Calvin and Hobbes (![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png)
calvinandhobbes_rss_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:00 am
calvinandhobbes_rss_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:00 am
Organization for Transformative Works (otw_news_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:17 pm
otw_news_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:17 pmThe OTW is Recruiting for Open Doors Import Assistants and Fanlore Policy & Admin Volunteers
Are you interested in the rescue and preservation of fanworks? Are you a good wiki editor? The Organization for Transformative Works is recruiting!
We’re excited to announce the opening of applications for:
- Open Doors Import Assistant – closing 30 April 2025 at 23:59 UTC [or after 35 applications]
- Fanlore Policy & Admin Volunteer – closing 30 April 2025 at 23:59 UTC [or after 40 applications]
We have included more information on each role below. Open roles and applications will always be available at the volunteering page. If you don’t see a role that fits with your skills and interests now, keep an eye on the listings. We plan to put up new applications every few weeks, and we will also publicize new roles as they become available.
All applications generate a confirmation page and an auto-reply to your e-mail address. We encourage you to read the confirmation page and to whitelist our email address in your e-mail client. If you do not receive the auto-reply within 24 hours, please check your spam filters and then contact us.
If you have questions regarding volunteering for the OTW, check out our Volunteering FAQ.
Open Doors Import Assistant
Do you enjoy spreadsheets, self-paced projects, and helping protect fanworks from getting lost over time? Are you interested in the rescue and preservation of fanworks? Do you still guiltily—or not so guiltily—love the first fanwork that opened your eyes to fandom?
Open Doors is a committee dedicated to preserving fanworks in their many formats, and we’re looking for volunteers to support this goal. The work we do preserves fan history, love, and dedication to fandom: we keep fanworks from offline and at-risk archives from being lost, divert fanzines from the trash, and more.
Our import assistants contribute to our goal by:
- Importing works to AO3 from rescued digital archives and fanzines
- Searching AO3 for existing copies of works that creators have already uploaded themselves (to prevent us from importing duplicate versions when we import an archive)
- Compiling and correcting spreadsheets of works from an archive to be imported and/or tags to use on those works
- Copyediting/proofreading works from fanzines that have been scanned from PDFs (to ensure that the scanned works were transcribed properly by the software we used)
The training is self-directed, and so is the work for the most part, though we also have weekly working meetings/parties for people to all chip in and work on tasks together! Import assistants can generally alternate the types of tasks they work on. At any one time, we usually have several tasks of different types available.
To apply for this role, you must be at least 18 years old and legally of age to open explicit fanworks in your local jurisdiction.
If you’re interested, click on through for a longer description of what we’re looking for and the time commitment. For your application to be considered, you will be required to complete a short task within 3 days of submitting your application.
Applications are due 30 April 2025 [or after 35 applications]
Apply for Open Doors Import Assistant at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Fanlore Policy & Admin Volunteer
Do you have an interest in preserving fannish history? Do you have an interest in wiki editing, or writing help documentation? Fanlore is recruiting for Policy & Admin volunteers!
Fanlore’s Policy & Admin volunteers are responsible for dealing with all the behind the scenes stuff to ensure that Fanlore runs smoothly. We respond to questions and complaints; shape Fanlore’s policies, tutorials, and guidelines; and assist Fanlore gardeners and other editors. No extensive experience is required—just a strong interest in documenting and preserving fandom, good communication skills, and a willingness to work with a team and further Fanlore’s mission. Join us!
Applications are due 30 April 2025 [or after 40 applications]
Apply for Fanlore Policy & Admin at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Dinosaur Comics! (dinosaur_comics_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:00 am
dinosaur_comics_feed) wrote2025-04-23 12:00 amDINOSAUR COMICS COMES OUT AS DEEPLY AMBIVALENT ON THE SUBJECT OF "TASKS"
| archive - contact - sexy exciting merchandise - search - about |
| ← previous | April 23rd, 2025 | next |
April 23rd, 2025: Hey, did you know I wrote a choose-your-own-path STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS book last year? Well GOOD NEWS EITHER WAY, it's a finalist for both a Hugo and an Aurora award! That is extremely awesome and I'm very happy. If you've ever wanted to read an interactive AWARD-NOMINATED Star Trek comic, might I recommend WARP YOUR OWN WAY?? – Ryan | ||
poliphilo (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
poliphilo) wrote2025-04-23 01:31 pm
poliphilo) wrote2025-04-23 01:31 pmSupplementary
The cover picture on that book I dreamed about looked a lot like this.....
