I hadn’t watched TV in a couple of years, not because I don’t like TV–I love TV–but because I was having this problem with depression and just didn’t care. Then last week, on a whim, I watched some old episodes of Numb3rs. I’d forgotten what a cosy show that was, all about family and close friends set in front of an ever-changing stream of violent crime and math. I kept watching because it was comforting (I skipped episodes that I remembered as being wrenching), going back to that family again and again. If I ever get through all this stuff that’s overdue, I think I’m going to do a lot of rewatching because if there ever was a time to snuggle down in a comforter with hot chocolate and watch something old, it’s now, as the seasons turn and the world starts to go into winter sleep.
What made you happy this week?
There were a couple of decades where I worked evenings mainly, and it was impossible to watch prime-time TV. I remember watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer with the dotter for about four seasons before a) her attention wandered and b) my schedule changed. I saw the rest on DVD. Somewhere in there people started using recording devices that were more sophisticated than my old VCR, and then everything switched to streaming or downloading so you could watch anything anytime.
Now I have Netflix and Hulu and Amazon Prime. I just watched a Justice League movie. It was okay. I watch seasons of the animated Justice League “cartoons.” Also Flash and Green Arrow and Supergirl and the like.
Last night I watched Kung Fu Panda. I may have laughed aloud.
Kung Fu Panda, my first thought was that the movie/cartoon that never ended? That was when our grandchildren were little and we took them to the movies for shows like that. Some were ok the Disney’s were charming like Toy Story but some I was sitting there in agony and I was a kid myself once. That’s why I would go out and buy the DVD as soon as it became available for when they stayed over and we had Sunday morning movie festivals. One that really intrigued them was The Babysitter with Elizabeth Shue (an oldie). Hocus Pocus went missing never to be returned but I knew my Granddaughter borrowed it. And then there are the Barbie movies, Raiders of the Lost Ark series and good ole’ Jack Sparrow waiting to be rewatched but they’re growing up now. My grandson is fascinated with Zombies. So, I’ll just have to be satisfied with my favorites.
I also just re-watched Kung Fu Panda. The fight over the last dumpling always cracks me up, because I can identify. I love all 3 of the Kung Fu Panda movies.
I didn’t know there were three until I went back to Netflix and got the “because you watched” screen. Now I’ve watched two and it’s recommending the third.
I’ve watched both episodes of THE IRRATIONAL and I’m really liked it. Of course, I’ve always loved Jesse L. Martin, so he was the reason I started watching it in the first place. I do have a quibble with Maahra Hill. She doesn’t look or act like any of the FBI agents I’ve known. But ya know, that’s TV.
I’m looking forward to my birthday, Oct. 15, not because I’m turning 65 but because I celebrate the day each year by re-reading WILD RIDE. It’s my personal tradition.
Pam, we share the same birthday (although I am a few years older than you; I will turn 68)! Because I don’t have any family close by to share in my birthday celebration, I celebrate for a week, doing something special (however trivial) each day.
I think that’s a good idea, whether you have local family or not.
I love your birthday tradition.
Happiness this week is getting the house cleaned for company, and hosting Thanksgiving dinner tonight.
That seems a little early. I’m sure you have a reason for that.
It’s Canadian Thanksgiving, not American. (At least according to my calendar.)
I didn’t think they had such a thing. How interesting.
In fact, the first celebration of Thanksgiving in what is now Canada took place in 1579 during the voyage of explorer Martin Frobisher, who stopped at Baffin Island for a ceremony of thanksgiving. In New France (Quebec), the Order of Good Cheer was formed in 1606 and held feasts in November which included First Nations guests. The first recorded American Thanksgiving was in Virginia in 1619. You’re welcome.
Yeah, I miss Canadian Thanksgiving, partly because it’s a long way from Christmas (and partly because I’m never with Canadian family at the time). Having two big holidays only a month apart is too much.
I forgot tomorrow is Thanksgiving (in Canada) and I just pulled out a Cornish hen to thaw. Much better than turkey.
https://www.somethingsmustbeendured.com/post/using-a-4-slice-toaster-oven-to-prepare-a-cornish-game-hen
I often make Cornish hens, because I live by myself. Also, I find turkey boring.
