It is about 100 degrees where I live, and big chunks of Southern California is burning.  It's not so great for my asthma, though it's not nearly so bad as it is near the fires, where the air quality has actually been listed as Hazardous.  Marina, if you are ok, please let us know, ok?  I've been trying to restrict exercise, but I will have to get back to it because they say this fire might go on for two weeks.  

Last week I was at the grocery store and noticed a man in uniform behind me.  I asked "police or fire?"  and he said "fire,"  and I saw the LA County Fire Dept. badge.  I gave him a thumbs-up and said "I really, really appreciate everything you do."  I'm so happy I said that now.  I would never have the courage that these men and women do and I'm so grateful for them. 

I'm also worried sick about the big cats at the Shambala Preserve.  These are all lions and tigers and panthers, mainly who have been abandoned by stupid pet owners, or who were abused.  There are over 70 of them, and it's nearly impossible to evacuate them.  (Get 70 lions out on a two lane mountain road?  Um, no?)  So the staff has dug in.  They do a fire drill every six weeks, and they have a big fire break and a 22,000 gallon water tank and a lake and water hoses, and I hope to heaven it's enough.  I love every kind of cat, as you probably have figured by now, and I have a special kind of anger for people who decide that oh, hey, it would be cool to own a tiger, and then get rid of it.  

I'm trying not to think about it, because I'll be really sad if things go badly, but I can't.  And of course I'm worried about the people, too, though I do wonder why anyone would think they could "ride out" a Southern California wildfire by sitting in a hot tub.  Regular animals are being sheltered at the Pasadena Humane Society.  I just sent them a donation.

Also, anyone who feels like saying something like "well, it's their *fault* for living in a fire zone" :  I give you the back of my hand.  People like that have NO CONCEPTION of how big these fires get.  You don't have to be a millionaire living in a fancy home in a brushy canyon.  You could be some ordinary family living in a regular suburb.  I don't have a lot of patience with people who talk a lot of stuff about how the victims probably should have been living somewhere else.  When bad stuff happens, you pitch in and donate to the Red Cross, and send messages of support.  You save your criticism for later.

ETA:  GREAT.  Yosemite is on fire, too, and my parents are supposed to go there on vacation on Wednesday.  I'll call them tomorrow and check in with them.  I doubt they'd be in any specific danger, but my Dad has asthma too and a lot of crud in the air would not be good for him.

ETA 2:  My parents are going to Yellowstone, not Yosemite, duh.  And whew.

Via the fine folks at Sparklefield:

Wuthering Heights reprinted with *Twiight* style cover.  Twifans express disappointment.

Actual quote:  The novel might be flying off the shelves, but readers posting reviews on Waterstone's website weren't entirely impressed by Brontë's writing. Giving it just one star, Hayley Mears wrote that "I was really disappointed when reading this book, it's made to believe to be one of the greatest love stories ever told and I found only five pages out of the whole book about there love and the rest filled with bitterness and pain and other peoples stories".

This is really too bad.  Personally, I think Meyer's understanding of Great English literature is kind of reductionist.  Romeo and Juliet, Wuthering Heights, and Merchant of Venice are all about the love stories for her.  That's a pet peeve of mine, especially with books like Pride and Prejudice and Jane Eyre:  yes, they are love stories, and they are ALSO about other stuff.  Jane Eyre in particular gets big points from me when she has to decide if she is going to stay with Edward Rochester, because she knows he will do something desperate, and she should save him from himself, and after all he's the only one who cares for her:  "Who cares for you?"  and she responds to herself:  "I care for myself."  I can never think of that moment without a huge mental BOO-YAH.  

Incidentally, I was on another site where someone suggested that people who liked Twilight had never read anything else, and I shot back that that was definitely, demonstrably, not true.  It ain't my cup of cougar squeezins but that doesn't mean that no literate, intelligent people like it.  I think some of the argument that people make fun of it because it's a romance novel with a mostly feminine audience has some merit.  

