IdeaMine

Once upon a time, my beloved dreda took me to Russell House Tavern too cheer me up when I was feeling ill and despondent. When the server arrived, she presented us with menus and asked whether we were interested in drinks, and I said, "Yes, please. I've got the flu; can I have something with bourbon, ginger, and honey?"

The server nudged the cocktail menu in my direction and said, "can you find something here that you might like?"

She was kind, but such was the depth of my woe that I put my head in my hands. I said, "okay", and Dreda suggested to the server that we might need a minute to review options. The server left. Then a moment later, to our surprise, she returned with a bourbon drink in her hand.

"I explained your request to the bartender, and he said, 'this is what she's asking for'." I tasted it. It was just right. The table erupted with (restrained) joy and appreciation.

I give you... The Russell House Remedy.

in a hiball
stir 1 tsp honey into 2 oz bourbon
add the juice of half a lime, then ice
top up with ginger beer
add dash of angostura bitters

Sip with joy and appreciation for the wonders of chemistry.

This morning is about small wins.

Like... I re-tied my scarf so that the gray-and-white chain pattern matches my bracelet. That kind of win. It made me tilt my head and smile.

To you, in all manners and states that you exist today, I send moments like these, of quiet, warm, aesthetic contentment.

Thank you.

There's a SMOP here somewhere.

I've been thinking for a while about the challenges -- and potentials -- of multithreaded conversation.

( why is that, rising_moon? )

Can we harness it and use the fire for good?

Recently I've read a few excellent fantasy novels which were written around believable, consistent, and reasonable systems of magic. Believable magic is one of the elements that will sell me on a writer. I've enjoyed The Abhorsen Trilogy, by Garth Nix, and, most recently, The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.

I've learned that Brandon Sanderson, who wrote this essay on systems of magic, is going to finish Robert Jordan's 12th and final novel of the Wheel of Time series. Depending on my Lady's response to his work, I might take up the first one. :)

Unrelatedly (maybe): can any of you recommend a good history (articles, blogs, anything) of technical approaches to affixing Identity? That is, assuring that individuals are who they say they are? I'm making a study of transaction psychology -- financial services inclined but not fixed -- and would love some background data on approaches to identity assurance. Thanks!

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/05/15/same.sex.marriage/index.html

The California Supreme Court struck down the ban on same-sex marriage.

Is it mean of me to hope, just a little bit, that Scalia gets photographed soon in a passionate and unmistakeably romantic clinch with a male clerk?

My day's been a morningsworth of upbeat energy swirling in a steadily-narrowing snowstorm of corporate jargon and project performance analyses. New team leader = new assessment metrics = piles of spreadsheets.

This video makes it all better.

In case you haven't seen it yet, I urge you to visit my Lady's journal to read the featured chalkboard for our new (fictional) bistro, Nom!

Heh.

http://mail.google.com/mail/help/customtime/index.html

"This morning I put instant coffee in the microwave and I almost went back in time." - Steven Wright

I'm on a ten-minute break in a week of all-day meetings. I've got another one coming up at 3pm or so.

What's on your mind?

Hey, I'm a beer!