I just discovered the 1970 screenplay for Lord of the Rings and...it's disturbing. Like seriously need-longbottom-leaf-to-even-start-to-comprehend-this disturbing. Maybe some hobbit mushrooms as well. I mean, I type this with a couple of mimosas in my system and I still can't comprehend it...

Although Halloween in Italy is very different from what it is in the US, I thought I'd still do this PSA.

The Teal Pumpkin Project



The Teal Pumpkin Project is all about food allergies. My nephew has it way worse than me. It's not like people regularly hand out buckwheat and tomatoes at Halloween. Oldest nephew is allergic to peanuts and eggs. No reeses, no mr. goodbar, no paydays... he typically has to give up on well over half his bag if not more because of allergies.

By putting out a teal pumpkin, it means you have allergy friendly treats available. I always gave out play-do in the States (80 cans are about $35. Even the big kids love play-do) but other fun things are Halloween Stamps which are 50 for $10.95 or whistles or even those spider rings that I scared my Mom to death with accidentally when I was a kid. :-) The Teal Pumpkin Project has a lot more idea for fun treats that aren't expensive.

Btw, I've been told that Target has teal pumpkins if anyone would like to get one. :-)

I'm not sure this will work but I created a new group called "Fasting Fashionistas". With so many of us on diets, going on diets, or thinking about going on a diet, I thought a group board to help with recipes and encouragement would be nice.

It's moderated lightly - anyone can sign up but you have to be approved once you request to join. It's only to keep out spammers.

Pipe bomb found behind tents at a re-enactment. It was neutralized but, please, be careful. This is sadly only one of many incidents this year. A group of re-enactors were pepper sprayed a couple of months ago.

I was laughing so hard at this I had to share....

When doing any sort of historical costuming, most people get told, at some point, to only use natural fibers as man made fibers are pretty much a 20th Century invention. Cotton, linen, wool, and silk are all natural and are what should be used. However, thanks to science, there is now another reason; the environment. Every time you wash that poly fleece cape or that acrylic brocade gown in the wash, it loses some of those fibers and those fibers end up in the waterways. Polyester and acrylic don't degrade, unlike natural fibers.

Prof Thompson says washing clothes could be a "significant source" of plastic microfibres in the ocean.
"When we sample, we find plastic fibres less than the width of a human hair - in fish, in deep sea sediments, as well as [floating] at the surface."

So those hideous leggings? That cute poly organza blouse? That 1500's acrylic brocade gown that I just can't get rid of because the fabric is still so pretty? It's filling fish up with plastic.   I don't want to eat plastic fish... This, of course, doesn't go for rayon which does degrade at a pretty rapid pace (Faster than cotton!). So, all my linen rayon blends should be environmentally friendly...

Behold! The monster I have started! Craftysnark or Snarky Crafters is a new community in the spirit of Costume_snark, regresty, ect. There is a line, most of you know it, if it's crossed, well, we do eat our own. :-) Only members can post.

Of course, Fort Fred is next week.  I can probably just fix the green jacket and wear that rather than trying to make the cotton striped dress like I wanted to.  We'll see.

May 6 is Atlantian Crown and I'm very excited.  There are few people I'd like to see win and a few people I hope just get the stuffing knocked out of them quickly.   :-)The site allows pups so Miss Abigail will be there.  I'd like to make her a simple cape and finally finish my embroidered chemise (parts are done) but I have no idea how much I'll get done.  

The weekend after that is las Vegas so nothing will get done that weekend.

I also need to finish up my Grad Papers (at least one tomorrow will get done) and update my blog.   I've been working 10 hour days (10 1/2 today) to make up for missing work on Easter Monday.   Since I want, desperately, to have a half day for my birthday, I'm working at least 9 hour days M-Th this upcoming week.  We'll see how much I get done grad school wise.

I bought a new radio transmitter for my iPod in the car.  The old one died - it wouldn't charge the iPod anymore- so I had to get the new one.  It seems to work well enough so far.   I'm really glad I got it because dealing with just sat radio and it's 100+ channels was so a first world problem I didn't like.  :-D  

I bought a ton of silk in the latest fabric mart sale.  I can't pass up $5.99 a yard silk.  It's just not possible.  I now have tangerine and forest green dupioni (5 yards each) and a lovely soft "sunlight" yellow dupioni as well as a couple of yards of red and mauve checked taffeta.  The yellow dupioni is slubbed in such a way that it looks more like raised stripes than slubs.  I'm thinking kirtle still for it or maybe a nice fitted gown?  Wools work better for the fitted gowns though...

