kengr | Network

Posted by elysium_star

https://archiveofourown.org/works/75292986

We begin our story with Will Stronghold and Warren Peace's fight happening on the first week of school. Will has gained his powers of strength and flight during this fight and was transferred into hero classes directly afterwards. Layla, feeling the loss of her friend and noticing his growing group of female fans, begins fake dating Warren Peace in the hope of recapturing Will's attention. However, through their ruse they begin to form a genuine friendship with one another, bonding over rejection and their experiences at Sky High.

Words: 1584, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Sky High (2005)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Categories: F/M
Characters: Warren Peace, Layla Williams, Will Stronghold, Magenta (Sky High), Ethan (Sky High), Zach (Sky High)
Relationships: Warren Peace/Layla Williams
Additional Tags: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Jealousy, Love Triangles, Not Actually Unrequited Love, idk if there will be smut yet, Not Canon Compliant, Canon Universe, Fluff and Angst, Eventual Romance, Teen Romance

https://archiveofourown.org/works/75292986

full_metal_ox posting in

fancake

Fandom: Lord of the Rings; How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Pairings/Characters: Gen; Sauron, the Mouth of Sauron, Pippin, Sam Gamgee, the Hobbit community
Rating: General Audiences
Length: (Fic) 957 words; (Comic) 30 panels
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Creator Tags:
Erisif | Valarhalla: #i could have done something useful today #instead i wrote this #i hate myself
english-history-trip: #lotr #nonsense #well that was my day how was yours #why is sauron in a cave and then a tower #go to hell that's why #why is frodo bartholomew cubbins instead of a who #the answer won't surprise you

Creator Links:
(Fic): Elisif: (AO3)

Elisif; (Tumblr)

valarhalla
(Fancomic): english-history-trip: (Tumblr)

english-history-trip

Theme: Amnesty, Crack, Crossovers/Fusions, Just Plain Fun, Non-Fic Recs: Fanart, Non-Fic Recs: Fancomic, Poetry, Tumblore

Summary: Every being in Eä liked peacetime a lot…
But Sauron, who was also in Eä, did NOT.

Reccer's Notes: Elisif’s retelling of The War of the Ring in Seussian rhyming verse, firmly informed by The Lore, maps the Shire onto Whoville without introducing an anachronistic Christmas (that’s for Narnia.)

And then, in proper cumulative Tumbloric fashion, english-history-trip proceeds to remix Seussian illustrations to match. (Spoiler: Sauron does not experience redemptive cardiac enlargement; another character gets to preside over the grand climactic celebration.)

Fanwork Links:

Fic: AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26135110
Tumblr: https://valarhalla.tumblr.com/post/190955320437/every-being-in-eä-liked-peacetime-a-lot-but

Fancomic: https://english-history-trip.tumblr.com/post/636994579930939392/english-history-trip-english-history-trip-part

filkferengi

I like chocolate. From this first principle, interesting adventures derive [themselves]. I used to favor Hershey's Kisses, but the logistics of fiddling with tiny wrappers during an arthritis flare were an obstacle. Then I hit upon the bag of milk chocolate chips as my delivery vector of choice; direct chocolate hit, chocolatier taste, no fiddly wrappers - what's not to like?

When they're not to be found, that's what. Over a couple of weeks, due to scarcity, my sweet spouse went to more than one store, for me. Then, last week, there were none to be found anywhere. He brought me a bag of Kroger's store brand and a bag of Ghirardelli. While not as chocolatey and with more beat-up looking chips, the Kroger was still an acceptable alternative. Ironically enough, the Ghirardelli bag combined being significantly more expensive with larger chips. My spouse called the chocolate taste "understated." I called it "nonexistent." Nothing like paying more for less flavor.

This week, relief was in sight, as he returned home victorious with the desired chocolate. Those first chips after a week of deprivation were intensely pleasurable. [I may have to do extra walks this week, weather permitting.]

As I went towards the fridge this afternoon, in anticipation of more chocolate chip goodness, I heard music in my head. I'm a filker; this isn't exactly a surprise. Bill & Gretchen Roper have an excellent song on the subject, "My Husband The Filker." As I let the tune play out to see which one it was, "Sha bop, sha bop" flowed into "I Only Have Eyes For You", a decidedly apt tune for chocolate on an overcast winter afternoon.

