Confessions of a Liberal Puritan

My back and neck have been bugging me today, along with my right knee. I blame the weather, and arthritis. And sitting at a desk all day. And the commute. Oh well, at least I scheduled my lab work. Now, I just have to schedule three more doctor appointments and two x-rays. And figure out where to do it around my schedule.

And try not to worry about the stupid union going on strike. Folks were worrying over it in line to get cookies at Insominac Cookies today. A strike would effectively shut down a good portion of the city and all of Long Island - it would be a nightmare for everybody - which is why I'm against it. The Insominac Cookie Clerk decided I deserved a free cookie and a discount - since I come in every day or every other day. I got three cookies today as a result, one was free, and I only paid $5.58 for all three of the home-made, freshly baked, chewey, warm cookies - and the cookies are medium size. I was in heaven. Insominac has the best gluten free cookies anywhere. I've not had better gluten-free cookies anywhere - the closest I've come to these are Heritage. They are even better than home-made tollhouse cookies and the old Mrs. Fields that I had prior to being diagnosed with Ceiliac. You've not had cookies until you've had these. Yum.

I wish there was a pill or something I could take - to get more patience. I feel I've almost reached my limit?

Mother thinks I've a phenomenal amount of patience.

Apparently folks in the publishing realm and in educational circles have decided that people are writing with AI, if:

* they are using em -- dashes.
* semicolons
* proper word syntax
* coma usage

Yes, we live in a world in which -- if you have learned to write well or know proper grammar usage, you are considered a robot. So, from now on - if anyone checks my grammar or syntax - can I accuse them of being a bot? Yeah, that'll end well.

***

Chloe Zhao was apparently interviewed (prior to the cancellation of the Buffy pilot) on the Buffy ships. (Damn, they must all be very disappointed that the Revival was cancelled - since they marketed the hell out of the pilot.) ( Read more... )

As an aside? I'd rather have a continuation of Buffy in animated form, than a continuation of Firefly. We've enough stuff like Firefly out there, I mean come on - Star Trek, BSG, Farscape, Star Wars, Expanse (which is a lot better by the way), etc... Firefly wasn't that good. I tried a re-watch and thought, damn, this is annoying in places - it may have gotten better. I should try again? I remember enjoying it, but I never really loved it. It was problematic? It kind of took the worst things in Westerns and threw them in the middle of a space opera, that reminded me a touch more of Space 1999 meets Star Wars? I'd have preferred more of Caprica - which was a bit more...innovative?

I don't see myself watching an animated Firefly. I barely watch animated Star Trek or Star Wars, and I liked those better.

Happy Wednesday!

I'm taking search offline sometime today to upgrade the server to a new instance type. It should be down for a day or so -- sorry for the inconvenience. If you're curious, the existing search machine is over 10 years old and was starting to accumulate a decade of cruft...!

Also, apparently these older machines cost more than twice what the newer ones cost, on top of being slower. Trying to save a bit of maintenance and cost, and hopefully a Wednesday is okay!

Edited: The other cool thing is that this also means that the search index will be effectively realtime afterwards... no more waiting a few minutes for the indexer to catch new content.

Television Re-Watches

I attempted to re-watch Veronica Mars and Firefly - but neither held my interest, and Veronica Mars - sigh, it neither dates well nor holds up. I remember liking this better when I first watched it? Maybe I wanted to like it? The writing and direction just aren't that good. And Bell doesn't quite sell the high school student vibe? The performances are more forced and less natural than the ones on Buffy - there's a scene with Veronica crying in about the seventh or eighth episode, and I don't buy it. Buffy cried - and I bought it. Also, Veronica isn't as likable nor is Keith, none of the characters are - and I think it's a dual problem, writing and direction. I can see why Rob Thomas's work didn't take off and Veronica Mars didn't last more than three seasons, and the revival didn't take off. I may try Firefly, again, not certain, don't really remember it all. I only have a vague memory of most of the episodes.

