I'm fairly obsessive about checking my good old GFY and make a concentrated effort not to bug you all with every post there that I find funny--but these I must share. Ron-lovers, take note.

Ginny is pretty!

So is Rupert!

And now for something different. GFY didn't much like this dress that Emma Watson wore but I adore it. Seriously. I want one in every color so I can wear it every day.

Is anyone else rereading HBP to prepare for the movie? Really, I find it hard to believe I would be the only one.

That is all. Pointless post is pointless, as they say.

Well, flist. I did it. It took two weeks, multiple confused stares from various friends/airport security guards and more than one headache but I did it. Yay!

Check out my reading list while I was on vacation:

( Vampires and werewolves and klutzy girls, oh my! )

For the question meme train_lindz asked me something that makes my heart a-flutter with joy. The answer deserves its own post, yes indeed. And here it is.

Why is Luna so awesome?

Um... because she is. Obviously.

No, okay, I have an actual answer. For me it's all about her perspective. I'm fascinated by the way she looks at the world. I feel like she sees things the rest of us don't and understands them in a way that is totally logical, if only you take the time to pause and think. Too many people, in my humble opinion and with myself included here, get so caught up in trying to finish everything they don't take the time to think properly. And thinking is a good thing. We should all do more thinking.

She's more mature than most people, Luna is. Probably losing her mother and then dealing with passive aggressive bullying did that to her, which is tragic, but somehow not because of how strong she is. And Luna is strong. She's stronger than most of the people in the book, I feel, because she doesn't ask anything of anyone and she doesn't put up with nonsense or worry about the crap that surrounds her. She just does what she thinks is right and says a kind word when she has one available.

Her scene with Harry after Sirius died is the moment she became my girl. I liked her from the moment she appeared (the wand behind her ear? genius) but that was when the true depth of her character became apparent. Strange as she is, and screwed up as her logic is to the rest of us, Luna understands people and she understands how to help them. That's no small thing.

Also the idea of her giant inappropriate laugh just plain tickles me. I love it. Those are the kind of random quirks I love, the little things that authors do that just make me so damn happy. Because it's such a contrast from the serene girl Luna usually is and yet, for me at least, it's a contrast that works.

Notice I've said nothing about the crazy animals and conspiracy theories. These are, for me, the least interesting aspects of her personality. I have very little tolerance for conspiracy theories (we went to the moon and Shakespeare wrote his own stuff; deal with it) so I just... ignore those aspects. Or use it for humor in fics. I don't feel too badly doing this, either, because I feel like her crazy theories are tangential to her character. They're a manifestation of her different perspective or even, I sometimes suspect, a mask for her to hide behind. Because despite what I just said about her strength, she is a young child teased by her peers and missing her mom and misunderstood by pretty much everyone and, yeah, she probably had to hide some of herself to get through the day. No faults there.

So yes. Luna is my girl. She's my favorite character outside the trio but she's also my favorite sole character. Because I think of the trio as a unit, as three parts that need to be together to be a whole. But Luna? Luna is a whole character all by herself. She may not be in all the books or take up many pages but she is a fully realized, independent, fascinating individual. Props to JKR for creating her. Mad props.

( More Luna talk within, this time about fanfiction. )

But one more thing: LUNA FTW!

I'm hard at work on my fic for fandomfusion right now, and have been for about two weeks. It keeps getting longer. It's astounding. I think it'll be 4,000 words by the time I'm done. Considering 1,200 words is my go-to length, this is shocking.

But I'm not here to talk about the length. I have a question about Remus. I feel like a lot of fic I read about him says he's got crazy strong werewolf metabolism and so doesn't get drunk. Is this canon? I feel like it just may be a fandom convention (or perhaps proof I need to read Remus fic outside shoebox_project) but I'm just not sure. Lexicon said nothing about it, which leads to me to think it's probably a fandom thing but I just want to check with you guys.

It's a fic about Sirius. I've never written Sirius before. I was intending to write a fic about Andromeda and Peter (odd combo, I know, but it's fic about betrayal so there could be some interesting parallels, yes?) but now I've written about Sirius. And it's long. 'Tis odd. Usually I write short Luna fic, not long Marauder fic. I don't even know how to spell Marauder. It took about seven tries to get it right here. Is it right?

Anyway. I'm on the last few paragraph now and when I'm finished, anyone feel like being a beta for me? I apologize in advance for the length but I swear it shouldn't be too difficult a job. It's not a crazy POV or anything.

Oh! While we're on the subject of fic, I never got around to telling y'all about my springtime_gen fic. I stressed over it for awhile but in the end I'm pleased so you should check it out. I even think my portrayal of Snape is decent, which is what I was most worried about. Here's the info.

