Raising a glass to new beginnings

I keep complaining (mostly internally) about not getting enough writing done, and about not writing consistently.  This past weekend, I typed over 7500 words.  The problem, if it is really a problem, is that everything was written for an audience of one.  Audience of two might be more accurate sinceI keep rereading what I wrote.  Over the course of today, I wrote another thousand words which will likely never be read by anyone but me.  (In this case, that's a good thing.)

7500 is a lot of words for a not quite forty-eight hour period.  Respectable at any rate.

Somewhere in either a NaNoWriMo or Script Frenzy conversation, I read about wasting one's word count on writing other than the project at hand -- chatting, e-mailing, posting to various social networking sites, sending text messages -- and I realized that when I really get going, either due to concentration or because I get really emotionally fired up about something, word count isn't the problem.  The problem is where I channel it and how I use it.

Some things can't really be helped.  Those probably fifty e-mails I send every day at work, for example.

Other things shouldn't be helped.  Writing in my journal is cathartic for me.  It helps me figure things out and work through problems and deal with various emotional crises and conundrums (conundra?).  I have set up a private blog or two in the past where the posts can only be viewed by select, invited individuals.  I think that kind of writing is good, too.  It tends to be the most creative writing I do that someone else sees.  That particular audience has disappeared, however.

The time has come to broaden my writing horizons, and my audience.  I'm not much of a social butterfly.  I'm a nerdy little hermit who tends to worry about being noticed by strangers, but even in my tiny little corner of the world, I know that there are a few people listening, so maybe it is time that I speak up and let my voice carry just a little farther, and maybe a few other people will hear me and think that what I have to say is interesting.

Or not.  But I definitely won't know if I don't try.

There are certainly plenty of opportunities and possibilities out there.  I have heard rumors of Camp NaNoWriMo.  And I have a Script Frenzy screenplay I have never finished.  As well as the first nanowrimo novel.  I could finally figure out how to write rpg characters, maybe even become a dungeon master if I decide that I like it.

A good bit of what I write might still stay hidden for a while, but in the meantime, I am going to take another shot at blogging.

After all, as Julie Powell says in Julie and Julia, "I could write a blog.  I have thoughts."

Connections and Discoveries

There was a time when I read pretty much nothing but books about books -- novels about books, to be more specific.  I am pretty sure that it started with The Little Country by Charles de Lint and went from there.  Every once in a while I would mix it up with a non-fiction sort of book about books, such as So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson.  I found novels and mysteries and fantasy and chick lit.  I have read a pile of such books, and there are still plenty on my "to read" list.  The novel I started writing the first time I participated in National Novel Writing Month involves books.

Phases like this are extremely common for me.  I find something that I like -- a genre, a game, a hobby, a musician, a style of clothing, a food, a television show or movie, a historical period, even a person -- and become, well, obsessed.  I immerse myself in the subject until I am practically drowning or until something else comes along and attracts my attention.  I keep wandering through my various interests with varying degrees of enthusiasm, adding new ones along the way.  Eventually I might even become fairly well versed in a subject.

Some time after I had read a bunch of books about books, I encountered the title Alligators, Old Mink and New Money, and I was off learning about vintage fashion.  Target Underwear and a Vera Wang Gown followed, along with a few others.  Last year's reading list saw a reappearance of vintage fashion with A Vintage Affair and Dreaming of Dior, and since books/stories about fashion which are not art/coffee table books more focused on the photos than the text, I have been on the lookout for another "vintage" read.

Today's trip to the bookstore introduced me to The Secret Lives of Dresses by Erin McKean, and it turns out that I have encountered Ms. McKean before.  She is the founder of worknik.com, of which I am a fan, and the author of the blog dressaday.com, which I came across at some point after reading Dreaming of Dior.  It was like seeing a familiar face in a crowded room or learning something completely new about a longtime acquaintance.  It's fun.

The first twenty pages or so have me interested in reading more, especially since the protagonist adores vintage clothes but feels out of place trying to wear them, even when they fit and suit her, and ends up reverting to her t-shirts, comfortable jeans and sneakers.  I feel the same way.  I love fabulous, stylish, couture and vintage clothing and shoes, but the view always seems better from the outside than when I look in the mirror.

