Seattle, Washington is by all accounts a fabulous place to live. We have some of the lowest crime rates (among cities of similar size), a relatively affluent and well educated population, and for about 3 months of the year - fabulous weather (seriously - it is like perfect). As with every place one lives there are positive and negative aspects - but here in Seattle the negatives are few - in fact, I think if you were to do a poll, you would likely only hear about either the 9 months of gray, mild, weather or the "Seattle Chill" - which actually has to do with social custom rather than the temperature outside.

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The Chicago Manual of StyleReference books are of course never the most-scintillating books for discussion at the dinner table, but they are extremely invaluable to have next to you when you are writing and editing. The Chicago Manual of Style, published by the University of Chicago Press, serves as one of the publishing industry standards on writing. The latest edition of The Chicago Manual of Style has nearly 1,000 pages and contains the rules for numbers, plurals, and spelling and more. Because The Chicago Manual of Style also details the responsibilities of both editors and writers throughout the stages of a manuscript, it is significantly more interesting for writers and editors as a reference book than some of the other reference books available.


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I stopped reading after he bludgeoned the songbird to death.

But let me back up.  

I first heard about Manny Howard when he was a guest on The Colbert Report.  Howard turned his Brooklyn home and yard into a farm, with the challenge to live off it for a month.  


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I picked this up expecting it to be profiles of DIYers ("Makers," as Frauenfelder calls them).  I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was more of an autobiography of Frauenfelder's projects, his successes, and - more to the point - his failures.

Mark Frauenfelder is a big name in the DIY world.  The man behind MAKE and CRAFT magazines, founder of Boing Boing (the original zine and the website), and the Man of A Thousand Hobbies.  I saw Frauenfelder recently on The Colbert Report; he brought on a truly wonderful device, which is a box that turns itself off.  You flip a switch on, and a little hand immediately pops out to flip the switch off. Love it!


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Lisa Diamond, an associate professor of psychology and gender studies at the University of Utah, in January of 2008 published the results of a multi-year study of 79 women who did not self-identify as heterosexual. Professor Diamond's research began in 1995 when she conducted in-person interviews with the women, who identified themselves as lesbian, bisexual, or unlabeled but not heterosexual. The women were all between 18 and 25 years old at the time. Diamond then followed up with each woman every two years, in a phone interview. Dr. Diamond was researching the idea of bisexuality as a temporary stage of denial or transition, a stable "3rd type" of sexual orientation, or a heightened capacity for sexual fluidity.

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Many fans of fantasy may recall Gail Carson Levine’s wonderful tale, Ella Enchanted, as well as its charming screen adaptation featuring Anne Hathaway. Though Levine may be most well known for this wonderful tale, she has since written several more fun fairytales that are just as enjoyable—if not even more so (including my favorite of them all so far, Fairest). Her 2008 fantasy novel, Ever, departs from the spins that the author likes to wrap around traditional fairytales and instead takes on a mythological tone.

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I first read Stephen King's Misery many years ago when I stole/borrowed my sister's copy of it. Being a naïve youth, most of the story went over my head. But then I grew up, understood more about writing, and not too long ago, came to the conclusion that King is one of my personal heroes, and a career in writing is definitely within my grasp. Diligently, I picked the book up again a couple of weeks ago. Going into the novel after a break of maybe thirteen years, the only thing I remembered about Misery was a trapped writer, insane serial killer-turned nurse, a typewriter, and something about an axe. 

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I was reading this lovely story on the Newsweek website about animals that have been in space (Animals in Orbit) and it got me thinking about all of the furry little friends that have blasted off into the great unknown - including, of course, Sigourney Weaver. I don't mean to say that she is some sort of freakish, big toothed animal, but... she is a freakish big toothed animal (for the film Alien at least... oh she wasn't the alien? Whatever, I stand by it).

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Well, this is an oldy - but a goody... well grossy...

Im a huge fan of Amy Winehouse. In fact I aspire to be like her someday. honestly, who wouldn't want to be under the infuence, semi-conscious, out of control, and rich? I guess I do not want to be exactly like her though - I mean she does do and say some pretty bizarro things, but I like to think of them as British and "charming"... sometimes.

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After Kirstin and Rachel help Emily the Emerald Fairy, they are off on their next adventure. In book number four of The Jewel Fairies by Daisy Meadows, the two girls head out to go shopping in a costume store to find the perfect Halloween costume for an upcoming party. The store has everything you could imagine to dress up as. As always, the girls are keeping their eyes out for anything that could mean that they are on the hunt for another missing jewel. It doesn’t take long before they realize just how close they are to Chloe the Topaz Fairy and her missing jewel.

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