All the RomCom of Qi Xi

Anyone going to Star Trek Las Vegas? elanorofcastile and I are going and I think it'd be fun to meet up with a bunch of slashers. Anyone?

The teaser trailer for Assassin's Creed: Embers is up. here. Oh my heart. Seriously, just gah. This game series just about breaks my heart. I love Altair, don't get me wrong, but Ezio has a special place in my heart. I think it has a lot to do with how much we've seen of his life versus how little we saw of Altair. We've seen Ezio since he was a baby and now we get to see him as an old(er) man.

I think Imma sign up for the Assassin's Creed Big Bang, especially as the word count is a minimum of 4k. Next challenge is all about cliches and I can think of about a billion cliches I'd love to write.

My biowarebang fic will be posted shortly. We've an extension from the mod and hopefully everything comes together in the next day or so. You should see what kath_ballantyne came up with, folks. Seriously, her drawings are amazing. AMAZING. I have no words for it. Plus, the fic mixer has some great ideas (and she loved my fic so there's that, too).

I have a huge, ginormous amount of shit to take to the post office now that the post office has found my lost packages. So if I owe you mail, you will be getting it soon.

Work has been ridiculous lately but it's eased up. We've finally closed our fiscal year and can work on July and move on with our lives.

One of the people I loathe at work just turned in her two weeks. I'm sort of ecstatic over it. She's a royal pain in the ass with a giant martyr complex while she also thinks that she is the most amazing person in the entire world. I hate listening to her fucking lectures on how awesome she is and how she knows more than everyone else. Self-absorbed asshole is finally going away. Thank the maker.

Spent today working at the main job as my boss is in Bali and I'm doing her job plus mine for three weeks. A bit stressed, can't think, blahblahblah. I literally pulled my hair out in frustration/stress the other day. I watched hair sprinkle down onto my paperwork and realized it was time to take a break.

Today, I came home, and in a fit of "see? I can do shit well, sometimes!", I vanity-googled (as you do. Come on, you know you do it) and found that, a long time ago, I won Best Kiss at the Charlie Awards for a Charlie/Lavender fic I wrote. More to Life. It's a fic I wrote for Daily Deviant awhile back. I sort of like the idea of Lavender haring off to go be a Dragon Tamer. YMMV, of course.

But that got me to thinking about some of the stories I've written. There are two that I've written that sort of squick me at the same time that I sort of really love them. Both are Star Trek. One is Lead Me Not Into Temptation which features Jim Kirk at 13 having sex. Which, um, ew, but... hot. And the other is If It Please Your Father which features George Kirk/Leonard McCoy/Jim Kirk in an incestuous DP(one hole) fic. The idea of dad/son cocks rubbing together in my body is GROSS but in McCoy's? Please and thank you.

So what about you? What fic have you written that you're especially proud of? What one has you wondering WTF you were thinking? What one pushes your limits and/or comfort zone?

I started back at Fry's though I called out on Saturday. There were multiple reasons:

1.) My ankle hurt like a bitch.
2.) On Friday, my ankle was swollen enough that the skin looked about to split.
3.) I'm fucking tired.
4.) Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention.

so I went to the Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention and had an ZOMGAMAZING time. I'm really going to get into the costuming. I went to all sorts of panels on prop development and building along with character development and costuming. I've been writing out what my character would be all about. I think she's going to be a bounty hunter - fairly western in her gear, kick ass with a love of shoes.

It tailors in to a friend's (the one that went with me) character sheet of an airship pirate. We've decided that the story of our airship is a team of bounty hunters that fund themselves, in their "off time" as pirates. We met up with a bunch of Tucsonans that want to do more steampunk stuff so we're thinking of getting an airship team together.

I bought a new corset from an amazing company called "Damsel in this Dress". If you need a corset, I cannot recommend her enough. The entire thing was handsewn by her family members off of one of her designs. It's super amazing and can actually be worn as a vest in addition to a corset, all depending on the tightness of the lacing.

