[syndicated profile] the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Rachel Thomas

woman shares being a military girlfriend struggles (l) man serving in the military (r)

Being a military wife, partner, or even girlfriend can be tough. From moves across the country at a moment’s notice to isolation within insular communities and a lack of partnership during key life developments, it can break even the strongest people. 

One woman has a different set of problems entirely related to her military boyfriend, though. TikToker @motob660 posted a video saying that she was having a hard time with her boyfriend’s military involvement. It wasn’t because he was halfway across the country or in a completely different country. It was because she was reportedly not invited to military celebrations due to her “girlfriend status.” 

Prices

Apr. 14th, 2026 06:40 am
ursulas_alcove: Blakes 7 (scared)
[personal profile] ursulas_alcove
In keeping with garden advice, I looked for the nitrogen fertilizer I used last year. I used an organic feather mix that is slow release. I liked it and it was easy to use. While it was easy to find this year and reasonable at $17 a box, the shipping costs for a couple of boxes from CA was $78! It wasn't oversized nor are the boxes heavy. Either their shipping algorithm is screwed up or something is way off. Yes, I left an "abandoned" cart. But prices are going up. Last year I bought packs of coco coir for about $7 or $8 a pack. The discount was bigger in packs of 6. This year I can only find single packs at $22 a pack. Same exact size. Same company. Just wow!

That means a couple of things. One - I'll be looking at bokashi to fertilize. Two - Like it or not, I am going to go flip that compost pile and water it periodically. I'd chase over to Starbucks for coffee grounds, except that uses gas. Once I have the backyard beds all built, I may call for a chip drop. It's a LOT of work hauling those chips up the hill. We'll see if that even happens. The third thing I am doing is making biochar. My latest bed is getting the winter cover crop as plant food. I guess that makes four things. My costs will be water and seed for the cover crops. Just hoping my watering can makes it through the year.

Rain has been a scare commodity. I'll be harvesting the comfrey leaves for the buckets soon. Any digging or reshaping of the land (cinderblock leveling) will be put on hold. The clay will break the shovel. I have a broken tool collection.

Another one bites the dust . . .

It burns me to know that we get plenty of water BEFORE the last freeze but not after. I can't collect rainwater in March when it's plentiful. Hard freezes trash the container and the spigot valve. April 6th was our last hard freeze. We haven't had rain since nor is any forecast for a while. Going forward, I am going to have to do something about that. I am considering a water trough heater, just for those April days when temperatures dip. Before climate change really hit this area hard, we'd get close to 4" of rainwater every month - like clockwork. Now, it's all or nothing. I don't like it but I need to adapt. El Nino not only means high temperatures for the summer, but it also means drought in our area. I've been buying organic straw for all my beds. The Oya will be installed in the newest garden bed. I may make oyas out of old terra cotta pots. I also snagged a failed pottery attempt from Tosten. He was making clay pots with lids. The glaze failed. I think it'll work.

https://youtu.be/gkLRanqTKWw?si=tjvXEz4SRjdbEa0S

My latest video is out on the potatoes. In it, you'll see the latest "purchased" raised bed. I picked up a 2 for 1 sale on Birdies beds last fall. I don't know if I'll like it. My galvanized steel "fire ring" garden has never done well. A lot of garden catalogs are getting rid of a lot of products. Shipping has gotten too expensive. I picked up a wooden bed too, 41" x 36". If I can get that set up this year, it'll hold a zucchini squash plant. That depends on whether I can finish getting the mulberry tree trimmed. It's been too windy. I have quite a ToDo list. As time allows, I'll be working more with items I make out of scrap things. There is no money for purchased items any longer. (With the exception of perlite or soil that I have to get from the hardware store if I am to plant this year)

How Hackers Are Thinking About AI

Apr. 14th, 2026 10:49 am
[syndicated profile] bruce_schneier_feed

Posted by Bruce Schneier

Interesting paper: “What hackers talk about when they talk about AI: Early-stage diffusion of a cybercrime innovation.

