sundries

[rm]

In case this isn't clear: You don't fuck with my family. Not my partner. Not my creative collaborators. Not my friends. Not my ex-lovers (because while there are a few who can happily stay way the hell away over there, I don't actually wish bad things upon them). My ability and willingness to make your life unpleasant in completely legal ways is higher than you might suspect. God, I am pissed off at people's shit this week!

With three minutes to spare, I did get those two essays done. Not my best work in the sense of the magic I do with cadence, but clear, entertaining stories with emotional points on topics not previously addressed. I can live with it. I AM A GOD OF ADEQUACY.

Some luxury travel mag came in the mail last night probably because of the cruise we've registered for. It contained: a good feature on NYC with some restaurants I now want to try (yay), a feature on Wales (oh god, I really want to fucking go now, but god help me for wanting to stay in this hip little place with entirely white furniture and awesome textures in fucking Penarth), and a piece on luxury camping which yielded one vacation idea for Patty and I, and one plotbunny.

Gotta get groceries tonight. And do laundry. And deal with the dry cleaning. Food and fabric are both infinite.

Patty sent me pictures of a mass stingray migration yesterday. It's been all over the net, so you've probably seen it, but I fucking love rays, and she remembered that and I was tickled.

Today I am doing work about Tibet.

I am loving the cracktastic AfterElton Torchwood episode summaries.

Interesting movie thing maybe going on for me.

I really thought I was going to be crazy into ST:Reboot fic, as I thought the movie was so sexy and great and loving towards the original and fannish sentiment. However, I find I do not care. I am slightly sad.

Privatization might be next for USPS. It's worked well in other countries, but I'm not sure it would here. In fact, I think it would probably suck. http://naamah-darling.livejournal.com/410499.html

I can deal with people disagreeing about how to achieve universal access to health services, but I can't deal with the people who think that healthcare, the basic medical maintenance of our existence, isn't somehow a basic right. If we say people with more money have more right to health and normal life-expectancy we're getting into some very scary territory. I hate my tax burden, but am glad to pay more, both so my neighbor can get care, and also so that I am not complicit in a serious of illogical and amoral decisions about who is worthy and what has the best ROI. Of course, there are a hundred other things wrong with our healthcare system too, like a focus on non-critical drugs for non-critical ailments that produce lots of side effects and have no efficacy. The whole thing is such a fucking mess and makes me very, very angry.

Being female, I like to say sometimes I was never mine, and this is what I mean: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/louise-marie-roth/is-a-woman-in-labor-a-per_b_242307.html More infor here via browneyedgirl65.

When does whatever the big Doctor Who/Torchwood news we're expecting come out of Comic Con? I'm actually sort of tense about it, because there's one thing I'm really hoping it's not, as it will send me off into a deep-end of professional crazy I'm not in the mood for.

I tripped over some stuff yesterday and fucked my knee up but good.

I am having thinky thoughts lately about the current state of the fencing thing (and there's an essay that I have to write relatedly), various BDSM stuff and my crappy disease. All unrelated to each other. Whether I get around to posting any of it is another matter entirely.

I've been eating scads of garlic bread lately. Granted, it's sort of lame celiac garlic bread that involve gluten-free toast topped with vegetable oil butter-like spread, garlic powder, oregano and paprika, but it's still pretty good.

FUCKING SQUIRRELS ripped off more vegetables. FUCKING SQUIRRELS.

Still have a cold, but kinda sorta almost feel human.

I was really hoping my new suit would be here in time for WriterCon, but unless I hear from Seyta today, I'm pretty sure that's not happening.

Looks like the Taco Bell chihuahua died.

