That's Gneiss! #131 ~ Two BIG things (one good, one horrific)
Also: pretty flowers and something for the data nerds in the crowd
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Hello friends!
I’ve got a mish-mash of things here for you today. The first is a big announcement.
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
I’ve lost my mind and started another newsletter! I don’t want this one to turn into a weekly gripe-fest about the neighbors, who remarkably did not drive anywhere yesterday. Don’t worry - they’re up to their mobile antics again today. I do want to keep That’s Gneiss! true to my original goal of creating something that provides a distraction for a few minutes every week, so I’m pleased to introduce…
21st Century Plague Diaries - pandemic ponderings with a side of snark
If you’re inclined to read my rants and ramblings about life during this strange time please sign up. No rules over there - no set schedule for posts, and I might swear. Total anarchy. Don’t worry - I won’t spam your inbox, but posts will likely come every two or three days. Fun times ahead! I have A LOT to say… and it looks like this pandemic thing is going to go on for a while.
The big news of the week of course is the discovery of Asian Giant Hornets in North America.
Yikes - that sounds awful.
In December 2019, the state department received and verified four reports of Asian giant hornets near Blaine and Bellingham. They were the first sightings of the hornets in Washington state and the U.S.
GEEEZ! Are you serious?!! Right here in Washington state?! Can we not catch a break up here? First recorded COVID-19 case - right here.
Now this. I am NEVER leaving the house again.
How do you identify one of these “murder hornets?” To begin with - they are really bloody huge!!!
“This is our window to keep it from establishing,” Chris Looney, a Washington State entomologist, said of the two-inch Asian giant hornet. He displayed a dead hornet on his jacket.Credit...Ruth Fremson/The New York Times
I’m glad to know that scientists are working to find them and eradicate them, as they can decimate beehives in just a few hours. Their sting is also incredibly painful (so I’ve read) and can be fatal to humans. I know you’ll want to read the entire article in the New York Times and share my horror.
A dead Asian giant hornet.Credit...Ruth Fremson/The New York Times
I do like how they clarify in both captions that those hornets are dead. DEAD. Because no rational person would hold one in their hand or smile at one on their jacket. Even Godzilla is having none of it.
When I saw the NYT article I immediately thought of the Oatmeal comic where he encountered giant hornets during a run in Japan. No thank you!
It gets worse folks - this is a real product! I was waiting for a nice music video to start on YouTube this morning and was subjected to an advertisement for this product. Normally I skip the adverts as soon as the allotted time passes, but this time I was transfixed. At first I thought it was a joke, with the demonstration and testimonials.
It was not a joke. The video below is not the same advertisement I saw, but you will more than get the gist of my horror. Maybe if you’re lucky you’ll happen upon the advertisement when you’re waiting for a nice music video to start.
The Jawzersize
All I can think is choking hazard. That’s not totally true - I’m thinking a few other things, but I’ll keep them to myself today.
Enough horror for one day. Only good stuff from here on out. I found a source of old catalog cards, and got my order of 100 the other day. I have a plan to use them in my artistic endeavors. They’re from a school library, a nice mix of fiction and non-fiction.
Substack now allows us to resize our photos, which is great! No longer does every photo have to be the same large size. To end things today, I’d like to share some pretty flowers from our garden.
Pretty Columbines!
Lots of Pansies! Even the dandelions look cheery.
Early stage Snowball Bush. The flowers will turn white soon. The previous renters pruned the heck out of it, so last year it send out a lot of new shoots. This year it’s covered in flowers!
That’s about enough for me today. The sun is attempting to shine and I may attempt to get outside and pull a few weeds.
Oh - skip that. Those are some really dark clouds coming in. Maybe some art or reading instead!
Until next week my friends - stay well and healthy!
~Anne
Tidbits
Are you a movie watcher? Check out Letterboxd - sort of a Goodreads for film
Do you love oceans, and like to read about them? Check out the new “Ocean Channel” from Nautilus - science, conservation and culture
Coronavirus data sites good for different angles:
NPR Coronavirus Map and Graphics - state by state comparisons that show “the curve.” Very few states are even close to flattening… and they aren’t the ones that are reopening.
