stickK To It - 1st New Years Resolution

Alright, enough is enough.

Today, I  weighed myself and to my horrified fascination, my  weight had upended from all those  holiday puddings, biscuits and whatnot.  In fact,  both me and my  mum were appaled with our weight, and of course, she wanted a regime.

As for myself, I  made a plan, both  in paperback and electronic format, and  I intend to stickK to it.   Pun intended? You betcha.

To  put it bluntly, I  am overweight.  Didn't help that I underwent another operation -  this time  for chest -  and my exercise regimen  at the time was rudely interrupted and later on, I've  had many  laziness to excuse me from  getting down and  dirty, so to speak.

But this year, I intend to  change that for the better.   My plan, in short is -

 -  change eating habits,  so less sweets and cereal-based foods, more veggies and fishies along with meat in,

 - more water and unsweetened  drinks -  I am drinking way  too little for my comfort

 - exercise daily,  so my resolution is sticking to Hip Hop Abs, and  finally  finishing the  dratted program in one go. Last time, I stopped at the  third week, this time, I wanna  end it.  Amen.

 -  and exercise some more, whether  by walking  furball, doing the work around the house or anything else.

So I found the platform on the 'net,  basically that gives you support base, while  holding you up to your goal.  If you are sticking to it,  then one of the  things that can make you better, is stickK, because  there can be monetary  punishments if you fail the  project -  the thing is, monetary punishments you yourself piled  by the way on laziness.   I am doing this without the money added in, but I do have a money punishment  set on myself -  for each abandoned session,  there goes 5 euros.  It doesn't seem much, but for me, it's a good incentive to get off of my butt and get movin' like my life depends on it. My  moneybag certainly does!

This is my year long project, and hopefully  when the year turns around, I will be healthier, fitter and overall have more energy.

My worry is how in the freaking hell I will get all I intend to do in 24 hours I have allotted in the day, but as said, procrastination will have to go, one way or another. I intend to add the resolutions one after another, so I will have time to get to everything  I  deem important at the time.

On the writing side -  I  ceased waiting on beta. Yes, it rankles me something fierce that  she  hadn't sent me the corrected doc back when I requested, but  it can't be helped.  On the other side, another beta in waiting, but I am skeptical of that one, because  their review was not spelling-correct, though  their grammar  and spelling in their own works was good. I will have to inquire on why's that. As it is, Among The Hawks And Doves is one, I still have to  edit it for AO3, along with  uploading last three chapters for Who We Are on the same site. Hopefully  they  solved the trouble with separators.

I will have to get out the replacement keyboard for the longer typing  as that  darned key  I chipped off is  chipped off and if I press on the key the wrong way, it's chipped off again! I would glue it back with the hot glue, but  I worry what would happen to electronics then. So,   replacement keyboard.  I am peeved as the keyboard clicks a lot,  so I will have to see what I can do  in regards to that,  but otherwise... well, don't forget the batteries /wry/. 

It seem this will be the motto of this year...

Another Day Another Year

One year has passed since I've  updated this little blog of mine.   Now,  we are   nearing the end of the first day  in year 2016,  so I thought it prudent to write out  the happenings and reasons for my  longer than normal absence from blogging.

Year 2015 was  in some ways  a hard year -  from me  going under the scalpel once again,  to  mum and father losing their brothers  and  near family to  death.   Miya had grown up some, if you care to remember the doggy  furball I was  ranting about some posts back -  she successfully  passed the second obedience exam  along with both first and second sniffling exam. Mum even participated with her in a national sniffling competition!

As for me, I don't know  whether I've  grown some.  The last year was taxing on my patience what with me having to listen to  brother's "poor Miya" laments while being pissed off that he didn't  keep his promise to  take her out on the walk  at weekends.  I  sometimes  still hold a grudge  for that one. 

I still haven't gotten a job, but  I think I've improved in writing the job applications, along with making a good leap in  going to job fairs.  They are exhausting and disheartening, but  every time I learn something new.   I learned to stand up for myself when talking about what I want  to do  for a job,  so  I have now  defined wants and lines  to where I want to go,  I will have to brush up my skills for my trial working period soon -  I just hope  it will  go well with the skill set I have.  I am a little bit nervous about it, but  let's hope it will go  smoothly.

On writing front, this is the first  year since  acquiring the contract job for  being freelance writer for some  internet page.  It's slow going,  but   at least I can express my thoughts there, though it irks me that  I still haven't got enough traffic to be  considered for  payment.

