…it would be wonderful, now that it is fixed, if it calmed his opera-on-the-stairs routine, but we have small hope. The good news is, he is otherwise in good shape.
Sympathies for those of you in heat-stress. We’ve been cool up here, but I have the feeling nature will find a way to let us have our share.
Working along on the gardening—my share—while Jane does her work on Alliance. Then we switch again.
Poor kitty. Dental trouble is no fun no matter what sort of mammal you are.
I don’t know, with a name like Tanner, wouldn’t bluegrass or country-and-western be more of his thing? A cowboy yodel? 😀
The name Tanner makes me think of a tanned, active kid more than a cat. Lucky kid. And adult nostalgia is a funny thing. The idealized image isn’t very close to what most of the boys I knew as a kid looked like. They were mostly ordinary, with a few who were in better shape or more handsome. Ah, and those guys are all over the hill now, and I am not ready to be called “middle-aged.” Oh well, life is like that.
Goober, without someone stealing his food bowl out from under his silly, non-assertive nose, has become surprisingly more demanding about getting moist food more often, and is still in a more picky, “I don’t like that flavor, I’ll just let it sit all day” phase. (I stopped ordering all but the box with the variety he does like, at least for now, and am gradually sneaking in the remaining cans to use them up.) He also wants more treats (Feline Greenies.) He’s not eating as much dry food, but still will. — As far as I can tell, there is not a dental or digestive issue going on. He has always been the ultra-long-and-lean build of cat with natural appetite control. He’s getting to be a very senior kitty. So I am trying to watch carefully. — But so far, I think this is just, “Ooh, I can get the human to do this for me and nobody else is here to steal my noms! I’ve got it made!” Heh. He’s non-assertive, but that doesn’t rule out passive-aggressive, or cleverly sneaky. Or a certain feline sense of humor along with his goofy/klutzy tendency, still present. But mostly, he’s a sweet, gentlemanly fellow who seems not to understand why anyone, certainly any cat, wouldn’t want to be his friend. He’ll hide if he thinks he needs to, but living here, he’s become more blasé about human noise and activity.
Good news on the gardening and writing fronts. Glad you’re making such progress! (More Alliance, please, please.) (I could put in a begging-and-pleading for more Chanur / Compact too, just because. But then, I’d be in favor of more of just about any prior books, or something new.)
The story-idea I have had is being stubborn, and I’ve deleted the few pages of another draft, but the world-building is still good. Maybe another pass at it tonight will yield better results. I may try a different opening gambit, as even though I like the one I had in mind, the two attempted passes at it just weren’t quite doing it for me, as though I was missing something. — But I’m also taking the advice of salads here and going for a more lighthearted, maybe comedy-sprinkled approach. Real life world news is too gritty-dystopian and crazy-making than one could want. While I like a good amount of realism in what I read, which could explain some of the books and writers I like; on the other hand, I am newbie enough not to be sure how to mix tones and events / character traits / backgrounds, in such a way as to avoid getting too much into adult or darker themes that I don’t think fit this story. (And good grief, that is the most convoluted, dense little paragraph I’ve written in some time. Maybe. Others may differ with me on that point, haha.)
Gonna give this another pass tonight and see how it goes. But now I’m irritated that it hasn’t suited me yet, and determined somehow to get the thing started and keep going, and edit and revise later. — I still have too little mapped out in story points. I am such a noob. :-/
The copy of The 26 Letters, by Oscar Ogg, arrived the other day. Surprise! I ordered a paperback, cheap, used, in good condition. What I received is a nice hardbound copy which appears to be in good shape. I am going to recheck the price I paid. Thing is, the asking price for an HB copy was in the collectible, no-I-can’t-justify-paying-that-much territory, while the PB price was, my-gosh-that’s-cheap-these-days range. I think I have gotten a real bargain and the used book seller ate the difference, or was also surprised.
