Stuff and Things

I have been feeling a little blocked blog-wise as I have a few things pending, but they are still in the works. So, here are my recent life events in a list (you know I love the lists!). I tweeted a few of these things so I apologize to anyone who has to read my random thoughts twice.

1. Today, my husband wore my shirt all day and did not notice. He only vaguely wondered why it was so small on him. It is a funky 70's style Millennium Falcon T that we both have. This is not the first time something like this has happened.

2. I tried EA sports active for the Wii - it is pretty good, except the squat censors don't really work for us tall girls.

3. We went to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (really liked it, boo to the haters) and that resulted in a Harry Potter themed weekend. My husband read books 6 and 7 (which I had just finished) and we started watching the older movies. We watched Sorcerer's Stone and I burst into tears at "You're a wizard, Harry" (yep, pathetic).

4. Our fish committed suicide. We had him for a week. His name was Bo Jangles. RIP Bo Jangles.

5. I went to Bookman's and bought a ton of great vinyl for very little money. I highly recommend the store (though I think they are only in Arizona).

6. It is really freaking hot.

7. I am almost done arranging my books by color. It ROCKS. I think about half (or more) of our books are black. Also, we have 3 copies of "The Hobbit".

8. I found out that I will watch anything that Hulu puts in front of me. I re-watched the first season of the OC. I hate Oliver.

9. Various software programs hate me lately. These include Lotus Notes, Excel, and Safari, which just crashed and almost took this blog post with it. (I currently hate you all and I'm not going to link you!)

10. My life is so boring, I couldn't think of a tenth thing.

Here we go...

Here is something even more amazing you can do with all the colorful covers of books you don't actually want to read...

(source)

Books by the foot

I am currently in the process of arranging my books by color. Not only do I think it has design appeal, but it actually helps me find things. I have never been a person to whom the name of a book or its author comes easily. My close friends will know that I also never know the name of an actor or movie off of the top of my head - something that is incredibly frustrating for me, given that no one else around me seems to have this problem. I do, however, recognize books and people when I see them - hence the color rearrangement.

This seems to be an aesthetic obsession with a lot of people lately and I have been seeing this site around on the blogs but I'm not sure how I feel about buying books "by the foot" in accordance with a specific genre or, more commonly, a specific color or look.

I am a big believer in the patrolling of bookstores and picking things up based on recommendations from friends, NPR, or, less often, based solely on the cover or jacket. The most bulk buying I have ever done is to pick up a paperback lot of a favorite author on eBay, a fantastic bargain if you like to read prolific writers and have no desire for a perfect-looking bookshelf.

But now, buying books based solely on looks or a grab-bag from one genre - I cannot decide if this is good or bad. Would most people be purchasing these just for the look? You can even buy books that make your library look more scholarly or technical. Wouldn't you want to hand-select technical manuals that actually apply to your profession? Are these libraries just set-dressing for the immaculately designed home or are these covers actually being cracked?

What do you think?

Not-so-Red Velvet July 4th Cupcakes

I think that, if I ever have a child, I will be prepared to bake with that child since baking with my husband is such a similar undertaking. He wants to help but doesn't really know much about baking (i.e. he doesn't know what "packing" brown sugar is or how to use the kitchenaid mixer). Plus, all he really wants to do is fun things like decorate anyway. So, he is my best decorator and cleaner-upper maybe someday I can actually teach him to bake. The truth is, I like doing it so much, he probably will never need to know.

On to the cupcakes. Happy 4th of July, everyone! In honor of the holiday and of my husband's southern roots, I decided to make red velvet cupcakes. Plus, I already had red, white, and blue sprinkles left over from baking for University of Arizona tailgating. I cracked open my new favorite book and they turned out scrumptiously. One note I have is to add more gel coloring than Martha says because Martha is probably using some fancy chef-caliber food tinting, and you and I are probably using whatever gel food coloring Safeway stocks.

I am happy with them (other than the not-so-red part) and they will be traveling with me to my Dad's for a July 4th cookout (and swimming... we really should have gotten a house with a pool).

Here's the recipe if you do not have my favorite cookbook.

Always be generous with frosting.

Happy baking.