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Jan. 2nd, 2026 08:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ravena_kadeDad had his MRI today at noon. Found out no one was going to read it until Monday so they decided to let him out. WE got home at 8 PM.
I'm tired.
This weekend I am going food shopping and that is all.
Dad has appointments next week in the building. It looks like he is going to try the LVad. He wants to hold out until February. If things go okay it could give him 5 years. If not he will pass of multiple organ failure.
I'm tired.
This weekend I am going food shopping and that is all.
Dad has appointments next week in the building. It looks like he is going to try the LVad. He wants to hold out until February. If things go okay it could give him 5 years. If not he will pass of multiple organ failure.
[ SECRET POST #6937 ]
Jan. 2nd, 2026 06:41 pmcase posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fandomsecrets⌈ Secret Post #6937 ⌋
Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.
01.
( More! )
Notes:
Secrets Left to Post: 00 pages, 00 secrets from Secret Submission Post #990.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 1 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
Shovel Work, Storm
Jan. 2nd, 2026 02:40 pmranunculusYesterday involved a hike up over Power Pole Hill and then up Fairview Hill. The goal was to make lots of water bars on the trails in advance of today's storm. The trails and roads all looked pretty good considering the downpours that have happened this year. Possibly because of work done last year and the year before. Between hiking up, up, up steep hills and shoveling it was a great, extended cardio workout.
Today the promised storm is moving in. It is windy, starting to rain a bit, and not very pleasant outside so we are sitting by the fireplace in the living room.
I did get lots of canning and storage jars moved up to the attic. Lots of home canned stuff is getting eaten up, which is good!
Today the promised storm is moving in. It is windy, starting to rain a bit, and not very pleasant outside so we are sitting by the fireplace in the living room.
I did get lots of canning and storage jars moved up to the attic. Lots of home canned stuff is getting eaten up, which is good!
(no subject)
Jan. 2nd, 2026 01:58 pmgreghousesgfWent out for breakfast, I had a green chile, mushroom and jack cheese omelet and a biscuit. I would have had an orange and pecan muffin but the waitress didn't bother telling me they had those. Bought a new calendar and some fancy soaps.
Please wait for just a few more minutes for our loyalty department
Jan. 2nd, 2026 03:37 pmbill_schubertI had an account with HEB through Netspend for a debit card. A few months ago their security was breached and someone in Mexico spent a bunch of my money. It took me three months and a trip through the Consumber Finance Protection Bureau and some higher up person in the Nestspend chain to get it resolved. They gave me back my money (but no interest.. .at least the IRS gives you interest when they hang on to your money) and I cancelled the cards. Today I called to close the account. I'm rolling up the dregs of any finance I don't actively use.
The poor guy that answered the phone verifiec (for the second time on that same call) who I was and said that, yes, my cards had been cancelled but he could not close the account. I needed to talk to the 'loyalty department' for that. Sounds a bit like 1984 but I've got Google hold and a good gin game so OK. After a bit he came back on and said it would be a few minutes longer and I said 'no'.
He said, if you want to close your account you need to talk to the loyalty department. After a few rounds of me not being nice and telling him that my life would, in fact, one day end and the number of minutes between now and then are mine and they may not have any more of them. Close my account now. I can't do that, you have to talk to the loyalty department.
No, I don't. And I can just imagine the depts of useless conversation between me and the Netspend loyalty department. It would not have been pretty.
Back on the web site I actually found a place "Close account". It opened to a longish bit of writing I did not read and gave the phone number again. BUT, BUT, there was a continue at the bottom. I clicked on it and it had all my information for them to verify and another button that said "Close my account". Bingo!!
I cancelled my USAA visa card earlier in the week.
My USAA bank account is zero'd out. I'll close it one day soon, I guess. It may actually serve a purpose and cost zero so I may not.
And I just got an email survey request from HEB Debit card asking my opinion. So all is well after all.
The poor guy that answered the phone verifiec (for the second time on that same call) who I was and said that, yes, my cards had been cancelled but he could not close the account. I needed to talk to the 'loyalty department' for that. Sounds a bit like 1984 but I've got Google hold and a good gin game so OK. After a bit he came back on and said it would be a few minutes longer and I said 'no'.
He said, if you want to close your account you need to talk to the loyalty department. After a few rounds of me not being nice and telling him that my life would, in fact, one day end and the number of minutes between now and then are mine and they may not have any more of them. Close my account now. I can't do that, you have to talk to the loyalty department.
No, I don't. And I can just imagine the depts of useless conversation between me and the Netspend loyalty department. It would not have been pretty.
Back on the web site I actually found a place "Close account". It opened to a longish bit of writing I did not read and gave the phone number again. BUT, BUT, there was a continue at the bottom. I clicked on it and it had all my information for them to verify and another button that said "Close my account". Bingo!!
I cancelled my USAA visa card earlier in the week.
My USAA bank account is zero'd out. I'll close it one day soon, I guess. It may actually serve a purpose and cost zero so I may not.
And I just got an email survey request from HEB Debit card asking my opinion. So all is well after all.
from the other site this time....
