chaletian | Entries tagged with books

Ugh, life. What a trial, eh? Every Thursday morning we have what we laughingly call our multidisciplinary team meeting which consists of the screening team plus an ophthalmologist or two. This is at 8am (which I already consider to be a TRAVESTY). Today I arrived at work at 7.05, headachey and starving hungry (for no reason, given that I could have stayed at home for another 55 minutes, come to, had a cup of tea and a lovingly prepared egg/toast combo, and generally segued gently into the morning’s travails) because I am an idiot. Still, I will go home at three (via Waitrose for a year’s worth of chocolate granola, assuming it’s still on special offer), so that will be nice. Tea tonight (and I am sure everyone feels spiritually starved from the long absence of updates re the Fangirl Towers menu) will be tomato and lentil soup* with a hearty crust of rustic bread.

Anyway, let us return, clawing fitfully through the mists of time, to yesterday evening. Katie and I went to see Rush (top notch – really enjoyed it and would recommend to all, F1 fans or not), then returned home to a tasty pasta parcel. Good times. Also, I watched the season opener of NCIS. I cannot lie, chums, I am concerned about the non-appearance of Certain People, espesh since I have heard Rumours. Prepare yourselves for wails of outrage and copious fix-it fics should the worst happen.

Moving on to today’s topic: what I’ve been reading. Actually, I’ve been hijacked a bit by my peripatetic interest in Richard III, so recent reading has consisted of Josephine Tey’s Daughter of Time, as well as Walpole’s awesome Historic Doubts and Markham’s original article in the English Historical Review** (this can be found online); the same issue includes Gairdner’s rebuttal of the Henry VII accusation and the corresponding flurry of letters couched, naturally, in the language of scholars. I have also, finally, got round to reading Kendall’s Richard III, which is extremely readable and I would definitely recommend it (also Walpole: his history is not beyond question, but it’s beautifully written).

Simultaneously, I am reading Peter Ackroyd’s The History of England vol. 1, which is also enjoyable, interspersing what is essentially a narrative divided by monarchies (arguably the most coherent way to structure a chronicle of medieval England) with snippets of social and economic history. I would definitely recommend it. And tonight’s reading will be the Holinshed’s Chronicles account of Edward II’s reign, so that I am fully prepared for the theatre tomorrow. (My edition is the Folio Society’s, and it’s beautiful.)

In conclusion, ooh, we went to see White House Down in the kino the other week and it was fucking glorious! The best kind of ridic action film, up there with Die Hard and Con Air (the twin towers, if you will, of the ridic-but-actually-genuinely-good-action genre).

* I say soup. By the time I’m done with it, it’s usually struggling bravely into stew territory.

** Yes, yes, this is because I can’t be arsed to read the whole book into which he expanded his article; maybe one day…

Bonjour, darlings! Long time, no LJ. I felt the urge to leap upon you all and tell you about all the good things in my life at the moment, because I was just in the kitchen making raspberry jelly and admiring the jars of passata and raspberry jam that Katie's parents brought us and the little box (sadly now empty) of Ladurée macaroons that Kathryn so superly gave me for my birthday, and thinking about how smashing my life is.

1. National Trusting. K and I have had NT membership this year, and I have been to loads of places. Started with going to Polesden Lacey (near Dorking) with K and my mother, when we had an absolutely lovely day. The house was beautiful, ditto gardens, weather was perfect, we had a gorgeous picnic (including fizz), and I bought a tea towel with BEEEEES! On hols in Dorset, we went to Corfe Castle, which (leaving aside the carrot issue) was ace; Kingston Lacy, which is the house the Bankes family built when the Roundheads blew up Corfe Castle; and Mompesson House, which is a lovely, lovely Queen Anne house in the Salisbury cathedral close (I will be living there when not at the Mump; there's even a hut for Nellie). Also been to our local place, Ham House, twice - a brilliant C17th house on the bank of the Thames, just outside Richmond. Then, the other weekend, K and I finally carried out our longstanding plan to go to Hampstead to see 2 Willow Road (a modernist house which is hilariously like going to see a grandparental house rather than NT) and Fenton House (which is where we will live when the revolution comes - lots of alcoves; lovely little gardens; a freakishly huge number of china knick-knacks; lots of aged keyboard instruments). (Also Kenwood House, which is English Heritage but free - a bequest from the Guinness family - very worth a visit.) And finally (so far), a young crowd of us went to Osterley Park last weekend. I do love a house you can walk to from the tube. NT tat bought on these visits include: recycled wool rug (shades of blue and pink, very snuggly, and bargainous at only £12!), a multitude of tea towels (naturally), many souvenir magnets, lots of postcards, and a marrow (later stuffed).

2. I HAVE BOOTS! I bought them yesterday and am super excited because I've wanted some knee-high boots FOREVER but my legs are too short and fat to find any to fit, except NOW I HAVE!!! Sadly, the same boot is not available in brown, which would be the summum bonum, but nevermind, I will take the win.

3. Spent a lovely birthday weekend in Derbys. with my mother and brother. On Saturday we went to York. Popped round the Macarthur Glen place (I bought a le creuset spatula and some tea bags), then went into town and had a smashing lunch at Betty's. Chris ordered us a celebratory bottle of champagne, and then we were given little cakes because they knew it was our birthdays. On Sunday, we did not, alas, have time to visit a castle (any castle), but instead went to an unexpectedly amazing pub/restaurant in Rotherham (I had a Pim Pom to drink - best drink name EVER) and visited Grandma.

4. I whinge about our kitchen being too small, but that is only because of my PRIVILEGE. Actually, it can cram loads of people in when we have a party and everyone gravitates. We have a radio and two boxes of kitchen tapes (things like Noel Coward plays and 30s popular music and Dorothy L Sayers adaptations and Tom Lehrer and Elaine Paige). I have a shelf for all my recipe books, and there's another shelf for porridge. We have space for two sets of saucepans (non-stick and not), and about four sets of crocks, and fifty tea cups and sixty mugs, and a dozen or so melamine mixing bowls, and my everyday scales and K's antique scales, and two pots of utensils, and two racks of spices. I want a four-slice toaster, but we cope with a two-slice. We have a drawer for tea towels. And this month K's dad is going to build us a cupboard under the microwave and extra shelves and it's going to be ACE.

