Odds and Ends

"Hour of Tea" by Vladimir Volegov

Oh, hi there, all of you whom I haven't talked to for almost two months.

Still alive over here.  *waves* Life's been a little crazy and a little busy and not exactly conducive to writing long blog posts of late, but I promise I haven't abandoned this spot!  I do have a few new posts in draft right now (including a couple of movie reviews that realllllllly need to get finished) and they'll be along eventually.  ;)

But for now I thought I'd do one of those random update posts because I always like reading those and they make good filler when you're not feeling particularly Creative.  (Hey, I'm being honest here.)

So right now I am...

~Turning

Well, I'll let you guess. :D

"Upon my word," said her ladyship, "you give your opinion very decidedly for so young a person. Pray, what is your age?"

"With three younger sisters grown up," replied Elizabeth, smiling, "your ladyship can hardly expect me to own it."

Lady Catherine seemed quite astonished at not receiving a direct answer; and Elizabeth suspected herself to be the first creature who had ever dared to trifle with so much dignified impertinence. 

"You cannot be more than twenty, I am sure, therefore you need not conceal your age."     

"I am not one-and-twenty."     
~Pride and Prejudice, chapter 29

Yep, I'm turning twenty.  Or that is, I did-- almost a month ago.  (Heh, heh. I was going to write a commemorative post to bid farewell to the teen years, but yeah, that didn't happen.)  Last year my age matched Elinor's and this year it matched Elizabeth's and next will be Emma... and then I'll be out of Jane Austen heroines (unless you count Jane Bennet, but nobody does :P) until I turn 27 and match up with Anne Elliot again.

~Reading

My mom and I are reading A Chance to Die (a biography of Amy Carmichael) by Elisabeth Elliot together right now, and I just got Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Won't Stop Talking from the library, so I've been enjoying what I read of that so far. :D  My sister gave me The Making of BBC Pride and Prejudice for my birthday, which has been SO much fun to poke through, and I recently finished up The Penderwicks In Spring.  Which I pre-ordered the moment it was available.  No shame. :P  I'm still working on a Goodreads review for that, but let's just say I was not disappointed. ;)

The book in the picture above is The Mockingbird Next Door: Life With Harper Lee by Marja Mills, which DID disappoint me, and in fact I have a review of sorts in draft right now (with a lot of philosophical rambling about the role of truth and ethics in journalism) but I'm including the picture because I thought it was pretty and I don't generally take good pictures, haha, so this one needed to be commemorated.

~Listening

I saw Into the Woods back in January and have been enjoying various recordings of that musical (Bernadette Peters is a majestic empress, y'all) and I'm also binge-listening to Cecilia Bartoli and a lot of pieces by Scarlatti.  But really, just about anything Cecelia Bartoli sings. Because she's amazing.   And hilarious.  Proof below-- this is a piece called "Papagena" from Mozart's The Magic Flute and this video cracks me up every time. :D

~Working

I started a new nannying job in January (in addition to the one I've had for the last two and half years) and it's a little bit exhausting (four VERY energetic kids ten and under) but rewarding and lovely and all that.  And the kids are beyond cute, so that's a plus.  No pictures, because privacy, but here are some amusing conversational tidbits from the mouths of babes...

 6-year-old: You wore earrings today!

Me: Yes, and so did you!
6-year-old: I always have these in.
Me: I know.
6-year-old: But yours are just SPECIAL. They're just... I don't know. So CLASSY.


3-year-old: I like my pasta clean and fresh.
Me: ......
3-year-old: I LIKE MY PASTA CLEAN AND FRESH.
Me: ..............
7-year-old: He means he likes it without any sauce on it, duh.

~Sewing

Experimenting with 50's style dresses and skirts for SPRING!  What I'd really really like to make is a reproduction of Maria's lilac dress from West Side Story, but I have a bunch of other projects lined up right now so that will have to wait.  I'm also modifying a Regency dress to fit my youngest sister so she can wear it when she plays piano for a Jane Austen themed fundraising tea at our library later this month.  (SQUEEP.)

