destina: (Default)
Updated December 31, 2018 with AO3 links to stories from the last two years in the following fandoms: Star Wars Sequels (Finn/Poe); James Bond (00Q); Merlin; MCU (Peter/Tony, and Tony and Rhodey); X-Men First Class; Ocean's 11; Halt and Catch Fire; The Eagle; Tombstone; Babylon 5; Penny Dreadful.

Merlin (BBC) )

James Bond movies )

The Eagle )

Vikings (History Channel) )

Hannibal (NBC) )

Die Hard (Live Free or Die Hard) )

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) - all pairings )

Hawaii Five-0 )

Wiseguy )

Southland )

Band of Brothers )

Kings )

Stargate: Atlantis )

Brokeback Mountain )

Stargate: SG-1 )

Supernatural gen )

Supernatural Sam/Dean )

Supernatural Dean/Castiel )

Supernatural J2 and J3 RPF )

Supernatural het (one sad lonely story) )

The Sentinel )

Star Wars sequel trilogy )

Star Wars and The Phantom Menace )

Smallville )

Miscellaneous other fiction on AO3: Angel the Series, Anna and the King, Batman Begins, Babylon 5, Ben-Hur, Captain America RPS, Carnivale, Deadwood, due South, ER, Farscape, Fast and Furious movies, Fire From Heaven, Game of Thrones, Gladiator, Halt and Catch Fire, Hard Core Logo, Highlander, Homicide: Life on the Streets, Horatio Hornblower, Iron Giant, King Arthur, L.A. Confidential, The Lion in Winter, Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, Mad Men, Ocean's 11, The Outsiders, OZ, Penny Dreadful, Queer As Folk US, Rome, Snowpiercer, Tigerland, Tombstone, Tron and Tron: Legacy, White Collar, The X-Files, X-Men First Class )
destina: (mcu: tony exasperated)
I went to see Quantumania this morning. I think what this experience brought home for me is there aren't very many more MCU movies I'm going to be interested in seeing in theaters.

general thoughts and spoilers )
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destina: (christmas merry and bright)
Bringing home the December posting meme with a prompt from [personal profile] j_crew_guy - Five things you're thankful for this year.

1. I'm thankful to be alive, and for my health, since last year was quite challenging in that regard. I'm also grateful for the relative good health of my family and friends.

2. Very thankful for my job, and for the roof over my head, and food on my table, in times when so many people have been struggling, and thankful I have the means to help others.

3. I'm thankful for my resilience, which has really taken some body blows and deep cuts these past 3 years, but is still intact.

4. Thankful as always for my family and my friends, and that includes all my fannish friends and all of you here. ♥

5. I'm thankful to be at a point in my career where I have consequential decisions to make about my future, and grateful for where the path has led, even if I'm not always cracked about the scenery. 33 years ago when I graduated college and embarked into adulthood, I couldn't possibly have predicted the path my life would take, but I am grateful every day for what I have. No regrets, no point in looking back. Very interested to see what 2023 will bring.

Wishing you all a very happy and peaceful new year, and one that is filled with joy for you and those you love. ♥
destina: (Default)
Still a little catch-up! But both of these are short answers. :)

[personal profile] lyr asks: If you could be the showrunner for a reboot of anything at all, what would it be and how would you do it differently? Bonus, who would you cast as the lead/s?

This one was easy! I’d reboot Kings, and I would pay truckloads of money to Sebastian Stan to come back, as well as Christopher Egan, and I would pick it up at a future point after it went all the way over to where it was going to go - to David and Jonathan, their souls were knit together, whither thou goest I go, etc etc. Because honestly, that is the show I wanted to see, so I would make it. :)


[personal profile] danveresque asks: Whaaaat is the best book you read this year and why was it the best?

I barely read any books this year, I am sorry to say! But I can recommend The Hands of the Emperor by Victoria Goddard, as it is a gentle novel about the fidelity of a civil servant to his magical king, and the friendship that develops between them, and how he takes his king on vacation (that's it, that's the plot pretty much) and all the little things they learn about each other along the way. It's a slow burn friendship, and it's kind of beautiful. Unusual, to be sure. But it's cozy and soft and delightful, and the kind of book one rarely finds in today's world.
destina: (other: rainbow hearts)
I got just a touch behind because of life, so three posts today! So sorry.

