Alyssa Goodnight's Blog, page 16

For the love of Jane!

Today is officially my first day blogging over at Austen Authors, so please come say hi!  There is a veritable treasure trove of offerings in celebration of  their 1st Anniversary.  And there are giveaways galore!

In other news, Kensington sent me some marketing cover flats for AUSTENTATIOUS!  They are very striking–I like the mustard yellow spine–and my name on the cover!  My Jane Austen action figure had a little fun posing with the cover flats…

She's as excited as I am!

Here she is, hinting at her starring role in the book!

And now she's just being cheeky…

Book Review Club ~ September 2011

Summer is starting to fade, and suddenly, it's September, back-to-school, and the beginning of the autum season.  That means apples, fall color, pumpkins, and cool breezes!  Most of that is still a little ways off here in Texas, but today marks the Sept. installment of Barrie Summy's Book Review Club!   This month I'm reviewing Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore, a YA (light) paranormal set in Texas.

Amy Goodnight (I'm rather partial to this character name) and her sister Phin, UT Austin college freshman and sophomore respectively, are house-sitting for their Aunt Hyacinth on her Texas Hill Country herb farm over the summer.  And there is something a little special about the Goodnights…  They're witches, each of them having an 'affinity,' or special gift.  Phin's gift is with gadgets; cousin Daisy's gift is clairevoyance, and Amy's…  Amy's is circumventing any magical run-in's with the outside world.  Dodging questions, crafting explanations, and trying to make the Goodnights seem normal.  Or so she thinks…

When a long-dead body is dug up during some construction on a neighboring property, Phin can't resist heading over with a few gadgets of her own invention.  Amy feels compelled to tag along, just in case Phin starts spouting off magical theories.  But she's quick to discover that Phin's not the one she needs to worry about.  She is.  She's already clashed with the neighbor, not to mention given him an eyeful–he's taken to calling her Underwear Girl, and suddenly strange things are happening to her.  A ghost is asking for her help and causing all sorts of mischief on the neighboring ranch, and she's bound (as in magically bound) to help him, even when things start getting dangerous…

I'm not usually one for paranormals.  I like them on an individual basis, usually the less paranormal the better.  That was the case with this one….a little witchery, a little ghost…and plenty of normal.  I admit, the 'Texas' in Texas Gothic drew me.  I haven't read a whole lot of books with a Texas setting, and I like to see other authors' perspective.  This one didn't disappoint.  The story line was well-crafted and, despite its ghostly theme, even plausible.  And the main character was perfectly cast.  She spent the whole book caught between a desire to distance herself from all the witchy Goodnight shenanigans and a compulsion to join in the fray.  She handled all her responsibilities with graceful aplomb.  She also gave as good as she got in every single conversational exchange.  Very impressive.  I hope there's a sequel planned, because I'd like to see a little more of the Goodnights!  I was also very fond of a certain cowboy…just sayin'.

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@Barrie Summy

Party!

Wanna crash an anniversary party?  Well, technically I guess it wouldn't be crashing, because you would be warmly welcomed, but it would be a little like crashing because you may not yet know the party-givers.  I'm hoping this post changes that!  If you don't read this blog on a feed, you may have noticed the extra little box I added in the sidebar last week, linking to Austen Authors.  I am happy to announce here on my own blog that I am joining the Austen Authors!  I will still maintain my own blog, with its spotty spots on questionable topics, but I will also post once a month (or so) over there as well on a medley of Jane Austen-related topics.  My official introductory post is this Friday, September 9th, and I'd love to see you over there!

However, between now and then, you should definitely click over to Austen Authors for their One Year Anniversary Celebration!  Austen Authors is a collaborative blog hosted by a diverse group of authors who take at least a portion of their inspiration from Jane Austen.  Some authors' books are reimaginings of Ms. Austen's six classic novels.  Others are sequels and side stories about characters you may have always wondered about.  There are vampire tales, modern day romantic comedies, and even a western!  Simply put, there is something (lots of somethings, in fact!) for every fan of Ms. Austen.  And this week, there are giveaways galore!

Once upon a time, Jane said, "I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal."  Well, she would have found the Austen Authors to be very agreeable intend.   And so will you!

