Justine Larbalestier

reading, writing, eating, drinking, sport

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Polls (Updated a lot)

So that I can better get to know what you, the reader, thinks, I have added a poll thingie to the sidebar.1

The first poll is about winter because I need to know if the total darkness before 5PM and constant cold and the only decent fruit & veg being apples and pumpkin is bumming out anyone other than me.2 Tell me I am not alone!

That it’s December and I’m still stuck in the Northern hemisphere fills my soul with despair.

Here have some more quokkas:


Lucky quokkas living far away in sunshine and warmth. Oh, how I envy them!


More sunshine & quokkas. Look what the peoples wear! Lucky, lucky bastards.

Okay, that didn’t make it warmer or lighter or less depressing here . . .

Update: I have just learned that creating a new poll instantly replaces the old one. I’d planned to leave the winter poll up for awhile but I done killed it. Thus there is a new poll, which I will not tinker with until next Sunday. This is my punishment for futzing about with the blog3 when I should be nosegrinding towards my deadline. I am bad.

Update 2: I don’t even know how I broke the poll this time. I am turning the internets off and stapling myself to the grindstone.

Update 3: Stupid poll software. I kick it.

  1. This was in no way a work avoidance measure. It is serious research! [↩]
  2. I should be clear: it’s only Northern hemisphere winters I hate. Sydney winters are lovely. [↩]
  3. I also added blog stats (Look! I done writed almost 250,000 words of posts! Fortunately that is still less than my published words. Phew!) and a tag cloud [↩]

Posted by Justine at 1:10, 10 December 2007 under Admin, Bloggery, New York City/USA | 37 Comments »

Comments

  1. Rebecca Says:

    they might be one of the most adorable species i’ve ever seen.

    i love their name. ah, native floridians. who have no cool native animals. okay, that’s not true. but none as cute and unscale-y as those little poofballs.

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:00 AM

  2. Liset Says:

    i want one…. do they hop?

    i just have to say that it’s really cool to see your comments on scott’s blog. You are just so much more fiesty than he is. I like it… haha!

    also, what’s it like being married to a fellow writer? (you must be asked this a lot). I’m a writer, and usually date musicians… it must be said, that they are moody and way too sensitive (as a writer, i think i MUST be very sarcastic) and even though they’re really cute, they always bug the hell out of me, and then never think that writers are artists… NOT COOL. I think I want to try out a painter next… drummers just always have the best hair! ahh

    to the point… I like winter clothes, especially scarfs! (I was just knitting one, but i ran out of yarn -_-) but yes, the cold is not very fun.

    -Liset (who is sorry for this VERY long comment)

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:14 AM

  3. Kitty-Maree-Dahlila Says:

    Okay, the poll didn’t have an answer for me. I’m in Brisbane, and it’s summer now, but the worst thing about winter was that it was way too hot. The worst thing about summer is that it’s way too hot. Also, it is way too humid but at some point there will be a thunderstorm, so I guess it’s alright.
    Also, quokkas kinda creep me out. Possums do too, actually.

    Also, liset – I make it a rule never to date writers or songwriters anymore, because they are always cute, always say the perfect thing and i always end up kicking them in the shins.

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:37 AM

  4. jennifer, aka literaticat Says:

    oh, i can say “you’re insane” because i’m in california.

    it was sunny an’ gorgeous today – a little cold, like 55 degrees f. – so i bundled up in scarf and coat – but still brilliantly blue, and perfect.

    December 10th, 2007 at 6:07 AM

  5. Kaleb Says:

    you sound like me! the cold is so miserable. Is there somewhere on this earth that isn’t scourged by it at some time of the year, or do we just have to keep hopping continents to run from it?

    December 10th, 2007 at 7:51 AM

  6. Patrick, The Space Lord Says:

    Yeah, I put that you’re insane, too, because it’s 80 in FL and my orange tree is giving me fresh homegrown oranges, which is comforting, because if it was giving me watermellons, I’d be a little concerned.

    December 10th, 2007 at 7:56 AM

  7. Gillian Says:

    Better to envy this summer from a distance: it’s a stinker. More humid than any summer since 1984. I would hang my t-shirt out to dry with me still in it if I thought it would help. And I’m up in Canberra – I believe Sydney is worse. The storms are worse, too, in Sydney.

    Did that cheer you up? Knowing that you could be here and complaining about the weather instead of there and complaining about the weather?

    December 10th, 2007 at 8:13 AM

  8. 8. Justine Says:

    Gillian: You don’t understand! I love humidity! I love summer storms! Once the temperature gets above 20C I’m happy. Unbearably hot for me is over 45C.

    I think I’m going to have to ban everyone who lives somewhere without actual winter: ie Brisbane, Sydney, California, Florida etc. Those places do not have winter. If it doesn’t hurt to breathe, if you don’t have to wear hat, gloves, scarf, and michelin man coat from head to toe to go outside for more than a few seconds you are not living in real winter.

