i'm in the middle of fifteen things, all of them annoying
Apr. 18th, 2026 10:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wychwoodHad my PDR yesterday, which as ever was much less terrible than I feared. And no really annoying objectives! Also Boss Lady thinks I'm hard-working, so apparently all the days on the struggle bus aren't visible from where she's sitting, which is reassuring... We talked about how I haven't been able to keep on top of things this year, and are hoping that next year will be smoother; it's not that I've been feeling outrageously stressed or anything (most of the time!), and she's been really good about openly acknowledging that I haven't been able to progress A or B because I was working on Z, but I don't like how many things I have sitting on the to-do list, or how often I have to say "no, sorry, I haven't followed up on that" in meetings. I spent quite a lot of time on the big letters project last year keeping other people moving things forward, and now I just... don't have time. Or the projects where I need substantial blocks of time to really dig in to learn what I need on a new system, and I almost never have the brainspace to do it, even though I know that the long-term benefits would be noticeable. We will see what happens.
This year's tendency for terrible things to happen to my friends has not slowed down. The swimming friend mentioned there died on Wednesday, as did friend and former-line-manager L, who was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer a few weeks ago. No one seems to be able to catch a break this year (except Mum, who is doing really well at the moment! So I am grateful for that much).
But the sun has been shining today, a dozen people are coming to my dinner, I bought a ticket to see The Flying Dutchman next month, and while I do have choir all next week it's Brahms' German Requiem, which is fabulous. And Miss H and I are watching Babylon 5 and you guys it is SO GOOD. We're halfway through season one, and even the bad episodes have had redeeming features, but the good ones, wow. "Born to the Purple" and "And the Sky Full of Stars" in particular are great.
This year's tendency for terrible things to happen to my friends has not slowed down. The swimming friend mentioned there died on Wednesday, as did friend and former-line-manager L, who was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer a few weeks ago. No one seems to be able to catch a break this year (except Mum, who is doing really well at the moment! So I am grateful for that much).
But the sun has been shining today, a dozen people are coming to my dinner, I bought a ticket to see The Flying Dutchman next month, and while I do have choir all next week it's Brahms' German Requiem, which is fabulous. And Miss H and I are watching Babylon 5 and you guys it is SO GOOD. We're halfway through season one, and even the bad episodes have had redeeming features, but the good ones, wow. "Born to the Purple" and "And the Sky Full of Stars" in particular are great.
“That creepy guy is here again,” my boss hissed.
Apr. 17th, 2026 10:04 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
microsff_feed“That creepy guy is here again,” my boss hissed.
I looked to the pinball machine in corner. A lanky man in overalls and a soft hat was playing.
“You’re making a fortune from the old coins he’s using. But I’ll have a word.”
Later, I told my boss the guy worked as a ferryman. Why’d he get so pale?
“Could you turn me into a cat?” the man asked.
Apr. 17th, 2026 05:25 pmmicrosff_feed“Could you turn me into a cat?” the man asked.
The witch gave him a long look. “Why?”
“So I could be your familiar,” he said with a grin.
“What an interesting idea! Let me try.”
*poof*
“Oops!” the witch said.
She picked up the frog. “Let’s get you to a pond.”
Before the entrance to the superhero academy, the boys compared powers.
Apr. 15th, 2026 04:19 pmmicrosff_feedBefore the entrance to the superhero academy, the boys compared powers.
“What do you do?”
“Er…”
“C'mon, spill!”
“I can add pockets.”
“Like, interdimensional?”
“No, just normal, usable pockets. To any garment, matching any material.”
“What use is that?”
“If I can help anyone I’d be happy.”
45 Multi-fandom icons
Apr. 14th, 2026 06:55 pmthesleepingbeauty posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
icons
All icons HERE @
little_mermaid ♥ Note: This post will only be open for a few weeks … after that it will be locked to members only, so feel free to join / subscribe to the community if you like my work. Thank you.
“There’s this expression, ‘cursed by the gods’. What does that curse entail?
Apr. 13th, 2026 07:02 pmmicrosff_feed“There’s this expression, ‘cursed by the gods’. What does that curse entail?”
“Literally, 'may people behave like humans at you’,” the god said.
“Ouch! And 'blessed by the gods’?”
“Same thing.”
“How can it be the same?”
“The difference,” said the god, “is which people’s attention you catch.”
i wonder where the birdies is
Apr. 12th, 2026 12:09 pmwychwoodGoing back to work was a bit of a horrible shock. Why must we work, why can I not merely lie around all day doing nothing.
