Quote Of The Moment…

 "Rigid masculinity is a prison."
-Peter Souvall

Waiting…

Okay, so everyone knows Vanessa is Proteus. Neatly wrapped up? Not so much. In a bid to escape, Vanessa gets into a fiery car crash, and now has a split personality. Well, I don't think it's legit, but she seems to have a good number of people fooled.  Marj Dusay is doing fantastic work, and I can't wait to see how every thing plays out.

Greenlee and Leo are off again after the whole shipwrecked disaster with Jake. Leo has befriended down and out Simone, after she's been blackballed for being self-serving. In a stereotypical soap contrivance Leo and Simone will be living together in the same building as Greenlee. Sure there will be nothing but peace and harmony. GreenLeo just need to choose each other already. Don't mind the drama when they are together, but this never-ending back-and-forth dance is wearing on me.

Erica is innocent, Kendall and Bianca are living together. There's sure to be an explosion in short order. Don't think TPTB know what to do with Maggie. They initially brought her back for the Vanessa drama, and now she's flailing. No doubt she'll be mixing it up with the Kane women soon enough.

Dixie is pregnant, and has decided to leave town in order to carry to term peacefully. David is the only person that knows. This is sure to be yet another bone of contention with the Martin clan when revealed. Speaking of the sanctimonious family, Jake is the new Chief Of Staff, and has offered David a year contract. Anna wants him to take it, as she was just named the new Chief Of Police. I'm with David. You couldn't pay me all the money in the world to work under that asshole. We all know he's going to, but I won't blame him for hating every second.

Randomize

Randomize by Andy Weir
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Definitely going to think twice before going to the casino. Very interesting. Good narration.

The Last Conversation

The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Not very enjoyable at all. Decent narration.

You Have Arrived at Your Destination

You Have Arrived at Your Destination by Amor Towles
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Seems like this story could happen in real life, if we're not too careful. Good narration.

Emergency Skin

Emergency Skin by N.K. Jemisin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Terrifying, and too close to reality for my liking. Great performance.

Summer Frost

Summer Frost by Blake Crouch
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One of the best books I've listened to this year. Was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Absolutely fantastic. Great performance.

Ark

Ark by Veronica Roth
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Provocative. Hopeful. Good narration.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really don't know what to say about this classic story. So very nonsensical, utterly strange, yet positively delightful. As for this recording, it's absolutely exquisite.

Super Nintendo: The Game-Changing Company That Unlocked the Power of Play

Super Nintendo: The Game-Changing Company That Unlocked the Power of Play by Keza MacDonald
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

entertaining and informative, but something I can't put my finger on is missing. Lackluster narration.

Quote Of The Moment…

 "Cheating is a series of choices."

Quote Of The Moment…

 "When I think about our future, there's a shadow where I should be."
-Pray-Tabyana Ali

Tell Me When I'm Telling Lies…

I Call Bull!

 As everyone knows by now, I recently purchased the newest Evita cast album. As it was only released digitally, I ordered my copy through the iTunes store. Everything was great, until I tried to listen to it on my phone. I have an android, but the Apple Music app is available for that operating system. I was under the impression that if I purchased an album with my own money, whether I have a monthly subscription or not, I would be able to listen to it. Well, went to look on my phone in the library section of the app, and it wasn't there. After doing some fruitless research, I decided to call Apple customer service. The second gentlemen that helped me was incredibly rude, and informed me that because I do not have an iPhone, listening anywhere isn't an option. When I asked him why the app is offered for android users if it doesn't have the same functionality, I was met with a cocky non-answer. I was then told that android is the lesser choice, and I need to smarten up. Oh, and I was refused when I asked for a refund. Needless to say, I will never purchase anything from Apple again, and hope everyone reading this weighs their options before continuing to support this company.

The Safe Room

The Safe Room by Lisa Unger
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Really liked this, until the climax. Was a little too goofy, and predictable. Good narration.

View all my reviews

The Last Father-Daughter Dance: A Short Story

The Last Father-Daughter Dance by Lisa Wingate
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Perfect.

View all my reviews

54!

 That's right! With the purchase of the official recording of the 2025 London revival, I have 54 recordings of Evita! Nothing compared to some collectors, but I think it's pretty impressive. The best part, in my humble opinion, is that I have recordings of every professional production I've seen. My favorite of which will always be the 20th Anniversary National Tour. I hope to continue seeing this amazing show, and collecting recordings as long as I live.

Getting Difficult…

 Visitors may have noticed my lack of current soap content lately. There's a rather unfortunate reason for this. I'm not particularly enjoying what's on my screen at the moment. Before I go any further, let me be clear. This post is not a reflection of the work of the incredible acting companies of Beyond The Gates, or General Hospital. They do their absolute best with the material they're given. I'm talking writing and pacing.

BTG's second anniversary is fast approaching, and storylines from the debut episode are still unresolved. There's no excuse for this. Sure, I know Proctor and Gamble soaps have a tendency to move at a bit of a slower stride, but the goal of keeping people tuning in can't be lost. Along that same road, antagonists must be held responsible for their dastardly deeds. Dana, Joey, Haley, and Heather are absolutely free of consequence. What's the point of investing countless hours if villains never get what's coming to them?

To cut down on being repetitive, I will say that is also my biggest gripe with GH. Willow and Drew have been wreaking havoc for years, with absolutely no consequence. The reasons described above are why I stopped watching Passions.

In contrast, I'm watching All My Children from 2002, and am just as invested as I was first time around. Storylines progress at a decent clip, acting is mostly top shelf, payoffs are worthy, and writing is intricate, sensible, and smart. Don't get me wrong, nothing is perfect, but it's head and shoulders above BTG and GH.

Can't see myself tuning in much longer if something doesn't change.

Evita: 2025 London Revival Cast Recording

What to say of the 2025 London Revival Cast Recording. We will start off with the few positives. The orchestration is gorgeous, and the quality is incredible. Do I wish the original Broadway orchestration had been used? Absolutely, but you can't win them all. Anyway, every second sounds lush, vibrant, and is immersive. Another plus. Vocals are top notch. Rachel stands out, of course, but, everyone is in top form.

Here in lies my biggest issue. Everyone sounds beautiful, but there is absolutely no emotion, with the exception of an occasional scream. There is a glaring preoccupation with perfection, that doesn't allow the power of the material to shine. As a child, one of the things that made me fall in lifelong love with this work is the gut wrenching realness, and incredible raw emotion of the original Broadway recording. I defy anyone to not get choked up listening to the closing moments. In complete contrast, this newest recording is gorgeous, but almost entirely vacant. The material deserves better. An inexcusable disappointment.

As a much less important final critique, what the living hell is with this cover art. What happened to the classic image? Could this be any lazier? Gross.
 

Ahoy!

Photo Credit: Latisha Todman

Expansion!

 

Photo Credit: Latisha Todman

The New Bedford Whaling Museum is finally expanding! So excited to see new treasures. Going to be awesome! 

Stunning!

Photo Credit: Jill Rock

Unsettling…

 

Photo Credit: Latisha Todman

Never Forget…

Random, But Cool…

 

Photo Credit: Latisha Todman

Gorgeous!

 

 

Photo Credit: Latisha Todman

No filters! 

Lucille

Lucille: The Life of Lucille Ball by Kathleen Brady
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Didn't know much about the life of this amazing legend, so the listen was entertaining and informative. Quite inspirational as well. Decent narration.

Beautiful 40th Anniversary Edition!

 

Photo Credit: Jill Rock

Saw this online a while back, and knew I had to have it. A new collectible edition of one of my all-time favorite books. Don't particularly care for the fact that the new artwork seems to be inspired by the miserable remake, but it's still awesome to have on my bookshelf. 

Goofy And Adorable!

 My sweet boy could always be counted on to be caught in a ridiculous moment.

Quote Of The Moment…

 "The art of wrestling is making people feel things."
-Becky Lynch

More!

 

Photo Credit: Jill Rock

Was looking around my computer room recently, which also serves as the home of the majority of my wrestling collection, and realized there are a few things I never shared on the blog. So, here they are. Have no interest in playing the card game, but it's still an awesome collectible.

Newest!

 

 Photo Credit: Jill Rock

Daniel and Eric were at Savers  quite a while ago, found this guy, and thought I would give him a good home. He's so cool, and very well behaved so far. We'll see what happens when he's introduced to his brothers and sisters around Christmas.