askmehow | Recent Entries

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/54462.html

Heh, looking at my rec-list, the running theme appears to be powerful, talented and competent women, which makes me so happy.

Give Me Everything (Parks & Recreation; Leslie and her relationships with the cohort of amazing women in her life; in every way a delight!)

Titanium (Wonder Woman)

Hadippa! (Chakh De!; Yay sports movies! A perfect and joyous celebration of all the things the movie stood for: female friendships, dedication and teamwork.)

Killer Queen (Red)

Rondo (Sense & Sensibility; wonderful use of jump-cuts to suit the tone and tempo of the music)

Va Va Voom (A League of Their Own; fast and fun. (Also, can you tell that I like sports movies about female athletes?)

Smoke and Mirrors (Mad Men)

Seven Devils (Kings)

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/53090.html

...one giant leap for mankind."

RIP Neil Armstrong.

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/47137.html

As of the 28th of March, the New York Times is switching to a payment model whereby any user who wants to read more than 20 articles a month has to pay for the right to read them. As a long-time online NYT subscriber, I find it sad that the Times, one of the last reputable free news sources, is moving away from ad-revenue-only model. The main exceptions to this rule, however, are articles on the front page and section fronts, and articles linked to in blogs or emails. So here are a few stories I found interesting.**:

Judge Rejects Google’s Deal to Digitize Books. There go Google's plans to create a super-library. Excellent points on orphan works and copyright. Interesting side-note: Judge Denny Chin is the same judge who sentenced Bernard Madoff to a 150-year sentence.

American universities' Humanities departments are using virtual recreations and other digitized methods of teaching. Great stuff.

Mad Men's 5th Season Start Date Is Uncertain Looks like we won't see Mad Men till 2012. Siiiiigh...

And finally: Gorgeous slideshow of the birds of India, and the accompanying article.

**NOTE: in order not to spam everyone with these posts, I'll be creating a filter for NYT links posts. Comment if you want to be added.

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/45678.html

Fireflies, by

talitha78 (Dug; G)

I'd like to make myself believe...

♥ perfectly sums up how I feel about this vid. I had mixed feelings about Up; like everyone else, my heart broke within the first fifteen minutes of the film, and I couldn't fully recover after that. But this vid... Oh, this vid. It makes me so completely, resplendantly happy. Dug! He's awesome! And he makes everyone around him awesome too!

Go, watch, and tell

talitha78 what a genius she is!

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/45420.html

Take The Hit, by

madame_meretrix (Jared/Jensen, Jensen/Jeff, Jared/Misha, Jensen/Jeff/Jared; R)
Warning: Mentions of past drug abuse and physical abuse.

Jared sees himself as broken. He's aimless, tired of defining himself by his past but unclear about how to change it. Jensen is his best friend; Jared would do anything for him. Eventually Jared understands that everyone has some kind of baggage, it's just a matter of how you learn to let it go.

I just finished reading this fic, and it was such a wonderful read that I'm having trouble picking only one or two things to highlight. Don't let the number of pairings mislead you: at heart, it is a love story about two people who deal with and overcome complex personal issues.

madame_meretrix's prose really makes the story feel like a journey: it isn't always sunshine and light, but the way Jared and Jensen change and grow and fall in love is so, so satisfying. And if Misha the vegan yogi won't bring a smile to your face, I don't know what will!

Go, read it, and tell her how awesome she is!

Crossposts: http://askmehow.livejournal.com/45073.html

I went to see The Social Network yesterday, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Jesse Eisenberg was a complete revelation: he did such a good job of making me not want to root for Mark; he was mesmerizing, and didn't feel the need to soften the edges of the character at all. And Andrew Garfield! A++ work; I am now on board with him in the Spider-Man reboot.

In honour of the first really good film I've seen in months*, have a rec:

Secret Video Diary of a Billionaire, by

sturmundwank (Mark/Eduardo; PG-13)

NATALIE
I have no idea what I did to offend you. But it’s very clear that you’re doing everything in your power to offend me.

MARK
(beat)
I am offended by your vast underestimation of my power to offend.

The author so perfectly captures the Mark Zuckerberg that we saw in the film: self-entitled and brilliant and cruel as only he can be. And don't let the screenplay format put you off; it's actually the best part of the fic, and is put to excellent use: the staccato dialogue and shifting back and forth between past and present inter-connected narratives are both utterly Sorkin-esque.

Go, read, and beg for a sequel!

* Yes, yes, you Inception lot, I haven't seen it yet. I know I'm probably the last person on the planet, but I'm getting there!

Current Mood: misery, frustration and woe!

So this morning my external hard drive died. My brand new, barely-used 500 GB external hard drive, which had 5 years worth of work-related documents, countless family photo albums and, oh, about 200 GB worth of television and movies. Which I bought barely a month ago. It died.

