Finished rereading The Thirteen Gun Salute by Patrick O’Brian, book 13 of the Aubrey/Maturin series. This is one of my favorites in the series, with some of the most memorable scenes, and for once the next book will start more or less where this leaves off. I can’t recommend this as the first to read (that would be H.M.S. Surprise), but it’s a high point to look forward to.

Had beers and burritos with Adam last night: a great evening.

Finished reading The Bright Ages by Matthew Gabriele and David M. Perry. The book is less a history of Europe and more a support of three arguments: that there was continuity from the end of the western Roman Empire to medieval times; that we shouldn’t use medieval history to drive a modern agenda; and that medieval populations were diverse and mobile. I wish it had been more of a history, but I suppose it would have needed to be ten times longer to offer a brief survey of the period. Fortunately, the book ends with extensive suggestions for further reading, focusing on recent writing and a few primary sources, particularly ones that are more readily available to the non-specialist. (The voice and perspective of this book reminded me a bit of The Dawn of Everything.)

This morning’s kitchen victory: crêpes Suzette.

Played a game of Civ this weekend, first time in a long while.

Mom came over for dinner tonight — first time we’ve seen her since the omicron peak.

Finished rereading The Letter of Marque by Patrick O’Brian, book 12 of the Aubrey–Maturin series. This one felt more full than some recent ones: more naval action, more intrigue by land, more of Maturin’s laudanum addiction, and an interesting look at how a private letter-of-marque ship differs from a Royal Navy ship.

Finished rereading The Reverse of the Medal by Patrick O’Brian, book 11 of the Aubrey–Maturin series. We’re in the back half of the series now, and O’Brian clearly wants to introduce new plots and situations, as there’s only so much that can be done with the Royal Navy. Here we have more treachery, a court case, and a thief-taker, leading to a miscarriage of justice and a satisfying climax.

Walked along Lyon Creek, around Mountlake Terrace, and home: three hours, 9½ miles.

Finished reading The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow. This was a slow, dense, enjoyable read; the authors attempt to reinterpret prehistoric and historic societies, and (even with a few rhetorical sleights-of-hand) succeeded. I’ll probably look back on this book as perspective-changing.

Thinking about my former coworker from Ukraine, and my former coworker from Russia who was embarrassed by how his birth country was behaving.

Walked down to Pike Place Market (about 10½ miles, 3½ hours), and then (after taking light rail up to Northgate) home (4 miles, 1¼ hours). Talked with William and Jon along the way.

Had a bit of snow last night and this morning — maybe a quarter of an inch of accumulation, basically all melted by now.

Spring cleaning today, plus a walk to the grocery store for a loaf of bread.

Went over to Nathan’s and played Pax Pamir with him and his friends Bryan and Dina.