Here's a very basic Hallmark Christmas Movie Generator.

That time I met Zachary Levi

Yes. Yes. I did.

Yeah, so if you haven't seen me fangirling about it on Facebook or Twitter, I saw "Once" and "First Date" on Broadway this weekend, and I met Zachary Levi, not once, but twice.

Zac -- because like I know him or something -- has kinda been my nerd boyfriend for years now. Every year at Comic-Con, seeing him has been a priority, whether at the convention center or at his off-site Nerd HQ event. Last year we had front-row seats for all three Nerd HQ panels we went to, including his solo panel.

So when I heard he was gonna be in "First Date," a new musical on Broadway, I was definitely not going to miss it.

As close as we were gonna get
to Arthur Darvill. Sadface.

Side note: And I thought, What the hell? Might as well see "Once," too, since (a) it's one of my favorite movies and soundtracks ever and (b) it currently stars Arthur Darvill, "Doctor Who's" Rory (A.K.A. the one shining light from the Eleven era, IMHO).
"Once" is highly enjoyable. Nothing can match the movie, but it's well done. AND the audience can go up on the stage -- set like a pub -- before the show and grab a drink. How often can you say you were literally on a Broadway stage?! And you know what? Darvill was surprisingly good, too. I knew he had singing experience, but the cynic in me wasn't expecting much. I'm glad I was wrong. He was great. But I was really sad he didn't come out after the show and greet fans at the stage door.

Anyway. Back to Zac.

So after "Once," we were making our way through the crowd around Broadway Barks, a big pet-related event the shows do, and whom do I see just hanging out on the street? Zachary. Levi.

This is what you get when you wear a star's
T-shirt line when you meet him on the street.

So I calmlynotcalmly went over. When I got his attention, he noticed my Nerd Machine shirt (his line of merchandise), which I had worn intentionally for the show that night. But yay, double high-fives from him because of it! Then, he told me how the stage-door line is set up and where I should stand and warned me it might be a while after the show, and I feel bad because I kinda was only half listening because ZACHARY LEVI. And then I told him to break a leg and thanked him and walked away and then at a safe distance from him, proceeded to freak the eff out.

His show, by the way, is really cute, set entirely on one blind date. It's in previews, so there are some tweaks to make, but he is really great in it. Lotsa shades of Chuck Bartowski. He brought the house down with his big solo number, and really seemed to appreciate the long ovation he got.

Zac: "I saw you earlier!" Me: *dies*

Later, after the show at the stage door, Zac remembered me! (Thank you, yellow Nerd Machine shirt!) And I asked him how he's going to manage doing Nerd HQ this week. Short answer: He's skipping a week of previews. (Long, cute answer here in this video.)

He could not have been more gracious and patient and nice both times we talked. Super down-to-earth and had a conversation with all his fans after the show.

Meeting him more than made up for skipping Comic-Con this year, so, thank you for that, Zac!

Once again, I swear I am not a stalker. Indeed, some of these guys I just stumble upon by chance. And now that I've met him and Richard Armitage and the other guys below, I wonder who I'll meet next! (I wouldn't say no to meeting Henry Cavill. Just saying.)

The Maltese vacation

Oh, hey! I forgot to blog about Malta, where I went in March. You should all go visit. A few movies were filmed there, most recently "World War Z" (more like World War Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz; I disliked that movie, obvs) and "The Count of Monte Christo" (more like, "I love you, Henry Cavill, but WHY ISN'T THIS MOVIE DONE YET?").

Seriously, the island in the Mediterranean is a neat mix of European and Arabic influences. In WWZ it stood in for Israel. It's lovely. Before I leave you with a few pics, here's a pro-tip: Don't stand too close to the Med when a storm is passing through; you are liable to get nearly swept away.

Victorian pools cut from the rock.

View of Valletta from a boat.

St. Julian's Bay.

Valletta fish market buildings from the boat.

Tarxien Temple ruins.

Marsaxlokk. 

At the cliffs. Look at the stormy whitecaps below me.

Ramla Bay

At the salt pans goofing around.

Sea caves remind me of in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

My fave part of the trip: the natural arch!

A turn about the room

You guys, you guys! I went to Jane Austen camp! I am totally not kidding.

Backstory: I love Jane Austen. Pride & Prejudice is my favorite book ever, hands down. I've been to her cottage in Chawton and seen the tiny writing writing table where she worked. I've been to her burial site. I geeked out in Bath on the gravel walk, where a key scene takes place in Persuasion. I love her.

