ugh, it's already been a morning and it's barely past 7, which is what happens when you wake up at 4:15 and the brain weasels start running full tilt.

(It's fine; it's just the dealing-with-money demons that I usually wrangle by automating everything I possibly can so I don't actually have to deal with them very often. Everything's in flux right now, though, so I have to think about it all and yeah, I still hate sorting through the many 'uncomfortable feelings' (to quote one of my past therapists) it drags up.)

In less fraught topics, when I did my last round-up of what I'd been watching, I forgot that BabyBoy bounced off a few walls to get me to watch Knives Out with him, which we both really had fun with (though I made him watch youtube clips of Don Johnson in his Miami Vice glory days once we were through. And then I compounded the horror by making sure he knew the actress from 50SoG was his daughter. Evil!Mom FTW?)

I had some minor quibbles with a few of the narrative devices upon which the plot balanced on (which I hate to talk about b/c, really, just watching it all unfold was so much fun), and it took my brain entirely too long to cognitively align with James Bond and a Southern accent, but I liked it well enough to go hunting for fic during that week's awake-before-five-a.m. sessions, of which, I think I can link to Knives In for your post-murder reading needs.)

We also watched Hamilton, and for those whom I've met in the last few years and who missed my slight crise de nerfs after Mom passed away and very unlike-me spending-of-money (see above, re: demons), I ended up with tickets to the last night of the OBC with my just-turned-16-year-old theater geek of a kid. I bought the tickets in February, for a random weekend in July that just turned out to be the big night, originally because I was trying to thread the needle on D's multi-season baseball commitments (which ended up not happening, because he literally could not clear his schedule until after I'd already bought plane tickets and changing them (or adding another) became a 4-figure proposition.) I talked about it here (with random pictures) and here (restaurants).

Watching the filmed version was interesting, but the one thing that it really confirmed was that yes, Daveed Diggs really *was* that magnetic, because one of my crystalline memories of the actual performance was how he *crackled* off the stage (and we were in the upper balcony, so it's not like we were 50 feet away from him.) I can remember telling a friend that him swanning down that staircase as Jefferson after nearly jumping off the stage as Lafayette was riveting, like I could barely drag my eyes away from him to see what everyone else was doing.

So, I've been trying to write this since 7 this morning, so I'm just going to stop here and maybe come back with books tomorrow. ::crosses fingers:: Stay safe!

books
I haven’t been reading a lot since D’s stroke—just not a lot of brain power and my commute is very fractured atm, so I’m moving verrrry slowly through books I would ordinarily zoom through in a week of trains. But I did read Daisy Jones and The Six, which was fun, but ultimately sent me off to find the Fleetwood Mac Behind the Music (a two-parter, b/c they really were that much of a crazy mess, and I say that as someone who listened to Rumours on repeat for a solid year.)

I also got my hands on Evvie Drake Starts Over, for which my tip for max enjoyment is to mentally cast Anna Kendrick as Evvie and Chris Evans as Dean and just go with it. I also thought I was going to have to yell about certain aspects of Evvie’s marriage being glossed over by the characters, but thankfully that got addressed.

The prequel to Practical Magic (about the aunts, and presumably the mom) auto-downloaded from the library last night so I should probably get into that soon.

tv
I’ve been randomly going through my Netflix queue, with little rhyme or reason, so I’m halfway through John Favreau’s Chef (the series, not the movie, but hey, I’m here for Roy and John cooking through random restaurants and chefs and food people.) It’s not as soothing (or as gorgeous) as Samin Nosrat's Salt Fat Acid Heat, but it’s good for decompressing after work.

I think I finally hit my limit on Once Upon a Time, though I’m still ff-ing to the Hook/Swan parts (I dunno, it’s a thing, lately.) Also, like I mentioned before, I zoomed through the first season of Hell On Wheels, and am now in a bit of a holding pattern b/c I’m not sure how you bring your characters back after you shove them off that metaphorical cliff, and boy, was there a cliff-shoving.

In network tv news, I’ve caught a bit of Cobie Smulders’ Stumptown and like it well-enough (when the inevitable love triangle hits, I’m Team!MichaelEaly’s character all.the.way. I mean, the best friend is fine, but yeah, no, ME is fiiiiiiiiine.) #2Son & I are hoarding S4 of The Good Place until his break when we will nom it all in one glorious rush. I may check out the Nancy Drew adaptation, just because people are whinging about how dark it is and it Is Not For Them, kids these days, and whyyyyMillenialswhyyyy, which just punches all my contrarian buttons.

movies
I rewatched Practical Magic, basically to drool over the house (and a little over Aidan Quinn’s gorgeous eyes) and how I wiiiish that had been a better overall movie. The house is still amazing & I do love the aunts & their wardrobes. Actually, I love the sisters, too; I just wish for a better, more even tone.

