Come Hell or High Water (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
musyc) wrote2025-05-24 12:21 pm
musyc) wrote2025-05-24 12:21 pm2025 Reading #9 plus more
Final update on Mr Holmes! He has been officially adopted! His foster mom fell in love with him basically on sight and she and her partner have given Mr Holmes a forever home. I am so grateful that he found a loving family and a comfortable life for the rest of his years.
Picture book readings:
Home is a Wish - Julia Kuo, author and illustrator
Dealing with a big move to a new home, and the worries that come with that. Cute but not memorable. 5/10
A Cat Like That - Lester L. Laminack, author; Nicole Wong, illustrator
A chubby cat and his wanderings around his town. Illustrations were a bit off for me, but I did like the little map that showed the cat's movements. 5/10
Pavlo Gets the Grumps - Natalia Shaloshvili, author and illustrator
Pavlo is a grumpy kid/kitten that doesn't want to play. Mom and friends help with his big feelings. Okay, but nothing special. 5/10
Midnight Motorbike - Maureen Shay Tajsar, author; Ishita Jain, illustrator
I liked the story and setting of this - Amma and daughter take a motorcycle ride through India at night when it's too hot to sleep - but the illustrations were very muddled. Lovely story, not a joy to look at. 4/10
We Are Lion Dancers - Benson Shum, author and illustrator
Lovely book about children watching lion dancers and learning how to do the dance themselves. 7/10
Scamp - Anden Wilder, author and illustrator
Cute story about a little girl who is almost more cat-like than her cat. 7/10
Another Word for Neighbor - Angela Pham Krans, author; Thai My Phuong, illustrator
Gorgeously written, excellent vocabulary, lovely illustrations. This was a winner of a book, where a new family with two kids moves next to an older man who just wants quiet. They make friends and they make pho! 9/10, would definitely buy.
Safe Crossing - Kari Percival, author and illustrator
This was adorable. Environmental education and citizen outreach, plus a diverse set of characters. There is a touch of a sad moment when the unfortunate realities of salamanders and frogs crossing a road gets explained but it's not huge, and treated with compassion. 9/10, would absolutely buy.
Reading goal #9!
Ben Aaronovitch - Masquerades of Spring
If you had set me down and said this is Aaronovitch's Yuletide fic, I would not have been in the slightest bit surprised. This read like a Folly-based Jeeves and Wooster AU, which is not a criticism! It was a frothy book, very enjoyable and fun. 8/10
DNF: Manda Collins - Lady's Guide to Mischief and Mayhem. Five chapters in and I kept picking something else to read, so back it went!
Currently checked out:
Boyd and Beth Morrison, Lawless Land
Evie Woods, Lost Bookshop
Picture book readings:
Home is a Wish - Julia Kuo, author and illustrator
Dealing with a big move to a new home, and the worries that come with that. Cute but not memorable. 5/10
A Cat Like That - Lester L. Laminack, author; Nicole Wong, illustrator
A chubby cat and his wanderings around his town. Illustrations were a bit off for me, but I did like the little map that showed the cat's movements. 5/10
Pavlo Gets the Grumps - Natalia Shaloshvili, author and illustrator
Pavlo is a grumpy kid/kitten that doesn't want to play. Mom and friends help with his big feelings. Okay, but nothing special. 5/10
Midnight Motorbike - Maureen Shay Tajsar, author; Ishita Jain, illustrator
I liked the story and setting of this - Amma and daughter take a motorcycle ride through India at night when it's too hot to sleep - but the illustrations were very muddled. Lovely story, not a joy to look at. 4/10
We Are Lion Dancers - Benson Shum, author and illustrator
Lovely book about children watching lion dancers and learning how to do the dance themselves. 7/10
Scamp - Anden Wilder, author and illustrator
Cute story about a little girl who is almost more cat-like than her cat. 7/10
Another Word for Neighbor - Angela Pham Krans, author; Thai My Phuong, illustrator
Gorgeously written, excellent vocabulary, lovely illustrations. This was a winner of a book, where a new family with two kids moves next to an older man who just wants quiet. They make friends and they make pho! 9/10, would definitely buy.
