Jantar

@Jantar@mstdn.social

I read, I write, I bake - and though I was born in Holland, I now live (with a cat) in a tiny village in the Czech Republic. (Before I moved here, I worked almost eighteen years in the largest hotel for the homeless in Holland. Before that, I worked freelance, as a translator, copywriter and editor, but I also tended bar and worked as a pub cook - and I taught English whenever I lived abroad and needed the extra cash.) https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jan-Thie/author/B0841RPQBS?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

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golgaloth, to random
@golgaloth@writing.exchange avatar

#WritersCoffeeClub 12.
Do you prefer to write on a desktop, laptop, etc

All on computer. Either my desktop, or laptop if I'm away from home.

Jantar,

@golgaloth

I started out writing first drafts on paper, then typing those up on a mechanical typewriter.
(Yes, I am old.)
For many years I kept doing first drafts on paper and doing the next rounds on a mainframe computer.
Then I started doing first drafts on a laptop but the rest still on my mainframe.
These days I do all my first draft writing on my phone, and then do edits on the laptop. My mainframe computer has been languishing in the guest apartment for five years or so.

lcamtuf, (edited ) to random

deleted_by_author

    •
    Jantar,

    @lcamtuf

    Maybe yes, maybe no; I don't know enough to judge.

    One thing I can think of in 'defence' of online dating is that it is a very recent phenomenon. For what it's worth, I suspect the points you make are valid enough but part of that may be that people are still learning what the best use is.

    Mind you, the business of romantic partner selection is also quite new, and if you look at the divorce rates, who can say with certainty arranged marriages aren't more successful?

    Private
    Jantar,

    @JD_Cunningham @bookstodon

    True. I remember reading a Stephen King collection of short stories and in one of the introductions he mentioned that he loved the Canadian writer Robertson Davies.

    I immediately bought a book by RD and was terribly disappointed it wasn't a horror novel. Well, I was sixteen or seventeen at the time.

    A few years later, I tried again and absolutely loved the book, and I went on to buy all the RD books I could lay my greedy hands on.

    Jantar, to random

    'For I have known them all already, known them all:
    Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
    I have measured out my life with coffee spoons'...

    ..... and so yes, that's another one done - and it's been a bit more than four years now of these three-monthly hormone injections.

    Anyway, eat that, Eliot!

    #TSEliot
    #Prufrock
    #Zoladex
    #HormoneInjections
    #ProstrateCancer

    Jantar, to solar

    This pic was taken two steps inside my front gate and it might be my best night pic ever. Mind you, it was just me and the iPhone camera getting lucky. I think the nice green colours come from the cheap solar lights I bought a few years back. They are aimed low (to light my way) but must leak enough light to produce those colours. (I never use the flash.)

    I really like this one!

    #Moon
    #MoonShot
    #Night
    #NightPhotography
    #NoFlash
    #Solar
    #Garden

    grammargirl, to random
    @grammargirl@zirk.us avatar

    A town with a fun name — Nowthen — leads us down the path of understanding when someone is and isn't a namesake.

    In this week's podcast, I also share my thoughts about a surprising new poll about the word "commentate."

    Enjoy it on your commute, while you go for a walk, or do some cooking. 🎧

    APPLE PODCASTS: https://applepodcasts.com/GrammarGirl

    SPOTIFY: https://spoti.fi/454uDte

    TRANSCRIPT: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/namesake/transcript

    YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/KMRW1b5pu6s

    Jantar,

    @grammargirl
    Not quite the same thing but we passed this town two weeks ago on our way to Prague.

    (I found the photo on the internet; I was too slow to take a pic myself.)

    RickiTarr, to random
    @RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

    If you restarted your life from scratch, would you end up in the same place? Would you change anything, if so what, if not why?

    Jantar, (edited )

    @RickiTarr
    Leave your house 5 minutes before you actually leave it and you may meet the love of your life; leave 5 minutes later and you could be killed by a drunk driver.

    In other words, unless you lived that second life as an exact carbon copy of the first one, it would definitely go differently and who'd want to have a second go as a preprogrammed shadow?

    For the rest: I'm happy where I am now, and since you could never change just the one thing, I'd keep things as they are.

    cstross, to random
    @cstross@wandering.shop avatar

    Welp, here's your story prompt for today! (Found on Bluesky.)