I saw a Steampunk Furry cause, yanno, why just pick one (as someone on twitter said)? I was super creeped by the Furry (because he had a giant schlong, srsly) but then, later on, we saw the person inside the costume walking around without the head on and omg. OH EM GEE. The person was like TWELVE. Had to have been under 18 and walking around with a giant FURRY SCHLONG OH JESUS MY EYES AND BRAIN.

My friend, M, and I are also looking to take leatherworking classes because we fell in love with all the various things that people made out of leather there. The prices were freaking ridiculously crazy, though, so I want to learn how to make my own pieces.

If you like steampunk, have you seen The League of S.T.E.A.M.? They do webisodes of them hunting supernatural creatures. One of them had a steam-powered holy water gun. Another had a "baby electric eel" powered stun gun (all right, the baby eels are a 9volt battery inside but whatever, pretend here ppl).

Finally, I bid on a vid at help_nz and got an AMAZING video for my small donation. find it here and please tell the vidder how awesome she is. She used You Give Love a Bad Name from Bon Jovi and omg, she timed everything so freaking well. akd;lfa;sdlfj I LOVE IT!

On Thursday and Friday nights this past week, I volunteered at an emergency shelter. Tucson declared a state of emergency due to the cold and the fact that 14k people were without heat. Unfortunately, the shelter didn't get a lot of usage but, still, awesome idea.

During my time volunteering, I met some amazing people. There was the guy that gave up his condo in NYC to drive around in a beat-up Jeep and camp out in various places around the US. He was appalled that, whenever he asked anyone where the library was, they had no idea. It wasn't just Tucson, it was Seattle and Des Moines and Chicago and Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. We talked about books and writing for hours.

There was the guy that came in that had a bit of gas going into his house but he simply couldn't afford to heat his house. He chatted with me as he walked his cat around on a leash. We had brilliant conversations about his time in the military and how he felt a bit loss because he'd never found a job that fit quite like the military. He had problems relating to people and never once made eye contact with me. He told me that I was the first person he'd talked to for more than a few minutes, at least in three years. Three years of not having anything more than a cursory conversation with someone.

There was the homeless man who had a service chihuahua. The dog was there for seizures and for mental health issues. It was freezing so the man came in from the cold only for his dog. If it hadn't been for the dog, he would've stayed right outside, he proudly told me. He was very withdrawn and only responded when asked about his dog.

But the one set of people I met that has me wrenched up in a navel-gazing sort of way was the 13 year old girl I met. (I'll call her "A") She came in with her father and they had two cats that walked on a leash. One was fixed and the other wasn't. It wasn't until they'd been at the shelter for three hours that she gave an interview to one of the reporters that showed up. When the reporter asked her how long they'd been without gas, she looked at him, blinked and said that there was plenty of gas in their car. It's just it was nice to sleep in a real bed.

A and her father (always father, never dad or daddy. always father) had been living in their car for two months. This time. They'd had a place for a few months before that but before that, they'd been living in the car. In the past year, she'd been living in the car over 6 months. A car.

Both her and her father had very limited social skills. The first night, they barely talked to anyone. They were polite but withdrawn. A was proud to admit that she'd started her first college class (13 and going to college and homeless). Other than that, they didn't speak. The second night, I greeted them by name, ushered them into the shelter with a smile and found myself talking to both her and her dad. It was hard to navigate the conversation, to keep it away from things they found intrusive (questions like, "are you warm enough here" and asked because the first night, the boiler malfunctioned and the place's temperature sank to 55, was far too personal). I talked to them about their animals and the importance of spaying and neutering. The father mentioned that one of my co-workers had mentioned a free neuter but he wasn't interested. We talked about health risks and ensuring that the animals kept all their shots up to date.

I took a moment to introduce everyone to my replacement, ensuring that my replacement volunteer knew the minefield and could make better decisions than I had the night before, and went on my way.

This morning, I got a call from the co-worker (who is a high mucketymuck at work and not just a grunt like me) that the father had agreed to neuter his cat and that it was all "your fault". I've never been so grateful to hear the words "your fault".

