The Ramblers

I have changed my default icon to reflect ~~my obsession with both Brian and Justin and the giddy gloriousness that is the holidays~~ the season.

because some people wanted to know how they are doing:

They are doing great!!!

We started Ronny on his heart medication eight weeks ago,which started out with a lot of vomiting and diarrhea on his part,until the vet finally found the right medication.During this time he had to see the vet three times a week and he wasn't really happy about it. ;)
Sometimes his heart was beating too slow,and then it was beating too fast, but just yesterday the vet said that now his heart is beating regular and that it sounds really good..so YAY!!!
And with all the test the ved had done he found out that Ronny's blood pressure is a bit too high.So now he is taking medication for that,too.

Giving him his medication was a pain in the ass for the first few day,but now he's used to get his liverwurst first thing in the morning...;D

Remember Benny and his fat tumor right above his left shoulder joint?
Well,turns out that it isn't THAT big anymore and that he doesn't need to have surgery.
So that's YAY too,right?
Right now he's outside,playing in the snow and digging holes into the ground.Ronny is sitting right beside me on the couch.He hates the cold and the snow and Benny loves it as much as he loves the sand on the beach...;)

yesmeansyes - Anti-rape/sexual violence blog

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Title: Reunion Interruptus
Author:

vl_redreign
Prompt: Home For The Holidays

Notes: I'm pooped tonight. You get 3, and ummm...families are a pain in the ass. Ask Brian and Justin.

( Reunion Interruptus )

Title: Comeback
Timeline: AU
Author’s Notes: Written for the Friends and Lovers Challenge at

qaf_challenges. This fic was something really different for me, and I had a blast writing it! MASSIVE amounts of thanks to

xie_xie_xie for her amazing beta skills on this fic! I could not have done it without you! ♥

( Comeback )

Title: Just In Case
Author:

wavingcat5
Prompt: Christmas bauble image
Notes: Writing drabbles when sick kids are on you, crying, half the night isn't easy. But it's a good distraction!

( Just In Case )

Well actually,me and my "three boys" got mail!
And to state it even more precisely: Me and my "three boys" got Christmas pressies!!
YAY!
YAY!!
YAY!!!

THANK YOU,♥

michira_70♥

We got cookies (my furry boys got their own cookies and me and my other boy got some very delicious,self-made Schokocrossies.Hmmmmmmm...YUMMY!!!!),two very tasty chocolate snowmen,a totally lovely Christmas card (Which I assume,is also self-made,right?) and some very beautiful Christmas ornaments for our Christmas tree.I really,really like them (Did you make them yourself too?)and they will look great on the tree.I'll post some pics as soon as it's up.

Michi,you are the BEST and this is exactly what I needed after a really long week!

Ma boys said that I should say ♥WOOF WOOF♥ to you from them. ;)

Love you and THANK YOU very much!!

♥ and a BIG hug,
M.

Marathoning West Wing.... fire in the fireplace... cloudy cold day... Kyrie curled up on the sofa.... nothing to do today but meet

vl_redreign for lunch and go downtown and buy a new lipstick!

This is what I need to recharge the creative batteries!

I don't have any place to be today. No rushing around to get ready for Christmas or my trip.

We have about an inch or so of snow which makes everything so pretty.

I think it might just be a perfect day. I'm going to bounce between the goodies from the FALL CONTEST, wrapping Christmas presents, watching NCIS on dvd (seasons 1-6 I got for my birthday) and reading porn from the SNOWBOUND challenge at

bj_action.

*happy happy sigh*

Title: And Presents By The Tree
Author:

vl_redreign
Prompt: Blue Christmas ornament image

Notes: Sorry, the boys want to be alone. *weg*

( And Presents By The Tree )

Hi there! I've been thrilled at the number of drabbles posted in my Gusmas Drabble Celebration that I'm guest-hostessing at

qaf_drabbles. As you know, I'm donating a dollar for every drabble posted there before the deadline of New Year's Day, to the Ali Forney Center for LGBT youth.

It's a good cause, and one that I feel resonates with our fandom for many reasons. I gave to them last year, too, in honor of the fandom that's given so much to me.

