firecat | Network

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/puppetry-arts-institute

International Puppets!

The puppetry arts institute in Independence has everything someone could want in a puppetry museum. Strange looking and creepy puppets, puppets from around the world, a stage for creating puppet shows and of course the opportunity to make a puppet. Staff members allow guests to choose from a wide selection of puppet heads that can be painted in any form.

There is a room at the museum dedicated to Hazelle Hedges Rollins and her Kansas City puppet factory. Hazelle started her puppet making business in 1935 and they became really popular. Her puppets ended up being sold in more than 1800 different stores across the country. In 1972 Princess Grace of Monaco ordered some of Hazelle's puppets to establish a puppet theater in Monaco. At its peak Hazelle's business annual sales totaled around 250,000 all while employing only 50 workers. The museum features many of Hazelle's marionettes.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/puppetry-arts-institute

malinaldarose

I slept in just a bit this morning (only about half an hour), but I have already been trapped under a cat, so there's that, I suppose. Parker jumped onto my desk while I was reading DW and I was trapped for half an hour or so. Fortunately, I had the commentary on the Miss Universe pageant gowns linked to by

senmut to keep me company.

I am noticing that my computer is making a droning electrical noise this morning and I am beginning to wonder if I need to start looking for a replacement after all. Le sigh. Sure, why not. I clearly haven't spent enough money this weekend.

Speaking of which, I did not end up getting the new vacuum at BJ's. Between stacking coupons and discounts, Kohl's ended up having the better price, and now I will have $45 of Kohl's cash to spend on new pajamas, since mine are becoming threadbare. Which is easy enough, since rather than expensive pajama sets, I buy flannel bottoms and regular t-shirts a size up from what I normally wear. Works just fine and is basically what pajama sets are anyway.

Yesterday, I went out to the grocery store after the pharmacy opened at 9:00 a.m. It turned out that the doctor's office had sent a new prescription, so they filled it for me while I picked up a few things. When I got home and put the stuff away, the first load of laundry was done, so that got hung up in the basement and the second load put in.

I looked at my do-list and looked at all the things that need to be done around the house and just shook my head. There's no way. So, instead of trying to put fall decorations away and get out winter ones, I sat down at my desk and listened to Wait Wait Don't Tell Me while drawing the January pages in my home calendar for next year. I've decided to use the somewhat fiddly box layout that I rejected for my work calendar. I'm getting tired of the boxes with triangular flags that I have used for the last couple of years. I got all of January drawn, though I'm not certain I'm going to include the trackers and notes pages that I've had for the last couple of years, because I didn't use them at all this year, so what's the point? I might try something else, instead, or I might just flow one month into another as I do with my work calendars. We'll see. Also, while I like the idea of a book journal, I didn't keep up with it, so I think that's just going to turn into my new book where I just keep my lists of what I have read (which grew out of the 50 Book Challenge years and years and years ago -- I have been keeping the current book since 2008, but I'm down to the last few pages, so I need to start a new one).

After that, I tok the work calendar upstairs and decorated the August and September pages. I was certain last week that I would have it finished and ready to go to work with me tomorrow, but I don't know that I'm going to make it. I need to do the December pages in my home calendar today, and I suppose if I did nothing else, I'd be able to finish the work calendar...but I'm not betting on it....

Last evening, I had dinner early because I skipped lunch, then I cleaned the kitchen, and settled on the couch and read all evening, until I finished Enchanter's End Game. So that's The Belgariad finished. I am debating whether or not I want to go on to The Malloreon. I might decide to read something else first and then go on to it. Or I might just go grab it as being easier than trying to choose something new.

It is 29° this morning. According to the weather wiseacres, it's supposed to get up to 39° and both rain and snow. Won't that be fun? I thought briefly about going to see if the new bookstore had any more stock this week than they did last week, but I don't think I'll be doing that. Too many other things to do to waste my time on that. (And it would be a waste of time, I am certain.)

Current Mood: okay

summersgate

Looking through the magic circle.

Yesterday afternoon I went with Jules to Home Depot to get paint. A sky blue. He wants to paint the middle bedroom in his house and I said I'd help. We got back from that kind of late so all we got done yesterday was put spackling on any holes and take the covers off the electric outlets. Today he'll sand the spackling and we'll get started painting. I like painting. Painting pictures or objects or walls. I'll use the brush and he'll do the roller.

Deer rifle season started yesterday. The little orphan doe that was hanging out in the nook outside Jules' back door is back again. She'd been gone from there for about a month but she's smart enough to know that it's a safe place so she's back since all the bang bang got started. Rainy doesn't like bang bang either. She's not scared of thunder but the sound of a gun scares her and all she wants to do is run home when she hears it. Not much fun to take her for a walk down back to the creek right now. It's a harsh and frightening world sometimes.

lilly_c posting in

writethisfanfic

How is the writing going?

Poll #33894

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 0

View Respondents

Today I

View Answers

wrote
0 (0.0%)

edited
0 (0.0%)

posted
0 (0.0%)

sent to beta
0 (0.0%)

researched
0 (0.0%)

planned
0 (0.0%)

had a cheeky break
0 (0.0%)

dealt with life
0 (0.0%)

Discussion: what are you working on this week?

lilly_c posting in

writethisfanfic

This takes us into the first weekend of January just to make things a wee bit easier on my end until I know what my shifts are like at work.

