Catching up, why not?
I am not at all happy with myself for neglecting to post here so often, so I'm going to do this meme and see what happens.
So what have you been up to? / Major life changes? Same old same old?
I have a new niece! She is amazing and tiny and very, very fierce:
Also, she gives most excellent side-eye.
And here's one of her brother, who continues to be the sweetest buddy, very excited about his first day of school:
Other than that, I've had a work project keeping me busy the past couple weeks and I'm about to launch into some pretty thorough exterior renovations of my house. There will no doubt be pictures and complaints about the noise here.
What fandom are you in/do you spend most of your time in?
At this point I feel like fandom is my fandom. Still writing Early Edition; reading fic for some of the MCU (Peggy, Natasha, Sam, Steve, Bucky, Clint and Laura (with Laura secretly being a super spy, it's kind of catnip to me), comics Clint, and Kate Bishop, and just about any romantic or BFF combination among them is of interest.) and for smaller fandoms when I can find it (Code Name Verity, Orphan Black, Friday Night Lights).
Sports fandom (in the general, not RPF sense, because I've read exactly two RPF sports stories that I've liked, and that's just me, not the fandom) is a weird place to be right now. I'm conflicted about cheering for the Cubs and Blackhawks (for very different reasons), the Twins did nothing this year, and my beloved Husker football team has had 3 heartbreaking last-minute losses so far (that's out of 5 games) and they just aren't having much fun playing. The bright spot is the Husker volleyball team; they beat #1 Penn State last weekend (my favorite team to beat, their coach is a complete jackass and their fans...need to get out more). More than that, they seem to enjoy their sport and enjoy each other, and that's the whole fun of watching any sport.
Where do you hang out online?
Tumblr and here for fannish stuffs; Book of Face for family and muggle-level connections; Twitter for an odd amalgamation of the different sides of my personality.
What are you reading?
I am partway through The Shepherd's Crown; took a break because I had something come in from the library as an ebook and I only had 7 days to read it and also because I'm torn. On one hand, the book is rather uneven in parts and I'm trying not to be disappointed by that, and on the other the parts that are good are so good, and so clearly Pratchett's writing, that I want to slow down and savor them. I will probably do a whole dissection of my reaction here once I finish
Just finished said ebook, The Royal We by Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks, aka the Fuggirls. And it's really fun and sweet! Plus the descriptions of Oxford put me right back there.
I've also been reading some comics as recommended by folks here on DW and by my friend who worked at one of the local comics shops (ONE OF. WE HAVE SEVERAL. <--sorry, I just was reading an interesting dissection of Rainbow Rowell's writing that threw me off because they started talking about Eleanor and Park taking place in "a small town" and NO. Omaha is not a small town. Smallish city, sure, but metro area is right around 1 million so STOP IT. Anyway.). I'm really liking the Hawkeye titles I've read so far ("My Life as a Weapon" and "LA Woman") and I have a random Natasha title ready to read ("Homecoming"). Random because they weren't keeping her full series in stock. *sigh* Oh, and I have a couple of the Orphan Black titles, too.
And a picture book, if you have any kids in your life who want something fun and different, Interstellar Cinderella, by Deborah Underwood. Cinderella doesn't want to marry a prince; she wants to be a space ship mechanic! Her helper is a robot mouse. It's all totally adorable.
What are you watching?
Argh. It's so frustrating waiting for things I'm invested in to come back and being disappointed when they do. I'm not sure what to make of Sleepy Hollow as a whole yet, other than Pandora is obvious and boring and I would just be happy if Abbie, Ichabod, and possibly Jennie all lived together and fought (more interesting) supernatural crime and every once in a while had sexytimez. The Muppets seems like it's getting better every week, then does something to undermine the goodwill it was starting to build up (and after the pilot, they were starting from zero in terms of goodwill). At this point I feel like I'm watching both shows out of sheer protectiveness, as if my side-eye could stop the showrunners' acts of egregious character assassination.
Waiting hopefully for Elementary and Reign (aka the Queen Catherine Show of Hilarible Anachronisms), and in the far future, Orphan Black. And for Supergirl!
ETA: Whoa, Reign already started and Catherine is Doing Things! And I forgot iZombie, which continues to be so damned adorable I want to pinch its cheeks. Except for the Blond Zombie Who Might As Well Be Spike, him I could care less about.
