we go together
Feb. 19th, 2026 04:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pensnestI learned today that (see Tuesday's post) Sable was companionably choosing to relieve herself next to The Man, who was on the loo at the time.
This amuses me so much.
This amuses me so much.
pensnestHighlights from Katsucon
Feb. 18th, 2026 05:14 pmsetsuntamewI only went to one day of Katsucon, but omg it was fantastic this year!!!!! Alex was house/catsitting for her sister for the weekend, and since her sister lives near DC, it was closer than our place. Sooooo Liz and I headed there Friday night, grabbed a very late dinner at McDonald's with Alex, and then watched a bunch of enstars videos on youtube so Alex was ready to be excited for Absolute uwu
Also, she gifted me an adorable new friend, who goes absolutely perfectly with my CNstars cat nuis ;w; I also made them ice cream cones to match Madara's global exclusive card, and I think they came out really good ♥
if anything happens to my tutulong I'll just fucking die lmao
.....and then I stayed up waaaaaay too late because I'm fucking nocturnal D: Even though we had to wake up at 7 am to drive down early enough to get parking....I'm not smart :T
Liz and I didn't cosplay this year, cuz I didn't feel up to it, so I wore...a wig, a corset, and a floor length skirt XD wig is my Mayoi wig that I haven't styled yet - I pulled it out of the bag on Friday night and was delighted to discover that it's a lacefront - and the skirt is one I made for the Vampire Ball Liz and I went to in 2017. This did end up biting me in the ass because the corset ended up not sitting super well by the end of the night D: But we'll get to that later~
First thoughts on this year's katsu: holy shit I didn't realize how bad lobbyconning had gotten. I could actually move through the halls without be crushed by crowds????? Like, I was there on Saturday and I didn't feel cramped every second of the day. They did move registration to its own building, which freed up space to give Artist Alley a larger location, but still. It was really nice to be able to breathe during the con.
After getting our badges, we ran into some friends of Alex and Liz that they hadn't seen in over a decade, so everyone had a good time catching up. Which is, tbh, a classic Katsucon experience, since so damn many people go.
The first programming we went to was an absolutely delightful performance by Special for Princess!- or should I say Nice? XD Nice Arneb Thunder was MCing and they did a fucking incredible job. like. not to spoil it or anything, but this was such a highlight of my day, idk if anything topped it :0
Also, the esupuri group was just really sweet!!! They seemed so excited and a little surprised that so many people had come out to see them ;w; But seriously, they were quite good and did a good combination of songs and games. The trivia was great for me and Liz, since we actually keep current with the JP stories~ Liz won a tiara for answering some 4piece trivia correctly!
We hit up the Artist Alley for a bit after that, got lost in conversation with a Nagisa cosplayer who usually cosplays Double Face Kohaku, and I was blown away by their gorgeous ita bag. They had so many can badges from the DF TRIP album *w*
....and then we remembered we woke up balls early and Liz & I hadn't eaten :T So after debating a few options, we made our way to our tried and true katsu food: Mezeh. They opened sometime between katsu 2017 and 2018, and we've gone basically every year since. It's affordable and actually filling, especially since they have fresh veggies. Sometimes you gotta get some greens in you- especially at a con!!!
not me sounding like an ad read for my favorite fast casual restaurant lmao
The dealers room is a bit of a blur to me because it's soooooo big and there's so much to see, but I remember it being.....fun? Busy? It was probably one of the more cramped places at the con, but that was partially because some people are just rude. Many people shoving their way through...I didn't come with much money cuz it was a last minute decision to even go, so I wasn't sure about buying anything besides maybe something small from the idol goods booth. But since the idol goods booth wasn't there this year (?????), I ended up getting a new ita bag~
I'd seen it around on insta and lusted over it, so now it is mine!! I'm planning something around Double Face's TRIP album for it OwO
And then we had to hustle to finish artist alley before it closed, cuz we weren't coming back on Sunday D: Liz and I weren't planning on spending any more money, but 1) Alex wanted to buy more stuff and 2) we still wanted to see all of it. And in the end we did buy more XD We got a few more Trigun charms from![[instagram.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/profile_icons/instagram.png)
magpiesoddities, because we've been collecting their super chibi ones since Stampede came out~ They also gave us a free plantcest sticker for being men of culture (perverts).
uhhhhhh what did we do after that..............
OH RIGHT!!! Liz and I chilled on a bench sorta new the dealers room/artist alley area while Alex went to the MXTX photoshoot, and basically just took in the sights. I love people watching at cons :D We also got to help some youths (late teens/early 20s maybe?) learn the ways of Caramelldansen. They knew the dance and song, and it sounded like they'd heard people used to dance to it at cons? So they were trying to figure out how to bring it back. So while it was a conversation that made me feel very old, it was quite wholesome.
After debating back and forth a bunch, we ended up eating dinner at the grab and go place in the Gaylord. It wasn't necessarily "cheap" but like...nothing in National Harbor is, you know? And we didn't have to leave the building, which was a big plus. I'd never grabbed anything from there before, so now I know that it's not half bad.
We wanted to go to the video game room next, but my corset was fucking killing me and I needed to find a family bathroom so Liz could help me loosen it (since all the handicapped stalls in the Gaylord are barely wider than regular ones). So that was quite the fucking adventure. BUT WE EVENTUALLY DID IT. And I've learned I'm never wearing a floor length anything to Katsucon again.....idk how I forgot this lesson from 2017 lmao.
Next up: video game room! And..............it kinda fucking sucked??????? Lie, the games were brought from the same people who supply them for a video game bar I go to here in Baltimore, and usually it's a much better selection?? Like how did Anime USA, a significantly smaller con than Katsucon, have such a better video game room? idk man like......it was kinda disappointing. They didn't even have Chunithm ;w; And it closed at midnight, which is baffling. Katsu used to run sooooo late into the night, I swear it was originally a 24 hour con. Maybe I'm wrong? But I've been going for 17 years now, so I'm pretty sure I'm right :T
Whatever! Alex is gonna come down so we can go to the much better video game bar here~
After we watch cookie monster and godzilla have a cage match in the hall, we were all wiped and ready to head home. So lemme share all the pics I didn't include throughout the entry, cuz it would have ended up even longer :T
( welcome to the party (many katsu pics inside) )
Happy Valentines and goodnight from the boys!!!! I carried many nuis around all day but tbh it was such a rush that I barely took the time to sit, let alone take pics of them D: I will say that the cat kigu nuis with their ice cream cones were a hit with the many Double Face fans and cosplayers I ran into~
All in all, a successful day at the con!!!!! Hopefully finances will be better and I can go for the full weekend next year, but I can now say I've been going to katsu for 17 fucking years.....which is wild. Here's hoping the next 17 are even better!!!!!!
