The smoke is gone, I “mopped” the floors, and all windows are open. Feeling agitated by the fallout of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death yesterday, and by the upcoming two-plus months of political shitshow, but not quite so helpless/hopeless.

Just noting the smoke for the record. Woke up to a yellow-beige light this morning.

Tonight’s picnic victory: bratwursts in sauerkraut on the grill; baked beans; nectarine/raspberry cobbler with ginger biscuits; peach sorbet with the bambina; coffee ice cream with the dude. Mom and Greg and Jocelyn and the kids came over to help us eat it all.

The dude convinced the bambina to listen to “The Internationale”. She seemed into it, though maybe not as much as he is.

Downloaded 1700-some photos from my Flickr account. Boy is that some nostalgia.

Got sucked into Ancillary Justice, and then reread Ancillary Sword and Ancillary Mercy in short order. A couple thoughts:

• Of course the books are a criticism of imperialism and oppression, and a subversion of gender normativity. But Leckie also writes what strike me as neuro-atypical characters as well (Breq here, but possibly also one of the main characters in The Raven Tower).
• By the end of the series, I had grown tired of Breq’s near-omnicompetence.

Anyway, I finally got back to The End of Policing last night.

Talkin’ cosmology with the dude.

Last night’s and tonight’s kitchen victory: assisted the dude making coffee ice cream.

For years I’ve only read one book at a time. I’ve recently started alternating between two — one important, one fun. So, also currently rereading Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie.

Now starting The End of Policing by Alex S. Vitale.

Also, I finished writing the first draft of my long walk journal. Next up, get a red pen and give it a vigorous editing.

Finished reading A Memory Called Empire. First impression confirmed; it felt more like Leckie’s and Chambers’s second or third books than their firsts. That’s a strong recommendation.

Recently started reading A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine. First impression is that it sits somewhere between Ann Leckie and Becky Chambers.

I am delighted and so grateful that the kids are getting along so well during the covid home time — actually growing closer, when they could easily have been antagonizing each other to death.

Finished reading How to Be an Antiracist. It feels like more of a primer than a deep dive, but it’s carefully structured and methodical, and I’m sure I’ll be thinking about it a lot. I hope I put some of what I read into action.