Haunted

I was introduced to Alice Hoffman by the movie Practical Magic. I thought the movie to be entertaining and fun. On the cover of another of Ms Hoffman's books was the tag from the author of Practical Magic. I figured it would be worth a shot. It was nothing like the movie. Her books have a dark quality to them that my brain finds quite appealing. They are wonderful for melancholy days. The Ice Queen held to this prinicple as well. The victim of a lightening strike has had her one wish come true - to be frozen. Everyone that touches her is burned by the coldness that she can do nothing about. The color red has been lost to her. Through a daring friendship and journey of self-discovery, she learns to forgive herself. The story stuck with me for days after finishing the book, just as the other titles I've read have. Even as I type this, weeks after its conclusion, the same haunted feeling comes back. I'd highly recommend this book.

Game over

The words of a hacker

Gary McKinnon has been accused of committing the 'biggest military computer hack of all time', and if extradited to the US faces up to 70 years in jail. So how did this techno geek from north London end up cracking open the Pentagon and Nasa's systems? He talks exclusively to Jon Ronson as he awaits his fate In 1983, when Gary McKinnon was 17, he went to see the movie WarGames at his local cinema in Crouch End, north London. In WarGames, a geeky computer whiz kid hacks into a secret Pentagon network and, inadvertently, almost instigates world war three. Sitting in the cinema that day, the teenage Gary wondered if he, too, could be a hacker. "Really," I say to him now, "WarGames should have put you off hacking for life." He strenuously denies the justice department's charge that he caused the "US military district of Washington" to become "inoperable". Well, once, he admits, but only once, he inadvertently pressed the wrong button and may have deleted some government files. "What did you do then?" "I thought, 'Ooh, bloody hell,' " he says. "And that's when I stopped for a while. And then my friend told me about Darpa. And so I started again." Darpa is the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency, an intriguing collection of brilliant military scientists, funded by the Pentagon. Darpa has been widely credited with inventing, among other things, the internet, the global positioning system, the computer mouse, and - somewhat more boneheadedly - FutureMAP, an online futures market designed to predict assassinations and bombings by encouraging investor speculation in such crimes. The US Senate once described FutureMAP as "an unbelievably stupid idea". Darpa has long been of interest to conspiracy theorists because it is semi-secretive, bizarre (they have put much effort into creating a team of telepathic spies) and occupies that murky world that lies between science and war. Gary heard from a friend that Darpa might have invented a robot soldier, so he hacked in and claims he found evidence of "an autonomous machine that would go in and do the dirty work. These things could go upstairs and look for bombs. You wouldn't have to send in real people. And I also found these awful special forces training videos of guys running around, doing close-quarter battle. It was ridiculous."

The article is really quite good and tells how Gary got caught. His terror is quite evident.

Developing Language

I love how language totally depends on what the user thinks it means. For instance, Clive Thompson in his article Robert B0rk: A man of his word writes that Robert Bork believes "bork" means

[Bork] noted that "Borking" is now used as a verb meaning "to attack with unfair means."

while the Urban Dictionary has it as

To have totally fucked something up. Usually by doing something stupid. Specifically used to describe technology that is broken.

I love debates like this in language that is developing.

The English Major in Me...

...missed reading Victorian Literature so I picked up The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl. I read one of Dante's comedies during college and enjoyed wading through the historical weightiness of the piece. The idea of murders based on the works on Dante during Civil War Boston made a fascinating combination. The book moved fast for the first fifty pages and the last fifty definitely made the inbetween worth it. The middle was hard to digest. The characters are familiar American writers, including, James Russell Lowell, Oliver Wendell Holmes and publisher James Fields. Mr Pearl has a website, The Dante Club, to keep fans up to date. After I finished the novel, I started a bookray on Book Crossing. It will eventually end up in Europe. I miss reading books like this. I need to dig into the Victorian Era of writing. I know that when I was an English Lit major still, I bought books with wild abandon. I'm sure that if I dig through my boxes, I find a dozen of titles that I have yet to read, besides the others that are worth re-reading.

I am a statistic

MIT Weblog Survey : Thanks: "

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Man charged with stealing Wi-Fi signal

The article states that the man stole from a private individual, not a business. I hear from my business associates about this practice, but most of them relate to business theft not private individual. The ramifications and impact of wireless have led me to keep my house wired. I don't have confidence in my ability to monitor or set-up the necessary encryption tools. Not that I don't trust my neighbors or anything...

My Writing Club

Oshkosh Area Writers Club is now online. Author visits, meeting notices and other great writing related information is available. A big thanks to Ruth for getting this set-up!

Step Eight

I've completed Step Eight of the Snowflake method. Looking back through my notes, I discovered that my four page synopsis no longer matches my scene outline. My plan for the moment is to back track and have those two items coincide. The synopsis will be invaluable when submitting the book and nice to have it done before the first draft. Kelli has read my one sentence and one paragraph summaries. She gave me a thumbs up and the ultimate compliment that she would by it based on the "back cover" excerpts. The Backcover Jo’s work as a consultant fits the carefree lifestyle of the party-girl she really is. A lifestyle that crashes after a bachelorette party ends with a court summons for drunk and disorderly behavior. Her supervisor for the court ordered community service appeals to a softer side that Jo didn’t know she had. Jo fights to keep up the life she has created for herself, but finds that her new responsibilities have shifted her priorities. Jo decides that while she is still carefree, life as an adult can be what she wants, even if it isn’t quite what she had planned. Unlike my other pieces, I really have a good feeling about this. I believe that it is worth submitting and publishing. Everything before, just feels like practice.

Bookcrossing Notes

When I checked my email on the 5th, I had a welcome surprise of four Bookcrossing notices. It was grand and glorious. All were from books I had released last year and found by anonymous finder. I believe that they have been read and released a least one other time. The entries are...

1. Once and Always
2. Left for Dead
3. Househusband
4. A Corner of the Universe

I wish the readers well and many happy catches and releases.

Taking Blogging to a New Level

For me, at any rate. My college friends are widely scattered through this country. None of keep in touch as much as we would like; it's the way of the world. But thanks to Blogger's Team Blogs, we are going to give keeping in touch through blogging. The Klatsch was one of our favorite places in Mankato to hang out, get high on caffiene, keep up with each other's lives and attempt to get that paper for Czer written. As such our blog name is The Klatsch. I'm expecting a witty collection of wise words from everyone who joins. The first offering is weak, but essential. I invite you to check back in a few days to meet my friends.

Email Quizzes, Part II

In a prior posting, I asked for someone to send me email quizzes. I got two from Kelli sent me two that I combined into this one email quiz. This one I received from a reader looking for other quizzes. I didn't use it for my novel. This one digs deeper than the first and would still get to the answers and personalities of the characters. The reflective nature of the questions give the opportunity to really dig into the mind of the character. I wouldn't use this for every character, just the main ones. I'd stick with the first for minor and supporting characters. About You Your gender: Straight/gay/bi? Single? Want to be? Your birthday: Age you wish you were: Your height: The color of your eyes: The color of your hair: Piercings? Tattoos? Do You... Smoke? Do drugs? Read the newspaper? Pray? Talk to strangers who IM you? Take walks in the rain? Drive? Like to drive fast? Have You Ever... Hurt yourself? Been out of the country? Been in love? Done drugs? Gone skinny-dipping? Had a surgery? Ran away from home? Played strip poker? Gotten beaten up? Been picked on? Been on stage? Slept outdoors? Thought about suicide? Pulled an all-nighter? If yes, what is your record? Talked on the phone all night? Slept together with the opposite sex without actually having sex? Slept all day? Killed someone? Made out with a stranger? Had sex with a stranger? Kissed the same sex? Done anything sexual with the same sex? Been betrayed? Broken the law: Met a famous person? Been on radio/TV? Been in a mosh-pit? Had a nervous breakdown? Been criticized about your sexual performance? Had a dream that kept coming back? Shoe brand? What are you normally wearing to school/work? Wear hats? Judge other people by their clothing? Wear make-up? Favorite place to shop? Favorite article of clothing? Are you trendy? Beliefs Believe in life on other planets? Miracles? Astrology? Magic? God? Satan? Santa? Ghosts? Luck? Love at first sight? Yin and Yang? Witchcraft? Easter bunny? Believe it's possible to remain faithful forever? Believe there's a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? Do you wish on stars? LOVE, And All That Stuff: Did you get frightened or uncomfortable seeing that as a section title? Do you remember your first love? Still love him/her? Do you consider love a mistake? What do you find romantic? Turn-on? Turn-off? Do you base your judgment on looks alone? Have you ever wished it was more "socially acceptable" for a girl to ask a guy out? Ever been romantically attracted to someone physically unattractive? Do you think the opposite sex finds you good looking? What is best about the opposite sex? What's the last present someone gave you? Are you in love? Who Was The Last Person... That you laughed at? That laughed at you? That turned you on? You went shopping with? To disappoint you? To ask you out? To make you cry? That you thought about? You saw a movie with? That you talk on the phone? You talked to through IM? You saw that you knew? You turned down? When Was The Last Time You Smiled? Laughed? Cried? Bought something? Danced? Were sarcastic? Hugged someone? Talked to an ex? Watched your fave movie? Talked on the phone? Listened to the radio? Watched TV? Went out? Helped someone? Sang? Said? Got drunk?

