2026 February questions meme.
Feb. 3rd, 2026 11:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pattrose4. How old is the oldest book you own?
I have Ten of a large series by Dell Shannon. (this author is a woman) They are cop mysteries. I just love them. They are from the 60s so they are dated but still good reading. Wonderful case driven stories. I fell in love with the entire station house. Each book was like watching a great episode on tv. Then I have a set of ten by Ed McBain. It was another series that I loved. They were written in the 60s also. Gosh I was young when I got those books. The next set were from țhe 70s and 80s. His name is Lawrence Sanders. He's my favorite by far.
The First Deadly Sin. (1973)
The Second Deadly Sin (1977)
The Third Deadly Sin (1981)
The Fourth Deadly Sin (1985)
The Sixth Commandment (1978)
The Tenth Commandment (1980)
The Eighth Commandment (1986)
The Seventh Commandment (1980)
I own some cook books that are from the 50s and the 60s. I save books for a long, long time.
How about you? How old are your oldest books?
I have Ten of a large series by Dell Shannon. (this author is a woman) They are cop mysteries. I just love them. They are from the 60s so they are dated but still good reading. Wonderful case driven stories. I fell in love with the entire station house. Each book was like watching a great episode on tv. Then I have a set of ten by Ed McBain. It was another series that I loved. They were written in the 60s also. Gosh I was young when I got those books. The next set were from țhe 70s and 80s. His name is Lawrence Sanders. He's my favorite by far.
The First Deadly Sin. (1973)
The Second Deadly Sin (1977)
The Third Deadly Sin (1981)
The Fourth Deadly Sin (1985)
The Sixth Commandment (1978)
The Tenth Commandment (1980)
The Eighth Commandment (1986)
The Seventh Commandment (1980)
I own some cook books that are from the 50s and the 60s. I save books for a long, long time.
How about you? How old are your oldest books?
Wednesday 04/02/2026
Feb. 4th, 2026 07:54 amdark_kana posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
3_good_things_a_day1) Delicious homemade ice tea
2) No training this evening, can't say I mind much today
3) A friend from jiujitsu coming over for dinner
2026 60 questions meme
Feb. 3rd, 2026 11:09 pmpattroseWrite about an act of kindness that someone did for you that took you by surprise.
For our 55th anniversary, hubby took me out for dinner and told me he got tickets for a cruise to Greece. What a shock. I always wanted to go. My father was Greek and always wanted to go but never got around to it. So, hubby thought it would be nice if my dad could see it through our eyes. My dad died 14 years ago. It was sweet and loving that hubby did that. And hubby made it a wonderful trip. We've been so blessed.
For our 55th anniversary, hubby took me out for dinner and told me he got tickets for a cruise to Greece. What a shock. I always wanted to go. My father was Greek and always wanted to go but never got around to it. So, hubby thought it would be nice if my dad could see it through our eyes. My dad died 14 years ago. It was sweet and loving that hubby did that. And hubby made it a wonderful trip. We've been so blessed.
Seeds! Plants!
Feb. 3rd, 2026 09:34 pmranunculusI now have five dozen cells happily growing seeds. Some of those cells just have a couple of peas in them, but others are more densely planted. Very soon some of that stuff is going to have to be pricked out and moved to the greenhouse. ( Read more... )
Time out
Feb. 4th, 2026 05:26 amvriddyGoing on a Discord time-out for a few days (longer would probably be better, but let's start where we can). My skull feels like a hedgehog turned inside out with all the spikes drilling into my brain lately, and synchronous conversations (or even just the possibility of it) are like electric shocks running up and down the spikes.
I don't know why I'm always working so hard to find metaphors that probably only make sense to me. "And today's headache is... drilling into my brain through the temple! ...cerebellum massage with boxing gloves...!"
....I actually didn't know this bit was called cerebellum hahaha I thought it was the amygdala. Nothing like looking at diagrams of brain slices in the morning.
I wanted to post a book rec so it's not all eldritch hedgehogs and brains, but the BuJo with the rec I was thinking of is out of reach... Hm. Here are a couple of other books I enjoyed more recently though!