The Guardian Coronavirus Map of the U.S. - leaderboard style. WA state is holding at #18. The state to watch? Georgia, while at #12 could be making a push ahead of Connecticut and Louisiana soon.
Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Dashboard - BIG RED DOTS, global leaderboard. The U.S. is TROUNCING everyone.
Financial Times tracker - general death tolls and mortality rates (all causes) for countries, compared to historical averages. Too bad we don’t have enough testing to get the true rates of COVID-19…
Making: I am so close to finishing the gift! I’ve also been in the mood to do more creative stuff, and that’s felt great. I played around with the watercolors that came in my latest Sketchbox, and they are really nice! The colors are beautiful and blend together nicely. I may have ordered a handful more of those little pans, along with some gouache which Michael says will change my life.
Recently eaten: why yes, I did dip white cheddar Cheez-its in blue cheese dressing leftover after we ate hot wings. Also, Michael made the most beautiful quiche ever.
Reading: I’m enjoying being back in a reading mood too! Working on Murderbot, and also an old book about rubber stamps and mail art called Rubber Soul: Rubber Stamps and Correspondence Art. It’s fun, but there’s some VERY dated stuff since it was published in 1996. Kind of humorous.
Videos of the Week
Any of you working from home have now probably experienced more Zoom meetings than you want to count. This is a very accurate depiction of many Zoom styles. He forgot one - The One Who Sits Really Far Away.
Just because.
Two-thousand Two-zero party over OOOPs out of time… tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1999!
(because 2019 kind of sucked and doesn’t fit the lyrics well)
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.
If you had unlimited resources, what frivolous thing would you collect? Not books. It has to be frivolous!
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Last week I asked if you could live in the setting of any book or movie (without necessarily being involved in the storyline), which would you pick?
First, I thought “The Milagro Beanfield War.” My wife’s family grew up near Taos, only its even smaller today than what John Nichols portrayed of late 60s northern New Mexico. I loved that book when I read it in college.
Then I thought of “The Art of Racing in the Rain.” Lately we’ve been living with Quattro’s advancing years. Three weeks ago, we thought he’d had a stroke. He couldn’t walk or stand. Finally got him to the vet and learned about “old dog syndrome.” Symptoms are much like a stroke but with some recovery. His balance is still iffy so he can’t shake his head, and he’s pretty deaf and doesn’t see well anymore either. But he still loves to go for rides. Like Enzo. There’s so much of him I see through Enzo’s story. I’m glad we have him a little longer.
The Simpsons or DUNE. Or something in between.
Just rewatched one of my favorites from Agnès Varda, Cléo de 5 à 7, and seeing a busy 1960s Paris made me ache for normal city life. I must admit that it made me feel a little strange, seeing all the people jammed in...which perhaps indicates that I'm settling nicely into my new life.
If I could live in any setting in a book or movie I would be torn. I loved the description of the opening in the second half of Seveneves by Neal Stephenson where the main character puts on this incredible suit and is able to fly around in the beautiful lush landscape that recovered Earth is now experiencing. It was so hopeful this future image where technology and the natural world finally merge. But I also love the 1940s. It all began when I first watched the series Foyle's War. They simultaneously gave depth to the difficulty of the time, and made it magical and nostalgic. The movie Sophie Scholl: The Final Days is similar in set production and costuming of Sophie and her family. The styles, the simple but practical clothing, the houses, many of which still didn't have electricity. How simple! No cords! House got cold? You wore an extra sweater or two and corduroy pants. You ate what you bought fresh that day - no fridge or icebox necessarily, and you ate dry goods and canned goods and used bar soap. And most importantly, no plastics! Ugh all the plastics! I definitely wouldn't mind going back to a time before or after plastics.
I would love to live within any of Ann Cleeves’ Shetland mysteries. Her writing is so descriptive that I can almost believe I’ve been to Up Helly Aa, but I want to feel the scorching heat from the burning Viking ship and go from house party to house party in real life.
Welcome to Shetland!
Current Temperature: 57.6 F (14.2 C)
Current Humidity: 51%
Wind (max gust): 11.4 mph
Precipitation: 0.00 in
China doesn't give very good gifts! And when this Covid-19 is over, we'll all be Mrs. Kravitz by then (the ultimate curtain-twitcher!)