No Better Time...

To talk about the Fourth of July then in November...right?

I was talking to the BFF yesterday about how I couldn't believe we were well into November when I feel like it was JUST summer vacation. Seriously, I don't know where the time went. It seems like we jumped from swimming and kayaking to peppermint lattes and ignoring Christmas carols by way of a few colored leaves.

Yesterday, we went to see About Time. I LOVED it. The movie is about an endearing British family where the men can travel back in time for do-overs. (Perhaps one of the reasons I loved it is that I've always wished for powers like that!) The main character falls in love with Rachel McAdams and they have cute babies. There is more to it but I wouldn't want to spoil anything. It was hilarious and sweet and heartbreaking and thought provoking.

The main take away from the movie is to enjoy the "normal" days in life because ultimately, those days are what make up most of your life. And I loved the idea that the key to happiness is just to change your perspective about difficult things and make the best out of every situation. The idea that the meaning of life is simply about spending time with people who love you seems so easy.

In stark contrast, I am currently reading Inferno by Dan Brown. I'm not thrilled with it, but as I'm 250 pages in, I feel like I must plow ahead. The premise of the book (as far as I can tell) is that an individual or organization is plotting to destroy half of the world's population in order to keep the human race from going extinct.

My mind is torn between wanting to find joy in ordinary things and trying to come to terms that the world is collapsing all around us. ← A bit dramatic maybe?

So back to the 4th of July...I did so many mundane yet fun things this summer and aside from photos published to Instagram or worse, pictures merely filling my phone's memory, I haven't really acknowledged or written about my adventures. Since the days are getting shorter and darker and colder, I thought it would be fun to relive my summer vacation.

Won't you join me?

Books

What books have you read recently that you loved?

What books have you read recently that made you think?

What books have you read recently that changed your perspective about something?

I am in need of book recommendations.

I like to read lots of different types of books...except classics. I've gone through phases of reading chick-lit, non fiction, and young adult books...and I enjoyed them all for different reasons.

So what are you reading?

   

Color Me Surprised

I received an anonymous gift today!

I think I know who it's from but I'm still doing some detective work.

Edit: The gift is no longer anonymous. Thank you Bonnie!

I LOVE IT!!!!!

#Summer4eva!

Don't Judge a Book by its Cover

Dear Library,

I recently read the following book:

On the side of the book you affixed the following sticker:

Obviously you have not read this book. The only animal in the story is the horse that pulls the plow. In fact, it is a story about a young boy with promising intellectual abilities who leaves school to return home to help care for his father who has just had a stroke. The boy learns to communicate with his father who can no longer speak and decides to build a barn with his brother and sister. He hopes that having something to look forward to will help his father get better. The boy finishes the barn late one night and decides to wait until morning to show his father. Now, I don't want to ruin the end of the story for you but guess what happens to his father that night?

So dear library, you really shouldn't judge a book by its cover (or title). Some poor, unsuspecting child is going to pick up this book expecting to read about piggies and get quite the life lesson instead.

XOXO,
Amy

Basically...

My entire week boils down to this:

All I'm doing is working for the weekend so I can see The Hunger Games. I'm going to be so disappointed if it sucks!

Today it was hot! It was 79 degrees at afternoon recess on the last day of WINTER! When you live in New England sometimes you get blizzards in October and this on the first day of spring:

I got a new bathroom ceiling today! There is now dust on every surface of my apartment but I no longer have insulation hanging out over the tub. 

This morning I emptied my bathroom and piled everything in the hallway outside (everything being bathmat, shower curtain, and all my shower stuff). When I got home it was all back in it's place. I thought it was strange that the contractor hung up my shower caddy before he left (and vacuumed my entire apartment) but at least it doesn't look like he tried on my underwear.

      

Number Twelve

Read all of Roald Dahl's books...check!

I love Roald Dahl. His books never cease to entertain me and I love reading them aloud to kids. While researching Roald Dahl's catalog of work, I quickly decided to exclude his numerous (50+) short stories. Therefore, this goal includes only Roald Dahl children's books and biographies. FYI: I completed some of these books before the official start of The List so below are my notes, thoughts, or recollections of the stories.

The books:

The Mildenhall Treasure - A true story about a poor farmer who dug up a Roman treasure. His boss took it and tried to hide it but it was found out. Roald Dahl read about it and offered the man half of his book money if he would let him tell the story.

My Year - An observation of nature throughout the months of the year.

Rhyme Stew - Funny poems!

The Missing Golden Ticket - Secrets behind Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. There were originally more golden tickets!

Going Solo - Follow up to Boy. Crazy stories like watching a lady being carried off by a lion.

Boy - Autobiography. Interesting to read about the experiences that inspired several of his novels.

The Giraffe and The Pelly and Me - A giraffe, a pelican and a monkey paint houses.