We’re having spatchcock chicken for our Thanksgiving dinner. We get it from a local grocery store and perfect for 3 people.
I live by myself and I have a freezer. I love turkey and can easily eat half of one in a week and freeze the rest for later.
(I’m going to get one soon. The pictures of my Canadian Facebook friends’ turkeys (and ham) were inspiring.)
Happiness is that even though having COVID put an end to my Thanksgiving dinner hosting, it is a lovely weekend here at the cottage and an excellent time to relax. My husband and his father (who travelled from BC to hang out with contagious me) are going to see Queen tonight so that’s fun. We watched Indiana Jones and the Dial of Something last night. An odd use of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s talents.
I watched the same Indiana Jones movie on a aeroplane the other day and thought Phoebe stole the show. She was brilliant in the part. The movie took up the entire flight. So I was happy.
I loved Fleabag. I wikipedia-ed PWB – she was in the Bond movie No Time To Die. She was in 8 episodes of Broadchurch – may have to watch it again to look for that. She wrote 4 episodes and executive produced 24 episodes of Killing Eve.
And sometime in 2019 she hosted Saturday Night Live with musical guest star Taylor Swift.
She is apparently a woman of many talents!
PWB was a very unhinged secondary character in London Irish. If you loved Derry Girls, this show is by the same creators with a lot of the same actors. Very funny but also bonkers. (On Freevee/Prime)
I rarely watch TV or stream shows, except for CNN or a special sports event. The choice on streaming services seems overwhelming. I would rather read.
We had a stretch of very warm weather so was outside as much as possible. My garden is still going strong – so many tomatoes! I dug out one of my large compost bins so it’s ready to be filled up with plant cuttings. I have 4 big garbage cans filled with compost I’ve made this season, ready to go onto the beds when I finally pull them out. Re-potted several outdoor plants that will come inside for the winter.
We had a lovely brunch with my nephew and his gf who are in town for Thanksgiving. Had tea with a friend who told me about a story about magical creatures she’s working on. I knew she’s attended several writing workshops but this is a brand-new genre for her. Plus the first time we’ve talked in depth about her writing.
I have a wee question that I’m not sure where to ask. I’m very excited about the new books, but long covid brain fog and headaches mean that I can’t read novels at the moment. Is there any possibility of audiobook releases in the future?
Happiness for me right now is watching Murder, She Wrote for the first time. I’m in the thick of season four. And watching the first few matches of the Cricket World Cup. I’ve been a cricket tragic since I was a teenager.
Jenny has said they’re working on it.
I think the latest is, they’re hoping for a February release, but nothing’s definite yet.
Ah, that’s good news. Something to look forward to next year. Thanks.
I started sharing episodes of “Murder, She Wrote” with my 8yo last year! It’s been a fun way to share what normal everyday things looked like when I was that age. It’s also occasionally overwhelming just HOW MUCH has to be explained…!
Yes, I was a tween and teen in the 80s, but wow, it looks like a whole other country now. The hair, the shoulder pads, people smoking everywhere, Jessica and friends driving around without seat belts. Push button and even rotary dial phones. It’s a lot.
I’m enjoying it very much though.
But, as we in Maine all know, don’t move to Cabot Cove! It’s got a very high murder rate!
The crime capital of the US. 😊
I’m just surprised that her friends kept asking her to visit them since people had the bad habit of turning up dead everywhere she went.
The tentative date is in February from Brilliance according to agreement on both sides, but we haven’t signed a contract yet, so I’ll let you know when it’s firm.
Oh, that’s great to know. Thank you.
Now I just have to possess my soul in patience until then.
Huge Murder She Wrote fan, in fact I try to get up to Mendocino at least once a year to soak in all the Cabot Cove vibes. It really hasn’t changed a bit in 40 years! Enjoying Mrs. Sidhu on Acorn a lot, has a very MSW vibe but British sensibilities.
And for all the teachers/professors out there who secretly want to be PI’s, Harry Wild is back today for season 2 on Acorn. I avoided it for a long time thinking I didn’t care for Jane Seymour but she’s amazing as a newly retired professor teaming up with a teenager to solve crime in Dublin.
I am so glad you finally got past the hold that depression had on you, and can enjoy life and creating, again!
I rewatch MASH six nights a week, except that I always have a book handy, since I’ve seen all the episodes many times. If I don’t care for one, I put the TV on mute and read till the next one comes on. I watched and rewatched Ted Lasso when it was on. Otherwise, I don’t have cable TV, and have not watched TV for 29 years, and I don’t miss it. I have no idea who some of these “Stars” are, now, but TV has gotten really inane, from what I can tell. Kardashians? I retch.
My happy is that I had a voice this morning! Usually it’s a croak first thing. I think I really am finally over this sinus/virus. Also, yesterday, I filled three bins full of dead branches, weeds, and the day lilies and Sweet Black Eyed Susans that were overhanging the street, so that the street cleaner can pick up the leaves, and the snow plow can get close to the curb when it needs to. The next project is mowing, once the grass is dry, and the “back forty” which is full of weeds and logs from the mulberry trees that were taken down several years ago. It is finally below 60º most of the day, so the chiggers are dormant. Yay!
Happiness for me is cool temps and open windows!
Any time I do a rewatch, it’s typically an Aaron Sorkin show because his writing is soooo good. So it will be The West Wing or the Newsroom for me!
Yes, Yes! Both. Love ’em. Have you watched The Morning Show?
Jenny, have you seen Ted Lasso? It’s on Apple+, which I resisted getting for a long time, even though everyone said the show was brilliant. It turns out, the show was brilliant.
I had a huge happy this week. My beloved brother in-law (married to my middle sister Sarah, father to 30 year old twins Brianna and Addy) was unexpectedly diagnosed with cancer almost two years ago. They removed a huge tumor from his colon, thought he was all clear, then found a tumor in his liver in the one spot that made it inoperable. 20 months, more set-backs, they used radiation on the tumor and got rid of it, only to discover another one had shown up in the other lobe of his liver. At which point they told him they no longer considered his cancer to be curable. 26 rounds of brutal chemo. (On top of the fibromyalgia and depression he already dealt with.) So where’s the happy? They did a Petscan a couple of weeks ago and he got the results on Friday. The scan showed he is cancer free. CANCER FREE. Two of the happiest words in the English language.
And it is just in time for him to walk my niece Brianna down the aisle in Nashville next Friday. So we have two things to celebrate. That’s a lot of happy.
There is no way to know what the future holds, but for now, we’ll take the win.
What great news about your brother-in-law! Happy for your family.
Wow! That’s amazing! I’m so happy for him and his family.
You can subscribe and watch stuff for a month, or two, then unsubscribe, if you want to. That’s what I did. That show helped me through the ongoing COVID/political dysfunction nightmare.
That is very happy new, Deborah!
That is wonderful news! Thank you sharing.
So happy for your family!
I will admit I watched 2 episodes of Ted Lasso and didn’t get the hype. I’ll likely never finish that series.
Writing retreat with my writing bestie. Lots of words, good food, and good times for the soul.
I just about burst a blood vessel watching Mr. Bean last night. So incredibly silly and over-the-top funny.
We re-watch a lot of Barney Miller. It’s fascinating how after so many years it doesn’t feel dated.
We have a TV. It lives in the guest bedroom. For some reason we don’t watch TV – or DVD’s or stream or download or whatever. It’s not even that I have some kind of moral high ground.. I have the attention span of a gnat. Every few months I will catch a how-to video on YouTube. However I spend an inordinate amount of time playing solitaire on my iPad and at least 15 minutes a day doing Duolingo. This is my version of meditating.
I often play Solitaire on my phone while listening to a book, if I’m re-listening.
We’ve watched the entire series of ‘Numb3rs’ twice. I adore the evolving dynamic between those three men (doesn’t hurt that Rob Morrow, FBI edition, ticks all my sexy boxes).
This week we re-watched ‘Strictly Ballroom’ on our anniversary and then re-watched ‘Shall We Dance’ (Japanese best picture winner, the movie that sent me to a dance studio where I met DH) and ‘Shall We Dance’ (American remake, not as emotionally true but still entertaining). Also for anniversary DH brought home three days’ worth of Italian food and three months’ worth of orchids. <3
In other happiness, my aged mother realized after several days of unmanageable coughing that she was sick and had Dad take her to the ER where she was promptly, kindly, and effectively treated and is now feeling much better.
