J.K. Rowling's The Tales of Beedle the Bard contains 5 fairy tales. They teach lessons in being kind, creative, and using common sense. Wizards who behave badly by being cruel or arrogantly abusing their powers are punished.
The best part by far is Albus Dumbledore's commentary following each story. He gives us more insight into the wizarding world and also teaches us some dirty words. Pro-Muggle witches and wizards can be called "Mudwallower," "Dunglicker," or "Scumsucker."
Monday, March 30, 2009
Book 24: Holy Unexpected
Holy Unexpected: My New Life As A Jew by Robin Chotzinoff is her story of becoming religious. She was raised by atheists but was ethnically Jewish, and at age 40 she decided to become religiously Jewish.
Chotzinoff excels at meeting people and finding out their opinions on all sorts of things (she also wrote People With Dirty Hands about gardeners). She listened to different opinions about keeping a kosher kitchen, following the sex rules, and observing the Sabbath fully (should you drive? should you clean? should you flick the light switch?). Her older daughter quickly became much more Orthodox than Chotzinoff herself, who prefered to pick and choose what worked for her.
She also talks a lot about her relationship with her father. He was initially very angry and disappointed in her for becoming religious, but over the years he came to enjoy eating traditional dinners with her family, even while mocking some aspects of them. His health declined, mostly due to his lifetime of unhealthy choices, but he lingered on the verge of death for years. This trying relationship and saddening/maddening situation was the best part of the book for me, though I enjoyed reading about how she decided which aspects of Judaism to focus on, which to ignore, and which to save for later consideration.
Chotzinoff excels at meeting people and finding out their opinions on all sorts of things (she also wrote People With Dirty Hands about gardeners). She listened to different opinions about keeping a kosher kitchen, following the sex rules, and observing the Sabbath fully (should you drive? should you clean? should you flick the light switch?). Her older daughter quickly became much more Orthodox than Chotzinoff herself, who prefered to pick and choose what worked for her.
She also talks a lot about her relationship with her father. He was initially very angry and disappointed in her for becoming religious, but over the years he came to enjoy eating traditional dinners with her family, even while mocking some aspects of them. His health declined, mostly due to his lifetime of unhealthy choices, but he lingered on the verge of death for years. This trying relationship and saddening/maddening situation was the best part of the book for me, though I enjoyed reading about how she decided which aspects of Judaism to focus on, which to ignore, and which to save for later consideration.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Ray Liotta on Martha Stewart's Show
I don't get to watch Martha much anymore since our local network stopped broadcasting it. I have to watch it on Fine Living Network in the evening, which is weird. It's a morning show.
Anyway, I caught it today, and Martha had Ray trying to make some sort of savory pie, and he stopped at one point and said, "I just can't believe there's a show about this."
Later, they were talking about how Hannibal Lecter fed Ray's character part of his own brain in a movie. Martha told him that she used to date Anthony Hopkins (who plays Hannibal), and after she saw that movie, she just couldn't follow through with her plan to invite him to her house.
All Ray cared about was this: Was Anthony a good kisser?
Oh yes! He's terrific. He's a remarkable actor, so he can do anything. [something like that -- I forget which adjectives she chose]
Then when they were going to commercial, you could hear Ray over the music, "So how long did you go out with Anthony?"
It was so funny that he was all into Martha's gossip, AND that he had no idea that a show could exist that's about cooking and crafts and gardening.
ETA: Michi pointed out that we can all watch this on Martha's website. It's in two parts. Ray and Martha. Sorry, you'll have to click on the right segment, unless you want to watch the whole episode.
Anyway, I caught it today, and Martha had Ray trying to make some sort of savory pie, and he stopped at one point and said, "I just can't believe there's a show about this."
Later, they were talking about how Hannibal Lecter fed Ray's character part of his own brain in a movie. Martha told him that she used to date Anthony Hopkins (who plays Hannibal), and after she saw that movie, she just couldn't follow through with her plan to invite him to her house.
All Ray cared about was this: Was Anthony a good kisser?
Oh yes! He's terrific. He's a remarkable actor, so he can do anything. [something like that -- I forget which adjectives she chose]
Then when they were going to commercial, you could hear Ray over the music, "So how long did you go out with Anthony?"
It was so funny that he was all into Martha's gossip, AND that he had no idea that a show could exist that's about cooking and crafts and gardening.
ETA: Michi pointed out that we can all watch this on Martha's website. It's in two parts. Ray and Martha. Sorry, you'll have to click on the right segment, unless you want to watch the whole episode.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Crochet Your Own Sea Anemone
Do you like Sea Anemones? Would you like to have your own no-maintenance Sea Anemone? Yes, I have to keep writing "Sea Anemone" because there is another kind of anemone, which is a flower. The animals were named after the flowers.
Sea Anemones are primitive ocean animals, and they are full of poison. When a fish swims within reach, the anemone touches it with a tentacle, poisoning and paralyzing the fish.
Then it pulls the fish into its primitive mouth-stomach. Once done digesting, it spits the waste back out through the mouth.
A Sea Anemone can slide around on its adhesive foot, sometimes scooching into enemy territory. Oh, YEAH! It's a Sea Anemone turf war, as seen here:
Now that you're all revved up, it's time to get your yarn!
First make your tentacles. You can cover the top of your Sea Anemone with tentacles, or make a ring around the top. To cover the top, make about 30; for a ring, make about 20.
