last blog post of 2008

I'm sorry to report that I will hold off on blogging again until 2009 so hopefully you all will still be around then! ;-)

corny, I know, but I couldn't resist!  This is a big day at la casa de Holley.  I'm about to pack a bag for the overnight stay at T's for New Year's Eve but in anticipation of getting back to a non holiday work schedule next week I made a massive grocery run and have spent ALL MORNING cooking and freezing.  I'm currently waiting on my last crockpot concoction to finish cooking then I'll dish it up and freeze it.  

I made:

pot roast - bagged & froze 8 portions

lasagna - boxed & froze 12 portions

chicken and pasta casserole - boxed and froze 6 portions

roasted chicken (whole) - bagged and froze 7 portions, (it would have been more but I used 2 cups to make chicken & dumplings)

chicken & dumplings - it's not done yet but I anticipate at least 8, maybe 10 portions

that's around 40 meals!  Plus I bought some dry butterbeans to make but I don't have time at the moment.  We had ham at KT's last weekend and they were nice enough to let me take the bone and some trimmings so I'll cook the beans up sometime next week maybe and then I'll have a freezer full of good stuff.  The grocery bill was bad at checkout, but if I don't have to go again for a few months (other than perishables) then it will definitely be worthwhile.

Everyone have a safe and happy New Year and I'll catch you on the flipside!

the day after

and I am at work, bored as hell. It is absolutely useless that we are open. There are probably 10 people in here at most. I've done nothing but listen to the HVAC run for 4 hours now.

(The one bit of business? Our resident crazyass phoner-inner called and wanted to know the meaning and history of the phrase "good luck"...KT, I'll give you 1 guess and the first one doesn't count)

We really have to come up with a great nick name for her...so far I can't think of anything crazy enough. She told Mary that someone from the Middle East owned the Federal Reserve, asked Mary to corroborate this dicey info, then refused to accept Mary's quite correct answer since it did not include her crazyass information. She asked me the meaning and history of the word "renig", especially "nig" (her emphasis, not mine). She informed me that it wouldn't be hard to find and that it was ancient Greek. Um, not that I found but whatevah. I can't even recall more of our conversation now because she is straight nut crazy. She asked Lauren what love was, what it did to the brain, and how to recognize and avoid it. (I'm hoping she's avoiding it just fine.) I don't know what to tell you about that either. She asked Daxx how to recognize and what to do about passive-aggressive behavior. (I was hoping this was a cry for help, ya know?) She asked someone to diagnose a mental disorder, but I don't remember which one of us it was. As in, "go get the DSM-IV and tell me what these symptoms mean!" (Just a suggestion, it means you should look in to electroshock therapy and quit calling us)

I have it! I think I'll call her Renfield! What do you think, KT?

99 Things

Blatantly stolen from Lauren! (though she did invite anyone to join in the fray)

THE 99 THINGS MEME

Things you’ve already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to - leave in plain font

1. Started your own blog.
2. Slept under the stars.
3. Played in a band. 
4. Visited Hawaii.
5. Watched a meteor shower.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to Disneyland/world.
8. Climbed a mountain.
9. Held a praying mantis.
10. Sang a solo. *only in the car!
11. Bungee jumped.
12. Visited Paris.
13.  Watched a lightning stormat sea.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch.
15. Adopted a child.
16. Had food poisoning.
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty.
18. Grown your own vegetables.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.
20. Slept on an overnight train.
21. Had a pillow fight.
22. Hitch hiked.
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill.
24. Built a snow fort.
25. Held a lamb.
26. Gone skinny dipping.
27. Run a marathon. 
28. Ridden a gondola in Venice.
29. Seen a total eclipse.
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.
31. Hit a home run.
32. Been on a cruise.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.*Starr, Mississippi is as far as I got :)
35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language.
37.Had enough money to be truly satisfied.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing.
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David in person.
41. Sung Karaoke. *Ha.
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.
43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant.
44. Visited Africa.
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.
46. Been transported in an ambulance.
47. Had your portrait painted.
48. Gone deep sea fishing.
49. Seen the Sistine chapel in person.
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling.
52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud.
54. Gone to a drive-in theater.
55. Been in a movie.
56. Visited the Great Wall of China.
57. Started a business.
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia.
60. Served at a soup kitchen.
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies.
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Gotten flowers for no reason.
64. Donated blood.
65. Gone sky diving.
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp.
67. Bounced a check.
68. Flown in a helicopter.
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.
71. Eaten Caviar.
72. Pieced a quilt.
73. Stood in Times Square.

74. Toured the Everglades.
75. Been fired from a job.
76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London.
77. Broken a bone.
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.
80. Published a book. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
81. Visited the Vatican.
82. Bought a brand new car.
83. Walked in Jerusalem.
84. Had your picture in the newspaper.
85. Read the entire Bible.
86. Visited the White House.
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.
88. Had chickenpox.
89. Saved someone's life. 
90. Sat on a jury.
91. Met someone famous.
92. Joined a book club.
93. Lost a loved one.
94. Had a baby.
95. Seen the Alamo in person.
96. Swum in the Great Salt Lake.
97. Been involved in a law suit.
98. Owned a cell phone.
99. Been stung by a bee.

Wow, that is a wide-ranging list of stuff!

conversations with Toes...

