Pod Aware Day Two: Podfic Fandom
For many of us, podfic is more than just a fanwork, it's a community. We form friendships, support each other, discuss our shared passions and push each other to new forms and heights of creativity. To find out more information on podfic and podfic fandom, check out Pod Aware on DW, LJ or Tumblr.
I suppose that, for today's Pod Aware topic, the most obvious route would be to discuss the many excellent people I've met through posting podfics and comments to amplificathon, or those who dragged me down into Bandom via Twitter, or the poor unfortunate souls I met on the podfic friending meme last year. Because I have, truly, met a remarkable number of excellent people (from all over the globe) through podfic! But I think, instead, I'd like to talk about a specific incident that happened to me recently, solely as a result of podfic fandom.
Once upon a time, I had an iPod Classic. It was a lovely iPod, with more internal memory than my laptop, and full of all my podfics and music and movies and Solitaire scores. Then, tragedy struck! Through carelessness on my part, that lovely iPod Classic was either run over by a car or crushed under a bowling ball in my absence - either way, it now has a dent the size of a small hamster in its casing, and won't turn on anymore.
But I am a podfic person! I need access to my audiofic! Whatever would I do? (Keep in mind, I am also perpetually broke.)
After much internal debate - I am a Mac girl, and Windows-based technology gives me the willies - I purchased a very basic model Sansa Clip. It would be enough to tide me over until I could afford a new iPod, I consoled myself.
And then the months passed, and the temporary nature of my little blue Clip became less temporary as I grew to love it's little light-up screen and clippy nature. I could literally clip it to my pants, as I washed dishes or folded laundry. It was eminently portable, had a reasonably long battery life, and had enough space to hold a few days' worth of podfic at a time. I became attached to the little blue bastard, dammit. I took it everywhere with me.
And then, a little over two weeks ago, I was hurrying to fill that mp3 player with as many podfics as possible while I still had an outlet at the public library (how else would I properly survive Hurricane Sandy, if not through the soothing benefit of comfort!pods?), when disaster befell me once more.
"FAT CORRUPTED" flashed across the screen of the little mp3 player that could, and all was lost.
"O, Woe is me!" I moaned, "O, Angst! O, Despair!"
I spread my misery to Twitter.
And then! Like a voice from the Heavens, helens78 brought tidings of Comfort and Great Joy:
"I just got an iPod Touch. You can have my Sansa Clip, if you'd like. I can mail it to you tomorrow."
And then there was much celebration and exultation and general exuberance when, four days later, a NEWER, BIGGER, SHINIER Sansa Clip came in the mail - in BUBBLE WRAP, even! - and filled in the dark, empty cavern that was my podfic-less soul.
Opening that envelope, I had the biggest grin across my face. I was absolutely floored by this act of kindness, from someone I'd never even met in person. I mean, yeah, there was much rejoicing and waving my new Shiny in siblings' faces, but... I don't know how to fully express how awesome (in the strictest sense of awe) this moment was. I've never been in a fandom this willing to share with one another before, such a welcoming group of people and ready to help perk up someone's flagging day-week-month so fully. Heck, I've been in Youth Groups with less generosity of spirit than the Podfic Community.
So this is for you, helens78. You fixed my Listening To Podfics problem, so I made you something to listen you yourself. I'm also making you a hat, possibly a scarf. We'll see how much of it's done in time for Christmas....
Alekhine's Defense is a post-XMFC fic, written by sinuous_curve (who has BP!), set some time after Jean makes her way to Xavier's Academy but before the events of Ellis Island in the X-Men movie'verse. A seemingly chance meeting between Erik and Charles over a chess set in Central Park that quickly becomes something much more fraught with meaning - "because before they were enemies, they were friends. And lovers."
I went into this story expecting a puff piece, but it's so much more than that: yes, there are some lighthearted and fluffy moments, but sinuous_curve manages to pack so much more character back-story and emotion and tension into Alekhine's Defense. It's a story with depth, and by the time you finish, you'll be feeling it down to your toes. The Intro/Outro music for this podfic is "No Such Thing As Monsters", by Mark Isham - I have some sort of mental association between chess and instrumental music, so this seemed the only option. Additionally, I'm using this podfic to fill the "Disability" square on my podfic_bingo card, for the discussion of Charles' wheelchair.
You can download this podfic as an mp3, running approximately 30 minutes, right over here (thank you, paraka, for hosting me!) OR you can stream the story by clicking above.