~Watching

Last year I won a DVD set of Wind at My Back, season one, from Sullivan Entertainment, and I immediately fell in love with the show.  Recently Melody and I have been watching season two as well (and I've been showing season one to my sisters!) and I can definitely name it as one of my favorite TV shows of all time.  It's a sweet family story set in 1930's Ontario, following the struggles of a widow and her three children, her absolutely abominable mother-in-law and their friends and relatives and all their trials and triumphs and blah-de-blah.  Pretty much impossible to describe without sounding incredibly schmaltzy, but if you can get your hands on an episode or two (they're expensive and/or hard to find, unfortunately), the show is definitely worth watching.

~Writing

Lots and lots of stuff for Masked!  Screenplays, of course, but also audition sides and script treatments and character studies and all those other little things that go into producing a show.  It's a bit of a whirlwind at present, but we're getting very close to the actual filming now and that's SO exciting!

~Laughing

Well, these pictures have been cracking me up for days now. :D

~Enjoying

I was going to make this one "drinking" but decided that didn't sound quite as nice as I would like it to. :P  I'm talking about tea, people, sheesh.  My aunt recently gave me some Yunnan black needle tea which I was a little cautious about trying because it sounded quite different from anything I'd had before, but I ended up really enjoying it.  A couple of weeks ago I also happened upon Celestial Seasonings' Tangerine Orange tea in a grocery store I don't go to very often, which was a happy occurrence indeed, because that particular kind is quite hard to find these days.  :/

~Learning

Humility is a big thing the Lord's been impressing on me lately-- that along with trust and letting go.  The three go hand-in-hand, really.  I like to saunter through life with my own plan in mind, confident in the (narcissistic) assumption that everything is going to go the way I want it to, and if it doesn't, well, I'll fix it.  But "life is what happens when we are making other plans" and I've been learning time and time again that roadblocks will come up and tragedies will strike and times of hardship will come hurtling toward us, and there's not a whole lot we can do to stop them.  Or, even, get rid of them when they come.  Which is, in its way, incredibly humbling, because it reminds me that I am not the all-powerful being I like to think I am :P, but it is also incredibly uplifting because it reminds me that the God I serve IS an all-powerful Being and absolutely nothing in this world happens outside of His perfect plan.

Happy spring, everybody!

A delightful animated film about a young boy and and an old man who fly away to an exotic place in a balloon house...

...in other words, what's up.

I've been...

~Reading

Just finished Christy by Catherine Marshall (SO good, though not recommended for younger readers as it has some mature themes), am still plugging away in The Count of Monte Cristo, and just delved into Captain Wentworth's Diary by Amanda Grange.  It's quite lovely so far-- I really enjoyed her Mr. Knightley's Diary, so I'm hoping this will be as good.  (Got any book recommendations for me, friends?  This time of year is when I read the most, it seems...)  I keep track of all my reading on Goodreads, which I'd recommend (I've used that word three times now... ugh, I need a synonym) to any bookworm.  Yay for book-sharing and bluestockings!

~Listening

Well, I'll tell you what I'm NOT listening to just yet, and that's Christmas music.... just pretend you can see me scowling.  (If you know me in real life that won't be hard to imagine.) I'm a stickler for Waiting Until After Thanksgiving, and this year is no exception.  Instead I'm listening to Audra McDonald whenever I get the chance, and remembering how much I love The High Kings.  Oh, and the Sherlock soundtrack. :D

(this is 3-year-old's and my special song-- well, one of them)

~Working

I've been at my nanny job for two years now... hard to believe the little munchkin who wasn't even walking yet when I started is now running around talking a mile a minute because he's THREE now and definitely not a baby anymore.  (Well... depends when you ask him.)  We're a close-knit pair, we are.  I'm also beginning a volunteer position at my library next week, so that's fun.  ;)

~Sewing

A lavender Civil War dress as a somewhat late fifteenth birthday present for Molly-- HOW IS SHE FIFTEEN ALREADY.  Visions of sugarplums a new Regency dress for a Jane Austen Christmas tea are dancing in my head but I'm determined to stick to just one project at a time.

~Watching

Anne-girl and I just began the BBC Robin Hood together, and though it's not really my usual cup of tea, I'm enjoying it heartily.  Much is my favorite character.  Also Will Scarlet.  Because, y'know, Harry Lloyd.  Do I really need to explain that.  Didn't think so.  I'm also loving In Earnest, a new independent web series based on Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest-- which is one of my favorite plays ever, so it's quite fun seeing it adapted into a clean and hilarious modern-day vlog series.

