George Bernard Shaw – A Splendid Torch

Today I’m pondering this quotation, from George Bernard Shaw: This is the true joy in life, being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one. Being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world w … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

September Photoblogging Challenge Day 2: buildup. When analog planners get together, we share the extra delights we’ve accumulated. #mbsept | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

September Photoblogging Challenge Day 1: abstract. A visit to the nursery meets a Hipstamatic filter. #mbsept | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Finished reading: Shift (Silo Trilogy) by Hugh Howey I enjoyed the second book in the series even more than the first. Definitely my sort of story, examining how people make decisions to challenge the status quo. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

No week notes this week. Typing post-surgery is still slow and painful. But I’m getting a lot of handwriting time in, which has been wonderful. Hope to write next week! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Finished reading: Wool by Hugh Howey Reading is an excellent post-hand-surgery activity. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much more than the show. Onto the next book in the series! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 31 Notes: Softer Eyes, Remember

If this week were a flavor, it would be a Mission-style burrito, even though I can’t eat them anymore. Hello from the San Francisco Bay Area, where FunkyPlaid and I are staying for the briefest of visits to attend my mother-in-law’s retirement party. It has been five years since … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

After an all-day drive, we arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area for a whirlwind visit with family. Sun setting over the bay as the fog rolled in. I have so many memories here, the place I’ve lived the longest. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Day one post-op: Pain woke me up at 03:00 from a sound sleep. Basic tasks take twice as long. Plastic bag over the hand to shower. One-handed typing on a full keyboard is garbage; swipe-typing on a phone is grand. Ice + elevation make it bearable. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Currently reading: Wool by Hugh Howey “Silo” the show wasn’t for me, but I am enjoying the first book so far. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Found a game I can play while my hand heals! #Rogule 2023-8-2 🧝 5xp ⛩ 117 streak: 1 🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⚔ 🦇🧟 rogule.com | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Fasting before surgery: All I can think about is eating food. And I have 12+ hours before I will eat again. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Finished reading: The Story of the Lost Child (The Neapolitan Novels #4) by Elena Ferrante Expertly done, a fitting conclusion to the saga. I’m glad I read the series. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

New sticker, a gift from FunkyPlaid. ️ | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 30 Notes: Closure, Aperture

If this week were a flavor, it would be roasted beets that you grew your own self … after someone showed you how to plant them and someone else watered them and someone else, before that, constructed the raised bed and filled it with soil. This week at work, we celebrated a cowor … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I finally had the energy, time, and focus to fix my TWSBI Diamond Mini! ️ Thanks to @jessekelber for the important hints and to FunkyPlaid for figuring out what I couldn’t. Now filled with Troublemaker Inks' Petrichor and ready to write. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I love picnics, and I don’t plan them nearly enough. 🧺 My mom’s 2016 Advent gifts were all picnicking supplies, which FunkyPlaid and I used for a picnic dinner with new friends in a nearby park. Perfect weather, delicious food, outstanding conversation … a lovely night. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Listening to “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” as full-blast as that ‘88 Toyota Corolla’s sound system ever got, speeding (no, not even at my most rebellious) around Chicago, with not one iota of understanding of Sinéad O’Connor’s politics, only loving her fist-like heart. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Very unscientific test happening in my life right now: Basing a “radio station” on the same song in both Apple Music and Spotify yields very different results. So far, the Apple Music station is winning. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

No, I didn’t rinse out my fountain pen in my mug — this is butterfly pea flower tea, and it really is this teal! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Currently reading: The Story of the Lost Child (The Neapolitan Novels #4) by Elena Ferrante I have enjoyed these novels, and I’m looking forward to the conclusion of the story. At times, the friendship between Elena and Lila is too painful to experience vicariously. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 29 Notes: Public Service and Casual Cruelty

If this week were a flavor, it would be watermelon agua fresca, but not the first, refreshing, summery burst of it. The fifth glass of it. Because we made so much. So, so much. What have we done. This week I met with someone who was interested in learning about a career in librar … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