You can make them all the same length, or a variety of lengths. For shorter tentacles, of course you start with a shorter chain.
Chain 6 (or up to 20)
Turn and Single crochet 5 (or up to 19)
Finish off.
Leave the tails a few inches long.
Make 20 - 30 tentacles.
Now start the body.
Chain 2
In the first loop, Single crochet 5
Pull the tail tight to create a ring of 5
Double crochet in each of the 5 loops, making a second row of 10
Single crochet 1, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 15
Single crochet 2, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 20
Single crochet 3, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 25
Single crochet 4, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 30
Single crochet 5, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 35
Single crochet 6, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 40
Single crochet 7, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 45
Single crochet 8, Double crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 50
You're only partway done with the body, so don't finish off. Pull the working loop out a few inches so you don't unravel your work.
Now you can attach all your tentacles. Using a tapestry needle, use the tentacles' tail ends to attach them to the body. Pull the tail ends through adjacent holes in the body and tie them in a knot. Repeat until they're all attached.
Return to working on the body. Pull the working loop tight around your hook again, and
Single crochet 5 rows of 50. Now begin to decrease as follows.
Reduce 1, Single crochet 8, and repeat 4 times; this row has 45
Reduce 1, Single crochet 7, and repeat 4 times; this row has 40
Reduce 1, Single crochet 6, and repeat 4 times; this row has 35
Reduce 1, Single crochet 5, and repeat 4 times; this row has 30
Reduce 1, Single crochet 4, and repeat 4 times; this row has 25
Reduce 1, Single crochet 3, and repeat 4 times; this row has 20
At this point, you can stuff the body with fiberfill, yarn scraps, etc... If you have a lot of yarn inside already from your tentacle ends, you may be content with the shape without stuffing.
Reduce 1, Single crochet 2, and repeat 4 times; this row has 15
Reduce 1, Single crochet 1, and repeat 4 times; this row has 10
Reduce 5; this row has 5
Reduce until you can't any more. Finish off and pull the tail end into the body. Trim it off so the end is hidden inside the body.
Crochet Your Own Tube Sponge
Would you like to make your very own Tube Sponge? Finally, your dream can come true!
Sponges are one of the most primitive animals in the ocean. The poor things don't even have any organs, and their skeletons get recruited to scrub our dishes. How demeaning.
Instructions:
Choose your yarn. I recommend using 4-6 complementary colors, but you can do whatever you'd like!
Chain 7
Turn and single crochet 6
Repeat for 9 to 20 rows (depending on how long you want that tube to be)
Finish off, pulling the yarn tail down through the tube.
Tie that tail to the other (starting) end of the piece of yarn.
Pull both ends into the tube. Pull hard and trim them off so that when you let go, they disappear inside the tube.
Make about 12-20 tubes of different heights and then sew them side by side in a pleasing arrangement. You may use thread and a sewing needle or yarn and a tapestry needle. Again, hide the tail ends of your thread or yarn inside the sponge.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Book 23: People With Dirty Hands
People with Dirty Hands by Robin Chotzinoff. This is another re-read. I first read it when I lived in Napa and could grow all kinds of stuff in a giant elementary school garden AND in a garden and greenhouse on the property where I lived. Ah, Napa! I had a persimmon tree in my yard, which was exciting: FREE FRUIT! But then it was disappointing: Oh, THIS is what persimmons taste like.
I could also go to many parks and gather up free walnuts that fell out of trees. Free food was very appealing because I only made $4 per hour working for Americorps, and I really needed to conserve all cash for going out for beers with my co-"workers". As you may know, half my teammates were the laziest, worst kind of irresponsible hippies. Hence the "workers". They worked so hard at getting out of doing anything! And they were FILTHY! How did they get so dirty without doing anything? It was amazing.
Anyway, Chotzinoff lived near Denver when she wrote this book in 1996 (I don't know what she's up to now). She writes about some Coloradans, but also goes on road trips to find subjects. It's fun to read about Denver gardens and farming, because I live near Denver! Why is it so fun to read about your nearby city? It feels like you are almost famous.
In this book, she writes little portraits of various kinds of Plant People: those who are obsessed with tomatoes, hot pepper growers, a Cajun traiteur (kind of like a witch doctor, curing people with plant medicine), rose rustlers, and gentile estate holders, among others. Oh, it makes me long for a big yard where I can grow all kinds of flowers and foods and hang around enjoying the outside. I dream of a giant yard with a 6-foot fence around it to keep out neighborhood dogs and deer and spying neighbors (At least once a month, I catch a neighbor staring right in my windows -- it's creepy). But I will enjoy having any kind of yard at all that belongs to me and that I can feel is rather permanent, and therefore worth the investment of time, labor, and cost of seeds, bulbs, etc...
I could also go to many parks and gather up free walnuts that fell out of trees. Free food was very appealing because I only made $4 per hour working for Americorps, and I really needed to conserve all cash for going out for beers with my co-"workers". As you may know, half my teammates were the laziest, worst kind of irresponsible hippies. Hence the "workers". They worked so hard at getting out of doing anything! And they were FILTHY! How did they get so dirty without doing anything? It was amazing.
Anyway, Chotzinoff lived near Denver when she wrote this book in 1996 (I don't know what she's up to now). She writes about some Coloradans, but also goes on road trips to find subjects. It's fun to read about Denver gardens and farming, because I live near Denver! Why is it so fun to read about your nearby city? It feels like you are almost famous.
