Miscellany

I'm all plans and no execution lately. I have all these ideas for posts, but haven't gotten it together to make them happen. And I keep writing drafts and deleting them. Here's something to hold over until I get a bit more time to do a proper post:

UNDERWAY
A cupcake contest, pitting the cities' best bakeries. Whose buttercream will reign supreme? I'll post the results once we've declared a victor.

NOSTALGIA
For those who read the Babysitter's Club books or Sweet Valley High, these sites are fabulous:
The Dairi Burger (SVH)
What Claudia Wore (BSC)
BSC Headquarters (BSC)

CRAFTY
There's something about February that makes me want to embroider. Posie Gets Cozy's Pleasant Dishtowels look pretty tempting. DesignSponge's cookie tin makeover was also a fun little project for an old pretzel tin.

FOOD
To celebrate avocado season, here's one of my favorite recipes: Comfort rice. Mix a few cups white (short-grain) or brown rice with one avocado, cubed, and top with a generous splash of rice wine vinegar, a generous pinch of salt, and a hearty sprinkling of furikake. It's so hearty and warm and sour and salty you have to feel good just eating it (I have a recipe for "Comfort Pasta," which inspired this recipe's name). Cucumbers can replace avocados when they're in season.

Things that make me cry: While driving

1. Funeral processions
2. Terrible accidents
3. People on strike
4. Political enthusiasts encouraging you to vote (bonus if they're holding a homemade sign)
5. Chubby fathers jogging with their chubby sons

Monthly book post: January

January books
After Dark by Haruki Murakami. One of my favorite authors, Murakami doesn't disappoint in this novel that takes place one night in Tokyo. One of his more accessible books.

The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney. This 2006 Costa Book of the Year Award-winning novel opens with a murder in a desolate Canadian post and gets more interesting from there. Well-written, with hints of Jack London's "To Build a Fire" and A Narrative of the Captivity, Sufferings and Removes of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.

The Godmother by Carrie Adams. One woman and her many friends, all with their own very real and troubling problems, come together in this fast-paced novel. One of those books that prompts you to consider what you would do if you were in those situations, then to pray that you will never be, because they're the type of problems that have no easy solutions.

The sharper your knife, the less you cry by Kathleen Flynn. Flynn fulfills a life dream to attend Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Although I'll never cook most of the things she described (most require doing appalling things to poultry and fish) it was a fun insight into the famous and influential school.

Also read:
In college I loved reading a bunch of books by the same author and then analyzing one aspect of them in a big old thesis. Although I haven't put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard), I've been enjoying rereading Judy Blume favorites (Here's to you, Rachel Robinson, Blubber, Are you there, God? It's me, Margaret) and noticing things I overlooked as a kid. For example: the parents in her novels are really interesting, both in the lives they lead, their relationships with each other, and how they interact with their kids.

Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine
Keeping Christmas: Yuletide Traditions in Norway and the New Land by Kathleen Stokker
D.I.Y: Design it Yourself by Ellen Lupton

















The cabin... where I enjoyed reading many of the January books. On the table there is one of Husband's - Bill Bryson's Shakespeare: The World as Stage.

All things running

Resources:
Tacohead's Running Gear Review
Tacohead's Running Gear Review 2
Running in the winter
Marathon training
Husband on training movies

Recaps:
Marathon #8 - TCM 2
Marathon #7 - Paavo
Marathon #6 - Grandma's 2
Marathon #5 - Med-City 2
Half-Marathon #5 - Brainerd
Marathon #4 - Rocket City
Marathon #3 - Twin Cities
Marathon #2 - Grandma's
Marathon #1 - Med City
Half-marathon #1 - Frozen Half
TC 10-mile

Musings:
Identity
Why I run
Nerves
The zone
No excuses

Book lists

2008 mini reviews
September/October 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008

2007 mini reviews
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007

2007 complete books read
SEE ALSO: 2007 books organized by category, which is how I think of them and may be more helpful in finding interesting read.

Heat - Bill Buford
The Secret River - Kate Grenville
Snow Blind - P.J. Tracy
*Two in a Bed - Paul Rosenblatt
* An Abundance of Katherines - John Green
I like you: Entertaining under the influence - Amy Sedaris
Girls - Frederick Busch
*American Born Chinese - Gene Luen Yang
The Doctor's Wife- Ariyoshi Sawako
Mansfield Park - Jane Austen
The Boy Book- E. Lockhart
Hattie Big Sky - Kirby Larson
* Special Topics in Calamity Physics - Marisha Pessl
* Poster Child: A Memoir - Emily Rapp
Black Swan Green - David Mitchell
Candy Girl: A year in the life of an unlikely stripper - Diablo Cody
Unseen - Mari Jungstedt
Cancer Vixen - Marisa Acocella Marchetto
Life as we knew it - Susan Beth Pfeffer
Great with child: Letters to a young mother - Beth Ann Fennelly
Falling boy - Alison McGhee
Two in the Wild - Susan Fox Rogers
Astrid and Veronika - Linda Olsson
The Omnivore's Dilemma - Michael Pollan
*The Spellman Files - Lisa Lutz
Shyness and Dignity - Dag Solstad
Stones from the River - Ursula Hegi
The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse - Louise Erdrich
The Inheritance of Sorrow - Kiran Desai
*The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade - Ann Fessler
*If you lived here - Diana Sachs
The looniness of the long distance runner - Russell Taylor
Nineteen Minutes - Jodi Picoult