I also snagged Master of Dark Shadows from the library, and while it is nominally about Dan Curtis, the creator and exec producer (who went on to produce The Winds of War / War and Remembrance mini series, who knew?) it spends a lot of time on Dark Shadows itself, and very lovingly. And it loves the fans, too, which is always nice.

What’s up with y’all?

D finished inpatient rehab last week; we had a couple of days off and then started outpatient therapy today. (If you missed my quick update, he had a stroke in June. All this therapy and rehab is of the physical/occupational/speech variety, not the mental health/self-medicating flavor.) Also, the new bed that was supposed to be delivered today arrived with only a mattress, no platform. Everyone is v. v. sorry, but … Back to the air mattress for me and the pullout couch for BabyBoy (D is sleeping on his bed.)

I am ready for the ridiculousness to be done.

Since I have spent a large number of hours in a big, green hospital chair next to D's bed this summer, I have accumulated a fair number of links to share.

From Kerastase, Eau de Vagues Beach Wave Spray - Between this and some overpriced purple shampoo (to make the silver pop) I have been having the best wash-and-wear hair of my life AND it lasts for two or three days (which never happens), which is fortunate as a few days into the stroke saga, the blessed dog took off after a cat and I did not drop the leash fast enough to keep from breaking the ring finger of my right hand, so holding a blow dryer has been problematic.

This is my Yay, I Am Not A Widow Retail Therapy bag (though I did not pay retail, as I have an annual pass discount and friends in Orlando to use it.)

I have no idea how many hours I've listened to soundscapes from MyNoise.net but it's definitely helped with my mental equilibrium.

Everyone here knows about my Navy pilot thing, yes? No one is going to be surprised that I watched the new Top Gun trailer a bazillion times, right? Alternately, wow, that Cats trailer did bad bad things to my brain. YMMV.

For all my popslash girls--seahorses!

At some point, I literally googled 'soothing streaming tv' and this list is the one I ended up bookmarking b/c it wasn't just landscapes or fireplaces: The 10 Most Soothing Documentaries on Netflix.

Byeeeee, and we'll see if I can make it back on Weds with coherent thoughts about the books I've been glomming to keep the bad voices in my brain quiet

Ok, we are in the crunch period to the Royal Wedding Shenanigans (someone in my twitter feed shared the news that Eugenie & her dude have moved into another one of the cottages at KP, which makes everyone neighbors), the boys are making me crazy, and I need to go review some API doc with several non-native English speakers, so here, have the thing that has been keeping me sane recently some more Modern Royals recs:

A Princess In Theory, Alyssa Cole, might have the Best Premise Ever: Our Heroine, a grad student/former foster child on a shoestring budget, keeps getting these irritating emails about how she’s the Betrothed of the Crown Prince of Thesolo in Africa. Our Naledi, being a smart girl, ignores the spam. Except… it’s not spam. :D So, yeah, super-fun premise; super-gorgeous cover; fun, mostly fluffy, plot, seasoned judiciously with a little reality, angst and villains, requisite HEA ending. Prince [] is a little oblivious to his privilege but not outrageously so, his right-hand-woman is awesomely cool (I hope she gets a sequel) and Naledi, the heroine, is a little vulnerable under her strength. All very good stuff with maybe a little bit of a rushed ending, but still, super-fun to read.

Royally Matched, Emma Chase, sequel to Royally Screwed, which I also liked, though I will say, the men of this family (the hero is RS’s hero’s brother) are about as far down the jackass line as I want to go. They (mostly) make up for it and get better, so there’s that.

The Princess Trap, Talia Hibbert – I feel like this one should come with content warning for abusive relationships, because, holy crap, does the prince in question come from one seriously bad, bad, bad family situation. He’s mostly still a functioning adult, but he comes with a lot of baggage and ends up dragging the heroine into it all. She’s pretty awesome, though. There should probably also be a smut warning, because there’s lots of (well-written and just a little on the kinky side) sex.

Royals, Rachel Hawkins, is out today and I am waiting for the d/l from the library, but I’m giving it a shout-out because RH’s #sexyhistory twitter threads have kept me going on more than one long, gray Tuesday. I’m waiting patiently for the whole War of the Roses thread, which will probably take weeks and weeks. (Today's thread seems to be Queens Mary and Anne and their less than heteronormative emotional lives and the tangles in which Srs Historians tangle themselves to not admit said less-than-heteronormativity.)

