That's Gneiss! #128 ~ Nothing but fun and games for all!
Also: a sporting competition between two labs and quarantine bingo!
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Hello friends!
Today is a day, different from other days but so much like every day that I find it hard to remember what any of the days are these days.
Since today is the same, yet different, I’m going to write about an hodge-lodge of things. Hey spell check! That’s HODGE-PODGE, not lodge. Sheesh. No griping and complaining about the neighbors (though I’m taking bets on whether they’ll have visitors for Easter dinner).
First up! Did you know you can find out what the Hubble telescope was looking at on your birthday? Just select your birthday (or any date) and you’ll see a photo taken on that day. No need to lie about your age either! Just enter the month and day. The picture for my birthday was boring and pixelated, so I tried Nolan’s instead.
MUCH BETTER.
This troupe of galaxies, known as Hickson Compact Group 87, is performing an intricate dance orchestrated by the mutual gravitational forces acting between them. The small spiral near the center could either be a member or an unrelated background object.
Since time has little meaning these days, and we’ve got plenty of it, maybe it’s time to start a new hobby. I’m not talking about tatting or Philately, although those are good options as well when one has a lot of time on their (recently washed) hands.
I’m talking something that requires complete dedication and patience. Friends, I am talking about GROWING YOUR OWN FURNITURE.
All you need is a spot to grow a few willows, some willows, and several years.
One can take this up for fun or eventual profit. That will really take A LOT of patience, and some other source of income for at least a decade if one wants to eat.
If you’re not up to the task yourself, you can spend a few minutes reading about the folks who are growing a forest of furniture in England. Furniture is now available for pre-order from their company, Full Grown. This will also require a good deal of patience on your part.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
Lamps are the ‘quickest’ with small ones taking 3-5 years and chandeliers 5-7 years.
Small and side tables grow in 6-8 years with larger dining tables growing in 10-12 years or your company conference table in 14-16 years.
Chairs can grow in 7-9 years depending on the species. Please Note: the photo is a prototype. Finished chairs will be ready for harvest when the branches are nearly twice as thick.
If you have enough patience to read the entire article about the furniture forest, you’ll also learn about Axel Erlandson, who grew what came to be called the Circus Trees. If you’re ever allowed to leave your house and travel again, you can see these trees at Gilroy Gardens in California.
Image source: Ripley’s Believe it or Not!
I don’t usually write about work, but have a tale to tell you all about what we’re doing now that we can’t provide brick and mortar services. We’ve got a number of teams working on all sorts of things - online storytimes, online book groups, helping people get retrained for new jobs - the list goes on. In my new role as Programming Coordinator I landed one one of the first teams. Our responsibility?
Online Pub Trivia!
Several libraries were already offering in-person trivia events, so this was chosen as one of the first new online events to develop. We had a short turnaround to get this off the ground, and in just two weeks we were ready to roll. Friday night we held the first ever Sno-Isle Libraries Online Pub Trivia event, and it was definitely a success.
When registration opened, all the spots filled up in less than three hours and we ended up with a wait list longer than the maximum number for the event! The demand for something fun to do on a Friday night is definitely there. We ended up with 38 people in the Zoom meeting at peak, but of course some of those “people” were pairs or more at one household.
My job for the evening as one of the co-hosts was Zoom-Bouncer. I am happy to say that nobody misbehaved and I did not have to use my bouncer powers! I also monitored the chat box for questions. There were some, but most people got on with the tech pretty well and there were few problems.
Of course, the ambience of a real pub is lost when this takes place in a Zoom meeting. A lot of the folks playing used their webcams, and I saw a few beers and glasses of wine. I could tell that some of the players were talking to teammates in other locations on their phones as they discussed the answers. Playing as a team requires some creative communication when you’re not sitting at the same table! All in all everyone had a great time, they were patient as we worked out some kinks with the scoring, and they’re looking forward to more.
Me? I’ll be bowing out and leaving the trivia-loving librarians to carry this on. I am so crap at trivia, they don’t want me around. Ha!
Last but not least in parade of fun and games is Quarantine Bingo! You can find an endless supply of quarantine bingo cards online if you google “quarantine bingo” and check out the images. There’s something for everyone! Some focus on working from home, some focus on beer, and others are full of - things that are “good” for you? Ugh. That’s not fun. We need to win points for feeling miserable AND good.
In my version, you get to make up your own squares as you go, and don’t even have to put them in a grid if you don’t want to (or can’t be bothered). Here’s some “boxes” I’ve been able to X out already!
Not step foot in any business for over a month
Comical grocery delivery mistake: we meant one baby bok choy, not ONE POUND!
Social distancing dream
Corona Cop has taken up residence in my head
Tallying the number of times the neighbor’s cars come and go each day (see above)
Afraid of all other humans (see above)
Drove car around to give the engine a workout and freaked out a little bit because everything is strange
Dog freaked out when I left to drive the car around because I haven’t left without him for nearly a month
Ordered a liquor delivery in the middle of writing this newsletter: why not, it’s a holiday!
Pile of delivered boxes sitting in the corner waiting for a couple of days to pass before we open them
Ordered masks on Etsy: Auntie Killjoy makes some great ones!
Wore masks sent by a dear friend from high school (see below)
Changed hair color (see below)
We’re all winners, aren’t we?
Of course we are.
What’s on your Quarantine Bingo card?
Well folks, I think that’s all I’ve got in me for today. I hope you’re all staying safe, staying home, staying entertained, and staying sane.
Tidbits
Time on your hands? Here are 50 novels over 500 pages long to keep you busy. I’ve already read eight of them!
The Believer Jr. - a semi-regular newsletter full of activities for children (and the parents who are caring for them at home) from the folks at The Believer.
Armchair travel via drone - 40 beautiful and fun images to enjoy
Every Bob Ross episode - distract yourself for days!
Making: that top-secret gift I can’t reveal
Recently eaten: Michael made something new - chicken piccata. It was scrumptious.
Reading: not much
Videos of the Week
Scottish sports commentator Andrew Cotter calls this tense moment between Olive and Mabel. Who will win the coveted “good dog?”
This clip reminded me of the time a skunk sniffed my shoe while camping in the middle of nowhere, southeast Arizona. Nolan was a tiny baby, sitting in his carseat on the picnic table. I stood VERY still as a skunk wandered through our campsite, stopping to inspect my foot. Its fluffy tail kept going up and down, up and down. Finally, it wandered off and I could breathe again…
Question of the Week
If you feel like answering the question, hit reply to this email. Answers will be shared in next week’s newsletter - anonymously. Don’t be shy! General public commenting is available too at the end of this post.
Animal videos! We love them, they make us laugh and forget all that other crap for a few minutes. Share the funniest you’ve enjoyed recently. Domesticated or wild - what have you got?
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Last week I asked for topic suggestions for future newsletters. Thanks to those that sent them in. And - it’s not too late! If you think of something quirky that you’d like me to write about in a future newsletter, send your idea along anytime.
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