DAMN IT. BUGGERIT MILLENIUM HAND AND SHRIMP. Why must my Bureau shows be throwing me a curve this month?

( This is not a cool XMas present, Jeff Eastin. DAMN IT. )

I'm on a serious FBI kick right now. I found a paperback version of Bryan Burroughs's Public Enemies -a history of the Great Crime Wave, Dillinger and Bonnie and Clyde et al, and the self-birth of the FBI. And it's got me totally hooked. I was reading it for, like 3 hours straight this afternoon after work. Wow. Also, I think I have kind of a crush on John Dillinger. Not the Johnny Depp version either. I would have totally been a moll, y'all.

a head cold which seems to have metamorphosed into a full-on sinus infection: -20
but which sounds worse than it feels, and which I am trying to overcome without antibiotics, because, hello, drug resistance: -10
a day at work which was full of incompetent braining on my part: -15
including EPIC SHELF-READING FAIL, meaning my coworker must go pick 5 pages worth of list again : -50.
(short story long: books what I thought were not there, were actually across the aisle. STUPID ANNEX SHELVING.)
no response from Thesis Adviser/Recommender after leaving him alone for a month post-info-dump email: aieee.

getting through Thanksgiving with mostly a minimum of family drama: + 15
quoting "Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole" at the Fraternal Unit, after he apparently complained about Paternal Uncle's stereo choices on the drive to the Thanksgiving restaurant: +20
having a Step-Mom with whom I get along and can commiserate with about Father-Related Issues: +35
discovering a new awesome cop-show/BBC movies in Foyle's War (Michael Kitchen is very good at his job) :+10
Less then a month till Christmas/Doctor Who, plus advent calendars even though I'm agnostic: yaaay
(I'm a very bad agnostic, really. I get so sucked in by all the trimmings, and I still love a good carol service. Maybe I need to turn pagan.)

Fic To-Do List (in no particular order)
(because 5.09 has thrown my ficcing world into chaos)
-"VITA"? Maybe? Kind off? Though after 100, it might need a present day epilogue.
- Some sort of prequel or sequel to "Birds and Bourbon", yet again pulled off course by the gravitational weight of 100.
- Mutiny in the BAU fic, with amichevole
- A "Five-Things" post-ep to 100, involving the Gentile version of Shiva food. Stretching through the aftermath to Haley's funeral and beyond. I have the food, now I just need to write the thing.

And finally, 5 Questions Meme, partie trois, thanks to my cousin and partner in crime phantomcranefly :

1. What song (or artist, or even kind of music) do you listen to most often?

It changes from season to season. Right now, it's Johnny Cash's American Recordings, albums one through five. And it depends on the day, which one I'm interested in. If I'm feeling upbeat, I like "Country Boy" or "Mean Eyed Cat",off American Recordings; if I'm feeling more mellow or low, I go for American Three: Solitary Man. Especially his cover of Bonnie Prince Billy's "I See A Darkness." Johnny Cash has become my non-emo emo, sadly. And if I'm not in a Man in Black mood, I go for the Dylan. I'm having a Dylan redecouverture, centered around Highway 61 Revisited and "Desolation Row" (as any Dylan fan paying attention to my entry titles recently would have realized.)

2. What book do you most need/want to read and haven't?

Probably any one of Isaac Asimov's novels you could name. The Foundation trilogy, I Robot, etc. When my mother introduced me to Roger Zelazny last year, I was so glad she did, and for the remainder of my time at the homestead, I *need* to raid her science fiction and fantasy collection.

3. What's something you didn't know in college that you now wish you had? (Why, no, I have no ulterior motive. None at all. Really.)

That a lot of things you think are incredibly important and world-shattering at the time...turn out not to be. That you can move on, semester by semester, and the important things are what you make of them. Oh, and find the place you want to be, and the things you want to do, and the grades will usually follow. Happy and involved students get better grades.

4. Which is cutest: Tribbles, Adipose babies, or Pikachu?

Not Adipose babies definitely, because the eyes just freak me out. And Pikachu is too inherently powerful, and dangerous in that way, to be completely "cute." Even if Tribbles could be as dangerous with their overpopulation, it's a slower death than electrocution. So, Tribbles all the way.

5. Tolkien or C. S. Lewis and why?

Have to go with Tolkien, just on personal preference. I have to confess I actually never got past the first couple of the Narnia books. Maybe because I was introduced to them as a kid. And it never really clicked with me. (maybe this needs to go under "Books I need to read but haven't".) Sacrilege alert: I only started reading LOTR *after* the release of the first movie. (*prepares for flinging of produce*) I was in my junior year of high school, right after 9/11, and it was a case of right book, right time, right person. I read through all three of them in a bout a month, and then on to the Silmarillion. Maybe, as a mythology nerd, Middle-Earth just called to me more. For escapism, it's pretty violent and sad. But good does eventually triumph, even at a price. (See also my current obsession with Criminal Minds.) .And Sam Gamgee....'nuff said.
(Though I would still adore Lewis just for The Screwtape Letters alone.)

