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May. 3rd, 2011 08:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
labellementeuseLike a month ago I promised china_shop that I would try to keep updating on account of I love you guys and don't want you to defriend me/decide I'm boring and move on (although that's true and I don't want to lie about it.) I keep thinking of things to post about and forgetting, which is at least an improvement on a month ago when I couldn't even think of anything to post about? Unfortunately I'm not really in touch with anything fannish right now and I'm just finishing up three weeks housesitting for people who I don't know what their internet's like, but I unilaterally decided not to download anything while I was here.
Consequently, here are some things I have not yet watched:
- Doctor Who (well OK I did watch the first half but I want to wait til I've seen the second half to post)
- Game of Thrones
- Anything else that just started again
- Anything that aired in the last 18 months.
Therefore, I have not really been reading my flist, because it is a frustrating experience.
Here are some things I have been watching lately:
This was mostly a rewatch for me, except for about half of the fifth season, the sixth season, and most of the seventh. I can't remember why I didn't finish the fifth season last time except I didn't, and then I skipped to the seventh season and watched only those episodes in which Josh and Donna make out.
I'm not embarassed by that AT ALL.
So on a rewatch - which was weird because I watched it in order of "available in my video shop" - I watched like, the third season, then the second, then the first, then the fourth, then the sixth, then the seventh. What I noticed tremendously is that between the end of the fourth and the beginning of the sixth season it became a *completely* different show. Like, suddenly they're all split up in different parts of the country, Donna never talks to CJ never talks to Will never talks to Toby - people's relationships became suddenly, dramatically restricted, so CJ only talks to Toby and the President, Toby only talks to CJ, Josh gets to talk to most people, Donna only talks to Josh and occasionally Will, Will never talks to anyone. It's just bizarre. So with half of my mind I'm wondering if this is because of those well-publicised cast disputes, because surely, surely no-one looks at an ensemble show and says "Hey, the strength of this show is the brilliant writing and fiery interactions between all of the characters, so let's split them up into three tiny groups and never let them talk to each other". ?? I mean, it's called the West Wing, but at the end there, what's it even about? Really? And I like the Santoses a lot. I don't know.
And yet with all that it wasn't unwatchable, and I look around and try to find a show with that kind of quality and depth or even, hell, that long-runningness... is there any show around that you think deserves to get seven seasons? ten? I DON'T KNOW YOU GUYS, I just have all these feelings.
There are all these political thoughts that I have and can't articulate, like:
- If Sue Bradford ends up on the Mana Party ticket I can't not vote for them
- If not I might end up voting Green
- But I feel kind of sick at the idea of voting for a party that doesn't believe in flouridation of the water supply
- I believe there are still great people in the Labour party but Phil Goff is such a twit, argh.
Then there are all these worries I have, like:
- Tornadoes in the US - I hope you're all OK
- Tornadoes in fucking Albany?
- Seriously, is this the apocalypse?
- Why are we all so happy about Osama bin Laden's death? Do we really think it's going to change the amount of terrorism in the world?
- Why the fuck, seriously, does Stuff have an article comparing Osama to Voldemort? Did someone get confused and think they were writing for the Onion? Our national news, people!
- Canada had an election and the Conservatives got 40% of the vote, which means they can govern; I'm wishing proportionate representation for you guys so hard
- There's only ONE Green MP in Canada?
- Canada's really big. (This is not a worry. Today I was reading about the Northwest Territories (I was trying to find out if they really had travelling librarians) (my gf is a librarian and she's travelling a lot and I made a joke and then had to explain due South to her) (badly. I should not have explored it at that juncture) ANYWAY there are 40,000 people in the NWT, over 1.1 MILLION square kilometres. By contrast, there are like 5 million people in NZ over 200,000 square kilometres. CANADA IS REALLY SPARSE.)
ALSO last time I posted I made a list of the books I'd gotten out from the library. Since then, I have finished:
- 0 of those.
This is really my biggest life issue right now. I have been able to read absolutely nothing but military SF and fantasy this year. I am barely kidding, I have read:
1.5 books by John Scalzi
2.5 books by SM Stirling
And, OK, Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine (YOU MUST GO AND READ THIS NOW and you will be able to win every argument with stupid gender essentialists ever) and The Disreputable History of Frankie E. Landau-Banks by E. Lockhard (very fun). Plus some graphic novels (HIGHLY rec first volume of Morning Glories, which is also very affordable; and Batgirl Rising). And a bunch of re-reads - but even half my re-reads have been City Watch Discworld novels, which are at least *sort of* military SF/Fantasy.
At any rate. I hate not being able to read widely. Yeah, we all go on kicks sometimes and those can be fun, but I prefer my kicks as part of a broad diet, and right now my diet feels very very limited.
Okay, that was a pretty crap post, BUT I'm thinking it's kind of like you have to practise to get back into the swing of things, you know? So yeah, I'm going to do that. Here, have an embarrassing confession: I had to google how to spell embarrassment. Because I always spell it with one r. I'm hoping writing it out here will sufficiently embarrass me that I get it right from now on. Possibly that would be ironic?
china_shop that I would try to keep updating on account of I love you guys and don't want you to defriend me/decide I'm boring and move on (although that's true and I don't want to lie about it.) I keep thinking of things to post about and forgetting, which is at least an improvement on a month ago when I couldn't even think of anything to post about? Unfortunately I'm not really in touch with anything fannish right now and I'm just finishing up three weeks housesitting for people who I don't know what their internet's like, but I unilaterally decided not to download anything while I was here.Consequently, here are some things I have not yet watched:
- Doctor Who (well OK I did watch the first half but I want to wait til I've seen the second half to post)
- Game of Thrones
- Anything else that just started again
- Anything that aired in the last 18 months.
