Yesterday I went to the first Orlando Pen Show. It was my first pen show, too, and I had a great time. I went with my friend The Artist, who is not into fountain pens but was happy to go with me. She lives in another state but was visiting Read more…
A few weeks ago I got the urge to binge recent episodes of The Pen Addict podcast. It had been several years since my last listen. When I got divorced in 2015, I sold off most of my fountain pen collection, and pretty much got out of both the hobby Read more…
I’m continuing to enjoy my delve into audiobooks with The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry by Jon Ronson. This was my first book by him. It was great, if a bit triggering for me. When I was a teenager I dated a man who told me, laughing, Read more…
I never had good luck with audiobooks. As someone who mostly reads nonfiction, I find that audiobook readers often have no idea how to handle it. It often sounds like the high school P.E. teacher trying to teach algebra — like they don’t know the material, and don’t really care Read more…
TW: discussion of make-believe self-harm. Back in 2002, I made friends with someone who played the live-action role-playing game (LARP) Vampire: The Masquerade. I was familiar with it, having attempted to play back in the late 90’s, but I never got to do much with my character. This time I Read more…
I don’t read many fiction books. I used to, but in the last decade or so I’ve had a harder time with mental world-building. I still read Rudy Rucker, though. He’s a physicist and computer scientist who did a lot of acid and it shows in his work. Rucker was Read more…
You can learn a lot about a society by its taboos. Surprisingly, Britain and her former colonies still have a lot of the same social mores as the English during the Elizabethan period. From the disgust at open-mouthed chewing, to many people’s horror at frank discussions of menstruation, there’s a Read more…
I am currently reading Life on the Edge: : The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology by Johnjoe McFadden and Jim Al-Khalili. It was recommended to me by an acquaintance who is a biologist, and it’s interesting reading. I had never heard of quantum biology before. I wasn’t aware that Read more…
I’ll be honest with you: I haven’t been reading any non-fiction lately. I’m sorry. I go through phases, you see, and as of late I’ve been reading novels. I’m going back to school full-time this month, so I don’t know how much free time I’ll have to read anything other Read more…
I originally wrote this up on the Facebook “Tarot Nerds” group, and someone wanted to share it elsewhere. Instead of joining other groups just to post it, I thought I’d put it here and expand it a little. Even if you’re not interested in tarot, it’s a very brief summary Read more…