The Burning Sky

I picked up an ARC of The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas at RWA.  I love this prologue.  I will, in the future hold up this prologue as a defense that I don't hate all prologues.  But then, I felt it took a while for the story to get to the part the prologue promised.  (Not forever, a day in book time, which is for some people not long at all and for impatient readers like myself - a bit of waiting.)  But the book lived up to the promise and ultimately I really enjoyed it and look forward to the rest of the trilogy. 

Iolanthe Seabourne is an elemental mage being looked after by a guardian slipping deeper into addiction.  When he inexplicably tries to ruin a light elixir she is working on, she calls down a bolt of lightning to fix it, drawing the attention of those who have been waiting for a predicted powerful mage.  Prince Titus shows up with a plan in place to protect her - she will come with him to his non-mage school in England (Eton) and act the part of his classmate returned from convalescence. 

I'm a big fan of Sherry Thomas' historical romances, which take place in a similar time period (late 1800's as non-mages count it), so think this will appeal to fans of those.  And for those less interested in adult historical romances, but up for a historical YA fantasy (say fans of things like Graceling) this will appeal as well.  And well, that prologue I adore so much.  Let me send you here to read it. 

Dear Project Runway,

I am behind on two weeks, so much to cover. 

First, Dear Helen,

Deciding to ask a question in private is totally fine.  Doing so at the door to the room where everyone can see you is silly.  Obviously, given the cameras, the idea of a secret is pretty much gone, but asking where everyone can see you but not hear you and then refusing to share is certainly a choice, but it's a choice that is essentially designed to create conflict.

And then, when you got the conflict, perhaps in an attempt to seem tough, you insisted on responding in kind and then went and told Tim on the other designer and implied that you felt your safety was at risk.
Having some time to ponder this, given the whole Sandor thing, I am not properly appreciating your level of concern.  As a city girl I tend to think people who yell from the other side of the room, even when it includes obscenities are pretty harmless.  But sure, if you felt legitimately threatened, then escalating early made sense. 

Dear Ken,

Oh, don't get me wrong.  I think Helen was overreacting, but that doesn't mean cursing someone out is the right answer.  It's not.  Hopefully the chat with Tim helped you refocus and remember that you have better things to do - ie make stuff. 

Dear Kate,
I thought that fabric was so ugly, kudos for turning it into a cute dress. 
Dear Dom,

Please don't scare me like that.  Also, I totally understand why the idea to do something a little different makes sense, but there's different and there's dull.  Simple is not dull.

I also made a crazy statement that I liked your second dress enough to buy it even at the expected high price. We shall see if I live up to that. 

Dear Bradon,

Well, I thought your dress was fine, but not as interesting as the judges did.  (But I've never been in a Belk, so what do I know.)  I hope you are gracious about the weird you thought you won and now there is another winner.  Or gracious outwardly.  If you, or Alexander and Kate who were in the original top three wanted to bitch a little about them giving a prize to one of the bottom three, it would be hard to blame you. 

And well, the non-model people challenge is coming up.  Hopefully none of you make anyone cry. 

Three Interesting Things

1.  I didn't think I was particularly interested in tipping, but here I am linking to an article about it again. This article looks at some of the challenges and issues with eliminating tipping and/or replacing it with service charges. 

2. I made my way down a link rabbit hole and ended up on this story about a man being ultimately cleared by the TSA to fly after a screening issue was resolved, but then refused by his airline, causing him to have to buy a new ticket last minute.  While I get that airlines have some discretion for refusing passengers, this seems an extreme case, and I'm a little surprised it hasn't gotten more attention. 

3. And for a change of pace, here is this thoughtful discussion of what constitutes a dumpling.

Family Cats

I want to start by saying that all the lovely cats in this story are no longer with us, because I find nothing more heartbreaking than a long post about a beloved pet that ends with their death. 

