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Five Facts About Me

Posted in Friday Five, TV on August 7, 2015| 4 Comments »

I am participating in Susannah Conway‘s August Break 2015 on Instagram, and today’s prompt was “five facts about me.” So, ever the overachiever, I decided to narrow my five facts down to random things that I collect or have collected.

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  1. I have an unholy obsession with ramekins. I have at least four different sets. I am not even sorry because 1) they’re cute, 2) they serve as both cookware and serving pieces, and 3) they make individual portions. I have a whole drawer that’s just ramekins and cookie cutters. I hardly ever open this drawer without making some sort of appreciative squeaky noise at the cuteness that it contains.
  2. I collect coffee mugs from various cities. Pictured here are my New York mug and my New Orleans mug (well, one of them). If friends go on trips and feel the need to bring me a gift, that’s my favorite gift to get. And don’t get fancy – I like standard-sized mugs.
  3. I am working on a patchwork blanket made up of knitted squares that I will eventually weave together. This started out as “I’m going to make lots of dishrags” and quickly evolved into “I don’t need that many dishrags – that’s ridiculous.” So…blanket it is!
  4. My favorite wine stopper is a crystal pig. I bought it when I was a member of P.I.G.s, the Performance Interest Group of the Communication Studies department at UNT. I had a brief period of collecting pigs, but that didn’t last long. This is one of the few remaining items from the collection.
  5. And last but not least – the Smallville collection. Or, rather – the Lex collection. One of my first online communities was the Smallville fandom. I participated pretty frequently. I read and wrote fanfiction. I was a member of the Michael Rosenbaum Message Board (MRMB, for short). Best of all, I traveled to meet other fans in person whom I had met online. Some of them actually became pretty close friends. *waves* I don’t have all my Lex paraphernalia, but the Ty Nant bottle (Lex’s water of choice) and my Lex action figure are two of the pieces that have survived.

What unusual collections do you have?

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What I’m Into – July 2015

Posted in Books, Music, TV, What I'm Into on August 3, 2015| 4 Comments »

This is going to be short and sweet. I’m not that into July. Because OMG hot. I’m into July being over.

Y’all.  Y’ALL. You know how much I love Nina Simone.

Well. WELL:

Here, there was originally a great video of Lauryn Hill singing Feelin’ Good on the Tonight Show, but it has been taken down. If you haven’t seen it, you’re going to want to Google it. If you have seen it, you know you’re going to want to Google it again.

God bless Lauryn Hill. I need that album. NEED.

(I will make real sentences soon.)

To watch (other than that video, of course):

My sister and I have been watching White Collar. I just love this show. My heart cannot accept that it was canceled.

I blame the charm of Neal Caffrey for my sudden need to watch old Robert Redford/Paul Newman movies (think The Sting and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) this month.

To read:

My favorite thing I’ve read this month is Tiny, Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed. If I were to be an advice columnist, this is exactly the advice I would give. I have never agreed so fully and adamantly with pretty much everything someone said in a book as I did with this one.

To do:

It’s been a busy month, but I’ve been into the usual things – book clubs, supper club, random outings with friends. I did make time to enjoy this glorious thing:

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It’s a cold brew from Harvest House with a little vanilla bourbon tucked inside. HAPPY.

And that’s pretty much been the month.

I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer – join us and tell us what you’re into!

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What I’m Into – April 2015

Posted in Books, Feast, Fun, Invitation, TV, What I'm Into on April 30, 2015| 2 Comments »

Grieving injustice. Fighting the patriarchy. Talking to the kids about issues, ideas, and intersectionality.

You know – the usual.

Another April down. That’s a relief. I gave it the good college try with the April Love Instagram challenge, but I have missed the last week or so. I sure do have a lot of pictures of blankets on my Instagram. My MeMaw would be so proud.

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Words

It was a slow reading month but a good writing month. I finished the books for two of my three book clubs – Nora Webster and Unbroken – and I read Tara Owens’s Embracing the Body and Lauren Winner’s Mudhouse Sabbath. I enjoyed them all, especially the latter two. I wrote almost 35,000 words on Feast, which was not as many as I wanted, but I’m satisfied and still on schedule to finish in May!

