I did my monthly cleanup of stories on my alert list.  Any story that hasn't been updated in 12 months, I remove from the list.  If there is a story that was a good ways along and/or I was really interested in, I send the author a review asking about the status.  This is typically what I send -

Just wondering if you plan on finishing this story or if I should take it off my watch list. If you do plan on finishing, do you have an idea of how many chapters are left? If not, can you give me a quick summary of the rest of the story so I know how it ends? Thanks!

Sometimes I get a response, sometimes not. Never have I gotten such a hostile response as the one I received today.  This is what she responded with. (This first one wasn't bad. It's the second one that surprised me.)

I say take it off your list. I really don't have the time to finish at the moment, for matters that really are not anyones concern. And no I won't tell you how it ends. Sorry!

First, I didn't ask the "why"'s. Don't care. As she said, NOMB. But her saying that she wasn't going to finish and wouldn't give the ending made me sad. I read the first couple chapters and liked it and was waiting for it to finish to complete it. So I sent her this -

Well, thanks for letting me know you will not be continuing this story. The "why" doesn't matter to me. As you said, it's none of my concern, not that I was asking. (I don't really need/want to know the details) Altho, it kinda sucks that you won't give a hint as to how it would have ended. You put a lot of effort into this story and I'm thankful that you shared it with us readers. I was hoping to read it anyway because the summary was interesting and the first chapters caught my attention, but without any kind of ending, well, I just don't see the point. Ah well.

Oh! And FYI, when you disable your PM's, it makes it so people that you send a message to cannot read it. Luckily, I have it set up so it also sends a copy to my email, which is the only reason why I was able to read your response. :)

I thought it was fairly neutral. I wanted to be clear that I wasn't trying to pry into her private life or was trying to pressure her and that I enjoyed her writing. I know that some readers can get kind of aggressive and demanding to writers who haven't updated in a while, so I wanted to be clear that that was not my intention. I was just curious about the status.

I didn't realize her PM's were turned off until I tried to respond back and wasn't sure if she realized that I wouldn't be able to see her reply if they were so I thought I'd let her know just in case.  It didn't make sense to me that she would reply knowing that I wouldn't see the actual message, ya know?  Apparently she did not appreciate my efforts as this was her final reply -

I not once said that I wasn't going to finish the story. All I said was for you to take me off your alert. Cos I have no intention to share or continue the story for you. And for some reason it is only you that I feel strongly about not sharing how the story will end. I guess you caught me on a bad day.
Your bad.
As for disabling my PM don't feel special, I just don't have the energy to reply to the reviews and many requests I get everyday about my stories. Lets face it if I did then I would be writing.

Not quite sure what I did to offend her other than asking her the status of her story in a polite way, but if this is the way she treats all her readers (which, when you read the last paragraph where she basically states that she can't be bothered to even thank the readers for their support, it appears she does), well, it's probably a good thing she stopped writing.

To top it all off, she then blocked me from further reviewing her story. Kind of reminds me of when my 8 yr old throws his tantrums over some perceived wrongdoing. He'll go into the office and close the door and act like we don't exist. It frustrates him further when our only response is to giggle at him. LOL

Anyway, so, am I in the wrong? Was something I wrote offensive? As disappointed as I was, I tried not to be an ass towards her. I mean, it's just a story. It's nothing earth shattering.  I was disappointed but not angry. I was only curious about the status.  But if my initial inquiry is prickly, I'd like to know so that I can re-word it in the future.

My rec for this is a story that was abandoned for a while but recently started updating again.

Lessons in Forbidden Love by xsecretxkeeperx
We always want what we can't have but their love was so much more than just temptation. So what do you do when you fall in love with a student? That's the question Edward has to ask himself as he falls for his favorite student Bella. All Human,Not typical
Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Hurt/Comfort - Chapters: 14 - Words: 81,213 - Reviews: 1667 - Updated: 3-28-12 - Published: 12-8-08 - Edward & Bella

I know there are a lot of people here who love the new Sherlock Holmes series, so I thought I'd let all you American campers know - just in case you don't already - that there is a new episode tonight on PBS. It's at 9:00 PM MST. 

This is post is not interactive (unless you want to come back after watching the episode and squee about it) and I have no rec at this time. Rangers, delete if you see fit.

Can the beautiful campers here help me alleviate my blues?

Have you ever felt your life is one big comedy show solely in production for God's entertainment? I swear the Universe is trolling me hard right now.

More inside…

FYT:

(click 'view image' for larger image)

REC: PROUD by jennde - Blue-collar Dadward, lives for his daughter, works hard so he can provide her a decent life, left a promising career to raise her. Enter Bella: supposedly bitchy client of his who's been dealing with her own issues all alone. AH, OOC.

My husband was all eager-pants to see The Avengers, so we went and saw it this afternoon.  I figured I could live through a Y-chromosome flick because I was willing myself to fall in love with Chris Hemsworth (since he seems to be the odds-on fan favorite to portray Jamie Fraser, my one true love, should Outlander ever be made into a movie).

Chris Hemsworth - meh.

The only thing I was able to see onscreen the entire movie (not counting RDJ, because let's face it, it's hard to miss RDJ) was this guy:

Never mind that he looks all kinds of goofy in his horned-costume or that there is no known universe where people could ever believe he's Chris Hemsworth's brother, WHAT ELSE HAS HE DONE AND WHERE HAS HE BEEN ALL THESE YEARS?  

D@mn, I love me a good villain.  (He totally would have made a hot Aro, just sayin').

(To make this more interactive, have you ever gone to see a movie starring "insert big name actor/actress here" and found yourself fixated on "insert minor character here" instead?)

So, I was in another campfire just about two seconds ago, when I noticed something on the side of my monitor.

It was a book. A new one, by the looks of it, the first in a trilogy with the second book coming sometime this year. Anyway, I decided to feed the trees (something I don't do too often, though I'm trying to improve that) because I was curious what this book is about, and now I'm planning to see if my local B&N has it in stock.

The book?

Multiples of Six by Andy Rane

Has anybody read this, yet? This is the summary:

An old woman gunned down in her home in Texas. A hunted man tired of running. A retiree out to right the wrongs of his past. An assassin with a kill list. An FBI agent done playing by the rules. And a young man whose simple life is about to be shattered.

With the death of his mother just days prior, James Masterson is only scratching the surface when he discovers the assailant on his back porch is his brother...a twin brother he never knew he had. Now, he must gather all of the pieces to the unraveling puzzle that is his life, discover the truth about his past, and save his brothers. All five of them.

So... to make this interactive: have you read any good books lately? Or have you seen any new ones that piqued your interest but haven't gotten around to reading just yet?

The title says it all. Post pics of your favorite food p-o-r-n. I'm totally starving and this lunchable is not doing anything for me. Show me your James Deen of the food world. Here's a little something from one of my favorite local restaurants to get us started.

Introducing the Wild Eggs House-made Cinnamon Roll...Croissant pastry dough filled with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, baked in a cast iron skillet and topped with house-made vanilla bean icing, garnished with powdered sugar and cinnamon. O.M.G.

Hey, all!

I'm looking for a fic with Scottishward that was originally dating Irina (I think?) and Bella has a hugeeee crush on him. He loses his job or something, and is about to be deported. He doesn't want to ask Irina to marry him, so Bella offers. Irina and Edward break up and Bella and Edward end up together. 

It's split on the pov's. First half is Bella's, second is Edward's. They go to Scotland for a "honeymoon."

Emmett's Edward's brother, maybe?

I dunno, but I remember LOVING this story!

Oh, and Edward talks about his farts. All the time.

Thanks for the help!

My recc:

The Golden Giants Tour 
"Three months," he kept going in his deep voice. "You'll probably never be able to do this again." Three months, three continents, sweaty nights, an uncomfortable bed, ten men, a girl, and a bus. Bella Swan should have known better than to say yes.
Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Humor - Chapters: 32 - Words: 46,452 - Reviews: 779 - Updated: 5-6-12 - Published: 3-23-12 - Bella & Edward

We in the US still have to wait another month until Bel Ami comes out...and even then, many of us will not get an opportunity to see the theatrical version, given the small size of the distribution. 

Robsessed posted this scene yesterday and I was, frankly, bowled over by it.  Rob made my skin crawl, and I mean that in the very best way.  Unlike the other clips we've been shown where he's been so charming and, well, Rob-like, in this scene we see the true, utterly despicable character of George DuRoy, and I found it bone-chilling.

The only negative thing I have to say about the scene is that Rob's face does twitch a bit too much for my taste...but I also think that is as much an artistic choice on the part of the directors as it is Rob's.  George can barely  contain his contempt for Madame Rousset; his face stills when she is looking at him, and only twitches when she's not.  I have to believe that the directors wanted that twitching face; they had to have looked at the playbacks and the dailies and thought it looked great.  Otherwise they would have asked him to try something different, gone with a different take, etc.

So I'll say it again: I think Rob has the potential to develop into a very fine actor.  Very few people are "natural" actors.  Acting is a craft; most people have to learn it through years of experience.   What he does have already is natural charisma and watchability.  IMO, Rob has the innate intelligence, curiosity, analytical ability and seriousness about the craft to make it happen if it's what he really wants.

What say you all?  :D

Happy Sunday morning, Fellow Campers!

From 1999 - 2005,  I ran a website dedicated to a somewhat unknown Canadian actor (with his acknowledgment and cooperation).  But in 2005, I returned to college to finish my degree and something had to give -- and that website was part of what gave.

Fast forward 7 years and I have a new job.  Part of my responsibilities include overhauling our department's intranet site.  Web design has evolved about a billion times in those 7 years.  Not only are my skills rusty, they're a bit obsolete :-(

So, I'm calling on the collective genius of ADF to help me out with tips and tricks.  Specifically, Adobe Photoshop tips and tricks (or any tricks, even if you use another software application to create web graphics).  

I'm specifically looking for ways to make things "pop" -- photos, text, banners.  I'm convinced, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that corporate design/logos don't have to be BLAH.  

And some HTML5 or Flash info wouldn't go amiss either.  If you yourself don't know any tips, but maybe you know of some killer how-to websites or great examples of good design, feel free to share links. 

Some pretty and a rec for your time!

(Mateus Verdelho, who {sigh} is apparently very  happily married and has tattooed his wife's photo on his right thigh since this shot was taken).  

Playing Footsie an oldie but a goodie by Scarlett71177.  

"Bella wonders why Edward never removes his shoes at night with her. Set during 'the happiest summer' after Twilight. E/B, one shot."

Good day campers!!!  How's everyone doing?  How's the daily challenge coming along?

Homework:  Any new toons or recipes you'd like to share

24/7 Support - ADF Fit Club LJ Community

Also its never too late to join in. ; )

Hey all Brits, I missed the Freecycle campfire due to RL, but I have some awesome YA books to give away that are perfect for Campers!   I loved these titles, but I'm moving to California with only a suitcase and so they must go to a good home.

I can deliver these items to you if you're in the Greater Manchester area or in North Wales (Mold area). I can drop them at yours or at a safe public location.   Sadly, I cannot afford to ship them.  They also must go as a group, as I can only do one delivery, unless you want to pick up one or two titles from my place in Manchester, which would be cool as well.

Please see inside for the list of titles.  Thanks!

Shock cascades through her body, sparked by his smile. His resemblance to the boy who left her in the forest so many years ago is remarkable, but there is one key difference. He is human. AU.

AAAAHHH

*happy dance*

Read it then come here and squee with me?

Yep, ME ME ME.

We're talking about me.

That's me, with a dog in my crotch.

Now I'm exhausted and cranky, and stepping into The Forest after being gone so much lately feels like I'm the awkward unemployed cousin at a family reuinion.

I have to take my finals tomorrow for a class I might not pass.

A co-worker left her husband yesterday & I brought her home with me. (Is it strange to be critical of the way a person sits on a sofa? I found myself thinking she wasn't taking proper advantage of the sofa's comfiness, and I wanted to boss her around & had to rein myself in and just let her find her own way.)

Two of my students needed a chaperone to go see The Avengers last night & I went with them. One of them has a 3 year old sister who ended up as a last minute plus-one, and she fell asleep on me.

Now you.

YOU TELL ME ABOUT ME.

Can you do it?

(Also, I GOOGLEIMAGE searched "jennyfly" and got some pretty interesting results. Try it.)

I'm a introvert music lover sitting by myself with just my iPod give me some encouragement!

OR

The Kentucky Derby is on CINCO De MAYO! WHAT TO DO, WHAT TO DO!

Do you celebrate BOTH? Neither? Did YOU pick a horse? A salsa?

Do you have a favorite cocktail recipe? I do so enjoy a smooth Kentucky bourbon over tequila. Do you agree? Maybe I have never had a good tequila. Recommendations?

Lets talk minor holidays, sporting events with hats, and drinks!

RANGER EDIT: THIS IS THE OPINION OF THE RANGER WHO HAPPENED TO SEE THIS CAMPFIRE AND THINK ... THIS WOULD BE THE TIME TO USE EUPHEMISM. EUPHEMISM IS A LINGUISTIC TOOL FOR POLITELY STATING SOMETHING NOT FIT FOR POLITE SOCIETY OR FOR WHICH THERE IS NO POLITE WORD. I JUST... I'M NOT TAKING THIS DOWN OR ALTERING THE ORIGINAL POSTER'S CONTENT, BUT I WANT TO SUGGEST STRONGLY TO THE ORIGINAL POSTER AND OTHERS WHO MIGHT BE IN SEARCH OF FICS OF THIS ILK: EMPLOY EUPHEMISM WHEN DISCUSSING THEM. THIS IS PRECISELY WHAT IT WAS INVENTED FOR, SO THE REST OF US CAN PRETEND NOT TO HAVE UNDERSTOOD YOU CORRECTLY. THANKS.//RANGER EDIT

Hi Everyone,

As suggested I am changing the wording of my request.

I'm looking for AH Edward/Bella (brother/sister) fics where they develop RECIPROCAL and CONSENSUAL romantic feelings for each other.  It doesn't matter if they are biological or adopted siblings.

Two well written fics that I recommend with this theme are:

Can't Have You by CozItRunInMyBlood

A Brother and Sister love each other more than anything in the whole world, What will happen when lust kicks in? What will they do about it? Possessive, Jealous Edward. Strong Bella. AH/AU. ExB.

Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Angst - Chapters: 8 - Words: 24,499 - Reviews: 307 - Updated: 5-2-12 - Published: 3-7-12 - Bella & Edward
 

Illicitus Amare by IllicitWriter 
The love that lasts the longest is the love that can never be. An unexpected attraction leads to a forbidden relationship. If discovered, both could face dire consequences, ones that society proscribes. E/B/AH/OOC Review Disclaimer
Twilight - Fiction Rated: M - English - Angst/Romance - Chapters: 15 - Words: 73,498 - Reviews: 707 - Updated: 9-27-11 - Published: 11-13-10 - - Edward/Bella
 

Thanks!

Thanks to all the help I got in my campfire below I am now able to start this campfire that I wanted to start yesterday! LOL

Thank you guys!

This week my mom and I went on a little getaway to Pilansberg Game Reserve/National Park in South Africa near Sun City. Can't really call it a vacation seeing as we only went for 3 days.

Being from South Africa I've never been to a large game reserve, except if you count all the times we go out on my uncle's farm looking for some kudu bucks and warthogs.

I do know of this one time while I was still in primary school that we went to a really small game reserve where they had lions and we saw how they fed them some meat, but that's besides the point!

I wanted to share some of the pictures that I took this week and to give you a perspective of how close all these animals were to us? I took all of them with a blackberry! Yes people. I could only zoom as much as the phone allowed me to.

Because I didn't have a better camera with a MUCH better zoom (or whatever you call it) I couldn't take any pictures of the hippo's and rhino's that I saw. I could only see them through the binoculars and that would have to be enough!

I'm going to post these two here and some more inside. 

I took this one of the elephant throuht the window behind the driver's side.

These are some blue wildebeest with three babies around her.

Come on inside and share some of YOUR amazing vacations/Getaways with pictures if you'd like

I know this is a stupid question and one of the most basic things that you should be able to do when you start a campfire, but for the life of me I can NOT figure out how to put a picture in my campfire that I have on my computer. *bangs head on table*

Is it maybe possible for someone to help me?

I've already been through sloner52's tutorials that he did in March, but everyone of them you had to have a url.

I have some awesome pictures that I want to share but at this stage it's just not happening!

Thanks for any help!

I am looking at purchasing my first home and need some advice and/or tips.

I think I've found the perfect house, but I won't be able to go view it for another 2 months or so (it's located out of state). The house is located on a little over 1 acre, has a full finished basement that opens up to the back yard/field. It has a darling pond and there are woods on the property. There's even a grapevine growing on the back porch.

At the current listing price I can purchase the house in full (only because my grandmother died and left me an inheritance). However, I was told that I wouldn't get a tax break if the house was paid off.

I know nothing about closing costs or about making an offer or about any of the steps involved in this process. If I make an offer on the house and does that obligate me to purchase it or can I keep looking at other houses?

Any help would be appreciated!

Looks like Twibrary is no longer available. It was great tool to search for fic. Anyone knows what happened?