On board the SS Karimloo

[doctor_jehane]

So, I have the vague idea that it's the done thing to assemble a ship manifesto, before one embarks upon the vessel in question? And I am nothing if not a keen adherent of The Done Thing.

As such, I present you the following evidence of that tantalising luxury cruiser that is Ramin Karimloo and Will Swenson:

Comments

[spikedluv]

All is very well now! The doctor (we ended up going to the ER) told him that he was the worst case he'd ever seen, but once we cut out gluten, he was fine. He'd lost about 20 lbs in 2-3 weeks and looked like a skeleton (he couldn't afford to lose any weight because he could never ~gain weight -- now we know why), but he started putting weight back on pretty quickly as his intestines healed. He was 155 on a good day, and he's now ~185, so he's put on 50 lbs since getting out of the hospital (30 lbs from his normal weight). It's been weird having to buy him larger and larger clothes, lol! (If he's not careful, he's gonna end up on the ~other side of the weight spectrum. I told him that one day I might actually weigh less than him if we both keep going the way we are. *g*)

I am like a low-carb enabler right now! I feel like someone who just found religion and wants to convert every one they know, lol! The most amazing thing to me is that I CAN DO IT! It was pretty easy, right from the beginning. And prior to that, just thinking about ~thinking about dieting made my brain hurt. Keeping a food diary for the first 4 months helped tremendously. It might also be because I knew I ~had to because of my blood sugar, but something gave me the impetus to GET 'ER DONE. *g* (I'm on a 3-carb serving meal/1-carb serving snack plan. Is yours similar?) Exercise is where I fail big time. I'm trying to start walking more, using the puppies as an excuse, but it's slow going on the motivation and habit-forming front.

smallfandombang is so much fun! (If I do say so myself, lol!) We're in our 5th round (posting of fic and art begins on 4/5), and every year the response is better than I expect it to be. There's a lot of us out there who like to write in small fandoms, apparently. *g* For this comm (and smallfandomfest) the cut-off for qualifying fandoms is 2,000 fic. There's no nominations, or anything like that, all small fandoms (that have fewer than 2,000 fic obviously) qualify. (There are over 1,000 fandoms that have been asked about and qualified on a spreadsheet I keep for that purpose! o_O) It does make finding artists tough, though, because it's the rare artist who is willing to work in fandoms they aren't already familiar with. This challenge opens on Sept 1 with author sign-ups and ends in April, so there is a lot of time to write. (I did that on purpose because of Nano and Yuletide falling in there.)

smallfandomfest is the first small fandom comm I created, and it is gratifyingly popular. I run two rounds per year (May-July & Nov-Jan) that consist of submitting prompts, and then claiming them for fic or art. We also have a sign-up for people to pimp their favorite small fandom(s) and there are personalized buttons for people who submit 3 fic &/or art.

Additionally I mod smallfandomflsh (a flashfic comm with new prompts every two weeks; the fic cut-off for this comm is larger than the other two at 7,000) and smallfandom_nb (a noticeboard comm).

I told Mae that you were asking about her. *g*

[clover71]

[sorry for butting in]

I hadn't heard of that small fandom flash fiction. Glad you mentioned it here :D No more than 7K fics to qualify? Does this mean K (anime & manga) qualifies? It was denied for smallfandombang. I need to check out smallfandomflsh (erm, as soon as I'm done editing my small fandom bang entries :D).

[spikedluv]

Hi! Yep, I created a bunch of small fandom comms around the same time. (There's also smallfandomrecs, but that didn't go over so well. o_O)

It looks like that would qualify! There's no qualifying list for the flashfic comm like there is for the fest/bang, it's mostly honor system.

Yes, check it out, please! There's not nearly enough posting going on there! And there's a lot of past challenges you can check out. I've also created a mirror comm on DW for it (as I have with the fest, bang and nb comms).

[doctor_jehane]

oh man, that sounds so serious. was Pip always gluten intolerant, or did he develop the issues later in life?

I didn't say last post how sorry I was about your beloved dogs :( But puppies, how lovely is that? we have a golden doodle, and he is just the best. they keep you active, too! i try to walk him every day.

I have always had high metabolism, but when i hit my late 30s it kind of slowed to a crawl, and i found myself putting on weight like i never used to? going low carb really helped me - i have cut out processed sugar, and don't eat any carb for dinner. I eat fruit and I drink; i eat fat. also portion control is key!

exercise is also key. i enjoy pilates (and some yoga), and because i like it I'll exercise. i'm looking to take a dance class which will hopefully help both Hub and me. would you have fun at dance? or swimming? if you think it's fun you'l be more motivated to do it - and if you do it with Pip that makes it even better!

smallfandomfest and bang sound awesome! I think many of my tiny fandoms will fit your fest. do you accept rpf? many don't, so no issues if not!

also, clover71, downstream, is a wonderful artist ;) Hope she might be persuaded to participate!

