The Curse Of Winter Break

[skybythelight]

Yeah, makes sense. My boyfriend and I watch the show with a few of his friends, though, and they've all read all of the books. I always feel like such a jerk when they're trying to talk about something and bf or I has to be like GUYS SHUT UP SHE HASN'T READ THEM ALL YET.

[practical cat]

Any tips for indoor exercises/sport-type things I can do (in a small amount of space...) to keep myself from actually going crazy?

You can also find zumba videos all over the internet (free!) and those can be pretty fun.

[rising_star]

Dear buffy fans,

Watch "Dollhouse". Especially if you're teaching about women & gender in the media. Or science & technology.

Also, I am jealous of those of you that don't have massive winter break plans. My winter break will be spent moving across the country, finding an apartment, moving into said apartment, getting a new office (hopefully!), applying for fellowships/jobs/postdocs, writing a manuscript, and some time with my family. Yowzers, that looks insane when I write it all out.

[rems]

Dear buffy fans,

Watch "Dollhouse". Especially if you're teaching about women & gender in the media. Or science & technology.

I agree.

[practical cat]

Dollhouse is great (after those first five terrible, terrible episodes), Angel is the best.

[lisajay]

continue The Dark Tower series (I actually finished the first one yesterday -- very excited to start #2, also sitting at home waiting to be read)

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

did you read the revised or original version of the gunslinger?

oh man, i am SO excited vicariously right now. enjoy your trip down the rabbit hole. btw, at least among my circle of friends, book 3 (the waste lands) is sort of notoriously difficult to get through. i think it's really a pacing issue. there's something about transitioning from 2 to 3 that makes the pages start to turn a little slowly. but power through, & it will be so very worth it.

btw^2: the wind through the keyhole takes place between books 4 & 5, so you could read it then, or you could read it in publishing chronological order (i.e. last since it just came out this year). how you tackle that is obviously up to you, but i think if i could go back & do it all over again for the first time, i'd probably read TWTTK after finishing the series proper anyway; it's a good read, but it's really ancillary to the series IMHO. just my $0.02.

[ProfLorax]

Dollhouse is great (after those first five terrible, terrible episodes), Angel is the best.

Really? It gets better? I should have known, since Whedon has a tendency to take his time finding his groove with each new series. I tried watching Dollhouse when it originally aired, but I couldn't get past the first few episodes. But I'll give it another shot, as well as Angel, this winter break. My To-Do list is lengthening by the minute!

[practical cat]

Yeah. I think the overwhelming theory with Dollhouse at the time was that Whedon was suffering at the hands of the evil FOX folks. The first five have really very little in common with what follows.

[rems]

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

did you read the revised or original version of the gunslinger?

oh man, i am SO excited vicariously right now. enjoy your trip down the rabbit hole. btw, at least among my circle of friends, book 3 (the waste lands) is sort of notoriously difficult to get through. i think it's really a pacing issue. there's something about transitioning from 2 to 3 that makes the pages start to turn a little slowly. but power through, & it will be so very worth it.

btw^2: the wind through the keyhole takes place between books 4 & 5, so you could read it then, or you could read it in publishing chronological order (i.e. last since it just came out this year). how you tackle that is obviously up to you, but i think if i could go back & do it all over again for the first time, i'd probably read TWTTK after finishing the series proper anyway; it's a good read, but it's really ancillary to the series IMHO. just my $0.02.

I think I read the original -- it was an old copy I just happened to find at the Goodwill used bookstore. I was literally about to buy a copy of it at Barnes and Noble, and then I went to the used bookstore first and, well, that it was.

I loved it. I can't wait to start the second one. I mentioned it at the dept xmas party, and some grad students (I can say that with disdain since I'm an adjunct now) started going on and on about how much they hated the series, esp. books two and three which I had heard were the best. I begged them not to spoil anything, but I'm really excited to see what everyone is talking about (nerdalert).

My boyfriend just read The Wind Through the Key Hole -- he's a big SK fan -- and he said it was pretty good, but also suggested to read them in publishing order. I've read a lot of SK in my day, but this has been the one series that I just haven't gotten around to. I've read The Stand last summer which is another reason that I wanted to start this series. I'm currently straddling Dark Tower with Song of Fire and Ice series. I kinda wish I had chosen just one, but I decided to read The Gunslinger before I started book 2 for Martin's series. (nerdalertx2).

And Dollhouse is great -- I actually watched Dollhouse before I watched Buffy (I was a late convert). But you do have to get through the first few eps tho. And it speaks a lot to feminism and women in modern culture regarding the body as comodity, etc. etc. I won't get into. Just watch it. FIrefly is pretty good too, but probably my least fav. I haven't watched Angel yet, but it's in my Netflix queue.

Edited December 12, 2012 by rems

[DontHate]

I have no idea what any of you are talking about.

[rems]

I have no idea what any of you are talking about.

