Home from the holidays

I never wished you a happy Hanukkah. Happy belated Hanukkah! Mine was laid-back and enjoyable; potato pancakes and a Skype call with my dad & his part of the family on the first night, the giving of gelt and portable holiday-scented hand sanitizers to my coworkers.

And now, happy post-solstice, post-Christmas and post-most other December holidays as well. I spent a few relaxing days at synn's place with her and her visiting mom and her two cats that prevented the putting-out of gifts under the tree until the last minute due to their propensity for eating all the ribbons but who were forgiven on account of being fluffy. Games (including Star Trek Catan from my mom), TV (Psych, Firefly, X-Files, Storage Wars, a whacked-out movie version of the Nutcracker Ballet), food, crafts, conversation; who could ask for anything more? A joyous Christmas morning gift exchange followed by a Skype call with my mom & her part of the family.

Many excellent things were given and received. You all need to see these in particular, courtesy of synn:



( Star Trek watercolor portraits and three other nifty things! )

Drove back safely through sleet and snow yesterday, which turned into rain early enough that I made it over to deelaundry's after work for further celebrations. Among other things, she gave me a camel-colored cloche hat that matches my winter coat and looks super cute with the graduated bob I've had for a few months. I will have to be careful lest people mistake me for someone fashionable. :)

I did not send as many holiday cards as usual to fan friends, and some of them are likely to be late; I'm sorry. Thank you to those of you who sent cards—nightdog, rubynye, anyone else (roga ♥) whose cards might be winging their way to the mailbox.

Oh hey, also I read some fic

Poked through the Yuletide 2012 archives and explored the small percentage of fandoms I'm familiar with and interested in reading fic for. My favorite by far is Springtime Will Kill You, a brilliant noir retelling of Orpheus' journey to find Persephone in the underworld. Riffs on Greek and Roman mythology, and on Hades/Persephone in particular, are always a treat when Yuletide comes around, and toft_froggy pointed out in her own rec that "noir is the perfect genre for the incestuous, alcohol-riddled, tragic, horrible plots of Greek myth to unspool." It's so clever and well written. I'd say more, but it would spoil the delight of the story unfolding.

Second favorite would be a series of diary entries in which Tim Gunn critiques various locales and personages he encounters during a day in New York City.

Also enjoyed the meta found poem constructed from AO3 Yuletide tags. The popular The Bar at the End of Fandom is witty and creative, but, I dunno, I guess its heart is not my heart. Same deal for me as some of astolat and ces's meta-fannish and meta-vidding vids. We celebrate ourselves, we laugh at the in-jokes we understand, and that's awesome and deserved, but separate from the ability to appreciate those fanworks on a cultural/artistic/intellectual level, not every LJ/DW/AO3/etc. fan has or loves the same experiences.

There was also a quiet future fic for Cairo Time, and a couple of stories involving the Gashlycrumb Tinies (a clever but long drabble set depicting a less than flattering backstory for each child and one where Wednesday Addams uses the form to write her family history). And another modern version of Persephone/Hades & Orpheus/Eurydice, raw, unsentimental, feminist. But the noir version was the one that held me rapt all the way through.

I might've enjoyed the Borgias in the Hunger Games historical fusion if I knew more about the Borgias. I liked the concept of Indiana Jones and Alan Grant Walk into a Bar but confess I skimmed.

Keeping an eye on other people's rec lists for more.