Tumblr crosspost (5 March 2020)

I have a Facebook account that’s almost entirely for interacting with people I know from grad school or who share academic interests to some extent, but some of the people I’m friends with use it a lot more generally, and … uh.

Well, I’m glad that people who are attracted to men are able to express it more openly, but I am really really really not one of them.

Tumblr crosspost (5 March 2020)

I was looking for an old post and, Tumblr’s search function being what it is, instead found the old ace!Luke wank. It was just … lol, I don’t even know.

I mean, I stick by my headcanon, but also, ACE LUKE IS BAD FOR ACE PEOPLE may be the absolute stupidest take I’ve ever responded to.

(I probably shouldn't have bothered, but it kept showing up on my dash, so I was like ... yeah, fuck that. IIRC it's still the only thing I've ever gotten real hate over.)

Tumblr crosspost (6 March 2020)

I got permission to teach the rest of my course online! :D :D :D

I was stressed about my dad's immunosuppressant dragons w/ all the COVID-19 stuff, and a friend was like ... you should ask! so I did, and the head of English grad studies and the department chair were "oh sure, take care," lol.

(ETA 10/18/21: this actually turned out pretty terribly in the long run because I ended up having severe Internet issues and more-severe bipolar mood swings, but I appreciate their willingness, at least. Also, I think this might mark the point when I started taking the pandemic very seriously.)

Tumblr crosspost (10 March 2020)

I reblogged this post about Faramir's name and added:

Your regularly scheduled reminder that "Faramir's name means 'sufficient' because Denethor is Just That Awful" is not, in fact, canon.

(We hates it forever, precious! But honestly, it's like ... OKAY. If you're going to assume that Denethor was the one who named Faramir and the name was chosen for etymological meaning, then it's more likely that Denethor went 'I think we should name the baby for the seashore,' which in the context of who Finduilas was and how she felt is honestly sweet. And yet in our year 2020, I've got 'oh, Denethor always thought Faramir would only be sufficient, he is Just That Awful' on my dash. /seethes forever)

Tumblr crosspost (10 March 2020)

lesbiansforboromir reblogged this post and pointed out that our Faramir wasn't the first Faramir in history; the other one was a royal prince of the House of Anárion. They also noted that it was a joy to follow me!

I replied:

That’s right! IIRC Prince Faramir was the second brother of the Princess Fíriel who married Arvedui of Arthedain—and so a remote uncle of Aragorn’s. Not a minor figure at all. And I’m pretty sure that makes our Faramir the first member of the House of the Stewards to receive a royal Quenya name since the line of kings failed.

That’s part of what makes the fandom take so weird. Faramir is named after a) a royal prince, b) the seashore (most likely in reference to Finduilas’s family, also princes), or c) both, and it’s like … ah yes, clearly a stealth insult to a newborn.

And thank you very much :)))) afdfasdj;kasdf Faramir is named for literal princes, and people are like ... what a hardship.

Tumblr crosspost (10 March 2020)

captainwordsmith replied to this post:

So the name means something like ‘Jewel of the Shore’ if memory serves.

I replied:

Yes. His mother came from the seashore and “turned her eyes ever south to the sea that she missed,” so it makes sense (eta: not that a name needs to have a direct etymological significance, but in this case it does fit the circumstance).

Tumblr crosspost (10 March 2020)

An anon asked:

Have you watched Sense & Sensibility 2008 miniseries? If yes, what do you think of it?

I replied:

I haven’t! S&S is not a fave as Austen goes, and the miniseries seemed more engaged with the 90s S&S than the book in any case, so I didn’t see much reason to watch.

(Especially given my passionate hatred of Andrew Davies, lol)

Tumblr crosspost (10 March 2020)

I mostly have a great birthday on the Middle-earth front, since a) it coincides with the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, my favourite of all the Middle-earth battles, b) that battle specifically includes Éowyn laughing into the Witch-king’s face before stabbing him, and c) my favourite Tolkien character, Faramir, is saved from death on the same day!

But my second-favourite dies tragically :(

otoh … Éowyn

tagged: #every time i look at the timeline it's like 'march 15. battle of the pelennor fields' FUCK YEAH!!! 'pyre of denethor' NONONONONO #but with all respect to denethor it's still a pretty rocking birthday for a tolkien fan #the ride of the rohirrim is one of the single best scenes that tolkien wrote in anything ever SO

Tumblr crosspost (11 March 2020)

elamarth-calmagol replied to my conversation with lesbiansforboromir here:

What do you mean? The first Denethor was the king of the Green-Elves. This Denethor’s father was named Ecthelion! Maybe not named after kings, but definitely named after elves.

I responded:

Yeah, there are some Elves/Elvish royalty in there. I assumed @lesbiansforboromir was referring to the Dúnadan royal names. The non-Ruling Stewards seem to have typically used Quenya names, like the royal family did, but they stopped doing it once they become rulers (I think to emphasize that they weren’t claiming the throne). IIRC Faramir is the first member of the family since Mardil to have a royal Quenya name—and he specifically shares it with an actual prince of the line of Anárion. So IMO that’s significant in the Gondorian worldview in a way that Denethor, Turgon, etc aren’t.

Tumblr crosspost (11 March 2020)

I reblogged a screenshot of a Tweet (I don't know where the original is) from Ryan Boyd talking about how difficult it is to write good sex scenes and how romance writers deserve credit for trying where a lot of serious literary writers often don't risk writing about good sex.

I replied:

Yeppp. The only time I really managed to write them was when there was enough badwrong that I had too many other things to worry about, lmao. I do have a romance novel (...series) perpetually in the works, but the idea of writing sex scenes for it just ... stymies me.

Tumblr crosspost (11 March 2020)

I don’t regret moving to Washington (my home state!) but it’s, ah, a bit higher intensity rn than I ever anticipated