Honestly, I'm still a little stunned so this might not be the most eloquent post.
I've been plagiarized quite a few times. A lot. Enough to be jaded by the whole ordeal of checking out links, sending emails, contacting administration. Since the last time I posted about this, I've been informed of a few more attempts that I haven't even bothered to mention here on this blog. I was just sick and tired of the same old thing, rinse and repeat, losers who have no lives.
But this is the first time that I'm aware of someone having the actual audacity to publish and sell both False Facades and Through Me on Amazon, here: False Facades and here: Through Me. And while she's at it, this "Martha Greenwood" decided to steal reviews from readers too, slapping up comments I've cherished in the clumsy blurbs. And to complete things, plagiarize a bunch of other people's stories as well, listed in this post: Martha Greenwood on Amazon - fpwatchers.
I've always had this niggling worry that one day, this would happen. And it finally did.
There's this uncomfortable tightness in my chest. It's a mixture of frustration, heartbreak and this sick feeling of ... what else can I possibly do? I've tried taking FF down, plagiarism still cropped up, I put it back up and left my stories up for years, finishing TM, and it continues. All I can comfort myself with is the fact that at least, the stories are up to prove my copyright and that there are readers who still look out for me, exposing these plagiarists.
Thank you, fellintothemoon, for letting me know. Thank you so much.
And sadly, for now, I have an exam to get back to studying for. I have no time and zero tolerance for this crap. Martha Greenwood, you are one sad person.
Showing posts with label Through Me. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Through Me. Show all posts
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Sunday, June 3, 2012
tltr
One of my cousins and I like to bicker a lot. Most of our interactions consist of mocking each other for fun though unfortunately, I think he has a lot more embarrassing stories to make fun of me with.
I don't remember exactly what we were texting about - maybe discussing which laptop I should buy to replace my old one or the crazy price increases in external hard drives after some Thailand floods hit manufacturers hard - but at one point, I must have text/ranted.
His response: "tltr"
At first, I was like did he sit on his phone and texted me by accident?
Then, pathetically, I went to google what tltr stood for just in case it was one of those newfangled text speech.
It was. Urban Dictionary revealed tltr = "too long to read".
Stupid cousin.
My response: "sorry you're illiterate."
And that's how part of Adel's text conversation with her brother, Adam, came about.
Other sparkling texts I've exchanged with cousin:
One good thing about cousin though is he can be a really handy garbage disposal. We were at a Japanese food buffet and I, overestimating my gut, ordered one too many rolls. And the thing is the rolls look better in picture than in reality. They had mixed in some fried tempura batter in with the fish in the center, but something about the oil was really heavy and tasted horrible. I couldn't stomach it and was literally breaking out into a sweat, getting a tad nauseous. I felt especially bad because cousin was treating and I expected to just pay the extra fee myself for not finishing the rolls.
However, cousin finished his plates and simply reached out for mine after I ate all the raw fish lying on top of the rolls like sashimi. Even though the remaining rolls were really bad, he still claimed he could finish it all, saying it was no problem at all. And he did. By breaking it down, grain by grain, separating the mass of pink fried concoction in the center, and forcing all of it down. It was simultaneously hilarious and touching because I thought it was so cool of him to just shovel it down for me, taste buds of steel.
So yeah, I suppose he's one of my favorite cousins.
Even though he's still an illiterate fool who should really stop making fun of me.
I don't remember exactly what we were texting about - maybe discussing which laptop I should buy to replace my old one or the crazy price increases in external hard drives after some Thailand floods hit manufacturers hard - but at one point, I must have text/ranted.
His response: "tltr"
At first, I was like did he sit on his phone and texted me by accident?
Then, pathetically, I went to google what tltr stood for just in case it was one of those newfangled text speech.
It was. Urban Dictionary revealed tltr = "too long to read".
Stupid cousin.
My response: "sorry you're illiterate."
And that's how part of Adel's text conversation with her brother, Adam, came about.
Other sparkling texts I've exchanged with cousin:
Him: can i come over boredRandom Food Photo to bring flavor to this post:
Me: you can come hang with bro. cramming until dinner tonight.
Him: u should just wing it
Me: I wing you!
Him: Wing isn't a verb
Me: You just used it as a verb. Ohhh winged.
One good thing about cousin though is he can be a really handy garbage disposal. We were at a Japanese food buffet and I, overestimating my gut, ordered one too many rolls. And the thing is the rolls look better in picture than in reality. They had mixed in some fried tempura batter in with the fish in the center, but something about the oil was really heavy and tasted horrible. I couldn't stomach it and was literally breaking out into a sweat, getting a tad nauseous. I felt especially bad because cousin was treating and I expected to just pay the extra fee myself for not finishing the rolls.
However, cousin finished his plates and simply reached out for mine after I ate all the raw fish lying on top of the rolls like sashimi. Even though the remaining rolls were really bad, he still claimed he could finish it all, saying it was no problem at all. And he did. By breaking it down, grain by grain, separating the mass of pink fried concoction in the center, and forcing all of it down. It was simultaneously hilarious and touching because I thought it was so cool of him to just shovel it down for me, taste buds of steel.
So yeah, I suppose he's one of my favorite cousins.
Even though he's still an illiterate fool who should really stop making fun of me.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Through Me Chapter 30
Through Me Chapter Thirty has finally been posted! The end,
at last.
I'm so sorry about the ridiculously glacial speed I've been
updating this story with, but thank you all so, so much for continuing to
support me and the story.
Been sitting on this chapter for a while now. My cousin had started to despair of ever seeing it posted up. I'm still not sure why I took
so long to put this up, but I do have 63 pages of TM outtakes at the end of
this all so maybe it was because I still wanted to continue revamping it or
maybe subconsciously, I just didn't want this to end haha.
Or maybe! I'm just really scared of more plagiarists popping up now that TM is fully completed. Plagiarism has totally left a bad taste in my mouth. I will destroy you if you steal my stories, including those of you who have stolen the basic outline, edited scenes and lines to try to paraphrase your way out of outright verbatim. You know who you are. I'm glad you've decided to edit your story so it reads less like False Facades now, but I was really furious in the beginning. Decided not to call you out on it because it looks like some readers have picked up similarities since they took the time to alert me and you seemed to be aware that you needed to back up that road fast and fix up your story so the plot is more of your own. Hope you continue to work at it. To others who are contemplating doing the same, you won't be so lucky.
Or maybe! I'm just really scared of more plagiarists popping up now that TM is fully completed. Plagiarism has totally left a bad taste in my mouth. I will destroy you if you steal my stories, including those of you who have stolen the basic outline, edited scenes and lines to try to paraphrase your way out of outright verbatim. You know who you are. I'm glad you've decided to edit your story so it reads less like False Facades now, but I was really furious in the beginning. Decided not to call you out on it because it looks like some readers have picked up similarities since they took the time to alert me and you seemed to be aware that you needed to back up that road fast and fix up your story so the plot is more of your own. Hope you continue to work at it. To others who are contemplating doing the same, you won't be so lucky.
Anyway, as to the tltr part (tltr is short for "too long to
read") which you'll get to at the end of this last chapter, I'll probably blog
the background story that served as inspiration for the exchange tomorrow or
so. It's not much of a story, actually, but based on some of your responses to my previous blog posts, I think some of you guys are
surprisingly interested in reading how dorky I am.
It's been a while since I updated this blog as well
so I wanted to say: I'm alive! Happy Very Belated New Year 2012! And hope you
all recently had a great Memorial Day weekend for those of you in the U.S.
Everything's been going well. Got Step 1 (one of the first
medical licensing exams) over with a while back and that went well too. Will
blog more about phlebotomy training and clerkships.
This is a bad habit of mine, but I think I've been avoiding
the blog until I finally finished TM 30 so I could update with happy news at
last, but now that it's done and over with, I should be able to blog more with
no guilty conscious lurking over me! Granted, they'd probably be more random
ramblings, but at least, you guys won't be left wondering if I'd collapsed into
a black hole or something.
So thanks for following Through Me and I hope you all have
enjoyed this supremely lengthy time with Tristan, Adel, and the rest of the
gang.
You're the best!
P.S. To the random people who have been sending me repeated
requests to purchase the rights to False Facades for $199, my answer is no.
Thanks for the offers, but no.
To all others who have sent me reviews and PMs that I
haven't gotten back to yet, I'm sorry! I'll try to go through them as soon as
possible.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Through Me Chapter 29
Through Me Chapter 29 has finally been posted! It's a really, really long chapter (around 25 pages) and Fictionpress went and messed with some of my formatting again so Adel and Tristan look like they have ultra fancy email addresses for the technologically impaired, but oh wells. I hope you like it anyway.
I'm hoping to wrap up the story by the next chapter or so. A nice round 30 chapters. Until then, thank you all so much for sticking with this story for so long. I know it hasn't been easy with my excruciatingly slow updates so you guys really are way awesome.
