Fiddly.

So, around Christmas time, I was invited to a cookie swap. I had never been to one before and it was fun but…I didn’t really enjoy baking the cookies. I couldn’t tell you exactly why except…it’s kind of fiddly. I mean, with a cake or cupcakes, pretty much all the work happens at once, it’s baked and you are done (unless you want to frost them). But cookies, much like candy, seem to go on and on. I tried to bake several pans of cookies at a time, but with an entirely accurate oven and all, I got a little twitchy. If burned one batch, I’d burn all of them, so I stuck to two pans at a time. It was fine. I think I made three kinds of cookies and you know, they were all good, but I just didn’t enjoy the experience as much as I wanted to. I’ve baked cookies many times before and you know, it’s not my favorite thing to bake but…this time…I kind of felt guilty that I didn’t enjoy it more. Maybe it was the holiday aspect, maybe it was because I was taking them to a party. It just wasn’t…my thing.

So, I’ve decided I need to dedicate a little more time to cookie baking. And, since I enjoy the vegan cupcake-baking thing so much, AND there is a lovely vegan cookie book by the same authors, I’ve been baking cookies a little bit more.

So far I’ve tried three recipes from the cookbook and I’ve liked them all well enough on their own merits. I do have to say though that a vegan chocolate chip cookie, while perfectly pleasant, even good, is not a chocolate chip cookie to me. It’s like a veggie burger. I enjoy it for what it is, not what it isn’t. I don’t like beef much but I do enjoy a good veggie burger, be it bean, soy or…other. But they don’t taste the same to me at all. One is not a replacement for the other in my book, and so far, I feel the same way about the chocolate chip cookies. Non-vegan chocolate chip cookies get much of their flavor from the butter. The two versions we tried relied more on the chocolate. One was enhanced by a base of whole wheat pastry flour, which gave the cookie a nice nuttiness. The other was, to me rather bland, but with a nice traditional texture, that half-baked chewy thing. But it was this that made me realize that I actually prefer a cake-like cookie and I liked the texture of the whole-wheat version.

Surprisingly, well…to me…the brown sugar flavor of a chocolate chip cookie really kind of fades into the background without butter. Who knew? Nonetheless…we ate all of both kinds. And yesterday my husband asked me where I had hidden the cookies. Um…in my tum. Sorry.

The other recipe I tried was a peanut butter bar cookie and man was it good. It was ever so peanutty and the recipe described it as fudge like. I don’t like fudge. I liked this bar. There you go.

Next, I’d like to try the recipe for… I think they were Mexican flavor influenced snickerdoodles. And there is a recipe for Rocky Road cookies with and accompanying picture that drives me to distraction.

But, in the meantime, while I haven’t had time for the fiddlyness of cookies, I did whip out a batch of wicked good cornbread muffins and a whiskey cake that was very good but could be better.
(PeeEss…if you are interested in the cookie book it’s Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar but Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romeo. I am enjoying it very much.)

Quoted.

Today I read a Dorothy Parker quote that I had never heard before. Granted, I am not well versed in Dorothy Parker, although she is part of a good era for me, she was an American, and I tended to kind of phase out during modern American lit lest someone mention John Updike.

“This wasn’t just plain terrible, this was fancy terrible. This was terrible with raisins in it.”

Now, personally, I love this quote because it mentions raisins. If you are child of the same 80’s that I am a child of, you probably know the other famous quote involving raisins.

“It’s got raisins in it. You like raisins.”

And if you don’t know that quote…I’m truly sorry that you believe that John Cusack is just now starting to do wacky comedies (don’t get me started though, I am kind of cheesed off about this whole “Hot Tub Time Machine” thing. Seriously, dude, you wouldn’t do commentary for “Better off Dead” but three or four tragic films later you hearken back to your roots? Seriously?).

Um…anyway…raisins.

Yes. Raisins. I could tell you how I am not such a big fan of raisins except in certain circumstances (covered in chocolate, perhaps).

Or I could tell you that I actually own a bracelet.that has another Dorothy Parker quote on it. “I like to have a martini,
Two at the very most.
After three I'm under the table,
after four I'm under my host.”

My husband doesn’t think it’s funny.

He’s should be glad it’s not this one: “Ducking for apples -- change one letter and it's the story of my life.”


Yeah, I know this isn’t much of a post but I read those quotes today and felt the need to share.

Smug.

So tell the truth. Do you read certain blogs or websites because you hate them? Hate the recipes, hate the designs, hate the suggestions for improving your life, the sanctimonious tone or the trite ideas? Do you?

I subscribe to a newsletter that I detest. It’s written by a “person of note” and it’s ridiculious. It tells me all the wonderful things I can do in cities I can’t afford to visit and places to stay that will cost more than I make in a week. It gives me recipes that make me shudder and tells me that I should exercise more, eat more fish, and only use organic toilet paper. It tells me why my friends don’t like me, who my friends should be, what my friends should be wearing and where to meet my friends to tell them I no longer want to be friends with them. It’s amazing and spectacular and hateful and horrible. And every time I read it I think, “Man, this is awful, I should cancel it.”

But I don’t.

Because then how could I possible feel so smug about being better than all this? Being better than a newsletter? How could I make fun of it if I didn’t read it every damn time it appears in my inbox?

It’s petty and it’s childish and I am pretty sure we all do it. I am pretty sure that someone is doing it right here, right now. It’s all right. We don’t all have to like the same things. Heck, I rarely like the stuff other people like, but I’m just contrary like that. But yeah…’fess up. You do it too, don’t you?

