Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit! Welcome to October. Coming up later this month: the damage poll (on Monday), the fall reading poll (on the 15th) and the splitmeet (on the 22nd).
Meanwhile, it's time for the “visual media” version of our fall reading poll.
So do tell us...
...what fragrance you're wearing today?
...any great tv shows or movies you've discovered recently, and/or
...anything else fun you've been streaming (exercise videos? cat videos? anything),
Or, as always, just talk about something else...
Note: top image is "Ralphie in Bunny Suit Handmade by Robots Vinyl Figurine from A Christmas Story", $14.99 at A Christmas Story House & Museum.
I’m in a drop of amber paste today, a cheap favorite from the co-op. For less then $8, a teeny tiny smidge literally lasts all day!
I’m currently addicted to a show I found on YouTube, it may be streaming elsewhere…Ruyi’s Love in the Palace. This is a Chinese historical soap opera based on real people. Ruyi starts out as a childhood friend and ends up as Empress. There are 78 episodes, each less then 1/2 hr so it’s not as overwhelming as it looks. But OMG the fashions, the hairstyles, the jewelry!!! It is a stunningly beautiful show. There’s love, intrigue, backstabbing, poisoning, murder, it’s got it all. Go to YouTube and do a quick search, if only to get a look at the fabulous setting. And YES, perfume is often mentioned in the story, several of the Emperors wives/concubines have signature scents.
Wow, just an image search confirms what you said about costumes, it’s lovely.
Looks like maybe DisneyPlus has it too?
I did watch Ruyi. The Yanxi palace one is a different point of view. Full episodes are on YouTube.
I watched that too! They were both very addicting.
Thank you for recommending this show! I have been looking for a new historical drama after finishing my beloved Magnificent Century, a Turkish one that was thoroughly enjoyable.
Oh gosh, I just checked this one out. I’ve bookmarked the first episode. Thank you!
I’m in Fendi Theorema, no reason, it caught my eye. Only a mL or so left: might be gone by the end of the year, but it was a good run.
No media in particular to recommend because I am spending quite a lot of time fighting with German on Duolingo. I think German is winning: I know people actually speak this language on a daily basis but sometimes I don’t know how because there are SO. MANY. RULES. and you have to remember all of them at the same time. Nevertheless I soldier on.
Oh gosh my father spoke German before he spoke English and his mother never really got used to another tongue. During WW2 she didn’t go out much due to anti German sentiment.
My sister and I both had to take German in school.
It’s a tough one. Good luck!
Lol, I’m learning Italian on Duolingo! I’m enjoying it and I’m quite competitive with myself but I’m pretty sure I’ve passed the window in my brain to make it stick. We’re going to Italy next year for 3 months, I just want to read a menu, order a drink and be polite.
Yeah, I don’t care what anybody says, once you’re in your twenties, your chance of being able to learn a language to fluency decreases with every passing year. I did study German in my late teens and I really wish I’d stuck with it, because I have forgotten *so much*.
OMG, my 20’s are so far in my rear view mirror I don’t bust and a chance! 😂. But I’m trying.
I’m happy I will be able to order a glass of wine and basically read a menu, there’s no hope for a real conversation.
Stand a chance! Why this very strange autocorrect?
Never heard of the app (which is a little like me saying I never heard of a specific drill bit or a Norwegian composer—- in other words, not surprising!) but just downloaded it to brush up on Spanish. So far, the challenges are all in my wheelhouse, but I am guessing it will get discouraging when they aren’t. Over 30 years ago I worked in a Planned Parenthood clinic and gave out a lot of birth control information in Spanish, so my vocabulary is errrr not going to have a whole lot of applicability on my upcoming trip to Spain 😂
I totally laughed out loud at drill bit🤣
Same here.
Hee hee. Or else you will impress everyone there with your specialized vocabulary!
you mean there are different drill bits? hmmm
I am doing Duolingo Spanish and it may well help you on your Spain trip. I took Spanish as an adolescent nut never used it in suburban New England. When I moved to Texas and found myself in the medical field, I had to resurrect the Spanish. I have a lot of the medical jargon down but conversation eludes me.
I do one or 2 lessons each day, usually at night and I find Duolingo helps me keep fresh, I am about 420 days in. My only criticism is that it takes a while to advance through the more basic lessons.
Good luck with the German! I’ve got 2+ years of Duolingo French under my belt now, and I still wouldn’t be able to go to France and have a conversation (or understand anything anyone said to me, given accents. And Quebec is likely hopeless!).
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I have a really hard time with the way Duolingo teaches languages — the intuitive approach I think works better for young kids than for me. I spent years studying German (and then French and Latin) in high school and university, and the classes led with the grammar. I find I need to know the ‘why’ of how to construct a sentence first, and it frustrates me when Duolingo teaches not by explaining, but by letting you get it wrong 3 or 4 times before they half-explain a rule or conjugation or tense you were just supposed to intuit.
The absolute blessing of German is that all the letters are pronounced, so I find spoken German much easier to comprehend than French. But for English speakers who aren’t used to genders and cases, it can be tough. (That said, I can’t imagine how hard it would be to learn English, where the rules and pronunciations are all over the map.)
