Busy Binge-Watching

I have found myself wanting deeply engrossing tv lately, so I have been on a run of watching intense foreign mystery series on tv over recent weeks. It's funny -- often my preferred escapist viewing involves lighter fare, but lately I've loved the feeling of getting lost in serious, intense mysteries. Here are ones I've watched and can recommend highly:

Broadchurch -- David Tennant (you might recognize him from Dr. Who) stars in this series about a cynical, exhausted detective arriving in a small English coastal town just as a young boy's body is discovered. The search for the boy's killer, and its effect on the close-knit village, is riveting. Seasons 1& 2 are on Netflix, and Seasons 1, 2 and 3 (which picks up with the same people 3 years later) are available on Amazon Prime. I didn't want to leave this village or these characters.

Shetland - Another gorgeous coastal British setting, another complicated detective - recently widowed, trying to sort out his newly single life and an independent teen daughter -- and more grisly crimes to solve. I found the depiction of Shetland life fascinating, but I'll admit that I had to turn on the Close Captioning to subtitle the heavy scottish accents!  There are 3 seasons (all available on Netflix), plus one currently airing in the UK. I loved that season 3 involved a significant subplot involving one of the regular detectives and how crime affects women. Now I've added Shetland to my "Travel Someday" list.

Marcella -  A detective returns to work after taking time off to have her children, only to have her husband leave her -- and to discover that her husband's mistress has been murdered around the same time that Marcella had a depressed, drunken black-out episode. So there's a lot going on -- woman coping with family upheaval, re-asserting herself as a detective, and worrying about the niggling question -- could SHE had committed the murder? I loved this. All 10 episodes are on Netflix.

Bordertown - I started watching this after seeing this billed as a "Netflix original" and was surprised to find that it was totally in Finnish ,with English subtitles of course. Turns out it's a Finnish series imported to US by Netflix -- and I loved it. Another intense, quirky detective, having moved to a small town after his wife has survived surgery for a brain tumor, so the family goal is for him to start over in a job which will give him more family time.  The crimes in this series are kind of creepy -- sexual overtones, young girls -- but it was worth it to get past that to this intriguing combination crime/family drama.  I really enjoyed the sound of Finnish being spoken, too.  The "border town" aspect is that the town is across the water from St Petersburg, Russia, so the stories involve Russion influences too. Fascinating.

Doctor Foster -  This wasn't a murder mystery miniseries but it was an engrossing thriller. Dr. Gemma Foster begins to suspect that her husband is having an affair, which he convincingly denies. Is Doctor Foster paranoid? Crazy? or Perceptive and angrier by the minute? Who is lying to her, and whom can she trust? This series features a strong woman taking strong action -- sometimes bizarre but weirdly understandable, too. Definitely gripping.

Wallander - I'm currently watching this one. Moody, troubled Swedish detective Kurt Wallander is played by Kenneth Branaugh -- looking distractingly slovenly in the first episodes when his life is really a mess.  This series is a British remake of an original Swedish series, and thankfully it's in English. Moody Swedish scenery, cool to see the Swedish home decor, good mysteries and solid acting. Did I say moody? It's very moody.  And a few hints:  someone riding a motorcycle is a bad guy. And the sound of flies buzzing? Dead body. Walking alone in the Swedish woods? Soon to be followed by sound of buzzing flies. You're welcome.

Oh, and there's a young and very curly Tom Hiddleston (from the Night Manager) in the earlier series!

 I'm not tired of these serious mysteries yet, so I've got a few more lined up on my Netflix list:

And I may go crazy and veer off to a legal series --

I'll let you know how they go.  Have you watched anything great lately? What are your binge-watching pleasures?

Give me Celebrity Rehab any day

 
There is one thing about the whole "let's watch Charlie Sheen fall apart on TV" thing that is reassuring and pleasing me. (One thing.  The rest is sad and troubling and just icky.)

It's that I can't bear to watch it. 

