These Pretzels Are Making Me Thirsty

It's one thing to put something in a series finale you know is going to bother people, and it's another to go on record laughing about how you could have listened to people and not put it in there. One is annoying, the other vile.

Knew it was coming, of course, and I still don't get the appeal but whatever. I could easily hand wave it all away in fandom, but the statement from the showrunner just sours everything in such an unnecessary way.


In other news, it's molting season here. Cat. Hair. Everywhere. I'm doing my best to keep them brushed but ugh. Also gave W a dreaded bath today, he was getting a big gamey. He does not like bathtime but is a very good boy about it.

I've been taking Friday afternoons off - every year we get a week of personal leave and rather than take it in a block, I've parsed it out over sixteen weeks with early releases on Fridays. Let me tell you in the spring that time is invaluable! I can get odious outdoor tasks done and not have to waste all day Saturday doing it, etc. Well, I've been a bit lazy on those afternoons so far, but yesterday I did manage to do laundry and also reseal the shower grout, a task that was overdue. I don't know why I kept putting it off, it's not that bad of a job.

Next I have to maybe finally paint the doors, trim and linen closet in the small hallway. It's still poop brown from the prior owners. I will never get why they chose the shade of brown they did, but it's not a nice brown, y'all.

Icontest for Hawaii Five-0 experiencing holiday doldrums. You don't have to have familiarity with the fandom to vote for pretty things. Won't you go cast some votes?

Voting post here.

Please and thank you!

What a week. For some reason, I never felt quite in control. I don't know why - I've been sleeping like the dead. Today I had a vague feeling of heartburn all day. Even yesterday I moved wrong when Johnny was coming to headbutt me hello and I split my lip on her noggin. I'm off.

Have a feather.

Oh, and even if you don't watch, perhaps go have a vote: H50 icontest. Apparently votes are pretty low. Understandable, considering how small and not-LJy that fandom is.

There's a room in the basement of my new house that I think used to be a darkroom! So cool.

Put on one coat of paint in bedroom and bathroom, so glad I did. I thought about keeping the gray, but no. Nope. Just not me. Went with a very vibrant green in bathroom. It's love/hate. I happen to love. I can always paint again. :) I am bummed about one thing - there was a full gallon of paint left in the house that was labeled some basic off-white. I was going to use this for baseboards, window and closet. Alas, I cracked it open to make sure this would work and discovered ... pink. Pepto pink. Boo, hiss! On the positive(ish) side, I overbought the wall color and will go to Home Depot to get them to lighten up the extra gallon for trim.

First time anyone but me has seen the place and so far - everyone says I did good. Well, duh! ;) I knew as soon as I saw the knocker it was mine. Now I'll just see what taxes bring, live with fuel oil for a year and then convert. I don't want to finance that project, at least not entirely, so I want to be cautious and sure with what I'm doing (gas or heat pump). If I hurry and try to do it now (incentives end 12/31) I may not make the right decision.

Now I just have to deal with switching over water/sewer and set up garbage. And get a lawnmower. Lawn's a mess. As soon as it sold, they stopped with the upkeep, LOL.

House, house, house!

In other news: for any granola people out there: it's true. Coconut oil, baking soda and cornstarch makes an excellent deodorant. I was a skeptic, but it works a heck of a lot better than anything I've tried pre-packaged.


Also, continue to mostly love S5 of H50, cannot for the life of me recall a thing about NCIS ths year, still enjoy Haven. Sleepy Hollow is fairly ridiculous, but hello pretty people.

All little H50 stories, most posted long ago. I really need to get a few E! stories out sometime soon. I've had one scene rattlin' around in my head for a solid year, have just been too exhausted to commit.

The Cold Truth (Or, The Doxylamine Succinate Principle). S/D, first kiss, humor. PG. 3251 words. Danny's kind of repulsively sick, but that doesn't seem to stop Steve from wanting him.
Leave It To Stever. S/D, satire, weirdness, schmoop. R. 2117 words. Danny's got the perfect life ... sort of.
Like Mustard Seed. S/C, S/D, angst, realizations, first kiss. PG. 4974 words. Sometimes you find out what you want isn't what you need, and sometimes it takes some people longer to realize that than others.
Collateral Damage. S/D, angst, first kiss, tag to 4.19 and 4.20. PG. 6303 words. Both of them are broken in different ways and also in the exact same way.
Hold On. S/D, angst, missing scene for 4.21. 2508 words. Danny sees the video.

