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Archive for the ‘Games’ Category

  • 8 Literary Tattoos That Make My Heart Sigh

    Wednesday, February 1st, 2012

    Last week we looked at three literary tattoos that my children thought were wonderful, AND I was delighted to find out so many of YOU have tattoos!

    I also promised to give you my own list of personal favorites.

    So, here they are along with the books that inspired them. I heart these more than I can say….

     

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    The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien–the words at the base of her neck are elvish for “dream” (from Pinterest)

    We wants it, Preciouses.

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    “I shall not live in vain” by Emily Dickinson (from Pinterest) 

    An incredible poem. A dainty tattoo.

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    “Radiant as the sun” from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (from College Candy)

    So simple. So lovely. So powerful.

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    Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (from Pinterest) 

    I’ve seen one like this with glow-in-the-dark ink. Awesome, no?

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    Howl’s Moving Castle tattoo.

    Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (from Miyazaki: A Beautiful Mind)

    My dearest, gorgeous, perfect Howl… *girly sigh*

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    The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis (from Tumblr) 

    I want to tattoo this on my children…

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    The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling (from Pinterest)

    Um, seriously how adorable is that?

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    “And days went by like paper in the wind” (from Pinterest)

    Okay, so this last one might be from Tom Petty, but still…fabulous, yes? Methinks I need the dress to go with it.

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    Well? What do you think, Preciouses? They are quite fancy dancy, yes???

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    Posted in Games, Genre Savvy, Uncategorized | 15 Comments »

  • Tattoo a Book Upon My Heart…

    Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

    TRUE CONFESSION: I have a tattoo.

    Just a thin thread of an ivy strand I got when I was eighteen and away at college. It encircles my ankle and makes me smile whenever I notice it’s still there. They say that once you get a tattoo, it’s like an addiction and you want more, covering your skin with art and poetry and pictures of loved ones. But not me…

    At least, not usually.

    Every once in a while, though, I’ll come across a tattoo that charms my whimsical heart–such as my sister’s, which is written in pretty, elvish words and translates “Shall we dare the dragon?”  (Are you thinking she’s awesome? Because, yes she is. In fact, ten points to whoever can tell me what book that’s based on…) And while I’m totally convinced my sister’s tattoo is the coolest ever, I came across a link from Publisher’s Weekly for some other literary tattoos yesterday when I was flitting around the internet kingdom. (Thanks to one of my Book Blog friends, Mary at Bookhounds!)

    Check out these ones of The Little Prince, Alice in Wonderland, and Where the Wild Things Are (which my kids liked best)! What do you think, eh?

    Next week I’ll give you MY best-of-the-best list of literary tattoos. But in the meantime—do any of YOU have tattoos? *stares intently until you ‘fess up*

    And if not, have you ever wanted one? What would it be of???

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    What’s the mood noise of the moment? Christina Perri:  The Lonely

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    Posted in Games, Genre Savvy, Uncategorized | 12 Comments »

  • And Our Winner Is…

    Wednesday, January 4th, 2012

    First we build suspense with a little mood music by Europe.

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    Next we place the entry names into a fancy dancy hat and add pixie powder.

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    We swishes them around wildly while magical six-year-old child closes eyes tightly…until his face scrunches up.

    Then magical child pulls out a name…

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    Congratulations Cathe Olson!!! The $25 Amazon gift card is yours! I’m sending you a note by email and will ship the card off asap!!!

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    Thank you again, Preciouses, for goofing off with me week after ridiculous week! You guys keep me grinning and learning and laughing (and finding more excuses to talk about that tea-sipping old hottie, Lord Peter Wimsey). Here’s to another fabulous year!!!

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    Posted in Games | 10 Comments »

  • My 2nd Blogoversary Gift Card Giveaway!

    Wednesday, December 28th, 2011

    Dear Preciouses,

    Officially, I have written eloquently TYPED LOUDLY from this little blogosphere space for exactly two years. I love it more today than when I first started. I love the books more. I love writing more (which is hard to imagine). And much of this is due to you, my Preciouses. Your comments, insight, and opinions have encouraged me to grow as a book reader, writer, and all-around weirder-than-your-grandmother’s-toupee-wearing-cat-type-person.

