kalakirya

A couple of short naps through the day helped deal with a late night out last night, and while I can't regret my choices and accept the dignity of risk, I'm glad I was able to schedule a day to recover. I would've gotten to bed earlier if the train had stopped in the usual station, but I had to make two transfers instead of one, and I got back around when the pizza places started to close. I'm rarely out that late, ever, and it's a sign I'm also up too early.

Last night it was a screening of Mission Impossible 2 out in Brooklyn on a 35mm print that probably hasn't been played since 2000. Two people co-hosted an introduction to it, asking if it's worth reconsidering, and given the volume of cheers and clapping in the audience throughout, it very much is. I've joked it's a movie that makes more sense on a big screen; during the intro, I raised my hand to tell the hosts that a friend of mine described it as "effervescently pre-9/11" and "a film that could only have been made before the towers fell", which they thought was perfect. Afterwards, I commented that it was the horniest the MI movies got, explaining that while De Palma did sensual, Woo managed horny, and it was lovely to see that in a big theater.

I had a total of three cocktails over the course of the night and was still a little buzzed when I got back. I'd have slept well, other than for how little I managed on account of how late I'd gone to bed and how early I'd stayed up.

Current Mood: tired
Current Music: nothing now

hannah

When I tell people I struggle to fall asleep and that I've had that problem a while, they never expect me to say it's gone at least as far back as kindergarten - at least, not by the looks on their faces when I tell them. But that's how it's always been. It's both an issue I struggle with and something I struggle to accept, and people not accepting that it takes an immense amount of work or the occasional dosage of drugs to cut it down to what's commonly accepted as typical at the bare minimum.

Case in point: telling my therapist I was tired this morning, and telling her it wasn't unusual. I'd tired myself out yesterday, too, from a decent workout and doing a lot of batch cooking, and it didn't shift anything once the lights were off and the covers were up. I've yet to find a reliable medication to help with this, and I'm not even sure what to ask for, since what I'd really like would be a small supply of several things at once to try them out without having to keep going back and asking again, but I understand most physicians and pharmacies aren't willing to go that route. So I'm just taking it as I take it.

Current Mood: sore
Current Music: nothing now

hannah

This afternoon, I heard a sound which captured my attention: a regularly occurring artificial squeak, unlike anything from a bird or a car engine. It was timed exactly to the countdown on the crosswalk, and I stood underneath it to try to parse if it was a new feature and hear it better close up.

Then a woman walked by me, her steps in time to the countdown, her shoes the cause of the sound.

I took it as a reminder to be attentive to things around me, to really open myself up and pay attention.

I was so wrapped up in that thought, I completely missed one of my parents' neighbors walking towards me until he said hello.

And thus, balance in the universe.

Current Mood: calm
Current Music: The Suburbs - Arcade Fire

hannah

I know I set my alarm last night, and I don't remember turning it off this morning, but I must have because when I got out of bed, it was almost 9:30. I didn't panic because I prepared for this with canned coffee in the fridge and protein bars in the cupboard. I didn't panic when I got pretty well soaked by the rain, either, since I knew I'd be coming back to my place to strip off the wet clothes and do laundry.

Similarly, I've got sauteed zucchini in the fridge for upcoming breakfasts, and I'll soon put some beans on to soak to cook tomorrow. It's a bit of a domino effect and a commitment to a given outcome, and it's more of the same planning and anticipating. I don't know how much I'll be able to get done this week on assorted projects and tasks, but I'll be ready to get rid of excuses.

Current Mood: restless
Current Music: Strangers - The Kinks

hannah

In talking to

petra and

melannen, it hit me that Ryland Grace of Project Hail Mary, especially the movie version, is exactly the kind of person who'd ask, "Doesn't everyone have a system for socks?"

It's got me thinking there could be a piece of fandom shorthand about how to identify characters who'd have Systems for socks. Because they don't struggle with socks, they have a System for socks. It might be bad rats, though I think a way to say they have a System for socks is an easy way to describe something deeply specific.

