Category Archives: Holiday

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I Will Be Calm. I Will Be Mistress of Myself

Happy New Year!

So to say 2020 didn’t go as expected is an understatement. Most people spent the year like this:

I know whenever I am troubled, there is always something I turn to:

Or her other works. Or read her books.

That lead me to this year’s theme. There is no better book to help you get over 2020 and move forward than Sense and Sensibility. I mean the Dashwoods encountered grief, hardships, huge changes, etc.

As this year marks the 210th anniversary of its publication, of course it will be the theme of the year.

I’m not quite sure how I will work it in, will it be an Sense and Sensibility post every month or just more Sense and Sensibility? I reviewed the 1995 film this year, maybe I’ll do the miniseries? I guess we will just wait and see.

Now on to the year in review!

Let’s go!

The Views

From Clueless

This year I had over 118,200 views!

Wow! from The Blob

The most viewed day of the year was November 7th with 6225 views! That was the day I posted nothing, but the number one post viewed that day was What Happened to Ally Palmer?: The Good Student (2006) from Horrorfest VII. That doesn’t surprise me as the end is confusing and I’m sure many google and read it to try to find out the answer.

The Top Five Posts

Here are the top five most viewed posts of the year, although again none were posted this year. I guess whatever I post in the actual year is never popular enough? Who knows.

5) A Real Man from 2014

4) I Ran Out of Milk So I Put Buttermilk in My Tea from 2019

3) Fulfilling the List: A Walk to Remember (2002) from Romance is in the Air 2013

2) What Happened to Ally Palmer?: The Good Student (2006) from Horrorfest VII 2018

1) Being Friends is Good Enough: Catching Fire (2013) from Romance is in the Air II from 2014

The Followers!

So this community has really grown in numbers and I can not describe how pleased I am about that. We have gone from 14 followers in 2012, to 439 in 2015, to 1021 in 2017, and now 1714 in 2020.

Jane Austen Posts:

Of course there will be quite a bit of these as Jane Austen is the name of the blog.

Jane Austen

Jane Austen Products

Sense and Sensibility

Pride and Prejudice

Mansfield Park

Emma:

Northanger Abbey

Persuasion:

Recipes:

Nothing goes better with reading than something yummy to snack on!

Modesto Jane Con:

This year my book club and sister attended JaneCon in Modesto. I took copious notes which I transcribed into the following posts:

 

Mystery Posts:

From Knives Out

This year’s theme was mysteries in honor of the 100th anniversary of The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie being published. I tried to post at least one mystery a month. I also received a mysterious package every few months and detailed what was in it.

Mysteries:

Mysterious Packages in the Mail:

Romance is in the Air Part VII:

Every year I do 14 posts on a romantic moment in TV and film, below are this year’s picks.

 

Giveaways:

I love giveaways! Every time I win something I try to post a review of what I received.

Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers:

There comes a time when you have read all the Austen books and quite a few adaptions and are searching for something else. Something like Jane Austen, but not a direct retellings. That’s why I created the Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers and here are the ones I reviewed this year.

Catherine Morland’s Reading List:

Any Gothic novel lovers out there? Catherine Morland’s Reading List is a review of Gothic novels I know Catherine would love (if she were alive today).

Horrorfest IX:

Every year I let my Catherine Morland spooky girl side out and have 31 posts of different horror films or TV shows to countdown to Halloween.

BookishFirst Bingo:

On Instagram (@janeaustenrunsmylife) I try to achieve a Bookish Bingo every month. I usually read whatever I like and then see which slot it fills. I write how it fits the categories in my stories and save them for the moth and the one after, replacing it with the new month’s selections. It is a lot of fun, and I recommend trying it out.

