The state of me and a pimp (and there really needs to be a comma in there *g*)

[darkhavens]

Hi, everyone. I'm still alive, still... around, just very very quiet. I can't believe it's March already and that I'm staring 39 in the face, but at least I have the week off work to cope with getting older. *g*

So, what have I been doing since last I posted? I've been entertaining Mommie Dearest with marathon sessions of seasons of various tv shows (Bones, Midsomer Murders, The Shield, Criminal Minds, the CSIs, NCIS... I'm sensing a pattern here). I've been trying not to get reeled in by the brain-numbing storylines of her many tv soaps. And I've been indulging her with IMDb searches every time she says 'Ooh, where do I know him from?' And we've been gossiping and giggling like 12 year olds and having wonderful fun shopping online.

But now she's back in France, bombing down the motorway like a madwoman as I type, heading away from the place she considers to be home (here), towards the place she'll spend the next ten months wishing she was here - St Tropez, on the Mediterranean coast. She's nuts. And I miss her already.

I've also been busy here at lj, in ship_manifesto, an older comm (5 years old this year - there will be more on this later!), run by a friend who recently put out a plea for assistance. I was helpless to resist. So, I spent a week coding links to the manifestos into the masterlist, and then spent another week organising tags and then tagging every single post in the comm. (A slight touch of OCD can be a wonderful thing. *g*)

And now the hard work is done and my procrasty-pants self is suddenly at a loss for 'things to do that are not writing', and I really want to write, I do, I do, but instead of actually, y'know, writing, I keep trying to find other things to do.

Which reminds me! I've been reading stuff that is not fanfic!

I tried a Sookie Stackhouse book, because literati watched a couple of eps of True Blood and fell for Eric the Viking Vampire and poked me until I gave in. *g* Sadly, though she is hooked, I am not. The books are written in first person and Sookie's head is not a place I care to linger. Too many page-long descriptions of who's wearing what, and really? I couldn't care less what colour Bill's socks are. Or that Sookie shaved her legs and her pits and plucked her eyebrows for her date. TMI, girl, really. But literati is crushing on Eric, so I endure. ;)

(Want to know how I turned literati into literati?:
<lj user="ACTUAL USERNAME" title="FAKE USERNAME"> - at least until lj realise how easily this can be abused. *g*)

Instead, I switched my reading habits to Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden series, which has been recommended to me several times over the years and I've never quite forgotten, just never got around to them. Until now.

I luff Harry. He's irreverent, except when he's not, and he's a hero, even when he knows better. But wow, Jim Butcher really does love hurting that guy! I've read the first two books now and in both, Harry spends a lot of time struggling on through the pain, trying to ignore his injuries and suffering in silence. Is that a thing with these books?

Also? Despite seeing several Harry Dresden/John Marcone prompts at rounds_of_kink last night (See? I'm not entirely avoiding ficiness, just... not writing. *siiiiigh*), I am resisting the urge to slash them. To be honest, the relationship only started getting interesting that way towards the end of the second book, but the potential is there. *headdesk*.

So, back to the writiness of me. I spent a couple of hours last night going through the 1693 prompts over at rounds_of_kink Yes, you read that right - one thousand, six hundred and ninety-three prompts in all manner of fandoms, slash and gen both. I whittled that boggling number down to 31, and then down to 22, and am now trying to bludgeon my procrastypants self into submission. I can do this, I can! Not all 22, you understand, but at least one or two, right? *sigh*

Anyway, this is me, still here, still reading fic, still modding away and thinking about writing. And apparently in a sharing mood today. *g*

I still have fb to reply to and I will, eventually, so please know that if you've commented recently (or not so recently), I do appreciate it and feel all warm and happy over each comment, I just suck at replying at the moment.

{{{hugs and smishes you all}}}


Teeny pimp, cos I just gotta:

ship_manifesto - the place for your "Why I ship this pairing/threesome/moresome" manifestos. All fandoms welcome - live action tv, manga, anime, literature, computer games (Suki, I'm looking at you *g*). Go check out the masterlist! Stake a claim! Share the love! /pimp

One last thing! If you or anyone you know is being inundated with popups, and/or has seen their computer slow down considerably, you may be infected with the Virtumonde/Vundo trojan horse. Spybot, Norton, Symantec, Adaware, AVG (and possibly others) are not catching this. But all is not lost. malwarebytes.org has the solution, and for free! There is a paid, always-on version with automatic updates and scheduled screening, but the freeware version does the job just as well. I diagnosed a customer's computer woes while selling his wife cigarettes and told him to use this prog. He was back in 3 hours with tears of joy in his eyes. Well, okay, he was happy and said thank you, but it works! :D

Comments

[sunnyd-lite.livejournal.com]

great to hear from you! Glad you & your mom had a fab fannish visit!

