niankhsekhmet: (xina harem)
2006-12-26 05:41 pm

Question of the day:

So, tell me, in your opinion, just WHAT is a "Dark Goddess"?

Note: Anyone who says, "Sekhmet" shall eat a large, flaming solar disk wth a Uraeus for dinner. ;)
niankhsekhmet: (outraged)
2006-12-07 06:06 pm

Mini Rant:

I am really VERY tired of LJ updating my viewing options for me! I put them the way I wanted them for a reason. It is convenient for me. I don't give a raggedy DAMN about your new bloody features. I don't care about your new viewing options. Leave my stuff the way I put it or I can take my business and go elsewhere.

In case anyone else has had their "new and improved" (NOT!) crap foisted on them: Here is the page to change it back again!

http://www.livejournal.com/manage/settings/

LJ seems to have forgotten the three-clicks rule of user interface design for web. That rule is, if it takes more than three clicks to get anywhere you have lost the eyeballs of the visitors to your website. Losing those eyeballs on your site equals losing revenue. LJ, since the merger with Six Apart has pretty much become a user interface mess. Nevermind with their new "improvements' the FAQ is not easy to find, or just about anything else. No, I don't want a site that is more like MySpace. If I wanted to be on that Internet purgatory, I'd be there. I have a MySpace page. I have never, nor do I ever have any plans to update it.

Yes, I know. Some people like all that sensory overload, multimedia, bandwidth hell crap. I don't. Call me anal retentive and obsessive compulsive or an old lioness who refuses to learn new tricks - but I hate the interface. It's clumsy and it doesn't work for me. It's just common courtesy to ask people before you just change it on them to try to get them to go with your improvements.

I will not be asimiliated.
niankhsekhmet: (piratespank inferno)
2006-11-10 04:48 pm

My review of Cocaine Energy Drink

Well....my first comment is "Ouch!"

There is so much citric acid in this stuff, if you do not burn your throat with it going down, you will die of acid reflux afterwards. There is no doubt that there is caffiene in it. Oh, yes. That comes form the gurana. Gurana can have up to three times as much caffeine as coffee does. Does this energy drink give you a buzz. Yep! It sure does! I dont know that it is worth the nearly seven dollars a can. (No, I am not kidding!) A case of this stuff will put you back $100. I will probably sell the extra cans that the distributor in payment for their delay of getting it to me for more than I paid. In essence, I got my product for free. I know that I will get just about any price I name just because I know people are wanting to try the drink that 7-11 banned all because of the hype of it's name. Hey...it's a great marketing strategy. Their sales skyrocketed just as soon as someone said that the public couldn't have something. I know that is why I bought mine. It does have some kick. It is very VERY concentrated, but in my opinion, it is too sweet, it is too acidic and it is far too expensive. That's alot to pay for something that will give you heartburn. The second ingredient in this stuff is citric acid. (Does that tell you anything?)

The drink is red. It tastes like Red Bull with some high proof alcohol added to it. It is of course non alcoholic but it has that type of burn, and it does not go away for a very long time.

I will say something that many of you would never expect me to say, and that is drinking that much caffeine in one sitting is probably not a good idea. If you are on ANY kind of medication, I would check to see if there are any adverse reactions to extremely high doses of caffeine. Just for the record - too much caffeine can kill you. Of course, It takes about 13.5 grams of caffeine to kill a person who weighs 200 lbs, 75 cups of coffee, 155 mountain dews etc. Anyway, if you do try this stuff=, just don't gulp it. It needs to be sipped. And for the love of GOD don't be tempted to be doing more than one at a time! You will feel it and you very possibly could make yourself very sick.

Please understand that I don't say things like this likely. I am someone who has done very high doses of caffeine in her life for long, long periods of time. When I worked for Frontier, I would have between two to four double shot, double tall (that's four shot glasses each) of espresso. I use a French press when I make coffee. I do Turkish coffee in a big way, and I refer to most commercially available coffee as "what's the point?". Hell, Starbuck's coffee doesn't even impress me. I find that it is pretty weak by comparison to how I take my cuppa joe. Cocaine energy drink is like having mainlined that four cups of double shot, double tall espressos all at once.

Do I recommend it. Eh...maybe. It all depends on your taste, I suppose. It's an ok buzz caffeine-wise. Now if I could just get past the ultra-sweet taste.

Meh....
niankhsekhmet: (squee!)
2006-11-04 02:17 pm

*SQUEE*

I just found out that Senator Barak Obama is going to be in Iowa City tomorrow night at 8PM to campaign for our Democratic candidate for Governor. You can BET that [livejournal.com profile] userbenu and I are going to be there!!!