Week 1: 7th to 13th
Week 2: 14th to 20th
Week 3: 21st to 27th
Week 4: 28th to 3th

lilly_c posting in

writethisfanfic

It's time to sign up for the December WIP challenge! Some people join the challenge mid month, or comment on check-in posts without signing up, which is fine -- I'm glad there's a way for the challenge to be useful in a variety of ways. For those of you who find the commitment of signing up useful, please leave a comment with the below information.

Sign-ups will be open until the end of December.

Level of challenge:

Fandom(s) involved:

What you're looking for from the challenge:

What you could offer other participants yourself:

How people should contact you:

Time zone:

Copypaste below:

The post for hosting the daily check-in is here and thanks to everyone who helps out with this. If you're interested in helping out and there are still slots available the post remains open until the last week of the month and we generally run our week Sunday to Saturday, I'm happy to chat via PM on DW for anyone who might need it.

If you have ever completed a fic through this challenge we have a collection on AO3 and on SquidgeWorld both collections are open and unmoderated. Should there be an issue with adding a work, let me know and I'll see if there's a fix for it.

spikedluv

I did not go downtown today. I had planned ahead and did my usual ‘Saturday shopping’ yesterday. We weren’t supposed to get that much snow, but I thought, just in case. Good thing I did. I had already decided to stay home, but Pip called after he got to work to tell me the roads were a hot mess and that I shouldn’t go out. I didn’t tell him that I answered the phone from back in bed. *g*

I shoveled the sidewalk, did two loads of laundry, hand-washed dishes, finished clearing off/dusting in the dining room, AND THEN GOT OUT my Christmas decorations!! (I can’t believe I have it done earlier than the week before Christmas, lol!), went for a walk with Pip and the dogs, cut up chicken for the dogs' meals, and scooped kitty litter.

I visited mom and stopped at Stewart’s (for gas and milk) on the way home. We had various leftovers for supper. I read fanfic and watched a Hallmark Christmas movie and some HGTV programs. Dr. Pol was my evening background tv.

Temps started out at 28.6(F) and reached 39.9. (By the time I got home from mom’s ~3pm it was already down to 31.1! And the sun was still shining some. I really hate this time of the year.)

We got over 6" of snow (TWC app says 8"), because there was quite a bit more on the sidewalk when I shoveled again this morning. By the time I went down to see mom (after lunch) the roads were clear of snow and just wet, where any remaining snow had melted. And the sun was shining nice and bright, as is often the case after a snowstorm!

Mom Update:

Mom was doing well when I saw her. ( more back here )

kalloway posting in

readingtogether

And we're to the end of November! How did your month go?

(and a reminder that

readingtogether is open to all sorts of read-alongs hosted by anyone. I'll probably be doing my sometimes-annual Lingering challenge between Xmas and New Year's.)

mific posting in

fanart_recs

Fandom: Tolkien: Lord of the Rings
Characters/Pairing/Other Subject: Elrond
Content Notes/Warnings: none
Medium: digital art
Artist on DW/LJ: n/a
Artist Website/Gallery: leucisticpuffin on tumblr
Why this piece is awesome: This is a lovingly detailed depiction of the garden at Imladris (Rivendell), with a somewhat younger Elrond sitting, reading. The notes are interesting as well, giving additional detail. I like the warm tones, and of course the amazing gardens and scenery.
Link: Elrond in the flower garden at Imladris

sallymn posting in

1word1day

mantra [man-truh]

noun:
1 (Hindu) a word or formula, as from the Veda, chanted or sung as an incantation or prayer.
1 an often repeated word, formula, or phrase, often a truism

Examples:

Maybe the 'us against the world' mantra is something that can drive the team on towards the heights that they have so far been unable to get to. (Andy Burke, Is there 'entitlement' around Scotland or has Townsend misjudged criticism?, BBC, November 2025)

Maharishi taught a form of meditation derived from the Vedas, the foundation of philosophical thinking in India, known as mantra meditation, in which a person silently sits alone with the eyes closed, and repeats in the mind a sacred Sanskrit mantra that is believed to be endowed with spiritual potency. (Syama Allard, Buddhist mindfulness is all the rage, but Hinduism has a deep meditation tradition too, Hindu American Foundation, May 2021)

Greenland is still a place where 'the weather decides' can be a liberating mantra - once we accept that we're powerless to do anything about the weather, we can give up control. (Gabriel Leigh, Greenland Wants You to Visit. But Not All at Once., New York Times, February 2023)

It was hard to find adequate space to run and stretch and even harder to find a quiet corner for my breathing and mantra ritual. (Ibtihaj Muhammad, Proud)

He was sitting on the ground, his knees drawn up to his chest, and he was chanting the statement like a mantra, but loudly. (Dave Eggers, Zeitoun)

Origin:
1808, 'that part of the Vedas which contains hymns,' from Sanskrit mantra-s 'sacred message or text, charm, spell, counsel,' literally 'instrument of thought,' related to manyate 'thinks,' from PIE root men- 'to think.' Meaning 'sacred text used as a charm or incantation' is by 1900 (Online Etymology Dictionary)

smokingboot

Great until the last ten minutes. Here's how it should have ended:
( Hidden for spoilers )

We enjoyed this film, even R who is not a fan of horror, but agreed that the ending was unsatisfactory. Then for true horror, we turned to the Wales/South African Rugby match.

ysabetwordsmith

To save their small town newspaper, they opened a cafe. Now their profits are up 40%

In 2024, Maine business owner Reade Brower was forced to sell off a majority of the newspapers that he owned. He then tried to salvage four weeklies by combining them into one paper: The Midcoast Villager.
( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Famous filker Leslie Fish has passed away. She wrote many of the greatest filk songs.