5. I have re-joined FOCS (had a story in the last mag; will have another one in the next), and started to re-collect the GGBP Chalets. Mostly have, actually, except for the super rare ones which I am hoping will be reprinted. Read Clare Mallory's League of the Smallest, which is adorable and everyone should read it.

6. I have a kindle. It's amazing. Super, super amazing. I will be getting rid of loads of books, so watch this space.

7. To contradict point 6, I have bought more books recently. Here is a picture:

8. Been to the theatre a bit. Saw Anne Boleyn twice again at the Globe; also Doctor Faustus, The God of Soho, All's Well That Ends Well, and The Globe Mysteries. Disappointed we couldn't get tickets for Much Ado. Saw the first half of Emperor and Galilean at the National and honestly couldn't stand to stay for the second half. Also saw Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead at the Haymarket, and A Delicate Balance at the Almeida. Going to see A Woman Killed With Kindness at the National in a couple of weeks, also hopefully the new Stephen Poliakoff play at the Almeida. And Matilda when it comes to the West End (MATILDA!!!!).

Some recs, because I like sharing awesomeness. Maybe at some point I will tell you about my hols and what I've been up to, but that day is not today.

Toboganing Anebody [Chalet School, Gen] by RroseSelavy
I gather there was some challenge about writing Mary-Lou's accident in the style of another writer. This is perfect.
"Funker!" Emmy repli, and set off wizz down the mountain just as Mary-Lou come dashing up the slope like the skool dog after Grabber hav given it a kick.

another time (round the wheel) [Chalet School/Doctor Who, Gen] by Nightwing
What is better in this world than some timey-wimey fic? Nothing, that's what. Non-linear, confusing at first, clever, and awesome. (It's only barely a DW crossover; that part doesn't really matter.)
Someone screamed – it sounded like Con – and a babble of voices, harsh and high-pitched reached her ears. Joey quickened her pace, her heart beating rapidly from both the exertion and the frightening thoughts that were filling her head. She reached Con’s bedroom door just in time to see – “But that’s impossible,” she gasped, “there can’t be – ”

The First Year [Chalet School, Len/Reg] by Nightwing
This is adorable university!Len and Reg, with sweetness and misunderstandings (with bonus Con being ace). I have to admit a softness for Len and Reg, and this makes Reg a very sympathetic character. (If you like this sort of thing, you could also try *cough*pimp*cough* my Cherry Ripe, which is thematically not dissimilar, though inferior.)
And what did Hamilton know, Reg thought furiously as he entered his own room. He had never been in love. At least, he amended, not the same way that Reg was. Hamilton was sighing after a new girl every week, but Len was the only girl there had ever been for him. He glanced over at the stack of notepaper he'd bought, just especially for writing to Len. Maybe he should tell her so? She had only just left, it was true, but it would be a while before the letter arrived for her anyway...

Mad Medusa [Chalet School, Gen] by chattie
This is a war story, about two anonymous Chalet girls in the Resistance. A bit harrowing, actually. Beautifully done.
Only God knew what had really happened and perhaps it was better that Béatrice remained a ‘lost’ Old Girl, known to God and commemorated by this window marking her call to Higher Service.

William Brown is a fan of Theremins [Just William, Gen] by AdaptionDecay
William Brown, the eternal eleven year old, is on Facebook. As are the Outlaws. And Violet Elizabeth.
Violet Elizabeth Bott added The Outlaw's Secret Hideout to the Places I've Been application.

The Conscience of a Queen [LPW, Gen] by Ione
Harriet has to solve a mystery. Lovely Yuletide fic, with bonus Mr Ingleby and Miss Meteyard.
Before Harriet could politely demur Miss Climpson whisked herself out of her own office, her manner brisk and efficient. Harriet's protest would have been mere politeness; though she did regret interrupting Miss Climpson's obviously busy day, she also knew that Miss Climpson was never happier than when she was being of use--particularly when she could do so in a covert manner.

teach us not to be too loud [Wild Child, Poppy/Kate] by summerstorm
Written for the lovely Awesome Ladies Ficathon. I love this film and these characters.
"It'll work out for us," Poppy says, and Kate has to frown at her before Poppy realizes using the word 'us' is kind of weird when you just kissed someone out of the blue for the first time.

The Starkadder Switchback [Cold Comfort Farm, Gen]
Cold Comfort Farm meets noir detective LA. Flora has to rescue Seth from an accusation of murder. This is perfect.
The detective slammed his glass down on the desk, so the liquid licked up the sides like a drunk licks out his first hit of the day. "Lady, I don't care if you got the studios on your side. I don't care if you've got the cops. Hell, I don't care if you got the goddamn Pope - I've been out of the confessional too many years to bother about him. Your cousin killed a small-town kid with big dreams and bigger problems, and I'm going to see him fry for it."

Flora frowned. "You didn't kill anyone, did you?" she asked Seth. It was best to be certain in such matters.

Starkadder's eyes were smouldering. He looked at his cousin with a face like a bull in a bush fire. "Happen I might," he growled.

"'Happen' nothing, Seth," said Flora sharply. "This is a very serious matter, and it's no time for melodrama. Did you kill her?"

Seth glowered at her, then decided there was more mileage in glowering at the rug instead. "No," he said, sulkily.

And I have recced these before, but they're appropriate to these fictional works, and I like them, so hey.

Green Ice [LPW/Jeeves & Wooster, Gen] by

adina_atl
One of the most intriguing crossovers I've ever read, this tells the story of Lord Peter Wimsey's first ever case (the Attenbury emeralds), which happens to require a visit to Market Snodsbury. Brilliantly written, and the most fascinating characterisation ever of Bertie Wooster. I recommend this unreservedly.
The second bird was not overly tall, with hair the colour of corn silk, arrayed in the outer crust of a gentleman in a style Jeeves could not but approve. It was the monocle screwed into his left eye that fired the old brain cells, however. "Flim! Flim Wimsey! I say, it's been a few years, what?"

