ivyfic | Reading

Posted by callmeri

https://www.transformativeworks.org/otw-signal-june-2025/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=265723

Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works.

In the News

The Conversation’s article “The lore of ‘lore'” explores how fandom fueled the reinvention of a 1,000-year-old word:

Now essential online slang, [“lore”] can be traced back to Old English, where it referred primarily to learning, as in the act of teaching or being taught. Over time, lore came to be associated with more informal knowledge, passed on through word of mouth … [but then it] largely slipped out of common usage … So, how did “lore” come to hold such contemporary relevance?

“Lore” still carries shades of its original meaning, but just as fans expand and transform canon, modern usage reimagines it. Oxford University Press—which shortlisted “lore” for their 2024 word of the year—explains:

In recent years, people have been using “lore” in different ways and in new contexts. For example, they might now talk about the lore surrounding a particular celebrity, or a character in a book or film, or even refer to their own personal history as their lore. Online cultures and social media have seen the emergence of new kinds of celebrities and highly-engaged fandoms, and the word has been applied much more widely.

From its popularity in K-pop to the semi-eponymous Fanlore, the rise of “lore” is a great example of how fans build cultural meaning through shared language and creative reinterpretation.

The Geekiary’s article on fandom holidays speaks on how fans mark time within their communities. Be it May the Fourth (Star Wars Day) or Destiel’s confession anniversary, fandom holidays are not an uncommon phenomenon. Some humorous, some profound, these unofficial yet widely beloved holidays are often tied to moments from canon (such as a character’s birthday or an in-universe event) and serve to foster community building.
These observances turn the ordinary calendar into a timeline of shared emotion and meaning. As an act of tradition, they become ritual anchors that give structure to the fan’s calendar, offering a sense of comfort and familiarity in an ever-changing world. The article notes how this act of building new traditions and creating opportunities for community bonding forges a sense of cultural memory for fans.

In her book Rogue Archives: Digital Cultural Memory and Media Fandom, Abigail De Kosnik describes how “Memory has gone rogue in the sense that it has come loose from its fixed place in the production cycle. It now may be found anywhere, or everywhere, in the chain of making”. Celebrating holidays online or by digitizing photographs/experiences allows these memories to be accessed later on, rather than be fixed to just a specific person or place. It lets our fandoms live outside of us as individuals.

Like lore, fandom holidays demonstrate how participation itself becomes a form of authorship—each contribution adding another thread to the tapestry.

OTW Tips

Fandom is global, and many amazing fanworks are written, drawn, or subtitled in languages other than one’s own. Whether you’re tagging fanfiction in your native language or collaborating with international fans, your efforts enrich fandom’s diversity and inclusivity.
The OTW is recruiting for Tag Wrangling Volunteers (Russian), Internal Complaint and Conflict Resolution Volunteers, and Support Volunteers (Chinese).
Consider volunteering for one of the OTW’s teams to support and celebrate global fan participation!

We want your suggestions for the next OTW Signal post! If you know of an essay, video, article, podcast, or news story you think we should know about, send us a link. We are looking for content in all languages! Submitting a link doesn’t guarantee that it will be included in an OTW post, and inclusion of a link doesn’t mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/otw-signal-june-2025/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=265723

sholio

Okay, the previous post has the non-spoilery intro to the series, so this is the one with all the spoilers. I finished book 3 this evening (of seven books so far), and I'm still having a terrific time.

( Spoilers )

china_shop

I finished off an old writing exercise for the Yield challenge on

fan_flashworks:

Title: Supplanted (1541 words) [General Audiences]
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Characters: Xiao Quan (Shen Wei's student), Shen Wei, Zhao Yunlan, Jiajia
Additional Tags: Episode Related, Canon Scene, Canon Dialogue, POV Outsider, Episode 9 roadtrip, Zhao Yunlan is my blorbo, but sometimes he's a bit of a dick, Xiao Quan don't get no respect

Summary:

The responsibility for getting them back on the road rests on Luo Quan’s shoulders—and when he achieves it, the glory will be his, too. Jiajia will clap her hands and promise to buy him a drink when they get back to Dragon City. Professor Shen will give an approving smile.

askamanager_feed

Posted by Ask a Manager

https://www.askamanager.org/2025/06/should-i-have-called-campus-police-my-coworker-is-constantly-away-and-more.html

https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31687

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Should I have called campus police?

I’ve retired for a while now, but I have a question about the past. I worked in a science laboratory that didn’t interact with the public, in a field that attracts individuals who seek confirmation of their diagnoses and treatments.

One day, I was having lunch when a peculiar man entered our lunchroom, looking for our laboratory. Our building has robust security measures, including guards and visitor vetting, so I assumed he was there for official business. He requested to speak to my principal investigator, who was out of the office. He appeared restless, evasive, and somewhat uneasy. He asked if I could relay any questions since I wasn’t sure when she would return.

As it turned out, he was one of those individuals who firmly believed they were “infected” and sought “treatment.” I explained that our laboratory conducted only pure research and did not handle patients. I collected his contact information and he left. Other people in the lunchroom soon approached me to inquire about him.