Banned Books

A rather detailed website for the listing of Forbidden Books. Banned books and the reasons has always been a curiousity for me. Perhaps it is because of my nature to make some mischief. Or perhaps I just like controversy in literature. Whatever the reason for me, Forbidden Library has taken to recording the history of the protest and her own opinions.

The Power of The People

The PledgeBank has a great concept for helping others. A person posts a pledge to do something (plant trees, loose weight, spread goodwill) but will only do it if enough other people promise to do the same. The site is based in the UK. The generosity of people is astonding. Here's a couple of pledges that were recently completed: Jenny Marlowe will stop using plastic carrier bags at the supermarket, and use reusable cloth bags instead but only if 30 other people will too. Matthew Jones will start a wikipedia page but only if 10 people will too. And some that need support: Simon Holledge will have 10 trees planted to offset my total carbon dioxide emissions for 2005 but only if 99 other people will too. (193 days left, 11 more signatures needed) Caroline Skinner will donate £200 to Breast Cancer Campaign through www.justgiving.com/CarolineSkinner but only if 20 other people will each donate £10 through the same website. (30 days left, 10 more signatures needed)

Lodinews.com - Lodi, California, News Archives

Mystery planes continue to circle over Lodi as it has for the last four weeks. My writer's imagination is getting all worked up over this one. I'm going to have to print it for the reference files.

Bookworm Report, June 2005

This month was a good month for reading as I finished some of the novels I've been reading over the last several months. I'm not happy unless reading a couple of books at a time. For the month of June, I read 4,083 pages or 13 books. In 2001, I read 3,401 pages/7 books; 2002, 1,975 pages/5 books; 2003, 2,560 pages/7 books; 2004, 2,608 pages/6 books.

• The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman
• Napalm & Silly Putty by George Carlin
• Black Rose by Nora Roberts
• The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
• The Italian Secretary by Caleb Carr
• You Have to Kiss A lot of Frogs by Laurie Graff
• Runaway Mistress by Robyn Carr
• The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber
• Dying for Chocolate (Audio) by Diane Mott Davidson
• Premonition by Randy Ingermanson
• Double Vision by Randy Ingermanson
• Rising Tides by Nora Roberts
• Inner Harbor by Nora Roberts

For the year, I've read 50 books, or 17,377 pages, which averages to 8 books a month, or 2,896 pages per month, and an average book length of 348 pages. Have a great holiday weekend, celebrate our freedoms and remember those who sacrificed for us.

Love In England

It doesn't matter where you go, girls are girls and boys are trouble. Straight Talk by Jane Green shows just how several twenty-somethings tackle the dating scene in London. Change the slang and the city and it could have been a group of my friends discussing our love & sex lives instead. Great to read.

Close to Home

The premise of Miracle Cure by Michael Palmer struck close to home. The book focuses on a miracle drug for people with heart disease, specifically hardening of the arteries. The drug has the "if it seems too good to be true" ya-sayers and its cheerleaders both. Inbetween the two sides in our hero, a recovering doctor with no license and a father who would benefit from the drug. All in all, it was a pretty good book. Some portions of it seemed contrived, especially at the beginning. The middle and ending make it worth your while though. It hits close to home because my mother has been identified has having a heart murmur and some other conditions. Being that close to a similar situation really helped put me in the shoes of the doctor who wants only the best for his father.

A Book I Didn't Get

Skip Prospero’s Children by Jan Siegel, if it is on your reading list. I don't know if it was because the author was from England (I doubt it) or if it was because the book dealt with a subject I read infrequently, but I just did not get this book. It was slow moving, until the shift into another world. The resolution was left hanging. I didn't understand what the resolution had to do with the characters in the modern world (as opposed to the world that is traveled too.) This is one fantasy novel I'd recommend avoiding. It is the first of a trilogy. I'm a quarter interested in checking out the other two, just to see if the series as a whole is better than the first part.

Experimental Drugs

Apparently, scientists are more open minded about experiments than my college professors ever told me. According to this article, Francis Crick used LSD. Yep, Francis Crick of the Double Helix fame. I read the novel The Double Helix when I was in college, as part of the required reading for my sophomore level biology course. I liked the book so much that I actually read it twice. It has a nice, conversational tone that a non bio person, such as myself, wasn't intimidated by the huge mind boggling concepts that these guys were investigating. If these allegations are true, and high school kids get their hands on the information, can you imagine what it will do to a classroom?

Angels by Marian Keyes

This is the secon Marian Keyes novel I have read. It's just as good as The Other Side of the Story but with more depth, I'd say. Pieces vital to the plot of Angels are revealed as the story progresses. It doesn't have a deus ex machina; the necessary details were cleverly built into the story and hidden so that their full meaning could later be revealed. At first it seems like a rather typical chick-lit plot, but more lurks below the surface than what is first seen in this novel.

A Naked Novel

Novels written by several authors often have the word Naked in the title, earning themselves the nickname Naked Novel. Marcia Talley edited her first Naked Novel, Naked Came the Phoenix, as way to raise funds for breast cancer research. Her second, I'd Kill for That has the same goal. Both of her edited novels have been written by various female mystery authors, including (but not limited to) Anne Perry, Jennifer Crusie, Nora Roberts. The result is a fun novel, with changing voices and writing styles. It leaves much to be desired as far as tight structures normally found within mystery novels, but the result is worth reading.

Preparing for July 16th

I always like to re-read J.K. Rowling but this time it is in preparation for the release of Book 6. I decided to start at the current end and read to the beginning, to give myself a fresh perspective of the series. The Order of the Phoenix is a dark novel compared to the first four. As it ends, I wonder how the sixth will fill the gap to the series end. I know that whatever Ms Rowling has planned will be brilliant, but my limited vision seems to think that Book Six is a place holder for a seven book series. (Book series almost always are odd numbers, I've noticed.) The Goblet of Fire ends the way The Order begins, but the rest of it is rather typically growing pains of any teenager - school, girls and rifts with friends. Actual reviews of the works seem a bit pointless, as you should have read them by now. If not, get a copy and get reading. The weekend of the release promises to be quite busy, as it looks as though I will have house guests. As a result, I'm not going to be able to start the book until the 18th in all likely hood. I have some thoughts about this and what I'd like to post, but it would work much better if I could give my family a vacation on the 16th. If only I could convince them to go away for the weekend and leave me to read in peace.

Writing Pains

Last year when I took on the NaNo Challenge of writing 50,000 words in 30 days or less and have a complete story told, I learned quite a few things about my writing self. 1. I can type 2,000 to 2,500 words in 30 minutes or less if I stop thinking about what I am saying. Hence the Nano qualifier of "it doesn't have to be good." 2. If I have a plot thought out, I am more interested in writing my characters' story. Even on the days that I didn't feel like writing, I had to, because I needed the word count and I knew where I was going. 3. Plotting doesn't have to be painful. On the forum boards I found a plotting method called The Snowflake Method as described by Randy Ingermanson. I've been using his method to plot out my last endeavor. I'm on step 7 of 10, 10 being the first draft. His idea revolves around starting with the simple design and adding the complexities and details one level at a time. The steps for doing this are posted at his sight. Since he explains it much better than I do, I suggest you visit his page entitled The Snowflake Method. The part that I am on now involves those email quizzes that I requested. Yes, Kelli, I'm getting to it. I might even have it done in two weeks, if I can keep up the rate I'm going at now. The thing about writing is it takes time. Just like this blog takes time. And my family. And my job. I've been told by a wise woman that you can only focus on three major things at any given point in time. I'm juggling four. I just need to figure out how to split myself in halves or thirds so I can juggle all of the important things in my life.

Brewers vs the Cubbies

After attending last nights game at Miller Park I understand how the other team's fans feel when the Packers are in town. The game was sold out and I'm pretty sure it was to all of the Chicago fans. The stadium is excellent, inspite of any problems you may have heard about. No matter where you sit, it's a good seat. Now if the Brewers will play decently today...

Be a Mentor

DMC, the thread people, have a really cool opportunity on their website. Be a mentor and teach kids to cross stich. DMC provides the kits for small projects. You provide the enthusiasm, support and knowledge. If I knew some kids who were interested, I'd sign-up in a heart beat. P.S. I'm on vacation for the rest of the week and won't necesarily be posting first thing in the morning.

Recent Research

I love it when my writing research takes me to a site like the History of Chocolate by Godiva. I'm pretty sure that I gained about twelve pounds while reading about the rich history of my favorite food.

A Man with Too Much Time on His Hands

As an artist, my medium of choice is words. This man's is the etch a sketch. Check out his work and price tag at his website Etched in Time. Maybe I should consider a different medium... via J-Walk

Random Thoughts

I've been watching bits of the series Inside the Mafia on the National Geographic Channel. I found out that the Mafia became the powerful organization that it did during Prohibition. They were willing to provide alcohol to anyone who wanted it. But they would have problems among the various families. To put a stop to the inter-family fights, they organized a panel that was the heads of all the families. If one had a grivenance against another, it was brought to this panel. It was this panel that decided to move to drug trafficking. Prior to the organization of the mob families and their venture into drugs, very few people used drugs in the States. My question is thus: If Prohibition had never existed, would the Mob had organized? If so, would they have moved into the drug trafficking sooner? The series has been really good. I hope that they re-run it so I can see the parts that I missed.