So a couple of weeks ago, when I saw on Twitter that my alma mater, the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, was hosting a four-day conference for the 200th anniversary of Pride & Prejudice, I thought about it for 24 hours -- to just, you know, pretend to be an adult and make rational decisions -- and then signed up.

I was a little worried how scholarly it would be. Indeed some of it was. Two or three professors just about read directly from their papers on things like "the Lockean education" and "the networked novel" that went over my head. And I wondered if I had made a mistake in coming.

(The video here is me dancing the Duke of Kent's Waltz!)

But then there were fabulous discussion groups (even though we had a bit of a Catherine de Bourgh in our group, which appropriately was in the posh octagon room redubbed Rosings for the event) in which we talked about the book in-depth. And other panels on topics such as P&P as a precursor for romance novels, a post-Colonial look at P&P using Sri Lanka as a test case, how costumes help detail character in the 2005 movie. One participant brought some books from her impressive P&P collection, including an edition with the lovely Hugh Thompson illustrations. I have the peacock illustration on my Nook cover, a tote bag and a T-shirt. But to hold the book in my hands? Unbelievable.

And the friends I met were super fun, including a teacher from Virginia, and a mother and her 11-year-old daughter who has read more Jane Austen than I have. All so great.

But the best part -- the best part -- was that we learned to dance ... in preparation for the ball. A ball! The steps were hard to remember, but no one cared. Well, the caller might have cared. I felt bad for him, and the patient dance enthusiasts who were there to help us look good.

The ball itself was fab. Historical drinks from a local bartender who loves that kind of stuff, a silent auction, live music, the dancing itself, whist (easy peasy!). The music even stopped when "Mr. Darcy" and "Caroline" showed up. All in all, just so lovely. (Edited to add: Lots of people had period dresses, many didn't. I was lucky in that I was a bridesmaid in a friend's wedding years ago and the dress was PERFECT for the ball.)

Now there's a Jane Austen ball here in Alexandria that I may go to and another workshop and I've joined the Jane Austen Society of North America, so this is now a slippery slope. And UNC is planning on doing a Jane Austen camp every year. Next year is on Sense & Sensibility. I'm on the fence about going -- but mostly just because I don't know the book as well as P&P or Persuasion. But I'm definitely leaning toward going!

You can read more about the camp here and see some of the collector's P&P books here. I'll leave you with a slideshow of more pics from the weekend: the Rosings room, dance lessons, the ball and the lovely dance book they made for us.

'Allo, 'Arry!

YES!!! (Photo credit: my friend Hal)

Oooh, so I just got back from vacation in London and Malta last week. Malta will be a later post. (If you're wondering where Malta is, it's an island south of Sicily in the middle of the Mediterranean and it is awesome.)

But before Malta, I stayed the weekend in London. Please. Don't be surprised. I try to finagle a visit there every year, obvs. The first thing that came to mind for this trip was Warner Bros.' Harry Potter Studio Tour. Which was amazing and wonderful and everything I wanted it to be. If you're an HP geek, you should head out there. Tons of sets, props, tech -- everything they used in the making of the film. And you can take photos of it all. Like, seriously, I took them up on that offer. Want to knock on the Dursleys' door? You can. Want to stand in Dumbledore's office or the Gryffindor Common Room? Yup. Want to buy Hermione's Yule Ball dress? You can do that too.

I just watched all the movies to prep for this visit, so one thing that surprised me was how small many of the sets seemed. The exceptions were maybe the Great Hall and the Potions classroom. Even Diagon Alley seemed smallish. But that was my favorite part ... until we saw the 1:24 scale model of Hogwarts they built for the movies. I think there's a collective gasp when you come upon it.  Here are some photos from the tour. I highly recommend a visit.

(By the by, the rest of the short visit in London was awesome as well: A visit to the Shard to see London from superduper high up, "Book of Mormon" in previews and the fabulous Underground poster exhibit at the London Transport Museum. Less than 72 hours in London, and we did a lot!)

