Contest(s)

• Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of Frisky Business by Tawna Fenske. Closes May 18. US & Canada.

• Blodeuedd’s also giving away a copy of The Forgotten Seamstress by Liz Trenow. Closes May 18. US & Canada.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and AAR (romance)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• “Dear Author is not any publisher’s bitch“.

• Dear Author on digital first publishing.

• Linkity from Smart Bitches.

• Love Romance Passion shares three reading pet peeves.

• Kassa wonders why sex in YA novels isn’t considered ok. Keira Andrews wonders if there should be sex in YA.

• “LGBT representation in mainstream American comics, part 1“.

• An online graphical dictionary to help you visualize word associations.

• Chipotle’s bags and cups now have “original musings by literary minds” on them.

• 24 books that predicted the future infographic.

• George R.R. Martin writes using DOS.

• You could buy Dracula’s castle. (via mental_floss)

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• “10 comics that can help you understand mental illness” (of course Hyperbole and a Half is one!).

• 10 disappearing or vanished lakes.

• History of the chocolate chip. (Spoiler: That Toll House story is a lie!)

• On sneezing.

• “An introvert’s guide to surviving a weekend with strangers“.

• Credit card skimmers have been found on USPS stamp machines.

• Most commonly spoken language by state after English and Spanish. (Guess for Minnesota before you follow the link. I’ll be really surprised if anyone guesses correctly!)

• Which countries drink the most? And if you ignore abstinence?

• Hockey and players of color.

Cookity

• Mediterranean cauliflower “couscous” salad.

• Sweet pea hummus.

• Avocado stuffed with spicy shrimp.

• Strawberry oatmeal chia smoothie. (via The Kitchn)

• 11 rhubarb recipes.

• Peanut butter pavlova.

• Lemon sorbet.

• Cosmo slushy.

Gluten Free

• Chocolate cake mix doughnuts.

• Cherry turnovers.

• Pecan carrot cake cupcakes with vanilla bean cream cheese frosting.

• BBQ chicken pizza.

Crafty

• Crochet the Death Star. (via CRAFT)

• Turn a tshirt into a cat tent. (via CRAFT) (Jeanne! We could totally do this! Looks much less messy than decoupage was.)

Cool

• Minneapolis: Weisman Art Museum. Spoonbridge and Cherry. Driving into downtown. Downtown skyline. Downtown.

• Artistic staircases.

• More unusual dragon hoards.

• LEGOesque recreation of Bobby Orr’s iconic goal.

• Star Wars villains Disneyified.

• Poster covering 100 years of cameras.

• A year of repairs to the Washington Monument in 80 seconds.

Cool or Wha…?

• Tie Fighter nutcracker.

• 10 special edition Mr. Potato Heads.

• 35 of the world’s scariest places.

• War Worm from the BBC.

• Star Wars, Tarantino style.

Wha…?

• Manly candles.

• Would you swim swim between two the tops of two 38-story buildings?

• Burger King has a triple-patty nacho Godzilla burger in Malaysia.

• 50 really weird stock photos. (via Sklya)

• Pigs that taste like whiskey.

• Frozen treats made with NHL arena ice. (EWWWW.)

• Uterus cakes.

LOL

• Hedging reporters. (Hover your cursor for additional text.)

• Alpacas and chickens.

• Every. Single. Time.

• That’s a sturdily mounted toilet paper holder.

• Not this black kitty’s finest moment.

• Batcat.

• Bad kitty!

Teh Cute

• Kittens! Tiger and babies! Baby cheetah! Black kitten! Black kitten! Kitten! Ducklings! Kitten! Kitten! Tiger and babies! Takin and baby! Chinchilla! Lioness and babies! Lynx and baby! Lioness and baby!

Reading Update

• Do you really expect one at this point?

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“….zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz….” -Chaos

(That’s his back foot in the upper right corner of the picture, if that helps.)

Contest(s)

• Blodeuedd’s giving away winner’s choice from the first eight books of  Gini Koch’s Alien series, plus postcards and magnets. Closes May 18.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and Tor.com (PNR)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• Kassa ponders the need for happy endings in romance.

• Bookity linkity from Becky Black.

• 11 ancient/medieval alphabets.

• Scroll down to the bed frame made from paperbacks.

• Why the book is always better than the movie.

Think, Make, Learn, Do

• NPR on a US government report about the impacts of climate change. (via Wil Wheaton)

• “Why Minneapolis is one of America’s best winter biking cities“.

• Apparently South Dakota is the best place in the US to retire to.

• Senator Al Franken on net neutrality. tl;dr.

• An app that lets friends/family track a cyclist on a ride, just in case.

• “For fitness bands, slick marketing but suspect results“. (via Gizmodo)

• Win Rock-Paper-Scissors with science.

• How has Disneyland changed since 1955?

• Infographic for doing your laundry more effectively.

