Okay so my blogging isn’t perfect yet. I read “The Extraordinary Sisters of April, May, & June” as well as “Saving June” this week, so you could say warmer weather is definitely on my mind. No review of those two this week but I’d recommend both.
Anyway, the purpose of today’s first entry (yep, gonna do a foodie post later) is to get any of you who haven’t watched “The Lizzie Bennett Diaries” yet, totally hooked. The web series is a modern adaptation of “Pride & Prejudice” created & produced by Hank Green (brother to author John Green) and Bernie Su. The show is absolutely phenomenal. For all that P&P gets remade and adapted, the truly good versions of the story are few and far between. The LBD is one of the very good ones.
It begins with Elizabeth “Lizzie” Bennet creating a video web diary for a grad school project and jumps right into the P&P storyline. So far the adjustments to the story that bring it into the 21st century are very well done. Along with “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries” are several videos from Lydia Bennet, and a few from Charlotte’s sister Maria that help bridge a gap in the story.
While I’ve loved all the videos, I’m most impressed by the Lydia Bennet Diaries so far. The series turned the younger Bennet sister Mary into a cousin (which fits the story and the present day much better) and Kitty into an actual cat (also fitting the story). The first half of the Lydia videos seem frivolous but if you’re paying attention, you can see how much Lydia craves the approval of her sisters and how willing she is to find it elsewhere if necessary.
The move into the Lydia and George Wickham part of the story is phenomenally done and completely heartbreaking. I so wish there was more recognition for web series because the latest Lydia videos are some of the best TV I’ve seen in any format.
Several characters are also on twitter if you want to fully immerse yourself in the LBD world. So go watch and then come talk to me about how much you love it. Also about how Fitz needs to show up more because hello, he is awesome.

As for the band I’m going to highlight, Whitney introduced me to Bronze Radio Return and I’m a big fan. They’ve been around for a while, but like I’ve said before, keeping up on new music is not my forte. Those of you who like Hart of Dixie may recognize a couple of the songs.

Er, well, the goal is no more. I’m going to change things up a bit and bring this blog back to a more personal level (which is what it should be since there aren’t that many people who care about my opinion) and try to introduce a bit of a schedule. I’ve tried this before without much luck. but new year, new discipline! or something. Anywho, there will be a second post today, in the spirit of getting on track immediately, but for now, I’ll give you the two bits of info I consider somewhat important: where you can find me on the web (for stalkers friends) and what the blogging schedule will be. I may add extra posts from time to time but in case you want to ignore certain days or (I hope) look forward to specific posts, you’ll be able to find them.

Blog Schedule:

Mondays: Book Blog! This will be a sort of summary post, what I’m reading, what I recommend, what I think you should stay away from, etc. I’m always open to suggestions for new books to read. I tend to prefer young adult fiction but I’ll branch fairly often into biography, philosophy, historical fiction, and weirdly business books. (I snagged my brother’s copy of Freakonomics and I’m loving it). If you want suggestions from me, it helps if I know the type of books you like and maybe the last couple that you read and enjoyed, as well as the last one you remember hating.

Tuesdays: Tuesday Tunes! I’m not a music guru by any means. But I do have favorites, from top 40 (I’ve learned to accept that I like dancing around to both Ke$ha and One Direction) to lesser known indie bands, to my growing love of EDM (thanks to my brother). So this won’t be exciting, but hopefully it’ll clue you into what’s playing in my head.

Wednesdays: Book Blog! A bit different from Monday’s entry. This one will take my favorite book I’ve been reading (or perhaps an old favorite) and do a full review. I’m debating a couple different styles. I can either do a more review style with some fun extra categories (think in the FYA vein) or I’ve considered a reaction style post, where I recap the book as I’m reading it. The latter would have more spoilers, but get more into my thoughts as I read. I’ll let y’all chime in down in the comments about whether you prefer reviews to be spoiler free, or like the idea of more detail. Whatever book does get put here will get a brief mention in the previous Monday’s post, so if you wanted my quick opinion before going to a review, that will still be available.

Thursdays: Rewind Recap! Keeping up on recapping current TV shows is fraught with problems for me. I don’t have DVR so I have to watch life. But contrary to popular opinion, I have a life! (I know right, who would’ve thought). Plus there are plenty of great recappers out there and the world doesn’t really need another one added to the mix. So I’m going to stick to lesser recapped shows, or older ones that are harder to find recaps for. Right now, the plan is to finish covering Dance Academy, with at least 2 episodes covered a week. As for after that, I’ve got a few choices in the poll at the end of this entry, so please vote or submit your choice.

Fridays: I Can Be Opinionated. This should not be new information for any of you. But basically, Friday’s posts will be for me to get all editorial on y’all. On whatever topic I feel like.

Saturdays: Foodie Fun! I like cooking. I like baking. I like making epic failures in the kitchen just to find something that does work. My goal is to have at least a main dish and a dessert recipe, complete with my thoughts and tips on here each week. This week’s (for those wondering) will be crockpot brisket and white cupcakes with raspberry filling & lemon buttercream frosting.

Sundays: Roundup! This will sort of be my catch all post. News, videos, thoughts on movies, fanfic recommendations, favorite tattoos, whatever have been highlights of the week that I haven’t covered, that’ll be on Sundays.

Where you can find me:

Twitter: @onlymystory I’m on twitter the most out of anything else so that’s the easiest place to talk to me, ask questions, suggest a book that I must read, give me a recipe to try, tell me why I’m an idiot, or gush about the cast of Teen Wolf & The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. (I’m obsessed).

Tumblr: onlymystories Getting just slightly less attention than twitter, tumblr is one of my favorite places. I don’t have a fandom specific blog, though it is pretty Teen Wolf heavy right now. I do tag most fandom posts however, so if you want to follow and tumblr savior a few things, I’d recommend it. For those who share my love of shirtless werewolves, I’m always open to talk about the characters, theorize over future plotlines, answer questions about any of the fanfics I’m writing, or take prompts. Seriously, I don’t bite.

