Things fall apart
Oct. 30th, 2026 10:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pocketmouseWell, I was going to post a couple weeks ago to complain about the fact that my computer pretty much shat itself and is dead, but a. I didn't want to post about it and jinx recovery efforts, and b. the last version of my password I have saved was apparently outdated, so I dragged my feet hoping the recovery would come through. It hasn't yet, but it also hasn't been ruled out, and I think everyone will agree this has been a week. At least it's not Tuesday, Lemon.
It's funny, I haven't written anything in ages, and then I start writing again, and my computer bricks itself. But it's OK, because my fic's all old enough that it's posted. Then the AO3 goes down. I mean, it's still technically fine -- almost everything I've written this year was self-indulgent bullshit from the Torchwood RP AU where Owen and Andy are mind-melded and are working through the 'I hate you/no one's allowed to punch you in the face but me' stage before getting to a stable OT3 with Tosh. Somehow. But yeah, it requires several million words of Internet-Archive-accessible-only backstory that I was never going to post it. And all my old stuff is old enough that it's on DW or teaspoon or both, except for one little ficlet. So I can't really bring myself to be too upset. I'd be overjoyed to get my files back, but if I don't I don't. I also want my weaving notes, though I backed those up so I'll only lose a couple months of data (I'd thought I'd backed up the folder the fic was in, but apparently not. And don't ask about how long ago I backed up my D&D campaign notes).
I did at least already have another computer, so I'm not dealing with taking care of that, too -- I grabbed up a laptop year before last, the last OS before Apple started to really force AI into everything. It's just I held off on transitioning onto it, I was kind of hoping to keep it for gaming, but I still haven't managed to play more than an hour or two of BG3, I just can't get into it. I don't like any of the party characters, and I can't figure out the pacing. Probably other stuff too.
I finally got around to reading the first of the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, and I'm not sure how I feel about them -- the writing's fine, but the main character in a D&D style dungeon crawl is a white(?) ex-law enforcement dude whose skill is punching people. And not that I read/saw it, but it's also giving me Ready Player One vibes with all the pop media references. And I don't know enough about Matt Dinniman to know if he's allowed to comment on fanfic. Maybe I'll check the next one out from the library, but it's only a maybe.
I also finally read Project Hail Mary, so now I can watch the movie and compare. I wanted to read the book first because with The Martian, I liked the book better, but I'm hoping it'll be the reverse this time, because this book felt very 'Andy Weir can only write one guy,' and like he was upset about the emphasis on relationship stuff in popular reaction to The Martian so he removed all other humans. And the ending in the book felt abrupt and -- not like a downer, exactly, but disappointing, because I wanted to know how things were going on Earth, but given Weir's commentary about 'not wanting to write political' stuff, I shouldn't be surprised that he avoided addressing it. Still. Though now that the AO3 is down, I might end up waiting to watch the movie anyway.
It's funny, I haven't written anything in ages, and then I start writing again, and my computer bricks itself. But it's OK, because my fic's all old enough that it's posted. Then the AO3 goes down. I mean, it's still technically fine -- almost everything I've written this year was self-indulgent bullshit from the Torchwood RP AU where Owen and Andy are mind-melded and are working through the 'I hate you/no one's allowed to punch you in the face but me' stage before getting to a stable OT3 with Tosh. Somehow. But yeah, it requires several million words of Internet-Archive-accessible-only backstory that I was never going to post it. And all my old stuff is old enough that it's on DW or teaspoon or both, except for one little ficlet. So I can't really bring myself to be too upset. I'd be overjoyed to get my files back, but if I don't I don't. I also want my weaving notes, though I backed those up so I'll only lose a couple months of data (I'd thought I'd backed up the folder the fic was in, but apparently not. And don't ask about how long ago I backed up my D&D campaign notes).
I did at least already have another computer, so I'm not dealing with taking care of that, too -- I grabbed up a laptop year before last, the last OS before Apple started to really force AI into everything. It's just I held off on transitioning onto it, I was kind of hoping to keep it for gaming, but I still haven't managed to play more than an hour or two of BG3, I just can't get into it. I don't like any of the party characters, and I can't figure out the pacing. Probably other stuff too.
I finally got around to reading the first of the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, and I'm not sure how I feel about them -- the writing's fine, but the main character in a D&D style dungeon crawl is a white(?) ex-law enforcement dude whose skill is punching people. And not that I read/saw it, but it's also giving me Ready Player One vibes with all the pop media references. And I don't know enough about Matt Dinniman to know if he's allowed to comment on fanfic. Maybe I'll check the next one out from the library, but it's only a maybe.
