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  • Silvertree

    Mod post: No wishlist posts in blogs

    By Silvertree

    Please be aware that we do not permit swap-related content on profiles or in blogs. Please post this content only in the For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted forums, or in the Wishlists topic. ~from Swapping 101  Thanks!
    • 5 comments
    • 4,218 views
Is Anybody Out There?
 

DSL and stuff

Okay! Here's the deal, folks. I have no idea. I got an auto-reply from the watchdog group saying that they'd be gone until after the 20th, so nobody has gotten in touch with us, which I find really strange... Hopefully they can do something about this, but I'm pretty sure my dsl won't work without an active phone line in the house, so I may be gone for a bit. If that is the case, please remember: Happy holidays, whatever you celebrate! I'm thinking of you and will be going through massive bpal.org withdrawls. I love you guys!
smallvoice

smallvoice

1
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Just thinking aloud...

I don't like having rare scents. I thought I did, but it feels like there's too much responsibility involved, especially when they're scents I don't -love-. I'm over-anxious about swapping those scents, because I'd be really sad if they got stolen or lost in the mail. I'd be over the moon for a bottle of, say, Storyville, but that's because I can't imagine I'd ever want to get rid of it.   I held onto the Monster Bait scents for WAY too long, because none of them really worked for me, but I didn't want to regret getting rid of them. I swapped (or maybe sold?) Red Lantern and Smut way, way too quickly. I can't remember what I swapped them for- I think I may've gotten Lotus Moon out of Red Lantern, so that's a decent trade- I love Lotus Moon. Anyway, I digress.   Dude. I am having anxiety attacks non-stop. I think it's sugar and holiday stress and, oh yeah, my dad's first wife is dying. And my sister in law is being a complete bitch to my brother, which just blows my mind. It blows my mind that he is in a relationship where his wife can just act like that and, in her mind, it's completely acceptable to do that.   Yet, I really do love her and I think she loves my brother, and I know he loves her, so... it's frustrating. And I can't even think about what would happen to him if they did divorce, because she would fight DIRTY for custody of the kid, I think, and... yeah, my mind is just f'n racing right now. I don't want them to have a bad relationship. He deserves a really solid marriage. And then I feel guilty for judging from the outside, but I can't believe she would call him up like that to just... screech and call him every name in the book because her anxiety is bad. I get it. I thankfully don't know what it's like to be in her head, but I know a bit about anxiety, and she really needs help. She needs to take her f'n medication, she needs therapy for coping skills, and she needs to be accountable for how she behaves despite her condition. Those are hard things, but you learn to do them for the things in life that really matter... like your family.   I don't know all the ins and outs of married life. I'm newly married and I've only lived with my husband for just under a year. So I know I'm not speaking from a point where I can say I really understand what it's like to be living with somebody in a long term relationship for 6+ years, but it still seems like appalling behaviour.   The watchdog group still hasn't contacted me. Our line will be disconnected (rather than the service being interrupted- this means the number will be gone, etc.) on the 18th, and I think that will screw with our DSL connection. Can anyone tell me for sure if it will? I guess I could call Verizon to check on it. This is just giving me fits.   I'm applying for a student loan so that we can dig ourselves out of this hole we're in at least a little bit. My husband is applying for financial aid and plans to start school in the fall, which is very good news. It gives him a goal to focus on, rather than just idly sitting by waiting for more paperwork about his application for disability. He's still doing that, but school is a more immediate thing that is in his control.   My sister better really be moving back into town. I miss her, and it would be really great to get to know her kids. So, check it out! She's going to school for hair-styling, and we were talking recently, and I had commented that this summer I was going to chop all my hair off and give the length to Locks of Love, and I was thinking about dying it blue. My 40-year-old (and before people get offended, keep reading!) conservative, LDS sister was ALL FOR IT. She wants to do it. I love my sister. I would also love very much to look like her when I am 40. Actually, I would like very much to look like her 40-year-old self right now. I don't know that I've gushed about my sister enough here, so I'm sorry if I'm repeating myself, but it simply must be said, and my thoughts are running a mile a minute right now. (I just emailed the watchdog group. I really hope they get back to me.) Anyway, the awesome part about my sister is that she's always been beautiful, but she's never been snobbish about it. And I'm not being generous because I care about my sister, she is everything I would love to be, only I'd keep my hair. She is tall and thin and her bone structure is gorgeous- but she is the kindest person ever. She's strong and smart and really thoughtful and... okay, I miss talking to my sister.   I am so very glad that I got to have siblings, thanks to my dad's first wife. I do love them, though we are quite different in age ranges. I think we'll all four be together at Christmas, if my sister in law isn't a complete bitch, or if my brother can get time off- which he should be able to.   Okay, I think I've gone on long enough. I am just all over the place right now.
smallvoice