Pinterest: Onlymystory I have a pinterest. I update it fairly regularly. I have a variety of boards so I guess you can decide if it’s worth following or not. But there it is.

Obviously this is my blog. I’m never NEVER on facebook. Like missed a friend’s wedding shower because that was the only way invitations got sent out and I didn’t check it for 3 months level of never on facebook.

My cafepress store MusicBlend. The name doesn’t fit at all. Once upon a time it had music-related gear only. Now it’s mostly movies & TV show inspired stuff. Feel free to check it out and/or make requests.

Storenvy: I make crafty type things!

Goodreads: I’m trying to be better about reviewing each book I read so if I don’t have it reviewed in detail on here, check that out for an additional perspective.

Fanfiction or AO3: If you’re curious about my fic writing preferences, there’s a half-finished TVD story (that probably won’t get finished at this point because my interest is nearly non-existent), a lot of Teen Wolf stuff, and a few Suits stories. I slash ship like crazy. FYI.

So yeah that’s me! Remember to vote below on the show I’ll recap after Dance Academy and feel free to leave any suggestions.

Back when Ordinary People aired and subsequent episodes, I and most other recappers had a lot of criticisms of the Viking thing. And its still sort of been a bit of a joke I think. Like oh sure werewolf Vikings showed up down in Virginia  like a thousand years ago instead of the werewolves being natives and naturally Alaric has a degree in runes. I’m still doubting the Alaric part but I’ll refrain from speaking ill of the dead. #RIP

But um, werewolf vikings? Actually spot fucking on. Like to the point that I sort of want to send baskets of mini-muffins to the TVD writers room. So werewolf legend typically originates in two places; Greek Mythology (the legend of Lycaon) and Norse Mythology (Fenrir, son of Loki–that would be the Avengers reference–and of Asgard). Yes, my nerd is showing, shush. The Originals being from Eastern Europe ties them into both Greek or Norse legends because the Vikings did quite a bit of settling in that area, just like the Greeks way back when. But since we’ve got runes in a cave in Virginia, I’d say the writers went with a Norse influence.

I mean you’ve got Vikings who are all wrapped up in their Norse mythology so if you’re going to have werewolves in what will be America, of course they’re going to be Vikings. And they’re going to use runes to write in because that’s their form of writing at the time. I’m just kind of flailing right now because it all actually does click together. You’ve got werewolves searching for a new home, a place where they would be safe and free, not only because Europe is slowly being settled (not fast, hello this is like 980 AD) but also because people back then would still believe in werewolves, so there were probably a lot more hunters. But getting a witch to tell you about another world where you could be free? Yeah if I’m a werewolf pack, I’m so jumping on that. 

And with the whole Viking heritage in their Norse bones, they’ve got a better chance of making it across the Atlantic. Naturally they still want to keep a record of their history, hence the runes. This might be only making sense to me (which happens an awful lot) but my brain is basically realizing that it actually all weaves together a hell of a lot better than any other theory I had before. Like it fits. I love when mythology fits together.

So on that note, sorry I spent so long doubting you Vampire Diaries writers on this point. But seriously, where did Alaric learn to translate runes? Because I still can’t find that correspondence course from the University of Phoenix.

So About Those Viking Runes on The Vampire Diaries…

1) Minimum wage for servers in most states is $2.13 an hour. This loosely translates to “we are going to pay you just enough to cover your taxes so please don’t ever expect a pay check.” Some states pay up to $4.00 an hour but this is often in cases where servers don’t make as much. There are a few states who pay servers decently. California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, & Hawaii pay between $7-9. So when servers say they work for tips…THEY MEAN IT.

2) Having a bad day as a server (or any tipped employee) is very different from having a bad day at an hourly paid job. See let’s say your cat died yesterday. You’re upset about this, understandably, but unfortunately you only get so many sick days and this isn’t the kind of situation that work will be okay with you using as an excuse. So you go to work and you’re kind of grumpy and maybe not that helpful or cheerful with customers. But the thing is, even if you piss off every customer that day, you’re still getting paid the same amount per hour.

Now let’s contrast that with the server who’s cat died. She goes to work and is equally sad but rather than breaking down in tears, just chooses to not really talk much and isn’t very interested in smiling. You know what 95% of her tables will assume? That she’s a bitch. Rude, mean, etc. She’ll probably get a lot of comments along the lines of “geez, crack a smile” or “who died” and as much as she’d love to get pissy, she can’t. And then she’ll get crap tips and have to deal with putting off paying that overdue bill a couple more days. All because her income relies on making other people happy, and other people don’t like to give a server a chance to have a bad day.

3) On the other side of #2, don’t feel like you always have to give that server the benefit of the doubt. Some servers are shitty. You can always keep an eye out, do they stand around talking? Ignore your needs? Or are they just busy? I give servers a lot of leeway. But I once had one who after an hour of us waiting (and already getting our salads & soups wrong), came by the table & listened to us ask about our food and then said “Oh yeah. Totally forgot to send that to the kitchen. What’d you want again? I wasn’t really listening.” I SHIT YOU NOT. Believe me, I made loud complaints.

4) How to complain about your food is not that difficult. The type of customers who get their food spit on are not people who merely request for a fix. I could tell you horror stories about the things I’ve seen. But the people who get treated like that are the ones who cuss at servers and grope their waitresses and are total assholes. They aren’t the people who didn’t want mushrooms in their spaghetti.