Also, The Back-Up Plan is such an awful movie. Jennifer Lopez is genuinely horrific, honestly. But Alex O'Loughlin ... mmmmm, so pretty. So, so, so pretty.

Okay, I don't think it spoils anything if I say that I think the character of William on Haven was horribly miscast. Nothing but love for Colin Ferguson, but he is far too goofy for what the character is supposed to be. I am not buying what he is selling at all.


Also, I told ya Grover would drink the H50 Kool-Aid.

I found sheets that fit! Now I need to find a bedside table that comes with a little step stool I can tuck back under it (they make that kind of thing, right?) out of the way when not using it, because my bed is now too high to get into without a bit of effort. It's taller than my belly button now. LOL. The cats adore the extra squish of memory foam. :)

I also got my hair chopped off today. It's been about a year, and I lost a good six inches. It's now just below the chin in the front and shorter in the back. Yep, returned to an a-line bob. What can I say, I kind of like that style, and now all the dry ends from henna are gone and it's silky soft again.

No spoilers, really:

Haven is still enjoyable, but seems a smidge off so far this year. Still worth watching, even if I'm not connecting to the characters as much anymore.

H50. Oh dear. Ridiculous as always. I do expect that, but goodness, it was a bit extreme last night. I figure I'll always lament the good old ohana days of S1, back when the whole team had valid things to contribute, id est Danny wasn't solely the funny sidekick, Chin had more than a lone one-off episode dedicated to him and Kono had spit and fire and a refreshing lack of doe-eyes. So, I won't talk much about it, because I know I come off as bitter. I just miss that vibe so much. Viva la fanon.


And I'd love to re-watch S1, but for some reason my laptop won't play DVDs and I cannot for the life of me figure out how to hook up my DVD player through the cable box (which I really need to find an alternative for the "deal" I got when I signed up is over and I'm forking over an even larger exorbitant fee).

Also, the forecast called for aggressive rain, and they weren't joking. It is a mess out there. Not quite wall-rattling wind, though. Windows, sure. It's a stay-inside-read/write fic kind of day!

Aieeee. Two days to finish this fic which was actually supposed to be finished in June. Not. Done. Yet. *gnaws on knuckles*

On the downside, it seems like nearly every time I join a fandom activity, that fandom activity kind of disappears and/or isn't, uhm, managed very concisely. I'm taking that to mean I ought to just keep trucking away to amuse my own self.

I have a feeling mine won't do that well this week!

H50 crack at varying degrees if/when you follow the cut.

I also signed up for an alphabet thingy, which I now have no idea what to do with. I enjoy the challenge and, hey, I have to keep myself occupied. Except I keep signing up for things and then instantly losing motivation/inspiration. That ever happen to anyone else? I think yesterday my brain was a total blank all day. Today I woke up with a migraine, which sucks but somehow also kicks my h/c gene into gear. Hehe.

I think I have to be resigned to work seasonal-only front desk if I want any income this year, which is fine, but the idea of being unemployed again come October makes me twitchy. Apparently that's the status quo around here - work hard all summer long, collect unemployment on the off months, if you're lucky enough to work for a place that will give you enough hours to qualify.

Still, have put in applications to several full time gigs I know I could do, so cross fingers, please. Then I'll duck out about this subject for a while again. :)

The multi-family home I thought about purchasing for the rental income (three bedroom home on top, one bedroom apartment downstairs) was on the market for about twenty seconds! I am totally exploring that idea for after I get a job, because it would make a mortgage payment more doable, and I'd get to do things like tear up carpet and put in floors more appropriate for animal owners. And get a dog. Walked the riverwalk as I often do and came across a Corgi pup playing with a very large Bernese. So. Cute.