I'm sure you'd like to take some weight off your cloven hooves
Warning! If you are avoiding ALL STAR WARS SPOILERS (you know who you are) you might want to skip this one. Or, skip the Mixed Media section. There be some trailer gifs therein.
hey, there.
This week I did something BOLD and UNPRECEDENTED: I left my house on my day off. One of my favourite things about Washington, D.C. is how easy it is to wander in and out of multiple museums–most of them are free! You don’t have to focus on one just to justify the price of your ticket. Although I did end up spending most of my wandering day in one, because the Inka Road exhibit at the National Museum of the American Indian was fascinating.
(The NMAI is also one of the most beautiful buildings on the mall, as you can see.)
The construction and use of the Road spanned over two thousand years, and while the bulk of the exhibit is focused on the Inka years, it’s still a huge span of time to cover at once. Nonetheless, they persevered, with rooms devoted to the building of the Inka capital Cusco, food, animals, and material culture, and in the end the impact is even greater when you realize how brutally efficient the Spanish were at laying waste to it all.
A very sad thing, indeed.
I also stopped to see my favourite outdoor sculpture in the city, Juan Muñoz’s Last Conversation Piece. It’s outside the Hirshhorn Museum.
Finally, I popped into the Freer Gallery of Art to sit for a spell in the Peacock Room. The Freer is closing for renovations beginning in January, and going until mid-2017, so my opportunities to enjoy it are dwindling quickly. The rest of the Freer (and its sister museum, the Sackler) are also fantastic, housing primarily Asian art.
But I have a weakness for James McNeill Whistler’s bonkers dining room (in grad school I wrote a paper just about the andirons in the fireplace). Anyways, it was a nice way to spend a Thursday.
Dog Thing
Twisty.
Mixed Media
As promised: STAR WARS. The new, final trailer exploded into our lives on Monday, and nothing’s been the same since. If you were not a Star Wars fan and had to weather the storm of being on the internet while everyone (read: me) completely flipped out, then I’m kinda sorry but mostly not because STAR WARS.
I mean, look at these cuties. What are their stories??
And THIS GUY! What’s up with him?
What’s this dude’s deal?
Who made Leia sad?? Can I fight them? Where is Luke??
I am FULL OF QUESTIONS and I want to know everything right now, thanks. Honestly, even if this movie turns out to be terrible (I’m 90% sure that’s not possible, but, I mean, the prequels did happen), I’m glad I had the experience of seeing this trailer. As soon as the music started in, it was like being 9 years old again, snowed in and watching the movies for the first time with my brother and dad. It was pretty great then, and it was pretty great again. I fully admit, I cried. Speaking of reactions, check out both Daisy Ridley’s and John Boyega’s, if you haven’t already.
Also: Adele’s new single dropped this morning, and it sounds just like an Adele single ought to. I saw Crimson Peak (mostly through my sweater because I am a baby and SCARY GHOSTS), and I largely enjoyed it but wish it had taken more risks with the gothic romance storyline (I guessed all of the twists) and also that Mia Wasikowska’s character had held onto her spitfire-ness a little more. But it was a gorgeous movie, and Jessica Chastain was astounding. I finished Aftermath, the Star Wars novel by Chuck Wendig that picks up after the end of Return of the Jedi, and I liked it!
I Read Comics for a Living
The plan was not actually to smother you with Star Wars today, but Shattered Empire #4 was actually really good. And it unloaded some pretty big things for one character in particular in the new movie, in a very exciting way. Since, you know, I needed an excuse to be more excited for The Force Awakens.
Also good:
Giant Days #7 Giant Days is back with its second arc! Artist Lissa Treiman has sadly left the book (she has another real job, as an animator for Disney), but Max Sarin’s art is a fine substitute. It’s a little less elastic than Treiman’s, but just about anything would be. This issue is a little all over the place, but it’s setting up some big things, so it works.
Gotham Academy #11 Finally we’re learning about Olive’s dark family history, and we do it against the natural backdrop of a field trip into downtown Gotham for a tennis tournament. I loved the whole group of kids in this, although as usual Maps was stand-out great in her interactions with Red Robin.
Anxiety Pyjamas
ASOS Chelsea Peers Moroccan Tile Jumpsuit: it has pockets!!
Fics I Shouted About
The Grown-Ups Are All Right by marycontraire Teen Wolf, Sheriff/Melissa. I love a good Sheriff Stilinski & Melissa McCall story, and this one is SO CUTE.
The Parts of Our Sum by Annie D Supernatural, Dean/Cas, Sci-fi AU. I don’t actually watch Supernatural, but I have been known to drift into unfamiliar fandoms for the sake of a good story, and this was just good sci-fi.
Numqvam tē tradam by otter The Martian, Mark/Chris/Beth. This is probably not something I would have sought out on my own, but I love otter’s writing enough to give just about anything a try. I liked this, basically a hurt/comfort story, a whole lot.
Friends in High Places by jaegermighty Teen Wolf, Sterek, Stargate fusion. I like it when anything overlaps with Stargate, and this is one of my favourite examples.
aftermath by sevenfoxes The Martian, Chris/Beth. I am into Martian fics where everyone is taking care of Mark and talking about their feelings, apparently.
Lastly
Yeah.
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