Living Without a Net

Jory of Pause... has taken a plunge that many have considered: She working for herself. Jory records various findings and self discoveries for the benefit of those of us who work for others. Her odyssey has taken her to realize her core competency along with discovering how to be at one with her inner slacker. Jory's ability to be honest blows me away as I struggle to smile through the solution to yet another corporate mishap. I've thought of taking that plunge myself, but my overwhelming need for a safety net has always prevented me. Here's two thumbs up to those who do it, and can blog in the face of their adversity.

Not Something You Hear Often

Yesterday, I was walking by a mirror in the ladies room and looked at the sideway image of myself. Mostly to check my hair as the humidity is making it super frizzy lately. But I noticed something else and thought to myself, "Is my ass smaller?" I tested my theory last night with a pair of jeans, fresh from the dryer. Sure enough, there is a smiggen more room in them than I remember there being. Maybe all of that jogging and biking is starting to pay off.

The Poet is Back

One of the great thing about serial novel is that villians who have escaped can be brought back to fight again. Michael Connelly does just that in The Narrows. The Poet was the head of the FBI's criminal mapping. He was good at his job because he was the very sort of person that they were mapping. Harry Bousch teams up with an FBI agent, Rachel, to follow the path the Poet has left for her, and perhaps get ahead of him by enough steps to capture him.

Drinking as a Rite of Passage

Koren Zailckas doesn't consider herself an alcoholic, but readers of her book Smashed : story of a drunken girlhood probably would. Koren was introduced to drinking as a teenager by a friend. She continues drinking into high school and college; her drinking quickly turns to excess. Some of it might seem like kids being kids, but Koren explores what kept her drinking, along with why she couldn't seem to stop, even when she wanted to. Truly an eye opening book. Even though I am the about same age as Koren, I found myself thinking of her as a much younger sister, rather than a peer.

My Ennegram Type

Free Enneagram Test

Nothing to Say

Any posting ideas I might have had have been channelled into my current novel. Terribly sorry, but I'm sure that Average Jane or Heather B. Armstrong will have some good words for the day. Have a fantastic weekend. If that just isn't possible, have a mediocre one.

Ten Reasons to Love my New Saab

1. The Sport Button When deployed this nifty little button allows me to go very fast very quickly. After driving my powerful 8-cylinder Durango, I feared moving to a 4-cylinder; with the sport button, I hardly notice the difference. 2. The Combination Moon and Sun Roof If it hadn't been for the fact I drove the Durango for three years, I would have listed this first. It was the prereq for any vehicle I was going to buy. 3. Gas Mileage I'm averaging 23-24 mpg compared to 10-11. I love filling my car with gas when it is every other week and runs about $30. 4. Auto-locking Doors For the back seat only. I appreciate the thought, since I have kids and all, but love not having to remember to unlock mine when I want to get out. 5. Using the Key to Lock the Doors It took some getting used to, but I can never lock the car with my keys in it. 6. Other Weird Lock Features Like when I unlock all the doors with the key and someone tries to open their door at the exact second that I unlock, their door doesn't open. It keeps my kids out usually, or my mom, but if it were a person with malicious intent, I'd be safe. 7. Leather Seats No matter what is spilled, I can just wipe it up. 8. Wiper Blades on the Headlights As strange as it sounds to have them, I'll be loving it in winter when I won't have to scrap my headlights. 9. Resale Value They hold their value better than most domestic cars. If I ever decide to sell, I know that I'm not completely screwed. 10. The Speedometer Tops out at 150 Not that I've tested that or anything...

Thoughts on being Rude, Part II

Obviously it bothered me that the kid was rude. It wasn't just his rudeness, but the rudeness that seems to penetrate my life at every turn. The driver that is a big hurry; the vendor that needs a balance paid; the person who took my order for lunch. Probably every 3 out of 4 conversations I have with strangers have one of us being rude. I'm guilty of it too, I know. Especially if you can't hear me when I'm in my car. I don't remember this rudeness when I was a kid. In fact, I remember 2nd grade being the biggest pusher of manners (Thanks, Mrs. Larson, for that lesson.) It takes little or no extra time to say, "Please" or "Thank you." Why don't we do it? Why do we drive 10-15 miles over the speed limit and force our way into a spot that is meant for a comfortable gap between the cars? Why don't we take the time to thank those that assist us or greet people properly? I hate nothing more than when someone calls my house and starts talking. What ever happened to saying "Hello"? I may have caller ID, but I don't always look at it first. The Fox River Mall promotes Random Acts of Kindness. While a lovely program conceptually, the problem lies deeper than being randomly kind and handing out flowers or doing a good deed for someone. The fact that a program exists to draw attention to an action that should be an inborn habit, should give you a clue has to how much reform is needed. Be polite all the time. Use the manners that your mother (hopefully) taught you to use. Promote Consistent Acts of Manners instead.

Thoughts on being Rude

Are you a rude person? I'd like to think that I'm not, but I make more than my fair share of disparaging remarks about other drivers. A couple of days ago, though, I met my limit. The following is probably going to be a fairly long and somewhat boring story that ends in a morale. Fair warning. I was biking, as I often do, after work. The weather was beautiful and it's a great way to get some exercise. I'm not the fastest biker in the world, averaging 8-10 miles per hour. Keep in mind, however, that I am also pulling a 35 lbs kid and a 10 lbs carrier. I think that I'm doing pretty good. Oshkosh is not laid out for commuters on bikes. Neenah has bike lanes, even on some of their busiest streets. In Oshkosh bikers are forced to stay on the sidewalk or risk their life on the road. I see other bikers doing both, probably 50-50 each. I choose the sidewalk, not only because of my speed, but for the safety of my child that I'm towing. Sidewalks are designed for pedestrian traffic and don't leave much room for passing. So I object to the nasty comment "Thanks for moving over" from the headphoned teenage boy that was behind me. Some lessons in manners are needed, I believe. Playhouse Disney has them, young man. Perhaps you've heard of Manners with Max. No? Let me instruct you, then. When you want to move around someone, "Excuse me" is going to get you further than your silent sulking behind me. Secondly, "Thanks" is a more polite response to a person in your way, even if they gave you no help. I realize, young man, that you are most likely still trapped in a stage that has a strong egocentric force, but get over it. When biking down 9th St, in Oshkosh and traffic is whizzing by, no one is going to hear you coming up behind them when you also are moving under your own force. Last, a sarcasm tone is not your strong point. Next time, try a little inflection. Then be man enough to stay so I can teach you the manners that my 5 year old has.

Brilliant, Again

James Patterson never fails to delight and thrill my imagination. Honeymoon made my night. It was a really quick read. Even my mother agreed with me for once on that one. The novel is about an unlikely serial killer and the FBI agent who tracks her done. As I overwork my brain in an attempt to think of how to describe this thrilling volume, I faulter again and again. The story lines are woven so tight, and so brilliantly that I fear giving something away. To be generic, Patterson is a novelist that you need to read.

Bookcrossing Notes

I've left a book In Her Shoes on the northside counter of Jo-to-Go, if anyone is interested in a Bookcrossing book.

Neighboring Houses

When purchasing a house, you are really gambling. Is it a nice of a neighborhood as it seems in the middle of the day? Are there kids around? No kids? What about pets? If the neighborhood is a subdivision, another force is added to the mix with regulations about what can and cannot be done. Some of the questions are easy to answer. Driving through the neighborhood a several different times of the day should give an idea of what it is really like. The neighborhood association usually has a go-to person for any regulations that might be of concern. But there are a few questions that always remain unanswered, no matter how carefully a neighborhood is scouted. What does the street look like when it is Christmas time? Do the lights go up early and stay on late? Late, as in February? And what about dogs and kids? Is running through all yards exceptable? Or are restraints required for both? How about fences? Or those corner fences? What about trees? If your tree is hanging over my house/yard/driveway, do I have the right to critize your maintenance and upkeep of it? These are the sorts of things that make apartment living attractive, especially when your views and the neighbor's view don't match.

Bookworm Report, May 2005

Now that summer seems like it is really here, I've been spending less time reading. And with the release of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince just around the corner, I dusted off a couple of old favorites to re-read.

For the month of May, I read 3,417 pages or 7 books. In 2001, I read 4,659 pages/20 books; 2002, 1,517 pages/5 books; 2003, 3,803 pages/8 books; 2004, 3,977 pages/11 books.

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
• Straight Talk by Jane Green
• Prospero’s Children by Jan Siegel
• Angels by Marian Keyes
• I'd Kill for That by Marcia Talley
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
• Miracle Cure by Michael Palmer

For the year, I've read 37 books, or 13,294 pages, which averages to 7 books a month, or 2,659 pages per month, and an average book length of 359 pages.

For those of you keeping track, I missed reviewing a couple of titles last month. I'll be sure to catch up this month.

