Vicissitude and Season

Quick TV catch-up:

Sleepy Hollow: Almost like Katrina after last night's episode. Almost. Also, nice to see Frank again? I hope?

Castle: Back to form and they managed to find a new twist to keep things running a little longer. (Based on last week; haven't seen this week's yet.)

The Good Wife: And the Chicago canyons echo again with the refrain, "Kalinda, what the hell, no!" Also, I love episodes that require "we didn't know this would be in the news" disclaimers.

Elementary: Introducing new main characters and giving them storylines of their own is a good thing, people; season developing nicely. (I should probably note here that Ophelia Lovibond was yet another in the category of "where, oh where, have I seen that actor before? *checks imdb* Of course: 'Lewis'.")

Agent Carter: Watched the first two episodes of this; will probably keep watching. My main reaction is: it's just so satisfying. In somewhat the same way as Miss Fisher except with much more anger and fork-in-artery grit.

Person of Interest: On hold again until February, dammit. (Not that I begrudge the State of the Union, but otherwise grrr.) Good essay here: Why Person of Interest Needs to Continue Being the Gutsiest Show on Television. It's hard to remember sometimes that reactions are different outside fandom, but I'm not surprised that some viewers want it to go back to being the cosy procedural it never was. And probably hate Root/Shaw.

Couple of reading notes: Aside from finishing A People's History of the American Revolution, it's been mainly comfort reading. Among other things, I reread Lois Bujold's The Spirit Ring, which is an early stand-alone historical fantasy novel that I must have read originally after plunging through the Vorkosigan books. In that context it was a bit disappointing, but it's really very good on its own merits: the world-building is solid, the writing sings in places, and the characters are appealing. Seen retrospectively, it strikes some interesting notes with regard to the Chalion series, too.

Earlier in the month, to remove the taste of a dreadful Agatha Christie conspiracy thriller dealing with the misuse of an international youth movement, I reread some John Verney - anyone else here familiar with the Callendar series? ismo is the relevant one here, but the series starts with Friday's Tunnel - very fun 1960s British teenage adventures, which for some reason our local library possessed when I was a kid, and I later managed to procure copies for my kids (out of print alas and tend to be expensive). All of them use female POV, girls with real personalities and varied interests and a tendency to be irritable, and I'm glad to find I still love them (the books and the protagonists, especially February). If I ever do participate in Yuletide, I'll be sure to propose this series - there has to be someone out there who's read it.

1) Three more inches of snow yesterday, and today it's cold and windy and whipping around white, but this is it, really. Somewhere out there a daffodil is blooming.

2) POI just average last night (I think; I was sleepy) but end of season still looks good (the finale is called "Deus ex Machina," yes they are going there). I am a bit concerned about Bear's self-discipline.

3) Also caught up on The Good Wife (for which I was spoiled, but still, a shocker) and Hannibal (less of one, and isn't that interesting?). And watching Elementary season one in downtime (rewatching, but since I fell asleep during every single episode the first time, defining it as such is debatable).

4) Up to The Ringed Castle in my Lymond reread. Funny how little I recall in detail from first read however many years ago that was, though general tone sticks very well. This one, recollected: a fair amount of bad weather, speculations on illegitimacy, and things that begin with L. On rediscovery: surprising amounts of politics and relevance to today's news. And an eagle.

5) Aside from that, it's all a blur of garden plans and powerpoints and seeds and formatting I really should get to and worrying about adult children's schedules. And taxes. (I have netted over $200 on the book so far, but all paid (or to be paid) in 2014 so nothing to be done about that at present. Except think more about marketing.)

6) I did join Pinterest, but have done very little about it so far except stick a whole bunch of Time for Tea-related images on a board. It's a mishmash of portraits and costumes and pistols and scenery and Japanese tea ceremony et cetera, and needs to be organized at some point. But I am intrigued by the idea of wrapping subject matter around imagery.

