Stephanie Abbott's Blog, page 22
March 12, 2012
Great Horned Owl chicks grow and fledge in Golden Gate Park
Reblogged from Musings on Nature & Items of Interest:
A report of a Great Horned Owl nest in Golden Gate Park prompted three visits over the past 6 weeks. My first visit on Feb 5, 2012 found two chicks and the mother in a very large pine tree. As always, click on the image to enlarge it. Those days' shots can be seen at this link Then on Feb 19, I returned and found the chicks grown quite a bit… That days' shots can be seen at this link. And then on March 10, I came back to find both chicks had fledged, I found them with one of the adults in another tree …
Gorgeous…
Filed under: Stephanie Abbott
March 10, 2012
Rachel MacReady on DISTURBING FEELINGS
… from the Past Lives series, my lead character Rachel MacReady speaks in a series of essays. This one is in response to the question, "Do you have any feelings in general that you are disturbed by? What are they? Why do they disturb you?"
If you'd asked that question in my B.C. days – "before crash" – I would have said, nope, that's why I'm an artist. I embrace all emotions – doubt, angst, fury and fear – and spew them back on canvas in a swirl of color. But then came the car crash and everything changed. In twenty-four hours I learned I'd lived before as Cassandra Masters. I discovered Cassandra had been a telepath and I was, too. And finally, I was reunited with the reincarnates of my four closest companions from 1870. Two, Brannon and Josh, had been Cassandra's friends. The others, Zach and Hayden, had been Cassandra's lovers. Much as I adore painting, I'd have to re-do the Sistine Chapel to work all those emotions out.
And being a new telepath among my rediscovered friends can be a little strange. Take Josh Strickland. In 1870, he was powerful pyrokinetic. Nowadays, he's a slacker – uninterested in his dad's construction empire and playing at being a car broker. He skates by on looks and charm. I want to reach into his head and make him see that life is too short. It's a terrible temptation – because I can impose my will, sometimes I almost think I have the right. Almost.
Then there's my cousin Brannon. In 1870 she, too, was pyrokinetic, as hot-tempered and combustible as the gift implies. Today she has zero confidence except for her good grades and her perfect attendance record. She hates her looks, hates her body type and she's always running after the wrong guys. I want to tell her exactly what those guys think of her – how self-defeating her behavior is – and help her regain some of her old fire. But again, I don't have the right.
Or take Zach. Once upon a time he was Dominic, a powerful telepath in his own right and Cassandra's beau. In this life he's hardly changed at all – handsome, smart and sexy. But when our powers accidentally combined and I glimpsed a traumatic memory in his mind, I didn't break contact. He was forced to sever our link, and now I wonder if he'll ever trust me again. Why did I trespass on his privacy that way?
Thank goodness for Hayden. In 1870, she was Ted Harrington, badass telekinetic and possibly the most feared man in the Order. Cassandra's first meeting with Ted was less than perfect – he was on trial for murder – but according to my confused memories, they eventually became lovers. Ted was one of those rare individual virtually immune to telepathy, and Hayden is, too. That means I can't read her mind, so she can't inspire any disturbing feelings. And God knows she's nothing like Ted. He was hard, masculine, his raspy voice like a low growl. Hayden is curvy with full, perfect lips and a voice like honey poured over lightning…
So yeah. No disturbing feelings there. None at all.
Filed under: Books, Past Lives Series, Stephanie Abbott, The Order Tagged: Hayden Cross, Past Lives #1: Rachel, Past Lives Series, rachel macready, Steampunk, Stephanie Abbott
Movie Mention: Captain America: The First Avenger
Okay, so I am probably the last person on earth to see Captain America: The First Avenger. What a pleasant surprise! I was expecting something long, boring and overambitious, like Ang Lee's wildly misbegotten Hulk (2003). Inside, I got a charming fantasy about a little guy with nothing to offer but heart, who in the course of trying to fight Nazis finds himself rebooted into a superbeing (not to mention a super looking being).
