Crafting tonight

Dec. 15th, 2025 02:14 pm
unicornduke: (Default)
[personal profile] unicornduke
Hey all, if you'd like to join the crafting hangout, it is tonight from 6-8pm ET!
 
Video encouraged but not required!
 
Topic: Crafting Hangout
Time: Mondays 6:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
Join Zoom Meeting
 
Meeting ID: 973 2674 2763

Attempted socialing and work work

Dec. 15th, 2025 08:03 am
unicornduke: (Default)
[personal profile] unicornduke
I attempted to do social things twice this weekend and neither attempt happened. Saturday was an SCA event, but I looked at the weather and our wood levels and decided that I needed to split wood on Saturday instead. It was the only day that even approached near freezing, it hovered around 30F with only a little wind. In contrast, yesterday was 25F with 10-20 mph winds. Freezing cold, I was displeased, today is also supposed to be windy.

So Saturday, I split wood. I had to chainsaw a lot of the logs as I went since the bobcat can only pick up 16 foot lengths and the logs we had delivered were 32. That warmed me up nicely for sure. Nothing wanted to start and run well since it was so chilly first thing in the morning. Once I did that, I started with our outdoor burner wood, I split big logs into big chunks in the back of the dump trailer. This is probably two weeks of wood. We split this pretty much as big as we can lift, although I like a eight inch diameter log to be split in half for ease of throwing into the burner. Once it gets heavier, it is hard to throw it to the back of the burner. 

A green dump trailer heaped full of split wood.

cut for more wood info and house renovation fun )

and the hits just keep coming

Dec. 15th, 2025 09:15 am
tielan: (don't make me shoot you)
[personal profile] tielan
Work is gonna be slightly stressful the next three weeks. Apart from managing two systems until mid-January (and three for the 10 days after Christmas), they've instigated KPIs on basic tickets, and at least two of mine went overtime, in part because I was waiting for someone to get back to me. *grr*

I hate waiting for people to get back to me.

--

The shooting at Bondi Beach - a public Channukah event was targeted, one of the shooters was non-white, one of the members of the public who disarmed him (and was shot twice but survived) was middle eastern. Reports debate whether he was a Christian or a Muslim: the name suggests Muslim, his country background suggests Christian. Of course the cookers are already calling for a halt to immigration and trying to start up the culture wars again, the conservatives are yelling at our PM (centrist party), and the "anti-semitism adjudicator" has once again used this to basically declare that if you're not 100% for Israel in everything then you're antisemitic.

a few thoughts

It shouldn't need saying but we say it all the same.

Was the shooting at Bondi antisemitic? Absolutely.

Is disavowing Israel's actions in the West Bank and Gaza in the removal of/bombing of/cruelty towards Palestinian locals antisemitic? Not even close.

I'm hoping Ahmed el Ahmed is Muslim, at the very least for the optics. Nevertheless, whatever his background, he's definitely a hero to the majority of Australians, and I suspect the fruit shop he runs will be well-frequented in the coming months and he will never need to pay for a meal while out for the rest of the summer.

Whatever faith or origins are revealed of any of the players, this was an awful day for all Australians who aren't cookers (Americans would call them RWNJs). Fear breeds distrust, and events like this breed both copycats and retaliation, and tear at the fragile fabric of our communities and our societies.

And the gun control argument is going to be so fucking stupid, too. The 2A Seppos are all in our faces jeering about us having gun violence, too, and the old "good guy with a gun" shit is coming out of the woodwork - never mind how many people are pointing out that the guy who did successfully disarm one of the gunmen wasn't armed. And the cookers just want violence to justify their itty bitty penii and their terrible self-esteem (cause they can't get jobs when the coloureds take the opportunities)...

God have mercy on us. All of us.


--

A friend tested positive for COVID after we had dinner together (with some other friends) on Saturday night. She thinks she got it at her work Christmas Party on Thursday.