Previous list here

And finally, a podcast: When Meghan Met Harry, which has been updating weekly since the beginning of the year, covering every wedding rumor, related event, and marginal possibility. If you only want to listen a little, grab last week's ep with Tan from the new Queer Eye as special guest.

And speaking of, I am loving the new incarnation of Queer Eye, especially since they're running around the ATL, *double* especially when they take their fabulous selves out into the wilds of OTP (Outside the Perimeter, aka, Red Country.) I don't think there's been an episode yet where I haven't cried.

Also. Holy sh*t, I had ZERO inclination to see Venom, and the first teaser trailer did nothing for me, but then the second trailer dropped and TH (IN WELL-FITTING JEANS) came striding onto my youtube with his whole face visible (and scruffy, killmenow) and this is clearly a lost cause.

Alsoalso, I was going to write up my reactions to Infinity War, but I think they can be summed up as ( definitely spoilers )

books
now
The Winter Sea, by Susanna Kearsley--it is, like all of her work, very, verrrrry detailed. It also turns out to be about D’s family (the Scottish clan from the 1700s, so nobody we know), which I didn’t realize when I snagged e/audiobook on whatever Deal of the Day I got it on. It was a little bit of a kick when the Countess of Erroll showed up as a character. (I seriously doubt D’s family is from that exact branch of the family, but they were/are that clan. It’s given me renewed interest in digging through genealogy records. After 4 or 5 generations, it’s just so many names on a screen to me, even with my own family.)

Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett & Dave Evans--the book form of their Stanford course on using design principles to figure out what you want to be when you grow up (even if you're already there, ie, old.) I mostly got this to see if it might help #2Son with his less-traditional life plan, but I'm enjoying it on my own, too. (I do enjoy a good self-help book and this one is low on the woo-woo scale, which is even more endearing to me.)

A Second Chance At Paris, Cole McCade--I've completely lost the battle to stop adding to my (already staggering) TBR pile, both virtual and not, and this is one of the romance kindle deals I've been unable to resist. But seriously, the heroine is an astrophysicist with a father suffering from Alzheimers--how could I pass that one up? So far, it's not bad. There is some serious lack of communication in the main couple's background, which usually sets my teeth on edge, but since this case involves high school miscommunication, I'm letting it slide for now.

done
Since the last time I checked in...

Turn Coat, Jim Butcher, audio by James Marsters -- #10 or 11 of the Dresden books; I can't remember the last time I've lasted this long in a series, but now I'm at the point where I'll be damned if I stop. (Also, good on Butcher for letting the Luccio situation play out the way he did. I'm also to the point where I think he actually planned it that way, too.)

When Gods Die and Why Mermaids Sing, C.S. Harris -- #2 & 3 of the Sebastian St. Cyr books (Regency-era badass ex-military viscount with an Irish actress mistress & a former street-rat of a tiger), both of which I very much enjoyed. There was one point where I was a little worried that the actress was ripe for fridging, but in the next chapter Harris set up her agency and involvement so that while I am not entirely sure she'd going to survive much longer, it probably will have more to do with her own (valid, understandable) choices. The setting is spot on, too -- no wonder my mom loved these books.

next
I have a couple of Beverly Jenkins' books on my bedside table so I think those are next up. Also, 2 more St. Cyr mysteries.

tv
You all know I almost never watch anything as it's actually airing, but I'm making an effort for Poldark, if only because of my mom (again.) Even if I can't call and dish with her about this version and even knowing the general plot line (we watched the original series way back in the day), I can't let it air without watching. I have to say that I think this Elizabeth is much more sympathetically written, because I *never* saw her point back in the '70s (omg, Team Delmelza all the way) but now I am rooting for her to find some way to happiness (so long as she keeps her mitts off Ross.)

The boys have been shepherding me through Parks and Rec, which never appealed to me when it was on, but that was apparently because I watched in the first season. We skipped clean over S1 & S2 and I am having a *blast* with S3 onward. We're up to Leslie's campaign for city council and while it is striking a little too close to home these days, I still get all the warm fuzzies from it.

I'm tiptoeing through Daredevil and Jessica Jones, mostly because I fell hard for Mike Coulter in the first episode of JJ and really want to watch Luke Cage with the proper background, but I can only take about 1 episode a week because of the dark (themes, not settings.)

