I recently saw my lj f-list from a computer other than my macbook, which meant that I saw my journal for the first time without ad blocker installed in my browser. I was very surprised and a bit appalled at the ads I saw--ads that I think people see every time they visit my journal or leave comments etc. I didn't even realize they were there until I saw them but now that I have--in the interest of not subjecting anyone else to them--I have decided to forgo the minor privileges that sponsored mode offers and I have gone back to basic mode. Sorry for the past year or so of obnoxious adverts everyone.

I am tempted to sign up for this wardrobe refashion pledge I found via craftzine, it is kind of what I do anyway and it would be fun to see what other people are doing, but I fear that it may be yet another temptation towards for procrastination--like I need any more! Still, looks like fun...

Come and join the new community I created partly for 52 acts and partly in a self-serving fashion to be entertained by giving all you wonderful people the chance to amuse me and make me laugh :)

feministfun

from the userinfo:

Feminist and Funny is:
A community created for the sharing of non-sexist, non-racist, non-ablist, non-discriminatory feminist-friendly humour.

We welcome posts with jokes, humour, funny images, links to entertaining sites and posts, thoughts about your favorite comedienne/an, reviews of fun media (i.e. books/tv/film/audio etc) you have consumed, anything goes as long as it is feminist-friendly, does not rely on negative stereotypes or general meanness, and is funny.

All feminists and feminist allies are welcome.


And some fine print just in case...
Feminist and Funny is NOT:
A place for trolling or baiting. A place for reclaiming offensive jokes--although we understand that there can be power in this when done thoughtfully by specific groups *on their own behalf* this is not the aim of this community. An anti-male community--the aims of Feminist and Funny include exclusion of *all* sexist jokes. A feminist education and debate community--a basic understanding of what is considered to be sexist/ablist/racist/homophobic etc is assumed and anything that falls outside of these simple guidelines will be deleted without comment.

I really need peoples' help with this one--it is only a community if people join and share and participate--it is not something I can run and maintain on my own, I need your posts!  But it is something I would really love to see get used because, well, laughing is fun damnit, and humor made with love instead of meanness is worth the effort.

Hi everyone! I have been out of town but I am now back. Unfortunately I am extremely ill (I think a food reaction, but it seems rather extreme for any of the small amounts of possible culprits I have eaten so it might just be incidental--but wow, horrible horrible nausea and head spinning vetigo...) but I am working at home in bed and am feeling in good spirit.

Now I know you have all been dying to hear what I have to say about the open source boob project, so go read my latest creative installment over at 52 acts (warning, image heavy for dial-up users).

Ahh... sometimes I amuse myself greatly :)

The vest I made for baby_b in my knitting frenzy


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I have been engaged in a knitting frenzy. I decided to do a knit based art project for one of my 52 acts, so with the help of my MIL and the interweb I have been re-learning how to knit. I am finding it a very interesting process, I did not realise how very mathematical the practice was--there is the counting of rows and stitches, the  constant replication of formula, and a steady rhythm that seems to take over as you go.

In the past week and a half I have knitted a shrug for me, a vest for Baby_B, half of a loose-knit feathery wrap, and 40 rows of my secret message scarf (which, of course, is not a secret to me since I designed the pattern, but I still want one anyway, and it is probably only fair that I test it out to make sure it works since this is my first time even reading a pattern let alone writing one).

I am really pleased with the secret message scarf project, I think it is going to be a lot of fun--it is like playing a game, only in knitting :) I hope those of you who knit will consider giving it a go, and those of you who have friends who knit will consider passing on the info, 'cause, you know, the more the merrier.

An explanation of the project from the site:

While I don’t necessarily have a lot in the way of finely honed knitting skills, I do have a lot of ideas and opinions on the subject of art vs craft, value given to traditional pastimes based and its relation to gender, and the personal creation as a political expression.

As an expression of those opinions I give you the project ‘one row purl, one row plain’ a blog based knit art project. Every day for the next 45 or so days I am going to post 10 rows of a scarf pattern I have created using the very cool knitpro web application. The scarf is designed to be in very basic stocking stitch (one row purl one row plain) and has two colours, a base colour and a contrasting colour that will be used in the pattern to form the text of a special message for all the crafty feminists that would like to join in this project.

The finished scarf will be aprox 450 rows long x 38 stitches wide. I will post images of my progress in the comments and encourage anyone else who you like to join me to do the same.