If there is something wrong with your food, I suggest two ways to complain. If it is in fact the dish you wanted but something was left on that you didn’t want and you can’t pick it off, blame allergies. Just tell the server that you have an allergy to it and unfortunately will need a new dish. All the server has to do is walk back & tell the kitchen. (Do remember that it takes longer to fix a steak than it does pasta). If you were supposed to get something, say avocado on a sandwich, just ask for it to be brought out on the side unless it absolutely screws up the taste to add it yourself. I say on the side because if you take even a bite of your food and then send it back, most restaurants will (and all should) make you a brand new dish. This is due to health code but you’ll be waiting longer for your food. And if it’s the wrong dish completely? Take the blame and ask it to be fixed. Look, I’ve served for years. 9 times out of 10, the customer orders one dish and means another. So just tell the server that you clearly weren’t paying enough attention and meant to order a different dish and could they switch it. You can always blame allergies again.

The thing is, most of us servers are more than happy to fix your meal. We want a good tip and that means you shouldn’t have to feel bad about saying you don’t like what you’re eating or the order was wrong. Just don’t do it in a way that berates the server. Asking nicely really does go a long way. And again, if the food is wrong, don’t negate the tip. A lot of people are involved in the process & it is not necessarily the server’s fault.

5) Bad service is slightly different. If the server is flat out being an ass, inappropriate, or says they purposely ignored you (and yes, there are servers who do that), by all means complain and stiff their sorry ass. They have no business being that level of rude. But if it’s the kind of service where there were a few mistakes or your drinks sat empty a little longer than you’d like, that kind of thing…just tell the manager that you weren’t satisfied. Explain that you understand people have bad days or get distracted but you had expectations from your meal and they weren’t met. Most managers will comp your meal or comp a significant portion of it. In this case, you should still tip. Stick to the standard (18%) but tip on the original price of the meal.

6) If you use coupons or gift certificates, please tip on the original amount. The server did the work for it. Standard tip percentage for waitstaff is 18%. More is always nice if you have good service. A couple other things to consider are refills and how long you were there. Like say you go to a soup/salad place and are brought 4 refills. Your bill might only be $8 but you had $32 worth of soup & salad at any non-unlimited establishment. I’m not saying you have to tip on a full $32 but at least consider doing more than throwing down a dollar.

Also, servers have specific sections in a restaurant, usually with 3-5 tables. An average table turns (ie a group sits and eats and finishes their meal) in 60-90 minutes. So if you come in with friends and stay for 3 hours, eating and drinking, that’s your prerogative. But remember that you are depriving that server of additional income. So toss in a couple extra dollars.

6) If you are the type of person who likes to make lewd comments at your waitress, stay at home. If you have friends like this, don’t try and laugh it off as though he doesn’t mean anything by it or pretend to ignore it out of embarrassment. Your server has done nothing to deserve being objectified or groped and you should be calling out that person. If you don’t, well there are three types of servers out there. The ones who smile and put up with it and behind every smile is a shudder and a go fuck yourself. The ones who get upset and get another server to take care of the table. And the ones like me. As in you wouldn’t be the first guy to have his shoulder dislocated while his face gets shoved in his spaghetti.

7) Dine and ditch isn’t funny. Period. You think oh oops neither person remembered to pay or you might have skipped out because obviously the restaurant can afford to cover the cost of one meal. A mom & pop place can’t. A corporate chain? Yeah, they can handle the cost. But the thing is most of those individually owned restaurants will cover the cost of the meal and not expect the server to. The chains put the blame on the server. Every chain I’ve worked in has a three strike at most policy on people skipping out. After three dine & ditches, you get fired. Even though it’s almost never the server’s fault. Short of handing you your bill and standing there until you hand me payment, I can’t guarantee that while I’m in the back getting another table’s food together, you won’t skip out.

So what happens is most servers do what is called eating the bill. As in we pay for it out of our tips. It’s better than risking getting fired. But that means your $40 meal just meant I can’t put gas in my car. Or buy groceries. Or pay for a babysitter the next night for my kid to try and make up that lost money. Skipping out on a meal doesn’t hurt the restaurant. It hurts the server. DON’T DO IT.

Finally, please remember two things. If you can’t afford to tip, you can’t afford to go out to eat. Second, servers are people too. A little respect and common courtesy goes a long way.

So the basic concept of crescent roll ups are to put your filling in the crescent roll, roll it up and bake according to the crescent roll package instructions.

Pizza rollups: pizza sauce, pepperoni and mozzarella cheese. Of course, just like with pizza, you can change things up. I usually add sausage & black olives to mine.

Southwestern: Black beans, sharp cheddar cheese, white onion, and cilantro. I like to dip this one in salsa when I’m eating them.

Chicken Alfredo: Alfredo sauce, shredded chicken, green onions, and green peppers with a little asiago cheese. This one doesn’t need a ton of sauce. I go with a spoonful on the crescent, then the filling, then one more spoon on top.

Veggie: Broccoli and cheese. For this one I recommend a blended cheese, like a 4-blend Mexican cheese or 3-blend Colby Jack. Load up on both the cheese and the broccoli for the best taste.

Wonton Style: Crab meat, green onions, and cream cheese. You can spice this one up with garlic or cayenne but it’s great on it’s own.

Chicken Parm: Chicken fingers, mozzarella, and spaghetti sauce. I haven’t actually had the chance to try this one yet but I can’t wait to test it out. I will probably add a little garlic for personal preferences.

Enchilada: Enchilada sauce, shredded meat (beef, chicken, or pork), finely chopped white onions, and cheddar cheese. This one is a big favorite of mine. I usually don’t roll this one though, instead I roll the crescent into squares and make like ravioli pockets out of them, that way I can get more sauce inside. Then I mix sour cream with a spicy salsa and heat it up on the stove for a dipping sauce.

*And when I said ravioli just now I got an idea to try doing a few others in a more ravioli style and frying the dough. I will keep y’all updated on how that turns out.*

Chocolate & Peanut Butter: Nutella, peanut butter, and a piece of a chocolate bar. Make sure to spread the first two ingredients out or you get a convoluted mess (yes, I made this mistake).