osprey_archer (osprey_archer) wrote2025-04-23 08:13 am
osprey_archer) wrote2025-04-23 08:13 amWednesday Reading Meme
What I’ve Just Finished Reading
Agnes Hewes’ The Codfish Musket, third and last in her trio of boring 1930s Newbery Honor winners. I can only imagine that the committee felt that the “Rah rah MANIFEST DESTINY” message was good for the Youth, because my God these books are dull. How can books be so dull when there are so many deadly conspiracies?
But maybe it’s because Hewes is actually not great at deadly conspiracies. The best part of this book by far is the non-deadly middle, when our hero Dan Boit goes to Washington and accidentally becomes Thomas Jefferson’s secretary after he finds Jefferson’s lost notebook full of observations about when the first peas come up and the frogs start peeping.
In modern-day Newbery Honor winners, I finished Chanel Miller’s Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All, a short and charming tale in which Magnolia and her new friend Iris try to return orphaned socks from Magnolia’s parents’ laundry to their owners. In the process, they explore New York City and learn more about the denizens of their neighborhood.
I also read Susan Fletcher’s Journey of the Pale Bear, about a Norwegian boy accompanying a captured polar bear to England as a present for the king. If this sounds familiar, it’s because Fletcher wrote a related picture book, but that focuses more on the bear’s experiences, while this is more about the boy and the boy-meets-bear of it all. Who among us has not wished for a bear friend!
What I’m Reading Now
In Our Mutual Friend, Lizzie Hexam’s father has DIED. This may be a lucky escape for him, as he was about to be arrested on suspicion of murder (at the word of his wicked lying former business partner), but I’m very concerned what will become of poor Lizzie.
My suspicion that Mr. Rokesmith is in fact the dead John Harmon has only grown stronger as he has insinuated himself in the Boffin household as an unpaid secretary. What is his ultimate goal here? A more suspicious soul than Mr. Boffin might wonder who on earth would offer himself up as a secretary without pay, and consider the possibility of embezzlement, but blessed Mr. Boffin is not concerned a bit.
What I Plan to Read Next
Onward in the Newbery books! I am ten books from the end of the historical Newberies, and I intend to finish the project while Interlibrary Loan is still alive.
Agnes Hewes’ The Codfish Musket, third and last in her trio of boring 1930s Newbery Honor winners. I can only imagine that the committee felt that the “Rah rah MANIFEST DESTINY” message was good for the Youth, because my God these books are dull. How can books be so dull when there are so many deadly conspiracies?
But maybe it’s because Hewes is actually not great at deadly conspiracies. The best part of this book by far is the non-deadly middle, when our hero Dan Boit goes to Washington and accidentally becomes Thomas Jefferson’s secretary after he finds Jefferson’s lost notebook full of observations about when the first peas come up and the frogs start peeping.
In modern-day Newbery Honor winners, I finished Chanel Miller’s Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All, a short and charming tale in which Magnolia and her new friend Iris try to return orphaned socks from Magnolia’s parents’ laundry to their owners. In the process, they explore New York City and learn more about the denizens of their neighborhood.
I also read Susan Fletcher’s Journey of the Pale Bear, about a Norwegian boy accompanying a captured polar bear to England as a present for the king. If this sounds familiar, it’s because Fletcher wrote a related picture book, but that focuses more on the bear’s experiences, while this is more about the boy and the boy-meets-bear of it all. Who among us has not wished for a bear friend!
What I’m Reading Now
In Our Mutual Friend, Lizzie Hexam’s father has DIED. This may be a lucky escape for him, as he was about to be arrested on suspicion of murder (at the word of his wicked lying former business partner), but I’m very concerned what will become of poor Lizzie.
