selenite0 | Network

Mickey 17, 2025 science fiction movie directed by Bong Joon Ho and staring Robert Pattinson as a hapless space colonist who has agreed to be killed and reprinted over and over again as a way to escape Earth. I'm always excited to see a movie try to do what I might call "real science fiction" and there were some interesting elements and moments but I didn't really feel like it all hung together. Maybe if it had tried to do a little less? I was more interested in the sfnal or personal character story than in the political satire parts. I mean, I was interested in seeing a movie do a multiple-bodies story, and I'm interested in first-contact stories, but I didn't end up feeling like it said anything particularly interesting about either, alas.

psocoptera

I still hope for another round of Annual Take Advantage Of My Best Friend's Comic Purchasing Day, but in my first pass at sitting in her living room and reading her books, I enjoyed:

The Other Jay & Eve, Emma Jayne, 2025 graphic. What if you and your roommate got duplicated for money and then you met up with your duplicates and then you found out they were *engaged*. An obviously instantly compelling premise with good execution, although I initially felt like it didn't reach a satisfying conclusion, but on further reflection I think it worked, and definitely worthwhile overall.

Who Killed Nessie?, Paul Cornell and Rachel Smith, 2025 graphic. A murder mystery at a convention for mythological creatures, which one newbie hotel worker has been left by her coworkers to staff. Fun premise and a bunch of the joke made me laugh.

Testament, J. Marshall Smith, 2025 graphic. A nun and a caretaker robot, the last survivors of a one-way mission of planetary exploration, contemplate their situation. This is exactly the sort of thing I like - space nuns, quiet sad thinky stuff about how space exploration might really work and who would do it and what it would be like, beautifully illustrated alien biology. Recommended to fans of To Be Taught If Fortunate, Scavengers Reign, and maybe anyone who remembers whatever that Robert L. Forward novel with the one-way mission was.

psocoptera

I have my laptop back! There is much rejoicing and also catching up! The one thing I will say about having my battery and remaining functional port fail more or less simultaneously is that I only had to pay the open-the-case fee once, yay efficiency, otherwise I do not recommend it.

Anyways! Some things have happened, such as the Nebula nominees coming out! Here, or below the cut with my comments.

( Read more... )

umadoshi

Having a week's break from the spring crunch (and a couple of those days as actual days off, not just regular workdays) meant I was able to get some reading and a bit of watching done!

Reading: On the novel(la)s front, two by Seanan McGuire and one by Rachel Reid. Butterfly Effects (the newest InCryptid) was good and also one of the major "wow, the reality (or maybe the scope, rather) of this series bears almost no resemblance to the impression given by the first handful of books" installments; the existence of multiple dimensions comes up very promptly in the early books (I think in the very first), but it was still a big shift to have that become part of the hands-on reality that the characters are dealing with.

Next I read Game Changer, the first book in Rachel Reid's Game Changers series, AKA the Heated Rivalry source material. I expected this to have far more detail on the Scott/Kip relationship than the show did, what with it being a novel that basically got turned into a single episode, but was a bit surprised by how many (most) of the detail in the show was completely different than the book, while the broad strokes are the same. (Also, I feel like I saw more than one reference to show!Kip being very physically different from book!Kip--I'm very sure I saw the word "twink" in play for the book iteration--and am baffled by where that came from, because...no? Anyway.) It was fine. I didn't love it, although I did appreciate many moments that were particularly fun in the context of the show.

And then I read Through Gates of Garnet and Gold, this year's Wayward Children novella. The sheer cost of these novellas made me decide within the last few years to just go for the digital versions rather than hard copies, and this year I opted to simply get the ebook from the library, which is why I read it a couple of months after it came out. I'm just not invested in this particular series. Ah, well.

For manga, I read the fifth omnibus of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, which includes the three volumes available in English that I hadn't previously read at all. (Did I buy vol. 13 and 14 in their original single-volume release and then have to buy this omnibus volume to get vol. 15? Yes. >.<) A sixth omnibus English volume has been scheduled and delayed repeatedly, so I knew there was still at least a fair bit to go--the three volumes to be bundled in that one--but after this catch-up was the first time I actually checked for info online, and I was not braced to see that it's up to 31 volumes in Japan and ongoing. o_o I have no clue what's going on with the English release, but I'm going to take a stab in the dark and say it's probably a mess.

Non-fiction: still reading a chapter of Braiding Sweetgrass here and there, and I've also started (but not gotten far into) Crystal Wilkinson's Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks.

Watching: We're caught up on The Pitt and have a couple episodes of Frieren yet to watch. (Am I right that this season of Frieren is over now?)

