Dreamflower's Mathom-house

My friend danae_b is dipping her toes into Who-fic! She's writing as theotherbadwolf, and has a new ficlet posted here. Very lovely bit of post-Pond angst, written with Dana's usual tight POV!

Well, this has been an...interesting...morning.

As I've mentioned before, we had been having plumbing problems. Today the plumbers came to replace the sewer line beneath the house, a noisy and stinky process. At some point while they were here, I put some eggs on to boil. Then, because my brain is still foggy from being sick, I forgot. Because of the sewer stink, I did not notice the smell when they started to scorch after the pan boiled dry. I did, however, hear when they began to explode! There was exploded boiled egg all over the kitchen!

I am feeling better today, but whatever laid me out last week is still lingering, and my head still feels like it's wrapped in cotton.

The plumbers finished, and I am waiting to get a call about how much it has cost us. It was not covered by the home warranty. As much as that was a big help our first few years here, the last few repairs we needed, we could not get them to cover. We've about decided to drop them.

But I was able to do a load of laundry AT HOME! :)

OTOH, I've been uploading some chapters of "Eleventy-one" at AO3, and was able to add the nice banner baranduin made for me! I felt quite accomplished when I figured out how to do that! I'm going to add it over at MPTT next!



I'm going to have some lunch now that the house doesn't smell so bad, and then depending on how I feel, I will either do some writing or take a nap.

Does anyone know if SoA is down?

My computer had a virus, and I was online and on the phone with Norton all afternoon getting it de-bugged. Unfortunately, the tech person had to de-install Firefox, which put me back to IE as my main (only actually only) browser, and wiped out my favorites; trying to get SoA back on the list and none of the links are working for me. I don't know if it's down, or if it's just me.

I actually haven't done this one before. danae_b gave me the letter "K".

Something I hate: Kardasians. Actually, I don't really hate them as individuals. I don't really know them. I'm sure that underneath their public personas they may be perfectly nice people, and not nearly as vapid and shallow and materialistic as they present themselves. But I do hate what they represent--that you don't have to actually deserve fame--all you have to do is be famous for being famous. I prefer celebrities who actually have talent or who accomplish something to get their fame.
Something I love: Kitties! I love doggies, too, but they don't start with K. My kitty is such a love sponge, and she's soft and furry and purry and she goes limp in my lap. But she can also be very silly and funny!
Somewhere I have been: Kentucky. That was my mother's home state, and I went there many times as a child. She grew up in a small town called Hazzard, in Perry County. I think the last time I went there was about in, maybe '73. I know I was still in college then, and she went to see a cousin. Mostly I recall all the narrow winding roads, the beautiful mountains and scenery broken up by the ugly places where coal had been strip minded, and then beautiful again. And I can barely remember my grandmother's house, which seemed huge to me when I was little, but when I saw it on that last visit didn't seem all that big after all.
Somewhere I would like to go: Kent. OK, this stumped me for a while, so I was just thinking of places that start with K, and I know Kent's in the UK, and I never got out of Scotland when I went there in '07, so I'd like to see some other places in the UK. I looked it up, and it has some neat places there I've heard about, so yeah, it seems like a place I'd like to go. :)
Someone I know: kerravonsen. I also know quite a few people whose RL names start with "K", but I don't like to put other people's real names online.
Best Movie: Karate Kid. The original one with Ralph Maccio and Pat Morita. (I haven't seen the latest remake yet). Umm, that's the only movie I could think of that I've seen that started with "K" except for Kung Fu Panda, which I also liked. But not as much as Karate Kid.

You know the drill: if you want to do this one, ask me for a letter!

Day 9

In your own space, rec at least 3 fanworks you thought you wouldn't like (because they weren't your fandom or they pushed against your boundaries or you thought you just wouldn't be interested) but you ended up loving. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Now, it's well known that my main interest in Middle-earth are the hobbits of the Shire; at first I had no interest in Elves unless the Elves were accompanied by hobbits; most certainly not Elves in Valinor with no hobbits anywhere to be seen. The first writer who made me like Elves asElves was Bodkin. She had a little series of vignettes called Reflections on the Paradise of Elves which were basically conversations between Legolas, Elladan and Elrohir as they adjusted to life in Aman. It started out humorously, but with each new chapter, she added more and more depth to the society she was showing us. It was fascinating! Hobbits will always be my first and best love. But they don't have to be there to make me like Elves now.