When my boss returned, I informed her about the incident. She expressed some concern and suggested that I should have called the campus police on him. I explained that I had considered that, but he was polite and I felt no threat and I believed it would have been excessive to involve the police on someone who was polite and compliant. I felt I was physically stronger and faster than him, and as the son of a law enforcement officer, I was more than capable and determined enough to protect myself from an unarmed individual.

Now, I should add a few more factors: I was a rare Black researcher in science. In 35 years, I never met my racial counterpart in another lab. As I mentioned, my late father was in law enforcement, and my brother and I had a distressing experience walking to our elementary school. Two policemen stopped us and made us stand with our hands on a fence while our classmates walked by until a woman arrived to identify us. She looked at us puzzled and told the policemen we were kids and didn’t match the description at all. We were gruffly let go. My dad contacted the police department, found out who the officers were, and made them come to our house and apologize. My brother and I spent the rest of the year fearfully walking to school, afraid of revenge. I think of calling the police like drawing a gun: you only do it when you fear enough that you’ll ensure the other person has a very bad day.

Another wrinkle was that the lab was predominantly female, and I understand that safety is a top priority for women. Hence, I understand her caution, but I’m not sure she fully comprehends my own caution. Calling the cops is the ultimate option for me, but is it the most prudent business decision?

I’m not going to second-guess your decision; you were the one who was there and had to assess the situation based on everything you were picking up about it. For all we know, your calm, respectful response even could have been what kept things from escalating. I will quibble with “I was stronger and faster and could protect myself from an unarmed individual” since you presumably couldn’t know for sure that he was unarmed. But it ended peacefully, so I’m not going to say you made the wrong call.

That said, I do think your employer’s security procedures matter and generally should be followed. For example, if it was a secure area and an outsider shouldn’t have been able to gain access at all, that’s something I’d report (even if for no other reason than that they need to know it happened so it can be better prevented in the future).

2. How can I stop feeling resentful about all the vacation time my coworker takes?

My coworker Annika and I are the only two full-time employees on our team, and one of us will cover for the other when needed. My issue is that Annika always seems to be on leave and I’m left trying to juggle everything.

Annika is currently in her home country. She was supposed to be back this week but requested an extension of her leave from our manager, Kathryn. Kathryn approved the request but said she did tell her it wasn’t ideal given she was also away for a conference the week prior to her leave and has taken leave several times this year.

We do have quite generous leave entitlements, but feel like I can never take mine. Annika demands detailed handover notes from me if I’m away for two days (even though I don’t think she reads them properly) but I don’t get any from her when she’s away for six weeks. I’ve often gone to work while feeling sick because I know she’s away. When I had Covid, she gave me two minutes’ notice that I would need to run a Zoom meeting she had scheduled because she was busy and lost track of time (she “forgot” I was unwell and I did say I could keep working from home since I wasn’t bedridden, so that’s probably my fault). There have been several times where I’ve mentioned wanting to take a week off at a particular time, and she’s told me I can’t because she’ll be away.

Annika is obviously entitled to take her leave, but how do I get over my resentment?

By advocating more assertively for what you need!

First and foremost, take your leave. Annika doesn’t get to tell you that you can’t; take whatever leave you want to take, just as she does. If you can’t both be gone at once and she books the whole year up early, start booking yours earlier too … and if that doesn’t solve it, tell your manager you’re unable to take your own leave because of Annika’s schedule and ask for her to help so you can use the time off that’s part of your compensation.

Second, if your workload is too high because Annika is gone so frequently, dump that squarely in the lap of your manager: “I’m not able to do my own job plus Annika’s this frequently. I can do X and Y, or Y and Z, but not all of it. How do you want me to prioritize?” You don’t need to just do it all.

And if you want detailed handover notes from Annika the way she gets from you, ask for them! Or if you don’t want them and don’t think it’s a good use of your time to provide them to her, take that to your boss as well.

Right now you’re letting Annika call all the shots without speaking up for what you want and need. Start speaking up!

3. When should I tell my boss I’ll be resigning after my maternity leave?

I’m pregnant and due this fall, and my employer offers 12 weeks of paid parental leave. Recently my husband and I have been researching daycare options and reviewing our budget and have realized it will make the most sense financially and logistically for me to leave my job and take a few years off to care for our child until they’re eligible for preschool. Childcare is really expensive in our area, and while my organization offers good benefits, the pay isn’t great.

I’d really like to utilize my paid leave, so I’m struggling to decide when I should notify my supervisor that I’m not planning to return. I’m a crucial member of my team, and I feel guilty allowing them to think I’ll be back to work after my leave and make plans accordingly. However, I’ve been warned by my family that if I tell them ahead of time, they might terminate my employment preemptively to avoid having to pay out leave for an employee who isn’t coming back. I’ve worked really hard at this company for subpar pay for eight years and have never taken leave before or even used all my sick days, so I sort of feel like I’ve earned this paid leave. Is it better to let my supervisor know in advance that I’m planning to resign after my leave is up so they can adjust their plans and start looking for my replacement, or should I come back to work briefly after my leave expires to formally give notice and tie up any loose ends?