My parents decided to be cat people fairly close to the time they decided to work on becoming parents.  They had seen the movie "Aristocats" and my mother had decided she wanted to have an orange tabby like the cartoon cat who wished to grow up to be an alley cat.  So, she called a woman who had posted an ad for kittens and asked if any were orange.  Hearing that one was, she went for a visit and was hissed at by a black tabby cat, so she ended up taking two - the orange and the black - home.  My sister and I, in the way of children, decided that Toulouse and Poki (short for Popoki) were our brothers and that Toulouse was really my cat and Poki was really hers. Toulouse met something in the alley that left him needing antibiotics and eventually a surgery that he did not survive.  Poki shortly after went to live with some friends of ours where he turned from a bird feeder stalking cat to a basement hiding cat. My mother had developed severe allergies and a no fur rule was instituted in our house.

My sister and I did get an actual brother, who was fairly entertaining. And at some point (although I should mention well after my attempts at exemption, not that I hold a grudge) the no fur rule developed an exemption first for two gerbils (one for each of my siblings) and then for a guinea pig.  I may have tried to argue that fur was fur (I had lost interest in gerbils and never much had any in guinea pigs) but no go.

Fast forward quite some time and I get a call from my brother.  He had gotten home from school to discover a plastic tray and a bag of cat food in his room, had I left it there?  No.  Neither had my mother.  I made it home before my dad, who asked my brother and I if we had any guesses what his surprise was. (Our dad loved surprises, but he loved them so much he often gave them away in his excitement.) My brother asked if it might be a cat.  And my dad, a little surprised we had caught on, produced a box of annoyed orange fuzzball that came to be known as Cosmo. 

The is not the first time that my dad brought home a surprise, so my mom took it well.  And fortunately her allergies seems to have lessened.  Especially since my dad mentioned the family who had found a mom cat with a litter of kittens in an abandoned pipe factory had another kitten that needed a home.  I might have mentioned that I had always wanted a cat.  And well, a few days later my mom opened the door to a flash of orange being chased by a flash of black. She always said Sabrina, as she came to be known, was lucky to have that off center orange stripe because it was that adorable stripe that kept her from becoming a Barbie coat.  (Never mind that there were no Barbies in the house.) 

I later moved out and Sabrina had other cat companions, and then in this last place it was just us. Especially since being on an upper floor precluded her getting outside regularly (or really, at all).  She occasionally patrolled the hallways, just to make sure everything was okay. 

She started losing weight at the beginning of the year.  The vet visits went from looking great to looking good for a cat her age to we need to consider how aggressive treatment should be.  She was diagnosed with chronic renal failure, arthritis,  and a heart murmur.  Another vet visit led eventually to adding anemia and cancer to the list. 

Having been raised on Judith Viorst books, I of course, think ten good things about Sabrina should be offered up, even if my tenth will be a little different. 

1. She was smart.  She cracked the fancy cat carrier open and never let the more newfangled ones stop her from trying. 

2. She ate all the treats.  My sister used to sit on the other side of the bedroom door and poke treats under the door and try and steal them back. 

3. She appreciated humans in small groups who might pet her.  (In large groups she found humans best avoided.) This turned into something of an arrival bonus for cat friendly early early guests.

4. She found dogs interesting up until they tried to chase her. 

5. She had stopped being a lap cat, but would happily curl up on my arm. 

6. She often operated as a back up alarm, convinced that I was missing out on prime cat petting time.  (Fortunately for us all, she did this pretty close to actual alarm time.)

7. She would indicate a preference for the air (or rarely heat) to be turned on by jumping on top of the unit where she would let it blow her fur. 

8. She had no particular interest in my knitting unless the yarn ball  fell to the floor.  Even then, she mostly wanted to make sure they weren't going to fall on her.

9. She would catch pom poms in the air.  I had a roommate who thought the idea of a cat playing anything like catch was ridiculous until I demonstrated.  She also snuck up on unsuspecting pom poms and wrestled them to the ground.

10. And her leftover cat meds have been donated to the vet so they can help another sick cat whose owner might not otherwise be able to afford them. 

Three Interesting Things

1. I feel I should warn you that this link pitching TV shows to TLC (which TLC seems to have taken with just the right blend of seriousness and humor) does contain a picture of the clothed (well, partially) but large scrotumed man who sparked EW's interest in what a TLC show might be. 

2. If you loved "Bunheads" and somehow missed the final tribute dance from much of the cast, let me direct you here.

3. Have you ever wished "Hamlet" would actually let you decide whether to be or not to be?  Well, now there is a choose your own adventure style version.