Part of the reason that I wrote more slowly than planned is that I am at the stage of writing where I usually start getting better ideas for titles, which is to say that I’m having a lot more fun with it. What started as simply “Feast” has finally taken on its personality. I am currently sitting at “From Fret to Feast: Entertaining for the Socially Awkward.”

I’ve hosted a couple of people for my Invitation to the Table series, and I would love to host more. Submissions are still open!

Wellness

This week has been consumed with Nepal and Baltimore. There is so much &%^#%@ in the world. I am grieved and angry and anxious and restless, and so is my body. I need to find a way to engage and listen and process and still be able to sleep and keep food down. Haven’t done that very well this month.

Watching

The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Hilarious. And awful. But awesome. I’m not sure how I would feel about it if I had escaped from a cult myself. But I watched the whole season in one sitting.

I have also enjoyed the Felines of New York. As a fan of Humans of New York and cat pictures, I am surprised that I didn’t think of this first.

And last, but certainly not least, there’s this weird thing. I’m not saying that I would actually text a goat picture to someone. Nor am I suggesting that anyone else do such a ridiculous thing. But if I were to get a message with a goat picture and a caption that said something like “Have a goat day,” I would not be sad about it.

…

Please don’t text me goat pictures. It would be funny the first time (okay – the first ten times. I really do enjoy goats.). But I can see it going into overkill very quickly.

I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer. Join us and tell us what you are into this month!

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What I’m Into – March 2015

Posted in Books, Food, Fun, TV, What I'm Into on March 30, 2015| 9 Comments »

Well, it’s here. Spring. My nemesis. And I feel bad talking about how much I despise it, because:

1) People are so happy, and while none of them cared to spare my feelings when they were endlessly (soul-crushingly, tediously) whining about my beautiful winter, I just can’t bring myself to do the same (most of the time, that is, because clearly, I’m having no problem doing so right now).

2) I literally feel bad. Spring brings out all my allergies, so working up a nice rant uses too much energy – energy better spent trying to breathe and stop itching.

I have the good drugs, though, so at least there’s that.

And at least it’s not summer. Yet.

But rather than focus on what I’m not into, let’s talk about what I am into.

My favorite thing I did this month was turn 40.

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The weather was nice (and by “nice,” I do mean rainy, overcast, and mid-50s), so that was my birthday present from Jesus. We tried out a new breakfast place – Crickles and Co. – and it was amazing. Everyone basically purred through the whole meal (the biscuits – omg, get the biscuits!). After a very leisurely breakfast, a few of us went to Barnes and Noble and browsed for a while.  Then I went home and spent the afternoon my favorite way – reading and napping. I woke up refreshed and ready for my birthday dinner at Greenhouse. Then we went to my sister and brother-in-law’s house for cake and coffee. The cake was coconut and pineapple, and the coffee was strong. And Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer came on the music mix right as we were about to cut the cake, so they sang the chorus instead of the traditional happy birthday song. Tammy’s explanation: “It fits. You’re halfway there. Halfway to death,” which was hilarious and pretty much my favorite thing anyone said all day. We then watched The Whole Nine Yards while everyone recovered from/embraced their food coma.

It was a great day.

What made it even more enjoyable is that I didn’t worry about the planning. Rather than try to make it this huge event, I picked a couple of places I wanted to go and limited the guest list to people who had asked what I was doing for my birthday or who regularly include me on invitations to theirs (and I kept adding people all week, because I am old and forgetful – an excuse I plan on using a lot from now on). So the group stayed small enough that I didn’t have to make special arrangements or reservations. It was relaxing in both planning and execution.

And then, of course, I have enjoyed spending time on other days with people who couldn’t make it. I have had outings and been treated to so many dinners. I love March.

Another fun thing I did this month is the Wicked Wine Run. Or rather, the Wicked Wine 1K mosey, in my case. It took place at the Lost Oak Winery in Burleson, and we had a lot of fun. Two of us dressed up like Pikachu and a unicorn. I wore a headband and funky socks (not pictured).

