Weekend Plans
Jul. 11th, 2025 04:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
settiaiI'm trying to get a bunch of things done before D&D tonight, including cleaning up the hotel suite. I still need to wash clothes this weekend, but I'm holding off on that until Sunday so that I can fit as many as possible into a single load since it's $8 to wash/dry each one.
My hope, however, is to get everything but that done today so that I can properly settle in and play video games all day long tomorrow. I keep saying that's the plan for the weekend, and then something comes up to prevent it, so I'm really going to try my best this time because I know it will help on the mental health front to lose myself in another world for an entire day.
I'm leaning towards Baldur's Gate 3, but I might go with Dragon Age: The Veilguard instead. Or even Mass Effect. I definitely think it's going to be something I've already played before, though, because something new-to-me requires a different headspace that I don't think I'm in at the moment.
We'll see how it goes, I suppose? 🤞🏻
My hope, however, is to get everything but that done today so that I can properly settle in and play video games all day long tomorrow. I keep saying that's the plan for the weekend, and then something comes up to prevent it, so I'm really going to try my best this time because I know it will help on the mental health front to lose myself in another world for an entire day.
I'm leaning towards Baldur's Gate 3, but I might go with Dragon Age: The Veilguard instead. Or even Mass Effect. I definitely think it's going to be something I've already played before, though, because something new-to-me requires a different headspace that I don't think I'm in at the moment.
We'll see how it goes, I suppose? 🤞🏻
tardis_bingo comment bingo
Jul. 10th, 2025 01:47 ammerryghoul| Locked in/trapped | Huddling for warmth | Tea | Accessory | Master |
| Sound/Vision | Injury/illness | Reunion | Bodyswap/Genderswap | Aliens made us do it |
| Spies/secret agents | Angels | WILD CARD | Sonic | Companion |
| Wings | Multi-era | Age difference | Mystery | Date |
| Daleks | Fashion | Science | Soul mates/soul bonding | Monsters |
Me-and-media update
Jul. 9th, 2025 03:06 pmchina_shopPrevious poll review
In the Crowd-sourcing randomness poll, heads got 19.4%, tails got 22.2%, edge got 25%, and zero-g (the coin never falls) got 38.9%. Either a) the laws of probability have ceased to function in a localised manner, b) Dreamwidth is surprisingly popular in space, c) we've stepped into an alternate dimension, or d) these results are not statistically robust.
In ticky-boxes, hugs came first with 75%, followed by surviving AO3 outages (69.4%), and grumbly cats in search of treats (66.7%). Thank you for your votes!
Reading
Two chapters to go in The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander. It hasn't hugely grabbed me, maybe because of my stop-start reading habits, but I am very much enjoying mentally casting Grover from Sesame Street as Gurgi. I have an omnibus of the Chronicles, so I may continue on to The Black Cauldron.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, read by Arian Moayed -- ahh, this is so good! It's about a young death-obsessed recovering-alcoholic gay Iranian American who's writing a book about martyrs. It reminds me a bit of Love in the Big City, but it's more experimental and lyrical. I'mhalfway through nearly done. Surprising, funny, sad, beautifully written. Warnings for drug use, alcohol addiction, suicidal ideation, and politics.
Also Guardian by priest, and I currently have on loan from the library: No Rules Tonight by Hyun Sook Kim and Freya Marske's Swordcrossed in audio.
Kdramas
My Dearest Nemesis -- I am enjoying this so much. The leading man, as well as being a closet fanboy, is adorably ridiculous and so love-starved. I want to give him a puppy. (In fact, I think he should just have a dog for a couple of years, and one or two more friends, and then he can get a girlfriend.)
Other TV
Ghosted on Apple TV+, a spy/romcom with Chris Evans and Ana de Armas. The reviews are terrible, and it was indeed very very silly, but we watched it on its own terms and enjoyed it tremendously. Some laugh-out-loud moments. A+ popcorn movie! (The trailer is VERY spoilery, ftr.)