However, before that time I did manage to get the sewing machine out and fix things, and also wash the second net curtain. And I'm wearing the repaired NASA hoodie right now! Not too bad for a week off. Now I just need to make the cookies I've had ingredients sitting on the side for, for the last, uh, several weeks. And maybe the pancakes I bought (and froze) milk for, for Shrove Tuesday, since we're currently up to the second Sunday of Easter.
I've also prodded various social things; as ever, it is a terrible balance between my desire to stay at home and do nothing, and my desire to hang out with cool people who I like. I did finally send out the invite for the David Attenborough Centenary Dinner I decided needed to happen - cool people don't turn 100 every day! And I've been vaguely planning a large group invite to the local food truck place for a while, so this seemed like a good excuse. I've invited twenty-odd people, and am hoping for maybe half-a-dozen - I booked Miss H in advance, so at the absolute worst I would have someone to eat with! And one other person has already signed up, so that seems like a success. If it goes well, perhaps I will repeat the concept (although probably without the Attenborough theme!); I really like the idea of regular social things with a bunch of people, but it's always so complicated (and see above re: staying at home forever). But this is extremely low-key, and doesn't require coordinating anything much, which might make it more sustainable. We'll see.
It's really getting quite spring-like now; still cold overnight, but the sun can be properly warm, and we've had a few really nice days; I'm keeping my windows open a lot because I can although am also sneezing a lot, corroborating the "very high" pollen forecast. But everything is green, the grass is growing, there's blossom and new leaf buds on the trees, flowers are popping up around the place, and a new spider has spent several days hanging around in my room (got me out of bed early one day, when it decided to pop up next to my pillow!).
However, before that time I did manage to get the sewing machine out and fix things, and also wash the second net curtain. And I'm wearing the repaired NASA hoodie right now! Not too bad for a week off. Now I just need to make the cookies I've had ingredients sitting on the side for, for the last, uh, several weeks. And maybe the pancakes I bought (and froze) milk for, for Shrove Tuesday, since we're currently up to the second Sunday of Easter.
I've also prodded various social things; as ever, it is a terrible balance between my desire to stay at home and do nothing, and my desire to hang out with cool people who I like. I did finally send out the invite for the David Attenborough Centenary Dinner I decided needed to happen - cool people don't turn 100 every day! And I've been vaguely planning a large group invite to the local food truck place for a while, so this seemed like a good excuse. I've invited twenty-odd people, and am hoping for maybe half-a-dozen - I booked Miss H in advance, so at the absolute worst I would have someone to eat with! And one other person has already signed up, so that seems like a success. If it goes well, perhaps I will repeat the concept (although probably without the Attenborough theme!); I really like the idea of regular social things with a bunch of people, but it's always so complicated (and see above re: staying at home forever). But this is extremely low-key, and doesn't require coordinating anything much, which might make it more sustainable. We'll see.
It's really getting quite spring-like now; still cold overnight, but the sun can be properly warm, and we've had a few really nice days; I'm keeping my windows open a lot because I can although am also sneezing a lot, corroborating the "very high" pollen forecast. But everything is green, the grass is growing, there's blossom and new leaf buds on the trees, flowers are popping up around the place, and a new spider has spent several days hanging around in my room (got me out of bed early one day, when it decided to pop up next to my pillow!).
The case of the missing notifications
Apr. 11th, 2026 11:58 pm![[staff profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user_staff.png){kind=small}
denise posting in ![[site community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/comm_staff.png){kind=small}
dw_maintenanceI keep forgetting to post about this: we've been troubleshooting the "missing notifications" problem for the past few days. (Well, I say "we", really I mean Mark and Robby; I'm just the amanuensis.) It's been one of those annoying loops of "find a logical explanation for what could be causing the problem, fix that thing, observe that the problem gets better for some people but doesn't go away completely, go back to step one and start again", sigh.
Mark is hauling out the heavy debugging ordinance to try to find the root cause. Once he's done building all the extra logging tools he needs, he'll comment to this entry. After he does, if you find a comment that should have gone to your inbox and sent an email notification but didn't, leave him a link to the comment that should have sent the notification, as long as the comment itself was made after Mark says he's collecting them. (I'd wait and post this after he gets the debug code in but I need to go to sleep and he's not sure how long it will take!)
We're sorry about the hassle! Irregular/sporadic issues like this are really hard to troubleshoot because it's impossible to know if they're fixed or if they're just not happening while you're looking. With luck, this will give us enough information to figure out the root cause for real this time.
multifandom icons.
Apr. 11th, 2026 09:12 pmwickedgame posting in iconsFandoms: Addicted, Bridgerton, Cobra Kai, Elite, Guardian, I'll Turn Back This Time, Mako Mermaids, One Piece, Shadowhunters, Superman & Lois, Zorro
the rest are HERE @mundodefieras
the rest are HERE @
mundodefieras 
There was a faint puff of smoke from the bottle, and a small genie appeared.