- August Kitko and the mechas from space, by Alex White. With its bright pink cover, you know it's going to be as crazy as the title suggest, and it was a ton of fun! With mechas! From space!! Haha. Crack treated seriously at its finest. Fun premise, set a few hundreds years in the future, and written so well. Loved that one of the MCs was a bisexual dude and the second MC/love interest is nb with they/them pronouns. Not plot relevant, it just is. Great space opera overall.
- A Darker Shade of Magic, by VE Schwab, which I got from a rec here (I mean I get like 90% of my book recs from my Dreamwidth reading page at this point I believe :D Thank you all!). Wonderful worldbuilding, wonderful writing, great characters. Great concepts, used really well. The kind of books that makes me want to write. I'm impatiently waiting for my library hold on the second one to be released!!
To quieter brains and asynchronous conversations! \o/ Please be patient with me if you expect a reply from me on discord. Or Dreamwidth, for that matter. My inbox is not quite empty yet but I'll get there, in time :D <3
Talking Meme Month - day 3
Feb. 3rd, 2026 09:02 pmhafnia(For all the questions, or to submit one of your own, the post is here ♥ )
Favorite song of the moment?
I do appreciate that it's "of the moment", ha. :D
There's a few — we'll go with different genres!
1). The weird: "Ants in My Room", Carter Vail.
You'll be fine, my baby
Oh, you've got to trust me
It'll all work out in the end, just maybe
You'll be fine, my baby
Oh, you've got to trust me
It'll all work out, 'cause
No onе's gonna love you like
It's weird, it's incredibly fucking catchy, it's great, I...don't know what else there is to say? Max made me listen to it on Friday and I love it.
2). What people probably expect from me: "Votive", the New Pornographers.
My hands are cupped around a match
I'm just trying to keep the lights on
That...feels familiar. To say the least.
3). Old but still good: Blood in My Mouth, Djrum
That cello opening is so good. The music layered over ambient noise — the result is this really weird, wistful soundscape. The fact that the only words we get are at the very end is also choice. I've had this album in particular on repeat a lot while writing lately. ♥
Favorite song of the moment?
I do appreciate that it's "of the moment", ha. :D
There's a few — we'll go with different genres!
1). The weird: "Ants in My Room", Carter Vail.
You'll be fine, my baby
Oh, you've got to trust me
It'll all work out in the end, just maybe
You'll be fine, my baby
Oh, you've got to trust me
It'll all work out, 'cause
No onе's gonna love you like
It's weird, it's incredibly fucking catchy, it's great, I...don't know what else there is to say? Max made me listen to it on Friday and I love it.
2). What people probably expect from me: "Votive", the New Pornographers.
My hands are cupped around a match
I'm just trying to keep the lights on
That...feels familiar. To say the least.
3). Old but still good: Blood in My Mouth, Djrum
That cello opening is so good. The music layered over ambient noise — the result is this really weird, wistful soundscape. The fact that the only words we get are at the very end is also choice. I've had this album in particular on repeat a lot while writing lately. ♥
There's a kiss at the end of the rainbow
Feb. 3rd, 2026 07:54 pmgwynSo many times, I've sat down, intending to post, but I'm so consumed by anxiety and stress from ::waves hand around:: and my general life crap that I can't seem to do it. There's this part of me that just can't believe--I mean, literally can't believe--what is happening in this shithole country. I don't doomscroll much, but it's impossible to avoid everything.
My mom was from Minnesota, St. Paul specifically but as anyone who's been there knows, it doesn't really matter which of the twin cities you're from, they're just across the river. I've spent a lot of time there, even though the half of her siblings who stayed in Minnesota had families that were never great to those of us out here in the PNW. (It's funny, out of her six sibs, three stayed there and three moved here.) A part of me does kind of want to know what is happening with my cousins, but we've really lost touch, and I think one of the few I've stayed in some vague kind of touch with is pretty conservative, so... So as much as I've tried not to get into a doom spiral, it's really freaking hard. And it's not like these jackboot fucks aren't also in our own cities, especially in these blue states.
