I think goals should have a bit of a challenge to them. Reading 10 000 pages was easier than I expected, and it seems kind of silly to have a year's reading goal met by April. So I am upping the count. 20 000 seems to be really easy; 25 000 is hard but still seems doable but I actually want a challenge so I am going for 30 000 pages.
At 12 691 pages, I am currently just a little over 1/3 the way there which seems just right.
Here are the latest additions to the list:
33. A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin, finished 21 May 2012, 753 pages
32. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin, finished 09 May 2012, 1177 pages
There is only one more book to go in the Land of Ice and Fire series (well, only one more PUBLISHED one. There is at least one more in the wings.). I rather liked the fourth book although I admit that at first I was really annoyed because he doesn't feature any of my favorite characters in this book. However, there are multiple storylines and all are interrelated to a certain degree. Seemingly minor characters are more fully developed, which probably means that I will spend a lot of time crying reading the next book as there are now MORE characters to care about that will die. Although, "dead" doesn't always mean "dead" in these stories.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
kitchen serendipity
I like hard cooked eggs as a snack and I store them in the egg carton. To easily tell the difference between raw and cooked, I add some food dye to the cool-down water. I don't aim for anything fancy, just enough of a color to be able to tell which is which at a glance.
Awhile back, I bought some black food coloring to color some caramels (the plan was to make liquorice caramels but I never got around to it. Go ahead and mock me, but I LOVE liquorice caramels.) And today I decided to use the black food coloring.
To the cooling water, I added a glug of vinegar and a squirt of food coloring and let the eggs sit for about a minute or so. I don't think this food coloring was meant to have acid added to it because the dye broke but it resulted in some amazing effects. Some of the eggs have a patina-green color, some look like bronze but the coolest ones look like bronze with blue-green patina. Here is a crappy cell phone photo:
Take that, Martha Stewart!
Awhile back, I bought some black food coloring to color some caramels (the plan was to make liquorice caramels but I never got around to it. Go ahead and mock me, but I LOVE liquorice caramels.) And today I decided to use the black food coloring.
To the cooling water, I added a glug of vinegar and a squirt of food coloring and let the eggs sit for about a minute or so. I don't think this food coloring was meant to have acid added to it because the dye broke but it resulted in some amazing effects. Some of the eggs have a patina-green color, some look like bronze but the coolest ones look like bronze with blue-green patina. Here is a crappy cell phone photo:
Take that, Martha Stewart!
Sunday, May 06, 2012
Reading Goal Met!
Updates to the reading list:
31. The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka, finished 06 May 2012, 129 pages
30. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin, finished 04 May 2012, 883 pages
29. Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin, finished 29 April 2012, 799 pages
28. "Weiland, or the Transformation" from American Gothic Tales, ed. Joyce Carol Oates, finished 08 April. 9 pages
Current page total is 10 008! Yay me.
Friday, April 20, 2012
No reading updates, but a tasty recipe!
NOw that it's rhubarb season, here is a very tasty recipe for rhubarb quickbread (from www.rhubarb-recipes.com)
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 whole eggs
1.5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh rhubarb, chopped into 1/2 inch slices
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine brown sugar, milk, and oil in a bowl. Add eggs, and then the flour, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and rhubarb. Mix well. Pour mixture into a well greased 8.5" x 4.5" loaf pan. Sprinkle the granulated sugar over the top and dot with the butter. Bake for one hour or until bread is firm to the touch. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. (Alternately, you can forget to grease the pan and then you can eat the cake directly out of the pan.)
Also, I've made this recipe with twice as much rhubarb and it's still very tasty. It has a denser and moister texture but also more rhubarb goodness.
US/UK baking conversion info can be found here
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 whole eggs
1.5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh rhubarb, chopped into 1/2 inch slices
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine brown sugar, milk, and oil in a bowl. Add eggs, and then the flour, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and rhubarb. Mix well. Pour mixture into a well greased 8.5" x 4.5" loaf pan. Sprinkle the granulated sugar over the top and dot with the butter. Bake for one hour or until bread is firm to the touch. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. (Alternately, you can forget to grease the pan and then you can eat the cake directly out of the pan.)
