cactuswatcher | Reading

Anyway, E was looking at Halloween costume patterns and obviously your opinion doesn't really matter at all, only the parents' does, but I thought I'd put up a poll anyway. Which costume is best for a six or seven month old?

Poll #33490 Halloween costumes!

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 20

View Respondents

Which costume is best?

View Answers

Bee
7 (35.0%)

Dinosaur
2 (10.0%)

Pumpkin
7 (35.0%)

Bat
4 (20.0%)

* Former stepmother, but the relationship is still there even if she's not with their dad anymore

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See if you can find one near you.

So, we watched that one with the telepathic pitcher plant. Seven and Naomi bond - the writers really worked to make Naomi useful to the plot rather than just being kinda there, and it mostly works - but honestly, our space Ahab has chosen the least-efficient manner possible to destroy his whale.

Then we watch the two parter with the Borg Queen, in which we establish that the Hansens (whom Seven actually refers to as the Hansens) were absolutely terrible parents. I mean, even beyond the way they brought their child on a platter to be assimilated, growing up on a tiny spaceship with only two other people is just no life for a child. They should have left her at home. (And all the flashbacks establish that she spent a lot of her brief childhood scared. Poor baby!) At one point in this episode, Seven helps rescue a group of astonishingly passive refugees who are about to be assimilated. There's a lot of off-screen screaming, but I guess these refugees weren't paid enough to talk, because they're both passive and totally silent. Also, nobody at any points suggests trying to de-assimilate any drones, even the one who is probably Seven's father, if we can believe the Borg Queen. Seems a bit uncaring, but as I said, he wasn't a good father so fuck him, I guess.

This is followed by a kinda sad and pointless episode in which Harry Kim contracts love from having surprisingly racy (for 90s Trek) sex with a dissident from a xenophobic society. She achieves her primary objective, forcing the people in charge to allow those who want to leave their society to do so, but they still break up. He's sad about it. (E and I decided that the only other Varro with a speaking role has gotta be her dad. He sure acts like he knows her pretty well, and that ship has a lot more people than Voyager does!)

And then one of my absolute favorite episodes, the one where Tom and B'Elanna get married and there's apparently a new baby on the ship we haven't heard of before and, by the way, the ship is disintegrating. Lots of people hate this episode because it's sad and bleak and pointless, but I absolutely fucking love it.

We skipped the Chakotay episode because ugh, fake Native American fake spirituality, something something "vision quest", and then it was Think Tank, which is a very watchable episode. It's not great, it's terrible - it's watchable. Also, nobody really says it, but the spokesperson of the eponymous Think Tank is himself a victim of it. He was taken from them in childhood, which wasn't all that long ago. Possibly they all are victims except the founder. It sounds like being part of a particularly reclusive cult.

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I owe you a Fantastic Four: First Steps review, don't I?

The Fantastic Four, often abbreviated as FF, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 (cover-dated November 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first superhero team created by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and editor/co-scripter Stan Lee, and through this title the "Marvel method" style of production came into prominence.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantastic_Four

This is a film that I was admittedly very much on the fence about seeing. I've not seen a Marvel film or a superhero film in theaters since...roughly, I can't remember? I think the last one was Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. III? I'd gotten a tad burned out on the genre. And so many of the films felt repetitive. And well, it's the Fantastic Four - and I've always been ambivalent of the comics and the team. I read a few here and there, curiosity and well, I'm an X-men comics fan since roughly college, and there's cross-overs. But I wouldn't call myself anything approaching a fan or expert? So I went into this with mixed feelings, low expectations, and for the most part blind. I hadn't really seen the trailers and I knew very little about the film - outside of who the villains were, who the cast was, and that it was retro-futuristic 1960s from the posters, whatever that meant.

