catching back up

Hello, lovely peoples! I've been meaning to post for days and days now, but it has been A Week, and for no discernible reason other than there having been too many weeks like that in the recent past.

Summing things up:

Thank you for all the birthday good wishes! In spite of the stupid week, I did get to have deconstructed gumbo and coconut cream pie at Watershed on Peachtree. Since I count the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot as a birthday trip, the rest of my gifts are (much) lower key--just things like new cooling racks (just in time for the holiday baking season) and a new pepper grinder. Still, lots of fun.

Also on the birthday topic, rogoblue, thank you for the cheeses, they were/are very yummy! (I somehow lost your email address, which is why one should never clean out inboxes uncaffeinated.) Also, the, uh, odd gift that will probably arrive w/o a note is from me. (I could not figure out how to add a note to the order and then it processed before I could go back and change it. I got a shipment notice on it, though, so it did get sent. Someday, I will manage to do presents w/o all this attendant drama. I live in hope that it's before I go on Social Security.)

BabyBoy and I went to see Thor 2 and had an excellent, popcorn time, though I think my favorite part was the 5 minute Cap 2 trailer (yes, we did 3D--13 year old boys don't go for anything else.) I seriously cannot wait for that movie. Back in Thor-land, I have this Clint/Darcy that's been kicking around on my hard drive for the last 6 months that seems to have been kick-started by all the snarky Darcy in the movie, which is a pleasant surprise. Extra bonus points that what I already had didn't get jossed by the movie--maybe I'll even manage to find an end for it at some point?

I finished an actual, full-length novel last week--will wonders never cease? It was one of my Victorian-widow-turned-private-investigator mysteries, Tasha Alexander's Lady Emily series. It was fine, but suffers by comparison to Raybourn's Lady Julia/Brisbane series with which it shares a fair number of similarities. But sitll: a book! of fiction. Finished!

Still watching SHIELD (May continues to own me, but FitzSimmons are growing on me fast; also, so far not-jossed on the AOS/Avengers Clint/Coulson, writing as fast as my brain will process); Arrow (Oliver and a sense of humor--I so approve; still on the Olicity train); Sleepy Hollow (I'm not sure which is more fun: the IchAbbie or Orlando Jones live-tweeting the episode). Still lagging behind on SPN and OUAT, and Castle gets watched in bits and pieces in the mornings so I'm watching but I'm not entirely focused.