Things You Should Like, But Just Don't

[Monocle Money Mouth]

I'm not a picky eater, but those are a few things I can't deal with :)

After that list, I'm not entirely sure that's true =P

If you had to choose to go out to eat with me or my Mom, you would probably much rather eat with me. Here are some things my mom won't eat but I will:

Mexican
Chinese
Indian
Lebanese
Yellow Cheese

The dining options with my Mom are as follows
Steak Place
Italian

I'll eat everything above and then some. It's not like I live on french fries and grilled cheese sandwiches.

[EricL]

Microsoft Windows - for me the cause of significant aggravation for reasons way too long to go into.  The salt on the wound is when I explain my pain free Mac preference and Windows users say I'm in a cult.

Raw tomatoes- the Devil's work

Big Bang Theory - yawn.  Even though I get and can even correct them on their geek knowledge

Babies - for reasons that should seem obvious

Horses - Just not my thing.

Cars - I had one and driving had its moments, but I just never was into them except for their practical applications. 

[AllieVaulter]

I think most of things are food items:

Alcohol
Soda
Coffee
Seafood

[dorothyc]

Lots of people ooh and ahh over shrimp, crab, lobster and the like. To me they just look like sea bugs.

[EricL]

Lots of people ooh and ahh over shrimp, crab, lobster and the like. To me they just look like sea bugs.

They are bugs.  But like most things they go great with butter. 

[Rural]

Lots of people ooh and ahh over shrimp, crab, lobster and the like. To me they just look like sea bugs.

They are bugs.  But like most things they go great with butter.

You know, this should mean we could all have such treats for free any time we want, just by using the land version. Should cut down on any mercury accumulation issues, too.

[mtn]

Lots of people ooh and ahh over shrimp, crab, lobster and the like. To me they just look like sea bugs.

They are bugs.  But like most things they go great with butter.

You know, this should mean we could all have such treats for free any time we want, just by using the land version. Should cut down on any mercury accumulation issues, too.

Unfortunately, "real bugs" have too much shell in the shell-to-meat ratio to make it worth it. And the meat just isn't that tasty.

Yes, I have eaten insects before--specifically cicada's. A guy said he'd give $30 to anyone who ate one. I did it, and would do it again today, but would bring some syrup or molasses or chocolate to dip it in first. Oh, and take the wings off. Bleyach.

FWIW, I do love Lobster, even plane without anything, and crab. I am completely indifferent to shrimp, and generally actually try to avoid it due to my fear of its origin.

[milesdividendmd]

Shouldn't eating invertebrates be less objectionable to eating mammals?  It's an extra degree of separation from cannibalism.

[GuitarStv]

Only if you have objections to cannibalism.

[RetiredAt63]

I don't find lobster and shrimp have much flavour either, but garlic butter makes lobster, and cocktail sauce makes shrimp.  Mercury content in lobster is really variable, depends on the area they are living in.  I think Canada does test (or used to, we have had so many budget cutbacks).  Shrimp is a close-to-surface filter feeder, so there should be almost no contamination for mercury, but could have contamination from things like red tides or oil spills.

Actually re flavour, it seems to come with myoglobin - at least I find dark meat in poultry is a lot more interesting than white meat, and pork and beef have lots of flavour and myoglobin.  I had crocodile once, and it could have passed for lobster or really boring chicken breast, very bland, very delicate texture.

Unfortunately, "real bugs" have too much shell in the shell-to-meat ratio to make it worth it. And the meat just isn't that tasty.

FWIW, I do love Lobster, even plane without anything, and crab. I am completely indifferent to shrimp, and generally actually try to avoid it due to my fear of its origin.

[sixup]

Cooking. I try to enjoy it. I want to enjoy it. But it just sucks. First you gotta have/get all the ingredients. Then you have to combine them properly with tedious measurements. Then you wait if you're lucky, or worse you have to stand by some hot ass pan and move the things around as you sweat profusely. Then, if your recipe was anything substantial, you have a moderate-large amount of dishes you now must wash. All this to eat, which takes maybe 15 minutes tops...hopefully there is enough for left overs so you don't have to do this shit again for a couple days!

[Proud Foot]

Zombies as you're talking about them I would group into the popularity of WWII films, anything having to do with Nazis, neo-nazis, etc., where people get the satisfaction of having a bad guy without feeling conflicted about it.

