kirundo | Network

Reading *Strong Female Character* by Fern Brady.

The author is autistic, wasn't diagnosed until mid-20s and is writing about the struggles of growing-up, of being that 'evil child', that girl who didn't understand the unspoken rules. I'm also thinking of the overlap between pain and humour - a lot of the book is horrific, but I can see it as being incredibly funny when told out loud. Example - she's telling her father that she's being diagnosed as autistic and he just dismisses it outright, asks her what she's having for dinner.

Brady is a comedian (which she describes as perfect for autistics - it's a 100% scripted conversation, and if people give an unexpected response you're allowed to shout at them), and of course she uses her life for material.

But I'm finding it very difficult to read, and may not finish.

fflo

yourlibrarian in

tv_talk

Assortment of black and white speech bubbles

Welcome to the weekly roundup post! What are you watching this week? What are you excited about?

keplers_angels

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

gilda_elise

My name's Griz. My childhood wasn't like yours. I've never had friends, and in my whole life I've not met enough people to play a game of football.

My parents told me how crowded the world used to be, but we were never lonely on our remote island. We had each other, and our dogs.

Then the thief came.

There may be no law left except what you make of it. But if you steal my dog, you can at least expect me to come after you.

Because if we aren't loyal to the things we love, what's the point?

The book is a book inside a book. Griz, locked in some sort of prison, writes in a journal how it all came to be, how he ended up where he is. It starts with the theft of his dog, Jess. Griz rushes after the thief, taking only his other dog, Jip; the story builds from there. Would I have rushed off, not waiting for any sort of help, to get my dog back? Probably. So it was easy to empathise with Griz.

It’s a book that really should be read nice and slow, so that you can pick up all the little nuances of Griz’s journey. Because what starts out as a very basic journey soon turns into an odyssey through a shattered landscape. There are very few people left, but there is still danger. And while much has been destroyed, much is still untouched.

I do have one tiny complaint; the author kept dropping hints as to what is going to happen (as Griz is writing this from the future.) I really wish he hadn’t done that. It made me want to skim through pages until I found out what happened, which sometimes wasn’t as bad as the reader is led to believe.

But this is a solid, well written novel. And though civilization has come to an end, there is still much to love, still reason for hope.

Mount TBR 2026 Book Links

Links are to more information regarding each book or author, not to the review.

1. The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky
2. Four Past Midnight by Stephen King
3. The Possession of Alba Díaz by Isabel Cañas
4. The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon/a>
5. Moon Flower by James P. Hogan
6. The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses Grant in War and Peace by H.W. Brands
7. Fires of Eden by Dan Simmons
8. Clytemnestra's Bind (House of Atreus 1) by Susan C Wilson
9. Glory and the Lightning. by Taylor Caldwell
10. Into the Ice: The Northwest Passage, the Polar Sun, and a 175-Year-Old Mystery by Mark Synnott
11. Regeneration (Regeneration 1) by Pat Barker
12. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
13. A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher

Recommended by severina2001

Goodreads 13

oursin

Goodness knows, some real weirdness is revealed in You Be the Judge in Guardian Saturday, but today's produces a theory which is entirely new to me -

You be the judge: should my housemate stop warming her mug and then pouring the water back into the kettle?

But apart from all this hoohah about HYGIENE, I am rather taken with New Health Scare Theory:

Boiling water twice is a no-no for me – there is a change in quality and taste. My life had a certain drabness to it – I now attribute that to consuming poor-quality water for so long without realising.

This could be a whole new thing, couldn't it? Once-boiled water for vitality!

I was going to ask are they living in a log cabin or what in Ohio if the kitchen is so freezingly cold in the mornings they have to warm up the mugs so that they do not immediately chill the coffee but I see the issue is poor insulation.

Maybe they should do something about insulation rather than bicker over 'secondhand water'?

chickenfeet

Anna Theodosakis' production deals effectively with the problematic libretto... https://operaramblings.blog/2026/03/14/is-it-all-uot-operas-the-rape-of-lucretia/

susandennis

I went to bed too early and could not get to sleep. I finally did but then at 11:30, the electricity came back. I got up to plug in shit and turn off shit and then, of course, I could not get back to sleep. Finally about 2, I got up and watched the last 45 mins of a show I started in the afternoon. And then, finally, I went back to sleep. Julio and Biggie wanted breakfast at 5:30 so they got it and then I went back to sleep again until 7:30. I think, in all, I got plenty enough sleep.

