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Entry tags:

Self Defense (Stargate Atlantis; Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex)

Title: Self Defense
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis,
Pairing/Characters: Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex
Word Count: 166
Content Notes: none
Prompt:

no_true_pair September 11 - Rodney McKay & Ronon Dex - weaving

Link to fic: Self Defense (on AO3)

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SOTD: Twice, "Merry & Happy"

This morning the YouTube Music app decided I needed to hear "Merry & Happy" by Twice. Even though it's a Christmas song, I listened to it, because I love this song. It lifted my spirits, so I went back and listened to it again, which lifted my spirits some more. So now I'm sharing it with you.

Watch on YouTube

After this experience, my daily affirmation for today was "Take joy wherever you can find it. If that means listening to Christmas music out of season, so be it."

(no subject)

Oh hey I just found this community. Slow on the uptake here.

I'm Dino, DinoBetta on PoGo, and my favorite 'mon has always been Charizard :}, favorite types are fire and rock and ground. Been playing Pokemon Go for five years-ish now, I'm getting close to level 44, however as of Monday the 8th aka the latest update, my app is completely unusable. Long story short the Niantic email 'help' bot thinks I was/am banned (I'm not) and won't actually give me any useful help, so I guess I'm just going to have to sit around and wait for the next update to drop to see if that fixes the problem.

Very annoyed that my lunch hour fun time and walks-in-the-park app is borked, especially right when an event happened.

Anyway once I can hopefully access the app again, I'll be sure to add my trainer code and good grief if there's anyone local I have so many trading tasks I need to complete, pleeeease. (I will forever be salty they don't allow long-distance pokemon trading.)

Entry tags:

Rearranging (Transformers [Bay Movies], Starscream & Mikaela Banes)

Title: Rearranging
Fandom: Transformers [Bay Movies]
Pairing/Characters: Starscream & Mikaela Banes
Content Notes: None
Prompt: September Eleven - 2 & 4 - weaving

Walk a Different Road is the backdrop

( Mikaela looked up at her Decepticon counterpart )

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parody

The Queen Haters - "I Hate the Bloody Queen" (1983)

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

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Library Update #9: Stuff Removal

Junkluggers Truck in My Driveway
iPhone 13 mini photo

I spent the end of last week and the weekend sorting stuff - moving some into piles and packing some into boxes. Boxes became piles, and some boxes were stacked in the family room. Space Tetris continues.

( Taming the Stuff )

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9/11/2025 WCRP Alvarado Staging Area / Picnic Area

U and I spent the morning in Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, first walking up from the parking area at Alvarado Staging Area to the Belgum Trail Gate. It's still early, and the only Fall migrants were two Yellow Warblers unless there were some Allen's or Rufous amongst the surprising number of hummingbirds we found feeding on flowering eucalyptus and bottlebrush. Ebird had to be reassured that U really meant the number of hummingbird sp she entered. Then we went down to the picnic area, where we had not only Yellow but a Townsend's Warbler, and a Warbling Vireo most likely just stopping to eat while on migration to Central America. We had a little rain a day or so ago but it hadn't done much for Wildcat Creek, and we didn't find anything around the few little pools. It was a good woodpecker and nuthatch day and of course there was a Red-shouldered Hawk flying and yelling. ( The morning's lists: )

It's the time of year when the American Crows start to gather. They were in the tops of some very tall eucalyptus, flying out in a loose flock and then returning. They made quite a racket in which a surprising number (to me ) of individual voices could be picked out. Crows are certainly interesting. Every so often I think about trying to befriend my locals but then come to my senses. I do not need that!

Current Music: Modern English, "I Melt with You"

I saw the world crashing all around your face

This afternoon my godchild's school was locked down because one of the students had a gun and the nineteenth and twentieth monarchs of the summer hatched. What am I supposed to say about the day itself? That I am reminded even without the martial canonization of a never-laid grief that nothing is easier to shovel under six feet of lime than memory? The last cousin of my grandparents' generation died earlier this week at nearly a century. The lines to the past snap fast enough, no one needs to hurry them along.

On that note, Andrew Kozma's "The Black Death" (2025). I like that Ulysses S. Grant is top of the list of historical characters Jared Harris wants to play, in part because of his civil rights commitments as president and as a counterweight to his negative figuration in the mythos of the Lost Cause. I need a door in the hall closet to BFI Southbank if they are going to keep doing inaccessibly tantalizing series like last year's complete Powell and Pressburger or, currently, Anna May Wong.

