Francesca Forrest's Blog, page 127

1400 people….

On the news, talking about fires in California, they said 1400 people were evacuated. (Or maybe it was 1200--it was either twelve or fourteen. Hundred.) I always assume, when I hear a number like that, that it's rounded off. The chances that it's a perfect fourteen hundred--not 1,396, not 1,407 or 1,421--seem low to me, though I suppose it's possible.

But if it's rounded off, that means the actual number is either higher or lower. If it's higher, that means there are displaced people who aren'...

post on the occasion of Eid

I'm not Muslim, but the fact that people in my online spheres are celebrating Eid reminds me of a time, many years past, when our phone number was the same as the phone number of a mosque in Quincy, Massachusetts--but with two of the digits reversed.

It took us a while to realize what was going on. All of a sudden one day, phone calls started coming in asking us when the sun was setting. And other calls began with the greeting salaam alaikum, which I hazily recognized for what it was, though...

Today in Pen Pal (post 1 of 2): Sumi

On July 27, Kaya wrote a journal entry in which she recalled the day she found Sumi, her pet crow. She also wrote a letter to Em. Here is her first glimpse of Sumi:

All along the dock, draped from rails, yellow and orange nets hung limply, drying, but this one was rippling and writhing. The other nets were sleeping. This one was having nightmares.


(photo by Liz Amis on Flickr)

Something was in there, tossing about like a fish. I came closer and saw it was a bird, but not a white-winged gull or t...

This day in Pen Pal: top marks

On July 26, Kaya, writing about her childhood in her journal, recalled the day she discovered that the boy who'd won a scholarship to a prestigious secondary school was not the top scorer on the qualifying exam:

I caught a glimpse of Ramiratam’s exam on the headmaster’s desk when I was dropping off the attendance. In the final box, neatly printed in red: ninety-five. Five points higher than the score Nawalam was bragging about to one and all. Ramiratam was the top scorer. Why didn’t he say any...

super premium

At the train station, there were single-serving packages of instant oatmeal for sale. Not just any instant oatmeal, but Super Premium oatmeal. Super premium oatmeal? How does oatmeal get to be super premium, exactly? What distinguishes it from run-of-the-mill oatmeal? Are there any other things that are unlikely candidates for super premium status? The healing angel suggested traffic cones and elevators. I suggested intersections and nail clippers.


ckd linked me to this Tumblr post by Tumblr...

thunderstorm blues

We're having a thunderstorm just now. Actually, it seems to be fading, but the thunder at the height sounded just like someone pounding a door and stomping around in heavy work boots.



thunder knocking at my door

thunder knocking at my door

what you stomping round here for?




don't want your lightning or your rain

don't want your lightning or your rain

you bring 'em to me all the same




and now I hear you're going away

you're rolling off and going away

I almost wish you'd maybe stay

Today in Pen Pal: Kaya's mother sends her a letter

Kaya'a mother sends her a letter, updating her on how her friends are doing and sending her Em's reply to Kaya's first letter:

Look what came for you—a letter from your new friend in America. I am doing as you suggested and sending it along with my note to you.

She also talks a little about the fact that the government is billing Kaya's imprisonment as an honor:

As for the government’s story regarding your “elevation,” most people recognize it as mockery, just another insult that must be borne....

sunset and adventures

I went out to get some coriander seeds from the garden, only the sky was doing this:



and this



It was very exciting.

Another thing that was exciting was yesterday, at the airport. I had to pick up wakanomori but there were some problems. Customs and immigration were in a bad mood because there was a huge backlog and pileup of people because of a bunch of planes being rerouted because of thunderstorms, and so they were detaining bunches of people, including him! He got off one text message to me t...

The mighty burdock

Sometime last week, I shared with osprey_archer this image of Fergus the Forager, in his suit made of burdock leaves:



( osprey_archer , someone asked him in comments how he made it, and he said he did it by glueing the leaves to a preexisting cloth suit--so it's not like those leaves had to hold up on their own!)

His whole entry on burdock is fascinating. I knew about burdock root as a food, because I prepared it all the time in Japan. My favorite recipe is kimpira gobo, which I'll share before...

Very reduced connectivity for the next few days

In a couple of hours I'm heading to my dad's house, and then on Friday I'm driving with him to Readercon (though, we will not arrive until quite late--in time for his panel, though). Since I have no laptop, I will likely not be posting or responding to comments until sometime on Monday.

I hope your next few days are bright and beautiful--or shady and cool, or thunderous and dramatic, depending on your own preference--and I'll catch up with everyone next week.