HD Love, Jimmies (plural), & the Like

5 Interesting Things You All Ought to Know

-1-

New year, new me, new blog.

 Look around. Isn't it colorful? I am currently working on improving the layout of the blog and making it more functional. I'll be rolling out some more minor changes which will hopefully make this blog easier to navigate. 

-2-

Heather Dixon loves me.

Me, and Marlene. Below is a screenshot to prove it. If you haven't read Heather Dixon's positively enchanting novel Entwined or clicked "follow" for her hysterical blog Story-Monster, I would highly recommend it. She can make me laugh (or swoon) even on the darkest and dreariest of days.

Fangirl captions added for your entertainment.

-3-

Downton is back, ladies n' gents.

While other viewers are trying to keep calm and carry on after Season 3, I am still suffering from post-Season 2 depression. Face it: Best season of Downton Abbey ever. I have professed my love for William and Branson and Downton Abbey before, so I will leave the gushing to my past self. I am looking forward to Season 4 viewing sessions with my family until I return to school. My sisters, mother, and I all make tea and watch it together, and my father inevitably asks for the details the next day. (He's secretly a fan. I just know it.) So far it's more of the same, but the promise of new characters should shake things up relatively soon.

 -4-

On top of Jimmy, there are jimmies!

There's Downton Abbey Jimmy, and then there are jimmies. As of tomorrow, I'll have both! I'm planning to bake some sprinkle-covered cookies over the course of the week, and for some reason the irony of back-to-back Jimmy-ness tickles my funny bone.

Durdurdur I'm Jimmy durdurdur.

-5-

 My sister loves Earl Grey. I repeat: SHE LOVES EARL GREY.

I watched my youngest sister acquire a taste for tea over the past few years, but we had sort of parted ways. She experimented with vanilla chai concoctions while I perfected the art of a perfectly steeped, stirred, and sweetened cup of E.G. She saw me having my "usual" this evening and asked for a sip. She brought the mug to her lips, took a tiny sip, looked me in the eye, smiled, and said, "That was delicious." I promptly made her her own cup and watched her skip off into boiled leaf juice bliss. I'm so proud, guys!!!

The tea was Iroh approved.

On the writing front... All this time off has given me some time to write, which has been glorious. Still in my fairy-tale phase. I may or may not have promised some of my friends at school some finished stories, so I have my work cut out for me. I only have two weeks before I have to head back! My sentiments on the subject look a little like this:

Okay, maybe not that dramatic, but I'm pretty happy right where I am. So there you have it: 5 things you ought to know. Until next time!

Image Credits: 2nd down, 3rd down, 4th down

Concerning "Writerly Duties"

I just told my mother that I had writerly duties to attend to. "Writerly duties?" she responded. "Is that a club or something?" "No, Mom," I said, then launched an explanation of all the writer-ish things I have on my plate. The articles, the blog posts, the essays... I am a busy woman!

Equipped with a cup of Earl Grey in my Anne Shirley mug (courtesy of my dear friend Abby), I take to my laptop, eager to get some words on the page/screen. I was totally psyched to write yesterday --- Ally and I were supposed to have a writing retreat in a ski lodge --- but a snowstorm interfered. I'm looking at you, Elsa.

She does what she wants.

Instead of having an at home writing retreat, my cold decided to knock out any and all motivation so that all I could bring myself to do was watch The Legend of Korra and Sherlock. All. Day. Long. I wouldn't call it an unproductive day, though. I did character analysis on the cast of Korra and found out that Molly Hooper and I both do the same giggle thing. Also, the first episode of Season 3 of Sherlock is brilliant. #feels

An example of le giggle.

Now I am back on track, thanks to cough drops and a hot shower. (And Sherlock hair ruffling.) Before I return to the world of More Serious Writerly Duties, I thought I would tell you a little bit about my recent trip to Barnes & Noble and show you some cool stuff.

First up, this blanket. I had to snap a picture because it was so darn awesome, would totally match my future house decor, and I recognized all the quotes.