I'm considering doing the Fandom T***ps Hate (I hate that fucker so much I can't stand to say his name and it's ruined a perfectly serviceable word) auction, though I'm really struggling with the idea of it. I loved doing the Fandom Loves Puerto Rico auction some years back, and got to do both a vid and a fic. But at this point right now, I don't think I have anything to offer that anyone wants; I haven't found anything to replace Cap fandom and a lot of the smaller fandoms I could write don't even generate other signups at Yuletide. So like a minimum bid of $5 wouldn't exactly help the auction much when I can't generate any interest because of my goofy list of unpopular fandoms. There used to be these Yuletide stalwart fandoms every year like Kings, but a couple years ago when I wrote for it, even people who used to be into it didn't read the fics. I don't know, I can't decide. I'd like to contribute, but I feel like what little I could do wouldn't make much of a contribution.
Part of it, I'm sure, is that I am not into the popular thing, once again. I have not been swept away by Heated Rivalry, and definitely am reminded of that feeling when it seemed like there was literally no other person in all of fandom who didn't love Stargate Atlantis, and how isolating that was. It was kinda nice after Captain America: The Winter Soldier to be in something popular and huge. That's rarely been the case for me--even in hot fandoms, I would always be into the "wrong" ship or something, so Stucky was pretty wild for me.
I could consider adding something popular like The Pitt, but I'm also not sure if I could write in it; I haven't been reading fic much, for some reason I can't concentrate enough for that, and so I don't know what I might be able to do in it. There are definitely shows/movies I'd love to try to write but don't feel like I could. I have always admired people who can come up with ideas for just about anything they like, I'm so envious of that. I don't know what's wrong with me!
In non fandom news, I'm still mostly hanging in there: my numbers are holding steady and I think the cancer part is mostly okay, it's just the other weird stuff that's plaguing me. There's something really weird and wrong with my knee, and my hands are so bad and constantly painful that I'm not sure what I am going to be able to do about it. But I have chemo on Thursday so I am planning to talk to my oncologist about it all. Sometimes the obvious things are things I can't do because of the cancer or the drugs.
I had been in the middle of a Schitt's Creek rewatch when I heard that Catherine O'Hara died, and I am just so heartbroken. She has been one of my all-time favorites for so long, and there were two wonderful things she did in the early '80s when there was that short-lived revival craze of anthology shows such as the '80s Twilight Zone, Amazing Stories, The George Burns Comedy Week, and this movie a lot of the SCTV crew did called Really Weird Tales, that I think few people ever saw, let alone remembered. If you want to laugh and enjoy her as much as I do, you can watch both of these on YouTube, they're not the best quality but I loved them so and it's great to know at least one or two other people remembered these shows. Her segment of Really Weird Tales is called I'll Die Loving and the George Burns one is called The Dynamite Girl (the link to RWT is the whole movie, but the George Burns one is her segment alone).
My mom was from Minnesota, St. Paul specifically but as anyone who's been there knows, it doesn't really matter which of the twin cities you're from, they're just across the river. I've spent a lot of time there, even though the half of her siblings who stayed in Minnesota had families that were never great to those of us out here in the PNW. (It's funny, out of her six sibs, three stayed there and three moved here.) A part of me does kind of want to know what is happening with my cousins, but we've really lost touch, and I think one of the few I've stayed in some vague kind of touch with is pretty conservative, so... So as much as I've tried not to get into a doom spiral, it's really freaking hard. And it's not like these jackboot fucks aren't also in our own cities, especially in these blue states.
I'm considering doing the Fandom T***ps Hate (I hate that fucker so much I can't stand to say his name and it's ruined a perfectly serviceable word) auction, though I'm really struggling with the idea of it. I loved doing the Fandom Loves Puerto Rico auction some years back, and got to do both a vid and a fic. But at this point right now, I don't think I have anything to offer that anyone wants; I haven't found anything to replace Cap fandom and a lot of the smaller fandoms I could write don't even generate other signups at Yuletide. So like a minimum bid of $5 wouldn't exactly help the auction much when I can't generate any interest because of my goofy list of unpopular fandoms. There used to be these Yuletide stalwart fandoms every year like Kings, but a couple years ago when I wrote for it, even people who used to be into it didn't read the fics. I don't know, I can't decide. I'd like to contribute, but I feel like what little I could do wouldn't make much of a contribution.
