jmc_bks

The new Harris Teeter opened in my neighborhood.  Well, the next neighborhood over, really, Locust Point.  But it's within walking distance and closer than Whole Paycheck. It'll probably replace WP as my grocery budget buster. (Although WP's prepared food section seems better at first glance, HT's produce section is better by far.)

Yesterday I bought stew meat at the butcher stall at Cross Street, but forgot to stop at the vegetable stall, so I walked to HT and bought the veg for stew and then puttered around while it bubbled away on the stove.  Will I ever remember that mixing flour and water for thickener works better than sprinkling flour in directly?  Probably not.  Instead I ended up stirring like crazy to get rid of the lumps.  It was pretty good for a dish I haven't cooked in nearly 20 years.

The cracker candy and peanut butter bars that I planned on making...did not get made.  It'll have to be tomorrow evening, I guess.  All the ingredients are on the shelf, I just felt like I'd used all my interest in domesticity by cleaning out a cabinet and making the beef stew. 

This afternoon I flipped between Star Wars IV: A New Hope and Kissing Jessica Stein and football.  (FWIW, The Empire Strikes Back is on SpikeTV right now.)  I love both movies for very different reasons.  And I was looking for updates on the Packers-Chiefs game.  While I'm sorry the Pack lost, at least all the hype will go away now, leaving them to concentrate on the next couple of games and the post-season.  They play the Bears at Lambeau next week, and I'm expecting lots of trash talk from The Boy Uncle, a die-hard Bears fan.

I've invited Mom, T, bro, and SIL to my house for dinner on the 23rd if that suits.  They are welcome on the 24th, when I originally planned to invite them, but there's a game at 12pm that day, so parking will be horrendous in my neighborhood.  Haven't figured out the menu yet.  Maybe more beef stew with salad, rolls, and some type of dessert?  Must consider.  I'd like to do a turkey breast maybe, but am not sure I can get one from the butcher -- he was going to check and let me know but I haven't heard back yet.  Whatever I cook, mashed potatoes and gravy must be on the menu, otherwise it is not really dinner for T.

Must motivate myself to wrap gifts -- everything that wasn't shipped directly is sitting on a bench in my living room, waiting to be wrapped or bagged appropriately.

I feel like I'm forgetting something, something major, but can't figure out what.  I'll probably remember when it's way too late.

Posted a review of Finding Nouf over at WordPress for SBD.

That sleeping woman?  Could have been me.  I think I was asleep or dozing more often than I was fully awake all weekend.  And it wasn't even a holiday food coma!  The Chemist made an awesome Thanksgiving dinner (smoked turkey breast, duck and salmon, plus sides) but we didn't actually eat THAT much.

The visit to H&A was lovely.  It always is.  We don't have to DO stuff, it's nice to just hang out in the same space and chat and cling.  Which probably entertains A.  We watched a lot of tennis and football, went for a couple of walks around the neighborhood.  Spent an awkward afternoon with dad.  Had sushi at Japaneiro's once and beer (root beer for me) at the Flying Saucer twice.  I would highly recommend the vegetable tempura and the non-alcoholic mojito (made with green tea) at Japaneiro's.  And the Chef's Nirvana, but that pretty much goes without saying, right?  Julio the waiter was awesome -- he clearly knows H&A well, to the point of chasing them down with the left over sashimi he'd boxed for them :)  One of their cats was incredibly smelly because of a diet change; he totally deserved the smelly cat song.

My YAGKYAS fic is plotted and outlined (mostly) but not written.  It needs to be written and beta'd by the 12th at midnight.  BICHOK didn't really work for me this evening -- although my hands have been on the keyboard, they've been busy typing other things.  I <3 procrastination!  

And tomorrow I'm back to work.  I didn't miss it at all.

Also, FYI, I SBD'd over at WordPress about the nonfiction I read over the weekend.

I missed SBD yesterday -- my apologies -- due to work getting in the way of my life.  And then after work, I went to the 9:30 Club to see Foxy Shazam, Patrick Stump and Panic at the Disco with my sister and some of her friends.  The "don't be creepy" speech from Zach (tour manager) was both entertaining and disturbing -- people really need to be told not to grope during the photo op?  Someone brought as a gift a pumpkin that had been carved with the band's logo, which made it up on stage.  The people watching was stellar, in part because there was a costume contest.  I especially liked the Venus Flytrap costume :)

Foxy Shazam, I don't really know what to think of them.  I liked their music but the lyrics were questionable (go listen to a clip of "I Like It" at iTunes.)  The lead singer was exhausting to watch, like an ADHD kid off his meds and on caffeine.  The trumpet player (in zebra striped lyric pants and a top hat) was bendy like Gumby and all over the place.

Patrick Stump -- okay, he's an adorkable kid and I just want to pat him on the head.  He came out in the red tuxedo and a headband with blinking red horns.  Opening medley:  Ghostbusters, Spotlight, Porcelain.  Loved his cover of In the Air Tonight, along with Run Dry and This City.  But apparently he had never seen how baking soda reacts to water?  Because he used it to paint his face white and then had to frantically rub at his face with a towel when he started to sweat and the liquid and powder reacted (ouch).  (I had no idea that it was a risk for Panic to take him on tour, but apparently not everyone is thrilled with his musical direction post-Fall Out Boy.)