Entry tags:

daily

Daily Check-In

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Thursday, September 11, to midnight on Friday, September 12 (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #33602 Daily check-in poll

This poll is closed.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 28

How are you doing?

I am OK
16 (57.1%)

I am not OK, but don't need help right now
12 (42.9%)

I could use some help
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans live with you?

I am living single
12 (42.9%)

One other person
11 (39.3%)

More than one other person
5 (17.9%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

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[#044 – Earth] Patience and Quiet (Silmarillion, Lalaith & Tuor)

Creator: Zdenka
Title: Patience and Quiet
Rating: T
Type: Fic
Size/length/word count etc.: 1042 words
Prompt: #44 – Earth
Fandom/Ship: The Silmarillion - J.R.R. Tolkien, Lalaith & Tuor
Warnings: past child death, thralldom, non-graphic violence, domestic violence
Summary: In Dor-lómin, Tuor and Lady Aerin both dream of a golden-haired child. (Lalaith is doing her best, considering that she's a young child and also dead.)

Link: Here on AO3

Entry tags:

dear author

Dear FFFX Author

I use the same name everywhere so I am

beatrice_otter on AO3. Treats are awesome.

I would rather get a story you were happy with than "well, she said she liked x, so I guess I have to do x even though I don't like x and/or am not inspired that way." This letter is long with lots of suggestions and preferences if you find it helpful, but feel free to ignore it if it is not helpful. I'm fairly easy to please; I've been doing ficathons for over a decade and am usually very happy with my gifts.

The most important thing for me in a fic is that the characters are well-written and recognizably themselves. Even when I don't like a character, I don't go in for character-bashing. If nothing else, if the rest of this letter is too much or my kinks don't fit yours, just concentrate on writing a story with everyone in character and good spelling and grammar and I will almost certainly love what you come up with.

I have an embarrassment squick, which makes humor kind of hit-or-miss sometimes. The kind of humor where someone does something embarrassing and the audience is laughing at them makes me uncomfortable. On the other hand, the kind of humor where the audience is laughing with the characters I really enjoy.

General Likes and Dislikes

other things to keep in mind:

I like stuff that takes side characters and puts them center-stage, especially when the characters and/or actors are marginalized. I enjoy seeing them come to life.
I don't like it when marginalized characters get relegated to the sidekick/supporting/helper role so that it can be All About The White Dude.
I like it when female characters are more than just the Strong Female Character(tm) or The Nurturer.
I like fluff
I like angst with a happy ending
I like stories that make me think about things in a new way.
I like to know that culture matters to people, and to see how different cultures interact and where the clashes are.
I like unreliable narrators.
I like acknowledgment that different people can have different points of view without either of them being wrong.
I like stories that engage with problematic aspects of the source, and which deal with privilege in one way or another instead of sweeping it under the rug.
Worldbuilding is my jam, I am pretty much always up for explorations of why the world is the way it is. I love hearing about the economics, the politics, the religion, the clothing, the history, the folklore, all of that kind of stuff. And I want to know why it matters--how is all this cultural background stuff affecting the characters, the plot, everything. You don't have to do deep worldbuilding, but I'll enjoy it if you do.
I don't like it when plots hinge on characters being selectively stupid, or selectively unable to communicate. Like, if they are stupid or a himbo or whatever in general, or have problems communicating in general, that's fine! Or if they canonically have a blind spot in that area, again, it's fine. But if it's just "the only way I can think of for this plot to work is if the character spontaneously and temporarily loses half their intelligence and competence," then I'm going to spend the rest of the fic wondering why the character didn't just ____?
I like AUs, but not complete setting AUs (i.e. no highschool or college or coffee shop AUs, and especially not mundane AUs--nothing where you keep characters but drop most of the worldbuilding). I like fork-in-the-road type AUs, where one thing is different and the changes all result from that one thing, and you explore what might have been if such-and-such happened.
I like the concept of sedoretu marriages.
I like historical AUs, but only when the author actually knows the history period in question and does thoughtful worldbuilding to meld actual culture of the time with the canon.
Crackfic is really hit and miss for me, sometimes I love it and sometimes I can't stand it. Basically, if it's the characters we know and love in a ludicrous situation, that's great. If they're OOC or parodied in order to make something funny ... it's not funny to me.