~Traveling

Recently returned from a jaunt to Kansas City (again!).  It was lovely to see my Rovirosa peeps again and I miss Ally and her siblings already... but we have a plethora of new inside jokes to console ourselves with.  Since none of them are blogging much anymore I could probably say whatever I want about them on here... but I'll refrain from sharing mor'ifying anecdotes :P and simply say that we had a splendid time and made idiots of ourselves and stayed up really late every night and played games and roasted marshmallows and went to play rehearsals and watched movies and the like.  It was quite good fun.

~Anticipating

Christmas, duh.  BUT THANKSGIVING FIRST.  Basically the entire holiday season.  *rapturous sigh*  And seeing relatives I haven't seen in ages.  And my first voice recital, because I'm really excited about that.  And seeing Cinderella (the musical!), our Christmas present from my grandmother.  And baking a ton of treats because that's what we do this time of year.  And the Victorian Christmas ball we're going to!!  Oh, and the new Night at the Museum movie.  No shame.  :D

(random quote I like)

~Planning

Melody and I have a really delightful project we're currently working on... which I should devote some time to this morning, haha.  What I'd love to be planning is a trip to go visit Melody, but hey, she was just here, so I need to bide my time.  And save my money.  Heh.

~Writing

Well, y'all know about Masked now.  :D  That's been keeping me pretty busy.  I've also been plugging away at a couple of movie reviews for this blog, which still haven't materialized.... but life goes on and things will be okay.  Yada yada.  Tomorrow is a brand new dayyyyy...

~Laughing

I'm always laughing over something because I'm a little too easily amused, but this song has had me in stitches recently.  For all you fellow low-pitched women out there...

(The chorus bit from I Feel Pretty is the best, IMHO.  And as a girl who can rock the Bishop's low notes in Les Mis and then be told by a young friend that I sound JUST LIKE his older brother, I can identify with that.  Haha.)

~Wondering

Soooooo is Sophie Hunter going to become Sophie Cumberbatch?  Isn't that the uppermost question in everyone's minds? :D  Personally if I had the opportunity to take on a name as unique and hilarious as that one, I'd grab it.  Despite having to spell and explain it to everyone for the rest of my life...  (HUGE congratulations to the happy couple, by the way, and NO I'm not in deep mourning or anything, to answer the solicitous inquiries of half my friends.  Snort.)

~Learning

That this crazy thing we call life is happening right here and not now-- that I'm not waiting for anything, but instead just discovering how to enjoy and accept each day as it comes without constantly worrying about the future.  Now is the time to seize the day, stare down the odds and seeeeeeeeize the day... you don't get anywhere by staying stuck in a rut fearing what's to come and worrying over what's already happened.  The God who controls the universe controls every aspect of it, including my own uncertain and small existence, and He has a perfect plan for each and every part of it.  Someday I'll fully grasp that.  Hopefully. :D

How's it been with you lately?  

Movie Reviews: A Public Service Announcement (and some other stuff)

Oh, look, folks, it's me again, popping in here after three weeks of silence with a measly excuse for a post!  Yay!

Seriously, though, life has been crazy busy and when I do get on the computer, I've been catching up with emails and staying in touch with friends and not actually writing blog posts, and I do apologize for that, but y'all know the drill by now.  I shall be here when I can be, and neither more nor less, and since you're all so splendid, you understand.

Anyways.  However.  I do have a movie review in draft at the moment, one that's amusing me immensely as I write it, and as I'm writing, it occurred to me that there's something I need to make known to the followers of my blog.  I've gotten quite a few comments and emails in recent months from blog readers asking for rundowns on objectionable content in various films and TV shows.

And, though I am generally rather bad at saying this to people, after giving it some thought, I've come to the conclusion that my answer is no.  (But I'm really really sorry to have to say that and I hope you're not offended and please don't hate me.)

Ahem.