Part of it, I'm sure, is that I am not into the popular thing, once again. I have not been swept away by Heated Rivalry, and definitely am reminded of that feeling when it seemed like there was literally no other person in all of fandom who didn't love Stargate Atlantis, and how isolating that was. It was kinda nice after Captain America: The Winter Soldier to be in something popular and huge. That's rarely been the case for me--even in hot fandoms, I would always be into the "wrong" ship or something, so Stucky was pretty wild for me.
I could consider adding something popular like The Pitt, but I'm also not sure if I could write in it; I haven't been reading fic much, for some reason I can't concentrate enough for that, and so I don't know what I might be able to do in it. There are definitely shows/movies I'd love to try to write but don't feel like I could. I have always admired people who can come up with ideas for just about anything they like, I'm so envious of that. I don't know what's wrong with me!
In non fandom news, I'm still mostly hanging in there: my numbers are holding steady and I think the cancer part is mostly okay, it's just the other weird stuff that's plaguing me. There's something really weird and wrong with my knee, and my hands are so bad and constantly painful that I'm not sure what I am going to be able to do about it. But I have chemo on Thursday so I am planning to talk to my oncologist about it all. Sometimes the obvious things are things I can't do because of the cancer or the drugs.
I had been in the middle of a Schitt's Creek rewatch when I heard that Catherine O'Hara died, and I am just so heartbroken. She has been one of my all-time favorites for so long, and there were two wonderful things she did in the early '80s when there was that short-lived revival craze of anthology shows such as the '80s Twilight Zone, Amazing Stories, The George Burns Comedy Week, and this movie a lot of the SCTV crew did called Really Weird Tales, that I think few people ever saw, let alone remembered. If you want to laugh and enjoy her as much as I do, you can watch both of these on YouTube, they're not the best quality but I loved them so and it's great to know at least one or two other people remembered these shows. Her segment of Really Weird Tales is called I'll Die Loving and the George Burns one is called The Dynamite Girl (the link to RWT is the whole movie, but the George Burns one is her segment alone).
Fig (2011 - 2026)
Feb. 3rd, 2026 11:45 pmjames_davis_nicoll
I just got email from Fig's owner that Fig (who I owned from 2012 to 2017) passed away this evening. Cause unknown. My impression is Fig just didn't wake up.
a very nerdy flex
Feb. 3rd, 2026 09:57 pmseekingferreta Hugo Award for Best Novel meme
Bold if you've read it
2025 The Tainted Cup Robert Jackson Bennett
2024 Some Desperate Glory Emily Tesh
2023 Nettle & Bone T. Kingfisher
2022 A Desolation Called Peace Arkady Martine
2021 Network Effect Martha Wells
2020 A Memory Called Empire Arkady Martine
2019 The Calculating Stars Mary Robinette Kowal
2018 The Stone Sky N. K. Jemisin
2017 The Obelisk Gate N. K. Jemisin
2016 The Fifth Season N. K. Jemisin
2015 The Three-Body Problem Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Liu
2014 Ancillary Justice Ann Leckie
2013 Redshirts: A Novel with Three Codas John Scalzi
2012 Among Others Jo Walton
2011 Blackout/All Clear Connie Willis
2010 The City & the City China Mi�ville
2010 The Windup Girl Paolo Bacigalupi
2009 The Graveyard Book Neil Gaiman
2008 The Yiddish Policemen's Union Michael Chabon
2007 Rainbows End Vernor Vinge