And why is that a good thing, you ask?  It's because I have an embarrassing fondness for reality tv.  It's like my own little late night, junk food substitute.  So I tune in to see what appalling things the Real Housewives are up to, I watch Bethenny cope with a new marriage and motherhood and a growing business, and (thank you, Karen) I watch Joan and Melissa figure out how to live together in LA without killing each other.  I regularly tell Roger that, as a psychologist, he needs to watch Celebrity Rehab, because it explains addiction in a way I've never understood before.  That show is horrifying and painful and sad to watch sometimes, but  there's compassion and education and genuine hope grounding that show. (He's not buying that, by the way, and declines my offers to watch it with him.)  I actually don't feel guilty about my love for Project Runway and Top Chef and Work of Art -- those involve watching the creative process in action, and they're just plain fun.  But the other stuff?  It's not exactly life-enriching.

I know.  I don't admit this to many people.  (So you'll keep my little secret, right?)  I just find it entertaining in a mindless sort of way.

I actually do have some standards.  I can't take the mean, conspiratorial competitiveness of Survivor.  I can't take the glorified a-holeness of Dr. House.  (A lot of folks love this show, I know, but it just twists my stomach up in knots to hear how House talks to others.  I used to work with a guy like that, and I think I'm still traumatized.)  And just so you know, my favorite tv tends to be of the PBS and BBC variety.  I'm nothing if not wide-ranging in my viewing tastes.

But I can't stand to watch Charlie Sheen coming unglued on screen.  And turning away from that is a good thing.

Funniest TV Bit, Ever

Guaranteed to make you laugh!

Making a Joyful Noise

I have mentioned here before that I am smitten with Gareth Malone, the choir master and presenter of the BBC series "The Choir" which BBC America has started airing here in the US this summer.  Apparently, I am not alone.  He's a charming fellow, that Gareth.  He's determined to get real people -- kids in school, communities -- singing together, and he speaks energetically and inspiringly about the important positive effects of sharing music.  (I can't recommend these shows highly enough -- they are, I think, the most uplifting things I've ever seen on TV.)

I've been thinking about how I used to love Glee Club back in middle school -- which was the last time I sung in a group, aside from Christmas caroling parties over the years.  I really did love it -- especially the feeling of adding my thin little voice in with a bunch of others to create a really beautiful sound.  And that memory got me looking on the web to see if there were any singing groups in my area for rank amateurs for people like me -- and lo and behold, my very town has a community choir!

So, for the last several Monday nights I have trotted off to sing along with a group of 50 or so other adults who find singing fun.  It was daunting at first -- I feared an audition, which I would surely fail -- but I was reassured to learn that if I could carry a tune, I'd be in.  I spent five minutes alone in a room with the choir leader Betty, who showed me how much better I could sing if I'd just open my mouth widely -- and I found myself hitting notes I didn't know I could hit.  So I now know I'm a soprano (la la la!) and I am seated toward the back of the group (by height and I am tall) next to a lovely woman named Paula who has a beautiful clear and strong voice for me to follow.  

We are preparing for a set of holiday concerts in December, so I am now singing holiday songs all day long.  We've been given CDs with our specific parts on them -- which makes practicing quite easy, really, and I'm finding it especially nice for driving around in the car.  Yep, that's me going by, singing with my mouth wide open but the windows closed so my shrieks don't alarm others AND the bugs don't fly in! 

I have no illusions about being a great singer -- but I am having fun and I come away from each practice feeling very happy and energized.  Thank you, Gareth!

Oh -- and if you don't get the Choir, here's a video of Gareth leading a group of boys (very, very reluctant choir members at the outset of the series).  Watch this and see if it doesn't make you happy!

Colorful Life

Terry's post today about choosing paints and colors made me think about a new TV commercial that Sherwin Williams is airing. It utterly charms me.



Makes you want to go get some paint strips, doesn't it?

The New Digital Frontier

My sister was just telling me about an episode of Frontline that she watched, called "Digital Nation," and I've just tracked it down online and watched it myself.  It explores the way technology is changing how we interact with the world, and whether it's changing our brains as well.  It looks at the internet, blackberries, texting, ipods, googling for research, online games, blogging and video-casting, virtual reality, even military applications.  I was especially interested in how it looked at how technology encourages multi-tasking, and what that means for how kids learn and need to learn.  It's fascinating, and raises a lot of issues about the advantages and disadvantages of technology in our lives. 

The show is online and will stream live on your computer for free, here.  (I watched it via computer while multi-tasking and tidying my office!)  Definitely a thought-provoking ninety minutes.