smallvoice

3
This Old Snark
 

R.E.M.'s optimistic nihilism

Packaging reads: Disco, optional   So, after a brief brush with the concept of single-income-dom a few months ago (that was circumvented with a lateral career move), it looks like The Mister has finally reached the end of his rope with his current employer. He's meeting with his supervisor sometime today to announce his intention of resigning from his position effective the end of this month.   Snarky will surely panic later, but currently she is feeling oddly fine about things. It's not the end of the world... just the end of the world as she knows it. And when she looks around, she sees all sorts of things that can be trimmed away to make their impending financial strain less panic-inducing.   Snarky grew up not quite poor, but very, very frugally. She can re-create some of the methods her parents employed to ensure that the important things remain covered.   Normally, and this was proven in very recent history with The Mister's last "I've had it!" moment, Snarky does not handle the threat to her creature comforts well. But this morning when The Mister reached over to take her hand, it was shaking violently enough that she thought he was rapidly squeezing her hand for some unknown reason. She gave him one of his emergency panic attack pills, cooked him a quick breakfast, and went out into the rain. Now she's wondering if she should have stayed behind to provide moral support while he prepared for this life-changing day.   In slightly better-perhaps news, she pointed The Mister to the "Be an Actuary" site that antimony suggested a while back, and he was very intrigued. Turns out the actuarial field was one of his top picks based on some sort of career choice evaluation he did a while ago.   In the meantime, Snarky knows The Mister well enough that he will land on his feet. It will be rough going, but they will get there.
darkitysnark

darkitysnark

5
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Grades!

I did something right with psychology- I got a 3.8!! Math is, of course a 3.4 (curses! I was hoping to make it to a 3.5, but it just didn't happen.) and the fitness center grade was a 4.0. So my quarterly GPA is a 3.83 and my cumulative is 3.42. I'm just sort of thrilled over psych right now. Hopefully my classes for next quarter will have similar results.   In other news, I'm now a super member on the forums!
smallvoice

smallvoice

4
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Haiku

I don't think I've tried writing poetry in over a decade, and it's been way longer since I tried haiku. I have seen a lot of people expressing things through haiku on the forums and thought I'd try my hand at it. Eh, we'll see. It's 5/7/5, right?   Disability Is such a pain in the ass and in the wallet   The famous Snake Oil simply does not work for me such disappointment   O, Katharina You, of the fruity white musk always comforting   You lovely readers subjected to my meager attempt to create   Right... That was fun. I think I shall have to continue! Some other day.   My grades are available technically today. I hope I didn't completely blow psych. I am really excited about my new classes, but I shall be extra busy. More math! Plus loads of reading to do for my Lord of the Rings class. I'm most nervous about that one, to be honest.
smallvoice

