the Dalaverse

You know, I scoffed at a display in the Bodies exhibit that said people are both with a preference for either sweet or salty, but I think it must be true. I love sweets, but when I get a craving for something salty I go insane. For instance, we just got back from the grocery store, where I bought (among other things) a toffee-filled Cadbury bar and a jar of pickles. The thought of the Cadbury made me swoon, but I had three little squares in the car and I was done. Whereas when I got the pickles home, I immediately ate two (after wanting them badly this afternoon) and am about to go down for a third. The funny thing is, I don't like salt on my food at all, but I love sour pickles and salt-and-vinegar chips and OMG vinegar...even people who enjoy vinegar on their fries won't share with me, because I drench them beyond recognition. I can't wait to get back to places where they just bring you vinegar (Heinz!) like ketchup and you don't have to ask for it.

You want to know how sad I am? I spent ten minutes wandering around Safeway trying to find the international foods aisle with, hopefully, a tiny English section. Unfortunately they didn't have one, which is like the one thing Giant wins at. They have Cadbury fingers and Hobnobs and marmalade and lemon curd and Irish sodas...::wanders off in dreams of Cheshire cheese::

God, I love food.

In other news, I don't seem to be able to read anything at the moment but books I've already read. And a book I read less than a year ago, at that. I can't help it, Assassination Vacation is wonderful. Sarah Vowell is such a funny dork about history. And I'm also reading Good Omens again, which I do love to pieces, but I need to put it down every forty pages or so to take a break from the wacky. That's the general effect Terry Prachett has on me, actually - I find him much more tolerable alongside Neil Gaiman. I've very proud of myself for resisting Borders' massive buy 3 get 1 free summer sale. It isn't that it's such a great deal, but that there are so many books included in it - tons of historical fiction. Also, there's a brand spanking new book about Elizabeth I as a Pirate Queen that I MUST HAVE at some point (possibly from the library, which isn't open Sundays in the summer ::pouts::) and two new books about Woodes Rogers' campaign against the Caribbean pirates. Plus Blockbusters has an even better sale - buy 2 previewed movies, get 2 free, and in general it's been a very trying weekend for me and my bank account. Sigh. If I hadn't bought that blouse at Target, I would've allowed myself at least one novel. But I so rarely get lucky when it comes to clothing that I can't really feel conflicted. And my new iPod protector is pretty!