Eggplant Parm, flicks, and a snarky book revue

Here's what I've been up to today. Eggplant Parmesan ready to go into the oven. Nice red Montepulciano smelling delicious in the glass. Three movies and a book. I've been trying to keep busy and not think too much. Monday, I have my mammography early in the morning. I don't think there is something wrong but I guess I'm enough of a pessimist to not be so sure. It's that whole hubris thing again. Never be too sure of anything. Fate lies in wait. I'll be able to relax when they say I'm O.K. Until then, I'm great at worrying and keeping busy staves off the demons. Eggplant parm helps a lot. I guess the thing I really hate the most is being squished and scrunched to take the pics. I am, how you say, buxom with the fullness of the boobage.

I got this great book about Venice from the Library as well as a biography of Kathryn Hepburn and Audrey Hepburn. A veritable Hepburn festival. The Audrey book is clearly written by a man in love with his subject and is very gentle and sweet- not too much depth. The Kathryn is really bitchy. The guy has taken everything that everyone ever said about Kate and Spencer and Kate's life and slashed and burned his way through all of it mostly with conjecture. He writes with the premise of "if it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck etc." regarding her sexuality and relationship with Spencer. All of the stuff may very well be true but the manner in which he writes is...well...bitchy and down right mean. Not a nice book. I tried to glean the stuff I hadn't read before about her and just sift away all the crap. I really couldn't care less about their sexuality- so what if she was bi-sexual and Spencer was a falling down nasty drunk. None of it came as a surprise but it's written with such venom. Anyway, it would have been great to know more about the events of her life and less about what he thinks might have been. Now- in a total turn around I was bored for something really fun to read last week and picked up a copy of Tammy Hoag's paperback "Prior Bad Acts"-what a fun, fast, read. Maybe it's just that I have read a lot of heavier stuff lately but it is light and well written murder mystery. I have to say I've read a couple of her books and she gets better with each book. Me likey! Fun stuff not much effort required...perfect for the mood right now.

I got Marie Antoinette just for the costumes and I heard that Little Miss Sunshine is pretty good. I got a good year despite it's horrible press because right now I would kill to see anything that takes place in Provence or any other wine country for that matter. I'm just so ready for the sun to keep shining and the flowers to start blooming C'mon spring! I'll be back with quilty content soon. On tomorrow's menu is Rian's recipe for beef short ribs. I hope I do her proud.

Addendum:If you haven't checked out the horoscopes on Crazy Aunt Purl(sidebar) you should. She has captured the Gemini so well. Also the story of her cats and their personalities makes soda come out of my nose from laughing.

WIP Wed & more of the hawk

These photos are really not great but it's snowing and the light is awful. I hope you get a better idea by clicking and enlarging. I made these blocks a while back. I had a misguided moment where I thought I would make them for a quilt for my son as a graduation present-Gad! what the hell was I thinking???? Well...I was thinking that he loves black and white checks and purples and such. Of course I soon came to my senses and realised that white....welll...WHITE anything for a young man. So I stopped at about 20 or so blocks and put them away for future consideration. I really like the graphic back and white mixed with the purples and deep pumpkin color. Wish I had more of that pumpkin fabric.

Yesterday I sewed the squares together. That's the extent of my sewing this past week. At least I managed to get something done and hopefully escape those winter blahs or blues. As I go around some of the blogs I notice I'm not alone in my disconnect from things artistic. A lot of really talented folks have been complaining about the same vague feelings. I don't recall feeling this way in winters past. Maybe it's a kind of defensive amnesia but I really used to like the whole inside working on quilts cavelike feeling. This year, in a winter with less snow and bad weather than usual, I feel all out of sorts. Well, this too will pass. I think my friend the hawk remained in whatever enclosure he hangs out in when the weather is not good. Just as well, I can waste a lot of time on standing chipmunk watch. My brilliant husband(hi Honey!) blew-up one of the pics and took out most of the glare for you to see more of the bird. I'll be back with better pics tomorrow. Here's a closer shot of the blocks.

I hear throught the grapevine that there are some quilts coming my way to bind for the QOV that the Quilt Studio is donating. I can't wait to see them in person. I promise to take better pictures when they're done.

Feeling hawkish

Here's what I've been up to for the last few days. We have a number of hawks in the neighborhood who unfortunately feast on such things as my beloved chipmunks and squirrels. Now and again you will see giant wings swooping down and making off with a fuzzy gray or brown thing and so it goes with the circle of life-Ugh! The raptors themselves are magnificent to see though. This one has a wing span of about 3 or so feet. I think you can enlarge by clicking the pics.

These last few days he has decided to make his perch on the front porch-directly over the little cinder block where the chipmunks launch themselves across the yard and where the squirrels feed on birdseed we put out for the mourning doves. You can tell when he's around because there isn't a living thing moving in the air or on the ground. I am fascinated my his size and patience. He let me open the door and move the camera around to get out of the glare of the door glass-well almost. He was getting a little skittish so this was as far as I could go. I'm about three feet from him. That's amazing and unfortunate at the same time. I think he belongs to our neighbor who has raised a number of raptors. He used to have peregrine falcons as well. The sun will be gone from this part of the porch soon and since it's 17 degrees out this morning(hello...where's my springy temps?) I suspect he will be on his way. I keep referring to the bird as a him when it very likely could be a female searching for food for the young. It just looks like bird who could kick the crap out of another bird and thus makes it male-like in my eyes. Silly really, since I could kick the crap out of a number of people myself. I would do this while frying up some bacon and bringing home the bread...cause I'm a woman W O M A N....Oh wait...where was I? The bird, yes...anyway, my fallow quilting period seems to be lessening and after a week of not sleeping but a few hours a night, I got a full night sleep last night.

I will be back tomorrow with something new to show for WIP Wed. For now I will follow the tale of the bird a few minutes more. I'm torn between not wanting it to leave and not wanting it to leave with anything cute and furry. I stand ever vigilant in defense of the chipmunk population.....This thing is actually big enough to carry off the neighbors cat.....meow