In this book, she writes little portraits of various kinds of Plant People: those who are obsessed with tomatoes, hot pepper growers, a Cajun traiteur (kind of like a witch doctor, curing people with plant medicine), rose rustlers, and gentile estate holders, among others. Oh, it makes me long for a big yard where I can grow all kinds of flowers and foods and hang around enjoying the outside. I dream of a giant yard with a 6-foot fence around it to keep out neighborhood dogs and deer and spying neighbors (At least once a month, I catch a neighbor staring right in my windows -- it's creepy). But I will enjoy having any kind of yard at all that belongs to me and that I can feel is rather permanent, and therefore worth the investment of time, labor, and cost of seeds, bulbs, etc...
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Book 22: French Dirt
French Dirt by Richard Goodman was originally loaned to me by my friend Chelsea, or maybe her mom, Barb, when I was in high school. Oh la la, it's so good.
Whenever I'm ready for spring to arrive, I love to read about gardening. In this memior, Goodman tells of a year he spent renting a house in a little village in the south of France. He really wanted to become a part of the village, and how he wedged his way in was through his garden.
The villagers offered all kinds of advice, labor, and loans of land, tools, and equipment to help the not-as-lazy-as-they-expected American have his French garden. They corrected his grammar and pronunciation and grudgingly admitted that he had done okay, for an American.
A light, enjoyable read if you like gardening and don't hate the French. I have read it more than once (I got my own copy), and I'm sure I will continue to read it in the chilly days of future winters and springs.
Connection to 'Tis:
* The French village Goodman lived in was the site of historic battles between Catholics and Protestants. Frank McCourt knew all about battles between the two groups in Ireland and the U.S. McCourt also received this unrelenting advice from almost everyone he encountered: "stick with your own kind." There was seemingly something very American and appealing to him about blonde, Protestant women, and he was drawn to them and their unknowing sinfulness. They didn't give a "fiddler's fart" about living in a state of grace or not (while he was constantly haunted by his sins and felt TOO sinful to go to confession and be absolved).
Whenever I'm ready for spring to arrive, I love to read about gardening. In this memior, Goodman tells of a year he spent renting a house in a little village in the south of France. He really wanted to become a part of the village, and how he wedged his way in was through his garden.
The villagers offered all kinds of advice, labor, and loans of land, tools, and equipment to help the not-as-lazy-as-they-expected American have his French garden. They corrected his grammar and pronunciation and grudgingly admitted that he had done okay, for an American.
A light, enjoyable read if you like gardening and don't hate the French. I have read it more than once (I got my own copy), and I'm sure I will continue to read it in the chilly days of future winters and springs.
Connection to 'Tis:
* The French village Goodman lived in was the site of historic battles between Catholics and Protestants. Frank McCourt knew all about battles between the two groups in Ireland and the U.S. McCourt also received this unrelenting advice from almost everyone he encountered: "stick with your own kind." There was seemingly something very American and appealing to him about blonde, Protestant women, and he was drawn to them and their unknowing sinfulness. They didn't give a "fiddler's fart" about living in a state of grace or not (while he was constantly haunted by his sins and felt TOO sinful to go to confession and be absolved).
Book 21: 'Tis
'Tis by Frank McCourt is the second installment of McCourt's autobiography. I read the first book, Angela's Ashes, last year. McCourt is an Irish-American who was born in New York but grew up in Limerick. His family was completely impoverished because his alcoholic father drank his entire paycheck each week.
McCourt dropped out of school at 14 and worked as a telegram deliverer to save up money to move back to the U.S. He worked several jobs doing menial and manual labor and finally joined the army to fight in the Korean war. With the G.I. bill and encouragement from various acquaintances and friends, he talked his way into college, even without having attended high school.
Finally a teacher, as he had dreamed of, McCourt realizes how different school is in New York from school in Limerick. He would have been very grateful to attend high school, and considered it a privilege. I doubt many of us know an American-born teenager who is grateful to go to high school! He struggled with reconciling his American dreams with the American reality.
He's a great writer telling a fascinating story. Just as we expect of Irish writers, he is self-deprecating, self-analytical, funny, and lyrical. I will surely read the third book, Teacher Man, some day.
McCourt dropped out of school at 14 and worked as a telegram deliverer to save up money to move back to the U.S. He worked several jobs doing menial and manual labor and finally joined the army to fight in the Korean war. With the G.I. bill and encouragement from various acquaintances and friends, he talked his way into college, even without having attended high school.
Finally a teacher, as he had dreamed of, McCourt realizes how different school is in New York from school in Limerick. He would have been very grateful to attend high school, and considered it a privilege. I doubt many of us know an American-born teenager who is grateful to go to high school! He struggled with reconciling his American dreams with the American reality.
He's a great writer telling a fascinating story. Just as we expect of Irish writers, he is self-deprecating, self-analytical, funny, and lyrical. I will surely read the third book, Teacher Man, some day.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Book 20: In Defense of Food: Again
Okay, I'm ready to talk about In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. I really enjoy this genre of book: food and its effect on our health, our society, our environment, our economy, etc.... This book is no exception.
His advice is simply:
*Eat food. (not processed "food products" or food-like substances)
*Not too much.
*Mostly plants.
I love when he says that throughout most of human history, we were guided in our food choices by Culture, which is just a fancy word for your mother. Of course Moms buy most of the food, cook most of the food, dole out or withhold snacks and desserts, and nag us to eat our vegetables. Well, in the 1960s, Moms (along with the rest of Americans) started to be very influenced by Nutrition Science and government advice, rather than long years of experience and tradition. And we all became fatter and less healthy.
