arduinna | Network

The state of the world depressed me so much yesterday that I spent the day binging a Netflix series called Love Life.

Love Life starts out with that age-old addage that everybody is looking for their perfect soul mate and proceeds from there into the quaint rituals of Millennial couplings, spread out over 10 half-hour episodes. The show got canceled after two seasons.

There were things about the show I really liked and things about it that irritated the hell out of me. Among the things that irritated me—

The second season focuses on the romantic misadventures of a young Black male protagonist.

When he meets the woman of his dreams, she tells him, "Honestly, I just can't dance in a room full of white people. They make me feel like I'm on display."

And the couple flirts by googling "ugly white babies."

###

Now!

If you showed a white couple flirting by googling "ugly black babies," you'd be portraying ignorant racist creeps. There would be no cute, ironic subtext to it.

But this Black couple, we're given to understand, is hip & adorable.

This kind of double standard is absolutely fucked.

Either nobody should be allowed to make these kinds of racially motivated digs or everybody should be allowed to make these kinds of racially motivated digs.

skygiants

Broadly speaking, I liked Star Wars: The Mask of Fear, the first book in a planned trilogy of Star Wars Political Thrillers pitched as Andor Prequels, For Fans Of Andor.

This one is set right after the declaration of the Empire and is mostly about the separate plans that Bail Organa and Mon Mothma pursue in order to try and limit their government's whole-scale slide into fascism, with -- as we-the-readers of course know -- an inevitable lack of success. It is of course impossible not to feel the weight of Current Events on every page; the book came out in February '25 and so must have been complete in every respect before the 2024 elections, but boy, it doesn't feel like it. On the other hand, it's also impossible not to feel 2016 and Hillary Clinton looming large over the portrayal of Mon Mothma as the consummate politician who is very good at wrangling the process of government but whom nobody actually likes.

That said, as a character in her own right, I am very fond of Mon Mothma, the consummate politician who is very good at wrangling the process of government but whom nobody actually likes. With her genuine belief in the ideals of democracy and her practiced acceptance of the various ethical compromises that working within the system requires, she makes for a great sympathetic-grayscale political-thriller protagonist. I also like the portrayal of her marriage in this period as something that is, like, broadly functional! sometimes a source of support! always number three or four on her priority list which she never quite gets around to calling him to tell him she's back on planet after a secret mission before the plot sweeps her off in a new direction, oops, well, I guess he'll find out when she's been released from prison again!

Anyway, her main plot is about trying to get a bill passed in the Senate that will limit Palpatine's power as Emperor, which involves making various shady deals with various powerful factions; meanwhile, Bail Organa has a separate plot in which he's running around trying to EXPOSE the LIES about the JEDI because he thinks that once everyone knows the Jedi were massacred without cause, Palpatine will be toppled by public outrage immediately. Both of them think the other's plan is kind of stupid and also find the other kind of annoying at this time, which tbh I really enjoy. I love when people don't like each other for normal reasons and have to work together anyway. I also like the other main wedge between them, which is that both of them were briefly Politically Arrested right before the book begins, and by chance and charisma Bail Organa joked his way out of it and came out fine while Mon Mothma went through a harrowing and physically traumatic experience that has left her with lingering PTSD, and Mon Mothma knows this and Bail Organa doesn't and this colors all their choices throughout the book.

Bail Organa's plot is also sort of hitched onto a plot about an elderly Republic-turned-Imperial spymaster who's trying to find the agents she lost at the end of the war, and her spy protege who accidentally ends up infiltrating the Star Wars pro-Palpatine alt-right movement, both of which work pretty well as stories about people who find themselves sort of within a system as the system is changing underneath them.

And then there is the Saw plotline. This is my biggest disappointment in the book, is that the Saw plotline is not actually a Saw plotline; it's about a Separatist assassin who ends up temporarily teaming up with Saw for a bit as he tries to figure out who he should be assassinating now that the war is over, and we see Saw through his eyes, mostly pretty judgmentally. I do not object to other characters seeing Saw Gerrera pretty judgmentally, but it feels to me like a bit of a cop-out in a book that's pitched as 'how Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, and Saw Gerrera face growing fascism and start down the paths that will eventually lead to the Rebel Alliance' to once again almost entirely avoid giving Saw a point of view to see his ideology from within. But Star Wars as franchise is consistently determined not to do that. Ah, well; maybe one of the later two books in this trilogy will have a meaty interiority-heavy Saw plotline and I'll eat my words.