The Subway [Narnia, Gen] by DJ Caligula
A story about Susan, post series. It's odd and a little freaky and very, very satisfying.
Susan gaped - and although her skin crawled in horror - her mind did indeed flicker back on the games that she and her siblings used to play, a long time ago. Games with kings, and queens, and centaurs and mermaids and fauns and cruel Eastern princes. God-like lions and villainous giants; unspeakably ancient cities, harsh deserts, icy northern peaks. Susan used to make maps, because she was clever at things like that, and with colored pencils and paper, she was able to create whole worlds, where forests were marked carefully with green, oceans had beasties springing out the depths, and southern cities had minarets and gates straight out of National Geographic. It had been jolly good fun, for a while, and it had helped pass the time, after they had been relocated to the countryside while London was being bombed by the Nazis.

I have signed up to the Remix - yay! I like a bit of a remix. Dear person mixing me: have at it! I've got a load of fic all over the place - the full list up to six months ago or so is here; more recent stuff is under my fic tag here. (I also have accounts at AO3 and fanfiction.net under the username chaletian.) And I forgot to say on my sign-up, please don't remix Destroyer of Worlds, as that was a remix itself. Thank you!

In other news, chaps, I am feeling very pleased with life at the moment. These bullet points will explain why:

♥ The sun is finally shining! I was actually warm as I sat outside today, eating my lunch without a coat on. Yay sun! This winter has lasted forever.

♥ I just made chocolate and raspberry muffins, and proper orange and mint jelly FROM SCRATCH. I have recently discovered the concept of leaves of gelatine, and have made jelly and panna cotta (tasty tasty); I will not stop here.

♥ Dancing on Ice is bringing me joy. We want Laura to win, and are prepared to invest actual monies to see that dream become reality.

♥ Forgot to say, Katie and I went to see an am dram production of Hay Fever at the Putney Arts Theatre. It was actual hilarious. S - I thought he was dead! J - Oh, he's not dead, he's upstairs.

♥ New bedlinen on Sunday and a bit of a tidy. Bedroom is a haven of deliciousness.

♥ Fuck yeah, Roehampton Asda, you're awesome! I finally went to visit it on a bus, and bought two pairs of linen trousers, two cardigans, three tops, and about four vest tops. Also leaf gelatine, and a DVD of The Little White Horse, masquerading under the title The Secret of Moonacre. Asda is made of win. (OK, I know, Walmart, evil corporation etc etc etc, but on the other hand, new grey cardigan and gelatine!)

♥ I spent today consulting with another screening service and building them a little database. It's beautiful, if I say it myself. Colour coded and everything. Going back tomorrow to complete it. I do always like the opportunity to work away from the office. Far, far away... Actually, that makes it sound like I don't like my job/office, which isn't true at all, but I do like to swan around. Amanda and I are going to build a website for the service, and are going to take a day to wander around the various sites taking photos etc. It'll be ace!

♥ Post today: the new Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and my 1p copy of Noel Streatfeild's Murder While You Work. Yay! Also, Helen's lent me a couple of CS fill-ins and Streatfeild's The Whicharts.

What ho, darlings! I feel I should do a proper post, and keep you all enthralled with charming little tales of my recent exploits, but I fear I should find it tedious, so bullet points ahoy!

1. Despite having received some excellent prompts (thank you), and despite having had ideas for all of them, I am no closer to writing fic. Sadfaces. Ah well, it may come to me in time.

2. Dentist again today. Next time I will be getting filled. :-(

3. I have, in the last week, read my GGBP-sale fun-in-the-fourth books, and highly enjoyed them. I read Val Forrest in the Fifth first, which was my least favourite, but only because the other two were so good. I liked the Withers-iness of her lodgings! Then I read Evelyn Finds Herself, which I absolutely adored - definitely the best school story I've ever read. Hearty recommendation to everyone! And then I finished off with The New School and Hilary which was also ace. I now need to find more books by Josephine Elder and Winifred Darch.

4. In that vein, I ended up on the Greyladies website. I want to read all their books! Does anyone have any I can borrow, please?

5. The pater has now flown off to Qatar and will be living there until further notice (for work - he hasn't gone AWOL). Mater bearing up manfully - well, womanfully, really.

6. My brother broke off his engagement, had a relationship with someone else, handed in his notice at work, set up his own business (properly registered at Company House, I am given to understand!), and is trying to work things out with his former fiancée. It is something of a roller coaster.

7. I have two holidays planned this year, and while neither is at all exotic (1. Dorset; 2. Katie's parents in France), I am looking forward to them both tremendously! I also have a "staycation" at the end of April (oh, I can see you all harking back to the glory that was Staycation 2009).

8. I WANT A LITTLE HOUSE IN ROEHAMPTON!

9. I dyed my hair bright red a little while ago. It's like Hitler marching on Moscow...

10. I have some bright yellow ranunculas (?sp) in a vase. They're gorgeous. Also, I invested in some very superior fake flowers in IKEA for my room. I approve.

11. Katie will be home very soon, which means I have to get up and make dinner. I AM COSY. But dutiful (mostly).

12. There is a children's book fair in Bath in April. I shall, I think be going. This is fun. I like Bath. I like children's books. I like April. I cannot lose. *thumbs up*

13. Earlier this year I read Hilary McKay's sequel to A Little Princess, Wishing for Tomorrow. This was ace and people should read it. Ditto Celia Rees' The Fool's Girl, which is about Viola and Orsino's daughter coming with Feste to find Shakespeare to help with a plot to save Illyria, and in the process telling him all about her parents and how they came to meet etc. It was really fab and brilliantly written. Also recommended.

14. I have also read adult books, though none are springing to mind right now.

15. I recently realised that I still haven't read Eva Ibbotson's last book before she died (so sad - she's one of my favourite authors), so that will be a little treat at some point.