--

I'm standing for the presidency of my permaculture club again, with an eye to changing the way things are done - they're not working for us as a volunteer-based organisation anymore.

Of course, the COVID diagnosis means I'm not going to tonight's meeting with the election. I'll try to put together a short video talking about the forward vision for the club. IDEK.

Short TV show review: Andor

Dec. 14th, 2025 11:11 pm
dhampyresa: (A most terrible case of the Star Wars)
[personal profile] dhampyresa
I really enjoyed watching Andor, overall. I did think there were a few places where the pacing dragged a bit and it wasn't as mindblowingly great as the hype made it sound like it would be, but it was still very good! The bits on Ghorman were kind of annoying because the Ghor language sounds so much like French but isn't French, I felt like I was taking crazy pills hahaha. Favourite episode was either the prison break or the Kleya flashbacks episode. I agressively Did Not Care about Syril or his mother, but every other character was at least interesting. I love Cassian, Vel and Cinta, but I think Kleya might be my favourite. I want to rewatch Rogue One, now.

I feel Accomplished

Dec. 13th, 2025 06:07 pm
jennaria: Chihiro from SPIRITED AWAY (Chihiro)
[personal profile] jennaria
I have finished the first draft of my Yuletide pinch-hit (which is, yet again, in a fandom I have never written before, or at least one I've never posted to AO3 - go me?). I'm sure the feeling will fade once the beta-readers have gone over it, and I go back to put in all the bits I thought were in there to begin with but didn't actually make it out of my brain, but for now, I'll enjoy the feeling.

Also we have our Christmas tree up and decorated. Other Christmas decorations, not so much, but then our celebration of Christmas isn't so much Actual Holiday as it is Oh Thank Fuck The Semester's Over And We Have Time Off, with a side of movies and Chinese food.

Next up: finishing my Secret Santa gift. Maybe put on some nice seasonal murder while I embroider. :-D
snickfic: retro art with text: rocket power (mood sf)
[personal profile] snickfic
All Systems Red (2017) by Martha Wells. A humanoid cyborg created to do wet work jobs finds itself giving a shit about a human research team it's supposed to be protecting on an alien planet.

I can see why people love Murderbot itself; it's a big old angst bucket desperately trying to pretend it isn't one. I've seen people characterize this type as an iron woobie, and it's fandom catnip.

However, I did not connect with any other part of this novella. It's so damn insubstantial. There are other characters, but they're mostly indistinguishable. There's a strong whiff of claustrophobic found family that made me DNF the one Becky Chambers book I tried, with the same element of "the one character who doesn't buy in without question is treated as an antagonist." There's some worldbuilding, but extremely thinly drawn. The prose is conversational, which can work great in a lot of cases but here just feels like one more missed opportunity to give me anything I might be interested in.

I've read a lot of pro SFF novellas over the years, and I genuinely can't think of one that felt less deserving of its length than this one. You can pack a lot of thoughts and ideas into a novella! But this didn't even try. If it'd been a third of the wordcount, I probably would have liked it pretty well.

I've heard the second and third in the series are the best, and I might try them at some point, but tbh I think I'd have better luck with the show, which at least has real actors to lend some weight and complexity to the characters.

--

The Tainted Cup (2024) and A Drop of Corruption (2025) by Robert Jackson Bennett. The first two books of his Shadow of the Leviathan series, a Sherlock and Holmes riff (or possibly a Nero Wolfe and Archie riff) about an idiosyncratic middle-aged(?) female savant and her long-suffering young gay assistant solving murders in a fantasy world where basically all technology is organic in some way.

These were great fun. Bennett seems really into both cosmic horror (the "leviathans" of the series are mountain-sized monsters that crawl out of the sea and wreak havoc every wet season) and body horror (more terrible plant-related things happening to bodies than you can shake a stick at). Even when this world is running the way everyone wants, it's still so damn weird (complimentary). Augmentations that turn your skin purple and gray! Immortality treatments that stop aging and cause you to just grow forever, like an iguana! The augurs in the second book who pattern-match to such a degree that they can't handle spoken communication: A++, and they reminded me a bit of parts of Anathem.