[personal profile] avidrosette asked: What are your top 5 favorite ships that you write, and what draws you to those specific pairings? Follow-up: is there a pairing that you love but choose not to write?

Since I'm a fannish butterfly, or serial semi-monogamist, I don't have a top 5 I write in the present tense, since I am rarely writing more than one or two ships concurrently. Once in a while. But I can talk about five I have loved writing, and why! And I can answer the follow up question as well.

1. Arthur and Merlin, from Merlin - what drew me to this pairing was, predictably, self-sacrifice and devotion. I love all versions of King Arthur, but I was less cracked about this version of Merlin, in the beginning. It was just so silly. But the show later took a serious turn, and toward season 4, when I gave it another go, I fell hook line and sinker for the depth and devotion in this version of the relationship, especially after Uther dies. They are friends and brothers in ways that they don't acknowledge with words, until the very last few episodes - but they demonstrate their feelings through their actions, in mutual fashion, in nearly every episode ever aired, going back to the first few in the entire series. And then there's their snark. It's a combo I can't really resist: fealty, loyalty, devotion, competence, and love.

2. Danny Williams and Steve McGarrett, Hawaii Five-0 - this pairing is both complicated and fun. Steve is fascinating to me, not just because of his backstory and his career, but because he's impulsive and unpredictable and has a very strong moral core that to others might appear to shift around in shades of grey. And then there's Danny, who bulldozed into Steve's life and knocked over all the china and Steve's clammed up emotions and just...remade his entire life, really, with Steve's consent. Steve returned the favor by taking control of Danny's car, being favorite uncle to Danny's children, and eventually quitting his job because the near loss of Danny almost destroyed him. And then there were the carguments and the banter and the snark and the jokes. They are so fun to write! So layered. So interesting. Unparalleled dynamics.

3. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, Star Wars - this pairing is super-fun for me for two reasons. One, because I like to send them adventuring and see what impacts their adventures have on their relationship. (Interestingly, this world-building and character-creation angle also attracted me to SG-1; I like to build a dollhouse and see how moving through it changes the relationship dynamics. I am the dungeon master.) But I also like to write stories for these two that really drastically alter their traditional circumstances and their relationship to each other. Honestly, my stories were not always well-received by the fandom for this reason, but I have always found it immensely satisfying to explore the shades of grey and the power dynamics in masters and apprentices, and Jedi in general.

4. Winters and Nixon, Band of Brothers - if I could find more angles from which to write this pairing without really banging on over well-trod ground, I would be writing them constantly. I've read just about every book, biography and autobiography about Easy Company soldiers, and they all live in my head, and the part that really kills me is, they all are explicit that Winters really did love Nixon in spite of all his flaws, and no one could really explain it whatsoever. In fact some were annoyed and baffled by it, because Nixon was not well liked among the men, in general. Some saw him as a difficult drunk. So that informs my feelings about this pairing, and the complexity of how their bond was formed, and the differences in their personalities, all combined with their unwavering devotion to each other. IDK. I love them.

5. Dean and Castiel, Supernatural - I've been writing this pairing on and off since, I don't know. 2008? What attracts me to it, once again, is the devotion and the found family aspects, and the unexpected nature of the relationship. The angel does not ever act as he's supposed to, even as far back as season 4; he is the one thing in the story Chuck wrote - by Chuck's own angry admission - that does not go as planned, and the fact that he changed the narrative right from the beginning and all because he loved Dean (hello, it's canon now! Hurray!) is what helped Dean realize his worth, and helped to enable the Winchesters to win the ultimate battle. The shifting dynamics of this relationship over time have made it fascinating to write at multiple points in time, and to read, as well.

And for the follow-up question! -

One pairing I love, but haven't really attempted to write, is the Richieverse version of Holmes/Watson. I finding writing Holmes a little intimidating, in any incarnation. I have never been able to quite zero in on the voice. I've made a few stabs at it over the years, but they aren't quite right. Maybe someday.
destina: (merlin: pendragon)
I moved this back a day because yesterday was a decision-making day, where I could not think of fun things. But now that is done, so back to the posting meme!

[personal profile] killabeez asks: What do you look for in a fandom source? What's your fannish kryptonite?

