Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That

TGIF. Good effing gods, it's been a week.

Today finds me at work and crunched up in my chair in weird positions because my ovary and uterus and back are having a wall-thumping orgy in there, and it is not actually conducive to my getting any work done.

Friend/supe M offered me her heating pad, but I move a lot and don't want to be tied to a cord, and also she needs it herself, I'm not taking it from her. And yes, I have an electric throw blanket under the desk, plugged in - which is incredibly against the rules, btw - but don't like to overuse it.

My work partner in crime, C, offered me her corn-filled microwave heat bag, and I went, "Say what, now?" This thing is fabulous. I want fifty of them.

And they seem easy enough to make, so I might give it a try. I could even make up a bunch of hand-warmer size and maybe sell them at the craft fair in the fall. Kind of excited to try!

There's a 3-sentence ficathon running again!



I loved it so much last time, I wanted to pin it here. I will add to this post as I go along with things I fill and things I prompt. And things I just loved.

Prompts I've Filled:

1. Narnia, Peter Pevensie, more than one way to be a hero - harmony_lover
2. The Hunger Games, Johanna/Annie, picking up the pieces - ohmeguro

Prompts I've Given:

1. Narnia, any, I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones
2. Narnia, any, that kind of luxe just ain't for us, we crave a different kind of buzz
3. Avengers, Steve/Darcy, baby, it's cold outside
4. Narnia, any, I am the love in every heart
5. Avengers, any, K.I.S.S.: Keep It Simple, Stupid!
6. Narnia, Susan, I never wanted to say goodbye
7. Narnia, Pevensie siblings, we're in this life together, even when one moves without the other
8. Narnia, Rabadash, Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin "You are weighed in the balance, and found wanting."
9. Avengers, Steve Rogers (+/ any, if you like), "Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism -- how passionately I hate them!" - Albert Einstein

Prompts And Fills I Love:

1. Narnia/Avengers, Phillip Coulson, like mother like son - idhren24
2. Greek Mythology, Persephone & Psyche, why Persephone chose to give her a box of death/eternal sleep instead of beauty - betonyb
3. MCU, Bruce Banner, I'm here, I'm here/not heroic but I tried - vialethe

*frowns*

All right, we'll try this again. Note to self: Copy entire post before hitting the "post" button, just in case the entries page eats the damn thing again.

FLIST! It's been a while! I've been coming and reading entries, and keep telling myself I'm going to post "as soon as I have some time," but that never seems to happen. *rolls eyes at self*

( Cut for length. )

I am sure there a million and one more things I could put here, but am drawing a blank. I find myself doing that more and more often...which is kind of sad, considering that two weeks from today, I will only be 34.

If you want an update on anything I haven't rambled about in this post already, please don't hesitate to ask! I want to get back into the habit of posting again, so hopefully it won't be so long a wait. ;)

EDIT: Dreamwidth People: Does anybody know why, when I move the mouse out of the entry box on the create entries beta page, the text in the box leaps upward? I don't mean the words switch places or anything, but the whole text body itself scrolls up each time I move the mouse out of the box, and never just stays where I left the damn cursor. I can even stop typing, move the mouse out, then back in and back out a couple times without typing at all, and it will keep scrolling up a bit with each movement in and out. I'll check the bug list thingy later, of course, but thought I'd pose the question here, just in case anyone has a quick, easy answer. ....I wonder if it does this from home. I'll have to check; at work I'm forced to use IE8, but use firefox at home.

Good gravy, this year has seemed like such a whirl of activity. I'm finally, finally feeling like I maybe don't have to be everywhere at every moment, and things have calmed down here and there a bit.

1. Work has been SO MUCH BETTER since we got shifted over to the new manager. She is very, very smart and extremely fast-paced, but it's not overwhelming at all because she listens to us, has made a point to be very open and up-front with us about changes (whether or not they impact us) in the department we're now a part of, and is making another point to learn WHY we do things the way we do.

She's expressed to me that she values me and what I do so highly that, should layoffs come around again and our area is under the microscope, she will fight tooth and nail to keep me. That's a big load off my shoulders, believe me.

The only bad thing, really, is that we still have nine months to go before Mr. Useless retires his ass out of here for good. At this point, it's just about waiting him out, and occasionally bitching out frustrations as needed. *rolls eyes*

2. Boychild "graduated" from sixth grade on June 8, and with the best report card we've seen in a while. Reading every week really paid off for him, much as he hates it, so one of the few rules we placed on him for the summer is that he must read one chapter and summarize it every single day. He just finished The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe yesterday, and is starting Prince Caspian today.

