Hello, internets. I spent almost the ENTIRE HOLIDAY WEEKEND watching Wimbledon coverage. No lie, it was pretty awesome. (Except for the part where I needed to destroy John McEnroe because he didn't shut the fuck up, and also Mary Carillo for the "big babe tennis" shit.)

Game

1. The Crystal Method, "Name Of The Game" (wikipedia)

2. Disturbed, "The Game" (wikipedia)

3. Skinny Puppy, "Killing Game" (wikipedia)

4. The Roots, "Game Theory" (wikipedia)

5. The Von Bondies, "Blame Game" (wikipedia)

6. The Redwalls, "Game of Love" (wikipedia)

7. Millencolin, "Brand New Game" (wikipedia)

8. The Ramones, "What's Your Game" (wikipedia)

9. Of Montreal, "Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games" (wikipedia)

10. ABBA, "The Name of the Game" (wikipedia)

11. XTC, "Complicated Game" (wikipedia)

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To download a zip file of all the songs above, please click here (51 MB).

Please note: All mp3s featured on this LJ are for sampling purposes only. If you like the songs, go spend some money on the artists!

It's nearly the end of the month, and you know what that means:

Female Vocalists

1. Die Mannequin, "Autumn Cannibalist" (wikipedia)

2. Jem, "They" (wikipedia)

3. Barbara Morgenstern, "Meine Aufgabe" (wikipedia)

4. Eisley, "Marvelous Things" (wikipedia)

5. Jenny Dalton, "Alionushka" (last.fm)

6. Kate Voegele, "99 Times" (wikipedia)

7. Alexa Wilkinson, "Good Fight" (wikipedia)

8. Roxy Rawson, "Hiding Away" (last.fm)

9. Jenny Lewis, "Black Sand" (wikipedia)

10. Marissa Nadler, "The Hole Is Wide" (wikipedia)

11. Aretha Franklin, "I Never Loved A Man" (wikipedia)

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To download a zip file of all the songs above, please click here (52MB).

Please note: All mp3s featured on this LJ are for sampling purposes only. If you like the songs, go spend some money on the artists!

I didn't have time to write a drabble for mcshep_match (work + gym + code deploy = has no free time), but members of both teams wrote a ton of John/Rodney drabbles: 217 for Team War and 251 for Team Peace.

Now, I'm on Team Peace this year, and should you want to vote for my team because we're awesome, I would be much obliged.

In addition to signing up mcshep_match, I also seem to have signed up for cliche_bingo! Oops.

( here is my card )

Feel free to make fandom and pairing suggestions for my squares! Especially "pretending to be married", because I LOVE that one.

Fast

1. Frightened Rabbit, "Fast Blood" (wikipedia)

2. Bree Sharp, "Faster, Faster" (wikipedia)

3. Viva Voce, "Faster than a Dead Horse" (wikipedia)

4. Tori Amos, "Fast Horse" (wikipedia)

5. Alkaline Trio, "Live Young, Die Fast" (wikipedia)

6. Manic Street Preachers, "Faster" (wikipedia)

7. Buzzcocks, "Fast Cars" (wikipedia)

8. Circle Jerks, "Live Fast Die Young" (wikipedia)

9. L7, "Fast And Frightening" (wikipedia)

10. Daft Punk, "Harder Better Faster Stronger" (wikipedia)

11. Sugarhill Gang, "Livin' In The Fast Lane" (wikipedia)

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To download a zip file of all the songs above, please click here (57 MB).

Please note: All mp3s featured on this LJ are for sampling purposes only. If you like the songs, go spend some money on the artists!

Things that I've been up to lately:

* Finally remembered to purchase my Dragon*Con membership.

* On that note, I need to pay for the VividCon bar and extra DVD sets. I'm buying a set for arallara, so I have two sets left if anyone wants me to buy & ship. ETA: Both claimed!

* Signed up for mcshep_match. Team Peace!

* Bought my ticket to see Empires play at Schubas on August 26th, and I'm going to Taste of Chicago to see them play on June 26th. \o/ Finally, some concert dates where I'm not out of town!