The film, directed by Matt Shackman, and written by Josh Fredman, Eric Peterson, and Jeff Kaplan - is among the tighter of the genre entries to date (and believe it or not shorter). Clocking in at just under two hours. The plot clicked along, it had just the right amount of suspense, and emotional gravitas for this genre. It wasn't overly predictable, nor convoluted. It did a good job of setting up both its world and the characters without inundating us with too much unnecessary exposition, and it was fun. There was in short, no huge information dump, yet at the same time - it introduced the story to those who may never have read a comic or seen a Marvel flick or television series (a rarity for Marvel). It also had an almost childlike innocence to it - which is true of the early 1960s comics and 1970-80s superhero flicks - which some may find silly, but I oddly enough found refreshing? It may just be that I'm tired of dark grim films and content, the world can be depressing enough all on its own. In some respects this film reminded me of another era - the films released in the 1940s and in the 1960s, films depicting a better world, where problems can be solved with a smattering of cool science and cooperation, a kind of cartoon escapism.
( vague spoilers and mainly just cut for length - what works, why it works, why it's better than all the previous efforts, and why you should see it. )

Overall, the film is worth a watch, particularly on a big screen and in a good theater. And well, if you are an MCU, Marvel or most importantly? A Fantastic Four fan? I'm certain there's a few of you out there?

Tags:

A free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wing
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.

The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.

********

Link

Watch on YouTube

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Now that we've all done the MCU, let's do the DCEU, or DC comics films and television shows (live action only, the list is long enough as it is). DC has been at it longer - so, they more films, and they are versatile - they have non-superhero adaptations in there. Neil Gaiman's and Alan Moore's comics were DC.

DC for the folks who don't know is behind the Arrowverse, Superman, Batman, and sigh The Watchmen, and Sandman.

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

( insanely long DCU or DC comics movie list )

Tags:

Ask the Algorithm!

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( Links )

(Some of which I may have asked before, in which case, forgive me.)

1. People often do say that the English subjunctive is in decline. However, literally nobody I've ever heard say this has provided any sort of evidence. Is there any data on this other than "yeah, feels that way to me"?

1a. I've also heard that the subjunctive, or at least some forms of the subjunctive, is more common in USA English than UK English, from somewhat more authoritative sources but with roughly the same amount of evidence.

2. I got into it with somebody on the subject of "flammable/inflammable". I am aware that there are signs that warn about inflammable materials, and also signs warning about flammable materials. Is it actually the case that anybody has ever been confused and thought they were being warned that something could not catch on fire? Or is that just an urban legend / just-so story to explain why the two words mean the same thing and can be found on the same sorts of signs?

3. Not a language question! I've recently found one of the Myth Adventures books in my house. Gosh, I haven't re-read these in 20 years. Worth a re-read, or oh god no, save it for the recycle bin?

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A couple of things that have zip to do with the meme.

Spoke with Mother. Apparently her church is requiring her to do a virtual background check to see if she complies - in order for her to sing in her church's choir. And she can't get it to say she complies.
( our conversation regarding this insanity... )

Oh, and I saw Fantastic Four : First Steps - which was excellent. It was everything I wanted in a superhero Fantastic Four film and then some. I've been lucky - I've only been to the movies twice in the last three years, and both films I loved to pieces (the other one was Oppenheimer).

***

Below is an insanely long MCU (Marvel Cinema Universe) franchise list - television and films, meme. Similar to the Star Wars and Star Trek memes, but longer. I thought about making it even longer by adding all the films that were adapted from Marvel Comics by other studios, such as Across the Spiderverse, and well all the X-men films, but chose not to, because the list is long enough on its own. There are lot of Superhero films and television shows out there. If they stopped making them tomorrow? We would not be deprived. (Not to worry - they won't.)

I take no credit for this monstrosity, I snagged it from colls, thank you colls for doing it.

( insanely long MCU superhero film list )

Tags:

The real world continues to be the thing that is what with all of it all. Keeping plugging away, and so forth.

Have a bit of a...cold. Took a Covid/Flu test, but with Covid now being a known (to my body) disease, hard to say if it would show up or not before I kick it. At this point, I'm treating any sickness as a reason to isolate-ish. I mean, I live in CA with a backyard and its summer. So isolate has meant sit outside in the shade and let the dry heat clear my sinuses.