(NB: I have not yet seen S2 of Andor and I do plan to do so at some point, please don't tell me anything about it!)

james_davis_nicoll

Six works new to me: two fantasy (one a roleplaying game), four science fiction. The roleplaying game is part of a series but otherwise, they all seem to be stand-alone.

Books Received, September 6 — September 12

Poll #33608 Books Received, September 6 — September 12

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 46

View Respondents

Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent (October 2025)
8 (17.4%)

Outlaw Planet by M.R. Carey (November 2025)
20 (43.5%)

Champions of Chaos by Calum Colins, et al
1 (2.2%)

Slow Gods by Claire North (November 2025)
24 (52.2%)

The Divine Gardener’s Handbook: Or What to Do if Your Girlfriend Accidentally Turns Off the Sun by Eli Snow (August 2026)
22 (47.8%)

Death Engine Protocol: Better Dying Through Science by Margret A. Treiber (April 2025)
13 (28.3%)

Some other option (see comments)
0 (0.0%)

Cats!
30 (65.2%)

fred_mouse

Today has brought the news of the passing of two more people - one I counted a friend, and one I knew more in passing. I've known both since the 80s.

David was a member of the dance group my mother and I joined in about 1984, and which I've intermittently been associated with since. I'm not sure if I ever had a conversation with them that wasn't about dancing. We were members of the same performance group, although I spent far fewer years in it than David. Other than folk festivals and dancing places, the only other place I ever remember encountering David was in one of the city queer pubs on a very quiet weekday afternoon. I never did find out if they were there because it was a safe space, or because it was their local pub.

Robert ran the Fremantle Music School, which I attended briefly in the mid 80s*. I've encountered Robert intermittently over the years, at various music events. They were involved in the Mandolin Orchestra, and I believe the Recorder and Early Music Society. We met up again when I joined the first of the two (very) amateur orchestras I've joined in recent years -- they have been the leader of the group in the years I've been there (two years? three?). In retirement, Robert became somewhat prolific in composing pieces, and I think we had one of their pieces at least every semester. We have one that is due to be debuted tomorrow, at a concert that is now going to be a bit fraught. **

* provided-by-school lessons ran to the end of year ten. I found a lovely teacher at the FMS, but when they moved away from the school roughly a year later, I followed them, mostly having lessons at their home.
** I really feel for our conductor, and for our other main organiser, both of whom have been dealing with calling telling people one on one throughout today.

mabiana

Moaning on DW helped yet again, last night someone did a radical thing and just asked on Discord about listening together and now there shall be a gathering tonight. ;-) (I know I could have just done this, too, but feel I am way too new in this group for that and am self-conscious about my lack of spontaneous entertainment value).

I unsurprisingly and definitely liked the episode, even though I got all by myself who the baddie was. This was however not due to my impressive deductional skills, but due to having consumed so many mystery plots by this point that I recognized a pattern which I would not have at the age of the target audience. What was going on exactly was still a surprise, and it did not diminish my enjoyment.

Elizabeth Arthur, daughter of the founder of the series who has now started her own continuation of her father's book, has written a reaction to Charlie Kirk's death, outing herself as fan of both him and Trump and writing that her continuation is supposed to transport their values. Well. That answers the question whether I will at some point bother to buy these books abroad - German booksellers don't seem to carry them, I assume because of licensing rights. I had thought initially it was a pity she did not join the authors continuing here, translating is after all a thing and it would have gotten her a very large amount of very interested readers immediately, then gathered she wanted to do her own thing with already one change I had heard of, now I see it is a very own thing for a specific audience that I don't have to read as alternative universe.