Also, she gifted me an adorable new friend, who goes absolutely perfectly with my CNstars cat nuis ;w; I also made them ice cream cones to match Madara's global exclusive card, and I think they came out really good ♥
if anything happens to my tutulong I'll just fucking die lmao
.....and then I stayed up waaaaaay too late because I'm fucking nocturnal D: Even though we had to wake up at 7 am to drive down early enough to get parking....I'm not smart :T
Liz and I didn't cosplay this year, cuz I didn't feel up to it, so I wore...a wig, a corset, and a floor length skirt XD wig is my Mayoi wig that I haven't styled yet - I pulled it out of the bag on Friday night and was delighted to discover that it's a lacefront - and the skirt is one I made for the Vampire Ball Liz and I went to in 2017. This did end up biting me in the ass because the corset ended up not sitting super well by the end of the night D: But we'll get to that later~
First thoughts on this year's katsu: holy shit I didn't realize how bad lobbyconning had gotten. I could actually move through the halls without be crushed by crowds????? Like, I was there on Saturday and I didn't feel cramped every second of the day. They did move registration to its own building, which freed up space to give Artist Alley a larger location, but still. It was really nice to be able to breathe during the con.
After getting our badges, we ran into some friends of Alex and Liz that they hadn't seen in over a decade, so everyone had a good time catching up. Which is, tbh, a classic Katsucon experience, since so damn many people go.
The first programming we went to was an absolutely delightful performance by Special for Princess!- or should I say Nice? XD Nice Arneb Thunder was MCing and they did a fucking incredible job. like. not to spoil it or anything, but this was such a highlight of my day, idk if anything topped it :0
Also, the esupuri group was just really sweet!!! They seemed so excited and a little surprised that so many people had come out to see them ;w; But seriously, they were quite good and did a good combination of songs and games. The trivia was great for me and Liz, since we actually keep current with the JP stories~ Liz won a tiara for answering some 4piece trivia correctly!
We hit up the Artist Alley for a bit after that, got lost in conversation with a Nagisa cosplayer who usually cosplays Double Face Kohaku, and I was blown away by their gorgeous ita bag. They had so many can badges from the DF TRIP album *w*
....and then we remembered we woke up balls early and Liz & I hadn't eaten :T So after debating a few options, we made our way to our tried and true katsu food: Mezeh. They opened sometime between katsu 2017 and 2018, and we've gone basically every year since. It's affordable and actually filling, especially since they have fresh veggies. Sometimes you gotta get some greens in you- especially at a con!!!
The dealers room is a bit of a blur to me because it's soooooo big and there's so much to see, but I remember it being.....fun? Busy? It was probably one of the more cramped places at the con, but that was partially because some people are just rude. Many people shoving their way through...I didn't come with much money cuz it was a last minute decision to even go, so I wasn't sure about buying anything besides maybe something small from the idol goods booth. But since the idol goods booth wasn't there this year (?????), I ended up getting a new ita bag~
I'd seen it around on insta and lusted over it, so now it is mine!! I'm planning something around Double Face's TRIP album for it OwO
And then we had to hustle to finish artist alley before it closed, cuz we weren't coming back on Sunday D: Liz and I weren't planning on spending any more money, but 1) Alex wanted to buy more stuff and 2) we still wanted to see all of it. And in the end we did buy more XD We got a few more Trigun charms from
magpiesoddities, because we've been collecting their super chibi ones since Stampede came out~ They also gave us a free plantcest sticker for being men of culture (perverts).uhhhhhh what did we do after that..............
OH RIGHT!!! Liz and I chilled on a bench sorta new the dealers room/artist alley area while Alex went to the MXTX photoshoot, and basically just took in the sights. I love people watching at cons :D We also got to help some youths (late teens/early 20s maybe?) learn the ways of Caramelldansen. They knew the dance and song, and it sounded like they'd heard people used to dance to it at cons? So they were trying to figure out how to bring it back. So while it was a conversation that made me feel very old, it was quite wholesome.
After debating back and forth a bunch, we ended up eating dinner at the grab and go place in the Gaylord. It wasn't necessarily "cheap" but like...nothing in National Harbor is, you know? And we didn't have to leave the building, which was a big plus. I'd never grabbed anything from there before, so now I know that it's not half bad.
We wanted to go to the video game room next, but my corset was fucking killing me and I needed to find a family bathroom so Liz could help me loosen it (since all the handicapped stalls in the Gaylord are barely wider than regular ones). So that was quite the fucking adventure. BUT WE EVENTUALLY DID IT. And I've learned I'm never wearing a floor length anything to Katsucon again.....idk how I forgot this lesson from 2017 lmao.
Next up: video game room! And..............it kinda fucking sucked??????? Lie, the games were brought from the same people who supply them for a video game bar I go to here in Baltimore, and usually it's a much better selection?? Like how did Anime USA, a significantly smaller con than Katsucon, have such a better video game room? idk man like......it was kinda disappointing. They didn't even have Chunithm ;w; And it closed at midnight, which is baffling. Katsu used to run sooooo late into the night, I swear it was originally a 24 hour con. Maybe I'm wrong? But I've been going for 17 years now, so I'm pretty sure I'm right :T
Whatever! Alex is gonna come down so we can go to the much better video game bar here~
After we watch cookie monster and godzilla have a cage match in the hall, we were all wiped and ready to head home. So lemme share all the pics I didn't include throughout the entry, cuz it would have ended up even longer :T
Happy Valentines and goodnight from the boys!!!! I carried many nuis around all day but tbh it was such a rush that I barely took the time to sit, let alone take pics of them D: I will say that the cat kigu nuis with their ice cream cones were a hit with the many Double Face fans and cosplayers I ran into~
All in all, a successful day at the con!!!!! Hopefully finances will be better and I can go for the full weekend next year, but I can now say I've been going to katsu for 17 fucking years.....which is wild. Here's hoping the next 17 are even better!!!!!!
