( The suspect outfit I wore today. )

THAT'S RIGHT, BITCHES.

I know I'm cool.

Dressagegrrrl: Oh my god! Listen to this! "The Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts (DCCA) will open an exhibit by Christopher K. How called Lesbian Mountains in Love.

The exhibit will run this Thursday, Nov. 19 to March, 7 in the Carole Bieber and Marc Ham Gallery. Lesbian Mountains in Love is a video portrait of the yearning of Mount Rainier in Washington and El Popo in Mexico to reunite after millennia of tectonic movement thrust them apart. Subtitles appropriated from Nicholas Sparks's novels take on their own poignance in a quiet, poetic evocation of longing against all odds."

RFN: Hnn. I'm still waiting for the buddy cop movie about the Mojave and Sahara deserts.

Dressagegrrrl: The one with subtitles appropriated from "Kindergarten Cop?"

RFN: It's not a tumor!

---

I am dressed atrociously today. It's so bad that I'm actually rather proud. I dress exactly how I please in my day-to-day life, and I rather resent "business casual." Peh, I spit on it. So I feel like I am subverting the system... one polyster ruffle or faux lizard-skin vest at a time.

I'll take a pic later and post it so you all can stare in embarrassed silence.

Note to self: It is better to be caught eating a cupcake neatly than it is to be caught choking on the cupcake you wolfed in order to avoid being caught eating it.

ENJOY. Thank me later.

If any of you are interested in nominating, I have two eligible fics:

1. Disguised Affections - AU. SSHG. Post-Vold. Snape is #1 on the Dth Eater hit-list after the fall of the Dark Lord. His memory is wiped when he is attacked, and to buy time to find a solution, Dumbledore hides him amongst the 7th yrs under a glamour and the watchful eye of HG.

2. Potions Master's Storeroom - An act of good will changes the relationship between the Charms mistress and the stodgy Potions master. Hermione regrets never becoming a decent Occlumens. Severus is pleased she isn't. Fluffy and humorous.

Nominations go here. Rules are here.

No pressure, of course!

So, yes - the stress level in the Dgrrrl household has not at all abated.

However, RFN and I have discovered new and innovative ways to combat it! Thank goodness for that man.

1. We're reading a book of Robert Frost's poetry together - one poem a night. (And by the way - if you haven't read much beyond his "Road Not Taken" poem, you are really missing out. Read Home Burial or The Witch of Coos. Holy smokes. "Home Burial" in particular REALLY got me.)

2. Cooking! We're cooking together a lot - trying new recipe and improving some oldies, but goodies.

3. Handcuffs. **Blush**

4. Exercise!! I go ride my horses and Robby goes for a run. Man, that's great for stress. :)

We've worked together non-stop on the house, and it is REALLY shaping up. We're having a painting party on the 26th (so any of you in the area - you're welcome to stop by!), and we've been working on tearing the carpet up. So far, the hardwood underneath (which is about a hundred years old and a very soft pine) looks pretty good. We're hoping to be able to refinish it. However, if it's in too bad a shape (probably a 50/50 chance), we'll have to recarpet it. Boo. Pictures to come!

Zee Twenty-Ninth Birthday celebration was fun. We went to the Ren Faire and ate gyros. I did some archery, watched some jousting, drank some beer.

That is all, I suppose.

I'm kind of sad right now, though. There's TONS of new, great-looking fic out there (both in the Buffyverse and in the SSHG fandom), and I have NO TIME to read it. Booooo. Hissssss... If any of you have any recommendations of really outstanding new fic, please feel free to rec it in the comments. <3

Love you all. Thanks for holding the inkertubes down for me in my absence. Oh, and terribly sorry to anyone I haven't responded to who's left a comment. Time is short, short, short. I'm reading about 75% of your entries in a lurky-sort-of-fashion, but if I've missed something significant, feel free to smack me over the head. In a loving fashion, of course.

I really do.

It's not just about the stories, although that was what initially drew me in. It's because of the lovely people in the fandom.