With the above in mind, I've been watching a whole bunch of youtube videos analyzing the new Superman movie. The seeing of which was my joy. My catnip. My precious pearl of a personification of a hopefuly gosh darn sweetie. Not in a perfect movie sort of way, but it's flaws are as chaff to me. It was precisely the version of Superman I've been wanting.

My favorites of the videos so far have been this analysis of Lex Luthor in this current (and other) iterations

https://youtu.be/zhLpgSgvFBM?si=kgh937AhvhpnOXCY

And this (admittedly 4th in a series) talking about Superman having being positioned as Jesus, starting with the 1970s Superman movie and reaching a sort of nihilistic apotheosis in visual representation in Man of Steel. I mean, dude quoted Mimesis. Waves lit crit feelers in the air. Good stuff.

https://youtu.be/uzaVClQzX1o?si=SF1JOci_A0rz7k6C

Now back to reading about the history of CA for story reasons and trying to breathe, or maybe watch more videos.

And for those who identify as a Superman fan in some way, here's an academic survey
https://ucf.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1MOUmv3yWTYYozI?platform=T

but it *is* pretty sweet!

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List Memeage, only culture junkies need apply.

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

Star Wars Franchise

RELEASE ORDER
( all the star wars series and films released to date that you've seen. )

I've actually seen more of the MCU stuff than the Star Wars stuff. Although I have admittedly watched more of the Star Wars than Star Trek - at least I think I have? Let's see?

Bold = Watched Entirety
Italic = Watched Part
* Watched more than once.
† Watched in the first few weeks of release (at least initially, for TV shows).

Star Trek

RELEASE ORDER
( all the Star Trek Series and films seen to date )

Hmm, I was wrong, I've seen more Trek than Star Wars. [Morale? Never assume without checking first.] There's only a handful that I've not seen. Who knew? Apparently I'm more of a Trekkie than a Star Wars fan. Granted Trek had more content availability when I was growing up - Star Wars didn't take off again until the 21st century.

And that's a lot of Trek. I think that out does the Star Wars franchise ten to one.

Side note? The forgettable film, Star Trek Nemesis? The villain was written with James Marsters in mind - based on his performance as Spike. But Marsters is a die hard Trekkie, and blew the audition. He froze when he met James Patrick Stewart, had similar problem when he met Nimoy. So, Tom Hardy got the role and his career took off instead.

And I've seen more of the DCU and MCU franchise than of those two. Let's face it I'm a sci-fi/fantasy fan, with a weakness for superhero films. I tend to hide this side of myself from most of the folks that I know - current cubicle mate wouldn't understand. I miss my previous cubicle mate who loved superhero films and science fiction.

Tags:

It really seems like the deaths are piling up lately.

Fantastic Four: First Steps (directed by Matt Shakhman)

Well, it took five tries, but they finally got it right.

First Steps is a classic Fantastic Four adventure--almost literally. It's as if someone took a Stan Lee/Jack Kirby 1966 FF comic book and fast forwarded it to 2025. It has retrofuturistic analog technology, a cool crystal blue/white color scheme, and more full length dresses, starchy suits and Fedoras than you can imagine in a "modern" movie.

If we're coming in at FF#48, the first issue of the Galactus trilogy (which I guess we are), there's no need for an origin story. We know who the characters are, their relationships and their respective powers. (We've had four previous FF movies; we shouldn't need the hand holding.)

The movie hits all the relationships perfectly: Reed and Sue's marriage, loving (but suffused with underlying tension); Ben and Reed's friendship, shaded by Reed's guilt over Ben's condition, but undiminished; Ben and Johnny's constant, affectionate verbal jousting and Sue's den mother guardianship of her weird, super-powered family.

