Holdouttrout

Reading

2025-02-28T16:24:50Z

I'm on storygraph (spectra37) and I wanted a monthly TBR shelf challenge and I couldn't find one that was quite what I was looking for... so I made my own!

Monthly TBR Challenge (2025).

I set it up for one book per month, and then I added a few fun bonus challenges, like "I couldn't help myself: I read this instead" or "Talk of the Town" or "Before it was cool." I let myself be very clever, hah!

I went ahead and made it public, but since it was already well into January by the time I set it up, I figured that it would most likely be just for myself... but 48 other people joined! We are now two months into the year... so it's the perfect time to post about it, lol. So far, I've completed two months on time (by the skin of my teeth), and have a noticeable gap in my bookshelf's TBR shelf. Woot!

What I'm really hoping for is to get books I've borrowed back to their owners. I've only had some of them for years at this point...

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Wheel! Of! Time!

2025-02-21T03:57:54Z

Sneak peek for season 3 released today, and I'm massively intrigued about how they're setting up major story arcs. I'm hopeful that this is an efficient way to set up three or four threads that, in the books, take forever to get going.

Considering this is a TV show with a limited amount of time to split between characters/plots/settings... they really have to ramp up each key piece quickly and get people into the places they need to be. We'll see!

I also still just really love how colorful everything on the show is; it's very refreshing not to have it all be greys and blacks and browns. (Pseudo-muddy-chic.)

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snowflake day 1

2023-01-09T04:50:48Z

I've seen these snowflake challenges floating around on my reading page and thought I would give it a shot.

I updated my profile page here, edited my ao3 a tiny bit, and added a pinned post to tumblr! I like having things more up-to-date and it was a nice reminder, too, about how sometimes people can make random connections by going through a profile.

Hoping to do additional days but am fairly slammed rn, so we'll see!

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The Locked Tomb Sideblog Adventure

2022-10-01T02:07:12Z

I'm a tiny bit obsessed with The Locked Tomb series and read Nona the Ninth the day or so after it came out. That meant that I was able to unblock the tags on Tumblr pretty quick, and I started seeing artwork and meta come across my dash. Which is great!

I also have friends obsessed with the series, but most of them aren't able to read it right away for various reasons. So I uh... started a side blog: The Locked Tomb Repository

I figured I could keep everything there and then direct my friends to the blog for some fun scrolling once they finish. About a week later, I have over 100 posts on the thing. I'm not sure if that's a success or a sign that I'm not great at curating. Spoilers abound, but I have tagged everything.

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Writing and Headaches

2022-09-23T22:00:16Z

I have the opportunity this weekend to do some writing and make serious progress on a fic I've been working on... I'm just feeling a little shy about the actual writing part. And I know what this is. I run into this sort of wall every time I try to write something a little longer. I swear I can set my fandom watch by it, it's so punctual. I'd really like to push through this wall; on the other side of that wall is better writing, more interesting stories, and I WANT TO GET THERE.

That being said, I set myself the goal of doing three hours (just three hours!) of serious writing this weekend. I was hoping to do an hour today, but have had the WORST headache today. So bad I cannot imagine sitting for hours and looking at my computer screen again after I'm done with work. Ugh.

Anyway, here's hoping for headaches to subside!

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Movies and Musicals

2022-04-24T02:57:17Z

I went and saw Everything, Everywhere, All at Once yesterday.

( More about the movie here, with no real spoilers but some reactions )

I also went and saw Hamilton with a friend, and it was (of course) delightful. I think I enjoyed it even more this time than the first time I saw it a couple of years ago, but I'm not sure if that was the cast or just the lack of expectations or my mood or what. Also, the athleticism of the cast is just... something else.

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children's books

2022-04-16T13:52:02Z

I am about to read the first two books in my honorary nieces' favorite series: Dragon Masters. Pretty sure there is nothing cuter than little kids getting excited about their stories. I told them that I LOVE dragons and they said that I should borrow the books and I had to start with the FIRST one.

I have high hopes.

ETA: I just finished them both, and they are, in fact, delightful. I hope they'll let me borrow more...

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Wordle, Quordle, Heardle, and Getting Old

2022-03-12T00:18:22Z

Yes, I play Wordle, and no, I'm not going to post the little boxes for it. I wasn't playing any of the other dailies until I got lured into Quordle, which I found incredibly difficult for one day but now enjoy.

Heardle, though... Heardle. Well, let's just say that Heardle is a humbling experience. So far, I haven't recognized any of the days I've tried. I DID manage to guess the artist today, but I don't remember ever hearing a single song in my life, apparently. (Look, if you gave me a Heardle from my own music collection, it would be very different, but I'm honestly a little befuddled by the music choices. Am I THAT out of it? (I am.)

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Today is the Day of Doing Things

2022-03-05T19:15:42Z

I have many things to do today, including mailing a package I tried to mail last weekend, picking up a library book, cleaning my bathroom, vacuuming, hanging out with terminally online people (done, will do more later), possibly writing, remembering to start my dishwasher (two down!), maybe some laundry, maybe some other odds and ends... busy day!

I also just started watching Gentleman Jack and it is delightful and supremely full of Looks and Hands and Walking... IDK if I didn't have just so much to do today, I'd probably watch the whole thing in one go.

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Riding the Productivity Wave

2022-02-21T20:52:52Z

Today is a work holiday, and I'm using the time to take care of normal chores such as laundry, grocery shopping, etc, but also to do a couple of things that are part of longer-term projects, such as re-caulking a shower stall. I'm not talented at that, but my goal was "functional and better than the last hack who caulked this thing," which is a very low bar. Anyway, that bar has been cleared and something that kept bugging me is off my to-do list.

I'm also using the time to catch up on some TV - right now I'm on the latest episode of Star Trek: Discovery. I sometimes think this show needs a little more humor, a few more filler episodes. I miss filler episodes, or maybe I should say "breather" episodes. I remember loving when shows started doing season arcs, but now I miss the one-offs where you get two characters interacting not because of plot reasons but because it was fun.

After Disco, I'm going to catch up on Legends of Tomorrow. Now there's a show that knows how to have fun.

And yes, I put both of these things on my to-do list. Fun things are part of productivity, too.

Later, I want to do some reading: I have three Sulpadnen Ajah-assigned New Spring chapters to finish as well as some other reading I want to do. Finally, I have some Wheel of Time fic-writing on the list.

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Fandoms and time

2022-02-14T04:14:07Z

I feel like I used to have so much time for fandom, whereas now I never feel like there's enough time for anything. I'm sure I could do all the math and figure out exactly where all my time has gone--I can think of a few things that I've added to my life since I was basically just binging Stargate and going to work... but it's still a little frustrating, and sometimes I just wonder if time really is moving faster now that I'm older.

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Sneaky Cats, Cool Movies, and Writing

2022-02-05T03:56:54Z

I love my cat, and one of the things that I love about her is that she thinks if she's subtle enough about climbing onto me, I'll let her hang out on my face. Like, maybe I won't notice she's stepping on me if she comes around from the back of the couch.

I'm watching the Matrix right now, and it is absolutely the coolest movie ever made. Something about the very fact that it's so grimy and ragged at the same time everyone's dressed like... that. Something about the aesthetic on top of... IDK - how normal everything is?

( reference to Matrix: Resurrections )

I've been writing fic! I have gotten a bit stuck but I'm sure I'll manage to figure it out, hopefully tomorrow... I wanna finish a draft and then coerce someone into betaing it for me. I'm excited!

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Wheel of time

2022-01-22T02:18:08Z

It's so nice when a new fandom starts up and I get to feel that little *zing* of "Oh hey! New fandom! People are nice! Actors are pretty!" It's even nicer when someone gives you a link to a discord server that's tiny and friendly--my favorite discords have the fewest people on them.

Anyway, I'm fully on the Moiraine/Siuan train, so you know... not saying there will be fic, but this one seems fic-able, and I hope it does happen!

(I am also going to have to at least attempt to read at least 1-2 of those damn books, which I was pretty sure I did Not Want to Do, but there's just so much world to reference...)

I will say that people need to start giving shows more episodes in a season. I'm not just saying that because I want more now, but because it's really clear the pacing is just not good when you do a full season's story, with an ensemble cast, in eight episodes. I think 12 would have been better.

I am also happy because a good friend is reading through Harrow the Ninth and WTF-ing about it at me and I love hearing her wild guesses (sometimes eerily accurate and sometimes just ludicrous) about what's going on. The more I read this book, the more I think it's... well, it's... definitely a book that rewards a second reading, which is cool in a way but also a flaw when reading it the first time through.

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Lights, sleep, to-do lists

2022-01-15T15:51:06Z

I managed to do light therapy twice this week, including right now. Clearly, my "routine" isn't what I thought it was.

( Possible TMI about my morning habits )

In other frustrating things from the week, my sleep has been a little terrible. I'm having trouble making myself go to bed, and then I still wake up early, which is on time for me. Last night I definitely felt the lack. I will try to trick myself this week by telling myself I'm just getting ready for bed early and don't have to actually go to bed until I want. I've had some success with that in the past.

The last part of this post was going to be complaining about my to-do list and how I didn't want to do anything on it... but the light therapy might actually be working on that one, because I'm going to go make myself breakfast. :-)

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Light Therapy, Plants, and Movies

2022-01-09T02:41:39Z

In the spirit of trying to get more into this whole "maintaining a blog" with "actual content" thing... have some random notes about my life? Is this what we do? I'm so out of practice!

1. I just got a Verilux light thing and I read the instructions... and yet I still don't know that I know what to do with it. I just... let it cast light upon my visage? And that's supposed to do... something? Has this been peer-reviewed? My therapist suggested it, and one friend has assured me that yes, light upon thine visage Does Something and should be attempted.

2. I acquired plants during the pandemic (like just about everyone else), and I have a camellia with leaves that keep turning brown. I finally got around to looking up why that might be, and it's either fungi or pests, so... I need to get rid of the affected leaves and if that doesn't work, then use oil on them. If any of you have more suggestions on that, let me know.

3. I watched Encanto and really liked it. It made me cry a bit, but in a good, cathartic way, so yay!

4. I'm just about to sit down and watch Matric: Resurrections. I might try to do an ETA or comment or something on thoughts after I finish.(ETA: There is in fact a tiny comment, feel free to comment on that thread.)

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A New Year and the hope of a pancake

2022-01-01T23:26:36Z

I like to start off the New Year right by eating something nicely decadent, so I don't trick myself into thinking I'm starting a healthy lifestyle on Jan 1. Yesterday I saw someone make a pancake in a rice cooker and today I thought--I'll try it! It just finished, and I think I could have cooked it a bit longer, but it is less fussy than making pancakes individually, so I'll have to try it again.

I'm eating it while watching The Two Towers. They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!

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Cooking

2021-05-16T21:47:58Z

I started a roast just after lunch today in my slow cooker and then went outside for a couple of hours. Just came back in and went "Huh. Something smells good. Must be one of my neighbors...wait! That's MY food that smells good!"

So my afternoon is going well!

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Farscape: DNA Mad Scientist, They've Got a Secret, Till the Blood Runs Clear and Rhapsody in Blue

2021-03-10T04:30:46Z

I forgot to post last week, even though I'd actually watched and written up thoughts. So... here we are.

( Read more... )

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PK Tech Girl and That Old Black Magic

2021-02-24T20:05:49Z

( So these thoughts are completely random )

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Farscape: Back and Back and Back to the Future and Thank God it's Friday, Again

2021-02-18T05:45:50Z

Haha! I certainly didn't spend all my free time this week getting obsessed with a puzzle and almost forget about Farscape. Nope. Not me!

( Random, sleepy thoughts )

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Farscape: Exodus from Genesis and Throne for a Loss

2021-02-10T03:26:59Z

Hah! I remembered!

( Exodus from Genesis )

( Throne for a Loss )

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Farscape: Premiere and I, E.T.

2021-02-04T02:04:39Z

Just some random thoughts below the cut, guys--feel free to chime in with actual themes or side notes or tell me how wrong I am. I should also mention that I know there are different episode orders out there but I'm just following along with my DVDs. So. Yes.

( Premiere )

( I, E.T. )

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Farscape rewatch: My attempt at a loose schedule

2021-01-31T03:19:19Z

I'm thinking about starting my re-watch of Farscape NEXT WEEK. I'm looking at doing 2(ish) episodes each week, with flexibility for the three-parters, so I can watch them all together. I will do my absolute best to make a post of some kind for the episodes as I go. I'll try to post on late Tuesday/early Wednesday... I'm just dreadfully out of practice at this communal fandom thing, so feel free to remind me if I forget.

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Reflecting on 2020 and Resetting for 2021

2021-01-01T06:20:14Z

Gosh, it's been a while since I've done one of these. Let's see if I remember how to do all these little tags...

( Read all about 2020 here )

( 2021 not-resolutions )

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Underappreciated Pleasures

2020-11-27T04:08:59Z

1. A clear and free-flowing sink drain.

2. Watching the Turkeys Away episode of WKRP in Cincinnati (despite never watching any of the other episodes, ever, in my life).

3. Having a house decorated with familiar Christmas decorations.

HOWEVER.

Christmas tree lights are the absolute DEVIL and deserve no quarter. Every SINGLE strand except one on that tree had a section of lights out and it took me an HOUR to take all those damn lights off my tree. The strand that was fine? Just long enough to go around the base of the tree ONCE.

Options: Christmas Light Tester or LED strands. If anyone has used the testers, let me know if they're worth it.

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