Potpourri
"Bacon wrapped filet mignon" - the greatest party snack ever. Ate many of them at the party that my cohost Ron threw for his wife Emily's birthday. Oh my. It even tops the slow cooked pork and the brisket that darlox has made at past occasions. Ron's friends agreed that my idea for bacon wrapped chicken wings was sheer genius.
I finished a number of books recently, including Guns, Germs & Steel, which gieves quite correctly recommended to me; 1632, a light and frothy alternate history in which a town from 1990s West Virginia appears in the Holy Roman Empire. The residents procede to conquer the world. It is junk fiction but terribly enjoyable. Think Turtledove's The Guns of the South but not nearly as serious.
I also knocked off four novellas by Ethan Canin collected as The Palace Thief that I borrowed from a coworker. I had strong opinions about all of the stories, which is probably a good sign. The titular story was pretty weak but it, like the others, demonstrated that Canin is very good at characterization. Tom pushed this on me because I asked him what he thought of the Murakami he had on his desk, and I didn't get to Canin for a few days because I was busy reading Murakami's Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. I liked his The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, but this blew that out of the water. I really liked the alternating story lines. It is enough to make me wish that I could read it in the original Japanese. xhollydayx has snagged Kafka on the Shore for me to read next, and I am slowly making my way through a autobiographical history novel called Constantine's Sword.
"Your potentially deadly and soul sucking stable life." - Micah's accurate description of my current life. Must remember to try new and interesting things, like drinking with gieves and darlox at the Nemo Grille in Avon. I had a great meal ( short ribs ) and demonstrated that my capacity for alcohol has apparently declined dramatically. We also caught up on all the gossip. I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you, and then I'd have to clean the blood off my floor.
I have started emailing landlords and will be looking at places this week. Most of them are in Lakewood. Depending on the apartment I find I may very well sell the dining room set I got from aquamindy rather than move it. I also sense new shelves for my CD collection in my near future.
I finally sorted through all my clothes and donated 6 full bags of clothes that I never wore or that were too small. I also tossed some shirts that were beyond repair. Tragically, this included two of my three RENT shirts and all of the shirts I had in my favorite shade of blue. At least this should making moving somewhat easier. I finally cancelled my gym membership as well. Now that I will be on the West Side I will be activating my free Westlake Rec center membership that I am eligible for through work. The money I save from this should cover the small bump in my rent that I am likely to incur as I lose my roommate to the bright lights and big city of Portland.
Besides, I can't work out anyway. I finally went to see the doctor about my knee. It appears that my kneecap is out of alignment of some such ridiculous thing. No problem. Apparently physical therapy should be able to realign it, which should greatly alleviate the pain I have had while working out recently. Sigh.
The Tribe utterly destroyed the Red Sox when I went to the game last Thursday. It was cold enough that xhollydayx prevailed upon me to leave at the 7th inning stretch. Fortunately, they didn't blow it while I was gone.
I finished a number of books recently, including Guns, Germs & Steel, which gieves quite correctly recommended to me; 1632, a light and frothy alternate history in which a town from 1990s West Virginia appears in the Holy Roman Empire. The residents procede to conquer the world. It is junk fiction but terribly enjoyable. Think Turtledove's The Guns of the South but not nearly as serious.
I also knocked off four novellas by Ethan Canin collected as The Palace Thief that I borrowed from a coworker. I had strong opinions about all of the stories, which is probably a good sign. The titular story was pretty weak but it, like the others, demonstrated that Canin is very good at characterization. Tom pushed this on me because I asked him what he thought of the Murakami he had on his desk, and I didn't get to Canin for a few days because I was busy reading Murakami's Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. I liked his The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, but this blew that out of the water. I really liked the alternating story lines. It is enough to make me wish that I could read it in the original Japanese. xhollydayx has snagged Kafka on the Shore for me to read next, and I am slowly making my way through a autobiographical history novel called Constantine's Sword.
"Your potentially deadly and soul sucking stable life." - Micah's accurate description of my current life. Must remember to try new and interesting things, like drinking with gieves and darlox at the Nemo Grille in Avon. I had a great meal ( short ribs ) and demonstrated that my capacity for alcohol has apparently declined dramatically. We also caught up on all the gossip. I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you, and then I'd have to clean the blood off my floor.
I have started emailing landlords and will be looking at places this week. Most of them are in Lakewood. Depending on the apartment I find I may very well sell the dining room set I got from aquamindy rather than move it. I also sense new shelves for my CD collection in my near future.
I finally sorted through all my clothes and donated 6 full bags of clothes that I never wore or that were too small. I also tossed some shirts that were beyond repair. Tragically, this included two of my three RENT shirts and all of the shirts I had in my favorite shade of blue. At least this should making moving somewhat easier. I finally cancelled my gym membership as well. Now that I will be on the West Side I will be activating my free Westlake Rec center membership that I am eligible for through work. The money I save from this should cover the small bump in my rent that I am likely to incur as I lose my roommate to the bright lights and big city of Portland.
Besides, I can't work out anyway. I finally went to see the doctor about my knee. It appears that my kneecap is out of alignment of some such ridiculous thing. No problem. Apparently physical therapy should be able to realign it, which should greatly alleviate the pain I have had while working out recently. Sigh.
The Tribe utterly destroyed the Red Sox when I went to the game last Thursday. It was cold enough that xhollydayx prevailed upon me to leave at the 7th inning stretch. Fortunately, they didn't blow it while I was gone.