Lily Valley

Nona was absolutely the best and will get my vote for best series and best novel. It's new, it's fresh, it's funny and it expects you to be smart and keep up. Loved it. Loved it LOVED IT.

Yo nerds. I am going to make it. Bringing a new sibling. Be kind to them. See you in Chicago.

Ok. Finally finished Harrow. I am likely going to rank it #1 for the sheer gleeful Gore and the reference to Miette. Also NUN HUMOR!!! Only have City We Became left. I really enjoyed Black Sun as well. Felice not sure about the PDF. :(. I probably won't get through the series reading. I really took my time with Gideon and Harrow.

And struggling with Harrow the Ninth. What in the HELLSCAPE OF VISCERA am I reading???

Yes. It's the "Lieutenant" "Warden" "Prince what's his face" "Babs" "Lady Pent" stuff I had to write down. I did manage to catch the counting bit.

Gideon is seriously growing on me. This is a book where a paper copy would have been helpful to keep the characters straight. I finally had to highlight all the houses in order to remember who was who and put them in my notes. It's also a locked room mystery which I LOVE. Really looking forward to reading Harrow. The epic swearing and depiction of women's sexual gaze is SO GOOD. This book got mixed reviews, it was a slow start for me so I can see why, but definitely worth it. I'm about 60% through it right now and it feels like I'm at a classic turning point. Digging it!! Thanks nerds for encouraging me to keep going. Bonus for Gideon:. Harrow reminds me so much of my first and long term Great Love. We started as enemies because we were kids. Totally hoping these two wind up hate kissing at some point. Anyone with thoughts on where to start best series? I should finish the novel category by Friday and the shorts by Monday or Tuesday. *Edit:. Gideon is free on KU right now.

Really? I'll have to give it another shot after my speed reading binge. I really felt like it was bouncing off me. Also know I was missing a LOT by skimming the statuary passages. I liked Jonathan Strange more on the second read. I think I need to treat Clarke's books like I treat The Blind Assassin. I reread that every three years or so and it takes me a week. Raybearer sequel is out as well. Loved it. I inhaled The Last Graduate (squee!!) Sometimes I think that binge reading the Hugo's will impact my perception because of reading order. Like I'm bad DJing my reading perception. Nobody wants Berlioz after Earth Wind and Fire. Feeling fortunate that the packet is robust enough to create this type of dissonance. Right now it looks like I have 8000 pages of Tasmin Muir to finish, but I'll break before I read Jemison's newest or move on to the shorter works.

Ok. Reading Gideon the 9th. Not sure why it put me off last year. I think the imagery was too grim and I was not in the mood for playful snark. I pushed through the grisly beginning and it's growing on me. Did not like the Relentless Moon. I haven't read any of the rest of the series. I was willing to go with "really unlikeable main character" until a few things happened that grated my last gay nerves. There's some room for discussion about the portrayal of feminism and how it's handled that would require reading more of this author's work. I will leave this as "not for me". Additional justification on Relentless Moon: I LOATHE Stephenson who similarly bloats his novels with his research. This book had a LOT of unnecessary asides about "Fun Facts about SPACE" that were distracting, especially so in first person delivery. I KNOW some of you enjoy this stuff @Ser Scot A EllisonEllison but I would like it shoved in a footnote, accompanying workbook, or (best option) in the author's notes, never ever to see the light of day. Loved Black Sun right until the ending. Piranesi was just...bizarre. I enjoyed Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell but there was a whole lot of description in this novel. A LOT. Fun afternoon read that involved heavy skimming on my part. Network effect:. Murderbot has grown on me now that Murderbot has quit whining so much. This was charming. I have to buy the new Jemison or wait on the Library.

Ok, so I finished Deadly Education, Raybearer, Wizard's Guide, Legendborn. I'm still struggling with Cemetary boys (it's the teen boy angst that's putting me off. The fact that it's getting under my skin bespeaks how well this character is written). Haven't read Elatsoe yet either, but I have a copy. So far, Raybearer is the stand out. Deadly education was awesome, but the cliffhanger ending tore me up.

I can't believe it's been this long since I was here (OK I can). I'm out of town right now being a fucking ostrich about how much work I have to do. I absolutely INHALED Deadly Education. I had read T. Kingfisher's book last year on a day I didn't want to get out of bed. Working through the Lodey's now. I think next up is Cemetary Boys? Bummed that K. Eason's Rory Thorne Space operas didn't make it. But this COVID / Hurricane / Tornado time has been going on so loong I can't rememberr when anything was published.

