the 30 day meme: day 4

Day 04: Your Favourite Book

there are several books i go back to over and over again.

emma by jane austen, for the character foibles and period gossip.

alias grace by margaret atwood, for the quiet might-be-supernatural epic story.

the little prince by antoine de saint-exupery, like my own personal bible.

harry potter series (especially prisoner of azkaban) by j. k. rowling, duh.

the little house series (especially the long winter) by laura ingalls wilder; probably the most re-reads to date, since i loved them from childhood.

world war z by max brooks. movies about zombies are one thing. but realistic books about zombies are the most horrifying things ever.

memoirs of a geisha by arthur golden, because of the attention to detail. he is able to resurect a dead era and make you feel like you're there.

but for favorite, i'm going with the last unicorn by peter s. beagle. it has the fantasy element, and that pulls me in. the characters are all very self-aware of their role in a "story." they're funny or idiotic or terrifying or full of dreams and that keeps me coming back. but what i love most is the amazing amount of longing and sadness in it...it's so beautiful. it's an ache you obsess over. a hurt you hold dear. its an old sorrow that makes you human and mortal, and prone to that exquisite, in-the-moment awe and joy that only comes when you know it can't last forever.

( the list )

i was in madison for laura's birfday weekend.

you totally missed out. activities included:

--pissing off polo with as many hugs and pets as possible.

--sleeping and napping lots, and thereby being a boring guest.

--some really bad movie from the '30s that was supposed to be scary but was something not scary. and the sound was so bad that i kept wondering why they were looking for an escapee from the planetarium. (i learned later that it was a sanitarium. i like my version better.)

--COMPLETE SERIES OF STAR TREK: NEXT GENERATION!!!! courtesy of beau, because he's awesome and because laura is awesome for suggesting they get it for me, and because i'm awesome and deserve it. so you know. if you can't find me for the next few months...

--the zoo. OMG RED PANDA WAS AWAKE THIS TIME FOR REALZ! and he was all climbing up branches and staring us right in the FACE! i want one so hard. and we got to see a giraffe pooping and rub faces with the tiger (seperated by less than 1" of glass, of course) and the flamingoes danced for us. i enjoyed watching the iguana eat worms.

--held a bunny. yes i did.

--rode a greyhound. the bus kind. 6 hours. laurie and i had the tiny seats. don't let anyone tell you different: greyhound busses do not bolt their seats down with equal leg room. we know. we tested that shit out. and we had the tiny seats. also, i'm 99% sure that greyhound has a contract with mcdonalds.

--muramoto. here's a link to their menu:
http://www.muramoto.biz/

i had the sugar-roasted beet salad with truffled tofu and yuzu crisp, the rainbow roll, and the vegetable from brad's plate which was a gorgeous au grautin celery root delicousness. i also got to try laura's deep fried tofu with spicy coconut sauce. gorgeous.

and then we ordered 2 chef's choice desert samplers! there are four deserts per plate, but only 5 deserts on the menu that night. imagine our glee when we found out that they made extra deserts for us! list!

--strawberry spring roll with honey ginger ice cream and edible flowers
--honey ginger ice cream with some sweet sauce(on its own)
--black sesame ice cream
--chestnut tartlet with cranberry compote (laura's favorite)
--coconut rice pudding with stewed prunes and chai puff straws
--apple ginger torte (my favorite)
--roasted pear in spiced honey syrup
--indian spiced chocolate fondant on top of a pistacio rasin cakey thing, hints of bacon.

amazing. best madison weekend ever.