2006 Spin Robert Charles Wilson
2005 Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke
2004 Paladin of Souls Lois McMaster Bujold
2003 Hominids Robert J. Sawyer
2002 American Gods Neil Gaiman
2001 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J. K. Rowling
2000 A Deepness in the Sky Vernor Vinge
1999 To Say Nothing of the Dog Connie Willis
1998 Forever Peace Joe Haldeman
1997 Blue Mars Kim Stanley Robinson
1996 The Diamond Age Neal Stephenson
1995 Mirror Dance Lois McMaster Bujold
1994 Green Mars Kim Stanley Robinson
1993 A Fire Upon the Deep Vernor Vinge
1993 Doomsday Book Connie Willis
1992 Barrayar Lois McMaster Bujold
1991 The Vor Game Lois McMaster Bujold
1990 Hyperion Dan Simmons
1989 Cyteen C. J. Cherryh
1988 The Uplift War David Brin
1987 Speaker for the Dead Orson Scott Card
1986 Ender's Game Orson Scott Card
1985 Neuromancer William Gibson
1984 Startide Rising David Brin
1983 Foundation's Edge Isaac Asimov
1982 Downbelow Station C. J. Cherryh
1981 The Snow Queen Joan D. Vinge
1980 The Fountains of Paradise Arthur C. Clarke
1979 Dreamsnake Vonda N. McIntyre
1978 Gateway Frederik Pohl
1977 Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang Kate Wilhelm
1976 The Forever War Joe Haldeman
1975 The Dispossessed Ursula K. Le Guin
1974 Rendezvous with Rama Arthur C. Clarke
1973 The Gods Themselves Isaac Asimov
1972 To Your Scattered Bodies Go Philip Jose Farmer
1971 Ringworld Larry Niven
1970 The Left Hand of Darkness Ursula K. Le Guin
1969 Stand on Zanzibar John Brunner
1968 Lord of Light Roger Zelazny
1967 The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein
1966 Dune Frank Herbert
1966 This Immortal Roger Zelazny
1965 The Wanderer Fritz Leiber
1964 Way Station Clifford D. Simak
1963 The Man in the High Castle Philip K. Dick
1962 Stranger in a Strange Land Robert A. Heinlein
1961 A Canticle for Leibowitz Walter M. Miller, Jr.
1960 Starship Troopers Robert A. Heinlein
1959 A Case of Conscience James Blish
1958 The Big Time Fritz Leiber
1956 Double Star Robert A. Heinlein
1955 They'd Rather Be Right Mark Clifton & Frank Riley
1953 The Demolished Man Alfred Bester
Bold if you've read it
2025 The Tainted Cup Robert Jackson Bennett
2024 Some Desperate Glory Emily Tesh
2023 Nettle & Bone T. Kingfisher
2022 A Desolation Called Peace Arkady Martine
2021 Network Effect Martha Wells
2020 A Memory Called Empire Arkady Martine
2019 The Calculating Stars Mary Robinette Kowal
2018 The Stone Sky N. K. Jemisin
2017 The Obelisk Gate N. K. Jemisin
2016 The Fifth Season N. K. Jemisin
2015 The Three-Body Problem Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Liu
2014 Ancillary Justice Ann Leckie
2013 Redshirts: A Novel with Three Codas John Scalzi
2012 Among Others Jo Walton
2011 Blackout/All Clear Connie Willis
2010 The City & the City China Mi�ville
2010 The Windup Girl Paolo Bacigalupi
2009 The Graveyard Book Neil Gaiman
2008 The Yiddish Policemen's Union Michael Chabon
2007 Rainbows End Vernor Vinge
2006 Spin Robert Charles Wilson
2005 Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke
2004 Paladin of Souls Lois McMaster Bujold
2003 Hominids Robert J. Sawyer
2002 American Gods Neil Gaiman
2001 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J. K. Rowling
2000 A Deepness in the Sky Vernor Vinge
1999 To Say Nothing of the Dog Connie Willis
1998 Forever Peace Joe Haldeman
1997 Blue Mars Kim Stanley Robinson
1996 The Diamond Age Neal Stephenson
1995 Mirror Dance Lois McMaster Bujold
1994 Green Mars Kim Stanley Robinson
1993 A Fire Upon the Deep Vernor Vinge
1993 Doomsday Book Connie Willis
1992 Barrayar Lois McMaster Bujold