In mixed news, my BFF with whom we were to have brunch today is not feeling well post-vaccine (the bad) so we will reschedule, which means I have another day to do nothing but write etc (the good).
I love both those versions of Shall We Dance.
And I love Strictly Ballroom!
The sun came out today, so I could sit in the garden again, reading Loretta Chase in between doing bits of gardening. My cuttings have all taken, although I seem to have got the labels muddled, so it’ll be fun seeing exactly what I’ve got next spring.
Finally managed a film night again last night – it was great to catch up with Pam. And I was delighted to discover one of the two new volunteers for the Lost Ways project is an old friend from Shrewsbury – who’s also a retired solicitor and judge, so altogether a great addition.
TV-wise, what made me happy this week was watching Great British Bake Off episode 2, and The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar on Netflix. At the moment, there is nothing I really want to rewatch.
Book-wise, I just finished re-reading Welcome to Temptation for next week’s podcast. It was my first ever Crusie. I picked it up in the long-defunct Borders in Brighton and it made me super happy then and it made me super happy this weekend. I am getting ready to write 1800 words about why and will then record that early ready for release next Saturday.
It is lovely revisiting, it must be four or five years since I last reread it.
And finally, I’m listening to Rosemary Standley and Dom La Nena on repeat. OMG.
Thank you for the Rosemary Standley/Don La Nena reference. I had not heard of them previously- such a moving combination of voice & music. Much appreciated.
Podcast? Tell us more, please.
Considering our conversations on Thursday, happiness this sunday has been going to a small Devon village for a lovely pub lunch to celebrate our second son’s birthday. No aristocratic kilt wearing scots in sight…
I’ve been thinking about Thursday’s post and the question about stories in which someone moves to the city from the country and finds love.
I agree with all the responses. The contrast between city life and country life goes back a long way and it permeates not only fiction but politics and all aspects of society.
My small addition is that I’ve mostly not lived in either the city or the country: I’ve spent most of my life in the suburbs. I’m a kind of mugwump — mug on one side and wump on the other. (Imagine a dog or a cat in a doorway.) I think the stories about either side of the contrast are really important to me.
And now I’m trying to think about romances in the burbs. Karen Templeton did a bunch. But whereas the small town ones have clear themes (as Jenny said) and the big city ones are generally about making it professionally / how to find a love in a big city where you can be lost and anonymous, I’m not sure what the typical suburban theme is.
Also I have a post in moderation about quilts that might interest Nancy H and Jinx.
I think that a story set in the burbs would be about how to lighten the monotony. There is a lot of sameness and facelessness in suburbs… Chain stores and pto meetings…
I haven’t read one like that but it seems like it should be a theme
Happiness was being on vacation, and now being home. This was the first time the cats “got by” being visited twice a day: the first two times my wonderful b-I-l worked from home at my house so someone was here for hours. they are a little needy and complaining but better that than stand-off-ish or sulking.
I got all my outside decorations up except for the large purple inflatable spider which will go out the last week. It all looks very good, if I do say so myself.
I just am not a tv or movie watcher. I am not even a short video on YouTube watcher unless one of my kids sends me something. I’m all about words on the page. Fortunately for our marriage DH gets to watch lots of movies on his endless work travel.
But I can be visual. What made me happy this weekend was going to a quilt show with a good friend I hadn’t seen in months. It’s a local group so I thought it would be fairly small and low key. It was AMAZING. They had over two hundred quilts some from people who have their work in national shows and museums
Their website is here https://www.needlechasers.org/ and the link to the photos of their last show is here https://www.needlechasers.org/2021-quilt-show-time-well-spent-post-show.htm .
You can see lots of quilts including last time’s best in show.
The one I expect to be voted best in show this year was all in silk, with lots of appliquéd flowers and fruits and birds with embroidered detail and a really tiny quilting pattern and all done by hand by the same person. It took 3 years apparently.
I’m definitely going back in two years (it’s a biennial show).
I thought of Nancy H of course but also
Jinx who lives in the same town.
