idealists are the cruelest monsters of them all.

I dunno what happened between yesterday morning and this afternoon, but uh, I like whatever Kool-Aid y'all are drinking and wish to stockpile it for the upcoming revolution. I see how it works now though, I write y'all not one, but two, GK fics* (which is technically more than I've written since, oh, say September) and y'all give me things.

THIS IS FUCKING AWESOME!! I am totally available for bribery!!

First of all, huge appreciation and thanks to lambourngb who bought me two months of Paid LJ times (which uh, I kind of needed since it was running out two days after Christmas). Do you want a pony?! I can give you one of sparky77's!

And secondly, to serialkarma for my snow globe. I love snow globes.

And last but never ever least to alethialia, bijoux, copernica3, imntsaying, not_sally, pinkfinity, shezan, sockitch, sparky77 (keep your Orlando cooties to yourself), sprat, trolleys, wickedprimadona, and Anonymous #1, #2, #3 Thank you for my awesome cookies, which just make my info page very pretty and happy and make *me* very happy, so thank you that. I truly could not ask for a more wonderfully giving flist and you make me very happy to write for you. <3

*If you missed either of my GK fics It May Be Heart and Fist and Human Voice and Pefect Opening Line (which I posted on Saturday night, while the rest of the world was drinking, sleeping or committing c-class felonies) I recommend them, because I can recommend myself all I fucking want :D


ETA: alethialia has posted A Newbie's Guide or Even A Bitter Old Fandom Queen's Guide to what to read in Generation Kill fandom. Okay, that's like a long version of the title, but what A has done is she's created a definitive rec list of what to read in our fandom, and I've only read the first rec and I just say, get thee hence!

I would like to add, however, that she has not added HERSELF to this list, which is bullshit. A, now is not the time to be modest, so I shall do it for you. If you have a chance, I think you should read A's entire GK ouvre here.

If you are strapped for time however, I particularly recommend The Temptation of the LT from last years's yuletide, Some Stay, Pleasure over Propriety and Noblesse Oblige (and not just b/c it was written for my birthday).

So, I'm kind of on hiatus right now. I'm around, but not really, but if you need me I'm sure you can find me. Like today when trolleys was all "the idea of [Brad] being Iceman when it comes to everything BUT Nate and he reverts to 8th-grade-dance awkwardness which Nate thinks is painfully adorable and ten, twenty years later Brad will still try to awkwardly dodge Nate's compliments because let's face it, one doesn't get 100% used to Nate's awesomeness even when you're married to him, and Nate's heart will still feel that pull of overwhelming fondness at the sight of bashful!Brad. and I was like, OMG! WTF! BBQ! <3333333

And then she and I did what we normally do around each other, which that is one of us baits the other and then we babble for a bit and generally something pops out into the world, like a baby, but with a way shorter gestational period.

All this babbling is to say that trolleys IS SO MUCH LOVE because she made art for older!married Brad and Nate with grown-up!Layla and hand-holding and grey hair and blushing and prune juice and v-neck sweaters and then I fucking DIED.

Please tell trolleys how much you love her, because really, I do and you should too.

ETA: I admit that post and the .gif almost makes me want to write some total piece of fluff called like, "My Baby Said I Did a Good Job" or "Dear Mom, I Met the Man I Want to Marry" or something equally embarrassing.

Today is the most beloved romanticalgirl's birthday. Yes, she of the sniper-like pornography (one shot to the head and you're on your back) and gorgeous turn of phrase, who I have known through many years and many fandoms, has graced us with another year. I think it's a testament to her character (and mine) that we haven't shared a fandom in many, many years, but after much harassing she has come to the Generation Kill side and I honestly could not be happier about this. In fact, I would write you a story just to celebrate your day of birth... but I already did that. (It is possible there shall be another, I dunno, everybody's being shady... especially John, I don't even know what's up with that. Maybe Slutty!Ben broke him. Which would be really sad).

And I would create a banner of glittering cocks... but amberlynne beat me to it (and I have no idea how).

I digress. Happy Birthday, L, you are a joy and a comfort and one of the most giving, thoughtful people I have ever encountered in fandom. PORN SWAT would not be the same without you. Especially considering that you write sex that involves bacon and syrup. And a gorgeous Lilley POV. And Brad meeting Nate's ex.

Speaking of porn, or not, GK people, get thee to sparky77 LJ and read the very long time coming premiere of her Rudy POV, Rudy's Guide to Auras and Fair Game Play, which guest stars Pappy and Ray and Brad (and Poke! ILU Poke!). Some people Q is just born to write. First Ray, now Rudy. I think it says something about her, but I shan't say what exactly (but you can probably guess).

ETA: Is it possible that any of you lot have the following mp3s:

Babybird 'Back Together'
Shawn MacDonald 'Captivated'
Wyclef Jean and the All-Stars 'New Day'
Irma Thomas 'Break-a-way'
Blue October 'Breakfast After 10'
Steve Earle 'Feel Alright'
Snow Patrol 'We Can Run Away Now They're All Dead and Gone'
The Parlor Mob 'Can't Keep No Good Boy Down'
Sponge 'Plowed'


ETA#2:: WHY DID NOBODY TELL ME ABOUT THE BALLAD OF G.I. JOE?