Also, I've made this recipe with twice as much rhubarb and it's still very tasty. It has a denser and moister texture but also more rhubarb goodness.
US/UK baking conversion info can be found here
Tuesday, April 03, 2012
books 2012 continued
Moving right along towards my goal. Current page count is 8208.
27. Weeds: In Defense of Nature's Most Unloved Plants by Richard Mabey, finished 03 April, 291 pages
26. Marsbound by Joe Haldeman, finished 26 March, 226 pages
25. Plugged by Eoin Colfer, finished 21 March, 254 pages
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
book update
Book #24. The Thrall's Tale by Judith Lindberg, finished 19 March 2012, 450 pages
Set during the first Norse Settlement of Greenland, and based heavily on archaeological research. Told through the point of view of three women in the story: a seeress of Odin, a thrall (daughter of a captured Irish Christian), and the thrall's daughter. The pacing is a bit slow but it's not boring. Highly recommended.
Update: current total is 7437 pages out of the 10,000 page goal
Wednesday, March 07, 2012
books read in 2012
I am calling each item a book for the sake of the list. Each item has been published under the title that is listed although some are technically short stories or novellas.
Updated Goal is to read 30,000 pages of narrative, either fiction or non-fiction. Current total as of 22 May 2012: 12 691 pages
Titles in bold are ones I have especially enjoyed.
33. A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin, finished 21 May 2012, 753 pages
32. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin, finished 09 May 2012, 1177 pages
31. The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka, finished 06 May 2012, 129 pages
32. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin, finished 09 May 2012, 1177 pages
31. The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka, finished 06 May 2012, 129 pages
30. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin, finished 04 May 2012, 883 pages
29. Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin, finished 29 April 2012, 799 pages
28. "Weiland, or the Transformation" from American Gothic Tales, ed. Joyce Carol Oats, finished 08 April. 9 pages
27. Weeds: In Defense of Nature's Most Unloved Plants by Richard Mabey, finished 03 April, 291 pages
26. Marsbound by Joe Haldeman, finished 26 March, 226 pages
25. Plugged by Eoin Colfer, finished 21 March, 254 pages
24. The Thrall's Tale by Judith Lindberg, finished 19 March 2012, 450 pages
23. The Great Typo Hunt: Two Friends Changing the World, One Correction at a Time by Jeff Deck and Benjamin D. Herson, finished 14 March 2012, 259 pages
22. Eels: An Exploration, from New Zealand to the Sargasso, of the World's Most Amazing and Mysterious Fish by James Prosekk, finished 4 March 2012, 201 pages
21. The Keeper by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 29 February 2012, 223 pages
20. Oneiros by S. L. Armstrong, finished 29 February 2012, 75 pages
19. Rachmaninoff by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 27 February 2012, 507 pages
18. Catalyst by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 25 February 2012, 543 pages
17. "Apples and Regret and Wasted Time" by Cornelia Grey, finished 23 February 2012, 40 pages
16. Various short stories and novellas Master Class; Sublime; Where He Belongs by Rachel Heimowitz, and "Breaking Point" by S.L. Armstrong. 333 pages combined
15. Love Is A Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield, finished 19 February 2012, 224 pages
14. Anchored by Rachel Heimowitz, finished 13 February 2012, 317 pages
13. Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: one man's quest for true love and a cooler haircut by Rob Sheffield, finished 07 February 2012, 205 pages
