Dispatches from the Cottage in the Woods

[starfishstar]

I'm now living in a cottage in the woods.

Well. Technically it would be equally accurate to say "a cottage sandwiched between two highways." (Yes, somehow both of these things are true!) But I look out directly over the lake, and at night I fall asleep to the sound of the geese making their delightful racket down by the water's edge. (I decided to pretend I'm in a lighthouse cottage on an island, and the sounds going by on either side are two big shipping lanes...)

Also, freight trains go by almost beneath my window, and I've gotten quite expert at recognizing the very particular low rumble that means a train is coming (distinct from the louder but less sustained rumble of heavy trucks on the highway, which sometime tricked me in the beginning). And when I hear a train coming, I run to the window – one time I even couldn't help shrieking "train!" out loud, even though there was nobody else here but me – to watch the train go by with rapt delight. There are some ways I'll never grow up...and I'm cool with that. ;-)

I'm here as a working/writing retreat for the last push of my master's thesis. After one life crisis after another, and having had to delay my submission deadline FOUR TIMES, I'm finally on track to finish. As of a few days ago, I have a complete, fairly finalized draft, and on Monday I'll be sending it to my advisor for feedback. I am ahead of schedule. It feels amazing, but also scary, because the past couple years of life have taught me that whenever I reach this point where I think things might actually be working out okay, the next disaster hits. But hopefully not this time.

A motley assortment of bookish and fannish things:


1. The first translation of Harry Potter into Yiddish has just been published!! I've been in ceaseless delight over this for weeks. I've also read a bit about the translator, and it sounds like he's done a particularly incredible job of the translation.

Yiddish was the language of my great-grandmother, and for much of my life I thought it had all but died out, so it's still a thrill to come across Yiddish being used in modern, secular contexts. It makes me a little sad that I've invested so much energy into learning all manner of other languages of the world, but can't speak the language of my own heritage. (Though I did take a semester of Yiddish during my first year in Germany!) So I'm thinking of getting a copy of "הערי פּאָטער און דער פֿילאָסאָפֿישער שטיין" ("Harry Potter un der filosofisher shteyn") and trying to power my way through at least some of it. I did manage to mostly read the one-page excerpt that's available online, even if it took a while. ;-)


2. Speaking of Harry Potter: I was moved by this Stephen Colbert interview with Charlotte Alter, author of a book called "The Ones We've Been Waiting For." First for the clear and on-point way she described the forces that have shaped the millennial generation in the U.S., socially and politically. (Yes, I felt very seen.) And then for the beautiful point she made about how a whole generation has grown up with Harry Potter as one of the touchstones of their lives, a model for young people fighting back against both authoritarianism and apathy.


2a. Speaking of comedy clips on Youtube, scfrankles have I thanked/blamed you yet for starting my John Mulaney obsession?? I'd never even heard of him before you mentioned your Yuletide gift, but now I have a John Mulaney obsession. :D


3. And finally: I'm behind on watching the current series of Doctor Who, but at some point I stumbled across a minor bit of a hint/spoiler that seemed to imply a certain guest character. I won't spoil anything, in case anyone else is as behind as I am, but when that character did indeed appear, at that moment I wasn't expecting it at all, and shrieked with delight, and had to go back and immediately rewatch that bit, because it was so great, and it happened so fast, and I wasn't ready, and it was great.

Also, episode 12x5, Fugitive of the Judoon, is amazing. Don't read ANYTHING about it beforehand, go into it without any spoilers. It's amazing.


Okay, now back to work!

Comments

[sanguinity]

Was the guest character as pleased to be there as you were pleased to see them? I think maybe they were. :-)

Are you going to get the Yiddish Potter?

Horray for writing retreat! Also! HOPEFULLY NOT THIS TIME. *knocks wood on your behalf*

[starfishstar]

Why YES, the guest character was very very pleased to be there, how did you KNOW? ;-) Ah, it was such fun. It was an amazing episode AND with those super fun bits as well.

I was actually thinking I might ask my parents for the Yiddish Harry Potter for my birthday. :-)

Thank you for your good wishes and wood knocking!

[sanguinity]

Aha! I thought we might be talking about the same guest character! I do like seeing him happy and enthusiastic. And also Graham's amusement to have a smackeroo laid on him. :-)

[starfishstar]

All his reactions to the current companions – especially Graham – were delightful and just as they should be. :D

[sanguinity]

Yes, as much as I enjoyed Graham's bemusement, I'm very pleased he didn't try the same with Yaz. But I did enjoy that she got her moment of "Then YOU must be the Doctor!" too.

[scfrankles]

...have I thanked/blamed you yet for starting my John Mulaney obsession?? I don't think I've ever started anyone off on an obsession before ^_____^ That's lovely ^___^ Have you seen John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch? I haven't seen it yet but I've heard the songs on YouTube - my favourite is Grandma's Boyfriend Paul. Laugh out loud funny, eccentric, but also deeply truthful - which kind of sums up John Mulaney's style.

How exciting that a Harry Potter novel is coming out in Yiddish ^___^ And how lovely, but how poignant, that this used to be a language used in your family. I hope that you do manage to build on the Yiddish you already have ^__^

Am I the only one who read Also, freight trains go by almost beneath my window... and thought immediately of The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans? ^^" (^___^) All the best for your master's thesis, and all the best in general ^___^

[starfishstar]

HMM, I hadn't thought of The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans, but now I'm definitely going to be thinking about it. It occurs to me, too, that there's an interesting opportunity for a rural version of that story, where it's a long-distance freight train instead of an Underground car. Intriguing!

I actually haven't watch the Sack Lunch Bunch yet because it vaguely sounded less exciting than his other stuff (a variety show...? with kids...?) but I'm already getting a sense of just how wrong I am about that. I'll have to check it out soon! Nice to hear your recommendation of that song.

And thank you for the good wishes!