Damp squib
Apr. 12th, 2026 11:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mificAs often happens, after all the dramatic warnings cyclone Vaianu was only a period of heavy rain and moderate winds where I live. Just another Sunday. More flooding elsewhere, but not too bad. Oh well, at least I got my camping gear out ready for any future power cuts. off to bed with me now, night all!
i wonder where the birdies is
Apr. 12th, 2026 12:09 pmwychwoodGoing back to work was a bit of a horrible shock. Why must we work, why can I not merely lie around all day doing nothing.
However, before that time I did manage to get the sewing machine out and fix things, and also wash the second net curtain. And I'm wearing the repaired NASA hoodie right now! Not too bad for a week off. Now I just need to make the cookies I've had ingredients sitting on the side for, for the last, uh, several weeks. And maybe the pancakes I bought (and froze) milk for, for Shrove Tuesday, since we're currently up to the second Sunday of Easter.
I've also prodded various social things; as ever, it is a terrible balance between my desire to stay at home and do nothing, and my desire to hang out with cool people who I like. I did finally send out the invite for the David Attenborough Centenary Dinner I decided needed to happen - cool people don't turn 100 every day! And I've been vaguely planning a large group invite to the local food truck place for a while, so this seemed like a good excuse. I've invited twenty-odd people, and am hoping for maybe half-a-dozen - I booked Miss H in advance, so at the absolute worst I would have someone to eat with! And one other person has already signed up, so that seems like a success. If it goes well, perhaps I will repeat the concept (although probably without the Attenborough theme!); I really like the idea of regular social things with a bunch of people, but it's always so complicated (and see above re: staying at home forever). But this is extremely low-key, and doesn't require coordinating anything much, which might make it more sustainable. We'll see.
It's really getting quite spring-like now; still cold overnight, but the sun can be properly warm, and we've had a few really nice days; I'm keeping my windows open a lot because I can although am also sneezing a lot, corroborating the "very high" pollen forecast. But everything is green, the grass is growing, there's blossom and new leaf buds on the trees, flowers are popping up around the place, and a new spider has spent several days hanging around in my room (got me out of bed early one day, when it decided to pop up next to my pillow!).
However, before that time I did manage to get the sewing machine out and fix things, and also wash the second net curtain. And I'm wearing the repaired NASA hoodie right now! Not too bad for a week off. Now I just need to make the cookies I've had ingredients sitting on the side for, for the last, uh, several weeks. And maybe the pancakes I bought (and froze) milk for, for Shrove Tuesday, since we're currently up to the second Sunday of Easter.
I've also prodded various social things; as ever, it is a terrible balance between my desire to stay at home and do nothing, and my desire to hang out with cool people who I like. I did finally send out the invite for the David Attenborough Centenary Dinner I decided needed to happen - cool people don't turn 100 every day! And I've been vaguely planning a large group invite to the local food truck place for a while, so this seemed like a good excuse. I've invited twenty-odd people, and am hoping for maybe half-a-dozen - I booked Miss H in advance, so at the absolute worst I would have someone to eat with! And one other person has already signed up, so that seems like a success. If it goes well, perhaps I will repeat the concept (although probably without the Attenborough theme!); I really like the idea of regular social things with a bunch of people, but it's always so complicated (and see above re: staying at home forever). But this is extremely low-key, and doesn't require coordinating anything much, which might make it more sustainable. We'll see.
It's really getting quite spring-like now; still cold overnight, but the sun can be properly warm, and we've had a few really nice days; I'm keeping my windows open a lot because I can although am also sneezing a lot, corroborating the "very high" pollen forecast. But everything is green, the grass is growing, there's blossom and new leaf buds on the trees, flowers are popping up around the place, and a new spider has spent several days hanging around in my room (got me out of bed early one day, when it decided to pop up next to my pillow!).
