The Year of the Lazy Baggage*

* No.  Not that one this time.  It's IWeMeUs!

 That's right, We are the Lazy Baggage in question.  I'm sure you can't have failed to notice a glut of lazyitis in the vicinity of Hexenhäusli Device this year?  In fact, I'm so lazy that I can't even be bothered to come up with an excuse think of the reason for not actually blogging that much.  I'm sure there was one, though...

 As luck would have it, a certain someone's penchant for Monday GIFs has come in handy as this one from January illustrates the horror and despair I felt upon opening this draft post and realising that it was so unfinished as to be barely started!

 Look, we haven't got time to appear terrified-yet-glamorous while trotting about in the garden encrusted in jewels and wearing something far too skimpy for this time of year!  We've got to try and remember what happened this year, then wrap it up and bundle it in the back of the sideboard so that the New Year can start on time!

 Oh, cripes.  We'd better get on with it, then.  It's a good job that everyone else has been quite productive:

January

Event : After years and years and years of deliberation, cogitation, and waiting for just the right moment, Ms Scarlet banished her FGES anxiety and launched the New Year by holding the Freakin' Green Elf Shorts Caption Competition!

Rimpy's sigh of relief could be heard across the globe...

 Two weeks later, Maddie, the Mistress Borghese, won the competition and became the 28th person to become inflicted with the 'Shorts!

 

 And two weeks after that, Ms Scarlet prepares herself to go through Post Shorts Syndrome...

 

Discovery : I was almost beside myself when I discovered a modern, live-action clip from one of my favourite 80s cartoons - Dungeons and Dragons!

 My excitement was dulled somewhat when I realised that it was from a Brazilian Renault advert, but I still live in hope of a car-less reboot (fan-edited English language version here).

February

Quotes : "An erect stud at 16 hands is something to behold and rather terrifying I must say!", and...

"Julian fingering Fanny's lip"*

1983 Bantam Books cover

by Yvonne Gilbert

 It's almost the end of the year, so here are most of the things I've read, watched and listened to since my last update back in September.  Unfortunately, I don't have much time to spend on this as I need all the time I can get to work on the end-of-year roundup - which I've barely begun - Eeeek! (The observant amongst you will notice that I copied this intro from last year's end-of-year update because it's still relevant.)

 

Read

Oh, gods, it's been a year and I'm still struggling through Little, Big by John Crowley.  And I haven't even re-read anything either!  We'd better quickly move on to the next category...

Watched

⸰ The Vast of Night (Prime Video) - I could not make out what the male lead was saying for much of this alien abduction film.  His accent and specific 50s dialogue combined to become almost impenetrable to me.

⸰ Star Trek: Lower Decks, S3 eps 7-10 (Prime Video) - Amazing! The finale was so exhilarating, but rather than post a video of that and ruin it for anyone who may want to watch it without spoilers, here is a clip from an earlier episode.

 

"Thanks again for the mimosas."

Frost and Fungi

 Inspired by Melanie's latest Nature-Led mushroom free-for-all - and also because I had loads of photos to use up that didn't make the cut, and have nothing else ready to publish - here are some fungi photos from the last couple of months:

 

A broken & blurry specimen from my allotment on 11th October:

 

A little nubbin of a toadstool by the front garden fence (from 20th October):

 

 

The following fungi were all from a walk around Blickling Hall grounds on 22nd October:

 

CHOKING HAZARD - No Small Parts

 Brace yourselves: This is a self-indulgent dumping ground for my latest Star Trek fan art, so either nod & smile until you get to the end, or just click away now and wait until I post something more interesting (athough that could take a while...)

 

 Diving straight in, here is the result from August's 'bonus photo' in my Cloud Mouth post: August's Art Challenge: "Hailing Frequencies Closed" (in honour of the dearly departed Nichelle Nichols at the end of July)

 

 

➣

 

 I had an idea for September's "TOS Anniversary" Art Challenge theme - the Ardanan floating city, Stratos.  That didn't pan out - the sketch on the right is as far as I got - so I ended up submitting a sculpture-type thing of the TOS operations & engineering insignia instead.  I cobbled it together from old, broken & seaworn roof tiles on a wander down to the beach to blow away the frustration that Stratos had built up.