Floating Leaf

First of all - before I forget - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, goddessofchaos!!! I hope you have a wonderful time, and do find something edible at the office Christmas party.:)

Second of all - thanks for the lovely card, dissonant_dream! It's quirky and artistic and very cool.:) *massive hugs*

I didn't send any cards this year - which is not suprising. I basically suck at this whole card exchange business. I am very picky about greeting cards in general, and I refuse to send people stuff I don't like, and I never seem to remember to go "card hunting" early enough so that the mail gets wherever it needs to get before the holidays... and and and. Long story short - I gave up on it, once again. *sigh*

Yesterday I had dinner with Nancy (the famous Namarie120), akashaelfwitch and jades_tempest. Which should be called our Annual Holiday Get Together... because the last time we all got together was exactly a year ago.:P Actually, the last time I got together with ANY of them (yes, even Akasha, who lives a few blocks away) was exactly a year ago. Yeah, that's what my "socializing with friends" looks like these days. *snort* Not that I really have a problem with it - which is probably troubling in and of itself... *sigh*

BUT!... my "online socializing" potential just greatly increased, thanks to a "friending frenzy" at elven_ranger's journal, to which I was pointed by meathiel. So I have FIVE new people on my friends' list since yesterday (!). People who actually POST, I might add. *stunned gasp* ;) I had a full page of fresh flist entries to read tonight - and that hasn't happened in a while.

So welcome, new friends.:D I hope I won't bore you all to death - well, at least not right away.;)

I might not be posting again until next week, so Season's Greetings to everyone - whichever variant of midwinter holiday you celebrate.:) I'll be heading over to my parents' house, as usual, to make them happy by enduring two days of endless gluttony and vegging out in front of the TV.:D That's what Christmas is all about, after all, isn't it?...:P

Oh, and btw, I seem to just have accidentally discovered a great goth/metal band called Antichrisis. How timely.;D Honest, I was just randomly going throught the alphabetical list at Soundike.com, looking for intriguing (or amusing) band names (yes, that's what I do every other night, why do you ask?...;), and this one caught my eye. So I click on it, chuckling to myself, thinking it's probably going to sound cheesy... and BOOM! it's delicious. Darkly romantic and melancholy, with just a bit of an "edge" to it, and lyrics talking about "cold midwinter nights" and "immortal desire". I mean... be still, my Piscean heart!... The brooding little goth girl inside me is in heaven.;D Who knew? Has anyone ever heard of this band?... I certainly haven't. It's incredible, all the great stuff I seem to be missing out on. And I'm still not even finished with the letter A... LOL.

All right. Shutting up now.:P

Cute little meme stolen from gairid:

Your Soul's Spice is Basil

You value deep, authentic relationships. You're not big on small talk. You are deeply spiritual, even if you don't talk about it much. Deep down you are good with yourself and the world. You are unpretentious and natural. You couldn't be another way even if you tried. You have a beautiful soul, and it shines through in the way you treat others.

So I've been thinking... Yeah, I know - thinking is all I ever do, LOL. But I've been processing this spiritual talk I mentioned earlier, and I sort of want to tie my own reflections to it. Without any preaching, mind you. You will never see me preach - in this journal or anywhere else. I absolutely cringe at the thought of telling other people what to believe or how to lead their lives. Just like I cringe when other people do the same to me. Which is why I am most likely to explore the ideas of those who are the least "pushy" about spreading them around. Could be my incurable stubornness or something, I don't know. But I digress. ( Read more... )

I received a beautiful gift today. Viggo's latest poetry/photography book Canciones de Invierno/Winter Songs. From a dear LJ friend who had originally purchased the book for herself, but after reading it (multiple times, I suspect, even though it is in very good condition) decided to "pass it along" and share with me. If you happen to remember romi, the long-lost legend of the A/L fandom (*giggle*), then you will know that she hasn't been around for a while. Real Life snatched her away from these shores - but what a delight to know that she still treasures our friendship enough to actually come up with the idea of sending me this book. Yes, she mailed it from Sweden. So the book has come quite a long way - there and back again, as it were. Traversing the path of friendship, shared fascinations and beautiful memories. Which reminds me, yet again, of the incredible wealth that discovering LJ and the LOTR fandom has brought into my life. It's a gift that keeps on giving - to use a popular corny cliche...:P

