I have decided that my plan for this year (and life in general) is 'do things and be excited about them'. So far, I'm doing quite well.

1. I participated in a Big Bang for the first time ever, which was pretty dang scary but also exciting! I made two fanmixes (my first ever!), and I'm super happy I managed to meet the deadlines without too much panicking or disaster. My fun was dampened a little by my quietly failing out of The Mentalist fandom at the moment, which is a kind of inconvenient thing to do when you're participating in the Mentalist Big Bang, but gosh has the show become tedious. I stopped watching about two weeks ago and unfollowed a lot of The Mentalist tumblrs, and while I feel slightly sad about it (it used to be my favourite tv show! D:), I'm also kind of relieved I can continue failing out of fandom now that the Big Bang is done and over with.

2. I watch both series 2 and series 3 of Doctor Who in January! I HAVE SO MANY SAD FEELINGS ABOUT THE ENDING OF SERIES 2 AND SO MANY AWESOME FEELINGS ABOUT MARTHA. But Rooose. Rose will always be in my heart. Because.


ROSE AND NINE FOREVER. (I don't know okay. I love them much more than I expected to and I still miss them GOD I MISS THEM SO MUCH.)


Okay, sorry, back on track. Martha. Martha omg Martha. She really is kind of crappily treated by the writers, but she is still absolutely fabulous. She's so clever and strong and TRAINING TO BE A DOCTOR. So there. There was so much fabulousness in series 3! I absolutely adored Human Nature/The Family of Blood because it was basically ALL ABOUT MARTHA AND HOW AWESOME SHE IS. So I'm a little sad to see her go, but I'm also looking forward to finally seeing Donna again. DONNA. AMAZING DONNA. 

(PS: Blink = best Doctor Who episode ~ever, y/y? I WANT SALLY SPARROW TO BE A COMPANION. OR TO HAVE ANOTHER CAMEO. ANYTHING. JUST GIVE HER BACK TO ME.)

3. I sat my written Abitur exams in German, English, and History! (Yeah, I know. Priorities. Doctor Who is definitely above this on my List of Important Things in Life.) I wasn't really worried about them a lot in the first place, but I'm still glad they're in the past now, especially since I have a feeling they all went exceedingly well. :D :D :D I have about a month of school left, and I still have to pass my oral exam in biology, but the way things seem to be going, that's going to be a breeze. I CAN'T WAIT TO MOVE OUT AND DO THINGS ABOUT WHICH I WILL BE VERY EXCITED. I applied for a summer job at my dad's company in Paris so I won't laze around all summer waiting for uni to start and hopefully make some money instead. I haven't heard back from them yet but if this works out, it should be absolutely awesome. \o/ Ooh, and speaking of that...

4. I still need to decide when to go to London. It'll probably be some time in April/May, and I yet have to inform my aunt and uncle that I plan to invade their house around then, but if you have any preferences/suggestions/whatever, THIS IS THE TIME TO TELL ME. WHEN SHOULD I COME TO LONDON. I WANT TO MEET ALL OF YOU BECAUSE I LOVE YOU. :D?

This is an art post for the Mentalist Mini Bang (mentalist_bb).

Author: feralious
Artist: branquignole
Fic: (link coming soon)
Summary: (coming soon)
Art: fanmix + cover art

A/N: Whew. So this is what being on a deadline and having no idea where you're going feels like! But the good news is, I DID IT. Even though feralious and I talked more about Holmes/Watson and all things language in our emails than the actual fucking Mini Bang, and were therefore a little hard-pressed to finish this on time, it was all sorts of fun! Thank you, feralious! I hope you enjoy this. (: (And yes, I annexed Molly Hooper from BBC Sherlock as Jane's wife. :D Sue me.)


( fanmix: one shot to kill )

This is an art post for the Mentalist Big Bang (mentalist_bb).

Author: tromana
Artist: branquignole
Fic: All Roads Lead to Nowhere
Summary: After O'Laughlin's death, she thought it would eventually get easier. Seems Van Pelt's family has other ideas...
Art: banner, fanmix + cover art, translation

A/N: Hi hi! This is my very first Big Bang (so much fretting omg), and I was incredibly lucky to get such an awesome author on the first go. I'd really like to thank tromana for writing fabulous Van Pelt-centric, post-O'Laughlin fic, and for being generally excited and making this loads of fun! <3 Also, thank you and apologies to anyone I may have whined or capslocked at (or a combination of both) in both my enthusiasm and occasional despair. :D?

As for the art: graphics aren't my strong suit, this is my very first fanmix, and I'm probably the first person who did a translation for a Big Bang as 'art'. The translation is not a translation of the entire fic but rather one of a few selected scenes that inspired my song choices. I think that's all I have to say for now? I really enjoyed this, and I hope you guys (especially you, tromana) enjoy it too! 



( fanmix: dine with the cannibals )



( translation: alle wege führen ins nichts )

 I swear to God this was supposed to be an absolutely coherent and sophisticated post. But I mean, ya know...


