tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77707048217074476132024-03-06T11:47:45.073+13:00The New Old-Fashioned Girl<center>Cooking, Craft, Science Fiction, and Interesting Stuff</center>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.comBlogger154125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-27366294368674637522013-08-03T22:17:00.000+12:002013-08-03T22:17:17.931+12:00Book Review: J Michael Straczynski's Superman Earth One (volumes one and two)<div style="text-align: justify;">After being so good and posting twice in one week, I have fallen off the wagon again (yes, I warned you). But I just received some motivation to get myself back to this humble blog...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I came to graphic novels pretty late in life, so I have missed out on a lot of backstory for the established characters of the Marvel and DC universes, and have been too intimidated to try jumping in. I have stuck to new and one-off works, like <a href="http://www.freakangels.com/?p=23">FreakAngels</a> (that I've fangirled over here <a href="http://www.newoldfashionedgirl.com/2011/07/webcomicsgraphic-novels.html">before</a>), Girl Genius (ditto), and Watchmen; or <a href="http://www.newoldfashionedgirl.com/2012/11/latest-graphic-novels.html">graphic novel versions</a> of books (like the awesome Lovecraft graphic) or the continuing of tv shows (Farscape. Farscape, Farscape, Farscape). But I've always wanted to get into the classics.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">While processing returns at work (how I find all of the best books) I noticed the first volume of a new Superman series, written by Babylon 5's creator and writer, J Michael Straczynski, and knew I had to try it based solely on the awesomeness of B5.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Superman-Earth-One-DC-Comics/8168908/?r=1606091"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoBPzQ-HbxXqwdYlEqOZQhvsKz5l4x6VgRiMiMls81g7yzjbAwQVigpg64Nx6_HcL5rsQbqDpJL467yy8iVve8aeA7IbklCvgqReEQj3x9EUPbDIxyMCLi3mD3AP_swVg_00ibDjZ8Bxc/s320/Superman_Earth_One.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">I really liked it; it was easy to read and the illustrations were awesome. Can you hear the 'but' here? But... It felt really really short. In fact, a few weeks later while writing this, I can't even remember what happened except a lot of great backstory... or was that in the second volume?</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Superman-Earth-One-Volume-2/19839687/?r=1606091"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9zRK7pViNqoy2Mrdxuu7jJoi_RMaGFlYbkldvyTepanc8Tg0PGdCQgDLsUcx1x4HTyqveB0GfdUobtXVbAWxAbOAKecVpQ00H5DlOuwhvMI3muZ6DTC1f5ZH2C5SUoiN1TMMZMQFez4/s320/superman+earth+one+two.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">There is a plot to both volumes, but they're not very memorable. In the first there are robots and an alien determined to kill the very last surviving Kryptonian; in the second a man horribly mutated into a power-sucking thing that looks a lot like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venom_%28comics%29#Mac_Gargan">Venom</a> from Spiderman. The draw for me, though, is the exploration of this new Superman/Clark Kent.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Clark isn't the Clark I know from the movies, tv show, or through popular culture. He's mega smart for one thing, and has hidden that away from the world along with his traditional abilities. He is withdrawn without any friends, having never had a girlfriend... basically a loner, who has withdrawn so much from society that he doesn't even seem to think that someone will notice him applying for jobs with various sports teams (using his super speed and strength) and research facilities (using that super brain). This Superman isn't so super, in fact, it takes him an embarrassingly long time in the first volume to decide to help save the earth.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I like this Superman. I have always thought Superman was too perfect, without any selfishness, a country boy that everyone loved, whose only flaw was being just a little too innocent when he moved to the big city. This Superman is more real, a little emo, and not as goody-good as I'm used to (for example, he has no qualms leaving a bad guy in the north pole in a t shirt and bare feet, and telling him to walk home). Although I wont be rushing out to buy them, I will read the third volume when it is eventually released - hoping that now that Clark's character has been fully fleshed out, there'll be a faster-paced story.<br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">In other news, I have been asked to make an amigurumi for a colleague! I was so flattered when he asked, but then became concerned - the only amigurumi I've ever successfully finished was a Dalek for Miss S. I have started an amineko for myself and a puppy for Miss M, and not finished either. So I am nervous. I'll keep you posted!</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-45568235965261873752013-06-07T09:08:00.000+12:002013-06-07T09:08:35.315+12:00Spam Glorious Spam, Wonderful Spam<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Disclaimer: Don't worry! I'm not posting a recipe that contains that horrible un-food Spam!</b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The funniest picture I found when I googled spam, hehe</td></tr>
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A while ago I decided to make it easier for anyone who wanted to to post on my blog. I took away any need to identify yourselves, but luckily, kept the moderate-before-posting option ticked. I have had heaps of spam comments since then, which is fine because I just ignore them and after a while they disappear. But the following comment is reproduced for your entertainment (minus the links to whoknowswhat), because it made me cry with laughter.</div>
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merely a calculator engaged to the add up along with the payment on
metre, staying low-level your papers because we've spent too untold of
the vocalist immediately with no beset best loans for bad credit
are in take of Bc keno sort For day, the authorised stock is
transferred straight into your funds and issuance an example. As we
reason out tonight’s call… I </i></blockquote>
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My friends at work and I puzzled over this comment, and decided it was some kind of poetry. What gave it away was the final sentence - simply "I". So, thank you spam man for your work of art.</div>
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How is everyone anyway? Read any good books lately? Have you done any craft? I am currently working on both - <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Dark-Is-Rising-The-Complete-Sequence/7170847/?r=1606091">The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper</a> (a teen novel Miss A loved when she was a kid, but which is heavy going - literally, that's one HUGE book!), and another* crochet blanket.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Spoiler alert: expect a post about the last one soon!</span><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-88563106928772279402013-05-07T22:21:00.002+12:002013-05-07T22:21:27.078+12:00Logan's Run<div style="text-align: justify;">
Look at this, folks, two posts in a week! Don't get used to it... Hehe. Spoiler alert - as this book is pretty old, and you should have seen the movie by now, I'm not going to bother putting a spoiler image in like I usually do. So here's a pretty picture in case you missed having one:</div>
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<b>Logan's Run</b> has been one of my all-time favourite movies for as long as I can remember. A brief summary follows - brief because if you have seen it, you need little reminding; and if you haven't seen it, just watch it now please. No, I mean it. Go. Now.</div>
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Logan is a <b>DS man</b>, a <b>Sandman</b>. His life's purpose is to ensure all whose lifeclock palm crystal has progressed through red to flashing red to black are caught. And killed. Life ends at 30, one way or another. Hedonism rules. At 30 you go to <b>Carousel</b> and hope for rebirth, or you Run, and the <b>Sandmen</b> kill you. The great computer who controls the domed city (outside of which there is Nothing) asks Logan to investigate <b>Sanctuary</b>, to become a <b>Runner</b>, losing his last years to serve the greater good. And his DS partner Francis chases him.</div>
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The movie is beautiful; a masterpiece of classic science fiction cinema. A post-apocalyptic dystopia where everyone is young and beautiful (even <b>Michael York</b>?). The book is somewhat like the 'behind the scenes bonus' for the movie. All of the poison of the society that one has hints of in the movie is brought to the forefront of the book, and it is disturbingly plausible. What's worse is that the domed city is replaced by the entire world - a world-wide systematic eradication of anyone over the age of 21. Consumption; decadence; and inhumanity; cruelty. But the same sense of innocence is there too. The actress who plays Jessica in the movie has huge, almost cartoonishly innocent-looking eyes, and both Logan and Jess are completely clueless once outside of the city. Meanwhile, in the book it's a lot more subtle.</div>
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I initially had a problem with the ending because going to a space station felt a little like overkill - popping a sci fi trope in just for some excitement. But then I realised - as Logan and Jess escape the world in the book, so they do in the movie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the movie their whole world is the city- the dome is our atmosphere. In fact the book's somewhat open ending makes me feel a little odd about the movie - was I being force fed a fully completed dumbed down story all this time without realising it? Don’t get me wrong, I still absolutely adore the movie. But I have to admit, the book is a lot more challenging. I believe there are sequels, but it remains to be seen if the library (or even the publishers) bother with them.<br />
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I've been looking to buy this book for as long as I’ve known it exists, but until now thought it was so out of print I’d never find it. Sound familiar? <b>Tajore Arkle</b>, people - the greatest pain of my literary life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m glad I read it, and, like <b>Tajore Arkle</b>, I can see myself wanting to reread it.<br />
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You can buy Logan's Run on dvd <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/DVD/Logans-Run/1459665/?r=1606091">here</a>, and you can even buy the <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Logans-Run/7626402/?r=1606091">book</a> in NZ now! </div>
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</style> <![endif]--><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-73734631284515686522013-05-03T15:49:00.002+12:002013-05-03T15:49:33.288+12:00Nostalgia<div style="text-align: justify;">
Not only am I pretty slack at posting on this blog these days, but I am terrible at clearing out my email inbox. It's almost like trying to clear out the junk room of your house - what to throw away, what to keep, what to never buy (or sign up for) again. I keep reminding myself that 'archive' doesn't mean it's gone forever! While going through old emails I opened one from Amazon suggesting tons of '80s cartoon dvd sets. I watched a lot of cartoons as a little kid, not that I remember sitting in front of the tv for hours - I think it was one cartoon before school, and one when I got home. See if you remember any of these:</div>
