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Ash

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Tronics [Feb. 1st, 2016|03:43 pm]
Ash
( Tronics: Restoration and RecoveryCollapse )
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Tapestry.net? [Feb. 20th, 2009|01:29 pm]
Ash
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There's a SMOP here somewhere.

I've been thinking for a while about the challenges -- and potentials -- of multithreaded conversation.

( why is that, rising_moon?Collapse )

Can we harness it and use the fire for good?
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Systems of Magic, and a request [Dec. 4th, 2008|05:33 pm]
Ash
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Recently I've read a few excellent fantasy novels which were written around believable, consistent, and reasonable systems of magic. Believable magic is one of the elements that will sell me on a writer. I've enjoyed The Abhorsen Trilogy, by Garth Nix, and, most recently, The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.

I've learned that Brandon Sanderson, who wrote this essay on systems of magic, is going to finish Robert Jordan's 12th and final novel of the Wheel of Time series. Depending on my Lady's response to his work, I might take up the first one. :)

Unrelatedly (maybe): can any of you recommend a good history (articles, blogs, anything) of technical approaches to affixing Identity? That is, assuring that individuals are who they say they are? I'm making a study of transaction psychology -- financial services inclined but not fixed -- and would love some background data on approaches to identity assurance. Thanks!
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2 and 48 [May. 15th, 2008|02:10 pm]
Ash
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http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/05/15/same.sex.marriage/index.html

The California Supreme Court struck down the ban on same-sex marriage.

Is it mean of me to hope, just a little bit, that Scalia gets photographed soon in a passionate and unmistakeably romantic clinch with a male clerk?
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from ravenlyn1 [Apr. 30th, 2008|02:44 pm]
Ash
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My day's been a morningsworth of upbeat energy swirling in a steadily-narrowing snowstorm of corporate jargon and project performance analyses. New team leader = new assessment metrics = piles of spreadsheets.

This video makes it all better.

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PSA [Apr. 28th, 2008|04:54 pm]
Ash
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In case you haven't seen it yet, I urge you to visit my Lady's journal to read the featured chalkboard for our new (fictional) bistro, Nom!
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*snrk* [Apr. 1st, 2008|10:12 am]
Ash
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Heh.

http://mail.google.com/mail/help/customtime/index.html

"This morning I put instant coffee in the microwave and I almost went back in time." - Steven Wright
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go to [Mar. 27th, 2008|09:19 am]
Ash
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I'm on a ten-minute break in a week of all-day meetings. I've got another one coming up at 3pm or so.

What's on your mind?
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(no subject) [Mar. 6th, 2008|09:42 am]
Ash
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Hey, I'm a beer!

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Lucien's Library meme [Feb. 14th, 2008|02:09 pm]
Ash
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[EDIT: and by "Lucien", I mean the bespectacled librarian of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series, not the SCA persona of the same name. Answer as many or as few of these as you'd like.]

I'm curious, friends. :)

What 4 books (if you only got four) would you bring with you to a desert island?

What would be the title of your (as yet fictional) autobiography?

Quote a memorable passage (a few lines) of a book you're reading these days.

If you could own any book, written by anyone at any time, even if it hasn't been written yet or was never written, what would it be?

What was your favorite book when you were 10?
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Home [Jan. 2nd, 2008|10:30 am]
Ash
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For my friends, a taste of hot sweets for a cold day: http://youtube.com/watch?v=pV_eeDKzqlM.

Happy new year, all.

-rm
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straw poll [Oct. 5th, 2007|12:41 pm]
Ash
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If friends of yours issue an open invitation to some event or activity that they think is fun, and you choose not to participate because you're not interested, do you feel left out anyway?

If so: Is it worse, the feeling of being left out, if you can still see them, right over there, having fun doing something that you don't enjoy?