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Music: Kindergarten - Voxtrot

hannah

My irregular hobby of checking for apartment clear-out sales netted me a lot of spices today, some of which I'll make use of and some of which I'll have to figure out how to dispose of - I've got a pepper grinder, I don't need pre-ground black pepper taking up any shelf space. I also don't think I need to hang onto any béchamel sauce packets, either. I can make good use of tomato paste and arborio rice and reasonable use of canned corn and spice-infused honey, but béchamel sauce packets are beyond me.

Also some hot chocolate packets, which I'm definitely saving for later. Much later. After the next equinox later.

Heading out to grab everything also included a pit stop at the library, and it's a wonderful feeling to take over a dozen items out at a time. A very budget-friendly, accessible way to feel incredibly wealthy.

Current Mood: relaxed
Current Music: nothing now

hannah

In the absence of my parents being in the city, and in the absence of either of my brothers being willing to host dinner - my sister in law G. is worn out from work conferences and I don't think it's worth asking given my sister in law E. to begin with - I'm torn between going out to the movies, or staying in and watching a movie.

I'll likely stay in. Nice as it'd be to go out, it's not like I don't have enough movies I want to see, and I can make my own popcorn. Also, it's to do my own Shabbat on occasion.

In other news, pulling out a box of paper clips at least 14 years after putting them away in case I might need them because I finally needed them is one of the stronger reinforcements of my pack rat tendencies I've had in a good long while. I seriously don't know how long I've been carrying them around - probably since grad school - and today, I needed them. And there they were.

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Music: nothing now

hannah

In testing out the different fans at assorted speeds and angles, I'm learning that at least one on a low setting is enough to cut through the worst of the midday heat, especially when the breeze hits me. That and taking cold cans of seltzer from the fridge and pressing them right against my neck, or behind my ears, or to my wrists, is helping to get through the days. I'm unwilling to do more than that, plus pulling the curtains when it gets really sunny. At least until later in the summer.

None of it helps me dry off after a show the way air conditioning does, and I'm going to try to not let that spoil me. My parents' gym has air conditioning and taking longer workouts to stay in it a few more minutes isn't the worst plan in the world.

Current Mood: groggy
Current Music: nothing now

trobadora posting in

sid_guardian

Guardian Reverse Exchange 2026. Image shows Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan facing each other, gripping the Sundial between them.

The collection is live!

Your gift should be visible in the collection, or on your own AO3 page under "Gifts". Thank you all for another wonderful year of reverse exchanging and glorious fanworks! And thanks especially to our fabulous pinch-hitter

facethestrange, who came to our rescue. ♥ ♥ ♥

We hope you enjoy your gift and the collection as a whole. Please remember to comment on your gift and thank your creator! If there are any problems, let us know ASAP.

Feel free to re-date your entry: edit the work, tick "Set a different publication date" and choose today's date. That way, your work will appear on AO3 as if posted today, rather than when you actually posted it.

Now have fun reading and looking and listening - go admire and enjoy!

*** Happy 520 Day! ***

hannah

Evidently, Cyndi Lauper lives in my neighborhood. Apparently, her apartment's less than ten blocks from mine. Anecdotally, she isn't easy to spot because she knows how everyone expects her to dress, so if she dresses up as though she's going to work in a law firm, people might think that the woman they pass looks kind of like Cyndi Lauper, but they're not going to look twice to double check if that's really her.

I'm not going to try to keep an eye out for her from here on out. There's no reason to. I don't have anything I'd want to say to her, not specifically and not personally, and the idea of keeping an eye out for a celebrity spotting doesn't sit well with me on general principle. That said, I'll admit there's something compelling about the reminder of how densely settled Manhattan is, and how easy it is for all kinds of people to share the same space.

Current Mood: calm
Current Music: nothing now

trobadora posting in

sid_guardian

We expect to open the 520 Day Reverse Exchange collection tomorrow at or shortly after 9pm UTC!

