On the Road

I'm Vancouver bound. So, expect some updates.. maybe just not today.

Full of Beans

And they say life on the farm moves slowly. On Sunday, when I went to the farm to visit my dad, I managed to make a double batch of chocolate chip cookies (for his harvest time lunches), cleaned and snapped a bucket of beans that my dad proceeded to can, picked five quarts of raspberries, mowed the grass, looked through a box of old letters, and watched a movie. I'd say it was a full day.





Oh, and he canned some dill pickles too!

Previews Do Their Job.

After my recent foray into the theatre I am now eagerly anticipating these movies--but trailers need to STOP showing so much of the movie.... go for the teaser approach, people. I don't want to KNOW all the best bits before I ever see it.

August Rush
Aside from loving Freddie Highmore, it just looked like a fun movie. I'm not a huge Keri Russell fan, but Jonathon Rhys Myers is pretty cool. And it's about music and family and belonging.

The Golden Compass
Loved the book. Delicious. And Nicole Kidman seems perfect for the role of Mrs. Coulter. And Eva Green plays the Finnish witch. And the armored bear seems perfectly done. I hope it's as good as it could be. The books are splendid.

Enchanted
This one seems uttlerly ridiculous in a Kate and Leopold way without the Hugh Jackman and Meg Ryan charm, but it's the fairy tale stuff that always gets me. Plus Amy Adams was delightful in Junebug.

Stardust
This one is based on a Neil Gaiman book and I've heard good things about some of his stories. Of course, this picture comes out the soonest and yet seems like it might not be my thing. Nevertheless, I do want to see it.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
I need to see the first Elizabeth. But she appears to kick some ass in this one.


Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium
Finally this one is another kid's story that seems almost TOO much. Yet, the inventiveness of the toys seems sort of Willy Wonka like and who can argue with that.

HAIRSPRAY--the musical. Their hair was perfect. But the world was a mess.

Yesterday I saw Hairspray (2007) and loved it. Having never seen it on Broadway, nor in its 1988 version, I had nothing to compare it to. Now I want to see all the versions.

During the last musical number in the film, I sensed movement behind me and looked back only to discover this flock of 7-10 year old children (there on a field trip) all out dancing in the aisles. It was that kind of experience.

In truth, I was surprised to like it as much as I did. And the soundtrack is great too. Full of songs that make you want to sing along. I went straight to the library and picked up the Broadway musical version and I think I have to get the movie one too.

John Waters on the Broadway musical:
John Waters, the director of the film on which the musical is based, says "I used to hate musical comedy, but Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman's score and lyrics for Hairspray have turned me into a real show-tune queen. If I had rhythm, these would be the songs I wish I could write. Listening to the feel-good numbers about rats, flashers, hickies, ratted hair, and checkerboard chicks' turns me into a happy Walt Disney on hallucinogenics, hoping whole busloads of twisted Broadway tourists go to the theater, abandon their diets, and feel sexy about it. Cross-dressing, racial-integration, and overeating have never seemed so wholesome, so American. I think Marc and Scott and the rest of the creative team have turned my weird little movie Hairspray into a jumbo-dream of a musical for outsiders of every persuasion."

John Waters on the 2007 film: "The movie was kind of realistic, and the Broadway play was, hey, let's go to Broadway, and let's be a musical. The musical on stage had to be exaggerated; it was all on one stage!" says Waters, explaining how the new movie has reinvented the musical and the film. "And Michelle Pfeiffer in this movie is the kind of villain I liked as a kid, she was a Disney-movie villain. As a kid I would have been obsessed with her."

Waters on the Waters-iness of the new Hairspray:
"I did talk to (screenwriter) Leslie Dixon and was involved through the whole thing talking to the producers (Craig Zadan and Neil Meron). I was up on the set a couple of times. And Leslie threw in "John Waters" things like the pregnant women smoking and drinking as you walked by there, that was hilarious and completely true then. "

"I always said to [director] Adam Shankman, hey, I told you do whatever you want right out of Hairspray, but there is also a shot in the bathroom, when they go into the bathroom and there are three girls in the bathroom, that's out of Female Trouble, and when John Travolta goes into the dressing room, that's Edith in Polyester. I'm saying there's two shots that really made me laugh. And I mean somebody must have read everything. And that shot of her going to school in a garbage truck? Divine went to the premiere of Female Trouble in a garbage truck. Somebody read that."

John Waters quotes taken from Sun movie critic Michael Sragow's interview with Waters on July 19th, 2007.