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<b>David the Gnome</b></div>
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The list of my absolute favourite cartoons of <i>all time</i> includes David the Gnome. Beautiful animation, and stories that teach kids to be kind and generous - who could want more? Buy it <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008IELRUM/ref=pe_164420_27493570_pe_vfe_dt1">here</a>, and find out more about the show <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_the_gnome">here</a>.</div>
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Need a reminder? (I can't believe it, I remember pretty much all of the words!)</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/LJx8-DGgbiM?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Lady Lovelylocks</b><br />
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THE girliest cartoon ever made. Lady Lovelylocks is lovely, she has long golden hair that's magical. There are purple dragons. There's a prince that's been turned into a dog, and a blind wizzard. And of course, the bad guy (well, girl) is a brunette. </div>
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Need a reminder?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/mOyKELtKt3U?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Jem</b></div>
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No list of awesome '80s cartoons would be complete without Jem. I would have wanted to be her, except that her sister almost has my name... I'm sure you all remember Jem, so just enjoy the music below!</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/20BZID081Vk?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Inspector Gadget</b><br />
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Penny has a tablet and a mobile phone built into her wrist watch (that also doubles as a calculator, might I add!). I always wanted her computer book, and now that we live in the future, I can actually go out and buy one. I hope someone has made a tablet look like her computer book.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/e-JHfXVlkik?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Captain Planet</b><br />
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He's our hero, gonna take pollution down to zero; need I say more? Starring LeVar Burton and Whoopi Goldberg, just like my favourite tv show... You can now watch full episodes online (like most of the cartoons on this list).</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/vpXM9bj-WPU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Gummi Bears</b><br />
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No, not the lollies! I remember having a book-and-tape of one of the Gummi Bears stories, and listening to it in the dark on Mum's stereo that had lights that would move up and down with the sound. And singing along to the song! Buy it <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HWZ4RK/ref=pe_164420_27493570_pe_vfe_dt2">here</a>.</div>
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Need a reminder?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/SM9fRjRPKEo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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And if you need something a little more sophisticated:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/BW2NuxOC8fU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>The Snorks</b><br />
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What stands out in my memory most from this show (other than it being fun) is the use of the word 'snork' in place of many other words. "Snorking along" or "it'll be a snorking good time". I know a lot of shows have done this, including the smurfs, but this is the one I think of when I think about using a species name in this way! The other thing I remember was them making sounds with the nose thing on their heads, and the dog-like snork pet, he was cute!</div>
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Need a reminder?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/I4ALjDSsMd4?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<b>Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles</b><br />
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I know I loved this when I was little because I have almost the entire set of special coins that a newspaper in Australia made that had the characters on them. But I really don't remember all that much about the storylines, just the characters.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/AxuvUAjHYWQ?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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I watched cartoons well into the '90s (in fact, I still watch <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEvVGq8SBRs">them</a>!), and here's a quick set of links to the ones I love from that era: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ReyS9i9BJg">TaleSpin</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfoZ1xOBwkw">Aladdin</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFXTa2yeYWs">Chip'n'Dale: Rescue Rangers</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=375ENQbru8s">Darkwing Duck</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frGLMtGsotc">DuckTales</a> (I have a DuckTales board game, true story), <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdXQVXYy7Fs">Tiny Toons</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6-bmhoulCM">Animaniacs</a> (..while Bill Clinton plays the sax!), and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuEJWmxWkKw">Reboot</a>.</div>
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What are your favourite cartoons? Did your parents let you watch cartoons growing up? If not, do you watch them now?</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-28126192174005794612013-03-01T11:57:00.000+13:002013-03-01T12:04:57.503+13:00Latest Books I... Haven't Read<div style="text-align: justify;">
Do you ever go through spells where you
just can't find the right next book? I'm going through quite a
prolonged period of this right now (with some notable exceptions). Our
library has a feature of it's online account where you can track all of
the books you've had out, no matter for how long. Let's have a look at
mine for the last few months (since I last posted a book review).</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Demi-Monde-Winter/10395315/?r=1606091">The Demi-Monde: Winter</a> by Rod Rees</div>
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Have only had a peek at this one, will reserve jugement. It does seem a little like Ready Player One...</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Ghost-Planet/19847887/?r=1606091">Ghost Planet</a> by Sharon Lynn Fisher</div>
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Not
sure. Last night I ripped my bookmark out of the book, convinced I
don't want to read it. But we'll see - a girl can change her mind,
can't she?</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Hello-Kitty-Must-Die/4003176/?r=1606091">Hello Kitty Must Die</a> by Angela S Choi</div>
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What was I thinking?</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Art-Forger/19817206/?r=1606091">The Art Forger</a> by B A Shapiro<br />
Present tense. Need I say more? </div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Agatha-H-and-the-Airship-City/10416634/?r=1606091">Agatha H and the Airship City</a> by Phil and Kaja Foglio</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Love
the graphic novel (<a href="http://www.newoldfashionedgirl.com/2011/07/webcomicsgraphic-novels.html">Girl Genius</a>), but the books was a bit slow (probably just because
it's the same story as the graphic, so, to me, it's a repeat).</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Selection/19400471/?r=1606091">The Selection</a> by Kiera Cass<br />
Teen science fiction/fantasy romance. Ugh.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Kirinyaga/2528124/?r=1606091">Kirinyaga: a fable of Utopia</a> by Mike Resnick</div>
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He killed a baby. He got returned to the library.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Long-Earth/18626886/?r=1606091">The Long Earth</a> by Terry Pratchet and Stephen Baxter<br />
Fan-freaking-tastic (review will come eventually, promise!).</div>
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</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Blue-Remembered-Earth-Poseidons-Children-1/18273576/?r=1606091">Blue Remembered Earth</a> by Alastair Reynolds<br />
I love Alastair Reynolds' <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Century-Rain/2633347/?r=1606091">Century Rain</a>, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/House-of-Suns/1732349/?r=1606091">House of Suns</a>, and <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Terminal-World/10088100/?r=1606091">Terminal World</a>.
But I couldn't get into his Revelation Space series. I couldn't get
into this book either, and I see now that it's the first in a series...</div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Night-Circus/10361364/?r=1606091">The Night Circus</a> by Erin Morgenstern</div>
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Present tense. Again. I just can't stand present tense in novels!</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Blackbirds/19343947/?r=1606091">Blackbirds</a> by Chuck Wendig</div>
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I don't even remember this book at all.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Origin-Master-the-Art-of-Business/19856631/?r=1606091">Origin</a> by Jessica Khoury<br />
First person, she was a bit annoyingly perfect and boringly innocent. Seemed a bit creepy too. </div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Ready-Player-One/10382260/?r=1606091">Ready Player One</a> by Ernest Cline</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I can't believe I haven't reviewed this book yet. SO so good. Like Ender's Game good.<br />
</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Among-Others/20780973/?r=1606091">Among Others</a> by Jo Walton</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The girl was a witch or something. Living in a boarding school. She had issues, too much baggage.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Do
you start to understand when I tell you that I am picky? Have you read
any of the books I have tried and failed to finish (or in some cases,
really start)? Would you like to try to convince me to give them
another go? Leave a comment!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Do
you have any pet peeves when it comes to fiction and writing style like
I do with present tense? I am really the only one who wont read novels
in present tense? I will write a post about that soon. I might even
make a comment on the state of teen fiction right now - fantasy/science
fiction/horror but all with romance? Sigh...<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-23480188057991926082013-02-05T17:55:00.000+13:002013-02-16T13:56:18.433+13:00A sad post<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi everyone. I had intended to be posting once a week from the beginning of the year, but the passing of a beloved family member has halted that effort. Our lovely budgie passed away after being sick for only a weekend. He was only three, and so it was a big shock to us. The house is so quiet that it's been hard to do anything while home alone except mope. We miss him very much.</div>
