I’ve been on a big of a blogging hiatus, as my creative spirit battles it out with the onset of winter. I just don’t do well with cold weather. My instinct is to hibernate, both physically and emotionally.  Of course, the peril of Internet silence is that if you let it stretch on too long, you become a nonentity, quickly forgotten as people move on to more immediate sources of entertainment.

So here’s a slapdash update, as I get the rant machine revved up again.

I’m still working my way through Liz Carlyle’s backlist, currently reading No True Gentleman. I haven’t watched much in the way of movies lately, and I sent Bad Education back to Netflix unwatched because a)I wasn’t in the mood to sit through it and b)Pedro Almodovar signed that fricking Polanski petition. I keep going back and forth as to whether I want to see This Is It and Precious, both of which have gotten rave reviews. And my sense is that I can’t watch either of them in the theater. I think — for different reasons, obviously — both films are just too personal and emotional to share with a big crowd of moviegoers. I need to be in my pajamas, with tissues and comfort food nearby.

Speaking of which, I’m really proud of myself because I’ve nailed a standard Bengali comfort food recipe. Khichuri, often served after prayer services, is a mix of rice, lentils and spices and is one of my favorite rainy/cold day foods. It’s like chicken soup or chili, something that just spells home. Between this and somewhat mastering chana masala (a chickpea dish), I feel like I’m really getting a handle on traditional Indian cooking once more. At some point, I have to start making chicken curry again. I was really good at it back when I lived in Ohio. Haven’t made it in New York, though.

I’m trying to balance my non-soap TV viewing as best I can, but when you watch upwards of 20 hours a week for work it gets exhausting. I had to jettison Castle (sorry, Nathan Fillion!) because the Monday at 10 spot was brutal. I’m a week behind on How I Met Your Mother. I make sure to tune in to NCIS and The Good Wife on Tuesdays, Glee on Wednesdays, and The Vampire Diaries/Supernatural on Thursdays. If I’m awake, I watch White Collar live on Friday nights at 10, but I mostly catch it On Demand on Saturday or Sunday.

Aaand that’s pretty much it for me at the moment.

Not too thrilling, eh?