The point I'm trying to make is this: Yet Another Period Drama Blog, contrary to what appearances may imply, is not a movie review blog.  It's a personal blog.  A blog for rambling about the movies and books and television shows and fictional characters that I like, with a dash of Lots of Other Things thrown in.  When I "review" a movie, I'm really just sharing my thoughts about the movie and opening up a discussion where others can share their opinions and thoughts. (And sometimes I actually get around to replying to comments!  Woot!)  I'm not trying to provide an objective rundown of the film; I'm just taking any excuse I can to sound off about something I enjoyed. (Or didn't enjoy, as the case may be.)  I am not a professional film critic, nor even an aspiring one.  (That would be a boring job because you DO have to be at least somewhat objective, and I prefer airing my snarky personal opinions.)

In addition, I also don't feel comfortable trying to provide an all-encompassing content advisory for my blog readers.  Very few people share the exact same views on What's Okay and What's Not when they're consuming media (that phrase sounds strangely food-ish), and my opinions as to what makes a movie "passable" and what makes it "objectionable" may be very different from yours.  We're not all cookie cutters, after all.

However, this doesn't mean I won't issue a warning here and there if I feel it would be helpful to my readers-- if a movie has a scene that I usually fast-forward, I'll probably give you a heads-up about that.  Or if my own younger siblings didn't watch a movie with me because it was too intense or adult, I may mention that as a caution if I feel it's appropriate.  But I won't write up a detailed list of every instance in which John Watson says a bad word, or exactly how far down the neckline of Marguerite Blakeney's dress falls.  Deciding whether a movie is worth watching is your own business, not mine, and I'm not going to try to tell you what you can and can't see.  Does that make sense?

Here's the too-long-didn't-read version: YAPDB does not offer content reviews, though I do try to keep the content on this blog as clean and family-friendly as possible.  If you want the lowdown on objectionable stuff, try the IMDb Parents' Guides or any of the multitude of movie-review web sites out there.  (PluggedIn, Common Sense Media and Charity's Place, for example.)

Thanks for bearing with me.  :D

Alsoooooo... don't forget about I'd Like to Share for October!  Please add your nominations in the comments section on the I'd Like to Share page.

Again, sorry for the severe lack of posts on here lately.  I've had a really busy month, not least because of Julius Caesar-- which was incredibly amazing and it ended last night and I'm really really sad it's over because I loved every moment of it.  (Well, I didn't love the times when I got lost driving in the city trying to get to rehearsal with my sisters... but I love my amazing director who stayed on the phone with me and talked me through some confusing one-way streets because he's awesome like that.  Silver linings.)  I really learned a lot-- for instance, Shakespeare is the best, theatre is amazing, actors are hilarious and great and fun to be around, military banners are much heavier and unwieldier than they look, it IS actually possible to do a complete costume change in under 90 seconds, and literally every line in Julius Caesar can be improved if you do it in a muppet voice.  Fact.

(It's a quote from Marc Antony, in case you were wondering, who in our production was played by an incredibly talented actress who doubled as Portia-- yes, we had gender-blind casting, how else do you think I ended up as a snooty butler and a soldier?) 

And on that impassioned note I will end this extremely random post.  :)

P.S. Hail Caesar. *falls to her knees enraptured*

P.P.S. He will eat only the finest Turkish caviar.

P.P.P.S.  Major points if you got that last reference.

A Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

I haven't done one of those "right now I'm currently doing..." posts in ages and ages, so I thought now, as summer's ending, would be a good time to do one.  An update of sorts, you know.  I don't tend to blog a great deal about my personal life on here, but now and then it's fun to write a little about what's going on outside of the blogging world.  (Because, you know, I do have a life outside of movie reviews and Pinterest.  Hard to believe, but it's true. :P)

So, of late, I've been...

~Reading

...the classic Christy (so good! though I don't recommend it for younger readers, as there is some adult content), the thrilling The Count of Monte Cristo (with my dad-- we read a few chapters each week and discuss them), and the fascinating Anne Boleyn: A New Life of England's Tragic Queen (a look into the life of a very misunderstood historical figure).

~Listening

...to Laura Osnes and Bernadette Peters and Mark Vincent and the Newsies album.  Film soundtrack and OBC recording, both.  And don't ask me to pick a favorite, because I like both for different reasons and I don't know if I could decide.  