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But today I am playing Disney tunes and singing, so the place is feeling a little less empty for now. I'm going to write some posts over the next few days that will be much cherrier, but for now, let me show you my pretty little fella.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMBCK-jv0C3V7hhQBZEcCh8gphnmAENCGLuO_MXG1M7BB5BwBwexNKqPWhXN82q0RJ1JbVEPAYpFy7B0HUrpi3TF7Q16F1GTd6LhrtjdErH85APRh7byTVAkt_foZDTbWdWlB7UTJnTQY/s1600/123209+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMBCK-jv0C3V7hhQBZEcCh8gphnmAENCGLuO_MXG1M7BB5BwBwexNKqPWhXN82q0RJ1JbVEPAYpFy7B0HUrpi3TF7Q16F1GTd6LhrtjdErH85APRh7byTVAkt_foZDTbWdWlB7UTJnTQY/s320/123209+(2).jpg" width="303" /></a></div>
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This is Budgery-Boy as a baby, would have been not long after we brought him home. Yes, his wing is trimmed, but only for his own safety - getting used to a new home can be scary, so this means he couldn't fly too high or too far. Notice how blue his feathers are, and how few spots he has on his face!</div>
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Just a few months later, his wing feathers had grown back and he'd turned green, but he always had a little blue at the base of his tail, and always had a yellow spot on top of his head.<br />
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I was never sure if he thought he was a person, or if he thought we were birds. I know he wanted to eat and drink anything we were eating or drinking, so I ended up pouring two glasses of water if he were out of his house - one for me, and one for him.</div>
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For a while he loved to have baths. As long as the water was shallow. But as he grew up, he grew out of it. But, he did like to drink from the tap now and then...<br />
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And he loved his bell! He never quite got the hang of soccer, but he did love to talk to it! He also loved sitting on people's feet and talking to their toes. But I wont put in a photo of that, hehe. And he loved his mirror. So much so that he would say "where's your mirror?", and I would have to go get it for him to sit and talk to. And feed. Seed everywhere. Ick. Hahaha, he was a character.</div>
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And this is the most common pose of all of the photos I have of him. He loved the shine of a camera or phone or ipod or computer webcam... I call this a beak shot. I have dozens!<br />
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Thank you for looking through these photos of my best little friend. I hope they made you smile.<br />
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<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-20602171314881488642012-11-23T17:56:00.004+13:002012-11-23T17:59:25.946+13:00Latest Graphic Novels<div style="text-align: justify;">Lately I've been finding it difficult to commit to a novel - mostly because I keep picking up books that are entirely written in present-tense. I can't stand present tense in novels. It denotes edge-of-the-seat action to me, and I can't keep that amount of anticipation going for a whole novel. I do not have the energy. And it's a pity, because the books I brought home to read looked really good. So I have been reading graphic novels like a fiend. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>FreakAngels: Volumes 1 - 4</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I've talked about <b>FreakAngels</b> <a href="http://www.newoldfashionedgirl.com/2011/07/webcomicsgraphic-novels.html">before</a>, so I wont go on about it too much here. It is totally different reading this on paper than it was reading it online, and I'm finding that there are a lot of little details that I either glossed over or have lost in the bigger picture of the series that I'm picking up now. And there are little details that I remember from my first reading (for example "CHICKENZ!"). It also seems more coherant. There is something about the immediacy of turning a paper page that I don't feel when waiting for the next page to load in my browser. There's more... connectedness. Anyway, if you have read the series online, try reading the hard copy, and if you haven't done either, I don't know what to do about you.</div><br />
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<b>Orbiter</b><br />
Another <b>Warren Ellis</b> graphic novel, but totally different to <b>FreakAngels</b> - for a start it's a one-off story. When the last space shuttle to leave Earth returns ten years after it went missing, top scientists in the now defunct field of space travel research and development gather to investigate the ship, and its sole surviving crew member. I can't say much more because it would spoil it, but I enjoyed it. I wasn't dileriously happy with the ending, and I think a bit more explanation could have been put into the background of the world that the story takes place in, but I'd at least give it three out of five stars.<br />
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<b>Farscape: Volume 1</b><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">I love <b>Farscape</b>. Absolutely love it; I love the humour, the action, the premise, the characters, the pop culture references, everything except (SPOILER) the deaths. I can rewatch <b>Farscape</b> over and over. Now this love of the original four-season series and its movie conclusion was bound to colour how I felt about reading what is basically the next season of the show in graphic novel form (think of the <b>Buffy The Vampire Slayer</b> comics). And I liked it, a lot. Because I haven't watched the last season and movie in a while, there were tiny details I had forgotten, but there was no real need for a recap, as the story is almost fully contained - know the characters, the premise, and have a vague idea of what's been happening and you'll be fine. I think I would have enjoyed it a little more if I had just watched some episodes. Trying to get <b>John</b> and <b>Aeryn's</b> voices right in my head was a little distracting. I think to make a full judgement on them, I will have to read more issues.</div><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>The Lovecraft Anthology Volume 1</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I had tried reading <b>Lovecraft</b> years ago and it didn't grab my attention. Recently, however, there have been a few of his stories produced on one of my favourite podcasts, <a href="http://www.drabblecast.org/">The Drabblecast</a>, and I just loved Norm's reading so much that it renewed my interest. I had been planning to take home one of his books, but I was checking in books at work and a graphic novel version of some of his most well-known stories was returned. I really enjoyed it, and it even spooked me a bit. Each story is illustrated by a different person, so with each new story there's a new interpretation of the weird and creepy - which makes it even more weird and creepy. The only issue I had with it was that the stories were quite brief - but that's less to do with the editing and more to do with the original material. Most of his original stories are short, or at least the ones I've heard/read.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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<b>Ex Machina</b><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">I'm reading this on the suggestion of a collegue (the same that encouraged me to try the <b>Farscape</b> graphic novel), and I don't know about it yet. The main character has power over machines and is also the mayor of New York. I don't really understand it. And nothing much is happening yet, except some drama over a painting, and a lot of (necessary) backstory. I kind of feel like I've walked into the middle of a long-running series even though it is the first volume. Also, I don't know if I like the lead character. I don't understand what his motivations are, or even if he's a goodie or a baddie. But I will read on, I won't make up my mind until I have finished it, and if I end up liking it, I'll post about it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkIArVEKHYXcMmdQTWutk0x-FviTULkfewqv_L3NDTKWzNqvN76TFKXCtttZQWu2qs1uzXIavLcJLtUcKqSN71xBz-4ltjf8tYrp-CQ_gMFTE0QlC2CqwLD07mxbHtoeh5HvhbML5tQUo/s1600/ex-machina-vol-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkIArVEKHYXcMmdQTWutk0x-FviTULkfewqv_L3NDTKWzNqvN76TFKXCtttZQWu2qs1uzXIavLcJLtUcKqSN71xBz-4ltjf8tYrp-CQ_gMFTE0QlC2CqwLD07mxbHtoeh5HvhbML5tQUo/s320/ex-machina-vol-1.jpg" width="197" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">Although most of the graphic novels I've read are in series, I particularly like one-off graphic novel stories, where I don't have to commit to a huge storyline over multiple volumes. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to read <b>Spiderman</b> or <b>Batman</b> or the <b>Phantom</b> (yup, the <b>Phantom</b>, I like him!), but with all of the multiple timelines and generations... it's hard to know where to start. Do you like graphic novels? Do you have any suggestions? </div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-91439508425741723802012-11-16T09:58:00.001+13:002012-11-16T10:00:46.405+13:00Escape Pod<div style="text-align: justify;">Hi all. Yes, I am aware that I haven't posted in a while, despite my best intentions, and yes I'm aware that I haven't finished off my previous post about buying my domain and not being able to update the look of the blog. But I'm quite excited that I am finally up-to-date with a podcast that I love, so want to do a post on that instead :-)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Escape Pod is a weekly science fiction podcast that runs stories from authors such as Tim Pratt, Lavie Tidhar, Vylar Kaftan, N K Jemisin, Cat Rambo, Cory Doctorow, Mike Resnick, Saladin Ahmed, and Catherynne M Valente. Impressive, right? The podcast is also totally free. The good news doesn't stop there, the narration and production is impeccable, and each episode comes with monster surf rock theme music by <a href="http://www.daikaiju.org/">Dai Kai Ju</a> (who are pretty cool).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I thought to write this post, I tried to compile a list of my favourite episodes, but it's very hard to choose, and sometimes it's difficult to remember just how much I enjoyed each story as I was listening to it. I think this is one of the features/flaws (depending on how you look at it) of audio fiction - it obviously lacks the physical presence of written prose, and so becomes kind of like a sandcastle; beautiful but impermanent. Click on the image below for some of the episodes that really stood out for me.</div><br />
