Prime Day 2022

We're about 2 weeks out from Amazon Prime Day.  And I'm ready for it this year.  I've got 8 things sitting in my cart, currently coming to a grand total of about $1,300.  Let's see if this figure comes down when we get to Prime Day.  And certainly for a few of these items, I am not beholden to a particular brand - so I'm fairly hopeful that I can find some good discounts.  Naturally, none of these things are close to essential so I might end up with nothing.  From the cheapest (some placemats) to the most expensive (a better portable AC unit than the one I currently have), I feel a degree of shame about my materialistic wants.     

Westworld

Westworld is a classic example of a big budget prestige drama that has gone off the rails.  I was a big fan of the first season - in fact I think I blogged about each episode, and bought the blu-ray.  But then the 2nd season underwhelmed and the third season was just a mess.  It shouldn't have been that way - a great premise, great actors, so many twists, so much potential.  But it lost the plot - it went too overboard with the multiple timelines and who is really human and who isn't, and the "bigger picture".  I lost interest and lost caring.  I'm disappointed with Westworld - but a different kind of disappointment than say the last season of Games of Thrones.  I don't feel anger, just indifference.  Which is why when the first episode of the 4th season aired this weekend, I didn't even bother watching.  I'm through with this show.  I don't remember anything about the 3rd season, and I'm not inclined to try to pick up the convoluted plot - if that's even possible - for this 4th season.  Good luck if you're still watching it.  You're probably the same kind of person that is still inexplicably watching The Walking Dead.     

Song of the Week #116

Some classic 80's for your enjoyment.

Every year ...

... after the first spell of really nice weather, the same thing happens to me.  Every year.  I get ravaged by insect bites.  And not just small bites, but big ones that result in these noticeable, red, swollen, itchy bite marks.  This weekend, my arms got hit hard.  Which is surprising, because I thought my legs would be the number one target as this was the first weekend of the year where my pasty white gams were on display.  Either way, perhaps a sad inditement of how appealing my blood is to insects.  And this is not a new phenomenon.  

Mischief

This popped up on my YouTube feed recently (I had to include the link here, because I wasn't able to imbed the video, but if that doesn't work then look up Peter Pan Goes Wrong on YouTube):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAVQtknp3XQ

And I have to say, I quite enjoyed it.  Very silly, very British, kind of like the next evolution of pantomime.  I had never seen this before, but when I googled the theater group it appears that they have had a few Christmas specials and a series on BBC, so you might be more aware of them than me.  But I noticed they also happened to be doing a US national tour of their play, and quite coincidentally they are in Seattle next week.  How fortuitous I thought, I think I'll get a ticket and go and watch them live.  Imagine my disappointment when I discovered every single one of their shows - and they are in Seattle for about 2 weeks - are sold out.  Gutted.  Hopefully I might catch one of their live shows another day (a less than subtle hint for something to do with certain family members when I'm next back in the UK!). 

Florida

I would consider moving to Florida when I retire.  Despite the heat and humidity.  And despite Floridians.  However, then you come across stuff like this:

This monstrosity was captured in the Florida Everglades recently.  A Burmese python that was 18 feet in length and weighed 215 pounds (excuse the American units of measurement - suffice to say this is a huge snake).  Nope, I can't be doing with crazy wildlife like this.  Time to reconsider my plans.  

A Dark Day

I like living in the US for lots of reasons.  I hate living in the US for lots of reasons.  Sometimes living in the US makes me really happy.  Sometimes living in the US makes me really sad.  Today, with the Supreme Court decision that we knew was coming because it was leaked, living in the US makes me f*cking disgusted.  An enormous backward step for women's rights.  A total disregard for decency and common sense.  A decision made by a court that should be impartial but in actuality is highly politicized.  A decision made by a court that just expanded gun rights earlier in the week.  It beggars belief.  And it makes you stick to the stomach.  And with the mid-terms coming up, when a bunch of unqualified lunatics that believe in QAnon, an illegitimate election, etc. will be voted into positions of power - we can expect a further erosion of women's rights, voting rights, civil rights, etc.  This is not the America I want to live in.