Other than that, all I watch is HGTV and the Food network. :D

movies
For some reason, I have been in this total Bollywood mood. Maybe because Sonali Dev's writing reminded me how much I loved the drama and flair? (She has a new book out right now and I ended up re-reading her first two on various planes this summer.) Luckily, the library has an excellent collection of the genre, because it’s otherwise a pricey addiction. So, yes, lots of giant dance numbers, except my 2 favorites turned out to be straight drama, not musicals. (Dil Chahta Hai, which is a coming-of-age arc about 3 friends and their romantic entanglements; and Monsoon Wedding, which does have the obligatory wedding but where the wedding is the catalyst for the drama in that everyone comes together and Stuff Happens. I am not ashamed to admit I cried through parts of both.) I'm still on the waiting list for Dil Dhadhakne Do (which sounds like the same big family Drama, only with a 30th anniversary cruise) and Band Baaja Baharat (friends to lovers against a backdrop of wedding planners. Dear lord, the bulletproof tropes that one hits for me...)

Sidenote: Last weekend D wanders into the bedroom asking if I had RSVP'd for his friend N's wedding, which, uh, no? Your friend, your chore. I haven't even met the bride-to-be, though I do like the groom a lot. He's adorable. (He taught with D for years.) So, they're a modern couple and everything is set up online, which forces D to go through the (agonizing, seriously, no one ever had to do so much stuff to rsvp a wedding, yes, my eyes are rolling out of my head) process of downloading the app and finding the wedding and then he's all, 'a sanjeet?' (he's spelling it out for me), 'what is that and why do I have to rsvp for that, too?', so yay for cultural diversity in reading and watching and still being able to impress the husband even after 30 years?

games
I am the world's worst gamer--my hand-eye coordination can handle typing & that's about it, but I am managing to play Knight of the Old Republic with much support from the HoB. I'm so proud? Also, on my phone I have been playing Regency Love for a couple of months & might just find myself running off with a most unsuitable beau. Also on the phone, I have just started Fallen London, but I have no idea what I'm doing there, so I'm expecting to die a horrible death at any moment.

cut for your scrolling ease

( this week in fandom )

( this week in writing )

( this week in DragonCon )

( this week in food )

Also, Trader Joe's cookie butter is EEEEEVIL.

Late to the party, as usual, but here's the movie meme: 

1. Star Wars (no, I will not call it Episode IV: A New Hope, kthxbye) 
Sitting in a theater in summer 1977 and watching Han blast Vader out into deep space is literally the moment that Fannish!Me was born. 

2. The Godfather
Whenever someone wants to tell me how amazing Breaking Bad is/was, and how it's fascinating to watch a good man slide into evil, I tell them I already saw that story 40 years ago with Michael Corleone. I had to beg my parents to let me see it in the theaters, but it was worth all the effort.

3. The Sting
How can you not love Robert Redford grinning at Paul Newman? I guess you can, but getting a kick out of that certainly helps explain all slash fic happening around here.

4. The Wizard of Oz
It came on TV every year when I was a kid and it was the first 'real' book I ever read myself (I was 7.) It took me decades to reconcile my love of this movie with the heart-shattering disappointment I felt when it told me Oz wasn't real. Now I just pretend the very end of the movie doesn't exist. I think it was my earliest instance of the 'I reject your reality & substitute my own,' that has served me well on my fannish life.

5. Moonstruck
I don't even like Nic Cage's character, but he made Loretta so happy that it ultimately didn't matter. All rom-coms should be this good.

6. The Philadelphia Story
I have to excise that hideous line about how it's Tracy's fault her father is a cheating asshole, but otherwise, I adore that the definition of love is that your beloved thinks better of you than you do yourself. Also, I feel certain that Liz and Mike had a fabulous life together.

7. Apocalypse Now
I think this one explains my love of 'what if' (and thus my love of fan fic) because there are very few adaptations that move further than between British colonial Africa and the American Vietnam War experience. 

8. The Fellowship of the Ring
This one is on here because it let me introduce my kids to fandom and share it with them. (I mean, I love it, too, but formatively speaking, it gave me so much more on a personal relationship level than it did as a movie.)

9. Tootsie
Did I ever tell you how much love teenage!me had for soap operas? Let's just say it was A LOT, "".

10. Beauty and the Beast
My favorite Disney movie ever. I almost squealed with glee last month when the hostess led us into the ballroom/dining room at Be Our Guest restaurant in WDW. Luckily, D is used to my spontaneous geek-gasms and did not flinch (it helped that my geeky joy came with a steak for him.)