Pollan applies Gyorgy Scrinis's term "Nutrionism" to name the ideology of Western Food Thought. It is not science. It is a belief system about food, and it is basically this: foods are the sum of their nutrient parts. So, reduce food down into protein, carbs, and fats. Break it down into the vitamins that we can sense and have given names, and then you can let scientists make it in a pill. The problem is that real food is worth a lot more than the sum of its parts. Either we can't identify some parts of foods, or the parts have to work together to give us their full benefits. Real food is always much better and healthier than processed food products.
I really enjoyed his mention of the Puritan influence that still taints the way Americans feel about food: food shouldn't really be enjoyed. There should be just enough to survive on, but eating not an occasion for gluttony or some sort of animalistic orgy of pleasure. And when the "foreigners" came, with their goulashes and stews with many ingredients mixed together, flavors mingling, and all those sinful spices -- oh, catch me I'm fainting. Now if we can remove pleasure completely from food and instead follow rules and trust that scientists in labs will determine what is necessary and the government will tell us what rations to eat, that will be much safer. It's a fun theory to consider!
I'm so glad to be introduced to Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, who thought that animal protein promoted masturbation. He believed in complete abstinence. That's why he pushed grains so much, even starting a still-famous breakfast cereal company. This guy also ran a Sanitarium where he gave patients hourly yogurt enemas (including John D. Rockefeller and Teddy Roosevelt) and was a big proponent of eugenics, believing that immigrants would damage the gene pool.
It's entertaining and smart, with common sense advice.
His advice is simply:
*Eat food. (not processed "food products" or food-like substances)
*Not too much.
*Mostly plants.
I love when he says that throughout most of human history, we were guided in our food choices by Culture, which is just a fancy word for your mother. Of course Moms buy most of the food, cook most of the food, dole out or withhold snacks and desserts, and nag us to eat our vegetables. Well, in the 1960s, Moms (along with the rest of Americans) started to be very influenced by Nutrition Science and government advice, rather than long years of experience and tradition. And we all became fatter and less healthy.
Pollan applies Gyorgy Scrinis's term "Nutrionism" to name the ideology of Western Food Thought. It is not science. It is a belief system about food, and it is basically this: foods are the sum of their nutrient parts. So, reduce food down into protein, carbs, and fats. Break it down into the vitamins that we can sense and have given names, and then you can let scientists make it in a pill. The problem is that real food is worth a lot more than the sum of its parts. Either we can't identify some parts of foods, or the parts have to work together to give us their full benefits. Real food is always much better and healthier than processed food products.
I really enjoyed his mention of the Puritan influence that still taints the way Americans feel about food: food shouldn't really be enjoyed. There should be just enough to survive on, but eating not an occasion for gluttony or some sort of animalistic orgy of pleasure. And when the "foreigners" came, with their goulashes and stews with many ingredients mixed together, flavors mingling, and all those sinful spices -- oh, catch me I'm fainting. Now if we can remove pleasure completely from food and instead follow rules and trust that scientists in labs will determine what is necessary and the government will tell us what rations to eat, that will be much safer. It's a fun theory to consider!
I'm so glad to be introduced to Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, who thought that animal protein promoted masturbation. He believed in complete abstinence. That's why he pushed grains so much, even starting a still-famous breakfast cereal company. This guy also ran a Sanitarium where he gave patients hourly yogurt enemas (including John D. Rockefeller and Teddy Roosevelt) and was a big proponent of eugenics, believing that immigrants would damage the gene pool.
It's entertaining and smart, with common sense advice.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Book 20: In Defense of Food
Thumbs up. I'm not feeling well, so I'll write more tomorrow about this book.
Since I haven't felt up to par this week, I've been reading for comfort, which for me means that I've been reading several books at a time. I love reading about food and food politics (In Defense of Food and Eat for Health), and I'm reading the second installment in Frank McCourt's autobiography ('Tis), and now I've started a book about a visitor gardening in France, French Dirt (which I have read several times before and will read several times more). I'm in the middle of a few more books, but I know I will quickly finish and report on the ones listed here.
I'm off to bed, to soothe myself to sleep with reading.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Book 19: The Lace Reader
The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. This narrator tells us from the beginning that she's a liar, and you would be wise to remember that. She has been a mental patient and has received electric shock treatments which destroyed some of her memories. Plus, she lies. I think you know that I enjoy an unreliable narrator, and this one was no exception.
Some elements of this story include twins, domestic abuse, identity, being "damaged", witches, going home again, and duty to family v. escaping from family.
Some connections to other books I've read this year:
1. Roger Williams. A Puritan who I learned about in Sarah Vowell's The Wordy Shipmates. He was the most confrontational of the New England colonists, insisting that the church should cut off all contact with the Church of England. The Lace Reader takes place in and near Salem, Massachusetts, which was established by some Puritans.
2. In both The Lace Reader and The Empty Chair, by Jeffery Deaver, a bad man is trying to break into a house to hurt a woman. He breaks a window, and the woman grabs his hand and brings his wrist down on the broken glass.
3. In The Lace Reader, a character compares himself to John Newton, who wrote "Amazing Grace" and was a depraved slave trader. In A Maiden's Grave, by Deaver, one of the main characters realized she was going deaf when she mis-heard the name of a song as "A Maiden's Grave" instead of "Amazing Grace" and asked for the sheet music in a store.
