Meida Round Up: Comfort and Textiles
Apr. 20th, 2025 11:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
forestofgloryI’m once again sharing my thoughts on my recent media consumption. But first some thoughts about my joyful reading project.
I spent several days making a deliberate effort to not read if I didn’t feel like reading or wasn’t excited by anything I had to read. I don’t think it really helped? I was kind of miserable but in a different way than when I read things because I don’t have anything better to do. (I need no screen low hand impact things to do right before bed) But I guess after I did that I did end up reading some things. So maybe it worked? But I would rather not do it again.
I went back to reading not because I was suddenly super excited but because I had a day where I was too sick to do much at all and ended up reading a long fic all day.Which was nice, maybe not joyful, but nice.
( All Systems Red, Commodity and Exchange in the Mongol Empire, The Crescent Moon Tearoom, and The Flash Band )
I spent several days making a deliberate effort to not read if I didn’t feel like reading or wasn’t excited by anything I had to read. I don’t think it really helped? I was kind of miserable but in a different way than when I read things because I don’t have anything better to do. (I need no screen low hand impact things to do right before bed) But I guess after I did that I did end up reading some things. So maybe it worked? But I would rather not do it again.
I went back to reading not because I was suddenly super excited but because I had a day where I was too sick to do much at all and ended up reading a long fic all day.Which was nice, maybe not joyful, but nice.
( All Systems Red, Commodity and Exchange in the Mongol Empire, The Crescent Moon Tearoom, and The Flash Band )
Weekly proof of life: media, adulting, food
Apr. 20th, 2025 01:59 pmumadoshiReading: Still working my way through The Spear Cuts Through Water--somewhere past the halfway point now.
Watching: I finished my Guardian rewatch!
scruloose and I finished season 1 of Kingdom and did indeed opt to hold off on season 2 until after we finish season 2 of The Last of Us. (Is Kingdom complete at two seasons? Anyone know offhand? Fear of spoilers makes me not want to search up the info.) We also saw the season premiere of TLoU and the first episode of The Pitt.
Playing: Because the evil 368chickens game keeps track and springs the number on you when you beat it, I know that when I finally rescued 368 chickens a few days ago it was after 454 tries. And for reasons that are not clear to me, the victory screen (at least in the browser version) also informs you that you can't play anymore and is all that shows if you reload. (There are ways around it, of course--incognito tabs, simply using a different browser, whatever--but it just seems weird to me. I have thus far avoided going back to it, but that just means returning to my default couple of games that I play endlessly when my brain is completely incapable of focus but needs to be doing something. >.<)
Adulting: Mid-week,scruloose and I took the day off for my birthday and both dropped off our tax documents with our tax guy (bless our tax guy) and voted in the federal election at the Elections Canada office. I'm glad we got the voting taken care of so early--sounds like lineups for advance polls have been unusually lengthy this weekend (and here's hoping that's a good sign for the outcome!).
( under the cut: fruit and meat consumption (separately) )
Watching: I finished my Guardian rewatch!
scruloose and I finished season 1 of Kingdom and did indeed opt to hold off on season 2 until after we finish season 2 of The Last of Us. (Is Kingdom complete at two seasons? Anyone know offhand? Fear of spoilers makes me not want to search up the info.) We also saw the season premiere of TLoU and the first episode of The Pitt.Playing: Because the evil 368chickens game keeps track and springs the number on you when you beat it, I know that when I finally rescued 368 chickens a few days ago it was after 454 tries. And for reasons that are not clear to me, the victory screen (at least in the browser version) also informs you that you can't play anymore and is all that shows if you reload. (There are ways around it, of course--incognito tabs, simply using a different browser, whatever--but it just seems weird to me. I have thus far avoided going back to it, but that just means returning to my default couple of games that I play endlessly when my brain is completely incapable of focus but needs to be doing something. >.<)
Adulting: Mid-week,
scruloose and I took the day off for my birthday and both dropped off our tax documents with our tax guy (bless our tax guy) and voted in the federal election at the Elections Canada office. I'm glad we got the voting taken care of so early--sounds like lineups for advance polls have been unusually lengthy this weekend (and here's hoping that's a good sign for the outcome!).( under the cut: fruit and meat consumption (separately) )
20 HPI icons for the Monopoly round at icons10in20
Apr. 19th, 2025 05:59 pmtinnyThe anniversary 40th round at ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
icons10in20 was a Monopoly game! That was so much fun! I decided - no surprise there - to make it an HPI set. Okay, two of them are actor pics of the HPI actors, but who's counting?
Teasers:
( 20 HPI icons )
Every single comment is treasured. All icons shareable! Concrit welcome. Check out my resource post for makers of textures and brushes I use.
