kithrup - Tumblr blog

[kithrup]

you know who’s gay? paul the real estate novelist who never had time for a wife and davey who’s still in the navy and probably will be for life

[kithrup]

[kithrup]

Image description: A four page black and white comic of my tortoiseshell cat, Bunny, complaining that I won’t let her in from the screen porch.

Page 1 

Panel 1: A small tortoiseshell cat sits on the other side of a glass door, looking up sadly, saying, “Mama! Mama, help! I’m in the screen porch!” 

Panel 2: She scratches at the door. “Mama! Mama I’m trapped! I’m trapped in the screen porch! Mama!” she cries. 

Panel 3: She looks through the glass with her sad, innocent expression. “I see you, Mama! Can’t you hear me? Why won’t you let me in? What have I done, Mama!”

Panel 4: The left corner is dominated by a close up of her face, as she reminisces about the cat tree in the screen porch. We see her perched on the very top, looking out over the backyard.

She says, “Was I not grateful enough, Mama? You gave me a throne, here in the screen porch! A place where I could look down upon the world as a god!”

Page 2

Panel 1: While she’s perched atop her cat tree, it begins to rain outside. Bunny looks askance at it from behind the screen. 

“But I couldn’t touch it, Mama!” she narrates, now in boxes instead of word balloons, “I could see the rain lavish the earth, but never feel its cool caress!”

Panel 2: A paw rests on the screen. On the other side, two birds chirp, unbothered by the presence of Bunny.

 “I could smell the blood of the song birds, but never taste its warmth! I lived as Tantalus in this screen porch, Mama!”

Panel 3: Sitting on a cushioned chair, bunny looks out over the yard, barred from her by the porch screen. 

“Tormented by what I could never reach!” 

Page 3

Panel 1 : Another reminiscence, this time of Bunny running through the open door to the screen porch earlier that day while I was taking out the garbage. 

“And yet I returned, again and again and again! Was that my sin, Mama? Is this my punishment? To be condemned forever to a hell of my own choosing?” 

Panel 2: Returning to the present, Bunny looks up from the otherside of the door, her eyes wide.

“Is this what you call justice, Mama?” She says. “Is this what you call love?” 

Panel 3: From Bunny’s perspective we see me; I am ignoring her, going about my business. She calls out to me, “Answer me, Mama! Mama!”

Panel 4:I glance back at her, unmoved by her cries. “Mama!” she yells. 

Page 4

Panel 1: Pulling out we finally see more of the wall which has the door to the screen porch. Directly beside it is a cat door that goes through the wall, out into the screen porch. Another cat, Bunny’s sister Maggie, is coming through the cat flap with no issue.

 I say, “ Bunny, I know you know how to use the cat door.”

Clawing at the window, tears in her eyes, Bunny screams “MAMA!!”

End ID.

[kithrup]

We’ve been domesticating cats for about 10k years (whereas dogs started around 40k years ago OR LONGER); as a result, I tend to say cats are only half domesticated.

But, in the context of this thread, one thing that is *certain* is that, a few thousand years ago, Egyptians *did* select their cats for desired traits. We have no idea what they were (other than they did domesticate cheetahs), but there was simply no way they did *not* do so, because they were human and that’s what we do.

I just find this funny.

hello since you seem to know lots about cats could you possibly tell me what my little skrunkly creature is she is small (i can use 1 hand to comfortably hold her and she feels almost weightless despite not being underweight), very fluffy with a plumed tail, amber eyes and is a calico i have tried to search cat breeds but none of them match im not even sure what mix she could be

Most cats aren't any breed, or any mix of breeds. "Purebred" cats are less than 150 years old and represent a phenomenally tiny portion of the total domestic cat population. Every trait found in purebreds is also found in the general cat population still, outside of extreme exaggerations (think the severely smush-faced persians, for example).

Unless you specifically got your cat from a breeder, she is a domestic mediumhair or longhair.

Also, if she is an adult and that petite, it might be a good idea to run some basic bloodwork and make sure everything is working correctly.

