observations – Page 2 – Late to the Theater

Horror of Houses Pt. 1

The Housing Market sucks for buyers. It’s a seller’s market, and the Central Florida market especially sucks.

Hola, Readers and Friends!

Months have passed since last I updated this blog, for no good reason other than just… I haven’t. Procrastination, depression, avoidance, call it what you will, I went silent. Just couldn’t bring myself to say anything, since the (internet) world feels so full of noise. I’ve thrown a few stones into the raging sea that is Twitter, but nothing that feels meaningful. I’m still writing a bit, but not as much as I was.

(No, this isn’t a pity party. Stay your ‘close tab’ hand!)

So now you know what I’ve NOT been doing. Let’s catch up on what I AM doing.

Continue reading “Horror of Houses Pt. 1”

Jen In England 2018 – Part 2: Driving and Dining in a Babysnatching Kind of Place

First, I found Oxford University. I found it 4 times in fact, because I kept missing the damn turn on the roundabout.

Recently, Jen took her first ever trip outside the United States. Please enjoy Part Two of this multi-part series chronicling her tale abroad, along with the requisite musings. Part One can be found here.

Note: The internet is full of posts by smart, photogenic people taking meticulously staged selfies at famous landmarks, so this travelogue is restricted to actual personal thoughts, including things I found fascinating and/or hilarious. This entry contains baby snatching, naked arthouse mannequins, and a brief moment of uncontrollable public sobbing. Off we go!

Oxford Bound

Thursday I bid adieu to London and my Airbnb, and headed to Marylebone train station. After walking probably 30 miles the previous few days, I was looking forward to a train ride.

Oxford_marylebone — Pictured: Thursday Morning Bustling

Along the way, I people watched.

Continue reading “Jen In England 2018 – Part 2: Driving and Dining in a Babysnatching Kind of Place”

Sci Fi Short: Scavenger

I love when I run across something that reminds me of all the good things people can do.

This sci-fi short imagines an alien running across the Voyager 1 spacecraft and its precious cargo of music, greetings in multiple languages, and children singing. The alien is understandably entranced, and falls in love with humanity and a human woman, causing him to seek out Earth. Yes, it’s the plot of the first Star Trek movie – cut me some slack, I’ve had a rough week.

I love being reminded that despite the news, Good Things are still happening. People are still communicating messages of hope by making art and music and working together on passion projects.

I love that technology amplifies crystalline notes of hope, and that anyone with the bandwidth and computer access can experience it.

I love that someone imagined an alien falling in love with the best of what humans are capable of.

I love this, and that I’m still alive to appreciate it.

I love.

Achariya: Mother of Bloggers

Here at Late to the Theater, you know Achariya from her in-depth and illuminating articles, such as the ones about her Asian heritage or her childhood spent exploring Hawaiian caves with her entomologist father, but did you know she’s also a sports journalist?

It’s true!

For several years, she was Site Manager for hockey site Raw Charge. She did such a great job whipping folks into shape that one of her proteges wrote her this splendid and heartfelt piece: Raw Charge Secret Santa: Highlight Achariya, The Queen.

Here’s a list of all the articles she’s written for the site. Spend a bit of time clicking around, even if hockey is an unknown country for you (as it is for me) and you’ll see her enthusiasm, intelligence, and high standards shine through. She’s a great writer, a serious journalist, dedicated Mom, and somehow still manages to be a wonderful human.

Please join me in toasting her, and celebrating her work! Send some good vibes her way, and wish her a happy weekend at DragonCon!

The 90th Academy Awards: Always overblown, newly relevant

The Academy Awards felt as relevant and fresh as they could while yet maintaining all the cheese and slight odor of staleness that marks this large, ponderous institution.

Achariya: Full disclosure, although I unreservedly love the red carpet of any Hollywood event, I haven’t watched the Academy Awards for years, in part because it felt like there was little point to watching Hollywood wank itself over movies that I generally find uninteresting. I’m a geek and like action/spy/fantasy/sci-fi/arthouse movies, and the stuff that tends to win is what garnered best actor last night, movies like Darkest Hour (which, ok, I kinda liked).

Jen: Even though I appreciate the fanfare and pageantry, the Oscars have become a thing I’m aware of rather than look forward to. I appreciate filmmakers and crews and such receiving much-deserved recognition because it usually results in more work for them and more creative control, but for me actually making time to sit down and watch is less a priority than knowing what’s nominated and what won.

Achariya: I watched the show last night because after the #MeToo movement pointed out all the flaws in the Hollywood system, I wanted to see how the Academy Awards producers would handle it. And in fact, they handled it subtly and well.

Continue reading “The 90th Academy Awards: Always overblown, newly relevant”