Ramblings and Musings of the Insane, Philosophical Ladybug

Frankie Valli released a Christmas album this year! Squeeeee. I saw it at Wal-Mart on Friday and I couldn't resist getting it. Somehow I resisted listening until after Halloween. It is awesome and totally puts me in the Christmas mood. And I adore that he's still working with Bob Gaudio after all these years!

I ended up doing three different things for costuming. At the party, I played Rouge. It was nice to pull out that old costume again, but I still wanted to try some new things too. On Friday, when Wal-Mart was having a party and costume event, I threw together a very bad costume of Lydia from Beetlejuice in her casual clothes. I never could find a pink sash I know we have, so I had to use a scrap of cloth left over from a sewing project. And my hair is too long to stand on end, so I had to settle for a ponytail on top of my head. At least the makeup was in both correct colors, but I had a terrible time getting the purple to show up well.

None of us could find those yellow clothes, so now I'm really worried wondering where they are. But I played April on Halloween anyway, doing a combo of the 1987 and 2014 versions. My aunt gave me some blue jeans for my birthday that are so soft and lightweight and comfortable, so I used those and my tan boots as the 2014 elements. Everything else was the 1987 version.

I'm so glad we went to the Trunk or Treat at the church; there were only two groups of kids who came to our door (aside from one or two that came so early they weren't expected and I couldn't get there in time). I think that's the slowest Halloween we've ever had. It's sad how things have dwindled in recent years. It's strange too, considering how much people are spending for Halloween stuff. You'd think the number of Trick-or-Treaters would increase, not decease.

I've started to warm up to at least one of the new Troll characters, as I figured I would. I like Poppy, who is the leader. She reminds me more of the classic Trolls than most of the characters do, so I would like to get a plushie of her, I think. Probably the Build-a-Bear one, as I'm not impressed by the "fur" softness levels of the more mainstream ones. I might even try to see if I can see the movie. I figured I'd really want to give it a try after all, since I've loved Trolls so much through the years. I've always tried any version of them I could find. I loved the computer game about finding baby Trolls (I was playing it just the other day) and the children's novels about a pink-haired Troll coming to the human world and making friends with a human girl, and I would have tried the series Trollz if I had been aware of it and had access to it when it was on. Regarding Poppy, from the trailers I've gathered that rather than being a naively cheerful idiot, she's a good leader who chooses to be cheerful even though she knows there's a lot of things to be unhappy about. I could be wrong, though.

I finally took some screenshots of Baxter and Barney from my DVDs and am continuing to work on my website. I think I almost have it to the point where I'll let it go live. I still need to decide what I'm going to do with my fanarts, if I should post them on dA and link them, or if I should post them on the website only. People on dA rarely seem to give a darn about stuff I post, so I'm pretty bored with posting there. That, and half the time when I try, dA ends up gobbling memory and I have a horrible time even getting stuff up. Ugh.

I'm still ordering Netflixes from that list Dad made of movies we'd seen many years ago and liked. A Mario Lanza movie came yesterday, That Midnight Kiss (ugh, what a stupidly mushy title). The music was beautiful, of course, and I was totally thrilled that Kathryn Grayson was the girl, as I adore her and her singing. But the movie itself was pretty stupid. Some guy convinces a temperamental tenor to trash his room when he's mad and tear up his contract, because they want to bring Mario's character in as the tenor instead and they have to get that guy to go. And it ticked me off how the girl just couldn't bring herself to sing the operas' love songs with the temperamental tenor, not because he's a jerk, but because he's fat, ugh. But that was the typical attitude of the day, that fat always equaled unappealing. Honestly, I liked the guy okay; in physical appearance he reminded me of Simon. And actually, in some ways he had a perfect right to be angry, considering the way he was being treated at different points in the film. And then there's a huge misunderstanding between Mario and Kathryn's characters and they're both acting stupid refusing to talk things out and she's doing the typical "I hate him! I hate him!" immature nonsense when he sends her good luck wishes and she stomps on the poor roses, yet for some reason when she sees him on stage instead of the other tenor, she's totally thrilled and happy and all anger is forgotten, even though they haven't talked anything out yet. Of course, you're supposed to take it that it's because she really loves him instead of hating him, but I was expecting an explosion on the stage before she calmed down.

