Post-Christmas mishmash | Recent media
29 Dec 2025 15:47![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
umadoshiI guess at this point we're well into the liminal last bit of the year. (I said to
scruloose earlier that I still try to hold "Christmas is twelve days, dammit" in my heart, but it's hard, especially when our observance of the the holiday at all is so low-key.) We had masked visits with both sets of parents (mine on Christmas Eve and scruloose's on Boxing Day), and in between, Christmas Day was just the two of us and the cats and the Netflix fireplaces. My mom sent us home with Christmas stockings and some gifts (also very low-key; we still keep nudging for just not doing presents at all), and the latter included a hard copy of the most recent edition of Garner's Modern English Usage, which was a delightful surprise.We actually had a white Christmas, which has never been a sure thing and is getting rarer and rarer at terrible speeds, but now ice and rain are arriving, to be followed by a cold snap, so I'm really glad we don't need to leave the house anytime soon. (See also: will we lose power? Very possibly! >.< But we're pretty well-equipped to deal with it.)
I'm feeling like I should be looking ahead or setting small goals or trying to find specific things I want to focus on, but so far I'm not really scrounging the brain for it. Anyone want to tell me about how you're approaching it?
(I do think I'll sign up for a GYWO wordcount goal again, despite having written almost literally zero words this year, but at this point I have the grim suspicion that the words may stay gone until a new full-on fannish obsession hits me, and that's so infrequent for me. ;_; I have so many Guardian WIPs and fragments. [And while I'm enjoying seeing all the fannish glee over Heated Rivalry, I don't currently feel fannish about it myself {which, honestly, I'm okay with}.])
Recent media, mostly books: All Is Bright, Llinos Cathryn Thomas' "read over Advent" novella, which was lovely; The Dark is Rising (book), which I'm glad to have finally read; I don't know if/when I might read the books that follow it; Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher; Widdershins by Jordan L. Hawk; KJ Charles' Masters in this Hall (which I should've checked the series info about first, as it's the third Lilywhite Boys book and I haven't read the second. Oops); and Brigid Kemmerer's A Curse So Dark and Lonely.
scruloose and I finished listening to System Collapse, so we're out of Murderbot books. Yesterday (?) we listened to the four-minute audiobook sample of The Thief, which I might be able to work with? But wow, the voice sounds so much older than Gen to me. (Also, Kobo, four minutes is a reasonable sample length, but it literally cuts off mid-word.)I watched the season finale of Heated Rivalry pretty promptly on Friday morning, for fear of being spoiled, which meant
scruloose, who hadn't seen any of the show previously, pretty much watched it too while feeding the cats and having their own breakfast. (I did give them some background info first.) As noted above: not feeling fannish, but I thought that was really well done overall, and the actors seem like an absolute delight.And we've watched two movies since starting vacation (Wake Up Dead Man and Sinners), which brings me up to a whopping four [4] movies this year.
Pass It On 6
29 Dec 2025 11:25chocolatefrogs posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
iconthat
https://res.cloudinary.com/dc2cefbey/image/upload/v1767036312/ay5yer_h2yxux.jpg
Next picture: Nyota Uhura (Star Trek: The Original Series)
Not really the call of the wiiiild, I guess
29 Dec 2025 19:29oursinOut for my walk today, went through the pocket park behind the house, and there was a lady with a small terrier (I think), that was going absolutely spare under some trees -
- and looking up I finally saw, right up at the very top where it had attained to, a squirrel, which was presumably the reason for the agitation.
Had some passing converse with the dog's owner anent this, who claims that he will never actually catch a squirrel, even though they are tame enough that if you go and sit on one of the park benches they will come and look you over.
Mostly the dogs that one sees being walked in the park are less vociferous, perhaps they have grown wise to the ways of squirrels.
So anyway, I passed on to the other somewhat larger park, and see no advance yet in what is supposed to be a development involving a pergola (???) and further eco-stuff but at least there is no longer unsightly work being done at that spot.
Have only very lately discovered that two objects which I vaguely thought, had I thought at all, were maybe bird-houses, are actually insect-houses. Much to my chagrin, I can find nothing about this on the park website which boasts of various eco and environment good stuff that goes on there (I am still trying to work out what the sparrow-meadow is, have not seen plume nor feather of a sparrow on my ambles).
However, I can at least point dr rdrz at this site where I perceive that insect houses are quite A Thing: designed to provide safe nesting, hibernation, and breeding spaces for beneficial pollinators such as solitary bees, butterflies, ladybirds, and lacewings'.