Current Mood: complacent
Current Music: The Flamingos--I Only Have Eyes For You

ao3_st_lowerdecksrss_feed

Posted by thunderbirdx

https://archiveofourown.org/works/75395656

by thunderbirdx

Andy Billups' mother is the ruling monarch of their home planet, Hysperia. She's domineering, conniving and tenacious, but in her own way only wants the best for her son.

She's also another great Trek MILF and only wants to help make your kingdom come.

Words: 0, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Star Trek: Lower Decks (Cartoon)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Categories: Other
Characters: Queen Paolana
Additional Tags: Fanart, artwork

https://archiveofourown.org/works/75395656

madbaker

Friday the wife and I went to North Beach. We had a decent dinner at one of the many Italian eateries. (This one didn't seem too touristy, at least.) It was vaguely amusing part-listening in to the couple next to us on their first date.

We went to a comedy club after. We were reasonably early, so it was a short line. Went through the portable metal detector; the wife followed me and it went off. At which point they wanded me. Um, what? I took it with good grace, because while it didn't make sense I wasn't trying to sneak anything in.

The first of my two-drink minimum wasn't very good. As might be expected for a comedy club bar.
The two openers were okay, nothing to write home about. The headliner was funny but not side-splitting.

All in all, it was a good date out.

Current Mood: calm

hrj

Lately I've been thinking about starting a Scrivener file of memoirs. Not necessarily with specific plans to do anything with it, but just to organize some of the writing I've done that I think other people might be interested in.

One thing contributing to these thoughts is my "analyze the Best Related Work" category and looking at published memoirs, but it's not like I think I'm operating at that level.

I pulled up my Dreamwidth tag "personal history and philosophy" and laughed to see that the second most recent post under that tag was a similar rumination where I noted that I'd put together a spreadsheet of links to DW posts that I thought fall in the category of memoir-worthy. Well. So. That will make assembling the Scrivener file easier!

As I noted in that post, I have a lot of posts on writing philosophy and technique in my Alpennia blog that I'd need to identify separately, but that might be of more interest to people than random natterings.

What I don't know is whether that interest actually exists. I mean: *I* think I'm pretty darned good at a turn of phrase and interesting angle on things, but maybe I'm deluded? I'd like to think I write a lot of interesting things in this blog and in the Alpannia blog, but how can I tell unless people have interacted with me about them?

visualcapitalist_rss_feed

Posted by Niccolo Conte

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/heres-where-home-prices-surged-the-most-in-north-america-2005-2025/

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/?p=184869

See more visualizations like this on the Voronoi app.

Use This Visualization

North American Cities With the Fastest Home Price Growth

See visuals like this from many other data creators on our Voronoi app. Download it for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Key Takeaways

Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto saw the biggest home price increases, each rising more than 160% over the past 20 years.
Southern metros like Dallas, Charlotte, and Denver rank among the fastest-growing U.S. housing markets.
Major coastal cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York saw slower growth but are among the most expensive markets overall.

Home prices across North America have surged over the past two decades, driven by population growth, limited housing supply, and post-pandemic demand.

This infographic shows how average home prices have changed from July 2005 to July 2025 across 25 major North American cities, based on Zillow data compiled by Hanif Bayat.

Where Home Prices Have Risen the Most

On average, home prices across the top 25 cities in North America have risen by 92%, or nearly doubled, between 2005 and 2025.

The table below shows the North American cities where home prices have risen the most:

City	Percentage change	Avg home price in July 2005	Avg home price in July 2025
Vancouver	175%	$306,000	$842,000
Montreal	167%	$156,000	$417,000
Toronto	164%	$268,000	$709,000
Dallas	139%	$154,000	$369,000
Charlotte	134%	$166,000	$389,000
Denver	125%	$258,000	$581,000
Seattle	119%	$343,000	$751,000
Houston	107%	$150,000	$311,000
Atlanta	102%	$191,000	$385,000
Miami	84%	$256,000	$473,000
Tampa	83%	$198,000	$361,000
San Francisco	79%	$629,000	$1,130,000
Boston	77%	$412,000	$731,000
Orlando	76%	$222,000	$389,000
Phoenix	75%	$256,000	$449,000
Philadelphia	74%	$222,000	$387,000
Los Angeles	73%	$555,000	$959,000
San Diego	71%	$542,000	$926,000
Inland Empire*	66%	$353,000	$585,000
Detroit	66%	$162,000	$269,000
New York	59%	$447,000	$713,000
Minneapolis	53%	$255,000	$391,000
Baltimore	45%	$278,000	$404,000
Washington	41%	$414,000	$585,000
Chicago	41%	$246,000	$346,000

*Inland Empire refers to Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California metro area.