I'm hoping to wrap up the story by the next chapter or so. A nice round 30 chapters. Until then, thank you all so much for sticking with this story for so long. I know it hasn't been easy with my excruciatingly slow updates so you guys really are way awesome.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Worst Christmas Ever
Christmas Day, my brother drove into a Rite Aid parking lot so that I can pop in to pick up some formula for my cousin's baby and as he started to maneuver the car around into a parking space, the SUV in the next space suddenly started to back up blindly until thud, it dented the rear backseat door of our car. The lady then honked as if we were at fault for being in the way and when we didn't move, she threw her hands up and stuck her head out of the window with a cigarette dangling from her lips and goes, "I didn't do that. That dent was already on your car."
We stared at her in disbelief and from then on, the argument basically went through "Uh, yeah, you hit us." ... "No, I didn't." ... "Yeah, you did." ... "No, you're lying." ... "No, there's a dent. Why the hell would we lie?" ... "I don't know, because you want your car to be fixed." ... "Yeah, because you HIT us."
So we got out of our car to call the cops to file an accident report.
Then crazy lady proceeded to drive forward over the parking lot bumper and turned her car around across the neighboring three empty parking spaces and tried to drive away.
So I called after her, "Hey, lady, I got your license plate number so go ahead, drive off. We'll just wait here for the cops."
Insane lady then made a loop around the parking lot and doubled back still screaming out the window, "I'm going to call the cops. I know the cops. You're lying!" Sped off. Returned. "Don't try to put this on me! You're lying!"
To which I shouted back, "What are you even doing right now? What are you doing? Are you on drugs or something?" She was pasty-faced with dried lips and I still couldn't comprehend what she thought driving in circles would solve.
Of course, she responded intelligently with, "What are you doing? What are you doing?"
"I'm calling the cops, thanks."
"Well, I'm calling the cops too. On my own."
"You go right ahead. Keep driving around in circles, too."
Then she drove off again to hover in the outer perimeters of the lot.
Meanwhile, I'm calling the cops to confirm the address when suddenly, a red car veered up next to us and a man with heavy-lidded eyes jumped out yelling, "What are you doing to my wife? My wife didn't do anything! She didn't do anything!"
Pointed at the dent. "Your wife hit us."
"She didn't do anything! Nothing! What are you trying to pull?"
Okay. Apparently, insane lady called her equally insane husband for back-up. Nice. Oh look, here goes insane lady driving up again to scream the equivalent of "Yeah!" and "That's right!" in accompaniment to her husband's eloquent monologue. Also, "I'm going to the hospital and I'm gonna say that you hurt my neck. That's what you get for making a big deal out of it."
I laughed out loud.
Well, we exchanged a few choice words and then I turned my back on them, ignoring them to talk to the operator and to call my cousin up to come pick up our gifts for her kids because we weren't going anywhere anytime soon. Then I called my other cousin to say that we might not be able to meet up for lunch after all.
So so far, I was pissed off and irritated, but that turned out to be nothing compared to how I felt when the cops actually got there. Because instead of relieving my concerns, the first thing one of the cops said after listening to the lady ramble on about how there wasn't any problem at all was "So why did you call us? Why did we even need to come?"
My brother's brows furrowed. "Uh, she hit our car. We called you. Can you come take a look at our car first?" As in, can you please get out of your car and come take a look, sir?
So blah. blah, blah. The cops announced, "Okay, we're going to file a no-fault report."
And I stared at them. "No fault? We got hit. They're at fault."
The insane husband was still blabbering in the background about how that was exactly what he told us, that there would be a no fault report filed and what would end up happening would be that both our insurances would be raised so it would be equally bad for both of us ... blah blah, basically trying to convince us that not filing an insurance claim would be the best route for both parties. Well, you sure seem familiar with these accident reports - had a lot of experience?
I ignored him and the cop explained, "But right now, she's saying you're the ones who hit the back of her car so it's a he said, she said thing."
"Wait, what if there were witnesses?"
Cop raised an eyebrow. "Well, where's your witness then?"
I pointed at the surveillance camera. "The video probably caught everything."
Cop then practically scoffed and said, "Well, I'm not going in there to get that video. If you want it, you go get it yourself."
It wasn't so much about what he was saying, but how he was saying it that rubbed me the wrong way. He literally could care less. It started to feel like we, the victims, were the ones who were at fault for calling the cops and wasting their precious time.
So my brother ran in, got the help of a really nice Rite Aid security guard, and then came jogging back out. "They have the video. It shows everything clearly."
The cops actually sat there deliberating so I added, "Would you take a look, please?"
They sighed and agreed and I muttered a "Thank you." But at that moment, I was relieved because surely, the video would help clear this whole mess.
What actually happened was that the relatively more professional cop looked at the video while the other cop who told us to get the video ourselves hung around in the store, not even taking a look and chatted with the insane husband, saying, "I don't know why they're so persistent about this when it's just property damage."
I wasn't in the store then, but my brother was and he later told me what happened and my response was pretty much *string of curse words* ... Seriously, what happened to good cops and justice and all that jazz? If someone hit their car, I'd bet my last dime they wouldn't be all zen about it ("Oh, go on, it's just property damage, please, dent my other side too so that I may achieve perfect symmetry. Golden ratio, behold.")
Brother muttered, "This makes me want to not pay taxes."
In the end, we got a copy of the video which showed the SUV clearly backing up into us (store manager who took a look even blurted out, "She hit you! Junkie monkey?"). Insane lady, however, still maintained that we hit her or that we had moved the car back to lie in wait for her to hit us and continued cursing us out and taking pictures of our dented car. She had a stack of expired licenses or something for some reason and didn't even managed to produce a current license, saying she left it at home and still, the cops didn't fine her? Then she tried saying that we'd been harassing and threatening her until the cops came. To which finally, finally, the slightly more professional cop told her he wanted her to leave and go home. Junkie monkey, indeed.
Then I asked the cop if the report would still be filed no-fault and he said that they can't determine anything; it's the insurance company who does that. So fine, okay, guess the cops were never going to be a major help. As long as they got the information down and we got the video, we'll try to deal with everything else ourselves and hope the insurance claim pans out. It was just frustrating and aggravating. In a normal scenario, we could have just exchanged insurance information and went on with our lives. What are the odds that we'd get hit by a weirdo who can still keep up a delusional string of lies even after seeing the recording? Even insane husband gentled his tone later as he still tried to convince me that not filing an insurance claim would be better for both our insurance rates. Of course, I snubbed him by turning around to talk to my cousin instead of listening to him, but at least, he didn't continue cursing like a maniac.
But hey, Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! And Happy New Year! May we all get off to a much better, happier year than the last.
And here's to hoping our neighborhood precinct get around to upgrading their standards for better cops.
Haha, I'll stop being a downer now.
I will update Through Me Chapter 29 soon - tomorrow or sometime this week. I also wanted to get Chapter 30 down too and finish the story this winter break, but I have another of those pesky board exams to deal with and the break's already sadly nearing its end. It is an optional one on a subject I took a year ago, but I signed up for it since I think it'd be good to see how badly I do so that I can be properly scared into prepping hard for Step 1 haha. Sighs, I'll see. Happier posts coming soon!
We stared at her in disbelief and from then on, the argument basically went through "Uh, yeah, you hit us." ... "No, I didn't." ... "Yeah, you did." ... "No, you're lying." ... "No, there's a dent. Why the hell would we lie?" ... "I don't know, because you want your car to be fixed." ... "Yeah, because you HIT us."
So we got out of our car to call the cops to file an accident report.
Then crazy lady proceeded to drive forward over the parking lot bumper and turned her car around across the neighboring three empty parking spaces and tried to drive away.
So I called after her, "Hey, lady, I got your license plate number so go ahead, drive off. We'll just wait here for the cops."
Insane lady then made a loop around the parking lot and doubled back still screaming out the window, "I'm going to call the cops. I know the cops. You're lying!" Sped off. Returned. "Don't try to put this on me! You're lying!"
To which I shouted back, "What are you even doing right now? What are you doing? Are you on drugs or something?" She was pasty-faced with dried lips and I still couldn't comprehend what she thought driving in circles would solve.
Of course, she responded intelligently with, "What are you doing? What are you doing?"
"I'm calling the cops, thanks."
"Well, I'm calling the cops too. On my own."
"You go right ahead. Keep driving around in circles, too."
Then she drove off again to hover in the outer perimeters of the lot.
Meanwhile, I'm calling the cops to confirm the address when suddenly, a red car veered up next to us and a man with heavy-lidded eyes jumped out yelling, "What are you doing to my wife? My wife didn't do anything! She didn't do anything!"
Pointed at the dent. "Your wife hit us."
"She didn't do anything! Nothing! What are you trying to pull?"
Okay. Apparently, insane lady called her equally insane husband for back-up. Nice. Oh look, here goes insane lady driving up again to scream the equivalent of "Yeah!" and "That's right!" in accompaniment to her husband's eloquent monologue. Also, "I'm going to the hospital and I'm gonna say that you hurt my neck. That's what you get for making a big deal out of it."
I laughed out loud.
Well, we exchanged a few choice words and then I turned my back on them, ignoring them to talk to the operator and to call my cousin up to come pick up our gifts for her kids because we weren't going anywhere anytime soon. Then I called my other cousin to say that we might not be able to meet up for lunch after all.