Vanessa Kirby plays all of Sue's traditional strengths--minus Lee's 1960s sexism; Joseph Quinn is a slightly less hot headed Johnny Storm (but it's balanced by a general boost in smarts and his well developed connection with Julia Gardner's Silver Surfer); and Ebon Moss-Bacharach nails Benjamin J. Grimm/The Thing--the idol o'millions who's still the scruffy kid from Yancy Street. The movie wisely tones down the "tortured monster" trope and gives us a Ben who's comfortable in his own rocky skin.

[Two nice touches: in an early scene, Ben is in the kitchen helping Herbie the robot cook the evening meal--just a reminder that Richie from The Bear is under all that CGI. And near the end, Ben stops in at a local synagogue to check on Natasha Lyonne. Yes, kids--Ben Grimm is Jewish! (Look it up.)]

But this is Pedro Pascal's movie.

Pascal brings a human dimension to Reed Richards that we never had in the previous movies or even in the comics. This Reed still has the sky high intellect and the problem solving compulsion--but Pascal's Reed is painfully aware of how his obsessions affect his relationship with Sue and the rest of the group. You can practically smell the flop sweat as the smartest man in the world deals with two life changing crises he can't problem solve away: a cosmic. planet-devouring monster....and impending fatherhood.

[Speaking of Galactus: love the design! Jack Kirby dimensions, but not so much Kirby style. It reminded me of Moebius (from Silver Surfer: Parable)--granular, totemic, as if sand accumulated for billions of years until it eventually formed this Being.]

And finally....dare I say it? I found the conclusion/solution to this Galactus story much more satisfying than the one in the original comic book!

So...well done, everybody. Can't wait for Avengers: Doomsday. Pedro Pascal vs. Robert Downey Jr.'s Victor Von Doom? BRING IT ON!

Thunderbolts (directed by Jake Schreier)

I think Marvel has learned a lesson here: give your movie a strong central character (with a well-plotted character arc) played by a top quality actor and your audience can forgive any minor flaws in the overall plot.

In this case, it's Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, wrestling with her past as a brainwashed assassin for Mother Russia, bitching about her current, unsatisfying (to say the least) stint as a black ops agent for the CIA, and wondering whether she has any kind of future.

It's odd to have depression as the major theme for a superhero movie, but Pugh makes it work. She's ably assisted by the motley crew of fellow mercenary misfits she picks up along the way: David Harbour as Red Guardian, Yelena's adopted "father", uncut cured Russian ham, but a loving, sensitive man underneath the bluster; Wyatt Russell's US Agent, a would be Captain America and bit of a dick, who gradually confronts his dickishness over the course of the movie; and Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, reluctantly baby sitting this crew of cast-offs with understated cool.

[Stan doesn't get much of a spotlight here, but one scene with a motorcycle shows that Bucky still has the goods as a dynamic action hero. Look for it.]

The main antagonist ("villain" isn't quite right), The Sentry, is a perfect mirror for Yelena's existential crisis. "Bob" is a dead-on super-powered metaphor for bipolar syndrome. When he's up, he's literally Superman (with the big "S" to prove it), a God among men; when he's down, he's the Void, a black hole of despair sucking the entire city into the darkness with him. The team's efforts to pull Bob out of his psychic pit (and Yelena out of hers) is a refreshing change from the usual brain dead action climax.

Not everything here is perfect. Hannah John-Kamen kind of fades into the background as Ghost (pun intended); the movie dispatches Taskmaster way too soon; and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (much as I love her) just doesn't make it as the cynical, cold-hearted head of the CIA. (She comes off more like an out-of-her-depth PR flack for the government.)

But, as I said earlier, Pugh is charismatic enough to obscure these minor glitches. (We'll be seeing her again in Doomsday... so check it out!)

Daredevil: Born Again

Finally, I highly recommend Daredevil: Born Again.

Well... mostly the second half.

When reviving the beloved Netflix series, you'd think the showrunners would reunite us with the characters we loved and load up on superhero action... red meat for Hornhead's devoted fans.

Doesn't happen.

Instead, they kill off Foggy Nelson (Matt Murdock's best buddy) and exile Karen Page (former law partner and soul mate) to the (ugh) west coast. Matt is so wracked with guilt over Foggy's death that he stops being Daredevil.

