Northshore (Seattle) voters, pay attention to school boards!
Nov. 1st, 2025 03:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdHEY IF YOU’RE IN NORTHSHORE AND CAN VOTE – vote FOR Kimberlee Kelly and vote FOR Sandy R. Hayes for school board!
Their opponents are people who were either low-key or openly anti-trans in the primary and they’ve both gone SUPER-high-key anti-trans in the general. This is how it always works and is why we always have to pay attention to “unimportant” races in the primaries:
So anyway, since people don’t pay attention enough in primaries, we have this shit.
Vote FOR Kimberlee Kelly and vote FOR Sandy R. Hayes, because their opponents are haters and shitheels.
(You can also vote for Carson Sanderson. Arun Sharma – who also seemed fine even if I voted Carson – dropped out after ballots were printed, and then endorsed Carson too.)
Posted via Solarbird{y|z|yz}, Collected.
Memery
Nov. 1st, 2025 12:39 pmathenaisshewhomust asked about my version of the Book Sin meme, so here is my reply.Lust (books I want to read for their cover)
I can be swayed by a cover if the plot sounds good, but otherwise this isn't my kind of sin.
Pride (challenging books I've finished)
Oh, gosh, everything I ever had to read for English Literature courses. I generally didn't want to read them, let alone analyze them, but I certainly like being able to say I have read them. Have I ever reread any of those books? Other than Austen, Brontë, and Alcott, no.
Gluttony (books I've read more than once)
Everything by Patrick O'Brien, Georgette Heyer, Katherine Addison, Caroline Stevermer, Kerry Greenwood; I reread fantasy novels and historical fiction a lot for comfort and because I often get something new out of the experience.
Sloth (books on my to-read list the longest)
I still haven't read The Anglo-Saxons by Marc Morris, published in 2021. Why did I buy that? I don't care about the Anglo-Saxons. Well, not much. Not enough to read a fat history of them, I guess.
Greed (books I own multiple editions of)
Three versions of Georgette Heyer's romances: hardcover, paperback, digital. Same for Sherwood Smith's Inda series.
Wrath (books I despised)
Despised is a strong word, but of the zillions of books I've read I complain most about Middlemarch, Lolita, and Even Cowgirls Get The Blues.
Envy (books I want to live in)
Jo Walton's Lifelode, a domestic fantasy set in a high-magic world. I loved that novel. Almost any Georgette Heyer romance novel where I get to be rich; I think The Masqueraders would be my first choice.
It's very important to me that you understand that Dark Souls is a deeply eccentric game
Nov. 1st, 2025 07:46 pmrydra_wong
[Image description: my character seen from the back in a giant bird's nest perched on a ruined stone building. She is wearing a pointed crimson hat and a greyish-brown shawl over her shoulders, and holding a halberd in one hand. An option on the screen says "A: Curl up like a ball."]
(The reason you curl up like a ball is to pretend to be an egg so that a giant crow will transport you to another location. Obviously.)
weight and sleep and health
Nov. 1st, 2025 07:04 amhudebnik160.3 lbs.
breakfast: grapefruit, yogurt, cereal, soy milk
lunch: chicken bacon avocado sandwich, lemonade
dinner: chicken tortelloni, pesto
dessert: chocolate bon-bons
In bed about midnight; D. followed half an hour later. Up once or twice to cough and pee; up 7:00 to alarm (for an 8:00 doctor's appointment).
Not a lot of coughing overnight, but I have a scratchy throat this morning.
breakfast: grapefruit, yogurt, cereal, soy milk
lunch: chicken bacon avocado sandwich, lemonade
dinner: chicken tortelloni, pesto
dessert: chocolate bon-bons
In bed about midnight; D. followed half an hour later. Up once or twice to cough and pee; up 7:00 to alarm (for an 8:00 doctor's appointment).
Not a lot of coughing overnight, but I have a scratchy throat this morning.
BABBDI: for all your liminal brutalist platforming needs
Nov. 1st, 2025 09:34 amrydra_wongAvailable on Steam and Itch.io for the low low price of free:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2240530/BABBDI/
https://lemaitre-bros.itch.io/babbdi
The description says it's a short game but I've spent over 10 hours happily wandering around in it and there's definitely more to do.