My emergency hardware did great. Especially, my portable power station. It's the size of a children's shoe box and has all manner of DC outlets and 2 AC outlets and a big light. It cost me about $70. (not available any more so no link but look for 'portable power station' - there are a bunch the size of children's shoe boxes that have the outlets.) I charged it up when I got it in the fall of 2024. When I turned it on yesterday, the charge was showing 100%. I plugged my bed into it and got the head raised for sleeping. I plugged my toothbrush/water pick in and got my teeth ready for sleeping. My plans this morning were to have plugged my coffee pot in to make a cup, plug my induction plate in for scrambled eggs and my toaster in for, well, toast. All easy and doable. And, doable, probably for several days with no more charge required.

Another thing I could plug in but maybe wouldn't would be my toilet. For more than a decade now my toilet has sported a bidet that includes a heated seat. My ass is just used to the finer things and sitting on a ice cube is just a shock it does not appreciate. But, I guess, sacrifices need to be made. It (my ass) loved that the juice was back on this morning.

Timber Ridge sent an email last night saying breakfast would be served at 10 this morning, lunch at 1 and dinner at 5. They totally know how to handle buffets for all of us now. AND the meals today would be complementary. I'm guessing they are still going with that plan. And then tomorrow back to normal.

Oh and unlike last time, when the wifi came roaring back as soon as the electricity did which was very nice to see.

In other news, the IRS sent me an email saying there was news so I checked Where's my Refund which is way easier than logging into my account and, sure enough, they are promising the refund in my account by Thursday.

Volleyball was called off for today yesterday afternoon. Elbow coffee starts at 10 but that's when they are serving breakfast downstairs so it may be a no go.

I may watch the Mariners game. I for sure will be putting all my emergency supplies away, hopefully for a long time.

nverland in

recipecommunity

Blackberry-Mint Julep
Servings: 4

Ingredients

½ cup packed fresh mint leaves
1 pint blackberries
6 tablespoons sugar
½ cup bourbon
4 cups small ice cubes
4 sprigs mint, for garnishing

Directions

Roughly chop mint leaves.

Puree the mint, blackberries, and sugar in a blender. Press through a fine sieve into a bowl; discard seeds.

Rinse blender, then return puree to blender, and add bourbon and small ice cubes; blend until smooth. Divide mixture among 4 glasses. Garnish each with a mint sprig.

oursin

Happy birthday,

gwynnega!

my_spikesgirl58_feed

https://spikesgirl58.livejournal.com/6796648.html

daily_otter_feed

Posted by Daily Otter

https://dailyotter.org/posts/2026/3/14/sea-otters-speedy-grooming

Via Frank Fujimoto

https://dailyotter.org/posts/2026/3/14/sea-otters-speedy-grooming

fred_mouse

two more radiation treatments to go; I have a mild (and itchy) looks-like-sunburn across a roughly 20cm square running between my armpit and my midline
the new medication I'm supposed to start after radiation is back ordered until May. need to contact the specialist on monday
general body health alternating between 'ow' and 'fatigue'. but i'm getting some stuff done
mental health - struggling with the cognitive load of daily treatments, but mostly chill.
i have started the 'reading fiction' part of my project; the first book has a lot of details, but suffers from coming out in 2020 and thus is showing a lot of the pre chatgpt tropes surrounding AI
I am knitting a tiny fifth doctor scarf as a decorative item; it is getting less and less accurate to the pattern as I go on. I only have six of the seven colours....
reading? not much.
walking home from the hospital? did it the once. have not had the spoons since. have been using the cane more than some.
other exercise? bugger all.
garden: birds have eaten all but one pomegranate. hoping that one gets ripe enough. guava are ~2cm across; I thought i had done a good job of thinning, but nope. have not thinned the feijoa even that much so argh.
family: youngest has a job contract signed; to be starting in ?august.

my_spikesgirl58_feed

https://spikesgirl58.livejournal.com/6796412.html

chez_jae

Current Mood: okay
Current Music: "Takin' it to the Streets" ~ The Doobie Brothers

ysabetwordsmith in

gardening

Seed Library Network
This website has extensive resources on seed libraries and seed swaps.

