Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #944
I am aware that I am writing to you incredibly late today. I know. And I'm sorry, especially since I gotta get up early tomorrow to bring Momma to the kitty dentist to potentially get some of her teeth pulled (the poor thing...), but... today was astoundingly productive. And that's part of the reason I'm writing so late in the first place.
I started today with preparing a meal. I figured this would be a good enough brunch-ish sort of thing. It's got all the necessary components of a food, even if its composition is non-traditional for brunch. Nothing too fancy – just another iteration of baked chicken leg quarters, because it's simple and easy and delicious every time, so... ya know. Classics are classics for reasons.
You remember how it goes, right? First you preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190.5 degrees Celsius). Then, you snap the stringy ends off your asparagus, stick them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, drizzle them with olive oil, and season them with whatever the fuck you want. I used my usual combination – salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder:
Then you put your chicken on another baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Season these, too, with whatever the fuck you want. But I used the same stuff I put on the asparagus, haha... This one is probably my favorite seasoning combination, actually, for savory foods.
Once both things are seasoned and the oven is finished preheating, you just stick it all on there for an hour, easy peasy. During that hour, I washed dishes, and changed into a new set of Invisaligns, because it is somehow that day of the week again (seriously, where did the freaking time go, holy shit...), and I wanted to get it done and out of the way. Here's the top jaw, compared to the set I started out with so long ago:
Here's the lower jaw, too:
Once my teeth were squared away, I began preparing boxed macaroni and cheese to go with everything; I use Cracker Barrel. And then, before I knew it, though, everything was done:
...The asparagus didn't turn out crispy this time, but still, everything was really good overall. Here, have a plate; it's good for ya!
The rest of today... kinda passed by in a blur. Once I was finished with eating, I did some more dishes, and then followed up on the endocrinology referral that my primary care doctor has been trying to send to this one place; apparently, they keep not getting faxes, which is weird, so I called them, and they gave me a different fax number to send along to my regular doctor's office, so then I called my doctor's office, and they re-faxed the referral to the new number. I'm gonna call back in another couple of days to see if it's been sorted out; goodness knows I need my endocrine system checked out for a variety of weird shit it's been doing my whole life.
Then, I wanted to go to the hardware store and a store with desks, because... well... both of our toilets are busted as hell and are long overdue for replacement. And... I wanted to move my work/writing/recording/PC gaming area upstairs to my art room, where I will be undisturbed by encroaching cats or by whatever M and J have on the TV at any given time. But I didn't wanna go alone, because I've never bought a toilet before, and so I played Nine Sols until J was ready to go.
...Well... J wasn't ready to go until after his shift was over, and I was having so much fun that I didn't realize how much time had truly passed. Whoops. Haha...
...Yi... seems to be learning and growing, as a character. I dislike him slightly less than before. But Kuafu is still a speciesist prick. It's nice to imagine kicking him in his smarmy, arrogant, elitist shins.
We did eventually go out to get the things. I don't have a picture of the toilets, because they're gonna be delivered tomorrow, I guess, and J and I will try to replace the ones we have once the new ones get here. And then we went and got me a desk for upstairs, and a chair to go with it. Both things were relatively inexpensive, thank goodness. But some assembly was required.
...Sephiroth. A solid piece of life advice. If you ever have to assemble some furniture, like an office chair or a desk or whatever, and you think to yourself, “it is just some simple item; how long can it possibly take?”... that is dark forces talking. Do not underestimate furniture assembly, even if the instructions are clear and there's no confusion about what parts go where. It is still a process. You will NOT, in fact, have it done in 30 minutes or less. And that is why I'm writing to you at 1:30am.
...The results, though, are pretty rad. I'm super stoked about how cozily it turned out:
...My poor laptop. Its hardware... is very old. The hinges are broken. The keyboard doesn't work in places. The screen doesn't work. The touchpad isn't very good. So... it runs on peripherals now. Its USB ports still work, and its hard drives and processors and such are still good, so... it's totally fine. It just needs a little bit of help, that's all. And it's got that help.
What's nice about this desk, too, is the little shelf slightly higher than the rest of the desk, for the monitor. I – a tall person – am not all hunched over my desk like I'm seeking to be in the fetal position, just to read my screen anymore. This chair that I'm using has been adjusted to be a bit lower to the floor than the regular wooden chair I was using, which puts a bit less strain on my knees and ankles, too. My posture is a lot better here. And it's gonna be warmer up here in the winter than it is downstairs. I'm pretty thrilled about how this turned out, actually.
And you know what? The very first thing I did at this desk was breathe life into today's wishes for you.
...Despite today being filled with so many things, this letter feels relatively short, still. But... it can't really be helped, because I gotta get my sleepy ass to bed. Up early tomorrow, after all.
I love you so much. Enough to share my little victories with you, even when it seems like they're a bit few and far between, lately. I get the feeling sometimes, though, that even my small victories are enough for you. I hope that your small victories are enough for you, too.
I'll write again soon. I'll have faith in the meantime that you're on your way home, and that you'll be safe on your travels.
oml i just started reading shirley and i love it! it's very different from jane eyre, but i still sense the lovely writing of charlotte brontë, and i'm excited to keep reading! my newest discovery is how amazing second hand shops are for books, i totally recommend them as a cheap way to try new reads :)
in other news we're out of lockdown? i feel like we get tossed from one to the other so quickly... but i'm still very glad we're back to school!
Don’t really know how to form these posts yet. Today I studied a lot of maths, got through one chapter of a popular-science book and made notes, did my daily dose of sketching, studied for a car license and read some articles on energy work.
I scooped the kitty litters, made supper, did towel laundry, g-ma's laundry, moved the cat tower by myself (i had to take it apart to move it cause it big, heavy and awkward), took down the shelf above the newly moved towers so cats wouldn't try to climb it, did some dishes and put some away and finally went up town to buy milk and eggs.
