Breakfast Around the World

I'm sure I'm probably missing some great writing opportunity in not exploring breakfast types and rituals in my fiction, but I always seem to write those types of details similar to the ones I know. I guess when it comes down to it, I'm really not that much of a 'foodie' (even though I do like my desserts), and in my fiction, I find other plot devices to be much more exciting than eating...

Really, out of all the works I've written (17 published, some ebook and some with ezines; and countless others unpublished), only a handful of them include food:

• There was my flash piece, "A Simple Need to Eat," but do vampire meals really count?
• Frog makes -- or rather, tries to make -- himself a cup of tea in "A Slip of Wormwood," but then again, that's not really a meal.
• In "Prophet's Choice," Lyra stays in an Inn for a while, with lots of eating going on, but on second thought, I don't think she actually eats...
• "Collecting Dreams" has a lot of eating in it, supernatural and natural alike! :)
• And in my upcoming release from Quake, "Requiem," there's a scene of your typical teen breakfast of cereal & milk.

I hear "Requiem" will be coming out very soon -- sometime in October, so you'll have to watch for that. And just because I'm cool ;-), I'll let you read the blurb early:

Hattie Locke has a gift: when she sings, the dead dig themselves from their graves to listen. As a death-siren, her life has always been this way.

Then the dead begin to show up in numbers far beyond expected. With each song she sings, they grow pushy and demanding, rushing the stage to reach her. Trapped in a place where her dreams of music become her nightmares, Hattie is left with nowhere to turn.

But then she meets a boy, who promises freedom from her curse.

Now Hattie wonders: is ridding herself of her voice worth losing the music she’s lived to create?

And I promise: the rest of the story is going to be a whole lot more interesting when Hattie isn't eating her breakfast. ;)

So with that, I'll leave you; the rest of this month I'm going to be traveling around the web for my Rise of Gothic Blog Tour. It should be fun! :) Next week, I'll be blogging at Echelon Shorts, so don't be shy -- c'mon over and say 'Hi.'

Some competition for Ray's the Steaks?

Pay no regard to my failed attempt (in the comments) to implore Michael Landrum to open an enormous Ray's Hellburger in the Marriott Residence Inn, right across from Ray's the Steaks.

Instead, apparently Fire Works restaurant is coming. What is it? I have no idea. Here is the blurb from DCmud, The Urban Real Estate Digest of DC:

"Fire Works will occupy approximately 5,500 square feet at the street level on Clarendon Boulevard and open up to the Western end of Courthouse Plaza for patio dining. The 240 seat (160 indoor, 80 outdoor) restaurant will offer upscale casual dining featuring local, fresh and organic ingredients and is expected to open in Spring 2010."

Supposedly it's the same Fire Works as Fire Works Pizza in Leesburg. Anyone been? Is it any good? Should Faccia Luna be worried?

But my dreams haven't been crushed yet--there's still over 3000 sq ft of retail space available. Michael Landrum, are you listening now???

Thanks LB for the link!

Learning all about fables...

Year 3C have been busy learning all about fables and even got the chance to act out a popular fable, The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Through acting out the story, they were able to understand how the different characters felt and wrote sentences to show these feelings. They did a great job.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

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Mr. Cusack.

Maybe I Should Get a Dog Named Snoopy

I love hats and admire anyone who can wear one with panache. This is because hats do not love me. I don't have an especially round face, but once I put on a hat, I look like Charlie Brown. Style does not matter. I can try anything from a cowboy hat to a Fedora, a stylish beret to the All-American baseball cap, and the result is the same. All I need is the yellow shirt with the zig-zag stripe along the bottom.

Hats seem to come in and out of fashion, and after looking at this year's threads-to-be-seen-in, especially at the junior high and high school level (because isn't that what everyone emulates in the end, anyhow?) I'm not sure hats are in this year. Nevertheless, I know that right now, except while in the classroom where I have a feeling all headwear is banned, someone out there has something for his or her head to be clapped on when the dismissal bell rings. And it will make him or her look positively dashing. I would have been green with envy in high school and still am now.

Come winter, because my ears freeze and my head hurts if I don't, I will be wearing something on my head when the temperatures drop below freezing and the wind-driven snow takes my breath away. A few years ago, my nephew (the one who does works in the video gaming industry) was sporting a knit cap with a bill on it and I fell in love with it. His mother (my sister) gave me an identical cap for my birthday. My nephew promptly stopped wearing his. I guess skater caps aren't as cool when your aunt puts one on to shovel snow.