Abstract: The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) is raising concerns about its potential to transform cybercrime. Beyond empowering novice offenders, AI stands to intensify the scale and sophistication of attacks by seasoned cybercriminals. This paper examines the evolving relationship between cybercriminals and AI using a unique dataset from a cyber threat intelligence platform. Analyzing more than 160 cybercrime forum conversations collected over seven months, our research reveals how cybercriminals understand AI and discuss how they can exploit its capabilities. Their exchanges reflect growing curiosity about AI’s criminal applications through legal tools and dedicated criminal tools, but also doubts and anxieties about AI’s effectiveness and its effects on their business models and operational security. The study documents attempts to misuse legitimate AI tools and develop bespoke models tailored for illicit purposes. Combining the diffusion of innovation framework with thematic analysis, the paper provides an in-depth view of emerging AI-enabled cybercrime and offers practical insights for law enforcement and policymakers.

tamaranth: me, in the sun (Default)
[personal profile] tamaranth
2026/053: How to Fake it in Society — K J Charles

"...in effect, you must paint what you see, and not what you know to be there. Because what we see and what is there are not always the same thing. I suppose it is important to learn that." [loc. 2026]

My initial mini-review is here: I reread the novel for this full review and can confirm that it is still an utter delight.

Titus Pilcrow is a colourman, a maker and supplier of paints and colours for artists. As the novel opens, he is in despair, because his landlord (also his ex) is evicting him. By a stroke of fortune, spoilers below )

trailer_spot: (Default)
[personal profile] trailer_spot
The Invite     HD720p 25MB
Chamber dramedy about Joe (Seth Rogen) and Angela (Olivia Wilde) whose marriage is on thin ice, and tonight might be when it all falls apart. Unfortunately, their upstairs neighbors (Edward Norton, Penélope Cruz) are about to arrive for dinner, and everything that can go wrong goes worse. Also directed by Wilde (Booksmart, Don't Worry Darling).
This is the US version of the Spanish film Sentimental/The People Upstairs that by now has been adapted about a half a dozen times. Looks funny and Sundance reviews are very favourable.

In the Grey     HD720p 30MB
Trailer for the latest action thriller written and directed by Guy Ritchie(Snatch., The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Swept Away). It follows a covert team of elite operatives (Henry Cavill, Jake Gyllenhaal, Eiza González) who live in the global shadows, as comfortable wielding power and influence as they are automatic weapons and high explosives. When a ruthless despot steals a billion-dollar fortune, the team is sent to steal it back on what would be for anyone else a suicide mission. Kristofer Hivju, Fisher Stevens and Rosamund Pike are also part of the cast.
IMDb informs me that filming already took place in 2023. Hopefully not all snappy bits of dialogue are already shown in the trailer.

Backrooms     HD720p 25MB
Horror mystery in which a strange doorway appears in the basement of a furniture showroom. Cast members include Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass and Lukita Maxwell.
Certainly an intriguing trailer, especially for genre fans. An earlier teaser: HD720p 7MB.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping     HD720p 35MB
Full trailer for the latest franchise extension, again directed by Francis Lawrence (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Constantine, I Am Legend), to be in theatres in November. It will revisit the world of Panem 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell. Cast members include Joseph Zada, Elle Fanning, Ralph Fiennes, Jesse Plemons, Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Mckenna Grace, Maya Hawke, Lili Taylor, Whitney Peak and Kelvin Harrison Jr.

The Devil Wears Prada 2    HD720p 27MB
A second trailer for the sequel. It follows Miranda Priestly's (Meryl Streep) struggle against Emily Charlton (Emily Blunt), her former assistant turned rival executive, as they compete for advertising revenue amidst declining print media while Miranda nears retirement. Anne Hathaway and Stanley Tucci also return. Among the new cast additions are Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley, Justin Theroux and Lucy Liu. Again directed by David Frankel (Collateral Beauty, Hope Springs, Marley & Me).
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

Happy Tuesday!

Have I mentioned yet how busy April is for releases? This week, there’s horror, fantasy romance, mafia romance, and more on our TBR piles.

What releases are you excited for? Let us know in the comments!

The Auction

The Auction by Sadie Kincaid

Author: Sadie Kincaid
Released: April 14, 2026 by MIRA
Genre: ,
Series: Wages of Sin #1

The queen of dark mafia romance, Sadie Kincaid, begins her new explosively sexy Wages of Sin series with The Auction. Beauty and the Beast meets organized crime in this tense slow-burn romance with scorching spice, thrilling suspense, and life-altering secrets. 

I was trained to be a pawn, but I will rise as a queen.

My life has never been my own. After the death of my parents, I was saved by my grandfather, with the promise that he would turn me over to the Brotherhood on my twenty-first birthday.

I was kept away from the outside world so I could one day be sold to the highest bidder—pure and unsullied. Penance for my parents’ alleged crimes.