Safe Crossing - Kari Percival, author and illustrator
This was adorable. Environmental education and citizen outreach, plus a diverse set of characters. There is a touch of a sad moment when the unfortunate realities of salamanders and frogs crossing a road gets explained but it's not huge, and treated with compassion. 9/10, would absolutely buy.
Reading goal #9!
Ben Aaronovitch - Masquerades of Spring
If you had set me down and said this is Aaronovitch's Yuletide fic, I would not have been in the slightest bit surprised. This read like a Folly-based Jeeves and Wooster AU, which is not a criticism! It was a frothy book, very enjoyable and fun. 8/10
DNF: Manda Collins - Lady's Guide to Mischief and Mayhem. Five chapters in and I kept picking something else to read, so back it went!
Currently checked out:
Boyd and Beth Morrison, Lawless Land
Evie Woods, Lost Bookshop
it only hurts when i breathe (spikedluv) wrote2025-05-24 11:18 am
spikedluv) wrote2025-05-24 11:18 am
it only hurts when i breathe (spikedluv) wrote2025-05-24 06:52 am
spikedluv) wrote2025-05-24 06:52 amEntry tags:
The Day in Spikedluv (Friday, May 23)
(This is a test of the Emergency Alert System daily posting.)
I hit Walmart and Price Chopper while I was downtown yesterday. (The Walmart stop was to get a different wrist brace to try as the one I purchased previously I think would work better while I’m actually using my laptop rather than sleeping.) I hit Stewart’s (for gas and milk) and the library (to return a book) on the way home.
I did two loads of laundry, a load in the dishwasher, and paid a bill online. I baked chicken for the dogs' meals and made corned beef for supper. (It was awful. The corn beef tasted odd – enough that Pip was okay with me tossing the leftovers because he didn’t want to eat any more of it – and even the boiled potatoes went funky. The potato came off the skin and turned to mush, basically. I have no idea what happened.
Fun stuff! I watched the current ep of Leverage: Redemption and some recorded HGTV programs, took a nap (I’m blaming the weather for how many naps I’ve had to take lately), and read some fanfic. I also talked to my mom on the phone before my shower. (We generally talk every night, just telling each other about our days, no matter how little we did or how boring they were. *g*)
Temps started out at 42.3(F) and reached 53.8. It rained all day, though it was mostly drizzles and sprinkles. Still enough to make it impossible to do anything. Plus the overcast sky is soooo depressing.
Will today be better? As the Magic-8 Ball says, Don't count on it.
ETA: It was my niece L's birthday! She turned 35.
I hit Walmart and Price Chopper while I was downtown yesterday. (The Walmart stop was to get a different wrist brace to try as the one I purchased previously I think would work better while I’m actually using my laptop rather than sleeping.) I hit Stewart’s (for gas and milk) and the library (to return a book) on the way home.
I did two loads of laundry, a load in the dishwasher, and paid a bill online. I baked chicken for the dogs' meals and made corned beef for supper. (It was awful. The corn beef tasted odd – enough that Pip was okay with me tossing the leftovers because he didn’t want to eat any more of it – and even the boiled potatoes went funky. The potato came off the skin and turned to mush, basically. I have no idea what happened.
Fun stuff! I watched the current ep of Leverage: Redemption and some recorded HGTV programs, took a nap (I’m blaming the weather for how many naps I’ve had to take lately), and read some fanfic. I also talked to my mom on the phone before my shower. (We generally talk every night, just telling each other about our days, no matter how little we did or how boring they were. *g*)
Temps started out at 42.3(F) and reached 53.8. It rained all day, though it was mostly drizzles and sprinkles. Still enough to make it impossible to do anything. Plus the overcast sky is soooo depressing.
Will today be better? As the Magic-8 Ball says, Don't count on it.
ETA: It was my niece L's birthday! She turned 35.
Delphi (they/them) (delphi) wrote2025-05-23 08:21 pm
delphi) wrote2025-05-23 08:21 pmEntry tags:
REC: Untitled Narwhal!Merman Izzy by MegaDucko (Our Flag Means Death)
Fandom 50 #16
Untitled Narwhal!Merman Izzy by MegaDucko
Fandom: Our Flag Means Death
Character/Relationship: Izzy Hands (Izzy Hands/Edward Teach in framing text)
Medium: Art
Length: 1 piece
Rating: SFW
My Bookmark Tags: slice of life, romance, ambiguous ending, established relationship, au: merpeople, long-distance relationship, gifts, nature
Artist's Summary: For 27 years now Ed has been bringing Izzy, his sea unicorn, small gifts every time he returns from a particularly lucky raid and those are Izzy's happiest moments...
