sundries

[rm]

Patty and I will be in the UK (mostly London, with a day trip to Cardiff one day) April 9 - 18. During the weekdays she'll be at a conference and I'll be working remotely for my job, but I find myself making a list of things I want to do -- not just the obvious tourist things, or the sorts of things I do as a traveler, but things that are sort of my personal melancholy nerd tour of London.

I've never been in the UK before, so it is to me, largely, the scene of far too many books and movies. Also, I get excited by ordinary things -- I LOVE going to supermarkets when I travel, for example, and so am very excited for Tesco (although a lot of that is the reported availability of gluten-free naan). I want to go have lunch hour at Canary Wharf and sit about thinking of Daleks and Cybermen. I'm so geeky, you all.

Patty also heads to Ohio today for spring break, which means we're on Buffy hiatus until she's back on the 20th.

The old Yankee Stadium has been destroyed. You get used to these things in New York, I suppose. We're supposed to anyway. But it's hard for me.

As a toddler, my parents dressed me in a Pete Rose jersey and so everyone thought I was a boy. In my twenties, I went to my first baseball game with Michael and he always said it was just because I liked new-to-me things so much, but there is nothing in the whole world like the first time you wanted through that tunnel into that stadium no matter how bad your seats were. There aren't a lot of things we did together that I can think of as always happy. The few baseball games though always were -- even the time it was lately October and I was shivering cold or the time I got seasick on the ferry up there.

I know most of the rest of the world hates the Yankees and I know sports and I know sports mythology just makes the truth about sports that much uglier and I know Derek Jeter is a homophobic closet case, but Michael used to tell me stories about men and scotch and steaks and baseball and everybody's got to believe in something they know they shouldn't. So I'm a bit sad.

Speaking of things now gone. On our excursion to Tu-Lu's the other day, we walked down 9th Street, which I so love for it's festive lights and feel of some sort of hidden city. And I discovered that Enchantments, witchcraft store of my childhood (okay, teens and twenties and I guess even some of my thirties) is gone (oh, I just googled it, apparently they've only moved, which is still sad but not awful). There's a bar there now. I'm still sort of stricken about it. I suppose part of that nostalgia comes from watching Buffy. Willow is always what we wished it would be like when we were fourteen, you know? Who admits that? Well, I do.

Am deeply annoyed about the coverage of "JihadJane" that seems to think white people can't be Muslims or that Americans can't be extremists.

I know that picking on Syfy is a bit like shooting old-school Daleks stuck at the bottom of a flight of stairs, but... check out the racist, sexist failtasm.

Also, seriously, have they watched Merlin? No one EVER goes on about Gwen being plain or not desirable or a poor match for Arthur for any reason other than her social position. No one thinks she's plain or ugly and no one mentions her teeth, glasses I can't even recall (are they sure about that) or her sinful curly hair. Big screaming What The Fuck here. It has to be pretty faily for me to think to something that's somehow actually more offensive than the show itself. Really, I get why people like it, the chemistry is fantastic and it seems cute and harmless. I may even watch the third season. But it's pretty terrible.

delchi alerted me to prom canceled due to lesbians.

copperbadge tells us of the horror of doing grocery store self-checkout with his best friend, noting that part of the problem is that this guy "wants to cuddle his bonus-value-sale chicken wings for as long as possible."

In case you missed it, GDL reading a short story on BBC4. Both the story and the performance are quite excellent. (Really, one of the saddest non-narrative things about Ianto biting it on CoE is no GDL doing potential future Torchwood audio books/plays. He was absolutely the best of the lot at them).

OMG Claudette/Cricket was just up on a bookcase, having OPENED THE PANEL TO THE FUSE BOX and BEING ABOUT TO CUT OFF OUR ELECTRICITY.

Comments

[liminalia.livejournal.com]

I don't think white people can't be Muslim, but from what I've heard of the story, I'm not even sure JihadJane was really Muslim. It sounds like she was mentally unstable, deeply unhappy and bored, and was looking for something to do. Her bf didn't even know she had converted. She abruptly moved out one day and immediately headed for Europe to plot.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Which would be a very legitimate angle to the story, but I keep seeing length descriptions of her blonde hair, next to photos of her, and I'm like "okay, we've got it".