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That’s my way to race – with four wine-tasting stops. Actually, the energy of the race atmosphere makes me want to train for an upcoming 5K, so starting on April 26, I begin my training, and I am actually excited about it. We’ll see how that goes.

In entertainment/arts news:

  • I’ve been binge-watching The Mindy Project. So many people have recommended it, and I finally heeded their recommendations. It did not disappoint. I love this show.
  • The Angry Women Blog. This blog understands me. I will be submitting posts to it within the next few months.
  • I tried watching Entourage. Meh. I am four episodes in, and I can’t decide if I’m actually bored with it or if, after hearing the HBO sound, I’m just disappointed that The Newsroom doesn’t start. But after four episodes, I still can’t think of a single moment that got any sort of enjoyment reaction from me. So I might have to throw in the towel on this one.
  • This has been a good reading month. My top three recommendations are The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles, The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway, and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy (I’m about to start #3) by Laini Taylor. So good.

My favorite thing I made to eat was lasagna with spinach and goat cheese (instead of ricotta.  DO IT.). It looked like a bad accident:

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…but it tasted so good.

And my favorite non-coffee thing to drink was this tea:

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It might actually replace Earl Grey as my favorite. It’s that good.

So that was my March. How was yours? I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer – you should join us!

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The Wrong Milk

Posted in 31 Days, TV on October 22, 2014| 2 Comments »

Today’s activity was sneaky.

Every moment I was alone at the desk, I performed a task that either stretched, strengthened, or slightly elevated the heart rate.  Such tasks included:

  • moving quickly around the desk/lobby to put things that were out of place back where they belong
  • with my heels on the floor, raising my toes (strengthens the shins; helps avoid shin splints)
  • standing to talk on the phone and using the time to slowly rise to my tiptoes and lower down again
  • tightening/releasing the butt muscles when seated
  • flutter kicks under the desk
  • bicep curls with whatever I happened to be holding at the time

I felt like Michel on Gilmore Girls when his dairy gave him the wrong milk. He was horrified at the extra caloric intake and spent the entire episode doing squats and side crunches any time the customers weren’t looking. Hilarious.

It’s also a fun game. I highly recommend it.  See if you can do it all day without anyone catching you. Extra points if you do it while someone is in the room. Double points if you do it while they’re talking to you and they still have no idea.

As busy as my desk gets, I think I succeeded in working in extra movement all day with no one knowing that I was doing anything out of the ordinary. It gave me an odd sense of accomplishment.

I’m committing to 31 Days of Movement, and today was one of the fun days.

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What I’m Into – July 2014

Posted in Books, Denton, Food, Story Sessions, TV, What I'm Into on July 30, 2014| 2 Comments »

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July is pigtail weather. July is also finding-things-to-do-indoors weather.

What I did:

For July 4th, I made Sloppy Joes (Mom’s recipe that is basically meat, ketchup, and sweet pickle relish – also good on lentils but drain the relish first to avoid soupiness), Caprese Salad bites (although mine didn’t look that pretty…in fact, they were mostly assemble-yourself bites), and White Sangria (after comparing several recipes, I just dumped peach nectar, vanilla vodka, brandied peaches – aside: delicious – and Moscato in a pitcher) and made everyone come to me.  Then I watched the fireworks from my couch.  Happy.

The DFW Story Sisters came to Denton this month.  So naturally, we hit the square.  We started at Jupiter House, wandered through Recycled Books and SCRAP, and followed dinner at Abbey Inn up with ice cream.

Michelle, Steve, and Savvy came to visit the next weekend.  They brought over Mr. Chopsticks for lunch, and then we spent the afternoon on the square collecting leaves, looking at books and candy, having a little dance party, eating ice cream at Beth Marie’s, and having dinner at LSA. 

 

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Her fannish glee in mid-squee.  We swear she picked Smallville up all on her own with no coaching. I love this little face!

Supper Club hit Wine Squared again this month.  I think we’re in love.

