beboots

 Sometime in April, I think, I'm going to organize an excursion for some friends of mine (history dorks, all), which I want to entitle "A Day of the Dead at the U of A". Essentially, it's going to amount to making an appointment to visiting the mummy (we have a mummy! The only one in Western Canada! His nickname is Horace - AKA Horus)... and then, we'll go into the bowels of the Health Sciences library (which is itself in the middle of the labyrinthine building that is connected to the university hospital, so it's a quest to even get that far), heading down to the special collections room to look at... THIS. 

( LJ cut because I'm morbid and some people don't really want to see books bound in human skin. A (horrifying) part of European heritage, people. )

 I've noticed that many other people have been making fanfiction recommendations recently, which I greatly appreciate. :) I thought that I would thus return the favour and rec a few to make you smile and get the new year off to a good start. :) Some of these are very recent; others have been favourites of mine for years. A mixed bag so there will be something for everyone. :)

Furthermore, in the spirit of good cheer and well-wishing, if anybody wants more recommendations of any fandom, feel free to comment and I'll see what I can dig up for you from my brain and/or Delicious archive. :) (Also, huzzah for the rumours of Delicious' demise being greatly exaggerated?)

Counting the Hours by Forthright 
Fandom: Inuyasha
Summary: "When Inuyasha calls in a favor, Kagome sacrifices her holiday in order to help him fulfill an annual familial obligation. Missed flights, misunderstandings, and mistletoe conspire to bring two strangers together."
This fic is absolutely lovely. Anything by this author is, but this fic makes me smile. Realistic fluff. The first chapter was posted over Christmas last year; the second chapter picks up where the last one left off, only covers the week afterwards, and was posted only a few days ago. The author intends to make this an annual thing, and I don't know whether or not to glee or be dismayed at having to wait a whole other year for an update... Of her other fics, I particularly love Unspoiled for sending Kagome to a past in which she encounters a very young and adorable Sesshoumaru. But really, if you love the series, read all of Forthright's works. 

This Kid I Once Knew by Minnow
Fandom: Calvin & Hobbes
Summary: "Daniel sends their whole improv group an e-mail saying "check this out its fun1!1" and a link to a web comic called The Adventures of Spaceman Spiff."
If you loved Calvin & Hobbes when you were younger like me (and still love it, again, like me), you will love this fic. :) And possibly The Roommate of +10 Confusion, a Calvin & Hobbes crossover with Foxtrot, in which Calvin and Jason become roommates and awesomeness occurs. Thanks to beckyh2112  for pointing these my way. 
Oh, and speaking of Calvin & Hobbes, this should make you smile (especially, but not necessarily, if you're a history dork like me): "Few historians know of the heartwarming friendship between French Reformation theologian John Calvin and English political philosopher Thomas Hobbes, the latter of whom may or may not have been real, considering he was not even born yet."

Strange Girl by Sunfreak
Fandom: Spirited Away
Summary: "She's a strange girl. They all say it. She talks to rivers and trees and animals and won't dissect the frogs in science class. And she always wears that same silly hair tie, no matter how she does her hair."
Oh come on, when you saw that movie don't tell me you weren't aching for Chihiro to meet Kohaku again, weren't you? ;_;

Flying Again by esama
Fandom: Harry Potter AND Temeraire. Crossovers = <3
Summary: "Harry learns languages and philosophy and mathematics and misses something important, while elsewhere Charlie thinks of pearls and foolish dreams and is unable to find the right dragon." 
A story told in (adorable and touching) drabbles, in which William Laurence is reincarnated as Charlie Weasley, and Temeraire as Harry Potter. Give it a chance, if you love Temeraire. Also, dragons.