April Question a Day Memage:

20. Did you sleep well last night?

Not really. I need to go to bed earlier. I've been getting to bed around 10:30, and as a result only sleep a little over 5 hours. Also getting up at 5:50 am. I slept longer, when I went to bed by 10 am, and slept until 6 am.

21. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would that be?

New York City. I really don't want to live anywhere else? It has ease of transportation, my favorite mode of transportation, is near water, has lots of trees, and a temperate climate. Plus lots of cultural pursuits, and is very diverse in population.

I'm a New Yorker, I think. It's going to be very hard to prod me out. NYC has kind of ruined me for anywhere else. You either take to this city and love it for life, or you can't wait to get out of it - and don't stay long. It's often one or the other. Also apparently, you either love Boston or NYC, not both.

Maybe London would work? I remember loving London in the 1980s. I suck at languages, so it would have to be a place that spoke English as the official language. Also, I don't/can't drive any longer (yes, I drove once upon a time - long ago, in a galaxy far far away - it was called Kansas, and it was back in the 20th Century). I like trains. And I need trees.

**

Books

To get out of the reading slump - I've embraced one of my go-to genres, Fantasy. And am exploring all the new fantasy novels out there. I have two favorite go-to genres - Fantasy and Science Fiction. (Then mystery and romance, and horror, and sigh, regular realistic fiction which more often than not tends to bore me? I need more plot and world-building than actually exists in realistic fiction.)

I finished Illona Andrews "The Kinsmen Universe" novellas, Silver Shark and Silver Streak (I think), and stopped short of the soft core porn short story (Illona Andrews isn't that good at sex scenes, and I tend to roll my eyes?). It was good. Not enough plot. But fast reads.

Now? I'm reading Gideon, the Ninth on my Kindle - it's a book about lesbian necromancers in Space. Gideon is attempting to escape a necromancer strong-hold. We'll see. I'm heterosexual - so lesbian stories sometimes work for me, and sometimes don't. It depends on the characters. Actually that's true of heterosexual stories too, so never mind. It came highly rec'd - mainly for the banter and laugh out loud sections, also emotional core. From various social media sources - people here, and random strangers on "Book Instagram" (I finally found "Book Instagram" - which is kind of like Book TikTok but far less annoying, and not quite as obnoxious with the marketing and pimping - not that I'm on TikTock - TikTock irritates me - and that's just from the posts folks throw at me from it on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. It reminds me of the worst of Twitter - but with videos.)

Also making my way through This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Illona Andrews - in hard cover (so I can only read it at home - although, I am debating lugging it to doctor's appointments). This book is a portal fantasy - except into a "GrimDark Fantasy World" (a la Game of Thrones without GRR Martin's abilities - so think a very watered down version of Game of Thrones?). Portal Fantasy is not my favorite fantasy sub-genre?
It's hard to pull off well - and Illona Andrews doesn't quite manage it? So far there are far too many information dumps, and way too much telling and not enough showing. Every time a character shows up - we get a couple of paragraphs, sometimes pages of character backstory, summarized by the protagonist based on her memory of the book's world. It's kind of like having a commentator with you as you read? CS Lewis did a better job with the portal fantasy in the Chronicles of Narnia, as did the guy who wrote The Magicians, which became a series. Long Live Evil - was atrocious, I couldn't get through it.

Also the world, which is GrimDark, is much nicer to the protagonist than it should be. It's kind of a comforting, romantic take on Game of Thrones, while at the same time making fun of Game of Thrones...or the fact that GRR Martin can't finish the series because he wrote himself into a corner and got writer's block as a result. (We're never going to see Winds of Winter.)

***

Doctors...

I've finally figured out why people who see doctors are called patients. I'm surprised it took this long. It's kind of obvious when you think about it.

1. My workplace's browser (MSN) shot an article at me today on the renewed, cancelled and still waiting television series. I'll see if I can find it?

Well I found it HERE on Scary Mommy (sigh don't ask) (does it by network and streaming channel) and via Rotten Tomatoes (does it alphabetically),
and Tv Line and Metacritic (which is more up to date than Scary Mommy, not surprising in the least).

