oldies cereal

First, I was in a subway station at night. I didn't know where I was going. I tried to read the signs. It was mostly empty but I was nervous about the other people that were there. Would they try to hurt me? Was I safe?

Then I was in a white-painted pantry in the morning, looking for breakfast. I decided to mix Cheerios and some multi-grain flakey things. The white-painted pantry was part of my first apartment (although not in life, just in the dream). I sat at my old kitchen table to eat.

Soundtrack to this dream: "Summer in the City" by Loving Spoonful

Submitted for Peer Review: The Great Mattress Pad Experiment

The Great Mattress Experiment: Tests in Cuddling and Fornication, by lady_anemone, BA, and trouble4hire, AB

This experiment was designed after a new memory foam mattress pad was bought to make a mattress more comfortable. Our research was made possible in part due to a generous grant from the prestigious Pet Foundation, as well as the MA Sales Tax Holiday.

Hypothesis 1: There is a discernible difference between the mattress by itself and the mattress with the mattress pad.
Hypothesis 2: The mattress will be more comfortable to lie on with the mattress pad.
Hypothesis 3: As proposed by our esteemed colleague jenaflynn, sex will be more difficult with a memory foam mattress pad.

( Somewhat naughty, very silly. Text-only, perhaps not work safe. )

This paper is publicly released for peer review as of August 20th, 2008. Your comments are appreciated.

Dead and Loving It by MaryJanice Davidson

I got this anthology out of the library. It includes four novellas about the Wyndham Werewolves. I have to be totally honest with you, my loyal readers - I skipped the first one because it was about Christmas, and I hate Christmas. The second story I read all the way through, but readers be warned - there is nonconsensual sex with the main character's love interest. (I hate that. If he will rape you for ANY reason, including being deeply in love with you, he is NOT THE GUY.) The other novellas were good, though not especially memorable. Recommended for Davidson fans. Two and a half stars.

The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen

This book is the second novel from the author of Garden Spells. I read Garden Spells earlier this year and enjoyed it very much. This second book, I imagine, will be even more popular, as it is a bit darker and edgier than Garden Spells.

Josey is the sheltered daughter of a rich family. No one in her small hometown can forget her terrible behavior as a child. To make up for it now, she lives only to please others. Her only escape is a secret space behind her closet, which she fills with candy, romance novels, and travel magazines. But when a strange, flashy woman sneaks into her house and chooses the closet as her hiding place, everything in Josey's life will be turned upside down.

( A quote. )

Based on Garden Spells I thought that this was going to be pure, fluffy fun, but it wasn't. I liked the former a bit better, but this was still good. Three stars. Recommended for fans of Alice Hoffman.