![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rachg82Hello peoples. Time for your regularly scheduled rambling & randomness, courtesy of moi!
First, a disclaimer: I don't have time to proof-read this before I need to leave for plans I have tonight, so please forgive me for any instances of spelling/grammar/sense-making fail. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Heh.
1. Icons!
Soo, here's the thing about icons. Once you start making them, you will not be able to stop. Even if you are rocking the most ghetto basic photo-editing software in the world, like I am. Trust me. Fortunately for me though, this morning I was on an XF kick, which is the easiest show in the world to icon. I mean, it's just so damn ~pretty~, you know? You really don't need to get too fancy-schmancy with it.
And because I love you all so much (and because my inner child still likes putting her pictures up on the fridge so she can say "Lookie what I did, Ma!"), I'll share the fruits of my time-wasting here. They're nothing that special, but feel free to swipe any you guys want as long as you credit them back to me:
I also really wanted to do a BSG icon for Six & Baltar in the Opera House (specifically a close-up of their hands as they walk down the aisle), but I can never find a good screencap of that scene. If any of the BSG fans on my flist know of any, please drop me a line. I freaking love that scene. (it's pretty much the moment when I knew I was going to be hooked on the show. Shape of Things To Come FTW!)
2. My friend at work's birthday party tonight, which I'm invited to and which I won't need to take the bus to because one of my other coworkers offered to give me a ride. I kinda want to keep the candle I bought for her for myself though. Hee. It's so big & pretty smelling! Plus it has swirly burgundy colors & a little black dish to sit on, which would perfectly match the color scheme in my living room. I think I'm gonna go back & buy a second one for myself later.
3. The new Italian take-out place that opened up a block from my apartment. I haven't eaten there yet, but it's about time one showed up around here. I'm tired of pizza chains. They also have sandwiches & pasta too, and who doesn't like pasta? Of course I'll try not to eat there too often even if they are good, because of the whole "eat out less" part of my New Years resolution, but it's nice to have the option so close by. I swear, this neighborhood is like the most pedestrian-friendly place ever. Which is another thing that makes me happy, btw. 90% of the things I could ever need or want (movie theater, drycleaners, my dentist/doctor/eye-doctor, Hollywood Video, grocery stores, library, book store, my hair salon, you name it) are within walking distance. It's fabulous. Now if only my gym were closer and there was a MAX line nearby (there is the WES train a couple blocks away, but that one's only for weekdays/rush hour. Otherwise I have to take the bus), it'd be perfect. But oh well. Still an extremely convenient place to live.
4. The weight I've been losing. Clothes are already starting to fit better on me. This is the first time my weight has actually started going down in numbers in probably about five years. And I haven't even been going to the gym! Amazing what moderate walking & eating less shitty food will do for you. And I've gotta say, I am feeling so much more motivated about it now that I'm starting to see the results.
5. My day at work yesterday. I talked to my manager about my migraine/stomach-fail gameplan, and he was super supportive & nice about it. Of course it probably helped that I talked to him about it on a Friday, which is when he's always in a good mood, but still. Then, on top of that, I had a bad-ass sales day. I told my boss what I made on my way out and his eyes bugged out of his head. Haha. Also, we had a really nice meeting in the middle of the afternoon where my boss' boss sat down with us, told us that the bigwigs have appreciated our work & are putting more money/investment into the department (meaning there's more of a chance we could get hired on & then move up eventually) & singled out every person in the team to say something nice about them and what they contribute. For instance, one girl was the "decorator" (she's the one who put up the Happy Birthday banner on my cubicle, and is also the one whose party I'm attending tonight), another person was the "nice guy," etc. I was the "analyzer", for those who are curious. That kinda cracked me up as I knew it was going to be something like that. Heh. It was really flattering though because of what he said about it. He was like "Can anyone here ask Rachael a question without her analyzing it?" (which, hee. So true), and then said how another higher-up associated with the department (whom I've probably met only a handful of times) came to him once telling him to basically keep an eye on me, because I had "quite a mind" on me. HOW NICE IS THAT? It made my whole day. The whole meeting did actually, because I'd been feeling a bit stressed out at work lately, and really needed a little sign of appreciation & boost in morale. Plus there was free food, and I love free food. Heh.
