Me: I should listen to some music that's new to me. Me, a few hours later: Okay, back to Poets of the Fall.

'Tis the season to avoid lunch traffic/people. I encountered not one, not two, but three Karens today while out. My quota is now met for the next 12 months given that I'm not working retail. (Retail has special Karen rules in my personal experience.)

If you can’t get the “got nothing in my brain” part of Swift’s “Shake It Off” out of your brain, then you have something in your brain.

I’ve had an extra busy life the past several months. Looking forward to slowing down for at least a little bit. Tomorrow may be blanket fort day to recover a bit.

I had a moment today where the wind gusted so strongly that it nearly ripped the trash out of my hands. What a freaky gust of wind that was!

Just FYI: Measles outbreak in northern South Carolina. My advice these days is to find a good epidemiologist to follow online to learn more about what’s actually happening regarding outbreaks and vaccinations.

I’ve worked in public libraries for 20 years, today was the first time we’ve had to tell someone they couldn’t bring their chainsaw in the library.

My brain is in hibernation mode due to the sheer amount of soul-sucking gray skies we’ve had here. Bit of sunlight now and again, but not nearly enough. Perhaps I need more baked goods.

This year (and the political cycle) has seen me singing Evita and Les Miserables A LOT. I’d rather go back to my Lion King, Chess, and Phantom of the Opera singing. Maybe with a dash of Aladdin.

My homage to @toddlockwoodart.bsky.social's cover for the Book of Challenges is the July image in the Limited Edition 50 Years in the Dungeon 2026 Wall Calendar. The only way to get the calendar is to pre-order it directly from me. Leave a comment or DM me to get the details.

A new bakery opened up near me. I will of course have to sample its wares.

Those who follow American politics may want to read the 2026 priorities of that infamous foundation. On their website. Nowhere near as many words as the 2025 one. But definitely worth knowing as we head into the midterms.

Truth. Don't let comparison ruin your opportunities for happiness. For my part, I'm pretty happy with where I am, and if I could maintain it, I'd be happy with that, too. whatever.scalzi.com/2025/11/28/p...

The chocolate mousse cupcake I just had from the cupcake shop near me has put me into a sugar coma. It was extremely good, which is why I continued to eat the whole thing.

I am pleased to announce that I'll be running a campaign for D&D in a Castle next October at Walworth Castle in the UK. It’s called Infernal Greetings and it's a nod to Guide to Hell, my AD&D 2E sourcebook from 1999. Sign ups are open now. dndinacastle.com/pages/dungeo...

are any of my followers in the DMV and perhaps able to take on two emergency cat fosters?

This is cool to know: neurosciencenews.com/neuroscience...

Hmmm...I have enough apples to also make a homemade apple pie. I guess I could pick up more crust tomorrow. Or make it from scratch. Plus I'd obv get some ice cream. Maybe a salted caramel flavor.

Every time a pop science article is like "50 million year old [creature] still [doing thing that creature does]", I like to imagine it's talking about the same individual creature for that entire span. Like one specific clam with a VERY well established daily routine.

While I certainly don't hope for it, I fear the news this weekend could feature "family poisoned by making AI 'recipe' they found on the internet" stories. 😬 Please, double-check that any new recipes are from a trusted source!

Note to anyone who has an eye doctor in a shopping center that also contains a grocery store: Do not make an appointment the week of Thanksgiving. Don't ask me how I know.

I have pumpkin pie makings. All is right in my little world.

Examples: Erasing student loan debt. Students living in poverty. Working two or three jobs just to get by. Being hit as a child. And so on.

As I give my cat a Churu tube snack and think upon advent calendars, I realized that I'd totally buy my cat a Churu advent calendar, where we open up a new treat every day, with each day being a different flavor.

Oh no. Jigsaw puzzle subscriptions exist. (And they never saw Miranda again.)

I love jigsaw puzzles. I love advent calendars. I don't love looking at advent puzzles online and having to play "Spot the AI-Generated Art." Found one where the stockings hung from the chimney with care looked like square blobs with random ribbons.

Bearing in mind that I'm one of those wacky people who'd be happy having my tax dollars provide healthcare to all: How Big Mad would the congresscritters who push for work stipulations on safety nets be if the same stipulations applied to the benefits that they receive after leaving Congress?

This happened a lot to magic swords with annoying personalities

This Bingo card I have is wild.

So, turning off smart features in Gmail undoes the few category tabs they had set up. Heh. Guess I'll set up some rules instead. Take that, feature I didn't want to use!

It is soul-sucking gray outside. So despite the walk in cold temps, my brain is like “hibernate now plz?”

May all the Veruca Salts in our lives go down the chute.

Charlotte - buy gift cards for Manolo’s bakery, which is having to close temporarily because 🧊 is terrorizing his customers. Voted best cake shop in USAToday - the gift cards might help keep him afloat until you can pick up your cake. #ncpol manolosbakery.com

Hey, weekenders! Just a reminder that the Feeding America bundle over on @drivethrurpg.com is offering over $500 of RPG product for a donation of just $25 to support food aid, including THREE Icons books: Assembled Edition, Adversaries, and Evil Rising!

Sometimes you dream about Maglubiyet, I guess.

This is so awesome!

I love mystery boxes. However, my budget does not, so I rarely go in for them. I do make exceptions for advent calendars, which are a kind of structured mystery box to me. I'm especially happy that places have been doing Halloween advent calendars.

My cat requires her emotional support phone to be in my lap before she'll sit in my lap. This phone has not been mine for over a year now.

As of this morning, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE. And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history. Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX

I’m apparently unable to stop watching Christmas baking competitions once I put one on.

Me, looking at my supplements: It’d be convenient to nom all these at once. Calcium: Bring it, Iron! Iron: Umm, no. I’d rather have quiet time with friendo Vitamin C in an empty tummy. Calcium: Coward! Food: Now, Calcium, don’t be like that. Besides, you like hanging out with me. Me: Argh.

With politics, I think you have to go into any negotiation with the idea that you are a player character asking for a wish from a DM who is demonically good at fulfilling wishes in the style of ye olde monkey’s paw.

“They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made.” ―F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

I never really wanted to live in the Gilded Age of anything. I vastly prefer everyone around me to be thriving and healthy.

We're at the time of year where the hawk at one of my fave parks has a heat lamp. (They bring it inside when it gets too cold.) Poor dear can't fly, so they take good care of it. And their owl continues to lurk in shadow when I visit.

Hey, I know the shut down is technically over but if you’ve got the time or money, please keep helping the food banks. It’s going to be really rough heading into Thanksgiving and Christmas after the double hit of SNAP recipients and Federal workers needing help. ❤️

Been a bit since I donated blood, so I did that today and did my first power red donation. The Nutter Butter reward I give myself after is still the best Nutter Butter ever.

Any gal who has gone trail hiking probably knows that feeling of “that dude is acting creepy—am I overreacting” at some point or another. If a dude is being creepy, listen to your gut and take as many precautions as you can while getting somewhere safer.

I'm loving my new oatmeal breakfast. Basically you prepare oatmeal with a bit less water and add pumpkin, cinnamon, brown sugar, cloves, and ginger. I'll split it into serving sizes and keep them in the fridge for a quick heat-up (minus the portion for that day, which is fresh from the pot).