lilfluff

To close more windows,
that is my goal. Finger clicks
and one more opens.

New user icon! This one by the talented Meeks (On LJ too, Meeksp

Title: Fade to Black
Fandom/'verse: Tales of the Mascot
Rating/Warnings: Blood, fade to black, don't hit the author?
For the 2nd 30 Days of flashfic prompt #16, "write a scene that takes place at the end of a long road trip"
Summary: Down a member from betrayal, battered and weary from the fight that followed, the band makes their way to the nearest castle racing to reach there ahead of the invading army...


Kyle fought back the urge push the horses faster. Even he could tell they were already pushing them harder than they should. The poor animals were panting with a harsh wheezing that was painful to listen too and foaming at the mouth in a way he had always thought writers had made up. Rising higher on Lydia's shoulders he could finally make out the top of the walls over the next rise. "Yes! We've made it!"

( Of course they have, because it's always this easy in good fiction. :) )

Title: River Watching
Universe/Setting: Post Unknown-Type of Apocalypse
Rating/Warnings: Should be safe for all
Summary: After mankind disappears an AI monitoring a dam is faced with a decision...

Prompt provided by ysabetwordsmith

( Click here for the story, click above for links to the prompt or ysabetwordsmith's LJ... )

Title: Journey, part one (for lack of a better title)
Setting: sci-fantasy alien invasion?
Content warnings: Slavery, rather blatantly implied past abuse (but none on page).
Summary: Oskar's happier after the invasion than he was before. But if there's one constant in life, it's change...

From an idea that came to mind while in that half-awake half-asleep state in which so many ideas are gained and lost.

( Story below the cut. Click here to avoid the fnord and read the story. )

Would you like some microfic? aldersprig is throwing another Giraffe call (called this as donations help with paying for some giraffe print carpet).

How does this work? Quite simple: Simply make a reply to the Giraffe Call (LJ link) post with one or more story prompts. The theme of this prompt call is, "Gifts, gifts, and the gifted."

And if you would like a sample, there has already been a story posted: A True Gift (LJ link), an ominous story from Anke's prompt on gift giving by an Evil Overlord.

There will also be an incentive story, for which there is currently a poll to pick a setting for.

So, on a whim I decided to run through one of those online personality quizzes. Usually on them and the official test I come back as INTP. From time to time, INFP. Today's an INFP day.

Results (using the quiz at Human Metrics:

• very expressed introvert


• slightly expressed intuitive personality


• slightly expressed feeling personality


• moderately expressed perceiving personality

At Keirsey.com they call this type the Healer (from the Idealist group), while my usual INTP is the Architect (from the Rational group). "Healers present a calm and serene face to the world, and can seem shy, even distant around others. But inside they're anything but serene..." "For Architects, the world exists primarily to be analyzed, understood, explained - and re-designed."

And I found an amusing INFP 'motivator' poster: INFP: walking the fine line between cute and creepy (Caution, extreme close up a fuzzy spider or similar bug :))

I think my favorite personality test result was on a test I took in college where I scored high on both logic and aesthetics. It assaulted the stereotypes others unconsciously have. Quite a few people responded, "But, but surely that's not a valid result," and had trouble with it even after it was pointed out that the test (I sadly can't remember which personality profile test it was now) put logic and aesthetics on separate scales. Which meant that yes, someone could score high on a preference for both.

I generally don't take these too seriously, but it's amusing to review them from time to time.

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First, I'd write two checks and pay off my remaining debts. Call it $990,000 left after this, rounding down to the next lowest $5,000 to simplify things. Rounding the remaining to nearest $5,000 as well.

$15,000 into checking as pure indulgence money.
$10,000 for a nice laptop and a nice desktop computer system.
$10,000 budgeted for car work. Take it to the shop and say, "If it even looks funny, fix it." I've got a good shop that hasn't burned me in the past, your mileage might very.
$10,000 and pay next years rent lump sum (Good management at the apartment, so I'm willing to do a year. But I would ask if I could get a discount for paying a year in advance.)

That leaves... $945,000. This all gets split into two investments. One timed to become available in time to pay taxes (You do realize if someone hands you a check for $1,000,000 you will have to pay taxes on it, right?) and the other locked up for at least a year. In that year I can start reviewing financial advisors, but my goal for the remaining money would be simple: Invest it, and only ever touch a portion the the interest. Let's say after taxes, fees, etc, there's $400,000 left. 3% pulled out a year, split over twelve months would be $1,000 per month. Hopefully the investment portfolio makes better than 3%, which means that monthly payment will go up over time.

Oh, and sorry as yet hypothetical children. In the also hypothetical event that I was given a million dollars out of the blue, you would not inherit it when I die. Depending on their ages a trust fund to pay for insurance and assist with education and a moderate lump sum, but the majority would get turned over to some form of charitable trust. Indeed, once you hit a certain level of assets accumulating more seems rather meaningless (would I really be happier with $200,000,000 than I would be with $10,000,000?). So if I did well enough said charitable trust could exist before I died rather than waiting.

aldersprig has opened her November call for writing prompts. This month's theme is Family. Make a prompt and receive 150-300 words written to your prompt.

As an incentive she is also posting a continuation of one of her Fae Apocalypse stories which had previously ended with a mother and her two children coming upon one of the injured Fae invaders while fleeing from the city they lived in. The original story is included as the opening of the incentive post.


Meanwhile I have made an outline for three linked Fez-Kitty stories from prompts to my Rebirth, Renewal, and Rediscovery call for prompts. These will be the next bits of writing that I work on.

Reading through this post by Mari Ness on LJ about her hotel experience at the Town and Country hotel in San Diego has left me appalled. Even if I was to give the hotel the benefit of the doubt and assume Mari is incorrect on half the details it would still be past acceptability. When Chase Bank says, "What, no way should you have to pay that hotel bill," you know things were Not Right.

The best reading I can see of this shows utter incompetence on the part of the hotel. That's the best reading of the situation I can see. Any other reading only goes downhill from there.

From aldersprig's prompt: A rediscovered planet, my favorite sci-fi trope.

Title: Welcome Back
Universe/Setting: Unspecified science fiction setting, post "Long Night" scenario
Rating/Warnings: Should be safe for all.
Summary: After the Long Night one world's explorers finally find neighbors. This feels more like a lead into something than a piece on its own. (487 words. Did I say 150-300 words? :))


With the distressing sound of something buckling, the Williamson's Hope fell back into normal space. For several minutes the bridge was filled with overlapping conversations as the crew double checked on the ship's health and where they had arrived.
( continues below cut )