Queen Mediocretia of Suburbia

Putting the TMI in absentminded

Month: December 2023

  • Weekly Paint Progress: 12/21/2023

    This week the mandolin went from this: … to this. Lord that yellow shadow is an ugly color. And how is the vase still wonky?

  • Cat Tone

    I have read that grown cats don’t meow to other cats. They mostly only meow at humans. Because cats are manipulative, and want food, and glaring isn’t as effective as meowing. I mention this because the other day, Gary and I were bickering, and the cat said, “MEOW meow MEOW, meowmeow.” Perfect imitation of the…

  • UPDATED: What’s up with this?

    Well, this was a surprise. My humble (but beloved) blog views spiked a few days ago. From page views under 40 (each, as I say, treasured) to over 10k on a day I was writing about lip reading. Other metrics (Google Analytics, Feedblitz) don’t back this up. I’ve alerted Typepad that something must be wrong…

  • Allergy Skin Test

    So, after I passed the blood test to see if I was allergic to penicillin, I had to prepare for skin tests. I had to buy one capsule each of the penicillin-derivatives Amoxicillin and Keeflex, plus one from a different family, Cefdinir. I brought them to the doctor’s office. I took the morning off. I…

  • TWIL: Strep

    Strep throat is coursing through the ranks at TeddyJ. Co-workers have it , their children have it, I don’t have it, because I’ve never had it. This week I learned these things about strep. The most recent strain of Covid feels like strep throat. Doctors ready a Covid test when adult patients suspect strep. Strep…

  • Lip Reading

    The way my Zoom is set up at work, when I get on a call I can see the faces of the other participants but not hear the audio. Often, of late, the faces are animated. Annoyed. There’s clearly a spirited debate, then when they see I’m finally on audio, they shut up. They’ve been…

  • Rewriting the Novel: In a Corner

    My Plot and Structure book recommends you detail your plot on index cards, then shuffle the cards. Supposedly it makes you weave more surprises into your plot. I have inadvertently done this by chopping up my first half. Since I sent the oilman husband off one month early, this has happened: His mental illness is…

  • Weekly Paint Progress: 12/14/2023

    This week the mandolin went from this: … to this.

  • Goldie Manipulation Day Two

    Well, I have created a monster. Now that I have employed the Intermittent Positive Reinforcement, Goldie is indeed trying to please me. All I want him to do is come in my room. However, because the reinforcement is random, he doesn’t quite know what he did right. He knows he got a treat when he…

  • Goldie Manipulation

    Goldie the cat really loves to do death-defying leaps from the middle of the long ledge over the basement stairs to the shorter higher perpendicular ledge above it. It alarms Gary. Gary Method Gary has two methods he uses to discourage the cat. A. Blocking the high ledge with unattractive cardboard boxes. B. Pleading with…