Gin Craze!

Jan. 25th, 2019 02:57 pm
sienamystic: (eclipses)
I'm doing a short talk on two Hogarth prints later on this semester, so I've just started reading two books on the subject of the prints, Gin: The much-lamented Death of Madam Geneva and Ale, beer and Brewsters in England: women's work in a changing world, 1300-1600. If you're interested in the topic, there are also two podcasts that relate directly, one from the BBC's In Our Time on the gin craze (the image they use is a detail from the print I'm talking about) and an episode of Tides of History where the host interviews the author on the topic of women and beer brewing.

Kiki has had her two shots and is now on her two month stretch of enforced inactivity. She can go for short walks but I predict in a few days she'll be feeling better and the short walks are just going to frustrate her. She's going to end up staring at me with pleading eyes and trying to squish herself into my lap so I know how much she is suffering.


[personal profile] jesse_the_k asked about three of my icons, my main one, my eclipses one, and my zen one.

My nom-de-internet is pretty old by now and comes from Saint Catherine of Siena, a mystic saint that I did my thesis on. The image is of Saint Catherine holding a lily, and is from a fresco in the basilica of San Domenico and was painted by Andrea Vanni. If you go visit, say hi to her head for me.

I didn't make my eclipses icon and sadly I don't have a note down anywhere about who made it. I know very little about astronomy, but I'm fascinated by old astronomical charts and texts and images. I adopted this icon because I just find it deeply beautiful.

My zen one is Damian Lewis from the tv show Life. I loved the show so much, and besides the great acting and fun stories it had great music too. Sadly it was crippled by the writers strike and when the two seasons finally made it to DVD they had replaced a lot of the music with lesser choices. I was not happy. Anyway, Damian Lewis's character Charlie Crews is a police officer sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit, and while he's there he studies Zen. When he's freed, he brings his slightly eccentric Zen sensibilities out into the world with him, much to the frustration of those around him. (He also has a thing for fresh fruit.)
sienamystic: (cactus pot)
I don't think I binge-watched, exactly, but I just now finished up watching Jessica Jones over the weekend. My quick and dirty review - wrenching, compelling, not perfect by any means, but really, really good. Sometimes the tone got a little lost, and there were little eddys in the execution where you could see why the show was doing something but maybe it didn't work. On the whole, though, it was a pretty great piece of television. I don't know how it compares to Daredevil - I think that show had higher highs and a few low spots that slowed things down a lot, and the action scenes were better. But I feel more attached to this show and also attached to more of its characters.

Also, definitely ready for a Hellcat show. Also also, the adventures of Clare Temple, Night Nurse. Not sure I got attached to Luke Cage's story enough that I'll be wound up waiting for his show, but I'll probably watch it.

I have one more post to do on the Italy trip. Will try and get it out sometime soon. Work is really busy, with a lot of tricky shit in the works just as everybody (including me) wants to go into holiday mode. We're thinking about buying a house and I'm shit unprepared for it and really anxious about the whole process. On the other hand, the house is less than some people pay for fancy cars, so, hah. Anyway. It was nice to have the distraction of the show over the past few days.
sienamystic: (Joan)
BRB, sobbing wildly because of a tv show I'm going to miss very much.
sienamystic: (Anya)
I wasn't particularly caught up in it, although it did send me to find the Branagh version's soundtrack on Spotify and listen to it. And I did fall completely in love with the French princess's lady in waiting Alice.
sienamystic: (Bourne)
Why am I watching Hannibal it's so pretty but I can't cope. But I can't look away, either.

I shake my fist at thee, charismatic group of actors and staff and people who write clever Tumblr tags and post gleeful cannibal puns. I shake my fist at thee!
sienamystic: (Be More Awesome)
So work is kind of intense right now, and I'm listening to a lot of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals to try and get through it, and things are a wee tiny bit super-stressful.