<div id="spoiler" style="display: none;"><div style="text-align: justify;">The episodes that stand out to me include the first I listened to - <a href="http://escapepod.org/2010/02/13/ep238-wind-from-a-dying-star/">Wind from a Dying Star</a> by David D Levine; a sweet story about being old in a post-humanist future and chasing memories. I also enjoyed <a href="http://escapepod.org/2010/08/26/ep255-variations-on-a-theme/">Variations on a Theme</a> by William Meikle, about a biology teacher who realises his students are being possessed by aliens, one by one. <a href="http://escapepod.org/2011/01/27/ep277/">Rejiggering the Thingamajig</a> by Eric James Stone is about a pacifist mama tyrannosaurus rex just trying to get home to her babies when the wormhole system she was using shorts all over the galaxy leaving her and an AI to fix the... thingamajig. And more recently, Hugo award winner, <a href="http://escapepod.org/2012/05/17/ep345-the-paper-menagerie/">The Paper Menagerie</a> by Ken Liu, about a man coming to terms with who he is through the origami animals his mother had made him when he was a child. Lastly, <a href="http://escapepod.org/2012/11/01/ep368-springtime-for-deathtraps/">Springtime for Deathtraps</a> by Marjorie James is a fun little story about, arguably, the best deathtrap designer who has ever lived (previous stories about Xnab can be found <a href="http://escapepod.org/2009/11/12/ep224-the-ghost-in-the-death-trap/">here</a> and <a href="http://escapepod.org/2005/06/23/ep007-the-trouble-with-death-traps/">here</a>).<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I have 192 of the 369 episodes of Escape Pod stored on my hard drive so limiting to even this many suggestions was tough! Not to mention the fact that they run all of the Hugo award nominees in both audio and print (the Escape Pod feed includes a 'Soundproof Digest' - the printed version of each of the stories - every few months), which is great when you don't subscribe to all of the magazines they feature in every year.</div></div></div><img onclick="if(document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=='none') {document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=''}else{document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display='none'}" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1b/EscapePod.jpg" title="Click to show/hide content" /><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I started listening to Escape Pod in February of 2010, and liked it so much that I downloaded all of the back issues I could. Which meant I was perpetually behind, but I didn't mind so much - the stories don't exactly go out of date. But after a couple of dozen episodes, listening to the feedback segment made me want to get involved with the Escape Pod community by posting and discussing the latest story on their forums. But I was never able to catch up, until now. I guess long bus rides to work every day have one benefit!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I can't recommend Escape Pod highly enough, just go and download all of the episodes you can and start listening! Do you listen to any podcasts already? Are they fiction or non fiction? Do you listen to audiobooks? Tell me about them in the comments!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-85197676258699337262012-10-22T08:16:00.001+13:002012-10-26T11:37:19.071+13:00A More Permenant Home (updated)<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi all! I bought a domain! I'm going to speak in short exclamations! Because I'm excited!</div>
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Okay, that's enough of that. My friend <a href="http://minaross.wordpress.com/">Miss C</a> said to me at work the other day "why don't you just buy newoldfashionedgirl.com, it's only like $10 a year or something". I had never thought of actually doing this, so I looked into it. This is what I found out:</div>
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li>It really does only cost $10 a year!</li>
<li>It's pretty simple to do once you find the right set of instructions (blogger's instructions seem to skip some details)</li>
<li>I should have done this ages ago!</li>
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So today I'm going to work on a revamp to celebrate my new address. A spring cleaning and redecorating. I realised we've been staring at the same décor on this site for about a year now, and it needs to change (though I do love it so). I will also post about how I went about buying the domain, and the tricky issues I had (mostly because of skipped instructions!).</div>
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This may take more than one day...<br />
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<i>Update: So, looks like it will definitely take more than one day. My template will not update, and apparently a lot of people are having the same problem, and have been for a while. One person on the forums said they'd not been able to change anything since the end of August! I hope blogger gets its act together soon! For now, we shall stay pink and pretty.</i></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-17845207753056239402012-09-22T10:23:00.000+12:002012-10-06T16:38:49.477+13:00Bonus Post: RedshirtsWhile hunting for a cover picture of <a href="http://newoldfashionedgirl.blogspot.co.nz/2012/09/book-review-john-scalzis-redshirts.html">Redshirts</a>, I found some awesome redshirt-related pictures on google. Enjoy these:<br />
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<a href="http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/d00d/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFcLlJovOM9P4-3mjZj8lxvJdVo-uxWxcd1UbkeGK-P02s6c5E5Mi7BZcTQihDfbrBUBg9mXiStV1EyaghhL0rD91KPLFRaJFMUWq82Rk3HZS9sbmM82Exw2Z6ahPnRf3tsBUtguyIkU0/s1600/d00d_hes_undead_jim.jpg" /></a></div>
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Go to thinkgeek to buy this as a t shirt. Awesome!</div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjppTVfeFrTjmw_xYaK_7zoG6PZiIFU4c4rH6BePgKyshGFpJVBjx_KKfdVjLlwlBYQ6rey9PO1ALGLIhLd2EA18sPkyBskRjeg72R2-XPGMJkW73RprsWB-KHpllPsz6ZR7h4hEDOTTY/s400/gw014-redshirts.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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So there!</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Star-Trek-Red-Shirt-Cologne/19342232/?r=1606091"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn2RwzLOabjsiMO96c6JFjCaMK40zMaqVnIK9GOMdNQOvobAXBpGL0JC2bUxVcLMbyms7BjbZya9uRQzF7nAjmIOxmJ5wp55iNYsUqVDcqfGICQT_t3et9jZxgYYEniOaPyOgBi_c6Exk/s320/redshirt30.jpg" width="249" /></a></div>
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The scent of Redshirt... Even available in New Zealand!</div>
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<img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0be0nCPofUt5cVAICZPorCgEhLwX8sIlqFsobU6jsDa2Qpz9AAja7ufNEUjhhHGQHg11VHtgjLApcb8pNexacwJstD6mH2r6kbbDahYpi2_0qkX9OQKCLn_KM93_vVa4MuqSsWHlz-qQ/s400/insp_expendability.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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This is my favourite Redshirt reference*.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Also note Kirk's pose/expression - doesn't he just say "Oh man, I am so cool"?</span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-39371414450305615022012-09-14T16:05:00.000+12:002012-09-18T18:29:04.160+12:00Book Review: John Scalzi's Redshirts UPDATED<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em>I've been told I was not critical enough in my review, so I have added a sentence or two to this post in the spoilers section.</em><br />
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Those of you who know anything about my reading habits can probably already see a Scalzi obsession forming. I have a reputation (mainly with myself...) for finding an author that I like, and reading most of their back catalogue. But this time, instead of reading on in the <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Old-Mans-War/3696961/?r=1606091">Old Man's War</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Man%27s_War#Sequels">series</a> (the next book is called <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Ghost-Brigades/3716650/?r=1606091">The Ghost Brigades</a>), I decided to go straight to his latest book- <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Redshirts-A-Novel-with-Three-Codas/20619315/?r=1606091">Redshirts</a>.<br />
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I wrote a recommendation for this book as part of a requirement for work, and managed to make it less than 200 words:</div>
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<b>John Scalzi’s Redshirts</b></blockquote>
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What would you do if you discovered you were expendable, an extra in a story that is simply using you for dramatic effect? Dahl and his crewmates decide to take action, to find out why their fellow ensigns aboard the Intrepid keep dying in ridiculous situations, and why, at times, the Captain makes decisions that take them directly into the path of danger and drama. Scalzi’s knack for presenting heavy ideas (in this case predestination, taking action against insurmountable odds, and being the protagonist in one's own story) in a light, often humourous, and enjoyable read is why I think I will carry on reading his back catalogue. If you enjoy this book, you might also like Scalzi's 'Old Man's War', and Connie Willis' 'To Say Nothing of the Dog' for more big ideas wrapped in a humourous, seemingly light read.</blockquote>
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Like what I did there? Remember <a href="http://newoldfashionedgirl.blogspot.co.nz/2012/01/book-review-connie-willis-to-say.html">TSNotD</a> and how much I liked it? I genuinely believe that if you enjoyed that, you will easily see the same appeal in Redshirts. Now I look at it and think "there's not all that much more I want to say". Don't get me wrong, I am really excited about the book, but I don't think I want to pull it apart like I have most of the books I've reviewed on here (also, I'm writing this review a while after I finished the book and I have already returned it to the library!). So there are very few spoilers if you click on the picture below.</div>
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Imagine how excited you'd be, after having graduated from space academy, to be stationed on the fleet's flagship. The Intrepid's xenobiology department is Dahl's very first posting and he couldn't be more eagre to participate in his first away mission. Now imagine how creepy it would be if the members if your department disappeared every time a command-level officer came looking for volunteers for away missions. Dahl finds his co-workers 'getting coffee', 'checking the storeroom', or.. well, hiding under their desks when the chief science officer needs assistance for a run of the mill away mission.<br />
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Soon we learn that away missions are not opportunities to explore new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations... They are instead ways to boldly die where no man has died before. The ship's course is set by how much drama can be encountered along the way. The same decks are hit every time the ship is fired upon. People have random monologues. If you knew the bad guy at the Academy, you will die. If you are a command officer, you will not die of mortal wounds. People know convenient things about each other than they never knew they knew... The list of things that make Dahl, and others, think that there's something screwy going on on the Intrepid is obviously longer than Scalzi had time to detail.<br />
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A chance encounter with a hermit (yup, space ships can have those too), enables Dahl to find out what is going on - they're on a tv show. That's right, they don't exist outside of the imagination of several writers, producers, directors, and actors. Dahl and his friends kidnap one of the command-level 'characters', jump through a wormhole, and end up in our present day, intent on stopping the tv show at all costs.<br />
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I liked this part of the book the best. Most of the characters meet themselves, which is cute and trippy, and there is a lot of running about without pants, gate crashing night clubs, and kidnapping. But the two things that will stick with me are Dahl's visit to the actress who played Jenkin's wife, and how they manage to convince the show's director to cancel it if he could have his son back.<br />
