Cats
Aug. 30th, 2025 09:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
james_davis_nicollPoll #33552 I knew I forgot something
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 27
Cats?
james_davis_nicoll
Books Received, August 23 — August 30
Aug. 30th, 2025 09:01 amjames_davis_nicoll
Six works new to me. Three fantasy, three SF, four are series (at least in a sense) and the other two appear to be stand-alone. Lots of TTRPG material.
Books Received, August 23 — August 30
Poll #33551 Books Received, August 23 — August 30
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 11
Which of these look interesting?
View Answers
Victoriana by Alex Cahill et al (Q1 2026)
2 (18.2%)
Victoriana Menagerie by Alex Cahill et al (Q1 2026)
1 (9.1%)
The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu (April 2026)
8 (72.7%)
Ship of Spells by H. Leighton Dickson (November 2025)
3 (27.3%)
Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Imperium Maledictum, Voll Adventures by Lisa Farrell et al (Q1, 2026)
2 (18.2%)
Coriolis: The Great Dark by Kosta Kostulas et al (August 2025)
6 (54.5%)
Made it to Dayton
Aug. 29th, 2025 08:38 pmcornerofmadnessIt's been a loooong day of multiple lab sections and then driving 2 hours. It's a very easy drive, literally three turns and two of them are in Dayton. This hotel is in a huge mall that sprawls for about four lights and on both sides of the road but it means I have plenty of food around me. I opted for the Rusty Bucket which sees to be a chain in SW Ohio (I've been to the one in Cincinnati) their cold brew martini was amazing, best part of the meal.
I almost went to the Blue Crab Juicy seafood bar but I wasn't sure about it (and it's right next door to Lust, the strip club which is probably directly behind this hotel. Oh geeze. Well it's not like I didn't live behind one for years) I looked it up. Maybe tomorrow...
This room is weird. Maybe wheelchair accessible? Doesn't say it (but at least it's on the ground floor) the bed is orientated not to the tv but to the window with your head to the door. I thought maybe it would be hard to get a wheelchair around the room if it was the normal way. Nice room though with a shower no tub. I appreciate that.
Wrote a story (NSFW)
Title: Brothers, Troublemakers and Apologies
Fandom: Hazbin Hotel
Summary: After a sweet morning of trying out new sex games, Angel has high hopes for the rest of the day with Husk. All that ends when retribution comes for him. He really shouldn’t have stolen Arackniss’ car.
Rating: explicit
Author Note - written for spikesgirl58’s six word challenge and the six words were Kindly, Breed, Mother, Complete, Milky, & Tremble, for allbingo’s prompt of family matters and for summer of the 69. While this is part of the Power Play series, it is a stand alone. You don't need to read the others (but please do if you're so moved) All you need to know is the Vees have been disposed of and Angel stole Arackniss' car last story.
( story under here or at the above link )
And here are the friday fannish 50 fan recs
A Little More Time Torchwood
Holding On To Hope FAKE
Pumpkin Carving Buffy the Vampire Slayer
A Song of the Grand Banks Captains Courageous - Rudyard Kipling
Still This Good Hazbin Hotel
Electric Blue Hazbin Hotel
Valid The Owl House
Hazbin Academy Hazbin Hotel
The Truth Behind The Lies Torchwood
Unwise Behaviour Stargate SG-1
Beware of the Thin Man The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Petrified The Owl House
from the middle, this time with a plan
陈情令 | The Untamed (TV)魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
Lustful Brewing Hazbin Hotel
Deck the Halls Sapphire & Steel
Fucking Tease Hazbin Hotel
Mifepristone With a Side of Gummi Bears
Doctor Odyssey
Valentino Is Scared Of The Supernatural Hazbin Hotel
Skeletons in the Closet The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Too Early to be Morning but Here We Are
Columbo
Chilled to the Bone Hazbin Hotel
No Thyme At All Torchwood
A Black Cat in a Dark Room Doctor Who
Under the Heat of a Rising Sun Hazbin Hotel
An Order of Magnitude Stargate Atlantis/Stargate SG-1/Real Genius
Camelot's Resident Sorcerer... Arthur Pendragon? Merlin
The Candy Buying Affair The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
What the Future Holds 911
Trick or Treating Despicable Me
Mission: Retrieve Coulson Redux Murder She Wrote/The Avengers
untitled Hazbin Hotel
Moving into the Hale Ranch Teen Wolf
Learning the Lay of the Land Teen Wolf
I almost went to the Blue Crab Juicy seafood bar but I wasn't sure about it (and it's right next door to Lust, the strip club which is probably directly behind this hotel. Oh geeze. Well it's not like I didn't live behind one for years) I looked it up. Maybe tomorrow...
