LJ Idol Presents:

Hi. It's still 90 degrees at 7:45 in the evening! Whew!
Had a good weekend. Went to Tanglewood to see a revival of A Prairie Home Companion. It was fun. All the sam old jokes but I was a huge fan before Garrison Keillor got the boot. He made fun of himself at the beginning of the show.
Also went to our local Pride celebration which also was fun.

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legalpad819

Blisteringly hot here as well. This happens to be the week that my older two boys spend at scout camp, so they're relatively miserable and sending me text messages like "can you buy us fans for next time?" I'm a sucker. I went and bought a bunch of mini fans from Amazon.

I was a big Garrison Keillor fan in high school, when it was definitely NOT cool to be reading such material. I considered it preparation for moving to Minnesota where I went to college.

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Yeah. You needed to be prepared to fend of the Norwegan bachelor farmers at the Chatterbox Cafe! And remember, Ketchup has natural mellowing agents. Smile.

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marjorica

I have read everything, voted and am now impatiently awaiting the next topic. My mind is guaranteed to go blank. I might be playing the home game. Don’t care!

There are too many fantastic entries this week to single any out particularly. We have some amazing wordsmiths here, some daring souls, some slices of life and troves of information.

I just want more, plz.

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legalpad819

Yup, I'm done reading and now periodically studying the poll. I always wonder who's playing the game to strengthen their writing or for fun, and who's playing to win. Maybe we're all a little of both?

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"I always wonder who's playing the game to strengthen their writing or for fun, and who's playing to win."

There are people playing to win? LOL It's a fascinating question, but for me it's always been more about surviving from week to week, rather than being the overall winner. Of course, maybe that's just because I don't have the stamina to be a "serious" contender. (grin)

Dan

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murielle

I try to work on my writing. It's why I became an Idoler in the first place. Win? Never happen. But my writing has improved thanks to Gary and you, all of you. 😊

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Well said. It's like having a group of 36 exercise buddies, and our exercise is writing!

Dan

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vik_thor

*nods*

forwriters who mesh with this typs of community, I have heard that something like this (and writing groups in general) are on of the best helps for themm

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legalpad819

Never say never!

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legalpad819

Sure there are people playing to win- or at least a lot more seriously than the field.

I've never been a serious contender either, though I've probably cracked the top 10-12 when we were working with a much larger contest. I'm a lot more likely to run out of byes before I get eliminated on most occasions though. This round has far fewer people, so I think my chances of getting eliminated are much higher than in the past when you could just fly under the radar for weeks at a time.

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"Sure there are people playing to win- or at least a lot more seriously than the field."

LOL I know, just being a smart ass.

"This round has far fewer people, so I think my chances of getting eliminated are much higher than in the past when you could just fly under the radar for weeks at a time."

And that's what really fascinates me, voting patterns. For example, both you and I wrote nonfiction this week. How much of our position in the poll is based on that, verses how we told our stories, verses the "cult of personality" which one of us has more friends who will vote for us just because? (grin) I'll never know any of that for sure--unless maybe I could put together my own LJ Idol user study--but it's fun to theorize.

Dan

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I play to prompt me to write more and to just have a good time.
I've met some terrific people when I've played.

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murielle

Read, commented, and voted.

Reading is a gift of old and new voices. If my fingers were tongues they'd be tied. Commenting is always the hardest part. Voting? Easy peasy!

I too am chafing at the bit to get the next prompt.

So, Gary, how many cookies to get a sneak peek? 😉

Edited Date: 2025-06-24 12:11 am (UTC)

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clauderainsrm

The wheel hasn't even told ME what the next prompt is! I will finding out a few minutes before you do! (in fairness, I know what is on the list. But still not which one will be chosen)

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murielle

Ahh! Plausible deniability. ;-)

So, only the wheel knows, and the wheel cannot be bribed with cookies. The chaos begins! :-)

Edited Date: 2025-06-24 03:07 am (UTC)

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legalpad819

Don't rush it! The prompts come fast and furious at some point and I'm not looking forward to that moment if I'm still in the running.

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murielle

And I expect they'll be coming a lot faster this season. 😊

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halfshellvenus

I'm almost done reading. 2 more to go.

We saw "Materialists" this weekend, and liked it. We'll pass on 28 Years Later, though, because HalfshellHusband does not like zombie-oriented stuff.

