Shaped.

Ok, let’s be honest. Were you listening to Jimi Hendrix out of the womb? Did you start your musical appreciation with The Velvet Underground? Were your first words, “Turn that easy listening crap off. Mommy!”? Because for me, it’s No, no, and no. I didn’t start out this cool…cool being a relative term and all. I grew up listening to what my mom put on the stereo or what my best friend’s mom played on the kitchen radio.

Despite the face that almost everyone in my family (well…not my dad) is musical to some extent, we really didn’t obsess over music during my childhood. Granted, my oldest brother is enough older than I am for me not to really have been exposed to his music during my most formative periods but later he would introduce me to some good stuff. But the only thing I really remember him listening to when I was little was Olivia Newton John. Not that Grease stuff either, the Please Mr. Please stuff. And my mom was all about Jim Croce and Paul Simon.

I didn’t grow up on the Beatles or the Rolling Stones, although someone in my house had a copy of Let it Bleed because I remember being amazed by the cover…still am. I suspect my mother still wouldn’t be able to name all the members of either band. My dad listens to Wagnerian opera, John Philip Sousa, Beethoven and Japanese drummers. I did hear a lot of marching band music…a lot. But that was pretty much it. So when Facebook added this “Five Albums that shaped you” thing…well…you want to see what really shaped me? Because now I listen to music, all kinds of music but then…


Yeah, that’s right, you see what I am talking about…you recognize some of those, don’t you? And if you are that much cooler than me, well let me illuminate you as to what the hip kids of the early 70’s were listening to. From left to right you have: The Muppet Movie Soundtrack, The Monkees, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band MOVIE SOUNDTRACK (i.e. NOT THE BEATLES), Andy Gibb’s Shadow Dancing, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Theme and Variations, The Purple Puzzle Tree, Supertramp-Breakfast in America, McCartney II, K-Tel’s Songbird collection, Donny Osmond’s Singles and Shaun Cassidy.

You heard me. That’s what I listened to. And I am only slightly ashamed. Not really ashamed, just…well…honest. I was shaped by easy listening, kids Christian education albums, and bad movie soundtracks (The Muppet Movie was not bad, Sgt. Pepper was…not good…oh, and I forgot the soundtrack to the Raggedy Ann and Andy movie!) not the White Album. Don’t get me wrong, I love the White Album but I am guessing I never heard the whole thing until I was…in college maybe?

I remember listening to the radio. I remember Terry Gibbs, Eddie Rabbitt, and Crystal Gayle. I can probably sing you all the words of the “Piña Colada Song” or any number of Barry Manilow tunes. I listened to Super Chicken on the radio and I listened to the Kingston Trio at Christmas time. I LIKED ABBA IN AN UNIRONIC WAY. I STILL DO!

As a pre-teen and teenager, I was exposed to a lot more music. I played in the jazz band, the marching band and the concert band. I danced to disco, classical and showtunes. I watched the Muppet Show and learned about Alice Cooper (whom I later met). My friends and I bought Queen albums and I won an 8-track player in a contest and got Billy Joel, Fleetwood Mac and the REAL Sgt. Pepper for Christmas that year…on 8-track, yes.

I get the idea behind that little Facebook app and I tried to turn it into “5 albums that mean a lot to me” or “5 albums that I could listen to right now” but it didn’t feel right. It felt…dishonest. It felt like a betrayal of all that was good and pure and Osmond in the world.

And as for those albums in the picture, I own three of them on cd. But there are a few more I will get eventually…I’ll leave it to your imagination as to which ones.



For the record, the K-tel Songbird album playlist is as follows:
Every Woman in the World-Air Supply
How ‘Bout Us?-Champaign
Crazy Love-Poco
Games-Phoebe Snow
Together-(I think it’s by a band called Tierra but I can’t read the printing)
Biggest Part of Me-Ambrosia
Crying-Don McClain
SIDE 2 (THERE WERE TWO SIDES!)
More Than I Can Say-Leo Sayer (I still love this song)
Looking For Love-Johnny Lee
The Winner Takes it All-ABBA
Fool In Love with You-Jim Photoglo (Can that be right? Photoglo?)
Killing Time-Susan Anton and Fred Knoblock
Her Town Too-James Taylor and JD Souther
Somebody’s Knockin’-Terri Gibbs

Semi.

I know everyone who cooks loves to complain about Sandra Lee and her Semi-Homemade show. I watch it. I am fairly frequently horrified by the ideas she has. But I fully support the concept. 70 percent storebought , 30 percent home made isn’t perfect, no. But it’s certainly better than 100% drivethrough. And it’s a good way to start if you really aren’t much of a cook. So, no, I don’t take issue with it, but I do hope that it’s a learning tool. I mean I use canned beans all the time. Have I used dried beans? Yes, I have. And I like dried beans but it’s pretty amazing that I remember pants most days so let’s not push it, ok. I don’t want to be out a dinner just because I forgot to put the beans to soak. Have I made my own bread? Yep, many, many times. And I love it. But do I still buy sliced sandwich bread? Oh hells yes.

I enjoy a baking challenge. Just yesterday I was reading a recipe for croissants and I thought…hey…I should…no. No! NO! But you know I will someday. I like to try stuff and I like to bake and I wish all my food was perfect and home made and organic and vegan…but it’s not. I can’t pretend that there aren’t Wendy’s nights. And even, once a year, a…dare I say it? McDonalds night (literally ONCE…A…YEAR because it takes me 364 days to forget how much I didn’t like any of it except for the hot mustard. I love the hot mustard.). So I can’t really complain about Semi-Homemade all that much.

Except for one thing. And it’s not the Kwaanza cake because that just defies…everything.


(And just so you know, I am not the only person obsessed with the Kwanzaa cake.)

I was watching the other day and she made a cocktail called the “Risky Whiskey.” She started by saying “Put three cups of Whiskey in a pitcher…”” and I said “DONE!”.

Sandra Lee, I just beat you at your own game. 100% store bought. 100% delicious. Wanna come over for a cocktail?

(Obviously she added other things to the pitcher (maple syrup? really? ew.) but really…why mess with perfection?)

Hi.

This is how I know I’ve been really tired, mostly due to allergies, I think…this morning, when the alarm went off, I decided it was far too early and reset it (didn’t just hit the snooze, actually reset it) for one half hour later. I was pretty angry about a minute later when it went off again and I thought I must have set it wrong. But no, it was actually a half hour later. It only felt like a minute. I never sleep THAT deep or THAT soundly in the morning. Mostly due to the endless construction on the building across the street. Or possibly the endless landscaping of California. Or maybe the dude at the window repainting the trim…yeah, that’s always a fun one. I had my breakfast with that dude the other day as he was painting the kitchen window trim. It was rather shocking to walk into the kitchen for my coffee and encounter a mustachioed man in the window. He seemed nice enough but there wasn’t enough coffee for him too.

My point? Tired. Allergy ridden and tired. Ah spring!

So, in lieu of actually doing anything here, I’d like to show you a few links.
Pride and Prejudice conducted on Facebook made me laugh out loud.

I find Ecofont amazing. No one else seems as thrilled as I do. But people, with this font, you use 20% less ink and it’s very nicely designed, totally readable and you can’t see the holes at normal point sizes. If you have to print things out a lot for say, proofreading purposes, don’t just tell me you print in draft mode, try this. It’s all kinds of awesome. Seriously.

Also, love this palette generator. It’s a nice way to change the way you look at things and it generates a usable palette, so if you particularly like the look of a picture of piece of art, you can adopt the colors to play with at will.

And in a similar vein, this lovely blog captures personalities and feelings in a CMYK palette. Very nice. I am feeling kind of like this at the moment…


(The green represents my allergies. ewwwwww.)


These happy clouds are changing my outlook though. Although, I think if I actually saw one in the sky, not knowing what it was…dude, I’d freak.



Boxed water is better for the earth. So simple. So practical. Interesting.


Finally, I find this endlessly entertaining. Through it , I created a great poem, but then I forgot to save it, so you’ll have to take my word that it was creative genius. GENIUS!

I'll be back. I have other posts a-brewin', I've just been feeling a little 75/50/73/23 lately.

Crispy.

I think I said previously that I have gotten in the habit of roasting things. Did I say that previously? Because I should have. I like to roast things. Or, maybe more accurately, I like to cook as much of my dinner as I can in the oven, so I can do other things while that is happening. Like go to the bathroom.

Seriously. I come home from work, throw things in the oven and then go to the bathroom, change into sweats, find my clothes for the next day, find some pajamas, give the cat her meds, wash my hands and then finish dinner. So, anything that can happen in between throwing something in the oven and washing my hands is good. Very good. Anything that makes dinner easier and faster…very, very good.

So a lot of things get thrown in the oven these days. Most veggies get roasted. I love asparagus, but roasted asparagus? Perfection. Don’t like Brussels sprouts. Roasted? They are awesome. Roasted cauliflower stinks while it’s roasting but tasted great, especially the browned bits and roasted broccoli works great, even with frozen broccoli. So the newest veggie to get chucked in the oven was kale.

Kale is bit of a tricky one. I like it, most of the time. But it’s got a strong flavor and if I am not in the mood…eh. Boiling it just never seems to do the trick, steaming it doesn’t seem to cook it enough and sautéing it used to be the best option. That is, until last night when I roasted it. The husband declared it a keeper and we ate a whole pan of it as a topping to baked potatoes.

Here’s what I did:

Preheated oven to 450°

Washed and spun one smallish bunch of kale dry…actually, I do this backward. I usually cut the kale (lettuce, greens, cabbage, whatever) first, then put them in a salad spinner and wash and dry them. Is that bad? I wash the cutting board and knife before using them again, in case the greens were contaminated, but it just makes more sense to me…anyway…kale is cut into about 1” strips and washed and dried.

Then I put it on a baking sheet and drizzled it with olive oil and tossed it around a bit to coat. You want a fairly healthy covering here, so if you are concerned with fat, this probably isn’t much better than frying or sautéing. But it’s olive oil, so your skin will be smooth and your coat will be nice and glossy.

Chuck the whole mess in the oven for about 10 to 14 minutes. Check it at ten and see what you think. It should still be very green but the edges may start to get brown. That’s about where you want it. Too much brown is bad. Black is also probably not good.
Take it out of the oven and turn the oven off…because I always forget that part.

Drizzle with a little tiny bit more oil, just a little bit and sprinkle liberally with sea salt or kosher salt. I don’t want to be all fancy here, but they do work better as finishing salts because they have a “softer” taste and we’re all about the soft taste over here.

We put the kale on top of baked potatoes and it was good. Like really good. It’s crispy, and almost like a really thin potato chip, only made from kale. And I could eat these leafy greens like chips, just put ‘em on a plate and munch away, they were that good.

I was going to draw you a picture of my potato with kale topping but…that sounded like work, so I didn’t. Here’s a worried tiger instead…

Baked.