My suspicion that Mr. Rokesmith is in fact the dead John Harmon has only grown stronger as he has insinuated himself in the Boffin household as an unpaid secretary. What is his ultimate goal here? A more suspicious soul than Mr. Boffin might wonder who on earth would offer himself up as a secretary without pay, and consider the possibility of embezzlement, but blessed Mr. Boffin is not concerned a bit.
What I Plan to Read Next
Onward in the Newbery books! I am ten books from the end of the historical Newberies, and I intend to finish the project while Interlibrary Loan is still alive.
vivdunstan (vivdunstan) wrote2025-04-23 01:11 pm
vivdunstan) wrote2025-04-23 01:11 pmDream
Had a very long dream just now, where Martin and I went into a secondhand bookshop in St Andrews - this made up secondhand bookshop in South Street (not the real one as was!) is a recurrent thing in my dreams, at least until now. And this time they were closing down and had a "Pay £15" at the door, then get as many books as you want for no extra cost deal. So I got dozens of books. History books, computing history ones, gamebooks, children's fiction, an amazing bound Dickens, so many Gaelic books, and so much more. It was a very good dream 😜
iamrman (iamrman) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
scans_daily2025-04-23 12:32 pm
iamrman) wrote in scans_daily2025-04-23 12:32 pmEntry tags:
Silver Surfer #72
Writer: Ron Marz
Pencils: M.C. Wyman
Inks: Tom Christopher
The Silver Surfer and Firelord team-up to look for Nova.
( Read more... )
sabotabby (sabotabby) wrote2025-04-23 07:03 am
sabotabby) wrote2025-04-23 07:03 amEntry tags:
Reading Wednesday
Just finished: One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad. I don't know what else to say about this scathing, perfect little book beyond that I wish I could make everyone in so-called Western civilization sit down in a chair with their eyes forced open, Clockwork Orange-style, until they'd read it. Until they make this atrocity fucking stop. It's one impassioned cry in the midst of genocide but it's a very powerful cry.
The Dragonfly Gambit, A.D. Sui. I have mixed feelings about this novella, which is a military sci-fi about a pilot, sidelined after a career-ending injury, who plots an elaborate revenge against the empire that blew up her planet. I first encountered the author at the same event where I first encountered Suzan Palumbo, and this could be a paired reading with her book Countess, only I read Countess first and preferred it. Which is not to say that this book isn't good, because it really is, but it's a bit inevitable to compare two anti-colonialist lesbian revenge fantasy space operas that end in tragedy that came out the same year, y'know?
My main criticism is that it suffers from the same issue that a lot of space opera suffers from, which is that there's a big universe and a limited cast of characters, doing all the things. The genre wants scrappy underdogs with interpersonal drama, but it also wants its protagonists in positions of power, which you can do in longer-form work but is challenging in a first-person novella. The Third Daughter is very hands-on, and it's implied that Mother is as well, but at least the former is ludicrously incompetent for someone running a massive empire. Which is to say that if you've blown up someone's planet, you probably shouldn't promote three young people, all of whom are childhood friends, from that planet into critical military positions. Especially if you're going to fuck at least two of them.
That said, I like the romance in this one more, if you can call it a romance; it's wonderfully toxic. And the ending is a gutpunch.
Currently reading: Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons From Marine Mammals by Alexis Pauline Gumbs. This continues to be excellent. One thing that I think is really cool about it, among the many things that are cool about it, is that she's decided to capitalize the word Black in all instances, not just where it applies to humans. Which has the intended effect of anthropomorphizing the creatures she writes about in a way that identifies them as the racialized Other, and thus part of the struggle for liberation. Look, this is poetry about marine biology, I'm going to basically love everything about it.
Lost Arc Dreaming by Suyi Davies Okungbowa. I just started this one last night but we have a future Lagos that is mostly underwater, save for five skyscrapers. Which is a cool enough concept that I'll overlook that the book starts with both a dream sequence and the main character dressing for work. I'm into the worldbuilding so far.