(and Toes is 2 and a half, one of my honorary nieces via KT)

Toes:  "we onwee dwaw on papuh, not own wawls, owah awms, owah ebee, owah scowt, owah mommy, owah daddy, owah auntie, owah nanna, owah aunt howie, onwee on papuh, not on wawls...right aunt howee?"

Me: that's right!  no drawing on walls, only on paper!

E: "Mom!  Bebe's on the couch!"

Toes: "BEBE!  Get owf duh couch!"  (to me:) "Bebe teetees on duh couch."

Me: Yes, Bebe is getting old and can't hold her bladder very well anymore.

Toes: Bwadduh?

Me:  Yes, everything that teetees has a bladder.

Toes: Weulll, I teetee and I don't haf a bwadduh!

Me: Yes, everyone in the house has a bladder.

Toes: Weull,  Nana don't haf a bwadduh.

Me: Yes she does.  Everyone has a bladder Toes.

Toes: why you haf two eahwings aunt howee?

Me: because I have two ears

Toes: why? (yes, we have arrived at this developmental stage)

Me: God put them there

Toes: why?

Me: You'll have to take that up with him.

Toes:  I don't haf two ears

Me: Well, what are these?

Toes: Okay, well maybe

Toes will be a philosophy major at some point I'm fairly certain :)

just for you :)

because everyone deserves a throbbing Christmas

*snicker* (thanks engrish.com)

ACTUAL CONVERSATIONS IN THE LIBERRY

(to borrow from Juice, the library ninja)

Let me start off by saying that today is the day of the stupid f*%k 

:)

I hope your day is as ridiculously special as mine is currently.  Not everyone falls under the heading of stupid f*%k, but many (many, many, many, many, many) do.

CASE IN POINT!

Patron walks up to the massive desk behind which I sit wearing my name tag that says "Holley, Reference Librarian"

Patron: Is there a big desk up here where a librarian sits?

Me:.....*blink* (then I do a Vanna White-esque presentation gesture at the desk and myself and manage a strangled, "How may I help you?)

The patron hands me a Florida driver's license (we are in the state of Alabama).

Patron: The lady downstairs told me you could give me a temporary library card....(which we don't do, never have, never will)

Me:  Do you just need to use a computer?  If you want to use the computers I can log you on but we don't give out temporary cards.

Patron: yes

______________________

dumbass.

packing stuff

I will be petsitting starting today until late afternoon Christmas day.  I'll come home every few days to check on Bink since she doesn't really handle me being gone as well as she did when she was a younger kitteh...plus I have to pick up my mail!  I'm expecting some pretty decent netflix movies in the next little while as I went wild on my queue yesterday and added about 15 things I haven't watched in oh.....15 years or so.  I'm talking great 80's and early 90's hair and corny acting, it's going to be fanf*&kingtastic when they get here.  Have you ever seen this, or maybe this?  Fun stuff, I assure you!  

anyway, gotta run so I can get to work on time today!

uh, no.

Bink would FlIp OuT, and not in a hairdryer and roundbrush sort of way!

a little too much looping...

.....but tremendously funny nonetheless!

ghosts of christmases past

prepare to giggle, then click here!  Has this been your experience?

wishlist

as KT has said on her blog, for any family or friends who visit here and are interested, here is a list of some of the things that would make me v.v. happy:

Movies
Eagle vs Shark
Cloverfield
Wall-E
The Orphanage
Doomsday
Hellboy
Hellboy II
Under the Tuscan Sun
The Happening
Ironman
Children of Men
This Christmas
Fred Claus
Midnight Meat Train

Books
The Electric Michelangelo
The Host
The Canterbury Tales (new translation by Burton Raffel)
The Walking Dead: Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, (I don’t know if there is a Book 4 yet)
Proust Was a Neuroscientist
The Book of Lost Things
Throne of Jade
Black Powder War
Empire of Ivory
Victory of Eagles
Fire Study
Garden Spells
Sugar Queen
Heartsick
Sweetheart

Stuff
Diamond Anniversary Edition Scrabble
Connect Four
Charles Wysocki jigsaw puzzle
A deck of regular playing cards

Of course, I always allow that a hug and a kiss will always be the perfect gift, but if you are in a buying mood then you now have some leads!

why Le Clezio truly deserves the Nobel Prize for literature

"To provide nearly everyone on the planet with a liquid crystal display is utopian. Are we not, therefore, in the process of creating a new elite, of drawing a new line to divide the world between those who have access to communication and knowledge, and those who are left out? . . . [The book] is practical, easy to handle, economical. It does not require any particular technological prowess, and keeps well in any climate."--J.M.G. Le Clézio. The Guardian observed that Le Clézio, in his Nobel Lecture, "looked to the wider world . . . warning of the dangers of information poverty and calling for publishers to increase their efforts to put books in the hands of people around the world."

That is all.

draggin

not to be confused with dragon, of course, but sleepiness is a natural byproduct of staying up until 2:30 reading.  I was SO tired and sleepy on the way home and I was just going to get in a chapter or two and then I looked up and it was 2:30am...ugh!  I'm really going to have to start setting the cooking timer on the cd player in the kitchen instead of the egg timer so I HAVE to get up and turn it off.  I don't do well if I don't get enough rest.  

