BIG SOUND : THE RECEIVERING

1. Blu-ray player
2. Apple TV/Television
3. Record player
4. Cassette player
5. VCR
6. Subwoofer
7. Computer

Another year, more tech stuff breaking down. My receiver was only 11 years old, but I guess it was its time. Back when I got my first receiver in high school, it was assumed that it would basically last forever, but nowadays the technical changes come fast and furious, so at least it came with some updates. My parents decided to go with bluetooth speakers and forgo the receiver when they moved to a smaller space, but I have a lot of analog media still. 

At least the new speaker plugs are just kind of annoying, instead of utterly maddening like the old ones you had to hold down while simultaneously trying to push in the speaker wire. 

The main new feature is receiving Bluetooth signals. I can send music from my phone or iPad (or even my iMac, but there's Airplay for that) to the receiver. It even knows the names of the songs somehow. This works for iTunes or apps like TuneIn, Spotify, Bandcamp, Amazon Music, etc., which is nice because the Apple TV is a little light on music apps and it's easier to control with a mobile device than my computer via Airplay.

Current list of Bluetooth devices:

• Onkyo receiver
• Mpow headphones
• Logitech computer speakers
• Magicbox II portable speaker (for travel and kitchen/bathroom)
• iPhone 
• iPad
• iMac
• Apple Bluetooth keyboard
• Logitech K810 portable keyboard
• Apple TV

After I put it together, I remembered that the computer in wasn't connected to anything since my iMac doesn't have audio in like my old cheese grater Mac, so I ordered one of these. That way, I don't have to move my record player/cassette player to the bedroom when digitizing (I have the world's longest headphone cord for that).

ALT-RIGHT PLOT SUMMARIES

Thread by @ash966: "@SecretGamerGrrl What kind of terrifying plot summaries do these guys have in their heads? @SecretGamerGrrl Alt-right Star Trek: WHITE GUY D […]"


I unrolled this thread for you, because it's hard to find old Twitter threads, especially replies.

On Universal FanCon

Guys, I am really sad and mad right now about Universal FanCon. I hadn't heard of it before it was postposed/cancelled one week before it was to occur, but seeing tweets from so many people who were planning to go was heartbreaking. So many artists and vendors losing their first shot at sales/networking and cosplayers and other attendees who never felt accepted at other cons losing a safe space for geeking out. 

I'm proud to be an exhibitor and co-creator of the Manga Reading Lounge at Anime Detour and my July staycation at Convergence is a highlight of my year. I can't imagine having an experience like that taken away so suddenly. 

The other sad thing is, it might not have failed if the founders hadn't 1) tried to make their first con some huge, money-making endeavor when most cons barely break even, 2) failed to vet one co-founder who had been involved in failed cons before, and 3) they had asked for help from experienced con people. The Twitter conversation made it clear that there was a deep bench of experienced con administrators who would have been happy to help. I'm not one myself, but my limited experience creating a miniature library con tells me that it's a very complex endeavor with a lot of moving parts that requires constant back-and-forth communication, not just asking Starbucks to donate stuff at the last minute. 

WHAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE THINGS BETTER:

• Support your local, volunteer-staffed con. Unless you are super into getting celebrities to sign stuff, skip those traveling things Alexandra Erin calls "autograph mills". Local cons are way more fun, you have more input in their content & policies, plus it gives volunteers/staff more experience to start more cons to fit your interests. 
• If your local con sucks, start your own, but start small. Comic-Con wasn't built in one day. 
• Make your con safe for diverse attendees. Ask them what policies would help them enjoy the con. Have diverse panels and panelists. Ban harassers. 
• Attract and mentor diverse con volunteers and employees. Then, they can learn and start their own cons. Geek culture is big, we can have cons for everybody. 
• Don't be a dick. Don't tell a marginalized person they "aren't allowed" to cosplay as someone.
• Give these artists some money. They lost a major source of income, so support them if you can. 
• Attend this pop-up convention. if you can afford it and are near Baltimore, attend this mini-convention for people who were coming to FanCon.
• Make your Con transit-accessible. Not everyone can drive or has a car, and some people may fly or bus in. I'm looking at you, Con of the North!

JFRO's 2017

Jfro's 2017 from ash966 on 8tracks Radio.

Sorry this is so late, guys. 