Fanfiction writing,   I've posted  at least three works -  updated Reach For The Sky,  along with  finishing  Scrapbook Jewels - even if I still get the ideas, I've  closed this particular compendium down,   to  help me concentrate  on advancing and consequently  finishing the already existing  works, like  Among The Hawks And Doves, Fire And Ice and  Crimson Sagittarius.

Last updated works aside  Reach For The Sky was Stray Notes - QUARTET NIGHT. I've explored that fandom quite thoroughly what with me watching and re-watching the episodes and I really couldn't help myself but be amused with QN's jealously issues,  so  this  four-part fic came into being, and later on gifted to Zara who was the reason for me to even getting into writing in this particular fandom.

The largest piece of writing   this year, aside from some of  my  more technically minded projects, was  Who We Are,  a Fate Zero/HP crossover.   I believe I've munched on this one  for  a year,  both because of the difficulty of characters and  story-wise, I  had to  make  biggest number of scene rewrites up until now.  There went a perfectly good notebook /mournful/.   I  am grateful  I got an excellent beta, Luna13 who helped me to  edit this monstrosity both on the French and English side. I hope  the  following year will be fortuitous to her.

Among The Hawks And Doves  is already written and (presumably?) in beta-reading I am concerned, because my new beta  haven't replied back to me yet.   MHB is not on the radar anymore,   for at least a year already, so I've sought out another one. mist_el is  similarly  preoccupied, which worries me,  because she already  passed the  deadline twice - I've sent her the document after Christmas, and I expected to get in back  in 4 days tops.  No such luck, so  I am self-beta-ing again,  which is pissing me off,   because it delays the posting the chapters.   it doesn't help the  chapter in  question is 10k long and the theme is a little bit more on a sensitive side than usual.  I am on thin ice with it, becasue it  threatens to offend the readers, what with blood and gory bits, but  life is not a teletubbies land,  so  I am not  so kind as to  conform to the readers' expectations here.   Naruto is a good manga, but they omitted many  life-aspects from it,  if they weren't  shinobi related.  Well, here's to  correcting that eyesight.  /mocking smile/.

Another beta,  Paxloria,   offered her services  for  beta-ing  Fire And Ice -  I already have half of  the chapter done, but   it will be prone to revising at least once,  for  I think I  lost  a sight on where the story  is going, and  one kind reviewer forced me to  revise and explain  my reasoning  to  her, which clarified my thoughts on  the interactions of characters, but amusingly enough,  I haven't got  a reply back.  Antares is a hard character to work with, because on one side, I ant to bash everyone for him, but on the other,  I want to make him merciful, which is an interesting conundrum to  balance.  We'll see how it goes.

Sewarea is a newbie on the scene,  and  I hope we will work well together,  but so far, she had sent me  the chapter for Reach For The Sky in a completely unrecognizable formatting that is making me scratch my  head   with confusion. Tomorrow, I will attempt to get  the program that will open the  document, and then we will see.

I am a little bit disgruntled that I am so dependent on  betas, but  I have to admit,   with chapters as long as they are, even I can lose sight of the mistakes, be that grammar or  spelling ones.  MHB  was a godsend in that regard, and I miss her,  but  still, I wish her all the best.

Also got into  writing original fiction,  and despite of being rejected  from the  publishing company,  I am still going strong.   I am  officially rewriting Shoes To Marry For to my satisfaction -   it seems that I don't agree with  word-imposed limits, so I am all  on my own in this one. Still, having fun, and that's the most important bit here.

Last project to write was for Rose of Versailles,  and I got it together in two days,  because inspiration stuck.  I believe that I spent the last day of the  year 2015  writing like possessed -  managed to chip off a keyboard's key, while I was at that -  and  finished   writing at 3.30 in the morning.   If the old adage, what are you  doing at the  first day of New Year any indication, I think I have a pretty good idea where my  days will be spent for a foreseeable future.

I am obsessing over writing, that's for certain.  Much to the disgruntlement of both my mum and brother,  and for that reason, I am not very happy camper when I am interrupted to go out walking with a certain furry ball of ours, even if  sometimes my  head does need some  pause to get thoughts in order.

Unlimited Pen Works

As it is, I finally had some time to get my  paws back into the writing waters,  both on the  thesis and fanfiction front,  even if that means my brain is burning from both ends, and right now, this is not a pleasant feeling to endure.