The top three fastest-appreciating cities are all in Canada. Vancouver leads with a 175% increase since 2005, followed by Montreal at 167% and Toronto with a 165% rise.

Canada’s big metros have experienced rapid population growth and strong foreign-buyer interest, combining to create some of the world’s hottest real estate markets. Vancouver and Toronto, in particular, have faced long-term housing shortages and rank among America’s least affordable housing markets.

In the United States, cities in the Sunbelt region in the South have seen their home prices more than double since 2005. These include Dallas (140%), Charlotte (134%), and Denver (125%), followed by Seattle (119%), which is the only more northern metro among the top five U.S. cities.

Houston and Atlanta have also seen strong growth in home prices, along with Miami and Tampa in Florida.

Coastal Cities Show Slower Home Price Growth

Despite being the three most expensive housing markets, major coastal cities like San Francisco (80%), Los Angeles (73%), and San Diego (71%) show relatively slower growth in home prices. On the East Coast, prices in New York have also grown moderately, rising 60% over the last two decades.

These coastal metros were already expensive in 2005, leaving less room for percentage-based appreciation as compared to Southern cities like Dallas and Houston.

Meanwhile, among the top 25 cities, home prices have grown slowest in Washington, D.C. and Chicago, rising 41% between 2005 and 2025.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To learn more about this topic from a global perspective, see Home Prices and Rent Changes Around the World on Voronoi.

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/heres-where-home-prices-surged-the-most-in-north-america-2005-2025/

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/?p=184869

badly_knitted posting in

get_knitted

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.

Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.

This Week's Question: Does anyone have any plans for making Christmas gifts or cards?

If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Current Mood: tired
Current Location: my desk

oursin

This week's bread: Country Oatmeal aka Monastery Loaf from Eric Treuille and Ursula Ferrigno's Bread (2:1:1 wholemeal/strong white/pinhead oatmeal), a bit dense and rough-textured - the recipe says medium oatmeal, which has seemed hard to come by for months now (I actually physically popped into a Holland and Barrett when I was out and about the other day and boy, they are all about the Supplements these days and a lot less about the nice organic grains and pulses, sigh, no oatmeal, no cornmeal, etc etc wo wo deth of siv etc). Bread tasty though.

Friday night supper: groceries arrived sufficiently early in the pm for me to have time to make up the dough and put the filling to simmer for sardegnera with pepperoni.

Saturday breakfast rolls: adaptable soft rolls recipe, 4:1 strong white/buckwheat flour, dried blueberries, Rayner's Barley Malt Extracxt, turned out very nicely.

Today's lunch: savoury clafoutis with Exotic Mushroom Mix (shiitake + 3 sorts of oyster mushroom) and garlic, served with baby (adolescent) rainbow carrots roasted in sunflower and sesame oil, tossed with a little sugar and mirin at the end, and sweetstem cauliflower (some of which was PURPLE) roasted in pumpkin seed oil with cumin seeds.

senmut

AO3 Link | Cat and Bird (300 words) by Merfilly
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: DC Comics (General)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Selina Kyle & Dinah Lance
Characters: Selina Kyle, Dinah Lance
Additional Tags: Triple Drabble, Post-Crisis, +Modern Age (1986-Present)
Summary:

Selina's in the neighborhood

Cat and Bird

"Hey there, little birdie," came a voice from above Dinah, and she looked up to see her friend Selina on the roof. That made Dinah's mood much better, and she hastily made use of the fire-escapes — and walls — to get up there.

"Hey yourself, tabby cat," she said with a grin, barely breathing hard for that exercise. "A bit out of your territory, aren't you?" She plopped herself down on the roof-edge next to the other girl.

"Hmm, came to check on one of the ones that got adopted out, make sure it was on the up and up."

"This neighborhood? It better be, or word will get around. Bunch of nosy people around. And Dad hears all the rumors like that."

"Nice older couple, and the kid was from their faith. How he wound up in a Catholic orphanage is anyone's guess," Selina said, giving Dinah the clues to keep her own ears out for the kid.

"Glad you decided to stick around when you got done," Dinah admitted, leaning over against Selina.

"Knew you'd be out sooner rather than later. Make any money today?"

