The Raven's Roost

New Kindle Devices Will No Longer Show Up as External Drives - Amazon has removed the ability of users to sideload non-kindle ebooks onto their readers. Older devices can still be used this way but once my current device becomes unusable, I likely won't get another Kindle. Over half the stuff I have is e-pub.

This is what your 2004 home computer was going to look like in the 1950s which would be funny if it weren't a 2000's era photoshop. I'm just glad I never had to learn FORTRAN. What's the wheel for?

Carb Loading Time! Well, not for me, not yet. Not sure how I'm going to manage 2300+ calories a day of just carbs, but I'll figure it out. Though when I ran a half marathon distance last Sunday, I tried more frequent fueling and it seemed to work. I was going for every half hour, but my gut doesn't hate energy gels, so I could get away with every 20 minutes. For reference, the back of the packet suggests every 45 minutes. Every 20 minutes would allow me to take in about 300 calories of carbs each hour I'm running. Every 15 minutes might even work, I just know I would get very tired of the sticky, super-sweet mouthfuls. Plus that requires a lot of water, so a marathon would demand a potty stop.

Doctor appointment went well yesterday. He mentioned the liver specialist's office got back with him and suggested maybe my "elevated" liver numbers were NASH? Which seems ... not right? Bear in mind these elevated liver enzymes have never gotten into three-digit territory, and they can be well into the thousands. I do wish the specialist had said something to *me* but I also think they aren't correct. Here's why - I also have a "too much blood" problem that he says he typically only sees in obese patients. Restricted breathing and lower oxygen spur the creation of extra red blood cells, so it's often seen in people with sleep apnea and things like that. You know what else can mess with your oxygen levels and cause the creation of new red blood cells? Endurance running.

I really have to be more strict with the "no workout" rule ahead of blood tests in the future.

Anyway, the weather looks like it will be decent for Wine & Dine Weekend. upper 60s/70s for lows, mid 80s during the day, so not that bad. It's supposed to be rainy here, so we may shut the house up and leave the AC on set at around 80 or so.

This morning I headed out for a short, easy run - 40 minutes. The water has drained off in a lot of places, but we still have both standing puddles and places where water is still flowing. A few bad washouts on Villa Neuva but nothing we haven't seen before. Once I got back I showered up quickly and we headed out to get more paneling and stuff to redo the doors for the trash can shed, and we got our flu and covid shots at Publix. I got both of mine in the same arm because YOLO. And because I'd like to have use of one arm instead of walking around like a T-rex.

I've already gotten my blood test back, and I should probably not have gone on that run the day before because my ALT was "high." If I'm reading things correctly, that's the one that indicates muscle damage. High being 42. My hematocrit and hemoglobin were also "high," by fractions of a percent, but I'm sure my GP will comment on them. Everything else is fine - glucose was 87, which makes going without coffee all morning worth it. The draw itself wasn't fun. She stuck me in the arm but then couldn't get any blood, so she wiggled the needle around and then gave up. She did a second stick in the back of my hand, which hurt way more, but blood actually came out, so mission accomplished. I'm tired of being the target in a game of medical lawn darts this week.

The house is open, the air is cool, life is good. I've bought myself a copy of the Kurzgesagt Human Era calendar I rather like having an 'old school' print calendar, even though I use my Google Calendar a lot.

We Are Here On Earth To Fart Around, wise words from Kurt Vonnegut.

The Life-Changing Magic of Japanese Clutter I know I'm not immune to the image of Japan as a paragon of sparse Zen minimalism and visual quiet, but after actually visiting Tokyo, the average Japanese person is no more or less organized than any other human on Earth. To a certain extent, the ideas of minimalism have helped me rid myself of a lot of stuff that I didn't need, wasn't using, and had no reason to keep, but carrying minimalism too far will make you feel bad about any and all new acquisitions, even if it's something obviously useful.

1. Georges Lake needs to check their weather station. But this little screenshot is neat because it shows the microclimate that we're in. Microclimate or not, I seriously doubt they have three percent humidity.

2. ysabetwordsmith was posting about native bees, which led me over to the Florida Wildflower Foundation and this article on sweat bees. I see these bright, shiny bees in my yard in the mornings, but because I have a brain like a sieve, I always forget to look up what they are. They're especially busy in my squash plants, if they can wedge themselves in there around the bumblebees :D

3. The Right Stuff hydration pouches. NASA developed this and now someone's selling it to athletes, and I only have two questions. One, does the citrus flavor taste like Tang, because it really ought to. Two, I thought we needed glucose to perform electrolyte transport. Not a ton of it, not saying you need to be a hummingbird, but I don't quite get how sugar free hydration blends are supposed to work, unless they assume you're also consuming things like energy gels that DO have a bunch of sugars in them?

