Tag Archives: Books

Quiet Thoughts

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By mamamockingbird77

I had planned to jump on here Monday afternoon and catch you up on stuff– my nice weekend and things like that. But I was stunned into silence at 3 in the afternoon.

A couple days later, I’m still feeling quiet. But that doesn’t mean things cease to happen.

Re: Books

I finished The Fairy Godmother last night which was a cute little twist on Cinderella– definitely original. If you’re in the mood for cute, read it. It does a pretty good job of addressing fairy tale stereotypes. Not a perfect job, mind you, but a decent one at least.

This morning, I started Ready Player One. I’m no more than 20 pages in and I love it. I don’t know if I’ll stay loving it but right now, I love it. I love it good.

Even more books came in from the library as well, Refuse to Choose as recommended by Single Mom Rich Mom, and Wonderstruck.

Re: Child Support

Still ongoing. Still shouldn’t say anything about it. I want to. There is stuff. Unrelated to the motion, but related to child support– Remember the whole thing about the IRS garnishing his refund? I’m beginning to doubt I’ll ever see that money. It hasn’t shown up nearly two months later. A lady at the state attorney’s office told me that if it was a significant amount of money, they would hold it and ask him to confirm it and then release it. And then if he doesn’t confirm it, they go through a separate process. Apparently, it has to do with them wanting to make sure the tax return isn’t fraudulent because if it is, I have to return it. At least, that’s what she told me. I can’t find anything about it online. Everything else says simply, three to five weeks. So… yeah

Re: Programming

The semester is wrapping up and it looks like I won’t be able to take another class until next year. The summer schedules are complete poop and the Fall is not going to work for me at all. So I have to start coming up with a plan on what to do before then. I know one thing for sure, I can’t give up programming because I’ll lose everything I’ve learned. I just wish I knew programmers. I’ve met a few online on Google+ and have been getting feedback from them but sometimes I feel like I don’t even know the questions to ask. I am going to work on CodeAcademy for sure and I think I might tinker with Scratch for a while. I just want to get to the point where I can come up with little programs and run them. I especially think of games for my kids. Remember Choose Your Own Adventure?

Re: Kids

They’re awesome. Last week, we signed up for DIY.org but because it was their dad’s weekend, we haven’t really done much with the site. Going to have to change that though. Have you guys seen that site? If you have kids, you MUST check it out. They will love it. Especially if they’re curious and/or tinkerers. It’s Kid-Safe and it’s like a Pinterest for kids but BETTER. My youngest two are coughing and stuff so I’m combating with allergy meds and cough medicine. Other than that though, I think everything’s ok.

Re: Crochet

I finished a top for my mom I’d been making for months. And then she tried it on and it doesn’t fit her right on top. So I started taking it apart at the top. I’m going to redo the top in a smaller hook size and see how that works out but I’m really sad it’s all screwed up. I’ve been working on it since October. I also started working on Daughter’s Communion Dress. I have a year for that one but wanted to get it going. Sizing in crochet is tricky.

crochet lacy top

Re: You

How are you? What has been going on in your world?

The Shelves of Chaos

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In my house, books are everywhere. They are on tables, window sills, counters, beds, nightstands, dressers, even the floor. And that’s interesting considering I have given, and continue to give, away so many of my books. But there are always new ones coming and going from the library and of course, there are the children. The children love books and I love that they love books, I really do.

To us, books are entertainment. They are for fun. They are toys. I like it that way, I really do.

Even then, I do love tidy bookshelves. Which is a shame because they don’t really happen in my house. A while ago, Comradde PhysioProffe asked demanded people share photos of their bookshelves. This  sent pangs of unease through me. I used to dream of a library– floor to ceiling shelves stacked to the brim with books except for some gorgeous windows here and there and lots of comfortable chairs and chaises. I let that dream go a couple of years ago and carted bags and boxes of books to the library with its death.

Some times, I regret doing that. But most times I don’t. That’s why I have yet another giant bag waiting at the front door. I can’t decide if I really do want that dream to die or not. I’m not a re-reader. The only book I re-read consistently is The Little Prince (which I gave to my children and can no longer find). So, for a long time I struggled with what the point of the library would be. Stallion doesn’t read. And Eldest does, but a lot of the books I have in my collections are mature and would make me feel uncomfortable seeing him read– some of them, forever probably. I don’t really have many friends these days, and most of them aren’t readers either. Not to mention, I’m still battling with the idea of spending money on books.

All that being said, there are books piled in places in my home. And since Comradde and Nicole and Maggie showed us theirs, I’ll show them mine in all their chaotic glory.

Daughter's Bookshelf and the Surrounding Area

Daughter’s Bookshelf and the Surrounding Area

Sons' Bookshelf and the Surrounding Area + Gecko

Sons’ Bookshelf and the Surrounding Area + Gecko. Also not the bag of library books in the bottom which has MY MISSING CROCHET PROJECT

My Grandmother's antique writing desk has these little shelves in it. The duck book ends were hers as well.