Jan. 2nd, 2026 02:23 pmliminal_space1a. What is the single most important change or commitment you could make to support your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing in the next twelve months and beyond? This year, the focus will be on using the physical (exercise/body awareness) to supplement and support all other things.
1b. What might that look and feel like on a day to day basis? For the winter? Lots of video workouts, yoga, and elliptical work. For warmer months? Pilates, horseback riding, kayaking, hiking. The more outside, the better.
1c. Which attitudes, habits, rituals and rhythms might help you? Keeping in touch with my support system on a daily basis; getting up earlier vs. later; document, document, document.
2. What would you like to learn more about this year? So many things, but I'm going to be doing more miniature builds, so want to really immerse myself in that.
3. What do you want more of this year, and what are you willing to trade, forgo or sacrifice to get it? More time w/my horse — and like always, I'm willing to sacrifice keeping the house clean for that. ;)
4. What do you want less of this year, and how will you ensure that happens? Be specific. Less debt! I'm sticking to my budget and savings envelopes and cash-only transactions to help.
5. Map out the constellation of important people in your life (individuals and groups), and identify how each of them supports you, and what part of yourself is supported. Is any kind of support missing from your constellation? If so, where might you find it in the year ahead? Immediate family is my guiding star; close friends orbit — they provide all I need.
6. What are you hopeful about? That there are enough level heads in the world to make change happen.
7. What is your intention for the year ahead? To hit the final weight loss goal and become as healthy as I can.
8. And finally, what would you like to nurture this year? My inner goddess; she's been taking a backseat lately.
1b. What might that look and feel like on a day to day basis? For the winter? Lots of video workouts, yoga, and elliptical work. For warmer months? Pilates, horseback riding, kayaking, hiking. The more outside, the better.
1c. Which attitudes, habits, rituals and rhythms might help you? Keeping in touch with my support system on a daily basis; getting up earlier vs. later; document, document, document.
2. What would you like to learn more about this year? So many things, but I'm going to be doing more miniature builds, so want to really immerse myself in that.
3. What do you want more of this year, and what are you willing to trade, forgo or sacrifice to get it? More time w/my horse — and like always, I'm willing to sacrifice keeping the house clean for that. ;)
4. What do you want less of this year, and how will you ensure that happens? Be specific. Less debt! I'm sticking to my budget and savings envelopes and cash-only transactions to help.
5. Map out the constellation of important people in your life (individuals and groups), and identify how each of them supports you, and what part of yourself is supported. Is any kind of support missing from your constellation? If so, where might you find it in the year ahead? Immediate family is my guiding star; close friends orbit — they provide all I need.
6. What are you hopeful about? That there are enough level heads in the world to make change happen.
7. What is your intention for the year ahead? To hit the final weight loss goal and become as healthy as I can.
8. And finally, what would you like to nurture this year? My inner goddess; she's been taking a backseat lately.
(no subject)
Jan. 2nd, 2026 03:08 pmseasonedritethefridayfive1. Do you mostly drink tap, filtered, or bottled water? Filtered water, using a Brita filter.
2. Is it safe/recommended to drink tap water where you live? If not, why? It is safe where I live, in general. Last year many of us got letters telling us that if we have an old lead supply pipe we should run cold water for three to five minutes in the morning or when we have not used the water for six hours. This was very concerning for us, but not enough to push me to replace the pipe. Yet.
3. What does the tap water taste/smell like where you live? I can't describe the taste but is distinctive. I can't claim that it tastes like nothing. It is treated and has fluoride so maybe I can call it a chemical taste. It's an acquired taste for sure.
4. Do you collect rainwater? If so, what do you use it for? No, no need for this since droughts here are infrequent so far.
5. Do you/have you ever had restrictions on water use where you live? What did you have to change about your lifestyle? No.
Books read, 2025
Jan. 2nd, 2026 11:34 amthewayneLooks like I made about 66 books last year. The number is a bit fungible as that includes manga collections, Hugo reads - what's the difference between novellas and novelettes, etc, and some other things that just make my head hurt. I temporarily set aside some stuff due to events in December and switched to comfort reads, i.e. Terry Pratchett, and seem to be continuing in on that for the foreseeable future until something else distracts me.
The list is inverted so I don't have to scroll through it when I finish a new book. Much easier to update that way!
The year began with continuing Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series re-read and continued from there. I'm not going to talk about things in detail, but will discuss anything if people want to talk about something in comments. A few notable things, though....
01/29 The Last Nine Days of The Bismarck, CS Forester (HB,NF). This is one that came across my desk at work as an interlibrary loan. First, the author. Forester of the Hornblower series. It's a short book, you can probably polish it off, uninterrupted, in three or four hours. VERY interesting read! Obviously C.S. is a master of naval writing, and this book is a good example. The British were desperate to not let the Bismarck get out into the Atlantic where it could wreak havoc on all Allied shipping, they dedicated pretty much everything they had to finding and sinking that ship. And while they did succeed, it was quite the fight. And quite the read.