He is trying very, very hard not to admit it, but he really did enjoy the book. ♥

His other rule for the summer is that he must learn to ride the bike his Oma picked up for him. He is twelve, and it is high time. He is fighting it with every breath in him - he has got some kind of mental block about putting his feet on those pedals. We made sure the bike was of a size that the seat could be lowered enough to keep his feet flat on the ground, because that gives a modicum of control to him in terms of not falling over. But while we can get him on it and he can walk himself along and even get up a bit of speed and balance enough to coast ten and fifteen feet, the idea of actually putting his feet on the pedals - even though they can touch the ground any time he wants! - sends him into panic mode. I do not get it. Thoughts? Suggestions?

3. Chapter is Dark! WOOT. This means I have two months ahead of me in which all I have to do is print out labels for a grand officer reception and collect mail. Steph took charge of the newsletter, so now all I have to do with it is check her editing and item placement, and she does all the rest. YAY!

4. I finished my hp_porninthesun piece, and am so pleased with it. That's the second fest I've participated in, and it's definitely fun being a writer. I've forgotten - both times - that there is someone else writing something for me, too! I get so excited to see what people think of what I wrote that it doesn't even register that I'll get my own gift. And I love that.

Speaking of writing, I've been wanting to post my fanfic on my journal. BUT-. I don't want to force anyone to read it, so I've been toying with the idea of setting up a filter so people can opt out if they want. Much as I'd love it, not everyone is into Harry, and even those who are seem to have moved beyond it into other fandoms sometimes, so-. You know.

5. I have pictures of my plants! ... On my phone. Once I figure out how to get them OFF my phone, I'll post them. I finally have tiny tomatoes growing! And my green beans are sprouting! YAY!

That's all I can think of for now, especially as it's go-home time. Hopefully I'll get back into the swing of posting regularly - I miss it.

I was going to post pictures this weekend, and I completely forgot. So I will post them tonight or tomorrow night, and for now, just do a basic update.

( Life, the Universe and Everything. )

8. Back to the grind today, but it's a quiet day, as Evil Manager is out, so I'm enjoying the quiet. I hope everyone is having a lovely Monday!

Yowser, it's been a busy few weeks. It never seems like it, though, till I get down to the wire (aka Three Days Till We Leave For The Lake). This is when it seems like there are a million and eighteen things to do.

So, like any self-respecting journaler, I am putting it off for a little longer in order to recap here. Duh.


( Boychild Went to Camp )

( I Finally Pamper Myself )

( We Make Cookies )

( I Kick Vacation Planning Into High Gear )

( I Find My Muse )

( Speaking of Reading... )

( We Drive A LOT )

I'm straining under the weight of so many things to get done before we leave on Saturday, but I know that once we leave, it's going to be a great week.

1. So I'm lagging behind again, as per usual, but that makes this no less heartfelt. To all the moms on my flist, whether your children are human or otherwise:

Happy Mother's Day!!

On Saturday afternoon, the boychild decided to get a subtle hint across:

Boychild: "Mommy, you can sleep in as long as you want tomorrow."
Me: "I can? As long as I want?"
Boychild: "Yup." ... "But you should sleep on your BACK."
Me: *trying hard not to snicker and giggle*

Now, I would say that maybe only moms might understand the reasoning behind that suggestion, but my cousin's wife, who is a mom herself, didn't get the implication, so I can't assume everyone reads into it what was so easy to see. It was his way of ensuring that I would be in the proper position for him to set a tray on my lap in the morning, brimming with "breakfast." ROTFL.

I got scrambled eggs with cheese melted on them, pancakes nearly drowning in syrup, bacon too crisp to eat and burnt toast slathered with butter and strawberry jam. Despite some of these unfortunate things, it was still the best breakfast ever. And he was so excited to have done it. ♥♥♥

Hubby made a fabulous roast beef with potatoes, carrots and celery for dinner, and Yorkshire pudding to go with it, and there was ice cream for dessert. We invited my parents and sister over to join us and had a lovely evening.

2. We didn't go to the church yesterday. We'd planned on it, quite forgetting that it was going to be Mother's Day. So we intend to aim for NEXT Sunday. Hubby already has another church picked out to try after that one. He's leaning hard toward a United Church of Christ church, because based on what he's read and his growing-up-experiences, they seem to be most closely aligned with what we both believe.

I have a hard time in the whole church/religion department. Do I believe in God/Jesus? Yes. Do I subscribe to one set of rules for how best to follow Him? Hell, no. I don't always have the greatest amount of faith, I don't habitually - or even easily - pray (though that's a whole other kettle of fish), I don't believe that to be a good Christian, you have to go to church every Sunday. From any church I attend, I expect to be accepted however I choose to arrive, whether I am in formal attire or rags. I expect that my thoughts and opinions are respected, whether or not they are agreed with. I expect that ANYBODY is welcome to join in, regardless of age, race, religion, sexual orientation or anything else that I'm currently forgetting to include. I expect that questions are accepted and considered thoughtfully, if not encouraged, and I expect that should I choose to regularly continue attending the church, I am not required to TAKE A CLASS.

