Patron Saint of Falling Over Things

I was going to make a post about how I've been quiet because life has been a bit garbage, but this morning I woke up and things were a little bit okay?

( Cutting the bad stuff: illness, work issues, death in the community )

While this was going on, I somehow managed to churn out 1000 words a day for Camp Nano in April, and finish one of my big WIPs, clocking in at 80k. I'm editing that now, and I hope I can start posting soon. I finished my gift fic for the Person of Interest exchange and I'm tooling around with some treats now. (Weirdly, while we were in hospital I had this urge to go back and re-read my Twin Peaks/X-Files crossover, and I've only just now realised that I wrote that the last time there was major health stuff going on. Maybe I write more when I'm stressed? IDK I can live with writing less, if that's the case.)

Also, the whales have started appearing to scope out the whale nurseries along the coast, and that is always reassuring, when you are feeling overwhelmed by the imminent collapse of the world.

Linkspam
Some of these have been in my to-post folder for a while, so apologies if it's been seen around everywhere already.

- podcastjoy - I started a podcast comm! (With glinda!) It's for all kinds of podcast things, and I'm planning a weekly Watcha Listening To type post, because I crave new podcasts.

- audiodrama, because it never rains but it pours, there's also a comm for audio dramas, so, fictional podcasts. Added bonus: there's a kinkmeme here:Prompt/Kink Meme. Go leave prompts!

- from my network, the signs as upsetting vintage dishes. It's Facebook, but it's unlocked. And the dishes are very vintage, very upsetting. Lots of jello.

- Harry Potter: Wizards Unite available in Australia and New Zealand in open beta at theverge.com
lilacsigil and I are playing it right now - it is a mix of adorable and clunky, but I think as the activity ramps up and they start finetuning the gameplay, it will be fun. (Also, I had to rescue a Chudley Cannons player, and she was super hot.)

- snickfic has a great idea to follow Reading Wednesday, Thursdays are for Reccing.

- via lilacsigil who sent me the link: People might have lived in Australia twice as long as we thought (at The Guardian)

- rachelmanija posted a round-up of people currently reading Enid Blyton boarding school stories, and a poll: Boarding Schools.
(Please see relevant rec at the bottom of this post)

- Schitt's Creek episode guide type thing by thingswithwings.
I keep trying with Schitt's Creek and bailing for embarrassment squick, but maybe this will be helpful to others?

- The Pyrex Glass Controversy That Just Won't Die at Gizmodo
I have my nonna's pyrex from the sixties and seventies and it is precious to me for this reason. (Among other reasons.)


Thursday is for Recs even though it's Friday here
I guess my theme is unexpected crossovers that work really well?

For King and Country by killalla (Harold Finch/John Reese, Teen)
The crossover here is Person of Interest/Lord Darcy Series - Randall Grant. As far as I can tell (and I'm sure someone on my flist will know more) the Lord Darcy Mysteries is an contemporary alternate history where the Plantagenets survive and also there is magic? I don't know more than that, and this fic works, because it's all iddy hand kissing and fealty swearing and THAT IS GOOD YES.

of course it's beastly when anybody dies by suitablyskippy, (Gwendoline Lacey, general)
The crossover here is Malory Towers/Death Note, where Darling Gwendoline finds the notebook. This is dark and messed up, and Gwendoline is exactly as awful as you'd expect with the power of life and death in her hands.

May the Fourth, guys. *sobs a little*

- Via spikedluv: Glitter for Carrie Day (I'm wearing a glittery pendant in the shape of a butterfly wing.)

I should be finishing up a fic for beta, but instead I'm procrastinating by clearing my inbox and answering comments. And also doing my job, to be fair. It's not the best environment for writing, a busy store.

New (or new to me) Comms
- fanifesto - similar to ship_manifesto. A community for fannish manifestos, or why this thing you love is the most amazing thing ever. (I should write a thing for this. I don't know what I should write about, though?)

- memekink - a masterlist of kinkmemes on Dreamwidth! This is a damn good idea.