Gatekeeping SUCKS. And that's what she's doing. "Queerer than thou" queers are just mean girls / boys in an outside of high school environment. You're better off knowing that she's superficial and childish NOW before she can actually hurt your career. I think I broke my microscope yesterday. I have to be the clumsiest faggot on earth. This trip has been a series of "The Most Awful Things That I Can Possibly Do Under Stress, squared." And right now i am sitting on the porch trying to have a wine and i am LITERALLY getting wrapped in a spider web. Please burn this address with fire.

Outed myself at work due to carpool necessity / science community is a small town / this is a small town. Hopefully shes not a gossip, because with ONE second degree connection she has information that could damn me from returning next summer to do research. @Robin Of House Hill, people are the GODDAMNED worse and you are right. Edit: I'm not worried that being outed will make me appear "more difficult". Ok I am. I'm not PRIMARILY worried about that.

Portland, Or on steroids is the stuff of all of my nightmares. However, if you are right about that community alert. They swarm around young first. It **might** buy you some invisibility

Yes it does! We have several spectacular Easter parades here on Sunday that are PRIDE themed, so it didn't get much notice here either.

This is mostly true, alas, just not true for @brook. The more she talks the prettier she gets. Distance! Australia why you so far away!!!!! @Theda Baratheon gross. You're perfectly correct to tell him off. Can you imagine asking straight people details about their sex life / fantasies? Since we're on that topic, I'm going to do just that. To everyone who likes beautiful cinema: Below Her Mouth is on Netflix right now...

Oh, forgot to update, he's seeing someone else. Found out thru the frapevine. Apparently that "maybe a date" was Def a date. I have no idea why there needed to be coyness about it. My opinion of this person's maturity and moral character is drastically reduced, but otherwise it's all good. Dodged another navel-gazing bullet. Back to ye olde drawing board. I've been entertaining myself by terrifying men my age at the bar. Given a flat out proposition they just run away. Hehehe. Off to flirt with girls. At least I don't scare them into leaving town. Also. NO, I never ever touch anybody without CLEAR invitation and I NEVER start dirty conversation, but I DO tend to finish it.

Very good news! Second what Robin said about the quiet awkward family, they may have had no idea how to react supportively so said nothing to avoid harm. Really pleased to hear this. Best of luck to your cos going forward!

Are you available to provide some support? If so, I'd highly recommend the previous iterations of this thread as a how-to guide. I really hope you're wrong, but so happy and excited for your family member!

Best of luck @Xray the Enforcer The student org at my school has been taken over by some lovely kids and seems to be going well, EXCEPT: I got a mass email from them querying how to serve / better serve our trans PoC. :bows head in exhaustion: I know it was really well intentioned, but that population in New Orleans is the most at risk and #ownvoices in the region. I haven't had time to be as active with the group as I should have been (10 classes this term. Again), but there's an outreach group here that does education for allies that should be paid to come teach our group leads. Please let me know what's working for you up there as I'm still working on my group here. On the + note, I have made it to enough meetings to show my face that ALL of the students from our organization are telling me, "hi" in the hallway. Visibility matters and I can afford it. It's been really important to me that these students know that I see them too. On another + note, there has been ZERO bathroom-nonsense talk in the office since I came out. It used to be the all day channel. Like my colleagues don't have a private locked bathroom anyway. It's been a tough couple of years on that front and there may have been some crying and yelling in the Lily department.

