What was begun as an online journal of the books I read evolved...or maybe it devolved...to also feature behind the scenes goings-on at All About Romance from my perspective (mostly based on my personal feelings - okay, it's a personal pity party); topics I've gone over ad nauseum in commentary at AAR, including the nature of reviews and online behavior; and my non-cyber life (including family and items in pop culture that capture my interest, which is just about everything).

Please do not violate my trust. I restricted certain AAR-related and personal entries for a reason...to keep them as private as possible. Now that my blog is read-only, to access restricted entries you must already have a password; if you do, hold onto it so that you can continue to read restricted entries.

This blog is not part of All About Romance. I ask that you keep comments or questions regarding restricted blog content off of AAR.

Below you'll find the blogs I visit, broken out in my own odd little system of categories.

June 2008



If I Never See Your Face Again

Monday, 30 June 2008 2:30 P GMT-05
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Category: Entertainment

A Cuppa

Friday, 27 June 2008 2:22 P GMT-05
Converts tend to be more fanatical about whatever is the object of their conversion than other people. It's generally true about religion, politics, sobriety...and coffee. I know. I'm a coffee convert. We travel to a lot of out-of-the-way places, and
Category: Personal/Political

More New Beginnings

Friday, 27 June 2008 11:56 A GMT-05
Earlier this month I blogged about my involvement with New Beginning Center, a domestic violence shelter for women and their children. I don't know how many - if any - of you checked out the page at AAR I set up to solicit involvement/donations, but
Category: Personal/Political

Goodreads vs Shelfari?

Thursday, 26 June 2008 12:00 A GMT-05
Lately I've been receiving a lot of email asking me to put AAR onto Goodreads. Not being as up on Web 2.0 and all the available book-related social networking sites, I'm at a loss. I decided Shelfari was a good place for me - and for AAR - because of
Category: Reading AAR Internet
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These Two Reviews from Me Today at AAR

Wednesday, 25 June 2008 4:42 P GMT-05
When a Hero Comes Alongby Teresa Southwick Sea Witchby Virginia Kantra BTW, I read the Southwick, along with two other books, on my Kindle while out of town this past week...continue to love, love, love it! TTFN, Laurie Likes Books
Category: Reading AAR

George Carlin...A Place for My Stuff

Monday, 23 June 2008 5:10 P GMT-05
Category: Entertainment

Shelfari update launch...and little old me

Tuesday, 17 June 2008 2:27 P GMT-05
Every morning I go through a routine...download email from four main email accounts. Go to webmail account for AAR Group Shelf to see if an AAR at Shelfari member wants access. Go to Shelfari to check both my personal shelf, AAR at Shelfari, and AAR
Category: Reading Internet
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Born in Death

Monday, 16 June 2008 1:28 P GMT-05
Born in Death J.D. Robb Grade: B Sensuality: Warm The delight (or sickness...take your pick) of being in the midst of a glom is that nothing will deter a reader from continuing, even in the face of disappointment. I was certainly disappointed by the
Category: Reading
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Bookies of a Feather... (added to)

Saturday, 14 June 2008 8:56 P GMT-05
At times like last night, I'm so happy to have AAR that it's hard to put into words. But let me try. A couple of days ago I asked if any of my AAR colleagues wanted me to add to their profile pages at AAR a link to an internally-hosted page containin
Category: Reading AAR
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The Best of Bravo's A-List Awards

Saturday, 14 June 2008 10:25 A GMT-05
Hulu.com still shows this embed code, but to see what I want to share with you, click here.
Category: Entertainment

High Dudgeon Peckishness, in a Prescient Fashion

Saturday, 14 June 2008 12:00 A GMT-05
Earlier in the month after I wrote my last At the Back Fence column, I told my husband that I'd been able to use a wonderful phrase in it: high dudgeon. Apparently this is not a term in as widespread use as I'd thought, but then, I spend more time in
Category: Reading Personal/Political

Tim Russert...Dead at Age 58

Friday, 13 June 2008 4:59 P GMT-05
Tim Russert, host of NBC's Meet the Press, died today while working. I don't often mention the passing of the famous, but occasionally, I will, and this is one of those occasions. Russert may not have graduated journalism school, but he was most defi
Category: Entertainment

Top Chefs

Friday, 13 June 2008 10:06 A GMT-05
Yesterday I caught up in my Top Chef Blogs reading, so that I'd have the best frame of reference upon which to write about the finale earlier this week. Although Ted Allen isn't truly a "regular" regular Top Chef judge, his wrap up of Wednesday night
Category: Entertainment

New Beginning

Thursday, 12 June 2008 12:14 P GMT-05
I hinted in a recent ATBF column that I was about to embark upon a new beginning in my life after meeting a couple of women who work at an area women's shelter. My volunteer experience began in earnest last week during a working meeting with the Dev
Category: Personal/Political

Memory in Death

Wednesday, 11 June 2008 11:57 A GMT-05
Memory in Death J.D. Robb Grade: B- Sensuality: Warm Although my copy of Memory in Death has more than a few tissues stuffed into it as bookmarks, it is one of my least favorite books in Robb's series. A scene depicting Eve's meltdown upon meeting he
Category: Reading
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Corn...or Stinging Nettles

Sunday, 8 June 2008 8:44 P GMT-05
We're watching Iron Chef America right now, and Marcus Samuelsson is facing Bobby Flay in "battle corn." Somehow this doesn't seem quite right to me; it would be akin to having the two fight "battle stinging nettles." As to Samuelsson, he's pretty cl
Category: Entertainment

Two new reviews from me at AAR today

Sunday, 8 June 2008 4:17 P GMT-05
Wicked Pleasureby Lora Leigh The Great Derangementby Matt Taibbi TTFN, Laurie Likes Books
Category: Reading AAR

Catching Up (updated)

Saturday, 7 June 2008 7:36 P GMT-05
Here are the highlights of the past few days: I am Packrat free and will try to avoid becoming, like former smokers, a proselytizer on the time-sucking dangers of Packrat. No longer will I aggravate myself obtaining (stealing or buying) Packrat item
Category: Personal/Political

The Return of the Caterpillars!

Tuesday, 3 June 2008 8:02 P GMT-05
My husband and I have anticipated the return of caterpillars, which we first noticed on Father's Day of last year. This evening as I went out to water the plants and flowers (we bought lots of parsley this year), I noticed...we had some! Last year th
Category: Personal/Political

My Birthday

Tuesday, 3 June 2008 7:13 P GMT-05
My birthday was Saturday. Which meant I was able to open my Kindle, and I was able to indulge myself in another fantastic meal. It was a great day.
Category: Personal/Political
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