So I'm going to a cookie swap today at K's house, something I've never done before.  In case you are like me and aren't familiar with such an event, people are invited and they bring enough cookies to cover everyone who is invited plus some copies of their recipe.  We eat cookies and take the recipes we want to try.  I did not make cookies as those are not my specialty unless they come in a log which I then cut up with a knife.  My specialty happens to be spiced pecan halves...a treasured dessert in my family which my great grandmother cooked, my grandmother taught me how to cook, and which my aunt still makes every year for all of her friends.  99% love rate for these little beauties though they are somewhat messy to make, especially when I do it :)

You put 1 cup sugar, 1/3 cup evaporated milk, and 1/2 tsp of cinammon in a sauce pan and cook until a drop of the mixture dropped into a cup of cold water retains its drop shape (in my grandmother's recipe it says "cook to a soft ball" and no one ever knows what that means so I've started spelling it right out on the recipes I write).  Gently stir in 1 tsp of vanilla extract then stir in 2 cups of pecan halves, remove from heat, and continue stirring to coat.  It sets up fairly quickly so don't lolligag in your stirring, turn out on wax paper to cool and separate when they get cool enough to touch.  I don't bag them until they are completely cooled as I don't want condensation in the ziplock bag.  YuMmY!

I also made the cake I told you about at Thanksgiving (since I didn't get around to making it then!) and took it to KT's mom's (who is always referred to as "Lady," I've never asked the origin of the nickname) house last night.  They invited me over to help decorate the Christmas tree and have dinner so I made the cake and some corn bread and took it over as my contribution to dinner.  Lady make some kick@$$ chili and the corn bread and cake, IMHO, complimented it perfectly.

Tomorrow I'm going with L to see Twilight again...I'm developing a bit of an obssession, I am not immune to its allure.  I've heard one opinion that "it makes Harry Potter look lame" but I don't agree.  That's comparing apples and oranges.  The Twilight series is a fantastic and entertaining story but Rowling has (again, IMHO) better world-building skills.  I LuRvEd Twilight and Eclipse but the whole Italian vampire thing felt kind of random and hastily tacked on.  I don't remember anything from the Harry Potter books that felt random and hastily tacked on.  For all the Twi-hards out there, please don't misunderstand...I read all four books and loved all four books, AND will recommend all four books, but the first two were my favorites.  Thanks to L's direction, I'm now looking forward to Midnight Sun, if it ever comes our way!  And how could I forget The Host, which I loved!  

Ah well, I could sit here and speak book forever but I've got to get on to my cookie swap.  Everyone have a fantabulous day!

decorating circa 1969

***Disclaimer - I have no collegiate sport affiliation!  Knock yourselves out!***

What better way to celebrate the recent Iron Bowl win than to dedicate a room of your home as a lasting souvenir.  For assistance and ideas, I give you, again, the 1969 classic, Decorating Ideas for Every Room in Your Home:

My favorite part?  The tasteful GiAnT red feather quill on the artfully draped table...what's your favorite spot in this room?

the non-Thanksgiving

Last Wednesday I began to feel bad around 11am and it just went downhill from there.  I was SiCk Wed night, all day Thurs (I missed Thanksgiving and spent it huddled in the recliner, shivering) and Fri (I went to the dr. and got meds).  Sat was a better day and I went to K’s Crafturday.  She rented a room in her local community center and about 7 or 8 women (me included) showed up and crafted.  There was quilting, sewing, cross stitching and scrapbooking going on from 9-3.  I managed pretty well but was very glad to get back to the house, the recliner and the blanket.  After a nap, I went to meet E at the movies for my second viewing of Twilight.  I am nearly out of the vortex, only about 100-150 more pages to go in Breaking Dawn, then E and I are going to have to have a lunch discussion. 

 

This week has been SO much better than last week and hey, I lost 8 pounds last week!  At least there’s a bright side to not attending a Thanksgiving festivity

 

I have a busy schedule over the course of the next few days so I’ll do my best to get back in here and let you in on the fun!

 

sorry

I have recently been sucked into the Twilight vortex and have not yet emerged....soon I will rejoin humanity, but not right now

;)

htw

update from holiday of the living dead

so I had food poisoning...I don't recommend it for any of your holiday festivities

I'm 90% better...more later

:-(

I was rudely awoken at 5:45 this morning...I have a stomach virus.  To say I feel bad would be a tremendous understatement.  I started feeling bad yesterday afternoon but just thought I was tired.  It got worse from there but in my standard "there's absolutely nothing wrong with me" way, I assumed I would get better.  

ugh. 

I'm still trying to get in touch with KT this morning to let her know I won't be coming to the Thanksgiving extravaganza.  I want to go but I just don't think it would be a real good idea.

I'm sad.

Happy pre-Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.  If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving then I hope you have a SpEcTaCuLaR dAy tomorrow anyway!  I am going over to KT's and I'm making and taking this:

Mrs. D made one last week and brought a giant hunk of it to share with the department and I have no words other than joy and joyness.  So, all the ingredients wait faithfully on my kitchen counter and I will probably bake it tonight and frost it tomorrow :)  If you are interested, it is on the front cover of the Dec 2008 issue of Southern Living, or you could just click here.

Friday I have talked T into venturing out into the craziness that is the busiest shopping day of the year...however, we will not be shopping (at least I fervently hope not)!  Instead, we will go to see Australia!  Or Four Christmases (if I could talk T into it)!  Hugh Jackman or Vince Vaughn...it's such a tough decision because I like both of them.

