.MS active logs (Nanao4 Fisher4 Aizen2)
 FisherZaraki (The Maggots Crawl In, The Maggots Crawl Out), NanaoShunsuiJyuushirou (Coming Home), FisherGin (New, Used, Abused), FisherShinji (Freedom Is Another Word), NanaoKiyone (Dressed For Success), AizenGin (Short An Assistant), NanaoKuukaku (Liquid Fire), NanaoFisherCirucci (Burning Down The House), AizenUlquiorra (Spare the Rod);

.MS logs (Nanao1Fisher0 Aizen1 ) to be edited and posted
  AizenStark (PHB),  NanaoNemu (A Boy Like That)

.MS planned logs, no particular order (Nanao2 Fisher2 Aizen7)
NanaoRetsu (Running Away), FisherJyuushirou (Mentor), FisherJyuushirouShunsui (Lost and Found),   NanaoShunsui (You Did What),  AizenMenori (Oh, Aizen-sama!), AizenGin (Winter Wars), AizenGin (Listening In), AizenFisherGin? (Changing Hands), AizenTousenGin ( This Will Be The Day That I Die), AizenGinKira (Big Boss On Top), AizenRetsu (Band Aid)

.TtS active logs (Nanao1)
NanaoUnohanaIchigo (Poke Me!)

.TtS planned logs, no particular order (Nanao1)
NanaoRenjiRangiku (Rukongai Reports)
NanaoChad (If I say Jump, You Say How High)
.post_host active logs (Haruhi1)
HaruhiTamaki (Ladies Who Lunch

ZarakiFisher log is up at mercy_street_rp. Thanks to all the MS crew for good times -- going through this one reminded me how much I loved writing with you. For this one, special thanks to Sky and, of course, Soph, for writing the most magnificent Zaraki ever.

So I was involved in a discussion about books the other day (the kind of discussion where you wave your hands around and knock over your coffee a lot) and sf/f came up. Someone had read Jules Verne. Another had picked up "Eragon" and put it  back (not that I blame him).  And then there was Harry Potter, that nobody had read except to their children or other people's children.

I opened my mouth to talk about sf/f as I know it;  the invention and re-invention of culture and of Other, the thrill of an imagined future one year, five years or thousands of years down the timeline. I opened my mouth the way I always do when I feel sf/f is misrepresented: to share the joy it has given me. (And to tempt with the names of  Gaiman, Gibson and LeGuin.)

Only I couldn't, because to explain, enthuse and encourage common ground on behalf of sf/f is suddenly beyond me.

I'm a person of colour living in Flanders, stronghold of De Vlaamse Bloc. I deal with racism and stupidity (including well-meaning stupidity) every day of my life. I already know that bringing up racism and privilege labels and exposes me in detrimental ways; that the wrong tone or appearing less than grateful for the time someone has spent listening to my explanations, invalidates what I'm saying even if the person demanding to know is a drunk stranger at the bus stop; and that when the professor pulls his eyelids sideways or asks me if I just came on a boat from China, he's not joking.

ETA: This was in our mailbox this morning along with a tl;dr pamphlet. It's a yellow pig saying "Vlaams Geld in Vlaamse Handen!" (Flemish money in Flemish hands! ) My neighbour who is from Senegal got a black one. Not the first time, won't be the last time, but this is one of the reasons I'm tired.

Also, I only found out this week that "Pizdaglaz' means 'cunt eye', but people have been calling out that word to me for months. Elizabeth Bear, how dare you suggest I should stop talking about racism while I'm getting pigs in my mailbox ?



So, no, racism isn't abstract to me. It is, however, one of my deal-breakers, so sf/f, sorry to be dramatic and categoric and leaving, but here's where we part ways. I would have liked to stick around for a bit longer, but I'm tired and there's still a long way to go before we're getting anywhere. Thanks to all who have spoken up and thanks for all the fish, sf/f authors I have loved books from.

[If anyone wants to know more things about RaceFail'09 (which is not a flamewar or a wank but a debate about cultural appropriation with several sf/f authors and editors trying to derail the discussion in asinine ways, for example by outing coffeeandink ) you can go torydra_wong 's Because tl;dr shouldn't be an excuse or topoilass collection of links in RaceFail09. If anyone wants to know what De Vlaamse Bloc is, google it. Please don't ask me to explain anything more today, I'm done, I'm all out.]

ETA: To end on a brighter note: Mom, myself and Selma.

</lj>

Tags: race, sf
Current Mood: tired

Dear Yuletide Writer. I am sure that whatever you'll write me will be awesome. Because I prefer to do everything backwards, I posted my letter to you in the thread where everyone linked to their LJs. Here is the link. This probably tells you more about me than a thousand letters could.