The Friday Five, found in

dine's journal:

1. What is your favourite fruit?
Strawberries, though I have quite a thing for mangos lately, too

2. What is the last book you read?
Read as in read with my own eyes the one I got so annoyed about in the previous to last post, All the Feels, and I have half-heartedly started the next one in the series but am only a few pages in. As an audiobook I listened to Hape Kerkeling's Der Junge muß an die frische Luft, which I had already read when it came out first and now decided to hear the author read himself. It makes me both grateful that my childhood with a mentally ill parent was not even remotely as traumatic and tragical as his and feel a bit weird because I think I still turned out more lopsided from it.

3. Do you like any of your school photos?
I gather school photos are a yearly thing in the U.S.? I have a class photo from first grade, a class photo and an individual photo from fourth grade and a class photo from shortly before finishing school, but that was not an official one. Yes, I like them all. The individual one of me is funny because I look so extremly dead serious and my bangs are way too long. I remember considering very long bangs highly fashionable and flattering for me then and loved them, but looking at that now - no. :-D

4. Do you ever blowdry your armpits to get the deodorant to dry quicker?
That would actually have never occured to me until two weeks ago I witnessed a fellow early morning swimmer blow-drying her whole body (and hoped she'd get done in time for me to use the thing to blow-dry my hair to not get quite so cold on the way home - she did). So, no. I brush my teeth inbetween that and dressing anyway, to not get lotion onto my clothes.

5. What was the last film you watched?
Ein Mann, ein Fjord last night (working myself through the collected works of Kerkeling a bit ;-) ). It was amusing.

troisoiseaux

Read The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich, which is not quite a short story collection but not quite a linear novel; it's sort of a matryoshka doll of stories - the direct narratives that each of novel's three main narrators "tell" to the reader, stories told diegetically to the narrators by other characters, etc. - each "layer" compelling enough in its own right that I not infrequently forgot how they nestled together until coming to the end of a given story thread. (Actually, according to the author's note, a number of chapters had previously been individually published in various magazines, so... I guess it is indeed a novel in interconnected short stories?) Basically, it's about the ways that 3-4 families in a small town in North Dakota have interacted over generations (between 1890s-1970s?), which includes murders and lynchings and rescues and cults and affairs and crushes and strange convoluted crimes and redemption arcs. It would have been helpful to have a family tree or cast of characters, and some of the subplots were... distinctly odd, but overall a top-tier Erdrich.

creepy_shetan posting in

comment_fic

[ If you're interested in being a Tuesday-Thursday guest host, you can sign up here. Thanks! ]
↑↑↑ Available dates:
[Sept 22~26: Lonely Prompts Week]
September 30 & October 2
October 7 & 9

Hello and welcome to our weekly Free for All. ^_^ There are no themes to follow for prompts or fills. If you've had any ideas this week that didn't really work with Tuesday's or Thursday's posts, today's your chance to prompt 'em. Be free, and have fun! ✎

Just a few rules:
1. No more than five prompts in a row.
2. No more than three prompts in the same fandom.
3. Use the character's full name and the fandom's full name for ease in adding to the Lonely Prompts spreadsheet.
4. No spoilers in prompts for a month after airing, or use the spoiler cut option found here. Unfortunately, DW doesn’t have a cut tag, so use your best judgment when it comes to spoilers.
5. If your fill contains spoilers, warn and leave plenty of space, or use the spoiler cut.
6. If your story has possible triggers, please warn for them in the subject line!

Prompts should be formatted as follows: [Use the character's full names and fandom's full name]
Fandom, Character +/ Character, Prompt

Are today's prompts not catching your eye? No worries, because we have plenty of older prompts that just might do the trick! You can browse through the comm's calendar archive (here on LJ or here on DW) for themed and Free For All posts, or perhaps check out Sunday posts for Lonely Prompt requests. (Or, you can be like me, and try to save interesting prompts as you see 'em... and then end up with multiple text doc files full of [themes + links + prompts] that you can easily look through and search for keywords.) Multiple fills for one prompt are welcome, by the way! Oh, and you are very likely to find some awesome fills to read as well, and wouldn't it be nice to leave a comment on those lovely little writing distractions? ~_^

We are on AO3! If you fill a prompt and post it to AO3, please add it to the Bite Sized Bits of Fic from 2025 collection.

