Project Runway... Sewing Machines?

What's next?  Top Chef  Essence of Howie Sweat?

From TVGuide.com:
Anyone who has watched Project Runway and wished they could do something similar at home will soon find that goal a little more attainable. In a licensing deal that is unprecedented for a reality show, the Bravo hit series is teaming up with five partners to create Project Runway-branded merchandise that will be available in stores nationwide in late 2007 and early 2008.

“We are excited to make the show’s fashion and design experience accessible to consumers worldwide with specialized products and tools,” said Pam Henning, an SVP at the Weinstein Company, which produces the show. “We’ve seen how Project Runway resonates with consumers, and with the show’s tremendous reach and credibility within the fashion community, it is a natural platform for brand extensions.”

The newly licensed products will include jewelry by Aaron Co., sewing machines by Brother International, sewing accessories by Prym Consumer, fabrics by Robert Kaufman Fabrics and sewing patterns by Simplicity Pattern. Further details will be announced after the launch of the series’ fourth season this fall. 

***
Me: Actually, I kid.  I bet PR can sell sewing machines.  I hate, loathe, and despise sewing with the  heat of a drought-ridden Alabamian in a heatwave during August and PR almost makes me wish that I enjoyed sewing. 


PS - Yes, it's supposed to be 103 (or perhaps 105) again today and still no rain in sight.

In fact. I looked up the weather record so far this month and it's something like this (starting with the first):
96, 97, 97, 100, 94, 97, 100, 101, 103, 106, 104, 105, 104, 106, 105, 101, 101, 98, 95, 96, 100...

Predictions of what's to come: 103 to 105 today.  

And rain?  Hah.  I beginning to think you guys are making up this mythical thing called 'rain.'  Who believes water falls from the sky?

Waiting for summer to be over. ::sweat::

Project Runway... Sewing Machines?

What's next?  Top Chef  Essence of Howie Sweat?

From TVGuide.com:
Anyone who has watched Project Runway and wished they could do something similar at home will soon find that goal a little more attainable. In a licensing deal that is unprecedented for a reality show, the Bravo hit series is teaming up with five partners to create Project Runway-branded merchandise that will be available in stores nationwide in late 2007 and early 2008.

“We are excited to make the show’s fashion and design experience accessible to consumers worldwide with specialized products and tools,” said Pam Henning, an SVP at the Weinstein Company, which produces the show. “We’ve seen how Project Runway resonates with consumers, and with the show’s tremendous reach and credibility within the fashion community, it is a natural platform for brand extensions.”

The newly licensed products will include jewelry by Aaron Co., sewing machines by Brother International, sewing accessories by Prym Consumer, fabrics by Robert Kaufman Fabrics and sewing patterns by Simplicity Pattern. Further details will be announced after the launch of the series’ fourth season this fall. 

***
Me: Actually, I kid.  I bet PR can sell sewing machines.  I hate, loathe, and despise sewing with the  heat of a drought-ridden Alabamian in a heatwave during August and PR almost makes me wish that I enjoyed sewing. 


PS - Yes, it's supposed to be 103 (or perhaps 105) again today and still no rain in sight.

In fact. I looked up the weather record so far this month and it's something like this (starting with the first):
96, 97, 97, 100, 94, 97, 100, 101, 103, 106, 104, 105, 104, 106, 105, 101, 101, 98, 95, 96, 100...

Predictions of what's to come: 103 to 105 today.  

And rain?  Hah.  I beginning to think you guys are making up this mythical thing called 'rain.'  Who believes water falls from the sky?

Waiting for summer to be over. ::sweat::

Project Runway... Sewing Machines?

What's next?  Top Chef  Essence of Howie Sweat?

From TVGuide.com:
Anyone who has watched Project Runway and wished they could do something similar at home will soon find that goal a little more attainable. In a licensing deal that is unprecedented for a reality show, the Bravo hit series is teaming up with five partners to create Project Runway-branded merchandise that will be available in stores nationwide in late 2007 and early 2008.

“We are excited to make the show’s fashion and design experience accessible to consumers worldwide with specialized products and tools,” said Pam Henning, an SVP at the Weinstein Company, which produces the show. “We’ve seen how Project Runway resonates with consumers, and with the show’s tremendous reach and credibility within the fashion community, it is a natural platform for brand extensions.”

The newly licensed products will include jewelry by Aaron Co., sewing machines by Brother International, sewing accessories by Prym Consumer, fabrics by Robert Kaufman Fabrics and sewing patterns by Simplicity Pattern. Further details will be announced after the launch of the series’ fourth season this fall. 

***
Me: Actually, I kid.  I bet PR can sell sewing machines.  I hate, loathe, and despise sewing with the  heat of a drought-ridden Alabamian in a heatwave during August and PR almost makes me wish that I enjoyed sewing. 


PS - Yes, it's supposed to be 103 (or perhaps 105) again today and still no rain in sight.

In fact. I looked up the weather record so far this month and it's something like this (starting with the first):
96, 97, 97, 100, 94, 97, 100, 101, 103, 106, 104, 105, 104, 106, 105, 101, 101, 98, 95, 96, 100...

Predictions of what's to come: 103 to 105 today.  

And rain?  Hah.  I beginning to think you guys are making up this mythical thing called 'rain.'  Who believes water falls from the sky?

Waiting for summer to be over. ::sweat::

Dracula is a Dumbass

Okay, I have finally, finally slogged all the way through The Historian and my conclusion is that if Dracula in the story wasn't dumbass enough in his own right, he's an even greater dumbass for not murdering every other character in the book. 

Look, over the years I've read my fair share of crap. I can even enjoy crap. (Hell, I read The DaVinci Code in one sitting and have been known to defend it on the basis of it working as a fast-paced chase-thriller and travelogue).   It takes a very special kind of crap to inspire the urge to chuck a book across the room, and The Historian is that very special kind of crap.

First off, it's taken me around four months to finish the book, and the delay wasn't due to the length of the novel.  It was due to the fact that about midway through it I swore that if one more character opened his or her mouth to have yet another stilted exposition dump I was going to throw the book on the floor.   

So I did.

Of course, in childhood I developed some dogged determination to see most stories through to the end, so I eventually found the fortitude to go back to the cursed thing.  

It didn't get better.

queenofthorns or someone (perhaps a book reviewer?) said "Who remembers what they had for dinner twenty years ago?  Every character in The Historian."  After having read that remark, I literally burst out laughing when I next ran across a scene in the novel where a character described the delicious meal they had a decade earlier. 

In fact, I laughed a lot while reading the novel (at the unintentionally funny places because the author has no humor to speak of in the book).  When Dracula finally, finally put in an appearance, I giggled.  Poor Prince of Darkness, how did he become such a useless git? Snagging a quote from a review on Amazon (a review with which I heartily agree) here is one person's summation of the big plot reveal:

( Warning: Spoiler behind the cut )

For most of the novel it felt like evil!Spike lurked around somewhere in my head complaining about Dracula dicking around with innocent bystanders and collateral damage while never actually doing anything to the people he was supposedly menacing.  Meanwhile, in another space in my head, Scott Evil was jumping up and down with impatience saying he could kill these people with a gun shot in five seconds and Drac had gone 500+ pages and hadn't done anything more than piss people off and reveal his master plan (Dracula clearly never read the Evil Overlord's Handbook ).

And pulling out a couple of other quotes from the Amazon poster:

Everyone in this novel is a bookworm, for the same reason that everyone acts the same, thinks the same, and talks the same: because everyone in this novel is essentially one character, the author herself. Romanian peasant, Turkish professor, expat teenager--read a line of dialogue at random, and you'd never be able to guess who is who. When you pick up the book, it is often a bit confusing to figure out where you are...

I'll add that it's also impossible to tell when you are.  The 1950s, 60s, and 70s are all 100% interchangeable.  Gender and decade make no difference. Characters and their circumstances are exactly the same. 

( Spoilers behind the cut )

All in all, I have to give this book the prize for most annoying book I've read in a very long time.  How did this book garner so much praise?Honestly, I cannot think of a single thing about it that made it a worthwhile read.  I've read purple-prosed bodice rippers which were more entertaining.

Dracula is a Dumbass

Okay, I have finally, finally slogged all the way through The Historian and my conclusion is that if Dracula in the story wasn't dumbass enough in his own right, he's an even greater dumbass for not murdering every other character in the book. 

Look, over the years I've read my fair share of crap. I can even enjoy crap. (Hell, I read The DaVinci Code in one sitting and have been known to defend it on the basis of it working as a fast-paced chase-thriller and travelogue).   It takes a very special kind of crap to inspire the urge to chuck a book across the room, and The Historian is that very special kind of crap.

First off, it's taken me around four months to finish the book, and the delay wasn't due to the length of the novel.  It was due to the fact that about midway through it I swore that if one more character opened his or her mouth to have yet another stilted exposition dump I was going to throw the book on the floor.   

So I did.

Of course, in childhood I developed some dogged determination to see most stories through to the end, so I eventually found the fortitude to go back to the cursed thing.  

It didn't get better.

queenofthorns or someone (perhaps a book reviewer?) said "Who remembers what they had for dinner twenty years ago?  Every character in The Historian."  After having read that remark, I literally burst out laughing when I next ran across a scene in the novel where a character described the delicious meal they had a decade earlier. 

In fact, I laughed a lot while reading the novel (at the unintentionally funny places because the author has no humor to speak of in the book).  When Dracula finally, finally put in an appearance, I giggled.  Poor Prince of Darkness, how did he become such a useless git? Snagging a quote from a review on Amazon (a review with which I heartily agree) here is one person's summation of the big plot reveal:

( Warning: Spoiler behind the cut )

For most of the novel it felt like evil!Spike lurked around somewhere in my head complaining about Dracula dicking around with innocent bystanders and collateral damage while never actually doing anything to the people he was supposedly menacing.  Meanwhile, in another space in my head, Scott Evil was jumping up and down with impatience saying he could kill these people with a gun shot in five seconds and Drac had gone 500+ pages and hadn't done anything more than piss people off and reveal his master plan (Dracula clearly never read the Evil Overlord's Handbook ).

And pulling out a couple of other quotes from the Amazon poster:

Everyone in this novel is a bookworm, for the same reason that everyone acts the same, thinks the same, and talks the same: because everyone in this novel is essentially one character, the author herself. Romanian peasant, Turkish professor, expat teenager--read a line of dialogue at random, and you'd never be able to guess who is who. When you pick up the book, it is often a bit confusing to figure out where you are...

I'll add that it's also impossible to tell when you are.  The 1950s, 60s, and 70s are all 100% interchangeable.  Gender and decade make no difference. Characters and their circumstances are exactly the same. 

( Spoilers behind the cut )

All in all, I have to give this book the prize for most annoying book I've read in a very long time.  How did this book garner so much praise?Honestly, I cannot think of a single thing about it that made it a worthwhile read.  I've read purple-prosed bodice rippers which were more entertaining.

Dracula is a Dumbass

Okay, I have finally, finally slogged all the way through The Historian and my conclusion is that if Dracula in the story wasn't dumbass enough in his own right, he's an even greater dumbass for not murdering every other character in the book. 

Look, over the years I've read my fair share of crap. I can even enjoy crap. (Hell, I read The DaVinci Code in one sitting and have been known to defend it on the basis of it working as a fast-paced chase-thriller and travelogue).   It takes a very special kind of crap to inspire the urge to chuck a book across the room, and The Historian is that very special kind of crap.

First off, it's taken me around four months to finish the book, and the delay wasn't due to the length of the novel.  It was due to the fact that about midway through it I swore that if one more character opened his or her mouth to have yet another stilted exposition dump I was going to throw the book on the floor.   

So I did.

Of course, in childhood I developed some dogged determination to see most stories through to the end, so I eventually found the fortitude to go back to the cursed thing.  

It didn't get better.

queenofthorns or someone (perhaps a book reviewer?) said "Who remembers what they had for dinner twenty years ago?  Every character in The Historian."  After having read that remark, I literally burst out laughing when I next ran across a scene in the novel where a character described the delicious meal they had a decade earlier. 

In fact, I laughed a lot while reading the novel (at the unintentionally funny places because the author has no humor to speak of in the book).  When Dracula finally, finally put in an appearance, I giggled.  Poor Prince of Darkness, how did he become such a useless git? Snagging a quote from a review on Amazon (a review with which I heartily agree) here is one person's summation of the big plot reveal:

( Warning: Spoiler behind the cut )

For most of the novel it felt like evil!Spike lurked around somewhere in my head complaining about Dracula dicking around with innocent bystanders and collateral damage while never actually doing anything to the people he was supposedly menacing.  Meanwhile, in another space in my head, Scott Evil was jumping up and down with impatience saying he could kill these people with a gun shot in five seconds and Drac had gone 500+ pages and hadn't done anything more than piss people off and reveal his master plan (Dracula clearly never read the Evil Overlord's Handbook ).

And pulling out a couple of other quotes from the Amazon poster:

Everyone in this novel is a bookworm, for the same reason that everyone acts the same, thinks the same, and talks the same: because everyone in this novel is essentially one character, the author herself. Romanian peasant, Turkish professor, expat teenager--read a line of dialogue at random, and you'd never be able to guess who is who. When you pick up the book, it is often a bit confusing to figure out where you are...

I'll add that it's also impossible to tell when you are.  The 1950s, 60s, and 70s are all 100% interchangeable.  Gender and decade make no difference. Characters and their circumstances are exactly the same. 

( Spoilers behind the cut )

All in all, I have to give this book the prize for most annoying book I've read in a very long time.  How did this book garner so much praise?Honestly, I cannot think of a single thing about it that made it a worthwhile read.  I've read purple-prosed bodice rippers which were more entertaining.