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What I read:

I again spent the month looking over cookbooks.  I’m going to stop pretending this is a seasonal thing. Cookbooks are my jam.  Ohhh…jam cookbook! *plots*

Moving on…

My two favorite recommendations:

 – Joy the Baker. If it were possible to make love to a cookbook…

And apparently, others have felt the same.  About every ten pages or so of the library’s copy, I would find crumbs or flour dust between the pages.  On the one hand, I totally understand.  These recipes demand immediate baking.  On the other hand, come on, people!  Library books are communal books!  All the more reason to buy my own copy, I guess.

Everything I have tried so far is glorious, but I especially recommend the vegan pumpkin walnut bread and the banana rum cake with brown butter frosting.  Or the goat cheese-pepper-cocoa truffles.  Or the coconut macaroon ice cream. Oh, I can’t choose.  Just buy it and make it all.

– The Runner’s World Cookbook. Part of me thinks, “Most of this information is on the Internet somewhere.  I could just look there for free.” I can’t bring myself to settle for that, though, when all of it is right here, neatly organized into one beautiful book. 

Reasons I will be buying this book:
1. The charts and lists. It gives a easy comparison guide for different grains, fats, and proteins. 
2. A basic whole grain pancake recipe, followed by two pages of batter and topping variations – most of which I would have never thought of on my own, and I experiment a lot. I can’t wait to try the Speakeasy Special and the Sweet Southerner pancakes.
3. Chicken Not Pie. As a loather of chicken pot pie, I appreciate a recipe that takes everything I would like about it and leaves out the rest.
4. Steel Cut Oatmeal Risotto. This is an example of my favorite thing about this book – they took food I love and made in a slightly different way to make it new and interesting.

To watch:

This is a short list.  I’m making my way through Boston Legal.  It’s hilarious. I recommend it, if for no other reason than to see William Shatner and James Spader in flamingo costumes.

My favorite things people did on the Internet:

  1. Luke Harms tells married men how to act around women.
  2. Beth Morey takes on sex and marriage.
  3. Robin Korth became my hero. 
  4. Confused Cats Against Feminism.  Because they’re cats.
  5. I joined Equal Exchange’s Red Cherry Challenge – will you?
  6. All the #FaithFeminisms – but especially this one by Abi Bechtel.
  7. Reason #482 to love The Bloggess.

I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer – come on over and tell us what you’re into!

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Binge

Posted in Andilit, Feminism, TV on June 18, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Oxford Dictionaries defines binge as “a short period devoted to indulging in an activity to excess, especially drinking alcohol or eating.”  Mirriam-Webster defines it as “a short period of time when you do too much of something.”

I find these definitions rife with judgment, but maybe I’m reading too much into the definition (or not enough into the word – that is certainly a possibility).

Certainly it is possible to eat or drink (or do anything else) too much.  If one makes doing so a habit, one might even find oneself in need of some sort of treatment. There’s no doubt that this word – binge – might be triggering to some, and with good reason. Moderation is generally a friend.

But when Andi prompted our writing community to reflect on the word binge this week, excess and too much were not the ideas that came to mind.

You see, what I binge on is TV. There is an element of escape to this.  I admit that sometimes, I’m re-watching old episodes of Big Bang Theory because I am avoiding doing something productive (because humorous as it may be, this is not the show to watch for deep character development).

(The Gilmore Girls understand me.)

But most of the time, watching television is productive for me. A couple of weekends ago, for example, I spent the whole weekend curled up on the couch with the pups I was dog-sitting enjoying an Orange is the New Black marathon. 48 hours, two full seasons. Lots of popcorn.

And it was good for me.

I binge on story.  I binge on characters. I like seeing how other people develop plot and show-don’t-tell personalities. I like stewing in the tension of not really liking a main character (Piper Chapman, I’m looking at you). I like it when seemingly random happenings appear later and branch into a whole new storyline (see the entire series of Arrested Development).

Could I get this same thing from reading books?  I could, and I do.  But unless it’s the book we’re discussing in book club that month, or it is a book I’m reading for class, the insights I glean from reading tend to remain as solitary insights.  I love this, and it is valuable, but the beauty of television is that it gives me the opportunity to engage in discussion in real time.  If learning story and character are a classroom, books are the texts and television is the in-class discussion.