For those of you who don't know...Obama WILL be the President of the United States - if not in 2008, sometime in the future. He is probably one of the most incredibly charismatic speakers I have ever heard. Think John and Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King type of powerful speaking! Don't know about him? Google his name, baby! And be sure to go to YouTube and check out his Democratic National Convention Speech given in 2004.
niankhsekhmet: (yes I would)
2006-10-31 06:42 pm

Re: Writing, NaNoWriMo, Roleplay etc. (LONG)

Since this topic has come up among a few of my friends, I thought I would comment. It seems that it has gone on for a little while. Rather than sit on my hands, I am just going to let things fall where they will. Please note that nothing in this post is about anyone specifically, it is just a general commentary and needs to be iterated.

Many of you know that I have been writing and roleplaying for many years. I cut my teeth on the now-defuct site, Ancient Sites, which has evolved into Ancient Worlds. Now, before Ancient Worlds came into being, all those people who were without a home needed a place to be. This led my writing partners, Dan Rice, Sydney Longfellow, Ki Longfellow and I start Pan Historia. Pan Historia has a sister site, Pan Erotica. The latter is not a porn site. And, like it's elder-sister site, Pan Historia, it is focused mainly on writing and roleplay.PE is just more writing and roleplay that goes in a more mature direction. It is writing focused, RP is just part of what happens because in either of them, the format is toward "novels". Communication is absolutely key. And you have to have alot of good communication to make that sort of thing work. If you don't you're screwed. Suffice it to say I've been doing all of this stuff for a very long time.

Many of you also know that I am the mun (writer) for [livejournal.com profile] fannyfae, who has been in the LJ community [livejournal.com profile] theatrical_muse, amongst others. Fanny has been a character of mine since back at the very inception of Pan Historia - since 1999. That is a long time to be writing any character. Over time she has evolved.

No character, unless they are a Sue or are incredibly boring can go through their literary life and not change some. I will be rewriting and reformatting a great deal of material for Fanny for NaNoWriMo. This muse wants to be a book and by God, she is going to be! She has roleplayed with many. She isnt the only character I do roleplay by any stretch of the imagination. I think last count over on the Pan sites, I have in excess of about 28 characters which are all active in about a dozen novels. Unfortunately, due to real life events this past month has seen me get behind not only on the groups on LJ, but also on Pan Historia. That just isn't a way to run a business. I know that. I also have a straight gig (job) and a son, a priesthood in a temple that I am very dedicated to, herbal clients that I serve and a home. In short, I have a life outside of writing and roleplay. Sometimes those things will take precedence. It isn't an excuse, it's a fact.

Re: Roleplay

If you are easily offended please bypass this part of the post. This is the only warning that you will receive. )
niankhsekhmet: (driving)
2006-10-28 02:04 pm

This and That...a short update.

Work has been insane. I have had today to actually get things done that I want to get done. Today I have gotten to spend the majority of the day with my son, [livejournal.com profile] userbenu. He is getting so damned tall! He got through mid-terms at college. I am so proud of him I can barely stand it. He is so responsible he frightens me sometimes. He has handled all of his college funding, loans, loan forgiveness, etc. without a damned bit of help from me. It's a good thing, because his mama at present isn't making as much as she could be!

At last Sekhem.net has been uploaded to its new home. It is now being hosted on the Pan Historia servers. What is there now is by no means permanent. We just wanted to get SOMETHING up there! This means I have tons of space to make this site what I want it to be without having to worry. My focus for it, in spite of what I have up there now, is to discuss the healing system of Traditional Sekhem, herbal medicine, and be a sort of clearing house of information about Sekhmet and Her worship. The Ancient Egyptian Virtual Temple which is on my main ISP is in desperate need of an update and expanded information. Hopefully I will get to that soon, but I have a gazillion things to do this weekend. We are ready for winter.

My muse, [livejournal.com profile] fannyfae has been after me to get moving on a few posts. I owe reps over at Pan Historia, in [livejournal.com profile] theatrical_muse, [livejournal.com profile] elite_muses and various other threads such as the one I have going with [livejournal.com profile] bella_louve, [livejournal.com profile] civ_barbarian and [livejournal.com profile] all_forme. I am trying to convince the muns for [livejournal.com profile] all_forme, [livejournal.com profile] allfor_one, [livejournal.com profile] allfor_god and any other Three Musketeers muses to come over to Pan Historia and take over the all-but-dead "novel" over there. (Come, my lovelies! I have lots of goodies like free webspace, messaging, and such to offer you as a bribe! ) Given the level of storytelling and the precision of the writing coming out of those aforementioned muses, I really think we can increase the following for them over here on Livejournal. *gently nudges them all in that direction*

