Thinking about fall, and somehow that Gaiman fellow pops up everywhere

Oh hai, Saturday! Look at you, all shiny and new, with a nip in the air that tells me the better beach-going days are probably behind us for the next nine months or so. It's a bit of a shame, because I would have liked a few more hot days, but I understand that Fall is getting closer and the seasons have to do their thing. It'll be a good time for things like pumpkins, warm sweaters, and scary stories. Some mornings there might even be a bit of frost, making the grass crispy so there's that funny crunching sound when you walk on it.

But I'm getting a little ahead of myself, aren't I? This is just an early Saturday in September, still officially Summer, and there's probably a few more weeks of warm weather in the immediate forecast. So let's do this blog post thingamajig, and in the meantime I'll decide what to have for breakfast or brunch. Coffee, for sure. A croissant would be nice. French toast, maybe? We'll see.

-   Looking for a new holiday tradition? How about giving someone a scary book this Halloween? All Hallow's Read is the new tradition (started by Neil Gaiman) that you can be part of. The book doesn't have to be new. It just has to be scary, and... age-appropriate. Don't give a little kid The Shining. That's for an older audience, unless you know a kid who likes getting spooked by twins in a creepy hotel. A young child might prefer something, I don't know... less blood-curdling. I would ask a good bookseller or librarian. Or even a kid. They're pretty good at knowing what they want to read.

I can get on board with this. Also, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is my favourite Halloween-time read. It's almost time to read it again. Maybe I'll give that to someone.

-   Speaking of Neil Freakin' Gaiman, here's a cute quote of his that I thought some people might appreciate:

-   Another author I really like is Bill Willingham. I just read a pretty wonderful review of his new book, Down the Mysterly River, and it sounds just like something I'd like to read right now. Willingham is better known as the author of the Fables series, and this book sounds like a cross between that and fractured fairy tales that are very Gaiman-esque.

(FYI, my current read is Stardust, by Mr. Amanda Effing Palmer.) (Check the badge.) (Seriously, it isn't a Neil-themed week. I think.)

-   What we SHOULD have been taught in our senior year of high school. Although the first bit isn't applicable to Canadians. (Except for the one who work in construction, because good luck getting those people to switch from imperial to metric. What's a 2 x 4 in metric?)

-   In the 90s, Kevin Sorbo starred on the TV series Hercules, a show that was entertaining, campy, and filled with quality dialogue. For example:

I might use this at work when I show up on Monday. "Wait a minute... this isn't my bed... DISAPPOINTED!"

-   Song of the Week: I've thought about posting this song for a good five or six weeks, but held back each time because I couldn't make up my mind. Well, my mind's made up, and I'll say that Someone Like You is a haunting, beautiful song, remarkable for its nakedness of emotion and general lack of in-your-face production. It's harder to disguise mediocre talent in songs with stripped-down arrangements. Adele isn't perfect, but it's the imperfections that can make some songs easier to love.

(Enjoy the full video, or skip to 1:07 for the beginning of the son.)


***
It's breakfast time. Let's go make some waffles.