Interesting, albeit not surprising, sidebar? Paramount is cancelling all the Star Trek in favor of all of the Taylor Sheridan modern (also uber violent) Westerns. (I'm feeling validated for cancelling Paramount and boycotting CBS. Honestly, people were willing to unsubscribe to Disney for Jimmy Kimmel, but not unsubscribe from Paramount for Star Trek and cancelling Colbert? People? Really?)

Gone are the days, I can just list them. There's too many. It would take me hours.

2. Listened to a podcast - with Juliet Landau interviewing David Greenwalt.
Landau is great at interviewing folks. She barely talks and just lets them talk, with various targeted questions that spur them to say more about the business, and she, for the most part, avoids problematic topics.

Take away? Greenwalt's reward for doing Buffy was supposed to be - joining the writing and producing team for the X-Files. But Greenwalt states that he couldn't write for the X-Files. He just couldn't write that type of television series. When Landau asked why, he said that he needed an emotional arc or an emotional core - that his writing was more character based and emotion based. He said that while the X-Files is brilliantly written - it has no emotional core. It's just not there, and he couldn't write for it because of that. The network apparently wanted Mulder and Scully to kiss in the first episode, and the writers fought against it and won. Which was the right decision - it wouldn't have worked at all.

X-Files is plot based, not character based. You literally could put anyone in it and it would for the most part work - a skeptic and a true believer.
That's actually a hard format to pull off well. Emotion based is easier.
Plot based can get redundant and old fast. X-Files had good writers: Tim Minear came from the X-Files as did Vince Gillian.

I didn't like the X-Files that much - for two reasons? 1) I don't really like hyper-realistic horror. I like my horror unrealistic. Also alien invasion/government conspiracy stories irritate me - it's most likely a side effect of being forced to watch a lot of 1950s, 1960s and 1970s sci-fi alien invasion/government conspiracy series/ and B movies as a child. My best friend at the time loved that shit. 2) It's a by the books, plot procedural with no emotional base - and I'm a bit like Greenwalt, I need the emotional arc. I get bored or my attention starts to wander if I don't have that. I'm more character than plot oriented, most people tend to be one or the other? Some are both. I preferred Fringe? It was less hyper-realistic scary, and had more of an emotional core.

3. Listened to Nerd Subculture - which is an Australian Podcast Series on well, American television series? It's not very good. FB kept throwing snatches of it at me. So I gave it a try. They lost me in their analysis of Beneath You. (It's a couple, one has seen the series, one hasn't.)
( Read more... )

April Question a Day Memage:

18. How often do you listen to the radio? If you do, what kind of things do you listen to (talk/pop/classical)?

I don't really listen to the radio? But if I do - it's usually music, and a mix. I have an Apple Music account - so I just download music, and its unlimited.

19. In 1934, Shirley Temple starred in her first film. Have you ever seen any of her films?

Yes. In law school during the 1990s, I had a friend who adored Shirley Temple films - so we binge watched a few of them. (I'm not a fan - Temple annoyed me. So, I suffered through them? Also saw a lot of them in the 1970s during the afternoon movie. I've suffered through Shirley Temple, Godzilla, Elvis, Frankie and Annette Beach Party, Sandra Dee, and Kurt Russell films in the 70s. The best were the Kurt Russell films. )

We didn't have cable or streaming back then - so the pickings were kind of slim?

***

Started watching From on Prime, although it's an MGM + series. It's rather good. Surprisingly so. I don't find it scary so much as...suspenseful with an air of dread? Also kind of gory, but not overly violent. It's a common enough horror trope - made rather popular in the 1950s and 60s, actually (Twilight Zone and the Outer Limits loved this trope) - in which a group of people find themselves stuck in a town or specific local, there's no way out, and monsters hunt them at night. All they have to depend on is each other - which being human beings whose default is selfish entitled stupid asshole syndrome, isn't necessarily helpful? In these series, it's really the human beings that cause all the problems. Actually that's true in most horror tales. Let's face it - the worst monster is well, us.