* Accidentally said yes to being the Backup Test Lead for AD&T (OTW). This means that the next code deploy for the Archive of Our Own is going to require me to be organized and on top of things. Ahahaha. Oh, god.

* Started going to the gym. I hate it, but for the sake of my hypertension and high cholesterol (thanks, genetics!) I need to be more active and less indulgent with food. I now own a pill organizer, a scale, and exercise pants. And to help me exercise (ptui!), I bought an iPod shuffle. I like my tiny green rock machine; her name is Toph.

* In my vanishing free time, I've been trying to read more books and take better advantage of my Netflix subscription. (Lately this means that I'm watching everything with Karl Urban in it ever, including Comanche Moon. *facepalm*)

Last night I entered a contest to win 2 tickets to the PJ Harvey & John Parish show at the Riviera tonight at 7:30pm.

And I won! Who knew?

Who's free tonight and wants to go with me?

Today is the birthday of my nestra! To celebrate, I have written something very silly for a TV show that Nestra told me to watch. Happy birthday, Nestra! I hope you find it adequately ridiculous.


The Second Work Outing
The IT Crowd. PG-13, Roy/Moss. 1,839 words.
"In which Moss and Roy are somewhat more married than usual."

Thanks to athena4lynn and gritkitty for the quick&dirty read-through.

( The Second Work Outing )

My flight home was delayed, but at least United didn't trap me on the east coast this time. Over the weekend I got to hang out with my ladies, attend a renaissance fair, buy expensive jewelry, see Star Trek for the second time (Karl Urban, get in my pants), and watch a lot of TV. I saw two episodes of Gilmore Girls, Star Trek: TOS ("Amok Time" and "The Trouble With Tribbles"), and Genius. I made my friends watch many episodes of QI, Being Human, and Merlin. Among other things, I ate sushi, a crab cake sandwich, homemade paella, cheesy bread, German chocolate, pie, drunken goat cheese, and blackened tilapia with crab over fettuccine alfredo. Nom.

I'm now doing laundry and hoping there's something vaguely edible in my refrigerator. Tonight I probably will try to finish reading the first book of the Nightrunner series by Lynn Flewelling, and tomorrow I think I shall go to Binny's for some Slivovice even though it won't be as good as the homemade stuff I got to drink this weekend.

Bringing you the monthly female vocalists posts a little early, as I'll be out of town next Monday.

Female Vocalists

1. Grey DeLisle, "Sawyer" (wikipedia)

2. Norah Jones, "The Long Day Is Over" (wikipedia)

3. Debbie Harry, "I Want That Man" (wikipedia)

4. On!air!library!, "Faultered Ego" (wikipedia)

5. Curve, "Forgotten Sanity" (wikipedia)

6. Donita Sparks, "Infancy Of A Disaster" (wikipedia)

7. Juliana Hatfield, "Dirty Dog" (wikipedia)

8. Paula Cole, "Tiger" (wikipedia)

9. Marianne James, "Tout Te Tue" (amg)

10. Poe, "Spanish Doll" (wikipedia)

11. Odetta, "Long Time Gone" (wikipedia)

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To download a zip file of all the songs above, please click here (52MB).

Please note: All mp3s featured on this LJ are for sampling purposes only. If you like the songs, go spend some money on the artists!

Hypothetical: if you were going to visit a bunch of friends next weekend (and I am!), and you were planning to make them watch at least one episode of Merlin and Psych (AND I SO TOTALLY AM), which episodes should those be?

I'm kinda looking for episodes that you think will make them say, "FINE, okay, your STUPID SHOW is KIND OF AWESOME. Now burn me some DVDs."

(Um, hi. I've been off dealing with credit card fraud and a worrisome doctor visit. To reward myself for going to the doctor, I bought a large stack of books. And as the first of what shall be many rewards for actually following the doctor's instructions, I purchased some shiny earrings. My genetics are stupid. And I need to buy a pill organizer. Bah.)

Dear Thieves,

Please stop stealing my credit card number to buy plane tickets to Europe and new cell phones. It makes me cranky, and you wouldn't like me when I'm cranky. If anyone absolutely must steal my credit card number, I'd prefer it to be Alec Hardison, with the caveat that he must show up to my apartment to make a very personal apology.