I just heard a rumour about a new energy drink. That energy drink's name is so controversial, it got it banned from 7-11 stores. The name is Cocaine. It is not in any way illegal, it just is 350% more powerful than Red Bull. Yes, I ordered some. I have three cans on the way from a distributor on eBay. Why? Because I hate it when someone tells me I can't have something only by virtue of the fact that they just simply "say so", and secondly, I am an herbalist. I want to look at the ingredients list for real. I have my suspicions about what is really in it. I want to see if I am right. Not that I need to. I already have a SYTO (SYTO = Speeding Your Titties Off) formula of my own. I admit, I don't use it very often, however. It isn't good for your body to be up on energy drinks all the darned time. It burns out your adrenals.

Anyway, right now I have to take Beni back into town. His laundry is done. He needs a haircut and some things from the store. I should be on later. :)
niankhsekhmet: (Default)
2006-10-12 07:41 pm

It bears mentioning

There was a post in [livejournal.com profile] dark_christian that really got my attention. We hear so much from many faiths, be they Christian, Muslim, Hindu, etc. about the concept of forgiveness. Diana Butler Bass, a columnist over on beliefnet wrote an incredible article on the recent tragic events in the Amish community this past week, and the incredible example of forgiveness that the Amish people have shown in spite of it all.

Despite attempts to avoid this particular news, the stories of the Amish practice of forgiveness eventually captivated me. Their practice of forgiveness unfolded in four public acts over the course of a week. First, some elders visited Marie Roberts, the wife of the murderer, to offer forgiveness. Then, the families of the slain girls invited the widow to their own children’s funerals. Next, they requested that all relief monies intended for Amish families be shared with Roberts and her children. And, finally, in an astonishing act of reconciliation, more than 30 members of the Amish community attended the funeral of the killer."

The article in it's entirety can be read here.
niankhsekhmet: (piratespank inferno)
2006-09-18 06:29 pm

Yeah, you just go right ahead and diss fanfic and fanfic writers all you want. However.....

In The Wall Street Journal's Weekend Edition in the Pursuits section, on the front page was a very interesting article on the subject. Livejournal got some mentions, and I will be sending out copies of the full article to a couple of you who asked for it. Anyone that tell's you fan fiction isn't a good way to start out, shove this under their nose. If it is good enough to catch the notice of The Wall Street Journal, it means there's money to be made in there somewhere. Is what you;re writing good enough to catch the notice of a publisher or media company? You very well might be.

Rewriting the Rules of Fiction

Amateur authors writing tales about favorite characters are drawing big audiences and landing book deals. Meet Harry Potter's grandparents.

By JOHN JURGENSEN

September 16, 2006; Page P1

Fan fiction, stories by amateur writers about characters from their favorite books, movies and television shows, was once mainly a fringe pursuit. Now, it's changing the world of fiction, as Internet exposure helps unknown authors find mainstream success. Some Web sites are attracting unprecedented numbers of readers and, in some cases, leading to book deals. They are also feeding the appetites of readers and viewers who can't get enough of shows like "Lost" or "House."

There's a librarian in Rathdrum, Idaho, who spent 10 years posting her writings about a character from Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" online; Simon & Schuster paid her a $150,000 advance to publish the works as a three-novel trilogy. In Brooklyn, N.Y., a free-lance copy editor has become one of the Web's best-known "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter" fan-fiction writers, and has landed a three-book publishing deal for a young-adult fantasy series. When a comic-book store manager in New Jersey decided to take his first stab at fan fiction this year, entering a contest sponsored by Showtime's "The L Word," he got the attention of a literary agent, who signed him last month. And Ms. Jones will soon have her first book published.

Read more... )
niankhsekhmet: (outraged)
2006-09-12 06:53 pm

Borrowed from [livejournal.com profile] bush_sucks

This is a transcript of Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson's speech that he gave when President G.W. Bush visited his city. It is very anti-Bush. Apparently the press has taken him apart before, during and after this speech given on August 30, 2006. It is WELL worth the time it takes to read!


Transcript of Mayor Rocky Anderson's speech

A patriot is a person who loves his or her country.
Who among you loves your country so much that you have come here today to raise your voice out of deep concern for our nation - and for our world? And who among you loves your country so much that you insist that our nation's leaders tell us the truth? Let's hear it: "Give us the truth! Give us the truth! Give us the truth!"

Let no one deny we are patriots. We love our country, we hold dear the values upon which our nation was founded, and we are distressed at what our President, his administration, and our Congress are doing to, and in the name of, our great nation.