An actual up to date little post of nice things
Feb. 18th, 2026 07:15 pmthisbluespiritI thought it might make a change to write something here and post it straight away, instead of in two weeks or three or four months, idk, shocking but still. (I continue as before, getting a little more useful with every few days.) In the meantime, here are some fannish things that made me happy in this last week:
1. Another Enigma fic! \o/ 0_o
All Tapped Out (665 words) by misura
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Enigma (2001)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Tom Jericho/Hester Wallace
Characters: Tom Jericho, Hester Wallace, Wigram (Enigma 2001)
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Vignette, Missions Gone Wrong
Summary: “What the bloody hell was that?”
2. Sesskasays, whose Classic Who reactions I have enjoyed so much... is going to be doing Blake's 7! I did not dare really hope, but yay. I cannot wait for her to meet Servalan.
3. Small Prophets, on the iPlayer, a 6-part comedy from Mackenzie Crook, who did The Detectorists. It has all the mix of slow build, appreciation of small things & being v down to earth of the former, with actual supernatural ingredient in shape of six humunculi that Michael Sleep (Pearce Quigley) grows in his garden shed, for reasons. I haven't watched most of ep6 yet, but cannot imagine it producing any reason in the last 27 minutes for me not to rec it warmly here.
4. Another magnitude of miraculous on from Enigma-fic - a Rufus/Adam vidlet for A Fatal Inversion (Jeremy Northam & Douglas Hodge in 1991/2) from someone on YT:
Like. This is why I wrote Rufus/Adam fic that nobody wanted! And this doesn't even have the shots with the dinner party and the make up, but, lol, I feel like it is a much more compelling argument for watching it than me saying it's very good. XD
Anyway, creative people continue to be a Good Thing is all. <3
1. Another Enigma fic! \o/ 0_o
All Tapped Out (665 words) by misura
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Enigma (2001)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Tom Jericho/Hester Wallace
Characters: Tom Jericho, Hester Wallace, Wigram (Enigma 2001)
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Vignette, Missions Gone Wrong
Summary: “What the bloody hell was that?”
2. Sesskasays, whose Classic Who reactions I have enjoyed so much... is going to be doing Blake's 7! I did not dare really hope, but yay. I cannot wait for her to meet Servalan.
3. Small Prophets, on the iPlayer, a 6-part comedy from Mackenzie Crook, who did The Detectorists. It has all the mix of slow build, appreciation of small things & being v down to earth of the former, with actual supernatural ingredient in shape of six humunculi that Michael Sleep (Pearce Quigley) grows in his garden shed, for reasons. I haven't watched most of ep6 yet, but cannot imagine it producing any reason in the last 27 minutes for me not to rec it warmly here.
4. Another magnitude of miraculous on from Enigma-fic - a Rufus/Adam vidlet for A Fatal Inversion (Jeremy Northam & Douglas Hodge in 1991/2) from someone on YT:
Like. This is why I wrote Rufus/Adam fic that nobody wanted! And this doesn't even have the shots with the dinner party and the make up, but, lol, I feel like it is a much more compelling argument for watching it than me saying it's very good. XD
Anyway, creative people continue to be a Good Thing is all. <3
What I was watching... um... in summer?
Feb. 17th, 2026 08:33 pmthisbluespiritI've had this post stashed away since late November, meaning to come back to it and write something more sensible about The Stone Tape that wasn't how much I wanted to icon Jane Asher's face. The reviews were already at least a couple months out of date, I think. Then life intervened and alas, I have even less brain now than then, so I should get on and post it anyway.
Eye in the Sky (2015)
This was one of the later things I pulled off Jeremy Northam's CV. The JN tumblrs reckoned it was a good one - and it was.
It's about an international military and political operation to capture the three top leaders of an Islamist extremist group in Somalia, with various layers of people involved via video conference - the UK Colonel in charge (Helen Mirren), the US soldiers running the 'eye in the sky' (Aaron Paul, Phoebe Fox), the Somali agents on the ground (esp. Barkhad Abdi), and a small group overseeing it from a meeting room in Whitehall (Alan Rickman as General Benson, Jeremy Northam as the Minister in charge, Monica Dolan as PR), plus various others who need to be consulted, including Iain Glen as the Foreign Secretary. And right there in the middle of it all, is Alia (Aisha Takow), a child who lives close to the target house.
( Cut for more details )
Smartly made modern film, but also exactly the kind of knotty moral problem and intelligent writing you'd have got in a Play of the Month.
Talking of which...
Nigel Kneale's The Stone Tape (BBC 1972)
I this via Talking Pictures, after having heard of it forever, and it was great! I really loved it. The creepy concept, the scientific approach - I really wished I had screencaps so I could icon Jane Asher in it (she was wonderful generally, not just icon-able) and everything. The way that the misogyny was used was also great, and took me by surprise because I had felt my one other Nigel Kneale did give way to a 1960s/70s misogynistic trope that I had seen too often by that point, but perhaps the "seen too often" part was more of the problem, because this just made me sit up and do the, "Oh. oh" moment for real. Highly recommended if you like any brand of creepy UK 70s TV. (It IS creepy/disturbing, though. This is not a chirpy watch that will end well, please do note). It starred some other people who weren't Jane Asher, too, like Iain Cutherbertson and they were all also good, I just didn't want to icon them and their face and their red hair in quite the same way. XD
So glad I finally watched it & I enjoyed it even in summer, when I so often can't manage TV downstairs.
Official Secrets (2019)
EitS having been so good, when I realised that this one (featuring one of the 2 brief cameos that are all JN has done since 2016) was also directed by Gavin Hood, I checked for a cheap copy & obtained it poste haste. I really liked this too, and watching them close together made me think even more highly of both - this is the story of a real incident from 2002, while EitS is a theoretical piece behind its tension, but underneath, they're both smartly done morality plays with excellent casts. (Incidentally, there are 3 actors who feature in both - Monica Dolan, John Heffernan and Jeremy Northam).
When I looked up both films online the first description is always "underrated" and the Guardian apparently ran a piece for Keira Knightley's 40th earlier this year recommending a top list of her films to watch, and put Official Secrets at no. 1.
Official Secrets isn't as tightly contained as EitS, as it's based on a real UK whistleblower incident from 2002, but which ended up not having much effect, so it's a really unusual thing to tackle (& as faithfully as this - they had a lot of the real people involved in the production in some way or other). As before, it's a large but excellent cast (Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Adam Bakri, Matt Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Indira Varma & more).