Format once again ripped off shamelessly from the Librarian in Black:  

Books -- Who Fears Death?, Universal Harvester, Fingersmith, The Collapsing Empire, City of LIght, City of Poison

Comics -- Ooku, Over Easy, Genshiken Second Season, Order of the Stick

Movies -- The Shape of Water, Free Fire, Thor: Ragnarok, The Big Sick, Willow Creek, The Boy & the Beast, Atomic Blonde, Mifune: The Last Samurai, Get Out, The Nice Guys, Okja, My Cousin Rachel, The Love Witch, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Gimme Danger, Logan, Moonlight

TV Shows -- Stranger Things, Taboo, Black Sails, Orphan Black, Halt & Catch Fire, The Walking Dead, Insecure, GLOW, Billions, The Expanse, Bojack Horseman, Orange Is the New Black, The Path, Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce, Veep, Train to Busan, Travelers, Silicon Valley, Sense8, RuPaul's Drag Race, Transparent, Powers, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Americans, Legion, The Magicians, Archer, Mr. Robot, Fear the Walking Dead, unREAL, 12 Monkeys, Versailles, Crazyhead, The Strain, Better Call Saul

Albums --Woven Hand: Star Treatment, Troubled Horse: Revolution on Repeat, Telekinetic Yet: Abominable, Summoner: Beyond the Realm of Light, Ruby the Hatchet: Planetary Space Child, Royal Thunder: Wick, Moonbow: War Bear, Kadavar: Rough Times, Fireball Ministry: Remember the Story, Ecstatic Vision: Raw Rock Fury, Crystal Fairy: Crystal Fairy, Colour Haze: In Her Garden, Greenleaf: Rise Above The Meadow, Blues Pills: Lady in Gold, WhiteNails: First Trip, Tad: 8-Way Santa (Remastered)

Songs --Willam: "Ho Ho Ho Ho", Red Velvet: "Talk To Me", Girl's Day Everyday: "I'll Be Yours", BTS:"Not Today", Tiffany: "Talk", RVG: "IBM", MGT: "Knowing Me Knowing You", 2NE1: "I Am The Best", Crystal Fairy: "Drugs On The Bus", Sofi Tucker: "Drinkee",  Skrillex & Damian "Jr Gong" Marley: "Make It Bun Dem", Jackie Shane: "Any Other Way", Cari Cari: "No War" 

Apps --Reelgood, Reddit, TuneIn, Flickr, Artstudio, Tumblr, 8Tracks

Devices --iPad, iMac, Apple TV 4, Nook GlowLight Plus, Universal Laser Systems laser engraver, Lulzbot 3-D printer, soldering iron

Events --Convergence, Anime Detour, ToshoCon, Steampunk photoshoot in Irvine Park, WMCN Reunion show, Chris Isaak, Minneapolis-St. Paul Mini Maker Faire, presenting at the Library Technology Conference, Bakken Museum, At Home With Monsters @MIA, World War I @Minnesota History Center, Como Obon Festival

Items of clothing --Gray motorcycle boots, gear earrings, resin pendant, Steven Madden hooded coat

Games --Plants Vs Zombies 2, Candy Crush: Soda, Tetris Blitz, Agents of Oblivion, Delta Green

Web sites --Lifehacker, r/rupaulsdragrace, r/relationships, Captain Awkward, Fast 'n' Bulbous

Twitter Twerps --@AnaMardoll, @arthur_affect, @FakeLibStats, @HalpernAlex, @loather

YouTubers -- Jimmi Pynk, Kevin Logan, Feminist Frequency, The Boulet Brothers, MovieBob, Screen Junkies, Afterbuzz TV, Diamanda Hagan, Vaginal Fantasy, Hey Qween, Willam Belli

Materials - metallic acrylic paint, EasyCast resin, laser rubber

Boyfriend --JSeux continues his winning streak!

I MADE YOU SOME BREAKFAST

Everyone who knows me, knows I love me some breakfast. Even if I wake up at 4 PM, I like to start with some breakfast-type food.

Unfortunately, this conflicts with my desire to stay in bed as long as possible on workdays. My solution is to bring portable breakfast items that I can eat between the time the bus drops me at work until the time I have to be on a desk.

My go-tos are Quaker Real-Medley oatmeal cups and Jimmy Dean Delites breakfast sandwiches. The only problems with them are that they are 1) full of preservatives and stuff, 2) OK, but make you dream of better food, and 3) kind of rubbery from the microwave in the case of the sandwiches.

I'd been trying to find a breakfast sandwich recipe for a long time, but trying to make good eggs for a bunch of sandwiches just seemed really intimidating. I've just mastered making scrambled eggs a few years ago, and they require careful watching to come out right.

