A Taste of Westeros Day 1

Mar 282011
 

Woo-hoo! Today kicked off the weeklong Taste of Westeros event in NYC.   Chef Tom Colicchio created regional based menus to celebrate the launch of HBO’s A Game of Thrones series.The first stop was to Union Square:

The menu tonight was inspired by King’s Landing – crispy trout with almond butter citrus mostarda, roasted rabbit honey preserved lemon and stewed pistachio, and lemon cakes:

Looking at that pic now, I realize Laura may have been trying to organize the napkins so all the words faced forward. But then it was cold and windy and I moved the red one thinking it was gonna blow away. Whoops. Didn’t realize I turned it the wrong way. Did I mention it was cold? Mind numbing apparently. :P

Anyway, I had the rabbit and the top of a lemon cake. It was freaking amazing!! Presentation was awesome, taste perfection. It was well worth standing in the cold for it. I even loved the menus HBO handed out to us while we waited. And now that I’m home and sitting down for dinner, my own meal looks so damn pitiful:

I can’t wait for the recipes to be released! I want to make them now!! Lemon Cake one is up. I will have to try to make that this weekend. :)

In the meantime, I’ll be keeping watch for the rest of the stops, hoping I can go to another:
Tuesday, March 29
Wednesday, March 30
Thursday, March 31
Friday, April 1

And now that’s the end of this ramble. Off to dive back into The Game of Thrones novel, attempting to read while Ruki rubs her cheek on the corners of the book. :P

Through my bookshelves

Mar 172011
 

It’s a rare moment! Every book I own (except the one I’m carrying around with me) is on a shelf. Huzzah!

Usually I have stacks of books tucked in various corners of my apartment. But I’m trying to be more organized. Plus, I finally donated some to make wiggle room. You know what that means, though, right? I can get more books! :P

Anyway, I thought I’d share a tour of my bookshelves.

When you walk into my apartment, books are the first thing you see:

The book barrier is there to give my living room some sense of privacy for when I open my front door. This shelf collects all my hardcovers, trade paperbacks, kids books, some of the manga spillage from another shelf, and oversized art books. It’s really a hodgepodge of books. I tend to arrange books by sections and aim to have them in author & series order. This shelf seriously needs to be re-run. I noticed I have a ton of Tor trade paperbacks and a few hardcovers shoved on there out of order. It’s what happens when I bring work home and want it off the floor. :P

I couldn’t get the full shelf in the picture so here’s a detail with the top included:

I love Halloween decor! :)

As you walk into the apartment, you’ll see the other side of the book barrier is also a set of shelves:

This shelf has two main sections to it. Mass market paperbacks on the top half and new age on the bottom. The cardboard box on the floor is one of Ruki’s favorite lounging spots.

Here are closer shots:

On a perpendicular wall lives another shelf:

A chunk of this shelf is taken up by my DVDs. The bottom half includes manga, graphic novels, gaming, media related (X-Files, Lost, Firefly), and random books on topics like writing, web, forensics, and maker type subjects. In the middle of the pic is a section of books on their sides. That’s my current stack of in progress books. Keeping them on their side makes it easier for me to spot them and off the floor.

Here are a few closer shots:

And ok, so I have one section of books that doesn’t actually live on a shelf. They are on a coffee table. Close enough! :)

Looking at that pic, I’m seeing that I need to move my charging station to where it will be less of an eye sore. :P

And that’s that! The only shelf I didn’t take a picture of is my project supply shelf. It houses papercutting and steampunk metalworking tools. Plus, a few related books, cookbooks, and even a bread machine. Maybe next time.

Wonder how soon until a stack appears on my floor again… :D

Apple is such a tease!

Mar 172011
 

Look what arrived in the mail today:

It’s my iPad Smart Cover. Woot! It looks pretty awesome. Can’t wait to try it out!

But…I can’t believe they went ahead and shipped that because now I’m more impatient than ever for my iPad2 to arrive. It hasn’t shipped yet so it’s gonna be a while. *pout* I will just have to pass the time rolling my cover into a triangle and unrolling it again. :P

Pen Thief!

Mar 132011
 

I was trying to do some work when this happened:

Ruki! Lately she has been stealing every pen I’ve got. I have no idea where she takes them either! Sheesh. :P

On another note, my old theme glitched out and stopped letting me write posts. And my sinuses are still keeping way too blurry-eyed to bother with trying to find the problem in the code right now. So, I’ve tossed another theme up for the time being. Things may look strange around here until I dissect the problem. Maybe I’ll just be lazy and keep the new theme.

Guess I should go get my pen back now before it disappears for good. Sounds like it’s being dragged across the floor somewhere around a corner. Maybe if I stalk her I can find the rest of my pens! Well see… :D

 

Dipping my toes back into writing with a sorta new start

Feb 222011
 

Look at all that paper! On the right of my laptop sits manuscript #1. On the left sits #2, part of #3, and folders with tons of scribbled notes. I’ve been going through pieces of these papers for the past couple weeks, trying to reacquaint myself with the story. Three years (at least!) of writer’s block has had me hesitant to dive in completely. It’s been surreal going through it now. And what’s really hitting me most is that I need to start over.

Huzzah!