Waking: A memoir of trauma and transcendence - Matthew Sanford
Gaining: The truth about life after eating disorders - Aimee Liu
Survival in Auschwitz - Primo Levi
Love is a Mix Tape - Rob Sheffield
*Crashing Through: A True Story of Risk, Adventure, and the Man Who Dared to See - Robert Kurson
Girl Stories - Lauren Weinstein
*Dishwasher: One Man's Quest to Wash Dishes in All Fifty States - Pete Jordan
*An Encyclopedia of Ordinary Life - Amy Krouse Rosenthal
The Plain Janes - Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg
Cabin Pressure: One Man's Futile Attempt to Recapture His Youth as a Camp Counselor - Josh Wolk
Pretty Little Mistakes - Heather McElhatton
Out Stealing Horses - Per Petterson

Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith - Anne Lamott
I love you Beth Cooper - Larry Doyle
Waiting for Daisy: A Tale of Two Continents, Three Religions, Five Infertility Doctors, an Oscar, an Atomic Bomb, a Romantic Night - Peggy Orenstein
Boundary Waters: The Grace of the Wild - Paul Gruchow
Dangerously Alice - Phyllis Naylor
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (reread) - J.K. Rowling
The Princess of Burundi - Kjell Ericksson
*On Chesil Beach - Ian McEwan
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
Frenemies - Megan Crane
Partly Cloudy Patriot - Sarah Vowell
Austenland - Shannon Hale
Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant - Daniel Tammet
The Sweet Edge by Alison Pick
Without a Map - Meredith Hall
Two-part invention: The story of a marriage - Madeline L'Engle
Second Opinions: Stories of intuition and choice in a changing world of medicine - Jerome Groopman
Swapping Lives - Jane Green
Literacy and Longing in L.A. - Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack
Bento Box in the Heartland: My Japanese Girlhood in Whitebread America - Linda Furiya
Fourth Comings - Megan McCafferty
The Discomfort Zone - Jonathan Franzen
Still Life with Chickens: Starting Over in a House by the Sea - Catherine Goldhamme
The Lost: The Search for Six of Six Million - Daniel Mendelsson
The Best of Friends: Two women, two continents, and one enduring friendship - Sara James and Ginger Mauney
Women, Water, Wisdom: Voices from the Upper Mississippi - Nancy Scheibe
Mary Reilly - Valerie Martin
Why Do Men Fall Asleep After Sex?: More Questions You'd Only Ask a Doctor After Your Third Whiskey Sour - Mark Leyner
Warm Springs: Traces of a Childhood at FDR's Polio Haven by Susan Richards Shreve
Here if you need me: A true story by Kate Braestrup
Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Novel by Leonie Swann
The Headmaster Ritual by Taylor Antrim
The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A year of food life, by Barbara Kingsolver
Identical Strangers: A memoir of twins separated and reunited by Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein
The Water's Lovely by Ruth Rendell
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern
The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler
*Deep survival : who lives, who dies, and why : true stories of miraculous endurance and sudden death by Laurence Gonzales
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell
*Let the northern lights erase your name by Vendela Vida
The simple home : the luxury of enough by Sarah Nettleton and Frank Edgerton Martin
Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume by Jennifer O'Connell, et al

Good to know

A follow-up on the Twin Cities Marathon, from an article in the February 2008 Runner’s World titled "Even hotter? Same day, same scorching conditions, but no drama at Twin Cities”

“Chicago wasn’t the only Midwestern race to face blistering heat on October 7. In fact, 400 miles away, runners in Minneapolis lacing up for the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon faced slightly nastier conditions when the gun sounded. At 8 a.m. racers were sweating in 72 degree heat and 87 percent humidity. Four hours later, it hit 80 degrees and 72 percent humidity.”

The article noted that Twin Cities had a higher rate of medical treatment and hospital transport than Chicago. “[B]ut things were different in Minneapolis: No one died, the media spotlight wasn’t glaring, and there was no drama over lost ambulances, water shortages, or a course closure.”

Recycling citrus

I have some latent Depression-era delight over making good use of food that you'd normally throw away. And since we're all about recycling, why not make the most of your peels? Here are a few ideas for turn rinds into riches (beyond the delicious candied peels).

Make them into a powder to sprinkle on roasted meats or baked goods
Make limoncello
Make a candle

Blank slate

This sight of this has been making me happy ever since I took down the scarred and scribbled 2007 version. The year, fresh and clean, full of possibilities.

Husband and I have been watching bits of Anne of Green Gables lately, who is found of reminding herself that "Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it."

Here's to 2008!

Monthly book post: December

December list:
Deep survival : who lives, who dies, and why : true stories of miraculous endurance and sudden death by Laurence Gonzales. One of my top ten books, I reread this when I realized I'd forgotten some of Gonzales's arguments.

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell. I was a bit put off by the title, which is reminiscent of nearly everything on the Barnes & Noble paperback fiction table, but the novel reads like a more coherent Mrs. Dalloway (which is good, because Woolf is one of my favorites) and was engaging enough to read up until the moment we left to line up for the marathon.