Local Writing Group

On the first and third Saturdays of the month, the Oshkosh Public Library hosts a writer's group, from 10 to 12. The next meeting is on June 4, or this Saturday. The format is announcements regarding upcoming events, like author visits, conferences and contests. The groups then splits for critiques. Every time I have brought a piece to read, I have always received good feedback in the areas that need improving, the bits that they liked, and encouragement to bring the next section. There are no membership fees, but it is restricted to those 17 and older as the pieces do contain adult themes and life issues. If you'd like more information, please call 231-6182 and speak with the group's organizer.

How Was Your Weekend?

Mine was really good. I went to not, one, but three movies. My oldest wanted to see Madagascar, which was a really cute kids' movie with great music. In fact, I bought the soundtrack, kind of for him, kind of for me. It will make a great workout companion. I also show The Longest Yard with my husband. The remake did justice to its predecessor. Finally I saw Star Wars: Episode III. I have to echo the sentiments of Average Jane; it felt more like an obligation. Yesterday, I took the youngest to the N.E.W. Zoo in Suamico. We were both pleased with the set-up and animals on display. He did a fantastic job of finding them. Every bird was a "quack-quack" while every large animal (think moose) was a cow and every mid-sized was an "Elle." We worked on some of the names. In all, it was a good weekend. I hope your's was too.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day always reminds me of my uncle Mel and putting flowers on gravesites. It was something that he did every year. In the back of my head, I know that Memorial Day is more than a three day weekend, but for what purpose is it truly to serve? All uniformed men and women? Just those lost in battle? I googled it and found this site. The origins of Memorial Day vary quite a bit, but I did find that it is a day to honor all those who have died in battle. But I'm not the only one who doesn't know the traditions surrounding the holiday.

Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years. Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the graves of the fallen are increasingly ignored, neglected. Most people no longer remember the proper flag etiquette for the day. While there are towns and cities that still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in decades. Some people think the day is for honoring any and all dead, and not just those fallen in service to our country...But what may be needed to return the solemn, and even sacred, spirit back to Memorial Day is for a return to its traditional day of observance. Many feel that when Congress made the day into a three-day weekend in with the National Holiday Act of 1971, it made it all the easier for people to be distracted from the spirit and meaning of the day. As the VFW stated in its 2002 Memorial Day address: "Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day."

On Monday, during the picnic, the zoo trip, the movie, remember not just those who fought in battles, but those who died during battle and those that were left behind to enjoy the freedoms they earned.

What's New with the Kids

Thomas the Tank Engine's popularity is waning in the house. There is no forerunner in the race for his replacement, but Blue's Clues and Bob the Builder are neck and neck. Blue might even have the edge. A typical day is spent watching at least one of the clue hunts with either Joe or Steve (we like Steve better.) The kids even have their own handy-dandy notebooks, even if they don't have a picture of the Thinking Chair on the cover. But they both delight in carrying around the notebooks and drawing in them. Until they draw on the fridge and I am forced to ask, why? for the 18th time that day. But I think I figured it out. Picture this: The littlest one dragging me into the kitchen all excited. He's jabbing his chubby little finger at the fridge, yapping away. My brain is ignoring him, focusing instead on the crayon mark that wasn't there a few minutes ago, because I had just washed it off. As I start to ask why he wrote on the fridge, again, I realize what he is saying to me. "A clue! A clue!" Just like his friends, Blue and Steve.

Archiving A Website

Jen of Searching for Me recently posted about archiving her website from Typepad. I truly appreciate this posting as I need to the same to my own blog. I want to keep it for my kids, but also, because I journal. Or used to, at least. It's more difficult to do these days, but I try to through my blog. I just need to remember sometimes, that the very people I wish to write about will be reading it. Then I follow the excellent advice of Anne Lamont from Bird by Bird. When writing about people you know, she states, give them an unattractive feature, like a small penis. Then they won't believe that it could possibly be them.

His Dark Materials, a supplement

Philip Pullman has written a wide variety of children's novels, but the Dark Materials series is my favorite. He continues the story with Lyra's Oxford, a short story that takes place after the trilogy has ended. It's a slim volume, both front to back and top to bottom. Holding it while reading made me think of a secret journal or code book, instead of a novel. I loved being reminded of my tenth summer, when secretly reading diaries of my friends was one of the thrills each of us had. I hope that the release of this story signifies more novels of Lyra's world will be published. I'd hate to think that I've read all there is to about it.

Something to do this Summer

The Oshkosh Public Library is sponsoring a summer reading program for teens called Express Yourself. Part of that expression includes catching a dream, a drumming circle, journalling and setting up a blog. (The last bit to be sponsored by yours truly.) Registration starts on May 31 at the Library's information desk or by calling 236-5202.

Blogrolling

I started using Bloglines to keep track of the blogs I read. It's an aggregator, for those who aren't familiar with it. It feeds me the new items for each of the blogs I read. Using it is pretty straight forward and I like it better than checking each and every individual site. One feature that I only recently explored was the script it provides to post my feeds to my blog. I've added a few blogs that I read, but never adjusted my template. Thanks to Bloglines script, my blog roll will adjust as I change my feeds there.

One of Those People

Do you have one of those people in your life where no matter what you do, it isn't right? No matter how nice and pleasant you are, it just pisses them off? I had one a few years ago. No matter what my mood was, she was crabby at me. Pleasant to everyone else, but noticably crabby to me. Other people in the office commented on it. One even asked what I did to make her so mad. As I didn't know, I couldn't answer. I have a good idea, but nothing concrete. I have one of those people again. It doesn't seem to matter where I work, what grade level or position I am in, what clubs I join, what church I attend, it is inevitable that a some point in my dealings, another one of those people will be present. I have to speculate that the problem is me. But I've heard grumblings that others are having the same problem with the current person as well.

Another Fix in the Artemis Fowl Series

Eoin Coulfer did it again. Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception is a brillant tale that twists every known convention of fairy tales, heros and antagonists. Imagine my delight when Artemis (antagonist) and Holly (protagonist) join forces and reawaken Artemis' memory in order to beat Opal, which, of course, they do. If you haven't read this delightful series, read the first book Artemis Fowl. See if you can resist the rest.

Happy Birthday, Raspberry Latte!

Today is the one year anniversary of my first post. Was it ever pathetic. I'd like to think that they have improved since then, but I am often delusional. I started posting because I wanted to learn more about HTML and web design. I have, but I still haven't learned enough to customize my template. I'm going to. That's my second year goal. I quickly realized that blogs work best if they have a theme of sorts. Sticking to it can be a challenge, but it can be done. I try to give stories of my life and day, but add in the things that interest me, along with local events. Shortly after I started posting, a very close relation passed away. I wrote about it here. It still is the best lesson that I learned in the last 365 days. What's your best lesson for the last year?

Mom, I'm Bored

Wisconsin Online for all the things to do in Wisconsin. The Milwaukee area is covered pretty well, at least. The Valley could use something like this. It's a great place to find bike trails, bike tours, bird watching hotspots and local events. It's one of my stops to answer the age-old question, "What do you want to do today?"

The Movie Industry

What was the last movie you saw in the theater? I think it was National Treasure with Nicholas Cage. An excellent movie recently released on DVD for $19.99. I know our tickets cost $16, since my husband and I pay out of one money pot. I'm pretty sure at least soda and popcorn were involved, but sometimes we find things in our pockets or my purse once we are already inside. I have no idea how that happens. If we did get the popcorn and soda there, it would have been the combo that's about $10. Crazy, isn't it? For $20 I could own the movie, but instead I had a one time experience with it on the big screen for $26. Every year the movie industry states that ticket sales are down. Every week, they report the highest grossing movie, usually making millions of dollars. Yet, I can own it for $20, if I am willing to wait 3-6 months for the DVD release. Sure I have to provide my own popcorn and soda, but for the extra six bucks, I can buy a box of microwave popcorn and a six pack of soda. If my fellow viewers prove to be talkers, I can throw popcorn or a pillow at them instead of shh-ing them to no avail. I am not subjected to a commercial loop or promos that I don't want to watch. And I get behind the scene clips that are usually as entertaining as the movie. Unless it is going to be totally awesome to see on the big screen, I'm skipping the theater and going straight to DVD section of Target.

It'a A Boy...or a Girl

The ducklings have hatched. My husband went out to check on them as he always does and comes back in, "I'm a father!" which really wasn't news as both of his boys were in the same room as us. We saw three of them in the crook of the tree. The momma duck has tolerated our looks and glances well. The babies are a little more adventurous and actually let my husband pet them. But yesterday afternoon, when he went to show them to a neighbor, they were gone already. We live near a creek and figured that she took them down there. They were already two days old, we figure. I'm just glad we didn't have to haul out the Baby Names book.

Concrete Light Bulb

This looks absolutely fab. I need to make one for my desk at work.

It's only 226 days until Christmas

My husband says that I'm impossible to buy for. That he never knows what to get me. I decided to help him out by setting up a wish list at a few of my favorite stores. Just click on the link below and search for my name. It will show you what I've been wishing for. This is more fun than a wedding registry, let me tell ya' Amazon.com and click the link "Wish Lists." When you search for my name, use the one with the right birthday. Evidently there is another me out there. NordicNeedle.com and click the link "Search Wish Lists."

