Which is also a contest entry. It’s difficult, by the way, to make something as abstract as a fractal carry a set theme like the good vs evil concept. I think I managed. What do you folks think?

Fractals cure new-job jitters, as it turns out. I promise they do.

This shares a common origin with the fractal on this post. It took some fiddling to get there, though; the head area did not want to show up at first, preferring to hide behind that swathe of misty black. (Well, what did I expect?) But I figured it out, finally, and now we have Oracle 3, unveiled.

Sarah McLachlan - Fallen

Heaven bend to take my hand
And lead me through the fire
Be the long awaited answer
To a long and painful fight
Truth be told I tried my best
But somewhere along the way
I got caught up in all there was to offer
And the cost was so much more than I could bear

Though I’ve tried I’ve fallen
I have sunk so low
I’ve messed up
Better I should know
So don’t come round here and
And tell me I told you so

We all begin with good intent
When love was raw and young
We believe that we can change ourselves
The past can be undone
But we carry on our back the burden time always reveals
In the lonely light of morning
In the wound that would not heal
It’s the bitter taste of losing everything
I’ve held so dear

I’ve fallen
I have sunk so low
I’ve messed up
Better I should know
So don’t come round here and
Tell me I told you so

Heaven bend to take my hand
With no where left to turn
I’m lost to those I thought were friends
To everyone I know
Oh they turn their heads embarrassed
Pretend that they don’t see
That it’s one missed step, one slip before you know it
And there doesn’t seem a way to be redeemed

Though I’ve tried I’ve fallen
I have sunk so low
I’ve messed up
Better I should know
So don’t come round here and
Tell me I told you so

I’ve messed up
Better I should know
Don’t come round here and
Tell me I told you so

I’m tired. Really tired. The relentless beat won’t let me slow down, though, and I think it’s the only thing keeping me moving right now. I’ve run out of places to put boxes—as half my stuff was already in boxes, occupying the available space—and while I don’t really have that much to pack, finding ways to pack it is definitely a challenge. I may just resort to cleaning around the boxes now, and picking up some more boxes later, to be packed while/when my father and brother have cleared the room of the already-packed boxes.

I need to:

• re-box my knitting supplies
• fill and reseal the half-empty boxes that never actually got unpacked all the way
• do the dishes and pack them away
• finish the last load of laundry
• gather the things in the laundry room and bathroom
• vacuum once the boxes are gone
• pack the things on my desk, which includes my good speakers, so I’m procrastinating

I also desperately want a shower and to tend to my hair so it doesn’t look like someone dragged me through a bush backwards! I may do that first, I think, or at least second, while the current load of laundry dries.

Thanks to a friend who has forbidden me to thank hir and whom therefore I will not name, the outage has a definite end. I should be back online on the 6th, almost certainly no later than the 7th. I may sneak on before then if some kind neighbor has an unsecured wireless connection, but I can’t count on that, and that’s when my own connection gets put in.

I am currently doing the last bits of laundry and finishing off the packing; I’m around—but not really paying attention—for the next few hours, until my brother and father show up and the Fun begins. Have I mentioned that I hate moving? Because I do. I really, really do.

I know this because I just realised that I’m moving in less than two days and nary a word of that has made it here. Long story made very short: laid-off woman without a car needs to be in a place that has something resembling public transit, if she is at all interested in being re-employed. Walkability would also be good. Cary, as lovely as my current, lakeside home is, does not fit either of those requirements, so I am moving back into Raleigh, just a mile or so away from the apartment David and I shared. This time, I live alone—the house I’m moving into has been divided into four discrete apartments. Two bedrooms all to myself, not to mention an east-facing screened patio, and the ability to lock my door and know I have no-one to worry about or answer to but myself. It makes up for the funny-shaped bathroom, the tiny kitchen sink, and the lack of washer and dryer connections, it really does.

Speaking of said patio: my plan is to use it for gardening. I don’t have a good handle on how much light it will actually get yet: the road runs north-south, and the house is on the eastern side of the road. The front of the house, where my bedroom will be, faces west. The back of the house, where the patio is, then, faces east—but the patio is entirely covered, it is screened, and there is a wall on the north side of the patio that divides my side of the top floor from my neighbor’s. There is a half-wall all the rest of the way around; I plan on circumventing this by using my kitchen table out there to lift the plant containers above the height of the half-wall. Suggestions for somewhat-shade-tolerant vegetables that are suitable for container gardening (aside from tomatoes and peppers, which are the staples, I know) would be most appreciated.

Side-effects of the move: I’m going to be offline for an unforeseeable length of time. My cellphone is unaffected, but I don’t have Internet service over there and won’t have a landline either until my tax refund arrives or I get a first paycheque from a new job, whichever comes first. I will list my new address in my contact info post; anyone listed as a friend on LiveJournal has access to that. My cellphone number is already listed there as well. I won’t be able to check email, so comments may go unanswered for awhile; I’m sorry about that. I’m here until Thursday morning, and after that all bets are off.

While it may be true that once you learn how to ride a bicycle you never forget, my shaky knees are proof that you can entirely forget how to ride one well. I haven’t ridden a bicycle for more than fifteen minutes since I was twenty-one years old. I expect it’s going to take me some getting used to.

In the good column:

Weekday mornings are a good time to ride that trail; with everyone at work or at school, it’s clear of pedestrians.

I did not fall off, or anything remotely resembling falling off. Of course, the step-through design of my bike helps with this, which is why I chose it. If worse comes to worst, I can just put my feet down and slide off the saddle.

The saddle is, in fact, wide enough and comfortable enough that there was no pressure in inappropriate places.

I can, in fact, shift gears without trouble—this is the first bicycle I’ve owned where shifting gears is even a possibility, and I was worried.

I had not the slightest twinge of back pain—hurray for being able to sit upright and not bend over the handlebars.

Cons:

I’m still going to need a lighting system if I’m going to use this for commuting.

I’m still going to need a lightweight jacket and tracksuit pants or something—I don’t fancy bare skin against asphalt the day I do take a spill.

The accident-induced fear of traffic translates directly. To be perfectly frank, Raleigh drivers still scare the living hell out of me, and that’s going to take some time to go away. I’ve got the same sick feeling getting on the bicycle that I do getting into a car.

This is moondancerdrake’s fault.

Clearly, I need to look around and see what fansites exist for these things, since if this runs true to form I will be playing with them for the next six months. In the meantime, if you folks could please spare a click, I promise not to post them all the time.