I know I'm kind of all over the place with this whole discussion, I haven't exactly thought my points through very clearly, so bear with me, here. This whole "You have to take a class before you can be a member of this church" thing...NONONONONO. I want no part of any church that requires me to attend a class in order to be fully welcomed. That's not acceptance, that's not CHRISTIAN. My parents' church made them take a class in order to be members. My dad said it was "to make sure they believed what the church believed." *snorts haughtily* I was so offended on their behalf, because God knows they didn't have the sense to be offended themselves. *rolls eyes* I love my parents, don't get me wrong; I simply despair over their version of "Christian."

So to sum up: If I'm attending a church, they need to accept me no matter how I look or what I believe, as well as any other human being. If they can't or won't, then it's not the church for me.

Reading back over this whole section, DUDE. Help me flesh this out. Ask me questions. Make me think about it. It feels like random points with no concrete frame, no solid foundation. Wait, scratch that last bit - my foundation is simply that we are all human, and all of us are worth the same, regardless of choices we make throughout our lives. But still - point out my wobbles, ask questions, help me firm this up into something that makes a little more sense. Or tell me if it already does (but I don't think so).

3. thefourthvine posted a FABULOUS rant Here. Fanfic lovers, enjoy. ♥

4. Speaking of fanfic...I have so many ideas, but so little motivation. I have chapters in my head for my next-gen, but the first sixteen need some overhauling before I put any of it down. I've been going round and round with some founders fic in my head, as well as a Rowena Ravenclaw one-shot that's trying to form. On top of all that, I've been reading a little bit of Narnia fanfic, and now have a couple one-shots in my head! I've never written fanfic outside of HP, so if I ever manage to sit down and just write, it should be interesting.

I think part of the whole motivation thing is not really knowing who - beyond myself, anyway - would want to give reading it a go. I mean, why bother penning it out if I'm the only one who cares anymore? *sigh*

But also, part of it is just knowing I have to overhaul what I have before moving on. I could write it down, but I just can't let what's come before sit there and continue eating at my brain - I have to fix it. asdf;lkj

5. I'm having an aversion to cuts, lately. Sorry.

6. I finally - just this morning, actually - found out what "tl;dr" means ("too long; didn't read"). And I have to say, I think sometimes my own entries get like that! *snerk* But oh well. If you regularly make it to the end of my entries, kudos to you. If you don't, well, at least it's still here for my own perusal. :)

7. My books are all due in 3 days. Boo. Now I have to gather them and go back to the library because I'm out of online renewals for all of them. *sad face*

8. That must be all for now. You know me, I'll post again if I feel the need. I hope you all had a good weekend!

All right, so I have a thing for sparklies when it comes to pictures and text, and as the Sparkle Generator has been mournfully dead for a few months, I've been at a loss for how to show my glee over certain gleeful things.

Then yesterday, I found a post somewhere in my LJ friends page that - GASP - HAD SPARKLY TEXT IN IT!!!

OMFG SO HAPPY!!!!

I asked the poster where they found it, and was directed to a lovely directory on simcatsubame's journal, and copious amounts of squeeing later, I am thinking of reproducing it here on my own DW.

Part of it is to share the love, yes, but also to have it easily available to myself here on DW.

My question for the lot of you, flist, is whether I should just keep it to myself for now and do a private, my-eyes-only entry, or if any of you would be inclined to make use of such a gorgeous bounty of info.

Thoughts?

1. WE LEAVE IN TEN HOURS!

2. I posted $2.8 MILLION in payments today. Been holding them for WEEKS when she told me to work on those bloody corporate accounts...she'd completely forgotten I had the other payments, so was thrilled when I told her month-end would look great once I posted all the outstanding electronic files I'd accumulated.

Some days, I wonder why I still work there.

3. We went to Como Zoo last Sunday. I had way more pictures than this, but my camera's been a bit wonky lately and zoom won't work, so these are just a few of the better pictures.

( Mini Zoo PicSpam )

4. *points at top of journal* Did you see the banner I made, huh? Huh? Didja? *is proud*

5. In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe. MICHAEL JACKSON.

6. Time to get some sleep. Everybody have a great week!

Run-on sentence warning: I read a lot of Harry Potter fanfic when I'm able, and I always wonder exactly what it takes for someone to be a beta reader, because some sites are SO super-strict about what they take and what they don't, but then I find stories that have horrible grammar usage, sentence structure, misspelling, etc, and I wonder exactly what kind of standards these people actually have when the stories they host are in serious need of fixing.

So, coonassblondie posted some pimpage for a Hermione-centric "big bang" fest thing, and after taking a peek, I decided to sign up as a beta reader.


hermionebigbang

We'll see if they like me enough to do it, but I'm really kind of hoping to give it a stab.