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 marveen | |
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Well, here's the tale, divided up by day. I absolutely hate dealing with wet canvas. Let’s get that out of the way right now. It’s heavy, the smell gets old after a few hours or DAYS of constant wet-canvas-smell, and let’s not talk about the mildew issues. D-:< However! Much fun was had by all. The first day I arrived at ten-thirty, just in time for registration. I signed up for a class on making quill pens and then had a couple hours’ break, during which I ate some lunch, got dressed (1837-Plains-type tradecloth dress & accessories) and set up my camp. (Wedge tent, iron firepit, folding table, wood & canvas folding cot, and a Rubbermaid tub of clothing which I carefully covered with a blanket so as to remain Primitive.) I then got “drafted” into a class on butter churning that was under-registered (only one student, so I sat in on it anyway). Later in the afternoon I had a class on weaving (a variation on fingerweaving) before it was time to prep for the nightly potluck. I brought Bourbon-Glazed Apples En Brochette, a recipe of my own invention that involves simmering quartered apples in a syrup of brown sugar, butter and bourbon until they’re almost done, then threading them onto skewers to glaze them over an open fire. Other offerings included potato salad, fruit, pasta salad, broccoli salad, chili, cornbread, barbecued pork ribs, barbecued beef ribs, meatballs in tomato sauce, chicken ala king, corn and quinoa casserole, sourdough French bread, biscuits, fettucini with Italian sausage, stewed chicken, chorizo stirfry with peppers and onions, a plate of pickles including pickled okra (one of my favorites), brownies, cheesecake, dump cake, apple cake, chocolate bread pudding, German chocolate cake, lemon cake, carrot-and-zucchini cake, oatmeal cookies, and a very boozy trifle made with strawberries and pineapple marinated in brandy. I went visiting some before bed, being careful to bring extra candles in my possible bag so as not to have to fumble around in the dark back at my own camp. I brought the Ginormous Bedroll of Doom on the premise that it's better to have it and not need it, etc., and used one wool blanket and one quilt underneath with four quilts and one wool blanket on top. I was perfectly warm and comfy, though a cot has its drawbacks. I'm feeling:  content
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elenbarathi | |
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Ganked with thanks from randomdiversion, who reposted it from Truthout.org: We, the Vast Underclass, Must Rise Up Against Global Mafia - or DieI'm not going to re-post it here, because I know most people don't read these re-posts, and they can just as well not read it on the original site. Here's my commentary on it instead: *extremely long sigh* First, yes. It's all true. Second, it doesn't matter that it's true, because the people of this country have been carefully educated by the public schools, the churches and the media to be sheep. They're not going to rise up in revolt against their masters. They're not even going to read all this fine revolutionary rhetoric, because it makes them feel uncomfortable, and they do not like to feel uncomfortable. They'll go shopping instead; buy a lot more cheap crap at Wal-Mart to reassure themselves that they still have power in the world and everything's really fine. "Rise up in rebellion; steadfast defiance" - oh yeah, right. Sheep don't rise up. Sheep mill about in confusion, until the shepherd gets them under control again, and then they gratefully follow to the shearing-pen or the slaughterhouse. The only thing sheep will ever steadfastly resist is standing up for themselves - the tendency has been relentlessly bred out of them. "It is time to build radical mass movements that defy all formal centers of power and make concessions to none. It is time to employ the harsh language of open rebellion and class warfare." Yes, because historically we see how well THAT works out. The French, the Russians, the Chinese all rose up against their oppressive exploiters, killed all of them along with their families, friends, associates and distant acquaintances, and destroyed their corrupt systems of government. As we see, the Reign of Terror in France ushered in a society based on Liberte, Egalite and Fraternite, while the Russian and Chinese Revolutions united the Workers in solidarity forever, peaceful and prosperous and free from corruption. Isn't that how it always works when the masses rise up? Sure, let's have all those benefits in THIS country - wouldn't that be great? Except that the American government has a lot more firepower than the French, Russian or Chinese governments ever dreamed of, and those in control of it would rather nuke us from orbit than ever give up a shred of their power. Remember "mutually assured