( More under here, although not really spoilery )
Anyway, after watching both, I got excited by clearly liking a director's stuff, so I looked up what Gavin Hood had done since - and the answer was nothing, dammit! (Before that he did Wolverine and Ender's Game, which are not tightly done morality plays. I mean, I assume not?? But I might need to investigate the first half of his CV more closely sometime. He has something upcoming lurking on imdb, which sounds more similar, but I'm not sure if that's real, or just a production hell mythical something or other.)
Eye in the Sky (2015)
This was one of the later things I pulled off Jeremy Northam's CV. The JN tumblrs reckoned it was a good one - and it was.
It's about an international military and political operation to capture the three top leaders of an Islamist extremist group in Somalia, with various layers of people involved via video conference - the UK Colonel in charge (Helen Mirren), the US soldiers running the 'eye in the sky' (Aaron Paul, Phoebe Fox), the Somali agents on the ground (esp. Barkhad Abdi), and a small group overseeing it from a meeting room in Whitehall (Alan Rickman as General Benson, Jeremy Northam as the Minister in charge, Monica Dolan as PR), plus various others who need to be consulted, including Iain Glen as the Foreign Secretary. And right there in the middle of it all, is Alia (Aisha Takow), a child who lives close to the target house.
( Cut for more details )
Smartly made modern film, but also exactly the kind of knotty moral problem and intelligent writing you'd have got in a Play of the Month.
Talking of which...
Nigel Kneale's The Stone Tape (BBC 1972)
I this via Talking Pictures, after having heard of it forever, and it was great! I really loved it. The creepy concept, the scientific approach - I really wished I had screencaps so I could icon Jane Asher in it (she was wonderful generally, not just icon-able) and everything. The way that the misogyny was used was also great, and took me by surprise because I had felt my one other Nigel Kneale did give way to a 1960s/70s misogynistic trope that I had seen too often by that point, but perhaps the "seen too often" part was more of the problem, because this just made me sit up and do the, "Oh. oh" moment for real. Highly recommended if you like any brand of creepy UK 70s TV. (It IS creepy/disturbing, though. This is not a chirpy watch that will end well, please do note). It starred some other people who weren't Jane Asher, too, like Iain Cutherbertson and they were all also good, I just didn't want to icon them and their face and their red hair in quite the same way. XD
So glad I finally watched it & I enjoyed it even in summer, when I so often can't manage TV downstairs.
Official Secrets (2019)
EitS having been so good, when I realised that this one (featuring one of the 2 brief cameos that are all JN has done since 2016) was also directed by Gavin Hood, I checked for a cheap copy & obtained it poste haste. I really liked this too, and watching them close together made me think even more highly of both - this is the story of a real incident from 2002, while EitS is a theoretical piece behind its tension, but underneath, they're both smartly done morality plays with excellent casts. (Incidentally, there are 3 actors who feature in both - Monica Dolan, John Heffernan and Jeremy Northam).
When I looked up both films online the first description is always "underrated" and the Guardian apparently ran a piece for Keira Knightley's 40th earlier this year recommending a top list of her films to watch, and put Official Secrets at no. 1.
Official Secrets isn't as tightly contained as EitS, as it's based on a real UK whistleblower incident from 2002, but which ended up not having much effect, so it's a really unusual thing to tackle (& as faithfully as this - they had a lot of the real people involved in the production in some way or other). As before, it's a large but excellent cast (Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Adam Bakri, Matt Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Indira Varma & more).
( More under here, although not really spoilery )
Anyway, after watching both, I got excited by clearly liking a director's stuff, so I looked up what Gavin Hood had done since - and the answer was nothing, dammit! (Before that he did Wolverine and Ender's Game, which are not tightly done morality plays. I mean, I assume not?? But I might need to investigate the first half of his CV more closely sometime. He has something upcoming lurking on imdb, which sounds more similar, but I'm not sure if that's real, or just a production hell mythical something or other.)
(no subject)
Feb. 17th, 2026 11:16 ampensnestWhen I went up to bed last night, my Beast announced that the cat had peed in the bidet.
On the whole, I'm inclined to think that if Sable wishes to urinate somewhere in our bedroom suite, the bidet is about the best bet. The shower would also do, but then she'd get her feet wet and leave unwelcome little footprints everywhere.
On the other hand—why? Sable, why? You have a litter tray and an entire garden, which have between them sufficed for several years.
Sigh. Cat urine is very pungent, and the anti-urine spray is not much less unpleasant.
*
Still. I woke up with a horrendous cold this morning so I'm probably not getting the full, er, impact of the smell.
*moan*
On the whole, I'm inclined to think that if Sable wishes to urinate somewhere in our bedroom suite, the bidet is about the best bet. The shower would also do, but then she'd get her feet wet and leave unwelcome little footprints everywhere.
On the other hand—why? Sable, why? You have a litter tray and an entire garden, which have between them sufficed for several years.
Sigh. Cat urine is very pungent, and the anti-urine spray is not much less unpleasant.
*
Still. I woke up with a horrendous cold this morning so I'm probably not getting the full, er, impact of the smell.
*moan*
Books and comics read in January 2026
Feb. 14th, 2026 12:34 pmusuallyhatsAll Consuming: Why We Eat the Way We Eat Now - Ruby Tandoh
The Tomb of Dragons - Katherine Addison
The Grapples of Wrath - Alice Bell
A Case of Mice and Murder - Sally Smith
No Such Thing As Duty - Lara Elena Donnelly
Inventing the Renaissance - Ada Palmer
Secrets of the First School - TL Huchu
An Oresteia - Aeschylus, Euripides, Sophocles trans Anne Carson
In the Shadow of the Ship - Aliette de Bodard
So my resolution to DNF more is certainly going... well?
First in a series (of which I accidentally read the second one first, oops) of murder mysteries set in the Inner Temple around the turn of the century, in which one of the lawyers keeps getting dragooned into solving mysteries instead of spending all day solving difficult legal puzzles, as he'd prefer. The setting is very well drawn, as is the lead character (who by today's standards would be described as aroace and sitting somewhere in the overlap between autism, OCD and anxiety) - even with only two books out his development is already promising, but I also loved that he's never cold; right from the first time we meet him, he's trying to meet other people with kindness and sympathy, even if he doesn't entirely understand their emotions or why illogical platitudes help.
This first one suffered a bit from the solution to the mystery not quite landing - more of a "sure, I suppose that makes sense" than an "of COURSE" - but the second one is already better on that front, so hopefully the author will hit her stride with that aspect as well.