Reading Watching, Listening..... July 07 in Review

What I Was Reading in July

Good Poems by Garrison Keillor
From Reader to Writer by Sarah Ellis
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros
The Giver by Lois Lowry

Am still plugging away at my library copy of Good Poems. Love it. I reread The Giver for my RRVWP workshop and enjoyed it once again. It was really cool to look at the manuscripts of the book the next week at the Kerlan collection and read the editor's views on the early drafts of the book. The Sarah Ellis book is a reread too, but it related to the concept of Authors as Mentors.

Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros was our RRVWP book club pick and this one, while mildly interesting to me, is dragging, dragging. I actually set it down after our meeting (though I still intend to finish it--you can read more about the book here). In its stead, I picked up the 5th Harry Potter and took my time reading that one. Now I am faced with the tough choice of completeing Caramelo first or moving on the the 6th Harry Potter.

What I Was Watching in July

On TV
Don't Forget the Lyrics
Live Earth concerts

TV series on DVD
Moonlighting
Alias-Season Five

I am by no means hooked on these Lyrics programs. I just managed to watch it a few times. It's very fulfilling to actually discover --I-- know all the lyrics to some of the songs... however, I've never known the lyrics on the songs that finally stump the contestants.

Live Earth concerts were interesting. Watched clips. Loved Sting. His voice was sounding a bit rough. However, he's definitely one hot aging rocker. Yum. Bon Jovi, on the other hand, was the BEST sounding of the performers. I didn't really enjoy Madonna's performance or Billy Corgan's. However the online clips of Jack Johnson seemed exactly as I expected. He, too, is wonderful. Roger Waters was pretty good too. Gotta love the flying pig. In general I have no real opinion on the concerts or their environmental efforts but I did enjoy seeing some big name musical performances.

Emma and I have been working our way through Season Five of Alias since she's not seen all the episodes yet. We're about half done. It's as delicious as ever. I also own the first two seasons of Moonlighting. I am discovering while I feel like I remember it well, I actually haven't seen all the episodes. It's amazing to discover this show is already 20 years old.

films on TV
Serendipity
Sweet Home Alabama

Both of these films are ones I've seen before. Still, I managed to be sucked into them enough that it seemed too much work to reach for the remote. I love John Cusack. That's really all that matters about the Serendipity film. And Sweet Home Alabama is pure Reese Witherspoon fun.
On DVD
Children of Men
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Monster House
Little Children
Miss Potter
The Painted Veil
Dukes of Hazzard
Sweet Charity
Nights of Cabiria

In the Theatre
Live Free, Die Hard

Children of Men was pretty disturbing, but didn't really have all that much of a plot. Typical futuristic film, but more of a frantic nonstop chase scene than anything. It had potential to expand, explain, offer more background into their world, but the film failed in that regard. I think the highlight of the film was Michael Caine's performance.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was a delight. I saw half of it on TV and had to rent it from the library to finish it off. This one is heart warming and as a staple in the classic film canon, it's a must see.

Monster House was not great. I am amazed it was nominated for an award. It seemed too scary for kids and not interesting in the Tim Burton film kind of way. Don't bother with this one.

Little Children was disturbing in an entirely different way than Children of Men. This oscar nominated film, based on a Tom Perrota novel, stars one of my favorite actresses--Kate Winslet. It was a depressing glimpse into marriage. However, I really liked the way it all wound up. Actually, I think this one warrants a rent.

From Bridget Jones to Beatrix Potter, Renee Zellweger takes on another Beloved Brit. In this case, I wasn't familiar enough with the real Beatrix Potter to know if she did it justice. All I can say is that I enjoyed it. I tend to like films about famous authors. Finding Neverland about the life of J.M. Barrie was wonderful too. Ewan McGregor's performance as one of the Warne publisher brothers was convincing enough that I completely forgot that he was an actor I love.

The Painted Veil was decent but nothing too exciting. Edward Norton's had better movies, certainly. As I watched this I was thankful for air conditioning. So thankful. Naomi Watt's portrayal as Norton's wife worked, but I felt the film could somehow have done just a wee bit more. I guess I haven't read the book to even know the rough material they were working with.

The Dukes of Hazzard? Seriously. It's just about as good as the show was back in the day. Somehow I feel that John Schneider and Tom Wopat weren't adequately represented by the choices they made in this film. Jessica Simpson worked out just fine as Daisy, however. Why not?

Sweet Charity and Nights of Cabiria were films I watched in tandem since the former is based on the latter. a 1957 Fellini film. Sweet Charity is a musical and Nights of Cabiria is not. They each had their charm. I am not sure I am totally in love with either of them, but I am glad I watched them. Nights of Cabiria is a lot less sugar coated and the main character is a bit more "brash." I felt Shirley McClaine's Charity was meant to be more "fun loving and endearing" than Cabiria. I think of the two films the more substantial one and the film that resonates more deeply would have to be the Fellini one. However, the very nature of a musical strips some of the weight from Sweet Charity before it even begins.

I went to see Live Free, Die Hard at the theatre with Emma. Her choice. It was my first Die Hard film. I actually liked it better than I thought I would. Much of the action was highly improbable, as it is in most action films, I guess. But I will say Bruce Willis seems to improve with age.

What I Was Listening to in July

a random sampling from my MP3 player
here are my posted shuffles

July 9

You're in My Heart by Rod Stewart
Paradise City by Guns and Roses
Happy by Martin Sexton
Dream Vacation by Gear Daddies
Bang a Gong by T. Rex

July 21

Effect and Cause by The White Stripes
She Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals
Against the Wind by Bob Seger
The Things You Do To Me by Martin Sexton
Watching the Detectives by Elvis Costello

Ladies Night

Last Saturday, Pam and I hosted trivia. I understand our questions were a little tricky. I guess they don't SEEM difficult when you KNOW the answer. Maybe people were just confused by our stunning good looks and impeccable taste in obscure music. Well, here's a tip for all you would be trivia players.... we host again in August. Brush up on your ABBA.

I Do Love Fireworks.

Everyone's Wild About Harry

With a world gone mad for the 7th Harry Potter book, I am out of the loop. Though I am still reading my book club book for July, I thought it might be fun to read the 5th Harry Potter and try to catch up a bit. Maybe see the latest movie. Sure the book is 870 pages long, but everyone assured me I would fly right through it. Well, with that in mind I started reading last Tuesday and though it's Sunday now I've not managed to get any farther than 397. I feel like I'm letting down the team.

*** I finally finished just before midnight on Monday night. Only seven days of reading!

Weisman Art Museum

Molly Roth
I am So Happy You are Here
Knit wool, weights, 2005

Housed in a striking stainless steel and brick building designed by architect Frank Gehry, the Weisman Art Museum offers an educational and friendly museum experience. The museum's collection features early 20th century American artists such as Georgia O'Keeffe and Marsden Hartley, as well as a diverse selection of contemporary art. A teaching museum for the University of Minnesota and the community, the Weisman provides a fresh, engaging arts experience through an array of programs and a changing schedule of exhibitions.

The current exhibit is on Seasonal Affective Disorder and it was rather intriguing. I particularly liked the piece pictured above (found on their website).

SAD features nine Twin Cites-based artists-Ana Lois-Borzi, Jan Estep, Theresa Handy, Chris Larson, Charles Lume, Molly Roth, Andrea Stanislav, Piotr Szyhalski, and Katherine Turczan-whose work is evidence of this impulse across a range of media, including video, installation, painting, photography, and sculpture. Meant not as diagnosis of the artists or the specific culture, SAD instead offers a view of ways in which artists interact with and illuminate particular environments and atmospheres and engage ways in which we understand human subjectivity. As with the age-old tradition of landscape painting, the artwork in SAD addresses a sense of place focused not on land, but on the qualities of light and atmosphere, and the sense of time to which those elements relate. Furthermore, the works in SAD all assert the connection between physical and psychic space, speaking to how our surroundings affect and define us.

Our group took a little side trip through the museum after lunch on Wednesday before we returned to our work at the Kerlan. Since I've always meant to go to the Weisman, I was thrilled with this opportunity, despite the brevity of our visit.

So Much for Downsizing.

Well, it happened again. I went crazy in a pair of Half Price Bookstores, Barnes and Noble, and Wild Rumpus. I already have more books than I know what to do with and I just bought 17 more. Seriously!

Seven of them are for my classroom. Two of those I already owned but I lost one copy and the other is a favorite I FEAR losing. Three of the other books are biographies: Jim Henson, Beatrix Potter, and P.L. Travers. Two are book club picks for upcoming months. Eat, Pray, Love is on recommendation of Marci. Three Cups of Tea is on recommendation of Muriel. the Miranda July book is one I knew I wanted. The Francine Prose book is all in the spirit of the class we just did since it's about reading like a writer. I love anything Nick Hornby writes. Probably would read his grocery lists if it wouldn't earn me a restraining order. Maybe he should write a children's book and they'd probably accept those documents AND his grocery lists for the Kerlan Collection (some of Karen Hesse's work was written on the backs of envelopes and lists too).