Don’t tell them you’re not planning to come back after your maternity leave. First, it’s always possible that your plans could change between now and then (your husband’s work situation could change, you could find you dislike staying at home, all sorts of things); there’s no point in locking yourself in early. Second, at some companies if you don’t come back after parental leave, you’ll be responsible for paying your health insurance costs from those three months, and the paid leave itself may be contingent on agreeing to return for some length of time. (Check your employee handbook on this.)

Employers are aware people don’t always choose to come back after leave. Prioritize protecting yourself and your family.

4. 60% of my team are family members and they all want to go on vacation together

I am a manager of a five-person parts department (split between two office staff, two warehouse staff, and myself).

Three staff members (both warehouse people and one office person) who are all family, and they have all asked for the same dates off to go on a family holiday. This will leave only me and one other person. What should I do? Do I refuse the holiday?

It really depends on what the impact will be on the ability of your department to function. Will it leave you with enough coverage? Will it bring work to a complete halt / leave important functions undone / leave customer needs unfilled, or just be slightly less convenient? If it’s more toward the “less convenient but doable” end of the scale, I’d try to make it work (while also telling them it might not be something you can approve again), but if it’s more toward the “truly unworkable” end of things, it’s okay to explain that you can’t approve it because of coverage needs. If there are modifications that would make it work, like a shorter time away, mention that.

For what it’s worth, having three members of a five-person department be family members is not ideal, for a whole bunch of reasons. This is definitely one of them.

5. Citizenship delay has cost me a job offer for the second time

Thanks to the triplicate bureaucracy here in Germany, my citizenship application has taken years. Finally, last month I had my second to last meeting and was told I could in good faith apply to the jobs I wanted to (at the only big employer within an hour’s drive, across the border in Austria). I was given a date to reach back out to the foreigner office to make my last appointment and wrap everything up, five weeks ago. Today was that date, and in the meantime I secured a job offer at the big company.

Except, of course, today I was told “it could be two weeks more … or a month.” And, the kicker is, this is the second time I’ve had to do this to this employer in six months, having had another offer before. This time I believed my citizenship officer who said, “I am 99% sure everything is fine, this looks great, I’m sending positive energy for your job interview!” Fool me twice, right?

Now I can’t think of a script that won’t burn the last bridge with the only employer around, and I want to put the blame squarely where it belongs: “Hi, I can’t believe I have to share this, but my immigration officer encouraged me to apply, stating it was a certainty that everything would be processed by this week. I’ve now been told it could be another month.”

They can’t hold that job, I’m sure, and while there are others, I worked in recruiting myself and wouldn’t hire myself based on this. I needed this job so bad that once my citizenship does come through I’m having to consider moving to another EU country with a lower cost of living if this company won’t be able to hire me.

Ugh, I’m sorry. All you can do is be straightforward, and your proposed script would be fine to use. I might add, “I of course understand you may not be able to hold the job until then, particularly when they’ve shown we can’t rely on their estimated timelines, and I’m so sorry about this.”

They might be perfectly used to dealing with this and not surprised or put off at all. Either way, though, just explaining what happened and apologizing is the only way to go.

The post should I have called campus police, my coworker is constantly away, and more appeared first on Ask a Manager.

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https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31687

yourlibrarian

1) I've been seeing a lot more posting on

common_nature, very encouraging! Have added the first of my waterfall photos there, of Latourelle Falls.

2) Looks like there is a spammer at work on Squidgeworld. I got 3 comments to different posts within a few hours today, two with outright solicitations for commissions.

3) Saw Dune 2, and thought it was ok. It's almost as if the movie was made to be the direct opposite of David Lynch's version in casting and tone as well as visuals. ( Read more... )

4) Finally saw the Barbie movie as well. I can see why it did well. Given its remit and likely limitations, I thought it did a good job. It had a clear direction, and it did it well and with both humor and heart. I also quite enjoyed its ending. That said, I think the film itself opened the door to a more incisive critique which it didn't follow. ( Read more... )

5) This past month is turning out to be an expensive one. My partner's sister had a roof leak in her spare bedroom, which went on long enough that it damaged the bed underneath it before she noticed. Since this was where my partner stays when he visits his family, a replacement was needed. So we decided to move his current bed there and get a new one. ( Read more... )

Poll #33282 Kudos Footer-528

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Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 2

Want to leave a Kudos?

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Kudos!
2 (100.0%)

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Posted by Ask a Manager

https://www.askamanager.org/2025/06/my-boss-sent-me-a-bereavement-gift-then-demanded-to-know-how-i-felt-when-i-received-it.html

https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31503

A reader writes:

I’ve been at my current workplace a little less than two years – about six months more than our CEO, Ryan. We are a small arts charity in which I have a significant expert-type role, working part-time and freelance. Ryan comes across as an energetic and pleasant person, keen to make a success of the organization. As they settled into their role, our initially frequent contact has tailed off – especially as the work I do involves closer liaison with a middle manager and not much time in the office.

The atmosphere is very informal: “Hey, we’re all friends here.” Maybe because of that, I’ve had to be clear about my workplace boundaries (when I’m available, what my hours are, and so on) and when I was new, had to be very assertive about being included and consulted – and about direct and clear communication generally. There’s a bit of a gossipy culture and some colleagues circumvent each other when in disagreement about a project’s outcomes.

