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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

We're All Fine Here, Thanks. How Are You? - The FanFic Social Thread

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction and Writing Resource' started by mavjade , Aug 15, 2014.

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  1. mavjade

    mavjade Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 10, 2005
    Welcome to the brand new, shiny FanFic Social Thread, where we're all fine, thanks! (Your poor mods are hopeless with funny titles, but we thought this appropriate.)

    Before we dive back into cats, food, the weather and any other number of strange topics, let's remember that there are a few rules for the social thread:

    1. The TOS and rules found in the FanFic FAQ still apply in this thread so remember to keep your language clean and avoid baiting/flaming. If someone is making you upset or getting on your nerves, rather than making a post that might get you in trouble, take a step away and come back later.

    2. This thread is not for talking about specific stories, be them your own or someone else's. If you need help with your fanfic, please use one of the many FanFic Resource threads available or PM a mod if you have any questions as to where you should be posting.

    3. This thread is not a chat room. You should never feel the need to post twice in a row and if the conversation is between you and another person for more than a few posts, consider steeping back or changing the topic so that others can join the conversation.​

    4. We don't want to dictate what you can or cannot say here, but try to minimize topics that make people uncomfortable (i.e. in-depth medical issues, hot button/political topics such as religion, etc.). People are here to have fun and socialize with their fellow fanficcers, not debate politics; there are other areas of the boards for that. If multiple people have tried to change the subject, then it's probably making people uncomfortable, be respectful and let the topic change.​


    Now that you've read the rules, go over and grab some desert that's on that table in the corner and have some fun. Just try not to make too big of a mess, okay?!

    Okay??!!

    It's hopeless isn't it?

    *sigh*

    What the heck, have fun! *throws a piece of cake at the first person to post*
     
  2. Briannakin

    Briannakin Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 25, 2010
    First!

    I shall grab my cake and run!
     
  3. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    My youngest son got his dive certification today. I signed him up to do a shipwreck dive next weekend. He is thrilled. It is too bad his brother didn't pass the swim test. :( It would be cool if they could do these things together.

    I don't know if I told this story last month so this may be a repeat. A military buddy of mine shared a link to an interview with a military cadet and how in Academies they toss their hat at the end of the graduation ceremony. He took a selfie video of himself during the hat toss and mentions he wondered who would get his hat (little kids run onto the field to get the hats). There were comments below the video link with people telling stories about finding the owner of a hat they got when they were kids.

    I looked behind me and noticed there were two military hats in my closet. I am not sure how I got them, but my sons would play with them when they were toddlers. I think my husband's baby brother got them at a graduation hat toss and twelve years later when my kids were born my mother-in-law gave the hats to my boys.

    I look into one hat and there isn't a name. Inside the other hat there is a name...and it is the name of the kid in the video doing the interview...except the kid in the interview was a Junior. I had his dad's hat! :eek: WTH?! So I google the name and find the son's FB page and send him a note about the hat. We confirmed it was his father's. I mailed them the hat and today I got a thank you note. My family had the hat for almost thirty years!

    Yes, I'm a hoarder. :rolleyes:
     
  4. Goodwood

    Goodwood Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    May 11, 2011
    Now that's an interesting story. I guess Academy grads aren't too worried about losing the hats to grubby little kids (heh heh) because they most likely won't ever need them again. Which brings up another topic...what does the graduate of a military academy do with his or her school uniforms? I can't imagine a need for them ever again, once they're commissioned and all...

    ...still, I'd like to know, just in case the answer(s) prove interesting.

    Also, Briannakin, I think that cake should go to Jedi_Lover because you're a mod and you knew when the post was going up beforehand. As the classic set of boilerplate contest rules state, employees of the company are not eligible... ;)
     
  5. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    They hang in your closet for a ten or fifteen years until your kid pulls one out and asks if they can wear it for Halloween. Most grads toss their class uniforms but they usually keep their dress uniform. I knew one grad that had his dress uniform displayed in his home like a freaking shrine. :rolleyes:
     
  6. Briannakin

    Briannakin Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 25, 2010
    Wow, that is a weird coincidence with the hats. But I've come across several military uniforms, I'm assuming they were academy uniforms, in my garage sale-ing days.