My beta  promises -  fingers crossed and all that -  that she will manage to beta my stories at the Spring Break,  because  they  got them shitload of work in their  schools right now.  I can understand that,  and as for me, I am  dizziying my way through the practical side of thesis -  or will be, as of tomorrow, and let's hope it will come out  with  minimum plotholes imaginable; right now  I am  not very happy I got  myself such an  difficult  questionnaire to  interpret, so this would take some time  to get in a shape  that I will be satisfied with enough to proclaim the whole affair  over and done with.  Seriously thinking on NOT going  through the additional  amount of  schooling, because  after I finish that,   I  won't be in  shape to  write anything  so stuffy  like this  for some  time.

On the front of stories, I finished another chapter of   Among The Hawks And Doves -   chapter numero Sexta, under the name  Getting High -  I certainly was on something  when I was writing the thing,  and then, two chapters of Fire And Ice are  as good as dea -  ahem,  finished.  Excuse  me,  I am feeling a little  homicidal because  the last chapter was a murder and a half to write.   Back To Me counts as a tenth chapter in the series, while  Riders On The Storm is lucky eleventh. Or torturous one?  Will see what  MHB says on that.   The last one is a monster in its own right,  and   I just hope it didn't fall out too awkward, but  as it is, it's finished and waiting on revision. 

Somehow, I got myself another obsession in the shape of  Fate/Stay Night  -  still have to watch through Unlimited Blade Works,  but it seems to be pretty interesting, both story and characters-wise.  This spawned two additional stories, one in the original 'verse, and another I went, in all my awesome stupidity,  write in a crossover style.  /Sweatdrops/ Jay-sus Christ,  sometimes my  brain is  feeling  very  trigger-happy, and when it is,  there is only one solution -  grab something to write with and on, and then aloha, madness.    Because I  dithered long enough, I am now  presenting some previews of  my   works mentioned in this yappy excuse for  a post.

Among The Hawks And Doves

Getting  High

Harry was just minding his business, meaning haggling with Yamamoto-san for groceries.  The old man was a farmer - grumpy and old and constantly complaining on having sciatica that wouldn't go away or his daughter-in-law or his son - his wife was already dead, and Harry stumbled upon him via Naruto's bratty pranks. Old man Yama, as he asked Harry to call him - only Yama part,   the 'old man’ Harry added for his own amusement, to  see  Yamamoto huff and puff in irritation.

"Hell no, Yama-jiji.  I won't pay ten ryo   for a measly daikon radish!" Harry snapped out.  "See, it's  dried out, old and wrinkly,  just like your ass, so don't try to fool me!"

"You little twerp!" Yamamoto barked back, his   bushy silver eyebrows twitching.   "I will have you know this radish is the finest quality -   if anything, I am letting you rip ME off!" He hacked a little as he stroked his long silvery mustache, as his old eyes narrowed in mock-anger.

Harry tilted his head.  "Ripping you off?  Old man, have you gone senile or do you just love bad jokes?  This daikon radish barely deserves the name -   even a cat's dick would be bigger than it!" He barked back, making Yamamoto hack out his pipe in surprise. 

"Wha -  cough, cough -  My daikon radishes are  NOT smaller than cat's dick!" The old man boomed,  making the  passerby's  eye him strangely, before they hurried away from the crazy man.   Yamamoto blinked and then, it clicked just what he had  roared out. 

Harry  grinned at the man's half irritated, half-amused face.  "You got this round, brat.  So the  carrots and some spinach…." He huffed and hawed as he moved, wincing.  "Ahwoo, my old  bones…. I am old, too old for this shit.  And you dare to disrespect an old man like me….  Youth these days…." He mumbled, shaking his gray head disbelievingly.

Harry sighed.   "Right, I apologize, Yama-jii.  What about   ginger cookies and some tea to get these old nerves of yours in order?" He offered back, smiling slightly.   Squinty eyes, like those of an old fox, looked at him.   "Two batches?" The man inquired craftily, while he expertly bound the daikon radishes in a small bunch. 

Harry made an innocent face.  "Well, I had three, but if you insist on two – " Yamamoto harrumphed.  "I will throw in some vanilla persimmons.   Satisfied, you greedy brat?" He grumbled put, peeved.