NOT A NERD. I mean that as an insult.

[lisajay]

I think I read the original -- it was an old copy I just happened to find at the Goodwill used bookstore. I was literally about to buy a copy of it at Barnes and Noble, and then I went to the used bookstore first and, well, that it was.

I loved it. I can't wait to start the second one. I mentioned it at the dept xmas party, and some grad students (I can say that with disdain since I'm an adjunct now) started going on and on about how much they hated the series, esp. books two and three which I had heard were the best. I begged them not to spoil anything, but I'm really excited to see what everyone is talking about (nerdalert).

My boyfriend just read The Wind Through the Key Hole -- he's a big SK fan -- and he said it was pretty good, but also suggested to read them in publishing order. I've read a lot of SK in my day, but this has been the one series that I just haven't gotten around to. I've read The Stand last summer which is another reason that I wanted to start this series. I'm currently straddling Dark Tower with Song of Fire and Ice series. I kinda wish I had chosen just one, but I decided to read The Gunslinger before I started book 2 for Martin's series. (nerdalertx2).

And Dollhouse is great -- I actually watched Dollhouse before I watched Buffy (I was a late convert). But you do have to get through the first few eps tho. And it speaks a lot to feminism and women in modern culture regarding the body as comodity, etc. etc. I won't get into. Just watch it. FIrefly is pretty good too, but probably my least fav. I haven't watched Angel yet, but it's in my Netflix queue.

[brace yourself: nerding out in 3... 2...]

ok, so! screw those grad students who clearly wouldn't know a good story if it bit them on the ass. SK gets a lot of unnecessary flak from lots of people (one of my favorite high school teachers regularly chided me for my love of "junk food for the brain"), but the fact is, the man can write. speaking of, if you haven't read on writing, i seriously can't recommend it highly enough. so good. so good.

re: the gunslinger, i highly recommend reading the revised version at some point. i read books 1-4 in high school, with the original version of book 1, then when book 5 finally came out several years later, i started the series over & read the revised version of book 1, & holy shit. the original version is a better book (for reasons i won't go into lest i spoil anything for you), BUT! the revised version actually emphasizes some stuff that ends up being crucial to the series, so it's definitely worth while to read it (especially the introduction or foreword, i forget exactly how it's labeled, but it's worth the read for sure).

the stand is actually DT-related in more ways than one. yay!

[DontHate]

NOT A NERD. I mean that as an insult.

Oh I'm definitely a nerd. Just not a Joss Whedon fan or a fan of whatever else is being referenced on here.

[rising_star]

Yeah. I think the overwhelming theory with Dollhouse at the time was that Whedon was suffering at the hands of the evil FOX folks. The first five have really very little in common with what follows.

My understanding is that FOX refused to air the original pilot. Instead, that episode was spliced and cut into basically the first 4-5 episodes of season 1, which is at least part of why those episodes suck, imo. But, once you get through them, you get a really, really interesting show. So, so good.

[dazedandbemused]

FIrefly is pretty good too, but probably my least fav.

That makes me sad. I haven't watched any of Buffy (just couldn't get into it) but I loved Angel back in the day. However, I would take a bullet for Malcolm Reynolds, no questions asked.

[rems]

Oh I'm definitely a nerd. Just not a Joss Whedon fan or a fan of whatever else is being referenced on here.

I'm not a huge Whedon fan either -- I like his stuff a lot, but I'm not headoverheels for it.

That makes me sad. I haven't watched any of Buffy (just couldn't get into it) but I loved Angel back in the day. However, I would take a bullet for Malcolm Reynolds, no questions asked.

It's not that firefly is bad, it's just Buffy and Dollhouse are better. I do love me some Nathan Fillion tho.

[brace yourself: nerding out in 3... 2...]

ok, so! screw those grad students who clearly wouldn't know a good story if it bit them on the ass. SK gets a lot of unnecessary flak from lots of people (one of my favorite high school teachers regularly chided me for my love of "junk food for the brain"), but the fact is, the man can write. speaking of, if you haven't read on writing, i seriously can't recommend it highly enough. so good. so good.

re: the gunslinger, i highly recommend reading the revised version at some point. i read books 1-4 in high school, with the original version of book 1, then when book 5 finally came out several years later, i started the series over & read the revised version of book 1, & holy shit. the original version is a better book (for reasons i won't go into lest i spoil anything for you), BUT! the revised version actually emphasizes some stuff that ends up being crucial to the series, so it's definitely worth while to read it (especially the introduction or foreword, i forget exactly how it's labeled, but it's worth the read for sure).

the stand is actually DT-related in more ways than one. yay!

To all of this, awesome! I wish I'd read more at this point, so I can comment further on this, but in the meantime, you're making me want to start the second one right now...