So, screw the moment of silence because we all know the Great Con in the Sky is bellowing "Banned from Argo." I got to hear her sing that one once, and it was glorious. But I think "Hope Eyrie" is more apt. Another timely one is "Freedom of the Snow," which I used to belt out when walking across campus after an evening class. Frat rats crossed the street to get away from me. \o/

Here's a good description of Leslie's impact on filk.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: pensive

dine

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

fleetsparrow posting in

writethisfanfic

Hello, hello!

Poll #33893

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 2

View Respondents

How many things are you actively working on right now?

View Answers

1
0 (0.0%)

2
1 (50.0%)

3-4
1 (50.0%)

5+
0 (0.0%)

NONE--I'M FREE, FREE I TELL YOU!!!
0 (0.0%)

Other....
0 (0.0%)

It's still Saturday for me ~~barely, but that's besides the point~~ so let's do a Status Share! Whether you want to share snippets of what you're working on, share a struggle, share how far you've gotten so far, go for it!

ysabetwordsmith

Generations of Bearded Vultures Stashed Humans’ Treasures, Including a 650-Year-Old Sandal, in These Bird Nests

Bearded vultures are unusual birds. Their diet consists primarily of bones, which they sometimes drop from great heights to break into smaller, bite-size pieces. They deliberately change the color of their plumage by rolling around in reddish-orange mud. And they return to the same nesting sites year after year, with generations of the species even reusing nests for centuries.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith posting in

goals_on_dw

Today is Shop for Good Sunday. This holiday highlights businesses whose goods and services support values, not just making money and shuffling junk around. This may be relevant to those of you with goals related to activism, virtues, shopping, sustainability, charity, etc.

If you know what your friends and family value -- whether that's fair trade or sustainability or women-owned businesses -- then you can buy treats they might not ordinarily get because the good, responsible stuff tends to cost more. Pay attention to packaging: some companies just slap on a seal or few and call it good, but others really highlight the values aspect of their goodies with text or illustrations so your recipient will definitely notice it. The same goes for cards or gift wrapping in companies that offer that service.

Shop for Good Sunday banner with hands making a basket

Shop for Good Sunday banner with hands making a basket

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith posting in

newcomers

Today is Shop for Good Sunday. This holiday highlights businesses whose goods and services support values, not just making money and shuffling junk around.

If you know what your friends and family value -- whether that's fair trade or sustainability or women-owned businesses -- then you can buy treats they might not ordinarily get because the good, responsible stuff tends to cost more. Pay attention to packaging: some companies just slap on a seal or few and call it good, but others really highlight the values aspect of their goodies with text or illustrations so your recipient will definitely notice it. The same goes for cards or gift wrapping in companies that offer that service.

Shop for Good Sunday banner with hands making a basket

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

daily_illuminator_feed

http://www.sjgames.com/ill/a/2025-11-30

A beast of an undertaking: Munchkin.

Throughout the years, the constant has always been Munchkin – while my design handiwork is at the forefront of a few versions (lookin' at you Munchkin CCG, Munchkin Wonderland, and Munchkin Spell Skool!) – this game has permeated my day-to-day tasks over the years. With good reason, too. It's a fan favorite, and the subject matter of its pun-fueled jokes can expand to just about any corner of the imagination. Now, my next statement is one that I hope you hold tight to your torches and sheathe your pitchforks for: I had never heard of Munchkin prior to working here! Soon after joining the team, I found out just how popular the game was, and I could instantly see the spark in a fan's eyes when I'd talk about the brand and the info I could share about upcoming titles.

We constantly have projects in the works for Munchkin because it's important to us, too. As already announced, our newest version, Munchkin Second Edition is one that we had wrestled with internally for quite some time. I'll remind Steve and others of this post that we now think of fondly; it's one of those reminders of why the old saying "never say never" exists. Steve put in countless hours to make Second Edition a game that the fans of the first edition would still enjoy – while also making it easier for new players to join in on the fun. Upon my very first playtest of Second Edition, it made me very happy to know that now casual gamers (like me) can be introduced to Munchkin and immediately start playing without needing any prior introduction or the first edition of the game. I hope fans of the original Munchkin give this new edition a try – it's absolutely compatible with their well-loved sets. (There will be a one-page upgrade guide available on the landing page soon, along with the Second Edition rules to convert your original edition cards to Second Edition playability.

You will be seeing a lot more promotion of Second Edition in the coming months, and hopefully you are able to play it at an upcoming convention! Some early, not finalized, hand-made playtest sets have already crept into the wild, and they've gotten positive feedback from fans. The team put in a ton of work to bring this new edition to life, and we all hope you love it as much as we do.

– Sabrina Gonzalez

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

http://www.sjgames.com/ill/a/2025-11-30

petra

I am reading Retrograde, an Old Guard story, off a recommendation from the Rec Center newsletter. It is charming, and I am more than happy to forgive it its comma splices for the well-told tale of Nicky waking up at a different point in his own history every time he dies.

What made me pause to cry laughing was actually a footnote in the fic that "'Snails" is a minced oath for "God's nails," as cited in Green's Dictionary of Slang from 1599.

I haven't giggled this hard at something snail-related since the Barricades Con did a snéance (a snail séance) to ask Victor Hugo a few burning questions.

I am also sad all over again that they didn't name the sequel 2 Old 2 Guard, and that it wasn't good, but that is a Doylistic set of concerns, and when I am enmeshed in the story, I don't care so much.

Current Mood: shakespearean
Current Music: Arm in arm in arm in arm

settiai

It looks like Leslie Fish has passed away.