For five episodes.

Now, it's not BAD, really; this is still Charlie Cox in the role, and man, he owns it. But I don't want to watch Matt Murdock, Blind Lawyer with Superhuman Hearing and Sick Fight Moves; I want to watch Daredevil.

Things turn around when Matt visits Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, about a group of NYC cops who are using Frank's particular iconography. Frank is still loonier than Daffy Duck, but he does force Matt to confront his grief over Foggy's death. Cox delivers a beautiful speech about Foggy's basic decency and how "men like us" will never achieve that in our lifetime.

From there, the horns are back on, and the plot picks up speed until the parallel paths of Matt and Mayor(!) Wilson Fisk intertwine in a brilliantly shot sequence at a fundraising ball.

I could have used a bit more character development for Matt's new law partner; she's just not that interesting. The new psychiatrist GF is more plot device than main character. (When Karen shows back up near the end, you almost breathe a sigh of relief.) And Cherry (Homicide's Clark Johnson) mainly pops in to yell "you're blowing up your life, Matt!" and exiting, stage left.

Still...the series is (and has pretty much always been) the pas de deux between Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk (the Kingpin). Fisk, an amoral, monstrous brute who has convinced himself that his taste in tailored suits and fine wine gives him a veneer of civilization; and Matt Murdock, a deeply compassionate human being who thinks of himself as the devil. The interplay between their similar, yet contrasting personalities is endlessly fascinating. This, the showrunners got right.

Season two is teed up and ready to go. Kristen Ritter is back as Jessica Jones! (Never a bad idea to bring Kristen Ritter into your series.) The fight against the Kingpin continues...

I was going to post a quote of the day, but I can't remember it? So probably not that important.

After a bit of a lull, here is the return of the Good News Report, which is mainly about the environment, and not for once, about a hundred different litigation disputes. (In case you didn't already know that that US is a highly litigious country, with an insanely complicated court system - 2025 has managed to educate you on that point with interest, and in less than six months. 2025 is providing litigation attorneys with a lot of work.)

Anyhow, this post is mostly about environmental good news, although I'm certain there will be court cases resolved and otherwise in the middle of it, because that's how we roll.

Disclaimer: As always, good news much like humor and beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. So mileage may vary on this?

1. The United Nations reported a global shift toward renewable energy, passing a “positive tipping point” where solar and wind power will become even cheaper and more widespread.

https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-solar-wind-power-fossil-fuels-6aca4846e594ea8405f91edda39a03ad?sh_kit=7a2950363f4b90b1881ae76c68d24551846eea9063b67a6a14e9fa39bc419e40

2. Todd Koehnke and Tim Macklin, cofounders of the Collective Oyster Recycling and Restoration, have set out to restore the health of Connecticut’s overfished oyster beds by collecting shells from about 50 seafood restaurants in the state and dropping them back where they came from.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/used-oyster-shells-connecticut-long-island-sound/?ck_subscriber_id=2496857656

3.Conservationists and AI are successfully teaming up to help save the California red-legged frog.

https://www.npr.org/2025/07/19/g-s1-78230/ai-california-frog-science-conservation-threatened-species?ck_subscriber_id=2496857656

4. Despite the national extension shutting down, Illinois is keeping its dedicated 988 lifeline for LGBTQ+ youth.

https://khqa.com/news/local/illinois-to-keep-988-suicide-crisis-lifeline-for-lgbtqia-youth-after-national-extension-hangs-up-federal-funding-cuts-trump-administration-governor-jb-pritzker-idhs-secretary-dulce-m-quintero-mental-health-behavioral-services-counseling-support-teens?sh_kit=7a2950363f4b90b1881ae76c68d24551846eea9063b67a6a14e9fa39bc419e40

5. There are now about 11,400 high-speed, public charging stations in the US, and hundreds more are being added every few months. Driven by the private sector, the rapid expansion has continued despite the Trump administration’s freezing of construction subsidies.