So so far, I was pissed off and irritated, but that turned out to be nothing compared to how I felt when the cops actually got there. Because instead of relieving my concerns, the first thing one of the cops said after listening to the lady ramble on about how there wasn't any problem at all was "So why did you call us? Why did we even need to come?"
My brother's brows furrowed. "Uh, she hit our car. We called you. Can you come take a look at our car first?" As in, can you please get out of your car and come take a look, sir?
So blah. blah, blah. The cops announced, "Okay, we're going to file a no-fault report."
And I stared at them. "No fault? We got hit. They're at fault."
The insane husband was still blabbering in the background about how that was exactly what he told us, that there would be a no fault report filed and what would end up happening would be that both our insurances would be raised so it would be equally bad for both of us ... blah blah, basically trying to convince us that not filing an insurance claim would be the best route for both parties. Well, you sure seem familiar with these accident reports - had a lot of experience?
I ignored him and the cop explained, "But right now, she's saying you're the ones who hit the back of her car so it's a he said, she said thing."
"Wait, what if there were witnesses?"
Cop raised an eyebrow. "Well, where's your witness then?"
I pointed at the surveillance camera. "The video probably caught everything."
Cop then practically scoffed and said, "Well, I'm not going in there to get that video. If you want it, you go get it yourself."
It wasn't so much about what he was saying, but how he was saying it that rubbed me the wrong way. He literally could care less. It started to feel like we, the victims, were the ones who were at fault for calling the cops and wasting their precious time.
So my brother ran in, got the help of a really nice Rite Aid security guard, and then came jogging back out. "They have the video. It shows everything clearly."
The cops actually sat there deliberating so I added, "Would you take a look, please?"
They sighed and agreed and I muttered a "Thank you." But at that moment, I was relieved because surely, the video would help clear this whole mess.
What actually happened was that the relatively more professional cop looked at the video while the other cop who told us to get the video ourselves hung around in the store, not even taking a look and chatted with the insane husband, saying, "I don't know why they're so persistent about this when it's just property damage."
I wasn't in the store then, but my brother was and he later told me what happened and my response was pretty much *string of curse words* ... Seriously, what happened to good cops and justice and all that jazz? If someone hit their car, I'd bet my last dime they wouldn't be all zen about it ("Oh, go on, it's just property damage, please, dent my other side too so that I may achieve perfect symmetry. Golden ratio, behold.")
Brother muttered, "This makes me want to not pay taxes."
In the end, we got a copy of the video which showed the SUV clearly backing up into us (store manager who took a look even blurted out, "She hit you! Junkie monkey?"). Insane lady, however, still maintained that we hit her or that we had moved the car back to lie in wait for her to hit us and continued cursing us out and taking pictures of our dented car. She had a stack of expired licenses or something for some reason and didn't even managed to produce a current license, saying she left it at home and still, the cops didn't fine her? Then she tried saying that we'd been harassing and threatening her until the cops came. To which finally, finally, the slightly more professional cop told her he wanted her to leave and go home. Junkie monkey, indeed.
Then I asked the cop if the report would still be filed no-fault and he said that they can't determine anything; it's the insurance company who does that. So fine, okay, guess the cops were never going to be a major help. As long as they got the information down and we got the video, we'll try to deal with everything else ourselves and hope the insurance claim pans out. It was just frustrating and aggravating. In a normal scenario, we could have just exchanged insurance information and went on with our lives. What are the odds that we'd get hit by a weirdo who can still keep up a delusional string of lies even after seeing the recording? Even insane husband gentled his tone later as he still tried to convince me that not filing an insurance claim would be better for both our insurance rates. Of course, I snubbed him by turning around to talk to my cousin instead of listening to him, but at least, he didn't continue cursing like a maniac.
But hey, Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! And Happy New Year! May we all get off to a much better, happier year than the last.
And here's to hoping our neighborhood precinct get around to upgrading their standards for better cops.
Haha, I'll stop being a downer now.
I will update Through Me Chapter 29 soon - tomorrow or sometime this week. I also wanted to get Chapter 30 down too and finish the story this winter break, but I have another of those pesky board exams to deal with and the break's already sadly nearing its end. It is an optional one on a subject I took a year ago, but I signed up for it since I think it'd be good to see how badly I do so that I can be properly scared into prepping hard for Step 1 haha. Sighs, I'll see. Happier posts coming soon!
Monday, July 19, 2010
TM Chapter 28 Posted
Through Me Chapter 28 has finally been posted! Finally. Finally.
This chapter was especially hard to get out because I wanted something major to happen, but like always, Adel and Tristan's discussion got out of my hands and I realized that it wasn't going to happen until Adel gets back to China. But if I kept writing, I wasn't sure if I'd have a reasonable cut-off point and I doubt you'd want to read Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Encyclopedia.
Plus, I had a major case of writer's block. My Google Docs account now officially have about eight beginnings of various other stories because I was trying to write anything to get me out of the funk. However, it is now summer for me and I do hope to finish Through Me once and for all sooner than later. I start school late next month with a Neuropsych and Behavioral Sci exam the first day, but I am hoping to get out at least another chapter (maybe even finish the story?) before I start studying.
But yay, tis summer!
Cousin just graduated from law school and she's raking in the big bucks now! Even though an exam (curse those stupid things!) prevented me from attending her graduation, I'm so proud! My bro went, but the only thing he mentioned was that the cheese at the reception was good.
It was also recently my birthday so I celebrated with family, med school friends, and high school friends on separate occasions. Ate a lot of food, had a lot of cake, drank a wee bit (still gave me quite a buzz, but that's not saying much when half a glass of coke and rum can already send me reeling).
Okay, some people said it wasn't merely a buzz. Probably when I started jabbing at a friend's biceps and declaring, "You have such big guns!" And when they had to loop my arms through theirs while I insisted on walking my buzz off. And when I stated that I wanted to paint my nails orange and brown, which was something I really don't remember saying.
I also watched Toy Story 3 in 3D! It really wasn't necessary to catch it in 3D, but the movie was so good anyway. I have to admit that Toy Story 1 and 2 weren't my favorite Disney films - 1 was good, 2 was alright, but they didn't hold a place in my heart like Finding Nemo
or Aladdin 
or The Little Mermaid
or Mulan
or yeah, most of the classic Disney flicks. However, Toy Story 3 ... it just really blew my mind.
I rewatched it later with my brother and at the end, he admitted that he maybe, might have, sorta teared up a little. When I laughed at him and said I didn't (I totally already did the whole tearing thing the first time), he said that's because I was a "soulless, heartless being".
Then brother's birthday rolled around and cousins took us to Olive Garden where we kept those breadsticks coming and coming.
Friend also made a two hour journey to my house twice, the first time to bring me pastries for my birthday and the second time to have a movie night. We gorged on sushi, popcorn, and ice cream while watching Did You Hear About the Morgans?
on dvd. It was ... eh. I remember more chewing than laughing.
Relatives from Hong Kong also came to visit so there was a whole truckload of dinners to attend.
Then my internet died. It revived, but it still dies sporadically sometimes now. I think it's because of the heat here. I'm praying - knock on wood - that my laptop doesn't just keel over. So far, I know three people whose laptops suddenly upped and died on them recently. I'd cry if my laptop crashes. Friend bought me a cooling pad, but so far, I've broken it twice. Good news though is that I had snapped off one of the fan's blades the first time and the second time I managed to snap off another blade the opposite side so now my fan is actually balanced again. It's a good thing. Really.
And yup, that's the basic gist of what's been going on lately.
Oh, and btw, for those who don't know already, if you're a student and have an .edu email address, you can sign up for a free year of Amazon Prime. Comes in handy for all those textbook purchases.
This chapter was especially hard to get out because I wanted something major to happen, but like always, Adel and Tristan's discussion got out of my hands and I realized that it wasn't going to happen until Adel gets back to China. But if I kept writing, I wasn't sure if I'd have a reasonable cut-off point and I doubt you'd want to read Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Encyclopedia.
Plus, I had a major case of writer's block. My Google Docs account now officially have about eight beginnings of various other stories because I was trying to write anything to get me out of the funk. However, it is now summer for me and I do hope to finish Through Me once and for all sooner than later. I start school late next month with a Neuropsych and Behavioral Sci exam the first day, but I am hoping to get out at least another chapter (maybe even finish the story?) before I start studying.
But yay, tis summer!
Cousin just graduated from law school and she's raking in the big bucks now! Even though an exam (curse those stupid things!) prevented me from attending her graduation, I'm so proud! My bro went, but the only thing he mentioned was that the cheese at the reception was good.
It was also recently my birthday so I celebrated with family, med school friends, and high school friends on separate occasions. Ate a lot of food, had a lot of cake, drank a wee bit (still gave me quite a buzz, but that's not saying much when half a glass of coke and rum can already send me reeling).
Okay, some people said it wasn't merely a buzz. Probably when I started jabbing at a friend's biceps and declaring, "You have such big guns!" And when they had to loop my arms through theirs while I insisted on walking my buzz off. And when I stated that I wanted to paint my nails orange and brown, which was something I really don't remember saying.
