Oh, I love this show so much.

I was e-mailing scarletts_awry during the commercial breaks, so here's some disjointed commentary based on -- and expanded from, since I was vague in certain places to avoid spoiling my sweetie before she watches the episode -- those real-time reactions.

( episode spoilers )

Love love love this show. Fabulous start to the season.

So I was just saying in a comment to bilyana that I'm not spoiled for the new season of Leverage beyond a couple of very basic things and some promo pictures, the latter of which mostly means that I'm spoiled for several of Nate's dress-up efforts.

And that reminded me of the absolutely...amazing photos for episode 204:

No real spoilers, but don't click if you don't want to know anything at all about the episode.

( the specifics of my reaction )

I'm also of the belief -- and this is pure speculation on my part -- that, because they're splitting the season into two parts, the mid-season break will end with some horrible cliffhanger.

As I said to scarletts_awry, imagine if the last episode of the first season had been "The First David Job." It's going to be something just that bad.

Hey, y'all.

Real life continues to interfere with my best intentions to post more regularly. The main issue is that, along with being busy at work, I'm struggling with some insomnia/sleep issues that are doing a very good job of draining my physical and emotional energy.

But I'm working on it. I still want to write an entry about "Yahrzeit." Maybe not quite a review, but some thoughts, mostly about Hawkes.

And in happier news: Leverage S2 premiere in four days!! Nate and Sophie and Hardison and Parker and Nate's hats. I am ecstatic.

Finally, I have two Dreamwidth invite codes to offer. Comment here if you'd like one! First come, first served.

scarletts_awry and I just watched "Yahrzeit" this afternoon.

(We are just now catching up on the last six or seven episodes of CSI:NY since we didn't watch them when they originally aired, and we started on NY once we finished our Sunday afternoon re-watch of Leverage S1.)

And: wow. Wow. Very emotionally difficult and a lot to take in. Quite possibly one of their best episodes ever. Mac's arc was very interesting and there's a lot of food for thought there, and Ed Asner knocked it out of the park with his guest appearance, but I'm also very interested in what was going on with Hawkes in this episode. Hill Harper similarly just went for broke in his big scenes, and while that's not the material that (I suspect) garnered as much attention as the Asner part of the storyline, I think there were some equally difficult, complicated things going on there.

I'm terribly out of practice with writing reviews, but this is an episode I might like to try to go into greater detail about in a future post. I've missed reviewing.

I've been reading a lot of the warnings discussion that's been going around, and I knew from the beginning that I believe warnings are a good and necessary and kind tool to use. I'm not writing these days, but I have an entire archive of fic, and in light of that, I wanted to put forth some kind of note about my own warning practices. I wasn't sure what to do, but I've seen this a couple of places now, most recently from taraljc, and I think it's a good and clear system.

( content labeling system )

I will also be taking a look at my fic archives to see if there are any other ways, in addition to expanded headers on "All Access"-related stories, in which I can improve my headers or my tagging system.

If anyone reading this ever has questions about a specific story that aren't covered by these headers, whether that's because you want clarification on one of the areas above or because you have a specific trigger that's not covered by these areas, please don't hesitate to send me an e-mail or a private message. I'll be more than happy to let you know if a story is safe for you to read.

And if you feel that any of my stories don't have adequate headers or warnings, please contact me about that too and let me know your concerns.

Snagged from scarletts_awry:

List the top ten things you want, right now at this very moment. Silly, serious, insane, it doesn't matter.

Except for the first one, not listed in any particular order.

1. not to live so far away from scarletts_awry
2. a new DVD player
3. the legalization of same-sex marriage in general and, specifically, the repeal of Prop 8 in California
4. many, many different books
5. to be able to sleep through the night and shake my recurring chronic insomnia
6. on the second season of Leverage: more Hardison being made of magic and win; more Sophie being smart and beautiful and not villainized for her sexuality; more Nate being a fucked-up, manipulative, evil genius bastard while (literally) wearing many different hats; and more Sterling in general
7. continued job security
8. tea and sushi and coffee and chocolate: not all at the same time, but on a regular basis
9. a couple more casual summer skirts
10. to be able to write again

For Labor Day weekend, I am going to Seattle to visit gin200168!

Then, not quite four weeks after that, I am going to go visit scarletts_awry for the second time this year!!

I get to see my good friend and my honey all in the same month.

And then next spring scarletts_awry is coming to L.A. again so that we can attend the wedding of another good friend of mine, which is exciting because it feels like a very Official Couple kind of thing to do.

...just posted incredibly amazing and hot Nate/Sterling and you should all go read it as quickly as possible.

Her story encapsulates everything that's amazing and screwed-up and amazing about this pairing, and it's making me make high-pitched squeaky noises inside my head and have to attempt to hide the delighted smile on my face while I'm reading it.

I'd try to say something more coherent, but right now it's all coming out as "OMG Nate/Sterling the flashback and in the office power dynamics Nate what he does and Sterling with the thing and oh honey no Nate you bastard and go Sterling. And with the hot."

Seriously. Nate is a rampant bastard. Sterling knows this. Things happen.

...Because the hatesex would be epic.

That is all.

scarletts_awry will be posting soon to explain the amazingness of this pairing in greater detail, and so I'm leaving that to her because I know she'll do a much better job of it than I could, but I felt the need to go on the record and state my position.

Erm, as it were.

Yes, we're still all over the Nate/Sophie, but now we're all over the Nate/Sterling too, and there are a ton of reasons why.

Also, I just watched all of the Sterling scenes in "The Two Horse Job," and I'm a little bit giddy all over again. Especially about the final scene when Sterling is waiting for Nate in the office and OMG, the way they look at each other.

Also also, Sterling is completely underappreciated, and he's one of my absolute favorite characters on the show. John Rogers, and Mark Sheppard with his brilliant acting job, have done a very smart thing with the character by making him a true antagonist for Nate, and he's done that by making Sterling sympathetic and smart and the one character on the show who's entirely comfortable with the truth -- which is what makes him so dangerous. Truth is a weapon, and Nate can't stand the truth. Sterling uses it with the precision of a dagger.

He's also, as he describes himself in "The Second David Job," an "utter self-serving bastard," but in a very sensible, practical way.

And I do love him.

Epic. I'm telling you. And scarletts_awry will tell you.

I am also refraining here from going into rhapsodies about Nate's hats. But, oh, Nate's hats. And I have an embarrassing fondness for his Bob Gibson routine in "The Two Horse Job." So yes, I also watched the poker game again. scarletts_awry is completely shocked by that, I'm sure.

42 years ago today, on June 12, 1967, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the matter of Loving v. Virginia, declaring Virginia's ban on interracial marriage unconstitutional and ending all racial marriage restrictions in the U.S.

On June 12, 2007, Mildred Loving issued a statement:

Loving for All

By Mildred Loving

Prepared for Delivery on June 12, 2007,
The 40th Anniversary of the Loving vs. Virginia Announcement

When my late husband, Richard, and I got married in Washington, DC in 1958, it wasn’t to make a political statement or start a fight. We were in love, and we wanted to be married.

We didn’t get married in Washington because we wanted to marry there. We did it there because the government wouldn’t allow us to marry back home in Virginia where we grew up, where we met, where we fell in love, and where we wanted to be together and build our family. You see, I am a woman of color and Richard was white, and at that time people believed it was okay to keep us from marrying because of their ideas of who should marry whom.

When Richard and I came back to our home in Virginia, happily married, we had no intention of battling over the law. We made a commitment to each other in our love and lives, and now had the legal commitment, called marriage, to match. Isn’t that what marriage is?

Not long after our wedding, we were awakened in the middle of the night in our own bedroom by deputy sheriffs and actually arrested for the “crime” of marrying the wrong kind of person. Our marriage certificate was hanging on the wall above the bed. The state prosecuted Richard and me, and after we were found guilty, the judge declared: “Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix.” He sentenced us to a year in prison, but offered to suspend the sentence if we left our home in Virginia for 25 years exile.

We left, and got a lawyer. Richard and I had to fight, but still were not fighting for a cause. We were fighting for our love.

Though it turned out we had to fight, happily Richard and I didn’t have to fight alone. Thanks to groups like the ACLU and the NAACP Legal Defense & Education Fund, and so many good people around the country willing to speak up, we took our case for the freedom to marry all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. And on June 12, 1967, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that, “The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men,” a “basic civil right.”

My generation was bitterly divided over something that should have been so clear and right. The majority believed that what the judge said, that it was God’s plan to keep people apart, and that government should discriminate against people in love. But I have lived long enough now to see big changes. The older generation’s fears and prejudices have given way, and today’s young people realize that if someone loves someone they have a right to marry.

Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don’t think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the “wrong kind of person” for me to marry. I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people’s religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people’s civil rights.

I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard’s and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That’s what Loving, and loving, are all about.

Rules:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions into Flickr Search.
b. Using ONLY the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Mosaic Maker. Change rows to 3 and columns to 3.
d. Save the image and post it on this note.