Blind faith in bad leaders is not patriotism.

A patriot does not tell people who are intensely concerned about their country to just sit down and be quiet; to refrain from speaking out in the name of politeness or for the sake of being a good host; to show slavish, blind obedience and deference to a dishonest, war-mongering, human-rights-violating president.
That is not a patriot. Rather, that person is a sycophant. That person is a member of a frightening culture of obedience - a culture where falling in line with authority is more important than choosing what is right, even if it is not easy, safe, or popular. And, I suspect, that person is afraid - afraid we are right, afraid of the truth (even to the point of denying it), afraid he or she has put in with an oppressive, inhumane, regime that does not respect the laws and traditions of our country, and that history will rank as the worst presidency our nation has ever had to endure.

Read More
niankhsekhmet: (flower seller)
2006-07-31 09:28 pm

Update

I have not even *begun* to get myself packed for Retreat. Good god, I need to henna my hair, get all of my saris, dupattas and salwaar kameez ready and packed. I just clearned the balance off of credit card so I don't have to worry about having enough money for gas, etc. when I leave. I still cannot believe I am going to be working till 6PM on Wednesday, going home, picking up [livejournal.com profile] userbenu and then both of us turning right around and leaving that night. I must be insane! The more I think about it the more I believe that I should probably opt to stay that night at home, get some rest and then just leave very early Thursday AM instead.

Herb class ramblings )
niankhsekhmet: (squee!)
2006-07-29 03:59 pm

stuff....

It has been so damned ungodly hot and humid! Tomorrow is herb class, but I have to tell you, I have not the motivation to do much of anything. I may beg off if I am feeling like I did this AM.

I did manage to get to Barnes and Noble in my travels and picked up the latest tome by Robert Greene, the author of two of my favourite books, "The 48 Laws of Power" and "The Art of Seduction". Now he has come out with "The 33 Strategies of War". If I could ever have heard a muse squee in my head, I swear that I heard [livejournal.com profile] fannyfae do what amounted to a happy squee. No doubt she will be reading over my shoulder as she did the other two and the principles therein will end up in her posts. It's wierd having to deal with a netjeri or muse or whatever the hell she is have her own books and music and idiiosyncracies that have absolutely NOTHING to do with me personally! My thanks go out to my co-writers and fellow muns that indulge Fanny and I. (You know who you are!) You have been the most patient and kind and loving friends on the planet....and I know you know exactly what the hell I am talking about when I talk about this!

[livejournal.com profile] jessierarr, I got your DVD's today. Good news is that they are nice, in great shape, etc. Bad news is that they are Japanese and the packaging is not the same as the ones you must have with the fold out portfolio. Except for the copyright warning at the beginning, which is in spanish, the rest of them look fine. Now, I am going to insure the crap out of them and send along all the other stuff with them! Bloody post office!! Oh...and btw, get some bloody sleep, will ya?! ;-)
niankhsekhmet: (yes I would)
2006-07-23 12:31 pm

And now a word to the wise....

24 = CRACK

That is all.
niankhsekhmet: (Default)
2006-07-02 09:08 am

PC Issues

Em hotep, All:

This week one of my friends on my AIM list infected my PC with a malware / hijacking virus. It was someone whom I trusted and I was just bloody stupid. I should never have clicked on the link because it launched a bunch of exe's that were disguised in the link to what was supposed to be an image. As of this moment I am on my old PC. I have no master disk for Windows XP for that machine that I can find. So...I have some options. I need to go out and buy another Win XP Home Edition disk today, or the situation might be so bad that my machine ends up in the shop. I am thinking that it probably will end up there. I don't get a start menu at all.

I am hoping and praying that I have not lost months and months of work and writing because the HD needs to be reformatted. I have already spent over $80 trying to get rid of this damned malware. I will be up as soon as I can but it looks like I am going to be relegated to this machine for the time being. I really don't have the time and the money for this bullshit.

I am so upset right now. I was going to spend my weekend writing.
niankhsekhmet: (outraged)
2006-06-19 09:53 pm

Six Apart Is Bound And Determined to Destroy Livejournal!

If the crew at Six Apart are going to turn Livejournal into another My Space, I will take my toys and go home. This is probably the WORST idea I have ever heard!! Please, if you care about having an intelligent, coherent blog space that supports wide varieties of communities and such without the stupid teen-oriented bells and vapid whistles, please, sign the petition.