Done Since 2026-04-05
Apr. 12th, 2026 01:01 pmmdlbearNot a great week -- very down on myself for having sent N off with the wrong charger for (scooter)Gizmo. It was hiding in a box, and I overlooked it several times. G found it immediately, when asked. I need to change some of my habits to keep it from happening again. N finally managed to get one locally on Friday, with help from the seller and the hotel concierge. The seller had express-shipped one, but it somehow got held up in Turkish customs despite their having charged N extra for getting it expedited. She got back yesterday evening, and we now have a spare charger for Gizmo.
Meanwhile our other scooter and scooter-like vehicles are still out of commission: (Folding scooter)Lizzy is still in the shop, (carlet)Scarlett came back from the shop without her charger, and (walker/wheelchair)Roman is still unusable without a software upgrade. Which requires some kind of special interface (being shipped by boat) and Windows. All of this is due to my procrastination and phone phobia.
On the other, um..., foot, I now have two pairs of compression socks. Getting them on is fairly easy, because I can pull. Getting them off is not; I have ordered a foot-extraction tool. And I walked every day, so there's that.
Germany Just Made Open Document Formats Mandatory! This is particularly timely, because WireGuard And VeraCrypt Developers [were] Locked Out Of Microsoft Accounts... It may or may not be fixed by now, but the fact that they did it means that it will almost certainly happen again.
(Filk-adjacent, s4s-adjacent) linkies: (from Monday -- great way to start a week!) (also serious rabbit-hole warning) Angine de Poitrine - Full Performance (Live on KEXP) - YouTube (h/t to siderea) polka-dotted aliens with loopers, polyrythms and a double-neck quartertone guitar/bass. The band name, Angine de Poitrine, translates as "chest pain" More on Monday and Wednesday. Possible s4s post soonish; this will do until then.
And from Friday, Take a mind-bending ride through the cosmos at light speed Deep time and beyond: the great nothingness at the end of the Universe, both from Aeon.co. Take note: eternity is longer still.
Daily Happiness
Apr. 12th, 2026 07:28 pmtorachan1. I got laundry done again this morning. We’re only here for three more days (only two full days) and it’s such a hassle to go to the other hotel, so I think we’ll just save any remaining dirty laundry for when we get home.
2. Today was a non-Disney day and we went to a couple non-touristy areas that we’d seen recommended by TabiEats. In the afternoon we went to Shizuoka to try and go to Tower Records, Pokémon Center, and Nintendo Store, but it was sooooooooooo crowded it was ridiculous. We did go to Tower (it’s a huge one and Carla finally found some of the CDs she’s been looking for for a long time) and then a Disney store we spotted on the way, but did not go to the Pokémon Center or Nintendo Store as with the level of crowds we figured it would probably be as crowded as the ones at Osaka Station had been and we didn’t want to deal with that. Having the contrast of the non-touristy places in the morning with the hell of Shibuya on a Sunday afternoon made us appreciate our low-stress morning even more (and all the food we had was delicious).
3. We came back to the hotel too early to get dinner while we were out and didn’t want to go back out again, so we tried out the hotel restaurant. It’s a buffet and not worth the price they charge but it was decent (better than the one at the hotel next door that we ate at last year), and it was nice to just not have to go out somewhere.
4. The weather was pretty nice today. Sunny, but we managed to stay in the shade most of the time, and the temps were lower than yesterday. Tomorrow and Tuesday should be similar, though even more overcast (hopefully that’s actually true).
2. Today was a non-Disney day and we went to a couple non-touristy areas that we’d seen recommended by TabiEats. In the afternoon we went to Shizuoka to try and go to Tower Records, Pokémon Center, and Nintendo Store, but it was sooooooooooo crowded it was ridiculous. We did go to Tower (it’s a huge one and Carla finally found some of the CDs she’s been looking for for a long time) and then a Disney store we spotted on the way, but did not go to the Pokémon Center or Nintendo Store as with the level of crowds we figured it would probably be as crowded as the ones at Osaka Station had been and we didn’t want to deal with that. Having the contrast of the non-touristy places in the morning with the hell of Shibuya on a Sunday afternoon made us appreciate our low-stress morning even more (and all the food we had was delicious).
