Yggdrasil
Oct. 25th, 2025 09:45 am--My Chemical Romance, Sept 7 with wife A - magnificent as ever but even more magnificent with The Black Parade as a theater concept piece. I wish this was a movie so I could pick it apart. I loved the way they used humor: the constant presence of the dictator stroking the velvet arm of his chair, the deliberate silly mix-up that makes the audience complicit in an execution by firing squad. In parts of the show I wept. In parts I screamed my voice raw. One of those transcendent musical experiences.
--Mint Green (+ various), Sept 14 with friends D & A - love a good tiny rock show in a bar basement. Most of the audience was probably under 25 and there were some adorable baby queers trying to mosh but not having the critical mass of people for it. I've seen this band before (with same friends, who introduced me to them) and hot damn, still good.
--Wardruna, Sept 24, just me. I probably could have gotten someone to go with me but this is a band I kind of like to marinate in so I didn't want the distraction of wondering what my companion was thinking. The staging was very simple and almost entirely done with light and shadow against the bodies of the band and the different instruments, which is especially effective with the historical war horns. The one exception to the light/shadow was a dynamic lightning-strike projected onto the back curtain at the climax of one song that made the whole audience gasp. Stunning.
--The Psychedelic Furs with Gary Numan, Oct 17 with wife A - we've seen the Psychedelic Furs before but it was in a much smaller venue and we were right down in the crowd. I think that would have improved our experience immensely this time around - they were good but the energy up in the seats of the MGM was not high. Also, much more exciting to me was Gary Numan, who I knew pretty much from the song Cars and who did perform that but in the middle of a set of intense horny synth metal that I absolutely adored. Must listen to more of his stuff.
--Belly, Oct 23, with friends D & A - I knew precisely one Belly song going in (Feed the Tree) which was a radio hit when I was at the age of beginning to form my own musical taste as opposed to just listening to what my mother listened to. Still, I like that song a lot and I generally go to shows with friend A regardless of whether I know the band or not (he has yet to steer me wrong, although a Rolling Stones cover band might be a step too far) so I figured I'd enjoy myself and I was right. Damn, they're good. Must listen to more of them as well.
This seems like a lot of concerts to have gone to in a short span of time but live music has been emotionally load-bearing in the last couple of very stressful months. And I don't actually have anything else scheduled until December.
Not the effort nor the failure tires
Oct. 25th, 2025 05:56 pmJust one of those weeks that felt like a strain - lower back flareups and insomnia and long-scheduled commitments that could not be deferred -
Though I did get a few small bits of life admin accomplished, like finally making an appointment for the first session of dental inlay work and chasing up whether journal reviews editor actually got my review.
But at the moment having the blahs.
Database maintenance
Oct. 25th, 2025 08:42 amGood morning, afternoon, and evening!
We're doing some database and other light server maintenance this weekend (upgrading the version of MySQL we use in particular, but also probably doing some CDN work.)
I expect all of this to be pretty invisible except for some small "couple of minute" blips as we switch between machines, but there's a chance you will notice something untoward. I'll keep an eye on comments as per usual.
Ta for now!
Just One Thing (25 October 2025)
Oct. 25th, 2025 12:08 pmComment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.
Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!
Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.
Go!
UK people: Scrap The Bathroom Ban
Oct. 25th, 2025 11:33 amFrom TransActual and Trans+ Solidarity Alliance. Produces a template letter to your MP which you can customize as much as you can or want to.
Article by Jane Fae of TransActual (who have been absolutely kicking ass):
https://www.scenemag.co.uk/jane-fae-a-director-of-transactual-writes-on-the-eve-of-launching-a-new-campaign-to-get-mps-to-reject-the-ehrcs-bathroom-ban/
There are now a bunch of Labour MPs who are worried and making noises at the government, even if it's only about the impact on businesses of rules which are possibly illegal and impossible to follow without getting sued:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/oct/23/dozens-of-labour-mps-warn-of-chaos-for-firms-over-gender-recognition-advice
It's alleged that Bridget Phillipson was sitting on the guidance because she was worried it'd scupper her bid for the deputy leadership, whereas Powell is actively trans-friendly and has called for MPs to have a chance to debate and vote on the guidance.
The below may be an overly optimistic view but it seems clear there's tension and conflict between the EHRC and government:
https://iandunt.substack.com/p/frightened-and-desperate-ehrc-anti (warning for Substack, in case you are boycotting it)
So this is a moment when leverage is possible, and letters to your MP may actually do something.
And, huh. It looks like I lost my bank card
Oct. 26th, 2025 11:48 pmAnyway, speaking of protests and politics and food banks,
If you donate at least $25 in cash or in-kind to a food bank at any point between now and the end of the Trump Administration, and you either share a fandom of mine and want a drabble or fannish poetry, or you want original poetry, drop me a comment, and I will write for you.
So, there you go, that's a win-win for everybody.
Edit: Well! As you might expect, as soon as I posted I happened to roll my chair over my card! It's fine, chair and card are both fine. I still need to make them fix my name, but it can wait.
Welp, my glasses have reached the point of no return with superglue
Oct. 25th, 2025 08:40 pm(Though, looking on the website, it seems glow in the dark frames are an option!? I would never, sounds like a real visual annoyance, but man, so much respect for anybody who goes in that direction!)
( Read more... )
Yuletide letter!
Oct. 24th, 2025 07:10 pmI'm entirely here for Queering the Tide, Yuleporn, Three Turtle Doves, and any character, Yulegoat, that you are interested in exploring gender with I am Here For, if you want to play with Trans Tide.
