The Illustrated Primer

An Introduction

2013-11-24T02:22:43Z

I haven't posted in this journal for quite a while, because I started posting to FB and I would rather have my personal life, such as it is, located there. However, this journal isn't dead, I still use it to keep up with old friends' journals and read/comment on fanfic and the like. If I have friended you recently, it's generally because I am interested in following your fic/fandom posts. I just wanted to reassure anybody that needed it that this journal isn't dead, I'm just really private online.

She's so Fabulous...

2007-12-10T23:32:55Z

Happy belated Birthday to ljs who is the most fabulous person I know, as well as the kindest. If I could get everyone out here, I'd organize a Ljscon at my house, where we would hold various seminars on the different ways in which she makes the world a better place. After hours of nuanced discussion, there would be wine and Britpop, and we'd see if we could get her to dance. *g*

I hope you have a wonderful year, hon.

In the Happy Place

2007-05-27T01:32:29Z

I saw PotC: AWE today and I had a blast. Very brief spoiler, I will try to post more thoughts later on: Any movie where Orlando Bloom makes his entrance bound and soaking wet and Johnny Depp makes his with multiple tattooed versions of himself along for the ride is one that makes me joyful, indeed. Not to mention the awesome fight sequences. I am, as they say, a cheap whore. I have a lot more to say, but as I can barely type right now, that shall be all.

What is it with LJ? It's making it very hard to type anything, everything is being processed extremely slowly.

We need new Pop Culture

2007-02-18T07:14:18Z

I went to the gym tonight. I got on the treadmill to warm up these creaky limbs of mine and I happened to glance up at one of the TV screens. As usual, CNN was on. What do I see? More crap about Anna Nicole Smith. Luckily the sound was off. Seriously, this is a joke. I keep seeing announcements about her on major network news shows --only at the gym, because I gave up on watching major networks for news ages ago.

I've always been interested in pop culture. I've always turned up my nose at people that think having a TV melts your mind or something. I've never been above checking out a gossip rag at the supermarket or when it's lying around at the gym. This study *smirk* has caused me to observe that our pop culture has increasing turned into our real culture. And our real culture has increasingly turned into a cesspool. I have always thought that pop culture reflected our society. Therefore, I think we are in real trouble.

Lost -- the relationship

2007-02-16T00:09:42Z

Being a fan of a TV show, movie, book series, whatever is like having a relationship with someone. Sometimes the relationship lasts until you are ready to let go. Sometimes the frustration builds up until you have the break-up from hell. Sometimes you were never that serious to begin with, and then you just laugh and move on. And so on. Anyway, Lost was never meant to be anything but a nice diversion. It was fun, we got along, I started noticing some of it's deeper qualities and I started looking forward to our dates. Then the frustration started settling in. Since we weren't that serious to begin with, I don't forsee this being any kind of horrible breakup. After all, I learned my lesson about avoiding serious entanglements with the Buffyverse. But, at this point, dates with Lost go like this -- some real fun is had, but then something happens to make me grind my teeth. I have some attachment -- after all, I'm really not a slut, and I can't spend real time with anything without feeling something ;). We have deep-seated philosophical differences, in spite of the fact that the show can be fun. So I think the time is coming to break it off.

A few spoilers from last night I actually thought last night's episode was pretty awesome. It was probably the most entertaining flashback they've had in a while. I've gotten sick of endless stuff about, say, Jack's eensy personality quirks and I'm sure I'll be grinding my teeth when his next one comes up. This flashback really seemed to mean something in the grand scheme of things, and Desmond is all kinds of hot. Plus it was unorthodox, and kept me guessing. But the show's policy of killing off characters in order to maintain a sense of drama makes me tired. If the writers were more creative they could create a sense of drama by actually doing something with the characters. I'm guessing that if Charlie doesn't actually die, it will be Sayid. What a waste of two talented actors. Oh, and I'm really sick of having Matthew Fox shoved down my throat all the time. What committee decided that this man was hot, and that he needed to be the star of the show? Especially when the show is knee-deep in hotter, more talented actors? My final gripe is we also have two new characters that we are supposed to be making room for. What is it with this cast of thousands approach? It's so hard to maintain am emotional connection to a show when everything is so chopped up.

So, now that I've bitched and moaned, I should ask: What causes you to get attached to a show, movie, book, etc.? What would cause it to fall out of favor with you?

First of all...

