kittydesade | Network

Found a nice gaming article on Bluesky (Three Tiers of RPG Publishing), which led me to another article, which I found insightful and clever (and a bit sad, as accurate talk about economics these days tends to be), and then hit the bit that blew my mind.

They Killed Normal and Called It Progress: "Julia Roberts, Applebee's, Bandcamp, your manager, and the death of everything in between. (Also, Sweetgreen is the A24 of dining and I will die on this hill.)"

Have you noticed that the middle is gone from everything? Restaurants, companies, careers, music, retail, the economy itself. What replaced it is a barbell: one enormous weight on each end, nothing in the center, and most of us trying not to get crushed by the bar.

And the replacement does look better every single time, I grant you that. The A24 film is better than the $40 million adult drama from 2007, yeah, we can all agree on that. The Sweetgreen bowl is better than the Applebee’s chicken parm, sure. Your favorite Substack is sharper than the mid-list magazine that folded in 2019. Every replacement is a genuine upgrade. But every replacement serves fewer and fewer people.

That's not the mind-blowing part. That's the thesis, the baseline, the part that he spends half of the ~3000 word essay explaining, giving examples of, making neat comparisons across different industries.

( It's amazing that it doesn't get boring because it truly is the same damn pattern )

nanila posting in

awesomeers

It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

dine

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

torachan

1. It is the weekend! Today was fairly hassle-free, work-wise, and I got home by like four or so, which was nice, but it's even nicer to not have work tomorrow.

2. I found a new puzzle site to order from and I really like that they mark their puzzles with a no AI guarantee. (Not all of their puzzles have this guarantee, but you can filter for it and the majority of them seem to be.) I hope other sites implement that as well, because it would definitely make me more likely to order from a site that did that.

3. Carla got a catnip chew rope the other day and all the cats have shown some interest in it, but Molly seems to especially like it. No one's that into actually chewing it, though, just rubbing and writhing lol.

ysabetwordsmith posting in

followfriday

Got any Follow Friday-related posts to share this week? Comment here with the link(s).

Here's the plan: every Friday, let's recommend some people and/or communities to follow on Dreamwidth. That's it. No complicated rules, no "pass this on to 7.328 friends or your cat will die".

Current Mood: busy

scalziwhatever_feed

Posted by John Scalzi

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/03/20/view-from-a-hotel-window-3-20-26-san-diego/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59840

There is a parking lot visible in the photo, I will note. That said, this is not the usual parking lot photo from when I travel.

San Diego is lovely. But then, when is it not. We will be in it only briefly before setting sail on this year’s installment of the JoCo Cruise. Try to have fun without us for a week.

Oh, and happy equinox! Spring is here. Thank God.

— JS

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/03/20/view-from-a-hotel-window-3-20-26-san-diego/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59840

muccamukk

RAYE - "Click Clack Symphony"

Watch on YouTube

I didn't think I could love her new album as much as My 21st-Century Blues, but... this is looking like I might.

musesfool

I was shocked and saddened when

devildoll just texted me this: Nicholas Brendon, ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ Star, Dies at 54. I knew he had troubles, but also thought he had time to work them out. He's a year younger than me!

*

Current Mood: shocked
Current Music: then i hide until it goes away

julian

I've got a friend, a MUSH person,

badfaun here, who lives over in Seattle, and who I have known for uh, 20 years now?, who's in the late stages of metastatic breast cancer, that spread to her brain, and is now in the cerebro spinal fluid, which is impressive in its inventiveness and staying power if nothing else.

(This is ileah/Francisco/Heart, for any GarouMUSH people around.)

She's pretty stubborn and pretty great, but the spread to the CSF is Just Not A Good Thing, and she's now going to be going to hospice.