The best bookstore in the world has to be Wild Rumpus. I've talked about this store before. I realize this. On Thursday we got to visit with the owner and hear the history of her store that has managed, in 15 years, to earn a national reputation. It's a visual delight and a very hands on place. Part of its renown has to be the animals.

Meet Alice. She was our pal for most of the visit. All the animals are introduced into the store at birth and so they are used to the activity and little children chasing them around the store. All of their cats are Manx cats because of their temperament. As you can see from these images, the crowds don't seem to bother them one bit.

Of course their range of animals also extends to a tarantula, a chinchilla, a chicken named Elvis, and some rats who live under the floor where kids can watch them through clear panels and see them playing. They see the animals as "coworkers" and are protective of them, but also want the store to be a place where no one is shushed or scolded.


Wild Rumpus is a treasure for more reasons than atmosphere. The collection of children's books extends beyond what many chain bookstores carry. They have the standards one would expect to find in any bookstore, but they also carry many new titles carefully selected and everyone who works there reads and recommends. The store has a little purple door for kids within the main door. And the ceiling looks almost like a cracked egg opening up to the universe beyond. Quite deliberately the store takes on an increasingly wild appearance the deeper one goes in. A visit to Wild Rumpus is a memorable experience from start to finish.

The Kerlan Collection

This week I attended part two of an institute devoted to studying authors as mentors. Our overall objective as teachers was to explore ways to use published authors' works in our teaching as exemplars for our students and even as a way to aid our own writing. Part one involved four days in the classroom and Part two was a field trip to Minneapolis to visit the Kerlan Collection in the Anderson Library on the University of Minnesota campus. For three days we studied the collected artifacts in a variety of authors' files.

The Kerlan Collection presently contains more than 100,000 children’s books as well as original manuscripts, artwork, galleys, and color proofs for more than 12,000 children’s books. One-eighth of the books are inscribed by the author or illustrator. The Collection includes books that are significant in the history of children’s literature, award books, classics, and representative books from Great Britain, Australia, Denmark, Japan, the Netherlands, Germany and others. Also included are over 300 periodical titles and more than 1,200 reference titles as well as many other items including letters, posters, toys, photographs, audiovisuals, publishers' catalogs, and even a figurine collection.

I started my exploration by examining a few of the files of poet Eve Merriam. Next I discovered Margaret Sutton, author of the Judy Bolton books, a girls series similar, if not superior, to Nancy Drew. In her collection I found mainly letters to and from her editor. Notes on her books. Plot outlines. Original drawings. A mock-up for a book complete with fragile typed strips pasted in the pages and loads of images cut from magazines for the illustrations. It felt like a treasure. Mary Roger's Freaky Friday galley proofs and original manuscript and analysis by the editor was another treat, but getting to see and hold (with gloves of course) Carol Ryrie Brink's Newbery Award for Caddie Woodlawn was seriously cool.

I saw some original drawings by Beatrix Potter. A storyboard for an animated version of William Steig's Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. An 1895 correspondence between Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) and someone named Winnie. Later I read editor's notes on The Giver, a book by Lois Lowry and found some initial analysis by the editors and revisions the author made which definitely affected the tone the book. There was also a file of 31 different images for the cover art of the book Gathering Blue (a companion novel to The Giver) and it was cool to discover the title was almost Blue Yonder or The Gathering. I also looked at several drafts of Kate di Camillo's Because of Winn Dixie and could see evidence of revision even in the first page of each draft. Finally, the folder that seemed to have the biggest wealth of material was the Karen Hesse one for the book Out of the Dust. This is a 1930s novel written in verse and it turns out that nearly EVERYTHING in that book was based on a real event. Hesse had tons of notes and newspaper clippings from the 1930s that she used to work into the story. She had many more poems than actually appeared in the book and the only problem I had was in not having read the book recently enough to spot all the adjustments. I would love to return to Anderson Library and dig deeper.

We toured the facilities as well. All the archives are stored in two large climate controlled underground caverns carved out of limestone and lined with concrete blocks. Each cavern is 600 feet long, 70 feet wide and 25 feet high. The caverns are lined with 400 precast concrete panels. (each panel is 10 feet wide, 25 feet long and 8 inches thick) The ceiling consists of a thin layer of shale topped with 10 feet of reinforced limestone. Each cavern holds approx. 1.2 million volumes. In order to find the materials you would like to see, researchers can go online to their website and use the finding aids in the Author and Illustrator Holdings and Links category . Or if you are at the facility the most updated versions of their collection can be found in a set of red binders.