But, really, I wonder about the impact I had. Anyone who has been on my flist for awhile can tell you that, every year, for my birthday and for Christmas, I ask people to give to the needy, to look through their closets and downsize their stuff. I ask people to donate to local charities and take the time to volunteer if they can. I'm really good at the lip service to these causes.

However, I've learned that I still suffer from the "not in my backyard" syndrome. Sure, there's a problem with homeless families but, really, not in Tucson. We're a very generous small city. And, really, if it's a homeless family, it's female-led. That's why it's important to have safe places for families to go. Except that most homeless shelters don't really plan for male-led homeless families so where did this father/daughter combo have to go that wouldn't separate them?

The other part that really got me was that each person that I spoke to told me about how awesome the libraries are, how important they are for a safe haven and the opportunities they presented. To A, they meant a place where she could work on her college and high school classes. To the traveler, they meant a place where he can get a book, brush up on his skills and take a moment to rest somewhere warm/cool. To another gentleman, they meant a place where he could just be. It was rare that I heard about the importance of the books but, instead, they talked about the librarians that helped them without judgment and the rare one that did judge. They talked about how it was a shame that libraries weren't treated with respect anymore. They talked about how people abuse the library, stealing books that others want to enjoy.

And I sat there, knowing full well that I owe twenty-five dollars in fines to the library that I can easily repay but I've been too fucking lazy to do and I was so ashamed at that moment (and now). So, Monday, I'll be calling the main branch and having my credit card charged for my fines. I'll be making a donation, too. I'm going to work harder at my classes.

I'm reassessing what I've been doing and how I look at the world. It's all navel gazing but, really, sometimes you need something to rock you out of complacency and I have to thank A for that.

Sorry this is so long and not under a cut but it feels wrong to hide their stories under a cut. These people are hidden away so much by society already that I feel ashamed for trying to hide them again. So, no cut and you can flay me for it, if you'd like.

I spent yesterday in a round of awful errands. First up was waking in a panic as my sister's dog fell out of the car and my mum freaked. So, after getting him in the car, again, then dressing, then taking hiim to the vet then bringing him home, I got the joy of the DMV.

I needed to get a salvage title so the insurance would give me the money to fix my car. (remember that, it's important...) So I go to the DMV and the lady behind the counter explains to me that I have to get my car inspected to get the salvage title. To get the inspection, my car has to be fixed. This prompts me to explain that to get my car fixed, I need the salvage title. She didn't get it. So I went through the whole thing - to get my car fixed, I need the salvage title. To get the salvage title, I need an inspection. To get the inspection, I need to get my car fixed. But to get my car fixed, I need the salvage title. She finally gets a clue and, after an hour, finds out that she can override the issue that is causing this whole clusterfuck. The issue? Well, 7 years ago when I registered my car, turns out that someone didn't enter "15" in one of the data entry areas. That's it. That was the entire issue. Salvage title in hand, I then proceeded to make the mistake of asking for an updated driver's license. Back to the end of the line I went and, 1.5 hours later, left the DMV.

Only to journey to the post office where I made my third attempt to mail off my final Cross-stitch for the help_haiti auction. Turns out that Australian post really doesn't like me. $35.50 later, it's on its way to Australia. Hopefully it makes it there. I also mailed off a package for my sister.

Then I went to the bank where I made a deposit for my sister.

Then I went to the grocery store for my sister.

In there, I also went to the doctor's office and got some scans done. I get home, crawl into a bed for a well-deserved nap to replace the sleep my sister's dog cost me and... my sister wakes me up to "say thanks" for running her errands for her. MOTHERFUCKER. Less than half an hour of a nap. She then couldn't understand why I was pissed off about it. WTF?!

Anyway - tomorrow, I have my court appearance for when I got cited when a dude cut in front of me after making an unsafe lane change and then slammed on his brakes on a green light. (Coincidentally, the accident causing the visit to the DMV)

If all things go correctly, I get my car back in two to three weeks. My luck says that it takes longer than that.

An update about moi in the continuing saga of "wook has no luck".

