Tag Archive: dune


The Dancing Never Ends!

I just drove my husband out of the living room.

Not on purpose, mind you.  We each sat down to do a bit of writing, and were simply reminded that we don’t work the same.  It’s not a bad thing; if anything, it’s probably a good thing most times.  I have an issue where I have to have complete silence when I write.  I can sometimes work with the tv on mute, but most times I’ll turn it off completely.  Mick, on the other hand, has to have noise when he writes.  A show or some music or something going on in the background.  Helps him get into the right frame of mind.  I guess I’m just more easily distracted.

Well I wrapped up the last of my birthday celebrations yesterday after going out to dinner with my dad and Spud.  I’ll say now that this has been a pretty geeky birthday, as far as gifts go.  Which is awesome, mind you.  I bought a ton of yarn with the gift certificate my brother gave me.  Mick got me an AMAZING owl mask from the one and only Miss Monster, AND as if that wasn’t enough, the first volume of Absolute Sandman!  If you haven’t seen these things, well then you must not be a Sandman fan.  And if you’re not a Sandman fan, well, I don’t know if we can be friends.  There’s a couple volumes out that encompass the whole of the original series, plus all sorts of sketches, outtakes (for lack of a better word), unfinished frames, lots of neat little extras.  It’s a beautiful leather-bound book too, no paperback here.  And, knowing how much those suckers cost, I am very appreciative of it! 

On top of that, my parents managed to shock me with their gift: An Anthology of Beowulf Criticism!  I’m sure to most of you that sounds like the most boring thing you could possibly recieve, but dammit I think it’s awesome.  You may have read earlier about my studying Old English, and of course you can’t go through Old English without reading some Beowulf.  Or you could do like me and take an entire semester-long graduate class doing nothing but translating Beowulf.  So for me, this book is effin sweet.  A lot of the pieces in here I’ve read before but haven’t owned copies of.  And it’s got all of the essentials: Blackburn, Tolkien, Kemp Malone, Herbert Wright, Margaret Goldsmith, plus more, eighteen in all.  I look forward to settling down to read them soon.  Because occasionally I feel the need to be all high-falutin and edumacated and stuff.     

On an unrelated note, this kid in a 1956 western is totally doing some sort of insane breakdancing at a hoedown.  I have no idea what’s going on in this movie.

It’s a lot trippier if you watch it with the sound off.  “This kid”, btw, is Russ Tamblyn.  Fuckin Dr. Jacoby!  Dancing his ass off!

Anywho, so that was the end of my very pleasant Birthday 2k10.  And for all that celebrating, I didn’t have a single piece of cake.  How wrong is that?  Very wrong, I say.  Funny how silly little things end up being more important to you than you realize, or want to admit.  Well, aside from having no cake, it was a very pleasant birthday. 

Now that the birthday festivities have ended, it’s back to insane needlework.  I keep meaning to find out when the actual show is, but remember that “easily distracted” thing I was talking about earlier?  Yeah.  More of that.  Market bags are coming, plus the odd tea cozy thrown in here and there because they’re quick and don’t require thinking.  I’ve found a couple new patterns to use with my new yarns that should prove quite awesome. (did you see that bright yellow yarn in the picture?  that’s going to be an amazing lace shawl.)

I’m also trekking along through Dune (still), and still really loving it.  I’ve passed into Part III now, so I’m getting close to the end.  It doesn’t feel like it’s about to end, it feels like there’s so much left to cover.  I’m guessing that means this last 1/3 will go at breakneck speed.  After that, we’ll see how I feel about getting into the next one in the series.  In fact, I’m gonna go do that now.  I’ll see you suckers later!

So I just got back from the gym…

Yes, it’s one of those blogs.  But just for a moment so I can tell you about GYM DOUCHEBAG NUMERO UNO!  I’m sure you know the guy: fake tan, fauxhawk, some kinda Jersey Shore ripoff.  So I’m over in the freeweights, minding my business, trying to not look like a pussy with my 10 lb weights, when I see him looking at me in the mirror.  Creepy, right?  So of course I have to walk past him to put my weights up, and when I do he says something to me.  I thought it was pretty obvious by the large white cords hanging from my ears that I don’t wanna talk to anyone, but that didn’t deter mister shiny-pecs.  So I stop, take the time to pause my iPod, and let him know that I couldn’t hear him.  Of course I’m trying to be polite, because maybe I sat in gum or my shoe is untied, giving him the benefit of the doubt that maybe he’s just being courteous.  And he says to me, “So, you come here often?”

Really?  People actually, really say that?  In real life?  I stopped “Bat Out of Hell” for that

For a moment I was relatively speechless; luckily my snark factor kicked in rather quickly and I gave him the “yeah, with my husband”, complete with eyeroll and quick departure from the area.  As you can see, I’m still a little stunned. 

Maybe it’s because I’m a writer and my mind is endlessly arranging and rearranging words, meticulously calculating everything that comes out of my mouth, but a certain part of me expects people to be at least a little creative.  I know that’s probably silly of me, and a lot of people just lack the capacity, the imagination.  And it might be unfair of me to judge someone based on their lack of linguistic skills, but first impressions are key a lot of times.  I wish there was some way to rig a sign, something that tells people “Your large muscles and orange tan do not impress me; your words better make up for it.”  Or something to that effect.  “Come here often?”  Gah.  Wasted words.