EDIT (for slyppi, who asked, but also for anyone who's curious): I'm unscientifically gathering some data to help me solidify an opinion about a recent discussion. One corner of the discussion dealt with inclusion. It's really, really helpful to see what folks are writing about feelings of inclusion. Thank you for answering!
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shiny objects [Jun. 6th, 2007|08:38 am]
Ash
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* The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova, passed down to me from my lovely Lady's travel reading. What a gift! I'm usually pretty self-contained when reading in public, though grinning like a fool through the pretty parts, but yesterday I reached a well-prepared situation that made me bark out a laugh on the red line. People looked at me. Also? It makes me want to go to Romania.
The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova
* Amazon.com's "read inside" feature, not for its functionality, although that is fun and interesting, but for its heavily-annotated code source. The 'head' block reads like an HTML/JS primer.
* Circle-walking Ba Gua Tai Chi, as a meditative exercise. We learned the slim basics in a lightning-quick tutorial last night. Now if I can just concentrate for long enough to make good use of the "meditative" part of the exercise...
* Maybe little pinch?
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shiny objects [Feb. 13th, 2007|04:29 pm]
Ash
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* According to our friends at the USN Observatory, there will be a total Lunar Eclipse on the evening of March 3, at what looks to be a 88.9 azimuth. *crosses fingers for clear skies*goblet made by Libbey Glass, where Dreda's Opa used to work
* Watching Gosford Park with the closed-captioning on is like watching a whole new film. There are layers and layers of stories going on at the same time, and they're all fascinating!
* My new harp teacher is fabulous. She's a virtuoso with infectious enthusiasm and boy can she wail on those strings. Woo!
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shiny object [Oct. 31st, 2006|04:14 pm]
Ash
* jack o lantern
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Turnip Greens [Oct. 5th, 2006|10:51 am]
Ash
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Tuesday night I removed the unhelpful components (cabbage, onion) from the turnip greens and spent half an hour mixing tiny amounts of greens with other ingredients looking for the best fit. My Lady, bless her, bowed out only after sampling quite a few bite-sized concoctions. I persevered.

We have a winner. :) Many thanks to all who contributed foils, additives, sparks, and jibes to the Turnip Green Project.

STRONG GREENS
sautee onion (strip cut) in olive oil and garlic (sliced) until translucent
add greens (stripped), reduce
salt and pepper per "normal" greens
add a bit more salt
add several splashes of lemon juice to taste

Et voila: tasty green stuff. The lemon juice did the trick! Many thanks to yagagriswold for that crazy notion. Acidey lemon juice stands up to the heady yelping bitterness of turnip greens and mellows it out to a comfortable purr.

Both of them run right over the mustard greens, however. We'll experiment with those... next year.
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shiny objects [Sep. 11th, 2006|02:13 pm]
Ash
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* Zazarac: Fill a martini glass with shaved ice. Stir brown sugar syrup laced with bitters into cognac until the sugar has dissipated. Dump the ice. Rinse the martini glass with Absinthe. Strain cognac into rinsed glass. Serve.

* Peter Callesen's A4 cutout paper sculpture (by way of Andii) features several crawly beasties, which are on my mind today, and a host of evocative and allegorical shadow-figures made of... paper and glue.

* Is synesthesia dead?
* Still shot from the film THE FOUNTAIN.
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shiny objects [May. 9th, 2006|01:18 pm]
Ash
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* The Berkshires are still there. Our hosts at the 1886 House impressed with cozy lodging and tasty breakfasts. Over the weekend we stumbled on (and right through) Northampton Pride, plenished our kitchen with widgets at Thornes, hot-tubbed at East Heaven, sushi'd at Teapot, and refilled our lungs with their proper supply of greenery and pine on the mountain. All good.

* MI-3 is missing a theme song. Watching Philip Seymour Hoffman sneer and growl (eevil Lester Bangs) didn't quite do it. Playing hooky on a Monday made it worthwhile. :)

* Benjamin-Moore has an online color-viewer. My workday is over.

* LJ thoughts are turning to the Camping Season, so I begin to wonder... Apart from essentials that appear on all the packing lists (extra tent stakes, first-aid kit, copies of your prescriptions, etc.) what much-appreciated but rarely-mentioned items come to Pennsic with you?
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Bittersweet Ganache Frosting [Dec. 19th, 2005|11:01 am]
Ash
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1 1/2 cups heavy cream
16 oz. bittersweet chocolate
1/3 cup light karo syrup
1 tsp vanilla

Heat cream to a boil. Shave/chop the chocolate blocks into tiny shards and put them in a mixing-bowl.
Pour cream into mixing bowl, stirring the chocolate as it melts. Stir until the chocolate is smooth and shiny. [NB: At this point you have a ganache.]
Mix in the karo syrup. Let stand for 3 minutes.
Mix in the vanilla. Chill, stirring occasionally, for about an hour, until thick but still spreadable.

Voilá.
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Imagine This [Dec. 8th, 2005|03:33 pm]
Ash
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peace


( and thisCollapse )
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