psycho-babble of the minions

12:02 am - Sunday Secrets

http://postsecret.blogspot.com/2010/03/sunday-secrets_14.html

12:01 am - Live PostSecret Events in March and April

http://postsecret.blogspot.com/2010/03/live-postsecret-march-april.html

neried7

01:03 am - Twitter Feed

• 16:31 @obra just ask for a pub, they will have food too. #
• 17:44 @keybuk Yes. #
• 21:09 @NakedCapitalist Victory? Who? #
• 21:14 @NakedCapitalist _nice_. I knew they were playing tonight. I'm jealous that I can't play for them anymore. #
• 23:07 @hoppzor I'm fixing my karmic so i can bring my ipod, so i can boogie my way to OCB. #

med_school

slim_ivory_rose

11:12 am - Career Progression in the USA

I am from the UK and am just curious about the career progression in the USA.
Do you have consultants and registrars?

Just to clarify, in the UK :

• Med school: 5 or 6 years
• Foundation years: 2 years everyone does virtually the same job
• Specialist or GP training: minimum of 7 years for specialities and 3 years for GP

01:49 am - My team 3, the other team 1

http://rhode.chronosilence.org/blog/archives/004779.html

06:39 pm - (retro)photo Friday #8: Laugh.

http://www.meganmccafferty.com/archives/2010/03/retrophoto-friday-8-laugh/

http://www.meganmccafferty.com/?p=2444

I have no idea who or what was making me laugh so hard when this photo was taken.

But every time I see it, I’m reminded that I need to laugh more often.

Especially at myself.

05:00 am - GeoIP

http://xkcd.com/713/

neried7

01:03 am - Twitter Feed

• 11:35 d'awwww:
  i.imgur.com/EZzz5.jpg #

fullbodycast

asmodai

07:39 pm - photos

Photos from this last week's show are up on the site.


http://fullbodycast.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=53308

news

theljstaff

04:11 pm - LiveJournal Major Notes: March header, Charitable vgift, Squirrels in love

We're finishing up a few odds and ends before our next major release. Our mighty Ops guys continue to slay spambots and balance load times on a highwire without a safety net (which is kind of tough dressed in full ninja gear). Down on solid ground, we're celebrating this week's virtual birthday party with a warm toast to pants. If you can rearrange the letters of your favorite city, state, and/or country (feel free to combine these elements) to spell one of Frank's favorite treats (e.g., pants, wire, paper, etc.), he'll send you over a can of whipped cream to top it all off (provided you return the empty can for his midnight snack)! And, with that, let the word scrambling commence!

Stuff you should know:

To our paid users, we send squirrels in love!

If you have a paid or permanent account, you can send five free Squirrels in love vgifts through Monday, March 15th at 4pm, PST! You'll see both the free and the $0.99 squirrels displayed until they've scurried off to their new homes. Please send only one vgift at a time. In other words, you'll need to complete check-out and start a new order for each vgift you send. If you're not receiving vgifts (from friends and/or Frank), you may have disabled them. To enable vgifts, visit Edit profile (under Profile), scroll down to the bottom of the page, and select 'Do not disable' from the drop-down menu. Have fun!

Help is on the way!

We're pleased to announce the winner of our first charitable vgift poll, Doctors without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières, which provides critical medical care to under-served populations around the world. Priced at $2.99, we'll donate 100 percent of the proceeds we raise from the sale of this vgift (we'll cover credit card fees). We invite you to start recommending nonprofits for our next fundraising drive at ljnewscontests. We'll take suggestions through the month and post a poll in the news during the first week of April to let you choose the recipient. We thank you, again, for your passion and generosity.

We've crowned a header

Congratulations to ohterlus for submitting the winning header, which will go live next week and keep us leafy through mid-April! You can submit designs for our next header contest at ljnewscontests now until March 31st. We'll post a poll in the news to let you decide which header will sit at the top of LiveJournal from mid-April to mid-May. All artistic interpretations are welcome. The winner will get a $25 LiveJournal gift certificate. All other contributors will receive $5 gift certificates. Our heartfelt appreciation for sharing your talent and creativity!