Now don’t be hasty, master Merriadock.  It takes a long time to say anything in Old Entish, and we don’t say anything unless it’s worth taking a long time to say.

This is how my brain works, by the way.  Seemingly random quotes and lyrics fly around all the time, occasionally popping into prominence for one reason or another.  You’ll get used to it. 

Also, just FYI, my favorite human-specific curse: ass-douche. 

I feel like a slacker for not having worked harder on Big Green the last couple of days, so I’m going to try and knock some of that out tonight.  I’m almost finished with a section that’s supposed to look like intertwining trees…and it does!  I know I shouldn’t be surprised, but I have a habit of second-guessing myself; it’s always nice, though, when things turn out the way they should.  The trees look like trees!  The schnozzberries taste like schnozzberries!  And it’s all happy times. 

I’m getting more into Game of Thrones too, slowly but surely.  I’m not doing much time on the bike and treadmill, so it’s coming in little spurts.  One trend I’m noticing: incest.  I guess it’s not so unusual for royal families, but it’s still just the tiniest bit surprising when I do come across it.  And I like that.  I like being surprised.  Dune is also progressing quite well, over halfway through now and it still seems like it’s just getting going.  I guess that’s the idea when you have a series of 700 books.  And maybe that was a detrement of me watching the movie first: I already know what’s coming and I keep thinking, “ok when are they gonna get to this part?”  Luckily all the stuff that didn’t get into the movie is really pretty awesome, so I’m definitely not getting bored in the least. 

Now I think I’m going to have myself a hot bath and a cup of tea, then some knitting work.  I hear Mick plugging away in the other room, so you should have something wonderful to read from him very soon too!  Take care, my preciouses.  Hasta manana.

Ok, before I get into this, I have to show you what I made last night:

it's a cthulu cosy!

 

Probably the most awesome tea cosy you’ll ever see.  And a really easy pattern too, I have a feeling I’ll be crafting quite a few cthulu-themed projects in the future.  Thanks to Arcana Vitae for the adorable chart! 

Right.  So.  I was going to talk about Dune today, because it’s been a part of my life for about two weeks now and I’ve yet to have a good sit-down about it.  Dune is one of those books that I’ve been meaning to read for, oh, like a decade or so, and just never got around to actually picking it up.  So a few weekends ago, Mick and I were looking for a movie to watch, and he graciously left the choice up to me.  After perusing our gigantic collection for a little while, I was thumbing through the David Lynch section and came across the Dune movie.  It seemed exactly what I was in the mood for, and Mick was more than happy to oblige.  And I must say, after the first 10 minutes or so I was already in love with it.  By the end, I adored it.  And in my brain I kept thinking “if you love this, imagine how good the book is!”  Or was that Mick telling me that, I don’t remember.  Anywho, I was spurred.  I waited till the next evening before actually picking the book up and diving in. 

I’m not very far in just yet, but I am having an incredible time with it.  Herbert is a magnificent crafter of characters, and I adore every one of them.  Of course there’s a little disconnect between book and movie that throws me off at times; the brilliant Kyle McLaughlin doesn’t really pass for a 15-year-old, and no matter how many times I read Gurney Halleck described as a fat lump of a man, I can’t help but think of Patrick Stewart.  But tiny deviations aside, I am constantly being blown away by Jessica.  She’s badass!  And I think that’s something that didn’t get as much emphasis in the film as it should have, I’m sure due to time and content constraints.  It happens.  But damn!  She’s just flippin brilliant, and wise beyond that.  And I love the way that all of her savvy, all of her influence and understanding, essentially comes from her ability to read and understand people.  Rather than seeing faceless bureaucracies and swarming populations, she can look at the individuals that make them up and understand the system by its creators and inhabitants.  Which I think is a brilliant way to look at the world.

And of course I have to love the poor tragic Duke.  I can’t help it, I have a terrible weakness for proud, vulnerable, flawed heroes.  I’ve always been fascinated by the character of Theoden mainly because he wasn’t perfect and he did fuck up some, but he was able to overcome in the end and he did the best he could.  He was real, he was human.  The Duke strikes me in much the same way.  He’s not perfect, he gets fatigued and upset, he’s proud, but his fallibility is all the more endearing.  Especially since I know he’s about to be murdered by a close friend.

Which brings up one more thing that I’ve been thinking about…why the hell will no one suspect Yueh??  How is he the one person that Jessica can’t truly see through?  And why would Duke Leo suspect his lover over this guy?  It’s like he’s a jedi or something!  Or maybe because he just sort of blends into the background…he’s reliable, dependent, doesn’t cause trouble or draw attention to himself.  Makes me wonder if I would suspect him if I didn’t already know he was the traitor…those are the questions that keep me up at night. Confound you, Frank Herbert! 

Anyway, I read right up until the scene of the betrayal last night, and then stopped because I wouldn’t have time to finish the whole thing before my nighttime shows came on.  I’m a creature of habit, what can I say. 

I’m also proud to report that I’ve gotten a ton of complements on the cthulu cosy!  Yay!

That’s all for now, I’m off for a delicious Kim Phung lunch with the wonderful Mick.  Toodles!

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