~Sewing

...a Civil War ensemble that a friend recently commissioned (currently having lots of fun with petticoats :D) and working here and there on some new skirt designs.  Eventually I'd like to expand my Etsy shop to include a line of contemporary clothing with a vintage influence, so that's been dominating my needle lately.

~Watching

...just finished Martin Chuzzlewit with Melody, and I'm mourning the end of Emma Approved... a review will hopefully come soon.  (In case you didn't know, Emma Approved is a highly, highly recommended web series-- younger viewers should watch with caution as there are a few very minor content issues but all in all it's a really fabulous adaptation of Emma.)  Oh, and my family just saw Muppets Most Wanted on my youngest sister's thirteenth birthday (we have four teenagers in the house now, WHAAAAAAT) and I loved it.  Quite hilarious, and Tom Hiddleston's in it, even if only for about a minute.  :P  I'm also enjoying Green Gables Fables, which is another web series based on (just guess...) Anne of Green Gables.  Not as professional as EA, but still fun.

~Working

...at my nannying job, which I've been doing for almost two years now!  Time flies-- and my little charge is now almost three.  Good grief.   (And he's very talkative. And precious and adorable and a chatterbox.  And did I mention he talks a lot?)

~Anticipating

...FALL!  Sweaters and pumpkins and sharp autumn gusts of wind and tea in dainty cups or chunky mugs and wrapping up in an afghan with a good book.  It's my favorite season for a reason.  ;)

~Acting

...in a local production of Julius Caesar!!! This is my first real play ever, in my LIFE, and I'm really really really excited.  We have four performances in September and I'm looking forward to it immensely.  I'm playing the scintillating part of Caesar's servant-who-delivers-stuff (and I'm a guy, so that'll be interesting-- no, I mean, I'm portraying a guy in the PLAY, sheesh, I don't mean in real LIFE, I haven't been LYING to you all this time) and also a Random Plebeian who does a lot of screaming and protesting and shouting in the crowd and stabbing poor Cinna the poet.  Shakespeare is awesome.  :D

~Studying

...personality types and how people relate to each other. It's fascinating stuff, whether you're looking at the Four Temperaments (good post on those here) or the Myers-Briggs 16-type classification.  I'm an ISFJ with a bit of INFP thrown in the mix, which matches me up with John Watson and Combeferre and Diana Barry and all those splendid supporting characters I've always loved.  (If there's anything more fun than figuring out which categories your family and friends fall into, it's figuring out where to place your favorite fictional characters.)  You can take the test here if you're interested-- do leave a comment and let me know which type you are!

~Writing

...many great and wonderful things which you know not of.  :P  If you've been following my writing blog over the last year, I offer my most sincere apologies for posting, um, once.  Or maybe it was twice.  Whatever, it was measly.  I am still working on the Rochesters, but in a vague sort of way-- they're off being beta-read by several friends and relations, and when I get them back and dust them off and ask about their trip and remind them to put their laundry in the hamper, I'll settle down to giving them what will (hopefully) be their fourth and final edit. We shall see.  In the meantime, I've been devoting a lot of mental energy to some top-secret projects-- which I mention here partly to tantalize you because I'm mean like that, and partly because several people have been asking and I wanted to satiate what curiosity I could.  Which isn't much.  Haha.

~Learning

...to trust and rely on the Lord more.  Life can be so confusing and tangled and full of sharp drop-offs and cliffs with no foreseeable end, but I serve a God who sees the future and knows the plans He has for me.  His purposes and actions and love are always perfect, so why am I wasting so much of my time worrying and fretting because His plan doesn't seem to be aligning with mine?  How will my faith ever be strengthened if I don't exercise it more?  They that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength, after all-- they shall mount up with wings as eagles and run without weariness.  That's what I want to be able to do.

"Not being able to fully understand God is frustrating, but it is ridiculous for us to think that we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of understanding."

~also Francis Chan-- the guy has a way of putting things :D 

~Reminding

...all of YOU to submit your nominations for September's I'd Like to Share!  Please remember to limit them to one per person per month, and to leave them in the comments on the I'd Like to Share page, *not* just in a random post on my blog.  It can be difficult to round up all the links if they're scattered across comment boxes hither, thither and yon.  :D  Looking forward to seeing your nominations!