I'm vaguely considering seeing Elio, though I could have sworn that was previously released years ago? Or maybe I'm conflating it with Coco. And then there was Soul, which I really recommend. Especially for musical people.

Edited Date: 2025-06-24 12:43 am (UTC)

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legalpad819

I don't think I can bring myself to see "Materialists" because it seems so trope (girl abandons the kind rich man because she's truly in love with the poor artist). I'm guessing at the ending because I haven't seen the movie, so it's not a "spoiler."

Elio might be on my agenda if I can find the time.

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halfshellvenus

We like romantic comedies, and we like seeing getting to go out to the movies, so that was the main reason we saw it. AND... it was a romantic comedy feature grownups, rather than teenagers or people in their early 20s, so that was a bonus. :D

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roina_arwen

Busy weekend, but I’m about halfway done so far! Got home late this afternoon and am doing laundry.

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legalpad819

I washed and dried my laundry, but it's sitting (unfolded) next to my bed right now.

I definitely lack the motivation to fold laundry at the moment!

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roina_arwen

Since our laundry room is downstairs and the bedroom upstairs, I just fold everything as I take it out of the dryer. I’m going to have to do it anyway, so might as well just get it done.

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legalpad819

I used to fold laundry right by the machine, but in our new house, the laundry room is where we always enter/leave the house, so I'd be blocking the door if I did that. That's my one complaint about this house, which I otherwise LOVE. I wish it had a dedicated laundry space so I could turn that entranceway into just an area to store coats/shoes and open it up a little.

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There were quite a few week 1 entries that caught and held my attention. I look forward to reading more from those authors.

I’m doing well, but feeling frazzled. On Saturday I leave for vacation and I feel like everyone is asking me to do something this week and all I’m trying to do is make sure I have clean clothes and money packed for my vacation, but I can’t because I’m being pulled in every other direction.

That’s great to know about the movie. I love both of the 28 days/weeks movies and do plan on seeing it (hopefully before it’s out of theaters).

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legalpad819

I feel your pain! We leave for vacation mid-July, but my best friend is having cancer surgery next week, so I'm probably going to visit her for a couple of days to help her.. and my sister is due with her first baby, so I'm going to need to travel to her as well. It's a little bit of "too much all at once" in my arena. My husband is a "throw things in a bag half an hour before we leave" type of packer. I am not.

Wishing you a moment of peace to pack!

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Thank you and I hope you're able to do everything you have e to do before your vacation.

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vik_thor

EEEK! Very best of luck to your friend!!!Hope she does well!

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roina_arwen

all I’m trying to do is make sure I have clean clothes and money

Laundering money… hmm, must be going to Vegas!

Just being silly! Where are you headed?

Edited Date: 2025-06-24 03:02 pm (UTC)

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That made me laugh so hard 🤣 I didn't even think about it that way. I meant money to spend and clean clothes to pack. I did go to Vegas mid-April. Didn't go to the casino...I did that the following week when I went to Detroit.

My niece and I are going on a cruise. This will be my second one and her 3rd or 4th one.

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roina_arwen

I knew what you meant! But I have a weird sense of humor, so between editor-brain and brain-squirrrels, it made me giggle!

Hubby and I love cruises! You get to see lots of sights and take your hotel with you.

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murielle

You have brain-squirrels! Where can I get some? 😉

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I'm already thinking about my post-graduation cruise (after May 2026), which might end up being a birthday cruise with my boyfriend later in the year, as the location we want to go seems to only have cruises from September to February. I would prefer later in the year so that we can go all out and make it memorable.

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I love cruises! We haven't been on a vacation in a while because life, you know?

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We haven't been on a vacation in a while because life, you know?

Yup. I know that. May 2023 was my first proper vacation since 2007, when I went to visit my brother and his family for my birthday! I took a 3-day trip to San Diego with my sister and niece, but I ended up getting sick from the heat and couldn't properly enjoy myself.

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My "vacation" was going into class to get my new Seeing Eye dog. So I won't be taking any significant time off until winter break. I have some fun small trips planned: New York to see Hadestown and a couple of days in Boston to see The Wiz and spend time with a friend.

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legalpad819

Cruises are the best! My mom and I took a cheapy mother-daughter cruise in January and it was so relaxing. We're scheduled to do two cruises next year and I can't wait to get back onboard.