That’s how I come to be sold at an auction.

And who buys me but the reclusive billionaire, Lincoln Knight?

Some say that he’s a monster, more dangerous than any of the evil men from the Brotherhood. That he wears a mask to cover his scars. But I believe he’s hiding more than just his face behind his mask.

My fate is sealed when he takes me to his crumbling mansion deep in the woods. I’m trapped. Entirely at his mercy.

I have to escape.

But something here isn’t what it seems.

Lincoln isn’t what he seems. Maybe he’s not a monster at all. I’m drawn to him in a way that I can’t explain. Until I discover that his secrets go far beyond his mask.

He’s everything I’ve been taught to fear, but what if everything I’ve ever known has been a lie?

Amanda: Auction plots are kind of my catnip.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Cherry Baby

Cherry Baby by Rainbow Rowell

Author: Rainbow Rowell
Released: April 14, 2026 by William Morrow
Genre: ,

#1 New York Times bestselling author Rainbow Rowell returns with a breathtakingly honest novel about art and sex and forgiveness—and how imperfectly we fall in love. 

Everybody knows that Cherry’s husband, Tom, is in Hollywood making a movie…

Almost nobody knows that he isn’t coming home.

Tom is the creator of Thursday—a semi-autobiographical webcomic, turned bestselling graphic novel, turned international phenomenon.

Semi-autobiographical. That means there’s a character in this movie based on Cherry… “Baby.”

Wide-hipped, heavy-chested, double-chinned Baby.

Cherry never wanted this. No fat girl wants to see herself caricatured on the pagelet alone on the big screen. But there’s no getting away from it. Baby looks so much like Cherry that strangers recognize her at the grocery store.

While her soon-to-be ex-husband is in Los Angeles getting rich and famous and being the Internet’s latest boyfriend, Cherry is stuck in Omaha taking care of the dog he always wanted and the house they were going to raise a family in…and wondering who she’s supposed to be without him.

Cherry had promised to love Tom through thick and thin.

She’d meant it.

One night, Cherry decides to leave all her problems, including Tom’s overgrown puppy, at home. She ventures out to see her favorite band play her favorite album…and someone recognizes her from across the room.

Russ Sutton knew Cherry when she was a young art student with a fondness for pin-up dresses and patent leather heels. Before Tom.

Russ knows Cherry. He likes Cherry.

And best of all…he’s never heard of Thursday.

Cherry Baby is Rainbow Rowell’s richest, most ambitious—sexiest—novel yet. Told with deep tenderness and shot through with Rowell’s signature wit—this is a second-chance romance for grown-ups. For people who understand how rare it is to get even one chance at love, and how impossible it can feel to make it work.

New Rainbow Rowell coming out!

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Deathly Fates

Deathly Fates by Tesia Tsai

Author: Tesia Tsai
Released: April 14, 2026 by Wednesday Books
Genre: , ,

A sweeping debut inspired by the Chinese folk practice of necromancy, Deathly Fates is perfect for fans of Descendant of the Crane, The Bone Shard Daughter, and A Magic Steeped in Poison.

As a priestess paid to guide the deceased home, Kang Siying has never feared death. However, when her beloved father collapses, Siying realizes that even she is not free from the cruel grasp of mortality. Desperate to provide her father with the medical aid he needs, Siying accepts a dangerous job that promises a generous commission, and travels to a hostile state to retrieve the corpse of a missing prince.

But the moment Siying places her reanimation talisman on the dead prince’s head, rather than make the corpse obedient to Siying’s commands, the talisman brings the prince back to life. Worse, he won’t stay alive for long—not unless he absorbs enough qi, or life force, to keep his soul anchored to his body.

In return for a reward worth twice her original commission, Siying agrees to aid the frustratingly handsome prince in finding and purifying evil spirits for their qi. As they journey across the countryside, encountering vengeful ghosts and enemy spies alike, they gradually uncover dark secrets about the prince’s death—secrets that could endanger both Siying’s father and their entire kingdom.

Amanda: This sounds so good!

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Happy Ending

Happy Ending by Chloe Liese

Author: Chloe Liese
Released: April 14, 2026 by Gallery Books
Genre: ,

From USA TODAY bestselling author Chloe Liese, a clever and heartwarming rom-com that is perfect for fans of Christina Lauren and Annabel Monaghan about two best friends who must fake a relationship for their exes.