My mother died four months ago and I was overwhelmed at the time by the kindness of my colleagues. I received a lovely self-care-type gift and lots of encouragement to take all the time I needed.

I didn’t know who had organized it, so when I returned to work, I made sure to stop by the office and thank the full-time staff. They told me it was actually Ryan. I asked them to pass on my thanks. I repeated those thanks a few times in passing conversations after my return. I haven’t seen Ryan one on one since before my bereavement.

Yesterday, I received the following message in my personal – not work – inbox, which I’m giving to you verbatim, because … I just …. what? Which was pretty much my initial reaction.

Hi, Please could you send me an email confirming you received a care package from me on behalf of the team after your bereavement, detailing how you felt when you received it? Many thanks.

This strikes me as a really weird thing to require of an employee. I’ve never before been asked to confirm receipt of a gift in writing, nor to “detail” my feelings about it.

To be honest, I felt …. upset? offended? Something like that. It’s only four months since my mother died, so my feelings are definitely Feelings right now and I’m trying to get beyond my High Dudgeon, but this has left me really unsettled and wondering if this workplace is an okay place.

Have I misunderstood something? Given that communication issues have troubled me there before – plus, you know, dead mum – is it just me, finding this message weird and intrusive and somehow transactional about what I thought was a spontaneous gift?

And more to the point, how on earth do I handle it? Pretending I haven’t received it (current strategy) – and stewing about it so much I write to you – isn’t going to cut the mustard for long. I’d like to be professional and direct in the way I address it, but part of me is just very very GET IN THE SEA about the whole thing.

This is very, very weird!

It would be fine for Ryan to confirm that you received the care package, if the thanks you passed along happened not to have reached him. A little awkward so long after the fact, but not a huge deal.

But “detailing how you felt when you received it”?? What on earth was he hoping for there — “Well, Ryan, I felt awful because my mom had just died but I was bowled over by your beneficence?

It feels transactional to you now because Ryan’s message feels like he’s fishing for gratitude — like he only sent the gift for the payoff of being thanked or making you perceive him a certain way.

As for what to do, the only appropriate response to the email is, “Yes, I did receive it — thank you! When I came back to work, I asked Janine and Rocco to pass on my thanks to you, but it sounds like that might not have reached you. It was thoughtful of you and the team to send.”

You do not need to “detail how you felt when you received it.” You can decide that Ryan obviously didn’t mean to demand that and just answer as if he’d said something more normal.

Beyond that … does this fit into any troubling patterns about Ryan or the office culture more broadly? If it’s just a weird one-off, you don’t necessarily need to read a ton into it; people have awkward moments. On the other hand, maybe there have been a bunch of other weird things too, and this helps crystallize the pattern for you. (For example, maybe this is part of a pattern of demanding people perform particular emotions when they shouldn’t have to, or kowtow to Ryan’s ego.) If that’s the case, then the next step would be about less about reacting to this one odd email and more about deciding how you feel about the broader pattern.

But yes, it’s weird.

Also, thank you for teaching me “get in the sea,” which the internet tells me is a British expression used to express contempt or tell someone to go away.

I’m sorry about your mom.

The post my boss sent me a bereavement gift, then demanded to know how I felt when I received it appeared first on Ask a Manager.

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https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31503

goddess47 posting in

stargateficrec

Show: SG-1

Rec Category: Jack O'Neill
Characters:Pairings: None
Categories: Gen, Humor, Five times
Warnings: none
Word Count: 1421
Author on DW: none found
Author's Website: AO3 Profile
Link: Five Times the Cleaning Lady Wondered (and One Time She Didn’t)

Author's Summary:

Mrs. Halvorsen was hired by the U.S. Air Force to clean a few houses around Colorado Springs.

The clients are quiet, rarely home, and oddly fond of glowing books, deep freezers with warning labels, and candles that look like they’re summoning something.

She doesn’t ask questions. But sometimes… she wonders.

Why This Must Be Read:

It's just a cute little fic with a lovely outside POV about some of our favorite SG-1 characters.

( snippet of fic )

full_metal_ox posting in

fancake

Fandom: Neuromancer | Sprawl Trilogy - William Gibson
Pairings/Characters: Gen; Sally Shears | Molly Millions & Yanaka Kumiko
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 1,225
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply (but a character’s dark backstory is hinted at.)
Creator Tags: Cyberpunk, razor girl, Friendship, Mentors, Mentor & Protégé, Yakuza, Missing Scene, Female Friendship, Backstory, Fanon
Creator Links: (AO3)

LizzyChrome; (BlueSky):

lizzychrome; (DeviantArt)

lizzychrome; (Facebook)

LizzyChrome; (Instagram)

lizzy_chrome
Theme: Female Relationships, Backstory, Book Fandoms, Female Friendship, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Older Characters, Worldbuilding

Summary: How do Molly's claws and lenses actually work? Kumiko pries. (Missing scene from "Mona Lisa Overdrive.")

Author’s Notes: If you havne't read MLO yet, I won't spoil anything. I'll just set the scene, without giving anyway any important story elements: Molly is now middle-aged, goes by "Sally Shears," and is working as a body guard for a Japanese girl named Kumiko.

