Lessons

I've given in to Tumblr

honorh — Mon, 07 May 2018 04:52:08 GMT

As you may (not) have noticed, I've not exactly kept up this blog. I'm mostly using LJ to follow a few communities these days. However, I just started a Tumblr, which will largely be for writing. If you're there, please comment with your blog name, and I'll add you. Thank you!

Merry Christmas?

honorh — Mon, 26 Dec 2016 05:35:02 GMT

First update since my cluster F-bomb. Felt like maybe I should move my LJ on. (My feelings about our new orange overlord are unchanged, btw.)

This has been an odd Christmas, and not just because we've been short on Mandarin oranges. Things weren't feeling quite right. And then I figured out it's the first Christmas that's been just Mom and me at home. Dad died in '14. That Christmas, we had my sister Meg's family here. Then, last year, Mom and I went to Alaska to be with my other sister's family. This year . . . just us at home. My brother and his family are in town, of course, and we had a wonderful Christmas dinner with them, but it felt strange all the same. Part of it is that my mom's been sick, too. She got knocked flat by the flu, and it kind of left her short on holiday spirit.

So, yeah, it's been a melancholy Christmas for me. I hope next year's is better.

In better news, I've got a potential job tutoring online. It's not much, but it's something. I'm going to fill the rest of my time with volunteering. Plump up the resume, make some contacts . . .

And maybe get out of town when I can. I need another adventure. And maybe to avoid the country for the next, oh, four years.

I have to get it out of my system

honorh — Wed, 09 Nov 2016 05:41:21 GMT

What the FUCK, America, what the FUCK?! He was endorsed by the fucking KKK, he's lied and lied and lied through the whole campaign, how is it even possible that he's in a position for the fucking Presidency? I know Hillary's unpopular, but I had no idea people would prefer a fucking lunatic to her. Yeah, I'd have preferred another choice, but at least she's sane! Fuck this, fuck him, fuck the GOP for not making it clear this isn't what they're about, fuck the government, fuck all of it!

. . . I feel better. And I'm praying Hillary throws a Hail Mary. No, I don't like her particularly, but in this case? She's the superior choice by miles.

P.S. Sorry about the f-bombs, but I needed them, just this once.

honorh — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 06:10:06 GMT

Ever have a moment when you realize you accidentally did something totally brilliant while writing? I just did. Woohoo! This story may end up working after all!

I am so sick of FaceBook

honorh — Tue, 25 Oct 2016 05:02:59 GMT

I really am. I hate all the politics, all the trash information that gets passed around, the freaking memes, I really hate it. But it's the best way to keep up with far-flung family. I wish I had a stronger "ignore" response.

In other news, I just read the second in Rick Riordan's Magnus Chase series (the Norse one). It's definitely, to me, more engaging than the first. The characters feel more solid and three-dimensional. I think it's because Riordan really chose to focus in on Magnus and the two lead female characters, Samirah and Alex, rather than trying to juggle a big cast. Blitz and Hearth are also pretty prominent, but the lead trio are really in focus. Alex is a great addition to the cast, and I hope Riordan continues to focus on this trio in the books to come. It looks like Alex may end up as Magnus's love interest, which is doubly interesting as she's trans/gender-fluid. No doubt some people will complain.

Begins with "cluster"

honorh — Sun, 09 Oct 2016 06:17:44 GMT

. . . is what I'd say the general description of this election season is. Are all of you non-Americans just watching this in horrified fascination, or what?

Anyway, the only thing making it worthwhile is Owen Ellickson's Twitter. It stars the lunatic currently posing as the figurehead of one of our two major parties, an increasingly-despondent Paul Ryan, a badly-abused Chris Christie, a homicidal Ann Coulter, Lovecraftian horror Roger Ailes, Tr*mp's rotating campaign staff (currently headlined by a chain-smoking, not-even-bothering-to-hide-her-contempt-for-him Kellyanne Conway), various other political figures, and a bunch of evil clowns. Guest appearances by a foul-mouthed Hillary Clinton and her mook squad. If you haven't discovered it yet, do. It's become my one little island of happy in all this. I hope it gets made into a musical someday.