Secrets of the First School - TL Huchu
Final volume in the Edinburgh Nights series, in which teenage ghost talker Ropa Moyo gets increasingly tangled up in magical goings on in near future slightly AU Scotland. I feel like this series has always had pacing problems, and this volume is no exception - I could have done with one more book to give all the twists and revelations slightly more time to land - plus it's been frustrating to see Ropa keep on yoyo-ing between "I must do everything alone! No wait I have friends and allies! But I must ignore them and do everything alone!". But those problems aside, I've really enjoyed this series, and I'm sorry that it seems to have been flying under the radar a bit, there's so much good stuff in it.
In the Shadow of the Ship - Aliette de Bodard
De Bodard has been more miss than hit recently, but I liked this one a fair bit! I would have preferred it either without the romance or with more development for the romance than the page count allowed, but otherwise, a nice solid little slice of the Xuya universe.
Didn't finish:
What if the late 18th century, but with magic? This slightly fell between two stools for me - it's not quite weighty enough to be serious, and a bit too serious to be fun.
The Iron Below Remembers - Sharang Biswas
I just don't enjoy prose superheroes - I keep trying, but there it is. There was a lot else in this novella that I liked, but... prose superheroes. They just don't have the weight for me of their comics counterparts, and it made the superhero characters in this feel underdeveloped.
Project Hanuman - Stewart Hotston
I wanted to like this, but it felt like the prose style was fighting me, and I didn't quite like it enough to soldier on. (It didn't help that it was FULL of typos, what is going on at Angry Robot.)
The Tomb of Dragons - Katherine Addison
The Grapples of Wrath - Alice Bell
A Case of Mice and Murder - Sally Smith
No Such Thing As Duty - Lara Elena Donnelly
Inventing the Renaissance - Ada Palmer
Secrets of the First School - TL Huchu
An Oresteia - Aeschylus, Euripides, Sophocles trans Anne Carson
In the Shadow of the Ship - Aliette de Bodard
So my resolution to DNF more is certainly going... well?
A Case of Mice and Murder - Sally Smith, Secrets of the First School - TL Huchu, In the Shadow of the Ship - Aliette de Bodard
A Case of Mice and MurderFirst in a series (of which I accidentally read the second one first, oops) of murder mysteries set in the Inner Temple around the turn of the century, in which one of the lawyers keeps getting dragooned into solving mysteries instead of spending all day solving difficult legal puzzles, as he'd prefer. The setting is very well drawn, as is the lead character (who by today's standards would be described as aroace and sitting somewhere in the overlap between autism, OCD and anxiety) - even with only two books out his development is already promising, but I also loved that he's never cold; right from the first time we meet him, he's trying to meet other people with kindness and sympathy, even if he doesn't entirely understand their emotions or why illogical platitudes help.
This first one suffered a bit from the solution to the mystery not quite landing - more of a "sure, I suppose that makes sense" than an "of COURSE" - but the second one is already better on that front, so hopefully the author will hit her stride with that aspect as well.
Secrets of the First School - TL Huchu
Final volume in the Edinburgh Nights series, in which teenage ghost talker Ropa Moyo gets increasingly tangled up in magical goings on in near future slightly AU Scotland. I feel like this series has always had pacing problems, and this volume is no exception - I could have done with one more book to give all the twists and revelations slightly more time to land - plus it's been frustrating to see Ropa keep on yoyo-ing between "I must do everything alone! No wait I have friends and allies! But I must ignore them and do everything alone!". But those problems aside, I've really enjoyed this series, and I'm sorry that it seems to have been flying under the radar a bit, there's so much good stuff in it.
In the Shadow of the Ship - Aliette de Bodard
De Bodard has been more miss than hit recently, but I liked this one a fair bit! I would have preferred it either without the romance or with more development for the romance than the page count allowed, but otherwise, a nice solid little slice of the Xuya universe.
Didn't finish:
A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians - HG Parry, The Iron Below Remembers - Sharang Biswas, Project Hanuman - Stewart Hotston
A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians - HG ParryWhat if the late 18th century, but with magic? This slightly fell between two stools for me - it's not quite weighty enough to be serious, and a bit too serious to be fun.
The Iron Below Remembers - Sharang Biswas
I just don't enjoy prose superheroes - I keep trying, but there it is. There was a lot else in this novella that I liked, but... prose superheroes. They just don't have the weight for me of their comics counterparts, and it made the superhero characters in this feel underdeveloped.
Project Hanuman - Stewart Hotston
I wanted to like this, but it felt like the prose style was fighting me, and I didn't quite like it enough to soldier on. (It didn't help that it was FULL of typos, what is going on at Angry Robot.)
Oh right, it's Friday!
Feb. 13th, 2026 06:27 pmgoodbyebirdFanart Friday ahoy :D
Absolute Wonder Woman
absolute wonder woman by asianfisherman @ bluesky. Our favorite lady and her favorite Pegasus. LOVE the profile of Diana here, the tousled hair, the palette. Perfection.
Absolute Wonder Woman by ohvalkyrie @ bluesky. Unusually angled profile, lovely coloring.
A3 commission by getcampbell @ bluesky. Moody black and white ink drawing.
Really loving Absolute Wonder Woman right now by camartstuff @ bluesky. Full bodied hairporn goddess.
horse girls by crowwkui @ bsky. Diana and Kara, super cute!
Princesses of the Underworld by dylanmacri @ bsky. Hades crossover, very adorable, much muscle.
I still don't know how to spot if certain bsky posts are locked when you don't have an account... sorry if some don't load for you.
Absolute Wonder Woman
absolute wonder woman by asianfisherman @ bluesky. Our favorite lady and her favorite Pegasus. LOVE the profile of Diana here, the tousled hair, the palette. Perfection.
Absolute Wonder Woman by ohvalkyrie @ bluesky. Unusually angled profile, lovely coloring.
A3 commission by getcampbell @ bluesky. Moody black and white ink drawing.
Really loving Absolute Wonder Woman right now by camartstuff @ bluesky. Full bodied hairporn goddess.
horse girls by crowwkui @ bsky. Diana and Kara, super cute!
Princesses of the Underworld by dylanmacri @ bsky. Hades crossover, very adorable, much muscle.
I still don't know how to spot if certain bsky posts are locked when you don't have an account... sorry if some don't load for you.
I feel conspired against.
Feb. 13th, 2026 11:17 amgoodbyebird+ So.
