NOT me rewriting my entire reading summary post to take out the Animal Crossing content. >_> As usual, my intentions were modest, but the AC photos ballooned out of control, and my attempt to include my newest obsession in this post ended with me separating the AC content into its own post. (Two posts in one day? I’ve really lost my shit.) As my Twitter feed can attest, I fell down the AC rabbit hole one week ago today when my brother showed me his island. I ran to the store to buy a Switch almost immediately, and now I have a house, a museum, and a store, and I’m getting the island ready to receive my first wave of immigrants. Also, learning through Facebook that I rolled out of bed at 10 instead of 11 is legit the best thing that’s happened to me today, because more time for AC. The addiction is real, guys.
In non-AC-related news, I am coming to you live from my new iMac! 😀 Way back in 2019, when I was looking for a replacement for my seven-year-old grad school MacBook, I made the mistake of buying the cheapest iMac money could get. This was a bad move because technology really is an investment, and in this case I got what I paid for, which was a less powerful computer that wasn’t really equipped to deal with multiple Adobe programs being open at once. This literally was a computer that had trouble just opening Chrome, and every time I opened the internet I had to refresh two of my three auto-open tabs because they never loaded on the first try. The computer could open the Adobe programs and do things, but it required 24 hours’ written notice before even just opening Photoshop, and every program from Word to InDesign took at least five minutes to open. It was like this out of the box, and I have spent the last three years being disappointed with its performance.
For all of these reasons, I finally gave up on hoping the computer would spontaneously morph into a better computer, and traded it in for one of the candy-colored iMacs I have been eyeing covetously for the last year or so. Fare thee well, 2019 iMac. You weren’t great, but you tried, and I hope you go to an owner less demanding than I was.
Recording Mr. 2019 in his box for posterity, because it looks like he’s wearing a hat and it’s just funny.
Unfortunately the buying process did not go completely smoothly, because I was counting on paying for the new computer in installments and did not realize that you have to have the Apple Card to do that. This is why they tell you to read the fine print, only I didn’t and therefore my trip to the Apple Store included an awkward segment in which I misspelled my bank password three times while trying to make sure I had enough in my checking account to buy the computer. This was absolutely a moment where I was so glad that I came to my senses five years ago and realized that freelancing just wasn’t for me, because that realization laid the foundation for me to acquire a job that enables me to buy what I need and I am so grateful for that. In conclusion: all’s well that ends well, and the computer came home with me.
Playing AC while I waited for my back-up files to transfer and my Adobe apps to download, because I will never not be addicted.
Of course the first thing I did even before I really got started on the set-up was download Chrome, because words cannot adequately express how much I dislike Safari. There was also an unpleasant misadventure involving my MS Office subscription, which the MS programs did not recognize, not even when I threatened to call their mother. Then when I finally did call Apple Support, it turned out that I am a dumb-dumb and there was a link on the MS login window that let me activate my existing subscription with a code. In my defense, it looked like it was a part of the password reset tool, and that is a dumb way to be running things. Then when I had everything set up the way I wanted it (barring the Adobe programs, which I still need to tweak), I failed to notice that Photoshop’s default unit of measurement was inches, so I accidentally blew up one of my blog photos to 1,000 inches rather than the intended 1,000 pixels. And with that, I am asking my last two brain cells to kindly please get their shit together, because I stopped being amused five years ago.
October Reading Stats
Books Finished:
- Circe – Madeline Miller
- Fire & Blood – George R.R. Martin
- Nona the Ninth – Tamsyn Muir
Total Pages Read: 1,599
This is the rare month where I actually have published review posts in advance of my reading summary, and it is such a nice feeling. The October MVP is without question Nona the Ninth, which was sheer perfection. There’s always a little worry in the back of my mind that the Locked Tomb series might grow less endearing over time, especially given my feelings on Harrow the Ninth (which I did still love), but it seems I worry in vain because Tamsyn Muir really knows what she’s doing. Now I just have to finish the audio book, which is also wonderful, and read the Locked Tomb companion stories while I wait for Alecto the Ninth.
In Westeros-related thoughts, holy shit am I glad House of the Dragon is over for now. My feelings are extremely mixed, though I will be watching season 2 because I am still trash and they hooked me with their finale. The book also helped drag me in deeper; it’s dry as fuck and the writing is infuriating, but it provided a lot of important information and kept me interested in the show.
Currently Reading
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Susanna Clarke
I read two sentences and promptly threw in the towel for this year. This is going to be a next-year project.
Hamnet
Maggie O’Farrell
Current rating: 4.5-5 stars. This is lovely. I wouldn’t say it’s fast-paced, but it’s thoughtful and written in a style that works really well with the tone of the book, though in other contexts the style might well drive me nuts. This is the kind of book that invites a more deliberate approach to reading, and I’m taking my time with it. So far I really love Agnes, and overall I am expecting great things. (And it’s also made me cry and I’m only on page 57, and that is just rude.)
Random Goodies
Maybe I should stop congratulating myself for not buying books, because every time I do that this happens. I mean, I just had a new BN open near me. It was so shiny and pretty. What was I supposed to do, just go in and not buy books?
And, finally, one of my latest photos of the Queen of Lap-Snuggling. Because clearly I don’t take enough of those.