Soooo…here’s what I am doing for and you can now dislike and make fun of in your spare time…

Soulless by Gail Carriger- my dad says that the Kindle, which he loves, is problematic in one way, he can’t browse the aisles of the book store the way he used to and he has a hard time finding new books. Um…I have the opposite problem. I browse online (he doesn’t really like being online) and I follow links and the next thing I know I’ve got a list of new books and not enough time. I think that’s how I came across this one. And I was given a few gift certificates and I thought, oh what the heck? And I am glad I did. Very entertaining, light but not fluffy. Good understanding of the Victorian age and clothing of, and sexy in a way that worked without being embarrassing. Oh and it has vampires and werewolves. Can’t really go wrong can you? But then I finished that. So right now it’s:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Yeah, I know, I know, you read it ages ago. Whatever. It’s taken me while to get into it but at about 23% in (hello kindle!) and I am starting to get into the groove and I’m enjoying it a bit more (NO! Wait! I finished I enjoyed it but…well…that’s for another day). After this…well, I have quite a lot of free books I have picked up for the kindle, a few cozy mysteries, a romance (of all things!) and what appears to be a parody of a Victorian mystery. So I have choices to make, but I also just ordered the first book of the Red Riding series by David Peace. After reading about the tv series based on these books which were themselves inspired by a series of murders and…well, I haven’t read it yet, but it looks good. I’ll let you know.

What I’ve been listening to:

I think I have a new desert island disc. I’ve been listening to Pablo Honey on repeat for a while now. I think I kind of dismissed the whole Radiohead thing early on. Well, not true, I liked Creep, from this album and of course Fake Plastic Trees, but then I kind of wandered away from them, as I tend to do, until much later. And then I started kind of obsessively listening to Thom Yorke’s solo album, which I really, really love and that brought me back to Pablo Honey. So, the current list of desert island discs kind of reads like this:

Pablo Honey- Radiohead
The Eraser-Thom Yorke
Fashion Nugget -Cake (I know, what?)
All Over the Place-The Bangles (DO NOT JUDGE ME! It's a very listenable album!)
Django Reinhardt Box Set (sorry, I’ve not yet decided which single disc, I’ll try not to get stranded until then)
Elvis Costello-Mix cod (spell check insists that I mean COD here, and who am I to argue?) that I will have to prepare before being deserted
And I am starting to think that Massive Attack may have to appear here, possibly with Blue Lines (or maybe Protection) and some Rolling Stones...and...and...

Hmm. I think I need think on this. I did spend some time over the weekend tracking down some cds. Don’t you hate when you grab a cod (*ahem, thank you spellcheck) case take it to your car and then go to pop it in and…what? Am I the only person who doesn’t have an mp3 player in their car? Anyway, lots of empty cod (knock it off!) cases later I tracked down my copy of Fashion Nugget and listened to it on the way to work. It remains awesome.

Also, I’Ve been baking cookies. It’s experimental as I don’t really care for the act of making cookies as much as I like the act of eating cookies, but…it’s been slightly enlightening. Which is mostly just a phrase I wanted to use because I like the way it sounds. I’ll get back to you on this cookie experiment later…

Ahem.

I haven't abandoned anything! I don't care what they say. But until I can get it all back together (um...the tree is still up. Christmas presents are still ungifted...and there are two big boxes full of stuff from the east coast in the middle of the floor. Not to mention the suitcases that need to be put away, the thank you notes that need to be written and the dusting...oh god the dusting!...that needs to be done)...


Hellllllllo Nurse. Nice to see ya, Doctor!

Until then, gaze adoringly at the Ninth Doctor as John Lennon. How could that be any better? Maybe if he was holding a fluffy bunny or perhaps a Publisher's Clearing House check made out in my name...or maybe just a cupcake.

I'll be back. I have a list of the books I read in 2009. A rundown of People's Sexiest Men (no, seriously, I wrote it THAT long ago), some commentary on candy making, and why I don't like baking cookies...oh all kinds of lovely things! It will be delightful. Really, it will!

Prunes.

How often can I start a blog with…”So much has happened since last time!”?

Apparently, pretty often.

I don’t even know when last time was…hang on, let me look…hmmm….not quite a month. So I have almost avoided blogging for the entire national blogging…month…thing…what do you call that? NANBLOPOMO…eh. I am not participatory anyway.

So, we’ve had Halloween…nothing on there, I’ve made a few new Christmas card designs…the ‘rentals have come to visit and now we are well on our way to Thanksgiving. So, there…now we are caught up. Oh, right. And I got a year old and I received an awesome gift or two…one of them being a Kindle. Which is exciting…for me. I also became the proud owner of a 1917 cookbook entitled “A Thousand Ways to Please A Husband, “ oddly, there seemed to be no companion book on pleasing a wife…go figure.

Let’s see…Thanksgiving. Same ol’, same ol over here. Turkey…last year I felt like I was done with turkey. That maybe it was time to move on to some other holiday protein. Tofurky…nut loaf…something else. I still kind of feel this way but because I am cooking for others, I will stick with traditon. We’ll see how I feel about it this year and perhaps next year I will add the vegetarian option. I don’t know. I do have strong feelings on both sides, but last year the turkey just didn’t work for me.

Sorry, lost my train of thought there…turkey, stuffing, sweet potato casserole (topped with pecans and brown sugar or may be almonds or walnuts since I already have those …), roasted Brussels sprouts, cranberry jelly (from a can, dammit, none of your fancy compotes here!), crescent rolls (ya gotta!), and…what else? Pumpkin pie. Maybe some whoopee pies…and, if we have company, some sort of snacks for earlier in the day. Maybe the old standby of artichoke spinach dip or some jalapeño dip. I think that sounds pretty good. We’ve gotten rid of the mashed potatoes because…eh, we have enough. And I was going to make an acorn squash pie instead of a pumpkin pie but was advised against it. So there you go.