In conclusion: MOTHERFUCKERS.

Irately,
shrift

Female Vocalists

1. Amanda Palmer, "Runs In The Family" (wikipedia)

2. Diam's, "La boulette" (wikipedia)

3. Gabriella Cilmi, "Awkward Game" (wikipedia)

4. Rhea's Obsession, "Cun Lacoudhir [The Breaking Ice]" (wikipedia)

5. Emma Pollock, "Adrenaline" (wikipedia)

6. Esther O'Connor, "Right Here" (myspace)

7. Kathleen Edwards, "The Cheapest Key" (wikipedia)

8. Thea Gilmore, "Rosie" (wikipedia)

9. Sinéad Lohan, "Whatever It Takes" (wikipedia)

10. The Go-Go's, "Our Lips Are Sealed" (wikipedia)

11. Bonnie Tyler, "It's a Jungle Out There" (wikipedia)

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To download a zip file of all the songs above, please click here (62MB).

Please note: All mp3s featured on this LJ are for sampling purposes only. If you like the songs, go spend some money on the artists!

The Epiphany Job
Leverage. PG-13, Alec/Eliot. 3,612 words.
"When he rolled out of bed that afternoon, heated up some Philly Steak & Cheese Hot Pockets for breakfast, and then went to the office, Alec Hardison was not expecting to experience a paradigm shift."

Written for lgbtfest. Beta by nestra. Prompt: 873. Leverage, Alec/Eliot, Alec might be a criminal; but at heart, he still is the good little boy who wants to make his Nana proud - and falling in love with a man is not part of that.

( The Epiphany Job )

Polyamorous Recommendations
has been updated!

It's been a busy year.  One of us moved cross-country.  One of us got a new job.  Neither of us got married or had babies, but we know people who did.  Also, PolyRecs turned eight!  Which is why we didn't update the site until now.  We think there are 300 stories, but we figure you won't care if there are actually 301.

-- shrift and nestra

Pretty Much A Humperdinck
Psych. PG, Shawn/Gus. 2,605 words.
"According to the rulebook of Shawn Spencer, once dibs are called there are no take backs."

Written for lgbtfest. Beta by nestra. Prompt: 1071. Psych, Burton Guster/Shawn Spencer, Gus and Shawn have been friends for life. When do they figure out they are more and how do their families react?

( Pretty Much A Humperdinck )

I met up with celli and thehoyden this evening to see Fast & Furious. I was expecting pretty men, fast cars, explosions, and maybe some eyefucking if I was lucky. I didn't expect ( GAY CHRISTMAS )

When we stumbled out of the theater, I was sweaty, giggly, and in dire need of a cigarette.

In conclusion: UNF UNF UNF, dear Chicago fangirls, we're so going to watch that one again.

Went to Tweet for noms. Portland omelet with bacon, tomatoes and green onion, smothered in cream cheese, with a slab of crispy hash browns, rye bread, fresh fruit, and a slice of orange. Coffeecoffeecoffee. Wore the awesome new purple wedges.

( and then there was this )

Earlier today, I said that it had been the kind of day where I was going to buy vodka on the way home from work, but that I'd need to nap before I could drink any of it.

I got the vodka. I did not get the nap. (Who has two thumbs and is going to sleep well tonight? HA HA THIS GUY.)

My quest for purple shoes continues. Target is having a 75% off sale and I had a gift certificate, so I ordered these two on Monday. And then, about 30 minutes ago as I was making dinner, I checked to see if the purple wedges I wanted were back in stock at Zappos. They were; one pair; so I ordered them, too.

Um. The fact that I have a shoe problem isn't news, right? (I may be indulging in some retail therapy. Work is insane.)

I stayed up ridiculously late last night. I reached the point of no return in The Disorderly Knights, and I couldn't go to bed until I finished it. Once I did at half three, I said some blistering curses for a while, and then flailed around going, "ARRRRRRRRGH." I immediately stuffed Pawn in Frankincense in my bag so that I could start reading it on the way to work this morning. I can blame no one but myself. I was warned.

And now, vodka!