Girl Genius for Friday, June 13, 2025
Jun. 13th, 2025 04:00 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
girlgenius_main_feedThe Girl Genius comic for Friday, June 13, 2025 has been posted.
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Jun. 12th, 2025 05:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
copracatQuestion of the Day
Do you have some table items you only bring out when you entertain guests for dinner?
I picked up this question fromdine. I like to use my precious things rather than save them for special. Otherwise why have them? If it has function, let it function. Some things though are too large for one or two person eating. I have a tin-lined copper couscoussier that is not suitable for cooking small amounts. It also looks amazing when you bring it out and put it on the table, gleaming and full of deliciousness.
Other than that there are platters, serving spoons and such that only come out when I'm feeding a few.
Do you have some table items you only bring out when you entertain guests for dinner?
I picked up this question from
dine. I like to use my precious things rather than save them for special. Otherwise why have them? If it has function, let it function. Some things though are too large for one or two person eating. I have a tin-lined copper couscoussier that is not suitable for cooking small amounts. It also looks amazing when you bring it out and put it on the table, gleaming and full of deliciousness. Other than that there are platters, serving spoons and such that only come out when I'm feeding a few.
(no subject)
Jun. 12th, 2025 05:42 pmchina_shopHaha, I just signed up for a free online Harvard course on a whim,[1] and having spent the last few months in the Three Billion Comments Club on ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
sid_guardian, naturally I'm diligently replying to people's comments in the discussion sections of the course, too. What could possibly go wrong?
(You don't have to reply to everyone, china! This is not your circus! /o\)
[1] Someone on my flist pointed out a while ago that there are a bunch of free online courses.
sid_guardian, naturally I'm diligently replying to people's comments in the discussion sections of the course, too. What could possibly go wrong? (You don't have to reply to everyone, china! This is not your circus! /o\)
[1] Someone on my flist pointed out a while ago that there are a bunch of free online courses.
Fic: Raw Nerves, Old Scars (Guardian, post-canon CSZ/SW/ZYL, ZYL & DQ, Teen)
Jun. 12th, 2025 11:12 amchina_shop posting in sid_guardianTitle: Raw Nerves, Old Scars (5967 words) [Teen and Up]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Chu Shuzhi/Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei & Ye Zun, Da Qing & Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei, Chu Shuzhi, Da Qing
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, (sort of), (except Ye Zun), Anger, effects of past trauma, Complicated Relationships, Poly Relationships, Shen Wei misses his didi, Zhao Yunlan hates Ye Zun, Zhao Yunlan is triggered, Loyalty, Friendship, Sharing Clothes, Unreliable Narration
Series: Part 3 of Breakage and Repair 'verse (CSZ/SW/ZYL)
Summary: Feel the anger and do it anyway.
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Chu Shuzhi/Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei & Ye Zun, Da Qing & Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei, Chu Shuzhi, Da Qing
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, (sort of), (except Ye Zun), Anger, effects of past trauma, Complicated Relationships, Poly Relationships, Shen Wei misses his didi, Zhao Yunlan hates Ye Zun, Zhao Yunlan is triggered, Loyalty, Friendship, Sharing Clothes, Unreliable Narration
Series: Part 3 of Breakage and Repair 'verse (CSZ/SW/ZYL)
Summary: Feel the anger and do it anyway.
Me-and-media update
Jun. 12th, 2025 10:40 amchina_shopPrevious poll review
In the hair, there, and everywhair poll, 78% of respondents said they air dry, 35.6% towel dry roughly, 30.5% towel dry carefully / squeezingly, and 22% use a hair dryer or other device. (I towel dry carefully / squeezingly, then air dry. But I have thick, slow-drying hair, and I can’t sleep with it wet, so I use a hair dryer occasionally.)
In ticky-boxes, “a yawning cat broadcasting calm and satisfaction into the world” beat hugs, 71.2% to 67.8%! The power oftoxiplasmosis cats on the internet! Thirty-six point two percent of respondents agreed that other people are, generally speaking, quite mysterious. Thank you for your votes!
