artyartie

Okay, today has been a mixed bag of a day, but watching Yo-Yo Ma being honored at the Kennedy Center just utterly warmed my heart - and made me like James Taylor a tiny bit. Was anyone else watching? Oh to be in that box with Meryl Streep and Yo-Yo Ma and the Obamas...

So, I have a seminar paper to finish, but I'd really like to have something creative to do on breaks from that.  Do any of you know of any good summer writing challenges/prompts/comms/etc. going on now or soonish?  Nothing quite big bang-ish, but a little meatier than drabbles.  It's been ages since I've written something that wasn't a book review or response paper or research, and the right sight of my brain doesn't want the left side to have all the fun.  Thanks!

Waiting for the posole we made for New Year's to settle in my stomach and for another reveal for a single-fandom holiday story exchange to reply to those comments, and so the requisite Yuletide reveal post, if somewhat late. In the meantime, happy 2009, and may it be infinitely better than 2008 for everyone, everywhere. A quiet changing of the year here - my mom and I had gone to a funeral for her cousin's husband, and so a rather somber end of year with some perilous driving on the way home, marked with a few Man from U.N.C.L.E. episodes and a small glass of wine, and a cacophony of gunshots and fireworks outside. A calming thought, at least, that they were fired in celebration and not in malice.

And so, my Yuletide offering for this year, Here as on a Darkling Plain, set six years after the end of Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. It's a rather introspective piece, from Guinevere's POV, and although it didn't garner many comments (although several of those comments were quite touching), I'm rather happy with it. My recipient, cheapmetaphor, had asked for a tale rich with detail, which I think I managed, and something well-written, which I truly aimed for. Although this story did the same, statistic-wide, as my other Yuletide offerings, I think this story had more than an inkling of my voice, which I'd like to encourage to come out in future works more than it usually does. And a huge, huge, huge thank you to otahyoni, who was my beta at the eleventh hour, and provided some much-needed trimming and guidance.

Barring final comments and what's sure to be a scandalous defense, the thesis of doom, at 160 odd pages total, is DONE.

*flutters*

More to come when my brain comes back to me.

A very late postscript to an absolutely incredible, indescribable day - my sister and I went out after voting and I found myself unconsciously crossing my fingers the entire time, wanting to glimpse a TV if only to see the first results come in. So coming home to news of victory in PA was cause for a cautious though entirely celebratory yelp - after Obama took Ohio I put a bottle of wine in the fridge to chill. Sadly, our news station cut to local results the moment Obama won - it cut back to the graphic with those vital words, "elected 44th President of the United States," and my mom and I gave each other bewildered smiles, folowed by whoops and cheers and hugs and more than a few tears. We watched McCain's concession (so very, very gracious - one of the best speeches of his campaign), and watched Obama's speech with that wine (saved for a happy occasion, and I can think of no finer) and a few more sniffles.

It's still hard to process - and with news on Prop 8 still out, my happiness really can't be totally, utterly complete - but watching history be made tonight, seeing the glimmer of hope in this darkness that's ours to grasp and to kindle and nourish, has made me so incredibly proud. Did we win this election? Yes, we did. Can we funnel that energy and spirit into the work of citizenship? Yes, we absolutely can.

I am finally, finally watching "John Adams." And why aren't you?

*shoes off f-list to go buy or rent it*

McCullough's book hasn't made its way to my bedside, and so the tenor of the program, at least, is new - thus far, I'm halfway into episode two, aka when the Big Man from Virginia shows up in his pretty uniform and somehow gets promoted, and I'm rather impressed. Yes, there's glossing and fudging, but far less than your average American history class - the tarring and feathering is quite gruesome, and had me curled up on the sofa. Paul Giamatti does an excellent job portraying Adams' conflict over, well, the conflict, and Laura Linney as Abigail is just so much freaking win. You know, if we'd had her as our second President...

Sadly, Alexander Hamilton doesn't come in for another three episodes, which will have me squeeing nearly as much as seeing another conservative in antiquity on screen. But it's nice to have on in the background while editing, though just a bit too distracting. But in the best possible way!

It's late and I'm wiped and need to head to bed soonish, but the Getty Villa today, and getting to meet vandonovan = awesome, even if they only had ONE Cicero book in the gift shop, which was not a Loeb. Will post pictures soonish, for me, anyway - including a lovely new bronze Athene I picked up today. Now, if I start writing ridiculously long letters to friends begging them for statuary...

There may be some more exciting news on the horizon - watch this space!

A bit of a quick entry - wonder of wonders, the Winston Salem bus depot is within walking distance of fabulous things, so I'm nibbling on good sandwiches (not out of a vending machine!), having what may be my last glass of sweet tea in a while, and charging my computer equipment. In half an hour, it's up to West Virginia, then Ohio, and at 2:55 tomorrow, finally, finally, into Indiana!

It's been an enjoyable drive - the Piedmont is just gorgeous and green, and I've listened through Chapter 2 of the unabridged Master and Commander, a gift from my wonderful godmother whom I'm seeing first on my trip of trips. I was an idiot and forgot my pillow, so we'll see just how well I can fall asleep with a balled up shirt as a headrest. :)

Take care, everyone, and to North Carolina and all the wonderful people in it, auf wiedersehen!

So, 52-odd episodes and hours later, I'm at last done with Blake's 7 - and even though I spoiled myself like mad, both accidentally and with intent, a good deal of my reactions still managed to surprise me. Thoughts, musings, and general summings up beneath the cut.

( Massive spoilers for all of B7 )

Occasional, I am a bit anal - it's not often, but it seems to happen during opportune times. Like tonight, when I decided "you know, I may want to give these honey cake recipes a test run...."

The first recipe - well, it made a honey cake. A honey pancake. It was very dense, with the texture of a sproingy bread pudding, but if you drizzled honey on a wedge and ate it, it was damn good. Yet not a honey cake!

So I sought out a recipe that had more ingredient volume and eggs. But when it came time to pour, the batter was no longer pourable, and had to be goaded into filling out my cake pan. The top wasn't flat, but looked rather like the surface of the moon. When it was done, however, and I 'tested' a piece, it was quite lovely! Texture much like a dense bread, sprinkled through with almonds, and a slightly sweet taste (the only sweeteners are four tsps of honey and a quarter cup of sweet wine). But once you drizzle it with honey - wow! Very tasty, but I disagree with Brutus. It could use a touch more cinnamon!

Recipe here, for those wishing to try their hand at it! If your dough is too floury, add milk until just moistened. For my wine, I used Madeira, which worked quite well.