do *NOT* read this book

(the girl with the dragon tattoo by stieg larsson; the mystery-thriller equivalent of black tar heroin)

IF
you have anything else which absolutely positively needs to get done this week


OR
you need more than a couple of hours sleep per night


BECAUSE
it is seriously SERRRRRRRRRIOUSLY addictive and you will stay up until stupid o'clock--or even half-past stupid--each night; and you will take any excuse to drop what you are supposed to be doing in favor of reading

JUST
A
FEW
MORE
PAGES
pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!


(and then it will be over really really quickly and you will wish you had read it slower!)

the doodle formula

one of my favorite scrapbloggers, adrienne looman, published a book earlier this year and i have been looking for it off and on since spring! i've searched online, i've tried scrapbooking/crafty type stores, i've been to borders a few times...all to no avail. and then, the other day, i was standing in line at michaels* and there it was, starin' at me from right across the aisle, the doodle formula!!!

i was expecting it to be mostly photos of adrienne's lusciously color-saturated, whimsically doodle-embellished layouts, with a few tips and techniques scattered throughout; but there is actually quite a bit of text in the course of these 31 pages, including lots of step-by-step intructions backed up with concrete examples, and of course loads of fab hand-drawn illustrations! however, i suspect this is one of those books that you need to hold in your hands and look through before buying, because i think it's a book you'll either used constantly or not at all, and that just totally depends on whether it speaks to you or not.

i definitely got TONS of inspiration from it (as i absolutely ALWAYS do from adrienne's work!) and even picked up some great practical pointers. oh yeah, and already i made this page in my art journal using ideas from the book, combined with my own love of vintagey bits, scraps, loads of rub-ons!

(ek success circle punches in several sizes; 7 gypsies dotted circle stamp; prima paper bird; page from a vintage book; patterned paper scraps: basic grey, paper co, making memories, scenic route, plus bits from catalogs, maps & photos, rub-ons: scenic route, making memories, creative imaginations; zigwriter pen, colorbox ink)

*because one always stands in line at michaels'...for AT LEAST five minutes...even if there is no one else in the entire store! and it's not just my local michaels', either, it's every branch i have ever been to. *WHY* is that?! does anybody know??!? if you happen to be a michaels' representative, and you are reading this, please take note: those three aproned dynamos who are always busy sorting the foam shapes with such vigor in aisle 17 would be better employed AT THE CASH REGISTER, ok?!! thank you! ahem. sorry, i had a bit of a rant there. i hope i didn't embarrass you, michaels' representative. other than that you are doing a very nice job, honestly!

one of the best books...

...i have read recently is russell the sheep. however, with no disrespect to rob scotton's excellent story and charming illustrations, the thing i liked MOST about it was...

...the company!

yes indeedy, if you are looking for three girls to form an appreciative audience, you cannot possibly do better than nieces (from l to r) madeline, lindsay, and riley elizabeth!!!

if you are wondering: "geez, was it a good idea for elderly aunt lauren and her charmingly disintegrating vertebrae to sit cross-legged on the floor for the length of time it takes to read even a fairly short stoybook?" the answer is, "ummmmm...NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" fortunately LHJ had the foresight to bring along a hydraulic winch and some chocolate biscuits and eventually the poor sad old dear was restored to a standing position where she remained, chastened and rebuked, for the rest of the afternoon. :)

whatcha *ING*ing??!

yes indeedy...time for some random stuff i am currently enjoyin'...maybe you'll enjoy it, too??! :)

readING: spook country by william gibson. fast paced. lots of points of view. (each told from an authentic and individual-sounding voice) ...and i have NO IDEA what is going to happen next... (looooove that!)

watchING: wes anderson's the darjeeling limited on dvd. not exactly what i expected...but once i stopped trying to make it be rushmore or life aquatic...i enjoyed it quite a lot! (plus the first scene alone is EASILY worth the price of a dvd rental or movie ticket!)

listenING: to the audio book piece of my heart by peter robinson, from the library. pretty good british police-procedural-type mystery, which interweaves the investigation of two murders: one in 1969 and one in the present day. (...and i'm pretty sure i know whodunnit...)

drivING: where i want, when i want to, ON MY OWN...now that i have my little car back!!! (in the meantime "much respeck" to m'friend & colleague joshua, who ferried me about cheerfully & without complaint for several days!) not to worry, however, the case for car-updatING has been well and truly made...thus i am also...

debatING: the relative merits of the toyota matrix and the subaru impreza for my next automobile...i definitely want a compact with AWD... (any thoughts for or against those models...or others...will be gratefully appreciated!)

photoshoppING: pictures of "dear abby" for my own nefarious purposes (to be revealed later!)

downloadING: awesome (free!) handwriting fonts by kevin and amanda! they have some awesome doodles/dingbats, too like the "pea stacy doodles" to name just one! (thanks, stef!!!)