destruction" from back in the 60's? That's their bottom line: the willingness to destroy all life on this planet if that's what it takes to stop us. The writer of these many far-too-long paragraphs has no plan; only the same short-sighted demagoguery that ignited previous Revolutions - the sheep stampeding right down the gullets of the wolves; devastation and corruption and even worse poverty and oppression under the new 'Leaders' than they suffered under the old 'Masters'. Sure, let's stir up some insurrection - we've already got people shooting and blowing up innocent civilians, getting on their bulldozers and plowing down buildings when they don't get what they consider to be "justice" - think the corporate Masters would mind a little more? They would welcome it! Every act of 'revolutionary' law-breaking justifies more draconic repercussions. If the people advocating violent revolution spent their time reading history instead of fapping to action-adventure movies, they would know this. "The law historically has been a very imperfect tool for justice, as African-Americans know, but now it is exclusively the handmaiden of our corporate oppressors; now it is a mechanism of injustice."Imperfect as it is, the law historically has been the ONLY tool for justice. If the rule of Law is destroyed, what will we have in its place? Kangaroo courts of vigilantes, or simply might-makes-right, kill-who-can? It's not true that the law is exclusively the handmaiden of the corporations. But how many of the citizens of this country have EVER written to a single elected representative? How many of them even bother to vote in national elections, let alone on the local level where candidates get their start? How many of them have ever worked for any political campaign? The rule of law hasn't been taken from the people; the people have let it slip from their hands through sheer sheep-like apathy. Instead of goading the dissatisfied to vent their rage and frustration by violence - which will only be answered with greater violence - what about urging people to take the law back into their own hands by voting every chance they get, writing directly to politicians, editors and CEOs about issues, and campaigning for candidates they support? What about not buying products and services from corporations they oppose? It's not as easy as turning off one's brain and putting on another video, but it's surely easier than wreaking random havoc on innocent bystanders till you're shot in the street or beaten to death in a cell - which is essentially what this irresponsible author is advocating.
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siderea | |
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Many thanks to  fiddlingfrog who posted that OMNI magazine is now available for free at the Internet Archive. There is much that is awesome in that trove, and I'll be unearthing some of it. But the crowning issue, as far as I am concerned, was February 1986. It was the issue which introduced me to the word "tetrodoxin", the concept of ethnobotany, and the existance of the Exploratorium. And the jewel in the crown was a short story, which remains one of my all-time favorite works of fiction. Neither SFF nor magic realism, it introduced me to -- though it never used the word and I only figured it out later -- Surrealism. I reproduce it here in full. The Man Who Wasn't Thereby William Kotzwinkle Idle one evening and dully curious, I chanced to turn over a painting that hung upon the wall of the rooming house. Wrapped around the wire was a little scroll of paper. I opened it and read: Now you have met me/ Can you forget me?/ I offer you a chance.In the bottom corner of the paper was the name of a tramp steamer and its next port of call. I rolled the little scroll back up, but instead of placing it back upon the wire, I slipped it in my pocket, as a souvenir. I thought no more of the matter, but fate, or chance, had me on that tramp steamer when next it sailed. It was a voyage of several weeks, and I'd been staring at the empty springs of the bunk above me for many nights and mornings before I noticed there was a tiny figure tucked inside the coils---a figure of a unicorn, cleverly shaped out of folded paper. Examining it, I suddenly knew that it had been made by the man whose note I carried. I'd followed his thoughts---to the unicorn, mythical creature never seen. I made inquiries; no one onboard, from cabin boy to captain, recalled a passenger with the habit of folding paper into little animals. But when we docked in port, ( I had not forgotten him.Collapse )Tags: lit, surrealism
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shadesong | |
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Today I am packing for Chicago/Wiscon, because tomorrow I am flying to Chicago. Stressors non-related to my trip have settled down to the point where I am capable of bursting into tears randomly.