Let the northern lights erase your name by Vendela Vida. Set mostly in Finland, this novel plunges you into the cold icy stoicism, humility, and beauty of northern Scandinavia, and into the life of a woman who abandoned her fiance to track down her father. The characters in this novel don't act as you expect them to, yet it's not altogether unbelievable.

The simple home : the luxury of enough by Sarah Nettleton and Frank Edgerton Martin. Pretty pretty pictures of real homes that values resources, functionality, and aesthetics over McMansion acreage.

Also read:
Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume by Jennifer O'Connell, Meg Cabot, Beth Kendrick, Julie Kenner, and Cara Lockwood. A series of essays: I love the first ones but my disappointment with the last half keeps me from recommending it.

A moment

A moment for art: posters about the 35W bridge collapse

Crafty: Update

I thought I'd do a little follow up to the Christmas craft post so I could remember some of this for next year.

HOMEMADE FOOD GIFTS

Enamored with both almonds and Italy, I ended up making amaretti and biscotti (recipe follows, technically cantuccini) to give away. Both are easy to make and quite tasty.

I received a few very yummy and clever gifts. Husband declares that the candied orange peels are "chock full of awesome" and "need to be taken away from me." (Note on recipe: remove from syrup, roll in sugar to make this version).

And I'm totally copying this idea next year: dried herbs from the garden, packaged in cute little jars from Penzey's. Good thing AP gave us a little primer on drying herbs!

Speaking of AP, another fabulous food gift that she gave me a few years ago was homemade cream cheese, dusted with curry powder. Husband and I still swoon at the memory.

OTHER FOOD GIFTS I'm giving this year:

Ames Farm makes some tasty honey, and has a cute gift set of 5 for $15.

Cheese - who wouldn't enjoy a nice selection of local cheeses from the coop? (My dad, I hope).

Clementines
Green and Black's chocolate bars

And even though it's usually awkward and unsuccessful, I'm always trying to tie on interesting things on top of my gifts. Two ideas: Nut Goodies (local and festively wrapped) and mandarins (with the little leaves attached).

Happy holidays!

Almond Biscotti of Tuscany (Cantuccini)
modified from Lynne Rossetto Kasper's recipe, printed in the Star Tribune, for those with a food chopper/small food processor and no large Cuisinart-style food processor

Makes 30 to 40 cookies.
• 14 oz. whole blanched almonds, toasted
• Generous 1 1/2 tbsp. shredded lemon zest
• 2 generous tsp. shredded orange zest
• 1 1/2 c. bleached flour (measured by lightly spooning flour into the cup and leveling with a straight edge)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• Pinch freshly ground black pepper
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg whites
• 2 1/2 tbsp. clear corn syrup
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Butter and flour a large cookie sheet. In a food chopper, process almonds until coarsely ground (like coarse sand) with a few larger chunks remaining. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in both the zests, the flour, and the baking powder. In a separate bowl, mix the salt, pepper, eggs, egg whites, corn syrup, sugar and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients, mixing only long enough to blend. Dough will be a dense batter -- do not overmix.

Using a rubber spatula and pastry scraper to help you, spread the batter on the baking sheet, shaping it into two 16-inch-long loaves about 3 inches wide and 1 inch high. Space about 3 inches apart.

Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven, turning heat up to 325 degrees. Cool the biscotti 10 minutes, slice crossways 1/2 -inch thick, and turn each piece on its side. Bake 12 more minutes, turn over the cookies and bake another 15 minutes. Cool the biscotti completely on a rack. They are best eaten the second day and later.

Marathon #4

Last weekend Husband and I traveled to Alabama to see what that's all about (conclusion: AWESOME) and to run a marathon. The race itself was more akin to my first marathon - lots of waving and thanking volunteers, chatting and wooting, enjoying the sites, out to have a good time and not break some the land-speed record.

















To be sure, the race had a few southern charms. I've never had a race emcee let us know he'd be praying for us. Or been cheered on by Baptist teens bearing motivational signs from the Bible. Or been accosted by disgusting protesters/"spectators" outside Planned Parenthood. I don't know enough about Auburn or 'Bama football or the military to understand the seemingly incomprehensible cheers (hooky hooky hoo!?). Nor has the post-race refreshments ever included two kinds of Moon Pies.


















The course was the flattest thing I've ever seen. It was beautiful. The weather (average low is 35, average high, 55) was a unseasonably warm 71, with what-is-starting-to-seem-inevitable? extreme humidity. You can see the haze/mugginess in some of the photos. Speaking of the photos, you might be wondering how we came to have them. My amazing and frequent-flier-laden parents flew in to cheer us on. They were an unbelievable support crew and quickly expanded their cheering efforts to include a few handfuls of other runners, who they came to know as the runners were right before or after us throughout the race.


















To us, the residential streets were a fun opportunity for ethnographic study. To local residents, I'm sure they were just extremely boring.

We ran together the whole way, which was a first, and seeing what Husband goes through (oh the cramping!) makes me even more impressed with his strength and determination. We finished in a respectable 4:43. Then we walked the cowboy walk of the victorious, showered off the layers of salty sweat, napped, and headed out for a Thai and sushi dinner of champions.