There's Another Side to Every Story

And Marian Keyes captures it in The Other Side of the Story. The novel begins with Gemma, whose father has just left her mother. Gemma herself was recently jilted when Lily stole her boyfriend. Lily just published a best seller and now JoJo, her agent, calmoring for the next book. JoJo is looking for her next best selling author and believes that it might just be Gemma, who has been writing about her own life. Or at least, what she wishes it was. This is the first Marian Keyes novel I've read, but I'm going back for more.

Google compared to Wal-Mart

Is it possible that Google is the Wal-mart of the electronic world? Wired seems to think so.

Interactive Food Pyramid

Remember health class? The four food groups and the lovely square, at least if you are my age or older. I remember the shift to the pyramid, in order to incorportate fats and oils and split fruits and veggies into two categories. But the USDA has hit the 21st century and gone hi-tech. The new Pyramid is interactive based on age, gender and activity level. If this isn't enough for your tracking needs, they also have added a food and exercise journal, much like eDiets or Weight Watchers online. It takes your 1 cup of Honey Nut Cheerios and converts it to the equivalent grain serving and the percentage of your daily intake that it meets. It's slow, but pretty cool, if interested in tracking your food intake in detail. The only glitch that I found was that the pyramid generated from age, gender and activity level is different than the comparitive one inside the food intake equivalent. The differences aren't huge, but enough that you should decide which really is the one to follow and remember the percents from the first chart, if it is the one to follow.

Rites of Spring, Part II

Rummage sales are a favorite past time in my house. For most of us, at least. My kids love being able to park the vehicle and walk from one to the next, in search of treasures. I love looking for bargains that I want, know someone that whats it, or never knew that I had a need for it until I spotted it in the seller's garage. For instance, the wicker baker's rack and chair that I got last summer were a steal. As soon as I saw them I knew that they would be perfect in my back porch, even though I hadn't actually been looking for them. Books are one of those things that we always find on sale. My kids love to read and I love finding them for 10, 25 or 50 cents. My husband seems to have missed the finer points of rummaging. It's not so much about getting it done, unlike running errands. It's more about the time spent looking for those unknown treasures, walking from one to the next and the time spent together. I have obnoxious kids, I'm the first to admit it. But when it comes to rummage sales, the five year old has an agenda -- look for SpongeBob, Thomas, books and Blue's Clues. Movies and books are the stacks he looks for first, going for the toys last while I persue the adult books and kid's clothes. He is pretty good, unless it is close to lunch or there isn't anything for him to look at. Our rummaging party this last weekend included my husband. It wasn't until after I threatened to drop him off at home, that he understood I was serious about not rushing and taking our time. The kids weren't behaving nearly as bad and he thought and yes, we weren't looking for anything in particular, we were just looking. If he plans to come each and every time I go, I'm going to have to train him a bit better. After all, this is definitely an activity where the journey is more important than the end.

Novels of Self

Laurie Notaro has got to be one of the bravest writers I know. Average Jane mentioned her on her blog, once upon a time, and I noted the name, curious to see what sort of stories Jane was reading. I am always surprised that people intentionally read non-fiction. I usually come across it by accident, as I had when I picked up Pledged. It was in the Lucky Day section and caught my eye. Ms Notaro writes tales of her life. The first book The idiot girls' action adventure club contains the tales that anyone who is single would normal wish to hide. Or, at least, pretend during the re-telling that it happened to a friend rather than yourself. I laughed outloud at her descriptions of the crazy corners of her life that most of us won't admit to having. The second book Autobiography of a Fat Bride didn't make me laugh outloud. I still enjoyed it, but not to the same degree that I did the first. Perhaps her tales of new marriage and growing old struck a little too close to home. Or, perhaps, it just wasn't as good as the first. At the time of this posting, these are the only books of Ms Notaro's that the Oshkosh Public library has. I plan to keep an eye out for others, should more crop up.

Recent Referrer Stats

Ever since I posted about wanting email quizzes (thanks, by the by, Kelli) I have been getting tons of page hits from people looking for them. I haven't a clue to whether or not this is the sort of one that they are looking for, but I aim to please. Kelli sent me two versions, which I then combined and promised to return to her once I had completed them with my character descriptions for the latest novel I am working on. (See, Kelli? I didn't forget, I just haven't gotten them down yet.) The questions are... 1. What is your full name? 2. What color underwear are you wearing? 3. What are you listening to right now? 4. Legs crossed? 5. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? 6. How is the weather right now? 7. Last person you talked to on the phone? 8. First things you notice about the opposite sex? 9. Do you like the person who sent you this? 10. How are you today? 11. Favorite drink? 12. Favorite alcoholic drink? 13. Hair color? 14. Eye color? 15. Do you wear contacts? 16. Siblings? 17. Favorite food? 18. Last movie you watched? 19. Favorite day of the year? 20. Saturday or sunday? 21. Are you too shy to ask someone out? 22. Summer or winter? 23. Hugs or kisses? 24. Chocolate or vanilla? 25. Do you want your friends to write back? 26. Who's most likely to respond? 27. Who is least likely to respond? 28. Living arrangements? 29. What books are you reading? 30. Did you wake up before your alarm went off? 31. Buttered, plain, or salted popcorn? 32. Favorite crisps? 33. Favorite car(s)? 34. Were you named after anyone 35. Do you wish on stars? 36. When did you last cry? 37. Do you like your handwriting? 38. What is your favorite lunch meat? 39. What is your birth date? 40. What is your most embarrassing cd? 41. If you were another person, would you be friends with you? 42. Do you have a journal? 43. What are your nicknames? 44. Would you bungee jump or sky dive? 45. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? 46. What is your favorite ice cream flavor? 47. Shoe size? 48. Silver or gold? 49. What is your least favorite thing about yourself? 50. Who do you miss most? 51. What color pants and shoes are you wearing? 52. Last thing you ate? 53. Favorite sport? 54. What did you watch last night on tv? 55. Favorite sounds? 56. East coast rap or down south? 57. What's the furthest you've been from home? 58. Do you have a special talent? 59. What is the biggest secret that you’ve kept and for how long?

On Being a Woman

I've been reading Jory Des Jardins' blog Pause... for some time now. I like her sense of humor and style of writing. In a parallel universe, I'd be Jory. Her latest post What do Women Want had me nodding my head in recoginition and, occasionally, embarassment as I found traits of myself in her post. She recently attended a marketing seminar focused on marketing to women. Her thoughts about the seminar reflect what I feel on most days.

I mean, I'm a woman by definition, but I've never felt I was a typical female. I've spent an inordinate amount of time being the anti-female. Not male, per se, but not exactly a card-carrying, silicone inserting, meal skipping, child-bearing, strappy-heel-wearing type either. I figured perhaps they could enlighten me, as I often struggle with that question; not so much, "What do women want?" but "What do I want?" Maybe, by being surrounded by other women who could provide statistic breakdowns of what we seem to want, I would get some ideas. Maybe, along with some swag and a few business cards I'd score an epiphany. I felt fortunate being there on a don't-really-need-to-know basis. Those whose livelihoods depend on marketing to women are fairly screwed; imagine resting your career on an ever-shifting market. The opening presentation, given by Frank About Women, asserted that demo targeting is a no-no when marketing to women. Afterall, who is, say, the typical mother of a small child? Today, she's in her teens, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, or older if she's the primary caretaker of a grandchild. She's got a husband, or no husband, or maybe a wife. She spends her husband's money, or she spends her money on her husband. She floats between monikers of stay-at-home Mom, career woman, desperate housewife, DIY home renovator. Whoever she is, she prefers that you provide her with a solution, not a lifestyle option--she's already made her choices there, thank you.

Read on at Jory's site.

Home Sick, Part II

Everything is better, today. As it turns out, the baby did have croup, but is doing remarkably well. Today it is me that is homesick. Not actually sick, I'll be going to work, but I want to stay home with him another day, just to play with him and be with him. Yesterday really showed me some of what I'm missing by being a working mom. Maybe a rich relative that I know nothing about will leave me enough money so that I can. On the other hand, by the end of this next weekend, I'll probably be ready to go back to work on Monday as they will have driven me nuts over the weekend. Never can have what we want, eh?

Home Sick

It's not me, though, it's the youngest. This is the worst part of being a parent. He woke-up with a raspy breathing and cough. No fever; it's a little below normal actually. I'm thinking, I'll stay home from work and my husband thinks, he can go to daycare. I have no idea which is the right response. Am I being too cautious? Is my husband too practical? Afterall, every other time we've taken him into the doctors, it has been a virus that they can't/don't treat. Who's to say that today isn't any different? I erred on the side of caution, but I'll probably being kicking myself after the doctor's appointment. Anyway, I'm at home today, instead of working. Well, I'm still working, just not at work.

Bookworm Report, April 2005

You have to live in Wisconsin to truly appreciate snow on the first day of May. I'm so ready for warm weather. I haven't rode bike in two weeks I bet. For the month of April, I read 2,606 pages or 8 books. In 2001, I read 3,027 pages/15 books; 2002, 1,858 pages/3 books; 2003, 2,589 pages/6 books; 2004, 1,166 pages/3 books.

