It's a bright Autumn morning in the small town of Chester's Mill. Claudette Sanders is having a flying lesson and Dale Barbara is hitching a ride out of town. Neither make it to their destination...
Inexplicably, an invisible barrier had descended over the town. a woodchuck is chopped right in half; a gardener's hand is severed at the wrist; the plane explodes and Dale Barbara, Iraq war vet turned short-order cook, is forced to turn back into the town he so desperately needed to leave
As the residents speculate about what has cut them off from the rest of the world, the Army searches for an inside man. "Barbie" is put in charge. But Big Jim Rennie, the mad who holds the town in his powerful grip, has other plans. And the Dome could just be the answer to his political prayers.
As food, electricity and water run short and children start to have premonitions of a terrifying Halloween, Barbie is forced to take on Big Jim, and his renegade supporters. Now time is running out for those under the Dome. Can they find out what has created in before it's too late?
Stephen King's mesmerizing new masterpiece - his biggest, most riveting novel since The Stand - features spectacularly sinister characters and a terrifying phenomenon. Under the Dome is a high-octane thriller, an apocalyptic vision and a fascinating allegory on a tyrannical state of political darkness.
Loved it. It is mesmerizing, it is big and, after an initial hiccup a little way in, it is riveting. The speed of moral decay is frightening and the division between Law and Order scary beyond measure. Buy it. Borrow it from the library or a friend (I'm in Harrow, if you wanna borrow my copy) - whatever. Just read it. It is good.
Hey guys,
Hope y'all had a wonderful weekend!
I've probably mentioned before that I really like Restaurant.com. They sell $25 restaurant gift certificates for $10, and they often have 80% off sales, so I usually buy the $25 cert for $2. Deal!
They're having this nice little promotion now. I can enter up to 30 friends' email addresses and they'll send you a free $10 gift certificate. (Of course, expect to be getting emails from them.... that's why I use my spam email address). But they're not that frequent.
So, if you'd like the free gift certificate, let me know. If I don't already have your email address, private message me with it.
Much love,
HapaLove
Welcome to the House of Dying Appliances.
Dishwasher -
Dead and gone. Sadly, not actually gone - still waiting for the delivery of new Dishwasher and collection of old Dishwasher. This should have happened Saturday, but we have heard nothing. I hate Currys!
It died last week, so I have had a whole week of washing up for six people. Bugger that - now I remember exactly why I got a Dishwasher in the first place.
Fridge-Freezer -
As you know, this is not that old. So when the fan started making a terrible, grating whirring sound, we were worried. Fortunately this is still under Manufacturer's Warranty, so we just had to make a calll. Simple - well, no. Because my life does not suck enough. I phoned the Repair Line, told the nice lady all about my troubles, she said "OK I will put you through direct to the manufacturer's Repair Centre". But she screwed that up, and put me through to the Parts Department. No, I want an Engineer. So I call the Repair Line again, only to be told the computers had crashed, and to phone back later.
So I did. And the lady at LG said "What is the serial number of your fridge?"
Well, I do not know that.
"It will be on the left hand side" she said.
So I looked, and looked, and looked. And failed to find it.
"Well, I am very sorry", she said, "I must have that before I can book an Engineer Visit."
I was gutted. Than I liooked again and thought "Fuck - mayber I should get Left and Right tattooed on my hand"
That was on Thursday. All is good now - the man cam this morning and fixed the fan. Verdict - don't put so much in your freezer that air cannot circulate. Whoops! OK, I will be more careful in future.
Washing Machine -
This died Saturday morning, just as I put a load in. And we do all the washing for the six of us on Saturday / Sunday / Monday due to working the rest of the time. So I phoned my Washing Machine Repair Man, who said he should be able to do it Monday but he is having an operation on Tuesday. So I am waiting to hear from him. Fingers Crossed!
We had a shitload of washing - siz bags, and one laundry basket. I spent three hours at the laundrette (and may I say thank goodness for laundrettes!). It was so freaking BUSY in there, and hot. And expensive!
Vacuum Cleaner -
We bought this, and it was crap. You need training to use it properly and if I get the kids to vac, they break the band that turns the beater, so it stops being any good for pet hair. I finally said I must have a new one, when it, too, died. What is it with this house this past few weeks? Luckily, someone we know runs a business selling and maintaining professional vacuums (for hotels, conference centres, anywhere they use lots of cleaners and need them to be ready to use at all times). So he is selling us one, cheap, and we get it later today.
I hope the Appliance Killing Field leaves the area soon.
I'm not sure I'll get to making all of it, but I am set for the following menu for Thanksgiving.
There are a couple of extra chairs at the table if you're interested!
Now I'd better get prepping because so far all I've made is the cranberry sauce.
Thanksgiving 2009
Deviled eggs
Variety of cheeses with French bread
Corn Lemongrass Soup with crab and mussels
Arugula Fennel Mint Prosciutto Pomegranate Salad
Turkey – brined and deep fried
Cranberry sauce – with ginger and Cointreau
Traditional Stuffing with pancetta
Mashed new potatoes with skins on, and mascarpone and chives
Gravy -
Pearl onions roasted with a port reduction and bay
Green beans sauteed with wildrice, mushrooms, bell peppers and pinenuts
Crème Brule
Pumpkin pie with whipped creme
There's much to be grateful for and I try to remind myself of that every day.
Some days I forget.
But I'm glad there's one day of the year when we in the United States are invited to take stock of the abundance in our lives. I hope each of you are with people who are grateful for YOU this year and who express it.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Hey all my wonderful neighbors,
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you are all enjoying the holiday, have much to be thankful for, and are close to family and friends... if not physically, at least in spirit.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday... I just love the togetherness of sitting around the table, and of course you all know my thing with food. :) This year is extra special for me, because it's my first year hosting my family. I am really enjoying all the cooking, because I've always wanted to do all these recipes my way. And I'm thankful for getting a break from traveling this year. No traffic!
I'm thankful for all of you... I've been on Vox for a couple years now, and it's been a hoot. The interactions have been great and even resulted in a couple of "real life" friendships. And, I'm happy to say, my Vox has been pretty much Internet-weirdo-free. I enjoy hearing what's happening in all y'alls lives, and I hope you're having a terrific weekend.
My present to myself this Thanksgiving - taking today off. It takes all the stress out of the prep. Ah, what a fine day.
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