I have a feeling that Leverage might possibly be more fun to work at then it is to watch. Hard as that is to believe.




Also...TEN WEEKS TO GO!!!

*tapes note to front door*

Dear World-in-General,

Taking short break.

Up since 4 AM (and only went to bed at 1).

And it's been practically non-stop for the last two days (and especially the last twelve hours)

I should be back on duty once I grab a quick nap, and maybe, you know, a shower.

Please leave all questions, crisis-es, and further complications, on the porch and I'll deal with them in an hour or two.

Thank you,

Me.

You knew it would happen eventually ...an Aldis Hodge-centric Leverage "extra" video.



(NOTE: If you have not yet seen the show [And, if so, WHY NOT????] this is really not spoiler-y in any way other than the very basic concept of "people on this show steal things"

So, revel in the awesome amuse-ity [amusingness? amuse-osity?] of Aldis and the Leverage crew!)

So, I was doing a search for images of Sierra Leone (it is truly a stunningly beautiful country) and I see a "News Results for Sierra Leone" dated only 16 hours ago.

So I click on it.

Headline: "SEVENTEEN HURT IN SIERRA LEONE, POLITICAL VIOLENCE"

"...at least 10 injured being treated at a hospital in the city, many with machete wounds [!!!] to their bodies, shoulders or hands."

Well,...Crap.

I really did *NOT* want to hear that.

Now, granted, she only arrived about four hours ago and I have no idea how close this was to where she's staying, but STILL!!!

...

I will NOT be mentioning this to Momma until she is home again safe. No need for that.

So you remember how last March was rather tumultuous for my family?

Well, this time around is pretty busy, too.

(I'm just hoping it's not ushering in another spring-summer-fall combo like we had in 2008!)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

( Click here to learn which family member is currently on the other side of the planet. Also, some depressing news on a global/historical scale )

( Click here for some depressing news on a more personal scale )

( Click here for updates on some information from last year, and news that is more bittersweet then depressing )

( Click here for a brief update and a wrap-up that tries to dilute the depressing content of much of the rest of the entry )

I don’t think my mom understands what it is I do.

( I know my entries are almost universally 'tl;dr' - so I'm going to cut to be nice. Click if you wanna read me ramble about my family, my life, and having family who appreciate your skills but clearly don't understand what you've actually been doing with your life )

So my last post was a rec for arefadedaway's awesome girl-power fanvid. (If you have not seen it, do so immediately. Heck, if you haven't seen it recently, rewatch it immediately.)

In the comments, omoo talked about seeing a recent movie and being angry at the portrayal of women in it "When afterwards we tried to name positive role models we had a really hard time, and were a bit depressed by that. We were trying to limit ourselves to non sci-fi/ fantasy since it would be nice if girls/ women had role models that were strong and cool in this world, now, instead of something that will just happen in the future."

I take this as a challenge!

Yes, there are a lot of disappointing representations of women out there, but there are also those that encourage, uplift, and inspire. Help me celebrate the many, wonderful, awesome fictional females!

I've never done something like this, so we'll see how it goes.

Here are the rules:

1. Post the name and fandom of the Fabulous Female you want to recognize in the subject of your comment

2. In the body of the comment explain briefly why she is a worthy woman role model.

3. If someone has already started a thread for one of your favorite characters, go ahead and chime in with the reasons that YOU love her! It's a love meme, we can't say too much.

4. I don't want to discriminate against any awesome characters, but for a challenge, let's try to focus on promoting the ones that are based on real women dealing with real life just like we do. That means those a) without special powers, b) living in the modern world c) not involved with magic/monsters/men from outer space.

5. Promote this meme to your friends.

Fanvid Rec

So, I found this a while back, forget now who or what community linked me to this video originally, but I wanted to promote it to all of you.

It’s a multi-fandom fanvid recognizing the wonderful, powerful, inspiring, beautiful, intelligent, fascinating female characters we all have come to know and love over the years.

A celebration to girls everywhere.

Yes, it has the ones you’d expect, like Buffy and Xena.

But it has much newer fandoms (Parker!) and much smaller ones (MISS Parker!)

(...and on a COMPLETE sidenote, although I had never connected those two before this moment, now I want some sort of crossover thingy about these women both known only by the same single name.)

