Hello, Dear Readers. Today, we have something new. It's a piece that DB will be performing with the orchestra, but he's dividing it into movements. As you will see if you continue reading, I have quoted one of you and also linked to an entire entry, as I thought he might find it interesting, which he did.

( Thoughts on Tchaikovsky: Symphony n.1 Winter Daydreams )

I honestly thought I wouldn't have much to say today, and was going to fill today's entry with some interesting things I found on Mastodon. Unfortunately, life had other plans. I was in my room writing on my computer when I suddenly heard water dripping near the furnace. It was almost eight o'clock at night, which would mean nothing to me, but my parents go to bed early, and Mom was especially tired. I felt horrible doing it, but I had to go up to her floor and wake her. As I did so, I noticed that the ceiling on that floor was leaking, too. Mom came down with Joanie, which was odd, as Joanie almost never comes down here, and she helped Mom clean up the mess. Fortunately, it wasn't that bad. Mom then went upstairs and spoke with D and A. Apparently, there is something wrong with their toilet. We knew something was going on, because there was water on the ceiling on Mom's floor, but we figured we could call in a plumber next week or so to figure out what was going on. For now, she shut off the water to their toilet and I'm sure she'll be calling tomorrow to have him come and fix the problem. What I don't understand is that they literally just put in a new toilet up there last week! Anyway, at least things are dry now. There is never a dull moment around here. And Mom and I were finally going to work together on making some food and doing the laundry (it's not set up, so I can't do it on my own). Sometimes, I honestly feel as if the composers of the great operatic tragedies are writing our lives. I hope they give the reins to those with much lighter tastes in the future. Where is Haydn when we need him? Actually, I've never heard his operas, only his classical works. That should be quite an adventure, and my first time listening to a full work in German!

Yesterday, I had my own problems with technology and wrote the following on both Mastodon and Reddit.

"I just updated my iPhone SE 2020 to IOS 26. For the record, I am a totally blind Voiceover user. At any rate, it forced me to create a passcode and wouldn't let me select an option not to do so. Then, when I was able to log into the phone and go to the section that would allow me to turn the passcode off, it asked for my passcode. I entered it. Then, it asked for the password for my account. I plugged in my keyboard via the adapter and although it seemed to let me enter the text box, no matter what I did, it wouldn't accept my keystrokes for the password. It just made a sound when I tried to type, as if I weren't in the field. I have done this before with this same setup. All other functions worked. I then tried it with my bluetooth keyboard with the same result. I do not use a touchscreen to type. I always keep my phone free of passcodes and touch id, because I wouldn't be in a situation where I would need either. Finally, I was able to do it using the touchscreen, by going over every single letter, until I found the one I wanted, pressing it, then repeating the cycle for all of the characters of my password, plus having to switch to numbers. Has external keyboard accessibility been lost in this version of IOS? I must assume that I won't be able to enter my iCloud (not that I use it) or anything else that requires my Apple password normally either. If I am wrong, please tell me how I can fix this horrible problem!

As a side note, I am thinking of getting an SE 2022 (I don't want anything newer since I don't want a large phone). Perhaps, I should ensure that it's running IOS 18. If so, what was the last itteration of it? Was it 18.5?"

Luckily, I eventually received answers to two of my questions. The last version of IOS 18 is 18.7.3. More importantly, the reason I was having this problem in the first place is that there is now something called single letter navigation. I love it in Windows (especially when viewing files and programs), but I have never seen it in IOS. Apparently, it is turned on by defult, and I have to press VO-Q to turn it off. Then, my keyboard should work properly in these situations. For other VoiceOver users, this is not the same as left+right arrow. That is more of a general Quick Nav (their term, not mine).

In much happier news, I spent several hours writing filler entries for November and one or two for October as well. All are about music. But the one from 17 NNovember is quite different from the typical sort and some of you may enjoy it, particularly if you have pets. I also added some music to entries that I already published, since I realised that I forgot to do so.