Web Therapy

In the car yesterday, I was listening to an interview with Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe, from "Friends") and she talked about a web series she's been doing, called "Web Therapy."  She plays a narcissistic therapist who does 3-minute counseling sessions with clients via the internet.  So I had to go  and watch ... and it's hilarious.
Each episode is short (3-7 minutes) so it's the perfect little comedy vignette if you need a break.  (I just love her intro to the show, and how she says "Web THERapy" in that syrupy announcer voice.)

Check it out!

My MVP

My MVP pick from Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl:  Chamomile, the boxer mix.  Just look at those blue eyes!

I'll watch frolicking puppies over football any day.  And the bunny cheerleaders were hilarious, if somewhat comatose.   If you missed it, you can watch highlights here.

For your entertainment?

I have been thinking about Adam Lambert's now-notorious performance at the American Music Awards the other night. I happened to tune in at the end of the show, just in time to see his performance. (If you didn't catch it, you can watch it on Youtube, here.)

I'll confess, I was surprised -- not shocked, not morally outraged, but disappointed and somewhat appalled that THAT was how someone as talented as Lambert opted to present himself to the music industry as a whole and the music fans who watch the music awards. He was making a statement, no question about it -- and that's what struck me. The statement he chose to make seemed trite and tasteless, in an "in your face" sort of way. I expected something far better from him.

There's no question that Lambert was making a statement, trying to define himself as an artist to the widest possible audience. And that's no surprise, either -- having come to mainstream recognition in the family-oriented American Idol context, maybe Lambert felt that he'd been forced to tone down his personal musical style and aim for a softer, gentler middle ground to appeal to the Idol audience. Maybe it's the same compulsion that would make an actress choose to play a drug-addicted prostitute role after gaining recognition for playing a goodie-two-shoes nanny. The shock value of the contrast is a conscious choice, designed to counteract the nicey-nice image. I get it.

Still, his performance disappointed me on so many different levels. The performance was more about shock value than it was about musicality, to my mind, and that in and of itself was disappointing. I thought Lambert's singing and tone was off, so that his usually soaring high notes seemed screechy and out of control. I've read that he didn't perform some of the more graphic or potentially offensive moves during rehearsal, so the show producers were unpleasantly surprised themselves. That seems professionally stupid, frankly, for someone who has been touted as having so much musical performing experience. Is Lambert trying to get the reputation as a risky, unreliable performer? Maybe , in fact, he is. Now he's saying that he had no clue that his performance might be offensive to some. You've got to be kidding.

As for Lambert's response that female performers such as Madonna and Britney Spears and Janet Jackson have aggressively used sexually suggestive moves in their acts without controversy, it seems to me that Lambert is missing a few rather significant points. First, Madonna and Spears and Jackson DID get a lot of controversy for the moves they've made. They didn't pass without comment. It's hard to imagine that Lambert wasn't aiming for exactly the controversy he's now gotten. Second, women have traditionally been viewed as victims or recipients of sexual aggression. The portrayal of women as sexually domineering or flagrant about their sexuality is a very different statement than one that shows men as sexually aggressive. Part of what has made Madonna and Spears and even Janet Jackson so noteworthy is not just the shock value alone -- its that the sexual aspect of their performances has said something bold and new about women and sexuality. There's an aspect of empowerment, a declaration of sexual independence in a way, in what they've done.

So when Lambert says that the controversy he's getting now is due to his being a gay man, I don't buy it. The basest stereotype of homosexuality, probably, is of "weird" men acting out in a sexually promiscuous and "perverted" way. And Lambert's performance, dog collar and leash, crotch thrusts, mimicked oral sex, tongue gyrations, and all, just played into that crude stereotype. Was that his intent? An "if this is what you think gay men are, I'll shove it right back at you" sort of message? If Lambert's point is that it doesn't matter whether he's gay -- which, I suspect, truly doesn't matter to most people -- then why did his performance throw his sexuality out there in such a tacky way?

I don't have a problem with Lambert choosing his musical identity and going with it, full out. It's clear he has a strong sense of himself, which is admirable. As a music fan, and as someone who appreciates his amazing talent, I'm disappointed that the direction he's choosing is one I don't happen to like (I'm not a Gene Simmons and Britney Spears fan, either). But I'd respect him more if the was up front about what he was doing. If he's going to choose to make a strong sexual statement with his music, fine -- but admit it and don't act surprised at the result. Maybe, after appearing to be an experienced professional, what Lambert is showing most clearly is professional immaturity.

