Janet

@relfal

Dilettante. Word-watcher. Insomniac. Trying to use all these lemons to make lemonade. In the unlikely event that you refer to me in the third person, she/her. Discussion, not debate.

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Janet@relfal· Jul 5

Instructions from my handy-dandy stain book. These are for tomato sauce, not tomato paste, but I checked and the instructions for removing tomato are almost identical, so they're probably fine for tomato paste.

Instructions for getting out tomato sauce stains, steps 1-10. If you need the full written instructions in text form, please reply below and I will transcribe.

Instructions for getting out tomato sauce stains, steps 11-12. If you need the full written instructions in text form, please reply below and I will transcribe.

Janet@relfal· Jul 3

I've been contemplating buying a trike for a while, and finally took the plunge this week when I saw this used trike advertised locally. Still somewhat anxious riding it on the street, but I successfully took it for a grocery run today.

Magenta adult-size trike in a rather dingy garage.

Janet@relfal· Jun 20

Near the southern tip of San Francisco Bay.

In the foreground, choppy waves wash against a green bank. The water is muddy brown. In the background a range of summer-brown hills.

Janet@relfal· Jun 20

Best use of dish soap:

Janet@relfal· Jun 19

Not the aftermath of a massacre; I was just cutting up some beets.

A cutting board and paring knife stained with magenta.

Janet@relfal· May 25

Me in my Bluesky bubble

Janet@relfal· May 23

New and improved.

Star Trek: TOS title card. The Enterprise is orbiting a generic blue planet with white swirly clouds. Text reads "Another Shakespeare quote. Are we Donne yet?"

Janet@relfal· May 23

Star Trek: TOS title card. The Enterprise is orbiting a generic blue planet with white swirly clouds. Text reads "Another one from Shakespeare. Can't we do Donne this time?"

Janet@relfal· May 22

Voyager title card showing the ship from beneath. Text reads "Are we there yet" in orange title font.

Janet@relfal· May 22

Deep Space Nine title card, showing the station from above. Text reads "JUST A SIMPLE TAILOR" in shaded blue-gray title font.

Janet@relfal· May 22

Cool!

Voyager title card showing the ship from belief. Text reads "WHAT FRESH NEW AGE HELL IS THIS?" in orange title font.

Janet@relfal· May 18

You may have heard of the "Bible Belt."

Chart from Pew study showing responses to questions about "Importance of religion in one's life among adults in the South." The percentage saying "very important" drops from 66% (2007) to 62% (2014) and 46% (2023-24). The percentages saying "somewhat" and "not too/not at all" increase over the same period from 22% to 26% and 11% to 28% respectively. The graphic also warns that the data was collected online and on paper in the most recent survey, while earlier surveys were done by telephone, but they believe that the results are comparable.

Chart from Pew study showing responses to questions about "Importance of religion in one's life among adults in the Midwest." The percentage saying "very important" drops from 55% (2007) to 51% (2014) and 36% (2023-24). The percentages saying "somewhat" and "not too/not at all" change over the same period from 30% to 27% and 15% to 37% respectively. The graphic also warns that the data was collected online and on paper in the most recent survey, while earlier surveys were done by telephone, but they believe that the results are comparable.

Chart from Pew study showing responses to questions about "Importance of religion in one's life among adults in the Northeast." The percentage saying "very important" drops from 48% (2007) to 45% (2014) and 32% (2023-24). The percentages saying "somewhat" and "not too/not at all" change over the same period from 30% to 27% and 21% to 41% respectively. The graphic also warns that the data was collected online and on paper in the most recent survey, while earlier surveys were done by telephone, but they believe that the results are comparable.

Chart from Pew study showing responses to questions about "Importance of religion in one's life among adults in the West." The percentage saying "very important" drops from 49% (2007) to 47% (2014) and 32% (2023-24). The percentages saying "somewhat" and "not too/not at all" change over the same period from 27% to 25% and 22% to 42% respectively. The graphic also warns that the data was collected online and on paper in the most recent survey, while earlier surveys were done by telephone, but they believe that the results are comparable.