smallvoice

3
Sourball Ho!
 

Finally! *whew*

I have a job! Woo! This has been a long 2 months, and while I've tried not to accelerate into PANIC!! mode, I can't say I haven't been nervous. This was where I worked before my last job, and they even offered me a raise over what I was making before. Scoreboard!   Seriously, I was hoping this would work out, as I liked my job, had a bunch of friends there and it was an easy commute. Now I can shop! I was really trying to keep a lid on my normal splurgey favorites, like candles and incense and shoes, and now I can shop without (much) guilt. Here's what my list is to eventually purchase:   --Possets: Santa Fart, plus Luminaria? Madame X? --Long-sleeve BPAL t-shirt --New cute black shoes – babygirlboutique.com had cute ones --Joann fabrics: apron pattern, tape measure, pin cushion/sharpener, fabric pen, iron? I can't find our old one --Stuff-o-rama bracelets --Fred Soll incense --feMaledictions incense, perfume samples --My Lady’s Chamber incense --Reprodepot – Texas tablecloth, Las Vegas buttons, more fabric! --Love & Rockets back issues, Locas in Love (Penny Century issues), subscription? --Mr. Beer -- I haven't made beer in a while, this would be fun to get into again --DVDs: Buffy, Angel, All the President’s Men 30th anniversary edition; Mel Brooks (Young Frankenstein, History of the World)   Yes, I keep a list of stuff I want to buy if I had lots of funds. I rotate them so I'm not buying so much at once (i.e., perfume or incense). Who me, materialistic?
dawndie

dawndie

6
Forum Updates and News
 

Invision released version 2.2 of IP.Board

Invision, the company that developed the forum software we use, recently released the next version of the forum software. This doesn't mean that downtime is imminent - we'll announce it a few days before we begin the upgrade. But, it is coming.   If you want to see what the default forum looks like with version 2.2, you can visit the Invision forum. I don't believe they've got any mods up, but I could be wrong.   One of the more interesting changes is a slight change in how the warning system works -- in addition to being able to give warnings and reverse them, moderators will be able to add notes. I'm not sure how exactly we'll use them, but I'm guessing that things that aren't warnable on a first offense (things like violating our signature image restrictions, or having an avatar that doesn't meet our work safe standard) will be noted in there. One thing that I do know: I've already modified the system slightly, based on feedback we've gotten - now, whenever you get a new note (beit a new warning or just a note), you'll get a PM letting you know that it has been issued.   And that brings another change to mind: no longer will people with full in-boxes have their PMs from the moderating staff bounced. Right now, if someone's in-box is full, we can't send PMs and in fact, have to give them a bigger capacity to contact them.
ipb

ipb

0
Do you have a flag?
 

Exceptional books to movies (sort of)

I love Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books. I think I've read almost all of them. They're funny and clever, and I like the characters.   My husband recently bought some Nero Wolfe TV shows on DVD -- apparently this was a series that A&E produced at some point in the last few years. When he told me that he was getting them I raised an eyebrow and expressed skepticism. I told him that I seriously doubted they could find any actor who could pull off Nero Wolfe, and since Archie Goodwin is my favorite Stout character I didn't want to see him butchered by some Hollywood ignoramuses who probably never even bothered to read the books.   What a surprise. I love this series. The guy who plays Wolfe (Maury Chaykin) does a fantastic job. He's a little more shouty than I pictured Wolfe, and he's also not quite as heavy as I pictured Wolfe. But other than that he's very good.   Archie Goodwin is spot on. Timothy Hutton plays him, and he's also one of the producers. I think he does some directing, too. This guy, obviously, has read these books. He's perfect as Archie Goodwin, too. He looks like Archie and talks like Archie and is basically exactly right. I'm very impressed.   On top of all that, they stick to the stories as perfectly as they can in this format, and they even use Stout's dialog. They don't take many liberties. And the whole thing is very pretty. The sets are beautiful and the lighting is lovely.   All in all, this is a highly successful adaptation. Apparently A&E cancelled it after only a couple of seasons, which is a great disappointment. I would have loved to see a lot more of these.
filigree_shadow

filigree_shadow

2
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Solstice and clairsentience