I had my ankle surgery on Friday. It freaking hurts but I started putting weight on it Saturday as I walked around the house. I did stairs tonight! Which means 2 things: 1.) my own bed and 2.) SHOWER! or, at least, partial shower! I just had to wrap the right leg in a garbage bag and tape it off so it doesn't get wet and then I'm able to shower. woooohooo!

I now know how gross my hair gets after 4 days of not washing it. The answer is "very gross".

My chest still aches and so does my left middle toe. My knee, hips and wrist also still hurt but everything is slowly feeling better. I have bruises on my bruises.

I keep falling asleep like an old man. I'll be in the middle of a conversation and just pass right out. Awkward... I think I've gained weight, too, considering that I've been flat on my back for almost a week.

Worst part is that the package I keep trying to ship to Australia keeps coming back to me. So I emailed the poor lady to tell her about the two different accidents and now she's had one of her own. It's like I'm a vortex of suck :( No one else has been dragged in, have they?

I go to pick up my handicapped tag at the DMV tomorrow. I have to finish shopping for my family.

I am finished with classes for the semester. I still haven't completed my background check to take a class next semester. This is rather hilarious in a burning irony sort of way. I am taking a class on sexuality (it has a really long title but it's basically about LGBT sexuality) and the only place that it's offered is on the local Air Force Base. LOL at the DADT and sexuality class collision. Except DADT got repealed! WEEHEE!

IDK if I've ever mentioned this here but my father is a very narrowminded Republican. We had a great discussion on why DADT is a bad idea and why equality matters. I think I actually got through to him. I know, color me surprised.

And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to finish curling up in my own bed. Me/my bed are OTP *snuggles*

omg, with the memes again. wtf, self?

Sorry, I have fic coming, promise.

Until then... stolen from someone on the flist...

Go to google and type in "you know you're from [state]" and bold the things that apply to you

( you know you're from Pennsylvania if... )

I am so embarrassed by all the language ones. I say all those things if you get me especially shitfaced and around someone from PA. It's awful. I start sounding all PA Dutch when I've worked so hard to get that crap outta me. kerryblaze - don't even try this the next time we get together. I will hurt you :P

And I really miss chicken corn soup from a firehall. Like bad. Like bad enough that I'm actually talking about a "food trip" with my mum wherein we visit tons of our favorite food places and eat and eat and eat and eat.

Funny story tying in to You live within two miles of a plant that makes potato chips, corn chips,pretzels, candy, or ice cream, or that packages turkeys, beans, or bologna.

I grew up in farming country near Carlisle, PA. For a school field trip in third grade, we went to a cemetery to see the Molly Pitcher Memorial. Did I mention the fact that there was an entire group of small children being dragged through a cemetery? Then, for lunch, we walked across the street to the Kunzler Hot Dog Factory where we got to watch them grind up the beef (they had artwork featuring farm animals hanging on the walls, too. So, just in case you weren't certain what they were grinding up, there were cute little pictures of pigs, chickens and cows on the walls as helpful reminders), "slide" it into the intestinal sheaths before steaming them and then the factory manager trooped us all upstairs where we got to eat the hot dogs we just watched get made.

Not only did I have one of the worst field trips ever, but I didn't eat hot dogs for years afterwards. It was that traumatic. What's the worst field trip you ever had? Let's compare childhood traumas.

On a more "let's catch up cause I haven't posted in ages" post... I'm currently killing myself on my classes. My Psych 101 class is fucking RIDICULOUS. There are 4 exams every 3 days. There are two homework assignments, 1 paper, and ten discussion questions. That's for just one class.

My Human Sexuality class is extremely interesting but it's also sort of ridonkulus amounts of work. There's about 4 a week in that one plus about 3-5 papers. Then there's also 4 discussion questions where I have to respond to 4 other responses per question.

Plus - in my Psych class - I've had to explain slut shaming and rape culture already. Dude. WTF.

I'm just overwhelmed.

BUT! I have 2 full weeks off of Fry's remaining and I'm taking advantage of it, lemme tell you. SLEEP! Homework! Writing! I signed up for the Reel Star Trek challenge. I also have moar Bakery AU fic done up. AND! I'm writing a mirrorverse fic.