Last night I decided that I wanted an egg with my dinner. It was a breakfast for dinner night and I thought an egg would be lovely with the Kashi waffle and veggie bacon. And I was right. The thing I is, I don’t generally care about eggs and I eat them so rarely that I am not very good at making them. I can scramble. Oh yes, how I can scramble (I use water instead of milk or cream…something about the proteins? Or the steam? I don’t remember, but it was in a book.) I can boil, soft or hard. I don’t think I’ve ever poached and egg but I am betting I could. It’s the frying that’s the problem. It should be easy enough but I can’t get the timing right and I either break the yolk or I cook it too long or, worst of all, I don’t like to cook eggs in butter so I use olive oil and they get really, really brown and look gross (but they taste fine, I swear). So last night, I figured it was about time to try something new. Baked it was. And it worked perfectly. One good egg was a perfect serving with the other stuff. It was easy. I DIDN’T HAVE TO PAY ATTENTION TO IT! That’s the biggest thing for me. I get home from work kind of late and I like to be able to put the dinner in the oven and let it go while I change clothes, give the cat her meds, check the mail, go to the bathroom, gather up clothes for the next day, prepare my breakfast and sometimes lunch for the next day and put away some dishes.

…

You know what I’d like even more? Someone else to do all that stuff…

Anyway, it worked well, it tasted good and it’s a keeper. Baked eggs are nothing new but if you are not a fan of standing over a frying pan it’s a nice way to go.

Here’s what I did:

-Buttered small ramekins (Next time I will use olive oil. Turns out, I don’t really like butter all that much. But, I had some in a small dish from a dinner I had served to friends the night before so it was convenient. Live and learn. Olive oil or Earth Balance next time.)

-Cracked one egg into each ramekin.

-Topped with salt, pepper and parsley.

-Added a few drops of soy creamer on top. A very few drops. Just enough to dampen the yolk really. I had read that the eggs could dry out without the addition of cream or milk and I had no cream or milk because I don’t really like cream or milk (or eggs…except last night, or butter…) so soy creamer it was. I was worried that there might be a protein issue here like when you add soymilk to hot coffee....it kind of curdles a bit…but no. No problems. Then, because most of the recipes I read called for it, I added a bit of cheese. Parmesan on one, cheddar on the other.

-Tossed the whole thing in a 350° oven for about 14-18 minutes. I let them cook a little long because I was unsure about how well done they would be. 18 minutes was fine. 14 would have been fine too, for a runny yolk.

-What I’ll do differently next time:
Olive oil instead of butter, no creamer on top, no cheese on top, possibly a wee bit of toast on bottom, and some frozen spinach, and if I have it, a slice of tomato. And maybe some other herbs, like thyme, or some green onion. And despite the fact that I claim not to like eggs (unlike Snarkydork, who REALLY does NOT like eggs), I think I might use two eggs in a slightly larger ramekin…with previously mentioned toast (or bread), spinach and tomato.

Congratulations to me for doing something else that the rest of the world has done for ages. Yeah, I’m not breaking new ground here. But it was really good.

Oh, also, if you are looking for more things to read, I've been posting a bit over here...

Justice.

Where have I been, you ask? I have been doing my civic obligation, my friends. And I hope to never have to do it again. Thirteen days of jury duty didn’t convince me that our legal system is the…well…look, it’s better than some, but it’s far from perfect. And while I can legally tell you all about the trial now, I don’t know that you care. Let’s say words like whistleblower, probation, psychiatrist, forensic accountant and pain in the lower back and leave it at that for now. It wasn’t fun. It wasn’t the kind of learning experience I like having and when your 20 minute commute is the highlight of the day, something bad is happening.

For the record, my usual commute is no less than 40 minutes. Today was an hour. Twenty minutes was pretty nice as far as that part goes.

So, that’s pretty much been it lately. I’ve been doing some art for a friend’s website, but not much else art wise…soon though…soon my pretty…

And other than that:

What I’ve been reading: Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe, which was, as Scott Pilgrim comics are wont to be, entertaining. But it confused the hell out of me. Characters start to look alike and hey, I thought this was the last one! (Apparently, it's not.)

The Reckoning The Murder of Christopher Marlowe.- I am not so much a Marlovian (look it up, it’s for real) but, as a friend once told me, I clearly have a crush on Kit Marlowe. I’ve only just started this book as part of my “read more non-fiction” initiative and it’s interesting.

Pigeon Pie-Ah, Nancy Mitford. It’s dated (WW2) and snobby and funny as hell. Rarely do I actually find myself laughing aloud at a book, but this one got me several times. It made cheerful reading in the hallway of the courthouse while other jurors were, oh, you know, BEING INCREDIBLY LATE.

Midnight’s Children- Salman Rushdie-Yeah…still reading this…slowly. I don’t know, I get it, I get why he’s famous, I just don’t know if I like it. He’s awfully in love with his words.

What’s next: Well, I just got two books in the mail that are non-fictions about 18th century women. One I bought because it was also written by Nancy Mitford so I am looking forward to that. There’s also a book called Lonely Werewolf Girl hanging out in my living room and I am thinking that’s next for fiction.

Oh goodness…look at the time…you don’t need to know what I’ve been watching (Sheep themed horror movies), cooking (root beer cupcakes) or drawing (cute little girls), do you? No, I didn’t think so.

I’ll get back on some sort of schedule eventually.

Maybe.

In the meanwhile, if you really miss me, I did do a post over here...

Dammit.

Can you believe this shit? I am STILL commuting to the Hall of Justice and I have at least one more day to go. But I have said that before...

Here's the really good part. They are closed tomorrow. I have to go to the office. And then back to the duty on Friday.

I am a good citizen. But I am not happy about being a good citizen.

Fluke.

Ah well, sometimes love isn't pretty. You can find this card in the store. There's no real explanation here except a fluke and a flounder are essentially the same fish except for the location of the eyes. And how you tell the left from the right is beyond me. Basically, it's a valentine joke for my dad. But if your valentine loves fishing, perhaps it will work for them too. Or...you know...if you really just want to confuse someone...go for it.


Ok, NOW I am out for a few days. I just wanted to show you some valentines before I had to go back to the HALL OF JUSTICE...yeah, i only wish Batman was there. Even Aquaman would do.

Post.

Sorry. I've been doing my civic duty for five days and foresee at least five more. I'll be back in touch if and when it's done. Until then...


New cards are available in the store. For the not quite ordinary Valentine.

Quick.

Coming in under the wire. Posting a link to download this Neko Case song because:

A) Neko Case is freakin' awesome. So there.
B) $5 will be donated to the Best Friends Animal Society, which is also awesome.
C) I love animals, I love Neko. Can't go wrong here.



I am sorry I didn't get it up in time for you to follow suit...unless you follow quickly.

Playlist.

Because I don’t have kids of my own, it’s important that I indoctrinate a love of the good things in my nieces and nephews. My two oldest are steps and they were too old to really change by the time I got there. In fact, last time I saw them they were making fun of me for having a Spider-Man antenna topper and a Hellboy dashboard saint on my car. Apparently, that’s not cool. But, despite my lack of input, those two are pretty cool on their own and read a lot of the same comics and listen to the same music as I do, so we can count them as successes, even if I had nothing to do with it.

The others…well, I still have some work to do there. My 16 year old niece is doing ok on her own. She’s a bit of a punk/goth/slacker and I am all right with that. She likes horror movies and Harry Potter and…Led Zeppelin…ok, that needs some work but you know, she’s 16 (sorry Janet, I just don’t love the Zep). She’s also from my husband’s side of the family so that explains a lot of deficiencies.

Now, a while back when the (now) 16 year old nephew was starting to read a lot for pleasure, I tried to pick out the books I had loved at his age. I gave him The Phantom Tollbooth, Trumpet of the Swan, stuff that I really liked at 9 or so. And he got it. I don’t know if he liked all the books, but he got the concept and I think he appreciated it. A few years later, we were talking about music and he was just starting to find his personal musical…feet. So I decided I would make him a cd of song that I liked and THOUGHT he would enjoy. Now, look, I do want to say that I very desperately want to be the “cool auntie”. I want him, and all the kids to say, “Oh wow, you like the Sex Pistols? That’s awesome!” but I don’t want to be the auntie that tries to hard to look cool and just looks foolish. I don’t want to be auntie mutton trying to dress as auntie lamb, as it were. So, right, I made him a cd, I tried to mix it up a bit, older newer, rock-ish, emo-ish, punk-ish. And he was…well…unimpressed. I don’t think he HATED it and hated me, I just didn’t hit the right buttons on that one. Here’s the playlist:

Crooked Teeth --Death Cab For Cutie
Hands Open--Snow Patrol
All Sparks--Editors
Gone Daddy Gone --Gnarls Barkley
Dance Like A Monkey--New York Dolls
Baby Goes to 11—Superdrag
Girlfriend--Matthew Sweet
World Shut Your Mouth--Julian Cope & The Teardrop Explodes
Spirit In The Sky--Norman Greenbaum
Mass Romantic--The New Pornographers
La Mer--Django Reinhardt
Slow Train--Lemon Jelly
Way To Blue--Nick Drake
Ballet Lane—Underworld
The Rainbow--Apples In Stereo
Eaten By The Monster Of Love—Sparks
Like Wow Wipeout--Hoodoo Gurus
(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding—
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
That Old Pair Of Jeans --Fatboy Slim
I Am Not Your Gameboy—Freezepop

You see where I was going though, right? Happy, appropriate, fun stuff that he may not hear otherwise.

So, this Christmas, the ten-year-old got an mp3 player. I gave him an iTunes gift card and made him a mix cd, again, trying to stay happy, fun and appropriate. I have yet to hear what he thinks but I know his dad liked a lot of it.

"Itchy And Scratchy" Main Title Theme--The Simpsons
Shining Star--Earth Wind & Fire
Land Of 1000 Dances--Wilson Pickett
Mr. Big Stuff --Jean Knight
Iko Iko --Cyndi Lauper
Mr. Blue Sky--Electric Light Orchestra
Here Comes My Baby--Cat Stevens
Beyond The Sea--Robbie
Big Yellow Taxi--Joni Mitchell
God Only Knows--Petra Haden
Minor Swing--Django Reinhardt
Stand--R.E.M.
All Star--Smash Mouth
And We Danced—Hooters
Antmusic--Adam & The Ants
I Wanna Rock--Twisted Sister
Go--Apples In Stereo
Rock Me Amadeus--Falco
Like Wow Wipeout--Hoodoo Gurus
Rock Lobster--The B-52's
It’s Tricky--Run DMC
One Step Beyond—Madness
The Simpsons Main Title Theme

Yeah, there’s a little cross-over there. But you gotta try to get your favorites in, right?

So, let me ask you, what were your favorites at 10 and 14? Would you have liked getting a cd mix (or cassette mix…or gramophone mix) from your auntie? What would she have put on it? I’m thinking mine would have had some Barry Manilow and Anne Murray, but I could be wrong.

Movie.

The only movie I saw over the holidays…actually, the only movie I have seen in forever was Frost/Nixon. I was persuaded to see it by my BFF although I did slip in one “OH hey, we could go see Twilight!” just to to make the effort, but no, it was Frost/Nixon or nothing so…ok. Hey look, I have a deep fondness for Michael Sheen. He’s cute. He’s a good actor. That’s pretty much enough. But I also really like Frank Langella. I think he is kind of a forgotten actor. When I mention him people always say “Frank Who?” but then you mention a few movies he’s been in and “Oh yeeeeeeah, him.”