Love to her, and her husband

aerynvale, who's been a rock in all this.

petra

[VID] nothing and everything (0 words) by hartknyx
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hamlet - Shakespeare
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Characters: Hamlet (Hamlet)
Additional Tags: Good Friend Horatio (Hamlet), Canon-Typical Violence, Suicidal Thoughts, Mental Health Issues, Lighter than it sounds, emo kid hamlet
Summary:

do you have the time to listen to me whine?

*

Hamlet + Green Day = FUCKING INSPIRED. I howled with laughter at the song choice before clicking, and the vid lives up to it.

Current Mood: melancholy (no srsly)
Current Music: I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains

julian

I woke up this morning with a really puffy arm, from elbow down to hand, and it felt like I had exercised a lot, but I Had Not, so Calluna and I bundled ourselves off to Urgent Care, and Urgent Care looked at it, said, "Hm, likely not, but Just In Case..." and bundled us off to Emerson Hospital to get an ultrasound, which made me almost fall asleep, which was nice.

And I don't have a blood clot, but I do have sucky blood pressure. Which I knew. So I don't *think* it's an allergic reaction, but I do think it's vein related somehow, so, mystery.

For most of the morning it was gorgeous and sunny and in the 50s, and very springlike, which fits since it's the equinox and the first day of spring, so, happy spring!

Then we got lunch and coffee and started down Route 2 to Arlington to retrieve my wallet, WHICH the Arlington Police in fact found a day or so ago, after I had ordered new everything, (But I can at least get my driver's license for ID purposes. And the wallet, which I like.) *But then*, sitting at a traffic light, we got slammed into on what I thought was my rear end but was actually my passenger side. Passenger side airbag deployed, lots of broken glass also deployed, some of it onto Calluna and a little tiny bit on me. All told, about 6-7 cars were involved, plus Route 2 was closed for like an hour.

I'm very much lacking information about who hit whom and how, but it *seems* as if the person who set the chain reaction going is the one who ended up in front, and rolled over. No one would let me stick around or figure out other people's information, which makes sense because there was like, gas leaking and stuff. Not-very-informative news article.

This time I let them impound it because Calluna needed to get checked a the hospital (same one we just came from!), and I went along for the ride/also to get checked out. (I'm fine; she may have a slight concussion and her neck's hurting.) 'm pretty convinced it's totaled, but unlike when I got run into in Coventry, RI, Concord's only 45 mins or so from me, so I can go retrieve all my Stuff from it Sunday when I also go get my durn wallet.

Happily, my s-i-l loaned me their ancient and venerable Prius so I have wheelz currently.

adafrog posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Friday to midnight on Saturday (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #34392 Daily poll

Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 20

How are you doing?

I am okay
11 (55.0%)

I am not okay, but don't need help right now
9 (45.0%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans are you living with?

I am living single
8 (40.0%)

One other person
8 (40.0%)

More than one other person
4 (20.0%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

sovay

On the way back from the MRI, in accordance with the local observance of the hundred and twelfth birthday of Wendell Corey, I found and talked to a dry stone wall.

Current Music: The Electric St. Lucy, "Harlem Roulette"

redbird

It turns out that changing Medicare Advantage plans is not costing me significant money: it looks as though the money I paid for prescriptions at the beginning of the year counts for a calendar-year maximum, even though I switched plans. I ordered another dose of Kesimpta on Wednesday, and they aren't charging me for it. As I said to

cattitude and

adrian_turtle, I'm glad that I could have afforded to pay that twice, but there are plenty of things I'd rather do with the money.

As a side note, this plan will pay for $65 per quarter of over-the-counter medications and some related things. I used part of this quarter's today to order Mucinex, Imodium, and an under-the-tongue digital fever thermometer. I think I can get them to pay for non-emergency transportation to medical appointments, and I should check what dental coverage I have.

jesse_the_k

From that reliable source of journal prompts, thefridayfive

1) What was the reason you began a Dreamwidth or LiveJournal account (or both)?

Volunteered for WisCon in 2007, clearly LJ was where everything was Happening. Took me a year to figure out the culture. Moved to DW on 1 May 2009.