Murderbot, Poker Face, Fringe, Étoile (omg, someone please give these people media training!! Also, I'm sad I looked at that one gifset, because I'm very spoiled for the plot thread I'm most invested in, which is undercutting the tension), and Turning Point: The Vietnam War (so disturbing and thoughtful and informative).
Guardian/Fandom
Partying on. <3 <3 <3
Audio entertainment
Not much; my listening time is being eaten by Martyr!
Writing/making things
I'm currently working on a handful of different shortish things in a desultory "what shall I pick up today?" fashion. This is not how I finish things or even get a satisfying sense of progress! (Yesterday's was another CSZ/SW/ZYL fic -- many deliciously difficult feelings; today's was a gen drabble sequence for FFW.) Just pick a WIP and finish it, china!
I now have 238 Guardian fanworks on AO3. Ten more will make it my most-created-for fandom. # writing goals
Online life
I keep getting as far as checkout on shop websites and then drifting off. The fear of buyer's remorse is very real. Yet another reason I have so many tabs open.
Link dump
Screenwriter's Secret to Mindblowing Plot Twists by![[youtube.com profile]](https://youtube.com/favicon.ico)
heyjameshurst | mergatrude's e/R playlist (Youtube) | Music: Mon Rovîa - Rust. (Live) (Youtube, via teaotter) | US politics: 5 calls | Newsblur RSS reader | ‘I wanted to be a teacher not a cop’: the reality of teaching in the world of AI (The Spinoff, local indie newsite) | Hieronymus Bosch butt music (tumblr link, via mific) | Underrated Apple TV+ show recs? (![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
tv_talk post) | Thai Coconut Chicken Soup recipe (via autodach) | Poetic fic meme (via extrapenguin). There, I've closed a dozen or so tabs. # progress
Good things
New shampoo making my hair soft. Guardian. Warm buttery toast. My sister coming over this evening. Kdramas and books. Yesterday's sunshine, and walking through the trees along a shared mountain-bike trail. Sushi on the waterfront. Writing. Clean sheets.
In the Crowd-sourcing randomness poll, heads got 19.4%, tails got 22.2%, edge got 25%, and zero-g (the coin never falls) got 38.9%. Either a) the laws of probability have ceased to function in a localised manner, b) Dreamwidth is surprisingly popular in space, c) we've stepped into an alternate dimension, or d) these results are not statistically robust.
In ticky-boxes, hugs came first with 75%, followed by surviving AO3 outages (69.4%), and grumbly cats in search of treats (66.7%). Thank you for your votes!
Reading
Two chapters to go in The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander. It hasn't hugely grabbed me, maybe because of my stop-start reading habits, but I am very much enjoying mentally casting Grover from Sesame Street as Gurgi. I have an omnibus of the Chronicles, so I may continue on to The Black Cauldron.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, read by Arian Moayed -- ahh, this is so good! It's about a young death-obsessed recovering-alcoholic gay Iranian American who's writing a book about martyrs. It reminds me a bit of Love in the Big City, but it's more experimental and lyrical. I'm
Also Guardian by priest, and I currently have on loan from the library: No Rules Tonight by Hyun Sook Kim and Freya Marske's Swordcrossed in audio.
Kdramas
My Dearest Nemesis -- I am enjoying this so much. The leading man, as well as being a closet fanboy, is adorably ridiculous and so love-starved. I want to give him a puppy. (In fact, I think he should just have a dog for a couple of years, and one or two more friends, and then he can get a girlfriend.)
Other TV
Ghosted on Apple TV+, a spy/romcom with Chris Evans and Ana de Armas. The reviews are terrible, and it was indeed very very silly, but we watched it on its own terms and enjoyed it tremendously. Some laugh-out-loud moments. A+ popcorn movie! (The trailer is VERY spoilery, ftr.)
Murderbot, Poker Face, Fringe, Étoile (omg, someone please give these people media training!! Also, I'm sad I looked at that one gifset, because I'm very spoiled for the plot thread I'm most invested in, which is undercutting the tension), and Turning Point: The Vietnam War (so disturbing and thoughtful and informative).
Guardian/Fandom
Partying on. <3 <3 <3
Audio entertainment
Not much; my listening time is being eaten by Martyr!
Writing/making things
I'm currently working on a handful of different shortish things in a desultory "what shall I pick up today?" fashion. This is not how I finish things or even get a satisfying sense of progress! (Yesterday's was another CSZ/SW/ZYL fic -- many deliciously difficult feelings; today's was a gen drabble sequence for FFW.) Just pick a WIP and finish it, china!
I now have 238 Guardian fanworks on AO3. Ten more will make it my most-created-for fandom. # writing goals
Online life
I keep getting as far as checkout on shop websites and then drifting off. The fear of buyer's remorse is very real. Yet another reason I have so many tabs open.
Link dump
Screenwriter's Secret to Mindblowing Plot Twists by
mergatrude's e/R playlist (Youtube) | Music: Mon Rovîa - Rust. (Live) (Youtube, via teaotter) | US politics: 5 calls | Newsblur RSS reader | ‘I wanted to be a teacher not a cop’: the reality of teaching in the world of AI (The Spinoff, local indie newsite) | Hieronymus Bosch butt music (tumblr link, via mific) | Underrated Apple TV+ show recs? (tv_talk post) | Thai Coconut Chicken Soup recipe (via autodach) | Poetic fic meme (via extrapenguin). There, I've closed a dozen or so tabs. # progressGood things
New shampoo making my hair soft. Guardian. Warm buttery toast. My sister coming over this evening. Kdramas and books. Yesterday's sunshine, and walking through the trees along a shared mountain-bike trail. Sushi on the waterfront. Writing. Clean sheets.
Poll #33341 Companions
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 56
What talking animal would you take on an adventure?
View Answers
emotionally unavailable alley cat
23 (41.1%)
naive gecko
9 (16.1%)
sad wolf
12 (21.4%)
stoic capybara
20 (35.7%)
trivia-obsessed fennec fox
23 (41.1%)
upbeat skunk
10 (17.9%)
coffee-addicted giant panda
11 (19.6%)
other
7 (12.5%)
ticky-box of frittered-away time
22 (39.3%)
ticky-box full of infinite monkeys and... wait, who's providing all the typewriters?
21 (37.5%)
ticky-box full of liquid birdsong that tastes like vengeance
20 (35.7%)
ticky-box full of dancing, light as thistledown, to an orchestra of metronomes
20 (35.7%)
ticky-box full of hugs
37 (66.1%)
Post-D&D Crash
Jul. 7th, 2025 06:42 pmsettiaiWelp. The last few days were certainly exhausting.
Don't get me wrong, the long weekend of D&D was a ton of fun, and I'm very glad that we managed to pull it off. That said, it was extremely draining on me even after I spent as much time as possible prior to it trying to charge my internal batteries. By the time we ended yesterday afternoon, my spoons were long gone.
Since I had to get up early to catch the bus to E&Z's place (which was on the weekend schedule the entire time since Friday was a holiday) and then it was usually 1am or so before I made home at night, I didn't get nearly enough sleep pretty much the entire time. Especially since I record summary videos for this game, so I had to get that done at night before I could go to bed.
I ended up taking a nap after I made it home yesterday, and the only thing preventing me from doing so tonight is that I know it will be better to push through and go to bed early instead. If I nap now, I'll be up half the night.
And then work today made things even more fun, but that's a story for another post. 🙃
ETA: Or, you know, I could decide take a nap after all because it hit 7:30pm, and my brain had completely stopped functioning. I'm still tired, so hopefully I'll be able to fall asleep at a decent hour despite the nap.
Don't get me wrong, the long weekend of D&D was a ton of fun, and I'm very glad that we managed to pull it off. That said, it was extremely draining on me even after I spent as much time as possible prior to it trying to charge my internal batteries. By the time we ended yesterday afternoon, my spoons were long gone.
Since I had to get up early to catch the bus to E&Z's place (which was on the weekend schedule the entire time since Friday was a holiday) and then it was usually 1am or so before I made home at night, I didn't get nearly enough sleep pretty much the entire time. Especially since I record summary videos for this game, so I had to get that done at night before I could go to bed.
I ended up taking a nap after I made it home yesterday, and the only thing preventing me from doing so tonight is that I know it will be better to push through and go to bed early instead. If I nap now, I'll be up half the night.
And then work today made things even more fun, but that's a story for another post. 🙃
ETA: Or, you know, I could decide take a nap after all because it hit 7:30pm, and my brain had completely stopped functioning. I'm still tired, so hopefully I'll be able to fall asleep at a decent hour despite the nap.
Aurendor D&D: Summary for 7/6 Game
Jul. 6th, 2025 01:50 pmsettiaiIn this afternoon's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )
And that's where we left off.
And that's where we left off.
Aurendor D&D: Summary for 7/5 Game (Evening Session)
Jul. 5th, 2025 11:28 pmsettiaiIn tonight's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )
And that's where we left off and will be picking up tomorrow.
And that's where we left off and will be picking up tomorrow.
Aurendor D&D: Summary for 7/5 Game (Afternoon Session)
Jul. 5th, 2025 05:00 pmsettiaiIn this afternoon's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )
And that's where we left off and will be picking up later tonight.
And that's where we left off and will be picking up later tonight.
Aurendor D&D: Summary for 7/4 Game (Evening Session)
Jul. 5th, 2025 12:34 amsettiaiIn tonight's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )
And that's where we left off and will be picking up tomorrow.
And that's where we left off and will be picking up tomorrow.
Two Guardian fics: Sunshine and Honey (M-rated) and Pages for You (T-rated)
Jul. 5th, 2025 03:20 pmchina_shopI wrote a self-indulgent Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan treat for idproquo and a post-canon Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan domestic-fluff flashfic for the fan_flashworks Amnesty round. Thanks to trobadora for beta on both of them! <3
Title: Sunshine and Honey (4126 words) [Mature]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Additional Tags: Ye Olde Haixing Era, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Outdoor Sex, Feeding, Finger Sucking, Oral Fixation, First Kiss (for one of them), First time (for one of them), Treat
Summary:
Title: Pages for You (1762 words) [Teen and Up]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Established Relationship, Domestic Fluff, Fade to Black, Community: fan_flashworks
Summary:
idproquo and a post-canon Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan domestic-fluff flashfic for the fan_flashworks Amnesty round. Thanks to trobadora for beta on both of them! <3Title: Sunshine and Honey (4126 words) [Mature]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Additional Tags: Ye Olde Haixing Era, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Outdoor Sex, Feeding, Finger Sucking, Oral Fixation, First Kiss (for one of them), First time (for one of them), Treat
Summary:
They were halfway to the Allied Forces’ southern boundary when the sun came out. Shen Wei pulled back his hood and looked around, conscious of the breeze on his bare face. The heavy clouds were finally breaking up.
Meanwhile, Kunlun had dropped his bag and flopped onto his back on the grassy slope. “Let’s rest here a while.”
Title: Pages for You (1762 words) [Teen and Up]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Established Relationship, Domestic Fluff, Fade to Black, Community: fan_flashworks
Summary:
Over the course of the evening, an impulse had taken root, and now Shen Wei submitted to it. He switched on his desk lamp, laid out several large sheets of paper and quietly ground some ink. If Zhao Yunlan wanted to read of their time together through the eyes of a Dixingren soldier, who better than Shen Wei to write an account—to show Zhao Yunlan exactly how much his arrival had meant to the war effort and to Shen Wei himself.
Me-and-media update
Jul. 5th, 2025 03:06 pmchina_shopPrevious poll review
In the Routine poll, 84.2% of respondents voted for tooth-brushing, 50.9% for locking up and switching things off around the house, and 33.3% for tending to pets. Night-time routines taking more than half an hour got 24.6%, and "sometimes it takes me an hour or more" got 7%. *high fives*
In ticky-boxes, hugs won with 75.4%, followed by "how stressful it is to ask tradespeople to change things they've done" with 57.9% and "sitting on a mountain ledge in the moonlight, listening to owls" with 56.1%. Thank you for your votes! <3
Reading
Incandescent by Emily Tesh, read by Zara Ramm, who sounds exactly like Emma Thompson. I spent the middle third of this being unsure what the plot was (or if there even was a plot; "is this a cosy magic-school story?" I asked nobody in particular). Things stirred ominously under the surface, but the tension relied on the reader being more worried about them than the mostly oblivious POV character -- which was interesting. Overall, I enjoyed it very much.
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (Chronicles of Prydain). A few more chapters. I'm past halfway and it still feels like setup, which I guess is a function of it being the first book of five.
A tiny bit more of Neurotribes. I'm bored with the case studies/anecdotes and ready for some theory.
Two more chapters of Guardian by priest.
My Whimsy binge stalled after bouncing off three different narrators for The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. None of them hit the humour right. I suppose I'm going to have to read in text, but Prydain first (and I still haven't finished my reread of Werecockroach, note to self).
Kdramas
I finished Our Unwritten Seoul and enjoyed it very much. It's about 30yo identical twins, one who works in a corporate office in Seoul, and one who lives in their hometown and does a series of temporary and part-time jobs. The office worker is miserable from being bullied at work, so they decide to swap lives. Contains some pretty good (in my inexpert opinion) disability rep, and
I cancelled my VIKI subscription earlier this week because I wasn't using it, so of course I immediately started watching My Dearest Nemesis, as recced byadore. It has a bit of a "based on a webtoon" feel, but I'm fine with that, and it's a neat twist on the Obnoxious Repressed Chaebol Exec trope. (The leading man is leading a double life: he's a closet fanboy, but his family and position require him to present as a 100% bland, respectable businessman.) I'm obsessed!
Note to self: check out First Night with the Duke next. And maybe renew your VIKI subscription.
Other TV
Poker Face and Murderbot continue to be enjoyable (we're an episode behind on each of them). I found the second half of Andor season 2 a lot more engaging than the first half (and might like the first half more on the rewatch; yet to be determined). Another episode each of Étoile and Krapopolis. The Old Guard 2 on Netflix.
A rewatch of French film Rosalie Blum, which I love.
Guardian/Fandom
The continuing delights of read-alongs and polls.
Audio entertainment
A little bit of Heather Cox Richardson's Letters from an American (US constitutional-law context for current developments), a little bit of Midnight Burger (audiodrama), most of the first season of Eight Days of Diana Wynne Jones (which I'm enjoying despite not being familiar with DWJ's earlier books).
Writing/making things
I wrote a flashfic for thefan_flashworks amnesty round and am poking at a couple of WIPs. My brain seems to be in recovery mode. My only current deadline is the fan_flashworks Science round.
Life/health/mental state things
My thumbs/hands/wrists are not in great shape. My body is working hard to metabolise ambient stress. (*hugs to everyone*) I'm feeling a little under siege by winter and ~the state of things~, but I saw my sister for the first time in weeks (she's had a cold), a friend came over for lunch on Thursday, and last night our tv-watching friend joined us for Rosalie Blum.
Good things
Chocolate. Andrew and Halle. Fandom and all of you. Polls. Kdramas. Books. Podcasts. Eminem. Writing when it happens. AO3 (*clutches*). Love, kindness, and diversity.
In the Routine poll, 84.2% of respondents voted for tooth-brushing, 50.9% for locking up and switching things off around the house, and 33.3% for tending to pets. Night-time routines taking more than half an hour got 24.6%, and "sometimes it takes me an hour or more" got 7%. *high fives*
In ticky-boxes, hugs won with 75.4%, followed by "how stressful it is to ask tradespeople to change things they've done" with 57.9% and "sitting on a mountain ledge in the moonlight, listening to owls" with 56.1%. Thank you for your votes! <3
Reading
Incandescent by Emily Tesh, read by Zara Ramm, who sounds exactly like Emma Thompson. I spent the middle third of this being unsure what the plot was (or if there even was a plot; "is this a cosy magic-school story?" I asked nobody in particular). Things stirred ominously under the surface, but the tension relied on the reader being more worried about them than the mostly oblivious POV character -- which was interesting. Overall, I enjoyed it very much.
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (Chronicles of Prydain). A few more chapters. I'm past halfway and it still feels like setup, which I guess is a function of it being the first book of five.
A tiny bit more of Neurotribes. I'm bored with the case studies/anecdotes and ready for some theory.
Two more chapters of Guardian by priest.
My Whimsy binge stalled after bouncing off three different narrators for The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. None of them hit the humour right. I suppose I'm going to have to read in text, but Prydain first (and I still haven't finished my reread of Werecockroach, note to self).
Kdramas
I finished Our Unwritten Seoul and enjoyed it very much. It's about 30yo identical twins, one who works in a corporate office in Seoul, and one who lives in their hometown and does a series of temporary and part-time jobs. The office worker is miserable from being bullied at work, so they decide to swap lives. Contains some pretty good (in my inexpert opinion) disability rep, and
I approved of both the morals (spoilers)
1) if you bottle things up and don't let people see your vulnerability, you can't feel their love; and 2) love isn't about winning or losing, or whether you're a burden; it's about being on the same team, staying together, and supporting each other as you win or lose. <3 <3 <3 (I was so happy when Ho-su stopped pushing Mi-ji away, and with the ending when they used sign language sometimes. <3 <3 <3)I cancelled my VIKI subscription earlier this week because I wasn't using it, so of course I immediately started watching My Dearest Nemesis, as recced by
adore. It has a bit of a "based on a webtoon" feel, but I'm fine with that, and it's a neat twist on the Obnoxious Repressed Chaebol Exec trope. (The leading man is leading a double life: he's a closet fanboy, but his family and position require him to present as a 100% bland, respectable businessman.) I'm obsessed! Note to self: check out First Night with the Duke next. And maybe renew your VIKI subscription.
Other TV
Poker Face and Murderbot continue to be enjoyable (we're an episode behind on each of them). I found the second half of Andor season 2 a lot more engaging than the first half (and might like the first half more on the rewatch; yet to be determined). Another episode each of Étoile and Krapopolis. The Old Guard 2 on Netflix.
Tiny spoiler for the very end.
Andrew was disgusted that, at the end, as [redacted] leave the secret archive full of ancient texts, they turn out the light but leave candles burning. "What about the ancient books?!" LOL!A rewatch of French film Rosalie Blum, which I love.
Guardian/Fandom
The continuing delights of read-alongs and polls.
Audio entertainment
A little bit of Heather Cox Richardson's Letters from an American (US constitutional-law context for current developments), a little bit of Midnight Burger (audiodrama), most of the first season of Eight Days of Diana Wynne Jones (which I'm enjoying despite not being familiar with DWJ's earlier books).
Writing/making things
I wrote a flashfic for the
fan_flashworks amnesty round and am poking at a couple of WIPs. My brain seems to be in recovery mode. My only current deadline is the fan_flashworks Science round.Life/health/mental state things
My thumbs/hands/wrists are not in great shape. My body is working hard to metabolise ambient stress. (*hugs to everyone*) I'm feeling a little under siege by winter and ~the state of things~, but I saw my sister for the first time in weeks (she's had a cold), a friend came over for lunch on Thursday, and last night our tv-watching friend joined us for Rosalie Blum.
Good things
Chocolate. Andrew and Halle. Fandom and all of you. Polls. Kdramas. Books. Podcasts. Eminem. Writing when it happens. AO3 (*clutches*). Love, kindness, and diversity.