Apple Pie: Apple pie filling. Top with whip cream & caramel sauce out of the oven. You can do this one totally homemade but it’s so much easier to buy filling.

Berry: Mix equal amounts of cream cheese with powdered sugar then smear a generous portion on a roll and then dump on the berries of your choice.

Pumpkin: Pumpkin pie filling, cream cheese, and cinnamon. Another one that’s great with whip cream on top.

So what are your favorite crescent rollup ideas?

I know one of my problems is that I’m kind of stuck in a Teen Wolf rut. Which isn’t the worst rut in the world to be in, OBVIOUSLY, but it does make it frustrating that other than Vampire Diaries, I can’t seem to find much excitement about other shows. Even the prospect of shirtless Wade has done nothing to get me to watch Hart of Dixie so clearly, there are problems.

Anyone have suggestions on how to fix this? Or any shows that might knock my humdrum attitude away?

That aside, here are some of my suggestions for recaps and discussion opportunities. Also note that these are my favorites. There are other great recappers out there, these are just the ones I focus on.

Vampire Diaries: Obviously one of my favorite shows so I read more recaps.

Both Erin (http://www.winestainedlife.com) and Iphignia (http://www.iphignia939.dreamwidth.org) are excellent choices for reaction recaps. Both tend to give a minute by minute reaction which I love because I can then see if other people thought the same things I did. Twitter moves so fast during the show that I miss that sometimes.  I’ve always loved Sarah’s (http://www.offcolortv.com) recaps but she’s taking a break this year and brought in @TikisGrandad to do recaps. The first one was utterly hysterical so I encourage you to add it to your must reads. As for introspective recaps (or ones that love to theorize and make me reconsider my own theories), Crissy (http://www.vampire-diaries.net), Lucia (http://www.heroinetv.com) and Cindy (http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com) are excellent choices.

Arrow: I’ll have a lot to say about this show down the road and may do the occasional recap-lite myself on this blog but for now, it’s a must that you read Erin (http://www.offcolortv.com)’s recaps. For starters, she’s got the opportunity to share with us some fun and unknown facts from the set but her first recap was pretty sweet as well.

Supernatural: I don’t watch Supernatural (yet) but my good friend Erin has just started recapping the show at The Televixen (http://www.thetelevixen.com) so be sure to check hers out.

As to specific recappers or recap sites, I’ve got three that I think do a solid job overall. Alan Sepinwall over at hitfix.com recaps-ish a lot of my favorite comedies and he’s got a great community of commenters that help catch pop culture references or soundtrack info.

The AV Club is interestingly enough a site where I half the time disagree with the recappers but I think they are by and large an intelligent bunch who make me think from different perspectives. Plus the comments are smart and insightful, always a plus.

My number one favorite recap site however is OffColorTV. (http://www.offcolortv.com). You’ve got a great group of recappers, all people who genuinely love their shows or love a lot about them (hey some shows suck but still gotta be recapped) and who aren’t shy about sharing an opinion. But the best thing about OffColorTV is the community. Even if you don’t like a recap style, you can usually get a good discussion going in the comments and there are rarely trolls hanging around. (If they do show up, they get shut down pretty fast too). In this day of people spouting off crap under cover of online anonymity, it’s nice to find a group of people who just love to talk about TV.

And of course if you ever want to know my opinions, feel free to talk to me on twitter (@onlymystory) or tumblr (Onlymystories.tumblr.com). I’ve never been shy about sharing and I don’t plan to start now.

Update: I knew I’d be dumb enough to miss one. You absolutely have to read Thomas Galvin’s Vampire Diaries recaps (http://www.thomas-galvin.com).

In the case of TV, this means the shows that I go back to time and again. The ones that I can rewatch any day because there’s always something about it that fits any mood. You’ll notice that some are more obvious comfort food style shows. Others are ones that can spark endless debate or reflection. I love a show where the characters are thoroughly well rounded and real and yet there’s still so much more to them that doesn’t ever make it on screen. Or, I guess it does make it on screen since I can see it, it’s just not exposited. Those are also my go to shows.

Finally, the one constant in all of my favorite shows is the idea of found families. You’re born into a family. Stuck with ‘em. Sometimes we get good ones, sometimes we get bad ones, most of the time we get a mix of good and bad. Some of us spend loads of time around our blood families. Some don’t. But the people who seem more like family to me are the friends I’ve gathered around me over the years. Found family. Give me a show with that and it’ll become an instant favorite.

Friends:

Friends has always been my go to favorite show. It was actually one of the first shows that I watched start to finish. I had to secretly watch at my best friend (who would wonderfully record it), no small feat in 4^th grade when you’ve got super strict parents but I was in love with it. Friends is my show by which I judge all comedy shows. I don’t need cutting edge or subversive in my comedy. (Not that those aren’t great). But for me, I want a bunch of jokes from a group of people that I’d want to hang out with. Basically if you put my favorite tweeps in a room & give us a topic, that’s the show I’d watch.

Friends is the show I watch in a bad mood because it makes me smile. It keeps me laughing when I’m happy. Nearly everyone I’ve met knows exactly what I mean when I start yelling “PIVOT!” A Friends gag reel soothes all pain. If I’m in a mood about not having my life where I want, the early seasons of Friends are perfect. And don’t even get me started on Thanksgiving episodes. There’s comfort food. Friends is my comfort TV.

Fave Season: Season 2. The beginning of grown up relationships, jobs, and life makes for great television. But you can also see that the cast has more than just gelled. They’re friends now and it shows in the easy camaraderie.

Fave Episode: As difficult as it is to choose just one, I really do like Thanksgiving in S10. And my major reason for this is the phone call telling Monica & Chandler they’re getting a baby. I WEEP EVERY DAMN TIME. But please, like I really have just one fave.

Favorite Character: Chandler Bing. Chandler is basically the female version of me. As pretty much anyone who meets me can tell.

