Blog - SB Hopper

Still here, technically

I am determined to get back to this. I miss it. To justify staying on Ghost, I need to get on their cheapest plan, which means ensuring that I'm on one of their default themes. Diving into that now, racing against the renewal clock! (I like Ghost and would like

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Requiem

Sorry for the dramatic title or subject line. I got in my car today and the classical music station was playing Mozart's Requiem. Texted some friends and told them if they hadn't listened to it in a while, they should. One friend wrote back, I think sarcastically, that he'd fire

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This is going to be interesting

I didn't feel like cooking anything tonight, and I wasn't particularly hungry, but I knew I'd want something during the obnoxious booms. I took a gamble on a Simple Truth, plant-based, spicy veggie masala. I'm a bad gambler, and I think I'm about to lose. One bright spot - it's

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Out damn spot...

It turns out I did sign up for Apple+. I blame (and thank) Chuck for the Severance recommendation. I am doing my best to spread the contagion. It's a great show. Tonight I started watching The Tragedy of MacBeth. I think MacBeth and Hamlet are neck and neck for the

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Odds and Ends

The finale of Severance was intense. (No Spoilers here.) I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Our main characters had a window, of unknown length, to reflect and gain awareness about their circumstances. A window that could close at any moment. Some of their actions confused

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Changes

I think we can call it Spring in Seattle. I saw people in shorts and t-shirts today. It was warm, and the shorts and t-shirts weren't unreasonable, but I've noticed that people in Seattle have an amazing ability to dress relative to the sun's presence. I haven't posted much recently.

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She's so popular

My mom and I share an inside joke. I can't remember how it started, and there's no sense trying to explain it. It just won't make any sense. But here's how it plays out. I listen to a lot of 70s and 80s music, the prime years for a certain

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Chow Hall Eats: Eggs and a tortilla

The other night I mentioned getting a burrito at Bimbo's (or is it Cha Cha?). Chuck replied, saying that he prefers tacos, so as to avoid the gluten. That reminded me that I would like to try cutting out gluten. Just want to give it a try. This is a

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Me again

> It's nice in the sun, the shade's not fun. ~ Neighborhood mail carrier. It's been pretty chilly in Seattle. I overheard the mail carrier saying that to a neighbor. We all had a good laugh at the unintentional rhyme. I'm glad we haven't given into the awful temptation over the years

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Well hello there

Excuse me for a moment while I dust off the cobwebs! This feels unnervingly strange. I know I've been gone for a while, but in the big scheme of things, it hasn't been that long. It feels like I'm having to re-learn the internet just to fire up this old

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This interview is not over

I wouldn't say I'm particularly interested in vampires. I like vampire stories, but in the same way that I like any good story. And Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire was a good story, about Vampires. I vaguely remember the film and reading the sequels. I was more interested in

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A little catch up

I'm striking out on getting a COVID booster. A perfect storm of demand, staffing shortages, and glitchy websites. I've spent a lot of time walking to local pharmacies. It's not pleasant. The pharmacy workers across the board seem exhausted and stressed. I missed my only real chance in the past

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The Irish were born for leaving...

...otherwise the world would have no pubs. It's a line in the trailer for Belfast [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIrOIrt30kE], and I might have misquoted it. The movie looks fantastic, and I can't wait to see it. Black and white, incredible actors, and fantastic music. At least two

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Seasons roll on by

I chatted with a neighbor today while a city worker took photos of his house for historical documentation. His house and the one next to it (maybe others, too) will be replaced by an 8-story apartment building. He and his wife bought the house in 1976. (Paraphrased) We've loved our

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Never give your parents grief

It's a pretty solid rain right now in Seattle. We're very close to the I'm always cold season. It doesn't matter how many layers one wears...always a little cold. I'm not complaing, at least not entirely. I can't abide excessive heat, and I believe all of us will be

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An Unreliable Narrator

I have been out with friends a few times the past week or two, and inevitably portions of the discussions involved COVID. I've started describing my experience with a breakthrough case as no big deal. After all, I thought my initial negative tests put me in the clear, and I'm

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Here comes the rain again

It was a dark, windy, and rainy night. Sounds like we're going to get drenched here in the Pacific Northwest. Stay safe everyone! Let's hope it helps with western wildfires. I thought this was a pretty cool description from the National Weather Service [https://www.weather.gov]: > Given that this

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Norwich on Caesar

John Julius Norwich never disappoints. Wikipedia describes his as a popular historian, which probably means academics wouldn't regard him highly. Who cares. I read his fantastic history of Byzantium, and I was hooked. Flipping through The Middle Sea, a History of the Mediterranean, and I read this description of Caesar.

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Carthage Must Be Destroyed

Carthāgō dēlenda est. ~ Cato (via Wikipedia) The sirens beckon. I am lost in the ancient world. A re-discovery of sorts. I spent the last 6 years or so not wanting to think too much about the Middle East. I'd had enough, for a lot of reasons. Looking back I think

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Maybe a bad idea (I'm full of them)

Charles Mudede is a fantastic writer, economist, film-maker...how do people get so talented at so many things. He has an article in The Stranger about climate change [https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2021/09/02/60958535/floods-and-wildfires-show-that-climate-change-is-to-the-us-what-world-war-was-to-the-uk] that made a lot of sense to me, things I've been thinking

COVID

Some COVID observations

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Clock watcher

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Don't forget the good

Muddling along in the meh zone. I'm not feeling awesome, but I'm not feeling terrible, either. If things continue like this for a few more days, I'll be grateful. It helps having friends and family who check in on you. Instant morale boost. A friend dropped off sushi, miso soup,

Foreign Policy

Next time...

I apologize for all the links of late. I'll get back to my stuff soon, but my mind has been on Afghanistan. Feel free to skip this one. I had a long talk with a friend about Afghanistan last night. We agreed that the situation was heartbreaking. We disagreed (slightly)

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We'll keep doing it until we can't

I think about this scene in the Dark Knight when I think about U.S. foreign policy. Credit: Nizzinny. I think most YouTubers are cool with having their work shared like this. If not, let me know and I'll delete it.Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya. I'm sure my friends' kids