Thea and Alex have three things in common—they love food, they hate where they live, and they’re both divorced. Otherwise, they couldn’t be more different.

Thea’s never cooked a day in her life. Alex is a world-class chef. Alex resents feeling stuck in his hometown. Thea resents the town for not feeling more like home. Thea and her ex are in a contentious custody battle for their dog. Alex and his ex amicably coparent their daughter. Beyond a few friends in common, a couple small-world connections (welcome to life in a mid-size city), their lives look nothing alike. Fast forward two years, and they’re truly the best of friends. No one would ever know their friendship began as a lie…

Two years ago, their exes got together immediately following their divorces, and somehow, Thea and Alex found themselves spinning a spite-fueled story about being old friends and first loves. Two years later, what began as a ruse has grown into real friendship—just friendship, despite what friends and family seem to think. But when their exes invite them on a two-week, “two family” beach vacation—daughter and dog included—Alex and Thea start to wonder if this story they’ve spun might have gotten away from them, and if it’s led them to the last place they ever thought it a happy ending.

Community fave Chloe Liese has a new contemporary romance out. 

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Save the Date

Save the Date by Mallory Kass

Author: Mallory Kass
Released: April 14, 2026 by Atria Books
Genre: ,

A romantic comedy of manners about a lavish wedding weekend gone very, very wrong with the slow-burn romance of Emily Henry and the fizzy humor of Sophie Kinsella.

The Beautiful, seemingly carefree Marigold is tired of being treated like a shallow it-girl. That’s one of the many reasons she’s excited to marry Jonathan—the handsome, kind, respectable doctor of her dreams. So when a shocking secret from her past threatens to ruin her wedding, she’ll do anything to make it disappear…even if it means tracking down a man she vowed to avoid forever.

The Maid of As the bride’s best friend, all Natalie wants is for this wedding to go off without a hitch. There’s only one Natalie has secretly been in love with the groom since college. When Marigold disappears, Natalie is forced to ask whether she can keep burying her feelings for the sake of friendship…or if she’s ready to risk everything to pursue her own happy ending.

The Olivia has spent her life cleaning up Marigold’s messes. So she’s determined to keep the wedding on track for the sake of their mother, who’s battling cancer and longs for one last perfect weekend. But when Jonathan’s best man—a prickly academic with a heart of gold—ropes her into a fake dating scheme, sparks unexpectedly fly. Will Olivia sacrifice her own happiness again, or could this fake relationship turn into the truest choice she’s ever made?

Heartwarming, hilarious, and sparklingly romantic, Save the Date will have you cheering for love in all its messy, unexpected glory.

Dahlia: This delightful rom-com is really 3 in 1, with three different female MCs each narrating her own storyline in one interwoven wedding celebration. It’s funny, it’s charming, and Kass (who you might recognize from writing The 100 as Kass Morgan) deftly makes you root for all three.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Stay for a Spell

Stay for a Spell by Amy Coombe

Author: Amy Coombe
Released: April 14, 2026 by Ace
Genre: , ,

A cursed princess must discover what her heart truly longs for in this charmingly cozy romantic fantasy for everyone who’s ever lost – or found – themselves in a bookshop.

Princess Tanadelle of the Widdenmar is disillusioned with life as a princess. She longs for real conversation, the chance to build a life of her own making, and uninterrupted reading time.

During a routine royal visit to the town of Little Pepperidge, Tandy’s dream comes true when she finds herself cursed to remain in a run-down bookshop until she unlocks her heart’s desire. Certain that someone will figure out how to break the curse eventually, and delighted by the prospect of an entire bookstore of her own, Tandy settles into life among the stacks. She finds it easy to exchange balls and endless state dinners for teetering piles of books and an irritatingly handsome pirate who seems bent on stealing her stock.

She even starts to believe she’s stumbled into her very own happily ever after.

There’s just one, minor as Tandy’s royal duties go unfulfilled, her frantic parents start sending princes to woo her, each one of them certain their kiss will break the curse. After all, what more could a princess want but a prince?

Amanda: The cover just looks so cozy.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

The Take

The Take by Kelly Yang

Author: Kelly Yang
Released: April 14, 2026 by Berkley
Genre:

A provocative, fast-paced novel about two creative women—a young writer fighting to be heard and an older producer clinging to relevancy—and the age reversal treatment that intertwines both of their lives…from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the beloved Front Desk series

Would you sell your youth for $3 million?