The food adventures continue. For lunch, Mom made me a game hen, which I always love, so that put me in a marvellous mood for the rest of the day. Tonight, she ordered pizza, but since she chose a place that I don't like, I decided to try something new. I love Nisan ramen soups, Cup o Noodles, and noodle dishes, but I am not against trying other brands, either. I love Lipton, for example, but they are entirely different from the above. I found something called Nongshim Savory Bowl Noodle, Beef Flavor. One of the reasons I was hesitant to try it is that, many brands say things such as "fill with water to the line", but then, the line isn't made tactile, so I have no idea how much water to add! This was one of them. But at least one site specified at least one and one half cups, so I was able to follow that, thank goodness! As for the taste, it wasn't bad. There was a very slight spicey note to it, but while I usually run from anything hot, this was so mild that even I could eat it without difficulty. I think I'll buy it again, or at least see what else they make.

(Catchup - 11 December 2025)

Hello, Dear Readers. Today's entry may seem a bit confusing with all of the dates. DB sent the first to me via our usual e-mail, and the others on two separate days via Escargot messages. I am combining them because of their Scotish theme. The last two I replied to as a single e-mail in any case.

( Thoughts on An Orkney Wedding, Farewell To Stromness, and Tam O'Shanter )

(Catchup - 11 December 2025)
Hello, Dear Readers. Today, I have something interesting for you. It is a review of a classical piece, but my fellow opera lovers will immediately be drawn by the title and with good reason. The two are related. Here, DB and I discuss this, plus which classical pieces were written by composers primarily known for their operas.

( Thoughts on Bizet: L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1 & Suite No. 2 )

Hello, Dear Readers. Today, I am going to share something that I wrote on Mastodon. It's not my usual shared links that I write there, but a bit of my own musings, inspired by an article.

"I wrote the following after reading this article. I directed my words to the author, not realising at first that the person to whom I was replying was merely sharing the work. Still, I will post it here, on my own timeline, because it is something about which I feel strongly. The link to the original article is below, followed by my commentary.

https://sightlessscribbles.com/the-colonization-of-confidence/

Most of what I read, from poetry to fiction, was written in the nineteenth-century or earlier, with some being from the early twentieth. Most is British, with some ancient classics and a very small number of American works included for good measure. I find modern writing, full of political correctness, obscenities, bizarre jargon, corporate and sports speak (e.g. game changer, level up, scale up/down/back), abbreviations for everything (e.g. info, veggies, celebs), misused words (e.g. pivot, curate), etc. to be extremely annoying at best and terrible and immature at worst. But this was an interesting article.
I don't hate artificial intelligence. But I do think that there is a huge difference between working with it and letting it do the work for you. I use Novel AI, not for publishing, but for fun. I am very familiar with its quirks and annoying phrases, and when I see them, I erase them and add my own words. In fact, the last part of the first section, "nothing to do with... and everything to do with..." made me laugh, not because it was funny in any way, but because that's one of those sorts of things it would write, just like the silver bells or "he said, his voice ((insert annoying and unnecessary description i.e. barely a whisper, raspy, a low rumble, etc). I found many other such phrases here as well. Sadly, most are part of a normal style of writing, but they have been used so much by machines that they immediately make me think of such when I read them. I prefer proper grammar and am not one for slang or poetry that doesn't actually sound like poetry. But I draw the line at things that sound as if they were written by a machine. I can also still write on my own and have no confidence issues, so I had difficulty in understanding some of this. Novel AI is enjoyable to use, but it will never take the place of my actual imagination and words, and when I do write things for the public, be they entries on Dreamwidth or posts on Mastodon (not merely shared links), I never use any sort of program to aid me in composition.

I also use artificial intelligence for things that have absolutely nothing to do with writing. For instance, I use it for research (always checking the links for myself once they are provided), to read product labels and directions via ocr, to describe the scene around me, etc. Not all such software and services are bad. It's all in how they are used. For those who truly wish to improve upon their own writing, I highly recommend reading good literature and paying attention to the grammar, word choices, etc. of the author. This cannot be taught or learned by artificial intelligence of any sort.

