Clicking these links will make your afternoon disappear

A short post today, Dear Reader, as I should read another chapter of my manuscript aloud before PL1 and PL2 wake up from their naptimes like cranky dragons ready for a peanut butter and jelly snack. (Dragons do love peanut butter and jelly. Just ask one, next time you see him.)

First, a shout out to TV Tropes. If you haven't ever experienced the gravitational pull of this website, I highly recommend you do not click that link. TV Tropes is a fascinating, snarky wiki about every kind of character and plot trope that has ever been done -- not only on TV, but in movies, books, and comics as well. An invaluable resource for writers, both in helping identify traits common to the kinds of characters we might already have in our texts and helping us keep our characters from becoming too cookie-cutter. Also, the more time I spend orbiting TV Tropes, the more inadequate I feel to come up with anything original. Ever.

Second, a shout out to a most puzzling and interesting Wikipedia page: Common Misconceptions. You may also spend a ton of time you don't really have combing through these interesting (and perhaps questionable) factoids. This one blew my mind:

"Searing  meat does not 'seal in' moisture, and in fact may actually cause meat to lose moisture. Rather, meat is seared to create a brown crust and to add a rich flavor via the Maillard reaction."

As soon as I've picked my gray matter up from the floor, I'm off to edit!

Lolcats are like inappropriate remarks: there's one for every situation.