[kithrup]

This does not appear to be accurate: https://onlysky.media/hemant-mehta/preacher-claims-he-dissolved-his-churchs-tax-exemption-for-political-gain/

I believe people complained, but it is very, very rare for a church to lose their tax-exempt status. They do get warned, but ... nothing tends to come of it.

https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/irs-complaint-process-tax-exempt-organizations

3. Nature of violation

Directors/Officers/Persons are using income/assets for personal gain

Organization is engaged in commercial, for-profit business activities

Income/Assets are being used to support illegal or terrorist activities

Organization is involved in a political campaign

Organization is engaged in excessive lobbying activities

Organization refused to disclose or provide a copy of Form 990

Organization failed to report employment, income or excise tax liability properly

Organization failed to file required federal tax returns and forms

Organization engaged in deceptive or improper fundraising practices

Other (describe)

[kithrup]

Oh man that was tough. I voted for Wrede, but that's just *barely* ahead of Circle of Magic, Tortall, and Duane.

[kithrup]

Like proper nazi-punching gentlemen, they met in person and talked over drinks.

can’t get over when famous gangster lucky luciano was like “hey lansky seems like quite a hassle getting all those nazis offa your terf you want us to help ya out” and meyer “Left Russia Because of Pogroms and Became A Gangster In The US” lansky was like “no. no getting to beat the shit out of nazis is reward enough for us. sorry lucky this one’s personal don’t worry about it”

[kithrup]

I never had an AOL or MySpace account.

oh god I have zero points, I am pointless and ancient and gentle 

[kithrup]

One of the aspects of a healthy economy is churn -- or what I like to call froth -- which is cash changing hands. (Or not cash, but small amounts  -- a million people buying a Big Mac results in a healthier economy than one person buying a 4 million dollar house.)

And that viewpoint demonstrates very well why billionares are *bad* for an economy. (And also why taxes on poor people are bad, but are good on rich people.)

So poor people don’t deserve to have money?!

[kithrup]

Well that’s not quite true, Alaska did as well, but were moose prefer to play soccer.

Had a weird dream last night that included someone complaining that Canada always won the fantasy football league “because they’ve got all the damn were-moose.”

[kithrup]

Yeah it turns out that you can perform Shakespeare word-for-word and *still* give it a modern vibe.

That was indeed glorious.

undefined

i am once again asking you to watch the 2019 shakespeare in the park production of much ado about nothing

[kithrup]

A friend says their cat eats food he’s allergic to deliberately, to make sure he barfs while they’re asleep.

Pippin has unfortunately figured out that if he plays with something he’s not supposed to, he gets my attention

as if he doesn’t get it enough 🙄 it’s just when i’m working and not paying attention to him bc of that work that he decides to rebel

[kithrup]

Nick O’Donohoe’s Crossworlds books have that something like that happen: a pair of well-meaning vets steal a pair of whooping cranes to bring them to a pristine world. And are very very very startled when they get to their destination, and a flock of thousands of whooping cranes get startled and leap into the air. Noisily. (And another time, Our Heroes are implored to move a group of dodos to a different island. So they swim with them, and try to keep them from drowning. And a randy selkie helps them and attempts to woo the women. I wish these books were available electronically.)

here is a concept: time travel cop, fish & wildlife division

most of their job is dealing with the kinds of assholes who think black market tiger cubs are a great idea right up until someone gets mauled, except these are even bigger assholes with black market Smilodon cubs that they are even less equipped to care for

this is the most straightforward and therefore relatively headache-free part of their job, because it’s the same “put that thing back where it came from or so help me” song and dance every time

it’s also significantly less depressing than the trophy hunters who don’t even want an alive extinct animal. those are extra annoying because you have to undo the time travel that let them kill that poor Megatherium or thylacine or anklyosaur or whatever, and it’s always so much extra paperwork.

and those people suck, definitely, and have fully earned a stint in Time Jail. no question. but they still do not create anywhere near as much work as the obsessive hobbyists with their exhaustively careful best practices and worryingly good track-covering. also, weirdly, it’s almost always birds with them?

like. the guys who will flagrantly abuse Time Law to bird-nap breeding pairs just long enough to raise one clutch of eggs apiece, and return them seamlessly to their spots on the timeline. who are so determined to keep their pet (ha) projects going that no one even realizes what they’re doing until they have an entire stable breeding population of passenger pigeons up and running. who are now the reason that reps from six different zoos are about to start throwing hands right in front of you over who gets dibs.

those guys cause the most paperwork. and half the time they’re snapped up by the same zoo or wildlife preserve that gets their colony of ivory-billed woodpeckers or Carolina parakeets or — once, very memorably — giant fucking South Island moa, and they never even spend a day in Time Jail.

