Happy 2013 + Book Review for last year

Whew! Our holidays went by so fast and we've really had a great time. Photos and a report to come. Happy 2013 to all!

But for now, I do my book summary for 2012. Now, I've read only a few books, not all of which I can remember, and I did some cook book and magazine reading this year. So, without any further excuses or ado, my ratings of the seven books (yep, that's 7 books) I recall reading in 2012, with my ranking from 1 -4.
1 = poor,
2 = okay,
3 = I liked it,
4 = I'd buy it for my library

Heaven is Here = 3
Devil at My Heels = 3
Steve Jobs = 3
Endurance: Shakleton's Incredible Voyage = 4
The Secret Life of Bees = 3
Crossing to Safety = 3
Uncle Tungsten = 2

I would recommend reading any of the 3s or 4 up there.

And now for 2013. I am currently reading a WWII spy book called The Brenner Assignment and the cookbook, Jacques Pepin's New Complete Techniques.

Random notes

Last night Jess stayed up very, very late to finish a good book.  We are talking the milkman is making deliveries- type late.  And he did most of it standing, leaning against the counter with his elbows.  That man can really get into a book.  I told him from now on, only picture books will be checked out from the library for him.

Every time I am looking my very best, I run into someone I know at Target (I say sarcastically).  But really the difference between my best and my not so good is quite minimal, so it's not all that bad.

Oliver has decided that our next child will be named Colt.  I cannot be sure where he got that name idea, but it has stuck with him.

And finally, did you know that Christmas was officially declared a holiday in the United States on June 26, 1870?  I learned that from my sister's Christmas card this year.

Holly jolly-ness

I hope your holiday season is going merrily. Ollie likes to plug in the lights the moment he wakes up. Jess and I start up the Christmas tunes daily and nightly. And we are all enjoying the sweets of the season. I had a chance to make stockings for my little fam, thanks to my great sister. We sewed away at these things for a couple of hours yesterday. And this morning, Oliver stood under the mistletoe and said, "It's time for a kiss!" Gladly.

12:12pm on 12/12/12

Playing downstairs listening to Christmas music. What were you doing?

Time is flying by

These last couple of weeks have been full to the brim with stuff, and so I find myself at December 10th thinking it should be November 30th.

Before I get into anything else, I must write that Oliver is in the mode where he asks lots of questions.  For instance:

What does "tilt" mean?
What does "flee away" mean?
What about "lean"?
Or "lonely"?

Sometimes my explanations aren't too good.  Like the time I tried to explain "understand."  I told Oliver it's when you comprehend something.  His response, "What does 'comprehend' mean?"  Which I followed up by explaining that it's when you understand something.  I caught my circular explanation and tried again. "It's when you get something or when something makes sense to you...Does that make sense?"  Nice.

Not only does Oliver like the meaning of words, he's also sounding them out and reading a bit.  He's getting the hang of it.  The best was when I went upstairs to find him spelling things out during his quiet time.  Here's his spelling of "QUIET."

Jess and I are getting the hang of living in our new place.  We've officially bought a new tree trimmer, a hand saw, a snow shovel, and a toilet handle.  I used to wonder why people shopped at Home Depot.  Now I know.  It is because they took care of their home, instead of a maintenance man doing it.

If we were in DC this year, I can imagine what my life would be like.  It would be good and we would be doing good things surrounded by good people.  This year, we are in Utah.  And we are still doing good things surrounded by good people.  And I am grateful for each day.  And I am grateful for this season.  And I am trying to enjoy each minute of it one Osmond Christmas tune at a time :)

Book Review: Devil at My Heels

This is the autobiography of the man who is the focus of the popular book, Unbroken. Excellent read, amazing story, impressive man.

The story of a young Olympian who served in the military during WWII and survived a plane crash, days and days in a life boat at sea, and POW camp. Not to mention the PTSD and trying to get his life back afterward.