He is, in fact, my first Dracula (I am totally going to market that as a new toy. MY FIRST DRACULA by Fisher Price!). Before him I was only aware of the Bela Lugosi verision which is a good one, I don’t mean to dismiss him since he is THE movie Dracula (who is nothing like *shudder* Nosferatu), but the 1970 something version was my favorite for many years…may still be. And Langella gets the sexy vamp, unlike the wonderful Gary Oldman who…let’s just assume it was someone else’s idea, ok? Annnnnyway…yes, frank Langella. AMAZING. Brilliant as Nixon. And this movie is basically two guys talking. A talking head movie, as it were. So I found myself concentrating on his face a lot. I couldn’t decide if he was wearing prosthetics or not, I couldn’t quite picture the details of his face to know. Turns out, he was. I know there were jowl prosthetics and I think there was a bit of a nose involved as well. I am not totally convinced that there weren’t earlobe add-ons too…they struck me as not quite right for his face. I’ve been pouring over pictures of him trying to tell.

Because this was basically an endless series of close-ups, I finally understood why all the actors these days are worrying about high definition tv. It struck home when I noticed that both Kevin Bacon and Michael Sheen have pierced ears. Not a big deal except I doubt that the people they were playing had pierced ears. For me, this isn’t a big deal but it does open a small can of worms for actors. If I noticed holes in ears in a movie, what am I going to notice on a high def televison. I hear the prOn actors are the most worried. Can’t really blame them.

So, not really a review but I did rather enjoy Frost/Nixon, much to my surprise. I went in expecting nothing and came out thinking, “Hmmm, better than I imagined.” The two phrases that do chase around my mind though are “ham-fisted” and “heavy-handed" which, yes, do pretty much mean the same thing. Some of the direction and writing took away from my pleasure in the acting. But I also go in with a bias of not loving Ron Howards’ direction, so you know, if you dig his other stuff, you won’t be bothered. Hmmm…I just went back to look at his directorial credits and I do like some stuff. Splash, Night Shift. Parenthood, but…yeah, I think it’s fair to call him heavy-handed. And I will never be able to forgive him for How the Grinch Stole Christmas, never.

Now I am off to much worse pursuits. The husband is going out of town so I have moved terrible romantic comedies to the top of the queue. I don’t expect Mama Mia to be good but hey, Colin Firth, Stellan Skaaaaarsgaaaaaaaaard and Pierce Brosnan? Singing ABBA? Yeah, not gonna miss that. I even got a bottle of sparking sake to make it go down easier. I’ll let you know how that works for me.

Read.

And now…looking back…I kept a record of all the books I read in 2008 and my intention was to write little reviews of them. I did write reviews for a few of them but then I got lazy and I decided just to make notes on the rest. Then I got lazier and I decided to just make notes on a few. It was a very vampire filled year so…you know…just a little more than skin deep, I suppose. I didn’t read as much as I would have liked (and for the record, I only list novels, not novellas, short stories or comic books) so there was some more reading, but still less than I wanted. Maybe this year…

Books Read 2008
January:
Fool Moon-Jim Butcher
The Stupidest Angel-Christopher Moore
Twilight-Stephanie Meyer
The Half-Moon Detective Agency-Eion Coufler
Tall, Dark, and Dead- Tate Hallaway

Clearly January’s books had a supernatural theme running through them. Fool Moon is the second in the Harry Dresden series from Jim Butcher and it was a fun read. I love the character and Butcher adds such nice touches to the story (Dresden has amazing magical powers but they short circuit modern technology, so simple things like email and cell phone calls just don’t work for him. It’s a nice little bit that can certainly heighten the tension of story when you know the hero just can’t call for help or download a file that will contain the info he needs). If you like mysteries and supernatural series, check the Dresden Files books out. And if you happen to catch the series running on sci-fi, that was kind of fun too. Sorry it’s gone.

The Christopher Moore I have read has been hit or miss for me. I loved Lamb but was less enthralled by Bloodsucking Fiends. The Stupidest Angel falls somewhere in the middle. I didn’t dislike it, but it was maybe a little to slapstick for my tastes. Moore does seem to enjoy himself though and his characters are memorable and silly (in a fun way).

Twilight is the first in a series of young adult novels. This one was pretty standard girl loves vampire fare. I didn’t find anything that offended me in it, but nothing grabbed me enough to make me want to continue the story either. I guess I am not the target market on this one though. (Hmmm...well, this was written before all the big Twilight boom this year. It was popular at the time I wrote this but I didn't yet know about HOW big it was or would get. I still think it was pretty boring and I am quite the fan of crappy vampire stories, so...)

The Half-Moon Detective Agency is another Y.A. novel (I know, I have to start reading big kid books!). I am particularly fond of Eoin Colfer, For some reason I feel like he writes like a kid. Rather, he’s got the right mindset to write for a super intelligent kid. I am fond of his Artemis Fowl series but this book, which I suspect will spawn it’s own series was more…fun. It made me laugh out loud while I was reading it and that doesn’t happen all that often. I don’t really know how to put into word the giddiness I felt reading this book and I don’t even know how to tell you WHY I felt that way but it just worked for me, the language, the style, the character development. And finally I see a writer who understands how kids use technology. Books are only just starting to make use of text messages and instant messages and the like in a way that seems natural. Colfer gets that and uses it to great advantage. If you are 8-13 and a looking for a very entertaining mystery novel, this is it. If you are…much older…read this and see if you don’t feel like this guy just gets how a kid’s brain works.

Well, I guess that this would not be the time to deny my fondness for vampire stories. Don’t know what it is, although I do know it’s not that I find them sexy. In fact, I tend to really dislike any stories that make vampires overtly sexual. I get the whole penetration thing, I get the whole blood thing, let’s get to the interesting stuff, eh? But that said, I really do enjoy the Tate Hallaway books.

February
The Bleeding Dusk-Colleen Gleason
Cakes and Ale-W. Somerset Maughm
Grave Peril-Jim Butcher
Kiki Strike and the Shadow City-Kirsten Miller-Oh hey, wow. I got a real kick out of this YA novel and I will certainly pick up more from this author.