The Kerlan collection is just one of the collections housed in the caverns. In fact, it's part of the CLRC (children's literature research collection) which contains six core collections and several smaller collections. They are the Kerlan Collection of Children's Literature, the Hess Collection of Dime Novels, Story Papers, and Series Books, the Paul Bunyan Collection, the Laura Jane Musser Collection of Oziana materials, and the Illustrated Treasure Island Collection. All the material is accessible to anyone, who needs to consult it, but use by readers is confined to the reading room, where attendants bring requested material.


For folks who treasure children's literature, are interested in the process of publishing, or in author's personal journeys with a particular book, I would highly recommend spending a day exploring the Kerlan Collection.

Browsing Bonanza

Today I found myself with a wee bit of time to browse... here are some of the fun little things I discovered.

this rather funny doormat.

this book, which I pulled off the shelf at Waldenbooks a couple days ago because of the great cover. Today I read a review on a blog that praised it and I have to say I am intrigued.

another sewing book is calling my name and I've not actually sewn anything in months. I need to get a grip.

you can create your own Simpsons avatar here or upload a picture of you and get Simpsonized!

if you are depressed easily, don't read this article on plastic.

how cute are these? I do love fortune cookies!

Miranda July. No one belongs here more than you. What more can I say?

Chop Chop

It turns out that owning a "chopper" of sorts is a very good thing. Suddenly recipes are much easier. I got this Tupperware Quickchef for my birthday from my friend Marcia and it's revolutionized my cooking attempts. Well, maybe that is too strong a word. But it's sure helped. Here's the sauce recipe I made today and used the chopper to aid me on my way.


Baja sauce
for tacos, chalupas etc... ala Taco Bell

1/4 of a red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 large jalapeno, chopped in half
2 tablespoons diced Spanish onions
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 dash garlic powder
1 dash cumin

1. Using a food processor, puree peppers and onion.
2. Mix 1 cup mayo and 4 teaspoons of the vegetable purée in a bowl.
3. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
4. Chill for several hours to blend flavors.

Bruise-free Apple-y Fresh Beauties

Okay, I am in love with these cute little apple sweaters. Though someone pointed out they aren't on quite right... the leaf and that opening should be on top. I wouldn't know, I didn't make them. But I think they are quite sweet and they look like a fun little knitting challenge. Rumor has it there's a pattern in Funky Knits. Well, if you must have one for your fruit, you can buy them here.

Eating My Way Through Summer, One Recipe at a Time

About a month ago, I went from writing group to a Norwex party with Marci and bought a few cleaning products that I still haven't used (haven't cleaned, since!) but our hostess served some snacky things that had me ooohing and ahhhhing...

Since, I have made both recipes. The dip for just me and Emma one evening (foolish since it makes enough for an army) and the Brie I made for our last wine club gathering. Like most recipes I attempt, I had questions and it seemed like I was doing something wrong. In the end, both turned out and were delicious!

Coffee Flavored Fruit Dip

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 20 Minutes
Yields: 32 servings

"This is a creamy, luscious, coffee-flavored dip for fruit -- strawberries, tart apples, pineapple, grapes, etc. It's perfect for bridal or baby showers, and it's quick and easy to make."

INGREDIENTS:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup coffee-flavored liqueur
1 (8 ounce) container frozen
whipped topping, thawed

DIRECTIONS:
Place cream cheese, sour cream, brown sugar and coffee-flavored liqueur in a medium bowl. Blend together with an electric mixer until smooth. Fold in thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill in the refrigerator until serving.

NUTRITION INFORMATION
Servings Per Recipe: 32

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 83

* Total Fat: 5.7g
* Cholesterol: 11mg
* Sodium: 28mg
* Total Carbs: 6.5g
* Dietary Fiber: 0g
* Protein: 0.8g

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Baked Brie with Mushrooms and Almonds

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 30 Minutes
Yields: 8 servings

"Delectable Brie never appeared more elegant than when bathed in a brandy sauce with mushrooms, almonds and tarragon. Serve this appetizer warm with baguette slices."

INGREDIENTS:
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
1 (8 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1 tablespoon brandy
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
1 (8 ounce) wedge Brie cheese, coating removed

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Mix in garlic and almonds, heating until almonds are lightly browned. Stir in mushrooms and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Cover with brandy and sprinkle with tarragon.

3. Place Brie in a small baking dish. Pour the mushroom and brandy mixture over Brie. Bake in the preheated oven 20 minutes, or until bubbly.

NUTRITION INFORMATION
Servings Per Recipe: 8

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 142

* Total Fat: 11.6g
* Cholesterol: 36mg
* Sodium: 327mg
* Total Carbs: 2g
* Dietary Fiber: 0.9g
* Protein: 6.8g

both recipes found on Allrecipes.com