Jane Austen Bingo:

So Jane Austen bingo is when you spot a Jane Austen actor in a non-Jane Austen film or TV show. Before I just snapped/shared a picture, now I post a picture on my Instagram (@janeaustenrunsmylife) that has the actor in their Jane Austen media alongside their other work. It’s a lot of fun and this year I determine the film with the most Jane Austen actors in a non-Jane Austen film is Love Actually as it has 8: Bill Nighly (Mr. Woodhouse in Emma 2020) as Billy Mack, Colin Firth (Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (1995) & Mark Darcy in the Bridget Jones’ Diary series) as Jamie, Emma Thompson (Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (1995) as Karen, Keira Knightley (Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice (2005) as Juliet, Julia Davis (Elizabeth Elliot in Persuasion (2007) as Nancy the caterer, Alan Rickman (Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility (1995) as Harry, Hugh Grant (Edward Ferrars in Sense and Sensibility (1995) & as Mark Cleaver/Mr. Wickham in the Bridget Jones’ Diary series) as the Prime Minister Davis, and Kris Marshall (Tom Parker in Sanditon) as Colin Frissell.

Period Drama Saturdays

With COVID19 my sister and I have started a new tradition, Period Drama Saturdays. Every Saturday we make a pot of tea and watch a period drama, alternating who gets to pick. Quite a few of these I plan to review for Non-Austen Films for Austen Fans, but just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Here are the ones we have watched this year:

  • Poldark (1996)
  • Drover’s Gold (1997)
  • Ever After (1998)
  • Turn of the Screw (1999)
  • Lorna Doone (2000)
  • Under the Greenwood Tree (2005)
  • Little Dorrit (2008)
  • The Young Victoria (2009)
  • Titanic: Blood and Steel (2012)
  • Poldark (2015-2019)
  • Dr. Thorne (2016)
  • The Moonstone (2016)
  • Victoria (2016-)
  • Selena: The Series (2020-)

Instagram Photo Challenges

From Clueless

So I have only done a few photo challenges in the past but this year I decided to try a few others. All are on my Instagram (@janeaustenrunsmylife) if you are interested in seeing the pics, and if any interest you-join me this year.

  • 30 Days of Jane Photo Challenge from Jane Austen Festival Kentucky
  • 30 Day Literacy Challenge from Jane Austen Literacy Foundation
  • Sip Down September 30 Day Photo Challenge
  • 31 Days of Hallotean
  • Tea Advent Calendar Swap on Instagram: This year I did another tea advent calendar swap and posted a photo every day leading up to Christmas on the tea. I will be doing a full review later.

Blogiversary Jane Austen July

My blogiversary is in July and alongside a post, I also like to do a series of questions on Instagram (@janeaustenrunsmylife) and post the results. This year I asked the following questions with the results on my Instagram if you are interested.

  • If you were going to match up Georgiana Darcy with one of Jane Austen’s remaining bachelors (Colonel Fitzwilliam, William Price, Thomas Bertram, or James Morland) who would you pair her up with, and why?
  • Who was the worst of Jane Austen?
  • Which Jane Austen character has the best clothes?
  • Which Jane Austen character needs their own story?
  • Which actor/actress would you love to cast in a Jane Austen film or miniseries?
  • What period drama would you love to see a crossover with a Jane Austen story (time period and country doesn’t matter)?
  • Who is the worst Mr. Darcy?
  • If the Jane Austen characters lived today what jobs would they have?
  • Do we need more Virtual Jane Austen festivals/events that run on PST?
  • What Jane Austen mashup do I need to do next?
  • If you had to wait in line with a Jane Austen character, who would be the worst one and why?
  • If you could live in any Jane Austen home or estate which one would you want to live in?
  • What Jane Austen adaption needs to be turned into a TV show or film?
  • What is something from the Regency Era you wished we had today?
  • If the Jane Austen characters could eat any food we have today, which one would they be going crazy over?
  • If you could cast any actor as Mr. Darcy (alive or passed on) in a Regency or modern adaption, who would you pick?
  • If you could cast any actress as Elizabeth Bennet (alive or passed on) in a Regency or modern adaption, who would you pick?