My Favorite Mix
This past weekend I was cleaning out some of my mediafire folders and came across the file for When the Bullet Comes 'Round, which is a fanmix that I made last year for Generation Kill. I've been sharing music for many many years now. Made more mixes than you can count on your fingers and toes and my fingers and toes, but this one is unquestionably my favorite. The flow, the message. If you ever think what kind of music does X like? this mix will give you the answer: Everything.

My Favorite Story That I've Written
Speaking of favoritest, I know I said it when I posted it, but I've been writing for a not inconsiderable amount of time and I'm pretty prolific and out of every story I have ever written Son is on a Midnight Run Like DeNiro or We're All Just Train Wrecks Waiting for the Crash (Southland) is bar none my favorite story. Cross fandom. If I'm only ever remembered for one story I hope it's this one.

My Favorite Story Under 15,000 words That I Wrote.
I like getting into fandoms at the very beginning. I like getting in there before fanon has cemented into something implacable, and if that's not possible, then god knows I love taking charge of characters that nobody else gives a shit about. I think the greatest example of this is Theodore Nott, who is such a throw away character in Harry Potter that he's mentioned one time in one book and then never heard from again. But in 2004 J.K. Rowling mentioned that she'd once had plans for Theodore. That he had a history with Draco, but that he didn't really like Draco, and one throwaway line turned into The Thousandth Man Verse, which is the story of Theodore Nott and all those Slytherins that are maligned by the masses. That entire universe is about Theodore and Neville Longbottom, but it's the story that made me think about what it means to be a Slytherin in the first place that I chose. Don’t Be Shallow


My Favorite GK Stories
When yuletide came around last winter, my only desire in life was a) to write Generation Kill fic and b) for other people to write Generation Kill fic. And lo was the fandom gifted with many many tremendous things. And so I say unto you if you are just tuning in: read alethialia's The Temptation of the LT, which is so good I'm still sending her feedback on it eight months later (trufax, you can ask her), sparky77's On How Sergeant Colbert is Nothing At All Like Winnie the Pooh, and Other Important Lessons That Can Be Learned While Observing the Sergeant Laying under a Jeep, because she undoubtedly has the best Ray voice in GK and lunasky's Free Falling Through the Nighttime Sky because that is how you write a love story about guys. To this pile I would also undoubtedly add romanticalgirl's Itch in Your Veins, which has the distinction of being so gorgeous I wanted to smash my keyboard over my own head. (I also recommend anything I've previously listed here)

Other Miscellaneous Recommendations (Because I can)
1. Tom Ricks Blog, for anybody who might like to actually hear an informed opinion on the war. There is nothing hotter than a man who knows what the fuck he's talking about and not just forming words out his ass. (Feed here tomricks)
2. scrunchy's Covered in Rain, or How We Really Said Goodbye, a story written for slodwick's 1000 word challenge, which almost three years later still makes me go emo.
3. SOUTHLAND. Which has started airing repeats in its new Friday 8pm slot. If you only listen to one recommendation I make, listen to this one. Watch this show. The first four episodes are up now
4. The Best Part of Breaking Up by fryadvocate, which has the distinction of being the first and only Barbie story I've ever read (not including coloring books naturally). And did I mention it's from Ken's POV?
5. The Wire. As evidenced by the listing above, I'm not really into fluffy stories (Bar Ken). I like things that make you feel like somebody just kicked you in the teeth or stomped in your foot or reached in your chest and twisted out your heart. The Wire has the distinction of not only doing that, but teaching you about how and why cities fall apart. About how what you think of as 'urban problems' are universal problems. So goes one, so goes us all.

There was no porn in my inbox this morning. That's... that's sad people. What the hell?

---

Last week, Michael Cudlitz and Ben McKenzie went to the race track to get ready for the start of S2 Southland filming. ROWR. Yesterday, they went to the gun range. Michael. Ben. I, um, this needs porn.

(Yes, Southland is coming back. It has not been cancelled. PLEASE. If you enjoyed Son is on a Midnight Run Like DeNiro at all, watch this series when it airs in the fall.

Michael says I am required to bring him 1 million viewers. Come here and tell me you are watching, so I can add you to my quota. With romanticalgirl, sparky77 and myself I only need... 999,997 more!). ETA: That's another five. Twelve Eighteen! Come guys, only 999,982 left!

---

c. Brian Williams: I'm Mark Sanford
Jon Stewart: Am I your wife or your mistress?

Yes, It's true. I totally fucking ship Brian Williams/Jon Stewart. I am not ashamed to admit this. They'd probably admit it, too.

---

kaneko wrote an absolutely gorgeous Generation Kill story, Tourists. There's something so compelling about the way kaneko writes Brad and Nate. She manages to transport you into her world with just a few sentences, make you feel everything acutely without overselling anything. Everything she does just feels so damn natural. Encourage her, people. Your fandom requires this.

