Don’t forget! Sunday is World Sauntering Day!

I had a dream last night that I was visiting Tom (of Iron Monkey) in Portland. Upon entering his house I took off my shoes (as I usually do when entering someone’s house) and we sat and talked and had a nice time.

It was only when I went to leave that there was a problem. I could only find one shoe. And the more I looked around, the more shoes I found–under chairs, under the sofa, under beds–his house was full of women’s footwear. More specifically, black shoes.

So, Tom, what is it with all these shoes?

A Dalek stolen from a Somerset tourist site has been found on Glastonbury Tor after thieves said it was “too hot”.

Ladies. Please.

We’re built to be curvacious and soft. It’s a good thing. Men like it. However, this means that when you wear tight running shorts, and roll the waistband down, you create rolls of fat.

This is not attractive.

I feel like I should carry a camera to take pictures of these people, to show them what they look like from behind.

And while I’m thinking about it…

ATTENTION WORLD!

A waistband, by its very etymology and definition, belongs around your WAIST. Not at your hips, and most definitely not falling off your ass like some white trash child who has to wear dirty Goodwill hand-me-downs from your obese older brother.

Thank you.

The Word of the Day is:

svelte \SVELT\ adjective
1 *a : slender, lithe b : having even and smooth lines : sleek
2 : urbane, suave

Tigana (1990) Guy Gavriel Kay

Why is it that every time I finish one of Guy Gavriel Kay’s books, I ask myself, “How could I have forgotten how good his books are?” Even reading this book for a second time, I was still surprised at how good it was.

Read More about Tigana

And Happy Birthday to Liz, who is 15 this year.

And Rules for Flying the Flag.

Cat vacuuming.

They forgot to draw the next to the last step: Going to the hospital for stitches.

Any suggestions?

Tomorrow after work I’m going to The Bookshelf to look for mysteries to loan my grandmother. I’ve got the last batch of recommendations, and a complete list of everything I have, so I can fill in any missing books, but I’m always on the lookout for new books.

Only stipulations are that they’re for my grandmother, so a minimum of naughty bits. And I need to be able to find them used, because my grandmother gives me a hard time if I bring her new books to read, even though she’s only borrowing them.

Because she thinks that I’m buying the books just for her to read.

(innocent whistling)

75 Minutes in Morgantown A photo collection of Morgantown. The only glaring error I found is that what he refers to as the Maglev is actually the PRT. (My first thought was, Maglev? What the heck is that?)

I heard a fascinating bit on Living on Earth last night on permeable concrete. According to the story, a gentleman accidentally invented water permable concrete. It took a bit for it to sink in why water permeable concrete would be a good idea–I do after all live in a fairly rural states–but after I thought about it for a second it struck me as sheer genius.

You can visit the website for the company that makes the concrete, Ecocreto (There’s a flash intro that I haven’t seen, since I don’t seem to have flash installed on this computer.)

Just imagine how different cities would be if the water went through the concrete instead of pooling or running off. Would it not make driving in the rain safer, since there shouldn’t be pooled water causing hydroplaning? Amazing.

Also, for your education and entertainment, a list of Teresa’s favorite rose names. I kinda like Lingo Muck, myself.

During our travels this weekend I decided that I really like Michael’s friend Chris. I’ve always been a bit uncomfortable around him, because he talks a LOT about drinking, and as someone who has a history with alcohol that has been tempetous at best, it always made me a bit nervous. Sunday however, removed my doubts. Anyone who has built their own Tesla coil out of spare parts, beer bottles, and aluminum foil, just for fun, qualifies as someone I really like.

So, the book a day thing is only for during the week. Weekends, apparently, are for no free time at all.

Went to Charleston this weekend. Michael’s mother turned 60, so we went down to surprise her. Spent time with her, and with Michael’s sister and her family. I actually took pictures of Wilson, his nephew, however most of those pictures just showed a small blur where Wilson was supposed to be, so you mostly get Maggie. Who is really very adorable.

If pictures of people you don’t know, and don’t care about aren’t your thing, I have some new flower pr0n.

My lavender is in bloom, which makes me very happy, since I love lavender. I’m glad I planted it by the driverway, so I can smell it every time I walk by. Additionally my day lilies are blooming like crazy, which gives extra color along the front of the house.

And my red rose bush has bloomed. We bought the bush reduced for quick sale a couple years ago, and for the last two years I kept thinking the thing was dead, but then it would surprise me and keep stuggling along. So last fall we moved it closer to the house, where the soil is better and I can dump water off the porch onto it when it looks dry. This year it went mad, and has huge, red blooms, that are taking days to open. And they have a very spicy smell, so I really should cut one to bring in.

Except for the fact that it will immediately be chewed on. So perhaps not.

Yesterday turned out to be personal grooming day. Dental check up and a hair cut. (But not at the same time.)

It was the dentist appointment that ended up causing problems. The dental hygenist who I had seen previously–and who I really liked–was gone. Hopefully she got another job or moved on to go to dental school or something good.

