Holiday relaxation 101
22 December 2019 09:43 amAs of Friday I'm off work until Jan 2, and today I feel well-rested for the first time in about two weeks. And what am I doing with all this leisure, you ask? Good stuff, let me tell you!
For one thing, I'm reading stories about some of my favorite people, written by some of my favorite people, in the company of some of my favorite people.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
sshg_giftfest and hoggywartyxmas are both currently posting, and both are crammed with amazing creations, whether you like sexy or silly, funny or fantastical, heart-breaking or heart-warming. There is even a set of dress-your-own Albus, Minerva, and Severus paper dolls!
I've also given in to the forces of pop culture and am watching The Mandalorian (friends had warned me that resistance was useless, and so it proved...). With Baby Yoda we have indeed reached Peak Cuteness. Behold my favorite meme:
Even more than that, though, I love how the series so perfectly evokes the feel of the original 1977 movie, from the music to the alien races that get background cameos, from the color palette to the look and feel of the tech, right down to the goofy "wipes" used in scene changes. I'm sure I'm not the only one who noticed that the encounter in the Mos Eisley cantina maps almost gesture for gesture with the original, where Luke and Ben meet Han for the first time.
And today I get to go out to lunch with Mr Psmith for the first time in ages, and I think we're going to shoot a little pool! I got him this cool thing for Christmas so he can play again.
Best of all, I'm paying no attention whatever to politics.
Ah, life is good :)
For one thing, I'm reading stories about some of my favorite people, written by some of my favorite people, in the company of some of my favorite people.
sshg_giftfest and hoggywartyxmas are both currently posting, and both are crammed with amazing creations, whether you like sexy or silly, funny or fantastical, heart-breaking or heart-warming. There is even a set of dress-your-own Albus, Minerva, and Severus paper dolls!I've also given in to the forces of pop culture and am watching The Mandalorian (friends had warned me that resistance was useless, and so it proved...). With Baby Yoda we have indeed reached Peak Cuteness. Behold my favorite meme:
Even more than that, though, I love how the series so perfectly evokes the feel of the original 1977 movie, from the music to the alien races that get background cameos, from the color palette to the look and feel of the tech, right down to the goofy "wipes" used in scene changes. I'm sure I'm not the only one who noticed that the encounter in the Mos Eisley cantina maps almost gesture for gesture with the original, where Luke and Ben meet Han for the first time.
And today I get to go out to lunch with Mr Psmith for the first time in ages, and I think we're going to shoot a little pool! I got him this cool thing for Christmas so he can play again.
Best of all, I'm paying no attention whatever to politics.
Ah, life is good :)
...to share my favorite holiday video!!
I love buying and sending Christmas cards, so this is my annual call for folks to enable my addiction :) If you would like to receive a card from me, please comment below and then PM me your snail mail address.
FAQs:
1) Will this be a real card or an e-card?
A real card, made of paper and ink, sent with a stamp.
2) What sort of stamp?
Probably a cute one with a holiday theme.
3) Do I have to send you one in return?
Nope, although I also love getting them, so if you want to, *yay*
4) Do I have to be in the US to receive one of these fabulous things?
Nope, I'll send 'em anywhere.
5) What if I don't celebrate Christmas, or am a grinch and just don't like it?
Doesn't matter. You just have to like getting something in the mail that isn't a bill or a request for money. (Actually I guess a bill IS a request for money, but you know what I mean.)
6) Will my card contain angels, crosses, or mention of Jesus?
Nope. I'm an atheist, so for me, Jesus is not the reason for the season. Please note that I have no objection whatsoever to anyone else inviting him along, but I myself celebrate the holiday in a strictly faith-neutral manner.
7) Will my card contain bad puns, silly jokes, cartoon animals, anthropomorphized vegetation, and/or generally positive sentiments about tolerance, peace, and the value of loving one another?
It very well may. I haven't bought them yet, so who knows??
8) Will my card be homemade?
Do I look like Martha Stewart? (Translation: No.)
9) What if I don't like my card?
You are free to fold, spindle, mutilate, burn, bury, or recycle it, no questions asked. But really, who doesn't like getting a card???
10) When may I expect this thing to arrive in my mailbox?
"Reply hazy, try again."
FAQs:
1) Will this be a real card or an e-card?
A real card, made of paper and ink, sent with a stamp.
2) What sort of stamp?
Probably a cute one with a holiday theme.
3) Do I have to send you one in return?
Nope, although I also love getting them, so if you want to, *yay*
4) Do I have to be in the US to receive one of these fabulous things?
Nope, I'll send 'em anywhere.
5) What if I don't celebrate Christmas, or am a grinch and just don't like it?
Doesn't matter. You just have to like getting something in the mail that isn't a bill or a request for money. (Actually I guess a bill IS a request for money, but you know what I mean.)
6) Will my card contain angels, crosses, or mention of Jesus?
Nope. I'm an atheist, so for me, Jesus is not the reason for the season. Please note that I have no objection whatsoever to anyone else inviting him along, but I myself celebrate the holiday in a strictly faith-neutral manner.
7) Will my card contain bad puns, silly jokes, cartoon animals, anthropomorphized vegetation, and/or generally positive sentiments about tolerance, peace, and the value of loving one another?
It very well may. I haven't bought them yet, so who knows??
8) Will my card be homemade?
Do I look like Martha Stewart? (Translation: No.)
9) What if I don't like my card?
You are free to fold, spindle, mutilate, burn, bury, or recycle it, no questions asked. But really, who doesn't like getting a card???
10) When may I expect this thing to arrive in my mailbox?
"Reply hazy, try again."
New Year's Day it was -15 here. Brrrrrr.
Just finished re-reading Bridget Jones Diary and had to laugh at this quote, which expresses my current feelings exactly:
New Year's Eve we binge-watched Season 1 of Game of Thrones. Remarkably, it is just as good as everyone said it was. I live in hopes that Seasons 2 will see Sansa murder Joffrey (who is a Draco Malfoy clone; even his parents are strikingly similar to Lucius and Narcissa) and that Aria Stark continues to kick butt, but Tyrion's whore provided my favorite exchange of the series so far:
*chortle*
Which seems an oddly logical segue to the fact that I just finished reading Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House , because it's actually quite a lot like Game of Thrones only with more suits and fewer swords.Also less incest. Hm, not completely sure about that, actually. It has a cast of thousands, lots of backstabbing, and even a Wolff lol!!
Just finished re-reading Bridget Jones Diary and had to laugh at this quote, which expresses my current feelings exactly:
"It seems wrong and unfair that Christmas, with its stressful and unmanageable financial and emotional challenges, should first be forced upon one wholly against one's will, then rudely snatched away just when one is starting to get into it. Was really beginning to enjoy the feeling that normal service was suspended and it was OK to lie in bed as long as you want, put anything you fancy into your mouth, and drink alcohol whenever it should chance to pass your way, even in the mornings. Now suddenly we are all supposed to snap into self-discipline like lean teenage greyhounds."
New Year's Eve we binge-watched Season 1 of Game of Thrones. Remarkably, it is just as good as everyone said it was. I live in hopes that Seasons 2 will see Sansa murder Joffrey (who is a Draco Malfoy clone; even his parents are strikingly similar to Lucius and Narcissa) and that Aria Stark continues to kick butt, but Tyrion's whore provided my favorite exchange of the series so far:
Tyrion: Where did you find one so pretty at this hour?
Bronn: I took her.
Tyrion: Took her? From whom?
Bronn: From, uh...Ser...what’s his name? I don’t know. Ginger cunt, three tents down.
Tyrion: And he didn’t have anything to say about it?
Bronn: He said something.
*chortle*
Which seems an oddly logical segue to the fact that I just finished reading Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House , because it's actually quite a lot like Game of Thrones only with more suits and fewer swords.
Festivus!!!!!
1 December 2017 06:19 pmsshg_giftfest has begun posting! And the opening double-header is awesome. Go ye and marvel :)
Also, here is a picture of a new trick our cat learned. Are we nervous? Um, yeah...
(click for larger view)
Also, here is a picture of a new trick our cat learned. Are we nervous? Um, yeah...
(click for larger view)
Hoggywartywho?
14 January 2017 02:40 pmReveals are up at hoggywartyxmas, so I can now own up to this:
Title: Love Hides in Familiar Faces (on LJ) (on AO3)
Rating: G
Word Count: ~4300
Summary: Even in the darkest of times, there are still glimpses of light. Fortunately for the few who are still awake within the walls of Hogwarts at half-past eleven on this Longest Night, one need not know a tale in order to be part of it.
I was extremely honored to have my fic chosen to open the fest. Many thanks to all the readers for their lovely comments, and to![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
therealsnape for hosting another fabulous Hoggy Warty Christmas!
Title: Love Hides in Familiar Faces (on LJ) (on AO3)
Rating: G
Word Count: ~4300
Summary: Even in the darkest of times, there are still glimpses of light. Fortunately for the few who are still awake within the walls of Hogwarts at half-past eleven on this Longest Night, one need not know a tale in order to be part of it.
I was extremely honored to have my fic chosen to open the fest. Many thanks to all the readers for their lovely comments, and to
therealsnape for hosting another fabulous Hoggy Warty Christmas!It's nog time!
25 December 2016 05:41 pmChristmas Day, so once again we made my great-grandmother's egg nog to take to my sister-in-law's. With 4 pints of half-and-half, bourbon rum AND brandy, this is high-calorie and high-test, but oh so very good. I am now having a mug and getting caught up on hoggywartyxmas and sshg_giftfest -- happy happy joy joy!
Here's hoping that all of you had whatever sort of day you wanted, doing whatever you wanted to do, with the companionship you wanted most. Hugs and happy holidays!
hoggywartyxmas and sshg_giftfest -- happy happy joy joy! Here's hoping that all of you had whatever sort of day you wanted, doing whatever you wanted to do, with the companionship you wanted most. Hugs and happy holidays!
My gift posted today over at hoggywartyxmas and oh, my, is it a thing of wonder. If you like stories that break your heart and then put it back together again in a most satisfying and lyrical manner, please take a moment to go and read:
Through the Spiral of the Years
hoggywartyxmas and oh, my, is it a thing of wonder. If you like stories that break your heart and then put it back together again in a most satisfying and lyrical manner, please take a moment to go and read:Through the Spiral of the Years
I can haz SS/HG prezzies!!
8 December 2016 10:53 pmMy gift has posted over at sshg_giftfest, and it is stellar. I don't know who the Mystery Author is (though I have a suspicion), but they've got a magic quill, whoever they are. Run, do not walk, to this delightful tale of a novel come to life and a bit of Christmas cheer which totally made my night :)
A Gifting of Book Wyrms
sshg_giftfest, and it is stellar. I don't know who the Mystery Author is (though I have a suspicion), but they've got a magic quill, whoever they are. Run, do not walk, to this delightful tale of a novel come to life and a bit of Christmas cheer which totally made my night :)A Gifting of Book Wyrms
A very Slytherin Christmas
7 December 2016 12:30 am![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif){kind=small}
mywitch has embarked on 25 days of fan art. Today she picked MY prompt, and gave me half-dressed Lucius. Go. See. Marvel.Hubba hubba!
I poemed!!
9 January 2016 07:25 pmReveals are up over at hoggywartyxmas so I can now own up to being the author of The Spoof is in the Pudding, a wizardy riff on "The Night Before Christmas, in which Hagrid and Flitwick eat too much fruitcake with surprising results while Severus and Minerva exeunt, pursued by a waltz.
I was thrilled that my poem was one of the opening day posts for the fest, and I have been truly overwhelmed by the number of positive comments that my little rhyme received. In particular, my recipientmmadfan said that the poem brightened her day twice when she was feeling under the weather. I cannot imagine a higher compliment :)
hoggywartyxmas always has superlative offerings, and the writers and artists this year really outdid themselves. Thanks to the mods for running it yet again, and I am already looking forward to next year!
hoggywartyxmas so I can now own up to being the author of The Spoof is in the Pudding, a wizardy riff on "The Night Before Christmas, in which Hagrid and Flitwick eat too much fruitcake with surprising results while Severus and Minerva exeunt, pursued by a waltz. I was thrilled that my poem was one of the opening day posts for the fest, and I have been truly overwhelmed by the number of positive comments that my little rhyme received. In particular, my recipient
mmadfan said that the poem brightened her day twice when she was feeling under the weather. I cannot imagine a higher compliment :)hoggywartyxmas always has superlative offerings, and the writers and artists this year really outdid themselves. Thanks to the mods for running it yet again, and I am already looking forward to next year!Antonio Gramsci did not like New Year's Day:
And there is something to be said for that. But I still love New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, with its feeling of freshness and potential. I think there is something good about choosing a specific time to reflect on what has passed and what is to come, and to think seriously about how one hopes to shape the next twelve months of one's life.
We had a lovely, mellow New Year's Eve finishing up our Firefly marathon and then watching the first Star Wars movie. Both made us rather melancholy, Firefly because it was cancelled so early and so abruptly, with so many stories left untold, and Star Wars because they all look so damn young. Still, it was great fun to watch the young and dashing Han Solo swash his buckles across the galaxy, and cheer for Captain Reynolds and crew as they fight their way through Reavers to get the truth out about Miranda. It occurred to us both that Captain Reynolds bears more than a passing resemblance to Captain Solo, even down to the stripes on his trousers. And of course the aforementioned dashingness. Big damn heroes, both of them.
The last eighteen months have been a real roller-coaster for me and mine, and I am devoutly hoping that 2016 will be a more serene period. I also hope to do more writing -- yes, I say this every year, and so far have failed, but that doesn't mean I give up on it as a goal. I also plan to take a page fromteddyradiator's book: "to keep my zen, to play more, and to cherish my friends."
Many hugs and warm wishes to all for the new year!
I want every morning to be a new year’s for me. Every day I want to reckon with myself, and every day I want to renew myself. No day set aside for rest. I choose my pauses myself, when I feel drunk with the intensity of life and I want to plunge into animality to draw from it new vigor...No spiritual time-serving. I would like every hour of my life to be new, though connected to the ones that have passed. No day of celebration with its mandatory collective rhythms, to share with all the strangers I don’t care about. Because our grandfathers’ grandfathers, and so on, celebrated, we too should feel the urge to celebrate.
And there is something to be said for that. But I still love New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, with its feeling of freshness and potential. I think there is something good about choosing a specific time to reflect on what has passed and what is to come, and to think seriously about how one hopes to shape the next twelve months of one's life.
We had a lovely, mellow New Year's Eve finishing up our Firefly marathon and then watching the first Star Wars movie. Both made us rather melancholy, Firefly because it was cancelled so early and so abruptly, with so many stories left untold, and Star Wars because they all look so damn young. Still, it was great fun to watch the young and dashing Han Solo swash his buckles across the galaxy, and cheer for Captain Reynolds and crew as they fight their way through Reavers to get the truth out about Miranda. It occurred to us both that Captain Reynolds bears more than a passing resemblance to Captain Solo, even down to the stripes on his trousers. And of course the aforementioned dashingness. Big damn heroes, both of them.
The last eighteen months have been a real roller-coaster for me and mine, and I am devoutly hoping that 2016 will be a more serene period. I also hope to do more writing -- yes, I say this every year, and so far have failed, but that doesn't mean I give up on it as a goal. I also plan to take a page from
teddyradiator's book: "to keep my zen, to play more, and to cherish my friends." Many hugs and warm wishes to all for the new year!
Cookie carnage
28 December 2015 09:57 amWe had some friends over yesterday with their kids for wine and chili (the grownups) and cookie decorating (the kids). One of the Parental Units got into the action and created this lol:
I have never actually had a hot buttered rum. Perhaps I should try one.
You Are Hot Buttered Rum |
 You are easygoing and pleasant. You are a good party guest. You are content to sit back and observe. You tend to keep your opinions mostly to yourself. You are quietly sophisticated and classy. You know better than to make waves. You are elegant, withdrawn, and brilliant. Your mind is a weapon, and you're able to solve any puzzle. |
Hooray for us!!!
15 February 2015 06:52 pmToday is the first International Fanworks Day!! Created by the Organization for Transformative Works (the folks who brought us AO3), it's a day to celebrate the creativity that abounds in fandom. Both The Mary Sue and AO3 have great suggestions for how to celebrate it, so pour yourself a glass of wine, pat yourself on the back, and enjoy!
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