The setup is written rather well - or the trap. I enjoyed the first episode, and the tension didn't let up and delivered. It has some nice jump scares. Stars Harold Perrineau of LOST, except with a much bigger role - he's the lead. (Note LOST is part of this particular horror trope - and among the better entries. Where folks are stuck somewhere and keep trying to escape, yet keep finding themselves back there.)

***

Online kerfuffles

People will fight about anything online.

I joined a Gluten Free for Beginner's Site on FB, and they keep breaking out into fights on that site.
It's painful.
( Read more... )
**

Also, there are still, STILL, idiotic judgemental holier than thou kerfuffles over Spike/Buffy and the attempted sexual assault in Seeing Red. That episode happened over 25 years ago? Seriously, people. Get a grip.

**

And, sigh, political kerfuffles over literally everything you can think of.

***

I've been battling a sinus headache verging on a migraine, with vertigo lurking in the background all day long. It's made me irritable. I blame it on the weather, allergies, and neck issues. It's also made it hard to do any exercises. I just want to sit very still and pray it goes away.

It appears to be dissipating now, along with the storm clouds.

Finished The Pitt S2 and here's an interview with Noah Wyle, producer, writer, director and star of The Pitt (he wrote the 14th Episode). I admittedly started watching it because of Noah Wyle (well that and I have a weakness for medical dramas). Now I love most if not all the characters. It's my favorite show at the moment. The Bear is close second. The only two characters I wasn't overly fond of - left the show during S1 or are about to. So, lucky me? I'm ignoring the fandom, because it's insane and doesn't appear to understand how television works. Sigh. Online fandom has become increasingly insane and insufferable since the early 00s, which considering it wasn't exactly sane to begin with... The nerd fandom is a little less crazy but not nearly as insufferable (nerds don't tend to ship romantic pairings (or care who is with whom) and are more into debating consistency issues, such as why is Spike's reflection visible in the glass of that store, along with the nitty gritty details of how a worm hole actually works and can you really fly that that thing through space - which is much easier to deal with.) (I miss the days in which I didn't know shows like the Pitt had a fandom.)

The Pitt is not a melodrama. Even if the crazy marketing folks online keep trying to pretend it is. It's a strict medical procedural that is hyper-realism, kind of like Homicide Life on the Streets was or Law and Order, or This is Going to Hurt (except more so than that).

Anyhow it was a good season. And I found it relatable and comforting. In the interview, Wyle provides five reasons for why it works so well and how it differs from other medical dramas (I'm a medical drama fan - so have seen all of them.)

Five things that make the Pitt work so well

"“It’s a couple of things that work beautifully in concert.

1.) No music. ( Read more... )

2) Shooting it with almost exclusively 50-millimeter or 65-millimeter lenses, which is the most comparable to the human eye—and only shooting from the point of view of a human being that’s present in this space. ( Read more... )

3) Taking place in real time. ( Read more... )

4). The election went the other way,” he says with a shrug. ( Read more... )

5.) This is essentially competence porn. ( Read more... )

Note, while the article may have spoilers, the above does not, and if anything tells you whether you'd enjoy the series. It's not for everyone? I don't like criminal procedurals for example - for some of the same reasons a lot of folks don't like medical dramas.

***

I completed Grantchester S2 as well. It surprised me, and not necessarily in a good way. I thought it was swinging more towards hyper-realism than, well it actually is? At the end of the final episode of S2, ( major spoilers )

***

It was very warm this past week, but over the past three days it's cooled a bit, and we're back to spring like temperatures. It's in the 50s and upper 40s today, overcast, with a slight breeze. Rain is in the forecast.

While this did affect my health a bit, it didn't as much as usual - ie. no vertigo. Which means what I'm taking to fend off the vertigo and doing to fend it off - seems to be working? I still think it is a combination of neck and sinus issues. The neck resulting in the vestibular, the sinus resulting in the headaches.

Had troubles getting to sleep last night. Spent time before bed on social media - which probably caused it. I got triggered - and as a result, my brain wouldn't shut off. But, I found a cure finally? My Calm App - I used two separate sleep meditations which managed to calm my brain and dis-spell the onslaught of negative thoughts churned up by time wasted on the internet. Note to self - stay off the internet at night.