• Lyra's Oxford by Philip Pullman
• Smashed : story of a drunken girlhood by Koren Zailckas
• Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception by Eoin Coulfer
• The Other Side of the Story by Marian Keyes
• The idiot girls' action adventure club by Laurie Notaro
• The Narrows by Michael Connelly
• Honeymoon by James Patterson
• Autobiography of a Fat Bride by Laurie Notaro

For the year, I've read 30 books, or 9,877 pages, which averages to 8 books a month, or 2,469 pages per month, and an average book length of 329 pages. I really need to get out more.

Customize Your CD cases

I will occasionally burn cds for people. But I'm cheap and generally buy my cds in bulk on a spindle and never have cases. Thanks to this website, I can make my own Paper Cd Case. Now I won't look like such a cheap bastard, just inventive.

Kiwi is my Favorite Fruit

I used to not eat it as much as I do now. I hated peeling the little buggers. Then, my friend and fellow blogger, Matthew, showed me a way that renewed my kiwi eating enthusiasm. Cut it in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the fruit. Voila! No peeling required. Thanks, Matt. Here's a half a kiwi to you.

Welcome to Jennifer Crusie

Interested in being a con artist? The Dempsey family follows in their father's footprints whether they like it or not. Sophie Dempsey, in Welcome to Temptation, tries to keep her sister and brother in line while helping out her brother's ex-wife. The ex-wife and brother take off at the end of the book for an adventure of their own, continued in the next book, Faking It. Only Davy falls in love with yet another family of cons -- art cons. Thoroughly delighted with the whole series, family and love how the characters come back and let you know what is going on. As soon as I can, I'm going to read the other novels by Jennifer Crusie. A couple of the characters from Welcome to Temptation really should have a book of their own.

Rites of Spring

I spent my weekend un-earthing my sun porch. During the winter it is the collection spot for cardboard, misc broken items, things that probably should go in the garage but haven't yet and various other items. In reality it should house our lawn chairs and a table. I made sure it did. I can't quite convince my husband that eating out there would be fun, but my kids are all for it. On Saturdays and Sundays it makes a great spot to relax in, yet be able to hear the dryer buzz signalling that my next load is read to fold. Speaking of which...

Find Cheap Gas...

...in Wisconsin anyway. This cheap gas site relies totally on vistors to update it. I work near a Kwik Trip and have found that the prices have been faithful between website and pump. Thanks, Ruth

Eating my Words

Remember how I said one day I'd own a duck, because my kids and my husband would gang up on me? Nature chipped in too. A pair of mallards can often be found in either our yard or one of the neighbor's. They're a cute couple as they trot down the sidewalk or perch on the front step. Evidently their visits were scouting trips for a new home as they decided to build their nest in the tree in our front yard. Yes, I said, a tree. The nook of choice was the lowest of all available to them, but it still puts them 8 or 9 feet off the ground. The female seldom leaves since she has eggs up there as well. I know that they've been there for a while, but I have no clue as to how long. Two of the eggs have dropped to the ground and cracked. My husband, ever the concerned naturalist, finished cracking them open and figures it is a week or two before she has ducklings. Now that we know that they are there, duck feed has been purchased. My husband is trying to figure out how to get a water dish up there for her too. He did go so far as to take out the Red Ryder BB gun and practice his aim, just to warn off preditors. Our neighbor lost $50 in a bet to his girlfriend. He was convinced that we were feeding him a line, while she believed us. I just want to know how the female knew that of all the yards she surveyed, ours would offer the most protection in the form of my husband.

The Artemis Fowl Files by Eoin Colfer

A slim volume with two new stories that fill in the gaps between the three novels previously published by Eoin Coulfer. Also included are interviews with select characters, namely Artemis, Holly, Julian, Butler, etc. One of the stories details how Holly earned her position in LEPrecon. It has a great ending twist that fills in character detail that you know is there, but love to see. I still need to translate the three-page Fairy Language passage that is in middle. More interesting details are to be found, I'm sure.

Cooking Lessons for Fakers

My family really loves a good lasagna. My normal recipe is somewhat haphazard, ie. if you aren't comfortable not using measurements, don't ask me for it. When I make this particular dish, I start in the morning and let it sit in either my fridge or my back porch (if it is in the winter) until supper time. I firmly believe that part of its greatness is the sitting period. Sometimes, it just sounds really good and I don't have the time to make it the way I want. Presenting, Fake Lasagna.

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1 lb (or so) hamburger Onion, green pepper and mushrooms (which ever and however much you have on hand) 1 jar of sauce - either the 16 or 28 oz, depending on how saucey you like it Noodles - any shape or size, so long as it isn't manicotti Cheese - anything other than processed slices works here Boil the water and slop in some olive oil to keep the noodles from sticking. While that is working up to the boil, heat some olive oil in a frying pan, preferably one with deep sides. Chop the onion, green pepper and mushroom. Adjust for kitchen inventory and preference. After these are starting to soften, add in hamburger (Usually the water is ready for the noodles during this step too.) Brown hamburger and season to preference (salt, black pepper, garlic. Fresh is the best, if you have a press) Once the noodles are al dente and drained and the hamburger is thoroughly cooked, combine the two and the sauce in a oven safe dish. The pot I boiled my noodles in works in the oven, so I only have two pans to wash. Cheese -- two options exist here. It can be added here and baked with the dish. This is great if you have cottage cheese or ricotta that needs to be used up. Shredded cheese can be stirred in too. Otherwise add it to the top of each plate before serving. Bake. If you have an hour -- 350 degrees. If you have 45 minutes, 425 degrees (add about a quarter cup of water to prevent the noodles from drying out.)

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This is definitely a staple at my house. My kids are pasta eaters and I usually have ingredients on hand. Some time when I make it I am going to run broccoli and carrots through my food processor and add them to the mix too. If I get them fine enough, no one might notice that they are eating healthier than normal. by the way...this is a good example of why you should never ask me for a recipe for something that I make without a recipe.

Terrible Book Alert

Wanted: One Groom by Pat Ballard was one of the most unrealistic and hard to swallow books I've ever read. The premise is the main character, Hanna Rockwell, needs to get married and fast if she wants to inherit her grandfather's riches. Plot twists include extra-marital affairs, ex-rock star comebacks and finding true love through arranged marriages. The one good thing about the book was Hanna represented a real woman with weight issues. The bad side to this issue is the way her brother reacts to her imperfection. I couldn't buy it. He was nasty and insulting in a thoroughly unbelievable fashion. The arranged marriage theme is cute, if you are a teenager or young adult. I could truly imagine having enjoyed this book when I was thirteen or fourteen, but not as an adult. It's books like this that make me believe that my own writing efforts can find a voice, an audience and a publishing contract.

And You Think I'm a Geek?

J-Walk has spent more time customizing his cd collection that I do reading. But this tweak takes the cake.

Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult

Jodi Picoult writes women's fiction. She dives into the issues faced by mothers. Each book of I've read has made a small part of me stand up and say, "Yes! Me too!" Whenever I pick up a Jodi Picoult book, I know that I'm going to explore corners of my life that I had no idea existed. Songs of the Humpback Whale was no exception. The novel is told in the voices of five characters -- Father, Mother, Daughter, Mother's lover and Mother's Brother. Just knowing the voices Ms Picoult uses should be enough to give you a bit of the storyline. The father is a marine biology, specializing in the study of whales. He loves them completely, a love that takes over the life of his family. One day the mother has had enough and leaves. The great part about using every character to tell the story is the sympathy develops for each person trapped in the same passage. The faults of the mother, father and daughter are laid open in a way that I've never encoutered before. This is the second novel of Ms Picoult's that I have read, but her first written. The other was Harvesting the Heart, a beautiful story of young, reluctant, motherhood. Her name is on my list of "To Be Read" so I get to all of her works.

Biking in Oshkosh

I rode to work for the first time yesterday. It took me about 20 minutes to go 3 1/2 miles. Granted, I'm not breaking any speed records, but it really isn't as long of a ride as I thought it would be. I enjoy riding for a couple of reasons. It's good exercise. I'm moving my own body weight, the weight of the carrier and the weight of the passengers in the carrier. Thank God that it is only one passenger at this point. By going slower, I see more things and get a different view of Oshkosh. You know how sidewalks usually dipped down and meet the surface of the road? Well, they don't always. I'm okay with it as my bike has shocks. But poor baby in the carrier. He is bounced around like tumbleweed when they don't. For the routes I've taken, I know if the road or the sidewalk is better to ride on. I meet people biking on busy streets like 20th and I think, I'm not that brave, especially with the carrier. People see me, but not the flag behind me that means a carrier. Spring means green, but this year I'm discovering that green comes in many more shades and tones than I ever realized. One of the trails I like goes through some thick foliage along the river. I cannot wait to see what that will look like when everything fills in. As a child I was always more interested in reading, mainly an inside activity. As a high school and college student, I kept my interest in reading, but also was busy with homework and for money work. As an adult, I still love to read and am glad to see my boys doing it. But I'm learning to balance my reading with other activities. Like bicycling.

