So -- I've been thinking about how to get around wanting all of my comments on Dreamwidth, without forcing anyone who doesn't want a DW account to have one in order to play, and this is what I've decided:

Going forward from July 12, 2009, most of my entries will be unlocked, on Dreamwidth and Live Journal; there will be some content that is filtered and/or locked, and if that happens, it will be on both accounts. I'm still forcing comments to my Dreamwidth account, but I've set comments so that ANYONE may comment; anon comments will be screened and IP addresses will be logged.

If you do decide to comment using anon, rather than with your OpenID, please consider signing your comment with your LJ or DW user name so I know who you are?

This entry was originally posted at http://gblvr.dreamwidth.org/645125.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

For turntap2's art meme here. But mostly because I told jbadgr I would play.

( I make no promises as to the quality of said art )

This entry was originally posted at http://gblvr.dreamwidth.org/633296.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

If I've defriended you on LJ, and that's going to interfere with your ability to read my journal because you're only reading there, please let me know.

This entry was originally posted at http://gblvr.dreamwidth.org/613891.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

I'm pretty sure I was not the target audience for this article: Wealth-Less Effect: Earning Well, Feeling Otherwise. It's left a bad taste in my mouth -- the classist assumptions in it make me more than a little rage-y, because I can't even begin to fathom how anyone can justify crying poverty with regards to their tax burden when they live more comfortably than a large segment of the rest of the population.

What I don't get is how someone earning $250K/year cannot be considered at least moderately wealthy? The family featured in the article, the Parnells, give this justification for why they *shouldn't* be considered wealthy:

For the Parnells, their perception of themselves is based on the math. The value of their house is down $60,000. Ms. Parnell says the couple's gross income last year was about $260,000. Taxes, premiums for medical care and deductions for Social Security and their 401(k) contributions cut the gross to about $12,000 per month. The family tithes $1,300 a month at their church. Their mortgage, second mortgage and payment on land they bought is nearly $4,000 a month. Other expenses, including their family car payment, insurance and college funds, as well as basics like food, utilities and donations to charities, leave them with about $1,200 left over each month.

"I'm not after sympathy. We are blessed. What I want is a reality check on what rich means," Ms. Parnell says. "I can pay my mortgage and I can buy some clothes. I'm not going without, but I'm not living a life of luxury."

They have health care coverage and a 401(K) account? They've got more right there than a lot of other people in this country. They have a home, and take a yearly beach vacation (noted elsewhere in the article)? Again, some people don't even have a place to live, let alone the chance to go on a beach vacation.

They have $1200 left over a month? That $1200 they have left over is almost enough to cover my mortgage, and I know people who make (and barely scrape by on) that much every month. They feel like they should be considered middle-class, but when more than 90% of the people who live in this country make considerably less than $250K/year, middle class falls well below that number.

I agree that some people need a reality check, and I think it should start with people like Ms. Parnell, who have no idea what it's like to struggle to get by.

(Also, this is my test of the cross-posting feature.)

This entry was originally posted at http://gblvr.dreamwidth.org/607768.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

If you're using a computer, thank Ada Lovelace, aka the founder of scientific computing!

You might ask, what are you on about? Well, today is Ada Lovelace Day, and I'm blogging to talk about women and technology -- there are so many inspiring women out there that use technology in new and exciting ways that I had a hard time choosing, so you get three (one professional, one fan-oriented, and one personal):

1. Imogen Cunningham: Imogen Cunningham was a photographer in the early 1900's. In 1907, she graduated from the University of Washington with a major in chemistry; her thesis paper was titled “Modern Processes of Photography.” She was awarded a grant to study in Germany shortly after she graduated, where she wrote several papers about the printing and developing process. Later in life, she was a founding member of f/64, an art group that aimed to establish photography as an art form. Her work may be found at the following online galleries:

Imogen Cunningham @ Photo Liason
Imogen Cunningham @ Artcyclopedia
Imogen Cunningham @ Photography West

What is notable about Imogen Cunningham's photography is that she pushed the limits of what could be done with a camera, both in terms of composition, and in terms of photo processing.

