Has anyone else read the "Rich Asians" series, of which Crazy Rich Asians is the first book?
It has been a very, VERY long time since I've read general literature. I'm a die-hard genre reader, but for the last 4 years, all of my reading power has been keeping up with the news.
Between our 4-year national horror show, terrible endings to series I was invested in, and genre series books dragging out with no end in sight, I just haven't been inspired to read much for fun.
The movie Crazy Rich Asians has become a comfort re-watch lately, taking over from where My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding left off. I think CRA has been on the TiVO for a year and a half, if not two years, and I've run it almost weekly since I first watched it.
The movie is so bright and colorful and full of energy. I've spent much time wondering if the world depicted in the movie could possibly be real. Eventually, I picked up the books, looking for more insight, but, if anything, the books paint an even more decadent lifestyle than the movie. I am starting to believe that most of what the author writes about has to be true. I can't imagine anyone making that level of spending up outside of a genre book!
Also, I've been surprised at the format and shape of the books. There are dozens of characters given a point of view. And not all the thoughts are finished or even picked up in the next book. Some characters never seem to grow. But isn't that like life? People rarely change, rarely learn lessons from important moments. There's a certain satisfaction in knowing a character is always going to be the way they are no matter what they go through. I'm left wanting more, but I don't think there is any more...The rest is up to my imagination.
I bet there's a thriving Rich Asians fandom somewhere writing epic FanFic about how Eddie learns to give his children a break and Peik Lin finds love of her own (I'm still reading the last book, in the first 1/3, so shhhh if this happens).
BTW, the movie is vastly different from the books, but this is yet another case of me being glad I saw the movie before reading the book. They are each good stuff in my eyes, but if I'd have read the books first, I would have expected the movie to be closer to the books. I always assume books embody their own space in the fictional realm, so I never expect a book to be like a movie. Only the other way around, so why put that kind of pressure on a movie by reading the book first?
So, I had a bit of a meltdown today. It's hard enough for me to manifest Christmas spirit in a normal year, and it's not any easier in this insanely stupid year, either. I was starting to organize my cards for writing and then I was torpedoed, and I spun into a serious case of the Why Do Anythings.
Christmas is not my favourite time of the year for many reasons I've written about in the past. But it's really just me, my sister and the SO now, so I try to muster up some spirit. My natural inclination is suffer grumpily into January, but I try.
I mean, you have realized by now that I watch all those Christmas movies to make fun of them and scoff in disbelief, right? No one goes from being a lawyer to a professional on the Ice Sculpture Contest Circuit. No one!
Anyway, I'm out of the funk for now. We'll see if those cards get out. I have been thinking that in Pandemic shut-down, there's no excuse NOT to get out cards.
***** Speaking of excuses, though, I have a good one for yesterday! The computer actually blue-screened as I tried to post and when I got it back up, the post was gone and it was well after midnight.
That's why I put up tonight's as a blank and am filling it in after midnight. I'm seriously worried for this machine now. It's been years since I've seen a blue screen of death and now there's been two in two days.
Pray to the Techno-gods for Moon, the computer. Maybe Neil Gaiman can put in a good word for me.
love, lore
Current Music
I've moved to a Lifetime movie with Captain Awesome from Chuck. He's still yummy
Had our friends zoom tonight. We all pretty much had the same Thanksgiving - at home with no one else, simple meals, talked to family.
I've sat here staring at the screen for a half-hour and nothing that's run through my head is worth writing down. I was worried about this when I started BloMo. It's hard to feel inspired day-to-day.
How about: I may be the only person in the universe unconvinced that the Zach Snyder cut of Justice League is going to be significantly better than the theatrical release.
I've found JL oddly re-watchable. I tend to leave it on almost every time I see it on the guide. The controversy around Joss Whedon's step-in on the film makes me unhappy, but that hasn't made me too uncomfortable to watch it. I can't say the same, for example, about the Potter movies.
I don't like Zach Snyder as a director. His films have been exploitative of women, full of extreme violence for pretend artistic merit, and don't have much lightness amidst excessive darkness. The end of his 2 DC movies have been 30 minutes of mindless CGI destruction.
I'm willing to give his cut of the movie a fair viewing. But I'm not holding out much hope that it will stop me from repetitive Theatrical views.
I intend to update this post throughout the day with random thoughts. We'll see if intention becomes reality.
****** First, a life funny. I have officially eclipsed all people who have stood there asking where their glasses are while said glasses were perched on their heads.