3. We came back to the hotel too early to get dinner while we were out and didn’t want to go back out again, so we tried out the hotel restaurant. It’s a buffet and not worth the price they charge but it was decent (better than the one at the hotel next door that we ate at last year), and it was nice to just not have to go out somewhere.
4. The weather was pretty nice today. Sunny, but we managed to stay in the shade most of the time, and the temps were lower than yesterday. Tomorrow and Tuesday should be similar, though even more overcast (hopefully that’s actually true).
Prince of Tennis fic
Apr. 12th, 2026 06:42 pmthawreckaCelebration Chance (1029 words) by thawrecka
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Fuji Shuusuke/Kawamura Takashi
Characters: Fuji Shuusuke, Kawamura Takashi, Kikumaru Eiji
Additional Tags: Fluff, post nationals, First Kiss
Summary:
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Fuji Shuusuke/Kawamura Takashi
Characters: Fuji Shuusuke, Kawamura Takashi, Kikumaru Eiji
Additional Tags: Fluff, post nationals, First Kiss
Summary:
Kawamura is still injured, but Fuji takes a chance on what he wants anyway.
Sunday 12/04/2026
Apr. 12th, 2026 10:35 amlhune posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
3_good_things_a_day1) After 4 days of inactivity, my old watch suddenly decided to start working again \o/ Almost a miracle ^_~ I’ll still turn it in with a watchmaker ti give it a full check-up but i’m happy I can use it until then.
2) Breakfast on my sunny balcony
3) Dinner at my parents’s place which means the swinging bench if the weather remains good
2) Breakfast on my sunny balcony
3) Dinner at my parents’s place which means the swinging bench if the weather remains good
Mind-protection vibrations through the holes in my skull
Apr. 12th, 2026 12:08 pmevereveNormally I don't really like radio music in public, and avoid that style of entertainment in my personal life. And certainly don't appreciate loud music from neighbours. But India actually has some groovy tunes which I can dig. They are dancey and have a whole different scale/note system and style. It is probably a good thing that I can't understand it though. Maybe it's only at this place I am staying. I'll find out if it's different elsewhere very soon.
Something which is striking is that the heat is so intense, that if you place your hand on inanimate objects, they are warm. There's a lot more I could say but I am still in the midst of anxiety-ridden uncertainty. I have not had the mind to do very much lately, let alone articulate my full mind via keyboard. But things are looking up, and I may soon find myself with something closer to a place to rest. My main goal is to find somewhere suitable, and if it works out, stay there for a month at least. I have dearly been wanting a month of rest for around 5 months or so. Or, especially these past few months. The reality is that I have had an unease for 3 years, and it has compounded and accelerated within the past few months to levels which I have not experienced for literally 20 years.
Oh and another thing: I am really glad I didn't go to the big tourist spots. Out-of-the-way places are absolutely the way to experience any new region instead of being coddled by pseudo-western convenience which is barely changing anything from what you left behind. That's not to say I am not still a westerner; I am living a life of relative luxury because of the imbalance between first and third world. I do not relish this, and just today I was given an offer to possibly contribute in a meaningful way to that disparity instead of just leeching off or just throwing money around as a tourist.
Something which is striking is that the heat is so intense, that if you place your hand on inanimate objects, they are warm. There's a lot more I could say but I am still in the midst of anxiety-ridden uncertainty. I have not had the mind to do very much lately, let alone articulate my full mind via keyboard. But things are looking up, and I may soon find myself with something closer to a place to rest. My main goal is to find somewhere suitable, and if it works out, stay there for a month at least. I have dearly been wanting a month of rest for around 5 months or so. Or, especially these past few months. The reality is that I have had an unease for 3 years, and it has compounded and accelerated within the past few months to levels which I have not experienced for literally 20 years.
Oh and another thing: I am really glad I didn't go to the big tourist spots. Out-of-the-way places are absolutely the way to experience any new region instead of being coddled by pseudo-western convenience which is barely changing anything from what you left behind. That's not to say I am not still a westerner; I am living a life of relative luxury because of the imbalance between first and third world. I do not relish this, and just today I was given an offer to possibly contribute in a meaningful way to that disparity instead of just leeching off or just throwing money around as a tourist.