::waves::

So, I'm writing an Avengers/Agents of SHIELD/Hawkeye Clint/Coulson that I've wanted to write right from the start of AOS, and I'm posting it a chapter at a time, because that's the only way I can reliably finish anything these days... ( and that got long and boring )

...and that was probably 100x more than what you signed up for around here, but it feels like I just freed up my brain to keep going on the writing, so cut-text it is.

I feel vaguely guilty for doing anything but trying to write on this thing (I, er, underestimated how long it was going to take to claw out of the angsty hole I dug for everyone, so instead of a nice 15K fic, I'm about to crack 25K and still have a third of it to go, whoops), but I have managed to read a couple of books (I finally realized I could put my iPad in a ziploc bag and read in the bathtub, which makes life SO MUCH BETTER, duh.)

What I've Just Finished
So poisontaster not only sorted me out on where to start with Barbara Hambly, but also loaned me her pick, so Bride of the Rat God, it was. I enjoyed it immensely, especially the setting and atmosphere of 1920s Hollywood, which was vivid enough to be a character of its own. So, that was fun.

And then I resolved to actually *read* some of the sale-of-the-day e-books I compulsively buy, so I dove into the first of the Phryne Fisher mysteries, Cocaine Blues, and didn't come up until I'd gone through Flying Too High and Murder on the Ballarat Train (and #4 is on the way from the library.) I think it's safe to say I enjoyed the series--it's nice to read something outside the usual post-WWI setting of England/NYC (these are set in Australia) and Phryne is entertaining enough in her own way. Plus, dear lord, the *clothes*. I find myself googling her designers and imagining my grandmother (who was a knockout in her day) in various and assorted outfits. The mysteries are fine -- I never bother trying to work out who the villain is when I read these things, I just float along and (if all is working right) am entertained by the spectacle, which these are doing nicely.

What I'm Reading Now
Nothing, at the moment -- or, well, cookbooks as I sit around assorted therapist/orthodontist offices. Canal House Everday and Bouchon Bakery (which qualifies as strength training, too, as it is huuuge.)

What I'm Reading Next
Phryne Fisher #4--I can't remember the name, just that it's waiting at the library and tomorrow is conveniently enough a work-from-home day, so I can grab it on my errand run around the little town we live near.

Other random stuff
Spring break -- I am experimenting with a third-party broker for Disney Vacation Club properties and have a savanna-view studio reserved for approximately the price of a moderate-resort room. (This is mostly so that #2Son can hang out in the room and have something to see if the rest of vacationing gets to be too much for him.) I will report back on how it all turns out, but so far it's been pretty painless. I also started making dining reservations in November, as soon as D confirmed that the varsity team was playing in a WWoS tournament, so I'm holding Saturday evening fireworks-timing at the California Grill, a reasonable time for dinner at Le Cellier, and an actualfax dinner table at Be Our Guest. (My squee is only barely contained at this trifecta of Holy Grail restaurants.) The Flower & Garden Festival is doing food booths again this year, so that's cool; the new MK daytime parade starts in about a week (and has so many steampunky elements I might have to see it more than once); and the construction walls are down from around the Seven Dwarves Mine Train, with the possibility of it being in soft-opening by the time we get there. For this being my 4th trip in 9 months, I am ridiculously excited by all of this.

TV -- Behind on everything except for SPN but that's only because BabyBoy has caught the bug and watches it in the morning before school. I was very happy to see who I saw this week, even if I'm seriously ready to start smacking some sense into people named Winchester.

Movies -- We finally (!!!!) coordinated schedules and went to see The Hobbit last weekend, and all I can say is that I have given up trying to be rational about those movies. As soon as the score begins, I just fall into this place where I'm catching up with friends I haven't seen in decades and while I can objectively see where the first part was a little slow, I honestly didn't care. I think we're trying for the Lego movie this weekend; I have promised not to make loud comments about Manic Pixie Dreamgirls while there (note the 'loud' part, because that's as far as I was willing to go.)



Anyway. Despite all evidence to the contrary, I'm still here (and on tumblr and twitter and goodreads and pinterest -- come see me if you're hanging out there, too!)

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.

yay, new Thor trailer!



( squeeful babblings )

We now return you to your regularly scheduled Wednesdays (where I will not be doing What I'm Reading Wednesday, because my entire week was spent trying to get into Murder As Fine Art only to concede and send it back to the library last night. Maybe there will be something to fit my mood on my Reserve shelf today?)