If you are viewing this post on our Dreamwidth site: please know that fills posted here will not show up as comments on our LiveJournal site, but you are still more than welcome to participate. =)

If you have a Dreamwidth account and would feel more comfortable participating there, please feel free to do so… and spread the word! comment_fic

A friendly reminder about our posting schedule: Themed posts for new prompts go up on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Saturdays are a Free for All day for new prompts of any flavor. Sundays are for showing Lonely Prompts some love, whether by requesting for someone to adopt them or by sharing any fills that you've recently completed.

flowing_river posting in

aspecex

Reminder to make sure your relationship and character nominations are disambiguated with the fandom name in parenthesis after the tag. Incorrectly formatted nominations will be rejected if they are not corrected.

Fandoms

盗墓笔记 - 南派三叔 | Daomu Biji - All Media Types Could the nominator list out what specific canons would fall under this AMT tag? Is there a more specific canonical fandom tag the nominator would be interested in seeing instead of an AMT tag?

Freeforms

Teenage realisations - This is a bit too vague, can it be updated to something like "Teenage Aspec Realizations"?

smallhobbit posting in

no_true_pair

Title: Connections
Fandom: Spooks/Sherlock Holmes (ACD)
Pairing/Characters: Lucas North & Ferret
Content Notes: No warning needed
Prompt: September 13th - with the title 'Connections'

Connections on AO3

dancing_serpent posting in

c_ent

The weekly chat posts are intended for just that, chatting among each other. What are you currently watching? Reading? What actor/idol are you currently following? What are you looking forward to? Are you busy writing, creating art? Or did you have no time at all for anything, and are bemoaning that fact?

Whatever it is, talk to us about it here. Tell us what you liked or didn't like, and if you want to talk about spoilery things, please hide them under either of these codes:
or

nanila posting in

awesomeers

It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

andrewducker

1. If you were wondering what Bryan Fuller and Mads Mikkelsen were up to, it's a movie about a guy who will (for the right money) kill the monster under your bed. Dust Bunny (also starring Sigourney Weaver).: I wish my kids were a few years older...
(tags:monsters children movies trailer )
2. How were escalators invented, and how safe are they? (very, unless your maintenance people are corrupt): (tags:design technology safety video history )
3. Israeli conductor condemns his country in extraordinary Proms outburst: (tags:Israel Palestine )

mific posting in

amplificathon

We have a new alternate address for the Audiofic Archive: https://audioficarchive.org

This an additional domain name that works exactly like the old jinjurly one
Both this one and the prior one, and all links deriving from these urls will function normally
The new link makes it a little easier for us to manage domain name renewals

Podfics posted from now on will have the new address in the post link and in any audiofile links.

sovay

I am glad to read that a classicist on Tumblr whom I do not know feels validated by a poem I wrote a dozen years ago, because she's right in turn about the linkage of ideas that led to its writing: the evocatio of Juno from Veii in 396 BCE, the evocatio of Tanit from Carthage in 146 BCE, the assimilation of Tanit to Juno Caelestis rather than Ištar-starred Venus, the self-fulfilling loop of enmity that a double-thefted goddess makes of the Aeneid and under it all the irony that Vergil even in his Renaissance aspect as magician could not foresee, that Carthage-haunted Rome was itself built on the needfire of the most famously sacked city of the ancient world, Troy whose gods Aeneas salvaged from the night of its destruction and now we remember Rome as the epitome of decadence, the eternally, contagiously falling city.

Also I had just been turned down by a housing situation that I had painfully wanted, but the classical stuff was all still bang on.

Current Music: Frank Turner, "The Next Storm"

snowynight

The Interactive Fiction Competition (IFComp) is an annual celebration of new, text-driven digital games and stories from independent creators. You can play as many of the entries as you like and vote for them in a ballot (requires a free signup). The vote is up to 15 Oct. I have played several of the choice based entries playable online.

Games I have finished and like:

Saltwrack: "A crew of three. A lost city, far in the north. A thousand miles of toxic ice. Plot your course, manage supplies, study apocalypse biota, and don't lose your mind. You'll find out why the world was ruined, or die trying. Content warning: This is a work of horror; it gets grim. Specific content warnings are available in the game's ABOUT page."

thoughts: I like it most. Very atmospheric, and the resource management gameplay really matches how grim and strange the world is.

