An Arizona Cheesehead's Thoughts

Social Networking...changing the world. Back in the day (man, that makes me sound old), I suspect a group of us would have headed out to a bar to watch the Gold Medal Olympic hockey game. We would have shared some pitchers of beer, cheered together and consoled each other after the US lost. Some of us would probably have kept an eye on the NASCAR race, too. But, with the advent of high-def, picture in picture, Facebook and Twitter, we can all stay snug in our own abodes while catching every detail of the action and still sharing our excitement and ultimate sadness. Easier on the wallet and the liver, too, as I stayed home and drank Diet Pepsi. I feel sorry for the FB folks who didn't care about the hockey game because pretty much everyone of my friends' Status updates were related to the game. In fact, I got chastised on FB for splitting my time between hockey and the Sprint Cup race because I made a race update. That's how feverish the Olympic intensity was. Despi...

Darkest Fear by Harlan Coben My rating: 4 of 5 stars Myron finds out he has a son who is dying from a rare disease. The only donor match is MIA and the search for the donor leads to the FBI, an incredibly powerful family and a serial killer/kidnapper. Good story with a few twists that I didn't see coming. View all my reviews >>

Dear American Airlines: A Novel by Jonathan Miles My rating: 4 of 5 stars What starts as a refund demand letter from a failed poet stuck in O'Hare turns into several tales of the poet's history (his parents, marriage and career), the ongoing activity in the airport terminal and a translated story of a Polish soldier post-WWII. Very engrossing story that I normally would have finished in one setting but I was sick so had to nap in between reads. View all my reviews >>

One benefit of being home sick is that you can catch up on TV...I knocked off the final three episodes of this season's Men of a Certain Age today. What a great show! I started watching it because I heard good things and they were true. Ray Romano, Andre Braugher and Scott Bakula are all excellent in the main roles as three good buddies trying to get through life. Ray Romano can really act. He's brilliant as Joe, a divorced Dad with a gambling addiction. Watching him stumble through dating and parenting is endearing and believable. Braugher is no surprise in his role. He's very steady as Owen who works under the shadow of his Father at the family car dealership while finding comfort in food (not good for a diabetic). Bakula plays the Peter Pan of the group as Terry, an actor who's never quite made it but still trying to live the lifestyle of years ago by smoking dope and bedding women half his age. Nice supporting cast, too, especially John Manfrellotti as Joe's...

The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Useable Trim, Scraps, and Bones by Anthony Bourdain My rating: 4 of 5 stars I've only caught bits of Bourdain's shows over the years and haven't read Kitchen Confidential but I quite enjoyed these essays none the less. He's kind of a cranky, know it all whom, not so oddly, I can relate to. The last section had some post-writing notes on a few of the stories which were interesting in themselves. View all my reviews >>

Red Hot Lies by Laura Caldwell My rating: 4 of 5 stars Nice read and fun to see the mentions of Chicago places. One of my fave cities to visit. Izzy is a highly paid entertainment lawyer whose main client dies of an apparent heart attack and whose fiancee goes missing with a huge amount of the client's money. Lots of plot twists and reveals as Izzy investigates. I'll definitely check out the next book. View all my reviews >>

I think this person should try to take up 6 spots...4 is just too easy.

Here's what I bought at the grocery store tonight: 3 six packs of Diet Pepsi 3 boxes of Peeps (yellow, pink and purple) brown mustard 1 bag of Nerds/ Laffy Taffy/Bottle Cap candy 1 bag of mini-Snickers 1 bag of mini-Milky Ways OK, the last 3 bags of candy are for the candy jar at work. But the Peeps are all mine, baby!