https://archive.is/

6.President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognize Palestine as a state in pursuit of what he called the historical French commitment “to a just and durable peace in the Middle East.”

https://archive.ph/CcnmN

7.Enbridge announced it will invest $900 million on a 600 megawatt solar power project in Texas.

https://archive.ph/Z9ARd#selection-1309.20-1319.206

8.In general, donations to NPR and PBS stations have surged since Trump’s cuts were signed into law.

https://archive.ph/vc5ex

9.Congo and Rwanda-backed rebels signed a declaration of principles to end decades of fighting, commit to a comprehensive peace agreement, and commit to “building trust” through various measures.

https://apnews.com/article/congo-m23-rebels-peace-qatar-rwanda-f80166117d557991896ef89d4cd3a324?user_id=66c4cab45d78644b3acfbcde&sh_kit=7a2950363f4b90b1881ae76c68d24551846eea9063b67a6a14e9fa39bc419e40

10.Tree planting in England is now at its highest recorded rate in over 20 years

https://forestrycommission.blog.gov.uk/2025/06/27/a-year-of-growth-tree-planting-rates-hit-their-highest-level-in-over-20-years/?sh_kit=7a2950363f4b90b1881ae76c68d24551846eea9063b67a6a14e9fa39bc419e40

( the rest of the 30 items of note )

Tags:

links,
nature

Sleepy. I didn't sleep well last night. Woke up in the middle of the night, and my body would not let me get back to sleep. Finally did, and had an odd dream about being unable to give new people I met my contact information. As if something was preventing me from putting it down accurately. I kept putting down the wrong thing. Also, I couldn't seem to get to my flight on time. Very odd dream. As a result of the sleep deprivation - I decided to only take a short walk today at lunchtime, well that and the fact that the pants I was wearing kept sliding down my hips as I walked, because I'd put a wallet and a phone in the front pockets. So I had to keep pulling them up. (Highly annoying.)

And spent most of the morning, taking a cybersecurity course that made me paranoid about everything I've ever posted on DW and social media in my lifetime. (We're required to take web based training modules for work every year, they are the same ones. Actually this one may have been updated. But the others are the same. )

***

Anyhow, here's a bit more of the August Question a Day Memage.

4. The artist Laura Knight was born on this day in 1877. She was an artist who worked in oils, watercolours, etching, engraving, and drypoint. Can you draw? Do you doodle?

Yes. I've been able to draw and paint since I was a small child. And took watercolor as a teenager. And have had art classes intermittently from the age of 5 until roughly my mid-thirties. I have worked in watercolors, etchings, engraving, and acrylic, not so much oil. And I don't think I've done drypoint.

I've posted some of them here from time to time. I can draw from memory, from life, and from photos.

Some people can sing, some can play instruments, I can draw and paint. - that came naturally to me. So does taking pictures. I'm visual. I can usually reproduce what I've seen, or a representation of it, through my own lens. My difficulty is knowing when to stop adding stuff to it. My mother used to yank my drawings and paintings away from me as a child before I ruined them.

5. How often do you check what paid subscriptions you’ve signed up for (e.g. an App on your phone, a TV channel, a subscription to a magazine, a membership to an organisation).

Not as often as I should? But I do keep track. If I'm not using, then I cancel. Just cancelled Paramount Plus and New York Magazine, next up may be three others.

6. Would you rather go on a city break, a seaside holiday or have a staycation?

I live and work in the city, and can go to the seaside if I want to. So probably a staycation and just do both?

7. This week in Bristol in the UK is the National Balloon Fiesta, a time to celebrate hot air balloons which draws thousands of visitors each year. Have you ever been in a hot air balloon (or would you like to?).

No. And...ambivalent? I'm not really a fan of heights? I could probably handle it, but I wouldn't go out of my way or anything.

***

So, I've been slowly rewatching the Buffy series, I forgot more about it than I realized. I honestly thought it was memorized, but apparently I managed to delete some of that over the years. Go figure.