[spikedluv]

We think that he was gluten intolerant for a large portion of his adult life, anyway, but we didn't know what those *coff* particular symptoms meant and he was not one to go to a doctor unless he was dying. (Not so funny anymore. *g*) (Once he got diagnosed, his mother's doctor was like *head desk* because she had the same thing, but to a much lesser degree at that time.)

Thank you! It was a tough time. We got Beau Dec 2014 right after the second pup (our Shiloh) died because Pip was too lonely without having a playmate. *g* We got Ti this January as a playmate for Beau. Luckily, Beau loves the shit out of him. They play like crazy.

I've been heavy all my life (except for a brief time in college), and had pretty much given up on ~not being heavy. I thought that going on any kind of eating plan was going to be impossible to stick to and show little results, but I was so surprised how easy it was to figure out this low-carb thing, and stick to it. (I needed a nutritionist to help me, though, because after having just figured out how to switch everything to Gluten Free, I was feeling overwhelmed about adding in low-carb, as well.)

I don't cut out carbs, but I have cut down quite a lot. Just not having cravings for brownies or M&Ms is revolutionary. And it's amazing how quickly your stomach shrinks so that you feel full more quickly. At 3-carb servings, I can have 1/2 bagel w/cream cheese, 1 hard boiled egg, and 1/2 banana for breakfast. And it's ~filling! And yummy. *g* Plus, with my snacks in between meals, I never really have time to feel like I’m dying of hunger.

I think I would like dance; I've been looking at zumba. But I would definitely have to start slow.

No, sorry, we don't accept RPF. And since I write RPF, I can't really remember what my reasoning was at the time. o_O

Clover71 is already a participant! *g*

[doctor_jehane]

What is your icon? I must know ;)

I am so glad to hear you might enjoy the zumba! Starting slow is the way to be, I swear. And then new adherents just say how much damn fun it is and how everyone should try it. I feel that way about pilates! I want to try the Argentine tango - I come from a dance background, albeit that my dancing days are totally over. I threaten Hub that if he refuses to come with, I am going to find some nubile young fellow and sweep him off his feet, lmao

ooh, your breakfast does sound yummy! I do the bagel+cream cheese or peanut butter and banana as well (so I am probably at 2+1?). A hard boiled egg and toast on alternate days - I can't take that much cholesterol in the morning. There is a fantastic organic sandwich shop near my work and I am there if I don't have a client lunch on. Then dins is a protein and cooked vegetables or salad.

LOL at you not remembering the reason for your RPF rule! Yes, I remember you totally write RPF. If this changes, call me :))))

I am glad you signed up clover71! I've been matched with her on two challenges and have found her to be a great, responsible, committed participant, and I have treasured everything she made for me ♥

[spikedluv]

My icon!!! (I had to check which one I had used. *g*) That is Sol and Robert (Sam Waterston and Martin Sheen) from the Netflix show Grace and Frankie (Jane Fonda and Lilly Tomlin). It's about two married men who were law partners (and lovers for 20 years), who finally confess to their wives that they want a divorce so they can get married. To each other. Technically, it's about their wives, who are wonderfully funny and heartbreaking, who are dealing with divorce and change in the 70s. I did a bit of a fandom pimp for the show for Fandom Snowflake this year, if you're interested. Here.

I looked up classes in my area, which are both limited and more than I expected, lol. I want to see if one of my sisters will go with me. PIP? No way, lol!

PB and 1/2 banana is often one of my snacks! I could never see the appeal until I started eating low carb and tried it. *g* (Also a small apple and PB, or grapes and almonds.)

The thing is, I originally DID allow RPF (I wrote 'Make Me A Supermodel RPF for it. Don't judge. *g*), but for some reason, whether it was just the sheer number of fandoms I was qualifying, I cut it out.

Yes, she's participated in both the bang and fest comms over the years, I do believe. *g*

[doctor_jehane]

Aw, this sounds like an awesome show - I love Sam and Martin, and am all about sexual portrayals of later love! I wonder if there's fic ;)

And, I'm back, having stalked through all your Grace & Frankie links. How lovely is that? I'm hooked!

I am totally not judging your "Make Me A Supermodel RPF". I just hope said supermodel was extremely hot ;)

[spikedluv]

Yay, I'm glad you're hooked! *g* The second season will be airing soon, and they've already renewed it for a 3rd, so no worries about cliffhangers that aren't resolved, yay!

Sadly, there is very little fic, but that one in particular I linked to is really good.

(This icon is also of Sol and Robert and I just *clutches heart* They're holding hands! *sighs*)

(I wouldn't say ~extremely hot, but it was a case of a gay boy rooming with a straight boy and the straight boy not being afraid of getting a little touchy feely. A few of us ran with that. *g*)