Immensely satisfying traversal and exploration of a brutalist concrete cityscape full of weird nooks and hidden places to discover, using a series of different movement tools (as well as your own ability to jump) -- including a baseball bat (hit a surface to propel yourself in the opposite direction, including hitting the ground to go UP), leaf blower, motorcycle, pickaxe (climb any vertical walls by jumping and stabbing the pickaxe in, then repeating) and propeller, all of which are enormous fun to use.
(You can only carry one tool at a time, but there are multiple iterations of them scattered around the map, and if you lose something, after a while -- possibly requiring quitting and reloading, not sure -- it'll tend to respawn where you originally found it.)
None of the platforming has required more co-ordination than I have; there are things I could undoubtedly do more easily if I was a better platformer, but finding the right tool can get me there anyway.
And if you can see somewhere, it's real and you can get there, and sometimes you'll discover things to see or collect. Maybe you'll crawl through a sewer and discover a secret underground dance party. Maybe you'll randomly run across a hidden room that looks at first glance like it's monitoring surveillance cameras but turns out on closer inspection to be running Windows on multiple microwaves. Even the invisible wall round what appears to be the edge of the map has a gap in it, and you can sneak through it to get to the ship you can see in the distance; it's not a skybox.
No fall damage, no ticking clock, no combat, no jumpscares. The vibe is ambient vaguely-dystopian melancholic creepiness, but within that people are going about their lives (the woman lying in the garden pond is not dead; she's breathing and appears to be just chilling). I'm reminded of the origins of parkour in the neglected brutalist concrete environments of social housing in France.
Weird, relaxing, delightful.
(For anyone wondering, yes I am still very much playing Dark Souls, but I can only do so in moderate amounts per day, when I have mental energy, so I mix it up with other things too.)
Whumptober Alt: Organ Theft (Murderbot)
Oct. 31st, 2025 10:16 pmsholioWhumptobers will continue until morale improves probably a ways into November, since I'm still having a good time with it, and I have a few incomplete ones.
Alt Prompt: Organ Theft
Murderbot & Tarik, 800 wds (bookverse, post-System Collapse)
Also on AO3: Grand Theft Human
( 800 wds under the cut )
Alt Prompt: Organ Theft
Murderbot & Tarik, 800 wds (bookverse, post-System Collapse)
Also on AO3: Grand Theft Human
( 800 wds under the cut )
"However much candy you want, the answer is yes."
Oct. 31st, 2025 10:39 pmazurelunatic23 trick-or-treaters this year, likely due to rain and construction. The last four were after we had started picking up and bringing things inside, and in fact after we'd sorted the candy into Keep and Share. (The Share candy stays outside overnight for the late crew, then goes with Belovedest to work. We don't have particularly much trouble with raccoons.) In the last party, the one with the umbrella hat and some sort of Studio Ghibli makeup (white face, red eye triangles) was enchanted with the glow sticks and picked one of the very few blue ones.
This year's innovation was doing the Wizard of Oz + Dark Side of the Moon thing with (much less cleverly timed) Chaos Emergency Doof Broadcast (Which is 4 hours of very silly DJ work), some of the Halloween episodes, with Addams Family Values on mute (several times through). We got the inflammable tango to "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and a few other silly confluences. I think this is one of the ones where precise timing doesn't help all that much, but it's great when it happens. By the time the show had run out of explicitly spooky songs, it got a little less entertaining.
Belovedest was Jigglypuff. I was a very tired Dulcie (wearing my own nightgown and some exhaustion makeup). I ordered the wrong crust on 2 out of 3 pizzas, and the 3rd one was gluten free.
This year's innovation was doing the Wizard of Oz + Dark Side of the Moon thing with (much less cleverly timed) Chaos Emergency Doof Broadcast (Which is 4 hours of very silly DJ work), some of the Halloween episodes, with Addams Family Values on mute (several times through). We got the inflammable tango to "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and a few other silly confluences. I think this is one of the ones where precise timing doesn't help all that much, but it's great when it happens. By the time the show had run out of explicitly spooky songs, it got a little less entertaining.
Belovedest was Jigglypuff. I was a very tired Dulcie (wearing my own nightgown and some exhaustion makeup). I ordered the wrong crust on 2 out of 3 pizzas, and the 3rd one was gluten free.
getting his shot
Oct. 31st, 2025 08:48 pmmusesfoolHappy Halloween! Have a recs update:
unfitforsociety has been updated for October 2025 with 8 recs in 5 fandoms:
* 5 Batfamily
* 1 Avatar: the Last Airbender, 1 Dungeon Crawler Carl
* 1 The Pitt/ER crossover
*
So does anyone know why the AO3 icon doesn't show up anymore when I do the "@ username . ao3" thingy here on DW? I've been noticing it for months now, but kept forgetting to ask.