The Great Hall with costumes from the different houses. (Photo credit: ME)

The ice sculpture from the Yule Ball in HP4.  (Photo credit: ME)

Hermione's, Viktor's, Harry's and Cho's costumes from the Yule Ball.  (Photo credit: ME)

Ron's bed from the dorm room. The beds were made to fit the boys when they were 11 and never changed -- so when they got older the boys had to curl up their legs to fit in them!  (Photo credit: ME)

The mirror of Erised!  (Photo credit: ME)

Hangin' with Ron's mannequin in the Gryffindor Common Room.  (Photo credit: ME)

On the way to Dumbledore's office? (Photo credit: My friend Hal)

Dumbledore's office!  (Photo credit: ME)

Potions class. Ruh-roh, I think I see the Half-Blood Prince's textbook.  (Photo credit: ME)

The Burrow! Press a button and the knitting needles move.  (Photo credit: ME)

I am NOT the heir of Slytherin. (Photo credit: Hal) 

Aww, the Potters' house in Godric's Hollow.  (Photo credit: ME)

Gross Voldemort doll. Press a button and his chest rises and falls and he squirms a bit. Like I said: GROSS.  (Photo credit: ME)

In Diagon Alley!  (Photo credit: ME)

I like this sign in the potions store window.  (Photo credit: ME)

Ollivander's!  (Photo credit: ME)

The huge model of the castle. It has lights inside that make it look like torches are lit and students are walking by! The light changes from night to say and the score plays as you walk around it.  (Photo credit: ME)

I'm on the top of two levels here -- that's how big it is. (Photo credit: Hal)

The castle at "day."  (Photo credit: ME)

The last room is a room of wand boxes with the names of cast and crew. A docent points out the names if you tell them the character. I thought this one was funny.  (Photo credit: ME)

Awww.  (Photo credit: ME)

"That's wizard's chess!" (tm Ron)  (Photo credit: ME)

I bought tons of stuff at the store: gloves for my sister, keychains, Gryffindor scarf (although we pretty much decided I am a Hufflepuff), magnets. My friend got a Timeturner. I'm kinda jealous that I didn't buy one too. Oh well. I'll have to go back! You can def spend a whole day there if you're a hardcore Potter nerd. For serious. You should go.

My girl Jane

My fave cover of my fave book.
Source: Archive.org

Monday is the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's "Pride & Prejudice." If you haven't read this book, WHY THE HELL NOT? It's only been my favorite book ever since, oh, about ninth grade. 

I remember it very clearly. The teacher was out or something or for some reason we spent like four days watching the 1980 TV adaptation of the book. And I was lost and gone forever. The frisson of excitement whenever headstrong, opinionated Elizabeth goes up against headstrong, opinionated and rich and handsome Mr. Darcy. The obligatory ball scenes. The turns about the room. After finishing the series, I immediately read the book. And I've done so a million times by now. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." Opening lines are so key to drawing readers in and P&P's is my absolute favorite. It's been used so often, it's a cliche by now, but reading it in print every time I open the book (I own several copies, digital and print), it's as fresh and fun and comforting as ever: "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." Funny, clever, sly. You go into the book knowing this is more than just boy meets-cute girl.

The chemistry between Darcy and Elizabeth is off the charts. Every scene they're in, you want to yell: JUST KISS ALREADY. But of course, back then, that would've been the ruin of them both. But this is one of my favorite scenes:

[Darcy to Elizabeth:] "There is, I believe, in every disposition a tendency to some particular evil—a natural defect, which not even the best education can overcome."

"And your defect is to hate everybody."

"And yours," he replied with a smile, "is willfully to misunderstand them."

JUST KISS ALREADY.

And then, and then, there's the proposal scene where she spurns him. (Him: "You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you." Her response -- and I'm paraphrasing here: "Oh, hells no.") And then the visit to Pemberley, which is my favorite part of the book, because Darcy's being all nice, and Elizabeth is all: "What the eff? Why's he being so nice? And WOW he has a great house." 

But when they do finally get together, it's just so squee-worthy, because finally they can talk about their feelings. Which has my favorite line from the whole entire book, which I've bolded below.

Elizabeth's spirits soon rising to playfulness again, she wanted Mr. Darcy to account for his having ever fallen in love with her. "How could you begin?" said she. "I can comprehend your going on charmingly, when you had once made a beginning; but what could set you off in the first place?"

"I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun."

I mean, damn. That is why Darcy is my fictional boyfriend. I seesaw between Darcy and Mr. Thornton from "North & South." They're similar in many ways: rich, handsome, taciturn, arrogant, spurned at first by a self-righteous heroine. Sometimes Thornton has the edge, because he's a self-made man, where as Darcy was born into his wealth and status. But really thinking on it, Thornton I love mostly because of the miniseries -- and actor, ahem. But Darcy. There hasn't been an iteration of Darcy that I haven't loved, which leads me to believe it really is the character not just the person playing him, that I love.