4. Matcha milk spread, which I think I'll make today and enjoy on my waffles. I made a batch of liege waffles to munch on while running. Today I'll be doing my running inside since it was already hot and humid when I woke up. Might as well take advantage of the treadmill and not run the risk of crashing out a couple of miles from the house. I know Fox would drive out and pick me up, but I also don't enjoy the feeling of bonking that hard.

An Alternate Theory of Generalized Anxiety Disorder

So I am often curious about anxiety and always on the lookout for ways to manage mine. This article interested me for its rethinking of why people are anxious and worried, because it fits very well with some of my own experience.

In short, worry mediates emotional rollercoasters. Instead of shooting from happy to sad or fearful, etc, worry keeps you on a more or less even (anxious) keel and when something bad does happen, it feels like far less of a blow. I've noticed that tendency in myself to become more worried when I notice I feel happy and content. For a while it felt like a superstition - I can't be happy, something terrible will happen if I allow myself to be happy.

Turns out this is a somewhat common reaction. The swing from happy to horrified is too much, but the shift from already worried to disaster isn't so bad. It's the come-down that's the problem, not whatever precipitated the problem.

 The Value of Solitude - My only issue with such articles as this, is that they often over-simplify introversion and extroversion. Extroverts gain energy and feel better mentally when they're interacting with other people. Introverts require alone time for the same thing. It isn't simply a matter of "liking people," but more where your personal energy comes from and what restores you when you feel down.

10 Best Black Food Bloggers to Follow - As Food52 says, this is not an exhaustive list but a pretty good starting point. As it is there's a lot of good stuff linked to, including sweet potato goodies and a recipe for black pepper and cultured butter biscuits that sound amazing. If you're anything like me you've had to purge a lot of nitwits from your social media lately, so why not add some quality accounts?

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Pasta - I love Brussels sprouts. I also love pasta and was looking for some interesting new ways to prepare my sprouts. This Italian-inspired dish also gives me an excuse to use some of the Meyer lemon juice and zest I put away late last year. I may cut down on the amount of noodles called for here and add some toasted sourdough, which will be welcome for mopping up extra sauce.

I slept decently last night, cramping kept me up for a while but naproxen eventually took care of that. There was also some weird noise around 1:30 that woke me out of a deep sleep. I assume it was a bear, but I didn't get up to look. I didn't see anything amiss this morning, so I honestly don't know what it was. I'm draggy this afternoon but I managed to get some art done, and I may perk up after dinner. 

Speaking of which since all I seem to be able to think of is food right now, I might as well start prepping. 

Nothing special, exactly. I have a thirty minute tempo run today, strength training, and yoga this evening. We're replacing some of the outdoor cameras and Fox will be doing a tower climb. I'm probably going to start direct composting a different garden bed, and I need to get my pumpkin seeds in the ground.

I'm making a pizza, which isn't unusual in and of itself. Today, it kind of is. I didn't follow the exact volumes on this recipe because that's way more dough than just the two of us need. But I am going to try the skillet trick and see if I can make us more of Blaze-style pizzas. I have some arugula, Violife feta, and plenty of mushrooms for mine. Hopefully we'll get two crispy personal-ish size pizzas. I've had the dough in the fridge for three days now and was just setting a reminder for later to take it out so it can start warming up again.

I'm reading Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey, and regretting that my one trip to that part of the country was with my ex-husband, who was an awful travel companion. I didn't want to go at all, mainly because I didn't want to go with him. (Very strict on scheduling and intolerant of delays, packed way too much and had no concept of traveling light, etc.) Anyway, this is going to be followed up with Blood Orchid by Charles Bowden and Coyotes and Town Dogs by Susan Zakin. I've been reading up on things like anarcho-primitivism, human rewilding, and environmental philosophy lately. And yeah, I know I'm reading about anarcho-primitivism online? With a computer? Well shit son, next time I need to contact someone I guess I'm just gonna write my message on a coconut and send it to them by swallow. (Yeah, there was a troll in one of the sub-reddits, LOL) I came around to this topic through looking at primal movement. The problem is that, like everything else any more, almost everyone with information has put it behind a paywall. Buy a coaching plan, buy a subscription. Ugh. That being said? Naturaletics YouTube channel seems to have a lot of good info, even if they haven't updated in a while. I intend to download these in case the channel goes bye-bye.

For something interesting on this topic, try The Dark Mountain Manifesto. Their books look gorgeous and fascinating. But I need to remember I'm saving my "mad money" for the Etherington Brothers Kickstarter.