Description:
Izzy's status as the ship's unicorn has a special place in my heart, and bringing this together with a merperson AU to give us Izzy as a narwhal-style merman is just brilliant. And as always, MegaDucko has realized a brilliant concept beautifully.
The setting is perfect for Izzy, with his sturdy build and scars: not white sand and crystal-blue waters but a more rugged and cooler coastline, beautiful in its own way but not conventionally idyllic. The overall design of his body feels so natural despite its fantastical construction, with the way his musculature and colouring blends together between top half and bottom, and with the way he's got his tail curled around, dripping water on himself. Curled over his gifts from his sailor-love, it's easy to see that piece of land he's cuddling up to as a proxy for Ed. His expression perfectly strikes the balance between contentment and yearning, and I'm firmly opting for the happier ending discussed in the artist's thread.
Untitled Narwhal!Merman Izzy by MegaDucko
Fandom: Our Flag Means Death
Character/Relationship: Izzy Hands (Izzy Hands/Edward Teach in framing text)
Medium: Art
Length: 1 piece
Rating: SFW
My Bookmark Tags: slice of life, romance, ambiguous ending, established relationship, au: merpeople, long-distance relationship, gifts, nature
Artist's Summary: For 27 years now Ed has been bringing Izzy, his sea unicorn, small gifts every time he returns from a particularly lucky raid and those are Izzy's happiest moments...
Description:
Merman Izzy, his lower half the mottled grey tail of a narwhal and his brow sporting a long horn, lounges kelp-draped on a rocky shore. He's adorned with a bracelet and an earring, and protected in a small grotto beside him is a collection of other trinkets.
Izzy's status as the ship's unicorn has a special place in my heart, and bringing this together with a merperson AU to give us Izzy as a narwhal-style merman is just brilliant. And as always, MegaDucko has realized a brilliant concept beautifully.
The setting is perfect for Izzy, with his sturdy build and scars: not white sand and crystal-blue waters but a more rugged and cooler coastline, beautiful in its own way but not conventionally idyllic. The overall design of his body feels so natural despite its fantastical construction, with the way his musculature and colouring blends together between top half and bottom, and with the way he's got his tail curled around, dripping water on himself. Curled over his gifts from his sailor-love, it's easy to see that piece of land he's cuddling up to as a proxy for Ed. His expression perfectly strikes the balance between contentment and yearning, and I'm firmly opting for the happier ending discussed in the artist's thread.
it only hurts when i breathe (spikedluv) wrote2025-05-23 07:21 am
spikedluv) wrote2025-05-23 07:21 amEntry tags:
The Week in Spikedluv (May 16 – May 22)
Last Friday: I hit Price Chopper while I was downtown. I did three loads of laundry and changed kitty litter. I watched current eps of 9-1-1 and Leverage: Redemption, and read more in a book. Temps started out at 61.0(F) and reached 89.1. There was so much sun! The thunderstorms that were supposed to roll in about 1pm held off until after 9pm.
( more back here )
( more back here )
svgurl (svgurl) wrote2025-05-22 05:54 pm
svgurl) wrote2025-05-22 05:54 pmEntry tags:
fic: my heart is with you (diana/steve)
This is what I wrote for the ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
unsent_letters_exchange. :)
Title: my heart is with you
Fandom: DCEU
Pairing/Characters: Diana/Steve
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1983
Summary: Diana writes letters for Steve, until she no longer has to.
unsent_letters_exchange. :)Title: my heart is with you
Fandom: DCEU
Pairing/Characters: Diana/Steve
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1983
Summary: Diana writes letters for Steve, until she no longer has to.
svgurl (svgurl) wrote2025-05-22 05:41 pm
svgurl) wrote2025-05-22 05:41 pmEntry tags:
unsent_letters gift fics (1 lane/dave, 1 rory/jess)
These were the fics I received from the unsent_letters_exchange. :D
Title: Please Mr Postman
Author:![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
Ultra
Fandom: Gilmore Girls
Pairing/Characters: Lane/Dave
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 2855
Summary: When Dave goes off to California for college, he and Lane agree to do the long distance thing, largely through letters... and a lot of pop and rock music references, of course
I was so excited to get Lane/Dave! Loved all the fun music references and the letters were very them. :D
Title: Please Mr Postman - Post Credits Scene
Author:Ultra
Fandom: Gilmore Girls
Pairing/Characters: Rory/Jess
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1097
Summary: Inspired by Dave & Lane's letter writing, Rory writes to Jess.