For this week's winning photo and more adventures with Frank & Meme, we'll catch you under the cut!

( Read more... )

ginny_n_draco

scarletladyy

10:30 pm - Fic: Underlying Desires [Draco/Ginny/Harry]

Title: Underlying Desires
Author: scarletladyy
Pairing: Draco/Ginny/Harry
Word Count: 2,708
Rating: R
Warnings: Threesome and drunken sex
Summary: Sex doesn't have to be about love.
Author's Notes: Written for hpvalensmut for pikaachu. Thank you to my beta seatbeltdrivein.

( Underlying Desires )

libba_bray

02:08 pm - The Birthday Blog

March 11th has rolled around again, signaling that it's time for the annual birthday blog.

One of my favorite cheesy things to do on my birthday is read a gazillion of those “You Born Today” thingies. My mom always sends me the one from my hometown newspaper (Thanks, Mom.) I usually pick up the tabloids and see what they say about those of us born on March 11th. (Hey, John Barrowman! I see you, Joel & Benji Madden. What up, Bobby McFerrin? Okay, stop showing off. I know you can make your voice do inhuman things.)

So here’s a round-up of those "you born today" posts. My commentary is in parentheses:

From Cafeastrology:
If You Were Born Today, March 11, you were born wise, and your intuition is exceptional (Well, natch. Of course, if my intuition is so exceptional, I might not have jabbed my leg on the end of the bed. Twice. Ouch.). However, your emotional ups and downs tend to be many until you learn to focus your energies. (Me? I’m a font of focu—ooh, look! Cake!) Getting a handle on this inner restlessness is crucial to success. You like to have many things going at once (just like criminals), and many of you have more than one profession or occupation (just like criminals, part deux). You might often find yourself acting on emotional whims (More cake!). Balancing your mind and your emotional instincts is an important challenge for you in this lifetime. You are exceptionally caring and loving. (Awww….) Famous people born today: Lawrence Welk (only the hippest for me), Douglas Adams (Epic Score!!!), Thora Birch (Shout-out to “Ghost World.”).

From the Daily Athenaeum:
BORN TODAY: This year you have many opportunities for change and heading in a positive direction (I’m liking this one so far). You will be much happier as you launch into a new life cycle (A new life cycle. Does this mean I get to jump into, say, being Beyonce or something? Do I need special fabric care in this new life cycle?). You could discover how content you are when taking a proactive stance (Wha???). You could be amazed by your affirmative behavior (Just say Yes!). If you are single, you will be surrounded by potential suitors (How ya like me now, Babies?). You will have to work at staying single (If ya like me then ya shoulda put a ring on it. Like the hubby did.). Others will be envious of your many admirers. (Unless those many admirers are serial killers and creditors.) If you are attached, the two of you might have a disagreement about how to lead your daily life (“Toilet paper roll goes over!” “No, it goes under!”). But because of your especially upbeat personality, the two of you can hop over any problem (Wow. I’m upbeat AND nimble. Awesomesauce). AQUARIUS makes a great healer (Paging all Aquarians).

From Birthscopes.com
The person born on this day is ruled by the Moon. In the Pisces realm this would make the female and the male born on this day completely different because of the feminine aspect of the moon. (Not to mention a few other minor details. Hello, ovaries!) Both born on this day are creative and noumenal (Yeah, I had to look it up, too. From freedictionaryonline.com: In the philosophy of Kant, an object as it is in itself independent of the mind, as opposed to a phenomenon. Also called thing-in-itself.// I am so a thing in itself. Or a thing outside of itself, which makes buying clothes tough.) which would make them sharp in the business world, but that's were the similarities of the genders ends. The female of this sign is dedicated to her work, family and friends. She uses her convictions and magnetic personality to succeed in an ethical way. (Slick! Hit me five—up high, down low.) The male on the other hand does not have the mother aspect of the Moon that is so well intertwined with the female born on this day, which would make the male born on this day a selfish, get rich quick scammer and he would probably sell his own mother to make or save a buck. (Oooh, harsh.) Along with this the male born on this day has an envious streak to last a life time. So they will try to squash people that know more or are better at something than them. Not to mention the narcissist trait that the male born on this day possesses. Note: This is only one interpretation, your chart may differ!

