Last two weeks

I just realise I've been busying myself for two weeks, and haven't got round to updating. There were lots of things I was going to mention, that were put off until I had time to write something amusing about them, but that if I don't now, I never will.

I like to record everything briefly in case I need to look back and see when something was, so I'll try to write one funny sentence each.

Two weekends ago: Owen, Richard and a couple of others came round here for DVDs. We mainly watched Drop the Dead Donkey. This is very good, and got a round of applause at one point :) The episodes all had mentions of current events, and now start with a clipping "This episode was first aired in a week wehn..." but it's *less* out of date now that it was when I first saw it repeated on TV, because we're invading Iraq again, etc.

ETA: DDTDD, Sally is portrayed as a bimbo in her first episode. But isn't she the only character no-one could ever fancy? Still occasionally likable, but odd, isn't it?

On tuesday: Sonicdrift's birthday dinner (thanks!). It was nice, and we went to chez gerard, which I hadn't been to, but had very nice food, I'm glad I did.

Good friday: Went to ewx's impromptu party (thanks!). I've only been there a couple of times, but for some obscure reason it always seems to follow the same pattern: I have a headache all day, can't find paracetemol, go to ewx's, drink lots of water and some wine, dukebox some songs, and have insanely random conversations with nice people.

Easter weekend: Lots of buffy (reactions to be spodded later) and film watching, short walks, and big spring clean. There's some tidying I'd like to do, but the flat is comfier for it, so I'm glad, and the letting agents were ok.

Easter Sunday: Films at Mobbsy's (thanks!). THX-NNNN is strange. I was curious to see it, but it left very little impression on me. Does anyone wish to defend it? PERFECT BLUE was intense and curious anime psychological thriller. It did keep yyou guessing about what was going on. CHAM is an amusing name for a band though; wikipedia actually 'sic'ed it. BLACK BOOKS was another comedy series in a small bookshop, which I'd never heard of, but had some great moments.

Easter Monday: More buffy, more cuddles, more cleaning.

Also: Veizla organised, work going well, had 10 hours sleep last night :)

Carlton

And while I'm spodding, I went to the carlton. I hadn't for a couple of weeks, but it turned out I was just in the right mood and had a great evening.

I had little to drink -- one dionysus, and some lemonade and lime (why is that bad? it's the refreshingest drink of them all! :)) and lots of water -- but felt a bit spaced and slûrry[1] anyway. Maybe I should have had more of a dinner.

Naath is back from essex, welcome home! :) I chatted to Naath and Tom and Mr Janet (name?) about buying houses and whom Japan is in debt to; and thanked the last for having s Horlogette because that prompted Owen to suggest I get one.

I spoke to filecoreinuse for ages, which was lovely. I remember when first knew him as "Boyfriend of Jennie" but now I run into him in the carlton more often than I see her. Also said hi to caesium (I think).

I dragged out of Mobbsy and sonic a description of how Play.com was taking over the world. Scary, in so many ways.

I met Verity, who was nice. So *that*'s who lives in the Gallery.

[1] I mean "slurry" as in "slurred" not as in the semiliquid barnyard refuse. My browser choked on the IPA letter I think I should have used, so here's AHD because that's where dictionary.com took me :( How *should* I differentiate those words? Is there a difference in vowel or should I have used a stress mark?

The creepy serial killer meme

Gakked from everyone. I didn't want to but:

(1) I wanted one post with screened comments. I never yet have. But if they're funny I might unscreen them, say if you want (or don't want) that.

(2) I want to know what everyone is saying. You want people for manual work such as cleaning or filing? How much does a cleaning service cost now? Is it that more worth it than hiring me out as a software consultant, sex slave, or organ doner, and paying someone else to clean? Or do you want only people you know in your house? Or is it cheating to hire someone to clean when you're not/no longer a cambridge student?

If you had me alone, locked up in your house for twenty-four hours and I had to do whatever you wanted me to, what would you have me do? All comments will be permanently screened because it's a secret. Then repost this in your LJ. You might be surprised with the responses you get.

Amazon vs Play

The last things I've ordered arrived.

* I am Deppless. Amazon took a couple of weeks to consider it, and then decided after "n week delivery time" to give up and refund and not send. However, I don't think they held up anything else waiting for it.
* The Sting finally arrived n0 years after it was produced. Mmmm.
* Preston Front is still on hold, I forgot, but that's the bbc's fault for not having released it :)
* Play was good, delivering promptly, including delivery in price, though hence no economies of scale -- due to Jersey tax dodge laws limiting order value? -- and helpfully (confirming I was me, since I ordered a lot for the first time by typing in my card number of the website.)
* However, all their invoicing say "Coming soon -- [films]" which is very confusing as they mean "coming out" not "being delivered", which made me go "Aah! Didn't order that," every time.

Komarr

I was reading Komarr (Miles Vorkosigan) *again*. I know they're often dismissed as space opera, but I find something more to like every time I read them.

* Budding authors are often given the advice to make characters have flaws. That's a reasonable first approximation to good advice, in that characters without flaws will tend to be boring, but leads to making a list of virtues and flaws. What's most adorable and realistic is traits that are *both*.

Miles is a reasonably good example, LMB even says his first book was partially defined by Miles' triumverate of defining sins.

What do you like about him? Impulsiveness. What do you hate? Impulsiveness.

* Or alternatively, stubborn optimism, that he *will* make things go right whatever, and pushes through everything he allowes himself to really want to reality without much respact for the laws of the possible. Yet, how is this different to Tien Vorsoisson? Tien also rolls the dice aiming for the win, but mucks it up every time. Is he just incompetent? That means we like people who are gifted with skill, which is understandable, but doesn't seem fair. Does he fixate on one thing, when he should be solving something else? That could be it. As sonic repeatedly enjoins me, you can do worse than take Mile's attitude to life, even if to even LMJ he's wish fulfillment :)

* I need to read Dreamwaever's biographies again. What happened to LMJ that she always writes women who are browbeaten into staying in boring relationships? Tien is interesting; he doesn't *intend* to be evil, his mistakes and weaknesses just always fall on Ekaterin. But he's realer for it, though I know of people who are that deliberately evil :(

* Ekaterin says she could always be goaded by accusing her of nagging, or being disloyal, or naive. My goads are ignorance and stupidity, I think. It should be a meme: "What is your most besetting sin? Not that which you are most prone to, but that which you most fear and are most careful to flee from?"

ETA: Yeesh, that was a lot of posts. A lull at work, a release of tension, and I'm pouring out :) Yesterdays two were enough to eat half my morning replying. Maybe no-one will be online at the weekend :)