Well they should.
Anyone acting like a child over election results shouldn't just be put in a corner; they should be locked in a room together until they learn to behave like adults....or until they kill each other. Childish behavior has been, in my opinion, running rampant in this country for a long time, but especially in the last 4 years and I'm afraid the childish behavior is just going to get worse over the next 4 years.
Teamwork, tolerance, manners and the ability to listen are all skills that were at one point learned in school and at home. Apparently, not anymore. No place is the lack of those skills more evident than in politics...both with the actual politicians and the arm-chair politicians at home. The amount of negativity in this election was, I think, at an all time high. There are a lot of things wrong with this country, but a lot of them could be repaired if people learned how to work together, listen to each other, remember their manners and be tolerant of ideas that might differ from their own.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
dancing, drinks and downtime
i have never in my life had a weekend that was simultaneously packed full of fun and was completely relaxing at the same time. probably because i typically go out of the way to spend most weekends basking in my aloneness catching up on my reading or tv watching. not this weekend. this weekend was full to the brim with activities and people.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
the great vacation: part 3
new orleans...oh how i love thee!
i'm not joking. love new orleans. love all of louisiana that i've seen for that matter. can't say much about baton rouge as i didn't actually see much of it, but i can say baton rouge did manage to make road construction not as obnoxious some how so that alone gets that great city my vote. but new orleans has entered my heart in a way no other place has...even my current home which i love.
the last third of my time in louisiana was spent in the big easy. you know the place...mardi gras, the french quarter, beads, hurricanes (the storms and the drinks), beignets. well, i missed mardi gras by 4 months, didn't buy, wear or share any beads, nor did i eat a beignet (i'm trying to be all healthy, remember?!), but despite that, i still managed to have a great time.
i'm not joking. love new orleans. love all of louisiana that i've seen for that matter. can't say much about baton rouge as i didn't actually see much of it, but i can say baton rouge did manage to make road construction not as obnoxious some how so that alone gets that great city my vote. but new orleans has entered my heart in a way no other place has...even my current home which i love.
the last third of my time in louisiana was spent in the big easy. you know the place...mardi gras, the french quarter, beads, hurricanes (the storms and the drinks), beignets. well, i missed mardi gras by 4 months, didn't buy, wear or share any beads, nor did i eat a beignet (i'm trying to be all healthy, remember?!), but despite that, i still managed to have a great time.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
the great vacation: part 2
i wrote an entry awhile back about how i was going to be seeing an old friend from my time in texas while on this trip. old friend #1 (of1 from here on out) is someone i hadn't seen since my last trip through louisiana nearly 10 years earlier. i was a little nervous about seeing someone i hadn't seen in that long and stressed about it a little going into the trip. well, leaving oak alley the stress level jumped about 100 levels because it was time to finally go meet up with of1 in baton rouge.
to give you an idea of how i was feeling, let me tell you a little about this phobia i have. i don't really like crossing bridges. especially bridges over water. even more especially bridges that get really high when they go over really large bodies of water. if you put some crazy iron work over the top of those really high bridges over very large bodies of water and i pretty much have a heart attack before we even start driving across. on the way to see of1 i had to drive my car over such bridges spanning the mississippi river no less than 3 times. that alone made my pulse race, my blood pressure sky rocket and my palms start to drip sweat. add into that the stress of seeing someone who was important to me 10 years ago for the first time in that many years and i was pretty much a basket case.
but we made it. i managed to ring the door bell, his dog didn't eat me and we managed to settle pretty quickly into the same easy friendly friendship we had living in texas all those years ago. and that starts phase 2 of the great vacation...
to give you an idea of how i was feeling, let me tell you a little about this phobia i have. i don't really like crossing bridges. especially bridges over water. even more especially bridges that get really high when they go over really large bodies of water. if you put some crazy iron work over the top of those really high bridges over very large bodies of water and i pretty much have a heart attack before we even start driving across. on the way to see of1 i had to drive my car over such bridges spanning the mississippi river no less than 3 times. that alone made my pulse race, my blood pressure sky rocket and my palms start to drip sweat. add into that the stress of seeing someone who was important to me 10 years ago for the first time in that many years and i was pretty much a basket case.
but we made it. i managed to ring the door bell, his dog didn't eat me and we managed to settle pretty quickly into the same easy friendly friendship we had living in texas all those years ago. and that starts phase 2 of the great vacation...
the great vacation: part 1
Sunday, May 27, 2012
home, home on the lake
i spent the summers growing up at indian lake nazarene campgrounds outside of kalamazoo, mi. as a child, several weeks every summer were spent driving my grandparents crazy while we stayed with them. when my sister and i finally became old enough to really be obnoxious, my parents bought a small cabin down the road from my grandparents summer home so we could run in and out of there instead of my grandparents house. it was a safe place to be. everyone knew us so we were able to run free without worries (or our parents). between our bikes and the lake, we were never lacking for something to do.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
to ninevah or bust
when i started this blog it was to document my adventures into things that made me uncomfortable. i've done a lot in that time that makes me uncomfortable, some i've documented and some i have chosen not to. but one month from today, i will be doing the single most uncomfortable thing i've done in a very long time. i'm great with the spontaneous uncomfortable things. i've spent many a night in weird places because of last minute changes or yes to something at the spur of the moment. i'm not so good at the planned events that make me uncomfortable. leaves me with plenty of time to get nervous and (most of the time) wiggle out of them. while i've had plenty of time to get VERY nervous about this event, i actually have no desire to wiggle out of it.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
these are a few of my favorite things
i have an almost overwhelming love of all things 'hunger games.' i can't explain it. i'm slightly embarrassed by it. and i don't understand it. but...well, i love it. i own and have read all the books several times. i've seen the movie (though only once, but it was on IMAX). and today i finally listened to the soundtrack in its entirety. that fact, plus my love of movie/musical soundtracks leads me to this blog.
here we have it, my top 5 favorite soundtracks (today...could be different tomorrow):
here we have it, my top 5 favorite soundtracks (today...could be different tomorrow):
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
cinderella had it all wrong
c & w enjoy listening to disney music. or maybe they enjoy me making a fool of myself while i sing and dance to disney music. no matter what the reason, our lunch time music has gone from katy perry and michael jackson (both artist are high up on the list of they boys favorites) to disney music. thank you pandora for being so helpful in making them happy.
anyway...
anyway...