The Great Big Answer Post... Part Three

(random pretty pic to start things off  'cause
that's what bloggers DO)

Final part of that gigantic questions-and-answers post! Phew!
...I did love doing this, just in case you're wondering.
;)


Marie asked...

What is your favorite Disney movie (this may or may not include Disney/Pixar as you prefer)?

Mary Poppins and Up might tie.  :D Mary Poppins pretty much WAS my childhood, whereas Up is just the sweetest, darlingest, cutest story there ever was.  The Adventure Book scene near the end gets me every time.

What is one modern fashion trend/style/etc that you do like very much (if there are any)?

I love silky scarves... I wear them as often as I can in the fall, winter and early spring.  I do have a few summery ones but I prefer not to wear them in the hot weather.  They get all up in my neck business and I don't like that.

Would you rather wear pearls or rubies?

Pearls, indubitably.  They always look so classy and they go with everything. I bought a vintage pearl necklace at an antique store a few months ago and I'm always on the lookout for any possible excuse to wear it.  One has to look nice when one goes to the library, after all.

If you had to choose between never being able to watch the next two seasons of Sherlock (and never being able to see pictures or find out what happens or anything like that) or never see any musical ever again, which would you choose?

Why. Would. You. Ask. That.
Marie.
Why.

*goes off and cries in a corner for three days*

Okay, okay.
IpicknotbeingabletoseeSherlock.  Because I can't give up all my musicals, I just can't.  *hugs Les Mis characters protectively*

DON'T KILL ME, GUYS.

Which do you like better: reading or writing and watching films combined?

Writing and watching films.  :D

Would you change your eye color if you had the opportunity? Would you ever consider changing your hair color?

I actually quite like the color of my eyes as they are on the Unique side, but ifffffff I had the opportunity to change them I might make them blue.  I always wanted Liesel's eyes in Sound of Music when I was little.

As for my hair color, it's changed an awful lot over the years.  It started out super dark and then went platinum blonde and then gradually darkened as I got older.  Case in point shown above.  But if I couuuuuuuuuld change my hair color (AND THEN CHANGE IT BACK RIGHT AWAY IF I DIDN'T LIKE IT) I'd be an auburn-ish redhead just for a day or so. To see what it's like.

Would you rather be extremely tall or extremely short?

Ummmmmm.  I think I'd rather be extremely tall.  At least I'd be able to reach things... right?
...Then again, looking down on people all the time would be awkward so maybe I'd rather be extremely short.

I don't know.  I CAN'T DECIDE.

...WHO LET YOU ASK THESE QUESTIONS.

What is your favorite punctuation mark?

The ampersand.  It's old-fashioned and dignified and it looks like a baby scooting across the floor.

French or British accents (or Scottish)?

British.  This encompasses Scottish, so I feel justified in saying that.  English predominately, but also Scottish.  Scottish ain't English.  But it is British.  (So it ain't English, then.)

Favorite color combination?

Pink and brown.

Would you seriously go to live in the 1800s if you had the chance? (Assuming this would be a permanent decision and all your family and friends would be automatically transported as well.)

I had to think about this one (which means it was a doggone good one :D) and my answer is no.  Much as I love learning about life in the 19th century and much as I love the fashions and the culture, I've gotten a small taste of what it might have really been like through doing Civil War reenactments, and that's convinced me that I need my modern conveniences, haha.  If I could just travel back in time for a week or so, sure.  But permanently?  Nope.  I need my indoor plumbing.  And my Internet.

(seriously, though, without the Internet I wouldn't have all of YOU.  *hugs*)


Melody asked...

What's your favorite thing to make for dinner?

Oven fries, believe it or not.  They are my Specialty-- I peel them, slice them thin, dress them up with olive oil, vinegar and seasonings, and bake them 'til they're soft then broil them 'til they're crispy.  My brother eats them by the pound.  :P

If you could change one particular thing about your looks, what would it be? (Be specific, Bob.)

Ai yi yi.
*makes long list*
*attempts to scratch all but one thing off the list*

Ummm... I'd make my face thinner.  It would help me look Less Young, for one thing (I don't particularly like being mistaken for a 15-year-old) and I've always wanted Exquisite Cheekbones.

