Things achieved and other mundanities

[lizbee]

1.  I bought 8gb of RAM and installed them in my laptop!  This is pretty exciting, since first I had to work out what kind of RAM I needed, and how much my laptop could take, and then I had to leave the house and buy a new Phillips head screwdriver.  And then came the really hard bit, ie, getting a tight screw loose, and then applying the full force of my strength (derisive laughter) to getting the memory into the second slot.  (Turns out that close enough isn't good enough.  More like, "close enough and your laptop tries to boot up but just gives you a black screen and then you panic for a bit".)

This is exciting!  More for me than for the people who just followed my liveblogging of the RAM adventure on Twitter, but I did something technical and didn't stuff it up!

And now my laptop is faster than when it was new, and I can actually use it without scheduling extended breaks for tea whenever I want to open a new program or save a file!  Which means that, if I find myself in the middle of a big writing project by the time my North America trip comes around, and I hope to be, taking the laptop is a viable option instead of the equivalent of hauling a brick across an ocean.  (I was also considering getting a keyboard for the iPad, which is still a possibility, but ... well, the truth is, I paid so little for this laptop that it cost less than some iPad keyboards.) 

2.  More expensively, but with less technology, I have bought plane tickets!  I'm flying United from Melbourne to Toronto (via Sydney and LAX), then Air Canada from Toronto to New York, and, eventually, United again from Chicago to Melbourne. 

I wound up deciding against Korean Air because, much as they're an amazing airline and it would have been more comfortable, it added about 20 hours to my trip.  United seems like the McDonalds of airlines, but it's a much faster flight.  Really, the only thing they lack that I would have really liked was in-seat USB plugs.  And my Kobo can manage, like, a week of constant use before it needs recharching, so between that, my iDevices and possibly my laptop, I guess I'll be okay for entertainment. 

("Liz, just bring a notebook and a pen and use them to write," you say.  Ah, but pens never work properly on planes!  I presume it's a side-effect of the air pressure.  And I'm really ... fussy about my writing implements.  Which reminds me, I really need a new brush pen...)

Now I have five months to sort out all the other things I'll need -- travel insurance, my ESTA waiver for the United States, possibly a new suitcase that isn't falling apart, a proper winter coat.  (Usually I use a very light wool coat, since my limited time spent out of doors in winter usually involves very brisk walking.  But then rj_anderson said, re Ontario, "There probably won't be much snow," and Chicago is supposed to be very cold in November.  I don't know about Boston and New York, but it's better to be safe than sorry, right?  What do northern hemisphere types wear in late autumn?!

3.  I baked bread!  Which I've never done before, but I worked in bakeries for years, and most of the bakers were idiots, so I figured how hard could it be?

And it was very nice bread!  Mostly.  I replaced the water with boiled wine, because what's the point of doing something complicated for the first time if you can't make it even harder?  So it came out with a lovely purple colour and a pleasant aftertaste. 

Of course, it would have helped if it had been cooked through.  So there's a lesson for the future:  the "tap and if it sounds hollow it's done" trick isn't necessarily accurate.  I served it up at our Game of Thrones finale party, and we sort of ate around the doughy bits. 

I briefly contemplated making another loaf for the Mad Men finale party, but really, the most appropriate food for that is nothing, just and endless sea of scotch and kosher wine. 

It does turn out, unfortunately, that kneading dough is bad for arthritic hands.  Maybe more practice would make them stronger?  Or maybe I shouuld invest in a bread maker?  But that feels like cheating.  I mean, what's the point in making bread if you haven't poured your own sweat and tears (and nail polish and a stray hair) into it?

Comments

[recessional]

Well. What temperature do you consider "cold"? And also what is a "real winter coat" to you? (Which is to say, in late November I'm probably wearing my faux-suede faux-bomber jacket, but it was 15C and cold rain today and I didn't bother with a jacket*, and generally speaking you can tell who the recent immigrants from warmer climes are here by who's wearing a parka while we're wearing jean-jackets still.)


*a fact which would make a Texan friend of mine go D: D: which is why I point it out: her idea and my idea of what "cold" is and when a "proper jacket" is required are totally different; likewise, her idea of "it's t-shirt weather" is pretty much my idea of "I am not coming out of the air-conditioned building and you can't make me". I will stop editing this comment now.

[melyanna]

I've lived in Chicago for fourteen years now and I don't think we've had a very cold November yet. Although I should probably ask what you consider very cold. (To my mind it doesn't get cold here till January.)

As for breadmaking, look into the stretch and fold technique. (I have the book that's being promoted there, and it's a great one.) It sounds crazy but works well for all breads, not just the high-hydration one he's working with in the video, and I imagine it would be easier on your hands.

[lizbee]

Well, right now it's 15C, and when I went outside for a walk earlier I just wore a t-shirt, with a light cardigan for when the wind picks up. A "real winter coat", to me, is the heavy kind, wool or similar fabric, not just a light trench.

[recessional]

Thus the asking! A wool coat would probably be about right for normal Toronto-November, if you're not planning on sitting still outside on cold days for a long time.

[lizbee]

Oh, good! That's what I was thinking. I have a wool coat, but it's mixed with synthetics, so not as warm as it should be.

[lizbee]

"Cold", to me, is weather that requires a heavy jumper instead of a light cardigan!

[medie]

Ontario is tricksy that time of year. I know for us down here (NFLD is generally colder than Ontario if you believe them *G*) it can get bitterly cold around November, but generally the worst of the winter cold and weather waits until after Christmas now.