April Question a Day memage:

11. Have you ever flown a kite?

Yes. When I was a kid - which was sometime in the 1970s?

12. What’s your favourite breed of dog?

I am partial to spaniels, but also adore collies.

13. Have you ever volunteered to do something long-term?

Yes. I worked with the Legal Aid Association of Western Missouri and the Domestic Violence Coalition as a volunteer for about a year or well over in the 1990s. And, volunteered with a social justice organization in my church for about two-three years.

14. It’s International Laverbread Day. Have you ever tried it?

No. (Per the youtube link, it is essentially seaweed turned into a kind of a paste. Richard Burton called it the Welsh Cavier.) The Wiki link wouldn't come up for some reason, instead I got an AI description and well the youtube link on what it is. They call it laverbread - because they knead the seaweed, and to eat it - mix it with oatmeal and use bacon grease to make it into cakes.

The youtube link is kind of fun and informative - it's an Asian woman trying Welsh Laverbread and showing how to make it. I enjoyed it more than reading a Wiki entry.

15. Leonardo Da Vinci was born today in 1452. What comes to mind when you think of Leonardo? Have you ever seen one of his works?

Mona Lisa, also The Anatomical Jesus and the Last Supper. Or the Da Vinci Code - which my parents thrust on me when I visited them in the early 00s.

16. In 1922, Annie Oakley set a women's record by breaking 100 clay targets in a row. Have you ever been clay pigeon shooting?

No.

17. Have you ever seen bats flying in your area? Have you ever seen a bat up close or seen a bat house attached to a tree?

Yes. Fruit Bats are rather common on the East Coast. And when I was a kid in West Chester, Pa - I saw them all the time.

***

Having quite a bit of down-time at work (albeit not nearly as much as many television actors and retail employees do, or flagmen for that matter), I listened to actor podcasts while playing with a spreadsheet.

It's a trend now. Actor podcasts. Not everyone has them. Just the struggling actors who require side-hustles. And considering there's a 99% unemployment rate in professional acting? There's a lot of actors hunting side-hustles.

The podcasts range from:

1. actors re-watching the television shows they were in over 20 years ago, and somehow never got around to watching until now. ( Read more... )

Charisma's Bitch is Back much like Landau's Revamped and Sackoff's podcasts, have interviews with lots of old cast mates and friends. Charisma did one with Seth Green - and they discuss trying out varieties of psychedelic drugs. ( Read more... )

Seth does explain why he had issues with Buffy. Even though, generally speaking, he enjoyed the experience and appreciated working with Joss - and had known Joss, Sarah and Hannigan for a long time. He grew up with Sarah and Aly. Also Green was in the original Buffy film - his scene was cut. He played a vampire with bad teeth. ( Green and Charisma's difficulties on Buffy )

2. Actors interviewing other actors (usually their friends and fellow cast mates - ie. other struggling actors)

* Michael Rosenbloom does "Inside of You" - he's a good interviewer but the ad breaks are annoying. He knows a lot of people - so he has a good range of guests on his series, and he gets a lot of information from them. He also talks a lot about mental illness and therapy on his series. And how difficult it is to work in the business and get work.

I listened to one with Jensen Ackles (Supernatural, The Boys, etc) - which was interesting. ( Read more... )

Others are:

Jonathan Frakes and Brent Spiner - Dropping Names (a fun one is where they invite Alan Tyduke and Nathan Fillon over, who in turn pimp their podcast Once We Were Spacemen).

Alan Tyduke and Nathan Fillon - Once We Were Spacemen (which is mostly them riffing)

Maurice Bernard - State of Mind (has a lot of soap actors, along with other celebrities of sports, music and acting) - discusses mental illness (take away? An alarming number of soap opera actors have bi-polar disease.)

Katee Sack-Off - she interviews a lot of folks prior to doing the rewatch

James Marsters and Mark Devine - Schmactors, and VidIdiots

There are more, obviously, I just don't feel like rambling all of them off?
When I say it's the latest trend - I'm not exaggerating. Actors have a lot of side hustles. They kind of have to? Acting is a difficult profession to make a living in.

