5 Fandom Friday: Fictional Pets I'd Like To Adopt

I am so grateful for 5 Fandom Friday right now. If The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick did not come up with these prompts my blogging would be scare. I am just not a Summer girl. If it is hot then I will avoid doing anything that requires leaving the house.

Now onto this week's 5 Fandom via Sara Richy.

Fictional Pets I'd Like To Adopt

1. Cheshire Cat

I can find a way to incorporate my Alice obsession into anything! Sure the Cheshire cat is mischievous but he would make an interesting companion. A bit too snide for some people.

2. Ludo

Have I mentioned I love Labyrinth?! I'm guessing I cannot adopt David Bowie as Jareth so I will go with the sweet and strong Ludo. Not only is he adorable but he can reach the upper shelves at a store for you.

(Actually can I please have Jareth?)

3. Calcifer

Howl's fire-demon friend has a great since of humor. Also he could make your house magical and well heated.

4. Fizzgig

Fizzgig from the Dark Crystal reminds me of my dog, Arthur. They are both tenacious, stubborn but very loving to those that belong to them. 

5. Falkor

The Luckdragon from the Never Ending Story. He can FLY! And staying with fictional animals that remind me of my babies. Tell me my Legolas doesn't resemble Falkor a bit

And I have that damn song stuck in my head...

      

July Wrap Up

The heat in Oklahoma has been trying to destroy me.

I am using this as my excuse for not doing much this month. The idea of leaving my air-conditioned house fills me with dread. 

However, I did venture out into the world a few times even though I nearly melted.

I even auditioned for a play again. Didn't get a part but there were close to 80 people auditioning for 7 to 10 speaking parts and an unknown number needed for extras. I knew I blew this audition but I am trying to get back out into the theatre world. 

Comic Con

The San Diego Comic Con was this month. Of course being poor in the Midwest meant I had to indulge in this nerdy festival via Twitter and Youtube.

I did manage to snag an Unmasked Captain America Funko from Barnes and Noble plus a free poster. Unfortunately I got caught in a rain storm and didn't get to Hot Topic to get the Doctor Who w/ Handles pop I wanted. It has been so long since I have driven in the rain I kind of panicked.

Baby Birthdays

My pseudo-niece (aka my cousin's daughter) turned one this month. I filmed her birthday party this weekend. She is so stinkin' cute. I don't really like kids but I adore this lil scrappy doo. She demolished her mini cake. I am proud.
Of course we bought her a pink Supergirl tank top and a shirt and short set wit Batgirl, Wonder Woman and Supergirl. I saw a Captain America top for girls that I really wanted to get her but mom said we needed to slow up on nerding out the baby.

Netflix

Since I have been avoiding the outside world Netflix has been my best friend. This month I started re-watching the first three seasons of Being Human UK. I haven't seen seasons 4 and 5 yet. I know that in these seasons the cast changes. Pity because Aidan Turner is gorgeous. Thankfully PBS is showing Poldark.

I have also picked back up on Chuck. I got distracted and stopped watching during the second season. Now I am getting back on track. 

And I have started Weeds too. Yup, I am in full Netflix binge mode. I think I will be until I can walk out to my mail box without dying of heatstroke.

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5 Fandom Friday: Fictional Vehicles I'd Love To Travel In

I have been remiss in writing this week. I had a real life disappointment and just didn't feel like coming up with anything to write about. I am still trying to keep this blog a haven of happiness and geekiness. But there are some days that being upbeat is impossible. 

Thankfully The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick keep me supplied with fun prompts to write about. Now onto the fictional vehicles I'd love to travel in.

 1. The Tardis

This is a no brainer. In fact I could just stop here. The Tardis travels in time and space. You literally do not need any other vehicle...ever. Also the Tardis itself is massive. We know there is a pool and library but there could be anything in there. I want one.

2. Serenity

What I like most about Serenity is its rag tag crew. I would travel to the ends of the galaxy and fight anyone under the command of Captain Mal. Plus I think I would be besties with Kaylee. But I would only want to be a part of this crew if Wash lived.

3. The S.H.I.E.L.D. Globemaster aka The Bus

This is just a really sweet plane. 

I am now a complete Marvel fanatic and I would love to be a part of any Marvel team. This needs to happen.

4. The Batmobile

It's iconic, sleek and a weapon. There are as many variations of the Batmobile as there are Batmans. As much as I love the 1960's Batman series I would not like driving around that Batmobile. The Batmobiles from the Dark Knight trilogy are just a little too much weaponry for me. I would go more with maybe Val Kilmer's version.

5. The Heart of Gold

Okay this is a weird one. Anyone that has read the entire Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy know that things just do not work out well for the passengers on The Heart of Gold in the end. Every time I re-read those books I get paranoid and yet given the chance I would totally jump on board this ship.  Let's be honest the Vorgons will destroy us all no matter what choice we make.

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July Ipsy and Birchbox

No 5 Fandom Friday for me today. I've not been to enough conventions to have anything worth writing about. Luckily Ipsy and Birchbox came this week. These are monthly subscription beauty boxes that cost $10 shipped in the US.

As always, I share this with my mom. The products she took are in RED.

 Ipsy

• (At the top) Be a Bombshell Cosmetics Lip Balm- Full sized pinkish lip balm. Manged not to melt in the mailbox, always a plus.
• Vasanti Brighten Up Exfoliating Cleanser- I got a sample of this awhile back in a birchbox. A good exfoliating cleanser.
• City Color HD Powder- Looking forward to trying this out. A translucent setting powder.
• Essie in Fashion Playground- Full sized nail polish. Always love these but just didn't love the color. Way too sheer as well.
• Octavio Molina Hair La Playa Salt Spray- I tried this out right away. Best on damp hair. Gives it a bit of wave and texture.

Birchbox

• Cartier Eau de Cartier Guotte de Rosa- A vial of perfume with a rose and vanilla scent. My mom loves these kind of samples.
• Supergoop! Anti-Aging City Sunscreen Serum SPF 30- I am as fair as can be and I burn easily so anything sunscreen related it welcome. Especially one you can use on your face without breaking out. So far so good.
• Stila Liquid Lipstick in Venezia- You can't tell in the photo but this is supposed to be coral. It is basically bright orange. Neither of us like orange lipstick. 
• Bumble and bumble All-Style Blow Dry- Protects during blow drying and absorbs oils.
• clariSEA Rapid Detox Charcoal Exfoliate- I use charcoal soap a few times a week but I have never seen this before. It is a powder that you either mix with water and make a paste or you add to your regular cleanser. I tried it with Noxzema. It made the cleanser crumbly but I think its works.

An interesting assortment this month. My favorites: Ipsy- Sea Salt Spray. Birchbox- Mom's Eau de Cartier. 

Marvel Collector Corps- Ant-Man

Finally it has arrived. My Collector Corps subscription box disappeared in the mail but customer service fixed it for me by sending a replacement box. I think a true measure of a company is made by how good or bad their customer service is. All I had to do was send an email and they got back to me within a few days. Simple.

This month's theme is Ant-Man to coincide with the movie coming out this week. To be perfectly honest, I know nothing about Ant-Man other than Paul Rudd is playing him. I like Paul Rudd and I like Marvel so I'm in.

The first thing in the Ant-Man box is a Collector Corps patch and pin with Ant-Man on them. The last box had the same thing with Captain America instead.

I should probably point out that my box came very late so almost everything was spoiled for me on various social media sites. 

The tee is a disappointment. A basic black tee with the movie name and a tiny Ant-Man. This seems too promotional. Like something they would give out at an early screening. The Avengers shirts in the last box were so much better.

Since this is a Marvel box there has to be a comic. 

The funko Pop this month is pretty good. Not only did we get an Unmasked Ant-Man but if you look closely there is a tiny Ant-Man bobble head too. So little, so cute!

I think you know by now that I love Mystery Minis and this box has two. I got Ant-Man and Yellow Jacket. In this series there are only 4 to collect. I am not entirely sure if these will be available outside of this box. 

In all a decent box. Some good items and some okay items. I will continue getting this box.

August's box will be Secret Wars which, as a non comic book reader, is mostly unknown to me. My love for Marvel is still new and I am learning as I go. 

5 Fandom Friday: Spinoffs I'd Like To See

It is 5 Fandom Friday time. This is the brain child of the wonderful ladies The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick. This week's prompt is "Spinoff I Would Like To See". There are many of these. When a show I like ends and I want it to continue. The devastation of characters leaving. Or just secondary characters from films or TV that need more screen time. This was hard to narrow down.

1. Rory and Amy aka The Ponds

When the Weeping Angels took the Ponds from the Doctor I was pretty upset...for days. Ok I'm still upset. But the Angels didn't kill them. They were forced back in time. So a spinoff is possible. It would follow their new life together in the past. Together or not at all.

2. Firefly

Captain Mal and River looked like they could take on the universe at the end of Serenity. So let them. Sure we lost some very loved crew members but I need more firefly in my life.

3. Bucky Barnes: The Winter Soldier

I would love to see more of this character. He has decades unaccounted for under the control of Hydra. Knowing Bucky he must have tried to resurface from the brain washing.

4. Harley Quinn

Harley is only ever a secondary character. I would love to see a film or TV series about her. She is dangerous, sassy, funny and fashionable. I think a film about how Harleen Quinzel becomes Harley Quinn would be amazing.

5. Joan and Peggy Take Manhattan

Mad Men is over but Peggy and Joan have just gotten started. These two characters have had to fight for everything. But as the show progressed they started to get the respect they had earned a thousand times over. Would a TV series about these two strong and business savvy women set in the 70s and 80s be amazing. It needs to happen.

Literary Fixation: Vanity Fair

I thought is was time for another Literary Fixation book review. I grabbed Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray during one of my Barnes and Noble hauls. I kind of regret buying it instead of borrowing it from the library now that I've read it.

In general I like classic novels. Vanity Fair has been on my "to read" list for a few years. I do not regret that I read it but I HIGHLY doubt I will ever read it again. I enjoy re-reading classic novels but not Vanity Fair.

Like many classics the chapters are short because they were written to be printed as serials. For me this is difficult to read because it lacks a certain flow from chapter to chapter. I've had this problem with some of Charles Dickens' books before. It took me three tries to finish Little Dorrit.

The difficulty in reading this is not the main reason that this book will sit on my shelf indefinitely. I didn't like any of the characters. I expected Becky Sharp to be an anti-heroine. Someone not good but still somewhat likable. Nope. There is not any substance to the character. She is a caricature of a bad girl with the ability to seem innocent. There seems to be no reason for most of the things she does except maybe a need for self-destruction. 

Then there is Amelia Sedley. Who is set up to be the complete opposite of Becky. The true innocent of the piece. I wanted to like her but I just couldn't. She lacks any personality. She is a bland nice person who suffers a lot in silence with a smile. Becky causes problems and Amelia endures. Yet they are both hollow characters.

I think of all the characters in this book only Rawdon, Becky's Husband, and Dobbin manage to be fleshed out. Rawdon actually changes as events form him. He is shown to grow as a person. Dobbin, on the other hand, is only fleshed out because the reader is privy to his feelings for Amelia from the very beginning. If not for that he would be a dull character.

Characters aside there isn't much of a consistent plot. It goes back and forth between Becky and Amelia (including people in their circles) showing their lives. It feels too long and pointless. The book follows these characters for years as the book meanders on. 

My Verdict: Not worth it

Instead read: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens or Women in Love by D H Lawrence

Influenster's I Do Vox Box

I received a free I Do Vox Box from Influenster to test out some products. This is my first vox box. Influenster is a review site that also sends out products for its users to try and review. Not everyone gets a vox box. You have to answer questions called snaps, earn badges by reviewing products on their site and just have good luck.

This box has items that are themed around attending a wedding.

• Nanoblur by Indeed Laboratories- This is a primer that is supposed to blur fine lines, pores, crow's feet etc. It goes on really easy and doesn't feel greasy. For me it does blur out pores. It does tingle a bit but otherwise it seems to work well.
• Sahale Snacks Almonds with Cranberries, Honey and Sea Salt- I really liked these. I don't normally like cranberries but in this mix they were really good. Just sweet enough to satisfy any sweet cravings but not so sweet that you feel like you are eating candy. I will end up buying these.
• SkinnyGirl Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough bar- This was not a horrible product but I just didn't like it. The texture is just wrong and it is almost too sweet.
• URGENTx Ache & Pain Relief- A single dose of powder you put directly on your tongue. The flavor is Lemon-Lime. When I get around to trying this I will update this.
• Neutrogena Hand Cream- Not what I was expecting. I thought this would be like a thick lotion but it isn't. It is a clear cream that reminds me of heavy duty chap stick. A little goes a long way. It is a bit difficult to work into your hands at first but once you do they feel so soft. I am going to stash this away for Winter.

And the last two products in this vox box are from CoverGirl. 

• CoverGirl Outlast Stay Luminous Foundation- I received this in creamy natural which is about one shade darker than most foundations I use. I tried it out anyway. It goes on smooth and is build-able which is something I like in my foundations. Being able to decide how sheer or opaque based on the individual day. I have used CoverGirl foundations in the past and this is a lot better than the last one I bought. I would buy this for myself in a lighter color.
• CoverGirl Outlast lipstick- The color is Phantom Pink. It is a rosy pink. It is creamy and goes on evenly. I rarely wear pink lipsticks but this one is just dark enough to work as a "no make-up look" lipstick. This Vox Box was delivered on one of the hottest days so far this year and this lipstick had NOT melted in the mailbox. That alone impressed me. 

 "I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes."

5 Fandom Friday: 5 Favorite Aliens

5 Fandom Friday time with TheNerdyGirlie and SuperSpaceChick. This week is 5 Favorite Aliens. Loving this prompt. I am such a sci-fi geek but narrowing it down took some time.

1. Frank

As in Frank-n-Furter. That sweet transvestite from the planet Transsexual. I have been a regular Frankie fan for decades. I love the movie. I have gone to live performances where of course I dressed up as Magenta. Oh Frank, you make me shiver with antici...

2. The Doctor

A list of my favorite aliens would be a giant lie without the Doctor, Doctor Who. My favorite version is Matt Smith's 11. But they are all amazing. Ever since 9 took Rose by the hand and said "I'm the Doctor, run for your life" I have waiting for the Tardis to come and take me away. I will be honest and say the Peter Capaldi has yet to inspire my devotion.

3. Thor and Loki

In the Marvel version they are not just Norse gods but they are advance aliens too. I think Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston are perfect in these roles. I watch Loki's Comic Con entrance a lot on youtube. I really need a Loki Funko POP.

4. Roswell's Michael

I like Max but Michael is my favorite. I hate Tess and the last season was almost ruined for me because of the "Katherine Heigl" centric episodes. Michael seems like a brat but he is really a good guy. I loved the whole Michael and Maria love story. I kind of prefer them to Max and Liz.

5. Everyone on Moya

Everyone aboard Moya, including Moya herself, is an alien. A band of misfits forced to band together just to survive. The viewer follows John, the lost in space Earthling, as he learns about different alien races and tries not to piss off an entire galaxy. 

...pation

June Wrap Up

This has been a pretty tough month. It started out with a massive power surge that almost started an electrical fire. If I had not been here when it happened I could have lost the house. Turns out my neighbor's tree that is growing into my yard and destroying the fence also rubbed the power-line and cause the damage. I lost a few electronics and had to replace a bunch of wiring. So I didn't have electric for almost a week when summer in Oklahoma came at full blast. I basically became a Tennessee Williams character. " I declare I am a Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"

That was the low point of the month. Now onto the fun stuff.

NETFLIX

Sense8

I watched the new original series, Sense8, on Netflix and I absolutely loved it. Really go watch this. It is sci-fi without being overly sci-fi. It takes a few episodes to get into it but it is worth it. The first few episodes introduce the main 8 characters and some secondary characters. It is important to know these characters as individuals so that when they start interacting it is all understandable. I really need a second season of this. There are many unanswered questions but I look forward to seeing more of this show. On a side note: I still have the song "What's Up" by 4 Non Blondes stuck in my head.

Starbucks

The new Starbucks in my town opened!! They had this promotion where the first 100 customers would get a free drink every week for a year. I thought about trying to be one of these lucky 100 but at 9 pm on facebook I saw pictures of people camped out for the night already. There was no way I could stay the night out in the Oklahoma heat defending myself from killer mosquitoes. By 10 pm it looked like the 100 were already there. But that doesn't matter, I still have a Starbucks nearby!!!

Hauls

Before the electric insanity my mom and I went a bit Bath and Body Works wild during the semiannual sale. Basically we took a big chuck out of Christmas shopping. Not bad for $60.

I just got this yesterday from Squishable. A Sloth Plushy!!! I ordered two mystery ones for my cousins' kids birthdays and wanted to get free shipping. Okay to be honest I just wanted this. So freaking cute.