Panel Interest Survey Open
Apr. 12th, 2026 06:20 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
wisconblog_feedRegister now to enter responses in the WisCon 48 Panel Interest Survey! From AI to resistance in speculative fiction to Heated Rivalry’s impact on fandom, we have topics you won’t want to miss!
Is this where I sign up to be on panels, to Moderate panels, or just say which panels I’d like to Attend?
Yes! We do all three in one survey.
One way to do it is look at each subject and mark anything interesting as ones you want to attend, and, if there’s one you have Thoughts on, then mark it as one you want to be in. For those you get to fill in any experience I have on the topic, which helps us build balance panels. Finally, if there’s one you definitely don’t want to miss, then you could mark it as one you want to moderate. (There will be panel moderator training this year, so even if you’re a beginner we’ll give you a good start!)How do I get to the survey?
This survey is available by going to http://wiscon.net and logging into your Wiscon account in the top left corner of the page, then click on Interest Survey along the top.If you don’t have an account or your password, then go to Forgot Password at https://program.wiscon.net/ForgotPassword.php
to create a new account or password!
How do I submit a manuscript to participate in a Workshop Critique Session?
You can submit a manuscript until May 1st this year. For more information on submission guidelines and how critique sessions operate, visit https://wiscon.net/programming/workshops/.
How do I read my work or make an academic presentation?
To read your work at WisCon, please email readings@wiscon.net
Keep an eye out here for more information about academic presentations!
What’s next?
We will close the Interest Survey on April 19th. After that point, you can sign up to be a substitute panelist or moderator.
Behind the scenes:
- The Panels Team will determine which panels “make the cut” aka have enough interest, panelists, and a moderator. (We may recruit additional panelists or moderators for particularly popular panels, starting with substitutes who have signed up by then.) Next,
- we will try to fit our list of panels into WisCon’s schedule as well as the schedules of each and every panelist and moderator. (We like to call this 4-dimensional tetris. It’s fun but challenging work!) Then
- we’ll confirm with the panelists and moderators, and finally
- we’ll rearrange the schedule again, to accommodate any substitute panelists’ schedules. (Even more 4-D tetris!)
With luck and plenty of willing panelists and moderators, we can post the panel schedule by May 1st!
What's Making Me Happy Today: Dimension 20 City Council of Darkness
Apr. 11th, 2026 09:58 pmdelphiThe first episode of the newest Dimension 20 campaign premiered on Wednesday, and I am so on board for this one.
City Council of Darkness is in the world of Vampire: The Masquerade, the tabletop roleplaying game most commonly set in the modern day, where vampires belonging to various clans and bloodlines engage politically in their home cities while trying to manage their own bestial urges, avoid the vampire hunters of the Second Inquisition, and above all keep the existence of vampires secret from humanity at large. City Council of Darkness is about what happens when a group of ambitious San Francisco vampires' bid for attention from the vampiric elite goes comically wrong, resulting in them being banished to the town of Purpee, Oregon, and forbidden to leave until they establish vampiric dominion there.
So far, it's been supremely silly in the best of ways, well-paced and plotted, full of mayhem, with characters and relationships that I'm looking forward to learning more about and an important reminder that the real monsters of San Francisco are Silicon Valley billionaires. I especially can't wait to see more of the friendship between Ventrue finance hustlers LaVonte Worthy and H.J. Wingstreet (joining Kingston Brown & Pete Conlan and Montgomery LaMontgommery & Olethra MacLeod as characters played by Lou Wilson and Ally Beardsley whose dynamic immediately grabbed me) and whatever the deal is between chaotic '80s(?) Brujah childe Zaeth Bondana and his respectable sire Koschei Severov.
The series as a whole is exclusive to Dropout.tv or through Youtube membership, but I'm pretty sure that in the tradition of Dimension 20, the first episode of the campaign will go up for free on the Youtube channel's Season Premieres playlist.
