Update: October!

This month’s Star Trek post is basically about how the structure of the show lends itself to Kirk/Spock shipping, with particular attention to the famously shippy licensed novel Killing Time. It’s probably the best Trek post I’ve done in a while, if I do say so myself. But it’s certainly the topic that has interested me most, so I hope you enjoy.

I’ve realized I miss doing the occasional chatty update, and don’t get a whole lot out of frequent challenge updates. I always do a bit of an update on the first Saturday of the month so I can link to that month’s Trek post, so it’s convenient to do some chat here too, and that’s the plan for the next little while. I’m moving challenge updates to the end of the year, and pondering what kind of monthly book update would be best, if any… a list of all the books I read in a month seems like it would be real long. On the other hand, I have a personal rule that I have to review any book I rate 5 stars, and I review a lot of 3- and 4-star books too if I feel like I have something to say, but there are other books that slip through the cracks and maybe you’d see something you’d wanna talk about? Let me know if you’re interested.

Of course it just happens to be a time when I don’t have a lot of other stuff going on… I finally finished grad school at the end of July, did I ever formally announce that? I don’t think I’ve ever felt such relief as when I turned in my last assignment and went to my last class. But I’m a Master now, and I started a new job in a library (nothing at all to do with my degree) and I really like it. I’m still getting used to having free time and the energy to use it for stuff. The weirdest part is how long I had to resist taking on volunteer work — the whole time in grad school I was volunteering in museums, taking on extra projects, all the stuff you’re supposed to do. I knew I did not have the wherewithal to keep doing that, I needed a few months to recover from everything (and finish putting some of those extra projects to bed), but it still felt very strange. I’m glad I did it though because I badly needed the reset. Right now I’m focused on finding a more permanent place to live than mostly-student housing, spending time with my loved ones, and starting to write fiction again. I have my eyes open for possible projects like I had been doing, and am engaging with political stuff to the limited extent I am able, but it is very limited.

On October 1, Georgia suddenly realized it’s supposed to be doing fall now and it felt amazing outside. It’s gotten warm again since, but I’m super excited for it to finally be fall so I can not be miserable every time I step into the outside. And I’m looking forward to Halloween, although I don’t have any particular celebrations planned. I’ll be doing a post about spooky picture books soon, and reading The Haunting of Hill House for my Classics Club book this month. I can’t read too much scary stuff because I am timid, but I’ve got some middle-grade books and movies lined up too — Always October, Half-Minute Horrors, Hotel Transylvania. And I try to watch The Corpse Bride and The Book of Life every October because I love them.

So that’s what I’m doing. What are you up to, and what are you reading for Halloween?