raincitygirl

So I finally read Uncle #1's letter, and it was completely innocuous. Lots of interesting stuff, actually, about my great-great-uncle Phil who fought in the Middle East in the First World War. This soldiering business was not for wusses. Neither was being interned, actually. My maternal great-grandfather was a German Jew who moved to London as a young man circa 1900, married an English Protestant girl, and got his ass interned in 1914 for no better reason than because he was originally German. Fucking War Office.

I've made a horrible discovery. I had been sleeping VERY badly, so I cut out caffeine altogether the past few days, and slept much better. I figured my one coffee in the morning wouldn't have much effect on my sleep at night, but apparently I was wrong about that. This is horrible because it means doing without caffeine at work. I'm not sure I can cope! But then I wasn't coping when I wasn't sleeping. It's a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea, really.

Gakked from selenak, have The Getting of Magic, a Harry Potter / X-Men: First Class crossover in which young Charles, young Raven, and young refugee Erik are all enrolled at Hogwarts in 1947. I was a little dubious about this one, because X-Men: First Class and Harry Potter are SUCH different canons, but I trusted selenak's rec, and it did not disappoint. Warning: long.

Going on a photo safari in South Africa is on my bucket list. It's one of those things that's on my bucket list rather than my "concrete plans" list because it's SO expensive. I'd have to win the lottery to be able to afford to go. But I was looking at safari tours online anyway, because looking at stuff I can't afford to do is kind of like porn, in a non-sexual way. The Kruger Park looks STUNNING. And now I really want to go. Guess I should start buying lottery tickets. Or plan to not take any vacations at all for the next ten years so I can save up enough to go. The latter plan might be more reality-based.

Still reading George, Nicholas and Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins and the Road to World War I by Miranda Carter, and it's really interesting. It was recced by...someone on my f-list/dwircle, I forget who. So thank you to whoever.

Gakked from rap541, a really neat short video by George Takei. It kind of made me sniffle.

It's technically the 7th of June by now, not the 6th. But I was kinda busy today, so my D-Day commemoration is a bit late. Both my grandfathers were in reserved occupations during the war, but one of my great-uncles went through the whole war, from being evacuated at Dunkirk in 1940 to the Normandy landings and then some. And my other great-uncle served in the British Army for several years until he cracked up with a monster case of PTSD, was institutionalized, and later lobotomized. No, I'm not kidding or exaggerating. He was a very sweet old man, in spite of people having butchered his brain back in the day.

So, you know, rah rah Normandy landings commemoration and all that, but war is still hell.