My Grandmother’s antique writing desk has these little shelves in it. The duck book ends were hers as well. I keep my library books here.

Art Books and Coloring Books as well reside in the living room

Art Books and some Coloring Books reside in the living room

This is my side of the entertainment center. It's filled with Photo Albums and Books and Toys. Stallion's is on the opposite side and is filled with movies and toy skateboards.

This is my side of the entertainment center. It’s filled with Photo Albums and Books and Toys. Stallion’s is on the opposite side and is filled with movies and toy skateboards.

Under the shelves in the entertainment center, I have the book cabinet. This used to be packed to the brim with books and is what got cleaned out the most heavily when I donated books.

Under the shelves in the entertainment center, I have the book cabinet. This used to be packed to the brim with books and is what got cleaned out the most heavily when I donated books.

So there you have it– my much slimmed down assortment of books and kids’ insane shelves of books. What about yours?

2013 Books So Far

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Books. I love them. They make me happy. They take me far, far, far away. And I like that. This year is, so far, a book-heavy year with a significant emphasis on flights of fancy. Which makes a lot of sense. When the real world becomes uncomfortable and stressful, it’s nice to run away as fast as you can. And the way I do that isn’t by drinking myself into oblivion or losing myself into a video game, or dropping acid, or smoking weed, or cosplay, or anything other than reading my eyes out.

In 2011, I read 55 out of my targeted goal of reading 60 books. In 2012, I set a goal to read another 50 but fell short and ended up with only 36. And I remember being unhappy about that because I really wanted to read more but things like depression and stress were really messing with me. Oh and school. So for this year, I settled on a more realistic goal of 40 although honestly I’d like to blow that one out of the water. So far, my pace is great. I’m 7 books ahead of schedule and am receiving a steady stream of books from the library.

By the way, for my fellow nosy book lovers, I am on Goodreads of course and also I made a little widget at Amazon, it’s right under my tag cloud on the right hand side. Every time I pick up books from the library, I add them there. I think it’s pretty since it scrolls through them all.

If you’re not interested in click through at all that, here are the books I have read so far and brief blurbs I wrote about them on Goodreads.

  1. The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown: 3/5 stars I didn’t write a blurb for this on Goodreads, so I’ll write one now. It’s a nice lighthearted read. With the heavy amounts of Shakespeare I studied in college, I appreciated the love of the bard that was spread everywhere. This isn’t one of those groundbreaking novels but it’s not a waste of time either. This is light fare, perfect for the spring and summer activities of lazing about.
  2. God Save the Queen by Kate Locke: 3/5 stars Hooray for fluffy and fun reading in an alternate universe. I always like it when lesser explored monsters are developed in books and in this case we get a good look at Goblins. Interesting idea of how these monsters develop and exist. I like the monster-ridden alternate universe very much actually. Main character is fun but sort of stereotypical bad assish. But I enjoyed her little twist.
  3. The Tent by Margaret Atwood: 3/5 stars Enjoyable tiny little snippets of Atwood writing. But I found it left me wanting. And I wonder if Atwood shares my brain because a lot of these things echo many bizarre little thoughts I’ve had myself. I like her novels better or her well developed essays. These are like interesting little fragmentations of her brain.
  4. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg: 4/5 stars Super super super interesting. And while extremely insightful I also found it to be discouraging. As much as it shows you why and how habits exist, it also seems to enforce how freaking hard they are to break out of.
  5. The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan: 4/5 stars FINALLY things are starting to make sense and our familiar Percy is back. Fun read. I am loving the tour of the country, especially Alaska.
  6. The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan: 4/5 stars Sucks me right in with these books every single time. Now that I’m older these passionate young romances annoy the heck out of me but I get why they’re there I suppose. Still it bugs me these authors are so driven to write the greatest love story ever told as it unfolds with a couple of teens. But that’s me being an old fart. I am enjoying the twist of Athena versus Minerva and how that causes so many rifts. The Arachne storyline was unexpected as far as I never imagined her as a major villain but it makes perfect sense. Can’t wait for the conclusion.
  7. The Serpent’s Shadow by Rick Riordan: 3/5 stars Fun conclusion to this series. I don’t think it’s as well done as the Percy Jackson but I have a feeling it’s because of the obscurity of the Egyptians. Which is sad because I think they are more interesting than the Greco-Roman but when it comes to the books the other ones are better. Still fun to read. I always had a soft spot for the Egyptians.
  8. Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins: 3/5 stars Alright. Very rushed. Shallow characters. Entertaining. My son loved it.
  9. Who Could That Be At This Hour? by Lemony Snicket: 4/5 stars I am silly and didn’t realize this was a series in the making so I was surprised by the loose ends. I love Lemony Snicket’s style. The vocabulary is great. I love that my son reads these and really encourage any parent to get these books into their kids hands ASAP
  10. Batman: The Killing Joke by Alan Moore: 4/5 stars Didn’t write anything for this one either. Crazy storyline. Not Suitable For Young People You Don’t Want Seeing Fetish Nakedness! the ending was… confusing. It made me feel dumb, like I wasn’t getting the joke. Which I think is good because maybe that means I’m not psycho.
  11. Old Man’s War by John Scalzi: 4/5 stars Great book. Very hard to put down, very easy to read. This is one of those books where I sensed a subtle shift in something towards at the end. It happens a lot in serialized books I’ve noticed. This one came right at the end but still picked up on it. It’s a pet peeve but this was hardly a noteworthy offender.
  12. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman: 4/5 stars Great story. Not appropriate for younger crowds but ok for high school and up. Adding: For young people, I like Stardust better. For older people, I like American Gods better. I really, really, really loved American Gods.
  13. The Belgariad, Volume One by David Eddings: 4/5 stars So much fun… I am desperately waiting for Volume Two at the library. Also, this one is appropriate for younger crowds. Going to let my son read it if he wants to. I have a girl crush on Lady Polgara.
  14. Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce: 3/5 stars It was a fun read and the rest of the series looks interesting. I wasn’t completely hooked by it to keep reading but because so many recommended the series, I’ll probably go on to the next one. Definitely refreshing to see girls saving the boys!
  15. The Belgariad, Volume Two by David Eddings: 3/5 stars Fun fantasy series for sure. I liked the first three books better than the last two. I felt the last two got overly fluffy and drawn out. Once it was clear what had to happen, let’s just get to it instead of all this dilly-dallying! :D Also I could do without the whole You get a wife! And you get a wife! And you get a wife! Good job everybody! You’re all winners and these wives are your prizes! WOO HOO!
  16. The Charmed Sphere by Catherine Asaro: 3/5 stars Fun and fluffy for sure. Doesn’t leave you hanging at the end of the book which is a relief but it doesn’t really leave you wondering about what could happen next. Interesting concept of magic for what it’s worth.
  17. Redshirts by John Scalzi: 3/5 stars I thought the book was a pretty funny read but then again I am a fan of Scalzi’s sense of humor. I think I liked Old Man’s War better though. This one didn’t dig in deep enough. I am sure avid fans of Star Trek will enjoy it in a way that is more layered than someone like me. I get the feeling a few things went right over my head. Definitely a fun read though, and super easy to devour. You can easily read this in a day or two. With summer coming, definitely keep this one in mind for the pool, beach, or airplane.

I just noticed I abuse the word “fun” in my book reviews. It just goes to show you, I really do think reading is fun. I never can understand people who don’t. So that’s what I’ve read so far.

Today, I started Kushiel’s Dart which was highly recommended on Google+. Also recommended on Google+, and by NicoleAndMaggie, is the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. I am dying to read these but my library is apparently not a fan. It has very few copies of the books in the series, and I’m not even sure they have the entire series. The thing is, I am so used to free books, I really don’t buy them anymore. I haven’t even finished the Parasol Protectorate Series because the only one my library carries is Soulless! And you guys, I loved that series. For now, they’re on my Wishlist.

Hmmm…. I just had a lightning bolt idea.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned here but I recently decided to part with some things K-Fat had given me while married. I had kept them to give them to Daughter when she was older but, that didn’t feel right either anymore. So I gave my grandmother the wedding ring and the Tiffany & Co. bracelet. I was going to give her the diamond studs too but she told me my grandfather picked those and the stones were excellent. Those, she said, were definitely worth holding on to. Since my grandfather is the one that got them, I relented, and have saved them in a box. When she is older, I will give them to her. My grandmother is giving the other jewelry to MutantWino’s mother-in-law who is a jeweler to sell. I can use that money to buy books!

The other things I’d held onto were two purses– a Louis Vuitton epi leather pochette and an Isabella Fiore bag. The idea of selling the Louis doesn’t bother me at all. It was a basic black wristlet, nothing special about it really. And it looks like it’ll fetch around $100 on Ebay so, more books!

The Isabella though… I went through a Covet Isabella phase for a very long time and the bag he got me, his sister picked out for me. She knew my taste so well. The bag is very me. It’s a gorgeous old school frame bag with a beautiful pattern on it similar to the one shown here. I’m annoyed it came from them given how things turned out. I can’t help it, I associate the bag with them even though it’s gorgeous and I adore it but I don’t wear it anymore. Every time I do, someone compliments it and eh. It doesn’t make me happy. So I had thought of giving it to Daughter but…  I don’t know. It won’t get me much on Ebay- maybe $40 if the searches are any indication. Maybe that one, I will give to her with the earrings and a couple of dresses I have saved from my super skinny days. Put it all in a box in her room labeled Future Daughter.

All of this talk about books reminds me NicoleAndMaggie requested pictures of bookshelves. I need to work on mine and do that. Most of my books are not on a shelf, they are stacked in a cabinet. My kids’ bookshelves are a disaster. I don’t like my bookshelves are crazy and/or empty. I just keep going back and forth on the idea of book ownership. I recently went through and tossed a bunch of books into a bag for the library. It hasn’t actually left the entry of my house, but the bag is there, holding the books. I like giving to the library because it feels like a two-way relationship. But I also do enjoy the look and feel of full bookshelves.