I had forgotten why I didn't like Season 3 of Buffy as much as most fans of the series seem to? People rank that season high, and seem to love it.
But I never quite did and I forgot why, well until now.

It's the Faith Arc. It doesn't work for me. I was watching Dopplegangland last night, which much like Amends, is a stand out episode. The dialogue snaps, crackles and pops. It feels a bit like watching a movie. The color palette is precise, the costumes perfect for the characters, and every lead character is utilized in some way. Also the characters emotional arcs are all furthered.

But, it is also an episode in which the writer, in this case Whedon, is working over time to fill in some serious plot holes.( Read more... )

Anyhow, it's late and bed calls.

So I may or may not continue rambling about this at a later point.

Tags:

btvs,
memage

Work is aggravating me. I'd regale you with all the reasons why, but then I'd have to kill you - and we can't have that, can we?

I can tell you that I've found someone who might help me get my picture taken in Manhattan as opposed to going all the way to Hollis, Queens (which is about an hour and a half away from my work site, a pain in the neck to get to (I have to take three trains, and one of them runs on intermittent schedules - which means, if I don't plot it right - I could be standing around for thirty minutes at Jamaica), and an hour and a half away from my home.) Actually it may be closer to the work site - so about just an hour depending on time waiting for trains. Plus a gadzillion stairs. Welcome to NYC folks - the stair-master capital of the universe.

I did the switch from the R to the F at 4th/9th Streets again - and dang, that's a lot of steps. I counted. It's about four flights to the ground level, and then four more to the top. So eight flights. Steep. I was spent.
This is after going down ten flights, then another flight to get to the R.
The R is deep underground, doesn't have an elevator, and has one escalator at Whitehall going up. The one at 4th/9th doesn't have any escalators or elevators. No wonder the MTA is getting sued by the ADA advocacy groups.

****

Things I want to talk to you about, that I read...or noticed, and I've been pondering.

1. Whatever You Do, Don't Do the Silent Treatment

( excerpt )

I was pondering if I do that with Wales? Not really. I'm not sure if you can state deleting text messages and not answering them is the silent treatment? So much as protecting one's continued mental health? I answer the phone when she calls me. I've had it done to me - my brother likes to inflict it when he gets angry. And BYT was notorious for doing it. I don't like it - to be honest, mainly because I want things resolved and out in the open.

Also, there are situations in which it is called for? Such as social media.
IDK. What do you think?

2. Buddhism: If you have issues with someone correcting you, then you have an ego problem.

Except everyone hates being criticized? Right?

I wanted to respond to the Buddhism post on FB as follows: You are incredibly judgemental for a Buddhist. [I refrained.]

3. Comfort animals. Is it fair to use an animal to give oneself comfort? And have them for the sole purpose of comfort? Carrying the animal into stressful situations, such as plane rides, cars, trains, doctor's appointments, trips - just to soothe anxieties? Is this fair to the animal who is soaking in the human's anxieties and may be stressed or scared itself?
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star trek strange new worlds

And then tonight as I took out the trash I saw where it's evidently been burrowing, a big hole directly under the retaining wall to our yard.

Now what?

The Gang

So, I may have said, the niblings' stepmother* has a new baby!

PSA: Protests Saturday

Voyager episodes!

Fantastic Four: First Steps Film Review -the Fourth Time is the Charm

Caged Bird by Maya Angelou

I have no idea why this was suggested to me by YouTube

The DC Verse or DC Television Show/Film Meme

At last, an advice column we can all get behind!

A few unrelated questions

MCU Meme - List - How many of these have you seen? (among other things)

(no subject)

Pink pineapple looks oddly like salmon

Science Fiction Franchises - How many Star Wars and Star Trek series/films have you seen?

Astronaut Jim Lovell, famed Apollo 13 commander, dies at 97

Three (gasp!) Quality Marvel Superhero Projects

The Return of the Weekly Good News Report

Thursday is catching up on memage...and is sleepy

Wednesday is pondering deep thoughts ....because it is bored

Strange New Worlds 3:1-4

Well, today I saw a groundhog

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