We also finished our watch of Heated Rivalry--my second time, and basically

scruloose's first, except for the part where they saw most of the finale with minimal context back when I watched it. They also had some random bits of info in advance for their watch, because when I was initially watching it I wasn't at all thinking in terms of "this is a thing they may wind up watching" (they have much less interest in watching things in general than I do), so I'd been blithely telling them random stuff here and there before we got to the point of "perhaps

scruloose will watch Canada's new national export after all". La? But they really enjoyed the show, which is the important thing. ^_^

Current Mood: restless

lsanderson

New crypto regulations likely to be big favor to the Trump family, industry insiders say
Regulators narrow securities definitions – a shift that could benefit Trump family’s crypto projects
Adam Willems
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/22/sec-crypto-regulations-trump-family

Trump news at a glance: president says ICE agents at airports would ‘do security like no one has ever seen before’
Donald Trump threatened to deploy ICE agents to US airports on Monday if congressional Democrats do not immediately agree to fund airport safety – key US politics stories from 21 March at a glance
Guardian staff
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/22/trump-news-latest-updates-today ( Read more... )

conuly

In which this teacher earnestly wants a word to substitute for "chink" in Midsummer Night's Dream, and one person suggests kink which doesn't mean the same thing.

And on the one hand, I'm sure they all have their hearts in the right place, but on the other hand, maybe they should collectively teach a different play instead. Shakespeare wrote plenty of comedies, just pick a different one off the shelf.

james_davis_nicoll

One determined man struggles to save humanity from the mutant scheme to avert doomsday.

Ring Around the Sun by Clifford D. Simak

jazzyjj posting in

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!

adafrog posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Saturday to midnight on Sunday (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #34404 Daily poll

Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 23

How are you doing?

I am okay
12 (54.5%)

I am not okay, but don't need help right now
10 (45.5%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans are you living with?

I am living single
6 (26.1%)

One other person
12 (52.2%)

More than one other person
5 (21.7%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

brithistorian

I talk with my hands. This amuses A. to no end: She's the one who's part-Italian and yet I'm the one who can't talk without gesticulating. Whether I'm talking about sending an email (fingers typing on a keyboard), sending a fax (hands palm-down, fingertips guiding the paper into the machine), or chopping vegetables (left hand moving the knife up and down, right hand advancing the the vegetable toward it), I don't even think about it, but my hands accompany my words.

Yesterday, we got some small cucumbers and I was talking about using some of them to make oi muchim (a Korean cucumber salad with thinly sliced cucumbers in a gochugaru-seasoned dressing). I was talking about slicing the cucumbers, and she looked at my hands and asked "What's that?" I looked at my hands and saw that my right hand was flat, palm-up, while my left hand was palm-down, in a claw grip, moving back and forth over my right hand. And then it hit me: When I make oi muchim, I don't slice the cucumbers with a knife. I slice them with a mandoline. And without even thinking about it, my hands were doing to the correct motion for the action I would be doing.

I don't even notice that I'm doing this until she points it out, so I don't know if I could stop it if I tried.

lsanderson

In marking the end of Ramadan, Twin Cities Muslims find relief from talk of ICE enforcement
The winter’s scars remain, but during Eid al-Fitr, the community’s conversation turned to celebration and family time.
by Shadi Bushra
https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2026/03/in-marking-the-end-of-ramadan-twin-cities-muslims-find-relief-from-talk-of-ice-enforcement-eid-al-fitr/

Minnesota stands out as an exceptionally generous and prosperous state, thanks to the contributions of immigrants
Under constant siege even before the federal ICE invasion, immigrants have been providing almost all our population increase and much of our economic growth.
by Dane Smith
https://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2026/03/minnesota-stands-out-as-an-exceptionally-generous-and-prosperous-state-thanks-to-the-contributions-of-immigrants/ ( Read more... )

skygiants

I've seen two Boston Ballets in relatively quick succession over the past month, both combo programs featuring two pieces; the first was "The Rite of Spring" (Elo's, not Nijinsky's) paired with Pite's "The Seasons' Canon," and the second was a premiere, Stromile's "The Leisurely Installation of a New Window," paired with Ashton's "The [Midsummer Night's] Dream."

Breaking with the actual curation of the productions, I'm going to talk about "The Rite of Spring" and "The Leisurely Installation of a New Window" together because they both came first in their productions, they had kind of similar vibes, and I experienced similar feelings of mild disappointment about both of them that were not technically the fault of the productions. I was really excited about "The Rite of Spring" because I wanted to see some ballet dancers do a dramatic ritual sacrifice, and I was really excited about "The Leisurely Installation of a New Window" because I wanted to see some ballet dancers slowly install a window. Instead, both of these pieces were kind of abstract explorations through dance of the Relationship between the Individual and Society, and I think both would have been enjoyable for fifteen minutes but ran a bit long at half an hour.