I feel like writing but have no inspiration. So if anybody would care to leave me prompts, I will try to write commentfic. Or longer fic if something sparks. Or no fic at all if I can't muster the minimum braincells to hit keys on the keyboard. I can't make any promises, people, but I will try.

I'm bringing back an almost year-old meme for this: Pick a pairing (het, slash, femslash are all okay) and I'll write a short scene where they share a kiss. Crossovers welcome unless they break my brain in half (although this is the same meme that last year resulted in Bunter/Eliot from Leverage kissing, so...

Fandoms: Buffy, Avengers movieverse, Dresden Files, Constantine movieverse, Firefly, Leverage, Sayers, Bourne, Castle, Jennifer Crusie, Vicki Bliss, Kage Baker's Company books

Also I'm watching Hannibal and the acting is pretty awesome and it's really intense and gory and beautiful but I feel a little weird about yet another "lots of dead girls" show.

Last night's Castle was really adorable, Mad Men is continuing awesome, I just painted my toenails with super-sparkly nailpolish. And that's all I have to say right now.

Ack thppt

Mar. 12th, 2013 11:12 pm
sienamystic: (Anya)
I'm scared one of the cats is ill, I have money but not really because hahahah bills, my feet hurt, and I ate a lot of crappy food today and regret it because blurgh, except probably not enough to stop myself the next time I want something crappy.

I apparently watched The Last Unicorn at just the right age to do serious damage because I almost started sobbing today listening to a PODCAST of the Tolkien Professor discuss it in his fantasy literature class. That's like, third-hand emotional trauma. (Although to be honest that's probably hormones talking. Mostly.) I have a DVD of the movie because my sister likes to torment me, and I could show it to Bemo because he's never seen it, but then he'd have to watch me cry helplessly from the second the movie started till the last credit rolled.

The next book the podcast was discussing was Sabriel so I have a good excuse to reread it, especially since I'm sort-of rereading one of the Travis McGees I don't really like and don't know why I decided to reread. And I'm also reading Caesar's Women for the umpty-millionth time, but it's been a while since Sabriel, so.

Also I have a bunch of the Oz books on my Kindle to reread.

Bemo's back hurts and he's in part-time PT because of it. Oh goody, more bills. If he winds up needing an MRI I'm going to scream. Of course it's not his fault, but that doesn't make me any less irritable about it.

This is all payback for me being happy that we only have three more car payments. By the time June rolls around I'll be too bugfuck to cope with the extra cash. Either that or the car will be hit by a meteor the day after I make the final payment.

Justified kicked ass tonight.

I don't know if random stream-of-consciousness really makes a journal entry.

I need quarters for laundry.

I need to clean the house.

I need to get to bed.

I need a gif that perfectly expresses my feelings. OH WAIT I DO

 photo PEGGY-IN-A-CIRCLE.gif
sienamystic: (Joan)
So as I wait for my sleeping pill to kick in, a few thoughts about Castle! Two great things that go great together, right?

So this was the two-parter, and I had remained pretty steadily unspoiled about it by not reading the TWOP boards or what have you. The first ep (and the better of the two, I think) was just stellar - they let Nathan Fillion off his leash and he got to do so much incredible acting all over that show. The Castle family just works together so well as a unit - you genuinely believe that these two women and one man have an incredible bond - and it was interesting to see how Beckett may eventually fit into that dynamic, even if she's not quite there yet. (Of course if the creators would bother to throw people a bone and just show everybody spending some relaxing time in the apartment instead of constantly shoehorning emotional development stuff into the crevices of the mystery story, that would be good too.)

The second half had a little bit too much plot bubbling around. While I didn't like the idea of Castle having a Spy Daddy, it was played out reasonably well, with some good chemistry between Fillion and Brolin. But they tried to squish a lot of stuff into the episode - perhaps giving it another half-hour to allow for a little decompressing and a little more of a structured payoff to all the tension that had built up at that point. By the last twenty minutes, things were in such a rush.