At least it's just shallow, stupid fluff, though, and not rage-inducing like Kiss Me, Kate is. Ugh, I loathe that production. The guy is such a jerk I can't figure out what she sees in him. Such an egotistical, abusive creep.... And I hate the whole Taming of the Shrew plot in general. I know about the different alternate interpretations of the plot, that she's not really tamed and she's just letting the guy think she is, but to me it's still a really gross and disgusting story.

And then there's The Toast of New Orleans, which I love for the music while I'm unsure what to make of the plot. On the one hand, I think the idea is simply that the high society types changed the main guy too much and that by making him integrate into their world, they're destroying everything that made him unique, and that of course that's a bad thing. But when part of what they did was simply to teach him good manners, I kind of struggle with the whole thing. The character was very obnoxious and crude and annoying, and I found him far more appealing when he learned good manners. I suppose the idea was more that the girl loved him for his bizarre and unique personality and didn't like it being erased or seeing him stifled, instead of simply saying that him learning good manners was wrong, but I have a really hard time seeing the distinction. Of course, it's not a good thing for anyone to have to be stifled if they're not actually doing anything wrong, but eh, I don't know; the way the movie handled the whole thing kind of bugs me. At least she said "We changed him too much," implying that some of the changes weren't bad, but still.

So a couple of weeks ago I finally solved my dilemma about the Amazon books. I really wanted to get a manga in the order, but I couldn't figure out how to make everything come out to exactly the cost of the gift card. I really felt I couldn't pay any cash with that order, so finally I had to set the manga idea aside and I got the two Pony-related books and two Nancy Drews.

The package was delayed because of weather problems and other such things. I was worried it might show up waterlogged. Thankfully it didn't, but whoever packed things couldn't do a good job. The one paperback in the order, the Pony U.N.C.L.E. parody, showed up completely dog-eared on one corner. Half the pages in the book were also bent at that corner! WTH? I don't know whether it was packed stupidly and happened then or if the book was damaged to begin with. I was absolutely furious. I'm still not sure what to do about it. Returning and replacing things online is such a pain, and that was probably the book I was looking forward to the most, so I hated to think of waiting even longer to get to read it. But I don't like always having to settle for damaged merchandise when I order paperback stuff from Amazon, either. I really chewed them out when I bought comics from them and they were packaged really stupidly and all showed up bent. I wonder if Barnes and Noble packs things better. They also have the free shipping with $25 of books deal. The problem there is that I don't have B&N gift cards, so I'd have to pay cash.

(Oh, I miss Borders so much. I was actually in the area where it used to be a couple of days ago and I spent some time just staring out the window at its location across the street. They were so much better than B&N. They actually had discounts in general and coupons for more than 15% off. And they generally had a bigger selection of stuff, except Nancy Drews, but now B&N's selection of those is lame too.)

I ended up reading the book last night. Of course it was a quick read and meant for kids, so it didn't get too deep, but I was intrigued that it touched, albeit briefly, on Bon Bon being weary and wanting to leave the secret agent stuff behind and have a peaceful life now. I would kind of like to expand on that in a fic sometime. And it ended happy, with her and Lyra still in the organization but being able to stay in Ponyville when not on missions. Also, the secret agent place was in New York (well, their New York) and it was accessed through a fridge in a pizza parlor. LOL.

The Equestria Girls book was really interesting. It takes place after the third movie and a large part of the plot is the human Twilight trying to befriend the girls from her old school. At first I was puzzled that it only focused on Sunny Flare, Sour Sweet, and Sugarcoat. But then I realized that the other girls, Lemon Zest and Indigo Zap, were already pretty nice people and probably didn't need any serious help turning their lives around. Lemon Zest is seriously adorable, definitely among the most normal of the girls at Crystal Prep, and so is Indigo Zap, basically. The other three are all kind of dysfunctional in various ways.

I don't think the author really captured the girls' personalities well, though. Sunny Flare was depicted as the nastiest of the bunch and the one most unkind to Twilight and worried about her turning into a monster again. That just doesn't fit to me, because while she was definitely nasty early in the movie, she was the one who called out Principal Cinch for trying to run away, and she looked really horrified and upset when Cinch said she was trying to get away from "that monster" and Sunny Flare should do the same. Sour Sweet was really the nastiest to Twilight in the movie.