Me: "Tonight was good!"
Judah: "...you were crying ten minutes ago."
Me: "I am capable of crying. After this week, that is significant progress."
But today. Packing. A million tiny meltdowns. I don't like being away from home. And it's a big dressy event, and my genderfluidity means I won't have the vaguest idea today what I'll want to wear on Saturday. Last year I felt dysphoric in dresses the whole weekend and ended up not wearing a single one of the, what, four?, that I'd packed. So I need dresses/skirts, jeans & t-shirts, cargo shorts & tank tops, what?
Also this involves hauling everything out of everywhere and trying it on and being upset at myself that most things don't fit the way I want them to. Being sick means I'm behind on toning away my winter pudge.
But hey, I found a swimsuit that fits. By dumping an entire drawer of random stuff on my bed.
I go step by step so I don't get too overwhelmed.
When I was crying last night, I told Judah that I haven't had a day when I was not in crisis mode since maybe early February. I just need a week off. This won't be that. The earliest I can possibly get that is mid-June. But maybe this week will be a good reset.
I still don't know what to pack for plane knitting.
Back to it.
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ursulav | |
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WARNING: Biological Icky Bits Ahead! Guess what I found!?  I’m a larva! This peculiar devil is the larval form of the American Carrion Beetle! How cool is that? (They feed on mushrooms and dead bugs as well as rotting meat, so I hasten to assure you that I do not, in fact, have dead bodies rotting in the woods. At least, to the best of my knowledge.) Spring sprung and was promptly batted aside by summer, so it’s hot and humid in the garden, and I am trying to stay ahead of the stiltgrass with copious amounts of mulch, because the flamethrower is questionable in a dry pine wood and would also take out all my nice jewelweed that has established so marvelously. Thinking of trying to fight it by transplanting in Virginia knotweed, which is an aggressive loon of a plant, but native, attractive, and host to a couple of butterfly species. (I have the variegated form, “Painter’s Palette,” which comes true from seed and boy, is there a lot of seed!) Other than that, everything is blooming, the pollinators are out in force, I had a Zebra Swallowtail show up the other day (an uncommon butterfly in this neck of the woods!) and the pond is full of frogs and predacious diving beetles. On the downside, the weird cold/hot/cold/hot weather sent most of the spring veggies straight to bolting, so I got no daikons, some very sad beets, and the tomatoes are already starting to come in. Lost a bunch of peppers, too. Sigh. But the cucumbers and squash are happy, and I am holding out hope that the peas will produce a batch before the heat exhausts them. (A lot of local farmers just gave up and plowed the peas under. Can’t blame ‘em. This has been demented weather.) Craw-Bob is still in residence. Haven’t gotten a good look at him, but we’ve got the night vision cameras and just need to get them working with the house network. Mostly he’s a flash of movement into the hole as I go by. The Patio That Shall Not Be Named has been graveled, sanded, mortared, and now needs bricks. I’m traveling at the end of the week, but hold out hope of getting it done before June rolls around. (All productivity must be crammed into this month, because June is solid travel and July and August will be miserably hot.) I had a bit of a wildlife mystery this morning. Was going out to feed the birds and found—there’s no other way to say it—a pile of viscera in the middle of the path. Somebody had left their guts in a neat pile on the ground. Being me, I of course immediately poked them with a stick. Yup. That’s guts, all right. Guts and….earthworms? For whatever weird reason, there were a bunch of dead earthworms in the pile as well. I wracked my brain—had something vomited and lost guts and earthworms together? Was this some kind of weird version of an owl pellet?—until I realized that the earthworms were from INSIDE the guts. Our deceased gut-owner had been out eating earthworms, and had quite a solid meal, then something jumped him, eviscerated him, and presumably ate the tasty bits. (I would have thought the viscera WERE tasty bits, but apparently somebody was picky.) My guess is that the victim was a large frog, but I’ve got no idea what the killer was. I tossed the remains out of dog range—hopefully either Craw-Bob or the carrion beetles will find it and start the clean-up process. So that’s all the excitement around here at the moment. Guts! Bugs! Mulch! THRILLS! CHILLS! ETC! Originally published at Squash's Garden. You can comment here or there. Tags: my garden