I assume solitary bees are a specific species, and have not actually been expelled from their hive for some vile transgression, to roam the earth etc etc etc like an apian ancient mariner.
Bundle of Holding: The Burning Wheel
29 Dec 2025 14:08james_davis_nicoll
An all-new Burning Wheel Bundle presenting The Burning Wheel, the medieval-themed tabletop fantasy roleplaying game about vibrant, dynamic characters whose beliefs propel the story.
Bundle of Holding: The Burning Wheel
Would my dog or cat really eat me if I died alone?
29 Dec 2025 14:07conulyPeople talk about this like it's so shocking, or like it means your pet obviously doesn't really love you, but c'mon. I love my cat, but I'd eat her in a heartbeat if she was already dead and there was nothing else left. She's my cat, she's not my baby. It's not like I've gone full on Donner Party - and let's be clear, if that was all that was left on the table, and they were already dead, I'd do that too. At least, I'd think about doing it. I suppose I might not be able to bring myself to go that far, but I wouldn't find it shocking if another person did!
Yuletide recs (part 2)
29 Dec 2025 10:38snickfic posting in yuletidePossibly in Michigan
The Secret History
The Raven Tower
Impromptu/19th Century RPF
The Dispossessed
The Long Walk -Stephen King
Waking the Moon
Rope
Having To Do Anything At Gunpoint Is Stressful.
29 Dec 2025 18:38rionaleonhartAs with 2024, I'm going to take a quick look at the preexisting favourites who've particularly occupied my mind this year, and then I'm going to comb through my 'first impressions' tag and give my favourite character from each canon I first posted about in 2025. (If no favourite character comes to mind, I'll skip the canon.) I might also cover a couple of canons I've tried out this year but haven't yet posted about.
( My favourite characters of 2025. )
Dexter is a surprising omission here! I watched a lot of that show earlier in the year, but I just don't have an answer to the 'who's your favourite character?' question. I like Deb, but not passionately enough to say with confidence that she's my favourite; I find Dexter interesting, but I can't say for certain whether I like him. I tend to be a very character-focused fan, so it's always a little surprising to me when I get into something without latching strongly on to any of the characters.
Yuletide recs, part II
29 Dec 2025 10:36snickficTwo, Seven, Eight, Possibly in Michigan, 1.8k. The Beachwood Place Mall is not a great work environment. The canon is a bizarre 1983 short film about weird men in masks following women in shopping malls, possibly with the intention of eating them, which you can watch here; this fic is a series of incident reports and answering machine messages to and from a concerned perfume counter employee. IDK if it's possible to fully capture the fever dream quality of the film, but this takes a good stab.
an island made from fate, The Secret History, Camilla & Charles, 1.6k. Early on at Hampden, Camilla escapes a tedious house party and finds Charles. This is a great, elegantly written little character study of Camilla, who never got quite enough time in the book IMO, and really shows the fault lines of her relationship with Charles. Great stuff.
k2, p2, yo, k2tog, The Raven Tower, The Strength and Patience of the Hill and The Myriad, 1.2k. The Strength and Patience tells a story about a sheep, and The Myriad has quibbles. The story about the sheep is fun and feels very in keeping with the universe of the novel, and the reveal about why the Strength and Patience has chosen to tell this particular story is delightful.
la femme comme il (en) faut, Impromptu (1991), George Sand, 3.2k. George gets invited to a salon and attends despite her better instincts. I'm not familiar with the movie and found this via the historical RPF tag, but I really enjoyed this vivid portrait of the Parisian artistic community at this time period, and the last scene really elevates it, IMO, and ties the whole thing together. I love the subtle emotional arc of this, and now I kind of want to go find the George Sand biography the author mentionds in the notes.
More A Comment Than A Question, The Dispossessed, Laia Asieo Odo & Sadik, 2.3k. Every so often, Laia goes a little mad and hears a voice claiming to be from the future. It's been a long time since I read about these characters, but I enjoyed this so much. The device of visiting Laia at these various points in her life was very cool, and there's something so peaceful about this whole fic, too, the same sense of peace and simplicity I got from reading the novel years ago.
There's No Discharge in the War, The Long Walk - Stephen King, Stebbins, 12k. Stebbins walks, dies, walks again. Stebbins has always been a sneaky favorite of mine, and I love seeing him get a fic all his own here that fleshes him out and gives him his own unique horrific trauma! The author uses the time loop device to fantastic and creative effect, and it all adds up to a conclusion that I like more and more the longer I think about it. Absolutely spectacular work. One of my favorites this year.
