slightly left of center

I started the day with the usual "ugh, mornings!" mood, not improved by the fact that my computer wouldn't turn on (it took IT about 1.5 hours to show up, and of course it was a quick & stupid fix). So I wrote some postcards and chatted with teachers, whose last day it was. And I got a couple of doughnuts!

It was a good mail day, with a neat postcard from kalloway, and a box from misbegotten, with a neat t-shirt, and an autographed book! I guess the author is local, so she was able to get it inscribed to me. Doesn't this sound right up my alley? American Bacon: The History of a Food Phenomenon - In American Bacon, Mark A. Johnson asks (and answers) a seemingly simple question: How has bacon overcome centuries of religious prohibition, cultural contempt, and dietary advice to become a twenty-first-century culinary and cultural powerhouse? Starting in early modern Britain and tracing the story of bacon through the colonial era, the Civil War, the Progressive Era, modern fad diets, and the emerging craft bacon industry, Johnson provides a new perspective on some familiar American narratives. More than a story of production, marketing, and consumption, Johnson argues, this cultural history connects bacon to race, class, and gender while also illuminating major historical forces, such as migration, warfare, urbanization and suburbanization, reform movements, cultural trends, and globalization. For Johnson, bacon’s story from “most dangerous food in the supermarket” to pop culture and gastronomic phenomenon reflects the cultural values of a nation.

I'd love a reverse swear jar situation where I put a dollar in and it gives me a new and exciting expletive to use. I'd end up accidentally saving SO MUCH money (and learning some cool new words)!

In 1776, Angry New Yorkers Tore Down a Statue of George III With a Revolutionary Fervor. A New Exhibition Lets You Do It, Too
New York City played a pivotal role in the American Revolution. This museum brings the city’s 18th-century history to life through artifacts, immersive environments and interactive experiences
This simulation is part of “The Occupied City,” an exhibition marking America’s semiquincentennial. The show focuses on New York City’s pivotal role in the Revolutionary War, tracing “the first sparks of rebellion” in 1763 to the city’s brief stint as the new nation’s capital from 1785 to 1790.

Once I could use my computer, it was a pretty decent day - there was enough work to keep me (mostly) busy, albeit with some quality screwing off periods, mediocre (but free is a very good price) foodz from a teacher potluck, and while not direct, the ride home wasn't too awful. and! I have a cool Bacon book to explore.

The eyes often give them away - camouflaged cats

Since there won't be teachers in the building for the next five weeks, I doubled-checked that my alarm code still works, so I can get in without issue. The folks upstairs work all sorts of schedules, so there's no guarantee that anyone would beat me in.

Replica Rises at Stonehenge as Archaeologists and Volunteers Build With Prehistoric Tools and Techniques
The reconstruction of a prehistoric building, likely originally a place for winter feasts at the nearby Durrington Walls site, will serve as a learning space for students
The building itself was fashioned using Neolithic tools, including flint axes, which themselves needed to be cobbled together using accurate stone and wood. The project sourced wood via coppicing, an ancient sustainable woodland management technique that involves felling trees close to their base to stimulate faster regrowth. Thatch and chalk daub—a thick mixture of straw, water and chalk—were made to insulate the hall’s walls and slanted roof. In addition to mastering ancient carpentry techniques, the project’s leaders analyzed pollen data to ensure the right natural materials were used.

WeRateDogs added some bonus dogs this week - it's the Top Fifteen! - (no one needs as much supervision as the guy in # 14 is getting)

that word doesn't mean what you think it does, episode # 683
"She planted her hands on her cantilevered hips" Does anyone have any idea just what the writer meant here? I'm drawing a complete blank, as afaik, body parts aren't generally cantilevered

Someone translated translated the Ea-Nasir complaint letter into Vulcan into Vulcan and engraved it in on a copper plate!

I'm not sure just how I stumbled across the first book in this series but with LIFT rides offering an excuse to read actual novels, I gulped it down, insta-bought the second in the series upon finishing it, and have already purchased the third so it's ready when I'm done with the 2nd.
Oak King Holly King (series) by Sebastian Nothwell
The first is a novel, the succeeding books are collections of shorter works featuring the characters/universe. I've been quite enjoying the worldbuilding, which alternates between Victorian London/England, and the lands of Faery, with all sorts of fae characters. The author has a way with words, including period-appropriate speaking/writing styles; I totally appreciate his using the language of the time, even for matters sexual - i.e., Cockstand (erection) and Fundament (asshole). It looks like he's got other m/m novels which I shall likely explore at some time.

A book meme* seen on bluesky (not in chronological order)
*list likely not complete. There's tons of SF/Fantasy & mystery stuff I read in the 70s/80s for which I cannot recall titles/authors

authors you've read at least 20 books by, living or dead
Isaac Asimov
Robert Asprin
Poul Anderson
Ben Bova
Steven Brust
Jim Butcher
Sarina Bowen
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Agatha Christie
C. J. Cherryh
Dorothy Dunnett
Diane Duane
David Drake
Jonathan Gash
Reginald Hill
Georgette Heyer
Robert Heinlein
Fritz Leiber
Sharon Lee/Steve Miller
Anne McCaffrey
Ngaio Marsh
Barbara Michaels/Elizabeth Peters
Alistair McLean
John D MacDonald
Lois McMaster Bujold
Michael Moorcock
Andre Norton
Ruth Rendell
S.M. Stirling
Shakespeare if plays count
Rosemary Sutcliff
Rex Stout
Dorothy L. Sayers
PG Wodehouse
Donald Westlake