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| Saturday, May 26th, 2012 |
chris_warrior
|
7:56p |
in which tomorrow is Sunday already?
run errands, do massages, fetch mulch, work in the garden, ride bicycle. rinse and repeat.
during my ride, i saw a huge snapping turtle just chillin' on the side of the road. he looked up at me as a zipped by, as if to say "If I could move that fast, I'd have crossed this damn road hours ago." when i got home, mom was headed to bed, so i locked up the house. there are three baby bunnies in the backyard.
so. glad. fence. is. up.
Current Mood:  tired
|
zoethe
|
7:40p |
Riding in a Critical Mass
Last night I attended my first Cleveland Critical Mass bike ride. Don’t feel badly that you don’t know what that means; I didn’t know about it until a few weeks ago. Critical Mass rides happen on the last Friday of the month in about 300 different cities all over the states and in some other countries. Here in Cleveland we had about 400 riders. In other places they have over 1,000. 400 riders strung out along a roadway was an incredibly impressive sight. We must have stretched out close to half a mile. I can’t even imagine 1,000. The point of Critical Mass is not speed or getting to a destination first. The point is to raise local awareness of bicyclists and our right–nay, requirement–to share the roads. Did you know that in many states, including Ohio, it’s a misdemeanor for adult cyclists to ride on the sidewalk? This is because sidewalks are for walking, and people walking are generally traveling at 2-5 miles per hour. Whereas cyclists are generally traveling at least 8 miles an hour, and easily can be traveling 18, 20, or more. Cyclists are a hazard to walkers. They are operating vehicles, and belong on the street. And the fact is that cyclists are safer on the street. I have been clipped by a car once on the street, it’s true. But I’ve had many near-collisions when riding on the sidewalk, because people are not looking for a bike on the sidewalk moving at 12 mph when they back out of a driveway or pull up to an intersection. They see me when I’m on the street. Still, there are people who don’t understand the law who still honk at cyclists, yell at them to get on the sidewalk, and even assault them. A recent instance I read about was someone whose kid was pelted with a milkshake that was thrown from a car window. I’ve had people swerve at me, and someone open a passenger-side door in my face just to frighten me. I’m not sure where this level of anger comes from. Yes, you might have to slow down and pull over to the left to get around a cyclist. But you’d have to do the same if a UPS truck was stopped there, and I don’t see anyone honking at the UPS guy. I sometimes have a sneaking suspicion that some of the resentment comes from thinking that the cyclist feels superior to people driving the car, or a guilt that the driver feels for driving along, drinking a milkshake while these cyclists are exercising. I know that I’ve been cursed at with “fatso, get off the road!” As if my wide hips are taking up more space. My very presence offends some people. I’ve learned to be more assertive in my biking, and also more cautious. I try to stick to roads with four lanes, and to bike toward the middle of the right lane so people don’t try the slip past me when there really isn’t enough room. I also bike at off hours or against the rush hour traffic so that I’m not frustrating tired people who just want to get home from work as soon as possible. I take my share of the road, but try to do so with respect for drivers. And I obey traffic laws. I stop for red lights. I yield at stop signs–a full stop is incredibly wearing on the knees, so I cheat a bit, but I give up the right-of-way when it’s not mine to take. I signal my turns. I try to be a good citizen. Still, it’s hard to be a cyclist at times. And cycling alone always seems more subject to verbal abuse than cycling with a group, or even just two. So last night, cycling with 400 people, was a kind of empowerment. We rode through neighborhoods where kids ran to the fences, waving wildly at us, adults smiled and called out encouragement, and drivers waiting at intersections honked their horns not with impatience but in celebration. We were a novelty, this enormous group of cyclists. We were a parade. Maybe the people who smiled at our dinging bells and honking horns and smiling waves will remember us. Maybe when they come along a solitary cyclist pedaling down a narrow street, they will recall the crazy, happy atmosphere of last night’s ride. And maybe they will be just a little more patient, give just a little more room, and we can all be better citizens on the road together. Crossposting from Dreamwidth now. Sigh. If LJ won't let you comment, you can comment here: http://zoethe.dreamwidth.org/795282.html?mode=reply: |
theferrett
|
7:38p |
Tales Of A Fourth-Rate Nothing: Busking On The Wrong Street Corner
During Clarion, I coined the phrase “busking on the wrong corner” to describe the phenomenon of “entertaining writing that doesn’t serve the story.” It’s the reason writers have to kill their darlings. It’s the trap that stops a lot of good writers from making the transition to great.