I like plotty, gen stories, and plotty stories in general. I don't care for explicit sex, particularly when it's just thrown in for teh porn. I'm asexual; a lot of the time I don't even bother to read the sex scenes. Romance is awesome (as long as both are in character and the romantic plot doesn't hinge on one or both of them being an idiot). I love it when friendship is held up as important and not secondary to romantic relationships and blood ties.

Please no incest or darkfic. I define "darkfic" as stuff where there's a lot of suffering and no hope even at the end and all the characters are terrible. Angst with a happy ending is fine, I enjoy it, but there's gotta be a payoff. Even an ambiguous ending is fine! But there has to be some note of grace or redemption or hope somewhere, it can't just be "people are awful and the world sucks, the end." I define incest as siblings and/or parents, cousins don't count.

I love outsider perspectives and academic takes on things. In-universe meta (newspaper articles, academic monographs--especially with the sort of snarky feuding common in actual real-world academia, social media feeds in current day or future worlds) is awesome.

Also, I'm picky about European historical clothing details. You don't have to talk about it at all! In fact, if you don't know much about historical clothing, I would prefer if you didn't mention it at all. My pet peeve is corsets: no, they weren't a restrictive tool of the patriarchy, no, they didn't interfere with most women's daily lives, no, most women weren't wearing them so tight they couldn't breathe.

I like religion but I'm picky about it. Basically, Christianity is deeply weird compared to most other religions, and a lot of people whose only experience with religion is living in a culturally-Christian nation assume that what they know about Christianity is some sort of universal principle of What Religion Is Like, and that's just not the case. For example, in Christianity what you believe is more important than what you do. This is not to say we Christians don't teach and practice Christian ethics or have rituals we are very attached to, but rather that if you don't believe in Jesus Christ, it doesn't matter what rituals you participate in or what ethical things you do, you are not a Christian (although you may be a "cultural Christian"). Every Christian group has at least a minimal core theology that members must affirm, but participation in ritual is far less rigidly a requirement. Most other religions rank what you do (both ethically and ritually) as more important than what you believe, and it is often quite possible to be a member in good standing if you participate in the practices and rituals even if you believe none of the teachings. Anyway, point is, if you are doing worldbuilding for a fantasy or SF or otherwise non-Christian religion ... unless it is explicitly a Christian-analogue, it should be different from Christianity. Question your assumptions and see where that leads you, and I will be fascinated and thrilled.

( Fandom for Robots )

( Peter Wimsey )

( Rivers of London )

( DS9 )

( TOS )

( TNG )

( Oh, My General )

( Thrawn Trilogy )

( Goblin Emperor )

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Comments

I've been seeing a lot of people talking about the lack of comments. So, let's talk about it.

I have a few theories.

First: Are kudos being counted in this conversation? Because I think that makes a difference. It took me a long time to see kudos as comments, given that I'm a Fandom Old who remembers when you couldn't really hit fancy buttons. You had to hit reply, hope you were logged in, and type a comment. Over time, I've come to count them, but I still prefer comments. Especially on chapter fic. I've written chapter fic where I didn't receive many comments, and I wasn't sure if it was because people lost interest, or they'd used their one kudos and that was it. Like that one call from jail.

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, some of my theories:

I'm going to be an old fart here and blame phones. Okay, I give them only a small fraction of the blame. But here's the thing - going back to my fandom old days, people generally went online when they had time. Baby was napping, they were home from work, they were on their lunch break and lucky enough to have an oblivious boss who thought Livejournal was a news website, it was Sunday afternoon. Now I talk to friends on Evilbook Messenger who are in between soccer practice runs. People go online on the toilet. I actually think that's stilted internet communication in general; there really isn't a captive, attentive audience the way there was 20 years ago, or even ten years ago, really. (I feel like it was about ten years ago that people started using the internet on their phones regularly, and not just in times of desperation.)

The other issue with phones? They're hard for some of us (me) to type on. I'll own it, I have meant to leave a comment before, but I read the fic (or whatever else) on my phone, meant to comment when I could type something longer than "I'm at the restaurant got us a table", and it never happened.

I think in the case of some fandoms, they became active in 2020. What happened in 2020 that meant a lot of people weren't leaving their houses very much? Yup. And it seems to me that a lot of people really didn't become active again until early 2022. I know that while I was back in the office by late 2020, I wasn't seeing people in large quantities until early 2022. So that's two years of people being able to read and comment a lot more, before their lives went back to being busy.