It's so nice to have a bit of free time.

I had a date. It, um, was interesting? He doesn't have email and he doesn't have any minutes for his cell phone. Dude. If you can't afford your cellphone, how the hell do you think you can afford me? I mean, srsly? A cell isn't all that expensive. Then he was sort of really pushy at the end of the night and he emo'd about me leaving to visit elanorofcastile. THEN, as it was a double date, I was trying to have a conversation with the other people at the table and he totally kept talking over me and going on and on about how smart I am instead of FUCKING LISTENING. So not fucking cool. AND, somehow, I have to extricate myself gracefully from a second date because he works with me. This is why I don't date people I work with. I so totally knew better but I wasn't certain if it was a date so I went, just in case it wasn't.

As far as the recent kerfluffles and shit going on - I just want to say - If people are telling you that they're hurt by your words, you probably shouldn't use snide, condescending language as you explain, over and over, how you didn't hurt them. You do not get to dictate their response to your words. Instead, why not try saying "I'm sorry I hurt you. That was not my intention" and leave it at that? Or would that be too nice and polite for you?

Bought a new laptop today. I'm still obviously getting used to a new operating system, a larger keyboard and nothing on it.

But lemme tell you, I will never buy another computer from Best Buy Ever Again Ever. The people were rude and condescending (at one point, the computer sales person said to me "well, if you were willing to actually spend any sort of money to get a real laptop, we wouldn't be having this discussion"). Then there was the manager who snarked at me that she couldn't change the actual item to match what they'd advertised as the features and I was being "quite demanding" to think that I would get anything other than what they were handing me (well, when I bought it online, it had different features, you dumb fuckup so why don't you consider that?!). All in all, a very poor customer service experience.

That being said, I do enjoy the looks of it and I think I'll get used to Windows 7. I like the larger screen, even if it isn't as large as advertised on the website.

Anyone know of an easy way to move your stuff from your old laptop onto your new one that doesn't involve purchasing a cable?

I'm especially asking about iTunes because a.) moving all those damned music files and b.) my playlists that not only make listening enjoyable but are also the way that I get music on my iPhone (plus my apps!).

I do feel guilty, though, as the old laptop is sitting next to me and is rather forlorn :(. It was such a good laptop but then the keyboard died :(:(:(:(.

And, finally, continuing the spate of random babble about my new laptop - I've picked a name. My first laptop was the Millenium Falcon. My second (and the one staring at me right now) is The Ebon Hawk. This one is the The Pulsar Skate. Oh Wedge Antilles, you are the love of my life.

I post, I disappear for two weeks. I post, I disappear for two weeks. I'm starting to detect a pattern.

Work is currently nomming on my brain. Unfortunately, that isn't likely to end as I'm currently working on some major projects that could have a very good payoff for me.

In addition, there's school and the idiots in my class. IE: We were asked about a solution to poverty and one of my classmates responded with "give people more money. People with money aren't poor." Cause, yeah that'll work. UGH. And all the responses were similar.

Anyway, I have fic. I have LOTS of fic. I have fic that I got back from beta a week ago and I have fic that needs to head to beta. I have fic in journals and on receipts and in books. I have fic everywhere but just no time to transcribe and tweak. Tonight is a rare night off and I'm totally transcribing it.

Did I mention that the keyboard on my computer died on Sunday? Only like 12 keys work on it. I've tried everything and nothing worked except plugging in a USB keyboard. I just hope that the Ebon Hawk holds together until I can afford a new computer. I figure if its namesake could have rocks crush it on Malachor V and fly off into the sunset, then so can my computer, dammit.

I also stitched up two of my four cross-stitched Star Trek character pieces for help_haiti. The first is a Kirk/Mirror!Spock and the second is Picard/Riker. I just have to find my freaking frames and mail them out and then I shall post photos. They're seriously adorable, just ask elanorofcastile.

I have missed bunches and bunches of your lives and I apologize profusely. I do not blame you for thinking I'm a douche.