    December 10th, 2007 at 8:57 AM

  9. Gillian Says:

    I hereby bequeath you every future humid day for the next 20 years. (I’m a kind person :) )

    December 10th, 2007 at 9:01 AM

  10. Kenina-chan Says:

    I hate snowpants. I hate them I hate them I hate them. Actually, they are better than snowoveralls.

    I think winter should only be cold on snow-days.

    December 10th, 2007 at 9:28 AM

  11. Kelly McCullough Says:

    I’m in the loves winter category, real winter too, Minnesota/Wisconsin we’ve got two feet of snow and it was 0 degrees Fahrenheit here last night winter. Skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, hooray. BTW, we’ve met at WisCon. I mostly lurk but felt the need to defend true winter just this once.

    December 10th, 2007 at 9:45 AM

  12. Judy Says:

    I’m in Arizona and we are having a typical arizona winter here. It has been 60F and a little rainy. But this week is supposed to clear up and be in the mid 60′s (f). You’d like it here!

    December 10th, 2007 at 10:08 AM

  13. Lydia Says:

    You should move to Georgia…our high today is supposed to be 76 and its been hot all weekend and the likelyhood of snow is slim and none for this winter…

    December 10th, 2007 at 10:12 AM

  14. Laura Says:

    I hate the getting dark so early, but I kind of like my winter clothes. I live in Dallas, TX, so it doesn’t get particularly cold here. I think last year it got down to 19 once, and that was about it. Right now I just wish it would pick one. It has been going:
    Monday – 79
    Tuesday – 80
    Wednesday – 43
    Thursday – 45
    Friday – 81
    Agg. 43 isn’t *that* cold, but it sure feels cold when it was 80 the day before!

    December 10th, 2007 at 11:10 AM

  15. marrije Says:

    the dark is getting me down a bit at the moment. I’ve started buying insane amounts of candles and even (gasp) a little wooden plate to put my candles on, to huge laughs from my boyfriend who accuses me of ‘decorating’.

    December 10th, 2007 at 12:31 PM

  16. janet Says:

    Justine: “Sydney winters are lovely.”

    But also: “I think I’m going to have to ban everyone who lives somewhere without actual winter: ie Brisbane, Sydney, California, Florida etc. Those places do not have winter.”

    Hmmm…..

    Growing up in Northern California has spoiled me for any other climate, I’m afraid. I don’t like cold weather, which means anything that makes my ears cold. I don’t like hot weather, especially when it’s humid, which means anything other than bone dry. If it rains for more than about two days in a row, I start to feel sulky.

    December 10th, 2007 at 1:10 PM

  17. Steve Buchheit Says:

    winters are the times that let us know that living is not easy or a given. That’s the beauty of snow and ice, the beauty of life in all its hard won glory glistening right outside your window, your shelter, the original cave redecorated. real seasons remind us of the world turning and those times where the veil between worlds is it thinest.

    December 10th, 2007 at 1:23 PM

  18. 18. Justine Says:

    Steve: real seasons remind us of the world turning and those times where the veil between worlds is it thinest.

    So does sickness and death and I ain’t loving them either.

    December 10th, 2007 at 1:46 PM

  19. Jelly-wa Says:

    you are bad.

    December 10th, 2007 at 3:01 PM

  20. Kenina-chan Says:

    Wow, I am 100% of the votes!

    December 10th, 2007 at 3:13 PM

  21. Jelly-wa Says:

    nno your not!

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:05 PM

  22. hillary! Says:

    I feel for you Justine! I’ve lived the last 6 years in SoCal, so when it hits 70 degrees I’m DYING of cold. And the rational part of my brain tells me my cousins in Illinois would think 70 is just heavenly. BUT IT IS NOT WHEN YOU ARE USED 100 DEGREES!

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:57 PM

  23. calliope Says:

    steve: philosofical answers are not happy. i don’t like having to justify my answers for why i hate winter.

    also, justine, i am totally with you on the banning people who don’t have real winter on blogs about coldness. if i read one more comment on how it is gorgeous with sunny blue skies and 60s/70s/80s in places that i don’t live in i will scream. seriously. people who are experiencing good weather cannot comment on this post.

    December 10th, 2007 at 4:59 PM

  24. 24. Justine Says:

    Hilary!: That’s right. It’s all relative. And relative to what I’m used to the current temperatures in NYC are killing me!

    Calliope: You tell them! Smug bastards. We don’t care that they’re warm, do we? I hope surf boards fall on every single one of them. Even if they live inland.

    December 10th, 2007 at 5:04 PM

  25. y.manynames Says:

    justine: “I think I’m going to have to ban everyone who lives somewhere without actual winter: ie Brisbane, Sydney, California, Florida etc. Those places do not have winter. If it doesn’t hurt to breathe, if you don’t have to wear hat, gloves, scarf, and michelin man coat from head to toe to go outside for more than a few seconds you are not living in real winter.”

    even the ones who try to send you sunshine? :(

    My sweetheart lives in England and he is all NOT enjoying winter either. I frequently tease him by telling him “oh yes, I played cricket on the beach today (true) in a purple bikini (not true, everyone knows the proper cricket bikini colour is white….)” but I would not do that to you justine! I just do it to him because he is a guy and it is fun to watch his eyes roll up in his head when his brain short circuits via webcam.

