Primetime, baby

DVR could very well be ruining my life. Now, I realize you may be thinking this is a little dramatic, but DVR has definitely changed my television viewing habits. What this all boils down to is that I have a mean addiction to American Idol this season. In the past, I watched the first auditions and maybe the finale, but this season, thanks to DVR, I have not missed an episode. It turns out that American Idol complements my morning bagel and cup of coffee quite nicely. Since I have to reserve my evenings for dreaded school reading (damn you metadata!), any show I want to watch has to be recorded and squeezed in at other times. Not that I'm complaining, mind you, because I do love fast forwarding through commercials. It's just that I'm a little embarrassed at some of my guilty-pleasure tv shows. Z and other assorted friends make fun of how much of my current event conversations stem from something that I saw on Regis and Kelly. The reason I'm publishing this to the world wide web is that my lingering belief that I'm not the only one with an embarrassing saved show list on my DVR. Who else wants to come clean?

I'm a Lazy Blogger

It's been so long since I posted that I've had a hard time mustering up the motivation to write something. Last weekend, I finished a novel on my Kindle that I liked so much that I will not be taking it off my Kindle for a while. I think part of the reason that I liked this novel so much was that I downloaded it for FREE (nothing makes my miser heart go pitter-patter like a free book). I think it may have only been free for a promotional period, because I was looking on Amazon the other day and noticed that it is selling for $8 or $9 now.

Crossroads Cafe by Deborah Smith follows Thomas and Cathryn as they deal with events that have changed their lives. Cathryn is a movie star known for her good looks, but a car wreck leaves her with serious burn scars. Thomas is an alcoholic who tries to cope with some lingering guilt after his wife and son die on 9/11. The two of them are brought together by the Crossroads Cafe, a diner in the North Carolina mountains (I know, I know, my plot summaries suck).

Anyway, the book is a little romantic, but more focused on dealing with personal demons. The dialogue is funny and the relationships feel genuine. Let's just say it's a slightly fluffy book worth reading. Typically, I read books on my Kindle when I'm working out, and this book was good enough that my walking cool-down was stretching from five minutes to fifteen, just so I could finish one more chapter. I'll add that I never have the same problem putting down my textbooks. Maybe Deborah Smith should start writing about information organization.

Time flies

The holiday break is pretty much over. I didn't get much of a break since I have to pretend to be an adult now and work, but Z had to start classes this morning. Technically, he had to work over the break too, so I suppose the good 'ole days of a month-long vacations are over.

Neither Z or I have finished the book for Lover Book Club, and since our one and only book club meeting was supposed to take place over the break, we may be out of luck. Both of us are close to finishing the book, (Lonesome Dove, FYI), but the final chapters are sad and I'm not ready to say goodbye to some of my favorite characters. After an expensive holiday season, it looks like the next book club selection will be some kind of financial planning book. Useful, yes, fun, no.

As for my New Year's cooking resolution, well, I still have some work to do. I have clipped some recipes from magazines and blown dust off cookbooks that I forgot I owned. I'm calling this "necessary preparation" before I actually start cooking. I also watched Julie & Julia, which I'm also considering prep for this adventure.

Any one else have some fun New Year's resolutions to share?

New Years Resolution, maybe

I have been on a foodie kick lately. I'm not sure if it's because of the holidays, or maybe the cold weather, but I have been reading a lot of food blogs and cookbook reviews. I've always been attracted to the idea of cooking--I like to flip through cookbooks and clip new recipes. My problem is that I lack the follow-through to actually cook.

The marathon I am running in is right around the corner, and maybe it's time to direct my attention to a new hobby. Poor Z is forced to eat whatever I throw together after work, and I can't remember the last time I tried something new. I think the key to this project is not only cooking more regularly, but trying a whole new variety of food. Now, I could eat casseroles every day of my life and be happy as a clam, but it may be time to venture out of my comfort zone and try making ethnic food, or meals that don't call for a can of cream of mushroom soup.

In the meantime, I'll be following all the new cooking blogs I discovered. Imagining my way into cooking has to be the first step, right?

Let's have a cheer for Christmas Break!

I posted my second, and final, research paper of the semester last night. I am not convinced that either of my final projects were my best work, but by the end of a long semester, I'm just thankful to turn something in.

Now that I'm footloose and fancy-free (in terms of school), I am psyched for all the holiday reading I have planned. This morning, I requested more books than I can possibly read over the break--I just couldn't help myself! I will be kicking off my reading bonanza with Lonesome Dove, which Z and I are reading together for what we're affectionately referring to as, "Lover Book Club." We watched the movie the other weekend and decided that reading the book together would be fun. If all goes well, we may tackle a David McCullough biography next.

Hindsight is 20/20

A few summers ago, I had to complete a school project for my degree. At the time, I referred to it as "my stupid reading list." Basically, I had to read a set of books for each of three different categories--author, time period, and genre. The reason for this trip down memory lane is that for the past two weeks, I've been working on term papers (think of "working" in the loosest of terms, it's really more like staring blankly at my computer and hoping that words magically appear.) The more I work on these term papers, the more I miss the reading list. Honestly, what was so bad about reading novels for a summer?

Today, I was browsing the Kindle store to load up my Kindle with some new stuff for working out, and I came across some of the authors I read for my reading list. Even better, because the books are early 20th century, they're free! Nothing makes a nerdy cheapskate like me happier than free books. Tonight, I will have to choose between Robert Graves, D. H. Lawrence, or E. M. Forster for my evening run. Then, it will be back to term papers. Boo!

Reading for the Chilly Weather

I just finished a book on my Kindle, Countess of Canada by Bessie Marchant, and I'm feeling a little bereft. Sometimes when I am finished with books I really enjoy, I feel like I've lost some close friends. This book saw me through many a hard workout on the treadmill, and it felt appropriate that the main character, Katherine, lives in chilly northern Canada. I felt like I could relate weather-wise.

Katherine and her family live in Canada where her father manages a general store. Katherine has recently returned home from college in Canada in order to teach, but there are not any young children in Roaring Portage for a school. Katherine spends most of her time helping her father deliver goods, but when he falls ill, the bulk of the work falls to her. Katherine spends her time delivering goods and managing the store along with her younger brothers and older sister. Along the way, she manages to rescue several people in the wilds of Canada, including Jervis Ferrars, an agent for a tradesman investing in a fishing operation.

Honestly, I am horrible at summaries and this one is not doing justice to the book AT ALL!

Bessie Marchant (1862-1841) was an English writer who focused on adventure novels featuring young women. This book reminded me a lot of Anne of Green Gables--both have spunky heroines and lots of what I would call episodes throughout. The novel feels like a variety of adventure stories strung together by the main character. Marchant is able to create characters that may not have a lot of depth, but feel genuine all the same. Katherine is brave, hard-working, generous, and intelligent, but Marchant balances all of that to make Katherine a believable character, and an inspirational one too. I never would have made it through some of those runs without reading about Katherine trudging ten miles cross country in snow shoes!