Tonight I read this post by the director of the Ali Forney Center, and it made me want to turn my bank account upside down for these kids. So even if all you can come up with is a single drabble, drop by the community and share it with us there. It's for the best cause of all: helping a kid survive a cold winter's night:

A few months ago a man named Anthony reached out to me to tell me a terrible story. He knew of a teen in upstate New York whose family learned he was gay and threw him out. A few days later the boy tried to return home, only to be told that if he returned again his father would kill him and bury him in the backyard. The boy tried to survive in near bye towns eating out of garbage cans and sleeping in parking lots. Anthony was the last person who saw the boy alive; Anthony was the train conductor who slammed on the brakes when the boy jumped in front of his train, ending his life.

When I first began to work with homeless teens in the mid 1990's I met a gay boy who had nowhere to stay. We sent him to what at that time was the one youth shelter in NYC, Covenant House, a large Roman Catholic Shelter. The first night he stayed there he was placed in a dorm with about 15 other kids. After he fell asleep, the other kids in the dorm gathered around him and urinated on him to show their hatred and unwillingness to share their dorm with a gay person. I cannot tell you how many similar stories I have heard over the years, of LGBT kids being gay-bashed, humiliated and abused at Covenant House. Back in the 90's most LGBT kids felt safer sleeping on the streets.

I feel strongly that we, the LGBT Community, who call on each other to come out of the closet, have to be there to protect teens who come out only to be rejected and abandoned. I am very proud of the work that the Ali Forney Center now does to protect these kids and help them heal the trauma they've been put through, and help them rebuild their lives. We offer housing, food, clothing, medical care, mental health treatment, and vocational and educational assistance. We, and the many people who support us and volunteer for us become an extended family, who give these kids the love and support their own families cannot give.

Last month was big for us; we opened a new shelter, increasing the number of youths we are able to house to 58 per night. It actually seems like a miracle when you consider that we were able to expand even though we lost $450K this year in government support. If we have a saint in heaven watching over us, it must be Bea Arthur, who left us $300K in her estate! I was actually frightened we would be forced by the funding cuts to shut down before Bea came to our rescue.

The biggest miracle for me though is seeing our kids thrive. Right now 16 of the kids staying with us are attending college, and over 20 have found jobs. One young woman who has been living with us for two years and is ready to move out on her own is fielding offers to work in the research departments of Stanford and Brown Universities! Over a thousand kids have stayed with us since we opened in 2002, and a great many are now living proudly on their own.

Happy Chanukah! (just under the wire)
And Happy Belated Birthday to Bunny (and anyone else I may have missed)!

And because I'm listening to someone ramble on the phone and trying to catch up with weeks of F-list stuff.

( Answers to the oft-bizarre questions below, if you care. )

The identities of the creators in the Friends and Lovers Challenge have been revealed. You guys are now free to cross-post your work and reply to comments. When cross-posting, a link back here to

qaf_challenges to encourage more participation would be much appreciated!

I'd like to say another big thank you to all the participants here this year, and especially to those who have participated in several challenges over the years. Thanks also to all the guest hosts this year. And thank you to everyone who leaves comments. Please keep it up to let our entrants know their work is appreciated! I can't say enough how important it is to the future success of

qaf_challenges!

We will be having a break until the new year, when we will return with a new challenge. In the meantime, you can relive all of our past challenges HERE! Until then, happy holidays!

( Here's the links list! )

I'm taking a few minutes to share some of my news with you all. (Plus I promised some people some pictures of the little guy.)

First of all, Champ is doing great. He gained an ounce while I was gone and that's an excellent sign and he's eating more and more on his own every day. I don't have to feed him through the stomach tube anymore and hopefully that can come out in a week or so.

My birthday was a lovely affair. My sister and my friend put together a fantastic little shindig almost all the people I love in my world. We ate, laughed, visited, scratched lottery tickets, played with my new blackberry and everyone drooled over the KINDLE I got as a super duper present. (Cannot rec it enough. I'm currently having affairs with both my kindle and my blackberrry.)

As for the vacation...wow. I had some amazing company on the road trip and all along the way. It was magical. Hotels were nice, the spa was amazing and it snowed at just the perfect moments (except for part of the ride home but ehhh, I've forgotten that already.) This trip was exactly what I needed: a chance to rest and recharge and I feel like I was able to do that. I feel almost like a new woman.

Finally, I can't believe that Reason turned a year old. It seems like just a few days ago that we were worried to death that he wasn't eating and he had to spend Christmas Eve and half of Christmas in the hospital. Now, he's tall, strong, smart, inquisitive and oh so adorable. I cannot express how much I love this child. Now, who wants pictures?
( step inside my heart )

Title: Blanket
Author:

wavingcat5
Prompt: image of street covered in snow
Notes: the aria is from La Boheme

( Blanket )