I've gotta admit, I'm torn on this one. In recent years, she's made it clear that she's transphobic, bigoted, and a generally horrible person all around. A fair bit of her music has meant a lot to me over the years, though, before it became widely known just what she's like.

So... yeah. I'm mourning for just how important she used to be to both me and fandom at large, but at the same time it's hard to be all that sad about the death of someone who's made it clear that she didn't consider me to be a person.

Current Mood: blank

apod_feed

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251129.html

This is not a screen from

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251129.html

yhlee

Saori WX60 + Clover Sakiori 60cm "feather" (reed/heddle thingy???) Frankenloom warping. This does work. It doesn't work all that well, but it works. Fortunately, the weaving is the fast part and this is a shorter warp, so I'll just finish this for exploration's sake and then return to "normal" warping. :)

Finished the 2-ply merino yarn!

billroper

It has snowed a lot here today. A ruler in the back yard carried by younger child measured in excess of six inches at around 6 PM. It is still snowing now. Happily, the snow is supposed to clear out by 6 AM which means that the roads should be clear for K to take her bus back down to Ball State for Monday classes. All I have to do is get her to the pickup site before noon. Assuming that I can get out of the as-yet-unshovelled driveway...

The tree was purchased and placed in its stand yesterday. Late today, the lights and ornaments were added and it is very pretty. We are not sure what Calvin the Very Hungry Dog is going to make of the tree, but I am sure that we will find out. I really wanted to get this done this weekend, because I wanted K to be able to help decorate and I didn't want to wait to get a tree for another two weeks. And so it is done. :)

The news came down the line yesterday that Leslie Fish was very ill and in home hospice, followed today by the news that she had passed. I was never particularly close to her for a wide variety of reasons, none of which were particularly anyone's fault. Nor was I likely to have ever agreed with her politics in general, although I might have agreed with one thing or another at one time or another. This is somewhat akin to two blind squirrels discovering the same acorn.

But there was music. So *much* music! And when Off Centaur Publications was being a tremendous force in the filking community and being built on the contributions of so *many* different people, well, to filk Kipling, "It was Fish, Fish, Fish." And that made a difference in my life and that of many other people. She wrote a lot of songs and some of them were great ones.

Maybe that's not a bad way to be remembered.

lycomingst

I bought a six foot artificial tree. I don't think I've ever had enough room in the places I've lived for a tallish tree and I saw a sale at the hardware store. It looks like a $30 tree but it's just background for the glamor you add, right? I hauled out the Christmas gear. One set of lights didn't work and got tossed, one set blinks and there's no stopping it. I tried.

I found only one box of balls. They are so old and fragile that even though they're plastic, they shatter like glass when they're dropped. The cat proved that to me. But I have small sets of angel ornaments to pop on. No cats have, as of yet, expressed interest in climbing the tree.

The overachieving neighbor has set up her outdoor lights. Winking and blinking at us.

The SEASON is officially opened.

torachan

1. I had a pretty restful day today, which was nice after two busy (if fun) days. It was pretty chilly, which I wish had been the case yesterday or Thursday, but I'll take now anyway. Tomorrow's supposed to be low 60s, too.

2. I finished another puzzle today. This was a 750 piece one but went pretty quickly as it had a lot of pattern and color differentiation.

3. Carla bought some gingerbread oatmilk recently and I had some tonight in a mug of cocoa and it goes so well together!

4. Found a hidden Molly in the curtain.

bardicraven posting in

holiday_wishes

‘allo and ahoy!!

I believe this will be my fourth year since learning of the Awesome and the third year participating.

A good year overall, certainly in comparison to some of the more recent ones, with a long way to go still.

It has become glaringly apparent that the Time of Rest and Replenishment is rapidly coming to an end and the Time of Flying Free drawing near - whether I will or no.

It would be good to be able to do so with a lot moar ease than is currently being had.

To that end, getting stories and shops ready to be shared, and otherwise getting ready to go Onstage is both where i’m at and where i’m looking to go. 🎭🍿

With that…

On with the Show (and the Wishes)!!!!

*****************************

1. Click 2 Give

In addition to the arab.org mentioned in other Wishlists, there’s also https://greatergood.com/, which includes freekibble.com.

So many ways to help with just a click. You can support the causes that are meaningful to you across click to give, petitions, games, and more.

It would warm my hollydays wondrous-well if you were to join in the clicking charity!! Just getting back into the habit myself after too long away and it's feeling good. 🌻🌞 😺

*****************************

2. Connection

Would love to connect with others via cards, emails, Bluesky, Dreamwidth and Discord friends.

Slowly digging my way out from under the social rock 🪨 I've been living under for so many years, and this would be a Most Pleasant way to assist with this.

DM for contact information.

*****************************

3. Eyes on Fic

One of the ways I am looking to earn my Daily Birdseed is through my original fiction and poetry. However, I've not been posting my original fiction with the regularity of my fanfiction, which is a bit of a problem.

If you would come and read/comment/subscribe to my Ream ( https://reamstories.com/BirdyTellsTales ), I believe that this will help me get my words and my works out of my head and out into the World where they belong if I know there is somebody out there to potentially read them.

There's definitely some construction 🚧 dust hanging around as I've kept changing my mind about what to post and when, but hang tight - the Goodness will be coming - likely in the New Year.

While you certainly can choose to pounce a paid subscription (and such would be most gratefully accepted!!!!), it is certainly not required to enjoy the Goodness.

At this time, I'm planning to have most of my words and works available to Followers and above, so you can have access to most of the Goodness in return for simply agreeing to receive email notifications from me.