Night one of trying to go straight to bed: slice my finger open on my razor in the cabinet as I reach for my toothbrush. Spend 25 minutes applying tissue paper waiting for the bleeding to stop before sullenly getting dressed and going to find a bandaid.
Night two, as I'm clearing supper away, a cheerful announcement in the mess hall: we have an extra GB of Internet each! ...That we have to use before midnight and it rolls over to the next week. Well. I can't let that go to waste but hey, I just bought a bunch of comics, they'll eat that GB for breakfast.
iPad: What is this wifi you speak of? Haven't heard of it, I'm not connecting to that.
Me: *beleaguered sigh* I can't not use it. *goes on YouTube and stays up way too late*
+ Anyways. I comfort bought a bunch of comics? Because the pre-order code for the Mitski tickets did in fact not arrive and so no concert for me *sullenly kicks rocks*. It looks like I could have paired it with the Gentleman Jack ballet, and I think the Marie Antoinette exhibit is still on at the VA? Was starting to slowly form a plan and now it ain't happening.
Comics though!
- pre-ordered vol2 of Absolute Wonder Woman, it was 50% off and that seems so silly to me.
- Vol 5 & 6 of Poison Ivy. The joy of realizing I was that far behind :DDD I'm two thirds through vol5 and it may be my favorite?
- Voyager: Way Home 5 issue mini concluded, I picked those up. omnomnom more Janeway.
- Nice House by the Sea vol1 for my creepy lil alien guy making poor decisions about his blorbos.
- Daredevil & Echo mini bc sale and pretty art.
- Defenders: Beyond bc it looked like a fun romp (I should re-read Saladin's Exiles tbh)
- Kaya vol1. Been wanting to for a while due to the art I've seen, and once again: sale.
+ Things I'd like to do when I'm home:
Post that Top 10 prematurely cancelled series list I wanted to do for Snowflake.
Festivids recs.
Get![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
intw_amc rolling.
Last masterpost from forsquares.
Play Dune Awakening, they've made it much easier to jump back in thank fuck.
Maybe the ABC of comics I saw on BlueSky that looked fun.
Open laptop. Make shiny squares. Possibly shiny vid.
Work on my layout.
Update scrapbook.
+ it's just TWO MORE DAYS you can do it Self! Let's go lesbians etcetera.
Night one of trying to go straight to bed: slice my finger open on my razor in the cabinet as I reach for my toothbrush. Spend 25 minutes applying tissue paper waiting for the bleeding to stop before sullenly getting dressed and going to find a bandaid.
Night two, as I'm clearing supper away, a cheerful announcement in the mess hall: we have an extra GB of Internet each! ...That we have to use before midnight and it rolls over to the next week. Well. I can't let that go to waste but hey, I just bought a bunch of comics, they'll eat that GB for breakfast.
iPad: What is this wifi you speak of? Haven't heard of it, I'm not connecting to that.
Me: *beleaguered sigh* I can't not use it. *goes on YouTube and stays up way too late*
+ Anyways. I comfort bought a bunch of comics? Because the pre-order code for the Mitski tickets did in fact not arrive and so no concert for me *sullenly kicks rocks*. It looks like I could have paired it with the Gentleman Jack ballet, and I think the Marie Antoinette exhibit is still on at the VA? Was starting to slowly form a plan and now it ain't happening.
Comics though!
- pre-ordered vol2 of Absolute Wonder Woman, it was 50% off and that seems so silly to me.
- Vol 5 & 6 of Poison Ivy. The joy of realizing I was that far behind :DDD I'm two thirds through vol5 and it may be my favorite?
- Voyager: Way Home 5 issue mini concluded, I picked those up. omnomnom more Janeway.
- Nice House by the Sea vol1 for my creepy lil alien guy making poor decisions about his blorbos.
- Daredevil & Echo mini bc sale and pretty art.
- Defenders: Beyond bc it looked like a fun romp (I should re-read Saladin's Exiles tbh)
- Kaya vol1. Been wanting to for a while due to the art I've seen, and once again: sale.
+ Things I'd like to do when I'm home:
Post that Top 10 prematurely cancelled series list I wanted to do for Snowflake.
Festivids recs.
Get
intw_amc rolling. Play Dune Awakening, they've made it much easier to jump back in thank fuck.
Maybe the ABC of comics I saw on BlueSky that looked fun.
Open laptop. Make shiny squares. Possibly shiny vid.
Work on my layout.
Update scrapbook.
+ it's just TWO MORE DAYS you can do it Self! Let's go lesbians etcetera.
Movie Night~
Feb. 12th, 2026 02:30 amsetsuntamewMOVIE NIGHT!!!! Liz, Pat, and I went to see Iron Lung, since Pat expressed interest and I love any excuse to get out of the house to do stuff. We had a great dinner of Costco Hot Dogs™ before going to my favorite movie theater of all time: the Ancient Egypt themed one~
and of course I brought Double Face along!!! I needed them to meet Anubis (clearly)
also Madara's kigu has a big enough tail that I could pose him standing up on the sphinx and I love that for him~
The movie itself was really good! It's not the type of horror that I usually go for - I dislike post-apocalyptic settings, space, and "trapped in a ship" horror - but since I didn't read up on it at all that's on me XD Plus, I'm always down to go to a thing a friend wants to do. And I'm glad I saw it despite it not being a thing I would have sought out, if that makes sense? The cinematography was fucking gorgeous; I kept getting lost in how incredible the lighting was.
ALSO THE BLOOD WAS SO RED IT WAS GREAT!!!!! I don't wanna spoil anything for anyone interested in seeing it, but it was just *mwah* The special effects were honestly stellar and I really like a lot of the choices made (like having some of the blood coagulate into things that looked like barnacles growing into the ship).
Downside is that it's the kind of horror that made me stressed for like 2 hours and then...I'm still lowkey stressed D: It didn't give me the release horror usually does, but it did for Pat so I think it's a personal preference. He absolutely loved it and is gonna be chewing on it for awhile.
Anyway, I also had to grab a few shots of the nuis in the mini arcade in the theater lobby. I got these kigus off aliexpress because labubu clothes (mostly) fit on the pattythree enstars nuis, and I got them like right before it got super icy cold out. So obviously I have to fix that~
aren't they precious???? I'm extra jazzed about getting them with claw machines because of Kohaku's card from Spring Night and the current top-up theming in globalstars *w*
Also, Liz managed to dig the car most of the way out!!! We have suuuuuch a long driveway that it's taken quite awhile, but now that it's been slightly warmer for a couple days, it's finally doable. And I apparently have a doctor's appointment on Friday, so I need to be able to get there.
