I've been so bad. I'm currently rereading a favourite for about the fourth time, and I'm struggling with that. Last book I finished was The Ivy Tree, but that was in November. I purchased one called Thames: A Biography at the used bookstore a couple of weeks ago, but... Like I said, I've been bad.

I've just been re-reading books. I need to get a library card here....

I thought if there was anywhere on Menewsha where this would be appreciated, it would be here:

Komodo Dragon Jesus. Quantum Hovercraft Jesus.

Poor Tim. That's another christmas song he's had issues with:
ITV pulls Tim Minchin's Christmas song : News 2011 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide
Christians slam Minchin for aiding charity : News 2010 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide

Biggles - That's not bad! Reading shouldn't feel like a chore. If you don't have time/energy, then you just don't. :)

I've started rereading the Harry Potter series since it's been so long since I read it, and I never finished it. I'll need to get the 7th book, though. I also got three really cool books for the holidays that I'm looking forward to reading once I finish up HP. I'm tempted to drop HP after I finish Prisoner of Azkaban to read those, but... I don't get to buy books very often, especially books I'm this excited about, so I don't want to just zip through them in an instant. Plus, I have a feeling Harry Potter might seem less enjoyable after them. :lol:

I've also been picking up some books at thrift stores.

That song was pretty good. Shame it was pulled, although not completely surprising. Same with Salvation Army pulling that other song. The Salvation Army can be such pricks. :/

This book is about an academic, so it has passages with a lot of academic language. Any previous time I've read it, my reaction was along the lines of "okay =3" but sadly this time it's more along the lines of "Er... eh? -inebriated face-"

I seem to be struggling more and more in this department. Over the past few years, I've had issues remembering words. I have a vast enough vocabulary to know when a word I'm using isn't the one I actually mean, but I can't access it the way I used to. It's been a real concern for me. Whenever I bring it up to family or doctors, I get something along the lines of "That's natural." or "It's probably a stress block." NO. MY BRAIN IS DYING. HELP.
yunocare.jpg

I know exactly what you mean. Not to that level, but I have books that I absolutely should be able to read but when I try to, my brain is like "nooooooo." That's why I've been reading YA books. If you think of your brain like a muscle... if you were able to do 50 pushups two years ago, but haven't done a single one since, well, you're not going to be able to do 50 pushups in one go anymore. So start smaller and work your way back up. It can feel kind of crummy, but trust me, Biggles, you are intelligent and your brain isn't broken.

Eh, this isn't what you want to hear, but forgetting words is pretty normal. It helps to use them a lot, especially in text as then you have more time to think about what you're saying and can choose the best word, rather than just using the first one that comes to mind, as in speech. I mean, assuming these are loftier, not-so-common words, not things like "door," (although forgetting the former is fine in one of those "AH SHOOT, I KNOW THIS WORD. IT'S. AHH. *mimes opening door* AHHH.... DOOR. DOOR. There we go." I just mean not in a "what is this swinging closure device called?" way)

One I struggled with for five minutes a couple of weeks ago was "presume". I just kept going around in circles. "Sounds like 'proceed'.... Proceed. No not proceed, sounds like proceed..." etc. The thing that bothers me is that it never, never used to happen until a few years ago. I know I'm technically young, but as this is the only number of years I've had so far, those teenage abilities don't seem that far gone and it frustrates me.

Yeah, you still know the word, it's just slipping your mind. Frustrating as all, but don't worry about it too much. Sometimes it just happens in bouts, especially if you've been stressed. :hug:

Did you have a nice holiday-type-thing?

Wait, It was 'pretense', not presume! Oh lordy. And I can't even remember what the one I was fixated on was.

At times it was pretty okie dokie? Too much to ask for more than that, I would think. And yours?

Well, that's even more understandable as pretense is used even less than presume!

Okie dokie at times is... good! :lol: Mine was pretty good! I got to see my family on my dad's side, which is nice. My mema had five kids, so it's a pretty good-sized group, I love seeing them every year. :)

That's great! Your avatar looks so comfortably festive, I like. It took me so long to figure out what your last avatar was holding. I've been so out of it, I didn't even know that was going on until the event started.

Thanks! I thought she looks like she's going to an intimate Christmas gathering with friends or family. I'm glad that vibe got conveyed!

Aww, really? There was a little yellow announcement thingy at the top. Sorry you missed it!

Say, have you gotten any snow up north? We got some flurries a few weeks ago, but haven't seen any since. Just short, gray days. :gonk: I want snow!

No snow yet, though it's definitely been cold enough for it at times. It tends to be a "disaster" when it does happen, because people aren't great about coping with it.

Oh, really? Then perhaps it's for the best that it hasn't snowed yet. We're supposed to get some possible light snow tonight, but no accumulation. Piddles, I want a thick blanket of snow!

It's blustery now. A wee winter storm with lovely clear starlight. What could be better?

That sounds lovely! Although it could be improved with... northern lights. Those make everything better. Man, I want to see those some day.

I'm surprised I couldn't see them tonight. Apparently they are sometimes visible here, and I don't recall a clearer night.

Oh wow. Have you ever seen them before?

Only in dreams. And then it's OH GOD GET THEM AWAY THEY ARE TOO CLOSE WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE. Not a very picturesque experience.

Attack of the northern lights? You have strange dreams, my friend. :lol:

Say, did I ever tell you about this dream my mom had once...

Happy New Years, me wee Hoffers!


Anyone have any resolutions they'd like to share?

I have never really been a resolution type person, other than I suppose "be happy" and "make the most of it".

Yeah, I'm mostly the same. Just sort of nebulous goals like "move forward in life" and "do more." I know when I've made progress. Wibbly-wobbly, resolutiony-wesolutiony.

Well, you certainly made strides in the last year! Three cheers!
Me, well, not so much, though it has been eventful. On the plus side, I did get to see the Simulcast version of the Importance of Being Ernest, attend a Tim Minchin concert, and got to see Richard Ayoade in person - A delight to my British comedy loving heart (yes, I have a list of the good things that happened to me last year. That's the kind of year it was.)

Looking back on my post about the northern lights, I realise that my dreams have been a bit strange lately. Not the fact that they were dangerously close, hovering just above my house (that kind of scenario happens quite a bit) but they also happened to be etched and embedded with alchemical symbols as they lurked. And in another dream, I found scattered branches on my lawn formed the name of a tarot card (I'm not even that familiar with tarot, I actually only happen to know the name of this card because of the section on it in The Mighty Book of Boosh :sweat:) It all strikes me as a bit weird.

It's always important to remember the positives. There are plenty of things that I didn't do in 2011 that I would have liked to, but I'm focusing on what I did do. You got some really cool experiences under your belt! You'll remember those for years to come. :)

Alchemy in auroras and branches making tarot symbols... man, girl, your dreams are high brow. When I have a stressful dream it's usually just having to use an exposed toilet. :lol: