There’s not a Christmas episode of Teen Titans, you know. Which is weird, considering that there’s a Fourth of July episode (and arguably a Halloween one?).
Anyhow, it’s still Christmas (there are twelve days of it), it’s also Hanukkah, and the New Year is coming up fast. Let’s talk about some things we want to see in the New Year! I did this for 2024; let’s see how 2025 fares.
HA! Sneak attack! Didn’t expect a second Saturday Note, did you? Well, consider it a Christmas present, of sorts.
I expect I’ll be reading a lot in the next day or so; today I’m scheduled to start re-reading something.
Maybe I’m thinking about this because I recently read a book about Tolkien and Lewis’s friendship.
There’s a new (final) season of The Dragon Prince up on Netflix, but I probably won’t get to it for a while. Right now I’m going through Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld and Interior Chinatown; the latter feels like a crime procedural take on Redshirts?
I don’t know if I’ll be able to do a Note next week, as I might be busy.
The original topic I jotted down for this week was good, but it felt like a not-so-great thing to end the year on. Will still probably do it, for some time or another…
I have had a bit of a stressful, busy week. I’m also not as far in Dragon Age: Inquisition as I’d like, either; every time I make progress, a dozen other quests pop up.
Still! This weekend should be fun! I apologize if this goes up late and/or rushed, though.
This Note came about after reading Feet of Clay, some Codex Alera, and Hellboy: Wild Hunt.
Hallo, friends! Advent is upon us, and yesterday was the Feast Day of Saint Nicholas. I had hoped to take my dad to see The Return this weekend after his birthday, but circumstances conspired to prevent that–not least of which being that no nearby theater is playing it. I just finished re-reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and am now reading Feet of Clay!
I’ll be out next week, so I'm unsure if I’ll be able to post a Saturday Note. I hope so.
Happy day after the day after Thanksgiving!
I have a few books I’m reading, but I am hoping that around Christmas, my schedule and my Discworld read-through will have allowed me to have gotten to Hogfather. I still have to get through Feet of Clay, though.
Trying to get through Dragon Age: Inquisition, but there’s so much to do! Gah!
Got a few reminders this week of how useless I am. I’ll make it, though–Thanksgiving is coming up! There should be some good food. I also want to work on getting some more Dragon Age 3 done before Christmas, so hopefully this break will give me the opportunity.
UGH computer’s updating again.
Inspired a bit by an article on Reactor Mag!
Yahoo Mail reformatted itself. Why? Because the Internet is Gehenna, I guess.
I am out of town for YALLFest this weekend, so I am pre-writing this before Friday. Actually, I should be writing these before the final day, anyway, but most of the time the week overwhelms me.
This one was prompted by some discussions I’ve seen about Dragon Age, though this Note isn’t actually about Dragon Age.
Also, “Villains of Dune” sounds like a really crappy Herbert novel.
Hoo boy, we had an election, and, uh… that happened. I was about to wangst about my life choices, but there are bigger issues in the world.
Currently reading a bit of a different book, but we’ll see how it goes! It’s very long, though.
Do you know Skyrim is thirteen years old? Or will be in a couple of days? That’s just nuts.
Happy All Souls’ Day!
I am back from vacation; I am very behind on… just about everything, I guess. The book reviews, the Saturday Notes, and posting photos. I take too many photos; I should have in the next month over a thousand photos onto Facebook. I hope to clean up the camera cards too, as YALLFest is coming up.
Also, there’s a new Dragon Age out? Someone let me know how it is.
I voted early this week. One of the benefits of vacation was almost hearing nothing about the election, but it is the subject of the Note. I apologize.
Just read Alloy of Law by Sanderson, which was fun. Going to try an art book and a new thing next, and then we’ll see what else! I started the Netflix Lara Croft; so far, good, but I’m not very far at all. Also I’m trying out the AMC series Dark Winds, based on Tony Hillerman’s books.