Saturday is a Crafturday with the girls!  At this point, I'll be doing counted crossstich while everyone else will be doing a variety of scrapbooking, quilting, sowing, knitting, etc.  One of KT's friends has rented out a room in a community center for the day and we are going to have a real hen party.  If I have any of the cake left, it's going.  Later in the day I'll head over to mom's house where she will be cooking some chicken gizzards for me...look it up and be HoRrIfIeD like everyone else :)  Then Saturday night, if I have not passed out with exhaustion I will go see Twilight with the Book Diva again :)

Sunday...hmm, I don't know, maybe a nap?  Oh yeah, I'll be petsitting this whole time so there will be trips back and forth to the house to let the dog out :)  

I love the holidays!

OH YEAH!!!!  Sunday, I'm putting up the tree!!!!!!!!!!!and the stocking!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and the cheesy plastic decorations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and watching another 12 Christmas movies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

you know you want to.

just a taste...

Look what I found!  You won't BELIEVE the wonders there are to behold between the covers of this monstrosity and I will be doling them out in truly stingy doses, trust me!  So, prepare yourself for the alliterative nightmares hinted at on the bottom of the book!

:)

Sunday Salon

yes, I am joining another group, The Sunday Salon!

If you'd like to join up too, head over to The Sunday Salon, fill out the form, and blog each Sunday about what you're reading and what you plan to read!

2009 100+ Reading Challenge!

I'm joining the 100+ Reading Challenge for 2009...I'm vowing to read 100 books or more next year, join up too why don't you!?!  Go over to J. Kay's Book Blog, sign up, and get your reading on...well, next year anyway!

I'll be posting all my readings to this post.  I'm not sure how that will work out, but them's the rules and I'll be following them.  No lists are required and I wouldn't now where to begin anyway as there are all kinds of good books due to be published early next year.  I can hardly wait!

***and so it begins***

1. The United States Constitution:  A Graphic Adaptation by Jonathan Hennessey and Aaron McConnell

I personally would never have thought I could sit down and read a book about the Constitution but I read this one cover to cover in almost one sitting.  I learned several things I did not know, got a refresher on many others, and giggled a time or two as well.  VERY accessible and quite scholarly for a general overview.  

2. a mercy by Toni Morrison

This novel had a bit too much of a stream-of-consciousness feel to it for me to really love it. That being said, most parts of the story were very cohesive and very moving.  I liked getting the story from so many different perspectives, especially the perspectives of Florens and Lina. Heartbreaking, bitter, redemptive, and so horrifically indicative of what was to blossom from the first stirrings of indentured and slave labor.  I look forward to reading another of Morrison's books soon.

Tag! You're it!

Over at the Book Lady's Blog, A great new meme is making its presence known throughout the blogosphere, The ABC List of Favorite Books!…I mean, I managed to find it so surely it will make its way around soon J  Anyway, type out your alphabet and see how many YOU can fill in!

A-Angelmonster

B-The Book Thief, The Book of Lost Things

C-Chocolat, City of Masks, Children of Men

D-Dark Horse

E-The Electric Michelangelo

F-Five Quarters of the Orange, Free for All

G-A Game of Thrones, Gargoyle, The Glass Castle, Garden Spells

H-His Majesty’s Dragon, Hero and the Crown, Host, Heartsick

I-I am the Messenger

J-Jade Island

K-Kite Runner

L-Lace Reader, Lightning’s Daughter, Lulu Meets God and Doubts Him

M-March

N-Now You See Her

O-Open Season, Old Man’s War

P-People of the Book, Proust Was a Neuroscientist, Pillars of the Earth

Q-

R-The Road

S-Sunshine, Sunday’s With Vlad, The Sugar Queen

T-The Taking, The Teacher’s Funeral, The Thirteenth Tale

U-The Uncommon Reader

V-The Virgin Blue, A Voyage Long and Strange, Vertical Run

W-Water For Elephants, The Worst Hard Time, Water Mirror

X-

Y-Year of Wonders

Z-Z is for Zachariah, Zookeeper’s Wife

____________________

Anyone reading?  If so, make an ABC List of Favorites post on your own blog or bloggy type application.

total recall

Here are two of my honorary nieces, E and Toes (toes is the tiny cuteness). When E came in to show KT and I her "baby carrier" I immediately thought of the Arnold Schwarzen*&%*(&) (sp?) classic, Total Recall, but I figured she would have been a little creeped out. Not 6-yr-old conversation I suppose. After this little mental detour, we roasted marshmallows at KT's gas stove :)

my morning time angel

Binky loves some sunshine!

2 months later

and I finally get this picture up on the ol' blog. Sorry it took so long but procrastination is obviously one of my better talents.

I am still LoViNg my new tattoo. It makes me smile at least 5 times per day. Of course, now that this has healed up I'm already thinking of what I want next. I have absolutely no idea how someone just gets one tattoo.

too much time on his hands

new medical garble from T

as I've mentioned before, my friend T works the switchboard for a local LARGE medical facility and her department is responsible for transferring incoming calls to the various departments.  Over the years she has shared with me many of the...um...interesting things people ask for instead of the department they actually need.  For example, the person who called to get the results from their autopsy.  You get the point.  

Without further ado!