Yeah, well, hey... I haven't written here in a while. I had to really buckle down to work at my job and something had to go, so meandering around on the internet was one of them. In addition, my winter solstice mood has been coming on, and that's not really a bad thing. When the days get shorter, I start getting quieter and more contemplative. I think it's reasonable behavior for a North American mammal. I see so much really bad behavior this time of the year that reminds me a lot of how animals in captivity act if you jam them into too small a space and don't give them enough food. Seriously -- you can go to a mall and see that sort behavior being acted out all over. I haven't seen anyone chewing on another shopper's ear, literally, but I've seen figurative versions of it in the tiny little forays that I've made out into the retail realm.   So no, I haven't been spending my time at the mall. I just completed some shopping online on Saturday. The internet is quite the blessing for the semi-hibernating North American shopping mammal. Except don't try eBay; you get into online captive behavior there.   Have any of you experienced what could be called clairsentience? It's the perception of energy fields through physical sensations. Scientific-rational types consider it hooey, because it's not a regularly occurring measurable phenomenon, but since our nervous systems send out energetic impulses are measured all the time with machines, I can't really understand why they think the human body isn't able to detect external impulses on its own. Any everyone has this ability, it just depends on how open or closed off to it we happen to be.   I'm just asking because it happens to me, and I think there's a lot of cool stories out there that most people won't talk about, lest they be considered "weird." And what I think is weird that that we can't acknowledge or talk about it without being seen as spooky. I was reading the New York Times yesterday, and being the incurable romantic that I am, I was looking at the weekly Sunday feature about a couple who had just gotten married. The woman in the couple featured yesterday said that during their second or third date, she felt a strong pang in her chest and she knew that something very special was happening between the two of them. How cool! There are so many people who would say she just had indigestion or an anxiety attack, and I get so tired of that "it's only..." blow-off to any mystical or emotional reading of a physical clue.   I do know that there are people who get those responses and then cut and run from whatever made them feel that way, because they find it scary and it makes them feel insecure. There is nothing spooky about it to me, it's a part of being human and having fully-functioning senses. There's a lot of mystery to it, but that's what makes it so remarkable. And because you never know when it's going to happen, you can't sit around and watch for it, which makes it even better.   So if you have stories, tell them... I'm listening!
valentina

valentina

6
This Old Snark
 

She's Crafty, S'more.

(Great, now Snarky is craving graham crackers and marshmellows and melty dark chocolate.)   Very quickly, as Snarky's back is starting to protest after a weekend of bent-over-the-coffee-table-exact-o-knifing, she's about 80% finished with the DeathRockFamily freezer paper stenciled t-shirts!   Step One: select toddler-appropriate imagery and use as template for freezer paper stencil.   Step Two: iron stencil onto targeted surface (in this case, American Apparel's toddler-sized raglan t-shirt) using another piece of freezer paper as back on other side of surface to add stability and prevent bleed-through.   Step Three: develop big head from success of first project, proceed to go insane and decide to stencil text onto next t-shirt. Because you are also slightly masochistic.   Step Four: covet your own work. (Note: the bear trap is just one application of black ink, but the toaster shirt has three coats because Snarky didn't have light colored paint intended for dark surfaces.)   Step Five: go even more bat-crap-crazy and decide to shoot for the moon on your next design. Halfway through, shake fist (while carefully aiming exact-o knife away from face) and ask WHYYYYYY?!?!?!   Step Six: Just walk away from the stencil. Take a breather. Come back tomorrow.   Snarky will post finished DeathRockMama shirt picks tomorrow (hopefully).  
darkitysnark

