Confessions of a One-Track Mind

Snagged from the lovely arliss:

1. Tell me one thing you love about me.

2. Tell me two things you love about yourself. Make it good. No self-deprecation allowed!

3. Look through the comments ~ when you see someone you know, tell them three things you love about them.

4. Do this in your journal so I can tell you what I love about YOU - and if you've already done it, tell me so, so that I can go back and give you some love. (Optional, of course.)

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As ganked from karaokegal.

How about headcanons? Reply with a name, along with a topic, or word and I'll tell you my head-canon for it.

List of fandoms I've written for at one time or another is on my profile page, and interests may also suggest topics. Please bear in mind, some fandoms may have fallen by the wayside and I'm not necessarily current with them (I stopped watching House MD, for instance, during the Tritter arc).

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What are your favorite song lyrics, and why?

Hope's the rope that keeps you tied in knots
The torture never stops. -- by W*A*S*P*

That's kind of the story of my life, y'know? Shit just keeps happening, one thing after another, but I still cling to the hope/belief/fantasy that Things Are Going to Get Better.

Also? The lead singer, Blackie Lawless (No relation to Lucy) is from my hometown, Staten Island.

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What is your favorite candy or dessert?


Oh, now there's a toughie! I was saying just the other day how difficult it is to find a decent cannoli around here---but as much as they remind me of my childhood, I'm not sure that's what I'd pick. I'd just like access to them a few times a year.

J makes chocolate chip cookies from scratch...they're best warm for the oven, but just as good when unwrapped on Christmas day. A bit jejeune, though.

Candy...I'm very fond of C Howard's violet pastilles. They're a rare treat. I developed a taste for Wine Gums (which are freaking pricey on this side of the pond, so they're even rarer). I really miss Royal Crown sour cherry sweets; I loved them growing up, but they've apparently been discontinued.

A while back, pwcorgigirl turned me on to Australian black licorice, which is the bomb. Almost as good as Russell Stover molasses chews. She also passed on her from-scratch gingerbread recipe, another divine dessert.

Dark chocolate is always a winner, especially with raspberries. I ship this combo like whoa! I answered a meme once that asked if I was a candy bar, what would I be, and I said jellied raspberry over a layer of marzipan, enrobed in dark chocolate (but with not more than 65% cacao, because otherwise, it's like eating chocolate chalk.

In case you can't tell, I have a sweet tooth, complete with cavaties....

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Ganked from all over, most recently arliss

You are The Empress
Beauty, happiness, pleasure, success, luxury, dissipation.
The Empress is associated with Venus, the feminine planet, so it represents, beauty, charm, pleasure, luxury, and delight. You may be good at home decorating, art or anything to do with making things beautiful.
The Empress is a creator, be it creation of life, of romance, of art or business. While the Magician is the primal spark, the idea made real, and the High Priestess is the one who gives the idea a form, the Empress is the womb where it gestates and grows till it is ready to be born. This is why her symbol is Venus, goddess of beautiful things as well as love. Even so, the Empress is more Demeter, goddess of abundance, then sensual Venus. She is the giver of Earthly gifts, yet at the same time, she can, in anger withhold, as Demeter did when her daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped. In fury and grief, she kept the Earth barren till her child was returned to her.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

For the record, I selected Uma Thurman as the heavenly body I most identify with. That's who I want to play me in the movie about my life. Why are you laughing? She's the epitome of the thin woman inside me struggling to get out.

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My curfew was the street lights and mom didn't call my cell, she yelled "time to come in". I played outside with friends, not online. If I didn't eat what my mom made me then I didn't eat. Hand sanitizer didn't exist, but you COULD get your mouth washed out with soap, and your butt spanked. Repost if you drank water out of a hose and survived.


Ganked from jagfanlj
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You were born during a Waning Gibbous moon

This phase occurs right after a full moon.

- what it says about you -


You love to let people in on the story of how things come together. You know the background of ideas and have a deep understanding of things others just touch the surface of. You can surprise people with your wide variety of knowledge, and they'll remember and appreciate you for it.

What phase was the moon at on your birthday? Find out at Spacefem.com

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- Comment with "like a fox"
- I'll respond by asking you five questions so I can get to know you better.
- Update your journal with the answers to the questions.
- Include this explanation in the post and offer to ask other people questions.

Acquired from ultraviolet9a

1. Your favourite new fandom?
I haven't written anything for it, but I'm really enjoying Blue Bloods. Great cast, solid writing, and Tom Selleck just keeps improving with age.
ETA: Wait, are we including reality TV? Because I'm totally hooked on Enough Already with Peter Walsh (whom I've adored since his Clean Sweep days). And last night, I watched The Unpoppables, about a trio of balloon artists, and was enthralled, so I think that's also going to be must-see viewing.