2007-02-14T06:39:31Z

Happy Birthday paratti!!!!! May you continue to rock as hard as you have always rocked.

Second of all, When I was watching tonight's episode of House, I thought it the best episode in quite a while. That's a bit more like it. The promos always make me giggle. How is it that each episode is guaranteed to push House in a way he's never been pushed before? *g*

Hugs....

2006-11-08T07:46:04Z

To ljs: In celebration of Lori day I will simply say that you are one of the kindest people I have ever met. You are better at being a friend than anyone I have ever met. I wish that I could make everything better, but I will simply give you a hug. (((Hugs)))

House and jumping off the rails

2006-05-11T01:45:16Z

So I was watching TV last night, and I wasn't pleased with what I saw. Some ideas about why I am displeased have been running around in my head, so without further ado...

This show engages in a great deal of handwaving. That's a given, as in the real world (RW), House would never be able to save every patient he gets in 24 hours and he would never be able to work. He would have been taken down by either a lawsuit or his Vicodin addiction. It's even more likely that Cuddy would never have hired him in the first place. But as this season as gone on, it's gotten worse. What I find disturbing is the handwaving the show engages in with ethics. The ethics are both medical/workplace ethics and simple personal relationship ethics.

As ljs points out, the show has been trying to make characters more human by having them do things that are simply fucked up. As they do these things, they make huge ethical blunders that never seem to have any repercussions -- in fact, they are hardly commented on. In the RW, these things would be enough to lead to lost careers, severed friendships, and possibly a jail sentence.

House -- earlier this season, he looked at Stacy's confidential therapy notes. Naturally, she filed a lawsuit against him and never spoke to him again. Er, no...after being angry at for for a couple of episodes, she decided to propose that they have a permanent relationship. WTF? ASide from that, House breaks rules so blithely that whenever someone does try to take a stand, they appear to be the bad guy. The best example I have of this is 2 episodes ago, when Cuddy wanted to preserve life-saving regulations and even Cameron threw a fit. He risks his subodinates lives and makes them commit illegal acts -- if they don't do what he says, he'll make their lives a living hell. He has created an atmosphere where Foreman stabbing Cameron seemed sort of logical (to Foreman). Foreman had to go risk his life, why shouldn't she? Anyway, House does such wild things all the time, the stuff anyone else does seem mild in comparison, with one exception (Foreman).

Wilson -- Slept with a patient. That's a big deal, and in the RW, he would pay a penalty for it if he got caught (therapists lose their licenses for that). It is possible that he could get away with it, but it's v. wrong.I think he knew it was wrong, and it does not seem to be his usual MO. So why don't we seem any repercussions? Either outside, or inside (guilty struggle, etc.). This was a throwaway. Why was it necessary?

Foreman -- By far the worst case, within only four episodes. Okay, first off we find out he can be ruthless and just not too nice. Not great, but it's within the bounds of what people do, and since he's supposed to be the one most like House, I guess this was their way of showing it. This would certainly be enough to make a point, although it's ethically meh. But then he stabs Cameron with the needle. Then we have this whole thing about Cameron forgiving him, etc. First of all, Cameron's an idiot. If that was done to me, I'd be about saving their lives and then making sure that Foreman 1) Lost his medical license forever 2) Was brought up on charges if I could manage it. Secondly, House just stands there and does nothing except sneer at Cameron for being weak? Having Foreman apologize to Cameron on his deathbed didn't make me feel any better.

Stretching the bounds of credulity even further, last night, Foreman is bouncing around looking great. After a serious illness than included brain surgery, there is no way he would be fit for work so soon (I believe weeks, not months had passed). Since House is a brilliant doctor, he should know that you don't cure brain damage by being cruel to someone. Furthermore, in the RW I don't think Foreman would be allowed to see patients without extensive neurological testing and rehab. ST memory damage is no small thing. I don't think he'd be able to keep up in that setting. Anyway, while I have a lot of compassion for him and his flashcards, I still can't get past the small problem of criminal action. Nor would I want him treating me while recuperating from brain surgery. The whole thing was very OTT and not necessary. IN the RW, he simply would not be allowed back in the hospital.

Cameron -- Throws herself at her superiors (In the RW, a boundary that is, of course crossed, but it's a foolish one to mess around with), and is generally a whiny idiot. Make her go away. Honestly, I feel that her character has been the weakest, and they would be wise to bring in someone else.

