Lady Gumdrop's Garden

And OF COURSE I had to have a piece as soon as I was ready to pop them from the bread pans!

I used Elaine's recipe, and this is definitely a keeper (for me, at least -- I don't think I can tempt Shaun into trying at least a small piece since he's a picky eater). And the one piece I had might have been dinner, too.

Thank you very much, Elaine! I now have something else fun to make every year for the holidays! :)

You probably already know not to click on wonky links, but there's some sort of inbox thing happening right now.

If you send me an email there that has something with "filmed" in the subject line, chances are that I'll just delete it without even opening it. (I already got one of those today, plus a possibly okay follow-up set of messages, which I'm only guessing might be okay, but which I decided to delete outright anyway.)

I'd rather not have to deal with de-virusing my machine right now! ;)

[Edited to fix the subject line term that caused suspicion.]

Okay, someone recommend a good fruitcake recipe to me. I know Elaine has one somewhere, but she might be like me a few weeks ago and completely away from LJ for a bit. (If not, post away!)

I really want to try this homemade fruitcake thing I hear tell of, and I'm willing to make the thing myself.

And, thanks, Monte, for bringing this up elsewhere -- now my curiosity has gone beyond passive to active on this particular topic! ;) I doubt I'll get Shaun to eat any of it, though.

Here's the list for your convenience!

Plague of Spells
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=217707400
Direct Chapter Link:
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_217707400.zip

Shadowrealm
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=217337400
Direct Chapter Link:
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_217337400.zip

Swordmage (paperback)
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=219107400
Direct Chapter Link:
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_219107400.zip

Lair of the Lich
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=219327400
Direct Chapter Link:
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_endlessquest_219327400.zip

I feel FANTASTIC and I'm still alive!

*hums a song*

As you were.

Several sets of metallic knitting needles are contained within a rather ratty-looking holder that ties closed with a filthy ribbon of indeterminate color. The needles are gold and platinum ones of varying sizes. The possibly purple silk holder looks like it has traveled through pretty bad conditions -- it has stains, tears, burn marks, ground-in dirt and maybe blood (you think), plus it smells terrible.

Check: It's pretty much what it seems like, though perhaps the holder picked up a few random arcane effects that come into play in the game at random points. In this case, there is a 5% chance every time a PC touches the holder that something happens.

d4. Result
1. Every liquid that you come in contact with for the next hour turns into a viscous, amber alcohol that smells like peanut brittle.
2. Any book that you touch receives a warding glyph that protects it, but only for 1d20 minutes. Then it fades.
3. You hair continually floats as if weightless for the next 1d4 hours.
4. For the next 1d4 nights, you dream about centaurs.

Price: 375 gp.

Five long strands of some unusual material are golden in hue. A single amethyst bead is attached to one end of each strand.

Check: These could be strung on a harp or other stringed instrument if adjusted slightly for each instrument. GMs might allow for unusual effects if used in a performance after the strands are correctly strung (which, in itself, could require a check of some sort).

d4. Result
1. The golden strands glisten brightly in the available light, which makes them stand out from any others.
2. A very faint harmonic sounds out each time that string is used for the next 1d4 hours.
3. The entire instrument takes on a faint golden glow for the duration of the musical piece being performed.
4. Nothing unusual happens.

Price: 50 gp.

A small faceted crystal case has two objects inside it. It pops open by pressing an almost hidden button on its side, and it opens like a clamshell. The hinge and button are remarkably well-crafted in nature -- as if the maker wanted to facilitate the illusion that the crystal case did not open at all.

Check: The two ivory pills inside the case are rock solid now. (They could have been that way to begin with, but their efficacy is in question due to the amount of time they've been in that case. They could have once been gelatin-based at the GM's discretion.)