“Busking” is the practice of playing in public spaces for donations – you know, that guy playing the guitar, his guitar case open before him, full of scattered singles and quarters. Buskers are often some of the most talented musicians. But the buskers’ art is also partially a knowledge of where the crowds are.
You can sing your fucking heart out on a corner where there’s no foot traffic. If you’re really good, you might make a few bucks. But if you’re really good and really smart, you’ll position yourself near the subway where people are pouring out by the hundreds as rush hour ends, a place where even a mediocre musician can clean up. Part of your strength is not just the raw force of your musicianship, but knowing where to place that skill so it’s maximized with silver rains of spare change.
Writers (me included, oh so included) are often putting their talents to use on the wrong corner. This chapter is brilliant writing, it’s got great characterization, it’s exciting. But underneath, the scene is at odds with what the story is trying to do, and what you’ll wind up with is a great scene that advances the story in the wrong ways.
Lemme give you the real-life example: the lead character of the novel I’m plotting right now, Autumn Akeley, is a taxidermist. In the beginning of the book, Autumn is deep in the woods on a rumor, searching for the Hulk.
Why the Hulk, you ask? Because she’s not just any taxidermist – she makes wild viral videos online parodying recent movies in order to drive business to her online taxidermy shop. Autumn’s latest planned video (“The Bearvengers”) needs a gigantic, light-skinned animal she can dye green to play the part of the Hulk. Autumn does not kill animals for her entertainment (she takes the death of any creature very seriously), but she just got a tip from a hunter that there’s a decaying grizzly in the woods she might be able to use. She tracks it down with her friend Karla and examines the corpse – it’s a little too moldy for her liking, but it has very light fur. She thinks she can salvage it.
Then a shot rings out across the forest: there are poachers in the woods. As someone who hates to see an animal killed senselessly, she does not take lightly to poachers. She sets off to investigate, starting the chain of events that sets up the novel….
…Now, that’s a pretty good scene. It’s got an interesting character doing something we’ve never seen done before in a book, it displays her odd compulsions, it allows us to watch her work (if you have a character with an odd profession, people love to see the fine details), and for a short intro it’ll do quite nicely.
And yet we are busking badly here. Why?
Because this novel is about Autumn’s friendship with Karla.
Okay, unfair, I didn’t tell you that – but the whole point of the novel is that a new man in town with a shadowy past begins to romance Karla, causing a rift when Autumn discovers the man’s past as a serial killer. And this scene, while good in a vacuum, utterly fails to set up the dynamics of Karla and Autumn and their friendship. In fact, you’d be excused for forgetting the existence of Karla in this summary, because while we can put in some nice dialogue and characterization to set up Karla’s character, the underlying structure of the scene is not about her at all.
This is a great scene for a novel featuring bold Autumn Akeley, bold adventurer. It’s a terrible scene for Autumn and Karla’s big fight – especially since the next scene involves Autumn tracking down poachers, which has even less to do with their friendship. And if you’re not a careful writer, you’ll think this is an awesome scene because it’s got it all – humor, good characterization, a quick hook to action – without realizing that it’s an awesome scene that’s structurally at odds with what you want to do in the long run. It doesn’t set up the things that need to be established.
It’s a good scene in isolation. In context, it’s a darling that needs to be killed… Or at least dramatically changed so that Karla does something so interesting here that the scene metamorphosizes away from Autumn’s search for the Hulk and into an expression of how Autumn and Karla couldn’t get along without each other.
The point I’m making here is that had I written that chapter, I’d have been very proud. It’d be a nice, 1,500 word opener that would grab the reader, full of lovely details and fun stuff.
And then I’d have to place it into my trash folder, because ultimately it doesn’t do what it needs to, then hunt for the right scene to write.
Cross-posted from Ferrett's Real Blog.