16. Theatre: saw The Heretic at the Royal Court on Monday, which was really very good - very funny, and also thinky (you know how I like that), largely about the necessity of Proper Scientific Thinking and not taking anything on faith, or just because Everyone Says. Also saw Becky Shaw (twice) at the Almeida, which I also enjoyed very much. Student production of Arcadia at Westminster School - very good, particularly Bernard and Chater. Hannah was a bit inconsistent (in terms of characterisation rather than acting), and there wasn't really enough distinction between 13-year-old and 16-year-old Thomasina, but overall, vg. And did I mention seeing Hamlet at the National before Christmas? Rather disappointing, anyway. What with that and the godawful All's Well That Ends Well, the National and Shakespeare is not proving a good combination for me. Ooh, speaking of, I see Roger Allam won the Olivier for his Falstaff - jolly well deserved, sir!

I'm so excited about Pillars of the Earth being on TV! I read it in my mid teens (about the same time I read things like Scarlett and The Far Pavilions - the only time in my life I've been prepared to spend more than a day or two on a work of fiction), and loved it so, so much. And now it's on TV!

Goodness gracious me, I don’t even know where to begin! Much has happened in the life of the Squeen since last you were updated. So much, in fact, that I really can’t remember half of it; fear not, however, for none of it was terribly exciting. I did not, it grieves me to admit, triumph in any act of political significance that would see (or hear, I suppose) my name echo down history. I did not, despite ongoing if desultory attempts, pen a first novel of such virtuosic brilliance that I would shine as bright a constellation in the starry sky of English literature as Shakespeare and Austen and the Brontë gang. Nor have I saved the life of a beautiful child, scaled a mountain, or invented a time machine. Mostly I have sat around and read trashy novels. And made a bit of compote.

I have also, in no particular order, had a tiny jumble sale and forced various chums to buy my crap, seen Inception at the kino (vg), Anne Boleyn at the Globe (vvg, though I thought the very ending was slightly dodge), and Scenes of a Sexual Nature on the tellybox (v amusing, though fundamentally depressing by the end, I thought), spent a couple of days in Cambridge at my previous job, training up my successor for filthy lucre and having dinner with Emma, chosen a laptop to buy when filthy lucre is eventually forthcoming, booked tickets for Henry VIII and Henry IV Part One (also at the Globe), booked tickets to go and visit my parents on the weekend of my birthday, spent some time contemplating my forthcoming birthday, at which event I will be celebrating thirty of our earth years, read Bluestockings by Jane Robinson, about women’s fight for a university education (very highly recommended), and been on holiday in Norfolk with

balooky,

katherinea and

pim2005, which was fabulous and supplied a new tea towel for the collection. Good times.

In current affairs, I am still fighting the good fight to get a pay rise, which hopefully will happen at some point before I actually die. My brother has become a homeowner (hilarious). I have not yet come up with any ideas to write for the Chalet School Big Bang. And I just had to go and water the balcony, which slowly succumbing to drought. La.

What ho, chaps! Summer, I can now report, is definitely icumen in: the first Pimms of 2010 has been spotted at Fangirl Towers. Naturally, being England, this will be the brief eye in the drizzly, grey-skied really-not-even-one-interesting-storm that is the British summer, but tant pis. For now, I will enjoy the (mild) sunshine. Actually, for the past couple of days, I have been enjoying it OUTSIDE. Yes, visitors to Fangirl Towers may not have noticed that we have balcony (unless you're Kathye and have used as a prime smoking location), as we never remember it ourselves. However, the balcony door has been open recently, and - STAND BACK, PLEASE - there have been some idle attempts at GARDENING. Yes, you did hear me aright. Actual gardening, with compost and, I'm not too proud to admit, various purchases from Poundland. (Fucking Poundland, I love you.)

So, over the weekend I planted rosemary, thyme, sage and mint (the mint in a separate pot, natch), and today I planted some fresia bulbs (I love fresias) and a gooseberry bush (in a pot that is possibly a touch too small, but we will see). In the coming months, I will be doing strawberry plants into our hanging basket (slightly limp and aged, but I am confident it is up to the ask), although I don't have particularly high hopes of them actually providing any fruit, and a tomato plant into the big tub thing my parents bought us for daffodils.

All these things are very likely to die.

I don't want anyone to be under any illusions. No tears when the news comes that the gooseberries died about six months ago and we didn't notice. No wails of despair when I excitedly announce that the cracked earth in the plastic pot once appeared to home some sort of plant, its desiccated leaves now giving no clue as to its identity. Please face the truth now, and accept it into your life: this attempt at bringing joy and happiness to our balcony is doomed to epic failure.

Speaking of death, funeral went as well as these things do. My father did the eulogy, and jolly well he did it too. Not easy, given his slightly rocky relationship with Grandpa, but I think he did them both justice and I was very proud of him. Nice to see the old family again, albeit fleetingly. Thankfully, the next family shindig should be Chris' wedding next year, which should be somewhat cheerier.

The prog man has decided on early retirement. Calloo callay etc.

I cleaned the windows in my room and the spare room (they look out onto the balcony). Ruined three dishcloths in the process, though will attempt to return them to some semblance of white with some Vanish. The windows, I suspect HAVE NEVER BEEN WASHED BEFORE. They were filthy, and are still a bit streaky due to me not getting around to rinsing them, but good grief, one can actually see through them. A miracle.

A thought: I do not think a hung parliament will lead to the apocalypse. Just my two penn'orth.

I am re-reading Eva Ibbotson's Magic Flutes. I love her books.

So, I am back in sunny Barlborough for the second time in a week (ah, the M1, my dear old chum), this time for Grandpa's funeral (he died at the beginning of last week). It feels a bit weird to have gone from having all my grandparents less than two years ago, to having just one clinging still to the vine. Anyway, another outing of the funeral dress for me.

In other news, I was simultaneously amused and dismayed by the Daily Mail's headline today: "Clegg in Nazi slur on Britain". Fucking hell, DM, really? Here is the article in question: Don't mention the war. Grow up, which seems perfectly reasonable to me, and relates to #6 of my previous post.

Our programme manager is due back today, having been off two weeks for stress. Having started in February, she's approaching the point where she's been off more than she's been in. I have demanded of Amanda that she text me the minute there is news of whether she has returned or not.

I am currently reading another new Stephanie Laurens. Seriously, why am I doing this to myself? I know that she's gone a bit shit, but like some mindless sheep, I keep trundling towards the slaughter gate of the sub-par trashy romance. In happier reading, I'd like to recommend Beswitched by Kate Saunders, about a girl who gets sent off to boarding school by her parents and ends up in a girls' school in 1935. It's actually vg, and I loved it.

