What's on my Bookshelf and in my DVR

You probably don't care what books and tv shows I like.  That's okay :)  This entry is for me--not you.  While I certainly hope you enjoy it to be completely honest with you I'm writing it because I never go a day without writing and if I don't write it then I won't have written anything today. Yeah, I know. It's kind of a cop out blog topic.  It won't require much writing on my part, but maybe you'll see something you might find interesting.

Books I LOVE:

1. Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.  It's dark and gritty with an underground world of fantastical things.  I think even people who say they hate to read will love this book.

2. Thomas Cahill's Mysteries of the Middle Ages. If you never read it and you only look at the pictures I think you will have gotten your money's worth.  I recommend reading it though--it's wonderful.

3. J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series.  Sure--you're seen the movies.  The books are better.  They really are.

4. The Sister Fidelma Mysteries by Peter Tremayne.  Peter Tremayne is the pseudonym for famed historian Peter Berresford Ellis.  He actually wrote the first book to show how Ireland's Brehon laws worked. He made his main character a female to further illustrate how these laws could have allowed women to play pivotal roles in the judicial system.  Set in 7th century Ireland, this is one of my absolute favorite series. I offer this longer description as I am fairly certain most of you are unfamiliar with this series.

5. The Temperence Brennan Series by Kathy Reichs.  I love dark, gory crime novels.  If you don't mind graphic descriptions of bodies in various stages of decomp then you'll love this series.

TV Shows I Love:

1. Chuck.  If you haven't seen it, this show is about a normal guy who accidentally becomes a spy.  It's like James Bond, but way funnier.  You've got to watch this.

2. Being Human (The Syfy version):  Yep. It's brand new on Syfy.  There is also a British version which I can't comment on as I've never seen it.  So far I absolutely love this show.  What's not to love?  It has a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost--and they're roommates. Awesome.

3. Grey's Anatomy.  I love this show.  You can hate it if you want to, but I'll watch it 'till the bitter end.  

4. Bones. I read all the books so I just have to watch the tv show.  Plus it has a really hot cast. You should watch it.

5. White Collar.  An ex-con forger extraordinaire goes to work for the FBI. It's funny. It's action packed. It has that chick from Saved By the Bell in it.  It's fabulous.

So what books and tv shows are your favorites?

Ice is Bad (But Snow is Good)

If you've read my bio (What?! You haven't read my bio? *gasp* Well you should) then you know that I live somewhere in the sweet, sultry south.  Let me tell you something about living in the south:  it does NOT snow here.

Okay, so it does.  On occasion. RARELY. It snows here.  We might get one short lived flurry every winter.  We hardly ever get any substantial amount of snow here.  It might snow a few inches once every 10 years or so (yes, really).

As a result I love snow and I'm terrified of driving in it.  So I simply do what pretty much everyone else around here does and I don't leave my house until the snow melts.  It snowed at the beginning of this month.  It snowed  A LOT.

That's my dog.  He loves snow too.  He roots around in it with his face (thus the snow all over his big head).

I love snow.  It's fabulous.  You know what I don't love?  ICE. Stupid, stupid ice!

In the middle of the night, following this beautiful and rare snowfall, it began to sleet. By morning the entire world was encased in ice.  It was beautiful, shimmering stuff.  The soft, fluffy snow was now trapped beneath a thick layer of frosted glass.

After three days of being stuck inside I brilliantly decided that my driveway looked clear enough to walk down.  I could take the dog on a walk!  YAY! 

Not yay. My driveway was covered in a sheet of black ice.  I went down--HARD.  The dog went down too.  I decided since we were already down the hill that is my driveway, we should continue our walk.  Bad idea.  The sidewalks were covered in ice.  It was like skating.  I finally gave up and returned home.

Except I couldn't get back up the hill.  I fell down three more times.  The last time I heard something cur-runch.  It was really a sickening sound.  I yelled out in pain.  My dog whimpered.  I think he knew I had hurt myself.

My hand was on fire.  And it was swelling.  I quickly yanked my glove off and shoved it in my pocket.  I tried to get back up the hill.  I fell again.  My hand was huge and turning purple.

I decided it was time to give up whatever pride or dignity I had walked out my door with.  Clearly I was going to be forced to crawl up my own driveway on all fours.  I had no choice.  I couldn't gain purchase.  I kept slipping.  So did the poor dog.

So the dog and I made our way (both crawling) up the hill next to the driveway and into the house.  I realized I could not get my car out of the driveway (too much ice).  I also realized that my hand was twice the size it should be.  I've broken bones before.  I just knew I'd broken something.

Sure enough, several hours and a trip to the ER later, my hand was in a brace and it was confirmed that I had broken two metacarpals and re-fractured a several years healed break in my wrist.  How did I get the break in my wrist the first time?  I am so glad you asked!  There was an ice storm in 2002 and I fell down on the way to a college final. Snap. Crack. Broken wrist. Lovely.

That ladies and gentlemen is why I hate ice. 

What did you say?  How am I typing this?  One-handed.  Boo yeah!  Because that's how I roll.