We rounded out our trip by driving up into the hills and touring some caves.























UPDATE: I found some photos on my parents' camera from Grandma's and added them to that post.

Day 30

And we're done! While writing everyday is hard (even if you cheat and solicit guest bloggers), remembering to write every day is by far the hardest part. Often I'd be going happily up to bed and see my little reminder post-it yelling "POST!" and trudge back down and sit myself in front of the computer.

And wow, writing about myself really made me sick of me. A big big thank you to the guest bloggers for keeping me from going insane and better yet, providing some fun content.

Thanks for sticking with me! See you soon (but not tomorrow!).

Monthly book post: November

November list:
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A year of food life, by Barbara Kingsolver. Barbara and her family commit to eating (mostly) local foods for one calendar year, growing most of their own food. I was so looking forward to this book that I was a bit let down when I finally read it. I wanted more what-life-was-really-like-living-local, and less politics and information. But I still enjoyed it overall... it really made me think of things differently and gave me some practical ideas about different ways to live. So, who wants to can tomatoes with me next year?

Identical Strangers: A memoir of twins separated and reunited by Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein. Elyse and Paula were part of the Louise Wise adoption agency study that separated twins to explore the nature vs. nurture question... without telling them or their parents Alternating viewpoints, Elyse and Paula are unfailingly honest as they get to know each other (admitting that at times they wonder if they'd been better off not knowing) and investigate the study, tracking down the doctors who participated as well as other separated twins.

The Water's Lovely by Ruth Rendell. An murder mystery about a pair of sisters who were involved with their stepfather's death many years ago... and now that they are older, one finds herself wondering what really happened that day. An entertaining cast of characters forge unexpected connections as the plot twists and turns toward its conclusion... in all a captivating and well done book.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. I wouldn't have read this book were it not for my book club (circuses are not a topic I'm usually drawn to), but it was a fun read. I'm not sure what we'll talk about... but if you're looking for something to keep you occupied on an airplane ride or to escape to for a weekend, this would suffice.

Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume. I love Judy Blume. There's such a perfect simplicity in her writing... and she captures all those what-you-think-are-taboo-at-the-time subjects of adolescence. I realized I hadn't read this one so I checked it out... a good read about a girl whose dad dies. My favorites of hers are Starring Sally J. Freedman, as Herself, Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, and Just As Long As We're Together. She's also written a few books for adults, such as her classic, Wifey, a story about a woman who is "tired of chicken on Wednesdays and sex on Saturdays."

Other books:
Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern
The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (I really disliked this book!)

Guest blogger! Husband on comics, cont'd

Recommendations

Here they are. These are the comics that I love. These are things that I think you might like as well, oh, anonymous reader.

Oh...by the way there is an excessive use of the word 'awesome' in what follows. This is something I would not allow in my prose...but the world just isn't ready to bring back 'rad'.

The Holy Trinity of things comics. There are three books (two collected editions, one graphic novel) that every person lionizing things comics recommend to everybody…ever:

1. Watchmen. Written by Alan Moore. Pencils, inks and letters by Dave Gibbons. Coloring by John Higgins. This is the most artful super-hero comic I have ever read. It deconstructs the archetype and makes you think “damn…this could happen.” And then you flip the page and see a giant, naked, blue, radioactive man and realize…nope…it couldn’t. Crazy stuff aside, this is true literature and the illustrations are some of the industry’s finest. The only warning I can offer is that this book was released in 1986 and as such is four-color so the coloring isn’t that nuanced. I have only met one person who likes super heroes that doesn’t like this book…and his only criticism is that it is overrated.

2. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Written, drawn and inked by Frank Miller. Colored by Lynn Varley. Again this is a superhero book but dang is it awesome. This deals with Batman at 50 trying to come back. He is old, tired and pissed. We watch him training himself to come back (training!) and then watch him kick butt. Frank Miller is somewhat of a wunderkind in Hollywood right now. 300 is a comic he did in 1998 (again with Lynn Varley) was made into a film. Sin City (which is entirely his creation) was also a film. He will now be directing The Spirit which is the creation of Will Eisner who is the God of all things comics (to the extent that he even coined the phrase graphic novel). Give it a read. It is dense but it is awesome.

3. Maus. Written and drawn by Art Spiegelman. When described in short this sounds like an exercise in bad taste. This is a comic book series dealing with the Holocaust with a cast of anthropomorphic animals. This is the story of Art Spiegelman’s grandfather’s experience in concentration camps. The Jews are represented by mice, the German’s by either cats or dogs, and the result is a completely heart-rending and informative experience. The fact that we are not looking at humans allow us the distance we need to deal with the horror. I have seen 14-year-olds read this in one sitting and senior citizens reading it as well--it is amazing. Everybody recommends this who has read it…everyone.

Superhero ongoing series that I love:

4. Justice Society of America. Written by Geoff Johns. Pencils by Dale Eaglesham. Inks by Art Thibert. Colors by Jeromy Cox. This is fun. It uses really old characters from the D.C. Universe and some new ones. It is great fun: crazy adventures and deeply character-driven stories.

