Back in St. Olaf...

I’m long overdue for a book review, and I’ve a very good one for this entry. During my plane trip for a Thanksgiving with my family back East, I read Betty White’s If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t). It’s an anecdotal presentation of her life and career, told in little vignettes of experiences in Hollywood and life. She speaks a great deal about her experiences getting older, with the famous quote “Growing old isn’t for sissies.”


The book is an easy read, delightful, and pretty thought-provoking. I’m convinced that Betty White really is as nice as she seems in most of her TV spots. She always reminds me of my grandma, and I hope that I am half as good and sweet as she always was. Ms. White always seemed very content with her life, and even in her younger days, wasn’t a complainer. Although one could argue that she had very little to complain about, I think that even the most blessed among us often have these “if only” whines, and I think that one of her best qualities is her classy demeanor.

She also explains her long-term career: she said that she’ll never stop working, only cut back. I completely agree with that. We need responsibilities, and we need something to live for. She talks about people that wait to live, that “as soon as” mentality. The problem is, “as soon as” never seems to come for many people.

Her humor is very evident: very self-deprecating, and she speaks about her appearance on SNL. She was asked to do the show a few times before, but turned it down because she worried about the pressure of producing a live show in such a short time. This generation convinced her: Facebook has spoken! Betty did the show.

Definitely a recommended read.

My Father's Daughter

So....I'm probably going to get some flack for this, but I actually like Gwyneth Paltrow. I think that she's a good actress, picks interesting projects (hello Iron Man!), and I like that she seems to be pretty involved with her family. I mean, she might not be really, but I'll take her word for it. And she has a similar name to me!

I know that there was a lot of eye rolling when she launched her Goop.com website, and I was skeptical myself. However, I actually enjoy the recipe aspect of the website, and made a point of checking out her cookbook that was released this April.

Say what you want about Ms. Paltrow, these recipes are great. They are absolutely "normal" foods, like roasted chickens and salad dressings, and I like that there is a slightly healthy angle on the ingredients. Nothing crazy, but she makes small suggestions, like replacing corn syrup with healthier brown rice syrup. The best part is that the majority of the recipes are quite easy, and perfect for everyday. Her maple-dijon vinaigrette dressing will be a staple in my repertoire. I use her recipe for easy roasted chicken at least once a month for a nice Sunday dinner.

I like that she makes sure to pay due respect to the origin of the recipes as well, giving credit to the makers, such as her grandmother, or Jamie Oliver.  All in all, this is a great book to have as a resource. Yes, go ahead and snicker at me for liking Gwyneth. :) 

Unplugging

Lately, I’ve been very tired. I’m not sure really why, but I’ve been really, really dragging. I attribute it to the change of weather, but really, I think it’s from over-activity. I’ve been doing a lot of writing and blogging, as well as keeping up with other projects that I am doing and working full time.


The other night, I realized that I hadn’t sat down and just read in so long, mainly because I’ve been writing so much. So I just sat and read. I’ve been reading Sula by Toni Morrison off and on for the last few weeks, but I couldn’t really get into it. Reading it straight through allowed me to understand the story, to know the characters better, and to really appreciate what a wonderful writer that Ms. Morrison really is. After all, writers are usually avid readers, and I was really not fostering this aspect of my writing that much lately.

I’ve a list of things that I want to read, and since it’s summer, I’m planning on taking more time to read and enjoy. I’ll update of course, but I think that I need to slow my posting pace a bit. What do you think?

T-shirt Tuesday!

Here we are again! Hope that everyone's week is going well. Mine is BUSY! Dr. appts, work, play rehearsals, this and that...I'm feeling the stress a bit!

This week's t-shirt is from Forever21. I know, I know, most of their stuff is strictly for the under 21 crowd, but I've been able to find some really neat stuff there over the years (although I think that I am WAY too old to shop there.).

I love the Frenchiness of this shirt, with the word "lire" in French, which means, "to read." And just look at the pile of books our heroine is carrying! I love the blue tones and the lightness of the shirt. It is so comfy on a hot day!

The Sweet Life in Paris

I'm not even sure how I discovered David Lebovitz and his fabulous blog (http://www.davidlebovitz.com), but for the past few years, I've been an avid follower of his travels and culinary prowess. This is a man who has not only been a pastry chef in some of the best restaurants in the world, but has also cooked with Julia Child herself. I mean, if that doesn't qualify someone as knowing what they are talking about in the kitchen, I'm not sure what does.