darkitysnark

8
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Swapping continued

I'm glad to know there are less swapliftings than there used to be, but I'm wondering if the ones that do happen now are on a larger scale- I know MT stiffed a lot of people, and I know at least one other person was left hanging by DM. I'm just very grateful for the swap feedback area; it was an excellent addition and it really does make swaplifting a more public offense.   With regards to my own swapping, I'm considering a policy of having the swapper send me their end first... but that just seems wrong. It feels wrong. If I don't trust them, why should they trust me, y'know? Then again, I think a third swaplifting would be extremely hurtful to me.   As much as I hate losing the CT and not having the bottle and decants from Mistress Tera or Duck Mountain- or the money- I still feel like I've come out on top, which is a wierd way of saying it, but I can't think of a better expression. It's just that the people here are so very generous, that all the kindness and the frimps and socks and notes of encouragement more than balance out the missing bottles. I feel sad and cheated by those people, but I don't feel cheated at all by karma. Does that make any sense at all?   I love the perfumes and the labbies and it's all well and good, but without the community here, I think I would have lost interest, which sounds insulting to the lab, but I don't mean it like that. I've just never been a perfume person, so I don't know that I would have been so drawn in without this network of amazing people. This place has become a sanctuary for me, and I am so grateful for that.   So, in the end, I have just one thing to say:   :joy:  
smallvoice

smallvoice

4
Druby's Blog
 

Complete Wishlist

My ever changing and growing wishlist.   5mls - The Carpathian Mountains - Rose Red - Lucy's Kiss - Dee - Red Devil     LE/Discontinued/Unreleased: - Evening Star - Lenore - Spirits of the Dead - The haunted palace - Cancer - Taurus - Sagittarius - Chypre - The Darkling Thrush - Blood Moon - Flower Moon - Hungry Ghost Moon - Milk moon - Pink Moon - Sleepy Moon - Kindly Moon - Miskatonic University - Lump of coal - Snow Angel - Spanked - Chiroptera - Oisín - Enraged Bunny Musk - Gingerbread Poppet - Graveyard dirt - Pink Phoenix - Monster Bait: Closet - Monster Bait: Underbed - Monster Bait: Underpants - Spooky - Sugar Cookie - Sugar Skull - The peacock queen   Carnaval Diabolique - The candy butcher - Mme. Moriarty, Misfortune Teller - Doc Constantine - Theodosius, The Legerdemain - Antonino, The carny talker     Single Notes - Lavender - Lemon Verbena - White musk - Neroli - Vetiver     Bewitching Brews - Antique Lace - Arcana - Bliss - Blood Pearl - Brimstone - Dana O’Shee - Delirium - Fae - I died for beauty - The Jersey Devil - Lightening - Mata Hari - Morgause - Namaste - Ode on Melancholy - Omen - Ouija - Phantasm - Saint-Germain - Tavern of Hell - Tempest - Veil   Funeral Oils - Darkness - Eternal - The Ghost - Haunted - House of night - Jazz Funeral - Midnight - The reaper and the flowers - Shroud - Twilight - Zombi   Dark Elements - Burial - Hurricane - Undertow   Sin & Salvation - The bow & Crown of conquest - Death on a pale horse - Dorian - Hellfire - Jailbait - Malediction - Sin - Gluttony - Greed - Wrath   Love Potions - Bordello - Casanova - Depraved - Endymion - Forbidden Fruit - Hunger - Jezebel - Le Serpent Qui Danse - Les Bijoux - Maiden - O - Psyche - Satyr - Spellbound - Temptation - Vicomte De Valmont - Wanda     Diabolus - Black Phoenix - Horreur Sympathique - Imp - Kitsune-Tsuki - Kuang Shi - Marquise de Merteuil - Phobos - Serpent’s Kiss - Villain - Wicked   Mad Tea Party - Cheshire cat - The dormouse - Drink me - Eat Me - The mock turtle’s lessons - The red queen - Two, Five & Seven   Illyria - Juliet - Katharina - Oberon   Wanderlust - Athens - Cairo - Glasgow - Hollywood Babylon - Moscow - New Orleans - Pontarlier - Port royal - Venice - Whitechapel   Rappaccini’s Garden - Black Rose - Blood Rose - Love-lies-bleeding - Moon Rose Excolo - Lilith   Voodoo Blends - All night long - Come to me - Love me   Somnium    
Druby

