after the money's gone

Jul. 17th, 2025 08:45 pm
musesfool: tasty cosmopolitans (we'll laugh and we'll toast to nothing)
[personal profile] musesfool
I made this fancy lemonade with what I learned from [personal profile] minoanmiss's tags is called oleo saccharum, which is sugar syrup made with the oils in the citrus peels. I had 8 lemons, and some leftover frozen strawberries and blueberries, so I let the berries defrost in the fridge overnight and then this morning I did all the juicing and the dicing and then let it sit for several hours (5, I think?) before straining the syrup and adding the juice etc. It's very good, though I need to try it with lemons only, I think, and maybe less sugar. Because I do like my lemonade on the tarter side.

Anyway! I dug out my potato masher and my citrus reamer with carafe for this, so it was nice to be able to use them. I do kind of wish I had a food mill but I've never been able to justify the expense to myself - I used a large fine mesh strainer and it worked fine.

In other news, I watched the most recent season of GBBO and I LOVED EVERYONE IN THE TENT, but especially Dylan! Nelly! Gill! and Georgie! spoilers, I guess ) And Allison is so great. I hope she sticks with the show for a long time.

*

New month, new book post!

Jul. 17th, 2025 01:06 pm
glitteryv: (Default)
[personal profile] glitteryv
Re-reads. HUH

* Towards Zero by Agatha Christie (Classic mystery) - A group of ppl gather at Gulf's Point, home of Lady Tressilian. Among the guests is famous tennis pro Neville Strange, Kay Strange (his second wife), Audrey Strange (his first wife), and a handful of other folks. There's a palpable tension that keeps climbing once murders begin to occur...

I first read this book when I was in 6th or 7th grade. After hearing that the BBC was gonna drop a new adaptation (and having watched another version), I decided to pick this novel up to refresh my memory. Even though it's the 5th in the Superintendent Battle series, I first read this book as a standalone and that's how I approached it this time around.

FWIW, I was disappointed with the story this second time. It had a good build-up, great atmosphere, etc. However, the whole plot kinda dissolves in the last two chapters. There are sudden coincidences that help solve the crimes and reveal the murderers identity. But everything was so convenient that I almost felt secondhand embarrassment. I gave this book a 2 out of 5.


I DNF'd

* Making It Fierce by Ian O. Lewis and Luke Jameson (M/M romance) - Elijah was a marine for 14 yrs until an accident led to him getting discharged. Now he's making a living as an audiobook narrator and voice actor. Lucas is a radio DJ and audio producer. They meet when Elijah rents studio time to record a v. important (for his career) audiobook.

The gist of the story is that both MCs want to love and be loved. For Elijah, that means meeting someone who doesn't mind he's got some physical injuries (including disfigurement) and also PTSD. Meanwhile, Lucas is tired of being everyone's one night stand.

Frankly, the writing was ATROCIOUS. Both MCs sounded exactly the same. And, for some weird-ass reason, the authors decided to dedicate entire pages to the het (really bad) romance that Elijah was recording. Awfulness all around. Thankfully, I'd borrowed this from my library cuz I'd have been pissed to have spent money on this. I gave this a 0.5 out of 5.


Had an awesome time at first (but it all went downhill from there)

* The Duke Who Didn't by Courtney Milan (Historical Romance) - Set in the late 1800s England, the story is abt Chloe trying to help her father set up a business for the upcoming village festival. She's got NO time for anyone's nonsense. Especially Jeremy.

Meanwhile, Jeremy is back in Chloe's life (after being away for years). He's DETERMINED to woo her and (hopefully) marry her. His only problem is figuring out how to tell her that he's the duke that everyone in Chloe's village seems to despise...

Funnily enough, I bought this book in 2020 (when it was published), started reading it, and stopped by chapter 3 for no reason I can think of. So I went back to the start and managed to read it all the way through.

FTR, the writing was AMAZING (as expected from a Courtney Milan book). I also really liked the relationship between Chloe and her father, the many perspectives on being part of a diaspora, and the description of all the yummy food Chloe's father cooked. Oh, and I loved how grumpy Chloe was; she had a fun personality and was someone v. easy to root for.