Fic: The Spindle of Necessity

honorh — Fri, 19 Aug 2016 03:37:59 GMT

Reposted from AO3:

Title: The Spindle of Necessity
Fandoms: The Heroes of Olympus and The Dresden Files
Pairings: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, background canon DF and HoA 'ships
Characters: Harry Dresden, Nico di Angelo, Will Solace, Lou Ellen, Khione, the Boreads, Piper McLean, Michael and Charity Carpenter, Molly Carpenter, other Carpenter kids, Maggie Dresden, Mab, Thomas Raith, Jenny Greenteeth
Rating: Teen
Summary: Harry Dresden thinks he's seen it all. Then three demigods show up in Chicago, bringing trouble with them.

The Spindle of Necessity

Verbatim fic summary:

honorh — Fri, 29 Jul 2016 20:29:56 GMT

halo insomnia mcangel is a daughter of hades who is in love with two different guys, but when a new girl named gabby de voltron threatens to steal BOTH OF THEM what will she do???????

join halo and her friends as they struggle w/ love, frienships, betrayal, sex (xD) and a lot of other stuff!!!!

(R&R plz!! dont hate this is my first fic :3)

Folks, this has the potential to be the "My Immortal" of Riordan fandom.

In other news, I've decided Khione will be my villain. She caused a lot of trouble because of her ambitions in The Heroes of Olympus (she wants to overthrow her father, Boreas) and would totally steal the MacGuffin to rewrite reality, she's got colorful sidekicks Harry will enjoy insulting, and being a snow goddess, she brings in the whole Winter Court thing. So! Fun!

Writing is being difficult

honorh — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 06:31:18 GMT

I've got a Dresden Files/Heroes of Olympus fic going, and I'm having a slight bit of difficulty. I've got my characters (Harry, Nico, Will, Lou Ellen of the Hecate cabin, with multiple bit players from either canon), I've got my MacGuffin (the Scepter of Necessity from the Myth of Er), I've got my basic plot (it's been stolen from the Underworld and might be somewhere in Chicago), I've even got the opening sequence written . . . but I don't know who took the thing, or why. I'm missing an antagonist.

Hmm.

With a new fandom comes new annoyances

honorh — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 03:43:14 GMT

This:

Boi this is gay tbh. It's also fucking shit whoops I'm sorry

is not a fic summary. It's an admission you shouldn't be writing anything, up to and including today's date.

Grr.

I am finding some really good stories, mind you. There are some really good writers, including one who's managed, somehow, to suck me into Ye Olde High School AU. I'll have to do a fic recs post one of these times. Meanwhile, I'm continuing to write my story, which has mutated severely.

Title: Becoming Us (Part 3 of ?)
Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Related Fandoms
Characters/Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Percy Jackson/Annabeth Chase, other canon pairings and loads and loads of characters
Rating: General
Summary: Starting with the three days in the infirmary, Nico di Angelo learns how to heal as he and Will Solace negotiate their relationship, discovering how two people so unlike each other can become "Us."

I'm still standing?

honorh — Wed, 22 Jun 2016 04:41:20 GMT

Yeah, it surprises me a bit that I'm back, too. I've been working hard on my Master's degree, which will be finished sometime this fall, once I get my Culminating Experience project done. I just finished a very intense year that involved writing a 30-page paper and nearly broke my brain.

Anyway, during that time, the new Rick Riordan book The Trials of Apollo: The Hidden Oracle came out, which meant I had to reread The Heroes of Olympus just to check in with my favorite Greek and Roman demigods. Somewhere along the line, I got slightly obsessed with Nico di Angelo, the tormented son of Hades. And so help me, I've gotten into the fandom. It's not in the least bit dignified, but then, neither is being a grad student. On the upside, I'm writing fanfic again, and it's just as fun as I remembered. I thought I'd link it here just in case there's anybody still lurking around my LJ who's into Percy Jackson et al.

Title: Becoming Us (Part 1 of 6)
Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Related Fandoms
Characters/Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Percy Jackson/Annabeth Chase, other canon pairings and loads and loads of characters
Rating: General
Summary: Starting with the three days in the infirmary and spanning three years, Nico di Angelo and Will Solace negotiate their relationship, discovering how two people so unlike each other can become "Us."

Answer for question 4608.

honorh — Sun, 07 Feb 2016 22:47:05 GMT

There's not enough "Hell" in "Hell, no" to express the hellaciousness of my answer. I'm genuinely embarrassed for the Republican party that this idiot has happened to it, and I haven't been a Republican in years.