Isn't it practically perfect in every way!?

I can't find a link for the product online, but I can personally assure you that this blanket was for realsies. If they have one at your local B&N and you have $40 just begging to be spent, purchase it in my stead. I entreat you.

I also read some Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales, which I thoroughly I enjoyed. I have a few of his fairy tales upstairs (the more popular ones) which my sister bought but never read (!?), so I might try and read some today. Reading from the H.C.A. collection stirred my memory and made me realize that after years of doubting its existence and dubbing it a figure of my imagination, the Hans Christian Andersen movie DOES exist, and it has Danny Kaye. My mind was blown.

See! It's real!

I spent the rest of the trip sitting on the floor, reading The Art of Frozen, a $40 book that I desperately want but don't have the means to buy. I love reading the story behind the story, and the Norwegian influence on the movie is so fascinating, I found myself wishing I could have been a part of the production. I've spent weeks drooling over Frozen concept art now. Is that weird?

You can purchase the book here. I think I'll wait for someone to sell a used copy!

I didn't buy anything on our B&N trip, but it was really fun. It was also quite rewarding: My sister bought her own copy of Macbeth! No new books for me until I can read all the ones I bought this summer. It's a new year, and time for some new stories. I can hardly wait!!!

Tenzin and I are both pretty excited about new books and Macbeth.

Now, back to those writerly duties. Later, gators.

* Confirmed: Writerly is, in fact, a word. I give you solid proof.

Twas the Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through Monica's house, 

Not a creature was stirring, 'cept for Monica's mouse.

The words on her screen had been written with care,

In hopes that someday a full story would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While waiting to go Mass in new threads.

And mamma on the couch, and I in my lap,

Had just settled my PC while the others did nap.

When out on tumblr there arose such a clatter,

I saved every image to preserve this dear matter.

Away to a new window I opened like a flash,

Brought up my Pinterest and shouted, "HULK SMASH!"

... except not really, because as I mentioned earlier, everyone is asleep.

Here I am, waiting for Midnight Mass, and writing fairytales. I've successfully downed a cup of Earl Grey and a mug of coffee. I have scrolled through a bazillion pages of gorgeous Frozen concept art to fuel my aforementioned fairytale writing binge. I honestly just want some more writing time for Christmas. Is that too much to ask? Oh, and I want Eleven to stay forever.

Stay? Please? DAT FOG WATCH. DAT VELVET VEST. *dies inside*

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Oh, what a beautiful morning!

If you really must know, I had the pleasure of seeing Ally, Marlene, and Athena from Charlie and Me over the weekend. As you can imagine, much silliness ensued. There may or may not have been light saber fights involved.

Anywho, Ally gave me a lovely idea! She told me she had gotten up early, made herself a cup of tea, and given herself some time to write. I decided to do the same. I gathered up my favorite Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati mug, the ingredients for a perfect cup of Earl Grey, as well as Ally's graduation gift to me. (This is my cue to gush about how AWESOME my present is.)

Ally got me some "unblockers", or "inspiration dice for writers and storytellers" by Palimpsestic. According to the tag, "these dice feature words and phrases torn directly from a used and abused 1962 copy of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen". Let me just tell you, these things are so cool. They're covered with all sorts of great, story-worthy words ("influence", "horrid man", "young ladies", "conjecture", "evening", etc.)! I tried rolling them all at once, then tried a single roll. I got the word "listen", and next thing I knew I was jotting down character and story ideas at light speed! If you want your own pair, go to http://palimpsestic.etsy.com. (No worries -- I didn't peek, Ally!)

Also, I found a webpage that said this at the top while searching for some background info for my writing.

• Is there a novel in every person?
• Are there stories that have never been told because they seemed unimportant?
• What is the value of the lives of people who will never be famous or have their biographies written?

 BIG QUESTIONS. Questions that maybe I'll answer some day.

So! Moral of the story: Writing in the morning is great, and it's even better with tea.

"Super-heated infusion of free-radicals and tannin, just the thing for healing the synapses..."

My mug. <3