April
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan-Lisa See-I am sorry, I can not really describe how little I liked this book. My mother passed it on to me and I read it because she did but…I should really know better, she did, after all, ask me to read all ten billion pages of The Corrections before confessing that she didn’t like it either. Anyway, a number of years ago we saw a museum…thing…about Lisa See’s family and loved it. The book…not so much.
Thursday Next: First Among Sequels- I love Jasper Fford. If only for that extra eff.
Dead Sexy-Tate Hallaway

June
Anonymous Rex-Eric Garcia This book kind of took me by surprise. It really sounds ridiculous when you try to explain it (Dinosaurs exist alongside people, hide themselves in people suits and eat herbs) but it worked. It was far more entertaining that I could have expected.

July
Cross Bones- Kathy Reichs I’d been wanting to read one of the temperance Brennan novels for a while and I did enjoy this. Very different from the TV series “bones” though, so if you are reading it for that…don’t. Still, I enjoyed it and may pick up another eventually.
Wire in the Blood- Val McDermid-Another book I wanted to read due to having seen a tv show. But you know what? It works here. Good book, good tv show. And I guess I was also influenced by an article I read some time ago where Ian Rankin put his foot into it by saying women, especially lesbians, were more bloodthirsty writers than men. Val McDermud, a lesbian and a woman (heh), had a bit to say about that. And I’m gonna toss this quote in just because I think sums it up pretty well

“I’ll tell you what pisses me off more than almost anything: when people say, ‘As a woman, how do you feel about writing on violence?’ Have you ever heard a male crime writer being asked, ‘As a man, how do you feel about writing about violence?’
“There’s a profound disassociation, it seems to me; as if somehow it’s wrong for us to be writing about violence against women, as though somehow we need permission to write about violence against women.”

August
Romancing the Dead-Tate Hallaway
When Twilight Burns-Colleen Gleason
The Good Fairies of New York-Martin Millar
Summer Knight-Jim Butcher

October
My Name Is Will: A Novel of Sex, Drugs, and Shakespeare-Jess Winfield- Written by a former co-worker of my husband. I felt like I should support the cause.
Any Given Doomsday- Lori Handeland-Preview copy that I got by asking for it on some website. It was…not my cup of tea. Yeah…let’s just be polite and say that.
Northanger Abbey-Jane Austen-Oh hey, I read this with an on-line read along and I really, really enjoyed it, which was cool because I feel like this is the hardest Jane Austen book to like and that there is a lot going on under the surface that goes missing. In fact, I enjoyed this so much that I was inspired to purchase some of the gothic horror novels mentioned in the story. I am currently reading The Mysteries of Udolpho which is one of the books that is repeatedly mentioned.

December
Roo’d Joshua Klein-this was a Daily Lit read that…I think I read an intereview with Joshua Klein about it. It was entertaining.
Making Money-Terry Pratchett-I am sad about Terry Pratchett’s not so recent diagnosis of a rare and specific type of Alzheimers. It makes me wonder what’s in store for his series of novels and how far he writes ahead. But I feel some amount of relief in the memory that even if he were never to write another word, he will have left quite a legacy behind. But I hope he keeps writing.
Death Masks-Jim Butcher
The Thin Man-Dashiell Hammett I don’t know if I had ever read a Dashiell Hammet book before. I kind of think I read part of the Maltese Falcon, but I don’t remember. I love the Thin Man movies and while the book doesn’t quite match the fun of Willam Powell and Myrna Loy’s version, it clearly defined the concept and for that I am greatful.

Well, I'm almost done my first book of 2009 and it's another supernatural...I think I need to move on to something different. Back to Midnight's Children, I guess.

Beginning.

Getting back to normal here..slowly. I had a nice Christmas visit with my family, a safe and uneventful trip back and now I am here..raring to…yeah…not so much. But hey, it’s a new year and there are new things to do and…sleep. I slept plenty at my mom’s house. Yeah, I know that the EMFs from that electric blanket are bad for me but man do I love a cozy bed! And it’s really cold in my room, so it’s kind of necessary.

New Year’s Eve was spent showering, kissing the cat at midnight and going to bed. The husband represented at a party that I would have liked to attend but just couldn’t. Too exhausted (got in from east coast at 10:30 pm).

Oh and hey, the new year has started off nicely in a different way. I made it into my first etsy treasury. That is, for those not in the know, a “curated” selection of items that the curator finds particularly interesting. My bee cards were listed in a bee themed treasury. The cards were originally designed last year as Valentines and are still available in the shop. They are…well…kind of goofy. I have a fondness for bees and puns so…you know..there you go.

OH! For those of you playing along, a NEW DOCTOR has been named. I have seen him in a few things but at this point, I don’t really have an opinion on him. I was pulling for an older doctor but what do I know? If you've seen the Phillip Pullman adaptations done for the BBC starring Billie Piper...one was called something like The Ruby in the Smoke, then you've seen Matthew Smith. He was fine. He's a stage actor primarily and he's 26 years old. So...there you go. We'll see.

Gossip.

Well, hello there...

Some small things of note:

If you have been following the Doctor Who saga of “who is the next who”, you may be interested in some things I have read, which I won’t link, because I am lazy…

James Nesbitt is not currently “the one” but apparently, David Tennant thinks he should be and tells reporters to go congratulate Nesbitt on his new role. Mean boy!

Robert Carlyle is amazing…but I don’t know if I want him as my new doctor. On the other hand…Robert Carlyle. He is, however, signed to be on a new Stargate show, so I'm thinking no.

