Everybody's sick for something that they can find fascinating

I ATEN'T DEAD

Sun, 07 Aug 2011 22:20:51 GMT

Wow, have I really not put anything on here for over a year? Sheesh. Weeeeeeell, I guess you all got the hint that I was on an unannounced hiatus.

Here is what has happened to me in the last year:

-Got burnout. Got signed off work and slept about 20 hours per day (seriously not exaggerating) for about three months.
-Went back to work (eventually). Realised I was still pretty ill and took a good long while building back to full time.
-Went to Cuba for best friend's birthday.
-Quit work because job was the problem and was going downhill again.
-Grandpa went into hospital. Visited him at least every other day.
-Found new job, with toy company!
-Grandpa died the day after starting new job.
-Met cousins I didn't know I had at Grandpa's funeral.
-Moved house.
-Got permanent job at toy company.
-Car failed MOT and would need an engine rebuild to pass. Sold car.

In short, I had one of the worst years of my life, and it's only just now building back up again.

So this hiatus is likely to continue ... for a while.

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I want a mini. That has nothing to do with this post.

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 20:39:04 GMT

I am going to do something I have never done before, and recommend that you watch Top Gear.

Not Top Gear in general. Oh no. Just this one specific Top Gear. And not even all of it! Once the main programme starts, skip along until the time reads 48:52.

And watch something of pure beauty and joy, during which I laughed so hard I stopped breathing.

EDIT: Bollocks, forgot BBC IPlayer doesn't work outside the UK. Have a YouTube version, part one. And two.

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Thu, 03 Jun 2010 16:04:35 GMT

As is probably obvious, I've not been around much for the last little while.

Part of the reason I've not been around much is evidenced by the fact that I just got paid £250 in overtime. Yeah, my work went bananas, but hey, they paid me moneys!

Which I promptly blew on a PS3 and a couple of games.

...so I probably won't be around for another little while.

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I voted today!

Thu, 06 May 2010 18:00:50 GMT

And while voting I found that the BNP are standing in my area. Ugh.

Speaking of the BNP, it is rather awesome that this got caught on tape. BNP candidate being filmed telling a couple of Asian men "there's more of us than there are of you" and throwing the first hit in a punch-up? Fabulous. Please continue to expose your bigotry in a public and embarrassing manner.

(And it shouldn't need saying, but just in case: I did not vote for the BNP. I nearly voted for the Pirate Party, though...)

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Three guesses on who has norovirus...

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 07:58:54 GMT

...and your first two don't count.

I spent the entire night vomiting roughly once every hour-hour and a half. This is not as much fun as it sounds. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on your perspective), my Mum is also off with norovirus; hers started earlier in the week. Anyone who tells you it's a 24-hour bug is LYING - the nausea and diarrhoea can continue for much longer.

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Mon, 12 Apr 2010 22:22:58 GMT

This weekend I saw the play Ghost Stories. It was, quite frankly, terrifying. I hadn't realised that I'm that much of a wimp. Any play that manages to make the phrase, "Daddy's got meow meow" into the creepiest thing I have ever heard is deserving of commendation. (I want to see it again, since I spent most of the play this time around hiding my face in my friend's shoulder and therefore missed a lot.)

Anyway. One of the ghost stories takes place while someone is driving on a country road late at night.

Today, I visited a friend who lives in the middle of bumfuck nowhere and had to drive back.

Late at night.

In the dark.

On a country road.

Needless to say, I was irrationally terrified and had the lights on main beam nearly the whole way back.

I tried many ways of distracting myself. I spoke out loud. I tried plotting fic. I thought about the next thing I have planned to do in the game I'm playing. Nothing really worked, because the sensory inputs I was receiving were too similar to the play to break the association.

Then I had a brainwave! I would turn on the radio! There wasn't a radio in the play, so a) it was different and b) I could listen to music.

So I reach over and turn on the radio. And from the speakers comes the haunting refrain:

"What's that coming over the hill, is it a monster, is it a monster..."

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Tue, 30 Mar 2010 15:27:42 GMT

Dittoing dragovianknight's recent case of the dun-wannas, I dun wanna finish writing this application form.

It's a freakin' awesome opportunity to be paid upwards of £15K per year to train as a social worker. I've got the skills, I've got the experience, I've got the desire...

...but I dun wanna write the application.

It's due tomorrow. :(

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[Fic] Ugly

Sun, 28 Mar 2010 21:31:00 GMT

I was digging through my folder of half-written fics (there are twenty-two separate fics in there, I kid you not) and found this, which is still only half-finished but what the hell, I'm posting it anyway.

Title: Ugly
Pairing: Er. Sort of Sai/Sakura? With background Naruto/Hinata.
Warnings: Sai. Being Sai. 'Nuff said. Aaaaaand I'm writing het, but it's awesome because it's Sai and Sakura. Well. Sort of.
Summary: “Hey, Sai, if you’ve got the hots for Sakura, why do you keep calling her ugly?”