At any event, I haven't given up on hats. I just ordered one from my wonderful Avon lady (no kidding) and a picture of it is at the top. It looks comfortable, it looks fairly warm at least for autumn, and it matches nothing I own. Although I suppose it would go just great with a yellow shirt that has a zig-zag stripe on the bottom.

Being Right When Nobody Will Listen

Modern history is strewn with the carcasses of women who died for their cause.

This is not their story.

This is the story of a man whose life was also laid down to advance the lot of women. His name was Ignaz Semmelweis, and his name should be better known than it is, because women out there, everywhere, owe him big time.

Incidentally, "strewn with carcasses" is a good way to start this story, because Semmelweis was a doctor in a time when medicine wasn't too advanced. In the 1830s, a time before antisepsis, anaesthetics, germ-theory, or any of today's medical trimmings and trappings, Ignaz made his way from his native Hungary to study medicine in Vienna. By 1846, he was the head of Vienna's General Obstetric Hospital, where, incidentally, maternal deaths averaged at about 10% of admissions. They all seemed to display the same symptoms; a high fever, abdominal swelling, and skin pustules. Semmelweis wrote that he was perplexed by the death rate - even women delivering in the streets were dying less often than women in the clinic. But by 1847, he had discovered something brilliant - and unprecedented.

A colleague of old Ignaz had cut his hand whilst conducting an autopsy, and within a few days died with the same presenting symptoms as the mothers in the clinic. So Ignaz Semmelweis concluded that "cadaverous particles" carried on the hands might actually be causing the deaths. He instituted a policy which was to see him hounded out of the medical profession: compulsory hand-washing in a chlorine solution.

Within a few months of his policy's implementation, two things had occurred in a noticeable fashion. Firstly, women were dying at radically lower rates - the death rate had dropped from 10% to less than 2%. Secondly, Ignaz's popularity and credibility had plummeted. Many doctors considered the idea that they carried disease-causing particles on their hands to be both nonsensical and the highest form of insult. Semmelweis was dismissed from his post at the hospital in 1848 on the spurious accusation of political activism, and openly ridiculed by the medical profession to the point where he returned to Budapest.

As his credibility wore through, so did his sanity. Semmelweis began writing angry letters to anyone who would read them, and eventually published in 1961 a book of "Open Letters" lambasting the entire medical profession as well as many famous individuals. In the last decades of his life, he became a man obsessed. All conversations were turned to childbed fever. He began stopping unknown couples in the street and tearfully begging them to ensure, should they ever have children, that the doctor washed his hands. He began drinking heavily and visiting prostitutes. Some believed that his brain may have been succumbing to syphilis.

Eventually, in 1865, he was sold out. A colleague persuaded his wife to allow Semmelweis to be committed to a mental institution, where he was subjected to beatings, placed in a straitjacket, and administered laxatives and enemas in the customary style of the day. A slight wound sustained in a beating from the guards turned gangrenous, and in an ironic twist which would be glorious were it not so terrible, Semmelweis died from precisely the disease he had spent his lifetime attempting to beat; septicaemia.

Had he only lived a little longer, Semmelweis would have seem himself vindicated by history. With the work of Pasteur and Lister, germ-theory became accepted and the sensible policy of handwashing made compulsory practice. Semmelweis' name now graces a university, a museum, and several medical facilities, whilst his visage has graced European coins and postage stamps. In Hungary he is known as "the saviour of mothers". Oddly enough, the psychological catchphrase "the Semmelweis Reflex" is sometimes used to denote the kind of knee-jerk reaction people take to things that fall outside their accepted frame of reference.

I guess the take home lesson here is that it's hard to be right when nobody will listen. Ignaz Semmelweis was by no means the first person to find that out (just ask Socrates), but his story is particularly ironic and painful because he wasn't actually asking that much. The man lost his life and his sanity because people didn't want to wash their hands.

So, like I said, we owe him big time.

Stomach Obstruction How Long To Live

Force Diesel U Music Festiva

Sometimes being a groupie has its rewards, and one night it is even more true if the TRE MEN Shake DO daddy pulled the roll and the school you across the face backstage. Of course the music was at the height of generalized buenrollismo VIP bracelets and copazo by pin flew as part of the tone of the night, that, with this crisis that grips also appreciated.