02/18 Tokyo Vice, Jake Addelstein (nf). This book is an autobiographical book about Jake's career as a crime beat reporter in Tokyo, mainly reporting about yakuza activity in Tokyo and Japan. It took me a while to compose that sentence, because it's a complicated book. I like books about Japan, I like Japanese culture. And this book is real. In places, it can be rather disturbing as it is honestly written. There is violence and murder in it, it spans years. Will I re-read it? No. It expanded my view of Japan and was interesting, not that I needed any additional prompting to know not to get involved with the yakuza.
02/26 Adios Muchachos, Daniel Chavarria. This is an amusing read, and a one-shot book, though Chavarria has written many books. It's about a Havana prostitute with an amazing butt and a rigged bicycle that she can make fall apart on command. She uses it to 'have an accident' in front of a mark to seduce them and get them into a longish-term relationship. She has a whole script she works on her marks, a program of seduction to make it long-term to make it very profitable, and it works quite well for her and her mother, but with the current mark it gets complicated when someone, a non-Cuban, accidentally dies, and she and the mark have to figure out how to deal with the body in a way to avoid police involvement. As layers get peeled back things become increasingly complicated and amusing for the reader.
02/28 The Shambling Guide to New York City, Mur Lafferty. Also The Shambling Guide to New Orleans. Young woman needs a job, replies to an advert seeking a writer for a traveler's guide for NYC. The office tries to put her off, saying they're really not what they're looking for, but she's insistent as rent is coming due and she is desperate for the job. Finally they hire her on a provisional basis. Turns out they are publishing a 'differently animated' guide for undead, werewolves, vampires, etc.: i.e. a world that she didn't really know existed. VERY entertaining! Mur is an excellent writer, I highly recommend her! Shambling Guide continues the series, and I think she intended the series to go on - and it may yet - but it ends at two books.
Andy Weir's Artemis and Project Hail Mary. I read these two books back-to-back. I read The Martian when it came out and really enjoyed it, loved the movie. But these books? I have to say that I'm feeling that Andy is, to me, coming off as a one trick pony and feels too much to be writing different versions of the same character of the same astronaut from Martian. Only this time it's a black girl on the Moon. And now it's a white teacher who's now Earth's last hope. Competence porn. I have no problem with a NASA astronaut going to the Moon or Mars being hyper-competent. Their life and the lives of everyone else on the mission depends on their knowing everything about pretty much every aspect of all of their equipment depends on that competency. But a teen girl born on the moon? Yes, she'd be taught from an early age about emergency drills and such, but she wouldn't have an intimate knowledge about a lot of that stuff. And the guy in Hail Mary? Yes, he has a laptop of everything ever digitized on Earth. Good luck searching it! Ask any librarian how much fun they have searching for information. Sorry, those two books rate as weak sauce for me and aren't going to rate very high as likely re-reads.
The rest of the books:
( Read more... )
The list is inverted so I don't have to scroll through it when I finish a new book. Much easier to update that way!
The year began with continuing Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series re-read and continued from there. I'm not going to talk about things in detail, but will discuss anything if people want to talk about something in comments. A few notable things, though....
01/29 The Last Nine Days of The Bismarck, CS Forester (HB,NF). This is one that came across my desk at work as an interlibrary loan. First, the author. Forester of the Hornblower series. It's a short book, you can probably polish it off, uninterrupted, in three or four hours. VERY interesting read! Obviously C.S. is a master of naval writing, and this book is a good example. The British were desperate to not let the Bismarck get out into the Atlantic where it could wreak havoc on all Allied shipping, they dedicated pretty much everything they had to finding and sinking that ship. And while they did succeed, it was quite the fight. And quite the read.
02/18 Tokyo Vice, Jake Addelstein (nf). This book is an autobiographical book about Jake's career as a crime beat reporter in Tokyo, mainly reporting about yakuza activity in Tokyo and Japan. It took me a while to compose that sentence, because it's a complicated book. I like books about Japan, I like Japanese culture. And this book is real. In places, it can be rather disturbing as it is honestly written. There is violence and murder in it, it spans years. Will I re-read it? No. It expanded my view of Japan and was interesting, not that I needed any additional prompting to know not to get involved with the yakuza.
02/26 Adios Muchachos, Daniel Chavarria. This is an amusing read, and a one-shot book, though Chavarria has written many books. It's about a Havana prostitute with an amazing butt and a rigged bicycle that she can make fall apart on command. She uses it to 'have an accident' in front of a mark to seduce them and get them into a longish-term relationship. She has a whole script she works on her marks, a program of seduction to make it long-term to make it very profitable, and it works quite well for her and her mother, but with the current mark it gets complicated when someone, a non-Cuban, accidentally dies, and she and the mark have to figure out how to deal with the body in a way to avoid police involvement. As layers get peeled back things become increasingly complicated and amusing for the reader.
02/28 The Shambling Guide to New York City, Mur Lafferty. Also The Shambling Guide to New Orleans. Young woman needs a job, replies to an advert seeking a writer for a traveler's guide for NYC. The office tries to put her off, saying they're really not what they're looking for, but she's insistent as rent is coming due and she is desperate for the job. Finally they hire her on a provisional basis. Turns out they are publishing a 'differently animated' guide for undead, werewolves, vampires, etc.: i.e. a world that she didn't really know existed. VERY entertaining! Mur is an excellent writer, I highly recommend her! Shambling Guide continues the series, and I think she intended the series to go on - and it may yet - but it ends at two books.