I do not own "Mona Lisa Overdrive."

This oldie was written probably over ten years ago. I originally posted it to Fanfiction.net, then took it down, feeling it was pointless. But in light of the new "Neuromancer" show coming out, I want to preserve this little ficlet, to see how my fanon explanation for how Molly's claws work compares to what (if anything) the show gives us regarding that explanation. After a quick re-read, I decided that no edit was needed. What you see here is what I originally posted ten or eleven years ago.

Reccer's Notes: This vignette expands upon an exchange in Mona Lisa Overdrive between aging cyborg mercenary Sally Shears (AKA Molly Millions, Cat Mother, Steppin’ Razor, Rose Kolodny, and Misty Steele—this lady’s got more names than a Wuxia hero) and her charge Yanaka Kumiko; Sally confides measured bits of her backstory to the crushstruck Kumiko, including stripping to bare a torso-long scar (from a near-fatal cagefighting injury, kept “to remind her of being stupid.”)

It’s a precious moment of trust, an elusive commodity in both women’s lives; LizzyChrome elaborates upon this to let Sally hold forth on how her prosthetics work—a question that Gibson chose to bury under Rule of Cool, and that’s challenged two generations’ worth of illustrators and cosplayers.

With the upcoming Neuromancer series on Apple+TV, Molly finally leaves the roster of visually iconic SFF characters not yet defined in the popular imagination by a screen adaptation (1). The Molly in my head admittedly didn’t resemble Briana Middleton, but I look forward to seeing her interpretation of the role (as well as how faithful to the spirit of the book the script gets to be, now that Hollywood has gotten their hands on

(A) a Beloved Property™,

(B) whose cyberpunk dystopia is feeling uncomfortably real in a number of respects—thanks in no small part to megacorporations like Apple.)

(1) Gully Foyle from The Stars My Destination and Elric of Melniboné also come to mind.

Fanwork Links: Shears, by

LizzyChrome.

pauraque

Flashing forward 75 years from The Autobiography of an Androgyne...

Stone Butch Blues is an autobiographical novel following Jess Goldberg, a queer working-class Jewish kid from upstate New York. It covers her 1950s childhood in which she is punished and rejected by her parents for not conforming to gender norms, her coming-of-age and finding a place as a butch in the lesbian community despite relentless police brutality, her decision to pursue medical transition, her partial detransition when she realizes she's neither a man nor a woman, her loves and losses, and her political awakening as a union organizer.

So, I came out as trans in the late 1990s, and two questions I soon grew to hate hearing were "Have you seen Boys Don't Cry?" and "Have you read Stone Butch Blues?" No, I hadn't, because I was already having a difficult time and I did not think I would find it helpful to consume media about people like me being raped and murdered, thanks. Well, I still haven't seen Boys Don't Cry (not planning to!) but now I have read Stone Butch Blues and I think I was right that reading it back then wouldn't have helped, except in that it would have given me more context for what some of the older people in the queer community had been through and why some of them treated me the way they did.

( Cut for length and content: hate crimes (in the book) and in-community hostility towards nonbinary people (in my own life). This post is more about me than about the book. )

Stone Butch Blues is available for free on Feinberg's website.

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Posted by Ask a Manager

https://www.askamanager.org/2025/06/angry-bosses-having-tantrums-at-work.html

https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31632

Work is usually a place where people are expected to control their emotions. That doesn’t mean you turn off your feelings, obviously — but professionalism involves maintaining a pretty even outward keel. We’re not supposed to give someone the silent treatment, cry in every meeting, or yell at our colleagues.

And yet, for some reason, in some offices, people yell. At Slate today, I wrote about yelling at work, what companies should do about it, and what you can do if you’re being yelled at. You can read it here.

The post angry bosses having tantrums at work appeared first on Ask a Manager.

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https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31632

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Posted by Ask a Manager

https://www.askamanager.org/2025/06/my-boss-made-me-verify-that-im-really-exercising.html

https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31515

A reader writes:

My office has an exercise leave program that allows us to stack our two 15-minute breaks to leave early, arrive late, or use the time midday for exercise. This benefit may be used three times per week, and may be combined with our flexible schedule and lunch break to allow for longer midday exercise periods. We complete an annual form, signed by the employee, our boss, and our one-person HR department.

I am a woman on the larger end of the mid-sized range who works out five days a week at barre/Pilates classes, two to three times a week using exercise leave (generally by leaving half an hour early). As of this morning, our executive director (my manager’s boss) states I have to provide verification of every single class I attend from now on and from the past four months. According to his email, he doubts I’ve “used the program appropriately as there is no improvement in your appearance.” Neither my boss nor HR were included in the email, which I have forwarded to my personal email address. He gave me until close of business Friday to submit evidence.

This is the first time I’ve been asked to verify my attendance at my exercise classes. My relationship with my manager is characterized by a high level of mutual trust. I have been here four years and have had no performance issues, including attendance problems, in that time; I have four years of excellent annual and quarterly reviews to back this up. When we all completed our exercise program forms at our recent all staff meeting, our boss even noted that she’s never had to ask for verification.

