Hey, it's me....
I've been a shitty friend lately and I'm so sorry about this. No updates, very little commenting. I am so behind on my flist and replying to comments I could just scream. Cover your ears...here it comes....
AAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
Well, alrighty then. I feel loads better. Thanks. I'm working on catching up, slow and steady. :)
Before I get to the nitty gritty, I think I may have missed a birthday and I'm really, really sorry about this....
I want to wish arlenerios a very Happy Belated Birthday! I'm so sorry I missed it dear, and I hope your day was a beautiful one. May the coming year bring you much joy!
Anyway, for those who are still speaking to me, here's what's been happening, some random thoughts and a small rant (no spoilers so don't worry) :)
I was just scrolling through my flist when I see this entry in one of the communities I'm watching. This idiot spewed out the ending of Deathly Hallows and didn't put it behind a cut. Even though I don't believe a word of his or her rubbish, it was the very first comment I ever left where I was just plain rude. I used the F-bomb and all caps. I feel crappy about having to do that but I was just so upset because I am never rude when commenting. Even if I read a bad fic, rather than leave a terrible review, I just don't comment. But this sent me over the edge. Thank goodness I skimmed over it and will probably forget about it, thanks to my ADD.
Okay, end of rant.
Let's see....We're still cleaning out the crap from our old office. It's going to become my new craft room at some point, but it seems like the junk coming out of there is just not going to stop! The motor in our cross-cut paper shredder actually burned out and we had to buy a new one. Isn't that pathetic?
We tore out a line of 10-foot tall bushes in our backyard and replaced them with a privacy fence that's about 6 feet tall. We gained about 3 1/2 feet in yard space and so did our neighbors. We had neatly trimmed hedges all around our house when we first moved in, but honestly...who has the time to keep them trimmed? I tried trimming them once when hubby was traveling and they ended up looking like Edward Scissorhands got hold of them. Besides, me and power tools don't get along too well. Hubby gets nervous sometimes. Anyway, we've been ripping them up over the last two years and we only have one lower row left. Our backyard looks like an obstacle course with wheelbarrows, piles of topsoil, bags of concrete, and fence materials all over it. When does it ever end?
Last Friday, Joe was putting up said fence and had to trim up one of the fence panels because it was a bit snug in the post brackets. Anyway, the box cutter he was using slipped and I had to bring him to the emergency room for stitches. That was fun.
Joe and I took Thursday and Friday off from work and we're going down to NJ this Thursday for my nephew's birthday party. He's going to be two years old. Gosh, time really flies, doesn't it?
I've just started reading Half Blood Prince again.
I'm taking July 11th off from work to see Order of the Phoenix. Joe will be in travel status and I won't be able to wait till he comes home to see it so my friend and I going to catch the first showing which is at 10:00 am. We're then going to go to lunch, then go to a 4:00 showing. Eeep! Can't wait!
Watched some of the Concert for Diana today. I had too much to do though so most of the time I just listened.
Saturday the 7th, Joe and I are going to the Meadowlands for the Live Earth Concert. This cause is very near and dear to our hearts. Our home is completely powered by renewable energy and our next car will be an environmentally friendly hybrid gas/electric car. Maybe a Prius. We're not sure which model we'll go with but it's a hybrid for sure.
July 24th, we're going to see The White Stripes at Madison Square Garden. Do I even have to tell you how freakin excited I am? I kneel before the guitar god that is Jack White. He's an amazing talent.
Saw Rush last night. Awesome as usual :)
I was going to rant about the attempted car bombings in London and what happened at the Glasgow Airport, but I don't want to bring anyone down. Suffice it to say I am more than a little disturbed, particularly because of the many connections I now have through LJ.
I plan to lock myself away when Book 7 comes out (see above rant). No internet in the few days leading up to July 21st, no TV, no radio, no going out of the house. If my husband even jokes about telling me the ending, I will leave the house, check myself into a hotel by myself, and turn off my cell phone. Anyway, does anyone have any ideas for avoiding assholes like this? I've read where people will set filters or something like that. How does that work?
I've been dying over all the new pictures of Dan and Rupert that have surfaced. Oh. My. God. These boys just keep getting more beautiful with ever passing day! I'm definitely going to be spending time going waaaaay back through my flist to see if I've missed anything else during my little hiatus.
And I am just about in heaven over what The Sunday Mirror said about Bonnie in the new movie, although I'm a bit nervous that too much fuss will be made over the unknown actress who gets the part of Lavender and Bonnie will be taking a backseat again.
THE VERDICT: This fifth instalment in the Harry Potter series is a deliciously dark affair, brimming with impressively gritty performances but still managing to balance magical wonder with breathless excitement. This time round, Harry (played with muscular zeal by Daniel Radcliffe) is something of a tormented teen, with those adolescent hormones - plus the imminent threat of the dark lord Voldemort - causing him to cuss his pals and shout at teachers.
