Clouds

I've been spending way too much time this May looking at these white fluffy things.

Rain, rain go away, come again another day.

Book Review: Bewitched and Betrayed by Lisa Shearin

Another book review by ~S

So, I have been slacking in my whole need to tell everyone what I'm reading. Part of this is because my letterboxing hobby has become an obsession but the main reason is that I found my own reviews to be too much whining about how I'd fix the book. I wanted to talk about a book I really liked. Finally, I finished a book I really enjoyed. Of course, it's the fourth in a series about a woman who accidentally gets herself linked to a magic stone which steals people's souls, who is torn between two men, and who has a horde of pirate relatives. Go ahead. . . guess what book??? Of course I'm talking about the Raine Benares series by Lisa Shearin, and I just finished Bewitched & Betrayed.

I liked this book-mainly--because the characters are enjoyable. I am interested in everyone from Raine, to her pirate family, to her 934 year old Elven father now residing in the 20 year old body of a new guardian, to her Goblin cohorts. Every character feels real and seems motivated by something you can understand - not just "because it is the right thing to do." I am looking forward to meeting the sneaky older cousin banker in the next book! Additionally, there's enough plot issues (political games goblins vs Elves, what to do with the big bad rock, how to keep your friends and family safe, etc.) that there's always something going on. That being said, I also like that the political intrigue doesn't take over the story but works in harmony with the other problems. This is a nice change from novels where you learn about the last ten generations of the family and know how they will act (nobly usually) based on this information. What a snore.

Finally, I also like this book due to the love triangle which has been building since Mycheal hit the scene and Tam kissed Raine into not forgetting him. Raine finally makes a decision in this book. I--for one--was rather surprised by her choice. I was mildly disappointed that some information revealed about her choice seems to be due to the need to make sure we all know this relationship is the only choice and will totally work out. The information came out of nowhere (no foreshadowing) and seemed a stretch to me. Then to justify it by saying that as a Benares Raine would have known about this secret group? Really? However, I still appreciated that a choice was needed and the repercussions of said choice were reasonable based on the history of the relationships. How's that for vague and not a spoiler. . . .

Anyway, I really enjoyed Bewitched & Betrayed. In fact, I've liked the entire series although I wasn't completely sold after the first book, Magic Lost, Trouble Found. I will also admit that this is not serious fantasy or a series requiring you to think too much about it. It is pure, fluffy enjoyment. If that's not for you, take a pass on this one. However, for a good time, call 1-800-Raine-Benares. And yes, I am definitely looking forward to the next book.

Another Saturday Night

Good friends, beer and a bite.

Bus ride.

Timbers game.

Beer and a band

Crawdads and Memories

I brought this guy and some of his kin home from Fitts Seafood the other day. My kids had a blast.

I bought them because I remember catching crawdads and eating them when I was a kid.

I also remember catching minnows from the rocky banks of the Willamette River in Keizer, I remember digging for treasure in the backyard, playing Wiffle ball in the empty lot next door, having dirt clod fights, climbing trees and eating young apples and feeling ill. I remember standing on a plywood sheet held up only by the blackberry bushes beneath it over the side of a hill, picking and eating until my fingertips were black. I remember the road trip I took with my grandparents and brother through the Redwoods, by the Great Salt Lake and to the red desert. I remember my pony. I remember having fun.

Memories.

Wheat

I like my wheat with a touch of citrus. Refreshing.

Geek Alphabet

I just had to, had to, had to pass this along....
From those brilliant geeks who are sexy at Geeks are Sexy

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All images used for our geeky ABCs are from Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons licenses that allow for remixing. And they’re “share alike,” which means that you’re welcome to use our geeky alphabet – as long as you credit us and link back to this post!

A is for Away Team, where you should never wear red (mild mannered photographer)
B is for Binary, 1s and 0s in your head (jpstanley)
C is for Cosplay, making cons an awesome place
D is for Doctor, who keeps changing face (great beyond)
E is for Emoticons, that tell you what we’re feeling (neal gillis)
F is for Flickr, whose photos we are “stealing” (tricky)
G is for Gadgets, the way to our heart (slipstreamjc)
H is for Hardware, I took it apart! (jurvetson)
I is for iEverything, love it or hate it (dan dickinson)
J is for Japan, we’re glad Nintendo invaded (oscar mota)
K is for Keyboard, we love every letter (andrew*)
L is for Leias, the more the better! (koadmunkee)
M is for MMORPGs, it’s a magical place (i eated a cookie)
N is for NASA, and the beauty of space (nasa1fan)
O is for Occipital Lobe, we love using our brains (illuminaut)
P is for Programming, ((though lisp is a pain)) (phil_jackson)
Q is for Quilting, and other geeky crafts (athenamat)
R is for Reading, no matter what the path (timonoko)
S is for Science, though the cake is a lie (don solo)
T is for Tabletop, and a 20-sided die (nengard)
U is for Uncertainty, you just never know (neil crosby)
V is for Voltage, oh the places we’ll go! (oskay)
W is for the World Wide Web, it’s more than just porn (shimown)
X is for Xerox, where so much geekiness was born (marc smith)
Y is for Youth, since kids are geeks too (benmcleod)
Z is for Zork, watch out for the grue! (the_tml)

rant, rant, rant

I am officially annoyed with my laptop. We've had a few differences of opinion over the last month or two.

It still works quite well for work (except when the "shift" button sticks) and for general internet perusal.

My main rant involves the transfer of photos to the laptop. I can't seem to upload them. Pfftttt.

Thus my spattering of recent blog entries

I can only do so much with my iPhone.

Grrrrr.

I have fantasies about iMac.

Green

My backyard.