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shadowkatCrisp cool day that began with me hugging my alarm clock (literally) and ended with a beautiful clear sunset out my windows.
The hugging alarm clock bit was due to me being only partially awakened by it - while wrestling to shut it off - I fell asleep, woke up, luckily 45 minutes later (6:51 am) and raced about to make to the subway by 7:18, made it to the train station by 7:35, and caught the train to Jamaica. In to work at 8:05, right after my boss - five minutes late, not bad. But very weird to wake up hugging one's alarm clock.
Am debating exploring areas of Brooklyn this weekend to determine new places to hunt for apartments in. Have been invited by a friend from church to check out an area around Brooklyn College. There's apparently some affordable condos out where she lives. But she just moved...might be better to wait a week.
Never know how personal to be in this lj. I think I tend to stick in the middle, flocking the ultra personal posts.
Still making my way through GRR Martin's Feast of Crows - which is a fascinating read, if somewhat of a downer.
No one is doing well or getting what they want in this book. Nor is there much hope they will. This however, considering the time period it is placed, is actually realistic. The Middle Ages weren't called the Dark Ages for nothing, after all. Always found that period of history to be depressing and grim, which I suppose is why it's decidedly odd that most fantasy novels (outside of modern urban fantasy which is a whole trope in of itself) take place in it. Usually they white-wash the time period or romanticize it - a la The Morte d'Arthur or Camelot. George RR Martin apparently fell in love with the War of Roses history books and wanted to write a fictional account. If you've read his blog, you know he collects toy soliders and has recreated and restaged the battles with these soliders in detail. The man has read extensively on the period and feels the need to put everything he knows about it into the books. Curious why he chose to do fantasy and not just historical? Fantasy is admittedly more fun - you can do zombies, dragons, and magic in fantasy. Although these books feel more political than fantastical, which is why I find them compelling or rather more compelling than some fantasy novels. In some respects they remind of Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Series, except less romantic and a lot gorier and far more grim.
The complaint that bloggers and others have made about the women? I think I figured something out on that. I was reading Brienne's pov - and she goes into detail about how a bunch of guys cruelly teased her. It's all told in flashback. Most of the action in these books occurs in flashback or the pov character remembering the event. Very little of the action happens on stage. It's either reported in a letter, or told as a rumor, or a flashback. Makes for a very passive narrative - which has its pluses and minuses. Martin is actually very good at flashback passive narration, in that it does contain a certain level of emotional resonance. And this type of narrative style is not without precedence. On the other hand - it also distances the reader from the emotional impact of the event - it happened in the past (often the distant past) - and the character is merely remembering it. Sure, it aids the reader in understanding the character's motivation better, but Martin appears to prefer it to actual "action". I feel like I'm being "told" what has happened, as opposed to witnessing it happening or seeing it happen. Not quite tell not show, but very close. That said? He is admittedly very good at it. But I suspect it does make it difficult on the people attempting to adapt this thing for a tv show. I mean - how do you adapt a passive narrative, where everything that takes place is either in flashback or talked about after the fact in idle conversation, into a visual "active" narrative on a tv screen? Now that's a fascinating challenge. It also may be the reason I prefer the tv series to the books - it's more emotionally satisfying, I'm less distanced from the narrative.
But back to the bit about women, sorry for the tangent. Brienne is remembering back, and the description of how men treat women - specifically these men - is painful. Randall Tarly (who we already know from Sam's pov, Sam being his son and terrified of him, is a nightmare) basically tells Brienne in the flashback that it would serve her right to get raped (although he prevented it) since she's trying to be a fighter, when that's the men's role, women are supposed to fight in the birthing bed - giving birth. He doesn't say it that nicely. I can see how that statement would push a reader's buttons - but it is a statement coming directly from the mouth of a character not the writer. And a character that is far from likable. If anything it makes the men sound horrible, not the women. Shallow to boot. But it is also realistic. Men say those things. So do women for that matter. And they do it today. (No, unfortunately, we have not all evolved past these base primitive attitudes. Some people are still living in the Dark Ages.) But I don't think you can say based on this that Martin thinks this way - that horrible character does. It's sort of like saying Joss Whedon is a misogynist for creating woman-hating Caleb, which is just silly. Reminds me of a statement that Kristin Cashore made on her blog a few months ago - that the writer isn't his or her characters. And a statement made by a character is not what the writer thinks. Martin has written a dark series of books, with a lot of unsavory characters capable of horrible deeds, his fantasy tales fall in the horror category or next to it. And yes, women are treated badly by the male characters, but the male characters are also treated badly. Randall Tarly, when Brienne meets up with him again is busy chopping off a man's fingers for stealing something. Brienne actually comes across as fairly heroic...is she referred to as ugly constantly? Yes. But by nasty men. If anything it makes the men look bad, not Brienne. People's perceptions on things, often bewilder me. (And yes, before you think it, I'm certain my perceptions bewilder them too.)
At any rate, I can sort of see why someone reading that chapter might think women were treated or shown in a negative light in the books and it rubbed them the wrong way towards Martin, much in the same way that I think the episode of Buffy, Seeing Red rubbed people the wrong way, or the Caleb character. It depends on how you interpret the authorial intent, I suspect.
This week's Grey's Anatomy was hilarious - well if you are geek and got the jokes. Or know geeks and got the jokes. Although I do resent the fact that in all these series none of the leads or regulars are geeks. Hello, completely unrealistic. The stereotype that all geeks wear horn-rimmed glasses, are under the age of 30, and look like Kevin Smith is such a stereotype.
It's ironic considering most of the writers are geeks - do they just have poor self-esteems or something? (Nothing against Kevin Smith - who is a multi-millionaire). Anyhow they bring in this bus-load of comic-con/sci-fi convention attendees who got in a serious accident. One is wearing hobbit ears, another is in a storm-trooper outfit. And the best two are arguing over a toy tardis.
Guy with Ear Chopped off: So, I lost my ear, at least we got the Tardis! The last and only one.
His roommate, wearing a Watchmen Logo T-Shirt, with smirking Smily Face: No, I got the Tardis. (The Tardis is in a box, with a picture on the front of a blue British police phone-box - just in case there's anyone reading this journal who has no clue what a Tardis is.)
Guy with Ear off: You betrayed me! That's my Tardis!
Doctors - calm down, we can restore the ear.
Later...
Guy with Ear Chopped Off (ECO) : So what did you do with the Tardis?
Roommate: I found your ear, looked for it all night, it was stuck to the helmet.
Guy with ECO: You sold the Tardis, didn't you?
Roommate (sheepishly): no, no...it's in the middle of our room, fine.
Guy with ECO: You lie, you sold it! How could you!
Later...
Roommate: Look, okay, I sold the Tardis. For the medical bills..
Guy with ear back on: How much?
Roommate: $7500
Guy with ear back on: You got ripped off.
Meanwhile...
Guy with hobbit ears finally gets up the nerve to talk to Dr. Kepner who reminds him of a Dothraki princess from a series of popular fantasy novels after she's thanked him for saving her: It's what a brave hobbit would do.
Kepner : Uh...I don't know anything about hobbits, bye. And thanks.
Geek Girl: Doesn't know anything about hobbits? They are only the lead characters in one of the best novels of all time.
And the top-grossing series of films. What rock has she been under. How can't she know anything about hobbits.
Hee. It's odd, but I find myself laughing more and a lot harder at dramas than I do situation comedies. I guess because the jokes are less telegraphed and more unsuspected. I don't feel the pressure to laugh. It's a surprise. Or ...sitcoms just aren't as funny as dramas? Or I have a bizarre sense of humor? (don't answer that.)
The hugging alarm clock bit was due to me being only partially awakened by it - while wrestling to shut it off - I fell asleep, woke up, luckily 45 minutes later (6:51 am) and raced about to make to the subway by 7:18, made it to the train station by 7:35, and caught the train to Jamaica. In to work at 8:05, right after my boss - five minutes late, not bad. But very weird to wake up hugging one's alarm clock.
Am debating exploring areas of Brooklyn this weekend to determine new places to hunt for apartments in. Have been invited by a friend from church to check out an area around Brooklyn College. There's apparently some affordable condos out where she lives. But she just moved...might be better to wait a week.
Never know how personal to be in this lj. I think I tend to stick in the middle, flocking the ultra personal posts.
Still making my way through GRR Martin's Feast of Crows - which is a fascinating read, if somewhat of a downer.
No one is doing well or getting what they want in this book. Nor is there much hope they will. This however, considering the time period it is placed, is actually realistic. The Middle Ages weren't called the Dark Ages for nothing, after all. Always found that period of history to be depressing and grim, which I suppose is why it's decidedly odd that most fantasy novels (outside of modern urban fantasy which is a whole trope in of itself) take place in it. Usually they white-wash the time period or romanticize it - a la The Morte d'Arthur or Camelot. George RR Martin apparently fell in love with the War of Roses history books and wanted to write a fictional account. If you've read his blog, you know he collects toy soliders and has recreated and restaged the battles with these soliders in detail. The man has read extensively on the period and feels the need to put everything he knows about it into the books. Curious why he chose to do fantasy and not just historical? Fantasy is admittedly more fun - you can do zombies, dragons, and magic in fantasy. Although these books feel more political than fantastical, which is why I find them compelling or rather more compelling than some fantasy novels. In some respects they remind of Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Series, except less romantic and a lot gorier and far more grim.
The complaint that bloggers and others have made about the women? I think I figured something out on that. I was reading Brienne's pov - and she goes into detail about how a bunch of guys cruelly teased her. It's all told in flashback. Most of the action in these books occurs in flashback or the pov character remembering the event. Very little of the action happens on stage. It's either reported in a letter, or told as a rumor, or a flashback. Makes for a very passive narrative - which has its pluses and minuses. Martin is actually very good at flashback passive narration, in that it does contain a certain level of emotional resonance. And this type of narrative style is not without precedence. On the other hand - it also distances the reader from the emotional impact of the event - it happened in the past (often the distant past) - and the character is merely remembering it. Sure, it aids the reader in understanding the character's motivation better, but Martin appears to prefer it to actual "action". I feel like I'm being "told" what has happened, as opposed to witnessing it happening or seeing it happen. Not quite tell not show, but very close. That said? He is admittedly very good at it. But I suspect it does make it difficult on the people attempting to adapt this thing for a tv show. I mean - how do you adapt a passive narrative, where everything that takes place is either in flashback or talked about after the fact in idle conversation, into a visual "active" narrative on a tv screen? Now that's a fascinating challenge. It also may be the reason I prefer the tv series to the books - it's more emotionally satisfying, I'm less distanced from the narrative.
But back to the bit about women, sorry for the tangent. Brienne is remembering back, and the description of how men treat women - specifically these men - is painful. Randall Tarly (who we already know from Sam's pov, Sam being his son and terrified of him, is a nightmare) basically tells Brienne in the flashback that it would serve her right to get raped (although he prevented it) since she's trying to be a fighter, when that's the men's role, women are supposed to fight in the birthing bed - giving birth. He doesn't say it that nicely. I can see how that statement would push a reader's buttons - but it is a statement coming directly from the mouth of a character not the writer. And a character that is far from likable. If anything it makes the men sound horrible, not the women. Shallow to boot. But it is also realistic. Men say those things. So do women for that matter. And they do it today. (No, unfortunately, we have not all evolved past these base primitive attitudes. Some people are still living in the Dark Ages.) But I don't think you can say based on this that Martin thinks this way - that horrible character does. It's sort of like saying Joss Whedon is a misogynist for creating woman-hating Caleb, which is just silly. Reminds me of a statement that Kristin Cashore made on her blog a few months ago - that the writer isn't his or her characters. And a statement made by a character is not what the writer thinks. Martin has written a dark series of books, with a lot of unsavory characters capable of horrible deeds, his fantasy tales fall in the horror category or next to it. And yes, women are treated badly by the male characters, but the male characters are also treated badly. Randall Tarly, when Brienne meets up with him again is busy chopping off a man's fingers for stealing something. Brienne actually comes across as fairly heroic...is she referred to as ugly constantly? Yes. But by nasty men. If anything it makes the men look bad, not Brienne. People's perceptions on things, often bewilder me. (And yes, before you think it, I'm certain my perceptions bewilder them too.)
At any rate, I can sort of see why someone reading that chapter might think women were treated or shown in a negative light in the books and it rubbed them the wrong way towards Martin, much in the same way that I think the episode of Buffy, Seeing Red rubbed people the wrong way, or the Caleb character. It depends on how you interpret the authorial intent, I suspect.
This week's Grey's Anatomy was hilarious - well if you are geek and got the jokes. Or know geeks and got the jokes. Although I do resent the fact that in all these series none of the leads or regulars are geeks. Hello, completely unrealistic. The stereotype that all geeks wear horn-rimmed glasses, are under the age of 30, and look like Kevin Smith is such a stereotype.
It's ironic considering most of the writers are geeks - do they just have poor self-esteems or something? (Nothing against Kevin Smith - who is a multi-millionaire). Anyhow they bring in this bus-load of comic-con/sci-fi convention attendees who got in a serious accident. One is wearing hobbit ears, another is in a storm-trooper outfit. And the best two are arguing over a toy tardis.
Guy with Ear Chopped off: So, I lost my ear, at least we got the Tardis! The last and only one.
His roommate, wearing a Watchmen Logo T-Shirt, with smirking Smily Face: No, I got the Tardis. (The Tardis is in a box, with a picture on the front of a blue British police phone-box - just in case there's anyone reading this journal who has no clue what a Tardis is.)
Guy with Ear off: You betrayed me! That's my Tardis!
Doctors - calm down, we can restore the ear.
Later...
Guy with Ear Chopped Off (ECO) : So what did you do with the Tardis?
Roommate: I found your ear, looked for it all night, it was stuck to the helmet.
Guy with ECO: You sold the Tardis, didn't you?
Roommate (sheepishly): no, no...it's in the middle of our room, fine.
Guy with ECO: You lie, you sold it! How could you!
Later...
Roommate: Look, okay, I sold the Tardis. For the medical bills..
Guy with ear back on: How much?
Roommate: $7500
Guy with ear back on: You got ripped off.
Meanwhile...
Guy with hobbit ears finally gets up the nerve to talk to Dr. Kepner who reminds him of a Dothraki princess from a series of popular fantasy novels after she's thanked him for saving her: It's what a brave hobbit would do.
Kepner : Uh...I don't know anything about hobbits, bye. And thanks.
Geek Girl: Doesn't know anything about hobbits? They are only the lead characters in one of the best novels of all time.
And the top-grossing series of films. What rock has she been under. How can't she know anything about hobbits.
Hee. It's odd, but I find myself laughing more and a lot harder at dramas than I do situation comedies. I guess because the jokes are less telegraphed and more unsuspected. I don't feel the pressure to laugh. It's a surprise. Or ...sitcoms just aren't as funny as dramas? Or I have a bizarre sense of humor? (don't answer that.)