So today (well, yesterday actually) was my birthday.
Since my parents had to go to the 50th birthday of a colleague of my Dad’s in the evening, I had lunch with them instead at a local Thai restaurant (which is actually run by a family of Vietnamese origin).
And since that meant I was alone in the evening, I settled down with a DVD. Initially, I was planning to watch The Avengers, because it’s a feel-good film. But since my Mom wants to see that one again in preparation for Age of Ultron, I’m going to watch it with her, so I opted for Guardians of the Galaxy instead, which is another largely cheerful feel-good movie.
Coincidentally, I just found last year’s birthday post and realised that I apparently watched The Avengers on my birthday last year. So apparently, it’s almost something of a tradition to watch Marvel superhero movies (but only the happier ones) on my birthday. But then, Marvel superhero movies usually leave you feeling really good afterwards and you want to feel good on your birthday.
By the way, for years I used to watch a Star Wars movie on my birthday, usually timed to coincide with my annual rewatch of the original trilogy (with or without the prequels). I don’t know why I stopped, but I guess it’s because I’ve seen the Star Wars movies a lot more often by now than any of the Marvel movies. Besides, I’m rather over Star Wars at the moment, though I’ll always love the original trilogy.
Okay, so the new trailer for The Force Awakens looks a lot better than I thought it would, especially since I can’t stand J.J. Abrams’ work. I particularly liked the hint at an interracial relationship (plus Han, plus Chewie, plus Luke). And I will probably see it come December. But I’m not nearly as excited about this one as I was about the prequels. For me, Star Wars is a story that has been told.
Talking of trailers, the trailer for Ant-Man also looks surprisingly good, especially considering that this is probably the Marvel movie I am least excited about. I’ll probably see it at some point, but I might simply wait for the DVD.
On the other hand, the trailer for Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice looks completely unenticing. I’m not a fan of DC’s grimdark superhero movies anyway (though I like their TV offerings) and this one looks even worse than some of the previous ones. And very, very grimdark.
Finally, here are some photos:
Wrapped presents
Me unwrapping presents.
My Mom with me unwrapping presents in the background.
My Dad takes a nap on the couch. I actually snapped a photo, because his posture is so weird.
Behold the loot! Books mostly, plus some chocolate, a bottle of plum wine and a nice haul of cards.
sending...
Happy belated birthday ^^ – April seems to be good for them, hee. The Godstalker Chronicles, wheeee – hope you write something about them if you find you enjoy P.C. Hodgell. I find the mix of horror and humor and just the whole world-building awesome and I love Jamethiel.
I’ve liked other Lilith Saintcrow fantasies, but bounced off the Hedgwitch Queen so I didn’t get the second book. Shanna Swendson hasn’t been on my radar at all, so I shall check into that. Yay for books ^^ and sweets.
Thanks for the wellwishes.
Lots of people (including you, I’m pretty sure) have recommended P.C. Hodgell to me, so I decided to take the plunge. Will let you know how I like it.
I’ve also enjoyed quite a few of Lilith Saintcrow’s books (not so much her YA, but everything else), so I decided to give this series a try. We’ll see how I like it.
Shanna Swendson is a personal favourite and highly recommended. A few years ago she wrote a great “fantasy in the modern world” series with a lot of satire of the modern corporate world, a good central mystery and a lovely romance subplot. Alas, that series was killed by the publisher one book from the revelation of the big mystery, so she eventually went indie and self-published the remaining three books. The first one is called Enchanted Inc. and there are seven books to date. This is a new series by her and I’m very interested to see if I enjoy it as much as the first one.
As for the two E.L. Tettensor novels, those went on my wishlist, because I enjoyed the epic fantasy novel The Bloodbound, which she wrote as Erin Lindsay, so much.
Happy birthday!
Thanks. 🙂