What about the Olympic marathon trials taking place in Atlanta? Check that out here. Nike is giving away Alpha-vapor-fly-something shoes to all the trials runners, but I also read something interesting recently that said "regular" runners, as in non-elite everyday runners like Yours Truly, not only would not benefit from these super-fancy shoes but that it might alter their gait enough to be a problem.

Anyway, that's what I'm up to. I'm looking forward to a more relaxing weekend now that I don't have medical stuff dangling over my head.

 Seeking the Lost Art of Growing Old With Intention - This is an older piece from Outside Magazine on Bernd Heinrich, who is not only a record-holding ultra-runner but a naturalist who has published some fascinating and highly readable pieces on Raven behavior. Obviously I am not in any way biased about this, wink wink. And obviously, he lives the dream in his rural cabin, surrounded by the natural world. I always aspired to a Thoreau-like existence as well. I mean, not camping out in Emerson's backyard, but settling into a quiet, routine observation of nature, season to season, until I'm able to read clearly the story being told in every ditch, thicket, and field. I feel like I'm beginning to develop that kind of observational ability, too. I know which trees change when fall approaches, even if in Florida we have precious little between "roasting" and "freezing." Which birds will migrate, which will stay year-round, which flowers will begin blooming first when spring approaches, and which bear is going to shit in my driveway.

To Feel the Awe of Living, Learn to Live With Terror and Wonder - This may be a bit of an over-simplification of this essay's point, but it brings to mind something I was reading a couple of years ago that's become basically a guideline for life for me. "Be willing to do what other people won't, and you'll be able to live how other people can't." In other words, do hard stuff, be willing to put in the work, show up every day, and you'll do epic shit. And there's going to be incredibly difficult things that happen, whatever it is you're pursuing. You'll be scared, you'll feel deeply alone, even depressed, angry, and like none of it's worth it. And I think, in the "transformation stories" we see so often now, those realities get glossed over in favor of The Change itself, cue the lights and music. So it's easy to believe that someone became the person they are without the blood, sweat, and tears. But that does a huge disservice to how life really goes. Shit hurts, but it's necessary. Ever met someone who never really had any hard or scary times in their lives? Didn't you want to just punch them in the face? Yeah.

How Energy Bars Became America's Favorite Snack Food - I'm certainly not above eating an energy bar as a meal replacement. Typically I make my own at home, mainly because I can, and also because I can control the amount of sugar, and because it's sometimes not easy to find good vegan ones. That's becoming less of a problem, though, as I start seeing more openly vegan (as opposed to accidentally vegan) snacks in grocery stores and such. My only problem with my homemade bars is that I can't take them out on a run. I haven't figured out how to pack them, and I assume if I'm going to take a stab at ultrarunning I'm going to have to figure this out. I guess I could buy something, but I like my little recipe - it tastes pretty good, and depending on whether I use vanilla extract or almond, it can be "just chocolatey" or have a more sophisticated, amaretto like flavor. But I've got the nutrition dialed in - fats, complex carbs, simple sugars, etc. Fiber, but not too much. Even for me - someone who routinely eats a very high-fiber diet - too much fiber on race day can lead to ... predicaments. But then, towards the end of long races I'm shoveling stuff in my mouth without being too critical of what it is. Which is how I've ended up chugging beer and shooting vodka, LOL.

First, a few links.
Buy less, be happier, and build a healthy planet." A European study of people participating in emissions-reducing programs found that those who bought fewer things reported higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction. This included such "low level" behaviors like setting one's thermostat temp lower in winter and higher in summer, buying secondhand clothes, and biking to work or for errands. They also found that these things actually had a demonstrable impact on emissions, but that is of course no reason to let large corporate polluters off the hook. Individuals can only do so much, but what we can do really does make a difference.

We Need to Opt Out of Black Friday (soft paywall) Sometimes Fox & I go out on Black Friday but it's mainly to watch other people being stupid. Honestly, the deals are not actually that great - the stores have been slowly marking UP their prices over the summer so that they can say something is 'NOW 30% OFF!!!' and people fall for it. The fact that this is even a holiday in itself now is a greasy black stain on our souls.

Is Savoring the New Mindfulness? Interesting take on the topic, but I would like to suggest that mindfulness and savoring involve the same skill set. Try the raisin meditation to see what I mean - being able to be fully aware of and engage with a pleasant experience uses many of the same abilities cultivated by mindfulness exercises. Specifically the ability to enjoy the pleasant experience going on right now instead of jumping to "gotta get more" or "oh no this is going to end soon."