"No; this tutoring is a trade. I help the blockhead learn, Mom gets her bad cooler fixed for free."

"You seem to be the one giving up time and effort a lot for these trades," Selina said, disapproving.

"Family business, Selina. Have to support mom somehow, and Dad uses it as an excuse to keep her off my back when I go out in the evenings." She slung her arm around Selina's shoulders and squeezed. "I get what I need."

"If you say so." Selina shrugged. "C'mon. I know who's working the door at the Regal. We can catch a movie and be irresponsible teenagers for once."

Dinah considered, then grinned broadly. "Sounds fun!"

lilliane posting in

holiday_wishes

Hi! I'm Lilliane, a 60 yo person who has chronic illnesses & is disabled, neurodivergent and newly diagnosed with brain cancer (biopsy being performed on 12/9/2025) who is not only looking for some assistance this holiday season but is also looking to help others in this community!

It is my 4th year participating and while it's been a tough year, it's been nothing compared to the last two weeks. Being diagnosed with a brain tumor (Glioblastoma), having a stroke and a seizure is no joke, boys and girls. Not even close.

Some of the things that I would love to give & receive this year are:

1) Correspondence via email or snail mail! Contact me via my Inbox here and I will give you an email address or my snail mail address, whichever is to your liking. It could be exchanging holiday cards, postcards, or even letters/emails throughout the year. I, of course, will be reaching out to those of you who wish for the same.

2) Groceries and prescriptions are more and more difficult to come by, as I think they are for a lot of folks, particularly this year and going into 2026. I would be grateful for any denomination of Walmart, Kroger, or VISA gift cards. Physical ones are fine, please ask for an address (obviously) but probably the quickest and simplest way are probably e-cards.

3) Be of service to your local animal shelter, library, memory home, art program, unhoused shelter, aging agency or city council in your community. It is so important to give back in your community if you are able to! There are so many different ways to be of service, not just monetarily. Even one hour of helping a senior at the library every week learn to use the computer, or bring a neighbor some groceries each week, read to a blind person or a child who is not yet able to read, help the local shelter get dogs out of their cages for a day outside…so many different ways to assist! You can even write letters or send cards to people in nursing homes! Get your kids or spouse involved and have fun with it!

4) I have an Amazon wish list: Lilliane's Wish List
I have all sorts of things on here, and trust me, they do NOT have to come from Amazon. If you wish to send them from somewhere else, like walmart.com or even yourself, just ask for my address. My roommate says my list is boring and made me add fun stuff. Not sure how I feel about that. :-)

5) Be kind to each other. It’s free, and I think we can ALL use a bit of kindness each and every day. However, remember to not confuse kindness and niceness, there is a distinct difference!

Thank you for taking the time to read wishes and help each other out! You are all fantastic!

Current Mood: exhausted
Current Location: Athens, GA, USA
Current Music: The dryer

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwygqqll9k2o?utm_source=DamnInteresting

Trains cancelled over fake bridge collapse image (from bbc.com)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwygqqll9k2o?utm_source=DamnInteresting

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-discover-the-first-single-gene-to-directly-cause-mental-illness?utm_source=DamnInteresting

Scientists Discover The First Single Gene to Directly Cause Mental Illness (from sciencealert.com)

https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-discover-the-first-single-gene-to-directly-cause-mental-illness?utm_source=DamnInteresting

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.space.com/astronomy/mars/mars-orbiter-sees-butterfly-crater-spread-its-wings-on-the-red-planet?utm_source=DamnInteresting

Mars orbiter sees 'butterfly' crater spread its wings on the Red Planet (from space.com)

https://www.space.com/astronomy/mars/mars-orbiter-sees-butterfly-crater-spread-its-wings-on-the-red-planet?utm_source=DamnInteresting

sarahscribbles_feed

https://sarahcandersen.com/post/802287963393441792

This brand new piece has been made available as a signed print! A portion of all proceeds go to Mind, the UK’s leading mental health charity.

https://sarahcandersen.com/post/802287963393441792

marycatelli posting in

books

The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 14 by Nekokurage

The tales continue. Spoilers for the earlier ones ahead.

