After going through depressing news and some Twitter this morning, and enjoying Linnet’s little song lyrics adaptation…
… I decided that today was needed to lift some spirits. Going out for a walk is always good as a mood lifter except that today I really didn’t feel like it and let Mr Esther go off alone on the long walk he had planned. I decided on a lazy Sunday at home instead.
I leafed through some more Letters From Hollywood, a lovely book that I had bought a few weeks ago while browsing through a book store.
There was also Sunday cuddling and playing on the couch with my black cat (I love those tiny vampire teeth) which was fun…
Folding laundry became a bit of a challenge when my ginger cat decided that lying in the middle of the bed, which also doubles as my folded laundry sorting station, was a good way of keeping me company…
And I also had some time for my latest Lucas Bryant fix, he had a new Hallmark movie out called The Angel Tree.
It was of course pretty standard Hallmark Christmas fare but really not too bad, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. It’s been kinda quiet on the Lucas Bryant front. He did a Chrismas movie last year called Time For You To Come Home for Christmas which was alright but missed some spark for me (more due to the story than the leads). This fall he had another Hallmark movie called Country at Heart which was alright as well, but he wasn’t the lead guy, so that was a pity. This recent Hallmark movie he did that I saw today I liked best, so I took this screenshot for my screensaver (I love those flecks of grey in his beard)…
It’s dark now, Mr Esther’s cooking dinner and I’m looking forward to a nice glass of red wine to round off this lounging-around-the-house Sunday. Hope you are all having a good one as well.
The Book of Esther 
Esther sounds like a pretty good Sunday lounging day!! Sorry about depressing news. My mum is 92 today and I’m not there with my dad and sis so that sucks.
That book looks very interesting!
Hope dinner is grand. Sometimes quiet is the best tonic ❤️❤️❤️
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Happy belated birthday to your mum!
Dinner and wine were nice. 🙂
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😘❤️
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It doesn’t matter all that much if Georgia goes Dem or not in the runoffs (although we are all acting that way, and I would be delighted if it did), because Joe Manchin (WV) will just switch affiliations. He already votes with the GOP a lot of the time anyway.
But on the Hallmark front, it seems like they are doing well as viewership is up! There’s an interesting article about it here:
https://www.vulture.com/2020/11/hallmark-channel-christmas-movies-streaming.html
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Well, that sucks about the Senate.
Yeah, I figured Hallmark must be doing something right because it seems like there are more and more Christmas movies there each year. Alas, the over abundance doesn’t do a lot for the quality and most seem like basically the same story over and over again with the same elements within the story (Christmas decorating, baking, skating, carol singing, finding your Christmas ‘spirit’ or ‘Christmas magic’ and mostly small town Christmas – aargh!). I skip most, just watch the ones with actors I like.
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Totally with you; I can’t make myself watch that stuff. However, one thing I thought was interesting (and it’s developed further in an article linked in that piece) is that apparently they are one of a handful of channels that are still making the old, linear TV model work — and one reason may be this repetitive pattern. Viewers don’t want to select something good or make a decision at all; they just want a predictable sort of “Berieselung” with a familiar product. This is supposed to appeal particularly to viewers over 35. I thought that was interesting — b/c this is one of a few reasons that we can’t get rid of our cable subscription; it’s how dad watches TV. Netflix is supposedly trying out linear TV in France this month and plans to expand the model.
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I keep on wondering myself why I return to these Hallmark things and maybe, despite the many gripes I have, it really is that mindless feelgood predictability, that “Berieselung” you mention, that keeps drawing me in. For me, I just wish they did a little less of all that Christmas stuff.
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To me, I think your remark below sort of hits it on the head — we consume a lot of this stuff because it fits our needs — it’s the right length, it’s on the right time, the need to be stimulated in certain ways or turn off certain kinds of stimulation. (And naturally the media we are using attempt to condition how we want to be stimulated.)
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Yep, you’re right, it really does fill a need. For others it’s baking shows (I wouldn’t be caught dead watching those), for me it’s these Hallmarks from time to time until I’ve had my fill for a while. It would feel the need even better if the story quality of a lot of these were better.
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And yes, it is fascinating how they seem to be able to make the whole TV thing still work for them! Although, I have seen an occasional Hallmark title appear on Netflix as well, so they are dipping in a bit with the whole streaming thing. This past summer, I saw that they had even sold a handful of summer films to be broadcast on Dutch TV (although I don’t know how successful that was).
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vampire kitty is adorable
Hallmark movies don’t do it for me, but i do like a good rom com though my fave pick me up atm is historical romance books
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I’ve all but stopped reading romance novels, the only romance I do still read on occasion is a fanfic that isn’t too long, that just takes up less of my time. With a romance novel, I usually can’t finish it in one sitting, which I prefer to do, so I then turn to a Hallmark movie that is 1 hour and 23 minutes long, perfectly fine to fit into my evening. I do get tired of all the Christmassy ones, though, so I skip a lot of those.
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As for vampire kitty, she sometimes reminds me of the black dragon in “How to Tame Your Dragon”. 🙂
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I have mixed feelings about baking shows but will always watch a cooking show. And not competitions. Friendly, calming hosts (Jacques Pepin is the epitome) who don’t make it look like high performance athletics. I think they remind of what I like about cooking myself (which I would do differently than I am right now if I were the only person involved), which baking more specifically, and competitions generally, never do.
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Need to add – I don’t watch cooking shows either. I know it’s almost therapeutic for many people but I don’t really enjoy baking or cooking in itself (although I do love eating), so those shows are kinda lost on me. Don’t know Jacques Pepin but cool that his calm hosting has a positive effect on you.
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he’s sort of the Bob Ross of the US tv cooking world. (Don’t know if he has made it to Europe. But I would never paint to relax, either.)
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OK, it’s spooky that you said this – got stuck on BBC4 earlier this evening where they are re-running Bob Ross shows! He did a soothing sunset painting that we got stuck into watching. Used to watch on occasion in the 80’s/90’s as well. And yeah, I still don’t paint. 🙂
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So he has made it to Europe!
I find him somewhat puzzling. My reaction to him is maybe somewhat like yours to cooking shows. I know after eight years of public school art classes (once a week through elementary and junior high) that painting will *never* relax me. He has a kind of soporific quality personally, though. (vs Jaques Pepin who both relaxes and inspires me).
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OK, here’s a cheerup for you!
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Thank you! 🙂
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