Just go ahead and combine the two! oh wait...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1278340/

Personally I don't like:
Most of the films that win the big awards (Academy's, etc.)
I also cannot stand most of the little hipster indie films either
Most books on any best-seller list
Fancy chain resturaunts, I much prefer hole in the wall, mom & pop type places.
Loud, overcrowded places - indoor concerts, clubs

[FLA]

 
[/quote]

i dunno, i think it's pretty common to hate this book but it doesn't make sense to me why people hate it so much. it's a beautifully written, deeply felt memoir about how a woman recreated her life in her own image. and of course it's navel-gazing -- it's a freakin memoir! that's what memoirs are! if you don't like people examining their own life experiences, then don't read memoirs!

also strikes me as funny that dudes who write memoirs don't seem to get this same criticism.

(that being said, the movie is bad.)
[/quote]

 my friends loved it, I tried it, did not care for writing style and to me, IMHO, having read two of her books, I find her to a bit of a narcissist.  But she seems to have inspired many others, whatever floats your boat.

I disagree about female autobiographers, Joan Didion and Patti Smith (she won an NBA) were lauded for their work in recent years. And both have strong follow-ups.   

[calimom]

FLA - completely agree with you about Joan Didion and Patti Smith.  I've read just about everything written by Ms. Didion, and looking forward to Patti Smith's new release "N Train".  I hope my library gets it soon.  Joan Didion is not for everyone, but I have loved her since college.

Books and movies are so subjective.  I can't say I hated Forrest Gump, but it was one big "meh" for me, and it did exceedingly well and is beloved today.

No wizards, zombies, ghosts, for me, not my genre, but glad there are writers who delve into it and glad the audience loves it.

[FLA]

Books and movies are so subjective.  I can't say I hated Forrest Gump, but it was one big "meh" for me, and it did exceedingly well and is beloved today.

No wizards, zombies, ghosts, for me, not my genre, but glad there are writers who delve into it and glad the audience loves it.

Titanic is my Forrest Gump, my ex's nieces dragged me to it twice when we were visiting.  Now I never have to watch it again, they got my eyeballs and my money, we're good.

I think books about anything are great, all genres are important.  And that's what it takes to keep people reading.  I hate that statistic that after college, 80% of people never read a book again.  I can't imagine this is true, I thought there was an uptick in reading with Kindles, etc. 

[boy_bye]

 my friends loved it, I tried it, did not care for writing style and to me, IMHO, having read two of her books, I find her to a bit of a narcissist.  But she seems to have inspired many others, whatever floats your boat.

I disagree about female autobiographers, Joan Didion and Patti Smith (she won an NBA) were lauded for their work in recent years. And both have strong follow-ups.

You seem to have missed my point ... I wasn't saying anything about other female autobiographers. I was specifically pointing out that I have not heard the navel-gazing narcissist criticism that I hear about Eat Pray Love when memoirs by dudes are discussed.

It's a gendered criticism, in my opinion, which means it seems to be disproportionately applied to books by women. (Similar to the dismissive "chick lit" label.) That doesn't mean it's applied to all books by women.

I get that EPL is not everyone's cup of tea, and that's fine. I just think it's worth looking at the gendered way people talk about it.

[FLA]

 
[/quote]

You seem to have missed my point ... I wasn't saying anything about other female autobiographers. I was specifically pointing out that I have not heard the navel-gazing narcissist criticism that I hear about Eat Pray Love when memoirs by dudes are discussed.

It's a gendered criticism, in my opinion, which means it seems to be disproportionately applied to books by women. (Similar to the dismissive "chick lit" label.) That doesn't mean it's applied to all books by women.

I get that EPL is not everyone's cup of tea, and that's fine. I just think it's worth looking at the gendered way people talk about it.
[/quote]

I gotcha now. 

[Shropskr]

Home repair.   
Home maintenance ie vacuuming, cleaning showers, etc

Kids homework
Parent teacher conferences
Hell anything I have to do at the school.
Fundraisers

Eke I love my kids and do everything I can for them.  But I hate school! Public or Homeschool. Still hate it.

[AmandaS1989]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

Loud or ill-behaved children. If they're quiet and/or have good manners then I don't have a problem. Babies I can't handle. My poor mom will never get to be mawmaw.