What about the name "Brunonia"??? According to Wikipedia, it's the name of an Australian plant, otherwise known as the blue pincushion.
If I ever finish one of my novels, perhaps I will publish it under a nom de plume like "Trunonia" or "Tonyaniana."
Some elements of this story include twins, domestic abuse, identity, being "damaged", witches, going home again, and duty to family v. escaping from family.
Some connections to other books I've read this year:
1. Roger Williams. A Puritan who I learned about in Sarah Vowell's The Wordy Shipmates. He was the most confrontational of the New England colonists, insisting that the church should cut off all contact with the Church of England. The Lace Reader takes place in and near Salem, Massachusetts, which was established by some Puritans.
2. In both The Lace Reader and The Empty Chair, by Jeffery Deaver, a bad man is trying to break into a house to hurt a woman. He breaks a window, and the woman grabs his hand and brings his wrist down on the broken glass.
3. In The Lace Reader, a character compares himself to John Newton, who wrote "Amazing Grace" and was a depraved slave trader. In A Maiden's Grave, by Deaver, one of the main characters realized she was going deaf when she mis-heard the name of a song as "A Maiden's Grave" instead of "Amazing Grace" and asked for the sheet music in a store.
What about the name "Brunonia"??? According to Wikipedia, it's the name of an Australian plant, otherwise known as the blue pincushion.
If I ever finish one of my novels, perhaps I will publish it under a nom de plume like "Trunonia" or "Tonyaniana."
Monday, March 9, 2009
Book 18: The Empty Chair
I couldn't resist finishing Deaver's The Empty Chair. It features Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs, who are dating, and the aide, Thom (or I guess you can picture Queen Latifah if you watched the movie of The Bone Collector!). The trio goes to North Carolina for Rhyme to have an operation which *may* reverse his quadriplegic condition a little bit.
But first, they get wrapped up in a local crime, with all kinds of local color. There is a swamp, and moonshiners, and an orphan, and cancer, and insects, and lots of plot twists. It's a fun one! No really graphic violence in this one. Also, I really don't think it's offensive to Southerners, even though every Southerner in the book happens to be kind of a jerk. In this book, EVERY character is kind of a jerk!
There's a great little moment when a black man from New York is saying, "Yeah, Mason here told me he doesn't like my kind." And Mason says, "Wait -- I meant Northerners!" And that's the truth.
But first, they get wrapped up in a local crime, with all kinds of local color. There is a swamp, and moonshiners, and an orphan, and cancer, and insects, and lots of plot twists. It's a fun one! No really graphic violence in this one. Also, I really don't think it's offensive to Southerners, even though every Southerner in the book happens to be kind of a jerk. In this book, EVERY character is kind of a jerk!
There's a great little moment when a black man from New York is saying, "Yeah, Mason here told me he doesn't like my kind." And Mason says, "Wait -- I meant Northerners!" And that's the truth.
I wrote 5 pages and I will do it again
I had promised you that I'd write 5 pages in my first novel last week, and I just barely finished it last night before midnight. It is not good writing, but it is writing. And I added a new twist to the story.
I promise to write 5 more pages this week, but I may work on the second book instead of the first. Or maybe divide it between the two.
I promise to write 5 more pages this week, but I may work on the second book instead of the first. Or maybe divide it between the two.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
The Bone Collector -- The Movie
Well, I tried to watch this today, but I really couldn't get into it. Jolie's acting is so flat!
One funny difference from the book is that Rhymes's medical aide, a sharp-dressing young man named Thom, is replaced by a frumpy Queen Latifah. I guess the movie was made before her glamorous makeover.
Amelia's last name is changed from Sachs to Donaghy, maybe to make her seem Irish since they didn't get her hair red. It looks like they tried to dye it red, but it was just too dark.
I guess I'm almost burned out on Deaver for a bit. I'm in the middle of his The Empty Chair, but I've also started The Lace Reader, which is general fiction. It has been described by words like "haunting," "bewitching," and "astonishing." We'll see.
My bookmark is a cute-cute photo of my friend Sparky's little boy, which makes me happy every time I see it. I need to print out some photos of my adorable niece, but I never get around to it. That's the one problem with digital photos -- you don't have to print them to see them, so it's easy to put that off.
One funny difference from the book is that Rhymes's medical aide, a sharp-dressing young man named Thom, is replaced by a frumpy Queen Latifah. I guess the movie was made before her glamorous makeover.
Amelia's last name is changed from Sachs to Donaghy, maybe to make her seem Irish since they didn't get her hair red. It looks like they tried to dye it red, but it was just too dark.
I guess I'm almost burned out on Deaver for a bit. I'm in the middle of his The Empty Chair, but I've also started The Lace Reader, which is general fiction. It has been described by words like "haunting," "bewitching," and "astonishing." We'll see.
My bookmark is a cute-cute photo of my friend Sparky's little boy, which makes me happy every time I see it. I need to print out some photos of my adorable niece, but I never get around to it. That's the one problem with digital photos -- you don't have to print them to see them, so it's easy to put that off.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Book 17: Making the Cut
Making The Cut by Jillian Michaels. I kind of dislike Jillian (she is one of the trainers of the show Biggest Loser, which I like a little, because it is inspiring, but I dislike how they pretend that it is healthy to work out for several hours a day and only eat 1000 calories -- if you're hungry, just chew some Extra gum or eat a mini bag of popcorn or view one of the other product placements), but I kind of like her no-nonsense attitude, and that she says "ass," AND you never know what will click with you to inspire you TODAY, and IS THIS THE LONGEST SENTENCE YOU'VE EVER READ?