I guess a lot of people will be watching to see what he does next, which was probably part of his intention too. I'm not sure I'll be one of them, though.

Birthday Season

Thanks for all your nice emails, guys -- I've appreciated your good wishes. Life stuff is just so ... relentless, sometimes, isn't it? But friends make all the difference.

We are in our household birthday season. We celebrated C's birthday earlier in the week, trying to cope in as "fun" a way as possible while getting a pile of homework out of the way. Today is my birthday and I am celebrating with an indulgent day of sewing, to be followed by a family pizza night in front of Wall-E. Tomorrow we will go out to our favorite sushi place with some friends. And next week is Roger's birthday, which we will celebrate by going into San Francisco to watch the big Chinese New Year's parade.

Fun! Lots of fun!

I am happy to be back at the sewing machine, finishing my "chair" piece for the Twelve by Twelve challenge. The reveal is tomorrow, so check in there to see the results!

Oh! One more fun thing: Don't forget to check out the Animal Planet channel tomorrow for its annual Puppy Bowl, broadcast during the Super Bowl (who wants to watch football when you can watch frolicking puppies?!) It is the cutest, happiest, smile-makingest thing you can imagine. And then some. They do re-air it after the football game in case you want to see both events, and I think they stream it online for some time too.

Have a fun and puppy-filled weekend -- I know I will!

SNL Nailed It!

This is SO worth watching!

Summertime Relaxation

Doesn't this look like a lovely spot for an afternoon of relaxation? Chatting with a friend, reading a novel, sipping iced tea.... This beautiful scene is at the Bishop's Ranch in Healdsburg, California. I swear, just looking at this picture changes my blood pressure and breathing rhythem.

And look at the summery color palette this photos yields, courtesy of Big Huge Lab's "Palette Generator":

I'm heading off for a weekend alone with my husband -- boy is that a rarity! Before I go, a few random thoughts:

I'm so happy that Project Runway is back! But c'mon -- if you knew you were going to be a contestant, wouldn't you think about previous challenges, and have some idea of what you'd do if faced with that challenge? I'd be thinking -- "what would I do if we had to use materials from a grocery store...a hardware store... a florist... a Walmart... a thrift store..." How could those people be faced with a grocery store challenge and have no idea what to do?

I just finished a delightful novel, called "If You Could See Me Now" by Cecelia Ahern. The premise is great: What if there were a group of invisible people whose job it was to befriend kids who need a bit of social support? So when a kid talks about his "imaginary friend," what if those "friends" were REAL, just invisible to everyone but the child? The novel is told from the perspective of such an "imaginary friend" whose perspective on life is amusing and entertaining and poignant. He hates being used by parents ("Fred LOVES broccoli and says you should try it, too!") and he just loves having fun. It's a charming novel, well written.

Now, off to the weekend fun...hope your weekend is relaxing!

I Love Jeffrey Toobin

I've always loved Jeffrey Toobin, legal writer in New Yorker and CNN analyst. But I was proud to be a fan of his last night, when I saw this during CNN's coverage of the Kentucky and Oregon primary results:

And as for that Alex Castellanos guy? Would be be back on CNN as a commentator if he said it was okay to call Obama the "N" word?

Feeling Better!

Thank you ALL so much for your kind thoughts after my surgery! I've heard from old and new friends alike, and it has really cheered me. I so appreciate that you took the time to let me know you were thinking of me!

So! I am coping well with one less body organ, all things considered! I have a fridge stocked with totally NON-fat food, so I can follow dr's orders and give my liver a time to adjust to the lack of gallbladder assistance. I have discovered an amazing dark chocolate gelato (the brand is Massimo) -- totally NONfat, only 70 calories for a half cup, even, and just a few spoonfuls totally satisfy the chocolate urge.

Tomorrow, I venture into normal jeans and actual driving and seatbelt wearing. (I have been protecting my tender abdomen, as you might guess.)

But I did enjoy the drugged fog, I must admit. I did a fair amount of reading -- the best of the lot was The Senator's Wife by Sue Miller. I've been watching (via Netflix) "The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard," a BBC/Masterpiece Theatre Series about an ordinary grocery store manager who decides that anyone else -- even SHE -- could do a better job in government than the sorry candidates who end up in a fistfight in front of her store... and she launches a campaign to make government accessible to ordinary people and becomes Prime Minister just 8 weeks later. It's very charming and rather resonant, with current political events here at home. I've also started over with Season #1 of The Gilmore Girls... if that's not cheerful, fun, recuperative tv, I don't know what is.

