I watched that documentary about Britney Spears, and it shocked me how little agency she had in her life. And how can anyone stay sane with that level of stalking behavior from the paparazzi?

I wish I could read LOTR for the first time after reading the Silmarillion.

I'm listening to the Prancing Pony podast; they mention the alliteration in LOTR, and how you may not pick up on that if you don't read it out loud.

I was just going to say this! Of all the things I wouldn't want to eat, anything made from Soylent would be at the top of the list.

For my books, not library books, I started the Great Re-Read last year. I intend to read them all and decide whether to keep or donate them. It will take years, since I only read them when I'm done with my library books. But by the time I'm ready to retire I'll know how many to pack and move.

I really don't have that many, about 75-80 total. On one hand, packing books is hard because those boxes get heavy so quickly. But on the other hand, when I get to the point it's hard to get out and about, I'll at least have plenty of books to keep me occupied.

If VR meant I could put on a headset and visit the Louvre, Hermitage, Uffizi, stroll down Vienna's Ringstrasse, walk through Angkor Wat or Macchu Picchu, visit the Valley of the Kings, I'd buy a set in a heartbeat.

But walking down Facebook boulevard, entering Facebook store and spending virtual Facebook money to buy a virtual Facebook soda, getting VR credits when posting said soda on my FB page...I'll pass.

When the girls exclaim about their Christmas dinner--coffee! popovers!--Hannah remarks how she remembers when they had coffee every day.

And then there's Meg, getting a job watching children, while Jo sells her stories to help the family out.

It's there--just as there is a difference between the position of the Hummels and the Marches, there's a distance between the Marches and Laurie.