Title: When Teachers Were Heroes
Summary: Some lessons even the most eager students never wanted to learn.
Word count: 1,700 (also longer than my usual!)
Characters: Hermione, Snape, McGonagall

Thank you so, so much to belladonna803 for looking it over for me and assuring me that Snape fans across the internet wouldn't throw things at me. I was legitimately concerned so thank you.

I also must link the truly wonderful fic I was given. I already posted about it but it bears repeating: My (surprise!) gift owned. Read it. Read it now.

Title: 'Til Your Frightened Eyes Do Close
Author: fannyt
Summary: Albus Dumbledore once said: "Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light." For Mr Ollivander, having Luna come join him in captivity was like finding a switch.
Word count: 3,700
Characters: Luna, Mr. Ollivander

Alright, I think that's everything. Exchanges are fun. :)

I... wait. I'm confused. My gift fic for springtime_gen has just been posted (and it's fricken AMAZING, btw) but, um, I didn't participate in the fest. Where did this fic come from? It specifically says it's for the prompt "Luna in captivity" but I know I never submitted that anywhere. I didn't fill out a prompt, I missed the deadline. That's why I was a pinch hitter instead of a proper participant. I wasn't expecting to receive anything.

Is it a mistake? Is this someone else's gift and they just put my name on accident? Or did they, I don't know, make up a prompt? If they did then that's pretty damn impressive because this is exactly the kind of fic I'd request. It's about Luna and I don't think I need to remind you exactly how I feel about her. It's about Luna and Ollivander in captivity (so something I would request) and I think you should go read it because where ever it came from and however it came to be doesn't change the fact it's well worth a read. Seriously.

Seeing as I've been all springtime_gen gaga these past few posts, attilatehbun has prodded me for recs. This, I feel, was a very good idea and in fact I can't believe I haven't done it already. But now I have. And here it is.

Young People for Progress
This is an AU, Snape-centric, first-person pov, depressing tale. So, you know, not something that's my cup of tea. It's a fantastic fic. Fantastic. Utterly chilling and so worth the read. Run, don't walk.

Recapturing Memories
Neville fans take note. This is one of the best representations of seventh-year (and beyond) Neville I've ever read. A whole host of smaller characters also make excellent cameos and McGonagall threatens to steal the show. Again, no walking to this one.

Impossible Things
Another one I wouldn't normally read, because it features time travel and I detest the idea of time travel. It's used so well here, though, that I don't mind. Lily and Ginny meet face-to-face, which sounds like it should be a horrible sentimental cliche but instead it's wonderful. The concept behind the fic is ingenious and Lily's voice is utter perfection. Ooh, and Fred makes an appearance! A good one.

Beyond the Frame
Easily the funniest one yet. The story of Sir Cadagon's attempts to recapture his honor after the password debacle in the third book and Hermione's attempts to teach him feminism. Seriously enjoyable fic and yet another one where the character's voice can only be described as utter perfection.

The Box
A very excellent mystery story featuring Vance, Augusta, McGonagall and Snape. As if that wasn't impressive enough, baby Neville makes an appearance. I repeat: Baby. Neville. What could possibly be more adorable? This author did a fantastic job a crafting a real mystery, complete with red herrings and subtle clues. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and the conclusion hit me in the gut.

And that's all for now. Happy reading!

April is National Poetry Month and though I have a very low tolerance for most poetry, the poetry I do like I love leik woah. So in honor of the genre that gave us Shakespeare, Milton and Syndey, here is a Hermione-centric R/Hr oneshot about the power of poetry (both good and bad). I tried not to be too pretentious with my poetry references but c'mon, this is poetry. A little bit of pretension may have slipped it.

For the sake of this story and this month, please assume that Hermione has some knowledge of muggle poetry, okay? Thank you.

And now, without further ado...

( The Lies Poetry Tell )

I've gone fest crazy, flist, I really have. I can't stop myself.

First it was springtime_gen. I'm not a proper participant but I did volunteer to be a pinch hitter and I'm currently hard at work on a fic that features people and places that would never even occur to me to write (I really should've read that prompt more closely before agreeing to it) but I'm actually really enjoying the challenge. It's off to a good start even if the middle is a jumble of stupid. I'm not too worried, not yet. There's still time for me to get it where I want it to be.

Then it was the CM challenge. I haven't started writing that one yet but I've been playing with different scenarios and will hopefully land on something worth writing soon. I have a very pretty, colorful image that's just begging for some happy R/Hr goodness.

And then today I signed up for femgenficathon. I've seen some of you lovely flisters talk about this in the past and was always intrigued so when I saw mention of it earlier today I made an impulse decision to join the fun. I got a quote that absolutely screams Luna but since this one is multi-fandom I might finally do the CJ or Izzy or Penny or Grace fic I've always wanted to do. We shall see. I'm excited.