*
unfitforsociety has been updated for October 2025 with 8 recs in 5 fandoms:* 5 Batfamily
* 1 Avatar: the Last Airbender, 1 Dungeon Crawler Carl
* 1 The Pitt/ER crossover
*
So does anyone know why the AO3 icon doesn't show up anymore when I do the "@ username . ao3" thingy here on DW? I've been noticing it for months now, but kept forgetting to ask.
*
My 1000th fic on AO3!
Oct. 31st, 2025 02:53 pmsholioAnd fic #1000 turned out to be .... a follow-up to the time travel Biggles fic that I wrote for Out of Order Exchange. I had threatened to write what happened between Algy and Erich in 1918, and here it is.
Out of Time (2300 wds, Algy & Erich, gen)
The first one should probably be read first, if you haven't already.
And there it is, and here's to the next 1000!
Out of Time (2300 wds, Algy & Erich, gen)
The first one should probably be read first, if you haven't already.
And there it is, and here's to the next 1000!
Fic: Falling Apart (and Being Remade) (Dragon Age)
Oct. 31st, 2025 06:34 pmsettiaiFalling Apart (and Being Remade) (12000 words) by Settiai, LuckyWizard
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age - All Media Types
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Carver Hawke & Male Hawke
Characters: Bethany Hawke, Carver Hawke, Female Amell (Dragon Age), Leandra Hawke, Male Hawke (Dragon Age), Original Fereldan Character(s)
Additional Tags: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Brothers, Cameos, Complicated Relationships, Darkspawn, Dragon Age Reverse Big Bang, Embedded Images, Family, Fanart, Inspired by Art, Minor Character Death, Ostagar (Dragon Age), Serious Injuries, Violence
Summary: Everything changed at Ostagar, whether the Hawke brothers realized it at the time or not.
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age - All Media Types
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Carver Hawke & Male Hawke
Characters: Bethany Hawke, Carver Hawke, Female Amell (Dragon Age), Leandra Hawke, Male Hawke (Dragon Age), Original Fereldan Character(s)
Additional Tags: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Brothers, Cameos, Complicated Relationships, Darkspawn, Dragon Age Reverse Big Bang, Embedded Images, Family, Fanart, Inspired by Art, Minor Character Death, Ostagar (Dragon Age), Serious Injuries, Violence
Summary: Everything changed at Ostagar, whether the Hawke brothers realized it at the time or not.
Rare Pair Recs
Oct. 31st, 2025 12:08 pmbeatrice_otterFor the ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
rarepairexchange I received a lovely Still Star-Crossed fic (that had good worldbuilding, good characterization, and excellent research backing it up):
you and you are heart in heart (2,289 words). Even now, two months after Paris’ defeat outside the walls of Verona, unrest still fermented. The peace treaty which had once hinged on Benvolio’s execution now hinged on Benvolio and Rosaline’s wedding.
And there was a lot of other good fic that you should check out. Here are some I liked:
Taking Chances Together (1254 words)
Fandom: Star Trek: The Original Series
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Spock/Nyota Uhura
Additional Tags: post s2e1 Amok Time, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Summary:
In Splendid Sunshine Dressed (1868 words
Fandom: Casablanca (1942)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Rick Blaine, Victor Laszlo (Casablanca), Ilsa Lund
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Getting Together
Summary:
Here's to We (1233 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Lorraine Anderson/Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan
Additional Tags: Slice of Life, Friends to Lovers, Character Study, Epistolary, Margaret Backstory Typical Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Episode Tag: s06e21 Temporary Duty, Episode Tag: s07e19 Hot Lips is Back In Town, 12x100
Summary:
I Prayed For You (2445 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: B. J. Hunnicutt/Father Francis Mulcahy
Additional Tags: Developing Relationship
Summary:
How the Halcyon Song Lingers (1348 words)
Fandom: Little Women (2019 Movie - Gerwig)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Theodore "Laurie" Laurence/Amy March
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Parenthood, Married Life, Fall Vibes, Domestic Fluff
Summary:
Heart's Got Everything to Do With It (6700 words)
Fandom: Tin Man (US TV 2007)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Wyatt Cain/DG
Characters: DG (Tin Man), Wyatt Cain, Azkadellia (Tin Man), Jeb Cain
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, First Kiss, Queen DG