    Jantar,

    @cstross

    'Even Greta Gerwig could not turn 'Dracula's Bed Bugs' into a box office hit.'

    Jantar, to random

    I just made this: rose petal pink dried peppercorn salt - which took all of three or four minutes, so I may need to dream up more fun kitchen-y tasks.

    • Heat rose petals in a dry pan, to release the flavours, but watch they don't burn.
    • Put peppercorns & petals, with sea salt, in a spice grinder.
    • Grind.

    Don't worry about amounts. Start with the petals & pepper, and a bit of salt, and keep adding salt till you're happy with the colour & taste of the mix.



    RickiTarr, to random
    @RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

    What is the spookiest or creepiest story that's supposed to be for children and why?

    Jantar,

    @RickiTarr
    Right. I'm going to ignore all the old, pre-prettified German fairytales, because so many of them are fucking hardcore.

    It's hard to think of one specific story though. Gaiman's Coraline springs to mind but the author said it's parents who get freaked out, while the kids trust Coraline to be triumphant.

    So, Roald Dahl's The Witches? The movie for the moment the true face of the head witch is revealed, the book because the boy will remain a mouse (& die within 9 years!)

    Jantar,

    @RickiTarr @hackdefendr

    The thing that always gets me is that in the original stories there were hardly any evil stepmothers. It was the mothers themselves doing all kinds of monstrous things - but later it was decided 'real' mothers could never do horrible things to their own kids, so 'mother' got changed into 'stepmother'.

    Jantar,

    @RickiTarr
    I've only seen the film once (and know the book better) but didn't our hero get changed back into a human boy at the end of the film?

    Jantar,

    @RickiTarr

    Hm, come to think about it, weren't these marketed at kids?

    Jantar,

    @RickiTarr

    This blog post explains it - but, in short:

    Book: the hero does not turn human again.
    1990 film: the hero gets his human form back.
    2020 film: the hero stays a mouse.

    (Live and learn; I didn't even know the 2020 film existed.)

    https://mamasgeeky.com/2020/10/witches-ending-explained.html#:~:text=The%20Witches%202020%20Movie%20Ending&text=The%20boy%20and%20his%20grandmother%20find%20the%20Grand%20High%20Witches,the%20grandmother's%20home%20in%20Alabama.

    Jantar, to random

    I ordered two mini #paella pans last month; which is enough for me, since I live alone and only have two regular (solo) house guests.
    This was the first time I used one of them.

    No recipe, just first principles: I sautéd onion & garlic, added #risotto rice & stirred, added a bit of bouillon, then a bit of leek, mushrooms, carrot & dried cranberries, let that simmer for 4 minutes, added a bit of grated cheese and put it in the preheated 200C/392F oven for 8 minutes - and very nice it was too.

    Extreme closeup of a spoonful of paella I'm holding up. The rice glistens and even in one spoonful, there's enough leek, mushroom and carrot visible to make for a very tasty mouthful.

    jeffvandermeer, to random

    neo the cute

    Jantar,

    @jeffvandermeer

    Damn yes.

    Likewise, to books
    @Likewise@beige.party avatar

    I do not like audio books.
    My focus leaves & before long, I realize I have no idea what’s going on. Also, I don’t find listening to a book near as enjoyable as reading it, something gets lost in the process.

    All that to say, I’ve been listening to this one. Granted, it’s taken me 2 times of checking it out at the library. These are all true stories that cover many subjects & the endings all make you think, which I love. I highly recommend.

    Even if you hate audio books 😉
    #books #nonfiction #davidgrann #fediverse @bookstodon

    Jantar,

    @alicemcalicepants @Likewise @bookstodon

    I love audiobooks but I do need to combine that with other activities. So I either listen to books walking to the village shop or doing certain garden chores, or I do it sitting on the couch or lying in bed while playing solitaire on my phone.

    Jantar, to Bread

    More baking fun: focaccine soffici*.

    100ml tepid water
    100ml whole milk
    15g fresh yeast
    300g strong bread flour
    8g salt
    10g honey
    30ml olive oil.

    Just before I put them in the oven, I applied a double egg wash** to the pieces of dough.