(fyi: if you're able to guess what fandoms those girls belong to you're pretty damn awesome)

ETA: I just signed up for another! Beware the Ides of March, doncha know. I'm going to do fandomfusion and I'm beyond pleased that Be Somebody by Kings of Leon is my prompt because omg I freaking LOVE that song.

So I finally did it, flist. I've been threatening to do it for ages (not here, but in the big bad real world) and today I followed through.

I watched Twilight.

It's requiring all the strength I have not to go out to the store and buy the book. Not because I want to or because I think it'll be especially good but... I don't know. I must. The whole Bella/Edward thing is hard for me to take (I'm sorry, they like each other why?) but I'm kinda fascinated by the other vampires. I made my sister give me all the backstory for them but I don't know if that's gonna cut it. I'm tempted to just go read the wikipedia articles about them and have that be that but I don't think that'll cut it, either. But I also don't want to read hundreds of pages about how diamond-like and beautiful the sparkly killing machine is. I mean, really. Bella is ridiculous. His "wit" does not make up for the fact he likes to drink blood. Get a grip, girl. He watches you while you sleep and he likes to drink blood. This is not normal behavior.

So it turns out I have very little patience for their romance. This, I suspect, would be a problem if I were ever to become involved in the fandom.

Holy shit. Did I just say fandom? Oh lord. I've gone to the dark side, flist, I really have. I've already read one fic about the other vampires (The Hunt by shiiki and I highly recommend it) and I'm thisclose to asking for requests. Just not romantic ones. Unless they're really good. Or about Alice because she's my favorite.

Oh goodness, I've babbled enough. If I wasn't so cheap and could make a poll, this is where I would put it. But, um, vote anyway. Should I give in and become yet another vampire girl? Or should I forget it and return to my obsession of the moment? (which, so that you may have all the facts, is Firefly and will likely be getting its own post shortly)

I'm gonna be out of town and away from my beloved internet for a bit so you all have a most lovely week and try--however hard that may be--to go on without me. ;)

Bye!

I just got a text message from a friend. This is what it says:

Have you ever wondered if the one dollar bills in your wallet were in a stripper's butt crack? Make someone else wonder.

Okay. First, EW. That's gross.

Second, there's spam for text messaging now? Hold me.

Finally got around to compiling all my fics. Well, most of them. I've let a few drabbles disappear into the internet because frankly, they sucked. But the list is really for my own organizational purposes y'all please feel free to ignore.

Also: Springsteen FTW! I mean, really, who else can full on slide into a camera crotch first and still manage to be cool? Oh goodness, the expression on his face was priceless. Love you, Bruce!

Also again: Did you see the freaking 100 yard interception run? Good Lord, it was almost enough for me to become a Steelers fan. Not quite, but very nearly.

I've finally gotten around to compiling my fics but before we get to that, here's where to find anything I've archived:
Eight stories up at Checkmated.
Two stories up at Undeniable.
Eleven stories up at ffnet (plus five Joan of Arcadia fics).

Here's the stuff that's up at lj. It tends to be more recent than the archived work so unless otherwise specified, fics are post-DH.

( LJ Fics )

I went to Border's yesterday with a list of books recommended by you lovelies and some coworkers about good LGBT fiction. After a lot of searching I found the LGBT section (which was "helpfully" labeled Shakespeare Criticism) and I went to find the books on my list and then: I saw a book with a picture of Joseph Gordon-Levitt on it.

Um. Guys? You do NOT know how much I fangirl this boy. I LOVE HIM. So guess which book I picked? And then finished within a day? I think you know the answer.

The book is called Mysterious Skin by Scott Heim and it's been made into a movie starring my beloved Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He's so freaking good. He used to be in Third Rock From the Sun but what won me over was Brick, aka The Movie You Must See. Seriously, if you haven't seen it yet then you need to get on that stat. It's the kind of movie that stays with you.

Returning to the current topic, though, Mysterious Skin is a pretty freaky book. Strike that, it's seriously freaky. It's mainly about pedophiles and prostitutes but drugs, freaky kinks, alcoholism and UFOs all make appearances. Really, a heartwarming tale. Though, honestly? In a strange way it kinda is. I don't know how. I do know I desperately need to see the movie. Dunno how I'll be able to watch the scenes with the little kids doing, um, things I haven't seen fit to do (and probably won't ever) but I suppose that's what squinting is for. Whatever it takes to see Gordon-Levitt in this role. It's an incredibly powerful book and with him the the main role the movie will be just as intense.

Some of it really was shocking, though, and I say this as a girl who's been reading sex scenes since way before the appropriate age (I continue to be amazed how much sex showed up in the books I read when I was younger; you simply can't tell from the cover which books are clean) and as someone who has been involved in this fandom for a long time. I mean, really, I didn't even know one particular action was physically possible and no I'm not explaining myself more fully.