[kithrup]

The overlap between the two is the thing that turned Romeo+Juliet into an actual tragedy for me.

yknow if romeo had just Cried on juliets corpse for a couple hours instead of drinking poison Right Then they would have been Fine

[kithrup]

Am I the only one who thought this was going to end up having no computer, but perhaps a temporal link in the phone system?

Me: “How can I help you today, ma'am?” Client: “Is e-mail internet”? Me: “I beg your pardon?” Client: “Is e-mail on the internet? I have no internet, can I still read my e-mail?” Me: “Well yes, you must be able to get online to view your e-mail.” Client: “Oh, dear. I can’t see my e-mail.” Me: “Well, let’s see. Can you open up Internet Explorer for me and tell me what you see?” Client: “Open what?” Me: “Your browser, can you open up your browser?” Client: “My…my…?” Me: “What you click on when you want to browse the internet?” Client: “I don’t use anything, I just turn my computer on, and it’s there.” Me: “Okay. Do you see the little blue ‘e’ icon on your desktop?” Client: “You mean I have to start writing letters again?” Me: “I’m…what, I’m sorry?” Client: “I don’t have any pens at my desk. I just want my e-mail again.” Me: “No, ma'am, your desktop, on your computer screen. Can you click on the little blue ‘e’ on your computer screen for me?” Client: “Oh, this is too much work. I’m too upset. Just send me my e-mail. Can’t you send me my e-mail?” Me: “We…okay, ma'am. Can you tell me what color the lights are on your router right now?” Client: “My what?” Me: “The little box with green or possibly a couple of red lights on it right now - it’s most likely near your computer?”

Client: “Lights and boxes, boxes and lights, just get my e-mail for me.

Me: “My test is showing that you should be able to get online right now. Can you tell me what you’re seeing on your computer screen?” Client: “It’s been the same thing for the last two hours.” Me: “An error message?” Client: “No, just stars. It’s black and moving stars.” Me: “…Do you see your mouse next to your keyboard?” Client: “Yes.”

Me: “Move it for me.” Client: “Move it?” Me: “Yes. Move it.” Client: “My e-mail!”

[kithrup]

Did Walter Bishop write this?

so when a doctor spends 30 minutes performing CPR and revives someone they're "a hero" and it's "a miracle they could come back after being dead that long" but when I spend 6 months synthesising new organs to bring them back after the doctors failed it's "horrifying to witness" and "a crime against nature itself" and "technically graverobbing but none of the laws cover it so we're not entirely sure what to charge you with". Typical

[kithrup]

Diane’s wizards at war, as a concept, reminds me a lot of Zenna Henderson’s The People -- one of whom was an airman on the plane that dropped one of the nukes; the comment was that he had been broken ever since, and was still under full-time Healer care.

Given the current geopolitical situation... What do wizards do in war?

The tl:dr; version: Mostly keep their heads down while attempting to keep the local entropy-increase from getting worse than it already is.

...But speaking less facetiously: Wizards absolutely do go to war (and in fact I seem to remember a book that got into that, in a wide-angle sort of way). It's nowhere written that wizards can't kill—and there's a "conversation" with Tom Swale here that gets a little way into the philosophical details of this issue.

The challenges for the practicing wizard involve not just the usual ones for a practitioner working in a sevarfrith culture, but the ongoing one of determining how to participate in a way that both honors the spirit of the Wizard's Oath and is also effective against the aggressor in the conflict. This can range from direct person-against-person action—always with the intent to do as little actual harm as possible—to the extremely effective methods that involve interfering with the way weapons work, either on the small scale or the large. (I.e.: sabotaged electronics, micro-EMPs, sudden interference with local weather that reduces previously-attractive "tank country" to an impassable ocean of sludge, talking very specific functions of GPS satellites out of working properly...)

Probably the greatest danger to wizards on the battlefield is the chance that they'll fall afoul of their own pain, grief and outrage... because the sheer awfulness of war can take even the best-prepared wizard by horrified surprise. (A fact which the Lone Power will always be willing to exploit.) And there are probably thousands of stories scattered up and down the long history of errantry on Earth that make this point, either painfully—when wizards fail—or triumphantly, when they succeed.

but generally speaking: what wizards want to do with wars is stop them. ...And sometimes it even works.

...By rights, this topic needs a long essay. (Or possibly a novel.) But in the meantime: HTH!