Things to NOT call your doctor for:

the gastrointelligent clinic (= gastroenterology)

the gastroarchaeology clinic (again, gastroenterology)

the confusion clinic (= infusion clinic, hematology and chemotherapy and such)

the weewee doctor (= urologist)

that is all.

ugggggh

the crud has decended and I have been stricken....SO not looking forward to work tomorrow :(

I'm about to take some Nyquil and attempt to be well in the morning when I wake up.  We'll see how that goes.  I've had Dayquil and some Afrin (in desperation due to lack of oxygen, I do know they shouldn't be taken together).  I want to get to sleep before the Afrin wears off and I'll just hope the air pressure from my CPAP will keep me from getting super congested again.  Itch eyes, sore throat, runny nose, sneezing, I have it all!  

Some things I also have are pictures to share but I'm too lazy to go get my camera so you'll simply have to wait for another day, alas.

night ya'll

bookworm tag

okay, so I wasn't tagged for this, but Trish over at Hey Lady? Watcha Readin'? was and I'm stealing the tag.

Pass it on to five other bloggers, and tell them to open the nearest book to page 56. Write out the fifth sentence on that page, and also the next two to five sentences. The CLOSEST BOOK, not your favorite or most intellectual.

So the closest book to hand for me this morning is God Rest Ye Merry Soldiers: A True Civil War Christmas Story by James McIvor:

The Yankees surrendered, and that evening Forrest's men were on their way again, leaving as fast as they had come.  Hearing the news of Forrest's raid on Murfreesboro, and fearing a threat to their hold on the state's capital itself, the Union army at Nashville quickly pulled back from the forces they had too confidently spread all across Middle and West Tennessee.  For the rest of the summer and fall the Union army would remain encamped in and around Nashville behind strong fortifications.  And so it was to Murfreesboro that Bragg now, in late fall, decided to concentrate his entire Army of Tennessee.  He hoped to entice the Union army into a battle in which Bragg would hold the defensive advantage.

Yes, stunning I know...I wish there'd been a more interesting book to hand, but such is the life of a meme.

Your turn KT, E, Lauren, Kathy and Z!

be forewarned!

I have found a great new blog, Books for the Holidays, and I am FiReD uP about it!  Notice the new button on my sidebar "I'm buying books for the holidays" and know that if you receive a gift from me this year, it will be a monograph of some kind!  The holidays always make me feel like I am shoveling money off into a void and I have no idea why I have not considered this in the past (since I'm a librarian and all)!

Over at Books for the Holidays, they have lists and lists and lists of stuff and will be happy to help you select a book for that hard-to-buy-for person.

Please consider purchasing books during your holiday shopping too!  Support authors, support art, support culture, keep literature alive!

that is all.

farewell and goodbye

to my oh-so-sweet staycation!  Seriously, if you haven't tried this I highly recommend it.  No luggage, no reservations, no gas stations, no cheap takeout (well, maybe a little...), no piles of laundry other that the various pj's I've worn over the past 7 days

listen closely....that, my dear readers, is the sound of contentment :)  Plus, about 30 minutes ago I surpased my goal of reading 7 books in 7 days to 8 books in 7 days...total, I began 10 books but two of them I had to abandon after a few chapters as they were failing to hold my interest and I've made a vow to myself that I will no longer finish any books that I'm not enjoying.  Here's a list!

A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World by Tony Horwitz

The Walking Dead: Book 2  by Robert Kirkman, et al

A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin

Black Powder War by Naomi Novik

Old Man's War by John Scalzi

Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain

Let Me In by John Ajvide Lindquist

Total Chaos by Jean-Claude Izzo

Now my head is literally bursting with all sorts of fun, disturbing, interesting and horrifying things and I am happy again!  

well...

I know I have gaps in my knowledge, but I never expected it would be these two...I've obviously let myself go :(

There Are 2 Gaps in Your Knowledge

Where you have gaps in your knowledge: History Art Where you don't have gaps in your knowledge: Philosophy Religion Economics Literature Science

Do You Have Gaps in Your Knowledge?

catching up

so I have all this stuff that I've been saving in my bloglines account that I wanted to write about and apparently today is the day, though my strenuous reading schedule is calling (7 books in 7 days...I'm almost there!).  

Anyway, I usually hate to post someone else's stuff in it's entirety but I must share my love of Eugene Novikov's work at Cinematical!  He and Scott Weinberg are my go-to guys when I want to watch something good and gory :)  So here is Novikov's Love Letter to Midnight Meat Train:

Dear Midnight Meat Train,

It was so great to see you on Wednesday night at the old, one-screen Clay Theatre in San Francisco. Pretty awesome that someone caught your pitiful theatrical release and decided to book you for a two-night run here. Actual people do things so much better than corporations sometimes.

Anyway, there's no easy way to say this: I love you. In fact, I think I might be in love with you. Deep inside I think you know the depth of my affection. But let me list just a few examples of your awesomeness.

I love how artfully, how meticulously, you were directed. You're freakin' beautiful, is what you are. What happened to the Ryuhei Kitamura who made the smug, ugly, useless Versus? I wasn't prepared for this evocative, moody plunge into bleakness. Every shot is a wonderfully unreal composition of light and shadow; every angle and camera move seems calculated to make you as unsettling as possible. 

I love that you took the time to get the details right. The little things -- they're so difficult. The relationship between the main character and his girlfriend/fiance is believable and sweet; there are some genuinely lovely scenes in the first half, moments where you just pause to regard these people outside of the plot. And those photos that are supposed to make Leon a star in the New York art world? Those are actually some great freakin' photos. I bought it, y'know?

