Stephy's Favorite Things

Hello there!

Yesterday was my birthday, so today you all get to deal with me rambling about some of my favorite things. Enjoy!

This was on my Tumblr. I tried to find out who originally posted it but ugh... didn't have much luck. Mostly because I was not in the mood to do a lot of searching. Sorry.

I am going to just put the first thing that pops into my head. So, this list will change at least on a monthly basis. My favorites change with my mood sometimes.

Movie

Dogma

Gonna be honest, there are a LOT of movies I could have put here, but I decided last time I watched Dogma that it was going to be my go-to when asked my favorite movie.

TV Show

Daria

Daria was such a solid show. And when it was originally aired, I was the perfect age for it. I got compared to Daria a lot during middle school and high school... I assume for my winning personality and impeccable fashion sense. 

Song

Drinking Song for the Socially Anxious by The Amazing Devil

Such fun lyrics.

Animal

Cats.

All kinds of cats. House cats, tigers, lions, bobcats, all of them.

Color

Purple

Word

Discombobulated

Fun story, Kottonmouth Kings have a song called Discombobulated. Me and my high school best friend were confused about what it meant, and we ended up asking my brother. He replied that it meant confused. Then he laughed and was like "You were discombobulated about discombobulated."

OTP

Kakashi and Iruka.

I don't care what canon says, those two are married.

Candy

Reese's Cups

Thing to Do 

sleep

Quote

"I can't die. I got a cat."

Magazine

Don't have one.

Holiday

Halloween

Accent

Irish or Scottish I guess. But honestly, I really like accents. Not in an "accents are sexy" way. I just find it interesting to hear how words can sound so different.

 

Number 

23

Clothing Store

Uh... Hot Topic?

Season 

Spring or Summer. 

I don't like being cold.

Book

Witch and Wombat by Carolyn Cushman

Again, there are a bunch of books I could put here, but I decided a while back that when asked this question I'm just gonna say this book.

Actress 

Carrie Fisher

Actor

Mark Hamill

Food 

Pizza

Pizza is great because you can do so much with it. 

Drink

Orange Soda

Letter

X

Cereal

Captain Crunch with Crunchberries

Fruit 

Tomatoes

Band 

The Amazing Devil

or 

Korn

Sound

People shutting the fuck up. 😂😂

That's all for this week. See y'all next Wednesday.

“It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like ‘What about lunch?’” 

– A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

 Hello there!

I'm Steph and I ramble about nerdy things.

Today I'm going to ramble about The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Hold my book, Oliver

I have (for some reason) decided to change my book review approach. I'm basically just copying and pasting notes I take while I'm reading the book and then going to try and make them into something coherent. So if it seems a little messy, welcome to my brain. Well, a slightly more coherent version of my brain. I'll see how this works for me. 

Warnings:

Death

Murder

Animal Deaths

As with all Sherlock Holmes stories and books (at least the ones I have read) this is in Dr. John Watson's point of view. Which I always liked. 

Okay, so, Dr. Mortimer shows up at Sherlock's flat with a problem. It takes about three chapters for him to get to the actual problem. First, he tells a story (Old Guy Baskerville was a dick, and a hound from Hell or something killed him). Then talks about his dead friend (Charles Baskerville - who maybe saw the hound and died of fright?). And finally, The Problem, should he bring the last living Baskerville (Henry - he's Canadian) to the home when it might or might not be cursed? Sherlock tells him to come back the next day and he will have an answer for the doctor.  Dr. Mortimer has an interest in skulls, by the way. No joke. I love it. 

The doctor returns with Henry Baskerville the next day. And Sherlock is all "I don't know what you should do. You have a missing boot? Let's have lunch."

Finally (after another missing boot and a threatening letter) it is decided that Henry will go to Baskerville Hall. But he should take someone trustworthy with him. Not Sherlock. He's much too busy. He takes Watson, at Sherlock's suggestion. I just imagine Sherlock picking up Watson and handing him over like "here, take this."

After arriving at Devonshire, Watson meets the Stapletons. A brother and a sister. The sister, thinking he is Henry, tells him to leave. Which is suspicious. 

"One page is missing." Where is that page Watson?!

I have read this book before. I have watched three different adaptations of this book. And I still cannot remember what happens. 

Oh yeah, there is an escaped convict out there somewhere. Keep forgetting about him. 