Been away for a while. Been reading . . .

honorh — Sun, 11 Oct 2015 21:05:03 GMT

Back to transitting to and from PSU regularly, which means I've had a lot of time to read, which is convenient, because four books recently came out that I had on my list. In order of reading:

Pack Dynamics by our very own agilebrit:

Definitely a strong debut. It feels like the first in a series in that it's obvious from the start that there's a lot more to the characters and the world than the author's going to be able to reveal in one book. That can be a dicey position, but it's handled well. The author never treats the audience like they're stupid and need everything spelled out. You either buy into this world that's 15 minutes into the future, where there's advanced nanotech and there are werewolves and vampires and who knows what else, or you don't. Personally, I bought in. Even the werewolf bunnies. Bunnies that turn into cute little terrifying werewolves. It's not a mental image I'm getting over quickly, but I kind of love the sheer weirdness of it. I'm looking forward to the next book. Recommended!

The Cinder Spires: The Aeronaut's Windlass by Jim Butcher

I tend to be a monogamist with authors; I will get hooked on one series and read only it and not any other series by the author. I absolutely, unequivocally adore Butcher's Dresden Files, but I've never read his Codex Alera and don't really plan to. However, the description of this book looked so interesting that I decided to give it a try, and I'm so glad I did. It kicks all kinds of ass.

Sometime in the future, some sort of disaster has left the surface of Earth basically uninhabitable. Unnamed Builders created the cinder spires, massive towers that now house humanity and keep them safe from the horrifying abominations that crawl the surface. Specialized crystals are grown in vats. They collect mysterious energy called ether and power the airships that are the engines of trade and war between spires. Otherwise, there is no technology past that of, say, the late 19th century.

The writing is Butcher at his best. While it lacks the charm of Harry Dresden's narration, the narrative is smooth and vivid and the characters are all distinct and multi-dimensional. Fully half of the major characters are female: Hot-headed, yet well-meaning and hard-working aristocrat Gwen; Bridget, who's more level-headed, but finds herself repeatedly out of her depth; Folly, an "etherealist" (one who directly interacts with the ether) with some severe social difficulties; the terrifying Mrs. Cavendish; and Calliope, who might very well be what you could call a "pirate."

My personal Wild Mass Guessing: This is a possible far future of the world of the Dresden Files. The unnamed disaster opened the Outer Gates and has left the world at the mercy of Outsiders. The Builders were Fae and wizards, who used the material of the Gates to build the spires in order to shelter humanity. Ether is wild magical energy that has altered the very laws of physics in our world. Etherealists are wizards. Harry's discussed the price of magic for different ages in the Dresden Files, and I think in the future, it's the mental instability that afflicts all etherealists. The elder wizard is a compulsive hoarder and can't work doorknobs. Folly is unable to directly speak to people. Mrs. Cavendish is just plain terrifying. And finally, I'm pretty sure Mister is directly responsible for the cats that inhabit the spires.

Absolutely recommended!

The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett

I was frankly disappointed in the last two Discworld books, so I put off getting this one. Turns out there was no need to be hesitant. Pratchett was in great form, showcasing his trademark humor, pathos and optimism in his final book. "The world is changing" was very much the motto for this book. It includes a very important character death, a character we've known since practically the beginning of the series, who is given a worthy send-off. Tiffany Aching, perhaps the youngest protagonist of any of the DW novels, is also a worthy protagonist of this final book. The book wasn't quite finished when Pratchett died, and you can tell; a couple of threads are uncharacteristically dropped, and the end is a bit abrupt. Nonetheless, this final outing of a series that has given so many people so much joy is as worthy a send-off as was given to the character who dies. Sir Terry, you are missed. Book status: recommended.

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard: The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan has previous tackled Greek gods, Roman gods and Egyptian gods, so it's high time he got around to Norse gods. There's a lot to like in this book. There's his trademark quirkily-irreverent worldbuilding, such as the Hotel Valhalla, which our young hero finds himself in after his dramatic death. (Barely a spoiler; it happens in just about the first chapter.) We get a cast of interesting characters, including a deaf elf, a snazzy-dressing dwarf, a disgraced Iraqi-American Valkyrie, and our hero, who's a homeless, teenage, dead demigod. Riordan unfortunately falls back on his old standard of our hero's intentions being tragically misinterpreted by the nominal good guys, which is a terribly tired plot device in any case. It's a fun book, and I'll read the rest of the series, but it's definitely the weakest of this bunch. Recommended if you've enjoyed Riordan's other books.

