My Yuletide assignment is *perfect*.
Oct. 18th, 2013 09:53 pmGuys, you don't even KNOW. It is exactly what I was hoping it would be when I signed up for that particular fandom. (I actually had two prompt ideas that I was hoping it would be, but one slightly more than the other simply because there was less research to do with this one.) I so cannot wait to write this.
*claps hands in glee*
Anyway. My letter to my Yuletide Santa:
Hi! As always, I'm so glad you're going to write me something, and I want to thank you in advance not only because I'm grateful you'd take the time to write me a story, but also because ... well, I can get a bit forgetful and do stupid stuff like not tell you how awesome I think your story is after it's posted, and better to prepare ahead of time.
A basic idea of my likes and dislikes:
I'm game for anything, really. My prompts don't exactly involve a lot of possibilities for sex, I suppose, but if you want to write it, go nuts. I'm open to het, slash, femmeslash, poly ... whatever. I'm open to anything sexually except for watersports and whatnot, because ... ew, but again, I doubt that'll come up.
Content-wise, I like a good sense of humor, sharp dialogue, and a good grasp on the characters. Honestly, if you think your story is taking off in a good direction that might not be exactly what I asked for, go for it. I'd rather a well-written story which wavers from what I asked for than a less-well-written story that sticks to my requests. The fandoms I asked for I all adore, so I can safely say that you'll find plenty of leeway with me.
So, request-specific stuff:
"The Tomorrow People (2013)": So I just started watching this show and I'm already totally hooked on Stephen. I just, you know, want him to be able to go have a little fun for a change, especially with everything that's gone on in just a few short episodes. I like Cara well enough, but Stephen/Cara is not my ship. I like her just fine with John and I prefer Stephen with Astrid (or John, when I'm feeling slashy). But yes, fun times all around. Maybe after they find their promised land?
"Now You See Me": I just really, really, really, really want to see Dylan do magic. I found Mark Ruffalo insanely hot at the end of that movie, and I want to see more. How did he get in the Eye? Has he been doing magic while in the FBI? If you're not into that, I'm also love Jack Wilder, and wouldn't mind reading a story about how he became so good at fighting the way he did.
"Galaxy Quest": Oh, man, I just want Guy getting to go to his very first con after the reboot airs, and he's not just there as some extra but as a genuine member of the cast. I want him getting to have fun signing autographs, and connecting with fans who come up to the table genuinely emotional about his journey from extra to cast member, and little friendly moments with the rest of the cast. I want Guy living the dream, you know?
"Elementary": Okay, so you know how last week Joan looked as though she was starting to write a book on Sherlock so that others would know him the way she does? I want to see what happens when that book becomes published. Would Sherlock be annoyed or proud? Would it help them solve cases, or would it get in the way of investigations? Feel free to write either friendship or Joanlock, because I am equally game for both.
Again, thank you SO MUCH. I hope you have fun writing! :)
Jennifer
*claps hands in glee*
Anyway. My letter to my Yuletide Santa:
Hi! As always, I'm so glad you're going to write me something, and I want to thank you in advance not only because I'm grateful you'd take the time to write me a story, but also because ... well, I can get a bit forgetful and do stupid stuff like not tell you how awesome I think your story is after it's posted, and better to prepare ahead of time.
A basic idea of my likes and dislikes:
I'm game for anything, really. My prompts don't exactly involve a lot of possibilities for sex, I suppose, but if you want to write it, go nuts. I'm open to het, slash, femmeslash, poly ... whatever. I'm open to anything sexually except for watersports and whatnot, because ... ew, but again, I doubt that'll come up.
Content-wise, I like a good sense of humor, sharp dialogue, and a good grasp on the characters. Honestly, if you think your story is taking off in a good direction that might not be exactly what I asked for, go for it. I'd rather a well-written story which wavers from what I asked for than a less-well-written story that sticks to my requests. The fandoms I asked for I all adore, so I can safely say that you'll find plenty of leeway with me.
So, request-specific stuff:
"The Tomorrow People (2013)": So I just started watching this show and I'm already totally hooked on Stephen. I just, you know, want him to be able to go have a little fun for a change, especially with everything that's gone on in just a few short episodes. I like Cara well enough, but Stephen/Cara is not my ship. I like her just fine with John and I prefer Stephen with Astrid (or John, when I'm feeling slashy). But yes, fun times all around. Maybe after they find their promised land?
"Now You See Me": I just really, really, really, really want to see Dylan do magic. I found Mark Ruffalo insanely hot at the end of that movie, and I want to see more. How did he get in the Eye? Has he been doing magic while in the FBI? If you're not into that, I'm also love Jack Wilder, and wouldn't mind reading a story about how he became so good at fighting the way he did.
"Galaxy Quest": Oh, man, I just want Guy getting to go to his very first con after the reboot airs, and he's not just there as some extra but as a genuine member of the cast. I want him getting to have fun signing autographs, and connecting with fans who come up to the table genuinely emotional about his journey from extra to cast member, and little friendly moments with the rest of the cast. I want Guy living the dream, you know?
"Elementary": Okay, so you know how last week Joan looked as though she was starting to write a book on Sherlock so that others would know him the way she does? I want to see what happens when that book becomes published. Would Sherlock be annoyed or proud? Would it help them solve cases, or would it get in the way of investigations? Feel free to write either friendship or Joanlock, because I am equally game for both.
Again, thank you SO MUCH. I hope you have fun writing! :)
Jennifer
Baby's first tattoo!
Sep. 28th, 2013 09:07 pmMy brother got his first tattoo!
He's a gamer, so I kept telling him that if he was going to get video game tattoos, stick with the classics. He found these tats online on someone else and fell for them, because his favorite games ever are the Final Fantasy series.
He still has to get two more on his other arm, so hopefully since I had to miss going tonight to work, I can go next time.
My own tattoo has reached that itchy stage that makes me want to rip my arm off. Owwwwww.
He's a gamer, so I kept telling him that if he was going to get video game tattoos, stick with the classics. He found these tats online on someone else and fell for them, because his favorite games ever are the Final Fantasy series.
He still has to get two more on his other arm, so hopefully since I had to miss going tonight to work, I can go next time.
My own tattoo has reached that itchy stage that makes me want to rip my arm off. Owwwwww.
I got a new tattoo!
Sep. 23rd, 2013 07:32 pm
So my birthday is this Sunday, and I've lost a little over forty-five pounds this year. So, as a present to myself for both, I decided to get a new tattoo.
I went with my notebook-lines-on-my-forearm idea for both symbolic and practical reasons. Symbolic, because an empty sheet of paper needs to be filled with stories and poems and whatever else is in my head. Practical, because sometimes I write on my arms and hands and whatnot and I might as well have some lines to write on.
I think I'm in love with it already. :)
(Oh, and my brother's scheduled an appointment for his first tattoo this Saturday. I'll have to take pictures, because he found the design online and it should turn out awesome if it's done right.)
A quick update
Sep. 8th, 2013 10:44 pmSo for anybody who's been wondering what's going on with me:
-- I finished my internship a couple of weeks ago and got an A, which ... yay! I didn't get a chance to meet my mentor face to face, but she was really great, and I'm sort of hoping I can do my second internship with her next summer. (Maybe. I'm still debating if I even want to do summer classes again next summer. Not having a break this year was brutal.)
-- I also finished my social diversity class and got an A in that, too. My final project was to participate in an ethnic or cultural event which I've never been to before, so I attended morning services at Temple Israel in Scranton. I don't know if you can say you had fun at a prayer service, but everyone was so lovely and helped tell me what page we were on in the prayer book since everything was in Hebrew (which I expected, but still). Being raised Catholic had its advantages and disadvantanges. On one hand, when other people stand, I stand -- I've got that rule ingrained in my head. On the other hand, people were walking around and greeting each other, including me, during prayers, and there's a part of my brain that kept saying, "But ... but you're just supposed to sit there and repeat what the priest says!" I had a great time, though, and the building was gorgeous.
-- Right now, I'm in the first couple of weeks on my new semester. I have business ethics online (which seems pretty laidback so far), technical writing (with the awesome new teacher who used to be a plus-sized model), and web design, a class in which I am sitting next to a girl who put a Deadpool wallpaper on her computer and laughed when I made a Geocities joke on the web page I was writing for class. So either I've made a friend or I've proven I'm an enormous geek. Or both.
-- The agent who's looking at "Heroine Addiction" still hasn't gotten to me to say whether or not he'll take me on. He did tell me he's a slow reader, though, and we spoke on the phone and had a great conversation where we really clicked (especially when we started in on comics and talked about Marvel vs. DC), so I've got my fingers crossed.
-- I scheduled an appointment to get a new tattoo. I was going to get it tomorrow, but a.) I'm more broke than I thought I would be and b.) I've had the flu for the past week and it's still hanging around. So I rescheduled for later this month. My birthday's at the end of the month, so if anybody wanted to chip in for my tat, I'd love you forever and make you cookies. (Just kidding, honestly. I think my brother's going to chip in money for it, and I have an Amazon payment coming up, so I should be cool.)