Anyway, it is about what you should do to lose the last 10-20 vanity pounds, which is what I'm trying to do. I don't know how many it is going to take, but I have a clear picture of myself in my mind. I want to see the muscles that I have built up over the last 5 or so years and have a bodyfat percentage around 15-18%. I used to weigh 132, from 7th grade through 12th grade. I was thin, but I had nowhere near the muscles that I have now. I don't know what I would look like at 132 with muscles, but I might like to find out. That would mean losing about 14 pounds, but that seems like it might be too much. I don't want to look too much like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or like a skeleton. So, I'm focused on how I look more than on a certain number. Hey, I already said it is about VANITY POUNDS, so I can think about how I look.
First of all, she divides people into groups based on your metabolic oxidation levels. It just seems like bullshit. But, I took the quiz and I am a Balanced Oxidizer. Yay, me! That means that I should eat similarly to The Zone Diet: 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat. Well, that is a very comfortable way for me to eat, so I guess that's okay. I feel like I should be eating more like 40% protein for fat loss, but it is definitely easier to eat 40-30-30 than 30-40-30.
She advises hard workouts with weight circuits (no rests in between exercises; just moving quickly from one to the next, so you get a cardio effect while strength training) and plyometric cardio training (jumping cardio, to get your heartrate really high), and mixing up your routine so you work every muscle and your body has no chance to adapt. No problem. I like to work hard. I'm doing that already, and I'm sore every day. And in the right lighting, I can see the striations in my anterior and medial delts. It's working. But I want to see more muscle definition in the middle of my body, not just my shoulders, arms, and calves.
But, here's where she loses me: for 30 days, I'm supposed to eat 1464 calories a day! Jillian, You Are Killing Me! Working that hard, it is tough for me to keep under 1700! She says it's *only* for 30 days. She says we're not going to drastically reduce our calories. To me, that is a drastic reduction and I'm not mentally prepared to do it. I'd honestly rather lose weight more slowly than eat only 1400 calories a day! I would be so sad. I love food, and I already ask Jason to regale me with tales of all the junk he ate all day long, so I can live vicariously through him. If only he were a foodie, so he could give me more detailed descriptions of the flavors!
So, it's not a very useful book for me right at the moment, but it is helpful to lower my expectations of how much I should be eating every day -- if I were to eat 1400 calories of truly healthy food, with NO junk, maybe I could do it. Not today, but maybe in a couple of months. It's something I'd have to work up to.
Anyway, it is about what you should do to lose the last 10-20 vanity pounds, which is what I'm trying to do. I don't know how many it is going to take, but I have a clear picture of myself in my mind. I want to see the muscles that I have built up over the last 5 or so years and have a bodyfat percentage around 15-18%. I used to weigh 132, from 7th grade through 12th grade. I was thin, but I had nowhere near the muscles that I have now. I don't know what I would look like at 132 with muscles, but I might like to find out. That would mean losing about 14 pounds, but that seems like it might be too much. I don't want to look too much like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or like a skeleton. So, I'm focused on how I look more than on a certain number. Hey, I already said it is about VANITY POUNDS, so I can think about how I look.
First of all, she divides people into groups based on your metabolic oxidation levels. It just seems like bullshit. But, I took the quiz and I am a Balanced Oxidizer. Yay, me! That means that I should eat similarly to The Zone Diet: 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat. Well, that is a very comfortable way for me to eat, so I guess that's okay. I feel like I should be eating more like 40% protein for fat loss, but it is definitely easier to eat 40-30-30 than 30-40-30.
She advises hard workouts with weight circuits (no rests in between exercises; just moving quickly from one to the next, so you get a cardio effect while strength training) and plyometric cardio training (jumping cardio, to get your heartrate really high), and mixing up your routine so you work every muscle and your body has no chance to adapt. No problem. I like to work hard. I'm doing that already, and I'm sore every day. And in the right lighting, I can see the striations in my anterior and medial delts. It's working. But I want to see more muscle definition in the middle of my body, not just my shoulders, arms, and calves.
But, here's where she loses me: for 30 days, I'm supposed to eat 1464 calories a day! Jillian, You Are Killing Me! Working that hard, it is tough for me to keep under 1700! She says it's *only* for 30 days. She says we're not going to drastically reduce our calories. To me, that is a drastic reduction and I'm not mentally prepared to do it. I'd honestly rather lose weight more slowly than eat only 1400 calories a day! I would be so sad. I love food, and I already ask Jason to regale me with tales of all the junk he ate all day long, so I can live vicariously through him. If only he were a foodie, so he could give me more detailed descriptions of the flavors!
So, it's not a very useful book for me right at the moment, but it is helpful to lower my expectations of how much I should be eating every day -- if I were to eat 1400 calories of truly healthy food, with NO junk, maybe I could do it. Not today, but maybe in a couple of months. It's something I'd have to work up to.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Book 16: Eat to Live
Eat to Live is by Joel Furhman, M.D., who has spent years researching the connection between diet and disease-prevention. He has a lot of research to back up his claims that a super-healthy diet can prevent heart disease, adult-onset diabetes, chronic headaches, cancer, depression, etc... Some diseases can even be reversed by a very healthy diet.