Apr. 8th, 2026 08:08 pmmicrosff_feedThere was a faint puff of smoke from the bottle, and a small genie appeared.
“You have freed me,” it said, “so I’m obliged to grant you a wish.”
It hesitated. “But I am not very powerful.”
I nodded. “Of all things I need, give me the greatest you can.”
Suddenly, I held a large mug of hot cocoa.
march booklog
Apr. 8th, 2026 04:28 pmwychwood( 42. The Return of Fitzroy Angursell - Victoria Goddard ) I really liked this one - both as a view of his history and of his life as he steps away from being emperor. I'd like to re-read it and then follow up with the relevant parts of At the Feet of the Sun to see how they fit together, too.
( 43. Mountains of Fire - Clive Oppenheimer ) An interesting book; more human-focussed than I was expecting, but not in a bad way.
( 44. Something Human - AJ Demas ) Not my favourite Demas, but this was still pretty good.
( 45. Strange Houses - Uketsu ) The first book was weird in a fun way; this was mostly just weird, in the sense that even the characters that weren't supposed to be involved in creepiness are stranger than seemed at all reasonable.
( 46. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain ) Still relatively fun, though full of more horrible things than I'd remembered.
( 47. Irresponsible Adult - Lucy Dillon ) I can't quite call this a soothing read when Robyn starts out making so many mistakes, but it was satisfying and enjoyable.
( 48. Windmaster's Bane - Tom Deitz ) Not a bad example of its kind.
( 49. The Anglo-Saxons - Marc Morris ) A good survey of what we know about the basic history - kings and whatnot - of the era.
( 50. The Anthropocene Reviewed - John Green ) A delightful collection of extremely random reviews.
( 51. A Tempest of Tea - Hafsah Faizal ) Maybe it's just me, but I thought this was terrible.
( 52. The Raven Scholar - Antonia Hodgson ) I just don't understand why any of the half-decent folk would stay.
( 53. James - Percival Everett ) I still don't think I really know what Everett wanted to do with this book, but I'm not at all sure it worked.
( 54. Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee ) Normally I love Lee's writing, but this just didn't quite work for me somehow.
( 55. Slow Horses - Mick Herron ) Well-done, but I'm just not going to be a spy fan.
( 56. The Republic of Salt - Ariel Kaplan ) I really thought this volume was going to actually finish the immediate story; more fool me.
( 57. Faerie Queene vol 1 - Edmund Spenser ) The first part of this was genuinely fun, but all of the moral / religious underpinnings are so confused. Interested to see where volume 2 goes.
( 58. Swordcrossed - Freya Marske ) This does a good job of earning the resolution; I enjoyed it.
( 59. Chalet School Reunion - Elinor M Brent-Dyer ) A fun chance to see various early pupils twenty years down the line.
( 60. Couple Goals - Kit Williams ) Cute sports romance! With a sapphic relationship as well as a het one.
( 43. Mountains of Fire - Clive Oppenheimer ) An interesting book; more human-focussed than I was expecting, but not in a bad way.
( 44. Something Human - AJ Demas ) Not my favourite Demas, but this was still pretty good.
( 45. Strange Houses - Uketsu ) The first book was weird in a fun way; this was mostly just weird, in the sense that even the characters that weren't supposed to be involved in creepiness are stranger than seemed at all reasonable.
( 46. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain ) Still relatively fun, though full of more horrible things than I'd remembered.
( 47. Irresponsible Adult - Lucy Dillon ) I can't quite call this a soothing read when Robyn starts out making so many mistakes, but it was satisfying and enjoyable.
( 48. Windmaster's Bane - Tom Deitz ) Not a bad example of its kind.
( 49. The Anglo-Saxons - Marc Morris ) A good survey of what we know about the basic history - kings and whatnot - of the era.
( 50. The Anthropocene Reviewed - John Green ) A delightful collection of extremely random reviews.
( 51. A Tempest of Tea - Hafsah Faizal ) Maybe it's just me, but I thought this was terrible.
( 52. The Raven Scholar - Antonia Hodgson ) I just don't understand why any of the half-decent folk would stay.
( 53. James - Percival Everett ) I still don't think I really know what Everett wanted to do with this book, but I'm not at all sure it worked.
( 54. Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee ) Normally I love Lee's writing, but this just didn't quite work for me somehow.
( 55. Slow Horses - Mick Herron ) Well-done, but I'm just not going to be a spy fan.
( 56. The Republic of Salt - Ariel Kaplan ) I really thought this volume was going to actually finish the immediate story; more fool me.
