Surely it's more than moonlight and music...
...surely it's more than wine
So dance with me, darling
Show them that you're still mine.
-"Bat Boy: The Musical"
I'm a little worried about my devotion to this journal. More accurately, I'm worried about what will happen when I'm off to school again on Monday. The problem with keeping up a journal or doing anything else on a regular basis during the school week, besides the obvious obstacles of homework and studying, is that I generally come home feeling physically and mentally exhausted. I just want to collapse on my bed and read or watch DVDs, and anything obligatory, from my morning and evening devotions to flossing, becomes an annoyance that I'm tempted to avoid. I still end up going through with them, though, and I'm hoping I'll still be able to enjoy my little LJ.
So, the dentist on Wednesday was a good news/bad news deal. The good news: they didn't actually do anything to me other than a couple of X-rays. (Of course, that in itself is an ordeal. Like always, the lady had to try at least a dozen times to get the little X-ray device in my mouth, and there was much gagging, tongue-squashing, and accusatory exclaiming of, "You have such a small mouth!") Anyway, they were supposed to fill my cavity, but that brings me to the bad news. Apparently, the "cavity" shows up on the X-rays as a shadow below my gumline; it may be decay, or it may just be a shadow. They have to know for sure before they start drilling into my tooth, but they can't ascertain anything yet because the stupid shadow is blocked by one of my wisdom teeth. So now I have to make an appointment with an oral surgeon, get that wisdom tooth removed along with a bit of gum tissue, and then head back to the dentist so they can deal with the potential cavity. Rubi, I will now feel at least half your pain. (But, hey--nitrous oxide!)
Wednesday night, I was up till 2:00 again, this time with my newest addiction: the 'Ship Manifesto. And, Goddess help me, I think I'm finally succumbing to the dark side; I'm starting to get into slash. My problem with slash has never been the homosexual aspect (see lovely Willow/Tara picture and Keller/Beecher reference in previous entry) but the fact that it isn't canon. I like my 'ships to have hot kisses, tasteful love scenes, grand displays of devotion. I've never fancied sifting through layers of subtext, squealing every time one member of my pairing touches the other's arm or something. But now? Now I have to go and read a handful of extremely passionate and well-written essays about these imaginary relationships, and the result? I've started seeing it everywhere. This is the part where you get to laugh maniacally, Kate; it is everywhere, it's not just you and your crazy friends, and it's not just anime.
Lost on Wednesday: in my opinion, the only memorable moments were Sayid telling Alex she looked like her mother (that whole scene with the swingset was vaguely creepy), Danielle watching her from the foliage, and of course, Locke's dad throwing him out the window and appearing on the island at the end, bound, gagged, and awaiting retribution. I can't tell you how weird it is to see Snyder from Newsies, a.k.a. Vic from Rose Red, a.k.a. Nick's Dad from Freaks and Geeks, as the Evil Kidney Thief, who is probably also the original "Frank Sawyer." Does Kevin Tighe never rest, or is he deliberately stalking me? Oh, and Sawyer needs to lay off the books and get out there and find Kate before the Jackass gets his claws back into her. Especially if he's going to be reading Ayn Rand.
I just had one of those long, rambling philosophical discussions with Daddy, this one revolving mostly around the nature or possibility of selfless love, and selflessness in general, with him referencing Shakespeare all over the place and reading me endless notes on A Winter's Tale that I didn't understand a word of, and me referencing Buffy all over the place and struggling to explain the difference between Spike's selfish love for Buffy before he earned a soul and his 'pure' love for her after he earned it. Why the long, rambling discussions with such a communication gap? I think we just like to hear ourselves talk. ^_^
Yesterday was a dream, by the way: 70 degrees out. Unbelievable. I spent most of it just wandering around town and lounging on the swing in the backyard. If I could devise an afterlife for myself, it would look something like that. Except something exciting would occasionally happen.
Grandma Ginny and Grandaddy came for dinner last night, and then Mommy, Grandma, and I went back to their house to watch the second Harry Potter movie on their new giant screen. This is where you really know you have crossed the fangirl point of no return: converting your grandmother to Harry Potter. She's already on Half-Blood Prince and, like any sane person, prefers the books to the movies.