Sunday, March 11, 2012
viral video of the moment
the above video has been making it's mark on the world over the last couple of days. i've watched it. i've even helped move it along by posting it on my facebook wall. is the video without flaw? not by a long shot.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
letter to a friend
dear mr. you know who you are~
over the last couple of years, i've had a lot of time to think of the things i'd love to say to you if i had the chance. some good things, some bad things, some things just to make you laugh, but mostly those things don't matter because what i really want to say is i miss you.
circumstances change, things get messy, life moves you in opposite, i get and understand all the reasons two people drift apart. i don't want to, but i get it. i don't like it, but i get it. doesn't change the fact that i miss you.
we were once closer than two people have the right to be. you were the ying to my yang. you were the milk to my cookies. you were my brother. and while the rest of the world around us, didn't get us, it didn't matter because we got us and it was great.
but life interfered and i didn't deal with it well. you found a happiness i couldn't understand and wasn't willing to try to understand. i was selfish. i was very resistant to the changes and i fear that made the distance unbridgeable when actual physical distance was put between us. i'm sorry about that. you were one of the two closest people in my life and i feel i took that for granted, but that doesn't change the big gaping hole in my life where you used to reside. i've moved on and worked to fill that hole. i've created a wonderful life for myself in your absence, but sometimes, late at night i wish you were still there for me to share my funny stories with or to help me talk through some drama i don't know how to deal with. at this moment in my life, i have never wanted your opinion on a topic than i do now, but i've learned over the last few years to trust my gut, go with my heart and never look back. i've become more spontaneous and fun. because you taught me to be those things.
i just want you to know, i'm happy, i'm sorry, i've moved on, but i miss you.
c
over the last couple of years, i've had a lot of time to think of the things i'd love to say to you if i had the chance. some good things, some bad things, some things just to make you laugh, but mostly those things don't matter because what i really want to say is i miss you.
circumstances change, things get messy, life moves you in opposite, i get and understand all the reasons two people drift apart. i don't want to, but i get it. i don't like it, but i get it. doesn't change the fact that i miss you.
we were once closer than two people have the right to be. you were the ying to my yang. you were the milk to my cookies. you were my brother. and while the rest of the world around us, didn't get us, it didn't matter because we got us and it was great.
but life interfered and i didn't deal with it well. you found a happiness i couldn't understand and wasn't willing to try to understand. i was selfish. i was very resistant to the changes and i fear that made the distance unbridgeable when actual physical distance was put between us. i'm sorry about that. you were one of the two closest people in my life and i feel i took that for granted, but that doesn't change the big gaping hole in my life where you used to reside. i've moved on and worked to fill that hole. i've created a wonderful life for myself in your absence, but sometimes, late at night i wish you were still there for me to share my funny stories with or to help me talk through some drama i don't know how to deal with. at this moment in my life, i have never wanted your opinion on a topic than i do now, but i've learned over the last few years to trust my gut, go with my heart and never look back. i've become more spontaneous and fun. because you taught me to be those things.
i just want you to know, i'm happy, i'm sorry, i've moved on, but i miss you.
c
Saturday, February 18, 2012
if i could turn the page in time
it is always amazing to me how a song can revive even the smallest of memories. for example, the song 'little lies' by fleetwood mac will always remind me of the time i was sitting in the back seat of my babysitter's car reading her daughter's science book. specifically, i was reading about a girl who drank bleach and what happened to her throat and stomach as a result. i was maybe 8 or 9 years old at the time, but every time i hear 'little lies' i remember that moment. while i'm sure i had heard the song multiple times before that moment in my life and i know i've heard it many, many times since, that one instance is, for whatever reason, etched into my brain. maybe i just need it as a reminder to never drink bleach. you know, because i crave it ALL the time.
a lot of other songs also trigger memories for me and most of the time those memories are really small and hardly worth remembering and yet my mind seems to take up a lot of space with them. 'little lies' is probably the most common because that memory at least as a lesson to be learned, however stupid. but there is a song out there that was popular in the mid-90s that triggers a memory of reading v.c. andrew's 'flowers in the attic'. right now, without the song (and i can't even tell you what the song is off hand) i can tell you that the memory is of me reading on my bed in my bedroom at the campgrounds i used to work at during the summer. i believe i was reading the book for the second or third time. the air conditioning was blasting so the room was really cold even though it was very hot outside. but when the song plays, i can tell you exactly what i was reading about the entire time the song played. i don't know what passage i was reading when i think about it now, but if that song were to suddenly start playing, i could probably recite the passage word for word. seeing that i was reading 'flowers in the attic' i'm probably trying to remind myself not to sleep with my brother. easy thing to do as i don't have a brother.
the brain is a wonderful, mysterious thing and i believe history is too. i've always been a person who spends a lot of time thinking about my past. i remember things from my childhood and adolescence that most people would have forgot about immediately. i can recall entire conversations that, looking back, are completely meaningless. i don't look back because my present is so unpleasant or because my future uncertain. my present is pretty pleasant and my future has always been uncertain because i've always tended to fly by the seat of my pants. my unofficial motto has always been 'no regrets'. i think that's why i look back and remember so much; to verify to myself that i don't regret the choices i've made. 'little lies' takes me back to a small few minutes of my childhood that lets me then remember the bigger picture of that time...the time i spent delivering newspapers with my babysitter and her children, a time of trips down the block to dairy queen and running in the spray of a fire hydrant, a time of watching my babysitter's son nearly getting kidnapped and then killed when the man who tried to take him decided to try and throw him in the st. joseph river instead. as scary as that last thing was, i had a great time with those people and all the craziness that came with it. the song that takes me back to reading that v.c. andrews book also sends me back to many, many great summers spent working at indian lake nazarene campgrounds. a time i wouldn't trade for anything. i get to remember all the times i was fired (no less than 4), all the people i worked with (a lot over the course of 9 years), all the fun i had scooping ice cream and flipping burgers, late night swims, and lots and lots of fun.
when i think back about all the decisions i made in my life, i don't regret a one. there isn't a single decision i made in my past that would be made differently if i had a do over. there are a lot of people i wouldn't have met if i had done things differently. if i'd worn my name tag while in washington, d.c. for a college field trip, i wouldn't have met tim (or stole a sign off of a fence around the capitol). if i hadn't decided to drive a van with a cracked head gasket, i would never have driven it to nashville and nearly been forced into marriage with david, a guy i had just met. if i had found another ride for the random guy who needed to go an atm, i wouldn't have hit drew with my car thus never meeting his amazing family and experiencing my first of many trips to new york city as well as my very first broadway production (les miserables). if i had deleted the weird email that showed up in my inbox the last semester of my senior year of college, i wouldn't have gotten the chance to work for an incredible family, experience a different world (i will forever maintain that texas is a totally different world), meet some amazing people and most importantly, realize that what i'm good at is being a nanny.
songs have a way of reminding me of parts of my life worth remembering. i had a pretty idyllic childhood, an easy adolescence, and an uneventful life since then. i'm sure there are decisions i could have (and should have) made differently, but then i might not be who i am and have those little memories that 'little lies' provides me with.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
my day helping a young adult marilyn play moneyball
i love movies. sadly, my schedule doesn't allow me to see them as often as i'd like. neither does my checking account for that matter. but occasionally i like to catch up on movies i have been wanting to see by spending an entire day at the theater taking in as many as i can. luckily, there is a second run theater in my town that offers movies for $3.99 so i'll wait til they are showing multiple movies i'd like to see and see them then instead of paying $9.25 to see them when they first come out.