Sigh, I continue to collect doctors. Price of growing older, I guess? ( health issues..which are seemingly endless )

Books...

I'm making my way through two Illona Andrews books, one in hardcover, This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me - which is lovely (in that I'm really enjoying it - the heroine is clever, strategic and not a killer and it has engaging characters and banter - if a touch pedestrian in the description department. I prefer good dialogue to description anyhow, so not an issue. And right now, the brain doesn't want all that much description.) but I've little time to read it? I can't cart it with me to and from work. Too bulky.

And..."The Silver Streak?" I think that's the name of it? It's the second novella in the Kinsmen series. More science fiction than fantasy. It has a neat subversive take on the personal assistant/powerful boss romantic trope. The set up is: ( Read more... )

I like Andrews - partly because their novels remind me a little of ones I've written or stories I've told. Not exact, but similar vibe.

Andrews is also more into weird nerdy details than the mere description of interiors. They briefly state what everything looks like - kind of like, okay now I have to tell you what they are wearing and where they are - done - off to the more interesting bits - such as how does one buy or rent a house in this place? Or how does a bio-network work. While other writers give you specific details on clothing, attire, and scenery, but skimp on how you rent a house or get into an Inn.

The Silver Streak provides details on the job. I'm a fan of books showing me what folks do for a living and how they do it - and I prefer jobs that aren't glamour (fashion, magazine editor, novelist, singer, chef) or educator. (Too many writers write about professions they've done, and folks - after the fourth book - student, professor, writer, editor - gets really boring. I'd rather read about a pilot or an intelligence officer.) Books that skimp over that sort of thing, tend to annoy me.

***

The result of International Buffy Day? Hard to say. We live in a very noisy world? ( Read more... )

A spot of ...good news? Apparently it is illegal for anyone "living" to appear on a US coin, postage stamp, currency of any kind, bond...

Trump Commemorative Coin Spurs Portland Man to Act - it Bugged Me

( Blurb )

(Most of the article is distressingly beneath a pay wall. And no, I refuse to subscribe. I'm having issues getting rid of the subscriptions I already have.)

Oh by the way... The Rook by Daniel O'Malley was turned into a television series - adapted by Stephanie Meyer (Twilight - yes that one) of all people - but she left after two episodes due to creative differences.
There was only eight episodes and it was Starz in US and Virgin TV Ultra HD in the UK, until Starz cancelled it in 2020.

I'd like to find it - but it may be impossible. It got mixed reviews.
Good acting, bad pacing. (Which was actually my difficulty with the book - interesting characters and world building, bad pacing.)

***

The heat affecting the rest of the country, finally caught up with NYC this week. We've been in the upper 80s and made it to 90 degrees in some areas (mainly mid-town Manhattan and upstate) over the past three days. It only made it to 83-85 degrees in my area - I'm near the water. Still hot though.
But I didn't mind it that much. My knees didn't hurt as much. When it's warmer, I don't hurt. Which most likely means cold climates may be out for retirement? I won't be able to move without pain.

Decided to celebrate with a rewatch of The Prom, and a bit of a listen to Once More With Feeling.

Link to an insane amount of meta on Buffy the Vampire Slayer

(There may be some fic in there?

And a dialogue drabble :

( Pesky television characters - they never do what you want them to... )

I keep forgetting to post about this: we've been troubleshooting the "missing notifications" problem for the past few days. (Well, I say "we", really I mean Mark and Robby; I'm just the amanuensis.) It's been one of those annoying loops of "find a logical explanation for what could be causing the problem, fix that thing, observe that the problem gets better for some people but doesn't go away completely, go back to step one and start again", sigh.

Mark is hauling out the heavy debugging ordinance to try to find the root cause. Once he's done building all the extra logging tools he needs, he'll comment to this entry. After he does, if you find a comment that should have gone to your inbox and sent an email notification but didn't, leave him a link to the comment that should have sent the notification, as long as the comment itself was made after Mark says he's collecting them. (I'd wait and post this after he gets the debug code in but I need to go to sleep and he's not sure how long it will take!)

