Now I know what's going on my Christmas list!

This is the stuff that Christmas dreams are made of! Jessica Bendinger, the screenwriter who brought it with the cheer-tastic Bring It On, has just published her debut novel! Here is the cover of the sure-to-be-glorious The Seven Rays:
And here are three things I already love about this book:

1. The cover proudly proclaims that it's by the writer of Bring It On and Stick It.
2. It received a rating of "a perfect ten" from American Cheerleader Magazine (they review books? I can almost hear Sue Sylvester's commentary).
3. Both Deepak Chopra and Greg "He's Just Not That Into You" Behrendt have nice things to say about it: "a journey of mystery, magic, and adventure," and "teen-tastic and freaky" respectively. Current TV likes it, too, and if Al Gore is on board that's good enough for me.

Now you know what will be in MY letter to Santa this year!

A Daily Coyote Shout-Out!

One of my very favorite books of 2009 was The Daily Coyote, by Shreve Stockton. Adapted from her blog of the same name, this book chronicles a year spent with Charlie, an orphaned coyote pup, in a tiny Wyoming town called Ten Sleep. The book is a standout in every way, but my hands-down favorite bits are the captivating, full-color photos of Charlie. After reading the book, I became a regular visitor to Shreve's blog, where she posts daily photos of Charlie and a weekly caption contest (every Monday, for those interested). Inspiration doesn't always strike, but when it does I enter a caption or two to accompany the picture. I've never had the winning caption, nor the accompanying prize (Charlie calendars, petrified squid and other Wyoming goodies, paperback copy of The Daily Coyote, etc.). But today I scored something just as good: a spot on the list of runners-up! I couldn't compete with "Yawn of Uncivilization," the winning entry for this photo of Charlie's epic yawn, but Shreve recognized both my entry and the reasoning behind it:

“Show me whatcha got / Show me your teeth!” — “Teeth” by Lady Gaga
(somehow I think Charlie would appreciate Lady Gaga!)

I am positively giddy! So in the spirit of all things Lady Gaga, here are some photos of yours truly along with my friends Cas Q. and Kristine C. at the Lady Gaga concert last Thursday. Do spend some time checking out the motley crew behind us in the second picture!
Well, I suppose the Christmas cards aren't going to write themselves. Must dash.

Here's one from my brag book

Incommunicado

I've been a little bit incommunicado recently, and it's time for some true confessions. First, I've given in to the hype. I am reading New Moon, and I am loving it. Although the first 200 pages do make you revisit a traumatic break-up or two. "I don't want to break up with you, I just want a hiatus for ski season" is one zinger that pops into my mind (and that person knows exactly who he is although he is most likely not reading this blog...his loss all around).

Second, I've been busy perfecting what I like to call The Best Recipe Ever, pictured here:
This recipe hearkens back to another recipe that was featured on True Blue Media Gal last May. I spruced it up a little and now it's even better, so simple and tasty:

• Sautee a chopped onion in butter and olive oil
• Add a jar of prepared pesto
• Crumble in a log of goat cheese and stir until it starts to melt
• Stir in any leftover marinara sauce (at this point the recipe will briefly look quite gross but persevere!)
• Stir in as much chopped spinach as you can fit into the cooking vessel, and cover so that the spinach wilts from the heat of the sauce
• Stir in some cooked, peeled, de-veined shrimp (it's not really a vein, you know, so the removal of said "vein" is key)
• Heat through, invite the neighbors, and enjoy!

Third, I've been trying to figure out when My Beloved James Franco will start appearing on General Hospital. And thanks to the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, I have a date: Monday, November 23, 2009. He's going to portray a mysterious artist named ... (my beloved) Franco. Let's show him some love!

How does she stay so youthful?

On November 14 Mattie LaMew celebrated her "1st birthday"! Actually, it was her 5th birthday but her 1st anniversary as my cat. Can't you just see the joy in that little kitty expression? I picked up a cupcake so that we could celebrate in style, but Mattie wasn't particularly interested in it. I actually had to lure her near the cupcake with her squeaky catnip mouse, also pictured here:
This photo captures the most exciting moment of her birthday celebration; it was followed by yours truly enjoying the cupcake, which was just delicious. The whole day included extra spoiling for her: fresh catnip on her scratching box, extra playtime with her string, and of course no shortage of kibble.