[Dicey]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

[AmandaS1989]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

Might want to have a trash can handy in case he hurls lol. Seriously I have no idea how they eat or why they even like it. But my parents both grew up with a lot less than what my brother and I had so they had to eat a lot of stuff my brother and I didn't have to. Like that evaporated milk. Ew. My mother told me during one point in her childhood things got so bad that my grandfather could only afford to buy apples for his family to eat. So for three months, except on the weekends when they went to their grandparents' house, my mom and uncle only ate apples. My mom told me she couldn't even look at an apple for an entire year afterwards.

[Rosy]

Diamond rings - which is odd, because I am a rock hound and love my gemstones, but I hate the idea that pricing is controlled by a cartel and artificially kept high, besides I am not all that impressed by a colorless stone.
For my money I prefer a fine juicy color of a luscious red ruby or the glory of a fine yellow labradorite or the kelly green of a quality chrome diopside anyday.

+1 on the zombie movies or books - gross.

On the coffee - can't live without it:), but don't care at all for the ice tea everyone here in Florida is in love with.

The most recent book I considered a complete waste of my time was the popular Konmarie book on Tidying up your Clutter. Waited for this book for two and a half months at my library - glad I didn't cave and buy it on Amazon. It fell short on so many levels, it struck me as rather juvenile in its approach.

My all time favorite book in this genre is called "Spirit of the Home" by Jane Alexander. The subtitle is "How to make your Home a Sanctuary" it considers your lifestyle and discusses clearing your clutter from a different, holistic perspective. Spring cleaning, natural cleaning products, space clearing, thoughts on your senses and sacred spaces including aromatherapy. The book includes a few chapters on Feng Shui which is one reason I almost did not purchase this book, but found riveting. Totally enjoyable and inspiring read - a book I go back to from time to time.
... outstanding photography too:)

[Bracken_Joy]

My all time favorite book in this genre is called "Spirit of the Home" by Jane Alexander. The subtitle is "How to make your Home a Sanctuary" it considers your lifestyle and discusses clearing your clutter from a different, holistic perspective. Spring cleaning, natural cleaning products, space clearing, thoughts on your senses and sacred spaces including aromatherapy. The book includes a few chapters on Feng Shui which is one reason I almost did not purchase this book, but found riveting. Totally enjoyable and inspiring read - a book I go back to from time to time.
... outstanding photography too:)

Thanks for the recommendation! On my library list now =)

[Dicey]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

Might want to have a trash can handy in case he hurls lol. Seriously I have no idea how they eat or why they even like it. But my parents both grew up with a lot less than what my brother and I had so they had to eat a lot of stuff my brother and I didn't have to. Like that evaporated milk. Ew. My mother told me during one point in her childhood things got so bad that my grandfather could only afford to buy apples for his family to eat. So for three months, except on the weekends when they went to their grandparents' house, my mom and uncle only ate apples. My mom told me she couldn't even look at an apple for an entire year afterwards.

Oh, that makes me sad. I hope they went on to live happy lives...
As to the trash can, not necessary. There's no way I'd even try to feed him that, and if I did, he wouldn't eat it. No how, no way. OTOH, just the thought of it could cause that reaction, so I think I won't mention it until well after dinner...

[AmandaS1989]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

Might want to have a trash can handy in case he hurls lol. Seriously I have no idea how they eat or why they even like it. But my parents both grew up with a lot less than what my brother and I had so they had to eat a lot of stuff my brother and I didn't have to. Like that evaporated milk. Ew. My mother told me during one point in her childhood things got so bad that my grandfather could only afford to buy apples for his family to eat. So for three months, except on the weekends when they went to their grandparents' house, my mom and uncle only ate apples. My mom told me she couldn't even look at an apple for an entire year afterwards.

Oh, that makes me sad. I hope they went on to live happy lives...
As to the trash can, not necessary. There's no way I'd even try to feed him that, and if I did, he wouldn't eat it. No how, no way. OTOH, just the thought of it could cause that reaction, so I think I won't mention it until well after dinner...

Things got better for them eventually. My grandfather moved them from the mountains where they lived to the city two hours away so he could find work. And finally decided to actually stay at a job longer than six months. Sometimes I wonder why my grandmother stayed with him.

Did you ever mention the sandwich to him? I hope he didn't turn green. But that's not the most disgusting thing my family's eaten surprisingly. My grandmother was fond of chicken livers and grape jelly together. I asked her why she would eat something so nasty and she said it didn't taste half bad. But she admitted that over 40 years of smoking had killed most of her taste buds so I'm not gonna trust that.

[mtn]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

Might want to have a trash can handy in case he hurls lol. Seriously I have no idea how they eat or why they even like it. But my parents both grew up with a lot less than what my brother and I had so they had to eat a lot of stuff my brother and I didn't have to. Like that evaporated milk. Ew. My mother told me during one point in her childhood things got so bad that my grandfather could only afford to buy apples for his family to eat. So for three months, except on the weekends when they went to their grandparents' house, my mom and uncle only ate apples. My mom told me she couldn't even look at an apple for an entire year afterwards.

Oh, that makes me sad. I hope they went on to live happy lives...
As to the trash can, not necessary. There's no way I'd even try to feed him that, and if I did, he wouldn't eat it. No how, no way. OTOH, just the thought of it could cause that reaction, so I think I won't mention it until well after dinner...

Things got better for them eventually. My grandfather moved them from the mountains where they lived to the city two hours away so he could find work. And finally decided to actually stay at a job longer than six months. Sometimes I wonder why my grandmother stayed with him.

Did you ever mention the sandwich to him? I hope he didn't turn green. But that's not the most disgusting thing my family's eaten surprisingly. My grandmother was fond of chicken livers and grape jelly together. I asked her why she would eat something so nasty and she said it didn't taste half bad. But she admitted that over 40 years of smoking had killed most of her taste buds so I'm not gonna trust that.

I love chicken livers. I love grape jelly. And while I cannot say it sounds good together, it doesn't sound too horrible--bad, but not disgusting.

My great uncle eats (or used to eat, his health issues determine his diet now) oreo cookies with velveeta cheese. I'm not knocking it, since I haven't tried it... But I'm also not going to try it. And I'll try anything once.

[gillstone]

Kale sucks

Beets taste like dirt

[GuitarStv]

Beets taste like dirt

Let's be fair . . . they taste like sweet dirt.

[AmandaS1989]

Beets taste like dirt

Let's be fair . . . they taste like sweet dirt.

It's still dirt though :)

[Rightflyer]

Camo.
As in camouflage patterned clothing, coverings, paint schemes etc. Seems ridiculous on anything that isn't owned by a military organization.

Cilantro.
I used to love it. I got sick eating a street taco in Puerto Vallarta in the 80's and since then, I just can't force myself to enjoy it. Not for want of trying though.

[Dicey]

Mayonnaise. Ugh *shudders* I don't know how my mom and dad eat mayonnaise and banana sandwiches. *gags*

My Bonus Kid won't eat anything with mayo or that has a mayo-like texture.
I am not personally fond of bananas. A mayo and banana sandwich would gross both of us out. I can't wait to tell him about this so we can shudder together.
*Shudder* x 3. Ugh is right.

Might want to have a trash can handy in case he hurls lol. Seriously I have no idea how they eat or why they even like it. But my parents both grew up with a lot less than what my brother and I had so they had to eat a lot of stuff my brother and I didn't have to. Like that evaporated milk. Ew. My mother told me during one point in her childhood things got so bad that my grandfather could only afford to buy apples for his family to eat. So for three months, except on the weekends when they went to their grandparents' house, my mom and uncle only ate apples. My mom told me she couldn't even look at an apple for an entire year afterwards.

Oh, that makes me sad. I hope they went on to live happy lives...
As to the trash can, not necessary. There's no way I'd even try to feed him that, and if I did, he wouldn't eat it. No how, no way. OTOH, just the thought of it could cause that reaction, so I think I won't mention it until well after dinner...

Things got better for them eventually. My grandfather moved them from the mountains where they lived to the city two hours away so he could find work. And finally decided to actually stay at a job longer than six months. Sometimes I wonder why my grandmother stayed with him.

Did you ever mention the sandwich to him? I hope he didn't turn green. But that's not the most disgusting thing my family's eaten surprisingly. My grandmother was fond of chicken livers and grape jelly together. I asked her why she would eat something so nasty and she said it didn't taste half bad. But she admitted that over 40 years of smoking had killed most of her taste buds so I'm not gonna trust that.

Well, yesterday we had a 90-year-old friend over for dinner, so I did broach the subject, but well before dinner. She grew up in Alaska, where food availability was much scarcer, so she said she couldn't be a picky eater. One of her childhood favorites was peanut butter-and-dill-pickle sandwiches. Okay...

[AlanStache]

Sketch comedy: very little of it is funny.  Yeah "more cow bells" is good but beyond that?  Really we have kept SNL around for the last 43 years because there was three ok skits in the early 80's?