Seed the Map
Is your seed library open? Take 5 minutes to get on the Global Seed Library Map.

Explore the Map
Search the map to find other folks in similar regions or at the same type of location.

Seed Library Networks
Check out the other seed library networks & learn about how you can create your own.

Current Mood: busy

my_spikesgirl58_feed

https://spikesgirl58.livejournal.com/6796218.html

anais_pf posted to

thefridayfive

These questions were suggested by Dreamwidth user spiralsheep.

1. Have you ever watched illusion magic? Close-up, or in a stage show, or on television? Did it work for you?

2. Have you ever wished on a star, or a lucky cat, or a coin in a wishing well? Did it work in some way?

3. Have you ever cast a spell, made a love charm, or tried a curse? Did it work in some way?

4. Are there any other traditional superstitions you pay attention to? Do they work in some way?

5. Would you want major magical powers like in a fantasy story? Which powers, and how would you use them?

1. I find illusion magic mildly interesting, but it's not something I seek out.

2. Always and sometimes. When you are owned by black cats, luck follows you.

3. Nope. To quote a vampire friend of mine, "There's always a price with magic, always."

4. Not really, except for the ones that make sense, like not walking under a ladder when there's the possibility of having something fall on you.

5. Nope. I'm happy with the way I am.

https://spikesgirl58.livejournal.com/6796218.html

kronette

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

susandennis

We still have tons of snow. But, we are seriously lacking tons of electricity. Puget Sound Power shows most of Issaquah and the surrounding areas are all dead zones with no ETA. Timber Ridge is not dead thanks to a marvelous generator but... We have lights in the hallways and power outlets in the elbows and the elevators work and the kitchen works.

But... no power in our apartments. I, somehow, am getting a teensy bit of wifi and I have my phone which does pretty good for internet except in the bedroom.

They can rig the generator to include hot water if this goes on for days. Last time it was 6 days.

Also last time, as soon as the power went out, Bonny packed up and went to her daughters. But, now her daughter is not speaking to her. OOOOPS Jackie has worked for weeks on a gynormous Kiwanis charity dinner tonight which will now not happen. Jim Down the Hall leaves in the morning for a massive road trip with his son, IF they can get out of Issaquah! He told me tonight that he plans to hook up with my brother!

Jim across the hall is now pretty convinced, I hope, that it's more than just him and he didn't cause it.

I have my emergency lights, two lanterns, spare batteries and a big battery that takes nearly any kind of plug there is and I can recharge it in the elbow if need be. So... all is sure not terrible.

And... it's still snowing!

marycatelli in

books

Temples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt by Barbara Mertz

A light discussion of Egypt. Admittedly covering a long period of history and so necessarily cursory in place. Discusses what records we have and what archeological evidence we have found, and various Pharaohs and changes.

Profile

kirundo

March 2026

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Page Summary

hunningham - Reading but might not finish
fflo - Postcard of the Day
yourlibrarian in tv_talk - Speak Up Saturday
keplers_angels - there was something I wanted to tell you...
gilda_elise - A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher
oursin - Yet another thing to worry about???
chickenfeet - UoT Opera's production of The Rape of Lucretia
susandennis - Snow is melting and the lights are on
nverland in recipecommunity - Blackberry-Mint Julep
oursin - (no subject)
my_spikesgirl58_feed - Good morning
daily_otter_feed - Sea Otter's Speedy Grooming
fred_mouse - life lived in dot points
my_spikesgirl58_feed - Good night
chez_jae - Friday the 13th in March
ysabetwordsmith in gardening - Gardening
my_spikesgirl58_feed - The Friday Five for March 13: Magical Questions/Just Wondering
kronette - (no subject)
susandennis - 4:10 pm
marycatelli in books - Temples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt

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Page generated Mar. 14th, 2026 06:38 pm

I can, and I will.

Watch me...

Network

Reading but might not finish

Postcard of the Day

Speak Up Saturday

there was something I wanted to tell you...

A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher

Yet another thing to worry about???

UoT Opera's production of The Rape of Lucretia

Snow is melting and the lights are on

Blackberry-Mint Julep

(no subject)

Good morning

Sea Otter's Speedy Grooming

life lived in dot points

Good night

Friday the 13th in March

Gardening

The Friday Five for March 13: Magical Questions/Just Wondering

(no subject)

4:10 pm

Temples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt

Profile

March 2026

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