hi

So, I was on a wee vacation with the lovely kiltsandlollies at the end of October, which I thought was the best time we'd had at the Halloween party ever, then my train was canceled on the way back and my bus driver got lost along the Georgia border (and all over the place in South Carolina), which was equal parts scary (three point turns on a pitch-black two lane road buffeted by swampland on each side in a bus) and funny and beautiful (there are a lot of causeways in the islands and it was a full moon). When I got back, my generous neighborhood internet provider had moved :( and we debated for a few weeks about whether or not we wanted to get it back (we did), and then I went super self-conscious, and now it's today. Hi.

I can't quite believe it's December already. I got two Christmas cards (well, one card, one postcard) from some friends in the mail today. I haven't even thought about cards yet, or putting up the tree--well, I've thought about that and had intended to do it this afternoon. It's only 8:30. It may happen yet. I've written one holiday exchange fic for rs_small_gifts and have slashababy to write but I have an idea (maybe--I'm waiting to hear back from the mods) for a pairing I've never written before. So, it's not like the holidays were a complete surprise except where they totally have been. I feel like I need a list.

This morning in the shower, I realized what I'm getting/doing for Laura for Christmas. I'm working on it as I type even though it doesn't look like it (what with the typing) :D I'm super excited for it, too. She's actually the only person I'm buying/making a present for. I sent my uncle a wreath (as I do every year because it's what he really wants) and a gift basket from Harry & David for my grandparents (as I do every year because they quite like it and need nothing) and an Amazon gift card for my sister (because she's having a mad affair with her Kindle Fire) and money for my mom (because she usually returns everything anyone buys for her and that finally got really old last year). I love creating presents and really wish I had a larger family.

That pretty much catches me up, I think. I'm still in love with yoga. In fact, that was really the only bit of planning I'd done for the holidays: choosing which yoga classes I was going to take while I have some time off at the end of the month. I managed, after literally months of finagling, to get someone (who would actually know) to say out loud the date my boss will retire *cue choir* and it's close enough that I think I can pretty much count on never having to meet with him one-on-one again (meaning it's over a year away but since we haven't met in person in a year and a half...). I plan to buy new shoes for his party. Red ones.

Recs!

The switch by some authors to keep their work hosted only on AO3 rather than Livejournal (removing it when it'd been there before) makes me sad. It means I can't share their work with friends who hate AO3. I miss that conversation and community that happens (or happened) on LJ. I'm not shaking my cane in the "back in my day" way but I do miss it. For what it's worth, no matter where else I may decide to post, they will always be here on escribo, too.

Anyway :D Recs! Because fandom, no matter where it happens, is awesome.

Remus/Sirius:
The Door through the World by amuly (also on AO3)
Growing up under the stern hand of Walburga Black was nothing less than torture for young Sirius. Until one day, he found a small, forgotten door, hidden in a store room. It was through this door that Sirius discovered a whole other world, and a whole other life. Ah-May-Zing. I printed this out (all nearly 100,000 words) in something like 8 point font and no margins so that I could take it with me to Florida to read in the train station (since I had hours to wait) and then finished it just before we pulled into Orlando. There is so much to love about this: the characterizations, the story--the structure of it, the telling, the idea of it. The writing is so good. I was able to get totally lost in it (which turned out to be excellent thing because I'd forgotten to charge both my iPods before leaving and this helped me to tune out my surroundings. Excellent work. Definitely one of the best stories in r/s.

Ever After by busaikko
Non-magic AU. Once upon a time, an astrophysicist was wooed by the gay Scheherazade... I like stories that feel really grounded and real, and this is that.

Of Cinema and Sticky Notes by bluepeony
AU: Remus Lupin is the office bore. Sirius Black is the office sweetheart. They fancy each other, on a purely aesthetic level. Here's another. It's anxious and lovely, which aren't two words I usually use together but there you are.

I had some more from rs_games but I've lost the post :( and have to go back through them, which is fine since I haven't even finished reading half of them yet. I know there was a lot of great stories and artwork there, though.


Suits
Answer in the Form of a Question by Blackstar777
Everything seems to be back on an even keel after the drama at Pearson Hardman and the emotional tsunami that ripped through Mike’s life: Gram, Tess, Rachel. So of course that’s when he and Harvey end up having phone sex. The sex scene in this is amazing, whichever one. All of them. It's just a really sexy story.

Best in the World by mskatej
Mike takes ecstasy with a hot client at a Pearson Hardman function but once he’s high he’s only got eyes for Harvey. There is a surprising dearth of (really good) sex in Remus/Sirius fic so...it's not that I forgot about sex but it's not what I tended to look for in fic there for a while. Suits fandom? Rife with it. Every kink imaginable, every position, every possible combination. Soooo much playing with power dynamics, which I love. But mostly? really incredibly written sex scenes. Porn that actually really hot. This is a good example--in character, funny in all the right places, and hot.