The Kids Aren't All Right by Christine Everhart(?)
Fandom: Iron Man, movie!verse
Summary: “It’s been ‘a hell of a year’ since industrialist Tony Stark owned up to his alter ego in a move that stunned observers and longtime aides alike. With the US facing unprecedented homegrown suicide attacks, Iron Man’s contribution to national security is more than ever under scrutiny. As she follows Stark during a year of crisis, exclusively for Vanity Fair, Christine Everhart explores the many contradictions of the man behind the mask, uncovers tales of personal loyalty, patriotism gone awry and corporate betrayal, and asks whether Iron Man is the embodiment of an outdated American fantasy—a self-made, unilateral, technological solution to hopelessly complex problems—and whether he can survive the violent encounter with reality.”
...AKA someone actually wrote that article that the reporter chick was working on throughout the movie. You know the one, she who slept with Tony at the beginning of the movie, provided exposition throughout, and prompted him during That Press Conference to actually confess who he was. This fic has an amazing voice and really could be a part of official canon. It's amazing. Also, has pictures, like a real magazine article would!
This one is probably on my list of the top 10 most amazing fanfics of all time. This is the fic I point to/explain when someone asks me what the point of fanfiction is. 

The Cold We Hate by VioletzeEcoFreak
Fandom: Hetalia
Summary: "The North American Ice Storm of 1998, an indisputable example of the cold Canadians and Americans alike loathe."
America and England help Canada through a rough patch. I have a weakness for hurt-comfort fic. Also, Canadiana. This fic is particularly appropriate at this time of the year.

The Care and Feeding of Hobbits by Baylor
Fandom: Lord of the Rings
Summary: "Ruminations on the Little People by Boromir, Man of Gondor."
An oldie but goody. Lord of the Rings was one of my first fandoms, way back in junior high. This one is still one of my favourites, and holds a special place in my heart. Fluff, but believable fluff, with hobbit cultural tidbits and not-a-bastard!Boromir. :)

I saw The King's Speech a few days ago with my Mother dearest, and I have to say that it was one of the most uplifting movies I've seen in a long time. It was funny, engaging, entertaining, intelligent... I especially loved the swearing scene, nearly cried at the scene where Bertie actually began to talk about his childhood and could barely get it out, and gleed when the speech therapist's wife came home early and found the Queen of England sitting down for tea in their tiny little flat... as well as dozens of other beautifully done scenes. :) Amazingly well done film. Even the trailer makes you feel awesome, watching it:


And as for tomorrow... I'm going to post those postcards and letters, apply for jobs, and actually work on my thesis. I promise. >_>

In the continuing effort to avoid doing more homework (hey, I managed to finish that four-way book review in time to be handed in this morning, okay?), I've decided to write a review of a book that I read last week (again, in an effort to avoid doing homework). 

1632, by Eric Flint, the first in a series. (Note for anybody who knows me in RL: other books in this series besides "The Baltic War" and "The Ram Rebellion", which I already have on my bookshelf, would be an excellent Christmas gift. :D )

First, take a moment to contemplate the awesomeness that is this cover. 


Yes, that is what it looks like. The plot goes thusly: the West-Virginian town of Grantville is displaced in time and place from the year 2000 to the year 1632, essentially dumping them in the middle of the Holy Roman Empire in the midst of the Thirty Years War, one of the most bloody conflicts in European history. 

( And lo, it was awesome... )

I want to read this later book in the series just because of the cover: 

Aww yeah! >:D

"You may not feel oustandingly robust, but if you are an average-sized adult you will contain within your modest frame no less than 7 x 10¹⁸ joules of potential energy - enough to explode with the force of thirty very large hyrdogen bombs, assuming you knew how to liberate it and really wished to make a point."
-Bill Bryson, on the meaning of E=mc², A Short History of Nearly Everything

(one of the most interesting paragraphs I've read today)


Mysterious Plant by ~Beboots on deviantART

So... what have I been up to?

Mainly working and doing errands. But as you can see from my previous post, work = lulz. :) I've been reading the abovementioned book, which has the distinction of being the only media that has made me actually interested in science in any capacity since Bill Nye the Science Guy. (For the unitiated, here is an example episode of a show that consumed my childhood along with the Magic School Bus: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ag6rcM9V-U ) Everyone my age who grew up in North America can sing the theme song, or at least recognize it, I swear.