At any rate, it was great tv, as is Justified (she said, segueing awkwardly. Seriously, though. Such an incredible, incredible show. High body count this ep. I like Boyd trying to outmanuver the fat cats even as his crew starts to fracture apart (and it's not much of a crew, is it? He needs to hire an extra thug or two.) And, oh, man. Raylan's relationship with his father is spectacularly crazypants bad in a way that you rarely see out of Greek Mythology.

I am talking about these things in part because I have had a stressful and slightly shitty day, even though things all came out well on the other end of things. But it's kind of been a Look At Your Life, Look at Your Choices sort of deal around here for the past little while and it makes me surly.
sienamystic: (flowermachine)
Inexplicably mopey. Well, perhaps not really inexplicably, but it's definitely no good reason. After yesterday's spring-like temperatures, it was chilly and snowed a little bit today, and we're possibly getting more snow this Wednesday - I'm praying for a snow day. Really, it's just one of those days when all you do is see yourself in the mirror and go, "God, I look tired and jowly and aged." That kind of thing. I'm feeling unmotivated and lumpy. Pssht.

I'd kill to be in Spa World right now, the Korean jimjibang back in Virginia, lying on the mats on the radiant heat floor. You get kind of boneless and warm to the core.

Anyway. Maybe there will be a snow day. Oh, and tonight's Castle was really, really good.
sienamystic: (iron man)
Am contemplating watching the Grammies for the first time in yoinks. Actually, what made me interested was to see how my current fave John Fullbright would fare in the Americana category. The fun thing was I was made aware of Bonnie Rait's current project - I loved her awhile back, but hadn't listened to anything new. I put the album, Slipstream, in while cleaning the bathroom today (housecleaning requires music) and had fun listening. I had already been poking at the Lumineers album that was also nominated, and while it hasn't quite clicked for me entirely, I'm still interested. There were also another couple of bands in the pool that looked interesting, so I have a lot of new stuff to try out.

Bonnie Rait won, which I suppose I'm ok with - she is, after all, pure concentrated awesome. I still wish From the Ground Up had got the nod, though. Hopefully the nomination will still get Fullbright some attention. He came onto my radar via NPR, so I suppose he's not exactly a hidden treasure.

SO ANYWAY. I have the E! red carpet coverage on (mostly muted because, god, annoying) and am vaguely watching celebrities parade past. But mostly I'll probably be spending it with the twitter feeds of Linda Holmes (@nprmonkeysee) and Stephen Thompson (@idislikestephen) to make the whole thing bearable. And I reserve the right to bail at any point in time because I suspect the majority of the show will be taken up by music I don't care about.

I made a giant pot of spaghetti and the wind is howling outside. It's not a bad evening to spend planted on the sofa.
sienamystic: (Joan)
I am late to the Elementary party, but glad I got there.

In other news, this video has been making me so happy recently. It's like all of Italy, encapsulated in one four minute video.

sienamystic: (Sophie)
Justified is back! Woot! Also I have an ep of Castle I need to watch.


Here, have a 1950s swimsuit -

Swimsuit Look Magazine May 1955
sienamystic: (Sophie)
Have finally caught up with all the Leverage eps that have been languishing on the DVR. This season has been a little flat for me, but wow, they made up for it with the two eps that served as their summer finale. Yowza.
sienamystic: (tempt me)
Korra finale in the morning, and a stretch of swimming and sitting in the sun at a local lake for the afternoon.

Korra verdict: very satisfying despite a sadly rushed pace that marred most of the season, plus some characters got short shrift while other were so satisfyingly rounded. Wished the whole bender/non-bender trope had been given more examination, because you were left without a really good idea of whether there was legitimate wide-spread bender resentment or if it was mostly something Amon stirred up. Got a little misty at certain points. Can't believe they went with a certain plot development given that the show's nominally for kids - really moving and surprising and sad.