Otherwise DH is back on the road and I’m digging into backed up chores. One is going to be cleaning and storing the antique German silver set my grandparents took when they escaped Germany in late 1939 which will be both fun and emotional.
Plus some census data job work that has the potential for big impact for funding for kids programs so very rewarding.
We are heading west for the final eg of relocating parents. It is very odd for me. With the exception of college, I have always lived within driving distance for my parents. After today, this will no longer be the case and I will miss them.
I have a cold (negative for Covid). It’s pretty mild but may throw my vaccine schedule off. So I’ve got an excuse to sit around and drink tea and read. And that makes me happy.
This week was a real emotional roller coaster. My BIL had a stroke and the next day I got an email from a friend in New Zealand from who I hadn’t heard in many years. He told me that the reason my emails were returned from his wife’s former employment was not because she had retired, but because she had had a stroke a few years ago and now was at the stage where she had to live in a nursing home. I was so depressed that I didn’t get dressed for 2 days.I wanted to go out to my sister’s house, but my niece and her husband were coming in from Milwaukee, and since they had a car, they could do more to help than I could.
Since then I have had a long talk with my sister and my niece and I hope that I can get some more concrete idea of how I can help. My BIL came home from the hospital and Tom, my NIL, has gone home. Emmy is still in town and I hope we can get together once before she goes home.
It took me several days to respond to my NZ friend, but I hope we will be able to set up a time to Skype in the coming week. We have been friends since the fall of 1978 and I am their son’s godmother.
After I confirmed that I was the person Charles was seeking, he wrote back to give me an update about their family and told me that Judy’s facto e lit up when he told her that I had replied to his original email.
Now I have to figure out if I can afford a trip to see them and how to go about getting there. The 2 times I went there before, I was dog sitting for my friend Ted and he gave me enough of his points to get across the pond. But Ted has moved, and is married to a retired person who has persuaded him to use his own points. In fact, I haven’t heard from Ted in over a year. And I think the travel agent I used to find my last ticket to France has either retired or changed jobs because I now get emails from a different agent at the same agency.
Does anybody here have any advice about finding good prices on air travel between the US and NZ? I really didn’t think another trip there would be possible, but now I think it is something I need to do.
What an awful week for you – I hope you find a way to get to NZ and that your BIL gets better. Please take care of yourself too.
My brother in law is doing well so far. I have a date to go out to their house and hang out with my sister on Friday to see what help, besides company, I can provide, Thank you for your good wishes.
And I am going to start sending greeting cards to my friend in New Zealand. Her husband says that since she remembers me in the very short term, they should cheer her up when she opens them. I wonder how or if her sense of humor has changed due to the memory loss.
I am a clueless traveller, but the rome2rio website helped me travel on European trains. They have an easy breakdown of international travel, so maybe try there
I am not an international traveler and have no idea how such things work, but I would be happy to donate to a go fund me or something, to help you get there.
Watching “Leverage Redemption” has triggered a re-watch of “Leverage.” I am now ending season 3 and debating which comfort show to re-watch next. I’m thinking either “Burn Notice” to pick up from the “Leverage” heists, or “Killjoys” to pick up from the team-as-found-family “Leverage” feels.
“Leverage” is one of my favorite rewatches! And now I’m so glad there’s “Leverage: Redemption” to add to the rewatch pool. I haven’t done a “Killjoys” rewatch yet (good idea!) and it’s probably worth it since that show ended so well. Some of my other favorites from around that TV era – just before streaming was big and cable was kinda good – are “Psych” and “White Collar”. Such great characters. “White Collar” might help quench that *people who didn’t know they needed each other* feeling, which I think “Leverage” also has.
I have been rewatching Brothers & Sisters. I don’t know why. It is very soap-opera-y.
Also enjoying the new season of Great British Bakeoff.
I have started watching the backlog of vlogs from Terri Conroy’s youtube channel – Danu’s Irish Herb Garden. She writes & practices under Wise Woman Herbals. I am living vicariously through her. I seriously hope when I buy a house I can find one with some gardening room.
I have written some & gone out to commune with trees several times & the beach once. Posting pics from those forays on IG makes me happy.