The Golden City by John Twelve Hawks My rating: 4 of 5 stars Nice ending to the trilogy. And, it left an opening for more. The story revolves around fighting the Vast Machine of technology and how it can be used to track, control and influence people. The main characters are against that, BTW. Kind of how I feel about having a chip in my passport - it bugs me and that's just the start of how we can be monitored. View all my reviews >>

The Arizona Parrot Head Club holds Mom O'Malley Memorial Poker Tournaments that benefit Hospice of the Valley. My contribution to the event is buying the first place award. I go to Things Remembered and get engraved items - Shot Glass set, Mugs and Flasks are some of the historical awards. The only problem with going to Things Remembered is that it's in the mall. I used to love malls. I could spend all day there and be very happy. Not so much anymore. I don't need running shoes, fancy jewelry, tea, coffee, expensive dress shoes, designer clothes...none of the crap that's prevalent there. So, I always have to wait about 30 minutes for the engraving and there are only two stores that I'm willing to browse during that time. Those are Claire's and Bath and Body Works. Inevitably, I end up spending more in those two stores than I do on the award. I can't help myself. The tournament is today so I hit Things Remembered as it opened at 10. My order in, I ...

Why would you have a Crackberry with a data plan if you don't answer your phone, respond to texts or read your emails? Just wondering...

Poor George. I left her in Steven's care over the long weekend while I was in Mexico. As usual, I came home to find nary a crumb left in her bowl. He said he filled it on Sunday but I have my doubts. She didn't scarf it down very quickly after I refilled the dish, though, so I don't think she was starving. She did throw some of it back up. Fortunately, on the tile for a change. I don't know if that was from nerves or pigging out. I also left her with what I thought was going to be entertainment. A friend of mine was here over several days remodeling my bathroom. I warned him that she would probably keep a close on eye him and told him the only rule was to not let the baby outside. However, there wasn't much opportunity for her to even escape as she spent most of the time in hiding. So much so that he worried that she might have gotten out somehow. It's funny. When The Rocket Scientist is working on things in the house for me, she's practically peak...

Because I Said So: 33 Mothers Write About Children, Sex, Men, Aging, Faith, Race, and Themselves by Kate Moses My rating: 4 of 5 stars Great collection of essays. Some are quite poetic in style, others prosaic but all have Motherhood and its issues and rewards as a partial theme. I quite enjoyed them all even when I couldn't relate to all of their stories. View all my reviews >>

I, Alex Cross by James Patterson My rating: 3 of 5 stars Another solid entry in the series. This one finds Cross investigating the death of a family member and dealing with his Grandmother's very serious health issues. Lots of government intrigue but a bit of an out of nowhere resolution to the investigation. View all my reviews >>

The Final Detail by Harlan Coben My rating: 4 of 5 stars Much darker book than the others. Myron takes a long mental break to recover from heartache and comes back to find his best friend and partner is accused of murdering one of their clients (and one of his college chums). Lots of emotion, self doubt and depression but still a very satisfying story. View all my reviews >>

One False Move by Harlan Coben My rating: 4 of 5 stars This one's set in the world of professional Women's basketball but the story is less about the sport and more about finding the recently missing Father and long lost Mother of a female basketball phenom. Throw in some of the mob and local politicians and an incredibly touching scene between Myron and his Dad and it was a great story. On to the next in the series! View all my reviews >>

Back Spin by Harlan Coben My rating: 4 of 5 stars I'm really digging this series. This one's set in the golfing world as Myron investigates the kidnapping of the son of the guy leading in the US Open Championship. There were the usual red herrings, plot twists and further development in the characters. Love it! View all my reviews >>

I would totally get a Myphone if they would guarantee that Eric Clapton and Buddy Guy would call me.

I have many friends who cook really elaborate meals, take pictures of said meals then post all the details. I don't know if they are just wanting to share or bragging. All I know is that my meals will never be posted like that. Solely because they can't begin to compare. Here's what I had for dinner tonight: Cooked Cauliflower with two tablespoons of cheesed mixed in. Sounds fascinatingly flavorful , doesn't it? I had dessert, though. I sliced up some pears that were about to go bad and baked them with some brown sugar on them. Apparently, it takes 50 minutes at 350 degrees to cook the pears all the way through. I checked them every 10 minutes after the first 20. Perhaps I should have cut them in to smaller slices. Anyway, that's par for the meal course around here since I'm still getting bi-weekly deliveries of organic fruits and veggies. You gotta eat those up somehow.