5. The Fantastic Four. By 17,000,000 different writers and artists. Talk about crazy nonsense--the fantastic four wins. So much fun. A guy who eats planets. Parents with super powers finding child care. A guy made of rock who has a blind girlfriend. Come on. It’s awesome.

6. Powers. Written by Brian Michael Bendis with art by Michael Avon-Oeming. Here is the Hollywood pitch: A homicide unit specializing in super-hero crime. That is awesome. Also I love the dynamics of the detectives the villains and the whole world. It is atmospheric and super fun.

7. Various Spider-Man titles. Again, 17,000,000 million creators. Smart-ass person with super powers who simultaneously deals with crazy villains and figures out how to pay the rent. I even love the stupid issues. Of late in Amazing Peter Parker (Spider-man) has been a little full of pathos and nasty and things aren’t looking good for his marriage but damn is it fun. However Ultimate Spider-Man (which is essentially a retelling of the early stuff) is always awesome. Always. I would suggest that one for the newbies.

8. Daredevil. Written by many but the best have been Frank Miller, Brian Michael Bendis, and Ed Brubaker. The art has been by many but best by Frank Miller, David Mack, Alex Maleev, and Michael Lark. Matt Murdock is a blind guy whose four other senses were heightened but here’s the kicker…he doesn’t have fear. Oh, he is also a lawyer…and an informal detective. The single coolest thing about Daredevil is that his stories are Shakespearian in construct. His villains don’t punch him in the face and run away they make his life miserable. This is a strange thing to enjoy reading but damn is it entertaining.

Non-Super Hero and Slice of Life books:

9. Blankets. Written and drawn by Craig Thompson. The Hollywood pitch isn’t that inspiring. Guy is sad. Actually there is quite a bit more to it. If you are put off by super-hero fun then take a look at this one. Visually it is awesome and the story is very evocative of young love from the male perspective.

10. Mouse Guard. Written and drawn by Brian Petersen. High fantasy with mice. The protagonists fight crabs and snakes and stuff…it’s cool and has shockingly awesome visuals.

11.True Story Swear To God. Written and Drawn by Tom Beland. The title says it all. It is bittersweet but awesome.

12.Fun Home. Written and drawn by Alison Bechdel. The subtitle of this piece is A Family Tragicomic and it is fitting. It is funny in spots but always lyrical. The issues of sexuality have never been better dealt with in this medium (in my limited experience).

13. American Born Chinese. Written, Drawn and lettered by Gene Yang. Colored by Lark Pien. Just freaking awesome. Five different vignettes that draw a broader conclusion. Funny, sensitive but above all: awesome.

For T.V. Fans (of which I am not a member):

14. Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Season 8. Written by Joss Whedon. Pencils by Georges Jenty and Paul Lee. Inks by Andy Owens. Colors by Dave Stewart. I have been “waiting for the trade" (often comics are collected in 6-8 issue arcs as trade paperbacks that are released 3 or 4 months after the periodical series reaches the end of the story arc) on this one. I haven’t read it yet. My friends who have (read: nerds) have loved it. I too will love it as I am one of the Buffy-Faithful (there is a pun there if you know the series (if not my geek is stronger than yours)).

15. Red Menace. Written by Adam Brody with Bilson and Demeyo (the latter two having had written the 1980’s Flash TV series). Penciled by Gerry Ordway (if you are a nerd it’s a big deal). Adam Brody is a super-hot TV star…according to my 12 year-old students. He was on the O.C. which was apparently a T.V. show. I’ve not seen it. But the comic is all about what if the red scare was not about commies but supers…its good. It’s short (115 pages). Give it a look.

16. Wolverine.Written by Marc Guggenheim. Art by Huberto Ramos. Guggenheim has worked on all of those Law and Order, CSI: Duluth andPolice-Cops shows (the latter two shows were cleverly cynical…he actually worked on Law and Order: SVU and CSI:Miami).

17. Young Avengers. Written by Allen Heinberg. Art by Jim Cheung. The stupidest, money-grab idea in the last 20 years becomes an awesome story with beautiful art. The story is a group of kids who have the powers of the Avengers (the Marvel super group) who are put to the test by both super villains and their own soap opera like trials and. All of this written by Gilmore Girls (and The O.C. though I have never seen that) writer Allen Heinberg. Where can I get mine?

18. The Astonishing X-Men. Written by Joss Whedon. Pencils and inks by John Cassiday. Colors by Laura Martin. If you want to sound like a comics glitterati the only X-book you can claim to like is Astonishing. I agree…it is great. Whedon’s feel for dialogue made popular a television series that lasted seven seasons based on a film that 18 people have seen (see next entry (ooh, he also was a writer on Toy Story). The art is clean, clear and kick-butt. If you are of a mind, check it out. Seriously the only comic that could get my money faster would be Aaron Sorkin writing…anything…ever…seriously he could make anything interesting. Even a list of recommended comics on a blog that normally has nothing to do with comics.

Lastly is a lightning-round-esque list of stuff I love (not like…love) for more info email Tacohead…she’ll forward it to me.

Newspaper stuff…

Peanuts by Charles Shultz. I get it...it's good...gotta say though...little depressing.

For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnson.…OK a Canadian is going to get my vote regardless…but the continuity and the clarity is amazing. I love it

F-Minus by Tony Carillo. Funny as Far Side and more incisive. Check it out.