A gorgeous bouquet of spring flowers arrived from my aunt and uncle, and I took the time to shoot a few flowers.



There is something about gerbera daisies that is so cheery, don't you think?

And then there is the always calming pink tulip...

A Day on Animal Planet

This was the view from my windshield as we arrived at the ranch to visit Caroline's step-horses (you know, the two beautiful horses Caroline has been given permission to visit and ride and treat as if they are her own). It was clear when we left our house, but we encountered quite a downpour when we arrived.

Pygmy goats don't come out in the rain, but they're still curious.



And, as usual, there were kitties huddled everywhere, staying dry.



Eventually the rain stopped, so Caroline got in a bit of horse loving and grooming.



From there, we went to my sister Laura's for the late afternoon and evening, leaving Roger to watch the Superbowl in peace. But we had a better time: watching Animal Planet's Puppybowl! If you have never seen this, you must follow the link and click on the video to watch some of the puppy highlights. Basically, they show puppies tumbling around a tiny football field space, romping and biting and stumbling all over themselves. It was wonderfully entertaining, and the half-time kitten extravaganza was hilarious, too.

C'mon, what can possibly be as cheering as watching puppies romp and kittens play?

The Red Jello and Gingerale Blues

I couldn't find any clever pictures to illustrate the way I've spent the last several days ... shuffling miserably between the bed and the bathroom, aching and shivering with a rather unpleasant flu bug. This thing came along quite suddenly and I'm only now feeling that I can eat a few soda crackers and drink a mug of broth without feeling queasy. Ideal for pre-holiday weight loss, but other than that, NOT GOOD.

Before that, I had two days of serious Christmas shopping... the result of which is heaped in a pile on the far side of the bed with a tablecloth spread over it all so curious eyes won't look. Normally I sort and hide everything quite cleverly, but what with sudden nausea and such, I simply couldn't deal with it.

When I felt ready to venture out of the bedroom, I did make it down to the family room couch to lie around and watch movies. Perfect. I watched Michael Moore's "Sicko," which has me ready to move to Canada... "Love Actually," which I'd seen before but forgotten I'd seen before (and I'd forgotten it took place at Christmastime), "Bewitched" with Nicole Kidman which I found charming and fluffy and just perfect for a fuzzy sick head... and best of all, I stumbled onto an all day marathon of America's Top Model which I'd never seen and which, in this state, fascinated me no end. (Actually, it did make me realize that modelling may be much harder than it looks.)

You can tell I've put my sick time to good intellectual use.

So. I'm hoping to get back to something akin to normal tomorrow. We are late getting the tree up (although all of the other holiday decorations are up) so that will happen tomorrow afternoon after Caroline's riding lesson. Then, stomach and bowels willing, Caroline and I will head up to Sacramento for my best friend Beth's annual cooking baking party on Sunday. I may just park myself in a corner (away from the cookies) and watch. We'll see.

I hope you all have been having festive holiday fun. And wash your hands often, people!

A Miscellaneous Sunday

It's a quiet Sunday morning, and I'm upstairs sipping my coffee and reading blogs while Caroline is still dozing and Roger is downstairs reading the Sunday paper and watching the political shows, as he likes to do. We're having fogging mornings here these days, and I love waking up to a big of chill in the air. I'm ready for fall.

Not much quilting activity going on here, as I'm catching up on work. At least the project on my plate these days is one I particularly like-- scripting questions for depositions of witnesses. I sift through the papers in the case, outlining lines of inquiry and identifying exhibits to ask the witnesses about. It's a bit like playing detective, and putting puzzle pieces together and coming up with questions that will help form them into a complete picture.

Yesterday I did take a break to watch an episode of The Quilt Show, the online show produced by Ricky Tims and Alex Anderson. If you've not seen one, it's worth checking them out. I'm fascinated by their direct approach to reach quilters -- if tv networks aren't going to make it happen, they're going to do it themselves. Admirable! The show I watched yesterday featured Denise Labadie showing her gorgeous quilts of Irish stone structures and demonstrating how to paint fabric to get wonderful rock-like effects. It looked like fun.

