Is That a Gift Card in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?:Books for your New Year's Resolutions

I'm not really a resolution kind of girl--generally I just have Really Good Ideas for the coming year, like "Talk to girls without shaking like a Chihuahua" or "use that daily planner the way it was intended." However, there's nothing like a new year to make a fresh start on, and what better way to set your intentions than with some exciting, inspiring reading material?

These are my favorite reads when I need a boost to the mind, body, or spirit.

The Red Book is a breathtakingly outrageous and tender guide to getting in touch with The Big Unknown and Unseen. It's the smartest book I've read about spirituality, and the one that speaks to me the clearest and brightest. Sera Beak's a jewel, and you should drop in on her blog, Spiritual Cowgirl.

Speaking of potential controversies, I'm just going to link to that Four-Letter One-Word Guide to Loving Your Damn Body and Womankind in General by Inga Muscio, for those of you that like your empowerment sprinkled with expletives.

Girlosophy is a guide to life and a journey through girlhood in all corners of the world. Anthea Paul takes gorgeous photos of every shape, size, and color of women and brings them together with tiny but heady bits of wisdom. There are more books in the Girlosophy series, all about traveling and food and writing and healing your heart. I love them.

The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn will make you fall in love with learning all over again. Even if you're not a teenager and unschooling's totally out of the picture, you can find out dozens of ways to learn and grow and change your life and the lives of others.

 

 

 

How to Be an Explorer of the World  by Keri Smith gives you a whole new way of seeing the world around us. It has exercises and places to doodle and ponder and document your life. This one's a bit more theoretical than the rest of Keri Smith's crop, but in an accessible, down-to-earth way.

 

The Teany Book: Stories, Food, Romance, Cartoons, and of Course, Tea is a book about tea, but it's also a book about life, with vegan recipes and herbal remedies in. It's wonderfully designed, clean and bright but with little doodles and crazy photos and asides to liven it up.

The Femme's Guide to the Universe (out of print, but good luck hunting!) is a million times better than any of those other life-as-a-twentysomething-with-lipsticks-and-a-credit-card guides, because Shar Rednour is whip-smart, hysterical, life-loving and mindful of those of us without a trust fund as backup.Plus, I personally find it awesome to read a guide-to-twentysomething life written for girl-loving-girls like me!

The Bodacious Book of Succulence is, oh yes, the ubiquitous SARK, but I think this (and Inspiration Sandwich) is her best work. It's an expansive guide to coaxing your inner muse out of hiding, and what to do with her once she's sitting on the fridge, peering at you curiously and eating all the Oreos.

 

 

Poemcrazy  by Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge is full of exercises, stories, and poetry to woo your muse off the fridge. It has this delicate quality and nature-based imagery that's soothing and inspiring all in one.

 

 

 

 

Beauty*licious and Think Pink  by Lisa Clark are newcomers to the game, and I never turned down a book just cause it's written for chiquitas half my age. (Hello, 90% of this blog.) They're quirky little guides to life, love, and the pursuit of the perfect back-to-school outfit written from the point of view of a preteen pink-haired diva. They're like brain candy, if candy was secretly good for your self-esteem and taught you a few things about negotiating with your friends, moving your body in ways that makes you happy, and wearing what looks good on you and not your classmates. Awww.

I Wish You Peace and Jelly Whelps

The Jelly whelps by =mariecannabis on deviantART

Amber called her uncle, said "We're up here for the holiday,
Jane and I were having solstice, now we need a place to stay."
And her Christ-loving uncle watched his wife hang Mary on a tree
He watched his son hang candy canes all made with red dye number three
He told his niece, "It's Christmas eve, I know our life is not your style."
She said, "Christmas is like Solstice, and we miss you and it's been awhile."

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
And just before the meal was served, hands were held and prayers were said
Sending hope for peace on earth to all their gods and goddesses

The food was great, the tree plugged in, the meal had gone without a hitch
Till Timmy turned to Amber and said, "Is it true that you're a witch?"
His mom jumped up and said, "The pies are burning," and she hit the kitchen
And it was Jane who spoke, she said, "It's true, your cousin's not a Christian,"
"But we love trees, we love the snow, the friends we have, the world we share,
And you find magic from your God, and we find magic everywhere."