12. Wild Boy: My Life in Duran Duran by Andy Taylor, finished 04 February 2012, 316 pages
11. Crescendo by Rachel Heimowitz, finished 02 February 2012, 277 pages
10. Elemental Magic. Stories by Sharon Shinn, Rebecca York, Carol Berg, Jean Johnson. Finished 30 January 2012, 339 pp.
9. The Spirit Lens by Carol Berg, finished 25 January 2012, 454 pages
8. Enchanted by Nancy Madore, finished 14 January 2012, 158 pages
7. The Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner, finished 10 January 2012, 338 pages
6. Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner, finished 08 January 2012, 269 pages
5. Saturn's Children by Charles Stross, finished 08 January 2012, 323 pages
4. Blackout by Connie Willis, finished 06 January 2012, 491 pages
3. My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: 40 New Fairy Tales, edited by Kate Bernheimer, finished 02 January 2012. 533 pages
2. The Flint Heart by Katherine Paterson and John Paterson, finished 01 January 2012, 288 pages
1. Machine Man by Max Barry, finished 01 January 2012. 274 pages.
Reading goal 2012
Last year, I set a goal to read 100 books and I am pleased that I completed it. Okay, to be fair, I made the goal in early December 2010 so I really had 13 months to complete the goal. I had defined a book as anything that that had been published as a separate entity and contained at least 100 pages. But after getting my Nook last year, I realized that there is a wealth of short stories and novellas available as individual titles and I wanted to be able to count these as well. Also, I admit that I shied away from some of the longer books because I was concerned that I wouldn't make my goal. (Generally, I would not consider reading any type of book detracting from an ultimate goal but last year was rough. I wanted to actually complete something meaningful.)
This year, I have decided to focus on pages of narrative. Since last year's goal was 100 books of at least 100 pages, I set this year's goal as 10,000 pages in whatever format the item comes in. Short story? Check. Novella? Check.
BTW...I really hope the popularity of the ebook readers will lead to resurgence of the novella. I LOVE the novella length. It's long enough for the author to develop complexity but short enough that the story can be read in a few hours, possibly in a single sitting. Rather like watching a movie. But novellas don't sell well in published format and the few periodicals that publish short fiction shy away from novellas because they are too long for their purposes.
Without further ado, here is this year's list so far. I am taking the page count from directly from the item itself. Some of these titles are electronic only; I don't know how many "pages" they would have if they were printed out.
And yes, some of the items on this list are titles I've read before. Maybe at the end of the year I will determine how many pages of new material versus reread are in the list. And I am only including titles that I finished.
Bolded titles represent ones I especially enjoyed.
Goal is to read 10,000 pages of narrative, either fiction or non-fiction. Current total: 6728 pages
22. Eels: An Exploration, from New Zealand to the Sargasso, of the World's Most Amazing and Mysterious Fish by James Prosekk, finished 4 March 2012, 201 pages
21. The Keeper by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 29 February 2012, 223 pages
20. Oneiros by S. L. Armstrong, finished 29 February 2012, 75 pages
19. Rachmaninoff by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 27 February 2012, 507 pages
18. Catalyst by K. Piet and S.L. Armstrong, finished 25 February 2012, 543 pages
17. "Apples and Regret and Wasted Time" by Cornelia Grey, finished 23 February 2012, 40 pages
16. Various short stories and novellas Master Class; Sublime; Where He Belongs by Rachel Heimowitz, and "Breaking Point" by S.L. Armstrong. 333 pages combined
15. Love Is A Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield, finished 19 February 2012, 224 pages
14. Anchored by Rachel Heimowitz, finished 13 February 2012, 317 pages
13. Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: one man's quest for true love and a cooler haircutby Rob Sheffield, finished 07 February 2012, 205 pages
12. Wild Boy: My Life in Duran Duran by Andy Taylor, finished 04 February 2012, 316 pages
11. Crescendo by Rachel Heimowitz, finished 02 February 2012, 277 pages
10. Elemental Magic. Stories by Sharon Shinn, Rebecca York, Carol Berg, Jean Johnson. Finished 30 January 2012, 339 pp.
9. The Spirit Lens by Carol Berg, finished 25 January 2012, 454 pages
8. Enchanted by Nancy Madore, finished 14 January 2012, 158 pages
7. The Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner, finished 10 January 2012, 338 pages
6. Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner, finished 08 January 2012, 269 pages
5. Saturn's Children by Charles Stross, finished 08 January 2012, 323 pages
4. Blackout by Connie Willis, finished 06 January 2012, 491 pages
3. My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: 40 New Fairy Tales, edited by Kate Bernheimer, finished 02 January 2012. 533 pages
2. The Flint Heart by Katherine Paterson and John Paterson, finished 01 January 2012, 288 pages
1. Machine Man by Max Barry, finished 01 January 2012. 274 pages.
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