I also finally read Project Hail Mary, so now I can watch the movie and compare. I wanted to read the book first because with The Martian, I liked the book better, but I'm hoping it'll be the reverse this time, because this book felt very 'Andy Weir can only write one guy,' and like he was upset about the emphasis on relationship stuff in popular reaction to The Martian so he removed all other humans. And the ending in the book felt abrupt and -- not like a downer, exactly, but disappointing, because I wanted to know how things were going on Earth, but given Weir's commentary about 'not wanting to write political' stuff, I shouldn't be surprised that he avoided addressing it. Still. Though now that the AO3 is down, I might end up waiting to watch the movie anyway.
This and that
Oct. 30th, 2026 05:46 pmelisiA few different things.
Due to the closure of pillowfort and trying to bring across some of the best things from that site,yourlibrarian has set up a food comm: ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
allaboutfood. You can read more in her post here
~
Does anyone remember The Million Dollar Homepage? Backstory here. A delightful piece of internet history.
~
UK peeps: If your mortage is up for renewal within the next year read this.
~
Avaaz petition: Don't hand the UN to the UAE
~
I keep meaning to share this:
From my Tumblr here, which has more info.
tl;dr
- if you copy the URL from the actual website, you're good
- if you copy the 'share' link, delete everything from the question mark onwards (the bit starting with 'si') or they can track you
~
ETA:ao3_isdown is hosting a AO3 Is Down Promptathon!
Due to the closure of pillowfort and trying to bring across some of the best things from that site,
yourlibrarian has set up a food comm: allaboutfood. You can read more in her post here~
Does anyone remember The Million Dollar Homepage? Backstory here. A delightful piece of internet history.
~
UK peeps: If your mortage is up for renewal within the next year read this.
~
Avaaz petition: Don't hand the UN to the UAE
~
I keep meaning to share this:
From my Tumblr here, which has more info.
tl;dr
- if you copy the URL from the actual website, you're good
- if you copy the 'share' link, delete everything from the question mark onwards (the bit starting with 'si') or they can track you
~
ETA:
ao3_isdown is hosting a AO3 Is Down Promptathon!AO3 :(
Oct. 29th, 2026 09:54 pmelisiWe estimate that service restoration for #AO3 will take around 2 weeks but it could be up to 4 weeks. We are hopeful that we will be able to bring the site back up in a degraded state sooner. If that does happen, there may be times when the site has to be brought down temporarily until this is fully resolved. Please stay tuned for further info.
OTW Status <- click on link for updates
Those poor volunteers. I dread to think what happened. :(
I'm reminded of the great LJ blackout of 2005...
If anyone's interested, I still have some Squidgeworld invites (it's an AO3 clone). Just drop me a comment or send me a DM.
OTW Status <- click on link for updates
Those poor volunteers. I dread to think what happened. :(
I'm reminded of the great LJ blackout of 2005...
If anyone's interested, I still have some Squidgeworld invites (it's an AO3 clone). Just drop me a comment or send me a DM.
jerks ahoy
Oct. 28th, 2026 12:00 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
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October 28th, 2026: I'm being really vulnerable estimating that getting called a jerk 3-4 times a year is normal! If I'm secretly a jerk don't tell me!! – Ryan | ||
Call for Volunteers
Oct. 27th, 2026 09:38 amflorianschild posting in snowflake_challengeThe Snowflake Challenge will be back in 2027! We hope you are able to join us for a month of community and prompting to ring in the New Year and get us through an otherwise dark and chilly season (for those of us in the northern hemisphere at least).
We have a group of wonderful mods who are returning this year, but we love having new mods join in and there is a LOT to do. Becoming a mod can be as low or high commitment as you like. Here's some info about the various roles we have as mods:
Poster: You would write and post one of the prompt posts. The mod community works together to decide on the topic, but you get to explain it in your post and frame it in a way that fits the challenge. Then, on an assigned day, you make the post. Typically, posters also act as commenters on their own posts (see the next role).
Commenter: As participants leave comments on the prompt post linking to their personal journals for the response, you leave a comment acknowledging their participation. You can also visit their challenge response and comment on what they wrote, if time allows.
Other site organizer: Ideally we would be able to extend this challenge into other fandom spaces. This role will require adapting each post to whatever site you are managing (tumblr, bluesky, mastodon, etc), which may include fixing links, removing or altering HTML, sharing a small quote and linking to the Dreamwidth post, tagging appropriately, and/or removing or altering images to your site's specifications. You should be prepared to crosspost all intro/wrap-up posts as well as prompts, and you should be prepared to make additional posts as needed on your site to promote the challenge and interact with participants. Usually one or two people manage this role for a single space (such as managing all the posting to bluesky).
