mostly keeping my promise

OK, so i've mostly been keeping my promise to myself to spend the summer reading things i KNOW will make me happy, because i've read them before, and enjoyed them before.

on the happy side of that equation is Steven Brust's The Sun, The Moon, and The Stars, which nearly has me in tears by the end. and after finishing this novel, i tearfully say to my aspiring writer other half "keep writing baby! i'll support us!" (it's easier to say these days, as I finally have a decent paying job). really, Steven Brust is a master writer, and it doesn't seem like anyone knows who he is! i flipped through some reviews of The Sun, The Moon, and The Stars on Amazon, seems like people either loved it or hated it. I think that people who didn't like it had already made up their minds about what they were looking for before they even started reading it. it's not that kind of book.

additional weight is given to the happy side of the entertaining book equation, because today i picked up my very own, paper back copy of Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora. and you know what? it's just as fun, snarky, and irreverant as it was the first time through. Makes me want to move to rural Minnesota (or wherever Lynch lives), to see what kind of pranks he plays on people. i get the impression that the phrase said most often in the company of Mr. Lynch is "grow up already!" coming from someone who earlier today was playing muppets with oven mits in Bed Bath and Beyond (and getting laughed at by the store manager), my response is "don't you dare, ever grow up, Mr. Lynch. and if you need some inspiration to quite your day job and write full time, just read some Steven Brust!".

now, for the not so happy end of my equation. i couldn't help myself. the book said "Steampunk". and it had the coolest steely blue pipy picture on the cover. i couldn't help myself, really, it's not my fault. seriously! scroll down and look at the picture! you know you can resist that kind of gothy, steampunky awesomeness! i bought the Steampunk anthology, edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer (and you know how much i love Jeff Vandermeer!). i'm about halfway through, and i gotta say, i'm pretty lukewarm on most of the entries. why is it that genre anthologies always suck so hard?

not too much food news. my husband made the most incredible pizza i've ever had. i think the trick was we cooked up some turkey sausage, and then fried onions in the sausage grease. omg, heaven! most of the rest of my cooking recently has involved tossing a bunch of stuff in a skillet, and hoping for the best. maybe with all these good books, will come some good cooking.

Summer of re-reads, and death comes on dark wings.

i've been in a bit of a book funk lately. Reading stuff that people have recommended to me, or books that had a lot of hype, or scanning the "New Releases" at the library for anything with an "SF" label on the spine, often reading whatever comes my way, and feeling somewhat obligated to get some enjoyment out of it.

suffice to say, lots of books have gone back to the library unfinished. i feel surrounded by not mediocrity, per say, but just books i didn't enjoy. and that's not a good feeling.

it's time to rekindle my love of good writing, fun adventures, and lovable characters by going back to my favorites. this is going to be the summer of the re-read.

in no particular order, my summer read list starts with:
Dream of the Dragon Pool, by Albert Dalia
Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand
The Sun, the Moon, and The Stars, by Steven Brust
The Lies of Locke Lamora, by Scott Lynch
Whitechapel Gods, by S.M Peters
The Anubis Gates, by Tim Powers
Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut
Frank Herbert's Dune series - starting with book 2, because i've read the first book about 100 times.
Some good old Robert Heinlein, maybe Friday, or Stranger in a Strange Land

that should keep me busy for a few weeks, and by then, hopefully I'll be out of my funk.



what's this i say, about death, and dark wings? i live in a fairly suburban area, with plenty of wildlife and college students. the crickets start up around 7pm. and while this can be a nice, calming sound, by 4am (i'm a crazy light sleeper), i kinda wish the crickets would just shut up already. and by then, the birds have started, and soon it's time for me to get up anyways. short of getting some ambien, it was time to do something about those darn crickets.

can you say bird seed?

and i dumped a whole bunch right by where i always hear the crickets.

damn right death comes on dark wings.

Tasty Mud

or maybe it looks more like tasty compost? or something you'd repave a road with? But it sure is a)easy to make b)super tasty, and c)good for you. it's just not going to win any awards for presentation, that's for sure.

adapted from a recipe in Jacqueline Clark's Mediterranean cookbook. I'll admit, when i first got this cookbook, it intimidated me. but just start with an easy recipe, and go from there! Piece of pie! Ok, so Clark calls this Egyptian Rice, which is a much prettier name than Tasty Mud. Also, her photo looked much prettier than what i ended up with.