Random Effects (1 pill)
d4. Result
1. Your nails grow noticeably longer throughout the next day (about an inch an hour), but your hair falls out in clumps over the next 1d4 days.
2. Your skin turns ashen within the next 24 hours. During that time, you are not hungry or thirsty. Your skin returns to normal after that over the next 1d4 days.
3. Your eyes glow for 24 hours-- and they shift colors every 1d4 hours. (Random color -- 1d8: 1 = red, 2 = orange, 3 = yellow, 4 = green, 5 = blue, 6 = indigo, 7 = violet, 8 = white.) No other effect is given (so, no, you can't see any better than usual, and you don't shed enough light to actually help see anything if you can't normally in a given situation).
4. Your heart feels like it's beating twice as fast as normal for an entire day. (GMs could consider adjusting any checks that relate to endurance with a penalty or maybe a bonus, depending on the situation. This should probably affect any resting situations, which could be good or bad depending on what's going on in the game.)

If two pills are imbibed within 24 hours of each other, GMs can either roll twice on the chart above or simply double the duration (consider it some sort of synergistic time-release situation). Or GMs can come up with more effects!

Price: 150 gp.

A small silver disk has a square-cut yellow topaz within it.

Check: The disk was a counter in a game that featured over a hundred different types of counters.

Price: 75 gp.

A pair of bronze filigree earrings have dangling, dainty pieces of metal all connected together in a way that makes a soft jingle whenever the earrings move.

Check: The dangling metal pieces are joined together in a way that once indicated that the wearer was a high-ranking sword-wielder among a nation of war-oriented, honor-seeking people. (The price below can be adjusted upward if the characters seek out a character who knows the significance of the earrings.)

Price: 150 gp.

A simple golden pin in the shape of a sunburst has a round-cut yellow topaz in the middle of it.

Check: Over a century ago, these pins were sold in pairs, and the stones on them were of varying colors. The one purchasing them would give one of the set to his or her current best friend or closest ally.

Price: 350 gp.

About that D&D comment from Goldfarb (others have posted it already):
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4news/20080828

(Sheesh. EVERYONE should always check their facts before spouting off about something...I don't really care who you are. And I appreciate it when someone points out a misconception that I have, so if I make any silly assumptions or whatever, please do point them out. Thankfully, I'm not repping a presidential candidate or anything, nor do I have a job where my knowledge is the difference between someone living and someone dying (as when a doctor forgets that there's a nasty reaction between two drugs he's prescribing or something similar), so whenever I do something that's based on a lack of understanding or bad information, it's not usually quite so much in the public eye nor will it have terrible ramifications! BUT, I still want to know if I have my facts wrong. Opinions...that's another matter entirely. ;) )

Also, linkies to Wizards of the Coast sample chapters for those who like such things (first link to product page so that you can learn more about the book; second link to zipped PDF); I should note at these are fairly recent updates:

Blackstaff Tower:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=218137400
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_218137400.zip

Cross County:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=219357200
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_discoveries_219357200.zip

Heaven's Bones:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=219227400
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_ravenloft_219227400.zip

Mistshore:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=217717400
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_217717400.zip

Oracle of the Morrigan:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=217797400
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_hallowmere_217797400.zip

The Stowaway:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=239607200
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_frnovel_239607200.zip

The Verdant Passage:
http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/Products/?doc=219807400
http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Downloads/products_dsnovel_219807400.zip

I hope I can post these whenever I can if it's not like sometime in the middle of the month at hand! (If you see problems with a link or page, please let me know here!)

Now, time for food!

An intricate beaded bookmark has a piece of thin rose gold from which the beadwork dangles on either end. The beads range from faceted golden yellow crystal beads to rich red ones and dark brown ones. A single rune or glyph is etched into the metal of the bookmark, which is in a well-worn black leatherbound book. No writing or lettering of any kind is immediately apparent in the book, though the pages seem to be aged.

Check: The rune translates to Autumn in a dialect of Elven (mountain-dwelling elves who were isolated from other beings for at least five hundred years at some point -- though GMs can adjust this if they prefer to avoid dialects). The book could have writing that is revealed in either standard (moonlight, heat, and so on) or magical means, and the writing is a simple address book of sorts for the largest settlement of elves in the mountains (annotated with amusing stories at your whim). The price below is for the bookmark only; any information in the book could be worth varying prices to various individuals.