The Rory/Jess references in the original fic was already nice but it was a lovely delight to get a followup fic with giving them a chance at a happy ending too!
unsent_letters_exchange. :DTitle: Please Mr Postman
Author:
Fandom: Gilmore Girls
Pairing/Characters: Lane/Dave
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 2855
Summary: When Dave goes off to California for college, he and Lane agree to do the long distance thing, largely through letters... and a lot of pop and rock music references, of course
I was so excited to get Lane/Dave! Loved all the fun music references and the letters were very them. :D
Title: Please Mr Postman - Post Credits Scene
Author:
Fandom: Gilmore Girls
Pairing/Characters: Rory/Jess
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1097
Summary: Inspired by Dave & Lane's letter writing, Rory writes to Jess.
The Rory/Jess references in the original fic was already nice but it was a lovely delight to get a followup fic with giving them a chance at a happy ending too!
Delphi (they/them) (delphi) wrote2025-05-21 01:58 pm
delphi) wrote2025-05-21 01:58 pmEntry tags:
What I'm Reading: Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams (2025)
✓ kingstoken's 2025 Book Bingo: Over 300 Pages
Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams is a 2025 tell-all about the author's time as Facebook's Director of Global Public Policy in the 2010s. The book focuses on the ill-preparedness of Facebook executives to navigate the geopolitical situations they inserted themselves into in their obsession with perpetual expansion, including their role in the Rohingya genocide, as well as the general bizarre work environment and the sexual harassment that the author experienced.
Wynn-Williams comes off as a deeply careless person herself, albeit one buoyed along on a slightly different type of inflated self-importance than her former colleagues. There's a lot of what feels like completely unreflected-upon self-incrimination in the book that lends credibility to her stories. The seams show clearly enough where she's edited her interactions with others (usually to give herself the winning last word in conversations that clearly would have continued) that I'm inclined to believe the bulk of what's there, even if I don't buy the characterization of her responses or her assessment of her own moral fibre.
When this book first came out, I wondered if reading it was going to feel redundant alongside all the media coverage it was surely going to get. But the gag order Facebook imposed on the author banning her from promoting the book—combined with the avalanche of other news in early 2025 about tech billionaires dismantling democracy—seemed to result in fewer articles about the content crossing my path than I would have expected. For that reason, I'm glad I took the time to read it.
Also, it's worth noting that in my searching, I found many results on other search engines that didn't turn up on Google, even when they involved sources that Google usually indexes.
( An Excerpt )
kingstoken's 2025 Book Bingo: Over 300 PagesCareless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams is a 2025 tell-all about the author's time as Facebook's Director of Global Public Policy in the 2010s. The book focuses on the ill-preparedness of Facebook executives to navigate the geopolitical situations they inserted themselves into in their obsession with perpetual expansion, including their role in the Rohingya genocide, as well as the general bizarre work environment and the sexual harassment that the author experienced.
Wynn-Williams comes off as a deeply careless person herself, albeit one buoyed along on a slightly different type of inflated self-importance than her former colleagues. There's a lot of what feels like completely unreflected-upon self-incrimination in the book that lends credibility to her stories. The seams show clearly enough where she's edited her interactions with others (usually to give herself the winning last word in conversations that clearly would have continued) that I'm inclined to believe the bulk of what's there, even if I don't buy the characterization of her responses or her assessment of her own moral fibre.
When this book first came out, I wondered if reading it was going to feel redundant alongside all the media coverage it was surely going to get. But the gag order Facebook imposed on the author banning her from promoting the book—combined with the avalanche of other news in early 2025 about tech billionaires dismantling democracy—seemed to result in fewer articles about the content crossing my path than I would have expected. For that reason, I'm glad I took the time to read it.
Also, it's worth noting that in my searching, I found many results on other search engines that didn't turn up on Google, even when they involved sources that Google usually indexes.