Reading
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (The Chronicles of Prydain) -- Welsh children’s fantasy, and the first book in the trilogy that Disney’s The Black Cauldron is loosely based on. I’m not far into this yet, I haven’t read it before, and I've misplaced my kindle. But it starts well.
Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers, narrated by Robert Bathurst -- This ripped along very engagingly. I like that Whimsy isn’t falling over bodies left, right and centre à la Jessica Fletcher; he has to actually seek out cases, and I appreciated his sporting enthusiasm at the outset, and also that he feels it when his actions have consequences. Also, I loved the spinster assistant, Katharine Climpson -- I hope for more of her. (And I just spoiled myself for that on wikipedia, oops, but anyway, good to know she’ll be back.) Is it the Bellona Club next, or am I missing one?
Guardian by priest -- The readalong continues, along with its sixty million comments each week. :D
Argh, I got distracted and still haven’t finished or commented on the rest of the 520 Day collection. Note to self!!
Kdramas
Nada.
Other TV
Department Q -- We finished off the 9-episode season earlier this week. It’s rather messy (not all the mysteries and loose ends get tied up), and there are a few different flavours of police violence (messed-up cop losing control; very controlled cop “extracting” information; but not group or institutionalised/authorised violence that I recall), as well as the bad guys torturing the victim. If the season had been longer, I might have bailed. But it is very compelling, and Morck (Matthew Goode) is extremely watchable.
Doctor Who -- I think I’m just not the target audience for RTD’s style of story-telling. I’m really going to miss Gatwa on my screen, though.
Stick -- the first episode of Owen Wilson’s new Apple+ golf dramedy. It was okay. Good cast, but the problem with a show about golf is the lack of ~team~. I’m reserving judgement.
El Eternauta -- we’ve finished episode 2 now. It’s fascinatingly creepy. Has a pretty bleak view of human nature, but I’m intrigued to see where it goes. (I was advised to start it with as few spoilers as possible, so I know nothing. Please don’t tell me anything!)
Also, more Murderbot, Poker Face, and Turning Point: The Vietnam War.
Guardian/Fandom
Mostly I’ve just been doing the Guardian novel readalong, the Guardian drama polls, and allllll the discussion that goes along with them. ♥ ♥ ♥
Audio entertainment
Writing Excuses, and several episodes of Coherent, a podcast focusing on our Deputy Prime Minister's move to set up a sort-of equivalent of DOGE and turn us into a libertarian hellhole. Gah! (Locals, submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill close on 1pm, Monday 23rd June.)
Writing/making things
Plugging away. Yesterday I posted a flashfic that I started in March last year. The first draft didn’t work and was wildly misguided (thanks to my beta for helping me realise that!), but I dusted it off and rebuilt it over the weekend, and I like how it turned out. I have a couple of other things in the works, too, and one day I’ll actually finish this ridiculous 13k-so-far gen fic. At least I’ve worked out why it was losing momentum, to wit, the longer a “missing scene” is, the more it needs to have its own build and climax, rather than relying on canon or narrative irony for the payoff. Unfortunately, the upshot of that is that I need an actual plot development.
I spent Monday’s writers’ hour looking for two story titles, and came up with one I really liked that doesn’t fit either fic. So I guess I also need to write a story to fit that title.
Life/health/mental state things
Optometrist and GP (for a laundry list of minor questions) this week. Both went fine. The weather is bitterly cold. I’ve been a bit headachy, but I’m mostly putting that down to needing new glasses.
Goals
Huh. I wonder if I should make some.
Link dump
Operation Spiderweb (wikipedia link; Ukraine’s strategic drone strike on Russia’s air capability) | From cat urine to gunpowder: Exploring the peculiar smells of outer space | Dynasty's Gay Journey - Killer Dads, Shoulderpads, and the Kiss that Rocked Hollywood (Youtube, 33:25, via a comment attv_talk). I have too many tabs open to rootle out more right now.
Good things
Writing. Writers’ hour. Beta. Guaaaardian. Chocolate. Cat. Andrew.
