Author Archives: Thistle

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About Thistle

Queer, neurospicy, chronically longwinded oversharer. 40s; they/them. ✍️📷🐈📚🥾🇩🇪🏳️‍🌈😇💖🐍

Subscription Review: Hello Fresh

Posted on October 1, 2021 by Thistle

Over the summer, my family had a lot of crap going on: car accidents, foster kittens, colitis issues, finding out Laurence is allergic to milk and eggs, etc. It made for a lot of fraught mealtimes and far more eating … Continue reading →

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Wellness Wednesday – Hikes of 2021, #41-46

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Thistle

I’ve been sticking mostly to the same parks I always hit. With the heat as bad as it is, and me not wanting to get up super duper early in the morning, I tend to stay at closer locations. But … Continue reading →

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Sunday Coffee – 100 Happy Days, Part 1

Posted on September 26, 2021 by Thistle

I was not doing well mentally over the summer, so I made myself a personal 100-day challenge that began September 1st. My plan was to discuss it here at some point. Honestly, the plan was overly ambitious and stressful, so … Continue reading →

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Quarantine Diaries – Week 80

Posted on September 24, 2021 by Thistle

It was a fairly calm week, so let’s get to it. This week’s numbers: Cases: 306,769 (+4,615) Deaths: 4,314 (+152) Seven-day rolling average: 595 (-213/day) Positivity rate: 4.9% (-2.2%) Cases per 100k: 41.7 (-2.8) Hospitalizations: 820 patients; 289 in ICU … Continue reading →

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Wellness Wednesday – 100 Days Coffee-Free

Posted on September 22, 2021 by Thistle

One of my primary goals for the year was to cut out coffee. In mid-July, thanks to my hospital stay, I did that. For 19 days, I didn’t drink any coffee. On day 20, I caved and had an iced … Continue reading →

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Ghosts of the Tsunami, by Richard Lloyd Parry

Posted on September 20, 2021 by Thistle

Subtitled: Death and Life in Japan’s Disaster Zone In March 2011, an enormous earthquake shook Japan. Afterwards, one of the largest earthquake-driven tsunamis swept over communities in the northeast part of the country. In this book, Parry lets the survivors … Continue reading →

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Sunday Coffee – My Favorite Smoothie

Posted on September 19, 2021 by Thistle

I shared this recipe on my other social medias, but I love it so much that I decided to put it here too. I’ve made quite a number of different protein smoothies over the years, some better than others. But … Continue reading →

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Quarantine Diaries – Week 79

Posted on September 17, 2021 by Thistle

We are in the middle of a worrisome scare here this week. Ambrose’s college just opened up to on-campus students last week. He only has two in-person classes, on Mondays and Wednesdays. Monday, he went to these classes, and by … Continue reading →

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The Drowning Kind, by Jennifer McMahon

Posted on September 13, 2021 by Thistle

Jax has distanced herself from her older, bipolar sister, Lexie, and refuses to answer a series of phone calls one night when Lexie is manic. The next day, she discovers that her sister has drowned. Jax travels to her sister’s … Continue reading →

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Saturday Coffee – 20 Years

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Thistle

On September 11, 2001, my family consisted of Jason, me, and 10.5-month Morrigan. This photo of us was taken in September that year, though I couldn’t tell you if it was before or after the 9/11 attacks. At that time, … Continue reading →

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