I also watched Toy Story 3 in 3D! It really wasn't necessary to catch it in 3D, but the movie was so good anyway. I have to admit that Toy Story 1 and 2 weren't my favorite Disney films - 1 was good, 2 was alright, but they didn't hold a place in my heart like Finding Nemo
or Aladdin or The Little Mermaid or Mulan or yeah, most of the classic Disney flicks. However, Toy Story 3 ... it just really blew my mind.I rewatched it later with my brother and at the end, he admitted that he maybe, might have, sorta teared up a little. When I laughed at him and said I didn't (I totally already did the whole tearing thing the first time), he said that's because I was a "soulless, heartless being".
Then brother's birthday rolled around and cousins took us to Olive Garden where we kept those breadsticks coming and coming.
Friend also made a two hour journey to my house twice, the first time to bring me pastries for my birthday and the second time to have a movie night. We gorged on sushi, popcorn, and ice cream while watching Did You Hear About the Morgans?
on dvd. It was ... eh. I remember more chewing than laughing.Relatives from Hong Kong also came to visit so there was a whole truckload of dinners to attend.
Then my internet died. It revived, but it still dies sporadically sometimes now. I think it's because of the heat here. I'm praying - knock on wood - that my laptop doesn't just keel over. So far, I know three people whose laptops suddenly upped and died on them recently. I'd cry if my laptop crashes. Friend bought me a cooling pad, but so far, I've broken it twice. Good news though is that I had snapped off one of the fan's blades the first time and the second time I managed to snap off another blade the opposite side so now my fan is actually balanced again. It's a good thing. Really.
And yup, that's the basic gist of what's been going on lately.
Oh, and btw, for those who don't know already, if you're a student and have an .edu email address, you can sign up for a free year of Amazon Prime. Comes in handy for all those textbook purchases.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Apologies
Recently, I've received some emails from some pretty angry readers and I'd like to apologize here for the long wait since my last update. Status update: regarding the next chapter for Through Me, I have 15 pages. I'm not lying and I'm not making something up to pacify you guys.
Your next question might probably run something along the lines of: "Well, why don't you just post the goddamn thing then?"
Because I don't want to. Not because I adore making you all wait and I love receiving hate mail, but because I don't love the chapter in its current condition and it's already in its third rewrite. Something isn't jiving. However, in response to some readers' concerns, I can promise you that the story will be finished and I haven't abandoned it yet. I just need to work on it longer.
Why is it taking me so long? Because of school. And also, because of friends and the other distractions that come along with life. Yes, I'm aware some of you have said school can't be that busy, but I do like to spend the few breaks I have with friends and family sometimes. Or yes, to laze around and watch a little bit of TV. Call me weak, but I can't stop myself from slacking off with some mindless breathing moments too at times.
And why haven't I updated my blog in a while? Microbiology, Immunology, and General Pathology. I just finished a 15 page path essay, prepped for tomorrow's small group discussion on abscesses and septic shock, and I have to start cramming for Monday's exam. I would also possibly like to curl up in a ball and sleep too.
I can certainly update the blog with posts of daily blabbering about work, but the response I received since my last post didn't exactly go over too well ... and I began to feel guilty instead. Perhaps these readers think I should be working on the next chapter instead of blogging? Perhaps they'd rather wait for a post about an actual chapter update? Yep, I got intimidated. And just uncertain. I definitely understand the frustrations of readers when they have to wait and wait and wait ... only to find nothing, nope, no update yet. And I was just upset because I didn't have anything substantial to appease these readers. Not yet. So I kinda walled myself off, dropped everything else, and focused on school, thinking that "Okay, soon, I will post when I get the next chapter out. Soon."
Yeah, okay. Too bad getting the next chapter out hasn't been working out so far. Writing's definitely been on the backburner these past months and I'm sorry to say that it'd probably continue until summertime, at the very least. This course has exams and presentations mixed in with essays, lab reports, and so much other tedious work that I could scream. Plus, it starts 8am daily. Which means I wake up 5:30am daily. I average about five hours of sleep a night. I haven't been the kindest soul in the mornings this past year.
The semi-good news though? Thanks to all your patience and understanding the previous months, I was able to really do nothing but focus on my Pharmacology class and I'm happy to report I got an A? Yay?
And for those who are interested in some random details about my recent non-life, I practiced giving PPD shots (The PPD shot is injected under the top layer of skin, causing a blister to form and it's a common test given to diagnose tuberculosis. I'm sure most of you have received this test before for school or work forms and what not) the other day. This means me giving my very first injection to a fellow classmate and her returning the favor. Only her needle slipped out the first time before she could administer the saline solution and she had to do it twice. I am self-sacrificing. Kidding, I didn't mind because she did it very well and it was relatively painless. We all ended the day at the clinic with our very own teeny bubbles on our arms. Gold stars and stickers? Pfft, those are for babies.
Otherwise, I know, I suck. And I'm sorry for everything. I will try to fit in more writing, but I honestly am getting buried by the workload at this moment. Parents are also away on vacation for three weeks and us spoiled spawn of theirs are still figuring out how to survive on a day-to-day basis. My brother claims he's not hungry every time I ask him what he wants for dinner. Either he's going on a diet or he isn't quite willing to entrust his stomach and I suppose, his quality of life in my clumsy chef hands. What? Food poisoning's treatable.
If you wish to kick me off your reading lists, I completely understand. All I can offer right now are my meek apologies. And if you can find it in your hearts to lay off on the hate mail for now, I'd appreciate it too. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your time and patience.
Your next question might probably run something along the lines of: "Well, why don't you just post the goddamn thing then?"
Because I don't want to. Not because I adore making you all wait and I love receiving hate mail, but because I don't love the chapter in its current condition and it's already in its third rewrite. Something isn't jiving. However, in response to some readers' concerns, I can promise you that the story will be finished and I haven't abandoned it yet. I just need to work on it longer.
Why is it taking me so long? Because of school. And also, because of friends and the other distractions that come along with life. Yes, I'm aware some of you have said school can't be that busy, but I do like to spend the few breaks I have with friends and family sometimes. Or yes, to laze around and watch a little bit of TV. Call me weak, but I can't stop myself from slacking off with some mindless breathing moments too at times.
And why haven't I updated my blog in a while? Microbiology, Immunology, and General Pathology. I just finished a 15 page path essay, prepped for tomorrow's small group discussion on abscesses and septic shock, and I have to start cramming for Monday's exam. I would also possibly like to curl up in a ball and sleep too.
I can certainly update the blog with posts of daily blabbering about work, but the response I received since my last post didn't exactly go over too well ... and I began to feel guilty instead. Perhaps these readers think I should be working on the next chapter instead of blogging? Perhaps they'd rather wait for a post about an actual chapter update? Yep, I got intimidated. And just uncertain. I definitely understand the frustrations of readers when they have to wait and wait and wait ... only to find nothing, nope, no update yet. And I was just upset because I didn't have anything substantial to appease these readers. Not yet. So I kinda walled myself off, dropped everything else, and focused on school, thinking that "Okay, soon, I will post when I get the next chapter out. Soon."
Yeah, okay. Too bad getting the next chapter out hasn't been working out so far. Writing's definitely been on the backburner these past months and I'm sorry to say that it'd probably continue until summertime, at the very least. This course has exams and presentations mixed in with essays, lab reports, and so much other tedious work that I could scream. Plus, it starts 8am daily. Which means I wake up 5:30am daily. I average about five hours of sleep a night. I haven't been the kindest soul in the mornings this past year.
The semi-good news though? Thanks to all your patience and understanding the previous months, I was able to really do nothing but focus on my Pharmacology class and I'm happy to report I got an A? Yay?
And for those who are interested in some random details about my recent non-life, I practiced giving PPD shots (The PPD shot is injected under the top layer of skin, causing a blister to form and it's a common test given to diagnose tuberculosis. I'm sure most of you have received this test before for school or work forms and what not) the other day. This means me giving my very first injection to a fellow classmate and her returning the favor. Only her needle slipped out the first time before she could administer the saline solution and she had to do it twice. I am self-sacrificing. Kidding, I didn't mind because she did it very well and it was relatively painless. We all ended the day at the clinic with our very own teeny bubbles on our arms. Gold stars and stickers? Pfft, those are for babies.
Otherwise, I know, I suck. And I'm sorry for everything. I will try to fit in more writing, but I honestly am getting buried by the workload at this moment. Parents are also away on vacation for three weeks and us spoiled spawn of theirs are still figuring out how to survive on a day-to-day basis. My brother claims he's not hungry every time I ask him what he wants for dinner. Either he's going on a diet or he isn't quite willing to entrust his stomach and I suppose, his quality of life in my clumsy chef hands. What? Food poisoning's treatable.
If you wish to kick me off your reading lists, I completely understand. All I can offer right now are my meek apologies. And if you can find it in your hearts to lay off on the hate mail for now, I'd appreciate it too. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your time and patience.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Fanart - orangedjuice
I not so recently ago received a gorgeous piece of fanart. orangedjuice created this picture of Adel from Through Me and I absolutely adore it. Thank you, orangedjuice, for spending time on this and I love all the details and the vibrant colors of it. It's incredible and you're awesome.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
What Winter Break? Exams. Rectal Exam.