Where do you stand on the book ownership thing? If you have a personal library, how do you use it? Do you have issues spending money on books? Why or why not? Also, how do you handle emotional attachments to items? Especially items that mean something not good to you, but might mean something positive to someone else.

Happy Friday!

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It’s Friday, the most anticipated day of the week! And today is shaping up to be an awesome one. I have to leave work early today because MutantWino is getting married this afternoon. They are buying a home and doing a remodel on it so they’re passing on the typical wedding frou frou stuff. The wedding is at the courthouse today and then the immediate family is having dinner. Next Saturday, my mom is throwing a party for them at her house. They say maybe they’ll do a real wedding at the end of the year or early next year. I say good for them although I know my Mom is wishing she could do the big thing for them.

Oh, the library had books for me:

Belgariad Volume Two, by David Eddings

Wild Magic, by Tamora Pierce

The Charmed Sphere, Catherine Asaro

Hooray! Have you read any of these? I’ve been very bookish lately, especially with the fantasy stuff. My son is ripping right through the Ranger’s Apprentice series. He’ll finish it this weekend and I have the rest of the Artemis Fowl series for him at home. He has really fallen in love with Ranger’s Apprentice. He was telling my mom how he loved the way the author kept everything in suspense. They have to dress up as a character from a book, and do a book report. He is going to dress up as Will from the series.

I have to finish up my programming project this weekend, but that’s about it for major things. Hopefully I can get it done by tomorrow. I’m considering staying up late to work on it tonight but tonight is getting filled with things so I’m not sure that’ll happen. And then, I’ll be reading and sleeping and maybe even crocheting, we’ll see. Oh and writing. More writing! I am having so much fun writing.

My kids aren’t on Spring Break yet and won’t be until next Wednesday. Right now, they’re scheduled to have Easter at their father’s house but I’ll probably still get them something little from the Easter Bunny. We’ll see. I did get them my friend’s book, Chester’s Colorful Easter Eggs, and she was sweet enough to dedicate it to the kids. If you’re looking for a cute Easter book for your kids, and want to support a talented single mom please do buy it.

By the way, if you want to watch something pretty fantastic, please watch this fantastic TedTalk by Colin Stokes. Granted, no talk is perfect but he does a good job, in my opinion, of explaining the difficult concept of subtle sexism in children’s movies.

Colin Stokes and Children’s Movies

I’ve got some things to do and my brain is drawing blanks so I better get to it before it all evaporates into a fine thought mist and leaves to join some thought cloud somewhere before one day raining down in a brainstorm on someone else.

What are your plans for the weekend? Anything spectacular? Anything totally low-key?

 

So long Spring Break

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This week, like all of the other ones this year, has flown by. Spring Break is ending and I’m not entirely sure I’m ready for that. It’s been pleasant to not have to rush to class and to rush home.

What I noticed too is that my demeanor with the kids changed. Usually I am exhausted and frantic and overwhelmed when we all get home late at night. It’s just really unpleasant for everyone. Lots of shouting and fighting and messiness ensues and I hate it. But yesterday, although I was tired, I wasn’t frayed. So I was able to control myself better and resort to a stern disposition instead of a crazy one. It worked well. Shocking right?

Something I’ve been doing this week is a lot of reading. As a matter of fact on Wednesday when the kids were with their father, I came home and got into bed with The Belgariad Volume One to do some reading before getting to crochet and dinner. I woke up at 10 PM. Oops. This isn’t by the way any type of negative reflection on David Eddings’ epic tale. I actually am enjoying it thoroughly. It’s beautiful to read. Unfortunately when I’m too exhausted, it’s beautiful like a lullaby. If you’re into Fantasy and haven’t read it, I highly encourage it. Perfect for Spring Break.

I’ve been playing with the blog of course. Don’t get too attached to any design you see for the next several days.

And when I haven’t been doing all that stuff up there, I’ve been reading my text book for class and doing some of the exercises. Now I’m really excited, because I found Practice-It, a website built on my book. I didn’t see it mentioned anywhere in the book but maybe it just slipped by my eyes. You don’t need the textbook to use the website by the way. It’s actually a really good tool to use no matter how you’re learning Java. But if you are curious, the book is called Building Java Programs and I really like it quite a bit so far. With the website, it’s an even better deal.

K-Fat and I switched weekends so the kids are with me again this weekend. Not really sure what we’ll do tonight or tomorrow. Sunday we will be going to a family friend’s house for a reunion sort of thing. Maybe we’ll head over to Jungle Island again tomorrow. The weather is cool so it’ll be fun. And I do love using those annual passes.

I’ve been trying to continue incorporating everyone into the cleaning of the house. It’s not easy. I’m always afraid I’ll upset someone with my requests. That I will come across as demanding or nagging. But my exhaustion prevails and I end up not really caring. It’s working, I think.

The only big thing I can think of to comment on that happened this week is the selection of the Pope. I’m not an angry person so even though I don’t really believe in Catholicism anymore, I don’t disrespect it and don’t wish it ill. I don’t think Catholics as a whole are a bad group of people. I don’t think popes are evil. I don’t think priests are molesters. Are there bad Catholics, Popes, and priests? Yes. But I feel they are as great in number across all religions. Anyways, there are things about Catholicism I do like and that has to do with the groups associated with poverty and disenfranchisement. So I’m happy they have finally selected a Jesuit. My father is a counselor in a Jesuit school and I grew up with a family friend who was a Jesuit priest. He was an absolutely beautiful person. I’m hoping for the Catholics they can at least get part of their mission back on course with his selection. I don’t expect them to ever really overthrow their views but I do expect them to stick to their core ministries. I know my Mom and Dad were really pleased with the choice.

I’m drawing a blank on pretty much everything else. Oh Google Reader’s demise. That made me sad as well. I’m trying different alternatives. We’ll see what sticks.

I feel like drawing a blank has been the main activity of the week for me. Blank spots everywhere.

What about you? Anything special happen this week? Anything planned for the weekend?

The Latest…

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I’m having a hard time braining together sentences and paragraphs today. So… updates.

A child support payment came in today. I don’t think it’s the IRS garnishment, I think it’s the paycheck garnishment. I hope that’s what it is, because I’m anxious to create a budget.

Monday I saw the counselor. She was super nice. She suggested I ask the kids lots of open-ended questions about their lives away from home. She thinks this will actually make them feel better about spending time away from me. Maybe by not talking to them about what they do with their dad, I’m inadvertently sending out the message that I don’t like when they’re away. Also, she thinks I’m too in the dark about basics– how they’re eating and being cared for, what their interactions are with the people they spend most of the time with, etc. She says it’s important to know those things and just because he’s their father doesn’t mean I should just accept that everything is ok.

As we were wrapping up, I missed a call from my mom and from my office. I got a text from my Office Manager telling me to call her. I told the counselor to give me a moment and called. The OM informed me I had to call my mom. When I asked if everything was alright she said no, my mom sounded really nervous. I called my mom, who was obviously panicked and starting to calm down, and she explained the kids did not show up at school that day and K-Fat had just now started responding to her. K-Fat told my mother he and his girlfriend had stomach viruses and were unable to take the kids to school.

He did not answer my calls and attempted to brush me off with a text explaining he was sleeping and that he had spoken to my mom already. Long story short, on the advice of the counselor AND the OM, I left work to go pick them up at his house. I told him he needed to communicate. This wasn’t right. There were lots of people he could have contacted. When I got into the car, I asked the kids what happened like the counselor suggested. They told me K-Fat was really sick and couldn’t take them to school. I asked about the girl and they said no she was fine. I told them K-Fat had told us both of them were sick and that’s why we were so anxious to pick them up. When I asked why she couldn’t take them to school they explained she was too busy taking care of K-Fat.

I then told the kids, like the counselor told me to, that in the future if this sort of thing happens they need to call me. They all know my number. There was a protest about how K-Fat’s mom called him too much to let them use the phone, I told them this was an emergency situation and they could get a call in. It also debunked K-Fat’s texts to me saying he couldn’t answer my phone calls because he had no reception. I asked what they had eaten for breakfast and they said Pop Tarts. What about lunch? Nothing. Or snack, Baby added. It was almost 2 in the afternoon. So yeah, drama. I’m going to see the counselor again in two weeks. She thinks the kids don’t need anything extra right now but if bad behavior is sustained, that might be different.

My midterm was yesterday. I think I did pretty badly. I tried my best, I really did. But I just don’t think it was good enough. I felt in the dark on many questions. And I took longer than an hour and he said no way should it take that long. I’m SO frustrated with the class and the professor. At least the class is free for me because if I was paying for it, I’d be PISSED. Better to just buy the textbook and teach yourself is what it seems like. I got home and decided to just start doing my own things. So I designed and wrote a Random Shakespearean Insult Generator. Spring Break is next week for us and I’m going to use the time to go hog wild with the textbook and teach myself as much as possible. I really like the textbook. It’s called Building Java Programs. Right now Amazon has it for $98 but I bought it two Mondays ago for only $37 so keep an eye on it. I think if you add it to cart they email you when the price changes. It has LOTS of exercises and the answers for all of them. The style is conversational and easy to understand. If you’re interested in learning Java programming, pick it up.