Thanks very much to emma_in_oz I found in my mailbox this week a copy of Fannish Journeys. I did the cover, layout and some sub-editing for this one, so the publication was not a complete surprise to me, but it is ever so lovely to see it all finished and 'real' :) Also, I love snail mail :)

For those who didn't get a chance to see Fannish Journeys at Swancon here is the (back and front) cover art:



Have I mentioned how much I love snail mail? If you are thinking of sending me something, no matter how small, a package, a letter, a drawing, a postcard or a quick note on a 'with compliments' slip stolen from your office, but you are wondering if it is worth the effort, then please know that it absolutely delights me and I cherish every word. I think, also, knowing how much joy I get from it, I would like to start posting more random things too. I may make a regular activity out of it for me and baby_b, perhaps one day per week, maybe Wednesday, can be correspondence day for us.

In other, more random news, we watched the first episode of the current season of Dr Who last night. It was silly with very cute monster thingies. The villain kept saying the word 'parthenogenesis' so I now have the song Nemisis by Shriekback on repeat in my head. Big black nemesis, parthenogenesis
No-one move a muscle as the dead come home...

What a wonderful week for receiving mail this week was! In my mail box I have been absolutely delighted to receive postcards from lilysea  (and helpers) with snippets from the swancon weekend! One card for each day of the con, and they were on the back of beautiful Tori Amos postcards, which gave me extra joy, as unbeknown to Lilysea I had lost my own set of Tori cards between the wall and fireplace fixture in my home soon after acquiring them with the latest album (I was amused to think that they will now probably be found in a few score years by someone renovating and either end up as a valuable ebay item or as scrapbook ephemera). Thank you so much lilysea , they really made several of my days this week.

Also in my mailbox was 2012, which I am really looking forward to reading. I bought it because the near-future concept really appealed to me, I do wonder if the date 2012 is a little too near in the future to be much different, but there in lays the challenge.  Something that struck me was how very polished looking it is--I think the screen shots I have been seeing of the cover do not fully do it justice. Advance reports have been really positive so I am really looking forward to reading it.

I took the laptop off to the apple hospital this morning. I am glad I did because it turned out that the buckledness of the case in the corner where the power input is located was just warped enough to prevent the plug from engaging properly. The mac doctors performed a little bit of makeshift panel beating and all was fine. While I can probably not longer describe my electronic best friend as being in 'mint' condition, it still seems to be working well. So I feel very lucky. And also kind of nervous when using it now. But I am sure that will pass.

On my 5 minute drive to the store I was very amused to turn on the radio and hear "I'm a new soul baby, la la la la lala..." singing to me from the triple J airwaves. No really, surely *that* is a sign...

Alas the apple store had no Macbook Airs in stock.

Can anyone actually tell for me which art work I won the Professional Art category? None of the reports seem to say, but there were two one the ballot, so I am interested to know.

What an amazing amount of positive energy and debate this years Swancon has generated! Congrats to all involved who produced it. I am still making my way through all the reports, thanks very much everyone for posting them, it sounds like I missed a great one.

Has anyone posted a summary of the business meetings yet? I would really like to see one, in particular I am interested to hear about the changes to the ditmars that were proposed.

I am finding the debate about gender inclusiveness in panels interesting, and an area worthy of improvement. I think that the inequality is not due to sexism on the part of any individual, but a result of many systemic problems of the wider world--this unfortunately makes it much harder to combat, but I think the discussions so far are coming up with some very worthwhile ideas. (I have read suggestions that it looks like the programmer relied too heavily on filling the program with his mates, but in defense of strangedave , knowing his social group, if this were true we would have ended up with a program filled with about 70% professional/uni women, 27% programmers/gamers/crazy computer musicians, and 3% font nerds--so I would argue that this criticism is unfounded and that there is something bigger at work here. Actually I think this imbalance is a problem every year, and what has changed is that people are starting to care--which is great!)

Thanks so much to the people who nominated and voted for me in the Tin Ducks--I am overjoyed to have won the art categories this year, as this is my last year eligible I can't think of a better way to go out! Congratulations to all the other winners, especially callistra and cheshirenoir. I am having trouble expressing how I feel about this topic, but let me just say that I think the tin ducks are very very special and I will treasure them always.

Thanks, friends, for all the kind words about my presence being missed and about my Borderlands cover--I am really chuffed that people like it.

You can find even more of my work at the con by seeking out the wonderful emma_in_oz  and purchasing her Fantastic Journeys NAFF fundraiser fanzine, featuring layout, sub-editing, and cover by me! I am particularly pleased with my cover image for this one, a fine piece of fan art if I do say so myself :) I believe that only a small number of these have been printed so if you want one make sure you bag one fast.

Sadly I will not be joining you at Swancon this year, for the first time in over ten years. The combination of both distance and young child has made it unviable for me. I think I could have worked around one scenario or the other, but together they have me beaten.

As a happy consequence of this though, I have discovered that the rest of the Australian population has this holiday at the time usually known as Swancon. A four day holiday! Full of restful family activities instead of a mad dash to get art works and costumes and panels ready for presentation! It feels very foreign to me, but I am now really looking forward to this thing they call Easter.