1. Go and vote in The Asstastic ass_off 09! Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like, a Tournament of Extraordinary Backsides. March Madness but with ASS! Complete with graphics! And make sure you vote for Brad, err Alexander Skarsgard!

2. The most fabulously brilliant thefourthvine explains why the number of comments you recieve on a story/in an entry is not, and will never be, directly proportional to the number of people who have you friended who read your journal. Because let's face it, this is not a friends thing, this is a goddamn reading list and would that LJ called it by what it really is.

3. sparky77 writes The Incredibly True Story of When El Jay met Dreamwidth.

4. romanticalgirl continues to run me out of wanting to write Generation Kill fandom by crafting some of the most honest and brilliant Brad POV possible and rendering me a mess. Read Ergo Sum. At this point I should be happy she's not a crack head or I'd be in the corner, doing shots with Ray and telling him how I introduced the love of my life to another woman, and she was better for him than I was, and damn the whole thing!

5. As of 9:12 this morning 'minions' will hence forth be referred to as "outside contractors paid in porn." So say we all. This contract has been ratified by myself and antheia

6. Dear Walsh on The Unusuals, You are tres hot. Like if Ben McKenzie ever ages I hope he looks like you. In fact, you really do look like you should be related. Maybe someone will write the X-over where you two are brothers and you come to LA and have blindingly hot sex with Cooper!! *waits* *waits more*

I've been on LJ Sabbatical for a bit while I handle some RL business, but I had to pop round and tell everybody that they need to get thee to a nunnery look at the most incredibly beautiful art that trolleys made for my GK!Thief AU Let's Be Bad Guys.

trolleys work is nothing short of inspirational (I saw that art with Arthur wearing Glasses and hope to write about it, before say, 2010) and I hope you will encourage her to make more.

I am not a morning person. No, like, for real, SO not a morning person. I had a thought that was going there, but mostly at this point I am all just blathering. Points of interest:

a) I posted my picfor1000 story, which is Chuck Happiness Was Never Really Our Success, which I apologise madly for if you tried to read it yesterday. There was a bit of a coding snafu, which cut out, like seven lines, which, when dealing with 1000 words, kind of relevant.

b) All Hail Generation Kill people! UK goers, GK started airing on FX like yesterday, so you know, FUCKING WATCH IT. Ahem. And the rest of us are required (yes, by me) to read bluflamingo's Yuletide Resolution story Seagulls and Sand, which takes place when Nate goes to visit Brad in the UK. Ah, GK fen, we do not turn out a lot of work (I have complaints about this), but what we do churn out I enjoy immensely. No lie. Maybe I need to check out the GK-based resolutions myself. Hmmm.

c) Speaking of small but mighty fandoms, Leverage folk, OMG THE ALEC/ELIOT Y'ALL ARE WRITING IS THE BOMB! Naturally, I (biasedly) recommend everything sparky77 has written (Leverage/O11 people), as well as with_a_key's work (esp this story), and this story by merle_p and this story by darkeyedwolf.

d) DEAR PRESIDENT OBAMA,

U IZ THE MOST AWESOMEST EVER.

<3,
X

e) Rahm Emanuel continues to be greater than you. (or me). Turns out the NYT has a White House OTP too.

f) I know y'all thought I was bullshitting you about Robert Downey Jr being cracked out in The Kingdom of the Blaggers, but I wasn't. Hell, by this example, I totally didn't apply ENOUGH crack. Gacked from musesfool

g) We now return you to your regularly scheduled Merlin/Burn Notice*/Psych/Gossip Girl/Leverage/BSG** babbling already in progress.

g2*) Burn Notice people, it is not my imagination that Michael got hotter, is it? Yeah, didn't think so. Also, do we all agree that in the Sam & Michael relationship, Sam is the big brother, which is why he gets to call Michael "Mikey" and nobody else does. Do we have fic about that, because we sure as hell need some.

g3) BSG, people, I don't even have words about the last two weeks. Actually, yes I do : OMGWTFBBQSTOPLYING!

Does anybody have the Cast Soundtrack for Wicked the Musical? I am also in the market for any Akron and the Family you might have (I only have a few singles: I'll be on the Water, Ed is a Portal and Afford).

Also, the new Verve album (now there are a couple of words I never thought I'd be able to type), Fourth is coming out on 26th August. If anybody might be able to help a sister out, well, I would be most appreciative.

Yes, I know, still no porn. Well, I've not written porn at ALL this year, so I have to work up to it. We'll get there. You'll like the trip.

I also have two fic recs:

Psych, Gus/Shawn, Interventions and Other Ploys by manicjoy, because there is never enough Shawn/Gus in the world, let along quality Shawn/Gus, and this has perfect delivery of what makes them an OTP.

Generation Kill, Fick/Colbert, POV by Beecher, err, Wright. Cats & Dogs by suaine, because I like Generation Kill, like a LOT, and Nate and Brad deserve to be happy in some time line somewhere.