Strangest Of Things

Weekly Wrap - 11/30

The tired ache of feeling sick is one of humanity’s greatest curses. The way that it seeps into your bones, into your head, into your muscles, and into your lungs. It all hangs around you, like a cloud, monitoring you, fixating upon you, like the eye of Sauron, but personally attached to you like a curse. I spent so much of this week attached to my couch, processing the cold that has run me over these past days. Everything becomes so boring. The usual excitement of getting to truly rest and relax is replaced by a deadened sense of desire for anything but the monotony that you have been existing in. The only way out is through. But boy does it feel good to finally, graciously, breathe through your nose again.

Watching:

The newest season of Stranger Things has arrived. I was genuinely not excited at all before starting it because, unfortunately, I found the 4th season to be so utterly unenjoyable, mostly due to the fact that 11’s storyline was just deeply disconnected for me. Also, Will is always annoying to me, so his whole plot last season was just too much.

That being said, this week, while recovering from a nasty cold, I wasn’t really up for engaging with a movie, so I threw on the first episode of season 5… And I was immediately whisked away. I think what I found so refreshing with this season is that it feels like the writers have really pinpointed again what makes their show special in certain moments, which is the twosomes and threesomes that they are able to give us through a talented, widespread cast.

Maya Hawke is single-handedly making me like Will Byers for the first time in the entire show, which is a feat that I believed nobody would be able to accomplish in a million years. Through her perfect note comedic performance and passionate ability to draw you into her emotional state, she makes you fall in love with her, and because she has been paired up with Will, he, by association.

Last, my friend Jesse was in a scene in the 4th episode, which made me literally do this with my dog. I yelled “JESSE” when the camera panned onto him for his first line of dialogue.

All in all, I was delighted by how much I enjoyed it, and I await Christmas morning for the rest of the episodes with glee.

Reading:

I have started building out a new fantasy world for a story. This is always the most fun part of the project, and I don’t know if it is going to be something that becomes an actual book or just a dnd setting or perhaps neither, it may end up being just a world that I make and never do anything else with. Whatever it ends up being, what I find the most enjoyable about it is the feeling of pulling at the threads of my own creativity to create something extremely layered and twisting. I think this comes with fantasy writing work so much because the process takes such a unique kind of writing that I often don’t get to do. It feels more like a puzzle than anything else, like you are solving a really specific crossword puzzle. Moreover, at the world-building phase, your story could be anything; it could hold a million possibilities still. You are at the infancy of something much bigger than yourself and so you get to feel the massivness of that. Its a special feeling and I am excited for what will come from it.

Albuming:

The best part about having our Christmas tree up is that every time I get home, I am put in the Christmas spirit immediately. Now that we have a few Christmas vinyls, they have been going on once a day when I get home from work. I have decided that the one album that I need to get this year, that I simply can’t live without, is the Elvis Presley Christmas album. It really is the pinnacle for me when it comes to Christmas albums with vocals. The perfect deep tone and the angelic balance he has, work in harmony to create the exact feeling of Christmas. It’s a feeling of comfort. A feeling of warmth and protection. But also the melancholy that can often creep into the edges of the day. It makes me think of all the Christmases that I had growing up and the traditions that have been passed down to me through time. Great music has the power to work as time travel, sending you back to periods of your life that you are no longer in. Christmas music, great Christmas music has that power, but even more specifically. Calling back all of the past December 25ths.

Nothing says christmas like this sneering face right????

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P*:

P this week is for Purrfect. Yes, corny, and maybe cringy, but I can’t help myself because of how excited I am. My partner is in Eugene with her family for Thanksgiving and is also picking up our purrfect new kitten! His name is Llewyn after my all-time favorite movie because remember, “Llewyn is the cat”. Now this cat is the most special cat because he may be the prettiest, momst beautiful boy you have ever seen. He sort of is the perfect encapsulation of what a cat should be. Delightfully and perfectly cute.

What I am most excited about is the feeling of getting our sweet angel dog, Goose, a new best friend. About a year ago, Goose got attacked by another dog and has ever since been really awkward and, honestly, a bit scared of other dogs. She isn’t always like that, but it’s enough to make it very clear that she is not a big fan. However, she has always been a huge fan of cats. Since we are getting Llewyn as a kitten, he is going to get to grow up with the best and most loving big sister ever.

Wrapping Up:

This week will be very cat-focused. He gets here on Monday night with my partner and the flight will certainly make it a tough night, but I have the next two days off, and they will be dedicated to making his time adjusting as smooth as possible. Also, I am now fully waiting for my grad school results. Terrified. It won’t come for a long time, but hey, the nerves can start whenever. Expect lots of Llewyn content next week, folks. He is about to win the award for most beloved cat in the world.