dandelionfiles

Even if you can only organize or make phone calls, check out http://informationisgolden.blogspot.com/ for how you can pinpoint need for cities within 100 miles of New Orleans. People are still there and are in dire straits. My friend ICEKNIFE is trying to unite bloggers in aiding Louisiana residents. Do what you can!

Jacklyn has complained I don't have enough pictures that smile on the blog--here one is

Well, I don't know whether to be amused, flattered, or unpleasantly surprised--the advertisers have finally stumbled onto our silly little site.

For the record (seeing as I'm a girl) I don't really need my penis enlarged. I've been told courage wise, though, that for a woman I have a really big set of balls, and truthfully, that's enough for little old me. I'm really happy with the pieces and parts that nature has provided me. As for weight loss, etc., unfortunately, I seem to be losing weight involuntarily at a rate of ten pounds a month since I started my new treatment--subtract ten pounds from the picture I posted and you'll know where I am physically right now--yeah, I'm seeing my doctor as soon as I can.

I respect commercialism, but could you people refrain from using our site? Seriously--the only way I'll post ads here is if we get some kind of compensation here. We're just a silly little blog. I won't even wear clothes with brand names prominently displayed on the principle of "they should be paying me to advertise, not vice versa". And yeah, I'm considering a part time job at an ad agency, so it's not like I think it's a horrible thing to advertise or anything like that.

SO-- anyone who actually likes the site and would like to be a part of it--let's ask about the comments here. Should the comments be limited to fellow bloggers? What do you think?

at least I read one. I've just had a run of bad luck. (I would avoid The Devil in the White City and Ahab's Wife. Too much serial killer in the first, too much smugness in the second, not enough architecture in either.)
That good book is... The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. If I were to tell you that it's written from the point of view of an autistic teenager who sets out to find who killed the neighbor's dog, you'd probably think, Not the old Sound and the Fury trick again! But let me reassure you that at no point will you have to consult Masterplots. (I finished this book in three hours.)
Everything about this book is amazing. Our hero, Christopher Boone, in spite of being completely unable to comprehend other human beings' emotions, feelings, etc., is a remarkable, courageous and thoughtful person. (I have to add that I also found him charming in his obsessively mathematical way, but in the interest of full disclosure I should say that Grissom is my favorite character on CSI, so I don't mind a little autism in my protagonists. His love of the Sherlock Holmes stories mirrors mine as well.) The other characters, in spite of Christopher's complete inability to understand their motives (and his is the only perspective you have), manage to come across as fully human -- a sign to me that this writer knows what he's doing. (I would tell you the other character that I thought was well-done, but that would constitute a pretty big spoiler.) The plot has enough twists and turns to satisfy those who picked it up thinking, Oh, an homage to Sherlock Holmes then, must be a mystery. There is also adventure and danger (and mathematics), and the ending is as satisfying as it could possibly be.
I know this was a bestseller five years ago or something, but I'm remedial on pop culture like that. All I can say is, if you haven't read this, please do so immediately. Thanks for your time.
I am cooking up an essay on Stephen Jay Gould's The Mismeasure of Man at my own blog as well. It should be ready for viewing and rotten vegetable throwing soon.

I started reading Happiness, which is on Lynx's list. This is going to be GOOD. As for mine:

1. Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis. Yes, the one who created Narnia and was equally well known for his religious writing. This is something completely different. Oural, the Queen of Glome, is writing her memoirs as an accusation against the gods for taking her beloved youngest sister away from her. This is a retelling of the myth of Cupid and Psyche done in a way that had me reconsidering how I viewed a lot of truths in life.
2. The King Must Die by Mary Renault. This is another retelling of a popular myth, this time the story of Theseus. In this, case, however, the gods are absent. This allows the characters to follow their individual practices and customs without Poseidon himself coming down to straighten things out. What a masterpiece!
3. Callahan's Crosstime Saloon by Spider Robinson. This is a much lighter, sillier suggestion than my previous two, so pick this one up if you need a break. The characters still ponder the fate of humanity and the conservation of pain and joy, but it's done in a bar somewhere on Long Island. This is the start of a series, but this collection of "reality with a twist" short stories stands on its own.
4. Perfume by Patrick Suskind. There are rumors that this book will make the leap to film, but I cannot imagine it being done. The narrative focuses so distinctly on scent that only the page does it the best justice. From the beginning, you know that you are about to enter the mind of a serial killer, but the rest unfolds in a completely original manner.
5. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. Yes, this book was the one everyone read a year or so ago. It was so popular because it's so beautifully written that I was drawn in by the first page. Many of the places mentioned in the novel are around my hometown, so it was even more chilling to read this story from the point of view of a murder victim as she watches life go on without her.

Enjoy! What does everyone else have to offer?

The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde: Are you a bibliophile? If so, Jasper Fforde is the mystery writer who is meant for you. The Big Over Easy was actually his first novel, which was not published until after he came out with the Thursday Next series—a detective tale in which literary work is more important in society than a movie star ever could be (my kind of place!). This novel centers on the work of a “Nursery Crimes” detective, Jack Spratt (who can’t stop feeling a sense of déjà vu as he notices magical beans growing in his mother’s garden to epic proportions). Incredibly amusing, with just enough social commentary so you don’t have to feel too guilty about frittering away your time with your nose stuck in a book. In fact, I’d like to recommend all of his books—read the Thursday Next series to see what happened to his first novel to make it publishable! Jasper Fforde has an ideal sense of the ridiculous—who doesn’t need to indulge in that once in a while?

Happiness ™ by Will Ferguson: Another amazingly amusing read. What would happen if someone actually wrote a self-help book that worked? The world as we know it might end! This book was actually remaindered at Barnes and Noble, which is a sad, foolish thing—do yourself a favor and pick it up, seeing as it’s selling much cheaper than it should be. You won’t be sorry.

Poptart by Liz Langley: It was this book of amusing essays (several stick in my mind, but right now one concerning Kenny Loggins’ affair with his colonist is making me chuckle) that helped me fall in love first with Langley’s essays (she’s online—look her up and subscribe to her paper) that mentions Ferguson’s book. Since she’s a good humorist, I thought it was my responsibility to mention her here.

How the Universe Got its Spots by Janna Levin: Oh, science geeks rejoice—especially science geeks who never got their share of cosmology. Levin is not only a good science writer (she has a gift for making very hard concepts make sense to the layperson) but she’s a good writer in general—her book centers partially upon her work as well as her life. As she explores her field and starts to feel isolated from the rest of the world, her universe starts to alter.

A Book of Bees and How to Keep Them: by Sue Hubbell: This is another one for the science geeks—in this case, those of us who secretly long to become naturalists. Hubbell became a beekeeper after a mental breakdown—but it’s her writing that will probably be appreciated most by society. She’s got a lively voice, amusing commentary, and enough factoids to make any subject fascinating. (OK—I find bugs interesting—but then again, I’m a geek. What do you expect from me? It’s you I’m concerned about.) She’s also got enough emotion to keep her work from getting dry. If you love this book, make sure to get A Country Year, which is the book that made me fall in love with her work to begin with.