(Um, I’m guessing somebody at birthscopes.com dated a male Pisces born March 11th and it did not go well. Just a hunch. Then again, Rupert Murdoch was born today, so, you know. Maybe not too far off the mark. LOVE the note at the end! Translation: You might not be a total scum-sucking, disreputable pig who doesn’t deserve to live. Not sure till I see your rising sign. But you’re on birthday notice anyway, jerkface.)

This one from Astrology.com wasn’t a You Born Today, but it was under the headline “Scandalous Pisces!” and I could not resist:
Oh, you Pisces people are a soulful crew. Some of you are so spiritually attuned that you should be running for sainthood. (Wait, we can run for sainthood now? Dude, I’m so trying out for that this year! I want some bling in my crown of thorns, though. Something tasteful, though, along with my Canonize This t-shirt.) Even though you tend to be wise beyond your years (oh, go on!), you still have to go through your twenties! (Been there, done that.) And having a strong moral conscience doesn't stop you from doing your share of outrageous behavior. (Uh…who have you been talking to? That story about breaking into the hot tub is not true. Ish.)
Speaking of which, these are some of my fave shocking moments in Piscean history.
1. Pisces Jessica Biel played a woman who works the stripper pole and cracks eggs on her chest to raise money for her sick son. (What’s scandalous is that anybody thought that would be sexy. Seriously? Was she all, “Hi, I’ll strip for you but first, how do you like your eggs?")
2. Remember when Pisces Drew Barrymore flashed her bare bosoms at David Letterman on his show back in 1995? That was awesome! Such a free spirited, impulsive little fish that Drew! (If I ever get to meet her, that is exactly how I will start off: “Come here and give me a big hug you free-spirited, impulsive little fish, you!”)
3. Pisces Elizabeth Taylor -- ok, remember when she got married and then married again and then married again and then married again, and then married again, and then married again and then married again and then married again? (Your point? It’s La Liz. The normal rules do not apply.)
4. Pisces Liza Minnelli married her manager David Gest, taped on episode of a reality TV show and then bailed on both the show and one year later the man who turned around and sued her for 10 million dollars. Remember how crazy that whole situation was? (Ha. Good times. Good times. You know, like those drug-and-alcohol-fueled, gold-digging Crazytown marriages always are.)

Well thanks for the memories you sexy Pisces divas! (You’re welcome, astrology.com. And let’s just keep that little bowling escapade in Austin to ourselves, okay?)

From GeorgiaNicholsOnline:

Science fiction writer Douglas Adams (1952-2001) shares your birthday today (As stated before: W00t!). You're shrewd and insightful (Look: This is my shrewd and insightful look. Sometimes people confuse it with my slightly constipated look as they are very similar.). You like to keep current and abreast of the times (Ain’t it the truth, Georgia. But let's leave my breasts out of it). In fact, many of you actually work in the media. You're competitive both personally and professionally (Really? You think so? Let’s put that to the test. Best two out of three.). You work hard to get recognition (*Sigh* So hard, Georgia. So, so hard. And still Clive Owen does not return my calls.). You can always trust your gut instincts (My gut instinct says it’s time for cake.). This year might be one of the most powerful years of your life. Dream big! (I WILL become a figure skater! It’s never too late!)

From The New York Post (This is the only day of the year I buy the Post. You’re welcome, Rupert.)
You must be willing to change the habits of a lifetime over the coming 12 months. Just because you have grown used to certain things being done in certain ways does not mean it should go on like that forever. (So harsh, Sally Brompton? What’s wrong with Doritos and coffee for breakfast? Somebody’s gotta do it, and I’m running for sainthood this year, so I’m willing to take that nutritional bullet for the rest. Sheesh.)

From the New York Daily News:
Happy Birthday, Pisces! (Always a nice way to start.) You have charisma and an energetic enthusiasm for life. This is a time when you can begin to lay the foundation to help achieve prosperity. Transform your life by going after your dreams! (I like you, Jennifer Angel. I do. P.S. Maybe you should have a talk with Sally Brompton. She gave the grumpies.)

