| The Editing Post! |
[Nov. 8th, 2009|03:59 pm] |
Hey all!
She's done! Thank you so much, editors, for all your help!
I've been thinking about the comments in the previous editing post, and here's what I think:
1. Yes, we should stop bugging the editors with PMs, etc. to do their edits because it kills some of the fun. Taken care of- we're going to pull back a bit.
2. I don't like the idea of mandatory editing from members not otherwise included to do so. Halfhearted edits and people not competing because they don't want to edit will hurt the community. That being said, we had more than enough editors this week for everyone to have two, so I'm going to cross my fingers and chaulk it up to a burp in an otherwise perfect track record. That seemed to be to be at least half of what was thought in the editing post comments from last week anyways. Any opposed?
Also- we're working on improving the editing chart. Here's some changes we made:
1. We merged "Tough and Polite" into one category. They're almost indistinguishable anyways.
2. We merged the link to the entry to be edited with the name of the person whose entry will be edited.
3. We got rid of those "X"es and periods and replaced them with text- that might be more compatible with our members who use LJ with screen readers.
4. Edits are now sorted purely alphabetically, instead of organized by how tough they are.
All the mods had a hand in this, but I'd like to especially thank ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) pipisafoat and awkward_ostrich for the fantastic ideas and brainstorming help.
What do you all think? The biggest problem I see so far is with the color of the links. I've never been able to figure out a good solution for that. Any ideas?
( The Edits ) |
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| Crock pot chicken experiment |
[Nov. 8th, 2009|12:24 am] |
I made chicken in the crock for dinner tonight - my son's request for his birthday dinner. I did my usual thing - put some cut up carrots and onions in the crock and set a whole chicken on top. But I thought it seemed a bit boring - same old, same old, you know. So I cut up an apple, stuffed half of it inside the chicken (it was a BIG apple) and put the rest around it. (This turned out to be a VERY good idea because when stuffing the apple into the chicken, I discovered I'd forgotten to take out the giblet package... OOPS!)
Then I rubbed the chicken with some lemon juice and a bit of olive oil, and then I sprinkled paprika liberally over the whole thing. I added a cup or so of water and a chicken stock cube (since I'm temporarily out of homemade) and cooked on low for about 8 hours or so.
I served it with a salad, noodles, and crusty french bread. Somehow the apple and lemon juice really perked up the chicken. And the paprika gave the skin a nice reddish brown color and some extra flavor. My husband said the chicken tasted even nicer than usual, and my mom-in-law (who isn't really a huge chicken lover) even had seconds! In fact, there is very little in the way of leftovers (which is both good and bad - I was rather counting on having enough leftover chicken and noodles to make a casserole for dinner tomorrow, darn it!) |
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| Week 2 Topic! |
[Nov. 8th, 2009|12:27 pm] |
Hey all!
It's that time again! I know some of you may be a bit, well, antsy for the topic by now.
::: Glances nervously at katden :::
*** New Members: Welcome! Check out the Main Contest Rules for info and guidelines on how to play! We're in the middle of our monthly contest right now, but you're always welcome to play just for fun this month and join in the heavy hitting next month!***
--- Please remember to submit your entry link in the poll below! ---
Your topic for November, Week 1 is....
Key
Sometimes, it's the little things in life that can be of the greatest consequence. A key is one such thing. It is your passage through boundaries- a tool of admittance, of entrance. Whether the key to your home, the key to your heart, or access to a secret garden, it is something small, and humble, that can make big doors open.
Keys need not be literal. A key can be a Rosetta stone- the guide to a map, or the key to an exam. Something that is key can also be the central feature- most prominent or necessary, such as a keystone or a keynote speaker.
However, taken literally, a key can have enormous applications. Will your keys be on a piano or typewriter, or perhaps you're thinking of islands, such as the Florida keys? What will you unlock this week?
Let's see some high-key competition this week! This may be the broadest topic I've ever presented: I challenge you to dig deep and bring something truly original to the table!
Click here to edit your submission
Poll #1482517 Contest Entries, Week 2, November
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 4Please link your Week 2 entries here. Submit your "Just for Fun" entries here. Other notes, such as R-ratings, NSFW, genre, format, and length can go here.
*** Your Contest Entries are due Saturday, November 14, 2009, at 2pm EST. Because this is week 2, we ask that you try to keep your entries below 1,500 words to help the readers catch as many as possible. All the best to you! ***
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| Getting Organized... |
[Nov. 8th, 2009|10:25 am] |
Hey all!
Just getting things sorted out.
The following editors missed their edits, or failed to check them offr for two weeks in a row. By Flame editing policy, I have to reassign those edits and remove you guys unless you contact me to let me know you're still interested. All interested editors will be welcomed back with open arms:
ailada
amused4ever
incommune
lezi
mullvaney. You should check this out. I couldn't respond to your PM today either, but I got it, and I appreciate it VERY much! <3
We have seven people catching on on last week's edits, but frankly, I take the blame for four of them, as I'm supposed to let our standby editors know about their edits on a case-by-case basis and I didn't.