Maggie Wang, a broke young Asian American writer, needs a lifeline. Ingrid Parker, a veteran white Hollywood producer with her career on the edge, offers an irresistible $3 million for ten experimental medical sessions to reverse her aging, using Maggie as a transfusion partner, and mentorship.

For Ingrid, it’s a chance to reboot her fading career. For Maggie, it’s access and freedom—money to support her parents and the connections to finally get her novel published.

What starts as a professional transaction exchanging blood quickly becomes a complex psychological dance. As Maggie gains unprecedented access to Ingrid’s hard-earned wisdom, Ingrid sees in Maggie a weapon against an industry that’s been trying to sideline her.

As their relationship intensifies, the rules around aging begin to shift. So does the balance of power between the two women, leaving both questioning who holds the upper hand and what they’re willing to sacrifice to succeed.

Sharp, timely, and utterly compelling, The Take is perfect for readers of Yellowface and Such a Fun Age—a searing portrait of two women fighting to rewrite their story.

Amanda: Had a friend recommend this to me and told me it’s a better version of The Substance.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

Climate Change

Apr. 14th, 2026 01:59 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Hurricanes are slowing down - and dumping far more rain than before

If you’ve ever watched a hurricane stall on a weather map and became worried, you’re picking up on something scientists are increasingly concerned about.

A new study suggests that rapid ocean warming isn’t just making tropical cyclones dump more rain.

It may also be slowing some of them down while they’re still in their tropical phase, which is basically the worst combo if you’re on the coast or anywhere downstream.


Read more... )

Late Bird by Angela Narciso Torres

Apr. 14th, 2026 12:42 am
conuly: (Default)
[personal profile] conuly
Count me among the noon risers who stumble,
dazed and bad-haired, from the nest midday,
pecking the crazed dirt for half-torn moth,
pear’s white core, severed worm. I’ve never
been one to trill at chink of dawn, to hop,
skip, chirrup before full sun. I’m better
at picking over crumbs, stitching a quilt
from what’s left, remaindered, given up
for gone. Better at betting the careless
will miss the best. Count me among
the nightbirds who sip starlight, a guitar’s
fading strains. Find me where moondust
swirls in streetlamp glow and stray dogs sleep.
What clings to the bone is most sweet.


***********


Link

(no subject)

Apr. 14th, 2026 04:48 am
[syndicated profile] apod_feed

The clouds may look like an oyster, and the stars like pearls, but look beyond. The clouds may look like an oyster, and the stars like pearls, but look beyond.


It's maybe five minutes onscreen

Apr. 13th, 2026 11:18 pm
sovay: (Silver: against blue)
[personal profile] sovay
Things in my neighborhood are starting to bloom, so I got out of the house in the on-and-off overcast and photographed some.

When it's just me against the sky. )

I agree with this post that the human body was not designed to know what the worst person in the world is doing every fifteen minutes, but it was not possible for me to avoid hearing that the man in the White House shared AI slop of himself as Jesus healing the sick for Pascha. It was much nicer to discover that Aimee Mann circa 'Til Tuesday belonged so clearly to the elusive Bowie–Swinton species. She could have starred in Liquid Sky (1982).
starandrea: (Default)
[personal profile] starandrea
Mom Cat Shows Her Kittens The German Shepherd Is Safe, youtube vid from Laffey and Amy

just an adorable german shepherd befriending some kittens with a little help from mom

Just one thing: 14 April 2026

Apr. 13th, 2026 09:53 pm
[personal profile] jazzyjj posting in [community profile] awesomeers
It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished!

Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

Today's Adventures

Apr. 13th, 2026 08:43 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today we did a bunch of different things, including a Charleston loop in the morning and a Champaign loop in the afternoon.

Read more... )

Earthquake!

Apr. 13th, 2026 07:17 pm
kayla_allen: Welcome sign on old US 40 at west end of town (Fernley)
[personal profile] kayla_allen
At about 6:30 PM this evening (01:29:11 UTC according to https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000sptw/executive), we had a 5.7 earthquake centered near Silver Springs and roughly 25 km southeast of my house. I definitely felt it. The whole house shook for maybe 5-10 seconds. I did not take cover. By the time I stood up to consider it, the shaking stopped.

I went out to check on Lisa in her trailer. She had been getting ready for bed. She said, "What the hell was that?" as it felt like it does out there when we get a very high wind effect. The fact that the trailer sits on shock absorbers may have amplified the effect.