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siderea | |
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Oh, hivemind! I come bearing a puzzlement. I was certain that I recalled a certain fact about the movie "The Hunt for Red October" which doesn't seem to be so, and now I'm trying to figure out what happened. I recall seeing the movie either when it came out or sometime not too long thereafter on video (so early 90s). I was very struck by a detail of the Russian defector's motivation: the cause of his wife's death. But I rewatched the movie, and, at least in the version streaming on Netflix, the cause of his wife's death is never mentioned. According to Wikipedia, the novel -- which I've never read -- does reveal the cause of the wife's death, but, at least according to Wikipedia, it's similar but importantly different from the cause I recall from the movie. According to wikipedia: "His wife, Natalia, died at the hands of an incompetent doctor who went unpunished because he was the son of a Politburo member." That's a kind of political corruption, and makes a statement about political privilege in the USSR. What I remember is that his wife died because the antibiotic with which she was treated turned out to be nothing but water; something to the effect of factory workers defrauding the factory or the factory defrauding the state. This is a different sort of corruption, and it makes a different statement about what was wrong at the time in the USSR. Am I remembering some other film? Presumably from the same time period? I was very struck by that plot point, and it adhered in my memory to "The Hunt for Red October" ever since. Tags: movies
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inverarity | |
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Now and then I get the urge to write another blog post. Sometimes about AQ progress, sometimes about OF progress, and sometimes about whatever issue piques me at the moment, but it would all boil down to repeating myself, mostly. Also, it would be writing about writing instead of writing, ya know? So I've actually been stuck with AQATWA for a while (not writer's block, exactly, just really having a problem moving past this one $@#%! chapter) plus I have reached almost terminal state with the SF novel. But I am still writing and my goal is still to finish AQATWA and start submitting SF novel to actual agents by the end of the year. Also, I know I am not keeping up with my rereading of AQATLB. I should, because it's mostly for my benefit (to refresh myself on small details I may have forgotten) but posting self-reviews is beginning to feel very self-indulgent. Boy, if I have this much trouble maintaining interest in this tiny little LJ for my fanfic fans, I am going to suck if I ever go pro, since nowadays authors are expected to "build a platform" and be all over Facebook and Twitter and such. :P I mean, sure, I can post whatever random thought crosses my mind several times a day, but there are very few people who can do that interestingly, and I don't think I'm one of them. I've also been rethinking my engagement with social media in general. (No, don't worry, I'm not going to suddenly drop off the face of the Internet. It's just that every time I contemplate becoming more active online, the cons outweigh the pros.) I have planted a small vegetable garden, which is doing well. Next I'll be posting pictures of my salad to Facebook. :P I hope you at least enjoy the book reviews between my infrequent updates. Tags: writing
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rainbow_goddess | |
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About a year ago I purchased a BluRay player to supplement my existing DVD player/recorder. I bought the BluRay not so much for DVDs (though it's getting harder to find non-BluRay DVDs) but because the player can stream files from my computer.
Alas, my BluRay does not detect my desktop computer, which is very annoying. Monster thinks this is because I'm still using XP, and XP is too old for the player to detect. He suggested I install some DNLA software and/or configure Windows Media Player to stream to the BluRay box. Well, no matter how many times I have tried, I have been unable to configure WMP, so I went looking for DNLA software (no idea what the letters mean.) I found some software that I liked, and I downloaded it for a free trial. It works well, but once my free trial runs out I have to delete it or pay $40 U.S. for it. I like the software (called KooRaRoo) but not enough to pay $40 for it. (What it does is, once I select a file and add the file to the software, I click "Play to device," select my BluRay player, and voila, the file starts playing automatically to my BluRay player and shows up on my TV.)