This room is weird. Maybe wheelchair accessible? Doesn't say it (but at least it's on the ground floor) the bed is orientated not to the tv but to the window with your head to the door. I thought maybe it would be hard to get a wheelchair around the room if it was the normal way. Nice room though with a shower no tub. I appreciate that.
Wrote a story (NSFW)
Title: Brothers, Troublemakers and Apologies
Fandom: Hazbin Hotel
Summary: After a sweet morning of trying out new sex games, Angel has high hopes for the rest of the day with Husk. All that ends when retribution comes for him. He really shouldn’t have stolen Arackniss’ car.
Rating: explicit
Author Note - written for spikesgirl58’s six word challenge and the six words were Kindly, Breed, Mother, Complete, Milky, & Tremble, for allbingo’s prompt of family matters and for summer of the 69. While this is part of the Power Play series, it is a stand alone. You don't need to read the others (but please do if you're so moved) All you need to know is the Vees have been disposed of and Angel stole Arackniss' car last story.
( story under here or at the above link )
And here are the friday fannish 50 fan recs
A Little More Time Torchwood
Holding On To Hope FAKE
Pumpkin Carving Buffy the Vampire Slayer
A Song of the Grand Banks Captains Courageous - Rudyard Kipling
Still This Good Hazbin Hotel
Electric Blue Hazbin Hotel
Valid The Owl House
Hazbin Academy Hazbin Hotel
The Truth Behind The Lies Torchwood
Unwise Behaviour Stargate SG-1
Beware of the Thin Man The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Petrified The Owl House
from the middle, this time with a plan
陈情令 | The Untamed (TV)魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
Lustful Brewing Hazbin Hotel
Deck the Halls Sapphire & Steel
Fucking Tease Hazbin Hotel
Mifepristone With a Side of Gummi Bears
Doctor Odyssey
Valentino Is Scared Of The Supernatural Hazbin Hotel
Skeletons in the Closet The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Too Early to be Morning but Here We Are
Columbo
Chilled to the Bone Hazbin Hotel
No Thyme At All Torchwood
A Black Cat in a Dark Room Doctor Who
Under the Heat of a Rising Sun Hazbin Hotel
An Order of Magnitude Stargate Atlantis/Stargate SG-1/Real Genius
Camelot's Resident Sorcerer... Arthur Pendragon? Merlin
The Candy Buying Affair The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
What the Future Holds 911
Trick or Treating Despicable Me
Mission: Retrieve Coulson Redux Murder She Wrote/The Avengers
untitled Hazbin Hotel
Moving into the Hale Ranch Teen Wolf
Learning the Lay of the Land Teen Wolf
Autumn is coming
Aug. 29th, 2025 11:21 pmgrrlpup
spotted in the back yard.
Yesterday was my last day working at the University– I took vacation leave today because I’ve already turned in my work computer, and as of Monday I will officially be retired with 30 years of service as an Oregon public employee. When I rode the elevator up to my office floor yesterday morning, it occurred to me that all my future rides up would be in a building where I used to work. That’s a very different feeling from a building where I work.
Today I feel myself wanting to Do It Right, not waste time, be productive. I want to read, write, and make things, and because jobs are what I know, I am making it feel like a new job. I think this will ease in time.
Sang offered to take me to the Delta for a celebratory drink last night, but I suggested putting it off until tonight so it’s her weekend. Turns out we’re going for pizza and a square dance tonight instead. Happy weekend!
This post originates at everyday though not every day. Comments welcome here or there.
Friday five
Aug. 29th, 2025 01:47 pmglacier_kitty1. What do you consider nature’s perfect food? Strawberries
2. What was once difficult for you but now seems like second nature? Running the register at work. I was terrified!
3. What is your favorite way to commune with nature? Go to the mountains, go in the forest and enjoy the smell of the trees, etc
4. How have you tamed nature within your living space? I don't have any nature in it lol
5. When you were you last bitten, stung, or slimed by nature? Hmmm..not sure..
Last night my back pain was so painful that I went to the hospital! They gave me a bunch of pain meds, but they didn't really do anything. This morning I saw a chiropractor, who said my muscles were SUPER tight. He had me stand in front of him and he told me I was leaning forward a little and my left palm was up a weird way. He said no one else would notice something like that, but I have noticed that in pictures of me, and mom said I walk stiffly too. He put some pain-relieving gel on my back, and some kind of electrical thing, stretched me, etc. He showed me a couple stretches to do to improve pain/my posture, and said to come back on Tuesday so he can work on me more. He said I was too young to feel so old haha! My back is still pretty painful, but hopefully it'll heal quickly. Universe, please stop hurting me, I've had enough LOL
Of all the comfy places Curti can sleep, he chooses..the floor?? He can sleep behind a chair for HOURS. Whatever makes him happy, I guess :P
( 29. How would you describe luxury? )
2. What was once difficult for you but now seems like second nature? Running the register at work. I was terrified!
3. What is your favorite way to commune with nature? Go to the mountains, go in the forest and enjoy the smell of the trees, etc
4. How have you tamed nature within your living space? I don't have any nature in it lol
5. When you were you last bitten, stung, or slimed by nature? Hmmm..not sure..
Last night my back pain was so painful that I went to the hospital! They gave me a bunch of pain meds, but they didn't really do anything. This morning I saw a chiropractor, who said my muscles were SUPER tight. He had me stand in front of him and he told me I was leaning forward a little and my left palm was up a weird way. He said no one else would notice something like that, but I have noticed that in pictures of me, and mom said I walk stiffly too. He put some pain-relieving gel on my back, and some kind of electrical thing, stretched me, etc. He showed me a couple stretches to do to improve pain/my posture, and said to come back on Tuesday so he can work on me more. He said I was too young to feel so old haha! My back is still pretty painful, but hopefully it'll heal quickly. Universe, please stop hurting me, I've had enough LOL
Of all the comfy places Curti can sleep, he chooses..the floor?? He can sleep behind a chair for HOURS. Whatever makes him happy, I guess :P
( 29. How would you describe luxury? )
Halloween: planned
Aug. 29th, 2025 06:30 amsistawendyI know what I'm doing for Halloween. It doesn't involve travel, it doesn't involve (much) money, and it does involve people I've wanted to see for years. They shall soon see, for the first time, the Devil Girl in all her glory. Can you tell I'm psyched?
Oh, and I seem to have fixed my sleep issue by going out for drinks with the latex folks last night. Socializing is good for whatever ails me, if not you too. Fun fact: trans people were about 10% of the attendees. Mmu hu hwaugh huh hah ha!
Oh, and I seem to have fixed my sleep issue by going out for drinks with the latex folks last night. Socializing is good for whatever ails me, if not you too. Fun fact: trans people were about 10% of the attendees. Mmu hu hwaugh huh hah ha!
Saltcrop by Yume Kitasei
Aug. 29th, 2025 08:56 amjames_davis_nicoll
Two sisters quest up a climate-change-and-blight ravaged coast and across the seas to find their missing sister.
Saltcrop by Yume Kitasei
52/197-198: Sloth
Aug. 29th, 2025 03:46 amrejectomorphLots of sleep the last couple of days, with dreams that leave no details, but only vague uneasiness. It's been cooler than it was last week, but still not cool enough to do entirely without air conditioning. Things I haven't done keep piling up, and some I can get by with ignoring, like fixing dinner, I just let go. One thing I won't be able to let go much longer is trimming my toenails. They are starting to slice into their neighboring toes. Plus my footgear fit poorly enough even without giant nails taking up extra space. They get into this state because I'm not flexible enough to reach the toes anymore, and my hands aren't good at working the clippers, nor my eyes at seeing what I'm doing. This oldness crap is getting old, real fast.
Rats, time has gotten away from me again. I need to post this and get to bed. Hot today, and more nasty heat coming up for the next week or so. I just want the damned summer to be over.
Rats, time has gotten away from me again. I need to post this and get to bed. Hot today, and more nasty heat coming up for the next week or so. I just want the damned summer to be over.
Health Woes and Jo's Birthday
Aug. 28th, 2025 10:02 pmglacier_kittyUghh I've had a rough week..I've felt very tired, even before what happened last week. Two or three weeks ago I chomped hard on a popcorn kernel, and my tooth had been sore ever since. My face has been in constant pain, I've had awful migraines, my joints have ached, possibly because of the constant rainy weather this month. I was very grumpy those two sale days at work, and ended the week wiped out. I went to the dentist on Monday, and they took x-rays, but didn't see cracks or anything. He said that tooth was very worn from grinding my teeth and was too crowded in my small mouth, so he said the best thing would be to remove it, so I had that done (good thing it's one that was in the very back). I think this is revenge for me telling the dentist I'm boring because there's nothing wrong with my teeth LOL. I woke up on Tuesday EXHAUSTED, and knew I definitely wasn't going to work. I went to the doctor and they did All the Tests (bloodwork, etc), but the only thing they found was a high heartrate. The doctor said I probably had a virus, and I do remember feeling like I was coming down with something earlier in the month, but I drank some Emergen-C and that seemed to take care of it. Even though I didn't get all the way sick, my body was still tired from fighting the virus. It definitely felt like post-covid tiredness. I decided to take the rest of the week off of work..I definitely have been working too hard. I should listen to my body before I crash! This whole week I've felt SO tired, my jaw has ached, and I've had a terrible migraine, especially today. I went back to the dentist and he said there was no dry socket, and to take pain meds every six hours. I did a couple errands after that, and was COMPLETELY exhausted when I got home, so I took Motrin and Excedrin, and crashed into bed. I felt tired when I woke up, but my face and migraine felt SO much better! I could think again! I've been too exhausted and fuzzy brained to write until now. I took a shower and when I tried to get out, my back twinged weirdly, and now I can add back pain to my list of maladies. Are you kidding me?! I don't know who I angered, but please stop!! I'd like to return to normal life again, please :P (I've definitely had to sing "even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise" throughout the week lol)
Jo's birthday was this week, so his mom (Carmen), stepfather (Dorian) and brother (Jonny) came up to visit. We went to a hibachi restaurant for his birthday..dad had never been to one before, so his reactions were very amusing haha. Carmen also made some Puerto Rican food, and yesterday we ate at a Thai restaurant. I think they leave the day after tomorrow..hopefully they had a good trip!
( a few pics from the week )
23. Describe your car: I don't have one
24. A movie that makes you cry: I've cried watching Passion of the Christ (the first one I remember crying to. I could never watch it again D:), Spider-Man 2, Temple Grandin, Raya and the Last Dragon, A Man Called Ove, The Road..that's all I can remember for now lol
25. What's your leadership style? Show people what to do in a kind and encouraging way (and try to be confident doing it haha). If someone makes a mistake, point it out, but still be positive, and give examples of my mistakes too. Positivity almost always gets the best results and makes people empowered and feel good about their work!
26. What's your favorite genre of TV shows? Action-y ones, detective ones like CB Strike, etc
27. How are you different from your siblings? I'm shorter, way more positive, terrible at cooking, I love to read, etc
28. Your first pet: I think it was a cat named Tiggy..if I remember correctly, my parents had to send him back to California for some reason..
Jo's birthday was this week, so his mom (Carmen), stepfather (Dorian) and brother (Jonny) came up to visit. We went to a hibachi restaurant for his birthday..dad had never been to one before, so his reactions were very amusing haha. Carmen also made some Puerto Rican food, and yesterday we ate at a Thai restaurant. I think they leave the day after tomorrow..hopefully they had a good trip!
( a few pics from the week )
23. Describe your car: I don't have one
24. A movie that makes you cry: I've cried watching Passion of the Christ (the first one I remember crying to. I could never watch it again D:), Spider-Man 2, Temple Grandin, Raya and the Last Dragon, A Man Called Ove, The Road..that's all I can remember for now lol
25. What's your leadership style? Show people what to do in a kind and encouraging way (and try to be confident doing it haha). If someone makes a mistake, point it out, but still be positive, and give examples of my mistakes too. Positivity almost always gets the best results and makes people empowered and feel good about their work!
26. What's your favorite genre of TV shows? Action-y ones, detective ones like CB Strike, etc
27. How are you different from your siblings? I'm shorter, way more positive, terrible at cooking, I love to read, etc
28. Your first pet: I think it was a cat named Tiggy..if I remember correctly, my parents had to send him back to California for some reason..
I'm a tad worried
Aug. 28th, 2025 11:19 pmcornerofmadnessAll this week the pressure of whatever's in my neck against my windpipe has kept me from sleeping well especially if I accidentally roll onto my right side. Now after the ultrasound and them pressing on it, even sitting up I can feel that pressure. I didn't want to have surgery in October but at this point if it has to be it has to be. I think this might be getting worse.
Also saw the neurologist who looked at my MRI, my back and my leg. Yes I have issues with so many nerves. Did the gabapentin help with the trigeminal neuralgia? Yes. So why aren't you taking it for the other nerve pain. Sigh, yes, point taken (but it has to be low dose because the upper doses make me too out of it)
There has always been a divide between fan artists and fan writers as long as I've been going to cons in the 80s and when I moved online it was worse. It's not a BAD thing. It makes sense (though I was always annoyed that fan artists could sell their transformative works but authors couldn't) Art can be easily digested. Stories require work to consume. But I'm still shaking my head and laughing because I posted this picture of my ship
and based off Husk's expression as he looks up at Angel I called him the Smitten Kitten.
I have gotten dozens of likes and comments off the same hashtags I always use for my own stories which gets 4 likes if I'm lucky Even funnier are the people commenting talking about how people (other shippers natch) saying they're just friends. Yeah we all look at our friends with THAT expression (right before we ask to be friends with benefits
I'm mostly ready for tomorrow, work then drive 2 hours to dayton (easy drive, literally 2 turns in over 100 miles). I'm anxious about it because NOTHING is working right online and I feel pressured. It'll be fine. It'll work out. Dayton has no ghost tours that come up online. Wow. I know I have selected a bunch of stuff I'll be interested in. Nothing but museums and cemeteries for three days.
Community recs
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomgiftbasket come join us, get some fannish stuff, make some fannish stuff.
spring_renewal A Spring Prompt Fest (okay we're totally going into the wrong season but I'll lose this before spring rolls back around)
no_true_pair loosely, a mad-libs-style challenge. You make a list of characters, a set of prompts is posted that uses all the characters in different combinations, and you create works using those characters. Okay that sounds challenging
Also saw the neurologist who looked at my MRI, my back and my leg. Yes I have issues with so many nerves. Did the gabapentin help with the trigeminal neuralgia? Yes. So why aren't you taking it for the other nerve pain. Sigh, yes, point taken (but it has to be low dose because the upper doses make me too out of it)
There has always been a divide between fan artists and fan writers as long as I've been going to cons in the 80s and when I moved online it was worse. It's not a BAD thing. It makes sense (though I was always annoyed that fan artists could sell their transformative works but authors couldn't) Art can be easily digested. Stories require work to consume. But I'm still shaking my head and laughing because I posted this picture of my ship
and based off Husk's expression as he looks up at Angel I called him the Smitten Kitten.I have gotten dozens of likes and comments off the same hashtags I always use for my own stories which gets 4 likes if I'm lucky Even funnier are the people commenting talking about how people (other shippers natch) saying they're just friends. Yeah we all look at our friends with THAT expression (right before we ask to be friends with benefits
I'm mostly ready for tomorrow, work then drive 2 hours to dayton (easy drive, literally 2 turns in over 100 miles). I'm anxious about it because NOTHING is working right online and I feel pressured. It'll be fine. It'll work out. Dayton has no ghost tours that come up online. Wow. I know I have selected a bunch of stuff I'll be interested in. Nothing but museums and cemeteries for three days.
Community recs
fandomgiftbasket come join us, get some fannish stuff, make some fannish stuff.spring_renewal A Spring Prompt Fest (okay we're totally going into the wrong season but I'll lose this before spring rolls back around)no_true_pair loosely, a mad-libs-style challenge. You make a list of characters, a set of prompts is posted that uses all the characters in different combinations, and you create works using those characters. Okay that sounds challenging
I forgot how to sleep again.
Aug. 28th, 2025 02:15 pmsistawendyThe subject says it all. I'd really like to be worth a damn after my second tea of the day wears off, especially between dinner and bedtime, but that hasn't been happening for the last few days. And it goes without saying that I've been waking up at oh dark thirty.
Poo. And zzzzzzz.
Poo. And zzzzzzz.
Thank you for being so cool
Aug. 27th, 2025 11:01 pmcornerofmadnessOne of my students tells me on the way out. Are you buttering me up already? It's only day 3. Then again compared to the other two biology profs I know you had, yes yes I AM cool. In this same class we were talking about radium and I went off on a radium girls tangent and how their medical records were doctored to make it look like they were loose girls with syphilis vs taking accountability for what these companies did and how things like the FDA came from these cases and the story of Eben Byers, the rich dude who was drinking so much radithor health drinks his jaw fell off.
Don't google this. Five seconds later they're all around one one laptop, stunned.
You googled it.
THIS CANT BE REAL!! Yes, sorry radium jaw is real. And that's what runaway predatory capitalism looks like.
But also WHY the fuck was the heater on today? Yes it was 57 this morning but I didn't think (nor does anyone think) that our building has sensors that should kick on the heater. It was 87 went I got there. I bitched. By noon the a/c was back on. WTF.
Today I stumbled onto the beginnings of a charity event with the Amazing Digital Circus crew playing Peak. Okay I still don't get the whole watch people play games thing but the charity was a good one (money to help immigrants fight back against what happens after ICE) so I donated and listened for a while.
What I Just Finished Reading:
What Can't be Said - a Sebastian St. Cyr book I called it but loved it
What I am Currently Reading:
Atlas of Unknowable Things - this is strange, good but weird
Solid Gold Murder - the one in my writerly ways this sunday. It's a little better AND the dumb ass thing I was talking about has come back and hit her in the ass so huzzah
What I Plan to Read Next:
The Secret of the Orange Blossom Cake - I bumped this to here5
Don't google this. Five seconds later they're all around one one laptop, stunned.
You googled it.
THIS CANT BE REAL!! Yes, sorry radium jaw is real. And that's what runaway predatory capitalism looks like.
But also WHY the fuck was the heater on today? Yes it was 57 this morning but I didn't think (nor does anyone think) that our building has sensors that should kick on the heater. It was 87 went I got there. I bitched. By noon the a/c was back on. WTF.
Today I stumbled onto the beginnings of a charity event with the Amazing Digital Circus crew playing Peak. Okay I still don't get the whole watch people play games thing but the charity was a good one (money to help immigrants fight back against what happens after ICE) so I donated and listened for a while.
What I Just Finished Reading:
What Can't be Said - a Sebastian St. Cyr book I called it but loved it
What I am Currently Reading:
Atlas of Unknowable Things - this is strange, good but weird
Solid Gold Murder - the one in my writerly ways this sunday. It's a little better AND the dumb ass thing I was talking about has come back and hit her in the ass so huzzah
What I Plan to Read Next:
The Secret of the Orange Blossom Cake - I bumped this to here5
Wednesday Reads the Side Catalogue
Aug. 27th, 2025 10:23 amradiantfractureMy recent reading features two short works by Tamsyn Muir, author of the Locked Tomb series.
I liked both of these books a lot: they seemed to me to feature Muir's strengths without some of the excesses of the Tomb books.
(I am aware that these excesses are precisely the source of delight for fans. I appreciate the meticulous artistry of the series; it's just that the particular qualities of deferral, substitution, and abrasion that are the formal and tonal preoccupation of these books, and that Muir wields so expertly and so persistently, are just not quite my tempo.)
The first book was Muir's 2022 novella, Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower.
This is a revisionist princess-in-the-tower story, so the pleasure comes not from a surprise twist but from seeing how the genre is executed. Very well, I thought.
(That said, there were two or three times I did exclaim out loud, "oh no!" etc. So it's not twistless.)
I liked it enough that when it was done I felt wistful about not being with the characters any more.
(Not in a sentimental way. Or yes, in a sentimental way, but not in a cute way. Or yes cute, but not cozy. Difficult and heartbroken and ridiculous. That way.)
ETA: I mean to say that genre-wise Princess Floralinda is solidly with Beagle's The Last Unicorn and Goldman's The Princess Bride as an anachronistic and self-reflexive take on the genre.
The second was a long short story, or maybe novelette? called Undercover, blurbed thus (in part): "A fresh-faced newcomer arrives in an isolated, gang-run town and soon finds herself taking a job nobody else wants: bodyguard to a ghoul. Not just your average mindless, half-rotted shuffler, though. Lucille is a dancer who can still put on her own lipstick and whose shows are half burlesque, half gladiator match."
What's more, I think it is better that that sounds.
sabotabby, I felt like you might enjoy both of these. Like you might start out thinking "Why did Frac think I would like this?" but then fairly rapidly think "OH" instead.
Anyway, that appears to be most of Muir's non-tomb catalogue, which is too bad. I wish there were more.
§rf§
I liked both of these books a lot: they seemed to me to feature Muir's strengths without some of the excesses of the Tomb books.
(I am aware that these excesses are precisely the source of delight for fans. I appreciate the meticulous artistry of the series; it's just that the particular qualities of deferral, substitution, and abrasion that are the formal and tonal preoccupation of these books, and that Muir wields so expertly and so persistently, are just not quite my tempo.)
The first book was Muir's 2022 novella, Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower.
This is a revisionist princess-in-the-tower story, so the pleasure comes not from a surprise twist but from seeing how the genre is executed. Very well, I thought.
(That said, there were two or three times I did exclaim out loud, "oh no!" etc. So it's not twistless.)
I liked it enough that when it was done I felt wistful about not being with the characters any more.
(Not in a sentimental way. Or yes, in a sentimental way, but not in a cute way. Or yes cute, but not cozy. Difficult and heartbroken and ridiculous. That way.)
ETA: I mean to say that genre-wise Princess Floralinda is solidly with Beagle's The Last Unicorn and Goldman's The Princess Bride as an anachronistic and self-reflexive take on the genre.
The second was a long short story, or maybe novelette? called Undercover, blurbed thus (in part): "A fresh-faced newcomer arrives in an isolated, gang-run town and soon finds herself taking a job nobody else wants: bodyguard to a ghoul. Not just your average mindless, half-rotted shuffler, though. Lucille is a dancer who can still put on her own lipstick and whose shows are half burlesque, half gladiator match."
What's more, I think it is better that that sounds.
sabotabby, I felt like you might enjoy both of these. Like you might start out thinking "Why did Frac think I would like this?" but then fairly rapidly think "OH" instead.Anyway, that appears to be most of Muir's non-tomb catalogue, which is too bad. I wish there were more.
§rf§
522/195-196: BOOM!
Aug. 26th, 2025 09:46 pmrejectomorphWTF Thunderstorm going on here right now. As if heat weren't enough. More than enough. I'm just hoping the lightning doesn't start any fires. There's already a big one burning around Napa. Sadly, the rain is confined to this area, so that fire won't be getting any. But at least my grape vine might be getting watered just a bit. The tap in the backyard has been dry since the pipes here were redone a year or so ago, and I don't go out back anymore, so nothing gets watered out there.
I should probably shut the machine down until the storm has passed. Or I have. Then, of course there'll be nobody to turn it back on. Probably not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.
I should probably shut the machine down until the storm has passed. Or I have. Then, of course there'll be nobody to turn it back on. Probably not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.
Wasn't expecting this
Aug. 26th, 2025 11:26 pmcornerofmadnessI went to open my lab 15 minutes before class time and my ENTIRE class was standing there waiting. I'm not sure I've ever seen that outside of exam day. Maybe I'm going to have a good class this year. Crosses fingers.
Sure as hell ain't having a good online class. I have two sections same class, class 70 perfectly cloned from last time, class 71, error message for every assignment and every test. Weeps in the corner (luckily IT was able to fix that).
Went to get more Dexcoms sent since no one reached out to me. Oddly can't find any emails from Edwards (mailorder). weird. Goes to their site. It claims I'm not a member. I call them and she says you're not an active person. I said look you shipped me shit in April (I get these once a quarter) So we try to make me a new account and I find old stuff on there from previous times I had Medical Mutual (or so I thought) We get my stuff ordered by they have the wrong phone number which I change but I SHOULD have kept it because OMG when I looked up the area code just now it's 409, fucking Galveston Texas (where the other Dana is) and the mother is listed as Mabel. I was laughing about that until I looked her up a second ago. There was a Mabel Louise Evans is Galveston TX who died in 2017 (which is after the first time Edwards (an OH company) has me listed as a patient (I was back in 14 when MM wouldn't pay for my needles/test strips at CVS)
Have I found the other Dana? Can't tell. No children listed in Mabel's obit (because now I'm down the rabbit hole) and even if she IS the other Dana, I erased the phone so I could change it for my own. I can't even with this.
Also made an appointment with Aspen dental because my dentist can't see me until nearly halloween. This tooth socket is hurting more and I am wondering is there a bone shard or something. I can't get to aspen until two weeks from now. Better than two months
So fannish 50 and the women of fandom.
fandomgiftbasket is open for about another week. I did sign up and included my two new fandoms (the two below)
First up Hazbin Hotel news. 8 pictures dropped (while they're all mildly spoilery, one with Pentious is rather upsetting in a way (in that I hope that this won't be dragged out)
So I finally watched the entirety (so far) of The Amazing Digital Circus (and wished I had done a deeper dive before speculating on Caine on Bluesky...but it's Bluesky so no one is listening to me anyhow. Did not know that Caine was meant to be an AI) Because I didn't know this was based on a Harlan Ellison short story (For I have No Mouth and I must Scream) and I'm debating...did I read this back in h.s.? I hated Ellison but all my geek friends (all men) loved him so I might have pretended to read it or listened to them talking about it. Anyhow alittlebitfrank has a nice bit here
So we have four women (Zooble, Gangle, Ragatha and Pomni who is the main pov character) this is a 3-D animated (not my favorite style) and we really don't know much about any of them because of the short run and the long period of time as this is indie produced (sort of) (which has led to lots of creator talk I didn't know about)
I liked Ragatha quite a bit
She's the second best developed of the women. We know she likes softball and had an overbearing mother who was so highly critical Ragatha has become a toxic positivity people pleaser. That's not really the interesting part to me. The two things that really interest me with her is she is very determined to protect Pomni (even from Jax) and is all but trying to force a friendship with Pomni (looking worried and jealous of time spent with Jax) and the fact she hates Jax. Yes Zooble and Gangle do too but in Rags case it seems more than just Jax is an asshole who tries to bully the others (is it a coping mechanism to keep people at arms length is a post for another time) Did she and Jax have a closer relationship and now they don't? Did he hurt her deeply? Does she have reason to fear him?
And of course we're meant to like Pomni
She's the main character. The first two episodes she's shell shocked, not interactive but we see her (and the world through her eyes) beginning to adapt to this weird world. She makes bonds rather easily with most of the characters including Jax. She seems to have a very good handle on him actually.
I'm curious where they'll take her. She is the catalyst for most of the deep explorations the show does, especially of mental health issues. It's interesting.
Sure as hell ain't having a good online class. I have two sections same class, class 70 perfectly cloned from last time, class 71, error message for every assignment and every test. Weeps in the corner (luckily IT was able to fix that).
Went to get more Dexcoms sent since no one reached out to me. Oddly can't find any emails from Edwards (mailorder). weird. Goes to their site. It claims I'm not a member. I call them and she says you're not an active person. I said look you shipped me shit in April (I get these once a quarter) So we try to make me a new account and I find old stuff on there from previous times I had Medical Mutual (or so I thought) We get my stuff ordered by they have the wrong phone number which I change but I SHOULD have kept it because OMG when I looked up the area code just now it's 409, fucking Galveston Texas (where the other Dana is) and the mother is listed as Mabel. I was laughing about that until I looked her up a second ago. There was a Mabel Louise Evans is Galveston TX who died in 2017 (which is after the first time Edwards (an OH company) has me listed as a patient (I was back in 14 when MM wouldn't pay for my needles/test strips at CVS)
Have I found the other Dana? Can't tell. No children listed in Mabel's obit (because now I'm down the rabbit hole) and even if she IS the other Dana, I erased the phone so I could change it for my own. I can't even with this.
Also made an appointment with Aspen dental because my dentist can't see me until nearly halloween. This tooth socket is hurting more and I am wondering is there a bone shard or something. I can't get to aspen until two weeks from now. Better than two months
So fannish 50 and the women of fandom.
fandomgiftbasket is open for about another week. I did sign up and included my two new fandoms (the two below)First up Hazbin Hotel news. 8 pictures dropped (while they're all mildly spoilery, one with Pentious is rather upsetting in a way (in that I hope that this won't be dragged out)
So I finally watched the entirety (so far) of The Amazing Digital Circus (and wished I had done a deeper dive before speculating on Caine on Bluesky...but it's Bluesky so no one is listening to me anyhow. Did not know that Caine was meant to be an AI) Because I didn't know this was based on a Harlan Ellison short story (For I have No Mouth and I must Scream) and I'm debating...did I read this back in h.s.? I hated Ellison but all my geek friends (all men) loved him so I might have pretended to read it or listened to them talking about it. Anyhow alittlebitfrank has a nice bit here
So we have four women (Zooble, Gangle, Ragatha and Pomni who is the main pov character) this is a 3-D animated (not my favorite style) and we really don't know much about any of them because of the short run and the long period of time as this is indie produced (sort of) (which has led to lots of creator talk I didn't know about)
I liked Ragatha quite a bit
She's the second best developed of the women. We know she likes softball and had an overbearing mother who was so highly critical Ragatha has become a toxic positivity people pleaser. That's not really the interesting part to me. The two things that really interest me with her is she is very determined to protect Pomni (even from Jax) and is all but trying to force a friendship with Pomni (looking worried and jealous of time spent with Jax) and the fact she hates Jax. Yes Zooble and Gangle do too but in Rags case it seems more than just Jax is an asshole who tries to bully the others (is it a coping mechanism to keep people at arms length is a post for another time) Did she and Jax have a closer relationship and now they don't? Did he hurt her deeply? Does she have reason to fear him?
And of course we're meant to like Pomni
She's the main character. The first two episodes she's shell shocked, not interactive but we see her (and the world through her eyes) beginning to adapt to this weird world. She makes bonds rather easily with most of the characters including Jax. She seems to have a very good handle on him actually.
I'm curious where they'll take her. She is the catalyst for most of the deep explorations the show does, especially of mental health issues. It's interesting.