The Dragonfly Gambit, A.D. Sui. I have mixed feelings about this novella, which is a military sci-fi about a pilot, sidelined after a career-ending injury, who plots an elaborate revenge against the empire that blew up her planet. I first encountered the author at the same event where I first encountered Suzan Palumbo, and this could be a paired reading with her book Countess, only I read Countess first and preferred it. Which is not to say that this book isn't good, because it really is, but it's a bit inevitable to compare two anti-colonialist lesbian revenge fantasy space operas that end in tragedy that came out the same year, y'know?
My main criticism is that it suffers from the same issue that a lot of space opera suffers from, which is that there's a big universe and a limited cast of characters, doing all the things. The genre wants scrappy underdogs with interpersonal drama, but it also wants its protagonists in positions of power, which you can do in longer-form work but is challenging in a first-person novella. The Third Daughter is very hands-on, and it's implied that Mother is as well, but at least the former is ludicrously incompetent for someone running a massive empire. Which is to say that if you've blown up someone's planet, you probably shouldn't promote three young people, all of whom are childhood friends, from that planet into critical military positions. Especially if you're going to fuck at least two of them.
That said, I like the romance in this one more, if you can call it a romance; it's wonderfully toxic. And the ending is a gutpunch.
Currently reading: Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons From Marine Mammals by Alexis Pauline Gumbs. This continues to be excellent. One thing that I think is really cool about it, among the many things that are cool about it, is that she's decided to capitalize the word Black in all instances, not just where it applies to humans. Which has the intended effect of anthropomorphizing the creatures she writes about in a way that identifies them as the racialized Other, and thus part of the struggle for liberation. Look, this is poetry about marine biology, I'm going to basically love everything about it.
Lost Arc Dreaming by Suyi Davies Okungbowa. I just started this one last night but we have a future Lagos that is mostly underwater, save for five skyscrapers. Which is a cool enough concept that I'll overlook that the book starts with both a dream sequence and the main character dressing for work. I'm into the worldbuilding so far.
Humph (spiralsheep) wrote2025-04-23 12:27 pm
spiralsheep) wrote2025-04-23 12:27 pmEntry tags:
Aurora Australis readalong 1 / 10, The Ascent of Mount Erebus
Aurora Australis readalong 1 / 10, The Ascent of Mount Erebus, post for comment, reaction, discussion, fanworks, links, and whatever obliquely related matters your heart desires. You can join the readalong at any time or skip sections or go back to earlier posts. It's all good. :-)
Text: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Aurora_Australis/The_Ascent_of_Mount_Erubus
Readalong intro: https://spiralsheep.dreamwidth.org/662515.html
Reminder for next week: Midwinter Night, a short poem by Ernest Shackleton:
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Aurora_Australis/Midwinter_Night
The Ascent of Mount Erebus, written by Tannatt William Edgeworth David, who also wrote the later published Narrative of the Magnetic Pole Journey about the same Nimrod Expedition's successful first visit to the magnetic South Pole (which was also the world's longest unsupported sled journey until the mid-1980s).
This is a ripping yarn of exploration and adventure with detailed descriptions of mountain walking through snow and ice, much specialised vocabulary about frozen landscapes and volcanic geology, and outbreaks of self-deprecating humour. Very much in the tradition of travel writing about extreme exploration (later perfected by Shipton and Tilman).
( Info and links )
( Quotes )
Hurrah! Champagne all round! :D
Text: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Aurora_Australis/The_Ascent_of_Mount_Erubus
Readalong intro: https://spiralsheep.dreamwidth.org/662515.html
Reminder for next week: Midwinter Night, a short poem by Ernest Shackleton:
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Aurora_Australis/Midwinter_Night
The Ascent of Mount Erebus, written by Tannatt William Edgeworth David, who also wrote the later published Narrative of the Magnetic Pole Journey about the same Nimrod Expedition's successful first visit to the magnetic South Pole (which was also the world's longest unsupported sled journey until the mid-1980s).
This is a ripping yarn of exploration and adventure with detailed descriptions of mountain walking through snow and ice, much specialised vocabulary about frozen landscapes and volcanic geology, and outbreaks of self-deprecating humour. Very much in the tradition of travel writing about extreme exploration (later perfected by Shipton and Tilman).