Words can't even describe how frustrated I am. I took it to the store to get fixed, and they're working on data recovery at the moment, but I want to make sure this never happens again.

So I need your help: I need some external hard drive recommendations. I need something that's portable, quite sturdy and has data recovery services if there's some damage.

I'm currently looking at the LaCie 'Rugged' 500 GB external hard drive as an alternative, but I'm open to suggestions. What are you guys using to back up your files?

Hi guys!

Rumours of my ~~death~~ dearth of posting have been greatly exaggerated, for lo! I come with a rec. And not just any rec, a rec of SPARKLY MAGICAL GREATNESS!

MODE: Final Issue!, by

yahtzee63 (Betty/Daniel, PG-13)

The past presents the future. You carry the best of what was into what will be.

I was reluctant to post a quote, because it was hard to pick the single one that would adequately encapsulate the sheer amazingness of this fic. It does justice to every character (Betty! Amanda! Marc! Justin!), and appreciates all that Ugly Betty was: not just the inventiveness and wackiness, but the characters and their ability to love, learn, change and grow. And, in the grand tradition of Betty, it's flat-out hilarious.

Go, read it immediately, and then tell

yahtzee63 how fantastic it is!

untitled snippet, by

rivkat (Veronica, Logan; PG)

It’s kind of a disaster, always has been, no matter how sweet the taste.

FBI Agent Veronica, out in the world, away from Neptune (and away from Logan). This is the perfect little shard of a snippet: compact and beautiful, but with a sting.

I love that she managed to pack so much into such a short piece, but she did, and it's marvellous; go and read it at once!

Unaccountable, by

harriet_spy (Holmes, Watson, Irene Adler; PG)

"The first marriage I can forgive her. She was young, she was foolish, and most importantly, she hadn't met me yet. You can't expect a beauty like that to immure herself on the off-chance we might cross paths. Though she might have shown a little foresight."

Irene gets married again; Holmes reacts as expected. Perfect Holmes-Watson interaction, and an Irene who's still around, even when she's not.

Yuletide archive's open!!!

*dives right in*

...go and check out this side-splittingly funny review of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. It's in seven parts, but it's so, so worth sticking around till the end; the discussion of the lightsaber battles in Part 6 is a thing of beauty.

Current Mood: gleeeeeee!

I'm Hoth, apparently.

Isn't that AWESOME? :D

ETA: Oh my god, this cracked me up: "You may have to climb inside a tauntaun for warmth." Geeeeeeeenius!

Current Mood: giddy

I CAN HAZ SNOWFLAKE COOKIE! Many, many thanks to

oxoniensis for the snowflake cookie that is brightening up my profile page! I love it! ♥

( So let's talk about how awesome Glee is! )

Ah, Glee. My love is pure.

NBC's ordering six more episodes of Chuck! And the best part:

The original plan was for "Chuck" to return in March.

Now sources say "Chuck" will likely return in January and will be partnered with "Heroes" on Monday nights.

Woohoo!

hat-tip to

musesfool for the news.

Shiny new layout! It's so clean and gorgeous! And blue! And it has a rollover sidebar!! I love it!
askmehow askmehow askmehow askmehow

TV! Since it's been a while and I'm lazy, here are my six-word reviews of the shows from the last week:
- The Good Wife 1x05, "Crash": Dan Rydell, minor league pitcher? Yay!!!
- Glee 1x08, "Mash-Up": Puck and Rachel? Sign me up!
- Grey's Anatomy 6x06, "I Saw What I Saw": No Izzie; Chief smacked down. Outstanding.
- Smallville 9x05, "Roulette": Michael Douglas movie knock-off; Chloe's creepy.
- Ugly Betty 4x03, "Blue on Blue": The Daniel-and-Betty show's heartwarming.
- White Collar 1x01, "Pilot": Banter! Competence! Suits! Oh, BOYS. Smitten!
- Mad Men 3x11, "The Gypsy and the Hobo": Holy shit! Did that just happen?
- Gossip Girl 3x07, "How to Succeed in Bassness": Blair's full-on crazy again? Yawn.

A Complete History of Noah Puckerman, Abridged, by

them0rgue (Rachel, Puck; Rated: G)

“Born with it?” Rachel pauses, meeting Puck’s gaze. “Let me tell you a few things about Noah Puckerman.”

I've seen so many comments all over my friendslist asking where all the good Glee fic is. Well, it's here, and it's FANTASTIC. Rachel, Puck and their shared history. ♥

So apparently, NBC cancelled Southland.

Seriously, Heroes is still on the air, but Southland had to get cancelled? Not on, NBC. Not on.

Procrastination central, party of one.

( Mad Men 3x07: Seven Twenty Three )

Current Mood: happy

Late realization: the Dixie Chicks rock¹.