Chase -- For some reason, he has been the only one brought before a review board in two seasons. I don't know if this plotline was necessary (the situation was indeed somewhat OTT), but it didn't bother me as much as some other things that have been done recently, possibly because he was indeed properly reviewed and humiliated for something, and it wasn't so sudden. Chase is a character whose weaknesses we have been familiar with for longer, like him or not. I am concerned that they are going to go off the rails with everyone now. This business with money concerns me. Furthermore, they dropped the whole issue completely after the beginning of the season.

Cuddy -- The Steadiest Character. One thing that bothered me a lot last night is how casually Wilson and House violated her boundaries, testing her behind her back. House covered up for Wilson, interestingly. In the RW, I think that doctors could get their asses kicked for that. Why didn't Cuddy do that? It's just another example of how ethics are increasingly blinked at. Anyway, she's been the best. It's worrisome that they may try to saddle her with a weak pregnancy storyline.

So in conclusion, I feel that they have gone so OTT with House's character, that they have become too sloppy with ethics and sloppy with the writing. They are dragging the other characters into very unsympathetic situations and cutting corners dramatically. I am not ready to stop watching the show, by a longshot, because with the exception with Cameron I enjoy these characters way too much (even Foreman, pissed off as I may be). However, I hope they stop heading towards the cliff.

Whoa, this really ran long. I need to go do stuff before Lost comes on. That's another one of those frustrating shows that I watch because I enjoy the characters.

She's a Goddess

2006-04-29T03:20:19Z

Yes, ljs is a goddess. She gave me virtual LJ chocolates!

I also wanted to hug paratti. Please take care, although I know you do, because you have good sense.

Various...

2006-04-25T22:34:39Z

So, I haven't been around very much. I've been feeling a little under the weather. I had a wonderful time when my friend was here, but I wore myself out a bit, and I haven't been able to get back up to that level yet. However, things are still better overall, and I expect them to improve.

Another, much more positive thing that has distracted me is that I have been dragged into the world of Harry Potter. paratti gave me Book One for Xmas. After reading it I decided it was Not Bad, and eventually bought the next two when my friend was in town and we were touring the city's used book stores. I then tore through them rapidly, my husband then read all three... we ordered the next two from amazon and fought over who should get to read them first. Then we both ran off to separate libraries to get book 6. So where is book 7, I ask? Most annoying. Anyway, I am publicly eating my words. I have been saying I don't care about HP for years, I was wrong. I wouldn't say Rowlings is a genius, yet she manages to tell a very entertaining story. If you can make people sit and read book after book for hours, that's some kind of talent. And I can totally see why HP generates so much wank. The husband and I have had some lively (and affectionate) debates, I can only imagine what happens in LJ. Lupin is my favorite character BTW, in case anyone was curious.

On a more serious note, I am sick of hearing about Bush's record low approval ratings. Whoop-dee-doo. What about those of us that knew he was a train wreck the moment he started running for office? Or were horrified by the manner in which he gained office in the first place? Where were all these disapproving Americans when he was voted into office for a second term, unleashing him to do even more damage? I just wish more Americans would pay attention before they have trouble filling up their SUVs. Or when Americans die on Home soil and Bush ignores it.

I'm calming down, because this next part is important...

Happy belated Birthday to freixenet!!! You were already one of the most fabulous people I know, and you have proved that you are very cool, indeed.(((hugs)))

Lost

2006-02-17T01:19:36Z

No plot points, spoilery if you squint, I guess. I know there is at least one person on my FL who has an opinion on last night.

So last night with Sayid? I found to be the sexiest thing ever. Does this mean I need professional help? I say no, my husband yes. What do you think? I like it dark, what can I say...

Peeking out

2006-01-02T20:17:19Z

Hello everybody. I thought I would take these stolen moments to let everyone know that I made it to 2006 without dying. I have had precious few solo computer moments here -- I have managed to read entries but I have no private time to answer anything. Nor to write anything particularly deep. So, I worry about everyone, while at the same time I send my love and support. May 2005 fuck itself sideways while throwing itself off a cliff (This year's quote).

May we all swim out of the abyss in 2006. I do think I see a light. I'll be back online after I return home and spend a few days recovering from the ghastly plane trip.

Happy Birthday to You!

2005-12-10T00:09:46Z

Happy Birthday to ljs!

You truly are one of the loveliest people I have ever known. You define class.