[tod-hollykim.livejournal.com]

Enchantments is *gone*??? Damn. I have been there in a long while but I knew Carol had sold it. But it was still Enchantments then.

Bugger. Another thing in this city.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I just googled it. Apparently moved, not gone! I am relieved but still sad.

[tod-hollykim.livejournal.com]

LOL! Yeah, I was just coming here to say I googled it and saw the street view. Apparently just a couple of blocks further east on 8th. Will have to go there soon.

[gairid.livejournal.com]

The old Yankee Stadium has been destroyed.


*mourns*

[xo-kizzy-xo.livejournal.com]

My dad was from NYC. He had to keep his Yankees love under cover when he moved up here, but I have no doubt in my mind he's turning over in his grave right now :sigh:

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

Cancelling prom due to lesbians and DC Catholic Charities discontinuing spouse's benefits due to gay marriage. I wish I had faith enough in the intelligence of the people of our nation that the outrage would be directed toward the people doing the cancelling.

Unfortunately, the outrage will be directed toward the gays/lesbians, who are the targets of the intolerance.

I know. Preacher -> Choir. But I'm in a fed-up place with all this news. Plus, kindergarteners being denied admission because their parents are lesbians. Really? What about all the children of divorced families, or children of parents who are on birth control.

ok. I'm done now. Really.

[austengirl.livejournal.com]

Excited to hear you'll be in London next month. Two places that have always been on my to-visit list, but I haven't done yet are The Wallace Collection and Sir John Soane's Museum. I'm not sure of your personal tastes in art, but I think you might find them intriguing on some levels.

I don't know how widely available GF products are in city centre Tesco Metros (usually they're not very big branches), but I hope London ones have a more diverse product range than what I've seen in other cities. There's a pretty good-sized Waitrose supermarket on Marylebone High Street which may be worth a visit. I like walking around that area, it is a bit on the posh side though. ;)

[m-nivalis.livejournal.com]

Well, window shopping cost nothing, and Rococo (http://rococochocolates.com/stores-and-stockists) has tasty chocolate bars. I find the bookshop on Marylebone High Street quite interesting - not so much the stock (which is a fairly normal selection) but the building itself.

And I second the Wallace collection and John Soane's. Still need to get around to go to the latter.

[ldybastet.livejournal.com]

Clearly, Claudette/Cricket has a past as a cat burglar.

[aviv-b.livejournal.com]

or an electrician.

[ayoub.livejournal.com]

That SyFy thing is disgusting. I stopped watching Merlin because the writing got on my nerves, and it just bored me, but there's no way she's not a very attractive young woman!

If you're up for it, maybe we could meet up? :D

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

An LJ you should look at before going to London: tubewhore. She hasn't updated since Aug. but, it's mostly about her goal, to visit every single tube station in the London Underground. She's also a costumer, so she tends to be dressed in her creations in her photos. It's a lot of fun.

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

Oh, sweet! And I see that she's a Who fan, too.

[gummitch.livejournal.com]

Don't forget Thames House.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Believe me, on the list.

[weirdquark]

There's a Doctor Who store in London. (I think they have other sci-fi things too, but it's mostly Doctor Who merchandise.) I don't remember where it is, because it was several years ago and I didn't actually manage to get there while it was open, but my roommate went and I could ask her if she remembers, if you're interested. (I came home from Europe with daleks full of bubblebath in my suitcase. I was kind of sad when no one searched my luggage, because the reactions would probably have been really interesting.)

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

I think the mothership-Forbidden Planet is on Piccadilly, and its selection is pretty darn epic, I agree.

There is another "Who Shop", but it's out in East Ham. Tubeable, but not as convenient.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

its selection is pretty darn epic, I agree.

Last time I shopped there, I was shocked to find more of what was on my shopping list at the branch in Cardiff than the one in Picadilly.

I know it's cliche, but oh - you must see Westminster Abbey! It's my favorite place on Earth.

[abnormal-apathy.livejournal.com]

I absolutely loved Tesco. The one I went to when I was in Hungary was less like a grocery store, and more like a Walmart, where they had not only food, etc. but also clothing, shoes and household goods. I came home with all sorts of things that meant nothing to anyone else, but helped me start my new life without Yoshi, so they meant everything to me.

