how I feel at my retail job, almost everyday

Italian Meatloaf

This is a recipe that I made up as I went along. I was wracking my brain trying to figure out what to make for dinner tonight and I decided that, because it was rather chilly outside, I would make meatloaf. It didn't hurt that I had about 2 pounds of high quality ground beef, pork, and veal thawed and in the fridge. Here's what I came up with:

2 lbs. of Ground Beef, Pork, and Veal (I must admit I felt like an ogre buying veal)
1 palm full of dried Oregano
1 palm full of dried basil
2 large eggs
1 tsp pepper
1tsp of salt
1/2 a red onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup of cooked until crispy pancetta, finely chopped
1/2 cup of bread crumbs
a little less then 1/2 cup of milk
4 additional uncooked thin slices of pancetta

Mix it with your hands, its easiest that way. Shape into a loaf, and place in a loaf pan that has been greased with butter. Place the 4 uncooked slices of pancetta across the top (this adds flavor and prevent it from drying out). Place in a preheated 425 degree oven and bake for about an hour.
My roomate really liked it and he's a picky eater so give it a try!

Stephen King

Is there a book by Stephen King that isn't awesome? NO! He is hands down my favorite author. He is the most amazing story-teller I have ever read. Here are my top 10 favorites by Stephen King:

1) IT
2) 'Salem's Lot
3)The Stand
4) Needful Things
5) Duma Key
6) The Shining
7) Pet Semetary
8) Bag of Bones
9) Dolores Claiborn
10)Cujo

I have read most of his work but these are the books that I have read over and over again!

You can't go wrong when you pick up a piece of work by Stephen King!

book: American Gods

"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman is in my top 5. I would have to say that it is most at home in the fantasy catagory but don't let that put you off. It was a book centered on an ex-convict named Shadow who finds himself widowed and adrift until he is employed by a strange man known as Friday.

The book is about the various gods and goddesses from different countries and how they were brought to America by immigrants and what happened to them as the people became American and started to lose their old ways and objects of worship. It is fascinating and once you pick it up you can't put it down. The narration and description of settings are so spot on that you can almost feel the place being described in the narrations.

http://www.neilgaiman.com/

book: The Stand

One of my favorite books by Stephen King. It was a story about good vs. evil after a devistating plague reduces the worlds population to about 5% of what it had been. The survivors are split into good and evil depending on who they dream about when they sleep. The evil people dream of the dark man and the good people dream of a kind old woman. They battle each other as they try to rebuild society. It is brillant, deep, heart-warming, scary, suspenseful, disturbing, and though-provoking. There were times when I had to put it down and leave my house to make sure that I wasn't the last person left on the planet. It is over 1000 pages but I finished it in less then a week. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well-woven yarn.

                                                                                                     

book: IT

The book "IT" by Stephen King is my all time favorite book. The characters are well developed and endearing. The scene and setting descriptions are so good that I can completely picture the geographic locations and I feel like I'm there. The story is beyond excellent. The switching between decades kept the story flowing and the journal entries by one of the characters that contained the history of the events was so good. The book is over 1000 pages and I have read it 5 times.
If you are a fan of well-written horror then this book is right for you.

book: "The Ice Princess"

"The Ice Princess" by Camilla Lackberg was somewhat of a let down. She is being hailed as one of the best authors from Sweden and that if you enjoyed the Millenium trilogy by Stieg Larsson you will enjoy her work. Since I loved "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," The Girl Who Played with Fire," and "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" (Larsson's Millenium trilogy titles) I was really excited to read Lackberg. I must say that I was a little disappointed. It was a decent read but it fell a little short. The story is ok but the premise is old and the character development just felt like it was missing something. I wish that she had spent a little more time describing the settings and scenery and flushing her characters out a bit.
It didn't grab me and engross me like a lot of other books (that I have read over and over and over again) have and still do. It's not a work that I will reread though I don't regret that I did, I just came away feeling like it wasn't as fulfilling to read as other books.