Druby

0
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Adventures in Swapping

I think I realized why this recent swaplifting has me so more upset than the first one did. I think it's because I lost a unique bottle in this swap, whereas I'd just paid Mistress Tera for the bottle and decants the first time it happened. But this time... My Chaos Theory is just GONE. I can't swap for it again. There isn't anymore of it. It was one of a kind, and it was mine, and... yeah. It's not anymore. And I don't have anything to show for it.   I'm thinking of sending them both Christmas cards (or holiday cards, I guess) and asking politely for a refund of what I gave them in it, but then I just get too angry and don't even want to deal with it.   I think I might sell my bottles from here on out. Hoping for the best is just wearing on me.   Of course, I won't. I'm too addicted to swapping. Here's the thing, though- I can't even say that I'll just limit it to reliable swappers, because both of these people were reliable prior to swapping with me. WTF? Please, please, stop choosing the time that I'm swapping with you to wig out and leave everyone hanging. I think I included frimps in with the CT.
smallvoice

smallvoice

6
Just Sniffing Through
 

#4 - Bliss

A shot of pure, self-indulgent euphoria! A scent that is very, very wicked in its own way: the serotonin-slathered scent of pure milk chocolate. (GC - Bewitching Brews)   Imp: Creamy milk chocolate.   Wet: Ack! That sickening smell of too much melted bittersweet chocolate. It's briefly overpowering but I'm giving it a little time to mellow.   Dry: It got a little better. I have this cocoa butter lotion from Jergens or some other Walgreens brand, and it smells exactly like Bliss once it's mellowed. It's nice, and I'll have to see if my boyfiend stays true to his word by not keeping his teeth off tasty-smelling me.   Verdict?: Imp only. I won't wear it often enough to warrant a bottle.
hackess

hackess

0
Just Sniffing Through
 

#3 - House of Mirrors

Antique amber frames a series of distorted, eternally warping clear crystal and glass notes. (LE - Carnival Noir)   I got a 5mL of this from happygophucky in a fairly unbalanced swap (I definitely came out ahead!) because she's unable to wear aquatic scents due to asthma. It found a good home!   Bottle: Crystalline and a hint of citrus.   Wet & Dry: I initially feared the amber note, but it's gorgeous and soft. The crystal notes remind me of the ozone I love in Lightning. Drydown is quick, but I get wafts of it all day and don't feel the need to reapply.   Verdict: This one stays on my shelf for when I'm not wearing rose blends.
hackess

hackess

0
Just Sniffing Through
 

#2 - Two, Five & Seven

A huge bouquet of squished rose petals: Bulgarian rose, Somalian rose, Turkish rose, Damascus rose, red and white rose, tea rose, wine rose, shrub roses, rose, rose, rose…   …and just an itty bitty bit of green grass. (GC - Mad Tea Party)   I can already tell I'm addicted to rose scents.   Two, Five & Seven was one of the first imps I ordered from BPAL almost a year ago.   Imp: Roses.   Wet: Roses.   Dry: Roses.   I love this. It's not too cloying, and the drydown leaves the roses smelling sweet - not like the potpourri in your grandmother's closet. Has great throw and wear - I usually repply once during the day just because I like being surrounded by the scent.   Verdict?: Bottle! Need! More! Roses!
hackess

