Men in Trees - what a quirky show! I can't help but watch it. Having lived for over 15 years in Alaska I am picking at the show in relation to what is unrealistic. However, this show does have it right about life revolving around the local bar. Where else but in an Indian village on the banks of the Yukon do you have the HeadStart raffle in the local bar, with donations of smoked salmon, moose meat, etc.? That isn't on the show - that was part of my life in Alaska! As the HeadStart director I had to be at every raffle and hand out the prizes. A couple of local guys were trying to get me to raffle off a kiss (I was barely over 20 at time) but looking around at all the rotten and/or missing teeth I wasn't about to take that chance!

I have decided that living alone makes for very weird dinners! I started out with mixed nuts, picking out the good ones, and then moved on to Tofutti with dark chocolate chips mixed in. But, I did eat a healthy desert - a delicious ripe plum - so it wasn't a total disaster. All I can say is that right now I am really missing Steve's delicious stuffed baked potatoes!

Lots of hype about Rachel Cohn and David Levithan's Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist. Both are well known YA authors in their own right. Cohn wrote the popular Gingerbread and Shrimp. My favorite of Cohn's is her MS level Steps. She nails the feelings of a young teen who isn't ready to give up her daddy to a new family and accept weird Australian step-siblings. Levithan, best known for Boy Meets Boy, joins Cohn in this co-written Nick and Norah's night together, which begins with Nick asking Norah to be his girlfriend for 5 minutes so he won't look so needy when his ex-girlfriend Tris walks in with a new guy. I will honestly admit that the reason I would have picked this book up, without having heard about it to begin with, is the names - I love The Thin Man movies so Nick and Norah bring up visions of a humorous loving couple who tip way too many martinis. :-) Perhaps because these names had prior "lives" for me is part of why I did not connect with this book. Granted - I did immediately realize that this is one of those titles that has high appeal to older teens as Nick and Norah are at the point in their lives when they are leaving high school and entering the "real world". But, I got bored with the constant vulgar language and the club scene. I loved the way their relationship grew during the short period of time and how both of them moved toward becoming more confident as they got to know themselves through each other, but there was so much "junk" that distracted from the interpersonal dynamics that I kept saying to myself, get on with it! Will I recommend this book to teens? Oh yes! This is another one of those books that I don't love, but will booktalk and "advertise".

I am watching 20/20 about the difference between men and women. Interesting! And then I had better call it a night as I am attending the Literary Homecoming tomorrow.