Going along with this, in general, the fandom may have been inhabited by people who had time in the social distancing years, and then everyone moved on. And even if 2020-2022 has little to nothing to do with it, it is true that fandoms don't seem to have a very long lifespan these days. So it may just be that the fandom's gone stagnant.

Some people are afraid they'll comment the "wrong" way. It's weird to comment on older fics. Your comments need to be long. They can't be too long. Emojis are cringe. Among other worries.

While I realize you're supposed to "write for yourself", we can't deny that people like comments. They like feeling part of a community. Also, it's just nice when your work is appreciated. So, what can we do? I have a few ideas.

If you are one of those people who won't respond to things while you're on your phone, try marking for later, or emailing the fic to yourself.

I try commenting on chapter fics, if I've already used up one kudos. Please let people know you're still reading. If you're not reading at all because you don't read WIPs, may I suggest letting the writer know if you've interacted with them before? I'll be very honest here, I once almost trashed a WIP because no one was commenting.

Don't be afraid of commenting the "wrong way". People LOVE reviews on their old work. People don't care how long or short your review is. Emojis are adorbs. If the writer doesn't like it, welp, that's their problem.

What does everyone else think?

The Friday Five for 12 September 2025: Randomosity

These questions were originally suggested by

wownelwow.

1. What is your favourite fruit?

2. What is the last book you read?

3. Do you like any of your school photos?

4. Do you ever blowdry your armpits to get the deodorant to dry quicker?

5. What was the last film you watched?

Copy and paste to your own journal, then reply to this post with a link to your answers. If your journal is private or friends-only, you can post your full answers in the comments below.

If you'd like to suggest questions for a future Friday Five, then do so on DreamWidth or LiveJournal. Old sets that were used have been deleted, so we encourage you to suggest some more!

Entry tags:

Amnesty: All in the Subtext (Miraculous Ladybug/Batman:TAS)

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

[ SECRET POST #6824 ]

⌈ Secret Post #6824 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

01.

( More! )

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 17 secrets from Secret Submission Post #974.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Entry tags:

september stampede

September Stampede - Day 11

So sorry - I thought this month was going to be difficult, but I hadn't expected posts to be this far apart.

If you've been using the table and tackling something each day, feel free to tell us all about it today. If not here's the table and pick up with today's (or any other day that suits) and tell us about it when you can - use this post until I manage to get up to speed enough to make another one.

Wishing you well for the month and remember the aim of the month's challenges is that most can be adapted to fit what you need so if it says a 'flat surface', any type of flat surface will do - desks, worktops, floors, tables and so on. Similarly a vertical surface could be a window, a tiled wall, mirror or door.

This is supposed to be a low-stress challenge - if you miss a day, it doesn't matter, if the day's challenge doesn't suit, repeat the day before or start on the next day's. With the exception of two days, the challenges should take about 10 minutes, if you want to spend longer that's great, judge by your personal available time and energy.

To make it easier to take part and not be held up by time differences and days when I'm not able to post, all challenges will be posted in the table below the cut to aid both those taking part and the daily poster.

My biggest request for the month is that, whenever you can, you join in the chat - even if you haven't done the day's challenge come and cheer for others. We're here for the ups and downs this month so you can tell us when you're struggling as well as celebrate your successes.

( Daily Challenge Table shown below the cut )

And so today's challenge is to spend 10 minutes dealing with food.

Good luck and have a great September.

Recent Playing: Citizen Sleeper 2

Earlier this week I polished off Citizen Sleeper 2, sequel to the 2022 game Citizen Sleeper. This is a text-based RPG about a player character fleeing from what is effectively corporate slavery.

The protagonist, as in the first game, is a "sleeper"--an android imbued with the consciousness of a debtor to the corporation Essen-Arp. In order to pay off their debt, the original human goes into stasis and permits a copy of their mind to be put into the android, who then labors, free of charge, for Essen-Arp until the debt is paid. As in the first game, this sleeper escapes and is now on the run. Unlike the first game, the sleeper of 2 is fleeing not Essen-Arp themselves, but another individual who would use the sleeper for their own ends.