25 Films of Christmas

So I started a few years ago on Instagram (@janeaustenrunsmylife), watching and posting a Christmas movie everyday in December. This year I actually ended up watching 29, but the original 25 were:

  • A Christmas Carol (1954)
  • Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
  • Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983)
  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988)
  • Goodfellas (1990)
  • Home Alone (1990)
  • The Santa Clause (1994)
  • Jingle All the Way (1996)
  • Borrowed Hearts (1997)
  • Eloise at Christmas (2003)
  • Love Actually (2003)
  • Christmas Child (2004)
  • Deck the Halls (2006)
  • Christmas in Wonderland (2007)
  • 12 Men of Christmas (2009)
  • RED (2010)
  • Rise of the Guardians (2012)
  • The Christmas Candle (2013)
  • Christmas in the City (2013)
  • A Christmas Mystery (2014)
  • The Holiday Calendar (2018)
  • Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe (2018)
  • A Very Nutty Christmas (2018)
  • A Kiss on Candy Cane Lane (2019)
  • A Recipe for Seduction (2020)

Other Posts:

Here are the others who don’t fit a theme (or I didn’t have enough similar posts to give them their own):

That’s it for 2020, here’s hoping 2021 will be better!

For 2019 in review, go to The Mysterious Affair at Jane Austen Runs My Life

For 2018 in review, go to The Future is Bulletproof

For 2017 in review, go to Life Seems But a Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

For 2016 in review, go to A New Hope

For 2015 in review, go to To Boldy Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

For 2014 in review, go to Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need Roads

For 2013 in review, go to Looking at the Past, Focusing on the Future

For 2012 in review, go to Looking Back, Moving Forward

 

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The Mysterious Affair at Jane Austen Runs My Life

Happy New Year!

It’s 2020, you know what that means! 1920s style is coming back!

So throw on your glad rags and let’s go putting on the ritz!

Love Me or Leave Me

So the past few years, I have done “theme” years. 2015 was Back to the Future, 2016 Star Trek: The Original Series, 2017 Star Wars: A New Hope, 2018 Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, and 2019 Dystopian future with The Running Man and Blade Runner. This year I’m all about the 1920s, especially one particular thing that came out:

For those of you who don’t know, 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of The Mysterious Affair at Styles, the first mystery that Agatha Christie wrote and introduced one of the greatest detectives: Hercule Poirot.

So that is where this post’s title comes from, I will be reviewing a Poirot or other Agatha Christie movie for Horrorfest IX, and will attempt to work in mysteries somehow and sometime throughout the year.

You know how I love mysteries!

Mystery, you say?

But enough of that. Let’s move on to the year in review!

Let’s get started!

The Views

 

This year I had over 74,700 views!

Wow!

The most viewed day of the year was August 12th with 752 views! That was the day I posted I Wrote Mr. Darcy a Letter

 

Although the number one post viewed that day was from Horrorfest VII Which Husband Ran Off With Addie Ross?: A Letter to Three Wives (1949)

The Top Five Posts

Here are the top five most viewed posts of the year, although strangely none were posted this year-and amazingly my number one post for the past six years was knocked down to number 2. I know why too, the number one post is a confusing movie that I and my friend googled to figure it out-so I’m sure that’s what bumped the numbers.

5) A Real Man from 2014

4) Tea Time from 2015

 

3)Which Husband Ran Off With Addie Ross?: A Letter to Three Wives (1949) from Horrorfest VII, 31 Days of Horror Films from Halloween 2018

I don’t know who to trust!

2) Fulfilling the List: A Walk to Remember (2002), from Romance is in the Air, 14 days of my favorite romantic moments (2013)

1)What Happened to Ally Palmer?: The Good Student (2006)from Horrorfest VII, 31 Days of Horror Films from Halloween 2018

The Followers!

So this community has really grown in numbers and I can not describe how pleased I am about that. We have gone from 14 followers in 2012, to 439 in 2015, to 1021 in 2017, and now 1,647 in 2019.

Book Club Picks

My book club read:

I am actually 11 books behind, but I will catch up in this new year…at least I hope!

Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers

So in 2018 I started a series on books to read after you have read all the Jane Austen novels and want elements of Jane Austen, but something fresher than another adaption or retelling. The following books I recommended for Austen fans last year are:

Dangerous to Know

So I was given the book Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues edited by Christina Boyd, in exchange for an honest review, and started reviewing it in 2018-but as I broke it up into multiple posts I didn’t finish it until 2019. We had:

Jane Austen

So of course there will be Jane Austen posts, that’s the name of the blog! I reviewed the following:

On Jane Austen & her works:

Sense and Sensibility:

 

Pride and Prejudice:

 

Mansfield Park:

 

Emma:

 

Northanger Abbey:

 

Persuasion:

 

Lady Susan:

Recipes

As C.S. Lewis says

“Eating and reading are two pleasures that combine admirably.”

And sometimes you want something to nibble on when you read Jane Austen or watch the films. This year we had the following recipes:

Books, Books, Books!

I love books and reading:

Holiday, Celebrate, Holiday, Celebrate…

I LOVE holidays, and love to celebrate. Here are the holiday posts:

Tea Time

What goes better with Jane Austen than tea? I love tea and we have the following posts on it:

Non-Austen Films for Austen Fans

So as I enjoyed doing the Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers, that I decided to expand to another series- Non-Austen Films for Austen Fans. This has films that are not based on Jane Austen, but have elements we love from the films in a fresher source. I recommend Austen fans to watch:

Desire & Decorum 

So Jane Austen has entered the 21st Century with Pixelberry creating a video game based on Jane Austen’s works and set in the Regency time period. I started playing in 2018 year and continued last year:

Catherine Morland’s Reading List

Another series? Yes…I know, I just can’t help it. Yes, this series will be on gothic novels that Catherine Morland would totally love to read, if she existed:

Painted Portrayals of Christ

For Easter I discussed different artworks of Christ, (have to put that Art History degree to work). Last year I chose:

Jane Austen Stuff

Last year I reviewed a few companies’ Jane Austen stuff:

Austentatious (2015)

Last year I decided to review one episode from Austentatious (2015) every month. After I finish it, I’ll be picking another one to do this to. I really, really, really hate this show-so be prepared for the sarcasm and the hate.

Giveaways!

Last year I won five giveaways. The ones I have reviewed:

Rational Creatures

So like Dangerous to Know, this book was given to me by Christina Boyd in exchange for a honest review. Rational Creatures has stories by Elizabeth Adams, Nicole Clarkston, Karen M. Cox, J. Marie Croft, Amy D’Orazio, Jenetta James, Jessie Lewis, KaraLynne Mackrory, Lona Manning, Christina Morland, Beau North, Sophia Rose, Anngela Schroeder, Joana Starnes, Brooke West, and Caitlin Williams-all on the women of Jane Austen:

 

Horrorfest VIII

25 Films of Christmas

Christmas is hard to do posts on as it is so busy! However, in 2018 I watched a Christmas film every day and posted it on Instagram. Last year I decided to do it again (and ended up watching 29 films). Here are the 25:

  • The Thin Man (1934)
  • Somewhere in Dreamland (1936)
  • The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
  • It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
  • How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
  • Frosty the Snowman (1969)
  • Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (1970)
  • Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977) (In my family it counts as a Christmas movie)
  • Jack Frost (1979)
  • Babes in Toyland (1986)
  • A Garfield Christmas (1987)
  • Die Hard (1988)
  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988)
  • Die Hard II (1990)
  • Home Alone (1990) I watched it twice!
  • Batman Returns (1992) It was my Friday the 13th pick
  • Jumanji (1995)
  • Jingle All the Way (1996)
  • The Christmas Card (2006)
  • The Christmas Candle (2013) I watched it twice!
  • Christmas in the City (2013)
  • Dashing Through the Snow (2015)
  • The Mistletoe Promise (2016)
  • Once Upon a Christmas Miracle (2018) Recommended to me by martha.leith on instagram
  • Klaus (2019)

Other Posts:

Other posts that don’t fit a theme:

For 2018 in review, go to The Future is Bulletproof

For 2017 in review, go to Life Seems But a Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

For 2016 in review, go to A New Hope

For 2015 in review, go to To Boldy Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

For 2014 in review, go to Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need Roads

For 2013 in review, go to Looking at the Past, Focusing on the Future

For 2012 in review, go to Looking Back, Moving Forward

by

The Future is Bulletproof

Happy New Year!