How about a little music history to round things out:

From This Day in Music.com:

1978, French singer Claude Francois was electrocuted changing a light bulb while standing in his bathtub. (I am hoping to have a better day than Mr. Francois.)

And this:
1978, The debut single from Kate Bush, 'Wuthering Heights' a song inspired by the Emily Bronte novel, started a four-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart. Record company, EMI had originally chosen another track, 'James and the Cold Gun' as the lead single, but Bush was determined that 'Wuthering Heights' would be the first release from the album. (This is one of my favorite songs, so I am pleased.)


So. There we have it. If you are born today, you can run for sainthood but first you’ll have to change your habits (no pun intended). You have a lot of charisma but that doesn’t mean you should strip and crack eggs on your chest. You need to get a handle on your restlessness and emotional whims, which might be hard because it’s possible you are a born criminal. Good news: You get Douglas Adams and John Barrowman but you’ll also have to take Rupert Murdoch, not that it matters because we know that male Pisces born March 11th are all hideous beasts with no morals, according to Bitter McBitterperson at birthscopes.com.

Alright. I gotta get back to my Beauty Queens and eat me some cake. Hope you all have a grand day, too.

Current Mood: chipper

cassandraclare

11:05 am - Clockwork Angel cover reveal and ARC giveaway

For authors, getting the cover of your book in your inbox is one of the most exciting and terrifying parts of the process — authors don't decide what their cover looks like, so it's sort of the equivalent of being assigned your brand new house by lottery — someone just dumps you in a car, drives you around for a while, and finally comes to a stop in front of a house: "Here's where you'll be living for the next six to ten years! Hope you like it!"

Fortunately I have been lucky with covers so far and liked them all. By far my favorite though is the beautiful cover for Clockwork Angel, which I am very much looking forward to showing you all . . .


Next week! On March 18th at 10:00am, Entertainment Weekly will be revealing the Clockwork Angel cover reveal at http://shelf-life.ew.com/ At that same link, you will (ON MARCH 18–NOT NOW) also find a link to a Clockwork Angel sweepstakes giveway: 25 winners will receive a signed ARC of Clockwork Angel months before the book's actual release date!

[Blog reviewers: you can always email me (don't post in the comments — email) with a link to your review blog and an address to send the ARc to get on the list for review copies for ARCs of Clockwork. I literally don't know how many ARCs my publisher will have to give away, but I can promise to get you on the list I'll give them of bloggers who want review copies. Or you could just enter the contest! :D)

neried7

01:03 am - Twitter Feed

• 16:09 @radmike WOO #

blondestwolf

03:08 pm - A luckily slow week...

This week has been going well, by which I mean things have been going slow. I've gotten a lot done in the last few days, work on my conference paper, that sort of stuff. I ran errands on Monday night, getting a few necessary groceries, and the like. I've also been working on my Flickr uploads, since I still hadn't put up all my vacation photos...

I've got a ton over there... Like here's one from Florence:



The night that Ross and I got in to Florence, we went to Acqua al 2, at the recommendation of avatrix and byakkodan_slash. Let me say, I enjoyed it a lot. I had the pasta sampler, which is basically five small courses of pasta, which are selected at the whim of the chef. Mine were mac and cheese with broccoli, farfalle with pumpkin, fusilli in a spinach pesto, rigatone with eggplant sauce, and gnocci with a mixed veggie red sauce. Ross had the steak sampler, which is served all at once, steak three ways. Both of us really liked what we had, and it was fun wandering around the center of Florence at night, past the Duomo and all that.

The next day, we of course had hotel breakfast. The thing that always gets me is the weird packets of biscuits and mini toasts. We hit the highlights, the Galleria del'Accademia to see the David and all of the really sweet icons, the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio, and the Duomo. The inside of the Duomo is very spare compared to the outside, the walls are by and large plain above a few person heights. It's actually a very spiritual atmosphere. I made an offering, their altars are quite lovely.



And of course, I had to take in some gelato. I didn't eat as much on my trip as I would have liked since it was a little cold!

