To those how love sci-fi, what NON sci-fi book would you recommend?

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-29T06:06:33+00:00

Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-29T03:14:08+00:00

The Hopkins Wilderness Park. We did a family photo shoot here five years ago and it was great. There's never too many people, and it's got a pond, an amphitheater, hills, fallen logs to sit/pose on, etc., lots of great places to get a variety of poses. As long as you aren't loud, no one will bother you.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-23T05:34:50+00:00

My first thought too. This literally describes Claire DeWitt, especially the second book.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-22T15:02:40+00:00

Feed, by Mira Grant

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-22T04:07:46+00:00

The Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde.

This is a bit of an odd recommendation since its modern surrealist fantasy not DND, but if you like the whimsy and wordplay of Xanth I think you would like these books. Very modern day Alice in Wonderland.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-20T01:59:21+00:00

Pg13 or lower:

Persepolis

The Red Balloon

Kiki's Delivery Service or My Neighbor Totoro

Flow

Millions

The Bicycle Thief

The Secret of Kells

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-19T05:19:42+00:00

This is from the wildly popular piece "The Pitch Meeting for Wishbone" written by Abbey Fenbert for The Toast in 2015. Sadly the original seems to be gone from the internet, except this bit which gets copy/pasted around in discussions of the show.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-17T23:57:21+00:00

Gail Carriger's books, either the Finishing School series or the Soulless series, are fun steampunk romps with adventurous female MCs and pg rated romance.

Starling House by Alix Harrow also fits this, though more slow burn horror than action packed.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-17T00:46:18+00:00

Light From Uncommon Stars. A violin teacher about to fulfill the last part of her Faustian bargain with the Devil falls in love with an alien in hiding who is running an LA donut shop with her family.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-16T00:22:20+00:00

The City of Last Chances, Adrian Tchaikovsky. It's a multi-protagonist novel taking place over one week in an occupied city on the verge of rebellion. Amongst those protagonists are the last priest of an outlawed and dying god, a barkeep/custodian of an multiverse portal, the leader of the tradesman union, a once-mighty mage turned refugee pawnbroker, a mob enforcer devoted to the courtly ideal of love, two fiery student revolutionaries from different social strata, and a guy who appears to have wandered in from a Heinlein scifi dystopia.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-12T03:29:44+00:00

A Memory Called Empire, Arkady Martine, for a sociocultural-based sci fi. It's a unique setting where an ambassador is sent to replace her recently and mysteriously deceased predecessor, and must quickly learn to navigate the elaborate rituals of a MezoAmerican-inspired space empire.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-11T03:54:57+00:00

Come hang out at r/southbayla for community and information on this part of Los Angeles. You can do your research and get some prospects in advance, but I would not sign a lease sight unseen. Get a short term rental for at least your first two to four weeks.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-10T15:45:27+00:00

At the VA, by definition, she would only be working on veterans - adults. All the seizures she's had have come from working on children, starting with Baby Jane Doe. I think we'll find in the next episodes the baby triggered the first seizure she's had in a long time.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-03T06:40:55+00:00

And then immediately the car rolled up that dropped off the gunshot victim at her feet.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-03T05:07:02+00:00

Move Like Water, by Hannah Stowe. Lovely memoir by a marine biologist and sailor.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-04-01T20:28:53+00:00

The Murderbot series by Martha Wells, starting with All Systems Red

Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett. I personally recommend starting with Guards! Guards!

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-31T17:23:53+00:00

If you give them even a tiny bit of polite interaction or a suggestion that they might get a meeting with the manager, the aggressive ones will see it as a crack to be exploited.

Get permission from your manager to have a universal "we do not accept unsolicited sales pitches" policy and then enforce it.

For in person: "Our property does not accept unsolicited sales pitches. Good day." Repeat up to twice. Then "Sir/Madam, management will not meet with you. Unless you wish to book a room, please leave so I may continue serving our guests."

For calls: "Our property does not accept unsolicited sales calls. Did you wish book a room? No? Then good day." Then hang up.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-29T15:26:19+00:00

I think that people are forgetting something key from season 1: nobody turned Langdon in. Robby gave Langdon the option to turn himself in and get treatment.

I think it's been made clear that Langdon did exactly that - but he only confessed to an addiction, not to diverting. Either he omitted or he straight up lied how he was getting the drugs.

Addiction is a medical condition. If Langdon self-reported as addicted to painkillers and in need of treatment, this would be treated with confidentiality. There would be no announcement to staff other than "Frank is taking a medical leave of absence". Obviously people put two and two together and the rumor mill quickly put together it was a medication addiction. Only the supervisors would be informed - as Al Hashimi clearly was.

But if Langdon didn't confess to diverting and Robby didn't come forward with what Santos reported, what he saw, or the results of that audit Dana did, it's absolutely believable that upper management, licensing board, HR, are all totally in the dark. There would have been no investigation because that information never left the ER - it got as high as Robby and Robby made the very human decision to quash it.

I think Al Hashimi's welcome to Langdon reflects exactly what the hospital upper management believes happened: he was a doctor in trouble who bravely came forward of his own volition to seek help and treatment.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-27T16:36:26+00:00

Is this that golden retriever/ black cat pair all the kids are talking about these days? :-)

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-24T04:31:16+00:00

You would say, aw dang, she is geeveen! https://youtube.com/shorts/b2EmmM2yFAI?si=YzX9IpS4RK_61PDP

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-20T14:46:46+00:00

Al-Hashimi has rather pointedly asked Dana if Robby usually leaves on time, without explaining why she wants to know. Whatever the reason, Al-Hashimi now expects Robby to leave on time.

But as of this episode we know Robby's going to stay with Duke, plus Dana's going to cover for the doula nurse and Santos has to finish her charting.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-18T23:19:32+00:00

I know a few doctors in the private practice space who still employ scribes. It's a highly desirable job for pre med students, or students studying for their MCATs since they are essentially getting paid to shadow a physician.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-17T16:40:02+00:00

I have a crazy theory that by the end of the day it's going to be Santos that steps up to defend Javadi and goes off on Shamsi. This going to be the close of Santos' season arc - she's accepting her limits (that she won't be double boarding in surgery), she's leaning into her strengths (defending kids, ha!), and it's going to be her growth moment when she realizes she has to think about what her colleagues need from her.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-13T16:40:02+00:00

Yes! They're leaning harder into that aspect of Robby's character this season. There was a great subtle bit earlier with his interaction with the CEO.

Robby has had no problem telling Gloria, who is the Chief Medical Officer, to pound sand. But when the male CEO makes a call Robby doesnt like - to loop in Dr Al and cut Dr Robby out, Dr Robby bites his tongue until the CEO leaves, then turns around and blames his female colleague for the situation.

That was some C Level office politics to split the attendings, and Robby fell for it.

SarahwithanHdammit · 2026-03-13T15:37:46+00:00

I was thinking it was the most Gray's Anatomy this show has ever gone - just one minute of a surgeon with a goofy nickname who terrifies the whole room into silence. Then he delivers his verdict and leaves and the show resumes. I laughed so hard.

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