Friday, September 28, 2001

Updated!

Believe it or not, I have finally been able to update my site. Eight new stories added to my fanfiction section. "Gladiator" and "X-Files" fics to follow shortly.
Love this song. It's "It's Time to Wave Hello," sung by Charlotte Church and it's available on her CD, "The Voice of an Angel." The quality of this particular version is a little rough and it *is* a Ford advertisement, but still - the song is lovely and worth listening to.

Thursday, September 27, 2001

Enterprise thoughts - what you expected something else?

Okay, so this isn't your grandmother's Trek. In 120 minutes, I saw more flesh yesterday than I have in the three previous incarnations of Trek. And yeah, that includes "Let He Who Is Without Sin..." and Voyager's "Season of the Tank Top." More on that later. In sum, Paramount spared no expense on special effects - there were some really nice FX sequences which kind of made up for the fact that the crew itself, with the exception of T'Pol and the chief engineering guy (someone help me out with his name - Tucker?), had very little personality in general. Yes, I do mean Archer too (question - who wears turquoise blue briefs *that* tight and *that* short anyway? Nothing left to the imagination, let me tell you).

Here's the premise: "Enterprise" is set on delivering a wounded Klingon back to Qo'Nos, but gets side-tracked by a nifty alien species called the Saublian - I think you can figure out how this one ends, btw. The aliens remind me of some creatures I once saw on "The X-Files" - they have the ability to change appearance or disappear entirely. They can also crawl around on ceilings and up walls. I hope we haven't seen the last of these guys because they were kind of cool. Anyway, so Archer is determined to return the Klingon *alive* (we all know what kind of cultural boo boo that is) to Qo'Nos despite the Vulcans' advice to do otherwise. BTW, the Vulcans in this episode all possess a chip on their shoulder. Not that they haven't always, but their superiority complex is at an all time high here. Like Archer and the some of his other crew members (why do none of their names stick in my head?), there were occasions when I wanted to knock T'Pol into the next star system, but then the show would have been a lot less exciting.

As for the crew - well, one thing I did like about them is that not everyone knew *everything* about what was going on. There was a case of space sickness, general fear of transporters, and while a curiousity about alien cultures existed, these guys aren't necessarily PC. It's definitely a case of "Um, do we really want to be here?" So in that sense, "Enterprise" is pretty refreshing. The scene where Merriweather is teaching Archer & Tucker how to fly a shuttle was one of my favorites - usually Starfleet personnel can look at alien technology and figure out how it works in about 30 seconds; so nice to see this.

Romantic prediction? Forget Archer and T'Pol. It's T'Pol and the engineering guy (what *is* his name?). If there is *any* doubt whatsoever, watch the shower scene again. Trust me. I predict many, many PWPs set in the shower.

We didn't really learn much about the crew, but as this is a B&B enterprise (sorry), that's to be expected. We got a little fleshing out of Archer, a lot (literally) of T'Pol and the engineering guy, and everyone else is pretty much as bland as peanut butter and jelly. Hopefully, this will change. In general though, I was pleasantly surprised though, first by the opening credits - which were a welcome departure from the usual Trek "starship flying through space" theme, instead it was a montage of explorers exploring. Also, the opening song was quite lovely. A friend called me around 10:30 pm last night to find out my quick thoughts (ep was still airing here, as we have a strange viewing schedule) and we both decided, without much discussion, that "Enterprise" was worth tuning into again next week.

Wednesday, September 26, 2001

Only in an MBA class would someone refer to a conversation as a "communication transaction."
Ann over at I Love P/T has made a wonderful music video set to Faith Hill's "This Kiss." I feel better already. Fairly quick download to as the video is less than 5 M and beautifully done - a must see for any P/T fan.

Tuesday, September 25, 2001

Thoughts at 7 am...

One question: Once we get bin Laden, then what? I mean, bin Laden has got to have friends and money squirreled away in places we don't know about. We get him, you know there's got to be someone to take his place and frankly, I don't think we solve a darn thing by bombing anyone or anything. KC suggested a radical plan last night, but frankly, taking over governments probably won't endear us to anyone either. We don't need to give people reasons to hate us more than they already do. Whatever it is, we're in it for the long haul. Terrorism is such a beast - and it's the type of thing that you cut off its head, it grows another one in its butt.

****

"Enterprise" has been getting some decent reviews. I'm actually looking forward to the premiere tomorrow night. Now if I could just figure out this shared WB/UPN deal...

****

New computer is here and I'm loving it. Did not know the internet could go faster than 14.4 and the fact that when I click on a program and it opens without sighing or groaning is definitely a treat! Plus, I don't feel the need to apologize if I have more than one program open - this computer can seem to handle having WordPad and Netscape open at the same time.