Hope everyone had wonderful holidays and Happy New Year! Here's to 2010!
Thanks for the recent messages, guys. I've gotten back to some of you today and like always, I'm still working through my inbox. I'm so sorry my lack of recent updates has left you hanging for so long. I'm still currently halfway through the next chapter for Through Me, but I'm really not in love with it at the moment and I have a serious case of writer's block.
Plus, I had an extremely short winter break (Those blissful month long breaks typical college kids enjoy no longer exist in our schedules these last few years. Think two weeks. Think a week. Think - ugh ...) And unfortunately, happy joy joy, classes start again tomorrow. Pharmacology, ahoy hoy.
I wish that I could just pound out the final chapters and I hope to do so soon sometimes in the near future, but at the moment, my classes are a bit distracting and even when I do sit down the document, I'm in the state where I hate everything I'm typing. I'll try to hopefully finish the story some time in the near future though and I hope to continue to update my blog in a more timely fashion to inform keep you all up to date. Thanks again for your message and I'm sorry I have no real concrete news about the next update at this time. I really appreciate your reviews and support though and I'm always glad to hear from you.
Interesting bits from the Behavioral Med class we just finished:
Anorexia (an eating disorder characterized by extremely low body weight, distorted body image and an obsessive fear of gaining weight) affects not only women. We watched two clips in class, including one about "manorexia". Both cases were shocking, especially when you compare the before and after, and it's important that anorexia's not treated lightly, like some switch the patient can just switch on and off.
We also learned about Tourette syndrome, autism, ADHD, and so forth. Behavioral Medicine was definitely one of the most interesting classes we've had so far.
At my ongoing training at the community health center I've been assigned to, I also got to perform my first rectal exam.
Friend: "So how'd it feel sticking your finger up someone's ass?"
Me: "Warm."
Also, slightly awkward, yes, but the male patient was game and he took it in stride. I wish all patients were this nice and understanding with two medical students hovering in the background. I don't think even I as a patient would have been so comfortable with the idea of a bunch of strangers grouped in the corner, listening in while the doctor's conducting his interview. But the patients we observed were all friendly and no one had a real problem with us being there after our roles were explained to them. Great experiences so far and here's hoping that they'd continue that way.
Thanks for the recent messages, guys. I've gotten back to some of you today and like always, I'm still working through my inbox. I'm so sorry my lack of recent updates has left you hanging for so long. I'm still currently halfway through the next chapter for Through Me, but I'm really not in love with it at the moment and I have a serious case of writer's block.
Plus, I had an extremely short winter break (Those blissful month long breaks typical college kids enjoy no longer exist in our schedules these last few years. Think two weeks. Think a week. Think - ugh ...) And unfortunately, happy joy joy, classes start again tomorrow. Pharmacology, ahoy hoy.
I wish that I could just pound out the final chapters and I hope to do so soon sometimes in the near future, but at the moment, my classes are a bit distracting and even when I do sit down the document, I'm in the state where I hate everything I'm typing. I'll try to hopefully finish the story some time in the near future though and I hope to continue to update my blog in a more timely fashion to inform keep you all up to date. Thanks again for your message and I'm sorry I have no real concrete news about the next update at this time. I really appreciate your reviews and support though and I'm always glad to hear from you.
Interesting bits from the Behavioral Med class we just finished:
Anorexia (an eating disorder characterized by extremely low body weight, distorted body image and an obsessive fear of gaining weight) affects not only women. We watched two clips in class, including one about "manorexia". Both cases were shocking, especially when you compare the before and after, and it's important that anorexia's not treated lightly, like some switch the patient can just switch on and off.
We also learned about Tourette syndrome, autism, ADHD, and so forth. Behavioral Medicine was definitely one of the most interesting classes we've had so far.
At my ongoing training at the community health center I've been assigned to, I also got to perform my first rectal exam.
Friend: "So how'd it feel sticking your finger up someone's ass?"
Me: "Warm."
Also, slightly awkward, yes, but the male patient was game and he took it in stride. I wish all patients were this nice and understanding with two medical students hovering in the background. I don't think even I as a patient would have been so comfortable with the idea of a bunch of strangers grouped in the corner, listening in while the doctor's conducting his interview. But the patients we observed were all friendly and no one had a real problem with us being there after our roles were explained to them. Great experiences so far and here's hoping that they'd continue that way.
Monday, August 3, 2009
More Through Me Fan Character Pics & Artwork
I realized that I haven't gotten around to posting some more pics and artwork people have sent me ... months ago. I'm so sorry! I feel absolutely horrible. Please don't think I've neglected anyone because "Stupid Maeven plays favorites and hates me". No, I'm just horrible at managing time and responding and updating in a timely manner. I also tend to forget things easily so I have messages lined up in my inbox ... and then they fall off the page because of new emails and then by the time I click back ... it's months later and I realize readers probably forgot they'd ever messaged me in the first place, ouch. I actually just got around to replying to messages from January this morning. Slap me, please.
Anyway, here's a compilation of character pictures sent in by some readers. Some of their messages made me laugh. You guys are awesome.
Angelia suggested: Adel Bradbury - Jessica Michibata
Angelia says "I thought Jessica Michibata would make a good Adeline Bradbury. She's half Japanese, a fourth Italian, and a fourth Spanish. According to Wiki, Jessica's a whopping 5'9 - which, I think, fits Adel since she's tall (especially for an Asian since she's almost as tall as Tristan...). However, I wouldn't really google her since she's a lingerie model. :X
Here's some pics (which are thankfully, with her clothed)."
maria suggested: Adel - Vanessa Hudgens and once again, Tristan - Alex Pettyfer
maria says "The first person that comes to my mind when i think of Adeline is Vanessa Hudgens, shes part everything from chinese to irish and has the whole exotic look going on."
Also: "As Tristan i think Alex Pettyfer is perfect for the role, hes got long blond hair but and green eyes( i know Tristan has blue, but we can overlook that fact because hes gorgeous)"
And! xxPoisened-black-Rosesxx sent me a link a while back to her Deviantart gallery where she has some cute sketches she did of some False Facades and Through Me characters. :) She even took the time to draw out a scene from False Facades and I thought the drawings are absolutely adorable and funny. Check out her gallery here: http://death-on-a-rose.deviantart.com/gallery/. Thanks, Katherine!
I also got some picture suggestions through PMs from some readers, but if you're not aware of this, FP bans links to other sites to avoid spamming and tends to fudge up the link in the message before it gets to me so unfortunately, I haven't been able to get to any websites readers have passed along. If you really want to send me any link, please leave a comment on this blog and I'll be sure to check it out.
Thanks again to all the patient readers out there! I'm slowly but surely getting through all the PM responses - I might even be able to run through more individualized review responses soon. Hopefully. When my last exam is over.
Otherwise, writing-wise, I've figured out what I hated about the next TM chapter and am currently reworking the whole thing. I like it much better so far and I hope to have it out soon. Thanks again for sticking with me - you guys are the best!
Anyway, here's a compilation of character pictures sent in by some readers. Some of their messages made me laugh. You guys are awesome.
Angelia suggested: Adel Bradbury - Jessica Michibata
Angelia says "I thought Jessica Michibata would make a good Adeline Bradbury. She's half Japanese, a fourth Italian, and a fourth Spanish. According to Wiki, Jessica's a whopping 5'9 - which, I think, fits Adel since she's tall (especially for an Asian since she's almost as tall as Tristan...). However, I wouldn't really google her since she's a lingerie model. :X
Here's some pics (which are thankfully, with her clothed)."
maria suggested: Adel - Vanessa Hudgens and once again, Tristan - Alex Pettyfer
maria says "The first person that comes to my mind when i think of Adeline is Vanessa Hudgens, shes part everything from chinese to irish and has the whole exotic look going on."
Also: "As Tristan i think Alex Pettyfer is perfect for the role, hes got long blond hair but and green eyes( i know Tristan has blue, but we can overlook that fact because hes gorgeous)"
And! xxPoisened-black-Rosesxx sent me a link a while back to her Deviantart gallery where she has some cute sketches she did of some False Facades and Through Me characters. :) She even took the time to draw out a scene from False Facades and I thought the drawings are absolutely adorable and funny. Check out her gallery here: http://death-on-a-rose.deviantart.com/gallery/. Thanks, Katherine!
I also got some picture suggestions through PMs from some readers, but if you're not aware of this, FP bans links to other sites to avoid spamming and tends to fudge up the link in the message before it gets to me so unfortunately, I haven't been able to get to any websites readers have passed along. If you really want to send me any link, please leave a comment on this blog and I'll be sure to check it out.
Thanks again to all the patient readers out there! I'm slowly but surely getting through all the PM responses - I might even be able to run through more individualized review responses soon. Hopefully. When my last exam is over.
Otherwise, writing-wise, I've figured out what I hated about the next TM chapter and am currently reworking the whole thing. I like it much better so far and I hope to have it out soon. Thanks again for sticking with me - you guys are the best!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Through Me 27 Update
Through Me Chapter 27 has finally been posted! It's incredibly long - 22 pages - but I figured you guys would kill me twice over if I didn't offer up some answers after the long wait. Thanks for the patience and support, all!