Why yes, I am feeling very emotional these days. My period is about to start any minute, which probably ranks pretty high on the list of contributing factors - but there has been other stuff, including the movie I mentioned in the previous post and various Things Seen On The Internet. Sadly, I lack the time to mention them all. I probably shouldn't even get started, because I feel tired and want to go to bed early tonight... but. I often have this wild craving to post when there is nothing of import to talk about - and then, ironically, when my brain is BURSTING with stuff to talk about, I don't have the time/energy to do it. *sigh* But the main reason I am keeping this journal is to write about things that keep my brainwheels running - not about the daily trivia that somehow occupy the majority of its pages. The trivia are simply easier to manage and squeeze into a post that takes less than five hours to compose... *sigh*

( a lengthy quasi-religious rant under the cut - consider yourselves warned :) )

So, yesterday was spent mostly at my parents' house, gorging on roast turkey and various side dishes, followed by a delicious Vienna cheesecake made by my sister (who's turning out to be quite the accomplished baker - to everyone's surprise, since she never showed much interest in such pursuits before). We also watched the latest Pirates of the Caribbean, which I hadn't seen yet, and which my brother-in-law absolutely insisted I had to see.:) It was... entertaining. Penelope Cruz makes a perfect pirate - almost as perfect as Johnny Depp, and certainly better than Keira Knightley.;) I also loved the charming cannibalistic mermaids.;P But other than that... oh well. At least I don't have to bother ordering it through Netflix, just so people would stop asking if I have seen it already.:D

Today I went shopping again, and bought a nice new skirt and jacket. Yes, I have three other skirts in a very similar style - but it is the style that looks best on me, and I am going to stick to it. And yes, two of those three other skirts are also in very similar colors - namely, different shades of gray. However, they both have some blue in them, due to which they can only be worn with either blue or gray sweaters. The one I bought today is pure gray, and so it will go with a number of other colors as well. Yeah, I am that anal about my clothes. Surprised, anyone?... *snort*

The jacket I bought is also gray (yeah, I know), but more importantly windproof and waterproof, with a zipper going all the way up to the chin, and a hood fastening under the chin as well. It protects the neck and head so well I probably won't even need to wear a scarf with it. See, my old black fake suede winter coat looks very heavy and warm, but, to be honest, doesn't do all that much for me in wet, windy weather. First of all, it doesn't have a zipper, but only about four buttons, and the hood is so loose I have to hold it together under my chin if I want it to stay on. Not very practical while walking around the streets in a classic Windy City gale.:/ It was all fine and dandy when I only had to walk to the car - but standing at the bus stop in such flimsy attire just won't do. I need hardcore outerwear now, savvy? I also bought two pairs of new waterproof boots a while ago - after the fancy fake suede "elven" pair I had bought last year got all soaked through while waiting for the bus in the rain one evening. Yeah. You live, you learn. Car-less existence means a considerably higher level of exposure to the elements... LOL.

And that will be all in today's fascinating newsflash. The long weekend fun is over. Work tomorrow.:/

So, I said I needed to take a break from too much internet, right? Well, apparently some higher powers were listening, because my connection went dead last Saturday. Randomly and with no warning. I waited till Sunday night to call customer service, just in case it was a temporary issue - and then had to wait until today for a scheduled visit from a technician. Like I suspected, someone had disconnected a bunch of cables outside my apartment building. Apparently, guys who work on various utility repairs do that sometimes, and then forget to connect them back again.:/ The same thing happened a few years ago. Strangely enough, that sort of shit usually occurs on a weekend, when I don't have the convenient option to check my email at work. However, I did manage to get the problem fixed right at the onset of a long holiday weekend - so all's good.:) *relieved sigh*