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Recipes Galore

I like to cook and bake, but it almost always seems stressful.  I feel like I need to hurry with a particularly long or involved recipe, because there are so many other things I could be doing.  And then there is a good chance that no one else likes it but me (or not even me!), and much of it goes to waste (which is rough with expensive gluten-free ingredients). Last week I spent two and half hours in the kitchen making green chile stew.  De-fatting the pork shoulder, browning the meat, chopping the vegetables, de-skinning and de-seeding the green chiles before chopping them up…  It was a LOT.  It turned out deliciously (and we ate it for four dinners in a row, but it was a LOT).  Oh the things I could have done with that 2.5 hours…

There are so many new recipes I want to try…so many glossy-paged cookbooks and gorgeously food-styled blogs, that I now have recipes on a waiting list.  Plus I'm experimenting with gluten-free cookbooks.  We have such a weird combination of tastes and diets in this house, it's amazing I'm not in the kitchen all the time.  Butters doesn't like most vegetables but loves Mexican and other spicy foods.  GFB can't have gluten and dislikes spicyness of any sort, not to mention any dip but ketchup.  PFB can't have nuts and doesn't much like meat.  He doesn't like Mexican food, but he does like salsa.  I like everything (mostly), and dessert is a must for me.  So we hobble along. I'm hoping it gets easier, and I try to actively search out new recipes that–just maybe–we'll all like.

I visit Joy the Baker's blog almost everyday.  Not only do her recipes generally look scrumptious and unique, but I love how she styles everything, not to mention her sassy attitude and complete zest for life.  She doesn't take herself to seriously, but she takes food VERY seriously.  She has a cookbook coming out next February, and I will be all over that!

I page slowly through each issue of Sweet Paul Magazine, making notes, and now I'm also fawning over the new digital magazine Easy Eats, which is dedicated to gluten free living.

I also love looking at the latest recipes from They Draw and Cook, which is a really fun site showcasing recipes illustrated by artists around the world.  Here is an adorable sample.

Plus, candy sushi sounds like an awesome idea!  I just ordered the cookbook, which is sure to be a fun read!

Where do you go for good recipes?

Obsession

I don't know if you have Sonic where you live, but here, it's something of an OBSESSION.  And, oh yes, those caps are warranted.  Sonic, for the uninitiated, is basically an old fashioned drive-up…the sort you might see in old episodes of Happy Days.  They sell burgers, fries, hot dogs, tater tots, etc.  Their main appeal, even in my uncorrupted mind, is their drinks.  They serve them in insulating styrofoam, with bunny-pellet ice, and the flavor options are insane.  Cherry Vanilla Rootbeer?  Pineapple Dr. Pepper?  Diet Cranberry Limeade?  They've got 'em all.  And they serve them in 44 oz. cups.  This simple thing has caused an obsession in these parts.  A day without a Sonic drink can never be a perfect day.

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I am, I think, the only stand-out in a group of my friends who are in LOVE with their Sonic drinks.  And most of them are not even taking advantage of the flavor options!  They're just getting a uninspired Diet Coke.  Gah!  Here's how bad it is… one friend washed out a Sonic Route 44 drink cup for me, complete with lid and straw, and brought it to me empty, to be filled with my choice of non-Sonic beverage, just so I wouldn't feel left out.  (The sentiment was appreciated, but that went right in the trash.)

I know people–multiple–that go everyday.  I've known people to go twice in one day.  If someone goes, they get everyone's order and come in toting gigantic drink carriers of mostly Diet Cokes.  Top-heavy Sonic cups can be seen in the hands of women everywhere.  Men seem immune to the appeal…maybe that makes me a tom-boy of sorts, because I'm definitely immune.  It's like a cult following, with more and more getting sucked in everyday.  Soon I'll be the only clear-thinking, Dr. Pepper can-drinking  woman in the 'hood.  I will go down fighting.

 

Opulence…

Have you seen the lap giraffes and the lap elephants? Ridiculous?  Of course!  Adorable?  You bet!