The absolute owners of the night were Alexis from Hot Chip, who knew how to mark the rhythm of the night by clicking the perfect music in each of the interludes, WAG, who despite seeing his attempt to shed truncation of pants by the organization managed to screw it brownish getting the public in the pocket, and The Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt!, which ran with crowds during and after their performance, and they knew precedence over technical problems with an A CAPELLAZA how only the most large (RIP) and I could do so. About Digitalisim and Crystal Fighters are going to have to ask another, because one can not have it both ways.

All without exception were the most treatable even rabble of my ilk in and out of backstage, making the night one of the most authentic eventazo for we knew we ride well. Grasias Diesel, about how next Saturday?

www.twitter.com / lawinehouse

Tiggy and Selection Day

This is a painting done for a friend whose little dog, Tiggy is very special.

She's quite elderly but I am greeted with such enthusiasm by both her and her 'sister' Abby.

I just love Tiggy's whiskers and the way she looks so poised, almost as if she was deliberately posing for the photograph.

Yesterday (Saturday - it is now early Sunday morning here in SA) was a hectic day. We had our society selection day for our Annual Exhibition which is held at the Sanlam Hall in the beautiful Kirstenbosch Gardens. I am on the South African Society of Artists (SASA) committee and besides running around from one end of the hall to the other, was responsible for the computer work! Me, who's not that fantastic with computers, is deemed to be the computer expert! Oh dear.

It all went very well even though it was a long day and we had just short of 600 paintings submitted, a record. The judges were put through their paces, and it was a fascinating experience watching their marks. There are three judges and each judge gives his or her own mark without knowing what the others are doing. Apparently this works in England and we have adopted it here.

I was lucky enough to have one painting submitted, my still life, but the other two didn't make the cut. Maybe next year.

Where The Wild Things Are

Childrens classic, Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963), has been turned into an amazing feature-length film to be released OCT 16. Considering the cast, Chris Cooper (love him!), James Gandolfini (quite different from Tony Soprano!), Catherine O'Hara (one of my personal faves) and Forest Whitaker (Super actor!) and a real Max (Max Records), how can this be anything but a hit?

I'm sure there will be skeptics. Can a film come close to the quality of a Caldecott Medal (1964) book? I have four words for you: Lord of the Rings. I still remember the anxiety I had sitting in the theater waiting for the first installment, The Fellowship of the Ring, to begin. As soon as Gandalf appeared on screen, maneuvering his wagon along the road to Hobbiton, I knew the movie would be superb.

In this digital age, I can only imagine the fun of bringing Sendak's illustrations to life. Here's the trailer for a sneak peek.

Some would argue that Sendak's books are too dark for children. Do you agree, or disagree?

What favorite book of yours has been adapted to the big screen? Were you disappointed or ecstatic with the results?

Mary Cunningham

I'm proud to announce the release of Book Four in the award-winning series, "Cynthia's Attic" will be released by Quake (Echelon Imprint) DEC 2009! Buy the first three books on Amazon and pre-order "The Magician's Castle." Echelon Press

Two Items of Interest

If you live in the DC Area: You can buy tickets to see one of your favorite Food Network stars this November doing a demo, or maybe go to their book signing. I'm still on the fence, but I'd looooove to see Paula Deen. It's tough, because I definitely make more Giada recipes, but I just want to give Paula a big hug like she's my grandma. I reaaaally want to go to her restaurant in Savannah. <3 No one even sent me an e-mail asking me to advertise this (and I ignore them all anyway!) so it's just a PSA for those of you who live on FoodTV/HGTV like me. This photo of Paula is from the event web site!

If you live in the NJ/NY area: Discounts in New Brunswick for Friday Night Date Night offer a STEAL at some area restaurants, including the fancy-shmancy deliciousness that is The Frog and the Peach. I probably can't get from DC to central Jerz fast enough on a Friday afternoon to enjoy this, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't. Mmmmm, cheap(er) food...

Coming soon, blogwise: Ridiculously amazing brunch dish at Poste, revisiting Beck, first look at Kora (from Chef Morou of Farrah Olivia), and Eamonn's.

Culture in Writing

Using different cultures in stories is one of my favorite parts about writing. As a writer, it makes the story exciting for me and therefore I hope you as well.

In my first novel, "Thomas Riley", the countries of West Canvia and Lemuria are at war. As you get into the story, and if you've ever visited Europe, you might notice that West Canvia bares a striking resemblance to The Netherlands and that Lemuria shares some traits with Germany. If you read the story, note what characters are drinking, what the buildings look like, their clothing, armaments and flags... There are little clues about the different cultures spread throughout the story.

To me, creating a mythos in writing is crucial to the story line. Being a huge fan of the TV series Lost has been inspirational in the deep and sometimes cryptic plot devises that I use. Who says you can't learn from television? I love the idea that a reader can look up a name, a place or a character and get additional hints on what the real meaning might be. This is of course geared toward the more hard core fans of anything, but to me it completes the story as well as gives the story limitless options and depth.

What inspires you to add other cultures in your writing? I want to hear what inspires you.

Nick Valentino wrote a Steampunk novel called Thomas Riley, which will be out on Echelon Press in October.
Check out the blog here.
Click here to enlist as a Canvian Sky Pirate and get free stuff.

Postcard: Before you leave New Jersey...

I know. Every time you leave New Jersey you are crying too hard to imagine stopping for a nice meal. But if you can hold it in until you cross the Del Mem Bridge, then stop around Exit 8 off the Turnpike for brunch at The Blue Rooster.

This place is cozy. And yes, I mean small, but I also mean adorably squishy and cute, and you want to cuddle on the windowsill seat with a girlfriend and drink tea and eat sandwiches for hours, later picking out a cookie from one of their MANY delectable baked goods. The house was built in 1850! Their selection of teas is impressive, and if you're around for tea time you should definitely stop by.

My omelet was cheesy, tomatoey, and spinachy, and not the least bit dry. I could tell this cheese was the real thing because when you took a bite of omelet, you tasted CHEESE, not a flavorless gooeyness. The special pancakes of that day were grainy, wheaty, and all around delightful. But the best part was the jam...OH the jam. Basically, blueberries in their natural state doin' their thang (being awesome). By the end of breakfast I was eating the jam with a spoon, and I'm not ashamed. So whether it's baked, cooked, sauteed, flipped, brewed, or jammed, it's delicious at Blue Rooster. And you'll get a piece of chocolate before you leave :)







The Blue Rooster Bakery & Cafe
17 North Main Street
Cranbury, NJ 08512

Kaylee and Killer Kali

I've been in love with the strange and unusual all my life so it's no stretch for me to delve into cultures and myths beyond those I was raised with. In fact, I find learning about all the fun creatures that populate fables and fairytales around the world to be pure entertainment, and inspiration.

When writing School's Out 4Ever, the sequel to DFF: Dead Friend's Forever in the Extreme Hauntings series, I knew this time I wanted the haunting to reflect the different cultures represented in the melting pot of our nation. Anyone who's ever had a history class knows the whole world helped settle the U.S. back in the day.

This time I borrowed architects from Europe and a pretty awesome creature from Hindu mythology, Kali. In my book, she's a misunderstood goddess of destruction and death. It was fantastically fun to merge this belief with Kaylee's world of angels and demons.

What are some of your favorite creatures?

J.R. Turner is the author of the Extreme Hauntings series. The first book, DFF: Dead Friends Forever is available at Amazon.com, Kindle, Fictionwise, and Echelon Press.com

Old House in Lisbon

This is for Bill Guffey's challenge this month - Lisbon. I searched and searched and eventually found this old run down looking farmhouse type building (and yes, it is in Lisbon) that I thought was rather nice to paint.

I struggled a bit and feel it's not quite as I would like it, but I've sent it off anyway.

Another problem is the photography! My trusty old camera died. So now I've had to use a 'cheap and nasty' that my sister has. But that's no excuse, I just took lousy pictures! So if it seems a little bit blurry, it is, don't check your specs.

5000 Units Of Heparin In 1ml Insulin Syringe

THE STAR IN MY COFFEE

While the muse is not with me tonight or at least I fail to listen to so many thoughts in my head This is the first post of NEW BLOG and therefore in this first post I share this moment ... in a life full of eternal and second perfect moment, the changes I've experienced the last few months have meant moments magical moments that make everlasting desire to preserve the perfection of harmony.

Last May, after awakening from a pleasant dream with absolute certainty what happened, a blood sample confirmed that the dream shared by Alex became a really beautiful: I'm pregnant.

Today, almost 9 months of marriage I have now almost 5 months of happy and healthy pregnancy ... 5 months of pregnancy a wonderful and magic that brought a star reflected in my coffee every morning.

