Monday Misc

I have a ways to go before becoming decent at NYT's crossword puzzles. Even with cheating by using the Internet to look up various clues, e.g. Turkey's highest peak (Ararat), I still couldn't finish the Sunday puzzle. However, I figure it's like anything else where practice makes perfect. I entered all my work into the computer version of the puzzle (I did it on paper yesterday) and used the solution to help fill in the remaining blank answers. Hopefully I'll use that type of help (Internet and then the computer solution) less and less as the weeks go on.

We went to see Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest last night. I was very disappointed. There were some amusing parts, but overall it was dull. It reminded D and I a bit of the Lord of the Rings trilogy where the story just isn't there and it's all a bunch of special effects; we don't get those kinds of movies. I loved the first Pirates and absolutely hated all of the LOTR movies. I think I'll probably skip the third Pirates when it's released.

Now it's time to think of something for dinners this week. I do not enjoy this process. My recipe DB is mostly useful in winter months, I think. I need some summer dinners. Lighter, quicker, easier to make. My dad sent me a vegan cookbook, so perhaps I'll pull a recipe or two out of that to try. OK, I think I'll try the following two:

1. Millet and Spinach Polenta with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
   
2. Grilled Italian Tofu with steamed vegetables
   

My dad also sent me a book called This Book Will Change Your Life. It's an interesting concept, but clearly designed as a gimmick rather than something to truly be executed each day. Basically it gives you little and odd things to do each day to change your life. Examples of activities that are not doable:

1. Day 176 says to put up a lost dog ad and see whether one turns up. What happens when one does? You'll just have to take the dog the Humane Society if you don't want a new pet. And who wants to post their phone number all over the place unless absolutely necessary? And then you have to go remove the signs after a while, or live with the fact that you just littered signs all over the place ... and the litter has your phone number on it.
   
2. Day 137 says to eat 100 oz of cheese to find out of cheese really does give you nightmares. That's 9400 calories and 780 g of fat, give or take. I think this task is best left to the MythBusters.
3. Day 323 says to take a cold shower. Are they nuts? Why would one voluntarily take a cold shower. D and I were watching Fear Factor the other night and one partner had to dig through some ice, the other had to be covered with spiders and other creepy crawlies that would bite. I would choose the creepy crawly's over digging through the ice.

Anyway, I think it's a clever idea, but flawed in its execution. I would think a good idea would be a blogging book: 365 days of blog posts that won't bore your friends and family. When I think of one, I'll let you know. In the meantime, wake up! This post is finally over. Roll credits.