James and the Giant Peach - Better than I thought it would be. Hadn't read it since 3rd-ish grade.

Vile Verses - Funny poems.

The Minpins - Tiny people who live in trees get saved by a boy riding a swan.

Danny the Champion of the World - This book really surprised me. It's a story about a boy and his dad who figure out an ingenious way to poach pheasants. I loved this book.

The BFG - It took me a long time to get past the dialect that the giants used but I ended up enjoying this book quite a bit.

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator - Had high hopes after Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but I thought this book was so random and disjointed that I couldn't wait to get through it.

Revolting Rhymes - Hilarious retelling of classic fairy tales. Red Riding Hood shoots and skins the wolf and makes him into a coat. Later, Red shows up to help the 3rd Little Pig. She takes care of that wolf, makes another fur coat and turns the pig into a leather bag! Watch it here.

George's Marvelous Medicine - George makes medicine and grows GIANT animals.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. A bit different from the movie.

The Twits - Mean, grumpy people. That's all I remember.

The Vicar of Nibbleswicke - A hilarious short novel about a Vicar who mixes up all of his words and drama ensues.

Esio Trot - Tortoise spelled backwards. A sweet love story about an old man who seeks the attention of a tortoise loving lady.

The Magic Finger - Um...his finger zaps people?

The Enormous Crocodile - A big croc gobbles up little children.

Matilda - A magic little girl takes on the Trunchbull and prevails!

The Witches - My favorite Roald Dahl book! Full of suspense, great description and a wonderful villain. Read it!

Fantastic Mr. Fox - Eh. Foxes underground being clever/conniving.

Someday, I hope to plow through Roald Dahl's short stories because his writing never ceases to amaze me. Now go pick up a book!


    

Number Fifteen

Make a serious effort at writing outlining a book...check!

I've spent the last 10 years hemming and hawing about writing a book. But what kind? A novel? A children's book?

In the fall, I was finally inspired to write...and then my computer crashed. Luckily D&O lent me a laptop and I got to work on...a memoir. I know, I know. How exciting can my life be? But I think that a good story teller (and yes I'm insinuating that I am one so don't tell me otherwise) can capture an audience with any story.

So while I did not pen a memoir in the past 12 months, I made a serious effort at outlining a memoir.

11 Chapters.
4,000 Word Outline.

Stay tuned.

   

Numero Dos*

Read 56 books...check!

As part of my Read 1,000 Books initiative, I set a goal to read one book per week.

Shortest book read: 32 pages...Revolting Rhymes by Roald Dahl.

Longest book read: 912 pages...The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest (Large Print) by Steig Larsson.

Oldest book read: 1911 The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

Newest book read: 2011 Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling.

Biggest waste of time: Behind the Bell by Dustin Diamond.

Favorites: On Writing by Stephen King

                  The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

                  The Year of Living Biblically by A. J. Jacobs

                

I achieved this goal ahead of time due in part to some high volume reading months:

This year I read mostly fiction books, but also enjoyed many memoirs and non-fiction books:

It's no surprise that because of #12 on The List, I read a lot of Roald Dahl books. But I also read a lot of books from:

And one last chart because obviously I had fun learning to make charts in Pages:

I'm glad that I read so much this year and I fully intend to continue reading as much as possible because it drives me crazy that no matter how hard I try, I'll never be able to read all the books. <--- Yes, I realize I'm a nerd. I've embraced it.

I've decided to add all of the picture books that I've read in second grade this year to my 1,000 books list for two reasons. 1) I did, in fact, read them.  2) It will bump up my total!

* In Spanish because I didn't want to call such an epic post Number Two.

 

The Secret Garden

At the beginning of the month I wrote about why I added Read A Classic to my list.  (The Cliff Notes version is that they scare me.)  For one of my May goals, I decided to tackle item #27 on The List.  I read The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. 

I chose this for a few reasons.
1.  I already owned a copy.
2.  It is found in the children's section.
3.  I had seen the movie several times and the musical (yes they made a musical).

Here is a secret...I have owned this book for 22 years and never read it until now.  My Great Aunt Jeannie gave me a copy way back in the 80's!  (OMG I am old.)

If you've never read the book, The Secret Garden is about a girl who moves to live with her uncle after her parents die.  Mary is spoiled and quite contrary.  She meets 2 boys at her new home.  Dickon has a way with animals and nature, and Colin is spoiled, bedridden, and has been told his whole life that he is about to die.  Mary discovers a secret garden that has been locked up for 10 years and she and her friends bring it back to life.  Everyone lives happily ever after.

I liked the book but I didn't love it.  Perhaps it was the written Yorkshire language that got to me, but I think, had I not been familiar with the story, I would have liked it more.  All in all, it was nice to read a classic, accomplish a goal, and finally make use of a thoughtful gift.