The letters began to be restricted by what I learned is that ... nothing was more necessary to feel my belly, nothing is more pleasant than knowing I am responsible for another being, no post, no text, no chapter may be advanced most wonderful dream your eyes and feel their movements. Anyway I live surrounded by words and phrases and ideas fed so I could not get away for much of my old passion points. Now that I have resumed reading obsessive, compulsive writing and constant composition, the wisest course was to begin this space, away from my most beloved Chronicles of Anagnorisis to share another anagnorisis; giving life. This deserved a new and unique space.

Anagnorisis Chronicles will remain, my fairytale alternative is part of me, I'm part of it and will remain so for a long time but now I will also be part of it, this magical space devoted to this perfect moment .

Today

then start this new blog, a blog different from my most beloved Chronicles. A blog is not intended to keep my head explodes due to a number of ideas generated, a blog that not only seeks to preserve this moment as you can keep sóbloletras. Keep the feeling that everything is However, the scent of coconut cream and bamboo, the skin smooth and refreshing moisture from showers, blow raindrops on my body and constantly changing set ... these letters claim to preserve the magic that you can now play and the miracle that can be felt.

know I'm not the first pregnant woman but certainly I recognize that I am the center of a perfect universe, illuminated by starlight reflected in my coffee and the glow of the moon. It starts here.

TICKETS CONCERNING THE NEXT STEP IS MAGIC IN:

LA ESTRELLA EN MI CAFÉ

Pop Culture

Pop Culture… Let me see…

For me, I guess the question is how pop culture is derived. I mean, how does a person, or a song, or a fashion statement suddenly rocket to the top of everyone’s list and become a part of our pop culture? Is there a magic touch? Is it totally random? Is it simply a matter of people trying to keep up with the times and following a trend?

Pop culture defines who we are. It reveals what our current likes and dislikes are as well as our previous likes and dislikes. And it is everywhere around us. Magazines, books, movies, songs, artists...

So here’s a question I want to pose: What do you think describes pop culture? Suppose someone comes up to you and asks you that question, what immediately jumps into your mind? A face? A definition? A song? Something else entirely? For me, it’s music that pops into my mind, but everyone one is different. So what about everyone reading this?

Welcome all Y3C students back to school!

Welcome back to John Bramston Y3C. I can tell we are all going to learn so much this year. To get you started, how about you try out this game I found. Let's see how good you are at number bonds of 10! Please leave me a comment and tell me if you liked the game. Mr. C.

Click here to play the number bonds game.

Knights of the Guild Podcast Ep 8 pt1

Knights of the Guild Episode 8 Part 1

Show Notes:

Here it is Episode 8 part 1 of Knights of the Guild. We hope you enjoy it.

Today’s show features:

• First up we have our monthly Vorkism.
• Our location today is at Gamestop as we wait in line for the new expansion game The Spiers of Dragonor.
• We talk about Season 3 and have some fan reactions to the first 2 episode that have aired.
• We have some Guild news about the two season box set and the comic book.
• We interview crew member Jay about his experience working on season 2 & 3.

• We find out what the actors and crew are up too.
• We have a special report from Dragon*Con
• We thank our Donors
• Mention important links
• Mention our recent Contest winners
• Then we have our final words and we say goodbye.

Please send your audio or written comments to knightsoftheguild@gmail.com or you can leave your comments in the comment section of this site.

Thank you again for all your support, we do this podcast because we are fans and more importantly for the fans.

Kenny & Jenni

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/
• Knights of the Guild Fan page on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group
• Knights of the Guild Group on Watchtheguild.com http://community.watchtheguild.com/group
• Knights of the Guild Livestream Channel http://www.livestream.com/knightsoftheguild
• Follow us on twitter @knightsofguild

• Knights of the Guild Cafe Press Online Shop : Where you can buy KOTG T-shrits, magnets, buttons and so much more. http://www.cafepress.com/KOTG

• Robin on Movie Mobs http://www.reelzchannel.com/moviemob
• Legend of Neil http://www.effinfunny.com/legend-of-neil
• The Guild http://watchtheguild.com
• Geekerdome Network http://geekerdome.com
• Between the Lines Studio Podcast Network http://Betweenthelinesstudio.com
• The Variants http://thevariants.com
• Melts in your pocket http://meltsinyourpocket.com
• The Night is a Child http://www.pasadenaplayhouse.org
• Conquest http://www.youtube.com/Conquestguide
• Sacramentjoe http://sacramentjoe.com
• Memories of the Futurecast http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/books/memories-of-the-future-volume-one/
• Memories of the Futurecast http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2009/09/memories-of-the-futurecast-episode-one.html

Podcast Promo’s played during the show this week:

• Waffle on
• Tuning into Sci fi TV
• Anomaly
• Take Him With You
• Treks in Sci Fi
• Worlds of Wayne
• AppyTimes
• Turning Left at Albuquerque

Cup Cakes

I don't often do the paintings from Karin's blog because I always seem to be so slow - never finishing in time to send to her.