And now, just to keep things balanced, here are 5 things that are bugging me at the moment:
1. My mouth being dry. Cut it out, Prozac!
2. My computer. It probably froze about 4 times while trying to upload those icons to photobucket. I'm hereby starting a new charity that shall be known as "Get Rachael A New Computer." Its tagline will be, "Make the World a Better Place. . .One Click of the Mouse At a Time." DONATE TODAY.
3. My missing checkbook. I had it sitting on my desk a few days ago, and now--after my apartments did an "inspection" of everyone's units--it's nowhere to be found. I'm sure I just used the last one & threw it out without remembering (I only use checks for rent so this is very possible), or it's hidden in some random place within a stack of junk mail or whatever, but it's making me super paranoid. I'll probably have to just ask my bank to cancel the checks that were left in that booklet. Annoying.
4. My fail parents. My dad never called me after my birthday (see, told you), and my mom is too busy trying to harass doctors into giving her methadone to call me back after hanging up on me this week for not giving her my pain killers. And yes, you read that right, I said methadone. Can I get a big round of "WHAT THE HELL EVER, HAVE FUN WITH THAT"? Christ.
5. Bones going on hiatus for two months. I mean, on one hand we've got the Winter Olympics, which I actually should've put in the "things that make me happy" list, come to think of it. But I only watch it for the figure skating! MUST YOU TAKE AWAY MY BONES?
Which, speaking of, let's talk about this week's Bones. Shall we?
I wasn't too crazy (no pun intended) about this week's Bones, guys. There were a few moments I loved, no doubt, but some of the way schizophrenia/mental hospitals were portrayed made me a little ranty too. So, fair warning.
-The X-Filesy opening. Don't tell me I was the only one who thought this. That was such an XF teaser, yo! With the church and the horns and the tail (HELLO THERE SMALL POTATOES REFERENCE, HOW ARE YOU TODAY?) and the ~creepy altar-fire~. I was totally waiting for the do-do-do-do-do-dooooooo music to start playing.
-"Zeus apparently had better aim than your god." Hahaha. LOVE IT.
-And while we're on the topic of Bones, how ridiculously cute was she when she was like "Oh you're joking! That's funny!" & laughed in the car? OMG so fucking adorable. How Booth resists from tackle-hugging her sometimes, I'll never know.
-"At least it wasn't Brimstone: Available Only From Hell." Ha! Cam didn't have that many great lines in this episode unfortunately, but this one made me laugh out loud.
-"Shouldn't they be in strait jackets or padded rooms?" FU, BOOTH. SERIOUSLY. And you guys know I love Booth, but that was such a douchey, ignorant-ass thing to say. Which brings me to the ranty portion of this review, so buckle in:
NOT ALL SCHIZOPHRENICS ARE THAT GODDAMNED CRAZY ACTING & HOPELESS. NOT ALL MENTAL HOSPITALS ARE GLOOMY PLACES OF DESPAIR & DELUSIONS, WITH ZOMBIES MAKING ART PROJECTS. Jesus H. Christ. My uncle on my dad's side is a paranoid schizophrenic, and guess what? He takes his medication (well, usually anyway. He causes less drama than my mom, I'll just say that), he does the best he can to do odd-jobs here & there while on disability, and he's a totally decent, nice man. He doesn't think he's the devil; he doesn't think he's an angel. He spent time in a psych ward when he was younger, but he's never had to since. He sometimes rambles & stops making sense, sometimes thinks something happened that didn't, and if he goes off his meds he has problems, but he does not deserve to be talked about as a "looney" or to be portrayed as this hopeless, horrible event in his family's life. A diagnosis of schizophrenia is a tragic thing, but it doesn't mean that person can't at least try to live a somewhat happy life.
