I’m almost finished reading the new oral biography of Warren Zevon, called I’LL SLEEP WHEN I’M DEAD. It’s a pretty entertaining, if not particularly insightful book. The thing that most impresses me, like other artistic biographies I’ve read, is how much quality work he was able to produce despite a crippling number of psychological problems, such as alcoholism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, sexual addiction, etc. It really is amazing he got anything done. I will honestly say not a month goes by that I don’t think about him or listen to one of his songs. In the spirit of WZ and his quoting of Ross MacDonald, I’ll end with one of my favorite WZ lyrics:

And if California slides into the ocean
Like the mystics and statistics say it will
I predict this motel will be standing
Until I pay my bill

Dinner was late for me because we were at the community pool and it was too hot to be hungry. When we got home and the kids settled down I scarfed down:

(1) Re-heated Ribs: I’ve gotten very good at making ribs through a few years of reading about and testing BBQ recipes and technqies. Unfortunately, these babies were not my finest hour, due to the fact that they were not at room temperature when they started cooking, we had cooked them in the oven at 325 wrapped in tinfoil rather than on the grill for an hour THEN finished in the stove, and The Wife had prepared them so of course they were not spicy enough for my taste (and yes, I make my own spice run). But they were tasty enough when you’re hungry, and with a little Chicken Shack BBQ sauce (because i haven’t had time to make any homemade sauce lately).

(2) Re-heated Spaetzle: This is a german noodle dish with tiny slivers of noodles that you boil and mix with butter and freshly grated Parmesan. This was a real pain to make last night because I was in a hurry and I put the water to boil on the wrong burner on the new stove, so it took like 30 minutes to reach a lame boil because I’d had it on the 1 BTU burner rather than the one gazillion BTU main burner. But the kids like it, and you can’t go wrong with noodles, butter, cheese, and cool name like Spaetzle!

(3) One half of a fresh papaya from Costco

I ended up staying up pretty late reading the Warren Zevon bio, so I had an evening snack of my favorite treat in the world–spoon size shredded what with fresh banna slices, milk, a touch (well, maybe more than a touch) of cream, and a spoonfull of sugar. If there was a Heaven, thsi is what they’d serve every morning for breakfast.

So what did YOU have for dinner?

Maddy marched with the Brownies in the Memorial Day parade. That was fun. The fire trucks made noise, which Cooper liked, we waved at the school board, the marching band was good. Who would have thought that a person with so little school spirit would love Americana so much?

The short answer is: No, we’re not done yet.

However, that being said, we should note:
–The sink and oven work
–We have cabinets holding dishes
–The dishwasher is washing dishes
–The wine caddy has wine bottles in it
–We are closer to the end than to the beginning

It should also be noted that, in the Ikea video that demonstrates how easy everything is to install, those cute children and the dog that come into the empty room with Mom and Dad at the beginning? They are nowhere to be seen for the rest of the video. Nor is there any indication of the parents being President of the Swedish PTA, or in charge of the Swedish High School Science Department. That’s all I’m sayin’….

You can see even more details here.

I know I am not atrue American because a) I have never watched FRIENDS, b) I have no interest in Nascar, and c) I have never read a Stephen King book. Until now!

For reasons shrouded in mystery, I picked up the book-on-iPod edition of Stephen King’s most recent book, CELL, which I’ve been listening to in my car on the way to work. And you know what? This sh*t is scary! At 3:03 PM on a day in October, everyone using their cellphone receives a signal that turns them into homicidal maniacs, trying to destroy everything in their path–with their hands, their cars, their teeth. Thousands of people are murdered in hours. Buildings are blown up. Planes crash. The few remaining survivors try to figure out what the hell is going is going on and make their way by foot from Boston to Maine, trying to avoid the phone crazies, as well as the other survivors only try to save themselves.

I think the reason I am enjoying this book so much is a) who doesn’t love the Apocalypse?, and b) it reinforces my natural feeling that, were I faced with calamity like this, or any other natural or unnatural disaster, I would be one of the first to die. “This way!” I would shout, and *BAM*, I’d be blown up/eaten/run over/vaporized. These books are especially nerve-wracking for those of us with children, wondering how you could protect your family. Who doesn’t love staying awake at night worrying about that!?

So next up — gallons of water in the basement and a concealed weapons permit! Meanwhile, check this book out! But don’t tell me how it ends! And for God’s sake–don’t call my cell!

Wrote this post on IKEAFANS, an invaluable resource if you’re installing your own stuff. Got a lot of good responses from people, since I was honest enough to talk about how many stupid mistakes I had made.

Meanwhile, the project goes on — counteryops cut, two counterstops levelled and screwed, spice cabinet complete, huge pan cabinet set. Fixed the stove so it no longer leaks deadly natural gas. (I won’t go into details, it’s all too painful..) Next up: Finishing the wall cabinets and setting up the big-ass pantry next to the fridge. Who knows…in 2008, this should look pretty nice!
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4. Why Do Hindus worship the cow?

Hindus don’t worship cows. We respect, honor and adore the cow. By honoring this gentle animal, who gives more than she takes, we honor all creatures.

From the Hinduism FAQ.