It was pure chance that Harry found out Yama-jii was addicted to the ginger cookies - it was actually Naruto's fault. The brat was clumsy with one of his pranks, the old man's nose was sharp enough to detect the scent of ginger on the brat, and he managed to catch the kid before he made his escape, dragging the foxy idiot to his caretaker, one Koizumi Akito. 

Harry was prepared for the man to launch at him a lengthy diatribe on the   fox brat and annoyances, but instead of that, the man thrust the mentioned fox brat at him and demanded to be given some ginger cookies. (His wife had baked those for him until she died, and his no-good daughter-in-law never did get them exactly as he liked them. And coincidentally, Naruto smelled like cookies   which, by the way, he had managed to filch right off of Harry's plate.)

From that meeting with the ginger cookie whore – ahem, Yama-jii, Harry had been buying most of the groceries here, as the man was not as prejudiced to Naruto's furry little problems as the   other villagers were.   And it did help that Harry could bake some of the most delicious ginger cookies.

Fire And Ice

Back To Me 

He closed his eyes as he carefully lifted the small porcelain cup to his lips.

The bait had been snapped up desperately, just like they expected it would be.  Even if he, as Harry, didn’t know Sirius much, he knew he was desperate for a family, and  with the state the Light side was in, along with the recent  skirmish in Diagon Alley,   Antares had presented himself as an ideal candidate to be allied to Order of the Phoenix, even if his methods came across  as a little too… unforgiving for some people.  And with him being a Carruthers, the Dark and Grey side were thrown in a tumult of confusion, flailing for anything concrete to hold on in a proverbial sense.

Carruthers’ name may have been disgraced, but their power and prestige, even diminished as they were, were nothing to sneeze at. 

He sighed with a faint disgust.

“Master?  Is the tea not to your liking?”  Faustus asked immediately, making the single eye  turn to him.  Antares shook his head.  “Tea is fine.  Just my thoughts bothering me. “ He murmured back quietly as he leaned forward to  place the cup back on  the tea table.  He was intercepted by white-clad hand that gently plucked the cup from his  fingers. 

“Everything will be alright.  You did prepare for this, Young Master.” Claude murmured back, his golden eyes glinting behind the square-rimmed spectacles he insisted on wearing.

“Tch.”  Antares scoffed. “Since when you were so very optimistic?” He  asked the spider butler archly, making a small smirk appear on the man’s face. 

“You forgot, Young Master.  Revenge is a… how shall  I put it…  a demon’s specialty.   And as much as I hate to  admit it,   Michaelis is  quite useful in  that regard.” He murmured back politely as he  put the  cup on the tray. 

“So very demure,”  Antares  snarked back. “Maybe I  should have  contracted only  Michaelis, then.” He  suppressed a smirk at the almost imperceptible tensing of the butler’s  shoulders.   “That impulse-driven crow?   I am beginning to  suspect your mental health had   deteriorated again if you are speaking  such nonsense,  Master.”  Claude  replied back stiffly, his pride stung at the implication he was worth less than the kuroshitsuji  who was currently    waiting on the…. guests… to appear.

Dark eyebrow arched, but as he opened his mouth to reply, he was interrupted  by Michaelis  entering the  room. 

“Master, some people wish to have an audience with you.”  The crow butler almost purred out,  mocha-colored eyes glinting with mischief. 

Work In Progress

Aw, hell. /Glares at the half-finished chapters/.

 Right now on Among The Hawks And Doves -  lucky chapter  seven.  Half-written already,   but seems I will have to add some things to round it up.  

One of the readers pissed me off with  remark my other  work, Crimson Sagittarius will be next updated in year 2013. Just for that, I am tempted to  delay  the actual launch of the  chapter, just to show the berk up.   Begun  the  chapter, but ATHD has  priority for now.

Fire and Ice  has the next chapter sent to the unmercy of my beta, the awesome MHB.  Seriously lucked out  with her -  thank God for her, otherwise my works would still be spastic little shits, riddled  with grammatic errors.   Now pondering just how the hell can I write her  HP/Firefly crossover she is so persistently hounding me  over for.  And yeah, she wants smut.  Sometimes I think the 'net is  other  name for Perverts Anonymous, but in the name of procreation of   human race and quality fanficition, I am willing to  overlook that fact. /Fake long-suffering sigh./ Yeah, love smut.  Shame it can be a bitch and a half to write without sounding too pornographic...

Off for now,

Eirenei