( Ugly )

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It hurts.

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 23:28:17 GMT

Dear Customer,

Thanks for preordering Dragon Age on PC from GAME.co.uk.

Your Begans Bow In-Game Weapon code is: ****-****-****-****,

To access this please follow these instructions:

Create a PlayStation® Network account by visiting eu.playstation.com/registration on a PC.

* Sign in to your PlayStation® Network account.

* Visit PlayStation® Store by visiting eu.playstation.com/registration on a PC.

* Select the Redeem Codes icon, found in the top right hand corner of the Store Top.

* Enter the 12 character promotion code shown above and select Continue.

* Follow the on-screen instructions to redeem the promotion code.

Thanks again for preordering from GAME.co.uk.

The GAME.co.uk Customer Services Team

Please Note: The code is case sensitive and must be entered exactly as displayed. The above code is required to access your pre-order bonus. Keep it safe and don't share it with anyone. It cannot be replaced if lost. Codes are limited to 1 code per PlayStation Account.

I pre-order the PC version of a game and get a PS3 pre-order bonus. WTF.

Not that I really care about the pre-order item. But still. What.

Edit: Okay, I can still get it in the PC version. Even so, major fail.

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Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:10:48 GMT

I just put a load of washing out on the washing line. And now I'm out of breath, shaky, and exhausted. I hate being ill.

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Ugh. Ill.

Wed, 17 Mar 2010 19:07:41 GMT

I have flu. Not just a cold, flu. Temperature, sweating, oh-god-someone-cut-my-head-off-my-sinuses-are-killing-me flu. And this is my fifth day of being ill despite being at home mainlining orange juice.

...This is my excuse for why I just bought the PS1 versions of FF7 and FF8 off Amazon.

(I also have the Dragon Age expansion pack, which will be released tomorrow, on preorder. And the next "Gentlemen Bastards" book by Scott Lynch on preorder, although that's not going to be released until May. Shh.)

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Noooooobody tells him what to do!

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 10:51:57 GMT

I feel that I must now update you all on what I did when I did not have internet.

Its name is Dragon Age: Origins.

There are many reasons why Dragon Age is awesome. Many, many reasons. Canonical gay is one of them. (There are four romance options in the game - two male and two female - and regardless of your PC's gender, you can have a romance with three of them in one playthrough.)

Other reasons are as follows, with informative headers. ( Very informative. Yes. )

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Feed me, Stanley!

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:49:47 GMT

I hate my metabolism. On average, when I'm sitting on my arse doing nothing, I last maybe two or three hours before I need to eat something.

I am one of those people who can eat anything and everything and not put on weight. I'm constantly told, "Oh, you're so lucky!" What the people saying that don't realise, however, is that I have to eat that amount to stop myself from feeling horribly unwell.

I have to have three large meals per day and I have to eat at least one snack in between each meal, or else I get joint aches, headaches, can't concentrate and end up sleeping twelve or fourteen hours a night because I'm so exhausted. Since glucose levels also affect the serotonin system, if I don't get enough to eat I can easily have a depressive episode and stop thinking rationally on top of all that.

The "not thinking rationally" part really does not help, because I have before ended up trapped in a cycle where I've concluded that I will feel better about myself if I lose weight, so I eat even less, so I get more depressed and more irrational and - the phrase "downward spiral" is rather apt.

The point of all this is that I have a date tomorrow, with a girl who is bubbly and weird and wholly herself and generally awesome, but who is also a model and a natural size six (UK size - US size two, I think) and doesn't understand my pain. I know from experience that she can function perfectly well for 72 hours on one meal - that one weekend I had to do the same, and I was so unwell as a result that it took me a full week to recover.

And. Um. I'm not sure there are any food places where we're going. Oops.

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Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:51:08 GMT

I am alive. I have been hiding from the internet for personal reasons. I should have known it would take RAGE to bring me back.

LJ suspends 186 accounts of sex offenders registered in New York.

RAGE.

Let's start from the top, shall we?

1) Having read through the comments and the link provided in the post, neither LJ nor the New York Attorney General's Office have provided a reason for the suspension that is more than "they're registered sex offenders".

2) Apparently, pissing on a tree in public can get you on New York's sex offender register.

3) So LJ have suspended these accounts apparently without proof either that the internet was related to the offender's offences or that their current use of LJ is questionable.

4) Soooooo... That little human right about not receiving punishment without trial? Yeah.

5) Soooooo... That little body of research demonstrating the links between social isolation and sexual reoffending? That body "little" enough to form the basis of professional work with sex offenders (like the Thames Valley Sex Offender Treatment Programme) and government-funded projects (like Circles of Support and Accountability)? Yeah. Not that a social networking site like LJ has anything to do with valid social outlets. Of course not.

If those accounts were being used by people to commit further offences, or if those accounts were the accounts of people who had already been convicted of internet-related sexual offences, fine. In that case, LJ's move is a good move.

The problem is that neither LJ nor the Attorney General's Office are saying that's the case. They're just saying they've removed the accounts of registered sex offenders. And that's not good enough.

