Links and stuff

* I saw this on Twitter and while I'm not in love with how they framed the link ("Which state has the largest number of award-winning literary works") because not everything needs to be a silly competition, this list of literary-award winners has at least a few books or authors I've not heard of, and might be a source of new books to read.

* Photographic evidence of my Christmas cactus blooming:



There are still a few buds on there, too.

* I still don't know about the post-tenure review thing. I'm leaning towards maybe seeing if I can find someone to go over my stuff with me before next time (NOT someone in my department, I don't think that would be allowed) and maybe help me polish it so it sounds better. I know I'm not good at "selling" myself; I was always taught to be modest and that "good work speaks for itself" but apparently it doesn't, always.

I just need to learn to view it as a game I have to  play, as one of the things that's broken about higher-ed right now and I can't change it, I can only learn to accept it and maybe not be so bothered by the fact that it's a game that's set up so I can't "win" in the way I would perceive "winning."

* I think I'm just anticipatorily peopled-out for next week. (And more: now the pastor-parish relations committee is meeting before church. I presume this is a "regularly scheduled" meeting and not that something horrible is up based on the notification, but....yeah.)

* I re-started watching "Parks and Rec" (which I can get free on Amazon Prime) because in part of  this article at Christ and Pop Culture. I like it better than I did on first viewing (when I felt annoyed that the "earnest" characters - Leslie, mainly, but in his own weird way, Ron - seem to be the buttmonkeys of the thing, as if it seemed to me to be saying "Look, trying too hard is a chump's game." Though honestly, maybe, it kind of is. Then again: upon rewatching, I realize Leslie's somewhat-unshakeable optimism and believe that she WOULD do good some day is kind of heartening and I wish I had that kind of cockeyed optimism.

It does have some similarities with "The Good Place" but I find "The Good Place" requires more concentration on my part to follow its thread and get the allusions, so right now maybe "Parks and Rec" is more my speed given how little energy I seem to have.

Also, it is more of a comedy.  (And I have occasionally caught an episode of "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" and I like it, too)

* I saw an article linked (By, ironically enough, an account that generally tweets out positivity stuff) linking an interview with Madeline Albright where she apparently claimed "There is room in the world for mediocre men; there is not for mediocre women" and while I get her argument (That women tend to be held to a higher standard, though I think that could be debated), I really didn't need to hear that, because some days I feel profoundly mediocre and....I dunno, it just feels like it's saying "You have to be giving your A game 100% of the time" and....I just can't. I don't have that kind of energy any more.

* Flitter Batter arrived, so Night Stitch has a friend now:



Yes, she's bigger than Night Stitch; made by a different company, apparently. And a more complex design, both the wings and the color patterning.

Man, I wish I had some kind of shoulder-riding pet friend that was, you know, real.

Also "Flitter Batter" is just fun to say.

* You know you're kind of overscheduled when you kind of envy the school districts that closed down because of flu. (Or bad weather; there's a slim chance we get it overnight but I'm betting either we don't or we don't close). It would be nice to have just a "surprise" day off.