City Council of Darkness is in the world of Vampire: The Masquerade, the tabletop roleplaying game most commonly set in the modern day, where vampires belonging to various clans and bloodlines engage politically in their home cities while trying to manage their own bestial urges, avoid the vampire hunters of the Second Inquisition, and above all keep the existence of vampires secret from humanity at large. City Council of Darkness is about what happens when a group of ambitious San Francisco vampires' bid for attention from the vampiric elite goes comically wrong, resulting in them being banished to the town of Purpee, Oregon, and forbidden to leave until they establish vampiric dominion there.
So far, it's been supremely silly in the best of ways, well-paced and plotted, full of mayhem, with characters and relationships that I'm looking forward to learning more about and an important reminder that the real monsters of San Francisco are Silicon Valley billionaires. I especially can't wait to see more of the friendship between Ventrue finance hustlers LaVonte Worthy and H.J. Wingstreet (joining Kingston Brown & Pete Conlan and Montgomery LaMontgommery & Olethra MacLeod as characters played by Lou Wilson and Ally Beardsley whose dynamic immediately grabbed me) and whatever the deal is between chaotic '80s(?) Brujah childe Zaeth Bondana and his respectable sire Koschei Severov.
The series as a whole is exclusive to Dropout.tv or through Youtube membership, but I'm pretty sure that in the tradition of Dimension 20, the first episode of the campaign will go up for free on the Youtube channel's Season Premieres playlist.
Today's Adventures
Apr. 11th, 2026 09:12 pmysabetwordsmithToday we went to the Small Business Fest held just outside Booth Library at Eastern Illinois University. It was several times bigger than we expected, which was awesome. It wrapped around the entire square, and one side had booths down both sides of the walkway. This was nearly the size of the old Celebration fest, with very similar offerings. They do this twice a year now, spring and fall.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Still yet more Prince of Tennis posting
Apr. 12th, 2026 02:24 pmthawreckaI finished the Nationals OVAs! They're fun. It's a shame they don't have more time to expand some matches, but also I think some things work better animated than they did for me in the manga. Yukimura v Ryoma seemed so silly to me in the manga, but in the OVAs I'm like, oh, I get it: Yukimura visits his trauma on other people with his tennis style that aims to make people feel like they're being betrayed by their bodies and don't enjoy tennis anymore, so Ryoma defeats him in the psychological battle by still liking tennis. It's not deep, but somehow it works better for me in the OVAs than it did when I speed read through it.
Though I'm a bit sad that the original anime series cannibalised bits of what happened during the Fuji v Niou match for the Fuji v Tezuka match it put in towards the end of the original anime, because it means anime Fuji v Niou seems so much less interestingly weird.
Once again I feel like I don't understand why there isn't tons of fic about Oishi's desperate unrequited feelings for Tezuka. Everyone is weird about Tezuka obvs, but Oishi is the most so.
also lmao, Inui capturing Tezuka smiling on video
Also also, for the most part I think Tezuka's sexuality is leaving everyone on read, but during the yakiniku insanity when Inui was trying to fly mouth first towards Atobe and then Tezuka dakked Inui before he fell on the grill... that seemed more like Tezuka trying to stop Inui from trying it on with his man than anything.
Though I'm a bit sad that the original anime series cannibalised bits of what happened during the Fuji v Niou match for the Fuji v Tezuka match it put in towards the end of the original anime, because it means anime Fuji v Niou seems so much less interestingly weird.
Once again I feel like I don't understand why there isn't tons of fic about Oishi's desperate unrequited feelings for Tezuka. Everyone is weird about Tezuka obvs, but Oishi is the most so.
also lmao, Inui capturing Tezuka smiling on video
Also also, for the most part I think Tezuka's sexuality is leaving everyone on read, but during the yakiniku insanity when Inui was trying to fly mouth first towards Atobe and then Tezuka dakked Inui before he fell on the grill... that seemed more like Tezuka trying to stop Inui from trying it on with his man than anything.