Actually, let me check my new 1917 cookbook and see if it has any good recipes…no…several “creamed” things…several “escalloped” things and…oh, this is kind of telling, three dessert recipes that involve prunes. Considering we no longer even call them prunes (they are now called “dried plums”), that seems pretty…dated. Prune blanc mange, prune soufflé and prune whip. Hey, I LIKE prunes, but…yeah. We’ll stick to pumpkin pie for this one.

One last thing for today…my big and lovely birthday present from my husband was a Kindle. I am swoony over it. Jodi said a while back that she didn’t think I would want one. She thought that I am the kind of reader that likes the tactile sensation of a book, and the smell of them. I’m gonna be honest with you here…I’m not. Despite loving books and owning many, many old and treasured volumes. I really don’t like touching old books. Too dirty (I know! Coming from me that’s pretty rich!) and I am really not fond of the smell of old books either. Guys I work with rhapsodize over that musty smell but ugh. Maybe it’s the memory of traveling during my childhood. I would bring my mother’s and grandmother’s books with me to read on long cartrips and spent too many sunny days trapped in the backseat of a car with and old book, and old dog and two older brothers coming back. I would get so queasy from the smell of the book on a hot day (not to mention the smell of dog and brothers!) and now, when I crack open an old book, that’s all I can think of. Yeesh, I’m feeling carsick right now. So, the Kindle seems ideal for me. No smell. No dust. And since I got it, I have put…let’s see, maybe 15 or 20 books on it and I’ve only paid for two! Naturally, like a good little geek my first addition was “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and being a lit geek, my second was the complete works of William Shakespeare. But since then I have been adding historical cook books, classics and the occasional free mystery novel. It’s been fun finding new stuff and so far, I am really enjoying it. And, again, no smell.


p.s. oh hey, look, a recipe for homemade crescent rolls....nah. i'm gonna get mine from a tuuuuuube!

Versus.

There have been cupcakes. Oh yes. And brownies. And toffee bars. And cookies with tofu. Yep. There has been baking. And lots of it.

Cupcakes to celebrate birthdays. Chocolate with vanilla buttercream and vanilla with brown sugar butter cream. Brownies and toffee bars to celebrate the arrival of fall…even though it was 95 degrees when I baked them. And tofu cookies because…well, just because. And all were well received.

The brownies were, perhaps, an experiment. I have a brownie recipe that I like and another that my father likes. But I used a third recipe for these particular brownies because…I could. Also, I had purchased some pumpkin spice flavored Hershey’s Kisses and when I opened the bag I discovered that they were…squished. They were all still wrapped and edible but I felt guilty leaving their little warped kissness sitting in the candy bowl, so I unwrapped a bunch and chucked them into some brownie batter. The brownies were ok, pretty good actually, but I am not thrilled with the Kisses. So I am thinking that particular recipe will be revisited soon and without any add-ons.

In other news…well there is no other news. But I did want to add that I had to step into a Mac vs. PC argument today and I just want to say…shut up. (Not to mention, doesn’t PC stand for personal computer? And isn’t a Mac still a personal computer? Isn’t this kind of similar to the ATM machine thing? You know, ATM stand for automatic teller machine, right? So why do people add “machine” to the end of it? And is it only in New Jersey that people say “I have to tap MAC” (MAC was the abbreviation for money access center, but I don’t know if it was used anywhere but in the Northeast.)

Um…where was I? Oh, right. Mac vs. PC…so to speak. Look, the basic function of all cars is pretty much the same. They get you from point A to point B. There are some very specialized cars that can do something…special, but, for most people, a car is pretty much a way to get to work. Now, since most cars do the same thing, couldn’t we all just drive the same type of car? I mean, what is the point of having something like…a Ferrari, when the speed limit is 65 (or 55)? Right? Why do some people spend more money on a high performance vehicle that they will never use to it’s full potential? Well, probably because they like it. Jeans are pretty much jeans, right? I can get jeans for $20 or I can get jeans for $500. Maybe the $500 jeans will give me some benefits. Maybe they won’t (you know, if they would vacuum, they’d be worth the $500 and I might buy them). It’s a matter of preference. Macs do some things better than PCs, PCs do some things better than Macs. I was trained on a Mac before I was trained on a PC and I have always found Macs more compatible with me. And yes, I have used PCs and I have used them at simultaneously with a Mac. I have used pens and pencils too. It’s all about what works best with and for you. So shut up already. Jeez.

That’s my rant. I swear these two guys argued about it for an hour in little whiny voices and it was just…so…irritating. But since I am sure that you too, no matter who you are, have also had to listen to this argument, I thought I’d throw in my views on the subject, because we just haven’t heard enough about it, have we?

Annnnnnd, back to baking. The next thing I want to make is …tofu cookies. Again. But with this lovely new vanilla tofu…I just can’t find it. But when I do, there will be cookies. Oh yes, there will. And I am kind of getting nervous about this pumpkin shortage. I don’t even like pumpkin pie but I think I am going to start hoarding pumpkin…just in case…

Comparisons.

As a kind of experiment, I have been reading Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre side by side in small installments (via DailyLit). I don’t think I have ever finished either of these books before, or if I did, I don’t’ remember. I have seen, and enjoyed, several movies based on each book, so I do know the basic premise of the stories.

I think I started this project as…well, I am honestly not sure. I am trying to fill in the gaps on my “classics” reading lists. I like to read. I like to read in installments and it seemed like a good idea at the time. I also had a conversation with a friend about Wuthering Heights and a theory I had about it. So I guess I wanted to be able to defend that theory. I don’t honestly know if I can, so I won’t bother boring you with it yet. But what has really gotten my attention is how very different the two books are, and how one appeals to me as a novel, the other as a novelty.

I let you know how it plays out in the end. Until then, any bets on which one I am enjoying more?

Music.