Thankfully, I have my studio membership receipt and the studio manager was kind enough to run a software report of my electronic sign-ins for the past six months. Though I can verify I have not misused the program, I am disturbed by his email and wonder what advice you have for addressing the fact that his request is based on my size and appearance, and not my work performance.

Wow, that’s offensive.

He shouldn’t be assessing your body to decide whether there’s been “improvement” or not — that’s wildly out of line and pretty damn gross.

It’s also not up to him to decide whether exercise should affect someone’s body in a particular way at all. Exercise can be good for you without always leading to the sort of physical change that would be visible in work clothes (like a daily walk, for example — someone might lose weight or change their muscle composition by doing that, but it wouldn’t be remarkable if colleagues didn’t see visible changes, nor should they be checking for any in the first place).

And it’s utterly boundary-crossing (and I would imagine violating and demoralizing) to be assessed this way and told to prove yourself when no one else has been asked for similar evidence. If your workplaces wants to change their program to require documentation, they certainly can — but singling out a single person on the basis of physical appearance is not okay.

I would strongly consider saying this to your boss, executive director, and HR: “I am deeply uncomfortable that I’ve been singled out and asked to provide documentation that hasn’t been requested from anyone else, apparently on the sole basis of an assessment of my appearance — an assessment that’s not appropriate for anyone at work to be conducting. I’d like an acknowledgement that this was mishandled and won’t happen again.” If you’d be more comfortable just talking to HR and asking them to handle it on your behalf, you can do that too.

You could also look into local and state laws on weight discrimination. Federal law doesn’t prohibit discrimination based on appearance or weight (and the ADA doesn’t cover weight in most cases), but Michigan and some cities (including New York City and Washington, D.C.) have laws prohibiting weight discrimination, and Washington courts have ruled that weight is protected under their discrimination law. If you live in a jurisdiction that provides that protection, you should cite that as well (“I believe this puts us in violation of X law”).

Your executive director is an ass.

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mific posting in

fancake

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: (attraction only) Teyla Emmagan/Sora, Teyla Emmagan/Elizabeth Weir, Laura Cadman/Teyla Emmagan, Teyla Emmagan/Kate Heightmeyer, Sam Carter/Teyla Emmagan
Rating: G
Length: 2928
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: tielan on AO3
Themes: Female relationships, Female characters, Friendship, Ambiguous relationships

Summary: Desire is a fine line. Five women in Pegasus walk it with care.

Reccer's Notes: This is a well-written exploration of how five women on the Atlantis expedition or elsewhere in Pegasus feel about Teyla. As a twist on the title, they all do or did want Teyla, even if they can't pursue that attraction for a number of reasons. It's also unclear if Teyla reciprocates any of their feelings. Excellent character pieces that ring true.

Fanwork Links: Five Women Who Never Wanted Teyla Emmagan

mific posting in

stargateficrec

Shows: SGA
Rec Category: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay
Characters: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Categories: M/M
Words: 2758
Warnings: no archive-type warnings apply
Author on DW:

the_spike (much of their SGA fic is here)
Author's Website: more fic on AO3
Link: Untitled SGA comment fic on AO3
Why This Must Be Read: It's a short, well-written story where John and Rodney are trapped in a basement off-world after a building collapses. There's some great snark and dialogue and when rescue is imminent, John finally makes a move. A fun read.

( snippet of fic )

sholio

Thank you so much to everyone who left comments on my solstice/anniversary post. ♥ ♥ ♥ I don't know whether I'll manage to reply to you all individually, but I have been loving reading them!

askamanager_feed

Posted by Ask a Manager

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https://www.askamanager.org/?p=31602

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. There’s human waste outside my building

Our office is downtown and has a nice outdoor canopy that is covered from the sun and rain. It also serves as the walkway into our building from the parking lot. It’s not uncommon for people who are homeless to sleep under the canopy at night. This year, we’re having a lot of problems with people going to the bathroom under the canopy. Right now there are five evident spots of human waste that are directly next to our building. Our leadership is planning to get a quote and have a company come out to pressure wash the walkway, but it’s been over a week and the human waste is still there. Additionally, the large fenced-in AC units that feed into the building were recently discovered to be covered in trash bags with human waste and used menstrual products on the ground. Last year, our HVAC company told us it was clear that people were urinating into the AC units regularly (which is why we then fenced them in).

I was in a meeting two weeks ago with my boss and a woman went to the bathroom directly outside of the window where we were sitting. It was clear it was a regular spot for her to use because there were several wads of toilet paper there throughout the week.

This is absolutely grossing me out. I keep thinking about how I likely have human waste on my shoes and that it’s getting tracked into our office and possibly into my car and home. I’m having a hard time concentrating at work as a result. I told my boss how I feel and she gave me the okay to work from home for now.

What is reasonable to expect from an employer in this situation? How quickly should they take care of the waste? How should a company handle this to prevent this from happening again in the future? Am I overreacting?

It is absolutely reasonable to expect that human waste will not sit on your walkway for a week. They should be moving with significantly more urgency on that. It also sounds like they need an ongoing cleaning contract and/or should be exploring other solutions to prevent the problem or at least deal with it more quickly once it’s there. What those solutions should be is outside my expertise, but this should not be unsolvable if they care about dealing with it. More trash receptacles for those bags? Lobbying for more/better public restrooms?