Henry develops an interest in the Stapleton sister. Which, her brother isn't too keen about at first, but then seems fine with it.

Some woman is crying at the Baskerville house at night. The butler, Mr. Barrymore says it's not his wife, who is the only woman in the place. Though, Mr. Barrymore is secretly watching the moor every night so not sure how trustworthy he is.

Oh yeah! The escaped convict is Mrs. Barrymore's brother! So there are a couple mysteries solved. 

Henry and Watson decide they are going to catch the escaped convict, instead of, I dunno, contacting the police or something. It does not end well. They hear a Hound (maybe. It could be a strange bird!) And Watson sees the shadow of a man. Oh. And the convict gets away. 

Oh, who could this strange man on the moor be?! *whispers* I know who it is. Oddly enough, back when I first read this book I guessed who it was. Made me feel quite smart.

Watson chats with a neighbor and gets a clue to where the Strange Man is hiding. So, Watson goes to confront the ruffian! Only to find out it is Sherlock. Because of course, it is. 

Watson is super upset that Sherlock lied to him. 

Wait! Stapleton's sister is really his wife?! And he has a "close intimacy" with that other lady?! How did I forget this?! He's the murderer. Dirty, lying murderer. Poor Henry is going to be devastated to know the lady he likes is married! 

Well… Henry is dead…

False alarm. It was the convict. Remember him? Cause I fucking didn't…

Wait. Stapleton looks like the old Baskerville guy? Plot twist! (I had to know this, right? I have read this book before…)

Sherlock uses Henry as bait and discovers Stapleton was using a great Hound as a murder weapon. He also tied up his wife to keep her from foiling his plans. 

The last chapter has Sherlock summarizing the entire case. Which was nice because there were a few details that Watson didn't know. 

And that's the book. I left out some bits (like Stapleton's motive) for reasons. Reasons that might or might not be that I forgot all the details. 

I really like Sherlock Holmes stuff. They're fun reads and I always get over-excited when I figure out something before Watson or Sherlock.

That's all for this week. If you like my ramblings, considering to donating to my Ko-fi so I can buy more books (and things for my cats...)

The Haunting of Ashburn House by Darcy Coates

Hello there.

I'm Steph, and I like to ramble about nerdy things. 

Today's nerdy thing is The Haunting of Ashburn House by Darcy Coates

I'm going to open this review by saying there is a cat in this book. And the cat lives. For anyone that was worried.

Now, onto the 

Warnings:

violence

blood

Adrienne inherits a house from an unknown great-aunt so her and her cat, Wolfgang, move in. The house, Ashburn House, is located on a hill outside of a small town. And there is something up with the house. People in the town say it's haunted. There was a brutal murder there years ago. But Adrienne has no choice so she stays in the possibly haunted house.

Book was good. Really good. Sucked me in and spooked me. With that in mind, I spent most of the book questioning Adrienne's common sense. It is explained that she moves into this house because she is broke after her mother got sick and passed away. She was living with a friend, which wasn't a permanent solution, before moving. All she had was a few changes of clothes, a book, a set of sheets, and a laptop. And cat supplies and her cat. Which, important. No sarcasm. Cats are necessary for life. What bothered me was the friend she lived with? Never got a name. They are just a nameless entity that she couldn't live with. Which... okay... It also bothered me that she went to a strange house in a town she has never been to alone. I'm surprised the taxi driver didn't murder her. But that's my True Crime brain talking. So many of her decisions left me screaming in frustration. But hey, it's a horror book. Not a How to Survive as a Woman book. So while it frustrated me, it made for a good story.

The friend not having a name still bugged me. Actually, the whole friend thing bothered me. She says multiple times she never really has friends. But... someone let her live with them (and two other people?). And she never gives them a name or lets them know she arrived safely. Nothing. That poor friend could be sitting at home worrying themselves sick about Adrienne's well-being, but Adrienne doesn't give a shit. She has no friends.

And while I spent most of the book questioning Adrienne's common sense for moving to this house and then staying when weird shit started happening, I got it. I got the need to move. And I watch enough spooky videos on YouTube where people are exploring abandoned places or just chilling in a haunted house to say "Yeah, this is believable". 

Overall, enjoyable spooky read with an awesome cat. The cat was the best. More books with cats please. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a spooky read but doesn't mind dealing with a main character that doesn't make the smartest of choices. I also feel the need to say I did not dislike Adrienne. She wasn't a bad character. She just didn't do things I thought were logical.

That's all for this week. 

“I saw a human pyramid once. It was very unnecessary.”

-Mitch Hedberg

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

Warnings:

Violence

Death

Blood

Drug Abuse

Betrayal!

I heard good things about this book so I picked it up. And then it sat in my Books to Read stacks for... a few years, I think. Finally decided to read it and could not put it down.

Lynnette is a final girl. A final girl is a horror (slasher) movie trope where one girl survives the movie. Usually a fresh-faced virgin. Lynette, and her fellow Final Girls, attend a support group to deal with their trauma. When one of them is murdered, Lynnette comes to the conclusion that someone is trying to take them all out. 

I'm not going to go any further into the plot because the book is still new enough that I don't want to spoil anything for anyone. But shit, this book is full of twists and turns. I was shocked face Pikachu for probably the last half of the book. Just, wow. It was like a horror movie, but better. The book took a bunch of horror movie tropes and made them more interesting. 

I liked how these girls weren't survivors of horror movies. These girls were survivors of horrific crimes that were made into horror movies. Which gave them added trauma. I don't mean I like them having trauma. I mean I like how it showed how little people care about the trauma survivors of these types of crime go through. Take the popularity of the True Crime genre. Which yes, I watch and read things of that genre, but I will admit that sometimes it goes too far. And this book, in my opinion, kind of put the spotlight on that. And how people tend to focus on the killers and not the victims. There is a comment made at the end of the book about how in slasher movies, the victims (aside from the Final Girl) are only given first names and you don't get to know them. But all my thoughts about that are probably better done in a post all on its own. Or a Tumblr rant. 

The Final Girls are all unique. Not in the movies. In the movies it is usually a fresh-faced white girl virgin who is a bit sexy but in that girl next-door sort of way. The real-life final girls are unique. Well... One is black. One is a lesbian. But still, they're not all white. Which is something. And they all deal with their trauma in different ways. 

The writing is excellent. Kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire book. I don't remember a lot of descriptions, but that isn't a deal breaker for me. Also, there might have been descriptions, my brain just didn't retain the knowledge. It does that sometimes.  

I'll leave off on this by saying I highly recommend this book to horror movie fans. Horror book fans. And maybe even true crime fans. 

“I have always imagined paradise will be a kind of library.” 

– Jorge Luis Borges

My Tier List of Starter Pokemon

 

There it is. My tier list.

I do not play Pokemon. I occasionally play Pokemon Go, but that's about it. So, I judged these little dudes based on their cuteness mostly. 

Thanks to my kiddo for typing out their names for me, cause I know Squirtle and that was about it. Well, I was pretty sure about a few others but wasn't sure enough so I just asked the kiddo to type the list for me. 

Commentary will be short. 

Tier One

Bulbasaur

I always thought Bulbasaur was a little cutie. 

 

Charmander

Fire. Dinosaur.

 

Squirtle

Squirtle is another one I always thought was adorable. Look at their little face!

 

Totodile

Kiddo has a stuffed one of these (kiddo has a lot of stuffed Pokemon), and it went to the eye doctor with them years ago. They and one of the assistants there geeked out over Pokemon for a few minutes. It was adorable. So, because of that memory, Totodile has a special place in my heart. 

 

Mudkip

Mudkip is fucking adorable. 

 

Chimchar

Fire. Monkey.

Piplup

Penguin!

 

Fennekin

Also adorable.

 

Rowlet

Owl!

Litten

Is this a fire kitty? I feel like this is a fire kitty. Fire. Kitty.

Tier 2

Cyndaquil

Not sure about this fella, but I think that is fire so I'm down with it.

 

Turtwig

Adorable little fella.

 

Froakie

Froakie is adorable but gives me weird vibes. I dunno. 

 

Fuecoco

Looks like an idiot. But in a nice way.

Tier 3

Chikorita

I bet this Pokemon takes an hour to get ready... I'm annoyed by them... 

Treeko

They just kind of look like an asshole...

Chespin

This Pokemon looks like a hyperactive child...

Popplio

They have a clown nose. I don't like clowns...

Sprigatito

It is cute, but it gives me horror vibes. Like, it's too cute. It will turn into a monster and eat my face.

 

Scorbunny

Sorry, but this dude looks like a Bugs Bunny rip-off... 

Tier 4

Torchic

I have issues with birds that are not penguins or owls. Sorry Torchic...

 

Snivy

 I feel like this Pokemon is judging everything I do and finds me lacking.

Tepig

Not sure what it is about this one, I just don't like it.

 

Oshawott

Is that a baseball on it's stomach?

 

Grookey

They just bother me. 

Sobble

I just imagine this one just never shuts up... 

Quaxly

You would think that this one looks like Donald Duck in Pokemon form would give it a higher ranking, but to me, it sort of looks more like a rip-off Donald Duck that you would find in a dollar store toy aisle. Ronald Duck.

And that's it. My tier list for Starter Pokemon. I apologize to all of the Pokemon fans because I know nothing about these characters, I just went by their cuteness level and the vibes I get from them. Tepig could be awesome, but I'll never know. 

Thanks to my kiddo again for humoring their mother and typing out the list of actual names for me. And also props to them for dealing with me renaming every Pokemon in my head and rarely remembering the actual name. No matter how many times they tell me what it is. Same for Ryan but I'm pretty sure he glares at me more. 

Also, these are my opinions. Don't comment to tell me I'm wrong. But if you want to have a fun discussion about which Pokemon give you weird vibes, comment away! 

And if anyone is curious, Snorlax is my favorite Pokemon. Love that sleepy dude. 

“I hate turkeys. If you stand in the meat section at the grocery store long enough, you start to get mad at turkeys. There’s turkey ham, turkey bologna, turkey pastrami. Someone needs to tell the turkey, man, just be yourself.”

-Mitch Hedberg

What I've Been Watching

Photo by Nothing Ahead

Just a quick refresher for anyone that forgot:

With the new year, I got back into scheduling what I watch. By that I mean, each day I focus on one streaming service or watching DVDs/blu-rays I own. I started doing this years ago and it really helped me to actually finish watching shows instead of just starting something and then going back and watching random shit on YouTube for the next month. Which is what I’ve been doing for the past year, really. So, I’m going to start some posts talking about what I’m watching for each day and my thoughts, and my expectations to actually finish it.

These posts are done whenever I finish up the schedule.

DVD/blu-ray

The Simpsons

Been watching my old Simpsons DVDs. Which the packaging on some of these leaves much to be desired. 

DVR

The Simpsons

Wasn’t really feeling anything on the DVR, so I found The Simpsons on FXX and decided that would work.

HBO Max

We Bare Bears

This is such a cute and fun show. 

Netflix

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

So… I was scrolling through Netflix trying to decide on what to watch when I saw the new My Little Pony… And I did not like the design. Was not happy. So I spite watched Friendship is Magic… 

This show gets a lot of... Not hate, exactly, but people really look down on this show. Though, that might be just people I know. "Cartoons are for kids". Which, yeah, they are, but that doesn't make them bad. My kiddo used to watch this show all the time and because of that I used to watch it all the time. It kind of sucked me in. I liked My Little Pony when I was a kid and this show was a good update. 

PlutoTV

Garfield & Friends

Prime

Buzzfeed Unsolved: Supernatural

Felt like some Ryan and Shane Shenanigans

Roku

Killer Mysteries

Actually finished this up. 

Tubi

How It’s Made

I put this on as background noise as I did some reading. I got sucked in. I know how toilets are made now! 

VUDU

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter

Resident Evil: Degenteration

Resident Evil: Damnation

Then the internet shitted out and I decided I’d watch Vendetta another day. 

YouTube

Mystery Trackers: Forgotten Voices (Hidden Object Game) 

Gab Smolders 

I love Gab and her Hidden Object Game videos are super relaxing to watch.

The Haunted Taxis of Ishinomaki

Decoding the Unknown

As always, I have to watch at least one Simon Whistler video. It's the law. Or something.

15 of the best orange dresses in cinematic history 🧡🦊🍊

ModernGurlz 

I love fashion stuff. Which seems to surprise people. But I love looking at pretty dresses and shit. And this channel is super good and shows me lots of pretty dresses!

Prohibition - OverSimplified

OverSimplified

Love OverSimplified history videos. Amusing, easy to understand, just perfect. We use it in my kiddos's history stuff. 

Tried to Cover Up a Vicious Crime… TWICE

That Chapter

This bitch was stupid.

Mystery Case Files: Escape from Ravenhearst (Hidden Object Game)

Gab Smolders

Again, love Gab. 

And that's what I've been watching.