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

First in the "His Dark Materials" series, followed by The Amber Spyglass and The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman. I've read the series before, but during college. I think that my brain was distracted as I am reading more things into the book than before. Or it could be the experience in knowing how it ends and the symbolism of Dust. The Amber Spyglass is sitting on my shelf to be read. I never purchased The Subtle Knife and it is books-to-purchase list. The first installment follows Lyra, a girl left in the care of the Scholar from Oxford College. Except Oxford isn't the Oxford you and I could visit. Instead it is Oxford in a parallel universe where people have daemons, an animal companion that is with them constantly. The deeper, under-lying connection between a daemon and its human is difficult to explain. The best word I have for it is an embodied soul, but even that doesn't really convey it. Lyra's world is carefree until one summer when the Gobblers come to Oxford. Their arrival coincides with Lyra's discovery of her parentage and a gift more precious than any other she has known. Armed only with the friendship of the Gypies, the alethiometer and her daemon, Lyra begins the journey that will change the world as everyone knows it. Interesting note: This volume was released with a different title in the UK -- The Golden Compass and Northern Lights are the same book.

Recent Entries

Ever since I decided to summarize the books I've read, two things have come to my attention

1. I don't need as many posts, if I only post once a day. For instance, last month I read 11 books. I generally only post Monday through Friday, which in April equals 21 days, ten of which I need to think of something else to say.
2. I get a lot of hits from people looking for summaries of the books I've read. I have a feeling that most of these are from seekers of book report type information, which they won't find here. Maybe some purple prose, but nothing that will assist in earning an "A+" from any teacher I know.

I love looking at referrer logs to see what is drawing people to my site. My Blog Log tells me where they go, if they click on a link that leads them off of my site. It's a cool way to complete the circle on a webpage.

100 Things

1. I love my husband, regardless of how much we argue
2. We have two little boys
3. They grow up too fast
4. We might have another
5. Randy is for it and I'm against it
6. I don't think I could stand the noise
7. But I really like babies
8. Especially when they are asleep
9. I love to read
10. I take vacation days and spend them reading instead of vacationing
11. I pretend that I'm an Excel geek
12. People at work believe me
13. I make their lives much easier through simple things
14. I pretend that they are interested in how I did it
15. Really, they just want me to be available to do it again
16. I keep track of my reading list in Excel
17. As a result, I have lots of information that is totally useless
18. Just like everyone else on the web
19. I really believe that I am capable of writing a book that is worthy of publishing
20. I fear that it will take me the next forty-two years to write it
21. I secretly teach my boys to like computer games
22. Just to piss off my husband
23. He thinks that they should be outside
24. I think that they need to be normal
25. My boys like computer games
26. But I make them go outside too
27. We like to go for bike rides
28. Sometimes, we even go really fast
29. Family is important to me
30. Especially since my own family lives two states away
31. I have a secret stash of chocolate in my house
32. It is for emergencies only
33. It gets raided every day
34. I have a black lab and a brown cocker spaniel
35. The cocker spaniel gets to live only because he is my oldest's
36. He eats too many shoes for me to like him
37. The dog, not the kid
38. We like pets
39. But we only have dogs and fish
40. I won't let my husband have a duck
41. One day, I'm going to own a duck
42. The three men in my life will conspire against me and get one
43. Thankfully that day is very far away
44. My eyes are blue
45. Sometimes they look green
46. Or gray
47. My left eye is smaller than my right one
48. But I don't look weird or anything
49. I'm a Harry Potter fan
50. I've read the first book about 15 times
51. I figure that's a testimony to its worth
52. Not something for me to be embarassed about
53. Others think that I should be embarrassed
54. I detest novels by Charles Dickens
55. I firmly believe that he is a prime example of what happens when authors are paid by the word
56. I adore Jane Austen
57. Emma is my favorite
58. But I've read Pride and Prejudice more
59. I am uninhibited when it comes to buying books for my kids
60. My house contains between 200-500 hundred books
61. Numbers like that occur when I use Excel to track things like books
62. I have abandoned my fantasy novel
63. I figure, if I'm not interested in it, why would anyone else be
64. If Bethany reads this, she is going to demand the ending for it
65. I suck at writing titles for books
66. I once wrote a 50,000 word novel in one month's time
67. I plan on doing it again
68. I've never read it, except during its conception
69. It's half auto-biographical
70. What it might contain scares me
71. But I'm positive that it contains some brilliant purple prose
72. HTML used to scare me
73. I started blogging as a means to force myself to learn it
74. I like HTML
75. I am going to re-do my template sometime soon
76. To me, HTML is like punctuation
77. Generally, it comes out the way it should
78. Occasionally, I make huge mistakes
79. When I make a mistake, it's a pretty simple one and everybody recognizes it
80. My husband tries very hard not to laugh when I do this
81. I love to rummage sale
82. I can find the best kids clothes at them
83. Kids clothes are too expensive to buy new always
84. I'm cheap
85. I like the big neighborhood ones where I can wear my kids out by walking for two or three hours
86. I bribe them with toys while we do this
87. Bribery is good training
88. Paychecks are bribery
89. I need chairs for my three seasons porch
90. My quest is to find them at a rummage sale
91. I was married in Las Vegas
92. I would highly recommend it to anyone
93. We were not married by Elvis
94. I want to go back there to renew my vows
95. I have four television shows I watch faithfully -- Las Vegas, Alias, Eyes and The O.C.
96. I've been to Sweat, South Dakota
97. I'm never going back
98. I would live in England, if I could live anywhere I wanted with my family
99. I want to go to Italy for my 15th wedding anniversary
100. I'm just enough of a geek to update this list within a year

Quote of the Day

ThinkExist.com Quotes

ABBOTT & COSTELLO: BUYING A COMPUTER

If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their infamous sketch, "Who's on first?" might have turned out something like this: COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you? COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den and I'm thinking about buying a computer. ABBOTT: Mac? COSTELLO: No, the name's Lou. ABBOTT: Your computer? COSTELLO: I don't own a computer. I want to buy one. ABBOTT: Mac? COSTELLO: I told you, my name's Lou. ABBOTT: What about Windows? COSTELLO: Why? Will it get stuffy in here? ABBOTT: Do you want a computer with Windows? COSTELLO: I don't know. What will I see when I look at the windows? ABBOTT: Wallpaper. COSTELLO: Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software. ABBOTT: Software for Windows? COSTELLO: No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write proposals, track expenses and run my business. What do you have? ABBOTT: Office. COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything? ABBOTT: I just did. COSTELLO: You just did what? ABBOTT: Recommend something. COSTELLO: You recommended something? ABBOTT: Yes. COSTELLO: For my office? ABBOTT: Yes. COSTELLO: OK, what did you recommend for my office? ABBOTT: Office. COSTELLO: Yes, for my office! ABBOTT: I recommend Office with Windows. COSTELLO: I already have an office with windows! OK, let's just say I'm sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal. What do I need? ABBOTT: Word. COSTELLO: What word? ABBOTT: Word in Office. COSTELLO: The only word in office is office. ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows. COSTELLO: Which word in office for windows? ABBOTT: The Word you get when you click the blue "W." COSTELLO: I'm going to click your blue "w" if you don't start with some straight answers. OK, forget that. Can I watch movies on the Internet? ABBOTT: Yes, you want Real One. COSTELLO: Maybe a real one, maybe a cartoon. What I watch is none of your business. Just tell me what I need! ABBOTT: Real One. COSTELLO: If it's a long movie, I also want to watch reels 2, 3 and 4. Can I watch them? ABBOTT: Of course. COSTELLO: Great! With what? ABBOTT: Real One. COSTELLO: OK, I'm at my computer and I want to watch a movie. What do I do? ABBOTT: You click the blue "1". COSTELLO: I click the blue one what? ABBOTT: The blue "1". COSTELLO: Is that different from the blue w? ABBOTT: The blue "1" is Real One and the blue "W" is Word. COSTELLO: What word? ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows. COSTELLO: But there are three words in "office for windows"! ABBOTT: No, just one. But it's the most popular Word in the world. COSTELLO: It is? ABBOTT: Yes, but to be fair, there aren't many other Words left. It pretty much wiped out all the other Words out there. COSTELLO: And that word is real one? ABBOTT: Real One has nothing to do with Word. Real One isn't even part of Office. COSTELLO: STOP! Don't start that again. What about financial book-keeping? You have anything I can track my money with? ABBOTT: Money. COSTELLO: That's right. What do you have? ABBOTT: Money. COSTELLO: I need money to track my money? ABBOTT: It comes bundled with your computer. COSTELLO: What's bundled with my computer? ABBOTT: Money. COSTELLO: Money comes with my computer? ABBOTT: Yes. No extra charge. COSTELLO: I get a bundle of money with my computer? How much? ABBOTT: One copy. COSTELLO: Isn't it illegal to copy money? ABBOTT: Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money. COSTELLO: They can give you a license to copy money? ABBOTT: Why not? THEY OWN IT! (A few days later) ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you? COSTELLO: How do I turn my computer off? ABBOTT: Click on "START"... Thanks, Mike

Email Quizzes

I'm looking for one of those email quizzes -- the one that ask you to survey yourself, surroundings and life. The ones that always ask at the end, who is least likely to reply. The ones that I never complete.