Gratitude

2005-11-24T20:55:26Z

So a quick update, before I retire to the main business of the day -- being with my husband, eating, and watching DVDs. I have rented the last SW flick so we can laugh and mock the dialouge while appreciating the killer fight scenes. There are a few other movies to be gotten to over this weekend, I'll let you know how it goes.

I am so grateful to my friends, here and everywhere. They have stuck by me while I have struggled -- no words enough for that.

I am grateful to the internet for amusement, pretty pictures, fanfic, and let's just say it, porn. *Tips hat to certain people on my FL who provide these things* I may be quiet sometimes, due to terminal lack of any energy, but I like my v. small conrner of LJ. I'd like to make it bigger, as I feel a little better.

I am grateful for my family, who continues to be there, even though we don't always get along perfectly. At least I can say I look forward to seeing them at Xmas.

I am so, so grateful for my husband. *loves* Truly an amazing human being.

I am grateful for Sayid, who was simply AMAZING on Lost last night. Yeah, you know what I'm talking about.

So for those celebrating, have a good one, for those not, have a lot of food anyway, it's good for the soul.

To the Buffy fans -- enjoy the ritual sacrifice with pie :).

Regarding Lost tonight....

2005-11-10T06:05:07Z

DOES THE DANCE OF JOY!

Yeah, you know what I'm talking about...

House, nonspoilery

2005-11-02T23:23:35Z

So I watched House last night. This is a non-spoilery comment
(unless commenting on what someone wore is a spoiler). Regarding Cameron, a woman who wants to be taken seriously in the workplace should never wear a light blue polka-dot shirt with puffed sleeves and a round collar. That is all (and, I'm sure made no sense to most people). Also, she needs to eat a sandwich.

Honestly, in RL I meet plenty of strong women. I don't know why there seem to be so many annoying ones on TV.

Which Lost character are you?

2005-09-25T23:30:13Z

I'm posting this because it amused me. Out of all Lost characters, Sayid is the one I would most have wanted to be, but I answered the questions as honestly as I could and was quite surprised. My past is not as shady as his. Really *g*.

Sayid
You scored 67% kindness, 52% courage, 50% seedy past, and 41% secretiveness!

"Hope is a very dangerous thing to lose."

You are Sayid. You are kind, strong, brave, and intelligent. You have a
tragic past that the others know little about. You, like Jack, are a
born leader, but you are content to let him get most of the spotlight.
You are always there to aid in times of need, but you are also smart
enough to realize not all people are inherently good.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 60% on kindness
You scored higher than 80% on courage
You scored higher than 80% on seedy past
You scored higher than 20% on secretiveness

Link: The Which Lost Character Are You Test written by ack_attack on OkCupid Free Online Dating

Saw a movie....

2005-07-18T01:53:32Z

So while everyone in the free world except me was reading Harry Potter this weekend, I went to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with the husband. And honestly, we were saying that we are both now considering picking up the books too. I'm really going to have to go to a library or a used bookstore and get the first one. I mean, if everyone I know likes them...

Anyway, I wanted to say that I thought the movie was brilliant. I was a huge fan of Dahl when I was a kid but hadn't looked at his books for a very, very long time. I was surprised at what I remembered and lots of things come back to me as I saw the movie. And Burton and Depp added their own special touches. I'll try to whip up a more specific review if someone wants one, but for now I wanted to just say this before cooking dinner: Johnny Depp was brilliant. Wierd, but brilliant. If you like ironic humor and liked the book, go see it. It's supposed to be a kids movie, but there is a ton of stuff in there that I think would just pass right by a young child -- but then again, I don't spend a lot of time with 8-year-olds right now so I have no idea. In short, I spent the whole movie laughing or smirking, and I considered it time well spent.

Memeage

2005-07-07T23:06:49Z

I was tagged for this meme a short while ago, and I thought -- hey, distraction.

id·i·o·syn·cra·sy Pronunciation Key
n. pl. id·i·o·syn·cra·sies
A structural or behavioural characteristic peculiar to an individual or group.

List 5 idiosyncrasies of yours:

Here are five that are not terribly personal (that is, that I would not feel the need to friendslock):

1) I eat icecream or anything icecreamlike feaster than than anyone you've ever seen. That does not mean I eat more of it, but I'll get a standard portion and it will be gone in 3 seconds flat. Honestly, that's true for anything sweet.

2)I have this real weakness for music that comes from soundtracks, and I frequently soundtrack my own life, or things I watch and read. But it's often too embarrassingly personal to talk about, IMO.