I got on a Steven Wright kick earlier in the week & laughed myself silly over all his quotes on Brainy Quotes. “I had a friend who was a clown. When he died all his friends went to the funeral in the same car.”
I just laughed for the hundredth time over that one typing it here.
PS – I tacked this on the very end of GBT post but it’s worth mentioning again.
If you want a romance that takes place in the city – I highly recommend ‘The Wedding Bees’ by Sarah-Kate Lynch.
Takes place in NYC. She keeps bees on the roof of her apartment & he is terrified of bees.
Anything she writes is magic – including this book.
Brothers & Sisters, I think the soap opera bit is part of it’s appeal. Some really sad and serious things happen in the series, but the light, comic and crazy stuff manage to balance it out. Most of the siblings are professional and serious people, but their sibling dynamic means they tell each other first, whenever something happens. Knowing that they will accept it however absurd
So busy lately that I am rewatching old fav shows. This way, I can fast forward to my favorite parts. I love Kdramas, so I am re-binging the following: Master’s Sun (a quirky rom-com horror – kind of like Beetlejuice), Faith (which is shot soooo terribly but I can still enjoy it if I fast forward to parts I like), My Love from the Star, Crash Landing Into You, and just the first episode of Descendants of the Sun because it’s a perfect episode.
I watch on the Viki app and have spent the last two months just zipping through them. It’s fun. I start 1% of Something tonight. It so sweet and light. If tv were a warm cookie, that show would be one with hot tea on the side. Just a sweet snack.
My apologies if someone already posted these reviews by Jo Walton:
Rest in Pink, Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer (2023)
Second in the Liz Danger series that began in July with Lavender’s Blue. These are romance mysteries set in the fictional Ohio town of Burney, where the couple who got together in the first book are making more of a commitment, while solving another murder. Delightful. It’s so nice to have a new Crusie, and this is top notch.
One in Vermillion, Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer (2023)
So I tried not to read this. I told myself sternly to wait until next month to read this, so I could have it in a different column here—it’s more interesting for you, the reader, and it’s also better for the books for me to read them in different months. But… look, it was right there, and I couldn’t stop myself. After all, even if I do occasionally spare you a thought I’m reading because I want to read, and what I want to read, not to entertain you or to promote the books. So I had no self-control, I just plunged into the third volume the second I was done with the second. They’re just that good, and just that more-ish.
In book 3 Vince and Liz make even more of a commitment. They solve another murder and clear up a mystery that has been unfolding throughout the trilogy. They get started on revitalising Burney and make a commitment to the town and community. Some secondary characters connect in satisfying romances of their own. Delightful and fun to read. If there had been another ready I’d have gone straight on to that too. These are not long books, but they are wonderfully readable and full of lovely details and fun characters.
I’ve been rather depressed for much of September. I can’t see my future (or have the illusion that I can see a future) while I’m living with and looking after my parents in their 93rd year. (94th year?) Things just move slowly, and routine is best for them.
I’ve remembered that I’m not actually 93, and I can move around and take long walks, go to the gym and the movies, and that’s helped me keep my head above water, and more. Getting out the watercolors has helped as well.
Taking care of people is so hard. I also find myself forgetting my age at times. Every once in a while you have to stay up too late, go out and eat expensive food, be out after dark or super early in the morning, something just to feed your brain some change.
And I still have days when I want to drop all the balls. Just stay in bed and not do any of the things I am needed to do… Not out of meanness or anger, but feeling tired and empty. And my dad isn’t even living with me anymore.
Take care of yourself. You can’t pour from an empty cup.
Does anyone know if Numb3rs is streaming anywhere other than Amazon’s Freevee? I hate Freevee because the commercial breaks are inserted randomly, sometimes even in the middle of a word the actor is speaking. There’s zero attempt to insert them into dramatic logical pauses pauses. Argh.
1) Sorry, I don’t know where it might be streaming.
2) I hate FreeVee for the same reason. I just watched Jumangi on Hulu – with commercials. Commercials suck.
Love re-watching. We recently re-watched Andor, best Star Wars in a long time. I could watch that one again. Other things I look forward to re-watching: The Americans, Man in the High Castle, probably ER at some point, though we are now enjoying one of the few seasons available to us of Casualty. West Wing.