Heh. You may wonder how I can celebrate that, but it’s a good thing. It’s inspiration. It’s a kickstart. And it has me excited! I realized part of the problem I’ve been having is that I was confining this story to a trilogy. And guess what? That’s not going to work. Series it is. How many books? No idea. Not sure how much from the original material will survive either. All I know is that I’m excited by the possibilities and want nothing more than to dive in with a fresh start. Writers block, be prepared, what’s left of you is about be annihilated! :P

First up, character profiles, maps, and some general outlining. Woot!

Has this ever happened to you? Have you had to scrap everything and start over in order to do what’s best for the story? Were you as ridiculously giddy over the idea of it as I am? :)

Ruki smiling in her sleep

Feb 212011
 

Ruki looks like she’s grinning in her sleep. Of course she’s all smiles after the morning she’s had. Attacked my ipod earphones, attacked my laptop cable, skidded out across the floor and crashed into me, all sorts of chaos. She was in some sort of psycho kitten mode this morning. Crazy cat! And now she looks all cute and cuddly. Awe…. :P

I wonder what she’s dreaming about. Any guesses?

5 months into the diet, 54 lbs down

Feb 132011
 

Yay! Time for a little celebrating!

Five months ago today, I joined Weight Watchers Online. I haven’t posted anything about it because I didn’t believe I’d actually lose weight. How could I? For about twelve years I’d been about the same weight. Doctors weren’t able to give me answers for most of that time. Then finally I got diagnosed with PCOS and eventually found out about the gluten allergy. In September, my doctor said all my levels (sugar, hormone, who knows what else) were all in check and he saw no reason I couldn’t lose weight then. He told me I’d have to believe I could do it and embrace it. Eh, he’s big on the motivating thing.

Anyway, I joined and voi la, down 54 pounds now. I’m hoping to reach my ideal weight some time this year.

It hasn’t been easy. It’s still not. There are days when I’m full of the pout, puffed out bottom lip and all. But I am slowly moving along. I’ve been following the points plan but have had to alter some things to fit my dietary needs. I had to ditch all fake sugar.  WW loves the fake crap. Splenda is big on their list. If I eat any of that or any other fake sugar, I gain weight back immediately. I alter any recipes that call for it or avoid the recipe all together. WW also hates rice flour. Oy does it ever. They launched a new points plan the Monday after Thanksgiving and guess what, the new plan hates rice flour even more. So I’m still trying to adjust for getting to eat some gf breads.

But I have been trying a lot of new recipes from their site and here are a few that have become staples for me:

*Oatmeal – I live off the slow cooker oatmeal for breakfast: butternut squash (recipe is for pumpkin, I just swap it out with butternut squash), or cranberry maple almond flavored.

*General Tso’s Chicken – doesn’t really taste like General Tso’s but has a great flavor

*Cider-Braised Chicken Thighs with Sweet Potatoes and Sage – I changed the recipe some. I use chicken breasts and less shallots. I just toss everything together and bake @ 350 degrees.

*Apple-Topped Sweet Mash Potatoes

*Chicken Cordon Bleu

As far as exercise goes, I did a few simple things to get more into my day. Every weekday I walk from Port Authority to my office. It’s about 1.2 miles depending on the route I take. This fall, I doubled that by walking the return route instead of taking the train. I get more exercise in and save on the train expense too. I also started taking a yoga class on Saturdays. I’m trying to do more yoga at home during the week too. Plus I ride an exercise bike whenever I can. As the weather warms, I’m sure I’ll be doing more outside too. Can’t wait!

That’s that. Here’s to losing the next 50. :)

The Move – paper animation

Feb 082011
 

This animation is adorable. It was created by Mandy Smith and her inspiration was moving in Amsterdam. The story is illustrated through paper:

The Move, Paper Animation from Mandy Smith on Vimeo.

(via Paper Forest)

Brain, you really aren’t working with me today

Feb 082011
 

I sat here while I ate my lunch, thinking of something to write about on this blog. I figured if I want to write more regularly, writing blog posts is a good place to start. Only thing is, here’s what happened:

“I could write about something digital related.”

Brain: “_”

“Or maybe about writing or research or something writing related in general?”

Brain: “_”

“Okay, how about a review? I’ve read a lot lately.”

Brain: “_”

“Er, maybe something steampunk related? Or gypsy-esque inspiration?”

I’m sure you can guess the response here. Yep, “_”

It’s taken me a while (yeah, I’m dense) but I finally realize the problem. My brain has turned into this:

Yep, pudding. At least it’s chocolate. That means there is hope my brain will be more active (and cooperative) tomorrow. If it was bland vanilla, I’d be screwed for at least another week. :P

A little cello music for your Saturday morning

Feb 052011
 

Eh, I wrote Sunday in that title first. Since I was home sick yesterday, I’d forgotten what day it is. Luckily I caught that before this went live, eh? :P

Still groggy and bleh, but Ruki would not let me sleep. Kitten had an empty belly, you know how that goes.

Anyway, I’m in the mood for some cello music (I know, I always seem to be in that mood), and thought I’d share some. I’ll be listening to Zoe Keating and Julia Kent today as I plunge forward into my reread of The Name of the Wind. Huzzah!

And now I’m off to read. Enjoy the rest of your day! :)

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