• “If we could convert the energy to build the Great Pyramid, would it be enough to send a rocket to the Moon and back?“

• How IKEA products are named. Watch IKEA spread around the world.

• The history of lolcats.

• Welcome to element number 117, ununseptium.

• Science experiments you can eat.

Cookity

• Cookie dough and whipped cream chocolate cake. (via bropunzeling)

• Creme brulee cupcakes. (via The Kitchn)

• Creme brulee baked oatmeal. (via The Kitchn)

• Rhubarb crumble.

• Sweet potato flan.

• Mixed berry and jasmine tea scones.

• Vietnamese spring rolls with Thai dipping sauce.

• Chipotle Cajun shrimp and guacamole pizza. (via The Kitchn)

• Guacamole deviled eggs. (via The Kitchn)

• 5 ways to add vegetarian protein to salads.

Gluten Free

• Thick-crust pizza dough.

• Strawberry cake roll.

Flourless chocolate cake.

• Multigrain lemon poppy seed muffins.

• Starbucks-style morning buns.

• Zucchini fritters with sweet soy dipping sauce.

• Slow-cooker sweet pork tacos with black beans. (via The Kitchn)

Cool

• I live less than a mile from where this photo was taken. (via joyfulseeker)

• 3D pavement drawings. And 3D beach sand drawings.

• A short film with a corgi, zombies, and some hockey touches.

• Hockey-themed birth announcements.

• Radio that follows sunrise around the world.

• Linkity from kmkat.

Cool or Wha…?

• A bicycle that folds to the size of an umbrella.

• Mobius table.

Wha…?

• Peeps – not just for Easter anymore.

• X-Men Twinkies.

• Spicy Chicken Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos.

• Scratch’n’sniff travel guidebook that includes horse manure.

• A man in Georgia held up a Waffle House with a pitchfork.

• When you’re dining alone at this restaurant in Japan. you will receive a stuffed animal to keep you company.

• A paper towel holder with a USB hub.

• An animated short called Prehistoric Hockey.

LOL

• The xkcd phone… (Hover cursor for additional text.)

• Amusing “infographics”.

• 15 funny texts from mothers.

• The Stanley Cup beard watch.

• Friends-style opening for Game of Thrones.

• Tiny hamster eating tiny pizza.

• Llama shaming.

• Please don’t make the animals sick.

• Penguin family vacations.

• Henri the Existential Cat returns.

• I know the feeling.

• Worried cat is worried.

• Cat questions.

• Such a helpful kitty.

Teh Cute

• Kittens! Red panda! Kittens! Albino kiwi! Kittens! Baby leopard! Baby sand cats! Reindeer and baby! Baby otters! Red panda! Tiger!

Reading Update

• Look! Over there! Is that the Stanley Cup playoffs?!

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Flashback Friday! Here’s May as a seven-month old kitten, keeping her eye on a wand toy that she’s about to leap after.

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Congrats to Sandra, who won an ebook copy of the Butt Ninjas from Hell anthology by Kage Alan, JP Barnaby, Ally Blue, TC Blue, Shae Connor, Jevocas Green, Kiernan Kelly, & Eden Winters!

Congrats to Jen CW, who won Stuck in Oz (Tales from Kansas) by Andrew Grey! Stuck in Oz was released by Dreamspinner Press on April 30.

Congrats to Rachel, who won Perfect Imperfections by Cardeno C! Perfect Imperfections will be released by Dreamspinner Press on May 5.

Congrats to MaryMary, who won a “Love” ring plus Sex and Candy by Nico Jaye!

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Contest(s)

• Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of The Day He Kissed Her by Juliana Stone. Closes May 10. US & Canada.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and Tor.com (UF, genre benders, scifi, fantasy)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• Linkity from Smart Bitches.

• VacuousMinx on self-publishing and Marx.

• VacuousMinx shares some ways to learn more about the genre of romance.

• “The uses and misuses of canon“.

• Becky Black shares seven tips for writing blurbs.

• Kassa on how useful (or not) she found the swag from an m/m romance con she recently attended.

• Tip of My Tongue helps you figure out the word you can’t quite remember.

• Infographic of science fiction books predicting (or influencing?) the future.

• Discover fanfiction! (The comments/tags are fabulous.)

• You are so busted, George R.R. Martin!

• Romance novel reader workouts: XVI and XVII (with link to all of the workouts).

• Publishing humor.

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• If your NHL team is out of the playoffs, Down Goes Brown will help you choose a new team to cheer for.

• April was a record-breaking month for earthquakes.

• How sunscreen works.

• Oh, Comcast, you really shouldn’t belittle the Consumerist. It won’t end well for you.

• Consumerist’s April recall roundup.

• 18 unusual May holidays.

• How to detect bad/badly reported science.

• Why we can see better when we squint.

• The problems with building a billion-story building.