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<i>Okay, so here's the critical bit, and I'll be brief, the book tended to drag a little in places, and lacked the action one would expect from a 'bad science fiction show'. But as I say, the writing almost completely makes up for this. Also, there are three 'codas' at the end of the book. I had to return it to the library before I could finish these, but I did read a little of the first one and it made no sense to me. It didn't continue the story, but instead seemed to be a portion of the story from another person's perspective (remember I didn't read it all, so I can only judge by what I did read). A friend read this book on my recommendation and she insisted I include this little critique because she thought the codas were terrible. I will get the book back out one day, and read them, and let you know!</i><br />
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Scalzi is skilled in writing stories about realistic characters that react to imaginative situations in a way that we could see ourselves reacting. He creates a detailed world around the characters that is believable - the suspension of disbelief is not a stretch for his books. He does all of this with humour, as I mentioned in my previous post about Old Man's War, and so it is never a chore to read his books - they seem light, but the heavy ideas are there. In Old Man's War, ideas about the role of the military and the reaction of the human psyche to warfare, as well as the ethics and ramifications of cloning and post-humanism, were all explored but never forced and rarely brought to the foreground of the story. In Redshirts, ideas about predestination and control over one's own life, taking action against insurmountable odds, and being the protagonist in your own story are covered - albeit a little more obviously. Still, info dumps are not Scalzi. Yes, I'm basing this on reading two of his books, and yes I could very well prove myself wrong when I go on to read the next one, but I do doubt it.</div>
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<img onclick="if(document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=='none') {document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=''}else{document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display='none'}" src="http://scifimafia.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/redshirts.jpg" title="Click to show/hide content" /><br />
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Okay, spoiler-free now. I know this review is not as well put-together as (I think) the others have been, and I have no real excuse other than writing it in pieces and only now putting them together about a month after finishing the book. I shall try to be good next time - I'm currently reading <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Ready-Player-One/18628515/?r=1606091">Ready Player One</a> by Ernest Cline.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-91560751327759451602012-08-23T09:00:00.000+12:002012-08-31T18:25:00.931+12:00Joy the Baker<div style="text-align: justify;">
It's been a long time since I have added a new feed to my list or gushed about a blog here, mainly due to the limited time I have to explore new sites. But I have to tell you about Joy the Baker. I was innocently checking in books at the library a few weeks ago when I saw this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidgs3T1C4K1uaowUcxwjB7KdjHZDG5tnQ6Vk5UdD84FvpLLkmkuNXKqA7WJJRBWov5WGgRhqaNQiCV1De7WERIwKYNMJevvzOlX7-DJyxON0g2cICv8d8iLKwLlu-Eam61FdbYRX_9LDM/s1600/Joy+the+Baker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidgs3T1C4K1uaowUcxwjB7KdjHZDG5tnQ6Vk5UdD84FvpLLkmkuNXKqA7WJJRBWov5WGgRhqaNQiCV1De7WERIwKYNMJevvzOlX7-DJyxON0g2cICv8d8iLKwLlu-Eam61FdbYRX_9LDM/s320/Joy+the+Baker.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>
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How could I resist a book that is 'A Celebration of Butter and Sugar'? I placed a request on the book, and reluctantly put it on the shelf to fulfill someone else' request. Soon afterward, I opened my account to find that it was available, and with great enthusiasm, I took it home. I read the introduction on the bus and knew I would need to read the whole book, rather than just browsing the recipe titles for something appealing.</div>
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Joy Wilson has an engaging writing style that made me subscribe to her <a href="http://joythebaker.com/">blog posts</a> and <a href="http://joythebaker.com/podcast/">podcast</a> (yes, she's THAT cool), without even thinking about it. Her website is the same mix of humourous anecdotes, tips, and mouth-watering recipes (that in this case are not limited to baking - see <a href="http://joythebaker.com/2012/08/tomato-zucchini-soup/">this</a> as an example). Go have a look, now!</div>
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"And what about the recipes?" I hear you ask... Well, I haven't tried any yet, but the first on the list to try is 'Single Lady Pancakes'. I know, right? Noone publishes recipes for baking yummy things for one! Fabulous! Other must-makes include 'Perfect Kettle Corn', 'Carrot Cake Pancakes', and 'S'mores Brownies'. But it's not all decadence - 'Kale and Spinach Banana Peanut Butter Smoothie' and 'Seaweed Parmesan Popcorn' sound like enough to justify your having an extra slice of cake later on... Expect to see more mention of her recipes here.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-18215067071302394602012-08-17T15:50:00.000+12:002012-08-19T20:36:32.015+12:00Living in the Future: The first bus-written post<br />
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I know I keep moaning on about how I have such long bus journeys, and how this means I have very little time for blogging. And I keep apologising for my extended absences. This must seem disingenuous as it keeps happening, but it's not that I don't WANT to blog, it's that there are far easier things to do to relax and be creative when I do finally get home from work. Miraculously I have kept up with reading, crochet, and computer games, as well as perusing my absolute favourite blogs/websites (geekcrafts, pinterest, mr x stitch, and bookporn, I love you so).</div>
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But I've just downloaded the blogger app and discovered that I can write posts (all be it without my usual resources) on my ipod, whether I have an internet connection or not! I am not promising I'll be posting more often, but at least now I feel like posting more often is actually possible!</div>
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I have some projects to share, such as my spectacularly succesful attempt at pink-iced finger buns, the lemon baby blanket, the discovery of caramel drops, and my current project (yup, it's another present, and yup, another surprise, so no posting about it until it's done).</div>
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But for now, a will sign off; typing on an ipod is tricky - it's taken 25 mins to write just this small post! Here's to living in the future!</div>
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(PS: I'm not on the bus right now, I was when I wrote this, I am just publishing it now - NZ is not THAT far into the future that there's wireless on the busses, woe is me) </div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-63867364951575622882012-06-08T15:29:00.000+12:002012-09-14T16:05:37.187+12:00Book Review: John Scalzi's Old Man's War<div style="text-align: justify;">
You may remember that weeks, or even months ago, I posted about starting Connie Willis' All Clear, and how excited I was about it. You may be wondering why I haven't told you more... Sadly, I have to admit that I have had to put the book on the back burner (which means 'returned it to the library') for now. It's such a heavy book so I can't take it on the bus to work, and I've had trouble reading in bed lately (lonnng days at work and lonnng bus trips = yawn). Please don't take it as an indication of the quality of the book! It's still fabulous, but as I've said before, I find it hard to get into Connie Willis' books at first, and despite this really being the second half of Black Out, it's still a new book. I can't wait for Christmas when I have some time off so I can get back into it!</div>
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Meanwhile, I picked up John Scalzi's Old Man's War while wandering through the science fiction and fantasy section at the library (yeah, I know, right?! We have a science fiction and fantasy section!). I almost literally could not put it down, and I finished it in less than two weeks (you may have realised, I'm a very slow reader)! Not only is the book gripping with brilliant character development and subtle but striking themes, but it is the most honest and funniest piece of science fiction I have read. Ever. Not to mention hostile aliens, galactic war, cloning, posthumanism, military technology, extra-solar colonies, faster-than-light travel... Basically, everything you could want from good science fiction. Except length. It was over wayyy too fast for my liking. On with a spoiler-free review (just trying something different!), that's still pretty long (so nothing new there) - so click on the picture to continue.</div>
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The very first paragraph of a book is often an indicator of the tone of the book, and the first paragraph of Old Man's War is short, punchy and equal parts shocking and amusing - "I did two things on my seventy-fifth birthday. I visited my wife's grave. Then I joined the army."<br />
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John Perry and his fellow recruits know two things when they turn their backs on their lives on Earth to do something that most people who enjoy science fiction long to do - see the galaxy. The first is that they will never see the planet of their birth again, and the second is that somehow, the CDF (Colonial Defence Force) will make them young again.<br />
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I think the most important aspects of this books were world-building, character-development, and humour. We are given just enough information to make the universe, but not so much to feel encumbered. As I said, this book is short, it doesn't have room for great info dumps. We know that there are colonies and we know who lives there, but we never see them or talk to them. We know that we have contact with some alien races, but we don't have a history lesson about our first contact. It's all need-to-know, and we, frankly, don't.<br />
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John seems like the regular guy down the road who keeps up with modern technology but doesn't understand everyone's reliance on it. He works hard and thinks up practical solutions to what seem to be pretty tricky problems - just because he doesn't seem to notice their complexity. He quickly makes friends with the other recruits, but doesn't fall into a depression when they go their seperate ways. He doesn't care that his closest friend in the corps is gay, because it's nothing to do with him. I really like him; he has my sense of humour.<br />
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I think the theme of posthumanism is underplayed, and not in a bad way. Without giving too much away, Scalzi looks at what it means to be human through showing how his characters don't really suffer lasting change as a result of their physical changes - instead it is their experiences that have the greatest impact on them. And these changes are so subtle; everyone remains themselves at their core, like we all do. He also debates personhood through a painful encounter with a special operative who, it turns out, doesn't know how to be human.</div>
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<img height="320" onclick="if(document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=='none') {document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display=''}else{document.getElementById('spoiler') .style.display='none'}" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00yENnQugyNQS_vwMkiCypaErPqDLMTs4v9eXNZ_mXEwLKpJWk-xDuLLdcAVe1RipAAJOMqQlM4wc1Wx_AUnwmvrabOUB5aPKJ7SzJeXnCZ6l2cA_Vj25gXsUmLjy5z68xTHz8sab838/s1600/oldmanswar.jpg" title="Click to show/hide content" width="240" /><br />