It has been untold years since I last reread that book. When I was a kid/teen, I checked it out of my local library several times, along with other books in that section. I remember it being a really neat book. — And I hope the old library branch still has its copy, being checked out by other kids and adults, fascinated with the origins of writing / alphabets.
Maybe it’s a good thing he isn’t in proximity to Junior; they’d be trying for 2 part feline harmony, and all the humans around would be looking for pillows to hide their heads under!
I just curse at them in Cat, and that seems to settle matters.
@BCS You might like this.
https://www.ted.com/talks/douglas_thomas_how_a_typeface_helped_launch_apollo/up-next
@Paul, that was excellent, thank you. Not only did that video essay tie quite a lot together, but it showed some very good examples of typography and graphic design in use. Futura is a design classic (although I wish they had a double-decker lowercase a for the default). (And I like Avenir, by Adrian Frutiger, quite a lot.) — The 20th century saw a an explosion of design creativity even before computers like the Mac came in and revolutionized how it was done. The majority of the type we use comes from the 20th century in original designs or in revivals and interpretations of earlier work, from the earliest type right through the start of the 1900’s. — And I grew up in the period right before computers came in, and learned things mostly on the Mac and partly by hand, design-wise.
Thanks also for the reminder of the Apollo Moon Landing. Heh, I was 3, in footie pajamas, staying up late so we could all watch it on the great big late-60’s / early-70’s era family color TV. (I later learned that thing had real vacuum tubes. It’s a wonder of engineering that it didn’t need repairs more often.)
Type design is this very strange mix of art and geometry and human perception, both a technical thing and a design / artistic thing. It’s a niche of a niche in the design community.
I was given a better idea of how big and how small and how interconnected that is, when I ran across a podcast episode while looking for something else this week. The podcast is ia series on the Python programming language, and thee episode was an interview with Just van Rossum, a type designer and the brother of Guido Van Rossum, who he says invented Python. They’re Dutch. In this, he gave background on several font editing programs and only a little about Python in these. It’s a bit techno-geeky, very much a niche thing, but people interested in programming and in graphic and typeface design might be interested.
If the link doesn’t get you there, it is: Talk Python to Me, Episode #47, Python in Typeface and Font Development. 2016-02-23.
https://talkpython.fm/episodes/rss
I haven’t looked into Python, but I may need to teach myself in order to use it, as from the sound of it, it’s vital and increasingly used in the font development community.
Dental issues are No Fun for any toothed creature. Glad Tanner is better now.
The white boy who used to live with me (half Siamese and half Godknows) used to sing “The Mighty Hunter Song” while parading in the hallway. Since he used to sing it mostly where I wasn’t, it took me years to figure out the identity of the vocalist. He also did a virtuoso rendition of the famous Lion Dance from “Shakkyuo,” the Kanze Noh play. We cohabited for almost 16 years. I lost him in 2015, and I still miss the little drama queen.
If Tanner is performing opera, it’s likely Klingon.
I suppose everyone has already seen the weird trailer for the new movie of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Cats? It’s created a bit of a stir. The consensus seems to be that it’s just WRONG. (I agree.)
I loved the 1999 film of the stage version, though: Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats
“The mystical divinity of unashamed felinity” 😃
I have to add a link to Elaine Paige singing the definitive version of Memory.
I liked that show so much I bought the video – I haven’t watched it in a decade at least, should try to see if it still works and if maybe I can get it onto DVD or digital.
From the trailer, the new version won’t be an improvement.
Cats was the first of three large modern musicals I saw live because our employee club organised a bus trip to Amsterdam to see them.
It made quite an impression, so when they organised another such trip to go see Phantom of the Opera I went too, and that was lovely too.
The last one I went to with my fellow musical-loving council employees was Joe, but the only thing that I remember being impressed by in that was the voice of Mathilde Santing who sang the angel.