As a sequel, I think this game does an excellent job of sticking with what made the first game fun while not coming off too derivative from the first game. The beautiful graphics, music, and game design are still there, but with expanded focus: you can now travel to several different space ports. The themes of community-building, compassion, and resisting corporate cruelty are still present, but with a new cast with their own interesting stories. There are a few recurring characters from the first game, but not in a way that would be confusing if you skip 1 and start with 2.

2 has difficulty levels as well, if you'd like to crank things up or dial it back. I played on the standard level and found it pretty easy to manage resources. There's a new stress mechanic to incorporate into your strategy, and while off on certain quests, you can utilize team members for various tasks as well.

If I had any complaints, I would have liked to find out more about Laine, the man tracking the sleeper. While his motives are explained by the end, he himself remains a rather mysterious figure and it would have been nice to have a clearer picture of the sleeper's main enemy, particularly given their history. The themes can also be a little heavy-handed, but not so much that I found them obnoxious, and I'm always happy to interrogate the harm that unchecked corporate power exerts on society, particularly on those least able to fight back.

On the whole, as a fan of the first game, I was quite happy with this follow-up and I will definitely play it again.

Entry tags:

(no subject)

A good while ago I traveled to Oregon from CA for the Labor Day weekend. I took some kayak lessons. It seemed to me that the weather changed over the four days. Autumn came. Living here now I find that to be true. It’s overcast most days, there are sprinkles of rain with more coming up. Just like that, it’s Fall. The leaves are turning and soon we’ll be ankle deep in crinkley crunchy dry stuff.

I went to Trader Joe’s this week. I didn’t get all pumpkined out, though there’s that opportunity. Pumpkin is the only squash I’ll eat but only if there’s lots of sugar and cinnamon added. I did buy some maple almonds and they were good. I have to remind myself that TJ runs must be done first thing in the morning, else I feel the press of TOO MANY PEOPLE. Why must they stare at all the cheeses for such a lengthy time? Don’t they know the kind of cheese they like? Cheddar? Blue? Something to shred for pasta? Eventually I just cut and run.

I’m winding down the garden. It’s not been a great success. The zinnias were great though. They’re on the roster for repeat. I’m saving money to have somebody really help me next year. There are some godawful, ugly bushes out there.

I also attended the monthly meeting at the Mobile Park clubhouse for the first time. I’m not good with strangers but a nice man did engage me in conversation. I learned that contrary to what I thought, we don’t have a swimming pool. Upkeep was too expensive and they turned it into a patio that gets more use. I did get the card that opens the back gate, which I was hoping to score. If I go again I will try to get info on good garden people.

We’re so happy to be a source of your information. The schmoop article for those who are curi

https://fanlore-wiki.tumblr.com/post/794426169065963520

mahikamihan:

TIL schmoop is an old fanfic term for something extra fluffy

We’re so happy to be a source of your information. The schmoop article for those who are curious.

https://fanlore-wiki.tumblr.com/post/794426169065963520

Entry tags:

rl_25

(no subject)

Well, that was A Day. Starting with A Night. Bed early because alarm set for 9 and then couldn't sleep and then leg cramps (more magnesium!) and then mosquito bites itched and then recurring nightmare of stabbing to death not only my HS best buddy but her brother-in-law as well. And then it was 7:30 and I knew if I went back to sleep the alarm would rip me awake and I'd feel exhausted for the rest of the day. So I did an hour of stretch and strengthen instead, got up and had breakfast etc etc, brushed teeth and waited for cab. Who arrived early and even with traffic got me to the dentist in 25 minutes. Wasted time in Shoppers and then had a 90+ minute appointment where she sawed off my crown and cleaned the cavity under it and put a temporary crown on it and told me not to drink anything hot until the freezing wore off and to chew on the other side.

I had a vague notion of maybe walking up to Canadian Tire and looking at tree loppers, or taking the subway up to Yonge and walking from there, or something. But warm humid September, that sleep-deprived night, and 90 minutes in a dentist's chair meant everything hurt, and what didn't hurt was stiff. So went over to University to get the subway up to St George, and thence to Bathurst for sushi. But the sign said the Bathurst elevators weren't working. OK, I'll have sushi at Spadina then. But the sign said the Spadina elevators weren't working either. Which meant going to Ossington and walking back. And if I have to go to Ossington, by god I'm going to have my yearly Big Mac there, and damn both the calories and the boycott. Which did, but it was still a weary walk home, and the whole thing got me a bare 5000 steps.

I trust I will sleep well tonight.