BAM, CUMBERBATCHED. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DEAL WITH ALL MY FEELINGS ABOUT BBC SHERLOCK AND BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH'S PERFECT FACE. (Which is conspicuously absent from this gif. But the rest of him is pretty fine too, so... Anyway. FACE.)


Right? RIGHT? I don't know either. 

And now for some words. Eh? :D?

( A Gay of Shadows, CSI: Baker Street, and lots of gifs. )

Everybody who knows me also knows that I really love me a list. I make lots and lots of them - so have some to sum up 2011!



( books read in 2011 )


( films watched in 2011 )


( musicals & concerts )

I travelled rather a lot this year; I went to Paris twice, I finally got to visit London, I was in Manchester, Liverpool, Chester, and York, and I travelled on a ferry for the first time in my life, which was really exciting (even in spite of the seasickness). All in all, it was a great year, even though I was in a bad spot every now and then, but I tackled some of my problems, and 2012 will be the year of coming to grips with them. It's also going to be a year of adventures! I'm going to finish school and move out (for the second time, but this time on my own), and I seriously cannot wait to start uni. Inbetween, I hope I'll be able to go to London (for funtimes and marmfishery!) and Paris (for work). I don't know whether everything will work out, but I'm certainly determined to try. OPTIMISM FTW.

Thank you all for being fabulous friends and for making my life all the time. <3 Here's to 2012!

Hi hi hi! Happy New Year, everybody! I realise I haven't been around except to ask for your addresses the better to stalk you, and things have changed! For one, I finally created a DW account in light of LJ's recent idiocies to secure my name. I imported my LJ and I will give crossposting from DW a try for a while. I'll still be on LJ (and mainly read and comment there, most likely), but I just like having a back-up, just in case. So, that's that.

I'll be sitting my Abitur/A levels in a little less than three weeks, so I should probably be revising, but I still haven't done a lot of that, since a good day of flouncing about just sounds so much better than a good day of revision. You could also say I'm taking it slow, which is either because I'm far too optimistic or far too lazy. Your choice. :D But let me tell you about the fabulous things I have been doing instead of revising!

1. I watched so much awesome tv! All of my shows are currently on hiatus, so I started watching Band of Brothers which I ended up having more feelings about than I would have expected. SO MANY FEELINGS. SO MANY PRETTY PARATROOPERS IN LOVE. *___* I still have two episodes left which, if I am correctly informed, are the ones starring Tom Hardy's Cock, so um... yeah. Looking forward to that. 

I also decided to give Doctor Who a second try since the first time I watched Rose, I ended up being all "wtf what is this" and not watching the show after all. But I have since reviewed my life choices, and Doctor Who is a most valid one. It's ~fantastic! It has its terrible moments, but asdjh;sldk so good! I am absolutely in love with Rose. Also the Doctor, even though I have yet to get used to David Tennant who just ~replaced my beloved Christopher Eccleston, outrage etc etc. I hadn't even realised I loved him so much, but now that he's gone, I miss him like whoa. D: I mean, seriously. Just look at him:


2. I went to Paris the weekend before last! We stayed at my dad's, which is always fun when there's one bed, five people, and a lot of controversy of who should be allowed to sleep in Just That Corner of the room, but we managed. We went to see The Sound of Music at the Théâtre du Châtelet, which was really really nice. I love the music, and the actors were all stunning and had great voices, so yay yay. After the show, we had dinner at a Korean restaurant, and I'm sorry, but there goes my coherency because OMG SO DELICIOUS YOU GUYS AKSJD;SDFLK. Kimchi! Seaweed salad! SO GOOOOODDD GET BACK IN MY FACE FOOD.

3. Christmas! Christmas was nice. It was, as always, spent with the family. On Christmas Eve (which is the day we do presents in Germany), we had raclette at home, and I made everyone listen to my Christmas albums. I'm a little sad we didn't go to church, but we always have to compromise because while I and my mum usually want to go, my siblings don't care much for church. But anyway, happy-making presents! I got a Wobble Clock (which I'd discovered the previous weekend at Nature & Découvertes, and just ~had to have), the Red Riding Trilogy DVDs (Andrew Garfield! Sean Bean!), Kraken by China Miéville, Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, and The Flawed Master by Logospilgrim (essays about Snape! BEST EVER Y/Y?), which I've basically been wanting forever, plus some money and lots of chocolate. 

I caaan't wait to read these books. Right now, I'm reading Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I understand about as little as I thought I would, but I'm also enjoying it far more than I'd expected!

And because everybody loves a meme, have one that is long overdue. laliandra gave me four fandoms, and I will try and tell you who my favourite characters are, ONLY I AM VERY INDECISIVE AND HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS, so proceed at your own risk.