We're sorry about the hassle! Irregular/sporadic issues like this are really hard to troubleshoot because it's impossible to know if they're fixed or if they're just not happening while you're looking. With luck, this will give us enough information to figure out the root cause for real this time.

The doctor wants to insert a gell into my knee which will act as lubricant or an oil job for the knee - or a cushion. Evaluation is in two weeks.
Then three weeks of injections, if insurance goes for it. Mother informs me this is standard practice - apparently she's had it done multiple times.
Also the stiff leg is normal. Plus, I appear to be walking more than most people do. (I average anywhere between 4,000- 10,000 steps a day depending on the day of the week.) They said walking and being mobile was a good thing, and to make sure I stand periodically.

This spiel motivated me to walk from the Doctor's office on Atlantic and Henry Street to the subway station on Smith and 2nd street. Which is approximately a 15-20 block hike or a little over a mile. I stopped along the way - in the B&N book store to pick up a few books (mainly the latest book by Illona Andrews - which is the first I've actually found in hardcover in a book store along with B&N's tote - bag of books). I spent way too much at B&N, they talked me into their premium membership card.
(Which I will most likely live to regret - already regretting it.) Note to self - stop going to book stores after doctor's appointments.

The books, I grabbed were for the most part across genres.

1. This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Illona Andrews

It's a portal fantasy, and a kind of satire of portal fantasy novels. The protagonist, Maggie, finds herself naked and muddy and alone in the world of the fantasy novels she knows by heart. But these aren't princess riding unicorns style fantasy novels, they are more along the lines of Game of Thrones fantasy novels. She has no powers, no friends, just her knowledge of the novels and the world depicted to an extent within them, and the fact that for some reason or other she can't die.

Sample?
( Read more... )

Pets book. Book and I are going to get along famously. Only one problem - I read it better with contacts and reading glasses. Bi-focals not so much.
But it does mean I can read it on subways - if I desire - even if it is a hard back book that takes up space in the backpack. Also has a very pretty cover. It's love at first sight. (I fall in love with books all the time. Books, music, movie and television shows. People - I've increasingly become leery of.)

2. Also picked up "A Walk in the Park - the true story of a spectacular misadventure in the Grand Canyon by Kevin Fedarku" - per the back cover:

" Shortly after quitting his job to pursue the ill-advised ambition of becoming a white-water guide on the Colorado River, Kevin Fedarko was approached by his best friend, National Geographic photographer Pete McBride, with a vision as bold as it was harebrained. Together, they would embark on an end-to-end traverse of the Grand Canyon, a journey that McBride promised would be a walk in the park. Against his better judgement, Fedarko agreed - despite being dimly aware that there is no trail spanning the entire canyon and that the tiny cluster of experts who had actually completed the crossing billed it as the " toughest hike in the world"." [ It has pictures. And was Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award and Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Non-Fiction...] It's in large paperback.

3. The others are also large paperbacks, with bigger print than average paperback novels. "The Lies of Locke LaMora by Scott Lynch" a fantasy novel about a con gone famously wrong, with lots of twists. "The God of the Woods by Liz Moore" - in Large Print paperback - it's a mystery novel. When a teenager goes missing from her Adirondack summer camp - two worlds collide.

And some tea - Honey Lavender Black Tea from the Republic of Tea.

After that - I went grocery shopping at Union, picked up various gluten free items, and to Planted for a gluten free jelly donut (it was okay) and a chocolate chip cookie (gluten-free) - also okay. Not really worth the price of admission, so to speak.

**

4. Today was pretty. But I spent it inside sorting through clothing and yanking out spring clothes for 50s-80s weather. It's supposed to warm up next week.

Been in a grumpy irritable mood of late (hence the book buying) - so I'm glad the doctor's appointment on Friday went quickly and well. Part of it is due to physical issues. ( Read more... )

* Insominac Cookies Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies are by far - the best gluten-free chocolate chip cookies I've had from any establishment in my life.