Are you planning on visiting Germany / Switzerland, or just learning for the intellectual challenge?
I tried, I really tried with French at the French Institute at Alliance Francaise in NUC with in-person classes designed for adults. My problem was I kept thinking in Spanish (not native but have had a good number of years) and it was not as effective as I wanted it to be. I have yet to try Duolingo, which was recommended to me a while back, but may dip my toes into it.
I took *two courses* with the Alliance Francaise in *one year* and it did not help. My fault, mostly: I should have practised it with French-speaking co-workers (I live in a bilingual province, or I guess I should say the bilingual province), but I couldn’t work up the nerve.
Duolingo has its ups and downs but after two months I am definitely learning German. I don’t know how useful it will be when we go back to Germany next year, but here’s hoping.
Honestly, in my experience, people are usually very welcoming there when you try any German.
I can see the point of Duolingo because you basically just repeat the same things over and over again until they get hammered into your brain, which really is how kids learn language. BUT! I’m an adult and I need some actual grammar! I need to be *told* that “mit” takes the dative case. I actually bought a grammar book today, because after two months of it I have to concede that Duolingo is just not going to be enough for me.
English in its way is an extremely easy language to learn, because the grammar is mostly fairly straightforward and you can make a *lot* of mistakes and still be comprehensible as long as the words are in the right order. BUT! We have an immense vocabulary and a hideous number of phrasal verbs, all of which you simply have to learn: you can’t really understand phrasal verbs from context clues— you can’t tell what “pass up”, “pass down”, “pass over”, “pass off”, or “pass away” mean just by knowing the verb “to pass”. I am so so glad I was born in an English-language environment because it’s a useful language to know and I would have even less chance of ever learning it well than I have of learning German.
Yes! Agreed. A grammar book is a huge help! On top of the prepositions that always take the same case, there are the two-way prepositions which take either accusative or dative based on context, and all the idioms. I was near-fluent at one point (a long time ago), but I still have my yellow grammar book from advanced German and I take it with me every time we go over there for extended periods, because I need to refer to that list of two-way prepositions and the list of idiomatic prepositions.
You might find Michel Thomas more up your street – that was my breakthrough helper in Spanish. 🙂
Theorema is gorgeous.
So gorgeous! It always makes me happy. I’ll be a bit sad when mine is all gone, but I have lots of other options.
This thread got me to finally download Duolingo to start learning Dutch. I don’t have any expectations that it will make me conversant, but hopefully it will help me with the vocabulary and accent, and will make it easier to take an in-person course at some point.
Hello fragrant friends
Not great sleep after an intense work week
Best news is all my family safe and unharmed by hurricane in Florida.
Sitting with my coffee on international coffee day.
Post shower will be Ruh from Pekji a fantastic coffee scent purchased as a blind buy. The bottle is beautiful.
Rewatching game of thrones cause I’m not loving house of dragons.
Reading a Michael Connolly Harry Bosch book cause no one does Los Angeles like Michael Connolly.
Got the new Byredo lip and westman atelier face drops prior to down payment for face lift! No spending no no no
Which Byredo Lip?
the new vinyl lip in shade 201
I apply with a lip brush
Glad your family is safe!
Ruh from Pekji. Looked it up. Am having an overwhelming yen for it now. Love the bottle too.
Good news about your family. I think we are going to be getting a lot of bad news from that state in the next week. My heart really goes out to everyone in Ian’s path.
Its so lovely and not heavy or cloying.
Yes, my sister is loading goods onto small planes where she lives.
And she wants me to move to Sarasota?
TBD me thinks.
Happy your family is safe!
Good to hear that your family is safe & sound!
Glad your family is safe. Absolute devastation in the southwest.
I’m very happy to hear your family is safe! I hope you have a very peaceful sleep tonight.
Would you mind giving your impression of the Westman Atelier face drops once you’ve had a chance to get to know them? They’ve caught my eye…
I didn’t like the drops at first. Then I paid attention to how to apply them. Now I love them.
two drops and use a brush. top off with a bit of powder.
had two women stop me and tell me my skin was beautiful.
Thanks!
Glad your family is safe and also not loving House of D.
I saw those drops on Nordstrom’s website and am tempted but am not sure what shade I would need…the dewiness calls to me.
Excellent news about your family members being safe and sound!
Hello and 🐰🐰🐰!
Sotd is Bond no.9 Chinatown.
I recently watched Narco Saints on Netflix and it was pretty good. I also watched The Rings of Power on Amazon, could be better but not bad.
Streaming on youtube, I have been re-bingeing videos from Sorted Food. If foxes are your thing, SaveAFox is worth watching, so adorable.
Well you just smell amazing!
I love Chinatown. I wish I could get some more. My bottle of it stubbornly stopped spraying. I love that bottle, too.
I need to tell a friend of mine about SaveAFox. It would totally be in her wheelhouse.
Good morning. I forgot the rabbits again. Oh, well. I am sure someone has some extra.
Wearing Vahina today. I thought I really liked it, but I am finding out that I am not much of a vanilla gal.
I am excited to be getting Bee and Civet in the mail today.
My husband and I thought we would watch Father Stu tonight now that it is on Netflix. Anyone seen it?
