That's Gneiss! #86 ~ A Mysterious Package
Summer arrived and just like clockwork the weather tanked. June gloom is upon us after some beautiful warm and sunny days. I thought we might escape it, but no. It was to be expected, I suppose… but I miss the sun already.
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Both Michael and I regularly order items online, so a package arriving in the mail or via some other delivery service isn’t unusual. Michael orders lots of little electronic bits for his pedal making. We try to avoid ordering directly from Amazon as much as possible, but often the sellers use Amazon for their distribution. I’ve spotted Amazon Prime delivery vans more often in the neighborhood, and a couple of Michael’s recent purchases have arrived that way. One day he watched the delivery person drop the envelope over the fence rather than walk it up to the door. I know they’re under some pressure to deliver items quickly, but that’s not cool - any person walking by could have scooped up the envelope and walked off if it sat for a while. Fortunately Michael saw it and grabbed it right away.
A couple of days later another package arrived, and this time the driver brought it to the door. It was addressed to Michael, and in an Amazon Prime envelope - but all of his orders were accounted for and there was no information on the envelope indicating who had shipped it. He opened the package and found the following single item:
That’s right folks, a package of Mickey Mouse baby wipes. That’s it. No clue as to where it came from, or why.
It’s a wonderful time to be alive!
I recently received an exciting package in the mail, but this was one I was expecting. The books with my photo on the cover arrived!
Oooh, look - there’s my name! I like the font they chose.
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Rowland spent several days after our camping trip in a moody funk. He’s taken to sleeping with his head on the bookshelf, perhaps trying to learn by osmosis. He goes through his blue moods now and then, and he’s a totally different dog. Not much playing, slow trudging walks (with me), and a generally grumbly attitude. It went on for a while, but when we arrived home from picking up our yearly chicken supply from Well Fed Farms on Thursday night he was his excitable self! I’m not sure what happened, but he snapped out of it. I think he gets blue after I’ve been home for more than the regular weekend, then have to return to work. Sorry fella! I wish I could stay home too.
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One last thing before I go. I recently came across this interesting collection of photos by Steve McPherson, who has been collecting plastic bits and bobs from UK beaches for 25 years. He organizes and photographs his finds, in often very aesthetically pleasing ways. Without close inspection, some look like bright mosaics and mandalas. A closer look shows the bits of plastic found on the beach. Some of my favorites are the Marine Plastic Collections, where he’s organized them by the type of item it is. Some are unsurprising, like tiddly winks, cocktail skewers, and army men. Then there are the plastic limbs (dolls, not humans!), fake nails (once attached to humans), and pieces of false teeth (humans again). Beautiful, but horrifying that so much plastic is floating around out there…
I’m looking forward to exploring more of McPherson’s work, like his Note Books…
All right then - I hope you have a great week!
Tidbits
Don’t forget to look up.
Linguistic spats, small and large.
Is blogging dead? No - Bring Out Your Blogs! I like this idea.
10 Journalism Brands Where You Find Real Facts Rather Than Alternative Facts - Forbes lists the top ten news publications that follow journalistic ethics and are consistently factual… subscribe and support one if you can!
Hooray for Boaty McBoatface! It’s nice to see Boaty rising above the the joking and making some great discoveries for science.
I love seeing the results of this project to restore tidal marshlands along the Snohomish River
Making: plans for more camping, and a shorter hotel trip around the Peninsula.
Reading: I finished Hippies in Our Midst (finally!) and Red, White & Royal Blue this week. On to less romantic things - The Paper Wasp (psychological thriller about a woman a little over-obsessed with her childhood friend), Awards for Good Boys: Tales of Dating, Double Standards, and Doom, The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America, and The Pugilist at Rest (short stories). The book about hippies was interesting until the author tried to get academic…
Recently eaten: we had dinner at Anthony’s Woodfire Grill down by the marina last night. No special occasion, just in the mood for something different. The food was excellent, and I had a very tasty pear martini. The people watching was even interesting. Some folks really dressed up, and others like us, a bit more casual. I watched a couple at a window seat - they were kind of dressed up, and looked to be out for a nice evening. SHE ALMOST NEVER STOPPED LOOKING AT HER PHONE. Even while she poked at her food. Good grief. We had a great time and really enjoyed the meal.
Video of the Week
This afternoon when I was walking Rowland we heard a party with live music going on. I don’t think it was quite like this party, but they sounded like they were having fun and the music wasn’t half bad!
Question of the Week
Answer if you wish, and I’ll share next week - anonymously of course. Just hit reply…
You can have an unlimited supply of one thing for the rest of your life, what is it?
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Last week I asked what’s on you summer reading list.
Here’s what’s on my summer reading list (so far):
A Better Man by Louise Penny - Penny is one of my favorite authors.
Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay - I love Barclay's barbed humor and intricate plots.
The Perfect Son by Lauren North - I’m reading this one based on the synopsis. I’ve never read this author before.
Goodbye Paris by Mike Bond - I’ve never read this author before either, so I’m giving this a whirl based on the synopsis.
Summer reading? I need time to read. I have so many things to do instead of read. I find some time to read things, but I don't have a list. I feel like next is Binti by Nnedi Okorafor. I have the whole trilogy and want to read it but I just don't make time for it.
The Beastie Boys Book by M. Diamond & A. Horowitz
(Keep starting! Must finish!)
Summer reading: Certainly Neal Stephenson's latest, Fall, or Dodge in Hell, and my friend Lauren Oakes' recently-published In Search of the Canary Tree about climate science in southeast Alaska. My wife recently read Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, and I think I need to as well. And I need at last to take care of my unread Jane Austen. I've kind of been saving my last two for ages, waiting for the right time, but I'm not getting any younger and have realized that I don't want to die unexpectedly without ever having read Mansfield Park. That's a start.
I have a few things on my TBR list, but which ones I’ll get to remains to be seen:
Hidden History of Napa Valley - Alexandria Brown (one of my long-time online friends!)
The Flatshare - Beth O’Leary
Fall, Or Dodge in Hell - Neal Stephenson
Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology - Leah Remini
The Lacuna - Barbara Kingsolver
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