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If you die, I die.
1. We went to the beach at Tybee Island yesterday. Fiona had never been to the beach before, and that was her vacation request this summer. When I went to bed last night, I felt like somebody had beat me up. I can't believe how much of a workout that was. I probably only tread water for 20-30 minutes total, but doing it in those waves was hardcore. Same with just standing and bracing myself against the surf. Wow. The girls had a fantastic time; poor Josh spent the whole day up under the umbrellas and praying not to get sunburned. He is a good sport.
2. Episode 4
I think Max introducing El to Wonder Woman is worth the price of admission to the whole shebang. Such a wonderful moment.
I love that everyone is starting to band up again; I love the way this show does that--has little groups working on disparate parts of the problem that converge at the end.
I also think the explanation for why the problem still exists is a good one; the part of the Upside Down that infiltrated Will wasn't destroyed. It remained behind. In a way, they should be grateful it did because the Mind Flayer is the heads up that something is wrong; they'd have had no clue that the Russians are trying to open the Gate. Robin and Steve and Erica would just disappear and show up dead somewhere later with no one being the wiser until it's too late.
Robin continues to be badass. I think all the women on this show are amazing. I love that she figures out the air duct system and how to get into the Russian base.
Erica is amazing. I love her. So glad the show brought her in.
The scene between Nancy and her mom makes me cry. Here's a woman who feels stifled and like there should be more to her life (what have we seen her do besides vacuum, drink wine, and make eyes at Billy) who just gave up the chance for an affair for reasons that aren't entirely clear to me. She admits to Nancy that she got beaten down and that she gave up. Her pride in Nancy's strength chokes me up.
El: "Maybe I should be with my species more." *dies* But she's not wrong. One of the hardest things for young people who are dating to learn is that your SO can't be everything to you and that romantic relationships are stronger when you have healthy friendships outside that relationship.
The scene with the kids trapping Billy in the sauna is so tense. Billy is clearly horrified at what's happening but unable to stop the Mind Flayer. Love Mike rescuing El and El rescuing them all.
Episode 5
Nancy and Jonathan are with the kids now. Yay! The team ups continue. I love that Nancy's first impulse is to find Will and make sure he's safe. Absolutely adore Jonathan and Nancy making up; that fight hurt my heart.
The Hopper and Joyce show continues to deeply amuse me.
Steve knocks out the guy! Yay!
And now we see how clever the Mind Flayer's plan is; it can just collapse any nearby meat sacks and join them up to form a more dangerous monster. There's going to be a lot of missing people after this season with no bodies left behind. I'm starting to think that Billy is not going to be salvageable.
Episode 6
Every single thing about the kids in the Russian base is perfect. I love Robin and Steve holding the line so Dustin and Erica can get away. Love, love, love Dustin telling Erica the truth and insisting that she's a nerd. And I love that they burn a hole in the floor and taze the shit out of the guy who's torturing Steve. Kiddos FTW!!!
OMG, Steve is such a good woobie. If he wasn't the LBD before, it's set in stone now. He's the Spike of this fandom. LOL He gets beat up so pretty.
Robin telling him that she used to watch him and have a fruitless crush on him is such a poignant scene. I often don't like new characters introduced late in a show after my love for everyone else has already gelled, but she is such an exception. I love her just as much as the others.
El rescuing Jonathan and Nancy is awesome. Lots of cheering in this house.
I absolutely love that Hopper knows exactly what he's talking about re: criminal psychology. My Hopper love grows exponentially each episode.
Conspiracy guy is back! Yay!
I really like the way the conflict between Mike and El is played here. He's not trying to control her; he's worried about her. He needs to trust her, but he's also not wrong that what she's doing is more dangerous than she thinks it is. "I love her, and I can't lose her again." *sniffle*
Okay, so my suspicion is confirmed; the opening scene is taking place in Russia.
Nothing in this show is thrown away, so Erica noticing that huge ass cage and asking how big the Demigorgon is gives me great pause.
Hopper and Joyce, I mean Wheelbarrow, call for help. I sincerely hope the government does come to help them. I'm really not sure how they're going to be able to defeat the Upside Down + Russians on their own.
So, the Mind Flayer is using all the people and animals to become that enormous creature it was in the upside down. EEEEEEEEEEP! :(
I hope we finish tonight!
3.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I don't have a lot of strong feelings about the Homeric epics; they basically amount to Odysseus is a jackass, Achilles is a whiny baby jackass, and Hector is bestest. The Iliad starts in the middle of the action with an invocation to the muse featuring Achilles's rage, and there's just not much more to him in the poem IMHO. The classics are not my bag; I've read the Homeric epics and Hesiod and many other primary texts from ancient Greece and some secondary texts to contextualize, but it is not my area of study at all, and if there's more to Achilles than an angry dude who sticks out his bottom lip and crosses his arms and takes his toys home, I don't see it. Well, until he turns into grief-stricken Achilles who is infinitely more interesting to me.
Miller makes me like Achilles and care about Achilles and see him as an essentially good guy. His anger and his choices make a lot more sense to me in the context of this book than they do in the poem.
The novel reminds me a great deal of Renault's The King Must Die except that the divine there is always ambiguous and may not even exist, but the supernatural is very real in The Song of Achilles. I love Thetis, how otherworldly and hard and frightening and destructive to what is human she is. Her mercy at the end means so much more as a result.
This is such a good book. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
View all my reviews
2. Episode 4
I think Max introducing El to Wonder Woman is worth the price of admission to the whole shebang. Such a wonderful moment.
I love that everyone is starting to band up again; I love the way this show does that--has little groups working on disparate parts of the problem that converge at the end.