Dude, you have NO IDEA. Michelle Obama's speech made it even possible in my current work environment. I'm a coward as far as it comes to work. My work is more important to me than eating food or being myself. Even at this job, which was NEVER even on my list of plans for work, work is breathing. Work is life for me. I was scared to DEATH until I watched all y'all brave fools open up and NOT HAVE YOUR LIVES DESTROYED. I honestly didn't even realize how scared I was until I was praying for y'all to be ok. Things are still a little weird with a few of my colleagues. I'm AMAZED at which ones are actually the most supportive. They don't know about the problems that I've been having at home and they absolutely don't need to. So I got teased really bad the other day about cleaning my desk / office area and organizing my shit. The youngest and LOUDEST conservative-ish woman in my office started teasing me that I was getting a "wife inspection" and did a whip round of the other faculty to teach my classes so I could finish cleaning. They ask about her. I have two that totally ignore it, that bit is surprising as well. The most shocking thing I heard recently was from my boss. He saw my Mardi Gras Queen photos and commented about how "princessy" my gowns were. He said he was surprised about my style choice. I swear to God I nearly died of shock. I realized that his perception of me had completely changed with the whole "lesbo" classification. When he hired me, I had waist length extensions and wore heels to work every day. I clean up really femme and very, very glamorously when I want to, ffs. On the dude front, you're right. I had a chat with him today about Krewe business and it was so weird. I am just way too old for shit like this, and it seems that the dudes I attract like to play idiot games. I have a few other irons in the fire, gonna be a very busy weekend. The woman that I drunkenly posted about before has followed up, she has no idea about my current living situation. I will pursue that now that it isn't Mardi Gras and we can have a CONVERSATION. On the homestead front, things are deteriorating RAPIDLY. It's pretty bad. I need a resolution to this situation before next year. I'm waiting on some news that will determine my summer plans before I sit down and deal with it. That news should be in by the end of the month. @Theda Baratheon Rural life is not so bad, but it's really really really hard for a young queer single person. I promise you that it gets better and you're going to have so much fun once you can move. I'll never EVER forget the first time I was at a queer club and a girl kissed me. Never ever forget how it felt to walk in and just take a load off and relax. Finally, this is a tl/dr, but I can't sleep. I concur that Mr. X is awesome. Please give him my warmest regards and say, "SUMMER IS FUCKING COMING!"

Did you get the Lelo yet? SOME PPL :cough cough: swear by it, I've seen AWFUL store displays for it. Only decent brick and mortar store I've been in recently was back in PDX. Even there the Lelo didn't have a good battery in it to get a very good idea on strength. Elsewhise, I'm in the market for some slim and small things for those pesky universal orifices. If you've got a hookup lmk. I tend to still shop Spartacus in PDX specialty items. They're a crapshoot on toys. (Read CRAP)

Lol, last time I counted I had 14. It's been a while since I had to find my patience to do this awkward preliminary fragile man feelings mating dance. It's exhausting.

I am living with someone else, so the whole I love you and want your babies thing is definitely not right. We also both have grown children. I think that some dudes play cool to promote insecurity or because of their own insecurity. Really don't know what's going on in his case. I'm pretty up front, so I intend to just ask this weekend. I don't do exclusivity. Maybe he does? Dunno. *AND* Tell your friend I have a whole bag of dicks.

I don't know? Had a week of totally fun amazing, er, exercise and then he got weird. Snappish. I took off, because life is too short to hang out with someone who cant speak to other people respectfully. Chalked it up to a bad day, but since then he has been lukewarm on making plans. I ran into him at my "office" (the local tavern) and the chemistry was still DEFINITELY there, but he was on a date so I split. Texted him the following morning about making plans and he was all, "call me Friday and I'll see what I'm up to." All together is smells like some bullshit dude emotional mind game nonsense. I forgot how cagey dudes behave early on and when things are going well. That whole "act cool so she doesn't think I like her that much" Or maybe he doesn't like me that much. I find the latter hard to believe. He has a pretty reliable "thermostat" that I read with the all detail that a trained scientist can bring to a new field of research. Anyway, I'll be seeing him this weekend since he's in my Mardi Gras Krewe and we're planning our Easter party. :shrugs: It's just been a looooooooooong time since I had to deal with the EPIC nonsense that most men bring to the table with their poor emotional awareness and general immaturity. He's my age, btw. Just reconfirming that I'm pretty gay these days by CHOICE and very grateful that it's an option for me. To my beautiful bi pals up on this board: ******GO TEAM BISEXUALS! TWICE THE OPTIONS AND TWICE THE FUN. GO AHEAD CALL ME "GREEDYAND I WILL CACKLE ALL THE WAY TO MY GRAVE WITH A DATE ON FRIDAY NIGHT!******** All the love from New Orleans. If I haven't mentioned it recently, thank you all. Especially @brook @Xray the Enforcer @Theda Baratheon for helping me find the guts to come out. Better late than never. <3

These binoculars are a multi-tool.