_jems_

I haven't posted in over a month and the sad thing is that I still don't feel like I have anything to post about. But I'm going to give it a try nonetheless, because this is getting ridiculous.

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My Year in Entertainment
I'm trying for the 100 / 100 / 100 trifecta this year. That is: 100 movies watched, a 100 television seasons completed, 100 books read. I'm totally counting rereads/rewatches or I'd never make it in a million years. So far I'm doing pretty good on the books and movies front (13 books read, 9 movies watched), but the TV seasons category is probably not going to start paying serious dividends until all the May season finales.

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Capping
Last year I tried to get back into capping, and I must say, it's paying off this year. Over my holiday/Christmas I capped the first discs of three of my DVD sets:

• Community, season 1


• Fringe, season 2


• The Good Wife, season 1

And I also started my Farscape rewatch (now stalled) by capping the first six episodes of season 1.

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I Shop, Therefore I Am
I've been spending TONS of money this month. Most of it came from Christmas/birthday money, so it's not too bad (my favorite purchase was a Global chef's knife. Cost me my parents a fortune, but soooo worth it. Damn, but a good knife will just make your day when you're cooking), except that last night at three am I went on a spending spree at various online clothes stores. ( My favorite purchase. )

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I Watch TV, Therefore I Am
At least, that's how it used to be, but while I'm liking a lot of stuff, I'm obsessive about nothing right now. The closest I get is Fringe, but it's been so long since we've had a new episode that it's not at the forefront of my mind at the moment.

Recently, I have watched:

• ( Spirited )


• ( Downton Abbey )

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So that's the state of me. I'll try not to crawl into a hole for another month. If I could only find the inspiration to picspam...

I've hardly read a thing since early June. Haven't finished a single book, actually, which is kind of depressing. My current subway read is Rosemary and Rue by seanan_mcguire, which is perfect right now because I find it so engrossing that I can just pick it up anywhere and remember exactly what's happened and what's going on. I really enjoy the world-building, the characters are intriguing and I'm even feeling kinda 'shippy about it. (Maybe it's just because I know she watched VM, but the first scene with Toby and Tybalt reminded me so much of this one from the pilot.)

I'm not even half-way, so no spoilers please!

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But even though I'm enjoying the book and the subway is the only place I'm reading right now, I'm still thinking of getting a smart phone so that I can watch My Stories (not only on the subway, but probably there too. What can I say, I'M OBSESSED!). Anyway, I wanted to ask for recs, does anyone have any? The ones I'm looking at most are:

• HTC Legend. The leading contender right now. Pluses: uses Android, fairly big screen for its size (and I can't really buy a bigger phone because my hands are tiny), REALLY PRETTY ALUMINUM CASING. Minuses: Wrong aspect ratio (would prefer 16:9), still kind of too big (but comfortable to hold, which mitigates it).


• iPhone. Do I even need a link? The one that started it all, but I've never been a fan of iProducts. The only reason I'm even considering it is because I figure they've had a few generations to work out the kinks. Pluses: Lots and lots of apps probably? Minuses: My feelings about iProducts in general. Not to mention I'd probably have to install some sort of software and that ways lies madness, usually. Still the wrong aspect ratio.

Poll #5411 New Phone!
Open to: All, results viewable to: All

Which phone should I get?

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Speaking of my current obsession, here's what I've watched lately:

( Nodame Cantabile )

( Oh! My Lady )

( Goong S )

I'm currently halfway through The Deeper Meaning of Liff, which is like my favorite new thing. For those not in the know, it's "a dictionary of things there aren't any words for yet", by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd. All words are really geographical places. ( My favorites so far... )

And let me tell you, by the time I stopped working at almost eight last night, I was feeling hynish in the extreme. But today was the first day of my five day weekend, so today is a happy day!

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I've been watching a lot of TV since my last update. A LOT. I'm almost back to my January levels, after dropping to alarmingly low levels in March.

( The Sarah Connor Chronicles, up through 2x12 )

( Life )

( Better Off Ted )

( My Boys )

I've run out of NCIS seasons on DVD, so unless this Farscape itch gets its claws in me completely, I think the next show in the pipeline is going to be Deadwood. Finally!

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I've been really good about adding 25 bucks to my Kiva account each month, and so far this year, I've made seven new loans (the repaid loans have enabled me to loan $175, even though I've only put $100 into my account)! And I think that once this year is up, I'll probably be able to make at least a loan a month in perpetuity without adding another cent.