Pharos Fidelis: "A romantic island getaway. CW: graphic violence, sexually suggestive content, toxic academia, denial of agency, hunger, death. Postmodern fantasy-horror gay demon melodrama"

thoughts: I find the world building with demon summoning intriguing. The gay reluctant summoner/demon romance is nice. I also like the check point system: saving me time to replay.

The Litchfield Mystery: "A wealthy businessman, dead in his study. Eight suspects, harbouring secrets and twisted truths. "There's always more to it than meets the eye..." To others, a tired cliché. To you, the cardinal principle that has successfully guided you in all your cases as The Sleuth. And you, Detective Pearce, are not about to let this one go cold."

thoughts: The walkthrough is very detailed and useful. The clues are reasonable, and the solution makes sense.

The Secrets of Sylvan Gardens: "When you find yourself sleepwalking in the lush ornamental gardens of the Sylvan Villa, you must discover how to break the thrall of a mysterious trance. You will be aided in your journey by the gardens' keepers: a gardener, a botanist, a librarian, and an enigmatic hermit. Form bonds of friendship or pursue a slow-burn romance as you roleplay, helping these companions with quests that draw you deeper into their individual stories."

thoughts: It's a cosy fantasy adventure with a good mix of puzzles. The NPc are cute and I love spending time with them. I also like the thoughtful ending choices, The creator(s) also created Fantasy Opera: Mischief at the Masquerade (solving a mystery before an opera opening) & The Path of Totality (cozy fantasy road trip adventure), which are both enjoyable

Penthesileia: "Your husband is a very important man, he tells you; many would like to see his head on a silver platter. Content warning: Material may not be suitable for children; please note strong language, as well as allusions to death, sexual themes, and violence"

thoughts: It's linear and quite obvious how the plot will go, but it's satisfying to play to the end.

casemod posting in

caseficexchange

Hello!

Thank you again for joining me for the inaugural round of Casefic Exchange (and thanks to the nonnies who expressed interest in an exchange like this earlier this year—it encouraged me to finally get this one on the exchange scene)!

I have a few things I'd appreciate hearing specifically about, but I'm also keen to hear about other aspects of the exchange. Please keep in mind that I'll be incorporating feedback that works for me as a moderator, as I need to manage this exchange within my schedule and limits.

I will do my best to reply to feedback, but please don't think anything of me saying "Thanks for your feedback!", as I will only ask further questions regarding feedback I'd like more information on.

More?

Perhaps the most important question of them all: 1. Are you interested in another round?

Schedule

2. I liked the time of year that we held the exchange, and I'd like to do so again, although I would like to shift the schedule to begin earlier in the year. I made the schedule based on my personal and exchange commitments (and will do so again), and if we have another round next year, I will keep the schedule in the first half of the year.

I'm considering starting nominations in January or February next year (I originally wanted to open in March this year, but wanted more time with the exchange before going live). If we open nominations in January, that means nominations/sign-ups are in January and the creation period falls in February/March/April, leaving May/June as the pinch hit/(hopefully) reveals period — would this be ideal? I understand we will always clash with other exchanges, especially those with higher minimums, but early in the year works perfectly for me as a moderator.

I prefer to avoid July entirely as I participate in Battleship Exchange, and I know a handful of you do, too.

3. Did Friday deadlines work? I chose Friday because the deadline conversion would be Saturday early afternoon for me (I am in AEST/AEDT). The alternative is to shift this to Sunday EST/EDT, so it falls on my Monday AEST/AEDT. (Saturday EDT/EST is not an option I will be considering.)

Regardless of the day we settle on, I would ask for leniency, as a mid-afternoon deadline for me may clash with plans that arise over the year. The 11:59pm EDT/EST deadline works for me, and I will keep this moving forward.

I'm not overly concerned about not being online when deadlines hit as long as participants make a good faith effort to meet them and are not stressed out by the fact I may not post until hours later that X deadline has come. (I always intend to post if something crops up offline that will prevent me from executing a phase.) I intentionally waited at least half an hour to an hour after the deadlines before taking any action to give people extra time in case they miscalculated the time conversion.