( 57. Faerie Queene vol 1 - Edmund Spenser ) The first part of this was genuinely fun, but all of the moral / religious underpinnings are so confused. Interested to see where volume 2 goes.
( 58. Swordcrossed - Freya Marske ) This does a good job of earning the resolution; I enjoyed it.
( 59. Chalet School Reunion - Elinor M Brent-Dyer ) A fun chance to see various early pupils twenty years down the line.
( 60. Couple Goals - Kit Williams ) Cute sports romance! With a sapphic relationship as well as a het one.
“No,” the swordmaster said.
Apr. 7th, 2026 07:11 pmmicrosff_feed“No,” the swordmaster said.
“One does not refuse the king,” the herald said.
“I do. I will not train his soldiers or officers, I will not tell my students to join his army, I will not support his unjust war.”
“You will regret this!”
“No,” the swordmaster said.
take my rights but you can't destroy all my love and my punk rock joy
Apr. 6th, 2026 09:53 pmwychwoodWe made it through the Triduum! Actually, in some ways I felt like this year was less stressful than it often is; somehow I just... wasn't as worried about things going wrong. I knew we would cope if they did. And, in fact, nothing really did go wrong, although as ever I have notes for next year. Between that and the free time I did manage to find (taking Maundy Thursday off work so that I have the day free before the service in the evening is the best idea, and I desperately needed that break this year) I have bounced back pretty well already. Although Fr A decided that we were going to kneel down between every single intercession on Good Friday, and my thighs were so stiff the next day! I felt very feeble for it, but also, ow.
Yesterday was family Easter, which is always nice but a bit exhausting just from the sheer volume of people (we had thirteen for dinner this year) (didn't seem unlucky though!). But today I slept in, refused to shower or get dressed, and ended up with enough energy to do the first couple of rounds of moving things back to where they ought to be after several days of dumping bags and pocket contents and so on on the nearest surface; the desperately overdue washing up (I've not been home for many meals, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but it wasn't great!); and, unexpectedly, even some of the "I must at some point" tasks.
I washed the net curtains in my bedroom - turns out they're actually white, who knew. They were already up when I moved in here and I haven't taken them down since, so it really was time. I hung them straight back up as the best drying option - it was a lovely fresh day, bizarrely for a bank holiday. I still need to do the spare room net curtains; maybe tomorrow. And I've added a reminder to my to-do list to wash them once a year, although I have no idea whether that's a reasonable length of time... anyone have any opinions?
And I did three of my sewing projects pile - I've had a t-shirt and a hoodie sitting on the blanket chest for at least six months, and I tore the pocket of my new hoodie slightly on Saturday, as well as bringing my horrible sweaty alb home from church to wash again, with the fraying sleeve I meant to fix last time. So the two hoodies and the alb sleeve were all hand-stitching projects and are now done; the alb hem and the t-shirt need the sewing machine really, and I have hopes for tomorrow on that. I'm so bad at sewing, but none of these are really visible and they're better than they were before I started, so that will have to do.
My reading took up most of the rest of the day; I finished the initial ebook collection I'd made on Thursday, and made a new one with 23 books in it which I am very much enjoying working on.
Yesterday was family Easter, which is always nice but a bit exhausting just from the sheer volume of people (we had thirteen for dinner this year) (didn't seem unlucky though!). But today I slept in, refused to shower or get dressed, and ended up with enough energy to do the first couple of rounds of moving things back to where they ought to be after several days of dumping bags and pocket contents and so on on the nearest surface; the desperately overdue washing up (I've not been home for many meals, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but it wasn't great!); and, unexpectedly, even some of the "I must at some point" tasks.
I washed the net curtains in my bedroom - turns out they're actually white, who knew. They were already up when I moved in here and I haven't taken them down since, so it really was time. I hung them straight back up as the best drying option - it was a lovely fresh day, bizarrely for a bank holiday. I still need to do the spare room net curtains; maybe tomorrow. And I've added a reminder to my to-do list to wash them once a year, although I have no idea whether that's a reasonable length of time... anyone have any opinions?
And I did three of my sewing projects pile - I've had a t-shirt and a hoodie sitting on the blanket chest for at least six months, and I tore the pocket of my new hoodie slightly on Saturday, as well as bringing my horrible sweaty alb home from church to wash again, with the fraying sleeve I meant to fix last time. So the two hoodies and the alb sleeve were all hand-stitching projects and are now done; the alb hem and the t-shirt need the sewing machine really, and I have hopes for tomorrow on that. I'm so bad at sewing, but none of these are really visible and they're better than they were before I started, so that will have to do.
My reading took up most of the rest of the day; I finished the initial ebook collection I'd made on Thursday, and made a new one with 23 books in it which I am very much enjoying working on.