There are the sci-fi chicks, of course: Aeryn, Teyla, Starbuck, Janeway, various Companions, the Firefly girls...

But this is a complete smorgasbord of fandom females:
Dani Reese, Chloe Sullivan, Veronica Mars, Anne Shirley, Susan Pevensie, Ziva David, Sam Carter, Temperance Brennan...

Old-school female roles (Wonder Woman, Emma Peel, Lt. Uhuru) get their due as well.

Naturally, there are women warriors (Sarah Conner, Eowyn, Trinity) girls with special abilities (Storm, Seven of Nine, Claire, River), and girls discovering new worlds and magical adventure (Lucy, Lyra, Hermione), but there are also women just dealing with the ups and downs of life, and deserving to be recognized (Tami Taylor, the girls from Mad Men, Lizzie and Jane!).

Oh, and the animated females are by no means forgotten, from Azula, Toph, and Katara, to Sailor Moon and her posse, ... even Carmen Sandiego!

I especially like that the bad girls (Angela Petrelli, Jadis, Maleficent(!), among others) get their moment along with the heroines.

And the editing is intriguing, the way certain girls are grouped together, or similar scenes/poses reoccur.

You should go watch it.

It’ll probably take several viewings to even begin to catch all the faces.

After all, with every name listed above, I’ve only mentioned less than ONE THIRD of the awesome females represented!

If you are not watching Leverage - WHY???

Let me just put it to you this way.

Last night was the first half of the two-part season finale.

I would be completely satisfied if that WAS the entire season finale.

And we were left with the "To Be Continued" questions of "where do we go from here?/what will they do?" for the entire hiatus.

THAT is how excellent this show's writing/characters/plot/motivations/dialog/etc is.

I was stunned when that thought came to me and I realized it was true. Because I have NEVER felt that way ever.

Onto episode comments!
( Leverage Season Finale Part One )

I haven't made a reaction post the same night the episode aired - for ANY show - in absolute ages.

Actually, I haven't watched Heroes at all in a long while. I just caught up with a mini-marathon this weekend. (The last episode I had watched was the one where Peter goes tossed out of Pinehurst.)

My opinion varied, but overall I would say favorable. Although, they're not even pretending to have continuity on this show any more, are they?

I mean, sometimes they'll do nice little touches and call backs and then the next episode they are completely retconning the heck out of some plot element or character motivation or whatever.

Which brings us to tonight's episode:

( Book Four: Fugitives )

...Or something like that.

I just found out - The wonderful, lovely, insightful, talented, generous, intelligent, beautiful people over at TNT have announced that Leverage has been renewed for a second season!!!

This makes me *SOOOOOO* HAPPY, YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!!

I want to twirl about with glee!!!

I get a whole 'nother season with Hardison and Elliot and Parker and Nate and Sophie and capers and costumes and accents and fight scenes and explosions and ... WHEE!!!

So have you noticed how the internet community – and fandom especially – has a way of infiltrating one’s subconscious?

That without ever intending to do so, one winds up …knowing things, almost by osmosis? Or being reminded of things …that you’ve never actually seen/experienced first hand? But it’s such a common reaction/response on your flist that it has somehow come to be something YOU think of as well?

Surely that sort of thing has happened to other people besides me?

The latest (and most extreme!) example:

Last night I went to see a Shakespeare play.

Shortly after intermission something twigged one of those little subconscious triggers and out of the blue I was suddenly struck by the thought of how some fanfic writers might subtext this particular scene in a slash fic.

THEN I was wondering – are there Shakespeare slashers out there? There must be.

Someone out there is all about the Brutus/Cassius. I know it.

(or the Romeo/Mercutio or the Valentine/Proteus or the Sebastian/Antonio ...no, wait, now that I type it out, I think I remember actually seeing that one mentioned somewhere. - See what I mean?)

Rule #34 of the internet modified for fandom - If two characters occupy the same area of space at any point in time, someone, somewhere, will slash/ship them.

You have to understand, I am not a slasher. I am not even a shipper. (Except in a few select cases, and even then it’s pretty much limited to canonical ships that, well, basically everyone supports.) I am a hardcore gen / friendshipper fan. I know we're a rare breed on the internet, but there you are.

