The Aliens 30th Anniversary Loot Crate!

                                

                                        

                                                      It'sHereIt'sHereIt'sHere!!!!

                                

                               Opening it up . . .  Nothing's jumped out at me so far. What's that?

                                  

                                         A Bug Stomper T-shirt, from the drop-ship logo!

                               

                         

                                                                   Comics.Very nice!

                             

                                                A cool mini-poster. Is that Japanese?

                               

                                   And then we have this guy, a 6.5'' figure from Titan. 

                     Sure, he looks kind of dayglo now, but you should see him in the dark. 

                             

                                   Aaand here's my favourite: glow-in-the-dark Alien eggs!

                            

    These are just so cool. They have this weird glow, even in daylight, if you shade them a bit. 

                         

Here's my attempt at shooting them in the dark. Yes, I actually locked myself in a dark bathroom  with the things to get these shots. You're welcome. 

                       

                   Honestly, these don't do them justice. They're super creepy in real life. 

                         

Yep, very happy with my Aliens loot. These are going in my dvd cabinet, behind glass doors, so they can't get out because it'll keep the dust off. Yeah. That's it.

Free Online Writing Course from The University of Iowa!

The University of Iowa is doing another free MOOC this year, open to everyone. Here's some info:

"On July 18, 2016, the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa will open the new MOOC Whitman's Civil War: Writing and Imaging Loss, Death, and Disaster. This free open online course will embark upon a journey through Walt Whitman's writings on the American Civil War. Through Whitman's lens, we will explore how writing and image can be used to examine war, conflict, trauma, and reconciliation - in Whitman's time and today. Join us!"

I did their last year's course, and it was amazing. Definitely signing up for this one, too.

If you want to join in, you can read more here.

Etymology Expeditions: The Biggest Word I Ever Heard

Here's a childhood favourite:

supercalifragilisticexpialidocious 

You probably know it's from the 1964 Disney movie version of "Mary Poppins," but did you know it was the subject of a lawsuit based on earlier song title "Supercalafajalistickexpialadojus"(1949)? Known as "The Super Song," it was recorded by Alan Holmes and his New Tones, lyrics by Patricia Smith (a Gloria Parker pen name. She was the one suing Disney.) 

 Disney won in the end, because they showed that variants of the word were in use well before 1949.

The word was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 1986. 

Some people have tried to break it into parts: 

super- "above", cali- "beauty", fragilistic- "delicate", expiali- "to atone", and -docious "educable"

but that doesn't make any sense, I think. 

Maybe it's best to just enjoy it for the wonderful nonsense it is?

Here's a link to the Disney version on Youtube. Go on, listen to it. It's the song equivalent of chugging a can of Red Bull.

Sources:

www.etymonline.com

en.wikipedia.org/

Unpopular Bookish Opinions

The "unpopular bookish opinions" tag has been making the rounds in all the Finnish writing blogs I read, and it sounded fun, so I thought I'd give it a shot. What the heck, I'm on vacation

1. A Popular Book or series that you didn't like.

Wuthering Heights. Just truly unpleasant. I wrote a whole blog post about this, so I won't go into more detail here.


2. A Popular Book or series that every one else seems to hate but you love. 

I'm a bit embarrassed about this one, but Scarlett, Alexandra Ripley's sequel to Mitchell's Gone With the Wind. I read it as a teen and it just stuck.

3. A Love Triangle where the main character ended up with the person you did NOT want them to end up with (warn ppl for spoilers) OR an OTP that you don't like. 

Ron and Hermione. I still don't get it.


4. A popular book Genre that you hardly reach for. 

Medical thrillers/mysteries, like the Kay Scarpetta books. I just don't like reading about realistic violence, autopsies, and serial killers. And a lot of these start to feel very formulaic to me after a few volumes.


5. A popular or beloved character that you do not like.

Heathcliff. What a jerk.