In the hair, there, and everywhair poll, 78% of respondents said they air dry, 35.6% towel dry roughly, 30.5% towel dry carefully / squeezingly, and 22% use a hair dryer or other device. (I towel dry carefully / squeezingly, then air dry. But I have thick, slow-drying hair, and I can’t sleep with it wet, so I use a hair dryer occasionally.)
In ticky-boxes, “a yawning cat broadcasting calm and satisfaction into the world” beat hugs, 71.2% to 67.8%! The power of
Reading
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (The Chronicles of Prydain) -- Welsh children’s fantasy, and the first book in the trilogy that Disney’s The Black Cauldron is loosely based on. I’m not far into this yet, I haven’t read it before, and I've misplaced my kindle. But it starts well.
Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers, narrated by Robert Bathurst -- This ripped along very engagingly. I like that Whimsy isn’t falling over bodies left, right and centre à la Jessica Fletcher; he has to actually seek out cases, and I appreciated his sporting enthusiasm at the outset, and also that he feels it when his actions have consequences. Also, I loved the spinster assistant, Katharine Climpson -- I hope for more of her. (And I just spoiled myself for that on wikipedia, oops, but anyway, good to know she’ll be back.) Is it the Bellona Club next, or am I missing one?
Guardian by priest -- The readalong continues, along with its sixty million comments each week. :D
Argh, I got distracted and still haven’t finished or commented on the rest of the 520 Day collection. Note to self!!
Kdramas
Nada.
Other TV
Department Q -- We finished off the 9-episode season earlier this week. It’s rather messy (not all the mysteries and loose ends get tied up), and there are a few different flavours of police violence (messed-up cop losing control; very controlled cop “extracting” information; but not group or institutionalised/authorised violence that I recall), as well as the bad guys torturing the victim. If the season had been longer, I might have bailed. But it is very compelling, and Morck (Matthew Goode) is extremely watchable.
Doctor Who -- I think I’m just not the target audience for RTD’s style of story-telling. I’m really going to miss Gatwa on my screen, though.
Stick -- the first episode of Owen Wilson’s new Apple+ golf dramedy. It was okay. Good cast, but the problem with a show about golf is the lack of ~team~. I’m reserving judgement.
El Eternauta -- we’ve finished episode 2 now. It’s fascinatingly creepy. Has a pretty bleak view of human nature, but I’m intrigued to see where it goes. (I was advised to start it with as few spoilers as possible, so I know nothing. Please don’t tell me anything!)
Also, more Murderbot, Poker Face, and Turning Point: The Vietnam War.
Guardian/Fandom
Mostly I’ve just been doing the Guardian novel readalong, the Guardian drama polls, and allllll the discussion that goes along with them. ♥ ♥ ♥
Audio entertainment
Writing Excuses, and several episodes of Coherent, a podcast focusing on our Deputy Prime Minister's move to set up a sort-of equivalent of DOGE and turn us into a libertarian hellhole. Gah! (Locals, submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill close on 1pm, Monday 23rd June.)
Writing/making things
Plugging away. Yesterday I posted a flashfic that I started in March last year. The first draft didn’t work and was wildly misguided (thanks to my beta for helping me realise that!), but I dusted it off and rebuilt it over the weekend, and I like how it turned out. I have a couple of other things in the works, too, and one day I’ll actually finish this ridiculous 13k-so-far gen fic. At least I’ve worked out why it was losing momentum, to wit, the longer a “missing scene” is, the more it needs to have its own build and climax, rather than relying on canon or narrative irony for the payoff. Unfortunately, the upshot of that is that I need an actual plot development.
I spent Monday’s writers’ hour looking for two story titles, and came up with one I really liked that doesn’t fit either fic. So I guess I also need to write a story to fit that title.
Life/health/mental state things
Optometrist and GP (for a laundry list of minor questions) this week. Both went fine. The weather is bitterly cold. I’ve been a bit headachy, but I’m mostly putting that down to needing new glasses.
Goals
Huh. I wonder if I should make some.