Oh, and I keep forgetting it's on, but Drunk History is ammaaaaaaazzzzing.
Things I've started on Netflix but have not found the wherewithal to finish: Bloodline, Sense8.
Things I've watched all of on Netflix and enjoyed: Wet Hot American Summer and, of all things, Archer. I know, it's obnoxious. It's filthy. It's ridiculous. And yet I glommed onto it this summer when I usually bounce HARD off cartoons, especially deliberately obnoxious ones like Family Guy. (UGH. SO MUCH UGH.) It's just so...tropey and self-aware and full of awesome women, and I burst out laughing at least once per episode.
What are you making?
I'm writing a novel that takes place in postwar Chicago (probably middle grade) and a fic I keep calling Long Thing here because it's over 150K words. Have done some sewing for the kiddos pictured above because they kind of have me wrapped around their fingers (I mean, when your 4yo nephew tells you his Anna and Elsa dolls need new purple skirts, you make them, right?)
What are you squeeing about today?
Just found out a friend had a doll I'd been trying to track down on EvilBay and she was willing to sell her to me. She came yesterday, and this is...look, I don't talk a lot about my doll stuff here. But one of the first books I read, and then continued to read for most of my childhood, was Tasha Tudor's A Is for Annabelle and this doll is my Annabelle. Gonna make her all the things my little girl heart wanted every time I read that book.
I should really watch/read/dive into _______ and then come talk to you about it!
Um? Oh! You know what, I want to talk to someone about Odd Squad. It's a newish PBS Kids show that is a straight-up cross between MathNet and The X-Files. The kids are agents and science & math specialists who solve Oddities! Their leader is a curmudgeonly girl who is spot-on every world-weary precinct captain you've ever seen and has an addiction to juice boxes! The kids are awesome actors! There's silliness and diversity and logical thinking all over the place. So I don't know, it's just fun, and I nominated it for Yuletide but more because I want to write it than get a story in it.
Also, I just found out Tori Amos co-wrote a musical based on George MacDonald's The Light Princess...I know, I know, you're all into Hamilton and I'll get there once I have some time to sit down and listen to it, but this combo is catnip to me so I'd love to know if anyone else has heard or heard of it.
What else is on your mind?
You know that weirdo podcast I talked about a few months ago? They broke off after "Two to Tangle" (ugh, the only ep I care about less than "A Bris Is Just a Bris") and have been doing this weird thing where one of the hosts is supposedly "missing" and then was "found" on another podcast about some show with a dog (because EE has a CAT. GET IT?) and they had to kidnap him back and I just...
Look, I'm keeping an eye on them, so to speak, because--well, it's like my thing with The Muppets. I care about the show and the characters and I can't believe how badly they're being used. I'm being protective and carping back at them. But ever since they hit the first ep with Toni* I've mostly FFwd'd through the podcasts or deleted them unlistened-to. This is just so weird, though. I think they're just not getting the response they'd hoped for and are trying to shake things up, but to pull these shenanigans right before they get to "Fate"? Shows me just how little they care about the actual show.
SO WHY AM I STILL LISTENING, or at least looking at what's in their feed each week? It's just...like I want to keep an eye on the idiocy, I guess? I'm kind of cheering for it all to go down in flames at this point.
*OMG, "In Gary We Trust." You know what they said about Toni Brigatti, Professional Badass and Love of Gary Hobson's Life? I QUOTE:
"Why would she have a job as a US Marshal if she's allergic to cats?"
"She's too controlling."
"She's so unprofessional, running around in a towel with her gun."
GDI YOU MORONS SHE WAS PROTECTING HER WITNESS BECAUSE SOMEONE WAS SHOOTING AT HIM. That's about as professional as it GETS. These are the same guys who spent 15 minutes--no lie, I timed it--on the same episode doing a bit about how one character tells another that glossy lipstick means a date. They disputed that, then called 5 female friends to see if they agreed. They left in the calls that weren't answered. On their 'professionally edited' podcast. WTACTUALF. They ignored the chemistry issues between Kyle Chandler and Kristy Swanson and the BLAZING chemistry between Chandler and Constance Marie. They just...do not get the show on such a fundamental level. My head exploded at that point.
I think at this point I'm just touching base to see how far down the stupid goes. We're currently approaching the Mariana Trench.
ANYway. That's what's up. How're YOU all doing?