As for me, I am copying everything from [livejournal.com profile] fannyfae's LJ and posting it over on Greatestjournal, just so I have a back up and in case these idiots really do follow through on the changes they are talking about implementing. I absolutely loathe My Space, and I want nothing to do with it or anything even remotely resembling that insipid technological nightmare!

niankhsekhmet: (Default)
2006-06-10 11:40 am

Saturday morning frustrations

When you live with other people, tell me, WHY can't people leave things WHERE they are put!? I know where absolutely everything is in this organized mess that I am trying to clean up today. However, it would be really bloody nice if I could find the things that I need to help me do the job if people would stop MOVING THEM!!

I am tincturing. Where are my corks? I laid them on the table in a baggie where I knew exactly where they were. Gone. Shifted to a different table that I know damned well I didn't put it there. After putting the label on the tincture, I need a black sharpie pen to mark what it is, when I made it, etc. WHERE are all of my black sharpie pens?! I have two drawers, one upstairs and one downstairs that I keep them in. I can find, blue, purple, green, orange yellow...none of which do me any damned good. Where is the black!? By now I am absolutely furious. Next step; putting clear packing tape over the top of the label to preserve it and keep it from getting splashed by tincture, water, etc. Oh..please..DON'T TELL ME! That's gone, too!? I have two tape dispensers for packing tape...and BOTH are missing?!

I really AM going to have to have a talk with someone about their habits of borrowing and./or not leaving things where I put them This person shalll remain nameless - because we *will* be having that talk! (You know who you are! ) Good thing that they are not in the house right now! I guess a trip to Sam's Club is in my immediate future today. *sigh*

Moral of the story: Don't move my stuff - especially when I use it regularly for making medicines! *growl*
niankhsekhmet: (piratespank inferno)
2006-05-21 12:04 pm

Catching Up...

It has been a while since I have posted much in the way of herbal things to my LJ. I have been working on my herbal AHG stuff. That never seems to end. Right now I am looking at trying to get the basement rearranged to facilitate all that. Its going to be alot of work.

I have been dealing with for the past few weeks something that is not conjuctivitis but is some sort of eye infection. I had my doctor take a look at it, they prescribed drops. The drops didn't do crap. I had been using an infusion of eyebright and goldenseal, but Trilby reminded me that goldenseal, in particular the constituent berberine is not very water soluable. Solution? I need to get a tincture of goldenseal going. Thankfully, I still have some on hand from when I worked at Frontier. I have some root, at least a gallon jar of whole root. Yes, it is farmed, not wild crafted for those of you who are concerned. It was one of those ultimate sweet deals as it was a particular packaging size that was discontinued...so what did they do? They put it in the free bin! Free you say?! Why, thank you! I will take that little price worth several hundred dollars, no problem! You don't have to twist my arm!

Today [livejournal.com profile] userbenu, my son graduates from high school! Let me tell you it makes me feel quite old at this moment! God, where did my baby boy go?! *flail* I am so proud of him, I can barely speak. He has been accepted into Mount Mercy, which is a private college to pursue his major, which is education. I made the mistake of asking him what everyone else asks, and that is, "What grade level do you think you want to teach?" Big mistake! He doesn't know yet, and that is fine. I think everyone should be allowed to find out what interests them. Did I mention that I am proud of him? ;)

Mini Kemetic-Related Rant beneath cut where much surliness ensues... )
niankhsekhmet: (khepera)
2006-05-05 07:47 pm

Stuff..

I am in a way sort of glad I didn't make it up to Chicago this weekend. I have so much to do this weekend around the house, plus, Trilby has an advanced herb class that I as her apprentice need to be present to help teach on Sunday. WooHOO! I am disappointed about not seeing everyone. but I needed the time. I am giving Trilby my schedule (as best I can) so that we can avoid the confusion next time around.

Oh, and Beni was checking out the creek down below and we have FISH!!! We haven't had fish in our part of Buffalo Creek since we have lived here! I am so excited! :)
niankhsekhmet: (Default)
2006-04-18 08:07 pm

Note to Self...

I think all adolescents should be sent to an island somewhere and not let off again until they can behave like adults....say after their Saturn Return!

Then again, some so-called adults would be banished there for life!

Meh!
niankhsekhmet: (outraged)
2006-04-09 11:03 am

Don't we have enough to worry about?!

As one commenter in [livejournal.com profile] bush_sucks said, "We are so far beyond fucked, we can't even see fucked from here!"

Please READ the article linked below by the New Yorker. Thankfully the New Yorker has a well earned reputation, so its not like watching something from Faux News. To be blunt, it will frighten the shit out of you. Apparently the occupational government of the United Police State of America has been planning this for quite awhile!

I CANNOT believe they are actually seriously thinking about going for Iran next!!!

http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/060417fa_fact