Beautiful Fan-made Video

I usually try to avoid the internet where Outlander is concerned. I've seen this beautiful video from Arantxa69 come up on youtube a ton of times and I've always blown it off. But now that I've finished DRUMS (yes - you read that right; commentary to follow) I am starting to get a little bold online. More than halfway there. 4 down... 3 to go, Sassenachs.
Watch this. I don't know if it's the PMS but holy god; it made me cry.

Best. Bree. Line. Ever.

"Do you have any idea how mortifying it is to have your own mother standing up in front of everybody, drawing pictures of penises?!

Dying. Absolutely dying.

Quick Drums Update

SPOILER ALERT: Dinna read until you have read chapter 41,  Journey's End.

Well - it happened. Jamie met Brianna. Yawn. Diana - in her usual Diana fashion - gave us a very anti-climactic meeting, a lot like when Jamie saw Claire again after 20 years. I have to believe she does this for a reason, Sassenachs. I really do. It's one of those times where I just have to close my eyes and TID ("Trust In Diana").

Oh and one more thing:

Dear Mr Nickelodeon,


Thank you, thank you, thank you for a little thing called the "Spongebob Marathon". 


We're snowed in but my children are happy. And my husband is napping. And I am now going to read. There is a couch calling my name next to a fireplace that is blazing bright.



Love, 
Carol

MORE LATER!!!!!!

My New "Fiery Cross" Theory

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read unless you've already gotten to where Roger is on his way to Inverness in DRUMS. Not sure what chapter. At least halfway through. Page 464 or something? I canna remember and my book is in my car an it's way too frigid at the Jersey shore to go outside right now.

OK y'all. I came up with a possible theory this AM and I had to share. So Roger knows that Bree has either crossed - or is crossing soon. *I* don't know if she has crossed or not but will hopefully be finding out shortly. NOW - here's my possibility (not really a prediction yet; not enough info).

I was thinking about Bree crossing this AM... and how Diana is always writing about Roger and we never really get inside Bree's head.  I thought "well I don't want to just find Bree in the past... I want to experience crossing over WITH her." And I wondered if maybe Diana would ever go backwards in time and go BACK over something that we have already read - but in someone else's mind - ie: Bree. It was at that point that I thought "Trask... radio...trask...radio".... no wait - what I really thought was "Bree crossing over....The Fiery Cross....Bree crossing over... The Fiery Cross...  So THEN I thought - WAIT A MINUTE - maybe THE FIERY CROSS isn't referring to the NOUN "cross" at all. Maybe it's referring to the VERB "cross" - and it's going to be about Bree's crossing. And we'll get HER story.

So - in summary - I'm thinking MAYBE the rest of this book will show us Roger traipsing around Scotland, looking for Bree and finding some little adventures of his own. (And maybe a return to LALLYBROCH! Squeeee!) while continuing to tell the tale about Jamie and Claire in the backwoods of North Carolina. And then the Fiery Cross will start off in the future - but at a time we've already covered with Roger, Jamie and Claire while Bree crosses over... and then we'll get to experience her cross over and subsequent adventures and mishaps until her final settlement in North Carolina with Jamie and Claire and her new husband Fergus after Marsali dies of the morbid sore throat. Poor Roger... although maybe he's going to take up with one of Ian's sisters at Lallybroch after their husband ALSO dies of the morbid sore throat. Ahhhh the possibilities....

Oh man. I can't WAIT to read tonight!!! The snow is headed our way (I live in NJ)... I'll have a roaring fire... maybe a wee dram of scotch... and JAMIE! It's truly literary nirvana.

PS - I'm giggling at the thought of Tracey and Sassy laughing their butts off at me if I'm completely off base. But admit it - if I'm wrong - it would be a cool way to do it, would it no?

The Slightly Auburn Earl of Brattiness

SPOILER ALERT: Dinna read unless you're well into chapter 25 of DRUMS OF AUTUMN.

I canna BELIEVE Jamie Jr. is in the states with John Grey. I only just met him at the river, getting his leeches picked off by Claire, and already I'm annoyed with  him. I have this DREADFUL feeling John is going to leave him there to be raised by Jamie... and I'm getting this strange Kramer Vs. Kramer feeling in the pit of my stomach about how it's going to go. I wonder if Claire likes chicken.

OK backtracking a little...I have a burning question: Can someone remind me what happened in Voyager in the cave as far as IAN goes? Shouldn't he have questions about what Geillis was trying to do... and why Claire almost disappeared in front of his face??

ALSO - another complete tangent - not sure if I've mentioned this but it's come up with three people over the course of the last 24 hours: Clearly they CAN change the future if Jamie's grave was in Scotland - but Roger's got a record of Jamie and Claire dying in a fire in North Carolina. (Let's hope they don't burn up because of an explosion in the privy, due to Jamie trying to kill yon rattlesnake.)

Metal Mouth

SPOILER ALERT: Dinna read unless you've finished chapter 23 in DRUMS OF AUTUMN.

HOLY CRAP! THE SKULL IS FROM CLAIRE'S TIME!!!!!!!!! Who IS it???????

OMG this is up-to-the-second commentary. I was going to leave the post like that - but then I read on. THERE IS A PORTAL NEARBY!!! I KNEW IT! I KNEW IT! I knew Diana wasn't going to make Bree go through the arduous task of sailing the 7 frickin seas. I KNEW IT!!! She's going to come over right in NORTH CAROLINA!

Does anyone hear James Taylor playing in the background??? Shall I add him to the playlist? LOL "In my mind I'm going to Carolinaaaaaa"....

PS - I'm just coming the realization that Diana is most-likely going to make me wait until the very end of this book for Brianna to come through. Isna she?

The Ruby Slippers

SPOILER ALERT: Dinna read unless you've finished chapter 23 in DRUMS OF AUTUMN.

I MUST make a prediction here. When Claire's horse threw her and she ended up spending the night under the uprooted tree... are we to assume the Indian took her shoes? I noticed that right away. She got up when the rain stopped - almost at dusk - and went up to the burning tree to get warm. And before she left, she reached around for her shoes but couldn't find them. Then when she got back from the burning tree, she reached around again - this time in the pitch black-  and found the skull, along with the opal. And then the Indian came along - watched her - and left. And then when Jamie and Ian found her, they had that CRAZY-ASSED story about hearing noises outside the window and finding her shoes on the doorstep. Um, is it me or is this ALL SORTS OF BLAIR WITCH people???????  I was TOTALLY freaked out by that story - and yet Claire seemed to "get gooseflesh" and then move on to raping Jamie and having a little grub along with her 19th swig of whiskey. (Friggin HILARIOUS scene, by the way. I loved it. And I've NEVER done anything like that. No siree. Not me.)

I suppose at this point I predict it was the Indian who took Claire's shoes - wore them to her house - and left them there - but why? So they'd find her? Was he being nice? Sounded like he was scary with his Mohawk. Then again - the Mohawks are supposedly friendly with the Indians from Anna Ooka?

Marsali Who?

SPOILER ALERT: Dinna read unless you have read chapter 23 in DRUMS OF AUTUMN.

I am going to start cutting and pasting email because I'm trying to read read read... and I dinna have time to type twice. I email my Outlander Mentor, Tracey quite a bit - and I need to just BLOG rather than email - so she can comment in answer. OK here is the email I sent about Marsali:


Months and years of her story are just mentioned in passing by Claire.. over the course of a few paragraphs while she's thinking back. It's hilarious. She'll go on and on about a stupid argument between Jamie and Duncan - paragraphs and paragraphs.... but then Marsali's return and CHILD are thrown in as an afterthought.

Honestly, I don't really care, as I've never formed any kind of attachment to Marsali. As much as I accepted her in Voyager, she's still the Wee Ho's daughter. Enough said.

A New Banner

Check out this new banner I whipped up (with all my amazing graphic design skills; NOT! I know I suck.) I got the original photo from my friend, Hugh, who happens be from Scotland, y'all. Born and raised. The photo is below - he sees this view from his house near Glasgow. (He calls these mountains in the background "hills" by the way.) Let me tell you something about Hugh: He's got a thick Scots accent and if he wants to mess with your head, he's tremendous at it. Ye willna understand most of the shite coming from his mouth if he lays the Scots on thick. Or worse - if he starts throwing the Gaelic around. He used to fool the wee lassies in college and speak to them in Gaelic - and the dopey girls would just bat their eyelashes at him and say "oh really?" having no clue he wasn't speaking English. It was truly comical.

Jamie Fraser Playlist Nirvana

Holy shite, Sassenachs. I've been making a few additions to the playlist tonight and I am SPEECHLESS at just how much musical goodness I found this evening. It's not in order yet; just head down to the bottom and listen to the new stuff. And make sure you read these LYRICS whilst doing so. "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) is SO Roger. I dinna think I can keep a dry eye at some of the other songs. It's like Jamie is speaking from the grave. Where that grave is, I canna be sure...

Big Country - "Look Away"

This time we run
this time we hide
This time we draw on all the fire we have inside.
We need some time to find a place
Where I can wipe away the madness from your face.
Our name is out
our name is known
Our name is everywhere
but who knows where we're flown.
I never meant to kill a man
But I will show you how to live like no one can.
So look away
look away
Hide your eyes from the land where I lie cold.
Look away
look away from the lies in the stories that were told.
Look away
look away from the love that I hide way down deep in my soul.
I met you wild in a snowed up town
When I was waiting tied and bound to be sent down.
Then I broke loose
you weren't around
So I raised banks and trains until I tracked you down.
Now look away
look away
. . .
You followed me why I said no
You lay with me when there was nowhere safe to go.
We made some friends
but now it's done
I always knew that we would never find the sun.
So look away
look away

Simple Minds - "Home"

God gave me travelling shoes, God gave me the wanderer's eye,
God gave me a few gold coins to help me to the other side.
Looked around and said: be careful how small things grow,
God gave me travelling shoes and I knew that it was time to go.

Sent in the ship at night to take me to the hidden port.
Found me the key at last to open up the prison door.
Brought down the blackbird's wings, gifted me with beggar's eyes.
Sent in the jackals to tell me I should say bye, bye, bye.

I'm home, home,
Home, home, home
And I'm home, home,
home, home, home
But I'm miles and miles and miles and miles and miles away
Where can I hide?

God gave me one last chance, gave me one last reprieve.
Jah gave me hunger, gave me the air to breathe.
Gave me one suitcase, gave me one last goodbye
Gave me travelling shoes, without them I would surely die, die, die

Home, home
Home, home, home (2x)

Miles and miles and miles and miles and miles away
Where can i go?
Where can I hide?

Susan Boyle performing "I Dreamed a Dream"

There was a time when men were kind
When their voices were soft
And their words inviting
There was a time when love was blind
And the world was a song
And the song was exciting
There was a time
Then it all went wrong

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
And they turn your dream to shame

He slept a summer by my side
He filled my days with endless wonder
He took my childhood in his stride
But he was gone when autumn came

And still I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms we cannot weather

I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I'm living
So different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed the dream I dreamed.

Steve Harley - Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)

You've done it all, you've broken every code
And pulled the rebel to the floor
You spoilt the game, no matter what you say
For only metal - what a bore!
Blue eyes, blue eyes, how come you tell so many lies?

Come up and see me, make me smile
Or do what you want, run on wild

There's nothing left, all gone and run away
Maybe you'll tarry for a while
It's just a test, a game for us to play
Win or lose, it's hard to smile
Resist, resist, it's from yourself you have to hide

Come up and see me, make me smile
Or do what you want, run on wild

There ain't no more, you've taken everything
From my believe in Mother Earth
How can you ignore my faith in everything
When I know what Faith is and what it's worth
Away, away, and don't say maybe you'll try

Come up and see me, make me smile
Or do what you want, run on wild