05:00 am - Single Ladies

http://xkcd.com/712/

neried7

01:03 am - Twitter Feed

• 14:17 i'm eating salad for breakfast. this is unsatisfying. #

cassandraclare

09:36 pm - Smart Chicks Kick It Tour

I'll be taking part in the Smart Chicks Kick It tour this fall, an author-organized tour with a whole roster of great YA paranormal authors. You can find the full list here:

http://melissa-writing.livejournal.com/397705.html

And these are my dates:

September 13th—Tour launches at Book People in Austin, Texas w Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Rachel Caine , & Cassandra Clare 7:00 pm BOOKPEOPLE BOOKSTORE

September 14th—B&N The Woodlands in Houston, TX w Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, & Rachel Vincent. 7:00 pm B&N, THE WOODLANDS 1201 Lake Woodlands Drive The Woodlands, TX 77380

September 15th—Blue Willow in Houston, TX w Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Sarah Rees Brennan, & Cassandra Clare 7:00 pm Remote location details to come Off site event hosted by: BLUE WILLOW

September 16th—Lemuria Jackson, MS w Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, & Sarah Rees Brennan 6:00 pm LEMURIA BOOKS 202 Banner Hall 4465 I-55 North Jackson, MS 39206

Hope to see some of you there! You can also follow the tour virtually over at the Facebook page.

libba_bray

11:20 am - The Middle Mile

I’m racing down the final stretch of the first draft of BEAUTY QUEENS. Well, that’s optimistic. I WISH I were racing. More like limping while dragging a large slab of beef wrapped in chains. (Don’t ask me where that image came from. I have not, to my knowledge, ever limped down a street dragging a side of chained beef behind me.)

I hate this part. It’s relentless. It reminds me of when I used to run cross-country, those practices where you’d be out doing a ten-mile run, and at some point, you’d just hit the wall, and you would want more than anything to stop. But you couldn’t stop, because you were about five or so miles out and you still had to get back. And on the run back, you knew, as you passed each mailbox and streetlight marker, exactly how much more you had to run and it felt hopeless. And then suddenly, you’d break through the wall and find that burst of energy to go for another mile or two. It was almost like you weren’t in your body anymore but inside the moment and the movement. There was just the steady rhythm of your breath and your feet striking the pavement. Very Zen.

Well, I’m waiting for that burst. Because right now, I am in that “middle mile,” as my coach used to call it. That horrible stretch where you don’t think you can finish the run. This is the time for me when every doubt creeps in, where my inner critic becomes brutal and the “go with it” flow of committing great swaths of words to page is replaced by the hesitant, this-probably-sucks-and-makes-no-sense micromanagement of every syllable and its placement. Thing is, in a first draft, you really should just let it rip and worry about fixing it later. I know this but I can’t always apply it. I can’t always take my own advice.

When David Levithan (my editor on this one) and I were road-tripping to R J Julia’s Bookstore in January, I started to tell him a little about the trouble I was having. He was great. He listened and reassured me that I would be fine and that it was his job to help me make sense of it all and help me find the story lurking in the chaos, that I wasn’t alone. I think that’s the thing I forget sometimes in the thick of it: that I’m not alone in the process.

But it’s hard to trust that sometimes. Like now. That’s part of the frustration and joy of writing for me, the idea that even though you may have written several books, it never gets any easier. You still have to push through that middle mile and make it home.

Does this happen to you? What does that inner critic say? What do you do to get past it? I welcome your suggestions. Meanwhile, I think I’m going to listen to “Die, Vampire, Die,” which is my favorite song to blast at my internal critic. And I’m going to get back to the island and see if I can make some serious headway with these beauty queens.

Wish me luck.

Current Mood: frustrated

tammypierce

02:50 pm - Another woman to look up to (besides Kathryn Bigelow!)

Andree Peel died at the age of 105. She held the French Legion d'Honneur and Croix de Guerre medals, and the American Medal of Freedom. (And, as you can see from this photo, a few other medals!)




What did this little old lady do to win such recognition? She was a true hero of the French Resistance in World War II, saving over a hundred lives and almost losing her own.



Isn't amazing what a woman can do?

Current Mood: determined