Yesterday, I was ducking about, looking all around and under the bed, wondering where my underwear went. The S.O. informed me I was wearing them.
We haven't laughed that hard since March. I think we've had too much naked time during the pandemic!
****** I'm ridiculously looking forward to Christmas by Starlight tonight because it stars both my favourite Hallmark Female lead with my favourite Hallmark Male lead. And neither have been in a TV show I followed! They have become my favourites by the parts they've played in countless other Hallmarks.
I've noticed that some actors are either typecast or choose similar projects. Paul Campbell can't help but be funny and disaffected. He plays a very different kind of Male Lead in Hallmark movies, therefore, his movies are always more interesting to me. The one time they made him play serious and brooding - ugh.
I see myself in the characters Kimberley Sustad plays. Shy, awkward, smart, unable to say No, trying to be as invisible as possible - that is all me, at least until I warm up to you. Then I am still just like that, but hiding it better.
These two were in a spring movie that just didn't "land", but I have high hopes for tonight!
***** And, intention KABOOLEY! We had such a lazy day. Didn't get the walk in, didn't binge watch anything. Talked to my sister, which was good and made some plans for tomorrow. Otherwise: Vegetables.
Probably needed, but still. Happy Thanksgiving/Thursday.
love, lore
Current Music
Whedon's Much Ado ....wish I felt better about Whedon these days
Part of why I keep watching Hallmark movies is that they're shot in Vancouver, which means I get to see a lot of actors I've enjoyed over the years in other productions from networks that shoot shows there. I'm thinking of X-Files and everything that was on the old WB, UPN, and current CW shows.
Right now, I'm watching Marc Blucas from Buffy and a woman I used to watch on Days of Our Lives the one summer I babysat the same kiddos for months. Many of the movies are like little homecomings between me and actors I used to see weekly.
OK, I can't help but sound obsessed with Hallmark movies when they're on 24-7 for two months!
***** We went to an area park today for a little more substantial walk than we've been able to get in lately. It was drizzling, which means we had the place to ourselves. I love a nice park when there's no one around to witness me trying to use it. ~_^
We picked up some smoked turkey breast and a few sides from a local butcher shop. I had in mind that we'd do fish or something really different for Thanksgiving food because it will just be the two of us, but we couldn't seem to break out of the mold. Plus, we have the other days of the long weekend to attempt some of my alternative meals. Shabu shabu, anyone?
Man, I missed posting yesterday, but I'm liking this feeling of not sweating it, which I gave myself permission to do when I decided to BloMo. My internal promise was that as long as I got back on the wagon, I wouldn't feel bad.
In the bad habit of merely diary-ing, it was the last day of earning this week, but it was a typical last day before a holiday - no one was in, yet one person, that one person*, found a way to torpedo my day and not get everything done I'd planned to finish for a fresh week on Monday.
The S.O. had his last class for the semester, and, gee, his mood was considerably brighter tonight. We ran out and had a too-short walk (man, I am not just out of shape, I'm outside the lines!), a little PoGo adventure and a semi-sensible dinner.
I guess I will sleep in tomorrow because the S.O. has said no less than 4 times today that I will sleep in tomorrow, despite me saying I'd like to get up early enough to get some seriously good daylight. This time of year, that means getting out the door at 10, which is to when I'd normally sleep in! Both are things that he knows. Hum.
Last thought - Why do I keep up with the Godwink Christmas movies? They've added a terrible Bring-a-ling noise every time there's a supposed "godwink". UGH.
love, lore
*There's no particular person who is the One Person that train-wrecks my day. The One Person is a concept that never fails.
If I'm being honest, yesterday was too long a day, so I slept in and poked about the house today. I mean to write a post on what I've been reading, which is its own miracle, and I had other ideas that haven't come back to me yet. It would help if I started before 11:45, too. ~_^
Not a horrible day. The SO got enough school work done to play a Pokemon event with me without stressing. The fact that he spent the last two hours of the event in the car with a work emergency over the speaker phone, though, sucked because that was my time, too. But still, we were not in the house all day. So an unhorrible day.
It seemed like this week lasted 5 years and it's not even the holiday weekend. A lot of stuff happened, nothing earth-shattering, but I'm wiped.
Friends Zoom tonight consisted of just one friend, me and the SO. It still turned out kind of nice. I think that's the longest we've talked with that friend one-on-one, ever.
love, lore
Current Music
I can hear the SO rewatching Buffy in the other room without me
