"Deep Thoughts" by Quicksilver Eyes

Hey all,

I'm back home on winter break finally. It feels so good to do absolutely nothing! I can't believe I only have one more semester to go, feels like I'm getting so old...

Anyways, just checking in to say hi and that I'm still alive! Hehe ;)

Love,
QE

Hey!

I'm home from school for a mini break and I've been catching up with LJ life. Recently, I've had such a craving to get back into LJ and fandom. I couldn't stay away for long! And I want to start writing fic again. I 'm taking a creative writing class in school right now, but sometimes it isn't enough. Like I'll want to write a drabble, but there's no way I could submit that to class... And some of the stuff I do write, I create the night before I have to read in class. That's all well and good, but I'm not all that invested in the stories and characters like I am in fandom. And the other people in my class don't give a hoot either, they're just there to critique so we can move on to their own stuff. But that's just one of the many reasons why I love fandom. Though we may portray these characters in different ways, we all love them. And they've become so real to us.

... so yeah... just wanted to say hey and that I've missed you. :) I'll try to be around more often and give back some of the lovely fic you give to me.

<3 QE

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Wow, it's been soooo long since my last update so I thought I'd pop in really quickly to say "Hey, what's up". (I don't even have an appropriate festive icon ready and I'm too lazy to go upload one right now. *hangs head in shame*) Edit: Back with Christmas icon.

I'm back from London (it was amazing!) and now it's Christmas. How did that happen? I coulda sworn it was summer last week. Anyways, I've completely lost track of what's going on with LJ. Somebody update me, please! I have so much catching up to do. If I can get myself back into the lJ-ing mood, expect much comment-spam. I'll also make a more detailed post about London and there may even be pictures!

Also, is it bad form to send postcards after you've gotten back from the place you got them in? Cuz I am so doing that, lol. Holla if you want one.

Anyways, I hope you're all having a great holiday wherever you are and whoever you're with!


Love,
QE

Hi everyone,

I've been really busy lately preparing for and then settling down after my trip to London. I'll be staying here for three months studying at this really great university. I've been having a really wonderful time so far, but I'm still incredibly tired even though I got here on Sunday! In some ways it's sooo different from America, but in others, not at all. The area I'm in is really diverse so I've met all kinds of people. It's also super expensive, which isn't all that much fun, lol. Anyways, that's all for now, but I'll make a picture post soon!

PS - Jae, look for a postcard soon, once I find out where to get one. (You'd think they'd be everywhere, wouldn't you?)

Hey all, just checking in. There really isn't all that much to post about. I'm just lazing about trying to enjoy my last week before I go off to school. But I'm not dragging my feet at all because, really, who doesn't want to spend 3 MONTHS IN LONDON? I can't wait! I leave next Friday. There's so much stuff to plan, though! Wish me luck. ;)

My mom and I are also altering a dress I bought recently. As soon as I saw it, I had this vision in my head of what it should look like. I'm making it shorter and turning it into a bubble dress. I saw them everywhere in NY and thought they were so cute so I'm trying my hand at it. Hopefully it'll turn out alright.

I also finally took that nerd test. I kept running into it wherever I went so I gave in. I'm slightly miffed that I'm just a dumb, awkward dork; I would have thought I'd have done better in the history/lit section, lol!

How are all of you doing?

Stolen from vlredreign!

You're Siddhartha!

by Hermann Hesse

You simply don't know what to believe, but you're willing to try
anything once. Western values, Eastern values, hedonism and minimalism, you've spent
some time in every camp. But you still don't have any idea what camp you belong in.
This makes you an individualist of the highest order, but also really lonely. It's
time to chill out under a tree. And realize that at least you believe in
ferries.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

YAY! I copied all my posts to IJ, GJ, and JF! Scribblit is also looking very interesteing too...

Hey, does anyone have any more info on smut_wednesday? I know fools_trifle deleted it, but for how long? Is it moving? What's going on?! I need my smut dammit!

Hey everyone!

