Welcome to the place where I have stored all the marbles I've lost over Kingdon! I hope you enjoy them (sometimes they're shiny!) β¨
Microfic Challenge: August 25
August 01st: Pool (499 words)
August 10th: Tank top (497 words)
Microfic Challenge: What should've been you (chronological)
August 06th: Lemonade (499 words)
August 14th: Picture (496 words)
August 25th: Sweat (500 words)
August 27th: Jellyfish (475 words)
August 28th: Festival (841 words)
August 30th: Bottle (500 words)
Bonus thoughts & Director's Cut
Microfic Challenge: November 25
Day 4: Apple (1.4k words)
Day 13: Moon (499 words)
One-Shots
Forever again (to love you the way that I should've back then) (6k, exes to lovers)
Cheating fic: Mel takes care of Frank, even if that includes sleeping with a married man. If things go her way, he won't be married for long anyway.
Current WIPs
Regency au: Just when Melissa King expects a proposal from the handsome Mr. Langdon, he disappears. Months later, she meets him again in London as she searches for a husband...
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schwΓΆre die AktivitΓ€t an diesem Post ist wie so ein Merz-Bullshit-Seismograph. Immer wenn der wieder Notes bekommt weiΓ ich dass er was Dummes von sich gegeben hat
"Thatβs what makes Zohran Mamdaniβs election in New York so unsettling to the old order. New York City is not just another municipality; itβs a sovereign-scale entity. Its population surpasses 38 states. Its metropolitan GDP trails only Texas and California.
It is, by any metric, a small country masquerading as a city.
It governs more lives and more wealth than most nations. If democratic socialism β housing reform, public banking, equitable taxation β functions here, it obliterates the myth that such governance canβt work at scale. The fear isnβt ideological. Itβs empirical. Because if Mamdani can keep the lights on, reduce homelessness, and maintain economic growth without catering to Wall Street, then the capitalist gospel collapses under its own dead weight.
What terrifies the establishment isnβt failure. Itβs feasibility.
If it works in New York, thereβs no reason it canβt work in Nebraska. If it works in Queens, it can work in Kansas City. And once proof exists, belief becomes irrelevant. The ship of democracy, fully refitted, will keep sailing β and no one can claim it isnβt American."
The heatβs been brutal this summer but we still gotta eat! If youβre like me, heat might suppress your appetite, and the last thing any of us want is to sweat over a hot stove and oven when itβs already boiling outside. Here are some of my favorite hot-weather recipes to keep hydrated and fed with when the weather is unbearable! (All recipes should be un-paywalled).
NYTβs best gazpacho (lives up to its name!!)
Persian cold cucumber soup (if you like tzatziki you will like this!)
Eric Kimβs cold noodles with tomato (infinitely riffable Korean flavor profile β for a creamier and less brothy take, try these cold sesame noodles too)
Vietnamese chicken and herb salad (this is an excellent time to get a rotisserie chicken so you donβt have to turn the oven on)
Radish sandwiches with butter and salt (and in a similar vein, if you dig this flavor combo you should try this Polish cottage cheese dip on some good rye bread or even crackers)
Itβs still a little early in the season, but you can never go wrong with a BLT (or, if you donβt eat bacon, try this tomato furikake sandwich in its place)
Infinite iterations of pasta salad! You can use anything you got but here is a template I like.
Assorted dense bean salads. This back pocket canned salad is a weird combo of jarred ingredients but it slaps, this hoagie-inspired one is super satisfying, and cowboy caviar is a classic for a reason.
Poke bowls! Canned tuna mixed with some kewpie mayo and sriracha is a budget-friendly riff on the usual ahi and makes everything taste like a spicy tuna roll, but use whatever proteins you like, this is more of a loose template.
Please feel free to add some of your own favorite summer recipes in the replies and comments! Weβll get through this together. π€π€π€
If you can buy pre cooked or canned beets at the store, chΕodnik (beet yogurt soup) is a great choice. You can leave out the radishes if you canβt get them.
I also love sardines on fresh bread and butter with assorted vegetables. Buy the fanciest canned sardines you can afford but even regular ones are pretty good. Plus, very healthy!
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It doesnβt feel like itβs been five years.
Mel never thought sheβd be back at a PTMC event after ending her residency last year, not with everything thatβs happened, but this is important. Important enough to face every little thing thatβs kept her up at night.
Five years since her first day at that hospital. Five years since her life changed, even if she didnβt know it at the time. Five years since Pittfest and the grief that came in the aftermath.
βAre you ready?β Mel asks, clenching her hands. She half hopes the answer is no. βWe donβt have to go in. Not if you donβt want to.β
Next to her, Frank squeezes her hand. Heβs scared too, she can see it in his eyes, but he always tries to be brave for her. βTodayβs important, Mel. You saved a lot of lives that day.β
βWe saved a lot of lives, Frank.β Mel knows her voice is tight, but she doesnβt care. βSay it.β
He smiles at her, some of the tension in his face melting away. She hates that he canβt feel pride in the work he did that day. Not that she feels proud givenβ¦ she just wishes he could see her the way she sees him.
They both still have unfinished business with the other staff members of the hospital. Some of it isnβt bad, sheβs excited to see some of the nurses again, but some of it feels like a sharp pain in the chest. She knows itβs worse for Frank, having to see Dr. Robby and Dr. Santos. It wonβt be easy for any of them to see the families of the victims or the survivors who committed to come.
But theyβll get through it. Mel knows they will. βWill you save me a dance tonight, Dr. Langdon?β
He laughs, real and quiet, before running a hand over her loose curls. βOnly if you promise not to get swept away by some handsome donor tonight, Dr. Langdon.β
She smiles, still not used to hearing her new name. βDeal.β
By the time Frankβs suit jacket comes to rest on his new girlfriendβs shoulder, Mel slips out of the ballroom. Tears threaten the expensive mascara the Sephora employee had dragged over her stubborn lashes. She takes a deep breath, but her hands curl into fists regardless. Heβd never mentioned any dates, any new name. And where had he found the time anyway, between shifts and the PHP and custody and evenings on Melβs couch?