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I highly recommend this book if you're looking for something amusing, that's light enough to read in a day (if you're that way inclined) but has enough substance to really make you care about what's going on and to stay with you when you're not reading it.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-39418040535864370212012-05-25T14:52:00.000+12:002012-05-25T14:52:10.584+12:00Domestic Minxes (Ooo Errr!)<div style="text-align: justify;">Time to share a blog! My friend (and kind of boss) co authors the Domestic Minxes blog where she and her friend document their somewhat disturbingly obsessive interest in nail polish.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://domesticminxes.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/essie-dive-bar-swatch-2-dm.jpg?w=490&h=367"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://domesticminxes.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/essie-dive-bar-swatch-2-dm.jpg?w=490&h=367" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Pretty right*? And that's just one! There are millions of gorgeous photos of pretty colours, so when you're feeling girly, go take a look. And leave a comment, this girl loves the comments :-P</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">I've been inspired to make a small post about makeup and nailpolish and things, but because I wear very little makeup, and stopped painting my nails when they got super brittle, I thought I'd have a look around the internet for things I think are gorgeous or amazing. Here, have some more link love!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/96282272/spn-set-castiel-and-the-impala-custom"><img border="0" height="203" src="http://img1.etsystatic.com/il_570xN.323973029.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Castiel and the Impala.<br />
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Need. I. Say. More? Check out more of these brilliant custom nailpolishes inspired by pop/geek culture by clicking the picture.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/SEz5FTjZBY0?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;">Stormtrooper Nail Art</div><br />
And the awesome continues. Cute Polish has a whole heap of geek and non-geek nail art tutorials, go watch!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://jangsara.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/may-4th.html"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEtkKDfd-jusFxIvgN-yLMFXugAKvbNJ6tj2-TnuXSBhDXEoWEslhCViOIh8lcTuPwdoAyBVcWmOeHAqOf2kmJiZWwRrsbvo8UblsQSffh5TdBdoDhG2yt0IIBPRotlCushs9UrabWNR2k/s320/Img_7313.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">R2I2? </div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">Another Star Wars pretty (and we all know how I feel about Star Wars) but it's just way too cool to pass up! Again, click on the link to find more awesomeness.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I found all three of these through <a href="http://geekcrafts.com/">Geek Crafts</a>, one of the few blogs I am still religiously keeping up with, now that I has the work thing going. I forget, did I mention this new job? I think I wrote a post about it and forgot to edit and publish it. I shall post about it shortly!</div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">*I'm thinking I would like to use this nail polish as the background for a picture of the Enterprise, following the method Cute Polish uses for her One Direction (oh no!) tutorial</span></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-86368988471343225242012-04-27T08:20:00.000+12:002012-04-27T08:20:08.387+12:00After another long absence<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi there! Yes, I know, I have been very bad, it's been ages since I've made an entry here. But I have a great excuse! I have a full time (well, almost, 38 hours) job! As you can tell, I'm excited about this! Very excited! I'm now a proper library assistant in circulation at the big library in the city - checking out books for people, checking them in, looking for missing books, working in the basement stack (SO cool! It's like a whole different library on its own!), finding holds for people. It's a lot of fun, and a lot of walking and climbing stairs and talking to people, so I'm enjoying it. What I'm not enjoying is the amount of time I spend on buses! But I can't complain too much, driving would be even worse.</div>
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I haven't stopped baking, reading, or crafting, though. In fact, I've just finished a big project for a friend who's just had a baby. As usual, I have to wait til she gets the present to post about it, but it's worth the wait, I'm really proud of how it turned out. What I can share though is the blanket Mum and I are making. I didn't know that there was such a thing as a knitted granny square, but Mum's taking them on... well... If you know my Mum, you know she's very good at crafts, but terrible at actually getting them done. But I'm doing my bit; I've made three granny squares now in crochet, and have almost finished a fourth. I really like doing them; they're pretty quick to make, and a great way to practice stitches I've seen but haven't had an excuse to try. I'll get a few more done, and then I'll start posting pictures and references to where I found the patterns. I'm also starting another present project today, and I'm REALLY excited about it. When I can post about it (which wont be for like three months!), you'll see why - it's REALLY cool!</div>
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How's everyone doing? What are you up to? Any projects in progress?</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-71511529112890741902012-03-16T08:43:00.001+13:002012-03-19T10:26:50.825+13:00Not A Review: Blackout by Connie Willis<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi there, I just finished reading Blackout by Connie Willis, and usually that would mean my posting a review and trying to convince you to read it. However, Blackout is the first part of a two part story that is concluded in All Clear, so I don't feel like I can really give the book justice, not knowing how the story ends. So, I'm going to wait until I have read All Clear to tell you about both.</div>
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For now, let me tell you that this is well-written, compelling, and interesting, despite the fact that this is the first book in the time travelling Oxfordian set where the present is completely absent (see what I did there?) from the narrative further than when the last person travels back in time. Oh, that's another thing we haven't seen before - Blackout follows more than one time traveller. And it's set during World War II - which seems to be Willis' favoute time period. But this is all I will say for now!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDAHrhkz_XhYKpL1tP-q6B7NIOJq4N4NBxkkuccLHmZmrNEfgmCUShH7pjyv2fzyOMHjXBaxzgKUikTJkGnZ2vlgatUg92FUkbKQCkcpCobMG4NlMwh66kyqxArUnRjBrnwTIfWc2wf2M/s1600/Connie+Willis+Blackout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDAHrhkz_XhYKpL1tP-q6B7NIOJq4N4NBxkkuccLHmZmrNEfgmCUShH7pjyv2fzyOMHjXBaxzgKUikTJkGnZ2vlgatUg92FUkbKQCkcpCobMG4NlMwh66kyqxArUnRjBrnwTIfWc2wf2M/s400/Connie+Willis+Blackout.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-56874133737626064742012-02-20T08:00:00.000+13:002012-02-20T08:00:03.477+13:00Cat with Umbrella<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJrkLo2ThXgYzAXYbL1hAgJCQ3JBO2ZsexmXNZo1a_yN9gdfUsSFru5-uoJPKGYZlmtGHUIut_Hn2TOZ7tO9XVXZszHwFSlrfI_dG-EqxoyJmENsdkk6HrWsWt13hPJcM88NC8pGN-4o/s1600/IMG_0120-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJrkLo2ThXgYzAXYbL1hAgJCQ3JBO2ZsexmXNZo1a_yN9gdfUsSFru5-uoJPKGYZlmtGHUIut_Hn2TOZ7tO9XVXZszHwFSlrfI_dG-EqxoyJmENsdkk6HrWsWt13hPJcM88NC8pGN-4o/s400/IMG_0120-1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">First she was scared of it, and then she sniffed it, then she sat under it as it dried on the deck.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Our little loony kitty.</span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-21899850056209996812012-02-19T18:06:00.001+13:002012-02-19T18:09:16.434+13:00Latest Non-Fiction ReadsLately I've been tearing through non-fiction at a vastly accelerated rate, and forgetting to share all of the awesome things I've found! So here's a catch up, <br />
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Science-Ink-Tattoos-of-the-Science-Obsessed/10422786/?r=1606091">Science Ink</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEi69MUOStgEtSCf4jk9T_8zpnaiYgVHH4uaKtVbdIRwQ_w5vyCg3LrxlsP0bI7_iiaeAEwns1VXtIbXsCetmEH3bJF-56N3-sVQJp_fMjWbpQCsmjCpZ_juaXUV2A2eVaRKU1-RDKT4Q/s1600/514nfP04BzL._SL500_AA300_-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEi69MUOStgEtSCf4jk9T_8zpnaiYgVHH4uaKtVbdIRwQ_w5vyCg3LrxlsP0bI7_iiaeAEwns1VXtIbXsCetmEH3bJF-56N3-sVQJp_fMjWbpQCsmjCpZ_juaXUV2A2eVaRKU1-RDKT4Q/s200/514nfP04BzL._SL500_AA300_-1.jpg" width="142" /></a></div>
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I read about this book online only last week and immediately posted two of the pictures from the review to <a href="http://pinterest.com/zoraaisling/awesome/">Pinterest</a>, and then put the book on hold through our library.</div>
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I can't believe in all of my years of studying science-adjacent subjects, I've never thought of getting a science-themed tattoo.</div>
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I'm not inked, but I've always wanted a tattoo... just never settled on something that means enough to me and is unchangeable enough to be forever on my skin. Maybe now I have no excuse?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0XG1hmZ64_bppx8vT4EfQCKPyGb5xJtr16Gvje-vjpw_IgYZUCcw84pW0IgPsXIlOSvqa-ykLb2BPaPy4-wu75DF2VpZCc2tUUpaUR973qxAzlV0-4hGLSdXzKaPpQc-z3PPLUVnljbA/s1600/IMG_0125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0XG1hmZ64_bppx8vT4EfQCKPyGb5xJtr16Gvje-vjpw_IgYZUCcw84pW0IgPsXIlOSvqa-ykLb2BPaPy4-wu75DF2VpZCc2tUUpaUR973qxAzlV0-4hGLSdXzKaPpQc-z3PPLUVnljbA/s320/IMG_0125.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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There are so many brilliant pictures in this book, but my favourites include a tree of life... </div>
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And some palaeoanthropological pretties, of course :-)</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-AWW-Cooking-School-AWW-Max/3957757/?r=1606091">The AWW Cooking School</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2wSifEPupwf-0FWNf-E_P3m_asD142tqfhaKajkIBPBD3bLbhGeVQmA42gmhGmBbfb2mU8ZiB8U8-ZXZZk38NtIiYb7fYu13BMRXS4m-EfpbogqlodQSWuDDJKwmpkfZPaQUJX1FVGo/s1600/AWW+Cooking+School.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2wSifEPupwf-0FWNf-E_P3m_asD142tqfhaKajkIBPBD3bLbhGeVQmA42gmhGmBbfb2mU8ZiB8U8-ZXZZk38NtIiYb7fYu13BMRXS4m-EfpbogqlodQSWuDDJKwmpkfZPaQUJX1FVGo/s200/AWW+Cooking+School.jpg" width="155" /></a></div>
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The best part of this book is the double page spreads that compare different types of the same food group, for example, pasta (click to embiggen):</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGB5kvGjECFiMujibqM19hTzhyNOXbxnnbdiENEFoIgBg_WaersPnwFMXLRM46Ur3HEIFOCZnf_vhhrAJewvWeBcuIB-SyK6VgyxIIWYS3WcooCDOyQIsexy-oi1DsVa-6XlZt8ufDR6Q/s1600/IMG_0124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGB5kvGjECFiMujibqM19hTzhyNOXbxnnbdiENEFoIgBg_WaersPnwFMXLRM46Ur3HEIFOCZnf_vhhrAJewvWeBcuIB-SyK6VgyxIIWYS3WcooCDOyQIsexy-oi1DsVa-6XlZt8ufDR6Q/s320/IMG_0124.JPG" width="320" /></a> There's one for salad greens, one for vegetables, one for rice, one for noodles, and more. There are some brilliant technical lessons, and techniques for making the most basic things - you know, those things that everyone notices if you screw up!</div>