OTOH, however, it took me AGES (at least until the last two chapters?) to finally warm up to Jeremy. On top of that (and despite enjoying a lot abt the book), I'm still not fully convinced abt Chloe and Jeremy's romance? In part, I think it's because, once the romance part gets going, there's a v. strong screwball comedy vibe that comes to the foreground. Chloe's hyper-organized and serious vibes vs. Jeremy's carefree and chaotic good ones. I found it tiresome. YMMV.

The OTHER thing that lowered the rating for me is a
HUGE SPOILEROK, so Jeremy's ENTIRE CONFLICT is abt Chloe's v. likely negative reaction once she finds out he's the Duke. He's STRESSING THE FUCK OUT abt this from the second he shows up in the novel. HOWEVAH, by chapter 5 or 6, there are a couple of character who let him know they know he's the Duke. And, OFC, after "coming clean" to Chloe, it turns out that she's known he's Duke FOR YEARS. As a matter of fact, the GORRAM ENTIRE VILLAGE knows and collectively decided to just, you know, play along for funsies?


NGL, I HATED THIS SO MUCH!!! In part cuz I guess I was somewhat emotionally invested in the goings on. Other readers have loved this twist. IDEK, y'all. It is a pretty low-angst book and the intimate scenes were good too. My local library does have the next 2 books in the series, so I'm planning to get around those eventually. I gave this book a 2.1 out of 5


Had a good time

* You're Ours by D.C. Emmerson (M/M/M romance novella) - Tyler works as a comptroller in a nameless company. One night, he accepts a dinner invitation to Jackson (a fellow comptroller) and SKy (Jackson's husband)'s place. The mood turns hot and then all three tumble into bed...

NGL, I was ready to DNF this novella cuz I can be v. picky/techty when it comes to office romances. [NB: technically, Jackson is one level above Tyler, but that's handled mostly OK and then there's a good resolution that works for everyone w/o breaking up the triad. I'm just mentioning it in case anyone else gets as (potentially) squicked abt these kind of unequal work dynamics as I do.] But this is a v. low-angst book. Or, better said, the angsty part has some weight to it. I also liked that all three characters were ADULTS with real jobs and stresses.

There was a smidgen too many sex scenes (which were good). Also toward the end, the author seems to have run out of space cuz there was a lot of telling instead of showing. THAT SAID, the writing was good, I liked the fact that no one was freaked out abt one of the characters being a trans dude, there was no cheating, etc. I'm giving this one a 3 out of 5.


* The Silent Places by Skyla Dawn Cameron (Mystery/Thriller) - As the anniversary of her husband's disappearance draws near, Imogen is still trying to survive all of the gossip and side-eyes thrown at her in the village of Red Fox. Everyone says she's killed her husband (but she didn't). And now there's someone sniffing around her story and her husband's. Imogen is worried cuz there are things she really, really does not want to be uncovered...

This was my first time reading this author and I gotta say WOWZA! Excellent writing, fantastic tension, and the kind of ending I'm STILL thinking abt. I also liked seeing POC and queer characters. FWIW, IDK why I can't give it a top rating, but I still gave this novel a 4 out of 5 and I'm planning to read more from this author.


Current fic tally

There's been a bit of progress in some ways (have picked up 134 fics, DNF'd 70). BUT, a lot of the fics I've been reading are 60k+ so it's slow going. Still having a good time, tho!


As for my profic reading, hmmm. June went on pause cuz of BORAMONTH + OT7 reunion, 4 different online concerts I had to wake up at 3-4 a.m. for, and lots of random livestreams. It's not like things have settled down per se, but I find myself getting back onto reading a bit more than before.


Up next...

Was finally able to borrow The Thursday Murder Club after, like, 10 weeks on hold. Have also borrowed a hot Adriana Herrera novella, am re-reading something regarding movies, and there are a handful of other things I've got my eye on. Good times altogether.