That said, being from a climate not used to it? Layers are your friend. Mannnny layers. :)

[melyanna]

In that case, you might want a coat, but snow's pretty unlikely here. The internet tells me that the average high temperature here, historically, in November is around 7°C. To me, that's weather to wear a heavy jacket, or maybe a wool coat, but the coat doesn't get buttoned up unless I'm going to be walking around in a brisk wind. And I don't really bother with hats and gloves and scarves till December or January.

[ceebee_eebee]

I flew from DC to Sydney on United and it was very comfortable. Great movie selection and they gave me ice cream. It was actually one of the most comfortable flights I've been on. You'll be fine. :)

[tree_and_leaf]

Layers. Also, a scarf is your friend.

[neotoma]

What do northern hemisphere types wear in late autumn?!

A wool duffle coat, gloves, hat, scarf, and wool socks. You're going pretty far north, and the weather can be bad even in late autumn.

Otoh, we had a mild winter this year, and may again. You might get by with a heavy jacket and a scarf -- you know your cold tolerance best, and should keep an eye out for the weather patterns for the cities you will be visiting. If you go to Canada first, you'd be able to buy the appropriate coat there, since Canada is likely to have the worst of the weather, unless NYC and Boston are hit by noreasters while you are there.

ETA: also, layers are your friend, as others have said. I'm often wearing a long-sleeve t-shirt with a pullover sweater under my coat, and you can add more. I stay away from polyester and go with cotton for the t-shirt and wool for sweaters because polyester and poly-blends don't breath -- sweating under your layers is no good.

[yiduiqie]

My Experience with a Northern Hemisphere Winter has made me all about the layers (more so even than my winters in Melbs).

[rj_anderson]

The average temperature in November is 3C. So that might make things a little easier to calculate?

I usually wear a wool blend coat (basically a shorter, blacker version of the Sherlock Coat) around that time myself.

[marymac]

You may want to add waterproof/resistant to the list of coat qualities if you intend to walk a lot in the States. You're well into the Atlantic maritime with New York and Boston, so good chances of getting dumped on with rain, especially in the tail-end of the hurricane season.

[nonelvis]

You've already gotten plenty of good advice for dealing with northeastern/midwestern/Canadian winters, so all I'll add to this post is that you can stick a probe thermometer in the underside of your bread to test whether it's done. Fully baked bread is usually in the 87°-95°C range.

[skalja]

Adding to the list of "things to look for in a good winter coat:" a hood. I don't know about the other places you're visiting, but the worst thing about the cold in New York is that it's windy, and blasts its way down all the crevices in your outer covering unless you're careful. Wool is a good option, but if dressiness isn't a factor I'd suggest looking at down coats as well. For one thing, down coats are a lot lighter, and thus take up less suitcase real estate. (They also squish much better into odd crevices in the overhead carryon compartment.)

Also seconding layers. Probably my most useful winter garment after my medium-length down coat is my silk undershirt, because it adds a LOT of warmth but breathes well, isn't bulky at all, and easily rinses out and air dries overnight if I get sweaty. And if it turns out I don't need it, well, it takes up as much space as a pair of socks.

Huh. I had no idea I'd picked up so much transmissible knowledge from all those transatlantic trips...

[melengro]

Around Thanksgiving I'd usually be in a sweater and/or cardigan, sometimes with a short fleece jacket over it. I don't usually start wearing real winter coats until December. It varies year by year though; we had a sickeningly mild winter of 2011-2012 and I barely wore my winter coat at all; the year before I wore it from the beginning of December to the beginning of April. I grew up in New England so I'm used to the cold; some transplants in my area can be seen in coats from about Hallowe'en to Easter.

[lizbee]

3C?

*gulp*

[rj_anderson]

Would it console you to know that's much warmer than the midwinter weather I used to walk through on my way to high school in Sudbury, which averaged around -15C? Occasionally it went down below -20C and we still had to go, but if it got near -30 they usually closed the school because the water pipes had a tendency to freeze.

At -20C there is this interesting phenomenon where the condensation from your breath coming up over the scarf wrapped around your mouth and nose forms little balls of ice in your eyebrows.

The traditional Canadian response to this is "Cold enough for ya?"

(Though if it's any consolation, I had a friend from Los Angeles come up to visit me once in mid-November and I chivvied her all around the Toronto Zoo wearing nothing warmer than jeans and her grandmother's old wool pea coat, and she did not, in fact, perish utterly. In fact, the next thing I knew she was booking a cruise to the Arctic.)

[lizbee]

UPHILL BOTH WAYS IN THE SNOW!

I'm actually looking forward to it, in terms of New Experiences and so forth. But I'm also making a mental note to bring my arthritis-strength painkillers and all my good socks.

[marymac]

Can you get Bridgedale socks in Australia or Canada? Because Bridgedale 4-season merino socks, warmest thing in the world ever.

And conveniently indestructible, as Doodle Dog's best efforts have proven.

[lizvogel]

Yay for techie accomplishment! It's such a thrill when these things actually work (says the former professional tech).

What do northern hemisphere types wear in late autumn?!

As others have said, layers. It could be sub-freezing and shin-deep in snow in the cities you've mentioned in November; it could also be so warm that the summer flowers are still blooming. (It's not inconceivable that it could be both in the same week.) But most likely it will be briskly chilly, enough to appreciate a good coat and a scarf if you're spending much time outside. Definitely you'll want something that stops wind; Chicago isn't nicknamed The Windy City for nothing!