Prom Cancelled due to Lesbians

[dulcinbradbury.livejournal.com]

Man... I feel so sorry for that girl right now. Because while I'm sure some kids are supportive, I'm sure a lot of them are pissed at her for "ruining it for everyone." At that age, anger could go against the girl or the administration, depending on the general feelings there.

If anyone were to put together an "anti-prom" -- inviting kids from that school, the whole thing, without it being under the school's rules? I'd donate money to that.

Re: Prom Cancelled due to Lesbians

[liminalia.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, there's a long tradition in some Southern states of holding private proms specifically to exclude people, (often it was to host all-white proms), so my guess is if a private prom gets held there, she still won't be invited.

[goseaward.livejournal.com]

I really enjoy your sundries posts generally, so...thanks!

But mostly I am confused by this one, as it appeared before copperbadge's on my friends list. You've made it! You can link into the future now!

[ckd]

I absolutely love London. The Museum in Docklands is unfairly obscure; it's not far from Canary Wharf, and focuses on the maritime history of London if that's of interest to you.

[idunn.livejournal.com]

I know that picking on Syfy is a bit like shooting old-school Daleks stuck at the bottom of a flight of stairs

Sorry, this made laugh pretty damn hard, and me with water in my mouth. Narrowly avoided a spit-take there.

You would LOVE the grocery stores in France. Paris has some open-air markets and independent neighborhood corner merchants, but it also has supermarket chains of the kind you'd find in New York. Trying new food and checking out the different packaging is more entertaining than it should be - friends and I took pictures when we discovered bottles of Mr. Propre (http://www.enviedeplus.com/MrPropre/jeu.aspx) in the cleaning aisle in Provence.

[natf.livejournal.com]

Sainsbury's is also good for GF food - including naan. I have found, though, that the out-of-town Tesco and Sainsbury's superstores out here in the sticks have a better variety of stock than the small Tesco Metro stores (and similar city Sainsbury's) in London. There may be a superstore near where you are staying - it is worth checking out their website(s):
http://www.tesco.com/storeLocator/
http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/sol/storelocator/storelocator_landing.jsp

[theohsocurlyone.livejournal.com]

(Really, one of the saddest non-narrative things about Ianto biting it on CoE is no GDL doing potential future Torchwood audio books/plays. He was absolutely the best of the lot at them)

I'm not sure it's been officially confirmed, but I saw news somewhere of future radio dramas, set pre-COE, for Jack, Gwen and Ianto. I think. I might have to look for a link, but it seemed likely! I love Gareth's voice; it's like melted chocolate. (Eve is fantastic at audio books, as well; she creates the mood pitch-perfectly.)

[rm.livejournal.com]

Except her voice for Jack! She shouldn't do voices. She's a FANTASTIC narrator though. I agree.

And Oh, find me that link -- that's really exciting. I wonder if it's the same rumour I heard though which was just someone being confused about release dates for CD versionso f the ones already aired?

[theohsocurlyone.livejournal.com]

I think it was reported a while back from this (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Torchwood-Tbc-2010-BBC-Audio/dp/1408466651/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1268332108&sr=8-10) amazon release in May 2010, which has this description:

This is an exclusive audio adventure for the Torchwood team set before "Children of Earth".

I'll have to search for more (whether it's an ensemble, or a single narrator, or...), but...there's that. Something to hope for!

[dr-is-in.livejournal.com]

The SyFy thing doesnt surprise me. These are the same people who destroyed LeGuin's Earthsea stories (some of my favorite books). The biggest fail of it was them switching the races of the main characters. Most of the characters in the book are dark skinned. SyFy bleached that and made them all white. That on top of completely butchering the story. There is adapting a book for tv/movie....and then there is putting out something that only barely resembles the book due to use of character names and places.

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

Am deeply annoyed about the coverage of "JihadJane" that seems to think white people can't be Muslims or that Americans can't be extremists.

This. Five hundred times over at least. So frustrating.

And the Merlin WTF. And the lesbian prom thing (and why does every conservative group get to call itself something patriotic and nice? Fuckery).

*kicks culture*

I am, however, loling at your cat.

[bugeyedmonster.livejournal.com]

Maybe Claudette/Cricket was after a spider that got into your fuse box? It was so that critter's fault, not her fault at all, y'know.