Sometimes I just don’t know what I want to listen to. It’s like being musically restless, I think I need some…rolling Stones, but that doesn’t do the trick, so it’s on to…the bangles…cake…underworld…pucinni…and it goes on and on. Today I posted on Facebook of my restlessness:

“can't decide what to listen to...first the runaways, then there was some x, which spawned some john doe and then exene, which morphed into streelight manifesto but that wasn't doing it...thirty seconds of "la giocanda" went to jace everett and now it's band of horses...still doesn't feel right.”

A friend responded that I should listen to some Bob Mould, so I did. Still not right. He came back and suggested The Pixies and here’s where it gets complicated.

I like all kinds of music. Seriously, even country and opera, which is where most people say “I like everything but…” I listen to some rap. Not a lot, but I think I am pretty open-minded when it comes to music…except for The Pixies…oh and Sonic Youth…and most Nirvana.

And that’s the thing. If you like indie, alternative or rock, you probably like all three of those bands. And honestly, I can’t say I hate every song by them, but…I will never choose to listen to them.

But, in order to do my due diligence, I went to Pandora and typed in The Pixies. It played “Hey” and I listened. I resisted the urge to shut it off. But I didn’t really enjoy it. And then, as Pandora does, it started to play music that is similar to The Pixies. First Weezer…ok, I am ok with Weezer in small doses. Then The Smiths and you know, I can listen to The Smiths, even though I still think that Morrissey sounds like Kermit the Frog, but you know… I can do that. Oh hey, what’s next? Radiohead, “Creep” groovy, love this song. And then…what is this crap? Oh, it’s The Pixies again.

I’m sorry, I can’t put my finger on it. I think it’s partially the jangly, feedbacky guitars, partially the voices. Just not for me, I guess. But I tried. And now it’s playing Smashing Pumpkins…what am I missing? This is nothing like The Pixies! *Sigh*…I guess I’ll just never be cool….oh well.

For the record, I have several “channels” on Pandora that have come up when I JUST HAVE TO LISTEN TO THIS BAND NOW…see if these make me sound any cooler, even though I still don’t like Sonic Youth...

X Radio
The Runaways Radio
Frankie Goes to Hollywood Radio
Streetlight Manifesto Radio
Social Distortion Radio
Ben Lee Radio
The Veils Radio
Robbie Williams Radio (one of these things is not like the other….)
Ted Leo Radio
Genesis Radio
Underworld Radio
Peter Gabriel Radio

Yeah...not really cooler, I guess.

Hmmm…Pandora is now playing Sonic Youth. I think it’s trying to tell me something.

Meanwhile...

To be completely honest…I haven’t felt like it.

There, that’s out of the way. No excuses (but I have been busy), no explanations (seriously, I’ve been busy), no complaints (he’s been sick…and it’s annoying). Just…haven’t felt like it.

Oh, I have written a bit, here and there, but some of it got political and some of it got…wrong and eh, there you go. I’ve been a little burnt out since comic-con and now, here we are, in September, of all places, and it’s like one hundred and two degrees and everything is on fire again.*sigh* So, for the moment, there are a few things I need to type and then a few things to fill some space and then….well…we’ll see.

I had a dream a few nights ago. I don’t remember what the dream was about at all but I do remember that at some point in the dream I was reading the concert listings in the newspaper and the name of one band in particular stood out to me…”Norman Fell and the Tits, the Nymph’s Nipples and the Fleshy Undertones.” This strikes me as odd. Does it strike you as odd too? It’s a rather long and involved name for just one band. And how, exactly, does Norman Fell fit into all this? I wish I could remember, but I do remember that, in my dream, they were playing on a Saturday night.

Also, there have been brownies…and cupcakes. And soon there will be cookies that have bacon in then. So that’s something.

And also also, since we last spoke, I have watched a movie. It was called “Rocknrolla” and I enjoyed it. It was return to form for Guy Richie and it was fun enough, with one excruciating chase scene that had me in stitches. So…there’s that.

I’ve been reading quite a bit and have finally finished Queen of Fashion: What Marie Antoinette Wore to the Revolution by Caroline Weber and I declare it good. If you have any interest at all in French History, clothing or Marie Antoinette, then it’s brilliant, and if you don’t, you will after reading this. The best book I have read in the last ten years was called The Death of Vishnu by Manil Suri, but this is the second best book I have read in the last ten years. I’d loan it to you but I already loaned it to someone else, and then I went and bought another copy to give to my mom. It’s good enough to do that, buy another copy.

And now…

What I am reading: Crooked Little Vein by Warren Ellis-It’s…eh. Its Warren Ellis, and don’t get me wrong, I love some of his comics, but this isn’t really doing it for me. It’s a fast read and it’s certainly Warren Ellis, so, you know, if that’s your thing…

Serendipity by Louise Schaffer, given to me by my mom. I should know better. Anytime my mom gives me a book about a troubled relationship between a mother and daughter…wait…is she trying to tell me something? I don’t know but this is not my type of book. I am finishing it because mom gave it to me, but I am going to give her hell about it later. Actually, I probably won’t. But eh, it’s good to read things that aren’t necessarily what you would choose, right?

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (dammit, I can’t find the umlauts on my keyboard!). I don’t remember if I have ever read this all the way through, but I have seen many movies based on it. It’s a bit of a mess of a story for me, but I am trying to get something new out of it. I was talking to a friend about it a while ago and he was declaring his distaste for it, but I was trying to defend it as something other than what was expected and then I decided I’d better go back and read it before I got in over my head. So far, I’d have to say that my theory stands.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte…see above. It’s just one of those things. I am reading them in installments via Daily Lit and enjoying it. So there.

What’s next? I dunno, I got a new Neil Stephenson book the other day, but those are a real commitment for me…hmmm. I do have some more books from my mom to read…sigh.