7) Have taken to spending some time each day working while standing. Looking forward to getting back to long walks when it's a touch warmer. Hope to be plotting Book Five while walking, this summer.

I'm sort of caught up on TV shows now (not entirely on Castle yet, and obviously not on Breaking Bad), and the visual dump is having the usual where-did-I-see-you-last effect where guest actors are concerned. I was less affected in this regard by Aaron Staton in last night's POI, or by Lisa Edelstein on Castle, than by Warren Kole (last seen as Creepy Stalker Ian on the never-speak-of-this-again POI "Bechdel episode") turning up as a plot-significant FBI agent on White Collar, and getting coffee with Neal in Washington Square. Spotted there earlier: Sherlock Holmes and Joan Watson (I have only caught two Elementary eps this season, though). I really wanted them all to run into Harold and Bear.

Also, if Peter Burke gets the DC promotion, he should obviously move into the apartment Rick Castle found. I'm sure it's awesome.

So: White Collar and Castle gave me the same "not what I thought the season would be about!" whiplash effect regarding early plot developments (well, White Collar's was worse). Plus ça change, I guess. Once Upon a Time is the same old *headdesk*-ooh! combo, and I have no fannish urges about it (Captain Yawn) but I want to see what happens with Henry. Sleepy Hollow has sucked me in, even though I keep protesting with whimpers of historical inaccuracy. The Good Wife is just as beautifully tense as I could have imagined. And POI… if they are doing what it looks like they're doing next week (well, in three weeks, more likely), you'll be able to hear the fandom screaming from space.

Though not me, because I'll be watching the Nov. 26 episode probably five days late. Ack.

Things:

1) Final big garden show-off event of the season tomorrow. And we are already planning next year's events, which is cool with me; I think I'll need the lead time.

2) I have, however, failed at posting every day on the garden blog. It's hard! Not so much finding things to say, as long as I accept the inconsequential and the inane, but remembering that it is a day and I have to put words online before it's over. Oh well.

3) Both having trouble remembering/scheduling and having trouble making decisions are symptoms for me of mild depression, so I'm watching out and moderating expectations. But it doesn't take much to get me revved up again, and I think what little time I have next week I'll use for working out more book details - I've done a lot; I need to fill in gaps and make a firm schedule now. And the following week Younger Son and I will hopefully be photographing a teacup on the rocky shores of New Hampshire.

4) In the meanwhile I've been editing Time and Fevers more, so that will be ready to go when Time for Tea is out. I think a few months' gap between is reasonable, and then a nice anticipatory wait for Time Goes By. I'm still taking out words; this is good.

5) In TV World, we've just barely started Breaking Bad s3; watched the opening episode of the new season of The Good Wife, which I thought hit the ball out of the park; and of course watched Person of Interest. The first two episodes of this season were strong for character re-introduction, nice ensemble moments, and setting up interesting potential conflicts. And I'm finally watching s2 of Once Upon a Time, which for some reason I dropped the ball on last year; I'm not fannish enough about it to care about being a year behind, and hey, now I finally get all the Lost jokes. :)

6) I'm making regular visits to the library to check out CDs; what they have is totally unpredictable, but it's free music and I am doing a lot of walking and weeding and other activities that require distraction (since I don't happen to be plotting a book at the moment, though I'll need to start that in the spring). There was this great ultra-nostalgic day last week when I picked up Rod Stewart's "Every Picture Tells a Story," which we had on vinyl when I was a teenager, and REM's "Document" and "Murmur" which are uselessly on cassette tape somewhere. Also the soundtrack of "Pippin." Music insinuates itself into your brain chemistry in a way nothing else does, and the physical reaction I have on hearing songs again always amazes me, and the way it stimulates memory, and how well I recall tunes and lyrics that should be long-vanished. Oh, and yesterday: Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris" - wow, I hadn't heard that in *guesses* 25 years? And it's all there.

