Tigger, Piglet, Wol and Rabbit
Jul. 18th, 2009
06:41 pm
Ok, so i couldn't wait until after the Parade of Sail to put my photos up online. Flickr set with photos and videos here. Those of you on Facebook, there are sets of similar photos there, broken up into two albums so that the cruise photos from today are separate. I will post Parade of Sail photos after the event.
2009 Books:
17: Audition by Barbara Walters
This is her autobiography. Quite a thick book and it's quite interesting. I liked reading about her life before she became famous and she was always very frank about her regrets, her ambition. She was a ground breaker for women in broadcasting and it sounds like she's a workaholic. The woman is in her 70s though won't say exactly how old she is. Very interesting to read how she got interviews with some of the most famous names in the world, both political and celebrity, heads of state and ordinary people who's lives and situations touched her. She talks about lots of her interviewees, many of whom she liked even if she didn't like their politics or what they'd done. Even when it's clear she really disliked her interviewee, she tends to soften it and doesn't write insults or hugely negative stuff. Some, yes, but not like "mud slinging" types of things. It seemed pretty fair and she seemed to try to be honest.
05:16 pm - Ahoy Matey
Cruise was on even though it was so foggy you could barely see the shore! I did take some pics and did a bit of processing on them so you can actually make out what's there and near the end of the cruise we were closer to shore so you can see a bit better.
I got over there a bit early and walked around a little, took a couple of photos but then... disaster! My batteries died. Now, on the way over, the batteries that were in the camera died but i had what i thought were fresh ones so i was ok. Only they weren't fresh or had lost their charge at some point. I went into the big gift shop on the waterfront. They had batteries but there were two customers in front of me. One was waffling between two wall hangings and haggling because both of them had tiny little nicks on the frame and the staff was saying they don't do discounts for that because they'll still be able to sell them to someone else. She waffled and ummed and then they had to wrap what she wanted because there was no box... and.... and... well, you get the picture. The lady in front of me had some breakable items too so that was another wrap job and i had to be to the quay for the departure very soon. Off i went to try a couple of the other small gift shops and one of the shops in the small mall. NOBODY had freaking batteries. During the TALL SHIPS festival!!!! I thought i might get one or two photos out of the batteries i had. I did ask a few people on board but they didn't and i asked one of the crew and no, they didn't sell them. Five minutes later she came over and said she'd found some below deck and gave them to me!! What a nice thing to do! I thought i'd have to be careful to preserve them because i thought they'd get used up quicker but they did a fine job.
About 3/4 way through, on the way back to dockside, four people were allowed to fire off one of the small cannons. They asked me and i said Oh yes!! The onlookers didn't use my camera but one lady was taking pictures and another was taking video so if it turns out ok, i'll have that. The lady next to me that fired off the next gun squealed... It seemed like after her gun went off, there was a lot of bits and pieces floating through the air. I don't know if it was something inside the gun... though i don't think so because i didn't notice mine did that, but it wasn't an actual cannon ball either. Anyway she thought she'd shot a seagull and was horrified. Looking over the side at the water, you can see why she thought that. All the debris, that might have been from a cardboard box or something, was grey and white and the right colour for Seagull bits and feathers. I don't know what it was but it hadn't been alive, we determined that.
So yes, we didn't have great views and they didn't put up the sail but there was munchies and a bar. The crew were all dressed like pirates, too, with the captain and mate looking the best. We had a good time anyway though right after we fired off the guns, the heavens opened up and everyone squeezed into the small area below deck. It only lasted about 10 minutes tops. We went back up on the deck and though it was still spitting and raining just a little, it wasn't so bad and we were heading in to dock a bit early anyway. Nice thing was, they gave everyone 2 for 1 vouchers to return later in the summer when the weather was better. :) Nice gesture, eh?
Since the rain was off and on, i came home. Mom dropped over later so i had a chance of telling her all about it. She found the seagull story very funny!
03:57 pm
They say that dopamine is one of the chemicals that your brain uses to make you feel "good" when you do something that it likes. Eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired, get dopamine, feel good. It encourages you to do things that are good for you by giving you a reward.
When I've been having a long, serious talk with someone I care about, the kind that addresses uncomfortable truths, it's the most wonderful feeling in the world to see them smiling again afterwards. I wonder if this is the same mechanism, or a similar one developed for higher brain functions.
07:58 pm - Loads of links
Just a links post today, as I graduated and then walked to Grantchester, and am too exhausted to do anything else.
First up, a cool link from ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/syndicated.gif){kind=small}
bloodyyank actually encouraging adults to read YA. Compared to the usually patronising attitude you find in the mainstream media, this is great!
