Books and TV and stuff
Jun. 5th, 2018 05:24 pmHello, all! Time for my monthly check-in. I took a week off work last week and my mom came to visit, so we had some fun adventures (Monticello! ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mcmegan! Colonoscopy!). Okay, that last one wasn't fun. It was my 10th, though, so it's kind of a milestone, I guess? Which I apparently decided to mark by passing out before the procedure, because I am a delicate flower. Honestly, I was just trying to save the anesthesiologist some time! I am thinking of investing in a fainting couch or something, because really I pass out more than the average person should. Otherwise, I am okay-but-not-great, health-wise, and may be trying more experimental drugs.
My mom and I binge-watched The Crown. It's good! It's kind of Downton-esque, but with more politics and royal protocol and less melodrama. It's especially fascinating to watch in the wake of the most recent royal wedding, and seeing how much has changed and how much really hasn't. My mother and I are also in awe of and working on perfecting Elizabeth's ability to express extreme displeasure with a single, disdainful "Oh." (We also talked in British accents most of the week. I feel like that goes without saying.) And, with the series finale of The Americans the same week, we were well prepared for this "Which Philip and Elizabeth?" quiz, lol.
In other TV-watching news, I am now fully caught up with Jane the Virgin (OMGWTF[spoiler]!) and Legends of Tomorrow, which has been a delightful surprise. Having already committed to the rest of the DC-verse with Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl, I initially gave it a shot, but totally bailed two episodes into the first season, because I hated the villain and at least two of the main characters. But I had heard that it got miles better in season 2 (which, based on the little I saw of the characters during crossover episodes, seemed possible), so I went back and watched just enough to get the gist and then skipped to season 2, which is completely bonkers fun as the time travel series shifts from "OMG we must track this evil dude through history without changing anything" to "watch these dumbasses fuck up history and then try to fix it." Season 3 (which just finished) is just as batshit bananas - a little too dependent on tracking down magical mcguffins, but the truly insane payoff in the season finale makes it worth it.
I continue to be delinquent in my reading - I am now SIX books behind my goal. *facepalm* Here's what I read in May:
Empire of Storms, Sarah J. Maas: Ehhhhh. I'm starting to lose interest in this series. It's gotten repetitive and all the characters are starting to seem the same (must EVERYONE be some kind of royalty and also unbelievably attractive and have fantastic superpowers? Remember when this series was about a scrappy assassin who could not solve all her problems by setting them on fire with her mind?). Also, while the series has gotten increasingly porny, all the good ships got trashed and the ones who are left are dull and so I mostly don't want to read about how much sex they're having. And yet, I will probably continue to read the series because closure?
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, Elizabeth Gilbert: LOL, oh, Liz Gilbert. You have some good things to say. If only you weren't so bonkers and full of yourself. Like, I appreciate the embracing of curiosity and creativity and the encouragement to make the stuff you wanna make and do the stuff you wanna do and don't worry about failing or what anyone else thinks of you, just do it to please yourself (which is fine, I guess, as long as you don't care about making a career out of it?). But man, she presents it all in the context of her belief in magical thinking - like, literal magic:
"I believe that our planet is inhabited not only by animals and plants and bacteria and viruses, but also by ideas. Ideas are a disembodied, energetic life-form. They are completely separate from us, but capable of interacting with us - albeit strangely. Ideas have no material body, but they do have consciousness, and they most certainly have will.... [I]deas spend eternity swirling around us, searching for available and willing human partners.... When an idea thinks it has found somebody - say, you - who might be able to bring it into the world, the idea will pay you a visit... I believe that inspiration will always try its best to work with you - but if you are not ready or available, it may indeed choose to leave you and to search for a different human collaborator."
Some of this comes from the Greek and Roman belief "in the idea of an external daemon of creativity - a sort of house elf, if you will, who lived in within the walls of your home and who sometimes aided you in your labors. The Romans had a specific term for that helpful house elf. They called it your genius." And her point is basically don't let yourself be burdened with the pressure of being a genius, just do your thing. Maybe genius will strike, but you can't control that. All you can do is put in the time and effort and be willing to accept whatever comes out of that. Which is not a bad attitude to have? (But also a lot easier to do once you've become a bestselling author.) It's just weird the way she presents it as though creativity is a religion you have to believe in.
And finally, since this is kind of a catch-all post anyway, here's a recipe!