( DNW )
Clocktaur War
( Read more... )
Companions of the Night
( Read more... )
DQ8, here's the youtube video of the Marcello cutscenes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuqpgWfTZnc
( Read more... )
Spinning Silver
( Read more... )
Brat Farrar
( Read more... )
Immortals Fenyx Rising
( Read more... )
Spindle's End
( Read more... )
Post DEADline pinch hits! mwahaha
Oct. 24th, 2025 06:44 pmTo claim, please comment on this post with your AO3 name and the number or name of the pinch hit you would like. Comments are screened. Pinch hits are first-come, first-serve, and if you're the first to claim, you'll receive the assignment to your email.
You don't have to be signed up to Trick or Treat to claim a pinch hit.
These are due October 28, 23:59 UTC.
Thank you!
PH #6 (firsttraintovictoriaville):
PH #13 (plicate):
PH #16 (rubylily):
PH #26 (Marenke):
PH #28 (all_ashes):
PH #31 (bluerosekatie):
PH #32 (blueteak):
PH #36 (diplomacy):
PH #39 (humancorn):
PH #40 (IncurablePeppermint):
PH #49 (Syksy):
PH #50 (terribletressym):
( Already claimed )
(no subject)
Oct. 24th, 2025 06:04 pmseen on
Rules: How many letters of the alphabet have you used for starting a fic title? One fic per line, ‘A’ and 'The’ do not count for 'a’ and ’t’. Post your score out of 26 at the end, along with your total fic count.
Fics chosen by going chronologically and iteratively replacing fics with the one starting with a given letter I most wanted to have on this list xD (this sometimes means a fic lasting is a testament to my desire to show the full range of what I've written across both fandoms and time...)
A: All Ablaze With Light (Korra/Kuvira, Oct 2015)
B: butcherbird (Changeling: the Lost/OW, Oct 2019)
C: Castles in the Sky (Chu Yunxiu-centric, Dec 2022)
D: Dandelion Seeds (Reva & Ahsoka, June 2024)
E: Enervation (Alex & Kara, March 2017)
F: First Rites (Pyre, Aug 2017)
G: Guidance (Rey & Leia, Dec 2015)
H: Here's a Hero's Hero (Wonder Woman/Supergirl Crossover, July 2017)
I: In Silence, Surrender (Michael Burnham/Ash Tyler, Feb 2018)
J: Jade Feathers (Lan Wangji & Nie Huaisang, July 2023)
K: khybersong (Obi-Wan, Feb 2020)
L: Last One Standing (Rogue One, Oct 2018)
M: More Than We Were Made To Be (Poe/Finn/Rey/Jess, Jan 2017)
N: Nothing to Fear (Singing Hills Cycle, Jan 2023)
O: One More, For Love (Pepper/Tony, Sept 2018)
P: Plum-Dark, Orchid-Pale (Lan Xichen & Nie Huaisang, Feb 2022)
Q: Quest Guide: "Runaway Dog" (QZGS, July 2022)
R: raise your head up high (QZGS, July 2021)
S: Starwatcher (Bend the Light) (Anakin Skywalker & Darth Vader, Dec 2021)
T: This Blade, My Honor (Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands, April 2016)
U: Undisclosed Desires (Jyn/Leia, Dec 2016)
V: veneer (Xie Wang/Ye Zun, June 2021)
W: Wind Beneath Our Wings (Poe/Finn/Rey/Jess, Jan 2016)
X:
Y: your poison in my veins (Aneela/Delle Seyah Kendry, Jan 2020)
Z:
so: no X or Z, but 24/26 is pretty good xD I'd expect no less, considering that I have like 800 works...
Yuletide 2025 Signups Closed!
Oct. 24th, 2025 04:36 pmThe Avoid Matching request form will remain open for another three hours for last-minute edits to your requests.
What will mods do now?
- Run matching.
- Contact participants who have no possible recipients, or where there's another matter to discuss.
- Update you on when assignments are likely to go out.
If we need to contact you, we'll use the email account associated with your AO3 account. (You can find it at Preferences -> Edit Profile -> Change Email.) We may also use this account later in Yuletide - for example, if your author has a question for you. Please check that you can access this email!
What should you do now?
- Check and edit any letter you may have linked in your sign-up (please ensure it's complete by end of October 29th AT THE VERY LATEST, and consider adding it to the app and to the comments at the letters post). (If you didn't link your letter in your sign-up, it's too late now. Trust in your author!)
- Please check your letter is accessible - log out of the platform where you have posted it and check that you can still view it, or ask a friend to. Tumblr in particular may cause issues with this and may require you to change your settings.
- Keep quiet about what you've offered: Yuletide is anonymous until reveals.
- Check that you can access your AO3-linked email.
- Check out the pinch hit community,
yuletide_pinch_hits, and sign up through Discord, a feed, or the Google groups mailing list to get immediate alerts for pinch hits. You don't have to be signed up to this year's round of Yuletide to claim a pinch hit. - Browse the promo post or even add a promotion.
- Check that you're happy with your AO3 settings for treats / unassigned gifts - see an older post for more information. If your account is new, treats may be disabled.
- Look forward to your assignments!
Congratulations to everyone who posted a story to the 2025 New Year's Resolutions collection, either as requested by mods or just because you wanted to fill a prompt. The collection will be open for roughly one more day, until we send out assignments - if you're planning to post, post soon! The NYR 2026 collection will open on January 1.
Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
Powerwash Simulator 2...spoilers?
Oct. 24th, 2025 09:15 pm"I saw an ad for the talking dog car movie on the toilet that came up out of the ground!"
That's a real sentence that I heard
diffrentcolours say this afternoon.
Sunflower Stories
Oct. 24th, 2025 01:49 pm
Trying to sneak into the In Crowd
( Read more... )