kindkit | Network

No visitation today. Got some shopping done, and the map projects have slowed down a bit. One job application filed this afternoon with the feds.

I suppose that's enough for today, right?

Current Mood: sleepy

mrkinch

This morning was just about perfect, a bit of fog to start but almost 60 and no wind. In fact it was a bit too warm by the time I left. It was a three warbler morning, not bad for August, and all singing; I hadn't heard a Wilson's sing in a while, and like a few days ago there was one and possibly two Orange-crowned Warblers singing, but best of all there was a MacGillivray's Warbler! He chipped loudly for quite a while and then began to sing. I was very glad he did because I'm not entirely confident of their chip note. I got a brief glimpse of him, but not diagnostic. ( The list: )

Other highlight was hearing a Common Raven.:) It's been several weeks.

earthspirits posting in

historium

Fandoms: The Last Duel (2021) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)

Characters: Jacques Le Gris, Original Female Character, Marguerite de Carrouges, Jean de Carrouges

Pairing: Jacques Le Gris / Original Female Character
Era: 14th Century

Chapter 1 of ?
Word Count for 1st Chapter: 2,464

Summary:

An AU vampiric horror tale inspired by "The Last Duel" (2021) and "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (1992). While Jacques Le Gris as portrayed in the film is reprehensible, my story depicts a very different version of the character. Here, Le Gris is a man of honor, betrayed by the brother-in-arms he believed to be his true friend, and by the woman he believed to be his true love.

There's an old saying: "Be careful what you wish for". Perhaps Jean de Carrouges should have heeded this warning. While the corrupt knight revels in his revenge, the man he wronged has his own plans for vengeance.

But this is also a love story. Years ago, Le Gris fell in love with a mysterious woman. A woman he never forgot, as different from Marguerite, as the moon from the sun. She would be his salvation.

Rating: Mature 18+

( Click for trigger warnings and story link )

superfangirl1 posting in

scans_daily

( Read more, )

rocky41_7

Today I wrapped up Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer, a horror/sci-fi novel with fantastical (?) elements about a biologist exploring a very unsettling landscape.

There are no names given in this book—the narrator and protagonist is simply "the Biologist," and she refers to her other three teammates by their job titles as well. Locations outside of the place they're exploring—Area X—are not given either, but the world is implied to be much the same as our own, with Area X a troubling and relatively recent anomaly. A private company hires the Biologist and her colleagues to venture into this strange place and take notes. They are the 12^th such expedition.

I appreciate that much of the horror in Annihilation isn't in-your-face: it's the slow build of things that are just off. This quiet and subtle approach means that when something extreme happens, it feels extreme. The Biologist and her colleagues know that Area X is dangerous before they venture in, but even so, they are unprepared for how and to what degree. VanderMeer's portrayal of how trust frays among relative strangers under these conditions felt realistic.

The Biologist herself is an interesting character. Many reviewers seem unable to connect to her or felt she wasn't fleshed out well, but I thought she was an intriguing female take on a scientist obsessed with their work. There simply isn't much to life for the Biologist outside her work—it is her life, in a way that even her husband never understood or appreciated. Among people, she can be cold, aloof, and disinterested, but presented with a tidepool or other transitional environment—her particular area of expertise—she comes alive. However, the book is narrated in first-person perspective, in the form of her field journal, so her reserved emotional distance from her own experiences can also put the reader at a distance. It makes perfect sense for her character, but it can verge on disengaging for the reader.

Her relationship with her husband is distant background to the ugly adventure unfolding in the present, but I also appreciated this portrayal of two people who loved each other, but didn't really understand each other, and the damage that did to their relationship, but with tenderness still lingering between them even as they recognize that their relationship has failed.

It's hard for me to review the core of this novel, because the story in a sense feels like it just got all the pieces set up. Annihilation is the first of four books in the Southern Reach series, and while I don't want to spoil anything about the ending, it feels almost like this first book is just setting the stage for what's to come.

And I am curious about what's to come. The book walks a careful line between whether what we're seeing is actual fantasy—magic--or if there's some rational, biological explanation for it which the Biologist simply lacks the understanding to articulate. Are there aliens involved? Did humanity cause this transformation of Area X? Has this been in the Earth all along, building? I would have appreciated a bit more information on Area X or the company sending these teams.

This is a slow burner, to be sure. That's not to say there's no action—things definitely happen here—but that even by the end of the first book I feel I don't really have a scope on Area X or what the Biologist will or can do now. This feels intentional on VanderMeer's part and I found this book engaging enough that I'm willing to play along a while longer, but I'm not sure I should expect any answers. Annihilation is a book that enjoys its mystery, and I expect this series will keep me guessing as long as it can.

Crossposted to

books and

booknook

china_shop

Last night, Andrew and I and our tv-watching-with friend started The Sympathizer, a drama set just after the Vietnam war, about a Vietnamese double agent. It's structurally really interesting, and it has RDJ in multiple kind-of-gross roles, lol. Darkly funny, but deals with some really serious subjects.