But these cup cakes were irresistible! To paint, that is. I don't really like cakes of any kind to eat - I find them too sweet. I prefer salty and spicy foods and love the food of the East, from India through to China.

I know many of you are going to think I'm nuts for not liking these sugary delicacies, but that leaves all the more for you out there!

Remolding - Day Seventeen

Today we got up early, packed up the truck and headed to the house. Once we were done unpacking the truck we went inside house and started to clean the new floor, we did the TV room first and started to lay down brown paper over the work so nothing get's on them. We then cleaned the dining and living room floors and noticed that they still looked white and sure enough it was dust, so we cleaned them for a second time and ran our finger across them and still got dust on it. We think we need a better mop as it's going to take a few more cleaning before we finally get them looking great. We then moved onto painting. While I taped up the rest of the kitchen Harry went into the office and sanded down some spots that he had spackled yesterday. Once he was done with that he went back into the kitchen and started putting a second coat of paint on the window area in the kitchen, while I painted the walls above the ledge. After we had finished that we pulled out the fridge and painted behind the fridge as well. Now the kitchen is completely done !!!

Next on the agenda was the Entrance. After I taped off the walls Harry started painting the remaining wall the same blue accent color that we had used in the dining and living room. While he did this I was busy with some touch up work in the kitchen and started taping off the beams in the living and dining room. After Lunch Harry put a second coat of paint on the accent wall in the Entrance.

Once we were done with that we turned our attention to the 2 beams. While I painted the major surface of the 2 beams with the roller, Harry used the ladder to do the trim. But all our hard work paid off.. we finished painting the living and dining rooms, both hallways, kitchen, pantry, entrance, TV room and Guest Room.

Tomorrow we will be taking a day off, but on Wednesday we’re back painting !!

The King is Dead … Long Live the King

When Michael Jackson died, it only marked the temporary death of a culture that thrived longer than most. The Pop Culture was always trivialized as being trivial, bubblegum, if you will. But it resonated with people because well, we’re trivial too. Just call us bubblegum people.

And when I say pop, I’m not talking about Dad … or soda-pop … or soap bubbles. Pop was about popular, in that the masses identified with it. Fun, not too intellectual, pop culture was people, so its music, its ideals, its essence was that of the people. Pop was us, and we won’t go away.

Sure, we couldn’t all dance like Michael Jackson … we couldn’t all sing like Michael Jackson, but he was all of us. He was black, he was white, he was male, he was … uh, maybe something else … who knows really. But he typified the times with fun, catchy songs that stayed in your mind until your brain was ready to bleed.

And we couldn’t get enough. When the tributes to his live started pouring in, sales of Michael Jackson stuff soared, as we remembered, or in some cases, discovered his ground-breaking songs, videos and trends. We all threw away a glove, and pulled out sequins so we could emulate our fallen idol.

Well, maybe you did – I didn’t. But I would have if … well, no, I wouldn’t have worn a sequined glove on a bet. Or maybe I would, if the bet was high enough, but I wouldn’t have let anyone witness it.

As writers, we have to take culture into account. When I wrote my first young adult book …

… what young adult book, you ask? Thanks for asking, Fang Face – get your humor vampire goodness now!

(sorry, commercial break over).

… anyway, when I was writing Fang Face, I had concerns about the culture of teenaged kids, which overlaps almost seamlessly with popular culture. Was I writing a book they would identify with? Was it a slice of their lives? Kids aren’t stupid. If the book didn’t resonate with them, they’d know it and would respond as kids will - by ignoring it and letting it die.

So I asked a teen to read the manuscript, and this turned into an entire school studying Fang Face as a class project. I was invited to come in and talk to them about the story, characters, plotting and other stuff.

Can you imagine a better think-tank for a teenaged book?