The Friday Five for 18 July 2025

Jul. 17th, 2025 01:39 pm
anais_pf: (Default)
[personal profile] anais_pf posting in [community profile] thefridayfive
This week's questions were suggested by [livejournal.com profile] bindyree

5, 4, 3, 2, 1 . . .

5. Name five favorite movies.

4. Name four areas of interest you became interested in after you were done with your formal education.

3. Name three things you would change about this world.

2. Name two of your favorite childhood toys.

1. Name one person you could be handcuffed to for a full day.

Copy and paste to your own journal, then reply to this post with a link to your answers. If your journal is private or friends-only, you can post your full answers in the comments below.
[personal profile] musesfool
They gave me a 3 pm - 7 pm delivery window for the dishwasher today, which meant waiting around and stewing in my anxiety until they showed up around 3:30. The whole process - removing the old dishwasher and setting up the new one - took about an hour. Now it's running through whatever the initial cycle the installation guys set it to, and then I should be able to use it. It did cost me an extra $125 to get the electrical connection set up, since the old one was hardwired and the new one required a plug, plus I gave both guys a $20 on the way out, so overall it cost almost $1800 for everything, which is more than my stove and fridge cost put together, iirc. It's the most expensive birthday present I've gotten myself since 2016, when I replaced my laptop, but totally necessary. And it is very snazzy looking! (it's the Bosch 300 series 18" dishwasher in stainless steel.)

Anyway, that has been my birthday! I put all thoughts of cooking on hold until tomorrow, when I might make pulled pork (or I might not) and some kind of fancy dessert (I am thinking about this coffee icebox cake but without a stabilizer in the whipped cream I don't know how it could hold its shape if you turn it out of the loaf pan; on the other hand, I'm not taking it anywhere so I can just scoop it out without removing it, so I guess that's not really an issue), but we'll see how I feel tomorrow - it will be cool to not have to wash up by hand afterwards!

Sunday at Dom's was lovely - Baby Miss L was a mermaid in the pool (she kept exclaiming, "Mermaid!" and kicking ferociously - she hasn't had swimming lessons yet but she seems like a natural at this point) - and once she warmed up after her nap she was her usual delightful self. She enjoyed the books I brought her, especially "Be Brave Like Batman" (to go with the Batman and Robin t-shirts), and she wore her Superman dress, so we are covering all superhero bases.

I made the KAF fudge brownies again to take with me, since I was assured that they'd loved them last time, and this time I got to taste them and they were good! Slightly overbaked, but still chocolatey.

Then yesterday on my ride home, the driver took Jericho Turnpike all the way to the Cross Island, which made the trip longer, but did avoid traffic and construction, so I guess the extra 10-15 minutes was worth it.

And I still have 6 more days off before I have to go back to work!

*

(no subject)

Jul. 14th, 2025 08:09 pm
neekabe: Bucky from FatWS smiling (Default)
[personal profile] neekabe
I thought I had a piece of popcorn lodged beside my front tooth since I saw Superman. It was annoying, and not responding to floss (slipping up beside it), but I could feel it move when I poked just right with my tongue. Went at it with a toothpick today and it turned out it was a filling falling out of my tooth.

So have an appointment on Thursday morning. Not looking forward to it. I remember when this one went in and it involved terrible needle placement requirements. but maybe they won't need numbing? Hopeful, but unlikely.

get down, get down

Jul. 12th, 2025 09:52 pm
musesfool: iconic supergirl (up up and away)
[personal profile] musesfool
As I may have mentioned, Baby Miss L loves potatoes, so when I saw a t-shirt on Etsy that said, "Potatoes gonna potate!" around a picture of a potato, I thought, I have to get it for her! Unfortunately, it was only available in neon green, which I did not like the look of. Luckily, many other vendors were also selling t-shirts with pictures of friendly potatoes on them, so I got her this one that says, "Tater tot!"

This morning, I received a series of glamour shots and a video of Baby Miss L thoroughly excited about wearing the t-shirt. It was so great!