After reading his blog for so long, and looking for an easy read, I decided to check out his memoir/recipe book, The Sweet Life in Paris. I was not disappointed. A wonderful mix of funny anecdotes, the hows and whys of his move to France, and several of his luscious recipes. This book is best enjoyed with an adequate supply of dark chocolate, and access to a bakery that makes a respectable pain du chocolat or baguette. :0) Believe me, I wanted both while I read page after page recounting his adventures (and misadventures) in French patisseries and boulangeries, not to mention his stories of Patrick Roger and chocolate making.

Also included are several tips and suggestions for travel to Paris. Always say hello when you enter a restaurant or shop, do not touch things that you have no intention of buying, and several other good tidbits for life in Paris.

Highly recommended for any lover of French food and culture, or anyone planning on travelling to Paris. Also,  make sure to check out his wonderful blog!

Book Recommendations

So what do you do when your local library is never open? I really hate to purchase books, unless I really love them. I simply do not have the room to store them. Does anyone know of any great paperback exchanges, or other ways to obtain books?

While we're on the subject of awesomeness

There will be a TV series of the graphic novel series, Fables.

Should I be excited? Why yes, I am.

Twilight

Twilight is probably the most popular awful book ever. It should be a fast read, but I'm going slowly because I seriously have to take brain-vomit breaks from it. I can't believe how popular this tripe has become.

And I love gothy teen romance, so it's just that this book is truly trite and cheesy. And Edward is mean.

If they break into dance in the movie (like they look ready to do in this pic), I'll be a little more excited though.

Dancing vampires, oooohhhhh!!!

What I've been reading lately

I become so immersed in academic and technical (work) reading that books for escape and fun have become an afterthought. I feel guilty sometimes for picking up a book that's not in some way related to a) academic pursuits or b) required reading for my job. So when I am able to read for pleasure, I find it, well, very pleasurable. My latest pursuits were Persepolis and The Key of Gold: 23 Czech Folk Tales.

Persepolis was very good; I can see why it is so often compared with one of my favorite books, Maus, by Art Speigelman. It is, like Maus, a comic book depicting horrendous real-life events. However, it is told in a very different format. The writer is giving what is basically an autobiography of her life from ages 10-25, whereas Maus is told secondhand, through the son of a survivor. It was very difficult to begin, but as I became involved in the story, I found it difficult to stop.

The Czech folk tales collection was another story. I so wanted to like these, but perhaps I'm just too old and jaded for fairy tales, at least badly fleshed out short stories rather than actual tellings with details and magic. I didn't finish the last two stories.

Next for the reading queue (since it's Spring Break, woohoo!): Smoke and Mirrors, by Neil Gaiman!

I like you!

I miss, miss the library so much when I go a long while without a visit. Things have been so hectic with school and learning to BE a librarian, that I've scarcely entered a real library (but plenty of virtual ones...ahhh the Internet). However, I needed tax forms, so I went to the library the other day looking for a tax sheet to claim my grad school expenditures. They did not have the said sheet, but I was able to download it, so all is well.

While I was there (I can't not look through the graphic novels), I picked up two books: Persepolis and I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence. while I was there. I have not yet read Persepolis, but expect a short review soon (or an Ugh...I really couldn't finish this one).

First off, I'm a big Amy Sedaris fan. I love, love, love the Strangers with Candy series. And by love, I mean I really insanely like it (although I don't own it). The movie version, not so much. It's hard not to hear Amy take on her Jerri Blank persona and voice as you read through her "tips" on first dates and entertaining everyone from the elderly to rabbits (yes, rabbits).

It's an easy coffee table read, or as Amy puts it "This book is so visual, a monkey could enjoy it," and is full of recipes, crafts, photographs, and sketches of party scenes.

The photography in this book is, of course, humorous in the style of innocent tackiness that only Amy can deliver with such sincerity and wide-eyed seriousness that makes you wonder a bit if she is simply being ridiculously ironic and sarcastic or if she truly believes her "advice."
Items such as on a first date: "Don't assume: Don't ask him where he went to high school (Maybe he didn't go), and Don't ask him about his mother (Maybe she's dead)."

The dark humor of SWC is immensely present, but does not magnify or echo the series, which is nice. The picture of Amy dressed as a 60s socialite holding a bong and looking peacefully morose is especially funny.

The last piece is the recipes. While the food is photographed in an unflattering way reminiscent of Lilek's, some of the recipes actually sound good! While some are humorous, such as a recipe for a hot dog that involves step-by-step instructions of how to throw hot dogs into a pot of boiling water, remove, and insert into bun (the first instruction is "wake up, get out of bed"), her cake recipes are homemade and something that I might actually try at some point.