Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Read it, toss it, eat it, record it . . .

Read it: I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crosley
The title itself is enough to make you want to buy and love this book, and the title is just, pardon the pun, the icing on the cake. Crosley's wit is sharp, and this collection of personal essays hits the spot. I think part of me did not want to like it because looking at her picture on the back cover, she looks about 26 and already has this smoking career as a published writer. I think I expected to read the ramblings of a young, sarcastic hipster who sometimes tries too hard. But no, I read the genuinely humorous, well-written, honest, thoughtful, and engaging work of a smart woman with whom I would totally want to hang out (though I would try to be on my best behavior as she does not hesitate to skewer those friends and acquaintances who deserve it). The essays include--just to whet your appetite--an account of a crazy boss, a bridesmaid gig for a high school "friend," and an investigation into who might have pooped on her bathroom rug . . . start reading.

Toss it: Organic Quinoa
Although I cannot consistently spell or pronounce quinoa (keen-wah) correctly, I have been intrigued with these little grains for a while now. Tonight, I made a batch in my rice cooker as the side of the Trader Joe's package indicated I could do. It looked to be cooked perfectly, but glancing on the box, I realized I had neglected to "Always rinse and drain thoroughly in cold water before cooking." What the hell I would drain it in without losing it all is a mystery (no, of course I don't have a sieve). Anyway, with being pregnant and all, I didn't want to risk harming myself and the child by eating dirty quinoa. I also did not want the hubby to close his mind to quinoa forever after eating one (potentially) bad batch.

Eat it: Trader Joe's Multigrain Pilaf
I purchased this plastic package at TJ's a few weeks back, drawn in by the promise on the front that it is microwavable and ready in 2 minutes. The description promises "A new twist on a classic American dish, with whole grains, soybeans, tomatoes, onions and flavorful herbs and spices." I popped the sucker in the microwave to replace the dirty quinoa, and I was delighted with the results. Great texture, great flavor, and ridiculously easy to prepare. Also, very filling -- 4g fiber per serving and 9g protein. I can't wait to get back to TJ's to get more and to see if there are any other microwavable grains befriending the pilaf on the shelf.

Record it: Well, you tell me . . .
Due to a power outage on Thursday evening, my DVR did not capture all of Bravo's A-List Awards (that, or the hubby messed with my timers and isn't fessing up). I only discovered the mishap yesterday and was sorely disappointed. Sadly, Bravo is apparently not replaying these awards again and again as they do with all other programming. Ah well. I don't have too many television commitments for the summer, and with Bub 2.0 coming, I won't have much free time in the evenings, but I do want to have some good stuff saved up for the rare occasions when I will be nursing the baby, sans Bubby and thus sans the accompaniment of Caillou or Super Why. To try to fill the void left by Top Chef (Hooray for Stephanie, by the way, and Richard, I still love you too), I am recording The Next Food Network Star. I am also all set with the new season of Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List. On a whim this evening, I set a new timer for Tori and Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood, but I feel ashamed and may delete it. For the record, I never watched Tori and Dean: Inn Love.


Comment challenge: Give me your own read it, toss it, eat it, record it list!

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have nothing to offer to read or record but I would really like someone to come and "toss" the 4 foot snake that has taken up residence on my deck. Everyone in the house makes fun of me and my "overreaction" yet no one has gone outside to toss it. That's all I got. m

Actchy said...

I was all ready to reply to this when I read m's account above. Holy shit. Having small nervous breakdown at the idea of a four foot snake on anybody's deck and need to recover for a second or two before moving on.

Anonymous said...

Here goes:

Read It: I'm more of a taker than a giver in the world of book recommendations. I sure do enjoy my People magazine though.

Toss It: Happy Meal Toys. I had an impulse to purge all the toy bins of those junky things this morning.

Eat It: Papa Johns. Yum. Just had some leftover pizza for lunch...warmed it up in the toaster oven and it was just as delightful as it was last night.

Record It: I find myself in the same predicament as you. Nothing good on these days. As I sat home alone last night with nothing to watch I also taped Tori & Dean in a moment of desperation. Not sure if I will follow through and watch. I've taken to recording movies I see on TV...last week it was Bounce and The Notebook so that made for a nice viewing change of pace.

Actchy said...

Okay. I think I've recovered from that snake story. So, here's what I have:

Read it: I'm in a book slump, but I will say that one of my favorites for summer reading continues to be Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns. Delightful.

Toss it: Um, the small Tupperware of leftover tomato paste that I had in my fridge that grew an empire of green and blue and white fuzz.

Eat it: The (organic) chocolate ice cream in my freezer that I *made* last weekend. NTB.

Record it: Hm. I'm not a big TV person, but we did go to see War, Inc. a few weekends ago in the theater and it was really pretty good indeed. Joan Cusack is hilarious in it. Of course, you really shouldn't record it, as this would be a violation of federal law.

Anonymous said...

read it: since i recently said i only obsess over male authors, i feel i should offer something penned by a female, just to prove i am not sexist. barbara kingsolver. huge fan. "the poisonwood bible" being my favorite, and also "the bean trees"

toss it: hand soap containers that i keep adding water to because i feel i am wasting if i don't get every last ounce of soap out of there. and so i am washing my hands with just water and some more water, and then rinsing with water. time to toss them.

eat it: caesar chicken pasta salad. i even have a link for you: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=222335
except i did not use a fat or even light form of the salad dressing. maybe that's why it's so delicious.

record it: i can't believe i'm going to admit this, but i can't help myself. somehow "the bachelorette" has sucked me in. i freaked out when my dvr erased an episode to record one million hours of golf for my husband. don't worry, i caught up on-line. and please don't tell anyone about this.

Anonymous said...

Read it: Life of Pi, just finished it yesterday! Great book.

Toss it: Possibly spoiled apple butter

Eat it: Swiss Chard sauteed with garlic and red pepper flakes.

Record it: Concerts on HDNet

Yay for Stephanie is right! Woo hoo, go women chefs!

I thought I was the only person who watched "My Life on the D List!" She cracks me up...of course, she sometimes makes me cringe.

CaraBee said...

Read it: The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monkton Kidd - I just finished it and really enjoyed it.

Toss it: All of the size 6's (okay, and 8's) in my closet. I'm not fitting into them any time soon and if I do, change that, WHEN I do, I deserve some new clothes!

Eat it: (not at all related to the last one, ha) Betty Crocker Warm Delights - Molten Caramel Cake is da bomb. Full of just about everything bad, but really quick and tasty.

Record it: The Closer. Kyra Sedgwick has a weird lip/teeth thing going on, but I still love the show.

mep said...

Wow, I love all the lists you guys generated. Perhaps I can start making "four-verb directives" a regular feature at NTB . . . for me, it was an easy way to mention four unrelated but still pressing topics in one post!

To follow up, I watched Tori and Dean last night and it wasn't bad. I don't know if I trust Dean though, and you know that Donna Martin can be naive. I guess I'll have to watch the next episode so I know whether or not I need to intervene for my fellow Class of '93 pal "Donna Martin Graduate!"

E... said...

My own list up at the Small World...
http://smallafterall.blogspot.com/2008/06/read-toss-eat-record-challenge.html

 
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