Although I feel I have made the right choice in terms of personal resources this year, I would have really liked to have attended Swancon. I feel very much in an SF community kind of mood. I am feeling quite social too. And I hear there will be cookies.

Even though I wont be there in person this year you can still see what I have been doing with my time by visiting the small press table and checking out the fresh off the press Borderlands issue 10.

The first line meme is going karaoke! Okay, so you guessed the song name over here, now see if you can guess the next line...

1. ... I gave you all of my money, time after time you done me wrong
2. I think I'm goin' for a walk now, I feel a little unsteady
3. I'm feelin' better since I surrendered, you can't climb till you're ready to fall
4. I lived in a place called Okfuskee
5. When you walk without ease on these very streets where you were raised
6. ... cocked you head to the side and said "I'm angry"
7. You fry me in a pan you cook me in a can you stretch me with your hands
8. Now I'm a sea sick singer on a ship of noise
9. And this is much I know, his teeth are white as snow
10. I spilled the ink across the page, tryin-to spell your name
11. I can't stand it I know you planned it I'm gonna set it straight this Watergate
12. I recall, a school boy coming home
13. I backed my car into a cop car the other day
14. Look at you your hair is beautiful your eyes are beautiful
15. Stars shining bright above you
16. Jody wears a hat although it hasn't rained for six days
17. She gets hungry for dinner at eight
18. How many cabs in new york city how many angels on a pin
19. Well sit right down my wicked son and let me tell you a story
20. We turn away to face the cold enduring chill as the day begs the night for mercy

Step 1: Put your MP3 player or whatever on random.
Step 2: Post the first line from the first 20 songs that play, no matter how embarrassing the song.
Step 3: Post and let everyone you know guess what song and artist the lines come from.
Step 4: Strike out the songs when someone guesses correctly.
Step 5: Looking them up on Google or any other search engine is cheating.

1. ... I gave you all of my money, time after time you done me wrong
2. I think I'm goin' for a walk now, I feel a little unsteady Untouchable Face - Ano diFranco (Lilysea)
   
3. I'm feelin' better since I surrendered, you can't climb till you're ready to fall Into the Dark - Ben Lee (Linstar)
   
4. I lived in a place called Okfuskee Way over yonder in the minor key - Billy Bragg and Wilco (Doctor_k)
   
5. When you walk without ease on these very streets where you were raised
6. ... cocked you head to the side and said "I'm angry" (It's been) One Week - Bare Naked Ladies (Doctor_k)
   
7. You fry me in a pan you cook me in a can you stretch me with your hands
8. Now I'm a sea sick singer on a ship of noise
9. And this is much I know, his teeth are white as snow
10. I spilled the ink across the page, tryin-to spell your name
11. I can't stand it I know you planned it I'm gonna set it straight this Watergate Sabotage - Beastie Boys (Doctor_k)
    
12. I recall, a school boy coming home Cattle and Cane - Go-Betweens (Doctor_k)
    
13. I backed my car into a cop car the other day
14. Look at you your hair is beautiful your eyes are beautiful
15. Stars shining bright above you Dream a Little Dream - Beautiful South cover version (Bardiegrub)
    
16. Jody wears a hat although it hasn't rained for six days
17. She gets hungry for dinner at eight The Lady is a Tramp - Frank Sinatra version (Stephbg)
    
18. How many cabs in new york city how many angels on a pin Careless - Paul Kelly (Linstar)
    
19. Well sit right down my wicked son and let me tell you a story
20. We turn away to face the cold enduring chill as the day begs the night for mercy

All lyrics are posted as heard by me, so apologies for any miss hearings - except for number 9, which is not as wrong as you think it is.

Good luck!

domestichaven is doing a series of short videos on the basics of dress form draping. found via craftzine.

On a whim the other day I made an apron for baby_b



more unbelievably cute photos under the cut.

( Read more... )

Can anyone think of reasonable female-gendered substitute words for 'fella' and 'guy' in casual speech? I was thinking that 'girl' was the colloquial opposite for guy, but in context it changes the intended age dramatically. I am all out of ideas for fella (which is short for fellow, so I think it is kinda gender neutral, but not really).

I started the salicylate challenge yesterday and kicked it off with two large glasses of fresh mixed fruit juice - wow that tasted good! I was going to add in a few more things but I had a difficult time finding things on hand that contained salicylates without any of the other things that I am restricting. Fruit shopping today will fix that - yum!

Some minor possible symptoms so far, although I am still assessing them critically and without several trial will be prepared to consider that they are coincidental.

( Cut for TMI and other peoples possible disinterest in my bodily functions )