Plot Bunny Boot Camp

I had my writerly ways nearly done, the browser crashed and for a second time the blog did NOT save a draft. I'll do that another day.

And my title isn't a lie. It is spooky. I went down to microwave something and the whole lobby/halls were empty. Just a few hours ago it had been bustling with all the steampunkers. Now it was like we were never there.

This morning went really well if you can ignore the low energy/half the people already mentally checking out. I went to a make your own tea blend thing. I've always wanted to do this with Adagio (still do) I wouldn't have called this a workshop really. It's like here's the tea, here's the mix-ins, go for it. I'll let you take 1 ounce for the 10$ you paid.... I mixed up whiskey black tea with some lapsang sou chong, added in cacao shells, ginger and cinnamon with a sprinkle of elderflower and called it Husk. I haven't tried it yet.

The next panel was by my friend Leanna on Poe and mesmerism. I very much enjoyed that. I thought I had an hour for lunch but no. The Victorians and the supernatural in literature was next. 15 minutes into it, no one showed and I thought well maybe since all the other talks were at the half hour not the top of the hour maybe the speaker was mistaken (wondering if it was Leanna since this is her forte). Someone went to find staff and next thing we know (it was a packed room) Leanna swoops in. No, this wasn't her panel. That person bugged out without telling anyone (how to get uninvited next year) and like I said it's Leanna's thing. She did well.

I said goodbye after that because the final panels had no interest for me. I headed out to Evergreen Cemetery to find Jennie Wade's grave (the one civilian death in Gettysburg) That was easy. There were other cool graves. and some fun names, can't remember them all but there was Solomon Toot, someone named Zephaniah and a mausoleum bearing the name Ball-Dickson (yes I became 12). Also found one mausoleum entirely in Italian.

From there I rolled down the street (past the hotel I usually stay in with my brother and SiL because it's in walking distance to all the interesting stuff. This con hotel is about 3 miles out) and stop at Mr. G's home made ice cream and texted my chocolate peanut butter to my brother to taunt him ( he loves it) God made the chocolate drip on my shirt in retailation.

Then I went to the battlefield to get pics of some of the monuments. After that it was dinner and I went to GarryOwen's Irish Pub. It was metered parking only (but I found plenty) and it's old fashioned meters, only takes quarters. I forgot about that. Then I remembered in some states handicapped tags can park for free. I google it. In PA I can do that for one hour so up goes my tag and in I go for the crab imperial 'poutine' (fries, cheese and the crab imperial in the place of the gravy) Tasty but SMALL for the price (ended up stopping at Sheetz for a hot dog to round out the meal, really goes together). I also had an Earl Grey Sour, gin, lemon juice and earl grey simple syrup. I think it needed a strong earl grey taste (I need to try making this syrup)

I was going to go ghost hunting but I'm exhausted and there was a writers' meet up on Discord tonight. I did that instead and got a little writing done before Discord fucked up and that was that.

Here's what I would have mentioned on the writerly ways: Always be on the watch for story fodder (Well Gettysburg is good for that) As I pulled into the Sheetz there was a man on the corner holding a nearly full sized cross and he had a microphone/transmitter with him. He started haranging people. As I was pumping gas, he was screaming at two women in a car at the redlight. JEZEBEL! You're whore like your mother. JEZEBEL JEZEBEL. You need to find God. Better hope you don't die tonight or you'll be in hell you diseased JEZEBEL.

Holy shit.




On to Hershey tomorrow.

And sometime this week I WILL catch up with comments (if there is any blog post you think I need to see, send it to me)

I'm too tired to do it justice (and friday's fannish 50 will probably be moved to tuesday). I hit a new museum here in town, Beyond the Battle out of the Adams County Historical Society. It was a nice idea and a small museum (with two enthusiastic older lady docents) It starts with local dinosaur findings, then a wee bit (very wee) on the local natives and then the making of Pennsylvania (and it's skirmishes with Maryland)

There was some on a famous local abolitionist and naturally quite a bit about the battle of Gettysburg and afterward (including Mag Palm who I learned about last year, the woman who beat up the slave catchers who came for her even though she was a freeborn woman)

It also went into the Spanish flu pandemic, WWI and WII I guess the Eisenhowers retired here.

But the really cool thing was 'Caught in the crossfires' It was set up like the sitting area of a typical house in the mid 1800s in disarray. You're sat in there and it's five minutes of what it was like in Gettysburg in those three days. The 'family' is in the basement and you can hear their voices as cannons and guns fire on the house with lights appearing in the 'bulletholes' in the walls, screams of animals and people and the floor shakes. They put effort into it (Not recommended for people with PTSD related to battle)


From there I went to the Shriver House museum and cracked the key as to when to get to downtown historic Gettysburg. Get there by 11 and you can find plenty of on street parking (during the week at least) The house was down up in period pieces and tells the story of the Shrivers. The husband was set off to war (thinking it wouldn't last long) while Hettie takes care of their two daughters and tries to keep the business going, a saloon in the basement and a two lane bowling alley (Shriver had sold off his farm and had a fair bit of money when he built this place.

It doesn't have a happy ending. I got the diary of the neighbor girl plus the one about the Shrivers (and a book on battlefield hospitals) These Shrivers are distantly related to the famous ones, like Arnie's wife.

Since the festivities didn't start until late today I went to the movie theater here on campus and saw Fantastic Four. I loved it with one major exception. I'm biased. I can't remember if FF was my first comic or if it was Justice League but I know Johnny Storm was my first comic book crush so there's that. I adored the mid-Century American feel (with the futuristic tech). What I liked, they reduced the origin story to a news clip since most of us know it and that Sue didn't get sidelined because she was pregnant.

What did annoy me: Reed, the world's smartest man, saying something stupid in a press conference that he could have not said a word about and for what? 10 minutes of drama? We could have done that a different way. Other than that, really liked it

At the con, I got to see my friends and I've already bought a few things. One thing they can do better (and I'll put that in my response if they do a survey) was tell us WHO are doing the panel talks. I went to one and it was Calamity Dawn and her cocktails which I didn't mind. I like her but I didn't even know it WAS her. Drank malort. don't rec.

I did notice that a lot of the usual actors aren't here in the vending room. Hmm, I need to look at them more carefully tomorrow. It's holiday shopping time.

I went dancing and I went to the magic lantern 'castel' presentation. I need to work magic lanterns into a story somewhere.


If I'm slow in answering you, sorry but man I didn't even get back til nearly midnight. I'm getting old for this place.

Since I've been to Fort Steuben (and still no pictures?) How is it am I leaving tomorrow? I got my rental today. I was hoping for a good SUV because I'm in the market.

I got a Ford Bronco. Sigh. If I wanted an off-roader this would be perfect. I mean it's got four settings for GOAT Mode. The gear shift is it a DIAL that you have to hold down a button and rotate it. OMG why? I would not buy this but it has 3000 miles and I'm ready to go.

I have two museums in Gettysburg I've not seen (which I should have time for when I get there and friday morning), I have both Superman and Fantastic Four at the movie theater that's in the hotel complex. I was going to do the ghost tour but I'll be tired. I'll try it sunday night after the con. I have too much planned for my day and a half in Hershey but I have my plans and NO spreadsheet (evil Little dog will be shocked) because all the museums in both towns are open 7 days a week

And watching Carnival Eats today gave me a bunny for the carnival horror open call. now to get on it

What I Just Finished Reading:

Monster Burger - urban fantasy not quite as fun as the first but still good. It's a fun book. There is a ton of fat issues in this like the other mystery I bitched about but in this case it felt...different. yes his guardian angel and kevin the roach pick on him for being fat but they're both mean. Lloyd knows his weight is an issue in monster hunting BUT his female partner does not mention it at all. I think that might be the difference


What I am Currently Reading:

The Wood - an urban fantasy so far so good

Dark and Dangerous Journey - WWII mystery arc



What I Plan to Read Next:

Pantomine - an LGBT (intersexed main character) fantasy, I like it but i'm shelving it for a bit


( I have pictures for you finally )

I woke up and spent the morning watching someone comment to every chapter of a couple of my Angel and Arackniss stories, trying to get them all in before they had to leave to get their kids. Now that is a great compliment and I was so pleased. Also that little Prodigal Son story I posted got comments out the wahzoo. I think the difference there is the age of the fans (older for Pson, younger for HH and TOH)

Mom and Dad bought a new SUV today (haven't seen it yet) and I rented myself a SUV to go to Gettysburg on Thursday. My CR-V has 106K on it and I decided not to run it up even more. It was worth a few hundred bucks to not crap out on the highway. (Must remember to get my EZ Pass transponder out of my suv)

We watched 2 juvenile cooper's hawk jumping up and down eating grasshoppers for a good ten minutes. They're always in Rogue's tree (we planted a tree over one of the cat's graves years ago)

It's music Monday. Feel free to share with us. We're doing the alphabet and we're up to S. I'm only sharing the last 5 years but you can share whatever S song you'd like.

( Now I had a ton of S songs )

My brother and his wife are home from vacation and I'm in Mom and Dad's basement listening to an online Abney Park concert.

I went back to Steubenville today to go to that bookstore (got one on why Steubenville used to be called Little Chicago, i.e. what was the Mob doing there 90 years ago) And the bookseller told me there is an ice cream parlor/bookstore in Weirton!! Side eyeing my brother/SiL Is this NOT information I should have had?!?

trying a new engagement thing for Saturdays, Science Saturday. The links will be any kind of science, not just the ones I'm good in and could also include archaeology and psychology. Hope you like it

Tomatoes randomly mated with another plant 9 million years ago. The result? Potatoes. I'm not that surprised. They're in the same genus


Pizzeria mishap left at least 85 people intoxicated with THC after infused oil used for dough Okay less science and more WTH? I'm struggling to picture a place that does both pizza and THC products...

It was in the 70s and sunny so where was I? Taking mom to the neurologist (for him to tell her what me and my brother have been saying for months. She needs a laminectomy for her spinal stenosis, and yes that's not what anyone wants to hear)

I'm sitting here reeling from what knew was coming, the loss of PBS and NPR

So have my fannish 50 recs (and sadness that I didn't watch everything I wanted to but hey I finished a season of Shetland (4), Mandalorian (1) and ALL of Lower Decks, finishing Moon Knight now)


I was thrilled to find out that my ficlet (Hazbin) All Thumbs was podficced here the podficcer is anonymous but the person it was podficced for responded and I'm confused by how MY story was gifted for some prompt but okay (no they didn't ask but I'm not unhappy about it)


Forever, Together Torchwood

Special Delivery L.A. Confidential

Vacation Interrupted FAKE

Love's a gamble, and baby I'm all in. Hazbin Hotel

Dragon's Fire Stargate Atlantis

Tank and Spank Hazbin Hotel

The Age Of Hope.
The Hunger Games

Under Fire Torchwood

Hidden Treasures Murder She Wrote/Shelter

Let Me Talk Stargate Atlantis

Júpiter Zé Hazbin Hotel

RSVP 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV)魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù

Mischief Finds a Home Teen Wolf

A Realization of Feelings in Public Places 9-1-1

Not about my opinion of the rain. It can stop any time. Still no pool time (but at least no reports of more flooding back home. Also learned that the center of decorative arts (which I didn't know existed until today) in Lancaster OH has a star trek exhibit and I'll have a week to get to it before it ends when I get back home.

No, the thing I changed my mind about is Star Trek Lower Decks. As much as I don't like binge watching, I only have this access for a week. I'm up for half way thru S4 and I am enjoying it. It's fun. It's unapologetic in its call backs to ALL the Star Treks that proceeded it. And because it's animated they can get away with so much more than you can live action (and OMG the holodeck training with Beckett stuck with the simulated crew infected with that water virus that makes them horny and insane...) I am glad I took the suggestion to keep on watching. It's worth it.

And since this is my Fannish 50 - women of fandom let me give you my faves and it might not be who you think (or who the show intends)

I can't decide between T'ana and D'vana Tendi so you get a packaged deal which is fine because they're both medical/science.



Tendi is probably my favorite. For one it allows them to expand upon and flesh out the Orions who we barely saw in the shows and make her more than 'pheromones and sex' She's bubbly, she's smart, she's friendly to a fault but she's also secretly dangerous. I like her very much (and if I wanted to run around a con all day in green face I could do it. hmmm maybe a local one where I won't be there all day...)


And then there's Dr T'ana.



I love that they gave us one minor to major character (depending on episode) on the command crew side of things who is a completely new race (I think. Maybe they were in a book somewhere) ANd no it's not because she's a cat that I like her. She's Bones in female form but more. She's a skilled doctor.

At the end of the day, she's ME. She's medical. She's a grumpy bitch. She's unapologetically kinky (the things she does on that holodeck). We all know it if I were on a starfleet ship I would absolutely be the most likely to tell someone to go suck a bag of Borg dick. I know I could never tolerate the heat of wearing a furry mask at a con, not even a short one. Too bad because I'd love to cosplay her.


Here's my ladies together.


I'm trying to watch Sinners. I am bored but it's about to get violent so there we go. I do love the soundtrack.