Now that this is over ... I'm going to fail my second Neuro exam. Oh boy. And friend is probably gonna slap me five times for saying I'm studying when I've been writing instead. I'm sorry!
Exam's coming up this Monday, the day of my birthday. Ugh. I can feel the old age creeping up on me. And this completely shoots celebratory plans over the weekends to hell since I'll be busy cramming and not sleeping.
And friend's gonna slap me again for not using this day more productively. When people expect me to study early in advance, so that I can have a carefree weekend before the exam ... yeah, I don't know why, it never quite happens.
But I hope you guys have a great weekend! And an awesome Father's Day! :)
What I've recently learned in Neuro:
- Most people know that there are five tastes, but not many of them can actually list them out. Do you know what they are? And spicy does not count. (It's actually a pain reflex. But it's so good.)
- Too many people have landed in the hospital - and died - for taking an odd mix of ecstasy, Viagra, and Red Bull. Don't do it.
Oh yeah, I'm so ready for this exam. Heh.
Now that this is over ... I'm going to fail my second Neuro exam. Oh boy. And friend is probably gonna slap me five times for saying I'm studying when I've been writing instead. I'm sorry!
Exam's coming up this Monday, the day of my birthday. Ugh. I can feel the old age creeping up on me. And this completely shoots celebratory plans over the weekends to hell since I'll be busy cramming and not sleeping.
And friend's gonna slap me again for not using this day more productively. When people expect me to study early in advance, so that I can have a carefree weekend before the exam ... yeah, I don't know why, it never quite happens.
But I hope you guys have a great weekend! And an awesome Father's Day! :)
What I've recently learned in Neuro:
- Most people know that there are five tastes, but not many of them can actually list them out. Do you know what they are? And spicy does not count. (It's actually a pain reflex. But it's so good.)
- Too many people have landed in the hospital - and died - for taking an odd mix of ecstasy, Viagra, and Red Bull. Don't do it.
Oh yeah, I'm so ready for this exam. Heh.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
FF Plagiarized. Again.
Happy news: I had time to get down 8 pages for Through Me Chapter 27! So I hope to get it out pretty soon, yay!
Bad news: I was informed by McQuinn of The Fictionpress Watchers that False Facades was plagiarized. Again. On Winglin. Again.
This time, the girl not only took the time to change the locations, features, and names, she also managed to translate pages of the dialogue into another language - Filipino, I think?
By now, there's been so much plagiarism incidents, I'm more astonished by the level of dedication some people have in stealing stories than I am really upset. Of course, I'm still ticked off, but it wasn't to the point where I got murderous furious like last time, when the girl actually impersonated me and answered readers with a flippant, "Yup, I'm the same Maeven from Fictionpress! Totally not plagiarizing here!" Uh huh.
Like before, I left a message on her comments page to give her a chance to remove the story herself. I generally think the plagiarists who steal my stories are pretty young and their purpose is to get whatever comments they could. Hopefully, she'll realize this is a very serious crime and won't do this again. If not ... I'll have to set up a Winglin account tomorrow and post a message to the administrators. Sighs.
Bright side? I found out how kickass The Fictionpress Watchers are! Holy crap, I really don't think I would have ever found this plagiarist. Even though it seems like there's a sudden increase in plagiarism incidents, I think it's more because we have these new Watchers and their dedication to uncovering all these incidents that have been floating around unnoticed these past years. Even though the message was bad news, I'm in total fangirl mode and if I wasn't such a mess these days and so website/technologically bleh, I'd totally leap into LiveJournal territory and sign up just toworship join their community. I don't know how they do it, especially since this person actually changed a lot of the dialogue into another language, but they found it and I'm eternally grateful. I bow down to their sleuthing skills.
And now ... I have to study for my practical. I went to bed at 6am on Sunday to study for my written exam, oh lord. Good thing I had a monstrous iced coffee earlier in the day. Otherwise, Neuro seems to be going well and I'll be posting the next chapter pretty soon. I sent it off to my cousin for her perusal first and I'm going to hammer down some more details, maybe add some extra scenes, before I get it out there. Once again, thanks for your support and your patience!
(Is it sad to get so used to plagiarism incidents that most authors' reactions these days are "Oh damn, not again. Link, name, administrators, please?"? I honestly thought I was lucky enough to have my story finally go under the radar and escape all these recent issues. Thank goodness it's just one recent case and it's on a site that I had dealt with before. Here's to hoping plagiarists will go extinct sooner than later.)
Bad news: I was informed by McQuinn of The Fictionpress Watchers that False Facades was plagiarized. Again. On Winglin. Again.
This time, the girl not only took the time to change the locations, features, and names, she also managed to translate pages of the dialogue into another language - Filipino, I think?
By now, there's been so much plagiarism incidents, I'm more astonished by the level of dedication some people have in stealing stories than I am really upset. Of course, I'm still ticked off, but it wasn't to the point where I got murderous furious like last time, when the girl actually impersonated me and answered readers with a flippant, "Yup, I'm the same Maeven from Fictionpress! Totally not plagiarizing here!" Uh huh.
Like before, I left a message on her comments page to give her a chance to remove the story herself. I generally think the plagiarists who steal my stories are pretty young and their purpose is to get whatever comments they could. Hopefully, she'll realize this is a very serious crime and won't do this again. If not ... I'll have to set up a Winglin account tomorrow and post a message to the administrators. Sighs.
Bright side? I found out how kickass The Fictionpress Watchers are! Holy crap, I really don't think I would have ever found this plagiarist. Even though it seems like there's a sudden increase in plagiarism incidents, I think it's more because we have these new Watchers and their dedication to uncovering all these incidents that have been floating around unnoticed these past years. Even though the message was bad news, I'm in total fangirl mode and if I wasn't such a mess these days and so website/technologically bleh, I'd totally leap into LiveJournal territory and sign up just to
And now ... I have to study for my practical. I went to bed at 6am on Sunday to study for my written exam, oh lord. Good thing I had a monstrous iced coffee earlier in the day. Otherwise, Neuro seems to be going well and I'll be posting the next chapter pretty soon. I sent it off to my cousin for her perusal first and I'm going to hammer down some more details, maybe add some extra scenes, before I get it out there. Once again, thanks for your support and your patience!
(Is it sad to get so used to plagiarism incidents that most authors' reactions these days are "Oh damn, not again. Link, name, administrators, please?"? I honestly thought I was lucky enough to have my story finally go under the radar and escape all these recent issues. Thank goodness it's just one recent case and it's on a site that I had dealt with before. Here's to hoping plagiarists will go extinct sooner than later.)
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Air France 447 & TM Non-Update Update
Yes, I know. I know. I suck. Thanks for all the recent reviews and PMs about Through Me and I'm sorry that they all also include variations of "WHERE THE HECK IS THE NEXT CHAPTER, EVIL ONE! I KNOW YOU'RE BUSY, BUT! Please. Kindly stop the torture."
Deepest, DEEPEST apologies about the wait! I know it's horrid of me and if I was the reader, I'd want to slap me too - though none of you have been so mean as to threat that. Yet. I love you.
Anyway, here's the deal:
My first Neuro exam is this Monday, followed by the practical on Friday. I currently have no idea how to study for it - the textbook reading list is basically "Read Ch. 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11 for tomorrow. Godspeed." No joke. I'm not even exaggerating. Those are literally the exact specified chapters I have to plow through for ONE day's worth of lectures since we have lectures straight from 1 to 5 these days. The professors have to do a sort of tag team thang, switching off every hour or so. By the end, our brains are mush.
Thus, I am basically pretty much screwed. Give me at least the time until I finish the exams and then I'll try my hardest to complete the next chapter. I have three pages written so far and I'll slowly but surely churn out the rest when I'm not drowning. So perhaps, in two weeks?
That being said, the recent news about the Air France tragedy is utterly heartbreaking. I can't imagine what the family and friends of the victims are going through, especially those who arrived at the airport waiting to pick up their loved ones only to hear that the plane went missing and then presumed lost with little chance of survivors. It's like a cruel joke. My deepest condolences and sympathies to the families. Even though the chances are beyond low, I keep hoping that I'll come across a new headline that a miracle survivor clinging to life was rescued somewhere from the middle of the ocean. May they find the rest of the plane debris soon and uncover the mystery of what exactly happened before the plane went down so suddenly.
My mom is officially freaked out by planes now. Coupled that with swine flu ... bad.
Deepest, DEEPEST apologies about the wait! I know it's horrid of me and if I was the reader, I'd want to slap me too - though none of you have been so mean as to threat that. Yet. I love you.
Anyway, here's the deal:
My first Neuro exam is this Monday, followed by the practical on Friday. I currently have no idea how to study for it - the textbook reading list is basically "Read Ch. 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11 for tomorrow. Godspeed." No joke. I'm not even exaggerating. Those are literally the exact specified chapters I have to plow through for ONE day's worth of lectures since we have lectures straight from 1 to 5 these days. The professors have to do a sort of tag team thang, switching off every hour or so. By the end, our brains are mush.
