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Remembering Kurt Vonnegut

"I have been a soreheaded occupant of a file drawer labeled 'science fiction' […] and I would like out, particularly since so many serious critics regularly mistake the drawer for a urinal."

~ Kurt Vonnegut

Happy Birthday, Mr, Vonnegut, the world isn't the same without you.

Advent Calendar Time!

I'm obsessed with Advent Calendars. When I was young, our crafty neighbor made one of those felt advent calendars which was a tree, and it had all kinds of little felt ornaments which would be added one day at a time. With four kids in the house, we each got to take turns adding those ornaments. It seems like a simple thing, but it was so exciting as we got closer and closer to the big day.

This year Maddie has another LEGO City Advent Calendar.  She's had these in the past and loved them, so I knew it would be fun for her.  Each day you get a little model to put together -- perfect for my Lego obsessed child.

I have to admit that I want an advent calender for myself too, but I'm having some trouble deciding.  I was thinking chocolate -- traditional and good for someone who reviews chocolate, right?  But I'm having a difficult time finding a calendar with decent chocolate.  That nasty "chocolate" stuff that comes in most calendars is inedible as far as I'm concerned.  

I did see this Hachez Haus Advent Calendar on Amazon which looks like it might be promising.

And I could always make my own and add my favorite chocolates:

• Embroidered Felt Advent Calendar at Purl Bee
• Advent Calendar Pockets at Allsorts
• Quilted Advent Calendar at Sew, Mama, Sew

And there are some darn cute advent calendars for sale over at etsy.

Do you have advent calendar ideas?  I'd love to hear them!

Fingerless Mittens

I do still knit -- in fact, I just finished knitting a pair of fingerless mittens!  I used Sophie's Toes Sock Yarn in the colorway Pumpkin Spice.  It is a lovely yarn that was a joy to knit with.  I think this is a fun little project that would be great for holiday gift giving, so I have written up the pattern and am offering it over at Ravelry for only $1.

Coupon

I don't mention it here often, but I have a rubber stamp store online which I've run for over 8 years now called Stamping Online.  Right now I have a promo going on -- 15 % off your entire order.  Just use the coupon code HOLIDAY during checkout.  Plus -- for my blog readers only -- mention BoogaJ in the order comments when you make your purchase and I'll send you a free Hero Arts catalog (filled with card ideas) as well as a free StampIt!  (A ClearDesign stamp with some adhesive gemstones!)  This sale and promo end on November 7th.

Updating

Do you read David Lebovitz's blog?  If you like food, you should.  Why?  Because he's funny, he lives in Paris & he posts great recipes.  If his blog leaves you wanting more, he has written a book, The Sweet Life in Paris, which is filled with great stories about his move from California to Paris and his adventures as he adjusts to this crazy city.  Each chapter is punctuated by recipes that, usually in some strange way, relate to the material presented.  It was a great read -- fun and light.

I mentioned a while back that I forgot to post a few books I had finished reading, and now I'm not sure I remember what I read.  I do remember that I finished Rabbit Is Rich by Updike a while back. This is the third Rabbit Angstrom book and the most depressing. Rabbit is reaching middle age and is quite pathetic really. At points the story moved a little more slowly than in the first two books, but a little over halfway through the plot picks up and once again I am left wanting to read more about Rabbit. Luckily I have the fourth book -- Rabbit at Rest -- which I'll probably read before the year is out.

I also read a collection by Will Eisner, a graphic novelist, called Will Eisner's New York: Life in the Big City. The stories are wonderfully engrossing and really pull you into New York as seen through Eisner's eyes. His style is detailed, old school and fits the subject matter perfectly.

I think I'm missing something else in there, but can't for the life of me think what it might be. Recently I've picked up Margaret Atwood's The Year of the Flood which I'm liking quite well -- probably not surprising since I liked Oryx and Crake and this new novel revisits the same world she sets up there. It doesn't appear to be a sequel, but rather a re-telling from a different perspective.  More on that as soon as I finish reading the book.

Halloween

We made it through another crazy October.  Last week was our annual pumpkin carving contest and this year Maddie carved her first pumpkin -- it's the cute little one in the top row -- second from the right.  She did all the carving herself and I was proud of her, because she chose a white "pumpkin" and those things are hard!  the carving tools were completely bent up and destroyed when she was done.

Our nephew received a *giant* pumpkin from his "big" (he's in Big Bothers/Big Sisters) and he spent at least an hour cleaning the thing out.  It looked great all lit up on the porch at my mom's.

I lost the contest once again (mine is in the top row -- far right), but I'm used to it by now.

Maddie was a witch once again -- I think it's her third time and I'm convinced she does it for the dresses.  She has her old costumes and loves to dress up in them from time to time.

Here she is with her cousins, ready for some trick or treating.  The sumo costume was a real hit with everyone (but perhaps not so easy to walk in!)

Luckily we had dry weather here after many days of rain.  It was seriously chilly, but at least it was partly sunny.  All in all, a good year for trick-or-treating.

A Three Book Day (or a five book day, depending on how you look at it)

I finished reading three different books yesterday...

Blind Lake by Robert Charles Wilson -- Best book I've read by him to date.  Even better than Axis, in my opinion.  You have to love sci-fi with aliens and thinking computers. 

Spirited Away, Vol. 1 by Hayao Miyazaki -- I read this graphic novel in the afternoon becasue Maddie finished it and loved it.  If you have kids who love Japanese comic book stuff (Manga) and are worried about content, this is a great book.  (Some of the Manga stuff can be age inapproproate, so I find it's not always easy to find stuff my 9 year old can read.)  Lovely graphics -- exciting story.

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman -- These little hardbound books that some authors have been putting out lately just kill me.  Nice illustrations, pretty book cover, great little novella -- you get the idea.  (Philip Pullman has done a couple of these, which I also own and love.)  This is a very short novel based on Norse mythology (Thor, Odin & Loki all appear) in which a crippled boy has an adventure.  Gaiman's voice shines through, so if you are a fan, this is a must read.

In addition to these three, Maddie and I are reading The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan, which fits nicely with our current curriculum.  She's been reading a lot of Greek mythology and history and just finished The Iliad and the Odyssey -- an illustrated version by Marcia Williams.

And since I can never go to sleep bookless, I started Kent Haruf's Where You Once Belonged.

I recenlty finished several other books, which I haven't posted on the blog yet, so when I get my act together, I'll get this updated.  (If I don't, I'll completely forget what I've read before the year is out.  The blog has become part book log for me.) 

What are you all reading?