- rocinante - for The Expanse fandom. They're currently doing a S1 rewatch, which is good timing for me and lilacsigil, because we're watching it right now

- weekly_food_challenge - Every Wednesday a moderator will post an ingredient or a cuisine; over the following week members will cook something with that ingredient or in that cuisine and post pictures and recipes.
I keep trying to cook something in time for this, and failing. But this week is chickpeas, so maybe I can have a go at some FODMAP-friendly hummus.

beautifulmechanical - This is a place to share the music that you love. Please do join the conversation and share any kind of music that you like.
Lots of eclectic stuff posted here.

- yurionicefans - a community for all fans of Yuri!!! on Ice.
I'm not in this fandom, but I originally read it as Yuri O Nice Fans, and thought it was cute. Also it's a megafandom, so some of you are bound to be in it. You are nice fans, I am sure.

Craft Links:
- Random Stripe Generator
For knitters and crocheters who need to generate a random stripe pattern, because faking random with your own eye is really hard.

- Crochet Water Balloons
Reusable water balloons that don't leave rubber debris all over the lawn. Made with Bernat Blanket yarn, then soaked in water until they are squodgy. Apparently they don't hurt as much when they hit you, either.

- My Stash Explained (Art)
This is for knitters but I have some of these things: "Really nice yarns I'm afraid to use", "The stuff I bought before I knew what was good" and "I don't feel like winding these."

- Lake Town Socks
I really hope stirrup socks aren't the newest crochet fad.

Actually, I think the newest crochet fad is going to be rag doll style amigurumi, like this:
Rag Doll Unicorn.
All the legs are on the same side! It's kind of adorable. I've seen giraffes, zebras, donkeys and unicorns in the last week.

Random links for the joy of it
- Poll Says Best-Ever Trek Episode Is...
This is a lovely nostalgic trip. I was somewhat surprised at how many TNG episodes made it in here. I was not surprised that no Enterprise episodes made it on here, because there is so much (UNJUST) hate for Enterprise. I do not hate Enterprise.

- How Capicola Became Gabagool: The Italian New Jersey Accent, Explained
I found this really interesting, because American Italian names sound so odd to my ear - we've obviously all come from different parts of Italy, but it's cool to see how that ancestral difference has played out linguistically.

- 10 Podcasts You Need in Your Life After S-Town
I did not know Jermaine Clement had a podcast. (Note: I need to talk about Jermaine Clement and Legion. LEGION, omg.)

I have a complicated relationship with S-Town, after runpunkrun linked me to an article talking about S-Town and consent: S-Town is a stunning podcast. It probably shouldn't have been made.

- Via kass, Meta: Swift musings on the Moffat era.
This made a few things a bit clearer for me about Moffat, about whom I do not always feel happy. (But I am so enjoying this season! Three great episodes so far, and Bill Potts is a treasure.)

- Speaking of Bill, Doctor Who hid secret clues to the new series in plain sight
The mysteries of Bill's jacket!

- The X-Files is back again – sort of – as new spin-off reveals what happened BEFORE the revival series
AUDIO PLAYS OMG. I am so here for this. I have pre-ordered. I am ready to crochet and listen to Gillian Anderson in my ear. (I am considerably more excited about this than another season of TV, to be honest, though I'll watch that season and like it, damn it.)

- Cookie Butter Choco Cookie
Sesame Street (Japan) takes on PPAP. Because Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen will never die, it will just be memed and re-memed. Incidentally, I am so weirded out by Cookie speaking Japanese. I think it's a primal, child-brain reaction. I am less disturbed by Elmo doing it, because I am way too old for Elmo, but Cookie? So weird...

( Music Meme: A song that reminds you of summer )

I'm not doing very well. The prednisolone did not go down quietly, I had rebound inflammation and I've been back on pred once already for a massive skin flare up (let me tell you about the 1 in 10,000 chance of getting photosensitivity while taking frusemide.) The cellulitis came back and I had another round of antibiotics (let me tell you about the rare side-effect where you can taste clindamycin IN YOUR SALIVA.) I've had lots of meds changes. I feel wrung out and tired all the freaking time. I am pretty down about this. I want to feel well, and not like my skin is crawling off my body. It's busy at work, too, and that is more exhausting than it ought to be.