    Basically, what I’m saying is that if I’d never started this blog, and you’d never visited this blog and encouraged me to keep frolicking around on it, I never would’ve made such lovely new friends, nor talked about books so frequently with old ones.

    I also never would have:

    Helped save billions (rough estimate) of marriages by posting a Rabid Fan Girl Status test and providing a list of Twilight Support Groups. That’s not to mention all the lonely guys I coached on how to get girls with my Twilight Dating Savvy advice.

    Nor would I have been allowed to talk about how sexy a seventy-eight-year-old man (Lord Peter Wimsey) is without coming across as totally creepy. Okay, maybe it was creepy, but that doesn’t diminish the impressiveness of having managed to wheedle the indomitable Lord Peter Wimsey into a blog post and three separate interviews. Yeah. That’s right. *discreet fist pump*

    I also never would have:

    Recovered the suppressed, childhood memory of consistently being elected for the part of Han Solo’s wookie, Chewbacca, (rather than Princess Leia) by my “childhood friends” (ahem, MMA fighter Tim Kennedy) during our Star Wars games. Although, on a side note, I’d like to think Tim may never have stumbled upon his true calling of Cooking with Tim had we not bullied prompted him into it on this blog, right Preciouses?

    I also never would’ve discovered that Joanna Volpe and I share a mutual affection for all things Steampunk, which, consequently, led to my pursuing—and her giving—a helpful piece of writing feedback. Thanks to her for that.

    And, of course, I never would’ve met Jay Asher (along with the wonderful JM and Isaiah) and discovered what an incredible writer he is, and even more so, what a sincerely kind friend. Thank you, Jay.

    Nor would I have met Jonathan Maberry (Wolverine, zombies, and King of Plagues), or connected with Mary Pearson (The Adoration of Jenna Fox), Catherine Ryan Hyde (need we say more?), and Laurie McLean (agent savant), or become blog friends with Anne R. Allen (her books just released!), or had the pleasure of interviewing super-silly authors such as Chuck Sambuchino (who can best me at pop culture references on any given Twitter day), Carolyn Mackler (who can best Jay Asher at spork fencing), and Lauren DeStefano (who makes me wish I possessed half of her wit as well as her preying mantis, Sarsaparilla).

    Also, I never would’ve gotten to show you this.

     Dobby Loves Socks card

    Or this:

    Gandalf Road Sign, New Zealand.

    Oh, and last but not least, I never would’ve had the opportunity to dote on you with this:

    a $25 Amazon gift card

    Which I will send to one of you in celebration of your wonderfulness.

    So this is how the gift card giveaway is going to work, okay, Preciouses?

    (1) You must be a follower of this blog either through email or RSS (the cute icons at the top of the page—one orange, the other a white envelope), or Google Friend Connect or Facebook (those two icons on the right of this post that show all the pictures of happy faces and people’s cats). So if you’re not a follower yet, it’s about dang time you became one.

    (2) Link to THIS PAGE one time via Twitter  OR  Facebook  OR  Google+  OR  from your own blog, and then come back and leave a comment (on this page) saying which one you did. (For your convenience, you can use the stylish icons below or–if the FB one is being finicky–go ahead and copy this page’s URL and paste it to FB manually.) Your link and comment must be posted by 11:59 pm (PST) on Monday, January 2, 2012.

    (3) I will take all the names from the comments (no matter how many times you comment or link, you only get counted once) and place them in a hat; then I’ll use my magical six-year-old child to randomly pull one as the winner.

    (4) The winner will be announced next Wednesday, January 4th, 2012. After which, I’ll contact that individual and mail them their gift card.

    (5) There you have it.  Thank you for following me and my blog, and for loving books as much as I do, Preciouses. ;0) May the odds be ever in your favor.

