Originally uploaded by jen.fotos.
I've decided I'm no longer going to deny myself the joy of collecting choice action figures. Being a grownup is less fun without them.
It's late, it's dark out, I don't have enough artificial light to properly play with my macro lens sans flash, but I setup the tripod to get a shot of this tonight because holy likeness, Batman! Absolutely stunning in the details, down to the unbuttoned and rumpled suit jacket, the Converse (oops, they're missing from this shot, trust me they're good...) I had heard how great this figure was and wow were they ever not kidding!
I love toys.
I've been reading this series of posts about a book about fanfic. An honest-to-Sadow published book. About fanfic. How fantastic is that? The book is Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet.
I'm finding the whole thing to be insightful and validating of my re-immersion in the land of fanfic. Also, the topic of slash seems to be covered quite extensively, which I have always found fascinating in the sense that it does absolutely nothing for me while the majority of fangirls tend to go nuts over the stuff. So, it's theorized in a way that makes total sense for why it's appealing to them, and why it's not appealing to me except for the few situations where I do read into it a little bit (see exhibit A: Jen's Theory of Club Sandwich).
That's all on that for now. The very important question I have, which is totally unrelated and yet not—is Urban Decay glittery eye makeup a no-no at age 33 for everyday wear? The other very important question I have, is, why would I care?
What do you do to get rid of a cold or flu?
Submitted by ashenflowers.
Actually, I don't do anything for a cold but ride it out. To lessen the pain, I dope myself up on Nyquil, lots of chicken soup, the classics. Also, I take a day off work if possible. Because I don't want to get everyone else sick, thereby eventually reinfecting myself. Yuck.
I had the flu for the first time over Christmas of 2005. I actually came down with it on Christmas Eve. Yes, that is as much fun as it sounds! So last year, I broke down and got a flu shot even though I'm not really at risk for the flu. I will not be doing that again, as I have needlephobia and ended up getting very lightheaded and nearly passed out after the shot. Which, by the way, was given out at work. So now everyone knows I'm a big wussy-wuss.
So yes, based on last week's post, I'm very angry with FOX for airing football or baseball or whateverthatwas instead of my cranky, painkiller-addicted House!
FOX? You're on the list.
What TV show(s) will you be watching this season? Why?
Submitted by ducnly.vox.com.
I am a day late answering this one, but I'm late updating here anyway.
I love TV. I love it so much, I have my own name for it: teevee. I watch many, many shows and only one of them is a reality show!
First off, The Amazing Race. Although I have found myself tiring of it, and wasn't even looking forward to it this season, I am still watching because 1) they get to go to cool places and 2) whoever I am watching with and I will try to race along. First by simply saying "you'd have to do this road block!" or "oooh they should totally take the physical labor detour." (Hint: you should always take the physical labor detour, unless the puzzle task involves something not luck-based and highly specialized in a subject you know about. Like, the sequence of aliens on screen in the Star Wars cantina scene.)
So that's Sunday. Monday is 24 (The Jack Bauer Power Hour) and sometimes I have a hard time deciding if Jack Bauer is my personal hero or if it's actually Chloe O'Brien, the sourfaced computer genius. (Yes I know it doesn't start til January. It still counts, it's one of the faves.) Oh to be as socially inept and still highly regarded at the job. It's a personal dream of mine. New to Monday nights is Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. I am new to the world of Aaron Sorkin, but this show has three points in its favor: Matthew Perry, and Gilbert and Sullivan. This is the only new show I'm doing this year, as I'm still quite booked from last year's hanger-on'ers. But two episodes in and I'm eagerly awaiting next week's and lurking in discussion boards and did you know they hope that we won't mind that their producer was caught doing blow? Brilliant.
Tuesday. Ahh Tuesday. You used to be a very full night for me, but less so these days. House MD, which I got into last season. He's cranky, he's mean, he's addicted to Vicodin. You know, I had Vicodin after getting my wisdom teeth removed. I'm too lazy to go out and search for non-Rx Vicodin, but I can totally see why people get hooked on it. It's very zen. Let's not imagine Doctor House while not on Vicodin, okay? But since I've fired cable, I no longer get FX which had the best darn Tuesday night all year round. Well, I tired of Dennis Leary and I had enough network tv to keep me busy. Plastic surgeons and crooked cops: as much as I love you, I can get your DVDs for less than the cost of two months of cable.