3)I dance around to music in an extremely geeky fashion all the time, but despite years of living with my husband, have yet to be caught.

4)I'm a totally nonviolent person, but I love action sequences in movies and TV. (some people have probably picked this up by now). I sometimes destress by going back to certain sequences on my DVDs and just rewatching them.

5)When it comes right down to it, I'm really not domestic at all. I'm rather in awe at how domestic everyone else is, honestly.

Lighting a candle

2005-07-07T19:51:03Z

I slept late this morning because I wasn't feeling terribly well and then woke up and heard about London. To my U.K. friends, my thoughts and lit candles are with you. paratti, I'm so glad you are safe.
bcassie, how are you? I should also mention that for some reason, whenever I try to post comments in your journal lately, it blocks me and I have no idea why. So please drop me a comment and let me know that you are all right.

((hugs everyone and goes off to post comments))

That meme...random thoughts

2005-06-07T04:59:57Z

I can never do memes because picking out 5 of this or 5 of that actually stresses me out, because I have an obsessive personality (I know, you're all shocked). So I've taken that 5 favorite songs meme and renamed it the "5 songs I'm very much into listening to right now" meme. It would be impossible to pick just FIVE all time faves. My theory is that your songs shift constantly. I have songs I've come back to throughout my life, I have new songs I pick up, and so on... So here goes:

1."Until the End of the World", U2. This one may qualify as one of my favorites ever, because I keep coming back to it.
"In waves of regret, waves of joy
I reached out for the one I tried to destroy
You, you'd said you'd wait until the end of the world."

Those lyrics get me every time I hear them.

2. "Teardrop", Massive Attack. Words cannot describe how cool and hypnotic this song is. Indeed, my world is richer because of MA, and I highly recommend the album this song is from, Mezzanine.

3. "Ancients", Gary Numan. From the "Cartharsis" mix sent to me by mogigraphia. It is indeed powerful and carthartic, at least to me. It sucks me in.

4. "Plainsong", The Cure. This is another song I revisit..I find it poignant and haunting. It crashes over me.

5. "Solitary" VNV Nation. I don't know, I just love them and this is one song I love right now.

In other news, my husband failed to understand why I had a deep need to listen to "Dancing Queen" by ABBA the other day. No taste. Really. And new Coldplay album tomorrow!!!

Final thought for the evening...I saw a bumper sticker today that read:"I love my country...but I think it's time we started seeing other people." Says it all, really.

Rather irreverent thoughts on Lost

2005-05-26T20:16:13Z

So the first thing I want to know is, am I going to hell if my first thought when the kid was being hauled off to slavery or whatever was, "no big thing, I thought he was annoying anyway?" I mean, yes that would be horrifying in real life, but on the show I generally found the kid kind of annoying. Obviously I am destined for a special level of hell, but we all knew that already.

No way can Sawyer die, he's too hot. And he never looking hotter than when he was preparing himself to blow those bastards away. Something about a man becoming a cold-blooded killing machine can really do it for me. I remember I first really got into Sayid when he tortured Sawyer, come to think of it.

Hurley was just too hilarious for words, especially when Arzt (sp?) blew up.

Okay, one thing that really did get to me was Charlie. The whole hitting rock bottom flashback, and then being confronted with the ultimate temptation. Really, I think it's a good idea, writing-wise, because his early withdrawal was a bit easy, and this will give him the chance to wrestle the demons some more. And if the writers are good, we'll get a chance to see what really leads him to addiction in the first place, as Charlie obviously has some sore spots in his psyche. I just love Dom, what can I say. *pets him*

Claire has officially entered my roster of TV's useless female characters (UFC). It's my acronym, feel free to use it. Like, maybe when someone is acting crazy, you don't hand over your baby to her? Just a thought.

Well, now that I've proven that I'm slightly mentally unstable yet again, my work here is done. I'm off to have some coffee ice cream.

roguedemon @ 2005-05-19T17:57:00

2005-05-20T01:29:33Z

Hi everybody. I just wanted to briefly say that when I diallowed comments on my journal entry after putting it up yesterday, I wasn't trying to tell everyone to take a flying leap or anything. I just had wanted to rant briefly while letting people know what was up. However, I really didn't want to talk about it further at the time for all kinds of reasons that shouldn't be too hard to figure out. I DO want to thank everyone for their support though. Profound thanks, at that. It does not go unnoticed.