This entry has also been posted at http://theferrett.dreamwidth.org/214853.html. You can comment here, or comment there; makes no never-mind by me. |
|
calvinhobbesurl
|
5:24a |
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| Friday, May 25th, 2012 |
scottchurch
|
6:01p |
|
food_porn
[ art_lurker ]
|
4:14p |
Love N Tower
 At Hancook restaurant located on the 1st level of the tower, diners can look out over Seoul as they enjoy traditional Korean cuisine in surroundings which blend antique Korean beauty with modern convenience. The most popular choice at Hancook is the buffet, offering a selection of 30 different Korean delicacies.This Wednesday I took a cable car and then a fast elevator to the top of the N Seoul Tower. ( Dinner in Korea ) |
food_porn
[ honeywest ]
|
12:02p |
Do-nuts Texas Style...
 I visited Austin, Texas last week and was treated to Shipleys Do-nuts... I especially loved a marshmallow cream filled. Ah yum! More info here. Current Mood: creative |
chris_warrior
|
2:44p |
|
dawntreader90
|
2:26p |
popstand. blowing it.
at 4 p.m, i'm blowing this popstand. it's allowed. my boss said so. but i have a presentation to make first. i took Captivate training a month ago and today i'm presenting what i learned (the basic gist) to my boss and Scrum team lead. i hope i don't forget my stuff. (what did we SEND you for anyway!??!) *snicker* ALSO!!! i got my Scrum t-shirt today. LOL. everyone wants one now. well, everyone on my FOCUS (with all the symbols) team. :D :D IT'S SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!! even people not on the team are like, "ooo! cool!" it's the little things. hahaha we're going to the movie event tonight at the winery. i hope it doesn't rain. it would be nice to chill out and sip wine under the stars while watching movie. ... i forgot my bugspray. oh well. i'm having such a good day, the bugs wouldn't DARE ruin it. ;) Crosspost from http://dawntreader.dreamwidth.org/1995591.html. There are  comments. Current Mood:  optimistic |
chris_warrior
|
12:46p |
in which there are twenty days of Dave.
( a long time ago, in a land far, far away... )
all told, it was Twenty Days of Dave. Twenty NonDavelessDays. so now it's kind of weird. i'm surviving with chocolate (unhealthy), showers with gingerbread soap (from the soap-loaf i bought for our anniversary and split between us) (healthy), and sleeping with the serape Dave "accidentally forgot" to pack to bring home (the one i wanted from his closet while i was in Maine, and whined about) (which smells strongly like him). i'm not sure if that last is healthy or not. at times i sort of feel like a puppy whose master is missing: i wander my yard sniffing here and there and crying to myself.
but i also forced myself onto the scale again. not great, but not irredeemably bad (252 this morning). i've recommitted to eating better, and less (though the chocolate thing is still a problem). i finally got a massage again, on Wednesday, and have been trying to take better care of my hands (icing, etc). i got on my bike again this morning. and there was a new baby bunny in the garden. so i'm dealing/doing pretty well. :D
sorry i've been away so long!
Current Mood:  accomplished
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| Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012 |
food_porn
[ emtqueen85 ]
|
8:51p |
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| Friday, May 25th, 2012 |
theferrett
|
10:36a |
More FetLife Posts
I’ve been quiet here as I’ve been slogging through the usual Seasonal Depression, but I did post two essays over at FetLife (TheFacebookforkinksters) that you may be curious about: “Depression. Fucking. Depression.”, which deals with how depression affects my sex life, and “Ropeweasels,” which deals with the issue of me being tied up. (There’s also “Fireplay and Me,” an oddly poetic musing on setting women aflame, which I don’t think I linked here but maybe I did.)
In addition, my humor essay “So I’m Going To Become A Dom” may be my most popular essay ever, with 612 comments and 965 loves. I guess it’s all about the specificity.
Cross-posted from Ferrett's Real Blog.
This entry has also been posted at http://theferrett.dreamwidth.org/214628.html. You can comment here, or comment there; makes no never-mind by me. |
theferrett
|
10:30a |
An Odd Change In A Dying System
Back in The Day, when I had infinite people reading me on LiveJournal, I’d post an entry and the comments exploded. I’d hit “post,” and five minutes later I’d have fifteen comments.