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
And where does magic come from, I think magic's in the learning
Cause now when Christians sit with Pagans only pumpkin pies are burning

When Amber tried to do the dishes, her aunt said, "Really, no, don't bother."
Amber's uncle saw how Amber looked like Tim and like her father
He thought about his brother, how they hadn't spoken in a year
He thought he'd call him up and say, "It's Christmas and your daughter's here."
He thought of fathers, sons and brothers, saw his own son tug his sleeve, saying
"Can I be a Pagan?" Dad said, "We'll discuss it when they leave,"

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old and
Making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold

~"The Christians and the Pagans" by Dar Williams

Go see MarieCannabis's other Dessert Whelps here, they're precious!

It's just a jump to the left...

A dear friend reminded me of the (apparently ancient) rumor that the Rocky Horror Picture Show is being remade.

Now, with MTV at the helm this could be quite the questionable venture. If I were to cast it? It would be a thing of beauty and a joy forever; that is, if you're the type that paints your nails blue and still listens to Sleater-Kinney. My dream cast follows:

Rufus Wainwright as RiffRaff--he's handsome in a wilted lily sort of way, has a this purring ironic voice and a great sense of theatricality. Perfect. Watch him in "Rules and Regulations" and "April Fools" (Bonus: Guess which lady matches up with which opera).

 

For Magenta, Beth Ditto. I'm convinced this woman is Divine reincarnated, in all the best possible ways, and her raw rock-star vocals and love of camp make her a fantastic candidate. You can watch her and The Gossip performing "Standing in the Way of Control" for a taste.

Now I'm a tad biased as I have a wicked crush on the lad, but I couldn't see anybody as Eddie but the painfully gorgeous Lucas Silveira. Those eyes! That voice! Those guitar licks! Catch me before I swoon again, and catch him and his band, The Cliks, in their videos for "Oh Yeah" and "Complicated" (with Margaret Cho!)

For Eddie's main squeeze and Dr. Frank's spurned love Colombia, who but the gloriously strange and dark and lovely Amanda Palmer? Of course, nobody can beat the goddess of rock herself, Joan Jett, in the Broadway run, but can't you just see her belting out Colombia's lamentations and giving Frankie what-for? See her video for "Leeds United" and judge for yourself.

For poor, sweet Janet, I picked Kristen Bell. She's already shown off her naughty-and-nice sides in Reefer Madness. Take a look at her in "Romeo and Juliet" (and then watch the rest of the movie, because it's great).

My friend Louie suggested Dan Radcliffe for Brad. I laughed so hard I pulled something. Consider him a placeholder till something better comes up.

For Mr. Rocky Horror himself, I've taken the liberty of picking Rob Pattinson. Blasphemy, you cry? Oh, but all he has to do is stand around and show off his glittery man titties, just like in Twilight. When even your professors think the man beautiful, you know you have a winner. Too thin, you say? Well, he came out of the tank a bit shrunken--cold water and all.

I made Anthony Head the Crim on a friend's suggestion (also, because he has no neck, see?), but Eddie Izzard as Dr. Scott? All my fault.

Oh? Have I forgotten somebody?

Ahh, yes.

Dr. Frankie...herself.

Yep. I did it. But men in heels isn't transgressive anymore, that's a Thursday night sitcom's subplot. But a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman, fooling around with Mother Nature and anybody else who shows a bit of thigh, and committing heinous crimes all for a bit of attention? That's hot!Take a look at her in "AC/DC," and see what you think...but don't tell it to me, I'm sold.

There's my dream cast. Tell me yours!

Places I Meant to Be: The Writings and Photography of Emily, the Hyper Faerie

I don't quite recall how we met--it must have been through one LJ community or another. However that happened, this self-described "average actress/writer/poet/freak/dork/daydreamer/sick-minded individual" charmed me with her writings about places I'd never been, but wished to be. She can take a city and make it come alive, the sights and smells and hidden corners, colors and flashes of light and the taste of a Cosmo cupcake or shades of emotion in the passers-by. They make me want to toss on some gypsy anklets and have a wandering day in a city I don't quite know yet--and you'll want to come along.

