a bird made from a shell

Already the second day of the new year. Well, well, well. Happy New Year!

Got a couple of late Christmas cards in the mail, which ironically jolted me from my recent bout of moodiness. One was from an old professor who had a heart attack in the middle of last year, had surgery, therapy, more surgery, and thankfully has recovered well enough to go back to work this year. The other was a friend from Fukushima who said they're recovering and all is fine, only that her child can't play outside and they can't grow vegetables because of radiation.

Sometimes I'm incredibly stupid and self-centered. Here I am, moping about myself when I should be facing the world with spirit, as others are doing. I will do better. Not a new year resolution, but a promise to myself: For 2012 (and after), I will do what I enjoy, and enjoy what I do. Otherwise I'm just letting myself down.

Best wishes for 2012, everyone! Be of good spirit, treat others kindly, and keep hanging in there no matter how tough things get (things'll either get better or you'll develop the muscle to deal). <3

***

Ah, Yuletide reveals are up.

serenissima (killalla) wrote Like Water, a Spirited Away fic for me. Thank you very much for such a lovely surprise!

I wrote Estuary Words, The Changeover. Wherein Sorry is a Wild Life Officer, and also apparently a radio station for the women in his life.

My fic was written for hazel, and by a coincidence I found via a rec list hazel's Yuletide fic, Of Woodshops and Ducks, Frederica by Heyer. It has Felix, so that makes it cool. ^__^

Other Yuletide fics:

Scymnus Diaboli, These Old Shades, The Devil's Cub, by Ione

A Great Storm in the Sjy, the Sun in the North, Taiki, 12 Kingdoms, by daphnerunning.

Snow in Spring, Ranjou/Shouryuu, 12 Kingdoms, by Jougetsu

A Clear Glass Window, at Sea Dawn, Chalion saga, by Lyonpyh

I got a Spirited Away fic for Yuletide! Like Water. Thank you so much, anonymous-for-now author.

So, before my exams ended I had all kinds of plans for what to do after. I would knit! Read! Knit and read! Make jewellery*! Write! Watch TV! Write and watch TV!

And then exams ended and I became thoroughly unmotivated, content just to sit on my ass all day. (Although I must say the dream (nightmare)** about flunking exams didn't help.)

Anyway. Got some motivation back now. Sent Christmas cards. Cleaned desk. Knitted (and knitted). Read (and reading).

Fics:

Limited Release, X-Men (First Class), White Collar-ish AU, Erik/Charles, by rageprufrock

These Three Things Remain, Avengers, Steve/Tony,by Siria

When the Lights Go On Again, Avengers, Steve/Tony, link is to chapter 1 (19 chapters in all), completed, by seanchai and elspethdixon

Books:

Persuasion, by Jane Austen. Re-read, but in fairness, a very, very infrequent re-read, and it was in my kindle. (Sense and Sensibility is more my speed.) Fun to notice (again) all the details and all the swipes Austen takes at pretentious people.

Four Souls, by Louise Erdrich. Connected to Tracks, contains seriously scary Fleur Pillager and always hilarious Nanapush. A trifle wordier than I like, and perhaps a little too declaratory, but still awesome. I don't always like "lyrical writing" in my reading, but when Erdrich is good, it doesn't feel tedious or overwrought; it just works.

The Rich and the Dead, edited by Nelson DeMille. Collection of mystery short stories. Some interesting.


*Sort of. I'm an amateur amateur jewellery maker. My expertise extends only to making earrings by attaching pretty beads to earring hooks.

**I don't think my subconcious was being fair when it created a scenario where I flunked an exam on Shakespeare, and to be even more insulting, it was on Hamlet, a play which featured in my school career three times and which I still know pretty well.

Drat, I missed the BG deadline.

Just too busy these few weeks, due to a whole bunch of deadlines that came up; hope to be slightly less so now that those are over...

Who am I kidding? >_>

1) I got a smartphone! A Samsung galaxy ace that looks like an iPhone 3, which means it's a boorrrring white (and the black is even worse). But it has been amusing to play with it (and also to discover my fingers are apparently too big for texting quickly).

2) Hast been reading books that were unearthed from depths of bookshelf. Here's the beginning of one:

Memory makes desires of its own. Deep in the candle hours it casts Hong Kong up like a shimmering sea of color against flames made of ache, fright, wonderment. Above all, it remembers her, when it ought to be getting on with life and other things. But it's no use trying to stop memory, and I've given up.

~Jadewoman, by Jonathan Gash.

Re-reading this makes me remember that the Lovejoy books aren't just misadventures, murder and general chicanery (but also - antiques).

***

Love's a Universe Beyond Obey, Neal/Mozzie, White Collar, by hoosierbitch

The Case of the Unexpected Guest, Sherlock, casefic, by thirdbird_fic

Sherlock fics:

Untitled Forensics John Fic and sequel, All's Well that Ends Well, AU, Sherlock/John, by stickstockstone

Subliminal, Sherlock, by speranza

The Blog of Eugenia V. Watson, AU, WIP, kidfic, by madlorific.
I can’t really describe how he walks except to say that he always looks like there’s an invisible cloak billowing out behind him.

2009 Sherlock Holmes movie:

Observations on Sentinels & Guides in Victorian London,
complete, Sherlock/John, Sherlock Holmes (2009 movie version) in Sentinel-verse, by ryuuzakochou. Link goes to last chapter; top of post contains links to earlier chapters.

It feels awfully self-indulgent to crosspost this in both LJ and DW. ETA: And hikarunogo (LJ).

Title: What glimpses a goban
Author: Luce Red
Fandom: Hikaru no Go
Summary: Shindou and Touya both see something they never expected. Barely-there hint of Shindou/Touya.
Notes: Written for Blind_Go 11. Re-posted after I reworked it a little for better coherence.

( Read more... )

Gundam Wing/Temeraire fusion ficlets, by askerian

So Easy for Everybody Else, 1/2, 2/2, sherlock, Mycroft, angst, trans issues, by etothepill

'J' is for..., Sherlock, by apple_pathways

To Have Far Different Views To Most Mortals, Sherlock, by postcardmystery

Ack, late for Hikago Day! My only excuse is that I got up early to write my fic for Blind_Go (advantage of being on the other side of the world from BG mods) and then worked late. But I'm pretty sure it's still May 5 somewhere, so Happy Hikago Day, everyone!

Blind_Go fics are up!

Guess mine and I'll...

Hm, when I went through my old stuff a while back, I came across this post where I offered to write Hikago fics that featured an outrageous tabloid-ish rumour. Eg, Touya Akira is actually a girl!

So, guess who I am at BG, supply me with an outrageous rumour (or two, or three, to choose from) and I'll write the correct guesser a Hikago fic.

Comments are screened until the reveal.

Yay Hikago fic!

to accompany; to go out, Shindou/Touya, Hikaru no Go, by sidevocalist

And check out the Hikago Kink meme

Uncertainty, Sherlock, Mycroft, by spycandy