I rewatched Star Trek Voyager S04E25, One:
After the rest of the crew is placed in suspended animation to protect them from dangerous radiation, the immune Seven, with only The Doctor for company, is placed in control of the ship [for 4 weeks].
It's such a good episode, when Seven, seeing no need for the company of others, finds loneliness taking a terrible toll on her. She hallucinates threats; her fears being embodied by crew members who appear to her in order to undermine her confidence.
"Seven, are you… frightened?"
"I am Borg."
- The Doctor and Seven of Nine
Came upon some really old photos: me as a pupil at Christchurch Girls' High School.
I do not recall the names of most of the other people.
On this morning's dawn beach walk there were reflections in remnant water.
It turns out I find romances easier to read when they're lesbian romances. I enjoyed Jones by Gerri Hill. 📚
When a girl’s weekend in Port Aransas ends with a lifelong friend dead, Nina Evans’ world is shattered.
It wasn't terribly challenging, and the author brought in a new character rather late, but it was a pleasant read.
This breaks my brain:
World military expenditure reached $2718 billion in 2024
Via Sunday’s Trailheads | scattershot.
We human beings spend $2,700 billion per year to kill people and destroy parts of our world.
Meanwhile billions of people scrape through lives of poverty and sickness, trying to grow things and make lives better.
It leaves me just utterly without words …
I do several word puzzles of US origin and every day they reveal just a bit more about how different US English is from the variant I speak.
Today's problem word was 'candy' — I tried 'sweet' and 'lolly', which didn't work.
One of hundreds of words that seem common in the US and rare in Aotearoa.
Feeling a bit meh today after an Open Home with no visitors so found a random photo from my album. Vanuatu, 2002, taken with a Canon PowerShot A20.
Extensive Internet searching has failed to turn up the name of this waterfall. It's located about a 20 minute drive from Mount Yasur volcano.
Deb and I go to the most excellent 24/7 Fitness Gym in either Levin or Paraparaumu, though they have some other lower North Island locations too.
When we move to Ruakākā we intend to join the (different) 24/7 up there. Interesting opening hours though, for a 24/7 offering. 🤣
I didn't like this book at all, and ended up skipping about a third of it only to read an unsatisfying end. The book was very little about Naomi Blake and mostly about an unpleasant group of people called Simon, Tally and Jack. The Camera Never Lies (Naomi Blake Mysteries Book 2) by Jane Adams. 📚
Simon thought he’d found something real with Tally Palmer, a brilliant photographer. Then, without warning, she ended things and vanished from his life. Heartbroken and unable to move on, he starts digging for answers — tracking her, questioning old friends, even compiling a secret file.
I'm wishing I hadn't already bought the third in the series and annoyingly Amazon won't let me return that unread book for a refund.
Got up to check out the helicopter flying overhead before dawn — rather unusual, but then I realised it'd be on its way to a Dawn Parade for Anzac Day.
Then I spotted the waning crescent of the Moon in the East with Venus and what turns out to be Saturn (not seen in the photo) right below.
It's quite something when the helicopter pilot flies at eye level straight towards our lounge window and then banks at the last moment only about 50 metres away. The video doesn't show the window vibrating and the air pulsing.
I've been watching Cornwall Air 999 - Cornwall Air Ambulance and have two key take aways: I won't be climbing any more ladders, nor will I be going anywhere on a two-wheeled motor bike. 😆
This gripping documentary series follows the dedicated air ambulance crews of Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust as they race against time to save lives across the stunning landscapes of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Landed an hour or so ago in the paddock next door. Perhaps it's picnic time … 🤣
Wow, I had no idea this was possible — Text Fragments Enable Deep Linking on Web Pages. The article explains more what deep linking is and how it works.
I encourage you to start using text fragment links when you share information from the Web—people might not realize why the experience is better, but they’ll appreciate not having to hunt for the information you’re referencing.
What a big High over the country does: a couple of days ago it was 29C (about 85F) mid-afternoon; this morning we had our first frost of the year.
With Easter over I ventured out early to the supermarket today. In the fruit and vege section the shelves were mainly empty! At first I blamed Easter but then recalled most of the country has had awful weather over the last week, so maybe it's supply chain issues.
This second book was a bit too unbelievable, a bit too glaringly obvious. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first. A Case for the Yarn Maker (Ainsley McGregor Book 2) by Candace Havens. 📚
It’s all fun and games until George Clooney, Ainsley’s Great Dane, finds Ms. Yarn’s dead body in a booth at Bless Your Art. Now the prime suspect is Mrs. Whedon, and while she’s not the easiest woman to get along with, there’s no way she’s the killer.
Very readable: The Complete Travelling Cook Mysteries 📚
At just under $2 it made sense to buy this 7-book box set for the two books in the series I hadn't yet read. Totally enjoyed them too! Martin skilfully provides all the clues to the reader, but it's Jenny Starling who puts them together.
The Complete Travelling Cook Mysteries by Faith Martin. 📚
A random favourite passage:
Jenny Starling turned a corner in the seventeenth-century stone-lined corridor, and came face to face with a stuffed owl. The owl, it has to be said, looked somewhat surprised. The travelling cook not so much.
See also The Jenny Starling Mysteries Books 1–4 and The Country Inn Mystery (Jenny Starling Book 7).
In this set I read:
- The Oxford Mystery
- The Teatime Mystery
How flu vaccines are created
This is interesting, about how flu vaccines are created —
Five flu vaccines are available this year - which one should you get?:
Since the 1950s, the most common way flu vaccines are made is by growing the virus in embryonated chicken eggs.
When the United States experienced an egg shortage recently, with avian influenza partly to blame, the appeal of alternative vaccine-manufacturing processes became clear.
Cell-based vaccines - grown in mammalian cells instead of eggs - are the way of the future, according to Turner.
Are they more effective? Again, no randomised trials compare the efficacy of egg-based and cell-based vaccines, but some studies have shown the latter to be slightly better at preventing illness.
Also interesting:
In healthy adults, data collated by Te Whatu Ora suggests the level of protection against confirmed influenza is between 59-66 percent.
Woke at 3 am from a ridiculous (and unpleasant) dream. Told my brain the concepts it was playing with there just don't work and to try out other ideas instead.
Made a cuppa to help settle back down.