Janet@relfal· May 15

Looks like we will have a good, but not overwhelming, plum crop this year.

Tree branch with green plums, one just starting to turn pink.

Janet@relfal· May 9

Of course the headline and the graphic are deeply misleading. The author does not advocate "forgetting climate change." He's speaking strategically: climate change is not a winning issue with many voters, so better to engage voters with class/economic arguments.

Screen cap from oped. Text reads:
To be clear, this does not mean an abandonment of climate goals. Fortunately, as I’ve argued, the heart of any affordability agenda — housing, energy, transportation — overlaps with the sectors we must decarbonize. Even though Mayor Zohran Mamdani of New York rarely mentioned climate in his 2025 campaign, one of his core policies of expanding public transit — “fast, free buses” — will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Janet@relfal· May 8

Fine.

Still from Severance, showing four people, each of whom has exactly three friends.

Janet@relfal· May 8

The average American has three friends. I posted this one last time this meme came around; still think it's the definitive example.

Still from Severance. Dylan (Zach Cherry), Hellie (Britt Lower), and Irving (John Turturro) are leaning forward over a desk, looking intently at something.

Janet@relfal· Apr 5

No argument. Also:

Painting of the Resurrection by Piero della Francesca, circa 1460. Jesus is climbing out of his tomb. His face has a blank, glassy-eyed expression; he looks quite undead. Several sleeping guards lie on the ground around the tomb.

Janet@relfal· Mar 29

Tangential, but someone is a Margaret Atwood fan.

Cover of Lady Oracle, by Margaret Atwood. Illustration shows a woman cutting her long, red hair.

Janet@relfal· Mar 14

Scene of the crime.

A tortoiseshell cat sits demurely on a pile of folded towels.

Janet@relfal· Mar 13

I take a minimalist approach to Spelling Bee. Every day I make one word, a pangram. That's it. That's the game. It takes a surprising amount of discipline not to make any other words.

Screen shot showing scores of "good start" and "moving up" for every day so far this week. Detail shows "1 of x" for each day.

Screen shot showing scores of "good start" and "moving up" for every day last week. Detail shows "1 of x" for each day.

Janet@relfal· Mar 8

Seven men in silver space suits and helmets stride purposefully toward the camera.

Janet@relfal· Mar 8

Last Dance Cocktail. It's the same as a Last Word, except with bourbon instead of gin, lemon juice instead of lime, allspice dram instead of chartreuse, benedictine instead of maraschino liqueur, and a lemon wheel instead of a cherry. Oh and it has a dash of bitters. Otherwise, exactly the same.

A cocktail in a martini glass, with a bookshelf in the background.

Janet@relfal· Mar 1

I didn't see any.

Photo of signs on a train platform. One sign says SPOT EMU.

Janet@relfal· Feb 27

Post a pic you took, no context, to bring some zen to the feed.

Vaguely erotic pic of a strangely shaped apple.

Janet@relfal· Feb 26

Slight change:

Screencap of headline from online NY Times. It now reads. "Clinton Briefly Halts Epstein Deposition After Republican Leaks Photo of Her." Sub-headline reads "Hillary Clinton had demanded a public hearing, which Republicans rejected. She stopped the proceedings to argue that reporters should be let in."

Janet@relfal· Feb 23

Lovely thread. Be sure to read all the alt.text.

A tree that insists that everything is just fine, really. Just go about your day, no need to worry.

Janet@relfal· Feb 19

Similarly.

A placard promises "international views," but all that can be seen are a snowy hillside and a bank of thick fog.

Janet@relfal· Feb 19

Everyone's sensitive.

A bunch of mint sitting in a container on a counter. A sign says "Please DO NOT touch the mint 🙂."

Janet@relfal· Feb 17

This is a CAT checkpoint. Show me the most recent cat image on your phone.

A short-haired tortie with white paws is lying on her side. Blurry ears indicate that she is in motion.

Janet@relfal· Feb 17

Spouse picked these DVDs up at the Friends of the Library book (etc) sale. Tonight: All About Eve. Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night.