farawayeyes4

Hey,

Is it just me or is time getting steadily faster and faster? It seems every time I turn around, another month has somehow flown by. It's almost already summer! When did that happen?

This month, as we continue our wild adventure in Ashaba, we're seeing it from Sesshomaru's perspective. I found this new arc set up fascinating from his POV and it will lay the ground work for the next two chapters that follow before we shift somethings around and start setting out on the next leg of our Journey.

I'll warn you, however. There is a cliff hanger at the end of this one. And I think it'll be an emotional one at that.

Anyways, you can find this month's chapter here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5488388/chapters/24310659 http://inu.adult-fanfiction.org/story.php?no=544177467&chapter=99
https://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_ch.php/102057/621062/
Until next month,

Far Away Eyes

123, ABC, for most of us, we learned this before we ever went to preschool or kindergarten. We learned it from Sesame Street, a program that brought us basic knowledge and understanding each day. Their sponsors weren't cars or candy or sugary cereal. Instead, Sesame Street would proudly proclaim that the day had been brought to us by the letter S or the number 4. Through this subtle method, Sesame Street reinforced these simple lessons with a catchy phrase. And while these were not really sponsors at all, when we think about the channel Sesame Street aired on, we realize that the biggest sponsor of them all was the American People, not a corporation or a business. It was through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting or the tax payer funds that provided the most money. Some of us have our earliest memories with Public Television in this way. We may not have known it or understood it, but we most certainly benefited from its existence and the simple but essential knowledge we learned each day.

But Public Television or PBS (Public Broadcasting System) is much much more than just Sesame Street. While most of us as kids would find their other non-children orientated programming boring or too hard to sit through, as we matured and perhaps took the time to watch a program here and there---like Nature for instance---we began to appreciate it much more. We could see that it was a thought provoking or groundbreaking medium. PBS would allow us to see portions of our world that we may never ever visit or know about otherwise---all without ever having to leave our homes. Perspectives we aren't even aware of prior are explored in depth in their shows. They talk about serious topics like history or religion or science or culture in a way that deepens our nation.



For many in the last decade, PBS has also come to mean shows like Downton Abbey or the more recent show Victoria. These shows are exquisitely done dramas that show us a past or a historical figure in a thought provoking portrayal, but in reality this is only the surface for PBS. It is when we watch the other shows advertised before and after these dramas that we begin to really appreciate the depth and reach Public Television truly provides.




Take for instance Rick Steves and his travel programs around Europe or the very complex look at the Holy Land. He not only shows us the examples we think about for each European country stop, he shows us the culture, the food, the off beaten path gems, and the complex histories of these places in clear, concise manners. He even went further to present that in his deep look at the Holy Land. We also are gifted through PBS with other cultural programs like Globe Trekker, a show that takes us indepth and deep into the history and culture of a particular locale. Or the recent show with Billy Connolly and his trek across America by train. Not only do we get to see other places in the world we may never venture to, we're gifted through PBS a deeper understanding of America, OUR country, through these cultural shows.





Or, take the look at our planet through the science shows like Nature and NOVA. These two programs make science accessible and relatable in ways perhaps we never found in school or in a book. Nature shows us upclose explorations of animals and how they live and how they relate to our inhabiting the planet. Their recent show, “Spy In the Wild” gave us some of our most clear and astonishing looks at how animals not only live but how intelligent they are, how they love, how they build communities, and how similar they really are to us in so many respects all the while being unique species. NOVA gives us greater understanding about various topics ranging from how certain everyday items came into being and how they function to the issues of climate change to cutting edge science changes. Take for example the look at how origami is shaping our future technology. The art of folding paper into cranes and other shapes from Japanese culture has transformed into other mediums such as metal and may one day help us to build a better more efficient rocket or space probe sent to monitor or explore another planet in our solar system. These looks at our world and universe can only be truly found for the American People as a whole on Public Television.