What I am watching…hmmm…what AM I watching? A little bit of this, a little bit of that. I’ve seen several things that I thought I had no interest in and then ended up enjoying. The Good Wife, for example, was…not bad. I am not a fan of Juliana Margulies but you know, I watched the beginning and felt compelled to watch the rest so…it did its job. Cougartown didn’t seem like my kind of thing, but it was much better than I expected and hey, that Courtney Cox Arquette…she was kind of funny. Surprise. I’ve been watching a bit of British stuff and if you didn’t catch Being Human as it ran, I’d recommend tracking that one down. Very enjoyable. Russell Tovey is awesome in his dorkiness. And I’ve been enjoying a show called Economy Gastronomy that made me realize that I’d be a pretty darn economical cook if I paid attention. Also, the chefs on this show…cute.

What I’m listening to…um…not much really. I have an Andrew Bird cd sitting here next to me…some John Vanderslice, Bibio and the Mark Olson and Gary Louris cd…but I’m not listening to them. I wanted to listen to some Franco Corelli yesterday, but I couldn’t find my cd and I’ve been trying to learn to appreciate La Boheme but my cod player absolutely refused to play it and it forced me to listen to The Marriage Figaro instead…seriously.

What I’m working on…nothing. Well, stuff, but…yeah...nothing.

What’s next for the rest of that stuff? Well, I am going to get the TV to myself for a while, so I guess I will catch up on all those episodes of the Elvis Costello show and maybe finish watching Dirty Sexy Money, even though I am kind of over it now that my favorite character is gone (yes, well, they are all gone, I know but…), musicwise…I’ve been wanting some ambient kind of stuff to listen to while I read. Any suggestions?
And workwise, well, it’s gonna get busy round here soon…we’ll see what comes out of it, shall we?

Until then. There is a give away for some Paperlotus cards over at Cupcakes take the Cake and another giveaway planned for Rarebird Finds, so you know, you could pop over there and leave a comment and maybe win a thing…

And finally, because I know you don’t care…

Who I’m crushing on…


Paul Merrett, Allegra Mc Evedy, Gerard Butler

Merrett and Mc Evedy are the chefs that I mentioned, he’s got stunning blue eyes and she’s just so freaking cool, and you know, I never got the Gerard Butler thing until Rocknrolla…go figure.

Smoke.

First, I want you to see this:



I'm pretty sure that "smoke" is not weather, unless you are in California.

Secondly, today I have read bits of Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, a Jim Butcher novel, a vegan cookbook and I am about to take a look at an Ian Rankin graphic novel. Tonight I will continue reading my werewolf book. I am trying to work on the books I so I can justify the Kindle I want. But then, I just read an article that says that the average Kindle user keeps their device for two years. TWO YEARS? I've have books that are older than my mother. I have books from the 1800s. And i realize that the point of a Kindle is basically to have those sorts of books that you read once and then let sit around until you remember to pass them on or take them to the used book store or donate, in a less physical form or something but...two years?

Anyway. Hot. Smoky. Books. That's pretty much the sum of things at the moment.

Flu-ent.

So, here’s how it happened.

I went to Comic-Con. It went pretty well, I worked A LOT and didn’t see as much as I would have liked. But somehow I managed to talk to every damn person in that convention center, touch their money, shake their hands and lick their netbook keyboards. That’s all I can figure. Because I got the nerd flu. And I got it pretty bad.

Well, ok, look, I TRIED to eat right. I had fresh fruit and tea and veggies everyday. I avoided soda. I had a few cocktails here and there but…nothing like I normally would. But then…then there was the tacos, or maybe the it was the late nights? Could have been the air conditioned room. Could have just been all that breathing. But I did try. I washed my hands, I used that sanitary spray stuff every once in a while…but…welll… by the time I got back from San Diego I was exhausted and had lost part of my voice. Then I got a cough, then the aches…and you know how the rest goes. Nerd flu. It could have been worse, I am sure, but it was bad enough to keep me home from work for several days. And then, of course, even after much rest, hydration and vitamins and whatever, there was still the lingering weariness that the flu gives you. Oh and the nausea…there was that one day where I was getting ready to go to work and suddenly couldn’t.. Too weak, too feverish…too…sick. Out of the shower, back into the pajamas, call in sick and then collapsed on the couch. Woke up three hours later.

I am better now. Still a little tired. But hey, this is a hazard of hanging with 140, 000 nerds and I guess I am willing to…hazard it.

So, the convention went well. BFF came along and, I think to her own surprise, enjoyed herself a lot. She got to see David Tennant while I worked. And she was a huge help at the Tired Girl table, writing up sales and fetching beverages and veggie burgers. The table was, once again, very well received and a pleasant time seemed to be had by all.

Sadly, I didn’t have any celebrity customers this time, which is something I get a kick out of. But I did get to see a few famous-ish folks on the floor (Deborah woll, of True Blood, very briefly and Matthew Gruber Grey of Criminal Minds on crutches…some others I don’t remember at the moment…).

I sold some new art and it did pretty well. I did a series of pin-up girls that were inspired by various Doctor Whos. I chose to do girls for the fifth, ninth and tenth doctor and I hope to do girls for the other doctors eventually, and possibly even some BOY pin-ups inspired by some of the female companions. I did these for Comic-Con because…well…geeks…you know. And the ninth doctor pin-up did sell out (OK fine…I didn’t take that many, but I came back with…NONE! Yay!). So it was a good show. I sold plenty of cards, some prints and lots of flirt cards, I had a good time. I saw a lot of people and then I got sick. That pretty much brings us up to date I think.

Here are some "parts" of my girls. I'll show you more and tell you a little bit about them later. But for now...nekkid girls!

Cheer.

So, I am heading out to San Diego Comic Con shortly and this year, more than previous year, I seem to be feeling all the stress that entails. And you know, I’ve done this a few times so it shouldn’t bother me. But it does.