Mind you, on the plus side, he gets to engage in a proper extended festive snog with Cho Chang (Katie Leung) under a magically sprouting sprig of mistletoe.
The film is impressively moody, brooding with bad omens, and while heavy on thrills and drama it has left behind childish schoolroom high-jinks and jolly japes, with the core of the story about how Harry and his band of school rebels start to train for the battles ahead.
Fun does come, though, in the stout and pink-suited form of new teacher (and Ministry of Magic stooge) Dolores Umbridge who rules the students with a rod of iron. Beautifully played by the terrific Imelda Staunton, she exudes creepy charm and steely determination and is quite happy to torture the kids to get her own way. Delightfully, her pink-painted office has its walls covered with decorative plates, each featuring an animated cat that purrs or hisses as she rebukes the students.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix overflows with devious plots, plans and clever machinations, and is constantly entertaining, wonderfully condensing what was the longest of JK Rowling's books.
Some things have had to give - there's no quid-ditch and sadly not enough of some of the wonderful teachers.
That said, Alan Rickman delivers a truly wonderful hissing performance as the dark and doleful Snape, and Helena Bonham Carter crops up in the final section as the maniacal villainess Bellatrix Lestrange.
The youngsters are all pretty impressive. But Ron (the ever-fine Rupert Grint) is never given enough to do, and while Hermione (Emma Watson) is as earnest as ever, it is Bonnie Wright as Ron's sister Ginny who makes the most subtle and memorable impact... her time is to come.
Oddly, the Cho Chang character simply fades away after her lipaction with Harry, but you don't mind too much because the final half-hour is a truly classic piece of action-adventure. The special effects are superb, and this time round we really get some proper wizard duelling, with the wands doubling as deadly weapons and blood spilled as the young heroes slug it out with a grizzled group of baddie magicians.
There is even a Star Wars moment as Dumbledore (the Obi-Wan Kenobi in this version) goes wand-to-wand with Voldemort (Darth Vader) as they battle for the life and soul of Harry Potter.
This time the magical teens are making the difficult transition to young adults. Love, betrayal, independence and commitment all play their part. The film is a cracking piece of entertainment - it's well over two hours long, but you simply wish it could go on.
Wonderfully directed by David Yates, it is an energetic epic that will keep Potter fans more than happy as the countdown for the new - and final - book draws on.
AAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
Well, alrighty then. I feel loads better. Thanks. I'm working on catching up, slow and steady. :)
Before I get to the nitty gritty, I think I may have missed a birthday and I'm really, really sorry about this....
I want to wish arlenerios a very Happy Belated Birthday! I'm so sorry I missed it dear, and I hope your day was a beautiful one. May the coming year bring you much joy!
Anyway, for those who are still speaking to me, here's what's been happening, some random thoughts and a small rant (no spoilers so don't worry) :)
I was just scrolling through my flist when I see this entry in one of the communities I'm watching. This idiot spewed out the ending of Deathly Hallows and didn't put it behind a cut. Even though I don't believe a word of his or her rubbish, it was the very first comment I ever left where I was just plain rude. I used the F-bomb and all caps. I feel crappy about having to do that but I was just so upset because I am never rude when commenting. Even if I read a bad fic, rather than leave a terrible review, I just don't comment. But this sent me over the edge. Thank goodness I skimmed over it and will probably forget about it, thanks to my ADD.
Okay, end of rant.
Let's see....We're still cleaning out the crap from our old office. It's going to become my new craft room at some point, but it seems like the junk coming out of there is just not going to stop! The motor in our cross-cut paper shredder actually burned out and we had to buy a new one. Isn't that pathetic?
We tore out a line of 10-foot tall bushes in our backyard and replaced them with a privacy fence that's about 6 feet tall. We gained about 3 1/2 feet in yard space and so did our neighbors. We had neatly trimmed hedges all around our house when we first moved in, but honestly...who has the time to keep them trimmed? I tried trimming them once when hubby was traveling and they ended up looking like Edward Scissorhands got hold of them. Besides, me and power tools don't get along too well. Hubby gets nervous sometimes. Anyway, we've been ripping them up over the last two years and we only have one lower row left. Our backyard looks like an obstacle course with wheelbarrows, piles of topsoil, bags of concrete, and fence materials all over it. When does it ever end?
Last Friday, Joe was putting up said fence and had to trim up one of the fence panels because it was a bit snug in the post brackets. Anyway, the box cutter he was using slipped and I had to bring him to the emergency room for stitches. That was fun.
Joe and I took Thursday and Friday off from work and we're going down to NJ this Thursday for my nephew's birthday party. He's going to be two years old. Gosh, time really flies, doesn't it?