Photo by Emily C.

One Foot on Sea and One on Shore: Stratford, Ontario

There is a little tea boutique a few blocks down selling rosemary jelly (rosemary reminds me of Ophelia--pray you love, remember) and tea buds that bloom like flowers in hot water. Lyrical Asiany names-- Lotus Lamp. Phoenix Eyes. Jade Guan Yin. White Jasmine Moon. Wild Love. Pearl in a Shell. I buy tiny tight-fisted greenish buds tied with jasmine called Rishi Fairy Girl--psychedelic flowery orbs for delicate pixie-lady sadhus to imbibe in between their meditations and mischief. Nextdoor is P'Lovers Eco-Store, named for the sea bird and also for P'lanet Lovers; they have patchwork hoodies and pewter pocket tokens adorned with angels, dolphins, faeries, Oms. The whole place smells like sage and lavender and aloe from organic beauty products. The banister knobs leading upstairs have sock puppet covers with funny stories attached: some sockpeople are Finnish dancer exchange students, others purple-black caped vampires.

Faeries by the Sea: Part I, Oslo, Norway and Part II, Brighton, England

Brighton reminds me of a Joni Mitchell song--the sea breezes carrying the sweet melancholy cries of gulls, the tiny cobblestone alleyways lined with pastel-painted boutiques selling sparkly things which look good enough to eat and colorful sweets looking good enough to wear. The bright lights and dazzling cacophony of the touristy little carnival at the Pier. Street performers' songs following you down the blocks where Tarot readers and local artists sell their wares. The Royal Pavilion like Kubla Khan's stately pleasure-dome, all Taj Mahal turrets and overgrown gardens outside, and inside Chinese dragons,snakes, and lotuses decorating every surface of decadent chandeliered dining rooms, plush rococo parlors full of mirrors and lacquered harpsichords, and colorful ballrooms with gilded cockle-shells lining the high ceilings.

The South Side: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Driving down the long long street – on which I have tested my mettle by marching up and down it three times in the cold during and after an anti-war protest– you feel like you're on the Sunset Strip, or a river flowing to exotic locales. Parking down there's shit but who cares; it's worth it to drive around for a bit as long as you can hang out there later. It unfolds before you – storefronts, ethnic restaurants, bars (so many bars), cars full of drunken guys speeding down the street like maniacs, punks loitering, theater-goers speed-walking to shows, and so much more– and it goes on and on until you reach the more corporate chain part but even that's still kinda cool, only not as much as the lower parts of Carson Street. And once your feet tread the pavement you know you're there; you can feel it. So much coolness with a little bit of edgy danger thrown in to spice things up a bit, dark with light shining through, an urban jungle with magic lurking around the corners.

p.s.OMGWTFNIPPLE

Moving? Maybe? Not Yet...

Hello all!

After the fifty billionth time fighting with Blogger and its layouts (I still love you guys, it just ate my blogroll), I'm looking to move on to another free blogging site. Never fear, I won't ever, ever delete the content I have here, and would probably mirror it at the new site.

How many of you amazing readers use Wordpress? Do you like it? I'm impressed with the functionality, but perturbed about content warnings. Not that I'd ever go above a PG-13 or so, but I'd hate to see things deleted. What say you?

Things I Am Looking For in a Blogging Site:

1. Tags. Tags and Labels, like NOGOODFOME, would be amazing

2. Three-column layout support

3. PG-13 content support

Come Stalk Me at The BUST Craftacular!

Hello all!

Again, again, late to the party, but I'd like to let you know that I'll be volunteering at BUST Magazine's (aka, the Mag from this spring's posts) Holiday Craftacular in New York City. 200 vendors, cheap admission, food, dancing, and Amy Sedaris signing books! Come on, you know you wanna get some  holiday shopping done...

(Click the pic for more info.)

I'll be working two to six--look for the teeny bottle redhead with a fauxhawk and black tie!

I think magic's in the learning...

Hello!

I've just completed my final project for my References and Resources class, a Feminism for Teens wiki named We're Waving, Not Drowning. I would love it if all of my awesome readers would help me contribute to this, so if you are interested please comment on this post or email me at devilinpetticoatsATgmailDOTcom for information on how to sign in and start playing with it.