I enjoy my shows and the character interactions without attributing any romantic interest or relationship behind it.

In fact, it took me a long time to figure out what people kept seeing as “hoyay” or slash. I recognize the chemistry, clearly, but 99.99% of the time I don’t see as it anything sexual.

Now that I do realize what qualifies as “slashiness” I occasionally enjoy spotting extremely blatant elements because it amuses me to think how interpreting that will get certain portions of fandom all worked up.

And, all of a sudden, that’s what watching the second act turned into for me.

It really is astonishing how almost every line or stage direction took on a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT MEANING when you looked at it through slash-tinted goggles.

(Especially since this particular scene was full of lines that easily translated into a lover’s quarrel – “Do not presume too much upon my love” “When thou didst hate him worst, thou lovedst him better Than ever thou lovedst [me].”)

I was sitting there, struggling not to giggle, because a) it’s Julius Caesar, not exactly intended as comedy b) I am NOT going to explain to the group of people I’m with that I’m imagining people on the internet – who, by the way, I’m not even sure really exist - planning to write fanfiction (and most likely pornographic fanfiction, at that) about these characters c) oh geeze, and now that last bit of dialogue suddenly prompted a vision of someone’s diehard Brutus/Portia/Cassius OT3 fandom d) I seriously need help

I blame you.

All of you.

So, it's just after lunch on the Friday before a long weekend. You're just trying to get through the afternoon and wandering the internet to kill time...

I have an idea! Let's play everyone's favorite bored-on-the-internet activity - the "What Are You Wearing?" Game! (Look! I even have a tag for it!)


1. Jeans (and they're fitting me much better than they did a month ago!)
2. Navy, long-sleeved ribbed t-shirt
3. Aqua, short-sleeve t-shirt with a navy letter "r" (it's lower case) outlined in little sparkly things and the word "relaxed"
4. Socks, and all necessary undergarments, but no shoes.

Taken from truemyth

~ Pick your 20 favorite movies (of all time or right now).
~ Post their movie posters.

I took "favorite" to mean a movie that I love from beginning to end and could watch over and over again (and have!)

( Get a glimpse of my somewhat eclectic tastes. )

I've decided it's simply ludicrous to consider even attempting anything close to "catching up" on nearly six months of livejournal posts.

Instead I'm just going to randomly read, skim, and comment as my fancy strikes me.

So, if you suddenly receive a comment on something that was posted AGES ago, realize I probably wasn't around then, or I might have actually read it at the time, but didn't stick around long enough to comment and I'm doing so now.

As always, feel free to completely ignore.

*blows dust and cobwebs off of poor, abandoned journal*

Hi, remember me?

I feel like I should cue typewritten subtitles, like in the movies: "5 or 6 Months Later"

Summary of events:

~ My family was finally able to move back into the house THREE FULL MONTHS after having to leave at the drop of a hat. Momma's health remains excellent with no return problems, praise the Lord. We're incrementally working on finishing the remainder of renovations as time/money/manpower allows.

~ Had a lovely Thanksgiving (though not as awesome as last year. Best. Holiday. Ever.) and Christmas (in which I got very creative and crafty and made/invented presents for almost everyone).

~ Massive computer/email/internet connection troubles and a desire to focus on important issues in real life without risking the temptation of the massive black hole of procrastination enabling that is LiveJournal contributed to my absence.

Current Family Status:

( Think of it as one of those Christmas newsletters you get from your cousins )

So, what have I missed 'round here?

WHEW!!

Real life = ... I cannot find a single word or phrase to adequately capture what this past few weeks/months has been like.

Think of those >>>>>WHOOOOOOSH! blurs that the Road Runner used to make on the old cartoons. No time to identify what you were hearing or seeing just Doppler Effect speed noises and a facefull of wind left in his wake.

THAT's kinda what my Real Life has been like.



But in a good way.

Mostly.

* * * *

One silver lining on that "mostly" - realized recently that my depression downward spirals (which, though more and more infrequent, still exist) are apparently far more linked to hormones than I originally thought. Going to start tracking them related to TOM and see.