2. If you would be given lots of money, what changes would you do to your house?
Well, after fixing the roof, and the electricals, I'd get double-paned windows and do my best to sound-proof the place. I'd remodel the kitchen---complete with appliances, replace the sliding glass doors, get the garage overhauled, up to and including a new door, and security lights all around. And I'd go to town on the cosmetic stuff as well---paint it inside and out, install new flooring over the terrazzo, new light fixtures---the list goes on. Or, if it was enough money, I'd find a quiet little piece of land and build a new container house. In the long run, it might just be the better investment.

3. I'm giving you a blanche carde to travel anywhere safely, with no regard for money (time travel not included). Where are you going?
Woohoo, see you later! I'm going to Disney World! I may as well start there, since it's right in my backyard, and I've never had the money to do more than day-trip. There are a lot of places in the US that I've always wanted to see, and some I'd like to revisit. Definitely a nice, long ramble around Europe. I'd love to see the ancient wonders of Egypt, go on safari in Kenya, wander through China and the rest of Asia before jaunting over to Australia. A quick hop to Hawaii, back to the States by way of California (I have LJ friends there!), ditto a quick detour up to Canada. I figure I'll be back sometime around 2014, but don't worry, I'll send postcards!

4. Name a book/story that packed the tighest punch in the last pages/paragraphs.
I'm going with the first thing that came to mind, Moreta by Anne McCaffrey. The last chapter or so of that book GETS me every time, and I've read it numerous times.

5. I remember you have tattoos. Can you describe one and tell me why you chose it?
I can do better than that---look at my icon. I've got the lizard and dragonfly with tribal grasses and clouds on my right calf. There are lizards everywhere in Florida, and I've always loved watching them. Same with dragonflies. If I did get the hypothetical pot o' money, I'd have more: I want a seahorse and a sea turtle on my left calf, with some seaweed and a wave design for balance.

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As snagged from karaokegal.


Five ways you know a story is by Vanillafluffy:

1. It's written in present tense.

2. It displays a fondness for secondary characters and OCs, including animals.

3. It's more likely to have another story (or stories) as sequel(s) than it is to be multi-chapter.

4. There's a 90% change it'll be gen. The other 10% is split between het, slash and just plain dark.

5. It has a twist at the end. (Also known as a KEL -- Killer Ending Line.) And it's probably a happy ending.


If anyone else has noticed a pattern to my fic, feel free to comment.


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Snagged from dine.

The rules are: This is about authors who've inspired, affected, delighted, or otherwise touched you somehow. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes.

15 Authors

Anne McCaffrey
Janet Evanovich
Elizabeth Enright
JK Rowling
Marie Killilea

CJ Cherryh
Elizabeth Moon
Jack London
Louis L'Amour
Armistead Maupin

Dick Francis
Robert B Parker
Stuart Woods
Carl Hiaasen
Spider Robinson

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Snagged from the one and only karaokegal

Reply to this with "Fandom is like a box of chocolates" and I'll reply with...

1. Something I'll learn about you by looking at your LJ page for 13 seconds.
2. Which color you remind me of.
3. My first memory of you.
4. What TV character you remind me of.
5. Ask you something I've always wondered about you, and your answer has to be as vague as possible to keep the suspense.
6. My favorite thing about you.
7. Give you a weird nickname.
8. Guess the last song you listened to.
9. Challenge you to post this on your journal

This list comes by way of candesgirl:

SPN, White Collar, Heroes and Dexter:

Supernatural: John. John was who got me into SPN; I sat watching IMToD (first ep I saw), wiping the drool from my chin going, "Okay, the boys are cute, but Daddy's a total studhunk." (And then, of course, I IMDb'ed him, realized he was the same hottie from The Burning Zone (which I totally quit watching after they brought Bradford Tatum on board), and was hooked, regardless of the fact that they'd killed John off.

White Collar: Peter Burke. I'd be hard-pressed to specify why, other than Tim DeKay, whom I've been fond of ever since---a long time, okay? (But serously? If you'd asked about my favorite character from Carnevale, I'd still say Brother Justin, because Clancy Brown has mega-seniority.)

Heroes: Sylar. Because conflicted bad boys striving for redemption and falling from grace again and again turns me on. And so does ZQ.

Dexter: Harry Morgan, because James Remar goes back even further than Clancy Brown does. And because Harry created Harry's Code. Or Harry's Law. Or whatever it is; I confess, I've only actually seen season one.

Yes, I have a one-track mind. What gave it away?


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This is that "Favorite character in four fandoms" meme that's going around. karaokegal gave me Black Sheep Squadron, Leverage, Royal Pains and Watchmen.

Black Sheep Squadron: I whimpered when I saw this on the list, because there was a ton of talent on that show. It came down to a coin-toss between Greg Boyington and Andy Micklin, and I couldn't bring myself to dismiss either of them that way. Greg was smooth and cocky and feisty---Robert Conrad at his best. Micklin was a cantankerous redneck, played with pugnacious glee by exMemphis Mafia member Red West. And together, they made beautiful discord.

Leverage: Okay, here's a curveball---Parker. I love the description of her as "twenty pounds of crazy in a five-pound bag". I love her skewed world view and slightly demented solutions to problems. I would like to get my hands on whatever fuck-nugget has been writing her as a woobie love-struck twit this season, and force-feed him/her/them an IBM Selectric. She deserves better.

Royal Pains: Another really tough call. I'm going to say, Evan, as far as the full-time regular characters so. He's a hustler and he puts his foot in his mouth constantly, but he's earnest and energetic. If he was a dog, he'd be a happy-go-lucky beagle, all waggling tail and enthusiasm. As far as recurring guest characters go, Boris. Because who doesn't love a European silver fox prince-billionaire with---gasp!---a Rare Fatal Disease?! (I would've used my "Chicks dig a good accent" icon, if it wasn't overruled by the next question.)

Watchmen: Come on. Seriously? We all know I'm going to say Eddie Blake, the Comedian. Now, he's not a nice guy, and IRL I'd run a mile. But on film? JDM in all his cigar-chewing, black leather wearing, flame-thrower wielding glory? Yowza! My toes curl at the thought.


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Describe your alternate life (Snagged from karaokegal)

After my dad died, I didn't make any major purchases or commit to any changes for six months. I got laid off from my job, and took that as a sign that maybe it was time to do something more with my life. After talking it over with my brother, I put most of the contents of the house into storage, found a renter for it, and took off in Dad's 1974 Comet for points west.

I've always been crafty; learning how to solder for my last couple jobs was fun. I've always loved shiny jewelery. It seemed natural to find a silversmith to apprentice myself to.

I settled down in Taos, NM. I lived frugally; I rented a small cabin on the outskirts of town, grew my own produce, took long walks in my spare time, exploring various ghost towns and flea markets. I incorporated found objects into my projects, and began to earn a reputation for myself. that includes my reputation as a clothes-horse: I got down to a size 10 and have kept the weight off for almost 25 years now.

During the long desert nights, I wrote a novel, a time-traveling Victorian western, that was made into a movie with Kurt Russell as the rugged hero, and later became a long-running TV series.

This brought me enough money that I was able to buy some land and build a house. It's an awesome place, constructed to use solar energy for heating in the winter, but still cool in the summer. There are solar panels which provide my electrical needs. Very New Age-Frank Lloyd Wright. My walk-in closet is the same size as my bedroom, and houses my collection of custom-made cowboy boots and a lot of hats.

I met the love of my life at Burning Man. The tall, dark-haired man in a blue plaid flannel shirt and jeans was studying a pair of cufflinks made from the rowels of an old pair of spurs. When he asked me about them, I knew he was the one. There was something about the resonance of his voice that echoed in the canyons of my soul.

He's a former professional athlete who managed his money well and started a consulting company that critiques the hotel industry. He travels a lot for business, and I go with him as often as I can. We've been married for 15 years, and the romance is still there.

My jewelery has been featured in the Sundance catalog and appeared in major motion pictures and on the red carpet. I'm working on another novel, a dark comedy about what might have happened in the life I left behind so many years ago.

The working title is "Tropical Depression".


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Snagged from karaokegal as a break from The Countdown:

Check my fandoms, my favorite characters, the pairings I like the most, my kinks, my fictional crushes, anything. Now, in a friendly and possibly teasing way, point out the obvious and not so obvious trends or fetishes you see in my tastes. Maybe I'm nuts for all vampire stories, or have a thing for men who smoke, or I'm fond for the tsundere archetype, or I'm into rival slash. Let's point out all of those you've noticed I tend to squee about during our friendship.


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After extensive research, I have determined that most of the time,





I ran entire stories through this thing---more than two dozen, total, ranging from a couple hundred words up to 10K ("Bad Fairy"). Chuck was the dominant paradiem, although there were a few doozies in there: "Judgement Day" scored as Nabokov (Lotita?! WTF?!). "Juan Valdez, the Radical Priest and Me" got Raymond Chandler (for the interrogation room setting, maybe?). "Crystal Dawn" matched up with Jack London (I adore "The Sea Wolf", but wtf?). My White Collar fic, "Per Diem" scored as Jane-freaking-Austen and my submitted-but-not-yet-posted exchange fic for spn_summergen supposedly resembles Mario "The Godfather" Puzo. Eh? Why?!

That's the big question. How do they analyse these things? Palahniuk and I both seem to write present tense. Are they analyzing by style or content, I have to wonder. The fact that I got a strong identification to one writer in particular is a Good Thing---it means I *do* have a discernable style. Now I just need to get my library fines ($1.40) squared away so I can check out a few of his works. I'm curious to see what, besides tense, is comparable.

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ETA: I posted this and went off to check my f'list, and found a link to this post, which has further discussion of this meme.
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Acquired by way of pwcorgigirl.

Post the first lines from your last 20 stories. Do you see a pattern?


( This date back to just over a year, so I haven't exactly been prolific. )
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