So anyway, stuff about Pop culture. Starting with some Lost and briefly mentioning House, and then posing a question.

Lost made me feel better last night because, well, I enjoyed the show. I want to say that the gratuitous shirtless Sawyer moments did not go unappreciated. At the same time I was giggling because they were so obvious. Sweaty, shirtless man chopping wood. Heeheehee. But still, even though he really isn't my type in real life, I was certainly in the happy place. OTOH, Sayid is my type in real life, and it's always nice to see him. *sigh* Yes, my types are generally men with tortured pasts that have accents. And beautiful, soulful eyes.

What I really liked, however, was that the character interactions were so genuinely touching. Sawyer telling Jack about his father really got me. It felt real to me. It felt like the kind of thing you do when you might be going off to die. Jack giving him the gun, as well -- it was nice to see them acting like adults. Sun and Jin also really got me and I was not expecting that. For the second time in oen week, I saw a married couple on TV actually acting like one. Two actual adults, showing emotion. Anyway, what keeps me watching Lost is not the fantasy stuff. It's the characters. And the show delivered on that front. If you have more, by all means let me know -- that's what coming to my mind. But honestly, I thought all the farewell scenes were very well done. Now next week, it can all go to shit.

House I don't have anything much more to say except that of all the TV I have sampled this season, this show and Lost are the ones that have truly captured me. However, House wins. I started watching it the latest, and it dragged me in. There have better be repeats on this summer. Anyway, on the show this week, we saw an interaction between a fictional married couple that again featured two strong people. Very nice. Which brings me to a question.

Something I see on TV, again and again, is what I call the Wes/Fred problem. I've also read this. I'm sure I've seen it in movies, as well. Oh, of course I have. A strong, intelligent man falls for some sniveling chick. Or just a relatively weak woman. She doesn't have to be dumb, in fact she often isn't. However, next to him she's generally a cipher. Hey, even Dr. House seems to like Cameron, he just recognizes that she doens't really like him for him. On Lost, you might call it the Sayid/Shannon problem. Now, the question my SO and I were pondering is, do you think this is indicative of real life? Do you see an imbalance in partners as you look around you, often? And is it generally more often found with women being weaker? Or is that just a TV construct? I have thoughts, but I was wondering what people think.

Happy Birthday to You!

2005-04-23T18:30:41Z

Happy Birthday freixenet!!! Let's dance together to some cheesy 80s pop songs, shall we? Your choice.

Wherein I rant briefly about Lost

2005-04-07T20:59:41Z

Here be spoilers

So they killed Boone. Nooooo. Fuck, no.

I do not approve of killing someone just because it seems logical that someone must die. What is logical about this show. There are so many other less interesting and more annoying characters they could have killed off, but it seems to me that they didn't because a) none of the female characters could be killed because they are paired off. b) neither the Asian nor the African-American dudes could be killed because it's all about the political correctness. And neither of those characters seem that interesting to me, sorry. Where exactly were their storylines going?

I detest Shannon and I feel that she and Sayid have zero chemistry. On the other hand, she and Boone actually had a very interesting stepsister/brother incest thing going on that they needed to work through, and I would have liked to see Boone work through more of that. Or not. When it comes down to it, I'm all about the twisted and I felt that Shannon and Boone were the most interesting couple on the island. Not that I wanted to see them doing the nasty, but I thought there was some seriously interesting darkness to be explored there. Much more interesting that articifically slapping together male/female characters so we can have romance. I'm also annoyed that they didn't even let Boone say goodbye to Shannon while he was alive.

I also hated that Boone's last episode was all about Jack's stupid issues. Give it a rest already. However, one thing I do find intriguing is that it's increasingly obvious that Jack had some issues with the bottle himself, just like dear old Dad. Honestly, I deal with Jack fine, but there are times when I feel like the dead horse has been thrown off the cliff already.

The thing is, I do love the show and most of the characters. I even like or tolerate most of the ones I don't love, I simply hate Shannon. But the whole circle of life plotline of this ep felt too obvious to me.

However, I am glad that it looks like the character will be mourned properly. It also looks like they will be getting back to some interesting intrigue and conflict. I also want to tip my hat to Sun, who is an actual strong female character on that show, and even Kate who did something useful for once. It occurred to me to wonder why Charlie couldn't deliver the baby -- do the writers think only women can do that?

So that's my usual disorganized ramble, and I'm off to run errands.