Have a good weekend everyone!
You can have one of my rabbit sets. I did 4 altogether so you get the first extra set.
I don’t have Netflix and have not seen Father Stu. There was a time when I thought that I need a Netflix subscription, but no longer. Amazon Prime has a lot of shows!
Black Saffron and drinking a cup of hot chocolate
Ted Lasso on Apple TV , just started Empress on Netflix
No other videos for me really.
Still reading Renault and at the same time reading a book about the Waldorf education, something I have been curious about.
Not that I would use it but what are the highlights of Waldorf education? Does Montessori use dramatically different methods?
Added Empress to my list…I need these polls more than anybody because I never know what is coming out.
We are planning to watch Ted Lasso this winter, I’m sure we’ll be the last to see it 🙂
When my better half and I watched the pilot for Ted Lasso he said no, I don’t like this. I really enjoyed it. After Ted Lasso won more and more Emmys I asked if we could revisit and watch just the next episode and we did and he loved it. Just thought I would mention that maybe the first episode won’t grab you but the next one will…
Thanks! Frankly when it came out we decided we didn’t want to see it at all, but now so many people have said it’s wonderful that we’ll give it a fair shot.
And there aren’t that many shows we will both watch, so it’s useful in that sense.
Happy Saturday! I’m enjoying Dryad this morning and looking forward to a warm sunny day. Mr. G and I were late to the Ted Lasso party, and the first time through it tickled me way beyond expectations. We’re re-watching it now and noticing tiny details that we missed before. Still loving it, but probably won’t watch it all the way through 20+ times like I’ve done with The Good Place (yes, okay, I might need help). We’re currently hunting for the next show to watch together — the Mr. consumes more tv than I do. As for other media consumption, once in a while I’ll go on a youtube kick watching hair or makeup how-to videos, but only for an hour or two. And my book consumption has been very slow for several years. I just don’t deal well with suspense anymore, so I’ve mostly been re-reading old favorites.
I recommend Bosch on Amazon Prime.
We watched all of Bosch a few years ago — might be time for me to re-watch it from the beginning. Has the spinoff been released yet?
Edit: I see that it has, and I have no idea why we’re not watching it — the ratings so far are actually better than the original series.
Yep…looking forward to it!
Me too! Just started watching it last week from the beginning. Really well done. Another reco on Prime is Goliath with Billy Bob Thornton. All four seasons very different in style and story.
Hey everybody–feeling good today after my first MRI last night. Why is it that the fear of something unknown is almost always worse than the actual experience?! Just glad it’s done. I am not a fantasy/world type gal, but I really enjoyed The Sandman on Netflix. Excellent writing and acting.
Wearing AA Ginger Piccante to get a head start on this week’s community project. Rabbits all around for everyone!!!
I hope that your heath fears continue to lessen! 💚
Glad the MRI wasn’t too bad!
Hooray for feeling good after facing a challenge!
I am extremely claustrophobic and learned the hard way that I need to take a sedative before having an MRI. I’ve also had several open MRI’s but frankly they are just as bad. Fortunately, doctors know this happens and so I’ve had no problem getting a couple of Valiums in order to do the tests I’ve needed. Just had one last month. The only drawback is that you must have someone to drive you home afterwards.
Good to hear that your MRI wasn’t as bad as you feared it might be!
Was in 31RC to see if we had kissed and made up after our very u happy last meeting. I’m not sure. It may have become too much for me. Mr. Skal unexpectedly changed his mind about going to our college’s homecoming football game (he didn’t want to, now he does; there are plenty of events I am happy to attend without him, but not this!) so I’ve had a quick shower and am commando.
Can’t remember if I’ve mentioned Seaside Hotel here — eight seasons (5-6 episodes/each) on PBS. Danish. Series begins in the 1920s, and Season 8 takes place in 1942. There is a ninth season filming, to be set in 1945. Beautifully acted, great ensemble cast, and some lovely clothing.
And of course, eagerly awaiting Derry Girls Season 3 on Friday!
Derry Girls YAY
Cannot wait for Derry Girls!! Liam Neeson & all.
IMH there is at least one incident in Season 3 that is more dramatic than Liam Neeson.
In other news, the football game was a rout (not in our favor). Sigh. But I did get to see four of my students play in person. I am trying to reconcile the happy-go-lucky, gentlemanly person who appeared in my class last semester with the person who made six or eight tackles in the first half alone.
Wearing Divine’s Narguile this cool grey morning and it is a perfect choice. I fall in and out of love with tv and streaming. When I’m in love, I can binge loads of movies and shows—documentaries, comedies, spy films, period dramas, fantasy. When I am not, everything bores me. I’m not feeling it these days. It may be because my work has me on Zoom too many hours just now, and so watching a screen feels like more of the same? Still able to sit through entire episodes of Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy, but only just. And there was a Bowie documentary I streamed a week or so ago that had some really great clips of him performing in the 1960s. . .
100% scent twins today!!! It’s so easy to wear … smoky!
Sotm is A La Nuit as I continue my jasmine jag.
We haven’t been watching much other than Hidden Villages with Penelope Keith about small English villages. It’s such a mellow contrast to busy days at work and a crazy world.
