When I was in Scotland a few years ago, I started to notice that "sticky toffee pudding" was on the dessert menu of every restaurant I went to, from the most basic of pubs to hipster joints elevating classic Scottish comfort foods. It began to feel like the de facto dessert of Scotland. So on … Continue reading Notions, the How is it October?!?! edition
food
A Delicate Mess
I sit, carefully constructed. Coffee lies within reach. Legs crossed, on the couch, a pillow settled as a spongy lap-desk. A plate balances on the pillow's apex, a beautiful pastry holding court at the center of my being. In my left hand I balance a paperback copy of M Train by Patti Smith. I use … Continue reading A Delicate Mess
‘Gideon the Ninth’ and Food Metaphors for Genre Fiction, a.k.a the Delicious Delights of Lesbian necromancers … IN SPAAACE!!!
I have been reading a lot of books about the climate crisis lately, mostly because three separate work projects have put me in their path. These books are less about the science, per se, and more about how we should respond—emotionally, actionally, narratively. I'm grateful for these books having deadlines because, despite how much attention … Continue reading ‘Gideon the Ninth’ and Food Metaphors for Genre Fiction, a.k.a the Delicious Delights of Lesbian necromancers … IN SPAAACE!!!
Possessions, Witches, Parasites.
After work yesterday, I went to my local watering hole and ordered a beer. It took a while for my partner to arrive, saying as he sat down, "Sorry. Have you been waiting long?" "That's okay," I replied. "You gave me time to finish my book." And it was that deployment of the possessive "my" … Continue reading Possessions, Witches, Parasites.
Notions, January 2020 edition (Formerly “Bits and Bobs”)
I am in a hell of my own making. (A delightful hell! The best kind of hell!) I have too many books to read. I have books for work and I have books for fun, books that flirted with me from the library shelves (their come-hither covers obscuring their three-week checkout times!) and books gifted … Continue reading Notions, January 2020 edition (Formerly “Bits and Bobs”)
Notions, Autumn 2019 edition
October feels a bit like a cackling murder of crows, sort of delightful but then it won't frickin' shut up already. So here are some bits and bobs from the season. The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware is a deliciously spooky novel straddling that line between mystery and haunted house tale. My favorite … Continue reading Notions, Autumn 2019 edition
Notions, Summer 2019 edition
This weekend I went on a climbing trip and, assuming I wouldn't have much time for reading, I only brought one book, of which I was two-thirds of the way done. (I know!) I finished it on the way there, leaving the drive home bereft and bookless. I used that time to catch up on … Continue reading Notions, Summer 2019 edition
Dogs, Coffee, & Books 