6. A popular author that you can't seem to get into. 

Stephen Baxter. He writes hard science fiction, emphasis on the "hard." I struggled to finish Time, couldn't muster up the energy for Space. Interesting ideas, but too much of a science lecture masquerading as a novel.

7. A popular book trope that you're tired of seeing. (examples "lost princess", corrupt ruler, love triangles, etc.)

The Hero's Journey in its most basic form. You know, the whole "chosen one" thing. Okay for a video game, but as I get older I'm starting to prefer a main character who knows what she's doing and is already an interesting person instead of a blank slate.


8. A popular series that you have no interest in reading.

Fifty Shades of Grey. Not my thing.


9. The saying goes "The book is always better than the movie", but what movie or T.V. show adaptation do you prefer more than the book?

Hmm. That's a tough one. There's lots of movies that are worse than the book, but better? Even "as good" is a tall order, but Howl's Moving Castle and the LOTR trilogy come to mind. Okay, here's one: I actually enjoy Jeeves and Wooster more as a T.V. show. But I like the books too, so . . .

Anybody out there who hasn't done this one yet? Tag, you're it!

Bengtskär Lighthouse and The Rosala Viking Centre

                              

First day of summer vacation, yay! Hubby and I celebrated with a day trip to Bengtskär Lighthouse. We booked this tour from Kasnäs.

                               

The lighthouse has been open to the public since the nineties, and it's one of the few lighthouses where you get to see the lantern room. 

                                 

                                             The building is built of local stone. It's beautiful.

                                    

                                                     We climbed all the way to the top. 

                                   250 steps and two ladders, but the view is totally worth it. 

                                    

                              The antique lens is still there, but nowadays they use electric lights instead.

There were lots of these guys about ("sea duck" is the translation I found (haahka)?). They  blend in so well that I nearly stepped on a few even though I was looking out for them. 

                       People have carved their names into the stone. I wonder who they were?

Oh, and there was an abandoned  wartime bunker there, too. And I went in! Pretty creepy, but cool.  It looked like something out of a horror FPS. 

                               

                               The tour also included a stopover at the Rosala Viking Centre. 

                               

                       It was actually pretty cool, especially the jatulintarha, an ancient maze. 

                                

We had lunch in the great hall. It would be an amazing place for a larp! They also do Viking feasts there, and the guests get to dress up. 

                                     

                                                       That's my vegetable soup and mead. 

                                      

                                       

The great thing about Rosala is that it's not a museum: you can actually touch stuff! This place would be really fun for kids. The guide actually said they do trips for school groups and summer camp type stuff, too.

                                    

These glasses at the gift shop were gorgeous, but as we were going on to Bengtskär, I didn't want to lug them around. I hope I'll find them at the Turku medieval fair in July. I definitely need a couple of these.

                                     

                                Yes, these are fake weapons. Yes, I played with them. Wouldn't you?

All in all, a great day out. If you're coming up for Worldcon next year and want to see a bit more of Finland while you're here, this is a fun option for a day trip. You can even stay overnight in the lighthouse. They've turned the lighthouse keepers' rooms into a hotel! Rosala also offers accommodation, Viking style.

Both would make great locations for a writers' retreat, too.

The Book Purse

                             

Meet my new favourite bag: the book purse from ThinkGeek. I've been looking for one for a while, and this is perfect. They also have a messenger bag version, but that's much too large for me. At forty bucks, this was a bargain even considering the customs fees. 

                          

                                Just look at that detail! I can't wait to wear this.

Deadlines

Whew!

I can't believe it: I actually made all my deadlines. And jotted down an outline for a new short story while I was at it. Why do the best ideas always hit when I'm swamped? I really wanted to start writing that one right away. And it's demanding to be written; sentences and images keep nibbling at my mind, making it hard to concentrate on anything else.

But now I'll think I'll relax for a bit. On the menu tonight: a walk with friends, and then some witchering, unless I finally give in and start that story. And only three days till the first week of my summer vacation, yay!

                                  

                                        That's Imperial Red from Wychwood Brewery, btw.

                                                   Thought it would go well with the game.