I don’t know about you all, but 2018 was not a good year for me. I’m glad it is over. New Year, New You-I’m definitely all about that:

So the past few years, I have done “theme” years. 2015 was Back to the Future, 2016 Star Trek: The Original Series, 2017 Star Wars: A New Hope, and 2018 Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. So what to do for this year?

For me, whenever I think of 2019, I always think of it as the year that Skynet takes over in The Terminator series. Why? I could have sworn that is what they said-but that is false. I have looked it up. The world was under the control of Skynet, but that isn’t when they took over. Oh, well.

So then I started thinking, what does happen in 2019? I mean what takes place? Well for one thing: Blade Runner

And My Chemical Romance‘s album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, of which I have taken the post’s title from their song Na-Na-Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)

And last, but not least-one of my favorite movies, The Running Man.

Watch out 2019-I’m coming for you

I am defintely planning on reviewing this movie this year for Horrorfest VIII. 

I guess this year is to be a dystopian year, hmmm-I wonder how I can work that in.

But enough of that. Let’s move on to the year in review!

The Views

This year I had over 92,000 views!

WOW!!!

The most viewed day of the year was September 22 with 934 views! That was the day I posted Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers: A Change of Fortune.

Although the number one post viewed that day was She Cries in the Night: The Screaming Skull (1958)

The Top Five Posts

Here are the top five most viewed posts of the year, although strangely none were posted this year.

I mean you like what you like. I’m just happy people are reading my blog.

5) It Was the Curse. My Curse: The Cheerleader Murders (2016) from Horrorfest V (2016)

4) A True Princess from 30 Day Challenge (2014)

3) I Saw Goody Osburn With the Devil: The Crucible (1996) from Horrorfest II (2013)

How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!

2) Tea Time (2015)

1) Fulfilling the List: A Walk to Remember (2002), from Romance is in the Air‘s 14 days of my favorite romantic moments (2013)

walktorememberMV5BMTM1MTYzNjA3M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjk2NTE4Mg@@._V1_SY317_CR3,0,214,317_

The Followers!

So this community has really grown in numbers and I can not describe how pleased I am about that. We have gone from 14 followers in 2012 to 42 followers in 2013, 169 followers in 2014, to 439 in 2015, to 616 in 2016, to 1021 in 2017, and now 1447.

Wow!

Book Club Picks

My book club read:

There are more that I fell behind in reviewing (oh darn!), but I will catch up in this new year.

200th Anniversary of Northanger Abbey and Persuasion

So 2018 marked the 200th anniversary of Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. I tried to fill the year with both, but unfortunately did not do as much as I liked.

Northanger Abbey posts

Persuasion posts

Tea Time

I love tea and I love posting on it!

My Musical Stylings

As always, I love to review my favorite songs. This year we had:

Jane, Jane, Jane Austen Posts

As always-we have Jane Austen posts (that’s the name of the blog!).

On Jane Austen, herself, and Regency times :

Based on Jane Austen:

Pride and Prejudice:

Emma:

Mansfield Park:

A Reading We Will Go

I love books and reading, so we will have quite a few posts on them.

Romance is in the Air: Part VI

This year we only reviewed 13 films as Valentine’s Day was my 1000 post. The romantic moments came from:

  1. Holiday Inn (1942)
  2. The Greatest Show on Earth (1952)
  3. Rear Window (1954)
  4. Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)
  5. American Dreamer (1984) 
  6. Aladdin (1992) 
  7. So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993) 
  8. George of the Jungle (1997) 
  9. Holiday in Handcuffs (2007)
  10. Fireproof (2008)
  11. “This Episode Sucks” Psych (2011) 
  12. “Gone Glitter” from Barbie Life in the Dreamhouse (2012)
  13. Trolls (2016)

1000 Post

I wrote this post in honor of my ex-husband, at the time my fiancé, but as he turned out to be an abusive jerk, I will probably change it. However, I am pleased to have made it to 1000.