I am about to go on vacation, so don’t expect another Saturday Note for a couple of weeks.
The Global Giving page for Hurricane Helene relief!
I spent actual hours fighting the first dragon in Dragon Age: Inquisition last weekend; hopefully nothing will take me that long this weekend. I’m also on the fence about whether or not to see The Wild Robot in theaters when I can.
In a couple of weeks, I’ll be out for a bit, so we probably won’t get Saturday Notes. I’ll try to make it up to the three of you readers somehow or another.
Got into a weird and disturbing argument on Tumblr this week which was… uh, not quite what I expected to face.
On the game front, WOOT YEAH GHOST OF YOTEI ANNOUNCEMENT!!1!! Also, still Dragon Age-ing. Got to the Skyhold. I am pleasantly surprised by the caliber of the game’s writing. A bit bothered by how little I’m blasting monsters, though.
Read Our America: A Hispanic History of the United States, and presently reading Latin American Writers at Work, so obviously I’m still on a Hispanic Heritage Month kick. The former is also a bit odd to read when the book was published in 2014, and it makes some political predictions that, uh, didn’t quite turn out.
Hispanic Heritage Month began last Sunday!
Bit of a stressful week, but I made it through. I am currently reading Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne, and after that will be a Batman comic, I think. And we’ll see how much Dragon Age: Inquisition I get through this weekend!
More Dragon Age this weekend!
I’ve finished re-reading Interesting Times, and will post my review for it soon enough. After that, we’ll do some BPRD and Thursday Next. In the world news, the International Eucharistic Congress is going on in Quito (or it might be finished?).
Also, fun fact, I wrote my notes for this on the same page I did notes for the review of Iron Giant.
I should go on vacation.
I have some weekend plans, and I’m debating whether or not to see a local production of Cat. I’m also working on future plans, including excitement at seeing that Trans-Siberian Orchestra is finally doing a different show this year from “Ghosts of Christmas Eve”.
I’ve been watching Alex Rider on FreeVee, which is good. Playing Dragon Age is going okay, but maybe picking qunari was a mistake? I know nothing about them, which makes roleplaying a bit difficult.
I should finish my T.A. Barron re-read soon, then continue with BPRD and Discworld. Still Dragon Ageing, and trying to find my footing in Thedas. Any tips would be welcome there.
Oh! And Mondaybor Day is Labor Day.
Yesterday was meant to be a lot happier than it ended up being. But work was the opposite of fun! I was furious for a good part of the day. And honestly, it doesn’t help that I was reading a book that’s…kind of trash? It’s the only thing I had with me to read on my break, though. I shouldn’t complain, because it was a free book, though the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it’s free for a reason.
Still starting up Dragon Age (playing as a Qunari mage, if you’re curious). Might have an adventure next weekend, for Labor Day Weekend. We’ll see!
This weekend I intend to begin my first Dragon Age, as Inquisition was on sale in the Playstation Store. I’ll let you know how that goes! I’m still debating whether to utilize the Dragon Age Keep to make story choices.
I’ve been re-watching season two of Elementary, and along with reading The Sherlockian, maybe a re-read of my Holmes book is in order? Regardless, now I’m on another book, this one about the Inklings. Long ago, in high school and as an undiegrad, I had the idea to form a writing group like that; years later, I realized that I lacked the charisma, drive, cleverness, and bluntly, the likability to do such a thing.
Anyway, bickering couples.
I have begun a book on Henry Avery, which posits a theory as to what happened to him after the Gunsway Heist. Apparently? He became a spy. Maybe. I’ll keep you updated.
Having survived this past week, and all of the rain, let us see if, I dunno, I can do something productive this next week.
Camp NaNoWriMo is over; the novel is not, but it’s very close. Without that chart and daily updates on the NaNoWriMo website, I struggle with keeping up momentum. All the same, maybe I can wrap up an epilogue, and then go back to the text. Quick aside: are any of you interested in my NaNoWriMo playlist? It’s mostly game (ie, Assassin’s Creed) soundtracks.