I just saw Shut Up and Sing, and damn, I am just so amazed by the Dixie Chicks' courage of their convictions, and humour and determination they displayed under pressure in the aftermath of their comment about Bush. It's so easy now to look back at their stance with the benefit of hindsight and know that they were vindicated, but they certainly didn't know that, and they did it anyway.

More than anything else, the solidarity of the three in the face of financial pressure, condemnation and honest-to-god death threats, this absolute faith in and reliance on each other... it just made me so verklempt. Check it out:

It's been a long time since I've been a fan of Heroes, or even a casual viewer, but I remember the first time I watched it, and thinking, "Damn, Adrian Pasdar's cool! His wife's lucky to have him." Having watched Shut Up and Sing, I think that goes for him ten-fold: Natalie Maines is an amazing woman.

In conclusion: the Dixie Chicks - they pass the Bechdel test of LIFE. ♥

¹ Okay, to be fair, I've known this about their music for a while; this isn't one of those "Guys, I've discovered this new thing called chocolate and I think it's going to be REALLY BIG!" situations².
² Unfortunately, this kind of thing happens far too often to me for my liking.

I have a huge project due in tomorrow morning, and I'm only about 80% done.

...naturally, this is the perfect time to discuss TV.

First, though, if you haven't seen the How I Met Your Mother gag reel (hat-tip to

irishmizzy), it pretty much wins the internet, so go see it now. Release the berserker!!!!

( Smallville 9x01: Savior )

The Good Wife 1x01: Pilot
I have nothing major to say about this, except: Josh Charles yay! Christine Baranski yay! Jenn's grandmother on Dawson's Creek DOUBLE YAY!! I'm cautiously optimistic; a lot of people have warned me that the show is likely to turn into a legal procedural instead of remaining focused on Juliana Margulies's character. In the meantime, though, I enjoyed the pilot a lot.

MAH ICONS.

default	oldest	newest


saddest	happiest	angriest


cutest	sexiest	funniest


fave ship	fave fandom	fave animated


best quote	best textless	best stolen idea


use the most	favorite

HOW MANY ICONS DO YOU HAVE: 111
OUT OF HOW MANY AVAILABLE ICONS SPACES: 115
IF YOU COULD BUY SPACE FOR MORE, WOULD YOU: No; 115 is quite a lot!
DO YOUR ICONS MAKE A STATEMENT: Yes, that I'm polyamorous when it comes to my fandoms. ;)
WHAT FANDOM DO YOU HAVE THE MOST ICONS OF: Generation Kill, with 12 icons
AND THE SECOND MOST: DC Comics, Mad Men, The West Wing, Veronica Mars and music-related icons tie here with 4 each
WHAT SHIP DO YOU HAVE THE MOST ICONS OF: Brad/Nate, Generation Kill
ARE YOUR ICONS MADE MOSTLY BY OTHER PEOPLE: Yes.
DO YOU MAKE ICONS: Yes, occasionally.
ARE THEY ANY GOOD: When I actually get around to making them, yes.
ANIMATED ICONS ARE: Hilarious when used sparingly, irritating when trying to get pages to load on a dial-up connection (ah, the pleasures of visiting my granparents' house!)

DO THE MEME.
Coding can be found here
Hat-tip to

celli: BTW, if you're going to do the meme yourself, it has one coding error in it: under "Sexiest," the URL reads img >src. Just take out the > and it'll work.

( Mad Men: Guy Walks Into An Advertising Agency )

( Glee: Preggers )

Current Mood: creative

Easy There, by

syllic (Merlin/Arthur; NC-17)

If it were simply a matter of choice, Merlin reasoned, he probably wouldn't be in a damp boathouse on an unseasonably cold day in early October, wearing lycra and being shouted at.

If you were thinking to yourself, "Hey, you know what Merlin fandom needs? A rowing AU!", then

syllic's about to become your hero. Rowing AU, you guys. Let me take a moment to let the awesomeness of that sink in: ROWING AU. Satisfyingly long, with a fantastic grasp of detail: each chapter is prefaced by notes on all the rowing terminology; there's also a glossary. A GLOSSARY! Seriously, there are little hearts in my eyes right now.

Lord Byron, the chartered accountant

Festivid recs

"One small step for man...

Linkspam, New York Times edition

Vid rec: Up

Supernatural RPS rec

The Social Network rec

Help me, all-powerful f-list!

PSA: I iz alive! + Ugly Betty rec

Veronica Mars rec

Sherlock Holmes rec

Is it Yuletide yet? YES IT IS!!!

Speaking of Star Wars...

Which Star Wars-type weather are you enjoying?

Snowflake cooooookie!

Gleeeeeeee!!!

Chuck's coming back in January!!!

Things wot made me happy this week: new layout! TV!

Glee rec

Southland cancelled?

Mad Men 3x07: Seven Twenty Three

Shut Up and Sing

TV Roundup, Part 2

Icon Meme

TV roundup

Merlin rec

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