The day's other discovery is that Dame Judi Dench has written a memoir.  I'm generally not much for the stories of famous people I don't know, but I can't imagine that Dame Judi doesn't have some fantastically witty and insightful observations about life.  She has performed on stage, screen and television and done everything from Shakespeare to Fleming (as in Bond, whom she takes delight in referring to as "a sexist, misogynistic dinosaur" -- yay!).  In the process, she has won every award given for such performances.  She clearly loves her work (even if she doesn't love everything she does), and I am excited to find out what she has to say.

Chronicles of Narnia, part 1 (and 2)

There are spoilers in here for those who have not read the books or seen any of the film productions.

So far so good.  At first I was wary of this whole "reading order" idea, but as soon as I read The Magician's Nephew, which is about the creation of Narnia, I understood.  (The religious themes and undertones which have always eluded me are much clearer as well.)  I finished The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe last night and am about to start The Horse and His Boy.

Now that I look at it, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe should probably be The Wardrobe, the Witch and the Lion as Lucy discovers the wardrobe first, then Edmund meets the witch, and only when they are all in Narnia do they (and the reader) meet Aslan the lion.

The first time I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, I was in second grade, and I remember the book being incredibly beautiful and magical and heartbreaking.  I wanted to have tea with Lucy and Mr. Tumnus.  I despised Edumund for his allegiance to the witch and wasn't nearly as willing to forgive him as his siblings were.  And my heart broke when the witch killed Aslan.  I remember seeing it all so clearly in my imagination.

This time around, however, I had to work harder to conjur the images.  The story seemed so much simpler (not to mention shorter).  I can't decide if it is a factor of growing up (or at least getting older) or a result of knowing the story fairly well already.

Further bulletins after I read more chronicles.

(And I haven't forgotten about Rostropovich.)

Howl's Moving Castle (first the book)

As part of my anime education, I received a dvd of Howl's Moving Castle as a Christmas gift.

Reading the credits on the back of the box informed me that the Hayao Miyazaki film is based on the novel Howl's Moving Castle by Daina Wynne Jones.  I had heard of the film, and I had heard of the author, but I had not heard of the novel.  As I have wanted to read something by Ms. Jones for some time but had simply not made a selection, I decided that this was my chance, and picked up a copy from my favorite haunt.

By the time I had made it through chapter two, I was convinced that this was yet another instance of finding and reading the right book at the right time.  The literary stars aligned, and knowing better than to ignore the signs, off I went on a delightful adventure.

(It turns out that there are two other "Howl" books -- Castle in the Air and The House of Many Ways.  My local library had both of them, so I can continue my exploration when the time comes, but I decided to begin at the beginning.)

Sophie Hatter is the eldest of three sisters, and she is left to work for her step mother (who is by no means wicked, although perhaps a bit self-centered and exploitive) in her father's hat shop after her father passes away, and her sisters are sent off to apprentice, one to a witch and the other to a bakery.

Despite a gift for trimming hats, Sophie's life is frightfully dull and sheltered until one day she displeases the Witch of the Waste, who turns Sophie into an old woman as punishment for her honesty.  (She tells the vain witch that a particular hat to which she has taken a fancy does not suit her at all.)

Afraid to face her family and tell them what has happened, Sophie strikes out on her own.  On her way out of town, she rescues a dog who is tangled in a hedge and rights a fallen and somewhat dilapidated scarecrow.  (Pay attention.  These things become important later on in the story.)  When night falls and she finds herself out in the cold, Sophie takes refuge in the moving castle of the wizard Howl, who has a reputation for eating the hearts or stealing the souls (the stories are never quite clear) of innocent young girls, a fact which would have terrified Sophie as the young woman she had been but does nothing to deter her as an old crone as she seeks out a comfortable seat beside a warm fire.  Besides, in addition to the comfortable seat beside a warm fire, Howl might be able to lift the witch's curse.

Once inside the castle, which turns out to be far less impressive on the inside, she talks her way past Howl's apprentice, Michael, and befriends -- well, strikes a bargain with -- Calcifer, the fire demon who is bound to Howl and living in his fireplace.