Apparently the Save Ianto Jones thing has now made the media. I am charmed by this, even as my feelings are mixed. I'm sorry he had to go, but he was always going to have to go, and I do feel the character, who was so much a kid who thought he was ready to die finding reasons to live (and still not being less about the ready to die thing), got to do everything he needed to, although not everything he wanted to and knew it. And yeah, part of me would love to have him back -- Ianto was the most organically and serendipitiously written character on Torchwood -- everyone admits his arc was never what anyone intended, but I also think his death served the larger narrative about Jack that took place not just in CoE, but across Torchwood thus far and, particularly, what we learn about Jack's future in Doctor Who. Also, writers write what they write for a reason. Sometimes those are reasons of craft; sometimes those are reasons of personal neurotic fixation; usually it's a combination of the two. The idea of anyone petitioning or lobbying to change the stories I need to tell freaks me the fuck out, so the whole petition thing, aside from being, I think, futile, makes me slightly uncomfortable. But I am also so charmed! It makes me feel so good as someone who is crazy about fictions in every possible way to see someone who's real in a different way than you or me so loved. And man, what a fucking kick this crazy ass shit must be for GDL. I'm tickled. I'm also feeling bad for the wave of misery that's going to be showing up tonight with the American broadcast.

Something I've never seen a good writer in Torchwood fandom tackle is Ianto's first time with Jack, if this whole being into men thing is actually news to him (as he claims to his sister, but canon tells us Ianto is a lying liar who lies). I've seen shitty writers do it as a way to address their own experiences of losing their virginity, but seriously? Not relevant and the "sex isn't meaningful unless there's penetration" shit is annoying. I'd like to see a writer do it well, with all that weird, awkward, scary first time stuff, but write it still recognizing that Ianto is a goddamn adult - one who is sexual, determined and compulsive and, my god, has Jack's fucking attention. Someone? ANYONE? If there's an awesome story I've missed somewhere, please let me know.

Comments

[annablume.livejournal.com]

Squirrels are rats with PR. They'll burn your house down, those.

[cruentum.livejournal.com]

In regards to saveiantojones, I share your mixed feelings, mostly because I'm fine with CoE and fine with the character development and fine with writers writing their stuff,

but 1500 pounds raised for Children in Need - that is a good thing and channeled things into a good direction, I think, so for that - yeah, charmed.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

Regarding your first point: I hope everything is okay!

Ianto is my favourite character for a variety of reasons and everything you said here: "who was so much a kid who thought he was ready to die finding reasons to live (and still not being less about the ready to die thing), got to do everything he needed to, although not everything he wanted to and knew it." - was exactly what I was telling my GF. Yeah, we're still talking about CoE.
We're currently debating in circles whether Jack leaving honours Ianto or not. I'm with you on Jack's arc and how Ianto fits into his story. What you wrote about Jack and his brand of heroism very much fits the way I view Jack as a character - someone who enjoys playing the hero, but doesn't really see himself as particularly honourable, I don't think. My GF is miffed that Jack would be willing to just "up and leave" and not stay and fight in Ianto's name.
Seeing as he actually fought in the Doctor's name in neither here nor there, and I haven't mentioned it to her... She doesn't like the Doctor.

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

1. ...I won't ask what prompted this comment.
2. yay!
3. plotbunny from a luxury magazine is good, I guess.
4.[re: ComicCon] that's what I want to know!

[rm.livejournal.com]

Ianto was, in a way, sort of an unassuming guy. I think he'd roll his fucking eyes at Jack fighting in his name.

I've added yet another fic to the fic queue, this about Jack hooking up with a widower when he's roaming about the earth in the time between Ianto's death and when he takes off for the stars.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

I in the opinion that when it comes to characters and their arcs we're going to pretty much agree :)

Is this story in the single digits when it comes to the fic queue, or on the back burner? 'Cause it sounds fascinating!

[rm.livejournal.com]

I sort of work on stuff at random as it moves me, but it's sorta on the front burner if I can solve the OC well enough.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Also, can I just say, randomly, you're one of the recent LJ'ers I'm so happy to have found. I really hope we get a chance to actually bump into each other some day (since my partner often works in the Middle East, you never know).

[rednwhiterose.livejournal.com]

Word.

If I didn't know any better I'd say the ones that hang around my house are plotting a massive takeover of the house, or at least the attic.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

Dude, I am so happy I delurked and actually started commenting on your LJ :)

I plan on returning to America at some point in the near future (i.e. hopefully less than five years from now) as I have quite a few friends and acquiescences I've met (and would like to meet).
Crossing paths would be awesome!

[unicursal.livejournal.com]

As far as I can tell, both SDCC pannels are on Sunday - DW at 11, and TW somewhere about 2:15? They are the only two panels I will likely attend, and I will be tweeting @unicursal

[rm.livejournal.com]

Cool! And I am so jealous. I've had the opportunity to do panels at SDCC for the last two years, but it's always been bad timing or not really worth my while, so I haven't gone, and both times it's caused me to miss AWESOME stuff.

[miep.livejournal.com]

quit editing your posts and adding lots of new information that gets stuck way down on my flist. :P

[thunderemerald.livejournal.com]

Also, writers write what they write for a reason. Sometimes those are reasons of craft; sometimes those are reasons of personal neurotic fixation; usually it's a combination of the two. The idea of anyone petitioning or lobbying to change the stories I need to tell freaks me the fuck out, so the whole petition thing, aside from being, I think, futile, makes me slightly uncomfortable.

Thank you for putting into words something I've felt for quite a long time. It always seems that when a character dies or is irrevocably changed -- Sirius, then Remus, in HP, and Donna in Who, plus many more -- my fellow character-fans start lobbying to Bring Them Back or just Ignore That Part Of Canon... and I find myself defending whatever event it was that I didn't even like in the first place. I guess it just boils down to what you said: the storytelling comes first.

[rm.livejournal.com]

To honor the character, I have to honor the story, even if I think the story shortchanged the character, feeling like I have their back, instead of wanting to change the canon story, is how I honor the character.

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

Agreed. I think the *manner* in which Ianto died was a bit of an anticlimax, but I'm willing to back the narrative because frankly that's his history now.

And agreed with thunderemerald that "fixit" mentality just doesn't work for me (which fact incidentally puts me very much on one side of a particular Hornblower-fandom divide).

[rm.livejournal.com]

Oh, the Archie issue? Yeah.

I'm happy to read TW fic in which Ianto doesn't die in CoE, but I'm largely not interested in fix-it fic, where they undo the death -- I need it to go AU before that (as we are doing in EtGB) or skip the shit entirely (as in the virtual season I'm part of).

[unicursal.livejournal.com]

If you ever decide to come out for the hell of it, I almost always have extra badges, even at the last moment.

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I am...kind of wanting to duck and cover because of Day Four airing tonight. The whole hostility thing and I are Not Getting Along. I just don't want to interact with it.

OTOH, like you say, the crazy is sort of splendid in its way.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I hate the anger, but I think the passion and love about it all is fucking glorious.

[thunderemerald.livejournal.com]

Yes yes and yes. I'm gonna quote the fuck out of what you just said.

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

I was really hoping my new suit would be here in time for WriterCon, but unless I hear from Seyta today, I'm pretty sure that's not happening.


Sadface! *fingers crossed that Seyta just hasn't contacted you yet*

Also, w/r/t health insurance/universal health care, this was linked from my friendsfriends and encapsulates a lot of how broken the system as it stands feels to me. And I'm one of the lucky ones.

[regyt.livejournal.com]

That last is a fic I would love to read. If I wrote fic ever, I would try to tackle it. I'm sort of tempted anyway!

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

It is, though I wish that some of it didn't leave me feeling like I've been caught in a blast radius.

Which is kind of its own rant, really.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Seriously. Also, I can't believe I feel the urge to defend myself against charges of "you don't love Ianto enough!" because I liked CoE.

First of all, the conversation is irrational.
Secondly, as a creative, I think it's obnoxious.
Thirdly, to go back to the irrational, people think saying that to me is a good idea? really? have they looked at how I conduct my relationship with fiction? FUCK YOU.