flit

So our dishwasher died a few weeks ago before we went to Portland. We've been trying to get it replaced ever since. We did the research and bought a Bosch model and arranged to have it delivered earlier this week. The installer said it wouldn't fit in our slot. Turns out that when the folks who remodeled the kitchen put in the marble tiles (many of which are broken), they took part of the clearance that many dishwashers, including the well-recommended Bosch, need. Back to the drawing board and Consumer Reports.

We got a list of brands that would fit and went back to Lowe's. Or rather, spouse did. He arranged for Lowe's to deliver a Kitchen Aid dishwasher that was decently recommended. They couldn't deliver it and install until after Thanksgiving, for some reason, but they could deliver this afternoon. He has also arranged for PreFix, our repair/handyman service, to show up and do the installation on Monday.

Fingers crossed that Monday night will involve loading the dishwasher. Washing by hand is Not Fun. Also I'm yet again annoyed by a sorry piece of remodeling that the flipper who did the house before we bought it--not from them; we bought it from the people who bought it from the flipper--messed up.

The Danish Quartet at Dallas Chamber Music Society. Caruth Auditorium, SMU. November 17, 2025.

I missed the opening event this season but I was glad to make the second concert. This time it was the Danish Quartet, which was probably the best-attended event I've been to out of any of the shows I've caught in the five or so years I've been a season ticket holder. Their last appearance in Dallas was eight years ago and apparently it was a barn-burner.

So was this one. They started with a Stravinsky set and a set from the There Will Be Blood soundtrack, but instead of doing them as separate sets, they mixed the two up. I couldn't tell where one began and the other ended, in part because I never saw the movie, but also because they're just that damn good at arrangements. The rest of the first act was a Beethoven string quartet.

The second act, after the intermission, was northern folk music, mostly Scandinavian, but including a couple of Turlough O'Carolan pieces. It was highly amusing to hear O'Carolan explained to the chamber music audience when I'm used to hearing him discussed in the entirely different Celtic folk music context. They also arranged a Faroese piece, which was interesting because it was all vocal. They finished up with a set of three including a piece of their own with a Chattanooga (TN) theme that I thought was going to go into Orange Blossom Express at one point.

Apparently they're currently touring on a folk album, so that's why they were doing the full set of traditional music. I was watching to see how they handled themselves and while they did come off a bit academic compared to the looser style of playing I'm used to with the Irish pieces, they did move into the folk metier. In particular, I noticed the violinists playing with their heads raised for some of the tunes, which is, as I understand it, a mark of folk play. Also useful if you're going to be singing along to the fiddling, which folk artists often do.

They did an encore after being drawn out by a whoopingly enthusiastic standing ovation, and I don't remember the pieces, but I recognized at least one of them. Definitely a standout performance and I'm glad I went.

We'd had the BBQ at Intrinsic Brewing before but we hadn't had their brunch yet, so we tried it this weekend. We both went for the chicken fried brisket, which was a mistake because it was a huge amount of food and we should have split one serving. The brisket was fine but the mashed potatoes that came with it were fantastic and the cream gravy was also quite good.

I had a side of French toast sticks that came with jam and syrup but they were good enough that I didn't want the syrup. We shared some pork belly burnt ends, expecting something like what we get at Heim, but these were more fatty (Heim's has definite meat in theirs) and instead of being sauced were served in syrup. Hard pass, and definite mistake number two.

The chicken-fried brisket was meh as lunch leftovers but a little barbecue sauce perked it right up. I think when we go back we'll try some of the other items, several of which looked interesting.

I read a lot of books over the last two weeks except for when I was at the con. I also listened to a fair amount of music but it was all playlists, not albums.

Books
The Governess Affair, by Courtney Milan. Novella prequel to a series of romances. I liked it but I think I'll be more interested when I read the series it belongs to.
First Class Murder, Jolly Foul Play, and Murder and Mistletoe by Robin Stevens. Third and fourth in the series, and still silly fun suited to a time when you're not feeling well. In the the third, the school detectives on holiday deal with a murder on the Orient Express. In the fourth, the Head Girl dies unexpectedly and suspiciously. And in the fifth, the girls spend Christmas with an older brother at Cambridge when one of his housemates dies under suspicious circumstances.
The Lighthouse at the Edge of the World, by J.R. Dawson. Sapphic urban fantasy take on the Orpheus legend. It deals with some heavy subjects so read warily, especially if you're grieving. I liked it, but it made me cry a lot.
The Crime Brulee Bake Off. Mystery/GBBO pastiche with a well-done romance. I liked the story and the outcome and wasn't surprised to find that the author was a romance author on the strength of that pole of the story.
The Magician of Tiger Castle, by Louis Sachar. A Renaissance romp told by the magician of an Italian city-state, with the sort of mixed up contrivances Shakespeare loved so much. Artfully written.
The Second Death of Locke, by V.L. Bovalino. I liked the story and the characters but was fascinated by the worldbuilding, and also by one particular plot twist I didn't see coming. The romance was a little less compelling, because of course he was into her! This is the first in a trilogy and I'm going to be interested to see where she goes (continuing with the same characters or a new generation).
Playing It Safe, by Ashley Weaver. Third WWII safecracker mystery. The plot is quite good and the romance/romantic triangle advances nicely. Two more before I hit the wall of having to wait for a new one!
Earl Crush, by Alexandra Vasti. Second in a regency rom-com series featuring a bunch of (Regency-style) feminist women. In this one, our heroine is shy outside of her writing but manages to go on an adventure that involves impersonation, spying, and a Napoleon-supporter attempt to murder the Duke of Wellington! The next one in this series is also out.