7 Quick Takes 50: Bare Firs, Bear-Face (Book)

Time for a random round up.

1. Post Christmas update: With the weather in Mississippi resembling a British summer, we haven't been burning nearly as much wood as we expected. Our $20 bargain Christmas tree is still going strong as a provider of firestarters.

2. Our eldest managed to kill her phone - but survived three weeks without replacing it. I didn't think that was actually possible for a young person. When I asked her secret, she told me she communicates with almost everyone via Messenger. And here was I feeling all modern because I regularly text her, when in fact she was just humouring her dinosaur of a mother.

3. The toddler apparently doesn't approve of our standards of housekeeping. The other morning, he stopped on his way across the hall, declared "Oh no," and pointed to a piece of fluff on the rug. Then he ordered "'Weep" and fetched a broom and dustpan. While we were cleaning the kitchen one evening, he toddled over  to get cleaner (non toxic before you panic) and a rag from under the sink. When I asked him what he was cleaning, he said "that" and pointed to a patch of cat vomit. If only we could bottle this enthusiasm for the teenage years. (And yes, I know I mentioned that topic last 7QT, but cat vomit and mouse guts loom large in our lives.)

4. A friend, and writer, whose opinion I trust mentioned that she thought my last Seven Quick Takes actually sounded like me. Now I'm obsessively analyzing it, because I feel like I've spent two years floundering around for a blog voice. I think it's because I'm an introvert and an English major: I don't want to share everything, and I want my posts to be structured. And did I mention my intense inner critic?

5. And following on from the internet paranoia in my last 7QT, I have a new saga. One of my domain names is up for renewal, and I thought I'd transfer it to Google. I couldn't get the transfer to begin on my original host (Webeden), so I went back to Google and tried from there. Google told me that Gandi, a French company, owned my domain - apparently it was sold without my knowledge. As if 1066 wasn't humiliating enough.
OK, so I went to their site - to find that I had to log in to make a transfer, using the password THEY HAD SENT ME WHEN I GOT MY DOMAIN. Hmm, missed that. Next step: email Webeden. That email bounced back three times until Gmail finally told me Webeden wouldn't accept it. Zut alors!

So, red coat on and drum at the ready, I am turning to my next plan: wait for the day it expires and try to swoop in and claim it. Update coming, hopefully of the Waterloo kind...

Just me and a few internet savvy friends... we're ready.

6. But wait, the internet trauma isn't over. I've also just about given up on my Facebook news feed. Some time around the election, Mary of Let Love Be Sincere, wrote very lucidly about why she refused to be forced off FB. And I admire that, but I'm not made of such stern stuff. I'm sick of politics, and it's impossible to avoid. Do you remember the Malcolm in the Middle episode where the teenage Malcolm tries to keep his snarky mouth shut, and ends up with a stomach ulcer? That's sort of how I feel when faced with - well, you know the types of posts and comments - but mixed with a stomach-churning fear of conflict. What I really want to reply is, "Why don't you check Snopes before you post/ Learn to construct an argument/ Exhibit a little common decency?" Instead, I'm only checking my groups, and my emotional life is much healthier.
And since I use black humour to cope with stress, do you know how much force it took to refrain from saying that I'm imposing a temporary FB ban while I negotiate stricter viewing rules with myself? Not enough, apparently.

7. And to bring down the tension with something short. Alcuin came up with his first real sentence: "Hit stuff." I think I have a boy.

For more quick takes, sneak on over to Kelly's at This Ain't the Lyceum. I don't think the French are after her domain.

P.S. In an effort to be less of a dinosaur, I've done a little updating around here. You can now comment without having any sort of account, subscribe via email, or link up via Friendster ;)