Created by Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar, who are also showrunners. Yes, that Don McKellar.

It also, features Sandra Oh. I did not expect either of their names in the credits! :D

flemmings

Laundromat and shopping achieved finally. Sopping wet in the humidity, also light-headed from the 'hotter than it says', but still intended to go by the library and my tony restaurant later. Then the weather channel was 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms in an hour, so ordered in pizza, alas. And that was that for the day, which did not rain, of course.

I rarely had sexual dreams even when I had hormones but last night's was very explicit, also unheimlich with what purported to be a woman but maybe wasn't, and her friends, and Daycare Hugh somehow involved in all this. Woman thought that seducing me was the way to get me to let go of the charging cords and electrical cords of the gang's various phones and devices, which I'd unplugged because I wanted some quiet, dammit. I did not let go in spite of her best efforts. Go me, I suppose.

vivdunstan

A guest blog post from Martin on my academic musings blog.

kaffy_r

James Arthur Lovell, Jr. 1927-2025

He never actually said "Houston, we have a problem." That was apparently his crew mate, Jack Swigert, who reportedly said "OK Houston, I believe we've had a problem here." Lovell then clarified the situation further, saying "We've had a problem here. We've had a main B bus undervolt."

It doesn't matter, ultimately, because Lovell's heroism wasn't because of what he said.

Lovell, the commander of the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission in 1970, was the face of a mission that turned from a potential tragedy to a victory of teamwork, both on the ground and in the cold and dark lunar landing module - a bloody-minded determination to get the crew home, using spit and baling wire (actually plastic bags, cardboard and duct tape) and on-the-fly math and physics problem-solving with pencils, papers and slide rules. Lovell played an active part in that kind of pre-smartphone computing; he was

These two videos are both gripping, although the first (and possibly better) one is on a page that isn't as accurate as it might have been. The one from the NASA website is slightly dryer, but with a wealth of information.*

His life, from his birth in Cleveland to his death in Lake Forest, Illinois, was so much more than that admittedly defining moment. The Wikipedia article is rigorously complete. The Washington Post's story is a good one (possibly paywalled), and the Chicago Sun Times' story, which is not behind a paywall, comes from an excellent writer and full of hometown pride. The stories talk about Lovell's love affair with rockets and space, which started when he was a kid and never ended. The stories are so worthwhile to read.

Rest in honorable piece, Commander Lovell, and may you finally walk on the moon as you make your journey to the stars.

* YouTube has decided to be a mess today, so it might be worth avoiding it.

Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Location: the living room
Current Music: Bump of Chicken "Ginga Tedsudou"

alisx

Anyway we watched Kpop Demon Hunters late night and man but if it didn’t remind me of this article . . .

RE: https://alis.me/x/the-shame/

Leave a comment.⁺

james_davis_nicoll

The Sidewise Award for Alternate History is looking for new judges to join the award committee.

This is the first time in the 30 year history of the award that they've made an open call for awards judges.

Apply here.

morbane posting in

crossworks

Nominations are scheduled to close at 8 August, 11:59pm EDT, but probably won't close on the dot as I have some scheduling conflicts today. Thanks for everyone's nominations!

Please only nominate "All Media Types" and "And Related Fandoms" tags if (as requester) you are OK with a creator using lore/characters from a wide range of parts of the franchise, or (as creator) you are confident in offering across a similar wide range. It's fine to have both a large umbrella part of a franchise and a smaller subset part of a franchise, both in the tag set.

Thanks for everyone's nominations, they're sparking amazing ideas already!

muccamukk

As a follow up to bitching about this in the last post, I thought I'd look and see where I was with watching some of these. The movies are in order they came out. The TV shows are sorta just stuck in there for the year they started, rather than breaking them up by season. I'm too lazy to look up the details of exactly when they aired (especially as I don't even remember some of these existed). I'm only including live action films and tv shows. ( Long list is long )

zwei_hexen

Tally:
Welcome post

Day 1:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

glinda,

goddes47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 2:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

callmesandyk,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

glinda,

goddes47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 3:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

callmesandyk,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

glinda,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 4:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

callmesandyk,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

glinda,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 5:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 6:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

callmesandyk,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

luzula,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 7:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

callmesandyk,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

goddes47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

yasaman,

ysilme

Day 8:

china_shop

Let us know if we missed you or if you didn't check in for a while, so we can add you. Of course joining the fun is possible at any point.

~ ~ ~

ysilme here: 1,2k words for me. Nearly 200 are for the first draft of a fill for

threesentenceficathon.

sylvanwitch here: 135 words of an alibi fragment. It was a long morning of editing student revisions, which seems to have given me a headache, so I'm happy I managed that many words, honestly.

shipperslist

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

pauraque

This poll brought to you by some questions relevant to my next book post, and a discussion with

phantomtomato.