1991 The Vor Game Lois McMaster Bujold
1990 Hyperion Dan Simmons
1989 Cyteen C. J. Cherryh
1988 The Uplift War David Brin
1987 Speaker for the Dead Orson Scott Card
1986 Ender's Game Orson Scott Card
1985 Neuromancer William Gibson
1984 Startide Rising David Brin
1983 Foundation's Edge Isaac Asimov
1982 Downbelow Station C. J. Cherryh
1981 The Snow Queen Joan D. Vinge
1980 The Fountains of Paradise Arthur C. Clarke
1979 Dreamsnake Vonda N. McIntyre
1978 Gateway Frederik Pohl
1977 Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang Kate Wilhelm
1976 The Forever War Joe Haldeman
1975 The Dispossessed Ursula K. Le Guin
1974 Rendezvous with Rama Arthur C. Clarke
1973 The Gods Themselves Isaac Asimov
1972 To Your Scattered Bodies Go Philip Jose Farmer
1971 Ringworld Larry Niven
1970 The Left Hand of Darkness Ursula K. Le Guin
1969 Stand on Zanzibar John Brunner
1968 Lord of Light Roger Zelazny
1967 The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein
1966 Dune Frank Herbert
1966 This Immortal Roger Zelazny
1965 The Wanderer Fritz Leiber
1964 Way Station Clifford D. Simak
1963 The Man in the High Castle Philip K. Dick
1962 Stranger in a Strange Land Robert A. Heinlein
1961 A Canticle for Leibowitz Walter M. Miller, Jr.
1960 Starship Troopers Robert A. Heinlein
1959 A Case of Conscience James Blish
1958 The Big Time Fritz Leiber
1956 Double Star Robert A. Heinlein
1955 They'd Rather Be Right Mark Clifton & Frank Riley
1953 The Demolished Man Alfred Bester
Slow Gods by Claire North
Feb. 3rd, 2026 07:46 pmlightreadsSlow Gods
3/5. Science fiction about a guy who grows up in and gets crushed by a kleptocratic fascist state, and how he is transformed, and what happens when an alien arrives to tell the scattered worlds of humanity that a supernova is about to wipe half of them out.
Interesting. Lots of things to say here. First, to be clear, you won’t ever catch me arguing that North isn’t a talented and unusual writer. She’s a good stylist, too. This book is science fiction in set dressing, but that’s wrapped around an eldritch and fantastical core that she is too smart to ruin by explaining or caging. I won’t spoil it more than to say that a lesser writer would have made this book about the protagonist’s attempts to understand the weird and creepy thing that happened to him. Instead, the reader understands that, mostly implicitly, and the book can go on about its business of being about immigration and politics and cultural preservation and assimilation.
Also, this is a book about autism. An autism metaphor, specifically. North has said this was a result of her own recent diagnosis, and I’m not in the business of critiquing how a person processes that in fiction. I will say that I would be critiquing the substance of it if this were not own voices, because I think parts of the portrayal (the equivalent to autism meltdowns, in particular) lean into a kind of scary stereotype of the violently uncontrolled autistic person. But because it is own voices, I’ll sit here and defend North’s right to process as she sees fit, even if that means grappling with some stereotypes in a messy way that didn’t land, at least for me.
All in all it’s an interesting book and I’m glad I read it.
Content notes: Fascist hellscapes – debt slavery, violence, imprisonment, medical experimentation, mass death and genocide through negligence.
3/5. Science fiction about a guy who grows up in and gets crushed by a kleptocratic fascist state, and how he is transformed, and what happens when an alien arrives to tell the scattered worlds of humanity that a supernova is about to wipe half of them out.