Andy Weir's Artemis and Project Hail Mary. I read these two books back-to-back. I read The Martian when it came out and really enjoyed it, loved the movie. But these books? I have to say that I'm feeling that Andy is, to me, coming off as a one trick pony and feels too much to be writing different versions of the same character of the same astronaut from Martian. Only this time it's a black girl on the Moon. And now it's a white teacher who's now Earth's last hope. Competence porn. I have no problem with a NASA astronaut going to the Moon or Mars being hyper-competent. Their life and the lives of everyone else on the mission depends on their knowing everything about pretty much every aspect of all of their equipment depends on that competency. But a teen girl born on the moon? Yes, she'd be taught from an early age about emergency drills and such, but she wouldn't have an intimate knowledge about a lot of that stuff. And the guy in Hail Mary? Yes, he has a laptop of everything ever digitized on Earth. Good luck searching it! Ask any librarian how much fun they have searching for information. Sorry, those two books rate as weak sauce for me and aren't going to rate very high as likely re-reads.
The rest of the books:
( Read more... )
(no subject)
Jan. 2nd, 2026 02:00 pmmajuthefridayfive1. Do you mostly drink tap, filtered, or bottled water? I only ever drink tap water, unless I'm at someone else's house and they offer me a bottle of water. If I'm given a choice, I ask for tap water.
2. Is it safe/recommended to drink tap water where you live? If not, why? Yes, it appears to be safe. It was also safe in Maryland.
3. What does the tap water taste/smell like where you live? In both Maryland and Connecticut, the water has no discernible (to me) taste or smell.
4. Do you collect rainwater? If so, what do you use it for? No, because there is plenty of water here. But I grew up on a farm where our only source of potable water was rainwater we collected ourselves; we used bore water for watering the garden and for the cows and sheep to drink.
5. Do you/have you ever had restrictions on water use where you live? What did you have to change about your lifestyle? There have never been restrictions in either Maryland or Connecticut while I've been there, but in Australia we usually had water restrictions in summer when I lived there, and probably those restrictions are still in effect. In my childhood we had to be careful how much rainwater we used, and in Perth the reservoirs were usually very low in water over the dry months (i.e. about ⅔ of the year) so we had to be watch our water consumption, only water lawns between about 6pm and 6am, etc. I used to collect grey water to water my plants, and I tried to only plant native plants because they didn't need watering, being adapted to survive in that climate.
FFA DW Post #2409 - PSA! Livejournal warning: save anything you have left on LJ soon
Jan. 3rd, 2026 07:49 amsunnymodffa posting in fail_fandomanonPlease spread this far and wide so as many people see it as possible, because I really don't see English-language LJ continuing in its present form for much longer, and I know some people may still have things they care about there. It doesn't matter how you get it backed up, but it's absolutely crunch time for getting it backed up.
-
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deniseAll the
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On the work of human rights work [pols, hist]
Jan. 2nd, 2026 07:03 amsidereaInteresting:
2025 Dec 31: DwarkeshPatel YT fea. Sarah Paine: Human Rights Killed Communism - Sarah Paine:
BTW, that's Sarah C. M. Paine, until very recently the William S. Sims University Professor of History and Grand Strategy and the Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime History, both, at the US Naval War College. She's an incredibly interesting speaker. Recommended.
(Dwarkesh Patel is this random dude who mistakenly thinks he's a podcaster and keeps trying to have other guests, but in actuality was put on Earth to bring Paine to the masses. He's got something like 14 hours of her up on his channel.)
2025 Dec 31: DwarkeshPatel YT fea. Sarah Paine: Human Rights Killed Communism - Sarah Paine:
BTW, that's Sarah C. M. Paine, until very recently the William S. Sims University Professor of History and Grand Strategy and the Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime History, both, at the US Naval War College. She's an incredibly interesting speaker. Recommended.
(Dwarkesh Patel is this random dude who mistakenly thinks he's a podcaster and keeps trying to have other guests, but in actuality was put on Earth to bring Paine to the masses. He's got something like 14 hours of her up on his channel.)
First snow of Winter
Jan. 2nd, 2026 10:01 amcmcmckThere was snow overnight. Just a couple of inches which wasn't forecast.
It is forecast for the next few days, however.
It clearly caught the council out as no gritting has been done.
A few pics from the house first thing:
And from the back:
I notice a few new people from LJ have asked me to friend. Can I please ask that you read my intro post at the top of my blog and if you're cool with what you find there, I'll open up for you. I keep things f-locked apart from my photos for privacy reasons but am always happy to meet new people and I do have good translation software if you aren't happy in English.
It is forecast for the next few days, however.
It clearly caught the council out as no gritting has been done.
A few pics from the house first thing:
And from the back:
I notice a few new people from LJ have asked me to friend. Can I please ask that you read my intro post at the top of my blog and if you're cool with what you find there, I'll open up for you. I keep things f-locked apart from my photos for privacy reasons but am always happy to meet new people and I do have good translation software if you aren't happy in English.