* * * *

The AC guys started work yesterday! They should be entirely done by middle of next week meaning MY FAMILY CAN ALL COME HOME FINALLY!!!!!!

(It is more than TWO MONTHS today. Enough is enough.)

* * * *

Momma is still feeling great. Not only are all the problems and chronic fatigue gone, but she says in some ways she feels even better than she has for a number of years. (Certain minor allergic reactions/coughing/sleep issues seem to have cleared up too.)

* * * *

Our non-profit's second annual women's retreat begins four weeks from today - and we already have 35 people registered!

That may not seem like much, but realize that last year we only had about 45 total and the majority of those registered in the last week or two.


* * * *

Also, two of my long-long-LONG-term friends who live out-of-state/out-of-town and we only get to see about once a year will be coming! And maybe the third sister too!

I'm so excited! We haven't all been roomies together since ... gosh. 1996?

And that was actually only the older two sisters and me. For all four of us at once ... Wow. I don't even know.

* * * *

Somewhat tarnished lining: After three solid weeks of exercising 45+ minutes daily last month, I am now on a similar streak of NOT exercising at all.

Granted I've been incredibly busy, and very active with cleaning/packing and moving boxes/furniture/etc, but still.

One of you give me a friendly shove towards the treadmill, okay?

* * * *

What I Learned Today:

(It was actually last night, but whatever)

You know the little plastic "arm" inside your toilet tank that lifts up when you push down the handle and causes the flush?

That is called the "flapper".

* * * *

Watermelon is finally in season, for which let us all give thanks.

It took forever this year for our local grocery stores to get large, tasty, ripe juicy watermelons.

* * * *

I currently have two in the fridges.

* * * *

Well, one and a half.

* * * *

In fact, I think I hear it calling my name right now. Time for a afternoon snack!

Whew! Real life is insane. That is all I am going to say on that for now.

After the last week or so, I realized that I needed to make plans for something entertaining, or I was likely to just continue moving from one project to the next and just filling time in between "need-to-dos". And I didn't want to keep that up. Therein lies madness and burnout.

Since Wednesday is 2-for-1 rental night at the local video store, I headed over there last night to see what I could find.

I wasn’t sure if I was in the mood for a classic, a comedy, a drama, a musical, a romance. I did know I wanted to see something I’d never seen before.

I wound up hitting a very happy medium with The Thin Man.

WHY HAS IT TAKEN ME SO LONG TO SEE THIS MOVIE???

I loved it!

Watching it was like the first time I saw Casablanca - it felt like it was an old well-loved favorite already.

Had a feeling it would be my cup of tea. Let me explain why.

Here are some of the things that I love and have always been fascinated/entertained by:

~ Black-and-white movies

~ ‘30s fashions

~ Antique slang (“swell dames” and “smashing ideas” and “mooks” who get sent to “stir” after “taking a poke” at somebody)

~ Mysteries – more than that, good old-fashioned detective stories where the final scene takes place with all the suspects gathered in the parlor or the dining car as the sleuth breaks down whodunit.

~ Men (and women!) wearing hats and overcoats

~ Witty repartee

~ Noir

~ Stories that hint at a long and colorful backstory

~ Atmosphere and character lifestyle – again with the old-fashioned detective stories (but a little bit of Austen love there, too) – you know the ones where people are always holding garden parties/dinner parties, have gobs of time for just talking and gossiping and bantering about and no one ever seems to work for a living?

~ Characters that act in an unexpected manner as a matter of course

~ Further expounding on that, established relationships that do NOT get tested by the quirks of the plot as so often happens, because the people involve trust each and, see above

~ It’s even better if those closely bonded characters (be the relationship romantic, fraternal, familial, platonic) tend to communicate non-verbally almost as much as verbally

~ Detective/Hero with friendly ties to the underworld, sometimes to the point of putting his interactions with the local officers of the law on rocky ground because of it

~ Characters with hidden depths/talents

~ Especially when, although on the surface they may at first seem flighty/shallow/helpless/insipid they are in fact incredibly capable and even downright awesome. (Geeze, there’s a whole LIST of them here – Starting with Sir Percy Blakeney and Lord Peter Whimsey)

(By the way, even if you know nothing of the Thin Man series – can you see from this list part of why I loved Veronica Mars SO much?)

