Mabel's VeganEats

My cafe expanded so I had to redecorate. (Fernando says if I say "I had to..." it means I'm a gamer now. I can accept that. I'm a decorating gamer. That's the only thing I like doing.)

Here's one side of the cafe. You can only seat one person per table, which is why the setup always looks weird.


Here's the other side. Don't you like my special corner with the underwater wallpaper, book shelf, sleeping puppy and table for one?

night friend!

There's a jolly little skunk who runs around our apartments, and we almost had a run in tonight! I was coming across the left side lawn, he was coming across the right side lawn. We saw each other. We both STOPPED. We regarded each other warily. I took one slooow step towards the front door (not in his direction) and that was his single to turn and run away.

So I didn't get skunked, and he didn't get [fill in the blank, whatever it is skunks fear from people not in cars.]

vomitahj

I became disenchanted with Mel Gibson when all his weird X-treme Catholicism beliefs came out around the time of The Passion. And when he was arrested and spouted his anti-Semitic and sexist remarks, I was Out. And now that we've heard more evidence of his ugly personality... bleh. Bird on a Wire is on TV and... bleh.

I apply a certain amount of disassociation between an artist and their work, but there gets to a point where the artist's life becomes Unignorable. Mel! You're just GROSS!!!

c'est tout

Finished re-reading Frederica. So good, and often cited as a favourite by Heyer fans. Also read a lot of Aurélie today--will probably finish it tomorrow.

Bought some more music, just singles mostly.

Right now the balcony door is open and it actually feels coolish.

That was my day.

Awards, immortality, or a cult following? Hmmmm...

Friend Maewitch sent me a fun internet thingy. You put in a sample of your writing, and it tells you which writer your style is like.

http://iwl.me/

She put in a few samples and came out as Stephen King, JK Rowling, and a "dash of Dan Brown." Which means she's going to be rich!

I put in my personal blog, the edited version of a story I wrote for Nanowrimo in 2002, the novel I finished-finished this past year, and the unedited first draft of Henry V written for Nanowrimo in 2009.

The blog + unedited Henry V = David Foster Wallace = when I don't edit, I'm bound for awards! critical acclaim!

The finished-finished romance novel = Margaret Mitchell = immortality! Or maybe I'm just racist.

The somewhat edited romance story from 2002 = HP Lovecraft = cult following but fame only after death.

To test The Machine I put in some HP Lovecraft text, and the answer did at least come out right. And I know The Machine has Wodehouse in there, cause I entered some Wodehouse text and it came out right. However, I begin to suspect it since Georgette Heyer came out once as Shakespeare, twice as Charles Dickens.

Anyway, now I know what I need to do--just keep rewriting my works, and plugging them into this thing, until they come out as Wodehouse. I suspect if I remove all contractions from my writing, I'll achieve the status of Dickens. Or Shakespeare.

50 Questions

What's the habit you're proudest of breaking?

Have I ever? There was a time in high school when I started churchifying and wanted to stop swearing. I swore like Eddie Murphy, so this was a big accomplishment. My school friends went along with me--we used the word banana instead. It amoozed us.

new music & videos

My recent-ish purchases...

An album by a Parisian band I'd never heard of, Caravan Palace. It's 1920s X techno. 1920s steampunk.



The new Big Boi album. But I'm still getting into it, so not much to say, except I like this song.



A Nigerian-French singer named Féfé:


He sang the French version of "Wavin' Flag."


I downloaded another single from Hawsley Workman's Meat.


My best discovery of the week, though, was Greek-Welsh singer Marina and the Diamonds. "She has cited a wide-range of influences such as Daniel Johnston, Blondie, The Distillers, Patti Smith, Tom Waits, Nirvana, Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, Yann Tiersen, Elliott Smith, Dolly Parton and Madonna.[7][8]" (wiki) Well! Can't complain about her influences!




In video news...

Justin Bieber & Usher's latest single is cute-ish, but the video is worth watching cause it's full of old America's Best Dance Crewers! I love watching dance crews. Sometimes I wish artists would get out of the videos and let me just watch a great dance routine.

Especially in this case cause their hot dancing just shows how forced Bieber's is. Stop dancing you little goof! And pronounce your TH's. You're from the nabe, not the hood.




There's a new boy band in town (from the UK.) They're boring, don't watch this.


And finally, leave it to the Canadian Tenors to produce The Only Version of "Hallelujah" That Totally Sucks. "Hallelujah" is one of those songs I thought you couldn't ruin. You could give a mediocre performance, but the song itself would carry a certain weight. It's even survived Idol treatment. It's even survived Il Divo!! Whoever produced this, they managed to turn a masterpiece into a completely bland and passionless piece of blargh. And the real shame is that it's Canadians ruining a Canadian song. Get out of there McLachlan! Save yourself!!