This LJ is abandoned. If you'd like to friend me or look at my icons, come on over to DW:

https://tinny.dreamwidth.org/

It was a slow decline, with the crossposter that stopped working in January, and parts of the iconmaker community finally moving to DW in March... and it turned out that my flist just stopped existing. There's nobody here anymore. Huh.

I'm less sad about it than I would have been if it had happened more abruptly. But it was a constant shift towards DW that took many years.

And now I hope that the iconmaker community will persist and thrive on DW, because I'm absolutely not ready to give up my favorite hobby.

If you're looking for me, you can find me here:

https://tinny.dreamwidth.org/

If you're looking for my icons, you can find those here:

https://tinny.dreamwidth.org/tag/art-icons

If you're looking for icon challenges on DW, you can find those here:

https://icontalking.dreamwidth.org/


So this is it. It's been a fun time, from 2003 to 2022, and I hope to continue on DW for many years to come.

The crossposter is still not working, and right now, I'd calculate with it not working for at least a few more months. I hope all of you already have DW accounts, but if not, here's the summary of my public February posts (there were also two flocked posts) :

February 1
11 cdrama icons for historamedy365

February 5
100fandomicons table for 2022

February 6
10 multifandom icons for fandom10in30

February 12
Zhu Yilong Picspam: Happy New Year!

February 20
Embrace Again - Movie Review

February 28
The last 11 icons for historamedy365

I'll keep this journal because I still need to run and participate in icon challenges, but I'm not going to manually crosspost everything. I'll also keep reading my LJ flist along with my DW flist.

That said, if you want to move over to DW, I'd be very happy about that!

Quite a few of my cdrama/guardian/tomb show friends are trying to liven up their dw journals again...

Here's a friending meme that might help with that!



Dreamwidth Circle Meme

Good luck making new dw friends!

x-posted from dw (comments: )

I know I need to get back into the picspams, but today was not a day for picking and choosing... So you get all the black suit pictures I have, from August to October 2020. All of them. Since these are from 2020, I haven't run out of Bai Yu pics yet. Enjoy them while they last. ;)

Previous picspams: (red, pink, orange, yellow, light green, dark green, light blue, mid blue, dark blue, dark blue Guardian edition, purple, black1, black2 )

Full size images here in the gallery: https://postimg.cc/gallery/VMnyn0Y





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That's it! Hope you enjoyed!

x-posted from dw (comments: )

I started out quite well in November and then... everything stopped and I even forgot to make a post at the end of the month. Oops.

So here are the 13 things I wrote down in November and December.

( mostly Chinese idiomsCollapse )


I think I'll take a break from these posts for a bit now. I still need to recharge a bit more. I still find joy in learning new things, but writing them down feels like a chore. I'll start again when it feels right.

x-posted from dw (comments: )

Once Upon a Time in the East by Guo Xiaolu
Also published in the United States with the title Nine Continents: A Memoir In and Out of China

This is an autobiography by Chinese writer Guo Xiaolu. She tells her life story, from growing up with her grandparents in a poor fishing village, through her adolescent years in a factory town and her film studies in Beijing, until her emigration to Britain, all in very direct words - she doesn't spare either herself or the reader.

This is a fucking hard book to read, and I absolutely think everyone should read it. But since most people probably won't want to, I am going to pick all the best parts out of it here and quote them for you.

The book (and my list) has a ton of content warnings: abortion, abuse (physical, emotional, sexual), neglect, rape, starvation, suicide

The main point of the book - for me - is the part about self-censorship: "We in China had undergone a proletarian revolution under Mao, and yet there was barely a free thought allowed in our heads. The layers of self-censorship we had to engage in before the official censorship came to get us had already strangled any creative work. In China, creativity meant compromise. Creativity no longer bore its original and intended meaning. Creativity under a Communist regime requires the struggle to survive under such rigid rules, and for all creative thoughts to be kept to oneself."

And this isn't only relevant for people working in Chinese entertainment, or their fans. I think people don't realize how much we censor ourselves at the slightest hint of opposition, and how much worse it would be if we, too, were threatened with prison or death or the end of our careers.

This book shows China as it is - or was. (Don't think it got better since. It got worse.) Of course it's only one woman's perspective, but it's honest and doesn't hold back.

( other passages and things that impressed meCollapse )

5 stars - Great insight into Chinese life in the 70s, 80s and 90s.

This is my final book rec post of 2021. (Sorry it took me so long to write this one up.)