I have seen quite a few episodes of that…agree, it’s a stress reducer.
Haven’t showered yet, but yesterday I pulled out all my samples and I’m considering how to reorganize. May go with something from the OJ set today. Once we get going, it will be a busy day with the kid’s orchestra rehearsal, then meeting a friend and her new baby (yay!) and going to another friend’s 40th birthday party late this afternoon.
I’ve been having to accept that I’m just not a screen person — I like the idea of watching shows, but then the actuality of doing it after a long day feels like too much, so we get through things very slowly. (Maybe it’s because I spend too much time on screens all day? I prefer to sit with a book.)
That said, we did just watch last year’s season of The Great British Banking Show, and got through it in less than a month, which is a practical binge for us. (It only came out on Netflix here recently.) I do love that show as a comfort watch. And we’re still very slowly working our way through Borgen. Otherwise, we watch a lot of cycling; I’ve particularly liked that coverage of women’s cycling is increasing and they resurrected the Tour de France Femmes this year.
I’m also not a viewer. I just don’t have the patience for it!
I can’t be bothered with 99% of what’s on tv, I prefer reading. But we both love watching cycling. Signed up for GCN last year and it’s been good, although they don’t have rights to TdF or Vuelta sadly.
All college football all the time here in our house. We do need to finish Ted Lasso. I want to watch, but it’s the one show my husband and I watch together, and he’s being slow about it. I may just abandon him and watch on my own.
Shalimar MVP today. Will do the new Tonka tomorrow.
I just heard from my BG SA. She will ring up 2 bottles for me. I am waiting to hear if an NST friend will take the 2nd one and if not, I will offer it up for a split.
Do please let us know what you think!
Curious to know what you think about it also!
If its good I may hunt down a bottle.
I know from a quick spritz the other day that I like it. I get the bitter almond, which I love.
I really hope there will be splits eventually of this one!
I’m sitting in a dim house – we haven’t had power since yesterday afternoon. However, our hot water still works and it’s amazing how cheerful I can be after a hot shower! They estimate the power will be back on by tonight.
I don’t really watch anything. However, in the last two months I’ve gotten my reading mojo back with a vengeance and have finished 8 novels! The best one was Mecca by Susan Straight – it’s also the first novel I’ve read that includes the COVID-19 pandemic. It was jarring to realize how large a role it will play in upcoming books, movies, albums ….
My SOTD is Aroma by Costa Brazil.
I just read Emily St. John Mandel’s “Sea of Tranquility”, which also played on the pandemic, and it was kind of jarring to see it become a part of the wallpaper. (That said, COVID had me thinking about “Station Eleven” a lot, and that was written well pre-COVID.) Yes, it will be interesting to see how big a role it ends up playing in other books that come out!
I read that too. It was kind of strange.
Not a TV person either. My reading is gradually recovering now after being too stressed over the past 2.5 years to even enjoy that.
I am wearing vintage Mitsouko extrait.
I don’t watch series or movies lately. I got lots of new books in Armenia so I will start reading those.
I am going to have to dig out vintage Mitsouko! You smell wonderful.
SOTD is Guerlain Purple Fantasy, in its asparagus-cap bottle. Or we could get ruder about what that cap looks like, but we won’t 😉 Sandalwood, jasmine, apricot. The top notes in my bottle are a bit off, I’m just waiting for it to settle down a bit to get to the good part.
We’re still watching loads of old movies on TCM. Watched a really charming comedy this week, It’s Love I’m After, starring Leslie Howard / Bette Davis / Olivia de Havilland / Eric Blore. Light and highly entertaining.
Otherwise we’re watching Yellowstone, getting to the end of season 4. Somehow you’re always rooting for the bad guys, lol.
Isn’t that a funny film? I tend to just think of Leslie Howard as the eternal Ashley Wilkes but he’s so much more!
I know! He was so funny in that film. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him in a comedy before, but he was great at it.
Ha!
That bottle sure is interesting.🤭
Canal Sur here in Andalucía shows an old movie every night, some with the original English language soundtrack. If you get the chance to see Midnight (Claudette Colbert) you might enjoy it. 🙂
Happy Weekend!
SOTD!
JHAG Sunny side up.Fun fragrance.
SOTE!
Salle Privee Monochrome…NOW we’re talking.Wonderful fresh and herby with cloves,galbanum,rosemary and a surprise leather-ish accord that smells more like a pleather seat in a doctors’ office.I loves it.
SO!
The Crown season 5 starts November 22nd,and I cannot wait!
I’ve been watching House of Dragons,but it really did not grab me so much
Wednesday is on my watch-list,the preview looks spectacular!(about Wednesday Adams,ala Adams Family…)
XO’s
We canceled Netflix and The Crown is the one I miss the most.
I’ve been watching the last season again in anticipation of the next and possibly last season of The Crown.It’s the only real reason my Netflix is still active.
Oh just to add…
I was searching for a Julia Child cooking video when I came accross this HILARIOUS dude named Jamie.His intention is to cook his way through her two best-known books on the art of french cooking.I enjoy it and him so so much!
