Oh, allergies...

[leene_chan]

Today's a little cooler than yesterday, even though I heard it was going to be warmer. I'm going to have to do some yard work--I'm having a hard time shooting pictures around the weeds! I know it seems like I'm just a lazy ass, but I'm living in a small split-level ranch house on almost an acre of land. I love having a yard like a small park, but sometimes I really envy people with tiny, manageable lots that they can plan meticulously and create romantic, themed gardens. We just have to find plants that grow wild and let them take over. Also, our yard has so many nooks and crannies that we always have a resident groundhog. ;_;

So, I watched almost all of What's the Matter With Helen? last night. For a horror movie, it's only slightly scary, with only enough gore to qualify it for a PG-13 rating. Still, it gave me a nightmare last night. I suppose it's the better movie in the double-feature, but it lacks the god-awful hilarity of Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?. Still, five dollars for two movies is pretty good!

I've been re-reading Jane Yolen's Sister Light, Sister Dark this weekend. I like the book a little less with the second reading. I'm always ambivalent about books centering on a strong political theme (this one, like many of Yolen's books, being feminism). Regardless of whether or not I agree with the author's views, I find that books written specifically to push an ideal usually sacrifice character development. As I read, I keep thinking, well, if you're sure you have all the answers and you just want to share them, what's the point of writing this as a novel? I guess every writer has their reason for writing. Jane Yolen is a feminist scholar and folklorist--almost all her books are either about exploring set traditions and putting a feminist spin on common tales. I know there's nothing wrong with that, but as a reader and writer more interested in the workings of the human psyche and how people relate to each other, I find her writing to be kind of dry...

I tried a pastry from a French-Austrian bakery in New Haven called Marjolaine; it was a free-form berry tart with a surprising amount of vanilla custard filling. It was probably the best thing I've ever eaten in my life. I am very picky. I think I should give up on dessert-making and leave it to the professionals!