Interesting. Lots of things to say here. First, to be clear, you won’t ever catch me arguing that North isn’t a talented and unusual writer. She’s a good stylist, too. This book is science fiction in set dressing, but that’s wrapped around an eldritch and fantastical core that she is too smart to ruin by explaining or caging. I won’t spoil it more than to say that a lesser writer would have made this book about the protagonist’s attempts to understand the weird and creepy thing that happened to him. Instead, the reader understands that, mostly implicitly, and the book can go on about its business of being about immigration and politics and cultural preservation and assimilation.
Also, this is a book about autism. An autism metaphor, specifically. North has said this was a result of her own recent diagnosis, and I’m not in the business of critiquing how a person processes that in fiction. I will say that I would be critiquing the substance of it if this were not own voices, because I think parts of the portrayal (the equivalent to autism meltdowns, in particular) lean into a kind of scary stereotype of the violently uncontrolled autistic person. But because it is own voices, I’ll sit here and defend North’s right to process as she sees fit, even if that means grappling with some stereotypes in a messy way that didn’t land, at least for me.
All in all it’s an interesting book and I’m glad I read it.
Content notes: Fascist hellscapes – debt slavery, violence, imprisonment, medical experimentation, mass death and genocide through negligence.
Fic: when all the leaves are gold (The Winslow Boy)
Feb. 3rd, 2026 08:32 pmthisbluespiritIn the midst of writing five ways Sir Robert and Catherine could have got together post-canon for yuletide, the inevitable result was also thinking about what if they were just married already. And I hadn't yet actually written them for 100ships or TWB for 100fandoms, so I scribbled this down somewhere in between or after the assignment, and here it is.
when all the leaves are gold (1497 words) by thisbluespirit
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Winslow Boy (1999)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Robert Morton/Catherine Winslow
Characters: Robert Morton (Winslow Boy), Catherine Winslow
Additional Tags: Community: 100ships, Community: 100fandoms, Community: allbingo, Post-Canon, Edwardian Period, Marriage, Suffragettes, World War I, (outbreak of), Vignette, Happily married Sir Robert and Catherine, Established Relationship, 1910s
Summary: Catherine and Sir Robert, making a marriage work.
(edwardianspinsteraunt, the second section centres around the imminent announcement of WWI and fears in that regard, but only discussions of it, and the first section is entirely war-free anyway, so you are definitely safe there.)
yuletide, the inevitable result was also thinking about what if they were just married already. And I hadn't yet actually written them for 100ships or TWB for 100fandoms, so I scribbled this down somewhere in between or after the assignment, and here it is.when all the leaves are gold (1497 words) by thisbluespirit
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Winslow Boy (1999)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Robert Morton/Catherine Winslow
Characters: Robert Morton (Winslow Boy), Catherine Winslow
Additional Tags: Community: 100ships, Community: 100fandoms, Community: allbingo, Post-Canon, Edwardian Period, Marriage, Suffragettes, World War I, (outbreak of), Vignette, Happily married Sir Robert and Catherine, Established Relationship, 1910s
Summary: Catherine and Sir Robert, making a marriage work.
(
edwardianspinsteraunt, the second section centres around the imminent announcement of WWI and fears in that regard, but only discussions of it, and the first section is entirely war-free anyway, so you are definitely safe there.)Seven Taoist Masters: A Folk Novel of China (in progress)
Feb. 3rd, 2026 03:20 pmjs_thrillOne book I’ve been slowly reading is “Seven Taoist Masters: A Folk Novel of China”.
Kate got it for me a couple holidays ago as a gift, knowing my interest in Taoism.
I am 8 chapters in (out of 28) and it is sort of a fascinating book in that, if this hadn’t been presented as “a novel about these seven people achieving self-mastery by Taoist sages”, it would 1000% read, so far, like a story about a charlatan establishing a cult.
Kate got it for me a couple holidays ago as a gift, knowing my interest in Taoism.
I am 8 chapters in (out of 28) and it is sort of a fascinating book in that, if this hadn’t been presented as “a novel about these seven people achieving self-mastery by Taoist sages”, it would 1000% read, so far, like a story about a charlatan establishing a cult.