Link dump
Operation Spiderweb (wikipedia link; Ukraine’s strategic drone strike on Russia’s air capability) | From cat urine to gunpowder: Exploring the peculiar smells of outer space | Dynasty's Gay Journey - Killer Dads, Shoulderpads, and the Kiss that Rocked Hollywood (Youtube, 33:25, via a comment at
tv_talk). I have too many tabs open to rootle out more right now.Good things
Writing. Writers’ hour. Beta. Guaaaardian. Chocolate. Cat. Andrew.
Poll #33240 The Tower
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 43
What kind of princess is in the tower?
View Answers
goblin princess
10 (23.3%)
elf princess
8 (18.6%)
vampire princess
6 (14.0%)
mermaid princess
4 (9.3%)
minotaur princess
14 (32.6%)
dragon princess
21 (48.8%)
troll princess
4 (9.3%)
orc princess
6 (14.0%)
cat
27 (62.8%)
other
4 (9.3%)
actually it's another-gendered member of royalty
16 (37.2%)
ticky-box full of intending to bake but not getting around to it
19 (44.2%)
ticky-box full of still resisting multi-focal lenses
7 (16.3%)
ticky-box of a squadron of rescue dragons who can exhale fire or water, as required
27 (62.8%)
ticky-box of clumsy fledgling puppies, tumbling all over each other out of the nest
20 (46.5%)
ticky-box of spoiler fairies leaving them under your pillow
12 (27.9%)
ticky-box full of hugs
29 (67.4%)
Poll: best SID team moment (drama)
Jun. 12th, 2025 09:46 amchina_shop posting in sid_guardianA few years ago, I made a Team-as-Family picspam for guardian_wishlist, if you'd care for illustrations. :-)
guardian_wishlist, if you'd care for illustrations. :-)Poll #33239 TEAM
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 14
Best SID team moment
View Answers
Hazing Xiao Guo (ep 1)
0 (0.0%)
Popcorn (ep 5)
5 (35.7%)
Congratulating Xiao Guo for becoming permanent staff (ep 8)
3 (21.4%)
Giggling over the sex doll (ep 9)
1 (7.1%)
Road trip (ep 9)
2 (14.3%)
Listening to Wang Zheng tell ghost stories in the mountains (ep 9)
1 (7.1%)
Drinking party in the mountains (ep 11)
0 (0.0%)
Team dinner to welcome Consultant Shen (ep 14)
6 (42.9%)
Resisting Zhao Xinci's leadership (eps 16-17)
6 (42.9%)
Reunion dinner (ep 20)
7 (50.0%)
Greeting Hei Pao Shi with a group bow (ep 21)
6 (42.9%)
other
1 (7.1%)
In ep 20, Zhu Hong reveals she has a syringe of magic resurrection venom that she’d forgotten about. What else does she have that she’s forgotten?
View Answers
a babelfish
1 (7.7%)
an alethiometer
3 (23.1%)
a time turner
5 (38.5%)
a sonic screwdriver
3 (23.1%)
a holy grail (it's very nice)
3 (23.1%)
a troublesome gold ring
4 (30.8%)
other (please specify in comments)
1 (7.7%)
Pinch Hits Available for Sakura Exchange
Jun. 11th, 2025 01:11 pmsakuramod posting in anime_mangasakuraexchange is a spring exchange for relationships in Japanese media, run on Dreamwidth and AO3. Participants create a fic or art piece for one of their assigned recipient's requested fandoms and relationships, and receive in return a fic or art piece for one of their requested fandoms and relationships. Detailed exchange guidelines are here, at our DW community.We have several pinch hits (unfilled requests) currently in need of creators. If you might be able to fill one of these requests by the current due date (June 20, 11:59PM UTC / 7:59PM EDT), please comment on the pinch hit post with your AO3 name and the number of the pinch hit you'd like to claim.
The minimum requirements are 1000 words for fic, or clean lineart on unlined paper for art.
