Recently, I’ve been thinking
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I figure if Jessica can blog about her garden, so can I.
Last summer I grew some basil on my patio. I get only a little bit of afternoon sun, so most anything I’d like to grow (like tomatoes) just won’t work. Today, I finally got down to Coleman’s and got some more basil for this year. They always have so many varieties that I have a hard time choosing. Last year it was Lime Basil. This time I’ve got African Blue Basil. Should be delicious!
On the advice of my mom, I also picked up some Fuscia. They are shady loving, so they should do good. They’re the red ones below. While I was getting some potting soil and pots, I decided to get some white impatiens as well.
I still have a bunch of potting soil, so I might need to go back and pick up some more plants. Anyone have any ideas of what I should get?
Spring is here! I usually make a big deal about spring being here on March the First, but I kept it kind of quiet this year. March was definitely spring in SE Michigan this year. (Amy even admitted as much to me. That’s kind of a big deal. )
But the springtime transitions are always kind of awkward. How do you know when its time to stop wearing your winter coat, and just bring a jacket? I’ve actually put a lot of thought into this one over the past few years… There is a point, sometime after spring has begun, where you can trust it enough to actually stop wearing a coat, where there may be some more jacket days ahead, but the coat days are behind us. I think I overcalled it this year for Michigan, but I understand that day hasn’t come yet in Utah and Wyoming. (And quit your bellyachin’, it’s the moisture you’re always praying for. )
 Image: Enchanted Stairs, by abekleinfel I have identified several other transitions that mark my spring:
1- The transition back to short sleeve shirts. I really, really like wearing sweaters, and do so for most of the winter. Unfortunately, that means an awkward (for me) transition back to just short sleeves. My arms have been covered for most of the last four months, and they just feel… well… naked. Add to that that all of my work shirts are long sleeve, and the transition to T-shirts makes for plenty of goosebumps. The transition back to shorts won’t be for another month or two.
2- The transition of waking up in the night to Thunderstorms. Got that groove on this morning. It’s been awhile, Mother Nature, since you’ve woken me up. Thanks a lot. Now I have to worry about my upstairs neighbors and thunder waking me up at 3:30 in the morning.
3- The transition back to sunglasses. During the winter, I rarely need my sunglasses. I drive to work in the dark, I drive home in the dark. Ergo, I have no idea where I stashed my shades last fall. Until I find them, my eyes are burning.
4- The transition back to green. My favorite part of spring! Suddenly one day you wake up, and BAM! Everything is green. The grass, the trees, the sidewalk where the geese hang out. It’s a beautiful thing! And then the flowers start to pop out!
5- The transition back to mosquitoes. I’ve been grilling for weeks. Ever since before that last snowstorm. Or maybe right after, I don’t remember. On Monday, I forgot to close the screen door to my patio, only to be tormented by the mosquitoes I’d let in for the next few hours. Fortunately, they’re still pretty slow, so their eradication was quick and at zero loss of blood (to me). Now I’ll just have to remember to take my bug spray with me when I go hiking.
I’m sure I’m forgetting some important spring transitions. I only usually remember after they’ve backfired on me at least once. So, now the question… What am I forgetting?
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Cool blog update notes:
1) I think I’ve fixed the feed issues that were plaguing me over the last few weeks. You didn’t know that I was having them, because your feeds weren’t updating. They should now.
2) I updated the header with pictures that I actually took. It rotates, so keep looking for something new. I’ll try to add new ones occasionally, and remove some of the awful ones.
3) I added the Google Friend Connect box. I think it’s kind of like following, so you can, you know, follow me if you wants.
I mentioned a while back that I was considering a navel-gazey post about trying to find a new alarm clock. Well, here goes.
I love my alarm clock. It’s a Timex travel alarm clock with an Indiglo backlight. I have owned it for longer than just about everything else that I have owned. I think I was given it as a graduation present during high school. It’s possible that I have had it longer than that. I just don’t remember. I took it with me to on my mission, that’s for certain. It’s followed me from Wyoming to Utah to Michigan. Most everything else has been discarded or acquired somewhere along the line.
 My alarm clock looks kind of like this one, but it doesn't have that extension at the back. I am perfectly attenuated to it. I know exactly when it will go off after a snooze and can usually drag myself out of bed a few moments before it sounds. If for some reason I’m not around to silence it, or I’m already in the shower, I know that it will ring for exactly one minute and then stop. I even love the short high pitched sound it makes when I hit the snooze button.
It’s more than 10 years old by now, and with age, my alarm clock has developed some quirks. Among others, it resets itself and loses the set alarm if it falls off my nightstand (or, as usually happens, when it gets forcibly knocked off my nightstand during the night terrors). This can be problematic, as you might imagine. It used to take a huge drop, but even gentle bumps will reset it these days.
