Wake the Sun

Oh my god, Internet, never leave me again.

I have successfully settled into my apartment in Chicago! I have also:

* Found the grocery store, overestimated my weight allowance, dragged everything back six blocks, remembered halfway to the third floor that Peapod is a thing.

* Locked myself out for an hour, sans keys and phone.

* Met upstairs neighbor who 1) is very nice and 2) knows how to jimmy locks with a credit card.

* Hung out with Roommate and his girlfriend, who are fantastic people. I lucked out, third floor walk-up or not.

* Sold my soul to Cricket for internet access. The internet tells me they're evil itself, but I didn't have many other options and scraping along on my iPad's limited 3G was too painful.

I managed to forget: my primary art supplies (fortunately the auxiliary set was in my laptop bag), a pillow, and an umbrella. Not bad!

Now that I've got internet back it's time to crank the job search into high gear (and try to get freelance gigs in the meantime, plus wrap up the stuff I've got) - I've got two months before I have to go home (or Atlanta, it's a thing) in disgrace.

 I just rewarched the Psych episode with the cat witness - you know the one - and am in the middle of a Suits fic. Both are awesome and both make the same mistake: they have a male calico cat. It's bugging me.

Calico and tortoiseshell are colors, not breeds, and they're linked to the sex genes. You only get 'em when a cat's XX (female) or XXY (very, very, rare, and probably sterile). You can't have a 'calico mix' and if your calico is miraculously male your vet's sure as heck going to comment on it. The more you know!

Stay tuned for next time on Animals In Fiction, when I'll explain why it's impossible for a galloping horse to pace a walking human.

In fannish review, I (in no particular order):

* Made 150 posts (151 with this one!) which averages out to, what, ~12 posts a month? None of it, sadly, is fanfic - I got squat written this year. Or finished this year, anyway; my WIPs are legion.

* Put together the Xavier Mansion - House and Grounds in one map-hazed weekend, which Google Analytics tells me is far and away my most popular post. As it should be.

* Took a stab at starting a fanworks fest, which... did not pan out. Next year! I have a written out Plan Of Action, I am ready. Also attempted to start a One Piece reread, discovered 1) organizing thing over the internet takes a lot of work and 2) One Piece is freaking long. Ouch.

* Joined Kingdom of Loathing on a whim and accidentally ascended two times. It woulda been three but, by time I got my Sauceror to the Frat/Hippy war, Crimbo hit and I got distracted by the shiny, shiny content.

* Watched a lot of TV and movies, recced some links, read a lot of fanfic.

( So quiet, basically. Which makes sense, seeing as RL was a rocky ride )

( Resolutions for 2012 )

Making me the latest to the party ever but I can't even care because oh my god my babies. I only have room for love**.

Just, Aang. And his face, and his choices. And Sokka's smarts and love of shopping! And Suki's badassery and Katara's courage and strength and fussiness and Toph's everything. And Iroh's everything. And Zuku wasn't my favorite, exactly, but he was the one I kept talking to because oh, baby, no, what the fuck are you doing.

I've been holding off on the fic for years and now I'm not sure where to begin (aside from trawling the Ao3) - does anyone have favorites to rec (I don't have shipping/lack of shipping preferences)? I'm especially interested in Azula fixit fic, that girl got a raw deal.

* I'd never made it past the first season.

**The regret will come later. What was I thinking, putting this off?

Spoilers under the cuts!

( Gunnerkrigg Court )

~*~

( Sanctuary )

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( Once Upon A Time )

If I, someone who enjoys wearing tshirts fitted to curvy bodies, wear the same size as a dude's Large (L), that makes me Extra, Extra, Extra Large (XXXL). Which I can't actually buy, seeing as 'girly' sizes only go up to XXL. Better hope that works!

[just received a package containing shirts for herself (XXL) and her brother (L) in which the L was a whole fucking size bigger. thanks, Threadless!]

One work week down, one left to go. I haven't heard back on any of the resumes I've sent out, which means it's about time for Plan B: Fuck It, I'm Moving Anyway. I've got to sit down with my roommates and my parents to hammer out the specifics, but right now Plan B consists of 1) moving most of my stuff into storage, 2) finding a few likely housing candidates in Chicago, 3) flying to Chicago (sometime Dec. 13-31, working around the holidays, my timing is so awesome), meeting folks, and sealing the deal on a place to stay, 4) moving to Chicago For Real the first week of January, 5) letting all the Chicago job openings know 'hey I live here now, I'm awesome, hire me :D :D :D', and 6) PROFIT.

I've only got enough saved up for 3-4 months, assuming a rent + utilities of ~$600, and thus am leery of signing a 6/12 month lease. No way am I finding my own place at that price point, so!

Does anyone have (or knows someone who has) a room (bedroom, den, basement, I care not) to rent/sublease/etc in Chicago for January-March? I've been looking at the Edgewater/Wrigleyville/Lakeview/Andersonville/etc area, but anywhere within walking distance of a rail station would be fantastic. I am quiet, female, queer, clean, fannish, and will be leaving my cats and books in Texas, so I won't even take up much space! References + details available upon request.

I just gave my two-weeks notice. The ball, she is rolling now.

I spent the weekend recovering from being ridiculously sick - turns out if you catch a bad cold and go to work anyway, you get worse. Who knew! I'm almost better now, at least, which means I don't have to spend my vacation sick as a dog. And I watched the first 35 episodes of The Twelve Kingdoms (and reread the first book) while recuperating, which was amazing! Twelve Kingdoms is the best, you guys.

I know what I want to get done this week (I'm giving notice when I get back, there is so much to do), I just gotta figure out how to strucure it. I will make a list! But first, a shower and clean clothes, then maybe air out the apartment.

It's my birthday! It's also nepenthe's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, B!

To celebrate, have many pretty pictures.

( It's like a mini tumblr up in here. )