2) How many DW or LJ communities do you subscribe to?

79! Most are evidently dormant. (DW comms never die.)

3) Do you have a favorite community or one you check out often to see what's new?

I love the questions and answers at little_details, where writers seek specifics about an infinite assortment of facts: paint manufacturing, historical Chinese tornadoes, NZ slang for three examples.

4) How did you pick your user name?

It’s a riff on my wallet name which I’ve been using it since 2001.

5) If you could change your user name, would you?

Nope.

nanila

The preceding two weeks of Friday Five questions didn't pique my interest, but this week's are great. Love a bit of meta-blogging. Thank you for the opportunity to navel-gaze.

What was the reason you began a Dreamwidth or LiveJournal account (or both)?

I started off on LJ in 2001 because everyone was doing it. I created an account and then let it sit for a couple of weeks while I figured out what it was for. I think it was victorine who prodded me into posting regularly and then I just…never stopped.
How many DW or LJ communities do you subscribe to?

A few dozen in total. Most of them are dead, the LJ communities in particular. The only one I participate in regularly is DW community awesomeers, because I'm one of the two people who puts up the daily “Just One Thing” posts. I find it easier to write a short comment about my day there than to write up a full post, especially during the work week.
Do you have a favorite community or one you check out often to see what's new?

See above. I also enjoy thefridayfive, and I like reading threeforthememories during its annual spate of activity.
How did you pick your user name?

My current username is a play on my actual name. My original LJ name was “lilith” as that's the pseudonym I first adopted when I started interacting with online communities back in the 90s. Eventually I felt I'd outgrown it, and I've been nanila ever since.
If you could change your user name, would you?

That would genuinely be a big decision after more than 15 years of using this one, in a lot more places than DW and LJ. I'd have to do substantive additional navel-gazing to work out what it would be.

rachelmanija

This spooky ghost story has a central pairing that I feel like I may have requested as an original work: Widow/Female Fake Psychic/Ghost of a Female Bog Body.

My Darling Dreadful Thing is set in the Netherlands in the 1950s, which is a selling point all by itself as I love unusual settings. Roos is a young woman whose abusive fake psychic mother forces her to participate in her fake seances. But though Roos does not communicate with the spirits sought by the desperate, grieving customers, she actually does have a spirit companion, a bog body whom Roos has bound to her and named Ruth.

Roos is delighted when Agnes, a biracial (Indonesian/Dutch) widow, takes her as a companion and spirits her away to her neglected Gothic mansion in the middle of nowhere. The mansion is otherwise occupied only by Agnes's sister-in-law, Willamine, who is dying of tuberculosis, and has a marvellously bizarre Gothic history. Roos falls hard in love with Agnes, with whom she has a surprising amount in common.

But this whole story is being told in retrospect, as a series of interviews Roos is having with a psychiatrist who is trying to determine whether she's mentally fit to stand trial for murder. Something very bad happened at the mansion...

( Read more... )

Very enjoyable, very gothic, very atmospheric. I'm excited to read van Veen's other two books. I looked her up to see if she's actually from the Netherlands (yes) and learned that she's one of a set of non-identical triplet sisters! I don't think I've ever read a book by a triplet before.

atlas_obscura_places_feed

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/paul-s-vintage-bicycle-museum

Main level

On an unassuming stretch of Main Street in the small town of Elizabeth sits a doorway into cycling’s wonderfully peculiar past. Behind it waits a collection of vintage bicycles so varied and charming that it’s hard not to grin as you walk in the door.

Paul’s Vintage Bicycle Museum isn’t slick or high-tech and that’s precisely the point. Instead, it feels like stepping into a lovingly curated garage where every bike has a personality. Sturdy cruisers from the mid-20th century look ready to coast straight into a black-and-white photograph. Odd frame designs and forgotten brands reveal just how experimental bicycle makers once were.

The real magic, however, isn’t just in the metal and rubber it’s in the stories. Owner Paul offers informal tours and enthusiastically shares the history and quirks of any bicycle that catches a visitor’s eye. Ask about a strange looking frame or an antique brake system and prepare for an impromptu lesson in ingenuity. The experience feels less like wandering through a museum and more like discovering a treasure trove guided by its devoted caretaker.

Admission is free, though donations are requested to help keep the collection rolling. The setting is humble, the atmosphere welcoming, and the surprises plentiful. For anyone who appreciates mechanical oddities, nostalgic craftsmanship, or simply the joy of discovering something unexpected in a small Midwestern town, this museum delivers in spades and spokes.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/paul-s-vintage-bicycle-museum

scalziwhatever_feed

Posted by Athena Scalzi

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/03/20/death-is-a-beautiful-cobalt-blue-release-day/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59832

Hey, everyone! You may remember my post from 2024 over my friend Jon R. Mohr’s album he released that summer, Bioluminescent Soundwaves. Well, I’m happy to report that Jon has come out with a brand new song, Death is a Beautiful Cobalt Blue.

Watch on YouTube

This eleven-minute composure featuring the vocals of Julie Elven is a piece that comes from deep within Mohr’s very soul, as it is the result of years of stress and existential crises. He mentions that this work is inspired by T. J. Lea’s story, “I Bought My Wife a Life Extension Plan,” which he listened to the audio drama of in January 2025.

Watch on YouTube

According to Mohr, the story really spoke to him and was practically a mirror to him and his wife, who was diagnosed with POTS back in 2023.

Following the diagnosis, her job let her go, and each following job failed to accommodate her medical needs appropriately. Between the medical stress, job insecurity, financial complications, and facing the physical struggles of POTS, the couple experienced their fair share of breakdowns and emotional turmoil.

Within this story, Mohr says it entailed the most beautiful depiction of death he’d ever heard, and it brought him comfort. He decided then and there that he’d believe in this version of the afterlife, even if it made no sense, because all that mattered was that it brought him comfort, and that works for him.

Things are much better now, with Mohr’s wife having a great remote job and a better handle on her physical symptoms, plus the two of them are closer than ever. The journey through all of this made Mohr truly appreciate friends, family, and the simple things in life.

In Mohr’s own words:

“Death Is a Beautiful Cobalt Blue is the result of all of that. It’s an exaltation of life, loss, beauty, and grief. It doesn’t shame or try to hide pain or the negative aspects of life. It welcomes all of it, because I feel so lucky to be able to experience all these things and truly know what makes life worth living. I also consider myself very lucky to both know what intense happiness and intense pain feel like. Because all of it is life. THIS, now, is all I can guarantee to be true and real.”

So, there you have it. A baring of a composer’s soul and struggles, as well as his joys and comforts. I hope you enjoy it, it really is quite beautiful.

Don’t forget to follow Jon on Instagram, and have a great day!

-AMS

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/03/20/death-is-a-beautiful-cobalt-blue-release-day/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59832

prisca posting in

fic_promptly

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

Warhead On Legs

What Goes Around Comes Around

The Missing Middle

Just One Thing (21 March 2026)

I'm useless, but not for long - the future is coming on

Daily Happiness

Follow Friday 3-20-26

View From a Hotel Window, 3/20/26: San Diego

Music Friday

i laugh in the face of danger

Also, fuck cancer

Recommendation: nothing and everything - Hamlets vid

I don't have a blood clot! However, my car is likely dead.

Daily Check In.

And four hours north of Portland, the radio flips on

Medicare advantage, again

The Friday Five: Journal History

The Friday Five

My Darling Dreadful Thing, by Johanna van Veen

Paul’s Vintage Bicycle Museum in Elizabeth, Illinois

“Death is a Beautiful Cobalt Blue” Release Day!

Friday, March 20 - Dating

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