So. What should I read next?

Answer for question 4460.

honorh — Mon, 20 Jul 2015 18:53:14 GMT

If a book bores me, I'll stop reading it. If it's just plain bad, I may hate-read it to the end just to see if anyone gets their comeuppance. "Confessions of a Shopaholic" was one of those books for me. I picked it up in Japan because it looked the most interesting of the very limited options I was presented with, and immediately started loathing the idiot protagonist. Hated it, but finished it. Can't say the same about some critically-acclaimed books that bored me.

She resurfaces

honorh — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 07:01:39 GMT

Yeah, I had kind of a horrifically stressful term. I passed and can move on, and that's all that matters. I'm gonna sum up with some bullet points:

--School: I just finished the "Methods" sequence for my degree. It's widely considered the hardest, with four hours in class every week and an order of magnitude more outside of class. Next term, I'm going to have to do a fairly heavy load as well, but after that, I'll only have to do half-time at school in order to graduate next spring. So there's that. Also, I don't have to take Japanese anymore, which is great, because I truly hated the Japanese program. Love the language, wish they'd ditch their hasn't-been-updated-since-the-'80s curriculum

--Work: This was the cool part, even though I had to ration my time carefully. Last fall, I got invited to be a TA for a first-year civil engineering course. Why? Because some three quarters of the class was ESL (mostly Arabic speakers, with a heaping scoop of Brazilians and a sprinkle of other ethnicities as well). The prof needed someone who could help them with their writing, and some blessed person in the Applied Linguistics office was impressed enough with my writing that they recommended me. It was actually a lot of fun, even if it meant a heaping load of grading some nights and weekends.

--Movies: I've managed to see a few recently. My impressions, in yet more bullet points:
---Avengers: Age of Ultron: Good fun. Not brilliant, but a lot of good fun, and that's all I ever asked of it.
---Mad Max: Fury Road: I loved this one! I do hope the director's style catches on, because it was a big, gorgeous, fabulously overblown action movie that used CGI wisely. (Sorry, Avengers, but that opening sequence looked like a video game.) I also loved the fact that everyone, even in the midst of all that action, got their own personalities. Nicholas Hoult just about stole the show for me. He somehow managed to play a violently fanatical follower of a complete psychotic who was also, in some ways, an innocent little boy. What with the two leads being stoic, silent types, I guess you had to have someone along for the ride who was on the wild-eyed side.
---Snatch: Reader, I howled. I'm going to have to watch more Guy Ritchie movies, because this one was a scream.
---Big Hero 6: Really very fun and adorable.

--I also read the book The Martian, which was great, and I'm looking forward to the movie this fall. It looks fairly faithful to the book, from the trailer, and I like Matt Damon. I do question the casting of Chewitel Ejiofor as Venkat Kapoor, though. I mean, yes, Chewy should be cast in everything, absolutely. But as an Indian character? Was Naveen Andrews busy or something? I'm sure he'll do great in the role, but seriously, brown people are not interchangeable, Hollywood.

So, anyway, yeah. I'm hoping to get a summer job that brings in a little cash for fall, and I don't intend to even think about school until then.

Answer for question 4358.

honorh — Sun, 10 May 2015 04:31:24 GMT

Okay, I'll bite. My Kindle (1st gen) was my best friend in Japan. Being able to have books (in English!) anywhere I was? Yeah! While I will always love the feel (and smell) of hardcopy books, I love the convenience of my Kindle (2nd gen, now; give me the e-reader, not the tablet, though it has its place, too). I have a small library available to me at all times, and it can go weeks without recharging. For a certified librophile with a long lightrail commute, that's nothing short of a lifesaver.

New computer!

honorh — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 03:23:29 GMT

I got a new computer today! It's an HP Stream, which is kind of their version of the Chromebook, but more like a "real" PC. The price was right, and it came with some nice extras, even though it is kind of stripped down and doesn't have the same amount of memory as my Dell. Anyway, it's enough to get me through the rest of my student career, when I can hopefully get a job that pays what is commonly called "a wage" and afford a new one.