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

Thanks! We had a wonderful time, but I was glad to be back in my own bed after two months on the sofa. *g*

[kitty-poker1.livejournal.com]

*waves*

I've been trying to find a way to compare the diffs between QaF (UK) and QaF (US) and describe the wonderfullness of Being Human. *sigh*

On your way in June? *bounce*

Write, hon! Write now, write Spander or McShep or anything, but writing is good. *scarlet!*

Prompt, even. *g*

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

*waves and hugs*

I keep meaning to watch Being Human. One day... *g*

June, for definite! I'm thinking the second week, so I'll buy my tickets in the next couple of weeks, as soon as possible to get the bestest prices. I can't wait! :D

Most of the Kinkfest prompts I picked up were Eureka, oddly enough, but there was a little McShep and some Spander in there too.

Scarlet, huh? We'll see. ;)

*smooches to you and your other half*

[kitty-poker1.livejournal.com]

June, for definite! I'm thinking the second week, so I'll buy my tickets in the next couple of weeks, as soon as possible to get the bestest prices. I can't wait! :D

Yay! The bed's made, there's plenty of steak in the freezer :p and can't wait to see you! Paul wants to have a sensible conversation with a woman who appreciates a good single malt. *g*

*smooches from us both*

[shakatany.livejournal.com]

I like the Sookie Stackhouse books but if they are not your cup of tea, you might try the Mercy Thompson books by Patricia Briggs. Mercy is a shapeshifter in a world of vampires, werewolves, fairies (not the Disney kind) and all sorts of other supernatural critters. At the moment they are my favorite urban fantasy novels.

Shakatany

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the rec, I'll see what I can hunt up.

I think part of the problem with the Sookie books is the 1st person POV. I'm not a fan of that POV unless it's really well done, and I've never particularly enjoyed riding through a story in another woman's brain. Oddly, I prefer a male 1st person POV. (An alien space, and yet so very comfortable. *g*)

[shakatany.livejournal.com]

Also Too many page-long descriptions of who's wearing what, and really? I couldn't care less what colour Bill's socks are. Or that Sookie shaved her legs and her pits and plucked her eyebrows for her date. I think that's the chicklit infecting other genres.

I went over to read a bit from Amber Benson's new novel Death's Daughter (http://www.deathsdaughter.com/) and there was quite a bit of that - on purpose. It grows old fast and if I want fashion critique I'll go read Vogue. Plus the first person style really bothered me there unlike the Stackhouse books.

Shakatany

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

This is why I don't read chicklit or fashion magazines, because I don't care about this stuff. *sigh*

The truth is, I'm more a voyeur than anything else. I want to watch other people go through the story, not be sitting in someone's 'I' seat.

[aimeelicious]

Sounds like you've had a lot going on! St. Tropez huh? Quite the adventure your mom is having =)

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

She lives there! She has lived in that area for over 11 years now, but she'd rather be close enough to torment me in person at every available opportunity. *g* She'll move back once the stepmonster gives in (and he will), but for now, she lives by the Med and pines for Dartmoor.

Aaaaaaand, I just remembered I never replied to your email and offer. *headdesk* It's really not necessary, truly (but Spander and a real log fire would warm the cockles of my heart, if you were so inclined). :D

[katbcoll.livejournal.com]

*waves* HI HI HI HI

thanks for the heads up about the Virtu virus. Someone on my flist has had to reformat her brand new laptop because it became infected right off. She'd mentioned that AVG and Symantec hadn't caught it. Thankfully I don't have the issues you decribed, but now I know what to look for! (I have Norton and Spybot S&D, so I thought I was safe. eep!!)

You know, if rounds_of_kink just doesn't help *snickers* you could always try comment_fic. It's a daily prompt community with different themes M - Th. Fridays and Saturdays are "free for all" days and Sunday is "adopt a lonely prompt" day. All fandoms and pairings welcome, even RPS. Aaaaand it doesn't always have to be porn.

Hmm, books.... I am impatiently waiting for Kat Richardson (http://www.katrichardson.com/)'s new book in her Greywalker series. Three books so far: Greywalker, Poltergeist, and Underground. They're set in Seattle and the main character is a P.I. named Harper Blaine.

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

I use AVG, Spybot and AdAware, which seem to catch most things. When I ran the malwarebytes prog, it found two small pieces of adware and a completely different trojan, but I was thankfully free of Vundo.

Ooh! *goes to check out comment_fic* *gets distracted* *wanders back half an hour later*

Okaaaaaaaaay, I may revisit that den of iniquity later. *g*

Another rec! Thanks. :D *adds to the list*

[dancetomato.livejournal.com]

I saw you reference "pookie" in comments somewhere and I was all, "Who is this person?" It never occurred to me to click the link. You sly minx. (NOTE: I find "minx" to be a very sexy word and now I want to smooch you)

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

*smooches you* *wears minxdom with pride and sassiness*

Honestly, I don't know how long that little trick will work before LJ pulls it. They've only just released it but it took me about 0.05 seconds to figure out how quickly things could go bad once someone with the knowledge gets involved in wank.