• Fractals explained, noir style.

• Which countries drive on which side of the road (and all the countries that aren’t doing the same thing they started out doing).

Cookity

• Rhubarb recipes. And more rhubarb recipes.

• 12 spring salads.

• Sweet corn risotto.

• Green rice.

• Spicy grapefruit guacamole.

• Crunchy black bean tacos.

• Quick chicken posole.

• Skillet cookies. (via The Kitchn)

• Chocolate-covered strawberries.

Gluten Free

• Chocolate almond muffins.

• Individual chocolate cakes with dulce de leche.

• Chocolate mousse cake.

• Sopapillas.

• Easy sandwich rolls.

• Grilled BCT sandwich.

• There’s a new gluten-free flour made out of dried coffee cherry pulp.

Cool

• Hockey hugs! (Be warned – some of these are terrifying.)

• NHL team logos as medieval banners.

• Sweet comic story – there is knitting! And a princess! And grizzled hero companions!

• The cats of the internet.

• Look at London in 1924 and 2014 – simultaneously.

• Minneapolis City Hall on a rainy day wouldn’t look out of place in London.

• Linkity from kmkat.

• Yoga cat. (I would think that would lead to a lot of scratches.)

• Animated gifs of obsolete technology.

• Visualization of the Monkey Head Nebula.

• Star Wars Jedis fighting Harry Potter wizards!

Cool or Wha…?

• Octopus yarn bowl.

• Zombie apocalypse survival bracelet.

Wha…?

• Giant robot sound effect slippers.

• Restaurant photo booth station.

LOL

• 29 best autocorrects from April.

• Princess cakes, wreck style.

• Mail vs email, then and now.

• Ah, falling down the old files hole. (Hover cursor for additional text – on my Android tablet, I can get the additional text by long-pressing.)

• Goats on a horse!

• Tiny hamsters eating tiny burritos.

• Such a helpful kitty.

• Hiding fail.

Teh Cute

• Baby caracal! Cheetah and baby! Tiger and baby! Hummingbirds! Cat! Lion and baby! Kitten! Klipspringer! Penguins! Kittens! Porcupette! Piebald squirrel! Leopard and baby! Kittens! Baby penguins! Baby clouded leopards! Dwarf Zebu and baby!

Reading Update

• Some hockey fics. 🙂

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“I’m just going to stay here in the past, when we had sunshine.” -Mayhem

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and AAR (romance)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• On being a critical fan.

• Dear Author has an updated version of VacuousMinx’s post on the length and form of genre fiction.

• Some women in China were arrested for writing fanfiction.

• Most famous book set in each US state. (Hmm. I think On the Banks of Plum Creek might give Sinclair Lewis a run for his money.)

• Build a sliding door bookcase.

• The National Reconnaissance Office’s approach to Where’s Waldo. (Hover cursor for additional text.)

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• Hey, the FDA recommends getting rid of old/excess medications the same way I always do. 🙂

• It looks like Nike is leaving the wearable fitness trackers market.

• Amazon adds Prime Pantry.

• General Mills has changed its mind about taking away consumers’ rights.

• Most US internet connections aren’t what they’re claimed to be.

• The Supreme Court wonders why Minute Maid’s pomegranate juice only has 0.3% pomegranate in it.

• Neil deGrasse Tyson on race, gender, genetics, and science. He’s a smart man.

• Simple animation explaining climate change.

• And another explaining how tsunamis form.

• At what speed would rain shatter your windshield?

• The TTB approved and then reversed its approval of powdered alcohol.

• Because of LEDs, your whites won’t look as white when you do laundry.

• xkcd on free speech. (Hover cursor for additional text.)

Cookity

• Chocolatey recipes (pictures at the beginning, links to recipes at the bottom), including Oreo cookie waffles and York Peppermint Patty brownies.

• Rhubarb and ginger jam cake.

• Strawberry-rhubarb streusel bars.

• Dark chocolate almond cookies. (via The Kitchn)

• Fluffernutter ice cream sandwiches. (via The Kitchn)

• Mango sticky rice. (via The Kitchn)

• Chicken in coconut milk with lemongrass.

• BBQ margarita chicken tostadas with sweet jalapeno margarita salsa. (via The Kitchn)

• Steak and avocado Ceasar salad.

• Radish and egg salad sandwiches. (via The Kitchn)

• Thai salad with curry coconut dressing. (via The Kitchn)

• Beet risotto. (via The Kitchn)

• Roasted spiced almond cauliflower.

• Honey sriracha roasted Brussels sprouts. (via The Kitchn)

• 11 asparagus recipes.

Gluten Free

• Chocolate caramel macarons. (Thanks, Mary Lou!)

• Half brownie, half cookie cookies.

• Dark chocolate popovers.

• Maple butter blondies.

• Subway-style sandwich rolls.