Three Darcys: Matthew Macfadyen (2005), Colin Firth (1995),
Daniel Gordh ("Lizzie Bennet Diaries," 2012-13)

And Elizabeth, jeez. I aspire to be like her. Who doesn't? That's all there is to say.

So, thanks, Jane Austen, for writing my favorite book ever. 

Me at Chawton, where Jane lived for a few years.
This is the tiny writing table where she revised/wrote many of her books!

The year in review

With 2012 over, I thought I'd do my own "best of" list. Not everything here was released in 2012, but I did see it this year and since this is my list, I'll make my own rules.

Books

Code Name Verity. Two awesome, distinct heroines in World War II Britain. I mean, it's totally right up my alley. I love the structure of this book -- I think to say more would spoil it. But it's witty and touching and I got sniffly on the bus when I read it so I'm sure people were like, What's up with her? Here's the book trailer (which, btw, I enjoy book trailers; this one is really cool.)

The Fault in Our Stars. I've written about this book before. It's about two teenage cancer patients, but it's not a cancer book. Funny, poignant and sad. I cried and cried after reading it and then couldn't settle into a new book for days after -- always a good sign of a great book. I want to read it again, but I dunno if I can handle it.

Bitterblue. A fantasy-ish book that's part of the Graceling series, so you should probably read "Graceling" first. That book is good -- about a medieval-ish kingdom in which some people have particular gifts. Bitterblue is set 10 years later, centering on a young queen. The part I find really interesting is its focus on how the queen's kingdom tries to recover from its horrific recent past.

Music

The Civil Wars. I want to say some celebrity on Twitter -- Sophia Bush or Scott Porter or someone -- mentioned loving the Civil Wars, and so I checked 'em out. And boy did I fall in love. Haunting harmonies and emotional vocals. LOVE. And I was all, Man, next time they come to D.C., I'm totally going to see them ... and then they decided to pretty much call it quits. Sigh. Just my luck.

Helen Jane Long. She's filed under New Age on iTunes, I think, but her instrumentals are just lovely. Quiet and relaxing. I like to listen to it at night before I go to sleep. Which sounds like a backhanded compliment, but I don't mean it to be. I want to get one of her songs on sheet music and learn it, even though I don't have a piano readily available.

Movies

The First Grader. This movie is streaming on Netflix. Go watch it. It's about this elderly man in Africa who enrolls in elementary school so that he can learn to read. Sniffles abound. Seriously. Sniffles. If you need more convincing, Naomi Harris, who stars in "Skyfall," co-stars here. Such a tearjerker of a movie. But heartwarming too...

Avengers. The one-liners and cadence of Joss Whedon's script and Marvel together means, dang, I loved this movie.

Lincoln. Mostly it's because it's like "The West Wing -- Civil War Edition." Plus it inspired and/or capped my family's exploration of Virginia's Civil War history. We recently toured the "White House of the Confederacy" in Richmond, then Petersburg's battlefield site, then followed Lee's Retreat to Appomattox and ended at Appomattox Court House to see where he surrendered.

Drama

Nashville. My favorite new show of the season. I can't remember the last time I liked Hayden Panettiere -- wait. Yes, I do. I liked her in "Remember the Titans." But she's good here, really -- and of course so is Tami Taylor, er, Connie Britton. Plus the music is awesome. I would've put the soundtrack up in the music category, but I just got it and I don't want to put it on the list without repeat listens at this point.

One Man, Two Guvnors. Okay this isn't a TV show, it was a play on Broadway, but it was fantastic. Quite possibly the best play I've ever seen. The first time I saw this farce -- about a big lunkhead who has to balance have two masters -- I thought it was hilarious. Then next two times just slightly less so -- mostly because you realize where the improv is and where the scripted bits are. But you also see how hard the cast works to make the scripted bits seem unscripted.

Downton Abbey. Watch Season 3 starting Sunday on PBS. No spoilers, but there are some WTF moments. That's all I'm saying. I agree with this review that says that whereas the second season was wobbly but ended strong with the Christmas special, this one is the opposite. Still highly watchable and addictive. Season hasn't even premiered here yet and I've already watched it twice....