1) So a few days ago, I whined about trying to register my car except I didn't have the title yet? Yeah. That's because dealer financing sent the title to my bank. Apparently they thought the bank was paying the balance off for a refi or something, because I used a certified check. IDEK. So I have to follow up with the bank because I don't actually have a car loan with them so they can't flag my account to call me when the title arrives. Meanwhile, S at work is all, "How many tickets can you get before they tow your car?" So. I'll be looking that up later today.

2) In the same post, I mentioned that I was waiting for a joint partnership between Sallie Mae and the IRS to bear fruit. Well, I called today and the IRS has apparently come through on their part, but the Sallie Mae rep informed me that "no action had been taken" on my account, (which is stupid because they've already estimated what it would be with the same numbers the IRS should be giving them) so he sent an email and told them to hurry. Fortunately I have a way to expedite this process a little but in the meantime I'm just like, "Really, Sallie Mae? Did I not call you up seventeen times this month and flip out on a wide variety of employees? Why would you want to delay action on that?" On the other hand, that's probably exactly why.

3) I have not yet seen this week's NCIS:LA! And apparently, neither has my flist. *squints at flist* I am trying to spoil myself, LJ! Get with the program!

4) In related news, G and Sam have decided that the fic I'm writing really needs to be two stories. Yay. Thanks, guys.

5) There have been critical failures in the tv/internet acquisition process. I may try again next week. I may not.

Because I've been so negative, I decided to make a list of things that make me happy. Except I really just wanted to talk about NCIS:Gay so that's what I did. But ya'll should know that today's sandwich was made of win.

( The Secret Origin of Secret Squirrel )

( Blah, Blah, Character Histories, Etc. )

Also, I maintain that this show is a grand experiment because someone bet someone else that a show could succeed on sheer slashiness alone. They don't even try to make the other characters interesting beyond how they react to the MFEO-ness of G and Sam.

Also, my tiny little fic has ballooned (as usual) but wojelah said I could post a tiny bit as a teaser. I'm working on the theory that if I just write everything that comes into my head, I can fix it later. No overthinking. *crosses fingers and hopes*

( Tiny Snippet! )

I think maybe not trying will get me better results.

1) I am on my fourth ticket for my car's registration being expired. The first time I was going to go to the DMV, I realized I needed my birth certificate and could not find it. I ended up ordering a new one from the Delaware Records place. Then I paid off my car, so there is no longer a "lienholder" and I haven't received the title yet, so I still cannot register my car.

2) I am zero for many on free internet this week (CalTort Laurel failed me, Barnes & Noble failed me, the local library failed me, I was off from work, etc. I called CalTort Silver Spring to ask if they had wifi. They told me they did. I came to CalTort Silver Spring to order a delicious burrito and have some internets. No internets. This has resulted in me selling out to the AT&T wifi at Starbucks. Even though, starting tomorrow, I can call up Comcast and get real internets at my house. We're just not going to dwell on this.

3) I am not doing NaNo and I failed to sign up for Yuletide because...lack of internets. But! I am doing a Rossi/Prentiss Secret Santa exchange, because wojelah was kind enough to sign me up.

4) I am two episodes behind on Criminal Minds, four on Merlin, two on SPN, have acquired but not watched White Collar, and apparently Robert Patrick was on NCIS last week. Despite not having viewed ANY of these, I have seen all the episodes of NCIS:Gay at least 3 times. And have four thousand words of Sam/G. Although three of those words are [insert plot here] so who knows what kind of monster this one could end up being. I do not understand it. NCIS:Gay is possibly the worst written show since the 8th season of the X-Files, but apparently it completes me. I showed up for the Chris O'Donnell but Sam owns my heart. (And okay, I shipping Sam/G along with...the writers...but does anyone else want to see a little G/Nate? Even as a mechanism to get Sam and G together, or as some sort of angst-o-phile can't-have-who-we-really-want kind of thing. Seriously, if you can't write shallow cliche-fic about this show, what show can you?)

5) Tangential to the last two, my credit card number changed as part of a bank-wide safety precaution and so my auto-renew failed and can't be fixed until, well, now. Which is why I am not using the "I Give Up" icon. Because seriously, I would totally be giving up. Okay, well, at least that's fixed now.

6) I failed the bar. So the plan is kind of to take it again in February, even though it's probably not going to affect my career in the least. I finally got my score back in the mail - I got 370 out of 406 points. So...it's not like I was so close that it would be ridiculous NOT to take it again. But it's not like I failed it so hard that I can claim I really need the extra time to study. So I guess I'll just take it? IDEK. All it means is that ya'll get more whining.

7) I still do not own a house. I am waiting for a combined effort of the IRS and Sallie Mae, which means I will be settling in approximately 2050, when the dollar devalues to nothing.

I'm sure I could go on but thta would get boring and seven is a nice, prime number.

Over the weekend, reccea tried to kick my writing mojo back in gear by demanding drabbles ficlets. They may not be the fandoms you seek, but they actually turned out pretty well. If I do say so myself. The first four could be from larger stories if I ever get around to writing them, but the last one is pretty standalone.

#1: Fixer-Upper
Fandom: NCIS: LA
Characters: G & Sam (are there other characters...?)
Rating: PG

( Fixer-Upper )

#2: A West Coast Avenger in Prince Arthur's Court (yes, again)
Fandom: Merlin/Iron Man
Characters: Arthur, Merlin, Tony Stark
Rating: PG

( A West Coast Avenger... )

#3: The End is the Beginning, or Something
Fandom: Life (set post-finale)
Characters: Reese/Tidwell, Reese/Crews (implied)
Rating: PG-13

( The End is the Beginning, or Something )

#4: Doctor's Orders (yes, yes, totally swiped)
Fandom: Star Trek Reboot
Characters: Kirk, McCoy (and some Sulu and Chekov)
Rating: PG

( Doctor's Orders )

#5: Fever Dreams
Fandom: Star Trek Reboot
Characters: Kirk/McCoy, academy-era
Rating: PG

( Fever Dreams )

I don't even know how to work the spoiler thing on this so um. Let me know if you are suddenly scarred by what's outside the cut. I think it's only a spoiler if the answer is yes. In which case there's nothing you don't already know. Yeah.

Has anyone read Garth Ennis's Preacher?

And is up on Supernatural?

( I'm only talking through 5x06 because I haven't seen this week's ep yet. )

My internet access is still fail. Next month, though! Next month! Sometime. Maybe the middle? Nothing definite. Also, I don't want to jinx anything. :P

I have had terrible, terrible writers block lately, and I don't know if it's because I am being stunted by lack of fulfillment in my profession or if I'm just stressed out by all the life things I'm failing at recently. (And yet, I have produced two amazing batches of cupcakes for work in the past month. And a delicious pasta sauce, not for work. And several other food-like substances.)

Anyway! I have no finals this year.

NaNoWriMo: Y/N?
Yuletide: Y/N?
Advent Calendar: Y/N?

(I'm too lazy to make a poll.)

Also, does anyone have any good recs for non-fiction books regarding the American financial system/financial products? I mean, I have a pretty good handle on how to judge credit card offers and what fine-print tricks those companies use to make life miserable, but apparently I need to learn about things like OTC derivatives and debentures. (I mean, I know what a debenture is now, but anything that would break down the kinds of debts and how the market currently deals with them, that would be awesome.)

In the immortal words of boutell...

Next!

Reckoning? Reckoner? Something. I haven't even gotten to the comments from last week because I FAIL at internet, but naturally I had things to say about this one.

( NOT JOSSED! (Much.) )

( And here comes the aftermath. )

Also, OMG, why hasn't anyone called me on this?
( Ruining My Teenage Crushes One Unsub at a Time... )

Just for the record, it is still easier to post to LJ from blackberry than to answer comments. I do not know why.

I got 10 inches of hair cut off last night. It's a little shorter than I'd originally intended, but 10 inches is the minimum for donation so I figured why not? It'll grow back.

There will be no pictures until it dries while I am standing up - sleeping on short, wet hair that has a propensity to curl? Bad idea.

I have not thrown a fit and cried yet, but I expect that will happen, and then I will love it again. It's a much better shape for my face and it'll be far easier to take care of.

Also, I seem to be coming down with something. My throat was sore the last couple days and then I started getting stuffed up yesterday, and then I went to bed at 9 and kept waking up with chills even though I am wearing flannel pants and a sweater. I have a headache now, too, but I have drunk astounding little caffeine in the past few days so that might be a contributing factor. So I think I shall spend the weekend on the couch with my face in a pillow. What are you doing this weekend?

OH. TEAM.

( Spoilers. Sort of. )

I have more comments to answer and such, but having finished S.1 of Pushing Daisies, I moved on to the first four episodes of "Life" and...

Anyone else familiar with both sources see Dani and Charlie as Huntress and the Question? (Rucka "Cry for Blood" storyline more than JLU, but still!)

I do not usually do birthday greetings, but because there's a long, complicated story about why reccea's birthday is important to us, I must say that she's 29 (for the first time, unlike some of us) and I am hoping she has a fabulous year.

In other news.

( Life (Mine) )

( Work, Briefly )

( Leverage, Briefly )

( Pushing Daisies, So Far )

( Fantasy Football )

( PSA: Don't Leave Your Dishwasher Running When You Leave )

Also, season four of Criminal Minds is out today! Ya'll should totally buy it and let me know if there are extra features I should look for on YouTube. When there is internets.

So I watched the first episode of Leverage last night and it was awesome, but this is an emergency.

I got myself volunteered for a Fantasy Football league at work and even though we're going with an automatic draft, I still have to pick out a bunch of players. The problem here is that while I like to watch football, I don't follow football. So...who is good? In what positions?

I'm a fan of the Eagles and I can mostly cheer for the Redskins as long as they're not playing the Eagles, but other than that, I only have a passing acquaintance with the Patriots, the Vikings, and the Ravens. I am reluctant to put Dallas players on my team (sorry, omglawdork!) and that goes double for TO. (I hate TO from back when he was with the Eagles.) I know the point of Fantasy Football is to put together the best team, but I am going to want to cheer for my players and I can't do that if they're on the wrong team. The Steelers, btw, are not the wrong team, but since my office is made up of a lot of Northern Pennsylvanians, I have a feeling I won't get many players from that team, and I definitely won't get their defense.

So, c'mon, LJ. Who do you like?

Seriously, ya'll are fired for not telling me about things like this. Daniel Craig in erotic vampire tv? I expected something like this to come up years ago.

Also, Amazon is having a big stupid sale on TV DVDs including the entire series of Due South for $18, SharkWeek, and just about anything fandom would want to watch.