It's the weekend links! On the real weekend! Less than a week after the last installment!
I can't remember the last time this happened.
They're short this week, but nice and meaty.
First off, a writing article from Rachel Aaron: "Flavor vs. Bake". Here's a tidbit:
Just as a good chef is known for the amazing flavors she creates, a good writer is known for their incredible creativity. Food has to taste delicious and books need to be interesting. Both of these come down to flavor, the creative flourish, but in books and cooking, flavor alone is not enough.
If I had to create a [Great British Bake Off] drinking game, I'd get everyone hammered by having people take a shot every time [the hosts] bemoaned the shame of a bake with wonderful flavor but terrible execution.
Yep. Creativity and execution: you've must have both. You can (and should!) read the rest at her website here.
This is a remote “community,” but probably not in a manner that you envision. Generally, community implies things like houses, post offices, stores, etc.; we have none of that. We are a remote fly-in camp. We are about 22 miles from the closest town, which is the village of Noatak, Alaska. Neither the mine nor Noatak are accessible by road. None of the villages in this region are accessible by road. The only way in to the mine is by air, and Noatak is accessible by air and river in the summer, and by snow machine during the winter. Our mine facility includes a living area for about 400 persons. The best description may be a large industrial complex with an attached dormitory facility. Meals are prepared by a staff of excellent chefs/cooks, and we have a wide variety of entertainment options. There are several weight rooms, aerobic exercise facilities, sauna, craft areas, satellite TV and game rooms (pool, darts, cards, etc.).
Imagine living and working in a place like that!
And, seasonally, here are some "Theologian Valentines". No snippets, because they're a visual treat and you should just go to the site and enjoy. :)
Finally - and very appropriately for the beginning of Lent - one of the books I'm enjoying right now is Adam Johnson's "The Atonement: A Guide for the Perplexed". This interview with him is a great taste of what's in the book, and a good listen. It's the sort of thing that goes great with an hour of knitting, or doing the dishes, or just a nice glass of wine:
I hope you all have a good first Sunday of Lent!
Peace of Christ to you,
Jessica Snell
This post contains an Amazon affiliate link; if you purchase a book from this link, I receive a small percentage of the purchase price. (See full disclosure on sidebar of my blog.)
Today I have the pleasure to be over at Jill Kemerer's blog, writing about St. Valentine and true love:
Even though there are many stories about Valentine (and even many stories about many different Valentines!), the oldest and most reliable account is clear about the important details: there once was a man named Valentine, and he loved the Lord Jesus, and he died for that love.
It’s a strange story to focus on in the midst of all the chocolates and roses and hearts that decorate our stores and our schools and our news sources during February.
This is a recipe for something called a "hot skin". I don't know why it's called that, but it's made from lapsang souchong tea and whiskey, with a few other ingredients, and it is smoky goodness.
Why do you gain weight when you start a new workout? This is the most clearly I've ever seen it explained, and I think knowing this can save you a lot of discouragement when you start that new weights or yoga routine! This made me laugh so hard. To my writer friends especially: check it out. It's an autocorrect hack for Word. "No! No! No!" Ha!
Staying on the topic of books, I've learned a lot about publishing in the past year, but I did not know about signatures. Apparently, the possible page counts for your masterpiece were determined hundreds of years ago by none other than Johannes Gutenberg.
I've been thinking a lot about how I use my computer, and I appreciated reading Challies' thoughts about how he moderates his use of technology. (Here is the computer verse: "All things are permissible, but not all things are beneficial. All things are beneficial, but I will not be mastered by anything." Emphasis mine.)
Here's an easy and super-cute Valentine's Day craft for the kids.
I find that I've been making a list in my head of firsts since I've been home: first cup of real coffee, first shower in my own shower (without sandals on my feet!), first night sleeping next to my husband again, first bedtime prayers with my kids, first time running a load of laundry, first time calling my friend whose number was outside the area codes allowed by the hospital phone, first time watering the azalea on my porch.
We were too blitzed to plan anything for Valentine's Day this year; Adam and I didn't even remember to say "Happy Valentine's!" to each other until the morning was half over. But you know what? I'll take all of these firsts for Valentine's this year and be very, very happy indeed.