And that reminded me that in my Practical Design workshop, we were asked to select "artist mentors" to study. The idea is that we can refer to the artist's work or method or style when we're trying to solve problems in our own work. I chose Andy Goldsworthy, as I love so many things about his work...its basic simplicity, its use of natural elements, its use of very basic forms and shapes to create art of stunning beauty. Denise Labadie's fabric painting method looked like it would be fun to experiment with and then fiddle with constructing some images inspired by Andy Goldsworthy. Ah, another exploration for another day...

We're currently enjoying watching Mad Men on the AMC channel. It's the story of an advertising agency in the early 60's, and it's really enjoyable. Mostly, I just love WATCHING It... the clothes, the decorating, everything is so exactly right for that era. It's my childhood, really. The personal dynamics between the men and women are fascinating too...how the secretaries in the office are treated as sexual objects and decorations, with the men powerful and seemingly invincible. The tone of the show is very evocative.

Okay, back to work for me....

What I''ve Been Watching

For the last several months I've been totally uninterested in what's on TV, but over the last few weeks I've had time to discover that there are some cool things worth watching.

I tuned in to see the first few episodes of Saving Grace, the new TNT show starring Holly Hunter. I like Holly Hunter in pretty much everything, which is what caused me to tune in...and although I was startled at first by the toughness of Holly Hunter's character and the explicitness of the show at certain moments, I'm hooked. Holly Hunter plays a cynical Oklahoma City police detective who is emotionally scarred by the death of her sister in the Oklahoma City bombing and who copes with her pain with drinking and sex and living a pretty wild life. At a particularly low moment in her life, an extremely unlikely angel appears... it's God's way of giving her a second chance, maybe. She's not religious, in fact she's pretty sacreligious, but she's trying to figure out how to reconcile what's happening to her. The show has depth and humor and great acting and intriguing drama. Definitely worth a watch. In my area, it's on Monday nights at 10pm... and it looks like you can watch episodes online for free here.

My sister mentioned that she'd tuned into watch Starter Wife with Deborah Messing earlier this summer, which was a 6-episode mini-series, and that she really liked it. I was regretting that I'd missed it after her report, when I discovered that all of the episodes are available on Itunes for download. So, I've watched 4 of the 6, and it's a hoot. Think Desperate Housewives, only smarter and wittier and with better acting. Deborah Messing plays Molly, wife of a big Hollywood studio exec who is figuring out who she is and how to cope in Hollywood once her husband dumps her for a young Brittney-esque pop star. The dialog is funny ("I've managed EVERYTHING for him all these years...and with PERFECT hair!") and the plot is taking some unexpected twists and turns. Judy Davis is in it too, a brittle, rich best friend. This is definitely great entertainment. And it looks like USA channel will run all of the episodes in a Starter Wife marathon on Wednesday, August 22. (You don't need an Ipod to watch Itunes shows, either. Itunes is a free download and then you can watch the show on your computer.)

During my weekend alone, I watched "Catch and Release" starring Jennifer Garner. A cute but not great girl movie. Perfect late night viewing/hand sewing accompaniement.

And okay, I'll confess that I was downright excited that Tori and Dean: Inn Love just started its second season. I know, I know, it's celeb-reality junk but it's fun junk. Their new baby looks just like Aaron Spelling! The same little round baldish head! And I'm pretty amused at how Tori Spelling has a funny sense of humor about herself, even while living the rich-girl-tries-to-figure-out-normal-life stuff. Running out of money? Business going broke? Hey! Time to go to London (with the nanny, of course) and stay in a luxury hotel.

Hmmm, maybe I'll watch Starter Wife, episode 5 tonight if I can stay awake...

A Scrap Bag Day

We're getting ready to head off for another week at Lake Tahoe...aren't we lucky? This time, it's the annual vacation with Roger's siblings and their families. We mainly hang out on the beach and watch Caroline and her cousin Dash catch crawdads under the pier. It occupies them pretty much the entire time, which is nice for us grown-ups who generally just want to sit and chat and read.

Anyway, it means the last few days have been errandy, chore-ish days. But I've got scraps of things to say before I head off:

1. Look! Crowded House has a brand new cd, called Time on Earth. I love Neil Finn and Crowded House so I had this on my Ipod in a shot. I'm looking forwarded to listening to it over and over again....hm, maybe in the car on the way up to the lake...