So: Friday or Sunday EDT/EST? It makes no difference to me, so please let me know!

As someone who exists entirely in the future, my exchange experiences with deadlines have always consisted of me adding a +1, which will most likely be different from the majority of participants, so I'd appreciate feedback on this.

Exchange mechanics

4. Did the minimum requirements work for everyone? Is 3k and its equivalents too small? I have no interest in decreasing this minimum. I'd appreciate hearing from all types of creators—fic, artists, and podficcers.

5. Freeforms were not something I was interested in adding during the first round as I wanted to try to make the exchange run as smoothly as possible so everyone (especially myself) could get a feel of how it'd run without that additional complication. (Full transparency: Freeforms, outside of the medium freeforms, are new for me as a moderator!)

I will investigate how to add freeforms to the exchange for the next round, as I think this would work well for prompts, i.e. you can select "heist", "murder mystery", etc. so your creator(s) know what kind of genre/theme of casefic you're interested in.

I would build into the schedule a week for crowdsourcing generic freeforms, such as "murder mystery", "heist", "stolen item", etc., as I will undoubtedly miss one if I leave it to myself, and make that final list available for you to select when signing up. These freeforms will not be "X con artist steals flower vase from museum" kind of freeforms. It'd be more in line with how

fandom5k has genre freeforms. I think this will assist when participants forget or choose not to provide casefic-theme prompts.

Given how small the exchange is, I'm hesitant to make these matchable, as we already are niche given we're a themed exchange.

Creation Period

6. How did you find the creation period? Was it too long? Just right? Did you want longer? I chose three months based on feedback from anons and because I broke it down as 1k = 1 month.

Please be mindful that I'm not interested in shifting the creation period based on other exchange commitments. We will always clash with other exchanges.

Check-in period

7. Did you want a check-in period? Given our long creation period, I wasn't sure if this was desired. I made the default deadline to be an unofficial check-in, but it didn't work as intended. Would you like a mandatory check-in period, similar to

fffx?

Default deadline and extension deadline

8. Did you find the default deadline motivating? The default deadline didn't exactly work as I had intended, as we ended up with more extensions than I had anticipated. I'm considering removing the default deadline from the schedule, but since it didn't work as I wanted from a moderator's perspective, did it work from a participant's perspective?

If it didn't work from either perspective, I'll remove it for the next round.

9. As I didn't anticipate so many extensions (there is nothing wrong with this!), I will be building two extension deadlines into the schedule that you can choose from (similar to how

ficinabox does this), as this will help me manage pinch hits. I learned from this year that having a deadline option available worked better than choosing the next Friday as an extension deadline.

I would prefer participants to email me for an extension, as I find that having this record is useful for me if I need to follow up. I was considering creating a Google form, but I would want emails to be logged/a record of your extension request sent to you so you have a record and reminder that you asked for it. I'd like to hear your preferences, as I have only ever used a Google form to request an extension as a participant and not as a moderator!

Trialling: Request specific assignment

10. Given the niche nature of the exchange, I'm hesitant to add swaps; however, I am considering allowing participants to request a specific assignment, with the caveat that you are not guaranteed your request being successful.

I saw some commentary about participants taking a more conservative approach to their offers for this exchange, given the minimum requirements, so I wanted to gauge interest in trialling this approach. (Please note this is not something I have ever offered before in any of my exchanges, so there would be a learning curve on the mod end on how to manage this.)

If there is an interest in swapping, I will investigate further how to run this as smoothly as possible.

*

Please let me know if there was anything else you'd like to be considered for round two! I tried to run round one as flexibly and simply as possible, while being open to ideas as I got my bearings with such an exchange (my experience is with a "/" exchange) and didn't wish to overcomplicate matters. I'm happy to add some more complexity to the exchange if that will improve the experience.

I'd appreciate any feedback, but please be aware that I will only implement what works for me as a moderator and makes the moderator side of the exchange as smooth as possible. I wish I could cater to everyone, but I can't.

You can comment here or email me at gumshoeagency@gmail.com.