If nothing else, there's a different music video on every page. Go have a listen! And enjoy the above video, Dar William's seasonal classic "The Christians and the Pagans."

The Order of Odd-Fish by James Kennedy

Have you read any Neil Gaiman? He's clever in such an understated way, making such things as poetic redheaded trees, children raised by ghouls, and an angel and a devil coming together to save the world perfectly believable, touching and human.

China Mieville? He's endlessly inventive and deeply dark, filling underworlds with unsavory characters, salacious detail, and gripping underhanded plots.

Tom Robbins? He writes absurd, whimsical modern-day myths with strange characters saving the world from mundanity.

If the three had a magical literary baby who fended for himself in the dusty stacks of a small liberal arts college with arcane moonlit rituals until he was rescued by the members of pagan art-rock group My Barbarian, it would be The Order of Odd-Fish.

Jo Larouche was an extremely dangerous baby--but life in her movie star Aunt Lily's ruby palace in the desert was blissfully dry and tame till a neurotic hedgehog, a three-foot tall cockroach and a mysterious package from the sky crash Lily's costume ball and Jo's humdrum life, setting off a wild adventure full of ostrich jousting, dangerous epic pranksters who create the most terrifying balloon animals in the world in a battle, knights who revel in useless knowledge and pointless quest, underground worlds, elaborate ceremonies, a mysterious actress who knows more than she lets on, dangerous musicals and the end of the world as we know it. 

Kennedy's first novel is so many odd flavors wrapped into one, a novel as rich and creepy and magical as Eldritch City, where Jo discovers her past and apprentices herself with the Order of Odd-Fish, knights and dames trained in esoteric sciences and obscure knowledge as well as jousting and ostrich-taming.  Together, they'll save the world from destruction at the hand of the all-devouring Mother, aided by the deadly Silent Sisters and the notorious Belgian Prankster, whose hideously humorous reality show leads to rumors that he may, in fact, be the devil himself. It has a sometimes droll, sometimes quick sense of humor best appreciated by someone with a love for words:

There was so much to learn, so many new things to do, she felt it was impossible to take everything in. Even in the evenings, the knights would gather the squires together to give seminars about their own specialties: Dame Myra would show off some man-eating flowers or metallic, glassy blobs she'd collected in the fens, or Sir Alasdair would give each squire a different musical instrument and watch in silent amusement as they unsuccessfully tried to play them, never offering any help--not even when Nora's instrument got angry, sprouted wings, and flew away.

I felt as if the first few chapters dragged a tiny bit, but once Lily and Jo escaped to Eldritch City, the story picked up at breakneak pace. Another little caveat? The love interest is a brave and true lad, but sometimes I didn't feel so interested in their blossoming relationship. (I have a far more interesting match for Jo, but Mr. Kennedy may not totally approve.) Hands down favorite character? Audrey, the gifted actress with a heart of gold and mischievous spirit:

One afternoon Audrey and Jo picked the lock to Dame Delia's secret dissection lab, and they spent hours examining dozens of Dame Delia's dead monsters. A huge spider was still spread on the dissection table, its underbelly opened up to expose its colorful guts; other creatures floated in barrels, hung from the ceiling, or were squashed away in drawers; still others were sliced into sheets and bound like books. Audrey stole what looked like a furry starfish and hid it in Ian's bed, and that night Ian's road of shock woke up the entire lodge, and Audrey and Jo had to bite their pillows to muffle their hysterical giggling. (This was part of Audrey and Jo's campaign to torture Ian until he got rid of his mustache. When he finally shaved it off, Audrey organized a small funeral for it.)

If you love elaborate ceremonies, weird motives, strange smells, hideous devices, a classic quest with Lovecraftian squishness, strong women and strange men, and the odd creature or two (tame squid anyone?), The Order of Odd-Fish is for you.

*James Kennedy's website

*His blog

*His performance group, Brilliant Pebbles: An exciting mix of romance, epic battles, space dance, psychology and fun. Adventures of imagination. Time through obstacle courses. Holy arrows in directions of orbiting eyes to new places. Animal knows, human houses guide -light- start -shoes- fireblood hearts SURPRISE ! Red curtains, and baroque bows. Gymnastic mirrors floating in hope. .

