insta pot

unboxing ourselves into the modern age.

drywood termite

the young man who shows up is very kind. we usually advise you to dispose of the piece once we see wings, he explains. buang, HOM translates for me. there goes a beloved secretary. the inside shelved piece is discarded. i sincerely hope the rest of it remains free of that white sandy stuff.

getting from A to B

the trains are out today so i take the bus to work.

one word to describe it all.

sardine.

reflections on kosuke kindaichi

to clarify, these are my reflections on the translated kindaichi books:

• convoluted plots galore with firm commitment to satisfying if somewhat far-fetched denouements
• and (from my reading so far, limited by availability of translations) fresh revelations to the very end
• surprisingly up-to-date themes, for stuff written in the middle of the last century: premarital sex same-sex sex twisted sex... you get my drift
• unfortunately under-developed emotions on the part of the detectives, who barely feel anything other than rage or irritation or shock or great distress. exhausting, is wot i say. perhaps some nuances were lost in translation

but generally satisfying in a very fair-play sense.

complete the sentence

you know it's been a long day when...

...you look at the dog pooping on the concrete floor in the dark and think to yourself what a strange place to poop at and the little boy stands up from his squatting posture.

laundry day

today i do a load of laundry in the machines. because O is home on her vacation and we are dangerously low on undies. here are some life reflections:

• standards are adjustable. our current is driven by underwear inventory
• i'll only iron over the weekend is a sound time management concept, only bettered by
• i may not need to iron this, really
• wool dryer balls are a game changer in terms of static generated and time needed

the hen who dreamed she could fly - sun-mi hwang (2000)

coming-of-age fable for parents especially mothers which manages to avoid self-pitiful tropes whilst dealing with trope-heavy issues like the young flying the coop. i really like that sprout is feistily living life on her own terms and not focusing on the pain and sorrow but on the present and the enjoyable instead. the illustrations incidentally are delightful.