It's Public Domain Day! Well, January 1 was Public Domain Day.
Jan. 2nd, 2026 12:53 amthewayneEvery January 1, in the USA, a number of copyrighted works lose their protection and become public domain! This year has a pretty neat list - Dashiell Hammett! Miss Marple! The Marx Brothers! Lots of neat things.
And obviously this isn't everything that's coming free of copyright protection, just a list of a few of some significant works. They're already free in some countries: Canada and Australia have shorter copyright terms.
BOOKS
Cakes and Ale
William Faulkner, As I Lay Dying
Dashiell Hammett, The Maltese Falcon (the full book version)
Agatha Christie, The Murder at the Vicarage (the first novel featuring Miss Marple)
Carolyn Keene (pseudonym for Mildred Benson), the first four Nancy Drew books, beginning with The Secret of the Old Clock
Watty Piper (pen name of Arnold Munk), The Little Engine That Could (the popular illustrated version, with drawings by Lois Lenski)
William H. Elson, Elson Basic Readers (the first appearances of Dick and Jane)
Noël Coward, Private Lives
T.S. Eliot, Ash Wednesday
Evelyn Waugh, Vile Bodies
John Dos Passos, The 42nd Parallel
Edna Ferber, Cimarron
Dorothy L. Sayers, Strong Poison
J. B. Priestley, Angel Pavement
Olaf Stapledon, Last and First Men
Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents (in the original German, Das Unbehagen in der Kultur)
Elizabeth Coatsworth (author) and Lynd Ward (illustrator), The Cat Who Went to Heaven
Arthur Ransome, Swallows and Amazons
W. Somerset Maugham, Cakes and Ale
Bertrand Russell, The Conquest of Happiness
CHARACTERS, COMICS, CARTOONS
Flip the Frog
Betty Boop from Fleischer Studios' Dizzy Dishes and other cartoons
Rover (later renamed Pluto) from Disney's The Chain Gang (as an unnamed bloodhound) and The Picnic (as Rover)
Blondie and Dagwood from the Blondie comic strips by Chic Young
Flip the Frog from Fiddlesticks and other cartoons, by Ub Iwerks after he left Disney
Nine new Mickey Mouse cartoons, the initial week of Mickey Mouse comic strips, and ten new Silly Symphonies cartoons from Disney
FILMS
The Divorcee
All Quiet on the Western Front, directed by Lewis Milestone (winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture)
King of Jazz, directed by John Murray Anderson (musical revue featuring Paul Whiteman and Bing Crosby’s first feature-film appearance)
Cimarron, directed by Wesley Ruggles (winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, registered for copyright in 1930)
Animal Crackers, directed by Victor Heerman (starring the Marx Brothers)
Soup to Nuts, directed by Benjamin Stoloff (written by Rube Goldberg, featuring later members of The Three Stooges)
Morocco, directed by Josef von Sternberg (starring Gary Cooper, Marlene Dietrich, and Adolphe Menjou)
The Blue Angel (Der blaue Engel), directed by Josef von Sternberg (starring Marlene Dietrich)
Anna Christie, directed by Clarence Brown (Greta Garbo’s first talkie)
Hell's Angels, directed by Howard Hughes (Jean Harlow’s film debut)
The Big Trail, directed by Raoul Walsh (John Wayne’s first leading role)
The Big House, directed by George Hill
Murder!, directed by Alfred Hitchcock
L'Âge d'Or, directed by Luis Buñuel, written by Buñuel and Salvador Dalí
Free and Easy, directed by Edward Sedgwick (Buster Keaton’s first speaking role)
The Divorcee, directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Whoopee!, directed by Thornton Freeland
MUSICAL COMPOSITIONS
The Royal Welch Fusiliers
Four Songs - I Got Rhythm, I've Got a Crush on You, But Not for Me, and Embraceable You - with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, music by George Gershwin
Georgia on My Mind, lyrics by Stuart Gorrell, music by Hoagy Carmichael
Dream a Little Dream of Me, lyrics by Gus Kahn, music by Fabian Andre and Wilbur Schwandt
Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight, lyrics by Al Lewis, music by Al Sherman
On the Sunny Side of the Street, lyrics by Dorothy Fields, music by Jimmy McHugh
It Happened in Monterey, lyrics by Billy Rose, music by Mabel Wayne
Body and Soul, lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, Frank Eyton, music by Johnny Green
Just a Gigolo (the first English translation), original German lyrics by Julius Brammer, English translation by Irving Caesar, music by Leonello Casucci
You're Driving Me Crazy, lyrics and music by Walter Donaldson
Beyond the Blue Horizon, lyrics by Leo Robin, music by Richard A. Whiting and W. Franke Harling (possible inspiration for the Star Trek theme song)
The Royal Welch Fusiliers, by John Philip Sousa
Lots of good stuff that creative types can play with without fear of any sort of legal reprisal! The first appearance of Betty Boop, and the original version of Disney's Pluto, then called Rover. It's interesting to see the evolutions of characters, like how Mickey evolved from Steamboat Willy.
https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/publicdomainday/2026/
https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/01/01/1712212/public-domain-day-2026-brings-betty-boop-nancy-drew-and-i-got-rhythm-into-the-commons
And obviously this isn't everything that's coming free of copyright protection, just a list of a few of some significant works. They're already free in some countries: Canada and Australia have shorter copyright terms.