Ouf! I am ker-nackered. I have foolishly invited around a coterie of chums for lunch and tea tomorrow, and have spent all day shopping and domesticking in anticipation. (Also I went to Roehampton Library, whose online catalogue had LIED to me, but which contained an assortment of other books that looked interesting, and bought a top; more anon.) Anyway, living room and hall are now mostly tidied, I have made our starter (vee delish - always a possibility there will be none left by the time folk arrive), our pudding, and prepared veg etc, so all is going well. I have even written a timeline for tomorrow morning, which will probably be abandoned by approximately 8.03, but nevermind.

Anyway, in other news: on Tuesday night Katie and I went to see Steve Carlson and various other people perform at Underbelly in Hoxton, which was jolly nice. Nice venue with some epic sofa/throne action, and just a nice chilled-out evening. (And chilled out is right because the temperature dropped liek woah and it was fucking freezing. And raining.) On Wednesday night, we went with Chloe to see a hideous, hideous dance film at Bad Film Club chez Barbican, which may have ruined me now for life. On Thursday I had the day off (very nice; very unproductive) and buzzed into town to meet Helen and Katherine for dinner off Trafalgar Square, moving onto drinks in a random pub, where Helen made me do her work for her. Harsh, Helen, harsh. However I was bought a lemonade to compensate, so fair enough, really. Katherine and I ended up getting the 9 to Hammersmith, which was hijously slow through traffic, and then I just missed the 33 so had to wait 20 minutes, but not too bad. Friday evening, I am happy to report, I stayed in and did not communicate with anyone. Actually, I can't even remember what I did yesterday. Acquired groceries, mostly, I think. And watched the end of the last series of Doctor Who. (I love John Simm as the Master. And I love Timothy Dalton being a baddie. And I love Wilfred. And I love Ten and his epic lonely dark angst. And I love Jessica Hynes. AND I LOVE MARTHA JONES TILL THE END OF TIME.)

So, that brings us back to today, encompassing, as previously noted, a visit to Roehampton Library, a visit to Kingston to buy possibly the world's prettiest top (even though I am supposed to spend no money this month) and a roasting tin to accommodate the massive leg of lamb currently taking up our entire fridge, a fleeting visit to Sainsburys in Kingston for rosemary (which they did not have) and pancetta (which they did not have), a fleeting visit to Tesco in Richmond for rosemary (which they did not have) and pancetta (which they did not have), and finally a fleeting visit to Waitrose (also in Richmond) for rosemary (which they did not have) and pancetta (which they did not have). Poo. Then I came home and instead of collapsing with exhaustion, as every instinct begged me to do, I instead embarked upon my ambitious plan of works to get Fangirl Towers shipshape and Bristol fashion. Oh, and I laid the table, but failed to iron the tablecloth. Whatevs. And then I watched Doctor Who, which I really enjoyed (and loved young!Amelia Pond).

But I am very tired now, and so to bed.

Given that I have only so far posted once this month, I thought I might make the effort and double it. Wowzers. So, words, eh?

♥ Oh em gee, Being Human. Awesome show. Love it so much.

♥ Dancing On Ice continues to dominate our Sundays. Danniella in the skate-off, though - wtf, people? I am now resolved to stop my habit of pity-voting, it is clearly IMMORAL. Also, ITV should hire me and Katie as commentators because we rock. Also, STFU people when Jason gives people perfectly valid criticism.

♥ I had soup for lunch and soup for dinner today. Huh. Also, two slices of M&S giant hot cross bun in a loaf.

♥ Day off tomorrow - GP then off to Staines to buy ridiculous cheap scarves in the market bit (actually, assuming there is a market bit on weekdays) and t-shirts and cardigans from Matalan. I will also, natch, be visiting the old BFF.

♥ Apparently Wil Wheaton is in The Big Bang Theory again. I am very excited by this. WHEEEAAAAAAAATON!!!!!

♥ Work is still awesome in itself, though we are now having a few staffing difficulties which makes things uncomfortable. Also, mental copy-and-paste girl at the last job seems to have gone off on one again. LOL apparently it's all very haircutgate over in St John's Wood at the moment.

♥ Speaking of, it was Cath's last day last week, so I went out with them all to see Sister Act (slightly hilarious "And I don't even think it's real fake tigerskin!" with a really good set - loved it) and have dinner etc. Nice to catch up, and see everyone (especially Emma and Ben, natch). Still need to organise my leaving do. Will not be inviting Rachael.

♥ Have been reading lots of trashy romances recently and not much else. Boo.

♥ I bought a necklace on Etsy and am quite excited. It looks beautiful.

♥ In glorious news, ITV3 have started showing Heartbeat from the beginning. Oh, Nick Rowan, I'd forgotten how much I loved you!! What with that, and the X-Files and Voyager, my early evenings bear an eerie resemblance to my teenage years.

♥ ^^^ CLAUDE JEREMIAH GREENGRASS LOL

♥ Are we having a general election soon or what? I'm fed up with all the campaign post we're getting at the moment.

♥ In other televisual news, we have rediscovered the joy of Roswell. Well, I say the joy of Roswell. It's not really that, let's be honest. It's the joy of Michael and Maria. I have been reading fic. (Also White Collar fic, when I can find stuff with Neal being a woobie and Peter having to be the FRIEND WHOM NEAL TRUSTS MOST IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD etc.)

♥ Katie introduced me to Katzenjammer. They totally rock. I have listened to their album approximately fifty thousand times. I feel like everyone else should do the same.

♥ Amanda and I keep bursting into song in the ~~office~~ camper van. It's hilarious, but tragically we are the only ones who think so. Nobody understands our genius. WE KNEW ALL THE WORDS TO AMERICAN PIE, PEOPLE!

♥ I don't know how to bowl.

♥ I ordered vol 13 of Fables and am really quite excited about reading it. Also, I got the first issue of the spin-off thing about Cinderella, which I reckon must be finished by now, so surely that'll be out in a trade soon, right? I love her character.