Edited December 12, 2012 by rems

[asleepawake]

Buffy is great, and it was such a huge part of my adolescence, but I do think there a lot of better shows that also deserve academic attention. Either that or I'm getting too lazy to read anymore so I just want to do pop culture studies foreverz. I think Veronica Mars was a better show than Buffy (Sorry!) as far as feminist-ish young adult series go (if you ignore season 3, which unfortunately, you cannot). So, um, if you haven't, this is the winter break you should watch Veronica Mars.

Seriously, though, television is such a great medium, even though it airs a lot of garbage, it also airs stuff like Homeland and Louie. Oh, and, I've been watching Nashville, and it's kind of great, so you should watch it if you have a Nielsen box so it doesn't get cancelled.

[bfat]

Oh my god how did I miss most of a conversation on Whedon shows and the Dark Tower, two of my favorite things in the whole world? Tho I guess I kinda started the Buffy thing. Anyway, yes Dollhouse gets pretty awesome. I'm actually writing part of my thesis on it.

The Dark Tower tho... It broke my heart. So much suspense for so many years... and then the biggest disappointment of my life (at least until these results come in, HA). I won't spoil anything but the last book hurt, it was so bad. Why can't Stephen King write an ending anymore? And yet I keep coming back...

On a kinda related nerdy note, has anyone seen The Lost Room? It's a mini series, but one of the best things ever. Gives me the chills just thinking about it.

[ProfLorax]

Buffy is great, and it was such a huge part of my adolescence, but I do think there a lot of better shows that also deserve academic attention. Either that or I'm getting too lazy to read anymore so I just want to do pop culture studies foreverz. I think Veronica Mars was a better show than Buffy (Sorry!) as far as feminist-ish young adult series go (if you ignore season 3, which unfortunately, you cannot). So, um, if you haven't, this is the winter break you should watch Veronica Mars.

I was going to post something very similar about the first two seasons of Veronica Mars. A noir show set at a high school that features thoughtful musings about gender and class?! It really can't be beat. Give in a shot, folks; the very first episode will suck you right in. I wish Kristen Bell would leave those rom coms behind and return to television!

[Datatape]

I run hot and cold on SK. Some of his work I just can't get into at all while others I can't put down. By far my favorite is Dolores Claiborne; it's one of his shortest but most intense novels, pretty much a master class on character development.

[rems]

Seriously, though, television is such a great medium, even though it airs a lot of garbage, it also airs stuff like Homeland and Louie. Oh, and, I've been watching Nashville, and it's kind of great, so you should watch it if you have a Nielsen box so it doesn't get cancelled.

I agree. I was debating mentioning the "cultural implications" of It's Always Sunny in my SOP. Also, the gender stereotypes of How I Met Your Mother (seriously, though, that show has gone down hill, quick).

[asleepawake]

I agree. I was debating mentioning the "cultural implications" of It's Always Sunny in my SOP. Also, the gender stereotypes of How I Met Your Mother (seriously, though, that show has gone down hill, quick).

Oh, gosh, I want to like How I Met Your Mother so much. Jason Segel? Alyson Hannigan? Neil Patrick Harris? YES PLEASE. But it is just so terrible, especially when it comes to gender. It has had its moments, but what a letdown, right?

Anyway, I mentioned Homeland in my SOP, at least for schools that seem open to some pop culture. Hello, humanized white terrorist, I want to write about you.

[asleepawake]

I was going to post something very similar about the first two seasons of Veronica Mars. A noir show set at a high school that features thoughtful musings about gender and class?! It really can't be beat. Give in a shot, folks; the very first episode will suck you right in. I wish Kristen Bell would leave those rom coms behind and return to television!

Seriously. I want to rematch them NOW but it looks like they're not on netflix instant anymore. This is a travesty. When is Netflix just gonna have everything already?

[dazedandbemused]

It's not that firefly is bad, it's just Buffy and Dollhouse are better. I do love me some Nathan Fillion tho.

Ha, I know. I'm just one of those weirdos who needs everyone to realize that the things I love are totally worth loving; why don't you love them too??

Nothing hurts worse than people who watch Doctor Who and respond with a barely enthusiastic "meh".

I agree. I was debating mentioning the "cultural implications" of It's Always Sunny in my SOP. Also, the gender stereotypes of How I Met Your Mother (seriously, though, that show has gone down hill, quick).

How I Met Your Mother makes me sad in so many ways. It could have been famous! It could have been a star!

[lisajay]

The Dark Tower tho... It broke my heart. So much suspense for so many years... and then the biggest disappointment of my life (at least until these results come in, HA). I won't spoil anything but the last book hurt, it was so bad. Why can't Stephen King write an ending anymore? And yet I keep coming back...

wait wait wait. the ending, or the coda? cos the ending was just perfect to me. & the coda... i just try to pretend didn't happen. i actually was tempted to rip those pages out of the book & never read them. but i didn't, & i still sort of regret that decision.