I’ve never been able to get it diagnosed, but the best guess to the rashes I often got in childhood is a sun allergy. It doesn’t happen much anymore, just a random small spot on my left hand or arm, and even that hasn’t happened in several years.

we all know I have no life, so:

I woke up this morning and chose violence buttondown.com/charliejane/...

Who knew that cleaning your stand fan for the first time in probably a year would result in strong, steady indoor breezes? (Will the lesson stick with me *this* time, after at least 20 years of having stand fans by my bed? Signs, uh, point to no.)

BROKE: Die Hard is a Christmas movie WOKE: Addams Family Values is a Thanksgiving movie BESPOKE:

I didn't come here to make friends. Unless, of course, you want to be my friend. In which case nothing would bring me greater joy

There are a ton of Agatha Christie things on sale today (only?) for Kindle/Kobo, and I’ve only read two before and have often thought maybe I should read more, but I don’t know where to start. Can we call this the @starinthetitle.bsky.social and @clairewillett.bsky.social signal for recs?

Wednesday is TRANSPHOBES ARE TRASH DAY! Congratulations to those who celebrate this wonderful day. Also, every other day is also Transphobes are Trash Day, I forgot to mention that.

I think I’ve just come up with a nice New Year’s Eve tradition for myself: rereading @keaneofficial.bsky.social ‘s Hopes and Fears book while listening to the music. I did it last New Year’s Eve, and I did it today. A straightforward way for me to end the year on a good note.

Well, I've finally done it. I put together my version of a library display classic -- the covers are all in a single color. In my case, green. As in, "These books are evergreen." I like the display more than I thought I would. (Not that anyone will check any of it out; they never do. But still.)

this is how you lose the dish war

In light of today's publishing news, I'd like to remind everyone, "do not feed me aioli, no matter what I say."

Timeline cleanser 🐈

Even if closed captioning doesn’t always get it right, sometimes it gives you a perfectly cromulent description. Impressive indeed, @dropout.tv

I heard someone say this, and I like the metaphor: Using AI to write a school paper is like bringing a forklift to the gym. The point is not that the weights need to be moved around.

This @keaneofficial.bsky.social thread is important, so I'm also reposting it with alt text.

Help @warchilduk.bsky.social continue to show up for children in Gaza at www.warchild.org.uk

Help @warchilduk.bsky.social continue to show up for children in Gaza at www.warchild.org.uk

In what normal, sensible sense of how words work is a single phone call, without leaving a message, considered "several attempts" to make contact?

This meeting could have been an email. This email could have been a passing fancy. This job could have been a lifetime of wonder.

Okay, this is a delightfully charming little tale.

When people talk about joy and positive art as something shallow, I always think back to this quote from Ursula Le Guin:

Nothing of consequence, but I made this gif years ago, and it's the first time I've seen it used by someone who isn't me. It's weirdly thrilling when that happens.

While defending the luddite argument in Discord, I stumbled into this IMO succinct explanation for opposing generative AI: At every step in the process, it impoverishes us.

Slightly diminish a band: Deuteronomy #niche

*whispers* Don't cry at the front desk, don't cry at the front desk, don't cry at the front desk...

And this is a real thing! Of all the things reading can be, first it has to be pleasurable, and entertaining, and engaging, otherwise people will do something else with their time. And pleasure reading begets more reading, or at least, more than the reading that feels like dutiful homework.

Things are pretty bad right now and we need to take joy wherever we can, so here is a picture of Jack McBrayer and Alexander Skarsgard holding hands and being best friends.

We have always made delightful little guys.

Many people that say things along the lines of "Libraries should do this thing" have never investigated to see if Libraries are in fact already doing that thing or if it is in fact possible for Libraries to do it! Libraries already do a lot of things in between doing the other things that they do!

I’d also note that Amazon links are very junky. We use Amazon for supplies at work and people will share links that are four or five lines long in an email. Just know that you can get rid of everything after the B0 number (ASIN) section of an Amazon product link you copy from your address bar.

Good (sorta old, sorta new) news of the day: my vocal cord paralysis is definitely (officially verified by the doctor) gone! I think it was definitely gone at least by the day after Father’s Day, but I know it’s not just, like, super-compensating or something but is instead moving like it should.

You guys, in trying to write a silly response to someone, I may have inadvertently written a halfway decent short bio?

You know, “Biblically accurate [thing]” is just a solid joke.

biblically accurate chicago

Biblically accurate cargo shorts

A small accomplishment for a too-hot day. My friend @cerianmusic.bsky.social is at Glastonbury this week, so she won't be streaming, giving *me* time to work on another lead sheet of one of her originals, an odd little hobby I've picked up.

Six years ago, barely an hour into the 23rd, I watched a video that led me on my wild and wonderful journey with all things @keaneofficial.bsky.social 💛 Happy (Nancy's) The Way I Feel Day. (The actual, official video I watched is hidden, but here's the same performance.) youtu.be/AHUd_CsPeP8?...

I love my city and I love my country even though they are built on deeply fucked up systems which badly need dismantling but they are full of good people who care about the right things and that’s not nothing I would rather be us than them

Okay, this made me smile *and* tear up a little. Too precious.

This is important, but part of me is flummoxed by the count. Breathe for 4? Perfect. No notes. Hold for 7? I’m sorry, where did you pull *7* from?! Who does anything in 7 (except the Doctor, of course)? Out for 8? Sense is returning, but my breath control is terrible; I don’t think I’ll make it.

Happy National Director's Day, @novemberday.bsky.social I hope you have a break soon.

This is quite beautiful, and I think I needed the reminder. Thanks, Chuck.

Ugh. Two artists I follow decided to make announcements today with white text on a peach colored background, and it's so hard to read that I just gave up. Yes, sure, it might be a nice color combination on its own, but it's a terrible one for sharing information -- it's nigh unreadable!

ah, every time an originalist is corrected on their bad history an angel gets its wings

I've found that I need a straw to (mostly) drink reliably these days, so I thought it would be good to have my own travel straws, just in case. Finding longer ones for single-serve bottles proved challenging. But finding this particular set, well, let's just say it makes things easy.