I seriously had to get a new computer, though, because I was on the verge of treating my Mom's old MacBook to a date with a sledgehammer. It got me through two months, for which I am grateful, but it was a serious pain in the ass.

And the diagnosis is . . .

honorh — Wed, 04 Feb 2015 05:35:24 GMT

Sinus infection! Yay!

Not that I'm really excited about the sinus infection. It hurts, and I can't smell a thing, and it's dripping toxic sludge into my respiratory tract. However, I am actually very glad it's a bacterial infection, because that means antibiotics ought to take care of it. Viruses are horrible buggers.

The nurse practitioner I saw at the student health center said this is one of the nastiest flu seasons she can remember. I believe it. People are getting the flu, they're getting colds, and then they're getting lovely add-ons like sinus infections and bronchitis. Including me, and I can generally shrug off anything that comes for me. I might get slammed off my feet for a day or two by a particularly nasty virus, but I'll be back to normal within a week or so. This whole "being sick for over a month" thing is, well, not really what I'd like to be doing with my life right now.

In case anybody's wondering where I've been . . .

honorh — Sat, 31 Jan 2015 06:09:39 GMT

I have literally been sick since Christmas. First it was the flu. Started feeling better, and then got hit by what seemed to be a cold. Was getting better, but still had a cough. And now I'm feverish and congested and still have a cough. Tomorrow, I'm seeing a doctor. Enough is freakin' enough.

2014, don't let the door hit you on the ass . . .

honorh — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 04:48:24 GMT

Actually, it can, for all I care. Just as a coup de grace, I came down with the flu the day after Christmas, also known as the day my beloved mermaidrain came down for a one-week visit. We managed to get in some fun nonetheless, but I couldn't even hug her goodbye, thanks to not wanting to pass on my virus. Just hope I'm better by Monday, when Winter Term classes start.

So, yeah. I'll get to the rest of the talking meme when I feel up to it. At the moment, I have laryngitis and otherwise feel like crap. Flu sucks. So did 2014. I'll raise a dose of Robitussin to a better 2015.

December Talking Meme: My Dad

honorh — Fri, 26 Dec 2014 08:16:40 GMT

It still barely qualifies as Christmas, and though computer problems might have caused me to need some grace on other entries, I'm determined to do this one.

My dad wasn't a tall man, or a big one. He didn't stun you with his good looks and charm. Instead, what most people remember about him is his warmth. He was a truly gentle man, tender-hearted in the extreme, with a love for beautiful things. Good music could move him to tears, and he loved watching dancing, too. He loved history, especially WWII history, especially the Pacific theater. He was so excited when we found out I'd be going to Japan because Japan fascinated him. He also loved old-school SF. Zenna Henderson's "The People" books were favorites of his. Old B-movies - War of the Worlds, Day of the Triffids, This Island Earth, etc. - he had a soft spot for them.

Dad was a devoted Christian. He was an elder at just about every church we ever attended, save only for the last one, and that only because he wasn't strong enough to take on the duties. He read the Christmas story from Luke's Gospel to the family every Christmas. (No one read it this year. No one felt up to it.) He loved God, he loved theology, and he loved church.

Dad was a great teacher. He taught chemistry and organic chemistry at the University of Alaska for over 30 years, and not one of his colleagues ever had anything bad to say about him. Some of his students did, because he was a tough grader, but if you met one who was really serious about the subject, you'd hear nothing but praise. I remember eavesdropping on a bunch of students one time at UAA. They were discussing the classes they'd just signed up for for next term. "I've got Heasley for Chemistry," one said. "Yeah, Heasley's great," said another, and I thought, That's my Dad.

Most of all, though, Dad was a great husband and father. He was devoted to my mother. They had an egalitarian marriage before they were popular. The dogma of the churches they attended was always that the man is the head of the household, the wife/mother stays home and always defers to her husband, etc. They gave it lip service, and then quietly did their own thing. Mom was better at getting the bills paid on time than Dad was, so he left it up to her. On the other hand, he was much gentler when washing our hair than Mom was, so he was the Shampoo Man. In later years, he would get up and make coffee and breakfast while Mom took her morning walk, and they'd eat together when she got home.

He was the best Dad ever.

I miss him.

