The year proceeds

 
Things are moving along, not all to my satisfaction but none to severely bad effect.

I learned that we can get our windshield repaired for less than $200. (More money than I would prefer to spend, but much better than the $900 that Honda quoted us.)

I learned that there’s actually a company that can expedite visas for China. (Which is good, because the 1] the Chinese consulate was closed today — time off for American New Year? — and 2] it might otherwise be necessary for Susan and me to both travel all the way to Houston. China does not make its rules with our convenience in mind.) Little more money, hugely less hassle.

Commitment to writing and working out daily? Proceeding as planned.

And, just to make things even nicer, a couple of my Buffy stories got nominated at absence_oflight.

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Grammar/language peeve of the day:
‘media is’

‘Media’ is the plural form of ‘medium’. To speak of ‘the media’ is to refer to a collection: the print medium, the television medium, the medium of radio, and whatever other subdivisions apply. (Obviously, ‘the news media’ refers to something different from ‘the entertainment media’.) Recognizing this, one would properly say that the media are doing one thing or another.