BOOKS
Cakes and Ale
William Faulkner, As I Lay Dying
Dashiell Hammett, The Maltese Falcon (the full book version)
Agatha Christie, The Murder at the Vicarage (the first novel featuring Miss Marple)
Carolyn Keene (pseudonym for Mildred Benson), the first four Nancy Drew books, beginning with The Secret of the Old Clock
Watty Piper (pen name of Arnold Munk), The Little Engine That Could (the popular illustrated version, with drawings by Lois Lenski)
William H. Elson, Elson Basic Readers (the first appearances of Dick and Jane)
Noël Coward, Private Lives
T.S. Eliot, Ash Wednesday
Evelyn Waugh, Vile Bodies
John Dos Passos, The 42nd Parallel
Edna Ferber, Cimarron
Dorothy L. Sayers, Strong Poison
J. B. Priestley, Angel Pavement
Olaf Stapledon, Last and First Men
Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents (in the original German, Das Unbehagen in der Kultur)
Elizabeth Coatsworth (author) and Lynd Ward (illustrator), The Cat Who Went to Heaven
Arthur Ransome, Swallows and Amazons
W. Somerset Maugham, Cakes and Ale
Bertrand Russell, The Conquest of Happiness
CHARACTERS, COMICS, CARTOONS
Flip the Frog
Betty Boop from Fleischer Studios' Dizzy Dishes and other cartoons
Rover (later renamed Pluto) from Disney's The Chain Gang (as an unnamed bloodhound) and The Picnic (as Rover)
Blondie and Dagwood from the Blondie comic strips by Chic Young
Flip the Frog from Fiddlesticks and other cartoons, by Ub Iwerks after he left Disney
Nine new Mickey Mouse cartoons, the initial week of Mickey Mouse comic strips, and ten new Silly Symphonies cartoons from Disney
FILMS
The Divorcee
All Quiet on the Western Front, directed by Lewis Milestone (winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture)
King of Jazz, directed by John Murray Anderson (musical revue featuring Paul Whiteman and Bing Crosby’s first feature-film appearance)
Cimarron, directed by Wesley Ruggles (winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, registered for copyright in 1930)
Animal Crackers, directed by Victor Heerman (starring the Marx Brothers)
Soup to Nuts, directed by Benjamin Stoloff (written by Rube Goldberg, featuring later members of The Three Stooges)
Morocco, directed by Josef von Sternberg (starring Gary Cooper, Marlene Dietrich, and Adolphe Menjou)
The Blue Angel (Der blaue Engel), directed by Josef von Sternberg (starring Marlene Dietrich)
Anna Christie, directed by Clarence Brown (Greta Garbo’s first talkie)
Hell's Angels, directed by Howard Hughes (Jean Harlow’s film debut)
The Big Trail, directed by Raoul Walsh (John Wayne’s first leading role)
The Big House, directed by George Hill
Murder!, directed by Alfred Hitchcock
L'Âge d'Or, directed by Luis Buñuel, written by Buñuel and Salvador Dalí
Free and Easy, directed by Edward Sedgwick (Buster Keaton’s first speaking role)
The Divorcee, directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Whoopee!, directed by Thornton Freeland
MUSICAL COMPOSITIONS
The Royal Welch Fusiliers
Four Songs - I Got Rhythm, I've Got a Crush on You, But Not for Me, and Embraceable You - with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, music by George Gershwin
Georgia on My Mind, lyrics by Stuart Gorrell, music by Hoagy Carmichael
Dream a Little Dream of Me, lyrics by Gus Kahn, music by Fabian Andre and Wilbur Schwandt
Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight, lyrics by Al Lewis, music by Al Sherman
On the Sunny Side of the Street, lyrics by Dorothy Fields, music by Jimmy McHugh
It Happened in Monterey, lyrics by Billy Rose, music by Mabel Wayne
Body and Soul, lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, Frank Eyton, music by Johnny Green
Just a Gigolo (the first English translation), original German lyrics by Julius Brammer, English translation by Irving Caesar, music by Leonello Casucci
You're Driving Me Crazy, lyrics and music by Walter Donaldson
Beyond the Blue Horizon, lyrics by Leo Robin, music by Richard A. Whiting and W. Franke Harling (possible inspiration for the Star Trek theme song)
The Royal Welch Fusiliers, by John Philip Sousa
Lots of good stuff that creative types can play with without fear of any sort of legal reprisal! The first appearance of Betty Boop, and the original version of Disney's Pluto, then called Rover. It's interesting to see the evolutions of characters, like how Mickey evolved from Steamboat Willy.
https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/publicdomainday/2026/
https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/01/01/1712212/public-domain-day-2026-brings-betty-boop-nancy-drew-and-i-got-rhythm-into-the-commons
Well, my LJ friends: it's time to switch platforms or lose your accounts!
Jan. 2nd, 2026 12:08 amthewayne[PLEASE post on your LJ account(s) and communities, if you have such, so as many people as possible know about this!]