Available pinch hits (click through for details):
PH 2 - Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses, 殺し愛 | Koroshi Ai (Manga), 2.5次元の誘惑 | 2.5-jigen no Ririsa | 2.5 Dimensional Seduction (Anime)
PH 4 - 爆上戦隊ブンブンジャー | Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger (TV), 魔法つかいプリキュア！ | Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure! | Mahou Girls PreCure!, 仮面ライダーギーツ | Kamen Rider Geats, Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne | Phantom-Thief Jeanne (manga), Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne | Phantom-Thief Jeanne (Anime)
PH 10 - わんだふるぷりきゅあ! | Wonderful PreCure! (Anime), Crossover Fandom, Show By Rock!! (Video Games), 美男高校地球防衛部HAPPY KISS! | Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-bu Happy Kiss!, Tokyo Mew Mew Olé (Manga), Fairy蘭丸~あなたの心お助けします~ | Fairy Ranmaru: Anata no Kokoro Otasuke Shimasu (Anime)
Thank you very much!
{trope tuesday} wedding crashing
Jun. 10th, 2025 11:00 pmcypresssunnFandom Fifty 2025: Post #17
Quick and dirty post about one of the best tropes, good old fashioned soap opera style wedding crashing.
Its tacky, its cliche, its literally the least realistic thing any human being would do. But alas I don't watch soap operas for realism. I barely watch them for the plot. The few British soaps I indulge in scratch such a primal itch for a specific kind of entertainment. I'm here to see one insane couple I root for absolutely terrorize each other until the end of time. I want to see them hold each other at gunpoint again. I want hostage taking. I want love declarations. I want hate declarations. I want blackmail. I want co-dependency. I want more affairs and stolen kisses and stupid horrible angst where they pretend to get over each other.
And I'm pretty sure I'm going to be well fed by Emmerdale this summer if the first scenes are anything to go by.
Especially when we have Robert 'craziest morally neutral bisexual to ever live' Sugden getting released from jail without anyone being the wiser just to show up at the doorstep of his doubly divorced ex-husband Aaron 'owner of the biggest brownest sad eyes and only attracted to murderers' Dingle when he is about to marry Robert's long-lost and unwanted half brother...
Dropping a link to my Robron Emmerdale Playlist 2025. None of the videos are mine, they are mostly courtesy of Zebra5702 who is famously punctual and reliable for uploading queer British soap story lines. However I desperately need to watch and rewatch the videos in chronological order rather than upload order.
Girl Genius for Wednesday, June 11, 2025
Jun. 11th, 2025 04:00 amgirlgenius_main_feedThe Girl Genius comic for Wednesday, June 11, 2025 has been posted.
Flashfic: Raw Nerves, Old Scars (Guardian, CSZ/SW/ZYL, ZYL & DQ, Teen)
Jun. 11th, 2025 11:50 amchina_shopTitle: Raw Nerves, Old Scars (5967 words) [Teen and Up]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Chu Shuzhi/Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei & Ye Zun, Da Qing & Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei, Chu Shuzhi, Da Qing
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, (sort of), (except Ye Zun), Anger, effects of past trauma, Complicated Relationships, Poly Relationships, Shen Wei misses his didi, Zhao Yunlan hates Ye Zun, Zhao Yunlan is triggered, Loyalty, Friendship, Sharing Clothes, Unreliable Narration
Series: Part 3 of Breakage and Repair 'verse (CSZ/SW/ZYL)
Summary: Feel the anger and do it anyway.
I started this for the Anger prompt last year, and finished it (15 minutes after the deadline /o\) for the Charity prompt. Ha!
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Relationships: Chu Shuzhi/Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei & Ye Zun, Da Qing & Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei, Chu Shuzhi, Da Qing
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, (sort of), (except Ye Zun), Anger, effects of past trauma, Complicated Relationships, Poly Relationships, Shen Wei misses his didi, Zhao Yunlan hates Ye Zun, Zhao Yunlan is triggered, Loyalty, Friendship, Sharing Clothes, Unreliable Narration
Series: Part 3 of Breakage and Repair 'verse (CSZ/SW/ZYL)
Summary: Feel the anger and do it anyway.
I started this for the Anger prompt last year, and finished it (15 minutes after the deadline /o\) for the Charity prompt. Ha!
Weekly proof of life (belated again): sentimentality, reading habits, household things...
Jun. 9th, 2025 04:10 pmumadoshiCat Herding: Our beloved Jinksy!bear turned twelve on Saturday. Twelve! He's (by a margin of a good few years) the second-oldest cat I've ever had, and continues to be just the sweetest, softest boy. May he be with us in good health for years to come.
