Electrical shocks

Nov. 24th, 2025 05:08 pm
oursin: a hedgehog lying in the middle of cacti (hedgehog and cactus)
[personal profile] oursin

Last week was definitely a trifecta of Electrical Stuff.

Okay, I had been suspecting for some time that the fan heater in the front room was an ex-fan heater, and plugging it into a different socket (rather than an extension cord) confirmed this.

Have now ordered a convection heater (Which Best Buy), allegedly arriving tomorrow.

Last Tuesday around 6 am there was a power cut - it only lasted about 90 minutes, but involved a certain amount of resetting appliances which had become confused - also UKPowerNet only finally alerted me about this event by text several hours after things were back to more or less normal.

What I had not expected and accounted for in resetting things was that my clock alarm had decided that the time my alarm was set for was 6 am, so I got a rude awakening the following morning.

The other thing - and this was positively sinister - was that my electric toothbrush suddenly started buzzing away all by itself on the bathroom window ledge and was very very reluctant to be switched off. How is it not scary when this sort of thing happens?

Anyway, next morning it was apathetic about being switched on and is now an ex-toothbrush. A new one - not a top Which Best Buy as those are hugely expensive, but about third on the list which is on promotion at various outlets - currently expected. I have a backup but would rather this had not happened the week I am due for a trip to the dental hygienist.

it's monday crafting

Nov. 24th, 2025 11:58 am
unicornduke: (Default)
[personal profile] unicornduke
Hey all, if you'd like to join the crafting hangout, it is tonight from 6-8pm ET!
 
Video encouraged but not required!
 
Topic: Crafting Hangout
Time: Mondays 6:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
Join Zoom Meeting
 
Meeting ID: 973 2674 2763

spiralsheep: Sheep wearing an eyepatch (Default)
[personal profile] spiralsheep
While I was admiring the Habsburg women's hats a while back I noticed Elisabeth of Guelders, with her haute hat couture, and that she was described as an abbess. Long time readers might remember that I'm interested in the European "princess-abbesses" who held their religious offices heading various monastic institutions simultaneously with their secular lives and titles. AFAIK this Elisabeth with the good hat wasn't that sort of abbess, although wikipedia might know more than me, but plenty of her posh relatives were.

When you imagine a portrait of an abbess you might think of somebody like this lady, who wikipedia claims was an abbess from 1796 to 1808 (warning for skull as memento mori): Mother Abbess Kunigunde Schilling von Hintschingen.

You probably aren't thinking of Maria Elisabeth of Austria in this 1781 portrait specifically of her as a princess-abbess with crozier.

And you might not expect an abbess to have her official portrait for her religious office painted featuring an enslaved boy.

Here's another later official abbessly portrait with an enslaved (or ex-enslaved) man.

But all this must've stopped a long time ago and definitely wasn't still a thing in 1918, no? No.
Princess Abbess, 1918.

And I'm sure an abbess wouldn't find herself at a high society horse racing event.

In conclusion: Princess-abbess was a thing until surprisingly recently.... something something.... IDEK.

Note: (ex-)enslaved men, often used as subjects of social experiments, were also occasionally held in these courts as servants e.g. Mmadi Make / Angelo Soliman and Couchi / Gustav Badin. How "free" they actually were legally or in daily life is open to many unanswerable historical questions. And in a different court with differing customs Abram Petrovich Gannibal was the Ethiopian/Eritrean Russian ancestor of the current Duke of Westminster. And then there's Zamor whose evidence against his "owner" helped make the case for her legal execution.

A forthcoming treatlet

Nov. 24th, 2025 02:44 pm
the_comfortable_courtesan: image of a fan c. 1810 (Default)
[personal profile] the_comfortable_courtesan

Your amenuensis is pleas'd to announce that there will be a little Christmas treat this year: The Cathcart Apocrypha: Volume 6: Times Changing Belowstairs will be downloadable from the website from 24th December:

Clorinda Cathcart, now the widowed Marchioness of Bexbury, has undergone a radical change of circumstances. These changes have not left her household unaffected; nor have events in their lives stood still.

Enjoy!

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Posted by Lori Dorn

Legendary Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant played a powerfully soulful NPR Tiny Desk Concert to promote his new folk album Saving Grace.

With a voice that’s only gotten better with age, Plant has deftly moved from the full-throated rock and swagger of Led Zeppelin to the more restrained and profoundly beautiful folk, blues and roots music found on more recent recordings.

With his incredibly talented band alongside him, Plant performed gorgeous covers of Bob Dylan’s song “Gospel Plough”, the Martha Scanlan song “Higher Rock”, the Low song “Everybody’s Song”, “It’s a Beautiful Day Today” by Moby Grape, and the haunting Lead Belly song “Gallows Pole”, which Plant originally covered on Led Zeppelin III.

His latest solo album, Saving Grace, is a collection of covers that range from the traditional spiritual “Gospel Plough” to “It’s A Beautiful Day Today” by Moby Grape, a psychedelic rock band that, Plant says, still makes him “weepy.”

Plant’s band included Suzi Dian (vocals, accordion), Matt Worley (guitar, banjo, cuatro, background vocals), Tony Kelsey (guitar), Barney Morse-Brown (cello), and Oli Jefferson (drums).

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The post Robert Plant Plays a Powerfully Soulful NPR Tiny Desk Concert for His New Album ‘Saving Grace’ was originally published on Laughing Squid.

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Posted by Lori Dorn

Postmodern Jukebox accompanied talented showman Rogelio Douglas Jr. in a spicy cover of the classic Eagles song “Hotel California” in the style of a vintage performance at El Tropicana in Havana. This distinctive style was further enhanced by Afro-Cuban percussionist Giovanni Rodriguez and drummer Petar Janjic, plus a lovely round of salsa with guest Miss Sunny Holiday.

This time, we’re taking the Eagles’ 1977 classic, “Hotel California” back to Havana’s El Tropicana, complete with Afro-Cuban percussion by Giovanni Rodriguez, drums by Petar Janjic, and a Sunny Holiday Salsa cameo. ¡Bienvenidos al Hotel California!

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The post A Spicy Vintage Havana Style Cover of the Classic Eagles Song ‘Hotel California’ was originally published on Laughing Squid.