Anti-Chef on youtube,do check him out!(the results have been both triumphs and epic disasters,has he has never before cooked or baked,until he discovered Julia….fun.)
Wearing L’Artisan Seville l’Aube for a picture perfect early autumn day. It’s sunny and mild enough to open the windows, Larry the cat is very happy.
My husband is watching Night Sky on Amazon Prime (I started it with him but it’s too science fictiony for my tastes.) I’m still watching TCM old movies. I especially enjoy the ones from the 1930s, even if the storyline is ridiculous the Art Deco fashions and furnishings are great. And I like comedian videos: Charlie Berens, Trey Kennedy, Jean Shorts and Girls Gone Mild. All PG and very funny.
Big fan of Charlie Berens…saw his live stand up last summer. Husbands of Target and How IKEA Was Invented are priceless.
I’m having a very lazy Sunday morning, contemplating the return to work tomorrow after a week away. It feels like a long time since I was there, but I know that the moment I walk in the door it will feel as if I’ve never been away. I wore a dab of Safari last night, and can still smell it. It’s almost a love, but somehow not quite.
The weather continues to be unusually cold and wet for the time of year. We had a mild winter and that seems to have just dribbled on into what should be spring.
We’ve been rewatching old CSI episodes, there are lots if them, so we’ll be doing that for a while longer. As a total change from that, we’re also watching The Sandman, which I’m enjoying more than my beloved. He has an urge to find plot holes, which I’m happy to let wash over me.
I might watch the Sandman eventually…you love it then? I do like Gaiman.
Enjoying my last weekend off before 3 weeks of straight work. Beautiful day here and took a walk, did grocery shopping. I am cleaning my coffee maker currently. I went on business trip last week and was despondent with the coffee the hotel had. I don’t consider myself a coffee snob, really I just want decent plain brewed coffee but that is apparently too much to ask. I already figured the breakfast was bad so I brought breakfast bars with me.
I am wearing sample of Comme de Garçons Zero. It is ok but not full bottle worthy.
Has anyone tried Rook perfumes? I ordered a sample set. I honestly think I enjoy the search for new scents as much as acquiring them.
Hope you enjoyed your weekend off! (And I feel the same about tea…not even worth drinking tea when I’m out.)
We are currently watching
The Bear, season 1 (we’re about to the watch the last episode). Highly recommend, esp. if you ever worked in restaurants.
Shameless, season 2 (we never watched this while it was in production. Entertaining but about the most un-PC show you can imagine)
Atlanta, season 4 (I only started watching because I liked Donald Glover in Community, but it’s way better than Community, although I loved Community too. IMHO one of the the top 10 series of the last 5-10 years. Bit of violence, though. Guessing I will eventually watch the whole thing a second time.)
Great British Baking — and we also watched the Junior version last month. Excellent stress reducing television.
I recently finished all of the British sitcom Mum, which my mom (ha) recommended. Very cute and undemanding. 3 seasons.
Looking forward to: last season of Shetland, and third season of Derry Girls, next season of Avenue 5 (admittedly a dumb comedy and my husband would not watch it, but I find it a good stress reducer, plus I love Hugh Laurie)
I”m a big Shetland fan, too.
I’ll look into Atlanta, that sounds good.
What a great list
I need to watch the newer seasons of Great British Baking because a friend keeps telling me that one of the cohosts looks and talks like me — I need to see whether I should be pleased or offended 😂
Ok, I really want to know which of them it is!
Robin, I remember you were interested in hearing more about the Essex Serpent when I was watching it the last time we had a viewing poll. It did end up growing on me, but I still much prefer the book to the show. The show had an amped up level of hysterics which I don’t really remember from the book. But I guess shows need to be like that…. Do give it a watch when you sign up for Apple tv, but definitely don’t sign up just to watch it!
Oh thank you so much tulipani! I do have an Apple TV list but taking longer to finish with other channels than I thought, so might be winter before I start. I will be prepared for the hysterics…and yes, sounds like they felt the need to amp up the drama.
Can you get the BBC series “Ghosts”? I know there has been an American remake. We’ve finished season 3 here in Spain (Movistar) while UK folk are on season 4.
I had not heard of it but looks like there’s already a US remake
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghosts_(American_TV_series)
and looks like the original BBC version is still on HBO Max.
Thanks, will add to my list!
I’m wearing Chipmunk on a lovely fall day. The temps are a little high for fall but the light angle is very autumn. I gave up my cable a while ago, replaced it with YouTubeTV, and then quit YouTubeTV for a set of streaming apps. I’m spending about $30/mo for TV now instead of $80. I have a Disney+ bundle, giving me Hulu, ESPN+, and Disney, Peacock for NBC and Bravo because an annual sub was $20 and I love Top Chef, Discovery+ for cooking shows, adventure shows, and HGTV, and I’m an Amazon Prime member. What I have discovered is that I used to watch a lot of stuff just because the TV was on. Now I have to deliberately want to watch, and except for a few shows I like, the TV is off and I read instead. I did watch the latest season of Making the Cut. I don’t give a hoot about designer’s “brands” and social media presence that has become a big part of the show, but I love to see the creativity. I will hop back on Netflix after the current season of GBBO ends so I can binge-watch them all and I will catch up on Blown Away. I still remember the glass potatoes one artist made, they were awesome.