I don't want to cheapen the book, though. It's good. Really good. And it's not about the sex, not really. Well okay it is, but not in a nasty way. It's about the consequences, about what we remember and how we cope with it. It's about connections between people and with the past. It's intense and powerful and you should read it.

I'm back home for the holidays. It's been lovely. My sister and I braved the mall yesterday to finish up some Christmas shopping and now it's just wrapping and baking and decorating until the big day comes. And tonight we're gonna see the nutcracker! We're excited.

Now about that baking. My mom makes Scandinavian almond bars every year at Christmas and they are the best cookies ever. It's a recipe that should be shared with all. So for lionelle (and for everyone else with exacting taste *g*), here it is behind the cut.

Comments in parenthesis are from me and you can feel free to ignore them if you want. Everything else is from a Better Homes and Gardens Christmas cookie issue that came out in 1989. It's a magazine that's seen better days (I scribbled all over all the pages when I was real young and we've spilled some stuff on it over the years of baking) but it's a magazine that's served us well. Here's hoping it'll do the same for you.

( Scandinavian Almond Bars )

You know what Christmas carol has always bothered me? I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. Why is this kid so cheerful about seeing his mom as a cheater? It's just silly. And every version I've heard is so damn thrilled that this kid is now probably traumatized. Well, maybe not traumatized. Maybe only confused. But still, I do not approve. That would screw with a kid's head to see Mommy kissing Santa Claus. Seriously, it's gotta raise some questions.

Anyway. I should finish my essay. Whee.

ohbutwait! I have to say this. I saw Spring Awakening and a Backstreet Boys concert last week. No snickering because c'mon, you know they were epic. Picspam and squee to come.

1. Stop talking about politics for a moment or two.
2. Post a reasonably-sized picture in your LJ, NOT under a cut tag, of something pleasant, such as an adorable kitten, or a fluffy white cloud, or a bottle of booze. Something that has NOTHING TO DO WITH POLITICS.
3. Include these instructions, and share the love.



Is this not the most awesome cake ever? Has anyone on my flist ever actually put a rubik's cube? Those are so hard. Impossible, I would say.

I'm in the process of backing up all my files and transfering things onto my new external hard drive and I found a fic that I wrote TWO YEARS AGO and never posted. I wrote it before DH came out and attilatehbun helped me out with some ordering questions (thanks friend!) and then... I don't know why I didn't post it. Then DH came out and I had to update a couple things but I made the fic canon-compliant and... still no post. So I'm posting it now because honestly, why the hell have I been holding onto it for so long? I don't understand me. I'm not even going to take the time to try to put it in an archive because I clearly cannot be trusted with this fic. Unbeta'd so all mistakes are mine.

Title: Conclusions
Summary: Everyone reacts differently to the end.
Genre: Not very happy
Rating: PG-13ish?
Length: 1350
Note: I've never been good with numbers so forgive me if the ones I chose here seem off to you.

( May I present to you, at long last, a little fic about life after war? )

I meant to do a quick fly-by post to tell you that I'm in the process of moving to a new apartment so I might not have internet for some time but then I got distracted by how frickin cool this meme is. So, meme:

- Choose a singer/band/group
- Answer using ONLY titles of songs by that singer/band/group
- Tag 7 more people. Or not. (I'm going with Not.)

No one is surprised I chose Springsteen, right? Right? :)

1. Are you male or female? Girls in their Summer Clothes
2. Describe yourself. Livin' in the Future
3. What do people feel when they're around you? Better Days (er... hopefully)
4. How would you describe your previous relationship? Brilliant Disguise
5. Describe your current relationship. Ain't Got You
6. Where would you want to be now? One Step Up
7. How do you feel about love? Cautious Man
8. What's your life like? Youngstown
9. What would you ask for if you had only one wish? Glory Days
10. Say something wise. You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)

Alrighty, I'm off to move boxes and swear at too-small closets. See you all hopefully soon but knowing my luck it could be awhile. Bye!

I'm back and jetlagged and already missing England but I do know that it's excellent to be back in big, shiny, too-hot California again. And it's great to be able to go online again. I missed my pretty pretty laptop a lot and of course a large part of that is that I felt so disconnected from my lovely flist. I'm about to start reading your posts but a month is a long time and I won't get all the way through them so let me know how you're doing, what's going on with you. I want to hear about what's going on, all the cool things you've done and seen and written.

I'll do a proper post later tonight or tomorrow with details about the trip and the numerous plays I saw (OMG just you wait until I tell you who starred in Hamlet) and the very cool places I visited and the crazy good time I had. Pictures will very likely be involved so prepare yourself for an long, image-filled, rambling post filled with exclamation marks and general squee. XD