today was one of those days spent at the theater and what a great day it was. i saw an excellent lineup of movies. i was hoping to take in 5 movies today, but had to settle for 4 as my last movie didn't let out in time to get into the 5th before it started so i'll have to catch 'tinker tailor soldier spy' another time. i did get to see 'my week with marilyn', 'young adult', 'moneyball', and 'the help.' so without further ado, my very poorly thought out reviews of these movies:
"My Week With Marilyn"
i have never seen an entire marilyn monroe movie, but now i want to. i have seen a lot of clips and several interviews she gave as well as seen multiple photographs of her. i grew up with a father who loves her and even has a life-sized cut out of her in his basement. based on my limited knowledge of ms. monroe's ability to act and her actual persona, i spent a lot of the movie in complete awe of michelle williams ability to become her. i was completely captivated by her. and eddie redmayne isn't getting nearly enough recognition for his role as colin clark. when the two of them were on screen together, everything and everyone else faded into the background and that included amazing talent such as kenneth branaugh and dame judi dench. i tend to get bored quickly with movies like 'marilyn', but i didn't check my watch once and would have loved for the movie to actually be longer. i have now seen 3 of this years academy award nominees for best actress and michelle williams would totally get my vote. i would recommend this movie to everyone.
"Young Adult"
i have a weakness for all things diablo cody. i loved 'juno' and 'the united states of tara'. so it was with great anticipation that i went to see 'young adult'. and i was not disappointed. this movie isn't for everyone. it doesn't have a fairy tale ending. it isn't flashy and full of special effects. in fact, it's kind of sad and pathetic...or at least the characters are. but it is real. and it is funny in a dark kind of way in all the right spots. charlize theron was great in the lead role and i always enjoy patrick wilson, patton oswalt and elizabeth reaser. theron and oswalt both played completely messed up characters that it would make sense to stay away from but i just wanted to hug. wilson and reaser were the 'normal' people in the movie...and in reaser's case, the bit of fresh air from all the mopiness. like i said, 'young adult' isn't a movie for everyone...especially if you like your movies to have happily-ever-after endings, but if you enjoy indy-type movies, definitely check this one out.
"Moneyball"
i love baseball and i love baseball statistics so this movie was my idea of a nearly perfect movie. throw in brad pitt and it becomes the perfect movie. i remember the season of baseball featured in the movie. i remember the confusion people had over how oakland was playing baseball. i've read excerpt's from the book 'moneyball' when it first came out and would love to sit down and read the whole thing. and i love the idea of the crap taken out of picking a team and just going with the good old fashion idea of numbers. it appeals to me because i love numbers. and i hate crap. i don't care how a baseball player (or any athlete) acts off the field. just that he can put up consistent numbers and help my team win. and that's what oakland's gm, billy beane, and numbers genius, peter brand, try to do in 'moneyball.' beane has no money to replace some important players who have left due to free agency and he has no way to get more money. no money, means no high priced talent. enter brand and his belief in a method of numbers only baseball. does this crazy concept win oakland the world series? watch the movie to see. watch the movie because pitt and jonah hill (who plays brand) are great. watch the movie because aaron sorkin knows how to write a script that should be boring, but isn't. shoot, sorkin made the pretty uninteresting story of computer programmers very interesting. he's done the same here with a pretty bland story of baseball statistics. and according the some of the people in the theater with me, you don't have to like baseball to enjoy this movie. the baseball is just an added bonus.
"The Help"
i watched 3/4 of this movie over the summer when it first came out, but due to a scheduling conflict didn't get to see the end. i didn't want to pay full price to try and see it again in theaters so figured i'd just get it from netflix when it came out on dvd. but due to it's oscar campaign it is back in theaters so i got to watch the entire film today. i enjoyed this movie. but i enjoyed the first 3/4 of the movie i had already seen and though i sat through the last 1/4 this time, for some reason i didn't enjoy it as much as rewatching the first 3/4. there was something about the last 1/4 that seemed unnecessary and rushed. i have also read the book and in all honesty if i had to recommend the movie or the book to someone, i'd tell them to watch the movie. i found the book to be lacking the heart that the actors brought to the movie. all the best parts of the book made it into the movie and as anyone with tv and the internet can tell, the acting was fabulous as is evident by the multiple oscar nominations. but while i enjoyed the performances of the three ladies nominated, it was bryce dallas howard that i felt made the movie. her performance as hilly holbrook was stole every scene she was in i thought and when she wasn't stealing the scene, sissy spacek playing her mother did. while the performances in this movie was good and definitely deserve recognition from the various award shows, i didn't feel it deserved an oscar nomination for best picture, especially since it beat out 'my week with marilyn.' to me, a best picture nominee has to have something for man and woman alike and 'the help' is just a little too sentimental for that. it's a movie for women.
now if you only see one of these four movies, make sure it's 'my week with marilyn'. it was the first one i saw today and stayed my favorite of the day through 3 other great movies.
today was one of those days spent at the theater and what a great day it was. i saw an excellent lineup of movies. i was hoping to take in 5 movies today, but had to settle for 4 as my last movie didn't let out in time to get into the 5th before it started so i'll have to catch 'tinker tailor soldier spy' another time. i did get to see 'my week with marilyn', 'young adult', 'moneyball', and 'the help.' so without further ado, my very poorly thought out reviews of these movies:
"My Week With Marilyn"
i have never seen an entire marilyn monroe movie, but now i want to. i have seen a lot of clips and several interviews she gave as well as seen multiple photographs of her. i grew up with a father who loves her and even has a life-sized cut out of her in his basement. based on my limited knowledge of ms. monroe's ability to act and her actual persona, i spent a lot of the movie in complete awe of michelle williams ability to become her. i was completely captivated by her. and eddie redmayne isn't getting nearly enough recognition for his role as colin clark. when the two of them were on screen together, everything and everyone else faded into the background and that included amazing talent such as kenneth branaugh and dame judi dench. i tend to get bored quickly with movies like 'marilyn', but i didn't check my watch once and would have loved for the movie to actually be longer. i have now seen 3 of this years academy award nominees for best actress and michelle williams would totally get my vote. i would recommend this movie to everyone.
"Young Adult"
i have a weakness for all things diablo cody. i loved 'juno' and 'the united states of tara'. so it was with great anticipation that i went to see 'young adult'. and i was not disappointed. this movie isn't for everyone. it doesn't have a fairy tale ending. it isn't flashy and full of special effects. in fact, it's kind of sad and pathetic...or at least the characters are. but it is real. and it is funny in a dark kind of way in all the right spots. charlize theron was great in the lead role and i always enjoy patrick wilson, patton oswalt and elizabeth reaser. theron and oswalt both played completely messed up characters that it would make sense to stay away from but i just wanted to hug. wilson and reaser were the 'normal' people in the movie...and in reaser's case, the bit of fresh air from all the mopiness. like i said, 'young adult' isn't a movie for everyone...especially if you like your movies to have happily-ever-after endings, but if you enjoy indy-type movies, definitely check this one out.