The past week was much less rainy than the week before, which is nice.
Presently re-reading Soul Music!
I am out of town this weekend, so it was a bit of a toss-up if the Saturday Note will be posted on time! But here we are!
I am almost done with season one of Once Upon a Time, and the new season of The Dragon Prince is here. I’m also getting towards the endgame of Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, so Al-Bahamut, watch you back!
This week I read Black Shield Maiden and Damsel, though the Note is more inspired by Great Tree of Avalon.
It is unclear if I will have a Saturday Note next week–I hope to, but I may not be able to, as I will be busy most of Friday, which is when I usually write these. We will see!
Camp NaNoWriMo continues to go on okay, and I expect that soon I’ll have to start wrapping up this story.
This is a bit more serious than other Notes, so I apologize for it not being as fun. And there are a couple of not-fun links. Sorry.
Camp NaNoWriMo is going okay; I’m only doing 700 words a day, which isn’t very difficult, so I’m mostly getting over half of it done before work in the morning. I didn’t play AC: Mirage during the week, though I’m quite excited to get to it this weekend. And I’m almost finished with season one of Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.
I almost made this about Neil Gaiman, given that bit of news from last week, though I don’t know if that’ll make it into a Saturday Note or a Tumblr post or what. I have thoughts, though.
I’ll try to not get too bogged down in Plot for this one, given I’m pretty sure, like, none of you read Gunnerkrigg Court.
Happy weekend after the Fourth of July! Remember, if you can’t find fireworks, you can always stuff some aluminum foil into a microwave to have a cool light/explosion show!
I am continuing to watch Once Upon a Time, and I think that maybe I’ll write a Note about it somewhere down the line? I suspect that’ll be when I finish the season. The one season. The only season. Shame no more happened after that, you know.
Also! I’m having a blast playing Assassin’s Creed: Mirage. Jumping around medieval Baghdad and stabbing people is great fun! Al-Rabisu, you better watch your back!
Happy Feast Day of Saints Peter & Paul.
Next week is another Camp NaNoWriMo, and you know what that means: existential agony as I try to write (or in this case, finish writing) a novel-length piece. Hopefully by August there will be a finished-ish draft, and I can work from there. Maybe that draft can go somewhere, and I can prove to not be a waste of space!
…I’m in a bit of A Mood after ImpishIdea, where my sporkings and a lot of my writing, went completely dead earlier this week.
Also! Hey! I have started re-watching season one of Once Upon a Time.
Yesterday was my mother’s birthday! Hooray!
I have one episode left in Death and Other Details, and it’s… eh, I guess. I feel like it goes too much for ‘conspiracy thriller’ instead of ‘murder mystery’ and so it goes way larger than I was hoping for when I started it.
There’s a bit of a break in book reviews until I finish a couple books that aren’t going to be reviewed for the public because I don’t feel like it.
This week, I finished watching Warrior and the seasons of Brooklyn 99 on Netflix. I’m now watching Death & Other Details on Hulu (we’ll talk about that, I think) and Chef’s Table: BBQ. I’ve been meaning to watch more documentaries, so we’ll see how that goes! After that, I may re-watch The Librarians or Once Upon a Time (but only the first season).
In the past few days, I’ve had a sore throat. I’m not sick in any other way, just with the throat. It’s not much fun.
This is my sister’s birthday! I had a different Note lined up, but I went with this one because I thought it’d be more interesting for this day.
Right now, Summer Game Fest is going on, which means we’re getting what’s basically the new E3. After that is Ubisoft Forward, and the reveal of the new Dragon Age the day after that. So! Games stuff. Let’s hope something good gets announced.
I am almost done with Warrior, and I think I’ll be finished up with season four (the final one that’s on Netflix) of Brooklyn 99. After that… who knows? Death and Other Details will probably be on the list, and after reading a tie-in book, I’m wondering if I should get to re-watching The Librarians, assuming I can find it somewhere.