So I got a new technician, fresh out of school. Which didn’t bother me too much, since everyone has to start somewhere. What bothered me was the fact that the cleaning hurt. And my teeth and gums hurt for the rest of the day. (In fact, I think I have one or two bruises.)

The strange thing is that even thinking about calling the office to say something about the problem made me incredibly uncomfortable. I even briefly considered trying to find a new dentist rather than letting this hygenist near my mouth again. Which is stupid. I’m fine with the dentists at the office, but having to call to (essentially) complain about an employee seemed like an unreasonable thing to do. Even though my mouth hurt so much I didn’t care to eat anything but soup for lunch.

Because I didn’t want to be one of those whiny people that complain all the time. Because part of me felt that it must be my problem, not theirs. Why do I do this? Why does the thought of making a complaint when I am fully justified to do so make me so uncomfortable?

In the end I did call the office and requested that my next appointment be with a different hygenist. I explained that my mouth really hurt, and I really would prefer not to see that hygenist again. The receptionist was, of course, perfectly nice about the whole thing. And part of me knows that the only way the hygenist will get better is if people let her know she’s doing something wrong.

But another part of me still feels like I was being mean or cruel in making a complaint. Probably the part that remembers what it was like not to be able to find a job, and the fear I felt when I finally found a real job, that I’d do something stupid and get fired.

No one tagged me, I just took it upon myself. Because the only thing better than reading books is talking and writing about them.
(via Making Light)

Total number of books owned:
1558. Not including new books that have not yet been added into the database.
This is the total for the house, so some of these books are Michael’s and I won’t ever read them.

Last book bought:
In the mail as I type…
Sabriel by Garth Nix – A birthday gift for someone.
Poland James A. Mitchner – A birthday gift for a different someone.
Latin American Folktales : Stories from Hispanic and Indian Traditions by JOHN BIERHORST – I love folktales, and I like the Pantheon collections the best. I’m really looking forward to reading this collection, and hope they continue to expand the collection (I’m hoping for more areas of Eastern Europe, but beggars can’t be choosers).
Brilliance of the Moon (Tales of the Otori) by Lian Hearn – I found the first two books of this series last month, and wanted to start reading them, but held off because I didn’t have book three.

Last book read:
The Shadow Roads (The Swan’s War) by Sean Russell – I just finished this book
The Assassins of Tamurin by S.D. Tower – I’m currently reading this book (as of Monday, 6 June 2005)

Five books that mean a lot to you:
Green Eggs and Ham Dr Seuss
The first book I ever read by myself.
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein
My Dad gave me the “illustrated” version (illustrated with pictures from the made-for-tv-movie [which I’ve never seen]) when I was in elementary school, and I loved it. For ages I thought it was the best book in the entire world. Despite the fact that within a few years pagers were falling out in chunks, I continued to read the book again and again. Several years ago my Dad got me a hardback version of the same book, so now I can go back and read without fear of losing pages.
The Complete Sherlock Holmes Vol I and II by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The first “grown-up” book I ever received as my own. At 12 1/2 I didn’t have too many hardback books with covers, so it felt like a big thing to receive these adult books for my own. I immediately loved Sherlock Holmes, and would try to improve my “powers of observation” in case I witnessed a crime, so I could be a good witness. Although the powers of observation never took, I still love reading those two volumes. I managed to keep the covers until I loaned the books to someone a couple of years ago, and the books came back naked. I’m still bitter.
Best-Loved Folktales of the World by Joanna Cole
I’m not certain when I received this collection, but I have so many fond memories of reading this book that even looking at the cover gives a small feeling of happiness. I didn’t get too much Disney as a child (although I remember being terrified during ‘Snow White’) but I at least knew the general stories. This collection contains stories from all over the world, and I was entranced by the Ananasi stories, and the other tales that were completely unfamiliar, as well as by the stories I thought were familiar, yet were different than I expected. I’ve found that I can read the same tales again and again, because different regions place a little different emphasis on the same tale.
Mythology Edith Hamilton
I’ve loved Mythology since third grade, when my reading book worked mythology into the stories. Because I so fondly remembered those stories, I signed up for Greek and Roman Mythology class in college, and this was one of the assigned books. It was fantastic. From there I moved on to Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Hesiod’s Theogony, and found that despite being “classics” they were actually quite readable. Reading mythology also re-awakened my love of folktales, and I’ve been buying folktale collections as I’ve come across them.

Tag five people to continue this meme:
erin
Tom
S Done!
Memer Done!
I’d really like to see what Solomon says, but he doesn’t read here, so this’ll just be a wish in vain.

Joy! More flowers!

I thought that the red rose bush on the other side of the house would bloom first, but it was this one instead. The pink rose was supposed to be a climbing rose, but that seems not to be true.

I moved the miniature roses last fall, and was worried they’d not come back, but they’re doing well–better than where they were before.