( Info and links )
( Quotes )
Hurrah! Champagne all round! :D
it only hurts when i breathe (spikedluv) wrote2025-04-23 07:26 am
spikedluv) wrote2025-04-23 07:26 amWednesday Reading Meme & Books 15, 16 & 17 of 2025
What I Just Finished Reading: Since last Wednesday I have read/finished reading: Mourn Not Your Dead (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) by Deborah Crombie, Gin and Daggers (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) by Donald Bain, and Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea (Tomes and Tea Series) by Rebecca Thorne.
What I am Currently Reading: Dreaming of the Bones (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) by Deborah Crombie (with The Nightmare Before Kissmas (A Royals and Romance Novel) by Sara Raasch on the back burner).
What I Plan to Read Next: I have another book out from the library.
Book 15 of 2025: Mourn Not Your Dead (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) (Deborah Crombie)
I enjoyed this book. The case was interesting. ( spoilers )
I have the next book in the series out from the library already, so I'm going to continue reading it for now; I liked this book enough to give it five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 16 of 2025: Gin and Daggers (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) (Donald Bain)
Wow, was this bad. I recall reading a later book in the series for a book bingo square and I didn't remember it being this bad, so hopefully he improves quickly. There were a lot of inconsistencies with the tv series and he really doesn't have a feel for the characters. Yet. (I talked specifics at this week's Monday [Fandom] Madness post, if you're interested in reading more.)
If I weren't reading this series for the sole purpose of seeing what details he adds to Jessica's life, I'd probably quit now. (I read a blog post that mentioned Jessica and Frank living someplace else before they moved to Cabot Cove, which made me curious if it came from the books and what else might be in them.) I'm only giving this book two hearts.
♥♥
Book 17 of 2025: Can't Spell Treason Without Tea (Tomes and Tea Series) (Rebecca Thorne)
I really enjoyed this book!( spoilers )
I'm looking forward to reading the next book (when the two libraries that have it take it off the ‘new and popular' list); I'm giving this book five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
What I am Currently Reading: Dreaming of the Bones (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) by Deborah Crombie (with The Nightmare Before Kissmas (A Royals and Romance Novel) by Sara Raasch on the back burner).
What I Plan to Read Next: I have another book out from the library.
Book 15 of 2025: Mourn Not Your Dead (A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James Mystery) (Deborah Crombie)
I enjoyed this book. The case was interesting. ( spoilers )
I have the next book in the series out from the library already, so I'm going to continue reading it for now; I liked this book enough to give it five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
Book 16 of 2025: Gin and Daggers (A Murder, She Wrote Mystery) (Donald Bain)
Wow, was this bad. I recall reading a later book in the series for a book bingo square and I didn't remember it being this bad, so hopefully he improves quickly. There were a lot of inconsistencies with the tv series and he really doesn't have a feel for the characters. Yet. (I talked specifics at this week's Monday [Fandom] Madness post, if you're interested in reading more.)
If I weren't reading this series for the sole purpose of seeing what details he adds to Jessica's life, I'd probably quit now. (I read a blog post that mentioned Jessica and Frank living someplace else before they moved to Cabot Cove, which made me curious if it came from the books and what else might be in them.) I'm only giving this book two hearts.
♥♥
Book 17 of 2025: Can't Spell Treason Without Tea (Tomes and Tea Series) (Rebecca Thorne)
I really enjoyed this book!( spoilers )
I'm looking forward to reading the next book (when the two libraries that have it take it off the ‘new and popular' list); I'm giving this book five hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥
minutia_r (minutia_r) wrote in jukebox_fest2025-04-23 01:41 pm
minutia_r) wrote in jukebox_fest2025-04-23 01:41 pmNominations Clarifications
Hi there! We've still got a few days left of nominations (they close on 27 April 2025 11:59pm EDT); thanks to everyone who has nominated so far. Your mod team has a couple of questions and comments at this point.
To the nominator of Satisfied—do you have a specific version or performance in mind, or would you rather leave it as a general tag?