Posted from my mom's old MacBook

honorh — Thu, 25 Dec 2014 06:04:05 GMT

. . . because, sadly, after three years of faithful service, my Dell is dead. Even more sadly, I was its killer. I spilled coffee on it, and just a little bit got down to the motherboard and fried a circuit. So very much not what I wanted for Christmas. The worst thing is that my Dell was the computer my friends (you know who you are) helped me to buy after the tsunami.

Fortunately, my mom uses her iPad almost exclusively these days, so I can borrow her laptop until I can save enough for a new computer. More fortunately, I have a job, so I will be able to buy one, though I think it'll take a month or two and some very careful spending.

I'm just upset at myself for making such a clumsy mistake. I mean, seriously.

December Talking Meme

honorh — Fri, 19 Dec 2014 05:59:24 GMT

Both mermaidrain and gehayi asked me about the books I've been reading lately. In the past few months, I've read a number of books, both fiction and nonfiction, and would basically recommend all of them. A sampling, because I can't be bothered to fetch my Kindle and confirm:

Fiction

World War Z by Max Brooks: Yes, it's a zombie apocalypse book, but I'm not even into zombies and I loved it. The setup is that an interviewer (and if you listen to the audiobook, the interviewer is Max Brooks) has written up the accounts of survivors of the apocalypse and organized them chronologically. You get a worldwide view of the initial outbreaks, how the infection (a virus called Solanum) spread, the panic as people realized what they were up against, efforts to fight back, and the eventual rebuilding of societies. Seriously, it's great.

If you've seen the movie, btw, it's nothing like the book. The book zombies are classic "slow" zombies, and infection takes up to 48 hours to set in. Also, there's no Brad Pitt. Or Peter Capaldi. A bit of the dialogue in Israel is about the only thing that survived from the book to the movie. I liked the movie, but it's an "in name only" adaptation.

Wool by Hugh Howey: In a future world where the air is so toxic people are forced to live in silos underground, the ultimate punishment is to be sent outside to clean the viewports that are the only glimpse the people of the silos have of the world above. The people sent out have just enough time to complete the task before they die. Everyone knows it's a death sentence . . . so why do they always do the cleaning? This is the central question that drives the narrative of the five individual stories the omnibus edition comprises.

Nonfiction

A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith by Brian McLaren: I've read a few of his books, and this one's my favorite. I identify as a Progressive Christian, but what McLaren posits is that the progressive, or emergent, church is actually going back to the roots of our faith, before it took on a Greco-Roman character. What was Christianity like before Constantine? Before it had political power? What accretions on our faith actually go against the character of Christ? These are important questions, especially in today's world.

Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi: I'm working very closely with a lot of Muslims these days, and I want to understand as much as I can of their religion. I have a friend who's a Christian-turned-Muslim, so when I saw this book, I thought it might be interesting to read the thoughts of a Muslim-turned-Christian. And indeed, it was. Qureshi speaks very fondly of his life growing up as a devout Muslim in a devoutly Muslim family, of the beauties and mysteries he found in his faith. He also describes what eventually caused him to turn to Christianity. It's a fascinating story, full of respect for both faiths.

Finally, my favorite:

A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans: Rachel Held Evans is a Christian feminist. So why would she want to do things like exile herself from her home during her period, cover her head while praying, and call her husband "Master"? Well, it's a funny story . . . and also a very enlightening, poignant one. There are so many contradicting opinions on what a Christian woman should be these days that she thought she'd go back to the source and try to follow some of the Old Testament laws (as much as she could without actual animal sacrifices). Along the way, she interviews women from a variety of Christian and Jewish traditions. And exasperates her longsuffering husband. It's a great book, it really is.

Two more

honorh — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 06:16:40 GMT

Got off by a day, so let's do two. First, per gehayi: "Five characters that influenced you as a writer and/or person (explaining, of course, how and why they influenced you)"

That's a big question. Might require a whole essay. I'm going to cheat and widen this to fictional canons, because there are just way too many characters.

1. The Chronicles of Narnia: During some of the darkest, most difficult days of my life, these books helped me find an anchor. I was very sick as a teenager. It led to the panic attacks and depression that's haunted me into my adult life. I would pray and pray for wisdom, for comfort, for the certainty I'd lost somewhere along the way, and feel utterly alone in the universe. The book The Silver Chair, in particular, helped me to find my feet. At one point, Aslan says to Jill, "You would not have called to me if I had not been calling to you." That idea, that God was reaching out to me even as I felt alone and scared, helped me through the crises of my health and my faith.