"Moneyball"
i love baseball and i love baseball statistics so this movie was my idea of a nearly perfect movie. throw in brad pitt and it becomes the perfect movie. i remember the season of baseball featured in the movie. i remember the confusion people had over how oakland was playing baseball. i've read excerpt's from the book 'moneyball' when it first came out and would love to sit down and read the whole thing. and i love the idea of the crap taken out of picking a team and just going with the good old fashion idea of numbers. it appeals to me because i love numbers. and i hate crap. i don't care how a baseball player (or any athlete) acts off the field. just that he can put up consistent numbers and help my team win. and that's what oakland's gm, billy beane, and numbers genius, peter brand, try to do in 'moneyball.' beane has no money to replace some important players who have left due to free agency and he has no way to get more money. no money, means no high priced talent. enter brand and his belief in a method of numbers only baseball. does this crazy concept win oakland the world series? watch the movie to see. watch the movie because pitt and jonah hill (who plays brand) are great. watch the movie because aaron sorkin knows how to write a script that should be boring, but isn't. shoot, sorkin made the pretty uninteresting story of computer programmers very interesting. he's done the same here with a pretty bland story of baseball statistics. and according the some of the people in the theater with me, you don't have to like baseball to enjoy this movie. the baseball is just an added bonus.
"The Help"
i watched 3/4 of this movie over the summer when it first came out, but due to a scheduling conflict didn't get to see the end. i didn't want to pay full price to try and see it again in theaters so figured i'd just get it from netflix when it came out on dvd. but due to it's oscar campaign it is back in theaters so i got to watch the entire film today. i enjoyed this movie. but i enjoyed the first 3/4 of the movie i had already seen and though i sat through the last 1/4 this time, for some reason i didn't enjoy it as much as rewatching the first 3/4. there was something about the last 1/4 that seemed unnecessary and rushed. i have also read the book and in all honesty if i had to recommend the movie or the book to someone, i'd tell them to watch the movie. i found the book to be lacking the heart that the actors brought to the movie. all the best parts of the book made it into the movie and as anyone with tv and the internet can tell, the acting was fabulous as is evident by the multiple oscar nominations. but while i enjoyed the performances of the three ladies nominated, it was bryce dallas howard that i felt made the movie. her performance as hilly holbrook was stole every scene she was in i thought and when she wasn't stealing the scene, sissy spacek playing her mother did. while the performances in this movie was good and definitely deserve recognition from the various award shows, i didn't feel it deserved an oscar nomination for best picture, especially since it beat out 'my week with marilyn.' to me, a best picture nominee has to have something for man and woman alike and 'the help' is just a little too sentimental for that. it's a movie for women.
now if you only see one of these four movies, make sure it's 'my week with marilyn'. it was the first one i saw today and stayed my favorite of the day through 3 other great movies.
Friday, February 10, 2012
mmmm.....cake
and yes, you heard that correctly. i threw a combined surprise party for both my parents and my sister. between january 18th and february 11th, both my parents turn(ed) 60 and my sister turned 30. rather than giving my standard 'happy birthday' phone call/text, i decided these milestone birthdays required something a little more special. thus began the weeks of finding a venue willing to host a large group of people without sticking me with a large bill, narrowing down the guest list from everyone my parents and sister know to only the people that all three know (the venue could really only hold 35ish comfortably) and trying to keep everything a surprise. needless to say, the cake portion of the party was by far the easiest thing for me to deal with. it is amazingly difficult to keep this kind of surprise from not just one person, but three. especially considering, my mom felt the need to start inviting people to dinner with us when i told them i'd be down to take them out for dinner. trying to keep every one's stories coordinated was really hard.
but in the end, all of them were nicely surprised, 35 people helped them celebrate their milestone birthdays and we had some delicious food courtesy of our host restaurant, B&W Old Village Inn in buchanan, and erin with mystic creations. and just to make you more jealous of the yummy cakes erin made, i'll include a couple more pictures. :)
and that, my friends, is why i haven't been blogging the last couple weeks. my mom is an occasional reader and i knew i'd be unable to go without mentioning something about the annoying planning of the party. because believe me, all i wanted to do was talk about the annoying planning of the party.
now enjoy some cake!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
yay for books!
i've already decided to change up my new years resolution to read 150 books this year. i'd like to make that resolution a little more challenging by reviewing some of the titles i read this year. and i mean some. there is no way i'm going to have the interest in reviewing every book i read. some just aren't worth it.
the ones i choose to review will be ones that i either REALLY enjoyed and want to share or ones that i REALLY hate and want to steer people clear of. let me warn you, there are few books i REALLY hate. a lot of books bug me, but i have a knack for finding something redeeming about nearly every book i read. most of the ones i'm already sure i'll dislike are the ones chosen by my book club for the next 6 months. there is only 1 on the list that i might have picked up on my own and 3 on the list that i already know will be tough for me to finish due to lack of interest in the topic. which is one of the reasons why i joined this book club...they push me to read outside of my regular, cozy comfort zone.
the majority of my reading falls into the category of young adult. while there is plenty of really great young adult books out there, there is also a lot of mediocre and crap young adult writing out there. and i don't discriminate. i enjoy almost all YA lit not because of the content, but because YA authors understand writing to people with short attention spans. they don't spend 3 chapters on stupid character background. they jump right into the story from page one, letting the reader figure out the characters (and even setting) as the story moves. i appreciate that. but 80% of the YA books i read really aren't worth commenting on so unless something is REALLY good, you won't hear about my having read it other than to see the book listed to the right in the 2012 book list.
feel free to send me your book suggestions. i'm always looking for new authors or even just titles to pick up. beware though, i don't read much non-fiction so if your recommend something that requires me to look it up using the dewey decimal system, i'm probably less likely to read it. not because i don't understand the dewey decimal system and therefore couldn't find it in my library, but because well, typically non-fiction is just really blah to read.
anyway, you'll be able to find book reviews in the 'Literary Adventures' tab.
oh yeah...i also decided that i'm going to try to catch up on some of the classic children's literature books that i missed out on growing up. can you believe i've never actually read Alice in Wonderland or The Secret Garden? first up? robert louis stevenson's Treasure Island.
the ones i choose to review will be ones that i either REALLY enjoyed and want to share or ones that i REALLY hate and want to steer people clear of. let me warn you, there are few books i REALLY hate. a lot of books bug me, but i have a knack for finding something redeeming about nearly every book i read. most of the ones i'm already sure i'll dislike are the ones chosen by my book club for the next 6 months. there is only 1 on the list that i might have picked up on my own and 3 on the list that i already know will be tough for me to finish due to lack of interest in the topic. which is one of the reasons why i joined this book club...they push me to read outside of my regular, cozy comfort zone.
the majority of my reading falls into the category of young adult. while there is plenty of really great young adult books out there, there is also a lot of mediocre and crap young adult writing out there. and i don't discriminate. i enjoy almost all YA lit not because of the content, but because YA authors understand writing to people with short attention spans. they don't spend 3 chapters on stupid character background. they jump right into the story from page one, letting the reader figure out the characters (and even setting) as the story moves. i appreciate that. but 80% of the YA books i read really aren't worth commenting on so unless something is REALLY good, you won't hear about my having read it other than to see the book listed to the right in the 2012 book list.
feel free to send me your book suggestions. i'm always looking for new authors or even just titles to pick up. beware though, i don't read much non-fiction so if your recommend something that requires me to look it up using the dewey decimal system, i'm probably less likely to read it. not because i don't understand the dewey decimal system and therefore couldn't find it in my library, but because well, typically non-fiction is just really blah to read.
anyway, you'll be able to find book reviews in the 'Literary Adventures' tab.
oh yeah...i also decided that i'm going to try to catch up on some of the classic children's literature books that i missed out on growing up. can you believe i've never actually read Alice in Wonderland or The Secret Garden? first up? robert louis stevenson's Treasure Island.
new year, new look
i've made a couple small changes to the site. hopefully some more will come tonight...as soon as i figure out how to add tabs. i'm not so good with the html stuff and i'm really not wanting to learn so i've been putting it off. but once i figure out html a little bit better, i'm hoping to add more content to the site besides my pathetic ramblings.
one of the first tabs i'll be adding is a cooking section. i don't get to do much cooking for myself as it isn't much fun to cook or bake for just one, but i get to do a fair bit at work and have come across several great recipes that i use on a regular basis. and i also get a chance to try new recipes whenever i like. my love of cooking and baking goes back to elementary school when i joined 4-H. i spent a lot of time learning to bake, winning a few competitions and earning some scholarship money along the way. in high school, i took a two hour cooking class at another high school every morning. while the first year, i learned nothing as the teacher was never there, the second year i learned a lot and really started to love cooking as well. so much so that i considered skipping traditional college in favor of culinary school. however culinary school scared me when i visited the school at Grand Rapids Community College (way more prestigious than it sounds). i realized i was more of a casual chef than a future restaurant chef.
the addition of recipes to the site will not be something i do often as even now, most of my cooking is for 3 year old, 5 year old and myself. while i love to cook and bake, i rarely want to eat the food i've prepared because my own palette hasn't matured much past elementary school. i still prefer sandwiches, chicken nuggets and the occasional pizza.
but here are a few recipes i love!
chicken chili
adapted from the Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook
serves 6
i love this chili as it doesn't have beans...a food i can't make myself eat. i like to keep it very rustic so i keep the onion and peppers a bit larger than the original recipe called for. and unless you like your tomatoes to be creamy, i don't put them in a food processor before adding them, instead i just give each tomato a good squeeze to break it up a little. as for the spices, amount used is estimated as i just put it in to taste, not actually measure it out. needless to say, my chili tastes slightly different every time.
4 cups chopped yellow onion
olive oil (i use a 3-4 second pour)
4-6 cloves of garlic (i love garlic so i use more than the 4 cloves called for)
2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped
2 yellow bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 28oz cans whole peeled plum tomatoes in puree, undrained (i prefer san marzano tomatoes)
1/4 cup minced fresh basil leaves (or i use dried basil to taste)
4 chicken breasts
preheat over to 350 degrees.
sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet. roast chicken for 35 to 40 minutes, until just cooked. let cool slightly. tear chicken into large bit-sized pieces.
cook onions in oil over medium-low heat until translucent (10-15 minutes). add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. add the bell peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne and salt. cook for 1 minute. crush tomatoes by hand and add to pot with basil. bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
add chicken to chili and simmer, uncovered, another 20 minutes. serve with chopped onions, corn chips, grated cheddar and sour cream. reheats really well.
peanut butter chocolate chunk cookies
also from the Barefoot Contessa
for a nice change of pace i'll change things up a little bit and use half a bag of chocolate chunks and half a bag of butterscotch chips.
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated (white) sugar
2 extra-large eggs at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup good smooth peanut butter (i use jif)
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 package nestle semisweet chocolate chunks
preheat over to 350 degrees
in the bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (this recipe is a lot easier with an electric mixer or a beater). add the eggs, one at a time. add the vanilla and peanut butter, and mix. sift together the flour, baking powder and salt then add to the batter, only mixing until combined. fold in chocolate chunks.
refrigerate overnight. (makes for WAY better cookies)
drop the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
this is the point where the barefoot contessa and i disagree. she says to bake for 17 minutes and that the cookies will be slightly underdone. i say if you bake for 17 minutes, you'll have burnt cookies. i bake them for 11-12 minutes and then pull them out. i suppose you should cook them til you feel comfortable with their doneness. do not overbake. remove from the oven, let cool slightly on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.
batch makes about 32 cookies depending on size. once they're cooled, i like to freeze them. they last longer (meaning i don't just sit and eat them all right away) and 30 seconds in the microwave makes them perfectly warm and chewy.
if you like your cookies chewy, make sure to throw the dough in the fridge overnight, but if you like them flattened and a bit crunchy, feel free to bake them right away.
one of the first tabs i'll be adding is a cooking section. i don't get to do much cooking for myself as it isn't much fun to cook or bake for just one, but i get to do a fair bit at work and have come across several great recipes that i use on a regular basis. and i also get a chance to try new recipes whenever i like. my love of cooking and baking goes back to elementary school when i joined 4-H. i spent a lot of time learning to bake, winning a few competitions and earning some scholarship money along the way. in high school, i took a two hour cooking class at another high school every morning. while the first year, i learned nothing as the teacher was never there, the second year i learned a lot and really started to love cooking as well. so much so that i considered skipping traditional college in favor of culinary school. however culinary school scared me when i visited the school at Grand Rapids Community College (way more prestigious than it sounds). i realized i was more of a casual chef than a future restaurant chef.
the addition of recipes to the site will not be something i do often as even now, most of my cooking is for 3 year old, 5 year old and myself. while i love to cook and bake, i rarely want to eat the food i've prepared because my own palette hasn't matured much past elementary school. i still prefer sandwiches, chicken nuggets and the occasional pizza.
but here are a few recipes i love!
chicken chili
adapted from the Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook
serves 6
i love this chili as it doesn't have beans...a food i can't make myself eat. i like to keep it very rustic so i keep the onion and peppers a bit larger than the original recipe called for. and unless you like your tomatoes to be creamy, i don't put them in a food processor before adding them, instead i just give each tomato a good squeeze to break it up a little. as for the spices, amount used is estimated as i just put it in to taste, not actually measure it out. needless to say, my chili tastes slightly different every time.
4 cups chopped yellow onion
olive oil (i use a 3-4 second pour)
4-6 cloves of garlic (i love garlic so i use more than the 4 cloves called for)
2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped
2 yellow bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 28oz cans whole peeled plum tomatoes in puree, undrained (i prefer san marzano tomatoes)
1/4 cup minced fresh basil leaves (or i use dried basil to taste)
4 chicken breasts
preheat over to 350 degrees.
sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet. roast chicken for 35 to 40 minutes, until just cooked. let cool slightly. tear chicken into large bit-sized pieces.
cook onions in oil over medium-low heat until translucent (10-15 minutes). add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. add the bell peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne and salt. cook for 1 minute. crush tomatoes by hand and add to pot with basil. bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
add chicken to chili and simmer, uncovered, another 20 minutes. serve with chopped onions, corn chips, grated cheddar and sour cream. reheats really well.
peanut butter chocolate chunk cookies
also from the Barefoot Contessa
for a nice change of pace i'll change things up a little bit and use half a bag of chocolate chunks and half a bag of butterscotch chips.
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated (white) sugar
2 extra-large eggs at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup good smooth peanut butter (i use jif)
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 package nestle semisweet chocolate chunks
preheat over to 350 degrees
in the bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (this recipe is a lot easier with an electric mixer or a beater). add the eggs, one at a time. add the vanilla and peanut butter, and mix. sift together the flour, baking powder and salt then add to the batter, only mixing until combined. fold in chocolate chunks.
refrigerate overnight. (makes for WAY better cookies)
drop the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
this is the point where the barefoot contessa and i disagree. she says to bake for 17 minutes and that the cookies will be slightly underdone. i say if you bake for 17 minutes, you'll have burnt cookies. i bake them for 11-12 minutes and then pull them out. i suppose you should cook them til you feel comfortable with their doneness. do not overbake. remove from the oven, let cool slightly on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.
batch makes about 32 cookies depending on size. once they're cooled, i like to freeze them. they last longer (meaning i don't just sit and eat them all right away) and 30 seconds in the microwave makes them perfectly warm and chewy.
if you like your cookies chewy, make sure to throw the dough in the fridge overnight, but if you like them flattened and a bit crunchy, feel free to bake them right away.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
bowling, bets and birthdays
last saturday i got together with some friends to celebrate a birthday. it was a fun night of football, bowling and weirdly enough bets. ok, so other people bowled and it isn't all that weird to take bets, especially when a sporting activity is involved. i was more about the football. and my bet was about the football. i love to bowl, but i didn't want to stop watching the lions/saints playoff game long enough to bowl. i love the lions and have only missed one game this season. first time to the playoff since forever was not going to be game number 2.
the game had it's good moments and bad moments. mainly 1 bad moment. the end score. unfortunately, the lions were unable to pull out a victory over the saints. equally as unfortunate, i knew deep down i wasn't going to go in my favor. didn't stop me from making the bet.
a friend of mine lives in baton rouge. he's a giant saints fan. i believe he told me he's THE saints fan. after some taunting texts exchanged through the first half, i suggested a friendly bet. he suggested the terms. i agreed and the game went on. it became clear about midway through the 4th quarter that the lions were done and i was going to lose.
so now i'm going to baton rouge. that is my punishment (?) for the lions losing. i have to go to baton rouge and i have to bring a friend. those were the terms. lions lose, i bring a friend to baton rouge. lions win, he brings a friend to grand rapids. somehow seems like no matter what the outcome of the game had been, i would have won. sure my football season is over, but now i get to spend 4-5 days in baton rouge with a friend seeing someone i haven't talked to in person in about 10 years. i think i win. plus we're going in april for spring break so that'll be fun and with the way this winter has been, we'll probably have 12 feet of snow in michigan that week so being some place warm is an added bonus.
sometimes i making bets is worth it....even if the airfare to louisiana is going to break me.
the game had it's good moments and bad moments. mainly 1 bad moment. the end score. unfortunately, the lions were unable to pull out a victory over the saints. equally as unfortunate, i knew deep down i wasn't going to go in my favor. didn't stop me from making the bet.
a friend of mine lives in baton rouge. he's a giant saints fan. i believe he told me he's THE saints fan. after some taunting texts exchanged through the first half, i suggested a friendly bet. he suggested the terms. i agreed and the game went on. it became clear about midway through the 4th quarter that the lions were done and i was going to lose.
so now i'm going to baton rouge. that is my punishment (?) for the lions losing. i have to go to baton rouge and i have to bring a friend. those were the terms. lions lose, i bring a friend to baton rouge. lions win, he brings a friend to grand rapids. somehow seems like no matter what the outcome of the game had been, i would have won. sure my football season is over, but now i get to spend 4-5 days in baton rouge with a friend seeing someone i haven't talked to in person in about 10 years. i think i win. plus we're going in april for spring break so that'll be fun and with the way this winter has been, we'll probably have 12 feet of snow in michigan that week so being some place warm is an added bonus.
sometimes i making bets is worth it....even if the airfare to louisiana is going to break me.
stairs are hard!
i don't think think there is a muscle in my body that isn't hurting today. and this is day two of muscle pain. this year i made the decision to up my fitness level. i have been working out at a gym a couple days a week for the last year or so, but i've really not done much more than work on cardiovascular health. after a lot of years of not doing anything to help my heart function at it's highest potential, it has been slow going. on top of that, most cardio activities bore me to tears after just a short time. i've gone from the treadmill to the stationary bike to the cardio wave and now back to the treadmill. i'm now actually enjoying my time on the treadmill as i've found a way to run without getting as bored. and i'm seeing results every day. so now i feel ready to up the level a bit and add a couple different types of workouts.
this is the first week this year that my schedule has been normal so i didn't get a chance to start the added workouts until now. my typical gym schedule is monday and thursday and friday, but i don't always make it on fridays. so i decided to put the other workout in on tuesday and take a break on wednesday. good thing i did.
i added some weights, core and lower body exercises on tuesday. most people say i'm crazy when i say this, but i find a strange sort of motivation when i do those types of workout if i use a workout dvd. i have one that i really like from Jackie Warner that includes 15 min workouts for each upper body, lower body and core as well as a 15 minutes total body and a 40 minute total body workout. tuesday i popped the dvd in, stretched, warmed up and got about 10 minutes into the 40 minute workout when i realized i totally wasn't ready for the entire 40 minutes. still, i continued to struggle through it because i hate to give up. i managed to complete the entire upper body portion and the entire upper body portion. i gave up about a 1/3 of the way into the core workout. the way Jackie's workout runs is instead of doing sets of say 20 reps on each exercise, she has you do a full minute of each of three separate exercises followed by all three in a single minute she calls a power burn. each 4 minute cycle focuses on a single muscle group. a full minute of lunges or chest presses or side planks is a LONG time.
all that leads to my having very achy glutes, hamstrings, quads, abs, and shoulders. yesterday was rough going. i nearly fell down several sets of stairs several times through out the day because my legs just didn't function well. didn't help that i spent 2 hours wandering the beach and sand dunes along lake michigan with a 3 year old. this evening, i'm suppose to spend some time running on the treadmill. i'm hoping a handful of advil and some fierce determination will get me through 3 miles on the treadmill though i have a feeling i'll be on the treadmill for a VERY long time in order to get through those three miles.
now i have to reconsider how i'm going to add in the other workouts without putting my legs out of commission every week until i get used to the extra workout.
this is the first week this year that my schedule has been normal so i didn't get a chance to start the added workouts until now. my typical gym schedule is monday and thursday and friday, but i don't always make it on fridays. so i decided to put the other workout in on tuesday and take a break on wednesday. good thing i did.
i added some weights, core and lower body exercises on tuesday. most people say i'm crazy when i say this, but i find a strange sort of motivation when i do those types of workout if i use a workout dvd. i have one that i really like from Jackie Warner that includes 15 min workouts for each upper body, lower body and core as well as a 15 minutes total body and a 40 minute total body workout. tuesday i popped the dvd in, stretched, warmed up and got about 10 minutes into the 40 minute workout when i realized i totally wasn't ready for the entire 40 minutes. still, i continued to struggle through it because i hate to give up. i managed to complete the entire upper body portion and the entire upper body portion. i gave up about a 1/3 of the way into the core workout. the way Jackie's workout runs is instead of doing sets of say 20 reps on each exercise, she has you do a full minute of each of three separate exercises followed by all three in a single minute she calls a power burn. each 4 minute cycle focuses on a single muscle group. a full minute of lunges or chest presses or side planks is a LONG time.
all that leads to my having very achy glutes, hamstrings, quads, abs, and shoulders. yesterday was rough going. i nearly fell down several sets of stairs several times through out the day because my legs just didn't function well. didn't help that i spent 2 hours wandering the beach and sand dunes along lake michigan with a 3 year old. this evening, i'm suppose to spend some time running on the treadmill. i'm hoping a handful of advil and some fierce determination will get me through 3 miles on the treadmill though i have a feeling i'll be on the treadmill for a VERY long time in order to get through those three miles.
now i have to reconsider how i'm going to add in the other workouts without putting my legs out of commission every week until i get used to the extra workout.
Friday, January 6, 2012
the grand unveiling 2012
New Years Resolutions 2012
1. Read 150 books.
last year i had a bunch of ideas as to how i wanted to complete my reading goal, some of which i managed to uphold (books had to have more than 150 pages) and some i failed miserably at (my goal to read more non-fiction). i'm going to do the same thing this year, but in some instances i'm going to get much more specific than i was last year. so here's the breakdown of how i'd like to completely my reading goal:
a. read the following books from my book shelf:
Swamplandia by Karen Russell
The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen
The Hole We're In by Gabrielle Zevin
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Suzanna Clarke
Curse of the Wolf Girl by Martin Millar
World War Z by Max Brooks
more to be added when i have a chance, but i'll start there.
b. read entire stephanie plum series by janet evanovich
yes, i said janet evanovich. last year i read all of the books in the anita blake, vampire hunter series by laurell k. hamilton so i wanted another series with a similar number of books that would last me for most of the year. i also wanted to series to be something super popular that i wouldn't typically pick up. janet evanovich fit that criteria.
c. read more non-fiction
last year i put a number on this and didn't succeed. this year i'm just going to state that i want to read more non-fiction. shouldn't be too hard to as i only read 2 non-fiction books last year.
d. graphic novels will NOT count in the reading goals this year
you'll be able to follow my reading progress at http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3508320-carrie
if you yourself is a reader, sign up...i'd love to be able to see what all my friends are reading.
2. Be a better blogger.
my goal this year is to post a blog much more regularly. i have plenty to say so now i just need to find the time to say it. i'm going to aim for at least once a week.
3. Be a better friend.
i am awful at staying in touch with friends who don't live in the same town i do. my best friend lives across the country from me and i'm luck if i talk to her once a month. i want to change that. i want to make a point to talk to those friends outside of GR more regularly. i want to be in the loop of their lives, not the girl they send christmas cards to, but never hear back from. as for my friends in GR, i want to do better there too. i want to be the once reaching out to make plans instead of sitting at home waiting for them to call me.
4. End the year with at least $1000 in my savings account
here's a few of the ways i'm going to attempt to save some money:
a. use less gas. i drive a lot for work (no less than 70 miles a day just to get to and from work) so economy is going to have to come in my driving habits in my off time. i'm going to attempt to take advantage of the buses. i used to ride them regularly, but have gotten out of the habit. everywhere in GR i'd want to go is on a bus route so when ever possible, i'm going to try taking the bus. i'm also going to change churches for awhile. i love my current church, but it is 20 miles or so away from where i live. there is a church within walking distance of my house and another only a 3 mile drive from my house, either that i would feel comfortable going to. i doubt the change will be permanent, but at least for now, i'm going to try going somewhere closer to home.
b. eat at home more often. living with other people meant my food got eaten by someone other than myself more often than not. something i got tired of very fast and stopped by no longer keeping food in the house. i have not spent money on groceries in probably two years outside of a gallon milk and box of cereal here and there....well that and ice cream. there is always ice cream in my house. needless to say, i eat out most nights of the week. that takes a bit of money to accomplish. while i will not stop eating out, i will stop eating out every night. the goal is to cook at home at least 4 nights a week. guess i'll have to get to the grocery store as the only thing in my fridge is a 2 liter of diet pepsi and some ketchup. i'll also need to get the gas turned back on to the stove.
c. take advantage of my goal-setters savings account. 5/3's goal-setter savings account requires you to go into the bank to get money out of it. you can not transfer from the website (which is how i prefer to do my banking...website and ATM). i'm going to start putting $50 from each paycheck into that account upon deposit. when the next paycheck arrives, i'm going to then transfer the balance of my checking account into the savings account. this will mean i will literally live from paycheck to paycheck, but i think it'll be worth it to have a savings cushion at the end of the year. and as i hate going into the bank, i'm less likely to try to get to that money than i would be if i could sit on my couch and transfer it out.
5. Take better care of my house.
i'm not a person who enjoys cleaning. i'm less likely to do it now than i was in the past because i do a lot of house cleaning and laundry at work every day. the last thing i do after vacuuming/mopping and washing clothes/dishes at work is come home and do it again. but i need to learn. by the end of this weekend, i will have my house clean and a chore schedule set up that i will try to follow every day/week to keep my house clean. i can't promise this will stick, but i'm certainly wanting to try it.
as for the rest of my resolutions, they all deal with health and fitness and will be posted on my other website (www.notcelebrityfitclub.com) sometime tomorrow hopefully. if you're curious about those resolutions, click on over.
1. Read 150 books.
last year i had a bunch of ideas as to how i wanted to complete my reading goal, some of which i managed to uphold (books had to have more than 150 pages) and some i failed miserably at (my goal to read more non-fiction). i'm going to do the same thing this year, but in some instances i'm going to get much more specific than i was last year. so here's the breakdown of how i'd like to completely my reading goal:
a. read the following books from my book shelf:
Swamplandia by Karen Russell
The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen
The Hole We're In by Gabrielle Zevin
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Suzanna Clarke
Curse of the Wolf Girl by Martin Millar
World War Z by Max Brooks
more to be added when i have a chance, but i'll start there.
b. read entire stephanie plum series by janet evanovich
yes, i said janet evanovich. last year i read all of the books in the anita blake, vampire hunter series by laurell k. hamilton so i wanted another series with a similar number of books that would last me for most of the year. i also wanted to series to be something super popular that i wouldn't typically pick up. janet evanovich fit that criteria.
c. read more non-fiction
last year i put a number on this and didn't succeed. this year i'm just going to state that i want to read more non-fiction. shouldn't be too hard to as i only read 2 non-fiction books last year.
d. graphic novels will NOT count in the reading goals this year
you'll be able to follow my reading progress at http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3508320-carrie
if you yourself is a reader, sign up...i'd love to be able to see what all my friends are reading.
2. Be a better blogger.
my goal this year is to post a blog much more regularly. i have plenty to say so now i just need to find the time to say it. i'm going to aim for at least once a week.
3. Be a better friend.
i am awful at staying in touch with friends who don't live in the same town i do. my best friend lives across the country from me and i'm luck if i talk to her once a month. i want to change that. i want to make a point to talk to those friends outside of GR more regularly. i want to be in the loop of their lives, not the girl they send christmas cards to, but never hear back from. as for my friends in GR, i want to do better there too. i want to be the once reaching out to make plans instead of sitting at home waiting for them to call me.
4. End the year with at least $1000 in my savings account
here's a few of the ways i'm going to attempt to save some money:
a. use less gas. i drive a lot for work (no less than 70 miles a day just to get to and from work) so economy is going to have to come in my driving habits in my off time. i'm going to attempt to take advantage of the buses. i used to ride them regularly, but have gotten out of the habit. everywhere in GR i'd want to go is on a bus route so when ever possible, i'm going to try taking the bus. i'm also going to change churches for awhile. i love my current church, but it is 20 miles or so away from where i live. there is a church within walking distance of my house and another only a 3 mile drive from my house, either that i would feel comfortable going to. i doubt the change will be permanent, but at least for now, i'm going to try going somewhere closer to home.
b. eat at home more often. living with other people meant my food got eaten by someone other than myself more often than not. something i got tired of very fast and stopped by no longer keeping food in the house. i have not spent money on groceries in probably two years outside of a gallon milk and box of cereal here and there....well that and ice cream. there is always ice cream in my house. needless to say, i eat out most nights of the week. that takes a bit of money to accomplish. while i will not stop eating out, i will stop eating out every night. the goal is to cook at home at least 4 nights a week. guess i'll have to get to the grocery store as the only thing in my fridge is a 2 liter of diet pepsi and some ketchup. i'll also need to get the gas turned back on to the stove.
c. take advantage of my goal-setters savings account. 5/3's goal-setter savings account requires you to go into the bank to get money out of it. you can not transfer from the website (which is how i prefer to do my banking...website and ATM). i'm going to start putting $50 from each paycheck into that account upon deposit. when the next paycheck arrives, i'm going to then transfer the balance of my checking account into the savings account. this will mean i will literally live from paycheck to paycheck, but i think it'll be worth it to have a savings cushion at the end of the year. and as i hate going into the bank, i'm less likely to try to get to that money than i would be if i could sit on my couch and transfer it out.
5. Take better care of my house.
i'm not a person who enjoys cleaning. i'm less likely to do it now than i was in the past because i do a lot of house cleaning and laundry at work every day. the last thing i do after vacuuming/mopping and washing clothes/dishes at work is come home and do it again. but i need to learn. by the end of this weekend, i will have my house clean and a chore schedule set up that i will try to follow every day/week to keep my house clean. i can't promise this will stick, but i'm certainly wanting to try it.
as for the rest of my resolutions, they all deal with health and fitness and will be posted on my other website (www.notcelebrityfitclub.com) sometime tomorrow hopefully. if you're curious about those resolutions, click on over.
last years resolutions+me=??
i've been drafting this blog in my head for a week or so now, but just now getting a chance to write it. another new year is upon us. in general, i don't really care that it is a new year. i don't really celebrate at midnight on january 1st like most of the rest of the world. partly because i find it weird that i get to start a new year 3 hours before my best friend does. i understand about time difference, earth rotation and what not, but it is still weird to watch people start their new year both before and after i do. so instead of doing that, i go to bed. if i'm awake at midnight it is because whoever shoots off fireworks and guns in my neighborhood as woke me up.
but the one new years tradition i do fall in line with is new years resolutions. i think self-improvement is important and what better way to motivate self-improvement but new years resolutions. i've been hit or miss about them over the past few years, but having them written down somewhere people can see them has helped me a try a little harder this last year.
to recap, last year i wanted to run a 5k in less than 30 minutes, weigh less than i did at the start of the year (203lbs) and read 100 books (with a bunch of smaller goals under that). i only achieved one of those goals...i read more than 100 books, around 125 in actuality. i haven't had a chance to go through the smaller goals and see how i did there, but the over all goal of 100 books was achieved. as for the other two, i'm not too sad about it. while i haven't run a 5k in less than 30 minutes, i have worked towards it steadily all year long. i've averaged 2 visits to the gym a week all year long so i'm now in the habit of going and working out on the cardio equipment. and after a break from running due to some latent tendonitis issues, i am back on the treadmill and actually making some good headway towards the goal of a 30 minute 5k. and the weight thing, well in all honesty, i didn't try so hard on this one, basically i didn't try at all. unfortunately, i weigh more than i did at the start of the year. i really don't feel bad about that though.
so after last years rather poor attempt at self-improvement, i've come up with a new list of resolutions that hopefully i'll be able to accomplish this year.
but you'll get those in a different post as it is now time for me to go to work... :(
but the one new years tradition i do fall in line with is new years resolutions. i think self-improvement is important and what better way to motivate self-improvement but new years resolutions. i've been hit or miss about them over the past few years, but having them written down somewhere people can see them has helped me a try a little harder this last year.
to recap, last year i wanted to run a 5k in less than 30 minutes, weigh less than i did at the start of the year (203lbs) and read 100 books (with a bunch of smaller goals under that). i only achieved one of those goals...i read more than 100 books, around 125 in actuality. i haven't had a chance to go through the smaller goals and see how i did there, but the over all goal of 100 books was achieved. as for the other two, i'm not too sad about it. while i haven't run a 5k in less than 30 minutes, i have worked towards it steadily all year long. i've averaged 2 visits to the gym a week all year long so i'm now in the habit of going and working out on the cardio equipment. and after a break from running due to some latent tendonitis issues, i am back on the treadmill and actually making some good headway towards the goal of a 30 minute 5k. and the weight thing, well in all honesty, i didn't try so hard on this one, basically i didn't try at all. unfortunately, i weigh more than i did at the start of the year. i really don't feel bad about that though.
so after last years rather poor attempt at self-improvement, i've come up with a new list of resolutions that hopefully i'll be able to accomplish this year.
but you'll get those in a different post as it is now time for me to go to work... :(
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