Ana Dolabra, the foul-mouthed savant detective is far and away the best part. Her assistant Din Kol, from whose perspective the stories are written, is a real sad sack, both due to circumstances and apparently innate temperament, and sometimes that can be a bit of a drag. I also felt like his renewal of purpose in A Drop of Corruption came way too easily; it almost felt like it happened off screen.

Overall, though, these are just a great time. It sounds like Bennett is on a roll, and I can't wait for the next one.
sholio: Gurathin from Murderbot looking soft and wondering (Murderbot-Gura)
[personal profile] sholio
As I don't have the bandwidth for a lot of reccing tonight, here are two quick recs of short Murderbot friendship gen from the last couple of days that I enjoyed. Both of these are more bookverse than show-based.

Ransom by [archiveofourown.org profile] BoldlyNo (400 wds, Gurathin-centric)
Augment-based ransomware! What a terrible/brilliant idea. This is short but complete-feeling and satisfyingly whumpy.

The Truth, Bitter as It Is by [archiveofourown.org profile] HonorH (900 wds, Gurathin & Murderbot)
An even worse truth comes out about Ganaka Pit. I went into this fic worried that it would be terribly depressing, but it's not; it is much sweeter and kinder than it has to be.

A couple of links

Dec. 12th, 2025 03:51 pm
sholio: Hand outlines on a cave wall (Cave painting-Hands)
[personal profile] sholio
[personal profile] amperslashexchange just announced a collection delay and still needs pinch hitters! See if there's anything you can pick up here - there are some with bigger fandoms as well as some small fandoms.

Romance author Fern Michaels died recently, and I enjoyed reading this old article from early in her career (NYT archive article from 1978, not sure if it's paywalled). I didn't know that Fern Michaels started off as a writing duo of two different women! Apparently the one who eventually became "the" Fern Michaels took over the pen name later, but at the point this article was written, they only had three books out. The article is not at all disrespectful, and I was interested in the details of how the two women chose to position themselves in the market, which reminded me of our brainstorming process for Zoe a bit:

“There used to be a market for the little 60,000‐word romance with no plot,” Mrs. Anderson said, “but our publisher has become very demanding.”

Fern Michaels's books usually end up containing about 250,000 words.

Mrs. Anderson credits the success of the books to the authors’ attitude about women. As she put it:

“We don't have women love men who brutalize, beat and brand them. Our women don't put up with that.”


Anyway, I enjoyed this look at the state of the genre circa 1978, as well as the very early days of an author (or authors) who became a powerhouse in the 1980s-2000s romance scene.

movies: Wicked 2, Dust Bunny

Dec. 12th, 2025 04:56 pm
snickfic: Yon-Rogg has Carol in an arm lock (Carol why this)
[personal profile] snickfic
Dust Bunny (2025). A little girl hires a hit man (Mads Mikkelsen) who lives across the hall to kill a monster under her bed. Or, Roald Dahl meets John Wick.

This is listed as a "horror thriller," which I guess is true in the same sense that the Barbie movie is a "political drama." I would be more inclined to call this a dark fantasy/action movie. It's also rated R, and I legitimately do not know why; this is like a mid-tier PG-13. I kept waiting for things to get gory and justify the rating, and they never did, so I recommend managing your expectations on that front.

The aesthetic here goes extremely hard. Their apartment building is an absolutely incredible art nouveau confection. We visit other locales with similarly heightened decor, but honestly nothing is nearly as visually stunning, which I think is fine, because the apartment building is the heart of the movie.

The acting here is all extremely good. In addition to Mikkelsen and the child actress, who is fantastic, we also have Sigourney Weaver, David Dastmalchian, and someone I didn't know named Sheila Atim who is delightful.