I asked my friend Sarah, who works with homeless people, what else could help. Here’s what she said:

“Especially if they live in a large city or metropolitan area, they might be able to reach out to a nonprofit with a homeless street outreach team, and ensure they’re aware of the situation — that there are homeless people that seem to be camping in the area without access to toilets and hygiene facilities, and that it’s become a public health issue. I’d recommend speaking with a supervisor or manager, and frame it more as being concerned for the homeless people’s health and safety. The nonprofit might be able to do some troubleshooting and outreach, helping to connect people with shelter options or toilet facilities.

Some cities have attempted solutions such as mobile hygiene units. Depending on the size of your office building and the budget of your company or property manager, they might consider installing some sort of port-a-potties as a stopgap, and a dumpster for the garbage. Ultimately this is a public health problem and not an isolated one.”

2. Does it look bad to show up really early to a job interview?

I saw a post arguing that showing up extra early to an interview means that you don’t have good time management, or have a lack of social awareness, or expect to be accommodated. (In particular, they talked about a candidate who showed up 25 minutes early and said it was part of the reason they rejected him.) This seems crazy to me but I was curious about what you would say.

I don’t agree that showing up really early means you don’t have good time management, but it is a flag for a possible judgment problem, and to some extent a lack of understanding about how offices work. Five or ten minutes early is no big deal, but more than that risks inconveniencing people; they might not have anywhere convenient for you to wait or might feel obligated to interrupt what they’re doing and come out to greet you.

You should definitely get to the interview location early, so you have a buffer in case you hit traffic or other delays. But once you arrive, ideally you’d wait in the parking lot or in a coffee shop until it’s closer to the interview time.

I’m not going to reject someone for showing up 25 minutes early, but it doesn’t reflect well on them.

That said, early is better than late.

3. Giving notice to a company that’s secretive about resignations

After several years at my company, I’ve decided to look for a new job. I don’t have any offers yet, but I’m already starting to think through how to handle resigning. My current role is fairly specialized, so I would ideally want to spend my notice period cross training and documenting what I do to help my team with the transition.

You’ve written in the past that it’s gracious to give more than two weeks’ notice, but I’m hesitant to offer a longer notice period because of the company’s history of treating resignations as taboo. For example, one of my teammates was not permitted to tell anyone else that she was leaving for nearly a week into her notice period. Her upcoming departure was not announced to our team until the day before my vacation that I would not return from until after her last day, leaving just a few hours for me to tie up loose ends with her. I have no idea why leadership insists on secrecy in these situations when it is a completely normal part of doing business.

While I want my notice period to be a courtesy to my teammates, I’m concerned that it would go to waste if I can’t discuss it with them or effectively manage expectations for requests from other teams. My current plan is to stick firmly to two weeks, state my intentions for how to use my notice period, and propose an hourly consulting rate if they try to push back my end date. What are your thoughts on the situation? Do you recommend I take a different approach?

Wait, you misread that post you linked to! It says, “Pay attention to how your employer has handled other employees who resign. Are people shown the door immediately? Pushed out earlier than they would have otherwise planned to leave? If so, assume the same may happen to you and give two weeks and nothing more. But if your employer has a track record of accommodating long notice periods, has been grateful to employees who provide long notice, and has generally shown that employees can feel safe being candid about their plans to leave, take your cues from that.”

Your company is weird about resignations and doesn’t use people’s notice periods effectively. Give two weeks notice, and that’s all you need to do. (Frankly, that’s all you’d need to do even if they weren’t weird about notice periods, but it’s definitely the case since they are.) If you have time to work on transition documentation before you resign, that’s one way to help things go more smoothly — but if you can’t, you can’t, and that’s fine too. This is a normal part of how resignations go.

4. How to tell my boss I don’t have enough work to do

It’s performance review season at my office. My role is one that is considered “engaged to wait,” though it isn’t a front-desk type. I can go weeks without an incoming phone call or email. My other job responsibilities are so routine that on any given day I can complete my standing items in an hour or less. I try to fill my work time responsibly, but I can only listen to industry-relevant podcasts for so long before my ears fall off. I’m so bored every day. When I started this position, I took over some responsibilities from my coworker’s job description. In a previous review, I tried to name other tasks I could take off her plate, but my supervisor declined for legitimate business reasons.

A further concern of mine comes from terrible timing. The contract that defines and funds my position is up for renegotiation, and those conversations will happen during this review period. Several outcomes are possible for my role, ranging from termination of my position, to keeping my position with reduced hours, to keeping my position fully as-is. I worry that expressing how little I have to do or how little time I actually spend “working” will fuel decisions to reduce my hours or eliminate my position. How do I tell my boss that I don’t have enough work to do without jeopardizing my job?

Wait until the contract has been renegotiated and your position is safe before you bring up that you need more work. That’s a conversation that you can have at any time; it doesn’t need to be tied to your performance review.

Once the contract is secure, can you go to your boss with a list of suggested projects you could take on? I know you tried suggesting tasks you could take off her plate and she declined, but what about entirely new work that no one is currently doing? If you look around and see things that need to be done that don’t currently live with anyone, that might be easier for her to say yes to. (She still might not — supervising you on those projects could be extra work she doesn’t have room to take on — but it’s reasonable to ask.) You might also look around and see if any colleagues seem particularly overloaded in ways that you could help with.