Saturday, September 22, 2001

Wednesday, September 19, 2001

What is it about the internet that makes people so dang rude? I don't mean to generalize - it's really just a few people out of many - but my goodness. Maybe it's the relative anonymity of the medium. You can call yourself whatever the heck you want and because there isn't a face to face encounter, it's easier to be cutting and hurtful. And given that there are lurkers everywhere reading everything, it's possible to hurt someone's feelings very deeply without even knowing it. Or maybe that's the intention. I don't know. Must feel pretty cool to slam people, I suppose.

I won't go into specifics, but there are certain people I just want to throttle or post a "Go away already, you waste of bandwidth you" message. It also occurs to me that continuously slamming people for whatever reason gets you nowhere, especially if it's a slam with no reason whatsoever behind it. Then the slam just sounds petty, jealous and ignorant - pretty ironic considering the flamer was probably thinking they were oh so smart. I also have little patience for trolls who can't spell or use punctuation. Dang it, no one is going to take you seriously if you can't even spell. I've kept my quiet so far, but I'm really quite stunned by how rude and ignorant some people can be. One of these days, you know I'm just going to have to say something, but until then, thank goodness for the Onslow Forum! I think I'm going to go cool my heels there now...

I saw a plane landing today. It's the first plane I've seen in a long time. I just stood and stared as if I'd never seen a plane before. Weird. I was thinking about whether I'd ever get on a plane again, whether I was afraid. I'm not afraid and I will get on a plane again. It's more scary driving through parking lots - not that one thing is the same as the other. Years ago, my father lost a friend when an Air India plane was blown up by terrorists over the Atlantic Ocean. Shortly after that, I remember flying to India, and having to wait for hours at JFK while our bags were completely opened and searched by security. Inconvenient, yes, but we knew when we got on that plane, it was completely safe. Every time I get on a plane, I always do consider the possibility of something happening, but then, so many things can happen in the course of every day life. And so, yes, I'll fly again. Like I've said before, giving into fear is giving into terrorists.

What I am scared of now is loud noises. I was walking through the parking lot today and I heard this loud bang. I nearly jumped out of my skin. It turned out to be a jackhammer, but I was terrified and immediately thought the worse. I also noticed this morning on TV, the station was broadcasting warnings about several construction projects in the area and the the possibility of sirens going off near the high school. At first, I was like, "What?" and then as I walked through the parking lot today, I figured it out.

Like the sight of airplanes in the sky, loud noises remind us all how our very sense of security has been destroyed. God bless us all.

Tuesday, September 18, 2001

Jolene Blalock speaks. I never ever thought there could be a training session for 'shaking' - scary the things you learn on the internet.

Monday, September 17, 2001

MBA=BMW.

Right now, I'd settle for a Toyota. Wait...

If I simplify, it's actually A=W.

I'm such a dork.
I'm moving on. The television is off and I'm doing my best to avoid newspapers. The horror does not lessen with each passing day and I continue to find myself stunned by the new stories which emerge. Because of this, I'm moving on. Not forgetting, mind you, and it doesn't mean I no longer care - it simply means that to keep sane, I can't let what happened on Sept. 11 consume every moment of my life. If I do that, then the terrorists have as good as won and I'm not going to let them have the satisfaction of getting to me.

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Site Rec: YMMV. I've discovered nirvana, a site that recs fics. Unlike the Best of Trek, this one recs sites from a variety of fandoms, which is awesome for a multi-fandom reader. You can find "X-Files," "West Wing," "Buffy" and "Voyager" recs. There may be others, but these are the ones I took notice of. So, if you need an escape, check out this site for some ideas.

Sunday, September 16, 2001

First thing we do, let's get rid of the 700 Club.

We've been throwing comments back and forth over at the Onslow Forum - some interesting perspectives, including some thoughts about the Middle East's POV and I do have to say, some of what has been said, by me, by others, may offend some people, so if you go to read, please note this ahead of time. Thanks.

Friday, September 14, 2001

It's not relevant, doesn't even make me feel good, but I found Wil Wheaton's blog. His blog about the the recent terrorist activity is particularly good, but you'll have to scroll past some gibberish about Vegas and other things to get to his thoughts.
Jerry Falwell, shut up. It's for your own good. Really. Falwell's latest soapbox.
Today is a National Day of Memorial..

Thursday, September 13, 2001

Fic Rec: Why We Endure by Rob Morris. The events of September 11, 2001 from Sisko's point of view. I think the story speaks for itself.
It's been two days and it still feels like one of those really bad disaster movies that airs on Sunday nights. In the movies though, disaster is averted at the last minute by the star of the movie - usually some child star like Danny Bonaduce or Melissa Gilbert - and then everyone is safe, happy and lives happily ever after. There's no happily ever after here, no riding off into the sunset. This is real life. It really happened, it really happened...

