everybody seems to wonder what it's like down here

[musesfool]

So my older nephew turned 21 yesterday. 21! Who let that happen? How is that even possible? (and the other nephew turns 18 next Thursday! 18! Otoh, since he was diagnosed with leukemia at 11 months, we are all thrilled that he recovered and thrived, and we don't say things like, "How did this happen!?" because we're just so glad that it did

Comments

[e_juliana]

I tend to use the Martha Stewart recipe - partially because it uses booze, and I'm a fan of putting booze in my sweet baked things.

http://www.marthastewart.com/966161/ideal-sugar-cookies

You can sub in dark rum and use brown sugar if you want a more molasses-y cookie without dealing with, you know, molasses.

The Serious Eats recipe is also very good: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/01/one-bowl-baking-easy-chewy-sugar-cookies.html?ref=search

[musesfool]

*bookmarks them both*

Thank you!

[caughtinanocean]

This is my favorite sugar cookie: http://sweetpeaskitchen.com/2010/09/soft-and-chewy-sugar-cookies/

They're beautiful, with great texture and excellent flavor. After I made them for the first time, I found any excuse to make them again for months. And they're just so much fun to make! I love cookies you have to roll in sugar and then squish. :)

[musesfool]

Oh, cool. Thank you! *bookmarks*

[spectralbovine]

I've seen criticisms that Seanan's first-person voice sounds the same, and on a certain level, I do see it, especially the snarkiness and general use of language (Parasite is an exception, as Sal is a very different character). I found Alex to be more distinct from Verity than you did, maybe not in the narrative voice itself but in the way each sees the world. I loved how Alex viewed everything through the lens of science.

[musesfool]

I think reading in quick succession, I can't help but feel they start to sound samey, and though I get what you're saying, I still feel like overall, Alex wasn't differentiated enough from Verity for me. I still enjoyed the book, though.

[prunesquallormd]

I tend to feel the same about 1st person narration. I guess it's fairly hard to make first person distinctive. I know I find it hard, which is one of the reasons I hardly ever use it.

[musesfool]

Yeah, I've found that it's okay for one book, but reading a few books in a row by the same author with allegedly different narrators, it can start to feel really samey.

[furies]

hah! this is actually a really great overview of WWI and why it started. hilarious, too.

http://www.collegehumor.com/post/6650094/facebook-news-feed-history-of-the-world-world-war-i-to-world-war-ii

[musesfool]

Ah, that was excellent!