    *A Guardian recipe: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/oct/09/focaccia-focaccine-soffici-recipe-little-soft-focacce-rachel-roddy
    **with honey, sea salt & chilli flakes.

    #Focaccia
    #Bread
    #Baking
    #Guardian
    #Recipes

    Extreme closeup of one little bread that I hold up in my hand. I had already taken a bite out of it, and I tried to capture the fluffy crumb here, without much success. It's fluffy though, while the thin crust is crunchy - which is just how you want it with this type of bread.

    stux, to random Dutch
    @stux@mstdn.social avatar

    Eindelijk... eindelijk wordt er iets gedaan aan de massieve schuld inning in #Nederland

    Een kleine schuld kan zo snel zo hoog oplopen dat je letterlijk geen uitweg meer ziet. Trust me, I've been there.

    Elke schuld wordt keer 10 verhoogd en de dreigementen worden alleen maar heftiger waardoor mensen alleen maar banger worden

    Hopelijk wordt er nu eindelijk werk van gemaakt en dit gelimiteerd zodat mensen niet meer in situaties worden gedrukt waardoor het leven amper iets waard lijkt

    Jantar,

    @stux
    Bij mij was het altijd meer afkeer dan angst - al was de telefoon een grotere vijand.
    Tot een paar jaar terug had ik niet eens een domme mobiele telefoon, last staan een smart phone.
    Ik weigerde in het algemeen ook om mijn vaste telefoon op te nemen - en toen het internet er eenmaal was, heb ik iedereen (inclusief bazen/ managers) verteld dat ik alleen per mail bereikbaar was.

    Deurbellen negeerde ik trouwens ook meestal. Ik heb sterke kluizenaars genen.

    Jantar, to random

    What a day, fellow Mastodonians, what a day.
    It was time to get my passport renewed/replaced and friends took me to Prague in their car.
    I HATE being in cars but the alternative was an even longer journey by bus (2x), metro & tram (and back), and what with #Covid still lurking and me living with cancer, I didn't need that kind of exposure.
    Still, some 5 hours in total in a car, plus the leaping through bureaucratic hoops at the embassy, is not my kind of fun.

    Which shows on my new passport pic.

    Jantar,

    @shawrd773
    Well, mine does that. Good point, also.

    DocCarms, (edited ) to books
    @DocCarms@mstdn.social avatar

    There was a poll that stated—Rowling’s opening line in the HP series is one of best in the world. Someone posted about how there are a bunch of other opening statements that are better.

    Here’s one of my personal favorites, from Gabriel Garcia Marquez (in English):
    “It is inevitable — the scent of bitter almonds always reminded him of the fate of unrequited love.”

    What are some of your favorite opening lines in literature? 😊
    @bookstodon

    Jantar,

    @DocCarms @bookstodon

    Just one example from children's literature:

    'There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife.'

    From Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book.

    Jantar, to animals

    Channel your inner Tammy* and sing along:

    'Sometimes it's hard to be a feline'.

    *Ayup, her: https://youtu.be/DwBirf4BWew?si=4-mixNMDaU9U6ZXM

    #TammyWynette
    #StandByYourCat
    #CatsOfMastodon

    garius, to random
    @garius@mastodon.me.uk avatar

    Three Olivier awards. Two SAGAs. Four BAFTAs. Founding company member of the National Theatre (having been personally picked by Laurence Olivier).

    But sure. Let's go with "Harry Potter actor Michael Gambon dies"

    Jantar,

    @garius
    Hah. Well, at least the Guardian mentions The Singing Detective.

    All the others seem indeed to go with 'Harry Potter actor'.

    I didn't know him but I suspect he would have wryly smiled if he could have seen those headers.

    Anyway, as I said, I didn't know him but damn, talk about An Acting Life Well Lived.

    (To me he will always be Philip E Marlow though. I saw The Singing Detective in my mid twenties and thought it was the best thing ever made for TV.)

    grammargirl, to random
    @grammargirl@zirk.us avatar

    I'm revisiting the word "toast" this morning and was reminded of one of my favorite tidbits:

    Toasting someone with a drink comes from the ancient practice of putting a piece of toast in bad wine to reduce the acidity.

    Jantar,

    @grammargirl

    Right, so you're essentially saying to the other people in the room: 'You lot are bad and acidic, have some toast'.

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