A brief update...

I am still making my way through the council meeting in Rivendell, but I figured I write a quick update to say that I have entered the "Once Upon a Readathon" through fellow book blogger Candace's blog page. The Readathon lasts from 12:01 a.m. on July 9 to 11:59 p.m. on July 11. As my minimum number of books to read during that time period I will say 3 books, which I will post at a later date.

And what, pray tell, is a Barrow-wight?

Sorry for my absence from the blogosphere, finals kicked my butt last week and I am just now finding time to relax. So now I am back and ready for action!

I am still making my way through The Fellowship of the Ring, and after having made it past the home of Goldberry and Tom Bombadil, I was very confused by the whole Barrow-wight scenario. Obviously our hobbit friends were confused enough themselves as they woke up next to the ominous stone that they picnicked at in the fog-filled valley of the Barrow-downs, but I seriously had to reread chapter 8 twice and still had to look up what a Barrow-wight was. According to the LOTR "One Wiki to Rule Them All" site, Barrow-wights are shapeshifting, evil phantoms that inhabit the treasure tombs of the Barrow-downs.  

"Cold be hand and heart and bone

and cold be sleep under stone

never more to wake on stony bed

never, till the Sun fails and the Moon is dead

In the black wind the stars shall die

and still be gold here let them lie

till the Dark Lord lifts his hand over dead sea and withered land."

                            ~Barrow-wight chant.

I don't know how much this clarify things for everyone else, but I am still slightly confused and hope that I never run into one.

As promised, here is my recipe for Mrs. Maggot's mushroom and bacon, served over eggs for breakfast. Though the recipe calls for four eggs to feed two people, if you are feeding two hobbits (especially in their tweens), you might want to double the amount of eggs. Also, it tastes best with organic, farm fresh eggs from the Shire.

Mushrooms and Bacon Breakfast Recipe

Makes 2 Servings

2 large portobello mushrooms, sliced

1/2 medium yellow onion, sliced

4 eggs (8 if cooking for hobbits)

1/2 cup Amish blue cheese

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon truffle oil

Cilantro (if desired)

Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once hot, saute onions and portobello mushrooms. Set aside.

Crack eggs into a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. In a separate pan, heat the remaining olive oil, then scramble eggs for 4 minutes. Once cooked, plate eggs topped with blue cheese, cilantro and mushrooms, then drizzle with truffle oil.

Enjoy before a long journey, toting a magical ring.

Summer Reading Challenge

I have an addiction.

Luckily, my obsession isn't with drugs or alcohol or sex ala Tiger Woods, but it is instead with books. I know you're probably thinking that it isn't that big of a deal, but it is very serious issue. My tiny, 400 sq. ft. apartment, which lacks sufficient storage space, is filled to the brim with books. Even worse, many of these have never been read. 

It all started with a little used bookstore on Adams Ave. in San Diego. I would walk to the bus stop en route to school and back, stopping to check out what books they had. Well, I slowly started to build a collection, and though I knew that I had little free time due to a heavy class schedule and honors coursework, I always thought "Well, I'll read this over summer break."

Eventually summer break wasn't long enough to read the mountain of books that had mysteriously accumulated in my bedroom. Where had they all come from???

"I don't remember buying that."

"Is that mine, or did I borrow it?"

"Why do I have three copies of The Jungle?"

When I did have free time, I often reread my favorites (The Bell Jar, The Catcher in the Rye, A Clockwork Orange, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, American Psycho, Breakfast at Tiffany's, to name a few). The pile of unread books grew larger, sometimes on a weekly basis, even though I read during every dull moment.

Many people have asked me why I don't own an e-Reader of some sort, and it's because I enjoy holding a physical book. I love scouring used bookstores for old editions of classics, reading the dedications that loved ones had thoughtfully written for gift recipients, sitting in cobweb-infested corners as I choose what the next addition to my collection will be, returning home with three or four books at a time that I neatly scrawl my name into before placing them on the shelf. E-readers are impersonal and distracting, and anyone who knows me well knows that I am anything but impersonal and that I need no further distractions from my busy life.

So instead of reading The Catcher in the Rye for the 12th time this summer, I have decided to challenge myself to read all of the unread books on my shelf, regardless of length or genre. For my extensive cookbook collection, I will make a recipe from each book. 

My book collection takes up one full-sized bookshelf in my living room, one small bookshelf in the kitchen (for most of the cookbooks), a shelf on the hutch of my desk in my bedroom, and another small stack on my living room floor. These neglected, unread books account for about 70 of the 100 books in my library - yes, I realize that this is pretty sickening ratio.

So, I invite you join me in my travels, reading my blog posts as I read through my library. Feel free to comment as you see fit, enter into friendly debates with me where our views differ, and read along with me if you feel so inclined.