Hmmm. I watch a lot of diverse media across genres, and the majority of it, I will never feel even a tiny bit fannish about. For me to start to feel fannish, something has to reach out and grab me in a really particular way, honestly, and sometimes the things I would think would have the magic, just do not. Or they do eventually get me, but years later, not at the time I'm watching, because something about my interests has changed. Interview with the Vampire is one such recent example. I love the show itself but I have zero fannish interest in it. I also loved but was never fannish about Buffy, but I was immediately fannish about Angel. Other examples of things I've enjoyed/loved but surprisingly never really felt fannish/participatory about about included Arrow, Torchwood, Harry Potter, Xena, and Strange New Worlds.

Over the years I've seen some patterns in the things I'm attracted to, and so here's the short list of what can potentially draw me in.

1. Pairings or duos where one character is brilliant or exceptional in some way, and the other is extremely hyper-competent at what they do, and each respects the other (and maybe loves them) for their particular gifts and skills. This particular pattern repeats over and over for me. Tony Stark and Steve Rogers; Merlin and Arthur; Mulder and Scully; Daniel Jackson and Jack O'Neill; Spock and Kirk; Nixon and Winters; Farrell and McClane; Q and Bond; Holmes and Watson; Methos and Duncan; Will and Hannibal; Wesley and Gunn. And many more.

2. Self-sacrifice and devotion. I used to joke that if a show or a pairing could be set to the Placebo version of Running Up That Hill, that was my fannish kryptonite, and the funniest part about it is that it's true! Steve McGarrett and Danny Williams; Arthur and Merlin; Jack and Daniel (and the whole SG-1 team really); Steve and Bucky; Dean and Sam (and Castiel); Brian and Dom; Ragnar and Athelstan; Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon (in fanon, anyway). And so many others!

3. Found family. There are shows I love that I'm not fannish about that I adored because of this (see: Pose, omg). But if there are other things present, this trope can tip me over to being fannish. See: Spartacus; Rome; Stargate SG-1; Star Wars; many MCU groups and combos; Fast and Furious; Vikings; Hawaii Five-0; Supernatural; and more.

4. Clams and puppies. For every Lucius Vorenus I am fascinated by, there's also a Poe Dameron or a Chris Pike or a Willow or a Sam Wilson or a Peter Parker I love. Characters who are stoic onions and clams who handle their business but are a mess inside, and characters who exude happiness/are centered and calm and aren't problematic, are likely to attract me far faster than grumpy jerks like House, or chaotic immature characters like Anakin Skywalker. (Tony Stark being a true exception to that rule.) But sometimes, those characters make me enjoy a show without feeling fannish about it, because there's not a lot to unpack.

Hope that answers the question! :)
destina: (christmas blue tree)
[personal profile] lilly_the_kid asked: A memory, fanish or otherwise, that always makes you smile.

This one is easy. :) Back when I was in college a million years ago, I went to Belk Lindsey (also known as Belk's) to find a Christmas present for my mom, and settled on a comfy-looking sweater with wide emerald green and black stripes. (This was the 80's; there were always a lot of sweaters to be had.) I loved it! I wanted one. It was sort of like the Freddy Krueger sweater, but cozy and attractive.

Cut to Christmas Day, and my mom opened her present and burst out laughing at the sight of the sweater. I was a little bewildered, because what in the world is funny about a sweater??? So she told me and my sister to each open one of our gifts, and...it turns out she had bought each of us the same exact sweater - me in pink, and my sister's in blue! Each of us got our favorite color. We laughed ourselves silly over it. Great minds think alike!

There's a fantastic picture of us all holding our sweaters up and giggling about it, which I have framed and sitting on my bookshelf, because there was so much joy on all our faces. ♥ ♥ ♥
destina: (christmas holly)
Sekrit message to [personal profile] gwyn: I would like to talk to you about SPAAAAAAAAAACE! as requested, but this is the second time I've sat down to do that and drawn a blank! Perhaps the topic is too broad for my tiny brain to process currently...can you narrow that down a bit? And I'll make another go at it! Because I do love talking about space. ♥
destina: (mcu: steve santa hat lol)
[personal profile] wickedwords asked about - Things (fandoms/characters/decorating ideas/etc.) that originally fell flat for you that now you adore.