Man, I really needed a good pick me up. I've been cranky and out of sorts for various reasons - most of which you all are already familiar. But then, just when I need it most, I get a lovely (although unintentional) pick me up.

It's a postcard from Azkatraz signed by:

Nom de Plume
Pyjama Pants
Pokeystar
Benevolent Goddess
Machshefa
Droxy
Dickie
Ari
Dixiebell
madamsnape
sunny33
qui-quae-quod
pythia-delphi
kitty the wolf
rdholmantx
Themoreyouclean

and a name I'm going to guess at (well, it was a crowded card):
Raoria(?)


Thank you guys for my awesome post card! I put it up on my wall at work!

Wow! Either annietalbot or ferporcel or maybe one of the other mods is really motoring on getting fics up at OWL. I want to add to the list some other excellent mods that I've spoken with recently: ordinary_magic and deemichelle!

You guys rock!

RFN left me yesterday. All day. By myself.

This would normally be bad since I get up to all sorts of mischief by myself. (Example: The Great Fire of 2004 when I accidentally burned a chunk of my sister's hair off. That story is 100% true, and my sister is still sore at me.) However, I was so busy writing and working with the horses that nothing untoward happened. (Luckily.)

So, as I was saying. RFN left me yesterday to go to Otakon with my eldest nephew RJ (who's just turned 16).

( Here are three photos from their adventures. )

He brought me two of the most WONDERFUL presents anyone has ever given me. EVER.



PANDA HOODIE!!! OSAKA PIN!!!!

ZOMG, **Dies**.

The gift giver. That's a boneless puppy on his lap.

AND THEN!!! AND THEN!!! When I got home from riding, I had a package! From Ms. pyjamapants herself!

( If you do not live in the States and are expecting a package from PJPants, do not open this cut because it will ruin your surprise! )

Thank you, PJ!!

---

Oh, and also? I had fun tormenting my niece yesterday. I made her prance around with my mare's ear thingy on her head. (What the frakk are those things called anyway?)

Dear, sweet Jeebus. **Starts weeping tears of blood**

( Ladies, douche with Lysol because your feminine odors are objectionable!! Don't let ignorance keep your girly box locked away from your manly and deserving husband!! )

juno_magic translated it for me. I told her I wanted it to say, "Speak friend and enter."

Thanks, hon! **Wink**

Here's the book trailer to the sequel to P&P&Z:



ZOMG.

Thanks for the heads up, aversiera.

Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god:

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Exclusive Clip


FIVE MORE DAYS.

Dressagegrrrl: **Smooshes kitty face** Could this cat be any more precious?
Rob: Actually, yes.
Dressagegrrrl: Huminah?
Rob: **turns kitty over and runs a finger down her belly** For example, she could be stuffed with gold.

Oh, RFN. King of the puns. :)

This weekend is the Celtic Fling and the Highland Games on the property of the PA Ren Faire/Mt. Hope Winery. Hooray!

RFN tells me he is planning on buying a kilt so he can pimp it out at the Ren Faire in August. This makes me go like this: :)

This conversation came about with my trader Joe after I tried to relate a story in which I screeched like a little girl because the other trader, Dan, startled me.

Dressagegrrrl: Ugh, how embarrassing. I just screamed in the kitchen and almost spilled coffee all over myself.
Joe: **Not looking up from the Bloomberg terminal.** What happened? Did you see a spider?
Dressagegrrrl: Nah. That kind of stuff doesn't bother me. **Thinks.** For example, last night I was riding at the barn, and I had to bury a dead badger. It was rotting. There were bugs.
Joe: **Looks up and stares**
Dressagegrrrl: ...That was probably a story I should have kept to myself.
Joe: No, it's cool. I remember when I had to bury my first dead badger.

...I really like my trader boys.

---

And on that note (you, know - the rotting badger one), Happy Birthday, Lariope!

Okay, so in Season One, Buffy is drowned. Xander resuscitates her, and she goes on to defeat the Master - 'ol Fruit Punch Mouth.

However, because she was technically dead, another Slayer was called - Kendra. That means there were two active Slayers.

So how come, when Buffy died for 147 days in between Seasons 5 and 6, no other Slayer was called?

At first I was thinking that it was because there was already another active Slayer, but that REALLY doesn't make sense because if that was true, Faith never would have been called after Kendra died.

So... is there anyone out there better versed in the Buffyverse that knows the answer?

Rob and I saw Terminator Salvation this weekend with my awesome sister-in-law, Amy.

This movie deserved its bad ranking on Rotten Tomatoes. Yet, YET - There were some incredibly interesting and compelling elements to it. For example: Marcus Wright, the machine that didn't know he was a machine. He FASCINATED me. And the actor that played him - Sam Worthington - absolutely stole the show. (Christian Bale was kinda lame in this one. ...Which, after watching Equilibrium, I would have thought impossible.) Also, Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese was very good.

What RUINED it was:

1. Christian Bale's gravelly Batman Begins voice, and his overall lack of dialogue. I swear, the guy had like five lines and the rest of the time he spent looking mopey and broody.

2. CRAP dialogue. Example:

Marcus Wright: Do you believe in second chances?
Generic Love Interest: Yuh-huh.
Marcus Wright: **Stares broodily at the moon.**
Generic Love Interest: Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm going to jump your bones now I need to share your body heat.
Marcus Wright: **Looks at woman clutching his chest as if she's a nasty case of ringworm** Uh...
Generic Love Interest: Your heart beats. It's sooooooo strong!!!! I love that noise. Ba-dump ba-dump. ...We should start a band.

(Okay, I added that last bit, but the REST is absolutely true.)

3. Flaccid Limp Droopy Poor plotting. ( Avast! Thar be spoilers! )

Still, despite all this, I really enjoyed aspects of this movie, and I'm not sorry I went to see it at all.

---

RFN is planning something sneaky for our five year. I know it. I have no clue what it is.

**Iz suspicious**

Along these lines:

White Ninja is Amused by Mutual Affection

Apparently, there is a(nother) Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie in the works.

I heard this news and I squeed like the nerdy fangrrrl I am.

Then...

Then... I found out that they weren't going to cast Sarah Michelle Gellar. Okay, so I have to admit that didn't crush me. My continuity hindbrain was a bit rankled, but to me, Buffy was one of the less likeable characters in the show, so I was still okay with it.

Then...

THEN I FOUND OUT THAT THEY ARE NOT PLANNING ON BRINGING JOSS WHEDON BACK TO DO THE SCRIPT. They are hemming and hawing, but Kazui and Kazui (creators of the craptastic although mildly entertaining 1992 flick) says that they are determined to take Buffy “into a new place” by themselves.

And AND, they aren't following the story line in Season 8. No sirree. They are "REBOOTING" the entire series from the beginning.

Is Hollywood crazy?

Okay, stupid question. RAWR.

When questioned about it, Whedon stated, "I hope it's cool."

Dressagegrrrl: HYPOTHESIS!!
RFN: Yes?
Dressagegrrrl: My hypothesis is that magic actually exists. It's not inborn to humans, but it's possible to build it up. Like... static electricity.
RFN: So, you're saying that the magic happens when you rub things together?
Dressagegrrrl: **Smirks at sex joke** Precisely.
RFN: How do you propose to test said theory?
Dressagegrrrl: It's elemental, dear RFN...
RFN: Do you mean elementary?
Dressagegrrrl: Of course. We will test it by rubbing two objects together and then seeing if you can do magic. I propose we start with cat fur and male pubic hair.
RFN: ...You really shouldn't be allowed to own animals.
Dressagegrrrl: It's all in the name of science! **In the background, a cat yowls.**

Please note: No cats were actually rubbed on pubic hair for the transcription of this conversation.

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In other news, RFN, my nephew RJ, pure_nell_alpha and I all took the cinnamon challenge. Videos to come.