♥ I keep meaning to do a post of women in TV that I love at the moment. One day, people. One day.

♥ I have a diary full of meetings now. It's slightly comical.

♥ Apparently, according to my grandmother, people are related to monkeys. Who knew?

♥ ITV had an ad for a new show with Piers Morgan. Is it wrong that I want to punch his annoying face in?

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I am sure this will come to a massive shock to everyone, but I don't really believe in censoring reading for kids by the time they hit high school age (particularly American high school age, which I imagine this questions means, and which I think I am right in saying is about 14?). Partly this is the voice of experience - I never really had my reading censored (I started borrowing books from the adult section when I was 11/12), and I don't think I suffered in any way for that. I read what I wanted to, what I was interested in, and that worked for me. Occasionally, I read stuff from my grandparents' top shelf, which was 'racier' than stuff I got at home (but we're talking Jeffrey Archer/Harold Robbins racy here). I read teen and adult books that talked about sex and stuff, and that didn't faze me particularly. I don't know, I think adults can get extremely precious about "protecting the children", which by 14 or so is a bit absurd, because children can actually decide for themselves what they want to read.

Anyway, in other news, I'm selling my soul (or, OK, GGBP books) on eBay if anyone's interested. Buy stuff from me! This time, it's an aid of going out next week for my work leaving thing. Because next week is my last week! Thank fuck! I've mostly enjoyed this job, it has to be said. I like (most) of the people I've worked with, the job itself has been often tedious but occasionally interesting and challenging, and I've had to learn stuff, which is always a bonus. I think I'm a better administrator than I was when I started. So, y'know, progress is good. On the other hand, they screwed me over a bit and the uniform made me want to kill myself, and the challenge is mostly gone, so I'm glad I'm leaving. Looking forward to the next job, too! I've got three weeks of that (well, two and a bit, plus the fun of NHS induction), and then two weeks of holiday, which I am really looking forward to - I do need the break.

I've been stressing quite a lot recently: largely because of work, and also because of my ongoing inability to budget my money effectively. So, I apologise to my chums who've had me ringing them up expressly to rant about work, and then adding some feeble request about their own lives! I am going to try and chill out and not obsess over being slighted by HCA and enjoy life and be sensible. A fine plan. Let's see if I can stick to it.

In fanfictional news (fascinating for everyone), I have embarked upon my long planned Merlin fic on the old rex quondam rexque futurus theme. I do, of course, use the word "planned" loosely: I had a vague idea, wrote the first part, and now find myself trying to actually plan the rest of the story. I sort of know what's going to happen. IT WILL BE FINE. In other fanfictional news, I wrote Dean and Jo and internet porn, pimped it, and then (this is unheard of), DEPIMPED IT. Yes. You heard aright. I depimped a fic. It wasn't right, and I will probably rewrite it. I've also read a load of fic recently, and will rec the good stuff shortly. I also need to get cracking on the SGA bigbang. Also, I am, once again, regretting that sign ups for Yuletide passed me by. Every year I think I'd like to do Yuletide, because there are loads of small fandoms I love and would be happy to write in, but I never do anything about it. I suck.

Small break there: I went to fetch my dinner. I'm eating parsnips. Yum. I have to take total parsnip responsibility in Fangirl Towers, as Katie doesn't like them, but that's fine by me, as I am heavily pro-parsnip. You're never alone with a parsnip, I always say. I am also wearing leggings. I look fucking absurd, but who cares? I am alone. (I interrupt this fashion update to inform you that I put a little honey on my parsnips when I cooked them, and they smell delicious. I AM A PARSNIP GENIUS.)

So, what other news do I have? I went up to Sheffield last weekend to visit Grandma, which was very nice. She's mad as ever, but it was lovely to see her (and Rosie, and my parents), even if it was quite a fleeting visit, most of which seemed to be taken up with preparing meals. But we had a jolly time nonetheless, and it's not so long to Christmas, really. Journey both ways was hideous though. There must have been some sort of M1 hoohah on the Saturday morning, because the driver came off just south of Derby and toured the back streets of Derbyshire AS IF THE COACH WERE CROSSING MOLASSES IN JANUARY. Jizzy Chrizzy, I thought my bottom would fall off by the time we finally crept towards Meadowhead. And, natch, M1 into London on Sunday evening was foul. I swear to god I'm getting the train at Christmas...

Anyway, there's my news for the time being. I'm off to read a Mills & Boon set in the Norman Conquest. Good times...

How do, chaps? I know you will all be delighted to hear that life is much jollier chez Squeen these days. Let's hear a collective woo! Anyway, work is much improved, which is amazingly ace. However, sadly, my dodgy wrist, which has been tendonitis-ridden for over a year now, seems to be totally fucked these days. Anti-inflammatories and icing not making much difference. Am sure you will all be fascinated to hear that I will be visiting my GP next week to discuss the issue. In the meantime, am wearing Katie's ludicrously child-sized ace bandage and hoping hand doesn't drop off.

In other news, I've been cooking various tasty things, having a tiny feud with Sainsbury's, finally getting my new salary agreed (OMG do not even speak to me of HR departments), writing Merlin fic (well, as you may have noticed; it were beauteous), laminating instructional sheets and sticking them to my wall at work (massively good fun), and re-reading Fables, which has been awesome in the extreme - I love that comic!! I'm halfway through vol 10 at the moment (the one with Flycatcher coming into his own), and have 11 and 12 to go, but sadly will have to wait till February for 13 (the Great Fables Crossover). I haven't read any of that in single issues, so I'm quite excited.

Also, I'm listening to Christmas carols at the moment. Yay. It's not even unseasonal, because the lights are on down Oxford Street! And I'm going to fireworks tomorrow, and Grandma's next weekend. Woo for life, eh?

Woo! I just checked the Radio Times site because on-my.tv was telling me Merlin was on tomorrow, which I thought was a tricksy lie, AND IT WASN'T!!! I am vee excited, because I am full of the Merlin love atm, mostly because of my burning passion for Prince Arthur.