Hmmm. Originally, I was not interested in a single character in the MCU other than Iron Man. It seems wacky now in hindsight, but it's true. I saw Captain America: The First Avenger, and I was deeply unimpressed overall (tho I fell in love with both Peggy and Howard), and also really mad about Bucky's death. It felt like a waste of a great character. (Obviously, I had no comics knowledge.) Then I saw Thor and could not get past his bleached eyebrows, and I was not at all into Tom Hiddleston, and I thought it was all campy and silly, and by the way, neither Hemsworth nor Evans did anything for me at all. (Like I said, there's no accounting for it! IDK what was wrong with me!)

What finally did it for me was the one-two punch of the Avengers (which I LOVED, and still love to this day; it was pretty much perfect) followed by CA: The Winter Soldier. The formation of the team, followed by the return of Bucky and my favorite dynamic (self-sacrificial devoted assholes) playing out in a spy thriller that gave me a SECOND team (the barbershop quartet!), sucked me in and kept me there, and I fell for all the characters, and that was that. Also most of the actors in the MCU are good eggs, and I actively adore several of them (Chris Evans especially), and that's just a nice bonus.
destina: (spn: beside me)
[personal profile] geeklover80 asked: Top 5 favorite SPN episodes/characters

I think my top 5 fave characters list is super-predictable (Sam, Dean, Castiel, Jody and Benny), so I will go with the top 5 episodes! That is really, really difficult, tho. So difficult.

1. A Very Supernatural Christmas - it still makes me feel warm and fuzzy after all these very many years, because we get the backstory of the amulet, and we see how much these kids love each other, and how it translates into what they have now, and it's heartbreaking and glorious.

2. Baby - I have rewatched this episode so many times, and it's still brilliant. Whoever came up with doing an episode of the show that is purely from the car's POV was a genius, and every time I watch it I catch and think about new things. Plus we get Jensen doing that amazeballs car maneuver which is just WOW. Plus Baby is a klepto, and I heart that about her.

3. All Hell Breaks Loose pts 1 and 2 (because it's really one episode) - still stands the test of time in my memory as a genuinely shocking and emotional roller coaster, and it's the episode where I realized I was deeply invested in what happened to both these Winchesters.

4. Regarding Dean - otherwise known as the one where Dean slowly forgets who he is.

5. Stuck In the Middle With You - structurally, it was a cool bit of storytelling, but also this is the episode where Castiel decides to tell the Winchesters he loves them and they are his family, and in a surprising move, Crowley saves Castiel's life for no particular reason, and then we find out Mary is a lying liar who lies, and it's dramatic and interesting and good.

Bonus episodes: Bad Day At Black Rock (because for MONTHS, every time I thought about "I lost my shoe" or "I'm Batman!" I would burst out laughing); Lily Sunder Has Some Regrets (because there's interesting Dean/Castiel dynamics); Don't Call Me Shurley (because before Chuck was the Big Bad, we all wanted him to come back, and when he did come back in a big way, it was gorgeous and amazing and I prefer to pretend that was the last time he was in the show); and Lazarus Rising (because Dean comes back from hell and hugs Sam, and because lo, an Angel of the Lord appears and it's the best entrance ever)
destina: (christmas red tree)
[personal profile] resonant asked - Do you hold any opinions now that are vastly different from when you were younger? Fannish, nonfannish, frivolous, serious - anything you like.

I like to think of myself as a work in progress, and I don't think I've had many opinions in my life that were set in stone, to be honest. As I've matured, and my thinking has broadened and deepened, I've shifted around on various things, because I don't know how I can remain open and curious to learning without eventually evolving in my thinking as a result of that. Also, and importantly, I've received a world-class education in topics like privilege, access, ageism, ableism, racism, bias, gendered roles and heteronormativity, and much more, over the 25 years I've been in fandom, and those lessons have greatly impacted how I operate in the world, and how I approached aspects of my professional work. Fannishly, I've shifted on various issues as a result of coming to understand the needs of others much better.

There are some constants in my life, however, and these will never change. Here are the top 10 such opinions.