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    Posted in Games | 31 Comments »

  • A Recipe for Chipotle Scalloped Potatoes (Plus a Bookalicious Quiz)

    Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

    IT’S HOLIDAY BAKING TIME!!! *Weehee!* Time to pull out our favorite holiday recipes  and get on down to the business of cooking for those twinkle-lit evenings with friends and family (and perhaps a bit of bubbly and toasted nuts). OH THE FOOD-LICIOUS JOY!!! This might even call for a performance of my awkward, whirly, celebration dance! (Although, if you hear my children mention that my awkward, whirly, celebration dance looks very much like MJ’s moonwalk but without the cool moonboots or necessary coordination, ignore them. It looks exactly like that. It looks nothing like that.)

    Okay, we move along…

    One of my standard recipes I keep stashed away is a spicy little spin-off of my sister-in-law’s incredible scalloped potatoes: CHIPOTLE SCALLOPED POTATOES. They’re simple and pretty-much un-ruinable (<– not a real word, but it should be). Nothing need be exact, a little more of this, a tad less of that—they’ll still taste amazing. I made them last week for a pre-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving dinner (had to brush up my rusty holiday skills, but really it was just an excuse to eat Thanksgiving dinner twice), and they were as smoky-cheesy-tasty as I’d remembered. Which, of course, meant that I had to immediately type the recipe out to share with you. So, here you go. See below.

    And while they’re cooking, check out this fun quiz that flitted across my Twitterfeed last week. See if you can match the Famous Protagonists to the Correct Novels (but be fast cuz it’s timed)! Then leave a comment telling us how you scored! (And no cheating by taking it twice. Yeah, you know who I’m talking to…. I’ve got my eye on you.)

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    A Recipe for Chipotle Scalloped Potatoes

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    • 3 pounds potatoes (thinly sliced)
    • ½ pound gouda cheese (shredded)
    • 4 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
    • 1 onion (thinly sliced)
    • Salt and pepper
    • 2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
    • 1 (of the Cream of Mushroom size) can of milk
    • 4 chipotle peppers (in adobe sauce) chopped

    Spritz with oil a 13X9 inch pan and cover the bottom with thinly sliced potatoes. Lightly sprinkle over the potatoes with salt, pepper, and onion slices, followed by 1/3 of each of the cheeses. Add another layer of potatoes and duplicate with the salt, pepper, onion, and cheeses. Repeat this process (potato layer + ingredients) a third time. In a bowl, combine the Cream of Mushroom soup, the milk, and chopped chipotle peppers and blend. Pour the Cream of Mushroom mixture on top of the potatoes. Bake on 350 for 60-70 minutes, then allow to sit for 15 before serving. Enjoy!

    *lovely photo taken from photobucket

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    Posted in Games, Literary Classics | 16 Comments »

  • A Recipe for Autumn Breakfast Cake (plus The Princess Bride Monopoly)

    Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

    “- In the farthest corner of the Great Square -
     - in the highest building in the land -
     - deep in the deepest shadow -”
     - lies The Princess Bride Monopoly Board Game – HUZZAH!

    I love the book. I heart the movie. And now, I must own this piece of inconceivable genius. Seriously. Check out those game pieces. Westley’s mustache? Who wouldn’t want to venture around the board with that?

    princess bride monopoly

    Now that I’ve got you all hung up on the need for your own copy, I recall you to the fact that you should never get involved in a land war in Asia. Also? I owe you a recipe. Which is awesome because it means you can now play with Westley’s mustache while eating tasty cake. So, as you wish, this month’s delicacy comes from my dearest Sharla, who is as autumn obsessed as I am. It’s a perfect breakfast cake, all warm and flavorful with bananas and chocolate and mm…. You should try it with a caramel latte. While challenging your enemies to a duel. With swords. Or iocaine.