Now, I make a big ol’ important post and sometimes I don’t get a comment for half an hour. That used to unnerve me – is this a bad entry? Did I say something wrong? – until I realized what was happening. English LiveJournal is slowly dying.
What used to happen was that the LJ friends page was like Twitter or Facebook now – so constant a stream of data that you just refreshed your friends’ page and wham, new entries. Maybe you didn’t check it twenty times a day like I did, but the friends page was a ritual where my latest entry popped up in real time. I was a part of the info-stream.
As LJ use has declined, though, the traffic patterns have changed for me. People no longer read my blog as part of a daily pulse; it’s in their RSS feeds, or bookmarked separately, or they wait for me to post the interesting links to Twitter (since I don’t Tweet-spam every post). I still get roughly the same number of comments, but as opposed to arriving in one explosive comment-dump, they now arrive scattered over the course of two days, like late passengers departing a red-eye connection. I’m read at their convenience, not the convenience of LJ.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it is a little weird. Some days I post a SRS ENTRY and then wait until I get one comment just to ensure someone’s listening. By the time I get out of the tub, I have like three comments, which used to be the sign of an entry falling on its face. Now, I’m patient; the user feedback will arrive in due course.
If you write it, they will come.
Cross-posted from Ferrett's Real Blog.
This entry has also been posted at http://theferrett.dreamwidth.org/214409.html. You can comment here, or comment there; makes no never-mind by me. |
brickhousewench
|
9:01a |
Good News Friday - Memorial Day Edition
Sitting here facing another day of trying to debug my Flare project is depressing me (I only fixed half of the problem yesterday. Turns out deleting Flare 7 is what broke my build script, which was pointing at the Flare 7 folder. So I uninstalled and re-installed both Flare 7 and Flare 8. But I’m still getting the pop-up error messages….) The best part about this Friday is that it is FRIDAY. And I get a three day weekend to collapse. So about all I got today is some Linkies: In a trio of lawsuits, interns stand up and say they deserve to be paid for working full time. I got paid $17 an hour for my technical writing internship (this was back before the dot-com bubble burst and 9/11 and the economy going down the tubes). This idea that you should work not just one, but multiple unpaid internships before you deserve to be paid is complete BULLSHIT. Working for free is called volunteering, not an internship. So good for these interns for standing up for worker's rights. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. As someone who dresses up in costumes on the weekends, I heartily approve of this photo project. Go go superheroes!!! And finally, some words of wisdom from a graduation speaker. "All education 'worthy' of the name is education of character." "The more I thought about myself, the weaker I became. The more I recognized that I was serving a purpose larger than myself, the stronger I became," |
zoethe
|
8:39a |
Pedal to the Point--so close to $2,000
This is the last day for the initial push for Pedal to the Point, so one final nagging/begging for now, and I promise not to bug you again--at least not until July ;-) I'm getting close to raising $2,000, and I'd like to reach that number before the end of the night. To those of you who've already given, thank you SO MUCH for your generosity! A couple people were having problems with the main page link not leading to the donation page link. I think the site has that worked out now, but here's the link directly to the donation page. And thank you thank you thank you! Crossposting from Dreamwidth now. Sigh. If LJ won't let you comment, you can comment here: http://zoethe.dreamwidth.org/795060.html?mode=reply: |
|
calvinhobbesurl
|
8:00a |
|
food_snobbery
[ splatterhouse ]
|
2:36a |
Pasta dough
I've been on a ravioli making kick & I am *really* frustrated with the dough. It rolls fine, it stays together, it cooks okay, but it's bland & the texture isn't great. It's like a rubbery vehicle for the tasty filling rather than an integrated part of the dish. I was thinking about using pureed spinach or roasted red pepper to replace part of the liquid - would I also have to adjust the flour to compensate for the fibrous elements in those veggies? I've googled extensively and tried a few different recipes but I really don't want to slog through the thousands of different recipes available to find something that works. :c Anyone have any favorite, tried-and-true recipes they like to use? I roll & shape my dough by hand, I do not have a pasta machine, if that changes things. I'm trying to be hypervigilant in order to not overcook & avoid issues that way, but if you have any tips to throw at me for that, feel free. I never had this problem cooking the fresh-made pasta from my local fancy-food-boutique-thing so I think it's actually a dough issue. Thank you! |
