and the second one
Dec. 25th, 2011 10:28 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ellenel13 This new system sucks. If it doesn't get any less shitty, I don't think I'll be getting more paid time after my two month trial period is over. I don't mind the subject lines so much but everything else sucks balls. It all looks like Facebook's ugly cousin. I hate Facebook. Maybe I'll write a rant about it someday.
Classes: my last final is tomorrow morning at eight in the morning. Rutgers is practically fucking deserted. It's awful. I feel like the little kid who got left behind when all the other kids left for a better town or something. At least my biochem is done.
Work: I have an interview for a possible promotion tomorrow. If I get this, I might not have to deal with annoying as fuck teens anymore. I should be preparing for the interview, but I'm afraid I might psych myself out. I just hope I'll be comfortable with whoever they choose to evaluate my teaching style. I'm pretty sure it'll be more than one person.
Originally posted on 12/22/11
Classes: my last final is tomorrow morning at eight in the morning. Rutgers is practically fucking deserted. It's awful. I feel like the little kid who got left behind when all the other kids left for a better town or something. At least my biochem is done.
Work: I have an interview for a possible promotion tomorrow. If I get this, I might not have to deal with annoying as fuck teens anymore. I should be preparing for the interview, but I'm afraid I might psych myself out. I just hope I'll be comfortable with whoever they choose to evaluate my teaching style. I'm pretty sure it'll be more than one person.
So I'm halfway through A Clash of Kings and still enjoying the series despite some pacing issues. The problem is that Martin has way too many characters to follow. I find myself reading about a character I enjoy, the chapter ends in a cliffhanger, and . . . switch POV to a character IDGAF about. Or switch POV to a character I enjoy, but is stuck in a plot too boring to get through (see: Jon Snow and Daenerys). I still read it all but I do it grudgingly. There's also some new characters I'm not sure I like.
Theon Greyjoy: this guy is the most carelessly misogynist asshole in the series, even when you include Littlefinger. First section we get his POV on, he's seducing some poor girl even as he complains that she's so simple and stupid. He pushes her head down to his crotch to get a blowjob and then forces her to swallow. Charming. I'm pretty sure he's going to try and conquer Winterfell to impress his daddy. Dick.
Asha Greyjoy: why did you molest your brother Asha? I know he's an asshole and a braggart, but you really should have told him who you were before you felt up his dick. Not cool. We haven't gotten anything from Asha's POV, but it is interesting that her father trust her with command of the Greyjoy pirate army even though she's a woman. Of course, Theon is whining because he's the one with the dick, he should be conquering the kingdom . . . blah . . . blah . . . blah. But their father doesn't give a shit. For man who leads a house that thinks it's perfectly acceptable to rape the women of any settlement they conquer, that's odd to say the least.
The Greyjoy house is pretty interesting. The Drowned God sounds like Culthulu and "paying the iron price" is interesting despite being so douchey (it's actually shameful to pay for shit and any man should kill someone if they want something of theirs?). I'd be enjoying those parts of the book much more if Theon wasn't constantly complaining about "bitches" and how little everyone appreciates him.
Stannis Baratheon: this guy is an amusing asshole. Whenever he's on the page, I imagine a grouchey middle-aged man ranting the medieval equivalent of "get off my lawn damn it!" and "kids these day!" I think Martin's trying to subvert the notion that honor is always virtuous with him. He tried with Eddard Stark last book (like I said, poor Ned got beheaded because he was inexplicably expecting the people around him not be assholes), but he's being less subtle about it with Stannis. The priestess he has working for him (Melisandre) sounds creepy as fuck. I think she's evil. I wish his sections weren't through Davos' POV because he's another character who bores me.
Renly Baratheon: totally fucking the Knight of Flowers. Stay here and pray with me? lol okay. He had a fucking rainbow guard. That being said, not sad at all when the shadow (wtf?) killed his him. He was so smarmy that the pages about him felt oily. He was less disgusting than Littlefinger, but only because he's not bragging about taking the "maidenheads" of women who wouldn't touch his dick if it was the last on Westeros. Not much more to say about him.
Brienne of Tarth: woobie. I'm sorry you fell for a dude who was obviously gay (seriously, RAINBOW guard). And that you're unfortunate enough to be an ugly woman in a society were women are not valued at all. That being said, it's awesome to read about a lady knight. It's even more awesome to read about a woman who isn't traditionally beautiful in a fantasy book. I wish we got chapters from your POV instead of icky Theon.
Now for characters from the last book:
Daenerys: wtf is going on with your storyline? I like Daenerys, or I did last book, but I can't really sympathize with her new quest to gather an army to conquer Westeros. I thought that was Viserys' goal, not hers. She said herself she doesn't remember a single thing about the kingdom, so why would she want to start a war there. I don't buy the whole "I want to make the kingdom a better place" bit for one second. She's got a khalasar right there she could be working to make better for common people. Plus she's turned into some kind of religious figure because she's breastfed baby dragons (IDK). I just don't understand her motivation anymore. Worst of all, her plot line's only tangentially related to the plot going on in Westeros, so every time there's a section from her POV it feels like an unwanted break in the action. I know there's people who enjoy stories about a hero or heroine travelling to new lands and meeting new people. I'm not one of them. Daenerys story lacks emotional drive for me. It's even more boring than Jon Snow's adventures up north.
Another thing. I'm supposed to believe that Jorah's in love with her because she's so beautiful and she reminds him of the wife who left him? What? That kind of shit is commonplace in other fantasy books, but it feels out of place in a series where even the "heroes" are kind of douchebags. Plus, Jorah couldn't stop oggling Daenerys' bared breast that one time she had to visit a city where women didn't wear shirts? She's fourteen/fifteen years old. Ew Jorah.
John Snow: his adventures up north are getting more interesting, mostly because Martin's gotten me interested in wtf is beyond the damned Wall. Also, the section where they Night's Watch visited a castle where a creepy guy married his daughters and killed any sons they might have by him was one of the creepiest things in the whole series so far, zombie attack and twin fucking included. For a moment, I was sure that Jon was going to kill the hell out of that monster, but he decided against it in the end.
Nothing much to say about Jon Snow. He's still very easy to like. I don't even blame him for not gutting the daughter rapist/baby son murderer. He's only fifteen/sixteen and he was ordered to leave it be by the person who's sort of become he's surrogate father. It's part of his character that Jon is a pleaser and stickler for rules. It was enough for me that he was clearly doing his best to help those girls with his limited resources and that he felt like shit about doing nothing in the end.
I found it interesting that other characters complain that Jon can be really cold and aloof. Whenever we get sections from his POV, he seems to care about everyone and everything. He saved the direwolf puppies in a way that meant he wasn't going to get one at first. Last book, he kept quiet about Catelyn's uncalled for asshole behavior. He started training the boys he considered his bullies when it was explained it him that HE was the one being the bully. He risked standing up to the Commander of the Night's Watch to stand up for another kid who probably would have been killed without his help. Yet more than one other character has complained that he's aloof, cold, takes everything and as an insult, and thinks he's better than everyone even though he's "just a bastard". I must go deeper.
Catelyn: much more sympathetic this book, mostly because she doesn't have Jon Snow to use as a punching bag anymore. she's actually acting much smarter, though that's not much of a compliment considering how stupid the people around her are being. I like her as Robb's diplomat. I also love how kind she's being to Brienne. My only complaint: she's worried as hell about her sons but rarely mentions her missing daughters. I give her credit on calling out Robb on thinking that his sisters are not worth as much as male hostages would, but I wish she mentioned them at least half as much as she mentions Bran and Rickon on her monologues.
Theon Greyjoy: this guy is the most carelessly misogynist asshole in the series, even when you include Littlefinger. First section we get his POV on, he's seducing some poor girl even as he complains that she's so simple and stupid. He pushes her head down to his crotch to get a blowjob and then forces her to swallow. Charming. I'm pretty sure he's going to try and conquer Winterfell to impress his daddy. Dick.
Asha Greyjoy: why did you molest your brother Asha? I know he's an asshole and a braggart, but you really should have told him who you were before you felt up his dick. Not cool. We haven't gotten anything from Asha's POV, but it is interesting that her father trust her with command of the Greyjoy pirate army even though she's a woman. Of course, Theon is whining because he's the one with the dick, he should be conquering the kingdom . . . blah . . . blah . . . blah. But their father doesn't give a shit. For man who leads a house that thinks it's perfectly acceptable to rape the women of any settlement they conquer, that's odd to say the least.
The Greyjoy house is pretty interesting. The Drowned God sounds like Culthulu and "paying the iron price" is interesting despite being so douchey (it's actually shameful to pay for shit and any man should kill someone if they want something of theirs?). I'd be enjoying those parts of the book much more if Theon wasn't constantly complaining about "bitches" and how little everyone appreciates him.
Stannis Baratheon: this guy is an amusing asshole. Whenever he's on the page, I imagine a grouchey middle-aged man ranting the medieval equivalent of "get off my lawn damn it!" and "kids these day!" I think Martin's trying to subvert the notion that honor is always virtuous with him. He tried with Eddard Stark last book (like I said, poor Ned got beheaded because he was inexplicably expecting the people around him not be assholes), but he's being less subtle about it with Stannis. The priestess he has working for him (Melisandre) sounds creepy as fuck. I think she's evil. I wish his sections weren't through Davos' POV because he's another character who bores me.
Renly Baratheon: totally fucking the Knight of Flowers. Stay here and pray with me? lol okay. He had a fucking rainbow guard. That being said, not sad at all when the shadow (wtf?) killed his him. He was so smarmy that the pages about him felt oily. He was less disgusting than Littlefinger, but only because he's not bragging about taking the "maidenheads" of women who wouldn't touch his dick if it was the last on Westeros. Not much more to say about him.
Brienne of Tarth: woobie. I'm sorry you fell for a dude who was obviously gay (seriously, RAINBOW guard). And that you're unfortunate enough to be an ugly woman in a society were women are not valued at all. That being said, it's awesome to read about a lady knight. It's even more awesome to read about a woman who isn't traditionally beautiful in a fantasy book. I wish we got chapters from your POV instead of icky Theon.
Now for characters from the last book:
Daenerys: wtf is going on with your storyline? I like Daenerys, or I did last book, but I can't really sympathize with her new quest to gather an army to conquer Westeros. I thought that was Viserys' goal, not hers. She said herself she doesn't remember a single thing about the kingdom, so why would she want to start a war there. I don't buy the whole "I want to make the kingdom a better place" bit for one second. She's got a khalasar right there she could be working to make better for common people. Plus she's turned into some kind of religious figure because she's breastfed baby dragons (IDK). I just don't understand her motivation anymore. Worst of all, her plot line's only tangentially related to the plot going on in Westeros, so every time there's a section from her POV it feels like an unwanted break in the action. I know there's people who enjoy stories about a hero or heroine travelling to new lands and meeting new people. I'm not one of them. Daenerys story lacks emotional drive for me. It's even more boring than Jon Snow's adventures up north.
Another thing. I'm supposed to believe that Jorah's in love with her because she's so beautiful and she reminds him of the wife who left him? What? That kind of shit is commonplace in other fantasy books, but it feels out of place in a series where even the "heroes" are kind of douchebags. Plus, Jorah couldn't stop oggling Daenerys' bared breast that one time she had to visit a city where women didn't wear shirts? She's fourteen/fifteen years old. Ew Jorah.
John Snow: his adventures up north are getting more interesting, mostly because Martin's gotten me interested in wtf is beyond the damned Wall. Also, the section where they Night's Watch visited a castle where a creepy guy married his daughters and killed any sons they might have by him was one of the creepiest things in the whole series so far, zombie attack and twin fucking included. For a moment, I was sure that Jon was going to kill the hell out of that monster, but he decided against it in the end.
Nothing much to say about Jon Snow. He's still very easy to like. I don't even blame him for not gutting the daughter rapist/baby son murderer. He's only fifteen/sixteen and he was ordered to leave it be by the person who's sort of become he's surrogate father. It's part of his character that Jon is a pleaser and stickler for rules. It was enough for me that he was clearly doing his best to help those girls with his limited resources and that he felt like shit about doing nothing in the end.
I found it interesting that other characters complain that Jon can be really cold and aloof. Whenever we get sections from his POV, he seems to care about everyone and everything. He saved the direwolf puppies in a way that meant he wasn't going to get one at first. Last book, he kept quiet about Catelyn's uncalled for asshole behavior. He started training the boys he considered his bullies when it was explained it him that HE was the one being the bully. He risked standing up to the Commander of the Night's Watch to stand up for another kid who probably would have been killed without his help. Yet more than one other character has complained that he's aloof, cold, takes everything and as an insult, and thinks he's better than everyone even though he's "just a bastard". I must go deeper.
Catelyn: much more sympathetic this book, mostly because she doesn't have Jon Snow to use as a punching bag anymore. she's actually acting much smarter, though that's not much of a compliment considering how stupid the people around her are being. I like her as Robb's diplomat. I also love how kind she's being to Brienne. My only complaint: she's worried as hell about her sons but rarely mentions her missing daughters. I give her credit on calling out Robb on thinking that his sisters are not worth as much as male hostages would, but I wish she mentioned them at least half as much as she mentions Bran and Rickon on her monologues.
Originally posted on 12/22/11