Does anyone have any recommendations for software that will do the same thing as this KooRaRoo stuff without my having to pay $40 for it? Ideally, though it's probably not likely, I'd love it if there were some way for me to stream content from iTunes, because I was recently gifted with a $25 iTunes card, and I want to rent The Story of Luke from iTunes and watch it on my TV rather than on my computer.
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rachelmanija | |
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These volumes provide all sorts of climactic, dramatic, startling action, and then a surprisingly relaxed and even sweet and sometimes funny interlude... with DOOM hanging over it. I like how, especially in these two volumes, people generally behave reasonably and listen when people say they have something important to tell them, and sometimes change their minds when presented with new evidence. There are definitely jerks, bad people, and people being ruthless, self-destructive, and cruel. But there's very little totally random assholery. I have read way too many recent fantasy novels in which people behave completely irrationally to serve the plot and ensure that the obvious course of action taken by the protagonists won't work. ("Screw your evidence proving that you're not the person who killed my wife and someone else is! I tear it up and drink it like a milkshake, HA HA HA!") I appreciate how Hale often has the logical course of action work, but then new obstacles or unanticipated complications arise. Everything else is completely and utterly spoilery. ( Read more...Collapse )Notes on volume one, only spoilery for that volume. Enemies and Shadows (The Rifter) The Silent City (The Rifter) Crossposted to http://rachelmanija.dreamwidth.org/1108451.html. Comment here or there.Tags: author: hale ginn, genre: portal fantasy, lgbtq
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rainbow_goddess | |
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I follow several Asperger-related pages on Facebook. Unfortunately, they're 99.9 percent parent-dominated, and 99.9 percent of these parents ask the same thing: "My x-year-old child has been diagnosed with autism/Asperger's. He/She does (X behaviour)" or "He/She has (X physical symptom.) Is this autism/Asperger-related?" What annoys me is not so much that they are asking but the fact that they're not taking into account that not EVERYTHING has to be autism-related, even if the child (or adult, but usually child) is autistic. It could be that the child just happens to behave a certain way because that is part of his or her personality. In some cases, there could be something else going on (like problems with writing could be due to dysgraphia, which can be comorbid with Asperger's but isn't Asperger's). There was one I saw that actually asked if their child was having stomachaches because of Asperger's. I'm thinking: why not take your kid to the DOCTOR and get him checked out for physical problems, especially diet-related problems, before asking if the symptom is related to Asperger's? I had a lot of stomachaches as a kid, and for me it turned out to be related to lactose intolerance. I was forced to drink a glass of milk with every meal, milk gave me gas, and gas gave me stomachaches. I also get annoyed when the people who answer questions claim that EVERYONE with autism/Asperger's has or does something. Like, "Is having a high tolerance to pain an Asperger's symptom?" Every single person who answered said yes. They or their children all have high pain tolerance. I had to butt in, because I have LOW pain tolerance. Does that mean I'm not an Aspie? Then there was a mother who posted the following (this is from memory so is not strictly verbatim): "My 37-year-old son has Asperger's. He has a good job and lives on his own in a very nice apartment that he pays for himself." (Lives completely independently of parents, in other words.) However, he doesn't have a girlfriend. I think it's time he has a girlfriend. How can I get a girlfriend for him? Are there any Aspie women in this community, close to his age, who live in (her city) that I can introduce to my son?" Seriously? Her kid is an adult, lives on his own, and she thinks it's her job to find him a girlfriend? How does she know he even wants one? She says clearly that it's HER idea that he needs one. He's an adult. Let him find his own girlfriend, or boyfriend, or not find one if he doesn't want one. Tags: asperger, asperger's, asperger's syndrome, autism
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rolanni | |
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. . .printing out Trade Secret as I type, today will be spent immersed in the Jethri-verse. The interwebs seem to be carrying on as usual without my participation. Carry on, interwebs, carry on. * * * Progress on Carousel Seas 77,938/100,000 words OR 78% complete "I'm afraid that you'll have nightmares, even if I do finish it," she said. "I've had my share of them, since we started down this path. But, even so -- even now -- I can't see what else we could have done; and it was certain that we had to do something." "Now you're just having fun with me," I said. Gran glared -- then laughed. "You're right. If I'm going to tell it, I ought to tell it properly, from the beginning." Tags: carousel seas, the writer at work, trade secret
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rolanni | |
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Look what came in the mail! Thank you, Woodchucks!