*****************************

4. Eyes on Shop

Would highly appreciate eyes on my Etsy shop. In addition to the items already in the shop, there are still many more designs to come, as well as tote bags, mugs, and other P.O.D. and digital items, so a follow while you're there would be highly appreciated.

While sales of course would be appreciated, please know that there is no pressure intended. At the end of the day, this is as much practice for me for speaking up about things I have for sale as anything else.

Gentle, honest feedback and suggestions for other designs and prrrroducts you'd love to see would also be happily welcomed.

Shop link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/boldkittenspounce

*****************************

5. Eyes on Substack

Another place where I could use some audience-based encouragement is my Substack, where my husband Mike and I will be sharing stories and telling tales about writing and the Writer's life.

There's a bit of construction 🚧 dust still hanging around, but the link should still stay the same.

https://birdydmikedrockobck.substack.com

Again, while there will likely be a paid option someday, it's going to be more in the realms of a tip jar rather than a proper paywall, so you'll be able to enjoy at least most of the Goodness for the price of agreeing to receive updates.

*****************************

6. Destash yarn

Any yarn you have hanging around that you’d like to find a new home for - I’m your Bird.

DM for address.

Please note shipping note below.

*****************************

7. Destash needlework kits

Any needlework kits - especially needlepoint or longstitch kits - that you have hanging around taking up space that you’d like to find a new home for - I’m your Bird.

DM for address.

Please note shipping note below.

*****************************

8. O'gos for Shawl

Among my many and varied WiPs, I have a particular project I'm looking for particular yarn for. I am partway through a shawl and I'm thinking that 2 o’go skeins of: Caron Simply Soft O'Go Almond Orchid Yarn should let me complete it.

The O’go itself is sadly discontinued, but there are still some left in the wild. I've seen them on Etsy, eBay, Amazon, and a store called YarnConnections ( https://yarnconnectionshop.com/caron-simply-soft-ogo-yarn-1/ ) at varying prices.

I have a bit of an obsession with O’gos these days, so any other colors you'd like to contribute to the stash would be most welcome and appreciated.

DM for address.

See below shipping note about shipping physical items.

*****************************

9. Paton's Stretch Sock Yarn for Blanket

Another WiP I have is for a blanket I began with some yarn gifted to me from last year's Holiday Wishes. I've gone through that and would like to complete the project, so any skeins you have or are willing to purrchase for me to use for this prrrroject would be Most Appreciated.

Any colorway would be acceptable - I will make them work!!

As to the amount needed, I don't know, but judging by how far I am now versus my idea of what I'd lie the blanket to be in the end, it's going to take a lot.

Any amount you care to contribute to the cause would be wonderfully cuddled and added to the blanket.

This is yet another yarn that has been discontinued (yes, I too am noticing the trend :D), which I have seen offered for sale on Etsy and eBay and Amazon.

Please make sure it's the 'Stretch' not the Kroy, as the Stretch has a bunch of elastic in it that the other one does not, so the feel will be dramatically different.

DM for address.

Please also see below note on shipping of physical items.

*****************************

10. Lion Brand yarn for Other Shawl

Finances have been keeping me from finishing, which I'm not best pleased by.

Another one of my long-term prrrrojects that has been stalled for lack of yarn 🧶 is another shawl where a few moar skeins of Lion Brand Homespun in the ‘Parfait’ colorway are needed for completion.

How many?? In this case I don't know, but after looking at the project again just now to verify the colorway, I would say a lot. Like maybe eight to a dozen skeins?? The 'Homespun' is amazing yarn, but does seem to crochet up quick.

Of course no one purrson has to do all of that unless you'd like to - any amount so I can keep going would be highly appreciated.

Homespun® Yarn SKU: 790-405F

Color: Parfait [790-405F]

Painterly color Bubblegum pink and soft white

https://www.lionbrand.com/products/homespun-yarn

DM for address.

Please note below-written note on shipping of physical items.

*****************************

And that's my lot for this year!! Flying off to see what wishes I can help fulfill.

Thank you most kindly for reading!!!! Happy Days and Hollydays to you and yours, with a Stupendous Season for All!!!!

Chirp chirp 🎶 🎶

Birdy 🐦 BardicRaven 🪶 the One Who Tells Tales 🌻 🌞 😺

*****************************

Important Note on Shipping

If possible, please ship any physical items larger than a card some other way than by USPS. The package service to where I live currently is terrible - two locked boxes that the keys keep getting stolen to. There was almost a tragedy of gifting last year and it took six weeks of sad uncertainty before the happy ending finally occurred. Another package I was supposed to receive - not from Holiday Wishes - disappeared, never to be found.

Also, if you are coming across my list mid-year of 2026 or after, it's extra-important that you check with me for my address as it hopefully will have changed. All good wishes appreciated that my husband and successfully and easily return to Ann Arbor to live sometime next spring/summer.