2. Star Trek: The Next Generation: I was fannish about this show before I knew what being fannish was. I'm so glad there wasn't an Internet around during my teen years, because I'm sure I'd have written the worst fanfiction for it. I loved it. The creativity, the optimism ST has always been famous for, the breadth of room for imagination--I can look back now and see its flaws, but who even cares? Besides, Jean-Luc. There, you can't argue with that.

3. Highlander: My first real online fandom. Exciting days! I stepped into fanfiction and bulletin boards via this show. It was also really the first show I remember that posited this hidden world that most people never saw, something fantastic among the mundane. It's something that's continued to fascinate me, and why urban fantasy is much more attractive to me than medieval fantasy.

4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Proof that in the right hands, the craziest idea (a cute cheerleader named Buffy who slays vampires and demons) can become sublime. This show went so many places. Sometimes it succeeded, sometimes it didn't, but you can never accuse it of being safe. The best things in my life have come to me when I stopped keeping myself safe. If I ever do write that novel, I think that's the lesson I'll have to take into it.

5. The Dresden Files: I know you expected this to be Doctor Who, and it does get an honorable mention, but DF sits closer to my heart. Just like BtVS wasn't a safe show, Harry Dresden isn't a safe hero. It's another crazy setup--a noir hero in modern-day Chicago who happens to be a wizard--and the supporting cast includes everyone from a crime baron to a holy paladin. The characters get tested in absolutely every way, and sometimes they fail, but the proof of the test is that they get up afterward and keep going. That's a good lesson to impart.

Next, from athersgeo: OBAFU, my thoughts theron.

Um, it happened? It was fun to do, and a lot of people liked it, but on the whole, I'm fairly certain I'd never have finished it. Maybe that's a good thing. I'm not convinced it was ever a good idea to begin with. Those are my thoughts. Not a whole lot of them.

Catching up three days

honorh — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 06:57:09 GMT

Had a busy weekend, so I'm catching up. Fortunately, the prompts all kind of work together.

First, per azriona, my first memory: To tell the truth, I'm not sure what this might be. My early childhood memories aren't precisely linear. I do remember protesting loudly that I didn't *want* to turn four on my fourth birthday. I also have some vague memories of the duplex my family lived in before we moved to the house that I grew up in. I remember a driveway - cracked, of course, like all good Alaskan driveways - and a metal wind-up car, the sort whose edges you could probably shave with.

Second, per kiwiria, my scariest memory: You'd think it would be the tsunami, but it isn't. That prize goes to another memory. When I was a sophomore in high school and (unbeknownst to me at the time) getting sick with Graves' Disease, I was hungry all the time. One day, I stopped at my locker between classes and dug out a piece of cold pizza I'd brought for lunch. I took a couple of bites hurriedly, and then the girl in the locker next to mine asked me a question. I started to answer her . . . and started choking. Not gagging or coughing, choking. I couldn't make a sound, couldn't breathe at all. I remember everything going all slow-motion and trying to gesture at my throat, to signal somebody that I was choking. My brother's friend (and friend's brother) Mark was nearby, since he had a class near my locker. Mark was generally not the kind of guy you wanted around during an emergency. Think Napoleon Dynamite. Seriously. Without the 'fro, but with the mouth-breathing. I remember Mark yelling something at me, and then grabbing me from behind and performing a perfect Heimlich Maneuver that he'd learned sometime in elementary school. The pizza came up, I went down, and I never rolled my eyes at Mark again. He's done rather well for himself, and neither of us has ever forgotten that day.

Third, per kiwiria, my most vivid memory: Hard to say, but I think the tsunami would have to be it. Just the whole time around it. After I returned to the US, one day, I heard a helicopter, and I had a flashback. A real, honest flashback. It was like I was in two places at once, as if my body were in Hillsboro, OR, but everything else was back in Japan. See, one of the constant sounds after the tsunami was the sound of chopper blades. There were helicopters everywhere. Military, news, medevacs. That sound brought it all back for just a moment of total disorientation. I talked about it later with my Gulf War-veteran brother-in-law, and he understood completely. He's never had the full-on hallucination flashbacks some vets do, but he knows the feeling of being *there* in all but body. I felt that strange displacement a couple of times afterward, but that first time was definitely the strongest.