I also learned that The Muppets covering Jungle Boogie is one of her current favorite videos. AMAZING!

On all counts, her vibes are immaculate.

Tomorrow, I'm going to a birthday bbq at my brother's, and I'm bringing her the Batman and Robin t-shirts, plus some toddler books about Batman and the Justice League. Hopefully she enjoys them almost as much! (I also recently sent her a Captain America t-shirt, which I believe she wore for the 4th, and I also got pics of her in the Superman dress, with her arms up like she was flying. 😍😍😍)

In other news, I found this review of the new Superman movie really moving. Will I venture out to a theater to see it? Probably not, but I will be very excited to watch it when it makes its way onto HBO in a few months.

*

the read on the speed-meter says

Jul. 11th, 2025 03:20 pm
musesfool: (easy like sunday morning)
[personal profile] musesfool
Two guys came and measured the space for my new dishwasher and it will apparently fit, but there are as always several - okay, 2 - unexpected wrinkles: 1. the current machine is hardwired into the electric, but the new dishwasher needs a plug, so the installers are going to have to build an outlet? These 2 guys didn't seem to think it was a big deal but it is another $75, which at this point is whatever, fine. Secondly, they were concerned that the installation might damage the drain pipe under my sink, and I was like, can we wrap it in something to protect it from being dinged? and they were like, "Eh, maybe, but if it breaks you're responsible for fixing it." Which, thanks. I suppose I can get under there and wrap a towel around it if necessary.

So we'll see how this goes on Tuesday. Keep your fingers crossed that it doesn't completely wreck my kitchen!

Speaking of wrecking my kitchen, my current HGTV viewing is "Help! I wrecked my house!" which I'm enjoying, but oh my god, the sheer hubris of some of these mediocre white men, who think they can demo a kitchen or a bathroom down to the studs and then figure out how to put in a new one, and then have to call Jasmine because of course they can't. I don't understand these people, tbh. There is nothing wrong with asking a trained professional to come in and do that kind of work, especially if you're not particularly handy. (And even you are handy in the "can change a washer in the faucet" variety, what makes you think you can install a shower from the ground up??? WTF?) On the other hand, I am really sympathetic to the folks who did hire a contractor who turned out to be shady and didn't do the work properly and stiffed them of their money to boot!

In other news, I am now on vacation and very excited about it! Except shit, I forgot to set up my out of office message. I will have to log back in and do that.

*

The Friday Five for 11 July 2025

Jul. 11th, 2025 12:59 am
anais_pf: (Default)
[personal profile] anais_pf posting in [community profile] thefridayfive
This week's questions were suggested by [livejournal.com profile] silent_r_infork

1. What was the most sick that you've ever been?

2. What disease are you afraid of getting?

3. Are you a big baby when it comes to taking medicine/shots for your illnesses?

4. Is going to the doctor really THAT bad?

5. Would you have the flu twice a month if you were paid $1,000 for having it?

Copy and paste to your own journal, then reply to this post with a link to your answers. If your journal is private or friends-only, you can post your full answers in the comments below.

If you'd like to suggest questions for a future Friday Five, then do so on DreamWidth or LiveJournal. Old sets that were used have been deleted, so we encourage you to suggest some more!

you're so close but still a world away

Jul. 9th, 2025 10:24 pm
musesfool: Olivia Dunham, PI (there are blondes and blondes)
[personal profile] musesfool
It's no meeting week at work, which is the best week! And then I'm on PTO next week. I carefully portioned out my to-do list so that I have one main thing to do every day (on top of whatever comes up each day) and it's so satisfying to mostly just cross things off it and not have to go to any meetings (which always add things to my list).

Yesterday, it was so quiet that I was able to read a whole book! Just sitting at my desk and answering email occasionally! So, Wednesday reading!

What I've just finished
Stone and Sky by Ben Aaronovitch, the very latest Rivers of London book. And when I say, "very latest" I mean it was released yesterday. I enjoyed it! spoilers )

What I'm reading next
Idk, I'll keep opening books in my library until I find one that holds my interest, I guess.

*

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