• Braided stuffed spinach and pepperoni pizza.

• There’s now a gluten-free taproom in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Crafty

• Knit a Wonder Woman jumper. (via zarathuse)

• Make a felt kitty bookmark. (via CRAFT)

Cool

• Montreal street art. (via Piper Vaughn)

• Yarnbombed benches in San Francisco.

• Large Hadron Collider umbrella.

• Photos of Star Wars miniatures.

• Linkity from kmkat.

• Watch videos of GE destroying things like a rubber ducky (well, they tried) and a baseball.

• All the Stanley Cup celebrations from 1949 through 2013.

Cool or Wha…?

• Quirky chopsticks.

• Weird toys from our childhoods. (Definitely skim through the comments for more pictures.)

• Unicorn rainbow fart cake. (via The Mary Sue)

Wha…?

• Beer lollipops.

• Fourth of July candy corn.

• Paying for unknown Doritos flavors.

• Movies that are in the works: one based on the Disney It’s a Small World ride, one based on Peeps (the candy), and a Barbie live-action comedy.

• Busy intersection with no traffic controls.

• Bearskin sleeping bag.

• Table containing a cat run.

LOL

• 8 text comebacks that burn.

• 12 Easter autocorrects.

• The problem with phone alarms. (Hover cursor for additional text.)

• How capitalism works. (Actually, it’s not really funny, but…) (via Wil Wheaton)

• “The male version of Power Girl’s boob window is…” (NSFWish)

• This sure isn’t the case at my house – food dropped on the floor doesn’t survive five seconds because Chaos.

Teh Cute

• Otter and babies! Kitten! Kitten! Kittens! Baby tiger! Kittens! Black cat! Otter and baby! Lioness and baby!

Reading Update

• Hockey fics! Woot!

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“Too close? I’m sure I have no idea what you’re talking about.” -Chaos

Randonymity

• So, we got 10.5 inches/26.67 cm of snow last Friday. Then it got sunny and warmer and the snow was completely gone by Sunday afternoon. This video will help you share some of that experience: Are You MN Enough? Winter Sucks.

• Saturday night I dragged Jeanne to see Cloud Cult at the Fitzgerald Theater. It was awesome. 🙂 Here’s a great song of theirs (“Armor and Calla Lilies”) that sadly wasn’t played.

• Less than awesome was Chaos managing to scrape one of his corneas again (scroll down to the cat picture and note below it) on Wednesday. Ointment four times each day and back to the vet Tuesday for a recheck. Ugh. 🙁

Contest(s)

• Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of Dance Until Dawn by Berni Stevens. Closes April 12.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and Tor.com (PNR)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• Writerly linkity from Becky Black.

• “In search of the ‘pure reader’“.

• Fiction Vixen shares tips for making sure the last book in your series actually feels like the end of the series.

• KJ Charles with a great flowchart for helping authors deal with negative reviews on Amazon.

• One reader’s tale of switching from iPhone to Android. (One of her complaints was that Mailbox wasn’t available for Android, but it is now.)

• 10 interesting American libraries.

• “Spoilers for every book ever“. (Thanks, Kate!)

• Good point!

• ‘Tis a bitter moment in the fanfic reader’s life, this. Time to reread! 🙂

• Erm… I might resemble this one.

Think, Do, Make, Learn

• You probably need to change some passwords because of the Heartbleed security bug. Good luck figuring out which sites have properly updated and reissued their security certificates so that it’s safe to change your password. (“Safe” as in you won’t have to change it at that same site again right away because they weren’t completely done with the fix.) Some black humor to help you through. (Hover your cursor for additional text.) And an explanation of Heartbleed from xkcd. (Again with the hovering.)

• Lots of vehicle recalls this week – this post about BMW’s recall has links to Ford and Toyota’s as well. “What to do if your car is recalled: An explainer“.

• CallRed can help you contact people who can actually help you with problems when a company has bad customer service.

• Tips for baking without gluten.

• “The leading flank in discovering how to use technology in cool, interesting, thoughtful ways will generally always be the amateurs.“

• When your favorite TV shows continue on after they should end.

• How to generate electricity from your faucet.

Cookity

• Saag paneer.

• Spicy peanut kale salad.

• Spring asparagus quinoa salad with tarragon vinaigrette. (via The Kitchn)

• Shrimp and asparagus risotto. (via The Kitchn)

• Asparagus and mozzarella pizza.

• Chocolate lava cakes with salted caramel goo. (via The Kitchn)

• Apricot chocolate fudge cake.

• Pink grapefruit margaritas. (via The Kitchn)

Gluten Free

• Sandwich Thins copycat recipe.

• Tiramisu cupcakes.

• Blondie-style quinoa bars.

• Elephant ears/palmiers.

• Cinnamon sugar soft pretzel bites and sticks.

• Crullers.