Rumors abound about the first female doctor. It is my understanding that it has already been established that Time Lords do not change sex when they regenerate. But I could be wrong and anything is possible. Billie Piper has been mentioned as the first female doctor but that’s just silly, and now, everyone is stumping for their favorite girl. Jennifer Saunders? Nah. Joanna Lumley? Nah, although, she did play the female doctor in a one-off, charity video a number of years ago. Sophie Okonedo? Hey, wait a minute…that’s interesting. She's already a part of the team as she's done some voice acting for...Scream of the Shalka, I think. But it gets better. Russell T. Davies has mentioned his interest (although he no longer really has a say) in Catherine Zeta Jones (meh) or…Lesley Sharpe. HOLDIT! If I’m gonna have a female doctor, you have just found her. Lesley Sharpe, if you have watched the most recent season, appeared in the “Midnight” episode as “Sky Silvestry” who was inhabited by the alien/presence that mimicked everything? Remember? Remember how she was creepy as hell? Well, yeah, that’s what she’s good at. And I love her. So if you gotta go for a lady, please do go for her. If you ever see her series "Afterlife" playing on BBCAmerica...dude, it's awesome. So, you know, if we gotta go female, let's do it right. (Also, she has a history with these guys, so that's good).

I think the current buzz is David Morrissey (again, someone with connections to the show and the writers and producers) and you know, that don't hurt, that don't hurt at all.

Oh, ok here, here’s one link with some (fake) info.


Ok, enough of that…well, one more thing. In my humble opinion, despite my deep love for the last two doctors (nine more than ten), I think we need a less sexy doctor for a while. Remember, he started out as an older man. There’s no reason he can’t be that again. It brings a different dynamic to the show and one I think is sorely needed at the moment.

OK, what else?

Pecan pie truffles. Done. Haven’t tried one since they got coated in chocolate but they seemed ok. They aren’t true truffles and I had to adapt the recipe a bit to make them work but…we’ll see what people think.

Chocolate mint brownies. Done. To be gifted this evening.

Gingerbread Cupcakes….
Yeah…I ran out of sugar. I don’t know why I was so underprepared but there you go. No sugar. No cupcakes. But I will be making them in January because dammit, I really want them!

Shopping? Done.
West Coast Christmas? Done. I got a Roomba! Groovy. And lots and lots of books and cds. Excellent. And the complete Nero Wolfe series with Timothy Hutton. THANK YOU!

East Coast Christmas? Leaving on Sunday. Wish me luck.

Have a happy whatever and a merry new year. See ya on the other side…I hope.

Blending in.

Done.

Well, sort of done.

Bourbon balls (sounds uncomfortable)?
Check.
Guinness Truffles?
Check.
Whisky caramels?
Check.
Guinness Cupcakes?
Check.
Gingerbread cupcakes?
…
No.
Brownies?
…
No.
Pecan Pie Truffles?
…
Look, I’m only human…well…mostly human.

Many packages have been mailed (keep an eye out). No presents have been wrapped though. And right now, right this very minute. I am tired. All of the sudden and quite decidedly. But hey, it’s getting there. Although I am doubting that those gingerbread cupcakes will show up before I leave.

And for the record, let me tell you about making caramel. I like to do it. It’s one of my favorite things to make, but be warned, caramel is extreme cooking. It’s candy napalm waiting to happen. Boiling sugar? Oh hell yeah that’s dangerous. But, what you may not think about (but believe me, I do) is that when you add cream to boiling sugar, you get a hot volcano of death. So far I have survived but I can’t say that the eruption doesn’t scare the bejeezus out of me. Luckily, this Whisky caramel recipe doesn’t call for cream. Instead it calls for whisky. Which also boils up violently when added to hot sugar. Except, it sort of…growls at you first. There is a distinct grumbling sound and then the insane bubbling starts. I was expecting the insane bubbling…I was not expecting the prelude of deep angry sounds. I am glad they warned me to step away. I was in the process of stepping away anyway but man did I JUMP when the caramel started making that noise.

Finally, randomly…I was thinking the other day about the Peanuts, the Tao of Pooh and identifying oneself with a cartoon character…don’t ask why. But when I was in college, all those years ago, The Tao of Pooh was a very popular freshman sort of things to read. My friends and I realized that we all fit into the mold of a Winnie the Pooh character and really lead our lives in the manner of those characters. Then I realized that I also fit into the mold of one particular Peanuts character, who also just happens to be my favorite Peanuts character as well. So, I’m asking you…which Pooh character and which Peanuts character do you think I am…and which are you?

Hmmm...also, just noticed that this is my 499th post. That's kind of interesting...

Things.

A few random things:

I watched Alvin and the Chipmunks. It wasn’t as bad as I imagined. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t good, but I’ve seen much, much worse (*ahem* I’m looking at you Grinch who ruined my belief in all that is good in the world). Yeah, there is that disturbing “raisin” joke but, I can see why an 8 year old might like it. That’s my review, “Reasonably watchable if you are eight.”

I read “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”. I am a fan of F. Scott Fitzgerald but for the life of me, I couldn’t remember if I had read this before, because, in my ever so humble opinion, it’s not his best work. I found it depressing and discomforting, if well written. I fail to see how you get a…90 minute? 120 minute, more likely, “romance” out of a story that, to me, was about aging, birth and how the very young and very old are treated. And how callous we can be in the middle. Whatever. I probably wouldn’t go see it anyway. My cat, however, might. Have I mentioned that she is obsessed with Brad Pitt? Seriously, she has her own dvd of Fight Club. If he’s on the televison, she will stop and watch and the only other thing she seems to watch is cartoons. Personally, I am very interested in “Nothing Like the Holidays” because it stars John Leguizamo, who is either a rich genius who just does whatever the hell he wants or is a seriously underused and undervalued actor. AND Alfred Molina. Who is one of the future ex Mr. “This is so silly”s. Dude, he made Doc Ock hot. What can I say?