It was a gorgeous day to swim in an almost-too-cold-but-not-quite lake, and eat banana bread and bask in the sunshine. We went with a friend and coworker, and plan to go next week. I may have to invest in a floaty thing of some kind. The day was sunny and warm, but not achingly hot, and all in all it was really nice. Not exactly a substitute for a real beach, but really nice.
sienamystic: (etc etc etc)
My birthday is tomorrow - looks like my gift from my mom is going to be a new tire. On Friday Bemo was dropping me off and a giant group of high school boys was trooping across campus and knocked over a normally-secured metal pylon. Cue loud yelps, clanging noises, and one big distraction, cue a slightly-too-hard curb check by Bemo, cue a flat tire showing up later that day and requiring a replacement. I am doing my best not to be really surly about yet another unexpected expense. I took out my irritation by cleaning the kitchen - at least all that energy can be harnessed for something worthwhile.

There's nothing that makes me realize how small the world has gotten than texting with my sister wile standing in the prep room unframing paintings, while she is on the other side of the world and about ready to go to bed. She's still on Mindanao, and aside from some mild annoyances with her classmates and some digestive issues and a sore throat, she's having a good time. She's prone to swollen tonsils, so fingers crossed that she shakes off the sore throat. She's already planted rice with a carabao, visited a shelter for young gang members trying to transition out of that life, and talked with a couple doing outreach through art.

Meanwhile, another friend is in Morocco and two coworkers are enjoying two weeks in Spain. I am in full-on travel yearning mode.

Also, continuing to love Legend of Korra, even if the dialogue was a little stilted this ep and I wish they had more time to spin out the story. Several characters are suffering a bit from the pace and the romantic strands of the story aren't being handled very well, but the action sequences are dynamite and I remain deeply in love with Lin Bei Fong.

Got a box in the mail from my mom. As usual, it includes things I wanted (a trashcan from Singapore that I had as a kid, featuring three flamingos, some Chiz Curls from a Filipino market because none of the markets here carry them), some things I didn't expect but were nice surprises (clothing from my sister - we've been swapping things) and some absolutely batshit stuff only my mom would think I want (a busted plastic knight's helmet, some clothing from mom that she knew I wouldn't fit into) and some things I wish she had not seen (A FAN LETTER TO RICHARD DEAN ANDERSON THAT WAS NOT MEANT TO BE READ BY ANY OTHER EYES). Oy.

Am currently watching some track and field events to get jazzed for the upcoming Olympics, which I unabashedly adore watching - not just track and field but a ton of events I otherwise do not follow at all. Am currently speculating that if I were a javelin thrower, I'd set up dummies and pretend to be attacking enemy troops. Meanwhile, a roast is filling the house with a very nice odor of steak and onions and potatoes, and I'm anticipating something delicious soon.
sienamystic: (Betty)
Oh my god, Mad Men, you have killed me in 30 different ways. I feel like retreating to Tumblr and posting a million heartfelt gifs about my feelings.
sienamystic: (flowermachine)
When I grow up I want to be Lin Bei Fong.

That is all.
sienamystic: (Reading Woman)
So, I was a big fan of the books. I devoured the first one, and ended up buying the UK versions of the next two, I think, because they were available earlier. I was all in. And then...well, the famous interlude. And by the time more books came out, I just didn't care anymore. The idea of rereading them all to remind myself about plot points didn't sound fun, and I was starting to have more problems with the whole Crapsack World thing. Picking up spoilers here and there didn't make me seem like I was missing much.

So, the show appeared. I was interested, because hey, Sean Bean. But I don't get HBO and so I figured I'd catch up via Netflix or something. The show was received well, and I didn't really seek out or avoid spoilers, and it all seemed like it was a pretty good show. Ended up buying the first four to watch on my ipod during some traveling. And I think I'm going to watch the rest of them, and probably pick up season two at some point...but I'm not positive. Because although everybody is really well cast, and the world is interesting and the series itself is really pretty, watching it knowing all the big plot points (and how bad just about all of them are) is really hard and unexpectedly stressful. I don't have a real sense wanting to watch the show unspool itself, because I know how it goes, mostly, and, well. Crapsack world. And nobody knows how it all ends, and blah blah don't get attached to anybody blah. For some people, that was a feature of the book, and it didn't concern me when I was all in, but now that I'm out, it's a big No Reentry sign for me.