This movie had all of that ... in SPADES.

And I was in love from way early on.

True, the main characters are basically a pair of high-functioning alcoholics

(According to this movie a liberal application of liquor – either straight or in one or more mixed drinks – is good for: celebrations, conversation topics, marital bonding, hangover cure, sleep aid, smelling salts, and more!)

But that is in a way part of the general atmosphere – the ravishing costumes (everyone in dressing gowns and robes! All that satin and fur trim – those SLEEVES! And then the daytime gear – with the fitted skirts and smart little plaids.)

The charming furniture (I greatly covet Dorothy’s bedset [those polka dots!] – and that darling little vanity table in the Charles’ kitchen)

The quaint language (“Send me up a flock of sandwiches”) and metaphors (“You’re peddling your fish to the wrong market”)

Plus, the dialogue is simply delightful:

(Commenting on the news reports the morning after Nick was grazed by a bullet.)
Nick: “I’m a hero. I got shot twice in the Times.”
Nora: “I read where you were shot five times in the tabloids.”
Nick: “It’s not true. He didn’t come anywhere near my tabloids.”

Later, at the penultimate dinner party scene:
Nick: “The murderer is right here in this room. Sitting at this very table. You may serve the fish.”

It’s all in the delivery.

(And by the way, gotta say, everything you've heard about William Powell and Myrna Loy making Nick and Nora one of the most fascinating classic film couples is true. Their chemistry is amazing.

I totally need me some "Nick & Nora - OTP" icons!)

I had read the novel many years ago (when I was first going through my Dashiel Hammett /Raymond Chandler stage) and enjoyed it, but somehow never got ‘round to seeing the film.

I’m so glad I finally did!





And the very BEST part?


There’s FIVE more movies after this!


Tonight or tomorrow, I’ve got an appointment with After the Thin Man and a plate of Chinese.

*happy sigh*

..O, what a beautiful day!

In the last month or so I have found that frequently I need no more than 3 to 5 hours sleep at a time. Many nights I get a full 7-9 hours, but others it's just a few and then, I'm awake.

It's not insomnia, because I'm rested and feel GOOD, so I've just been taking advantage of the extra time in the day, and sleeping when my body is tired. Worked out well so far.

Today was another one of those, and I decided to get an early jump on my daily exercise.

So, 6:24 found me dressed and outside, with my Golden, headed out for what turned out to be a brisk TWO MILE (!!) walk.

The City of Edmond has done a lot of work on this area right next to my neighborhood, putting in a dogpark and nature/walking/bike trails leading back around the little pond, even a "arboretum"

It's a lovely and relaxing place to walk.

And there's so much wildlife! Just this morning I saw a Great Blue Heron, (just SITTING there, majestically) two different Red-Winged Blackbirds at the same time (lovely! and one or the other must have had a nest near by 'cause they were still warbling away two loops later, so pretty) and a simply Gi-NOR-mous bullfrog that we startled into the pond. (Seriously, that thing was as big around as a grapefruit! Although not as high.)

Then there was the sky.

I didn't have my camera with me, but I tried upon getting home to find some images online that captured the beauty of the sky this morning. None of them came close. Because not only were there artistic sunrays streaming up from the horizon and scattering the clouds, but it everything was golden and light and it was cast across the ENTIRE sky!

(One nice thing about central Oklahoma, no pesky forests or mountains to block your view of sunrises/sunsets!)

So, yeah, I've walked two miles already this morning - at a pretty good pace, too, despite Ransom stopping to do his "business" (3 times for #1, 2 times for #2, and I'm not even sure how that's physically possible) - I know, because I timed myself at each halfway mark around the 0.4 mile loop next to the pond and I kept up the same time from point A to point B all three times around.

I might have been a touch overzealous though. 'Cause in the last two blocks before home, my hip started pulling. Just a little. Probably all that walking on concrete.

But I feel great! I'll just be sure to stretch extra well before next time.

And here it is, not even 8 o'clock yet!

I've still got my whole day ahead of me!




What are YOU going to do to make this a Beautiful Morning?



( Or, if you prefer a little bit more modern take on your musicals ...Mr. Hugh Jackman's version )