I've signed up for wipbigbang and Camp NaNo, so hopefully I can get some fic posted. I wasn't game to sign up for an actual exchange, so I sadly had to miss out on ssrconfidential. I'm starting to be more chatty on Dreamwidth, which is nice, and I did manage to do a big push on answering AO3 comments, which feels like an achievement. My only other achievement was to crochet a sock monkey hat with a big red pompom. I'm quite pleased with it, even if my sister says the button eyes are demonic. That's part of the charm, I think.

( Button eyes will eat your soul, my sister says )


I've been hoarding linkspam, too, which I shall try to group in themes:

The Expanse
- From Indiewire, The Expanse: How The Syfy Series Found the Unfindable Actress (Which Means Other Shows Can, Too)
About casting a S2 character, who is apparently female, Polynesian and tall/muscular. This is what made me want to start watching The Expanse, and I'm so glad I did. (I've just finished S1, so no spoilers, please. Apart from what's in this article, I guess.)

Podcasts (mostly The Strange Case of Starship Iris)
- From buzzfeed, 27 Podcasts You Should Listen To In 2017
Which reminds me, I've been listening to The Strange Case of Starship Iris and it's really lots of fun. The first episode drags a bit, but once there's more than a cast of two (from episode two), the dialogue bounces along, and the world building opens up. The story is building f/f UST between Violet and Arkady, it has a trans character and a gender fluid character, and I really like the crew of the Rumor. Would recommend.

You can listen here: The Strange Case of Starship Iris

For non-listeners, there's a transcript of Episode One, which isn't the best episode but it sets up the dynamic between the two characters well:
The Strange Case of the Starship Iris, Episode One: Violet Liu, written by Jessica Best

There's an official tumblr, where (I presume) the author discusses world building, nuances of the alien language, and other cool stuff: iriscasefiles


Iron Fist
- via netgirl_y2k, who also has an excellent post about Iron Fist, Here's The Important Stuff That Happens In Iron Fist So You Don't Have To Watch It
There were so many weird things about Iron Fist, (apart from the obvious weird thing of why they cast Finn Jones as Danny.)

( brief spoilers )


Dance-themed links
- From Pointe Magazine, #TBT: Watch Baryshnikov Do 11 Pirouettes in White Nights
Because Mikhail Baryshnikov is so pretty.

And through that video, I found a slo-mo analysis of the move, which was really interesting. It's mind blowing to count those turns in slow motion.
( embedded under the cut )

Speaking of ballet, the Dance Academy movie comes out next week!
( Trailer under the cut! )

More Dance Academy links:
- I wish I’d grown up with ‘Dance Academy’, ABC’s beloved teen drama

- The career of Joanna Werner, and how Dance Academy remains en pointe


Other random links
- From HuffPo, Dolphins Might Be Chewing On Blowfish To Get High
Dolphins are bastards and kind of sketch.

- From Buzzfeed, 23 Accidental Google Image Searches That’ll Make You Pee A Little
Very silly. Somehow very satisfying.

- via Nalini Singh's facebook, The Moistest Chocolate Mug Cake
The word moist has ceased to have any meaning that is not disgusting, but I do like a mug cake.

- via the medical tag on Ravelry, Dressed for Success
Crocheted stethoscope sweater. CN: anthropomophising of a stethoscope. Also not addressed is how this could contribute to spreading infection? IDK. The idea is cute though.

- via dine, Artist Paints Realistically Detailed Animals on Smooth Stones
So beautiful!

- From The Age, Police hunt for unicorn after attempted servo smash and grab
CN: armed robbery, only extra.

12 Yarn Ball Types and How to Knit with Them
Hankenstein. Heh.


I still need to post fic here that I've had up at AO3. And get planning on what I'm going to write for Camp NaNo which inexplicably starts tomorrow omg. Tomorrow is April Fools, too. *reminds self to watch out* I always fall for stupid shit, me.