If you're like us, that means it's time to get some last-minute edits in. (You can find your entry via your Statistics page on AO3.) If you're not like us, congrats, and what's your secret? *g*

Only one more day to wait! *gets ready to break out the champagne^[1]*

^[1] Or water, or other non-alcoholic alternatives, for Shen Wei and other non-drinkers!

hannah

It took two needles, but the second one worked, and I got to give blood today. I always think of it like that these days, getting to give blood. It's a privilege to be able to do it, and I don't take that lightly.

My iron was 14, my blood pressure 110/70, I was told my blood is also Code 96, and probably because my veins weren't cooperating it took over six minutes thirty seconds to fill a bag. If I could figure out a good hydration and exercise schedule for the days leading up to a donation, I might be able to manage another rapid tap. I scheduled my next session for July before I left, eight weeks to the day, so I'll take those early July days to try increasing my liquid intake even more. It should give the nurses more volume to work with.

I haven't done many other things today, and having done this one important thing is carrying me forward.

Current Mood: accomplished
Current Music: We Used To Wait - Arcade Fire

hannah

Along with strawberries and rhubarb, sticky nights have arrived. Not each night, not yet, and I'm savoring that - another couple of weeks and it'll hit, but for now, there's still a few where it's simply gentle.

Continuing with my Steven Spielberg kick, I've now seen all his kids-focused CGI stuff and say with some confidence it's only going to get better from here. The Tintin movie felt uncannily like I was watching a movie-length video game, down to the inventory puzzles and room searches. After this, it's people. Well, people and a horse.

Current Mood: listless
Current Music: Pressure's On - James

hannah

I know it's odd of me to not do the baby-talk voice to my niece A. when she's around, and I'm sticking with my usual register and cadence just the same.

Her mother didn't show, but she did call once when I was around to hear it - checking in to find out if my brother J. had fed A., and then hanging up. He'd apparently send her a text earlier, but she'd called, and after getting what she wanted, quickly hung up. I don't know her week's schedules, and I don't know what her day looked like. I can only state the events as I witnessed them.

Current Mood: indifferent
Current Music: nothing now

facethestrange posting in

sid_guardian

2 drama fics, 1 novel drawing, 1 rpf fic. :)

Hear Me Out (607 words) by facethestrange
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Background Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Lin Jing (Guardian), Da Qing (Guardian), Guo Changcheng, Chu Shuzhi, Special Investigation Division | SID Ensemble (Guardian), Cong Bo (mentioned)
Additional Tags: POV Outsider, Special Investigation Division | SID Ensemble Shenanigans (Guardian), Episode: e015 Zhao Yunlan Begs Shen Wei's Favor, Suspicions, Misunderstandings, Innuendo, Light-Hearted, Established Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, Guardian Bingo
Series: Part 9 of Guardian Bingo 2026
Summary: Lin Jing is convinced that Cong Bo's blackmail material is a sex tape.

Rest Like You Belong Here (705 words) by facethestrange
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Shen Wei/Ye Zun (Guardian)
Characters: Shen Wei (Guardian), Ye Zun (Guardian)
Additional Tags: Ye Olde Haixing Era, Twincest, Brother/Brother Incest, Reunions, Complicated Relationships, Misplaced Trust, unsettling fluff, ominous ending, Past Trauma, Timeline What Timeline, Shen Wei hasn't met Kunlun yet, Dixing Powers (Guardian), Kissing, Making Out, Hair Caressing, Hair-pulling, probably more T than M (definitely more sensual than in any way graphic)
Summary: Didi kisses his eyelids, and this too is new. This too is right.

Shen Wei breathes him in, the silver hair falling all around them now, under the crackling of dark energy that rises and unfolds before retreating again. He tries to ignore it, but it is like frost on this summer night, brushing against Shen Wei's cheeks and neck and lips until he shivers.

