The Twilight Zone (2019-2020)
May. 25th, 2025 08:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
runpunkrunFinally, also from my drafts, and the last in my irregular series from 2020-2024 of watching stuff, The Twilight Zone, on DVD from the library:
Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg (IMDb says: A British film producer, director, and screenwriter known for producing the X-Men films, Fant4stic, Logan, the Deadpool films, Cinderella, and The Martian) reboot the Twilight Zone. The stories are twisty, thought provoking, and intense, reproducing the original show's vibe and big name guest stars, while also adding diversity and confronting modern social issues like racism, sexism, and colonialism. I could only comfortably watch one episode at a time, and sometimes only uncomfortably. "Replay" was particularly effective in the way it portrayed the threat that police pose for Black people in America and I found it to be very tense. Other favorites from season one: "The Comedian," "A Traveler" (written by Glen Morgan of The X-Files's Morgan & Wong), and "Not All Men." But, as with any anthology, the stories are of varying quality and sometimes I spent the whole hour trying to divine the twist or decipher the in-universe rules because the show failed to make me interested in the characters or their problems. The season one finale, "Blurryman," was especially boring despite featuring my beloved Zazie Beetz.
I ended up I watching both seasons for completism rather than pleasure, with the second season a huge let down after the first. I briefly perked up for "8" about a remote science station doing deep sea research in Antarctica, all of that deeply my jam, starring Joel McHale's face, of which I am a big fan, but the rest of him is not so great at dramatic acting, and the episode itself was so flat I couldn't even care about what the twist meant for the fate of humanity. The standout in that season was easily "Try, Try" and its (correct) reading of Groundhog Day as romantic horror, as a woman is stalked and manipulated by Topher Grace in ways she couldn't possibly anticipate or defend against.
Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg (IMDb says: A British film producer, director, and screenwriter known for producing the X-Men films, Fant4stic, Logan, the Deadpool films, Cinderella, and The Martian) reboot the Twilight Zone. The stories are twisty, thought provoking, and intense, reproducing the original show's vibe and big name guest stars, while also adding diversity and confronting modern social issues like racism, sexism, and colonialism. I could only comfortably watch one episode at a time, and sometimes only uncomfortably. "Replay" was particularly effective in the way it portrayed the threat that police pose for Black people in America and I found it to be very tense. Other favorites from season one: "The Comedian," "A Traveler" (written by Glen Morgan of The X-Files's Morgan & Wong), and "Not All Men." But, as with any anthology, the stories are of varying quality and sometimes I spent the whole hour trying to divine the twist or decipher the in-universe rules because the show failed to make me interested in the characters or their problems. The season one finale, "Blurryman," was especially boring despite featuring my beloved Zazie Beetz.
I ended up I watching both seasons for completism rather than pleasure, with the second season a huge let down after the first. I briefly perked up for "8" about a remote science station doing deep sea research in Antarctica, all of that deeply my jam, starring Joel McHale's face, of which I am a big fan, but the rest of him is not so great at dramatic acting, and the episode itself was so flat I couldn't even care about what the twist meant for the fate of humanity. The standout in that season was easily "Try, Try" and its (correct) reading of Groundhog Day as romantic horror, as a woman is stalked and manipulated by Topher Grace in ways she couldn't possibly anticipate or defend against.
Apple Nut Crumble (or any stewed fruit)
May. 25th, 2025 11:53 pmmific posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
gluten_freeIt's late Autumn and getting colder so I threw together a crumble topping for the big pot of stewed apples I'd made. It worked really well - mostly luck as I ad libbed it.
Apples: washed, cored, chopped small but not peeled, stewed with a cinnamon stick and 3 cloves, a few squeezes lemon juice and raw sugar. Add as little sugar as possible so it's sweet, but still a little tart. Simmer well until the skins are soft, about 30 min.
(Equivalent vol. of about 8 Granny Smith apples although half of mine were sweeter red-striped ones)
Crumble:
1.5 cups rolled oats
1.5 cups rolled oats blended to a coarse flour
4 Tbsp butter, cut up and rubbed in until the mix is a crumble
Then mix in
0.5 tsp salt
1 cup shredded dessicated coconut
0.75 cup chopped walnuts
0.75 cup brown sugar
Remember to get the cloves and cinnamon stick out! (or use powdered spices). Top the stewed apples with crumble and bake for 30 min at 180C (355F) with a foil cover. Then remove foil and give it a last few min uncovered. I had it with cream, also great with Greek yoghurt. Or ice-cream if you like it sweeter!
This made 5 crumble serves and used about 1/2 of the apples - I had the rest of the apples with yoghurt for a few breakfasts.
Apples: washed, cored, chopped small but not peeled, stewed with a cinnamon stick and 3 cloves, a few squeezes lemon juice and raw sugar. Add as little sugar as possible so it's sweet, but still a little tart. Simmer well until the skins are soft, about 30 min.
(Equivalent vol. of about 8 Granny Smith apples although half of mine were sweeter red-striped ones)
Crumble:
1.5 cups rolled oats
1.5 cups rolled oats blended to a coarse flour
4 Tbsp butter, cut up and rubbed in until the mix is a crumble
Then mix in
0.5 tsp salt
1 cup shredded dessicated coconut
0.75 cup chopped walnuts
0.75 cup brown sugar
Remember to get the cloves and cinnamon stick out! (or use powdered spices). Top the stewed apples with crumble and bake for 30 min at 180C (355F) with a foil cover. Then remove foil and give it a last few min uncovered. I had it with cream, also great with Greek yoghurt. Or ice-cream if you like it sweeter!
This made 5 crumble serves and used about 1/2 of the apples - I had the rest of the apples with yoghurt for a few breakfasts.
Book Review: Gluten-Free Flour Power, by Aki Kamozawa and H. Alexander Talbot
May. 23rd, 2025 07:54 amrunpunkrun posting in gluten_freeGluten-Free Flour Power - Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table, by Aki Kamozawa and H. Alexander Talbot: A gorgeous cookbook with lots of color photos and not one, not two, but THREE custom flour mixes. One is like an all-purpose flour and is mostly starch (cornstarch, tapioca starch, white rice flour, brown rice flour, nonfat milk powder, potato flour, xanthan gum), one is closer to a whole wheat flour (arrowroot, sorghum flour, white rice flour [or millet], brown rice flour [or sorghum], potato flour, milk powder, guar gum), and one is a low-allergy blend (tapioca starch, sweet rice flour, arrowroot, sorghum flour, potato flour, golden flaxseed meal). And now that I type that out, they're all pretty starchy, as it's the first ingredient in every mix. They're going to give different results, but the authors claim you can use any of the three flour mixes in the recipes.
The recipes have measurements in volume and weight (grams). They're sweet and savory and cover the basic to the very fancy. I mean, the authors pulled out a loaf pan with dimensions I'd never seen before in my life. They also think you have the time, resources, and energy to cold-smoke masa harina. Don't ask.
The font choices are kind of annoying, but it has a useful index, and if I hadn't already hitched my gluten-free wagon to America's Test Kitchen's custom flour mix, I might have given this a try.
This review appeared on my journal in a slightly different form.
The recipes have measurements in volume and weight (grams). They're sweet and savory and cover the basic to the very fancy. I mean, the authors pulled out a loaf pan with dimensions I'd never seen before in my life. They also think you have the time, resources, and energy to cold-smoke masa harina. Don't ask.
The font choices are kind of annoying, but it has a useful index, and if I hadn't already hitched my gluten-free wagon to America's Test Kitchen's custom flour mix, I might have given this a try.
This review appeared on my journal in a slightly different form.
Fic & Podfic: Condition Zebra [SGA, McKay/Sheppard, Teen, 8650 words & 1 hour]
May. 22nd, 2025 09:58 amrunpunkrun
Condition Zebra
A Pod/Fic Collaboration! Fic by Punk. Podfic, audiobook, and cover by mific.Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard
Rating: Teen, for swears
Content notes: No standard notes apply.
Size: 8,650 words and 1 hour
Summary: John Sheppard, reaching new heights of not seeing it coming.
Punk's notes: In 2013, mific and I agreed that it'd be cool if I wrote a fic for her to podfic. I did, but then a lot of life happened and eleven years passed before I was able to open it up again and edit it into shape with the help of panisdead. This story is much better because of her, and I'm so grateful for the time she put in across multiple betas. I'm also grateful for mific, who did a wonderful job with the podfic, as always, and that all three of us were still around to finish this project.
Title from my dad, who served on an aircraft carrier in the US Navy during the Vietnam War and told me about how "Set Condition Zebra throughout the ship" would come over the 1MC and all personnel would be expected to report to their assigned stations as quickly as practical to prepare the ship for combat.
In memory of ESS and SK.
mific's notes: When Punk reminded me about our plan to collaborate I was excited, and even more so after reading this excellent story. It's been enormous fun to podfic, both because the story itself is like the best of canon with added John and Rodney feels, and as Punk was open to features like sound effects. I've had a ball making the podfic and the cover art, and I hope you all love the story as much as I do.
Download or stream mific's podfic on AO3, where you can also read the fic, or stay put and read it here.
( Condition Zebra )
A/N: You can reblog this on Tumblr if you're feeling it, and if you want to know why Rodney was shouting about pigs, he was quoting Robert Heinlein: "Never attempt to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and annoys the pig."
The Friday Five for 23 May 2025
May. 22nd, 2025 12:30 pmanais_pf posting in thefridayfiveThese questions were suggested by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
thegreymouser.
1. What was the best gift you received?
2. What was the worst gift you received?
3. What gift did you wish for, but never got?
4. What was the best present you gave?
5. What was the worst present you gave?
Copy and paste to your own journal, then reply to this post with a link to your answers. If your journal is private or friends-only, you can post your full answers in the comments below.
If you'd like to suggest questions for a future Friday Five, then do so on DreamWidth or LiveJournal. Old sets that were used have been deleted, so we encourage you to suggest some more!
thegreymouser.1. What was the best gift you received?
2. What was the worst gift you received?
3. What gift did you wish for, but never got?
4. What was the best present you gave?
5. What was the worst present you gave?
Copy and paste to your own journal, then reply to this post with a link to your answers. If your journal is private or friends-only, you can post your full answers in the comments below.
If you'd like to suggest questions for a future Friday Five, then do so on DreamWidth or LiveJournal. Old sets that were used have been deleted, so we encourage you to suggest some more!