I never listened to the modern pop stations on the radio so I didn’t know her, but she was already a well-known singer in the Netherlands. She mostly sang English covers at first, in a variety of genres, but more in Dutch (link for BCS, to read along – it’s the Dutch version of the song Inspiration from Joe) later on, and her voice is really lovely and versatile – after hearing her in Joe I bought most of her CDs, and she’s still one of the few (<20) modern 'pop'singers I've got in my CD collection.
Hope Tanner is ok (I dislike going to the dentist) but let’s not bury the good news in this post:
“Working along on the gardening—my share—while Jane does her work on Alliance. Then we switch again”
Yay for more Alliance (I dislike working in the yard but not as much as the dentist)
Looked normal to me. But then, so do hani.
Seriously, I saw it on Broadway. It was great. There was only one bad song in it. I loved the others. Unfortunately the song I detested was Memory, which was a letdown. My only gripe with the movie makeup is the ears are too small and too high, and the faces SHOULD have some width at the cheek. The bodies don’t bother me.
I think I’ve only ever seen Cats, the musical, in a segment on PBS during (and interrupted by) their annual funding drives. But that song as done by Elaine Page was incescapable on the local easy-listening station back when that production was touring. I loved it as a late high school / early college guy. It’s still fantastic.
I haven’t seen the new trailer / commercial. — Lately, there have been a lot of “odd” remakes / reimagining done, some OK, some awful, and some good. (I liked the Netflix reboot of Lost in Space.) — So I’ll look for the Cats trailer and, hmm, I’ll reserve judgment. 😉
I’ve seen photos online of various costuming for Cats and similar plays, elaborate airbrushing and really beautifully done, for cast members of all ages, male and female; and probably other plays with similar musical theatre live performance cat-themed costuming. Very impressive.
——
I fear it’s been so long since I played fetch / cat-ball with Goober that he showed no reaction, entirely unimpressed, this afternoon when I tossed a ball down the hallway. I’d realized how long it had been since I’d taken time and played ball with him, and had ordered new ones. — I will keep trying. He’ll likely warm up to the idea, once he sees he can get some interaction again. He needs activity and interaction and play, and the relief from boredom. He’ll be turning 13 at the end of October. I am glad he’s still doing so well.
He (and Smokey) fortunately do/did not go in for operatic caterwauling. But, ah, a couple of weekends ago, there was quite a soirée tryst between two of the strays that hang around the apartness, and, ah, if they were as successful as they sounded, there will be kittens in a few weeks. Ahem, they sounded very much like they were enjoying it. One could be a bit envious, honestly. Hahaha. — I’ve had no success in getting close to any one of the strays; there are at least three, one of which is either still half-grown kitten adolescent, or else very petite / dwarfed and thin. — Ah, one could ironically appreciate that they were enjoying their romantic interlude, even if the noise was, ah, quite involved. (Very, very pleased with themselves, hahah.)
I have to agree with GW. No, just no. I believe I’ll pass on that “new” version of “Cats.” Interesting trailer for Amazon’s “Carnival Row” and Netflix’s “The Witcher” also looks interesting, and terribly misogynistic.
I was also intrigued by that Carnival Row trailer.
Most / all the SF video series I’ve been watching are in between seasons with longer waits for the next one, so yay for something else to watch. Although this might give me time to rewatch or watch others I’ve been meaning to see.
Lucia de Clamormore must have been lonely; she found herself a pride-sister. Poor Jada has something wrong with her spine. She can’t move just the tip of her tail, but must move the whole thing at once. She can’t retract her claws. She is of a monstrous size, four or five times that of Lucia. She has truly awful body odor, and a terrible speech impediment. One would almost think she was a d… d… d…, nah, couldn’t possibly be. Could she?
Is Jada a new household member, or someone that Lucia has become acquainted with outside?
Jada was already here when Lucia decided to move in. For a while the had rather growly words, but they now will sleep together on purpose. Lucia takes fairly good care of Jada. She makes sure that Jada gets to eat second, and even summons her to the food bowl for that purpose.
A d-d-d..aaww…. — You mean those four-legs that bark? And woof and yap?