My latest HP observations:
*Moaning Myrtle is one of the awesomest characters in any of the movies, and it makes me remember how much I love her in the books as well. I find the Myrtle/Draco friendship in HBP completely adorable and intriguing, and while it seems quite unlikely, I hope it's further explored or at least mentioned in the last book.
*In the movie, there were seven snakes on the inner door to the Chamber of Secrets. I counted several times. Seven snakes, seven Horcruxes. I'm just saying.
*Good gracious, the Snape/Harry relationship is hot...and I am not talking slash here. I'm still not on board with pedophilia, thanks. For me, 'hot' is also a word for really good writing or character interaction, the kind that gives you tingles and chills. While it's no secret that I adore Snape (and am fully on board with the 'Dumbledore told him to' theory, which I actually thought of all on my own right after finishing the book and before ever seeing it online), I've always felt uncomfortable with the extreme hatred he feels for Harry, and vice versa. Lately, though, I've realized that it's actually fascinating: the way Harry inherited his father's (and Sirius's) prejudices, the way the roles were reversed (with Snape bullying Harry just as James used to bully him at school), the way "Snape's Worst Memory" dramatically if briefly changed Harry's perception of Snape and James, the whole 'Snape loved Lily' possibility, and most of all, the way their relationship intensifies in the two latest books, with the Occlumency lessons, Harry's shockingly blatant cheek in Book 6 ("No need to call me 'sir', Professor"--I completely forgot about that!), and of course, a certain murder and the 'half-blood prince' revelation. There are a hell a lot of plotlines to be wrapped up in Deathly Hallows, but there is none I am looking forward to more than this one.
This morning, I finally watched Howl's Moving Castle in Japanese. It was more-or-less exactly the same as the dub, except that, as Kate warned me, Sophie's voice wasn't as cool, while Howl's was even sexier. I didn't like Calcifer's Japanese voice much, either. Overall, I think I prefer the dub, if only because I would rather watch something in my native language unless it's a total travesty (e.g. Sailor Moon, Rayearth, and as far as I can tell, most other anime dubs). Anyway, a couple points I was reminded of that I didn't mention before: I really love the Howl/Calcifer relationship and the gorgeous catch-a-falling-star scene that Sophie witnesses in Howl's past. "Wait for me in the future!" So romantic.
One thing I'm proud of: when first watching Howl in English, I speculated that the frequent and unusual use of the word "'kay" (as an abbreviation for "okay") was probably a replacement, syllable-wise, for hai, and the Japanese version proved me right! Also, why do they always translate onei-san as the person's name? Why not go with "big sister" or just "sister"? It's a little distracting, since it's obvious that the character is not, in fact, using the person's name. Okay, enough amateurish Japanese talk for Kate to nitpick at.
Buffy: Season 8. The first issue finally came today. I really wish I could ramble incoherently about its brilliance, but my strongest impression: That was SO SHORT. I read it at the kitchen table in about two minutes. I almost cried. What can I say? I'm a total comic-book novice, and the only ones I own--Fray, Runaways, and Young Avengers--are great big collections containing multiple issues. Now I'm in a bit of an awkward position; waiting for such an edition of Buffy would be agony, and I would probably be spoiled through the roof, either accidentally or due to a lack of willpower, by the time it came out, but I don't know if I can endure or even afford these flimsy little issues once a month.
That said, Buffy still seems Buffyish, Xander's gotten hotter, I'm actually feeling for Giant!Dawn, and Amy's looking downright scary. I think it's off to a promising start, but it will never touch the show; Joss or no Joss, it will never come close. It may be canon, but it's not canon, if that makes any sense, which it does not, unless you're a passionate Buffy fan who sees the most glorious of television worlds reduced to comic-book form. It's all good, though. I've always seen "Chosen" as a satisfying end for Buffy; "canon" or not, the comics are just for fun.
My latest Netflix movie arrived: Truly, Madly, Deeply, not to be confused with the song. I get to see Snape as a ghost with a moustache! More later.
-S.W.