Before and After; Or, a shout-out to Mama Gladys

My mom recently picked up this 9-pound cabbage at a grocery store in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and I whipped it up into a big bowl of Cabbage a La Gladys. This involves quartering the cabbage, slicing the wedges into ribbons, and cooking it in butter and olive oil over high heat until it turns golden brown but still has a good crunch to it. The before and after pictures:

It's hard to judge the scale of these photos, but that is a pretty big cutting board and the cabbage took up the entire thing! Also, the after picture shows half of the cabbage post-cooking. I had to cook it in four batches! This is my mom's very favorite recipe, and it's all thanks go Mama Gladys and her culinary expertise.

Quotable Evan

I recently heard from my brother, Evan, who called from California to give me an update on Palo Alto's weather forecast: "It's sunny, 70°, blue sky with no clouds, about 50% humidity. 50% humidity is a little high for me, but I can take it." As I sit here, ensconced in the land of 98% humidity (a.k.a. Pennsylvania), my heart really breaks for Evan as he suffers with 50% humidity. But it's cool, because November has also broken with many exciting plans in the works. The new month got off on the right foot with a Halloween eve' game night, where I put in an appearance as Sue Sylvester, the cheerleading coach from Glee. I appear on the left with my hand weight and iron supplements, and below with my pal Loren as a "tavern lady." Next up is reading New Moon in preparation for seeing the movie. I was a bona fide Twilight hater until I saw the movie – low budget heaven! Now I'm just hoping I can get to the sequel before the movie opens. After all, time is tight what with watching Season 3 of Buffy on DVD, juggling Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill and Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler, and squeezing in Singles Night at Trader Joe's. I knew I'd been meaning to get business cards made for a reason! And that's how this gal "C's" it!

Can you stand the sweetness?

Sick Day

I'm home sick today. Not the kind of "sick day" that involves a yoga class, an oil change, and some outlet shopping. Rather, the kind of sick day that involves a vague, total-body ache and staring at the clock, willing it to be time for my next dose of Pseudo-Quil. Also the kind of sick day when I think I'll get a jump on all my holiday correspondence, but instead wind up racked out on the futon watching seven consecutive episodes of Flight of the Conchords, Season 2. Hilarious show, by the way, though in my current state any laughter leads to a crackling coughing fit. On the upside, I also get to spend several hours observing the birds on a wire outside my window as they puff themselves up and generally torment Mattie the cat. If only I'd been more organized about my Netflix delivery schedule, I would have Twilight on hand to watch! I just recently read the book and will withhold commentary until I see how Edward the Sparkly Vampire, he of changing eye color and cold skin, is portrayed in the movie. The book absolutely slayed me, and not in a fabulous Buffy-esque way at all. Oops, does that count as commentary?

I laughed, I cried, I listened to the podcast: It's a Rosanne Cash lovefest!

I left work a little late on Monday, so I only caught the last few minutes of Terry Gross' interview with Rosanne Cash on Fresh Air. Oh, but what a wonderful few minutes they were! I don't usually advertise my profound affection for country music; I prefer to save it for awkward moments at parties and/or lulls in any conversation. I then fill these lulls with comments such as: "Hey, have we talked about how much I love Dwight Yoakam?" So anyway, Rosanne Cash has a fabulous new album called The List. This album includes twelve songs from a list of one hundred essential country songs that her father, Johnny Cash, created for her when she was eighteen. The newest of these songs, Bob Dylan's "Girl from the North Country," is from the early 1960s. In other words, Carrie Underwood won't be keying anyone's Ford Dually in these songs. It's a collection of classic American songs that tiptoe over the border between country, folk, protest music, blues, and mountain music. Plus, I love Rosanne's style on the album cover: And when I listened to the whole interview via podcast, I came away with even more respect for Rosanne as a singer and a person. The List is not to be missed!