Panic.  Okay, I'm not a huge fan although I do like their music.  We went to the meet & greet.  And they were all in costume.  Ian = girl in Kick Ass, including pink wig :)  Dallon as the lead singer of Foxy Shazam.  Spenser as Ron Burgundy (really not too different from regular gear?).  And Brendon as Jesus.  The Jesus bit was a theme for the evening from him.  Went up to the balcony rather than stake out a spot at the barricade with H's friends.  Good view, less crushed.  

In summary:  good times.  But I feel old:  didn't get home until 1am, and am dragging today.  When I was 21, 1am on Thursday night had no effect on me on Friday.

I posted over at WordPress for SBD -- read and really enjoyed the PsyCop mystery/suspense or urban fantasy series.

Also, this time next week I'll be with The Biochemist and the Texas Fangirl Contingent (that name may not be entirely accurate), who are on the Tour of Flail and Glee, shenanigating around Texas and up and down the East Coast for the PStump and Panic! tour.

Sidebar:  I like PStump's Soul Punk album, especially "This City".  But I like the EP/original version of "Spotlight (Oh, Nostalgia)" better than the Soul Punk remix.

Thirdly, I've got a comment fic brewing for the most recent Rocktober post at we_pimpin.  We'll see if it gets posted tonight or tomorrow...

I've posted over at WordPress a quick summary of two nonfiction books I finished over the holiday weekend -- Rafa Nadal's autobiography and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, a sort of biography/science narrative.

I posted over at WordPress about 50/50. In short -- I liked it, especially the music, but wasn't thrilled with the handling of the girlfriend and failing relationship.

I also posted about books that I thought about buying today but left in the store.

Most Importantly: Rocktober has begun at we_pimpin.  Today's pic post has me trying to reduce to paper the thief AU that's been bouncing around in my head.  We'll see how that goes.

My travel budget is allocated for the rest of the year:  Texas in October and November, then I'm homebound until 2012 unless I use miles/points for hotel and buy cheap bus or train tickets by booking way in advance.  Which is probably what I'll be doing, because I want to see these shows on Broadway or Off Broadway:

• Seminar (November through March)
• The Book of Mormon (probably not until January)
• Bonnie & Clyde
• Chinglish
• Richard III (not until January)
• King Lear (October or November)
• The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs (October or November)

Unrelated:  my current favorite dish at the local?  Tempura asparagus.  Yum.

I've belatedly discovered yet another cop show, Rookie Blue.  A lot of the acting is horrible, and the scripts are cliche-ridden.  And yet I've watched most of Season 2 online.  Its only distinguishing features are its setting -- Toronto -- and one of the actors.

I've got a bunch of books waiting to be read (as usual) but feel no urge to pick any of them up.  Instead I've been paging through AO3 for fanfiction in my favorite fandoms that I may have missed or ignored.

First, since it is Monday, it is time for SBD.  Which I posted over at WordPress.  What arrived recently, what to do with a book that gets carried around but never read.

Next:  did you watch the Emmys last night?  I did not, and was pleasantly surprised to learn that Kyle Chandler won for his role of Coach Taylor in Friday Night Lights.  He and Connie Britton were the heart and soul of that show, and it's nice to learn that he got some industry love for it.  Would've been nice if Britton had, too.  My only question is whether Chandler's hair will get a mini Emmy of its own -- I swear the hair was a character all by itself.

C:  I'm catching up on all the Davis Cup matches that were played over the weekend.  And seriously, Nadal must've taken his Djokovic frustration after going 0-6 for the year out on the French team.  As Brad Gilbert would say, he took Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga out to the woodshed.  Giving up ten games over six sets?  It's ridiculously good...and made up for the frighteningly bad doubles match played by Verdasco and F. Lopez.  

C+:  I want to go to Spain the first week in December for the DC finals.  But my budget will not allow for it.  Also, since I've got a trip planned for February, it's somewhat unnecessary.  Except it's Davis Cup.  Finals.  And the opportunity to see Nadal and Ferrer play on clay.  Against Nalbandian and Del Potro.  I'm anticipating *epic* five set matches.

D:  (That unhappy face is intentional):  Netflix.  Oh, Netflix.  I was an early adopter.  And now I'll be one of the million or so users who will drop you.  I don't stream many movies, primarily because I get distracted by other things available online.  I dropped down to the not quite lowest DVD plan primarily because I like catching up on cable TV series appearing on channels I don't subscribe to (HBO, etc.) through your service.  I get that you're feeling crunched by cable providers who want to squeeze users (and thus you) for high usage rates, which streaming demands, and that your relationship with Starz and with various studios is no longer the money haul that it once was.  But inasmuch as you don't care about my monthly budget, I don't care about your PE ratio or ROI.  I'll be return the DVD in my possession and exploring other viewing options, thanks.  Best of luck with your new bifurcated business plan.