For a second story that pushed me a little further, there was Not Fade Away by Jael. I'd always discounted "modern Elves" stories. Most of them did not seem to be very well written. Jael's story blew me out of the water. Her Elves are magnificent and plausible, and Thranduil makes a most excellent CEO of a multi-national corporation.

To begin with, my reading was also confined only to Middle-earth. I was almost afraid of other fandoms. Then I discovered that under another name, my friend rabidsamfan had written Harry Potter fic. Knowing the excellence of her writing I gave a try with her story Yet Another Snape Meets the Dursleys. This was quite a bit of envelope pushing for me, because even though I liked the books and movies for HP, I was a little wary of the fic. I'd heard things. Plus I disliked Snape and I loathed the Dursleys! But because I knew I could trust RSF, I gave it a try. Now I read fairly widely in other fandoms I'm familiar with!

And just one more acknowledgement of someone giving me a push, this one as a writer. I'd never written in a non-Tolkien fandom, either. But my friend danae_b convinced me to take part in Yuletide one year, and I did, and I did it again for two more years. I still mostly create my stories in Tolkien's sandbox. But now it's nice to know that if I want to, I can dig a little in some of the other ones, too!

Day Seven

In your own space, create a fanwork. A drabble, a ficlet, a podfic, or an icon, art or meta or a rec list. A picspam. Something.

Here's a little drabble gapfiller, set in LotR, RotK, at some point before the chapter "Many Partings".

Persuasion

"All your news is grief to me, O Fangorn. Now I see I was mistaken in believing that Sauron could not be cast down. Yet I wished only to preserve what I could from the destruction I thought was surely to come." The Voice was sad and weary. "Now I must spend my days caged, ever cut off from the world I would have saved if I could." The Voice sighed.

The Ent blinked. " 'Saved' through destruction! But if we let you go, the keys will be left behind, as Gandalf said."

Saruman turned away from the window, smiling.

Day Six


In your own space, share a book/song/movie/tv show/fanwork/etc that changed your life. Something that impacted on your consciousness in a way that left its mark on your soul. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Most of my friends know this story, but perhaps some people don't. I am putting it behind a cut, because it is likely to be fairly lengthy.( Read more... )

Day 4

Comment to someone you haven't ever interacted with before or introduce yourself to someone you've interacted with and friend/follow them. Afterwards, leave a comment in this post with the equivalent of "I did it!"

It doesn't have to be anything complex - it can be feedback for a fanwork or discussing something you might have in common or even simply admiring their icon. The point is to reach out to someone you normally wouldn't and connect with them, even if it's only for the briefest moment.

This is a wonderful time of year to have this particular challenge, because there are all sorts of lovely stories by new people on Yuletide; it was there I found this gem to comment on!

I'll Be Right Here by Annie D (scaramouche)
A lovely little fanfic about E.T.--Elliot's all grown-up now, and the anniversary of ET's visit is coming up.

Day 3

In your own space, post a rec for at least three fanworks that you did not create. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so. See if you can rec fanworks that are less likely to be praised: tiny fandoms, rare pairings, fanworks other than stories, lesser-known kinks or tropes. Find fanworks that have few to no comments, or creators new to a particular fandom who maybe aren't well known or appreciated. Appreciate them.


Fic:
Flame of the Desert by pandemonium_213
This is a hilarious romp with Elrond, Glorfindel, and a third Elf named Gilfanon, as they make a journey into the desert of Valinor. The things Elf Lords will do when their wives are out of town and they are bored. Alcohol and hallucinogenics may also play a role!

Art:
Aragorn, Arwen and Frodo by RS9
A lovely drawing of those three sharing a smiling moment together.

Meta:
Tolkien's Triumph: The Strange History of 'The Lord of the Rings' by John Lennard
A fascinating essay on how LotR came to be, and all the rather unusual coincidences that combined to make it popular, as well as a nice section on why and how it has inspired so much fanfiction.

I have been throwing up this morning for no particular reason that I know of. I had plans for today.

I don't think I will get any of them done. *heading off to curl up and hibernate in my chair*