Hyacinth Girl, Waking the Moon, Oliver Crawford, 7.6k. Oliver, before the Divine. The author tags this as "Tragic Backstory" and they are correct!! I read this book last year and yet feel as though I'm missing things in this fic; I can't quite tell how many of these elements were present in the novel and which the author invents here, but the result is gorgeous and heartbreaking. You've got fairy tale stuff, dysfunctional family, the Benandanti always menacing in the background, more literay quotes than you can shake a stick at, absolutely gorgeous imagery.
Knife, Rope (1948), Brandon/Phillip, 4.9k. Brandon and Phillip's class go on a camping trip, and Brandon discovers that Phillip is not just more wallpaper. This is obviously backstory to the movie but feels like a beautiful, self-contained little psychopathic romance on its own. Two weirdos falling in love via discussing murder scenarios!! I was compelled from start to finish.
8 recs in 7 fandoms
29 Dec 2025 18:26mrs_redboots posting in yuletidePuck of Pook's Hill/Callendar Series
Sussex Set
Swallows and Amazons (two stories)
Cadfael Chronicles
Chalet School
The Secret Garden
and Dragonriders of Pern
There may yet be more to come....
On the 5th Day of Christmas...
29 Dec 2025 13:16clavally1. Redhead Creamery: North Fork Whiskey-washed Muenster and Microwaveable Pork Rinds. The cheese was really good, salty and creamy. I don't think I've ever had pork rinds before and they did indeed puff up in the microwave. I ate a few, but the taste wasn't sitting right with me somehow. I'm not sure why.
2. TheFictionPhantom: The Martian by Andy Weir. YES! I've been hoping for this one. Also hoping for Project Hail Mary, but we shall see. Value: $15.00. Total Value: $65.53.
![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
icanhascheezburger_feedTraveling with pets can be a nightmare, and this lady just proved it.
One of the worst things about being a cat owner is traveling. Whether you choose to leave them at home or bring them with you, you're pawsitively stuck with some terrible choices to make. Leaving them at home means a period without them and their company, wondering if they're doing okay, and paying for a cat sitter who may or may not be competent or not. But if you choose to bring them with you, you have to deal with airline fees and extra reservations, rules that change according to each airline, and don't even get us started about making a makeshift litter box for the plane.
And yet, some people feel purrfectly comfortable taking a nonchalant attitude towards it, then get upset when they don't read the fine print, just like our Karen below. She booked her ticket, or her mom did (we're not really sure), but either way, neither of them paid the reservation fee for two cats. She put both cats in one cat carrier and attempted to board the plane with her two cats stuffed into a tiny bag.
Obviously, the TSA agents noticed something was up and stopped her. She proceeded to get angry, screaming and accusing them of ruining Christmas for not letting her get on the flight. Really, sweetheart, you ruined Christmas yourself by trying to get around the rules. Watch the whole video below, and for Ceiling Cat's sake, we hope she never puts two cats in one carrier ever again.
In Which I Discover a New Fandom and, Wow! Fandom's Changed
29 Dec 2025 08:57loup_noirThe Princess of Hell, Lucifer Morningstar's daughter Charlie (Why Charlie? That's a question I'd like to ask the creator of the show.) believes in redemption, and she wants to help the damned achieve that state. With songs! Angst! And surprisingly good Catholic dogma, says the very lapsed Catholic here. It was fun as it was, but when the Seraphim showed up with all the eyes, I was in for the ride.
I had no expectation that it would survive for a second season, but it did and the storyline continued to be good. In many ways, it has A Knight's Tale feeling. There's a silly, shiny layer, but there's also a lot of history holding it together. All that reading for my Durmstrang series on the levels of heaven and hell, who inhabits where, etc. made Hazbin a lot more fun.
What was completely new to me was the fandom. Amazon has Hazbin Hotel Live on Broadway. All the voice actors, a lot of the songs, and wonderful, lingering shots of the fans, who know all the words and motions to the songs and many wearing fantastic costumes. The Alastors were especially good.
youtu.be/G1C1MFv7CKU Hope that works. It's a link to the show-stopper for S2. If you haven't seen the series, Lute (again, why that name?) is the angel, the dark male figure is Adam (as in Adam and Eve), and the angel at the door is Abel.