This is fun ride and great time. I spent most of the movie having absolutely no idea where it would go next. If any of this piques your interest, I definitely recommend it.

--

Wicked: For Good (2025). First, props, the subtitling is clever. Anyway, this is the second half of the story of a good witch and a bad witch fighting/collaborating with the machine while pining for each other and also some guy who's just kind of there.

Honestly, "just kind of there" describes a lot of this movie. It doesn't really expand on any of the political motivation from the first movie, so I had trouble remembering exactly WHY the wizard and his henchwoman have decided to demonize the animals and by extension their defender Elphaba. Fiyero the awkward third wheel, whom I actually found quite charming in the first movie, got almost nothing to do here. No animal character got any kind of significant development; the closest we got was one of the flying monkeys, who didn't even get any lines for plot reasons. There's a subplot involving Elphaba's disabled sister becoming increasingly more unhinged and embittered by her romantic disappointment and probably ableist society at large, but then, you know, she dies from a house falling on her, so that's the end of that. There's a Big Reveal about Elphaba's parentage that literally everyone saw coming, but which Elphaba herself doesn't even get to find out about or react to. There are barely even any big musical set pieces and basically no dance choreography at all. The only song that made a real impression on me was Elphaba's big heel turn song No Good Deed, and I hear from the theater folks that it was kind of weaksauce compared to the live musical version.

All that said, this is the Elphaba and Glinda show, and they're great, honestly. Ariana Grande's comic timing is impeccable. The pining truly is spectacular; there's an amazing scene towards the end that must be seen to be believed. The shippers feasted.

one room done!!!

Dec. 12th, 2025 06:44 pm
unicornduke: (Default)
[personal profile] unicornduke
The office has been emptied! This is very exciting! My dad and I spent this afternoon transferring their office stuff from the farmhouse to the spare bedroom at the fun house. It was three not very full truck bed loads with the worst thing being dad's desk which could and was disassembled for travel and the countertop that was mom's desk. That was a custom cut length of particle board countertop with a backsplash. 

They set up a temporary office in the spare bedroom because they still haven't finish the actual office but honestly, that is not my problem. I mean, it is kinda. But they said they were willing to do it like this and I believe them. 

But we got everything over there and they are currently over there setting up their computers and all that jazz.

I have been contemplating the room. 

The house layout is a C with the backdoor/main entry into the kitchen at one end of the C, then my future office + bathroom, the living room with the wood stove and then the old office at the end of the C. It will be my crafting room. Wait, let me MS paint this for better view

A terrible looking MS paint image of the house layout
beautiful, I am an architect.

this house layout is so nonsensical because the original house was actually only the sections labeled "my future office" and "living room" and they slapped on the left half later with a proper concrete basement instead of stone farmhouse basement, and the back porch/pantry/bathroom again later but they (previous owners before my parents) only put an uninsulated (literal) crawlspace below that so the bathroom is in danger of freezing pipes when it gets below zero even if the rest of the house is warm enough. 

The room is a good one for crafting because I will have my loom there and that takes up space and also my many spinning wheels. Very pleased with it. I don't mind my office being a through fare because it'll just be me for now and desks can be set against walls. I wasn't planning to make any changes to the crafting room because I wanted to get things in there but now that almost everything is out of it, I think I want to make changes. Sigh. 

The walls are a tan color that has changed to more of a peachy cream. They haven't been painted since we moved into the house in 2000. We had dogs that clearly slept against one wall because it is brown. It is dinged up all over. And also I don't like the peachy cream. So I guess I need to paint it. And I kinda knew that. I have picked out a light purple/blue that looks nice. But I'm also looking at the carpet. And the carpet is nasty. And worn. You can see where my dad had his office chair. The desk feet have left indents that much have fully compressed the carpet and under carpet to mush because the vacuum couldn't get the dust out of the indents. 

I don't waaaaanna tear the carpet out and sand the floors and refinish them. But the only thing in the room right now is a big shelf and if I'm going to do it, now might be the time. Arg. 