Therefore, I have not really been reading my flist, because it is a frustrating experience.
Here are some things I have been watching lately:
This was mostly a rewatch for me, except for about half of the fifth season, the sixth season, and most of the seventh. I can't remember why I didn't finish the fifth season last time except I didn't, and then I skipped to the seventh season and watched only those episodes in which Josh and Donna make out.
I'm not embarassed by that AT ALL.
So on a rewatch - which was weird because I watched it in order of "available in my video shop" - I watched like, the third season, then the second, then the first, then the fourth, then the sixth, then the seventh. What I noticed tremendously is that between the end of the fourth and the beginning of the sixth season it became a *completely* different show. Like, suddenly they're all split up in different parts of the country, Donna never talks to CJ never talks to Will never talks to Toby - people's relationships became suddenly, dramatically restricted, so CJ only talks to Toby and the President, Toby only talks to CJ, Josh gets to talk to most people, Donna only talks to Josh and occasionally Will, Will never talks to anyone. It's just bizarre. So with half of my mind I'm wondering if this is because of those well-publicised cast disputes, because surely, surely no-one looks at an ensemble show and says "Hey, the strength of this show is the brilliant writing and fiery interactions between all of the characters, so let's split them up into three tiny groups and never let them talk to each other". ?? I mean, it's called the West Wing, but at the end there, what's it even about? Really? And I like the Santoses a lot. I don't know.
And yet with all that it wasn't unwatchable, and I look around and try to find a show with that kind of quality and depth or even, hell, that long-runningness... is there any show around that you think deserves to get seven seasons? ten? I DON'T KNOW YOU GUYS, I just have all these feelings.
There are all these political thoughts that I have and can't articulate, like:
- If Sue Bradford ends up on the Mana Party ticket I can't not vote for them
- If not I might end up voting Green
- But I feel kind of sick at the idea of voting for a party that doesn't believe in flouridation of the water supply
- I believe there are still great people in the Labour party but Phil Goff is such a twit, argh.
Then there are all these worries I have, like:
- Tornadoes in the US - I hope you're all OK
- Tornadoes in fucking Albany?
- Seriously, is this the apocalypse?
- Why are we all so happy about Osama bin Laden's death? Do we really think it's going to change the amount of terrorism in the world?
- Why the fuck, seriously, does Stuff have an article comparing Osama to Voldemort? Did someone get confused and think they were writing for the Onion? Our national news, people!
- Canada had an election and the Conservatives got 40% of the vote, which means they can govern; I'm wishing proportionate representation for you guys so hard
- There's only ONE Green MP in Canada?
- Canada's really big. (This is not a worry. Today I was reading about the Northwest Territories (I was trying to find out if they really had travelling librarians) (my gf is a librarian and she's travelling a lot and I made a joke and then had to explain due South to her) (badly. I should not have explored it at that juncture) ANYWAY there are 40,000 people in the NWT, over 1.1 MILLION square kilometres. By contrast, there are like 5 million people in NZ over 200,000 square kilometres. CANADA IS REALLY SPARSE.)
ALSO last time I posted I made a list of the books I'd gotten out from the library. Since then, I have finished:
- 0 of those.
This is really my biggest life issue right now. I have been able to read absolutely nothing but military SF and fantasy this year. I am barely kidding, I have read:
1.5 books by John Scalzi
2.5 books by SM Stirling
And, OK, Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine (YOU MUST GO AND READ THIS NOW and you will be able to win every argument with stupid gender essentialists ever) and The Disreputable History of Frankie E. Landau-Banks by E. Lockhard (very fun). Plus some graphic novels (HIGHLY rec first volume of Morning Glories, which is also very affordable; and Batgirl Rising). And a bunch of re-reads - but even half my re-reads have been City Watch Discworld novels, which are at least *sort of* military SF/Fantasy.
At any rate. I hate not being able to read widely. Yeah, we all go on kicks sometimes and those can be fun, but I prefer my kicks as part of a broad diet, and right now my diet feels very very limited.
Okay, that was a pretty crap post, BUT I'm thinking it's kind of like you have to practise to get back into the swing of things, you know? So yeah, I'm going to do that. Here, have an embarrassing confession: I had to google how to spell embarrassment. Because I always spell it with one r. I'm hoping writing it out here will sufficiently embarrass me that I get it right from now on. Possibly that would be ironic?
no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 08:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 08:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 09:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 09:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 09:30 am (UTC)...and now I am realising I have nothing actually sensible to say in response to your perfetly acceptable and interesting post, so I am going to just wave at you and wrap this up. *waves*
no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 09:59 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 11:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 11:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 06:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 12:04 pm (UTC)Cherry-picking the Josh/Donna makeout session episodes is totally a viable strategy for S7 WW. It's like watching the all-Methos, only-Methos Highlander; sure, there's some other stuff, but you're really just watching for that anyway, so why not admit it?
Also, re: the whole Osama thing: it's complicated over here, y'all. I don't think anyone seriously thinks that his death is gonna reduce terrorism - in fact, a lot of the news stories are taking the "potential martyrdom boost" angle - but. It's a symbolic catharsis, killing the guy who attacked us on our territory for the first time in sixty years and then spent the next ten popping up to go "neener neener." It's not sensible, but we made our own boogeyman, and now, having killed him, people are getting a sort of grim satisfaction out of it.
Look, no one ever said people were nice.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 06:51 pm (UTC)It's not the un-niceness that bothers me here so much as the complete irrationality. Osama might have been the boogeyman, but he hasn't been suffering with a ruined infrastructure and a resurgence of fundamentalism - the Afghan people have. But yay, you got Osama, woo! I get that he's a symbol, but I think he's a bad one. (I have associated feelings about the fact that the US has been attacked on its own territory plenty in the last sixty years, but it was always by Americans before.)