przed | Network

My back is still randomly spasming, with a side of other muscle groups getting angry. I’ve been wearing lidocaine patches day and night, and occasionally breaking into the heavy meds at bedtime. Luckily I had an appointment with my doctor 5 days after the first round of spasms, and now have orders for three different MRIs of my back, a referral to a back specialist, and a prescription for REALLY heavy muscle relaxers. Heavy enough that I’m only going to take them at bedtime.

—-

I got my COVID vaccine today, which means I’m going to be miserable for the next few days. But not only was it time, vax schedule-wise, for me to get it, but I also wanted to make sure I’d had it before I head to Arizona for the giant company kickoff week at the beginning of January. Whee?

—-

Christmas was very low-key. We had already gotten and given each other presents, so there was nothing to unwrap. We spent the day having food with some local friends, and then binge watched the new episodes of Stranger Things. I have some suspicions about things that will happen in the finale; I hope they won’t happen, but there are some big narrative anvils dropping

(I’ve come to the conclusion that Eleven is my least favorite character; she’s a walking collection of superpowers needed for the story, but other than that, she’s not that interesting.)

—-

Now I will go make a sweet potato and ham gratin so there is easy food for the next few days while I’m miserable. My holiday time off is packed with excitement, yes.

hannah

Yesterday I learned there's curtains you can buy that are controlled by an app. I didn't get into the massive security concerns of this scenario because one of my clients has some and she was paying me to figure out what was wrong with them, not get a lecture. Besides, no small number of the issues involved were laid bare when she explained she'd updated the app and the app said the curtains weren't found on the network.

I knew the first step of figuring out if it's a hardware or a software problem was first making sure the machine's connected to the network - if there was a motor that responded to commands sent by the app, it was essentially working from a more advanced and less secure remote control. To check and make sure the motor had power to run and could connect to the app to begin with, I looked for where the power supply was coming from. It wasn't plugged into anything, instead running on 12 AA batteries. I figured that swapping them out for fresh batteries to see if that'd get them back online would narrow down the possible problems before we'd have to see if the curtains need an update.

My client called the company helpline, and they said that given when she'd installed them, it was probably a power issue and to replace the batteries.

I'd also helped her with a miniature flashlight that wasn't working. When she handed it to me, I pulled at it, inspecting the object, seeing what parts were detachable to find out where its batteries would be located - and in doing so, I got them realigned and working again.

When I explained my problem-solving processes to her and working through the possibilities to try to figure out the issue at hand, she gave me what I hold as a high compliment: "You should've been a mechanical engineer."

Current Mood: geeky
Current Music: nothing now

bluapapilio

Watch on YouTube

And the song it was based on:

Watch on YouTube

Current Mood: full

chocolatefrogs posting in

iconthat

https://res.cloudinary.com/dc2cefbey/image/upload/v1766884181/ay5y_z3mpdd.jpg

Next picture: Christopher Pike (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)

isis

December has been busy-busy for me between Yuletide preparation (as a mod) and Yuletide preparation (as a participant who also took on a pinch hit), but now, ahh, everything is done and I can reap the rewards!

My awesome gift (5-minute fandom: British Airways "May We Haveth One's Attention" Safety Video):

A British Original: Discovering Haddersford House and Its Residents (2248 words, gen)
Summary: A magazine article from the world where characters in costume drama occasionally come to life of their own--and stick around after the cameras stop rolling and the crews have gone home.

I really had no idea what to expect from this request (just that I had to have something about this marvelous video!) and I love how it's played with an absolutely straight face. Also, there's a nod to Planet Vancouver, hee!

Speaking of the ridiculous played straight, this is understandable (and hilarious) with only osmosis knowledge of The Godfather:

An Offer You Can’t Refuse (Unless You’re Lactose Intolerant) (1008 words, Godfather movies, gen)
Summary: On the day of his daughter’s guinea pig’s wedding, Don Vito Corleone received a request he could not immediately refuse.

Absolutely the best Godfather fic ever.