One Day Holiday Posts

Sometimes I just like to do a small post on the actual holiday instead of a countdown. This year I had:

Recipes

As C.S. Lewis says

“Eating and reading are two pleasures that combine admirably.”

And sometimes you want something to nibble on when you read Jane Austen or watch the films. This year we had the following recipes:

Jane Austen Video Games

We have brought Jane Austen into the 21st century with video games. I reviewed two this year.

Facebook:

iPhone:

Non-Austen Books for Austen Readers

So I have started a new category this year: Non-Austen Reads for Austen Readers. They may not be by Austen, but they are books I think Austen fans will love.

Horrorfest VII

So Horrorfest VI in 2017 was a total mess, everything just went wrong. But this year I redeemed myself. I completed my 31 posts! I reviewed the following:

Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues

After The Darcy Monologues, Dangerous to Know was born. I promised to read and review it but unfortunately life got in the way and I was unable to do it. I hate breaking a promise, that is my number-one most hated thing of all time. So I began reviewing it this year, breaking the post down into different sections. So far I have only done two, but plan to continue into the year.

  1. None: Possible kissing and affection.
  2. Mild: Kissing.
  3. Moderate: Some sexual references but not explicit.
  4. Mature: Some nudity and some provocative sex.

Instagram

So I have started an instagram this year. I post all kinds of different things on there and encourage you to follow me if you have one.

25 Days of Christmas Films

l swore I would never, ever try to post every day in December for Christmas, after my fiasco in 2012. It is just too hard with all the things that happen in getting ready for the holiday. Well this year on Instagram, I posted a brief film review everyday on a Christmas movie. The films I watched?

So what will the new year hold? I don’t know, but I know this:

For 2017 in review, go to Life Seems But a Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

For 2016 in review, go to A New Hope

For 2015 in review, go to To Boldy Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

For 2014 in review, go to Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need Roads

For 2013 in review, go to Looking at the Past, Focusing on the Future

For 2012 in review, go to Looking Back, Moving Forward

And just cause:

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Baked Apple Slices

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

This year I have a lot to be thankful for-1) Being alive-my ex-husband was abusive and tried to kill me; 2) My 5-year restraining order and the fact that my divorce was finalized 10/24/18-thank you California!; 3)My friends, family, and faith who have gotten me through this; 4) And this blog and all you readers!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday however you spend it. I am course am going to spend it with food:

So what would Jane Austen be eating if she was celebrating the American holiday?

Last year I shared a recipe for apple pie, I thought this year I would share one for baked apples which make a great breakfast, side dish, or dessert.

This comes from my sister blog MysteriousEats.wordpress.com. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 Granny Smith Apple-Peeled, Cored, and Sliced
  • 2.5 Tablespoons of Water
  • 1.5 Tablespoons of Cornstarch or Flour
  • 1.5 Tablespoons of Sugar
  • 1 Pinch of Cinnamon

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
  2. Spread the apples slices in a single layer on a baking sheet.
  3. Whisk the water and flour together, and pour over the apples and gently stir.
  4. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.
  5. Cook for about 15 mins.

 

 

Delicious!

For more Thanksgiving posts, go to Are Dean Winchester and Jane Austen Kindred Spirits?

For more recipes, go to Blueberry Earl Grey Tea Smoothie

For more holiday posts, go to Life Seems But a Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

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Life Seems But a Quick Succession of Busy Nothings

I know some of you will read that and think what a downer to start the year.

I’m going to hide under the covers with my ice cream

And yeah you can say that life is full of nothings, lots of the mundane and boring.

But you know what, life is also full of fun nothings. Things that aren’t important in the grand scheme of it, but lots of fun.

Like this blog. I know the things on here aren’t that important or ground-shattering. If I stopped writing it wouldn’t really affect anyone that much…but I have a lot of fun doing it.