But that’s ok because I have a few things that help me through times like these….

Baby porcupines (known as porcupets) eating bananas and having the hiccups…



Pugs with baby strollers…


Baby fruit bats yawning…(sorry, can’t embed this one but it’s worth the click if you aren’t afraid of bats).


Eighty three year old ladies who can totally rock it.

Inspiring article on acting with a quote that stopped me in my tracks, “I could not be more alive than I am at this moment. I can't do most things in life. This is what I'm for.”

Paper taco trucks.

And the things you really need to learn. Not as cute as a pug with a stroller but important nonetheless.

I’ll be back in a week or so with tales of geekery, Doctor Who pinup girls and with any luck, a photograph of someone famous…but who?

Management.

*Ahem*…Hi. This is what I wrote when it happened…


Oh dear, the LA Times caused a bit of a stir with a stupid (and kind of sexist) little article/slideshow called something like “A Girl’s Guide to Comic-Con.” It features (if you don’t feel like clicking over) some speculation on what cute boys will be appearing at Comic-Con to pimp their movies. Some people are bothered that it seems to assume that women only go to Comic-Con for the cute boys. As a woman who rather likes cute boys (OK, well…men, I am the anti-cougar and have no interest in anyone under the age of 39), I am a little more bothered by the fact that NO COMIC BOOK GUYS are featured in the story. Not a damn one.

Yes, yes, Comic-Con is now considered a “pop-culture” convention and believe you me, I have no problem with that. There was a time when (in my opinion) the movie and tv presence at the convention may well have saved the bacon of many a comic book company by generating a buzz that seemed to have dissipated around comic books. By bringing in the stars of movies based on comics, I think some new readers were led to our booths and tables and hopefully a new wave of fandom was born. So yeah, I’m ok with that pop-culture thing, as long as the comics are still important. And they are. And I love them, and I love the people who make them. And guess what…some of those people happen to be cute boys. I just wish the L.A. Times had mentioned that.


That was…a while ago. In the meanwhile the world has lost…a lot of people and think what you will of any of them, they all made some sort of significant contribution to this world and will be missed.

And other things have happened.

But blogging clearly has not.



This was written a while back too:

About a year ago I was traveling to the east coast by plane (I say by plane, because, as you may know, I am stupid enough to occasionally do it by car…but not this time). I was getting on the plane, waiting on the…what do you call that thing? The corridor leading to the plane? The gangplank? Well, I was waiting there as the inevitable backup had occurred. Someone was probably trying to put a child in the overhead compartment or something. How many times do you people have to be told that children should be checked? Aaaaaanyway, two girls, in their 20s standing in front of me having a conversation….

I’ve been listenting to this great band called MANAGEMENT.
Oh yeah?
Yeah, they are awesome.
Hunh. Haven’t heard of them.


The conversation carries on for a bit when the second girl, who has clearly been trying to figure out how to do this without making her friend look like a complete ass says:

Have you heard MGMT?
Um….that’s what I said earlier. MANAGEMENT.
Oh, I…I think they are called MGMT.
Yeah, that’s what I said. MANAGEMENT. That’s what MGMT stands for.
I…uh…I think they are just MGMT. Like the abbreviation.
Right. The abbreviation for MANAGEMENT. That’s what they are called MANAGEMENT.

It was the modern day “Who’s on first?” with the added twist of abbreviations.

I really wanted to let her know that the band does, indeed, go by the name MGMT and not MANGEMENT. But I was enjoying the conversation too much.

(I don’t really mean to make fun of this girl, I am pretty sure that almost every conversation I have sounds a lot like this.)

And it only serves to remind me that we are all someplace else sometimes when we should be right where we are….get it?

I’m not here. I’ll be back.

In the meanwhile. New cards in the shop.

Facon.

Why do people get so incensed when I mention veggie bacon? Not you…no, no, I know you understand me. But I mentioned having veggie bacon with my dinner (which, I didn’t for the record) the other night and right away got a response…a horrified response, from an old friend. Here’s the thing. I don’t mind bacon. But I don’t care about bacon either. It’s not my thing really. But, man do people get defensive about that. It’s not like I’m saying, I don’t really like…puppies or something. And it’s not that I don’t like bacon. I just don’t care about it. If there were no bacon, I wouldn’t be sad. And it is exactly because of this that I first tried veggie bacon years ago.

Now mind you, years ago, veggie bacon isn’t what it is today. I can’t remember the brand, but I do remember that it had such a strong smoke scent, that everytime I opened the freezer, I could smell it. Frozen and I could smell it. Yikes. It wasn’t good. Neither, for that matter, was the soy milk I tried all those years ago. But now I can’t imagine life without soymilk, it makes everything so much easier for me. But the point is, I tried something new, I didn’t like it. I tried it again, much later, but again nonetheless and I did like it.

When I first started in this job I have. I was often teased for my lunches. They were often (and still are often) vegetarian, and they often incorporate strange (to some) ingredients that my co-workers (Hi Candypants) would often mock. Nowadays, I hear these guys (yeah, you heard me, I said CANDYPANTS!) eat veggie friendly food on a regular basis.

I’m not a foodie, or a food snob. I’m not a vegetarian. I just like to try things. And usually I try them more than once. And sometimes, like with the veggie bacon and soy milk, it’s better the second time. Look, I don’t recommend veggie bacon if you like real bacon. I don’t recommend veggie bacon if you like turkey bacon. It’s not bacon. It’s something else. But it works for me.

Wait…what was my point here? I don’t remember. I just know if I mention veggie bacon people will appear from nowhere to tell me what a terrible thing it is.