I've just started reading Half Blood Prince again.
I'm taking July 11th off from work to see Order of the Phoenix. Joe will be in travel status and I won't be able to wait till he comes home to see it so my friend and I going to catch the first showing which is at 10:00 am. We're then going to go to lunch, then go to a 4:00 showing. Eeep! Can't wait!
Watched some of the Concert for Diana today. I had too much to do though so most of the time I just listened.
Saturday the 7th, Joe and I are going to the Meadowlands for the Live Earth Concert. This cause is very near and dear to our hearts. Our home is completely powered by renewable energy and our next car will be an environmentally friendly hybrid gas/electric car. Maybe a Prius. We're not sure which model we'll go with but it's a hybrid for sure.
July 24th, we're going to see The White Stripes at Madison Square Garden. Do I even have to tell you how freakin excited I am? I kneel before the guitar god that is Jack White. He's an amazing talent.
Saw Rush last night. Awesome as usual :)
I was going to rant about the attempted car bombings in London and what happened at the Glasgow Airport, but I don't want to bring anyone down. Suffice it to say I am more than a little disturbed, particularly because of the many connections I now have through LJ.
I plan to lock myself away when Book 7 comes out (see above rant). No internet in the few days leading up to July 21st, no TV, no radio, no going out of the house. If my husband even jokes about telling me the ending, I will leave the house, check myself into a hotel by myself, and turn off my cell phone. Anyway, does anyone have any ideas for avoiding assholes like this? I've read where people will set filters or something like that. How does that work?
I've been dying over all the new pictures of Dan and Rupert that have surfaced. Oh. My. God. These boys just keep getting more beautiful with ever passing day! I'm definitely going to be spending time going waaaaay back through my flist to see if I've missed anything else during my little hiatus.
And I am just about in heaven over what The Sunday Mirror said about Bonnie in the new movie, although I'm a bit nervous that too much fuss will be made over the unknown actress who gets the part of Lavender and Bonnie will be taking a backseat again.
THE VERDICT: This fifth instalment in the Harry Potter series is a deliciously dark affair, brimming with impressively gritty performances but still managing to balance magical wonder with breathless excitement. This time round, Harry (played with muscular zeal by Daniel Radcliffe) is something of a tormented teen, with those adolescent hormones - plus the imminent threat of the dark lord Voldemort - causing him to cuss his pals and shout at teachers.
Mind you, on the plus side, he gets to engage in a proper extended festive snog with Cho Chang (Katie Leung) under a magically sprouting sprig of mistletoe.
The film is impressively moody, brooding with bad omens, and while heavy on thrills and drama it has left behind childish schoolroom high-jinks and jolly japes, with the core of the story about how Harry and his band of school rebels start to train for the battles ahead.
Fun does come, though, in the stout and pink-suited form of new teacher (and Ministry of Magic stooge) Dolores Umbridge who rules the students with a rod of iron. Beautifully played by the terrific Imelda Staunton, she exudes creepy charm and steely determination and is quite happy to torture the kids to get her own way. Delightfully, her pink-painted office has its walls covered with decorative plates, each featuring an animated cat that purrs or hisses as she rebukes the students.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix overflows with devious plots, plans and clever machinations, and is constantly entertaining, wonderfully condensing what was the longest of JK Rowling's books.
Some things have had to give - there's no quid-ditch and sadly not enough of some of the wonderful teachers.
That said, Alan Rickman delivers a truly wonderful hissing performance as the dark and doleful Snape, and Helena Bonham Carter crops up in the final section as the maniacal villainess Bellatrix Lestrange.
The youngsters are all pretty impressive. But Ron (the ever-fine Rupert Grint) is never given enough to do, and while Hermione (Emma Watson) is as earnest as ever, it is Bonnie Wright as Ron's sister Ginny who makes the most subtle and memorable impact... her time is to come.
Oddly, the Cho Chang character simply fades away after her lipaction with Harry, but you don't mind too much because the final half-hour is a truly classic piece of action-adventure. The special effects are superb, and this time round we really get some proper wizard duelling, with the wands doubling as deadly weapons and blood spilled as the young heroes slug it out with a grizzled group of baddie magicians.
There is even a Star Wars moment as Dumbledore (the Obi-Wan Kenobi in this version) goes wand-to-wand with Voldemort (Darth Vader) as they battle for the life and soul of Harry Potter.
This time the magical teens are making the difficult transition to young adults. Love, betrayal, independence and commitment all play their part. The film is a cracking piece of entertainment - it's well over two hours long, but you simply wish it could go on.
Wonderfully directed by David Yates, it is an energetic epic that will keep Potter fans more than happy as the countdown for the new - and final - book draws on.