New Sampler from
Woodchucks' Revenge
Those who have read Carousel Tides will recollect a shout-out to Woodchucks' Revenge on the acknowledgements page, for a song called "Voices in the Hills," which was part of the inspiration for the trenvay. The Woodchucks do blues, old folk, new folk, cowboy songs, and anything else that takes their fancy, and you haven't discovered them yet, you should give them a listen. Here's their website. And here's the website of their producer, featuring sample songs from a wide range of artists. Have fun! Tags: mail call, music
I'm feeling:  pleased
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apocalypsos | |
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... is exactly as embarrassing as you think.
I took my car in this morning because it needed an oil change, new brake pads, and possibly new rotors. My $408 paycheck this week should have covered it. I then proceeded over the course of the morning to get three phone calls from the garage:
Phone call #1: "Yes, you do need rotors. Everything all together should cost you $350." (Me: *sigh* "Okay, whatever.")
Phone call #2: "Did you know your inspection's out?" (Me: "I thought ... fine, whatever. Do that, too.")
Phone call #3: "Sorry, but we can't let your car pass inspection because it needs front-end work." (Me: "Are you seri-- Wait, you know what? Just do the rest, because it's all I can fucking afford.")
At which point I went down there, already crying, and was told that the repairs my car needs to pass inspection total nearly four hundred fucking dollars.
I *should* be able to pay for it when I get my financial aid, but at the same time that was the final straw. I've been through so much stress over the past week I started crying right there and then -- oh, and protip to front desk agents: a crying woman who can barely afford to pay her bill as it is won't be able to get your company credit card, so don't bother fucking asking -- and barely made it to my car before I had a breakdown. And then I got home and had some more breakdown. And then I went to the minimart and bought a two-liter of Pepsi and a big bag of Cheetos and ate half the bag and drank half the bottle and had another breakdown.
I just really need a goddamn break for a change, I swear to God.
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rachelmanija | |
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I finally figured out what this series reminds me of: P. C. Hodgell's Godstalk series. Hodgell has more black comedy and flamboyant worldbuilding, and Hale concentrates much more on weaving a highly intricate story. But both series seem to have evolved from the same roots: bypassing Tolkien's high fantasy tradition in favor of the swords and sorcery of Fritz Lieber, Jack Vance, C. L. Moore, even Robert E. Howard. It's interesting that while the overall plots and details of the two series have very few points of similarity - the kinship is more one of tone and atmosphere - both have heroes who are avatars of the destructive aspect of a God. Beyond that, all I can say without spoilers is that this series just gets better and better as it goes along. Book five was particularly packed with holy shit! moments. Marie, if you're reading this, you would appreciate that the only characters who do stupid things based on sexual desire are reckless, desperate teenagers. The adults generally manage to sensibly resist doing stupid things out of sexual desire, despite extreme temptation. (Homosexuality is banned in large parts of this world.) ( Read more...Collapse )The Holy Road (The Rifter) Broken Fortress (The Rifter) Crossposted to http://rachelmanija.dreamwidth.org/1107550.html. Comment here or there.Tags: author: hale ginn, genre: portal fantasy, lgbtq
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rolanni | |
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So, let's see...Day before yesterday -- that would have been Wednesday -- I needed to describe Carousel Sun (by which I mean to say, the book I submitted in February, and God, She Knows what it's about because I'm three-quarters of the way through the sequel, and I surely don't) in a couple paragraphs (aka 150-300 words) so that the spring sales tip sheet will have something on it that will make book buyers eager to stock the book. This is one of those things that writers do which are double-edged, to say the least. On the slicing edge, you're glad the publisher has asked you for this input because they've got dozens of books on their plate, and you-the-author have only the one, and, presumably, you know your own work best (insert laugh track here). On the thrusting edge, though, there's the sad truth that I, at least, am a Lazy Writer and by gum if I could've told Carousel Sun in 300 words, I certainly wouldn't have used 104,000 of the little beasts. I'd've knocked the book out in an afternoon and then played for four months, until it was time to start the next book. Trust me, at this point in the proceedings, I know myself. So, it took a ridiculously long time to craft those words (this despite the fact that I had asked a long-suffering beta reader to help me define the principle storyline), but by the end of Wednesday, I had something I thought would work, sent it off, and got ready to do, yanno, work. Except that the next section of story stalled, and no amount of pointing at the outline to show the characters what they were supposed to do next elicited anything more than yawns and a conversation among themselves about whose turn it was to send out for pizza -- which long-time readers of this blog will recognize as a sure sign that -- yes, you in the corner wearing the pink flamingo t-shirt. . . Yes, exactly that. It means that The Author Screwed Up. So instead of writing any words, I went back over the last 75 pages of manuscript, looking for the place where I turned left when I should've turned right. Fortunately, it was easy to spot -- a case of the sub-plot moving along quicker than the main plot. It's also fairly easy to fix, if frustrating for a writer who is trying to make words and have a complete draft done in twelve days. Yesterday, then, I pulled 2,490 words of sub-plot out of the book, and carefully saved them for later use; then I wrote 2,252 brand new words. Today, I hope to write very many more words than this because I have news of two things that will be landing on my desk in the next couple days which will have precedence over this book. So! another chapter in the exciting life of a writer. I know, I know. . .not for the fainthearted. And now? I'm going back to work. Everybody take care. * * * Progress on Carousel Seas 73,706/100,000 words OR 74% complete I looked up. "My point is that any sentence that starts off with, No, but Bel -- really needs to be finished, so I don't have nightmares." Tags: carousel seas, the glamor!, the writer at work
I'm feeling: eek!
I hear: "Red Rubber Ball," Cyrkle
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shadesong | |
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So where I'm at: As I mentioned in brief, the tickly throat Judah and I had on Saturday turned into... nothing for him. For me? Being massively congested and kitten-weak through Wednesday. Yesterday I was just mostly weak, not totally immobile, and I've entered the terrifying-cough phase, which means that I am almost out of this, if I can keep it from turning into bronchitis. Y'all should buy stock in Mucinex and Symbicort. Then in the middle of that, Monday night, I had a hideous, possibly life-changing nastiness visited upon me. Big boom. Lots of shrapnel. So I've spent this week trying to process and trying to help others process. The problem being that I can't do both at the same time, and... hell, I'd tell you what happened if I felt like it was a good idea, but things are settling and we're waiting on information. Let's just say that me helping others here is sorta injurious to me helping myself, but I have to do it anyway, and I have to fix everything on a damn deadline, because I am going away for a week on Monday. This was supposed to be my rest week! Last week I had almost all of the deadline stuff - bringing my glasses in, getting Elayna's prom dress tailored, etc. This week was supposed to be the smaller stuff and a lot of rest. Instead it's been constant emotional awfulness while sick. Here. My schedule. Let me show you it. 5/21-5/22: Chicago, pre-Wiscon 5/23-5/27: WISCON Y'ALL for which I have to prepare a bunch of stuff like right now argh 5/28: I fly home. 5/29: BARCC Gala steering committee meeting, probably last-minute prom stuff 5/30: Awards Night at Elayna's school, when we find out if she got scholarships from local organizations. *crosses fingers* 5/31: Elayna's prom! An afternoon flurry of hair, makeup, corsage. 6/1: Cambridge Riverfest and a friend's party 6/2: nothing YET and skip ahead to 6/5-6/10: My parents, birthmother, aunt, uncle, sister, and brother-in-law all in town for Elayna's June 7th graduation! So basically I can't breathe 'til after that. Let alone write. It's been a while since I've had time to write and any emotional energy to spare. I'm exactly as happy about that as you think I am. Oh, and somewhere in there, I'll hopefully find out why I'm still in constant physical pain. Today I'll pick up my glasses and hope they're right this time. Tomorrow we'll visit a florist and see if we can commission a damn corsage already. Hi. Yeah, if you see me at Wiscon? Tea or booze and hugs. It is not all bad! The undercurrent through the past few months, the reason I've been able to keep it all together... I have a Person who's been holding the other end of my rope. Bastian to my Atreyu; he was there in the swamp, etc. And yes, I have been vague, and yes, I will still be vague - because that, too, it not completely resolved. There are additional dimensions to it that'll be clear really soon, and then I'll feel like I can tell you everything. I've been keeping from discussing because things are not quite complete, and I'd rather present all the OMGFEELS at once! But I did need to say that things are not all bad. At least the chaos of the past few months has kept me from bursting into tears over Elayna's imminent graduation and departure quite as often as I otherwise might have. So that is where I am. Friday MemeageWearing: Right now, tank top and Superman underpants. Reading: Perfumes: The Guide by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez, which is both informative and HILARIOUSLY BITCHY. Writing: Heh. Well, I wrote an outline for a poem that I missed the deadline on because people exploded my life this week. Knitting: Same; have not touched the needles all week due to constant work on awfulness. Planning: After breakfast, I'll go pick up my glasses. I have museum passes for the Gardner reserved, and Judah suggested that he go with me (which is frankly the only way I can go - if I get a ride - because my lungs are fragile right now), but I don't know if that still holds, given that his schedule changes every five minutes. (He basically has three jobs now.) Saturday, I'd like to go to Trivia in the Park. Sunday, I'd like to go to Strip Hop Hooray, but people in my life seem curiously disinterested in hip-hop burlesque. You?
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 invsagoth | |
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Yay livejournal is working again! Most of it has been working the last couple of days for me because I wasn't on an affected cluster, but not everything was working of course. I didn't want to spend time making a post if something else happened and the post got eaten, ya'know? I took some pictures with some of the little stuffed dogs I made posing with Frankie, I'll probably post those tomorrow. I've also been working on another puppy! It's made out of pure fabric this time instead of felt. I really like how much easier it is to sew, though with felt I can skip the sewing altogether and just felt it together. Options are nice. hehe I'm having fun with this little project. I told Scottie that I was going to start making some puppies colour coordinated with the Monster High dolls. xD I was also thinking about making some mini plushes of the ghoul's pets. I actually have very few Signature dolls so I have very few pets! I have Spectra, Howleen, Frankie, and Rochelle's pets. I thought it would be cute to have some pet stand ins. lol I've also been thinking about felting some animals out of wool. I sort of feel like I'm posting without a really clear reason just because lj is working again and I haven't been able to post about all the stuff I've been doing! lol Spring finally arrived last week, we had some rain that melted a lot of the snow. It started getting nicer... but the last couple of days have been cold and overcast. It's 40 F today, overcast and drizzling rain. It feel like Pilot! It's also supposed to snow tomorrow. I'm sure if it does it won't stick around for long, but geez winter give it up already! Dx Tags: alaska, crafts, felting, plushies, weather
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retreat.... 
loved
artistic
calm