I did a tiny bit of playing yesterday.  Not a lot.  Having work sitting around makes me feel guilty.  But I'm nearly done with drafting my theater business essay.  Now I need to add in the actual footnotes, which is a PITA and why so few people want to be theater historians.  Also, a super-sekrit crocheting project is nearly done! 

 As you probably know, I'm writing up some stuff about *Twilight* on my other journal, moonyprof .  It's probably going to slow down a bit because I really do have to start working again on my Theatre as Business article--I'm not sure whether the deadline is September 1st or September 30th, and I kind of freaked.  

While I was surfing around, I found some references to a Twilight religion: Cullenism.  That struck me as odd, because usually if you Google "Harry Potter" and "religion," what you get is a lot of references to the controversies between certain Christian groups and *Harry Potter.*  And I really, really don't think Stephenie Meyer, who is a devout Mormon, would be pleased.  

To be honest, I think they're kidding.  Mostly.  I think this is probably the sort of thing that started tongue in cheek and then was reported breathlessly as "GUESS WHAT!!111!!"  

I was just curious:  has anyone heard of other fandom "religions"?  Translating *Hamlet* into Klingon or Sindarin or something like that doesn't count:  it's extreme, yes, but not a religion.

Just wanted to say that Yima on GOS was kind enough to turn Astiee's Extreme Skin : Sparkling Flesh into a vampire default. She made one using Sussi's Mirror Gold eyes, which you can find here--

If you don't take breaks while grading, suddenly students are getting grades that are not quite so good.  Well, not the grades so much, but the comments start to veer towards the snarky. Even worse right now, because my MRI test results came back and it turns out that Achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis are what I *don't* have.  It's a couple of other tendons, and it's probably what's sometimes called "dancer's tendonitis."  It's kind of too bad, because the heel raises I was supposed to do as physical therapy really aggravate it.  I have to go see an orthopedist now, and chances are they will probably put me in some kind of a boot cast.  Bleh.  

I got offered a chance to give a paper on werewolves in *Harry Potter* and *Twilight*  at the Harry Potter convention in July ("Azkatraz"). It's a good incentive to get my taxes done, as I decided I'll go if I get enough of a refund to cover it.  I'd better speed it up, though, as hotel rooms are going fast and the film tickets are already gone (double bleh).

So naturally, with a pile of grading and a cold, and feeling a bit blobby because I haven't been exercising properly for weeks, I decided to direct my snark elsewhere.

Chances are I don't have to re-introduce this gentleman:
( Sim Sparklepires ahoy! )

Sigh.  Back to work and doing a few crunches and trying to figure out how to exercise and not aggravate the darned tendons.

Small earthquake out here.  They're all different--you could hear a slight rumble, but mostly a loud POOOOM! sort of sound and a shock as though someone had run a large truck into the wall behind my house.  The cats hated it.  But it seemed to be over quickly and I convinced them it was cool, and now it's as though it never happened.

Also, I went to the dermatologist.  I'm a pale person, and I live in Southern California, so when I see a mark or something that is new but doesn't go away, I figure I should get it checked.  He said it was probably nothing, but they'd biopsy it anyway, and they'd shave it right off. . .

Dermatologist:  And here's a consent form.

Me:  . . . You mean, you're going to do it now?

Dermatologist:  Yep.

Me:  You mean, now?  As in, NOW now?

Dermatologist:  ***rolls eyes***

I am such a total coward.  The local anesthetic hurt more than the actual thing, but it was all white and red and ikky-looking and it still doesn't look too nice, to be honest.  I hope it looks better by tomorrow.  I hate to stand up in front of students, knowing they're thinking, "what's that on her nose?"  It's not that I care what they think; I just know from experience that they will stare at my nose, and it will be as though the whole lecture didn't even happen.

I lectured the HECK out of *Beowulf* on Wednesday and I get to do it again tomorrow.  I should probably be prepping right now, only I'm a bit tired out. 

( simming stuff )

Also, I'm sure nobody really cares, but they decided to keep Taylor Lautner in the second *Twilight* movie.  I'm glad.  He worked really hard to show that he could do it. 

