Halsted M. Bernard @cygnoir@mastodon.social

Whoops, I never did a proper #introduction!

I often describe myself as a:
* #writer of fiction … I write and perform stories
* chronicler of foibles … I am an online #diarist
* wrangler of chaos … I am a #librarian and database designer

My about page has more:
https://cygnoir.net/about/

What I'm up to now:
https://cygnoir.net/now/

This is a fun pattern to knit! 🧶 It will look gorgeous once it is blocked.

📚 Reading: “Riverine” by Danielle Jorgenson-Murray, a beautifully bittersweet story about a woman married off to a river. Published in Reckoning, a journal of creative writing on environmental justice. https://reckoning.press/riverine/

Can’t get enough of Lo-Fang’s cover of “You’re the One That I Want”. 🎧 Finally, a version that captures the creepiness! https://song.link/https://music.apple.com/us/album/youre-the-one-that-i-want/1147088543?i=1147088785

Next on the needles: I’m practicing YO (yarn over) with this drop-stitch scarf pattern. 🧶

Pen friends: Oblation Papers & Press is having a sale on fountain pen ink, including their own new brand! Oblation Olive looks beautiful. And peep that dusky purple Kyo No Oto Sakuranezumi. 😍🖋️ https://www.oblationpapers.com/pens-ink/ink/bottled-ink/

The one thing I wanted so badly to give FunkyPlaid for his birthday today was a visit to Scotland, our other home. But we indulged in high tea from Lovejoy’s, and a friend sent some lush Scottish treats. Missing our family and friends there so much!

Novel Eats, our summer of local food carts in the library parking lot, kicks off today with Bubbles & Treats! My drink is the Moxie with coconut milk. So good! https://bubblesandtreatspnw.com

Criminy and Crivens love it when I wind skeins of yarn into “cakes” with my swift. 😻🧶😻

Finished the triangle garter wrap! 🧶 I’m glad it’s done, but I’ll miss getting lost in the pattern’s cozy simplicity.

I stand by the recommendations in this post, Writing On the Go, with one amendment: After using Field Notes for a while now, I’m switching back to pocket notebooks with Tomoe River paper. Paper preference is so personal! https://fromthe.study/writing-on-the-go/

This week has been such A Week that getting my second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine was the least notable thing that happened. 🩹 The side-effects were milder this time (whew) and I’ll be fully vaccinated on May 4th!

Whoosh! The time machine of music whisked me back to 1989 Chicago with just the first few notes of “Treason” by Naked Raygun. 🎧 I do not know how the sorcery of Spotify found me out, but there I was, and here I am. https://song.link/i/1120037550

I always feel better after a walk in the sunshine. I wish I would remember that.

On Tuesday, I received my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. 🩹 The vaccination process was smooth and quick. I experienced mild nausea and dizziness plus a moderate headache for ~72 hours, annoying but expected and manageable. Now I feel great!

Today’s tools: TWSBI Diamond Mini fountain pen, Goby Design pocket notebook with Field Notes inside, and an OliClip. Portable, refillable, and a joy to use.

I learned the 5D’s of bystander intervention at the Hollaback training yesterday. Distract is my go-to, and I want to get better at Document and Direct. I highly recommend this training! https://www.ihollaback.org/bystander-resources/

Both kittens absolutely lose their minds when FunkyPlaid closes his door to record a presentation. I’m attempting to distract them, with mixed results. (Crivens will just sit here, thank you very much.)

Housing for everyone. Now.

Candace Avalos column: Our unhoused neighbors deserve a safe and clean place to sleep https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2021/03/candace-avalos-column-our-unhoused-neighbors-deserve-a-safe-and-clean-place-to-sleep.html

Daphne odora, I love to say your name, to catch your not-quite-citrus and not-quite-vanilla scent on a rain-ridden gust. You and the ocean were my first West Coast crushes. One glimpse and I’m all right.

During my lunch break today, I passed the 75% mark on this triangle garter wrap. 🧶 Each side is now 39” long!