Yes, I understand.  It sounds a bit far fetched -- an old woman striking out on her own and preferring to take her chances with wizards and demons than stay with her own family, but Jones infuses Sophie with a great sense of purpose and determination, even if she is not entirely sure of her direction or destiny, that you can't help but be on her side both to support her on her journey and to follow her to see where it leads.

Besides, that is just the beginning.  There are kings and princes and other wizards and lady loves, and it turns out that the same witch who put the spell on Sophie (who can't tell anyone about it, by the way) is after Howl as well, which is why Calcifer has to keep the castle on the move in the first place.

The elements of an entertaining story are all here -- a varied and engaging cast of characters, complete with mistaken and confused identities, and a plot rife with plans (good and evil), accidents, mishaps, magic, mayhem, and a bit of romance.  There is even a visit or two to a mythical place called Wales, where people travel by loud horseless carriages and children entertain themselves with magical boxes plugged into walls.

The ending itself works out well, even if the final approach to it becomes more than a little convoluted.  I had trouble keeping track of characters' goals and motivations, especially the hidden ones which I got the feeling I was somehow expected to figure out before the final revelations, but I have never been good at that sort of thing.  The solutions to mysteries are often a surprise to me, but then I don't put a lot of time and effort trying to get to the end before I, well, get to the end.  I read to be told a story, not to second guess one or write it myself.

The next bit of fun will be to see what Miyazaki's film adaptation has to offer.  Stay tuned.

Culinary alchemy

What the recipe said:
1/2 c red wine vinegar
1 1/2 to 2 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp white or black pepper
1 1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp French Dijon or yellow prepared mustard
1/2 tsp thyme
1Tbsp honey

Combine ingredients, whisking or blending together well.

What I did:
3/8 c red wine vinegar
sea salt (did not measure)
white pepper (did not measure)
1 c extra virgin olive oil
4 or 5 tsp prepared Irish Stout mustard
A little bit of honey (maybe 1/2 tsp)
A few shakes of a Mrs. Dash onion/garlic/spice mixture

The way more mustard was to balance the entirely too much vinegar.  My first taste test made my eyes water.  The little bit of honey was a test to see if sweetness would balance the vinegar a bit more quickly than the mustard.  And the Mrs. Dash was because the first recipe called for some herbs, and I thought "Onions and garlic go well with mustard, so in we go!"

I reduced the oil and vinegar because I didn't want to make too much (as I tend to do when following a recipe), especially if it didn't turn out.

The reason for the experiment in the first place was a general lack of salad dressing in the house.  A fantastic side benefit was that the dressing was fairly thick and was delightful over asparagus -- a reasonable substitute for or alternative to the trickier to make hollandaise sauce.

My first attempt at homemade salad dressing was definitely a success ... and I discovered that a lot of the same experimental principles of cooking apply.  Choose your own salad dressing adventure!

A bit more depth and breadth to go with the previous post

Things I want to do or finish this year, from general to specific, and in no particular order.  I am not big on New Year's Resolutions, but it can't hurt to have some sort of plan.