Also? My mom--a manic-depressive (and yes, I know, my family has great genes. We're also busting at the seams with cancer & heart conditions. Go team!)--has been in mental hospitals several times in my life. We talked about committing her at one point because she was so out of control. But despite the fact that she's been delusional (that was while she was abusing drugs), and despite the fact that she was out of control going into the hospital, they were always able to get her to settle down after a few days there. Which just serves my point that not all patients in a mental hospital are Nutty McNuttersons with wide eyes and creepy voices, having no idea where they are or who they are. And the thing is, are some people in those places like that? YES. Definitely. And do some schizophrenics think they're evil or some other out-there delusion? Again, YES. Of course. But do you ever see TV portray a schizophrenic as anything *other* than those things? Anything other than a lost cause? Or scary? Or a joke? If that balance were there, this kind of plotline wouldn't bug me nearly as much. But the lack of representation just makes it that much more important to be careful when you DO try to talk about the illness, you know?
On the plus side though, I did like the doctor laying the smack-down on Bones for her hate-on for psychology (although, show, just so you know? Psychiatry & Psychology do not equal the exact same thing. Sometimes I really think they don't understand the difference), liked Bones apologizing to the doctor, and I do think they portrayed the family of the victim in a very sensitive light and showed how mental illness affects not just the patient, but everyone around them. And though I wanted to point out that not every schizophrenic is a burden on their family, it is VERY true that being related to someone who is severly mentally ill takes a giant toll on you emotionally. I just think schizophrenia in particular gets a really harsh treatment by most shows (and most people in general), which is why I was so sensitive to this plotline. But I completely related to the family nonetheless, after everything I've gone through with my mother.
Whew, ANYWAY THOUGH. Heh. Now that I'm done ranting, let's get back to the rest of the episode:
-"I don't want to be the Giant Satan. I only want to be a minor demon." Heh. Although I thought Cam was being a bit ridic (actually, a lot ridic) automatically assuming Aristoo was talking about them, it was still nice to learn more about him. I'm still getting used to the non-accent though, which is funny. But he's much cuter without it. And he was pretty bad-ass with those num-chucks (or however you spell that word. I'm not looking it up). Persian Ninja! Hee.
Also? Hodgins hitting himself in the head? Hahahaha.
-Sweets and his baby-face. Although I was feeling too P.C.-peeved to laugh at his "looney-ass crazy-sifter" comment (on another day it probably would've made me laugh, but not this time), he was great otherwise. I loved his "not funny" to Booth and I loved his "WHAT?"-amazement over Brennan's shoe-tying wisdom. Ha. That was cute.
-The return of the diner! I love the bar, but I'm glad they're not forgetting the diner too. I don't want it to suddenly disappear like Syd's.
-Brennan's jacket. I know you're probably shouting "See! Proof!" with your ED pregnancy theory,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
keenai, but I was too busy drooling over how cute it was to think about that. Ha. Although I still wish they'd let her go jacket-less again more often for awhile. What, is she that cold all the time now? WE WANT TO SEE YOUR BEWBIES, BRENNAN. *is shameless*
-"2 + 2 = 4. . .These things are beautiful to me." And here, my friends, is where the episode was saved for me. THAT WAS SUCH A LOVELY MOMENT BETWEEN THEM. First off, could they have been looking at each other with any more adoration in their eyes? I'm surprised those looks they give each other don't cause like a ~fall-out cloud of love~ to mushroom out around the room & make everyone pass out as they walk past. That, or just start going at it like bunnies themselves as part of an USTy contact-high or something. Haha. But seriously, it's not even just eyesex, it's EYELOVE. And it kills me. Also: Brennan's speech was so gorgeous. You do not have to be religious to appreciate the beauty of the world around you, or to feel comfort in finding the reason & meaning for things. She & Booth are way more similar sometimes than I think they realize. They're like two sides of the same coin in a way.
Oh, and P.S, before I wrap this up: BRENNAN WAS TOTALLY DRIVING, GUYS. WHAT KIND OF SHENANIGANS HAD TO GO ON BEHIND-THE-SCENES TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN? I swear, between that and their constant diner/bar scenes, they are so secret-dating & they don't even know it.
Final Verdict on the ep? Mixed. Certainly not one of their strongest, but even with my brief interlude in Rantyville, there were still parts I liked. Especially the "the sun comes up because the Earth turns" part. That's totally one of my new favorite Brennan-moments, hands down.
And now, I really need to end this so I can go get ready for the party. Before I go though, here's your Vid of the Day. This one's by SexyCheeseNipNinja, and goes nicely with the XF kick I've been on all day. God, sometimes these two. . .I just can't even take it. *flails*
First, a disclaimer: I don't have time to proof-read this before I need to leave for plans I have tonight, so please forgive me for any instances of spelling/grammar/sense-making fail. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Heh.
1. Icons!
Soo, here's the thing about icons. Once you start making them, you will not be able to stop. Even if you are rocking the most ghetto basic photo-editing software in the world, like I am. Trust me. Fortunately for me though, this morning I was on an XF kick, which is the easiest show in the world to icon. I mean, it's just so damn ~pretty~, you know? You really don't need to get too fancy-schmancy with it.
And because I love you all so much (and because my inner child still likes putting her pictures up on the fridge so she can say "Lookie what I did, Ma!"), I'll share the fruits of my time-wasting here. They're nothing that special, but feel free to swipe any you guys want as long as you credit them back to me:
001
002
003
004
005
006
007
008
009
I also really wanted to do a BSG icon for Six & Baltar in the Opera House (specifically a close-up of their hands as they walk down the aisle), but I can never find a good screencap of that scene. If any of the BSG fans on my flist know of any, please drop me a line. I freaking love that scene. (it's pretty much the moment when I knew I was going to be hooked on the show. Shape of Things To Come FTW!)
2. My friend at work's birthday party tonight, which I'm invited to and which I won't need to take the bus to because one of my other coworkers offered to give me a ride. I kinda want to keep the candle I bought for her for myself though. Hee. It's so big & pretty smelling! Plus it has swirly burgundy colors & a little black dish to sit on, which would perfectly match the color scheme in my living room. I think I'm gonna go back & buy a second one for myself later.
3. The new Italian take-out place that opened up a block from my apartment. I haven't eaten there yet, but it's about time one showed up around here. I'm tired of pizza chains. They also have sandwiches & pasta too, and who doesn't like pasta? Of course I'll try not to eat there too often even if they are good, because of the whole "eat out less" part of my New Years resolution, but it's nice to have the option so close by. I swear, this neighborhood is like the most pedestrian-friendly place ever. Which is another thing that makes me happy, btw. 90% of the things I could ever need or want (movie theater, drycleaners, my dentist/doctor/eye-doctor, Hollywood Video, grocery stores, library, book store, my hair salon, you name it) are within walking distance. It's fabulous. Now if only my gym were closer and there was a MAX line nearby (there is the WES train a couple blocks away, but that one's only for weekdays/rush hour. Otherwise I have to take the bus), it'd be perfect. But oh well. Still an extremely convenient place to live.
4. The weight I've been losing. Clothes are already starting to fit better on me. This is the first time my weight has actually started going down in numbers in probably about five years. And I haven't even been going to the gym! Amazing what moderate walking & eating less shitty food will do for you. And I've gotta say, I am feeling so much more motivated about it now that I'm starting to see the results.
5. My day at work yesterday. I talked to my manager about my migraine/stomach-fail gameplan, and he was super supportive & nice about it. Of course it probably helped that I talked to him about it on a Friday, which is when he's always in a good mood, but still. Then, on top of that, I had a bad-ass sales day. I told my boss what I made on my way out and his eyes bugged out of his head. Haha. Also, we had a really nice meeting in the middle of the afternoon where my boss' boss sat down with us, told us that the bigwigs have appreciated our work & are putting more money/investment into the department (meaning there's more of a chance we could get hired on & then move up eventually) & singled out every person in the team to say something nice about them and what they contribute. For instance, one girl was the "decorator" (she's the one who put up the Happy Birthday banner on my cubicle, and is also the one whose party I'm attending tonight), another person was the "nice guy," etc. I was the "analyzer", for those who are curious. That kinda cracked me up as I knew it was going to be something like that. Heh. It was really flattering though because of what he said about it. He was like "Can anyone here ask Rachael a question without her analyzing it?" (which, hee. So true), and then said how another higher-up associated with the department (whom I've probably met only a handful of times) came to him once telling him to basically keep an eye on me, because I had "quite a mind" on me. HOW NICE IS THAT? It made my whole day. The whole meeting did actually, because I'd been feeling a bit stressed out at work lately, and really needed a little sign of appreciation & boost in morale. Plus there was free food, and I love free food. Heh.
And now, just to keep things balanced, here are 5 things that are bugging me at the moment:
1. My mouth being dry. Cut it out, Prozac!
2. My computer. It probably froze about 4 times while trying to upload those icons to photobucket. I'm hereby starting a new charity that shall be known as "Get Rachael A New Computer." Its tagline will be, "Make the World a Better Place. . .One Click of the Mouse At a Time." DONATE TODAY.
3. My missing checkbook. I had it sitting on my desk a few days ago, and now--after my apartments did an "inspection" of everyone's units--it's nowhere to be found. I'm sure I just used the last one & threw it out without remembering (I only use checks for rent so this is very possible), or it's hidden in some random place within a stack of junk mail or whatever, but it's making me super paranoid. I'll probably have to just ask my bank to cancel the checks that were left in that booklet. Annoying.
4. My fail parents. My dad never called me after my birthday (see, told you), and my mom is too busy trying to harass doctors into giving her methadone to call me back after hanging up on me this week for not giving her my pain killers. And yes, you read that right, I said methadone. Can I get a big round of "WHAT THE HELL EVER, HAVE FUN WITH THAT"? Christ.
5. Bones going on hiatus for two months. I mean, on one hand we've got the Winter Olympics, which I actually should've put in the "things that make me happy" list, come to think of it. But I only watch it for the figure skating! MUST YOU TAKE AWAY MY BONES?
Which, speaking of, let's talk about this week's Bones. Shall we?
I wasn't too crazy (no pun intended) about this week's Bones, guys. There were a few moments I loved, no doubt, but some of the way schizophrenia/mental hospitals were portrayed made me a little ranty too. So, fair warning.
-The X-Filesy opening. Don't tell me I was the only one who thought this. That was such an XF teaser, yo! With the church and the horns and the tail (HELLO THERE SMALL POTATOES REFERENCE, HOW ARE YOU TODAY?) and the ~creepy altar-fire~. I was totally waiting for the do-do-do-do-do-dooooooo music to start playing.
-"Zeus apparently had better aim than your god." Hahaha. LOVE IT.
-And while we're on the topic of Bones, how ridiculously cute was she when she was like "Oh you're joking! That's funny!" & laughed in the car? OMG so fucking adorable. How Booth resists from tackle-hugging her sometimes, I'll never know.
-"At least it wasn't Brimstone: Available Only From Hell." Ha! Cam didn't have that many great lines in this episode unfortunately, but this one made me laugh out loud.
-"Shouldn't they be in strait jackets or padded rooms?" FU, BOOTH. SERIOUSLY. And you guys know I love Booth, but that was such a douchey, ignorant-ass thing to say. Which brings me to the ranty portion of this review, so buckle in:
NOT ALL SCHIZOPHRENICS ARE THAT GODDAMNED CRAZY ACTING & HOPELESS. NOT ALL MENTAL HOSPITALS ARE GLOOMY PLACES OF DESPAIR & DELUSIONS, WITH ZOMBIES MAKING ART PROJECTS. Jesus H. Christ. My uncle on my dad's side is a paranoid schizophrenic, and guess what? He takes his medication (well, usually anyway. He causes less drama than my mom, I'll just say that), he does the best he can to do odd-jobs here & there while on disability, and he's a totally decent, nice man. He doesn't think he's the devil; he doesn't think he's an angel. He spent time in a psych ward when he was younger, but he's never had to since. He sometimes rambles & stops making sense, sometimes thinks something happened that didn't, and if he goes off his meds he has problems, but he does not deserve to be talked about as a "looney" or to be portrayed as this hopeless, horrible event in his family's life. A diagnosis of schizophrenia is a tragic thing, but it doesn't mean that person can't at least try to live a somewhat happy life.