I also love Glee. It's a slightly odd show in some ways, and doesn't seem to know if it's fish or fowl or good red herring, but it's just so sweet, and I'm sort of emotionally invested in all the characters, even the ones I don't like so much, and SUE SYLVESTER IS A BEAUTIFUL ELEGANT GODDESS OF AWESOME.

So, what other news do I have? Not very much. For dinner tonight I made roasted squash and red onion risotto, which was nice. Last night was aubergine and mozz penne, made with passata from Katie's parents, which is especially nice. In the very near future I am also spying roasted veg soup, a nice bit of leek and bacon quiche, a spot of sausage and mash, and that old stand by, spin ris. Mmm. Good times.

Anyway, other than that, I've been tidying up my room, and it's actually going quite well this time. Woo. Last night I counted about 12 dresses in my possession, which is very many indeed considering a couple of years ago I didn't have any. And today I was stressed and frustrated at work, and now I have 13 dresses and no money. :( Still, I'm wearing a nice, new dress, so I totes don't care.

The rest of tonight has been spent: watching The Big Bang Theory (oh, Sheldon... ♥), Glee and last week's NCIS, making and eating dinner, obsessively checking my email, and sitting in the dark talking to Katie about Stella Gibbons' Nightingale Wood (a truly awesome book which everyone should read) and resolving that we would not become Witherish.

Greetings from this side of the weekend! Had a smashing time, and I will now proceed to tell you all about it. Well, not all about it. Let's aim for the highlights, what, and leave it at that. So, Katie and I bopped to the South Bank and met Helen and Chloe at midday, and went round the National with, it mun be said, quite a lot of old people, who asked questions like "How much of the National's funding comes from the Government?" But, anyway, it was fab and, best of all, only one (1) of God's honest pounds.

Then we went and had lunch in Trafalgar Square, which was vee yum (Prezzo is actually very nice), and then we walked down the Mall to Mayfair, where we made our way to Heywood Hill, an extremely adorable bookshop (located, so the blue plaque outside would have us believe, in one of Nancy Mitford's former residences) with a quite beautiful old chap running it. Anyway, thus was the Wodehouse exhibition, which was dandy. (Total, total love for the bookshop - the sort of place where you ring them up on the 'phone and ask for such and such a title, and they send it round in a plain brown paper parcel - gorgeous! I want to get all my books that way.) So that was all super, and then Katie and I went home on the bus (a routemaster - always jolly) and got the last bits of Helen's birthday present. (And I watched Merlin and decided to become an Arthur/Gwen shipper.)

Accordingly, on Sunday, I arose late and we went to Helen's for cake, wine and general bitchery (always a staple), which was perfectly charming.

In conclusion: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HELEN!!

And also: I got offered that job I wanted (at ten to eight this morning - ye gods!), so woo!

Woo! Book sale time! I have put onto eBay the whole of the GGBP La Rochelle series, most of DFB's Nancy & St Bride's series (all except the first two), and a few random Chalets. All good as new. Go and buy my books, people!! *g*

See the wonder of beautiful books!

I have (yet another) dreadful tale to relate. You’d better all sit down. Yesterday, I WENT OUT WITHOUT A BOOK. I know. Horrible, isn’t it? I can’t remember the time I made such an awful mistake. Rest assured, it wasn’t deliberate, merely an oversight, but still: tragic.

Anyway, moving on. The weekend: Katie was off at Connotations, so I had the run of the flat which, natch, I managed to trash in approximately 3.7 seconds (a personal best), which meant I had to get up at 6 o’clock yesterday morning to make some vague attempts at tidying. Other things I did over the weekend included watching TV and making egg fried rice. Also, I read Genesis, which was interesting, if a bit mental. It’s odd though, that most of the bible stories I was taught at school, all happen right at the beginning. Anyway, I’m looking forward to Exodus and the all-singing, all-dancing Joseph.

Last night I tottered off to the theatre with Xanthe and Kerry (with whom I went to school) to see All’s Well That Ends Well at the National. And when I say ‘tottered’, what I actually mean is ‘walked all the way from St John’s Wood to the South Bank’ – go me. Along my route (which encompassed, for any who might be interested, Baker Street, Oxford Street, South Molton Street, Brook Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, Charing Cross Road, St Martin’s in the Fields and Charing Cross Station), I encountered the former residences of no lesser personages than William Pitt the Younger, Ernest Bevin, George Handel, Jimi Hendrix and Prince Talleyrand. I also saw St George’s on Hanover Square which is where any couple of note in any Regency romance ever gets married (unless they elope to Gretna Green, natch).

Eh bien, the play. For the play, as we all know, is the thing. Oh, William. William, William, William. What am I to say? I mean, I should have known. I’ve seen A Comedy of Errors. I know the hideous depths to which your ‘comedies’ can sink. AWTEW is a ridiculous play. Absolutely absurd. Helena remains determined to have Bertram LIKE A MENTALIST, and Bertram is a cad and a bounder! You know how I feel about the noble Claudio? BERTRAM IS WORSE. They are welcome to each other. Bertram and Helena, I mean. Not Bertram and Claudio. That would be another play altogether and, for all we know, a better one. Anyway, the set was absolutely beautiful, very dark fairy-tale-ish, and worth the trip for that alone, frankly. The acting was so-so – it was mostly very STAND BACK, WE’RE PERFORMING SHAKESPEARE NOW with a lot of random monologues etc which got slightly tedious. Having seen various productions of Shakespeare (the Donmar Warehouse’s Twelfth Night, for one, or the Open Air Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet) where the action and language flow as easily as any modern play, to see this performed in such a pedestrian manner was disappointing. Still, as shit a play as it is, they probably couldn’t have done it much better. It was nice to be back in the Olivier, though – I can’t remember the last time I saw something there.

La. So, that was last night. Tonight, I was supposed to be going to Kathye’s, but I need to prep for my interview tomorrow (if anyone happens to know anything about diabetic retinopathy screening (or, in fact, about any DoH mandated screening programmes), please tell me everything!!), and possibly do some photoshopping for Alexandros’s leaving present, so will have to stay at home and be productive. Also, must remember to wash some tights.