    And no, I am not giving anyone the cake. Mav got to make the thread ergo, I get the cake (and no, I knew she was putting up the thread sometime this morning, but I didn't know when). This is a corrupt dictatorship, I thought you all knew that.

    Anyways. I'm bored out of my mind. I REALLY need to go back to school before I spend my tuition money out of boredom.
     
  7. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    Briannakin...you could volunteer to be a bridesmaid to one of your other friends. That seemed to keep you busy for very long time.
     
  8. Briannakin

    Briannakin Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 25, 2010
    Ha! No. I'm just thankful I don't have more friends. The former Bridezilla said she plans to get around to looking at the pics the photographer got sometime soon. I distinctly remember there being one of me doing a rude gesture in an otherwise beautiful shot, so I'm really hoping that one survived. If it did, I'll try to remember to post it.
     
  9. Force Smuggler

    Force Smuggler Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    [face_party]New Thread!
     
  10. Goodwood

    Goodwood Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    May 11, 2011
    Some jam with your spam, or green eggs and ham?
     
  11. Findswoman

    Findswoman Fanfic and Pancakes and Waffles Mod (in Pink) star 5 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Feb 27, 2014
    Huzzah! Shiny-new social thread!

    Jedi_Lover, that's very interesting about the hat-throwing custom—I didn't realize it was for keeps. What an interesting (and special) kind of souvenir. :)

    Well, after horrendous security lines at Chicago-Midway and a very long, twisty drive through the forests of Appalachia, we managed to arrive safely in West Virginia. The little guy was rather listless and tired on the drive and said his ears felt funny (which I think might partly be the altitude), but considering all that he was incredibly patient and well-behaved the whole way. Right now we're resting and refreshing ourselves a little before heading to the rehearsal dinner.

    We also had the World's Most Random Favor Bag waiting for us at the motel desk. Notable contents include packets of Advil, a Clif bar, a small bag of dried apple chips, two "BugX30" insect repellent towelettes, and various brochures on local attractions, most notably a map of a local park that features numerous colorful warnings about unexploded ordnance (including "Wally the Woodchuck's 3 Important Rules of UXO Safety").
     
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  12. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    Sorry about the extraneous social thread. Could it be deleted since it's no longer needed? I was under the impression that anyone could make one in preparation for the locking of the old thread. That's how we do it on RPM, where I'm a mod/admin (depending on when our head admin has certain options enabled. I'll need to talk to her about making me a permanent admin, as I'm there all the time and can sort things out quickly). Though, we are a bit looser there in terms of rules, as it's a smaller forum.

    Also after over thirteen years of moderating/administrating experience and duties on various forums, I tend to get a bit more lax and let really minor things slide, as in the long run, as long as it's not against the site's ToS, then it's not a big deal.

    Also, what part of West Virginia are you in, Findswoman? If it's anywhere on the panhandle, then you're roughly 45 minutes-two hours drive away from Gettysburg. ;)

    Anywho, tonight is a pizza and painting night. I have one unfinished project, but that's not on the docket for tonight (saving it for when I'm kidnapped to babysit again), so I'll be doing another painting experiment on a burlap canvas and with acrylic/gouache mixed media.
     
  13. Briannakin

    Briannakin Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 25, 2010
    You remind me of this.

    Glad you made it to WV safely Findswoman, but yeah, I am not a fan of airport security. That seems like a very random, yet useful favor bag.

    I just got a text from my sister. She apparently got called a 'he' several times in a work email (we both have masculine names, but her's is a bit more unisex, so people tend to avoid pronouns with her; I just get called Mr., him, he all the time). I laughed, hard. Apparently her boss responded to the cc'ed email with "SHE IS A WOMAN."
     
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  14. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    I welcome your sister to the Genderqueer Club. Here's her unisex t-shirt.
     
  15. Goodwood

    Goodwood Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    May 11, 2011
    If those are collared T-shirts, better make sure the buttons are on the correct side. ;)
     
  16. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    Anyway...

    So, this weekend when I'm kidnapped again to babysit, I'm planning on bringing some art supplies. Brushes will be easy. Palette will be easy. Big tub of paints will be difficult. I may even bring a couple of examples, as I'm showing the kids some painting techniques. I'd like to get my sis-in-law involved in a lesson, as she used to draw and paint. She'd pick up on this stuff quickly.

    What's currently throwing my niece and nephew off is a master's technique I've been showing them, where you render your painting in black and white, first. You render all the shading like that. Then, you apply a flat color wash (nothing too thick). Then, you deepen your colors, darken your shading, add your highlights and detail, and your painting has more depth. I'd much prefer to use my brushes for this, as mine aren't as... "punished" as theirs, and I have a larger variety of sizes and tips.

    Maybe if I bring some examples and show the in-progress shots of those examples, they'll get the idea.
     
  17. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    I think I have wild hemp growing my my yard. :confused: Either that or something that looks suspiciously like wild hemp.
     
  18. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    Take a pic of it and post it. If it's what I think it is, it's most likely not hemp.
     
  19. ThreadSketch

    ThreadSketch Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 22, 2013
    THIS. I loved this technique when I was introduced to it in college. Extra labor up front, but makes things soooo much easier when finishing. My favorite class portrait painting was done with this and I really dug it.

    EDIT: Ooh, I found an old photo of it on my hard drive. Photo quality is terrible, pardon me, but it's all I've got (the painting itself is long gone). In real life, the shadow areas were given an indigo/purple wash:


    [​IMG]
     
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  20. mavjade

    mavjade Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 10, 2005
    There was plenty of cake on the table... not just what I threw! :)

    That is awesome about the hat Jedi_Lover! Don't worry, I keep stuff like that too! When I went home for a visit my mom had a big box of stuff to go through to see what I wanted to keep and what to get rid of. While some of it I really didn't need anymore... I kept it all. :oops:

    Glad you got to WV Findswoman! I hope you have a good time! Yeah, the altitude may be bothering his ears. He should get used to it soon, if that is what it is. :)
     
  21. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    It can't be weed because I googled that and it said it doesn't have flowers. This has yellow flowers. I'm going to pull it out but I'd like to identify it.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]


    EDIT: I found it! It is a flower called five-finger cinquefoil.

    [​IMG]

    I showed my son and he thought it was hemp. Now I wonder how he knows what hemp looks like. :confused:
     
  22. Goodwood

    Goodwood Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    May 11, 2011
    Well it's not pot, but it's definitely weed. ;)
     
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  23. Jedi_Lover

    Jedi_Lover Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2004
    I don't drink, smoke or do drugs, so I am a bit clueless. I have been getting a bunch of weird things growing near my bird feeder. I think the seeds drop to the ground and take root. I have a big sunflower growing under the feeder right now.
     
  24. ThreadSketch

    ThreadSketch Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 22, 2013
    When I was growing up in South Texas, the mockingbirds would eat whole chiles off the little chile pequin shrubs in our yard, and we'd get new shrubs all the time from their droppings. (Those little dudes are fiery.)
     
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  25. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    Yeah, I was originally thinking it was a species of wood anemone, as they also have similar leaves. We have those around here.

    The thing about hemp is it's not a creeper like anemone and cinquefoil. Hemp grows tall. If it's springing straight up like various weeds such as goldenrod, evening primrose, and other tall stalk plants, then it could possibly be a species of hemp. However, if it creeps along the ground, it's nothing to worry about. Just a local wildflower.
     
    Kahara likes this.
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