It looks like the Putin government is getting ready to lock their social media sites in to Russian posters only and to require social media credits. Dream Width is doing what they can to smooth transferring LJ users over, and there are other sites that are LJ clones, but I can't name them. I think Insane Journal was one, I have no idea if they're still around. I moved to DW nine years ago this January and have no particular problems with it, and I would expect that Europeans would have no issues with payment.
This Bluesky post explains what's going on, and comments dig deeper and discuss alternative archive methods.
https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3mbebi2xfxc25
This LJ post explains things - in Russian. Google Translate should handle switching it into the language of your choice.
https://ru-news.livejournal.com/80899.html
I do hope you switch to DW. I know some of you are Facebookers, and if you decide to go there, I wish you well. I do not and will not use Meta properties.
Happy new year indeed.
When a date is announced for this lockout to go live, I will be deleting my account. My DW account is under this name, TheWayne.
It looks like the Putin government is getting ready to lock their social media sites in to Russian posters only and to require social media credits. Dream Width is doing what they can to smooth transferring LJ users over, and there are other sites that are LJ clones, but I can't name them. I think Insane Journal was one, I have no idea if they're still around. I moved to DW nine years ago this January and have no particular problems with it, and I would expect that Europeans would have no issues with payment.
This Bluesky post explains what's going on, and comments dig deeper and discuss alternative archive methods.
https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3mbebi2xfxc25
This LJ post explains things - in Russian. Google Translate should handle switching it into the language of your choice.
https://ru-news.livejournal.com/80899.html
I do hope you switch to DW. I know some of you are Facebookers, and if you decide to go there, I wish you well. I do not and will not use Meta properties.
Happy new year indeed.
When a date is announced for this lockout to go live, I will be deleting my account. My DW account is under this name, TheWayne.
2026 Friday Five #1
Jan. 2nd, 2026 09:43 amswingandswirlHere are my answers to this week's Friday Five!
1. Do you mostly drink tap, filtered, or bottled water?
At home, filtered, always. When out and about, I try to have a reusable water bottle with me, or ask for filtered water at restaurants, but sometimes I am forced to buy bottled water.
2. Is it safe/recommended to drink tap water where you live? If not, why?
Nope! I live in a developing country and while the water where I live is decent quality, it's still not potable. Most people use some kind of water filtration/purification system, or buy purified water from commercial vendors.
3. What does the tap water taste/smell like where you live?
Neutral, with a slight hint of chlorine from the purification process if it's from the municipal supply. I'm lucky to live somewhere with excellent groundwater.
4. Do you collect rainwater? If so, what do you use it for?
Rainwater harvesting is done by the municipality here and is standard. (I live somewhere prone to droughts.) It's used to replenish the water table.
5. Do you/have you ever had restrictions on water use where you live? What did you have to change about your lifestyle?
I have been lucky enough to never have had restrictions on water use, because my building has a borewell, so we were almost never dependent on municipal water supplies. There was a period of time where we supplemented the water from the borewell buy buying water commercially, but the thing with living in a drought city is that you're naturally careful about water use - to this day, I only take Navy-style showers, and have a deep and abiding hatred for golf courses. (Seriously, they should not exist in climes drier than Scotland. Why the fuck are there so many in Arizona?!) Seeing California ideas of 'restricted' water usage after growing up with people lining up to fill pots when the water tanker came was a trip, let me tell you.
1. Do you mostly drink tap, filtered, or bottled water?
At home, filtered, always. When out and about, I try to have a reusable water bottle with me, or ask for filtered water at restaurants, but sometimes I am forced to buy bottled water.
2. Is it safe/recommended to drink tap water where you live? If not, why?
Nope! I live in a developing country and while the water where I live is decent quality, it's still not potable. Most people use some kind of water filtration/purification system, or buy purified water from commercial vendors.
3. What does the tap water taste/smell like where you live?
Neutral, with a slight hint of chlorine from the purification process if it's from the municipal supply. I'm lucky to live somewhere with excellent groundwater.
4. Do you collect rainwater? If so, what do you use it for?
Rainwater harvesting is done by the municipality here and is standard. (I live somewhere prone to droughts.) It's used to replenish the water table.
5. Do you/have you ever had restrictions on water use where you live? What did you have to change about your lifestyle?
I have been lucky enough to never have had restrictions on water use, because my building has a borewell, so we were almost never dependent on municipal water supplies. There was a period of time where we supplemented the water from the borewell buy buying water commercially, but the thing with living in a drought city is that you're naturally careful about water use - to this day, I only take Navy-style showers, and have a deep and abiding hatred for golf courses. (Seriously, they should not exist in climes drier than Scotland. Why the fuck are there so many in Arizona?!) Seeing California ideas of 'restricted' water usage after growing up with people lining up to fill pots when the water tanker came was a trip, let me tell you.
Cruise Day 5: Cabo San Lucas: New Year's Day
Jan. 1st, 2026 08:26 pmdays_unfoldingThe dress that I’m wearing for New Year’s is the perfect travel dress. It doesn’t wrinkle. It’s a Chico’s petite maxi dress that you can dress up or down. It’s comfortable and flattering.