In fact, this is a six-day holiday weekend for me... LOL. I took today off, since it was an "early close" day at our office anyway (that means you come in for 5 hours only, but get paid for 8; or you can choose to schedule a day off by using only 4 vacation hours, which is by far the more sensible option...;P). Friday after Thanksgiving is a paid holiday at my workplace - and then I also took Monday off, just because.:P So I actually get more time off around Thanksgiving than I do around Christmas, or New Year. Which is weird... not that I'm complaining right now, mind you.;) I've got several shopping trips in mind for those few days... as well as an obligatory visit with my parents and, hopefully, some catching up on the online stuff that has piled up while my internet was gone.

Oh, and btw, I took some precautions in order not to scandalize the Comcast technician by the blatant LOTR slash display on the wall behind my desk (color printouts of highly erotic Aragorn/Legolas manips - in case you don't know that much about my room decor by now...;D). Namely, I dragged some cardboard boxes out of the storage closet and propped them up against said wall as a makeshift camouflage, LOL. But guess what? The technician looked behind the boxes anyway, because he wanted to check if all the cables inside the apartment were plugged in correctly before he went to check the outside. So... bummer.:D For the record, he didn't display any outward signs of either shock, disgust or uncontrollable amusement. High points for professionalism, I suppose. *snort*

Somebody stop me, please. I just created a 4-hour playlist for Anathema - but have I even listened to it?... Nope. Not yet. I am busy downloading more stuff. Which currently happens to be Scorpions. Yeah, Scorpions. Germans & East Europeans on my flist, feel welcome to roll your eyes & chuckle.;) Yes, those old album covers are desperately corny, and so are some of the songs. But - God help me - I like them. *hangs head in shame* ;) Or maybe I'm just getting old and will now officially like anything released before the onset of the 21st century.:P Actually, what I really want right now is a playlist of metal ballads. You know, like those old bootleg tapes they used to sell in Eastern Europe back in the eighties/nineties... Metal Ballads Volume 1, Metal Ballads Volume 2 etc. Anyone have any clue what I'm talking about?... I used to have a few of those tapes back in the day, but I can't remember the band or song names anymore. So I don't even know what to search for to download. Other than really obvious stuff - like, for example, Metallica's Nothing Else Matters, which is probably THE top metal ballad of last century. Any suggestions?... I don't mind corny, apparently. I'm in sentimental mode and I want old, cheesy stuff.:P I'm past the point of feeling embarrassed. So if you happen to have any ideas, please don't feel shy about them.:D

I haven't been getting enough sleep lately... mostly because I tend to stay up too late nearly every night.:/ And then I sometimes randomly wake up about two hours before I'm supposed to get up - and can't fall asleep again. I think I need to get more serious about a regular sleeping schedule. As well as regular exercise. I haven't done ANYTHING in that department for a good few weeks.:/ Yes, I do walk a bit every day, since I no longer have a car - but that doesn't, just by itself, constitute a "healthy lifestyle". Basically, I need to spend less time glued to the computer. Which also means posting less often. It's either that, or muscle atrophy and a permanent headache... lol. I know I've been through this before, and I know I can improve my daily routine... but then, after a while, I tend to slip back into the old, unhealthy habits. So, every once and then, I need to give myself a reminder. And now is the time. Because I'm starting to feel crappy, and it just takes any fun out of "doing whatever the hell I want". *sigh* Luckily for me, this weekend we are moving back the clocks - which should help with the sleeping schedule readjustment. But regardless, I think I need to hit the pillows early tonight. As in, around 11 p.m. Yeah, that's early - which is, in itself, kind of disturbing during a work week.:/

So, if you hear a little less frequently from me over the coming weeks, this will be why. And today I just want to share an interesting link before I sign off. I was reading my favorite feminist blog at work today: http://tigerbeatdown.com/. And there was an article about the "war on drugs" and why Western society is so much more approving of alcohol (despite its obvious dangers) than, say, psychedelic mushrooms. The article quotes extensively from a book by botanist/philosopher Terence McKenna, "Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge – A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution". And I find those quotes fascinating. ( Let me just give an example: )