I got back on Sunday and have been lazing about and trying to catch up on everything since then. I can't believe 10 weeks went by so quickly! I loved my internship and learned tons. Now I just need to figure out what I want to do with all that information...

As I mentioned before, I'm trying to figure out everything that's happened since I left. I have so much fic to catch up on and I know I owe b-day fic to some lovelies. I heard about boldthough-gate and am still trying to piece together everything that happened. Anyone want to enlighten me a bit? What's happening with fandom staying or leaving? I don't really want to leave but this is the second instance in less than three months.

What are your thots? Show me them, plz.

I also haven't really been around since book 7 came out. It doesn't seem like fandom's head exploded... which is a good thing. Is it THE END OF FANDOM AS WE KNOW IT? Are people packing up? I don't think so and I don't plan on leaving, but as I said before, I haven't been around and can't guess how people are feeling. I'm pretty happy with how things turned out for the most part and I can't wait to see how the WB handles the movie, lol.

Anyways, I missed all of you and I'm glad to be back. How was summer?

PS - Is anyone else obsessed with So You Think You Can Dance? The finale is tonight and I can't wait to see who wins. I hope it's Danny or Sabra!!!

I think this icon says it all.

Can I just say I loved Loved LOVED Deathly Hallows?! It was the best thing EVER!!!

I haven't had time to post about the book before, but I finished it on Sunday evening. I got it at exactly midnight on Friday night/Saturday morning and rushed home on the subway with my ipod blasting to ward off spoilers, my face painted like Crookshanks, and a balloon teddy bear that was hugging a heart slung over my shoulder. I looked like such a freak, but I didn't care.

I've been trying to browse the discussions, but there's no way to keep up! I don't even have time to go over it the way I would like to at the moment and I don't want to spoil anyone, but just know that I was totally blown away by JKR and her final product.

I also hear there's going to be another book about everyone's back story. IS this true? I'd love that.

Plus I went to Borders today during my lunch hour to wander around. It was still recovering from the midnight party and I got a huge poster of the cover!

That's all for now. Sadly, it's way past my bed time, but I'll definitely add my two cents some time soon. Hopefully.

Wow, I haven't updated in a while. Work has been keeping me pretty busy and on top of that, the interns have to complete a separate project. Fun, though hard work. Also, I'm still having internet troubles. It's really pissing me off, especially since I'm paying an extra fee for shitty wireless that cuts off every five minutes.

I miss being able to sit on the computer all day and participate in fandom as much as I want. :( In August I'll be able to for a while at least.

I know I owe b-day fic and more coming up and I NEED to update Vindicated like whoa. I just got a review that's kicked my ass into gear. Let's hope the kick was hard enough and there'll be a new chapter soon. :P

I'm also thinking hard about where this English major can take me. I know I won't be living in a cardboard box, lol. There are many choices. I guess I went in having a plan and now it's become a bit wobbly. It was to be expected, and now I'm kinda glad. As Ms. Frizzle says, "Take chances, make mistakes!" Still, I'd love to find a pile of money on the floor so I could retire before I begin. But really, who wouldn't love that? *snorts*

I miss everyone, how are you all?


PS - I'm not really feeling nostalgic, but isn't that the cutest mood theme ever? I'm trying to give some of the less used ones more love. :)

All I can say is wow. The last couple of days have been such a roller coaster ride, I could barely leave my laptop. I just want to say how proud I am of the LJ community, particularly fandom members. The way we mobilized was breath-taking. I thought I couldn't love you anymore than I did when FanLib struck, but damn, I stand corrected!

I want to fangirl you.

Yesterday I made a Greatest Journal just in case I had to leave and poked around Insane Journal (great site!), but I must say that neither one was LJ. Same technology and layout, but it didn't have the community. I knew there was no way I could just up and leave LJ. Even if LJ hadn't brought back the journals they'd wrongfully suspended and fandom decided to leave, I feared we'd be fragmented and that people would decide to settle in different places.