• 10 parve Passover desserts. (I haven’t confirmed that each of the recipes is gf, but it’s very likely that most, if not all, are. Beware any matzo.)

• Links to lots of muffin recipes.

Crafty

• Turn leftover cardboard into a cardboard ball toy for your cat. (via CRAFT)

Cool

• The geology of Game of Thrones. (via Tor.com)

• Game of Meows. (via The Mary Sue) And Game of Cats.

• All of the onscreen deaths (5179) in Game of Thrones… so far. (I’m going to guess this contains spoilers……)

• Animated short made with sticky notes.

• Completely amazing 3-D pregame video extravaganza by the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

• Tetris, 29 stories tall.

• Behind the scenes of 2001: A Space Odyssey. (via Wil Wheaton)

• Iconic album covers in Street View. (via Sploid)

• Geeky plushies from Funko. (via The Mary Sue)

• Timelapse of LEGO Fenway Park being built.

• Crafty miniatures.

• Dragon with a yarn hoard!

• Linkity from kmkat.

Cool or Wha…?

• Goats and sheep bleating the Game of Thrones theme song.

Wha…?

• A proposed addition to US Copyright Law that would make it illegal to link to certain content.

• As Hollywood’s leading men age, their love interests (overall) do not. (via Wil Wheaton)

• A man in China built a copy of the space shuttle on his roof.

• Creepy baby doll cakes.

• Minty fresh jeans.

• A woman received a birthday card in the mail – a birthday card that was mailed in 1969, from her (now dead) parents.

LOL

• The best of Parents Shouldn’t Text.

• How gay marriage affects straight men.

• What does the type of coffee you order say about you? (It’s spot-on for me with the mocha!)

• International landlubber code flags. (via java-genie)

• How to figure out who painted a painting.

• More truth in advertising…

• The comments on this app-enabled smart egg tray are hilarious. (Thanks, Cheryl!)

• Vicious polar bear attack!

• Kittens are extremely dangerous.

• “Cats are not nearly as impressed with magic as dogs“.

Teh Cute

• Jaguar and baby! Otters and babies! Cranes and baby! Kitten! Muskox and baby! Baby tiger! Baby agouti! Baby penguins!

Reading Update

• It’s almost time for the playoffs! 🙂

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*kitty meditation* -Mayhem

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Congrats to Louise, who won Moonlight Becomes You (Lucky Moon #1) (2nd ed) by Piper Vaughn and M.J. O’Shea!  Moonlight Becomes You will be released by Dreamspinner Press on April 7.

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Contest(s)

• Kaetrin’s celebrating her birthday by giving away a romance book bundle valued at $155. Make sure you read the post about how to enter! Closes 5 pm Adelaide (Australia) time, April 5. Australia only.

• Blodeuedd’s giving away How to Handle a Cowboy by Joanne Kennedy, plus a cowboy-themed gift. Closes April 12 – make sure you read how to enter.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance) and Tor.com (genre benders, fantasy, scifi, urban fantasy)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• How to buy ebooks from anywhere, remove DRM, and read them from one place.

• Read or listen to 12 Years a Slave for free.

• “Good books are hard to write, bad books are a breeze“.

• “Genre lines: Why literary writers won’t self-publish“.

• Book linkity from the Hypeless Romantic.

• Some history of the f-word.

• 19 rules that copyeditors used to enforce.

• Linkity approves of this: “Fiercety, seriosity, debonairity: 14 abstract nouns we need to bring back“.

• “Diction-Fairy“.

• Orange books.

Think, Do, Learn, Make

• Fascinating look at the history of cats.

• Smart birds.

• How many days of your life have you spent watching tv?

• The Start Menu will return to Windows 8.1 with an April 8 update.

• Make your own grout cleaner.

• How to fix food with too much salt or spice.

• 15 unusual April holidays.

• Dead malls. (via Wil Wheaton)

• The California drought’s not going to improve anytime soon, and what that means for both California and the rest of the US.

• “You’re always coming out“.

• “Asperger’s and the art of allegory“. (via Kephiso)

• Hockey science videos: slap shots and skating on ice.

Cookity

• Milo ice cream cake. (via The Kitchn)

• Marble cake made with olive oil.

• Nutella rolls. (via The Kitchn)

• Meyer Lemon Shaker pie.

• Buttery lemon lace cookies.

• Dairy-free chocolate syrup.

• Chocolate-dipped bacon. (via CRAFT)

• Spiced rice pudding.

• Chipotle peso chicken burrito bowls. (via The Kitchn)

• Crispy garlic bread grilled cheese sandwiches. (via puckling)

• Curried coconut quinoa and greens with roasted cauliflower. (via The Kitchn)

• Spiced eggplant with yogurt and quinoa. (via The Kitchn)

• Citrus fennel salad. (via The Kitchn)

• Smoked salmon dip. (via The Kitchn)

• Baked eggs in pomodoro sauce. (via The Kitchn)

• Breakfast pizza. (via The Kitchn)

• 13 five-ingredient dinners.