I prefer streaming over live TV too…we have both in the house but I pretty much only stream these days. You got a good deal! I currently have Hulu, Amazon Prime, Netflix, PBS Passport and Acorn, plus I get access to Showtime and HBO apps because we have them on cable. When I finish a few more series I will drop Hulu and Acorn and pick up Apple TV for a bit, then after that, Britbox again.
I don’t even want to think about what we pay per month, it’s outrageous, but my husband refuses to give up his access to every sport played on earth, hence we must keep cable.
Bois des Iles today to celebrate fall. I’m not good at these lists – we’re still watching Shetland and Brokenwood. Will need to find new stuff soon!
I am looking forward to next season of Shetland, such a good show!
Wearing Trayee on a very warm October 1st. No crisp fall breezes here, but I smell like autumn anyway.
Still watching an episode or two of the almighty Seinfeld before bedtime, but really not interested in much of anything, TV wise. I wish comedy shows like Carol Burnett would come back. Does anyone remember Flip Wilson? We used die laughing watching shows like that. Ah well, now it’s all the Bachelor or RHLA, or whatever city…I’m also wasting a lot of my time playing Diablo Immortal. Total escapism at its best!
I had no problem with the switch to the new computer system at work last night because I was never able to sign in. Rejection to the nth level! Lol! 😂
Happy weekend all! 🍁🍂
I would watch Flip Wilson with my Grandmother. Laughs for all ages!
Flip Wilson! Yes, we watched as quite young kids.
And we still watch Seinfeld. Recently rediscovered Everybody Loves Raymond; they are hilarious!
Any time you can find a comedy moment these days is a bonus.
I loved Carol Burnett! That show used to have us kids doubled over laughing. It was the first TV show my parents let us “stay up late” to watch.
Ha, yes same here. The chemistry between Carol, Harvey Korman and Tim Conway was amazing–always hilarious.
“What you see is what you get!”
Yes, I remember both Flip Wilson and Carol Burnett. Occasionally I see episodes of “The Carol Burnett Show” on MeTV. It’s a cable channel that specializes in old TV shows.
Rabbit rabbit! We’ve been enjoying “Rings of Power”, the series based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s earlier tales of Middle-earth. On a recent plane trip, I re-watched the movie “Yesterday”, a really charming movie about a Beatles fan. I won’t say more, so as not to take away anyone’s surprise! I’ve been on a bit of a movie musical kick in the last week; watched the remake of “West Side Story”, and re-watched “Mamma Mia.” Our perennial show is the British Antiques Road Show. All those nice polite English people!
Is the British Antiques Roadshow the one where each episode is set in a castle? I could be thinking of something else.
I loved Yesterday – and charming is the perfect word for it.
2nd that.
Hi everyone, I’m wearing Le Labo Patchouli 24 today, and smelling things up in a fun way.
My Netflix tastes are almost always for mystery or police dramas, and lately I don’t want to watch anything American. I watched Capitani because the guy was cute. It is, improbably, a cop show set in Luxembourg! I accidentally watched Season 2 but did not like it much and don’t plan to do Season 1. No thank you. I watched Entrapped, which is Icelandic, and part of a series with two previous entries that were great, but this one is just middling. This show has the unique distinction of featuring a quite fat police detective who has become a big heart-throb, and I can see why. 🙂
Above all, however, I’ve been watching Korean shows. There are so many and they’re of a very high quality. The plots are complex, the acting is good, cinematography, etc. There’s an amazing depth of good actors, and a lot of very good-looking people, including women with uncannily beautiful porcelain skin (and some men, too). I recommended Stranger a while back, and it’s still my favorite. Each season features one major crime and there’s a labyrinthine investigation that winds up revealing strands of both police and prosecutorial corruption, with a pure example from each profession who team. up together to solve things. And don’t have a romance, though you kind of wish for one.
Extraordinary Attorney Woo is somewhat more light-hearted with some entertaining bits but also serious ones; she is a brilliant lawyer who is on the autism spectrum. It’s borderline kitschy but still fun to watch.
Signal was just fabulous. A friend recommended it, and although I generally have no interest in time-travel tales, this one somehow managed to draw me in, and it proved quite memorable.
Little Women (not the Louisa May Alcott version) is now ongoing and an episode drops once a week. It’s gripping, the tale of three sisters living in poverty and trying to cope; their lives get entangled with an extremely corrupt rich family. Some scenes of the live of the wealthy people, including fabulous trips to Indonesia, are gorgeous to watch, and the plot revolves around a magical and sometimes poisonous rare blue orchid with a unique fragrance!
Finally I’m also in the midst of a show that is wonderful though not for everyone, My Mister, about employees’ lives and friendships and affairs within a big successful building construction company. Two people who are just abjectly miserable for different reasons become very unlikely friends. Each has a lot of secrets and some family love but they face some crisis situations. I enjoy the realism of the show.
It seems from these shows that Koreans do an incredible amount of drinking–wow–and also dining out in work groups. Sometimes I feel quite hungry while or after watching!