I love the way the ending makes your story bigger instead of smaller. Most horror movies turn out to be so puny -- it usually turns out that the killer was abused as a child, or is taking revenge against bullies, or is just evil, with no motivation at all. What a joy to see one that opens up to reveal something larger, something scarier. (I understand we have Clive Barker to thank for this.) And I loved how you let apparent incongruencies linger uncomfortably, risking our thinking you stupid, before explaining them in the final minutes.

I love that you have a moral dimension. What is the artist's role in depicting the awful, horrible things in the world? How far can he go to seek them out? At what point does he become complicit in them? These are questions you actually take seriously. Layers! In a gory horror flick! Remarkable.

We have to be apart until Lionsgate finally decides to put you on DVD (although Comcast customers who feel like watching you on TV can do so). In the meantime, though, I plan to rave about you to anyone who'll listen. I'm tolerant of the Sawfranchise, but Saw V's 3,000 screen release this weekend is kind of pissing me off now. 

Oh, I forgot one thing: I've been calling you Midnight Meat Train for short, but I love how your title is actually The Midnight Meat Train. Old-fashioned, but so appropriate.

Until next time,

Eugene

Come on now, that is AWESOME and you know it!  You now want to see it just as much as I do...well almost as much anyway!

I love Fall!

I do apologize for the low quality of these photographs...I should definitely have run the car through a car wash before attempting to take photos through the nasty cracked winshield. That being said, are the leaves B-U-tiful?!?!!?!

I voted!

Did you?

as promised :)

I proudly present to you the Blue Witch, Hannah Montana, a diminutive purple-croced Cinderella, and a Mom!

I applied everyone's makeup, including my own. I wasn't going to put on any makeup but the girls seemed amused so I'm glad I did :)

Cinderella's energy petered out early on, so the Mom also functioned as a kind of sherpa for her majesty. She asked for candy every so often and we unwrapped a piece and handed it up to her. As some point she tried to hand me a well-goobered piece of something and I graciously declined. She was pleased. I am surprised the Mom did not have well-goobered candy all in her hair.

As I mentioned in another post, E asked me to hold her hat because it "made her head feel cold" and Essie just gave me the microphone. I assume it was interfering with her candy acquisition. So, from goth aunt/librarian to cheesy Vegas lounge witch I went. Happily I might add, though after I took this photo of myself Essie Montana wanted her microphone back :)

dia de los muertos!

okay, so that was actually yesterday but the bare hands gallery downtown is having a celebration today and I'm heading over there directly after work!  Hopefully I will behave in a decorous manner and have good stories to tell at the same time

:)

evenin' ya'll!

time change and sundry items

don't forget that you should have set all your clocks back one hour!  It has recently gone from 12am (and waaaay past my bedtime) to 11pm (moderately past my bedtime.  "Recently" means 30 minutes ago so it is now close to waaaay past my bedtime again.  

Oh, but just let me tell you why I'm a bit wakeful.  I went with KT and Z to see Quarantine tonight. I have visions of things that snarl and gnaw dancing in my head and I'm concerned that they will visit me in my sleep.  I'm such a baby!  So, it's nearly midnight and I'm on my second giant mug of hot chocolate liberally laced with butterscotch schnapps...my wintry beverage of choice thanks to KT.  It was SO MUCH FUN! ...aside from insanely scary...

Yesterday I went to see Zack and Miri Make a Porno and loved it!  I have told everyone I talk to that it is a chick flick in wolves' clothing so don't be fooled.  If you go to see it, you will see a romance interspersed with porno bits.  However, like all bad porn they just look bored while Zack and Miri look anything but.  I would watch it again for the high school reunion if nothing else.  I only wish our 10 year reunion had coughed up anything that interesting but I didn't even get to go since I was in the middle of grad school at the time and had class that night so I guess I shouldn't complain about the level of inactivity.

Today is my dad's 65th birthday and he and my stepmom and my brother, sister-in-law, niece and nephew agreed to meet for lunch by library so I could join in too since I had to work today.  We had burgers and fries and beer and a great time.  I had to leave before everyone else so I could get back to the library to let my coworker go to lunch but Daxx was v.v. understanding and patient with my extended family lunch.

If you haven't noticed the new item on my sidebar, I'm finally on Facebook!  I still don't quite know how I'm going to manage all the different sites I'm farting around with now but I guess it'll work itself out somehow.  It isn't as if I have anything better to do when I get off work, most of the time anyway.  I am getting out and socializing a lot more than I did.  Hey, in fact I've been carded 3 times this week!  It must be all the hot chocolate giving me a childish glow or something because I haven't been carded in YeArS and one carder frowned at me mightily as if it might be a fake ID.  It made my day, really.  I wanted to say, "Sir, if you'll just shine your flashlight at my head and look at this bumper crop of tinsel coming in...I assure you that license is accurate."  But I didn't, I simply smiled and walked on in.