Someday I want to make big changes to the whole thing including tearing out the rest of the carpet, refinishing all the floors, making a pathway directly from the kitchen to the living room through the basement stairwell (only a problem because there's a chimney in the wall there somewhere), the entire back addition of backporch/pantry/bathroom needs to be torn off the house and rebuilt with insulation and turn it into a mudroom/bathroom, wall off my office so it can be accessed from the mudroom without going through the kitchen.

But for now, maybe just painting and getting the carpet out. 

Friday Five - 12/12/25

Dec. 12th, 2025 11:17 pm
renfys: (Voy - Janeway - Bwah ha ha)
[personal profile] renfys

1. Did you get an allowance as a kid, and if so, how much was it?

My dad gave me a fiver a week that he put into a bank account I had. First it was with Leeds, then the Abbey National. I saved it mostly until I was a teenager, and then I mostly used it to go out with my friend Lisa Taylor. In sixth form every Tuesday we went to see the new film at the Commodore and then played air hockey at the Peir until the last bus. We went regardless of what film was playing and we watched some doozies lol. My mum gave me £2.50 every week on Monday to suppliment my free school meals allowance. 

2. How old were you when you had your first job, and what was it?
I was 16 and babysitting for the Moore-Colliers. My mum cleaned their house and they were both academics of some sort. Mrs Moore-Collier often worked in Edinborough and was away so I babysat for Mr Moore-Collier. They had two boys who were easy to look after and then Mr Moore-Collier would come home drunk more often and not, shove some money in my hand and send me home in the taxi that had brought him home. Mrs Moore-Colliar paid me exactly what she said she would, lol. 

3. Which do you do better: save money or spend money?
Spend. I used to be better at saving, when I was a kid, but I dunno, I got some independance. I can save for big purchases, like my bow and other stuff. But also, I sold some stuff on Vinted and have already spent the money before I got it.

4. Are people more likely to borrow money from you, or are you more likely to borrow from them?
I am more likely to borrow money. Definitely.

5. What's the most expensive thing you've ever bought?
My wife's cars. And my printer. It's an Epson Eco-tank 8550. My bow and extras cost less than 300 all told. 

Random Neolithic Stones on a Friday

Dec. 12th, 2025 06:59 pm
purplecat: Averbury Stone Circle.  A large stone close by and smaller markers leading away. (General:Prehistory)
[personal profile] purplecat

The toes of two booted feet resting against a ledge insdie the carved out interior of a stone.  The entrance can be seen to the right.
The Dwarfie Stane, Orkney
[personal profile] fardell24
“Why wouldn’t I?” Anders asked as she allowed Fields in. “Your boss has ruined my career! Interviewing SpiderGirl was going to be a stepping stone, but now it’s a stumbling block.”

“I guess that’s one reason why I’m here.”

“Why did he send you?”

“He didn’t tell me,” Fields answered as they arrived in the kitchen.

“Figures,” Anders said as she picked up a wine glass from the cupboard. “You want some?” she asked as she lifted the bottle, which Fields recognised was from a local vineyard.

Fields shook her head. “I’m working.”

“Of course,” Anders said as she took a sip.

“I think you have had enough.”

“You can’t tell me what to do!”

“I feel guilty too!” Fields said. “But I’m not crawling into a bottle!”

“I’m not you!”

“No, but drinking yourself silly isn’t the way to deal with your situation. Osborn may have come up with a way salvage your situation.”

Anders took a swig and grimaced as she did so. “So, I would be in even more debt to him? You don’t sound like you believe him.”

“I know, but I also need this Oscorp job. I don’t want to go back to New York to live with my parents as I search for another job. Besides I have settled into Lawndale.”

Anders was quiet and was starring at her glass.