Meanwhile, I’ve been watching movies. So far:

Shoot ‘em Up-Liked it. Crazy, over the top violent and v.v. entertaining.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day-Liked it. Surprisingly dark. But filled with pretty boys. Oh, yeah...and good acting.
Strictly Sinatra-Not bad. Scottish gangster type flick.
Othello-Modern version w/Christopher Eccleston, Eamon Walker, Richard Coyle and Keeley Hawes. Liked it a lot. A very nice adaptation with brilliant acting. Highly recommended.
Meet the Robinsons-Kind of all over the place but in an entertaining way. I dunno, I wanted to dislike it because it was all over the place, but in the end, that’s part of the reason that I did like it. Nice art, some good jokes and I loved, loved, loved Goob.

Ok, look, if you don’t work in this office, the one where YOU had to RING in to get through the door, why would YOU, the person who does not work here, just let someone in? Jerk.

Sorry, had to get that one out of the system. I guess I’m feeling kind of ranty today…so here are some bits of my new pinup girls (not THOSE bits)...



As you were.

Things.

Here’s the thing, I’ve been writing a lot lately, but…not posting because I haven’t finished a damn thing. But today, Janet scolded me and I was already typing this so…I’m gonna throw a few of my not quite finished posts up here because yeah, I do feel like a slacker for not having finished any of them. So here are some lists of things because…that’s the best I can do right now.


Things made since last I posted:

Lemon lavender lace cookies-They were good, they just weren’t what I was planning on making. Not the lace part anyway. They were supposed to just be sugar cookies but all I can figure is that I wasn’t paying attention and left out some flour. HOWEVER, they were much lauded and well recived at beach party and I was told by one person that I need not make any other cookie ever again. So…I guess that’s good.

German chocolate cupcakes-these were pretty good. The cake was nice, although I really do just prefer a chocolate cake. The icing was different than the usual German chcoclate cake icing and it was less…sticky and more…pudding-y. which I rather liked.

Almond zucchini cupcakes with a marshmallowy, lemony frosting-these too were pretty good. I really liked the frosting, which was what I think we used to call a 7 minute frosting, which is basically a meringue. No butter. Which was a nice change. But it was sticky as all hell and kind of messy, so I am thinking of tinkering.

Speaking of meringue, there was a lemon meringue pie for a birthday. I don’t like lemon meringue pie and I don’t like making pie crust. But I did it. So there.

Aaaaaand…I think there was an emergency focaccia and some shortcakes in there as well.

There was also a birthday and an anniversary since last time I stopped by and now…well, I guess everything from here on in leads to comic-con. Sigh.


Random images found in my “inspiration” files:
1 moth
2 foxes
1 Alan Rickman
1 Dalek
4 Jeffrey Dean Morgan as the Comedian (and yes I know the Comedian is an awful character but I love that moustache)
3 Hellboys
2 Colin Firth
2 Wolverine images (Hugh Jackman style)
2 Thom Yorke images (Hunh? I mean, I do love the man and all, but when did I put those in there?)
1 Christopher Eccleston and 1 image from Doctor Who episode w/Christopher Eccleston (the valet parking ticket from The End of the World)
4 dresses made of paper
1 Trevor Eve
Many cupcakes

and then 3 Cyndi Laupers….

Go figure. That really sums me up, doesn’t it?

And finally, just because…

Rockstars I may or may not have had crushes on over the years:

Mick Jagger
Phil Collins
Peter Gabriel
Corey Hart
Eric Clapton
Adam Ant
Stewart Copeland
Andy Gibb
Donny Osmond
Shaun Cassidy
Ric Ocasek
Roger Daltry
Ray Davies
David Bowie

Have at it. i know you've got something to say about it....


Also, because I have been working while you weren't looking, some samples of new art.
Cupcake treeeeee, how I love theeeeeeeee...



And this is from a piece titled "He said I have a good personality..."

Advice.

Let me help you. Just take it from me that these are good ideas, I tested the theories so you don’t have to.

-Always put sunblock on the tops of your feet if you take off your shoes outside. And if you are wearing shorts, the backs of your knees as well. I wasn’t wearing shorts otherwise I might have remembered the tops of my feet when I did the backs of my knees. But I didn’t do either and my poor tootsies have suffered for my lack of attention.

-While baking is easy for some, it’s still a process that requires some amount of attention. You can always count the eggshells if you forgot how many you added but there is nothing left behind when adding flour. While the lovely, buttery, lacy lemon and lavender cookies were good, they weren’t what I was trying to make. So…um…pay attention.

-Primeval starts up again here on May 16. My advice is watch this show as if you were a fourteen year old boy. It’s easier to enjoy that way. Well, that way or with a cocktail in hand. How do fourteen year old boys feel about Douglas Henshall though? Because…yeah. Just watch. It’s good, stupid fun. But don’t expect, you know, real science or anything.

Then.

I just found this post that I started and never quite finished. So I am posting it. I can do that. It's my blog.

What I’m reading:
Queen of Fashion: What Marie Antoinette Wore to the Revolution by Caroline Weber.
I read about this on The Dutchess of Devonshires’ blog and got interested. I have never been big on French History or the 18th century but I am really, really enjoying this book. I did study some costuming in school and really loved it but didn’t want to make a living at it. This book is making me reconsider that. What can I do that would involve just studying clothes without having to sew them? Because I don’t really like sewing all that much…

Lonely Werewolf Girl by Martin Millar I’m enjoying this one a lot too. It’s become a bit of a court machinations sort of book, but I like that. It’s hard to write a good and convincing werewolf story…I’ve read a lot that don’t succeed, but so far so good on this one.

Just about finished The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie on Daily Lit and trying to decide if I want to do another Christie or if I’m feeling my spring need for some Shakespeare yet…maybe one of the histories that I don’t remember...

What I am watching:
Well, I’ve been trying to clear off the dvr and I did finally watch Wuthering Heights, Oliver Twist and Sunshine. Now it’s on to Richard III with Sir Laurence Olivier, Little Dorritt and a documentary about Nick Drake. I like to run through the channel listings for some of the more…esoteric sorts of channels and record random stuff that I might not otherwise catch.

