Tuesday Intro: You Deserve Nothing

Gilad

24 years old

You live in one place. The next day you live somewhere else. It isn't complicated. You get on a plane. You get off. People are always talking about their home. Their houses. Their neighborhoods. In movies, it's where they came from, where they grew up. The movies are full of that stuff. The street. The block. The diner. Italian movies. Black movies. Jewish movies. Brooklyn or whatever. 

But I never really got that. The streets were never running through my blood. I never loved a house. So, all that nothing-like-home stuff doesn't really register. The way you can be living in one place and then in a few hours you can be living somewhere else, that's what I think about when I think about home. You wake up, do what you do, eat, go to sleep, wake up, eat, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. The same thing for days, months, years and then, one day, you're no longer there. 

People always say how hard it must be to move from place to place. It isn't.

You Deserve Nothing 
by Alexander Maksik

My iPod is working again, so I was finally able to start another audiobook. You Deserve Nothing is the story of a popular teacher at an International School in Paris who will succumb "to a temptation that will change the course of his life. His fall will render him a criminal in the eyes of some and all too human in the eyes of others." It is told by three narrators, the teacher and two students. Once I began listening, I was hooked within twenty minutes. Now I'm curious to see where the story will go.

Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea posts the opening paragraph (sometime two) of a book she decided to read based on the opening paragraph(s). Feel free to grab the banner and play along.

TSS: Is it Sunday Already?

Good morning. Can it really be Sunday again? Twin B has been on spring break and the week flew by. We spent a lot of time together - shopping, lunch, movies, dog walks (it was in the 60's on Thursday), watching The Big East Basketball Tournament, and yes, even reading. She had two plays assigned over break, while I managed to keep current with Clarissa and read several short stories.

It was a quiet week at Lakeside Musing - no reviews posted and no books completed. It's starting to feel like I haven't finished a book in ages! Clarissa, of course, will take the entire year and The Makioka Sisters is a wonderful book, but a very slow read. I did post about my latest trip to the library and will hopefully tackle those pending reviews this week.

Good news -  my ipod works again! It seems the latest version of iTunes somehow required an extra step to sync, but I'm back in business now and listening to You Deserve Nothing by Alexander Maksik. Thanks for all your suggestions.

My book club met on Friday to discuss State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. I liked it more than most, but will save the details for another post. Up next is A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan, a book I have been avoiding. We'll see how it goes...

Today's plans are still up in the air, but we're hoping to see A Separation at the nearby art cinema. It recently won the oscar for best foreign language film and is only playing for a week, so now is the time! I hope you have a good Sunday... did you remember to turn the clocks ahead?

Fun on Friday

In case you needed another reason to love Jane...

(found on BookRiot's facebook page)

A Trip to the Library

Although I am thoroughly engrossed in The Makioka Sisters and our yearlong group read of Clarissa, that hasn't stopped me from checking a few books out of the local library. For a small town, we're lucky to have such an excellent branch. If what I'm looking for isn't on the shelf, chances are it can be obtained through interlibrary loan. I've also recently become acquainted with Wowbrary, an email service that sends weekly updates on my library's newest acquisitions - books, movies, and music. I can reserve a book before it even hits the shelves!

Here are the books that came home in my library bag this week. Unfortunately, some may be returned unread, but I can always check them out again later.

And Then There Were None 
by Agatha Christie
I'm finally reading my first Agatha Christie novel! March Mystery Madness provided a little extra motivation to get started and, just a few pages in, I have a feeling I'm going to love it.

The Last Brother 
by Nathacha Appanah
Amy said this book could be a companion piece to The Sense of An Ending (one of my 2011 favorites), so I put in an interlibrary loan request. Luckily it's a short novel, just 164 pages, so there's a chance I may get to read it.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers 
by Katherine Boo
This is a nonfiction title I discovered through Wowbrary, and then spied on the New York Times bestseller list last weekend. Subtitled Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, I may only get a chance to skim through this one and decide whether to check it out again later.

The Gathering 
by Anne Enright
I  loved Enright's writing in her most recent novel, The Forgotten Waltz, so decided to check out some earlier work. This won the Mann Booker Prize in 2007, but I'm afraid I won't have time to read it right now.

Brunetti's Cookbook
recipes by Roberta Pianaro and Culinary Stories by Donna Leon
Carol wrote about this last month for Venice in February  and I wanted to take a closer look. I've gotten into the habit of giving cookbooks a 'test run' from the library before adding to my collection. I'm making swordfish with savoury breadcrumbs (pesce spada al pangrattato saporito) for dinner tomorrow.


Have you been to the library this week?

The Sunday Salon: Welcome to March

Good morning and Happy March. Turning the calendar to March is always a relief for me. While it's not really spring, the worst of the winter is usually behind us. Another storm or two could still come our way but, judging from the past few months, I'm not betting on it. March means spring break for the college crowd. My three girls all have different weeks off and I'm looking forward to spending time alone with each of them. Of course, March also means college basketball. The Big East Tournament is coming up this week, and then it's on to the big dance - March Madness!

As for my reading, I seem to have more books in progress than normal. Our yearlong group read of Clarissa has picked up again, I'm slowly making progress on The Makioka Sisters, and also started my first Agatha Christie novel. After just a few pages, I think I'm going to love And Then There Were None. It fits in nicely with Christina's March Mystery Madness, too.

On audio, I finished Trespass by Rose Tremain and immediately started having issues with my iPod. I downloaded You Deserve Nothing by Alexander Maksik, but haven't been able to start listening. Hopefully my daughter can figure out what's wrong, because I really need an audiobook to keep me walking!

Also on the blog this week, I posted an alphabetized February Wrap-Up and shared a chicken pot pie crock pot recipe for Weekend Cooking.

Plans for today include finishing this weekend's Clarissa letters, a long walk, reading more of The Makioka Sisters, and baking a cake to take to dinner. I hope to find something to watch on Netflix Instant this evening... I miss Downton Abbey! How will you spend this first Sunday in March?

Weekend Cooking: Crock Pot Comfort

Weekend Cooking, hosted at Beth Fish Reads, is open to anyone who has a food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up over the weekend.


Comfort food. Those two words immediately bring my mother's mashed potatoes to mind, and then maybe the macaroni and cheese served at a New Haven hospital where I used to work. My husband's first thought is always chicken pot pie, but I rarely (okay, never) make my own. The combination of an intriguing crock pot recipe and a cold, snowy, comfort food kind of day inspired me to try.

Make It Fast, Cook It Slow by Stephanie O'Dea has been my favorite crock pot cookbook for the last year, but I've shied away from preparing anything vaguely pastry-related. Trish's recent experimentation was just the encouragement I needed to give this recipe a try.

CHICKEN POT PIE

The Ingredients:

FILLING

cooking spray
2 uncooked skinless chicken thighs or breast halves, cut in bit-size chunks
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 (10.75 ounce) can cream-of-something soup
2 tablespoons low-fat milk

BISCUIT TOPPING

2 cups biscuit mix
1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar
8 tablespoons melted butter
3/4 cup milk (2% or lower)

The Directions:

Use a 4 quart slow cooker. Spray the stoneware with cooking spray, and add the chicken. Add the vegetables and seasonings. Stir in the soup and add 2 tablespoons of milk to the can; swish around to get last bits of soup and pour into the crock. Stir well.

In a mixing bowl, make the biscuit topping. The dough will be pretty "play-doughy". Spread the dough on top of the chicken and veggie mixture.

(At this point, I began planning an emergency alternate dinner!)

Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours, or on high for 3 to 4 hours. The potpie is done when the biscuit topping is golden brown, and is hard to the touch in the middle. If you find that your slow cooker seals really well and you have a lot of condensation building up, you can prop open the lid with a wooden spoon or chopstick.

I was shocked this dish turned out so well!

A few notes:

• I used fat-free cream of chicken soup
• I misread the recipe and added 1/2 teaspoon instead of 1/2 tablespoon of sugar - it made no difference
• I cooked it on high for 4 hours, lid propped open with a chopstick for the last 2 hours
• I used two boneless chicken breast halves
• I used 1 cup of frozen peas/carrots mixture, plus 1/2 cup of frozen corn

I follow new recipes pretty closely, but the next time (and there will definitely be a next time) I'd add more a little more chicken. I also can't believe this used a whole stick of butter. Any suggestions on how this could be cut down or substituted?

February was...

*image credit

Another month of the "winter that wasn't"
Below average snowfall, maybe the least snow ever?
Complaints? Not from me.
DOWNTON ABBEY!!!
Experiencing severe DWS (Downton Withdrawal Syndrome)
Finally saw The Artist
Group read of Clarissa  going strong
Happy 22nd Birthday to Daughter #1
Ian McEwan's The Comfort of Strangers, an uncomfortable read
Just can't decide about Pinterest...
Kicking around ideas for summer travel
Leap Day
Miss Garnet's Angel  by Salley Vickers
Nothing like spending time with an old friend
The Odds by Stewart O'Nan
Planning for Daughter #1's graduation, then her
Quest for a job begins
Running slowly on the treadmill... or am I just walking fast?
Syracuse University Basketball still ranked #2
Trespass by Rose Tremain
Under the weather - sidelined by a sinus infection
Venice in February
When does the NCAA Tournament begin?
eXcitement for March Madness already in the air
You Know When the Men Are Gone by Siobhan Fallon, an outstanding audiobook!
Zelda's paw is almost as good as new

Welcome March... let the Madness begin!