Far Side by Gary Larson. Every time I laugh at this I feel I am closer the dark side.

Boondocks by Aaron McGruder. Right up my alley political satire...actively anti-racist and has a ton of heart.

Zits written by Jerry Scott and illustrated by Jim Borgman. Made me wish I had treated my parents better.

Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. As much as I love comic books…I love Calvin more. This is the single greatest achievement in graphic fiction…ever. I kid you not. If it were not financially stupid I would own his whole run. I love it. Caveat emptor: I have been told that as far as sequential art goes whatever you most loved at 12 is what you are going to love the most the rest of your life. I think it holds up but I am biased.

Other worthy Comics I read monthly.

She-Hulk written by Dan Slott and more recently Peter David. Illustrated by many. This is a funny, funny book full of fanboy in-jokes. Not for the newbie.

New Avengers written by Brian Michael Bendis and art (most recently) by Francis Lenil Yu. Consistently fun and will be leading into the new super big crossover full of (wait for it...) awesome.

Cassanova written by Matt Fraction with art by Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon. I honestly can't tell you what this is about. I am a smartish guy and whenever I finish an issue as I am wiping the laugh-tears from my eyes I am thinking "what the hell just happened?"

Punisher: War Journal written by Matt Fraction with art by Ariel Ollivetti. I hate the Punisher. Dumb character but Matt Fraction is nearly getting to that Joss Whedon/Aaron Sorkin/ David Mamet level of awesome.

All-Star Superman written by Grant Morrison with art by Frank Quietly. I can't believe I like this comic. It is the only Superman book I would not ever miss. Crazy strange 1960's storytelling with a modern sensibility.

The Hulk titles written by Greg Pak. Trust me they are fun.

Teen Titans written by Sean McKeever. Again, fun.

Justice League of America written by Duane McDuffie art by various. All the big names in DC comics in one book...hello?!

Runaways currently written by Joss Whedon but created by Brian K. Vaughn with art by various. Best teen book there is.

Books to read in trade paperback.

Y: the last man. Written by Brian K. Vaughn with art by Pia Guerra. The story of the last man alive with many, many women. Sci-fi soap opera pathos...yum.

The Walking Dead written by Robert Kirkman with art from Tony Moore and others. This whole book happens after most zombie movies end. Yes there are zombies but they are a plot device to tell truly human stories.

Ex-Machina written by Brian K Vaughn with art from Tony Harris. The premise makes it sound lame...it is not. A guy with super powers becomes the mayor of New York City.

Fables written by Bill Willingham with art from Lan Madina and many more. Fairy tales are real and they walk among us but live in small enclaves not unlike Little Italy or China Town.

Crap there are so many more but I have definitely gone on too long. Thanks for letting me share stuff I like with you.
Best,
Husband

Guest blogger! Slumlord on finding women

Today, as a special treat for sticking with me throughout November, I bring you the Slumlord, who allows us a peek into his obsession with spreadsheets and their uses beyond the usual work applications. He also gives us a peek into his kitchen... or at least, what used to be his kitchen. Thanks Slummy!

A hearty thank you to She of the Stolen Bike for allowing a numbers and spreadsheet guy like me, the Slumlord, to share this space.

Before we get into the dark and scary mind of the Slumlord, a bit of background is needed. For example, one might wonder why a person would be called the Slumlord. I agree with you, good reader, this is an unjust term given to me by my Hetero Life Partner aka Tenant aka Señor Ferret. Apparently, he requires a more functional kitchen than this:

Personally, I see this as the perfect rustic kitchen with a nice…ah…shall we say "Open floor plan." In many countries this would be luxurious and I should increase his rent accordingly. It has a refrigerator and a stove, what else does he need?! Running water is not needed, nor is a prep area! As you can see, the title of Slumlord is completely unjust.

I am frequently mocked for my use of spreadsheets by my tenant, Señor Ferret, because I use them for nearly every important decision in life. Sure, a normal person might use spreadsheets for financial decisions such as purchasing a home or remodeling the kitchen, but I take it one step further - even emotional decisions can be made with a spreadsheet. As a single man, finding a woman (Yes, a WOMAN) to spend my life with is a good example of how a spreadsheet can be used to make a decision.We all know that no one is perfect (except for me, of course) and compromises need to be made to make the happiest match. The only way I know how to compromise is based on data, so it is time to create data. Rate each important aspect of a person such as intelligence, sense of humor, life goals, personality, and looks based on your ideal. Once you average the scores you have an accurate numerical assessment of the person against your ideal which will assist in determining if this is a good compromise. You can add some conditional formatting where certain deal breakers aren’t met to draw your attention to any issues, such as a 5 in intelligence – a woman smarter than me would not be good. For the more detail oriented people, like me, each of these parent categories can be broken down into individual components to allow a thorough examination of each category. Clearly, you need to see the Girlfriend Rater v1.02 for you to fully appreciate its brilliance:

Lame? Yes. Emotionless? Yes, that’s the whole point. It’s the perfect way to make a decision and feel comfortable that all aspects are reviewed. In other news, if anyone knows a 8, 9, 8, 8.5, 9 looking for a 10, 12, 10, 10, 10 you know who to call.

Black Friday

I lied. Husband is continuing his post tomorrow. Stay tuned!