time for another *ING* list i think

...just a little survery of some stuff i've been enjoying lately...

watching:
life on mars
the second--and final--series is wrapping up on bbc america. i am glad they have refused to unnaturally prolong the "limbo" situation (if you're watching you know what i mean, if you aren't yet i don't want to spoil it) but i 'll miss this clever and amusing police drama. luckily the new series' of doctor who and torchwood start soon!
shameless
...was recently aired on either ifc or logo, though we have it on dvd. i was not entirely convinced that paul abbott could keep shocking/amazing/making me spit out coffee throughout an entire a second series, but i was so, SO wrong. i am as hooked as ever and cannot imagine what will befall the hapless gallagher clan next. (note: if this material was featured in a film it'd be R-rated for language, sexuality, adult themes, and...well...everything! if you are easily offended, skip this for sure!)
women's murder club
ok, it's not the DEEPEST program ever, but if you like an involving mystery show with a bit o' snappy dialogue and some strong roles for women, you could do worse than abc's new-this-season show. plus, it's on at 9pm on friday nights, which NOTHING EVER IS!

reading:
detective inspector huss by helene tursten
being a police procedural with a 40ish female protagonist, this is billed as "sweden's prime suspect" even though it is has little in common with that worthy title either thematically or stylistically. nonetheless it's a solid and involving mystery novel.

re-reading: the dares book...a few times, actually...i am kind of fascinated by this book. it's not really my style. i cannot really foresee directly borrowing or using many of the techniques or ideas used in this book. and yet, i have read every page of it at least three times. so far.

listening to: labyrinth by kate mosse; read by donada peters
i have come to the conclusion that it is safer to choose audiobooks by READER...since a great performance can elevate a commonplace selection as quickly as a monotonous or annoying voice can torpedo a wonderful novel. fortunately, in this case, the material and the narrator are equally terrific and i am trying to make this baby last!

downloading:
cool grungy/distressed typefaces from dafont.com and fontfreak.com
at the former you can even search by style...which is handy if you're looking for something in particular. some current faves: sidewalk, samarkan, and tattoo ink.

planning: a vacation to lake lure, north carolina with jeff's family in april. so far i've bought two guidebooks: insiders' north carolina's mountains and the ultimate guide to asheville & western nc by lee pantas; and i am very very excited about finally seeing the biltmore estate. if you have info or suggestions for things to do/see/eat in the area i'd be thrilled to hear them!

making:
cards for the february's month-long series of XOXO challenges at caardvarks, sponsored by queen kat designs

ordering:
no reservations, series one
lovely husband jeff LOVES anthony bourdain's manic and exotic part-food-show, part-documantary series. since we don't get the travel channel (on which it airs) i was excited to see it offered on dvd.

loving:
the short films, long trailers, newsreels, vintage documentaries, and actor profiles that air on turner classic movies. don't get me wrong, i love the FEATURES, too; but sometimes there is absolute *gold* between the films!

stockpiling:
foreign newspapers and travel books...especially those which use different alphabets, like bengali, hebrew, russian and arabic. i love the way they give a collage or card a little hit of immediate "exoticness" as well as providing the structure of text without the distraction of words i can read.

dreading:the icy-cold, wet-n-disgusting, surely blizzard-based comeuppance with which we will pay for this unseasonably warm and gorgeous week of 6o-degree temperatures and semi-sunny skies here in central new jersey. still, it's kind of worth it, though.

a book that changed my life!

ok, i'm exaggerating... (which, as you know, is SO unlike me!) ...this book did not actually change my life in any way...except that i am slightly more tired...as a result of staying up too late to read it for several nights in a row! :) it is a really cool book though, by an italian journalist who decided--as the result of a fortune teller's advice--not to fly for the entire year of 1993. it's sort of part travelogue and part social commentary...with a smidge of auto-biography...and a bit of an overview of eastern philosophy. the only authors i've read that even approach the same funky non-fiction style are justine hardy (bollywood boy is a fave) and mark kurlansky. but really...it's not enough like any other book to be able to label it...or compare it with anything else...and how often can you say that?!

...when i grow up, i wanna be heidi swapp!

to tell the truth, i was not so sure i wanted to shell out $10 for a book of JUST heidi, using just heidi products, and NO TEXT?! seriously???!



i stand corrected. this is basically scrapbook porn. every photo is lucious, every concept is liftworthy. generally, my idea books wind up festooned with posties marking the pages i think i will refer back to. this book has NONE of those...b/c frankly, there isn't a page that i don't loooove.

plus it turns out...she don't need no stinkin' text! she don't need nobody else's products! actually, i don't think she needs ANYTHING besides a pen and a few photos. because she's HEIDI!!!

...and i love her!