Previous icon posts:
icons10in20 was a Monopoly game! That was so much fun! I decided - no surprise there - to make it an HPI set. Okay, two of them are actor pics of the HPI actors, but who's counting?Teasers:
( 20 HPI icons )
Every single comment is treasured. All icons shareable! Concrit welcome. Check out my resource post for makers of textures and brushes I use.
Dear Investigator
Apr. 19th, 2025 05:03 pmmiss_ingnoThank you for creating for me! :D I hope this letter can give you some inspiration on which way to go <3
I'm open to treats of all mediums!
General DNWs: breaking up requested ships, genderswap, anything related to cannibalism, body horror*, graphic gore*, zombies/undead, hanahaki, sickfic, permanent character death for requested characters, mundane AUs, setting change AUs, de-aging, incest, breastfeeding of anyone 1+ years old;
nsfw DNWs: underage-under 15, watersports, scat, vore, sounding, enemas, fisting, ageplay, crossdressing, injured sex, anal prolapse, oral knotting, body modification (bitching excepted)
*re: body horror & gore, I'm fine with descriptions of the victim's injuries (missing organs, ripped open ribcage, torn throat, etc.) as long as this is framed in a somewhat clinical/professional setting (e.g. coroner's report, characters' investigative dialogue)
General Likes:
NSFW Likes: D/s, bondage, begging, enthusiastic consent, undernegotiated kink, kink negotiations, dirty talk, praise kink, happy sex/banter during sex, clothed sex, foreplay, aftercare, plot-relevant sex
Art Likes:
Generally, I'm happy with either leaning into the tropes as they are or subverting them in interesting ways!
[Letter in progress! More to be added soon]
I'm open to treats of all mediums!
General DNWs & Likes
General DNWs: breaking up requested ships, genderswap, anything related to cannibalism, body horror*, graphic gore*, zombies/undead, hanahaki, sickfic, permanent character death for requested characters, mundane AUs, setting change AUs, de-aging, incest, breastfeeding of anyone 1+ years old;
nsfw DNWs: underage-under 15, watersports, scat, vore, sounding, enemas, fisting, ageplay, crossdressing, injured sex, anal prolapse, oral knotting, body modification (bitching excepted)
*re: body horror & gore, I'm fine with descriptions of the victim's injuries (missing organs, ripped open ribcage, torn throat, etc.) as long as this is framed in a somewhat clinical/professional setting (e.g. coroner's report, characters' investigative dialogue)
General Likes:
- what ifs/canon divergences, alternate identity reveal, time travel (fix-it), canon aus where the canon setting remains,
- fluff, domesticity, banter, found family, family dynamics, friendship, developing & established relationships, intimacy,
- UST, misunderstandings, miscommunication, character conflict, conflict-rich dialogue, (emotional) hurt/comfort, secret identity, secrets and the slow reveals thereof,
- fealty & loyalty, devotion, protectiveness, protective possessiveness, mutual possessiveness, (public) claiming of some sort (jewelry, bitemarks, verbal, etc.)
- characters being competent at their jobs, Battle Couple, teamwork, nonverbal strategy communication,
- casefic, canon-style plots, mystery, action/adventure,
- outsider PoV, epistolary, multimedia and experimental formats (fictional socmed, letters, snippets from history books, text books, mission reports, etc.) that fit the canon setting
- The intimacy of your lover being able to kill you but choosing not to: knife to the throat (for shaving or during a fight enemies-to-lovers style), human!partner being vulnerable in monster!partner's grasp, strong person who trusts no one being vulnerable with their partner, etc.
NSFW Likes: D/s, bondage, begging, enthusiastic consent, undernegotiated kink, kink negotiations, dirty talk, praise kink, happy sex/banter during sex, clothed sex, foreplay, aftercare, plot-relevant sex
Art Likes:
- monochrome, b&w with pop of colour, high contrast with few colours, (but really, any art style is welcome!)
- jewelry & flowers, swords! (and other character-appropriate weapons), fancy clothes,
- character poses that tell a story/embody the dynamic between characters, small intimacies (hand to cheek! fingers brushing! eyes meeting! back-to-back! head on shoulder!), height difference where appropriate (or otherwise through environment or kneeling)
- And I'm really, really into the styles of stained glass (so pretty! I love the mosaic colours and religious symbology of it), tarot cards (the levels of choosing a card meaning to fit the character, the pose, the details!), and tapestry (just, the historical vibes? Usually some sort of major event or conflict, depicting a story between characters? *_*)
Generally, I'm happy with either leaning into the tropes as they are or subverting them in interesting ways!