1 cup brown/green lentils
water
3 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, one diced, once thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup rice
1 and 1/4 cup water
1 tsp cinammon
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
salt & pepper
parsley to garnish (optional)

put lentils in a sauce pan with enough water to cover by about an inch. bring a boil, cover, and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until they are tender. pour the lentils in a bowl, and remove any excess liquid. heat the olive oil in the pan, add the diced onion, cook till soft. near the end of the cooking, put the garlic in. add the lentils back in, with all the spices and some salt & pepper. stir in the rice, and water. bring to a boil, cover and simmer until rice is cooked, stirring occasionally. in a small frying pan, fry the sliced onions in some olive oil till very dark. pour the lentil/rice mixture into a serving bowl, put the fried onion slices on top, and garnish with parsley.

Serves four.

i took leftovers to work, somewhat worried that the cinnamony-lentilly scent could put some people off. . .and as soon as i took my bowl out of the microwave, two people immediatly said "that smells really good! What is it!" and it did smell good! And it tasted even better! and part of the magic of lentils is they keep you filling full all afternoon.

minimal book news, i'm still getting used to being home from work at a normal time. I did keep a promise to myself, and got James Fenimore Coopers The Last of the Mohicans from the library. Although slow so far, it's a pleasant read. it's been years since i read a classic, it'll do me some good.

lots of Variety to choose from

I made this. i likey!

i have no attention span

two whole days off from work? what will i do with myself? i haven't slept in for two days in a row since. . . January, i think. Yeesh, i don't think i've slept in for one day in a row since about then. Let's see. . . time off work and money in my pocket. . if you guessed "books!" you won! i'll send you a cookie or something.

and since my attention span has withered to zero (what were we talking about?) the only thing better than books is comic books! i meant to guy buy some nice work shirts, intead i spent $25 at the comic book shop, and "impressed" the clerk with my arcane and useless knowledge of Fullmetal Alchemist (if by impressed, you mean convinced him i'm even more of a nerd than he thought. all i need now is braces and a lisp).

purchased:
Fullmetal Alchemist #14
Action Philosophers #1
Serenity #2 and #3




For those of you who like learning, but like me have zero attention span, i highly recommend Action Philosophers. it's like cliffs notes, but with pictures. and humor. i can't think of a better way to spend $8.

all those comics. . . this means the only actual "book" book i'm reading right now is "Good Omens", by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. it got mixed reviews when it came out. . . i'll let you know what i think when i get there.

finished reading a galley copy of Stephen Brust's newest, Jhegaala. review to show up. . . eventually. speaking of reviews, here's one for Jumper by Steven Gould. Yes, it's the same Jumper as that movie that came out a few months ago. i tried to give the book a neural, rather non-committal review. actually, it was pretty awful, and i don't recommend it. what was really funny was there was some screen shots from the movie on the back of the book, featuring a character who is in the movie, but not in the book. funny, or stupid?

the hubby and i watched one of our favorite films last night - The Last of The Mohicans. i think that's going to be my next serious literature read. if i can only find a copy. might be a birthday present for myself.

hiatus

i've been on hiatus for a little while. . . and i'm going to stay on hiatus a little while longer until a)work slows down enough that i can actually finish a book in under 3 weeks, b)i have the time and energy to actually cook something worth talking about, and c)hiatus is such a funny word, i wonder where it came from?

a ha! Online Etymology Dictionary to the rescue: haitus comes from "Latin, hiare, ," from hiare "to gape, stand open." Sense of "gap or interruption in events, etc."" (is a link and quote marks enough to credit a portion of a sentence you rip directly from another website? i don't want to get in trouble for plagarizing something off the internet, the last bastion of open source-ness. . . )

what is this "busy time at work" i speak of? we describe it as Christmas meets the Superbowl, and it last 4-5 weeks. so i should be back in the swing of things in another 2 weeks or so. see you then.

you know you're working too much when. . . .

in the industry i work in, Christmas is now. Springtime at the office is like christmas + valentine's day + the superbowl. this is my second week in a row of 60+ hours, and so sue me, i'm just not used it it. don't worry, it'll be over in another few weeks.

we go nuts for the Office Space jokes at work, and i've been reading Michael Moorcock and Hal Duncan's Vellum lately. if you're familiar with any of that stuff, my little cartoons might make you laugh. and hopefully i won't be sued for copyright infringement for using these images in a humorous way.

Enjoy.




that said, i'm going to go take a nap.