Also, I might suck it up and finally fix the a/c in the truck and get the transmission fan installed.  I'll call up a few places tomorrow to get estimates....  I know how much the parts are and I know how to install the transmission fan if I really need to.  I'd much prefer a professional did it though....The a/c has been broke for umm...three years?  Maybe four....  I'm not sure.  However, I think the a/c being broken contributed to the transmission overheating so...if I want to tow, I need the a/c fixed.

I'm sure a few of you just went "Yeah, yeah, whatev" and clicked on. Don't. This is a BAD idea. There are a few points that I'm very concerned with and I'll try to explain why.

First:

Please note that, User shall be subject to Article 10.2 of the Federal Act of the Russian Federation No. 149-ФЗ if more than three thousand Internet users access the Blog (the Blog’s page) within 24 hours. So what does 10.2 say?


media should include reliable information about

its owner, or otherwise face, distribute information,

the form and amount that is sufficient to identify that person.

The owner of the site in the network "Internet" is obliged to place on belonging

his website information about its name, location and

address, e-mail address for the application,

specified in Article 15-7 hereof, and

may provide the possibility of sending this statement

by filling in an electronic form on the web site in the "Internet"

(In red. The federal law from November 24 2014. N 364-FZ -

Assembly of the Russian Federation, 2014, N 48, Art.

6645). From here

In other words, if you get over 3000 hits in 24 hours to any single page on your blog, and you don't have "identifying" information that pinpoints you to you, you can kiss your blog goodbye. Not a huge deal for most of us, normally, but imagine if that lovely botnet comes back like during the Russian elections a few years ago and we all suddenly get a bunch of random new visitors? Of course, this isn't terribly scary because it's not terribly likely. Read on...

7.3 User who created Blog shall be responsible for such a Blog as well as for the Content posted therein.
7.5 User who posted comments in Blog and User keeping such a Blog shall be jointly and severally liable in respect of such comments.

While I'm fine to a point with 7.3, why should I be held responsible if someone else posts something in the comments of my blog? What if I'm at work and can't delete a spammer quickly? What if someone post something disgusting in the comments? Why should I be held jointly responsible when it's not me writing it?

7.5 is the one that really has me thinking of leaving LJ completely.


9.1.2 In respect of any Content which constitutes intellectual property, User provides to the Administration a non-exclusive (simple) license to use his/her Content in order to provide the Service by reproducing his/her Content as well as by making it public for the entire period the Content is posted on the Service. If User participates in any rankings or if User’s Content is used in any editorial projects of the Service, User provides to the Administration an additional authorisation to modify, shorten and amend his/her Content, to add images, a preamble, comments or any clarifications to his/her Content while using it, and in certain cases based on the Service functions, an authorisation to use User’s Content anonymously.

If I'm reading this correctly - anything you post could be made public. Now, this is a translation and I might be reading it wrong but it looks like any content you provide LJ - so a normal blog post- can be used by LJ. LJ will make that content public, if it likes, on the service. Also, if the blog owner participates in that whole rankings thing, then LJ can edit your contect when they post it as a highlight. Now, what it could also mean is only if you have things set to public, in which case, most of us are fine. However, this is starting to get pretty scary....

9.2.7 post advertising and/or political solicitation materials unless otherwise directly specified in a separate agreement between User and the Administration;

So...what constitutes political solicitation according to Russia? No matter what anyone may think of our current political divides in the United States, I don't like the idea of Russia being able to delete individuals just because they are posting political posts. Granted, it says political solicitation but that's a pretty broad legal term. It means " A request or petition intended to obtain something" so, would be the "Stop Westbard Development" - which has become a local political issue in the neighborhood I work (and my parents live) be considered political solicitation if I ask others in the area to sign a petition? I think everyone can see where the problem is with this one.

12.5 The Administration may send to User information related to the Service as well as third-party advertising using the email address provided by User.

Yay! Spam! /facepalm

I've written up the entire dress diary entry over on blogspot. It's a super fun dress. I wore it with modern undies - ie, not 1920's. The only issue I really had with the dress is that black lace snags on absolutely everything. However, it wasn't that much of an issue and it was easily dealt with so, eh.