His message: it's all about attitude.  This is the kind of book I really enjoy and just can't get enough of.  I would highly recommend it.

bp's science says farewell

The posts on this blog that get the most hits are my science posts.  Just recently, I had an overwhelming response to one of my science posts which had been linked via reddit and other blogs.  It was kind of neat to see those links at first, but then people started questioning my facts, and I felt kind of crappy, but I could see why people did it.  In one remark, one of my entries was compared to a 'Wikipedia' page of science, and I get it.  While I have been trying to provide facts that I think are certainly true and the way the science works, I am not doing research myself in my garage lab.  I have a biology degree, but not a mathematics, physics, chemistry or any of the myriad other science degrees.  And as such, I do not understand everything out there.  But, truth is, I wasn't trying to be the science authority (are you kidding me?).  And it's the nature of the beast for a mistake or two to come along.  I mainly did the posts to keep me asking questions and trying to find the answer to them.  I thought it would be interesting to some readers along the way, and I hope it was.

And so, I have decided to quit bp's science.  It had a good long run for almost three years, but it is time to stop.  I've reverted all of the entries to draft so I don't have to read anymore poor comments about them.  Still, I will remember the good comments and, I must admit, some of those posts were gems and right on the money.  Plus, I really did learn a lot!

As Ron Rosenbaum states in a recent Smithsonian Magazine article, "...the wisdom of the ages is in some ways more distant and difficult to find than ever, buried like a lost treasure beneath a fathomless ocean of online ignorance and trivia that makes what is worthy and timelss more inaccessible than ever." And with that, I would encourage you to go to your library and seek out some good old books, papers, or journals.  There isn't any 'Wikipedia' there (that is, unless you go to the library and use the computers...but I digress).  Ciao!

bp's science: the art of shopping (v.1)

This holiday season, try this tip out: don't hold a basket at stores.  Research shows shoppers holding a basket (instead of pushing one) were seven more times likely to buy items that they weren't planning on buying or didn't need.  Why? They aren't really sure what the science is behind it but scientist theorize that the flexing of your arm activates the desire to acquire.  Or that the arm gets uncomfortable while shopping so it signals to your brain, "Gather whatever you can, man, and get out of here!"  A Snickers bar at the front cashier will provide the energy you need and will take less time than fetching an apple from the produce section.

I wonder what the difference is between customers who held a basket and those who held or pushed nothing.  What about carrying a bag on your shoulder (like in IKEA)?  What do you think?

photo from here

Book review: Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

In Steve Jobs' biography, the reader learns how Apple came about and why it is so successful.  Much of its success is due to being lead by a guy who didn't take any nonsense, was brutally honest, and was extremely eccentric...to a fault but also to the result of some of the technological world's greatest successes.  I read most of Walt Disney's biography last year and I found many similarities between these two, shall we say, geniuses.  They both had a feel for what the public wanted before the public knew they wanted it.  They truly believed in their product with undying determination and they usually could talk anyone into doing something for their (or their company's) sake.  True, these individuals could be hard to work with and you had to figure out how to be on their good side, but once you were, it was an adventure to be on board.  I am amazed at people like this, with such determination that they can go about business with such confidence.  Jobs was truly driven by his work and he did it because he loved it, not because he wanted the lifestyle (although, he did have a private jet and was designing his own yacht).  This is a fantastic read and a great look into a man who, like my brother recently mentioned and I agree, will be remembered with the greats like Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell, for changing the world with invention.

bp's science: warm milk and eggs (v.1)

Are you one of those people who makes a cake without bringing the milk and/or eggs to room temperature? I sure am. Even though I'm great at remembering to soften the butter, I never remember the milk and eggs. And for a while, I was proud of it. "Who cares?" I thought as I laughed inside, "I can make just as good a cake without the hassle."

Turns out, there's a reason all of my cakes are dense. According to REAL SIMPLE magazine, January 2011 issue:

"At room temperature, eggs, butter, and liquids such as milk bond and form an emulsion that traps air. During baking, the air expands, leavening the batter or dough and producing a light and airy baked good. Cold ingredients, on the other hand, don't incorporate evenly to bond."

So when making those baked goods this holiday season, take the butter, milk and/or eggs out of the fridge 30 minutes - to an hour before baking and enjoy that airy cake (or muffin or bread).