Other than that, we're good! I think we might be able to give 2 edits to everyone this week, even! THANK YOU ALL!
( The Editors, as I understand them... )
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| Poll Time! |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|10:07 pm] |
Good evening, and welcome to the Week 1 Voting Poll for November!
There were 95 sign-ups for this month. Out of that number, 52 submitted entries on time. As only 48 can move on to Week 2, four contestants will be eliminated this week.
( Ratings, Word Counts, & Genre Info )
Click here to edit your vote.
( Vote here! )
ETA (because it isn't Week 1 without it!):
1) Voting contestant raven_tiger's link was omitted by accident. Since this was my error, raven_tiger will default into Week 2. Here is their entry for your reading pleasure and commenting.
2) chickybluesky87 had 24 hours of internet fail and was unable to submit her entry on time. She's receiving a one-time Get Out of Internet Fail Jail Free card and will default to Week 2, IN ADDITION to the regular count for Week 2. In other words, no one will be bumped for Chicky, but she will still get to have a shot at Week 2. Her entry is here for your reading pleasure and commenting.
Voting for this poll will close at 12 noon EST on Wednesday, 11/11. |
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| Italian Beef Sandwiches |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|01:20 pm] |
Italian Beef (slightly adapted from a recipe found online)
Ingredients:
3 c water
1 t black pepper
1 t oregano
1 t dried basil
1 t onion salt (this is the only salt I used in this recipe)
1 t dried parsley
1 t garlic powder
1 bay leaf
1 (.7 oz) pkg dry Italian salad dressing mix
1 3-to-4# rump roast (I used a sirloin tip roast)
Italian sub rolls
Will make 6-8 servings.
Combine water, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, onion salt, parsley, garlic powder, bay leaf and salad dressing mix in a saucepan. Stir well and bring to a boil.
Place roast in crock pot, and pour mixture over roast.
Cover and cook on LOW for 12 hours (I went 13 hours). Remove bay leaf and shred meat. Turn off crock pot, recover and let stand for 1 hour. Serve Italian beef on Italian sub rolls and top with sauteed peppers if desired. Use the Au Jus as you wish: dip the sub, soak the sub, spoon some onto the sub, or eat the sandwich 'dry'.
Yum.
Not the most healthy of dishes, but I cooked mine overnight, refrigerated it in the morning, so when I got home from work, the fat had all hardened on the top and I was able to remove almost all of it. Plus I added no salt beyond the onion salt and what may have been in the Italian dressing mix, to help keep the sodium levels down.
It was pretty tasty. The Italian dressing mix gave it a kick other It. beef recipes I've tried didn't have. |
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| pineapple jam followup |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|09:13 am] |
Okay.
I put
3 chunked pinapples
1 lemons (sliced with the skin)
1 epic fuckton of sugar (like 3 cups?)
on low at about 11 last night.
I check now, at about 8 am (9 hrs later) and it's definitely starting to liquefy. there are a lot of dessicated looking chunks floating on the surface, and underneath that is a thin, brown syrup of tartly sweet nectar. At this point I added:
a few shakes of ginger
1 1/2 cups sugar
and some chopped pineapple mint
It's now chilling for what I imagine will be about 7 hrs.
Questions for the comm:
1. Should I add pectin? I'm okay with it not being the jelliest of jams, but wasn't sure if pectin speed the process along.
2. How much longer will this take? There's definitely still a lot of mass in the crock -- my understanding is that jamming in the crock involved a LOT of reduction... is it done done when it looks less "full"?
3. Should I make a vent or something to let the steam escape? Maybe that's why it's still so liquidy. |
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|07:31 pm] |
For the past couple years, I've been cutting my own hair; I finally had enough money today to have a professional do it. However, I still was a bit dubious; I've always been a little fussy about my hair. It's naturally baby-fine and really straight, which makes it tough to do anything with stylewise; and I always prefer to put as little junk as possible in it. So styling is something of a challenge. But then I also get into the attitude that "the devil you know is better than the one you don't," and I get paranoid about going to the salon because my hair may currently suck but at least I know how to work with it, and so I usually don't get there until I'm just about to shave it off in frustration and I end up staggering to a salon and screaming, 'FIX ME!'
But what also bugs me about going to the hairdresser is what they do with my hair after they cut it. They get it all cut, and right when I'm thinking that "okay, I can work with this," they then break out the hair dryer and the pomade and the fancy curling brush and the styling wax and the mousse and the glazing creme and the hair spackle and a ton of other crap and they tease and blow and curl and brush and slather and generally do all sorts of nonesense to my hair that I would never ordinarily do in a million years. And sometimes I can stop them, but other times they just start before I can, so all there is to do is just thank them and run home and wash my hair and start over.
And today was no exception. I already had an attack of nerves while the stylist was cutting -- it's rather shorter than I wanted it. But I decided that well, it'll grow, and I probably desperately needed to have it be that short after a couple years of my own haphazard job. In about a month it'll be the length I wanted, too, so that's also good.