hackess

0
Just Sniffing Through
 

#1 - Alice

Milk and honey with rose, carnation and bergamot. (GC - Mad Tea Party)   I got this because I love carnations and roses, and wanted to like the honey notes (though the SN of Honey goes rancid on me).   Imp: Lightly floral, threatening to go powdery.   Wet: Heavy on the carnation. Surprisingly creamy.   Dry: This smells exactly like chai tea on my skin! Pity it fades pretty quickly, because I can't stop sniffing my wrist. I've reapplied twice today because the scent is gone after about two hours. I like this one a lot, but I think I may have to swap it away because it doesn't last.   Edit: Forget swapping this away - I'm keeping it and hording more! I'll just have to slather.   Verdict?: After the edit, I might need to get myself a bottle of this. LOVE.
hackess

hackess

0
Gaidig's Blog
 

Whys & Wherefores

Here's the grouping I expect them to fall into:   Woodsy:   Anne Bonny - A scent several people recommended for Zoe -- woodsy & sexy to boot! Tintagel - ancient magical forest! Hamadrayd - I remember fiddledragon especially liking this one - deciduous forest.     Aquatic: Sea of Glass - it sounds so clean & makes me think of Ys. Also recommended by zankoku_zen. Neo-Tokyo - Recommended for Serenity & Steam Punk, according to zankoku_zen. Prague - After all the raves on Danube on the Aquatics post, people said this was the river version of the saltier Danube.   Sexy: Blood Kiss - debated between this and Blood Rose for all the reviews, went with zankoku_zen's rec. O - "defiled utterly" sounds more my style than "sugared with vanilla". Lust - Lust in a bottle & highly recommended in the sexy stuff thread & by zankoku_zen. - Slinky subset: Swank - Pommegranate (my favorite fruit) that doesn't sound too sweet like Persephone. Recs in sexy thread. Sin - Described as slinky in a dark blue dress. - Exotic subset: Scherezade - Exotic, highly recommended on the sexy thread & by zankoku_zen.
Gaidig

Gaidig

2
Gaidig's Blog
 

Tolkein

Unlike the Firefly post, there are few suggestions in the Tolkein post for what actually exists. I am trying to revive the thread & steer it that way, though.
Gaidig

Gaidig

0
Gaidig's Blog
 

First Order - Two batches of 6 imps.

Thanks for your help, zankoku_zen.   I am now placing my first order for the following imps:   Bewitching Brews:   Anne Bonny Blood Kiss Hamadrayd Scherezade Swank   Love Potions:   O   Sin & Salvation:   Lust Sea of Glass Sin   Wanderlust:   Neo-Tokyo Prague Tintagel
Gaidig

Gaidig

0
Diplomatka
 

Accumulation

Over the past four days, it has snowed in Kabul. This is strange because usually there isn’t snow until after the first of the year and usually it doesn’t snow for more than a few hours at a time. As a result, the airport has closed. The Kabul airport has no radar equipment, and therefore the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF, i.e. Coalition Forces) who runs the airport would not allow planes to land without three miles visibility. My boss (Suka) has been stuck in Dubai for the past three days and there are consultants and various others stuck either here, in Dubai, in Pakistan and in other parts of Afghanistan. Welcome to the 21st century.   Snow is not the only thing accumulating in Kabul. Consider the following, clear indications that it is time to get the hell out of Dodge:   1. My boss (Dutch) has requested that all international staff submit to him, in sealed envelopes, three proof of life questions in case we get kidnapped. (This reminds me of when my coworker was kidnapped last year and the security guy when to her house to “get some DNA” in case she didn’t come back alive.); 2. This article and 3. The Taliban Code which inclues this passage:   Those NGOs that come to the country under the rule of the infidels must be treated as the government is treated. They have come under the guise of helping people but in fact are part of the regime. Thus we tolerate none of their activities, whether it be building of streets, bridges, clinics, schools, madrases (schools for Koran study) or other works. If a school fails to heed a warning to close, it must be burned. But all religious books must be secured beforehand.   (I work for an NGO.)   Next week I am interviewing for jobs in Africa and Southeast Asia. I can't wait until I can file all the "things I worry about" under "not my problem".
Confection

Confection

0
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Muse's BPAL Scent Wishlist :)

