ELSEWHERE

hi my name is Erika and I am a pretentious Castlevania hipster

(I think the Netflix show is too aesthetically sharp -- i.e., I think it's ugly -- and not in line with the soft tones of Ayami Kojima's art style, which to me is intrinsic to the franchise; I am tired of the Alucard of that universe, he is a bottom tier Dracula-born dhampir; I don't like Warren Ellis and he's, as far as I know, still the writer; the entire tone is weirdly modern and unpleasant to me)

anyways I hope the Castlevania Netflix series is madly successful, especially the most recent run bcuz it will make racists mad, but I also long for the days of Lament of Innocence, Aria of Sorrow, or Castlevania 64 my beloved

edit after a quick Google: the most recent series (Nocturne) is not written by Warren Ellis, looks like Netflix gave him the boot after the sexual abuse allegations came out

I got a full night's sleep, huzzah!

Baby Dog seems back to her usual self, which includes getting huffy with me earlier when I wouldn't let her stomp through a mud puddle on morning walkies. I'm glad I stayed home yesterday, even though it's honestly put me pretty low on sick hours so I'll definitely need to power through and build them back up. But Baby Dog was lethargic and wanted cuddles and comfort, and I don't think Three Hours of Sleep Erika is the version I want to be working as a first responder. Seems unideal!

Aside from that, the weather is finally cooling off; we had about a week of nice fall temps and then an unpleasant heat spike that put everything back in the high 70s/low 80s. I had already taken out my window A/C unit so I just kinda had to suffer through with fans, but it's back to where I can actually properly open blinds and windows and not feel like I have to hide in a darkness cave in order to stay cooled off.

I think that's it for now. It's my Wednesday equivalent so I'm off to do my morning routine stuff!

What a bizarrely eventful thirty minutes or so!

So I got home and immediately realized Baby Dog had messed on the rug again. Neat! I, once more, cleaned it up and then put everything in the wash. This time I'm going to leave the rug off the floor until I'm sure we're all clear, just because I love Baby Dog dearly but I won't pretend I'm not exasperated that she always chooses the singular one piece of floor in my apartment that is extremely laborious to clean. (And expensive! I have to use the big washing machine which is $5 a load.)

Anyways, after I got that going I took her outside for walkies and passed by two-- gender nonconforming persons?? I always hesitate to say something like "obviously queer" but, I mean,,,

Regardless, they were out walking their dog and stopped to greet me and ask if they could pet Baby Dog. I told them her name and the femme-presenting person said their spirit was full because they just performed and their stage name is Baby Asia. I told them I hoped the performance went well and they announced that everyone saw their "mushroom butt," which I asked zero follow-up questions about. Despite my lack of curiosity they lifted their shirt to reveal they were wearing what I can best describe as assless chaps, and just had their cheeks exposed to the open Chicago air. I guess the "mushroom" part were some pasties or something they used during the show? I continued to ask zero follow-up questions, I won't lie. They were totally harmless (perhaps on Substances, but still, harmlessly so) and just having a nice night, but I also am not the type of human who will ask strangers about their mushroom butts.

After I wished them a nice evening I went back upstairs and now I'm waiting for the rug to at least finish its wash cycle so I can put it in the dryer before I go to bed @_@

re: Baby Dog; I've upgraded to mild concern but behaviorally she seems fine, so???? She's still highly food motivated and wants to play/wrassle/walkies/etc. I'm going to give it one more day with some additional troubleshooting (cutting food back a bit, going on longer afternoon walkies before I leave for work to make sure she has all the time she needs to potty) and see if that helps. If she messes inside again I'll make a vet appointment, just to be safe, since it's not her usual behavior but also she's a very elderly pit bull who sometimes gets an upset tummy so I don't want to lose my mind with stress over her just having a few days of bubble guts. We'll see! Hopefully tomorrow she'll have it out of her system, and for once not on my goddamned rug.

okay gonna space out w/ a YouTube or something while I wait to switch the rug over, then to bed after that

Good vibes for Baby! I hope she feels better by tomorrow

Sophie has informed me that the mushroom butt experience was probably me being flirted with and hilariously I did not even consider that to be an option

No accidents yesterday! I am going to give it through today before I put the rug back down, though. Today is my Friday equivalent, so tomorrow starts my weekend and I can keep a more direct eye on her anyways.

I know it won't be long before I'm annoyed at how cold it is and how disgusting snow is but we've snapped back to seasonally appropriate autumn temperatures and man it's nice to sit at my desk with a hoodie on and my lil space heater keepin' my leggies warm

Weekend!

Yesterday was nice; I got lots of tasks done (including meal prep!) and some stuff out to try and do a craft later today. Yesterday was also D&D day, which I always enjoy, just because it's nice to hang out with the homies and play dollies for a bit. Oh, and I did put the rug back down, so here's hoping it stays clean for a bit because I love having a ruggable but the act of washing it and then putting it back together is not........enjoyable.

Today I have a Grown-Up Phone Call to make (insurance issues with my most recent emergency department visit bluhhhhh) but otherwise am going to exercise, play some Final Fantasy 14, and enjoy being cozy indoors. It's right at the sweet spot of autumn weather where I can crack the windows for fresh air and wear a hoodie indoors, so I'm trying to enjoy that before it nosedives into wretched winter.

Oh, I wanted to walk to the fancy tea store today to buy some tea, and I still might, but that's a bit more up in the air. We'll see how I feel this afternoon!

Me, chatting with Sophie while I pick out paint colors for a project: hah, these are kinda like Beetlejuice colors
Sophie: sorry, what was that?
Me: the paints, they're Beetlejuice colors
Sophie: one more time?
Me: BEETLEJUICE COLOR--oh god damn it

Leon

My inevitable "the seasons are changing and I must deep clean my environment" has kicked in, so I'm gonna spread out some tasks throughout the week to get some cleaning and chores done. I think I do a good job of maintaining a tidy and clean homespace, but part of that does involve pretty regular deep cleans just because my apartment is so small that things like the baseboards, ceiling fans, insides of cabinets, etc. can build up pretty quickly. Plus, yeah, there's just something about a seasonal change that gives me some kind of Must Prepare the Castle for [Season], even outside of the transition to spring.

Anyways, tomorrow I'm gonna tackle the bedroom. As part of that I did order a new rug to go under my desk because I'm tired of my little one constantly getting flipped up by my chair and I have exactly two more days of Amazon Prime before I have to cancel, which is the perfect time to have a rug shipped. (I don't pay for Amazon Prime anymore and haven't since a bit after I moved to Chicago, although whenever it tries to tempt me with a free trial I accept and just set a calendar reminder to cancel before the trial runs out.) I do also need a new computer chair at some point, I got a kinda cheap one last time and I have decimated it (I am not gentle on chairs, I am a wiggly boy and often sit up with my feet in the chair or use the arms to lift myself up) so next time I decide to make A Purchase for myself I'll spring for a good one. This one'll do for a while longer, though.

I guess that's it for now. Today is my Monday Equivalent, boo, but my energy levels have generally been better and work has been less outright excruciating. I did let my boss know I'd like to move to first shift next time there's availability, for a couple of different reasons, but due to [boring explanation about personnel issues I have no control over] it might be a year or so before that shakes out. We'll see!