Television affords me the opportunity to engage in the social aspect of learning.  Again, books can do this as well, but they take more time.  Television is almost immediate. My Twitter feed lights up when a beloved character finally gets the job/relationship/etc. that s/he wants. When a series premiere or finale happens, a quick internet search (or let’s be real – the people whose blogs I follow specifically because we share favorite shows) gives me speedy commentary on how well the writers and performers met our expectations and hopes for the episode.

This commentary is not limited to online fandom.  When I was in grad school, I attended a panel at national conference on the feminist themes in Ally McBeal. I wrote papers on Ally McBeal (although my papers tended to focus more on how well the show handled the topic of loneliness and less on the feminism in the show, as that had already been widely discussed, leaving little exigence for further exploration). And if you’re bored some time, go to Google and type in “television after 9/11 site:.edu” (or just click on the link there), and see what pops up.

I can only imagine the multitude of hours of binge-watching it took to gather the information to write those papers.  If my own experience is any indication, there are a lot of people who  need to get to a therapist to discuss their worrisome indulgence in this excess behavior.

Or maybe – maybe – not all binges are bad.  Maybe “too much” is sometimes just enough.

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What I’m Into (finally) – April

Posted in TV, What I'm Into, Writing on May 5, 2014| 4 Comments »

So I got an iPhone last month.

In April, I made friends with Instagram.

I like the black-and-white filter:

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And whatever filter this is:

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So everything is getting Instagrammed.  EVERYTHING.

And I also added the Pinterest app.  Apparently, I’ve decided that I’m done with ever being productive again.

Here’s what I was into during April when I managed to tear myself away from my phone.

To write:

I wrote about 25,000 words on my What Not to Say project (which now has its own blog space for the pieces that are public-ready-ish).  I’m excited to start this back up again.  It’s been a few years.  I like adding new things and seeing how my writing has changed as I edit.

My two favorite posts that I wrote this month:

To read:

I read Lean In.  I have feelings, and not all of them are positive.  But I read it.  I’ll probably buy it, if for no other reason than her fantastic source section. The chapter on mentoring was a work of art.

My favorite book I read in April was The Giver.  I am looking forward to reading the other books in the series.

To watch:

April starts end-of-the-year madness at the residence hall and in my classes.  So I watch more TV than usual.  The only thing I’ve been watching, though, is Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  Four seasons of Buffy in one month.  I feel like a bad Joss Whedon fan, because this is the first time I’ve watched it.  Impressions so far:

  • Willow is my favorite.
  • Spike is a close second. “You made a bear!  Undo it!  Undo it!”  HILARIOUS.
  • According to BuzzFeed, I’m Giles.  Acceptable.
  • Riley is boring.  Just so, so dull.  I’m ready for him to leave.  I don’t even care how.

To hear:

This is a short list.  Crazy times at work mean silence is happiness at home.  In fact, this might be a non-existent list.  I can’t even think of one thing I have listened to.

To eat:

I have really been into guacamole this month.  I just can’t get enough of it.  I will drive through just to get guacamole and chips.  I’ve mostly made it at home, though – just an avocado, a tomato, a little cumin, a little cayenne, and a healthy squeeze of lime juice.  Happy.

And that’s what my diet usually looks like when the weather gets hot (for me, hot = above 75).  Fresh vegetables and fruits.  I forgot how much energy this gives me.

Want to share what you’ve been into?  Join us over at Leigh Kramer’s link-up.

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What I’m Into – March

Posted in Andilit, Books, Food, Story Sessions, TV, What I'm Into on March 31, 2014| 4 Comments »

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March is my favorite month.  October is a close second, but it cannot compare to March, because March is my birth month!  The thing I was into the most was turning 39.  I received both yoga pants and wine as gifts, and I appreciated them, so clearly I am right on schedule with fulfilling the stereotype.