But it's still more likely that I watch the show than read the rest of the books, weirdly enough. Unless the next two (I think it's two?) books are so incredible that I get that fire reawakened, like when I read the first and was So Excited. The tv show exists in a smaller universe where I can get my hands around it.

It's strange, how your response to things can ebb and flow over the years. And this one has had a lot of years to percolate.
sienamystic: (OMG octopus attack)
So obviously, right this very second, somebody is writing an incredible alterna-team story with Sterling, Maggie, Quinn, Chaos, and Archie all being badass, right? RIGHT?

What a great finale. Lots of continuity, juicy character moments, a fast-moving plot (two points for bivalve deployment) and a genuinely sweet Nate and Sophie moment at the end of it all. Sometimes they write Sophie as the Good Nagging Woman to Nate's Wayward Male, but I think they hit just the right notes tonight.

I actually had a weird pop culture moment and watched some of the Golden Globes tonight. Strange, I usually don't bother. But I wanted to see the dresses.

Also, I'm continuing to work through the stack of books from the giant haul from the library book sale ages ago - I'm currently reading a Laurie King book that apparently features both Kate Martinelli and Mary Russell? I'm not sure, have only gotten through the first parts of the book, and it's all Martinelli at this point.
sienamystic: (Bourne)
Test drove our new little cheapie hibachi today, and alas I botched the setup, resulting in a dense smokey taste that will likely stay in the back of my throat for the next year and a half. Burgers were cooked and consumed, but I can't say they were good, exactly. Will try to improve next time.

Did roll up some nice lumpia Shanghai for the dojo picnic tomorrow. Have discovered my big error - egg roll wrappers are just too thick...I've wanted spring roll wrappers all this time. We picked up a slew of them at a nearby Asian market and I'm very happy with the results. They cooked through, and are the right size and texture, instead of being these giant things where the wrapping never quite cooked through correctly.

Bemo's birthday on Monday. We should bring a cake to the dojo picnic in his honor. Will try to remember.

During the cookout today, Bemo announced that I had grey hairs. Well, I knew I had, but apparently they're proliferating around the top of my head with wild abandon, where I hadn't noticed them. Don't know how I feel about that. Well, I do know how I feel, I just don't know how intensely I feel it.

Have read and enjoyed Lev Grossman's The Magicians.. However, following it up with a reread of The Secret History and listening to Marc Maron's interview with Todd Hansen may have been too much bleak/angsty/dark, edgy art all at once. I know it was too much reading about people drinking, anyway.

Also finally got around to reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and found it a pretty thoroughly mediocre book. Will probably watch the new version of the movie on account of Daniel Craig, but the book was stodgy and full of characters without any life to them whatsoever, and endless descriptions of things I couldn't care less about, like computers booting up. I made it to the end only because I plowed through it in a couple of days, and have no impulse to ever reread it or read the rest of the books in the series, because I just don't care one whit about any of the characters.

Have watched a few eps of The Pacific on DVD. Didn't grab me as much as Band of Brothers did, but I was bustling during the second disc, so that may have been part of the reason I wasn't drawn in. Also my problem of telling people apart when they're all dirty and in helmets continues. Also also, either our tv is incredibly sucktastic (a valid proposition) or the night scenes were meant to be so dark that the actors are barely visible.

Also watched a little bit of the first season of The Electric Company. It was really working an interesting vibe, and I'd like to compare it to Sesame Street of the same year (1971). I think TEC must have been more slangy and edgy and hip, but I'm not certain.

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