I was tagged by polaris_86
1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 4-7 sentences on your LJ along with these instructions.
5. Don't you dare dig for that "cool" or "intellectual" book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest (unless it's too troublesome to reach and is really heavy. Then go back to step 1).
6. Tag five people.

Bestuzhev granted the benefit of his aid and protection to Catherine and Sergei, becoming "very intimate with us", as Catherine wrote, "without anyone else knowing anything." Throughout the winter, while the courtiers spent themselves at balls and masquerades, in pursuing petty rivalries and romantic intrigues (Nicholas Choglokov embarked on a dangerous attempt to seduce the ailing empress while Maria Choglokov carried on an affair with Prince Repnin), Catherine met with Bestuzhev and drew him surreptitiously into her circle.

There were many diversions that winter. Apart from the usual ice sledding and sleighing parties, toboggan races and skating on the frozen lakes and ponds, there was at least one near-fatal duel and numerous accidents. Fires broke out all over Moscow. Catherine recalled looking out the palace window and seeing three, four, or even five blazes going on in different quarters of the city at the same time. The empress nearly escaped serious injury while on one of her pilgrimages to a nearby convent.

That was from Great Catherine by Carolly Erikson. And I don't tag. :P

Okay, I was informed by hazy_crazy that the director of Half-Blood Prince is considering NOT having Christian Coulson play Tom Riddle in the next film! WTF has he been smoking?!?! Reading HBP, I got so excited we saw more of the character of Tom Riddle; because that meant seeing more of Christian. Maybe he is too old for the Tom in Slughorn's class. But he could be the one working in Borgin's, etc. So many of the other actors look far too old to be the characters they portray, but the film makers are keeping them around for the sake of continuity. If you are as irate as I am at the idea of not having Christian Coulson play Tom Riddle, please sign the petition. Even if you don't care, it would make me happy if you signed it. Mr. Coulson is fabulous actor, and the complete embodiment of the character. It would be doing the whole HP-verse a diservice not having him return.

I watched the concert for Diana. I didn't really cry until Diddy performed his cover of "Missing You", the one he originally did for Biggie. And then I cried at the end when they showed home videos of Diana when she was a little girl. It was a great concert. Everyone performed excellently. William and Harry did a great job of organizing the whole thing. One thing that really touched me was the fact that so many musicians from so many differet genres and walks of life were touched by Diana's inner and outer beauty just shows a lot of how she was such a wonderful person.

And now for a random-ish clip! Ricky Gervais performed towards the end of the concert, so here is another bit from him.




miss_bushido, this is for you:





Okay, I think it's time for peanut butter toast, and then a shower, to get unstinkified.