Thanks for the link on GDL. I wonder if he'll get to do any audio books. David Suchet(sp?) is also a great reader.

(And a really cracky idea comes to me when I remember comments about Welsh men's singing groups and that GDL can sing. Torchwood missed the opportunity to have a really cracky campy ep where an alien gets scared off by close harmony singing. No, I haven't had any Mary-Jane, I'm just naturally like this.)

I've not seen Merlin, but that text clip doesn't match the picture. I'm wondering if it's an old one written before the series was cast, and Syfy just posted it without looking. That said, how long would it have taken to proof-check the dang thing?

Not surprised at Old Yankee Stadium being pulled down. Here in Dallas anything old gets pulled down for something new. We don't believe in holding on to old things. Heritage? What's that?

I'm still a bit surprised that they pulled down something made in 1923, but I probably shouldn't. So what if Babe Ruth played there? It was old!

Anyway, have fun in Wales, but don't get arrested.

(^_^)/
BEM
fave Blackadder quote here...
Blackadder: Have you ever been to Wales, Baldrick?
Baldrick: No, but I've often thought I'd like to.
Blackadder: Well don't, it's a ghastly place. Huge gangs of tough sinewy men roam the valleys terrorizing people with their close-harmony singing. You need half a pint of phlegm in your throat just to pronounce the place names. Never ask for directions in Wales, Baldrick, you'll be washing spit out of your hair for a fortnight.

[vichan.livejournal.com]

I was raised to always know the rules of baseball inside and out, love the Cleveland Indians, and hate the New York Yankees. I love baseball immensely, I think it's a beautiful game, and I could wax poetic about it for days.

I suppose I'm typical in that - no, I'm not a huge fan of the Yankees, but I have an enormous amount of respect for what they represent in the history of baseball, as well as what that stadium represented. After the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field were both demolished in the 1960's, it was the last of the great ballparks in New York.

/giant baseball nerd

[rm.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that. I appreciate it. Also, all the hardcore Cleveland fans I've met have always been totally class acts about the whole rivalry thing.

[lachupacabra.livejournal.com]

oooooh sneaky kitty!
i wonder what her nefarious plans were?!?!

[kel-reiley.livejournal.com]

the yankees seem to be to baseball what the red wings are to hockey - ppl either love or hate them with very little in between
tiger stadium was torn down a few years ago and i still kinda miss it (tho mostly b/c it was a landmark for navigating when i drove downtown)

[(Anonymous)]

Are you in England for The Hub (http://www.massiveevents.co.uk/hub4/)?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Weirdly, despite the date overlap, no. My partner is participating in an academic conference in London and since it's a) her birthday the weekend before, b) close to our anniversary and c) somewhere I've never been, I decided to tag along. Despite the many awesome tales I've heard from the various Hub events over the years, as I'm not really a photo/autograph person, I suspect it's sort of not my speed. Also, Patty? Not of the Whoniverse. Should there be another Hub event going on during one of my other upcoming UK trips this year? Yeah, I might succumb.

[popfiend.livejournal.com]

1.) Re: Yankee Stadium. I went to Cardinal Hayes which is on the Grand Concourse and a stones throw from Yankee Stadium. The Student Council once prepped the Stadium for an event for the Archdioses (sp?) and I went down on the field and hit an imaginary home run and ran around the bases. It was awesome. The place where I did that is now a pile of rubble. :(

2.) The canceling the prom story makes no sense for many reasons. Even if you accepted the idea that gay = EVIL, why would you punish EVERYONE? Oh, wait you know that you'd catch flak if you made it exclusionary so you just bury your head in the sand. Wouldn't it then strike you that you were doing something wrong? *shakes head*

3.) Re: Merlin/SyFy - I am no longer surprised when people don't get it. Disappointed. Not surprised. If that makes any sense.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

I just listened to the story on BBC4, the ending was far more poignant that I thought it would be.

another mississippi linkk

[snufflesdbear.livejournal.com]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-10-18-yearbook-photo-lesbian_N.htm

Senior photo won't be included because she was wearing a tux. Maybe you covered this late last year, though. Anything that happens late Sept to end of Oct )Octoberfest to first frost in SE Ohio) is lost to me.