Poll #33324 Crowd-sourcing randomness
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 37
Crowd-sourcing randomness
View Answers
heads
7 (18.9%)
tails
8 (21.6%)
edge
9 (24.3%)
zero-g (the coin never falls)
15 (40.5%)
ticky-box full of grumbly cats in search of treats
25 (67.6%)
ticky-box full of being protective of your blorbos
18 (48.6%)
ticky-box full of surviving AO3 outages
26 (70.3%)
ticky-box full of soft, bright-green moss nestled at the base of a tree, glittering with beads of dew
23 (62.2%)
ticky-box full of hugs
28 (75.7%)
Aurendor D&D: Summary for 7/4 Game (Afternoon Session)
Jul. 4th, 2025 05:44 pmsettiaiIn this afternoon's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )
And that's where we left off and will be picking up later tonight.
And that's where we left off and will be picking up later tonight.
Dear Black Emporium Creator,
Jul. 1st, 2025 04:10 pmsettiaiFirst of all, relax! I'm far from being picky, and I can pretty much guarantee that I'll love whatever you decide to create for me. These are nothing but guidelines, for you to take to heart or ignore to your heart's content. Also, hey! You're writing me fic or drawing me art! That's automatically a good reason for me to love you, no matter what. So, please, keep that in mind. Trust me, you can pretty much do no wrong.
( More details under the cut. )
( More details under the cut. )
string things
Jul. 1st, 2025 09:13 ampocketmouseI'm still marvelling at having a hobby that I'm willing to spend money on -- I went to a weaving conference last week (got a first-timer scholarship, which covered admission and room and board, but I splurged and got a single room, so paid a little extra) which meant buying extra yarn for the workshop, and then even though I'm well out of storage room and have said multiple times I need to make some things before I buy more stuff, I bought 7 more cones of yarn (some of it was on sale! the rest was just really pretty hand-dyed!). Some of it I can definitely think of things to do with it, the rest I'll just have to try and keep an eye out for ideas, because I don't want it to sit forever.
And I talked to people too, constantly, the whole weekend. My god. By day 2.5 I was wiped, I am not an extrovert by any means. But folks chatted throughout classes, in the hallways, just wherever. I walked out of the dinner hall and ended up talking with some random woman whose name I never caught for like 10 minutes. Plus, also, I ran into a friend from local fandom cons who I hadn't seen in like 10-ish years (MJ and Con.txt). Neither of us were doing fiber things back then, so it was really a (pleasant) surprise.
Anyway now I am back home and waiting for work to ramp back up -- it always slows down in the summer due to end-of-fiscal-year purchasing deadlines, but today starts the new FY, so I'm just waiting for the word that budgets are loaded into the system, and I can start doing work again. Things are also wonky because DC passed an energy savings bill recently, so in order to comply we're finally getting around to converting the building to LED lighting -- which means shuffling folks' offices and encasing the stacks in protective material. We don't have an end date and the last construction project went on and on and on, so folks are just crossing fingers that impact will be minimal on the full-term researchers starting in the fall. I'm planning to hide in my new office with a fucking door so I can avoid chatty opinionated elder coworker for once in my life. My god this would be an amazing time to finally get a new job and quit.
Oh! I almost forgot. I also managed to blitz through all of Elementary in the last month or so, after having had it on my 'to watch' list for years. There are some parts of it that left me kind of 'meh,' and for someone who's great at identifying prosthetic-forehead Star Trek actors in other roles by only their eyes, I could not for the life of me identify Johnny Lee Miller in 3/4 profile shots on multiple occasions. My brain also kept replacing him in my memory with Darren Nichols. I think it was something about the overly upright posture (and also the dramatics). These things mostly resolved themselves by probably midway through season 2, by which point I could focus on things like how unsexy Mycroft was. It's a shame but unsurprising that there isn't more fic. I need to find something to watch that does have a lot of fic, but I haven't come up with anything yet. Though I think the latest season of Leverage: Redemption just finished, or is about to, and that sounds like it should give me something to sink my teeth into.