I'm glad LJ came to its senses, but things are far from over. This shouldn't even have happened in the first place. This is the first huge fuck-up LJ has committed since I joined last year and I'm willing to forgive them this time. They're not perfect and I'll wager this is the first time something like this has ever happened in its history. They handled it very badly. I don't think they'll ever do this again, though.

Their first crime was ignoring initial WFI and Perverted Justice complaints. There were pedophiles on the site and they did nothing. The second mistake was to react so strongly and in such an unorganized manner when WFI brought in the sponsors. When the threat of losing money entered the picture, they jumped into action and deleted 500+ journals! Huh? They were so intent on doing damage control before the sponsors pulled out that they couldn't even take a moment to make sure that the journals being deleted were actually being used for illegal activities. Some of these journals had been here for years and were loyal patrons. They put the sponsors over us which is something that a company should NEVER do. Their third mistake was not being prepared for the backlash that would occur. (OMGZ! Didn't they realize what would happen when they took away pornsh_pixies?!) Finally, their fourth mistake was not talking to us for 48 hours, but addressing CNET, MediaFilter, and whatever other media outlets they may have spoken to. That was a slap in the face.

Then a response came. I was unsatisfied with it on the whole, but it did address the immediate need for the reinstatement of the suspended journals and comms. Barak still needs to explain why LJ put the sponsors over us, why they deleted all those journals without even looking at them, why they talked to people outside of LJ, and why they didn't look into the background of WFI to see that they were a right-wing, bat-shit insane, vigilante group that was possibly involved in/connected to even shadier activities and groups.

And of course we have to wonder about the future. What's next? I don't think they'll do anything like this again. However, I don't know what else they'll be ignorant about. It's a problem that they didn't think we'd complain about the deletion of journals that did not deserve to be deleted. They underestimated us and the strength of our community ties. This ignorance and lack of foresight could lead to other mistakes that someone with more understanding of us would not make.

As I said before, I am not leaving and I'm willing to give LJ another shot. But I won't forget and I will be watching very closely from now on.

Did anyone see the season finale of House?!

My reaction can be summed up as ILUHFOIFJNSDKJCNIUFHIRJFLSJKDFKHIERUIGEHLJGNVKJFVN!!!!

And also AAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

And also WWHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTT?!?!?!?!



Now watch this video, frickin' hilarious!

Fred on Halloween

Henry Jenkins' interview with Chris Williams has been posted here. The FanLib FAQ and ToS have also been updated. This the first time we've gotten any straight answers. Or at least answers that Chris Williams might believe to be true.

My thoughts on the FAQ have been posted on life_wo_fanlib  here.

So. I've still been checking Henry Jenkins' blog for updates on when the interview with Chris Williams is coming and to read the comments that are still being posted about FanLib. The last comment, by someone named Wilderness Guru, linked to this article about the IP Protection Act of 2007 (PDF) that Alberto Gonzales proposed on May 14th. This happened over a month and a half after the defeat of strong net neutrality protection by the House Telecom Subcommittee and the day after the deadline for cable modem companies, DSL providers, broadband over powerline, satellite internet companies and even some universities to finally meet the FBI's requirement to allow it to essentially "wiretap" internet users through the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act. It kinda freaked me out. Maybe I haven't been paying attention and missed a kerfluffle so I did some Googling and came up with this Wired.com article that basically explains what the act proposes. I read it and my reaction can be summed up as What?

No, let me try that again.

WHAT?!?!?!1

This bill proposes that copyright infringement be made into a criminal act that could sometimes earn you a life sentence in prison. Prison!

Ok, lets backtrack.

Sorry for the spammage, but who doesn't like stock photo secks? Here's some blue man/pink man slashy goodness from the FanLib ad found on lizbee 's journal.

You might want to take a look at this too. It's how FanLib markets itself to the companies it solicits backing from. Very different from the way it markets itself to us.

Disgusting.