* The only other good gluten-free chocolate chip cookies are from Bakery Island Foods - Chocolate Chunk Gluten Free Cookie Dough. It's excellent - I got it from Union. (I couldn't remember where I got it - so was happy to see it at Union again and grabbed two packages of it.)

I spend more on groceries - because of my diet restrictions. Gluten Free + Carb Free + Sugar Free + Fresh vegetables/Fruits and Fish and Eggs. Cheap groceries = pain and suffering.

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5. Fandom Entertainment News

* The International Buffy Fandom is plotting a major protest and various activities in connection with it on April 14, Buffy's Birthday - aka International Buffy Day - with the first celebration happening on April 14.

"International Buffy Day is both a celebration and a protest, a global show of solidarity from Scoobies everywhere.

How to get involved:
( Read more... )

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* "X-men Film Reboot News" - X-men reboot director has hired the show-runners of BEEF and The Bear to write the script
( Read more... )

* Spiderman: Brand New Day

* Super Girl - Woman of Tomorrow - about Super Girl saving her dog and getting revenge in space. Actually this flick looks really good. I think they finally found someone who understands the DC Universe to show run these flicks?

* Avengers: Doomsday - all the official trailers so far

* Star Wars Films currently in the works

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6. Television

Watched this week's The Pitt, and Robby really resonated with me. ( spoilers )

I realized recently when people say - I just want to go home (my father and grandmother said it all the time prior to their deaths, almost on an hourly basis) - they aren't talking about a place on earth, a house, or even family - but home, the source, where their "energy" originated from. To go back home to their source. Because being energy beings in degenerating meat sacks on a swiftly turning planet in the vast vacuum of space with oh such creatures on it - can be wondrous at times, but also deeply painful and often at the same time.

I've been struggling not to lash out. Suppressing the impulse to verbally smack folks upside the head for being idiots - has grown wearisome. Off to watch Daredevil kick some asses.

Took the day off for what amounts to a 15-20 minute knee doctor's appointment at 2:40pm, the commute to it will take longer - well that and the wait time. Although, according to the PT - my knee doctor is world-renowned or nationally renowned, and people come from all over to see him. (Probably explains why he sees 30 patients a day.) No, the knee isn't really getting that much better. It's less painful. But still problematic.
And PT asked if I was okay with doing the knee exercises for the rest of my life, every day?

Look, I just want to be able to occasionally walk a three-five miles without pain, and go up and down eight flights of steps. It's not like I want to run a marathon or play tennis or anything. Just do floor exercises, hike, kneel, and dash to the train.

**

Discovered this singer on Instagram:

Labor by Paris Palomar

You have to listen to the live version to get it. Also once you hear the final choral lyrics - it's hard to get them out of your head? Talk about earworms - although this is one - in a good way?

It's a female primal scream at our toxic society. I can relate.

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4. Are there opportunities to go walking where you live? Do you take advantage of that?

Yes. I walk everywhere. I don't own a car, nor take any. I walk and take the subway. There's two large parks nearby, with lots of green space.

5. Pineapple on a pizza – yes, or no?

Ewww. No.

6. Is there a fashion or style from your youth that you wish would come back, or are you happy with how people dress these days?

I don't care that much about fashion, and don't really pay attention to the trends. When it comes to clothing - I just want to be comfortable and presentable. Fashion makes no sense to me - why unnecessarily hurt yourself to look pretty?

7. It’s National Robotics Week – if you could have a personal robot, what would you like it to do for you?

Laundry. (I already have two robot vacuums - that handle vacuuming.) Also dusting would be nice.

8. Have you ever played card games? If so, what’s your favourite game?

Yes. I don't remember them after I play them well enough to answer? I don't even remember the names of them.

9. It’s National Garlic Month – are you a fan? If so, what’s your favourite recipe using garlic?

Yes. I don't remember or really follow recipes? I just add garlic to stuff - when it suits me? I'm an intuitive cook.

10. Do you often see wild birds in your backyard/garden/nearby open spaces? What are the most common ones you see in your area?

pigeons. doves. cardinals. and sparrows. Also a handful of robins.