However -- then she started styling it -- and the more she worked the more I was getting vaguely uncomfortable, but didn't quite know why. I'd told her I generally like to brush my hair back away from my face, but she was instead brushing it so it fell to one side and forward. I resigned myself to my fate, resolving to just wash it out when I got home. I had one errand to run before I could, though, and kept peering into mirrors, swiping at it and frowning. It wasn't the way I liked it, but...my dislike seemed to be a bit stronger this time....as if I'd seen something else wrong about that that went beyond just not being used to it. Was it too short on the sides? Sort of, yeah, but not THAT bad...it was brushed forward, but that wasn't enough to cause this kind of unease.
Finally, as I peered in the mirror at the Reverie office, trying to play with it some more, it hit me what was bothering me about it. What bothered me was that I had already seen this exact same hairstyle....on ANDREW'S head.
I finished up at Reverie as quickly as I could and all but ran home to wash it and start over lest Andrew think he'd stumbled into some weird gender-bending version of Single White Female. |
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| Week in Review! 11/7/09 |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|08:54 am] |
Good morning, and welcome to this week's edition of Week In Review!
* Congratulations to jewelsverne for her fantastic October win!!!
* Congratulations to mistvieh for her first place in the October Mini-Contest! Further congrats to feigned_living and darthneko for their second and third places! We look forward to seeing your awesome prizes :-)
* ROAR sign-ups are open until Sunday, 11/8! Check it out!
* EDITORS! Please check the editing checklist here! If anyone is interested in assisting with edits, please contact lacombe.
*WRITERS! If you would like your entry for this week to be reviewed/edited by our crack team of editors, let desert_rose know over here! Sign-ups for receiving editing are open until Sunday, 11/8, at 8 a.m. EST.
*The Lit Library is looking for new articles as well as feedback on articles already submitted. You can read all about it here!
* Today in ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) nanoinflames - Stress Reduction and/or Procrastination. I think I'll be checking that out! ;-)
* This week has someoneingrey as our featured writer in the Writer's Showcase.
* The Brigit's Flame chat room is always open! Drop on by!
* And lastly, our Week 1 Topic - China! Post your entry links by 12 noon TODAY - you have about 2 1/2 hours left!
**************************************
Chatter Round-up:
This week's Chatter Posts featured the following topics and queries:
Monday: desert_rose:
What did you get up to this weekend?
Tuesday:
firesign10:
Have you served jury duty? How was it? And for the non-Americans, does your country have something like jury duty?
Wednesday:
mistvieh:
Do you know any favorite, personal, or family recipes you would like toshare with everyone here at the Flame or are there any recipe requests you'd like to make? Remember, you can include appetizers, snacks, main courses, finger foods, desserts, even drinks!
Thursday:
pipisafoat:
What have you or would you change about yourself?
Friday:
lacombe:
Does the government have any right to mandate laws that stop you from potentially hurting yourself or engaging in unhealthy activities if no one else is placed in harm's way but you?
I hope you have enjoyed this week's Week in Review! Stay tuned for the Week 1 voting poll, to be posted this evening, and a new edition of Writer's Showcase tomorrow. Have a good weekend! |
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| Editing Signups Poll |
[Nov. 7th, 2009|02:08 am] |
Hi there!
I'm very sorry the editing signups poll is being posted so late this week! Please forgive me contestants, just for fun writers, Jacques and Pip!
You may notice a slight change in the wording of the types of edits available. This has been done as they better reflect the types of edits our editors give, plus it hopefully makes choosing the type of edit you would like simpler. I hope I have done this correctly- there may be some refinements for week two, when I can get my head around this properly. :-)
Since I'm posting this so late, you will only have until 8am Sunday November 8 to sign up. Again, I'm very sorry I didn't get onto this sooner!
Poll #1481944 Critiques and Edits Signup for Week 1, November, 2009
This poll is closed.
Open to: Friends, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 36Would you like content criticism on your entry this week? Would you like feedback on your grammar, punctuation and technical writing feedback this week? |
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| Recipe modification suggestion |
[Nov. 6th, 2009|12:07 pm] |
Last weekend I made crackcrock pot jambalaya. This is my 2nd or 3rd time making it, and each time has been a little different. The recipe calls for 1lb of boneless skinless chicken breast, 1lb of andouille sausage, and 1lb of cooked and peeled shrimp (added at the end, obviously). The first time I made it, I didn't like how the shrimp made the leftovers taste (I'm not a big fan of fish, but love shrimp, but the taste about ruined the leftovers for me). I'm also learning that I'm not a big fan of andouille sausage. SO, this time, when I made it, I used the chicken, smoked turkey sausage (similar to kielbasa), and sweet italian sausage. It turned out really good, but the chicken breast came out incredibly dry.
My thought, and I'm hoping to get some justification here, is that next time, I'll use chicken thighs because there's a bit more fat in it, and would dry out less. Am I right in this thinking? |
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