It's explained further in this post by cheshyre  in life_wo_fanlib

Hey everyone,

Many people are back from Phoenix Rising, which ended yesterday. I'm sure they're being caught up on the FanLib Kerfluffle and formulating opinions. Henry Jenkins, an aca-fan who teaches at MIT has posted his thoughts on his blog. It's a very interesting read. His opinions are pretty similar to ours which is both reassuring and depressing at the same time.

PS - If I didn't think FanLib was utterly incapable of getting this information, I would suspect they planned their site launch to coincide with Phoenix Rising. All of the academic and enthusiastic fans who were able to go were away. I wonder what's going to happen now that the gang's all here. The second wave?

Hehe.

ETA: This just in, straight From Henriy Jenkins' blog -

Update: Chris Williams has accepted my invitation to be interviewed in the blog. We are still working out the details. In the meantime, I wanted to solicit from my readers questions you would like to see addressed in such an exchange. My goal is to allow him to tell his side of the story and to speak to the concerns which fans have raised. Either send me your questions via the comments section here or via e-mail at henry3@mit.edu. Thanks.

Has everyone been keeping up with the whole FanLib (link purposefully absent) Kerfluffle? metafandom   is doing a great job of expressing all of the (mostly negative) opinions. Somehow I lost today catching up on what's being said on both sides and soliciting some opinions on the legal issues from the wonderful people over at fandom_lawyers  .

In case you didn't know, FanLib is a new for-profit site founded by a non-fandom group for posting fanfiction from almost any fandom. It officially launched recently and has been kicking up a storm since. It seems like there's a lot of miscommunication going on on both sides and I'd like to discuss a few things. I'll try not to be biased, but it will be very hard. The main issues seem to be the fact that they are making money off of our work; the fact that they are shining a light on fandom that we did not necessarily ask for; the fact that the TOS seem to basically screw us over; and the fact that they are not members of fandom (this is the Board of directors I'm talking about), which somehow then leads to a breakdown of proper fandom, internet, and, yes, human etiquette.

ETA 1: The discussion over at fandom_lawyers is getting pretty interesting. Here's an admittedly sensationalist tidbit:

Given that a for-profit company is now expressly soliciting and posting fanfics, including fics with adult themes and/or fics which directly portray characters and elements in a non-canon, even negatively so, light, the gloves are going to come off. C&D's are coming. Eventually, counsel will get tired of a new round of C&D every week and start threatening with injunctions and damages. If they succeed, the site will not be able to make a profit. If they do not, they will start suing for those injunctions and damages.
If fanlib cuts and runs in the middle of a suit, or just complies with C&D's and hangs the authors out to dry, eventually an IP owner is still going to push the case through to get an answer once and for all, and that answer will, I have sad confidence, not be to the benefit of the fan community.

Also, we've been looking for evidence that the BOD of FanLib has at least some experience being in fandom. On the FanLib boards, David Williams explained his fannish history:

I can tell you that among other things, I am a HUGE Star Trek fan. Not speak Klingon or wear the uniform to bed kind of fan (not that there's anything wrong with that) but a seen every episode 1,000 times, went as Capt. Kirk for Halloween, written fan fiction about it kind of fan.

So why didn't he just say that in the first place or include it in his info?

ETA 2:
 Plz to be visiting these two communities:

fanarchive where people are discussing how to go about making our own multifandom archive that's cooler than FanLib

life_wo_fanlib where we're recording all the news that's being generated about FanLib.

This fic is for megyal who's birthday was on Thursday. She wanted butterflies.

This is my first H/D fic so tell me what you think!

Title: Butterflies at Sunset
Author:  quicksilvereyes  
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Rating: PG-13ish? Nothing to get your panties in a bunch about. :P
Word count: 4,288
Summary: It's Draco's birthday and Harry has more planned than Draco could ever have imagined...
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry or Draco so please don't sue me! Everything, but the plot belongs to J.K. Rowling and those other rich people.
A/N: Thanks to moonsaiyan16 for the quick beta!