1 - * stars - private novel draft
2 - 4 stars - All the Birds In The Sky by Charlie Jane Anders [DW link & LJ link]
3 - 5 stars - Once Upon a Time in the East by Guo Xiaolu [DW link & LJ link]
4 - 3 stars - Whispers Underground (The Rivers of London #3) by Ben Aaronovitch [DW link & LJ link]
5 - 5 stars - Chimes at Midnight (Toby Daye #7) by Seanan McGuire [DW link & LJ link]
6 - 1 star - Too Like the Lightning (Terra Ignota #1) by Ada Palmer [DW link & LJ link]
7 - 3 stars - Dragon Wing (Death Gate Cycle #1) by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman [DW link & LJ link]

x-posted from dw (comments: )

I actually watched twice as many movies as last year! Wow! That makes... four. :D

In April, I watched

Palm Springs, a movie with Andy Samberg that _profiterole_ recommended. It's great, a fun new take on an old concept, and I loved pretty much everything about it. The way it's introduced (which is why I'm not spoiling it here), and the way it plays out, intelligently and unusually, and the way it is solved (scientifically). A great time, and in true Andy Samberg fashion, both gross and sweet, violent and caring. 8 out of 10. My fave this year.

and Into the Beat, a German teen dance movie, which didn't really come together. The dancing sequences were awesome, but the plot was not convincing, and some of the characterization decisions were cringe. There was an actual dance-off involving angry sailors - that was the weirdest thing. Otoh, the two lead actors were cute and talented, so if you're okay with the plot being a bit meh (and can handle German, I have no idea if there are subs), it's worth watching for the dancing. It is marketed as a hiphop movie, but it was much more of a modern ballet thing - which I liked. 6 out of 10.

In November, I watched

Cloudy Mountain (峰爆), Zhu Yilong's first movie of the year. I wrote an extensive review about it here. It has Zhu Yilong in it, so it's automatically perfect. ;) Nah, nope, nooo. It has nice elements, but in the end, it's a propagandistic action movie. 6 out of 10.

And in December, I watched

Single All the Way, a gay romcom. I don't actually like Luke Macfarlane, but he's not a bad actor. He did a good job here and he had chemistry with both love interests. The overall mood of the movie was very "we will love Christmas and Family under all circumstances", which is not very realistic, lol, but it wasn't grating, either. It just failed to address any and all negative outcomes. But that's fine for a happy Christmas movie. The three leads were all well characterized, well acted, and I liked them all. The plot was sweet, funny, had a tiny little bit of quickly resolved tension, and no lengths. What more can you ask of a Christmas movie? 8 out of 10.

Also, look at him! This is Philemon Chambers. I'd not seen him in anything else before, but he's extremely cute:



x-posted from dw (comments: )

I don't want to separate Chinese and other shows anymore, because there's pretty much nothing left in the non-Chinese category, let alone anything I was fannish about.

So, consolidated into one list, in order of obsession, best first. Rec posts linked from the show titles:

The Lost Tomb Reboot 25-32 of 32 eps (season 1) - First season aired on Youku and iQiyi in July/August. I watched the first ten or so in real time, and then slacked off, but still got through the first 20 or so by October. And *then* I got stuck in the f*cking warehouse arc, which is so boring that not even Zhu Yilong's face could save it. I finally managed to drag myself through it by April. (It's still my fave thing and my main fandom this year. *sigh*)
The Lost Tomb Reboot 01-04 of 30 eps (season 2) - Second season aired on Youku and iQiyi in October 2020. After the warehouse arc was finally, finally over, it was much more fun again, so much fun in fact that I didn't want to waste it and dragged my heels. I'm saving it for a rainy(er) day.
Granting You a Dreamlike Life 35 - 40 of 40 eps - If it hadn't been for our discord's rewatch, I still wouldn't be done. I wanted Luo Fusheng to live! I actually regret watching it. Apparently, my tendency to not finish shows I love is a good thing. I should do it more often.
The Romance of Tiger and Rose all 24 eps - A hilarious transmigration story about a scriptwriter who gets dropped into her own classical drama, into a side character who is supposed to die in episode 3. Main themes are meta about dramas and writing, and the central romance. It had a few slow eps in the middle where it almost felt like "normal" palace drama, but in the end, the conflicts were all solved in unusual meta/transmigration ways, so that was cool. I loved it. Wonderfully fourth-wall-breaking and making fun of classical tropes - the only kind of Chinese costume drama I can watch.
Lucifer 5x05 - 5x12 Had fun watching one ep a month together with greyathena! I loved it, and am looking forward to season 6.
Wheel of Time 3 of ? eps - I love the look of it, and I used to love the books. I like the grandiose scenery and the fact that they cast a lot of non-white actors in the main roles. I can't say much more about it at this point, but I'll stick with it for now.
Ted Lasso Season 1 - 10 eps - greyathena's new favorite show, and I admit I like it, too. :D It's about a college (American) football coach who goes to coach a British Premiere League soccer team. It's based on some funny ad by comedian Jason Sudeikis, and he made that character from the ad into a whole tv show. It's sweet and caring and funny. Ted got on my nerves something fierce the first few eps, but then he gets better. In any case, it's worth watching for the two female characters alone.
Young Royals 6 eps of a Swedish m/m romance show set in a boarding school. Very realistic (in some good and some bad ways). I did not like the ending, but loved all the rest.
The Rebel 15 of 43 eps - Very propagandistic show about spies in 1950s/1960s China. It's all about the communists being the better people and therefore winning. Meh. Zhu Yilong looks emaciated and harrowed throughout, his character suffers a lot. His haggard look is what made me stop watching in the end. *shrug* But at least the production values are high, the plots actually make sense, there is a lot of Zhu Yilong whump, the acting is good, and even the propaganda is bearable (even subtle) most of the time.
You Are My Glory all 32 eps - modern cdrama romance starring Yang Yang and Dilraba - down-to-earth and very cute romance fare with a focus on Space engineering and online gaming. Weird combination, but it worked (if you can ignore the Chinese Space Program propaganda).
My Next Life as a Villainness 9 of 12 eps - Japanese anime about a girl transmigrating into the villain character of a dating game and turning it into a harem without noticing. Funny and sweet!
Vacation of Love 1 - 9 of 32(?) eps - Bai Yu's first show in 2021. It's a romance, so he gets to kiss the girl a lot, but so many of the details about this show got on my nerves like woah. I guess a Bai Yu cut would have been a good idea.
The Ideal City all 40 eps - It stars Chen Minghao in a larger role than I had expected. Although the theme is "construction industry" (ugh), the main character is female, which is nice, and Chen Minghao is very cute. I don't regret it.
Nirvana in Fire 28 eps and counting - neery's second attempt at making me watch historical palace drama, and at least the sets and scenery are pretty. Also the costumes. I'm not invested, but I'm hanging in there.
Craving You 10 eps of 10 minutes each - a Taiwanese BL short. Not even worth talking about, very cringey (but at least not in a non-con way), but ultimately completely inconsequential. Not even the kisses could save it. At least it wasn't much of a time investment.
We Best Love "No. 1 For You" 4 of 6 eps - Taiwanese BL. This show did the exact opposite of what I'm looking for in BL. Gave up after 4 eps.
Cherry Magic all 12 short eps - Japanese BL about a man who can read people's minds because he's still a virgin when he turns 30. Nice idea, and sweet love story, but the drama insists on pretending to be an anime, and the long *long* shots of the main character freaking out annoyed me a lot - the pacing (in the micro sense) is awful.
The School Nurse Files all 6 eps - another manga adaptation, and the pacing has similar problems as Cherry Magic does: a lot of the time, the main character is simply standing around watching the scene. My main gripe with it is that it's very depressing. Could have been quirky, but the attention is constantly put on how much she hates her life.
Color Rush 2 eps of 10(?) - another BL that leans heavy on the dubcon/noncon, no thank you. I find the premise fascinating, but somehow *both* characters' motivation is "I know what's best for you and I'm going to force you to realize that". Wtf.
Vincenzo 5 eps of 12 - a kdrama starring Song Joong Ki (who I know from Sungkyungkwan Scandal) - watched this with (and at the suggestion of) our discord. Wouldn't have watched this of my own accord, but did not hate it. Main lead is pretty and his Italian is impressive.


Things I always meant to continue/start but never did:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 6
Gintama
The Expanse 2x04 -
The Good Place
You Me Her Season 3

several BL shorts on viki:
Life~Love on the Line
History4 (everyone said it sucked, so i steered clear)
Because of You

Netflix documentary
All in My Family

x-posted from dw (comments: )

This month had a very cool challenge again at somein30: Icon Crossing. You were supposed to create "child" icons out of two randomly chosen parent icons (my complete list of 20 parent pairs is here). I didn't manage all 20, but a good portion.

Teaser:
PAIR 7:
->
frilly decorations, lineart

( 14 icons + 3 altsCollapse )

This is my last icon post of 2021. It totally scratched my "remake" itch already, but if you want to pick some more icons for me to remake, go here: my thread at bestof_icons.


Comments make me happy! Concrit is appreciated, too! All icons shareable, the old and the new. Here's my resource post, check out whose brushes and textures I use.

Previous icon posts:



x-posted from dw (comments: )