The rest of my recs really do require canon knowledge, but I know many of you know these canons:

Memories Are Made of This (4002 words, Northern Exposure, Ed Chigliak-centered ensemble gen)
Summary: “So this is Cicely,” Ed said, gazing wide-eyed up and down Main Street. “Where’s the rest of it?”

This is wonderful - like an episode of the show, warm and funny and a little bit off-kilter.

Hoar and Hound (2236 words, Cadfael Chronicles, Brother Cadfael-centered gen)
Summary: On a frigidly cold December night, Cadfael follows a trail through the abbey grounds.

A lovely, thoughtful portrait of the abbey and of Cadfael. The way he quietly assesses the needs of the people (and creatures) around him is perfectly in tune with canon.

Dis Manibus (1364 words, Frontier Wolf, Alexios/Cunorix, Alexios/Hilarion, G)
Summary: Alexios goes out to make an offering to the shades of the dead, but he does not go alone.

This is lovely and tender and measured, and has something of Sutcliff in the descriptions. For me Alexios/Hilarion only works if it honors the close friendship between Alexios and Cunorix, before things went bad - and this is perfect.

We Greet the Peoples of the Tower (1717 words but heavily illustrated; Chants of Sennaar, gen)
Summary: There are some oddly regular scratch marks on a wall in the Alchemists' level...

Basically this is a fangame (though the game part is optional; the first set of chapters are illustrations with glyphs as in the game, and the second half holds the translations), a whole new level in which the Monster goes seeking the other peoples to assert he is a human and their brother. It's a moving story that fits with the game themes, and it's just very cool!

Actually, if you've played Chants of Sennaar, I recommend all the Yuletide works for the game as the fandom has clearly brought its A-game, they're all great. (The one above is just extraordinarily so!) And there are two Madness works I haven't even looked at yet!

torachan

Recently Finished
Either Side of Midnight
Sequel to Trust Me When I Lie. This was good, but I do enjoy the Ernest Cunningham series better.

Murder Under Her Skin
Second in the Pentecost and Parker series. Just okay. I'll read more in this series, but it's not a priority.

Damn Straight
Another second book in a murder mystery series. This one the Lillian Byrd series. Same as above, I liked it well enough that I'll continue the series, but I'm not rushing out to read the next one.

Star Trek: Lower Decks, Vol. 1: Second Contact
There's a new series of Lower Decks comics! In fact, there's enough issues for a second volume, too, though it's not coming out until next year. My issue with these is the same with every comic based on a cartoon, which is that they're never quite as good as the show. They're enjoyable enough, though.

My Home Hero vol. 20-22

innitmarvelous_og posting in

iconthat

LINK: https://i.imgur.com/XyFj4NI.jpg

Next - Iron Man 2

Current Music: TRON (1982)

torachan

It was a busy day at the park, being a holiday weekend plus the first sunny day in a while. The park opens at nine and we got down there around 9:45 and the line for parking was super backed up, but thankfully the ADA lot still had a ton of spaces left, so once we finally got to it, it was easy to get a spot. The lines for the front gates were probably the longest I've seen, but still moved pretty smoothly.

( Read more... )

I think this will be our last amusement park visit of the year. We're planning on Disneyland on the 1st, but it's supposed to rain again, so we'll see.

This year my totals are 79 at Disneyland (including 4 at Tokyo Disney), 4 at Knott's, and 2 at Universal Studios. That's a lot! O_o

adafrog posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Saturday to midnight on Sunday (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #34012 Daily poll

This poll is closed.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 25

How are you doing?

I am okay
15 (62.5%)

I am not okay, but don't need help right now
9 (37.5%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans are you living with?

I am living single
8 (32.0%)

One other person
12 (48.0%)

More than one other person
5 (20.0%)

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.

sovay

I spent so much of Boxing Day curled on the couch with my books, I failed to notice it was snowing until well after dark when it glittered down through the streetlight in one of those soundstage tinsel veils. One of my goals for this afternoon was to get out into its Arctic wonderland, whose streets were spidered with ice and drift-blue with chemical salt instead of glacial age. I walked further than I had intended and had to come back across the snow of the imaginatively designated Veterans Memorial Park between the iron freeze of the Mystic River and the less elemental red lights of Route 16.

( Look quick, is that something you missed? )

I have been sick for so long, I feel that I have once again come unplugged from any of the places where I live. I don't know that I will be any less sick in the immediately foreseeable future, but I have to try to socket myself back into these streets, this light, the inside of my own head. I remain so tired the latter feels emptier than I would like, but at least I am trying not to punt every idea that crosses it as pointlessly exhausting. In the meantime I am enjoying Eerie East Anglia: Fearful Tales of Field and Fen (ed. Edward Parnell, 2024) and Russell Hoban's The Bat Tattoo (2002).

Current Music: Bright Eyes, "Mariana Trench"

shipperslist

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

ride_4ever

The event is called Rewrite A Fic. It's a multifandom event that gives you eleven months to rewrite a fic you've written before. The event rules are that the work written has to be yours originally, the fic you are rewriting has to be at least 1 1/2 years old, and using generative AI for the fic is strictly prohibited. The length of the fic doesn't matter. There are no content restrictions, but the use of proper content warnings is required when posting the work.

See full comm details, including how to post to the comm and how to add to the comm's AO3 Collection at rewrite_a_fic on DW.

Current Mood: maybe feeling a do-over
Current Location: near the lake they call Michigan

nomelon

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

southernmedicine

Tomorrow, we have to go to sleep at around 7-7:30pm, because we have to leave for Minneapolis at like 2:30-3:00am Monday morning to make sure we reach the airport, park, get through security and make it to our gate for a 6:30am boarding.

However, I keep getting winter storm warning alerts. Apparently beginning tomorrow evening and lasting until noon or so on Monday, there's supposed to be tons of snow, a blizzard, really, and white-out conditions on the highways.

Blair is at her grandma's house for Second Christmas (I couldn't go because I worked until 3pm today and the party began at noon) so when she gets back, I will ask what her opinion is. Strongly leaning toward the idea of setting out for Minneapolis tomorrow afternoon and staying in a hotel near the airport. I don't think she wants to, because we'd discussed that originally just for the convenience, weather aside. But I'm already concerned about making it with enough time to feel comfortable, and we'll have to drive even slower if the weather is as bad as it sounds like it's going to be.

Bleh.

Current Mood: sleepy

kalira posting in

smallfandomfest

Title: Rally the Pack
Author:

kalira
Fandom: Princess Mononoke
Ship/Characters: San & wolf brothers
Rating/Category: T/Gen
Prompt: Princess Mononoke, San, pack is everything
Spoilers: N/A
Summary: A curious cub ventures close to human children playing at the forest's edge, and San learns anew where her trust must lie - and where it never may.
Notes/Warnings: pre-canon with indeterminately young San and wolf brothers (for whom I have used the names Shou and Niiya, spinning off San read as three)
Wordcount: 850

Read on AO3

maevedarcy

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

case posting in

fandomsecrets

⌈ Secret Post #6931 ⌋

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

01.

( More! )

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 68 secrets from Secret Submission Post #990.
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.

case posting in

fandomsecrets

[ SECRET SUBMISSIONS POST #991 ]

The first secret from this batch will be posted on January 3rd.

RULES:
1. One secret link per comment.
2. 750x750 px or smaller.
3. Link directly to the image.

More details on how to send a secret in!

Optional: If you would like your secret's fandom to be noted in the main post along with the secret itself, please put it in the comment along with your secret. If your secret makes the fandom obvious, there's no need to do this. If your fandom is obscure, you should probably tell me what it is.

Optional #2: If you would like WARNINGS (such as spoilers or common triggers -- list of some common ones here) to be noted in the main post before the secret itself, please put it in the comment along with your secret.

Optional #3: If you would like a transcript to be posted along with your secret, put it along with the link in the comment!

tozka

A puffy snowman sticker on a bright red pole. The snowman has a top hat, red scarf and little red mittens. It’s smiling!

📍Phoenix, Arizona - December 2025 / All Photos / Pixelfed

osprey_archer

I’ve barely posted about movies this year, so I decided to do a quick movie round-up - very quick, as I’ve watched barely any movies this year! Some years are just not movie years, I guess…

The Balloonatic: a remix of a Buster Keaton movie set to the music of… okay I should have taken notes, I can’t remember the band, suffice it to say that it was a recentish band to which you would perhaps not expect Buster Keaton to be set. Smashing Pumpkins maybe? Lots of interesting cutting of the film which I don’t really have the technical vocabulary to describe, but just like - cutting what was clearly once one long shot into multiple shots? Kind of synced to the music?

I dragged the Brunch Bunch along to this showing, and we agreed that we’d see another if another came to town. But as we were just about the only people in the theater it is perhaps unsurprising that the theater has not booked another. Even an arthouse cinema has to have an audience.

Interview with a Vampire: I posted a bit of comparison to the book, but did not take time to note that this movie is an A++ example of complete commitment to an aesthetic, the aesthetic in this case being “decadent opulence spattered in blood.” This is an occasional aesthetic for me rather than one I would like to live in, but I admire the commitment.

The Shape of Water: This was a big disappointment, to be honest. Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth is one of my all-time favorites, so I went into this movie with high hopes, but honestly it just draaaaaaagged for me. Also highly doubt the ability of the fish-man from the Amazon to survive in the icy coastal waters of the Atlantic.

Kiki’s Delivery Service. A rewatch! Still one of my favorite movies, probably my top two Studio Ghibli with My Neighbor Totoro (but now I feel bad leaving out Spirited Away...) Love Kiki, love Jiji, love the richly detailed setting (which we dubbed “Francemany,” as it is clearly a mash-up of various European localities), love Miyazaki’s love of flying machines. This is an aesthetic I WOULD like to live in.

Also a couple of documentaries. Take Joy! The Magical World of Tasha Tudor is about Tudor’s life at Corgi Cottage, built and largely run in the style of a 19th century farmhouse, where Tudor lives with her goats, her doves, her corgyn (Tudor’s plural of corgi), her one-eyed cat Minou, and seven looms. (These are not all Tudor’s looms. Sometimes she gives house-space to a friend’s loom, if the friend doesn’t have loom room, a loom being a large contraption.) An inspiring example of building your own little world and living in it.

This theme is further developed in Take Peace: A Corgi Cottage Christmas with Tasha Tudor, an enchanting documentary perfect for anyone who has ever enjoyed Tasha Tudor’s Christmas illustrations, as the illustrations apparently draw extensively on Tasha Tudor’s own Christmas traditions or possibly vice versa, in a virtuous cycle of candlelit charm.

If you can’t find the documentary, the photo book Forever Christmas appears to have been made in conjunction, and includes some material not included in the film. Can’t believe they left out the sleigh ride!

Profile

przed

November 2025

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30

Page Summary

cupcake_goth - (no subject)
hannah - Practical problem-solving.
bluapapilio - 🔊 Daily music
chocolatefrogs in iconthat - Pass It On 6
isis - a handful of Yuletide recs
torachan - Weekly Reading
innitmarvelous_og in iconthat - Pass It On 6
torachan - 2025 Knott's Trip #4 (12/27/25)
adafrog in fandom_checkin - Daily Check In.
sovay - Look into that smoldering building's bombed-out fog until it finally lifts
shipperslist - Playing the Fool, books 2 and 3 by Lisa Henry & J.A. Rock
ride_4ever - Fannish Fifty Challenge: Post # 48: Community Pimping: Another Don't-Stress Fanworks Event
nomelon - 2025 Fic Round-up
southernmedicine - (no subject)
kalira in smallfandomfest - Fanfic, Princess Mononoke, San & wolf brothers, pack is everything
maevedarcy - Heated Rivalry Gifset #3
case in fandomsecrets - [ SECRET POST #6931 ]
case in fandomsecrets - [ SECRET SUBMISSIONS POST #991 ]
tozka - photo: spotted on my morning walk
osprey_archer - 2025 Movie Round-Up

Style Credit

Style: by timeasmymeasure

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated Dec. 31st, 2025 02:48 am