My Review of The Hunger Games

I finally finished the first book in The Hunger Games Trilogy.  With life not stopping to give me time to read, it took a bit of time for me to finish.  I managed to get about two thirds of the way through the book before taking my oldest and six of her friends to see the movie.  As usual, the book was better, but the movie was pretty good too.  I like the way Katniss's narrative was portrayed through the behind the scenes at the Capitol.  There were some scenes in the book that didn't seem to be present as much in the movie.  But, considering that many times, they just don't have enough time to include all of a book in a movie, I think they stayed fairly true to the book.  There were a few details that were very different from the book and that frustrated the girls.

This poor girl, Katniss has a connection with two different boys that is based on a common life experience with each of them.  A connection that goes very deep in very different areas of her life.  Each boy has very admirable qualities.  They have each stood with her in horrible circumstances brought about by a brutal government. This leads me to say that it seems this series is a romantic political thriller.   At this point, I don't know how I want the story to go.  I can't even imagine where it's going to go, based on what I'm learning about this government and the president.  The government has too much control over it's people.  The president strikes me as sadistic.  It seems like the people who live in the capitol like the way things are.  And then there are the people that live in the "lower" districts that see that the government is too much of a "big brother".

I've been told that once I get going, the books will be hard to put down.  I'm already at that point.  I have to make sure, before I pick up the book to continue reading, that I won't have anything needing my attention before I can set the book down again.  I've found myself re-reading a few sentences when I've been interrupted, because I don't want to miss a detail.  So, if it seems like I'm missing from the blog, I'm not.  I may be engrossed in a book.  I'm sorry if that happens.  But I promise I'll be back to continue my review.

Greece Someday...Maybe?

I've seen a few movies that are based in Greece lately. The scenery looks absolutely gorgeous and inviting. Cities on hillsides, culture, the food, the people and their daily activities. I know that the movies make it look peaceful and restful and usually don't show the difficult stuff. But, I'd still like to see it.

There is so much of the world that I would like to see before I die. And to experience it with Steve would be awesome. I know that it will probably have to wait until the kids are grown and on their own. So, that's my dream today. To see more of the world with my best friend that I married. It might be fun to see it with some of our friends too. I'm looking forward to growing old with Steve and hope that we get to travel as much as we would like to.

A Movie I Watched and an Old TV Show I Want to Share With the Kids

I watched Confessions of a Shopaholic the other day. It was a pretty good movie! I think it is based on a book, so now I want to read it.

I also recently discovered that our local library has copies of the old tv series, The Land of the Lost! Anxious to see what the kids think of that! Then, maybe we'll consider watching the remake.

While I'm Waiting for the Cookbooks to Arrive....

Friday I did my Costco shopping. They sell a dehydrated mushroom blend. I've looked at it nearly everytime I go through that section. I want to find something to make with it. This last time I looked at it and wondered if I would learn anything new from Julia Child about cooking with mushrooms, if she uses a variety of mushrooms, or if I might have to do some research on that on my own. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow, to open that box with the new cookbooks and another book I'll probably tell you about later.

Why Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, when there is a Panera Bread, Costco Bakery and a Wegman's bakery only 15 minutes from my house and in the same plaza? Well, because I can't buy their bread....literally. My youngest child has a life threatening allergy to all tree nuts and peanuts. I'm getting tired of reading labels when I shop. I've decided that my time is probably better spent making what we like rather than reading the labels of all the short cut items available. That means I need to find ways to make good food quickly and maybe create my own short cuts. I like really good bread and Steve likes having fresh homemade bread in the house rather than store bought. When we heard about AB in 5 Min a Day from 2 different people who don't even know each other, well, isn't that a good reason to give it a try? We think so! The concept seems to be about making a wet dough in bulk, that you store in your fridge and then all you have to do is take out the amount of dough that you want to use that day, shape it, let it rest, then bake it! Well, that all sounds good to me! So, I'm just as excited to have this book! I'll probably still use the bread machine that I have too. It's all about options right now.