This entry was originally posted at http://akamarykate.dreamwidth.org/406575.html. You may comment either here or there.
So what have you been up to? / Major life changes? Same old same old?
I have a new niece! She is amazing and tiny and very, very fierce:
Also, she gives most excellent side-eye.
And here's one of her brother, who continues to be the sweetest buddy, very excited about his first day of school:
Other than that, I've had a work project keeping me busy the past couple weeks and I'm about to launch into some pretty thorough exterior renovations of my house. There will no doubt be pictures and complaints about the noise here.
What fandom are you in/do you spend most of your time in?
At this point I feel like fandom is my fandom. Still writing Early Edition; reading fic for some of the MCU (Peggy, Natasha, Sam, Steve, Bucky, Clint and Laura (with Laura secretly being a super spy, it's kind of catnip to me), comics Clint, and Kate Bishop, and just about any romantic or BFF combination among them is of interest.) and for smaller fandoms when I can find it (Code Name Verity, Orphan Black, Friday Night Lights).
Sports fandom (in the general, not RPF sense, because I've read exactly two RPF sports stories that I've liked, and that's just me, not the fandom) is a weird place to be right now. I'm conflicted about cheering for the Cubs and Blackhawks (for very different reasons), the Twins did nothing this year, and my beloved Husker football team has had 3 heartbreaking last-minute losses so far (that's out of 5 games) and they just aren't having much fun playing. The bright spot is the Husker volleyball team; they beat #1 Penn State last weekend (my favorite team to beat, their coach is a complete jackass and their fans...need to get out more). More than that, they seem to enjoy their sport and enjoy each other, and that's the whole fun of watching any sport.
Where do you hang out online?
Tumblr and here for fannish stuffs; Book of Face for family and muggle-level connections; Twitter for an odd amalgamation of the different sides of my personality.
What are you reading?
I am partway through The Shepherd's Crown; took a break because I had something come in from the library as an ebook and I only had 7 days to read it and also because I'm torn. On one hand, the book is rather uneven in parts and I'm trying not to be disappointed by that, and on the other the parts that are good are so good, and so clearly Pratchett's writing, that I want to slow down and savor them. I will probably do a whole dissection of my reaction here once I finish
Just finished said ebook, The Royal We by Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks, aka the Fuggirls. And it's really fun and sweet! Plus the descriptions of Oxford put me right back there.
I've also been reading some comics as recommended by folks here on DW and by my friend who worked at one of the local comics shops (ONE OF. WE HAVE SEVERAL. <--sorry, I just was reading an interesting dissection of Rainbow Rowell's writing that threw me off because they started talking about Eleanor and Park taking place in "a small town" and NO. Omaha is not a small town. Smallish city, sure, but metro area is right around 1 million so STOP IT. Anyway.). I'm really liking the Hawkeye titles I've read so far ("My Life as a Weapon" and "LA Woman") and I have a random Natasha title ready to read ("Homecoming"). Random because they weren't keeping her full series in stock. *sigh* Oh, and I have a couple of the Orphan Black titles, too.
And a picture book, if you have any kids in your life who want something fun and different, Interstellar Cinderella, by Deborah Underwood. Cinderella doesn't want to marry a prince; she wants to be a space ship mechanic! Her helper is a robot mouse. It's all totally adorable.
What are you watching?
Argh. It's so frustrating waiting for things I'm invested in to come back and being disappointed when they do. I'm not sure what to make of Sleepy Hollow as a whole yet, other than Pandora is obvious and boring and I would just be happy if Abbie, Ichabod, and possibly Jennie all lived together and fought (more interesting) supernatural crime and every once in a while had sexytimez. The Muppets seems like it's getting better every week, then does something to undermine the goodwill it was starting to build up (and after the pilot, they were starting from zero in terms of goodwill). At this point I feel like I'm watching both shows out of sheer protectiveness, as if my side-eye could stop the showrunners' acts of egregious character assassination.
Waiting hopefully for Elementary and Reign (aka the Queen Catherine Show of Hilarible Anachronisms), and in the far future, Orphan Black. And for Supergirl!
ETA: Whoa, Reign already started and Catherine is Doing Things! And I forgot iZombie, which continues to be so damned adorable I want to pinch its cheeks. Except for the Blond Zombie Who Might As Well Be Spike, him I could care less about.
Oh, and I keep forgetting it's on, but Drunk History is ammaaaaaaazzzzing.
Things I've started on Netflix but have not found the wherewithal to finish: Bloodline, Sense8.
Things I've watched all of on Netflix and enjoyed: Wet Hot American Summer and, of all things, Archer. I know, it's obnoxious. It's filthy. It's ridiculous. And yet I glommed onto it this summer when I usually bounce HARD off cartoons, especially deliberately obnoxious ones like Family Guy. (UGH. SO MUCH UGH.) It's just so...tropey and self-aware and full of awesome women, and I burst out laughing at least once per episode.
What are you making?
I'm writing a novel that takes place in postwar Chicago (probably middle grade) and a fic I keep calling Long Thing here because it's over 150K words. Have done some sewing for the kiddos pictured above because they kind of have me wrapped around their fingers (I mean, when your 4yo nephew tells you his Anna and Elsa dolls need new purple skirts, you make them, right?)
What are you squeeing about today?
Just found out a friend had a doll I'd been trying to track down on EvilBay and she was willing to sell her to me. She came yesterday, and this is...look, I don't talk a lot about my doll stuff here. But one of the first books I read, and then continued to read for most of my childhood, was Tasha Tudor's A Is for Annabelle and this doll is my Annabelle. Gonna make her all the things my little girl heart wanted every time I read that book.
I should really watch/read/dive into _______ and then come talk to you about it!
Um? Oh! You know what, I want to talk to someone about Odd Squad. It's a newish PBS Kids show that is a straight-up cross between MathNet and The X-Files. The kids are agents and science & math specialists who solve Oddities! Their leader is a curmudgeonly girl who is spot-on every world-weary precinct captain you've ever seen and has an addiction to juice boxes! The kids are awesome actors! There's silliness and diversity and logical thinking all over the place. So I don't know, it's just fun, and I nominated it for Yuletide but more because I want to write it than get a story in it.
Also, I just found out Tori Amos co-wrote a musical based on George MacDonald's The Light Princess...I know, I know, you're all into Hamilton and I'll get there once I have some time to sit down and listen to it, but this combo is catnip to me so I'd love to know if anyone else has heard or heard of it.
What else is on your mind?
You know that weirdo podcast I talked about a few months ago? They broke off after "Two to Tangle" (ugh, the only ep I care about less than "A Bris Is Just a Bris") and have been doing this weird thing where one of the hosts is supposedly "missing" and then was "found" on another podcast about some show with a dog (because EE has a CAT. GET IT?) and they had to kidnap him back and I just...
Look, I'm keeping an eye on them, so to speak, because--well, it's like my thing with The Muppets. I care about the show and the characters and I can't believe how badly they're being used. I'm being protective and carping back at them. But ever since they hit the first ep with Toni* I've mostly FFwd'd through the podcasts or deleted them unlistened-to. This is just so weird, though. I think they're just not getting the response they'd hoped for and are trying to shake things up, but to pull these shenanigans right before they get to "Fate"? Shows me just how little they care about the actual show.
SO WHY AM I STILL LISTENING, or at least looking at what's in their feed each week? It's just...like I want to keep an eye on the idiocy, I guess? I'm kind of cheering for it all to go down in flames at this point.
*OMG, "In Gary We Trust." You know what they said about Toni Brigatti, Professional Badass and Love of Gary Hobson's Life? I QUOTE:
"Why would she have a job as a US Marshal if she's allergic to cats?"
"She's too controlling."
"She's so unprofessional, running around in a towel with her gun."
GDI YOU MORONS SHE WAS PROTECTING HER WITNESS BECAUSE SOMEONE WAS SHOOTING AT HIM. That's about as professional as it GETS. These are the same guys who spent 15 minutes--no lie, I timed it--on the same episode doing a bit about how one character tells another that glossy lipstick means a date. They disputed that, then called 5 female friends to see if they agreed. They left in the calls that weren't answered. On their 'professionally edited' podcast. WTACTUALF. They ignored the chemistry issues between Kyle Chandler and Kristy Swanson and the BLAZING chemistry between Chandler and Constance Marie. They just...do not get the show on such a fundamental level. My head exploded at that point.
I think at this point I'm just touching base to see how far down the stupid goes. We're currently approaching the Mariana Trench.
ANYway. That's what's up. How're YOU all doing?
This entry was originally posted at http://akamarykate.dreamwidth.org/406575.html. You may comment either here or there.