Katelisim's Round 2

First 2nd thread ever! Recap! Here are the categories from the 11in11 that I'm reading from:

1. I'm a Smarty-Pants : Textbooks/Class Reading
2. I Got My Delorian to 88 : Stories Set in the Past
3. 73ch-H34d : Science Fiction
4. Timbuk3 Knew About the Future: The Apocalypse and Post-Apocalypse
5. "I heard it from Peter, who heard it from John, who heard it from someone I don't know at all" (DM) : Recommendations
6. How Many Licks to the Center?!? : 1001 List
7. Do I Get To Meet Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki? : Supernatural/Paranormal
8. Visual Stunna : Graphic Novels/Manga
9. . . . : Series Continuance
10. Kidlins : Children's & YA
11. Open-Season: Anything Else

For the curious, past threads:
75 in 2011 thread 1: http://www.librarything.com/topic/105738
75 challenge in 2010: http://www.librarything.com/topic/79801
Doubled w/ the 1010 challenge: http://www.librarything.com/topic/74530
2009's 75 challenge: http://www.librarything.com/topic/58385

Books finished:
Thread 1
1. 1/4 Clockwork Angel, 4.5 Stars, Post #77
2. 1/10 The Penguin Book of German Verse, 3 Stars, Post #138
3. 1/11 WebMage, 3.5 Stars, Post #138
4. 1/24 Spiral Bound, 4 Stars, Post #158
5. 2/28 Master and Margarita, 4 Stars, Post #189
6. 3/14 The Demon Trapper's Daughter, 4 Stars, 196
7. 3/16 Fables 1, 3 Stars, 200
8. 3/21 Fables 2, 3.25 Stars, 202
9. 4/1 Department 19, 3.75 Stars, 214
10. 4/9 Astonishing X-Men: Gifted, 3.75 Stars, 216
11. 4/11 Astonishing X-Men: Torn, 4 Stars, 219
12. 4/12 Astonishing X-Men: Unstoppable, 4.25 Stars, 223
13. 4/14 Astonishing X-Men: Ghost Box, 3 Stars, 228
14. 5/7 Speed Racer Vol 1, 3 Stars, 255

Thread 2
15. The Practice of PR, 4 Stars, Post #2
16. multi-textbook, post 2
17. 5/17 City of Fallen Angels, 4 Stars, 7
18. 5/28 20 Years Later, 3.5, 26
19. 6/14 Infected, 3.5, 59
20. 6/23 Kaze No Stigma #1, 3, 67
21. 7/4 Night Runner, 4, 71
22. 7/12 Rombies #0, 2.5, 79
23. 7/26 Oscar Wilde miscellany, post 101
24. 8/6 Heart of Darkness, 3, 113
25. 8/14 My Favorite Band Does Not Exist, 4.5, 114
26. 8/19 The Secret Sharer, 3.5, 127
27. 8/24 The Hunger Games, 5, 134
28. 8/25 Catching Fire, 4.75, 135
29. 8/29 Mockingjay, 4.5, 142
30. 8/31, Dragonsinger, 147
31. 9/5, The White Dragon, 152
32. 9/5, