ridicully | Network

but_can_i_be_trusted posting in

100words

Title: 'The Sorceress'
Fandom: Original Fiction
Rating: G
Notes: Crossposted to

vocab_drabbles

( The Sorceress )

olivermoss

* Murderbot season 2!

I still need to finishing S1. During one of the episodes a lot of people are talking softly and like... I cannot get my computer to turn up enough. I need to finish it out wearing headphones. My laptop has good audio, but some Apple TV shows are just quiet.

I assume if they are doing an S2, they are probably doing more because it makes sense to film sort of concurrently due to the way characters pop in and out of the narrative. If they want to keep the actors, concurrent filming and maybe some 'meanwhile back on PresAux' moments. They dropped the first person POV, and again, that might be part of why, figuring out how to make it a viable project to continue.

* I got D&D in an hour. I don't have time to check if the new episode Worldcon drama is legit or not, dammit.

sovay

It was helpful of Adrian Tchaikovsky's Elder Race (2021) to include a dedication to its inspiration of Gene Wolfe's "Trip, Trap" (1967), since I would otherwise have guessed Le Guin's "Semley's Necklace" (1964)/Rocannon's World (1966) as its jumping-off point of anthropological science fiction through the split lens of heroic fantasy. As far as I can tell, my ur-text for that kind of double-visioned narrative was Phyllis Gotlieb's A Judgment of Dragons (1980), some of whose characters understand that they have been sucked down a time vortex into the late nineteenth century where a dangerously bored trickster of an enigmatically ancient species is amusing himself in the Pale of Settlement and some of whom just understand that Ashmedai has come to town. I got a kind of reversal early, too, from Jane Yolen's Sister Light, Sister Dark (1988) and White Jenna (1989), whose modern historian is doomed to fail in his earnest reconstructions because in his rationality he misses that the magic was real. Tchaikovsky gets a lot of mileage for his disjoint perspectives out of Clarke's Law, but just as much out of an explanation of clinical depression or the definition of a demon beyond all philosophy, and from any angle I am a sucker for the Doppler drift of stories with time. The convergence of genre protocols is nicely timed. Occasional Peter S. Beagle vibes almost certainly generated by the reader, not the text. Pleasantly, the book actually is novella-proportioned rather than a compacted novel, but now I have the problem of accepting that if the author had wanted to set any further stories in this attractively open-ended world, at his rate of prolificacy they would already have turned up. On that note, I appreciated hearing that Murderbot (2025–) has been renewed.

Music Michigander, "Giving Up"

itsnotmymind

I'm watching a movie in German without subtitles, even though I don't speak German. This is because I didn't realize it didn't have subtitles until I was pretty far into it. In fact, I didn't realize it wasn't a silent film until pretty far in. The movie is the 1933 film Ekstase, and although it is a talkie it has long segments without dialogue. I'm watching it for Hedy Lamarr, because I've never seen a movie with her in it and I decided I wanted to.

I'm reading a dense local history: A Union Against Unions: The Minneapolis Citizens Alliance and Its Fight Against Organized Labor, 1903-1947 by William Millikan. The subject matter is very interesting but as I said, dense.

One song I am really enjoying lately is "Because I Liked a Boy", by Sabrina Carpenter.

oriolegirl

I've been tired and cranky all week. I'm putting part (most?) of it down to the weather. It's no longer HOT but it's still too humid to even consider opening the windows again. And it's been rather gray the last couple of days. I've also had way too much chocolate this week. That probably doesn't help matters.

Yesterday was rather nice, humidity aside, and I did go to PokemonGO raid hour. I was mildly sociable as I was doing some trading, but I was rather less sociable than usual. Hopefully I will be in a better frame of mind for Saturday's event. Also, I'm having dinner with S on Saturday, so fingers crossed.

I had signed up for two webinars yesterday. The first I skipped because I'd gotten a later start than planned and I was in the middle of strength training when it started. It was a mid-year analysis from TIAA and I'm meeting with my TIAA guy in a couple of weeks, so not a huge loss. The second was the every other month Bariatric Advantage "support group" webinar - not so much support group as webinar - and I was mildly looking forward to that one. Although the topic wasn't one that I was super excited about. When I got the reminder, I just couldn't. They did send the recording and slides.

I should be in another webinar right now, but I just can't deal. Last night/this morning was one of those times when I woke up around 5am and just couldn't go back to sleep. I wound up doing stuff on my phone for a couple of hours before finally getting up around 8:45. Which gave me plenty of time to do a 3 mile Walk at Home video rather than a 2 mile.

I'm also signed up for a webinar tomorrow but I'm not optimistic about that one, mostly because it's right after I spend 3 hours on chat and during lunch. I don't even remember the topic, just that it's something historical, maybe English? Aha, Queen Victoria and Her Prime Ministers. We'll see. There'll be a recording at any rate.

My hair stylist has been out for a couple of weeks, I assume on vacation, and I've got an appointment tomorrow afternoon. I got a text a few minutes ago and was afraid they were canceling, but fortunately it was just a confirmation text. I can't wait to get the back trimmed - it grows the fastest and bugs the crap out of me when it gets too long.

oursin

For the first time in forever I have been making The Famous Aubergine Dip (the vegan version with Vegan Worcestershire Sauce, I discovered the bottle I had was use by ages ahead, yay). This required me acquiring aubergines from The Local Shops. There is now, on the corner where there used to be an estate agent (and various other things before that) a flower shop that also sells fruit and vegetables, and they had Really Beautiful, 'I'm ready for my close-up Mr deMille', Aubergines, it was almost a pity to chop them up and saute them.

A little while ago I mentioned being solicited to Give A Paper to a society to which I have spoken (and published in the journal of) heretofore. Blow me down, they have come back suggesting the topic I suggested - thrown together in a great hurry before dashing off to conference last week - is Of Such Significance pretty please could I give the keynote???

Have been asked to be on the advisory board for a funded research project.

A dance in the old dame yet, I guess.

vriddy

A Drop of Corruption was as good as y'all said. Loved it at least as much as the first book. Love these characters, this world, those mysteries. I hope we get ten more of them!! At least!!!!!!!!!! And the afterword/author's note at the end was kickass, too.

Yay to good books \o/

torino10154 posting in

neville100

Happy Neville Thursday!!

For our last round:

enchanted_jae wrote Mooncalves and Puffapods Neville, omc (background Neville/Luna)

enchanted_jae wrote Houseguest 2 Dean, Neville (background Neville/??)

digthewriter wrote Smoke and Bloom Neville

The new challenge is:

Prompt 569: Midnight

This prompt will run until July 24.

As always, we encourage responses to any prompt at any time, so if an older challenge inspires you, please feel free to post for it!

sineala

Establishing Shot (7854 words) by Sineala
Chapters: 2/2
Fandom: Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616, Iron Man (Comics)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Henry Hellrung & Tony Stark
Characters: Henry Hellrung, Tony Stark
Additional Tags: Character Study, First Meetings, Alcohol, Acting, POV Outsider, Comic: Iron Man Vol. 1 (1968)
Summary: When Henry Hellrung lands the role of Tony Stark on the upcoming Avengers TV show, he's thrilled. But first, he needs to know what makes this guy tick. But when the cameras are on... Tony's acting. Who is Tony Stark, really? Henry meets Tony in person, to see if he can learn the truth. What he finds is something he never expected.

It's been a while since I posted a fic, hasn't it? This is actually a gen fic written for the zine Transistor-Powered Heart.

It's also not actually as long as it looks; the second chapter is a bonus version with several deleted scenes.

Mood creative

vriddy

Community Thursday challenge: every Thursday, try to make an effort to engage with a community on Dreamwidth, whether that's posting, commenting, promoting, etc.

I just would like to give another signal boost and pointer toward

sunshine_revival, as the comm and event appear very active! You can dip in and out and don't have to start from the beginning, just jump in whenever you like and enjoy, and hopefully make new dreamwidth friends :) I've been enjoying the challenge replies I spot on my reading page!

kingstoken

Challenge #3

Journaling prompt: What are your favorite summer-associated foods?
Creative prompt: Draw art of or make graphics of summer foods, or post your favorite summer recipes.

I actually talked about my this last time and my love of summer fruits. I also love corn on the cob when it is it in season. I made this recipe for corn/chickpea salad the other day, at least I sort of did, I excluded the herbs, olives, and pickled onions, and added some soft cheese cubes. I also added a tiny bit of maple syrup to the dressing to cut the vinegary/sourness, I saw that on a YouTube shorts vid. It was very good, and I've been eating it for lunch for the last couple of days.

kay_brooke

Another eight books read in June.

Previous books posts:
Books 1-9 (January)
Books 10-15 (February)
Books 16-24 (March)
Books 25-33 (April)
Books 34-41 (May)

Cut for length, not for spoilers. Any spoilers will be marked.

( 42. E is for Evidence by Sue Grafton - 4 stars )

( 43. Rose Madder by Stephen King - 3.5 stars )

( 44. The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers - 3 stars )

( 45. Tell Me What I Am by Una Mannion - 3 stars )

( 46. Gory Details: Adventures from the Dark Side of Science by Erika Engelhaupt - 4 stars )

( 47. Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez - 3.5 stars )

( 48. Medicine's 10 Greatest Discoveries by Meyer Friedman and Gerald W. Friedland - 4 stars )

( 49. Free Space by Sean Danker - 4 stars )

Sorry this is so late. Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

glitteryv posting in

recthething

Every Thursday, we have a community post, just like this one, where you can drop a rec or five in the comments.

This works great if you only have one rec and don't want to make a whole post for it, or if you don't have a DW account, or if you're shy. ;)

(But don't forget: you can deffo make posts of your own seven days a week. ;D!)

So what cool fanart/fanvids/fancrafts/podfics/fics/other kinds of fanworks have we discovered this week? Drop it in the comments below. Anon comment is enabled.

BTW, AI fanworks are not eligible for reccing at recthething. If you aware that a fanwork is AI-generated, please do not rec it here.

garryowen posting in

fancake

Fandom: Star Trek TOS
Pairings/Characters: Kirk/Spock
Rating: G
Length: 1 min 41 sec
Creator Links:

indeedcaptain
Theme: Working together, outsider POV

Summary: the flagship may not be all it's cracked up to be

Reccer's Notes: Have you ever wondered what it's like to work with a commanding officer who has zero judgment when it comes to the captain and who does shit like almost kill him while under the influence of Vulcan mating hormones? Or how about working under a captain who has zero judgment when it comes to his first, and is always doing shit like risking his life and the ship to save his first's life? This short song captures what that must be like. It's the little things like trying to get your damn performance review submitted to Starfleet.

I'm not super into filk, but this one is well-written, with fun rhymes and nice progression from beginning to end. It'll put a smile on your face.

Fanwork Links: HR Violations on the USS Enterprise

james_davis_nicoll

Desperate to pay her brother Jasper's way out of Muhlenberg County, Opal accepts a job at an infamously cursed mansion.

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

muscle_wizard

For

sunshine_revival Challenge Three !!

Journaling Prompt
What are your favorite summer-associated foods?

Fruit is the star when summer rolls around - specifically watermelon and cherries.

Typically I buy 2 or 3 watermelons over the course of the summer. I split them with my mom, so we eat them pretty quick while they're juicy and hopefully a little sweet. I like fruit best in the morning as my something sweet, especially when it's chilled <3_<3 Occasionally I can find the oblong watermelon from my childhood filled with seeds - I just think they taste better *g*

I love all cherries, though my favorites are Rainier Cherries - there's (1) place in my state where you can pick your own cherries and they're priced by the pound(lb.), not by variety, so I try to buy them there. We can't always make the trip every year, so I'll play the waiting game at the market and buy them when they aren't full price lol.

I brew lots of citrus ice tea, green tea, and peppermint to help combat the hot weather.

I love making cold crab salad to stuff in hot dog buns, seaweed wraps, or plop on top of salads.

(I will still eat hot and spicy food tho.)

spikedluv

Murderbot: Good ep! ( spoilers )

Resident Alien: Good ep! ( spoilers )

dramapanda_c_feed

Posted by Vic

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/cheng-xiao-not-going-college-chase-k-pop-dream-regret.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=96015

Cheng Xiao Opens Up About Skipping College to Chase K-Pop Dream, Says It's Her Biggest Regret

Chinese actress and former K-pop idol Cheng Xiao is recently part of the cast of Chinese reality show Daughters and Mothers (是女儿是妈妈2). The 26-year-old star touched upon a long-standing regret of hers – as she wasn’t able to pursue a college education.

At just 14 years old, Cheng Xiao left China to become a trainee in Korea under Yuehua Entertainment, eventually debuting as a member of the South Korean girl group WJSN (Cosmic Girls). Her mother revealed on the show that she had negotiated a backup plan with the agency: if Cheng Xiao failed to debut within two years, she would return to her studies as an international student. However, the then-aspiring idol’s efforts paid off. She debuted and quickly became one of the popular members of WJSN. Despite this success, both she and her mother admitted that skipping higher education has remained their regret.

Chen Xiao with her mom and younger sister Cheng Chen — Cheng Xiao’s mom, younger sister Cheng Chen and herself

Cheng once wrote a heartfelt letter to her mom, saying, “If you don’t let me go, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.” Her mother, though conflicted, chose to fully support her daughter’s dream. Looking back, they both acknowledged that their relationship had suffered during those early years. “You just worried too much,” the singer-actress said with a smile.

Since returning to China, Cheng Xiao has steadily built her career. At just 19 years old, she was already a mentor on Idol Producer, which was the start to many other survival shows where she appeared in the same capacity. The former idol has also starred in dramas like The World of Fantasy, Falling Into Your Smile, and Fangs of Fortune.

Photos: Cheng Xiao

The post Cheng Xiao Opens Up About Not Going College to Chase K-Pop Dream, Says It’s Her Regret appeared first on DramaPanda.

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/cheng-xiao-not-going-college-chase-k-pop-dream-regret.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=96015

spikedluv

I had a chiropractic appointment this morning, so I didn’t get to mom’s until 9:20am. I took advantage of the fact that I needed to go downtown for that appointment to do some shopping; I got in Walmart and Price Chopper before my appointment, and the Pharmacy after. I also got in a walk around the park before my appointment.

I then had to go home and unload the car and put away groceries. I was home in time to make supper (Pip requested grilled cheese). I also hand-wash dishes, scooped kitty litter, and placed an online order.

I started the next Duncan Kincaid book and watched the current ep of Resident Alien and an HGTV program.

Temps started out at 65.5(F) and reached 84.2.

Mom Update:

Mom was sitting on her porch when I got there this morning. ( more back here )

pensnest

Journaling prompt: What are your favorite summer-associated foods?

My grandma grew raspberries. She had a lovely square patch of canes, and I often helped pick them, which was a great way to sneak extra raspberries into my mouth instead of into the bowl. Delicious berries. And they remind me of my grandma, which is never bad.

FIL also grew raspberries. Back when he had two allotments (!!) and a respectable back garden, he used to make raspberry jam, which was *excellent*. However, he also used to freeze raspberries with so much added sugar that they tasted more like sugar than raspberries, which was a practically criminal waste.

I have my first serious raspberry harvest this year! Picked a good bowlful on Sunday morning, and my Boy came round for lunch and interview prep. We had a generous portion each (fresh raspberries! from my garden!) and there was still enough for me to enhance my breakfast for a couple of days afterwards.

There are more on the canes. \o/

Creative prompt: Draw art of or make graphics of summer foods, or post your favorite summer recipes.

Hmm. I spent two hours yesterday drawing people, in the final class. Copying a photo is so much easier than drawing from life! We spent half an hour on the photo (an elegant Black woman in profile), then drew one another for five-ten minutes using pencils, graphite sticks, charcoal and oil pastels, then one final 'portrait' in whatever medium we chose. It was actually easier to do the 5-minute ones, because there was no expectation that we'd do it well....

All this to say, I'm out of drawing today.

As far as summery food goes, I guess I eat more salad in the summer and more soup in the winter, but salad merely involves cutting/tearing and throwing into a bowl a selection from: lettuce and similar, from a head or a mixed bag or both, spinach, tomatoes, bell peppers, spring onions, feta cheese, salted cashews, sprouting beans, mushrooms, anything else I have that seems reasonable.

I am, however, inspired to create a Summer Pudding. Nigella has a recipe here https://www.nigella.com/recipes/summer-pudding but all you really need to know is: pudding basin, slightly stale white bread, mixture of berries, sugar. Line the basin with the bread, fill the centre with lightly heated berries and sugar, saving some of the delicious juice to coat all the bread. Cover the top with more bread, and juice that, then put a weight on top and leave it in the fridge overnight. Serve slices with double cream.

Eton Mess is good, too, with the additional benefit of not mattering what it looks like.

Icon is Pedro Pascal because he is also delicious.

scifirenegade

Title: Gömd
Rating: General
Fandom: A Woman's Face (1941)
Pairing(s) / Character(s): Anna
Warnings: the most vague mentions of past trauma
Spoilers: not really

Note: For

fic_promptly. Prompt was "Any, any, a beautiful/handsome face and an attractive body isn't all there is to her/him, but it is what most people choose to see".

On AO3
On Squidge

( Read more... )

Mood awake

oursin

Happy birthday,

azara1,

hawkwing_lb and

mmestrange!

veronyxk84 posting in

100words

Title: Surprise Family Gathering
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Characters/Pairing: Spuffy, Dawn
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: none
Word count: 100 (Google Docs)
Setting/Spoilers: Set post-S11 (comics) in an alternate reality where Buffy and Spike are an established couple.
Summary: Buffy has bad mayhem memories linked to her birthday... But it doesn’t always have to end in mayhem.
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction created for fun and no profit has been made. All rights belong to the respective owners.

Prompts: [Amnesty XLV] #062 Delight + #224 Surprise + #263 Birthday

Crossposted:

sweetandshort, My journal, Sunnydale After Dark

—
( READ: Surprise Family Gathering )

torachan

1. I took one car to the car wash yesterday and the other today and now they both look much better. I will be very glad when they are finally done with the huge construction at the end of our street (should be done by this fall) because it really kicks up a lot of dust. (Even the car I got washed yesterday already has a visible layer of dust coating it by today.)

2. Since I got these new shoes several months back I have noticed them being really squeaky, especially on certain types of flooring. They're so squeaky that I often felt self-conscious about them. After trying a few things, I noticed that the insoles I have for them are slightly too large, even though they are the correct size range for the shoes, and it seems like the part of the insoles in the toe area are where the worst of the squeaking is coming from. So I ordered one size smaller of insoles and have been wearing those for the past week and the squeaking is almost totally gone! They still make a little noise once in a while, but it's like 99.9% reduced. The restroom at work was one of the worst offenders, so the first time I was able to test them in there and they weren't squeaking up a storm, I knew they'd be okay everywhere.

3. We went down to Disneyland tonight for dinner. It's been hot during the day this week but was much nicer by the time we got down there (and the sun was going down by then).

4. I finished another puzzle this morning. This is my first time doing a puzzle that wasn't square, so that was an interesting twist. I usually do the edges of a puzzle first, but I couldn't do that with this one because most of the edge pieces were tiny and didn't even interlock with each other, just with the next layer of pieces in from them.

5. Gemma looks very disturbed to realize that I've seen her.

dine

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

longficmod posting in

fandom5k

Thank you to all our pinch hitters. <3 Remember that anyone who isn't signed up but is only pinch hitting can leave prompts at our treats for pinch hitters post! This is a great place to look if you're interested in creating treats.

Ideally, these would be due 18 July at 23:59 US Eastern time, one day before our planned reveals date. However, it's possible I'll have to delay the collection opening to make sure all participants are covered, so if you know you can take one of these pinch hits but will need longer than the 18th, please let me know, and we can discuss.

A delay looks likely at this time, and I'll make an announcement about that tomorrow.

If you can claim one of these, please comment with your AO3 name and the number of the pinch hit you want. All comments are screened.

( PDPH 10 - The West Wing, Neko no Ongaeshi | The Cat Returns, Severance (TV) )

( CLAIMED - PDPH 13 - Naruto (Anime & Manga), Avatar: The Last Airbender (Cartoon 2005), Original Work, Gundam Wing, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies), Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses, House of the Dragon (TV) )

aurumcalendula

A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft:

( Read more... )

A Treachery of Swans by A.B. Poranek:

( Read more... )

I'd heard of Melissa Scott's Astreiant novels, but hadn't gotten to them until recently. I like the combination of plotty mysteries and slowburn romance. It reminded me of Swordspoint at times, although with more magic and a matriarchal-ish society (it was interesting to notice 'she' being used as default pronoun for an unknown person the way 'he' sometimes used to be, iirc). I'm very fond of the main characters, but I would really like to read something like this with a f/f main couple. More on specific books (I have two more left in the series to read) below.

Point of Hopes by Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett:

( Read more... )

Point of Knives by Melissa Scott:

( Read more... )

Point of Dreams by Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett:

( Read more... )

Fairs' Point by Melissa Scott:

( Read more... )

lightbird

Challenge #3

Journaling prompt: What are your favorite summer-associated foods?
Creative prompt: Draw art of or make graphics of summer foods, or post your favorite summer recipes. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Ice cream!!!!

And: fresh berries, peaches, limeade (yum).

Also, did you know that there is a Museum of Ice Cream? They have locations in many cities, most in the U.S. but there is one in Singapore. You have to reserve tickets, but once you're in you can eat unlimited ice cream, among other fun things. I'm in New York City where you can slide down into a big pool of sprinkles.

Previous Days
Day 1
Day 2

hannah

I made a mistake regarding patient charts at work - nothing life-threatening or genuinely harmful, simply highly improper procedure that created twice the work for myself and the practice instead of half the work that would've come from doing it right the first time. When asked about it, I said I could provide reasons and excuses and it didn't matter, I'd done the thing and would fix it.

Besides the lessons of "write everything down at least twice" and "most mistakes can be fixed", the main takeaway is the person who spoke to me about it assumed I was Gen Z and was a little surprised when I said I was a Millennial. Partly that's the nature of the mistake, and I think another part's simply how I look. Granted, he's nearly twice my age so anyone more than 20 years his junior is "young" by that standard. Even so, I'm going to take the skin care compliment.

Mood sleepy
Music Fake Empire - The National

starwatcher posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Wednesday, July 9, to midnight on Thursday, July 10. (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #33344 Daily Check-in

This poll is closed.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 28

How are you doing?

I am OK.
18 (64.3%)

I am not OK, but don't need help right now.
10 (35.7%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans live with you?

I am living single.
13 (46.4%)

One other person.
11 (39.3%)

More than one other person.
4 (14.3%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

princessofgeeks

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

Mood tired

princessofgeeks

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

Mood nostalgic

sovay

Last night's eight hours of sleep were more disrupted and fragmentary than the previous, but my brain wasn't wrong that in life Kenneth Colley was only a little taller than me and a year or so younger when he first sparked a fandom for Admiral Piett.

I read later into the night than planned because I had just discovered Irene Clyde's Beatrice the Sixteenth (1909), which would fall unobjectionably toward the easterly end of the Ruritanian romance were it not that the proud and ancient society into which Dr. Mary Hatherley awakens after a kick in the head from her camel while crossing the Arabian Desert has zero distinction of gender in either language or social roles to the point that the longer the narrator spends among the elegantly civilized yet decidedly un-English environment of Armeria, the more she adopts the female pronoun as the default for all of its inhabitants regardless of how she read them to begin with. Plotwise, the novel is concerned primarily with the court intrigue building eventually to war between the the preferentially peaceful Armeria and the most patriarchally aggressive of its neighbors, but the narrator's acculturation to an agendered life whose equivalent of marriage is contracted regardless of biological sex and whose children are all adopted rather than reproduced puts it more in the lineage of Theodore Sturgeon's Venus Plus X (1960) or Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness (1969) even without the sfnal reveal that Mêrê, as she comes to accept the local translation of her name, has not merely stumbled upon some Haggard-esque lost world but actually been jolted onto an alternate plane of history, explaining the classical substrate of Armerian that allows her to communicate even if it bewilders her to hear that the words kyné and anra are used as interchangeably as persona and the universal term for a spouse is the equally gender-free conjux. If it is a utopia, it is an ambiguous one: it may shock the reader as much as Mêrê that the otherwise egalitarian Armeria has never abolished the institution of slavery as practiced since their classical antiquity. Then again, her Victorian sensibilities may be even more offended by the Armerian indifference to heredity, especially when it forces her to accept that her dashing, principled, irresistibly attractive Ilex is genetically what her colonial instincts would disdain as a barbarian. Children are not even named after their parents, but after the week of their adoption—Star, Eagle, Fuchsia, Stag. For the record, despite Mêrê's observation that the Armerian language contains no grammatical indications of the masculine, it is far from textually clear that its citizens should therefore all be assumed to be AFAB. "Sex is an accident" was one of the mottoes of Urania (1916–40), the privately circulated, assertively non-binary, super-queer journal of gender studies co-founded and co-edited by the author of Beatrice the Sixteenth, who was born and conducted an entire career in international law under the name of Thomas Baty. I knew nothing about this rabbit hole of queer literature and history and am delighted to see it will get a boost from MIT Press' Radium Age. In the meantime, it makes another useful reminder that everything is older than I think.

As a person with a demonstrable inclination toward movies featuring science, aviation, and Michael Redgrave, while finally watching The Dam Busters (1955) I kept exclaiming things like "If you want the most beautiful black-and-white clouds, call Erwin Hillier!" We appreciated the content warning for historically accurate language. I was right that the real-life footage had been obscured for official secrets reasons. The skies did look phenomenal.

Music Haim, "Down to Be Wrong"

conuly

"Why work here?"

"Weekly pay!"

Yup, that's why I would like to apply for any and all jobs!

(On a side note, A has been sending me a lot of job links today. I'm a bit inundated, but I somehow don't think that "Great, please don't send them to me, just fill them out with my resume for me" is going to go over very well.)

***************

( Read more... )

xkcd_feed

https://xkcd.com/3113/

We're building on our earlier success getting web developers to pay to change the backslashes in our displayed payment URL to forward slashes.

https://xkcd.com/3113/

james_davis_nicoll

The latter half of Pyramid's ten-year run, the issues published from November 2013 to December 2018, sixty-two issues in all.

Bundle of Holding: Pyramid 2

oursin

What I read

Finished Murder in the Trembling Lands and okay, you have a mystery based on something that happened during some very confusing battle events back in the past, and this is all taking place during the upheavals of carnival in New Orleans decades later, and people lying, giving their versions of past events based on gossip, rumour, speculation etc etc, and possibly this was not really one to be reading in fits and starts.

Zen Cho, Behind Frenemy Lines (2025). This was really good: it does what I consider a desideratum particularly in contemporary-set romance, it has a good deal of hinterland going on around the central couple and their travails. And is Zen Cho going to give us a political thriller anytime, hmmmm?

Natasha Brown, Universality (2025), which I picked up recently as a Kobo deal. I was fairly meh about this - kind of a 'The Way We Live Now' work, about class and the media and establishing narratives and the compromises people make, I found it clunky (after the preceding!) if short, though was a bit startled by the coincidental appearance of the mouse research I mentioned earlier this week being cited by an old uni friend of one of the characters, now veering alt-right.

On the go

Also a Kobo deal, Taffy Brodesser-Akner, Long Island Compromise (2024): in my days of reading fat family sagas set in T'North, this would have been the 'to clogs again' section of the narrative.... it's sort of vaguely compelling in its depressing way.

Up next

Have got various things which were Kobo deals lined up, not sure how far any of them appeal. Also new Literary Review, which has my letter in it. The new Sally Smith mystery not out for another week, boo.

kitewithfish

What I’ve Read
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert Caro -
By god, what a book, what a monster of a book! Like many, I picked this up because the lure of a good book club is a siren song – the podcast 99% Invisible decided to do a year long project on this book, one extra episode a month to discuss the book and have a conversation with someone about it. (They got great people, too, including the author!)

I fell behind schedule of the podcast but kept listening and reading on my own, and eventually, to finish this book, I ended up owning it in paperback, ebook, and three audiobooks of 1/3rd of the book each. 1200 pages makes a lot of audiobook!

This book is huge story look at one man’s life in public administration of the parks and roads and buildings of New York City. At every stage, the power of an unscrupulous, brilliant, and determined mind is at play in every project he sets his hand to, and the resulting works show his massive ego and talent and all his bigotries. Robert Moses was a fascinating and complicated man, and his legacy is fascinating and complicated. It’s also a key lesson in how difficult it is to get out of power someone who is entrenched and well supported. It also shows someone who’s unethical in small things will be unethical in big ones.

Key thoughts: If you get started on a project, public figures are more embarrassed by half finished project that wastes moderate amounts of money than by one that goes wildly over budget but gets completed. Public goodwill can be purchased by getting the papers on your side, but only for so long. You can’t just be right, you have to be smart.

As a reading experience, Caro is a skilled guide thru a tangled mess of history, legislation, and construction projects. It really can just be picked up and read chapter by chapter – he’ll give you the context you need to understand. Caro’s got a great sense for a revealing anecdote and occasionally a real admiration for the people he writes about as skilled political actors.

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett – a very decent murder mystery in a fantasy world with some good characters and fun world building. Both the main characters and the world have mysteries built into them, and I found the whole thing very engaging. I don’t want to say more lest I spoil things.

Star Trek Lower Decks Warp Your Own Way by Ryan North and Chris Fenoglio – A graphic novel in the Choose Your Own Adventures style that is also a very fun Star Trek legacy piece. I don’t know Lower Decks at all but this was a fun introduction. Clearly made by people who love and appreciate Star Trek’s weirdnesses and with a eye on what makes someone heroic. I will say, it was a kind of confusing read – the Choose Your Own Adventure elements sometimes interact with the text, so you have to go thru several branches before getting enough information to figure out how to pick the right branch. It’s an iterative experience, but well written and charming enough to Trekkie that I did not get tired of it.

What I’m Reading
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo – A reasonably interesting premise but I feel like the story is being weighed down a bit. I am about 25% in and we still haven’t gotten the main character to the Big Meeting.

Someone You Can Build a Nest in by John Wiswell – A weird and gooey book with a monster main character.

What I’ll Read Next

The Deep Dark
Track Changes
Alien Clay
Service Model
Monstress, Vol. 9: The Possessed
Navigational Entanglements
The Butcher of the Forest
The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain
Speculative Whiteness: Science Fiction and the Alt-Right
The Brides of High Hill
The Tusks of Extinction
“Charting the Cliff: An Investigation into the 2023 Hugo Nomination Statistics”
“Signs of Life”
“By Salt, By Sea, By Light of Stars”
“The Brotherhood of Montague St. Video”
“Loneliness Universe”
“The 2023 Hugo Awards: A Report on Censorship and Exclusion”
“The Four Sisters Overlooking the Sea”
“Lake of Souls”

conuly

Asked where I lived, was concerned that the answer is "Staten Island". FFS, it's not Siberia!

I need to start telling people I'm moving in with a friend in Tribeca. Just straight up lie.

autobotscoutriella

Challenge #2: Tunnel of Love
Journaling: The romance of summer! What do you love? Write about anything you feel sentimental about or that gets your heart pumping.

I've never been great at being sentimental about things - complicated depressing family history reasons that eventually added up to "I'm bad at openly expressing how much I love something". But I've been working on that, so tricky as it might be, I'm going to talk about something summer-associated that I love that I don't talk about much: hummingbirds.

They're so pretty. I've had a hummingbird feeder for years, and every spring they show up at my window to see where it is. In the summer, I'll sit out on the porch with a book and just hang out while the hummingbirds hold a tiny little territory war over the feeder. I'm sure it's all very serious and dramatic, if you're a hummingbird. If you're me, it's just adorable, and kind of noisy.

Two years ago I left the back door open, and a hummingbird decided to make herself at home in my apartment. This would be an adorable moment of "chosen by the birds", except that I also have a cat, so it was a very exciting twenty minutes of trying to very gently remove a small angry bird. Worth it, though. They're precious.

(Note to self: refill feeder tonight.)

No creative-prompt fill from me this challenge, because poetry and I have a very bad relationship. Alas! In apology, I found a picture of a hummingbird (not mine, I can't photograph birds that move that fast):

( cut to spare my reading page )

Mood chipper

dramapanda_c_feed

Posted by Chase Shê

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/hong-kong-actress-natalie-ng-divorce-marriage-troubled-cancer.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=95997

Hong Kong actress Natalie Ng has been fighting a recurrence of her breast cancer since August last year. But despite her ongoing battle with the disease, she has continued working on her new autobiography where no topic seemed to be off limits. With the release of her book, the 50-year-old just dropped a major shocker when she revealed herself and her husband David Chan have divorced after 14 years.

Indeed it seems the actress is in the middle of moving out of their 2000 square foot luxury pad, with media reporting that she’s been selling off household items – some of it practically brand new, at a steep discount.

Cracks in Her 14-Year Marriage

In her book, the former Miss Hong Kong second runner-up got candid about several topics including her illness, her career, investments and even her relationship with her financial expert husband David. She shared that long before her diagnosis, her marriage was already in trouble. Despite several instances of splitting up and then reconciling, she said they never truly got around to resolving the root of their issues.

“I have been with him for a long time and we’ve been dating for so long. Perhaps we married because it was the right time. Over the years, we’ve separated and reunited many times, but we’ve never really worked out our issues. So finally, we made a decision.” And so, after 14 years of marriage, the pair decided to split. Natalie reiterated though that the divorce is an amicable one and that they’re still friends.

Natalie Ng and David Chan met when they were still students in the US. Despite breaking up, they ultimately tied the knot in 2011. The pair have two daughters, the eldest Scarlet is now ten whilst their youngest named Season is eight.

Source: 1

The post Hong Kong Actress Natalie Ng on Her Divorce, Says Marriage Was Troubled Before Cancer Diagnosis appeared first on DramaPanda.

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/hong-kong-actress-natalie-ng-divorce-marriage-troubled-cancer.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=95997

scifirenegade

Title: Philately
Rating: General
Fandom: Nazi Agent (1942)
Pairing(s) / Character(s): Otto
Warnings: brief mentions of 1940s Germany
Spoilers: not really

Note: For

fic_promptly. Prompt was "Author's choice, author's choice, collecting stamps" and the This and That challenge (theme is Rare Fandoms) on

sweetandshort.

On AO3
On Squidge

( Read more... )

Mood nervous

spikedluv

I was at mom’s by 6:30am. Before I headed to mom’s, I did a load of laundry, hand-washed some dishes, scooped kitty litter, and dropped Grant off at the garage.

I stayed until 3pm (again, giving mom a couple of hours by herself before my sister arrived). I stopped at the library on the way home to drop off a book and found a surprise book waiting for me, as I hadn’t yet received the notification. I also stopped at Stewart’s (for gas and milk).

I grilled Italian sausage for Pip’s supper (I’m not a fan), hand-washed more dishes, hung up Pip’s uniforms (last night’s load of laundry), dried the dog sheets (this morning’s load), emptied the dishwasher, and took a shower.

I finished the Clare Fergusson book and read two cozies, the next two in the Inn at Holiday Bay series, on my Kindle app.

Temps started out at 73.2(F) and reached 81.4. It was overcast all day even though we weren’t forecasted to get any rain. I hate not having sun, but it would’ve been much hotter if we had.

Mom Update:

Mom was tired today. ( more back here )

james_davis_nicoll

Yelling "Get off my lawn!" on an interplanetary scale...

Five Books About Aliens Who Are Fed Up With Humans

spikedluv

What I Just Finished Reading: Since last Wednesday I have read/finished reading: Silence in the Library (A Lily Adler Mystery) by Katharine Schellman, The Falcon at the Portal (An Amelia Peabody Mystery) by Elizabeth Peters, I Shall Not Want (Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries) by Julia Spencer-Fleming, and Portent in the Pages & Poison in the Pudding (The Inn at Holiday Bay) by Kathi Daley.

What I am Currently Reading: I just finished reading the last book last evening, but today I’m going to start Necessary as Blood (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) by Deborah Crombie.

What I Plan to Read Next: Heir, Apparently by Kara McDowell, unless something else comes in at the library that eclipses it.

Book 53 of 2025: Silence in the Library (A Lily Adler Mystery) (Katharine Schellman)

I enjoyed this book! ( spoilers )

This was a good book and I've already requested the next in the series. I'm giving this one five hearts.

♥♥♥♥♥

Book 54 of 2025: The Falcon at the Portal (An Amelia Peabody Mystery) (Elizabeth Peters)

Good book! ( spoilers )

I enjoyed this book and have requested the next in the series. I'm giving this book five hearts, despite my one disappointment.

♥♥♥♥♥

Book 55 of 2025: I Shall Not Want (Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries) (Julia Spencer-Fleming)

Good book! ( spoilers )

I enjoyed this book and have already requested the next. I'm giving this book five hearts.

♥♥♥♥♥

Book 56 of 2025: Portent in the Pages (The Inn at Holiday Bay) (Kathi Daley)

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything in this series, but I was looking for something easy to read after I finished the last book, so I looked through my Kindle library and chose this one. (Technically, I chose a different one that I DNF’d before I got more than a dozen pages into it, so this was my second choice.) This is the sixteenth in the series, to my surprise!

I enjoyed this book. It was a quick comfort read. I was happy to be reintroduced to the characters again. ( spoilers )

There wasn't a whole lot of suspense or concern for the characters, but it did what I wanted it to, which was help me kill a couple hours in an enjoyable fashion. I’m giving it four hearts, and I might even go on and read the next in the series.

♥♥♥♥

Book 57 of 2025: Poison in the Pudding (The Inn at Holiday Bay) (Kathi Daley)

After reading the other book, I decided to keep on with the series. This one was an enjoyable story, but a predictable mystery. Thankfully I read this series more for the characters and location than I do the mysteries. ( spoilers )

I'm giving this book four hearts.

♥♥♥♥♥

abyssal_sylph posting in

sunshine_revival

Introduction Post * Meet the Mods Post * Friending Meme * Challenge #1 * Challenge #2

Remember that there is no official deadline, so feel free to join in at any time, or go back and do challenges you've missed.

( Sunshine Revival Challenge #1 )

Check out the comments for all the awesome participants of the challenge and visit their journals/challenge responses to comment on their posts and cheer them on.

And just as a reminder: this is a low pressure, fun challenge. If you aren't comfortable doing a particular challenge, then don't. We aren't keeping track of who does what.

summerofhorrorexchange posting in

yuletide

Summer of Horror could use your help! We have one pinch hit left, due July 11 at 11:59 PM EDT or negotiable. Minimums are 500 words or a piece of original art (no manips), either digital or on unlined paper. For claiming and more details, go here.

PH 3 - FIC, ART - Psychonauts (Video Games), Higurashi no Naku Koro ni | Higurashi When They Cry, Umineko no Naku Koro ni | When the Seagulls Cry, Mortal Kombat (Video Games 1992-2020)

Thank you!

dramapanda_c_feed

Posted by Vic

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/amidst-tian-xunings-girlfriend-rumors-actress-they-dated.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=95996

Amidst Girlfriend Rumors, Tian Xuning's Former Co-Star Implies in Now-Deleted Post That They Also Dated — Photo: Tian Xu Ning and Teng Ze Wen

Chinese actor Tian Xuning’s sudden rise to fame may have led to new projects such as a guesting in the popular variety show Hello Saturday, but the actor continues to be hounded by negative attention that has gotten him repeatedly trending for days now. Most recently, actress Teng Zewen, who was his leading lady in the short drama The Silent Wife, just implied a past romantic relationship with the actor.

Now-Deleted Post Raises Eyebrows

On July 8, Teng Zewen posted—and quickly deleted—screenshots of alleged chat logs with Tian Xuning, where he had referred to her as “wifey” multiple times. The messages were dated in June 2024, which was after they had shot their drama The Silent Wife in May. According to Teng Zewen, the two became romantically involved after working together on the drama. She claimed the actor presented himself as single.

The revelation comes just as Tian Xuning had already faced rumors of other girlfriends—from an ex-girlfriend named Susu whom he dated for years until 2023 to another name, Ruoruo, that also cropped up. His agency had denied the marriage and child claims and said that the actor is single.

Screencaps of alleged chat convos — Left: Teng Zewen’s now-deleted post Right: Yu Zheng reveals chat with Teng Zewen’s manager

Yu Zheng and Chai Ji Dan React

Teng Zewen’s now-deleted post that she also dated him in 2024—seemingly around the same time as another girl—led to the actor trending over negative news again. Teng Zewen’s boss, producer Yu Zheng, also trended for saying he doesn’t know anything about it. Chai Ji Dan, the author of Revenged Love, seemed to mock “big capital” in China by saying their drama is “small-time” with investment that’s not even 1/10 compared to “others” and that she also doesn’t know anything.

Later on, Yu Zheng once again took to social media, this time showing a chat between him and Teng Zewen’s manager, as the actress is under his agency. He claimed the actress indeed dated Tian Xuning in June 2024, as seen in the chat logs with Teng Zewen’s manager. Yu Zheng criticized the actress for damaging her own career by airing private matters online and announced plans to “advise her to leave.” His words drew backlash. Assuming what she was implying is true, some netizens believe it’s unfair toward the actress. Meanwhile, fans who support the actor have been urging others to leave him alone, accusing a smear campaign of trying to block his rise to fame.

The post Amidst Tian Xuning’s Girlfriend Rumors, An Actress Implies in Now-Deleted Post That They Also Dated appeared first on DramaPanda.

https://dramapanda.com/2025/07/amidst-tian-xunings-girlfriend-rumors-actress-they-dated.html

https://dramapanda.com/?p=95996

james_davis_nicoll

In a city with over a million people per square kilometre, real estate firms will never lack for clients. Good news for the employees of the Wong Loi Realty Company!

Kowloon Generic Romance, volume 1 by Jun Mayuzuki (Translated by Amanda Haley)

scifirenegade

It has been little over 24 hours since I finished watching Autumn Sonata. If I say more it would quickly get too personal. Just... lord... but in a good way. Melancholic, sure, and I cried, but it was good.

Isn't it nice, how there are still films out there, that still makes one feel?

Mood contemplative

Interesting lives

Cracks in Her 14-Year Marriage

Now-Deleted Post Raises Eyebrows

Yu Zheng and Chai Ji Dan React

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