If you could go back in time to the year 2010, what one thing would you do differently since now you've seen whatever's happened since?

I would talk less, listen more, and start my blog a year ahead of time so I could beat you to it.  *smiles angelically*

Is there any particular question you've been hoping nobody will ask, and if so, what is it?

Yezzzz. I've been hoping that no one will ask what question I've been hoping no one will ask.

...Kidding.  Actually there was one question that I was hoping wouldn't pop up in the comments (though I wasn't actually dreading it or anything) and that was "what's your favorite episode of Sherlock?"  Because the answer would not be satisfactory to anyone, as it would consist mostly of MY SHERLOCK, MY SHERLOCK, I CAN'T DECIDE, I CAN'T, I CAN'T, I LOVE ALL OF THEM, GIVE THEM ALL TO ME.  SHERLOCK.

(p.s. it'stotallyReichenbach.)

Will you please post the five funniest pictures you've seen on Pinterest within the last two days for our laughing pleasure?

Indubitably, m'dear.  (Click to enlarge.)

(The best part about this one is the first Tumblr username.  Heeheehee.)

(This one cracks me up every time I see it.  Quite clever!)

(Um, for anyone confused by this one, that's Mark Gatiss, who plays Mycroft Holmes in Sherlock, for which he also co-writes the teleplays.)

(Do I even need to comment?)

(My little brother loves this one.  :D)

Jill B. asked...

How should someone go about becoming your friend?

Interesting! No one's ever asked me that before... usually when I become friends with someone, it just sort of happens.

Seriously, though, I am usually attracted to people who like the things I like.  In the blogging world, I'll probably be interested in being friends with someone who comments on my blog and whose blog interests me (and which I comment upon in turn), whose view of the world is generally similar to mine and who knows how to start a conversation and keep it going.  In "real life," you'd have to be the one to start the conversation-- I do love talking to people, but as an introvert I'm not going to get up the guts to approach you.  Heh.  Working on that one.

Do you have a song that you sing over and over and that drives your family crazy?

Like every other six-year-old in America, I do tend to burst into "Let It Go" whenever given even the slimmest excuse... oh, wait, I'm not six.

Whatever.

Who is your favourite missionary?

Amy Carmichael, probably.   If you're ever looking for a biography on her life, I'd highly recommend A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliot.

What are your tips for beginner bloggers?

Write about what you love.  Think before you type.  Pay attention to your grammar and spelling.  Make sure your posts have a purpose.  Use a clear, legible font.  Don't spam other people's blogs with comments begging them to follow you (pet peeve there, haha).  Remember to be kind in expressing your opinions.  Above all, enjoy yourself and remember your blog is your special place, so write whatever you like and don't let anyone tell you differently.  :D

What is your definition of a writer? A wordsmith, one who pours out the his breathings of his heart, or one who just writes?

Definitely both.  A writer is one who writes.  A cook is one who cooks.  A singer is one who sings-- it's all that simple.  Certainly, a writer ought to pour out the breathings of her heart on paper and put everything she has into crafting sentences with the power to create images and feelings in people's heads, but no matter how long you've been in the business or how often you do it, if you write then you are a writer.  End of story.

Do find it hard to write male characters?

Do.  I.  Ever.
Guys are complicated.  Not my division.  I prefer writing about girls.

(Not to say I don't appreciate a well-written hero.  Um, duh.  It's just hard for me to write one.)

Do you have a Beginner's Guide to Les Misérables?

I don't yet.  But I'm going to write one, since you gave me such a great idea.  *scribbles note to self*

I think you said somewhere that Javert was your favourite villain. Could you explain why?
I'm starting to like him (even though I've never seen the movie or the play), but I'm not sure how to explain him to my friends.

Oy.  Vey.
I always did rather poorly on those "explain why" questions on tests, FYI.  But I shall try to make my case persuasively and succinctly here.