I’ve decided to stay up until midnight Illinois time, which is an hour earlier than our current ship’s time. I’m going to skip the shore excursion.
Apparently sequins and lamé are in. Lots of women wearing sparkly outfits.
They didn’t have a countdown for Central Time, but I drank my champagne (I forgot how much I like champagne) and silently toasted the New Year. I went looking for food, but the station wasn’t open. I’m not staying up until midnight ship’s time. Anyway, Happy New Year!
I went and got something to eat, so I did stay up until midnight ship’s time. Lots of people wishing each other Happy New Year.
One flute of champagne got me pretty wasted, so I’m going to sleep now. And I’m not setting an alarm.
Woke up at 8 AM. The hot water is finally back on in the shower. Oh frabjous day!
I like the looks of Cabo San Lucas. I’ll put it on my list (which keeps growing, not shrinking!)
My feet are very puffy. I'll lie down with them up. Good thing that I have a doctor's appointment when I get back.
Had lunch (Caesar salad and an eggnog soft-serve). Now I’m hanging out until my manicure. The captain announced that we'll be heading back to San Diego, which I knew. We'll have one more day at sea. We turn the clocks back tonight.
Had my manicure done. Waited for my nails to dry. Had dinner. I had some fatty duck that I didn’t like and some mushroom soup that was really good.
I went to check out the shops because there is a nice bag in the rooms that says "Holland America," and it would be great for my music for choir. They had only large canvas bags, which is not what I'm looking for.
It's still early, but I think that I'll post. I start yawning at dinner time. It must be the sea air.
I’ve decided to stay up until midnight Illinois time, which is an hour earlier than our current ship’s time. I’m going to skip the shore excursion.
Apparently sequins and lamé are in. Lots of women wearing sparkly outfits.
They didn’t have a countdown for Central Time, but I drank my champagne (I forgot how much I like champagne) and silently toasted the New Year. I went looking for food, but the station wasn’t open. I’m not staying up until midnight ship’s time. Anyway, Happy New Year!
I went and got something to eat, so I did stay up until midnight ship’s time. Lots of people wishing each other Happy New Year.
One flute of champagne got me pretty wasted, so I’m going to sleep now. And I’m not setting an alarm.
Woke up at 8 AM. The hot water is finally back on in the shower. Oh frabjous day!
I like the looks of Cabo San Lucas. I’ll put it on my list (which keeps growing, not shrinking!)
My feet are very puffy. I'll lie down with them up. Good thing that I have a doctor's appointment when I get back.
Had lunch (Caesar salad and an eggnog soft-serve). Now I’m hanging out until my manicure. The captain announced that we'll be heading back to San Diego, which I knew. We'll have one more day at sea. We turn the clocks back tonight.
Had my manicure done. Waited for my nails to dry. Had dinner. I had some fatty duck that I didn’t like and some mushroom soup that was really good.
I went to check out the shops because there is a nice bag in the rooms that says "Holland America," and it would be great for my music for choir. They had only large canvas bags, which is not what I'm looking for.
It's still early, but I think that I'll post. I start yawning at dinner time. It must be the sea air.
[ SECRET POST #6936 ]
Jan. 1st, 2026 07:21 pmcase posting in fandomsecrets⌈ Secret Post #6936 ⌋
Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.
01.
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Notes:
Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 12 secrets from Secret Submission Post #990.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
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Jan. 1st, 2026 05:56 pmravena_kadeDad was supposed to have a special MRI yesterday for the clots in head, but they gave him all his heart meds at the exact same time and his blood pressure hit the floor. As a result they would not let him get the MRI and the window closed. The also figured that they dehydrated him so they gave him 2 bags of fluid.
Today was the holiday so the special MRI was not running. They said that they would keep him until tomorrow for the MRI. If they cannot fit him in they will discharge him and just book an appointment for that MRI.
On Tuesday he has an appointment to meet a man with one of the heart pumps. I have also found a group on FB fr people and caregivers of people who have LVads. I have been compiling a list of questions that I hope won't be too invasive.
Yesterday I met with a social worker who has invited me to a support group for caregivers. I would like that.
I have decided that this year I will meal prep food for Dad and just reheat. I need to eat better myself, but to eat healthy for me it has to taste good. I need more veggies and the thing with Dad's diet change for the heart pump is that I have to watch how much vitamin K he as as it causes clotting and many of my favorite veggies are high in Vitamin K.
Today was the holiday so the special MRI was not running. They said that they would keep him until tomorrow for the MRI. If they cannot fit him in they will discharge him and just book an appointment for that MRI.
On Tuesday he has an appointment to meet a man with one of the heart pumps. I have also found a group on FB fr people and caregivers of people who have LVads. I have been compiling a list of questions that I hope won't be too invasive.
Yesterday I met with a social worker who has invited me to a support group for caregivers. I would like that.
I have decided that this year I will meal prep food for Dad and just reheat. I need to eat better myself, but to eat healthy for me it has to taste good. I need more veggies and the thing with Dad's diet change for the heart pump is that I have to watch how much vitamin K he as as it causes clotting and many of my favorite veggies are high in Vitamin K.