In 1940s wartime Brooklyn, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is a ninety-pound weakling with asthma, multiple health disorders and a hero's unshakable resolve. Desperate to enlist, he tries over and over, always branded 4-F. Then a scientist chooses Steve for his Super Soldier Serum, and Steve is reborn. (Ironically enough, into the very picture of that "master race" the Nazis were keen on creating.) Meanwhile, the first recipient of that serum, Johann Schmidt (the always brilliant Hugo Weaving) has been transformed into the villainous Red Skull. His master plan? To use a stolen gem from Odin's treasure house to power a series of bombs that will "decimate" New York City and all other major U.S. cities. (English being his second language, I don't think old Skullie realizes he'll only be killing one in ten people.)
We don't know how the gem was stolen from Odin, why it was needed to create Infernal Weapons (in a world that already possessed the atom bomb) or even how the Red Skull's shockingly non-aerodynamic bomber stays aloft. But we know this: Hugo Weaving is more intimidating without the red makeup, Hayley Atwell is a delight as trigger-happy Peggy, and Steve will Do What's Right. He's an endearing character and Chris Evans hits all the right notes. Also, Tommy Lee Jones is at his best at the sort of role he was born to play — a bad-tempered hardass with a soft heart. If you enjoy comic book movies, fantasy violence and stylish fun, see Captain America.
Filed under: comic books, Fun Stuff, Movies Tagged: captain america: the first avenger, chris evans, hayley atwell, hugo weaving, marvel movies, red skull, the avengers, tommy lee jones
March 9, 2012
Blackbolt and Sentry: Frenemies
Reblogged from Ragdogs and other preoccupations:
Blackbolt and Sentry are typical blue lynx ragdoll kittens and in fact, look alike. They share the same lynx (tabby) stripes – vertical tufts of grey on the face, and patches of grey fur everywhere. They started living together about two weeks ago.Before that, Blackbolt enjoyed his lofty position as the master of our universe and ruled his roost with a firm paw and a fierce bite. Spoiled to silliness with all his toys and our affection, Blackbolt for the most part, seemed content with us. At six months, …
This is adorable…
Filed under: Stephanie Abbott
Movie Mention: Beginners
Beginners is a character study of Oliver (Ewan MacGregor), a sensitive artist trying to overcome his fear of commitment. We meet Oliver just after the death of his father Hal (Christopher Plummer in his Oscar-winning role). Growing up, Oliver wasn't particularly close to Hal, and he keenly felt the disconnection between his restless, unhappy mother and cordial, distant father. But after Oliver's mother dies, Hal comes out as gay. He tells his son, "I don't want to be theoretically gay. I want to do something about it."
Oliver supports Hal's decision, quietly bemused by his father's imperfect love affair with the much-younger Andy. Oliver has always held out for perfection in relationships, running away when they became too intimate. But watching his father living — and dying — authentically gives Oliver the impetus to try one more time with Anna, an actress with similar commitment issues.
(In addition to Ewan MacGregor and Christopher Plummer, this film also offers Cosmo the Jack Russell terrier as Arthur, and of course the dog steals every scene.)
Filed under: Movies Tagged: beginners, christopher plummer, ewan macgregor, jack russell terrier, Oscar
March 7, 2012
"Late Afternoon on the Moorland" – Peak District, United Kingdom – Les Wilcockson – Featured Photographer
Reblogged from PhotoBotos.com:
. . "Late Afternoon on the Moorland" – Peak District, United Kingdom – Les Wilcockson – Featured Photographer Moorlands have always seemed like a mysterious place to me. Maybe it is from reading too much English literature in high school and college. A common theme seems to be spirits and marauders frequent them when the sun goes down. If you are willing to brave the elements and underworld you can head out around Derbyshire with Les and capture some fantastic scenery shots and, who knows, maybe a …
Wish I were there right now…
Filed under: Stephanie Abbott
March 6, 2012
Past Lives #1: Rachel by Stephanie Abbott Review
Reblogged from Ritesh Kala's Book Reviews:
Past Lives #1: Rachel by Stephanie Abbott My rating: 4 of 5 stars Buy on Amazon: Kindle | Paperback I loved the idea behind the series and was really excited to get to read this book. I can say that the story definitely does not disappoint. The story runs along in two timelines, as all the characters in the present day are reincarnates from 1870 who knew each other back then and were somehow intimately connected. They were all part of a society of "super-humans" who had certain abilities …
Here's a nice review of my latest book…
Filed under: Stephanie Abbott
Book Thoughts: Believing the Lie by Elizabeth George
**Please note. What follows is packed with spoilers. Do not continue if you haven't read the book yet and wish to remain unspoiled!**
Writing Like It's 1985…
I spent a long time trying to decide what, precisely, I disliked so much about this book. It's well-written and as far as the locations, well-researched. A quick skim of the reviews on Amazon list the top three complaints as:
It's unusually far-fetched, even for a 600 page mystery.
It focuses too much on whiny, self-obsessed Deborah St. James.
It provides no satisfying whodunit.
And all that is true. But I can forgive a wild, convoluted plot (heaven knows I sometimes write them) and anytime Deborah appears in a story, I steel myself. Beautiful, redheaded Deborah, forever miserable because she once had an abortion and is now infertile (as we are told in every single book) is one of those shallow, pointless characters who should have been killed off ages ago. As for the early revelation that the death was just an accident, and we're in for 600 pages without a murderer — well, that's an artistic choice I can actually respect. Sometimes investigations go nowhere. Mind you, George was taking a chance by doing that to her readers, and I'm not surprised that some weren't pleased. But surely she ran that risk with eyes wide open.
No, what I so thoroughly disliked about this book is its outdated sensibilities. Believing the Lie might as well be subtitled, "The Truth According to 1985." In the book, the sympathetic female, Manette, states without irony that women's ages are reckoned like dog years, and though she's near Lynley's age, he can't be expected to find her attractive. Meanwhile Valerie, a family matriarch, explains that "all talk of sexism aside," little boys enjoy physical games and little girls prefer to play with miniature appliances while imagining their loving husbands will be home soon. I caught on early that Alatea, the perfect wife of former wastrel Nicholas, was transgender and hiding it from her husband. But even I was surprised when the entire climax hinged on driving Alatea to suicide. Can't you just see that as a TV movie of the week from 1985? "The searing story of a woman with a terrible secret…"
Then there's Tim Cresswell. Tim is a sensitive and intelligent fourteen year old boy. We're told he was perfectly well adjusted until his father announced he was gay and walked out on the family on Tim's birthday. Naturally, Tim is sent to live full-time with dad and the new lover, because that makes perfect sense, and they live in an unrenovated farm house with old-fashioned keyholes. So of course Tim peeks through a keyhole, watches Dad and new lover going at it, and turns violent and suicidal. This is presented as a logical consequence; as Manette asks, what was such a revelation expected to do to Tim's burgeoning sexuality? Why, destroy it, of course. Because this is 1985 and gay parenting is still a TV movie-of-the-week notion. Unlike fourteen year old boys in 2012, Tim has never had a gay friend, sneaked a look at gay images on the computer, or sexually experimented with either gender. 1985 offers no family counseling for Tim, just a school for delinquents and unrestricted internet access, allowing him to chat up a pedophile and arrange his own (homosexual) rape and murder. Lucky for him, Manette and her husband swoop in to give Tim a loving, normal home.
Notice I didn't mention Lynley? He's barely in it. Barbara Havers? Ditto. She's still wearing those "red high-topped trainers," though. Very similar to the hightops Cybill Shepherd wore to accept her Emmy … in 1985.
Filed under: Books Tagged: barbara havers, believing the lie, elizabeth george, inspector lynley
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