Favorite Quotes:
“You could not be more wrong. You could try, but you would not be successful.”
“I fold like a cheap hooker who got hit in the stomach by a fat guy with sores on his face.”
“Isn’t that just kick you in the crotch, spit on your neck fantastic?”
“You have to stop the Q-tip when there’s resistance!”
“The point is moo. It’s like a cow’s opinion, it just doesn’t matter. It’s moo.”

Gilmore Girls:

Oh Gilmore Girls. Honestly this show is a little tricky for me. The first time around I loved it. I loved Rory and Lorelai and Luke and the town. And until Logan showed up, I shipped Jess & Rory like it was going out of style. (Which apparently it was). I didn’t really like the elder Gilmores so I tended to ignore their scenes. I’d watch with friends to see how many pop culture references we could get. And I rewatched every chance I got.

But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve lost some of the comfort I get from Gilmore Girls and gained a greater respect for the show. Because Rory’s not really as admirable as I thought at first. In fact, she’s more like an obnoxious spoiled brat who okay at least has a decent heart most of the time. Actually, no character on the show is as good as I remembered. I’ve found myself liking Dean a lot more and being really frustrated at Jess. And my baby Logan clearly just needs me to comfort him and go live in his magical house with avocado trees. (Seriously Rory, what the fuck were you thinking during down free & unlimited guacamole?”

The thing is though, Gilmore Girls was a damn good show. It was smart and funny and heartfelt and all of the descriptor phases you can think of. But best of all, it represented a place people wanted to be. There are a number of famous places from TV. But in my opinion, the best ones are the ones you wished were real. Central Perk, the Cheers bar, and Stars Hollow. (Yes, there are more. This is a small example). Stars Hollow was the kind of place I wanted to live. Not just visit, but buy a home and stay forever. That’s why it’s a favorite. Because watching an episode feels the tiniest bit like coming home.

Favorite Season: Season 4. I honestly don’t think it’s the show’s best season but it is my favorite. The college dynamic, Paris, and the push towards Luke/Lorelai was wonderful.

Favorite Episode: They Shoot Gilmores, Don’t They

Favorite Character: Paris Gellar. Lorelai Gilmore is one of my all time favorite TV characters. But within the show itself, I’ll actually take Paris. I love her quotes for one (as evidenced below) but I also love the way the character was developed over the years. Paris grew from an utter bitch to a strong, confident, and emotional woman and it is a joy to watch.

Favorite Quotes:
“Oy with the poodles!”
“Copper boom!”
“Like stop eating the paste special?”
“I’m currently one of the women sitting home, thinking, if I could only find a man like Aragorn.”
“Hockey puck, rattlesnake, monkey, monkey, underpants”
“You don’t fall in love with people that make you want to crap your pants.”
“I’m not your mother or your hugger. If you need love, find a hooker. If you’re having a bad day, find a ledge or a way to deal. My door is not open to you, ever. You have five minutes to eat your cookies.”
“People are particularly stupid today, I can’t talk to anymore of them.”
“I just have to cancel everything I have planned for the next three months because I’ll still be laughing my ass off.”
“I heard he controls the weather and wrote the screenplay to Glitter.”

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

It may be listed further down but Buffy is actually my all time favorite show. I mentioned sneaking out for Friends, well I did the same with BtVS. They were my two shows that I wasn’t allowed to watch (or at least the shows I still insisted on watching despite supposed restrictions). Yes I’m a major Whedonite and yes this may be cheesy but I know y’all will understand when I say that Buffy changed my life.

It was the show that inspired me to stand up for what was right but perhaps just as importantly to stand up for what mattered to me. Buffy told me that as a teen girl I was supposed to be smart and confident and tough but that I was also completely allowed to crush hopelessly and fall in love and get my heart broken. It reminded me that friends are the most important people in the world and that your friends can also be the ones whose betrayal hurts the most.

Buffy showed me that the bad guy usually is the bad guy and that high school really does suck and that life doesn’t always get awesome after that. But at the same time it showed me that you fight for the good moments and you fight for other people to have those good moments. It said that it didn’t matter if you might lose, good was worth fighting for.

But most importantly, within Buffy and Cordelia and Willow and Tara, I found heroes.

Favorite Season: Season 3/Season 7. Okay season 3 is kind of a given. It or S2 tends to be a favorite of most BtVS viewers for obvious reasons. Season 3 was big for me because it wasn’t Buffy trying so much to figure out who she was but trying to get other people to let her be herself. Her journey was formative for me. Season 7 is often more polarizing but for me it very much reflected S3. As I’ve gotten older and gone through my own personal hells, it’s made the season all the more powerful and poignant.

Favorite Episode: 3.1 When Buffy, after being beaten down and felt like she needs to disappear realizes exactly who she is, who she wants to be, and that people need her…that’s why I love this episode. She’s supposed to say she’s nobody, nonexistent. But this is Buffy Summers. And no way in hell is that who she is. So she looks her tormenter right in the eye and says very clearly “I’m Buffy. The vampire slayer. And you are?” And then she kicks his fucking ass.

Favorite Character: Oz. I will get further into this one when I do my top 5 favorite TV characters. Just know that he has never and will never be defeated from number one. EVER.

Favorite Quotes:
“Sunnydale: Come for the food, stay for the dismemberment.”
“What is your childhood trauma?”
“In my fantasy when I’m kissing you, you’re kissing me.”
“This is not gonna be pretty. We’re talking violence, strong language, adult content.”
“Hello, salty goodness.”
“The earth is doomed.”
AND A ZILLION MORE.

Teen Wolf:

As of the last few weeks, Teen Wolf not only knocked Vampire Diaries out but also bumped itself above Grey’s Anatomy. Now I highly doubt that it will be able to beat any of the top 3. Okay I know it can’t beat BtVS or Friends. While I love Gilmore Girls though, every time I rewatch that show I get a little more pissed off at Rory so I suppose give Teen Wolf a few more seasons and we shall see.

The thing about Teen Wolf (which I wrote about previously) is that it started out as a fairly cheesy show, geared towards a very specific (and young) demographic. Around the end of the first season though, it turned into a show that basically went ya know what? We’ve got things to say and themes to discuss and some badass shit to show off and we’re just make an amazing show and y’all have to deal with that.

And it’s hard to understand this if you don’t watch a lot, I mean A LOT, of TV but that’s a lot more rare than it sounds. You get the shows like Lost & Game of Thrones & Breaking Bad that are expected to be great and for the most part are. And you get the shows like Gossip Girl & Secret Life that are expected to be awful and are. And nearly everyone else lives up to expectations. Once in a while you can get a stellar episode or a knockout character but most TV finds its fanbase and rolls with it.

There are only a handful of shows that tell a story because they want to, that buck the system for the hell of it, and that still manage to be smart, witty, and ADDICTING. Buffy did it. I think Battlestar Galactica did it. Teen Wolf is doing it. It’ll be interesting to see how Teen Wolf does going into the future but for now, it has become an absolute favorite.

Fave Season:
So far Season 2 nailed it. Again, we’re talking a 2 season show so this could change. But S2 managed to be heartbreaking, exciting, and romantic without ever breaking pace. What truly stood out for me was the introduction of the kanima though. In a supernatural show, one expects the introduction of additional supernatural characters. But the tough aspect can be weaving the mythology together so it makes sense to the core of your show. The Vampire Diaries does a damn good job of that. True Blood is a disaster. So I found it really intriguing that not only did Teen Wolf introduced a new creature that was tightly woven within werewolf mythology, it also used mythology we already knew about to defeat the villain. I’m a million times happier with a show that ends the season making me go “how the fuck did I miss all the clues” than a show that pulls a solution out of their ass. Teen Wolf’s S2 was the latter. They nailed it.

Fave Episode:
1.09. Obviously my favorite scene here is with “Cousin Miguel” because it is just freaking priceless. But the episode is a damn strong one regardless and I think it’s the moment Teen Wolf turns a corner.

Favorite Character:
Stiles. Hands down, across the board, Stiles is my absolute favorite. He’s basically my spirit animal. Or well he and a blend of Seth Cohen are my spirit animals.

Fave Quotes:
“I’m really not into the whole women make you weak Spartan warrior thing.”
“Sometimes the people closest to you are the ones holding you back the most.”
“I’ve been scarlet nerded by you.”
“Smile, because you never know who’s falling in love with you.”
“It’s called heartbreak. About 2 billion songs written about it.”
““Everybody wants to be a hero. Everybody thinks, that when there moment comes, they’ll know exactly what to do. But, not everyone does. And you’ll never know until you’re tested. Because when your friends in trouble, you don’t think. You trust the instinct.”
“FYI: I’m everyone’s type.”
Grey’s Anatomy

If you’ve noticed a theme so far it’s that I like shows that make me feel like I want to belong to the family that’s been created. And that’s very much Grey’s Anatomy. Or to be more precise, that’s very much Meredith’s house. I love love love found families and creating your own family out of friendships. So watching as Meredith let people in and opened up her home and basically created a new family, was exactly what I crave in a show. In fact, you can tell from the quotes I included just how important that is to me. Grey’s Anatomy has had its failures, epic ones, but it’s one of my favorite comfort food shows.

Favorite Season: Season 2. I think a lot of people call this a favorite. It had Denny (pre-ghost sex), an Izzy worth rooting for, a George who wasn’t a complete asshole, people figuring out their places in life and truly compelling ‘medical’ cases.

Favorite Episode: The Kyle Chandler Episode. Okay so I think it’s called something to do with the bomb but please, it’s the Kyle Chandler episode. HOT! And that episode is just plain epic so yeah.

Favorite Character: Alex Karev with Lexie (RIP) Grey a very close second. I actually love Meredith, contrary to a lot of fans but Alex wins. The way he’s grown and developed is fantastic and a great deal of that is due to the very talented Justin Chambers. Now if we could only give him a decent shot at happiness.

Fave Quotes:
“There’s an old proverb that says you can’t choose your family. You take what the fates hand you. And like them or not, love them or not, understand them or not, you cope. Then there’s the school of thought that says the family you’re born into is simply a starting point. They feed you, and clothe you, and take care of you until you’re ready to go out into the world and find your tribe.”
“We’re adults. When did that happen? And how do we make it stop?”
“There’s no such thing as a grown-up. We move on, we move out, we move away from our families and form our own. But the basic insecurities, the basic fears and all those old wounds just grow up with us…We get bigger, we get taller, we get older. But, for the most part, we’re still a bunch of kids, running around the playground, trying desperately to fit in.”
“Sometimes reality has a way of sneaking up and biting us in the ass.”
“At the end of the day faith is a funny thing. It turns up when you don’t really expect it. It’s like one day you realize that the fairy tale may be slightly different than you dreamed. The castle, well, it may not be a castle. And it’s not so important that it’s happy ever after, just that it’s happy right now. See once in a while, once in a blue moon, people will surprise you, and once in a while people may even take your breath away.”
“Boundaries don’t keep other people out; they fence you in. Life is messy, that’s how we’re made. So you can waste your life drawing lines or you can live your life crossing them. But there are some lines that are way too dangerous to cross. Here’s what I know. If you’re willing to take a chance, the view from the other side is spectacular.”

*Note*: A lot of you reading this I’ve met through Vampire Diaries, so you’re probably wondering how I couldn’t put it in my top 5. The thing is, while I love that show with a passion, it’s not at the top of my list for shows I can watch over and over again. Actually, it probably wouldn’t even crack the top 10 list. And that’s not to say it isn’t an amazing show. It absolutely is. It’s just not a go to show.

A week after Stiles and Derek had their impromptu make-out session, the pack was gathered again for a meeting. They’d actually had the pack meeting two nights ago, tonight was supposed to be training but Lydia and Allison said it was important that the pack discuss two important issues tonight.

Derek was trying to be more supportive of his pack as a whole and let them lead discussions. On the one hand, this made sense to him. His parents had led their family’s pack in much the same way, allowing everyone an equal say. It was always clear however that his mother, as the Alpha, had the final say.

He knew this particular pack of his was different too. It took Stiles pointing it out to him one night (before they’d moved their relationship ahead) that he was drawn to people who were broken. That too made it easier to understand why Allison and Lydia both fit within his pack even better than Scott. The boy wasn’t free from suffering but he hadn’t suffered in the way the others had. And of course Derek had never even considered biting Scott when he first returned to Beacon Hills.

He had felt an odd pull towards Stiles from day one though.

Knowing that his pack didn’t respond well to growls and threats had him doing his best to find other ways to teach them. Deep down, okay way deep down, he craved the comfort his family had. The sense of camaraderie and natural affection between a pack.

But at the same time, things were different. Derek’s parents had also trusted the other pack members to protect the pack. And Derek’s teenage hormones had gotten them killed.

So while he wanted one type of pack, he couldn’t help staying harsh and cold towards his betas and humans. He had to. If he let them do whatever they wanted, someone else was going to end up dead.

“Is this about school starting?” asked Derek. “Because training and pack meetings aren’t stopping.”

“We need to tell Danny,” replied Allison, interjecting quickly. Derek didn’t talk much but when he got started on the need for training and constant vigilance he really could JUST. GO. ON. “He’s been asking questions and if we’re going to keep using his computer skills, he deserves to know the truth.”

“Why? This isn’t an extracurricular,” questioned Derek. He had no problem with bringing Danny into the pack, in any way that Danny wanted to join but his pack needed to understand there had to be reasons. This wasn’t a club with members only jackets as their secret identifier.

“Heh,” laughed Stiles.

“What’s so funny?” asked Scott.

“I was picturing everyone in Members Only Jackets,” answered Stiles, still snickering.

“Bet you’d look good in one,” said Derek to Stiles in a low voice, momentarily distracted.

“Bet you’d look good out of one.”

Okay now Derek was really distracted. Especially by the way Stiles kept flicking his tongue along his lower lip.

Erica waved her hand. “Hi, just a reminder that we can all still hear you.” She wrinkled her nose. “And smell you. Really Derek?”

“Not all of us,” Lydia snipped. “Though it’s not exactly hard to imagine.”

Derek gave half a glare before coming to a realization. “Wait, you all know?”

A chorus of yeses, accompanied by groans from Jackson and Scott immediately followed.

“Dude, your heart literally does a pitter patter when Stiles walks into a room,” said Jackson, rolling his eyes.

“That’s adorable,” squealed Allison as both Derek and Stiles turned varying shades of red.

“It is kinda cute,” agreed Isaac quietly from his seat at Stiles’ feet.

Stiles leaned forward and ruffled the kid’s hair. “Thanks, Isaac.”

“Not that this isn’t fascinating,” said Lydia, “but can we get back to Danny?”

“Yes,” said Derek and a hint of the Alpha’s command was in his voice. He didn’t really mind the teasing, it was just the idea that his feelings might be deeper than he realized that gave him pause. He knew he liked Stiles. A lot. And he definitely wanted Stiles on a physical level. In fact keeping it to just make-out sessions had been difficult but he knew that was what Stiles wanted right now.

But more than that? Derek wasn’t so comfortable with that. The last time he loved someone, he got people killed. He knew Stiles wasn’t Kate, by any means. But he was still the same guy who couldn’t protect the people he loved. He couldn’t risk that as an alpha. Derek shook away his confusing thoughts when he noticed Isaac looking at him with a worried expression. The kid was far too observant.

“Fine,” said Derek, interrupting Lydia’s list of reasons why Danny should be told. “Danny’s in. If he wants it. Lydia, I suppose you and Allison will be telling him since you brought it up?”

“No,” interjected Jackson firmly. “I’ll talk to Danny. He’s my best friend.”

Everyone but Lydia turned to stare at Jackson in surprise. He had been drastically improving on his personality since he lost the kanima aspect but he never volunteered for anything. And the douchebag attitude was still slow to fully go away.

Lydia however knew that while the outward signs were emerging slowly, Jackson was a very different person now. She also remembered very clearly the day she’d walked towards Jackson’s house, just a few days after the kanima part of him had been killed, trying to figure out what to say.

*Flashback*

Lydia dragged her feet for the first time in her life. She needed to talk to Jackson. That much was clear. And while she’d practically forced Peter to explain exactly what happened to her, it become quickly evident that Jackson had been just as fucked up as she had been. Maybe the two of them could figure out what was going on with their lives now.

At the same time, something was giving her pause. She didn’t really know who else to talk to but she also didn’t really feel like Jackson needed her. It wasn’t in his usual asshole way either. It just felt like she couldn’t really help him. She just didn’t know who could. So she walked a little slower and tried to figure it out.

Meanwhile Jackson was pacing back and forth on his front porch. He had what he wanted. He was a werewolf, whatever the hell that actually meant.

Except he’d also been a kanima. No one had really been telling him what that meant, and now that he knew he could understand why. He’d finally gone to Scott and forced him to tell him what happened.

And now Jackson sort of felt like flinging himself off a roof. He knew he was an asshole. He knew he could blame a little of it on his parents being dead and the fact that he never really felt like he belonged anywhere. But he also knew most of it was because he just chose to be an ass and got away with it.

But now? Now Jackson was stuck knowing that his issues had turned him into a controllable monster. He’d killed people. Not in self-defense or for justice but because of the sick desire for revenge from a messed up teenager. Matt didn’t even have good reasons! The only death Jackson wasn’t feeling guilty over was Isaac’s dad. And yeah Scott told him that Matt was to blame and it wasn’t Jackson’s fault but it still felt like it was. If he hadn’t gone to Derek with the wrong reasons to become a werewolf, he wouldn’t have been so easily turned into a kanima.

He just didn’t really know where that left him. Derek hadn’t found him yet so he wasn’t really sure if he was supposed to be part of the pack. He wanted to be. More than he thought possible. In fact he was willing to do whatever Derek said if it meant he wouldn’t be left alone. The problem being of course that right now, he was very much alone.

“Jackson?”

A voice came from the walk up to his house. Jackson turned to see Danny standing there, looking worried.

“Danny? What are you doing here?”

“You haven’t been in school for a while and then yesterday at the store you said thank you to the sales clerk. I’ve never heard you do that,” explained Danny. “I thought maybe you could use a friend.”

Jackson stopped pacing and sank to the floor. “Am I really that horrible of a person? That being polite is what makes people think I’m messed up?”

“Yes,” answered Danny. He wasn’t about to sugarcoat things for Jackson.

Jackson stared at him in disbelief.

“But you know you don’t have to be, right?” continued Danny. “You could be the guy who says please and thank you and holds the door open for people.”

“You really think I could be better?” asked Jackson in a quiet voice. He had folded his arms over his knees and now dropped his head into his arms. “I don’t know if I can.”

“I know you can be better,” asserted Danny, sitting next to Jackson on the stairs. “You just need someone who believes it until you do.”

Danny was the only person in the world that Jackson knew how to be honest with. Or real with. And he was also the only person that he would ever let see him cry. “I’ve been an awful person, Danny,” he choked out. “And a horrible friend.”

“I know,” said Danny. He reached out and wrapped his fingers around Jackson’s hand, not moving it, just sitting quietly. Trying in a small way to comfort his best friend. “We’ll work on that too.”

Lydia’s lips turned up in a soft smile and she brushed away a tear as she stood at the edge of Jackson’s yard. She couldn’t hear what was being said and the boys hadn’t noticed her. But she could see Jackson’s hand curl around Danny’s, clinging to the comfort it offered. Something told her he would be okay.

*End Flashback*

Stiles seemed to sense that it was better to move on than to dwell on Jackson volunteering. “You said two things?”

“Oh yeah,” answered Allison, turning back from where she and Scott were making googly eyes at each other. “Well, um, the thing is…” she paused, trying to figure out how to word this next request.

Lydia jumped in, having no qualms about decorum. “We need to fix the house.” Of course, she also knew that Allison was kind of the wrong one to actually bring up this issue, seeing as she was still an Argent.

“Excuse me,” said Derek.

“It’s a mess, Derek,” continued Lydia. “And if we’re supposed to keep meeting and training and acting like a pack, we need more than an abandoned train station and skeleton of a house to do it in.”

Erica decided to add her two cents. “We could turn this place into a training area as well. The rail cars and equipment do give us something to work off.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” commented Scott. “We can also…”

“No,” stated Derek firmly.

“No, we can’t train here or no, we can’t fix the house?” asked Scott.

“No, we aren’t doing anything to the house.” Derek wasn’t interested in a discussion on the matter either. His home was not going to become a group project.

“Derek,” said Stiles, putting a hand on his leg, “maybe it isn’t the worst idea. If we do it right.”

“I said no!” Derek snarled and shoved Stiles’ hand aside, standing up as he did so. “End of discussion.” He used the full power of his Alpha to insure they all knew better than to try going behind his back and stormed out of the room.

“Okay then,” said Lydia. “He does realize this is still a problem right?”

“I can try talking to him later,” allowed Stiles, not wanting to comment too much when he was pretty sure Derek was still listening to them.

Peter sighed. “Let me. I have an idea about where his head’s at.”

Several heads turned to Peter in surprise.

“Yes, I can be helpful,” snapped Peter sarcastically. “We’ll talk about it again at next week’s meeting. Until then, training session tomorrow in the woods. Don’t be late.”

~

Stiles had barely walked into the house when his dad met him in the hallway.

“Stiles, we need to talk.”

“Okay, look Dad I know it’s late and I know I said I’d do better and I swear I will,” began Stiles as an explanation. “It’s just that school is almost starting and Derek wants to be sure everyone is prepared for whatever new disaster is probably lurking around the corner and…”

“Stiles.”

Stiles stopped. “Sorry.”

“I want to talk about you and Derek,” said John.

“Uh, what about me and Derek?” Please don’t let this be a sex talk, please don’t let this be a sex talk, thought Stiles fervently.

“This isn’t a sex talk,” said his dad quickly. “And no, you didn’t say that out loud. I think I know my own son’s facial expressions pretty well at this point.”

“Thank god,” said Stiles in relief.

His dad hesitated before continuing, clearly uncomfortable. “It’s just that I know you’re 18 and I know I said you two act like you’re made for each other in some inexplicable bond but I also know that some things, like sex, are supposed to be important and I just…”

“Dad I know,” interrupted Stiles.

“Do you?”

“Yeah. I mean at the risk of oversharing with my father, I want it. A lot. But I’m also the first person that Derek’s been with, in any form, after Kate. And while I very much want to be the person who allows him to move on, I don’t want to be the guy he uses to forget.” Stiles was actually very clear with himself on that particular topic. He just hadn’t figured out how to explain it to Derek.

“So you’re going to wait?” asked his dad.

Stiles sighed. “I want to know that he loves me first. And I know that may be cheesy and straight out of some crazy ass teen tv show rule book but that’s how I feel.”

His dad just hugged him in response and Stiles chose to sink into the hug, appreciating that no matter what, his dad was always there for him.

“I love you, Stiles,” said John quietly.

“Love you too, Dad.”