2. Dreamwidth Studios: Yes, I know men are involved, but my personal contact with Dreamwidth has been through the monthly stitch and bitch in Baltimore, hosted by sarahq and synecdochic; I see how much work goes into this, and have talked to D. about the project -- she really knows her stuff, and has been a driving force behind the site.

If you haven't heard about Dreamwidth, here's the skinny: it's Live Journal, improved. All of the buggy, inconsistent, redundant crap you hate about LJ is being stripped away, replaced, or re-coded into a working model; the Terms of Service will be fair and consistent; feedback and new ideas will be taken seriously. And best of all? The Dreamwidth community welcomes creative types, and will work hard to "make it easy for you to share the things you make, and easy to find the people who are making the things you want to enjoy." Huzzah!

3. justacat: I cannot even begin to count the number of hours she puts in coding and designing websites, from The Professionals Circuit Archive to the CON.TXT website. They always look professional and neat, and the behind the scenes workings come off looking so effortless that it's easy to underestimate the amount of work involved, The programming involved in the CON.TXT site has made my part of our con planning and execution so much easier. So, thank you, J., for all the hard work you put into the sites.

That's right folks, the OTW has kicked off its 2009 Membership drive! Click on the picture above to join (or to donate if you're already a member!)

And so this isn't just me asking you to give us money, here are a couple of reasons I support the OTW:

* The Open Doors Project, which will support at risk fannish endeavors, either by rolling them into Fanlore or Archive of Our Own, or by hosting them as special collections. To that end, Open Doors has recently brokered a deal between the OTW and a major university library to begin a Zine Preservation Project!

* Vidding History, which includes histories of vidding and vidding subcultures *and* an eventual Vidding Archive of Our Own, as well as tons of other goodies including documentaries and an archive of vidding press clippings.

Today's topic: Education

( Education and Me )

Today's topic: Ecomonics and Work

The essay today is particularly good, and has good links; I'm focusing on our unpaid work -- the job of mom and housefrau. Of course, these tips are good for everyone, not just the stay-at-homes.

( Household Hints & Cooking Tips )

Since it worked out so well yesterday, I'm going interactive on this one too -- if you have a household hint, please share it in the comments!

Today's topic: Women of Color

Yes, it's another picspam -- this is by no means comprehensive, so I'm sure I've missed some favorites. I'm asking people to make this an interactive thing -- add your favorites in comments?

( WoC Picspam )

Today's topic: Sexuality

( Sex (I'm A...) Mix CD )

Today's topic: Reproductive Rights and Motherhood

The following essay, entitled "If Men Could Menstruate" originally appeared in the October 1978 issue of Ms. magazine; it was written by Gloria Steinem, and yes, it's meant to be funny, but at the same time, there is a ring of truth to it....

( If Men Could Menstruate )

Today's topic: Women and Health

Get Happy! -- a mix cd
( Playlist, etc, back here )

I'm playing catch-up because my internet was out all of yesterday, and most of today, so....

14valentines, Day 2: Transgender Issues

( Picspam of Androgeny )

Today's Topic: Body Image

Let me preface this short essay with some vital stats: ( I am a fat girl. )

Three cheers for fanaticize_a for their win during March!

abandonada
archie_gremlin
ephemera
gritkitty
hazelhawthorne
katie_m
panisdead
obin777
robriki
skripka

SIGN-UPS ARE NOW CLOSED!

This sign-up is for writers of OTHER HET, OTHER SLASH and OT4 section -- please make sure this is the sign-up post you want! (Just in case you're lost, the Sheppard/Weir sign-ups are HERE.)



Welcome to the sign-ups for the (second) Stargate: Atlantis Big Bang Challenge! (This is long, but we believe that with patience and determination, you can read everything here.) ::salutes crisply::

We're doing things a bit differently for this portion of the challenge: writer sign-ups are first come, first serve, and the number of spots per pairing is based on the number of artists willing to do art. As each pairing fills up, I'll post an ETA to let y'all know it is no longer available. If your first choice pairing is not available when you sign up, we'll shift you to your alternate (depending on whether you've provided one, and availability.) A mod will comment to confirm your sign-up.

This challenge is open to any writer who wishes to participate, but you must read through rules 1-7 here and make sure you qualify and are interested in following the set parameters.