Snazzy post by ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
sistermagpie (which I found through ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small}
metafandom) about the shame we all seem to feel about being involved in fandom - and why we should reject basement-dwelling-nerd stereotypes.
Justine Larbalestier links to a Danah Boyd article about 'MySpace vs Facebook'. I'm not convinced of the distinctions that Boyd draws, but I think there's an interesting discussion going on in the comments on Larbalestier's post. Personally, I think the differences in internet use are related to more than just class - age has a huge effect, as do interests and things like general geekiness or nerdiness levels (you wouldn't catch my sister *dead* on LJ, Twitter or FF.net, and she only uses the internet to communicate with people she knows in real life).
This post on Stuff Journalists Like is all too true, sadly.
Finally, I'd like to draw your attention to a blog I've just discovered, called The Intern. It's written by an intern in a publishing company, and it's hilarious.
I hope you're all having a great weekend. I, for one, am over the moon. I have a Cambridge degree, and things are shiny!
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peaceful09:25 am
It rained last night.
Not really a problem in the normal realm of things
only
today it's very foggy
I'm supposed to go out on a sailing ship at noon.
It's got 2.5 hours to clear up.
I don't know if the cruise will be on or not
I'll go anyway seeing as i've paid for it
I guess it'll be fun
even if i can't see a blessed thing off the boat!
Crew should be dressed up as pirates and they are encouraging us to as well
Me?
No.
There's a bar on board. Door prizes (Work organized it).
I'll know many of the people going on it so i suppose it'll be fun regardless.
Sun is too much to ask for at this point in time. But being able to see the shore would be nice.
11:54 am - fannish5: Favorite Geniuses
Name your five favorite geniuses - evil or otherwise - from any fandom.
This is trickier to answer then you'd think. Because of the "genius" part. Take my beloved Arvin Sloane from Alias. I think he's brilliant, both in the sense of him being a great character and him being very clever indeed, but I don't think he's smart on a genius-level. Now if the criteria were "mastermind" instead of genius, I'd name him immediately. (Same goes for Irina Derevko, or the Empress Livia. Or Lost's Ben Linus.) On the other hand, Doctor Who's Master, whose overcomplicated plans fail far more often than Arvin Sloane's do, does qualify as a genius, due to being able to invent a number of gizmos for which one does need genius-level skills. (Including one made out of food when he has amnesia and thus not even access to his Time Lord memories.) Then there are characters who are geniuses and whom I like, but not in a "I really love them to bits" manner; for example, River Tam from Firefly, and as it's sympathy but not love for her, I can't name her in good faith.
After much to and thro, I came up with these choices:
1.) Marshall from Alias. Aw, Marshall. Whether it's presenting Sydney with favorite song compilations after two years of absence, whipping up entertaining plot-needed MacGuffins, or delivering his best Jack Bristow imitation ("the name is Bristow, Jack Bristow" from Tuesday is one of my all time favourite Alias moments) when confronting villains, I just love him.
2.) Tony Stark (Iron Man, both comics and film). I completely blame likeadeuce for this, as she made me wildly curious about this Stark character about a year before the movie came out, which meant I read up on some comics at the very time he was one of the most unpopular characters in the Marvelverse, which meant I was way more intrigued than I would have been had he been universally loved. But yes, Tony, and his messed up ways.
3.) The Master (Doctor Who), or to be more specific: Delgado!Master. I mean, love Simm!Master, too, but am only mildly sympathetic to Ainsley!Master on his good days, and in some stories I do dislike him (and not just in the sense that he's the villain anyway). And we don't talk about Erik Roberts. Crispy!Master is interesting in his last pre-Ainsley appearance but not so much in The Deadly Assassin. So, with the Master, my fannish love is very period-specific - i.e. Third Doctor Era and New Who, and when I had to choose one, it would be the Roger Delgado incarnation for sheer suaveness and charm.
*footnote: while with the Doctor I really can't limit myself to one incarnation - I more or less love them all, though some less then others. Also, the reason why I avoided putting the Doctor and the Rani on this list is that I wanted to limit myself to one character per fandom.
4.) Hank McCoy (X-Men): how can one not love Hank? Witty, kind, extremely versatile and, after his secondary mutation, one of the most visibly "other" of the X-Men, which makes for great angst in stories without making it all the character is about.
5.) Joss Whedon. (There was no "fictional" in the question, folks!) Has given me three shows I love passionately, a comic I adore (his AXM run), and other output that I like or dislike in varying degrees but which never bores me and most often makes me think. Can write songs in addition to witty dialogue. Is most definitely evil. In conclusion: does qualify.