*****************************

ride_4ever

My first post of combining hockey fandom and dog fandom was so well received that I've decided to do another one:

Watch on YouTube

Current Mood: sporty
Current Location: near the lake they call Michigan

thawrecka

I won't do a more formal version of the December talking meme, but if you leave prompts in the replies to this post about topics you'd like me to talk about I'll try to get through them during the month.

calimac

Here's what I had to say about Leslie Fish, who also died today.

mulhollands posting in

your_favourites

Tori Amos
( links )

Current Mood: cold

flareonfury posting in

mcu_cosmic

mcu100 is a bi-weekly drabble challenge for the Marvel Cinematic Universe!

o1. Join the community & you can JOIN AT ANYTIME!!
o2. Read the rules/FAQ. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.
o3. Once you're a member and have read the rules, be prepared to join a team.
o4. Start writing once the prompt is posted! & Earn points for your team to win!
o5. If your team wins, you get a badge!

flareonfury posting in

mcu_cosmic

GOAL: Write 15 fanfics (100 words mim.) for 15 different prompts.
CLAIMING: NO LIMIT! ANYTHING (CHARACTER/PLACE/PAIRING/CROSSOVER/ETC)!!
PLEASE JOIN

mcu15!!!

china_shop posting in

sid_guardian

Zhao Yunlan sprawled on a couch, grinning at his phone. The background shows a purply sky with stars. Text reads "Slo-Mo Rewatch. Guardian - half an episode per week @ sid-guardian.dreamwidth.org."

Hi, and welcome back to the Guardian drama Slo-Mo Rewatch. Watch half an episode a week, at your leisure, and then come and chat about it here in comments. Or you can just jump into the comments without rewatching, of course!

Here are the previous weeks' rewatch posts.

Episode 7, up to 24:30

Summary
Shen Wei starts to get serious with the muggers, but just then Zhao Yunlan shows up and "rescues" him... only to be caught unawares with a metal bar. They go to Shen Wei's place for first aid and verbal sparring.

Zhao Yunlan covering his mouth as he watches Shen Wei touching his arm (purely for first aid purposes).

Zhao Yunlan covering his mouth as he watches Shen Wei touching his arm (purely for first aid purposes).

Zhao Yunlan asks Shen Wei to be an official consultant to the SID, and Shen Wei refuses. Zhao Yunlan accidentally implies he's been in Shen Wei's place before. The next day at the SID, Lin Jing is telling ghost stories when a call comes about a new case: one of the muggers is dead. When the SID review nearby CCTV footage, they don't see much, but rewinding to earlier reveals that Zhao Yunlan met up with Shen Wei in that alley. Zhao Yunlan unconvincingly laughs this off. The "bears" call: Zhu Hong grudgingly conveys a laptop to Shen Wei for a Zoom call with Zhao Yunlan and the others. After Shen Wei's extensive and illustrated lecture on different kinds of bears, Da Qing pipes up to suggest the attacker might be a Youchu; Shen Wei produces a relevant sketch. Zhao Yunlan, Lin Jing and Chu Shuzhi visit the surviving mugger in hospital; he's out of his wits, babbling about a monster. Lin Jing sees the crime scene photos and makes the connection with his favourite web novel.

Quote
Shen Wei: There are some questions that, out of principle, I cannot answer. But when the safety of people around me are at stake, I will surely not watch from the side and hide information from you. You can count on me for that.

Detail
The moment they're inside his apartment, Shen Wei ~~starts disrobing~~ takes off his jacket and attempts, twice, to fold it while pressing Zhao Yunlan to stay.

Questions
Do you have a stand-out favourite scene or quote from the first half of episode 7? Do you think Zhao Yunlan's arrival at the mugging was coincidence, or had he been tailing Shen Wei? Do you think Shen Wei had qualms about letting Zhao Yunlan take on the muggers? Shen Wei doesn't show any surprise at the job offer -- do you think he was expecting it? Which of them do you think was most turned on by the "first aid"? We didn't see Zhao Yunlan in Shen Wei's bedroom while searching the apartment -- did he? We now know Lin Jing and Da Qing read web novels; who else at the SID reads them? What do the others think is going on when they see Zhao Yunlan with Shen Wei in the CCTV footage? Did Zhu Hong volunteer to take the laptop to Shen Wei for the video call, or was she assigned to do it? Why a video call instead of Zhao Yunlan paying a visit? At the hospital, why is Chu Shuzhi so grumpy? Lin Jing draws a connection between the case and the web novel -- but how does Wang Zheng already know about this when she calls?

Did you see any parallels in these scenes with other parts of the drama? If you're familiar with the novel, any thoughts about how the drama adaptation compares, if at all?

(As usual, these are all just conversation starters - feel free to answer all, some, or none, and to say as much or as little as you like! You don't have to be keeping up with the rewatch to join in. We'd love to hear your thoughts!)

And here is our schedule -- if you can, please sign up to host a post!

dialecticdreamer

The Search
By Dialecticdreamer/Sarah Williams
Part 2 of 2, complete
Word count (story only): 1166
[Sunday, May 10, 2020, night]

:: Searching for Liana leads to an unexpected encounter. Part of the Edison’s Mirror universe. ::

Donathea smiled at the man with dark skin and auburn hair. “It’s fine. I’ll be done in a minute.”

Aidan nodded. “Would it help if I spoke with another employee? There is no time to waste.”

The customer studied Aidan’s worried expression. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a teenage girl missing, seen getting into a car that may have come to the ferry,” Aidan explained quickly. “I am asking if anyone has seen her.”
( Read more... )

Current Mood: cold

petra

Also open to people for whom it is Not Dark Outside in the Southern Hemisphere.

Let me know if you'd like a holiday card, with or without short verse or prose, or a short piece of fiction in your inbox.

Even if you know I have your address, if you want a physical card, I would appreciate your leaving it in a comment on this post -- all comments are screened -- so I don't have to hunt for it. I'm in the US and have a pile of domestic and international stamps just waiting to come see you.

Please format your request like so:

I would like [a physical card/just a physical card, no fiction/just a piece of fiction or verse sent digitally], please.

