I just got home to PDX from Chicago!

Too many Joes in this post. I think we should start referring to Joe B. and Joe M. like in primary school. Or we could also use Joe B. and Quisling. That also works.

Beautiful pictures. Would like to see that myself. Will check for lily allergy rating.

The books that made the biggest impact for me is a tough call. I suppose I'd have to say Ulrich Neisser's 1967 book Cognitive Psychology, whose focus and methods inspired my PhD and most of my career. But the most memorable books for me are novels, and they do vary. On the shortest list I would have to place Peter Carey's Oscar and Lucinda for its sheer imaginative force, and Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon for its spectacularly beautiful writing.

I don't know if you've looked at the Notifications you can adjust in your User Settings. Click on your avatar and choose Settings. You can get a Notification just on the forum when you haver a new chat, or you can also do email so get notified there even if you're not here when something comes in. Lots of other Notifications, too....just don't forget to go to the bottom of the screen and Save Changes when you're done.

Thank you @Big_Al @Big_Al said in Piano recording: I couldn't tell what was the influence of the sustain pedal and the resonance of the piano itself, what reverberation in the room might be contributing, and perhaps also the tendency of cell phones to try to maintain a constant level as the sound varies. Any ideas? All of the above?? Joking aside, I imagine part of it has to do with the cellphone recording, what you mentioned and also the fact that I set the cellphone on top of the music desk, treble side, which is surely not a good place for it! But another big detail is that Einaudi is very much expected to be played with heavy pedaling, and that's how I play it. Lastly, there were probably times when I was over fermata-ing to cover up for one thing or another. Like trying to keep my concentration, or one part where my bluetooth foot pedal didn't turn and I had to turn the page (on my iPad) with my hand (which I never do anymore and so it slowed me down). So yeah, that's probably all of what you were hearing... That and just general mediocrity.

Something really ironic about having Santa pass out Christmas candy to Jewish children. What a sick bastard. I'm surprised to learn that there are neo-nazis in a former Soviet republic. Big Al

I could go for a couple of those dogs. There was a Chicago-style hot dog shop across the street from my office when I worked in downtown Pittsburgh years ago, but it's long gone now. Another sandwich I really liked when I was working on a project at Inland Steel was Zel's BBQ beef sandwich. They had several shops in the northwest Indiana area. Big Al

I really like shiso when it’s in pickled plums or a seaweed salad. It also nice tempura-ized. But I think Mr. SK thinks of it as something you eat in food prepared at a restaurant, not something he uses in his regular cooking. And the plant is not something you think of as an indoor house plant… it kinda just looks like a weed in a pot.

Wonderful!!

One step further.... If President Joe Biden were to not only acknowledge Democrats’ worries that he’s hurting the party’s chances at the poll but decides to resign from the presidency altogether, Kamala Harris would immediately become the President of the United States. This transition is outlined in the U.S. Constitution, and would make her the first woman and the first person of South Asian and African American descent to hold the office. https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/2024/07/20/president-kamala-harris-how-it-could-happen-if-biden-quits/74467430007/ Like any option it has its pros and cons.

I think it’s a White Pine “Baldwin” Pinus parviflora 'Baldwin'

I'm sort of where Mik is at. I'd be surprised if a bad case of COVID is tagged as the reason. But I guess anything is possible. And at this point, it really doesn't matter what reason he gives. Everyone will know why he dropped out.

They look cute but are wicked mean creatures. Used to see them occasionally in Door County and we always gave them wide berth.

Quote from 1984 or Brave New World goes here.

I have an update!! [image: 1721429481566-d79903b9-5f37-4192-af85-2bc7ff9dcd50-image.jpeg] The electrician came out. The landscape lights work, and they actually look great when on. The guy said the part that was worried about is just old and doesn’t look great but still functions so we’re leaving it as is. (Bc the alternative is probably totally disconnect and switch to solar stick lights) So Instead of swapping out the lights that are there, we added a timer to the switch plate as per @wtg ‘s suggestion. Yay! I think we might actually be done with all the stuff we needed to when we closed on the house

On the sit-com a patient mentioned a girlfriend who was manic-depressive and said that she was a heck of a lot of fun half the time. I thought that was hilarious. I was living with the woman who is now my former wife. She is manic depressive and that hit home. I think that was the only show I was a fan of.