Drowning Nor Waving

Today seems to be a slightly stop-and-start day at Dayjob, so I shall spam LJ a second time.

So due to catching the tail end of a fabulous sale last night while doing some price and build comparisons, I did actually plunk down some cash for a new laptop. Said laptop has the specs I needed for what I am told is a reasonable-to-cheap price, and I will shamelessly admit that a factor in my buying it was that I could customize the case to look like this:


Bahahaha I'm such a girl!

Yes. I am soon to be proud owner of a Sparkly Purple Girly Laptop. I am all aflutter. :D

Thing is, I am not sure quite what to name the new addition to the family.

Naming laptops is tricky. You sort of get what you ask for. While it was done more in recognition than in the spirit of asking for it, I'm sure it didn't do me any favours that my current/soon-to-be-former laptop is named Coyote the Trickster Laptop, and the relative cooperativeness of my desktop probably has to do with it being called Mary Sue the Wonder Desktop. You have to watch yourself with this kind of thing.

So. I figured why not hold a contest?

People of the Internet, what should I name my fabulously girly sparkly purple laptop?

While I reserve the right to use none of these things, award no prize, and just go haring off on my own, the suggester of a winning laptop name will be awarded some actual fabulous prize which I will think up when I'm not at work and append to the end of this entry once I've figured it out. Let's call the closing on this midnight on Friday, just to give it some good and solid time. As always, showing your work is appreciated.

ETA: Okay, methinks the prize will be chocolate of some sort. Maybe something from Polidori.

Go forth, my pretties! Fly!

Yes, folks. This livejournal promises, and it delivers.

I give you the new glasses:



[Poll #1480066]

These things happen when you think "nah, I'll just eat later"...

[Poll #1280743]

To be fair, there were also two pieces of bruschetta. But that's not dinner either.

*slinks off to the fridge, but happily*

Despite my not feeling entirely 100% today (okay, really I'm not even feeling 70%, and if it's not better tomorrow I might go to the doctor), I made it to Canadian Tire and got myself not only the nice railing-mounted windowbox that was the object of my desire, but some citronella candles and an immersion blender that was on sale for $15. Blender! It had to be mine!

[Poll #1218354]

Now I have to rouse my cranky body enough to get some dirt to fill the windowbox...

December 26, 2007 Progress Notes:

"Une Annee Sans Neige"

Words today: 550.
Words total: 2100.
Reason for stopping: I suspect I am doing this wrong. There are something like five stories tangled up in here, in bits, and I need to pick one and go with it.
Tea: Stash blueberry.
Munchies: Pork buns with the final iteration of the pork bun sauce: apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, and sweet red chili sauce in equal portions.
Exercise: N/A.
Mail: N/A, stat again.

Darling du Jour: "You guys used to fuck," he said, offhand – not that offhand. He sat way back from her on his spindly chair.
"Yeah," she muttered and leaned into the ice.
"S'okay," he said. "Every girl who ever shows up here and Brant used to fuck."

Tyop du Jour: N/A
Words MS Word Doesn't Know: N/A.
Research Roundup: N/A.

Mean Things: Well, as above. And I think Crow. I have to decide if Crow gets to play in this cosmology or if it's just someone who enjoys being taken for Crow.
Books in progress: Justina Robson, Selling Out
The glamour: Everything I poked today wanted to be a novel. Sellouts, every one of you.

---

Spent a portion of today costing out conventions, because at the ripe old age of 25, I've finally figured out that it's better to budget how much you might spend and plan accordingly first, instead of reeling from "ooh, I could afford that!" to "oh look, ramen for lunch". So I had the idea I'd go to Wiscon, Readercon, and WFC this year.

That ain't happening, sorry.

So...where d'you want to see me?

[Poll #1111766]

Please only vote for two. I can't afford three -- or maybe I could, but it would be financially sort of like walking down the highway meridian at rush hour -- and if you vote for three, I will take that as your willingness to pay my way to the third. :p

Now, book and bed.

Okay, I don't know if this is my upbringing kneejerking or a valid issue, but there is this guy on one of my LJ communities whose handle is "jewforjesus". This has been bothering me for some time, possibly because one of the very few times I recall my mother snapping someone's head off was when the Jews for Jesus were out canvassing, and I am suspicious of marketing ploys. We have a word for people for Jesus. We call them Christians. The whole thing has always smelled of a corporate marketing con.

So I inquired with my fellow persons as to whether this was in fact in poor taste or just my problem and therefore something I'd best suck up. And, well, we weren't sure, because the whole advertising of religion in the LJ handle is not something we the reasonably secular writers are familiar/comfortable with.

After all, said I, it's not like I call myself "agnosticforpie".

But maybe I should. Because that's kinda cool. *g*

---

So long story short, after much absence, there shall be a CONTEST!

Your task, ladies and gentlemen, is to hypothetically rename your Livejournal to reflect both your religious affiliation (since that's everyone's business) and what you are for.

Example solutions include "buddhistforcookies" (courtesy mekkavandexter) and the aforementioned "agnosticforpie", and possibly "badjewforbacon".

As always, you compete for whuffie, the respect and admiration of your peers, and fabulous, fabulous internet prizes!

Apologies, folks -- I know I'm late with this. Well, tanaise just whapped me over the head and said "where is my new contest?", which is how I know.

So we give you:

The Results of the Bylaw Contest!

The winner is:

A tie!

tacithydra, with There will be no one younger than 40...in SFWA.
and
tanaise, with There are no barbarians at the gates...in SFWA.

Honourable Mentions!

stevenagy, with There will be no BCDEGHIJKLMNOPQRTUVXYZ ...in SFWA. It's smartassed, but it made me laugh. *g*
barbarienne, with There will be no running with scissors...in SFWA.
sierralad, with There will be no cats in SFWA, the streets are paved with cheese. So it doesn't really fit the format. I loved An American Tail. *g*


Congrats to everyone for being funny!

New contest, next rock!

Today is a busy day here at the casa, so I am posting this all early in the morning (early for me at least) instead of later this afternoon. There is an annual physical, in which I will be poked with sharp things, and then I must write a two-hour midterm on Language Acquisition that I am feeling dreadfully unprepared for.

For those of you here expecting some sort of discussion on writing, that will hopefully resume after Tuesday, when I write the last exam I have this week.

For everyone else...

The Results of the Chicken Soup For the Soul Contest!

The winner is:

Kelly who has no LJ, with Chicken Soup for the Scientist's Soul, a tender collection of undisputed facts and annotated charts to support them. Because it just has a feel to it. *g*


Honourable Mentions!

sksperry, with Chicken Soup for the Cannibal Soul, a tender collection of tender confections., for combining gore with alliteration.
phantom_wolfboy, with Chicken Soup for the Zombie's Soul, a tender collection of Braaaains! because when it comes to zombies, simple is beautiful.
wood_dragon, with Chicken Soup for the Barista's Soul, a tender collection of reflections on the daily grind., because there were a lot of groaner puns in there, but this one made me groan and chuckle extra.


That was really hard to choose. A lot of those were superlatively funny.

You're all getting wilier!

*flees*