This weekend is mostly about running and working outside. Fox is cutting down some dead trees, and any that aren't already termite-eaten are going to be cut up for firewood. We've almost got enough space cleared to start putting in solar panels. (We can't put them on the roof because it's not rated for that kind of weight.) I'm doing an eight mile run today and an eighteen-miler tomorrow as I build up to Dopey distances. I am a little worried about it, but I keep reminding myself that last year, I got back from Japan and had to do a shortened Dopey training cycle, and I completed the races just fine. Music today, Natsume's Book of Friends tomorrow.

All the above links being "said," I guess I need to contact my family and see what they want for Christmas. Usually we all just get each other Amazon gift cards, which seems to work out pretty well. Despite having an Amazon wish list that runs 15+ pages, including lists by category, I don't have anything I want for Christmas.

I'm going to suit up and go run. With such a long run tomorrow I'll need to get started early anyway.

 How a TV Sitcom Triggered the Downfall of Western Civilization - on Medium, soft paywall

Full disclosure: I have never actually watched an episode of Friends. For the first half of its run I didn't even own a TV. But sitcoms are also not my thing - so Friends is not the type of show I would have watched even if I did have a set. However, what little I know of the show makes it seem to me as if it definitely falls into the category of things where everyone gets mocked and made fun of and not in a gentle way. Like one of those things that makes it feel like it's okay to substitute sarcastic put-downs for actual conversation, and like your friends aren't your friends unless they are pointing out what a loser you are.

I am not really a fan of television in general though, so this article is "preaching to the choir." I like having a set as a monitor - I stream and download movies and of course some anime. But I deeply dislike and avoid TV shows, broadcast or cable. There have been some exceptions to this, but I'm not the type to just sit down and watch TV. 

Star Trek, tho. No seriously, I love Star Trek.

 1. It Wasn't Me - a 28 acre wildfire in Keystone Heights is now 100% contained - This was still smoking pretty heavily this morning but when Fox and I rode over there to check it out, a Forestry Service crew was also there keeping an eye on things. Early this morning when I went to put the bird feeders out, I stepped outside, smelled smoke and thought, "That's not good." We've been very dry and it's Florida's wildfire season, so it's exactly the time of year when a careless trash fire or even a flicked cigarette butt can start a disastrous fire. SO BE CAREFUL.

2. BUTTAH - The other day, I got snookered into buying a tub of roasted, salted cashews. This was because I was inattentive, and someone had put a "raw" sticker on one side so I thought I was actually getting raw cashews. Today I noticed I was running low on peanut butter which is obviously a big problem, so I made this cashew and sunflower seed butter. It needed a little extra fat to cream up properly so I added some cacao butter, which gave it a nice touch of chocolate flavor. I'll almost certainly do this again and maybe add some vanilla, too.

3. G̴̡̨͈̝̲͚̺͒̓̇̆͐͜ͅà̷̧̧̼͓̪̮̬̗̣̱̦̥̃̏̓̆̆r̵̭̼̮͉̻͚̬̟͈̙̼̖̞͍̄͂̽̅̕ͅf̸̨̗̫̮̘̥̦̰͙̝͛̂̿i̵̡̨͙͉̘̖͍͎̥̣͐̊̑͛̅̃͂̈́̆́́͆̀̕͜͠ȩ̶̜̲̐͐͛́̑̈́́̈͑͠͝l̸͎̄̐d̸̡̨̹͍͍̤̣̠̞̹͍͔̳̀̅́̌̽ ̵̧̢̼͍͇̞͙͍̼̝͔͖̅͑̐̇̎͛̽̈̃̍͝͝ả̸̛̮̣̀͐̋͊̔̇͘̚n̸̩̦͍̲̋̋̔͗̿ḑ̸̛̼͇̌̑̅̾̀̽̽͋́͝ ̸̲̫̫̘̣͈̗̭͕͎͙̒͌̓̌̐̄̊̃̕F̷̨͕͍̦͛̏̈́̉͋̎̓̾̎̀͝͝ŗ̸̝͖̯͚͆͌͗̏̕͠ͅi̵̡͈͖͍̱̭͕̺̥͒̇́͛͌͑̅̚͜͝ͅe̴̡̖͉̰̥̻̮͙̓̉̉͒̿͛͂́͊̃͘͠n̷̡̧̧͉̱̰͚̹͔͉͆̏͛́̐͘͝ḓ̶̢̡̡͇̯͍̼̱̝̬̬̭̌͂͐͛̍̔̐͑͊͠s̴̢̢̛̮͓̟̙̥̪̯̪̳̜̺͑̏̄͆̀̄ͅͅ  HE COMES - "There's a kid in Miz Ryder's class who can draw Garfield better than you." - some fucker in fourth grade





Seriously, that kid threw a lot of shade for someone who couldn't draw a stick figure to save his life.