******

this ends tonight's ramble. Bonne Nuit.

Via jenavira and melliyna :

THE FANFICTION LOVE MEME



Here be my shameless plea for Love and Cookies.

Disclaimers: No member of the BAU or the fictional FBI belongs to me, though I love them dearly. They are the playthings of Messrs. Gordon, Bernero, and Mundy.
Rating: FRC (sappy and completely non-explicit.)
Spoilers: BIG DAMN DEPRESSING ONES for 5x09, "100",
Genre: Post-Ep, 5x09/Angst/Het
Series: Night Watch 'Verse
Characters: Penelope Garcia, Kevin Lynch
Pairing:Garcia/Kevin

Notes: a)Completely unbeta-ed, a cathartic writer's indulgence post ep for "100", so sorry if it sucks.
b)Oh my god, I wrote Het! There's a first time for everything.
c) Kind of, sort of, catty corner to the Night Watch 'Verse, though Hotch himself does not make an appearance. But Penelope is written with that history in mind.

Summary: Kevin returns to the BAU, after the day that was the day.

*************

( In retrospect, thought Kevin Lynch, today might not have been the best day for the BAU debut of the bacon donut. )

holy mother of god.

( no Dylan lyrics this week, because Show has broken me. )

Bad thing about having chronic allergies? It takes you a little while longer to realize when you actually *are* sick. Probably just a cold, though. Hopefully I will have recovered enough by Tuesday that they will let me get the H1N1 vaccine that the university is providing for certain groups of faculty, staff and dependents. Which I qualify doubly for, given my history of asthma (though it's now pretty much dormant), and the fact that I'm 24 (the top end of the "everybody 10-24 gets it" bracket) for 4 more months.

I always seem to get sick on weekends these days. Probably why I have a surfeit of sick days stored up. But despite feeling like death on a Triscuit, I have been virtuous and done my monthly rent-in-kind trip (groceries). If I can get up the energy, I might attempt another batch of cranberry sauce this afternoon, before settling in to watch AFC East Divisional Grudge Match Part Deux (AKA Pats-Jets.)

And BRAVO at an annoyingly loud volume for the brave boys of the Harvard Crimson, coming back to upend the Evil Elis in this years edition of The Game. 'Twas a hell of a game; ill-advised fake punts, rolling snaps that worked, last minute picks. There's nothing like Ivy Football; and that's probably a good thing.

Oh, sigh. That was pretty much the most depressing episode since "To Hell and Back." In the good way.

Different people having the SAME DAMN ARGUMENT (in this case Hotch/Haley) every 5-6 months. Not just the same subject, but the same premises and conclusions, etc. 20 posts of the same stuff. I like a good argument as much as anybody, but after the 4th or 5th time, one just has to tune out and wait for someone to change the subject. And some times even that doesn't work. It only dies down, and then springs up again. And the saga of is only one example; I've seen this in other fandoms.

/bitch-session

I'm currently hunkering down for the slightly-epic North Carolina Thanksgiving trip. Including Littlest Brother! Awesome. Even if it has been decided already that we're going out for dinner, to some special Thanksgiving Brazilian Barbecue. (mmmkay.)But having my parents in separate states for the holidays does help. It's not that they fight. It's that they bitch slyly about each other, and guess who is the buffer state in this scenario? Ahyup.

Today has been slightly odd, mentally. Like I've been half a step behind all day.

Broadcasting for once from *my* computer, Norman the iMac. I'm nearly done adding 131 new songs to the iPod, which was my big project for the morning. (Yes, I still buy CDs. Norman the iMac is not currently networked 24-7, so it's easier this way. ) (Also, I will seriously need a bigger iPod eventually.) The crown jewel of which, is all 5 "American" albums by the Man in Black. Because Awesome Musically Obsessed Coworker With A Massive CD Collection is Awesome and Generous.

Doctor Who is BACK tonight, and I will find (probably nefarious) ways to watch it tomorrow. *noises of joy* Can't wait to watch the Doctor and Servillia of the Junii. Even though the arrival of "Waters of Mars" means that the finale of Ten's song is starting. *snerf*

But for now, NEW 5 QUESTIONS MEME STUFF! This time from the lovely and talented melliyna , who is also responsible for the WW/CM Monster Crossover Bunny. (Or translation, a prequel/missing scene/sequel to "Birds and Bourbon.") Which, yay, I've actually started, and is kind of turning epic against my will. Damn her. :p

( I want to be with my friends, my family..and these women. ).