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It's such a hefty volume, and includes food inspired by many of the different cuisines that influence Australian and New Zealand home cooking, that it might be all you need (other than <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Edmonds-Cookery-Book/3196936/?r=1606091">Edmond's</a>). There's also a <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-AWW-Cooking-School-For-Kids/10167284/?r=1606091">version for kids</a> (I saw this in the library and it looks just as fabulous!), and both versions are marked down over at Mighty Ape right now (use the links above).</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Modern-Library-The-200-Best-Novels-in-English-Since-1950/10425351/?r=1606091">The Modern Library: The 200 Best Novels in English Since 1950</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilX9nA8Ea8eJ7120T0IheDh6LjlMS1-inQlLBUl0RrHykoFwePUazD9PtQsVGNVwjOtG5fAk388zmbMfuQYU2SDEY8TDMefirpPsUH-Of-uT1eAobvJbqTFYGcrsBO4QNdepyR9wlpdFo/s1600/the-modern-library-the-200-best-novels-in-english-since-1950.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilX9nA8Ea8eJ7120T0IheDh6LjlMS1-inQlLBUl0RrHykoFwePUazD9PtQsVGNVwjOtG5fAk388zmbMfuQYU2SDEY8TDMefirpPsUH-Of-uT1eAobvJbqTFYGcrsBO4QNdepyR9wlpdFo/s200/the-modern-library-the-200-best-novels-in-english-since-1950.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
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I never really like books like this because everyone has a different opinion of what the 'best' of this or that is, and I rarely agree. This book, though, is well-written, took input from people from around the world, and doesn't seem to dwell on the same books that everyone is told they <i>should</i> read.</div>
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Of course <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Lord-of-the-Flies/10337396/?r=1606091"><i>Lord of the Flies</i></a> is there, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Catcher-in-the-Rye/4719255/?r=1606091"><i>Catcher in the Rye</i></a>, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Lolita/1734718/?r=1606091"><i>Lolita</i></a>, and <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Bell-Jar/2906254/?r=1606091"><i>The Bell Jar</i></a>, but there are others that I've never heard of, like <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Lucky-Jim/3946461/?r=1606091"><i>Lucky Jim</i></a>, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Little-Girls/3601161/?r=1606091"><i>The Little Girls</i></a>, and <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/What-a-Carve-Up/2463095/?r=1606091"><i>What a Carve Up!</i></a>*. Some are even set outside of America and the UK! <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Plumb/1646653/?r=1606091">Maurice Gee</a> and <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Owls-Do-Cry/1670996/?r=1606091">Janet Frame</a> feature, and there are stories set in <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Empire-of-the-Sun/3856897/?r=1606091">China</a>, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/The-Siege-of-Krishnapur/4035082/?r=1606091">India</a>, <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Burgers-Daughter/2341897/?r=1606091">South Africa</a>, and <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Tirra-Lirra-by-the-River/1632869/?r=1606091">Australia</a> too**. If you're looking for a list of books from outside of your genre, this might just be it. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Please don't tell me how ignorant I am of brilliant literature - as I've said before, I don't claim to know everything (or anything) about literature!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">**All links are to the cheapest editions on Mighty Ape at the time of writing this post, but most have other editions to choose from.</span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-62046169228882730582012-02-17T19:16:00.000+13:002012-02-19T18:09:44.208+13:00I Love Your Bloodstained HeartYeah, I know it was a few days ago now, but I don't care, happy Valentine's Day!<br />
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Darren Hayes loves you :-) (and so do I... a little :-P )<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-687158419662617632012-02-05T12:00:00.000+13:002012-02-05T12:00:04.401+13:00Book Review: Tajore Arkle by Jackie French<div style="text-align: justify;">
I know I've only been doing book reviews and not craft or recipe posts lately, but believe me, I haven't been cooking anything new or working on my craft projects at all. I have another canvas sewing project half in my head and half done (I have painted the canvas, just need to do the sewing), but it's been like that for months now. And I'm reading five books at once at the moment, so these reviews help me keep somewhat sane.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(Sorry about the resolution on this picture, it's the only one on the internet, and is from Jackie French's website)</span></div>
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One of the books I'm reading, that has made me put all of the other books on hold, is what I have recently realised is my favourite book*. I've never been one to settle on favourites for long, and very rarely will reread a book, but I've just finished my third reading of Tajore Arkle by Jackie French, and I still love it as much as the first time. Set on a world where everywhere but the poisonous Rift is barren, rocky, and dry, and life is tough, Anya is special. Anya is a pastseer, remembering things that, in her short life, she's never actually learned or experienced. When her warning about impending disaster comes true, the people of her isolated village believe that she is the cause of the disaster, even if she did not intend it, and she is sent away with a traveling trader. What follows is a great and world-changing adventure that I'm not going to spoil! Just pick up this book, it's only 200 or so pages (and aimed at older children or young adults), and well worth it.</div>
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Although it is aimed at older children or young adults, the story of searching for a place to belong, or making changes in your world until you belong, is something I think everyone can understand and relate to. The characters and settings are so lovingly detailed that, especially upon multiple readings, I feel as if I know each of the named characters intimately. The aridity of the land suitably dictates social practices (such as cutting one's hair very short and resisting the urge to cry), the struggle for survival (in Anya's concern for the supplies of sweetwater and mana), and the level of technology (thin slabs of rock are used in place of paper - it is so dry that trees are very rare and precious). The animals - scitters, belsboks, harriers - also suit the landscape. All of these factors lead to world-building that is exquisite, which is natural considering Tajore Arkle is the world that Jackie French lived in as a child, and the novel is only one of the world's many stories. In the space of a few hundred pages, Jackie French describes an entire world, and leaves me desperate for more. Unfortunately this is the only book she has published about this amazing world, and so I must be content to make up possible futures for Anya and her friends.</div>
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My only complaint about this perfect book is that it is no longer in print and I do not own a copy. Our public library system has only two copies (<a href="http://www.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/EN/About/Pages/Home.aspx">our library system</a> is the biggest in Australasia with 55 libraries to borrow from), so this is a tricky book to get hold of. I have a dream that I will be casually exploring a second-hand bookshop on the other side of the world, and will find a copy hidden at the very back of the shop, waiting for me. But I don't know if I can wait that long! So, if you do find a copy, and do not want to keep it for yourself (you're
mad, by the way!), please consider selling/giving it to me. I would
forever be in your debt.</div>
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Do you have a favourite book that you find yourself returning to over and over again? That you can't stop talking about to anyone who will listen? That, once you find out someone is interested in reading, you have to ask "have you read this book?", and badger them until they read it. I hope that you own a copy of yours**!</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*This is my all-time-forver-favourite book. My favourite grown-ups' book is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jostein_Gaarder#List_of_works">The Orange Girl by Jostein Gaarder</a> (I <i>think</i> - so far I have only read it once).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">**I once read an article about someone who insisted that one must have at
least two copies of your favourite book - one that can be lent and
become dog eared and dirty without making you upset, and one special
copy that is all yours.</span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-58382066623777162822012-02-04T21:35:00.000+13:002012-02-28T07:28:16.836+13:00Link Love: Bookshelf P*rnI've found a new favourite picture blog! If you love books, and love the idea of having this in your house:<br />
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<a href="http://bookshelfporn.com/post/16688399249"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://27.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lygn1jlYk91qzupj0o1_500.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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This as your bedroom:<br />
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<a href="http://bookshelfporn.com/post/16753821390"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvst5zDYFs1r7k27io1_500.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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Or this as your local library:<br />
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<a href="http://bookshelfporn.com/post/16585550831"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXsBxE9pmKp6Y2aUdAHXwZJmgYPqJNcg5mYgPwMc1t0k7eeprgYbckoocnGVEkgarKF5i-x_p0TAKFSz8IaBy_uqXLhAFStM9VZA579cY4RTa-1ZJh1kiaIHeE59OypQ9AD4eRpjo0ud0/s320/tumblr_lygpqlqwAa1qzupj0.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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You'll love this blog as much as I do; find Bookshelf P*rn <a href="http://bookshelfporn.com/">here</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-13115638947374532012-01-30T12:44:00.000+13:002012-03-07T14:35:31.286+13:00Pinterest<div style="text-align: justify;">Hi there! It's been a long time since I have done a links of the week post, and I think it'll be a long time until I do another one. Instead, I've been pinning. And pinning, and pinning, and pinning. I'm obsessed with Pinterest. There is a button on my firefox tool bar so that wherever I go on this great wide internet, I can pin pictures that link to articles/shops/blog posts/websites. You can find me on Pinterest <a href="http://pinterest.com/zoraaisling/">here</a>, and see what I spend all of my days and nights doing instead of being productive here. Does anyone else pin? Leave me a comment so I can go visit your boards and follow you!</div><br />
