For Alyjude - In Memoriam This icon was made by Aly.

havoc
magician114
January 11th, 19:08

Sad news to share. Some of you may already know but most do not. We have lost our dear friend Aly, who passed away on December 30 from natural causes. She had been sick off and on for most of December. This is especially sad, since we just lost Sheila Clark, aka Bluewolf, a few months ago. The two of them worked together on Sentinel projects and both were incredibly prolific and memorable.

I met Aly about 12 years ago when she was conducting a fund raiser for the Moonridge Zoo, a wild animal rescue site in California that was a favorite charity of Garett Maggart. I won several of the bids and that's my first online meeting with someone I only knew through her writings. Through this same experience, I met one of Aly's friends and fellow TS writer, Arianna, who graciously agreed to deliver my items while she was traveling through. They've both remained good friends of mine.

Not only did Aly contribute to the fundraising success of Moonridge, she also worked for one of Richard Burgi's charities, Pacific Marine Mammal Center. But Moonridge was a centerpiece, creating not only the online auction which matched up crafts and Sentinel stories and art with eager buyers, but live events at the Zoo, where Garett attended (ahd handled a lot of the animals). She even housed out-of-towners who came for the fun. And she was absolutely bonkers for TS fanfiction, writing and creating art (she created my icon, which I won from a Moonridge bid) individually and cooperatively as part of challenges and projects. The Slash Virtual Season was one such project that was a massive undertaking to continue what the fanfic writer members envisioned as a continuation of canon (with a slash twist). She contributed to many challenges, including TS Secret Santa for many years. In fact, the last thing she wrote was to a 2025 TSSS prompt. She was so happy to still be creating despite her health issues. Here's where you can find some of her stuff:
Aly at AO3 (including Christmas Whining and Dining from TSSS) https://archiveofourown.org/users/alyjude_sideburns
The Slash Virtual Season (as part of Five Senses Inc) https://www.squidge.org/5senses/
Aly's Facebook https://www.facebook.com/allison.j.french I just noticed Cindy Maggart has posted a lovely comment there.
Aly's LJ (where she has some stories that are probably not found anywhere else) https://alysbasement.livejournal.com/33902.html
Aly's old skeeter site https://web.archive.org/web/20230326191522/http://k9kennel.skeeter63.org/Alyjude.htm

But Aly wasn't just a fanfic writer; she was multi-faceted. We would talk or text on a wide variety of subjects and when we visited several times a year we would yak for hours. I mostly stayed away from politics, which was near and dear to her, but she was a font of information of all kinds. She had such stories! About her past: swimming and family (including Hollywood gossip!) and running a school bus business. Present interests, which included our love of winter sports, especially figure skating, and books we've read and stories we've written. She gave me great feedback when I decided to write short stories. She was at times hilarious or growl-y or kind or impatient and generous and opinionated -- all the things that make up a truly well-rounded human being.

She suffered mightily in the last years of her life, but even when I first knew her she was never truly well physically. Yet, most of the time I didn't hear about her aches and pains, how she had to stay in bed for a day if she overdid and did her best to stay out of hospitals, where she said she was constantly uncomfortable.

We'd made plans on the 26th to meet on January 6 and, despite being weary from who knows what, she was enthusiastic about getting together. I'm sorry we missed this last meeting, but I can't be sorry for dear Aly, who fought so hard to keep going. In the end, she died peacefully with her beloved cat in the house decorated for Christmas. Her spirit escaped from the body she'd suffered in for so long and now has been reunited with those loved ones who have gone before her. I can imagine her entertaining them with stories about us.

So, say a prayer for Aly, who was very religious yet never used religion as a club to make her point. But also feel free to share or remember an Aly story if you feel up to it -- there are so many to tell. I guarantee she'll be listening and laughing.

Stay safe and strong, friends. Regina

Heated Rivalry Moodboards

( Rivalry )

I can't seem to find it. Maybe it's not posted yet. I'll try to be patient. 😁❤️

11. The first National State lottery in England was drawn in 1569. The first prize was £5,000, and other prizes included tapestries and high-quality linen cloth. How much does it cost to enter where you live (and have you ever bought a ticket)?


In Arizona there a big number of lotto games. Some winnings are In the thousand dollar range and others in the millions. Lotto is $2.00 a ticket. Not to long ago the lotto was in the billion dollar range. An Australian man won it.

Yes, I’ve bought tickets when it goes higher than 50 million dollars. But I’m weird, I only buy one ticket. If I could win I could Do it with only one ticket. So $2.00 a ticket isn’t going to break me. I could use a win. 😁