Even if you don't believe it, here's the thing: it's not some crazy, risky pills or anything. It's just a healthy diet. There's nothing to lose by trying it (except fat and feeling sluggish from eating poorly, and possibly risk of fatal diseases).
Basically, he advises us to re-draw the food pyramid, so the foundation of it is vegetables, and above that are fruits and beans. The next row is seeds, nuts, and whole grains. Then fat-free dairy and fish; then poultry, eggs, and oil. Finally, beef, sweets, cheese, processed foods, and hydrogenated oil are the littlest segment on the top.
It would be pretty difficult to abruptly make this entire transition, but I am trying to eat a lot more vegetables and fruits. He says to put a sign on your fridge that says, "The Salad Is the Main Dish." I don't have a sign on my fridge, but I do try to think that when I'm deciding what to eat. Hopefully it is becoming a habit for me to eat a lot more produce, because I have really gotten away from it. I know I feel a lot more energetic and I look better (less puffy-faced) when I eat more produce and fewer starches.
Even if you don't believe it, here's the thing: it's not some crazy, risky pills or anything. It's just a healthy diet. There's nothing to lose by trying it (except fat and feeling sluggish from eating poorly, and possibly risk of fatal diseases).
Basically, he advises us to re-draw the food pyramid, so the foundation of it is vegetables, and above that are fruits and beans. The next row is seeds, nuts, and whole grains. Then fat-free dairy and fish; then poultry, eggs, and oil. Finally, beef, sweets, cheese, processed foods, and hydrogenated oil are the littlest segment on the top.
It would be pretty difficult to abruptly make this entire transition, but I am trying to eat a lot more vegetables and fruits. He says to put a sign on your fridge that says, "The Salad Is the Main Dish." I don't have a sign on my fridge, but I do try to think that when I'm deciding what to eat. Hopefully it is becoming a habit for me to eat a lot more produce, because I have really gotten away from it. I know I feel a lot more energetic and I look better (less puffy-faced) when I eat more produce and fewer starches.
Book 15: The Bone Collector
The Bone Collector by, yes, Jeffery Deaver. This one was made into a movie starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. Denzel Washington played Lincoln Rhyme, a quadripalegic ex-detective who had an obsession with creating databases of various types of evidence, like soil samples from all over New York City. Angelina Jolie's character, Amelia Sachs, is a beat cop who gets unwillingly recruited to be Rhymes's eyes and legs, walking the scenes of the crimes to collect evidence and rescuing the victims of a serial killer.
This one is much more graphic, with gruesome details. It's engrossing and fun. Rhymes is a big jerk. It's impossible to imagine the characters looking as written if you've seen the movie. So you get to imagine Angelina with nervous tics and going into dangerous situations, and Denzel using adult diapers.
There IS a twist at the end, but it doesn't feel like a cheat. He has gotten a lot better over time at making his endings Plausible Surprises.
This one is much more graphic, with gruesome details. It's engrossing and fun. Rhymes is a big jerk. It's impossible to imagine the characters looking as written if you've seen the movie. So you get to imagine Angelina with nervous tics and going into dangerous situations, and Denzel using adult diapers.
There IS a twist at the end, but it doesn't feel like a cheat. He has gotten a lot better over time at making his endings Plausible Surprises.
Reader Request
Hi all,
Reader Sparky has asked me to talk about "Deus ex Machina," and I am happy to oblige.
It literally means "God from the Machine." It used to be used in Greek plays, when there was an unsolvable problem: a God would appear on stage and save the day! Now, it's a literary device consisting of a surprise solution or ending, used mostly when the author can't figure out how to finish the story. So, it could be a new character that appears at the end with the missing clue that solves the mystery. Or a character suddenly says, "Oh, I already called the police before the robbers took our phones. Here they come now!"
OR like in one of those Jurassic Park movies (okay, I looked it up and it's #3), when the paleontologist who I thought was Jeff Goldblum, but imdb tells me that it was Sam Neill) tries to call Laura Dern and tell her that the dinosaurs are loose and trying to eat the people, but he drops the satellite phone (or the dinosaurs take it or something). They're all doomed. Then, what do you know? Here comes the freaking Coast Guard! Laura found out that he called, assumed the dinosaurs had evolved and were more intelligent than previously believed, and were in fact communicating amongst themselves and working together to kill the humans. And she just made a call.
It's often kind of annoying, and it sometimes feels like the author cheated. But, sometimes you want a surprise at the end, and if you give away too many clues earlier on, everyone will guess the ending.
Reader Sparky has asked me to talk about "Deus ex Machina," and I am happy to oblige.
It literally means "God from the Machine." It used to be used in Greek plays, when there was an unsolvable problem: a God would appear on stage and save the day! Now, it's a literary device consisting of a surprise solution or ending, used mostly when the author can't figure out how to finish the story. So, it could be a new character that appears at the end with the missing clue that solves the mystery. Or a character suddenly says, "Oh, I already called the police before the robbers took our phones. Here they come now!"
OR like in one of those Jurassic Park movies (okay, I looked it up and it's #3), when the paleontologist who I thought was Jeff Goldblum, but imdb tells me that it was Sam Neill) tries to call Laura Dern and tell her that the dinosaurs are loose and trying to eat the people, but he drops the satellite phone (or the dinosaurs take it or something). They're all doomed. Then, what do you know? Here comes the freaking Coast Guard! Laura found out that he called, assumed the dinosaurs had evolved and were more intelligent than previously believed, and were in fact communicating amongst themselves and working together to kill the humans. And she just made a call.
