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happy day!

~ jama ~ 3 Comments

*jumping up and down with unbridled elation*

WooHoo! Congratulations to all the winners and honorees of the American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards!

It was so exciting watching the live webcast this morning, with everybody sitting on the edge of their seats, rooting for their favorite books. I was so so so happy when Marla Frazee’s, A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever, won a Caldecott Honor!! Yes, I’m shamelessly partial to picture books, but this was definitely one of my faves from 2008 (see my review here, and my interview with Marla, here, where she discusses the genesis of this book).

I also leapt out of my seat when Laura Vaccaro Seeger’s One Boy won a Geisel Honor Medal. This woman is red hot — last year, she earned a Caldecott Honor for First the Egg (my interview with Laura is here).

And, one of the biggest thrills was hearing Laurie Halse Anderson’s name mentioned as the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement in Writing for Young Adults. What a year Laurie’s had — with Chains being named a finalist for the National Book Award, and then recently winning the 2009 Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and now this!

Oh wow, now I have to calm down and get some work done.

Anyway, click here to see the full list of winners, which includes:

Newbery Medal: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.
Caldecott Medal: The House in the Night by Beth Krommes and Susan Marie Swanson.

Mountains of chocolate for everyone!!

friday feast: yum yum dim sum!

~ jama ~ 50 Comments

 

Guess what I’m eating this weekend?

Just the thought of all those little dishes and plates full of char siu bao (barbecue pork buns), har gow (shrimp dumplings), and siu mai (pork and mushroom dumplings) is enough to quicken my pulse and make my eyes roll back in my head. *salivates and smacks lips*

 

But it’s not my usual shameful self indulgence. This time, I have a legitimate excuse — Monday, January 26th, is Chinese Lunar New Year!


I love you, shrimp dumplings!

It’s the year of the Ox, also called the Brown Cow. I checked my astrological forecast, and my lucky element is Fire. I’ve been advised to wear red and decorate my home in a red scheme to energize my life.

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chili in every bowl

~ jama ~ 19 Comments

Happy Inauguration Day! So exciting!

I know you’ll be busy watching the inaugural ceremony and parade on TV and all, but NOW HEAR THIS: in order to properly celebrate this momentous occasion, this defining moment, this day when America turns on its axis — there is one thing you absolutely have-tuh do:

EAT CHILI!

That’s right! As I mentioned when I posted his recipe awhile back, chili is Barack’s favorite thing to cook. It makes perfect sense, too — an easy crowd pleaser, infinitely adaptable whether you’re a carnivore or vegetarian. Everyman’s food.

There is one thing, though: Barack’s chili (pictured above with ground beef), is surprisingly bland. No salt or tomato sauce was listed in the recipe ingredients. I know there are as many kinds of chili as there are people, but I did think the omission of salt was strange. Maybe that’s why he’s President and not a professional chef!

Anyway, it doesn’t matter whether you doctor up Barack’s recipe, use your own, open up a can, or grab a bowl of the stuff at your favorite restaurant — just as long as you eat some (over rice). Yes, it’s your civic duty!

And for dessert, indulge in some of this special Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, renamed just for the month of January in honor of Barack Obama. It’s available in scoop shops around the country — "amber waves of buttery ice cream with roasted non-partisan pecans." All proceeds from its sale goes to the Common Cause Education Fund.

          

Just last week, Barack was spotted at Ben’s Chili Bowl in D.C. (see video).

This cool video featuring the Obama song will get you movin’ and shakin’ (thanks, Jules)!

Also, this is a very interesting website covering Barack’s Hawai’i connections — places he lived, schools attended, etc. Thanks to James for the link!

For the official Inauguration Day Schedule, click here.

Change we can believe in:
Yesterday = chicken in every pot
Today =  chili in every bowl.

Hot stuff!

bbrrrrrrrrr!

~ jama ~ 28 Comments

Holy icicle, it’s cold here! I know, I know. I shouldn’t complain about 2 degrees F when people in the Midwest have been in the subzeros for awhile now.

I do know the best way to keep warm is to channel Hawai’i.

But if you wanna be Hawaiian, you gotta have a Hawaiian name.

My name, Jama, is a combination of James and Margaret. The Hawaiian equivalent combines Kimo with Makaleka — Kima. Not bad, Kima Rattigan.

Here are the Hawaiian first names of some of my favorite people:

Paulo McCartney
Lopaka Dylan
Palapala Streisand
Pali Gibb
Peweli Cleary
Kini Austen
Kinini Atkins
Keli Fineman.

Find out your Hawaiian name here or here.


Got it? Now put this flowah  behind yo’ ear.

Lookin’ good!

 
Have some Kona coffee and coconut cake.

Warm yet?

Okay. Now, escape to Waikiki, compliments of the Brothers Cazimero. Return there whenever you feel a chill coming on. 


Remember, your chant for today: Waikiki, Waikiki, Waikiki . . .

Now you sizzling, brah!

Aloha,

Kima
xxoo

presenting: fuzzy the fox!

~ jama ~ 31 Comments

You probably know we live in the woods and have a lot of critters running around. I’ve posted pics of deer, wild turkeys, and squirrels before.

But I’ve never posted any fox pictures, because they’re mainly nocturnal and very shy and elusive. That’s why I was so excited to spot Fuzzy this week curled up and napping in our back yard. He’s quite handsome, with thick red fur and black ears. It’s taken me almost 10 years to get a fox photo.

This one is for Jules, who asked if I had any Fuzzy pictures. This one’s quite fuzzy :)!

And to everyone in snow country, as you can see, no snow or ice on the ground for us in Virginia, yet. Hope the clear weather holds out for Inauguration Day. Stay warm!!