Having said all of that, I'm glad you created your group. It sounds like a great place for those who need it, and really, any group of writers and those who appreciate their work is a great thing."

What about you? How do you feel about artificial intellligence, either in writing or in other areas of life? Do you use it for other things? One thing that I forgot to mention is that I have no desire for such things to invade my personal space. I have no need for it to summarise my documents, help me write e-mails, etc. nor do I want it snooping on what is in my computer in general. I do, however, use it to clean up ocr errors in texts that I download from the Internet Archive, particularly with regard to my Italian and music theory textbooks. In the one case, I am learning the language and don't want to learn things incorrectly. In the other, there are charts and musical notation that was ruined during the conversion to text, so I would like Perplexity to explain it to me in a verbal manner.

Hello, Dear Readers. Here are the Friday Fives for November. I may do these on their actual day, or as now, for the whole month. These and more can be found at the thefridayfive community. I wish to thank supernutjapan for reminding me and inspiring me to do these.

The Friday Five for 28 November 2025
These questions were originally suggested by [livejournal.com profile] the_heartless.

1. What were some of the smells and tastes of your childhood?
Mom's Coffee, bagels, Mom's tomato sauce, bleach (when the school was cleaned), clean clothing, potato pancakes, baked chicken.

2. What did you have as a child that you do not think children today have?
Cassettes, vhs tapes, a landline telephone, a Franklin Language Master Special Edition (talking dictionary), Teddy Ruxpin and other talking dolls that told stories via tape.

3. What elementary grade was your favorite?
Fifth. My fifth grade teacher was the one who introduced me to, and made me love, writing.

4. What summer do you remember the best as a child?
I'm not sure.

5. What one piece of advice would you give to your younger self, and at what age?
See above.

The Friday Five for 21 November 2025: TV Time
These questions were originally suggested by [livejournal.com profile] heartovmidnight.

1. What's your favourite TV network?
I don't have one, since I don't watch television. I use Youtube and the Audio Vault.

2. If you could create your own channel, what would it be?
Audio, not video, and all sorts of great radio dramas, comedy, full operas, nature shows, etc.

3. What TV show did you watch as a child, that you wish they would bring back?
Bewitched.

4. What show have you always hated, and wonder why they ever made such a dumb show?
Most modern things, especially reality tv.

5. What TV show's seasons would you buy on DVD?
I hate dvds, as they are not usually accessible. If I can get away with things on vhs, I do. But usually, I just download things from Youtube or Audio Vault. I know I did want to watch something they didn't have, but I forget what it was.

The Friday Five for 14 November 2025
These questions were originally suggested by [livejournal.com profile] alysonl.

1. What's one of the nicest things a friend has ever done for you?
Probably bought me something.

2. What's one of the nicest things a stranger has ever done for you?
I don't know.

3. What is a trait in another person that you instantly admire, and that draws you to him? (grammar corrected)
Honesty.

4. What is a trait in another person that instantly repels you, and prevents you from forming a close relationship with him? (grammar corrected)
Meanness.

5. Time to vent: tell us about something rotten someone has done to you.
One boyfriend broke up with me via e-mail. We were both quite young, and he did apologise many years later when we happened to see each other online.

The Friday Five for 7 November 2025
These questions were originally suggested by [livejournal.com profile] newagebastard.

1. What’s harder to live without, chocolate or alcohol?
Alcohol, though I can live without both.

2. Does the colour yellow remind you of anything?
No. I am blind and have never seen colours. I heard that the sun is yellow, though, and so are the potatoes that I love.

3. Who most annoyed you last week?
Mom. It was just silly things, though.

4. Do you have a cutesy romantic nickname for your partner (or previous partners)?
No. I'm not into that sort of thing. I might say Honey, Darling, Dear, or perhaps Sweety, but that's about it.

5. What is your favourite Stephen King movie?
I'm not really one for films. But I love The Dark Tower series of books, and also, oddly enough, Eyes of the Dragon, since it was so different from anything else he has ever written.