You can’t ignore culture when you’re creating for the masses, be it bubblegum pop music, books or that green stuff growing in your tub. More specifically, you can’t ignore teenaged culture, which epitomizes what’s popular in society as much as anything. Teens drive the commercials you see on television, placement of merchandise in stores, art and music more than any other demographic of society.

So when you say Long Live the King, I say long live the Teen.

Norm

Norm Cowie

http://fangface.homestead.com

Teatro Goldoni

Once upon a time I went to Teatro Goldoni for a cute lunchbox-like lunch. Since bento boxes are apparently all the rage right now, I was reminded of this lunch.

The goods: Salad, cheese cannelloni (like manicotti--I'm really not sure there's a difference), salad, mashed potatoes w/baby spinach, protein (I had salmon, guest had two teensy scallops), and chocolate amaretto flan.

Overall I thought this was a great portion size for lunch, and quite reasonable at around $12 or so. There definitely could have been a slightly larger piece of fish (this photo is practically to scale--it was miniscule) and less in the pasta category. The cannelloni was very rich and cheesy, but good. Some might find it a bit much for lunch, but I never turn down something gooey and cheesy (and edible...I don't want to eat your gooey cheesy sock). It was tasty. My one suggestion is to put the flan on a separate plate. I know, it's cute to have the dish with all the seperators, but the thought of a stray flake of salmon hitting my flan was not appetizing at all. And I'm all about mixing my foods, so that's saying a lot.



I had heard that if you order the lunch special at the bar it comes with a glass of wine. I was with my supervisor from my internship, so suggesting it didn't seem appropriate. BUT it's ALMOST where I decided to go for my birthday for that very special. Instead we went to Java Green because--well, because it's awesome. It's [Rice and] Beyond, you could say.

So, K streeters, next time you are sick of Peacock Grand Cafe and the other minimal pickins in the area, know that you have a friend (and very friendly service, I might add) at Teatro Goldoni.

Teatro Goldoni
1909 K Street NW
Metro: Blue/Orange Lines to Foggy Bottom or Farragut West; Red Line to Farragut North

Remodeling - Day Sixteen

First thing we did today was head to Home Depot... We had to pick up 15 more boxes of laminate hardwood flooring, 1 can of paint for the living room, paper to protect the hardwood floor, painters tape and some cleaning supplies. We spent another 1100 bucks at Home Depot. Once we were done shopping it dawned on us that we had brought my Jeep instead of Harry's pickup truck. We managed to fit all the stuff we had bought, but it was quite a tight fit. Once we got back home we put all the supplies in Harry's truck and used the remaining space to fill it up with stuff that had to go to the house as well. We got to the house around 2 pm.

Once we had finished unpacking the truck we checked on the progress that our contractor had made. They had managed to get about half of the floor in the dining room done and it was looking AWESOME. We then had a quick bite for lunch and then jumped into painting.

I first taped off the remaining walls in the Kitchen. Once that was done I then started painting the remaining walls above the ledge while Harry started painting the walls around the window in the kitchen. We really like the color and it’s already hard to imagine what the kitchen looked all white. While we were doing that our contractor made a lot of progress with the floor and had sanded down the texture wall in the office.

After finishing up with a few minor touch ups in the kitchen Harry and I went to work in the office. By the time I tapped off the one wall and windows we were only able to get a little bit of paint on the walls as night was falling and there is no light in that room. Danny and his helpers stayed a few hours late so they could finish laying down the laminate hardwood flooring. They got about 99% of it done, still have a few things to complete but it looks great. We now have a beautiful hardwood floor in the TV-Room, living and dining room.

Tomorrow Harry and I are back for more Painting!!! We are sooooo over painting..

I will keep you guys posted on the progress !!

Video Blog - Flooring goes down

Remodeling - Day Fifteen

Today Harry and I got an early start. We got up around 8 am and started packing up the truck. After that was done we headed to Home Depot to pick up more paint and a new painting poll, since Harry broke one yesterday. By 10 am we had reached our new house. The first thing we saw was a little out of the ordinary, the garage door was open. So as we got to the front door I asked Danny our contractor if he had opened the door.. he said yes..because he had brought to more worker and they wanted to start working on the hardwood floor, which is in the garage. This was unexpected news as we didn't expect the floors to go down until next week. So we quickly went inside to see the progress.