If you want a physical card:
Envelope Name
Address formatted the way your country likes them done

Card Name (if different from envelope name):

If you want some words:
Please write me a [drabble or poem], [silly or serious or smutty or author's choice], for [one or more of these fandoms (the fandoms I know)] on the theme of [my favorite trope(s)]. Please avoid mentioning [winter holidays I don't celebrate].

Optional if you want to reciprocate:
I'm planning on sending holiday cards and don't have your address. Please provide it [at this link or in a reply comment].

Current Mood: festive
Current Music: I want a la-la-la-la-latke every Cha-Cha-Chanukah night

lannamichaels

Summary: The titular girl turning 12 is Katie, a homeschooled girl in Kentucky in summer/autumn 2004. She is enduring the beginning of puberty -- having to wear a bra*, growing leg hair, getting her period -- while her best friends have temporarily moved to Wisconsin, she is getting bullied at church** youth group, discovering her budding feminist rage about dress codes, and, worryingly, might have a crush on a girl in her theater club. A midgrade graphic novel.

( Read more... )

elasticella posting in

femslashfete

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

elasticella posting in

femslashfete

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

petra

There is currently a meme going around Tumblr of looking at the AO3 to see which of one's fanworks has the fewest hits. Mine is currently a drabble of Shakespeare/Marlowe titled from Stephen Sondheim.

As Jack points out, said fanwork could only be more on-brand for me if it involved mentor/student or one person/everyone else.

BRB, contemplating Kit/everybody and/or Will/everybody.

~~Oh thank goodness, I have the right icon for this post!~~

Current Mood: silly
Current Music: I am somewhat imperfectly me

archersangel

These questions were originally suggested by

the_heartless .

1. What were some of the smells and tastes of your childhood?
for smell; it seemed like every time we went to my paternal grandmothers house, it smelled like ham & dumpling soup.
for taste; here's a post i did about this lunch meat called chicken roll.

2. What did you have as a child that you do not think children today have?
freedom.
we could play in the yard with mom listening/looking out a window without a neighbor calling the cops because "they might get kidnapped." the nosy neighbor also why latch-key kids are not a thing any more.

3. What elementary grade was your favorite?
none.

4. What summer do you remember the best as a child?
they all blend together.

5. What one piece of advice would you give to your younger self, and at what age?
i have no idea.

more answers are over here.

Current Mood: nostalgic

watersword

Finally committed to buying myself some solid gold flatback earrings that I can keep in, and got the Maison Miru pavé lightning bar pair, which are almost identical to the Mateo bypass studs, except not diamonds, and about 20% of the price. (Christ, when I bookmarked those earrings, they were almost a hundred dollars cheaper.) I have managed to get them into my ears all by myself (look, I didn't get my ears pierced until I was 30, and push pin flat backs are even harder), and I am pleased to report that they are delicate and sparkly and I look forward to wearing them for the foreseeable future.

It's a shame that Saturday is my long cardio session at the gym, because damn does my hair look great on Sundays, when it is clean but the curl has fallen out juuuuust enough that the ringlets don't look fake. (My natural curl texture in the front is, genuinely, Shirley Temple curls. It is absurd.)

I have made cranberry-apricot cake and poppyseed cake and am restraining myself from making a miso-maple cake. The cod with artichokes and saffron broth did defeat the bag of artichokes that had been in the freezer since the dawn of time, but I actually think the broth isn't great — oddly bitter? — and won't be making it again. (I have leftovers and will eat them, but I won't be happy about it. Thank goodness I didn't waste the second cod fillet on this.) The pesto + white beans, on the other hand, were delicious and will become a new staple.

Sir Tom Stoppard's death is extremely upsetting and I am watching "Shakespeare in Love," "Enigma," and "Rosencrantz and Guildernstern are Dead" and reading Arcadia, The Invention of Love, and The Coast of Utopia about it. And re-reading the cricket bat speech from The Real Thing.

petra

It is definitely time for the ceremonial Watching of the Comfort Movie.

RIP, Tom Stoppard. And may you not have to do it all over again and again and again, because life is neither a rehearsal nor a play.

Current Mood: exanimate
Current Music: Postulate

flemmings

So after Thursday's wet, Friday was cold and blustery, so I stayed in again. Today was just iron cold grey November so I went out for a library hold and sort of dinner ie 3 p.m. because I slept in until 11:30. Had hoped for Sushi on Bloor but it was as crowded as the old days (2007 or so) so went to Pauper's. Post-brunch time it was reasonably empty and I lucked into the special, the Guinness beef stew. That was a prepandemic dish they served occasionally in the winter, and I haven't seen it since. Memory says it used to have carrots and potatoes, but this was beef and mash. Still pretty yummy. Some day I'll try their wagyu beef potstickers, which I doubt are wagyu beef but whatever, and are also fried which I think is a sacrilege, rather like fried pierogies. (Futures has all you can eat pierogy Wednesdays, but unlike every other day, the pierogies are fried, which I think proves my point. If it was all you can eat boiled pierogies, they'd lose money.)

Sleeping in till 11:30, or rather, going back to sleep for two hours at 9:15, gets me dreams of the nonexistent walkways and restaurants back of the Collonnade, here transposed across the street to outside the Museum. I was on my bike and in gel sandals, threading my way through construction? or homeless housing? when I suddenly realized I'd lost both my bike and my shoes and was walking in melted snow. 'This doesn't happen,' I thought. 'Could I be dreaming?' which is as close to lucid dreaming as I'm likely to come. And then I was back across the street in those nonexistent buildings that purport to ge restaurants or hotels and talking to a long-ago parent from the daycare and his kids, but son was still a pre-schooler while his younger sister had grown into a decided nine-year-old.

adafrog posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Friday to midnight on Saturday (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #33892 daily poll

Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 20

How are you doing?