Speaking of books, I got a TON of awesome suggestions on Google+ for books for Eldest. In my browsing, I came across The Ranger’s Apprentice series and got the whole thing at the library. It’s ten books long and he is loving them. He started Book 1 Monday and finished it yesterday. He started Book 2 yesterday and was halfway through by this morning so he grabbed Book 3 to take with him to his Dad’s house. When he saw the stacks I brought home from the library, he hugged me so hard. And he keeps thanking me for bringing them because he really likes them. I love that my little boy loves books so much. I also got some of the ones people recommended like Peter and the Shadow Thieves, Inkheart, and The Boy in the Dress which my Mom took for herself to read. I am still reading Nell Gwynn: Mistress to a King but I don’t know how much reading I’ll be doing now that I feel so behind in class.

I won tickets at the Gala to see the ballet this Sunday. Daughter and I will be watching the Miami City Ballet perform Program III at the Adrienne Arsht Center. I am really looking forward to it. I’ve never been to a show like this. And they’ll be performing The Steadfast Tin Soldier which I’m dying to see. Who am I kidding, I’m dying to see all the numbers they’re doing.

My OM told me this morning she feels it in her bones that things are going to start turning around for me. I hope she’s right. I turned this quote into a little poster and pinned it at my desk.

JK_Rowling_Quote_Rock_BottomDo you have any updates??

 

 

The Good, the Better, and the Amazing

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Three Smiley Faces

It’s Monday! And instead of being all Boo-Hiss about it, I’m trying to get into the Woo-Hoo frame of mind instead. And with that, I bring you this week’s, The Good, the Better, and the Amazing!!

The Good

  • I feel pretty today. Oh and yesterday too.
  • I really like the book we are reading from class right now, Natsume Soseki’s Kokoro. It’s my favorite so far although Hedda Gabler was pretty awesome.
  • My car started doing this crazy shaking thing this morning while I was taking the kids to school. I was able to get them to school AND drive the car to the mechanic. At first look he says it’s just a spark plug but wanted to let the car completely cool before taking a deeper look. So fingers crossed it’s just the spark plug.

The Better

The Amazing

  • I have the coolest idea for Stallion’s birthday. Still munching over details but the gears are turning. I love surprising people with something awesome that they really want.
  • I tried a new to me crochet technique this weekend called filet crochet. It looks so much harder than it actually is. I made a neat little skull doily type thing I am going to send to an artist as a thank you for some stuff they’ve sent me. And now I’ve got a new technique to add to my skill set!

So what about you? What’s your Good, Better, and Amazing this week?

What we did this weekend: AT-AT Walker Model building, girls play date, swing twisting, fort building, chores with the gecko, taco night, and filet crochet

 

A Simple Thing: A Book Tour

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I was contacted by TLC Book Tours to host a virtual tour stop for author Kathleen McCleary and her new novel, A Simple Thingin exchange for a copy of the book. Since I love to read, and so many of you do as well, I agreed. So without further ado, here we go!

I could give you the standard blurb on the back of the book but I generally skim over those when people post them on their blogs so instead, I’m going to jump right in and tell you what the book’s about, what I liked, what I didn’t, and wrap up with how you can find out more about the book or Kathleen.

The novel pivots around two women– Susannah and Betty. Susannah is in her forties, and is married to a geologist named Matt with whom she has two children. Quinn is your typical nerdy outcast in sixth grade and Katie is your typical rude wild child in eighth grade. Betty is in her late seventies, early eighties, is a widow, and has a son named Jim who has a wife named Fiona with whom he has two eighth grade twin boys– Hood and Baker.

Their lives are brought together when Katie gets herself involved with the wrong guy and does something pretty stupid. On top of that, Quinn is being incessantly bullied and Susannah is dealing with some personal demons stemming from her own early teen years. Her solution to fixing everything? Packing the kids and herself up and moving to Sounder Island– a tiny little island off the coast of Washington. It has no telephones, no electricity, and limited plumbing. Cell phone, internet and television connections vary according to the weather. In other words, they go off the grid while her husband stays behind working his new job.

And so the story is about their time on Sounder Island and the personal development they go through with Betty (Susannah’s landlord on Sounder) and her clan acting as a foil to Susannah.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s perfect summer reading as it’s easy and interesting enough to keep the pages briskly turning. It’s also pretty short which I appreciate. I thought many of the characters were fleshed out really well. Funny enough, the character I identified the most with was the problematic Katie. Another fantastic character, and my second favorite, was a Sounder Island long time resident named Barefoot.

It’s not that I didn’t like the main characters, I did, but McCleary does a good job of fleshing out some of the minor characters as well. Betty’s story is pretty fascinating and complex and works beautifully as a foil for Susannah who took some time for me to warm up to her. Unfortunately, not all supporting characters get the four-star treatment Katie and Barefoot did. Quinn remains pretty one-dimensional, Susannah’s husband remains an enigma to me, and one of the twins seems entirely unnecessary and forgotten.

This is definitely a character-driven book so if you’re more into things like the challenges of facing your fears, love in unconventional forms, mother-daughter relationships, and making  peace with your demons rather than the practical complexities of living off the grid, I’d highly recommend this book. The challenges of living off the grid become one of McCleary’s not very fleshed out supporting characters if that makes sense. It presents itself strongly right in the beginning and then pretty much fades into the background making occasional cameos here and there.