Eternal by facethestrange
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian - priest
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Da Qing & Kunlun (Guardian), Da Qing & Zhao Yunlan
Characters: Da Qing (Guardian), Kunlun (Guardian), Zhao Yunlan
Additional Tags: Cats, Cuddling & Snuggling, Reincarnation, Platonic Soulmates, Fanart, Drawing
Summary: The mountain god with his little furball, thousands of years apart.

we could play a beautiful game (even though we're gonna lose) (444 words) by facethestrange
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018) RPF, Chinese Actor RPF
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Bai Yu/Zhu Yilong
Characters: Bai Yu (Actor), Zhu Yilong
Additional Tags: Bittersweet, Cuddling & Snuggling, Tenderness, Accidental Confessions, Things left unsaid, Goodbyes, rated T only for mentions of alcohol; very G-rated otherwise
Summary: "So, how long until you forget all about me?" Bai Yu says into Long-ge's shirt with a cheeky smile, not letting his voice crack. Sometimes they're both a bit too good at acting. "Find someone else you'll feed breakfast every morning?"

hannah

Last summer, it was two showings each of Top Gun and Top Gun Maverick at the MOMI; this year, it was in IMAX on one of the biggest screens in the country. Last summer I took the subway under a river; this year, I rode a bike about thirty blocks. Last summer it was Top Gun on 70mm and Maverick in Dolby in the same theater; this year it was the same theater again, with Top Gun on an elegant film-to-digital transfer and Top Gun Maverick where I finally saw it with the full aspect ratio shift.

Both years I took the same local friend with me to at least one of the showings, and had even more of a blast because of her company.

Both years I recognized a few familiar faces up at the front of the line, and they recognized me too, all of us pleased that sometimes it isn't that big a city or that wide a world.

Both years I started and ended with Maverick, which was necessitated last year by the MOMI's programming and allowed this year by my deliberately choosing that order.

What's quite nice about the theater is that it's such a huge screen, there's exits up at the very top of the theater, the rows all the way in the back. What this means in practical terms is that not only does it increase safety and help reduce a bottleneck at the bottom of the stairs, there's extra bathrooms up there, plus a space where I can easily avoid the more annoying previews. Having to get back to my seat in the pre-screening "turn off your phone" bumper is a small price to pay for that. Trust me, after four screenings I can tell you which ones were worth my time.

I'm thinking I could probably squeeze in a couple more showings of one or both of them, and I'm also thinking that in terms of real-world practicalities - scheduling, costs, errands, chores - as well as in terms of keeping the mirroring motif consistent, I should say that doing it twice each is enough, and to be content with having been able to get as many showings in as I've already managed. It's a local theater, and it's also a time commitment. So, I'll take what I've got as best I can.

Rather amusingly, the original Top Gun score got classified by my music player as "new age." Though perhaps, given things like box office records, theatrical runs, National Film Registry selections, knock-off effects like sunglasses sales and military recruitment, it isn't wrong. A new age, indeed.

Current Mood: geeky
Current Music: Top Gun Anthem - Harold Faltermeyer

hannah

My older brother J. announced his plans to come to Manhattan this Saturday with his child A., and no mention of his wife E. I can't say I'm at all surprised at that.

I'm looking forward to it a reasonable amount. I'd like to get to know A., though as she's quite a ways from talking, it'll be a while before much of anything can happen there.

What I found odd on the phone call where he told me was the number of times J. used 'um.' Easily two or three times a sentence, and I'm not exaggerating. I'm someone who pays attention to what I say - I realized today I'd used "just" as an intensity modifier when I hadn't needed to qualify my statement at all, and I'm going to try to pay attention to that going forward, and I know what people say, and I still struggle to internalize that because of how much effort I put forth. And I'm not even very good at this.

Current Mood: cynical
Current Music: nothing now

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kalakirya

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Reading

Evening out, morning in.

Late cycle.

Seemed so sure.

Sunday night.

Just a sucker for you.

Another evening ripping DVDs.

Planning.

Changing seasons.

520 Day Reverse Exchange collection for 2026 is live!

I was told it's the Apthorp.

520 Day Reverse Exchange: about 24 hours to reveals!

Sign my name.

Face of self-control.

Family gathering.

My latest Guardian fanworks

Cue sunset and end credits.

Thursday night.

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