^ Denotes scents I have tried via Imps and have fallen in love with and am longing for a full size bottle   * Are the TOP scents I want to try in each category.   All other scents I'd love to try the Imps (where available!)!   When I buy/trade off, this list will be updated!     This list is MOSTLY a reminder for myself, but I'm adding it to my wishlists 'cause someone I adore suggested to do so. I think she secretly wants some hehe. I'll be buying a 6pack of IMPS every month or so, so this list will deplete quickly and eventually turn into a swap page, lol.   =========================== Bewitching Brews Hymn to Prosperpine ^Empyreal Mist Anne Bonny Incantation Scarecrow Sudha Segara *Leanan Sidhe I Died for Beauty The Coiled Serpent Zephyr Aeval Saint-Germain Veil   -------------------   Funereal Oils Embalming Fluid *Twilight Darkness Haunted Shroud Eternal Sheol   ------------------   Dark Elements *Undertow Hurricane   -----------------   Sin & Salvation Sea of Glass *Black Dahlia Death on a Pale Horse Fallen Envy Gluttony Dirty Anathema Lust Pride The Scales of Deprivation   ------------------   Love Potions The Temptation Snake Oil O Perversion La Belle au Bois Dormant Severin Suspiro *Muse (Of course!) Succubus Saturnalia   ----------------   Diabolus *Wicked Baobhan Sith Rage   ------------------   Mad Tea Party Cheshire Cat The Unicorn *The Queen of Hearts Alice Frumious Bandersnatch Drink Me The Pool of Tears   -----------------   Illyria Titania Oberon Tamora Ophelia Katharina Rosalind *Goneril Regan Desdemona *Juliet Caliban Viola Titus Andronicus   -----------------   Wanderlust *Bayou Uruk Prague *Kyoto Delphi Jezirat al Tennyn Neo-Tokyo Eden Whitechapel Santo Domingo Danube Lyonesse Versailles Port Royal Venice Manhattan Yerevan he Hanging Gardens * Niflheim   ---------------   Ars Draconis * Ladon Tanin'iver Dragon's Musk   ---------------
Muse

Muse

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This Old Snark
 

Snot 'n Snarky Shiksas

Well, Snarky isn't sick. YET. But The Mister is. Woefully so: fever, sinus pressure, just the general nastiness + malaise that tends to strike 'round this time of year.   Snarky fixed him up with a round of Nyquil (he was up all night, which means that Snarky was up all night too ) and set some frozen chicken thighs to thaw in the fridge for some Jewish penicillin tonight.   Actually, there is a type of chicken soup DarkityMa used to make when members of the DarkityFam were under the weather. She had a special clay pot with a sort of funnel in the middle - it looked like a bundt cake pan crossed with a clay donut - that she used to steam up the chicken. The pot sat on top of another pot of boiling water, and the funnel directed the steam into the donut and cooked the chicken she had placed in the bottom of the clay pot. The soup formed from the steam and random cooking juices released by the chicken and aromatics.   Snarky suspects that Chinese mothers and Jewish mothers have a lot in common. Her proof is still pretty flimsy, but this still might be something worth investigating futher: - both provide food, usually in the form of soup, as the panacea of choice (there's the aforementioned chicken soup, plus all manner of sweet soups for sore throats and mucus issues... Snarky disctinctly remembers a sweet soup her mother made with white wood fungus that was supposed to help her blood somehow, and she also recalls a berry/astragalus root tincture/soup she took roughly once a month for her wimmin issues) - both are violently addicted to mah jong - both consider Chinese Food a perfectly good holiday meal alternative/standby - both are highly skilled in guilt-ninjitsu, case in point:   "How many Jewish/Chinese mothers does it take to change a light bulb?" (heavily sighing) "Oh, don't mind me. I don't want to be a bother. I'll just sit in the dark."
darkitysnark

darkitysnark

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