1. Read LOTR.  Yes, I am a geek and a nerd, and no, I have never readLOTR.  I made three attempts to read The Hobbit.  I tried to watch the Peter Jackson films, and couldn't make it through the first one, but I am learning about role playing games (specifically Dungeons & Dragons), and the references and influence are everywhere.  I think that it is time that I find out and understand what people are talking about.
2. Read The Chronicles of Narnia.  I read two or three of them a long time ago, but never finished the entire series.  Watching the new Disney films makes me want to go back, reread and finish, in part to compare to the film offerings and in part to simply enjoy the stories.  (I am not particularly interested in the religious themes, perceived or otherwise.)
3. Learn about anime (and manga).  It's a fascinating art form which has eluded my interest for some time, but then someone introduced me toCowboy Bebop, and I became intrigued.  It's not nearly as isolated an art form as I thought it would be, although I am not sure why I am surprised.  References I have come across mean thatNeuromancer by William Gibson and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick (in graphic novel, novel and film form) have moved further up the reading list.  I have discovered anime based on Shakespeare and Dumas and Kurasawa, and I discovered that Howl's Moving Castle was first a book by Diana Wynne Jones before Hayao Miyazaki filmed it.
4. PMP certification -- at least the training.  I am not as sure about taking the exam and completing the certification because I am not sure if it is something that I really want to do and/or maintain and because I am not certain the the work I have been doing for the last four years really qualifies as project management.  (The online course I am going to take should help in that respect.)
5. Possibly find a new job.  Depends on how number 4 goes.
6. Read x number of the fabulous cookbooks I have on my cookbook shelves and try y number of recipes from each.  X and y need to turn into actual numbers, but I am making this list somewhat off the cuff, and the cookbook library is not nearby, so this item will require future expansion and clarification.  I received a lovely book about soups as a Christmas gift, and books by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid and by David Tanis have been beckoning for a while.  Making flatbread on unglazed kitchen tiles definitely needs to be on the list.  I think that one new recipe a week might be a reasonable goal.  Also, I have a lovely collection of recipes from family and friends which I have begun compiling in a cookbook so that they are easier to find, use and share than they are on recipe cards and photocopies and in folders.  I want to finish the cookbook this year.  (I am using blurb.com if anyone is interested and thus far am quite impressed with the application.)
7. Clean out the storage unit.  I am down to the hard part as most everything in there is stuff I want to keep, but don't really have space for in the house.  It has been two years, however, and I wanted to get it done in one year.  Actually, I wanted to get it done in six months, but I knew even at the time that that idea was just plain silly.  Some tough love is definitely called for.  As a corollary, but I don't think quite deserving of its own item, I need to get the stuff off the porch and organize the whole upstairs better.
8. Largely due to a buy one, get one free sale (and a few other coupons/deals), I went on a bit of a graphic novel buying binge, so I have a nice, healthy stack.  I should get those read.  I might even try to go back and finish reading Batman: Hush, which I put down after a shocking revelation and have never picked up since.
9. Use the Wii.  I finally got my own little tv, and a bunch of games for Christmas, so I should play with my fancy, expensive little toy.
10. Write.  I did better last year with the blog than I think I ever have, so I need to keep the progress moving forward.  One of last year's quasi-goals was to write something about every book I read and every film I saw.  It only sort of worked, but it makes for a good starting point.  April can be Script Frenzy, and November is National Novel Writing Month.  There is an unfinished screenplay which needs work, and the beginnings of two novels which could do with some serious attention.  The web site writers.com offers a number of courses which intrigue me, and that might be a good summer project, depending on their schedule.
11. Read.  Related to 1, 2 and eight, not to mention the reading challenges I have signed up for, but my basic goal of a book a week remains the same.
12. Knit.  I started several projects intended as Christmas gifts, and only one got finished.  I need to finish the others.  I also want to finish the fabulous sweater coat which I started ages ago.  My mother has received two scarves thus far, and likes them so much that she wants an afghan.  I don't think that is a realistic 2011 project for a number of reasons, but I'll put it on the radar just for fun.

Twelve months in a year, and twelve projects/goals.  Not exactly a one for one sort of setup, but a bit of symmetry or balance.  Sounds like a good start to me.  Time will tell how it goes.

New year, new list, new plan, new post

Well, here it is, January 1st once again.

I am not big on New Year's as a holiday, but it is a delightfully convenient benchmark.

A new year means that it is time to start a new reading list.  Since I have yet to achieve it (although I did get closer last year with thirty-four), I think that I am going to stick with the same goal of a book a week.  I am going to mix it up just a bit -- or perhaps give the plan just a bit more focus -- by participating in at least one reading challenge.

While I have never been much of a horror fan (although I think that more of what I read qualifies as horror than I think), I have become a definite fan of urban fantasy.  Last year saw me reading quite a bit of urban fantasy written for young adults and finding it at least as sophisticated and engaging as anything I have pulled off the main science fiction and fantasy bookshelves, so I see no reason not to continue the trend.  Therefore I am joining Book Chick City's Horror and Urban Fantasy Reading Challenge 2011.

She also has a Mystery and Suspense challenge that I am going to join because I used to read quite a few mysteries but got away from doing so as I discovered various sub-genres of science fiction and fantasy (i.e. steampunk and urban fantasy).  I think that it will be a challenge to get back to it, and it will also be interesting to find titles which qualify for both challenges.