No harm done. Nothing fell off shelves. Nothing broke or fell over.

I've been near some ~6.0 quakes in the past, but I'm not sure I've been this close to one of this size before.
snickfic: Giles from Buffy, text: Bookish (mood reading)
[personal profile] snickfic
A collection of short stories translated from Hungarian. I picked this up from the library because I'd seen references to the author writing cosmic horror, which is apparently one way to get me to read a short fiction collection I otherwise know nothing about.

Veres has a direct, unsentimental style that reminds me a bit of Lisa Tuttle, although with less interest in women. Like Tuttle, one gets the impression he doesn't like people all that much. I enjoyed the eastern European perspective, adding extra flavor to ideas I've seen American or British versions of before. Veres also is really good at spooling out the key information, so that apparently unremarkable scenarios get weirder and weirder as we learn more detail.

And indeed, there is some straight up Lovecraftiana in here as well as two different body horror twists on the idyllic rural past, all of which are squarely my kind of thing.

Favorites:
Well, both the Lovecraft ones. "Multiplied by Zero" is a travel report from a man who's gone on a guided tour of a Lovecraftian horrorscape. I enjoyed the contrast between subject matter and tone all the way along, and then it really stuck the landing.

Meanwhile, "Walks Among Us" is an inside view of a Lovecraftian cult, aka exactly my jam, seen from the perspectives of two people raised in the faith and struggling with it and one who's married in. I'm amazed by how deftly Veres weaves all the backstories together with the present day timeline. This is extremely nonlinear and yet I never had any trouble following the action. One could argue the discussion of the cult as a religious minority is not great, given that this minority really is into murder and slavery and all that, but I enjoyed the Watsonian view of the world too much to quibble about the Doylist implications.

The two farming horror ones are honestly quite similar in subject matter, if not theme, to the point of feeling a little repetitive. "Return to the Midnight Soil" has the more interesting and imaginative body horror, but I think the title story "The Black Maybe," about a family from the city doing farming tourism, wins by a hair because it's more horrific, rather than tragic like the first one, and because I cared a lot more about the daughter in it than about either of the boys in the other story.

And "The Time Remaining" is the slashy entry, a story about a man whose life keeps getting worse and the devil whose life's purpose is to convince him to lead the armiese of hell. VERY shippy.

Least favorites:
"To Bite a Dog," about a woman who discovers the psychic power of dominating other creatures by biting them and her boyfriend who can't decide how he feels about it. The most Tuttle-feeling story of the collection because of how damn bleak it is. Also I just don't like animals being upset or in pain. It's rough being a horror fan sometimes.

"Fogtown," an epistolary story composed of an unfinished manuscript about someone else's unfinished book about an incredibly popular underground band that seemingly no one ever actually heard. I love this kind of thing normally, but the nested epistolary layers (complete with editor's notes!) were hard to keep track of, and the underlying story just didn't have any meat to it. I've read this story before with less effort and at least as much reward.

Those were the first two of the collection, so I'm really glad I pushed through to the ones I enjoyed! In fact, I ended up liking the collection enough that I bought his new one rather than waiting for it to show up at the library.
[syndicated profile] the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Ljeonida Mulabazi

woman shares first date experience (l) server being flirty with man (r)

When you go out to eat, you expect your server to be friendly. But there’s a line. According to one Texas woman, a server crossed it during a first date, and not in a subtle way.

In a video that has garnered over 491,400 views, TikTok creator Samantha (@samanthahaines2.0) shares how a server may have ruined her chances with a first date.

[syndicated profile] scalziwhatever_feed

Posted by Athena Scalzi

Hey, everyone! I was going to continue to post about my adventures in Colorado, but I decided a detour was in order today to show y’all this spread I did last night for my friend’s engagement party. Feast your eyes on my (mainly Aldi and partially Kroger) spread of goods for about fifty people to snack on:

A large spread of various meats and cheeses, as well as jams, olives, and nuts, all laid out on butcher paper. There's large piles of cubed and crumbled cheeses, a river of prosciutto, folded salamis, wheels of brie, a log of goat cheese, lots of good stuff!

So, while this isn’t everything I put out, this is the main event. I was very nervous to do a spread for so many people, as normally I deal in much smaller groups. Usually my boards are usually made for about ten people. I know you’re probably thinking, there’s no way that spread survived fifty people. And you’d be right! After the first wave of snackers, I snuck in to refill everything, and continued to refill as was necessary to keep it looking full and making sure everyone got a bite of what they wanted.