( Read more... )

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/05/1128837/the-era-of-ai-persuasion-in-elections-is-about-to-begin/?utm_source=DamnInteresting

The era of AI persuasion in elections is about to begin (from technologyreview.com)

https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/05/1128837/the-era-of-ai-persuasion-in-elections-is-about-to-begin/?utm_source=DamnInteresting

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.damninteresting.com/incident-on-niihau-island/?date=2025-12-07&utm_source=DamnInteresting

On this day in 1941 a Japanese fighter pilot at Pearl Harbor survived a crash landing (from damninteresting.com)

https://www.damninteresting.com/incident-on-niihau-island/?date=2025-12-07&utm_source=DamnInteresting

damninteresting_link_feed

https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-blueprint-for-visiting-an-interstellar-comet?utm_source=DamnInteresting

A Blueprint For Visiting An Interstellar Comet (from universetoday.com)

https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-blueprint-for-visiting-an-interstellar-comet?utm_source=DamnInteresting

visualcapitalist_rss_feed

Posted by Marcus Lu

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/mapped-the-worlds-largest-regional-seas/

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/?p=185039

See more visuals like this on the Voronoi app.

Use This Visualization

The World’s Largest Regional Seas

See visuals like this from many other data creators on our Voronoi app. Download it for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Key Takeaways

The Philippine Sea is the world’s largest regional sea, covering nearly 5.7 million km².
Many of the world’s largest seas play major roles in climate regulation, biodiversity, and global shipping routes.

The world’s largest regional seas span a wide range of climates, from the warm tropics to the frigid waters around Antarctica. They are major subdivisions of the global ocean system, often defined by surrounding landmasses or submarine ridges.

This visualization highlights the 30 largest regional seas on Earth by surface area, ranging from the vast Philippine Sea to the chilly Labrador Sea. The data for this visualization comes from Wikipedia.

The term “sea” is not rigidly defined, and in this dataset it refers primarily to large subdivisions of the global ocean rather than isolated inland water bodies. These boundaries often follow continental margins, island arcs, or oceanic ridges.

The Philippine and Coral Seas Dominate the Rankings

The Philippine Sea stands out as the world’s largest regional sea at nearly 5.7 million km², making it more than twice the size of the Mediterranean. Its vast expanse hosts some of the planet’s deepest ocean trenches and most active tectonic zones.

The neighboring Coral Sea, the second largest, is home to the Great Barrier Reef and is a major reservoir of marine biodiversity.

Rank	Name	Area_km2	Area_sq_mi
1	Philippine Sea	5,695,000	2,199,000
2	Coral Sea	4,791,000	1,850,000
3	Arabian Sea	3,862,000	1,491,000
4	Sargasso Sea	3,500,000	1,400,000
5	South China Sea	3,500,000	1,400,000
6	Weddell Sea	2,800,000	1,100,000
7	Caribbean Sea	2,754,000	1,063,000
8	Mediterranean Sea	2,510,000	969,000
9	Gulf of Guinea	2,350,000	910,000
10	Tasman Sea	2,300,000	890,000
11	Bay of Bengal	2,172,000	839,000
12	Bering Sea	2,000,000	770,000
13	Sea of Okhotsk	1,583,000	611,000
14	Gulf of Mexico	1,550,000	598,000
15	Gulf of Alaska	1,533,000	592,000
16	Barents Sea	1,400,000	540,000
17	Norwegian Sea	1,383,000	534,000
18	East China Sea	1,249,000	482,000
19	Hudson Bay	1,230,000	470,000
20	Greenland Sea	1,205,000	465,000
21	Somov Sea	1,150,000	440,000
22	Mar de Grau	1,140,000	440,000
23	Riiser-Larsen Sea	1,138,000	439,000
24	Sea of Japan	1,050,000	410,000
25	Argentine Sea	1,000,000	390,000
26	East Siberian Sea	987,000	381,000
27	Lazarev Sea	929,000	359,000
28	Kara Sea	926,000	358,000
29	Scotia Sea	900,000	350,000
30	Labrador Sea	841,000	325,000

Strategic Waters in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans

The Arabian Sea and the South China Sea both rank within the top five and serve as critical hubs for global shipping. Their warm waters support major monsoon systems that shape regional climates and agriculture.

Further west, the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Guinea play key roles in trade and energy transport.

Cold-Region Seas Cover Vast, Remote Areas

Several polar seas also make the list, including the Weddell, Barents, and Greenland Seas. These regions are essential for deep-water formation, a process that helps drive global ocean circulation.

Their extreme climates limit human activity, yet they store significant carbon and influence sea ice patterns. As climate change reshapes the poles, these remote seas will become even more important for understanding Earth’s shifting systems.