Casefic Likes
- Murder Mysteries: I like the investigating and mystery-solving, the back and forth between characters, the getting ideas and proposing theories, the banter that ensues and the way it highlights different characters' areas of expertise and insight
- Police Procedurals: I like the general set-up/pacing of these, from the discovery of the victim, the autopsy bringing new leads, going to interview witnesses/suspects, the gathering of clues... I love the logic chain and the leaps of logic, the discovery of who did it and more importantly why
- Undercover: I like characters pretending to be someone else, the way they choose to go about it (lean into traits they already have? play at a fantasy self they don't think they can attain? act like their favourite spy thriller character? laying it on too thick?), the heightened stakes of getting caught, the rush of getting away with it (or with being caught and then rescued by the other characters). And I *love* when two characters go undercover independently and then have to come up with excuses for their reaction to the other on the spot, the whole "what are you doing here" whisper-hiss conversation
- Monster of the Week: I love love love mythology! I grew up on Greek mythology, with some sprinkles of Egyptian and Norse. In recent years I got really into Chinese folklore, too, and I'm always open to being introduced to new creatures/legends! I love the mystery of the characters having to figure out which creature it is based on what's happening, the gathering of clues and what to do, the reveal of the monster, and how they deal with it
- Kidnapping: love when the kidnapped character trusts 110% that their team/friends will rescue them and is proven right. Or they free themselves before they're rescued because the kidnappers underestimated them! It's also great when two characters are kidnapped (either together or seperately) and continuously bicker while the kidnapper's patience is waning xD
- Stakeouts: I especially love boredom and random chatter leading the two characters on stakeout to an emotionally vulnerable moment and/or confession, which then gets interrupted before the resolution by the suspects doing Their Thing and has to be postponed for later. Like the two characters work through whatever keeps their relationship from being better, misunderstandings, presumptions about the other, etc. and by the end of the stakeout have found a new understanding/level of friendship/insight/intimacy
- Mind Games
- Wrongfully Accused/Frame Job
- Competence: every/multiple characters getting a moment to shine/be in their element/be badass
Fannish March
Apr. 17th, 2025 11:44 amtinnyMovies
I saw Flow at the theater, the Latvian Oscar winner for animated movie. It was brilliant. I'm not sure I would have voted it higher than Wild Robot, but they're both extremely good, definitely deserving of the Oscar. The plot is a bit hard to describe, since there is no dialogue at all, and some things (both what's happening in nature and character motivations) are unclear. From what I gather, the pov cat character lives in a world that regularly sees floods, and we follow the cat through the current flood period. It meets other animals, and together they scavenge a boat to ride out the worst. There are no humans visible anywhere, but lots of artifacts, houses, and cities. The animals are shown as very individual, each with their own characteristics, but the main theme of the movie is how they bond and help each other. The music score is very important, since there is no dialogue, and except for one annoyingly tense section, I thought the music was excellent. The movie leaves a lot of room for interpretation - it makes you think, and that's always a good thing.
TV ongoing
Finally, there were new episodes of Doctor Odyssey! \o/ The first two were unusually gory, but also nicely suspenseful, which (though slightly illogical) totally worked for me. The next eps were a little more fluffy again, I just wasn't all that happy with the main themes: who's the baby daddy and surprise!alcoholism, and ep 11 (the crossover ep with one of the 911 offshoots) was the worst ep of the whole season for me. Still loving the throuple in general, and it keeps me watching. No decisions about a season 2 have been made yet.
I picked up some things again that I'd dropped in the middle, like We are Lady Parts (now on 2x04), especially loved Bisma's Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood. Awesome. I'll probably watch the rest of season 2 soon.
And Somebody Somewhere, of which I finished season 2. I thought they glossed over the conflict between Joel and Sam a bit too quickly, but I'm really loving Tricia this season.
I'm still doing the rewatch of HPI, now almost done with season 2, and my co-watcher has hopped onto the ship! \o/ In the last week of March, there was an event in Lille, SeriesMania 2025, where they showed the season five premiere, and people loved it. I'm very much looking forward to get to see it, too (airdate is May 15). I would love to find a fannish place to discuss the show, but only found a twitter community. :( I'm reading my way through the French fic on ao3 in the meantime.
TV new
In a very weird coincidence, I happened upon North of North, a very female comedy series, most of the characters and all producers are women. It's a series made by Inuk people about Inuk people, filmed on location *very far North*. It's a resounding rec. Siaja is a great character. In fact, the whole town of Ice Cove is a wonderful mix of characters, some loving, some eccentric, some traumatized. The show's humor is always on point, and even the embarrassing foot-in-mouth moments are played with so much love and charm that they don't feel squicky. It came out on Netflix on April 10, I'm planning on writing up a quick rec post for it soon.
Since I saw a lot of people talk about Severance's new season, I started the show, too. From the beginning - I'd never seen it before. The first ep was a little too slow for my liking in places - especially the dinner party omg. But apart from that, this looks very much up my alley. I like psycho horror (without jump scares) and bureaucratic dystopia in general. I stopped again when it got scary around ep 4. I'm not sure I'm up to that at the moment. It's very good, just a bit too heavy for me right now.