Saturday night, Steve and I went out for dinner and a movie. Indian cuisine rocks! Paneer Tikka (cottage cheese seasoned to perfection), Butter Chicken, Lamb Roganjosh and Gulab Jamun! What a dessert! Fried dumplings in a rose & cardamom syrup! I did NOT make the food. However, I love Butter Chicken and want a good recipe for it to make at home.

Steve & I were blown away by the Gulab Jamun! How in the world they made that syrup with rose & cardamom - we, or rather I was trying to figure it out. Steve humors me. I don't know if they use a rose infused water or honey....I've used cardamom before and like it but am stumped with the rose bit. The syrup was incredible, light and simply divine!

Steve & I were expecting the little cottage cheese curd that we are used to and were wondering how that would be.....but, this cottage cheese was more like 1" x 1/2" blocks of mild cheese cooked on kebobs with what I assume was a curry seasoning, served with onions, peppers and carrots - delectable!

Monsoon opened almost 2 years ago. We noticed their grand opening sign and visited within a week or 2 after that. I think last night was our 4th time eating in the restaurant and we've done carry out once or twice. We've liked everything we have tried there.

Avatar was a really good movie! I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but I will say, we both agree that it will be added to our dvd collection! Really worth the trip to the theater if you haven't seen it yet!

I Think I Want to Blog, But What Do I Blog About and the Friends Who Inspired Me

I have 4 Friends who were my primary inspirations to blog. I've known Theresa for about the past 14 years or so. We met through our husbands who grew up going to camp together. It's only been in the past 6 years or so that we've really had the opportunity to develop our friendship to the point that I now consider her a sister. I met Peg through Theresa about 4 years ago. Peg taught me how to knit in August of 2008. I have learned that knitting with friends creates a special bond that's hard to explain. A little over a year ago I learned that both Theresa and Peg were blogging. I was interested, but unsure about blogging myself. So, I enjoyed following theirs.

Then I joined Facebook and loved it, thinking that it could sort of fill that desire to blog. It sort of did, but not completely. During the time since I joined Facebook, I reconnected with 2 sisters that I grew up going to camp with, Beverly and Betsy. Beverly and I were the oldest in our families and as far as we can remember we started playing together at camp somewhere between the ages of 8 & 10. Betsy was/is Beverly's younger sister. It has been a lot of fun reconnecting with them! Betsy has been blogging for a while too, so I started to follow her blog. The blogging bug bit again. Betsy just moved to France, so Beverly asked her if she had seen Julie & Julia. Lo and behold, she had and she also has Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. I had wanted to see the movie but now had even more reason to, because of this new connection and understanding that Betsy had of Julia from this movie. Beverly told Betsy to blog about it, so she did. If you are curious, you can check out her blog. After reading Betsy's blog, I decided that I just had to see the movie sooner than later. The blogging bug bit again! Especially since Beverly was now considering blogging!

So, I finally made the decision. I REALLY want to blog! But, what do I blog about? I can't do what Julie Powell did, but that is a good starting point. What am I going to blog about then? Well, I am a homeschooling mom who likes to read, knit, bake and cook. Mostly I'm going to blog about my culinary adventures and maybe a bit about the other stuff I like to do too. I wanted to get MAFC so that I could connect in another way with Betsy while she is in France. Who knows, it may be the only way I'll get to experience France in this lifetime. I bit the bullet, so to speak, and ordered MAFC along with Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, which was recommended by another childhood friend of mine as well as a co-worker of my husband's. They are due to arrive this Tuesday and I can't wait!!

Why Kristi's Kafe Around the Korner? Well, the way I think about it, when friends get together at a local Kafe (changed the C to a K to match my first initial) they not only eat and drink coffee or tea together, but they also talk about their hobbies, what's new in general and what's going on the the world. A big thank you to Beverly and Betsy for the help in picking a name for my blog. And a big thank you to Theresa and Peg for the encouragement to go for it and have fun! I love you guys!

And there it is. Now you know why I want to blog, what I will blog about and who inspired me. I hope that you will enjoy this as much as I think I will! As soon as Beverly gets her blog set up, I will add her to my Blog List!