I am okay
13 (65.0%)

I am not okay, but don't need help right now
7 (35.0%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans are you living with?

I am living single
8 (40.0%)

One other person
8 (40.0%)

More than one other person
4 (20.0%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

shadowkat

1. Managed to get the flu shot that I'd been procrastinating - I don't like the pharmacy, but I'm no longer working in Jamaica, so can't get it there. And not sure about getting it at City MD in the city.

Also, due to shifts in the jet stream combated another migraine, still lingering but not as bad as it was earlier - and it appears to be dissipating finally. My own fault for forgetting to take an antihistamine. A hot shower helped. I'd taken a walk to pick up batteries and get brandy (actually I was getting rum but all they had was brandy, which actually works better anyhow) for the egg nog that I'd bought. I can also use it for hot toddies, hot apple cider, and baking/cooking. I don't really drink any longer - so it's used more for well egg nog and toddies, and baking.

Put up my Xmas lights in my living room window - which is a miniature evergreen tree (plastic but looks real with snow on it) and yellow lights, and a burlap stand. I call it my Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. It's adorable and make me happy. That and the snowflake fairy lights, and the little Saturn light globe. I'll probably leave them there until well into February. I leave the Saturn Light Globe there year round, just only turn it on during the winter months. Removed the little pumpkin from the window.
My holiday decorations tend to be on the simple side, and mostly in my windows and window sills.

2. Was thinking about Angel today, and it occurred to me that in "Are You There Now or Have You Ever Been" that he doesn't tell his friends what actually happened in the hotel or what he was doing there or that he'd left that poor woman in the hotel to suffer since 1952. I'm not sure what he did with her body or if she was a ghost? But his friends didn't seem to know she was still there or that the bank money was there? Which begs the question how did Angel get all the money he appears to have stashed away? He's clearly not poor, and tends live rather well. Similar to Dracula in a way. The older vampires in Whedon's series live quite well. Or know how to?

Probably over-thinking it too. Mustn't overthink television series, and Disney superhero films. Doesn't keep me and others from doing it...

3. Former Sr. Minister (the Unitarian Minister who left the church to become a rabbi), is writing a blog on substack for subscribers - which she advertises on FB. I wouldn't mention it - except, she surprised me today with this blurb on FB.
( where the Pillsbury Doughboy and Neil Gaiman manage to pop up in the same post and not how one might think. )

4. Tom Stoppard died. I've read and seen a lot of Tom Stoppard plays.
Known for: Rozencrantz and Guildestern are Dead, The Real Thing, Shakespeare in Love..
( Read more... )

5. Finished Slow Horses S5 - it's only six episodes and fairly tightly written - so it didn't take all that long to binge, unfortunately. By the time I got into it? It was alas, over. Very funny British satire about spooks.

November Memage

29. What types of fruit do you always have in the house to eat?

Granny Smith Green Apples, Raspberries and Blackberries.

torachan

Recently Finished
Tilly and the Bookwanderers
Tilly and the Lost Fairytales
Tilly and the Map of Stories
The Book Smugglers
First four books in a middle grade series about a world where people can travel into books when they read them. I have been enjoying these a lot as audiobooks. There are two more in the series and I've already started the second to last one.

Wayward Girls
Two women get a call that the boarding school they attended is being knocked down and they go to visit it one last time to get closure for the horrible events that happened there. Only a few chapters are set in the present with most of the book revealing what happened back when they were in school. I enjoyed it.

The Strange Tales of Oscar Zahn vol. 1
Graphic novel about a supernatural investigator who has some supernatural things going on himself, the first being that he seems to be a floating skull on top of an invisible man type set of clothes. He takes care of hauntings while more about his own backstory is revealed. I enjoyed this and will keep an eye out for further volumes.

The Day the Klan Came to Town
Short graphic novel based on a true story of a Pennsylvania town that fought back when the Klan tried to invade them. This is a fictionalized version of events using original characters, but based on what actually happened. I liked the story but the art was awful. :-/

My Home Hero vol. 16

nnozomi posting in

guardian_learning

部首
巾 part 5
带, to wear/to bring/belt; 席, seat; 帮, to help ( pinyin )
https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?cdqrad=50

词汇
保密, secrecy/confidentiality; 保守, conservative; 担保, to assure ( pinyin )
https://mandarinbean.com/new-hsk-4-word-list/

Guardian:
需要帮忙吗, do you need help?
我可以担保她跟这个案子没有关系, I can guarantee that she is not connected to this case

Me:
你去过旅游也没带给我个纪念品来呢？
保密非常重要。

innitmarvelous_og posting in

your_favourites

Loreena McKennitt / The Civil Wars (Bonus CW graphic here)

Alt for #2:
( See )

1. https://i.imgur.com/gQ8F1Ck.jpg
2. https://i.imgur.com/4SUOX9s.jpg
3. https://i.imgur.com/HVhUHC9.jpg
4. https://i.imgur.com/TcqOjD3.png

Current Mood: tired

Profile

firecat (attention machine in need of calibration)

September 2025

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
	1	2	3	4	5	6
7	8	9	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27
28	29	30

Page Summary

Style Credit

Base style: Modular by branchandroot
Theme: Purple Haze by timeasmymeasure

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated 30 Nov 2025 01:30 pm

tiny purple fishes run laughing through your fingers

Network

Links

Page Summary

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags