BronxWench

Wishing the very happiest of birthdays to my dear Pittwitch! Love you!      

Mum got her first covid vaccine shot today.  I mean, things aren’t exactly troublesome down here, but it’s still definitely nice to have.

writer question.
I heard an editor complain that people overuse “ “
i’m a bit confizzled how else are you supposed to inform the reader that talking/conversation is taking place?

Writer Question
cause a personal project is reaching completion.
 
If you leave it on  cliffhanger, Can/ should you have a epilogue and or put the stinger in the epilogue?

So I'm working on a Star Vs the Forces of Evil story, and I was amazed when I started typing the phrase "magical princess from another dimension" -- which I had last typed several months ago -- and my phone actually pulled up the correct next word. At least, up to a point.
magical
princess
from
another
recipe
Good try, phone, good try.

New memo from the US dept of labor, that due to the covid pandemic and the need to “catch-back-up”, the next eleven days will be considered “Monday” for business/tax purposes.  Happy April First everybody!

Around this time last year, we were dealing with devastating fires and serious water restrictions.  Now we’re having record rainfalls and devastating floods.  At least you can’t say we don’t have variety in Australia!

And we have an eruption happening! A volcanic fissure has opened up in a small valley, and is erupting. There have been hardly any quakes in the past couple of days, so hopefully the quakes are done. I can’t wait for the authorities come up with an official name for the fissure and resulting lava.

Quick question: Which of these three sentences do you find most readable? Assume that the speaker has only one boyfriend and one daughter, and that Randy also has only one daughter.
"This is my boyfriend Randy, my daughter Evie, and Randy's daughter Rose."
"This is my boyfriend, Randy, my daughter, Evie, and Randy's daughter, Rose."
"This is my boyfriend, Randy; my daughter, Evie; and Randy's daughter, Rose.

Well. It took close to a year and a half but we finally know why I’ve been having nerve pain and numbness and struggling to stand and walk. The ‘why’ is not an easily fixed condition (...possibly not “fixable” at all, from the sound of it...) but having an explanation for the problem is the first step on the path forward. I can’t even express how relieved I am to have physical proof that what I’ve been struggling with wasn’t just in my head; the fact that such was bothering me as strongly as it was should say something about how folks with invisible disabilities are often treated in the US. 
I’m still stuck with walking with a cane for now. There are also orthotics, braces, medication, and routine specialist visits added to the equation now. I’m not crazy about that...but I’ll live. At least it’s not neuropathy and there’s a chance of some improvement with treatment, and so long as those two statements are true, I’m sure I can find a way to not whine too much. It’s a bonus that the medication I’m on now is helping with my bad knee (why I had the cane, to begin with) and I’ve got a very courteous and understanding doctor taking care of me. Maybe now that the testing and waiting are over, I’ll have a little more free time. If so, maybe I’ll be more able to use said free time for writing and updating. In the meantime, it’s good to be back on here even if only occasionally.
Anyway. Dropping off the face of the earth without warning is kind of normal for me but...well...this is why I’ve been exceeding my usual DOtFotE statistics. In the coming months, if I get unusually bristly on here, say something unfriendly, or come across as short or rude, I apologize profusely in advance. I’m hanging in here the best I can...but...frankly, my nerves are compressed and sending pain and itching signals through otherwise healthy tissue, and there’s not a whole lot I can do when it gets really bad. There are days when it’s so bad I just want to cuss a blessed blue streak, cry, or both at once. Generally, I try to stay offline on days like that but they’ve snuck up on me before. If it happens, please be patient with me and let me know I’ve been a dick (because I probably won’t even realize it until later on when I’m trying to sleep) and I’ll apologize for it.
Until next time, I hope everyone’s having a comfortable and safe spring, and wish y’all the best.
 

Got my first covid shot.  I’ll have a second opinion in four weeks.

11000 earthquakes since last Wednesday… it’s been… oscillating! 
…. I’ll see myself out…. 

walk outside and get immmiedately hit with kidney stones. smh sometimes I really shouldn’t get out of bed.
How the hell does even get internal bruising? Now everything hurts.
 

Our dauschund is so proud of his wolfie provider prowess: he caught and killed a mouse!

I must be sick, I haven’t written for a week and even stopped reading...

Ok, so last time the news was nerve-wracking, but I’m happy to report that things have improved substantially.  My little brother is fine (his symptoms never got worse than the mild ones I described last time), and my middle brother’s wife has tested negative several times now, so it seems she was never infected.
Still sort of nervous about my aunt, but that’s two out of three COVID-related things that have turned out well so far.
With all that in mind, I have some reviews to catch up on.  I know Invidia  has started reading Mortuus Orbis, and of course JayDee has left reviews of every chapter, and @Sinfulwolf has left three wonderful reviews on the finale of WitS, so over the next few days I’ll endeavor to respond to all of those.
As for what’s coming up next, I have at least two things to work on in the near future.  Both of them are science fiction stories tied to another work, one that’s not on AFF and I don’t really want to describe here.
Suffice it to say I make weird friends for who I am.  Then again the first friend I made here was JayDee so maybe not that weird.
In the case of the longer one, my co-writer has asked if she could just start writing, so I have to make an effort to keep pace lest I be left behind (as well as work out precisely which of us will be writing what scenes).  I know Sparrow may be concerned at the moment, but I don’t quite know what the co-writing process with her will be like, so it may not eat up as much time as one might fear, and after the weekend, I will endeavor to be on Discord more often.
I have another idea for a story called Below, but that doesn’t have anybody waiting for it, so it can be placed on hold until other things get done.
Bringing it all back to the beginning of this post, thank you to everyone who wished my family well and offered prayers and support.  You have no idea how much I appreciated all of that.

(follows you around the forum)

Roofers finally making noise overhead.  It took NINE months minus a week for the insurance to stop dragging their feet and low-balling ripped roof deck and hail damage.  The first month it poured in, later it ‘only’ dripped.
Maybe we’ll all stop having problems sleeping.

why does me turning 36 scare me so?! 

I’ll admit it – I’m transmogriphobic. Shapeshifters give me the willies.
I know, I know, I should get to know some of them before I judge.

I honestly don’t see Trump hanging out with this group. 

I’m just going to say it… Congratulations, America. 

From those quotes you’ve likely never heard before: “Quite punctual, even showed up three days early to his execution!”

Lately, I’ve seen a lot of people (mostly on TV shows) misusing the expression “Divide and conquer.” This phrase does NOT mean “Split up to tackle separate tasks.” It means “Separate your enemies from one another so you can more easily overpower them.”

The video system that the Chinese government uses for mass surveillance of its citizens is called Skynet. I am not making this up.