Things I learned this week:
1. Almost all of the search terms used to find my blog are about Korean actors. I guess I got a little obsessive there for a while...oops?
2. I am perhaps more extraverted than I thought - I just need to be around the right people.
3. And I'm sure having weather that makes me want to go outside certainly helps. (But not with productivity)
4. Apparently you can publish things on a date that passed like a week ago. And apparently trying to schedule said post for Sunday (aka tomorrow) after publishing it by accident is not possible. (Otherwise known as the further adventures of Elizabeth being not technology savvy.) (Update: I THINK I DID IT!!...but don't kill me if you guys subscribe by e-mail and this sent out like a billion times. Sorry!)
Feeling angsty? This piece is great. Rock out.
Guys, the camp that I was a teaching assistant at was some of the most fun I've ever had and now I'm all mopey. (...that could also be the large stacks of things I was supposed to have packed this week and didn't). So I've either been spending WAY MORE TIME online than I usually do, or just wandering around aimlessly outside. (With the idea that maybe I'll find boxes except I keep forgetting to actually look for them while I'm doing said wandering). I'm still perfectly happy on my own - but only if I'm outside, so I don't know what all this moping around on the internet business is about.
The other day I wandered with the specific instruction that I was only going to go to a restaurant I had never been to, and it was awesome! I'm choosing to believe that I really was this poor waiter's best table because he did look rather frazzled and he didn't just say so and give me a free shot of limoncello because he was taking pity on me because I was eating by myself. I've never really understood the stigma of doing that. I got to listen to great music, (the singer sang one of my favourite songs - Why Georgia by John Mayer. I didn't know other people even knew that song existed!) eat good food, drink good cider, and read a book more or less uninterrupted (hence my wish for a table and not a seat at the bar). In any case, it was fun times.
I have started to amaze myself with my level of procrastination. I will spend hours walking around for no reason. I will lay on my bed and read Hyperbole and a Half all night. I actually posted things on fictionpress. Guys. I'm pretty sure I haven't written anything in like...two years. So on the upside, yay writing things? (And I actually like some of it. Which is saying something, because honestly a lot of what I posted on fictionpress is absolute shit. And no, I'm not being modest. I'm not a modest person. I'm being honest haha) On the downside...yeah...packing...
I don't usually self promote, but if you didn't read my review of Hissy Fit - go read it now. Not the whole review - all you really need is the quote from the book. Do it. Now. It's totally worth it, I promise.
This is probably my favourite La Roux song (followed by Fascination) Most of you probably recognize their song Bulletproof.
Bookish Links
Portrayals of LGBTQIA Characters in Japanese Media (Anime/Manga) - Really a very interesting look at how characters are approached in anime/manga. There's a lot more of them than we would find in most of our media (us being Americans, since I know not all of you are), but while there might be more of them, they aren't always shown in the best light.
In Case Of Emergency - What books would you save?
A Delicate Balance: Why You Should Read Ai Yazawa’s Nana - Ok I know this is looking a little manga heavy, but guys this manga is one of the most beautiful things I've ever read. Yazawa's artwork is some of my favourite ever, and the story is just...well, beautiful.
A Long Overdue Nod to SciFi and Fantasy’s Best Librarians - Giles! And Evie! My favourites :)
Fan Fiction is More Than Words – It’s About Worlds - Ok you guys know my very strong and enduring love for fanfiction, and this article really nails the biggest reasons why I love it so much. Read Fangirl and want to know what it's all about? Here's some of my suggestions as of a year ago for some of my favourite fanfics. Go explore!
True Life: I Think I’m A Creep - Jamie talks about her need to see what strangers are reading and all the crazy shenanigans she's gotten up to find out! (Confession: I'm totally the same way, if to a lesser extreme. But you know what's super rewarding? When you're trying to see what someone is reading and they lift the title for you in a super secret way. You might never know if they did it on purpose, but it makes me feel like it's a Super Secret Book Readers Code. ...ok maybe I am as bad as Jamie)
Favorite Passages - How do you mark your favourite passages?
How I Recommend Books - This is seriously awesome. I'm definitely going to use some of these tips in the future! (Instead of the usual YOU MUST READ THIS I DON'T CARE IF YOU WANT TO OR NOT)
Funniest Book Dedications - This is hilarious!
Nonbookish Links
Steven Moffat Ignores Canon, Insists That the Doctor Could Be Human - MOFFAAAAAAAAT!!!! What even. Like really? ARE YOU INSANE?! Shall we count all the times The Doctor has explicitly said he is not human? (This article does. So there you are.)
Poolside Purity & Bikini Battles - While I'm not religious and on that front am not likely to agree with that part of this, the preacher who wrote this article is seriously awesome and is bringing to the forefront a lot of the issues I have had with pretty much all churches ever.
British Film Institute Enforcing Diversity Standards - Isn't this great?! I mean if money is the only thing that really changes anything, I'm all for funding working for this purpose!
Horse versions of LotR Characters - So...these are pretty cool (And no they're not a mashup of My Little Pony, in case that's what you were thinking)
Ramblings: World Cup 2014 - Lianne recaps and talks about her favourite moments of the World Cup!
“Excuse Me, Princess“: The Princess Type, for Good or Ill, Part 1 - A well-thought and interesting discussion of princess tropes.
Loved the article on Princesses. I'm distinctly down the middle on the subject. I personally think iprincesses are influenced by conventional wisdom of the day as opposed being the influencing factor. But I WILL say that every argument about Ariel always leads to mentioning how she gave up her voice to chase after a man she barely knew. And yes, she did. But no one mentions she was obsessed with the human world to begin with. And perhaps being in the human world was where she really felt comfortable, not in the life she was born into. Also, with Mulan: the author mentions her giving up her warrior life to settle down, but Mulan never wanted to be a warrior. She only did so her father wouldn't have to go into war. So returning home seemed a logical choice. She also returned home without knowing Shan was going to show up. Not that the larger point isn't valid, I just think it is a bit more complicated than stated.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I'd never thought about the whole thing with Ariel or Mulan beyond that (although admittedly I'd never really thought of Mulan beyond YEAH AWESOME!!) And you're so, so right! (New arguments for anti-Disney people muahahahaha) I definitely agree with it being more complicated than stated as well. I also don't see princesses as being an inherently evil thing like the author does - princesses are easily adaptable into all sorts of things like Batman Princess or in my case Barbarian Queen Princess, and I think losing that source of creativity would be a shame. I also think that in general, all princess means is that you are born into a source of power - or at least that's how I used it as a kid. I mean it's way easier trying to explain how I became a ruler of an alien planet if I just said I was a princess alien lol
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