And since I love the idea of this site so much, here's that link again:



And if you do decide to make a loan, do join the fandom team. The number of members has doubled since my last mention, and the amount loaned has quadrupled, but I still think fandom can do much more.

And if you're into country rivalry, Team Sweden just passed Team USA, which is simply pitiful, you guys. Come on, where's your patriotism?! ;-) (If you're wondering where my patriotism is, I don't care so much about the US being ahead of us, since the US population is about 30 times the size of ours. I just want us to beat those @%!#^/$ Norwegians!)

If anyone has any advice about eReaders, I'd love to hear it.

I wasted the entire day playing around with Mobipocket Reader and Creator, because no matter what, that'll probably be the platform I'll be using. And the best part is, of course, ( making book covers. )

Oh, also:



Because seriously, how can she be losing in the first round?! Even if it is to the Doctor. I mean, HELLO, it's Aeryn! Vote! But not if you're going to vote for the Doctor.

I've been reading a lot of fic recently, kind of jumping from one fandom to the next. Here, have a few recs:

The Big Bang Theory

• The Earth Moved 1,117.7 Miles In Our Kitchen, by rashaka, art by irrel. Like Wonder Woman, Superman, She-Ra and all those characters her geeky friends cherished, Penny knew in one single, glorious moment what she had to do.

  This was the fic that converted me to Penny/Sheldon. Be sure to read the comment!fic, as well, because it was there that it happened, with the knocking (I'm sure you'll realize what I mean when you get to it). That was when I had my breath-studdering, heart-skipping moment.

How I Met Your Mother

• metal heart, by the_spin. she’s never heard a love story like this one.
  

  This, along with 'A' Game is now the fic against all HIMYM is measured. Not a lot holds up to that standard, trust me.

Veronica Mars

• Fish Out of Water, by dark_roast. Logan opts to leave Neptune, and spend summer vacation with his grandparents.

  A crossover with a fandom I have absolutely zero knowledge of, yet I loved it. The atmosphere was so rich, and the setting was so non-sensical that it couldn't help but make sense.

(And now I'm completely curious if the pingback feature will work. dtissagirl (sorry, dtissagirl) already proved that the rename feature does.)

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Speaking of reading, I'm thinking of finally getting myself an eReader. Because I'm not in the States, Kindle and Sony Reader are not options for me, and I'm having a really hard time finding something I REALLY want, so I'm thinking of settling for something cheaper. (I have this gut feeling that the eReader market is about to explode, and I don't want to buy something insanely expensive, only to be unable to afford the next generation readers.)

The three options I have right now are:

1. Cybook, by Bookeen. This is probably the leader right now, almost entirely because I like the look of it better than the other two contenders.


2. BeBook. Almost exactly the same features as the above, except it apparently has a patented screen, which I'm guessing makes the reading experience more paper-like.


3. iLiad Book Edition. This one is almost twice the price of the other two, and it has two major differences (for me, anyway): It has a 16 grayscale screen as opposed to the others' 4 grayscale screens, and you can write on the screen (meaning it can be used for notes, etc). But I don't know if it's worth the price, especially not if there is an explosion in the next few years, like I expect.

Does anyone have any tips? Advice? Recommendations? I want the reader mainly for two things: for buying and reading books, and for compiling, storing and reading fanfic.

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In the world of TV, I've watched a lot, but have very little to say.

( Legend of the Seeker )

( Top Chef )

I've also finished Brothers & Sisters season 2 (and am acquiring season 3 as I type), am in the middle of NCIS season 3 (and I have the season 4 DVDs all ready to go after that)

Holy crap, I just saw that Castle is premiering on Monday! I'm not sure how to feel about this. On the one hand Naaaaaathan Fiiiiiiillion! On the other hand, the trailer I saw a while back looked hokey and not at all up my alley.

After a few months of not complete and utter horror, I thought that 2008 might make a comeback and not turn out quite as atrocious as I thought it would be. Well, I guess it was just saving up for this past week, because I can now officially say that 2008 is just a huge ball of SUCK.

I am so ready for this year to be over.

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( American politics. )

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( I finished The Time-Traveler's Wife. )

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( Project Runway )

This post is private on my LJ, but that's mostly because of clutter issues. I figure not many people will visit my IJ, so I may as well keep it unlocked here.
( Movies )

( Shows )

( Books )