My life, in two tabs.

[bironic]

Browser Tab A: Federal website, because for my summer internship I am classified as a government contractor. Now in addition to my Sheppardian dog tag, I can be a little like Rodney! Or House in the episode with the CIA. Hopefully with less sexual harrassment.

Browser Slot Tab B: Tentacle fic.

Yeah.

.

Finally got to see the last episode of House. The whole time I kept thinking of an article called Reading Minds (PDF) by Ian Parker, which is a fascinating look at the syndrome the episode was all about. It may not have the show's maze of diagnostic turns and dead ends, but it takes a closer -- and I hate to say "more realistic," too, because what do I know about this syndrome, but at least a less wholly optimistic -- look at what it's like to try to communicate with people who have what the PotW did. As in: you do not train your brain to use a BCI in a day; and sometimes, even after months, it doesn't work at all. Like Kutner said, the mind can atrophy. Terrifying stuff.

Elsewise (it's a word because I said so), I was surprised to hear that Wilson was sleeping with someone; I thought the show told us that Amber was his true-and-only. Note: told, not showed. Now, once again, this new romance is off-screen. Also, since when does Wilson always date caretakers? I thought the other told-not-showed was that he acts as the caregiver for the needy. Though the Oedipus reference was nice for adding a touch of not-pop culture.

I really dislike when the director does close-ups so close you can't see the whole face, and the camera never stays still. For this episode, I could almost forgive it, because it served as a useful device instead of a distraction. Still, there didn't have to be quite so much shifting around and cutting; as my viewing buddy said, he had to have been moving his head to get that much range of vision.

Loved the PotW's line about, couldn't Foreman tell this story to someone who could walk away?

It was nice to see the show try some style, too, with the shifting background between the friend's basement and the place where he'd been a janitor. More often than not, though, it didn't work for me (e.g. circling around and around House and the PotW, or having the PotW and the wife in the background while Kutner and Taub searched). Was the whole episode greenish, too, or was that just the monitor we watched on?

And. Argh. The metaphysics hallucinations/daydreams/dreams again. Just as annoying as in "No Reason," only this time real!House wasn't even in them, so he didn't progress. That was left to the psychiatrist plot. I know David Shore et al like to show House's evolution in baby steps toward wanting to act less like an ass, so couldn't we have seen more of that than the patient's spiritual discussions with himself? Like, House at the psychiatrist's? How much fun would that have been? He could have made a mockery of the whole thing, or he might have genuinely tried to get something out of it; or both; and that would've been wonderful to watch. The last few minutes strongly implied that House did take it seriously, or else he wouldn't have (a) hid what he did from everyone or (b) reacted with such anger when Wilson found out what happened.

Comments

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

You'd be surprised how well tentacle fic fits in with the governmental mindset. *g*

since when does Wilson date caretakers?

I don't think people realize how needy caretakers themselves can be. Professional caretakers, eg doctors, nurses, etc., all have higher rates of substance abuse, psychiatric problems and suicide compared to the general population. I thought this fit in well because he's obviously dated nurses (i.e. caretakers) in the past.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Hm, that makes sense. My mind went to Bonnie and Grace (and Amber, who doesn't count because she broke his mold), who didn't seem to fit the description, although we don't know what Bonnie did before real estate, or what Julie did at all, if I'm not mistaken.

You'd be surprised how well tentacle fic fits in with the governmental mindset.

Fucked from all angles?

...Sorry. :)

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

Got it in one. ;-D

[bironic.livejournal.com]

*g*

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

Re House/psychiatrist subplot: I'd bet money on that being the reason why House crashed his motorbike, based on House's offhand comment about the patient being brain-damaged before the accident, not from it. Driving while emotionally stressed = not a good idea.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes. Yes. What do you imagine they talked about? D'you think this was his first session, since it's never come up before (even though House is supposed to be the main character and thus it's annoying when we're not in on stuff he's doing even when the other characters don't know), or that he's been going for a little while, which would allow him to have discussed something deeper than the first-meeting history-taking and thus more likely to bother him?

[thirdblindmouse.livejournal.com]

I thought the other told-not-showed was that he acts as the caregiver for the needy.

Told and shown, surely. Grace, yes? (I don't know the other two.)

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Grace was more or less shown, true, but followed swiftly within the same episode by House telling us exactly how Wilson "always" functions -- as an emotional vampire, needing neediness. Which was ever after assumed to be truth.

[yevgenie.livejournal.com]

oh man, I hope your time as a gov't contractor is better than my time as a gov't contractor.

heh.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Uh-oh. Should I ask and beware? This is only three months, and on-site every day, at least.

[yevgenie.livejournal.com]

Well, you get to use the internet at work, so you're already one up. :D

When I say "bunker mentality," it was maybe because we worked in *a bunker*. yaaah.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Heh.

I'm not planning on accessing LJ or reading/writing any fic while I'm there, though (starting in a month or so). Who knows how long that resolution will last, but for now at least it doesn't seem like a good idea to pull up trackable web pages like that.

[theninth.livejournal.com]

I was just about to say what yevgenie said. I couldn't get out of there fast enough.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

You guys, this is not promising! I insist on remaining optimistic. The people seem nice, and it's a set term.

[theninth.livejournal.com]

See, at least you know there's an end. And I'm sure my experience wasn't anything like normal.