For me, that’s just fine. I’d much rather dwell on the WHY than the HOW anyways.

The study of mother-daughter relationships is interesting. It’s pretty much non-existent in Betty’s case but it is nicely examined in Susannah’s story. There was even a passage I read aloud to Teenager who is the same age as Katie and having issues with her feelings towards her mother. Is that a standard thing for Teen Daughters to go through? If so, I’m glad I will only have to experience it once, that’s for sure.

The book is sentimental and if you time it just right hormonally, you’re sure to whimper a few tears here and there (guess how I know). I think this is a great one for book clubs or just groups of friends to share. It’s definitely a nice read– a good escape if you will.

If you’d like to find out more about the author, Kathleen McCleary, I’ve got some great news for you. She will be discussing the novel, A Simple Thing, on Book Club Girl August 21st at 7:00 PM EST. That means you have enough time to get a hold of the book, read it, and ask her some great questions. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

Hope you enjoyed my two cents on this one. What are you reading now?

Friday: Checking in to check out

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Yes, I’ve been in a bit of a funk that mostly lifts but it can also be brought on with a vengeance in a rush too so I’ve been sort of quiet navigating the conflicting emotions.

I was finally told this week that my job was safe, I was “protected.” I have no idea what that means but it’s good enough for me. If they didn’t lay me off now, I doubt they’ll do so in the next round in July as that’s even closer to the conference. After the conference, I get to worry all over again if that sort of talk is still around come the end of the year.

And it’s little statements like that one that sort of floor me on how quickly time slips through our fingers. Good thing and bad thing right?

These next couple of months are the end of my slower season– personally and work-wise. Birthdays start pouring in, the conference is in November, class starts up again (I wanted a summer one but it was cancelled), and everything will turn into high stress time all over again. At least it’s only half the year right?

How are you all doing with the Hydration challenge this month? I’m getting better little by little. I thought I could start strong but it wasn’t happening. I have this sports bottle at work and it says I should drink 3 of them with water every day. So far, I can clear one for sure. Today, I even finished it off by noon. But I just can’t seem to get down the second one before 5. I’m trying though. I figure if I can get two down at work, I’ll have a much better shot of meeting the water requirement. Once I get home, it can get harder but I do tend to do more chuggings at home.

I’ve been crocheting a lot the past couple of days. I found a pattern for a really pretty shrug. So I tried it out and it worked up really fast and really pretty. So much so I was able to start a second one yesterday and I’m halfway through with it today. I basically only need three Mother’s Day gifts– my mom, my aunt, and my grandmother. The shrugs are for the first two. I’ll buy my grandmother something this time.

I should get some money this weekend so that’ll be good. I can shop for the Secret Sister swap. For the gift I’m making her, I do need to buy some yarn because I don’t have her colors in my stash. I’m excited about it because I finally got an idea. I was a little stumped for a while but I had a breakthrough so now I’m all ready.

Ok I’m going to make a really silly little whine right now so just humor me please. This weekend will be the third weekend in a row the kids are with me. And I’m worn out. The past few weeks have been some of the most stressful weeks I’ve had to go through in a while. They have also been extremely busy weekends. The Boyfriend works on weekends so it’s not like I can say “Hey babe do you mind watching the kids so I can get out for a breather?” and my mom does so much for me during the week, asking her to watch them on the weekend is unfair too.

Anyways, it’s sort of thrown me for a loop and it’s taken its toll the whole thing of the stress and no break sandwich. But I remedied it with a date night for tonight. Avengers, assemble! I really want to see Dark Shadows too but one great movie at a time, right?

I’m reading again. That slowed down for a bit too. I’ve only read 12 books this year which puts me 5 books behind my goal of 50. I don’t think I’ll make it this year, but I’d like to get close at least. Right now, I’m reading Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. I’ve got The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes (New Edition) (Sandman New Editions), The Sandman, Vol. 2: The Doll’s House, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance – Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem!, and Dance Dance Dance waiting for me at home. Plus there’s a bunch of Young Adult stuff I need to catch up on– especially all the Rick Riordan books that have piled up. And I’ve got six more books in the library request system that are more popular and harder to get a hold of but should slowly make their way to me.

I can’t believe it’s Mother’s Day weekend already. For all of you mothers out there, have a beautiful weekend! I’ll be thinking of you.

Review- 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess

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Oh this book. This book took me completely and utterly by surprise. For Christmas, a friend gave me 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess because she thought I’d like what she took to be the general theme of the book from the blurb in the back– this lady scales back in 7 aspects of her material life. Yeah I love that stuff.

What is not glaringly obvious from the main blurb in the back is that this book is written by a pastor’s wife who’s also a speaker on Christianity. You have to look at the fine print for that and then it’s like “How in the hell did I miss that?”