 

 

 

 

 

A co-worker of my husband is a little taken with these guys and about to have her first baby.  My husband has decided to get a little crafty.  He had me buy a four-pack of white baby onesies.  On one we'll iron on a picture of the lap giraffe.  A second gets the elephant.  A third will say, "Lap-sized Human,"   And a fourth gets the quote, "Opulence…I has it!"

Sometimes Hubby is a little bit genius.

 

Click here to view the embedded video.

 

Lovely Libraries

After nine years living in our house, we converted the never-used formal living room to a library.  We painted the walls teal, bought some bookcases and some leather club chairs, and added a couple of sassy touches.  Voila…we now have a library.  It needs some wall art…and maybe a plant, but I LOVE it!  It's cozy and sensible and calming and just perfect. 



It doesn't measure up to these celebrity library shots, culled from here, belonging (left to right, top to bottom) to Oprah Winfrey, Nigella Lawson, Agatha Christie, and Diane Keaton.  But it's ours.

 

 

 

I love Nigella's mess and Diane's worldly look…but where is the furniture??

 

Sans rain

Having checked the local radar several times in the last few hours, it seriously feels like my house is the only one for miles that is not getting some rain.  I'm reading Facebook posts and Twitter tweets that the long-awaited and much-needed rain is here.  But I have none.  It's been scorching here.  Scorching and dry.  I think we've had three solid rain storms in FIVE MONTHS!  The trees are looking painfully dry and brittle, the grass is brown, the city pool closed before the summer ended, and we are waiting, hoping, praying.  Some of us are getting some tonight…and some of us are not.  At least not yet.

I opened the backdoor to let the dog out, and I could smell it.  I love the smell of rain…I love those first drops…the dark, heavyness in the air…and the anticipation.  Tonight it's all gone on a little too long.  I'm waiting for it to break…waiting for the sound of raindrops on the roof…waiting for the  sigh of relief.

This is what I want:  but I might accept this alternative as consolation…[via] & [via]

Snapshot

Inspired by Stacy's post, I'm giving you a little update of my life right now:

I'm reading Ammie, Come Home by Barbara Michaels for the Cherry Forums Gothic Book Club.  And I missed cashing in on my Texas Gothic (by Rosemary Clement-Moore) hold at the library by ONE DAY due to a recent vacation.  Now it's back on hold…  Instead I checked out Texas Pastry Queen for a little inspiration.  I am CRAVING a piece of lemon meringue pie, people!!

I'm watching all the shows I DVR'd over vacation…Burn Notice, Leverage, Warehouse 13, In Plain Sight, etc.  The rest of my family is watching the Little League World Series.

Both boys survived their first days of school, PFB in 4th grade, GFB in 6th–junior high!!  I survived a day of PTA volunteering and my A/C compressor gradually dying in 100 degree weather.

I'm desperate for a little rain…a sprinkle, a shower, a mist, or a downpour.  I think we've had three days of rain since March.  The swimming pool is like a warm bath.

I'm thrilling over a great blurb I received for Austentatious from Cindy Jones, author of My Jane Austen Summer (not allowed to share it yet)!  And trying to figure out my best strategies for promotion.  (If you have any thoughts on what worked for you or what sorts of things you love that authors do, please let me know!)

I'm back from a week-long vacation to Asheville, N.C. and Charleston, S.C.  There was a black bear (plus two cubs!) siting.  And a Trader Joe's visit and stock-up.  And some South Carolina barbeque…it's all about the mustard, baby.

It's green chile time, and I've stocked up on my roasted *hot* green chiles and am prepared to make a green chile stew in the next few days.  I'll also be trying out a new gluten-free recipe (Orange Juice Bread) and one of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams–I totally dropped the ball on this over the summer.

That's about it, in a nutshell.  What's going on with you?

Clever Wordplay

This poster was hanging in various places around Charleston (from which we just returned).  I think it's quite clever and nicely done. (Check out that blood spatter on the kitchen towels!)  I almost regret I'm going to miss the roller derby action.  Almost.  School starts tomorrow.  GFB is starting junior high–yikes!  I'm crossing my fingers for a good day.  I will be having fish tacos by myself, accompanied by a book.

This photo was taken in the dark, looking into a Sonic drive-in, while waiting for my 'Old School Rootbeer Float'–I admit, the quality leaves a little something to be desired.