5. Is it legal to steal my idea for a job?

Let’s say you create a proposed role for yourself and present it to the organization and they take that role and hire someone else. Is that lawful?

Typically, yes. The idea for a job isn’t generally considered intellectual property. If they used the job description you wrote word-for-word, that would be a copyright violation (because you own everything you write as soon as you write it, unless you’ve created it as part of your job, in which case it’s typically work-for-hire and your employer owns it). But the concept or idea itself isn’t protected.

The post is it bad to show up really early to an interview, there’s human waste outside my building, and more appeared first on Ask a Manager.

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otw_news_feed

Posted by Caitlynne

https://www.transformativeworks.org/2025-otw-elections-candidates-announcement/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=265719

Candidates Announcement

The Organization for Transformative Works is pleased to announce the following candidates for the 2025 Election (in alphabetical order by given name):

C. Ryan S.
Elizabeth W.
Harlan L.B.

Because we have 2 seats to be filled and 3 candidates, the 2025 election will be contested – that is, the members of the OTW will vote on which candidates fill the seats.

The Elections Committee is excited to introduce the candidates to all of the members of the OTW! Included in this post are links to short Bios and Platforms written by the candidates. This post also marks the beginning of our Q&A period, during which we invite the public to submit questions for the candidates. Additionally, we will be holding a series of live chats – dates and times for those are to be announced based on candidate availability. Information on the voting period and how to vote will also be posted shortly.

In the meantime, there is a timeline of Elections events available here for your reference. Read on to learn more about our candidates and how you can submit questions for them!

Platforms and Bios

We asked each candidate to provide us with a Bio that sums up their professional and fannish experience, as well as to write a Platform about their goals for their term on the Board by answering the following questions:

Why did you decide to run for election to the Board?
What skills and/or experience would you bring to the Board?
Choose one or two goals for the OTW that are important to you and that you would be interested in working on during your term. Why do you value these goals? How would you work with others to achieve them?
What is your experience with the OTW’s projects and how would you collaborate with the relevant committees to support and strengthen them? Try to include a range of projects, though feel free to emphasize particular ones you have experience with.
How would you balance your Board work with other roles in the OTW, or how do you plan to hand over your current roles to focus on Board work?

You can read both the candidates’ answers to these questions and their bios by following the links below.

Question & Answer (Q&A)

To better accommodate the time constraints of the election and the workload for candidates, we are asking voters to limit to one question per message. Additional questions in the same message will be discarded. Limit of three questions per person.

Anyone may submit questions via the Elections form. Please submit all questions by 11:59pm UTC on June 29 (what time is that where I live?). All candidates will answer each question submitted, subject to the following restrictions:

Questions must be a maximum of 50 words long.
Any submitted questions repeating what is already addressed on Platforms will be ignored. This is to allow candidates to dedicate more time to answering new questions.
Similar questions will be grouped together to avoid candidates giving repetitive answers. Elections volunteers will decide which questions are similar enough to group.
If you have a follow-up to a Platform question, please specifically mention it is a follow-up so Elections volunteers know not to treat it as a repeat.
One question per message. Additional questions in the same message will be discarded.
Maximum of three questions per person.

The posting date for answers will be chosen depending on the number of questions received. Posts will be spread out, arranged by topic, to make it easier for voters to read all the answers.

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chuckro

Your father was the brave hero Ortega, who set out to fight the Archfiend when you were but a wee child. He failed and disappeared, reportedly falling into a volcano. Now, on your 16th birthday, it’s time to gather companions and set off in your father’s footsteps.

( Read more... )

Overall: Probably the best way to experience this game, though there are still arguments for the fan-translated SNES version. They did a nice job keeping the original flavor but making it accessible to modern gamers.

bethbethbeth

On May 8th, I offered to read the first five books people recced - assuming they were available (preferably from the library) - and I'd give a short review [https://bethbethbeth.dreamwidth.org/701769.html].

This is the seventh recced book review.

It's been a long time since posting one of these (I had non-recced books to read!), but I just finished:

The Lost Flock (2023), by Jane Cooper (recced by marinarusalka on dreamwidth)

When this was recced to me, marinarusalka wrote, “I’m curious to see if a non-knitter will find it equally interesting.” Because here’s the thing. I know nothing about raising sheep, I’ve never knitted, I’ve never been to the Orkney Islands, and yet this is why I loved reading The Lost Flock. It’s the same reason I like reading science fiction and fantasy; learning about and getting immersed in a world you know nothing about is great.

So…if you want to know about Boreray sheep (a rare, primitive short-tailed breed) or how felting is done or how to spin without a wheel or about sails for Viking ships, this is your book.

meteordust

Wow, what an electric episode. Fantastic in so many ways. But I admit my first reaction in the first ten minutes was "Ahhhhhhh! Jeffrey Combs!" I loved him in Deep Space Nine as Weyoun, and then he kept popping up in so many other science fiction shows. It was a real delight to see him show up here.

( Spoilery reactions )