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quixoticJul. 17th, 2009
07:41 am - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Unspoiled version: as with the book, I thought this had some powerful scenes but also somewhat suffered from the fact JKR crammed all the teenage romance she wouldn't have time for in the last volume in this one. Jim Broadbent is great as Horace Slughorn, this is hands down Michael Gambon's best performance as Dumbledore so far, Tom Felton steps up to the plate (which is important as this is the first book where Draco Malfoy becomes a) important to the plot and b) a more dimensional character), and Alan Rickman is great as ever. THAT scene is just perfect. On the downside of things, for me the feeling of the film went back to the "Rushed Cliff Notes on Harry Potter" or "Illustrated Highlights of Harry Potter" sense I had from the first two movies and which I thought the later ones somewhat successfully avoided. I also have no idea whether the film will make any sense at all if you haven't read the novels.
( Spoilery version )
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peacefulJul. 16th, 2009
11:10 pm - Tall Ships, Part 1
My mate Tracey and i headed downtown to see some of the Tall ships docked. I wanted to get some photos at dusk and after dark for a change so we got there about 8 p.m. or so. We had to park on level 5 of a parking garage but there was a lift. (Except when we got back, it was out of order! Gah! Tracey graciously didn't make me climb up but she had to to get the car! ) We walked along the boardwalk from around the Bishop's Landing area and south to the container piers where some of the really large Class A ships were docked. That's only about half of the waterfront but we didn't get down to the lower half as it started to shower a bit. We saw some lovely boats and ships but most of the Class A ones were closed off to access tonight, though would be viewable tomorrow. Frustrating because they had lights along all the masts and riggings and it would have been a great photo. We did see a Russian one, though, and it was lit up as well. Just as we were going round the corner, the fireworks started, back where we were to begin with. Aggh! However, we could see most of them over the buildings with the lights from the top of one of the Class A ships peeking over top of Pier 20's building. I balanced my camera on a fence and used the fireworks "scene" setting and i think i got some decent pics. Not all, but some. I think what i'll do is wait until the end of the weekend and just post all the pics at once. Or i'll do some on Sunday and do the Parade of Sail on Monday night. Weather is going to be iffy on the weekend, some sun, some cloud, some showers. Hope it's ok for the sailboat cruise on Saturday!
02:17 pm - MemcacheD Update
Just wanted to let everyone know, that a new version of MemcacheD has been released. We will be rolling this out to the memcache nodes during the week of July 20th to 24th. This should have very little impact on the stability of the website; however users may see a slight increase in load times as the cache is re-populated with entries.
The software has been tested and verified to be working just fine with the application; so we perceive this to be a very minimal risk in regards to updating, and the stability of the website.
Thanks...
12:45 pm - The Women
The women of Torchwood: Children of Earth, that is. Because this miniseries has given us such a rich variety of female characters, of all ages, of such different dispositions, all with their firm place in the narrative, interacting with each other, and best of all, ( spoilery spoil ) so that now that I have the dvds in my greedy hands and did some rewatching I want to write an entry celebrating them all.
( Women of Earth )
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hyperJul. 15th, 2009
08:20 pm
My dad had a drug test for a job at City Center; cross your fingers, it would help out ENORMOUSLY and make all the difference in the world, especially about our health insurance for my mom.
I lost my job. There were only eight days left, and I'm glad to see the backside of it because I knew I wasn't making my goal and so I spent the last week there constantly cringing in fear of the axe. Still don't get paid until the 24th - planning on using it for school. Can't believe this, but I owe CSN a 160 bucks, so I hope I made enough to cover this next semester.
Also, I'm running out of pens. I might put some of the earlier Boccaccio illustrations on Etsy, but I doubt anyone will buy them. :(
Because I lost the job, I have no idea when the internet will get turned back on at my house, and the neighbors seem to have gotten sick of us and locked the network down. I'm at the library right now.
I posted the first of two or three Amazon illustrations.
Here's some stuff I liked:
Now Let Us Praise Awesome Dinosaurs: this is like the story of dinosaurs from my dreams. It's about dinosaurs from Mars who move back to earth, an earth where dinosaurs do gutterpunk things like race cars and fight in youtube videos. Really, truly awesome dinosaurs.
This article on horse puppets in "Warhorse": anyone else think that puppetry for the stage is the place to be lately? This is really amazing.
I also saw Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Here are my thoughts: ( Dumbledore dies on page 596. )
Other than that, liked the movie at least as much as I like anything Harry Potter.