Also? My mom--a manic-depressive (and yes, I know, my family has great genes. We're also busting at the seams with cancer & heart conditions. Go team!)--has been in mental hospitals several times in my life. We talked about committing her at one point because she was so out of control. But despite the fact that she's been delusional (that was while she was abusing drugs), and despite the fact that she was out of control going into the hospital, they were always able to get her to settle down after a few days there. Which just serves my point that not all patients in a mental hospital are Nutty McNuttersons with wide eyes and creepy voices, having no idea where they are or who they are. And the thing is, are some people in those places like that? YES. Definitely. And do some schizophrenics think they're evil or some other out-there delusion? Again, YES. Of course. But do you ever see TV portray a schizophrenic as anything *other* than those things? Anything other than a lost cause? Or scary? Or a joke? If that balance were there, this kind of plotline wouldn't bug me nearly as much. But the lack of representation just makes it that much more important to be careful when you DO try to talk about the illness, you know?
On the plus side though, I did like the doctor laying the smack-down on Bones for her hate-on for psychology (although, show, just so you know? Psychiatry & Psychology do not equal the exact same thing. Sometimes I really think they don't understand the difference), liked Bones apologizing to the doctor, and I do think they portrayed the family of the victim in a very sensitive light and showed how mental illness affects not just the patient, but everyone around them. And though I wanted to point out that not every schizophrenic is a burden on their family, it is VERY true that being related to someone who is severly mentally ill takes a giant toll on you emotionally. I just think schizophrenia in particular gets a really harsh treatment by most shows (and most people in general), which is why I was so sensitive to this plotline. But I completely related to the family nonetheless, after everything I've gone through with my mother.
Whew, ANYWAY THOUGH. Heh. Now that I'm done ranting, let's get back to the rest of the episode:
-"I don't want to be the Giant Satan. I only want to be a minor demon." Heh. Although I thought Cam was being a bit ridic (actually, a lot ridic) automatically assuming Aristoo was talking about them, it was still nice to learn more about him. I'm still getting used to the non-accent though, which is funny. But he's much cuter without it. And he was pretty bad-ass with those num-chucks (or however you spell that word. I'm not looking it up). Persian Ninja! Hee.
Also? Hodgins hitting himself in the head? Hahahaha.
-Sweets and his baby-face. Although I was feeling too P.C.-peeved to laugh at his "looney-ass crazy-sifter" comment (on another day it probably would've made me laugh, but not this time), he was great otherwise. I loved his "not funny" to Booth and I loved his "WHAT?"-amazement over Brennan's shoe-tying wisdom. Ha. That was cute.
-The return of the diner! I love the bar, but I'm glad they're not forgetting the diner too. I don't want it to suddenly disappear like Syd's.
-Brennan's jacket. I know you're probably shouting "See! Proof!" with your ED pregnancy theory,
keenai, but I was too busy drooling over how cute it was to think about that. Ha. Although I still wish they'd let her go jacket-less again more often for awhile. What, is she that cold all the time now? WE WANT TO SEE YOUR BEWBIES, BRENNAN. *is shameless*-"2 + 2 = 4. . .These things are beautiful to me." And here, my friends, is where the episode was saved for me. THAT WAS SUCH A LOVELY MOMENT BETWEEN THEM. First off, could they have been looking at each other with any more adoration in their eyes? I'm surprised those looks they give each other don't cause like a ~fall-out cloud of love~ to mushroom out around the room & make everyone pass out as they walk past. That, or just start going at it like bunnies themselves as part of an USTy contact-high or something. Haha. But seriously, it's not even just eyesex, it's EYELOVE. And it kills me. Also: Brennan's speech was so gorgeous. You do not have to be religious to appreciate the beauty of the world around you, or to feel comfort in finding the reason & meaning for things. She & Booth are way more similar sometimes than I think they realize. They're like two sides of the same coin in a way.
Oh, and P.S, before I wrap this up: BRENNAN WAS TOTALLY DRIVING, GUYS. WHAT KIND OF SHENANIGANS HAD TO GO ON BEHIND-THE-SCENES TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN? I swear, between that and their constant diner/bar scenes, they are so secret-dating & they don't even know it.
Final Verdict on the ep? Mixed. Certainly not one of their strongest, but even with my brief interlude in Rantyville, there were still parts I liked. Especially the "the sun comes up because the Earth turns" part. That's totally one of my new favorite Brennan-moments, hands down.
And now, I really need to end this so I can go get ready for the party. Before I go though, here's your Vid of the Day. This one's by SexyCheeseNipNinja, and goes nicely with the XF kick I've been on all day. God, sometimes these two. . .I just can't even take it. *flails*