-- Oh, yeah, the flu. Which I got from my brother last weekend, and spent the rest of the week trying to fight off and failing miserably. I'm still tired and have a sore throat, but I'm not feeling as awful as I did on, say, Wednesday when my fever spiked. Good times. *eye roll*
-- Also, I blame the flu for the fact that I'm still losing weight even though I haven't exercised in a few weeks and I've barely eaten anything. And not in a "I'm just too busy or distracted to eat" sort of way, but in a "I genuinely haven't had any appetite in a week" sort of way, which is just annoying. I've been forcing myself to eat, though, which is good, but it's mostly poking at diet frozen dinners with a fork.
When I weighed myself this morning on the crappy scale I first started weighing myself on in January, I finally cracked the 150-pound line to hit 149 pounds, which puts my weight loss at 46 pounds since the start of the year. Not the best way to do it, obviously, but still. I'm hoping to start back up on the cottage cheese, fruit, and diet bread again tomorrow, because I don't want to get back into bad habits. Still, I'm only nine pounds from the goal I gave myself in January. \o/
-- I finished my internship a couple of weeks ago and got an A, which ... yay! I didn't get a chance to meet my mentor face to face, but she was really great, and I'm sort of hoping I can do my second internship with her next summer. (Maybe. I'm still debating if I even want to do summer classes again next summer. Not having a break this year was brutal.)
-- I also finished my social diversity class and got an A in that, too. My final project was to participate in an ethnic or cultural event which I've never been to before, so I attended morning services at Temple Israel in Scranton. I don't know if you can say you had fun at a prayer service, but everyone was so lovely and helped tell me what page we were on in the prayer book since everything was in Hebrew (which I expected, but still). Being raised Catholic had its advantages and disadvantanges. On one hand, when other people stand, I stand -- I've got that rule ingrained in my head. On the other hand, people were walking around and greeting each other, including me, during prayers, and there's a part of my brain that kept saying, "But ... but you're just supposed to sit there and repeat what the priest says!" I had a great time, though, and the building was gorgeous.
-- Right now, I'm in the first couple of weeks on my new semester. I have business ethics online (which seems pretty laidback so far), technical writing (with the awesome new teacher who used to be a plus-sized model), and web design, a class in which I am sitting next to a girl who put a Deadpool wallpaper on her computer and laughed when I made a Geocities joke on the web page I was writing for class. So either I've made a friend or I've proven I'm an enormous geek. Or both.
-- The agent who's looking at "Heroine Addiction" still hasn't gotten to me to say whether or not he'll take me on. He did tell me he's a slow reader, though, and we spoke on the phone and had a great conversation where we really clicked (especially when we started in on comics and talked about Marvel vs. DC), so I've got my fingers crossed.
-- I scheduled an appointment to get a new tattoo. I was going to get it tomorrow, but a.) I'm more broke than I thought I would be and b.) I've had the flu for the past week and it's still hanging around. So I rescheduled for later this month. My birthday's at the end of the month, so if anybody wanted to chip in for my tat, I'd love you forever and make you cookies. (Just kidding, honestly. I think my brother's going to chip in money for it, and I have an Amazon payment coming up, so I should be cool.)
-- Oh, yeah, the flu. Which I got from my brother last weekend, and spent the rest of the week trying to fight off and failing miserably. I'm still tired and have a sore throat, but I'm not feeling as awful as I did on, say, Wednesday when my fever spiked. Good times. *eye roll*
-- Also, I blame the flu for the fact that I'm still losing weight even though I haven't exercised in a few weeks and I've barely eaten anything. And not in a "I'm just too busy or distracted to eat" sort of way, but in a "I genuinely haven't had any appetite in a week" sort of way, which is just annoying. I've been forcing myself to eat, though, which is good, but it's mostly poking at diet frozen dinners with a fork.
When I weighed myself this morning on the crappy scale I first started weighing myself on in January, I finally cracked the 150-pound line to hit 149 pounds, which puts my weight loss at 46 pounds since the start of the year. Not the best way to do it, obviously, but still. I'm hoping to start back up on the cottage cheese, fruit, and diet bread again tomorrow, because I don't want to get back into bad habits. Still, I'm only nine pounds from the goal I gave myself in January. \o/
So the agent I'm working with for my internship is all kinds of awesome, and I'm loving the hell out of almost everything (pitching books during conference calls is the worst part just because, ugh, talking on the phone AND public speaking rolled into one), and the cool part is that my advisor has been dorking out over my journal entries that I have to keep sending in.
Anyway, part of the internship is those conference calls for the interns where we talk about imprints and subrights and editing and a whole bunch of things that I already usually know pretty well before we even start. In any event, a couple of weeks ago, we had a conference call on book pitches, and our "homework" was to write up a book pitch for any book we wanted and send it to the agent we're working under to be critiqued.
So, since I needed to practice writing it up for query letters, I used "Heroine Addiction."
Which, I know, is probably a little tacky, but whatever. So I sent the agent I'm working with the book pitch and went back to working on whatever else I had to.
A few days later, she emailed me back and asked if she could give the manuscript to someone else at the agency.
So after I stopped flailing, I sent her the manuscript. I didn't figure I'd hear anything anytime soon, but I got bored the other day and started looking through the bios on the agency's website, because she didn't say who it was she gave it to. I found one who said he usually did non-fiction, but that he worked with pop culture, loves comics, and likes things with a quirky sense of humor and unique subcultures.
When she emailed me today, it turned out I guessed right and that's the guy she gave the book to. Heh. I'm smaaaaaart.
I hope something comes out of it, but I'm realistic enough to just be happy that apparently I can write a good book pitch. :)
Anyway, part of the internship is those conference calls for the interns where we talk about imprints and subrights and editing and a whole bunch of things that I already usually know pretty well before we even start. In any event, a couple of weeks ago, we had a conference call on book pitches, and our "homework" was to write up a book pitch for any book we wanted and send it to the agent we're working under to be critiqued.
So, since I needed to practice writing it up for query letters, I used "Heroine Addiction."
Which, I know, is probably a little tacky, but whatever. So I sent the agent I'm working with the book pitch and went back to working on whatever else I had to.
A few days later, she emailed me back and asked if she could give the manuscript to someone else at the agency.
So after I stopped flailing, I sent her the manuscript. I didn't figure I'd hear anything anytime soon, but I got bored the other day and started looking through the bios on the agency's website, because she didn't say who it was she gave it to. I found one who said he usually did non-fiction, but that he worked with pop culture, loves comics, and likes things with a quirky sense of humor and unique subcultures.
When she emailed me today, it turned out I guessed right and that's the guy she gave the book to. Heh. I'm smaaaaaart.
I hope something comes out of it, but I'm realistic enough to just be happy that apparently I can write a good book pitch. :)
A quick update
Jun. 29th, 2013 04:34 pm-- So I've sent out the second query to an agent for "Heroine Addiction" to see if I can get it published by a traditional publisher. The first one got shot down. Have I mentioned I hate writing queries?
-- I took next week off, which means I'll have plenty of time to look for a new job. Which is good, because I am literally THIS CLOSE to just quitting. Whenever I think it might possibly not be so stressful, it gets so much worse. (Case in point: We keep getting sent worksheets of claims which need to be processed that day. If we can't finish, we have to email our supervisor as to why we couldn't get them done every damn day. So basically we're expected to make excuses why we're not good enough every night, unless of course we manage to do ten to twelve hours of work whether we want to or not.)
-- The job is stressing me out so much that today I logged out so I wouldn't have a panic attack and call one of my supervisors to yell at her, then went to the cottage at the lake my parents are renting for the next two weeks for a breather, *then* left to come home to finish my work only to feel a panic attack coming on the closer I got to my apartment, THEN got pulled over by a cop for speeding in an attempt to get home before I had a panic attack. He gave me a ticket even though when he came back to my car with my paperwork, I was bent over the steering wheel hyperventilating.
You're goddamn right I'm pleading not guilty. I've never done it before but I'd genuinely like the cop try to explain to the magistrate the reasoning behind giving a speeding ticket to someone who was clearly having a medical emergency.
(He offered to call EMS, but seriously, fuck that. I would rather drive the two blocks to my parents' house and have my brother calm me down than sit there and wait for medical attention with a guy who's too busy trying to give me a $112 ticket to give more than a passing shit about me.)
-- Aaaaaaand now I have to work for the rest of the night, which means I've felt on the edge of another panic attack since something like noon.
I seriously cannot wait until tomorrow, when I can go to the lake and sit on the dock and get wasted while reading a good book.
-- I took next week off, which means I'll have plenty of time to look for a new job. Which is good, because I am literally THIS CLOSE to just quitting. Whenever I think it might possibly not be so stressful, it gets so much worse. (Case in point: We keep getting sent worksheets of claims which need to be processed that day. If we can't finish, we have to email our supervisor as to why we couldn't get them done every damn day. So basically we're expected to make excuses why we're not good enough every night, unless of course we manage to do ten to twelve hours of work whether we want to or not.)
-- The job is stressing me out so much that today I logged out so I wouldn't have a panic attack and call one of my supervisors to yell at her, then went to the cottage at the lake my parents are renting for the next two weeks for a breather, *then* left to come home to finish my work only to feel a panic attack coming on the closer I got to my apartment, THEN got pulled over by a cop for speeding in an attempt to get home before I had a panic attack. He gave me a ticket even though when he came back to my car with my paperwork, I was bent over the steering wheel hyperventilating.
You're goddamn right I'm pleading not guilty. I've never done it before but I'd genuinely like the cop try to explain to the magistrate the reasoning behind giving a speeding ticket to someone who was clearly having a medical emergency.
(He offered to call EMS, but seriously, fuck that. I would rather drive the two blocks to my parents' house and have my brother calm me down than sit there and wait for medical attention with a guy who's too busy trying to give me a $112 ticket to give more than a passing shit about me.)
-- Aaaaaaand now I have to work for the rest of the night, which means I've felt on the edge of another panic attack since something like noon.
I seriously cannot wait until tomorrow, when I can go to the lake and sit on the dock and get wasted while reading a good book.
This is literally my face right now.
Jun. 23rd, 2013 10:40 pmSo in addition to my awesome internship (which, seriously, if anyone can think of a great blog which doesn't have a book deal, I could use a few suggestions for an assignment I have due on Tuesday), I also took Social Diversity online to fulfill my social sciences requirement.
It's a pretty small group, and last week three of us and the teacher had dinner together and they were all lovely. There were two other students who couldn't attend, one of whom has seemed quite nice so far. The other is an Afghan war veteran who ... well, let's just say the best thing I can say is that he's completely honest about his totally unapologetic hatred of Muslims.
Last week we discussed discrimination, and our forum assignments included a choice between four questions to answer, one of which was about hate crimes. He chose that question, then proceeded to write a long rant about how much he hates Muslims now, and how it's okay because of what he saw in Afghanistan, and also we give everybody participation awards which is somehow related to how awful Muslims are in an argument I couldn't even follow, and also 9/11!!!, and then he posted a video about a bunch of Muslims throwing stones at Christians in Michigan or something. (He summarized the video before posting it, which was good because I was already feeling the urge to throw up even before I was supposed to watch it so I didn't.)
I would never have seen it if our teacher hadn't told us to go over and respond (he didn't answer the question until the very last day on Friday), presumably -- considering her personality when we met -- for the rest of us to call him on his bullshit. So basically I just spent the past two hours writing a very, VERY carefully worded takedown of everything he said, alternated with short bursts of switching over to Tumblr and cursing out loud so as to avoid calling him an idiotic racist belligerent dipshit in a class-related setting.
I really love this class, but Jesus, I am really glad this is an online course and I never have to meet this bigoted fucker face-to-face.
It's a pretty small group, and last week three of us and the teacher had dinner together and they were all lovely. There were two other students who couldn't attend, one of whom has seemed quite nice so far. The other is an Afghan war veteran who ... well, let's just say the best thing I can say is that he's completely honest about his totally unapologetic hatred of Muslims.
Last week we discussed discrimination, and our forum assignments included a choice between four questions to answer, one of which was about hate crimes. He chose that question, then proceeded to write a long rant about how much he hates Muslims now, and how it's okay because of what he saw in Afghanistan, and also we give everybody participation awards which is somehow related to how awful Muslims are in an argument I couldn't even follow, and also 9/11!!!, and then he posted a video about a bunch of Muslims throwing stones at Christians in Michigan or something. (He summarized the video before posting it, which was good because I was already feeling the urge to throw up even before I was supposed to watch it so I didn't.)
I would never have seen it if our teacher hadn't told us to go over and respond (he didn't answer the question until the very last day on Friday), presumably -- considering her personality when we met -- for the rest of us to call him on his bullshit. So basically I just spent the past two hours writing a very, VERY carefully worded takedown of everything he said, alternated with short bursts of switching over to Tumblr and cursing out loud so as to avoid calling him an idiotic racist belligerent dipshit in a class-related setting.
I really love this class, but Jesus, I am really glad this is an online course and I never have to meet this bigoted fucker face-to-face.
Reposting my short story ebook offer
Jun. 5th, 2013 07:56 amSince I'm still running a little low on funds, here's a link back to my original post about the short story collection I threw together to sell.
I'm maybe like twenty-five bucks short of rent, but I'd much rather get it from selling something than asking my mom or my brother (who's making an absurd amount of money at his new job, which is upsetting me and my piecerate-paycheck-earning ass more than I'd like, because it's not his fault my dad is a sexist idiot who never bothered to let me work with him as a teenager instead of at Burger King so I'd have construction work on my resume instead of customer service experience).
I'm maybe like twenty-five bucks short of rent, but I'd much rather get it from selling something than asking my mom or my brother (who's making an absurd amount of money at his new job, which is upsetting me and my piecerate-paycheck-earning ass more than I'd like, because it's not his fault my dad is a sexist idiot who never bothered to let me work with him as a teenager instead of at Burger King so I'd have construction work on my resume instead of customer service experience).
I’ve compiled four of my short stories into an ebook so that I can sell it and make a little extra money so that I won’t be as behind as I am right now.
The collection’s about 15k words and is called “In The Red.” All four stories are from my fiction classes from last spring and this past semester, so they’ve been polished within an inch of their lives for competitions and finals and whatnot. All four feature female protagonists. Trigger warning for mass murder, zombies, rape prior to the story, and the apocalypse.
I’m asking for two bucks a copy, but that’s only a suggested price. Basically, Paypal me whatever you want and I’ll send you a copy.
The collection’s about 15k words and is called “In The Red.” All four stories are from my fiction classes from last spring and this past semester, so they’ve been polished within an inch of their lives for competitions and finals and whatnot. All four feature female protagonists. Trigger warning for mass murder, zombies, rape prior to the story, and the apocalypse.
I’m asking for two bucks a copy, but that’s only a suggested price. Basically, Paypal me whatever you want and I’ll send you a copy.
A couple of people have been very helpful, and thank you, seriously -- I haven't been able to say a proper thank-you between the holiday and trying to get school in order and work being a pain in my ass. And now my checking account's in the red, which is a pain. I get paid on Friday, but ... well, rent, so. *shrug*
In any event, I'm thinking about taking two of the longer stories I wrote in my fiction classes, putting them in an ePub or MOBI or whatever anybody needs, and selling them for a couple of bucks. I'm working on getting "Monsters" done finally but everything's swallowing all of my free time, and the gay romance I was working on up until everything went to shit is going to have to wait until I can breathe again.
So, yeah. I may have something to sell sometime tomorrow. I don't know what I'm going to do for a cover, but whatever.
In any event, I'm thinking about taking two of the longer stories I wrote in my fiction classes, putting them in an ePub or MOBI or whatever anybody needs, and selling them for a couple of bucks. I'm working on getting "Monsters" done finally but everything's swallowing all of my free time, and the gay romance I was working on up until everything went to shit is going to have to wait until I can breathe again.
So, yeah. I may have something to sell sometime tomorrow. I don't know what I'm going to do for a cover, but whatever.
... is exactly as embarrassing as you think.
I took my car in this morning because it needed an oil change, new brake pads, and possibly new rotors. My $408 paycheck this week should have covered it. I then proceeded over the course of the morning to get three phone calls from the garage:
Phone call #1: "Yes, you do need rotors. Everything all together should cost you $350." (Me: *sigh* "Okay, whatever.")
Phone call #2: "Did you know your inspection's out?" (Me: "I thought ... fine, whatever. Do that, too.")
Phone call #3: "Sorry, but we can't let your car pass inspection because it needs front-end work." (Me: "Are you seri-- Wait, you know what? Just do the rest, because it's all I can fucking afford.")
At which point I went down there, already crying, and was told that the repairs my car needs to pass inspection total nearly four hundred fucking dollars.
I *should* be able to pay for it when I get my financial aid, but at the same time that was the final straw. I've been through so much stress over the past week I started crying right there and then -- oh, and protip to front desk agents: a crying woman who can barely afford to pay her bill as it is won't be able to get your company credit card, so don't bother fucking asking -- and barely made it to my car before I had a breakdown. And then I got home and had some more breakdown. And then I went to the minimart and bought a two-liter of Pepsi and a big bag of Cheetos and ate half the bag and drank half the bottle and had another breakdown.
I just really need a goddamn break for a change, I swear to God.
I took my car in this morning because it needed an oil change, new brake pads, and possibly new rotors. My $408 paycheck this week should have covered it. I then proceeded over the course of the morning to get three phone calls from the garage:
Phone call #1: "Yes, you do need rotors. Everything all together should cost you $350." (Me: *sigh* "Okay, whatever.")
Phone call #2: "Did you know your inspection's out?" (Me: "I thought ... fine, whatever. Do that, too.")
Phone call #3: "Sorry, but we can't let your car pass inspection because it needs front-end work." (Me: "Are you seri-- Wait, you know what? Just do the rest, because it's all I can fucking afford.")
At which point I went down there, already crying, and was told that the repairs my car needs to pass inspection total nearly four hundred fucking dollars.
I *should* be able to pay for it when I get my financial aid, but at the same time that was the final straw. I've been through so much stress over the past week I started crying right there and then -- oh, and protip to front desk agents: a crying woman who can barely afford to pay her bill as it is won't be able to get your company credit card, so don't bother fucking asking -- and barely made it to my car before I had a breakdown. And then I got home and had some more breakdown. And then I went to the minimart and bought a two-liter of Pepsi and a big bag of Cheetos and ate half the bag and drank half the bottle and had another breakdown.
I just really need a goddamn break for a change, I swear to God.
For starters, work. They're offering unlimited overtime, which would be great, except they're sending up spreadsheets from which we need to complete all of the claims on it and there's at least nine hours worth of claims on it for each weekday. This isn't counting claims we previously sent to other departments and now have to finish, or letters we have to write to providers. If I ended up doing the entire spreadsheet, I would be on the computer for ten hours a day, at least. Just the stress of trying to get it done is frying my brain. If I’m going to have to do overtime, I would rather do an extra eight hours on Saturday, rather than longer days during the week. It’s too much for my nerves when I can barely leave the house or take a break to exercise. I’ve been pretty much forcing myself to go out and walk or take a bike ride at this point because damn it, if I’m going to be stressed out, I need to get out of here once in a while, especially now that the weather’s nice.
It doesn’t help that I can’t drive my car right now. My brakes were fine, not squeaking, and then all of a sudden they started grinding the other day. Even if I do need new routers — I definitely need new brake pads, and I already needed an oil change — I should be able to afford it this week. At least, I hope so. It would be a lot easier if I could use financial aid toward it, but that’s another issue I have to deal with.
I got a remote internship for the summer, which is awesome, and I filled out the paperwork with my advisor to get credit. But she can’t confirm it until I give her a few pieces of information like job duties and learning objectives. But I can’t give her those because while I took notes regarding those things during my first call with the agent I’m going to work with, I can’t find them, and the email I sent to my agent probably won’t get answered until this weekend because she is crazy-busy and it takes her a bit to respond. So my class can’t get confirmed, which means my financial aid can’t get confirmed, which means I can’t use it to fix my car, which means I have to use my paycheck toward that, which I *also* have to use because someone screwed up along the line and I owe $41 for the spring semester. And if I don’t pay that, I also can’t get my financial aid.
Also, I have a buck in my bank account. Which wouldn’t be so bad (I've got plenty of groceries and my utilities and rent are all paid) if it weren’t for the car and the school bill and the need to just take a damn *break.* I’m seriously debating skipping the Heart Walk this Saturday, even though I want to do it, because I just can’t deal with this week anymore.
I wish I could take one night and get drunk and eat a whole bacon cheeseburger pizza and cry a lot.
It doesn’t help that I can’t drive my car right now. My brakes were fine, not squeaking, and then all of a sudden they started grinding the other day. Even if I do need new routers — I definitely need new brake pads, and I already needed an oil change — I should be able to afford it this week. At least, I hope so. It would be a lot easier if I could use financial aid toward it, but that’s another issue I have to deal with.
I got a remote internship for the summer, which is awesome, and I filled out the paperwork with my advisor to get credit. But she can’t confirm it until I give her a few pieces of information like job duties and learning objectives. But I can’t give her those because while I took notes regarding those things during my first call with the agent I’m going to work with, I can’t find them, and the email I sent to my agent probably won’t get answered until this weekend because she is crazy-busy and it takes her a bit to respond. So my class can’t get confirmed, which means my financial aid can’t get confirmed, which means I can’t use it to fix my car, which means I have to use my paycheck toward that, which I *also* have to use because someone screwed up along the line and I owe $41 for the spring semester. And if I don’t pay that, I also can’t get my financial aid.
Also, I have a buck in my bank account. Which wouldn’t be so bad (I've got plenty of groceries and my utilities and rent are all paid) if it weren’t for the car and the school bill and the need to just take a damn *break.* I’m seriously debating skipping the Heart Walk this Saturday, even though I want to do it, because I just can’t deal with this week anymore.
I wish I could take one night and get drunk and eat a whole bacon cheeseburger pizza and cry a lot.
THAT'S AWESOME.
Apr. 16th, 2013 01:53 pmSo I didn't move to the semifinals in the Amazon contest, which I'm cool with. Why? Because my Publisher’s Weekly review from the contest is really, really good. :D
Supervillainy mixes with soap opera in this imaginative and entertaining adventure tale of doughty heroes, dastardly plots, and dark family secrets. Teleporter Vera Noble — daughter of super-strong Paladin (aka: Ivy Noble) and mind-reader Wavelength (aka: Everett Noble), the world’s favorite super couple — hung up her cape five years ago to build a normal life. As the owner of a coffeehouse in a quiet small town, the worst she faces is occasionally bumping into her tattoo artist ex, and finding notorious supervillain Morris Kemp, aka: the Quiz Master, sitting in booth five. The truth is that her dad left her mom to shack up with Morris, a secret her parents have hidden for years now. But now Dad is leaving Morris and coming home. Whatever caused the change — robot, clone, brainwashing, amnesia, or something more insidious, Everett Noble isn’t himself. Then Morris turns up dead and Vera’s brother Graham (aka: Fortress) is arrested for the murder. Determined to learn the truth, Vera starts to dig, only to find herself stuffed in another superhero’s body with no idea who to trust. This action-packed mystery, along the lines of The Incredibles, reminds readers that being “super” doesn’t make you immune from being human.
Supervillainy mixes with soap opera in this imaginative and entertaining adventure tale of doughty heroes, dastardly plots, and dark family secrets. Teleporter Vera Noble — daughter of super-strong Paladin (aka: Ivy Noble) and mind-reader Wavelength (aka: Everett Noble), the world’s favorite super couple — hung up her cape five years ago to build a normal life. As the owner of a coffeehouse in a quiet small town, the worst she faces is occasionally bumping into her tattoo artist ex, and finding notorious supervillain Morris Kemp, aka: the Quiz Master, sitting in booth five. The truth is that her dad left her mom to shack up with Morris, a secret her parents have hidden for years now. But now Dad is leaving Morris and coming home. Whatever caused the change — robot, clone, brainwashing, amnesia, or something more insidious, Everett Noble isn’t himself. Then Morris turns up dead and Vera’s brother Graham (aka: Fortress) is arrested for the murder. Determined to learn the truth, Vera starts to dig, only to find herself stuffed in another superhero’s body with no idea who to trust. This action-packed mystery, along the lines of The Incredibles, reminds readers that being “super” doesn’t make you immune from being human.
(no subject)
Apr. 2nd, 2013 02:52 pmSo as part of my exercise routine and because of my mom's stroke, I signed up for the American Heart Association Heart Walk in Scranton on May 18. I posted my donation page on Facebook, but I figured I would post a link here as well.
Thanks to anybody who supports me in the Heart Walk! :)
Thanks to anybody who supports me in the Heart Walk! :)
- I've lost twenty pounds so far this year.
- I am thiiiiiiis close to cracking 180 pounds on my digital scale. (I have a cheap scale I bought years ago and the digital scale I bought about six weeks ago. The digital scale reads six pounds heavier than the cheap scale. The cheap scale read me at the start of the year as 195 pounds. So when the digital scale reads me as 179 pounds, which it'll probably do tomorrow morning, I'll probably do a little dance in my bathroom.)
- I don't have a coronary when I go up a flight of stairs anymore.
- My favorite XL yoga pants are now bagging at the waist so much I have to keep yanking them up.
- I went digging through my closet looking for a top to wear to a family dinner at a nice restaurant tomorrow night and found a cute red sweater I bought a couple of months ago when I got my first tax refund. I made the mistake of not trying it on before I brought it home back then -- it was a large and I figured I wouldn't have to -- and when I got it home I couldn't even button it shut. I tried it on just now, and aside from being a little tight over my boobs, it fits just fine.
Apparently my mom has been telling people I've been working out and dieting and losing a whole bunch of weight, which I get, but I also kinda wish she hadn't, just because I'm finding I like the phrase, "Oh, wow, you've lost weight!" more when people are surprised. Yes ... yes, I have. :D
I signed up for the American Heart Association Heart Walk in Scranton in May, so right now I'm just "training" for that, such as it is. I got my mom to say she'd do the Heart Walk with me so I can't cop out, but it also means I have to be able to walk a few circuits around Nay Aug Park without passing out.
My goal is to crack 140 pounds. To be honest, I'd be happy to get back below 150 pounds, but I'm aiming for the 130-somethings mostly because my mom's 145 pounds and I kinda want to be skinnier than her. And I'm really, really patient when it comes to this whole thing. I want to be there by Christmas, which is seriously not a huge expectation considering this isn't as difficult to stick to as I was afraid it would be. Normally when I try to drop weight, it works but after a few weeks I miss Cheetos and Pepsi and burgers and pizza and I quit. This time ... not so much.
MY SNAKE FINALLY ATE SOMETHING. \o/
Mar. 24th, 2013 11:15 amSo I've had Pugsley for two months now and getting him to eat has been impossible. Which isn't a bad thing, per se, since most people I've talked to said he might take a while to finally eat.
Anyway, last night I bought more frozen fuzzies and put one in with him, then put a blanket over his cage to give him some alone time. When I went to check on him fifteen minutes later, there was an itty bitty mouse butt hanging out of his mouth. Heh.
I may have danced around my apartment to celebrate, which just proves I am so very easily amused.
Anyway, last night I bought more frozen fuzzies and put one in with him, then put a blanket over his cage to give him some alone time. When I went to check on him fifteen minutes later, there was an itty bitty mouse butt hanging out of his mouth. Heh.
I may have danced around my apartment to celebrate, which just proves I am so very easily amused.
OH MY FUCKING GOD I'M DONE.
Mar. 23rd, 2013 10:32 pmOr the alternate title for this post, "A quick update about 'Monsters of Moosic', BUT NOT THAT UPDATE OMG DON'T GET AHEAD OF ME HERE."
Basically, I am done with work for this week. Okay, that's sort of a lie, because technically I should have worked until I either reached my quota or reached forty hours, but I still had three hours and 250 processed claims to go, and since I just spent an entire day pending claims from the same damn provider to the same damn department, which I don't think I need to point out means that I processed almost nothing today, I finally just said, "Oh, my God, fuck this noise," stopped working, and emailed my supervisor my damn payroll sheet.
If he asks me why I stopped early, I'm just going to point to the "pended claims" column on my sheet and glare. Goddamn it, I was getting quota every damn week until this ridiculous excuse for a workday, I swear.
ANYWAY. Aside from the fact that today has been as frustrating as possible, I am now ecstatic for another reason. Want to know why?
Because guess who has two thumbs and took all of next week off with the express purpose of finishing the edit on "Monsters of Moosic" or else?
THIS MOTHERFUCKER RIGHT HERE.
... this video is entirely necessary. Mmm-hmm.
Okay, now to go exercise and write "A&P" futurefic. (Not even joking. We had to read the story for my fiction class today, and that's our assignment for tomorrow.)
Basically, I am done with work for this week. Okay, that's sort of a lie, because technically I should have worked until I either reached my quota or reached forty hours, but I still had three hours and 250 processed claims to go, and since I just spent an entire day pending claims from the same damn provider to the same damn department, which I don't think I need to point out means that I processed almost nothing today, I finally just said, "Oh, my God, fuck this noise," stopped working, and emailed my supervisor my damn payroll sheet.
If he asks me why I stopped early, I'm just going to point to the "pended claims" column on my sheet and glare. Goddamn it, I was getting quota every damn week until this ridiculous excuse for a workday, I swear.
ANYWAY. Aside from the fact that today has been as frustrating as possible, I am now ecstatic for another reason. Want to know why?
Because guess who has two thumbs and took all of next week off with the express purpose of finishing the edit on "Monsters of Moosic" or else?
THIS MOTHERFUCKER RIGHT HERE.
... this video is entirely necessary. Mmm-hmm.
Okay, now to go exercise and write "A&P" futurefic. (Not even joking. We had to read the story for my fiction class today, and that's our assignment for tomorrow.)
The way the semi-finalists are chosen is that Publisher’s Weekly goes through all of the quarterfinalists’ full manuscripts and the editors decide who moves onto the semis.
I’m mostly just stuck on OMG PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY HAS A COPY OF “HEROINE ADDICTION,” YOU GUYS. LIKE, RIGHT NOW. :D :D :D
I’m mostly just stuck on OMG PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY HAS A COPY OF “HEROINE ADDICTION,” YOU GUYS. LIKE, RIGHT NOW. :D :D :D
So if you're not doing anything ...
Mar. 20th, 2013 11:51 am... would you care to leave a review on my "Heroine Addiction" entry for the Amazon contest?
I'm not sure if it impacts whether or not I get into the semifinals, but it's worth a shot.
If you do, just remember:
1. Make sure to download the free preview, even if you already have the whole book.
2. Only review the portion in the preview, not the whole book, just in case.
If I'm remembering correctly, the prize for semifinalists is a review by Publisher's Weekly. I don't think I have to emphasize how completely fucking awesome that would be. :)
I'm not sure if it impacts whether or not I get into the semifinals, but it's worth a shot.
If you do, just remember:
1. Make sure to download the free preview, even if you already have the whole book.
2. Only review the portion in the preview, not the whole book, just in case.
If I'm remembering correctly, the prize for semifinalists is a review by Publisher's Weekly. I don't think I have to emphasize how completely fucking awesome that would be. :)
HA HA HA HA-- wait, you're serious?
Mar. 15th, 2013 10:00 amSo, the house that my parents want me to buy?
The asking price is $46,000.
Now, keep in mind that as soon as my mom heard this from the neighbor across the street from the house, who’s apparently been speaking with the owner, my mom said, “Tell him I said he’s fucking nuts.”
For starters, the guy bought it for $23,000 not even a year ago. It is not a big house. It’s big enough for one person or maybe a couple, but that’s it. It’s not the fanciest house in the world, and it still needs work. He replaced the furnace, and he got rid of some of the crap inside it that the last owner left behind. And then he doubled the price.
It’s a small house in a small town. I don’t think the owner quite realizes how stupid he is to ask for that around here, because he sure as hell isn’t likely to get it. The owner’s from New Jersey, so maybe that’s influencing the asking price, but … seriously, come on. My parents bought the house next door to them to tear down last year (the one between their house and the house for sale), and they only paid $20k for it, and it wasn’t all that much worse off than the house for sale. (They mostly bought it because the worst neighbor we ever had lived there and my mom desperately wanted to buy it and tear it down out of spite.)
So for right now, we’re waiting on him to get his head out of his ass and lower the asking price, and hopefully not to get any nibbles by anyone dumb enough to take him up on the asking price until then.
The asking price is $46,000.
Now, keep in mind that as soon as my mom heard this from the neighbor across the street from the house, who’s apparently been speaking with the owner, my mom said, “Tell him I said he’s fucking nuts.”
For starters, the guy bought it for $23,000 not even a year ago. It is not a big house. It’s big enough for one person or maybe a couple, but that’s it. It’s not the fanciest house in the world, and it still needs work. He replaced the furnace, and he got rid of some of the crap inside it that the last owner left behind. And then he doubled the price.
It’s a small house in a small town. I don’t think the owner quite realizes how stupid he is to ask for that around here, because he sure as hell isn’t likely to get it. The owner’s from New Jersey, so maybe that’s influencing the asking price, but … seriously, come on. My parents bought the house next door to them to tear down last year (the one between their house and the house for sale), and they only paid $20k for it, and it wasn’t all that much worse off than the house for sale. (They mostly bought it because the worst neighbor we ever had lived there and my mom desperately wanted to buy it and tear it down out of spite.)
So for right now, we’re waiting on him to get his head out of his ass and lower the asking price, and hopefully not to get any nibbles by anyone dumb enough to take him up on the asking price until then.
*happy dance*
The first few thousand words of "Heroine Addiction" are available free here for the contest, and while I know that a few of you were nice enough to review it on the official page on Amazon (and thank you SO MUCH for that, seriously), any of you who have the time and would be willing to go over and put in on a good word at the link ... I would really appreciate it. Obviously, since they only have the first nine pages or so available, it's probably best just to review those few pages, since the entire novel itself isn't available through the contest itself just yet.
I'm not exactly sure if reviews are necessary, but they sure as hell can't hurt. ;)
Oh, and check out the other quarterfinalists's entries as well (searching for the contest title brings them up). I plan to do that myself when I get a chance later on. I'm just happy I ended up a quarterfinalist. If the book goes any further, I'm fairly sure I'll implode.
The first few thousand words of "Heroine Addiction" are available free here for the contest, and while I know that a few of you were nice enough to review it on the official page on Amazon (and thank you SO MUCH for that, seriously), any of you who have the time and would be willing to go over and put in on a good word at the link ... I would really appreciate it. Obviously, since they only have the first nine pages or so available, it's probably best just to review those few pages, since the entire novel itself isn't available through the contest itself just yet.
I'm not exactly sure if reviews are necessary, but they sure as hell can't hurt. ;)
Oh, and check out the other quarterfinalists's entries as well (searching for the contest title brings them up). I plan to do that myself when I get a chance later on. I'm just happy I ended up a quarterfinalist. If the book goes any further, I'm fairly sure I'll implode.
Well, that escalated quickly.
Mar. 10th, 2013 03:38 pmI started out this morning just planning to get some exercise in, finish some homework ... nothing major.
Now apparently I'm buying a house. Maybe. IDEK.
(The house next door to my parents is for sale. It's not the fanciest house in the world, but there's nothing wrong with it and it's bound to be absurdly cheap considering the area. And I don't have a problem living next door to my parents, and I can borrow against my 401k. And to be honest, I think the only reason I haven't looked into buying a house around here is because I'm terrified of the whole process. That said ... no, seriously, that escalated really quickly.)
Now apparently I'm buying a house. Maybe. IDEK.
(The house next door to my parents is for sale. It's not the fanciest house in the world, but there's nothing wrong with it and it's bound to be absurdly cheap considering the area. And I don't have a problem living next door to my parents, and I can borrow against my 401k. And to be honest, I think the only reason I haven't looked into buying a house around here is because I'm terrified of the whole process. That said ... no, seriously, that escalated really quickly.)
... but I've been trying to lose weight since the start of the year. And it's working, which is awesome.
I started out the year at about 195 pounds, and I hit 180 the last few days. I've managed to cut all of the crap out of my diet with the exception of my weekly treat -- I get one crappy meal a week so I don't get frustrated and stop -- and I've been exercising pretty regularly, which should become more frequent when the weather gets warmer. (I bought a new basketball and I'm getting a folding bike with my amended tax refund so that I can try to ride every day no matter where I go.)
My belly seems to be getting smaller before everything else, which I have nooooooo problem with. I haven't worn any of my jeans in a while -- partly because they made me uncomfortable around the waist and partly because working from home means quite frankly I don't have to wear pants at all if I don't want to -- but I put a pair on today and they're neither digging into my waist nor giving me a poochy belly.
I'd like to be down to 130 pounds by the end of the year. I'm seriously not in a hurry to lose the weight, I'd much rather just get back into shape again. I signed up for the American Heart Association Heart Walk in May, and I asked my mom to do it with me so I can't cop out at the last minute. So basically I'm in training right now so I don't pass out twenty feet from the starting line.
It would be really awesome if I was down in the 140s by the first week of August, though, since my family has a sort of family reunion that weekend every year and it would be nice to talk about something other than "How's school going?" and "Why aren't you married yet?".
I started out the year at about 195 pounds, and I hit 180 the last few days. I've managed to cut all of the crap out of my diet with the exception of my weekly treat -- I get one crappy meal a week so I don't get frustrated and stop -- and I've been exercising pretty regularly, which should become more frequent when the weather gets warmer. (I bought a new basketball and I'm getting a folding bike with my amended tax refund so that I can try to ride every day no matter where I go.)
My belly seems to be getting smaller before everything else, which I have nooooooo problem with. I haven't worn any of my jeans in a while -- partly because they made me uncomfortable around the waist and partly because working from home means quite frankly I don't have to wear pants at all if I don't want to -- but I put a pair on today and they're neither digging into my waist nor giving me a poochy belly.
I'd like to be down to 130 pounds by the end of the year. I'm seriously not in a hurry to lose the weight, I'd much rather just get back into shape again. I signed up for the American Heart Association Heart Walk in May, and I asked my mom to do it with me so I can't cop out at the last minute. So basically I'm in training right now so I don't pass out twenty feet from the starting line.
It would be really awesome if I was down in the 140s by the first week of August, though, since my family has a sort of family reunion that weekend every year and it would be nice to talk about something other than "How's school going?" and "Why aren't you married yet?".
I FINALLY FINISHED IT.
Mar. 5th, 2013 09:40 amFic: Snap Out Of It
Fandom: The Almighty Johnsons
Pairing: Anders/Gaia
Summary: After the goddess ceremony goes tits up, Anders doesn't want to get into it with Gaia because of Axl's feelings for her, even if his body disagrees with that decision. Gaia, however, has other ideas. Spawned from a prompt on the kink meme.
*
Can I just say how it's a little depressing that for AJ fandom, it seems like the kink meme is less kink and more "There's no fic for this fandom?! Oh, good, a place where I can request *everything*." Which, you know, is not a bad thing, especially considering there really isn't any fic out there for it. There really needs to be more people watching the show. (HINT, HINT.) But, yeah, I like some kink in my kink meme, damn it.
In any event, I've been shipping Anders/Gaia since the last episode of season two, and I will absolutely not be elaborating on that just in case anyone hasn't seen it yet. (No, seriously, HINT, HINT.) That said, I ship them in spite of the fact that I will freely acknowledge that Anders' entire sex life is one big consent issue. When he's not using his poetry to get laid, he's sleeping with goddesses who sometimes, in their own way, may be driven by something other than their own wants. (To be fair, in those instances he's in the same boat.) It's sort of like those romance novels where there's one chosen mate out there for the supernatural lead. I love those romance novels, but I will be the first to admit that's a little bit sketchy.
That said, I like Anders. I want him to become a better person. And I want to think Gaia would be good for him. So ... fic. :)
Fandom: The Almighty Johnsons
Pairing: Anders/Gaia
Summary: After the goddess ceremony goes tits up, Anders doesn't want to get into it with Gaia because of Axl's feelings for her, even if his body disagrees with that decision. Gaia, however, has other ideas. Spawned from a prompt on the kink meme.
*
Can I just say how it's a little depressing that for AJ fandom, it seems like the kink meme is less kink and more "There's no fic for this fandom?! Oh, good, a place where I can request *everything*." Which, you know, is not a bad thing, especially considering there really isn't any fic out there for it. There really needs to be more people watching the show. (HINT, HINT.) But, yeah, I like some kink in my kink meme, damn it.
In any event, I've been shipping Anders/Gaia since the last episode of season two, and I will absolutely not be elaborating on that just in case anyone hasn't seen it yet. (No, seriously, HINT, HINT.) That said, I ship them in spite of the fact that I will freely acknowledge that Anders' entire sex life is one big consent issue. When he's not using his poetry to get laid, he's sleeping with goddesses who sometimes, in their own way, may be driven by something other than their own wants. (To be fair, in those instances he's in the same boat.) It's sort of like those romance novels where there's one chosen mate out there for the supernatural lead. I love those romance novels, but I will be the first to admit that's a little bit sketchy.
That said, I like Anders. I want him to become a better person. And I want to think Gaia would be good for him. So ... fic. :)
(no subject)
Feb. 23rd, 2013 10:31 pmI wonder what it says about me that the thing that broke my recent bit of writer's block was writing a short story shipping Britain and America.
Which is great, because it was due today at 11:45. But then we didn't have class because of the storm, so instead -- thanks to the fact that I finished all my claims for work yesterday and I only have one more assignment to worry about that's due tomorrow at midnight -- I spent most of today slacking off on the couch watching "big Fat Quiz" clips on YouTube. I haven't had a Saturday off in FOREVER. :D
Anyway, here it is if anyone's interested. It's not perfect, but then again I think it's the one I'm workshopping so it doesn't really have to be.
*
( The machete was meant for fieldwork. )
Anyway, here it is if anyone's interested. It's not perfect, but then again I think it's the one I'm workshopping so it doesn't really have to be.
*
( The machete was meant for fieldwork. )
I need help reacting to something.
Feb. 5th, 2013 07:55 pmOkay, seriously, there is STILL some girl in the LBD tag on Tumblr trying to reason that maybe some third party stole George and Lydia's sex tape or recorded them without their knowledge because she "doesn't want to think George could do this."
I ... I can't help you, lady.
(![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
beanarie, it's that same girl. You know who I'm talking about.)
I ... I can't help you, lady.
(
beanarie, it's that same girl. You know who I'm talking about.)HOLY CRAP.
Feb. 3rd, 2013 04:09 pmSo I did my tax return last week and it was about $1500, which is on the upper end of what I normally get, which made me happy. But then I got the paperwork for my college tuition the other day, which somehow slipped my mind. (Probably because thanks to my online health class, I'm now apparently on an exercise program I didn't ask for. Not that I didn't expect to work out, since it's kind of why I signed up for the class in the first place since I've gained some weight from working at home, but my teacher's got some annoying rules about where we're supposed to run that requires going outside. Which, as someone who owns a treadmill, means I keep putting off exercising. So, you know, that's a big help. :| )
Anyway, I looked into adding it into the tax info I've already filed, and it means I now get something like $1700 more back.
Uh ... YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY.
Granted, I have to file an amended tax return seeing as how the first one was already accepted, and I have to wait until I get the first refund (which if I'm profoundly lucky will be this Friday) before sending it in, so I will probably not see the rest of it until March.
MORE MONEY. DON'T CARE. LA LA LA.
Oh, and working from home finally came in handy. La la la, writing off everything from rent to garbage tags, la la la.
Speaking of working from home, I *finally* reached quota this week! I think I figured out that I was too fixated on getting hours in, when what I really should be fixating on is my numbers. So instead of watching the clock last week, I basically sat down and worked until I reached 50 claims. Then I could take a little break, and then come back and do it all over again. And it works! I just put on QI episodes on YouTube or TV shows I haven't watched before on Netflix and the time flies by. :)
But, yeah. My refund's big enough that I can pay off my bills and still splurge on myself, so I'm getting two things I've been wanting for a while -- a new tattoo, and a pet snake. I'm actually thinking about getting two new tattoos, because one of the tats I want is "write something" in my own handwriting on the inside of my right wrist and that's not going to put much of a dent in my refund at all. I think this is my chance to finally get "this is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper, which I will probably get on my back near my right shoulder.
Also ... yes, a snake. Because there will be a rat, a tarantula, and a snake, and now no one will ever come over my house again. MWAHAHAHAHA!
I've been wanting a ball python for the longest time, so if anyone's got any advice I'm all ears. I haven't had reptiles since I was a teenager and I've never had a snake, so I'll take all the advice I can get. God knows it came in handy with the tarantula. :) (Who is somehow still alive, to my tremendous surprise. Not because I'm a bad pet owner or anything, but ... c'mon, it's my first pet spider. Even though I know better, I'm still surprised I've had it over two years by now.)
Anyway, I looked into adding it into the tax info I've already filed, and it means I now get something like $1700 more back.
Uh ... YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY.
Granted, I have to file an amended tax return seeing as how the first one was already accepted, and I have to wait until I get the first refund (which if I'm profoundly lucky will be this Friday) before sending it in, so I will probably not see the rest of it until March.
MORE MONEY. DON'T CARE. LA LA LA.
Oh, and working from home finally came in handy. La la la, writing off everything from rent to garbage tags, la la la.
Speaking of working from home, I *finally* reached quota this week! I think I figured out that I was too fixated on getting hours in, when what I really should be fixating on is my numbers. So instead of watching the clock last week, I basically sat down and worked until I reached 50 claims. Then I could take a little break, and then come back and do it all over again. And it works! I just put on QI episodes on YouTube or TV shows I haven't watched before on Netflix and the time flies by. :)
But, yeah. My refund's big enough that I can pay off my bills and still splurge on myself, so I'm getting two things I've been wanting for a while -- a new tattoo, and a pet snake. I'm actually thinking about getting two new tattoos, because one of the tats I want is "write something" in my own handwriting on the inside of my right wrist and that's not going to put much of a dent in my refund at all. I think this is my chance to finally get "this is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper, which I will probably get on my back near my right shoulder.
Also ... yes, a snake. Because there will be a rat, a tarantula, and a snake, and now no one will ever come over my house again. MWAHAHAHAHA!
I've been wanting a ball python for the longest time, so if anyone's got any advice I'm all ears. I haven't had reptiles since I was a teenager and I've never had a snake, so I'll take all the advice I can get. God knows it came in handy with the tarantula. :) (Who is somehow still alive, to my tremendous surprise. Not because I'm a bad pet owner or anything, but ... c'mon, it's my first pet spider. Even though I know better, I'm still surprised I've had it over two years by now.)
Not going to lie ...
Jan. 31st, 2013 03:05 pm... after today's "Lizzie Bennet Diaries" episode, ( Cut for spoilery comments )
I wrote stuff!
Jan. 28th, 2013 06:41 pmI have two flash fiction pieces due for my fiction class this weekend, and I've been starting and not finishing stuff since last weekend. But I finished one! So, you know, yaaaaaaaaay.
*
( It's not titled yet, or edited. But guess what it is? FINISHED. \o/ )
*
( It's not titled yet, or edited. But guess what it is? FINISHED. \o/ )
I changed my Tumblr username just because I wanted a change, so if you're looking for me over there, my Tumblr username is shickalenia.
(It's a word I stole my great-uncle, who uses it in public situations where he can't get away with cursing. I'm not exactly sure what "shickalenia" really means, but knowing my great-uncle, it's some absolutely vile sexual act. That's my family. We're all pigs. :))
(It's a word I stole my great-uncle, who uses it in public situations where he can't get away with cursing. I'm not exactly sure what "shickalenia" really means, but knowing my great-uncle, it's some absolutely vile sexual act. That's my family. We're all pigs. :))
Okay, I think I have reached the point of regularly checking the Lizzie Bennet Diaries tag on Tumblr where I'm equally as annoyed as I am at the hardcore Lyckham shippers as I am completely skeeved by almost every little thing Wickham does or says.
Seriously, there was someone on there yesterday going, "He said she was wonderful and she shouldn't listen to anyone who tells her otherwise! Would someone who's being manipulative say that?!" Uh, YES. That's how manipulation works. You say something nice now because you just said something utterly dickish and the person you're manipulating stops thinking, "Uh ..." and switches to swooning. Someone who's being emotionally manipulative isn't a total jackass 24/7, or else his attempt to manipulate you wouldn't work because you would run the fuck AWAY.
And don't even get me started on the "You just hate him because you hate book!Wickham!" shit going around. I literally had to sit down yesterday and post a list on Tumblr of every creepy, manipulative, lying thing George has done in the videos to show that no, actually, contrary to Wes Aderhold's very pretty face, LBD!George has done some appalling things in-canon. And we don't even know yet what he did to Gigi, whom -- I can only imagine -- the Lyckham fan will probably claim is lying when she finally reveals what he did. (Which I say as I suspect she's going to do so in tomorrow's video. The preview kinda looks that way.)
Ugh. I'm at the point where I want whatever big bad thing is going to happen TO happen because I'm really fucking curious to see how the Lyckham fans will explain it away.
Seriously, there was someone on there yesterday going, "He said she was wonderful and she shouldn't listen to anyone who tells her otherwise! Would someone who's being manipulative say that?!" Uh, YES. That's how manipulation works. You say something nice now because you just said something utterly dickish and the person you're manipulating stops thinking, "Uh ..." and switches to swooning. Someone who's being emotionally manipulative isn't a total jackass 24/7, or else his attempt to manipulate you wouldn't work because you would run the fuck AWAY.
And don't even get me started on the "You just hate him because you hate book!Wickham!" shit going around. I literally had to sit down yesterday and post a list on Tumblr of every creepy, manipulative, lying thing George has done in the videos to show that no, actually, contrary to Wes Aderhold's very pretty face, LBD!George has done some appalling things in-canon. And we don't even know yet what he did to Gigi, whom -- I can only imagine -- the Lyckham fan will probably claim is lying when she finally reveals what he did. (Which I say as I suspect she's going to do so in tomorrow's video. The preview kinda looks that way.)
Ugh. I'm at the point where I want whatever big bad thing is going to happen TO happen because I'm really fucking curious to see how the Lyckham fans will explain it away.
Okay, that's kind of awesome.
Jan. 19th, 2013 01:41 pmI had my first fiction class of the semester with my creative writing teacher from last spring (who's really great, and I completely forgot to tell him about the Lizzie Bennet Diaries, which I think he'd like), and he mentioned that we had the option of volunteering for the literary magazine's editorial board this spring. When he explained the way the decision process is made, he mentioned that the piece with the best score as voted by the editorial board is listed first in the literary magazine.
I went back and checked the literary magazine from last semester. The dystopian short story I wrote in my creative writing class? It's the first story in the fiction section.
\o/
I went back and checked the literary magazine from last semester. The dystopian short story I wrote in my creative writing class? It's the first story in the fiction section.
\o/
I am just really, REALLY stressed out right now.
I wish I could just quit my job. It just doesn't pay enough and I can't afford to keep doing this. The job itself is fine, but the paychecks suck. And for all the resumes I've sent out for the past two months, I have gotten one call, unprompted, by one of those places that's an insurance sales scam. The whole situation is so stressful that I am having one of the worst low times regarding my depression that I've had in, like, a year. I've been struggling a LOT, not the least of which is with my writing, so that's part of the reason I haven't been able to send out "Monsters of Moosic" yet. I had to focus on getting close to quota and keeping my job through December, but now that I seem to be okay on that front, I've been pissed that I had to work my ass off to keep a job which is just making me feel awful.
School starts this week, which is making me feel somewhat better, but it's a small 'somewhat'. (Let's not even get into the fact that my online Health class teacher is very much "Let's start an exercise program and fight the obesity epidemic!". My depression-spawned fatigue and increased sleep patterns think your "obesity epidemic" can bite me.)
Oh, and I got a form rejection email from Harper Voyager the other day. Which is okay, really, because I've gotten rejection emails before, but I submitted two manuscripts and it didn't mention which one got rejected or if it's just supposed to be for both, so ... yeah, thanks, Harper. That helped. :|
I've been sitting here for the past twenty minutes trying to keep myself from having a panic attack -- it turns out reading the comments on a gun control article don't help with that; who knew? -- so I'm kind of drained. But I just needed to vent for a moment because if I didn't, I felt like I would fry a synapse or something.
Running away and joining the circus only works if you're Robert Pattinson, right? *sigh*
I wish I could just quit my job. It just doesn't pay enough and I can't afford to keep doing this. The job itself is fine, but the paychecks suck. And for all the resumes I've sent out for the past two months, I have gotten one call, unprompted, by one of those places that's an insurance sales scam. The whole situation is so stressful that I am having one of the worst low times regarding my depression that I've had in, like, a year. I've been struggling a LOT, not the least of which is with my writing, so that's part of the reason I haven't been able to send out "Monsters of Moosic" yet. I had to focus on getting close to quota and keeping my job through December, but now that I seem to be okay on that front, I've been pissed that I had to work my ass off to keep a job which is just making me feel awful.
School starts this week, which is making me feel somewhat better, but it's a small 'somewhat'. (Let's not even get into the fact that my online Health class teacher is very much "Let's start an exercise program and fight the obesity epidemic!". My depression-spawned fatigue and increased sleep patterns think your "obesity epidemic" can bite me.)
Oh, and I got a form rejection email from Harper Voyager the other day. Which is okay, really, because I've gotten rejection emails before, but I submitted two manuscripts and it didn't mention which one got rejected or if it's just supposed to be for both, so ... yeah, thanks, Harper. That helped. :|
I've been sitting here for the past twenty minutes trying to keep myself from having a panic attack -- it turns out reading the comments on a gun control article don't help with that; who knew? -- so I'm kind of drained. But I just needed to vent for a moment because if I didn't, I felt like I would fry a synapse or something.
Running away and joining the circus only works if you're Robert Pattinson, right? *sigh*
So it's not in the theaters anymore, the DVD doesn't come out until two days after the awards ceremony, you apparently can't buy it on Amazon Instant Video, and there isn't a DVD screener to be found on the torrent sites.
You're killing me, Joaquin Phoenix, you're goddamn killing me here.
You're killing me, Joaquin Phoenix, you're goddamn killing me here.
I started watching "Django Unchained".
Jan. 11th, 2013 07:09 pmOh, hey, that's what I've been missing from every other theatrical slave-whipping I've ever seen! A good pop song on the soundtrack!
(Why, yes, I *did* make the face in my icon.)
EDIT: On the other hand, Christoph Waltz is earning the HELL out of his Oscar nomination.
Still, I just sat through a waaaaaaay too long scene mocking the KKK's hoods, so. There was that.
(Why, yes, I *did* make the face in my icon.)
EDIT: On the other hand, Christoph Waltz is earning the HELL out of his Oscar nomination.
Still, I just sat through a waaaaaaay too long scene mocking the KKK's hoods, so. There was that.
Oscarwatch: Silver Linings Playbook
Jan. 11th, 2013 04:51 pmMy mom shot me a text this morning and asked me if I wanted to go see this with her, so even though I already have it on my computer (heh), I said yes.
That said, I thought it was really great. The acting was superb across the board, and I don't think I disagreed with a single one of the acting nominations. I kind of want to single Robert DeNiro out if only because I've questioned his taste in scripts the last ten years or so, but I think he showed why he is the legend that he is in this movie. Jacki Weaver does great supporting work as the mom, and it's hard to argue against Bradley Cooper's nomination after watching this. I am really not the biggest Bradley Cooper fan in the world, or at all, but I thought he really showed that he's got some acting chops.
I do think Jennifer Lawrence was the heavy hitter here, though. I stand by my assertion after watching "Beasts of the Southern Wild" that while I want Quvenzhane Wallis to win, if Jennifer Lawrence wins I will be thrilled and I wouldn't argue against it. I saw one review before I saw the movie which called her a Manic Pixie Dream Girl and after seeing the movie I heartily disagree. Manic Pixie Dream Girls are weird, but it's not a genuine medical diagnosis. Like, if she were a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, she would like the Smiths and dresses with weird prints and wearing jelly shoes unironically. This girl has honest-to-goodness mental illness. I don't know if I would call it manic depression or just depression, but she's not doing to be cute, which is usually the impression I get from Manic Pixie Dream Girls. She's just as ill as Bradley Cooper's character.
I think that's why my main issue with the movie is the ending. ( Cut for spoilery comments. )
Still, I did like the movie for the most part. And hey, that's a good chunk of my Oscar checklist taken care of. \o/
That said, I thought it was really great. The acting was superb across the board, and I don't think I disagreed with a single one of the acting nominations. I kind of want to single Robert DeNiro out if only because I've questioned his taste in scripts the last ten years or so, but I think he showed why he is the legend that he is in this movie. Jacki Weaver does great supporting work as the mom, and it's hard to argue against Bradley Cooper's nomination after watching this. I am really not the biggest Bradley Cooper fan in the world, or at all, but I thought he really showed that he's got some acting chops.
I do think Jennifer Lawrence was the heavy hitter here, though. I stand by my assertion after watching "Beasts of the Southern Wild" that while I want Quvenzhane Wallis to win, if Jennifer Lawrence wins I will be thrilled and I wouldn't argue against it. I saw one review before I saw the movie which called her a Manic Pixie Dream Girl and after seeing the movie I heartily disagree. Manic Pixie Dream Girls are weird, but it's not a genuine medical diagnosis. Like, if she were a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, she would like the Smiths and dresses with weird prints and wearing jelly shoes unironically. This girl has honest-to-goodness mental illness. I don't know if I would call it manic depression or just depression, but she's not doing to be cute, which is usually the impression I get from Manic Pixie Dream Girls. She's just as ill as Bradley Cooper's character.
I think that's why my main issue with the movie is the ending. ( Cut for spoilery comments. )
Still, I did like the movie for the most part. And hey, that's a good chunk of my Oscar checklist taken care of. \o/
Oscarwatch: Beasts of the Southern Wild
Jan. 11th, 2013 10:44 amI didn't write about this the last time I watched it because I stopped about a half an hour before it ended, and then for some reason I deleted it, and so I had to download it again so I could finish watching it.
That said, I'm crossing my fingers for Quvenzhane Wallis to win Best Actress. I expect Jennifer Lawrence to win, and I wouldn't be upset if she did because while I haven't yet watched "Silver Linings Playbook" (I'm going to later today) I know from what I've heard that she deserves the recognition. That said, I think there's a decided difference between Jennifer Lawrence (who I think is an amazing actress, don't get me wrong) and a six-year-old first-time actress deftly carrying an entire goddamn movie. She's only a little girl, and she does better work in this movie than a lot of adult actresses do in their entire careers. Besides, I think Jennifer Lawrence will have plenty of other opportunities to win.
I'm also a little disappointed that the actor who played her father in the movie didn't get nominated for best supporting actor. He's another first-time actor and he also turns out a performance that's miles above what most other actors did last year. I always feel like I'm more impressed by the acting nominees who come from a less professional start because they're got farther to go.
I think what helps Quvenzhane Wallis is that the movie plays really well on the small screen. It's really intimate and rough, and I think the people who are watching screeners in their home theaters are going to have an easier time connecting with it than they would in the theater given that.
I just really, REALLY want Quvenzhane Wallis to win. If I can have one happy surprise on Oscar night, I want it to be that.
That said, I'm crossing my fingers for Quvenzhane Wallis to win Best Actress. I expect Jennifer Lawrence to win, and I wouldn't be upset if she did because while I haven't yet watched "Silver Linings Playbook" (I'm going to later today) I know from what I've heard that she deserves the recognition. That said, I think there's a decided difference between Jennifer Lawrence (who I think is an amazing actress, don't get me wrong) and a six-year-old first-time actress deftly carrying an entire goddamn movie. She's only a little girl, and she does better work in this movie than a lot of adult actresses do in their entire careers. Besides, I think Jennifer Lawrence will have plenty of other opportunities to win.
I'm also a little disappointed that the actor who played her father in the movie didn't get nominated for best supporting actor. He's another first-time actor and he also turns out a performance that's miles above what most other actors did last year. I always feel like I'm more impressed by the acting nominees who come from a less professional start because they're got farther to go.
I think what helps Quvenzhane Wallis is that the movie plays really well on the small screen. It's really intimate and rough, and I think the people who are watching screeners in their home theaters are going to have an easier time connecting with it than they would in the theater given that.
I just really, REALLY want Quvenzhane Wallis to win. If I can have one happy surprise on Oscar night, I want it to be that.
Oscarwatch: ParaNorman
Jan. 10th, 2013 08:20 pmOkay, that was incredibly cute. It was kinda like an animated version of "Monster Squad". I enjoyed the style of the animation and I thought the voice casting was really interesting, especially since I couldn't recall who half of them were until the credits rolled. (Which is a surprise -- I'm usually scary-good at identifying voice actors.)
I also forgot this was the movie where the big brother that Norman's sister keeps flirting with turns out to have a boyfriend. So that was a nice surprise. :)
I also forgot this was the movie where the big brother that Norman's sister keeps flirting with turns out to have a boyfriend. So that was a nice surprise. :)
What a fucking waste.
Jan. 10th, 2013 01:33 pmI am a half an hour into "The Impossible" and it's making me so fucking angry. Not because it's about the whitest family to ever white, but because if it weren't a great festering pile of racefail it would be amazing.
I'll write up a proper review when I finish, though.
I'll write up a proper review when I finish, though.
Oscarwatch checklist
Jan. 10th, 2013 12:53 pmBest Motion Picture of the Year
Nominees:
Amour (2012)
Argo (2012)
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
Django Unchained (2012)
Les Misérables (2012)
Life of Pi (2012)
Lincoln (2012)
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Bradley Cooper for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln (2012)
Hugh Jackman for Les Misérables (2012)
Joaquin Phoenix for The Master (2012)
Denzel Washington for Flight (2012/I)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Emmanuelle Riva for Amour (2012)
Quvenzhané Wallis for Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
Naomi Watts for The Impossible (2012)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Alan Arkin for Argo (2012)
Robert De Niro for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Master (2012)
Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln (2012)
Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained (2012)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Amy Adams for The Master (2012)
Sally Field for Lincoln (2012)
Anne Hathaway for Les Misérables (2012)
Helen Hunt for The Sessions (2012)
Jacki Weaver for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Best Achievement in Directing
Nominees:
Michael Haneke for Amour (2012)
Ang Lee for Life of Pi (2012)
David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Steven Spielberg for Lincoln (2012)
Benh Zeitlin for Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Nominees:
Brave (2012)
Frankenweenie (2012)
ParaNorman (2012)
The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012)
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
Nominees:
Lincoln (2012)
Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln (2012)
Joaquin Phoenix for The Master (2012)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Master (2012)
Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln (2012)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Amy Adams for The Master (2012)
Sally Field for Lincoln (2012)
Helen Hunt for The Sessions (2012)
Best Achievement in Directing
Nominees:
Steven Spielberg for Lincoln (2012)
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Nominees:
Frankenweenie (2012)
ParaNorman (2012)
The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012)
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