And then there's the most crucial element of PBS: the news. Today's world is rife with troubled news sources on the Internet and even within the standard big four network news affiliates. Too many, on both political sides, feel they can no longer trust the news they see on CBS, CNN, FOX, ABC, NBC, or in the biggest for profit newspapers. It matters not who they voted for in the previous election or what political affiliation they have. If there's one thing that most can agree upon, it is that there's something wrong with corporate media today. And so, this is where PBS steps in with crucial news programs like NewsHour or Frontline. These programs tackle news differently than the cable or network news sources. They don't rely upon simple soundbites to catch people's attention or to give only an impression of a world event. Instead, the news on PBS digs much deeper and gives each person the ability to think about the news being conveyed to decide for themselves. This is a fundamental of any story, any news we hear. To simply accept what is being told without contemplation or consideration is to lead us into danger.



And yet, PBS does not handle this aspect of Public Media alone. NPR (National Public Radio) http://www.npr.org/ tackles this on the radio and online as does other local public radio stations through out the nation. These are stations that give us our news in a fashion that allows us to think, to understand, and to decide what is right for ourselves. They give us the vital information we need to be informed not just on the world events around us---from celebrity deaths and natural disasters and violence in portions of the world---but to know and understand just what our government is doing or not doing. As American citizens, it is our fundamental right, captured exquisitely and emphatically in the First Amendment, to KNOW what our government is doing that will have impact on our daily lives and our nation as a whole. It is our fundamental right to hear the news without bias so we as citizens can decide what we think and what we want to do about it. NPR and affiliates around the country provide just that alongside PBS. It is our right. We must not let it be taken from us.

While Public Radio may give us our news, they also provide us with other stations that enrich our communities, too. Here in Minnesota, we have MPR (Minnesota Public Radio) http://www.mpr.org/ There are two separate channels outside of the news that do just that: Classical MPR http://www.classicalmpr.org/ and the Current http://www.thecurrent.org/. Classical MPR plays a 24 hours 7 days a week stream of classical music with insightful commentary from its DJs, gives us opportunity to hear live performances by the Minnesota Orchestra, and plays a weekly opera on Saturdays from the Met in New York. They give us cultural background and historical information on composers and musical pieces, bring a richness to our life, and a place with beauty to enjoy peacefully. The Current plays a mix of cutting edge current music and local artists giving them exposure that commercial radio may not provide. Their release of a CD each year with the latest Minnesotan artists is a big hit every year and sells many copies to promote the musical scene of the state, the very same state that gave us the likes of Bob Dylan and Prince. Essentially, these public services allow for us to expand our dial beyond the Top 40 and the latest genre fad or over exposure. They give us a richness that makes Minnesota better every single day.

PBS, NPR, MPR, and other Public Medias are vital to our cultural heritage, our national security, and our rights as citizens to know about our world and our government. If you are concerned about these institutions and the current threats to cut the budget to them at the federal level, contact your Senators and your Representative https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=state http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ . Donate to your local PBS http://www.pbs.org/, to NPR http://www.npr.org/, to your local public radio station where it applies. Stand as an advocate for Public Media by signing on to Protect My Public Media http://protectmypublicmedia.org/. If you value the notion of a media source that is truly of the American People, by the American People, and FOR the American People, support Public Media in any way you can.

Public Media is ours. It has always been ours. It only costs $1.35 per citizen per year. We can all afford that. Let's protect Public Media for the present and the future. Thank you.

Remember on Seinfeld when George explained in great detail why Relationship George and Independent George could never meet? Relationship George would KILL Independent George. He'd lose the ability to be bawdy, be Movie George, to be himself, to do all the things he'd normally do because if his fiancée Susan joined their friends circle he'd be expected to act as he would when he's with Susan alone. This cannot happen for George or he'll end up losing a huge piece of himself. That's exactly the same thing that Net Neutrality prevents happening. If the cable companies had it their way, the Independent Internet would be killed by Big Cable/Phone Internet. No more cat videos. No more fandom fun. No more shopping in your pjs---well at least at certain sites! If Big Cable/Phone Internet walks through that door, it will KILL Independent Internet. And as Jerry says to George, “But I love Independent George,” and George says, “Me too!” all of us, too, love Independent Internet. Don't let Big Cable/Phone Internet walk through that door.