*Chicago Reader's interview/review, "A Giant Peach", which mentions his next work, "The Magnificent Moots, a sci-fi comedy he describes as “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy meets Ender’s Game meets The Royal Tenenbaums meets A Wrinkle in Time."

*Laini Taylor's excellent review (scroll about halfway down):

You know how it's better to watch a comedy with somebody, that somehow the humor is riper and deeper when shared? Well, the whole time I was reading this I wished I was reading it with someone, so I could elbow them at particularly bizarre moments, or chortle, or read passages aloud and savor them. I don't recall having that kind of reaction when reading a book before, at least, not so consistently.

For the Distinguished Young Fortean Investigator--A Call For Recommendations

My younger brother likes Joseph Campbell, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, and H. P. Lovecraft.  He loves monsters and role playing games and Victorian horror and time travelers. He wants to be the next P.T. Barnum when he grows up.

As you can see, eccentricity runs in the Selavy family.

I'm making him a Cthulhu Hunter's kit for Christmas, inspired by the astonishing fascimile monster hunter kits by Alex CF (a bit of a warning: some of these are a bit gruesome) and the witchy surprise boxes by The Catt. It will be housed in a box that looks like a hardcover box, and contain a nice fountain pen, an antique journal with useful phrases for a monster hunter inside (such as "Something eldritch is dripping on your shoe"), calling cards (which he's wanted a set of for ages) and some tiny specimens. With this, I'd like to include some interesting books about creepy curiosities and wonders, or just strange stuff in general. Books that look like something a monster hunter would actually use--like the Dragonology books--are a plus, but in a pinch he gets a kick out of anything.

Here are some that I have in mind:

A Field Guide to Monsters (My brother likes picture books as much as I do)

How to Catch a Flying Saucer and How to Find a Ghost (these are middle grade books, but very, very well written and full of interesting info)

Yokai Attack!:The Japanese Monster Survival Guide

The Vampire Watcher's Handbook

The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases

The Discovery of Dragons

The Voyage of the Basset

And now I turn the floor over to my amazing readers. What books would you include with his kit? Anything about monsters, ghosts, vampires, demons, and surviving in the wilds of Ry'leh would be perfect, but anything with strange facts and weird stories works too. Thank you so much!

But there's the box and there's your name...

This is Amanda Palmer.

She is my epitome of womanhood.* She's created an awesome, beautiful video with drag queens and cabaret dancers and a big band sound and...football hooligans. Clearly, this is a brilliant, talented, beautiful woman.

Her record label, however, doesn't quite agree with me.

Do you think this is as ridiculous as I do? Then join the Rebellyon! You bet mine would be up there if I had any aptitude for writing on my stomach, backwards.

*Of course I respect Ms. Palmer for her mind and soul and brains. That said, I'm teased sometimes for having a type** and dark hair, light eyes, deep voice and men's clothes totally fits it. Swoon.

**"Rie, I saw you walking in St. George with your Cute Ex."

"That wasn't Cute Ex, that was The LIS Student That I'm Mad For."

"DAMN, Rie."

All Hail the Crafty Chica

If you're a hands-on kind of gifter, click over to Kathy Cano-Murillo's 50 Fabulous Gifts to Make and Give for the holiday season.

Yep, 50.

My theory is that she crafts in her sleep. Favorites? The Comic Book Belt, Glittered Birdcage, Loteria Luminaria, and Bejeweled Champagne Flutes.

The Leaving Shangri-L.A. Holiday Gift Guide

Ahh, tis the season for frantic Amazon.com hopping, balancing stacks at The Strand, and hoping that art book isn't going to land on your head at Barnes & Noble. Yes, holiday shopping is upon us, and I find the most touching gift, next to something handmade, is a well-chosen new book to love. I've been told I have book karma--the ability to chose just the book one was looking for (and five more they had no idea existed). It's a tough gift to manifest online, but here are some suggestions for some of the fantastically eccentric types you might find hitchiking out of Shangri-L.A.

I've recommended some out-of-print books too lovely to ignore. You can hunt them down at your local casa de used books, or (carefully!) find them online.