I was informed ahead of time that there were no known allergies amongst the entire group (except, of course, my bestie having a gluten intolerance). With that knowledge in mind, let’s look at what we got!

We’ve got double cream brie, dill Havarti, smoked gouda, cranberry cheddar, espresso martini soaked cheddar, pimento cheese dip, honey goat cheese, and a garlic and herbs Boursin. For the meats I did a very simple prosciutto and salami. I also brought a garlic summer sausage but I couldn’t really make it work in my presentation so I gave up on it and just went with the two meats, which honestly who needs more meat than just prosciutto and salami? Those are my two favorites, anyway.

Accoutrements include fig jam, a berry jalapeno jam, Stonewall Kitchen’s Maine Maple Champagne Mustard, quince paste, a pear, cardamom, and pistachio jam, blackcurrant mustard, Truff hot sauce, and an orange whiskey jam. There’s also stuffed peppers and herby olives, dates, salted caramel black truffle peanuts, rosemary Marcona almonds, pistachios, hot honey cashews, and chocolate covered pomegranate seeds. Finally, front and center is Zeroe Caviar’s vegan caviar made from seaweed. I’ve never put it on a board before, but I figured caviar was needed at an engagement party.

As you can tell from the grapes all the way on the right, there’s more to see than this picture lets on. I just did some strawberries, blackberries, and grapes with fruit fluff, and then pinwheel striped and sliced some mini cucumbers and set those out with carrots and celery alongside tzatziki and feta dip, plus a creamy ranch dip. There was also a tray of various cookies like Walker’s shortbread, Pirouette cookies, and some strawberry and creme covered pretzels. Plus blue corn tortilla chips and salsa.

Here’s a different angle so hopefully you can somewhat see some other items:

The spread from a different angle, now showing the fruit and veggies at the other end.

At the end you can see the fruit fluff and fruit, and the veggies and dips further down. And look, someone brought hummus! How thoughtful. Luckily, I had pita chips to go with it. I also set out some cranberry crisps, rosemary flatbread crackers, and some other entertainment crackers but nothing really of note. I kept my friend’s gluten-free crackers behind the counter for her, as well as her gluten-free cookies.

So, there you have it, a spread from yours truly for my bestie’s engagement party. I am so excited for her, her fiancé, and to be in her wedding. She means the world to me and I was happy to feed those closest to her.

Which cheese sounds the best to you? Would you try the vegan caviar? Let me kn0w in the comments, and have a great day!

-AMS

[syndicated profile] the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Teresia Gray

Clavicular hates being asked about his relationship to incel culture. The “looksmaxxing” influencer straight-up walked out of an interview because of a question about it.

60 Minutes caught up with Braden Peters, the kid’s real name, and Adam Hegarty asked him if he was an incel, straight up. Obviously, the 20-year-old didn’t like that too much and simply got up and walked out. This is a common theme with these kinds of influencers. They enjoy poking at minorities, women or liberal-leaning people. But, don’t ever try to embarrass them in front of a crowd. Now, the bully is being bullied all of a sudden.

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[personal profile] lightreads
Chain-Gang All-Stars

4/5. A near future dystopian America where the carceral system has an entertainment component under which inmates can “voluntarily” enter a reality show program where they fight to the death for a chance at freedom. This book is about a lot of people in and around that system, but centrally two women stars of it.

This is brilliant and beautiful and deeply humane while being about inhumane things. Some have complained it’s on-the-nose which, like, yes? I’m sorry, did you want subtlety in this critique? What good would that do?

Which leads me to the structure of this book. Tonally, it is a sustained scream, modulating with the kind of pain it is expressing. And then sprinkled throughout are footnotes. Some didactic, some painful, some about our current prison statistics, some about these fictional people. It is a really interesting choice. The author called it an “ethical” one which I am interpreting to mean that he is not interested in giving readers a chance to weasel out of understanding some of what this book is putting down. I think that is also a really smart way of confronting the thing that has wrecked other books like this. The problem is that it’s really hard to tell a story that is critiquing violence and suffering as entertainment without also entertaining your reader with violence and suffering. And the approach taken here is one of the best I’ve ever seen at negotiating that.

Content notes: Oh boy. Violence, murder, torture, mentions of rape and domestic violence, structural and personal racism

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