If you have no idea what Pinterest is, I'm looking at you like this O.o<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwDg9_bUM2ZOMwreiR6ZA3fNcm2-8UaYcDvxe56kwOq3lsSg11MJvL08IAAk7KG1npETNBjWGeh7G_Y4d60r7ffjhKJCUloAC7RD6bqsv4I11MGn2gX22pLp_AtTR22bqm5A2L_b4r1Jk/s1600/Pinterest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwDg9_bUM2ZOMwreiR6ZA3fNcm2-8UaYcDvxe56kwOq3lsSg11MJvL08IAAk7KG1npETNBjWGeh7G_Y4d60r7ffjhKJCUloAC7RD6bqsv4I11MGn2gX22pLp_AtTR22bqm5A2L_b4r1Jk/s400/Pinterest.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">These are my boards. As you wander the internet, you can pin a picture to your board by going to your account and putting in the url of the site where you found the image. Pinterest looks for images on that site, asks you to choose which one if there's more than one, and then asks if you'd like to comment on the picture. It then puts all of your pictures in one place, organised into boards you name. I love being able to pin a half a dozen pictures of shoes and then look at them all at once before choosing the pair I like the most (and then not buying them because I'm not rich).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As you can see, I have a lot of work to do in the Books Worth Reading section, and have gone overboard on the wearables. But such is life. Go look! One of the best things about Pinterest is that you can click on the image, and it will take you to the original website where you found the image, so, if you're not like me and are in fact rich, you can buy those shoes. :-) Happy pinning<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/zoraaisling/"><img alt="Follow Me on Pinterest" height="26" src="http://passets-cdn.pinterest.com/images/follow-on-pinterest-button.png" width="156" /></a><br />
</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-13194137848983236862012-01-29T12:30:00.000+13:002012-01-29T12:30:33.651+13:00Book Review: Sherlock Holmes: A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle<div style="text-align: justify;">
I've been wanting to read a Sherlock Holmes book for a while now, and after watching Sherlock (BBC) and Sherlock Holmes (Hollywood), I figured I should get to it. So I started at the beginning, with A Study in Scarlet (1886).</div>
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I was suprised by how easy this book was to read. I found myself comparing the prose to that of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea which was published only 16 before ASiS. If you have ever heard me talk about 20,000 Leagues, you know my opinion of this work, permanently dubbed The Fish Directory in my memory - it is DULL. But ASiS is fast-moving, includes just enough detail for the purposes of the story and to introduce the characters that we all know - Holmes, Watson, the slightly hopeless police detective/s that take all the credit. This surprised me, as I was expecting long, drawn-out descriptions of the minutiae of the murder scene and Shakespearean soliloquies exposing the identity of the murderer. This was so refreshing, compared to my (admittedly limited) experience with other classics, and showed great restraint on the part of the author.</div>
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Another surprise came in part two of the book, which tells the story of a man and a young girl stranded in a desert in the US. It took me a very long time to work out how this fit into the original plot, which either says something about my inability to see things coming, or about the author's ability to surprise the reader even in as straightforward a case as Sherlock deems this to be. I also liked the application of scientific techniques to the investigation of crime (no surprises there!), something that at the time would have been virtually unheard of. As Holmes and Watson meet, Holmes has just invented a liquid that reacts only when in blood is present - information that is still vitally important in criminal investigations today.</div>
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I don't think any further spoilers are necessary for this review, but I will say this: I recommend this book to anyone who is entertained by the Sherlock Holmes
stories, or anyone interested in an easy introduction to the classics.
However, those looking for a story similar to those of modern-day crime
writers may need to set some expectations aside - there is very little
that could be called 'gruesome detail' to be found here.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/A-Study-in-Scarlet/1743481/?r=1606091"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSf-7xjG1n8SW9RmIhHjzW_9q5TRtU0YsF_x6JMEirPbGFfIa8QMxydssVBDi5qIrH4i1lggh-leIcjx1zwk_kNFgW9WmZ-Z0oaQN01oDn1njoZA2FLx0UVzB2SX_keMEH_dJ8A1XbpvE/s320/a-study-in-scarlet-arthur-conan-doyle-paperback-cover-art.jpg" width="197" /></a></div>
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If I have inspired you to buy this book, please consider purchasing it from <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/A-Study-in-Scarlet/1743481/?r=1606091">Mighty Ape</a>. Using this link doesn't cost you anything and earns me credit to spend on more things to tell you about!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770704821707447613.post-91187710126833722812012-01-29T11:05:00.000+13:002012-01-29T11:07:09.982+13:00Book Review: Connie Willis' To Say Nothing Of The Dog<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Okay, I know I said I wouldn't repeat myself, but I just looked at my stats, and it says that noone's found their way to this post (remember that blogger backdated the post to when I started, rather than when I finished it?). I really enjoyed this book, so I'm hoping someone will read the review so they're inspired to read and enjoy it too!</i> <br />
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It's official, I love Connie Willis. Yes, I know, I'm only three books into her repertoire, but until I find evidence against it, I stick by my statement. This is the second novel in the Time Traveling Oxfordians universe (I don't think the series has a title...), and is almost the polar opposite of Doomsday Book in tone, setting, and characterisation.</div>
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Ned is busy in the past trying to find out what happened to the monstrosity that is the Bishop's Bird Stump, last seen in Coventry Cathedral before its bombing in 1940. This almost impossible task has been set him by Lady Shrapnell, who has basically taken over the history department (with her 'generous donations') to aid her in recreating the Cathedral exactly as it was moments before the bombing.</div>
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Because of the number of drops (ie time traveling trips) Ned has done in a short amount of time, he becomes ill with time-lag, causing "Maudlin sentimentality, difficulty in distinguishing sounds, fatigue... tendency to become distracted by irrelevancies. Slowness in answering. Blurred vision" and his almost being hit by a steam locomotive. The only cure for this is rest, but because of Lady Shrapnell, that just wont happen in (Ned's present) 2057, so Mr Dunworthy (yes, the very same from Doomsday Book and Fire Watch) sends him to 1888. Where else could be more relaxing - punting on the Thames, playing croquet, and drinking tea. Except that Mr Dunworthy has set Ned a task, something that Ned has since forgotten due to the time-lag. And here's where the spoilers start! Click the picture below for a much shorter than usual review...</div>
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I think the main, and perhaps the only theme, of the book is the conflict between the idea of free will and destiny/fate/coincidence. One of the most obvious illustrations of this is when TJ runs computer simulations of the Battle of Waterloo, changing certain important events through the introduction of an historian time traveler. It is almost impossible to force a different outcome to the battle - Napoleon always loses. Although that is the most obvious example, the entire story is an illustration of this idea. Mrs Bittner exerts free will in breaking into the lab and traveling back to the air raid to save elements of the Cathedral, but destiny sets Ned and Verity in the Cathedral at the right time for Tossie to cause the argument that ensures Miss Sharpe does not write to the the papers in 1940, thus informing the Nazis that the Allies had prior knowledge of the raid. Destiny also stops Ned and Verity from being in the wrong place at the wrong time (ie, when Mrs Bittner travels back to save artifacts from the Cathedral).<br />
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I think one of the most endearing things about the book in the little side project Dunworthy sets for Finch. I hate the idea of a future without cats just as much as I hate the idea of people drowning unwanted kittens. So the two are very nicely cancelled out by his efforts. I also really like the way romance is featured in the book. Although it is one of the main foci of the book, it's not at all mushy or sentimental. In fact, it's more about stopping people from falling in love. Although I had a very firm belief that Tossie would end up with the butler (as always, the butler did it), I was losing hope as time ran out. The scene where Baine throws Tossie into the fish pond (which would make a great scene in a movie. In fact, with the lack of good movies at the moment, may I suggest to Hollywood that they make this book into a film? PLEASE?) is the most romantic of Tossie's story, and even Verity and Ned are less than lovey dovey.</div>
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I think it takes a really skilled author to be both entertaining and thought-provoking, especially in both a lighthearted story and a serious story. If you found Doomsday Book too heavy to finish, do try To Say Nothing of the Dog. Also, give her short stories a try. I dug Fire Watch out of the library's stack (it was published in 1984) to read the Hugo and Nebula award-winning titular story, set in the same universe as Doomsday Book, To Say Nothing of the Dog, and Blackout/All Clear (which I'll definitely be reading soon*), and read on through the rest of the stories. I found A Letter from the Clearys (Nebula award winner), And Come from Miles Around, and Service for the Burial of the Dead the most enjoyable, though the imagery of Daisy in the Sun (Hugo award nominee) has stayed with me.<br />
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If I have inspired you to buy this book, please consider purchasing it from <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/To-Say-Nothing-of-the-Dog/1673831/?r=1606091">Mighty Ape</a>. You can also get the book that inspired the title <a href="http://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Book/Three-Men-in-a-Boat-To-Say-Nothing-of-the-Dog/1941057/?r=1606091">here</a>, and you can get second-hand copies of Fire Watch <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fire-Watch-Connie-Willis/dp/0553260456/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1327788124&sr=1-1">here</a>.</div>
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Using this link doesn't cost you anything and gives me credit to spend on more things to tell you about!</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Because this has been sitting in my draft-posts for so long, I'm now actually on to reading Blackout. I'm only three or four chapters in and I'm already hooked. I don't think it's a spoiler to say Colin (from Doomsday Book) makes an appearance!</span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">From The New Old-Fashioned Girl
admin [at] newoldfashionedgirl [dot] com
@zora_aisling</div>The New Old-Fashioned Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08428387896022029407noreply@blogger.com0