Then, this article appeared in Lifehacker. The sheer genius of baking the eggs in a cookie pan! No watching to make sure the eggs are OK the whole time. No cooking them in some kind of egg ring (I use small round Ziploc container lids to cut the egg into circles). No finding storage for a very specific device that might not cook everything equally well. Yay!

I made the breakfast sandwiches with ham and provolone. I added canned mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning to the eggs. For the muffins, I just used whatever Target had. They weren't the best, but the sandwiches still tasted good. I'd recommend getting the best English muffins you can afford.

For cooking from frozen sandwiches, I'd recommend defrosting them at 30% in the microwave for 90 seconds, then cooking them in a toaster oven for 5 minutes at 300 degrees (take the top muffin off and put it next to the rest of the sandwich), but you can cook them for 65 seconds in the microwave after defrosting if you are in a hurry.

After posting this recipe on Facebook, my friend SR shared one of her breakfast favorites, which just happened to resemble Quaker Real-Medleys, at least it did when I doubled the amount of oats. I put in craisins instead of currants because Target didn't have currents, plus craisins are awesome, and left out the sunflower seeds because yuck. After cooking, I put them into the above-mentioned small round Ziploc containers for work. I like to heat them up and add a splash of milk. At work, you could use those little creamer cups if you have some around. Just a warning: after a day, the mix looks a little grey, but it still tastes great.

I MADE YOU AN INSTRUCTABLE

Steampunk Gear Earrings

So, since my work got a makerspace a year and a half ago, I've been making more things than ever. One of my favorite sites for making ideas is Instructables. I've made LED bracelets, laser-engraved rubber stamps, and drawstring pouches. My felt cameos are a little different, but this is where the idea came from.

I even became a Pro member to support the site and because I like being able to download .pdfs to consult while making stuff. Youtube videos can be great for showing techniques, but nothing can compare to a step-by-step guide (although Instructables can have video, so best of both worlds, really). As a librarian, I make a lot of those, so I know of what I speak.

Since I now have the fancy camera for taking good macro pictures, I wanted to try my hand at making an Instructable. The editing interface is pretty intuitive for anyone who's blogged or added content to a web site. If you make stuff, definitely give it a try. If you want to get your content to people, Instructables' large, active community is going to get more views than a blog post.

I had hoped to make a video showing my technique for attaching beads with wire, but it was hard to get close enough to see things while filming it myself. Maybe next time.

I GOT A NEW CAMERA

So, I decided it was finally time to get me one of those fancy cameras. My point & shoot had finally died from being dropped one too many times, and I went to see Chris Isaak only to have him appear as nothing but a big white blob on my phone. Since I take a lot of pictures already, it seemed a good use of my annual fun spending. We have a DSLR camera at work, and I liked the pictures it took, plus it has that good old-fashioned "clickity-click" sound when you shoot.

My main worry was actually the size of the camera. I went to a photowalk once and people seemed to be competing in a who-can-lug-around-the-biggest-Cyclops-beast-around contest. My tiny hands and achy shoulders can't handle that sort of thing.

When I did a Google search on "small DSLR cameras" I learned about mirrorless cameras. My photography class teacher said that the lens is actually more important than the body of the camera for taking good pictures, so why not get a small camera that can still change lenses? Some of the big-name photography sites liked the Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II, which I developed a gadget crush on right away.

OK, let's face it, some objects are just more esthetically appealing than others, and it's not terrible for that to be a factor in your purchase decisions. As long as it does what it is supposed to do and doesn't clean out your bank account, why not? I have to admit I love the retro look of the OM-D and sometimes I take it out just to look at it. That's why that The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up stuff doesn't work on me, I have a TON of things in my place that give me joy when I look at them. My motto is "Everything I do got to be funky", not "Everything I do got to be boring but utilitarian", after all.

Also, the controls have a good hand feel for me and seem like they'll last a long time.

The main drawbacks of having a camera that is both fancy and schmancy are 1) worrying about something happening to it and 2) spending money on endless accessories. For 1) my vow is that OM-D will never be removed from either a case or a very-sturdy camera strap and for 2) I just have to parcel it out slowly and put things on my Amazon wishlist. Like did you know that the straps that come with fancy cameras are no good and have to be replaced with something better if you don't want it to slip off your shoulders? And that there are separate bags for cameras, lenses, and your whole kit? But that makes no nevermind now that I can take night shots that don't look like those weird light shows you sometimes see when your eyes are closed.