Questions:
1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite color?
3. What is your favorite food?
4. Favorite drink?
5. Dream vacation?
6. Favorite hobby?
7. What you want to be when you grow up?
8. What do you love most in life?
9. Best self-description?

( my mosaic )

That...is a surprisingly accurate depiction of the inside of my head, actually. Which is a little unsettling.

Porn Battle VIII is gearing up and is taking prompts through 7:00 p.m UK time on Friday, June 5.

You can contribute prompts even if you don't plan to write anything, or don't know if you want to do so. If you do want to write something, you can pick as many prompts as you like once the Battle moves into its next phase, and they don't have to be any longer than what will fit into a comment. On Dreamwidth, that's approximately 2,750 words -- and you don't need to have a Dreamwidth account to contribute.

I will not be writing, but I've contributed prompts here and here.

If you're curious, those prompts are as follows.

First Group:

CSI:NY, Mac/Danny, revenant, restless, stasis
CSI:NY, Stella/Hawkes, escape, whisper, steam, coffee, tangle, pulse
CSI:NY, Stella/Quinn, secret, cat-and-mouse, balance, bed, sheets, takeout, rain, bridge, snow, mouth, thighs, waiting

DC Comics, Kate Kane/Renee Montoya, hidden, masks, silk, throat, panic

Leverage, Nate/Sophie, godhead, confess, wrists, kneel, liminal, gun, Getty, breathe, spaces, teeth, priest, confessional
Leverage, Parker/Hardison, game, couch, soda, smile, geek, bungee, magic, xBox, digital, chest
Leverage, Parker/Maggie, gift, scent, touch, highwire

Second Group:

CSI:NY, Stella/Mac, bonds, whisper, hollow, curve, blood
CSI:NY, Hawkes/Mac, first, wait, moment, fingers, ache

Leverage, Nate/Sterling, past, wounds, drink, truth, weapon
Leverage, Sophie/Maggie, secrets, shared, spaces, lies

The Middleman, Wendy/Lacey, friends, trust, paint, mouth

Neverwhere, Richard/the Marquis de Carabas, night, rooftop, sleight-of-hand, stories

RPS, Project Runway, Jerell/Suede, aftermath, liquor, workroom
RPS, Project Runway, Emmett McCarthy/Tim Gunn, hands, touch, voice

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Presidential-Proclamation-LGBT-Pride-Month/

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION

Forty years ago, patrons and supporters of the Stonewall Inn in New York City resisted police harassment that had become all too common for members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Out of this resistance, the LGBT rights movement in America was born. During LGBT Pride Month, we commemorate the events of June 1969 and commit to achieving equal justice under law for LGBT Americans.

LGBT Americans have made, and continue to make, great and lasting contributions that continue to strengthen the fabric of American society. There are many well-respected LGBT leaders in all professional fields, including the arts and business communities. LGBT Americans also mobilized the Nation to respond to the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic and have played a vital role in broadening this country's response to the HIV pandemic.

Due in no small part to the determination and dedication of the LGBT rights movement, more LGBT Americans are living their lives openly today than ever before. I am proud to be the first President to appoint openly LGBT candidates to Senate-confirmed positions in the first 100 days of an Administration. These individuals embody the best qualities we seek in public servants, and across my Administration -- in both the White House and the Federal agencies -- openly LGBT employees are doing their jobs with distinction and professionalism.

The LGBT rights movement has achieved great progress, but there is more work to be done. LGBT youth should feel safe to learn without the fear of harassment, and LGBT families and seniors should be allowed to live their lives with dignity and respect.

My Administration has partnered with the LGBT community to advance a wide range of initiatives. At the international level, I have joined efforts at the United Nations to decriminalize homosexuality around the world. Here at home, I continue to support measures to bring the full spectrum of equal rights to LGBT Americans. These measures include enhancing hate crimes laws, supporting civil unions and Federal rights for LGBT couples, outlawing discrimination in the workplace, ensuring adoption rights, and ending the existing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in a way that strengthens our Armed Forces and our national security. We must also commit ourselves to fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic by both reducing the number of HIV infections and providing care and support services to people living with HIV/AIDS across the United States.

These issues affect not only the LGBT community, but also our entire Nation. As long as the promise of equality for all remains unfulfilled, all Americans are affected. If we can work together to advance the principles upon which our Nation was founded, every American will benefit. During LGBT Pride Month, I call upon the LGBT community, the Congress, and the American people to work together to promote equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2009 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the United States to turn back discrimination and prejudice everywhere it exists.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.

