Day #29 of Self-Isolation in Epidemic Central

Still here. Still well. Outside of allergies - itchy eyes, and some scratchy throat that went away once the Xzfal kicked in.
( corona virus diaries continue )

For entertainment? I watched two more episodes of Steven Universe last night, I'm four episodes in now, another episode (a REALLY good episode) of Runaways - possibly the best I've seen to date, and 101 Dalmatians - the animated version. There was a group of Disney animated films down by the same artists/vocal talents and music composer, in the late 1960s/early 1970s - 101 Dalmatians, Jungle Book, Aristocrats, Robin Hood and I think the Rescuers were the last of this period.
It was the period between Snow White, Cinderella, Lady & the Tramp, and Dumbo, but before the weak animation period of The Rescuers, Sword in the Stone, Black Cauldron...there's about five different animation period with Disney.
( Disney animation periods )

One of my cousins, who is bisexual, is project manager who put together and launched the Disney + platform. We're very proud of her.

Yes, I'm an animation nerd. I actually know various people who work in the field. My brother's childhood friends do. I'm kind of envious, art is very meditative. Today on the wake up, via my headspace app, I watched an artist create an abstract work of art using thousands of colored paper clips. He patiently placed each on in its proper place and created an optical allusion. I envied him in a way - it seemed very meditative. I need to draw something. Find a picture and attempt to draw it. But I find I have no time - working from home the way I am. When I'm done with work, I call my mother, make dinner, take a walk, watch television, update my journal, do a zoom hang out with my church, interact on social media...then wind down for bed.

Often just watch television. Disney + and Hulu are a joy to behold. Streaming provides animation and sci-fi/fantasy choices...just what I need in these crazy times.

What I'm trying to do is keep the anger at bay. I'm furious with the Federal Government and those who brought it about. And that is not helpful. It's better to let go of it. I can't do anything about it until November anyhow.

Interesting Links

1. Ah, DUNE - the new adaptation starring Timothy Chalamet, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac, Jason Momoa, Stellan Skarsgard, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Rampling, and Josh Brolin among others.

Denis Villeneuve's Dune makes some important changes to Frank Herbert's book (Which to be honest isn't necessarily a bad thing - he gives the female characters bigger roles, and casts a black woman in a lead male role. Mainly because the Director likes women and is a feminist, and Herbert, wasn't. To be fair to Herbert - he did write Dune way back in 1965, so of course it is a bit dated. The 1960s were not known for gender equality - they tried but not that well.)

( excerpt )

When is it supposed to be out?

Dune will hit theaters on December 18, 2020.

And here's the trailer:

Watch on YouTube

(A bit of a back story? I fell in love with Dune in Junior High - I discovered it in the library and devoured it. Didn't like the sequels as well - somewhat disappointing. But the first book was a revelation. And I drug my parents to the David Lynch movie as a teen - knew all about it and formed a crush on Kyle McLachlan, who also adored Dune. I also read the prequel - House Atredies by Herbert's son. And I tried the television series - which was slightly better than Lynch's version - except I found it be exceedingly dull, while Lynch at least had some style. It's apparently a really hard book to adapt well.)

2. Hmmm...this weirdly reassuring..it shouldn't be, but it is... What You Should Know About Food Expiration Dates

"Here’s the first thing you should know: Expiration dates are not expiration dates.

Food product dating, as the U.S. Department of Agriculture calls it, is completely voluntary for all products (with the exception of baby food, more on that later). Not only that, but it has nothing to do with safety. It acts solely as the manufacturer’s best guess as to when its product will no longer be at peak quality, whatever that means. Food manufacturers also tend to be rather conservative with those dates, knowing that not all of us keep our pantries dark and open our refrigerators as minimally as necessary. (I, for one, would never leave the fridge door open for minutes at a time as I contemplate what to snack on.)"

Let’s start with the things you definitely don’t have to worry about. ( Read more... )

In short, ignore the expiration dates.

3. How to Bake a Cake without flour, eggs, oil, milk or sugar

No Flour of Any Kind

In one of her more daring moves, Anna Jones makes a lemon cake with cannellini beans, ground almonds and four eggs. It is a stone-cold winner – fudgy, rich and sweet. For something more decadent, try the classic flourless chocolate cake. The recipe I have used for years is as follows: melt 200g butter with 100g dark chocolate over a bain-marie, then mix four egg yolks with 100g sugar, and fold that into the chocolate mix. In another bowl, beat the egg whites into stiff peaks, gradually adding a further 100g sugar, then fold into the chocolate mix and bake in a buttered tin at 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas mark 4 for 45 minutes or until set in the middle. Serve with whipped cream, Greek yoghurt or creme fraiche – if you have any – and a dusting of icing sugar.

I kind of knew that already - since I'm gluten intolerant and have had cakes with no flour.

4. Why So Many Babies Are Getting Their Tongues Clipped

Uhm...OW! Seriously OW!

"In recent years, surging numbers of infants have gotten minor surgeries for “tongue tie,” to help with breastfeeding or prevent potential health issues. But research suggests many of those procedures could be unnecessary."

You think?

5. Confessions of the Only Woman On a Rock Star Tour Bus

( excerpt )

6. Will We Ever Know the Difference Between a Wolf and a Dog

While it indeed is true that, on some levels, the dog and the wolf, as well as the coyote, are one and the same animal, it is also clear that identity (ontologically speaking) isn’t sorted out on a genetic level alone. We can ponder here, by analogy, the similarities, or the differences, between some close human ancestors and our own species, Homo sapiens, which remains the only one of those several ancestral hominins. According to contemporary biological evidence, humans and Neanderthals interbred to such a degree that most of us carry fragments of Neanderthal in our bodies. The genetic distance between these two species is very small. Yet, most evolutionary anthropologists observe clear differences between the two species when skeletal remains are unearthed in palaeoanthropological sites reaching from Europe to Eurasia. Some researchers even argue that the reason why humans prevailed through the Ice Age is because we had developed this close relationship with proto-dogs while the Neanderthals did not.