Even if none of the titles cross over, 24 urban fantasies and 12 mysteries sets a goal of 36 books total, which is 2 more than my 2010 achievement and thus a good starting point.

I also think that it will be just as much fun to see what books from other genres distract me from these two challenges.

There are plenty of other book challenges out there, if urban fantasy and suspense aren't your thing.  Start here: http://novelchallenges.blogspot.com/ or do a web search for reading challenges.  Or start your own.  It will be fun.

Enough blogging.  Time to start reading.

Vintage recipes - the good, the bad and the ugly

A number of years ago as a Christmas gift, my mother gave me folders full of family recipes.  (And by family I mean chosen family as well as blood relatives.)

Some are typed. Some are rewritten (as in copied out by hand).  Some are photocopies of the recipe cards which still live in recipe boxes.

It's a wonderful collection, just not very organized, so I decided in this age of modern technology and self-published that I would collect them all into a cookbook to share among family and friends.

I have just finished typing one stack which comes from the family of a dear friend who passed away almost five years ago.  (I think it has been that long.  My mother can correct my faulty memory.)  Even in this relatively small collection of 19 recipes, there is impressive variety, even though most are dessert related.

Some, like the Turtle Cookies, inspire me to make them right away even though I am no good at baking cookies.

Others, like Elsie Rich's "Good Salad," make me blink in wonder as my stomach gurgles in protest.

I share them below for your fun and amusement.  Enjoy!

Turtle Cookies
1/2 c packed brown sugar
1/2 c margarine or butter, softened
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
pecan halves
8 caramels, each cut into fourths

Cookies
Mix brown sugar, margarine, water and vanilla.  Stir in flour and salt until dough holds together.  (If it is too dry, stir in 1-2 tsp water.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  For each cookie, group 3-5 pecal halves (split if necessary) on ungreased cookie sheet.  Shape dough by teaspoonfuls around caramel quarters.  Press firmly onto center of each group of nuts.  Bake until set but not brown, about 12-15 minutes.  Cool.  Dip tops of cookies into chocolate glaze.

Chocolate glaze
1 c powdered sugar
1 Tbsp water
1 oz melted (cooled) unsweetened chocolate
1 tsp vanilla

Beat ingredients until smooth, adding 1 tsp of water at a time if necessary.

Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies.


Elsie Rich's "Good Salad"
6 oz pkg of raspberry Jell-O (or strawberry or cherry)
1 1/2 c water
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 c cottage cheese
1/2 c nuts
1/2 c chopped celery (Chef's note: "Not part of the original recipe.")
8 oz carton of Cool Whip

Dissolve Jell-O in part of the water which is boiling hot.
Add the rest of the water as ice water.
Add all other ingredients (except the Cool Whip).
Stir well.
Put in fridge until it starts to Jell.  (Love the spelling.)
Fold in the Cool Whip.

A bit of perspective

Kill one man and you are a murderer.
Kill millions and you are a conquerer.
Kill everyone and you are a god.
                   -- Jean Rostand

Quote of the Day

Courtesy of the inimitable Julia Child, from a letter to Avis DeVoto on January 19, 1953:

"All this chef-hostess stuff is my particular interest ... but it does take practice and experience, so the stuff is really hot, but not over-done, etc.  When we get into 'recipes for dishes,' we plan always to have 'make ahead' notes for everything, including veg.  (I also think the young hostess should be advised never to say anything about what she serves, in the way of 'Oh, I don't know how to cook, and this may be awful,' or 'poor little me,' or 'this didn't turn out' ... etc. etc.  It is so dreadful to have to reassure one's hostess the everything is delicious, whether or not it is.  I make it a rule, no mater what happens, never to say one word, thought it kills me.  Maybe the cat has fallen in the stew, or I have put the lettuce out the window and it has frozen, or the meat is not quite done ... Grits one's teeth and smile.)"

Source: Page 46 of As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto, Food Friendship and the Making of a Masterpiece, edited by Joan Reardon

I have only just started but am enjoying this collection immensely, even if I am having a bit of trouble deciding if I am eavesdropping on a private conversation between these two charming women or have been granted the opportunity to be a silent participant in same.