A bottle of cran-grape juice.

(thanks to calloohcallay for the image!)

I went hiking on Saturday with a friend in Blue Hills, which was fun. Turns out this friend and I have both (separately) endevoured to go outside more this summer while we can and do various activities that can only be done in the warm weather, like hiking. So now that we both know of the other's resolution, we at least have built-in activity partners for that!

There. I shared some good news. That being said... here's my rant.

( boo hoo fatty mcfatterson )

So for all of you who give blood and walk away with a sticker that says, "I saved a life today," it may interest you to note that you may not have, directly, saved a life. By that I only mean that there's a good chance your blood isn't going to be transfused into someone else's body.

WTF is THAT supposed to mean?
( Read more... )

http://www.afterellen.com/blog/thelinster/grown-up-alice-comes-to-sy-fy

Syfy (fucking SciFi, damn it!) miniseries premiering Dec 6th...

...modern Alice in Wonderland.

...Alice is a martial artist.

...Kathy Bates is the Queen of Hearts.

...TIM CURRY is Dodo.

I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high, however, because the last time SciFi did this, it was Zooey Deschanel and Allen Cumming in a modern version of Wizard of Oz, and it suuuuucked after I'd been looking forward to it enough to actually get a bunch of friends together to watch the premiere.

How long is long enough to know someone on the internet before meeting them for coffee?

A) Any length of time. It's just coffee, we're not picking out china patterns, for crying out loud.
B) 1-2 weeks. How much can we seriously chat about online before we need to DO something together?
C) 2-3 months. This will weed out most frustrated horndogs who were just looking for a fling.
D) 6-12 months. We want to feel connected before meeting, so it's less awkward and more like catching up with a good friend.
E) There is no acceptable amount of time. It's the internet. I don't want to end up on a "Have you seen me?" poster.

Feel free to explain your answers further in comments.

I first saw this on the news last night. Now I'm reading it everywhere on people's blogs, linking to this or that news story about it, so in case there's anyone left who doesn't know: there are boobs at stake. And also the lives of the women attached to those boobs.

Even though the American Cancer Society is very big on stressing to women that they should take tons of preventative measures like doing self breast exams and getting a mammogram every year starting at age 40, a new government task force has started saying that women shouldn't get them until they're 50, and even then, only every other year. They're also saying that the self-breast exams are more trouble than they're worth.

So... when Obama was talking about health care reform focusing on preventative care... I guess he just meant eating organic vegetables?

The thought process supposedly behind this advice is that most women who are diagnosed are diagnosed after 50 (some are diagnosed in their 40s and a few even in their 30s or late 20s, but whaa whaa, spilled milk, amirite?), making women in their 40s go is needlessly stressful. Also, the added stress can lead to false positives in the test, and sometimes needless biopsies can occur.

Listen, as someone with five ugly keloid scars on her arms, shoulders, and back, four of which were from "needless" biopsies which turned out to be nothing more than funky-looking freckles, let me be the first to say: who gives a shit? It goes like this:
Knowing I don't have cancer > Knowing I can afford treatment to prevent cancer > Knowing I'm pretty.

Telling people it's okay to not get checked out for cancer isn't just cheap, it's fucking irresponsible, bordering on evil. We can only hope insurance companies don't get wind of this and start telling women, "You heard the task force! We're not paying for your mammograms anymore until you're 50! And even then, only every other year!"

Look, I'm still for a public option and everything, but Jesus. If we do get one, let's make it an actual option, shall we? Stand up straight, shit heads. You're America, for crying out loud.

Yesterday I hit 10k!

This is a big deal for me, despite the fact that NaNoWriMo's website claims I should be past 20k by now.

...shut up, you judgemental series of tubes. :-P

Okay, so... saw Jim Carrey's A Christmas Carol in 3-D, because my mom really, really wanted to. She thought it would get her in the Christmas Spirit(tm).

WARNING: LOTS AND LOTS OF SPOILERS. I don't feel guilty about this because 1) it's behind a cut, and 2) It's Dickens. Do you really think you don't know what's going to happen in the movie?

( Read more... )

Syrinx and I are sort of competing this year to see who wins NaNoWriMo. This'll be my 5th year participating, and I've never won before, but fifth time's the charm... I'm pretty sure I've read that somewhere. Probably the Bible. Sure, why not.

Anyway, thus far my word count is currently higher than Syrinx's, and when I got cocky and pointed this out to my mother, she said, "Well, don't forget, she has to work."

Me: "I work!"
Mom: "Yeah, but she works full time, and all kinds of hours. You work, what, twenty-eight hours a week?"
Me: *grumble*
Mom: "Also she has her own place to maintain. You do a few chores around the house, but I've noticed not as many since Nano-whatever started."
Me: *handwave* "She has Amir for that stuff."
Mom: "And that's another thing, too. Having a husband doesn't exactly give you more free time, you know?"
Me: "Mom, you are RUINING MY GREAT VICTORY!"
Mom: "Sorry honey. Congratulations on your writing."
Me: *sigh* "Thanks."
Mom: "Uh... I mean... HA! TAKE THAT SHERRY!"
Me: "Was that so hard?"