And I talked to people too, constantly, the whole weekend. My god. By day 2.5 I was wiped, I am not an extrovert by any means. But folks chatted throughout classes, in the hallways, just wherever. I walked out of the dinner hall and ended up talking with some random woman whose name I never caught for like 10 minutes. Plus, also, I ran into a friend from local fandom cons who I hadn't seen in like 10-ish years (MJ and Con.txt). Neither of us were doing fiber things back then, so it was really a (pleasant) surprise.
Anyway now I am back home and waiting for work to ramp back up -- it always slows down in the summer due to end-of-fiscal-year purchasing deadlines, but today starts the new FY, so I'm just waiting for the word that budgets are loaded into the system, and I can start doing work again. Things are also wonky because DC passed an energy savings bill recently, so in order to comply we're finally getting around to converting the building to LED lighting -- which means shuffling folks' offices and encasing the stacks in protective material. We don't have an end date and the last construction project went on and on and on, so folks are just crossing fingers that impact will be minimal on the full-term researchers starting in the fall. I'm planning to hide in my new office with a fucking door so I can avoid chatty opinionated elder coworker for once in my life. My god this would be an amazing time to finally get a new job and quit.
Oh! I almost forgot. I also managed to blitz through all of Elementary in the last month or so, after having had it on my 'to watch' list for years. There are some parts of it that left me kind of 'meh,' and for someone who's great at identifying prosthetic-forehead Star Trek actors in other roles by only their eyes, I could not for the life of me identify Johnny Lee Miller in 3/4 profile shots on multiple occasions. My brain also kept replacing him in my memory with Darren Nichols. I think it was something about the overly upright posture (and also the dramatics). These things mostly resolved themselves by probably midway through season 2, by which point I could focus on things like how unsexy Mycroft was. It's a shame but unsurprising that there isn't more fic. I need to find something to watch that does have a lot of fic, but I haven't come up with anything yet. Though I think the latest season of Leverage: Redemption just finished, or is about to, and that sounds like it should give me something to sink my teeth into.
The OTC's commercial promotion post
Jun. 29th, 2025 12:11 ammerryghoulSo I read this post from the OTC. I totally understand why OTC needs a non-commercialization policy. On a petty level I've been annoyed at, for instance, someone writing fics in a kink meme and then linking to a site like Ko-fi at the end. And for copyright reasons I get not monetizing works. But part of me feels like their rules are a wee bit draconian.
I've been linking to the summaries of books I use as summaries forunconventionalcourtship to prove that they're real books since the goal is to alter a romance novel summary for a fic. I'm not advocating people to actually buy the book. I don't even know these authors. I haven't read their books. 🤐 I guess in the future I may just leave the links to the comm announcement posts and on DW but I'm a bit annoyed I'm being lumped in with people who actually are "please go to my Patreon for more!" when I thought I was doing a good deed.
Also: The OTC mentions Twitch but I want to clarify that getting a Twitch account is free. I would assume under their TOS that asking people to get Twitch subscriptions (with or without Amazon Prime) is against their TOS. There is no such thing as "Twitch Prime." And technically I think X actually can't be allowed to since you can subscribe to individual creators on X.
IDK, I think this policy needs a little bit of hammering out because to be fair it's thorny to enforce their commercial promotion policy as is.
I've been linking to the summaries of books I use as summaries for
unconventionalcourtship to prove that they're real books since the goal is to alter a romance novel summary for a fic. I'm not advocating people to actually buy the book. I don't even know these authors. I haven't read their books. 🤐 I guess in the future I may just leave the links to the comm announcement posts and on DW but I'm a bit annoyed I'm being lumped in with people who actually are "please go to my Patreon for more!" when I thought I was doing a good deed.Also: The OTC mentions Twitch but I want to clarify that getting a Twitch account is free. I would assume under their TOS that asking people to get Twitch subscriptions (with or without Amazon Prime) is against their TOS. There is no such thing as "Twitch Prime." And technically I think X actually can't be allowed to since you can subscribe to individual creators on X.
IDK, I think this policy needs a little bit of hammering out because to be fair it's thorny to enforce their commercial promotion policy as is.