Post by Mark T. Locker.

A couple weeks ago we discussed a classic Humphrey Bogart detective movie, The Maltese Falcon. This past week I had the opportunity to spend the night at a house on the Oregon coast. While the day started out unseasonably mild and nearly sunny, the wild wet weather swept in suddenly and ferociously. So while the rain and wind lashed the windows, we stoked the fire, filled our glasses with whiskey and pulled off the shelf another great Bogart classic, The Big Sleep.

The most interesting I learned while watching this movie was that it was the inspiration for another favorite of mine, The Big Lebowski. Now, I am not a movie scholar, I don’t “read” the movies or anything, so I haven’t really figured out what the parallels are. Whatever Philip Marlowe and The Dude have in common, it certainly isn’t clothing choices.

I like this movie for a few reasons: William Faulkner co-wrote the screenplay; Raymond Chandler wrote the novel; Humphrey Bogart is, well, awesome; and finally, two little words: Lauren Bacall. Need I say more? Watch it. It’s dark, sinister, mysterious, and exciting.

Tags: bed, bedroom, Charles P. Rogers, Movie Reviews, Movies

Post by Craig Jenkins.

Do you have a sizable room that you want to furnish with a bed that takes advantage of that space? Maybe you want to consider a canopy bed. Canopy beds are great ways of filling up a room. Naturally a king or queen sized bed will eat up some of the horizontal space in any room you put it in, but a canopy bed makes use of not only the horizontal space, but also the vertical space. Pick the right one, and you’ll not only have a luxurious, regal sleeping space for yourself and your family, but you’ll also have a towering, majestic focal point for your room.

Better yet, canopy beds allow you to flex your creative muscles and introduce little personal design flourishes you wouldn’t normally be able to work into a smaller bed. You can trick out your canopy with extra trappings like curtains, drapes, lights, plants, and whatever else strikes your fancy. If you have the right room for it, and you want to add some extra three dimensional pop and kingly largess to your sleeping space, a canopy bed seems like the perfect option.

Tags: bed, bedroom, canopy bed, Charles P. Rogers

Post by Alison Hein.

So far this year, I’ve made no gym or diet resolutions, and I’ve done plenty of eating. Sooner or later that has to change. In the meantime, I’m enjoying some good old-fashioned comfort food on these dreary January mornings. Waffles! Nothing warms the heart like biting into a crunchy-on-the-outside-fluffy-on-the-inside batter cake, its little grids filled to the brim with melted butter and maple syrup.

Not surprisingly, waffles originated in what is now Belgium (Think freshly whipped cream and ruby ripe berries!) in the form of wafers. Unleavened batter was poured onto wafer irons – two metal plates hinged together and attached to a long handle – then held over the fire to cook. Today, delicious variations of this simple theme abound across the globe.

Waffles are easy to make, but you will need a waffle iron and a little practice. Every iron differs and requires somewhere between ½ cup and ¾ cup of batter per waffle (mine uses ⅔ cup). You may create a few skinny waffles, or spillovers, until you get it just right. Try experimenting with different types of flour (wheat, rice, chestnut), or add some chopped fruit or nuts to the batter for variety. Kids, of course, love waffles. Any extras can be wrapped and frozen for a special weekday breakfast.

If you’re like me, and have no diet resolutions, or perhaps have given up already, try these waffles for a good old comforting breakfast in bed.

Ingredients
2 cups flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup vegetable oil, or butter, melted and slightly cooled
½ cup sour cream
Cooking spray

Preparation
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. In separate bowl, add milk, eggs and vanilla and beat until frothy. Pour oil or melted butter into liquid mixture and stir well. Using a wooden spoon or hand mixer, gradually add liquid mixture to dry ingredients until batter is smooth. Stir in sour cream.

Spray waffle iron with cooking spray and heat to high. Pour ½ cup to ¾ cup batter into center of iron, making sure you have enough batter to evenly spread across the surface of your waffle iron. Cook until golden brown and crisp and waffle pulls away easily from iron, about 5 minutes. Serve warm with melted butter and maple syrup. Top with fruit, if you like.

Makes 4 to 5 waffles.

Tags: Breakfast in Bed, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Recipes, Waffles

Post by Laura Cheng.

A few months ago, I was actually happy when my partner accidentally broke the ceiling fan while cleaning it. I now had the opportunity to begin the initial transformation of my ordinary and cluttered bedroom into a dreamy luxurious suite, à la the Presidential Suite at the St. Regis Singapore.

Source: http://www.blog.barnlightelectric.com/elegant-crystal-chandelier-and-sconces-in-the-st-regis/

It is now 4 months later, and although my bedroom doesn’t look anything close to the $15,000 a night suite, I did delve up some great chandelier selection tips.

Chandeliers are sold without the shades and are often used that way. These chandeliers will be brighter because the bulbs are bare and exposed. If you really want to light a room, choose a chandelier with bulbs or translucent glass shades. Adding or changing shades gives you a totally different appearance and reinvents the piece. If you simply want to light more of a bed, pick a chandelier with opaque glass shares or mini lamp shades that direct the light downward. Frosted bulbs will also cast a pleasing glow and won’t create shadows.

Any easy way to get more “sparkle” from your chandelier is to consider wattage. Chandelier bulbs come in up to 60 watts. Try using 40, or even 25 watt bulbs for the right amount of light in your space. Go one step further and install a dimmer to control the glow even more.

When trying to decide what type of chandelier is best, bear in mind that cleaning can be labor intensive. Simple, armed designs are easier to keep dazzling, while crystal chandeliers, however beautiful, take much more effort to maintain. Dust seems to collect much more easily on glass and crystal chandeliers.

Chandeliers come in many different sizes, so how do you know which size will be appropriate? A good rule of thumb is to add the width and length of the room (in feet). The sum of those two numbers is the diameter in inches of the chandelier you’ll need. For example my bedroom measures 10 feet by 9 feet. You add 10 + 9 together to get 19 inches in diameter. If you happen to have low ceilings, you can play with the width or diameter of a chandelier to create eye-catching looks. The bedroom below uses a chandelier that is much wider than it is tall.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/7ymxccu

How low should the chandelier hang? Personally, I would not hang a fixture any lower than 6’8” from the floor (the same height as a standard door) to avoid hitting your head when walking underneath. I have an 8-foot high ceiling so that gives me 16” of height to play with for a dramatic light fixture.

But of course, rules are meant to be broken. Over a bed or nightstand, where no one will walk, you can get away with dropping a chandelier a little lower like the ones below for added drama.

Source: http://www.bhg.com/rooms/bedroom/master-bedroom/25-of-our-favorite-real-life-bedrooms-/

Source: http://tinyurl.com/82r7tlm

And for those that really do not have head space in your bedroom for a chandelier, you could always try this quick and easy weekend project:

Source: hrhcollection.net

Post by Mark T. Locker.

  The Arrival by Shaun Tan.

I have some terrible news: I cannot find my copy of The Arrival by Shaun Tan. If you have not     experienced this book, you might not understand my implacable sorrow. This is a book I give others as   often as possible. It’s no good to read aloud (there are no words) and the subject matter may be a bit   mature for kids but that’s no excuse not to run out and get this book right now.

Despite the fact that there is no written text, the images tell a rich story and you really can read them as one would a story with words.

The tale told in the pictures is that of an immigrant, fleeing a land of danger and war and striving to find  his way in a new land which is wholly alien to him. What I love about this book is that it highlights how language is not the only barrier to overcome in a new culture; there are new ways of acting, strange new foods, some of which you may not even know how to eat, and a host of other experiences to muddle through.

The Arrival is an intense, sweet, and touching story about one man’s journey to a new life in a new world. I like it. You will like it too.

Tags: bed, bedroom, bedtime stories, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Shaun Tan, The Arrival