The main master, and instructor of the other seven, Wang Ch’ung Yang, commences his journey to enlightenment because he had a vision at/of a nearby mountain. In order to cultivate himself he deceives his spouse and family and pretends to be ill so that he can have solitude. He then goes out in search of students (abandoning his family), and encounters a couple, Ma Yü and Sun Yüan-Chen, who are worthy of being his disciples. But only if they sign over all their wealth and family property to him.
It is one thing to have a spiritual leader say “you need to divest yourself of material possessions to pursue this course”; it is another thing to have them say “actually you need to formally sign all your wealth and property over to me, so I can use it to build a spiritual retreat/school, and to require them to formally and legally arrange the transfer rather than, as they initially offer, letting him use the funds without transferring them.
The couple then creates an elaborate lie to get the transfer done with the approval of the couple’s other relatives, claiming the transfer is temporary and related to the husband’s ill health. Immediately upon getting the transfer done, the Master then creates some charitable activity to create the impression that he is just a custodian of the couple’s wealth, and then the couple decide that instead of husband and wife, they will be brother and sister in the Tao.
If you’ve watched literally any documentaries about cults and how they operate, it is impossible not to parse virtually every part of this as red flags!
Things learned in January
Feb. 3rd, 2026 09:34 pmtinnyThere's not much and I'm not surprised. But I am sticking with this until I am more awake again and my ability to write down (and hopefully remember) things will be better again. It's marginally better than the eight things I had in December.
( 10 (+2 related) things I learned in January )
( 10 (+2 related) things I learned in January )
Dull roots stirred, even if it's hardly spring rain out there
Feb. 3rd, 2026 08:03 pmoursinSo yesterday I had further converse with another person apropos giving a talk as part of a series of events in connection with an exhibition of archives at a local record office some months hence and they sound keen, and it is something I can do, and have a fair amount of material including visual stuff already. Plus, besides expenses, there will also be a modest honorarium - they actually asked what do I usually get paid - errrr.
So there's that.
And the long review essay is finally in production and while I had some rather confusing emails about this yesterday I think this is down to Academic Journals Having Really Confusing Systems, it is indeed going ahead, and I was obliged to compose a short biographical note, both to reflect current institutional state and also be pertinent to topics addressed in review (my last bio note leaned rather heavily on my relationship with Sid).
And I am beginning to get to grips with article for review, though slightly fearing I may be Interrogating From the Wrong Perspective (journal is Not My Disciplinary Field, though article certainly overlaps it).
Have had the very cheering news that a conference I thought I would never get to again because it would involve transatlantic travel, is coming to London next year, yay yay yay, I am already pondering a paper.
In other personal news, have booked dental checkup and hygienist appointment for next week.
And in other news, the National Trust has reached its target to buy the land around the Cerne Giant:
The money will be used to improve access to the 55-metre (180ft) figure and to link up a patchwork of habitats, improving conditions for species such as the rare Duke of Burgundy butterfly.
It will also enable further archaeological work to help solve the enduring mystery of whom the giant depicts, and when and why it was created.
Fic: when all the leaves are gold (The Winslow Boy)
Feb. 3rd, 2026 08:12 pmthisbluespirit posting in 100fandomswhen all the leaves are gold (1497 words) by thisbluespirit
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Winslow Boy (1999)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Robert Morton/Catherine Winslow
Characters: Robert Morton (Winslow Boy), Catherine Winslow
Additional Tags: Community: 100ships, Community: 100fandoms, Community: allbingo, Post-Canon, Edwardian Period, Marriage, Suffragettes, World War I, (outbreak of), Vignette, Happily married Sir Robert and Catherine, Established Relationship, 1910s
Summary: Catherine and Sir Robert, making a marriage work.
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Winslow Boy (1999)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Robert Morton/Catherine Winslow
Characters: Robert Morton (Winslow Boy), Catherine Winslow
Additional Tags: Community: 100ships, Community: 100fandoms, Community: allbingo, Post-Canon, Edwardian Period, Marriage, Suffragettes, World War I, (outbreak of), Vignette, Happily married Sir Robert and Catherine, Established Relationship, 1910s
Summary: Catherine and Sir Robert, making a marriage work.