I have wanted to write something like this for a while, but with the recent article on Bloomberg, I decided to go ahead and write it. Batman Arkham Videos has a short rundown of the article and related information, and doesn’t need a subscription to see, unlike the Bloomberg article (although there are ways around that).
I am out this weekend, but I am trying to write a Saturday Note ahead of time.
The library system does not have Dinotopia: First Flight. Disappointing! On the flip side, I’ve read it approximately 10 bajillion times in middle school, as that was the only one of the books in the series that the school library had.
We are now in the halfway month of 2024, and I feel pretty weird about that.
This Note is perhaps a bit rambling, and I didn’t get to everything I’d like (Joan’s companions/allies in the French military; Gille de Rais is infamous, of course, but seriously, look up La Hire sometime); still, I think I did on okay job?
Have you ever listened to Austin Wintory’s soundtrack for the game Journey? It makes good writing music.
I am juggling both Men Went to Cattraeth and Wild New World, with mixed results. I’ll let you know how that goes in the Book Diary/Goodreads.
I had originally marked to talk about Free Comic Book Day, but what the heck! Along with being Towel Day, it’s also the Glorious 25th of May. And Memorial Day Weekend. Talking about Free Comic Book Day just didn’t seem fitting.
Next week’s Note should be about Saint Joan of Arc.
Assassin’s Creed: Shadows! Finally, we’re getting feudal Japan! Stabbing! Samurai! Ninjas! Grappling hooks! Stabbing! What more could you ask for?
Also, it looks like Shogun, which was meant to be a miniseries, will be getting two more seasons? Why? I don’t know that I like that.
Otherwise, though, I’m okay. A bit overwhelmed because people keep announcing stuff for me to do in the next few weeks, though I think I’ll make it through just fine.
I tried something a little different and I read a George R.R. Martin book! I’m still not doing A Song of Ice & Fire, especially since that series has no end in sight, but I did read A Knight of Seven Kingdoms. It went well. Don’t expect the Book Diary to be updated very much for a couple of days, though–I’m a bit busy.
We’re a bit more rushed than usual, given circumstances, but I hope this turned out okay.
Today is both Star Wars Day and Free Comic Book Day! So get yourself on that!
I have finished the first season of Warrior; it’s an odd sort of show, being both a martial arts and gang drama. Still, it is entertaining and focuses on a people and period often ignored by pop culture. I also finished Don Quixote, and am currently working on God Emperor of Dune (that may have been a mistake).
Unclear if we’ll have a Saturday Note next week! Sorry, folks!
Now let’s talk about The Spiderwick Chronicles.
I have had a slow past couple of days, but I’m going to be out today for a bit. I wrote this beforehand, obviously (I always do), though Friday night was a bit more hectic than I’d like. I’m still reading Don Quixote–though I’m almost done–because it is really long. After that will be… heck, I don’t know. A library book, maybe? Or maybe another book I grabbed in the house.
Shogun is finished, and it was excellent, so right now I’m circling through Brooklyn 99, Warrior, and the Roku Spiderwick Chronicles, which I have thoughts about, though we’ll save that for another time. The movie was a better adaptation though.
Also apparently my writing music right now is the full soundtrack for Horizon Forbidden West?
[rubs forehead] Uh, hi there. I didn't sleep much last night. My original intro was more upbeat. I apologize.
This week I started Don Quixote, which is quite a long book, so aside from comics and illustrated books (and maybe the odd BIONICLE book?), don’t expect my Book Diary to update for a while.
The new adaptation of The Spiderwick Chronicles is now on Roku! Get a look at that if you’ve got the time and the Roku.
I didn’t exactly know what to write this week. I have a plan that one day I will write about Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, but that’s going to take some more work than usual. I made a list of several possible topics, and I ended up settling on this one.