***PLEASE NOTE: If you signed up to write McKay/Sheppard or gen, and would like to sign up for one of these pairings instead, you may.***

( The Rules and Sign-Ups )

And, last but not least, depending on sign-up volume, there may be times when I have to 'Private' the sign-up post to make sure I have an accurate count; if you get an error message, try again in a few minutes....

***ETA: CLOSED PAIRINGS***

3/12/08, 10:07am: Micheal/Teyla and Sheppard/Lorne are now closed!
3/12/08, 10:11am: Sumner/Weir and McKay/Keller are now closed!
3/12/08, 10:57am: John/Teyla is now closed!
3/12/08, 12:36pm: Sheppard/Mitchell is now closed!
3/12/08, 1:33pm: Carson/Teyla is now closed!
3/12/08, 1:46pm: Lorne/Teyla is now closed!
3/12/08, 2:25pm: Teyla/Sora is now closed!
3/12/08, 4:00pm: Carson/Radek is now closed!

***ETA: PROMPTS ADDED***
for 'Conversion'
edited the prompt for 'Rising 1&2'

Emails have been sent to any artists that provided an email addy (+ any thisissirius and I could find), and the ARTIST SIGN-UPS are live.

Go HERE if you are an artist wishing to sign up for this year's sgabigbang Other Het, Other Slash and OT4 challenge.

Writers -- we haven't forgotten you. Go HERE for the Writer Guidelines and Information.

I know this has been confusing and/or frustrating, but please bear with us -- we think we've finally figured this out, and the confusion will be lifting soon!

sgabigbang is considering opening its doors to multiple pairings, and I'm a huge fan of this idea, so I'm working to get the 'Other Slash Pairings' section going.... To do that, I need an accurate idea of numbers. I'm interested in authors, yes, but I especially need people willing to make art or vids to go with each story.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE pimp this poll to others -- I am interested in any and all SGA slash pairings that are not McKay/Sheppard, and I want to catch as many people as I can.


Poll #1149666 SGA Big Bang Other Slash Pairings
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

Writers: I would write a Big Bang story with a slash pairing other than McKay/Sheppard

Writers: what slash pairing would you write?

Artists/Vidders: I would create art for a Big Bang story with a slash pairing other than McKay/Sheppard.

Artists/Vidders: what slash pairing(s) would you create art for?

If you need more space, please feel free to leave me a comment.

ETA:

For Weir/Sheppard, go here: http://medie.livejournal.com/1509681.html

For HET other than Weir/Sheppard, OT4 or THREESOMES, go here: http://thisissirius.livejournal.com/258759.html

ETA, the second:

There seems to be a bit of confusion as to the timeline, so here are the relevant dates:

March 10th: Writer sign-ups begin, and will close on March 17th.
May 12th: svmadelyn will ask you on the community if you have 15,000 words yet. There are no consequences if you don't, but you are highly encouraged to have them done.
July 14th: COMPLETED story drafts are due. You will have a beginning, a middle, an ending. It will be completed to the point where, if posted online, you would not die of humiliation. You would only perhaps want to take a wee vacation in Bermuda. These will be sent swiftly to your artists. You may not blind your artists in other words. *g* All that should really be left is tweaking, slight plot point shifts, the like; adding the glossy finish to a beautifully crafted desk! No exceptions will be made - if your stories don't get submitted on this date, you won't get assigned an artist.
July 25th: Final copy of story is to be submitted into the story database. No exceptions will be made.
August 7th: Art, vids due.
August 12th or 13th: Site goes live.

And, the word requirement for this category (OTHER SLASH) is the same as the McShep/Gen category -- 40,000. I have no problem believing any of us could write that much (or more)....

ETA, the third: If you're committed to doing art or writing for OTHER SLASH, please leave your email address in a comment; I've screened everything. Thanks!

For 14valentines, Day 2: Hunger

Seven recipes you may or may not have seen: some are heart healthy, some are economical and filling, some are fancy, some are sweet and oh-so-bad for you. All of them are recipes for foods I love.

( #1 - Quick and Easy Goulash )

( #2 - Apple, Walnut & Blue Cheese Spread )

( #3 - Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies )

( #4 - Linguine With White Clam Sauce )

( #5 - Country French Turkey and Red Potatoes )

( #6 - Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting )

( #7 - Mexican Potatoes )