Books that use made up words: Anathem by Neal Stephenson, Dune, others.  Flipping to the back to look up a word spoils the flow.  Just makes me roll my eyes and say "damn-it what the hell is that again". 

Big Bang Theory is a below average sit-com.

[AmandaS1989]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

[mtn]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

(I'm 25, and grew up in Chicago suburbs and currently live in Chicago)

Squirrel and rabbit are both tasty. Nothing wrong with either of them, especially in a stew. If you think about it, pig is weirder to eat than rabbit.

[Bracken_Joy]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

(I'm 25, and grew up in Chicago suburbs and currently live in Chicago)

Squirrel and rabbit are both tasty. Nothing wrong with either of them, especially in a stew. If you think about it, pig is weirder to eat than rabbit.

Personally, I think squirrel is gross, but I love rabbit!

[Rural]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

(I'm 25, and grew up in Chicago suburbs and currently live in Chicago)

Squirrel and rabbit are both tasty. Nothing wrong with either of them, especially in a stew. If you think about it, pig is weirder to eat than rabbit.

Personally, I think squirrel is gross, but I love rabbit!

+1


Squirrel is better in stew than out of it, but that,s not saying much. Rabbit's actually hard to mess up, though.

[Kitsune]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

(I'm 25, and grew up in Chicago suburbs and currently live in Chicago)

Squirrel and rabbit are both tasty. Nothing wrong with either of them, especially in a stew. If you think about it, pig is weirder to eat than rabbit.

Personally, I think squirrel is gross, but I love rabbit!

+1


Squirrel is better in stew than out of it, but that,s not saying much. Rabbit's actually hard to mess up, though.

Rabbit stew with dumplings is YUM.

Rabbits are also easy to raise, which is lovely when you have limited space and spare time but would like to limit dependance on factory-farmed meat. We just moved, so none this year, but next year... yuuummmm...

[GuitarStv]

Rabbit is almost indistinguishable from cat, so if you like rabbit and see cat on a menu somewhere . . . give it a whirl.

[AmandaS1989]

I actually had squirrel once. I was eating a stew at a family reunion and I was like 'This is great, what's in it?' My cousin laughed and said 'I don't think you wanna know' but my great-aunt told me and I actually wasn't that freaked out. I would've never guessed it was squirrel if they hadn't told me.

[mtn]

Rabbit is almost indistinguishable from cat, so if you like rabbit and see cat on a menu somewhere . . . give it a whirl.

Nah, that breaks my personal almost-a-rule-but-really-a-very-strong-guideline of "I don't eat meat that eats meat".

There are exceptions (pig will eat anything, fish), but I generally avoid carnivores and omnivores.

[AlanStache]

...
Nah, that breaks my personal almost-a-rule-but-really-a-very-strong-guideline of "I don't eat meat that eats meat".

There are exceptions (pig will eat anything, fish), but I generally avoid carnivores and omnivores.

Really, why?  Not sure I see a reason to make a distinction there-but never really thought about it.  Are you talking about an animals 'natural' diet or what the crider on the styrofoam plate at the supper market ate?

[mtn]

...
Nah, that breaks my personal almost-a-rule-but-really-a-very-strong-guideline of "I don't eat meat that eats meat".

There are exceptions (pig will eat anything, fish), but I generally avoid carnivores and omnivores.

Really, why?  Not sure I see a reason to make a distinction there-but never really thought about it.  Are you talking about an animals 'natural' diet or what the crider on the styrofoam plate at the supper market ate?

A lot of reasons--ecological, culinary, economical, safety (I can go hunt a deer and know I won't get hurt; if I try to kill a Lion, I might piss it off and end up dead), as well as health. My wife is a Dietitian, and while we don't buy fully into the organic trend, we are somewhat of a hybrid mix of it. The old saying was, "You are what you eat". Now we're saying, "You are what your food eats". We do get some nutrients from what our food eats; it is just a healthier way. I've also heard from folks (asians, WWII POW's, etc.) that cat tastes horrible if it wasn't raised eating rice. Obviously you can't make a blanket statement based on one animal, but it isn't an unreasonable assumption to make. I know that beef tastes better when raised on grass than corn.

[wenchsenior]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

Uh...rabbit is a pretty normal thing to eat. Sold in grocery stores and everything.