Gluten Free

• Taco Bellesque smothered burrito.

• Pumpkin empanadas.

• Oat, number, and fruit bread.

• Texas Roadhouse style rolls.

• Easter chick cupcakes.

• Coconut layer cake.

• S’Mores cookies.

• Peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

• Chocolate chocolate chip cookies.

Crafty

• Turn a soda bottle into an adorable planter kitty. (If the google translate link doesn’t work, here’s the direct link.) (Thanks, Jeanne!)

• Make your own glow-in-the-dark stars. (via CRAFT)

Cool

• Simon’s Cat car decals?!

• Yes, this.

• Everyday awards.

• Animated My Little Blackhawk short! Too bad it’s an April Fool’s joke.

• Han Solo and Batman riding Swift Wind. (via The Mary Sue)

• Adorable dinosaur prints.

• Planetary plates.

• Spend an hour with Adam Savage.

• Turn your webcam feed into ASCII.

• Cat fight from a cat’s perspective.

• Tilt-shift time lapse short of Sydney, Australia.

• Touristy NYC pictures of Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen.

• A photo of eight hours of flights departing from LAX.

• Photos of cities with the past and present literally merged.

• Linkity from kmkat.

Cool or Wha…?

• Catwheels.

• Game of Thrones recapped in emojis.

• Clear putty.

• Tea-strainer shaped like an axe.

Wha…?

• Fish egg-stuffed crust pizza.

• Oh Canada, land of the french fry-smelling roads.

• Testing condom strength with Coke, Mentos, and Nutella.

• Ohio bananas.

LOL

• March’s funniest autocorrects.

• A guide to Fahrenheit for the rest of the world.

• Before there was the internet… (Hover your cursor for additional text.)

• “Puck Yeah!” hockey music video.

• Desperate times… (Thanks, Jeanne!)

• New Simon’s Cat.

• Oh, cats.

• Not one of my cats – neither approve of water falling on them.

Teh Cute

• Tiger and baby! Baby platypus! Baby otters! Kittens! Otter and babies! Baby turtles! Baby clouded leopards! Baby donkey! Baby fennec!

Reading Update

• I bet I don’t even need to tell you. 🙂

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“Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr” -Mayhem

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Congrats to DebraG, who won A Courageous Ride (The Bullriders #3) by Andrew Grey! A Courageous Ride will be released by Dreamspinner Press on March 31.

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Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• “When online reviewing is no longer fun“. “Reading and reviewing, then and now“.

• Dear Author ponders the usefulness of Facebook.

• Becky Black thinks about what makes someone a writer.

• Diesel eBooks is closing at the end of March.

• Learn about Little Free Libraries.

• One writer shares her descent into reading fan fiction. (via TeleRead)

• World record breaking book domino chain.

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• So, what if male superheroes posed the same way female superheroes do? (Thanks, Expy!)

• 20 tidbits about cats.

• How Robert Luongo saved Vancouver.

• Senator Franken, telling it like it is re: the proposed Comcast/Time Warner merger.

• How to fold a fitted sheet.

• How to use a rotary phone.

• Three simple animations that explain complex subjects: how we know the age of the sun, what’s inside a black hole, and how big the Universe is.

• How the Corvette Museum rescued most of its cars from that giant sinkhole.

• Easy exercises to increase bone strength.

Cookity

• Oatmeal Nutella mug cake.

• Nutella and bacon stuffed French toast. (via The Kitchn)

• Chocolate-filled hazelnut cookies.

• Dark chocolate walnut cookies.

• Raw chocolate chip cookie dough bites.

• Peanut butter chocolate mousse parfait. (via The Kitchn)

• Lemon curd. Lemon curd butterfly cakes.

• Thai cabbage and chicken soup. (via The Kitchn)

• Baked shrimp with tomatoes and feta. (via The Kitchn)

• Roast salmon and rice salad.

• Quick vegan curry.

• Whipped feta dip.

• 10 pasta recipes.

• 9 bar cookie recipes.

Gluten Free

• S’Mores waffles. (via The Kitchn)

• Banana muffins with Nutella swirl.

• Blueberry oat bars.

• Soft pretzels.

• English muffins.

• Chalupas.

• Cheese pizza crackers.

• Roasted banana squash and new potato salad.

Crafty

• Build your own Iron Throne.

• TECHKnitting with how to tink faster.

Cool

• The Star Wars theme played on an amazing pipe organ.

• Cartoon theme mashup played by an orchestra.

• LEGO Simpsons.

• Salvador Dali LEGO elephants.

• OYO (think LEGO) stop-motion animation of the Penguins vs Blackhawks at Soldier Field.

