Reached "The House of Tom Bombadil" last night about when Parental Control cut my music off. Did you know there's an audio alert as well as a pop-up window? Interesting dreams again--I think I was going to school with Trina, and we got in trouble about something, and then there was some sort of emergency--a flood?--and some chilled kittens. It was one of those dreams that makes perfect sense while you're in it, but when you wake up you have some questions.

I started on math about nine, and finished three problems by the time Karen, the Summit HHC nurse, came and took Grandma's INR. It was a little high, 4.5 I think, and they said to hold the Coumadin until they get back to us. Grandma had me walk the lark after she got here, and we headed out about ten-thirty with instructions to be back by eleven-thirty. We had to stop at the dig to ask for some tweezers, Lark having picked up some spines in her right hind. The professora found some tweezers in the first aid kit, and held Lark for me while I hunted spines. She asked my name and Grandma's, but I forgot to ask hers--something I have got to remember. The only name I know belongs to one of the guys, because one of the girls mentioned his cat in a conversation. Which reminds me--braids girl had her hair up today. I didn't recognize her at first, but the tattoos and highlights helped. Speaking of names I need to ask: she's consistently delighted to see Lark. Anyway, after prickly extraction we got going along the usual trail. We met one person, a young man who was cautiously approving of Lark. Which is to say he petted her but was cautious of me. :D Good attitude. On the way back we saw a deer, too. She froze as soon as she saw us, forestalling notice from Lark, but her bright red-brown against the trees caught my eye, and we observed one another for a few minutes. Lark never noticed, even when the doe began to move off. We went on. We were almost to the gate when she found a burrow to dig up. We worked on that awhile, but I gave up and leashed her. In the end we got home about noon.

We had Diane early this afternoon, after I'd done some more math. Unexpectedly I'm having more trouble with elimination by substitution than anything else.....and yesterday Sid forestalled me by saying she'd always been awful at algebra....maybe I should ask those students if any of them were good at high-school level algebra....but then they know how old I am, which is no fun....T_T......oh well.

Result of much time on IHAH:

see more dog and puppy pictures

On the other hand, I got all the way to the first Lol. After that I dropped in to the Derbyshire Writers' Guild. Been awhile.....and there's some pretty decent writing up. Better yet, some of 'em are nice and short. I don't feel like a five-page epic just now, so no full-length retellings, please. Something like this, in fact, is about right.....0.0 Scary thought, that....Also, they've been doing Twilight P&P....although I kinda liked the one where Lydia took up vampire slaying. Short and silly. Oh, man, elves? Somebody's been reading Mercedes Lackey lately....Forget this one. No way am I reading somebody trying to describe Elvish versions of Bingley and Darcy. 

Karen called back about five to tell us to hold the Coumadin until she comes out on Thursday. Okay, I can do that.

Oh, this is good. Doesn't quite qualify as fiction, but--nice. 

Whoo--hah. From An Unconventional Courtship by Mortie. Bweheh.

From a concealed pocket on her dress, Lizzy extracted a metal rod, approximately 30 centimetres in length and 5 in width; with the press of a button a concentrated beam of bright pink energy was formed and gave off a distinctive hum.

"Oh, no, not again!" Jane sighed. "Father forbade her from using her lightsaber after what she did to poor Mr. Collins."

"Not to worry, Darcy will not let her cause any harm. He's quite good himself."

As Bingley spoke, Darcy took his own lightsaber from his coat and activated it, the energy beam a vibrant green. While Jane and Mr. Bingley watched, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy engaged in a heated duel.

"I had thought you to be a more intelligent woman, Miss Bennett," Darcy said as he deflected a searing lunge. "One that would not place all her trust in a story told by one person when it involves more!"

The air buzzed as the two battled, with Jane and Bingley watching is apparent bored amusement.

"How am I to do otherwise, when the other parties will not tell their side of the story?" Lizzy whirled, her lightsaber a blur of bright pink, her target blocked by Darcy's weapon.

"Cannot you trust my word alone?" It was Darcy's turn to attack, though each swing was expertly parried.

"You, who have insulted me time and again? Who influenced his friend to extreme ends, resulting in mutual heartbreak?"

"Did I not amend that? Look, Bingley is even now standing beside your sister." Darcy's tactic worked, distracting Lizzy for just a moment. She was able to deflect his swing just in time, and the blade only singed her bonnet.

"Sir, you obviously do not trust me or hold my affections near enough to be able to divulge the information pertaining to Mr. Wickham!" In one move, Lizzy was able to knock Darcy's hat clean off and leave a long burn mark on his sleeve.

"What if," Darcy said, stepping back and deigning to pant a little as he was beginning to get quite out of breath, "I were to say that he has injured me in such a way that only God can forgive him? What if I were to say that he has taken advantage of not only my dear father's memory, but of my sister's innocence?"

"What?" Lizzy lowered her lightsaber and deactivated it.

Husky, Shiba

Diane came about nine this morning, while I was still pretty zombified. She brought, as promised, her Wii, which apparently has a lot of balance-related exercises. Grandma did better than I did on the skiing game. Sid called to ask if I wanted to come over and borrow this one movie that she and Isaac had been watching. Do you catch the relevant bit here? So I went over a bit later, once I'd gotten dressed and all, to see Isaac. He seized gladly on a new person to bug. Unfortunately for him, I wasn't really in the mood to put up with nonsense. Besides, oppressing innocent youth is fun. After he showed me the mini skateboard park Ralph had made, the glue still drying, we went for a hike. It was the the long way, through the Heller estate up along Rockhurst. Unfortunately there was a cold wind blowing, but it was pretty nice all the same. We saw some people walking a red husky along a different trail, too far off for Lark to go all the way over unless I were actually following. The other dog--also off lead--only stood and watched. Isaac talked nonstop. I would swear in court that his mouth was never shut for sixty consecutive seconds. It was pretty educational. That reminds me--I need to go see the Neopets that have been added in our absence.......Odd. None whatsoever. I have no idea what he was offering to trade for my Kiko. Anyway, that's a sample of his conversation. At one point, we went from Bible stories to bugs to Lord of the Rings, interspersed with Lord of the Beans. I am considering a raid on Veggie Tales headquarters at this time. Oh, yeah, and he thought Deagol has resurrected as Grima Wormtongue. Uh.....no. We were discussing this trudging up Rockhurst, the wind now blowing so hard I had to hold my hat in my hand, as it would not stay on my head. Wolfie was outside, and barked as we passed. Isaac was very impressed by my way down the mountain, calling the path through the scrub oaks a secret passage. I confess, I hadn't thought of it quite like that before. We swapped jackets at the bottom of the slope; he only had a windbreaker, and I had my bomber jacket. I warmed up again as soon as we got going, but I'm sure he was warmer in my jacket than he had been in his. Thermal mass, and all that, I suppose. Anyway, we made it back to Sid's alive, where Ralph told me Grandma had called to say I needed to come home as soon as I got back. So I came home and made lunch.

Did I mention Sid lent me a movie? I think I did. Mom.....do you remember once, you said something about this medieval movie you watched once, with knights and jousting and stuff, to rock music? Electric guitars, anyway. And it felt weird but it sort of worked. Well.........I think that was Ladyhawke. And remind me to investigate the actor Rutger Hauer, because Navarre was my favorite character, visually speaking. Er.....and probably in any other ways you can think of.....he just isn't funny. Which is fine. Wheeeeeee! He did seem high once, though. Besides the end, I mean. Oh, yeah, and there wasn't any jousting. Not proper jousting, at least. Just sword fighting from horseback in the cathedral. And you know, it occurred to me......movie fighting isn't proper swordfighting, either. Maybe it was once, but it's dirty fighting now. Your hero can kick and punch and grab bricks all he wants--and audiences like this, because the deftness is much more evident in a smooth kick to the chest after the swords are forced away than in a clever pass with a foil. Although, speaking of weapons, now seems the time to say, "Wheeeee! Double-stringed crossbow!" And furthermore it's a weapon Philippe la Souris can use, if not well--unlike Navarre's fancy longsword. Now, mind, this movie isn't perfect. The soundtrack is a little incongruous, I wasn't always certain about Philippe's acting, although Matthew Broderick seems pretty.....whoa. Godzilla? The main character? Ditto The Lion King? Inspector Gadget? He got to play Richard Feynman? Okay.....maybe it was just me.

You know.....I never entirely realized how much subtitles distract me until I watched this for the second time without the subs in French. I paid so much attention, sometimes, to trying to figure out the French, that I almost ignored what they were saying in English. Example: I completely forgot that the bad guy was a bishop because I kept looking at the French word for him. Note only to do that on rewatches in future......

After dinner, which was foraged because Grandma wanted cold cereal with banana, I took the beautiful out for a half-hour walk in the dusk. We met a jogger, and that was about it--although it seems there's a very large dog in that one house with the balcony overlooking the head of the trail. Nota bene.

Now-- Sylvester, Warrior's Apprentice, Please Save My Earth, or The Princess Bride on Youtube? More Ladyhawke on Youtube, for that matter. Hm.