I went trick-or-treating with KT and her kids yesterday evening and I'll have pictures as soon as I'm motivated enough to get my camera out of my purse.  I decided to put on a little of the girls' Halloween makeup because it would make them laugh and I had on my favorite zombie tshirt so when the girls asked me what I was I just told them I was a goth librarian.  For a six, five and three year old, this meant nothing :)  Over the course of the evening E asked me to hold her witch hat because "it makes my head feel cold" and Essie simply handed me her Hannh Mntana microphone with no explanation so I gradually transitioned into a bad lounge act in Vegas.  I took a photo to push home the point, you'll see.  Toes petered out pretty early and ended up riding for most of the night on KT's shoulders.  Toes' Cnderlla dress ended up on top of KT's head so she went from indulgent mom to a weird looking nun with a child growing out of her back.  I have photos of that too.  lots and lots (read: 7) of photos!

Plus I need to take a good photo of my new tattoo AND my new bumper sticker (Driving Slower to Save Gas).  I must tell you that my fellow motorists have been much more polite since I applied the sticker.  They were pissed off when they thought I was just some old crochety librarian (since I do have Librarian: The Original Search Engine on one side already) but now that there is a REASON that I'm driving slow, and one they can apparently respect, I don't get tailgated as much and have not gotten flipped off either!  There may be hope for the human race yet, I'll let you know after the election.

night ya'll!

htw

Proud to support Change We Can Believe In - November 4th!  

No matter who you plan to vote for, GO OUT AND VOTE!!!!!!!

war and zombies

One researcher charts the appearance of zombie films in relation to historical events involving war or social upheaval....THIS is cool science!  Do you believe this correlation or is it the old crime and ice cream scenario?

let me tell you . . . . . .

 . . . . . . how much I love my niece and nephew!  An accidental phone call led to me meeting my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew for lunch yesterday.  It was a wonderfully serendipitous meeting as I haven't seen them since we went to the beach in July.  It's a pain living an hour and half from each other, we're all busy and I'm not so good about making time for myself (which I'm trying to do better with, I'm taking a staycation next week!).  Anyway, I accidentally called D when I was trying to call my dear mother (one touch calling is nice until you call the wrong person) and I ended up meeting them for lunch like I said.  It is such a heartache to see them both so grown up.  I remember them both as itty bitty babies, changed their diapers, got thrown up on, have embarrassed myself just to see them smile...all that's going away now, or I guess the dynamics of it are just changing as they get older.  Anyway, I thought I'd share a timewarp moment with you!

Picture it: January 2001, Aunt Holley visits the hospital 

Please forgive the crap quality of this photo, it was taken with a Polaroid instant camera (this is not the model, but I thought I'd include it for the youngsters so they wouldn't be left out).  If you look closely, you can see the S's left nostril is clogged up with a giant buggar that we all got to see close up soon after this photo was taken when she discovered it.  It was a wonderful age for buggars :)  I wasn't able to be around much when S was an infant and we had a rocky relationship when she was a toddler but now we're tight (or at least I think so).  However, C seemed to come into this world smiling at me and he still does as you can see below.

This was taken this past 4th of July when I entertained them for a few days while D and K handled some unexpected household matters.  We went to DeSoto Caverns, the Montgomery Zoo, and to the movies to see Wall-E which is where this little photo strip came from.  Thanks to yours truly we all barely fit into the little booth but I think we managed to make it work.  S has the other copy of this and I hope she enjoys it as much as I enjoy my copy.

The fun part is that I get to see them all again on Saturday when we meet for lunch to celebrate my dad's birthday!  I'm sure I've mentioned before that D is my half brother and, of course, Daddy is who we share :)  Everyone is coming to the library and we'll eat somewhere close since I only get an hour for lunch.  I might be able to eeek a little more time out of Daxx the Magnificent as he is usually very patient when little delays pop up at lunch time.  I'll have to remember to tell him about it tomorrow.  Well, ya'll didn't come all the way over here to read about me making a mental to-do list so I guess I'll say goodnight!

oh my.....

.......what big tentacles you have!

For this first book cover, you really should get the full experience by clicking here (I could not find a larger image and it really should be viewed in all of its sci-fi glory).  And what's with the disembodied head and half-a-horse?  My entire department has snickered over this one almost as much as the Muffin.

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Attention: not to be confused with having anything to do with Miley Cirrus (or however the hell you spell it!)

That there is an R-V!  Nothing says romance like an old Winnebago (bad spelling is catching up with me again!) and a direct order!  No one has ever tried that line out on me so I can't speak towards its effectiveness but I'm going to go out on a limb and give it the ol' emperor's thumb down...

howling at the moon

so I have finished up the last book for my R.I.P. III Challenge!  I may get in a fifth book before October 31st but at least I finished the four I signed up for:

The Walking Dead: Book 1

Newes from the Dead

Land of Echoes

Bones of the Barbary Coast

additional title I may get to:

Flesh House

So, the other two books in Daniel Hecht's series about parapsychologist Cree Black have a subtitle of "A Cree Black Thriller" while this latest installment, Bones of the Barbary Coast, simply reads "A Cree Black Novel".  I can agree, but don't take that for disappointment!  I LuRvEd

 this book!  To me it read like some of Geraldine Brooks' and Tracy Chevalier's novels in that there is a historical mystery that needs to be solved.  Cree is digging into the history of an old Victorian Mansion in a fairly swank San Fran neighborhood after a bizarre set of bones was discovered in the basement.  Long, thin leg and arm bones, curved unnaturally; short, stubby fingers and toes; elongated skull with unusually sharp, pronounced canine teeth....you get the point.  Running parallel to this contemporary story are diary entries written by one of the original owners of the house.  The reader is the only one aware of the diary as the story goes along as Cree struggles to figure out the history behind the wolfman's bones.  Cree is in town at the behest of an old family friend, Uncle Bert, and their relationship is strained by lost contact, the passage of time and secrets that Bert isn't willing to share.  