I'M DONE WITH SNOW. It was nice for awhile but oh my god. I'm over it!!!!!!!!
and of course I brought Double Face along!!! I needed them to meet Anubis (clearly)
also Madara's kigu has a big enough tail that I could pose him standing up on the sphinx and I love that for him~
The movie itself was really good! It's not the type of horror that I usually go for - I dislike post-apocalyptic settings, space, and "trapped in a ship" horror - but since I didn't read up on it at all that's on me XD Plus, I'm always down to go to a thing a friend wants to do. And I'm glad I saw it despite it not being a thing I would have sought out, if that makes sense? The cinematography was fucking gorgeous; I kept getting lost in how incredible the lighting was.
ALSO THE BLOOD WAS SO RED IT WAS GREAT!!!!! I don't wanna spoil anything for anyone interested in seeing it, but it was just *mwah* The special effects were honestly stellar and I really like a lot of the choices made (like having some of the blood coagulate into things that looked like barnacles growing into the ship).
Downside is that it's the kind of horror that made me stressed for like 2 hours and then...I'm still lowkey stressed D: It didn't give me the release horror usually does, but it did for Pat so I think it's a personal preference. He absolutely loved it and is gonna be chewing on it for awhile.
Anyway, I also had to grab a few shots of the nuis in the mini arcade in the theater lobby. I got these kigus off aliexpress because labubu clothes (mostly) fit on the pattythree enstars nuis, and I got them like right before it got super icy cold out. So obviously I have to fix that~
aren't they precious???? I'm extra jazzed about getting them with claw machines because of Kohaku's card from Spring Night and the current top-up theming in globalstars *w*
Also, Liz managed to dig the car most of the way out!!! We have suuuuuch a long driveway that it's taken quite awhile, but now that it's been slightly warmer for a couple days, it's finally doable. And I apparently have a doctor's appointment on Friday, so I need to be able to get there.
I'M DONE WITH SNOW. It was nice for awhile but oh my god. I'm over it!!!!!!!!
Starfall Stories 52
Feb. 11th, 2026 08:31 pmthisbluespiritStill catching up on crossposting some rainbowfic:
Name: Sweet Interlude
Story: Starfall
Colors: Vert #11 (Marriage)
Supplies and Styles: Silhouette
Word Count: 2343
Rating: PG
Warnings: None?
Notes: Portcallan, 1313; Leion Valerno/Viyony Eseray. (A rather slight linking piece).
Summary: Leion and Viyony attend a wedding.
rainbowfic:Name: Sweet Interlude
Story: Starfall
Colors: Vert #11 (Marriage)
Supplies and Styles: Silhouette
Word Count: 2343
Rating: PG
Warnings: None?
Notes: Portcallan, 1313; Leion Valerno/Viyony Eseray. (A rather slight linking piece).
Summary: Leion and Viyony attend a wedding.
I'm resorting to bribery.
Feb. 11th, 2026 09:45 amgoodbyebird+ Doing poorly at getting enough sleep. I hereby decree that if I go straight in the shower and then straight to bed after work for the remainder of the trip, I get to order a batch of the damaged chocolates from Jentene På Tunet the next time the offer comes up + one new tarot deck (or just the oversized Buffy one? idk).
+ We did get two more days of orcas last week. Day one was just a solo boisterous youngling aggressively darting after the net, but the next day? The biggest pod yet! And best of all: after the net was up on deck they slowly glided alongside the ship, letting me observe them from the deck under water (which was crystal clear that day). I stood outside until all feeling left my hands and snot was running freely. ( Read more... )
+ Comics! My brain is so cooked, the only reading I've attempted was the physical trade of Batman: Secret Files that I picked up for a song during the New Year's sale. Made it half-way through the first story before my brain went "no thanks, I'm full". And I know The Gardener is in there! Brain tired. Sucks.
Know what doesn't suck? Poison Ivy still has an ongoing written by G Willow Wilson and Harley is in it as well and it is beauuutifull. Vol 2 of Absolute Wonder Woman is dropping in a few days. Meanwhile THIS HERE is Diana showing up in Absolute Batman (the writing is excellent, but THE LOOK woohee).
I'm waiting for it to be collected, but Harley & Ivy is bringing so much cuteness. Lookit!
+ I really wanna whine about work but I'm not gonna. Big sigh though.
+ hrrmm I need to cut my nails.
+ We did get two more days of orcas last week. Day one was just a solo boisterous youngling aggressively darting after the net, but the next day? The biggest pod yet! And best of all: after the net was up on deck they slowly glided alongside the ship, letting me observe them from the deck under water (which was crystal clear that day). I stood outside until all feeling left my hands and snot was running freely. ( Read more... )
+ Comics! My brain is so cooked, the only reading I've attempted was the physical trade of Batman: Secret Files that I picked up for a song during the New Year's sale. Made it half-way through the first story before my brain went "no thanks, I'm full". And I know The Gardener is in there! Brain tired. Sucks.
Know what doesn't suck? Poison Ivy still has an ongoing written by G Willow Wilson and Harley is in it as well and it is beauuutifull. Vol 2 of Absolute Wonder Woman is dropping in a few days. Meanwhile THIS HERE is Diana showing up in Absolute Batman (the writing is excellent, but THE LOOK woohee).
I'm waiting for it to be collected, but Harley & Ivy is bringing so much cuteness. Lookit!
+ I really wanna whine about work but I'm not gonna. Big sigh though.
+ hrrmm I need to cut my nails.
Madara Mikejima Robbed Me Blind
Feb. 11th, 2026 01:27 amsetsuntamewSo, after nearly two years, I've finally changed my profile in engstars...
BECAUSE I GOT MADARA'S GLOBAL EXCLUSIVE CARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so excited; he looks so good and I love him and I do not want to talk about how much I spent to max this card XD Very glad to have a supportive wife (who also maxed a global gacha card last year, so we're in it together lmao).
Also, I wanna change the card layout to include Kohaku at some point but I'm not feeling creative enough XD So right now it's just Mr. Ice Cream Thief as a testament to myspending problem devotion ♥
sobs I love them ;w;
I wanna make some new icons with his new outfit but I have to figure out what MV(s) to record him in...it's such a specific look that I feel like I don't quite know where I wanna put him :T
also I have icon challenges I wanna do but my brain is just MAMAMAMAMAMAMAAA soooooo
BECAUSE I GOT MADARA'S GLOBAL EXCLUSIVE CARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so excited; he looks so good and I love him and I do not want to talk about how much I spent to max this card XD Very glad to have a supportive wife (who also maxed a global gacha card last year, so we're in it together lmao).