And I’m not sure what I how I will be posting- every two days, every three days, every four, once a week, etc. But I know I’m going to keep on.

Why start with a Jane Austen quote? Well this will be the year of Jane as not one, but TWO JANE AUSTEN NOVELS CELEBRATE THEIR 200TH ANNIVERSARY!!!!! Northanger Abbey & Persuasion!!!!!!!

So let’s get on with our year in review! This post will only cover a few things, you really should check out the year for yourself. To start at the beginning go here.

The Views

 

This year I had over 58,121 views!

 

The most viewed day of the year was November 29 with 486 views! Although, I didn’t post anything on that day

The Top Five Posts

Here are the top five most viewed posts of the year, although strangely none were posted this year.

I mean you like what you like. I’m just happy people are reading my blog.

5) Tea Time, a quotable post on tea love (2015)

4) A True Princess from 30 Day Challenge:Disney Edition (2014)

3)I Saw Goody Osburn With the Devil: The Crucible (1996), part of Horrorfest II’s 31 Days of Horror films (2013)

2) Carry On Wayward Son, a post dedicated to the song (2014)

1) Fulfilling the List: A Walk to Remember (2002), from Romance is in the Air‘s 14 days of my favorite romantic moments (2013)

walktorememberMV5BMTM1MTYzNjA3M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjk2NTE4Mg@@._V1_SY317_CR3,0,214,317_

The Followers!

So this community has really grown in numbers and I can not describe how pleased I am about that. We have gone from 14 followers in 2012 to 42 followers in 2013, 169 followers in 2014, to 439 in 2015, to 616 in 2016, and now 1021!

Happy 40th Anniversary Star Wars

So last year marked the 40th anniversary of Star Wars. I couldn’t resist posting about it and did the following: A New Hope and Why the Princess Leia Crown Hairdo is Awesome

And a special post comparing Star Wars and Jane Austen characters in  You Put the Jedi in Pride & PreJEDIce

Jane Austen Film Reviews

I reviewed Pride & Prejudice (1995), Emma (1996), Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001), and Death Comes to Pemberley, Episode Two (2013)

Holiday Posts

I celebrated Chinese New Year with 4 of my favorite chickens/chicken moments in Nobody calls me Chicken: Chinese New Year; Saint Patrick’s day post on 17 Irish heroes in With a Little Luck of the Irish: 17 More Irish Heroes; Father’s Day in Dad’s Day; Fourth of July with Let Freedom Ring, Thanksgiving in Are Dean Winchester and Jane Austen Kindred Spirits? and Christmas in All I Want for Christmas.

Book Club Posts

This year I started a book club. We read one book a month, each member having a month where they choose the book (any type), and then we meet and discuss it with good food. So far we have read the books The Darcy Monologues by various and edited by Christina Boyd, The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie, At Home in Mitford (The Mitford Years #1) by Jan Karon, A Light in the Window (The Mitford Years #2) by Jan Karon, The Undoing of Saint Silvanus: A Novel by Beth Moore, A Voice in the Wind (Mark of the Lion #1) by Francine Rivers, and Sandcastle Kings: Meeting Jesus in a Spiritually Bankrupt World by Rich Wilkerson Jr.

How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You: Romance is in the Air, Part V

Once again I reviewed 14 romantic moments from film and TV shows:  Under Capricorn (1949), Sleeping Beauty (1959), Move Over Darling (1963), Back to the Future (1985), Working Girl (1988), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Pride and Prejudice (1995), Picture Perfect (1997), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1999), Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001), Young Justice (2012), How I Met Your Mullet, Raising Hope (2014),Age of Adaline (2015), and Doctor Thorne (2016).

Give Me Some Good Cooking!

So I added recipes last year and continued this year. Check out Apple Pie, Aunt Neal’s Old-Fashioned Tea Cakes, Baked Potato Soup, Cherry-Pistachio Tea Cakes, How to Make a London Fog, and Triple Berry Salad.