2. Recently, someone (Sorry, I forget who ... Deb, maybe?) posted a blog entry about The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. I put it on my library request list (I adore how my library lets me request books online) and it arrived yesterday. I started it at bedtime last night, and it's LOVELY. I want to read it slowly to savor the writing and the atmosphere but I want to zoom ahead to see what will happen. And best of all? It's a book about books and people who love books. I LOVE books about books... you know, like the Bookman's Wake and other Bookman novels by John Dunning, or the mystery series about book seller Dido Hoare by Marianne Macdonald. To whomever it was that posted about this book: THANK YOU! It's just what I was in the mood to read right now but didn't know I was in the mood to read until I started it.

3. Which reminds me that I'm about to receive the new novel by Stephen L. Carter, called New England White. I loved his previous novel Emperor of Ocean Park, which was a dense, cleverly plotted story about a law professor tracing his father's history and encountering mystery after mystery.

4. After last Christmas Eve's matching PJ's for the family was such a success, I decided that it'd similarly amusing for the whole crowd at Tahoe. So, thanks to Pajamagram.com, I've ordered matching pajamas for the entire crowd. I mean, there we are for most of a week, sitting around every evening to play games or chatter or read. Can you just picture a bunch of people doing that in matching pajama? Goofy, I know, but it amuses the heck out of me. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find pajamas that ranged widely enough (ahem) to fit everyone from male and female kids to the matriarch of the family, so I had to resort to one style for the females and another style for the males. Close enough, and still sufficiently matchy to be ridiculous which is what I'm aiming for. Fortunately, this crowd has a pretty good sense of humor so I think it'll be a hit. I'll keep you posted.

Relaxation ahead...for you all, too, I hope!

Random thoughts

It was a hodge-podge weekend around here. And in keeping with that theme, here are some miscellaneous things on my mind:

1. Did you know you can get a great deal on replacement rotary cutter blades on Ebay? I need new blades, and was going to send off my used ones to that guy who sharpens them...but I nixed that plan when I learned that even that costs $3 per blade. There are lots of deals on Ebay where you can get brand new Olfa replacement blades for around $2 per blade. Bargain!

2. In the new guilty pleasures file, I have just discovered "Tori and Dean: Inn Love" on the Oxygen channel. I find this show hilarious, and mostly unintentionally so. It features Tori Spelling and her new husband as they move "to the country" (ie, Temecula) from LA to open a fancy, cool, trendy bed and breakfast and live a "quiet" life. There are lots of vastly entertaining moments, where the rich city girl discovers life as normal people know it. ("What? There aren't any restaurants that DELIVER?") I think I find this so amusing because it reminds me of my college dorm experience, where I lived with a bunch of girls straight from Beverly Hills High School. I remember writing home to my mom within the first few weeks that I'd met a girl who didn't know how to make her bed. And frankly, Tori seems a lot nicer and more practical (in a very impractical sort of way) than the girls I knew.

3. I got to watch the Kentucky Derby while I was mid-way through Dick Francis' newest novel, Under Orders. I felt like a racing insider with all my Dick-Francis-acquired racing knowledge. I looked at the race in a very different way.

4. I'm listening these days to a lot of Alice Peacock. If you don't know her, she's sort of a cross between Sheryl Crow and Sarah McLachlan. If you want to sample her music, go here and scroll down to listen to a few songs. My favorite right now is "I'll Start with Me," which is a wonderful political statement that I find inspiring. And check out "Parallel Life," and "Leading with my Heart."

5. A little boy in our neighborhood, age 6, keeps dropping in to see if Caroline can play. The funny and rather adorable thing is that he pronounces "C" as "T." So, when asking for Caroline, he says "Tan Taroline tome out and play?" He's a very articulate kid, in terms of vocabulary, and he's really earnest in his delivery. He stopped by the other day, when Caroline wasn't home, and said "Tell Taroline I won a tontest!" Cute, cute, cute.

6. It's hot today, supposed to be up in the 90's. I think this means grilled fish tacos for dinner. I'll grill some fish and serve it with chopped lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, and spicy ranch dressing. And maybe there'll be a margarita involved too.

Happy Monday!