Let's rephrase it a moment. We live in monumental times. In the last thirty years, we've seen technological changes that have shaped and sculpted our society in ways that haven't been seen since Gutenberg launched the printing press and set the stage for what would become the Protestant Reformation. Information and its dissemination has always been a battle for who has access and control. Who has the right to read or access the texts that are provided by the wonder of the printing press? Who has the right to publish using the technology? Technically, anyone who has such a press can do so. In the modern age, in the 21st century, that argument has shifted from the movable type that Gutenberg made so famous to a digital text---a digital printing press we call the Internet.

Learn about the Printing Press and Guetenberg here: http://www.biography.com/people/johannes-gutenberg-9323828

Much like the printing press revolutionized everything in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries---setting the stage for the seventeenth and eighteenth century Age of Enlightenment---the Internet has already revolutionized how we do business, banking, shopping, every day communicating, recreation, and news. It has opened the world to new view points and to new ideas. It has brought people closer together all the while they are physically apart. It is through the Internet that we can reach millions of others in ways never thought possible even a short thirty or forty years earlier. It has given voice to everyone and all---want to find something or have a particular interest, the Internet will have some website, community, or app to fulfill that need.

Or it will as long as a certain tenet of the Internet holds: Net Neutrality.

It sounds extremely boring on paper. It sounds dry and dusty when broken down, so here's how I'll make it clear---think of the Internet's grand nickname: the Information Super Highway. Highway. That's what it really is in digital terms. With Net Neutrality, it means that you can go anywhere on that highway you point your mouse and click, no matter your cable or phone provider---just as you would point the nose of your car and drive down an interstate no matter the brand or make of car. It means that regardless of driving Ford or Audi that you can drive that road without paying extra or being forced to detour to a different highway to continue on your way. In Internet terms, it means that you can go to your websites---local and worldwide and beyond---without having to pay even more than you already do. It also means those that create the content you seek won't have to pay extra to even BE on that highway or pay for a marquee place within that highway that you can get to faster or find easier than other content. Who wouldn't want that?

Simple. The cable and phone companies that provide the Internet service we all rely upon for our everyday life now. They would love to either charge their customers more for access or extra access as they do for television channels---or they'd like to charge extra to those that provide the content of your choice more. They want to “tier” the Internet and make a so called “slow” and “fast” lane so that you can access only certain websites on the highway at the speed we've all come to rely and expect. I can see your eyes gloss over, so let John Oliver here explain it better than I ever could. Watch his explanation from when we first waged the war for Net Neutrality---and won.

Educate yourself so that we don't see Big Cable/Phone Internet KILL the Independent Internet!

Now, some have argued that the FCC or the governmental ruling that cable and phone providers must treat ALL Internet traffic the same as being a “governmental” take over. Oh really now. If you take this rule away, what will happen is you'll see the cable and phone companies decide what is good and bad or worthy or not worthy on the Internet. They'll let Big Cable/Phone Internet take away Independent Internet. No more “Movie” Internet. No more “Fandom” Internet. No more “Shopping” Internet. No more “News” Internet. Just whatever the cable companies think you should be able to “pay” enough premium to access. That's no fun for anyone but them. And, last time I checked, the companies that lead the charge for worst rated in customer service for the past ten years or so are cable and phone companies. What makes anyone think that they'll “improve” the Internet by dictating what sites are “fast” and which ones are “slow” and which ones we can access? Imagine having to fight with your provider every time you wanted to visit a local business website or your local library's website or a local governmental site? Imagine being unable to watch your shows or your news without having to pay even more? Or, for those content providers to pay so much more just to reach you. Something tells me that cable and phone companies would have no qualms about turning our Internet into a largely useless serviced unless one is able to pay a significant higher mark up than right now.

And really, don't we already pay enough? Tally your phone and cable bills. I'll wait. Now times it by 12 to see what you pay annually. Now you understand, yes?



