asking for help, since my friends all have impeccable taste

I'm not even sure about pricing or anything, but I'm looking for a relatively inexpensive and unusual way to add a certain whatsit to my kitchen wall. I have a blank space that's about four feet high by six or seven wide. As far as color is concerned, anything goes; the tile is baby pink, and the wood cabinets are stained so that they're a bright, orangey-brown. It's like when a red-haired person wears pink; the effect is ghastly. I can't match both, so I'm not going to try to match either. (Walls, ceiling, stove, fridge, and floor are all white.)

I have a few ideas in mind, but I'm looking for something that grabs my attention. Ideas that I'm already mulling over include a world map in sepia, a few of Lautrec's Folies Bergere and/or Moulin Rouge posters, album art or rock posters, or wall art of food.

It's gotta be cheap -- posters will go in boxy, clear plastic frames, for example -- and it's got to have energy. My living room will be the picture of serenity, with places to sit, one wall that's dedicated to books, no TV or computer, and wall art that shows sea and sky. But when you step into the kitchen, I want there to be color and movement. I have a dining nook that is an in-between place -- it's part of the kitchen, but it's visible from the living room, and the piano will go there -- and I've already decided that a sepia-toned photo that I received for Christmas last year can harmonize with just about anything I put in the kitchen as well (and it's calm enough to be visible from the living room). The other stuff will only be visible when you're in the kitchen itself, so it can have a completely different mood. I want it to be energetic without being obnoxious.

So, after all that babbling, what I'm asking for is ideas. If you like something I've suggested, please cast a vote for it. If you can think of something else that has the color and/or energy I'm looking for, please suggest it.

self-pimpage for the SSHG Awards

Slim pickings for me this time around. Lots of titles, but little substance: a meme response, an Exchange piece, and a bunch of drabble serials. Here are the fics that I have that are eligible for this round of the sshg_awards:

A Good Morning. One shot, rated Conservative.
Summary: A cup of coffee, a deserted library, and Hermione.

Dancing. One shot, rated Suggestive.
Summary: Severus and Hermione's anniversary doesn't proceed exactly as he'd planned.

Just Another Detention. Complete in six drabbles, rated Conservative.
Summary: A response to the Senses challenge at GS100: Severus finds himself dishing out equal measures of snark and compassion to his student.

I participated in a round robin at grangersnape100 last December. sshg316, ginny_weasley31, kribu, a_bees_buzz, misstee123, and I all collaborated to bring you Yuletide Potions. Complete, and most of it is work-safe.

I have other drabble serials that can be found if you're really desperate, but they haven't been archived: Regency Fluff, Happy Birthday, Severus, and Aperture.

The Drabble Trilogy:

Professor Longbottom. Complete in four chapters (thirty-odd drabbles), rated Conservative.
Summary: Hogwarts Headmaster Severus Snape and his Deputy Headmistress, Hermione Granger, find themselves short a Herbology teacher.

Pneumonia. Complete in five chapters (thirty-five-odd drabbles), rated Conservative.
Summary: Professor Granger neglects her health.

Hogwarts, a History. Complete in ten chapters (sixty-eight drabbles), rated Suggestive.
Summary: Professor Snape offers the irresistible to Professor Granger.

fic recs

For House MD. Spoilers for the episode that showed last week, but they're AU, as you can tell by the titles: Six Times Cuddy Regretted Letting House Anywhere Near Her Child and its companion piece, One Time House Didn't Completely Regret Being Left With Cuddy's Child. They're hilarious.

oh, this is disgusting.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081102/ap_on_el_ge/dirty_tricks

The article says this kind of shit happens all the time. I am appalled.