Oh god. Heβd probably never cuddle her on her couch again.
βMel?β
She slowly turns around. Her ankles still wobble in her old heels from prom. βOh, hi, Javadi.β
βWow, you look different! When did you get those highlights? Itβs so weird seeing you without glasses. And with make-up, too! Sorry, Iβm rambling. Have you met Dr. Langdonβs friend?β Her voice drops to a whisper, even though the hallway is empty. βAre they dating?β
βI havenβt met her,β Mel replies.
Javadi frowns. βOh! Sorry, I thought youβd be the first to know. Did he tell you heβs divorced? But she seems nice, you know, Iβm not trying to gossip or anything.β A little laugh slips over her lips.
Mel's stomach flips around. If there hadn't been a betting pool before, there'd be one now. And of course no one will ask her about it.
βHe mentioned the divorce, yes. I'm, uh, going home now.β
[10:06pm] Hey Mel! I didn't see you tonight, is everything okay?
[10:06pm] Hi :) I just left early, I didn't feel comfortable
[10:10pm] Okay πHave a nice evening then :)
Melβs phone lands on the floor, a few inches from her 100$ satin ballgown.
Okay. Everything was always okay for him: cancelling on him at the last minute because Becca didnβt want to go to the zoo alone, not being able to come over to his place for movie night because of a cold, not seeing him on shift for two weeks.
βNo problem, Mel,β heβll say with an easy smile tomorrow, while Mel will force every muscle of her body into paralysis, so she wonβt stomp her feet or throw herself off the PTMC floor.
God, she bought that dress only for him. What had she been thinking?
Frank shoves his phone back into his pocket. βGuess youβll meet her next time,β he says to Sophia. βHave you tried the finger food yet? I swear itβs the only good thing about these events. But donβt waste your time on the muffins, theyβre as dry as grandmaβs.β
Sophia glares at him with her arms crossed. βYou promised me you'd introduce her to me.β
βWhat do you expect me to do? Drive to Melβs place and drag her back here?β
βAs if you werenβt stalling all evening. You know this means I donβt want to hear her name one single fucking time at the next family reunion, right? And take your stupid jacket back, your cologne stinks.β
Frank shrugs. Sheβll have her fun eventually, and heβll just have a chocolate donut.
on the one hand: Amazon putting out a Legally Blonde prequel show called Elle about Elle Woods in high school when her family temporarily moves to Seattle in the 90s FEELS like a shallow cash grab somehow since it's a) amazon, and b) legally blonde is so beloved.
On the other hand, it was Reese Witherspoon's idea (she got the idea watching Wednesday, apparently) and she's really excited about it and I know she absolutely adores that character and LB3 has been in development limbo for close to a decade at this point, so I am hopeful it's at least clearly made with LOVE even if it's not great.
And on the third hand I love that Reese was part of the casting process for Elle specifically and that they cast an unknown actress named Lexi Minetree, and VISUALLY at least the girl is a perfect fuckin fit because just look AT her:
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I think this is just a trend everywhere but I've been very frustrated this week by how much admin work is being outsourced to me as the patient/customer.
My orthodontist tells me I can make an appointment with the surgeon. I call the surgeon. They tell me I need a new referral. I call the orthodontist. They do a referral. I call the surgeon. Referral didn't come through. They tell me about their special unique system we have to use. I call the ortho again and walk them through the referral. I call the surgeon. They say the referral was missing some details so they have to do it again. I call the ortho.
The insurance company calls me about repair shops. I give them the name of the repair shop which I already gave them yesterday. They say they're not in their system but I can use them, but I have to call the repair shop to ask them to contact the insurance company. I call the repair shop and they say the insurance company is supposed to email them.
I feel like at a certain point these constant fetch quests become unreasonable?? Is it too much to expect these groups to communicate with each other instead of making me run back and forth between them???
Made this post and then the new property manager (who started on Monday and only finally emailed us today because I sent a vaguely professionally hostile email to her boss because I hadn't heard anything and was not convinced she existed) asked for a list of open action items which her predecessor should have had but apparently wasn't keeping track of, which I learned when I met her boss and provided her with the list of open action items, which I guess tragically died in a fire in the last 2 weeks since she was sitting at my kitchen table, being menaced by the skull. How many people's jobs am I doing now
@kingdonmicrofic Day 2: Champagne (236) no warnings
The worst part about weddings, for Frank at least, is how normal the drinking culture seems to be. A happy hour before dinner, toasts to the happy couple, and of courseβ
βChampagne, sir?β The waitress is cute, short and blonde, with big doe eyes hidden behind thick glasses.
If Frank could just be normal about substances, heβd accept the drink and then say something flirty. Heβs sure heβd strike out, the woman is out of his league, but heβd have a better chance than whatever just came out of his mouth.
βIβm sober. 425 days. I mean, Iβm a drug addict, not an alcoholic, but I thought it would be better if I just cut it all out.β He cringes, looking away from where the serverβs eyes have gotten very wide, very quickly. βSorry. This is my ex-wifeβs wedding and Iβm a little nervous, as you can tell.β
To his surprise, the server is still there when he looks over again. Her head is tilted, looking over at the head table where Abby is sitting with Aaron. βHm. I mean, the groom is handsome, but I have to say, I think she downgraded.β
The server leaves before Frank can think of anything to say. Later, though, his dinner is served with a champagne flute of sweet ginger-ale and a paper napkin with a phone number written on it, the name Mel signed in a curling font.
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