Look at it another way. Think about how the Internet reflects democracy. There's websites, communities, and content that run the gamut of any interest or subject. This is a good thing---yes even for those subjects or view points we may not agree with. Some may not approve of all of the websites that discuss right or left political views. Some may not approve of the copious amounts of pornography readily available. Some may not enjoy the frivolity (but honestly, who can hate cat videos? There's a lovely cat video festival in Minnesota for a reason!). And yet, those that access and use the Internet on a daily basis have certain places they like to visit frequently for their daily needs. There's banking, news, education, and shopping that everyone uses. Some may not like certain news sources such as FOX, CNN, NPR, and yes, even so-called alternative or fringe or extremist sources such as Breitbart news. For every site you agree with, there's one you will disagree with. All viewpoints must be allowed on the Internet as it currently stands. That's democracy in action. That's the Independent Internet we all know and love. To choose which survives and which dies, it should be left up to users deciding which ones they will favor and which ones they will not based on which they visit and if they use the content/service being provided. Any other methodology---such as the fast lane/slow lane model---eliminates the democratic weeding of the Internet.

This has been seen in action. Think MySpace and Facebook. MySpace is still around, yes, but in comparison it has less usage and less users than its rival Facebook. Think about the start ups that are yet to be launched that could shape our future for the better---the next Google or the next Amazon or the next YouTube. No Net Neutrality, no one can access them in their infancy, and then the new venture dies. The Internet is the clearest practice of the old adage long held by the Republican Party: free markets without interference. (And yes, I know Republicans are the ones leading the charge AGAINST Net Neutrality) So, in this case, that means keeping other companies from interfering with other business. Verizon and Comcast shouldn't be able to tell Amazon or Etsy or Ebay to pony up or face being stalled on the networks in order for them to make a bigger profit. We should have the right and ability to visit Walmart's website or a small artisan's website just as equally. We should be able to reach our own customers equally---no matter what we sell or provide through our websites. The only business that wins here will be the cable/phone companies that want to charge even more exorbitant fees than they already do.



Think Cyber Monday, the final cap on the Black Friday/Grey Thursday shopping craze held throughout retail both digital and brick and mortar every year. It yielded $1.07 billion in 2016 alone. Yes, that's BILLION. Take away Net Neutrality, and suddenly that may collapse. If someone can't access your website because their cable provider may not allow it in the “fast lane” and that revenue shrinks immediately. Think that sounds bad, you're right. In no time, that'd create an economic collapse. In no time, businesses throughout the country and the world would be cut off from loyal and vital customers that are expecting an easy and quick shopping experience. Not all web businesses can pay the “fast” lane fee and not all customers can pay a higher premium for access to select websites on top of their already high cable/phone bills.

And now, here's where I expose that I'm extremely Dutch---and not just because of my name or my heritage. I pay about $270-300 a month combined to my phone and cable provider. I should, by all rights for what I pay them, get to use the Internet as I see fit, yes? If I'm paying that kind of money, you can bet that I'll be in your face if you try to dictate to me how I can use the service or what I can access or if I can reach one site at one speed but reach another at a slower one. I pay for this. I'm not just an Internet user. I'm a customer with hard earned money going into the service provided. I pay, they provide. That's how it's supposed to work. If they want to change what I'm getting, either charge me significantly less for this service or leave it alone as it is. Or, you can find out just how Dutch I can really be. I will not tolerate being told what I can and cannot do with the service I pay hundreds of dollars for. I won't stand silently by.

And neither should any other paying customer. The Independent Internet is OURS. It is for all of us. It should not be taken hostage by Verizon, Comcast, Charter, or Time Warner. It shouldn't be in the hands of AT&T. It should be for the American People. We pay for it. We pay for it directly to these providers. We pay for it in the taxes that are added on for various infrastructures that maintain these services. Put simply, we PAY ENOUGH ALREADY.

