My beloved wife has a tradition associated with Thanksgiving leftovers. She takes leftover turkey, cooked spaghetti, a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes and some cream of mushroom soup and creates something that might feature in a Garrison Keilor story about Norwegian btchelor farmers and the hotdishes they bring to Lutheran church suppers. I always assumed ( Read more... )

When we sleep, the cat hunts.

I went to bed the other night after falling asleep reading blogposts. During the night, the cat accessorized my laptop with a thoughtful gift: an external mouse.


( Read more... )

Next Friday, the 21st, is KassRachel's birthday. We'll be hosting a low-key party here at Chez N, from 7pm to whenever, which involves large piles of chinese food, small piles of alcoholic beverages, and a hot tub filled with vanilla pudding. (Most of that previous statement was accurate.) You're invited - RSVP below, if you'd like, so we know how ( Read more... )

7.20 CET - Wake to the mobile phone playing a tinny version of Devo's "Whip It". Attempt to leave bed. Discover that right foot is no longer functioning, perhaps due to 4km walk last night in business shoes. Resolve to stop wearing business shoes ( Read more... )

We're flying west, window shades open, and the sun has been setting for the past three hours. I see two ovals from where I'm sitting, each a Rothko-rich layer cake of burgundy, orange, green and blue. It makes me sad that we have to slow down to land, that night always wins ( Read more... )

The thing with travel is this: the more you travel, the more likely you are to spend much of your time with people who also travel a lot. I've reached the point in my life where my closest friends are more or less evenly split between two categories: people who I see in the Berkshires (people who live there now, or once lived there and come to ( Read more... )

So... while in South Africa and Zimbabwe, friends assigned me a small pile of reading to understand some of the changes going on in these two fascinating countries. Specifically, I was assigned "Ender's Game" as a commentary on media consolidation and social control, and Ursula LeGuin's "Always Coming Home" on the idea of isolation and ( Read more... )

Grr ( Read more... )

I used to travel to far corners of the world and make sure I got plenty of time to explore exotic new places, meet new people, take photos, eat strange food, get sick and sweat a lot ( Read more... )

A rainy Saturday. Tired from travel. A perfect chance to jump on an LJ meme. (Set your iPod/iTunes on shuffle, use the songs that appear as the soundtrack to your film.)

( Bring the Noise! )