Read More )

updatish

Dec. 12th, 2025 10:27 am
mergatrude: Steve and Sam, text = "if they're shooting at you, they're the bad guys" (CA2 - if they're shooting at you)
[personal profile] mergatrude
My handwritten daily journal is as empty as this DW one. I haven't really wanted to write about anything while dealing with the ongoing restructure at work. It's a lot of energy and emotions and attention. *breathes in pink, breathes out blue*

Reading: I noped out of two audio books recently. cut for rambling )

At a local bookshop I like browsing titles and then checking them out at the library. Recently, I was intrigued by The Seeker and the Sage, by Brigid Delaney. It's an introduction to Stocism, and listening to it has been a good reminder that I am the source of at least half of my suffering. *g* The audio book is enjoyable, even if I want to roll my eyes at the woman a good two thirds of the time.

I also browsed Plain life: on thinking, feeling and deciding by Antonia Pont, but I haven't managed to open it yet, due to all my reserves coming in at once (again!) and me being overwhelmed.

The only other book I have opened is one on making friendship bracelets. I want to make some as gifts for my work colleagues, given that we won't be working together once the changes are implemented.

Watching: Dude and I continue to inch our way through season 5 of Super Store, not missing Amy as much as we thought we might. We also watched Stranger Things 5, Part 1 and are okay with it. The Honest Trailers video is (as usual) pretty spot on.

Gaming: I haven't been playing much on my own. Dude bought Sonic Racing Crossworlds so we've been playing that (is it better than Mario Kart? Maybe?), as well as Sackboy: A Big Adventure. It's adorable! I've also been sucked back into Merge Dragons, though am avoiding spending money on it.

things and bits

Dec. 12th, 2025 08:50 am
tielan: (Merlin - merlin)
[personal profile] tielan
Well, darn.

I found a way to access my old LJ albums, but then discovered the pics I really wanted were stored on my personal website which...I think I relinquished access to back around 2012, and which was never archived...

DAMMIT.

I didn't think to download it before they went bye byes.

There's a part of me that wonders if I have the old HDs which contained photos from...oh, a decade ago, plus probably change.

Anyway, reading through my old LJ entries has been a blast. So many people, many of whom vanished from the intarwebs, some of whom may have renamed and just not kept up, some of whom I am vaguely in contact with...and some of who have migrated over to DW and are still here!

Amazing.

--

So cousin will not be doing Christmas at his place this year - it's an 'off' year with his wife's family. So we are no-go for Christmas Day.

My options are:
1. Quietly do nothing.
2. Volunteer.
3. Offer to host for 'orphans'

I will most likely end up at #1.

It's a bit late to volunteer, and I asked a friend (birthday twin) who has no family here in Sydney if she and her family would like to come around for Christmas lunch, but she has guests and a lot of things are up in the air for her. I might put up an invite for a local 'host a sister' meet up, but I doubt that anyone will want to meet with a stranger on Christmas Day.

It might be time to accept that the 'relatives Christmas' will only be happening every second year from now on and to plan accordingly. *sigh*

Year in review and next year's plans

Dec. 11th, 2025 12:23 pm
sholio: glittery Christmas ornaments (Christmas ornament 2)
[personal profile] sholio
I normally do this at the end of the year, but I'm doing it early this year because I'll be out of town 'til the 27th, and I don't really expect much to change; all my publications for the year are publicated. See the tag for previous years' updates!

This year's cover grid:

grid of 6 covers

3 full-length novels, 2 novellas, 1 collection. That's honestly much better than I was expecting; I spent most of the year clawing my way back from burnout, and the final two books were slammed out at the end of the year when suddenly my creative brain came back online.

Checking in with last year's plan )

Next year's plans )

Edited to add: one more thing )

Babylon 5 fic: Movie Nights

Dec. 11th, 2025 01:46 am
sholio: (B5-station)
[personal profile] sholio
I finished something I started a while back!

Movie Nights (2735 words) - Babylon 5, seasons one to five
Summary: Just a bunch of aliens getting hooked on each other's trashy serial media.

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