Books to the Sky

Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.

- Arnold Lobel

I have a confession to make. I love books. More specifically, buying books. I love the idea of what is in it. I love the smell of new books. I love how it always mixes in my sensory memory with the aroma of coffee. "Jen," you may say, "There's nothing wrong with that."

Here's what's wrong with that. I have every intention of reading the books that I buy...as soon as I finish the book that I'm reading now. However, when I finish that book, I may be in the mood to read something else. Long story short, I have stacks, stacks (!) of unread books.

Today, I have made a vow. A solemn vow that I intend to keep. I will not buy any more books until I finish all of the unread books that I currently possess. In order to keep that promise, I'm going to list them right here until I finish them all.

1. Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman
2. Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame Smith
3. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
4. The Girl who Played with Fire by Stied Larsson
5. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
6. About a Boy by Nick Hornby
7. Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield
8. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
9. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
10. Always Looking Up by Michael J. Fox
11. I Like You by Amy Sedaris
12. When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
13. The Alexandria Link by Steve Berry*
14. Born Standing Up by Steve Martin*

* These are actually books I borrowed and haven't read yet, so they're going on the list.

Folks, I'm going to read 'em all. And then I'm going to get a library card and make my own coffee.

Barbecue is Not a Grill

It's the time of year where we all get the hankering to cook and (inexplicably) eat outdoors. Smokey meats doused in sticky sauce start to call our name. Ladies and Gentlemen, it's Barbecue

Season.

Now there's food cooked on a grill, and then there's Barbecue. For the unindoctrinated and the yankees, here's a charming musical primer on Southern Barbecue:

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Now, there's a lot of barbecue out there, but there's a limited supply of good barbecue. There are some simple rules to help you find the tastiest shredded meat in your area:

1. Word of mouth. Find someone who knows what they're talking about and get a barbecue recommendation. It may take several tries and much experimenting.
2. Look at the cook. As a general rule, the best barbecue is cooked by big good-ole-boys and served by sarcastic, gum chomping women with frizzy hair. If the staff doesn't resemble this, you may be in trouble.
3. Sides. Check the menu before you order. If it doesn't include mac n' cheese, brunswick stew, baked beans and banana pudding, leave right now.
4. Sauce. The best places will have a variety of sauces, from vinegar-based to tomato-based to mustard-based to spicy. If they only have one, it had better be a signature sauce, like Maurice's.
5. Sketchy appearance. It may seem counter-intuitive, but the best barbecue places look like condemned barns with clouds of smoke coming out of them. If the place you're at is shiny and well-lit, give up now.

You can also make barbecue at home. It's great for parties or outdoor events. Not too long ago, I made some that was quite delicious, if a little dry. I roasted a pork butt in the oven and then pulled it and put it in a crock pot with bbq sauce and the drippings. Before roasting, I rubbed it with paprika, salt, pepper and garlic powder on a dijon mustard base. For sauce, I used Williamson Brothers' sauce.

Yummmmmmm.

The Beatles Will Never Die

What is it about The Beatles that is so pervasive? This weekend got me thinking about it after sitting in the scorching South Carolina sun to watch a tribute band.

Somehow, a 4 man band from Liverpool has managed to achieve what so few have in the history of pop culture: eternal, untouchable coolness.

When I was in high school, my best friend and I would drive home every day singing along (with assigned harmonization) to One, a compilation album of The Beatles' #1 hits. We were really good, particularly on "Eight Days a Week."

My 12 year-old brother has recently become a huge Beatles fan after I suggested that he learn "Let It Be" for a piano recital. Now the Fab Four take up his iPod. He listens to them every night. Yesterday he referenced "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" while we were watching Indiana Jones. Tonight, I heard him singing "When I'm 64" in the shower.

What the heck is going on here? How does a kid that was born in 1998 get so much enjoyment out of a musical group that broke up in 1970?

Somehow, some way, The Beatles are timeless. I once chided a roommate when she told me that she stopped listening to their music after a bad break-up, because they were her boyfriend's favorite band. Infuriated, I told her, "The Beatles are bigger than love!" What a strange sentiment, but it doesn't feel false.

Now, I'm not going to analyze why The Beatles are important musically. There are 33 million Google entries that could probably do a better job of that. I'm sure it's pretty apparent that The Beatles made largely accessible, evolving, innovative music. It's not surprising that people still love it. What is amazing about The Beatles is the collective decision that we made, consciously or not, that they were impeachably cool for all eternity.

Now certainly, the death of John Lennon played a role in this. The best thing you can do for your career in entertainment is die young and unexpectedly. However, Paul McCartney lived on, as did Ringo and George, for the time being. The heart was dead, but the soul lived on.

I think, in the end, it's a combination of factors, beginning with an insane rise to fame (what would be called Bieberesque today), an unprecedented consistency of artistic relevancy, a break-up that left the world wanting more, a villain to blame in Yoko, and finally a tragic death.

Somehow, this all led to The Beatles taking #1 on everybody's all-time lists of everything great. Seriously, have you ever met anyone who would admit to not liking The Beatles. All I know is that, even when we've lost Paul and Ringo, even when the music is 100 years old, people will still love it and listen to it.

All you need is love, and The Beatles are bigger than love.