I Just Can't Walk Away

Pretty sure my eyes are now made up of mostly pollen. That's how this works, right?


16.) Favorite BSC love interest:
Logan was probably my favorite as a kid because oh so romantic that he and MA were together and ooh, ahh. If they'd done more with Sam, I'd probably go with him, though he's probably my current favorite. I get why the timing with Stacey was always iffy as there's a pretty big divide between high school and middle (though imagine the possibilities if the regular series had moved the 8th grade to the high school ala CD) but really, I wasn't reading the books for the love interests. I got that fix in Sweet Valley.

This is going to be quick but I might update it later. LT is up and I went from holding steady at around 170-ish books for the last zillion years to, in less than half an hour, hitting 279. So in about 25 minutes, I added about a hundred books. And uh, yeah, they're all BSC books. When I've eaten and possibly when I've added the rest of my BSC collection, I'm going to sit down and see if I need to fix things (I've had to delete a couple of books that pop up probably because they have similar codes to BSC books) and then possibly nerd out if someone else hasn't already nerded out on the info. *adjusts glasses*


Really should've asked Widget about that folding table the other day. This would be so much easier, I suspect, done all from my room.


And because I didn't post this yesterday, we'll go for a two-fer. Stupid migraine jumped coasts from California to me.


eta:
And the LT is up to around 440 books. I say around because there are a few actual duplicates that I need to delete and I swear the number of books fluctuates but it's always at least 440. This, of course, means that I do actually have limitless book potential. MUHAHAHA. Ahem.

That covers about two shelves on my black bookcase. The second shelf I should probably go through and chuck/donate the various VHS things but sentimental reasons and a desire to finish up because my god, I was hungry kept me from doing so. I was pretty pleased that for the first time I can remember, I cleaned and sorted a shelf and managed to actually come away with room left over. Which I promptly filled but still. Room! Huzzah!

My original plan was to go through and book nerd it up properly with the various books but after about five of them I gave up. That's going to have to wait for a time when I've cleaned this desk off and LT is up for the weekend. Possibly might try to use the laptop for it again but also might not because getting comfy on the floor was not possible.

I will say that if you do go play on LT and are scanning in stuff like the BSC, just skip straight to scanning the inside cover. The newer books (like the re-releases from not too terribly long ago) will work the other way, but the old stuff won't. And some of them either have the same numbers as other books OR they're close enough and when scanning things, it'll sometimes double scan and catch another number at random. I'm used to the machines at work doing that so it wasn't a big thing. Also, it only happened a handful of times and I clearly scanned in quite a few books. Super fast, though.

Other highlights: me telling the program that yes, I know this was a duplicate book and yes, I meant for that to happen because I must catalog ALL the cover variations. Seriously, I'm the dork who would honestly like to have all the little variations like the little "win this!" things that changed cataloged. I might not want to own them all, but I'd like them to be noted. (And yes, in the land of SV, I think I've been known to buy the variations like that because I have a problem.)


In nail polish needs/wants, despite not really caring one way or the other about Grease, I have a mighty need for Chills Are Multiplying! because apparently I am a sucker for blue and glitter. It's beautiful though and I neeeeeeeed it.

7.) Favorite super special:
Toss-up between Summer and Winter Vacation. I always wanted to go to summer camp but I also knew myself well enough to know I would be absolutely MISERABLE and um, no to the snakes thank you. (I might've toured a girl scout camp that my mom was willing to send me to that's nearby but would've been sleep-away and while we were there snakes were found in the pool and I just had to say no.) This was like getting to go without having to actually leave home. Winter was fun and had a ghost story and it was just all kinds of yes.



8.) Least favorite super special:
The European one, I guess? I dunno, I don't remember much other than Mal being related to Shakespeare which is enough of a reason to make a face of no. It was also I'd pretty much checked out of the BSC and was only popping back in to buy the SS/Mysteries and anything that caught my eye. There's no nostalgia factor to mask any issues and it didn't stick in my memory very much. Plus side, when I re-read it eventually it'll be like reading a new book. Maybe.

And so tourist season kicks off. I'm sure everyone has their own designated kick-off date for it, but for me it's the Bridge Run and Flowertown. I think I went to Flowertown once and it was kind of awesome and definitely all too much for me, but I was also in middle school and I'd imagine it's worse as an adult. :P Anyway, you could tell all the people who came in last night who work any job that'll bring 'em in contact with tourists or those who are just really psyched for the two events. They had the look of "and so it begins." We all wished one another good luck because really, this weekend sucks if you don't get to play.


Onward!


Oh, and I finally looked it up and it turns out that I wasn't kidding every time I said my work-a-versary is April Fool's Day.


5.) Favorite mystery:
Mary Anne and the Secret in the Attic. I'm going to agree with people who think this should really be in the core books, especially considering how often things in the mysteries didn't really seems to translate to the core series but this one is a big, important life change for MA. I think I re-read it not too long ago (a year or two?) and the only thing that didn't hold up is that the pacing is off, and I think I remember feeling that way when it first came out, too.

2.) Least favorite sitter:
I see you, little meme. Trying to stir up trouble already. Tsk tsk. I really don't know how to answer this, though. Do I go with Jessi, who tended to just be the dancer of the group and seemed to exist to just dance in and out of meetings and occasionally show up when the plot needed sign language? That feels like a cop out, especially since I think Jessi had moments where she was pretty awesome. Also, I love her friendship with Mal and Mal would never forgive me for saying Jessi was my least fav.

Ghostwritten Kristy? But that feels like a cheat since it's a very specific Kristy and honestly, I think I'd have to narrow it down even more since not all ghosties treated everyone in the same way. I will say that Kid!me was not a huge fan of Kristy books because I did not care one little bit about sports and once the Krushers were a thing (which happened pretty much right after I found the series) I knew I'd never be safe in a Kristy book again. :P However, adult!me has a serious soft spot for early Kristy and also I have a vivid memory of trying to convince my mother that a friend of mine wasn't all bad, she was just very Kristy Thomas-ish. Mom replied that she did not really care for Kristy, be it in fiction or apparently in reality. So no, not Kristy.

Logan? Yeah, we'll go with Logan. He was part of the club before Jessi, Mal, Abby, and even Shannon and I don't think I really could tell you too much about him. Part of this could've been that he didn't really get a lot to do, being an associate member and all, and part of it could be that he was pretty much Mary Anne's boyfriend (except when he wasn't) and that's all my kid mind needed to know. Adult me just never really formed an opinion or cared much one way or the other. I don't hate him but I don't really have an opinion beyond "eh" and that I think qualifies for least favorite.

Day Four: A female character you relate to:

( You're standing on my neck. )

16. How have you participated in the fandom over the years?
  Shortly before/right as OotP came out, Jake asked me if I wanted to help mod the relaunch of H-C. I was on a Luna high, so I said, "Duh, of course!" or something to that effect, particularly when he added that I got to be Luna. My activity tended to coincide with interesting threads in the library section. Eventually I got canned for, I do believe, not being active enough (which is incredibly funny if you're still a member there and you see how spectacularly active some people are) and possibly for being the last hold out in the regime o' Jake. (Conspiracy theories make all things more interesting. It's true.)

But outside of that, I don't play much in the fandom. I'm lazy and HP brings out the super crazy in a lot of people, so I prefer discussing it amongst my friends when the topic comes up.

17. Your favorite celebs from the movies or fandom
  This will surprise no one, but I have none. The actors, they're lovely. The fans, they're crazy and I know nothing beyond that. I need to know nothing beyond that. It is, my dears, that simple.

18. If you could change one thing about canon, what would it be?
  You. Do. Not. Kill. A. Weasley. Twin.

That out of my system, I really think the whole Tonks/Remus both dying and leaving Teddy an orphan was just the biggest WTF moment I can think of. That's something that did not sit well with me then and doesn't now. It doesn't... ring true, I guess? So, if you need a semi-logical and less emotional answer, I would go with that.

19. A favorite fanart
http://picasaweb.google.com/CaptainMasquerade/PajamaParty#5268965737838560370
Go on. Click. You back? That might not actually count as fanart, but it is my favorite bit of HP-fanmade-anything. Ever.

20. A favorite quote
"To our newcomers," said Dumbledore in a ringing voice, stretching his hands wide and a beaming smile on his lips, "welcome! To our old hands -- welcome back! There is a time for speech-making, and this is not it."

And:
Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain.

I'm pretty sure that catches me up.

( Don't come around here no more... )

12. Favorite movie scene
  Bouncing. Ferret.
This is followed very closely by Hermione decking Malfoy.

13. Least favorite character(s)
  Well, there's always Percy Weasley. I mean, really, if we're going to go around offing the redheads and maiming them, we couldn't have thrown this one out instead? I'd like an exchange done, thanks. But you're supposed to dislike him for the most part.

For the most part I don't really dislike anyone. Or I do, but you're supposed to hate Umbridge. (She's my absolute least favorite for utterly obvious reasons.) So, to make up for missing yesterday's question and having such a short answer for it anyway, I'll piss you off by insulting characters you probably love. Yay! Wait, wha?

I do not like Hermione nearly as much as I suspect I am supposed to. But, and here's the thing, I only feel this way during the movies (and it's not that I hate Emma Watson) or when people go on and on about how utterly wonderful she is. Otherwise I'm usually content to just coast. I think Bellatrix in the movies is a letdown and I don't understand how this can be considering who is supposed to be putting the crazy in Crazypants. I mean really. I think Tom Riddle is vastly more interesting than Voldemort is 99% of the time.

Damn, some of the upcoming questions are difficult.

Hurry up and burn, R&I. I want to go to bed.

Dear headache, dear headache, please go away... go away.

Time to catch up on the HP meme of doom.

Day 8: (the 23rd)
08. Your favorite ship(s)
  I believe in Ron/Hermione. I think Luna/Neville is pretty damn stupendous. If you do not believe in Remus/Sirius, please do not tell me. I will not prance around shrieking, "TRUE LOVE FOREVER!" but dude. It's so obvious that even when I wasn't looking for evidence, it was still slapping me in the face. I can get behind Harry/Ginny. For awhile I would have happily shipped the good ship Ron/Luna. And we won't even speak as to what Crazypants (Bellatrix) does when she has alone time with, or without, Voldy.

09. Fanfiction: discuss (the 24th)
  I don't tend to read it. It's not because there's a godawful amount of crap out there (and there is) and I have nothing against it. In fact, I'm pretty much pro fanfic as a general rule. I think authors who get all pissy about other people playing in their sandbox should be smacked. If someone likes your world enough to move their mental vacation home there? Jesus, you meet them at the door with a casserole, a pie, and some booze if they're of legal drinking age somewhere in the world. I'm not saying you read it, particularly if your series is still on-going, as that's said to be a lawsuit begging to happen. Fair enough.
  But it's very, very, very important not to piss off the people paying for you to sit up there in your precious ivory tower and write. What separates you from the fanfic people (and not even all of them, mind you) is that you have an audience that pays for your creativity. Plus, y'know, book deals and whatnot. Point is, do not antagonize the hand that pays your damn bills. If nothing else, you don't have to read it. You just be flattered that people like your stuff enough to feel inspired.
  I do not tend to read fanfiction because I do not tend to have time to do so. Okay, fine, and I don't necessarily want to read something that everyone else says is amazing, nor do I want to wade through all the crap. It boils down to me being lazy.

10. Favorite book moment(s)
  My absolute favorite moment is when the twins make their exit from Hogwarts. It's the moment that gives you hope that one day OotP will end and that it might be worth the pain (actual physical pain) being inflicted by this stupid brick.
   I love Luna's coverage of Quidditch. Oliver Wood crying. The reveal that it could have been Neville and not Harry. Luna's hat.

( List! )

Now I need to find a book I thought I'd already given to Mums to return. Crap.

Day Six of our tour through the HP universe:
06. Your favorite character(s):
  Luna. Freakin'. Lovegood. I think you knew that. I've loved Luna since she first appeared and she was pretty much the only damn thing that kept me reading through book 5. My mind would start to break and then Luna would appear, so blissfully unaware (or maybe she just didn't care) of how the rest of the school seemed to think of her. If she wanted to do something, she did it. She believed in things no one else did and she was right far more often than most would have ever imagined at the beginning. And yes, she has tragedy in her past and all that. Luna and her funky hair and eyes. ♥

  I love Neville as well. He's just adorkable. He's sort of the flipside to Luna. Oh, Nevile knows how everyone else looks at him, and he still tries so damn hard. It would be so easy to just... not try and that's just not an option for him. One of the most awesome bits of the final book was the glimpse at how he'd grown up and taken charge. Dude. I could have accepted Harry dying but not Neville. Yes. My priorities might seem a little skewed.

I love the twins and lalalala-Ican'thereyouwhenyousaythatoneisnomore-lalalalalala! I believe that you don't mess with Mama Molly Weasley, and that Ginny is pretty bad ass at times. I think McGonnagall is sorely underrated and underused. Hagrid may drive me bonkers at times because he has moments where you have to ask yourself, Really?! but he's Hagrid.

And if you insist upon making me pick one of the trio, I love Ron. I get that I should probably pick Hermione but I can't. I like Ron because he gets jealous of Harry's fame and the perks that come along with it. He's a jerk at times, but in the end, he's got your back, even if he's pretty sure you've finally lost your damn mind. I like that he's not perfect, or perfectly accepting of everything. It makes things more realistic.

And a special mention for Oliver Wood. Love.

Snark of Bullet called on account of me getting bored (it's bad, bad, bad. JC finally comes out as a bad guy, only not because that would be awesome and we can't have that.) and because I got weird news and the person who delivered it then decided they were done with the conversation.

Yesterday was the significant ex's birthday. For the most part I think I only thought about it a couple of times (one of them being when my phone/alarm alerted me that he was turning 30 and I laughed because, well... I'm not 30 yet.) and the day was much better than I might have thought.

Today Cass tells me that oh, yeah, he's got a facebook (which I knew) and that he added her as a friend sometime last week and that the woman he's in a relationship with is 5-6 years older, isn't that just weird?

Um, kay, I knew the fb but I hadn't looked because I kind of hadn't wanted to know this exact information. It's one thing to know that duh, of course the person who did the dumping did the moving on. DUH. I get that. But it's another thing to have it confirmed, you know? So there's that moment where you feel like someone literally kicked you in the gut (and as someone with a little brother who believed in wrestling when we were younger, I know full well how that feels, thank you kindly.) and then you're left not entirely sure how to process the information.

Sure, it's a duh moment, but until ten minutes ago I could pretend he was effing miserable. It's harder to pretend that right now. ( Y'know? )

Of all the things to inherit, it had to be the ability to hold the most random and painful grudges.

And now for Day 3:
03. What house would you be in?
I'd like to say I'm a Ravenclaw because I'm oh so smart, but I strongly suspect that I would've been thrown in Hufflepuff. I'd have been okay with either, except for the part where the Ravens are mean to Luna. That's just not cool. But if you ask which house I identify most with, I blame my stint at HC and my sorting into Ravenclaw, because I'm all, "Ravenclaw pride!" You know, in a thoroughly mature sort of way. *cough* :P