Thus, I am basically pretty much screwed. Give me at least the time until I finish the exams and then I'll try my hardest to complete the next chapter. I have three pages written so far and I'll slowly but surely churn out the rest when I'm not drowning. So perhaps, in two weeks?
That being said, the recent news about the Air France tragedy is utterly heartbreaking. I can't imagine what the family and friends of the victims are going through, especially those who arrived at the airport waiting to pick up their loved ones only to hear that the plane went missing and then presumed lost with little chance of survivors. It's like a cruel joke. My deepest condolences and sympathies to the families. Even though the chances are beyond low, I keep hoping that I'll come across a new headline that a miracle survivor clinging to life was rescued somewhere from the middle of the ocean. May they find the rest of the plane debris soon and uncover the mystery of what exactly happened before the plane went down so suddenly.
My mom is officially freaked out by planes now. Coupled that with swine flu ... bad.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Through Me Artwork
Cousin's friend forwarded over some quick sketches for Adel. He's amazingly talented and I think he's a pretty cool guy for indulging us so.
I believe cousin kept insisting for more Caucasian features so poor guy went through several drafts, playing around with things. He's awesome. My cousin, a slavedriver. :)
I have an exam next Friday on Abdomen and Perineum. And I have to submit a Personal Statement Monday. Writing's definitely going on the back burner these days.
Friends say that I declare "I'm going to fail!" too many times. Apparently, I've said it so many times that the other day while I was making small talk with a classmate of mine whom I've spoken to only three times or so before as we washed our dissection tools, he asked "Are you prepared for the exam?"
My answer was a rapid fire, "No! I'm gonna fail."
And he chuckled and was like, "That was fast."
"Yeah, you don't even need to ask."
He grinned. "Yeah, I remember you saying the same exact thing last year right before our miniboard."
"Huh?"
"Yeah, we were standing outside in the hall and I asked you about the exam and you were like ... I'm gonna fail!"
Ah. So that's my catchphrase people will know me by. Epitaph: I'M GONNA FAIL. RIP.
So I'll try to refrain but ... you know.
On another even sadder note, I managed to rack up the most horrifying credit card bill to date. I want to die from guilt. Fortunately, the money I got back for research fellowship work could still cover it.
It was a momentary insanity thing. Classmates were all planning for Spring Break vacations and they asked me to come along and somehow, it went from "I'll see" to "I got hooked into going to Cancun. Forgive me, wallet." It happened so fast, I'm still reeling.
For some reason, my class really wants to have fun this spring break. Nearly all of our class are going somewhere. Are these people aware of the bad economy??
Eight girls and 1 guy are going together to Jamaica. Professor doesn't know guy is gay so he's like "That should be illegal." (Scary tidbit: Jamaica's really anti-gay so everybody in our class are all hush-hush wary for the guy. A girl said Jamaica actually has store signs saying NO GAYS and all in all, we're all thinking "Does he not know about the situation there?" Someone's probably going to try to enlighten him soon, but he's a really confident guy and a few girls in their group have discussed that maybe no one would know he's gay and they could just ... pretend. That, or they're going to get stabbed in the back.)
Another bunch is going to Atlantic City. A few girls are thinking about Ireland.
For our Cancun group, it's going to be around five girls, ten guys for about four days and ... yeah, I didn't even know we had so many guys in our class. Usually, girls outnumber guys in our classes, but the numbers just kept racking up. Eh, having a large group can be hard sometimes for vacations. Someone's bound to rub me the wrong way at times and there's no real escape.
I'm just hoping the place would be nice and tropical and I won't get sunburnt. That, and I'm looking forward to good food and drinks. Drunken revelers better get out of my way to the restaurants because even though I'm only about 100 pounds, I can eat my weight's worth and I will trample you for it. Just watch.
Professor was like: "HELEN, you going to Mexico too?"
Nod.
"HELEN, you going to drink from 10am to 1am?"
Friend laughed. "Those are the times when they're serving drinks. Helen can't drink. She's gone after a bit."
Professor nodded sagely, holding up his fingers an inch apart. "One drink?"
"Unfortunately," I sighed. "Yes."
Back to studying!
I believe cousin kept insisting for more Caucasian features so poor guy went through several drafts, playing around with things. He's awesome. My cousin, a slavedriver. :)
I have an exam next Friday on Abdomen and Perineum. And I have to submit a Personal Statement Monday. Writing's definitely going on the back burner these days.
Friends say that I declare "I'm going to fail!" too many times. Apparently, I've said it so many times that the other day while I was making small talk with a classmate of mine whom I've spoken to only three times or so before as we washed our dissection tools, he asked "Are you prepared for the exam?"
My answer was a rapid fire, "No! I'm gonna fail."
And he chuckled and was like, "That was fast."
"Yeah, you don't even need to ask."
He grinned. "Yeah, I remember you saying the same exact thing last year right before our miniboard."
"Huh?"
"Yeah, we were standing outside in the hall and I asked you about the exam and you were like ... I'm gonna fail!"
Ah. So that's my catchphrase people will know me by. Epitaph: I'M GONNA FAIL. RIP.
So I'll try to refrain but ... you know.
On another even sadder note, I managed to rack up the most horrifying credit card bill to date. I want to die from guilt. Fortunately, the money I got back for research fellowship work could still cover it.
It was a momentary insanity thing. Classmates were all planning for Spring Break vacations and they asked me to come along and somehow, it went from "I'll see" to "I got hooked into going to Cancun. Forgive me, wallet." It happened so fast, I'm still reeling.
For some reason, my class really wants to have fun this spring break. Nearly all of our class are going somewhere. Are these people aware of the bad economy??
Eight girls and 1 guy are going together to Jamaica. Professor doesn't know guy is gay so he's like "That should be illegal." (Scary tidbit: Jamaica's really anti-gay so everybody in our class are all hush-hush wary for the guy. A girl said Jamaica actually has store signs saying NO GAYS and all in all, we're all thinking "Does he not know about the situation there?" Someone's probably going to try to enlighten him soon, but he's a really confident guy and a few girls in their group have discussed that maybe no one would know he's gay and they could just ... pretend. That, or they're going to get stabbed in the back.)
Another bunch is going to Atlantic City. A few girls are thinking about Ireland.
For our Cancun group, it's going to be around five girls, ten guys for about four days and ... yeah, I didn't even know we had so many guys in our class. Usually, girls outnumber guys in our classes, but the numbers just kept racking up. Eh, having a large group can be hard sometimes for vacations. Someone's bound to rub me the wrong way at times and there's no real escape.
I'm just hoping the place would be nice and tropical and I won't get sunburnt. That, and I'm looking forward to good food and drinks. Drunken revelers better get out of my way to the restaurants because even though I'm only about 100 pounds, I can eat my weight's worth and I will trample you for it. Just watch.
Professor was like: "HELEN, you going to Mexico too?"
Nod.
"HELEN, you going to drink from 10am to 1am?"
Friend laughed. "Those are the times when they're serving drinks. Helen can't drink. She's gone after a bit."
Professor nodded sagely, holding up his fingers an inch apart. "One drink?"
"Unfortunately," I sighed. "Yes."
Back to studying!
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Through Me Character Pics - Nelaela
Nelaela (notmaryjane) sent along some more character pictures for Through Me. Thanks!
Adeline Bradbury - Marie Digby.
Nelaela says: "What can I say? she looks perfect, for me, anyway. ;) lol. She's half Irish and Japanese."
Tristan Harland - Robert Hoffman
Sammy Westlane - Emmy Rossum
Nelaela says: "Yeah, I know what you're thinking, she's not even a redhead, buuut, let me finish first, she got this innocent and cute feeling that when I saw her pics, I'm like "ohmigawd. if she's a redhead, she'll be a pefect sammy!" Not to mention, she's so pretty, and adorable (like Sammy)."
Thanks, Nelaela!
I'm really craving sushi right now. Spicy salmon, dragon rolls ... COME TO ME!
Adeline Bradbury - Marie Digby.
Nelaela says: "What can I say? she looks perfect, for me, anyway. ;) lol. She's half Irish and Japanese."
Tristan Harland - Robert Hoffman
Sammy Westlane - Emmy Rossum
Nelaela says: "Yeah, I know what you're thinking, she's not even a redhead, buuut, let me finish first, she got this innocent and cute feeling that when I saw her pics, I'm like "ohmigawd. if she's a redhead, she'll be a pefect sammy!" Not to mention, she's so pretty, and adorable (like Sammy)."
Thanks, Nelaela!
I'm really craving sushi right now. Spicy salmon, dragon rolls ... COME TO ME!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Fanart - shesaidhesaid
shesaidhesaid sent along some graphics inspired by Through Me. Thanks! They're absolutely lovely. I'm particularly fond of the bench one. :)
Bench
Kite
While I was waiting for my train this morning, a man passed by behind me talking on his cellphone: "What do kids care about Valentine's Day!"
Incredulous pause.
"Max has a girlfriend?? Max is five!"
The young ones grow up fast these days.
Bench
Kite
While I was waiting for my train this morning, a man passed by behind me talking on his cellphone: "What do kids care about Valentine's Day!"