Price: 150 gp.

A fine-toothed comb that is only about 1.5 inches wide is made from gold and has blue, purple, and pink gemstones on it. The stones are arranged to suggest flowers. "Alanthen" is engraved on it in flowing letters on both sides.

Check: This could be a flea comb for a pet -- or something else. In the former case, Alanthen was an animal. It could have been a familiar, in fact! In the latter case, it's up to the GM to figure out the finer details.

Price: 950 gp.

A leather case contains a pair of gold-handled scissors.

Check: These are scissors crafted by the hand of Pfilean, a halfling who became well known for the high quality of any scissors and shears that he created. He might still be around and kicking, but nobody knows where.

Price: 375 gp.

A strand of coral-colored pearls has an ornate platinum clasp. Each of the pearls has interesting silvery striations in it.

Check: These pearls probably came from an area blessed by the deity of the sea -- or by a dwarven god who likes metals in his precious things. Followers of both tend to prize these pearls more than others (so DMs could raise the price accordingly).

Price: 1,725 gp.

A heavy hand mirror crafted from platinum, sapphires, and black opals has an ornate flowing pattern on the back.

Check: Looking closely at the pattern reveals that it is a stylized symbol of a deity affiliated with death. Additionally, the top left and right edges of the mirror are rather sharp, and a bit of dried blood remains on the upper right edge.

Price: 2,500 gp.

A rolled-up piece of parchment contains the following words: The bearer of this parchment is entitled to one free healing elixir from Alain's Alchemy Shoppe. In smaller print: Alain reserves the right to choose the elixir.

Check: The parchment is about five years old, and Alain's Alchemy Shoppe is located in the nearest city. GMs can determine the cost of the elixir to be more than what's listed below if they want to scale it to the current level of the PCs. Alain originally handed out ten of these to a specific group of customers who had helped him out with aspects of a minor problem he'd been dealing with about six years ago; he has a way to verify the authenticity of the parchment (use magic or some interesting chemical reaction of your choosing, GMs).

Price: 50 gp.

A small crystal vial has a green liquid in it, as well as a single faceted stone that is a rich dark green in shade.

Check: The liquid is called leirntha, which the elves use to change the shade of stones. For example, a red liquid would change a stone to a red hue if the base stone is clear. Using a blue stone in yellow liquid would change it green over time (though it could turn blue if it's kept in the same liquid for a century or more). The length of time the stone spends in the liquid determines the richness of its shade. It's very possible for light liquid to tint a stone a very rich color over time. (GMs are encouraged to come up with rules that fit their system for length of time vs. hue and any artistry involved in matching colors to a specified end result.) Leirntha can be used over and over again, but it evaporates as quickly as rubbing alcohol does when exposed to air. The price below is for the formerly light yellow topaz and the liquid.

Price: 3,500 gp.

Currently up: Berserk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berserk_(manga)#Berserk_anime

I have seen a total of one episode. I usually give it several before I decide whether it's worth pursuing. Netflix rocks for this sort of thing.

I'm debating the merits of actually tracking down Gun Sword and buying it so that I can have it on in the background when I'm on the laptop working on personal projects. Or I'll just put it on my Christmas list and let someone else decide that for me. (Note to self: Look for it on Amazon.com.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_Sword

However, I think I want Cowboy Bebop first.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowboy_bebop

Along with that Ion drumset for Rock Band. Maybe. I'm going to keep an eye on that and hope that someone else around here gets it first before I plop down that much money for a GAME accessory. Granted, you can tweak it into actual electronic drums by spending MORE money, but I don't really see myself joining a band to play drums anytime soon. (If I ever do, you all can remind me of this post.) I'm probably picking up a lot of bad habits that real drummers would mock. ;)

https://www.drumrocker.com/