Also, I wanna change the card layout to include Kohaku at some point but I'm not feeling creative enough XD So right now it's just Mr. Ice Cream Thief as a testament to my
sobs I love them ;w;
I wanna make some new icons with his new outfit but I have to figure out what MV(s) to record him in...it's such a specific look that I feel like I don't quite know where I wanna put him :T
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY WIFE ♥
Feb. 10th, 2026 11:09 pmsetsuntamew
I made them a beautiful cake in honor of Absolute starting this weekend, aka the Eden climax, aka one of the best enstars events~ Liz asked for chocolate cake and gave no other specifics, so this is what I came up with: dense chocolate cake with raspberry filling and cream cheese icing. It's incredibly rich, so we all nearly passed out after eating just a little bit XD
Oops?
Anyway, I'm actually super pleased with how it came out!!! I had a vision and actually managed to bring it to life- with some help from Pat. He made the stencil for the lotus flower and helped place a the beads for the lower border. I think I leveled up making large smooth sections of color (for the bits I wrote on) and just...wrangling this cake in general.....I love this cake but I do not love how delicate and crumbly it is. Even with a crumb coat, I was afraid it would still be a mess. And it WAS hard to work with, but not impossible.
I'm also really happy with both the gradient and these tassels~
My wife loved it, and honestly that's what matters the most!!!!
We also had szechuan delivered from one of Liz's favorite places, since they're not feeling great and didn't wanna go out ;w; Hopefully they'll be feeling better soon, since it's very unfair that they felt crummy on their birthday.
Also, Katsucon is this weekend XD So I'm sure they wanna feel better for that!!
i enjoy being a girl
Feb. 10th, 2026 05:29 pmpensnestI have acquired a rather splendid scarlet T-shirt which bears the following legend:
THINGS WE DID:
Built this city; shot the Sheriff
THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:
Start the fire; shoot the Deputy
THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Break free; know what love is
THINGS WE WILL DO:
Rock you, Anything for love
THINGS WE WON'T DO:
That.
I should like to make a feminine version. Can you help? I want phrases sung by women, in whatever context. Any suggestions for any of the categories will be considered gratefully, and I will amend this post accordingly, though bear in mind that I am old-fashioned and may not recognise them all!
THINGS WE DID:
THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:
THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Zig a zig Ah
be loved by you
danced with somebody
have fun
build a snowman
THINGS WE WILL DO:
survive!
come out of the kitchen
always love you
THINGS WE WON'T DO:
be seen and not heard
THINGS WE CAN'T DO:
say no
THINGS WE NEED:
a hero
Interesting how different these are from the bloke version! Thanks for contributions so far, and I would be delighted to have some more.
THINGS WE DID:
Built this city; shot the Sheriff
THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:
Start the fire; shoot the Deputy
THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Break free; know what love is
THINGS WE WILL DO:
Rock you, Anything for love
THINGS WE WON'T DO:
That.
I should like to make a feminine version. Can you help? I want phrases sung by women, in whatever context. Any suggestions for any of the categories will be considered gratefully, and I will amend this post accordingly, though bear in mind that I am old-fashioned and may not recognise them all!
THINGS WE DID:
THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:
THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Zig a zig Ah
be loved by you
danced with somebody
have fun
build a snowman
THINGS WE WILL DO:
survive!
come out of the kitchen
always love you
THINGS WE WON'T DO:
be seen and not heard
THINGS WE CAN'T DO:
say no
THINGS WE NEED:
a hero
Interesting how different these are from the bloke version! Thanks for contributions so far, and I would be delighted to have some more.
Spamming them linksss
Feb. 9th, 2026 03:37 pmgoodbyebird+ Butches in Books. Found a bunch I hadn't heard off, looks to be a solid list.
+ 2025 Recommended Reading List by Locus. Really appreciate the addition of a translated novels category.
+ How RPGs Became A Haven For Women In South Korea.
+ What Was Luke's Plan in 'Return of the Jedi'? The ever escalating amount of hostages XD
+ We need to talk about Fournier-Beaudry and Cizeron.
Fournier-Beaudry and Cizeron are both talented skaters from the Ice Academy of Montreal, who teamed up in 2024. They are both very striking, with beautiful skating quality that makes them captivating to new and old fans alike. But there's a darker side to the beginning of their partnership that has escaped the notice of a lot of casual fans.
+ Green's Dictionary of Slang is now available online for free. Allows lookups of word definitions and etymologies for free, and, for a subscription fee, it offers citations and more extensive search options.
+ Trans athletes may not have fitness advantage in women’s sport, landmark study finds.
Trans women in the studies were found to have significantly greater amounts of body fat than cis men, but levels comparable to those of cis women.
However, while trans women appeared to have more muscle mass, there were no observable differences in upper or lower body strength, the study found.
+ Saving this for later: Wonder Man by Abigail Nussbaum (so very likely to be good).
+ Very informative step by step recap of Bad Bunny's Half Time concert.
+ 2025 Recommended Reading List by Locus. Really appreciate the addition of a translated novels category.
+ How RPGs Became A Haven For Women In South Korea.
+ What Was Luke's Plan in 'Return of the Jedi'? The ever escalating amount of hostages XD
+ We need to talk about Fournier-Beaudry and Cizeron.
Fournier-Beaudry and Cizeron are both talented skaters from the Ice Academy of Montreal, who teamed up in 2024. They are both very striking, with beautiful skating quality that makes them captivating to new and old fans alike. But there's a darker side to the beginning of their partnership that has escaped the notice of a lot of casual fans.
+ Green's Dictionary of Slang is now available online for free. Allows lookups of word definitions and etymologies for free, and, for a subscription fee, it offers citations and more extensive search options.
+ Trans athletes may not have fitness advantage in women’s sport, landmark study finds.
Trans women in the studies were found to have significantly greater amounts of body fat than cis men, but levels comparable to those of cis women.
However, while trans women appeared to have more muscle mass, there were no observable differences in upper or lower body strength, the study found.
+ Saving this for later: Wonder Man by Abigail Nussbaum (so very likely to be good).
+ Very informative step by step recap of Bad Bunny's Half Time concert.
