Long Time No Write (and Pine Brothers and Battersea)

So what else is new? Long time no write is a trend with me. So this is going to have to be short and sweet, or I'll never get back in the swing. The key of getting back into the swing of things is to be willing to start again being only halfassed at it. You'll never start with the skill (stop laughing) you left off with, so jump right back in and shimmy until you get a calf cramp. That's what I always say. Oh, but wait! I forgot the excuse. I was off fiddling about finishing my MA, taking trips, and nursing various ailments. Good enough?

So many exciting things are happening! While doing my usual search for Pine Brothers Cough Drops, the delicious substitute candies we used to eat in school, where of course real candy was not allowed, I actually found a site claiming to sell the "Original" Pine Bros. throat drops. Could it be? Well, I won't know until they start selling cherry or honey flavor, because I find licorice foul, and not even Pine Bros. can overcome that one for me! However, this eager gentleman may be willing to try out some fresh Pine Brothers, licorice or no. I'd like to hear his verdict on the veracity of their "originality." Although I admit it's likely the folks on that site imply a much earlier "original" than my early-'80s version.

What else? Well, I found a use of the word "scrobble" that predates the whole Last.FM thing. You'll have to wait for the exact quotation, but it was from Joan Aiken's Black Hearts in Battersea, whose Wikipedia page is so poor I see no reason to link it. In fact, I see reason to jump in and try to edit that page, but Wikipedia's a lot of thankless work, isn't it? I tend to stick to the simple "minor edits." Larger ones aren't really worth the effort. Black Hearts in Battersea definitely is worth effort, and lucky for everyone the only effort (apart from obtaining the book) is reading The Wolves of Willoughby Chase first, which may be even better. The whole series, which only leads from one book to the next with one dangling thread from its predecessor, is a perfect indulgent read to tuck into for late autumn and early winter.

So stop reading this and start reading that.