Protect Net Neutrality. Contact the new FCC Chairman @AjitPaiFCC or visit www.fcc.gov or call this number 1-888-CALL FCC (225-5322) and tell him that you want the Internet to stay open and unfettered from corporate control. Tell him and your Senators that you want to see Net Neutrality protected and upheld. Don't know how to reach your senators? Look up your state here https://www.senate.gov/senators/contact/ and start dialing/emailing/writing. Tell them don't let Big Cable/Phone Internet kill Independent Internet. Support groups like Demand Progress https://demandprogress.org/ and Free Press https://www.freepress.net/ so that they can argue on our behalf to keep the Internet as we've always known and loved it---and paid for it.

If you're not going to do it for the porn or the shopping or the fanfic, do it for the cat videos.


Because honestly, cat videos are the real reason we're all here on the Independent Internet, no?

Hey,

It's time for the first chapter of the New Year. It's a bit of a shift from our last few, but I think it'll allow us to build some character interactions and relationships between some characters that haven't really had a chance to meet/talk yet. It's also a bit of that coming of age story that is slow and growing for Shippo. He's been bothered by what happened with Rin, after all.

I hope this one entertains, inspires in some way, and makes you smile. We all need a smile in the world these days.

Review Responses:

Dunkelgelb: I'm so glad you like my interpretation of Sesshomaru and how he's grown in this piece. He most certainly wouldn't have intervened this way at the start and I don't think he would have felt this way then, either. Now that he's been through so much with them and gotten to know each one really well, Sesshomaru cares a lot. And, he's always been more about action than words generally. Doesn't mean he doesn't know how to use words to make his points, too. Glad you enjoyed so much.

Next month is a special month for Journey. The story turns 12. 12! Who would have ever guessed that this story---albeit after a six year dormancy---would be this old and still going? I'm glad that anyone out there reads it and enjoys it. I look forward to Journey Day each month for sure. And I sure hope you'll continue to enjoy reading. It is a joy to keep some wonderful characters alive for so long.

You can find this month's chapter at http://inu.adult-fanfiction.org/story.php?no=544177467&chapter=94 http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_ch.php/102057/620456/ and http://archiveofourown.org/works/5488388/chapters/21202130

Until next time,

Far Away Eyes

Hello there,

I'm one of the Live Journal refugees, as you can see. Finding out the truth about Live Journal's new serves unsettled me greatly, so I'm totally migrating here to an open sourced, American, and privacy centric place. Seems reasonable.

Let me introduce myself a bit. I am a creative writer, a retail worker (making my way to bigger and better all the time), and a someday librarian. I'm working towards getting into grad school for that, getting into the field of librarianship after that, and who knows what else.

As a fandom person, I participate in Supernatural and Inuyasha with some smatterings in others like Buffy, Star Wars, Star Trek, and the DC CW TV lineup. I read a ton (or I did in 2016), and I hope to share some of those choices with you through the year and the year end list. I write fanfiction for an older fandom, Inuyasha, and a book series David Eddings's series The Belgariad/Malloreon. The entries for that story will be here on the 17th of every month with links to the archives it posts to. It's kind of my baby.

I hope that this new journal community will be a nice breath of fresh air, a place I can feel safe in the current political climate, and an escape from the darker realities we soon enter into in the new year/administration. (You can guess my political leaning, I suppose).

My resolution with this journal and the new year is to build on the good I personally started in 2016, the book reading I did, and hopefully sharing what I learn to help others as we go forward.

So, hey. Don't be shy. Say hello!

Far Away Eyes

Hey,

It;s that time again. Another month, another chapter. In a way, this is an early Christmas gift, right?

Last month, we had a rather porn without plot chapter. This one gives us the other half of what was once a single chapter---with the PLOT included! Who knew!

We're getting into some of the exciting chapters that I've accumulated for a few months. I hope you'll like them as much.

As usual, you can find it at AFF.org MM.org and AO3

Until next month,

Far Away Eyes 

Hey,

Another month has flown by and it's that time again. This month we truly start a new arc in the story and start a journey to Ashaba, the House of Torak. Along the way, there's going to be a lot of little moments I've enjoyed adding---some are funny, some are sad. This time, we explore the world through Inuyasha's eyes as they start their long trek north towards great danger. He'll be somewhat surly, somewhat resolved, and focused on getting them there and out of Ashaba in one piece---perhaps with a small respite before they really make their way towards the House. We are talking Inuyasha. He'll pick fights with at least his brother.