| Thursday, May 24th, 2012 |
brickhousewench
|
8:59p |
In Black Widow Fandom before the Masses
While digging out my Green Arrow comics, I found something in my comic book boxes. I’d forgotten that I even owned ( this )So there you have it, proof that I was a Black Widow fan long before she became all trendy and stuff. |
brickhousewench
|
8:51p |
Green Arrow
Holy Crap! They’re doing a Green Arrow TV show! And it got picked up by the CW for next fall! Please God, let this Not Suck. I do not have enough archers in my life. (And it was hard picking one archer from my icon collection to upload. Legolas? Robin Hood? As you can see, I went with Hawkeye.) This led to me pulling out my box of Green Arrow comics. I was missing Longbow Hunters book 2. But I apparently have the entire 10 issue run of Kevin Smith’s Quiver. On the way home tonight I stopped off at a comic book store for the first time in years and picking up my missing book two. I had a nice chat with the owner, who had pulled the comic after I e-mailed him to ask if they had it in stock? Despite the fact that his power was out, I had a couple of bucks cash and we were able to commit commerce. I might have to go back this weekend when his power is back on (and he can run credit cards) and pick up some Avengers or Black Widow comics. |
scottchurch
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4:29p |
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bronxelf_ag001
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2:46p |
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matociquala
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12:21p |
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dawntreader90
|
12:43p |
family pictures
my cousin posted her wedding pictures. i looked through them all. ... while some are decidedly "not my style" (the photographer certainly has an unusual flair and i knew during photo-taking i might not enjoy all of them!) the vast majority are pretty awesome. most are candid photos and many of the ones that were posed look candid. so much joy and personality come through in them. of course, there was so much joy and personality at the wedding, you only had to point the camera. ;) many of the pics i didn't even know were being taken! among my favourites are - the ones of the girls in the guys' jackets. OMG it was cold outside.
- the 'photo booth' shot of me wearing ridiculous dealiebobbers, making a face, holding a fake cigarrette standing with my bridesmaid cousin whose wearing a clown nose, bunny ears and holding an easter basket. because we're weird, that's why! (all the photobooth shots are HILARIOUS. everyone had a great time using the 'prompts' --- according to a friend who didn't know they were props. lol)
- the bridesmaids pic in the hotel window--my cousins were waayyyy out on the rooftop getting their pic taken. i took a pic of them getting their pics taken. the photographer took a pic of us waving at them. ;)
- the Starlite Lounge shot of my cousin and husband SMOOCHING with the "it's martini time" menu in the foreground. ... now that's just classy. :D
- the BIG FAMILY PHOTO on the steps of the lincoln capital building. SO AWESOME. and everyone is smiling. the wind is not even blowing everyone's hair. so getting copies of this.
- aunt buba, my cousin and husband on the steps of the capitol. perfect shot!!
- my cousin's husband and his grandma. made me wish... well... we had a picture table set up for all the missing grandparents. <3
- best photo though. me and my mom. there are two, one posed and smiling (which is good), and one of me leaning on her and us laughing (which is beyond awesome). i honestly think it's the best photo of her and i ever taken. i love it. i'm definitely getting a copy of it for me and one for her. i got all teary-eyed looking at it. you can see how much we love each other in it and i can feel how much i miss her when i look at it. *sniff*
Crosspost from http://dawntreader.dreamwidth.org/1995452.html. There are  comments.
Current Mood:  nostalgic |
brickhousewench
|
12:37p |
I survived my demo
*Douses hair* *Whew* Glad that's over. Now to see what the hell I broke in my project. |
brickhousewench
|
10:30a |
Hair on fire...
I've managed to break my Help project so that I can't generate output. I'm getting some mysterious error that started yesterday. As in, when I save a file I get anywhere from four to THIRTY-TWO error messages popping up. Which is hosing my batch generation script. CRAP CRAP CRAP. And I have a demo in less than an hour. Good thing I have backups. At least I can grab output I generated earlier in the week before I broke whatever I broke. And I have at least two projects that aren't in source control yet (which may be part of the problem) that I can use to generate Word and PDF output. Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ. Talk about horrible timing. *runs around with hair on fire* Current Mood:  stressed |
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