So, reluctantly, last winter, I decided it was time to start auditioning new alarm clocks before it became terribly critical. I had only a few requirements: #1 Battery operated #2 Easy to read in the dark without my contacts in. Actually, #1 is a function of #2, because I usually have to hold it pretty close to my face, and if it were one of those big ones with a power cord, I’d smash my face frequently.
The first trial has ended unsuccessfully. Instead of replacing my alarm clock, I’ve just had two sitting on my nightstand in case one fails. The only things that I like about the new one was that it automatically reset itself for Daylight Savings Time. It was insufficient in all other aspects of alarm-clockery. The backlight is terrible. It rings for too long and at the wrong intervals. For some reason, it has a thermometer which is consistently overly optimistic about how warm my bedroom is. In another oddly designed “feature”, if I hit the backlight, it shows me what time the alarm is set for, rather than what time it is, which has led to a few panicked moments.
So, on to round two, I guess. Anyone know where I can find a brand new Timex Indiglo Travel Alarm clock, vintage 1998, perchance? Or have an awesome alarm clock that snoozes for exactly 8 minutes?
I’m a huge fan of reading. Ever since they taught me how to (and probably before), I’ve been practicing as frequently as I can. There was one teacher I had in grade school who claimed that she would either visit in our homes or call our parents, and if we were reading when that happened, we’d get something special. (I don’t remember anymore what the reward was.) Because of that (threat/promise/challenge), I read a lot. And kind of kept going.
 More old books... by guldfisken The statistics on reading baffle me. A few years back, a survey showed that the average American who reads regularly read only 7 books per year. And one in four adults read no books. No Books?!?!? I’ve already read six since the beginning of the year, and most of a seventh (it’s mostly a running book filled with tedious training plan details. I don’t really need the part of the book that I haven’t read until later when I’m going to run a marathon). If I stopped now, I’d be there with the average reader, and I still have ten and a half months to go!
The problem with reading that much is that you start to run out of things to read. I have always been a strong genre reader. I come back again and again to specific genres because I know them and I know that I will generally like what I read. My genre is typically Epic Fantasy, although I will occasionally fiddle with some other aspects of Speculative Fiction. I’m open to other genres and types of books, but I generally don’t know where to start outside my genre.
Late last year, I decided two things.
#1- I was going to read at least three books out of genre before returning to Epic Fantasy.
#2- I was going to leave Young Adult Fantasy and Sci-Fi behind me for the time being.
To point the first, I was pleasantly surprised by the books which I did read. The World Without Us is one that I’ve brought up in conversations with many of my friends and family. And while I don’t think I could recommend Ragtime in good conscience to most people, it was a good read. I think that my “adventure” with James Joyce could best be described by not describing it.
To point the second, I recently decided that while most YA Fantasy is good reading, I needed to read less of it. The plots were becoming predictable for me, and I was tired of the sanitization that happens in YA. Several years ago, I drew a line that placed that vampire series (you know the one) on one side of a line, and Harry Potter on the other. Lately, I’ve pushed a whole lot more past the line. Once my detox is complete, I think that I might reevaluate where the line sits. (There will always be at least 4 books on the other side of the line. You know which ones.)
After returning from my out of genre stint, I’ve actually had some fun. I’ve been reading classic science fiction works from the ’60s and ’70s. These were some of the real pioneers of the sci-fi genre. I also read a heady Speculative Fiction novel and a Literary take on fantasy.
With all of this reading, my To-Read shelf has dwindled. I have one or two more novels there, one of which I am saving because it might take some re-reading of some previous novels. So I took my problem to Facebook, and asked my friends what the best book they’ve ever read is. I was blown away by the response. Some clearly didn’t understand the assignment. (I’m looking at you, Clint.) I got a huge list of books to read! Of those suggested, I had only read four. And while a few were YA, most looked like ones that I could come back to after my self imposed ban is over.
I was so happy with the list that I thought that I should share it. So, below the break, I’ve included a cleaned up list of The Best Books, at least according to my Facebook friends. I linked them all to Amazon, in case you’re interested in more information about any of them. I’ve already ordered one (Scar Gate), and I’m looking forward to reading many more of them this year. (If you were wondering, I marked the ones I’ve read with (R) and the Young Adult Fantasy and Sci-Fi with (YA).)
So what about you? Did this list miss the best book you’ve ever read? Let me know in the comments!
Recently, Google decided not to continue support for the method which I use to publish my blog to bradyemmett.info. I had a few choices as to which direction I could go, and decided that I really really liked publishing to this domain and not to a random blogspot location. Call it vanity.
Anyhow, I’ve updated to a WordPress blog. I’ve managed to import most of my posts and (sadly, only a part of) the comments from the last few years. I’m hoping for minimal disturbances.
I still have some updates to make to make my blog pretty. But that’s not difficult. And then maybe I should add a post or two of my recent doings. All in good time.
I do have a favor to ask, Dear Readers.
I’m not sure that my feeds are working correctly. Can you leave a comment to let me know how you get to my blog normally (GReader, website search, link, bookmark, etc) and if that method is still working for you?
Thanks!
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