[KayakMom]

Sketch comedy: very little of it is funny.  Yeah "more cow bells" is good but beyond that?  Really we have kept SNL around for the last 43 years because there was three ok skits in the early 80's?

Big Bang Theory is a below average sit-com.

I whole-heartedly agree about Big Bang Theory.  What perplexes me is that I have had more than one person tell me that "I would love it"-- just not very good.

I have not watched SNL much lately but this skit got me chuckling:

http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/dont-buy-stuff/n12020

[Chranstronaut]

The book The Martian.  I love science fiction, I love space and I've studied a lot about spacecraft/habitat/mission design.  Everyone I know recommended it to me over and over, but...

I found the main character sexist, homophobic and terribly un-likable.  Most of the secondary characters were one-dimensional stereotypes and there was no significant character development among any of them.  The book was clearly never edited (some leeway here as it was originally self-published online).  The author's use of multiple writing styles and perspectives was inept and distracting.  I got the book club tie-in edition featuring interviews with the author.  He sounds every bit as self-absorbed and unlikable as Mark Watney because that's purposefully how he wrote the character - his own little Gary Stu.

I am working up the courage to go see the movie because I love the cast and I liked the basic concept.  This is the only time I have ever hoped the movie butchers the book because I think I would actually enjoy it then.

[AmandaS1989]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

Uh...rabbit is a pretty normal thing to eat. Sold in grocery stores and everything.

It is? I have never seen rabbit for sale in any grocery store where I live. But then again, we go to stores like Food Lion, WM Neighborhood Market and Aldi's. What part of the country are you from?

[mtn]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

Uh...rabbit is a pretty normal thing to eat. Sold in grocery stores and everything.

It is? I have never seen rabbit for sale in any grocery store where I live. But then again, we go to stores like Food Lion, WM Neighborhood Market and Aldi's. What part of the country are you from?

In the midwest, I have seen rabbit once at an Aldi, and a few times at Whole Foods.

[AlanStache]

The book The Martian.  I love science fiction, I love space and I've studied a lot about spacecraft/habitat/mission design.  Everyone I know recommended it to me over and over, but...

I found the main character sexist, homophobic and terribly un-likable.  Most of the secondary characters were one-dimensional stereotypes and there was no significant character development among any of them.  The book was clearly never edited (some leeway here as it was originally self-published online).  The author's use of multiple writing styles and perspectives was inept and distracting.  I got the book club tie-in edition featuring interviews with the author.  He sounds every bit as self-absorbed and unlikable as Mark Watney because that's purposefully how he wrote the character - his own little Gary Stu.

I am working up the courage to go see the movie because I love the cast and I liked the basic concept.  This is the only time I have ever hoped the movie butchers the book because I think I would actually enjoy it then.

Stand up and walk away from this table right now.  :-)

You expected supporting characters to develop in a book about one guy stuck on a red rock?  Yes some of it could have been cleaned up but over all it was a stupid 300 page space action page turner with potatoes grown in poop.  I have been waiting for gf to get back in town so we can go see it, the movie has got basically good reviews.  I would much rather take the stereotypes in The Martian than in Big Bang Theory :-)  (but dont recall the sexism or homophobia in the book so dont quote me to harshly.)

will watch the SNL link shortly.

[GuitarStv]

I'm desperately trying to recall any instance of sexism or homophobia from the book.  Could you elaborate on that a bit?

[wenchsenior]

Dill pickles and peanut butter? Well I guess that's not the strangest thing I've heard of. My grandfather on my dad's side said they ate squirrel and rabbit as kids. His brother would kill them with a pellet gun and he'd help skin them and his sisters would make pot pies or stew out of them.

Uh...rabbit is a pretty normal thing to eat. Sold in grocery stores and everything.

It is? I have never seen rabbit for sale in any grocery store where I live. But then again, we go to stores like Food Lion, WM Neighborhood Market and Aldi's. What part of the country are you from?

edit to fix quote tages

I didn't mean it was as common as chicken (not mass-produced to that extent), but it would be found many of the Whole-Foods type stores, and certainly at farmers markets. But it's available to a similar extent to bison, duck, pheasant, venison, etc, in that it's a very commonly homesteaded meat. It's also a commonly hunted small game species in all parts of the country. Are you a city-person? Not meaning as pejorative, but just that if you grew up and associate mostly with urban types, then you might not realize how commonly eaten it is in rural areas. Squirrel, I will grant you, is more regionally eaten in the South.