Winter persisted into the first week of the month and royally screwed up my class schedule, but I can’t even be mad about it.  It turned Spring Break into two weeks for me at the school where I teach, since I’m only there on Mondays.

Story Sessions had its first Story Feast (in-person meeting of local peeps), and ours was a small feast, but Marvia and I had fun hanging out at La Madeleine.

I got to spend a little time with Mom and Dad over break.  Mom had her first cataract surgery, so I went along to keep Dad company while he waited.

I took care of my friends’ dogs while they were out of town for about half a week.  While I was there, I had an uncomfortable realization. One of the dogs was dumb and needy but the sweetest dog in the world, and the other was smart and funny but also kind of an asshole.  I was dog-sitting every guy I’ve ever dated or liked.

I am also in the middle of two classes – Brandy Walker’s Be Course for Lent and the Reframing Collective through Story Sessions led by Jennifer Upton.  That’s why you’ve been seeing more pictures than usual.  I’m taking more.

Oh, and I got an iPhone.  This will be the first phone with a data plan I have had (I know, welcome to the 21st century, and I can stop churning my own butter now). I haven’t activated it yet, but I do have active plans to become addicted to Instagram.

Those are the highlights.  Here’s what was playing in the background.

To write:

I have Fishbowl mapped out.  I put the chapters in order.  I know how it’s going to end, and I know how I’m going to get there.  This is huge.

I have an idea that’s been brewing a while concerning the things people say to single people (and specifically, what I could stand for them NOT to say. . . just ever again).  So April, I’m going to write it out.  I’m going to bleed 2,500 words a day to see if I have enough words to start another project.  This could easily become a community project in the future, but for now, I’m going to see what I have to say about it.

My two favorite posts I wrote this month:

– My link-up piece for The Girls We Once Were, called Renaissance Girl.

– My answer to Andi’s prompt to give myself ten nuggets of writing advice.

To read:

– Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet.  I loved it, particularly the parts about solitude.

– Vonnegut’s Welcome to the Monkey House.  My favorite story was “Who Am I This Time?”

– Stephen King’s 11/22/63.  Whose idea was it to have an 800+ page book for book club?  Oh, right.  Mine.  Well, I share the blame. I guess we all chose it. It’s a quick read, though, for 800 pages.  Because Stephen King.

Goodreads tells me that I am 11 books behind schedule on my reading challenge (100 books) for the year.  I would exclaim, “800 pages!” but that first book I read this year was really just a transcript of a speech, so I’m going to call it even.  I am trying to remember that I catch up in the summer and not let Goodreads psych me out. And maybe I could also remember that the world won’t end if I only read 90 books this year.

Some gorgeous things were written on the Internet this month.  These are my favorites:

When I Measure the Distance of God by Preston Yancey

Speaking Fear, Praying Shalom by Osheta Moore

You Don’t Have to Be Pretty – on YA Fiction and Beauty as a Priority on the Belle Jar

How Riding is Worship by Katie Rutledge

When World Vision Drops Me by Benjamin Moberg

The Internet has also been a tough place to be this month.  Lord, have mercy.

To watch:

Three words –

House.

Of.

Cards.

I watched both seasons in three days.  I couldn’t look away.

I am avoiding Psych and Scandal spoilers.  I’ll watch them after the semester’s over, when I can devote the appropriate measure of time to them. I think I’m actually going to start Psych over and watch from the first season.  That will give this season time to come out on DVD so that I can have it for my very own.  I love that show.

I finally saw Catching Fire. I liked it just as much as I liked the first one. As much as I like the story, I feel that I should have more to say about it, but no.

I had a nice time this weekend re-watching one of my favorite movies – Under the Tuscan Sun – and drinking wine and eating my weight in pasta.

But my favorite thing that I saw this month?  Veronica Mars, of course.  These were the highlights for me (and I don’t think any of them are spoilery):

– Veronica is back with the old school pop culture references – “You weren’t planning on carrying me through the airport, were you?”

– “You should only wear this.” Both times.

– Logan leaning against the car.  Rewind and pause.

– Dax Shepard cameo, for the win.

– Mac’s hair.  If I could pull off short hair at all, this is the haircut I would wear forever.