( but I like all of their faces )

I read The Hunger Games trilogy back in February, and though I was planning to make a post about it, I just never got around to it. My memories are now vague at best, but I just read The Girl Who Was On Fire (an anthology of essays exploring themes and characters in The Hunger Games) and Battle Royale, which is the August book over at bookdeyada and a dystopian novel with a premise very similar to that of The Hunger Games. Reading both of these spurred my motivation to type up an entry with what I still remember and the new thoughts with which the anthology and Battle Royale have provided me. (: And then, of course, there's the teaser trailer for The Hunger Games just come out, by which I am considerably underwhelmed to be honest, but let's start off with it anyway:




When I was doing a work placement in a bookstore in January, Mockingjay was just bound to come out in German. Everybody was in a flurry about it, and I unpacked boxes upon boxes of Die Tribute von Panem - Gefährliche Liebe (the title is stupid, but the German covers are gorgeous) and decorated Hunger Games themed displays. I had heard of The Hunger Games of course, but that was the first time I actually seriously considered reading the trilogy. I ordered the box set from amazon and since I was ill and didn't really have much else to do, I tore through all three books in just a few days. In retrospect, that might not have been the wisest decision because afterwards, I felt incredibly sick and depressed.

( The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Spoilers for all three books. )

( The Girl Who Was On Fire. Spoilers for all three books of THG. )


( Battle Royale by Koushun Takami. Spoilers. )

This update, I admit, has been long overdue, but in my defense, I was very busy brewing potions! For lo and behold, I got my Pottermore welcome email! \o/ I'd been frantically checking my inbox all the time when it finally arrived on Saturday, and then I whizzed through The Philosopher's Stone in a few hours. I wish I had relished it a bit more because Chamber of Secrets isn't due to come out until some time early next year, and that is a really long wait. D: My username, for those of you also on Pottermore, is PumpkinMagic141, so when you get your email, friend me so we can have adventures together!

( Slightly spoilerish Pottermore things, I guess? )


On a completely unrelated note, my aunt and uncle came to Germany for my uncle's birthday, and I got to meet them right before I departed for Manchester. My aunt is the loveliest person; she brought me delicious tea and also invited me to come stay with them again whenever, which means that I'll be going to London again after I passed my Abitur. That should be some time in March or April (but not any later probably, because I'll be doing a work placement or some such thing), whenever flights are the least expensive or whenever is most convenient for people to meet up! What say you? What month should I come to London, lovely people of the UK?


( Adventures! Blurry pictures taken with my phone! )

Ha! You probably didn't think this post would ever be written, but here I am, proving all of you wrong! Way back (in April, actually) I wrote this paper about what I called "demancipation in literature", by way of which I wanted to prove that there was a kind of regression in female emancipation and that we are living in a rape culture, and that this would become apparent in comparing a 19th century novel - Jane Eyre - with a 21st century novel - Hush, Hush.

( HUSH WHY DON'T YOU JUST HUSH* )

Also, if anybody would like to read the paper (From Emancipation to Demancipation? - A Contrasting Analysis of the Portrayal of Women in Jane Eyre and Hush, Hush), just drop me a note and I'm happy to provide!

I'm sorry if this post is a bit rambly, it's late and I probably should have gone to bed instead of writing this, since school starts again tomorrow, but I wanted to get this done before the next school year starts, so. :D

* Han and Lal were talking about Hush, Hush on twitter earlier, which turned out like this...

HAN: AND ANYTHING THAT HATES ON HUSH WINS AWESOME POINTS AS WELL
HAN: HUSH, HUSH. NOT JUST HUSH. THOUGH I WISH IT WOULD JUST HUSH.
LAL: SO MUCH HATRED FOR HUSH WHY DON'T YOU JUST HUSH.

(Shut up, all capslocks conversations are awesome. But you see, this was too good for me to pass up.)

This is the promised post about Harry Potter! Yes! Finally! Also, in the meantime I got into Pottermore (with the perfectly ridiculous username PumpkinMagic141, which I love an unholy amount because my birthday is on Halloween and also pumpkins are awesome!) which I am unreasonably excited about. \o/
_____

So, um, hi, hello, I realise I haven't properly updated in quite a while, but I am indeed still alive. I went to see Harry Potter 7.2 on Saturday, and well, maybe I should actually put on my glasses for this, but I can't be bothered, so you'll just have to put up with the potential typos. ^o-o^ Also, to get into nostalgic mood, have this:
 

IDK, I'm feeling pretty nostalgic already, what about you?

Getting back to the actual topic at hand, I didn't think that DH2 was as good as DH1 and certainly not as good as I would have wanted the conclusion to the series to be. I loved DH1 a surprising amount, considering that I wasn't a fan of what Yates had done with the previous films, and I had kind of got my hopes up for 7.2, so I guess I was in for a bit of a disappointment. I still liked it a great deal though! I had tears and snot all over my cleavage by the end of it. ;___;

( Lightning has struck, I repeat, lightning has struck! )

( Harry Potter Meme )

Also, before you go, have the most awesome fan-made DH2 trailer in existence:
 

And last but not least, let us all take a moment to appreciate Tom Felton telling us about how he would love to have an arsenal of wands and broomsticks. Oh Tom, you adorable wooblet. <3