So, I have now finished all of LJ Smith's Night World books AND OMG I LOVE THEM SO MUCH I'M ALL WEAK AND TINGLY AND THEY SEE INTO MY SOUL JUST LIKE WE'RE SOULMATES!!!! Can't wait for the final book which is supposed to be out next year but I am SUSPICIOUS because it's so long since the others.

ungratefulwench, my source of knowledge in these things: is this something that's been promised for the last decade or something and never yet materialised because if so I will not get my hopes up.

Ah, the weekend, that oasis of awesomeness in the desert of officedom... Yesterday, Katie and I GOT UP EARLY (yes, ON A SATURDAY) in order to go to Kingston (there is nothing I don't love about Kingston) for a bit of shopping. You will all, I know, be ecstatic to hear that, after three and a half years, we have finally bought a new little scrubbing brush on a stick for the kitchen. *high five* 17p well-spent, I think we'll find.

After the shopping and the smoothie drinking, we went to Ealing to have lunch with Katherine, in honour of her birthday (which is today - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KATHERINE!!!). We sadly were only three, since Helen was still on her plaguey sick bed, however we called her and through the power of the speaker phone, we all got a little chat and she was allowed to share vicariously in the experience of Katherine opening her birthday presents. (HA HA HA WINE COOLER OMG WE'RE SO HILARIOUS!!) After lunch (delish), we plotted Frolickiness for a while (Frolick, people, come and Frolick...), and then Katie and I headed home via the Hammersmith Sainsbury's, have had the spiffing idea of brunch and tea for today. (Mmm, brunch. Mmm, tea.)

Today, I arose at half past ten, and read two more LJ Smith books (I don't even have words, at this point), and then watched The Last Legion (Colin Firth as a Roman soldier...) and Push (Chris Evans as anything and I am there), both of which I enjoyed to a surprising extent. I put half my books on eBay. I made brunch. Katie sorted tea. I made a bastard version of my tomato soup that basically turned into tomato and lentil bol, but whatevs, it's probably nutritious, and that's three days' lunch right there.

Also, I want to check everyone's up to speed with regard to The Great Hair Catastrophe of 2009. I've washed it a few times, and it doesn't seem that much lighter to me, though Katie assures me it is. Head and Shoulders will, I'm sure, do its sacred work - on the second scrubbing, I can feel the chemical tingle in my scalp which is simultaneously comforting (yes! work your magic! strip my stupid, ill-advised hair dye!) and concerning (can Head and Shoulders give you cancer?). Anyway, Katie took a photo. Normally I would not trumpet my shame in this manner... oh, OK, fine, yes I would.

( This way to view my shame... )

So, yes, no words there, really. However, tragically, I must tell you that my piteous existence does not stop there. Many of you will know of my troubled relationship with milk. I cannot deny we have our ups and downs. (For those of you who are new to the world of Me & Milk, the rules are simple. Milk must come from an approved source, namely the major supermarkets of Sainsbury's, Waitrose or Tesco. It cannot have been left unrefrigerated for more than 15 minutes. It cannot be past its sell-by date*. It cannot taste in any way unlike standard homogenised milk. If milk meets these strict criteria, it is my faithful friend, and I will drink it by the gallon. If not, I will scrawl curse upon malediction upon its treacherous plastic body, fling its milk blood down the drain, and throw the remains to the wolves**.) We had new milk recently. Properly delivered, properly containered milk from Sainsbury's. I supervised its arrival myself. It has not broken any rules. And yet, yet, fair reader, I just drank a glassful AND IT TASTED OFF.

I AM SO TRAUMATISED.

*sighs* Nobody understands my pain. Except Helen. We are tiny tragic soulmates.

* Yes, these are a giant con and normally I will eat/drink anything that seems OK regardless of label, but see above re total and irrational milk neurosis.
** Or leave it for Katie and/or the making of cheese sauce/pancakes etc.

Yes, it's that time again, when the Squeen pimps her belongings on eBay...

So, there are quite a few GGBP Chalet School books, with a couple of Antonia Forest and Clare Mallory thrown in for good measure. They're all in good condition; some of them have never been read.

ungratefulwench: give me your address, and I'll send you Tomorrow is a Stranger (I read it again last night, and it seemed a bit slow to start but then the old magic was there, and it does give a good idea of what the Guernsey occupation was like, I think), and, if you like, Plain Janes in Love.

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All My Fic Ever

June 2016

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Page Summary

What is this life if, full of care, we have to get up at arse o'clock in the morning...
QUEEN HELEN, LET US KISS WITH TONGUES!!!
Fanfiction is my crack.
Lists of happiness!
Wombats!
(no subject)
"I, Theodor Hugo Schultz, internationally renowned Concert Tubist..."
Despatches from SW14
"You're going to be reading a bit today about your secret plan to fight inflation."
"Don't turn your back, don't look away, and don't blink."
"Are they good Czechoslovakians? Are they bad Czechoslovakians? We don't know."
"Now fetch me Wil Wheaton!"
Stuff and nonsense...
"Without those endorsements, I won't be able to buy my hovercraft."
"I’d always thought her half-baked, but now I think they didn’t even put her in the oven."
*doing the pimping dance*
"Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie, which we ascribe to heaven..."
Oh, ridiculous vampire stories...
"I must scream of my pain in the loo!"
Drowning in a sea of books...

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Diary of a Suburban Squeen

Entries tagged with books

What is this life if, full of care, we have to get up at arse o'clock in the morning...

QUEEN HELEN, LET US KISS WITH TONGUES!!!

Fanfiction is my crack.

Lists of happiness!

Wombats!

(no subject)

"I, Theodor Hugo Schultz, internationally renowned Concert Tubist..."

Despatches from SW14

"You're going to be reading a bit today about your secret plan to fight inflation."

"Don't turn your back, don't look away, and don't blink."

"Are they good Czechoslovakians? Are they bad Czechoslovakians? We don't know."

"Now fetch me Wil Wheaton!"

Stuff and nonsense...

"Without those endorsements, I won't be able to buy my hovercraft."

"I’d always thought her half-baked, but now I think they didn’t even put her in the oven."

doing the pimping dance

"Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie, which we ascribe to heaven..."

Oh, ridiculous vampire stories...

"I must scream of my pain in the loo!"

Drowning in a sea of books...