There are heroes in all of this - the men and women who have been tirelessly working at the WTC and the Pentagon and in PA, not to mention those whose lives were lost and the families who grieve for them. All of these people are soldiering an enormous load - physically and psychologically - my heart goes out to them.

Last night, Liz and I were chatting and it was a bizarre *quiet* chat. We said a few words here and there, but there was a lot of "I can't believe this, I can't believe this." Even with the television constantly playing the images, it's hard to comprehend. Neither of us feel like writing right now and our strange senses of humor have taken a sabbatical. It is entirely too quiet, too quiet and every time, I think of a new, horrifying angle and chills go down my back again.

I'm concerned about the potential for violence against Arab-Americans. In this 'quiet unyielding anger' (as spoken by W) we all have, it would be so easy to associate the actions of a very, very small group with an entire culture. Arab-Americans are hurting just as much as anyone else in this country right now and it would be so incredibly wrong to show bigotry/violence towards them - even now we don't know who exactly is responsible. Let's leave retaliation to the government and treat everyone in this country with the respect and courtesy they deserve and not jump to judgements in our grief.

Tuesday, September 11, 2001

I can't believe it, can't believe it, can't believe it... I've seen the footage over and over again of the planes slamming into the World Trade Center and I've seen smoke on that lovely NYC skyline... My heart goes out to the friends and families of the victims. This has been truly a devastating day and it's simply horrible that terrorists could use innocent citizens against their own country. Please, give blood if you can - the New York hospitals are in desperate need - and do what we Americans do best: support each other in times like this. God bless.

Friday, September 07, 2001

I found this site on "Little House on the Prairie" last night; much hours of fun. You think "Voyager" has continuity problems? I'm so glad I'm not the only one who noticed the random problem with Royal (Almanzo's brother) and Jenny. That's always bothered me - how Royal has two sons and then two years later, not only does he look completely different, he no longer has the two sons, but has a 10-year old daughter, Jenny (played by the young, irrepressible Shannen Doherty) instead.

People we don't need to hear anything more from, ever:


  • Anne Heche
  • Jennifer Lopez
  • Angelina Jolie (Liz counts Angelina Jolie's lips as another person... that's another point entirely)

I reserve the right to expand this list at another time...

Thursday, September 06, 2001

Quote from Andrew quoting Kissinger (or Nixon, he's not sure): "All you need to be a good writer is a lead butt." True? Not true? Discuss. I do have to say, you do have to be able to have the patience to sit for a very long time to write and not only that, have the patience to get through the dry spells (which can be infuriating in their own ways). Of course, if you're in a writer's block period, sitting isn't going to help - I personally like to hit the gym or do something active or maybe get a good book. Sometimes, I go looking for fic (check this blog and my links page for my recommendations).

BTW, commercials which need to go away: the green M&Ms commercial with the parents who are concerned about the pin-up of the green M&M in their son's birthday. It's got cheesy music and a mother on the verge of tears. "But he's my little boy." Glad to hear it - it would be really creepy if she was sitting in someone else's son's room demanding that a cheesy poster be taken down.

Speaking of cheesy, I caught a bit of "Little House on the Prairie" the other day and wow, talk about melodrama. Don't get me wrong - love the show still - but my, they are good at *running*. Anything remotely angsty happens, they *run*, literally, out the door, and because it's on a prairie, they usually head out into wide open spaces, where they mope until the cause of their anguish comes to find them and apologizes. I think the running is a metaphor for *something*, but I'm not quite sure what. And it just occurred to me - the Ingalls kept adopting all of these children, but poor, poor Carrie never, I mean never, got any lines except for the occasional "Yes, Ma." Anyway, I did go looking for "Little House on the Prairie" in a curious "where are they now?" type mood. Especially for poor Sidney/Lindsey Greenbush (Carrie).

Sunday, September 02, 2001

Fanfic rec: Found a lovely new author tonight in "The X-Files": Meredith. Her writing is incredibly poetic, wonderfully drawn portraits that remain true to the essense of Mulder, Scully, Skinner - and she treats Doggett with respect. Wonderful. "The Sum of the Truth" and "Something Less" are both highly recommended. These stories - with their delicate language and intense emotion - are nothing less than breathtaking.
Cool site of the day: I found this site Noodletools.com while searching for information on MLA style - apparently my style manual is out of date and so I had to go searching for updated info. Anyway, this was a very cool and easy way to put together a bibliography page. I love technology - thank goodness for the internet. ::happy snoopy dance::

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Liz, I looked for birds all day today. I thought you'd want to know.

Saturday, September 01, 2001

Okay, I couldn't help myself, broken finger or not, I was just *itching* to say something, so I did. Oh well.

I think I'll go look into that computer now.