Incredulous pause.
"Max has a girlfriend?? Max is five!"
The young ones grow up fast these days.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Through Me Chapter 26
Through Me Chapter 26 has been posted. It's 22 pages and nearly took the life out of me.
I haven't started my readings for Anatomy yet and I'm back to panic mode now and my friend's probably going to reinforce my panic mode with a message "YOU FAIL!" very soon.
Today, a TA went around the table asking each kid what the differences between small and large intestines were. Since we didn't have our lecture on the intestines yet nor did we get up to the readings for that section yet, we all fumbled. The first five kids guessed and threw out random answers for him to correct and by the time he reached me, I had no clue what other differences there were and I couldn't very well repeat the same answers ("Uh, large intestines are larger than small intestines.") so what I finally decided on was: "I don't know."
So eloquent.
TA (he always picks on me!) narrowed his eyes at me. "What textbook do you study from?"
Ouch. Everyone at the table was like "OHHHH!" and I could kill them.
I muttered, "Essential Clinical - ah, what the heck, I didn't read the sections for intestines yet."
But TA was still having fun and didn't wait for my answer, continuing, "Because whatever book you used, I want to buy. I've never seen an "I don't know" answer before!"
Again with the "OHHHH!" Seriously, all these kids are going down.
So TA asked me, "So your book says "I don't know"?"
"Yeah." I nodded. When I have no clue what to do, the best bet is to go along with things and try to wing it. "Exactly. It lists "I don't know."
"Then which part of the intestines is "I don't know" then?"
I cleared my throat. "The small intestines."
"The small intestines?"
"That's correct. The small intestines."
"Ah, okay." He smiled and moved on to the next target. "What's another difference?"
The girl next to me grimaced, staring down at the cadaver. "Uh, I read the same book she does."
Everyone cracked up and he went onto the next four people, circling back around the group and everyone continued to stammer, unable to come up with an answer. Who's laughing now, laughers?
We are so sad.
And I really need to go read the book now before TA finds me again and I come up with another genius answer.
"No comment."
I haven't started my readings for Anatomy yet and I'm back to panic mode now and my friend's probably going to reinforce my panic mode with a message "YOU FAIL!" very soon.
Today, a TA went around the table asking each kid what the differences between small and large intestines were. Since we didn't have our lecture on the intestines yet nor did we get up to the readings for that section yet, we all fumbled. The first five kids guessed and threw out random answers for him to correct and by the time he reached me, I had no clue what other differences there were and I couldn't very well repeat the same answers ("Uh, large intestines are larger than small intestines.") so what I finally decided on was: "I don't know."
So eloquent.
TA (he always picks on me!) narrowed his eyes at me. "What textbook do you study from?"
Ouch. Everyone at the table was like "OHHHH!" and I could kill them.
I muttered, "Essential Clinical - ah, what the heck, I didn't read the sections for intestines yet."
But TA was still having fun and didn't wait for my answer, continuing, "Because whatever book you used, I want to buy. I've never seen an "I don't know" answer before!"
Again with the "OHHHH!" Seriously, all these kids are going down.
So TA asked me, "So your book says "I don't know"?"
"Yeah." I nodded. When I have no clue what to do, the best bet is to go along with things and try to wing it. "Exactly. It lists "I don't know."
"Then which part of the intestines is "I don't know" then?"
I cleared my throat. "The small intestines."
"The small intestines?"
"That's correct. The small intestines."
"Ah, okay." He smiled and moved on to the next target. "What's another difference?"
The girl next to me grimaced, staring down at the cadaver. "Uh, I read the same book she does."
Everyone cracked up and he went onto the next four people, circling back around the group and everyone continued to stammer, unable to come up with an answer. Who's laughing now, laughers?
We are so sad.
And I really need to go read the book now before TA finds me again and I come up with another genius answer.
"No comment."
Writing Status
I've been super busy these days with Anatomy and exams and family stuff - there aren't enough hours in the day. Last Monday was the New Lunar Year so Happy New Year to everybody! 2009 is the Year of the Ox and hopefully, this year will be great for everyone.
I just stayed up really late to finish up Chapter 26 for Through Me since it's been forever since my last update. I have 22 pages and I'm pretty much done, but since it's really late now and I'm not sure my brain's been functioning well, I'd like to post the chapter later when I'm more refreshed and have had a chance to look it over and see if certain parts jive with me. As with every chapter, I might switch around scenes, cut out parts, or break up bits. Stay tuned.
Since my schedule's been jammed pack these days, I haven't had a chance to sort through and respond to messages yet so my apologies for the delay - I'm not purposely ignoring you!
Last Friday was the suckiest day ever. I had my first Anatomy exam and practical and made a ton of stupid mistakes and I don't even want to face my professor anymore in case he can somehow zero in on me as the girl who put down "Infraspinatus" instead of "Supraspinatus". I'm an idiot. I glanced at the pinned structure so quickly, I just jotted it down without even looking at the part again and thinking about my answer again. My mind just flew back to the last question regarding the spinal cord and - I just want to kick myself.
Also, I thought there was a pebble in my shoe the whole day, but it turned out, for some odd reason, a tiny shard of glass had somehow found its way into my sneaker and by the time I realized, it had cut through my sock into my toe and my sock was dotted red with my blood.
Anyway, the week begins again and it's way too late now. Class tomorrow's going to suck for me since I haven't finished my readings and plan to wake up early tomorrow to complete them. I just wish I had a photographic memory sometimes. Okay, not sometimes. Always! My eyes are dying on me so this is just a quick update to let you all know that I haven't expired (yet) and I haven't forgotten about writing either. Thanks for your patience and lovely comments, all!
I just stayed up really late to finish up Chapter 26 for Through Me since it's been forever since my last update. I have 22 pages and I'm pretty much done, but since it's really late now and I'm not sure my brain's been functioning well, I'd like to post the chapter later when I'm more refreshed and have had a chance to look it over and see if certain parts jive with me. As with every chapter, I might switch around scenes, cut out parts, or break up bits. Stay tuned.
Since my schedule's been jammed pack these days, I haven't had a chance to sort through and respond to messages yet so my apologies for the delay - I'm not purposely ignoring you!
Last Friday was the suckiest day ever. I had my first Anatomy exam and practical and made a ton of stupid mistakes and I don't even want to face my professor anymore in case he can somehow zero in on me as the girl who put down "Infraspinatus" instead of "Supraspinatus". I'm an idiot. I glanced at the pinned structure so quickly, I just jotted it down without even looking at the part again and thinking about my answer again. My mind just flew back to the last question regarding the spinal cord and - I just want to kick myself.
Also, I thought there was a pebble in my shoe the whole day, but it turned out, for some odd reason, a tiny shard of glass had somehow found its way into my sneaker and by the time I realized, it had cut through my sock into my toe and my sock was dotted red with my blood.
Anyway, the week begins again and it's way too late now. Class tomorrow's going to suck for me since I haven't finished my readings and plan to wake up early tomorrow to complete them. I just wish I had a photographic memory sometimes. Okay, not sometimes. Always! My eyes are dying on me so this is just a quick update to let you all know that I haven't expired (yet) and I haven't forgotten about writing either. Thanks for your patience and lovely comments, all!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Status Report
I have 11 pages for Through Me Chapter 26, but I'm not quite finished yet. Unfortunately, I'm also nowhere near done with my readings for Anatomy either. I have 125 pages to go through. Haha (the laughter of the screwed).
Mission to catch up and go beyond for this 3 day weekend: FAIL.
I will try to complete the chapter soon - weekend? If only I didn't have six hours class+lab every day ... How indeed can I feel so dead second week into the new semester? Le sigh.
Mission to catch up and go beyond for this 3 day weekend: FAIL.
I will try to complete the chapter soon - weekend? If only I didn't have six hours class+lab every day ... How indeed can I feel so dead second week into the new semester? Le sigh.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Through Me Pics - Lindy
My cousin has been infatuated with Tristan Harland ever since False Facades days - never mind the other characters. I used to think I was louder and crazier than she was, but as we grew up, our roles seemed to have reversed and I can now (proudly?) say she just might be more eccentric than I am. Whoa. But she's also the person who has never failed to demand a new chapter every time I see her and she's the one who has consistently encouraged me to continue writing throughout these past few years.
With that said, it's no wonder why she forwarded me an email, demanding to join in the character pic fun. Ah, how I love her.
Tristan Harland - Chad Michael Murray (She misses Gilmore Girls.)
Adeline Bradbury - Kim Isak (She believes Adel would look more Caucasian, like Kim Isak. She also thinks Kim Isak seems taller and tougher than other girls, which is how she imagined Adel.)
Status: 6 pages in for TM Chapter 26.
With that said, it's no wonder why she forwarded me an email, demanding to join in the character pic fun. Ah, how I love her.
Tristan Harland - Chad Michael Murray (She misses Gilmore Girls.)
Adeline Bradbury - Kim Isak (She believes Adel would look more Caucasian, like Kim Isak. She also thinks Kim Isak seems taller and tougher than other girls, which is how she imagined Adel.)
Status: 6 pages in for TM Chapter 26.
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