• LEGO interpretation of The Way of Kings.

• Gif set in which Neil deGrasse Tyson explains how the selfie of himself, Bill Nye, and President Obama came about.

• Potholes treated artistically. (via oflights)

• Minnesota forest shaped like Minnesota.

• Lightning from above.

• London from above.

• Black cats! (The last gif is terrifying – that cat basically has a moveable thumb.)

• Linkity from kmkat.

Cool or Wha…?

• Meteor striking bus stop… sort of.

• Pizza axe.

Wha…?

• Beer that contains (goat) brains.

• The AromaFork.

• The possible link between California wildfires and titanium golf clubs.

• Dog wearing a crocheted unicorn mask.

• Naked Burt Reynolds on a bearskin rug… done in latch hook.

LOL

• Whoa. (Hover cursor for additional text.)

• I was not expecting this. Guaranteed (video) day brightener!

• “[B]ased on extensive observation, I believe that my cats have only a tenuous grasp on how much of my body is ‘me’“.

• How to choose a pet.

• I’m dubious…

• Naughty kitties.

Teh Cute

• Japanese dwarf flying squirrel! Hedgie! Baby otters! Lioness and baby! WALL-E, kitten version! Moose and baby!

Reading Update

• Hockey fics falalalalalala.

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“Of course I know I look very lovely and artistic here! Duh.” -Mayhem

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Congrats to Joder, who won Fractured by Mickie B. Ashling! Fractured will be released by Dreamspinner Press on March 24.

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Randonymity

• Some pictures of Minneapolis on the first day of spring. *sigh*

• Oh yeah, this is why I’m so tired of winter. (“Freezing” is 32F/0C for that infographic.) (via Neighborhoodr Minneapolis)

• Hey! Leave a comment if you get a chance – sometimes blogging feels like talking into a void… Thanks to all of you who comment regularly, particularly on the Misadventures and Linkity, which take the most time to put together!

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (romance/UF)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• “Anonymity, transparency, and online book reviewing“.

• Kate McMurray shares her thoughts on criticism.

• Becky Black lists 10 things you shouldn’t ask on writing forums.

• Even classic 20th-century novels were reviewed harshly when they were released.

• Five sites with free ebooks.

• Altered books as wall hangings. (via CRAFT)

• “40 worst book titles and covers ever“. (via MandyM)

Do, Think, Learn, Make

• Samsung’s Gear Fit looks really cool, except… you can only use it with a Samsung phone.

• How accurate are fitness trackers?

• The reason why dark chocolate is good for you involves gut bacteria…

• I didn’t realize that IBM sponsored the Hepburn and Tracy movie Desk Set.

• 15 unusual (and specific) color names.

• The next time time you need a new pillow, draw on ratings and reviews from 20,000+ pillow purchasers.

• How to streamline your home cleaning.

• How to stop compromising your online privacy.

• Wait, what?! It’s not Duck, Duck, Grey Duck everywhere?!

Cookity

• 8 recipes for beans and rice.

• 13 quinoa recipes.

• 29 quesadilla recipes. (via kdsarge)

• Kidney bean curry with rice.

• Black bean “meatballs” with marinara. (via The Kitchn)

• Slow cooker Thai chickpea stew. (via The Kitchn)

• Caprese tomato spinach soup. (via The Kitchn)

• Butternut squash and spinach lasagna. (via Cabled Sheep)

• Red pepper and sunflower seed pesto. (via Cabled Sheep)

• Savory oatmeal with roasted tomatoes and oyster mushrooms. (via The Kitchn)

• Superfood baked potato.

• Fish tacos with quick cabbage slaw.

• Quick coconut chicken soup.

• Cookie (milk) shot glasses. (via The Kitchn)

Gluten Free

• Chocolate eclairs.

• Snickerdoodle cookie chips.

• Chocolate chip quinoa cookies.

• Easy biscuit doughnuts.

• Starbucks-style petite vanilla bean scones.

Cool

• Highlights from the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards. (via Gizmodo)

• Lord of the Rings sneakers.

• Neil deGrasse Tyson talks to Pluto.

• Ancient abacus ring.

• “The history of movies from 1878 to 2014 in just three minutes“.

• Linkity from mrspao.

Cool or Wha…?

• Smiley face screws.

Wha…?

• Wave sculpture made from Barbie dolls.

• Wine and vodka milkshake.

• Three-pound iPhone case.

• Spring Black Friday. Ugh.

• “The 12 weirdest experiences you can have in Canada“.

• Creepy vintage mechanical doll. (Randomly, check out the scary “guest” we had at Thanksgiving one year.)

LOL

• Best out-of-order sign ever.

• Literal translation of Danish city and place names.

• It really doesn’t pack the same punch. (Hover your cursor for additional text.)

• Accurate. (Again with the hovering.)

• “Things I would wish upon my enemies“.

