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hettie_feedYesterday, I was going to make dinner at the ODS, but then it turned out that the current volunteer coordinator had put in their notice, and forgot or didn’t have time to purchase supplies for making dinner. I went to the shelter anyway, picked up some sweets from Vanille, and spent two hours in conversations with staff and residents. There were too many private moments in these conversations, so I am not sharing them except for one thing: I was thinking about taking a break from volunteering for the Night Ministry, but I am not going to do it.
Even though I am not there often enough, I still can do something good. And a little bit is better than nothing.
Yesterday was a very emotional and a very long day, and the whole week seems to be long and emotional. The fear of the National Guard’s appearance dominates the environment and touches my life in many different ways. Between escorting, which I did twice this week, ODS volunteering, and conference attendees coming from abroad, and all the conversations I have with people, it’s almost too much.
However, I have a hope (maybe too soon) that Chicago’s readiness to fight back stopped the worst that could happen. We’ll have to see, but I really hope…
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irmyvspomnit_vsyo_feedhettie_feedAll this week, I worried about my friend from Kenya, who was going to travel to Chicago to participate in next week’s conference. I worried that she would land in Chicago in the midst of raids and social unrest.
A couple of hours ago, I received a mass e-mail from the conference organizers, which I am just going to copy/paste here.
| We’re excited to see you in Chicago! We know that travel in the United States may not feel as safe and easy as it has in past years. To help provide some peace of mind, we’ve built a Travel Safety Check system. You can enter your contact and arrival info as well as an emergency contact. DEFNA board members will reach out to you via Whatsapp or Signal soon after your scheduled arrival to make sure you made it safely. If we’re unable to reach you, we’ll notify your emergency contact. We know travel can be stressful whether you are traveling within the country or flying in from abroad. If you’re traveling alone, it can feel especially overwhelming, and we want you to know you don’t have to navigate it entirely on your own. If that sounds like something that would give you some peace of mind, please register today. Only DEFNA board members have access to the system, and we’ll delete the data 30 days after the conference. What’s going on in Chicago? There has been a lot of posturing and public comment over the past week or so about the US federal government sending National Guard troops or Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Chicago. At this point it looks like movements are being made to follow through on this, but we do not know exactly what to expect on the ground–or when. Here’s what we know: – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has increased its activity in the Chicago area. These agents tend to wear masks over their faces, baseball caps, and minimal uniforms that say “police.” If you see people fitting this description, avoid them. They are likely looking for someone particular rather than wanting to investigate the general population in the area. We do not expect them to be active in the downtown area where the conference is located. – The National Guard is making logistical movements that make it look like they are planning to send troops to Chicago in the near future. These are military troops wearing a proper uniform. From what we’ve seen in other cities where they have been deployed, their job is going to be to stand around and not bother anyone. They may well do this in the downtown area near the conference. – The Chicago Police Department is completely separate from both these groups and has an official policy of not cooperating with ICE or the National Guard. Chicago Police officers will have patches on their uniforms that say “Chicago Police” and tend to wear a blue shirt with dark pants. They want all our attendees to have a great time in their city and are people you can approach for help should you need it. In the United States, you are allowed to record the police and military in public. If you or someone you’re with has an encounter with agents, take a video recording and please report the incident to the Code of Conduct team. We do not expect any of these developments to directly impact you while you’re in Chicago for DjangoCon US, but we do want to be prepared. Please attend opening remarks each day during the conference as we will provide any updates to these situations at that time. We may also send emails to attendees if there are important developments to be aware of. Sign up for the DjangoCon US Travel Safety Registration System Please reach out if you have any questions, – DEFNA |
hettie_feedFirst, I was waiting for the updated COVID vaccine to arrive. My only COVID happened at that time of the year, when the previous vaccine was already worn off, and the new one hadn’t arrived yet. Since I also travel extensively at that time of the year, I always try to get a new shot as soon as it becomes available.
So, I was waiting for the updated vaccine. The same day it became available, the new CDC guidelines barred me from getting it. I tried to schedule on both CVS and Walgreens sites, and both times got: Sorry, you are not eligible. Meanwhile, my GP returned from vacation and replied to the message I sent to her earlier: Yes, you should get a shot. I told her that “I am not eligible.” She replied: Maybe we do not have this vaccine yet. Could you try a local pharmacy? And please schedule a virtual visit with me if there are any issues. I replied that it was actually the local pharmacy that didn’t allow me to get an updated shot, and then decided to give it another try.
I started at the CVS site again and selected “I have a condition.” Nobody asked me what condition I have, and I could select an appointment pretty much immediately. I didn’t even have an insurance card with me, but I knew that this pharmacy had me in their system. I downloaded the card from the BCBS website and hurried up to my appointment.
Indeed, they didn’t ask for my insurance card, just verified the date of birth and said that both COVID and Flu were free, and five minutes later, I walked out with two band-aids on my arms.
That happened yesterday, and with all the craziness going on today with the Senate hearing, I am glad I didn’t spare any time!
hettie_feedI bought several greeting cards at Glenwood Art Fest, and most of them were from http://www.printedcanvas.com. I want to show the one I gave to Boris. What is said on this card is so true that we couldn’t stop laughing. Here it is.
Now we mention it all the time :).
hettie_feedIt’s just so not fair: Reifenstahl member-only preview is exactly at the time when I host my Postgres meetup! And the regular run is exactly when I will be out of the country!
I hope they will add more screenings later!
melilot909_feedhettie_feedIt was a very good end of summer. Oftentimes, when Boris is here, I end up being even more tired than “normal,” and after he goes back, I feel like I need to catch up with life for at least two weeks. It didn’t happen this time.
I took last Friday off, making it an “extra-long” weekend, and for these four days, I managed to remove myself from work almost entirely. We were doing all sorts of “normal” things; I don’t know how else to say it, but I truly felt like I had four days off, not four days to catch up on things.
I was sad that it became sharply colder the next day after Boris’ arrival, but that’s the weather he likes, and if it were warmer, we might not be able to bike as much as we did. Biking was amazing; I believe it was the first time since I moved to Rogers Park that we biked together, and I didn’t worry about him not seeing the cars. Both of our new bikes are great, and after a whole week of biking together, I’ve completely come to terms with how much they cost.
On Labor Day, the warmth had partially returned, and I went to the beach immediately after I saw Boris off. To my surprise, the water was still warm! As my neighbor commented, the wind was from the East, so all the warm water stayed in. Thank you, Lake!
egovoru_feedНатюрморта с изображением всех пяти любимых фруктов у людей-художников мне найти не удалось, но вот на это полотно попали два – хотя инжир там не так-то легко разглядеть.
А что же может предложить нам хваленый ИИ? Вот что выдал мне Bing Image Creator (DALL-E) на промпт «A painting in the style of Abraham Brueghel (Flemish, 1631–1697) with apricots, quinces, pomegranates, figs, and persimmons» (я выбрала лучшее из его произведений).
Плюс – вписанность натюрморта в ландшафт: Брейгель-правнук действительно часто так делал. Минус – половина фруктов представляют собой несуществующие гибриды; особенно раздражают монстры слева, гипертрофированный инжир (или это вообще апельсины?) в гранатовой оболочке. Не наблюдается никакого понятия о композиции. Но хуже всего – упорное желание запихнуть сюда виноград. Брейгель и правда любил его изображать, но, когда я попробовала исключить его, прямым текстом указав в промпте, что винограда мне не надо, ничего не вышло – винограда стало еще больше, а в углу творения появилась надпись «не надо винограда» :)
А вот вам продукт Raphael AI:
О Брейгеле он ничего не слышал, фрукты опять какие-то гибридные (причем скрещивали почему-то с тыквами!), к тому же – явно пластмассовые. Я попробовала еще несколько бесплатных ИИ-художников, но они были еще хуже – один, в частности, не мог продвинуться дальше абрикосов и на все мои понуждения выдавал только их, но во все бóльших количествах. Итоговый счет Брейгель:ИИ – 100:0, поскольку художественная ценность творений ИИ нулевая (Брейгелю же порядков можно и еще подкинуть).
А вы какие фрукты любите – и как вы оцениваете свой опыт общения с художественными ИИ?
vspomnit_vsyo_feedhettie_feedSunday was packed with activities: in addition to Bike the Drive, it was the day of the monthly Chicago Code and Coffee meetup. I’ve been there before, and I knew that this event is loud and hectic, but I also knew that advertising there is surprisingly efficient. And since I needed to advertise both my September meetup and the conference, I had to attend.
It was the last full day for Boris being here in Chicago, but he agreed that I should go to the meetup, and even volunteered to accompany me, and stoically stayed there for more than two hours of the total havoc. I distributed my flyers and stickers and talked to a large number of people, so I hope to see some new faces in September!
melilot909_feedhettie_feedI saw our pictures taken at three official locations, but I found only one on the website (well, two almost identical ones, at the same location), even though I had noted the picture-taking time precisely. I am happy to have that one, because I never had a picture on an actual ride.
This one was taken closer to the end, and something funny happened shortly after. We heard the sirens and the sounds of a helicopter; even though the Drive was closed, we could imagine that there could be some emergency that called for an exception. Everyone started to turn their heads around and moving to the right side, but there were no blue flashes coming. Only after the helicopter appeared right above us did we realize that the siren sound was coming from above! And the blue lights were flashing at the helicopter’s bottom!
I wonder who was supposed to move and let them fly 
.
melilot909_feedvspomnit_vsyo_feedmouglaswillie_wonka_feed - Сезонные дýхиwillie_wonka_feed - Лиса жонглируетhettie_feed - ODSmelilot909_feed - ЖЖшное, длинное, с продолжениемvspomnit_vsyo_feed - Игра 624 - подсказки-2vspomnit_vsyo_feed - (no subject)hettie_feed - Holding A Conference In These Challenging Timeshettie_feed - Vaccinationhettie_feed - Greeting Cardshettie_feed - Reifenstahl – And I Can’t Make Itmelilot909_feed - Подводный мир :-)hettie_feed - End Of Summeregovoru_feed - Там дале, в области Помоны, плоды деревья тяготятvspomnit_vsyo_feed - Игра 624- подсказкиhettie_feed - Code And Coffeemelilot909_feed - Щеночек наш подросточекhettie_feed - More On Bike The Drivehettie_feed - Today’s Labor Day Demonstrationmelilot909_feed - Плейлист 1983vspomnit_vsyo_feed - Игра 624 - ОТТЕНКИ ЖЁЛТОГО-1 (марафон лето 2025)![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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