Dear Yuletide Reader. I am so excited to write a story in this fandom, that in the words of doqz (one of our lesser known poets), I could stab someone. Yesterday I felt miserable about work until I started thinking about the story and then I was happy again. (Not that I usually feel miserable about work! I am fine! I am the purring cat in the lap of the Evil Emperor!)

Dear all who do not care about Yuletide, Selma has started school! She's a big big girl with a big big bag. During the weekend, she told us solemnly: "Must go to school. Must play with the children." Sweetie, it only get worse from here.




Dear all who have gotten this far, it is meme time!

Leave me a comment and I will reply with why I like you. If I don't know you, I'll either make something up or tell you why I like your LiveJournal.

And since I stole the meme from MS!writers, here are two ficlets from an MS!AU, which makes it a BleachAUAU. Some of you have seen them before, I know.

( The Other Story (Mercy Street, Deadshot AU: Nanao, Unohana, various cameos) )

( And I'll Be Your Sister If You'll Be My Brother (Mercy Street Deadshot AU. Nanao, Gin, Aizen, Rangiku)  )

Tags: bleach, fic, mercy_street, selma
Current Mood: bouncy

Tags: family, fic, gw, life, pantheon, pmk, selma
Current Mood: accomplished

Happy, happy birthday to merboo and dysmorphology ! I'm very much behind on drabbling, but if you like, gimme character and prompt?

I am such a doofus. Have I told you about the phone interview? Of course I have. I told everyone in the whole world about it, some of them today. And yet, it comes as a surprise to me, when I'm in the shower. To get off to a bad start,  they open with: tell us, what do you want do do? what would you do with 1,000,000 dollar for research? Which by the way are two different questions.

So I babble. I tell them about everything I'd like to do, some of which isn't  physically possible yet, and I make, not a fool, but a doofus of myself. I pace back and forth in the hallway and I tell them about my past research and what we did and thought and why in greater detail than anyone ever would want to know. They are five nice old gentlemen, all professors and they want me to succeed and I just, argh.

It gets worse. I get to ask questions and at the very last minute, I blurt out: Are there  any daycares in Cambridge? Because honestly, the website says there aren't. and you have to get nannies

Okay. I ask five British gentlemen with a combined age of about 350 years, so of course they have no clue. One mentions that he drives by something called so-and-so, surely that's a daycare center. Another thinks that place is a toy store. The third promises to find out. I thank them profusely for their time, hang up and collapse under the weight of my own dorkitude.

Also? Selma Bentell  HATES YOU.

.

ETA: No, I didn't get the job. They didn't think my vision agreed with theirs and that's fair. For example, I did tell them that I didn't think stem cells would be helpful with Alzheimer's disease -- there are lot of reasons why I don't think so. But I'm not  sad, since I'd probably would have turned down the job anyway. If anything, I'm a bit relieved.

And to show you that Selma can be cute, too, I give you this:



(Both pics by d_benway)

Not that I write enough to give people a sense of my style nowadays, but I thought this meme was interesting and so I gacked it from sophiap .

What do you think are the trademarks of the fiction that I write? What type of themes or characterization notes or quirks keep on manifesting in my writing? Essentially, what do you think is a stereotypically sevenall way of writing fic?

Post to own LJ and I'll come track you down there, yaddayadda.

Also, how to turn this lady clockwise? I have no idea.

Tags: meme
Current Mood: amused

London was dreary rain in Camden, Starbucks coffee near Trafalgar Square and an interview for science editor. at Middlesex House The last included a test (spelling, grammar, task prioritizing, abstracts review) which I may or may not have flunked due to sprinting for the Channel train. However, they agreed to a higher salary than normal, so it looks like they do want me or someone like me.

Then I was off to Vienna, where I met up with S, A and H. Lunch was Tunisian, dinner Nepalese and in-between, we had apfelstrudel, topfelstrudel and did a great deal of frivolous shopping. We considered going to the opera (Tosca), but decided against it in favour of flopping on S's bed with some white wine and snacks and just catch up with each other. We don't do that enough. As usual, when going out with S, we got at least one complimentary dish; she's that beautiful and charming.

The day after, we went to an exhibition of Lippizaner horses, in the Spanish Riding School. The skill of riders and horses was amazing. Then we drove out to a vineyard in Krems by the Rhen, shopped around for local wines, jams and beauty products and thought of climbing the hill to an old monastery, but didn't have time for it. Pumpkin soup and schnitzel at a very Austrian eatery, before we went to the airport and back to where we came from.

The flight to Sweden was something of an ordeal, as the air pressure changes hurt Selma's ears and the surrounding passengers were uncharitable. The second night, she threw up all over my father's room. But things got better. I met up with C and taught her how to make mayonnaise for paella, then A&A and E for a family evening and lemon chicken with baked veggies. E, who is 2 years old ate more than twenty olives and pestered Selma endlessly.

We also visited my aunt and were visited by her. I bought monster boots and pink shiny shoes for Selma. We went to Hagelby and Torekallberget to see sheep, goats, rabbits, cows, pigs, horses and hens. Also a cat. Then we flew back to Belgium. Selma slept in my lap the whole way. J was at the airport and everything was as it should be.

No further job news. Just more interviews and writing of writing samples. I've pretty much decided against the monastery lab as well as the largely belief-based bioengineering. Science editing seems like the best bet.

While in Sweden, I lost internet access as my parents had been fiddling with their wireless to the point where it all got hopelessly muddled. I only had brief bursts of connection -- my apologies to everyone, especially people who tried to IM me! I do not mean to be a jerk.

Tags: austria, family, friends, london, selma, sweden, uk, vienna
Current Mood: calm

Haven't done a personal update since last year, so it's about time. Everyone new, please be welcome!

Also, a very happy birthday to ajremix ! Prompt me for drabble if you like and I'll see what I can do.

.work: I finished up my Marie Curie Fellowship in July and submitted the report despite CORDIS Helpdesk's best efforts to the contrary. Now I'm looking for something completely different and am pretty sure I'll find it. I've interviewed for science editor, biochip R&D engineer as well as classical post-doc jobs (one in a 15th century monastery!). In the meantime, I faff around doing nothing and being housewifely.

.health: Has been rotten since I put Selma in daycare a year ago. It'll get better eventually.

.travels: Went to Sweden to see family and friends in July. Six places in ten days, we're not doing that again, but it was fun while it lasted. Will be going to Vienna with friends next week and back to Stockholm after that. London for interviews, but I don't know when.

.writing: Um. I wrote MS! drabbles for Tsuki, Ikkaku and Nanao variety. That's about it. Regarding the RPs I'm part of, I regret having so little time for chat, but I'm always open for logging and only ever an IM, PM or email away.

.other things of notice: Belgium doesn't currently have a government, and Pakistani protesters get our colours wrong (not that it matters much, since the flag is burning anyway).

.family: I love having a family. Here is my big girl on a horse. She yelled "cow" at it, but it didn't take offense.

Tags: 2nd_postdoc, belgium, selma, sweden, travels
Current Mood: chipper

Happy birthday tsuki_neesan ! Many happy returns!

I'd love to write you something -- prompt me?

This is for sophiap, with many thanks for running the MS anniversary fic exchange. Bleach canon(ish), G to PG, Shunsui Kyouraku POV and more than a little late. I hope you like it, m'dear.

Thank you all for the well-wishes! Things are very much improved over here, though I see throat surgery in my near future. Ick.

 And because I have nothing much to report, a meme -- stolen from many, many people:

Please leave a one-word comment that you think best describes me. It can only be one word. No more! Then, if you like, copy and paste this in your journal so that I may leave a word about you ♥

Due to illness, I need to go on hiatus.

Trust Meme. Comment with your characters and I'll rank 'em on a scale of 1 to 10 of how much my characters trust them. 10 being "I would trust you with my life" and 1 being "lol no get away from me backstabber".

Selma was one year old on Friday. We had cake and champagne and a ginormous Minnie Mouse balloon.



Happy holidays!

We leave for Stockholm on Thursday and then it's the usual snowy drive for three hours to the middle of nowhere, oh, excuse me -- Falun. The paper has been submitted to FASEB J, so please think good thoughts for it.

I didn't have time to sign up for yuletide this year. Which is, hey, too bad, but if I can't find the time to sign up for it, I don't think I can find the time to actually write a fic. So it's all for the best. That isn't to say I haven't been writing. I have! Letifos and Tula and lots of Bleach. And a little bit of ofic.

Please feel free to request a drabble. People have written the most brilliant drabbles for me and I want to reciprocate. What with the daycare plague and everything, I can't promise a quick turnaround, but I do promise I'll get it done.

This is for my beloved kerithwyn. Everything Garth I write is for her and I'm only sorry it's not longer or better. The Dick and Barbara one is still under construction.

( DC: Blood in the Water (Letifos, Garth, Tula, R) )

And this one is for fire_and_a_rose. Because I tried to cram it into the 4colorheroines challenge I wrote for her years ago and it wouldn't fit then, maybe it does now.

( A Sea Change (DC: Tula, King Juvor PG) )
And my take on the theme of "wombat, radio, silence", a bit of ofic in Australia for iamsab.

( I Say, You Say )

I've written canon!Bleach fic: a feral Rukia with hedgehog for bravecows, an Akon watching his vice-captain foryeah_its_me  and Momo coming back to Fifth after Aizen's ascendance for incandescens. sophiap gave me the prompt dS!RayK and competence, so I wrote my first dS drabble in forever.

Fiddled a little with the beginnings of a Bleach AU, where Rukia has cause to feel even more guilty. Don't think it's going anywhere in particular, but yeah. Might as well put it up.

( My Nanao App )

Some more bits and pieces that you may or may not have seen before -- will unlock "Stop All..." if people want to see it, but really, that story is very sentimental rubbish that I needed to get out of my system.

Perfect Day (Nanao, Jyuushirou, Shunsui PG13)
The Devil You Know (Nanao, Arrancar OC PG13)
(There's) No Need To Argue Anymore (Nanao, Takiko Ise, Shunsui, Jyuushirou) --which is maybe WIP?
Stop All the Clocks (Nanao, Shunsui, Jyuushirou, PG13 deathfic) --worst AU ever

Eh, and then Nanao tries to date.

How Can You Expect To Be (Hajime)

( Don't Know Why He Swallowed A Fish (Daisuke) NEW )
( The Morning After The Night Before (Susumu)NEW )
( In Sickness and In Health (Youji)NEW )

Since I missed Thanksgiving along with Halloween and probably will miss Christmas unless I focus very hard, I'll take this opportunity to say thanks to cadhla who has written a beautiful poem for Selma on the theme of baby daughter and almonds. And to alleyprowler who wrote me a novel (in your own words, dude). Go check out "Never Turn Your Back On the Sea", because it's done and it's all kinds of spectacular -- the best Quatre I know! Also, to kaigouwho gives me what I need, when I need it, which is superbly written Garrett and all the time. Sea-trolls ftw!

I'd also like to thank eclectify, who wrote me a truly thrilling fic in the MS! exchange on the themes of Mashiro and spectre and shyunpo who gave me the first and only MS!GrimmNanao (NC-17 ) fic to ever exist -- cracktastic, I say! Many thanks to tsukishine, who extrapolated the MS!Lisa and Nanao interaction into the lovely yuri fic Cream (NC17), to sophiap, who wrote me a subtle and exquisite fic about Yuzu and her regrets and to incandescens who gifted me with the wonderful piece the breaking storm, which has Shunsui, Nanao and Jyuushirou and conveys exactly who and what they are.

Hm, and pseudocide on LJ? For lip balm? The mind, she boggles.

Tags: 4colorheroines, au, belgium, bleach, dc, drabble, ds, fic, ficbits, flist_love, life, mercy_street, ofic, pics, recs, request, selma
Current Mood: cheerful
Current Music: "We All Stand Together" ´´ Paul McCartney

Nobody around here believes anything Rush Limbaugh says, right? But just in case there's some doubt he was factually right  -- no. No.

If Michael J Fox was off his meds he wouldn't be shaking. He'd be stiff and all movements would be decreased in amplitude. The shaking, the increased amplitude of all movements -- that's the medication. That's the best science can do for him today.

If he some times in the past went off his meds to, say, speak in front of US Congress, I sure as hell wouldn't blame him for not wanting to shake and flop around just then. But that ad, while it may be shocking, is what the disease looks like. With medication to the best of our knowledge.

Tags: belgium, politics, work

Fandom: Due South
Character: Ray K
Prompt: competence
Author's Notes: This is not very good at all -- I'm sorry to short-change you, but I throw in a bonus drabble in the bargain and an AU one-line fic to try to make up for it.

--
Fandom: Due South
Character: Ray K
Prompt: not exacly competence
Author's Notes: This wanted to be longer or not at all before I beat it into submission.


Fandom: Due South
Character: Ray K
Prompt: very far from competence
Author's Notes: My first attempt at one-liner fic, turning out as well as you might expect.

Tags: drabble, ds, fic, request

Fandom: Bleach
Request/prompt: Vice-Captains' meeting
Author's Notes: Liberties taken with the prompt. Possibly there'll be a longer version and/or a sequel.

Tags: belgium, bleach, drabble, fic, ficbits, request

Selma has a cold. Snot is everywhere. I suppose it'll be like this all the time when she starts daycare, NEXT WEEK.

Please to excuse further delays in email, tags, betas and promised stories.

Tags: belgium, life, selma