Not once did the author do Sour Sweet's trademark of first saying something fake and nice and then following it up immediately with her true feelings, always a burn. She did occasionally do Sugarcoat's trademark of being very blunt, but it seemed more like she gave that trait to Sour Sweet.

I also didn't agree with the author writing that either Sunny Flare or Sour Sweet said they were Twilight's friends (and they were also apparently on her Friends list on Facebook). Not once in the movie did they ever act like they were interested in being her friends; they only interacted with her when circumstances forced them together. Sugarcoat was really the only one of those three who acted like she might be what Twilight considered a friend. And then Lemon Zest was really nice and didn't seem to have anything against Twilight at all. Indigo Zap kind of thought Twilight was an idiot, but she "defended" Twilight when the Canterlot High students started wondering what she was up to, which was kind of cute. (Although she probably only did it because Twilight was a Crystal Prep student, not because she really cared about Twilight personally.)

The author also set it up that Sour Sweet, Sunny Flare, and Sugarcoat were supposedly friends, but weren't happy together. The first two hung out together in the movie and really seemed pretty chummy to me. Sugarcoat, on the other hand, really gave the impression of being a loner.

I did love that Twilight eventually did make friends with them in the book and things ended happy for all of them, instead of them just being portrayed as one-dimensional characters that wouldn't change. But to be honest, I kind of think I could write a better story with that basic plotline that would stick closer to canon regarding personalities. I'll admit that Sunny Flare's personality is the most underdeveloped in the movie, but I don't think it was fleshed out in the book in a manner that fits with what we did see in the movie. Maybe I can try to start writing a story like that and see what happens.

Then last night I started randomly singing Unleash the Magic to myself. It's sung in the movie by Cinch and the Crystal Preppers as they try to tempt Twilight to, well, unleash the magic she's collected in her mystical pendant. I was considering maybe trying to record it and do all the voices. Cinch would be a blast to voice, although I probably wouldn't be able to sound as nasally as she does. But so I got to the line "I understand you have your reservations/it's hard to have a brain as large as yours" and suddenly I wondered if it wasn't just a line of manipulation, but something Cinch personally understood. I finally listened to the commentary track for that movie and they were wondering what her backstory is. Now I'm wondering if she was a smart outcast like Twilight growing up and if in some way, she is a dark version of what Twilight could have become had she remained an outcast. She certainly is smart and calculating and loves knowledge. And even though she seems to be very arrogant and egotistical and is worried above all about her reputation, I'm not entirely sure she was worried for completely selfish reasons. As she told Twilight, it was her reputation, and the school's, that was responsible for everything they had to work with. If the reputation dropped, they might not have all the funding and other things they needed to function properly. So honestly, I could understand her worrying about keeping up appearances to some extent, although of course she took it way too far and her manipulation of Twilight throughout the movie was horrid.

Another thing the commentary track mentioned was that an early draft of the script had Cinch fall through the gaping portal hole created by Twilight when she flipped out and became Midnight Sparkle and Cinch ended up a horrible monster in Equestria. They changed that because it seemed too mean. I agree, honestly. Maybe it would have been poetic justice, especially after how she ostracized Twilight's transformation considering she encouraged her to use the magic, but I wouldn't have wanted her to stay like that permanently or be stuck in Equestria. That's more like what a show like TMNT might do, or maybe even the U.K. Pony comics of the '80's and '90's, but it doesn't fit for something sweet like the current My Little Pony series and movies.

Speaking of TMNT, though, the new movie came out today! Eeeee! And hopefully I'll get to see it next week! I actually really loved the movie two years ago; I thought it was great overall and I loved that there was scarcely anything crude and it was largely absent of swearing. I was very surprised and impressed by that. And to be honest, I really think I liked that movie better than the one called TMNT that came out about nine years ago. (Oh gosh, that long ago? Seriously?) While that movie was cute too, it had some things I didn't like, such as April and Casey living together while not married, and how they made it look like only Raph did something bad during the fight between him and Leo. Honestly, it was kind of interesting how they had Leo finally snap and say something really awful to Raph ("I'm better than you"), but it was spoiled by neither Leo nor the script acknowledging that Leo did something wrong as well as Raph. That was just seriously WTH?

Well, at least that film contributed to my loving Raph more. He scared me as a kid because of his bad temper. That still scares me a bit, but I'm mostly seriously intrigued by him and he's replaced Donny as my second-favorite Turtle.

I still need a Mikey figure. Even though he's my least favorite, I want to have a complete set of Turtles. I just wish the figures weren't so expensive these days. It costs almost $9 for one from any current Turtles line! And that's the cheapest price, since it's Wal-Mart's. I've checked other places before and they've been worse.

(Amusing note: just about each Turtles figure I have is from a different line. My Raph, and my Fugitoid, are from the 1987 TV series. My Leo is from the second movie. My Donny is from a line that looks more like the comics. And my Casey Jones is from the 2003 series. I need an April too. Not having her is sacrilege. And Splinter. Actually, I'd kind of like another Raph too, since my Raph is a space suit Raph and even though I love him dearly, I'd like one that's just normal Raph. But then I'll probably feel guilty to have two Raphs and not two of everyone else. Heh.)

I also want Mikey and Donny plushies. I had thought of getting Build-a-Bear's Mikey, but their new Mikey has a different face than the old one, I think. The old one was just cute, but this one's expression is seriously obnoxious. And then with Donny, I always planned to get him from the same line as my Leo, since I'm not crazy about Nickelodeon's redesign of Donny and it's less obvious with those big pillow plushies. But I didn't want Mikey from that line too, since they all have the same expression and that's kind of WTH. That was why I got Build-a-Bear Raph instead of pillow Raph.

And then I was thinking that while the 1960s and 1970s fascinate me, it seems to be the 1980s that I have some serious nostaglia for. Which is funny because I don't even remember the 1980s. By the time I was old enough to remember much, it was 1990. But so many things I loved from my childhood are from the 1980s to begin with: Ponies, Mario, TMNT, DuckTales, Gummi Bears, Pound Puppies, Care Bears, Garfield (well, he started in the late 1970s, but he sure got popular in the 1980s), Baby-Sitters Club, Alf, the latter two Star Wars original trilogy movies.... Most of my paper dolls had 1980s fashions. We had a couple of huge catalogs, a Sears Wish Book and a J.C. Penney's equivalent, both from the 1980s, that I just adored looking at again and again. And when I go to antique malls, it's the 1980s toys that send me into serious nostalgia trips. Sometimes I remember happy times of playing with 1980s toys with friends in the 1990s. When I see shows from the 1980s, especially family or kids' shows like Punky Brewster or the Pony or Care Bear cartoons, the nostalgia continues even though I never saw those when they originally aired. There's just something innocent and sweet and fun and cheesy about that decade. Then there's things that started in the 1990s: TaleSpin, Darkwing Duck, Sonic.... I love those too. And I'm trying to remember when Trolls got a resurgence of popularity, the 1980s or the 1990s. I think the 1990s, but they've existed since the 1960s. Gomer even had a pink-haired one in his foot locker, which Sergeant Carter threw a fit about. ROTFLOL. ("A Troll doll is a non-regulation item!") But I just don't seem to be nostalgic about the 1990s like I am about the 1980s. Weird. I almost wonder if that's because I actually don't remember the 1980s and so it carries a sense of mystery and the ability to place it on a pedestal, whereas I remember the 1990s very well and it just doesn't hold the nostalgia/pedestal factor. I don't think there's one decade I remember that I feel nostalgic about, really. I get nostalgic over experiences and shows, but not decades as a whole.

Had a lovely sleep and very weird dreams. One involved us at the old house doing some very weird laundry. My Hello Kitty was amongst it and so were what looked like baby shoes? Bizarre.

Second dream I remember was still at the old house and I couldn't quite tell whether it was a role-play or really happening. Something about rebels in a place with two moons (one was a giant lightbulb, LOL) and me playing hide-and-seek with a small white cupboard that I climbed in, and then it was a small, white closet and I was hiding behind clothes, and Lando was wandering around outside the closet and I think he's the one who found me. He wondered what the heck I was doing in there.

Third dream was toy shopping at Toys R Us again. I have a lot of those off and on. This one had me looking for Troll dolls again and being excited to find a small one for $1.50. There was also a bigger one in a wedding gown and it had black hair, which I found a hilarious combination for some reason. I was thinking I'd get both of those.

I woke up nostalgic for Trolls some more. I wish that the last time they came out with Trolls, I could have known about it long before I did. It seemed like I only found out a couple of months or so before they started getting rid of them again. Now I hear that Dreamworks has the U.S. distribution rights because they're going to make a movie next year. I was hoping they'd start releasing Trolls ahead of time to start getting people excited for the movie, but they haven't done anything yet.

I always longed for many Trolls, just like I longed for many Ponies. When it comes to being forced to resort to getting things secondhand, it seems better to get Ponies that way rather than Trolls. I don't know; somehow it seems like it would be hard to get Trolls' hair very clean, and if they're wearing clothes, I'd feel like I needed to wash those out by hand (too small for the washer). That would be such a pain. If I got plush, I heard that when getting secondhand plush, you need to keep it in a pillowcase separate from your other plushies for two weeks to make sure all possible bacteria is killed off. I'm just lucky my Darkwing Duck plush was apparently pretty clean, because I didn't know those tips when I got him. I wiped him off with paper towels and that was it; he joined my plushie family that day.

I could get Trolls mint in package so they'd still be clean in there, but that would send shipping prices way up. So bah, it feels like I don't have many options open to me unless Dreamworks does something with their distribution rights. (And unless I like what their Trolls look like.)

My very first Troll was a little keychain Troll with violet hair from All a Dollar. He was a naked one, so I wonder why Dad even let me get him. LOL. Naturally I clothed him when we got home. First I gave him a blue coat that I think belonged to an Alvin and the Chipmunks figure. Later I wrapped a rag around his body to make a piece of clothing. I really thought I was pretty clever to have made it work so well. Unfortunately, I haven't seen him for years. I think he was a fakie, not a Troll by one of the official companies, but I loved him and I wish I knew where he went. I kind of think he fell behind the bed and Dad found him when we were moving? He put the stuff from behind the bed in a specific sack, and I don't know where said sack is. Siiiigh.

I also have a green-haired Troll figure on a pencil that I don't have access to at the moment. I think I know approximately where that one is, though.

I remember when I was a kid and Smith's was actually selling Troll plushies. And it was right when I actually had a check of birthday money. It was December, about a week before Christmas, so either it was a belated birthday present or else I'd had it since October but hadn't decided what to spend it on yet. Needless to say, I was absolutely ecstatic. I rarely saw Troll figures around and plushies were even better! I got a green-haired girl and next week went back for another. The only one left was a red-haired boy, and both copies had things wrong with them. One had something stuck all through the hair (yuck!). The other had a hole and needed sewing. I ended up getting the latter because I wanted one so bad, even though my preference would have been a character they didn't have any longer. I sewed up the hole as best as I could, and I was glad to have another one even though he wasn't my first choice. I think it was a Troll family; the two I have are the kids, and didn't cost as much, and then there were two bigger ones that were the adults and cost more. I wanted the blue-haired one so bad, but he must have been more money than I could spend or I would have gotten him that first time.

I used to play my DOS Trolls game with the plushies on my lap. I used to always have plushies on my lap on the computer. I don't like to do that anymore; they're too distracting! I keep wanting to cuddle and pet them instead of doing what I'm supposed to be doing. Sometimes they make for awkward typing, too. So I put them on the bed I sleep on if I want them close to me while on the computer. Otherwise, they stay on the other bed.

I was so excited when I found that Trolls game at All a Dollar! It was just a Shareware demo, one little level, but I played the heck out of it. More recently I found the entire game online for free and downloaded it. It doesn't have the music, though. Sigh. But I play it sometimes. I can access all the levels and it's so weird and cracky and hilarious. The bad guys are different odd things corresponding to the themes of the levels, like ink wells and pens and pieces of paper are the bad guys in a writing level. Snerk. The only thing I don't like is that there are evil toys in a couple of toy levels. It's too sad to think of toys being evil, especially since there aren't any good toys to counter that. But eh.

My aunt knew I liked Trolls and one year she gave me some cute cheerleader Trolls she had around. Their hair is red, violet, and orange. The orange one has a black and yellow dress, so she looks like a Halloween girl. LOL. Soon after that, my dad actually found a really big rainbow-haired sailor Troll and I got that for Christmas. Squeeee. I think he's technically a fakie, too, but he looks like official Trolls and I love him.

The most recent time Trolls were out, I at last got a blue-haired Troll. I also got a white-haired angel Troll and a yellow-haired Troll dressed like a ladybug. (I had to.) I wanted more, but they were getting rid of them around that time. Sigh.

So, that is my Trolls collection. Oh, wait, as a kid I also had a Trolls sticker book, which thrilled me to no end when I discovered it at Rite-Aid. I also had some Trolls stickers, the kind you stick on things other than sticker books, and I don't know where I got them. It almost seems like they may have been a prize at kindergarten? I don't really think so, though, because I think I was seven when I got them. I stuck them around stuff. I think there's still one or two of them on the dresser I use. I know there's a pink-haired Troll I stuck on my old crib (where we used to put my plushies). Other than that, I can't remember where the stickers are. Maybe there's one on the high chair? Hmmm.

I had Mom make a whole bunch of paper dolls based on the Trolls in the sticker book and on the stickers. I love those. I should get them out of the box those paper dolls are stored in and look at them again.

I remember one time we got this invitation to look around this furniture store and I was in awe because there were Troll plushies all over the display beds and other places! I wanted one sooo bad. This was before I got my plushies at Smith's. I don't recall if the Trolls were available to purchase or if they were just on display. They probably would have been too expensive if they had been for sale at a store like that. But I was in Heaven walking around seeing them all. There was even some guy talking about them to a small group of people. I think he was telling which ones he bought for his kid and when?

I remember Hammon's Toys had Trolls sometimes. Maybe Hallmark did too? But I didn't have money to get them during the times they were there, and Dad didn't want to buy me one because he felt they were both ugly and expensive. Sigh. (That was before the sailor Troll.) But I loved looking at them, at least.

Also, I found it hilarious when I saw the Gomer Pyle episode where he has a Troll doll in his foot locker. Sergeant Carter's expression when he saw that.... ROTFLOL. "PYLE! A foot locker is for regulation items! A Troll doll is a non-regulation item!"

EDIT: Ohmygoshsquee! There's some Troll plushies on eBay in the same line as the ones I've got, and some of them still say New after all these years! They're very reasonable prices, too. Maybe I'll get a couple. Unfortunately, the only copy of the big blue one I wanted years ago is used, and even says it needs cleaning from light soiling. Ugggh. So he's out. There's a really cute pink ballerina, though, and there's a different blue one that says New! Also a yellow one and a pink/purple one that looks like a diva. LOL.

^^ I finished tweaking my blurb, and added the tweaked omake. They can be found here: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3346092/1/ And reviews at FF.net are loved. :) If you've already seen the blurb, please go for the omake! ^^ And I did add in a very important plot point to the blurb that I hadn't remembered when typing it before.

Should I be afraid that I keep wanting to write a story about my angel Troll doll? XD; I wanna write about her death and trying to adjust to the afterlife and being an angel. A very strange subject matter for something as cheerful as a Troll doll, I know. And she doesn't even have a name yet!

And I proved again that the majority of accidents happen in the home. -.- ( Cut for the Squeamish )

I've been finding some awesome FF7 AMVs at YouTube! I'm glad to see that, especially since it's hard to find good fanfics. XD; My favorites, other than the one using Hallelujah, are It's the Fear (featuring Kadaj, Sephiroth, and Cloud), Sleeping Awake (featuring everyone), Just Like You (featuring Kadaj and Sephiroth), and I Think I'm a Clone Now (featuring Kadaj and Sephiroth). I also still love one of the Pretty Fly for a White Guy Reno tributes. XD And Reno and Rude as Ghostbusters is too funny. I also found a Last Order AMV using Out of Control by Hoobastank. Next thing I wanna look for are some good Zack AMVs. Zack's awesome! X3

I also found some clips of Kadaj-tachi Sims. XD First, Kadaj and Yazoo argued and got into a big brawl. Then there was a house fire and everyone was freaking out. Though, the Kadaj Sim seemed to die. ;__; **sniffle.**