    A Recipe for Autumn Breakfast Cake

    • 2 ½ cups flour
    • 1 t. baking soda
    • ¾ t. salt
    • 1 ¼ cups sugar
    • ½ cup vegetable oil
    • 3 eggs
    • 1 ½ cups smashed bananas (3 bananas)
    • ½-3/4 cups semi sweet Chocolate Chips

    Directions

    1. Turn on oven to 325 degrees
    2. Grease two bread pans or a fluted cake tube
    3. Stir: flour, baking soda & salt
    4. In another bowl, beat: eggs, oil and sugar
    5. Add bananas and beat again
    6. Add flour mixture
    7. Stir in Chocolate chips
    8. Bake: 45-50 minutes

    And with that, my lovelies, I bid you all goodnight. Sleep well. I’ll most likely kill you in the morning.

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    What’s the mood noise of the moment? Sophie Zelmani

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    Posted in Games, Genre Savvy, Literary Classics | 13 Comments »

  • Ten Book Characters Who Did NOT Get Enough Valentines as Children (plus a recipe)

    Monday, February 14th, 2011

    Remember in 1st grade when we’d all show up to school on Valentine’s Day with our backpacks full of cheap paper hearts (that our mothers made us take for the ENTIRE class because we wouldn’t want to leave anyone out) and how we’d get all sweaty and nervous wondering if anyone’s mothers besides our two bosom buddies’ would make sure we got paper hearts in return?

    And then remember how afraid we were that the one person in class whom we actually had a crush on wouldn’t even remember our name well enough to correctly spell it on our card, or worse yet, it would simply say “Dear Friend” (even though everyone in class could remember the golden-haired “Donna” and every sigh she’d ever uttered through her perfectly straight teeth)?

    And then there was that one person who traumatized us more than any other by chasing us on the playground with a bag full of cooties and a finger full of boogers forcing us to spend the entire afternoon mortified that they might actually think our Valentine paper heart we’d given them was an indication of marriage intentions rather than the fact that our mother just made us do it.

    And then there was that one kid whom everyone seemed to forget existed (and thus our moms forgot to make Valentines for them) and we’d feel so awkwardly sorry for them (and embarrassed for ourselves) that we’d cut out a construction paper heart real quick during recess and hope they didn’t notice it wasn’t quite the same color as the rest…

    Yeah. Those were good times.

    And to truly honor those good times, I thought I’d make a list of book characters who were in that last group of kids. They obviously got left out of the paper heart sharing as grade school children and therefore grew up feeling lonely and unloved with their hair full of boogers and sad little hearts of flesh that eventually got cruel or weird and turned into stone. These poor souls are the ones who deserve our love. And to these, I bequeath my paper hearts today. Happy Valentine’s Day. ;-)

    1. Gollum
    2. Heathcliff
    3. The Queen of Hearts
    4. Katerina Ivanova (Crime & Punishment)
    5. Dracula
    6. Hannibal Lecter
    7. Bella
    8. Cugel the Clever (The Eyes of the Overworld)
    9. Annie Wilkes (Misery)
    10. Captain Hook

    Who have I missed? Anyone? Anyone?

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    A Recipe for Valentine’s English Trifle

    1. 1 purchased pound cake or a boxed yellow cake (baked & cooled)
    2. 1 lg. box Strawberry Jello mix
    3. 1 lg. container of Cool-Whip
    4. 4-6 bananas (sliced)
    5. 1 package fresh strawberries
    6. 1 package fresh raspberries
    7. 1/2 cup frozen blueberries

    Make the Jello according to package directions and allow to cool (but not harden). Cut the cake in slices and use ½ of them to cover the bottom of a large glass bowl. Place ½ of the sliced bananas and ½ of the berries over the cake. Pour ½ of the Jello over this and then spread ½ of the carton of Cool-Whip over. Repeat these layers again, beginning with the cake slices. After the final layer of Cool-Whip, sprinkle a few berries on top for prettiness. Chill at least 2 hours (to allow the Jello to thicken).

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     What’s the Mood Noise of the Moment?  What the World Needs Now

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    Posted in Games, Literary Classics, Reading Recipes, Undead Leeches | 19 Comments »

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