They had pulled out the carpet in the TV-Room and started laying down the Hardwood Floor. Our contractor had also made some progress in the Office and the Master Bedroom with re-texturing the wall and he had made substantial progress re-tiling the fireplace.

After checking out all the new construction work, Harry and I started putting up a second coat of paint in the Pantry. Once that was done we started painting the kitchen. When we opened the paint can I wasn’t quite sure about the color. This is the color that Harry wanted on the walls. So we put a little of paint on one of the kitchen walls. I looked at it from several different angels and still wasn’t quite sure if I liked the color or not, neither was Harry. When the color finally started to dry we were happy with it. But it's defiantly not your typical kitchen color.

For lunch we ordered pizza from a local pizzeria and expected that what you usually get in LA. There were 2 surprised with that. First one pizza was about 25 bucks and the second surprise was the size of the pizza. That thing was huge. All five of us barely finished one pizza and we had ordered two, so there are plenty of leftovers.

After Lunch Harry and I finished up painting the first coat on the kitchen walls between the counter top and the ledge. Once that was done, we pulled the tape off the pantry and inspected the quality of our paint job. There were a few places where we had to do touch up work. Once that was accomplished we checked the paint job in the kitchen as it was already dry, so we started putting up a second coat of paint. While we were doing that Danny, our contractor started ripping out the tile in the Entrance. By the time Harry and I were finished with the second coat of paint in the kitchen our contractor had almost completed laying down the floor in the Entrance.

After the the contractor had left we pull tape off in the kitchen where we no longer needed it. Not quite sure what happened, but we had to do quite a bit of touch up work. After that we finished the final wall in the dining room (at least the first coat).

It was around 8pm and we were exhausted so we headed home for the day.

15 days of painting and not an end in sight.

Is this the right building?

The end of summer was a big moment for me. The day before school started I kept thinking to myself This is it...this is the last day I'm not a highschooler. I figured I'd walk into my school building the next day and fall over from how different it is.

I didn't fall over. I went to my locker in the morning. I chatted with friends before homeroom. I went through the "welcome to this class" speech six or seven times. I read more than five course syllabuses. I got achy shoulder muscles from carrying a backpack around all day. And then I got home and thought, What was that?

It wasn't the infamous first-day-of-high-school I'd been anticipating. It just felt like school. Except there was more walking, more backpacking, and more gum-chewing than middle school. I also didn't have as many classes with my friends, and I didn't know everyone's names.

High school didn't start feeling like high school until the next evening when I went to the football game. I had a blast as I watched my friends in the marching band, and our team won by a landslide. That got me in a school mood as much as tile floors and rows of desks--maybe even more so. The next Monday I was able to somewhat match my day with the words "high school". Now I'm starting to get into the routine, and I think I'm looking forward to the next four years!

(Sorry this post is a bit early, I'm hardwired to school-night routine and therefore am pretty tired!)

-Kieryn
My YA novel, RAIN, will be available from Quake in 2010!
www.kierynnicolas.com
www.kierynnicolas.blogspot.com
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No Painting Today

Today we stayed in our rental as we had Bill (owner of our rental) bringing over a few people who are interested in renting the house. We still have quite a bit of packing to still do. So attempted to finish packing up my toy room. I have done a few hours here and a few hours there but only made a dent. This time I jumped in and packed up about 98% of it. All that is left are some books and that room will be done. We only have a few more things to pack. Most of it is daily stuff that we use and won't be packed until the day before we move.

Our Family Got Bigger

Today in Austria our family grew. My sister-in-law, Harry's sister Greda married Bernd. I wish them all the best.












Herzliche Glückwünsche

9/11

Eight years ago that horrible event took place that changed The United States forever. Today I will take a moment of silence to remember all those we lost.

Remodeling - Day Fourteen

Today we headed out to our house around noon and got there around 1.30 or so. First on the agenda was the a short video for Harry's sisters upcoming wedding (tomorrow). We had come prepared with a speech, but that didn’t make the video any easier. Harry got a kick out of the screw ups, especially me trying to say Congratulations in German. Harry thinks that the ‘Making of the Wedding Video’ is way funnier than the video itself.

Once that was done we continued painting the pantry which went fairly quickly. After that I put a second coat of paint on the trim in the hallway, while Harry started to put the first coat of paint on the remaining wall in the dining room. He couldn’t finish the upper half of the wall since he had broken the long painting pole. So in order to finish the rest of the wall we will have to buy an new pole first and more paint.

Will this every end!!!!!