When I started the book, this was an unpleasant surprise. Holy bible quotes everywhere. Not to mention the fact that God, Jesus, Christ, Jesus Christ, Lord, Holy Spirit, etc. get mentioned about 5 times per page. Usually bible quotes combined with a zealous use of Jesus name drops is very much not a good thing for me. My hypocrisy senses start tingling and I usually back away as quickly as possible while trying to not draw attention to myself.

But this is a book, not a person, and there WAS the whole thing about cutting back the excess in the seven areas of her life: Food, Clothes, Spending, Media, Possessions, Waste, and Stress. And she even broke it down into monthly projects. Which I always am a sucker for. Always.

Oddly enough, this book was part of a rhyming event in my brain as I had lately been thinking about the Republicans and the huge conservative shove to strip down “entitlement” programs in favor of a smaller government and more money in their pockets in the form of lower taxes that they have somehow mixed up with a fervent “We love Jesus and the Bible and truly want to protect Christianity” message.

And I kept thinking about how damn hypocritical it felt to me because even though I don’t practice anymore, I sure as heck know all about “Our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ” thanks to being raised by a really strict Catholic family and going through Catholic education from Kinder through High School. I’ve read the Bible thing those guys love front to back, inside out . Heck I even used to read the Bible out loud for the benefit of others as I was one of the lecterns at Church. And if there’s one thing I know about the Jesus that is in the Bible, it’s that he can’t possibly be the same Jesus the Republican candidates vow to love and protect to woo a bunch of Christian votes.

It turns out Jen Hatmaker apparently sees a lot of the glaring hypocrisies in American Christian churches today that I do. I can’t stand churches and I can’t stand the Christians that practice what I see as a Capitalism is Awesome form of Christianity. She is just way totally nicer about pointing them out than I am.

Let’s face it guys, Jesus was a dirty homeless hippie. You want to know the truth? Every time someone makes a derisive comment about “bleeding heart liberals” one image comes to mind:

If you really think the same dude who gave away free wine for his first miracle and later sat on a mountain giving away fish and bread all day would be against programs like Food Stamps or WIC, you’re wrong. If you think the same guy who made it a point to always seek out and include society’s shunned ones would be against extending this and other forms of assistance to as many people as possible, you’d also be wrong. If you really think the same guy who walked around healing lepers, restoring sight to the blind, and even raising people from the dead would be against free health care for everyone you’d be totally and completely wrong yet again. If you think the guy who talked about how awesome the Samaritan guy was for helping feed, shelter, and heal a total stranger no questions asked would want people to lift themselves up by their own bootstraps, well I’m pretty sure you’re in the totally wrong church.

You can imagine then why Jen Hatmaker turned my insides cold when she made the observation that, speaking on a personal finance level, you could interpret “Love your neighbor as you love yourself” into an equation where you live off 50% of your income and use the other 50% to love all of your neighbors.

I think it was around there that I started thinking, “Oh wow. She is a total Jesus Christ lover geek but she actually gets it. That’s… rare.”

Jen’s story is inspiring, moving, and interesting. Lots of people do projects where they eliminate this, that, and the other from their lives in big ways. But until Jen’s book, I was yet to read someone who took the experience and turned it into a movement to help those around her. De-cluttering is only half the battle. I missed the memo but I’m glad I got it this time.

Personally, I don’t think you need to be associated with a faith or a church or anything to look around you and do good for the world but I would likely be very interested in at least linking up with a church like Jen’s because it would give me an excellent way to lend a hand to the community. That moves me greatly.

Personally I found that my favorite thing about the book was the fact that I would read her experiences and think, “That is a brilliant idea. I want to do that for someone. How would I even start to do something like that?” Her book is a reflection and a call to action. A really loud, persistent one that somehow manages to remain humble and honest at the same time.

I strongly recommend the book even if you’re like me and things like churches and Jesus Christ give you the Hypocrisy Heebie Jeebies. Because I actually think Jen Hatmaker might be authentic. What she is teaching and what she is practicing makes more sense to me as an example of a true Christian than the classic modern representations of Christians today.

If you feel there is just TOO MUCH in your life– too much crap, too much stress, too much noise, too much madness, too much sadness, too much to deal with– grab this book. I think you’ll be moved.

By the way, the rhyming events continue. Last night, I caught this completely nauseating piece about Christian Louboutin at the Bal Harbor Shops. While I think many of his shoes are beautiful works of art, I can’t move past nausea thinking of the cost. I honestly wanted to weep when the woman so breezily admitted to owning about 100 pairs of the red-soled extravagances. Something is really messed up in our world. I’m glad there are people like the Hatmakers working to change things. I want to be one of them too but man is it scary.

P.S. What is a rhyming event? The term comes from this RadioLab podcast (omg I forgot to tell you about the Live Show of theirs I went to last week- future post) called “The Universe Knows My Name“. I like to think of them as dots waiting to be connected. Coincidences that can’t be so easily brushed away.

P.P.S. I keep thinking about this book every time I read another update from the many participants in Carla’s De-Cluttering Challenge for February. Rhyming event, rhyming event, rhyming event!