04:12 pm - Notes, Geo-Location, Pingbacks, Birthday Wishes, and More
New Notes Feature
Automatic Detect Location
Pingbacks for All
Birthday Wishes
( Read more... )
07:21 pm - Talk about yesteryear...
by7the7sea kindly pointed out to me that yesterday, I won awards for two old Heroes stories of mine: 
Which made me feel nostalgic, a bit sad (because I broke up with the show, and can't see myself returning) and somewhat wistful, in a "but the good times were really good" kind of manner. Runaways in particular was such a blast to write, and looking back at it reminds me how much I loved not just my favourites but the entire ensemble.
Incidentally, my awards in Heroes fandom remain excentric: once I won an award for "Dreaming" at heroes_slash, i.e. for a story in which there is no slash, and now I've won one for "Runaways" at heroes_het_fic, for a story in which there is no het! (Err, nor other kinds of sexual action.) (Though obviously there is some in "Folly", which is about the Nathan/Meredith backstory based on what we knew in s1.)
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grateful07:47 am - From the "You just can't win" files
A short time ago, there was a bit of embarassing publicity about one of Halifax's most famouse tourist sites, Peggy's Cove. PC is a small fishing village out of the city a bit with a picturesque lighthouse and a very rocky coastline. Thousands of tourists visit every year but the lighthouse was looking pretty shabby. This hit the media and the government scrambled to put up the cash for a paint job. Only to do that, there must be scaffolding around the lighthouse. Now the tourists are whining that the scaffolding is ruining their pictures!
Also in the news is a court decision that's going to force Transit companies to give equal ad space inside and outside the bus to posters and banners by the Freethought Association of Canada. The ad reads "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life". There was a lot of upset people over that one and they pressurized the transit companies, our local one included, to yank the ads out of the busses. The company took it to the Supreme Court of Canada and they won. The writer of the letter to the newspaper today is an admited devout Christian and says they believe in free speech but still thought this was too much for public transit. The writer goes on to extol the health and social benefits of having faith and decides that it's the non-believers that have more to worry about. yeah well. Free speech is free speech. You either have to go with it or not. The ads i find offensive? The ones that use blatant sexuality to sell something.
And yeah, further to my too-spicy jambalaya question the other day, i diluted it a bit with chicken broth. Result! Still spicy and hot but not quite so burny and still palatable. Thanks for the suggestion!
08:40 am - Multifandom links (yes, really)
Sarah Connor Chronicles:
Two great post-Born to Run (i.e. the s2 finale) stories, one a sort of sequel to the other:
These Things My Mother Taught Me and Like Locked Rooms. ( Description spoilery for s2 finale ensues. )
Harry Potter:
Due to the HBP movie finally getting released this week, it's interview time for the actors again. Which reminds me that when the film versions started, I wouldn't have predicted that of the three young leads, the one who'd turn out to be the best actor and the one you can see learning and improving from film to film would be Dan Radcliffe, but thus it has turned out to be. He also shows a great level-headedness and a sense of humor in interviews that's quite endearing. Here is a new one, complete with such gems as:
Q: You've said recently that you would like to date older women. You know who's older, single now and likes British guys? Madonna.
A: Christ. I don't think that I'd do my chances of working with Guy Ritchie any good. I don't know which one I'd rather do ... I'm not sure I'd be her cup of tea.
Multifandom:
Speaking of a sense of humour - not unrelated to certain current events post Torchwood - Children of Earth, but containing no spoilers about same (as opposed to spoilers for Tale of Two Cities, The Sting, and Gone With The Wind):
Tufax about pre-internet fandom
Torchwood:
A great review of Children of Earth, analyzing it as a horror story.
New community: if, like me, you're really not interested in fixits because you don't want any of the CoE events "fixed" (in the sense that fandom usually means it; I'm on board with coping and dealing fics), but want the new situation and above all the largesse of awesome characters we now have explored, check out torchwoodfive, where they're already debating whom the post CoE team should consist of.
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contentJul. 14th, 2009
09:31 pm - Ships and Travel!
Ok, next trip up.... Graham's next visit to Canada.
Plane ticket booked... Check (arrival Oct. 29, depart Nov. 15)
Aeroplan tickets booked for Montreal...Check (depart Nov. 2, return Nov. 7)
Hotel booked for Montreal...Check (staying in a suite hotel with a kitchen).
Montreal guide book bought...Check
To Do: Rent a car for Nov. 7 to when he leaves, returning car the day after.