7) Current state of the Oh, Mr. Finch playlist under the cut, just in case you're interested.

( albatross, blackbird, blue jay, bluebird, buzzard, crane, crow, cuckoo, dove, eagle, goose, heron, lark, nightingale, raven, rook, skylark, sparrow, vulture, wren, etc. )

8) I have finished all the Rivers of London books that are available in the US, and am tapping my fingers with impatience for February (I mean - February??) but I'll manage. So, any guesses on how Nightingale is related to Finch? *grin* Although the crossover I really want is with the Bryant & May books.

Wow, we just had a little rainstorm. I mean, really brief, and it won't make any difference to speak of in this drought (which has been unusually hard to adjust to after all the rain earlier in the season) but at least I don't have to water things today.

A week from today we'll be waking up in Oakland, CA, in a hotel we haven't booked yet, any more than we've booked any other places we're staying in a week-and-a-half's journeys. This is sadly entirely typical (we are somewhat more organized when traveling out of the country, but only somewhat). J and I have a date to figure this out over tea this afternoon. If we're not elsewhere doing something else. I have a ridiculous list full of obscure items like "soak the bitter gourd seeds, do it NOW you idiot."

I did get the tickets to see "King Lear" at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival a week from Wednesday. Close to the last four tickets in the theatre, but still. (No one ever tells you some things are harder when your kids are adults, but scheduling family vacations is definitely one of those things.)

What we have been spending our evenings on, mostly, is mainlining "The Good Wife" - we're now more than halfway through season 3, and it only gets better. I did poke around on AO3 a bit (can't read much fic until we're caught up) and was both stoked and amused to note that Alicia/Kalinda is the most popular pairing. A fandom with femslash, wow. (Though I think Root/Shaw is going to be a big thing, if not up there with Finch/Reese. So happy about Shaw as a series regular.) (Also, the TGW/PoI actor overlap continues: since the last time I reported, Ken Leung and Michael Kelly have made appearances (and Carrie Preston is back, oh Elsbeth you dear thing). Michael Kelly was also (like many of these people) on "Lost," in one episode. He got run over by a bus. (wasn't him after all; guy looks just like him though!) I am eagerly awaiting his reappearance on "House of Cards," where I bet he's going to have a character arc of great subtlety. Or possibly continue to be blandly evil, which is equally delightful.)

Because of this commitment to the legal, political and personal adventures of Florrick and associates, we're way behind on everything else, and have multiple episodes waiting for us of "Doctor Who," "Castle" and "Mad Men." We did remember (at literally the very last second) to watch the finale of "Elementary" (what can I say, it's the show that comes after "Person of Interest" and that wasn't on) which I enjoyed quite a lot and almost didn't fall asleep during. I particularly liked the ending. Nearly all of my bullet-proof kinks come out of Aubrey/Maturin, and "naming a living creature after your friend" is near the top. (I am, naturally, trying to think of how this might translate to PoI. Could Finch come up with a stunning new bit of code and call its result "reesing"?)

As I said before, it's not that I don't like "Elementary," it's that it's on at 10 and I am beginning to be the little old lady who falls asleep in front of the TV. Which does not make me happy about the shift of PoI to Tuesdays at 10, but I guess I'll cope. I just don't understand why CBS makes this show so hard to watch, though. I'm perfectly willing to buy episodes of shows I can't see as they air; for some reason we can't get ABC to come in on our cable-less TV, plus the aforementioned 10 pm thing, so we have watched "Castle" entirely via Amazon Instant Video, and I mostly haven't regretted the money. And we watch cable shows this way too. Helps that our DVD player is programmed to work with Amazon and Netflix directly. But PoI is not available anywhere for money or legally free as it airs, which seems astoundingly impractical. *growls ineffectually at network*

Okay, time to go soak those bitter gourd seeds. Or do the blog post about the ridiculously-late-frost-related death of my Juliet tomato and Romeo pepper duo, titled "Never was a story of more woe."