    I remember when I was living in the US, in a southern place where snow was unusual. I had just gotten my driver’s licence and drove to work one night. It was bitterly cold, which was weird for that area. I came out of the hospital where I worked at 4 am to 6 inches of SNOW! I watched one of the residents come slip-sliding into the parking lot, went inside and called a cab! I picked up my car that afternoon when the snow had melted.

    Sorry for the long-winded postage!

    December 10th, 2007 at 5:07 PM

  26. Sash Says:

    you’re right of course. it’s hard to stay unhappy when there’s a pool and sunshine outside the back door… even if sweat does drip off you just after you’ve got out of the shower.

    i officially ban myself. i’ll be floating in the pool, sipping a mai tai while i wait for you all to finish.

    oh, is that a quokka running by? No, just that damn possum that keeps me awake all night. grrr.

    December 10th, 2007 at 5:53 PM

  27. steve turner Says:

    I probably can’t be one to complain compared to northern hemisphere weather, but Sydney’s summer weather has hardly been a treat so far.

    There’s been six heavy storms in the space of a week — and I don’t mean nice summer storms either. Torrential downpours … inches of rain in 10 minutes, with multiple hail storms that have seriously damaged property and even lead to one death …

    It still hasn’t been cold here in Sydney, but damn it’s miserable weather for summer — grey and dark for most of December.

    Again, I know it’s still paradise compared to a northern winter, but it’s meant to be summer here!

    December 10th, 2007 at 10:01 PM

  28. steve buchheit Says:

    Ah, well, does it feel better when you get well or skate by death (I’m one of those weird people that death doesn’t scare, not to be confused with idiots that casually tempt it)? calliope, sorry for the philosophical sounding answer.

    Okay, so which is better, sweating on the bed for no good reason or snuggling in the warmth of blankets?

    I did a stint of work in Dallas, one morning the temps were actually a comfortable 70, I was driving to work with the windows rolled down and my arm out the side. Everybody else had their heaters on.

    December 10th, 2007 at 10:06 PM

  29. kim Says:

    we had a cold front recently and the low was 54. felt kinda chilly!! :)

    December 10th, 2007 at 10:28 PM

  30. capt. cockatiel Says:

    I don’t think we have read winter here in WA (by, you know, snow standards), but my school is all outside. They lock all the rooms at lunch! We are forced to eat out in the cold and rain and slush! Or, you know, in the bathrooms. >.> OUR TOES FREEZE!

    Actually, I just eat outside anyway because the rooms smell funny, but if they didn’t smell funny it would be even worse. But the smelly rooms are not the point here. The point is the frozen toes that then have to kick balls around for PE. And everyone who has ever kicked a ball with numb toes knows that it hurts. It’s all rather horrible, really.

    December 10th, 2007 at 11:04 PM

  31. Kadie-Wa Says:

    quokkas can just wander freely?!? Cool.

    You know justine, there are some sites that you can make polls like that and put it on your blog.

    December 10th, 2007 at 11:11 PM

  32. Robert Legault Says:

    Wow, this is the first I have heard of this species, though in the back of my mind I knew that there are plenty of animals, and particularly marsupials, I am still unaware of.

    As for winter: As you know, I live within a mile of you, and I think this weather sucks. I walk around wrapped in layer after layer of garments, and at home I huddle wrapped in blankets. Not wild about all the dark either. Spring can come anytime.

    December 10th, 2007 at 11:45 PM

  33. Eric Luper Says:

    your quokkas are not nearly as cute as these little buggers, just discovered in Mongolia. They are called long-eared jerboas and they hop around like teeny tiny kangaroos.

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7130484.stm

    You can keep your quokkas; I’m a jerboa man all the way!

    December 11th, 2007 at 11:24 AM

  34. 34. Justine Says:

    Eric: You can keep ‘em. Jerboas ain’t marsupials. I don’t hold with anything but marsupials as pets.

    December 11th, 2007 at 12:46 PM

  35. alisa Says:

    justine i am with you all the way. dark, depressing ice storm freezing my cute bootie off is NOT my ideal way of life.

    AND THEN DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT NASTY WEATHER DOES?

    it makes you sick.
    like a dog.
    *sniffle*
    *cough*
    *gag*
    *cries*

    December 11th, 2007 at 4:38 PM

  36. alisa Says:

    and i wanted all caps for that one line, why you eat my caps justine? it was just for emphasis! heehee

    December 11th, 2007 at 4:40 PM

  37. Eric Luper Says:

    Here is my tribute to the long-eared jerboa on my blog:

    http://eluper.livejournal.com/53301.html

    Of particular interest to children’s writers…

    December 11th, 2007 at 8:15 PM

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