I recently re-read all 4 of those books JUST so I could reread Babeltower... one of my top 5 favorite books of all time.
Speaking of which, it's probably about time soon-ish for a new AS Byatt book... off to check Knopf website...

Ooh I posted almost the same thing about "theme." Circus-theme! Great-Gatsby-theme! Train-theme! I have seen all of these on various 'real wedding' sites and mags.

Yeah and she had the lilies all done up in these tall glass vases that I just KNOW were going to be filled with clear glass beads and fairy lights and/or floating candles. My theory is that this is what happens when 19-year-olds get married — they're only about 3 steps removed from decorating for Prom.

Getting married early next fall — almost none of my vendors asked me about my "colors" (or if they did it was much further down on the questionaire). Now they all want to know the "style": elegant, rustic, preppy, vintage, etc. I blame Pinterest primarily. However, it's been refreshingly easy to answer "elegant barn…

Oh god, when I went to visit the first florist of 2 options (getting married in my smallish hometown), she had just finished spray painting 22 centerpieces full of lilies for a bride whose colors were orange and red. A bright orange and red wedding. *head explodes*

Ooh yes, grey is very chic right now. Look up "grey & navy wedding" on Pinterest. My groom and his 'smen are going to wear grey suits rather than tuxes so I'm all about grey. My colors are "pastel" — partly because I can't make up my mind, partly because I'm going with only white/green flowers/greenery (the cheapest…

Aw, she's my wedding photographer. She is amazing—glad to see she posted about this.

Yes! "Goal Oriented" is a great term! My partner is so focused on my orgasm that sometimes I get frustrated because it can be such hard work to get there! Sometimes I just want the closeness/bonding without expending the energy to focus on what he's doing to me! I'm working on him — he is willing to forgo his orgasm…

I have pale skin/medium brunette hair and this Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil is one of the most flattering lipsticks I own. The shade is Never Say Never. It's a tiny bit more pink than purple, but it's really pretty.

We use jarred oysters (so basically, already cooked). No use wasting the good kind you'd want to eat raw! Love oyster stuffing, it just has a tasty hint of something "extra".

It feels so good to laugh

It feels so good to laugh

I think you could shred them in the food processor and save your fingers! Also, the way my dad does — you cut the bottom of the sprout and then halve each one and put the flat side down and slice each half 3-4 times that will shred. But it IS time-consuming. I cook for 2 so it's not so bad to shred up a batch.

Those shredded sprouts cooked with some bacon or pancetta are a great side dish with seared scallops. Cook both the sprouts and the scallops in the bacon grease!

THANK YOU. I am making crash hot potatoes and roasted brussel sprouts for dinner tomorrow FO SHO.

Oh, I've eaten at the Houston branch. I consider myself an amateur of wine bars and LOVED it! Even cooler that they employ a female exec chef — ask her to open an NYC branch so I can go more often! ;-)

HOW do they chew so loudly!? One of my cats woke me up at 5am this morning, chewing loudly on a piece of string hanging down from the blinds. She was across the room. With the ceiling fan on. And my fiance snoring. And it was the chewing that woke me.

I saute with butter and a splash of white vermouth. And I leave the stems — I like a little crunch. That with some salt and pepper (and garlic if you want it), is a really good side dish.

The most recent EW is the "Reunions" issue and they actually specifically address that pregnancy. Can't remember the exact quote but Chris Carter said something to the effect that it changed the whole course of the show because once Scully was abducted she became less of a skeptic and it allowed the relationship…

Barney Stinson has known this for years — "The Cheerleader Effect aka The Bridesmaid Paradox." http://how-i-met-your-mother.wikia.com/wiki/The_Cheer…