It has been a bitter, somewhat brutal, cold week here in Ottawa with temperatures in the mid negative teens for much of the week, with numbingly cold wind chills. Today reached a high here of -11oC with a wind chill that made it feel like -17oC. Brrrr!!! indeed. More frigid temperatures through the weekend, and then back to more seasonable (winter) temperatures for the next week or so. Hopefully. I've been very tired the last couple of days, to be honest, and am feeling a bit under the weather. Most of this has been pain in my shoulder and leg, some abdominal issues, and the issue of the broke ..read more

For those who are fans of the Doctor Who tv series, and those who were fans of the actor... William Hartnell, the first actor to play the Doctor on the Doctor Who series, was born on this day in 1908. He would have been 117 years old today. For me, Hartnell will always be the definitive version of the Doctor in the series, as I grew up with him as a kid back in the early and mid-1960's. When I got older, I finally caught some of Hartnell's performances in other things he had done over the years, and came to truly appreciate his acting abilities. He was a fabulous actor and a wonderful Do ..read more

It has been a somewhat atypical week here in Ottawa for the winter, with a mix of relatively warm weather and rain coupled with what is now colder weather and snow, and about to become...very cold. The temperature hit the -8oC mark today, and is going down to around -17oC or so tonight with frigid temperatures in the forecast for the rest of the weekend. I've been very tired the last couple of days, to be honest, and am feeling a bit under the weather. Most of this has been pain in my shoulder and leg, some abdominal issues, and the issue of the broken tooth that still hasn't seen a dentist. A ..read more

Since it is the new month of January (and it's barely a few days old)... As is my standard usage of my blog space at or near the beginning of the month, I present the listing of my December, 2024 reads. ***** Books Read in December, 2024 Look to Windward by Iain M. Banks Doctor Who: The Time Meddler by Nigel Robinson Doctor Who: Galaxy Four by William Emms The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal Doctor Who: The Myth Makers by Donald Cotton Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde (r) Doctor Who: The Daleks' Master Plan Part I: Mission to the Unknown by John Peel Library of the Sapphire Win ..read more

Happy New Year! I would like to wish each and every one of my LiveJournal, WordPress and Blue Sky friends, and all my friends in other media who might be reading this, a safe, healthy, and Happy New Year. May the Goddess bless you with health, prosperity, safety, and good cheer for the coming year. And may 2025 be one heck of a better year than 2024. Happy New Year, one and all ..read more

A new year. A time for reflection. A time for memories. Up until a few years ago, I always did a Year in Review entry about things in a lot of detail. Nine years ago, I changed it up and didn't do that, only something along the lines of a year's perspective. I've come to realise that the year is done. Life has wound its course for 2024, and there's no point dwelling on it too much. That's not to say that I won't remember 2024. I am, I do, and I will. But I can't live in the past, though I can certainly learn from what happened last year. At least I hope so. I guess I'll start by saying that ..read more

January 1st, 2025. A new month. The start of a new year. Also a time for contemplation, a time for New Year's resolutions and thoughts, and a time when we discard the destructive, old habits for healthy, new ones. Supposedly. Back when, a good friend of mine, Janet Wilson, suggested that I journal today the New Year's resolutions that she makes every year, based on her time in Alcoholics Anonymous. She got this list from the column that Dear Abby wrote way back when. So here's some thoughts for folks to think about as we get ready to head into a New Year... Just for today: I will live through ..read more

And so, here we are, once again. New Year's Eve. I haven't planned to do much this New Year's Eve, other than to relax and have a relatively quiet evening, and I don't expect that to change. I'm in a heck of a lot of pain today due to my right shoulder and arm hurting a lot, the weather is cold and damp (around 2oC as I write this), and my foot and hip are bothering me as well. While the broken tooth isn't hurting ::knock on wood:: there are moments when it throbs and aches for a few moments. Heck, truth be told, I'm not really feeling all that sociable at the moment. The day searching for a ..read more

It's the last day of 2024. Thank Goddess this year is coming to an end. While there have been some good moments this past year, 2024 will be primarily remembered as the year that Russia and Ukraine continued their seemingly neverending war and the devastating toll it has taken primarily on the Ukrainians; the Israel-Hamas War that is now spreading to other countries in the area and that continues to devastate the Gaza strip and take the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, on both sides; the prices of food and groceries in Canada (and presumably other places as well); the mess that is Canadia ..read more

Happy Hanukkah! (Or Chanukah, if you prefer.) :) Today is the start day of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights that usually always occurs early in the month of Christmas, and lasts a bit longer than Christmas does. This year, unlike last year, Hanukkah is quite late in the month. Well, actually Hanukkah begins at sundown tonight, so we're all good. I want to wish everyone out there a very Happy Hanukkah. The gifts I would like this year aren't really all that complicated. Well, most of them anyway. First off, a year (relatively) free of illness. Second, a year free of shoulder/back/nec ..read more