We've caught a couple of incidents where we incorrectly rejected a nomination. (Sorry!) If you have made a nomination that you think should have been accepted but you don't see it in the tag set, please comment on this post or get in touch with the mod team.
Also, if you commented with your songs/videos on the nominations post, please make sure that you also nominated them on AO3, or else they won't be in the tag set.
This year, we received a number of nominations of short videos that combined both music and dialogue. We've decided to accept them into the exchange this year, but going forward, we're considering a rule that any video has to be at least 50% music by runtime in order to be accepted. What do you think?
To the nominator of Satisfied—do you have a specific version or performance in mind, or would you rather leave it as a general tag?
We've caught a couple of incidents where we incorrectly rejected a nomination. (Sorry!) If you have made a nomination that you think should have been accepted but you don't see it in the tag set, please comment on this post or get in touch with the mod team.
Also, if you commented with your songs/videos on the nominations post, please make sure that you also nominated them on AO3, or else they won't be in the tag set.
This year, we received a number of nominations of short videos that combined both music and dialogue. We've decided to accept them into the exchange this year, but going forward, we're considering a rule that any video has to be at least 50% music by runtime in order to be accepted. What do you think?
Vass (vass) wrote2025-04-23 08:33 pm
vass) wrote2025-04-23 08:33 pmEntry tags:
Things
Books
Very little progress.
Crafts
Dyed a 36x45cm piece of white 14 count aida cloth purple, for Secret Reasons. And now I know that I can get a reasonable result doing that with a large storage box and hot water, winging the quantity of Rit dye. Shenanigans may result.
Food
My parents' Christmas present to me, a new frying pan, just made it to me today. I haven't test-driven it yet, but it looks nice. And like it should heat up easier than the cast iron one my stove can't really handle, much as I love it.
Weather
Finally cooling down. Good.
Other
One of the Discord servers I'm in had a PowerPoint night. I didn't present, but I contributed a very unserious set of slides for someone else to present sight unseen. This was a heap of fun, and I recommend this form of grownup show and tell to other nerds. I am already working on my next such document.
In a different Discord, a discussion of linguistics prompted me to make a series of noises which in turn made Dorian give me a very funny look. If you would like to provoke yourself to make a series of noises that will make your cats give you funny looks, here is the chart.
Very little progress.
Crafts
Dyed a 36x45cm piece of white 14 count aida cloth purple, for Secret Reasons. And now I know that I can get a reasonable result doing that with a large storage box and hot water, winging the quantity of Rit dye. Shenanigans may result.
Food
My parents' Christmas present to me, a new frying pan, just made it to me today. I haven't test-driven it yet, but it looks nice. And like it should heat up easier than the cast iron one my stove can't really handle, much as I love it.
Weather
Finally cooling down. Good.
Other
One of the Discord servers I'm in had a PowerPoint night. I didn't present, but I contributed a very unserious set of slides for someone else to present sight unseen. This was a heap of fun, and I recommend this form of grownup show and tell to other nerds. I am already working on my next such document.
In a different Discord, a discussion of linguistics prompted me to make a series of noises which in turn made Dorian give me a very funny look. If you would like to provoke yourself to make a series of noises that will make your cats give you funny looks, here is the chart.
Vass (vass) wrote2025-04-23 08:11 pm
vass) wrote2025-04-23 08:11 pmEntry tags:
Daydream
What if, when you went to a nonprofit/charity/etc website because you want to donate money to them, you could add ?nomarketing on the end of the link, and it would bring up a barebones version of their donation page that would JUST LET YOU MAKE A SINGLE DONATION.
It would not sign you up to their newsletter.
It would not give them permission to contact you.
It would not ask you to share their link on social media.
It would not ask you how you found them.
It would not show you a thank you letter written in the first person by a composite version of one of their clients.
It would not show you tragic and distressing photographs or descriptions of the horrible things happening to the people you HAVE ALREADY DECIDED TO GIVE MONEY TO HELP.
There would not be any animated banners or carousels.
There would be no popups.