I need one. I'm developing new characters for a book and I think that they are the type of people who would answer this if someone sent it to them.

If you have one, please email it to me.

Thanks for your assistance in my artist endevours.

UPDATE: Thanks for everyone who helped. I have posted two of that I found; one here and the other here.

New Pet Developments

We recently invested in an aquariam set-up. Not, one, but two. And by invested, I mean spent obscene amounts of money on. But we saved because we bought it from someone else, rather than new. One of the tanks was for my oldest last birthday. We thought it would be fun to have a tank in his room so he could watch fish while he goes to sleep. He likes it, as do we. His is a small tank, 20 gallons. It's just big enough to be annoying when changing water, but not so big that it bites to haul buckets up and down the steps. The other tank is the focal piece when you walk in our front door. Registering in a 75 gallons, it has taken us some time to get set-up and find the various types of fish we want. The smaller tank had been set-up first, mainly with community fish. The larger tank has semi-aggressive fish and the Mob. We have two catfish, both of which have names that make their species readily identifiable, but neither of which I can remember. Let's just call them The Boss and His Minion. The Boss is a large-ish cat who prefers to come out only during the night and when no one is watching. He has taken residence in the local castle. I fear that one day he will be too big to leave and starvation will occur. His Minion, a small cat with long whiskers, pops out of the castle frequently and checks on the status of the tank and make sure that everyone is paying their respects to The Boss. I can always tell when The Boss has been out. Plants are moved, Spongebob has been roughed up, and my blue rock river has flooded his banks. He also has the plecostomus under his wing, er, fin. Most days the plecostomus is inside the castle too, rather than doing his job of sucking the sides of the tank. The whole situation thoroughly pisses my husband off. See, he used to have another Boss fish, entrusted to another care-taker. The whereabouts of this fish are unknown, hence the replacement. Instead of being the friendly, greet you at the door type, ours is a Mob Boss. On the whole, I like the fish. Often, visitors will find me parked on one of the kids' chairs, watching the large tank in the front room. Sometimes, I'll have a kid or dog on my lap. Mostly, I'm left to watch the fish alone. Better than swimming with them.

Books by Sophie Kinsella

Shopaholic & Sister and Can you Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella are great reading. Fun characters, great stories, good entertainment. Shopaholic & Sister is actually the fourth in a series about Becky Bloomwood, ex-financial expert and shopper extraordinaire. Becky has a bit of a shopping problem that any woman can relate to. But Becky's is worse, so yours doesn't feel so bad. Can you Keep a Secret? is about Emma, a girl trying to make it in the corporate world, both professionally and romantically. Ms. Kinsella looks at another aspect of women -- white lies and secrets. Everyone has them and most know the code -- if she say size six, it's an eight. Both novels are set in London, but the universal truths that both Becky and Emma face could be happening in the cube next to me. Ms Kinsella also has a website filled with fun quizzes and information about the two series she pens.

How to Blog and Not Lose Your Job

By Random Acts of Reality Blogging at work is something that fascinates me. I love this London's ambulance driver's response to people who blog at work and think nothing of it. By the way, this is an excellent blog. I really enjoy his writing style and thoughts.

Grisham's Latest Offerings

The Broker begins with the normal hooks that John Grisham fans know and love. The story setting description makes me want to jump on the nearest plane and head off to Italy, to experience the culture and live a little. The ending, however, is typical of his work since Painted House. It leaves me hanging for more thinking that the resolution isn't really there. My husband has the same dissatified feeling after he finished the book too. I miss the early days of his work with the die hard ending, whether it was the one you wanted (The Rainmaker) or the one you didn't (The Chamber).

The Secret Life of Sororities

Last month I read Pledge by Alexandra Robbins. As guessed by the title, the book is a study and discussion of the effect of sororities on women, their fraternity brothers and the campuses that host them. Ms Robbins takes her readers through one year in four young women's lives. Each at a different stage in their college careers, each from different ethic and social backgrounds. While the stories are individual voices, their experiences line-up with one another, easily illustrating the similarities of the experience. While I was in college the first time around, I toyed with the idea of pledging to a sorority. At that particular campus they were a minor part of the college experience and I decided against it for a few reasons -- fees, requirement to live in the house, the attitude of the person who gave us a tour, and no one else I knew was interested. I have to wonder if that small college in the backwaters would have prompted the same experience. The study Ms Robbins performed took place in Texas, where being Greek is expected of most college students. Definitely worthwhile to read. I was excited to see that I could find out what else happened to the four main characters by visiting the website but disappointed to see that I needed a password, which was easily accessed in the book, provided that I had not returned it to the library. I'll have to reserve it, look-up the last word on page 183 and come back to the site. Unless, of course, one of my readers decides to do the same.

Deciding on Being a Grown-up

One of the biggest decision ever made in life comes at the tender age of 17 or 18 during college and major selection. The decision can be put off or changed, but if delayed the pressure only continues. Mike Davidson of Mike Industries.com has great advice for those who want to be web designers. Man, I wished I had this sort of thing about seven or eight years ago when I was trying to figure out what to do with my life. This is some great advice. Instead I decided to go a different route in a company that has no career development for my particular role. So as I forge my own way, I searched for and found this interesting handout from the Council of Logistics Management. It has helped me think about where I want to be in five, ten or fifteen years. Things have changed a bit since I was a kid and the choices were doctor, teacher or nurse. I cannot wait until my own children start to wrestle with this decision. Knowing what I do now about careers and option that truly are available is a much better start than what I had. Perhaps it is the difference between where I live and where I grew-up. Either way, I envy the youth today.

Recent Activities

As most Americans, I'm some what out of shape, spend too much time in front of a screen (whether it be a tv or monitor) and not enough time being active. Tell you what, keeping up with two mobile kids is taking its toll. I decided that since my employer is nice enough to let me out of work by 4 pm most days and the time of darkness by 4:30 is past, I would take up a new activity -- bike riding. My biggest problem was the age of my bike combined with toting around one of the afore mentioned small children on daily basis. A trip to Wheel and Sprocket quickly put an end to whatever misgivings I may have harbored. The last time I bought a brand spankin' new bike I was living in a tiny town in the back woods of South Dakota and thought Roxette was the coolest band in the world. Things have changed. My new bike has shock absorbers on it, folks. Do you have any idea what shocks are like on a bike? It makes the river-side trails enjoyable. I didn't get a mountain bike, but a hybrid called a Navigator. It has some of the great things about a mountain bike (bumpy wheels that are great for gripping) combined with the smooth racing bike (quick shifting and light weight). The staff was fantastic. When I walked it, I'm sure I didn't look like the normal bike enthusiast. But the salesman (who's name escapes me. Sorry, but I do know that he is really the head mechanic) was patient with our questions, explained the differences, asked what I'd be using the bike for and recommended the appropriate safety equipment since I would also be hauling a child carrier. I've taken my bike out about four times in the last two weeks, each time riding for more than 3 miles, usually closer to 6 or 7. It has been a fantastic way to explore the city. I live on the west side of town, near West High. This prime location makes many of the trails along the creek and river readily available. While sidewalks and busy streets are a necessary evil that I am adjusting to, I love these trails. So does my riding buddy, comfortable and cozy from his perch in the carrier, while guzzling his cup of chocolate milk. If you see someone who might be me, say hi.

Winner of the Best "Oshkosh Blog" Award

The Best Website contest has ended and I've won best blog in Oshkosh! I'm honored to have been nominated and hope that this contest helps people to see what else is going on in Oshkosh. Maybe some of the readers will even be inspired to start their own blog or website. As a means to that end, I will be teaching a workshop as part of the library's teen workshop series over the summer. The theme for the summer is "Express Yourself" and my portion will cover blogging -- the basic set-up and HTML that I use in my own blog. See the library for further details.

Bookworm Report, March 2005

Sorry about the bit of time off from blogging, but I figured you had enough of book lists. For the month of March, I read 3,634 pages or 11 books. In 2001, I read 5,047 pages/20 books; 2002, 1,819 pages/5 books; 2003, 562 pages/2 books; 2004, 1,881 pages/5 books. March

• Secrets of the code : the unauthorized guide to the mysteries behind the da Vinci code by Dan Burnstein
• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three
• Shopaholic & Sister by Sophie Kinsella
• Faking It by Jennifer Crusie
• Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult
• The Broker by John Grisham
• The Artemis Fowl Files by Eoin Coulfer
• Pledged by Alexandra Robbins
• Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie
• Wanted: One Groom by Pat Ballard
• Can you Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella
• The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

For the year, I've read 22 books, or 7,271 pages, which averages to 7 books a month, or 2,424 pages per month, and an average book length of 331 pages. Stay tuned for the reviews of the books!

Online Dictionary for Translation

Ultralingua.net has got to be the best place I know of online when searching for words in other languages. For instance, with the above search I needed to know the Italian for blue. I got it in noun and verb form (the color blue and to color blue. It was so great.) I use simple translations like this in my writing. I'll leave you to guess why I needed to translate blue to Italian.