I started Love Scout (because I hated Filter, but needed something fluffy and Asian, or, idk why), and hated the first episode, but liked the second. I'll keep going if I need more fluff. I am once more reminded how much I don't like the directorial decision to go into slomo as soon as the leads have anything resembling a romantic moment, underscored by significant music intended to make the viewers look up from their knitting/phone/conversation with grandma so they don't miss the hug. *sigh* Apart from that, I do like the genderswapped setup with her being the workaholic boss and him being the doting father and secretary. That was almost four weeks ago already, though, and I haven't gone back to it... we'll see.
The best new thing I tried is The Pitt. Unfortunately, the camerawork makes me nauseous. That's a pity, because I really like it a lot. I went through it in 20-minute chunks, which kept the nausea at bay so far. I got about halfway through (7 of 15 episodes) in two weeks. I can see how the plot could be good (I have one guess at what's going to happen later in the day so far), although I don't like the setup of it only covering one day. There can perforce not be much character development in such a short time, at most "from flashbacks to now". And I'm usually always invested in shows for the characters and don't care as much about the plot. Despite all the gore and stress and death, it's comfort viewing for me, weirdly. :D Being Noah Wyle's age, it feels like we both started out on ER and have now come full circle, and that's just so beautiful. (I didn't dare look up interviews with him yet on why he picked the role, because everyone keeps saying that there are huge spoilers everywhere, so I'm being cautious. I did notice that he co-produced the show and wrote some of the episodes.) But it feels like coming home. <3
Fic Writer Meme
Apr. 16th, 2025 06:46 pmforestofgloryI answered the fic writer meme that’s going around. I was a bit hesitant to do this because I’m not writing anything at the moment, and I’m not sure that I even want to write more fic. But it seemed fun so here it is.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Welcome New People!
Apr. 16th, 2025 11:20 amforestofgloryWith the latest layoffs at Tumblr I've seen several friends making accounts here for the first time! Welcome, feel free to ask me any questions.
Here's what I hope are some useful links and tips:
If you are into Chinese entertainment and/or novels both thec_ent and cnovels communities are nice places to hang out, that host regular chats about what people are reading and watching as well as other topics. c_ent also keeps a list of Chinese media related communities on Dreamwidth.
I'm part of the group blogladybusiness which features intersectional feminist criticism and yelling about our feelings. I haven't been posting much there recently but renay has posted some great stuff!
I also rec followingcommon_nature for pretty pictures!
Here's what I hope are some useful links and tips:
If you are into Chinese entertainment and/or novels both the
c_ent and cnovels communities are nice places to hang out, that host regular chats about what people are reading and watching as well as other topics. c_ent also keeps a list of Chinese media related communities on Dreamwidth.I'm part of the group blog
ladybusiness which features intersectional feminist criticism and yelling about our feelings. I haven't been posting much there recently but renay has posted some great stuff! I also rec following
common_nature for pretty pictures!(no subject)
Apr. 15th, 2025 08:06 pmmomijizukamoriAs evidenced by the fact that I forgot the close the Shunga poll until, uh, now, I think I am not currently organized enough to manage something right now. Sorry, y'all.
Things I have been doing to try and not lose the remainder of my mind while the world burns:
- Finished and put up shelves for my fountain pen inks in my bedroom (photos to come once I have everything organized on them)
- Working on upgrades to last year's swordboy cosplays
- Watching the entire backlog of Musical Touken Ranbu shows and subsequently getting way too into the music
- Painting baby's first garage kit (also swordboys........)
What nerdy/creative things have you been up to?
Things I have been doing to try and not lose the remainder of my mind while the world burns:
- Finished and put up shelves for my fountain pen inks in my bedroom (photos to come once I have everything organized on them)
- Working on upgrades to last year's swordboy cosplays
- Watching the entire backlog of Musical Touken Ranbu shows and subsequently getting way too into the music
- Painting baby's first garage kit (also swordboys........)
What nerdy/creative things have you been up to?
15 + 5 multifandom icons for retro_icontest
Apr. 14th, 2025 10:09 pmtinnyThe current round at retro_icontest was a challenge from technique20in20. The themes were fun, and I made 15 icons.
Teasers:
( 20 (mostly HPI) icons )
Concrit and comments very welcome! Take and use as many icons as you like, credit is appreciated. If you want to know whose textures and brushes I use, take a look at my resource post.
Previous icon posts:
retro_icontest was a challenge from technique20in20. The themes were fun, and I made 15 icons.Teasers:
( 20 (mostly HPI) icons )
Concrit and comments very welcome! Take and use as many icons as you like, credit is appreciated. If you want to know whose textures and brushes I use, take a look at my resource post.