Subject line: "Something for your chilly office"

Ah, bless my brother for sending this link along. It's a Hello Kitty lap warming blanket that plugs into a USB drive. Wow. 2 weeks ago I would have purchased one _for sure_. I also discovered, via this email, that there's a site called Hello Kitty Hell. Check out the Hello Kitty yogurt maker, the Hello Kitty airplane, the Hello Kitty Crop Circles and the Hello Kitty Visa Cheque card. Ohh... and there's a Hello Kitty Scooter too. And Hello Kitty poptarts. Wow... I'm speechless. Perhaps it's curling in the background as I write this but, where are the Hello Kitty curling brooms and bright pink curling rocks? "Hurry Hard Hello Kitty! Hurry!"

Site of the Week: "You May Well Consider the Vocation of Librarian"

This gem is from the 1946 "Your Life Work" series. In this one, you are asked: "Are books your friends?... Do you like people? And, do people like you? Do you like all kinds of people? You do? That's wonderful. Because when you have these two important qualifications-- love for books and love for people, you may well consider the vocation of a librarian." Disturbingly, it appears that the minute you become a librarian, you become an octogenarian. And you avoid making eye contact with the public. And you seem kind of embittered. And you don't talk into phones: you just hang up on people who call with questions. But, remember, our work is vital and essential and we will make "a salary comparable to similar professions." On a side note, I think I own the same blouse as one of the featured librarians; make what you will of that.

I did this twice: who knows...

Take the Quiz here!

Take the Quiz here!

"A ninja hand claw! Why thank you!"

This in from Cindy: Bad Gift Ideas for Valentine's Day. Nothing quite says "I love you!" like 32 ounces of Wolf Urine or a Rat Zapper. There's something here for everyone on your list.

Enough about snow squalls, let's think about cupcakes

This just in from Dale: the Cupcake Courrier: "a new product designed to transport and/or store cupcakes and muffins in a stylish carrier."

February: searching for the smallest clues that spring is near

There's Todd Jones on my Tigers calendar peeking out from behind my books like Wiarton Willie. Does he see his shadow? Is spring near?

After a couple of glorious sunny days, we're back into grey and I find myself obsessively looking for signs of spring. I acquired 3 crocus plants on Friday and am fascinated by how quickly they're growing and blooming. To me, the crocus is a much more reliable harbinger of spring and I hold little hope I'll see any in my garden soon. Thus, I am transfering my desire for spring onto these forced bulbs. You too can monitor their progress on my flickr site.

Windsor/ Detroit on DNTO

Sook-Yin Lee and Definitely Not the Opera did an excellent profile on Windsor and Detroit and the fascinating cultural world of a border-land. You can listen to it here. Whether you live here or not, it's really worth listening to it. Particularly intersting is the segment on the Heidelberg Project, a "project recognized around the world as a demonstration of the power of creativity to transform all those whose lives it touches. The Heidelberg Project offers a forum for ideas, a seed of hope, and a bright vision for the future." While you're listening to this Podcast, you can subscribe to DNTO's great podcasts.

I'm still not complaining...

But let me just say 4 things: it's cold; I'm cold; I'm tired of being cold; I tired because I am cold. But I'm not complaining because I remember a note I left to myself on this very blog on August first. Because it's been cold, I've done a lot of reading and writing. I'm still working through Ross King's very good "The Judgment of Paris," finished another novel (that wasn't very good) and am working through the pile of New Yorkers that we've acquired. I also got back on my page a week novel writing pact. I've also caught up on reading my rss feeds where I ran into two very interesting articles. This one on Penguin's launching of a wiki novel and also this one on the reading habits of people on trains. And, since I'm describing this on IM already to someone right now, I will also mention we bought more cheese in Detroit over the weekend. Of particular interest was a pear and caramel stilton; mighty tasty. In case you were interested in our other grocery purchases, we didn't buy black licorice Scotty Dogs at Trader Joe's because while I was thrilled at the cute Scotty dogs, I wasn't wowed by their being made in black licorice. Dale, who really likes black licorice, wasn't as charmed by the cute Scotty dogs. I did succumb to Trader Joe's Ginger Shortbread Squares which are very very tasty; the dancing Scotsman on the box however seems not to be doing any Scottish dance I've ever seen. It is possible that he is doing "Scottish Dance Dance Revolution"(you can thank Dale that phrase). Thus ends this installment of Heidi's cold stream of consciousness. (Later: see the cheese at my flickr site... it's very pretty. I feel like Wallace and Gromit)