Apparently, my last life update post was in May after my Hen do, but I’ll also count Wedding Complete in June! Still… It’s been a month! I really don’t know where the time has gone, but gone it has!
I’m not really sure what I’ve been doing, to be honest! We had a few busy weekends with family things and friends, plus I’ve just been feeling quite wiped out in general. My anxiety has been rough lately, and I’ve been feeling extra sensitive. I shared that a bit in a joyful moments post. I think now that the wedding is all done, my brain can get back to its usual routines of problems to worry over. The number one recurring item is my lack of close friends, and my fear that I’ll end up lonely and isolated if anything ever happens to my Husband.
I have put a plan into action on this front, though. Unfortunately, it required using Facebook again (after I deleted my account about 8 years ago!), but whatever, needs must. I found a closed Group on there for women looking to make new friends in my city, joined it, and was heartened to find lots of lovely posts from women of all ages reaching out because they’re also lonely and want to get to know some new people. I put up my own post asking if anyone would like to start a little local craft social group or book club, and I got a few responses. Actually, dealing with the “admin” of responding to those messages took up most of last weekend… with hindsight, making that post on the weekend I got my period with a very intense week at work ahead (our new person finally started and I’m doing the mentoring!) was not the best timing, but it did lift a lot of the anxiety I’d been suffocating under!
Currently, I’m hoping to meet 2 or 3 of the girls next week in a cafe to do work on our projects and have a drink together. We’ll see how that goes! I have tried these things in the past (I used to be a MeetUp organiser in my late 20s) and often found nobody turns up, but I think this group is a different vibe, so fingers crossed.
Movement
In the walk to Modor challenge, I’m being attacked by Wargs at 783 miles (had to look it up, a Warg is that weird hyena-looking thing in the movie). I’ve managed to raise my average daily steps now to 7,915, which is good! My goal is really to get that to at least 8,000 a day.. Or at least aim for that as a weekly, daily average.
One of our friends involved in this challenge has been doing an average of 17,000 a day (20K most days!) and is going to complete the journey very soon (I’m scheduled to complete 18th April at my current pace)! As he’s blown past the milestones, we’ve been meeting to rewatch the movies (account for some busy weekends recently!). As I’ve shared before, I don’t really like LOTR, but thankfully, I’ve been allowed to sit and do my embroidery while we have it on, so I don’t get too bored!
We have tried to have themed snacks for these events, so this gave me a reason to try to create “towers” out of mini rolls and Mikado & Go sticks!
I did complete my Locutus of Borg challenge, and I think I forgot to update on that because it happened the day before we left to get married! I love this medal so much, it’s my favourite. You can push the Borg cube on the back up and down (so it looks like it’s got the Enterprise in its tractor beam!), and it’s very satisfying.
That challenge was 160km, and I only tracked my run in it. It took me 99 days!
I have fallen off a bit with my running recently. I’ve been very tired thanks to some poor sleep, and last week, with my period and very intense work days (it’s been a few years since I last did training, I forgot how exhausting it can be), I had nothing left in the tank at the end of the day for anything other than a short walk around the neighbourhood.
I’ve decided to get my back on track, I’m going to try another Garmin training coach programme. I did Jeff’s beginner course last time, which was great, but now I’d like to try to increase my run-to-walk percentage so I can spend more time running and need fewer recovery walk breaks. This time I’m giving Coach Greg a go, so we’ll see if I can get myself to run for 5K without needing to walk half of it! If I can do that, I’m thinking next year I could brave going to Park Run.
I’m debating paying for another Conqueror medal as well to give me some more motivation. I have my eye on the Van Gogh one. They recently updated the app so you can log other non-distance-based exercise and have it convert for you. This has me toying with the idea of using it to motivate me to get back to strength training, which I have not really done any of since we got the bathroom done in February.
I wish they had better Star Trek challenges. I’m not really interested in the Klingon one, which is the only other TNG theme, and I like Strange New Worlds, but I don’t love it in the same way, so those don’t grab me much. I might sign up for their animal conservation bundle of 3 medals and use them for running too. They are expensive, but I think they actually do motivate me, and it’s nice to have them as a record of my progress.
What have I been watching?
Movies
We went to see the new Superman movie, which I thought was perfectly enjoyable. I don’t really get excited about Superman, so it was unlikely I’d be coming raving about it! I used to love The New Adventures of Superman: Lois & Clark when I was a kid, but looking back, that’s pretty Superman-lite, and what I really loved about it was the solving mysteries as journalists at the Daily Planet, and the relationships between the characters! The new movie did not give me any of that, but it did give me Nicolas Hoult as Lex Luther, which I very much enjoyed, and I also loved Mr Terrific!
Yesterday we went to see Fantastic Four! I was excited to see this one, and I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I was very tired and was fighting to stay awake about halfway through (opening a packet of Maltesers helped!), but I don’t think that was a reflection on the film.I am a slut for a retro-future vibe (you know I love Fallout, and The Outer Worlds, and Tomorrowland at Disney!), so I absolutely loved the visuals, and I think they made the right choice in brushing past the originals of the superhero team because everyone knows that! The cast was great too, I had been sceptical about Pedro Pascal as Reed, but I was completely into it. I don’t think this one ranks anywhere near my favourite MCU movies because Fantastic Four just don’t resonate much with me as characters, but I like their message, and it is still a good time. It’s also very comic-booky too – loads of references, and the movie (accurately!) makes it clear that Sue is the most powerful on the team!
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) is such a stupid movie, and I really wanted to rewatch it because of the trailers for the new version they’ve made with Liam Neeson. I’m sorry, but that trailer does make me laugh every time, it’s just so silly! I used to love this film as a child, and also, it is how I learned what a condom is! I still think about that scene where they’re rolling around in full-body condoms! Happy to report that it’s still a lot of fun and it still made me laugh out loud (a bit awkward it has OJ Simpson in it, but he’s barely in it!).
Andor Andor Andor Andor Andor
OK, I finally watched Andor, and now it is all I can think about. I think I will try to write about this at some point, but I’m still trying to work out exactly what it was about it that just cut me to my core. I can’t stop thinking about Cassian Andor and his story! It’s left me with the same vibrating hollowness that I feel every time I play through all the Mass Effect games, or when I think about some of the characters in A Song of Ice and Fire (especially Brienne, Jaimi Lannister, and Robb Stark).
Andor was almost a perfect show for me. There are some things that I didn’t love about it (I don’t think he has any chemistry with Bix, and I hated how that ended), and I think if it could have had another season or two it could have been near perfect, but I think overall it was incredibly successful at portraying the human cost of rebellion and the sacrifices that it requires. I think it adds a foundation to the story that really improves the following movies, obviously Rogue One, but also A New Hope.
I seem to be in the minority of people who liked Rogue One anyway (I think it’s my favourite… I’m not as wowed by the Jedi, I think!) and now having Andor makes it so much better. I’m glad that we didn’t watch Andor until it was all available, so we were able to binge it and go straight into Rogue One! It’s interesting to rewatch and know where Cassian is coming from, and the insane and intense couple of days he’s had before these events!
My main takeaways from rewatching that file are that the music score is very distracting – Andor doesn’t have all that, and it felt better for it. The plot moves so fast that there is barely any time for character development, and I want more! I still think the blind force-sensitive guy and his friend are unnecessary; they don’t add anything other than going on about the force. You cut them from the film and use the time for more Jyn and Cassian character moments!
Now I really need more about Jyn Erso! We do not get enough in the movie. Where did she go after being left by Saw Gerrera as a teenager? How did she end up in that prison transport before the Alliance rescued her? I think there are some prequel novels with this story in, but I’m always wary of movie tie-ins. Maybe I can find this on audio.
I’m not really that much of a Star Wars guy (other than The Acolyte, RIP), but this bit of the story really does interest me!
Telly
So aside from Andor consuming my entire soul, I’ve watched a few other things.
We finished MurderBot! I loved it, except the episodes were too fucking short! Otherwise, fabulous adaptation, and I am praying for season 2 so we get A.R.T!
I rewatched a few classic British comedies. This Country just seems to get funnier and more poignant every time I rewatch it. It’s so well observed, and Daisy May Cooper absolutely deserves the BAFTAs! Also, if you’ve seen her on Last One Laughing, the anecdote that proved her undoing is something she’d written into This Country so clearly, it is something that she finds deeply hilarious! It’s just a throwaway line that Kerry says, but still!
The Inbetweeners got a rewatch, I was in the mood for it after seeing Greg Davies live! That show is seared into my brain forever, and I still find it very funny. I also did the movie, but haven’t got around to The Inbetweeners 2. I must have seen it, but the fact that I don’t remember it makes me think it’s probably not good!
I’m really enjoying the new season of Rick & Morty! I think I didn’t watch it for long enough that it’s funny to me again now. Also, new Bob’s Burgers, and just dropped new South Park (they really went for it with Trump)!
I stalled a bit rewatching Star Trek: Deep Space 9 because I hit season 7 and I can’t stand Ezri Dax! She’s an annoying character anyway but the way she gets shoved into every episode – at the expense of the far more interesting Dominion War – is so frustrating. It’s literally The Ezria Show at this point, and I miss stories with the rest of the cast – the ones I actually like! Plus it’s just ridiculous that she was even assigned to DS9 (and she’s a fucking useless counsellor)! The only thing worse than an Ezri episode is a Jake episode, but they mercifully seem to have given up with them!
What else?
- I am still playing Two Point Museum. Just when I think I’ve had enough, they release a new pack with a Fantasy land and museum exhibits!
- I’m obviously in a Star Wars mood at the moment, so I thought about replaying BioWare’s KOTOR, then I remembered there is a remake in the works, and I looked it up. Apparently, it is still happening, but no news and no idea when it should be released! If I’m not going to replay that, I might be getting itchy to replay Mass Effect (for the 8th or 9th time!)
- The garden is looking lovely, and we made a start cutting down holly trees. I keep thinking I’ll share photos, but there is just never the time at the moment!
- I’m hoping starting a little craft group will get me back on track with embroidery. I have been working on something for a few months, but I’ve almost finished, so I’ll try to revive the old craft blog!
- I’ve been thinking a lot about what confidence is recently and trying to pay attention to when I feel confident, and how that relates to feeling comfortable in my body. I definitely feel more confident when I wear chub rub shorts than when I’m walking around feeling my thighs chafing! Is that something? I don’t know!
- I also started following amelia.g.milne and Celeste Barber on Instagram, both of whom have normal bodies, exude confidence in their skin and I think are hot AF!