My first attempt at making watermelon agua fresca was a partial success. FunkyPlaid did the hard part, straining the purée. I goofed by dumping the chopped mint leaves into the pitcher instead of muddling them in each glass. Still delicious. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Finished reading: Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay (Neapolitan Novels Book 3) by Elena Ferrante Still enjoying this series! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Today, every time I used a fountain pen for more than a few minutes, it ran out of ink. I went through four pens this way. It felt like I was in The Bad Place. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Banned Books Week is coming up on October 1st. Let’s celebrate the freedom to read! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Glamour shot of the new pen. ️ The paper really is that shimmery — I found it in the creativity room at the PNW Pen Show. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

My kokedama project from a team-building event at DIY Bar today. Not bad for a first attempt! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 28 Notes: Of Time and Timelines

If this week were a flavor, it would be fresh mozzarella, like the cool side of the pillow, only for your mouth. Yesterday I attended the last meeting of my three-year term on the executive board of a professional organization. Over the past three years, I’ve let go of enough of … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I’m not the first librarian to say this, but I said it in a state professional organization board meeting this morning, and I’ll repeat it here: The essential work of our profession should not depend on us sacrificing our free time in the name of vocational awe. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Read Montana State Library Commission Votes to Withdraw From American Library Association (ALA). I did not have this on my 2023 bingo card. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I’ve been wanting to reduce my use of facial tissues and paper towels, so I invested in some 2-ply flannel napkins in cute prints. They’re the perfect size to tuck into my pocket and handbag, and they’re so soft! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I love dual-purpose stationery. Here is a set of ultra-thin metal bookmarks that can be used as stencils to record the weather in your journal. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

New pen from Newton Pens. ️ Here it is capped. The nib, which I will take photos of when I’m more awake, is a cursive italic custom-ground by Matt Chen. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

After reading the latest reader question on Analog Office, I’m considering switching to an open/closed lists setup. I just need to ensure those lists are always with me. Any recommendations for minimalist digital setups? Notes app with three notes in it? Is it Tot? (It’s usually … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 28 Notes: Play Slipping Away

If this week were a flavor, it would be Lik-M-Aid, nothing more than sugar with food coloring and flavoring added, but it reminds me of the very small town in which I was raised, the drugstore with the penny candy, and the splurge of it all, the utter decadence of dipping sugar i … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Seattleites! Halou, one of my favorite bands in the whole world, is playing in your fair city tonight. FunkyPlaid and I saw them last night and it was an incredible show. The new music is so good. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I get all the Threads hullabaloo, especially for those who are looking for one perfect way to connect with others, easily and for free. But I maintain we’re solving the wrong problem. Building real connection isn’t easy or free. Nuance isn’t easy or free. Care isn’t easy or free. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Finished reading: The Story of a New Name (Neapolitan Novels Book 2) by Elena Ferrante I found this one a little harder to get through, but I still enjoyed reading about Elena and Lila. On to book three! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I cooked three new recipes last week and I’m on track to cook three new ones this week. 🥘 Do your hobbies come and go in phases, like mine do? Sometimes I’m really into learning how to cook different things, and sometimes not. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I tried my hand at a no-recipe recipe for ham and cheese pasta with a handful of peas. 🥘 Tasty! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Over the course of this year I have somehow accumulated five notebooks I’m writing in daily. How did this happen? And how do I pare down mid-year? Paging @annahavron … I need help! | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Week 27 Notes: An Excess of Plot

If this week were a flavor, it would be fresh raspberries. So many fresh raspberries. Both the red and golden raspberry canes in our garden are producing way more than they did last year. It’s fun trying to keep up. I also planted too much red romaine and now I feel guilty that w … | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

I highly recommend the weekly newsletter “5 Ally Actions” from Better Allies. I always learn something new from Karen Catlin about creating more inclusive workplaces. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Twelve-hour workdays rewire my brain in a bad way. I find it difficult to disengage even when I struggle to focus. It’s easier for me to keep working, even if that work isn’t particularly good. Does anyone else experience this? | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Currently reading: The Story of a New Name (Neapolitan Novels Book 2) by Elena Ferrante | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Walking breaks are the best breaks. Five minutes outside and I’m refreshed and centered. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago

Sometimes (most times) I overthink things. And sometimes I don’t. This recipe looked good so I made it. 🥘 No overthinking. And delicious. | Continue reading


@cygnoir.net | 1 year ago