1. Diet Coke is the world's best beverage.
2. Morning Has Broken is the worst song ever written.
3. Hootie and the Blowfish is the world's worst band name.
4. People should be put in jail for watching video without headphones in airports, on buses, or on planes.
5. Ghostbusters is the world's #1 most quotable movie, followed closely by Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
6. Author's notes should not be longer than the story.
7. Friendship means never having to say you're sorry for being cranky on a bad day. (Though friendship also means saying you're sorry when you behave crankily on a bad day.)
8. Pink is the best color, and it's even better when it sparkles.
9. Never step out of the way of a man coming down the sidewalk; hold the course, and enjoy either the last-second swerve, or the bruise he's going to get from the collision, because both taste like sweet victory.
10. People who hate Titanic are just wrong. (People who hate Avatar, however, are correct.)
destina: (star wars: darth helmet)
17- [personal profile] musesfool asked: You are now in charge of Star Wars for Disney/Lucasfilm. What movies/shows do you make?

Ooooh, I love this question. Here we go!

1. Obi-Wan Kenobi series 2 and 3 green lighted, and Liam Neeson hired to be co-star of both. Production budget tripled and number of episodes increased to 12 per season. Fans hired to write it. (But nothing gets by without my approval, as I will be the new Feige of the prequel era.) Hayden Christiansen brought back as well.
2. Next the FinnPoe series, which centers Finn as a Jedi and involves a lot of adventuring across the galaxy. Rey makes cameos in episode 1 and episode 55.
3. Kanan Jarrus and Hera Syndulla series. (I’m fine with live action Rebels as well, but I need Kanan.) Many Caleb and Depa flashbacks. Every Jedi imaginable will appear in said flashbacks.
4. Solo 2 and Solo 3 begin back to back production immediately. Also featuring Chewbacca and Donald Glover prominently. Possibly features Darth Maul. Unless I find a better villain.
5. Six episode Luke Skywalker series greenlighted but it’s just Luke and Ahsoka having conversations about his parents while Artoo makes the kind of noises that let you know he’s old and he’s weary and he is not keen on reliving All Those Days again and Anakin’s ghost hovers indignantly in the background.
destina: (fandom: fangirl)
[personal profile] minnaway asked: if you had to show one episode of a show, or one movie out of a series, for which you're a fan to someone who hadn't seen it and didn't know anything about it, what would it be? Tell me about a "this would be fun even if you don't know canon" episode of something you like, basically!

In attempting to answer this question, I realized I am very, very bad at describing things to people who lack context or where there's backstory, especially when people don't share my super-niche interests, like characters who switch sides. I made three abandoned attempts at it, though! My actual post notes for the three are below.

Fast and Furious - I forget which number (5? ish?), but it's the one where this former federal agent, having fallen in love with a street racer and family in two previous non-consecutive movies while undercover and working cases (I really need to look up these numbers) goes all the way over to the criminal side to rescue his friend and then goes on the run with them and throws in with their criminal activities which really aren't that criminal tbh. Lots of found family and also there's the Rock, which makes things more fun and interesting. Also Wonder Woman is part of the crew. (Should I explain that the street racer he falls in love with is the sister and not Dom? That sounded confusing. Or maybe it isn't.) Then there's a cool heist plot with shenanigans and great fighting.

Die Hard 4 - It's every Die Hard movie but better, because it involves McClane protecting this hacker kid that he gets really fond of and they have a weird but fun buddy dynamic, and also Timothy Olyphant and Maggie Q are the villains and class up the joint, and also there's a terrorist plot to take down the grid and interfere with stuff that involves hacking, and Bruce Willis is unaccountably hot throughout the whole thing. There's a lot of fanfic about that. McClane kicks a lot of ass and gets his ass kicked a lot. Would it make this more or less appealing if I explain the chemistry between McClane and the hacker? IDK.

The French Mistake (an episode of Supernatural) - well. It would take too long to explain why, but the characters of Sam and Dean Winchester, played by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, cross over into a bizarro universe where they land on the film set of Supernatural, where they encounter Misha Collins (doing a hilarious schtick where he's not at all like his real self) and also they are mistaken for Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, and what follows is an hour of these two poking fun at their real selves and the Supernatural creators while playing Sam and Dean, and it is delightful and hilarious.

...so difficult!
destina: (other: rainbow hearts)
[personal profile] sef1029 asked - Five happiest days of your life!

I can't really say these are the happiest days of my life, but they are the top five things I thought of when I read the question.

1. The day I sat on the steps leading down to the Mississippi in New Orleans with cee/traveller, whom I had just met a few hours before, just bullshitting about life and watching the lights. (2010ish)
2. The day I hiked the cliffs of Northern Ireland with [personal profile] barkley and many strangers, in the sunshine beside the sea, and ended the hike at the Giants Causeway. (2013)
3. The day I handed in my resignation at my previous job. A GREAT DAY, yes indeed. (2018)
4. Any Christmas Day spent with my mom, dad, and sister, while my mom and dad were still alive. They were all joyful. It’s too hard to choose. (Any year up to 1999)
5. The night I sat with [personal profile] killabeez on the porch of a B&B in New Mexico, looking up at the Milky Way directly above us in a clear cold night sky, and feeling so incredibly tiny in the vastness of the cosmos. (2017)
destina: cherry blossoms (other: cherry blossom)
[personal profile] rheanna asked: your top five best individual scenes or moments from TV shows or movies

Here are the first five that came to mind immediately when I read the question. (It would be impossible to list five all-time faves, because I've watched way too much media to ever do that with accuracy.)

1. That scene in Angel where Angel tries to kill Wesley after finding out about Connor. I have rarely been that shocked or upset by a scene.
2. THIRTEEEEEEEENNNNNN. (Otherwise known as, that scene where Vorenus watches Pullo losing battle by combat and can't help himself; he has to jump in to save his friend.)
3. That scene where Tim finally tells Frank the truth, on the rooftop, from Homicide: The Movie. Gosh, I just teared up, just thinking about it. Ugh, Frank.
4. The sequence of scenes where Ben heals Jonesy, and then Jonesy wakes up and realizes what Ben can do, and never leaves his side again, in Carnivale.
5. Sam Winchester's first death, in All Hell Breaks Loose, part 1, and the scene which follows where Dean is speaking to his brother's body. (Supernatural.)
6. Bonus: Captain America wields Mjolnir in battle, in Avengers: Endgame.
Dec. 14th, 2022 09:52 am

a rec

destina: (mcu: natasha smiling)
I went to see Wakanda Forever yesterday (verdict: an absolutely excellent movie) and then I came home and looked up my bookmark for this story, because the movie made me think of it, because I loved M'Baku twice as much after seeing it as I did before. Which is saying a whole lot.

in cayenne and honey, in vinegar and lime - M'Baku/Bucky Barnes, 27k+ words
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destina: (Default)
[personal profile] ranalore asked: talk to me about music. Have you got a favorite genre? A favorite artist or song? And how do you choose music for vidding?

I think rock is and will always be my favorite genre of music, but I like a wide variety of things, including some hip hop, rap, and country. (A lot depends on the era and the artist, in those categories). But I listen to most sub-genres of rock, folk, R&B, jazz, blues, house, electronica/techno and dance, funk, disco, new wave, hair bands, 80's, classical of all types and eras, lounge, bachelor pad music, orchestral, scores, big band, soundtracks, etc. I don't listen to death metal (or really, most kinds of metal), most punk rock, some country, and hard-core rap. My favorite category, which isn't really one genre, is 80's music.

All-time fave artists, off the top of my head, include: Duran Duran, Journey, Frank Sinatra, Linkin Park, U2, the Police, Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Torme, Johnny Cash ...and as I started listing this, I realized writing out every band I love was quickly going to take over my entire day, and I'd start to fret that I was missing all kinds of artists I love, and faves, so I'm stopping with the ones that immediately came to mind. :)

As for how do I choose music for vids - I don't, exactly. The music sort of chooses the source. It's hard to explain. When I was still vidding, I used to hear "perfect song choice!" a lot in vid review. Sometimes I'd hear "wow, that song shouldn't work, but it does." I hear a song, and I see a story, and I know exactly how it should look, and what the story is about. I don't try to match up songs or music to the source; rather, I hear a song and I know instantly what the song is about, like it was written just for that source. I heard Did You and knew it was an OT4 SG-1 vid. I heard Nasivern Pi and knew it was about space flight. I heard This Town's Religion and knew it was for Top Gun, and I heard Resolution Road and (eventually) knew it was for Spy Game. Likewise, Farewell Ride by Beck was for Tombstone and Doc Holliday. And so on. I would see the story that song is telling me unfolding in my head, but with visuals from a specific source, and then I would go find the right clips and put them down. Probably sounds weird, but for a long time, it worked for me. I would sometimes stop to consider whether a particular song was too modern for a period source, but if I felt like it worked, I trusted my instincts. (One example of this was my Sherlock Holmes vid Deep Blue Sea.)

I have also pitched very specific songs and ideas to other vidders, after winning their vid-making skills in an auction or something, and been met with, "...interesting..." because they couldn't really see it right away. But then after considering the song choice, they did see it, and amazing vids emerged because they are superb vidders. A couple of examples: Jetpack Monkey's crushcrushcrush (he talks about the song choice here), and [personal profile] rhoboat 's Deep.

Thanks for the question!
destina: (other: pink flower)
[personal profile] kass asks: tell me the top five things you like about the place where you live? (This could mean the house, or the city, or the region -- up to you.)

My five favorite things about California!

1. This state is very blue, politically, and the parts that aren't blue, I don't need to travel through, and they aren't populous enough to change the political landscape very much. Yay!

2. There's gorgeous scenery up and down the entire state, and a huge variety of it, too. End to end, it takes about 14 hours to drive through California, and you'll pass beaches and mountains and valleys and farms and caves and deserts and wilderness, and there is so much natural beauty here. It's hard not to be awed and humbled by all that gorgeousness.

3. The weather! Whatever you are looking for, if it involves sunshine, we probably have what you need. We have mild Mediterranean climate, we have blistering hot deserts, we have temperate beaches, we have Tuscany-like valleys, we have snowy mountains. For most of the year, it's all sun-drenched. (We have drought and fire, too, but this is a list of good things, so I will pass on discussing those.)

4. Diversity! Except in those red spots I mentioned earlier, there are diversities of race, ethnicity, culture, gender identity, sexual orientation and expression, and religion across the state, and that is something to celebrate for sure. Not to say all of that is perfect and perfectly without conflict, but the population is not homogeneous here.

5. Hollywood and movie making! - although a lot of movies get made elsewhere now because California is really expensive and everything is taxed to the point of pain, including the movie industry, we still have the glitz and glamour of movie studios, and awards season, and so forth. It's probably a thing that's particular to Southern California, where the TV stations most receive are all LA-based, but there is a lot of news about the business, and stories about how the sausage gets made, and it feels very much like a local industry that's personal to everyone. So it's hard not to think of the movie business as 'ours' and therefore special.
destina: (disney: ear balloons)
I started out with long answers, and now they are all short! Not to worry, I have looked ahead to the rest of the month, and they'll get long again at some point.

[personal profile] dine asked: your favourite casual vacation spot - and what you most like to do when there

My favorite casual vacation spot is at home. :) I am as far at the end of the introversion scale as it is possible to be, and yet my day job requires me to be incessantly "on stage" and deliver extensive emotional labor to keep other people going. I am always running on a half charge because I never have time to recover my energy. It kind of sucks. And also, I work some long hours. So a week at home for me, where I'm off work, is like heaven. I can sleep in, I can read books (if I am able to recover enough energy and attention span to do so), I can watch movies and putter around and do nothing, I can catch up on errands. I can order food and never speak to another living human being.

I think staycations are wonderful in part because when I travel, I don't really do short local trips anymore, unless it's a there-and-back kind of thing in one day. Most travel for me involves a destination and a plane ride, and Doing Things for days. They're planned in advance, and they aren't casual, because I'm not a person who travels by the seat of her pants. I have to have a plan, and know where I'm staying, and have a rough idea of what I'm going to be doing. But that being said, when I lived closer to it pre-pandemic, Disneyland was my fave quick getaway, and some of those experiences are captured under the Disneyland tag, though the majority are friends-locked. (Except for the last trip in 2019, where I took possession of Disneyland's Sparkliest Object. I guess I felt the world needed to see that one.)
destina: (other: pink disco ball)
[personal profile] james asked for my opinion on chickens, and as a person who grew up in farm country, I definitely have one.

1. Chickens are not smart. They are also frequently annoying, and often mean. (Though not as mean as geese or swans.)
2. Kitchen chickens (the kind which decorate plates, tiles, figurines and wallpaper all over the midwest, the northeast and the plains) are Decidedly Not To My Tastes.
3. Chickens do, however, lay delicious eggs.
4. Chickens are tasty.
5. (I'll reserve this space in case I ever think of something positive about chickens in the future.)

I think that covers it!

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