BARACK OBAMA

I got to spend a long weekend with scarletts_awry a few weeks ago, and it was amazing. We went to the symphony and the botanical gardens, and had sushi one night, and held hands while we drank beer and watched Leverage, and went shopping, and did lots of other things. And I tried grits for the first time and they were amazing.

We are definitely going to do this again as soon as possible.

I've gotten a Dreamwidth account. As of right now, I haven't started cross-posting, and I haven't yet decided what I'm going to do with it, but if you're over there and you feel inclined, add me. I want to be able to keep track of people no matter which way the winds might blow.

I also have an account on Goodreads, which I have been using and which I've grown quite fond of, so if you're over there and/or you like the idea of the site and want to see what's on my various bookshelves, go check it out.

I'm unsurprised, though still very disheartened, by California Supreme Court's decision to uphold Prop 8 yesterday.

I am somewhat reassured by the fact that the Supreme Court's decision was based strictly on legal issues, as well as by the fact that the 18,000 existing same-sex marriages that were performed in 2008 prior to the passing of Prop 8 are going to be upheld.

We're going to get this issue back out there, and we're going to strike down Prop 8. Hopefully in 2010 rather than 2012. I truly believe that.

That doesn't mean I'm not sad today. That doesn't mean that I'm not disgusted by the fact that we've written discrimination into our state constitution, and that apparently this is a-okay with 52% of the voters in California.

I've said before that I'm very privileged in a lot of ways where my sexuality is concerned (and, side note, as a middle-class white woman): I live in a very liberal city and work in a very liberal industry. I'm out at work and to most of my friends and to my mother, and I've suffered no negative repercussions from any of them. In fact, they've been happy for me.

That doesn't change the fact that, because I'm in love with a woman, California voters have decided that I'm not entitled to equal protection under the law or to any of the other rights that come with marriage.

I would be angered by and sad about Prop 8 no matter what my personal circumstances were, but it's hard, now, not to be hit by it in an especially personal way.

I'm in love with scarletts_awry, and because of that, because we're both women, we're not entitled to the same marriage rights that heterosexual couples receive. Not in California.

Because of that, there are people out there who hate us, even though they don't know us.

I'm awed and grateful that we now have, or soon will have, same-sex marriage in five states, and that we're likely to have it in several more states soon.

I'm disappointed in California.

It's been awhile.

Real life has gotten busy the past few months, and while most of it is good, it's also meant that I've had to devote most of my time and emotional resources to things other than LiveJournal.

I've missed having the time and energy for this, and I hope all of you are doing well. I also hope that I can start posting again on a more or less regular basis.

(cover art made for me by scarletts_awry)

1. Magic - Bruce Springsteen

Trust none of what you hear/And less of what you see

2. Nobody - Johnny Cash

I ain't never done nothing to nobody

3. Back to Me - Kathleen Edwards

I've got ways to make you swear/you won't want your old life anymore

4. Someone Out There - Cowboy Junkies

But what I want to know/before you save my soul/is who gave this power to that fucker up there?

5. Goodbye California - Jolie Holland

I'm premeditating crime/of a personal kind/I'm about to go out of my mind

You can also download a zip file of the entire EP here at sendspace.

Life on Mars -- USA Series Canceled, but the Original UK Program Comes to DVD in July

(Hardison would just re-route a few more satellites if he didn't already own the Region 2 DVDs, but this will work too.)

Remember Otto the Octopus?

I think we've got a friend for him:

Octopus floods Santa Monica Pier Aquarium: The guest of honor in the aquarium's Kids' Corner octopus tank had swum to the top of the enclosure and disassembled the recycling system's valve, flooding the place with some 200 gallons of seawater.

You have to watch out for the octopodes, man.

Via a link from my scarletts_awry:

Leverage is relocating production to Oregon for S2.

This seems like as good a time as any to outline our plans for the interim between now and the beginning of S2, while I'm on the subject:

scarletts_awry and I are going to be re-watching the entire season, one episode a week, probably on Sunday afternoons, since that's the time when we're both most likely to be home and not have a lot of other things to do. We're going to watch them together, over the phone, so that we can pause the show as necessary and discuss what's happening.

This will facilitate scarletts_awry's plans to write reviews for all 13 episodes (she's already done "The Nigerian Job" here), and should also be really interesting. I discovered how much this show rewards re-watching when I saw "The Miracle Job" for the second time, and what we took away most strongly from "The First David Job" and "The Second David Job" was how much the show had been quietly setting up in advance.

With any luck, some other good things will come out of those discussions as well. That's the plan, anyway.

At the very least, it will be fun, and it will keep us occupied until S2 starts.