A room of my own...

ETA: I'm moving this to the top of my journal since all my fic is locked now. Those of you who have seen it before may ignore this post.

I've seen people post stuff about their friending policies, but I don't really have one. I do, however, have a policy about posts that are flocked.

( So this is how I decide what to lock... )

I wish Everyone a happy and prosperous New Year!

May you all have a wonderful year and make progress in all your resolutions!

Thanks for the lovely birthday wishes! I got a kindle for my birthday and can totally surf the internet on it!

Since Con.text last month, I have been watching a few more shows: Psych, based on an AWESOME panel that I went to; White Collar, based on the threesome poster with bondage overtones, and Haven and Covert Affairs, for their kick-ass female leads. The last two just snuck up on me and were a total surprise.

( the slightest of slight spoilers for Haven and White collar )

( Faewolf by D.M. Atkins and Chris Taylor, published by Circlet Press, 2009 )

I spent last weekend at Con.Txt III in MD and had the BEST BEST BEST BEST TIME!!!!!!!

This is a really well run con: The panels were relaxed but well organized, the presenters had all done their homework, and the audience filled in any minor gaps with lots and lots of participation. There was much squee, contemplation, and fun.

The Consweet was full of book sellers - which was great. I picked up some wonderful novels which I plan to review over the next few days. I met authors of fanfic, profic, and both, some editors, and some lovely fen.

New to me in RL were Libertina and Casspeach - both fantastic people to hang out with. I also got to see more old friends that I can easily list.

There were great breakfast buffets in the consweet, a fantastic snack table, box lunches for those who registered for them, and plenty of places to walk to for food if you wanted even more variety.

The fen, the fun, and the food - all of these are the best reasons for going to Con.Txt!

One of the things I have been having a hard time with during this move has been my anxiety of moving my side business and making time for it as I am going into a full time job.

I have project in particular that I was torn about. The clients have made many changes to the project, and really it doesn't pay that much considering the amount of work I've been doing, but I really like the client, and the pay isn't a total pittance.

So the question was, quit or continue.

Then I suddenly couldn't reach my client. They hadn't paid for the last installment I sent them. I was all about the EEEEEEEK! Half relieved that I wasn't going to have to quit on them since apparently they had dumped me, and half guilty that in the midst of the move, I frankly didn't have the energy to put a whole lot into finding them.

Tonight I got a call - aparently domain names changed without my knowing, and all my emails for the last two months had gone into the ether!

Plus, they have given me a major extension to the project based on all the changes they have asked for an how much they liked my work ( this is an educational writing project - basically a series of text books).

So now I am going to resend all my stuff, they will pay, and with the new schedule I should be able to keep them on as clients!

WOW - my life wis working out wierdly WELL. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, on the one hand, on the other, I really feel like this is where I am supposed to be and what I am supposed to be doing - and everything that has happened for the last three weeks just keeps on supporting that point of view.

I need to go to bed - but MAN I am WIRED! A happy wired, but still WIRED!

Well, I have formally withdrawn my permission for my pseudonym and any comments I've made to be used by Ogi Ogas in his research. The LJ he was using seems to be blocked off now, and I don't know exactly why that is, but oh, well.

The interactions I had Ogi were polite and interesting, however, since deadlychameleon, and many others, have pointed out that he has been misrepresenting himself, I can't support the research any longer.

I was waiting to see how things would pan out, to see if perhaps there had been a misunderstanding, but the weight of the evidence seems to be coming down against this being an ethical legitimate research project. Therefore I have locked my post that had a banner link to the survey, not to pretend I never made it, but to prevent it from giving any further advertising to the survey. Instead, I am posting here to say that I have withdrawn any encouragement to fans to take the survey.

In lieu of taking the survey, you can go here http://linkspam.dreamwidth.org/5800.html to get links to the discussions and debates that changed my mind about participating in this project.

I admit to having lived under a fannish rock for the two years or so. I haven't been writing fic, I haven't been reading outside my tried and true fandoms, and I have been actively avoiding all meta and kerfluffles. Life was just too stressful to stress over TV shows and movies. I just wanted to have fun.

Apparently, someone just doesn't want me - or more precisely, my Amerasian daughter and me - to have FUN.
I actually read my flist today- which is huge now and extremely eclectic since I locked this journal - and today I find this telling video and links to the controversy surrounding the casting of the movie version of Avatar the Last Airbender - an absolute never-miss favorite show for my self and my daughter.

This video covers the situation in what I think is a fair way:




Now, why do I feel like the casting of this film is aimed at me and my daughter definitely NOT having fun?

Well, let's be fair. It's not just my family that is being targeted. It's pretty much any family that is aware enough to try and provide real role models, myths, and entertainment for their Asian or Amerasian children.

Because, you see, my daughter loves the Avatar animated series.

She is going to want to go see the movie.

And I am going to have to tell my beautiful, black-haired, brown-eyed, golden-skinned, almond-eyed daughter, "NO."

The same way I had to refuse to only buy her the blonde, blue eyed Barbies when she said they were prettier. (We got every Princess of the World Barbie I could find from Asia and the Pacific, and she finally realized they were gorgeous, too.)

The same way I had to special order her first baby doll so that it would have Asian features and coloring.

The same way I had to eventually stop allowing her to watch the Suite Life of Zack and Cody because I didn't want her to spend that much time with a show where the ONE AND ONLY ASIAN GIRL ON THE ENTIRE SHOW was a complete air head concerned almost entirely with material gain.

I'm going to have to say no to the movie version of the Avatar, because when my daughter says, "I want to be Katara!" when she plays out scenes from the stories or makes up her own little fanfic role plays, as she often does, I do NOT want her to be thinking that she'd look more like Katara if she were WHITE.

I do not want this to be one more movie that makes her feel like her nose is the wrong shape (too wide) or hair the wrong color (too dark) or her eyes the wrong shape (too slant). I welcomed the Avatar animated series in part because it was an AMERICAN production that took pride in ASIAN culture. It seemed to me that it was as Amerasian as my daughter.

I cannot say the same thing about the movie.

We will boycott this movie, I urge you to consider doing the same.