( An Excerpt )
Sineala (sineala) wrote2025-05-21 05:31 pm
sineala) wrote2025-05-21 05:31 pm
Entry tags:
Wednesday Reading Meme
What I Just Finished Reading
Nothing. My ability to finish reading books has declined a lot, I guess.
What I'm Reading Now
Comics Wednesday!
( Fantastic Four #32, Iron Man #8, Superior Avengers #2, Thunderbolts Doomstrike #5, Ultimates #12, Vision and the Scarlet Witch #1 )
What I'm Reading Next
Still very slowly reading a book about the World Series.
Nothing. My ability to finish reading books has declined a lot, I guess.
What I'm Reading Now
Comics Wednesday!
( Fantastic Four #32, Iron Man #8, Superior Avengers #2, Thunderbolts Doomstrike #5, Ultimates #12, Vision and the Scarlet Witch #1 )
What I'm Reading Next
Still very slowly reading a book about the World Series.
it only hurts when i breathe (spikedluv) wrote2025-05-21 07:18 am
spikedluv) wrote2025-05-21 07:18 amWednesday Reading Meme & Books 28-32 of 2025
What I Just Finished Reading: Since last Wednesday I have read/finished reading: Brandy & Bullets (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) by Donald Bain, And Justice There is None (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) by Deborah Crombie, All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries) by Martha Wells, Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries) by Martha Wells and The Dragon Tamer by Megan Derr.
What I am Currently Reading: A Fountain Filled with Blood (Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries) by Julia Spencer-Fleming.
What I Plan to Read Next: Another library book or more Murderbot.
Book 28 of 2025: Brandy & Bullets (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) (Donald Bain)
I enjoyed this book more than the others. Perhaps because it took place in Cabot Cove? ( spoilers )
This book is the best of the bunch so far, but I'm not sure if that's because the author is becoming more comfortable writing them or because it took place in Cabot Cove, as I mentioned. I'm giving it four hearts.
♥♥♥♥
Book 29 of 2025: And Justice There is None (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) (Deborah Crombie)
I really enjoyed this book. ( spoilers )
I think this series is getting better and better; I'm giving this book five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 30 of 2025: All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries) (Martha Wells)
I wanted to re-read this prior to starting the tv series. It was so good! ( spoilers )
I look forward to the further adventures of Murderbot! I'm giving this novella five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 31 of 2025: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries) (Martha Wells)
I didn't have to read this book to start the tv series, but I couldn't resist seeing what Murderbot would do next. I liked it a lot. ( spoilers )
I look forward to seeing what Murderbot does next. I'm giving this novella five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 32 of 2025: The Dragon Tamer (Megan Derr)
This was a cute little novella. ( spoilers )
I enjoyed this and recommend it if you’re looking for something to do for about a half hour. (I also checked out some of her other books and they look good.) I’m giving this one five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
What I am Currently Reading: A Fountain Filled with Blood (Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries) by Julia Spencer-Fleming.
What I Plan to Read Next: Another library book or more Murderbot.
Book 28 of 2025: Brandy & Bullets (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) (Donald Bain)
I enjoyed this book more than the others. Perhaps because it took place in Cabot Cove? ( spoilers )
This book is the best of the bunch so far, but I'm not sure if that's because the author is becoming more comfortable writing them or because it took place in Cabot Cove, as I mentioned. I'm giving it four hearts.
♥♥♥♥
Book 29 of 2025: And Justice There is None (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) (Deborah Crombie)
I really enjoyed this book. ( spoilers )
I think this series is getting better and better; I'm giving this book five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 30 of 2025: All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries) (Martha Wells)
I wanted to re-read this prior to starting the tv series. It was so good! ( spoilers )
I look forward to the further adventures of Murderbot! I'm giving this novella five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 31 of 2025: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries) (Martha Wells)
I didn't have to read this book to start the tv series, but I couldn't resist seeing what Murderbot would do next. I liked it a lot. ( spoilers )
I look forward to seeing what Murderbot does next. I'm giving this novella five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 32 of 2025: The Dragon Tamer (Megan Derr)
This was a cute little novella. ( spoilers )
I enjoyed this and recommend it if you’re looking for something to do for about a half hour. (I also checked out some of her other books and they look good.) I’m giving this one five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