My new love affair. Because I totally needed *another* adorable buttoned-up fictional FBI agent to be obsessed with. And the cute con-man boy-toy ain't any slouch either.

(i disavow all true responsibilty for this post, it's katewallace 's fault. Hee.)

Come in and say "Resistance is futile" and I will give you 5 questions. Make an entry in your journal with your answers.

( Abandon all hope, ye who enter here. )

St. George then looking round about,
The fiery dragon soon espy'd,
And like a knight of courage stout,
Against him did most furiously ride;
And with such blows he did him greet,
He fell beneath his horse's feet.

For with his launce that was so strong,
As he came gaping in his face,
In at his mouth he thrust along;
For he could pierce no other place:
And thus within the lady's view
This mighty dragon straight he slew.

-Anonymous, Old English

Okay, yes, a slight exaggeration.

All three applications are in and paid for, with their fiendishly peculiar personal statements. The GRE reports are ordered. The transcripts are ordered and waiting for a consent form to wing their way down from Garden Street. All's done except  a few bits of extraneous paperwork, and the recommendations, and the recommenders are three people who I trust intensely not to let me down. (I have good family, friends and colleagues, whom I don't praise nearly enough. So, I praise them. And praise them again.)

(Funny dangling modifier that I fortunately noticed before I sent in the essay: "Those books, magazines, and ephemeral audio-visual media that might have been lost to future researchers when they physically disintegrated will now be available for years to come." Yeah, needed to rearrange that one a bit, given all the physically disintegrating academics I've met in my life.)

Now I can stop freaking out about it all, wait for what happens to happen. And kill time by obsessing over the hundreth episode of CM and writing all the fic-bunnies that are pestering me.

ROWR. I HAVE SLAIN THE DRAGON. FEAR ME. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land.

Okay....not a great episode, but it had a lot of pretty good moments within it. ( Can I have my own personal Garcia, please? )

My day, through the words and music of Johnny Cash:




I picked books from every floor of the Big House at least once, some multiple times, and nearly every section of books. Not to mention the weird and winding paths one has to follow to go through one call-number range. There are so many contortions necessary to squeeze a 2009-level collection of books  in a building from  the 1940s.

Also: I curse the name of whatever  architect (MOSBY?!) felt it was it was a good idea to put the old-catalogue-system history collection on top of a freakin' hill in the middle of the floor. Because books, in cart form, have a shitload of momentum.

*big theatrical collapse, avec sigh*

Yeah, as if tomorrow is going to be any less fraught. But at least it ends with LORD JOHN MARBURY! (squee.) Roger Rees and Shakespeare and hilarity at McCarter. LOVE. However, that's right after work (including dinner in the Square) and I have to vote tomorrow too (GO CORZINE). So I am going to be that first annoying girl down at our polling place at the crack of 6 AM.

Because democracy is important too. *g*

Disclaimers: No member of the BAU belongs to me, though I love them dearly. They are the playthings of Messrs. Gordon, Bernero, and Mundy. Sam Seaborn belongs to Aaron Sorkin, John Wells, et al.
Rating: FRC
Spoilers: Up to S7 for The West Wing; Season 5 for CM- 5x01 and 5x03 in particular.
Genre: Gen/Crossover (The West Wing)
Characters: Hotch, Sam Seaborn
Pairing: None
Note: a)Another ficlet originally written and posted for the CM Gen Comment Fic/Drabblethon, hosted by the lovely and talented melliyna .
b) Well after "Tomorrow" in TWW-verse, Sam is still DCOS; this is set somewhere between "Reckoner" and "Cradle to Grave" in the CM'verse
c) Internet Cookies to melliyna for giving me a chance to write two of my all-time teevee boyfriends in one fic.
Prompt: ""Hotch and Sam Seaborn are old friends from law school who met up occasionally for a drink. Discuss."

Summary: Hotch isn't doing great, but he's doing his best. And his old friend Sam knows better than to push.
 
( Sam looked down at his scotch and soda. )

Are You Being Served

I would so TOTALLY watch a Are You Being Served prequel involving the life and loves of Ms. E. Slocumbe (or Ms. E. Unknown-Maiden-Name) during the post WWII period. Anybody else? Bueller?

