• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, more romance), Book Riot (nonfiction, YA, best out this week, horror, queer)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• A tale of the Pevensies, Prince Caspian era.
• Wonder Sparkle Princess sort of ficlet.
• Octagonal house that I mostly like.
• Not your usual church conversion.
• “Time capsule 1963 bachelor pad“.
• “Immersive art piece” with a $14,000/mo homeowners association fee.
• Very colorful, but in that daycare-esque way.
• It’s just very. (No words missing in prev.)
• It’s a lot, starting with having to live in Kansas.
• Kinda sad dome home.
• Japanese castle-esque house that needs all the work.
• Whoa, that’s ugly.
• :facepalm:
• :sigh:
• Hmm.
• Yikes.

Both Harry and Polly are in this picture.

Sleepy Polly.

Sleepy Harry.

My completed Giant Square Scrap Blanket, made with many bits of leftover sock yarn (all with at least some blue) and knitted on 3mm needles (US 2.5). This was a gift and it was much appreciated. Which is good, because by the end, I was using 150 inches of circular needle cable and I could’ve added more… No idea how many stitches I ended up with, but it’s about 3.5-4 feet across. Used two-stitch i-cord to bind it off.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (Latine, horror novels by black authors, nonfiction, YA, best out this month), Reactor (YA SFF/H, fantasy, SFF crossover, romantasy, horror, SF), Gizmodo (SFF/H)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Linkity from BookWyrm Knits.
• I have complicated thoughts about the color-coordinated books.
• Nice MCM.
• Unusual beach house in Australia.
• If you’ve ever wanted to grow and sell vanilla beans in Hawaii…
• Minimalist, with a round kitchen.
• …It’s hard to describe.
• Odd blue glass house.
• Where are the doorknobs?! And why is the kitchen in the basement??
• The grey kitchen cabinets look terribly out of place. And I hate the blue ceilings.
• Quonset hut conversion. That would be miserable in Minnesota, since it has no insulation.
• New Mexico townhouse that desperately needs to be renovated. The first couple of pictures make it look as if it was a diner.
• Do they consider that a bench or an elevated walkway?
• Mysterious and dangerous.
• D’oh.
• Flimsy and no railing.
• No, thank you.

Harry on the move, Polly blep.

Harry doesn’t fit so well in the fabric basket, but that doesn’t matter to him.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (YA, best out this week, by black authors: historical fiction, queer YA)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• A little ficlet about the Pevensies after their return from Narnia.
• Heather Cox Richardson’s State of the Union recap.
• Why Scotch tape screeches.
• Nice MCM.
• FLW designed MCM. I love all of the built-ins.
• Castle house in Minnesota.
• Home that has some hamster habitatesque features.
• House that has two Hobbitesque houses included.
• Converted Masonic lodge in which certain choices were made, including a tub in the family room, a tattoo shop, too much taxidermy, and the master bedroom.
• Disappointing castlesque house.
• Yikes.
• Nope.
• Why.

Polly, staring into your soul.

Harry on the kitty warmer.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week, aromantic, mysteries/thrillers on audio)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Some fun knitting patterns for fingerless gloves.
• D12 that’s just wrong.
• Just here for the bookshelves.
• Cute not-a-treehouse.
• Nice dome home but you must love mint green/turquoise.
• MCM that’s so cluttered it’s hard to appreciate the interesting features.
• It’s not every house that has a built-in table with illuminated crevice.
• Ok but with some weirdness, like a corner tub and whatever is going on with the fridge/wall oven/pantry nook in the kitchen.
• Alice in Wonderland themed.
• For that shopping mall vibe.
• Damp looking cave house.
• D’oh.
• There are signs of a railing, but…
• You’d have to try very hard to fall through the window.

Artsy photo of Harry and Polly.

Polly on the window sill.

Harry under the covers.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Gizmodo (SFF/horror), Book Riot (comics/graphic novels, queer)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Linkity from BookWyrm Knits.
• To keep in mind…
• Read about the Minneapolis romance-only bookstore, Tropes & Trifles.
• More good stuff from Heather Cox Richardson.
• Phone settings to change before going to a protest.
• An interesting comparison of electrical outlets in the US and UK.
• “Fresh” fruit in heavy syrup. Hmm.
• A converted library – the dream!
• Nice converted medieval tower.
• Converted barn that looks expensive to heat.
• Gorgeous Italian Art Nouveau villa.
• Very nice MCM.
• Octagonal MCM.
• I love the clock room. Be prepared for the taxidermy…
• Has a cool waterfall but also way too many cups and saucers glued to the walls.
• Just here for the towers.
• And just here for the Kraken shower curtain .
• Is it just me or does the carpet on the main staircase have “stairs that can kill you” potential?
• I was not prepared for the interior either.
• Strange condo.
• I guess you don’t need a railing for the slippery bit at the bottom.