Thank you again! It's been a lot of fun. :)

natequarter posting in

iddyiddybangbang

Title: stand the bitter night
Author: natequarter
Fandom: Doctor Who (1963)
Word Count: 10,039
Rating: T
Warnings: None
Summary: Even in the years between leaving the TARDIS and meeting Josh Townsend, Sarah regularly managed to get herself into trouble. Sometimes that trouble is close to home.
Read on Ao3

viridian5

I realized that I didn't let you guys know that I bought a pair of sneakers! I transitioned out of the crappy podiatric boot and into the sneakers over a week ago, most often while also wearing a compression sleeve on my left foot and ankle but not always.

I went to Da-Bar Shoes in Maspeth, the place where I've bought my SAS walking shoes for years. Went in telling them what my doctor said, my experiences and what sneakers I tried on at New Balance and Dick's Sporting Goods (where I tried a Brooks brand sneaker), that the sneaker needs to be able to accommodate a compression sleeve or foot wrap, and that the upper range of the price I'm willing to pay is $150, while wearing the SAS shoe I bought there on my right foot. (Telling them that I've been buying my SASs from them for years, so they knew I was a longtime customer and they needed to treat me right for continued business.)

I had two salespeople tending to me. One told me that Hokas haven't been made as well recently so they don't last as long. I mentioned that I hated the aesthetic of Hokas and that I wanted to avoid a sneaker that screamed to viewers about it being a sneaker if possible.

I walked out with a pair of Easy Spirit for $80!

The toes aren't as crazy as the New Balance, but I am forced to walk somewhat differently due to the firm soles my podiatrist demanded.

Current Mood: sleepy
Current Music: "Three Imaginary Boys" by the Cure

snowynight

6 medium-sized apples, 5 eggs, 1 quart of milk, sugar, the rind of 1/2 a lemon and some almond or vanilla essence. Pare and core the apples, and boil them in 1 pint of water, sweetened with 2 oz. of sugar, and the lemon rind added, until they are beginning to get soft. Remove the apples from the saucepan and place them in a pie-dish without the syrup. Heat the milk and make a custard with the eggs, well beaten, and the hot milk; sweeten and flavour it to taste, pour the custard over the apples, and bake the pudding until the custard is set.

From Dr. Allinson's cookery book, comprising many valuable vegetarian recipes by T. R. Allinson (1915)

viridian5

I watched Alien: Covenant and kept getting knocked out of the groove by how stupid these people are. So. So. Stupid. I made it through to the end and felt no sympathy due to how unrelentingly stupid they were.

They made the crew of the previous Alien movie, Prometheus, look like geniuses by contrast. The bar is in hell.

( spoilers )

I really liked the first two episodes of Alien: Earth but not so much the next two episodes. I hear things get crazy in episode 5 and hope to get a chance to see it.

+++

During last year's car trouble, I didn't get to make my annual 9/11 trip to see the Tribute in Light so I felt it very important to do it this year with my Kia. At about 3 a.m. While I usually do a Shuffle for my music during it and end up with eerily appropriate selections, this year I was listening to Lady Gaga's Mayhem album, which affected the vibe. If the world doesn't burn down within the next year, I'm somewhat afraid of what people will do for the 25th anniversary.

Up close, I saw the birds flying in circles within the light beams, which is a cool visual effect. I'm also glad the lights get turned off now and then so the birds can escape.

Then I went uptown. Bergdorf Goodman had new cool window displays but there was nowhere to park to shoot them because there was a frickin' cop convention going on, officers and barricades everywhere and two blocks of trucks of various kinds lining the curbs of the streets around Trump Tower, which is a block away from Bergdorf Goodman. Also, I can only imagine the reactions of cops to me walking around the area taking photos. I assume the barrier wall of trucks were put up because of 9/11. I imagine one of the most disrespectful things you could do to 9/11 victims is to attack a Trump property on the anniversary so he can make it all about himself.

On my drive uptown from downtown Manhattan, I drove past some areas that have a lot of clubs. One tipsy guy came up to my car begging me to drive him home, he'd pay me $120, he was desperate! Of course I declined, not wanting to be found dead in a ditch somewhere.