For the record, I don't think Javert is a villain.  Antagonist, yes, villain, no.  There's a quote floating around out there (sometimes attributed to Tom Hiddleston) that says something to the effect of, "every villain is a hero in his own eyes," and I don't think Javert really sees himself as a hero.  He sees himself as a dispenser of justice, and he has a strong-- though flawed-- sense of right and wrong.  I see Javert as more of a tragic figure than an evil one: everything he stood for revolved around good works and duty and honor and obligation, with no room for grace and love and tempering justice with mercy.  Which is why realizing that Valjean (a man he consistently saw as "the bad guy") had mercifully spared Javert's own life was so traumatizing to him.   "His supreme anguish was the loss of certainty... He perceived amid the shadows the terrible rising of an unknown moral sun; it horrified and dazzled him."  If that isn't one of the saddest lines in the book, then I dare you to show me what is.  (I said ONE OF.  "Do you permit it?" is worse.  I do not deny it.)

In short, I cry over Javert, and that's a large part of what makes me love him.


The Scarlet Pimpernel asked...
(eep, I got questions from SIR PERCY!  Be jealous, peasants!)

What is your opinion on romance novels/stories?

I love a good old-fashioned kissing book as much as the next person-who-is-old-enough-not-to-mind-so-much.  However, I'm not usually a fan of books that focus solely on romance.  My favorite classic novels (Jane Austen is a name that leaps to mind...) tend to encompass Social Commentary and the Spectrum of Human Nature and Emotion, not merely romance.  Romance is great, don't get me wrong, but if the sole purpose of the book is to show how Boy meets Girl and How They Get Together, then I'm not going to be half as interested as I might be in a story about how Girl has Many Sisters and meets Boy and then meets Other Boy and Other Girls and Sister falls in love with First Boy and Other Girls are Mean To Them, while Other Boy is quickly falling in love with Girl, though Girl thinks he's an arrogant jerk, and Mother of Girls is freaking out because she's afraid they're going to die paupers, and Youngest Sister betrays the whole family by running away with Jerk Boy, et cetera and so forth.  (That was P&P, in case you couldn't tell.)

Oh, and I tend to favor more old-fashioned novels about romance-- modern ones tend to have more Annoying Bits in them, with less-than-squeaky-clean fantasizing and so forth.  Blah, blah, blah, Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte did it better, deal with it.

Have you ever read a book that you enjoyed but you still wanted to rewrite it? How would you have rewritten it?

Oh, yeah.  Lots.  Les Mis, for starters.  Nobody would have died in my version.  NOBODY WOULD HAVE DIED.

...Except the Thenardiers, of course.  *scowls*

What is your opinion on Amy March? Do you like or dislike her?

I like her!  Muchly! I don't think she gets fair treatment in most of the movie adaptations of the novel, however, nor even in the sequels to Little Women.  But I do like her very much, despite all her shortcomings (I mean, hello, she's human).  Last fall my friend Hayden wrote an analysis of Amy that says all I'd want to say about her, but in a much more articulate fashion than I could manage, so just go read her post, okay?

Have you read L. M. Montgomery's short stories? Is there one that was your favorite?

I've read nearly all of L.M. Montgomery's short stories, actually.  My favorite of them all might just be Penelope Struts Her Theories, which can be found in the Road to Yesterday anthology.

And now a couple of questions that were left in the comments after the first post was published, which I'll just answer here for the sake of Unity and Organization.

Evie Scott asked...

Have you been to Australia? Or if not, do you have any questions about it? 

I have never been there, but a very close friend of mine has, and has told me a great deal about it. :D  I think it sounds like a fascinating place!  Here's something I've always wondered, though... do Australians put up snow-and-pinecone-themed Christmas decorations the way Americans do?  Obviously y'all don't have snow over there at Christmastime... okay, some years we don't have snow either but at least it's cold, and as Rush Melendy would say, it's the principle of the thing.

Sara Lewis asked...

If it's not too late to ask one more question, what does Benedict Cumberbatch have to do with jaguars and cellos?

Some extremely smart person on Tumblr once compared his splendid voice to the sound of a jaguar hiding in a cello, and it's become a bit of a Fan Thing.  It's swellissimus no matter how you describe it, though, isn't it?

*insert ubiquitous Benedict Cumberbatch picture*

Thank you all soooooo much for submitting all these lovely questions and bearing with my sometimes very long-winded answers!  I now have quite a few post ideas stored away, and I'm ever so grateful for your inspiring inspiration.  Do come back next week for a rather exciting announcement, if you will, and in the meantime I hope your curiosity on all these random points has been satisfied.  :D