Required fields on the form would only be information they genuinely cannot accept your money without, and they would have checked both the law on what information they actually need and their assumptions about names and titles (e.g. not everyone has a first name, not everyone has a last name, not everyone's name is short, some names have spaces or apostrophes or hyphens, not everyone belongs to one of the four genders Mr, Mrs, Miss, and Dr.)
It would not give you a menu with three choices: make your one-off donation a monthly amount, make your one-off donation a monthly amount but more money, or (deselected and in a duller colour) "keep your one-off donation" before letting you donate.
Or after you donate.
Or both.
I understand they have a job to do, but do they understand how aversive this experience is? It is the biggest thing about charitable giving that I dread, when I have enough to give. "Hi, I'd like to give you some mon-" "CAN YOU GIVE US MORE? CAN YOU GIVE IT EVERY MONTH? KIDS ARE DYING, VASS, ANIMALS ARE DYING, THE PLANET IS DYING, MOREMOREMOREMORE CAN WE TEXT YOU, CAN WE CALL YOU UP AND TELL YOU ABOUT THE DYING KIDS CAN YOU TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS TO GIVE US MONEY TOO-"
If they made it less stressful, I would not have to psych myself up to do this. And by definition this is how they are treating people who already want to help them.
It would not sign you up to their newsletter.
It would not give them permission to contact you.
It would not ask you to share their link on social media.
It would not ask you how you found them.
It would not show you a thank you letter written in the first person by a composite version of one of their clients.
It would not show you tragic and distressing photographs or descriptions of the horrible things happening to the people you HAVE ALREADY DECIDED TO GIVE MONEY TO HELP.
There would not be any animated banners or carousels.
There would be no popups.
Required fields on the form would only be information they genuinely cannot accept your money without, and they would have checked both the law on what information they actually need and their assumptions about names and titles (e.g. not everyone has a first name, not everyone has a last name, not everyone's name is short, some names have spaces or apostrophes or hyphens, not everyone belongs to one of the four genders Mr, Mrs, Miss, and Dr.)
It would not give you a menu with three choices: make your one-off donation a monthly amount, make your one-off donation a monthly amount but more money, or (deselected and in a duller colour) "keep your one-off donation" before letting you donate.
Or after you donate.
Or both.
I understand they have a job to do, but do they understand how aversive this experience is? It is the biggest thing about charitable giving that I dread, when I have enough to give. "Hi, I'd like to give you some mon-" "CAN YOU GIVE US MORE? CAN YOU GIVE IT EVERY MONTH? KIDS ARE DYING, VASS, ANIMALS ARE DYING, THE PLANET IS DYING, MOREMOREMOREMORE CAN WE TEXT YOU, CAN WE CALL YOU UP AND TELL YOU ABOUT THE DYING KIDS CAN YOU TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS TO GIVE US MONEY TOO-"
If they made it less stressful, I would not have to psych myself up to do this. And by definition this is how they are treating people who already want to help them.
iamrman (iamrman) wrote in scans_daily2025-04-23 10:32 am
iamrman) wrote in scans_daily2025-04-23 10:32 amFantastic Four #289
Script: Tom DeFalco
Plot: Tom DeFalco and Paul Ryan
Pencils: Paul Ryan
Inks: Danny Bulanadi
The Collector has come to add Lyja’s baby to his collection.
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contrary_cal (contrary_cal) wrote2025-04-23 05:59 pm
contrary_cal) wrote2025-04-23 05:59 pmBook post...
...because I have, finally, been reading again, a bit.
And writing, a bit. I've got about 700 words of the epilogue to A Common Language on the page, and am starting to get a feel for where it's going, but I'm taking it bit by bit and only poking at it when I have energy over at the end of the day (or on a public holiday - roll on Friday!). And at some point after I finish it I will, somehow, figure out how to tag it properly so that people who want to read what's actually in it can find it and people who are looking for something-not-that won't be misdirected to it and get stuck reading something they don't enjoy (it currently has exactly 1,000 hits, almost 300 of which appeared since the last chapter went up, but only 4 new kudos, which suggests to me that the second scenario is what's been happening, especially as the hit rate went down after I changed the tagging back to what it started out as).
