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I finally picked up my copy of Anne Tyler’s “Back When We Were Grownups” today. (They had to send it over from another branch of the library.) I’m a couple chapters in and I’m enjoying it so far. It’s not what I’d pick up for myself, but it seems to be an easy read and I’ve already thought of lots of stuff for our discussion. Have you gotten your copy yet? Anybody having any difficulty?

Rockpool was fantastic. It remained a total surprise for the Snook up until we actually walked in the place. He said he didn’t figure I’d take him there, since it’s, like, “the best restaurant in Sydney.” (I didn’t know that. I just picked it because I recognized the name and it had a good rating.) He had sashimi and baked kingfish; I had salad and a steak. They also just kept bringing us little appetizers, like delicious cold zucchini soup and these little savory dumplings. The waiters were excellent, and I even managed to get one to tell me the secret of their salad dressing: “palm sugar”. (Whatever that means.) We had fantastic wines with each course and I learned what a “sommelier” does (that’s my word for the day). Then dessert. I had the passionfruit soufflé and the Snook had the chocolate. He said, “This is the best chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted in my life.” It was a pricey evening (well over $100 US), but it was soooo worth it. If you’re ever in Sydney you should give it a try.

I am not legally affiliated with Roald Dahl in any way. I simply run a fan site. I have no input whatsoever into the planned remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Therefore please stop sending me your script and casting ideas. I will not “pass them on”. Even if I were involved, I probably still wouldn’t greenlight a script for a children’s movie involving genetically-mutated Oompa-Loompas. Just some advice.

Diet Update: My gym has doctors’ scales. You know the ones, where you move the little weights across to make the thing balance? And you start by moving the big ones, and then they get progressively smaller so you can get your exact weight? Well, I just met one of my short-term goals: I got to move one of the big weights back a notch! That makes me ecstatically happy.

I was interested to note that my site received a hit from the Google search “his dark materials film lyra casting”. So I looked through the other results and found some news regarding the books. Apparently there is a film version in the works, but not much has been done other than the hiring of Tom Stoppard to work on a script (which sounds like a brilliant decision to me). Philip Pullman seems to have very little involvement in the project, and has stated his “take the money and run” attitude towards it on many occasions. I also found a great interview with him that took place right before The Amber Spyglass was published. The second half was fascinating to me, as Pullman explains why Lyra’s world is different and where he got certain ideas for the books. Interesting reading if you liked the series…

He turns 26 today! He doesn’t know it yet, but I’m taking him out for a super-fancy dinner tonight at Rockpool. (Shhh, it’s a surprise!) Oh, and I score 25 points, right, Bill? 🙂

That mention of River Phoenix on the PTWND (post that will not die) reminded me of a kickass Australian band I saw on TV last week called TISM. They were performing their song “(He’ll Never Be An) Old Man River”, the chorus of which is “I’m on the drug that killed River Phoenix.” Seriously. Some of their other songs include:

• “Honk if You Love Fred Durst”
• “X-Treme Sports Can Kiss My Arse”
• “I Might Be a C*nt, But I’m Not a F*cking C*nt”
• “All Homeboys Are Dickheads”
• “Defecate on my Face”

I mean, who wouldn’t want to listen to a band like that? Oh, did I mention it’s, like, nine guys all wearing leather hoods to hide their faces? The rumor is that they’re all schoolteachers and they prefer to remain anonymous. What are the best song titles you’ve ever heard? Any that struck you as really, really funny?

Good lord. Seriously, the Goonies post is the post that will not die. Every month or so another psycho wanders in via Google and gets all pissed off about something I wrote almost a year ago. This isn’t a Goonies site, people! Do you not understand the concept?

I don’t know if any other Australians are participating, but I just heard from my local bookshop that The Lovely Bones will be out here in August. That fits into our reading schedule perfectly! It’ll be $30 for the paperback. Not cheap, but definitely less than having it shipped from the States!

Do you have any experience with composting? Our back courtyard is filled with fallen leaves and I’d like to get rid of them in an earth-friendly way. Composting seems like a good idea, because I could use the end result on all our lovely flowers and plants out there. Unfortunately most of the resources I’ve found aren’t really geared towards an “urban” setting. The systems they describe are all too big or require too much maintenance. I’ve read some good things about “vermicomposting” though (using worms to munch everything up). But I have no idea where to even start. So again, anybody have any experience with this?