And now for something completely different.:) I am a little behind on chronicling my music discoveries. And there is at least one I just HAVE to mention here. Emilie Autumn. I owe the discovery chiefly to goddessofchaos, who is a huge fan and has Emilie-related graphics adorning her journal.:) And whenever I see artistically done pics of a gorgeous, eccentric woman, I get at least a little intrigued.;) This time I got very intrigued, and embarked upon a quest to see what this strange lady was all about... and before I knew it, I had acquired another crush object.;P Who, ironically enough, has been around for a good few years, and also actually happens to reside in Chicago. Yeah, I am living under a rock. *snort* Anyway... long story short, Emilie is - among other things - a classically trained violinist and a brilliant poet, with an amazing singing voice and great versatility as a composer. She's also a naturally born performer with a captivating image. And she doesn't shy away from using her art to tackle some really tough topics, like mental illness or sexual abuse. She actually wrote a book about her stay at a mental hospital several years ago... which I will probably read some day. She's also fascinated with both Elizabethan and Victorian cultures, and draws heavily on those inspirations in her costumes and music. Summa summarum, she's nothing short of amazing.:) And there's TONS of pics and videos online to prove my point.:D I'm just going to throw a few teasers in here for anyone who might be interested in exploring the subject further.;)





( more under the cut )

So, there's this sexuality meme/survey I've been meaning to do. I stole it from goddessofchaos. It's meant for asexual people, but the questions can be modified depending on your orientation.:) Feel welcome to grab it - though if you're straight, I guess "coming out" and related topics don't apply.:P

1. What is your romantic/sexual orientation?

I'm a biromantic (or, perhaps, panromantic) demisexual. That is, gender does not determine who I fall in love with - but actually falling in love is a necessary prerequisite for me to be able to experience any sort of sexual attraction. Or, to be precise, the more intense my feelings for someone, the greater the degree of physical/sexual intimacy I am willing to engage in. ( Read more... )

I know I shouldn't start posting at midnight, because I might end up not going to bed until dawn, and that inevitably results in a headache. But I only just had dinner, since I got home not that long ago, and I'm not even remotely sleepy anyway. Btw, it wasn't the greatest idea to try to go out to eat in between the two screenings. Both the festival theater and the whole surrounding area was hellishly crowded, and by the time I made it to the cafe, I only had about 15 minutes until I needed to run back to the theater for the second movie.:/ So I basically shoved in half my salad at warp speed and threw the other half in the trash - and still ended up having to sit in the first row, craning my neck at a ridiculous angle.:( But I did see both films, which I wouldn't have been able to see otherwise, so the mission for the day is accomplished.:) (The Good Doctor only had one screening, and the second screening of Romeos is really late on Tuesday night, which won't do, since I'm going back to work on Wednesday.)

So... let me heartily recommend The Good Doctor to all lovers of independent, thought-provoking cinema. It is an excellent film - very carefully done, very subtle, posing some important ethical questions, but not without a touch of humor despite the seriousness of the topic. I have to warn you, though: you might never trust a doctor again after you see it.:P As for Orlando's performance... I have said this before, and I will say it again: I much prefer him playing an "ordinary guy" than a glorified costume-bedecked blockbuster hero. It suits him better, and he has a chance to actually do some acting, instead of just waving around a sword and looking pretty.:) My favorite role of his so far (other than Legolas - but that's for sentimental reasons, more than anything) has been Shy from Haven; Martin Blake from The Good Doctor just might take second place. It's also a complex character, flawed and vulnerable. And Orlando is very convincing in portraying his youthful naivete, ambition, insecurity... I liked him so, so much. I am so happy that he takes a break from the blockbusters at least every once in a while to do something like this...

And now for something completely different.:) Romeos. The story of Lukas, who used to be Miriam, but is now transitioning into his male self, while at the same time realizing that he might be gay. ( Read more... )