Hope this is of some use to others. My two best friends here won’t watch things with subtitles. I don’t understand, these are the best shows on TV these days ! But they both like to do embroidery or knitting while they watch TV. I frankly don’t understand that either because you miss too many of the visuals. Korean shows in particular rely a lot on interactions that involve the exchange of subtle facial expressions and a lot of eye contact.
My mom was the same as your friends. She’d sit at her quilting frame with her back to the TV and rest of the room, “watching” TV. I think between the bright light needed for quilting, reading glasses, and differing distance between her eyes, the quilt, and the TV across the room it was impossible for her eyes to adjust quickly and focus.
I love your international taste in tv 📺
Oh! Thanks so much for the Korean recommendations. I too like Korean shows, ever since watching Crash Landing on You right as we were locking down. I’ve watched a number, but its been awhile and it helps to have recommendations.
My husband and I saw a Korean crime movie in a theater recently. I enjoy their humor, but boy it was violent. The bad guy was as brutally bad as it gets.
I don’t think the violence was especially bad in any of these. It’s not dwelled upon. I’m also interested that the sex scenes are very rare and if at all, are quite circumspect, just kissing.
I like that they’re quite chaste. And don’t always have endings tied up in a perfect bow.
Korean crime mystery shows sound intriguing — that’s my favorite genre too and I’m always looking for new shows!
Try Stranger, then. It’s so good. It’s very complicated–I wound up watching it twice so I could understand what had really gone on. Season 1 is just terrific. I also liked Season 2, though it’s a little less good. Signal is also great.
I started watching the first episode and it’s great! Very engrossing
Great recommendation, thanks! I am looking up Capitani right away, and the other shows sounds great, too.
I don’t understand why people have problems with subtitles, but I guess if you kind of half watch the TV while staring at your phone, such material won’t work…
We started putting subtitles on for everything when our baby was small because it helped with keeping the sound down when he was asleep, now we just do it by the force of habit. It helps with unintelligible dialogue in English shows anyway.
The watching:
1. House of the Dragon – does not have the magic of GOT sadly although Matt Smith is a lovely discovery…I see what all the fuss is about. ♥️
2. Only Murders in the Building S1 – still have to watch the last episode but a charming diversion.
3. Nine Perfect Strangers – a mixed bag; somewhat enjoyable but kind of didn’t come together for me somehow though I do like Ms. Kidman.
4. Beforeigners S2 – had just watched the 1st episode when HBO went cuckoo and pulled content due to seismic shifts of the conglomerate parent companies. I loved S1 and hope I can finish S2 when the conglomerates stuff fussing and order is restored. 😉
5. My Life is Murder – have watched the first two seasons and see S3 premieres Oct 10th. Formulaic but quite enjoyable before bed fare.
6. The Staircase – watching the documentary not the miniseries for clarity and on E3. Really draws you in…a fascinating case but full credit to the director Jean-Xavier de Lestrade…brilliantly handled by him.
Will start Andor soon which my brother is loving and just watched Hocus Pocus 2 w/ She-ra Mini last night. 🎃
The perfume:
Thinking about blind buying Lush Turmeric Latte based on Robin’s post earlier this week and thinking what else I need…any other recommendations? I haven’t tried Sticky Dates yet so that will probably make the cut. The cart adds up quickly on Lush… ehaeheh 😉 💵
I really like Sticky Dates – it’s sweet, but it’s not just sugar if that makes sense. I’d definitely try it since you’re a vanilla fan!
Do they not have the Turmeric Latte at Fashion Valley? I was planning to go down there to sniff it.
I have been liking British Netflix lately— anatomy of a scandal and behind her eyes both excellent.
I went to the mall today and checked out the Jo Malone counter which I haven’t in ages — I really liked Scarlett Poppy intense and the Oak and Hazelnut. My son was with me and really liked the latter – I will try to see if I can score him a cheaper bottle on Ebay.
Oak & Hazelnut does sound really nice, I should go try it.
Hot damn!
33° celcius today,and I am LOVING every sunray!!
Thinking of having a splash in the pool in a bit.
SOTD!
Fugazzi Parfum 1.Hmmm…interesting spicy concoction from this house.From the Skins cosmetics discovery box,I won’t be needing a full bottle of this.
The box has some other well-knowns to me such as Do Son,Mojave Ghost,Portrait of a Lady,all in minis.Pretty good value for money as I got 18 perfumes from 5ml-14mls in it.
Happy Sunday boys and girls!
✌🏻🌹🤗
We have only just said goodbye to low thirties temperatures. Now mid twenties and z lot more pleasant for walking about in. But, ah, how the nights are drawing in.
Wearing Coromandel today and taking my dogs to the park today. Haven’t found anything new to watch on TV recently.
U smell great
I’m still wafting my bedtime scent of CSP Café Vanille, will respray sometime today before work.
Just looking at temps around my usual traveling areas and noted that it’s cooler in Prescott AZ than it is here. Strange times we’re living in. 🤔
Sending good wishes to all those dealing with the aftermath of Ian. I remember the first time I ever saw a roseate spoonbill on Sanibel at the JN “Ding” Darling wildlife refuge. Strange looking, yet so appealing, they look to be the goofiest bird you ever saw but wanted to be friends with. I hope they find another home just as safe since Sanibel is in ruins. Here’s a little blurb about them for those interested at the aforementioned wildlife refuge.
https://youtu.be/jbbQDJDWhGU
I am wearing Padme Lotus by DSH today, I sprayed it on when we were leaving the house since I had a bottle sitting nearby. It is such a beautiful lotus scent, but it is bit too pretty and dainty for me.
There are couple of shows I have been watching that I would like to recommend:
Reservation Dogs, which just wrapped season two, about a group of teenagers living on reservation. Fully indigenous cast and crew, Taika Waititi producing. It is the funniest, most heartbreaking and most unusual show there is. Those who end up watching it usually end up loving it something crazy, I certainly do.
Barry, the dark dark HBO “comedy” (their category) with Bill Hader, about a contract killer trying to become an actor. Yes, it is very funny in places, but its also tight, super tense and totally bonkers drama.
Have not watched any international shows recently, but I did like Midnight Sun /Midnattssol TV series, set in far northern reaches of Sweden, when I saw it some time ago.
I am also watching the House of the Dragon and really liking it, save for the first episode’s medieval birthing technique, and I am hate watching the Rings of Power, and liking it a little, but mostly I am aghast at how much money they spent on it. It shows, and not in a good way. I want to watch Handmaid’s Tale, since it just started the new season, but there are only so many hours in the day..
I do watch YouTube in stretches, mostly different iterations of Baby Shark, but also Spanish pop and reggaeton music. I am so glad I discovered Rosalía last year and that I went to her concert on Monday, my first live event in ages. She is so unique and so ridiculously talented. And if she ever releases a perfume, it is not going to be some run of the mill fruity musk, I sincerely believe that.
Thank you for the list…had forgotten that I meant to watch Reservation Dogs.
Hope you get to watch Reservation Dogs! It is such a great and unique show. The latest news is that it has been renewed for season three, yay!
In the meantime, on the Rosalía front, I must have jinxed it because I just saw a Insta post by Rosalía shilling for … La Vie Est Belle perfume. Sigh. I really hoped she would pick something more adventurous. She had such an original showing in a spectacular Givenchy gown for the last Met Gala, but her taste in perfume seems pretty pedestrian, or she likes to play it safe joining forces with a make up and scent behemoth like Lancôme. She does not even look her usual radiant self in the LVB photos. Hope they pay her good money so she can spend it on Rick Owens clothes. Oh well, c’est la vie.
The not-pedestrian brands don’t tend to pay the big $$ for celebrity representation. It is a shame, always, to see another one bite the dust.
Another Barry fan here… what a cast of characters!
Right? NoHo Hank alone.. but really, everybody is so great in this show.
I love all the show recommendations, I’m adding many to my list.
I watched a few hours of Formula 1 racing this morning, great fun for me! And like many of you, I’m watching the British Bake Off and very much looking forward to Derry Girls new season.
Since Taika Waititi is mentioned just above, has anyone watched the movie Hunt for the Wilderpeople? It is very adorable and fun, I loved it.
I’m wearing Boy right now, I need something with a zing for the Sunday blues!
I had not even heard of Hunt for the Wilderpeople, looks great and like if I did not live under a rock I would have heard of it!
We watch the F1 races regularly – we even travelled to see one live in Singapore few years ago and it was really something. Have you watched Drive to Survive? It sounded so cheese as a concept, “Netflix F1 documentary” but it is such a great show, with amazing visuals and high drama. After each season is over, this is the cherry on F1 top. I keep recommending it to people who do not care one bit about car racing or even cars, it’s that good.
SOTD = Parfumerie Generale Felanilla 21
Powdery, resinous vanilla. It’s deceptively simple and I’m sure there’s more going on than my description. Sometimes you just need simple in a complicated world.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CjOTmTKOfUj/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Weird Amazon goings on – twice this week, I saw an Amazon panel truck moving from one place to another with the panel door open! The first time I saw it, I chalked it up to a distracted / forgetful driver which is dangerous in and of itself but did not think much into it. When I saw another instance a few days later, I scratched my head. Why, other than potentially laziness?
Shows – all on Amazon Prime and most as recommended previously by someone here.
Finished:
– The Wonderful Mrs. Maisel
– Downton Abbey
– The Durrells in Corfu
– Bosch
In progress:
– Bosch Legacy – currently only has 1 season but has been renewed. This one is on Frevee and therefore ad supported. Every 10-20 minutes, an up to 30 second ad appears which is no big deal for me
– Fleabag – not sure how I really feel about this…I keep dreading that something sinister and violent will happen …
– A Very British Scandal – not clear on where I am with finishing / not finishing. I saw at least one good episode.
Maybe they are doing that to save time? A friend did a stint as an Amazon driver and shared that they are heavily surveilled and penalized for time between each delivery. It sounded like an awful job
You smell great! I see Amazon drivers driving with the door open all the time. Presumable just for short stretches between deliveries.
I did not think Fleabag was anything I would get into but I ended up binge watching all of it and really loving it. It does have an unsettling, sinister edge to it, and this works in the context of this particular show. Such a “strongie”!