The description for "Window" in the playbill reads:

Eighteen dancers inhabit the work through distinct but interdependent roles. The Seeker stands close to tradition, moving with discipline and clarity. The People operate within shared systems, attentive to both order and its quiet tensions. The Reformers introduce disruption, not as spectacle, but as pressure applied from within.

This did help me understand better what was going on in the dance, as the Seeker stalked around holding a book and then portentously passed it off to some dueting Reformers, but also made it feel a bit like a LARP that I was not participating in. On the other hand Reeves Gabriel of The Cure was There and Participating in Ballet Music (and every bit of marketing wanted you to know that Reeves Gabriel Of The Cure was There and Participating in Ballet Music) and occasionally the music would get very thrillingly electric guitar and you'd be like "Hello, Reeves Gabriel of The Cure!" So it's not that I didn't have a fine time, I just would have been okay with somewhat less of that time.

However, after these very mildly disappointing openers, I loved both "The Seasons' Canon" and "The Dream" very much! The Seasons' Canon is, justifiably, a known Boston Ballet showstopper -- a huge piece with a huge cast, and as you guys know I often have trouble with a piece that is not trying to tell me a story but this piece is truly just Humans Make Big Shapes and it's riveting. Could not take my eyes off it. The trailer here gives a bit of a sense but of course is not that much like seeing it Actually On Stage, but it does let you see one of the things I found most striking about the piece which is how extremely non-gendered it is -- everyone on that stage is dressed identically in pants and nude tank that makes them look topless, the whole corps looks like one and moves like one and there is nothing to distract you from that. Really, really cool experience.

And "The Dream" -- look, I'm a simple soul, and what I have discovered is that I love Ashton's silly panto-esque ballets. They are fun and they are funny and I love it when people get to be funny in dance! Dance jokes are good actually! Titania ballet-hopping her way towards Bottom in a way that manages to be simultaneously fairy-like and hilariously sultry, the arguing lovers constantly picking each other up and pirouetting a partner firmly Away from them Thank You, the rude mechanicals!! we wanted more rude mechanicals but I was so glad we got what we got. A+ Midsummer Night's Dream, would see again.

james_davis_nicoll

13 books new to me, and save for one mystery, all fantasy. Man, fantasy is just eating SF's lunch. Not that that will be reflected in what I actually review.

Books Received, March 14 — March 20

Poll #34393 Books Received, March 14 — March 20

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 35

View Respondents

Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

The Siren by Tomi Adeyemi (October 2026)
7 (20.0%)

Twined Fates: Tangled Hearts, Book Three by K. Bromberg (October 2026)
0 (0.0%)

Light of the Song by Joyce Ch’Ng (September 2025)
8 (22.9%)

The First Flame by Lily Berlin Dodd (November 2026)
1 (2.9%)

A Destiny So Cruel by Amanda Foody & C. L. Herman (November 2026)
1 (2.9%)

Find Me Where It Ends by Cassandra Khaw (October 2026)
11 (31.4%)

Bad Company by Sara Paretsky (November 2026)
7 (20.0%)

The Kings’ List by Jade Presley (May 2026)
2 (5.7%)

My Unfamiliar by Mara Rutherford (December 2026)
7 (20.0%)

Ghosted by Talia Tucker (November 2026)
2 (5.7%)

The Mystic and the Missing Girl by Vikki Vansickle (September 2026)
5 (14.3%)

The Scarlet Ball by Nghi Vo (October 2026)
12 (34.3%)

Chosen Son by Adrienne Young (November 2026)
2 (5.7%)

Some other option (see comments)
0 (0.0%)

Cats!
28 (80.0%)

nanila posting in

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!

metallherz posting in

beautifulmechanical

( You're about to view content that a community administrator has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

ermingarden

Thank you for writing for me! I'm very excited to see your take on any of these worlds - I love them all and can't wait to see what you have to add!

General likes and DNWs

Structurally, I’m a big fan of epistolary fic, in-universe documents (including academic pastiche and social media pastiche), and outsider POV.

DNW: explicit sex scenes, BDSM

The Windrose Chronicles

the Citadel of Wizards, wizards' apprenticeships, hasu/Church wizards

What is it like to live in the Citadel of Wizards? I'd love to see a slice of life there, or perhaps an exploration of the origin of any of the many architectural oddities that became part of the Citadel over the years.

I'm very curious about what wizards' apprenticeships tend to look like in general; I'd also love to see an exploration of any specific apprenticeship, whether that's Antryg or Daurannon studying under Salteris, Kyra learning from Rosamund, Antryg's apprenticeship to Suraklin, or anyone else!

I'm also really curious about the Church wizards! What is day-to-day life like for the hasu? What is their training like? How do they think about their role in the Church and the nature of their powers?

The Silmarillion

Vanyarin culture, Valimar, archaeology of Beleriand, manuscripts and manuscript transmission, Tol Himling after the War of Wrath

We're told that the Vanyar and the Noldor built Tirion together, but that the Vanyar later left Tirion to dwell closer to the Valar. What is it like to live among your gods on a daily basis? How does Vanyarin culture change after the death of the Trees? After the War of Wrath? We don't get too much about the Vanyar, and I'm interested in really any direction you'd like to take this!

I'm fascinated by the questions of (a) what survives the sinking of Beleriand, (b) how it survives, and (c) how the surviving material is interpreted and reinterpreted by future scholars (and laypeople!) to recreate the history of Beleriand. What are the gaps that still need to be filled in? Where is the guesswork right – and where is it wrong? Why were these things preserved and not others – was it chance? If it was deliberate, who decided what was to be preserved, and how did they make that decision? Are there questions of authenticity and suspected forgeries? What new meanings did objects and places from Beleriand take on in the Ages after the War of Wrath?

Star Wars Legends

Jedi holocrons, Centerpoint Station

I've been kind of obsessed with holocrons for a while now. How sentient really are holocrons? What role do they play in Jedi society – both in the Old Republic and in the rebuilt Jedi Order? What is it like to interact with the holographic echo of someone you knew in life?

Centerpoint Station absolutely fascinates me. What is it like to live in the hollow interior of a space station the size of a planet? Who were the first people to live in Centerpoint, and why did they choose to settle there?

Current Mood: excited

frith

It is Spring and as it is often the case, there is snow. The llama hates snow but I don't mind, I have no schedule, no rush to shovel snow that will just melt away in a few days. I heed not time changes, like the llama I get up with the dawn regardless. I grow fat.

I have a fresh book to read I haven't started it. I've been building a collection of translations of My Little Pony fanfiction stories in multiple languages as a reference library or resource. There are over 1,000 now and counting. There are a dozen languages to choose from but the overwhelming majority of the translations are in Chinese, Russian, Spanish and French.

The only flowers around here are indoors. My amaryllis bloomed last week and is now busy making seeds. Maybe this time I'll succeed in germinating them. My azalea is winding down after months of pink blooms. I have hope that the fertilizer spike I stuck into the soil will be what it needed as the leaves are rather brown for the most part.

I'm still building up the nerve to dump Windows 10 and replace it with Linux of some flavor or other. My USB keys weren't working on the new machine, messing up any plans of saving stuff prior to wiping the disk, but the USB SNAFU mystery cure seems to be use a new USB with (I assume) an intact installation code. I probably had deleted it off the older USB sticks as I am wont to do with any suspicious software. Maybe. The 32 GB USB keys I bought recently works. 2 for $10! Not too shabby. So the USB Linux installation route is go! When I'm ready to bite the bullet.

One thing I want is a Linux Wordpad document clone. It was looking that Ted was just the thing! But it stopped getting updated about 13 years ago and doesn't seem to be readily available. It might not even work on recent iterations of Linux. LaTeX is probably overkill but now I've learned that there's LyX. I hope it's WorpPad compliant. I had expected that freeware would get better and omnipresent over the years, especially painting software. Instead software just keeps getting more bloated, difficult to use and the stuff that worked well just vanished. All the more reason to not update and to hold on to old software.

Yesterday I tried to update ComfyUI and instead of working well it stopped working altogether. Probably because I didn't download the three checkpoints it offered. That was because the bandwidth total was about my allotment for the entire month (Bell Canada sucks) and I already have a bunch of checkpoints. Somehow copy/pasting them into what looked like the correct folders did not work. Oh well, I already have hundreds of alien horse pictures, dancing, swimming, sleeping and whatnot.

I had a few gift cards retaining a residue of value but expiring in January of this year. So, panic time, I ramped up my Search for Stuff on eBay. I'd not seen the Barbie movie, despite hearing good things, but I live in a movie desert where the only oasis skips most unadulterated versions of movies and Barbie en version originale was one such omission. I'll drive an hour to see the My Little Pony Movie, but that's about it. So, I had an unrequited desire to see Barbie. I found it on eBay, on Blu-ray, UK import, Canadian seller (or just a Canadian division), free delivery, and delivery by mail. Mail! Oh yes, le gusta.

It arrived fast, two weeks early. It wasn't terrible. It had a very funny (and disturbing) 2001 A Space Odyssey spoof, a great Barbie world, plausible Quest, and then it slid a bit with the Real World and Ken takeover, kidnapping/deprogramming interventions and the Long Walk in the Snow. Not literal snow. 'Tain't Canada. So worth it enough to also watch the "making of" extras but otherwise. It was alright. Except the CEO bunch. There must be a CEO line of dolls I've never heard of.

Last year I saw Predator: Badlands, it was everything I hoped it would be. The perky killer synth was a riot, the extreme deadly ecology was great, and everything else was just icing. I'd heard that Prey, which is another Predator movie, is also good, so I ordered a copy off eBay and watched that. It was alright, kinda. Like, the Comanche have only the _one_ dog and the dozens of French traders are hauling a ton of bear traps out into the far frontier... by canoe? IIRC, the money was in beaver pelts, not bear.

I also saw Tron: Ares last year and it was worth it. The fact that not only do I remember that I saw it but that I still remember the story confirms that it was good. Not great, but good. The whole '3D laser printing plus simulations = instant cure for disease and hunger' plot device is a tough pill to swallow, as is the use of eye searing lasers to print or disintegrate tissue at the molecular level without cooking it. I wouldn't see this movie twice.

Dvd's from goodwill watched in 2025:

Book of Life, Guillermo del Toro animation, carved from wood/pop-up book style, exaggerated caricatures, so interesting visually. Story-wise, OK, somewhat predictable, no big surprises, I've already forgotten some of the plot points. Worth keeping.

Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Not good. Forgettable even. I saw the remake last year and it was only marginally better, suffering from Disney's family/children theme template. I should drop it back into the Goodwill bin.

More: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (hokey, failed equality), Tangled (I liked the horse), Cowboys and Aliens (worth seeing once), Shrek Forever After: The Final Chapter (surprisingly good), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (surprisingly bad), Trolls World Tour (worth it) and Monsters VS Aliens (worth it). I have a few seasons of Teen Titans on DVD, but after half a season I'd had enough. It's going back to Goodwill pronto.

adafrog posting in

fandom_checkin

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Friday to midnight on Saturday (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #34392 Daily poll

This poll is closed.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 23

How are you doing?

I am okay
13 (56.5%)

I am not okay, but don't need help right now
10 (43.5%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans are you living with?

I am living single
9 (39.1%)

One other person
9 (39.1%)

More than one other person
5 (21.7%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

redbird

It turns out that changing Medicare Advantage plans is not costing me significant money: it looks as though the money I paid for prescriptions at the beginning of the year counts for a calendar-year maximum, even though I switched plans. I ordered another dose of Kesimpta on Wednesday, and they aren't charging me for it. As I said to

cattitude and

adrian_turtle, I'm glad that I could have afforded to pay that twice, but there are plenty of things I'd rather do with the money.

As a side note, this plan will pay for $65 per quarter of over-the-counter medications and some related things. I used part of this quarter's today to order Mucinex, Imodium, and an under-the-tongue digital fever thermometer. I think I can get them to pay for non-emergency transportation to medical appointments, and I should check what dental coverage I have.

pegkerr

There is an archaic Scottish term that I have become rather fond of as of late: "hurkle durkling," which refers to the practice of lingering in bed, long past the hour that one should be getting up and busy with daily affairs.

This past weekend, the Twin Cities experienced a snowstorm. I ran errands and went to the grocery store (what a madhouse) on Saturday.

On Sunday, everything was cancelled. The newspaper was cancelled. Church was cancelled. All the stores were closed. The day involved some serious lounging about. I did eventually get out and shovel the front and back walk. I had a kind neighbor who took his snowblower to my driveway and the sidewalk in front of the house, however, so I managed to avoid the worst of the chore.

The snow wasn't as deep as some of the weather predictions had speculated it might be, but it was enough to grind the city to a halt. And it turned out that I didn't mind. A quiet descended over everything: call it winter's last hurrah.

Yes, indeed: I found that I really didn't mind a bit.

Image description: background: a city street where the road and all the parked cars are covered with snow. Lower third: rumpled bed covers with a tray holding a teapot and cookies resting on top. A woman's feet in red and white striped socks are stretched out beside the tray.

Hurkle Durkling

11 Hurkle Durkling