Summary:
Heart Murmur (2856 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan/Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Reunions, Cunnilingus, Hawkeye Pierce's canonical ED
Summary:
The Broadwood Grand (4827 words)
Fandom: Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Colonel Brandon/Marianne Dashwood (Sense and Sensibility)
Additional Tags: Tags Contain Spoilers, Romance, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Friendship/Love, Romantic Friendship, Love Confessions, Falling In Love, Piano, Family Fluff, POV Third Person Limited, Requited Love, Requited Unrequited Love, Present Tense, Regency Romance, Inspired by Jane Austen, Inspired by Music, Happy Ending, Extended Scene, Canon Compliant
Summary:
One Kiss is All it Takes (1470 words)
Fandom: Star Wars Original Trilogy
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Lando Calrissian/Luke Skywalker
Additional Tags: Getting Together, First Kiss, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Post-Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker Needs A Hug
Summary:
rarepairexchange I received a lovely Still Star-Crossed fic (that had good worldbuilding, good characterization, and excellent research backing it up):you and you are heart in heart (2,289 words). Even now, two months after Paris’ defeat outside the walls of Verona, unrest still fermented. The peace treaty which had once hinged on Benvolio’s execution now hinged on Benvolio and Rosaline’s wedding.
And there was a lot of other good fic that you should check out. Here are some I liked:
Taking Chances Together (1254 words)
Fandom: Star Trek: The Original Series
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Spock/Nyota Uhura
Additional Tags: post s2e1 Amok Time, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Summary:
A musical collaboration turns into more...
In Splendid Sunshine Dressed (1868 words
Fandom: Casablanca (1942)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Rick Blaine, Victor Laszlo (Casablanca), Ilsa Lund
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Getting Together
Summary:
Rick is invited back into Ilsa's life... but what about her husband?
Here's to We (1233 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Lorraine Anderson/Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan
Additional Tags: Slice of Life, Friends to Lovers, Character Study, Epistolary, Margaret Backstory Typical Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Episode Tag: s06e21 Temporary Duty, Episode Tag: s07e19 Hot Lips is Back In Town, 12x100
Summary:
Snapshots of Margaret and Lorraine's relationship from 1932-1952: growing up, growing apart, and finding their way back.
I Prayed For You (2445 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: B. J. Hunnicutt/Father Francis Mulcahy
Additional Tags: Developing Relationship
Summary:
Francis gave something away in hopes of comfort. BJ held that comfort close, even in the late hours.
Or Father Mulchay's trip takes a bit longer than predicted, long enough for some reflection on something developing. (For the 2025 RarePair Exchange!)
How the Halcyon Song Lingers (1348 words)
Fandom: Little Women (2019 Movie - Gerwig)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Theodore "Laurie" Laurence/Amy March
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Parenthood, Married Life, Fall Vibes, Domestic Fluff
Summary:
A glimpse of family life with the Laurences, as Amy and Laurie go for an autumn stroll with little Bess.
Heart's Got Everything to Do With It (6700 words)
Fandom: Tin Man (US TV 2007)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Wyatt Cain/DG
Characters: DG (Tin Man), Wyatt Cain, Azkadellia (Tin Man), Jeb Cain
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, First Kiss, Queen DG
Summary:
It was like the Quest had never ended at all; DG had just run out of signposts to follow. Well, except maybe one....
Heart Murmur (2856 words)
Fandom: MASH (TV)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan/Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Reunions, Cunnilingus, Hawkeye Pierce's canonical ED
Summary:
The woman who took the stage was a brunette, fading peroxide-blonde tips neatly tucked into a bun and graying at the temples. She looked better in a pantsuit than she ever had in fatigues, and she’d looked damn good in fatigues. Someone in the crowd wolf-whistled. She tapped her note cards to the podium with a glare that could jump start spontaneous combustion.
Margaret looked the same as ever, even brunette—like she was fully prepared to crush a man into dust for seeing her as less than she was.