"So darkhavens says..."

Yeah. I can't see it lasting long, but oh, what fun possibilities exist while it does, dancetomato*. :D

*It's Aztec for tomato, not something rood, I swears. ;)

(frozen) Love True Blood

[truebloodnet.livejournal.com]

I love True Blood but not because of Eric but because I love Bill. I have read all 8 books and I am hooked on the show. Can't wait for season 2. If anyone likes True Blood check out http://truebloodnet.com for the latest True Blood news.

[esmerelda-t.livejournal.com]

*waves to you*

If the French are holding your Mum hostage in St Tropez, I bravely offer to exchange myself for her.

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

*waves back*

Hi! YOu are a true trooper, but it's not the French who are holding her hostage, it's the stepmonster, and I've just about got her trained in how to handle him.

I bought her a 'I'm a Bad Girl' santa hat for xmyth, because I already had a santa hat and she didn't and she claimed to be jealous. And then I told her that when the stepmonster goes into one of his grumpy sulks because he thinks she's done something wrong/bad/not-advantageous-to-him, etc, she should put the hat on and see what happens.

If he strokes out or has a rage-induced heart attack, she could be back before xmyth. :D
/bitchiness

[literati.livejournal.com]

*smishes darkhavens*

I hope you get to write something soon! *uber muse vibes* ♥

I'm almost finished with book 8, and then I'll be starting the Dresden Files since you has recced them. Another Harry to add to my list. :P

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

literati! :D

There can never be enough Harrys in your life, truly. I visualise the Harry from the TV show, who I thought was rather dorkalicious, but I'm sure you'll find your own Harry once you've got one or two books under your belt.

Writing. Yis. Must do that. Soonest. *refreshes flist* ;)

[txrabbit.livejournal.com]

Hello, love.

I am missing you and Sofi, but I am never around when you are. RL is kicking my ass in a major way and I am too tired at the end of the day to invest energy in maintaining my relationships.

I'm holding on to your promises that I am always welcome and I hope to make it back someday. Love you bunches, I really do.

Oh!! And if you see Literati around, let her know that the Drarry bug has re-bitten me. It's very odd to go back to the old stuff that I read...

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

{{{hugs and smishes}}}

Any time, sweetie, any time at all! I love you and miss you too. ♥

Lit says hi and wonders if you've read any Harry/Scorpius. Apparently it's the new Snarry, but she'd rather die than name it that. LOL!

She says yay for revisiting Drarry, though she can't really relate as she never actually stopped reading it, she just added Spander - and Xangel(us) - to her reading list. *g*

ETA: Lit is offering Harry/Scorpius recs, if you're interested. :D

*twirls you*

I hope your uber-bosses get their thumbs out of their collective asses and promote you soon, or at least put someone into that role so you can actually catch a breath now and again.

♥

[saifai.livejournal.com]

Yay for doing the Mom bonding. TV with my Mom is much the same (Ooh, where have I seen them before?).

Thanks for the username tip. Very cool indeed.

I'd comment on your procrastination, except I do the same. damn. thing. LOL Good luck on your kink prompts. Look forward to perhaps seeing them in the light of day sometime soonish. :)

Oh, and I love Malwarebytes. Has been a life saver for my own system recently. Nothing else I had caught it except for this one. Don't have the paid version, but I do periodically update the software and run a new scan just to be sure.

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

MD is a gem who loves the pretty men as much as I do. She's a Jensen Ackles fan of old, and after showing her a slew of Wincest vids, she's come to love Jared Padaleki too! Her most recent love is Simon Baker (Thomas Jane in The Mentalist), and she thinks Chris Kane in Leverage is wonderful (though her favourite character is Parker). :D

Malwarebytes is now a part of my regular computer housecleaning. Cannot be safe enough.

*twirls you*

[tabaqui]

Wheeeeeeeeee!
*twirls you around and around*

OMG, St. Tropez. Wow.

I'm so pleased you're still alive!
*smooches all up and down*

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

*spins madly* :D

*smooches and gropes*

I'm poking about inside Dean Winchester's head right this moment. I just rewatched S1-3 and I'm feeling the love again. :D

[tabaqui]

Whooooot!
Very cool.
:)

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

248 words of ficletty goodness. (I'm playing with my Big Damn Table again. Instaprompts! *g*)

[entrenous88.livejournal.com]

It's so awesome that you're reviving ship_manifesto! If anyone can tag and organize and whip up enthusiasm, it's you!

[darkhavens.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It's getting there. :D

As soon as I have dealt with all the people who have been waiting patiently for a reply for upto four months (egads!), I'll be out and about pimping this sucker in fandom after fandom.

Notice the gradual widening of focus though? I started with a pairing-specific comm, and now I run that plus comms that are fandom-specific, joss-specific (*g*), slash-specific and now everything goes! It's a slippery slope. *adds lube* :D