Skin...a macabre comPilation

when you were a kid, did you read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or James and the Giant Peach? at the very least, you've seen clips of the latest film of CCF with johnny depp and thought, why does that movie seem so bizarre? right?! well, before these stories became movies, Roald Dahl also wrote short stories for adults. i picked up my copy of Skin and Other Stories a few months ago and have been slowly reading my way through this book. (i've kinda looked at them as treats, so i'm pacing myself!) these stories are probably great for teenagers but they are so gruesome, bizarre and well written that no matter what age you are, you'll enjoy then. the stories have a broad range of horrifying from a desperate man who gets caught up in a ghastly art dealer's scheme, to a murderer who gets away with... well, murder. you'll definitely think that dahl could have been a writer for the twilight zone. not every story has an amazing twist at the end, like the back cover implies, but they are so entertaining that you'll have to finish them once you've started. i highly recommend this collection - for under $10, it shouldn't be missed.

(btw- if you haven't realized this, the titles to some of my entries are useful links.)

wAterLemons...a suMmer recipe

now that summer is here, i thought i'd share my mom's waterLemon drink/dessert recipe!

ingredients
5-6 lbs of watermelon
1-3 fresh lemons
2 tbsp granulated sugar (or more, if needed)

utensils
1 large mixing bowl
1 chef knife
1 large spoon
1 apron

1. in a large mixing bowl and using only 1/4 of a watermelon at a time, dice watermelon (like you would an onion) .







2. using a large spoon, scrape the fruit down to the rind.
careful! the spray from the fruit will cover you so an apron will come in handy.







3. repeat with the rest of the watermelon. using a knife, carefully,
slice through the large chunks of fruit.

4. juice 1 lemon at a time and add in 1/4 cup increments to the watermelon fruit and juice. there should be a nice tartness to the juice, so you may have to add another lemon's worth of juice.

5. add 2 tbsp of granulated sugar. stir until dissolved. again, you may
need a little more, if you like your drinks sweet!

6. add ice cubes and serve immediately into individual glasses with spoons. or ladle into a pitcher or punch bowl and refrigerate before serving.

this drink lasts for a few days so you'll have plenty of this dessert to look forward to!

between each word...lies a memory

here's a great find if like to listen to international jazz. the 2nd cd from marta gomez - entre cada palabra- has been in my cd player (yes, i still buy cds) for about a week now and i find myself humming music and singing lines from it all the time. of course, i don't know spanish so i really have no idea what i'm saying. plus, i really don't know much about jazz other than i like hearing it. nonetheless, the sounds and songs on this cd are great. think norah jones...if she were a columbian woman without the piano. ok, bad example. i can just see her smiling as she sings- it's captured in the music somehow.

the songs on the cd remind me of my trip to Spain last year. while we were in sevilla, we went to see a free flamenco show at this place called la carboneria. i had no idea what to expect. it was stifling hot, the drinks weren't anything special, and the walls were covered in bizarre art. it was almost like they were daring you to look at the paintings but were really just forcing you to watch the little stage. thankfully, we didn't need to be forced. the dancer was as un-dancerlike as you could get...until she started her flamenco. she was amazing! she had this power, passion and style that i've never seen before. you actually forgot that she was built like a high school football player when she was on stage. the little spanish woman accompanying her could really belt out those lyrics and kept an intricate beat going with her hands and feet. the weakest part was the fabio wannabe playing guitar. quite frankly, i don't remember anything about him except his long, flowing locks...

Welcome...to ToTalLy ranDom!

hello! welcome to ToTalLy ranDom. that pretty much sums up my theme. right?! i will try to keep this site up to date on politics, books, movies, good recipes and great finds. i've never written a blog before so don't expect much!