If you haven’t had boribap, and if you cannot read Korean, it means “barley rice”. It’s often used in a kind of be bim bap (mixed rice) dish, where you take the rice (boiled with barley) and mix in vegetables and some hot sauce, stir it all up real good, and eat it. And then it grumbles around inside you for hours, dragging itself along every available surface within (which is very cleansing, I suppose) and giving you the most amazing gas. You also need to make sure there’s a bathroom available to you on demand for the rest of …
Month: May 2006
Vitreous humour is not funny
For those who arewondering why my eye has been bugging me, the process of liquefaction of the vitreous humour — the jelly like stuff that makes up the bulk of your eye — is discussed in this Wikipedia article. I was asked recently what was happening with my eye, and gave a long explanation I don’t wish to repeat, but I’ll note that things are a fair bit better now. My new glasses prescription and the unscratched lenses of my new glasses are definitely helping. In addition, the rest and stress-reduction of the last few days seems to be helping …
Rhythm method criticised as a killer of embryos
A link from this mailing list I’m sort of on, in one of the few threads I’ve been reading: a scientist criticises the rhythm method as a killer of embryos. Essentially, he’s saying that the incidence of intercourse at the fringes of the fertile period causes conception of far more embryos that can’t survive, and therefore that many more embryos are conceived and then die by this very calculated means than by other forms of contraception. Interestingly, he reports that Roman Catholics have statistically higher rates of miscarriage, at least according to one study — but of course, this is …
Is It Better? Is It Not?
Frankly, I can’t say at this point. I’ve changed so much in the hope of alleviating some of the problems with my eye, that I’m still not adjusted to all of those changes yet. I honestly won’t know for a day or two how they’re panning out… at the soonest. However, I have at least managed to reduce some of the workload and thereby some of the stress; I also picked up a new pair of glasses, and it was shocking for me to walk around with them on. People have faces again! Facial expressions! It’s not that I couldn’t …
Tune the Damned Thing
While I have been trying to rest my eyes, one of the things I’ve noticed is that trying not to look at anything too long, or in a way that strains your eyes, leads to you noticing more about your aural surroundings — the sounds that surround you. This morning, I woke to what I think were magpies — black birds with blue and white patterns on them. Someone upstairs hollered out his window at them, in English: “Hey birds! I can’t concentrate!” I can see why. They were really dreadfully loud, and their “call” sounded a lot like electric …
Less Worried
My eye is starting to get back to normal. I still have a little hazy light in my peripheral vision when I read too much or focus on the computer screen, especially with glarey overhead lights. But in general things are getting closer to how they were before. I am beginning to think stress and eye strain are a big part of the problem. Anyway, I talked to my mother, among other things to make sure she didn’t hear about this episode from one of my sisters who may have read my site. I didn’t want to alarm her. Among …
That “Brain-Hemorrhage” Look…
Lime tells me that when one pupil is dilated and the other isn’t, this is a sign of a brain hemorrhage. It’s quite a disconcerting thing to see in the mirror, really. Click for a better look at the horror, the absolute horror! Let me reiterate: in my case, it’s not a case of brain hemorrhage. This effect was achieved with some eye drops that relax the muscles of the eye in order to facilitate an examination of the interior. I think I haven’t mentioned the fact that I noticed a dark spot in the lower left-hand corner of my …
Twitchy
Looks like I’m not the only Clarionite-to-be who’s having eye troubles. I do feel somewhat better, and maybe it’s nerves, that are compounding the general fatigue, but my right eye — that is, my one good eye — is not doing so well these days. I credit lack of sleep, stress, and strain. The eyedrops the doc prescribed me are helping, but aren’t erasing my nervousness about it. I mean, when you have only one good eye, you kind of have to take care of it, you know?
Neat Book. New Story Idea
Ex-girlfriend of H.G. Wells narrating, explaining her refusal to marry him once he was available to her. London, around the turn of the century (which I’ll need help with). Possible alien invasion (long before the end of the 19th century) hidden by the writings of a popular early SF pioneer, but… why? And who are the aliens? Oh, not who you think. Muhahaha. Into the idea file it goes. The book is H.G. Wells in Love, a text I happened upon in the University library. I have no idea why it was purchased, but the card in the back of …
Fantasy & Science Fiction, July 2006 issue
I’m going to start my post with the disclosure that most people would stick at the end: the magazine issue I’m about to review was sent to me free, on the condition that once read, I would blog about it. Gordon van Gelder sent out fifty advance issues of the July 2006 edition of Fantasy & Science Fiction magazine to various people as part of a promotion announced here and I was one of the lucky ones who heard about it early enough to ask him for a copy. However, I should add that I’ve been intending to invest in …