• Well, this is definitely a twist on those stick figure family window clings…

• This is my life.

• Cat on a leash.

• Dream big! You are fierce!

• Lion, you are silly.

• Houdini kitty.

Teh Cute

• Buffalo and baby! Snow leopard and baby! Tiger and baby! Tiger and baby! Fox! Baby foxes!

Reading Update

• *twiddles thumbs*

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“I’m going to stay here a while, in case Mom’s not done vacuuming.” -Chaos

“Oh, shiny!” -Mayhem

The sign on the wall (click the pic to embiggen) was a gift from my family… Um, thanks?! 😉

Randonymity

• Just because I can’t fit it into any other category: female armor bingo. *sigh*

Contest(s)

• Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of The Maid of Milan by Beverly Eyeikli. Closes March 15.

• Blodeuedd’s also giving away a copy of Flight to Coorah Creek by Janet Grover. Closes March 22.

Bookity

• New releases: Fiction Vixen (UF/romance), Literary Escapism (UF/PNR), and AAR (romance)

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• Dear Author attempts to define comfort reading.

• Heidi Cullinan with a public service announcement: “Authors, write books not war”.

• Lisa Henry on how books are not babies.

• Lyn Gala points out that writing a review is not included in the definition of bullying.

• Thought provoking post from Kate at Booklikes about m/m books being written for fans instead of readers.

• Anne Rice has written another Lestat novel.

• All about speed reading.

• Humorous post about sock puppets on Goodreads from Becky Black.

• Authors! Have you submitted your application for the Amtrak Writers’ Residency program?

• Poster covering 100 years of the typewriter.

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• It’s actually not that likely you’ll get salmonella from eating cookie dough. And there was much rejoicing!

• Unblock YouTube easily lets you watch regionally blocked videos.

• Fitbit Force wristbands officially recalled by the US government.

• Some arguments against Daylight Saving Time.

• Looking at how phone calls worked in the past and how they work now. (via mental_floss)

• How to improve your bone density – Guess I’ll be adding some hopping into my routine once my hip can handle it.

• Most popular TV show set in each US state. I think the rebuttal version is more accurate for Minnesota.

• What if you tried to stop a car with radio waves/radar?

Cookity

• Miso coconut chicken. (via The Kitchn)

• 15-minute coconut salmon with kale. (via The Kitchn)

• Corned beef grilled cheese. (via The Kitchn)

• Lentil salad with olives and feta. (via The Kitchn)

• Brown rice bowl with chard and nutty tomato romesco sauce.

• African style stewed spinach. (via The Kitchn)

• Roasted broccoli soup with cashews. (via The Kitchn)

• 7 cabbage recipes.

• 7 olive recipes.

• 13 recipes using canned beans.

• 15 vegan lunch recipes.

• Grain-free nori rolls with roasted carrot hummus. (via The Kitchn)

• Clementine cake. (via The Kitchn)

• Red velvet chocolate bonbons. (via CRAFT)

• Red velvet chocolate-swirled brownie bars. (via puckling)

Gluten Free

• Chicken gyros.

• Taco pizza.

• Chocolate chip chip-style cookies.

• Two-bite brownies.

• Grapefruit kumquat scones.

Cool

• You can now explore the Colorado River via Google StreetView.

• Animated fairy tale adventure about fixing wifi.

• Anti-monster spray by prescription.

• Explore the tediously accurate solar system. (via Tor.com)

• Flat air conditioner.

• Geeky jewelry. (via The Mary Sue)

• LEGO St. Pancras station.

• LEGO Star Wars sandcrawler.

• LEGO family portrait.

• Purple doorknob.

• Mind-boggling rock balancing.

• Linkity from kmkat.

Cool or Wha…?

• Microwave that listens to popcorn popping.

• Remote control sofabed.

• Geeky lip balm.

Wha…?

• And I thought Zdeno Chara was scary before I saw this video.

• Stickers to make your toilet more fun.

• Superhero poop on Etsy.

• Weird Barbie and Ken dolls.

• Pasta with tomato sauce popsicle.

• Marmite-stuffed stuffed crust pizza.

• Chicken Soup for the Soul chicken soup.

LOL

• Snap! (Hover your cursor for additional text.)

• We had that day this week – it was 52F Monday!

• Uncommon dragon hoards. (Where is the book hoard?!? Must not be that uncommon.)

• Couple lip-syncing “Love is an Open Door” from Frozen – it’s their daughter’s utter disinterest that really makes this.

• The unmaking of Oreos.

• Anyone who owns a lizard needs this costume.

• Surprise!black kitten.

• Keyboard cat.
  

• My cats would not have this problem…

• Oh oh…

Teh Cute

• Baby river otters! Baby leopard! Camel and baby!

Reading Update

• *waves*

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“……zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…….” -Mayhem

“……zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…….” -Chaos