There were so many other things I loved about it, but any time you could spend reading about them would be better spent watching it.

To hear:

The Be Course has me dancing as a spiritual practice and also eating very fattening things so that my spiritual practice needs to take on some movement lest I gain 50 pounds during the class. So music has been mostly house and trip hop.  My neighbors don’t even know what to do with me.

To eat:

I have had a lot of baked goods this month (observe the pear tart above).  Brownies, cookies, cake.  I am in a constant state of sugar high.  This has to stop.  Of course, it’s chocolate chip cookie week in our e-course, and I’m a very good student. . .

During the dog-sitting/House-of-Cards-watching days, I developed an unholy affinity for peanut butter puff cereal.  I enjoy both the Mother’s and the EnviroKidz (yes, with a z) versions of this treat. As with all sugar-laced cereals, I try to mix it with plain Cheerios or plain puffed corn or wheat, but I have had at least one bowl a day for the last half of the month.

On Saturday, I took the marinara that was left over from supper club and mixed it with browned sausage.  I shaved a liberal dose of Parmesan over the top and put it on pasta.  So simple, yet so perfect when paired with birthday wine.

I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer – come by and tell us what you’re into!

 

 

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What I’m Into – January 2014

Posted in Books, Food, Story Sessions, TV, What I'm Into, Writing on February 4, 2014| 3 Comments »

This month January was fast.  I just don’t know where it went.

The semester started, and then it just took off.  I only have the one class this semester, so it seems like a year goes by between teaching days.

I made resolutions and chose my one word.

I started Story 101, and you’re going to hear a lot about that.  Yes.  Even more than you already have.  It seems that every other post is from a prompt from the class.  If you haven’t taken it, go ahead and follow the hyperlink above, because the spring session starts soon, and you don’t want to miss out!

Here are some other things I’m into:

To write:

I had the honor of guest posting as part of Preston Yancey’s series on what women want from the church.  That was scary and also fun.

I worked on some of my WIP, but not as much as I planned.  Other than the guest post (which I actually wrote in December), it’s been a bit of a blah writing month.

To read:

It has also been a light reading month.  I have been reading books on writing for the ecourse, and so far, May Sarton’s Journal of a Solitude has been my favorite.

To watch:

Ah, the reason that writing and reading have gone the way of the VCR this month…

My habits clearly think we’re still on holiday, because I’ve been watching way more TV than I usually do.  I got several seasons of Friends from Michelle and Steve for Christmas, so I have been reliving happy times.  That scene in The One With The Blackout where Ross gets attacked by the cat while the group is inside singing Top of the World?  I still laugh just as hard now as when I first saw it.  That’s just good TV. And nostalgia has not changed my unpopular position – I just don’t give a flying fig about Ross and Rachel’s relationship.  I know I’m supposed to care deeply, but I do not.

Parks and Recreation – I don’t want to talk about it.  I just want to let it know that I saw what it did. *stern face*

Community – I’ll talk about that. Nathan Fillion, how are you so adorable? Okay, that’s pretty much all I had to say on the subject.

As far as movies go, I went to see Frozen again, and this time I took my sister.  I love this movie.  I’m pretty critical of Disney, and I still have a couple of it-might-have-been-nice-ifs, but overall, I love it.  I even have a post planned to discuss the depths of my love for this movie, and that doesn’t happen very often.  It’s rare that I am able to invest in characters so quickly.

To hear:

I really love this song:

It makes me miss tango.  I’ve been feeling dance-y lately and listening to a lot of this-would-be-a-good-tango-song songs.

To taste:

Most of my meals lately have been odd combinations of frozen holiday leftovers. The most memorable was the taco roast-kale-Parmesan quesadillas.

I also made a pretty fantastic batch of Burgundy Beef after I had a glass of a disappointing wine.  It certainly redeemed itself in the dish.

My favorite thing I made all month, though,were my vanilla coconut waffles.  I could eat these every morning for the rest of my life.

So that’s my month.  I’m linking up with Leigh Kramer, so hop on over there to see what everyone else is into!

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