If you're interested in becoming a mod, comment here and you can be added to the mod comm. Thank you all and stay tuned!
We have a group of wonderful mods who are returning this year, but we love having new mods join in and there is a LOT to do. Becoming a mod can be as low or high commitment as you like. Here's some info about the various roles we have as mods:
Poster: You would write and post one of the prompt posts. The mod community works together to decide on the topic, but you get to explain it in your post and frame it in a way that fits the challenge. Then, on an assigned day, you make the post. Typically, posters also act as commenters on their own posts (see the next role).
Commenter: As participants leave comments on the prompt post linking to their personal journals for the response, you leave a comment acknowledging their participation. You can also visit their challenge response and comment on what they wrote, if time allows.
Other site organizer: Ideally we would be able to extend this challenge into other fandom spaces. This role will require adapting each post to whatever site you are managing (tumblr, bluesky, mastodon, etc), which may include fixing links, removing or altering HTML, sharing a small quote and linking to the Dreamwidth post, tagging appropriately, and/or removing or altering images to your site's specifications. You should be prepared to crosspost all intro/wrap-up posts as well as prompts, and you should be prepared to make additional posts as needed on your site to promote the challenge and interact with participants. Usually one or two people manage this role for a single space (such as managing all the posting to bluesky).
If you're interested in becoming a mod, comment here and you can be added to the mod comm. Thank you all and stay tuned!
Hey, let's have some good news too!
Oct. 26th, 2026 09:04 pmelisiLet's hear it for Serbia and Brazil! 🥳
And this just popped up in my suggested articles: 'It's offensively cheap': How solar power is quietly becoming bigger than nuclear
And this just popped up in my suggested articles: 'It's offensively cheap': How solar power is quietly becoming bigger than nuclear
The Pot had a particularly Spectacular View
Oct. 26th, 2026 06:23 pmpurplecat
This was Sunday morning, in between Storm Austen and Storm Beolo - "Red sky in the morning, Shepherd's Warning" as I recall the rhyme.
the relative merits of wooden vs concrete railway ties. AT LAST!!
Oct. 26th, 2026 12:00 amdinosaur_comics_feed| archive - contact - sexy exciting merchandise - search - about |
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October 26th, 2026: Railways! There is much to know about them, and much we already know, which is difficult to count accurately. – Ryan | ||
October Birthday Bash '26 - recap
Oct. 25th, 2026 11:01 amljgeoffMike and Carl got to Negaunee Oct 13th, in the evening. It was on-and-off sprinkles on Wedesday and Thursday, so the plan to strip off the old roof was chucked. Instead, they got up there when it was dry enough and buttoned up an area of Water & Ice that had come loose - that should hold for the winter. I came in on Thursday after a 600 mile drive from Iowa, and Mike and I got a room and collapsed.
On Friday, we had slushy rain all day. Mike, Carl, and Sam ran some new wire in Sam's livingroom, and now he has a ceiling light and I think a new outlet. I spent the day spending a lot of money buying way too much food and doing all my laundry. Crystal's Plus One got a new job three days before Bash, and couldn't make it. She and Jareth, who has his permit now, drove up on Friday and got in a little after dark. Most of everyone slept in until noon on Saturday. These people have been my family for almost 40 years now, and I still have expectations that they will feel my urgency and move in the direction I desire. I've always been a hopeful person.
We all got to the property at around 2pm. We picked out a spot for the outhouse, probably 50 yards further away than it needed to be, but at least we weren't bothered by smell. It only got half done, but it was usable. Luke, who wasn't there, has derision ammunition to his brothers for years. But, really, they did pretty well with the supplies that they had.
We didn't have time to work on the cistern, and I was morose. But all the supplies are there and it'll get done.
Camping went fine. Saturday was a beutiful day. Trentyn, Seth, and George went off to go fishing and got lost in the woods for three hours. They came back a little wiser.
We picked a good spot for our fire pit - I need to move one of the wood piles that will be a raised garden bed, and put a couple of picnic tables there. The fire pit needs a rim of cinderblock and some dedicated cooking grates. Our meal was ok, but it was really windy and cooking close to the fire added some extra texture and flavor that not everyone appreciated. Still, we had more than plenty and the commradarie was lovely.
Saturday night was cool but not terrible and everyone slept well. Except Mike, who slashed himself with a box cutter. I took him to the small hospital in Iron River and he got eight stiches. We fell into our tent at about 11pm.
Sunday was also beautiful. After a breakfast of eggs, toast, and pancakes, Mike took everyone on a hike to Bracken Lake. Zary and I washed up and packed up. Then the tents were packed and we all loaded up. Carl and Crystal took everyone for a quick visit to my Mom and Dad. Mike and I stayed in camp to make sure that everything was picked up, and we spent the night at Geriann's.