I also think the explanation for why the problem still exists is a good one; the part of the Upside Down that infiltrated Will wasn't destroyed. It remained behind. In a way, they should be grateful it did because the Mind Flayer is the heads up that something is wrong; they'd have had no clue that the Russians are trying to open the Gate. Robin and Steve and Erica would just disappear and show up dead somewhere later with no one being the wiser until it's too late.
Robin continues to be badass. I think all the women on this show are amazing. I love that she figures out the air duct system and how to get into the Russian base.
Erica is amazing. I love her. So glad the show brought her in.
The scene between Nancy and her mom makes me cry. Here's a woman who feels stifled and like there should be more to her life (what have we seen her do besides vacuum, drink wine, and make eyes at Billy) who just gave up the chance for an affair for reasons that aren't entirely clear to me. She admits to Nancy that she got beaten down and that she gave up. Her pride in Nancy's strength chokes me up.
El: "Maybe I should be with my species more." *dies* But she's not wrong. One of the hardest things for young people who are dating to learn is that your SO can't be everything to you and that romantic relationships are stronger when you have healthy friendships outside that relationship.
The scene with the kids trapping Billy in the sauna is so tense. Billy is clearly horrified at what's happening but unable to stop the Mind Flayer. Love Mike rescuing El and El rescuing them all.
Episode 5
Nancy and Jonathan are with the kids now. Yay! The team ups continue. I love that Nancy's first impulse is to find Will and make sure he's safe. Absolutely adore Jonathan and Nancy making up; that fight hurt my heart.
The Hopper and Joyce show continues to deeply amuse me.
Steve knocks out the guy! Yay!
And now we see how clever the Mind Flayer's plan is; it can just collapse any nearby meat sacks and join them up to form a more dangerous monster. There's going to be a lot of missing people after this season with no bodies left behind. I'm starting to think that Billy is not going to be salvageable.
Episode 6
Every single thing about the kids in the Russian base is perfect. I love Robin and Steve holding the line so Dustin and Erica can get away. Love, love, love Dustin telling Erica the truth and insisting that she's a nerd. And I love that they burn a hole in the floor and taze the shit out of the guy who's torturing Steve. Kiddos FTW!!!
OMG, Steve is such a good woobie. If he wasn't the LBD before, it's set in stone now. He's the Spike of this fandom. LOL He gets beat up so pretty.
Robin telling him that she used to watch him and have a fruitless crush on him is such a poignant scene. I often don't like new characters introduced late in a show after my love for everyone else has already gelled, but she is such an exception. I love her just as much as the others.
El rescuing Jonathan and Nancy is awesome. Lots of cheering in this house.
I absolutely love that Hopper knows exactly what he's talking about re: criminal psychology. My Hopper love grows exponentially each episode.
Conspiracy guy is back! Yay!
I really like the way the conflict between Mike and El is played here. He's not trying to control her; he's worried about her. He needs to trust her, but he's also not wrong that what she's doing is more dangerous than she thinks it is. "I love her, and I can't lose her again." *sniffle*
Okay, so my suspicion is confirmed; the opening scene is taking place in Russia.
Nothing in this show is thrown away, so Erica noticing that huge ass cage and asking how big the Demigorgon is gives me great pause.
Hopper and Joyce, I mean Wheelbarrow, call for help. I sincerely hope the government does come to help them. I'm really not sure how they're going to be able to defeat the Upside Down + Russians on their own.
So, the Mind Flayer is using all the people and animals to become that enormous creature it was in the upside down. EEEEEEEEEEP! :(
I hope we finish tonight!
3.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline MillerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I don't have a lot of strong feelings about the Homeric epics; they basically amount to Odysseus is a jackass, Achilles is a whiny baby jackass, and Hector is bestest. The Iliad starts in the middle of the action with an invocation to the muse featuring Achilles's rage, and there's just not much more to him in the poem IMHO. The classics are not my bag; I've read the Homeric epics and Hesiod and many other primary texts from ancient Greece and some secondary texts to contextualize, but it is not my area of study at all, and if there's more to Achilles than an angry dude who sticks out his bottom lip and crosses his arms and takes his toys home, I don't see it. Well, until he turns into grief-stricken Achilles who is infinitely more interesting to me.
Miller makes me like Achilles and care about Achilles and see him as an essentially good guy. His anger and his choices make a lot more sense to me in the context of this book than they do in the poem.
The novel reminds me a great deal of Renault's The King Must Die except that the divine there is always ambiguous and may not even exist, but the supernatural is very real in The Song of Achilles. I love Thetis, how otherworldly and hard and frightening and destructive to what is human she is. Her mercy at the end means so much more as a result.
This is such a good book. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
View all my reviews
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"HUGS"
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I have rarely gone to the beach over my lifetime, so I just didn't expect how exhausting it would be.
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Oh, that makes me very happy. I always felt that Achilles really had a point, given how his society worked. He was doing Agamemnon a favour being there in the first place; Agamemnon was an asshole and took away his HONOUR PRIZE - you don't *do* that in such a society and you don't put up with that, either. Why would he continue to fight for the asshole?
And his response to Patroclus getting killed I find entirely understandable.
(I'm a big fan of the Iliad. Really don't like the Odyssee, though.)
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I remember when Emma came home from ninth grade saying, "Odysseus is a big jerk," and I was all, "Yep." LOL
I really enjoy the depiction of Achille's depression and anger after Patroclus's death; it reads as very modern. We read it pretty close after The Epic of Gilgamesh so students can see the parallels there as well as two different reactions to the death of a loved one.