BLT Pasta Salad - I made this for a potluck a long time ago, but never posted it. Everyone loved it, and basically licked the bowl clean, so clearly it's good. (It's the bacon. Nothing with bacon can be bad.) The recipe makes a TON, so you might want to scale down if you're not going to a party, lol. I love leftovers, but I suspect the lettuce would get soggy.
mcmegan! Colonoscopy!). Okay, that last one wasn't fun. It was my 10th, though, so it's kind of a milestone, I guess? Which I apparently decided to mark by passing out before the procedure, because I am a delicate flower. Honestly, I was just trying to save the anesthesiologist some time! I am thinking of investing in a fainting couch or something, because really I pass out more than the average person should. Otherwise, I am okay-but-not-great, health-wise, and may be trying more experimental drugs. My mom and I binge-watched The Crown. It's good! It's kind of Downton-esque, but with more politics and royal protocol and less melodrama. It's especially fascinating to watch in the wake of the most recent royal wedding, and seeing how much has changed and how much really hasn't. My mother and I are also in awe of and working on perfecting Elizabeth's ability to express extreme displeasure with a single, disdainful "Oh." (We also talked in British accents most of the week. I feel like that goes without saying.) And, with the series finale of The Americans the same week, we were well prepared for this "Which Philip and Elizabeth?" quiz, lol.
In other TV-watching news, I am now fully caught up with Jane the Virgin (OMGWTF[spoiler]!) and Legends of Tomorrow, which has been a delightful surprise. Having already committed to the rest of the DC-verse with Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl, I initially gave it a shot, but totally bailed two episodes into the first season, because I hated the villain and at least two of the main characters. But I had heard that it got miles better in season 2 (which, based on the little I saw of the characters during crossover episodes, seemed possible), so I went back and watched just enough to get the gist and then skipped to season 2, which is completely bonkers fun as the time travel series shifts from "OMG we must track this evil dude through history without changing anything" to "watch these dumbasses fuck up history and then try to fix it." Season 3 (which just finished) is just as batshit bananas - a little too dependent on tracking down magical mcguffins, but the truly insane payoff in the season finale makes it worth it.
I continue to be delinquent in my reading - I am now SIX books behind my goal. *facepalm* Here's what I read in May:
Empire of Storms, Sarah J. Maas: Ehhhhh. I'm starting to lose interest in this series. It's gotten repetitive and all the characters are starting to seem the same (must EVERYONE be some kind of royalty and also unbelievably attractive and have fantastic superpowers? Remember when this series was about a scrappy assassin who could not solve all her problems by setting them on fire with her mind?). Also, while the series has gotten increasingly porny, all the good ships got trashed and the ones who are left are dull and so I mostly don't want to read about how much sex they're having. And yet, I will probably continue to read the series because closure?
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, Elizabeth Gilbert: LOL, oh, Liz Gilbert. You have some good things to say. If only you weren't so bonkers and full of yourself. Like, I appreciate the embracing of curiosity and creativity and the encouragement to make the stuff you wanna make and do the stuff you wanna do and don't worry about failing or what anyone else thinks of you, just do it to please yourself (which is fine, I guess, as long as you don't care about making a career out of it?). But man, she presents it all in the context of her belief in magical thinking - like, literal magic:
"I believe that our planet is inhabited not only by animals and plants and bacteria and viruses, but also by ideas. Ideas are a disembodied, energetic life-form. They are completely separate from us, but capable of interacting with us - albeit strangely. Ideas have no material body, but they do have consciousness, and they most certainly have will.... [I]deas spend eternity swirling around us, searching for available and willing human partners.... When an idea thinks it has found somebody - say, you - who might be able to bring it into the world, the idea will pay you a visit... I believe that inspiration will always try its best to work with you - but if you are not ready or available, it may indeed choose to leave you and to search for a different human collaborator."
Some of this comes from the Greek and Roman belief "in the idea of an external daemon of creativity - a sort of house elf, if you will, who lived in within the walls of your home and who sometimes aided you in your labors. The Romans had a specific term for that helpful house elf. They called it your genius." And her point is basically don't let yourself be burdened with the pressure of being a genius, just do your thing. Maybe genius will strike, but you can't control that. All you can do is put in the time and effort and be willing to accept whatever comes out of that. Which is not a bad attitude to have? (But also a lot easier to do once you've become a bestselling author.) It's just weird the way she presents it as though creativity is a religion you have to believe in.
And finally, since this is kind of a catch-all post anyway, here's a recipe!
BLT Pasta Salad - I made this for a potluck a long time ago, but never posted it. Everyone loved it, and basically licked the bowl clean, so clearly it's good. (It's the bacon. Nothing with bacon can be bad.) The recipe makes a TON, so you might want to scale down if you're not going to a party, lol. I love leftovers, but I suspect the lettuce would get soggy.
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