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For some reason I'm earwormed by the Cure's "Three Imaginary Boys" with some of Duran Duran's "The Chauffeur" mashed up into it.

Current Mood: tired

vaporwaving posting in

dwrp_icons

CANON: RWBY
CHARACTERS: Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long
ADDITIONAL INFO: Taken from RWBY volume 9, episodes 1 + 2
CREDIT TO:

vaporwaving

here @

vaporwaving

mecurtin

There were bugs up on the rafter above Purrcy 's head. I don't think he thought they were prey but they sure were *fascinating*.

Purrcy the tuxedo tabby is lying on top of a cardboard box, gazing upward with blown pupils and fascinated whiskers. He looks both eager and wary, like he can't quite believe what he's seeing.

Purrcy the tuxedo tabby is lying on top of a cardboard box, gazing upward with blown pupils and fascinated whiskers. He looks both eager and wary, like he can't quite believe what he's seeing.

casemod posting in

caseficexchange

And with that, our detectives are revealed!

Thank you for joining me for the inaugural round of Casefic Exchange! It has been a pleasure hosting, and I've been blown away by the works we've created.

Please remember that comments are mandatory in this exchange. You have until the next round's sign-ups to comment in good faith on your gift(s). If you have a reason for not commenting on your gift, please get in touch with me at gumshoeagency@gmail.com.

You are welcome to continue submitting works to the collection — it is now unmoderated.

I will be posting a feedback post in 24ish hours! If you have any feedback, please wait for that post, as I have questions about specific aspects of the round I'd appreciate feedback on. :)

For the last time this year: see you soon!

- Commissioner Clawseau.

cornerofmadness

Usually as I talk to

evil_little_dog on fridays I keep my twiddling fingers busy doing the fannish rec page. today I had nothing to do and was looking for things...somehow forgetting to DO the fandom recs. OMG. You'll get 'em tomorrow.

That's where my head is today. GONE. But here is MY story, based on that 30 seconds of Hazbin Hotel teaser (I had to go for the whump)

Title: Master of Puppets

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel

Summary: Angel finds himself at risk of becoming a pawn for the Vees and he’s not sure he can do anything about it.

Rating: mature

Author Note - This is inspired (and spoiler for) the 30 seconds of teaser trailer for S2 (you’ll know which scene flash, trust me). If you haven’t watched the trailer and don’t want to know, bookmark this for later.

written for

spikesgirl58’s six word challenge and the six words were Eatable, Board, Efficient, Ripe, Roar, & Creepy

Also written for the Lyrical titles bingo prompt of song with multiple singers using Master of Puppets by Metallica. I chose this song because Vox is definitely that, a master of puppeting people but also the song is really about how drugs can control an addict and Angel is at the mercy of both. Find the song here Master of Puppets

Also written for the allbingo prompt of shark bait.

( story above or under here )

Today I call the Grove City office for my surgeon because I'm less annoyed at them because I was at fault for some of that too. It was a mix up. And she goes...well I'm not sure why Chillicothe told you to make a Thursday appt. He does surgery thur/fri So now I'm furious because I suspect that there never WAS a real appt yesterday. I think someone fucked up and all they needed to do was lie to me and say we need to reschedule.

Now I'm going on the 30th and I have to cut a lab in half to get up there for a 4 pm appt. I'm also thinking of calling Cabell on Monday to see if I can get into the ENT surgeon quickly. Highly doubtful but it's worth a call.

I dump off my art today and the new art person loves the one with bones. After I get to my office I realize....I did NOT take pictures of either art project. Go Dana Go.

I get home and I call my insurance after I check my HSA and my EOBs about Aspen Dental which I want to burn down. Yes paid them 180$ but my EOB says I only owed 40 so yes they did owe me back 140 some. So now they say I owed around 170 keeping my money and asking for 25$ more.

I poke around my insurance and as far as I can tell it should have been covered 100%. I call my insurance and it's too soon to tell but she agreed, I shouldn't have owed ANYTHING. So I will be watching every EOB for next few weeks. I'm so angry at them.

Current Mood: frustrated
Current Music: Guy's Grocery Games