I thought I had all my Christmas shopping done. I was, of course, wrong. It’s down to those little things. Gift certificates, gift baskets. Things that I put off until the last minute (last paycheck). Close…so close.

I also thought I had my Christmas mix done. I was so very close this morning. It seemed a little depressing and I was trying to see if I could weave a few cheerful songs in and…um…I accidentally deleted the playlist. Oops. Well, it’s given me a chance to rethink and cheer it up. So…anyone want a Christmas mix cd? I’d be willing to trade for something similar…when I get it done…it’s so close….

It’s down to parties and candy making now. Three…possibly four, liquor enriched sweets. Guinness truffles, single malt caramels, bourbon balls and…if time permits, rum enriched pecan pie truffles. No time for any others this year. Oh but I did get suckered into making some cupcakes. I am thinking gingerbread w/lemon butter cream (faux buttercream, that is).

I’m sure there’s more to be said, but I’m not the one to say it.

Reminders.

The deadline is near. Enter the Paperlotus Holiday Giveaway. It’s easy and it would make me happy. Don’t you want me to be happy?

If you are shopping (I am done save a few gift certificates, a bottle of booze and one dvd set that I may or may not purchse) don’t forget to check out retailmenot.com for coupons and shipping codes and if they fail you, although it seems rare that they do, google the store in which you are shopping and “coupon”. I saved at least $20 dollars this morning on some books that were presents…for me. But still.

Giveaway.

Oh I had plans. I had big plans. Four days off, no guests for Thanksgiving dinner? Plans, baby. Clean house. Trip to the storage unit. Christmas decorations. Yep. Big plans.

What? Oh, you want to know what got done? Um…well…my desk is a lot cleaner. And my kitchen floor. But that's about it. Oh there was cooking. There was turkey and stuffing and and roasted Brussels sprouts and sweet potato casserole. There was sticky toffee pudding and pumpkin pie. There were even emergency muffins made late last night when I realized there was no real breakfast food in the house and that I am done, DONE, with turkey. But there are no christmas decorations up. There are a few sitting on the table in the dining room (also known as my office, also known as the other side of the living room). There are plenty more in the storage unit. But no tree. Not yet. Maybe next weekend.

Oh, next weekend…there is a craft show. Tallmouse hosts the Handmade Brigade, which the Tired Girls attended in the summer and enjoyed very much. So, you know, if you find yourself in Cerritos, stop by. I'll have a soy peppermint mocha, no whip please. And if you are feeling generous, make it a grande. Thanks.

In the meanwhile, I have a suggestion for you. See, there is this other blog…the PaperLotus blog, where you may have seen my musings on artsy things. Well, we are having a little holiday giveaway over there. All you need to do is stop by and follow the instructions which pretty much boil down to: choose something you like from the store and post a comment with a link to it. Simple, right? And who knows, you might win something. So please do. Besides, we love the company. And sometimes I say something over there that's not so stupid. And we like to talk about art and craft, so maybe you'll enjoy it.

Toast.

I am going to be completely honest with you here. I am burnt. And crispy. Like toast. Burnt, crispy, toast. Or bacon. Overdone. Uncomfortably crunchy. No, let’s go with toast. I like toast. I don’t care so much for the bacon. I am toast.

It’s been a busy three or four weeks around here. Traveling, birthdaying, premiering, Felt Clubbing, and having a cold has taken it out of me. Add on the poor air quality due to the fires and I am left a crispy outer shell with very little inside. But you know what? I am left, and my home is intact (messy, but intact) and all my people are ok, so I guess being burnt out, is a lot better than some of the alternatives around here right now.

Felt Club was good. I think we were pretty successful. We always get nice people visiting us and this time was no exception. And hey, there were also people we sort of know. Friends and internet buddies stopped by and that was lovely. I bought stuff that I don’t need but want anyway and that too was lovely. An adorable “soap dish” that is destined to become a display stand for the perfect cupcake, a very excellent print of a bat, a charming watercolor, a nice little bag…probably some other things that I am not remembering. It was big and it was loud and it was crowded and it was fun but on top of everything else, it was pretty exhausting.

And besides that, I had, AGAIN, this weird blushing problem. See, I am pretty shy. I do blush quite a lot when I have to talk to strangers but usually, it’s like, in a classroom situation, or being singled out from a crowd, which I guess is not really that strange, right? That’s a normal reponse, to blush when put on the spot. But here, it happened twice, no…three times during conversations that I instigated. And when I blush, I get really embarrassed. Which is kind of the opposite of how it’s supposed to work, right? But yet again, while talking to a very pleasant artist that I am fond of, I felt my cheeks flare red and I hightailed it out of there. And again when I spoke to a handbag designer and yet again while talking to a cartoonist. Now, partially I can say that I get bashful because these people are good at what they do and I feel a wee bit tiny next to them, but you know, I feel a wee bit tiny next to pretty much everyone, so…I don’t know. Any one have any ideas on combating that creeping flush?

Anyway, now it’s on to one more craft show, this one a smaller deal, but a very nice one, I am looking forward to that. And there’s a little bit of work to be done for it, but nothing too scary. And there’s thanksgiving. Which I thought was two weeks away. And I was wrong. So…yeah. And apparently I am cooking for all of you, so I guess I need to go shopping. And for the record, we usually have Pilsbury orange rolls from a tube for Thanksgiving breakfast. Years ago I would make beautiful cinnamon rolls or muffins or something lovely and take it to my girlfriend’s house. We would eat sweets and drink coffee and go off to our alma mater’s football game and it was a lovely tradition. Until her husband said “Wow, these are good cinnamon rolls, way better than yours, honey.” Thus ended the Thanksgiving breakfast…well and I moved away so…you know. But it’s orange rolls this year, so come early if you are into that (Brenda).