In any case... yesterday, on my first day off, I went out to Fabricland with Ashley on a whim, and we bought patterns and fabric and have half-finished floor-length cloaks on our hands. With lining. <3

I've also jumped through hoops to get my passport renewed. I swear, Passport Canada should really make passports expire every ten years, like the rest of the world, and not put us through such trials and tribulations every five. D:

I've also discovered that I really like Canadian government buildings, especially ones built to be impressive like Canada Place in Edmonton. (Does every large Canadian city have a Canada Place?) I feel comfortable around the familiar bilingual signs - it made me feel at home, even when visiting the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo a few years ago. :) It makes me feel calm and patriotic. Maybe they put something in the air...? ;)

I'm also planning on posting a long Temeraire fic idea soon. It's probably not going to get written out in full, but it's essentially the plan for a novel-length fanfic. I wrote it over the course of three hours or so, after ruminating on it for a week.

This post came out much less enthusiastic than I wanted to, but that's probably because I'm wilting from the heat. D: It's been like above 20C every day this week, and when you're working out in the sun, running hand-cranked rides or even just talking with people... it saps your energy.

"I think that this is the theme song for my attitude at the moment..."
(And yay, HTML has stuck with me! :D I learned it when I was a little kid, making neopets pet pages... and after only a little bit of refresher, I can at least make links. Huzzah!)


The Blue and Yellow Staircase by ~Beboots on deviantART

So, I'm pretty busy at the moment, mostly studying. And frantically writing essays: a French one on La Moustache (see previous post for its craziness), a Canadian History research paper on the Quiet Revolution in Quebec (that's when they first started getting all... seperatist-y) and a Habsburg History paper on Maria Theresia and two of her sons, Joseph II and Leopold II (and how Enlightened/Absolutist they were).

So far, I'm not panicking. Not yet. Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...

I'm also writing some fanfiction. I'm still working on that House, M.D./Twilight crossover from hell, admittedly very slowly, but then again, I'm determined to finish it, so... yeah. I've written down a few ideas, in point-form, for Temeraire fics, and I really want to write a few of them... mostly because that fandom isn't nearly big enough, yet. I am also working on a Good Omens crossover with Harry Potter, essentially in which Remus Lupin and Aziraphale become friends. Yes, I know that it's been done before, but not in a multi-chaptered fic. >:3 I've written the first two chapters, and a smattering of other scenes, but I want to finish this fic (and the other crossover, mentioned above) before posting anything. That way, I won't abandon my readers halfway, like I have with Rise of the Jinchuuriki.

Which I am finishing, by the way. Or at least continuing. I have like 20,000 words more of it written. Just not... in order. D: It shall get done as well!

... as soon as I'm finished my three papers. Hopefully.

Strange frowned. He seemed to dislike the question. “I suppose a magician might,” he admitted, “but a gentleman never could”’


-Exert from Johnathan Strange & Mr. Norrell

Okay, so I just finished reading the abovementioned book during my spare today... And now I feel the urge to sing it's praises!

It's a wonderful book, and I have no wish to summarize it - it's just over 1,000 pages long (daunting, I know!) but you really should just read it yourself. The author's website is brilliant, and there are some good summaries up there, so here's a link: http://www.jonathanstrange.com/

I just thought that this book was just so brilliant! It's so layered in meaning, so seeped in history, languages, the culture of England (and English magic!); not to forget healthy doses of really realistic fantasy. :D Plus, I really heart Johnathan Strange... and I even get to like Mr.Norrell by the end.

Mr.Norrell's character is really amusing, as he's the first practical magician to show up for centuries in England, and so should be the most interesting thing since the piano-forte was invented... but he's just so boring to speak to! XD But there are many "aww" moments with the two gentleman-like magicians.

And the magic in this novel! It's much more believable than that of Harry Potter (my other magic love). The descriptions of talking stones, of John Uskglass, of "the gentleman with the thistle down hair", of the random several-page long digressional footnotes... :D There's just so much I love about this book!

*pant pant*

I also began reading it alongside "Great Expectations" in English class. They're written in delibrately similar writing styles (the author of "J.S. & Mr.N" is brilliant for that, and many other things), but it was much more engaging than Great Expectations! They're even set in similar time periods. ... Woa, and I'm distracted because the sky just threw up outside my window. It's litterally raining buckets! And hail! Holy crap!
Okay I'm going to finish up incase there's a blackout.

Okay, I think I'm done now. But everyone, please read this book! It took the author ten years to write, and it really shows - it's a masterpiece!