Wednesday is Bones. TJ Thyne is great because he was the quintessential "hey it's that one guy!" and I love the girl who plays the object of his affection. Heh, I don't even know who she is, I just love the two of them. (I cannot believe he sat in the bathtub tonight.) Oh and I guess there's some Whedon-refugee on this show too, who also has great chemistry with the other lady on the show. Also (soon) Wednesday will be LOSTNESDAY, and on that day, all time will stop and we will take the phone off the hook and we will praise the teevee gods for giving us an island filled with creepy music and creepy others and very hot men with various accents. (By the way, Sawyer played a vampire on the pilot episode of Angel. The more you know.)
And then we come to Must See Teevee night. My Name is Earl has quickly turned into the "brill" in-joke favorite of the household. I have lost track of how many times we've sat there in awe with the really great full-circle stories they pull off each week. The Office... everybody loves The Office. The expansion of the cast last season was the best idea they had when importing this to the US, and putting the episodes on iTunes was the second best idea. I do purchase them all even though I buy the DVDs too. And the night is wrapped with Grey's Anatomy. You know a show has some great triangles when you get all "OMG I don't care who ends up with who, I just want to know now, is it next Thursday yet???"
At the end of each night, I'm saying "Wow I love [this]day, and this is my favorite show for sure!" I pretty much love my teevee.
Last weekend, I finished The Stolen Child. Actually, I read 90% of the book in two days, as it turned out to be an irresistable page turner. It has been too long since I was lost in a book, and as I look to the massive stack of Palahniuk and Sedaris and Tolkien and whatever else has been on the to-read list for the last 5 years, it's become painfully obvious that I need less hobbies or less working. To add insult to injury, I have spent the weekend laying out reviews of The Modern Library Top 100 for a friend. I find myself saying "Yes, why haven't I read Brave New World? I'm so uncultured." I'm sure the vast majority of the cube farm will not notice if I spend the days with my nose in a book. Perhaps I could fashion book jackets to make it look like I'm working. Or I could win the lottery and quit my job!
Someday!
Tomorrow I'm going camping for the whole entire weekend. There will be beer and tents and grilling and friends! My instructions were to bring the best beer from Minnesota. I am not sure what the best Minnesotan beer is, really. I used to be quite fond of Grain Belt, but that has somewhat lessened with the brewery's sale and subsequent move out of Minneapolis. Summit is okay, some labels are better than others, but it really does irk that St. Paul is making better beer than My Home Town right now, you know?
For the record, Grain Belt is not, nor never has been, a quality beer—although it is head and shoulders above anything put out by Miller or Budweiser.
And yes, there will be smores and weenies too.
I received my very first bottle of Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab oil (or BPAL, to those in the know) thanks to a trade/sell community and a very nice seller who threw in a couple samples for me too. Warning! Purchasing BPAL may be highly addictive. The bottle I have is called Stardust, and it is part of the Yule 2005 limited edition series. The description of Stardust is as follows:
When the holidays roll around, not everyone has mistletoe, caroling and cookies on their minds. This scent is a paean to celebrating hard: nights covered in glitter and dusted with cocaine, flutes of Cristal clutched in shaky hands, leather and lace, the Spiders From Mars in the background, and twisting, sweaty limbs entangled in dark corners. Hairspray and cigarette smoke is the incense in this temple to decadence, strobe and mirrors replace the devotional candles, and Bolan sings the hymns. This scent is for everyone that has every drifted off into Quaalude-induced reverie to the beat of a tribal 4-on-the-floor: the sound of Mott the Hoople, Sweet, Slade or the Dolls. This scent reflects the futurism, self-indulgence and excess of the Glitter 70’s: champagne, hyacinth, tuberose, ylang ylang and flashing white musk with jonquil, tobacco flower, white sandalwood and a pale poppy.
Although the site caters to the goth and pagan community, there is really something for everyone. Including those who missed out on the CGBG's, or just plain miss CGBG's.
Also featured: a mug of Boddington's Pub Ale, the chosen way to celebrate a car repair that was feared to be expensive but ended up being all of thirteen dollars.