What I've read
Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy by Martha Wells: These would have been a fun quick reread, except I got COVID in the middle of it. I did pick them up again eventually, and enjoyed them, as I always do.*
The Legendary Scarlett and Browne by Jonathan Stroud: I think I broke off at the worst possible place I could have just before doing my last book post - ie with Alfred doing something that made me cross - because once I got going again I really enjoyed the rest of it. A fun end to the trilogy.
The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison: As a book on its own, I quite enjoyed this. As a conclusion to the Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy I did not like it so much. I found its insistence that, despite spending two books relearning how to trust people and accept he has a place among them, Thara Celehar is in fact infinitely replaceable and, in the grand scheme of things, largely unnecessary (despite being Special because Miracles), and must choof off into the ether with a potential boyfriend and stop getting in people's ways (but it's okay because Letters), to be rather at odds with the trilogy's apparent theme, and it made me grumpy.
What I'm reading
Network Effect by Martha Wells: Continuing the low-effort, high-enjoyment reread.
What's next
My copy of Point of Hearts (which I mixed up with Point of Dreams when I first heard of it, months ago, so I can't even blame the COVID) arrived today, so it will be that. And then Silverborn!
*No, I am not rereading "in preparation for" anything. Do not talk to me about the Adaptation. I do not want to know a single solitary thing about it, ever. It can fuck right off.
And writing, a bit. I've got about 700 words of the epilogue to A Common Language on the page, and am starting to get a feel for where it's going, but I'm taking it bit by bit and only poking at it when I have energy over at the end of the day (or on a public holiday - roll on Friday!). And at some point after I finish it I will, somehow, figure out how to tag it properly so that people who want to read what's actually in it can find it and people who are looking for something-not-that won't be misdirected to it and get stuck reading something they don't enjoy (it currently has exactly 1,000 hits, almost 300 of which appeared since the last chapter went up, but only 4 new kudos, which suggests to me that the second scenario is what's been happening, especially as the hit rate went down after I changed the tagging back to what it started out as).
What I've read
Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy by Martha Wells: These would have been a fun quick reread, except I got COVID in the middle of it. I did pick them up again eventually, and enjoyed them, as I always do.*
The Legendary Scarlett and Browne by Jonathan Stroud: I think I broke off at the worst possible place I could have just before doing my last book post - ie with Alfred doing something that made me cross - because once I got going again I really enjoyed the rest of it. A fun end to the trilogy.
The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison: As a book on its own, I quite enjoyed this. As a conclusion to the Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy I did not like it so much. I found its insistence that, despite spending two books relearning how to trust people and accept he has a place among them, Thara Celehar is in fact infinitely replaceable and, in the grand scheme of things, largely unnecessary (despite being Special because Miracles), and must choof off into the ether with a potential boyfriend and stop getting in people's ways (but it's okay because Letters), to be rather at odds with the trilogy's apparent theme, and it made me grumpy.
What I'm reading
Network Effect by Martha Wells: Continuing the low-effort, high-enjoyment reread.
What's next
My copy of Point of Hearts (which I mixed up with Point of Dreams when I first heard of it, months ago, so I can't even blame the COVID) arrived today, so it will be that. And then Silverborn!
*No, I am not rereading "in preparation for" anything. Do not talk to me about the Adaptation. I do not want to know a single solitary thing about it, ever. It can fuck right off.
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-04-27 04:13 am
conuly) wrote2025-04-27 04:13 amBlack Cherries by W. S. Merwin
Late in May as the light lengthens
toward summer the young goldfinches
flutter down through the day for the first time
to find themselves among fallen petals
cradling their day's colors in the day's shadows
of the garden beside the old house
after a cold spring with no rain
not a sound comes from the empty village
as I stand eating the black cherries
from the loaded branches above me
saying to myself Remember this
*******
Link
toward summer the young goldfinches
flutter down through the day for the first time
to find themselves among fallen petals
cradling their day's colors in the day's shadows
of the garden beside the old house
after a cold spring with no rain
not a sound comes from the empty village
as I stand eating the black cherries
from the loaded branches above me
saying to myself Remember this
Link