Wait! Wait…I wrote this awhile ago and I watched that Nick Drake doc. It was ok. It was very…well…dreamy. Lots of time lapse of a shadow falling across the floor and the like but…eh. I don’t know. I really like his music but I don’t have that great sadness that seems to come with being a fan of his work. It was interesting that there was so much family stuff available though. Lots of family film and recordings, which made for some interesting listening. I ended up not finishing watching Richard III though. I wanted to but was running out of room on the dvr and wasn’t enjoying this version as much as I had hoped. Very stylized and old fashioned. If you’ve never read or watched Richard III, it’s one of my very favorite plays but it can be a little hard to follow if you aren’t a Shakespeare fan. I’d tell you to watch the Ian McKellan version, but last time I suggested that to someone it only confused them more. Maybe just read it. That’s probably the best way to go.

Also loving Lie to Me. At the moment I feel like I could watch that show every day, but that might be my eternal crush on Tim Roth. (This just ended for the season and I am looking forward to it's return next season).

Ketchup.

Things that have happened since last I blogged….

-I got to use the phrase “since last I blogged.”

-Easter. Food was good. Strawberry cupcakes not as strawberry as I would have liked but no one else was bothered. Burned the bottom of the buns so I cut the burnt bits off and refused to talk about it. There’s still a container of strawberry cream cheese frosting in the fridge that we have been using on our sandwiches and the like (no, we haven’t but that doesn’t mean we haven’t thought about it).

-HEATWAVE. Which I am enjoying.

-Watched Sunshine, Grey Gardens (the movie) and Twilight. None were satisfying and two were painful. I’ll let you figure out which was which.

-Received photo of the lead singer of a band for which I designed a logo. His anonymity is protected here because I don’t want him to get mobbed by fans.



(Here’s the logo)



-Caught a cold. Recovered from a cold. Meanwhile, my partner caught himself a fractured elbow. OW! Poor guy.

-Wrote a bunch of stuff I didn’t post. I’ll get around to that.

-Got a new computer at work that is so big it actually makes me a little dizzy. It’s kinda awesome. Also got a wee keyboard with none of the extraneous trim and such. Not quite used to it yet so there may be more typos than usual.

-Got an external HD for home. Haven’t hooked it up yet but it’s green. Not in color. Since it’s almost Earth Day I figured I’d mention that part.

-Watched the end of season one of “Ashes to Ashes” and really liked it. Also saw Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder (is that the title, I can’t remember…) and really liked that as well.

-Today I wore my hemp shoes and I didn’t even know it was Earth Day. Dirty hippie power even when unaware! Awesome.

Menu.

Easter Dinner

Jalapeño popper dip w/some sort of cracker/chip
Deviled eggs

Roast lamb with parsley, garlic, lemon, breadcrumb and anchovy gremolata sort of thing
Roast asparagus
Spring potato salad (with green onions, pickles, eggs, parsley and celery)
Homemade challah

Strawberry cupcakes w/strawberry cream cheese frosting
Deep-dish brownies


That’s the plan, man. We’ll see how it works out. We’ve had the same basic meal for the past three or four Easters and we still like it so…you know.


I was just having a conversation with someone about how you think you know a person and then they tell you something so simple and basic that you had no idea about that you feel like you’ve never known them at all. Like how they hate chocolate, or how they were raised by bears. Stuff like that. I think I am pretty transparent. It was made obvious when I found this in my inbox (that’s not a euphemism).


Oooh…shiny and naked. My two favorites.

(That's Wolverine there, in case you DON'T know me all that well. I get Naked Wolverine emails. Oh yes I do.)

And in my continuing adventures in hypnosis, I had another hypnotherapy session. Now, I don’t know how deeply I am actually hypnotized. To me it just feels more or less like sitting with my eyes closed, being mellow and listening to my friend’s voice. But it was pleasant, and I did feel relaxed and everything kind of…sloooowsss….dowwwwwn. So that’s good. This session was centered on creativity. It was nice and I do feel good and raring to draw today, but I think I liked the visualization part of the relaxation session more. We’re going to try some other stuff, but I have to say, even if it’s not achieving much, it’s very nice, and it’s 40 minutes or so of deep relaxation. I do feel something though and it’s been different somethings each time, so…whatever. It’s fun.

Finally....look at this. Give it a few seconds to load and then just sit and watch.

Bits.

First, people I know, doing great things:

Nathan’s interview on starwars.com.
His first vinyl toy will be out soon and it’s looking pretty darn awesome.

And Jason has been doing some art that coincides with Nathan’s art cards and although I am not a die-hard Star Wars fan…I now want my own wookie.


Captain Tracy has launched her website. Keep an eye on it for geocacheing opportunities.


Nextly…um…well, work continues apace on all things. I am struggling a bit with my book but not to fear because I am friends with a hypnotherapist and she’s gonna help me unlock my brain. Cool, eh? Actually, I was hypnotized for the first time last weekend. I am not sure how deep I went because for most of it, it didn’t feel like anything at all. But there was one portion that felt so odd, I can only assume that something was going on. The hypno-therapist explained that sometimes the subject doesn’t go under very well on a first attempt because they are apprehensive about what will happen. I didn’t feel nervous, because I trust her implicitly, but I was very curious to see what would happen. And since I have never been hypnotized before, I was unsure of what to expect. But it was not unpleasant, even if I didn’t respond as well as I would have liked. It was still a quite room with peaceful music and a relaxing atmosphere, so nothing lost. The next time we try it will be to encourage creativity. Open that part of my brain that is holding back, I hope, so…well…we’ll see. If I cluck like a chicken then you’ll know it didn’t go so well.