Jane Austen Book Reviews

I reviewed What Would Jane Do?: Quips and Wisdom from Jane Austen by Jane Austen; Suspense and Sensibility (Or First Impressions Revisited) by Carrie Bebris; Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife: Pride and Prejudice Continues (Darcy & Elizabeth #1) by Linda Berdoll; The Darcy Monolgues: Part I, The Regency edited by Christina Boyd and written by Various; The Darcy Monolgues: Part II, Other Eras edited by Christina Boyd and written by Various; Prude & Prejudice by Francine Carroll; Prom & Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg;  Too Pretty by Andrea Grigg; A Visit to Highbury: Another View of Emma by Joan Austen-Leigh; Pride and Prejudice Paper Dolls by Brenda Sneathen Mattox; For Darkness Shows the Stars (For Darkness Shows the Stars #1) by Diana Peterfreund, and Reason and  Romance (The Austen Series #2) by Debra White Smith

The End of the Fangirl Posts…For Now

We finally reached the end of the fangirl posts with You Can’t Keep a Fangirl Down and To Fandom With Love; which cover Jules Verne, Longmire, Raising Hope, V, Veronica Mars, Wishbone, Whitechapel, X-Files, X-Men, and Young Justice.

Scenes of My Everyday Life

There was the time I was stopped and checked to see if I was a possible terrorist in An Explosive Trip; a funny time justice was served in Road Rage; and when I was scared someone was trying to break in in Something’s Scratching at the Window.

Phangirl

I brought back my love of The Phantom of the Opera in President of the “I Don’t Like Raoul Fanclub” and Is Christine the Ultimate Femme Fatale?

Tea Lover for Life

If you love tea like me check out I Made My Own Teabags, Perfectea, A Perfect Cup of Tea or Tea for Two, and You Know You Really Love Tea When…, and You Know Me So Well

Painted Portrayals of Christ

This year we looked at The Last Supper by Andrea del Castagno; Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem from the Florence Baptistery by Lorenzo Ghiberti; “The Crucifixion” from  The Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald; “The Arrest in the Garden” from The Passion Altarpiece by Hans Holbein the younger; and Risen Christ by Michelangelo.

Continuing with Emma

We continued posting on the book Emma with Should We Pity Miss Bates or Strive to Be Her?, TO the Person Who Hated My Review of Emma (1996) AKA the Kate Beckinsale Version, and A Visit to Highbury: Another View of Emma by Joan Austen-Leigh

The Darcy Monologues

So I was contacted by Christina Boyd to do a honest review in return for a free copy of the ebook. I agreed as you know I will review anything Jane Austen. So the book is a collection of monologues or short stories; told from the point of view of Mr. Darcy. Some take place in the Regency time period, some take his point of view of the novel, some after the novel, and some asking the question of what would happen if..? The second half takes the story and shows it in different time periods. I did several posts on it: The Darcy Monologues: Part I, The Regency, I Have Been Remiss, My Deepest Apologies to The Darcy Monologues; The Darcy Monologues: Part II, Other Eras, and Book Club Picks: The Darcy Monologues.

A Horrible Horrfest Hangup

So my charger broke during Horrofest VI, and I tried to catch up but failed to have 31 posts. I know, so sad!!! These are what I did manage to review- film:The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946), The Beast Must Die (1974), Silver Streak (1976), Alien (1979), Friday the 13th, Part II (1981), Psycho II (1983), Big Trouble in Little China (1986), Pet Sematary (1989), The Witches (1990), The Addams Family (1991), So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993), My Boyfriend’s Back (1993), Hangman’s Curse (2003), Candlestick (2014), Doctor Strange (2016) & The Mummy (2017) –and the TV episodes: Scarlet Night: Archie’s Weird Mysteries (2000), Graveyard Shift, Spongebob Squarepants (2002), & The Cruel Giggling Ghoul: Teen Titans Go (2016)

So what will the new year hold?

We shall see!

For 2016 in review, go to A New Hope

For 2015 in review, go to To Boldy Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

For 2014 in review, go to Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need Roads

For 2013 in review, go to Looking at the Past, Focusing on the Future

For 2012 in review, go to Looking Back, Moving Forward