On Monday, Mike and I grabbed a van-full of teenagers and they helped us move a load of horse manure into the bed of the pickup. Then we dropped them off and drove the manure back out to camp and dumped it. Then back to Marquette to have supper with my folks.
My folks are doing great. Dad is 90 and mom is 89. I think they have a housekeeper come in every other week to do vacuuming and mopping, but otherwise, they take care of themselves, drive, shop, go to appointments and are very sharp. They'll have their 60th wedding anniversary in December. I'm really glad that I was able to get Jake up to see them.
On the way back from dropping off the manure on Monday, Mike and I had a good talk about what we need to accomplish. Next year, we're focusing on the Negaunee House roof. Mike's going to spend most of his PTO on getting that done. He's got to work things out with Carl and Luke, because he does need someone up there with him. While they're up there on the roof, I'll probably go out to Riverwood and work on the fire pit and move the wood pile. But the my plans for the cistern, cabin, and walipini are on hold until the Negaunee House roof is done.
I'm going to be boring for a while. Work, get a little ahead of the bills, maybe even save a little. Watch how the world deals with the coming political climate as well as the El Niño climate.
On Friday, we had slushy rain all day. Mike, Carl, and Sam ran some new wire in Sam's livingroom, and now he has a ceiling light and I think a new outlet. I spent the day spending a lot of money buying way too much food and doing all my laundry. Crystal's Plus One got a new job three days before Bash, and couldn't make it. She and Jareth, who has his permit now, drove up on Friday and got in a little after dark. Most of everyone slept in until noon on Saturday. These people have been my family for almost 40 years now, and I still have expectations that they will feel my urgency and move in the direction I desire. I've always been a hopeful person.
We all got to the property at around 2pm. We picked out a spot for the outhouse, probably 50 yards further away than it needed to be, but at least we weren't bothered by smell. It only got half done, but it was usable. Luke, who wasn't there, has derision ammunition to his brothers for years. But, really, they did pretty well with the supplies that they had.
We didn't have time to work on the cistern, and I was morose. But all the supplies are there and it'll get done.
Camping went fine. Saturday was a beutiful day. Trentyn, Seth, and George went off to go fishing and got lost in the woods for three hours. They came back a little wiser.
We picked a good spot for our fire pit - I need to move one of the wood piles that will be a raised garden bed, and put a couple of picnic tables there. The fire pit needs a rim of cinderblock and some dedicated cooking grates. Our meal was ok, but it was really windy and cooking close to the fire added some extra texture and flavor that not everyone appreciated. Still, we had more than plenty and the commradarie was lovely.
Saturday night was cool but not terrible and everyone slept well. Except Mike, who slashed himself with a box cutter. I took him to the small hospital in Iron River and he got eight stiches. We fell into our tent at about 11pm.
Sunday was also beautiful. After a breakfast of eggs, toast, and pancakes, Mike took everyone on a hike to Bracken Lake. Zary and I washed up and packed up. Then the tents were packed and we all loaded up. Carl and Crystal took everyone for a quick visit to my Mom and Dad. Mike and I stayed in camp to make sure that everything was picked up, and we spent the night at Geriann's.
On Monday, Mike and I grabbed a van-full of teenagers and they helped us move a load of horse manure into the bed of the pickup. Then we dropped them off and drove the manure back out to camp and dumped it. Then back to Marquette to have supper with my folks.
My folks are doing great. Dad is 90 and mom is 89. I think they have a housekeeper come in every other week to do vacuuming and mopping, but otherwise, they take care of themselves, drive, shop, go to appointments and are very sharp. They'll have their 60th wedding anniversary in December. I'm really glad that I was able to get Jake up to see them.
On the way back from dropping off the manure on Monday, Mike and I had a good talk about what we need to accomplish. Next year, we're focusing on the Negaunee House roof. Mike's going to spend most of his PTO on getting that done. He's got to work things out with Carl and Luke, because he does need someone up there with him. While they're up there on the roof, I'll probably go out to Riverwood and work on the fire pit and move the wood pile. But the my plans for the cistern, cabin, and walipini are on hold until the Negaunee House roof is done.
I'm going to be boring for a while. Work, get a little ahead of the bills, maybe even save a little. Watch how the world deals with the coming political climate as well as the El Niño climate.
t-rex and the work enemy
Oct. 23rd, 2026 12:00 amdinosaur_comics_feed| archive - contact - sexy exciting merchandise - search - about |
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October 23rd, 2026: What is T-Rex's job? None can speak to the matter with certainty, save of course for the certainty that he will not hold it for long. – Ryan | ||