Ongoing: Sacrifices to the weather gods
Really looking forward to the Tall Ships this weekend. They arrive on Thursday and I'm thinking i might go down to see them later in the evening, at dusk and after dark for some pics that are different from my usual ship pics. Not a late night, just to see them lit up. Probably will go see them after work on Friday and then Saturday is the cruise on the sailboat, Liana's Ransom at noon. I'm taking Monday off to go see the Parade of Sail and heard from my mate Tracey and she's taking the day off too so we discussed where we might go to get a good vantage point. We were both of the same frame of mind in our potential location, the Dartmouth waterfront at Alderney Gate. The ships generally go down that far or a bit more towards the bridge before turning to return so it might be a good spot. Get there early so we can get a good spot to sit.
She also mentioned an outdoor concert that's happening here on the first weekend in August, it's called Halifax Rockfest and is sponsored by, of all people, the military! Along with other corporate sponsors of course. The headliner is a "supergroup" called Chicken Foot. No i haven't heard of them either but the base player is from Van Halen and the lead singer is Sammy Hagar, the drummer is from Red Hot Chili Peppers and the lead guitarist is no less than Joe Satriani, an ace guitarist. Second on the list is Canadian rock act, Our Lady Peace and they're a pretty good rockin band as well. Perennial openers, Sloan, of course and The Trews. All kicking rock acts though, for me at least, Halifax band, Sloan is a bit run of the mill but they're not bad and they've done well enough, have cds out and songs on the radio. Sounds like it would be a pretty heavy gig. At 75 dollars a ticket for entry, not really so bad. Do I want to go to another all day outdoor thing? Maybe. I think it would be a good show
03:30 pm - Meanwhile, in non-Torchwood-related news...
Yesterday was Patrick Stewart's birthday, and Will Wheaton wrote an absolutely adorable birthday post for him. Awwwwww.
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cheerful09:10 pm - White Chocolate Pumpkin Pasties!
Okay, this recipe is posted all over the Internet if you google "pumpkin pasties recipe," but this is my personal version of it. That's right - I attempted to make them, so you can benefit from this slightly botched (but completely delicious) attempt! I have adjusted all of the ingredients, including doubling the amount of pie crusts needed, because I was left with half the filling leftover when I was done. I also made them even more delicious with white chocolate flavor, courtesy of Jell-o pudding :)
Oh my gracious, these things are so bad for you. But they taste pretty amazing - and I don't even like pumpkin pie!
This is half the recipe, plus a magic wand and an owl watercolor.
White Chocolate Pumpkin Pasties
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar (I actually used about 1/4 cup of Splenda brown sugar baking stuff. It's like half sucralose.)
1 lb. canned pumpkin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 t. allspice
1 packet of Jell-o instant fat free/sugar free White Chocolate pudding mix
1 2/3 cups evaporated milk (1 small can)
about 30 oz. pie crust pastry (4 premade crusts from the biscuit/cookie dough section)
To make filling add eggs and sugar to a mixing bowl, mix until well blended. Stir in pumpkin, salt and spices (and pudding mix). Add evaporated milk and mix well.
Bake the filling in a large casserole dish that has been buttered or sprayed with pam. Bake at 425ºF for 15 minutes. Keep oven door closed and reduce temperature to moderate (350ºF) and continue baking for 45 minutes or until table knife inserted in center of dish comes out clean(ish). Cool filling completely on a wire rack (okay, I definitely didn't wait for it to cool very much, but they don't seem to be any worse for wear).
Cut pie crust into circles approximately 4 inches in diameter. Put a spoonful of the cool pumpkin mixture towards one side of the center of the circle. Fold over the crust into a half-circle and firmly crimp the edges closed. You will notice that the premade pie crusts have a slightly shiny side, and a slightly matte floury side. I've actually forgotten which side sticks to which, but experiment a little to see which side sticks to itself, then make sure that that side is on the INSIDE of the pasty (face up while you're assembling it). You can see in my picture that they didn't all seal very well, because I did not do this. Prick the top with a fork. Place on a greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 400 degrees only until crust is a light golden brown, approximately 10-15 minutes.
Makes about 3 dozen. Serve at room temperature.
04:12 am - Fanfic Links
Still a Torchwood edition:
No need for shame: in which Gwen meets the Doctor, some time after. I absolutely love this one, with both Gwen's voice and the Doctor's perfectly written.
Five Conversation Gwen Cooper Had Following The Evasion Of The Apocalypse: co-starring Rhiannon, Alice, Rhys and Jack. The Alice section hit me hardest, but all the others ring very true, too.
For Duties Rendered: this one is actully set early in s1 though it makes use of an observation of Gwen's from CoE; it's salary day for Team Torchwood.
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