It was also Claudia's birthday, of course, and I always think of her on their birthday. Oh, my darling baby cat.
*The oldest was Jenny, the cat of my childhood who was still with my parents for years after I moved out. She made it to nineteen, most of that time in rock-solid health, and never really forgave me for moving to Toronto and thus straight-up vanishing from her life for months at a time.
Reading: I finished reading Jennifer 8 Lee's The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food, which remained an interesting read right through, and read Adrian Tchaikovsky's City of Last Chances, which I think is only the second thing of his I've read? (Elder Race is the other one I'm sure of.) Having finished it, I'm in a position that's annoyingly familiar, where I liked the book quite a bit and am curious about what happens next, but am not sure I cared enough that I'll ever actually get around to picking up the sequel.
(The thing where I've almost entirely been reading books I own for years now doesn't really help, where I've often picked up the first book of a trilogy of series or whatever on sale in ebook because I've heard it's good, and then am not sure I'm invested enough to pay full price on the next one when I own literally hundreds of yet-unread books. Feh.)
Watching:scruloose and I are up to date on Murderbot and have seen the first episode of Kingdom season 2.
In the case of the former, I'm skeptical about the nqqvgvba bs n punenpgre jub qbrfa'g nccrne va gur obbxf ng nyy--juvpu V'z abg vaureragyl ntnvafg, tvira gung gur fubj vf pyrneyl vgf bja guvat, naq V'z thrffvat fur'f gurer gb pbairl fbzrguvat gung jbhyq'ir orra gevpxl gb qb gur fnzr jnl va guvf sbezng nf va gur abiryyn. Ohg fur'fnaablvat , naq V'yy cebonoyl xrrc svaqvat ure naablvat jurgure fur vf va snpg freivat jung V pheeragyl guvax vf ure cebonoyr shapgvba (rarzl ntrag znfdhrenqvat nf nyyl) be fbzrguvat zber vagrerfgvat. [ROT13] Guess we'll find out soon!
Working: Thank goodness the manga I'm working right now is (as usual) a fairly easy rewrite and not a tight deadline, because scrounging the mental energy for freelance work has been frustratingly hard recently. I'm almost halfway through my draft and have about a week and a half left with it, so it's fine, but. :/
Weathering/Householding: We've had a lot of gray days and some high-ish temperatures combined with humidity (which I hate), and the air quality, while not remotely as bad as it is in a lot of places, has been fluctuating significantly...and the AC function of the heat pumps is essentially nonfunctional. >.< This is crappy timing, given how much of the time over the last several days has required having the windows closed (and the air purifiers running for good measure, although they don't address some of the nastiness from wildfire smoke). And for bonus fun, while the heat pumps are still under warranty, the company we bought them from went under a few months ago, which complicates things. (I think possibly the main person died. :/)
That said,scruloose made a bunch of calls today and we have reason to hope that someone can come in and take a look at them soon, if that particular company has the parts in stock. And while it's been uncomfortably warm inside some of the time because of this, at least it's not full summer yet. Hopefully we can get things dealt with by the time summer heat arrives in earnest.
And on a purely pleasant note, a couple nights ago we were in a phase of "somehow the air quality is fine outside right now, so we can just open the windows and run fans" while it was pleasantly cool and raining atmospherically and the wind was doing a wonderful job of wafting the smell of the lilacs into the living room.
It was also Claudia's birthday, of course, and I always think of her on their birthday. Oh, my darling baby cat.
*The oldest was Jenny, the cat of my childhood who was still with my parents for years after I moved out. She made it to nineteen, most of that time in rock-solid health, and never really forgave me for moving to Toronto and thus straight-up vanishing from her life for months at a time.
Reading: I finished reading Jennifer 8 Lee's The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food, which remained an interesting read right through, and read Adrian Tchaikovsky's City of Last Chances, which I think is only the second thing of his I've read? (Elder Race is the other one I'm sure of.) Having finished it, I'm in a position that's annoyingly familiar, where I liked the book quite a bit and am curious about what happens next, but am not sure I cared enough that I'll ever actually get around to picking up the sequel.