I was also lucky enough to receive one of the best reviews Journey's had in years at AFF this past month. I don't know if I or the story live up to all of it but here it is:

I am so very happy to discover you are still writting this story. I started reading it last month and instantly fell in love. It is so beautifully written. The emotions are so raw and real. The characters, settings, struggles and feelings are all described so perfectly that it just seems real. Your story is just so captivating, it draws you in. I did not realize it was an active story. I was completely heart broken when I finished reading chapter 89 and thought it was left there unfinished. I cant even convey to you the joy I felt when I noticed today that there was an 90th chapter. I am so excited to see how things devolope as the story goes on. I have read a lot of fan fiction, but none as dynamic and enchanting as this one. You are truly talented. Thank you for this story.

Thank you, Animotions_of_love for this wonderful comment. To know that anyone finds this story enchanting is perhaps one of the highest compliments. While this story did go dormant for many years, having it back has been a pleasure and sticking to that once a month posting schedule has been a real joy. As much as readers like you may look forward the updates, I look forward to the 17th of every month as Journey Day. I hope you will, too. Thanks again so much for reading.

You can find this month's update at AFF.org MM.org and AO3

Until next Journey Day!

Far Away Eyes

Hey,

Another month, another chapter. Can you believe we're almost to 90 chapters of this monstrosity? This story has truly flourished in the last year or so since I've picked it back up again.

This chapter lays so much groundwork for things to come, helps tie up some loose ends in other storylines, and gives Kagome a chance to do something rather remarkable. (No, I won't tell you. You just have to read it and find out for yourself.) I am rather proud of how I engineered the ending of this chapter and how this also focuses so much on the bond she shares with Inuyasha, too. They truly feed off of one another's energy and that can come in so many forms. It can show up in that endless bickering they do. It can be in the gentle touches or glances. And sometimes, when we play with some of that what if with the concepts of auras already in the series, we can really play with the bond they share in new and I hope innovative ways.

I hope the fusion of the two universes continues to work well for people in this chapter, too. We have some returns from the field and some characters that haven't interacted in awhile will do so again in this one and in the next few. It's been a delight seeing the two groups truly and finally become one big group in many ways. They're not nearly as separate or as divided as they were in the beginning. Over time, I think those divisions will truly and completely disappear in so many ways---as they should. This chapter also touches on some of those beginnings and will give us lots of groundwork on building that large pack they'll have in the long run.

Without further ado, enjoy. You can find the chapter at MM.org AFF and AO3.

Until nex month,

Far Away Eyes 

Hey,

Wow does time fly by, eh? It's another month gone by and we're ready to have another Journey chapter post live. In the month since, I've managed to accomplish the goal of finishing another chapter for later in the year. We're also going to have a chapter a month going forward for the remainder of the year. I hope to start plotting out the next year's slate in the near future. That way we may have more than one year's worth to look forward to reading. I'm pleased by this development. I wasn't sure if I'd manage to get a couple of them done in time, but I did. The slate is roughly set in a certain order, so I know what chapter goes live when.

This month, we're seeing what is going on with Koga. He's got his own role to play and it's about time we check in with him again. This chapter was a challenge to write as I had left the wolf demon in the midst of a pickle so to speak. And in the long run, I've kind of put him into an even larger pickle to be honest. You'll see when you read for sure.

Here's the review responses:

Dunkelgelb: Thanks for the review. I must admit I did spend a few years away from it, but now that I'm back to working on it, I'm finding that it's a lot of fun again. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Merely Truth: I'm so glad you found the story back. And you'll have to wait and see just what happens for Sesshomaru and Rin. The poor thing has had his heart broken for the time being, hasn't he?

The latest chapter, Chapter Eighty Five, can be found here: AFF MM.org AO3

Until next month,

Far Away Eyes