Now that I have tackled a classic (however juvenile it may be) I am ready for further adventures into "old" books!

The Death of a Dream

Way back when I was a sophomore in college I had a dream.  Not the Martin Luther King kind...it was more of a pipe dream.  As my roommate E can attest, my dream was to pen a super sappy heartfelt and moving novel that would be welcomed into Oprah's Book Club with eager arms (obv. propelling me to fame and fortune).

But today that dream must die.  Not only have I not written said novel but the demise of Oprah (as we know it) is upon us.  Today marks her last show and thus the death of a dream.

Let's pause for a moment of silence.


   

The Back Story of # 27

One of my May goals is to cross something off of my list.  A lot of the items are long term goals or things that I have plans to complete at some point later this year.  I took a look and decided that  # 27 is going to happen.  Maybe not this week but some time in the next 30 days.

The Back Story:
I put "Read A Classic" on my list because old books scare me.  I find them difficult to read, hard to understand, and boring (and that is if I actually read more than 30 pages.)  I LOVE to read but I was the girl in high school that refused to start finish any of the assigned reading.  I learned the basics...Gatsby loved Daisy and they ran someone over, either Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn went down the river with Jim, and Beowulf fought Grendel and his mom.

In 8th grade I was in honors English.  Due to a lack of effort, I did not get awesome grades.  By some oversight, I was placed in 9th grade honors English where I proceeded to do worse than 8th grade.  I convinced myself that English was my worst subject and that I wasn't smart enough to understand the material when the reality was that because I wasn't interested in the books we were reading, I neglected to apply myself.  To be fair I was 14 and being asked to read Charles Dickens.  I didn't even know what socialism was so how was I supposed to appreciate a novel about the social and economic pressures of 19th century England?  High school English class killed my love of reading.*

In an effort to make good on # 27, today I did some recon at B&N. 

I'm still unclear on what actually constitutes a classic.  According to the display I can choose from:
Frankenstein
The Wizard of Oz
Dracula
Don Quixote
Walden
Last of the Mohicans
Any novel ever written by Jane Austen

The three that I am considering are:
Little Women (I've seen the movie)
The Scarlett Letter (I've seen Easy A)
The Secret Garden (I've seen the movie)

Any suggestions?  My hope is to read all three before the year is out but my TBR (that is book blog lingo for to be read) pile is like 925 books high.

* Fun Fact:  I buckled down and studied hard for my 9th grade honors English midterm.  I thought I did well.  As the teacher was passing back the midterms, the snobby girl (yes I'm being judgemental) next to me who always got good grades got an 88% on her test.  She turned to me and said, "Well I got an 88, but I'm sure you'll do fine."  I got a 96% bitch...I bet she still hates me.

 

4 Reasons I Probably Won't Leave My House Today Even Though It Is Sunny And Warm Outside

1. Stephen left today to return to VA and I am sad about that.  Last year he came home for almost two months but this year stayed 12 days.  It's weird to go an entire year without seeing my brother.

2.  It is already 1:00 pm and I am still in my pajamas.

3.  My hair looks like this:

4.  I still have 250 pages left to read of The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest and it now overdue.  I am expecting an email from the library any day now telling me what a delinquent patron I am for withholding reading material from other patrons who are waiting for the book.  Although to be fair...I requested this book in August and had to wait until January to get it from the library.  This was probably my own fault as I accidentally requested the large print version.  Oops!

Fulfilling My Destiny

So it looks like I almost fulfilled my destiny on Saturday night. 

Today I learned of Edward Gorey's book The Gashlycrumb Tinies.  It is an ABC book that tells of the deaths of 26 children (each a different letter) in rhyming couplets.

Behold the first line:

At least I only suffered bruises!  The whole poem: 

A is for Amy who fell down the stairs.
B is for Basil assaulted by bears.
C is for Clair who wasted away.
D is for Desmond thrown out of the sleigh.
E is for Ernest who choked on a peach.
F is for Fanny, sucked dry by a leech.
G is for George, smothered under a rug.
H is for Hector, done in by a thug.
I is for Ida who drowned in the lake.
J is for James who took lye, by mistake.
K is for Kate who was struck with an axe.
L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks.
M is for Maud who was swept out to sea.
N is for Nevil who died of ennui.
O is for Olive, run through with an awl.
P is for Prue, trampled flat in a brawl.
Q is for Quinton who sank in a mire.
R is for Rhoda, consumed by a fire.
S is for Susan who perished of fits.
T is for Titas who blew into bits.
U is for Una who slipped down a drain.
V is for Victor, squashed under a train.
W is for Winie, embedded in ice.
X is for Xerxes, devoured by mice.
Y is for Yoric whose head was bashed in.
Z is for Zilla who drank too much gin.

I have to say, I'm glad I'm not Kate: