Amy’s Journal

Naomi plays hardball Naomi Orthmann Metallic Rouge, Episode 10

Here’s what I watched last week...

( A Bunch of Shows Below the Cut )

Today I rebooted Hinata, and wi-fi came up fine. The OS complained that iCloud sync wasn’t finished and for me to check passwords. Everything looked OK, and I restarted iCloud sync – and it finished without issue. I had to log back in to Google and Dreamwidth – and then everything was back to normal. That’s nice – although I haven’t yet figured out what I’ll do with my old laptop. I guess I’ll shut it down for now and set the 2018 13" MacBook Pro aside – maybe pack it up for donation – or recycling. It still works pretty well (except for the failing Touch Bar – which is rather important for function keys).

Just for kicks I dug out this photo of Nano-chan, my 2011 MacBook Air:

Nano-chan 2011 13" MacBook Air

It’s surprising how much that old laptop looks like Fern. I suppose this is why Fern feels nostalgic whenever I’m using the new laptop.

Fern 2024 13" M3 MacBook Air

Not according to plan – but I know when to throw plans out the window...

Friday morning I had a Zoom chat with one of my co-worker friends. During the call I explained my plans for a new MacBook Air, and he brought up the subject of corporate discounts. Six years ago corporate discounts did not apply to the Macintoshes I purchased (and I bought two in that year). But last year he had gotten a corporate discount on a Mac mini. Hmm. We looked online but did not find anything that specified discounts for any Mac laptop.

( A Change of Plans Below This Cut )

I’ve started working down my tsundoku pile, and as a romantic, I’m pleased with the stories in this first batch. Here is what I read, in order (and, yeah, kinda spoilery)...

Recently Completed
Yona of the Dawn, Vol. 40. In recent volumes the Kingdom of Kouka, the Dragon Warriors, Hak, Yun, Meinyan have all taken a beating and are losing on multiple fronts. With capital city Kuuto on fire, the Dragon Warriors down, and Meinyan kidnapped, things look good for the South Kai empire. The arrival of Val and Yun at the Kouka army camp brings news – and also spurs Yona into leading a stealth attack on the South Kai army. The big surprise is the arrival of reinforcements from an unexpected place. Yona makes friends everywhere she goes! There is also surprise news about the Dragon Warriors’ illness. Enough pieces are coming together for Yona’s bold move – and I’m finally feeling good about the situation. I love seeing the underdogs rising up.

Kubo Won't Let Me Be Invisible, Vol 11 In the penultimate volume of the series, Junta and Nagisa are both struggling with their feelings for each other, and there’s plenty of awkwardness and misunderstanding. There’s a class trip coming up, with times set aside for individual activities – and, thankfully, Junta and Nagisa have agreed to do things together in those times. The good news is that Junta and Nagisa know that they really like the other person, and they’re working hard to become closer. I’m expecting good things to happen in the final volume, scheduled to be published... *checks*... um, tomorrow! Guess whose Kinokuniya gift cards will be getting some exercise this week!

Only Hard Problems. This novella is all about Zane Zimmer and told from his viewpoint in every chapter except for one, which was told from Vesper’s viewpoint. The story takes place right after the events in Only Good Enemies (Book 2 in the Galactic Bonds series). Zane has been an obnoxious villain in the first two books, and in this book he shows who he truly is underneath the fake persona he generates. As usual, people are complicated. The thing is, Zane isn’t stupid – and the psion can be perceptive. Most of the fun in this story is watching Zane and Asterin Armas spar with each other. I like Asterin a lot, but she has Only Bad Options and is trapped with Zane in the matchmaking of the Zimmer and Collier families. As the novella progresses, it does appear that Zane and Asterin could be the recipients of the enemies-into-lovers trope so effectively applied to Kyrion and Vesper in the first two volumes. I’m all for this. More romance is good. The plot here (a Techwave attack) is just a sidetrip; the more important outcome is a changing relationship between Zane and Asterin.

Whisper Me a Love Song, Vol 7. The volume opens with additional bonding between Yori and Himari – which is welcomed by this romantic. The remainder of the volume returns focus on the two bands, in advance of the school culture festival performance. Yori’s focus is on writing a new song. The band Lorelei shares their backstory with manager Himari. There are old wounds, and we’re finally getting down to the underlying issues around Shiho (not that we didn’t already know). There is a lot of unrequited love in this series.

Anna Yamada Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu S2, Episode 21

Here’s what I watched last week...

( A Rampage of Shows Below the Cut )