It's often kind of annoying, and it sometimes feels like the author cheated. But, sometimes you want a surprise at the end, and if you give away too many clues earlier on, everyone will guess the ending.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Reading Update
Well, this challenge is really affecting the way I read. For the past few years, the books I have chosen to read have been mostly for entertainment and pleasure. I read quickly, without stopping much to think about the themes or the probable influences of the writers, and I certainly haven't been taking any notes. But this challenge has made me think more while reading, since I will have to report on each book. So, while I'm reading quickly to try to keep up the pace, I'm also slowing down sometimes, to notice things that I want to tell you about.
Some ways that my reading is being affected:
1. Choosing books. I am less likely to choose LONG books, or books that will be tedious. They will simply take too long to read.
2. I feel like I should read "better" books for you, my 3 readers. Like you will be disappointed if I only read mysteries and don't read at least a little Russian Literature.
3. Like I said above, I'm really trying to be more aware of what I'm reading. I'm reading more as a critic, as opposed to just being entertained. I'm discerning more precisely what I do and don't like about the books. I suspect that this will increase and improve as the year goes on.
This critical reading is helpful, as I am writing some books myself. Since last summer, I have been working on a novel, and at that point I started paying more attention to how novelists craft their books. Who tells the story, and what is the perspective? If the perspective shifts, is it confusing, annoying, or enjoyable? If there are time shifts, do they make the story confusing? Is it best if the story is just told straight through, without flashbacks?
There are some things that are perfectly acceptable in genre fiction that would simply be seen as cheating in General Fiction. What I am writing is somewhat a mystery, but I want it to be classified as General Fiction. So, I need to minimize cliffhangers and sudden plot twists and Deus ex Machina. But it might be more fun to go all-out with a mystery-genre book and have more rein to use the tricks of the trade.
I'm still not very far in my first draft, so I can still change my mind about what kind of book I'm writing. I'll see how it unfolds and see if I need to rely on mystery tricks or if I can pull it off without them.
I'm promising you here, today, that within the next 7 days I will write 5 more pages of my novel. I've gotten out of the habit of writing again, even though I keep getting ideas, and I need to get those ideas down on paper while I'm still excited about them.
Some ways that my reading is being affected:
1. Choosing books. I am less likely to choose LONG books, or books that will be tedious. They will simply take too long to read.
2. I feel like I should read "better" books for you, my 3 readers. Like you will be disappointed if I only read mysteries and don't read at least a little Russian Literature.
3. Like I said above, I'm really trying to be more aware of what I'm reading. I'm reading more as a critic, as opposed to just being entertained. I'm discerning more precisely what I do and don't like about the books. I suspect that this will increase and improve as the year goes on.
This critical reading is helpful, as I am writing some books myself. Since last summer, I have been working on a novel, and at that point I started paying more attention to how novelists craft their books. Who tells the story, and what is the perspective? If the perspective shifts, is it confusing, annoying, or enjoyable? If there are time shifts, do they make the story confusing? Is it best if the story is just told straight through, without flashbacks?
There are some things that are perfectly acceptable in genre fiction that would simply be seen as cheating in General Fiction. What I am writing is somewhat a mystery, but I want it to be classified as General Fiction. So, I need to minimize cliffhangers and sudden plot twists and Deus ex Machina. But it might be more fun to go all-out with a mystery-genre book and have more rein to use the tricks of the trade.
I'm still not very far in my first draft, so I can still change my mind about what kind of book I'm writing. I'll see how it unfolds and see if I need to rely on mystery tricks or if I can pull it off without them.
I'm promising you here, today, that within the next 7 days I will write 5 more pages of my novel. I've gotten out of the habit of writing again, even though I keep getting ideas, and I need to get those ideas down on paper while I'm still excited about them.
Book 14: A Maiden's Grave
A Maiden's Grave by Jeffery Deaver. Another good mystery by Deaver. The creepy plot revolves around 9 deaf hostages being held in an abandoned cattle slaughterhouse by escaped convicts.
We spend a lot of time with the hostage negotiator, which is fun. He gets Stockholm Syndrome over and over again in his job, and feels so sad each time the criminal, who has become his best friend, is taken away in handcuffs or shot. This time, the negotiator falls for the main hostage taker AND one of the hostages. Poor guy.
There are all kinds of battles for supremacy going on between the different government agencies involved. The hostages themselves have an ongoing struggle revolving around whether or not to be part of Outside society -- should the deaf attend "regular" school? Should they try to speak aloud? Should they learn to read lips? Do they need to be protected from life?
It's an entertaining read, not too graphically violent, and a Real Page-Turner, which I need to keep up this pace!
We spend a lot of time with the hostage negotiator, which is fun. He gets Stockholm Syndrome over and over again in his job, and feels so sad each time the criminal, who has become his best friend, is taken away in handcuffs or shot. This time, the negotiator falls for the main hostage taker AND one of the hostages. Poor guy.
There are all kinds of battles for supremacy going on between the different government agencies involved. The hostages themselves have an ongoing struggle revolving around whether or not to be part of Outside society -- should the deaf attend "regular" school? Should they try to speak aloud? Should they learn to read lips? Do they need to be protected from life?
It's an entertaining read, not too graphically violent, and a Real Page-Turner, which I need to keep up this pace!
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