The Kid at Heart will love you for indulging their inner child with cute craft books like Tiny Treats and Beautiful Doodles and wonderfully weird stories by Daniel Pinkwater, collected in 5 Novels and 4 Fantastic Novels. Magic Trixie's meant for the middle-grade-reader crowd, but Jill Thompson's amazing art gives it appeal for those who love a good witchy story. The classic Betsy-Tacy series is near and dear to my heart, and any girl who loves an old-fashioned family story with tons of period detail will eat them up--I especially love the sometimes-neglected high school quartet. Is she a sucker for a painfully sweet holiday story? Then pass on The Legend of Holly Claus. Kids at heart with an artistic flair will always appreciate a beautiful picture book. How about Mermaids on Parade, or The Girl in the Castle in the Museum, or The Salamander Room, or The Jewel Box Ballerinas?

Pair the book with: interesting and odd art supplies, finger puppets or small stuffed animals, or jewelry that looks like food

The Urban Fairy is a sweet, drifty sort who soaks up beauty. Fairie-Ality and Fairy Island will make her squeal in delight--not to mention the classic, Suza Scalora's The Fairies. Is she a New Yorker, or wishes she was one? Try The Good Fairies of New York or Changeling. Dame Darcy's twistedly lovely comics will go over well--try Gasoline and her Meatcake comic books. Something dreamy to look at, like Girlosophy or Inspired Gatherings, and something lovely to cook from, like The Teany Book or Sweet Serendipity,  will absolutely thrill the urban fae type.

Pair with: a bubble wand, a tiny bottle of glitter on a necklace, a hardy but pretty potted plant, a suncatcher, a feather butterfly garland, or shiny hair doodads

The Vampire Fangirl is probably chewing your ear off about the joys of sparkly bloodsuckers. Give her a new and improved heroine with Sunshine--a baker who makes charms and pastry with historical allusions and kicks major supernatural butt? That's my kind of girl. If she prefers her vampire romance on the giggly side, pick up the Vampire Kisses series or the insanely adorable School Bites graphic novels. Of course, nothing beats the classic Interview with the Vampire. (I can only guarantee the quality of the first two books in that series--after that, caveat emptor.) From the Dust Returned is the tale of a supernaturally gifted family and their mortal child; it's fable-like and melancholic and will appeal to many a vampire fan. If they'd like a bit of sensationalist nonfiction, track down Piercing the Darkness for an inside look at people who claim to be actual vampires.

Pair with: A piece of gothically ornate costume jewelry, a gift certificate to a costume shop, wineglasses, or tarot cards

The Happy Sapphist has no right to bitch about a gift of The Femme's Guide to the Universe or Girl Meets Girl if she's a newbie to the scene. If she's up on historical fiction, gift her with Tipping the Velvet (or the gorgeous miniseries based on it) or The Privilege of the Sword. Not so down with bodice ripping or swashbuckling? Track down some crazy decedant omnisexual speculative fiction (read: SciFi/Fantasy) novel, like Rock'N'Roll Babes from Outer Space. This list can help you narrow it down.

Pair with: A movie! Better than Chocolate and Itty Bitty Titty Committee are must-sees. Or else a set of ironic dress-up magnets, a tiny classical nude statue, a calendar of Nuns Having Fun or a book of postcards by her art heroine.

The Kitschionista is easy to please with a copy of some vintage-inspired craft guide like The Naughty Secretary Club: The Working Girl's Guide to Handmade Jewelry or The Big-Ass Book of Crafts. (I heart you so hard, Mark Montano.) Gorgeously eccentric, pop-culture filled memoirs like Queen of the Oddballs and Nasty: My Family and Other Glamorous Varmints will tickle her immensely and make her wish for a life less ordinary--then go find it! If in doubt, think colorful and weird, like Bitter With Baggage Seeks Same, The Gallery of Regrettable Food and its sequel Gastroanomalies, This is Blythe, and the absolutely hysterical and classic I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence.

Pair with: Hideously beautiful jewelry from the op shop, nail polish in colors to coordinate with the book's cover, sillicon baking supplies, or a scarf made of wild handspun yarn