Who makes the best Not Socks? at Ugly Green Chair.

What good movies have you rented lately? at Sundry Mourning.

The 2006 Good Gift Games. By Matthew Baldwin for The Morning News.

link dump - too hot to organize properly.


at Ask Metafilter:
- four leaf clovers everywhere
- reducing sewing machine noise for downstairs neighbors
- why do authors cross their names out when they sign books? (I recently asked Dustin Long this question as he was in the process of doing that. He said he saw another author doing it, when he asked that other author said he did it because he saw someone else doing it.)
- the search for a good bag
- what kind of notebook (computer) should I buy?
- on townie bikes, I've been contemplating buying a casual bike
- nintendo ds games
- If a digital camera says it can handle USB 2.0, does that mean it won't work in a USB 1.0 port?
- preventing chub rub
- seeking a potluck dish that is horrifying but tasty


elsewhere:
- I had no idea this park in Seattle existed
- Things to do in Portland, from people who live there at Posie
- recipe for Bul via Modern Cottage
- baked french toast
- how to make Marimekko wall hangings
- light and crispy waffles at Baking Sheet
- I want this: AeroPress coffee maker
- how to add a graphic to your blogfeed on blogines at Inspirecompany.
- Ikeahack - acoustic absorption panels
- solar LED address numbers
- armadillo game to check out

Last week I drove out to Mercer Island to obtain a King County Library Card for the sole purpose of borrowing Solarbabies, available only on VHS. I previously tracked it down at Scarecrow video, but borrowing it required a hundred-some dollar deposit and I wasn't willing to bet my VCRs health against it. The movie was awesomly bad-good. I firmly remembered all the roller-bits as people on inline skates, but there were all using the traditional type, with bit orange rubber stoppers and everything. Does this movie predate inline? Bonus: we discovered that our VCR still works, gosh do you remember fiddling with the tracking? And rewinding?! It was so time-warpy, I should have bought Funions and caffeine-free Diet Pepsi to go with the evening's theme.

I'm thinking about games right now for two reasons: One, we went to the Game On exhibit at the Pacific Science Center last weekend when we found ourselves between walls to paint. Two, I'm sipping a lemon tea which I will always associate with Shadow of the Colossus (awesome game). When we moved into our last rental house, a very temporary situation, we found it was mightily cold in January so we took to obsessively playing Colossus and sipping hot herbal tea before bed (we'd trade off). This was before we had Tivo and cable. Anyhow, it was this same lemon tea and now I'm having a strong scent-memory thing happening.

The Game On exhibit was pretty cool, there were lots of people our age wandering around suddenly remembering old games and gawking at the ancient consoles. Everything was set up for you to play, it was like being in the version of heaven someone arcade obsessed would dream up. I played a game for the sight impaired that was done using four arrow keys and audio cues, it was surprisingly spooky. I also got to play Nintendogs and Brain Age, and I'm seriously considering buying the DS Lite when it comes out.

The exhibit had the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy text adventure game, but we couldn't find a Zork anywhere. Also, no Klax, Joust or Burger Time. (Though, if you are jonesing for some Burger Time the Zesto's burger place in Ballard has one.)

I'm finally getting to play the recently (and long awaited) Dreamfall. I bought The Longest Journey a few years ago on a "it's only $9.99" whim and loved it. (How much? I read the website of it's creator, Ragnar Tornquist, I am fangirl.) Dreamfall came out the same week we were in escrow so I'm just now settling enough to play it.

I also recently found cheap versions of old Monkey Island games. Too bad it's not winter, I have a lot of sitting inside to do.

The cover of The Stranger (Seattle's cooler-than-yours free weekly) this week is a photo of little tree sweater made by Erika. It's so exciting.

Also Seattle related -- I have recently become interested in tracking down a VHS tape (not on DVD yet) of Solarbabies to watch. This is likely a result of my lingering fear of post-apocalyptic societies, love of bad movies I can barely remember and Scott has never seen, and the Rat City Roller Girls. We found a copy at the mecca, Scarecrow Video, but it takes a three-figure deposit to borrow. This means it is rare, and makes me want it all that much more. (We didn't rent it though, our VCR is unreliable and we didn't feel like risk takers at that moment.)

Page I'm finding very helpful - So you got a PVR for Christmas... at PVRblog. After a little struggle our Tivo is hooked up and I'll learn to use it right after I figure out some issues we're having with volume and buzzing.

The birthday party cupcake making has begun. Last night I made the pastillage (from the recipe half way down on this page, I think it's from The Cake Bible). I made two batches, divided each into half and quickly wrapped them tightly in plastic wrap, put them in tupperware and now they are in the fridge, waiting. I used up the rest of my bottle of food coloring (AmeriColor Super Red). The palms of my hands are stained carnage-pink. I'll roll it and cut it the night before the event.

On Friday night I went shopping for ingredients and managed to get a stack of nifty clear cupcake containers for free from the baking department. (Like the ones down on this page which I was too late to purchase.) It helped that I asked if I could purchase them, and that my cart was full bags of sugar and flour and ten pounds of butter. It probably also helped that it was 10 p.m.* so I wasn't holding up any customers, and everybody from the actual bakery department was long gone.

* I didn't mean to spend my Friday night shopping, but there was this whole finding pizza fiasco and by the time we got to the grocery store it was late late.


The latest game I've become addicted to is Professor Fizzwizzle, I like it so much I purchased the full game. Thank you, me.

Otherwise I've been watching Jamie Oliver on DVD, and reading Alton Brown books and experimenting with pizza dough - should I just dump a bunch of ingredients on the counter, knead it and stick it directly in the oven? Or should I carefully weight each ingredient and allow it to rise at least twice, once preferrably overnight, before shaping and resting before baking? I'm obviously still working on what type of a cook I might be.