Also, Sarah Palin gave an interview in which she screamed, pointed to a picture of Keith Olbermann, and said "that guy is EVIL!"  Keith had all KINDS of fun with that one, up to, and including, "MUAHAHAHA."

So here's what's up with me:

I went to the physical therapist, and she thinks it's not just tendinitis but some sort of nerve thing.  The pain problem goes all the way from my ankle straight up my knee and into my hip and back, so now I need to do some exercises and and something called "nerve flossing" and go back about twice a week for a lot of stuff like whirlpool and some kind of electrocution thing. 

Grading like mad, and I'm wiped.  Trying to keep up with it all and concerned that I will have to choose between exercising and hurting myself, or not exercising and having all that hard work go to waste, or giving up all the nice holiday goodies in the hope I won't gain any weight back, which would be silly. 

I haven't been in the mood to play much, and I think a large part of it is that I think EA is completely uninterested in releasing the rest of the EPs for Mac.  What the heck, Sims3 is coming out--why waste their time?  Then some kid, even on MATY, posts "You Mac people should get Windoze cause it's better for Sims3 and all teh other stuff !!111!!"  and I think, "OH, REALLY, gosh, I NEVER THOUGHT OF THAT."  I don't know why I'd want to install Windows on a perfectly good Mac machine and lay it open to Windows-type problems, and besides, I have almost two years of Goodytwoshoes going now.  But I get discouraged when I think "after April, everybody will completely lose interest in this."  I would have to crank to get everything done by April, and with all the research I have to do, it's not happening.  

Also, I know this isn't something everyone is interested in, but here goes:  ( Entertainment industry gossip )

But soon I'll be done with the grading, and maybe then I will be in the mood to play.  Even if I'm not, I'm looking forward to commenting on the Penguinos and the Finches and the Vetinaris and the Whedonberrys, and reading the Villainous Apocalypse recap.  And Christmas is almost here, and I am almost in the mood for it!  So, yay.

Don't bite your TONGUE, stoopit! Ow! Seriously, that really hurt. Gum-related incident, nothing to do with grading or the movie I saw this afternoon.

Busy weekend, grading and shopping for Thanksgiving, but I also squeezed in going to see *Twilight.* And I was very happy I did, because when I got back I was able to read the m15m version by cleolinda . Cleolinda has the most brilliant recaps of the books. They're funny even if you think you'll loathe them; they're funny even if you KNOW you'll loathe them. And the Movies in Fifteen Minutes version she just did is absolutely dead-on. I really do recommend it for anyone: community.livejournal.com/m15m/19551.html#cutid2

I don't want to bore the snot out of everybody, so I'll put this under a cut.

( put this under a cut. . .  )

When i got home, I needed a bit of a break from all the Gothic sparkly, so I listened to Hugh Laurie reading *Three Men in a Boat.* Very Victorian, very British, very funny, and no sparkles anywhere in sight.

Marbles, Marko (aka "Mr. Bulgy") and I are looking forward to Thanksgiving. I bought my first-ever real turkey roaster and turkey platter. Believe it or not, I've been wrestling turkeys onto an undersized roasting pan and coaxing them onto regular plates for years now, and I am tired of it. So thank you, Macy's and Martha Stewart.

I also played the Marius house yesterday. You may remember that the Marians marry simselves. Denise passed on, which was sad, but she was a real matriarch at age 84. Penguingirl and Decimus aged up to elder. I was stupid, so Pen aged up gold, or maybe green. That was very stupid, and she went permaplat the next day, so I am keeping an eye on her life bar and I am going to cheat her some more time to make up for it. And I have a few pics of Orikes, Tertius, and Sextus, so let me share them with you. . .

( pictures! )I'm almost done with grading, so I hope to catch up with a few more legacies soon.

PB

From the most recent blog post of cleolinda , there are going to be Twilight Dolls.    Robert Pattinson quote:

"But he's happy about the fact there will be an Edward doll in his likeness. 'Oh yes, I like that. The doll is cool. I mean that’s what I really want. I want to have a little button in the back so you can do stuff with it. ' "

The mind boggles, and I mean that in a good way. 

PB