Harry on my lap, deeply asleep.

Polly, sharpening her head on the scratching post.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (YA comics/nonfiction, YA, best out this week)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Fantasy micro ficlet.
• Some books about dragons.
• Heather Cox Richardson has had some great thoughts on what’s happening here in Minneapolis. (FYI – numerous links in that sentence.)
• “There is no ‘nervous system hack’ for fascism“.
• “31 things I want you to know I love about the Twin Cities when we’re not under a violent occupation by federal agents“.
• “US pediatricians give middle finger to RFK Jr, issue their own vaccine recommendations“.
• You can visit the Computer History Museum online.
• “Cat lore: colors and personality“.
• There’s really no way to be be prepared for the what LEGO’s partnership with Crocs looks like.
• Nice MCM – I love the room with the built-in bed frame and storage! Wish there was a way to do that in my bedroom.
• I like this a lot more than most contemporary construction.
• Quite nice earthship.
• Fun Victorian.
• Converted grain elevator.
• Smokehouse conversion – I love rocks but I hate the kitchen counters.
• Colorful.
• Why would you buy a crooked house?
• Been a while since we’ve seen egg slicer stairs.
• At least there’s a railing and carpeting…
• If you look at it again, it’s much worse than it was on first impression.

Harry napping.

Polly has a lot to tell me!

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (Latine, best out this week)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Knit a hat used by Norwegians in the 1940s to visually protest Nazi occupation.
• Heather Cox Richardson from January 21. And on January 17.
• “You’ve heard about who ICE is recruiting. The truth is far worse.”
• Debunking some myths.
• “Why everyone should still use an RSS reader in 2026“.
• Beautiful Craftsman.
• Nice school conversion.
• I’m not really a fan of tiled counters but the kitchen counters/backsplash are exceptional.
• I THINK it has potential, but there’s so much stuff it’s hard to tell.
• Converted 19th century church in which the Gothic architecture sits uneasily with the modern conversion.
• The beigest house in Utah?
• Disappointed in the three “libraries”.
• Deceptive not-stairs.
• “Nope” is the correct response.
• D’oh.
• Huh.
• Don’t do this.
• Even small children deserve railings on their stairs.

Harry blep.

A-tisket, a-tasket, Polly’s in a basket!

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Ficlet that involves the Muppets.
• “60+ small tasks to defend the right to read“.
• “Side-eyeing science fiction’s love of empire“.
• Heather Cox Richardson on what’s happening in Minneapolis. And on f@scism.
• Planetary alignment, xkcd-style. (Hover cursor/long-press for caption.)
• Gorgeous.
• Lovely Craftsman.
• Very fancy converted bank.
• Converted stable in Paris.
• Very castle-eque.
• Own a historical landmark.
• Formerly an infamous spy house.
• You are not prepared for the interior.
• You’ll just have more and more questions as you look through the photos.
• Kind of tragic bed and breakfast.
• Castle fail. Only the room with the mural is good.
• Colorful but still awful.
• Too much tile. Among other things.
• The unholy use of Photoshop and AI.
• That “bridge” looks quite flimsy.
• Needs more railings.

Sleepy looking Polly.

Harry and the Very Big Yawn, part two.

Polly and Harry, looking vaguely disapproving.

• What I’m referring to in the title.
• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, queer romance), Book Riot (nonfiction, best out in January), Reactor (YA SFF/H, SF, fantasy, romantasy, horror)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Linktiy from BookWyrm Knits.
• “40% of Americans did not read a single book in 2025“.
• Utah, no!
• “[A]lgorithm free internet music to discover and and diversify your music“.
• Very nice Tudor.
• Quite nice late MCM.
• MCM with a slightly odd interior.
• MCM with rocks.
• Round MCM.
• Cute cottage.
• Another cute one! And for that price, you’d be able to deal with the suspended ceiling and fluorescent office lighting.
• Nice but overpriced floating house.
• Houseboat on the Thames – quite lovely except the absolutely terrifying shower.
• Pretty nice not a treehouse in California.
• Converted school.
• A castle house where they actually tried for a medieval look inside.
• A house built inside the ruins of a castle.
• Very elegant, with towers.
• Manor with 13th, 16th, and 18th century additions. There’s a weird glass floor insert that I don’t like at all by the copper tub.
• Definitely unique – it comes with a geodesic dome, vintage convenience store, and plane wreckage.
• You’ll have more and more questions as you look through the photos.
• Not enough photos of this historic NYC mansion, originally owned by the founder of Arm & Hammer baking soda.
• Landlord “improvement”.
• Would absolutely not go down those stairs in socks.
• At least there’s a railing!
• No.
• Hmm.
• Give it a minute.
• Chaotic stairs.
• Higgeldy piggeldy stairs.

Harry and the Very Big Yawn.

Polly is very fond of the catnip banana.