Poll #33473

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 22

View Respondents

Is it a spoiler to state the PREMISE of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, which is revealed 80 pages in but is treated as a secret by the jacket copy?

View Answers

Yes.
3 (13.6%)

No.
1 (4.5%)

Technically yes, but the book is 20 years old and it's common knowledge now.
8 (36.4%)

I'm not familiar with the book.
10 (45.5%)

Is it a spoiler to state the GENRE of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, which is discernible neither from the jacket copy nor from where it was shelved in my library?

View Answers

Yes.
1 (4.5%)

No.
9 (40.9%)

Technically yes, but it's in the first sentence of the book's Wikipedia article so you're probably good.
4 (18.2%)

I have not become familiar with the book between the previous question and this one.
8 (36.4%)

For what it's worth, I was spoiled(?) years ago for the reveal, and I don't think it hindered my enjoyment of the book at all.

(Comments may contain spoilers? I guess?)

case posting in

fandomsecrets

⌈ Secret Post #6790 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

01.

( More! )

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 00 pages, 00 secrets from Secret Submission Post #971.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

rachelmanija

A middle-grade graphic novel about a boba shop with a secret.

Aria comes to stay with her grandmother in San Francisco for the summer to escape a bad social situation. Her grandmother owns a boba shop that doesn't seem too popular, and Aria throws herself into making it more so - most successfully when Grandma's cat Bao has eight kittens, and Aria advertises it as a kitten cafe. But why is Grandma so adamant about never letting Aria set foot in the kitchen, and kicking out the customers at 6:00 on the dot? Why do the prairie dogs in the backyard seem so smart?

This graphic novel has absolutely adorable illustrations. The story isn't as strong. The first half is mostly a realistic, gentle, cozy slice of life. The second half is a fantasy adventure with light horror aspects. Even though the latter is throughly foreshadowed in the former, it still feels kind of like two books jammed together.

My larger issue was with tone and content that also felt jammed together. The book is somewhat didactic - which is fine, especially in a middle-grade book - but I feel like if the book is teaching lessons, it should teach them consistently and appropriately. The lessons in this book were a bit off or inconsistent, creating an uncanny valley feeling.

Spoilers! ( Read more... )

Fantastic art, kind of odd story.

languagehat_feed

Posted by languagehat

https://languagehat.com/when-you-cant-speak-the-language/

https://languagehat.com/?p=17978

This one-and-a-half-minute video by Khalid Al Ameri will give you a brief introduction to some of the languages of India, as well as a good laugh. (Via Language Log.)

https://languagehat.com/when-you-cant-speak-the-language/

https://languagehat.com/?p=17978

naraht

( Mostly criticism, you stand warned )

Profile

kindkit

May 2025

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Page Summary

dewline - Checking In - 8 August 2025
mrkinch - 8/8/2025 Inspipration Trail
earthspirits in historium - Rebirth - Mature 18+ AU Vampire Fic Inspired by The Last Duel (2021) & Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
superfangirl1 in scans_daily - Rick and Morty vs. the Universe: Summer of Love #1 Lets's Party!
rocky41_7 - Recent Reading: Annihilation
china_shop - Canada has come back to haunt me
flemmings - (no subject)
vivdunstan - Butterflies in Dundee in 2025
kaffy_r - Dept. of Farewell
alisx - Saturday @ 8:30 am
james_davis_nicoll - Sidewise Award Announcement
morbane in crossworks - Nominations closing today
muccamukk - Mucca & The Marvel Cinematic Universe
zwei_hexen - Write every day! - August 2025 - Day 8
shipperslist - Sailing with her Wolf by Ariel Marie
pauraque - poll: Never Let Me Go
case in fandomsecrets - [ SECRET POST #6790 ]
rachelmanija - Super Boba Cafe # 1, by Nidhi Chanani
languagehat_feed - When You Can’t Speak The Language.
naraht - Foundation S3 interim thoughts

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something queer going on

Network

Checking In - 8 August 2025

8/8/2025 Inspipration Trail

Rebirth - Mature 18+ AU Vampire Fic Inspired by The Last Duel (2021) & Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)

Rick and Morty vs. the Universe: Summer of Love #1 Lets's Party!

Recent Reading: Annihilation

Canada has come back to haunt me

(no subject)

Butterflies in Dundee in 2025

Dept. of Farewell

Saturday @ 8:30 am

Sidewise Award Announcement

Nominations closing today

Mucca & The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Write every day! - August 2025 - Day 8

Sailing with her Wolf by Ariel Marie

poll: Never Let Me Go

[ SECRET POST #6790 ]

Super Boba Cafe # 1, by Nidhi Chanani

When You Can’t Speak The Language.

Foundation S3 interim thoughts

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May 2025

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