Updating Profile!

So a bisexual, polyfi, gaming-resistant, slightly mentally fragmented, kinky, submissive/switch, Gemini/Monkey, pagan, mostly-female, liberal/moderate, Alaskan, fannish writer/geek walks into a blog... Hi. I'm the Lunatic. Most people call me Azz for short. I like to get all that stuff up there out of the way up front so those who are going to get scared off by it up front get scared off quickly and painlessly.

I write. Maybe one of these days I'll write for a living. I'm not there yet, mostly because I haven't gotten published yet. This is in a large part my fault, as I'm too chicken so far to start sending out stuff. If you're so inclined, poke me now and then to get me moving on that issue. I participate, or at least attempt to participate, in nanowrimo every November. I therefore have two finished first-draft novels, a number of active plot bunnies, one ten-year-wonder of an unfinished novel that has enough material for ten separate pieces, and goodness knows how many other random fragments. I quasi-lead a local gaggle of female writers; we meet on a weekly basis for writing support and dinner. I've been keeping a journal in one form or another since the start of the Gulf War in 1991. (I was 10. It seemed like a good idea at the time.) This journal is nearly a prosthetic memory. I occasionally write humor. Sometimes I write random funny things that get passed around. Any public post is fair game to be linked from any reasonably friendly location. But even though it's hard for me to write things that are entirely devoid of humor, this is still largely my personal natterings rather than a series of editorial essays. Every now and then I think about starting up a blog that's entirely devoted to polished public content, but then I realize that I have a life.

I work at a consumer research survey call center as a supervisor. I started out as a phone goon and worked my way up. My duties include Quality Assurance Monitoring (listening to phone goons on calls and rating their performance), setting up the computer systems to dial the surveys correctly, balancing the surveys across different regions of the country, and (especially lately) doing random other administrative projects in the call center. Since I have college experience two trimesters short of a Computer Information Systems BS, and practical experience, these random other projects often involve computers. The technological experience in my department goes as follows: Halfwits < Incompetents < End-Users < Posers < Experienced Users < Me | Snarky Lady < Expensive Professionals. Readers of my LJ get the questionable benefit of hearing what I have to say about my co-workers and their computer skills.

I am an LJ patriot. I believe firmly that this is a good site run by decent people, and that they do have the best interests of the users at heart, even though their various ideas and ways of implementing same may be back-asswards. I've made strong friendships in the Support community, and like most people, I do react poorly to people bashing my friends. I know a decent amount about how the site works and do community service by answering requests on the Support board. In an emergency situation, every second counts. I participate in the LJ Abuse Emergency Contact Information First Post program. Do you? The life you save may be your own.

I live in Phoenix, AZ, USA, North America, Earth. I rent a tiny studio apartment near Metrocenter with my roommate and fellow writer hcolleen. I was born and raised in Alaska by a rocket scientist computer geek and an artist, without the questionable benefit of a television in the home, and with unrestricted access to the local library. Is it any wonder that I therefore turned out Odd?

I have a best friend. I call him Darkside in this journal, to preserve some vestige of his privacy. He's a straight, monogamous, gamer, singleton, Cancer/Goat, Christian, male, conservative, Army brat, fannish geek. I'm courting him with all the serious intent of Miles Vorkosigan courting the lovely and talented Ekaterin, except there are no gardens and I have already failed my stealth roll. I'm sure someone's already made the popcorn. Our mutual friends probably have a betting pool.

I have a fairly random friending policy. My reading list is near unto maxed out, so the barrier to entry is insanely high. Interaction with me is key to me getting to know you; if you want me to do more than notice that someone's added me when I glance at Semagic's notifications, comment here and there. If I find your presence to not be a source of joy to me, you will be informed by either garnetdagger or me. If you just want to fight with someone, I recommend the MMORPG of choice, or efw.

garnetdagger

azurelettuce

Former Household: Residents of the apartment, known as the Temple. House Rules.
The Computers: No gamergeek household is complete without a discussion of the machines, who have personalities all their own.
Good Friends & Other close people: The people I try to keep in contact with, those outside the household and immediate family who get the most love, and the people who are around on a regular basis.
Co-Workers/Cow-Orkers: The people I interact with at work on a weekly basis.
Old Crew: People we used to know, or those who have drifted out of contact.
Assorted Families: Even though we're our own household now, we still have relatives.
School: These are the people I used to see from day to day at DeVry.
Neighbors: People who live near us.