Whatever was Miss Lucia thinking? She must be exceedingly lonely to associate with a d-d-d…aaww…ghh…. Perhaps the hew-man wasn’t groveling enough and the barky-one would? My goodness me.
— There is no accounting for taste. Some fur-people do like dawgz. 😀
Well, as a hew-man, I am OK with this. While the other cats may look askance at Lucia, or with disdain, Lucia and Jada can be happily friends regardless. The cats do, however, seem to make occasional allowances for dawgz, and sometimes even for hew-monz.
(Goober likes the Tuscany Fancy Feast flavors and is boycotting the pâté set. One has no idea why. Also, that sentence sounds so veddy-veddy snooty, haha. — He is eating his dry food les often, but is still eating it, and likes the Feline Greenies treats perhaps more than he should. I don’t know why he’s on this kick, but he is.
That font draft that was Jenson-inspired is, hmm, not as much so as I’d thought at first, but I feel sort of committed to it now, and the Jenson idea will be in the works a bit later. I have all but the X, X, Y, s, x, and a and g in the basic alphabet, and need the numerals, and then need to fill out the remaining letters and symbols, but there’s been a good amount done. And, sigh, I’ve realized cap B, P, and R do not have the proper angle on their bowls. Must fix them. — I am still on about this, but have a new appreciation for all the fiddly bits that go with doing an old style serif face. Not sure still how far I can push the boldness before it clogs too much. Cooper Black, though, manages this so well that it’s still immensely popular, and so I may have more weights (someday) than I think. This is the 8th or 9th day with the draft.
I have the internet now at my home! (Via Hughes Net satellite which works better than I expected.) I retired 2 months ago and have been running like mad since.
I was able to spend time in Palm Desert and Joshua Tree, Idyllwild and to the Pacific Ocean near San Diego, Torre Pines National Park – so from the desert to the mountains to the sea. I have had a flood of visitors which is unusual and the last of my guests leave today. So this morning before everyone else was up and about I was able to reset my password and get caught up reading my favorite and only social website (Wave Without A Shore!)
I started my retirement reading Jane’s Net Walkers which I enjoyed very much, thank you, Jane. I now plan to read Emergence which I have also been saving.
With my many visitors my kitty has been overwhelmed, put-out and so very anxious but has thankfully survived and has not tried to reach the robin’s nest on my deck with 3 fledglings nearly ready to launch.
We have been extremely fortunate weather-wise with yesterday and I think today being the hottest we have had so we have been very fortunate. I am so happy to have the internet, I really missed you all!
Zinialin, welcome back, and it’s great you have a good internet connection to enjoy the web, and Wave Without A Shore, again. 🙂
I’m guessing my local Flame-Point boy is “living rough in the hood” these days. I saw him come right up into the foundation bed under the living room window last evening, working his way toward the dining room, so I moved over there for a better look. Then he saw me at the window, stared for a second and then scampered off past the other end of the house. Not very trusting. And not before I saw he needs a bath and maybe some feeding.
Tanner has been calmer and quieter since the dental work, and he’s now off the painkiller, so we think teeth may have been one of his issues.
This is good to hear.
If his teeth were paining him, I don’t doubt he was crabby. Glad this has been taken care of. Zorro is the Toothless Wonder, having some genetic flaw that caused her teeth to be substandard (loose and susceptible to rot) and need to mostly be removed. Once they were gone and no longer an issue, her eating resumed and resembles a black hole in its speed and intake.
eta: DH observes that she also sometimes has a digestive problem that makes her hork breakfast up again. One contemplates black holes spewing gamma rays, almost as toxic.
Mine lost one of her fangs at some point – I didn’t notice at the time – but it didn’t seem to bother her. (She never went in for hunting. The most she did was “point” the alligator lizard that had gotten into my apt.)
I miss having kitties so much, but I have to do without until the situation with my mom reaches its inevitable conclusion. She’s 95 this year, still active, alert, driving, but that could change in a heartbeat.