Law enforcement agencies have a duty to protect the public. However, any actions they take in the execution of that duty must be proportionate to the crime and/or risk, and must not unduly increase the risk of reoffending. Actions must also be accountable.

These actions? Stink.

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Sun, 27 Dec 2009 21:20:47 GMT

I have had no internet since 22/12/09. Posting this from friend's house since I don't know when I'll get internet back. If you need to get hold of me, call!

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TMI post

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:48:07 GMT

1. It's snowing outside.

2. I may have swine flu.

3. ( Now for the TMI. )

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Help?

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:01:23 GMT

Can anyone recommend any good anime series/tv programmes/movies that I can stick on my lovely new iPod? Its screen is so beautiful, I must put pretty things on it, but I can think of nothing.

(Technically, the iPod is my Christmas present, but since I bought it with my own monies and people are going to give me contributions towards it which I don't actually get until Christmas, I'm damned well using it now. XD)

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Ell oh ell.

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:25:01 GMT

Today, I was called "fat-arsed left-wing socialist fucking cunts!"

Well, okay, it was more that a guy was shouting at the world rather than at me in particular, hence the plural "cunts". Although he was looking straight at me for a while, until he moved on - he was walking along shouting at the world and everyone in it, particularly the women.

He was pretty clearly trying to intimidate, but I found it really quite funny. I think it was the "left-wing socialist" part that got me, as it was said with such venom he clearly meant it as an insult. Which has about as much effect as saying, "You British female!" and meaning it as an insult. Yes, I am a British female. Yes, I am a left-wing socialist. Your point?

Oh well. It's only a matter of time before he's arrested for section 5 public order offences. Note to British people and visitors to the UK: if you see someone behaving like that, and a police officer asks you if they caused you alarm or distress, say yes. That's the terminology needed to charge them.

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...

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:45:18 GMT

Dear Nose,

We've been together a long time. You may have a tendency to itch at the most embarrassing moments, and you may be unable to decide whether you want to be straight or snubbed, but generally speaking, you've done your job and I have no complaints.

Right now, however, you and my sinuses are ganging up on me to make my life hell. I am a snotty mess and my bin is overflowing with tissues. My head is pounding and my cheekbones feel like they're going to explode. Just remember, if they do, they're taking you with them.

I would quite like to be able to breathe again and maybe actually taste what I'm eating. I'd appreciate it if you'd cooperate.

Best wishes,

Your body.

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...WTF.

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:44:43 GMT

My interview? Was seven minutes long. It started at five to two. I got back home at half past two.

I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF THAT'S GOOD OR BAD.

Not-edit: Okay, apparently it is, because I just got offered the job as I was writing this. Woohoo!

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Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:45:34 GMT

I HAVE AN INTERVIEW ON WEDNESDAY. AHHHH.

*huff*huff*huff*

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TLR

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:25:37 GMT

Soooooo. I have been playing quite a lot of The Last Remnant - I'm currently just about to head into the Aqueducts in Nagapur and I've done all but two of the sidequests available. I'm saving those ones for grinding purposes (Cosmos Maiden and Wisdom's Echo). Both Rush and David have randomly learnt Blackout II, skipping Blackout, without me even quite knowing how that happened. Huh.

But. EMMA. Stupid bloody Squenix and their Aeris-style whallops. (Warning: major spoilers in the video.) I am also now deeply afraid of the Conqueror. ~~Is it wrong that I want to see Conqueror/Emma now?~~

It says something about the way my mind works, though, that I'm not yet at the end of the first disk and I've already daydreamed up a dystopian AU where Rush is on the Conqueror's side.

However, stupid bloody Windows Vista keeps taking exception to TLR. Among other things, it has a) randomly sped up the battle speed in the middle of one battle and now I can't get it back to normal so Rush & Co look like the Energiser Bunny on speed, b) has bluescreened TWICE while I was playing the game, and c) keeps freezing the game in the middle of fights. Sometimes it comes back, sometimes not.

It says something that in the eight-odd years that I used Windows prior to getting the new laptop with Vista, I never once had a computer bluescreen on me. Since getting Vista? Three times in a year. Twice in the last fortnight.

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Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:28:21 GMT

Russell Howard is ridiculously funny. I want to go see him live. XD

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Good news + ebil heh heh heh,

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:41:18 GMT

I PASSED MY DRIVING TEST!

And I just babysat for two young boys and convinced them that they were no longer allowed to ride their bikes until they passed a second cycling proficiency test.

I did tell them the truth eventually. XD

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Freud would be proud.

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:39:30 GMT

...why is the Gae Bolg a giant penis?

What the fuck, Squenix. What. The. Fuck.

(The Last Remnant finally finished downloading, so I am currently sort-of levelling by cycling through the Gaslin Caves and the Ruins of Robellia Castle. Rule of thumb with any RPG: if you have an opportunity to do stupid amounts of levelling really early on, do so.)

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