| OMG Victor Garber |
[Jan. 6th, 2010|08:32 pm] |
So, my TiVo recorded "The Martha Stewart Show" for me today. Why did you do that, Tivo, I thought, before seeing the episode is entitled "Stir Fry Recipes; Victor Garber." I begin watching to see that, in the intro, Martha and Victor are among the group sitting on stage with a GIANT BOA CONSTRICTOR in their laps, and Victor has a look on his face that is totally, "Why show business? Why not podiatry? Jesus, why not anything that would not involve sitting here with a HUGE DAMN SNAKE in my lap oh Martha shut up." And I am filled with love.
ETA: Late in the episode -- "Next, Victor Garber joins Martha in the craft room to make a decorative plant stand for your home!" My cup runneth over. |
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| "The End of Time," reaction post the last |
[Jan. 4th, 2010|02:32 pm] |
I didn't watch until last night, so here are my thoughts, for what they're worth -- and I appear to have been less enthused than most of my flist --
( The End of Time )
Yesterday, I also watched "The Princess & The Frog," which I can say in a nonspoilery way that I quite enjoyed. ( things to say in a spoilery way )
My love for Wii Fit is truly vast. The workout is actually quite solid, and so far, I do it every day, not out of a sense of obligation or even determination but because it's so much fun. |
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| Yuletide reveal time! |
[Jan. 1st, 2010|02:02 pm] |
I wrote "Their Last Night of Love: A Special Verity Presentation, Exclusively for Preferred Customers", a HUNGER GAMES story set squarely in the middle of CATCHING FIRE. It's not a very big fandom, so I figured it would fly under the radar, but I had not realized it would fly under the radar of its recipient as well. Alas. But I had a tremendous amount of fun writing it, and going through beta with the tireless ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) rheanna27 and the insightful miladygrey, so all is well.
I wasn't out all that late last night, and yet I slept like a dead thing until 1 pm. Yeesh. Now I have a lot to do and only half a day in which to do it -- |
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| da da da da, feelin' groovy -- |
[Dec. 30th, 2009|08:48 pm] |
Hello everyone! I am back home from a Christmas celebration that was, frankly, rather lackluster; still, nobody had an argument and everybody's still alive, so we must chalk it up as a win. The report on overnighting via an Amtrak roomette is strongly positive -- I would rather do this than fly any day. The roomette is private and, while not exactly huge, certainly large enough to sleep in comfortably. (Or, as I did the morning of my return to Chicago, to prop up in 'bed' while reading a book and looking out the window at the falling snow.)
Yuletide! My story, a "Fringe" tale entitled "Frozen", is precisely what I asked for -- Peter and Olivia UST, with a side of Walter and Astrid. I would issue that challenge about guessing which story I wrote, except none of you will ever guess. (No fair competing if I told you already!) I've also put quite a few more stories up on AO3. One question, though: On two of the multi-chapter stories I posted ("What Julia Knew" and "Irenicon," to be precise), the archive kept careful track of my chaptering until the end, when it decided that I had posted 8 or 26 chapters of (?). No matter how many times I keep going in to edit, to indicate that yes, these are all the chapters there are, the archive stubbornly insists these stories are not completed. This is doubly frustrating b/c the stories have been complete for years. Anybody else run into this, and know of a fix?
My brother sent me a Wii, not for Christmas, make up for the fact that he kind of, sort of forgot my birthday for 15 years in a row. All is forgiven now, needless to say. Right after Christmas, I hit the used-game racks and picked up, among other things, Wii Fit (complete with secondhand board), which I just love. And I can actually feel that I've had a good workout, not something I would've expected from hula hooping or the downhill slalom. What other Wii games do you guys particularly recommend? (Naturally, I will be getting Beatles Rock Band, though I think that has to wait for a special occasion.)
This cannot now be unseen. Should any of you choose to fic it, it is probable that my love for you will never die. |
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| riding the rails! |
[Dec. 21st, 2009|04:34 pm] |
Soon I will set out for Union Station, therefore to catch the overnight train home for Christmas. I have ponied up for a "roomette" (has a door that locks = works for me); it cost about the same as the air ticket, and my hope is that this will be much more civilized than the annual airport melee. I should be able to get into my roomette, maybe get dinner from the dining cart, read a little and go to sleep -- to awaken the next morning in Mississippi. Will it actually work that nicely? Not sure, but here's hoping. I shall report!
My Yuletide story is posted (as well as about 35 other stories of mine -- only the tip of the iceberg, but if you're looking for any golden oldies, you might well find them there) at the Archive of Our Own. If you are my ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) yuletide author, I must tell you now that I will be in the land of dial-up until Dec. 27, and my Mom's response to seeing me sign on the computer is to come sit directly by me and read over my shoulder, meaning I'm not going to see the story until the 27th. But I am looking forward to it.