The Broadwood Grand (4827 words)
Fandom: Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Colonel Brandon/Marianne Dashwood (Sense and Sensibility)
Additional Tags: Tags Contain Spoilers, Romance, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Friendship/Love, Romantic Friendship, Love Confessions, Falling In Love, Piano, Family Fluff, POV Third Person Limited, Requited Love, Requited Unrequited Love, Present Tense, Regency Romance, Inspired by Jane Austen, Inspired by Music, Happy Ending, Extended Scene, Canon Compliant
Summary:
Marianne Dashwood’s heart is an ocean, deep and vast and rich with life. He has seen it shimmer with the sunlight of affection, roil with the storms of heartbreak, and reel into the calmness of acceptance; but the breeze will blow when it chooses to blow, and Brandon—ever ready with his sails—would wait forever for good winds.
One Kiss is All it Takes (1470 words)
Fandom: Star Wars Original Trilogy
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Lando Calrissian/Luke Skywalker
Additional Tags: Getting Together, First Kiss, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Post-Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker Needs A Hug
Summary:
After what happened on Bespin, Lando visits Luke in the infirmary.
![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Oct. 31st, 2025 09:04 amsettiaiNintendo announced yesterday that Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting an update in January!
... okay, yes, there was also some news about the new Nintendo Switch 2 edition being released, but I didn't pay much attention to that one. I'm lucky to have a still-working Switch Lite considering just how old it is at this point, and I think it's safe to say that a new system isn't in my budget in the foreseeable future. So I'm much more interested in the update for everyone who already has the game.
ACNH has been my comfort game for over five years now. I'd never played any of the Animal Crossing games before, but one of the players in my Friday D&D group convinced the rest of us to all buy the game after D&D the day it was released back in 2020. The world had just gone into lockdown, and it was a lifesaver then and has continued to be over the years.
It's amazing just how much my mood has been lifted hearing that there's something new coming for it. I honestly didn't think they would be doing another update. 💕
... okay, yes, there was also some news about the new Nintendo Switch 2 edition being released, but I didn't pay much attention to that one. I'm lucky to have a still-working Switch Lite considering just how old it is at this point, and I think it's safe to say that a new system isn't in my budget in the foreseeable future. So I'm much more interested in the update for everyone who already has the game.
ACNH has been my comfort game for over five years now. I'd never played any of the Animal Crossing games before, but one of the players in my Friday D&D group convinced the rest of us to all buy the game after D&D the day it was released back in 2020. The world had just gone into lockdown, and it was a lifesaver then and has continued to be over the years.
It's amazing just how much my mood has been lifted hearing that there's something new coming for it. I honestly didn't think they would be doing another update. 💕
podcast friday
Oct. 31st, 2025 07:17 amsabotabbyHAPPY SPOOOOKY DAY and blessed Samhain if that's your thing.
This week's podcast episode sure is spooooooky! It's It Could Happen Here's "Occulture, William S. Burroughs, and Generative AI," and the moment that title popped up in my feed, I knew I'd be talking about it (even though I Don't Speak German covered Mother Night, this week, which is my favourite Vonnegut book. Maybe I'll talk about that one next week).
I had never heard of the Occulture conference, which is...what you think it is. As a good little Marxist materialist, I am not a chaos magick practitioner or believer as such except that definitely magic and the occult are a terrain we should not cede to the enemy so I am not not a chaos magick believer, y'know? At the very least as a philosophical and narrative system it's something that I'm quite interested in.
And of course for all his being one of the most Problematic Faves of all my Problematic Faves—he killed his wife ffs—I never really got over my teenage obsession with William S. Burroughs. As the episode points out, he's lumped in with the Beats but more properly belongs with the Surrealists (and the Dadaists) in terms of what he was doing. And y'all know how I feel about the Surrealists and the Dadaists. So there's an unexpected amount of discussion of Burroughs as a magickian at the the conference and his techniques (some of which were extremely funny, such as cursing a restaurant that took his favourite thing off the menu) and particularly his use of technology to channel the non-human.
Which brings me to the argument that I get into way too fucking much, which is "well isn't GenAI basically the same as cut-up poetry," and that's apparently something that was asked repeatedly at this conference. Spoiler: No it is not. Like, neither artistically nor magickically, which is a relief as that wasn't necessarily where the discussion might have gone. The short version has to do with Third Mind theory, which is quite interesting, and again, I feel there's a much more materialist explanation for why it's not the same but I also appreciate the occultist explanation.
Anyway it's a big meaty feast for my special interests and apparently there will be a second part dropping this weekend, so yay!
This week's podcast episode sure is spooooooky! It's It Could Happen Here's "Occulture, William S. Burroughs, and Generative AI," and the moment that title popped up in my feed, I knew I'd be talking about it (even though I Don't Speak German covered Mother Night, this week, which is my favourite Vonnegut book. Maybe I'll talk about that one next week).