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I'm really tempted to see if my sister in law (she's a travel agent) can set up a family cruise in the next 5 years so that my mom can join us. She's getting on in age and might not want to join us at 85/86 years old.

I hate that we didn't have the money to travel/go on vacations when I was younger. But by then, my parents were in their early 40s by the time I came around, and had done all the family traveling with my older siblings, and they wanted to focus on working, retiring, and getting me out of the house.

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gunwithoutmusic

I've been (slowly) getting my way through my reading and commenting. I should have some time tomorrow after I get back from the dentist. I had a tooth break last Thursday that needs a crown, and of course when they took x-rays they found an abscess in the tooth next to it, so I need a root canal and crown on that one. Looking forward to three hours in the chair tomorrow morning (ouch) but the rest of the day off (huzzah)!

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legalpad819

Ouch! I hope the tooth stuff gets resolved quickly. One of my dear friends has constant issues with her crowns and I feel like she's always at the dentist.

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gunwithoutmusic

Thanks! I actually just got out of my appointment and it went well. Still numb so we'll see how I'm feeling in a few hours :D but I am glad to have it mostly taken care of, at any rate.

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vik_thor

yep.
Fausts_dream's entry. I am LOVING their entry.

Otherwise, I am achey and exhausted...

I have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow, because my feet have been a bit swollen lately, and sore...

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legalpad819

I hope the feet are ok!

My feet and legs can swell when my thyroid is overactive.

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adoptedwriter

My car said 97 yesterday at 4 pm. The weather guy said 92.
Still beats temps in the 20s and 30s + no sun.

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legalpad819

It was already 88 when I was eating breakfast this morning. It's a little too hot for me right now. The giant dog is not pleased because he can't do a mid-day walk (pavement gets too hot), so he's sulking around the house and only picking at his food.

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I brought my guide dog's boots in case it's really hot when wehave to walk across campus for a meeting. He will not be pleased.

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legalpad819

I was looking for boots for mine, but he's so gigantic that they don't seem to come in the right size for his monster feet.

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Have you tried Ruffwear?

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legalpad819

I'll take a look. I had been looking on Amazon, but usually the largest sizes they offer are still a little too small for his paws.

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legalpad819

I don't make it to the movies often, which is a shame because I love the movies. My husband is more a TV guy. I did sneak out to see a matinee of the Phoenician Scheme last week with my daughter and her boyfriend. It was good, but not my favorite Wes Anderson movie.

Like many of you, I am feeling hot and cranky this week. I work from home and normally I work on the second floor while my husband works on the main floor. I expect it will probably be too hot up here by the afternoon, so I'll be relocating to my armchair in the family room and fighting off the dog's demands to be pet constantly.

Right now, I'm attempting to register for a race at Walt Disney World in February. The competition for these race spots is insane. Fingers crossed that we can get in. I've never tried their February races before.

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We've had some really great entries this week, and it feels like everyone brought their A Game this season. I'm looking forward to the next prompt and reading what all of you come up with.

I've been having fun tracking poll statistics this time around. Number of entries, total number of byes, which entries are trending higher as the votes come in, etc. It's been fun to refresh the poll results and play with the numbers in-between work meetings.

Similar to some other posts here, I'm looking forward to a week long vacation starting June 30, but at the moment Lizbeth and I aren't planning to go anywhere. Just resting, reading, and heat avoidance. :)

Dan

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legalpad819

There's nothing wrong with just resting! While you're on your rest week, I will probably be darting feverishly between Pennsylvania and New York like a pingpong ball. My sister is due with her baby and my best friend is undergoing cancer surgery and I'm determined to be there for both of them. It would very much help if we could have scheduled the baby's birth, but alas, that's not an option.

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Wow, best wishes on the safety of your travels, as well as to both your sister and friend! Those are pretty impactful and emotional life events to say the least.

Thank you, I'm looking forward to the "doing nothing" aspect, although I have a sneaking suspicion that Lizbeth might possibly have a "few" tasks lined up for me.

Dan

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You have a lot of traveling to do. Nope, babies can't be scheduled and I hope the birth goes well. Sorry to hear about your friend. Your support I'm sure will be invaluable.

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kizzy

I just came off a staycation. As long as you're not working, it's a vacation!

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