May everyone have a wonderful holiday! |
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| HELLO SAILOR |
[Dec. 18th, 2009|05:30 pm] |
The actor cast as the male lead in JJ Abrams' new show "Undercovers" is highly relevant to my interests.
In other news, I had a friend over for dinner last night, and we thought hung out talking until about 11:30 pm. In fact we had hung out talking until about 2 am. So I got a late start today, but have still had time to break out my new hand mixer/cooling rack/cookie sheets to get many Christmas cookies ready for tonight. Is there anything nicer than walking into an apartment that smells like fresh-baked cookies?
Well, maybe something. |
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| FIRST DRAFT FIRST DRAFT FIRST DRAFT |
[Dec. 16th, 2009|11:45 pm] |
Finally! I bundled myself off to the local coffeehouse today with the intention of not leaving until I had (a) finished the first draft of Vampire Book the Fourth, or (b) the place closed. 7 1/2 hours later -- 20 minutes before closing -- I was done. This draft is very very rough, but I think I already know what I have to do on the rewrites. And I am giving myself a couple days to clean house, restore something like a normal human sleep pattern, and hang out with fun people (such as the estimable lilrongal and the ingenious taraljc) before diving back in. Right now I am just happy, relieved and fuzzy-blissful in the way that only a minibottle of cheap champagne from the supermarket can provide.
I then commenced an orgy of celebration, which in my middle-agedness consists of watching a lot of HGTV. I hope to buy a place in just over a year, and I honestly think I'm learning a lot. Seriously, about 1/2 of these home-buying shows seem to take place in Chicago. In the new year, I am going to try to go to a bunch of open houses, not with serious intent to buy, but just to get a very solid idea of what the market's like. It had also occurred to me to go to my bank and say, I'm not looking for a mortgage now, but I will be in one year; what can I do now to make sure I get the best terms then -- has anybody done something like that?
Man, if I ever take a book this close to deadline again, you have permission to shoot me. You also have permission to shoot me if I write another book series with tons of magical items, the location of which you have to specify at all these different important bits of the story. I spent a solid thirty minutes today snarled up looking for a bracelet. |
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| first drafts, Chicago winter, "Vampire Diaries" pimpage |
[Dec. 14th, 2009|03:29 pm] |
After a cold snap late last week, it's been over freezing the past couple of days -- up to about 40 yesterday, which in most cities would have people griping about the cold but in Chicago appears to prompt the locals to break out bermuda shorts, BBQ grills and daiquiris, while everyone sings "Lime in the Coconut." I fear no weather evil, for I have my new puffer coat, and lo it is toasty, even if it does make me look like an enormous shmoo.
The first draft is ... still not done! But I am closing in on it. The section I wrote this morning actually loads me right into the big finale, and I am finally feeling that surge of energy that comes only right at the end. Good lord willing and the crick don't rise, I'll have a first draft on Wednesday, after which there will be much rejoicing and some baking of Christmas cookies. (The recipe involves white chocolate chips, pecans and dried cranberries. Anticipation is high.) Then there will be EXTENSIVE REWRITES, but I'll deal with that when I get to it.
As you may have seen, the CW is reshowing all the episodes of "The Vampire Diaries" during primetime this week. If your usual shows are now on hiatus, and you had any curiosity about this program, I strongly suggest putting your DVR in overdrive and catching up. This series was my biggest surprise of the year -- after three generically soapy episodes, they began developing an interesting storyline with twists and turns I haven't seen before. The characters are generally pretty strong, Ian Somerholder is having the most fun you can imagine as Damon, the women are interesting in their own right and, while obviously romantically interested in hot young vampires. have priorities beyond romance or high-school pettiness, and I'm really curious to see where they go next. Give it a chance! Even if you respond to nothing else, I can promise hot young vampire brothers who seem to need to change shirts multiple times a day, usually onscreen. Also, despite being a biped, Ian Somerholder turns out to be able to slither. It's uncanny.
Despite the mad first draft rush, I have managed to get my yuletide story to beta. Woohoo!
Happy birthday, rheanna27! |
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| 12 days of userinfo Christmas |
[Dec. 8th, 2009|10:39 pm] |
On the twelfth day of Christmas,  yahtzee63 sent to me... Twelve pugs drumming Eleven itunes piping Ten alias a-leaping Nine movies dancing Eight vampires a-milking Seven drabbles a-writing Six musicals a-moonlighting Five cla-a-a-assic films Four upstairs downstairs Three i claudius Two nadia santos ...and a fiestaware in an ugly betty.
Still in the heart of book madness. I WILL finish this thing by Sunday at the latest. No matter how wiggy I get. |
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| snowflakes! |
[Dec. 7th, 2009|01:20 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | meme answers | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  grateful | ] |
| [ | music |
| | "Safe in My Lover's Arms," Bering Strait (which is not an answer to the meme) | ] |
Thank you to everyone for the pretty snowflakes! I am most pleased. :D
Right now I am living in Crazytown. The book fair went very well, though I worked a lot harder than I'd realized; thank goodness I had a really good interpreter, because otherwise I think I'd have gone crazy. I want to get the draft of my fourth book done done done done DONE before Christmas, because it's been driving me crazy for eternity now, but in order to do this I essentially have to drop off the radar until, well, Christmas.
But! I am still wide awake at 1 a.m., and thus I shall do a meme. Taken from the delightful nextian:
1. Put your iPod on shuffle
2. DO NOT write down the lyrics of the first 15-20 songs to come up. (I only did 10 -- it's late!)
3. Describe what the song is about. Be creative.
4. Cross out the songs when your friends guess them in the comments.
( I never said I had taste )
This meme mostly taught me how many instrumentals I have. I had to scroll through about 30 songs to get 10 with lyrics. |
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| hand issues, travel a go-go |
[Nov. 30th, 2009|01:30 pm] |
Got back from Mississippi Thanksgiving on Friday evening, with a raging head cold that is only now in partial abeyance -- and tomorrow morning I leave for Mexico, to sing the praises of the books (with the help of a translator). So, between snorts of Afrin, I am doing laundry, packing and writing more book, with the goal of finishing one more chapter before I go. It's all a bit of a whirl, and not only because of the Afrin high. I intend to take a short break this afternoon for a mani-pedi, as I will be wearing open-toed shoes and do not want to appear in Spanish-language press as la escritora con miedo uñas largas, como el loco millonario Howard Hughes.
One troubling thing has cropped up the last two weeks: Quite suddenly, as in WHAM about two weeks ago, I began having serious forearm/hand trouble. At first I thought I'd injured myself (and am still open to this), because of the speed and severity of the symptoms (for about two days, I couldn't have carried a bag). It has improved since then, but I am still having nerve sensitivity and soreness. The natural first guess is carpal tunnel, but (a) does it really start like WHAM?, and (b) the internets inform me that carpal tunnel hits the wrist hardest, involves numbness and tingling, and mostly affects the median nerve. While the median nerve was highly sensitive at first, the largest difficulty I'm having is with the ulnar nerve. The main point of trouble seems to be the elbow, and while I have had no numbness or tingling, I am having sensitivity, soreness and occasional periods of too-low circulation, leading to cold hands. Any ideas? Anyone? As I just anted up for COBRA insurance (private insurers seem to take FOREVER to process you, jeez), I will be able to see a doctor about this, but not until after Mexico. |
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| meme ahoy! |
[Nov. 22nd, 2009|06:22 pm] |
Meme taken from many folks, most recently the enigmatic nomelon --
1. Write down the names of 10 characters.
2. Write a fic of fifteen words or fewer for every prompt, using the characters determined by the numbers. Do NOT read the prompts before you do step 1.
1) Damon Salvatore, "The Vampire Diaries"
2) Astrid Farnsworth, "Fringe"
3) Kenneth Parcell, "30 Rock"
4) Temperance Brennan, "Bones"
5) Don Draper, "Mad Men"
6) Bellatrix Lestrange, "Harry Potter"
7) Mr. Eko, "Lost"
8) Irina Derevko, "Alias"
9) Justin Suarez, "Ugly Betty"
10) Sue Sylvester, "Glee"
( the answers! )
So much packing and work to do before I leave for home tomorrow! I did take half an hour to get a manicure, reasoning that my mom will freak out so much about my short hair that some other evidence of femininity might help to soothe her. |
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| "Fringe," "Vampire Diaries," KLINGON VICTOR GARBER, meme time |
[Nov. 20th, 2009|12:41 pm] |
Another bright, warm day in Chicago. I am beginning to think this winter thing is all a myth to keep the place from getting too crowded. (However, to be on the safe side, I have purchased real true proper snow boots.)
Now, onto matters TVical and spoilery:
( Fringe )
( Vampire Diaries )
I am DLing "30 Rock" and "Bones" now. Ah, Thursdays, you are so crazy. (Though, to judge from the posts on my flist, giving up SPN a couple years ago was the right call.)
Tonight I shall cook foods for the delightful kirbyfest and we shall watch the STIX DVD, most particularly the deleted scenes with KLINGON VICTOR GARBER. I was in the fray when this news broke, but oh, my people. Had these scenes been left in the movie, and I had been unspoiled for them, and in the midst of my fannish glee KLINGON VICTOR GARBER had appeared onscreen, I would not have been responsible for my actions. I believe it would have operated much like direct chemical or electric stimulation of the brainstem, resulting in failure of basic bodily functions and higher brain capacity for some time. Those of you who attended the showing with me no doubt would have had to pick me up off the floor, where I lay with dilated eyes, probably salivating uncontrollably and possibly incontinent, but happy. Perhaps the deletion of the scenes was for the best. kirbyfest has been warned.
I'd done something to my hands that has slowed up my typing and, indeed, even basic work around the house for most of the last week. No idea how, but I managed to get on the bad side of the nerves between the elbow and the wrist. (I don't think it's carpal tunnel; my internet learnings suggest this is fairly different.) I am improved today, though, and will try to work some before KLINGON VICTOR GARBER night begins.
Now, a meme! From the vivacious thepodsquad: So, come on then, 3 people (fictional only, as I do not like to think of throwing real people in this manner) -- and I have to pick one to marry, one to boff, and one to throw off a cliff. |
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| Dear Yuletide Santa, plus catching up AGAIN |
[Nov. 15th, 2009|04:32 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | 30 rock, bones, flygirl, fringe, glee, guiding light, prisoner of zenda, tapas, ugly betty, vampire diaries, yuletide | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  contemplative | ] |
Yay for Yuletide assignments! I got one of the two fandoms I figured I'd get and think I already have a rough idea of what to do. As for you, oh Yuletide Santa, if you are reading this: Thanks for writing me a story! I will be delighted no matter what. But let me elaborate on my signup anyway --
( yuletide wishes )
So I have been silent for another week and a half! It's not that I am not reading LJ, but my life has entered a very quiet zone. Get up, eat, write, bed. I like it, but it's less postworthy.
TV reactions, nonspoilery: I am watching and loving "Bones," "Vampire Diaries," "Fringe" and "30 Rock." I am watching and mostly on board with, despite reservations, "Ugly Betty" and "Glee." I am watching, with increasing indifference, "V." I haven't seen the "Mad Men" finale yet and she who spoils me will suffer.
Other info: I have found Emilio's Tapas, Chicago people. Life is good. |
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| catch-up post of great brevity, plus popular meme |
[Nov. 5th, 2009|12:20 pm] |
I have kept putting off writing the much-needed catch-up post until I had time, but then more events occur, and it is now becoming clear to me that this is snowballing. So, as Inigo says, "Explaining takes too much time. Let me sum up."
* I am back from Ireland, where I had a lovely time with the fabulous rheanna27!
* I like my new apartment and love my new neighborhood! Seriously, you guys: Within about eight blocks, I have multiple grocery stores, multiple teahouses and coffee shops, multiple day spas, hair salons and nail salons, the park, the zoo, a nature museum, an electronics store, two major transit lines, a Borders, a Bed Bath & Beyond, several diners, a few restaurants, and a cupcake place that has both a build-your-own-cupcake bar and free wifi. THIS ROCKS.
* I am back in the writing groove and fast building to my FT goal of about five hours a day!
* My hair is blonde, and I think I'm going to keep it for a while!
OK, enough exclamation points. You get the idea. Right now, despite bouts of NYC homesickness, all is well.
I do have to elaborate briefly upon a dream I had in Ireland, specifically dealing with dianora2 and oeilade: ( this dream, for the curious )
Now, a meme, to get me back into the posting groove:
Pick a paragraph (or any passage less than 500 words) from any fanfic I've written, and comment to this post with that selection. I will then give you a DVD commentary on that snippet: what I was thinking when I wrote it, why I wrote it in the first place, what's going on in the character's heads, why I chose certain words, what this moment means in the context of the rest of the fic, lots of awful puns, and anything else that you'd expect to find on a DVD commentary track. |
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| greetings from Northern Ireland |
[Oct. 28th, 2009|01:27 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  okay | ] |
Hi! Hi there! It seems like a zillion years since I have posted. When I am in posting frenzy, the posts all take the form of "So, for lunch, I had a potato even though I wanted soup, and let's talk about the possibilities of a deleted scene from the fourth season of Alias." Now, it's more like, "I have moved to Chicago and am now visiting the welcoming rheanna27 in Northern Ireland." The first couple of days were somewhat marred by my still feeling considerably under the weather -- I've stressed my body too much over the past month, and it knows it and wants revenge -- but today I am perkier and getting some writing done. By the time we head to Dublin this weekend, I expect to be thoroughly in the pink.
November is going to be a lot quieter, and involve both more writing and more resting.
I hope everyone is good! I can't wait to catch up with people when I return. |
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| Tivo, Vampire Diaries, Fringe and the diner around the corner |
[Oct. 16th, 2009|11:23 am] |
I am currently in the diner two blocks from my house that is open 24 hours and has free internet access, or, as I have dubbed it, the "second kitchen." Although I am definitely still settling in, post-move, and homesick for NYC, I am already 100% sold on my new neighborhood. It's safe, it's quiet and virtually anything I could want is within 10 blocks' walk. (Art house movie theater? Check! Post office? Check! Best Buy? Check! Day spa? Check! And so on.) Tomorrow, Henry the Handyman of Excellence will be taking care of my coaxial and ethernet cords so that they aren't underfoot all the time, and Tuesday, a couple of storage pieces I ordered will arrive. So I am close enough to settled to feel vast, vast relief.
TiVo update! (Yes, I know you thought there could be no saga as thrilling as THE TOE, but the fun never stops around here.) After some investigation, I found the splitter in the box and determined that, although my TiVo cannot record two shows at one time, if I install the splitter properly, I will be able to record one show and watch another. This will take care of Thursdays when I'm at home, and otherwise I will grab what episodes I must. Of course, I didn't figure this out until AFTER last night's TV, but I have it going forward. Were I to install my VCR, I could literally tape another episode, but I just don't think I'm inclined to go down that road.
Let us discuss what TV made the cut last night!
( The Vampire Diaries )
( Fringe )
Though I have enjoyed having blue hair, it is already starting to fade to a sort of seafoam, and the constant shedding has me convinced that I must un-blue before I head to Northern Ireland and the habitat of the welcoming rheanna27 a week from Sunday. However, my hair is still bleached almost to the root, so I have decided to go to a salon, get the blue taken out and go blonde for a while. Like I said, the fun never stops. |
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| TiVo Woes |
[Oct. 12th, 2009|11:11 pm] |
1) As I have free cable with my apartment, I decide to buy a TiVo set. Yay!
2) It briefly looks as though my landline (necessary for TiVo, as I have no wireless here, by design) will be cheaper if I add AT&T TV service. So I give the TiVo away and get ready for the new TV service.
3) New TV guy shows up, and somehow, AT&T dude never mentioned that their TV service was satellite, and that I'd need permission for this guy to drill through the wall/install a satellite dish on the roof/other permissions I do not have and will not get. So I cancel that TV service.
4) I buy another TiVo.
5) After many travails, I finally get it set up this evening -- only to have it refuse to record two programs at the same time. WHICH IS THE WHOLE POINT OF A TIVO. I am at wit's end. Does anybody have any idea what's going on? This is all basic cable, no digital, and it's a Series 2 TiVo box. (Bought it used, came complete with Wish Lists for "Martin" and "Cops," which have been deleted.)
On the brighter side, I have unpacked all the boxes. I am not done done -- pictures need to be hung, storage needs to be bought and there is a lot of brickabrack still lying around -- but I am done with the hard labor part of moving. And thank God. That one about took me under.
I'm going to do the other ficlet requests, I promise! Just let me get my feet under me. |
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| ficlets while I work |
[Oct. 9th, 2009|11:49 am] |
I am definitely still a bit shaky today -- not sick, I don't think, but I am not pushing it today. I intend to do what unpacking I can do, little by little, throughout the day and not worry about it beyond that.
While not unpacking, I can work on answers to this meme:
Reply with a character or pairing I'm *familiar* with and I'll write a few sentences of fic.
Please no Whedonverse, guys. All else is fair game. |
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| the fruits of my labors (TVD, Fringe) |
[Oct. 8th, 2009|09:39 pm] |
So, temporarily DVR-less, I had to choose between "The Vampire Diaries" and "Bones" tonight, and somewhat to my surprise, TVD won, mostly b/c I suspected the plot would progress tonight on that one, while "Bones" looked mostly just cute. Tomorrow I will check "Bones" out and confirm whether that half of my prediction was true; the first half definitely was!
( The Vampire Diaries )
( Fringe )
My mood, as you can see, is much improved through the application of television. However, I still feel very wobbly and weak; I think I was not getting sick, actually, but just pushed it a little too hard. I hope to be in bed within the hour, after a little tea. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel much improved and can finish the largest part of the unpacking at last. |
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giddy
annoyed
groggy
good
hopeful
cheerful
ecstatic
productive
worried
busy
bouncy
rejuvenated
mellow
listless
lethargic