I had never heard of the Occulture conference, which is...what you think it is. As a good little Marxist materialist, I am not a chaos magick practitioner or believer as such except that definitely magic and the occult are a terrain we should not cede to the enemy so I am not not a chaos magick believer, y'know? At the very least as a philosophical and narrative system it's something that I'm quite interested in.
And of course for all his being one of the most Problematic Faves of all my Problematic Faves—he killed his wife ffs—I never really got over my teenage obsession with William S. Burroughs. As the episode points out, he's lumped in with the Beats but more properly belongs with the Surrealists (and the Dadaists) in terms of what he was doing. And y'all know how I feel about the Surrealists and the Dadaists. So there's an unexpected amount of discussion of Burroughs as a magickian at the the conference and his techniques (some of which were extremely funny, such as cursing a restaurant that took his favourite thing off the menu) and particularly his use of technology to channel the non-human.
Which brings me to the argument that I get into way too fucking much, which is "well isn't GenAI basically the same as cut-up poetry," and that's apparently something that was asked repeatedly at this conference. Spoiler: No it is not. Like, neither artistically nor magickically, which is a relief as that wasn't necessarily where the discussion might have gone. The short version has to do with Third Mind theory, which is quite interesting, and again, I feel there's a much more materialist explanation for why it's not the same but I also appreciate the occultist explanation.
Anyway it's a big meaty feast for my special interests and apparently there will be a second part dropping this weekend, so yay!
Whumptober Alt: “I hear you’re alive, how disappointing.” [Biggles]
Oct. 31st, 2025 12:25 amsholioAnother of the alt prompts written earlier in October.
“I hear you’re alive, how disappointing.”
Biggles & EvS, 600 wds, enemies-era
( 600 wds under the cut )
“I hear you’re alive, how disappointing.”
Biggles & EvS, 600 wds, enemies-era
( 600 wds under the cut )
2025/170-172: Whiskeyjack, Blackcurrant Fool, Love-in-a-Mist — Victoria Goddard
Oct. 31st, 2025 08:03 amtamaranth2025/170-172: Whiskeyjack, Blackcurrant Fool, Love-in-a-Mist — Victoria Goddard
Perhaps it was not the blind malignancy of fate making my life so complicated. Perhaps it was me. [Whiskeyjack, loc. 4159]
Rereads to sustain me through a bad cold and the aftermath of my birthday celebrations: I can think of few better remedies.
Whiskeyjack (original review here) introduces layers of complication, curses, several people who are not who they say they are, and Mr Dart's magic becoming more obvious to those around him. After reading Olive and the Dragon, Jemis' mother's letter has new poignancy.
Blackcurrant Fool (original review here) is the one where they all go to Tara: there are highwaymen, kittens, dens of iniquity, and Jemis' toxic ex-girlfriend. Also a devastating denouement, and some healthy post-colonialism. In some respects this is my least favourite of the novels, though it can't be because of the setting...
Love-in-a-Mist (original review here) is a country-house murder mystery, with a unicorn, the revelation of the Hunter in Green's identity, coded messages in the personal ads, and a missing heiress. I think this might be my favourite so far.
Even just rereading my old reviews is making me want to plunge on to the currently-final novel, and the novellas... but I will save those for especially awful days between now and Bubble and Squeak.
Follow Friday 10-31-25
Oct. 31st, 2025 12:23 amysabetwordsmith posting in followfridayGot any Follow Friday-related posts to share this week? Comment here with the link(s).
Here's the plan: every Friday, let's recommend some people and/or communities to follow on Dreamwidth. That's it. No complicated rules, no "pass this on to 7.328 friends or your cat will die".
and all the papers lie tonight
Oct. 30th, 2025 07:36 pmmusesfoolgot some good news at work I can't talk about yet, and then got more good news that we should be able to meet payroll through the end of the year (and hopefully get our SNAP and WIC funding to make us whole when it is finally released), and then got a $200 check from the State of New York for ~reasons~ (inflation refund? idek). all in all, a pretty good day.
I also had a dream last night where maybe I was Tim Drake? And I wanted a Robin-themed birthday party that I never got until I actually became Robin? idk, but it was very sweet.
*
I also had a dream last night where maybe I was Tim Drake? And I wanted a Robin-themed birthday party that I never got until I actually became Robin? idk, but it was very sweet.
*