Also, Mrs. Slocumbe and Capt. Peacock have most definitely done it at least once. And as kinky as it sounds, I totally ship Mrs. Slocumbe/Mr. Lucas. In the totally unhealthy/Buffy-Spike in Season Four kind of way. (Not Season 5 and after, because that just got sad.) Mrs. Slocumbe is such a cougar. That would be some very angry sex, but it would be hot.

And maybe, just maybe, I think Mr. Humphries and Mr. Lucas did some drunken experimenting once or twice. (You smooth talking sex maniac indeed.)

Good Neighbours

We watched through this last year, and I have such a crush on Paul Eddington, it's ridiculous. The chemistry between that show's main foursome was cuttable with a spoon. Which is why my favorite episode is The Wind-Break War, from Series 3 or 4. I love drunken Jerry trying not to, and completely failing at not flirting with Barbara in the kitchen, while they are mistakenly loading dishes into the freezer. "Dishywashy? Dishywashy?" I love Margot and Tom's scene only slightly less, simply because it's a tad more serious due to poor Margot's poignant insecurity.

And Rule 34 says that since I thought of it, there must be FRAO Margot/Jerry/Tom/Barbara fic out there.  Maybe I will look for it some day.But if there isn't, I don't think I have the talent or the courage to write it, yet.

Damn my fandom nature being seemingly limited to work-families where I find it icky to write anything porny. And I know even family-family doesn't stop a lot of writers in the SPN fandom but NO. Just no. I am open-minded to a lot of stuff in fic.  Even in CM where I would scream if they came anywhere close to inter-team shipping on the show.. I have a closet thing for Rossi/Prentiss, just because writers like mingsmommy  and wojelah  have written it so well. But Wincest is one of my sincere turnoffs. (Dean/Ellen....that is another story. But if asked, I will totally deny everything. I think.

Hah. This post ended up being much longer than I intended. Must be off.  I've decided to rewatch Shaun of The Dead and snack on our massive surfeit of Halloween candy tonight. (Lack of trick-or-treaters makes E tres sad.)  I do ship both Shaun/Ed, and Angel/Danny from Hot Fuzz. But only because Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are the most epic bros that ever bro'ed.

I, 'thekara, promise to stop being the Bitch-Goddess from hell about this whole grad-school thing.

(Or at least  try.)

Maybe going out to buy pumpkins will help. My costume this year (for purposes of answering our door wit' candy: The Woman in Black. Complete with Eye-Patch and Cowboy Hat. UPDATE: Sunglasses worked infinitely better, plus the old string duster I forgot I owned.

And my copies of  matociquala 's  By The Mountain Bound (new book!) and New Amsterdam (new to me!) arrived this morning. Score.

I just really wish there was some way to go into a Jedi-trance and have this paperwork shit be over and done with.

Okay, in my usual neurotic and frantic fashion, I have gotten stuff done. GO ME.

Went to the dentist today. And that was its own kind of stressful, because I've been going to see the man since I was 4. So if anything goes wrong with my teeth, I feel like I have personally disappointed him. But yaay, clean bill of dental health.

Then, quest to Trenton to get the bus pass of the month. (After losing the last one a week before the end of the month, and surviving using rolls of quarters. EPIC PUBLIC TRANSIT FAIL.)

Then, this afternoon. Which despite it being filled with typing and filling in forms, which I DO FOR A LIVING, was stressful. Because it is really not in my nature, in a lot of ways, to put myself out there. To be "Here is exactly why I am awesome, and you should totally let me into your Master of Library and Information Science Program." But, finished one, half of another (turns out I cannot plug  essay for First School into the essay topic for second school. DAMN IT.) So 1 and a half down, and half and one to go. Plus ordering various scores and transcripts and whatchamawhosits  from 50-eleven places.

(And The Empress tried to help. But her helping, as a cat, is somewhat less than optimal.
The Empress: *jumps up next to computer* PET ME.
Me: Go away, I'm doing stuff.
The Empress: * jumps on back of office chair* I went away, I came back. PET ME.
Me: *frantic call to the Maternal Unit for date we moved to Jersey*
The Empress: *does unspeakable nuzzly things to the phone*
Ah. Cats.)

But I've started it. A hit, a palpable hit. So I am calling it a day, pouring myself a scotch in a bit, and waiting for our scintillating Friday night plans. (Which basically are, pizza, Daniel Craig blowing up shit, and Matt Bomer/Tim DeKay being cute and competent.) (I Am Totally Hooked on White Collar after one episode, everybody.) Oh the exciting life I lead.

I'm having multiple homesickness pangs tonight.

Except I'm having them for about three different places.

I listen to music, I feel one thing. I watch baseball, another. And then, looking outside my window, or talking to a friend way off in China, there's a whole 'nother thing going on.

This is  a problem.