At 5:55 on Friday morning I was shivering outside Macy's, preparing to run in and grab the Hannah Montana doll doorbuster that we had convinced ourselves my little cousin wanted more than anything in the world. We were successful, only to get mesmerized by the pretty, pretty boots minutes later and when we left Macy's for Caribou, boots in hand, poor Hannah was left behind. We didn't realize it until Sunday, when in the name of holy Christmas miracles, she was waiting patiently for us in the lost and found.

Guest blogger! Husband on comics

I never would have opened up a comic or a graphic novel if Husband hadn't given me a few recommendations for titles that challenged the stereotype I had about comics. So I asked him to write a bit about comics for those who haven't picked one up since the Betty and Veronica days, and to provide a few recommendations to get you started. Thanks Husband!

A few people know this about me but it is time to come out of the long box…er… closet to a broader group.

Here goes (clears throat) I am a fanboy.

(crickets)

Sorry my geek:English dictionary wasn’t working. I am a comic book fan.

(hushed silence)

Whoo…I feel so free. I never anticipated feeling like this. I am a comics fan…a geek…a nerd…I am a Fanboy. Wow. (sniff) I love you all.

Here is the thing. When a fanboy or girl first “comes out” the thing most expected of him or her is to justify their particular hobby. I understand this tendency given the stigma associated with comics fandom. To a non-comics fan, the idea of the comic book is a quaint one. One envisions oneself at twelve years old with skinned knees drinking Hi-C, chewing Big League Chew and flipping through the latest Archie Digest and laughing along as Jughead yet again foils his own plans because of his lust for the cheeseburger. Your parents then call out to you and tell you to put down that trash and go outside and play.

However, when somebody thinks of a Fanboy one pictures the following. A sallow-skinned well-fed (or anemic depending on your preferred stereotype) person living in their parents basement surrounded by long white boxes of funny books, a life sized storm trooper suspended from the ceiling by an intricate system of pulleys and levers and a melange of discarded take-away containers covering the floor screaming the names Dominoes, Lui’s Chow Mien, and Taco Bell. There is a piquancy that permeates the air that has tones of ball sweat, discarded chili-cheese burrito and lost hopes. This person can quote chapter and verse from the book of Batman. This person does not understand why the “Comic Book Guy” on the Simpsons is funny, s/he thinks they have been separated at birth.

The truth is that the average fanboy (only adults are fanboys…kids can love comics but it takes a bit for those seeds of obsession to percolate to the role of fanboy-I-tude) is faintly bookish, given to obsession and above all loves stories.

That is what comics are…stories. True the cleavage, spandex, and heat vision to reality ratio is a lot higher than in Dostoevsky’s oeuvre but still…stories. But here is why I like comics. They are Awesome.

Some stuff I like about comics:

The gutters
A gutter is the space between two panels. In that space you are responsible for the fate of that character. This allows you to fill in the details. Here is a common conics scenario.

Panel One: Buxom young woman in extreme foreground facing the reader, making a salad. Drunk guy holding an axe in extreme background.

Panel Two: the neck and shoulders of the buxom young salad-maker.

What happened? In a movie you watch Hacky McChopsalot decapitate Suzie Mixedgreens. In a comic there are infinite options. I can see the appeal but I prefer to have the option that an invisible chipmunk came into the room used a rusty paring knife to sever the head of the soccer mom who ran over her boyfriend in her Cadillac SUV.. Uh…never mind…I take that back.

Options
There are three basic types of comics.

1. The ongoing series. These are the titles where every month you will get an installment of a title that may date back as far as 1938 (Action Comics if you are keeping score at home) and you will read part of this broad history while continuing a story arc. A story arc is a story that takes 2-12 issues and they are always self-contained while adding to the broader story (story in fanboy-speak is called continuity).
2. Limited series: Limited series are just that if you wanted to take a character from a book or an alternative future of a book you can tell that story, but it won’t happen in the normal title. Let’s say you wanted to create a story of spider-man where he was thinking he might be a furry. This would not happen in the regular book…but in a six issue series why not dress Peter Parker as Scrappy-Doo and lock him in a room with Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer with a bottle of champagne and a copy of Laying Private Ryan. Um…let me just say that idea…Husband TM.
   
3. The graphic novel. If you are a fanboy and want to sound cool you call all comics graphic novels. I actually know the derivation of the term “graphic novel” but I won’t bother you with it. The only things that you can actually call “graphic novels” are things intended to be one story. In that story you get the whole story you don’t think…”wait but what happens next?”

TOMORROW: A few specific comics that I love and recommendations you may enjoy (assuming you are not well versed in the comics world).

Crafty 2: Scavenged Crafts

A couple of years ago I noticed that nearly every other house on the street displays something pretty and seasonal in planters on their doorsteps... spring annuals, robust summer blooms, harvest colored mums, and then piney boughs and berries for the winter. Since then I've been trying to keep up... but have felt bad because it seems so wasteful to spend all this money on things that I end up throwing away when the season's done.

I was thinking about this the other day when I noticed all the planters were filled with wintry bouquets... and my eyes alighted on the dogwood bush in the corner of our yard. Hey! The same red branches that I saw for sale at local fancy grocery store! Then this morning I drove over to my parents and found a teetering stack of pots next to their garbage. Hey! Two perfect planters! A sweep of their backyard (part of a former pine tree farm) and I had arm fulls of boughs and a sack full of pine cones.