I know I use this phrase waaaay too much but this is another novel that explores the dark places of the human soul.  I have an interest in books that closely examine this point and I will be purchasing this entire series for my own personal library.  To sum up, while Bones of the Barbary Coast really doesn't continue in the truly scary vein of the two previous books in the series, City of Masks and Land of Echoes, it is a very strong book all on it's own.  I believe the author did an excellent job of fending off my paltry attempts to figure out whodunit.  I've typed and erased several sentences to follow that one but they all give something away that I believe you'd enjoy more finding on your own so go out and find your own copy and get to it!

it's baaaaaack...

way #3 to amuse a bored cat:

I have an 11-year-old, 13-pound Siamese male, and his favorite amusement is as follows: I grab him by his rear thighs and swing him back between my legs.  Then, I swing him back up in front in a flip, catching him under each arm.  His hing legs come up and rest inside each of my elbows. There he sits, while I use his "arms" to box (a la Ali) anyone nearby.  Afterwards, a full flip dismount brings a full purr! 

D.T. and F.A., Pheonix, AZ

I have friend who's a vet and somehow (and I fully accept the possibility that I could be way off base) I think she would frown mightily on this particular "fun" activity...I would have to go the ER to be stitched back up if I tried it on the Binskster!

vote for fail!

My failblog submission is up for voting!  It is on the second page and looks like this:

more fail, owned and pwned pics and videos

Vote for my pic to be featured on their homepage!

a blatant appeal . . .

. . .to two of the great loves of my life, kittehs and ponies


BEHOLD! (I don't know what to say about the soundtrack)

Yes We Carve!

I wish I'd thought of that!

...though I do like the one I did. I'm so unimaginative sometimes *sigh* Hey, I could always buy another pumpkin!

R.I.P.ing right along!

. . . for all my ghoulish fiends friends!

If you care to, you may catch up with my first two books in the RIP III Challenge:

The Walking Dead

Land of Echoes

On to the third!  Three down, one to go!

I can't even remember which blog I found this book on, but the description hooked me (no pun intended) immediately.  Based on real accounts, Newes from the Dead by Mary Hooper is a fictionalized retelling of the horrifying not-quite-death of Anne Green in 1650.  

Anne awakens in darkness, but is not immediately afraid.  During the cold winter months, she always rises in darkness.  It is when she tries to move that she discovers something is terribly wrong.  It is also then that she remembers the last thing that had happened to her...she had been hanged for infanticide.  Was she now in heaven, hell, or something completely unknown?

Out in the cold, cold world, the medical college has just received a rare treat...the chance to disect a fresh corpse.  The young lady had been hanged only that morning and the students were all eager for a chance to learn.  One student in particular, Robert Matthews, is disturbed because the body does not look like others he has seen...it looks almost alive.  The lead doctor is finishing up his speech about the importance of what they are doing for the future of medicine when Robert sees the corpse's eyelids twitch...or did he?

D-I-S-T-U-R-B-I-N-G!  And on so many levels!  This is young adult fiction but I thought it was pretty creepy.  Not scary, but definitely creepy.  Hooper's description of the hanging and the near-disection as well as the time Anne spends in the jail at Oxford Castle read more like a book for adults than young adults.  I actually got a bit squeamish a time or two.  The author has included a reproduction of the actual pamphlet printed in 1651 describing the events leading up to Anne's hanging and what happened afterward.  

if you do nothing else tonight . . .

 . . . visit ZooBorns and get your "awwwww" in shape :)

more pumpkin paintin' at Holley's House

I know you'll find it so surprising that this is my pumpkin, since I'm all sweetness and light and such ;) The fork was T's idea but the...uh....wet work...was mine!

Oh yeah, that's the money shot! Look out Romero, here comes Night of the Living Punkin'!

This gruesome looking fellow came supplied with the Freddy Krueger slash to the face. I asked M if he'd picked that pumpkin on purpose but he promised he didn't notice it until I pointed it out! I think the mirror glass eyes really set off the whole ensemble!

You can see the slashes better from this angle. Ahhh, the scars! Ahhh, the bottomless mirror glass eyes! Ahhh, the Frida Kahlo brows! Ahhhh, the stump eye! Ahhhhhhh!


. . . and a good time was had by all.

pumpkin paintin' at Holley's House!

Z put us all to shame with her spoooooky haunted house! The bats in the sky and the enshading trees are overlooked by a waning moon adrift in the clouds...good work Z!

The bottom row represents the entirety of KT's family. From left to right: E's three eyed rainbow, Essie's arachnid-looking beastie, KT's feather-crowned beauty, P-toe's haunted veggie, and bringing up the rear is D's honorary decoration (since he was not there). I like everyone's randomly placed eyes! The sun and star pumpkin is T's and I wish you could see the flower and vine on the other side! Arrrrgh! I didn't get a pic!

Here is A's flapper girl...you can practically see her doing the Charleston! Come on, you know you can! Love the mole!

The is M's feathered friend! He looks pretty excited to be there next to the chips :) I told M he looked like Captain Harris from Police Academy. Hopefully someone, somewhere, will get that reference...come on people, don't make me feel old before my time!


continued . . .