(The thing where I've almost entirely been reading books I own for years now doesn't really help, where I've often picked up the first book of a trilogy of series or whatever on sale in ebook because I've heard it's good, and then am not sure I'm invested enough to pay full price on the next one when I own literally hundreds of yet-unread books. Feh.)
Watching:
scruloose and I are up to date on Murderbot and have seen the first episode of Kingdom season 2.In the case of the former, I'm skeptical about the nqqvgvba bs n punenpgre jub qbrfa'g nccrne va gur obbxf ng nyy--juvpu V'z abg vaureragyl ntnvafg, tvira gung gur fubj vf pyrneyl vgf bja guvat, naq V'z thrffvat fur'f gurer gb pbairl fbzrguvat gung jbhyq'ir orra gevpxl gb qb gur fnzr jnl va guvf sbezng nf va gur abiryyn. Ohg fur'f
Working: Thank goodness the manga I'm working right now is (as usual) a fairly easy rewrite and not a tight deadline, because scrounging the mental energy for freelance work has been frustratingly hard recently. I'm almost halfway through my draft and have about a week and a half left with it, so it's fine, but. :/
Weathering/Householding: We've had a lot of gray days and some high-ish temperatures combined with humidity (which I hate), and the air quality, while not remotely as bad as it is in a lot of places, has been fluctuating significantly...and the AC function of the heat pumps is essentially nonfunctional. >.< This is crappy timing, given how much of the time over the last several days has required having the windows closed (and the air purifiers running for good measure, although they don't address some of the nastiness from wildfire smoke). And for bonus fun, while the heat pumps are still under warranty, the company we bought them from went under a few months ago, which complicates things. (I think possibly the main person died. :/)
That said,
scruloose made a bunch of calls today and we have reason to hope that someone can come in and take a look at them soon, if that particular company has the parts in stock. And while it's been uncomfortably warm inside some of the time because of this, at least it's not full summer yet. Hopefully we can get things dealt with by the time summer heat arrives in earnest.And on a purely pleasant note, a couple nights ago we were in a phase of "somehow the air quality is fine outside right now, so we can just open the windows and run fans" while it was pleasantly cool and raining atmospherically and the wind was doing a wonderful job of wafting the smell of the lilacs into the living room.
Girl Genius for Monday, June 09, 2025
Jun. 9th, 2025 04:00 amgirlgenius_main_feedThe Girl Genius comic for Monday, June 09, 2025 has been posted.
Fic bundle (ParaKiss, JJK, SB69, :REverSAL, Yatamomo)
Jun. 8th, 2025 12:07 pmthepasteldyke posting in anime_mangaI keep forgetting to crosspost, and I don't want to spam, but I also don't want to make the post overly long, so I'm using a table to minimize the length.
| Title: Amber, like the colour of her eyes Fandom: Paradise Kiss Pairing: Hayasaka Yukari/Sakurada Miwako Rating: G Word Count: 511 Summary: Yukari didn't realise her eyes would become an integral part of Miwako's latest creation. dreamwidth, AO3, website | Title: The final beep. Fandom: Jujutsu Kaisen Pairing: n/a, Satoru & Shoko friendship fic Rating: G Word Count: 492 Summary: Satoru's tamagotchi dies. It's more painful than he expected. dreamwidth, AO3, website |
| Title: And the cherry blossoms bloom Fandom: Show By Rock!! Pairing: Sumomone/Uiui Rating: G Word Count: 344 Summary: Sumomone catches Rararin talking to a cute girl she's never met before. dreamwidth, AO3, website | Title: Hikkoshi Soba Fandom: Show By Rock!! Pairing: Sumomone/Uiui Rating: T Word Count: 453 Summary: Sumomone and Uiui finally get an apartment of their very own. dreamwidth, AO3, website |
| Title: She took my heart and my number Fandom: :REverSAL Pairing: Koizumi Ayame/Matsuyuki Ayame Rating: T Word Count: 765 Summary: Ayame is talked into going to a Halloween party at a club for the first time, and she manages to get Ayame-han and Takayuki to come with her. She didn't expect the emotions it would cause her. dreamwidth, AO3, website | Title: Don't wait for the tide just to dip both your feet in Fandom: Yatamomo Pairing: Yata/Momo Rating: M Word Count: 1166 Warnings: *Referenced Underage Prostitution, Referenced Rape/Non-con, Trauma, Asphyxiation* Summary: Yata takes Momo to the beach so Momo can finally learn how to swim. Not everything goes quite as planned. dreamwidth, AO3, website |
(no subject)
Jun. 8th, 2025 04:09 pmcopracatI'm been reading a few pages of my DW network link lately and discovered I'm not following people I thought I was following. I suspect I have accidentally unfollowed because on my current layout reply is close to the drop down list that has unsubscribe and ban user. I need an icons to the left layout.
Anyway, happy long weekend, Australians. At least those Australians who get the king's birthday holiday this week. I'm listening to the Classic 100 countdown to not-celebrate. Can we have a republic now, please?
Anyway, happy long weekend, Australians. At least those Australians who get the king's birthday holiday this week. I'm listening to the Classic 100 countdown to not-celebrate. Can we have a republic now, please?
Anyone still remember magnificent manga Wild Adapter?
Jun. 7th, 2025 06:49 pmdr_zook posting in anime_mangaAuthor: dr_zook
Fandom: Wild Adapter (manga)
Characters: Kubota Makoto, Tokito Minoru
Rating: Teen & Mature, m/m
Word count: 1,307 & 1,480
Notes: Two years ago I wrote a fic for Yuletide and promised my beta reader a raunchy sequel, so here we go.
Read them over at AO3! And/or chat me up at my DW. :D
hide the fuel that's gathered here is set right after their escape in vol. 6! Click the link for further notes and tags.
Soaked in Fire Two Paths Collide is the promised raunchy coda for above fic. Things are heating up here. ;)
dr_zookFandom: Wild Adapter (manga)
Characters: Kubota Makoto, Tokito Minoru
Rating: Teen & Mature, m/m
Word count: 1,307 & 1,480
Notes: Two years ago I wrote a fic for Yuletide and promised my beta reader a raunchy sequel, so here we go.
Read them over at AO3! And/or chat me up at my DW. :D
hide the fuel that's gathered here is set right after their escape in vol. 6! Click the link for further notes and tags.
Soaked in Fire Two Paths Collide is the promised raunchy coda for above fic. Things are heating up here. ;)
Swimming Upstream Into the Mouth of a Bear [Death Note]
Jun. 7th, 2025 12:26 pmpastelpom posting in anime_mangaFandom: Death Note
Author/Artist: pastelpom
Title: Swimming Upstream Into the Mouth of a Bear
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,346
Highlight for Warnings: *Suicide mention, death, canon typical misogyny, etc*
Disclaimer: This is a fanwork, I do not own the characters and no profit has been made from this work
Summary:
The world was not built for you. The world does nothing to accommodate you. Think of yourself like an insect evolved to resist pesticide - you grow in spite of, not because of, the narrative of the world. God's mighty hand inks you in the same way he would an extra in a crowd shot. Fuzzy, indistinct, vague.
You are tired of it.
Why not try something new?
A/N: a little meta thing about misa becoming aware of her place in the narrative :3 still tweaking things here and there but overall im happy with it!
AO3 Link
Author/Artist: pastelpom
Title: Swimming Upstream Into the Mouth of a Bear
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,346
Highlight for Warnings: *Suicide mention, death, canon typical misogyny, etc*
Disclaimer: This is a fanwork, I do not own the characters and no profit has been made from this work
Summary:
The world was not built for you. The world does nothing to accommodate you. Think of yourself like an insect evolved to resist pesticide - you grow in spite of, not because of, the narrative of the world. God's mighty hand inks you in the same way he would an extra in a crowd shot. Fuzzy, indistinct, vague.
You are tired of it.
Why not try something new?
A/N: a little meta thing about misa becoming aware of her place in the narrative :3 still tweaking things here and there but overall im happy with it!
AO3 Link