It's a bit free-flowing and needs a little touch-up after some of the branches settled, but hey, it was free!
























My second scavenged craft isn't something that I put together but something that will enable me to do crafts. Since I got my sewing machine in June I've been thinking idly about a table for it... wondering if I should buy something cheap at Ikea... or ask around... or make something from an old door in the garage.

Then Husband and I were driving home from running last week and I spied a table on the curb with a FREE sign. I'm not usually one to pick up random stuff, but after half a block I asked Husband to drive around again. We hobbled out the car, inspected it, and shoved in it the back.


















It's got a metal top and is nice and big, and has these extensions tucked under the top to make it even bigger. It just needs some fresh paint on the bottom part.


















Good timing, as I start my sewing classes next week!

Guest blogger! Bino on sleeping

When I was thinking of potential guest bloggers to ask, I thought of people who didn't have blogs but who should because they have interesting things to say. I'm very pleased that Bino accepted my invitation, and lo, how he outdid himself. If you're ever attempted a top 10 list, you know how coming up the material for 10 is pushing it. Bino crushes us all and busts out an impressive 25 without breaking a sweat. Or without falling asleep, which, as you will soon learn, is more impressive. Thanks Bino!

Over the past weekend wife LEH and I spent time giving thanks (mostly for food and liquor) with our soccer team at our 2nd Annual Soccer Thanksgiving Festival. Après consuming too much food, too many“Little Smokies,” and imbibing a few too many shots of tequila, the fellas proceeded to lounge around in the reclining leather chairs… mmm, very comfy. Shortly thereafter we somehow stumbled on to our hosts’ stash of magazines (I was definitely not the one snooping!), the topmost one which proclaimed “Top 50 Places to Ski.”

I don’t know what it is, but nothing captivates your attention like a “Top 25” or “Top 50” list. Many people attempt to mesmerize the masses with their “Top 10” lists, but these just don’t cut the mustard. Perhaps it’s that a Top 10 list is not robust enough, or perhaps we recognize the lackluster attempt inherent in cultivating 1000’s of items down to a paltry list of 10. Needless to say we were all spellbound with reading and discussing the list created by the readers of Ski magazine. In the magic of the moment we shared stories of past experiences (“This one time I was skiing at ___ and, oh man, there’s this one run where…”), we hatched plans for future vacations together, and created a Top 25 list of our own.

In the spirit of Top 25 Lists, I thought it might be appropriate to provide my own enthralling list, but what to choose? After waffling for a few days, I decided to proceed with what I do best. So here you have it folks, unrestricted and uncensored (excluding the descriptors and/or caveats), in no:

Bino’s Top 25 Places To Fall Asleep

1. In a snuggly warm bed (preferably pre-warmed by wife LEH)
2. On the porcelain chair in the “office”

THUD!
LEH: Bino, are you okay in there?
Me: Yep, just dropped my book on accident, that’s all.

3. On the couch by the window (preferably with the sun shining through)
4. At a Smashing Pumpkins concert (I was rather sick, but still!)
5. In the car on the way to church (darn those heated seats)
6. In the car on the way home from church (mmm, I love these heated seats)
7. In the car on the way to soccer (Can you drive LEH, I’m low on gas.)
8. In the car on the way home from soccer (hey, I worked hard out there)
9. Riding in the car on the way home from a party

LEH: Are you going to fall asleep?
Me: No, I’m not tired.

10. In the car during a road trip with LEH to Michigan, to Utah, to Illinois, to Lutsen, to…
11. Pretty much anytime I ride in the car. No, seriously, anytime I’m in the car I’m a disaster.
12. In the middle of my own sentence…
13. While opening gifts for family Christmas gathering (scoring negative points as it was the in-laws again!)
14. At the computer in my office (Place the beaker in theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee)
15. In a chair, on the couch, or on the floor at the aforementioned party (especially post drinking)
16. On the floor in the hall outside of my dorm room in Ellingson, in the middle of a conversation
17. In the middle of lecture in college, complete with the GIGANTIC full-body muscle jerk that scares the people sitting next to you
18. While playing Catch Phrase at the 1^st Annual Soccer Thanksgiving Festival
19. While watching TV in the old apartment

Roomie: Bino, it’s late (11 PM), go to bed.
Me: Wha, what? Oh, thanks, yeah, I’ll get up soon.
Five hours later…Me: Ugh! What time is it, and why does my neck hurt?

20. On my bed in the middle of my own party (thank you mystery person for setting my alarm clock early enough for the next day to make it to work on time)
21. While taking the PRAXIS II exam (requisite for receiving my teaching license)
22. While grading papers for class (“Mr. Bino, what’s this big green line on my paper for?”)
23. On the porcelain chair in the “office” (yes, it’s happened more than once!)
24. Hanging out with friends at Perkins

LEH: Are you sure you should take that cough medicine?
Me: Yeah, I’ll be fine. It says “May make you drowsy” but this stuff never really works…

25. On the floor of my in-laws dining room, under the table, with feet propped up on chair, post dinner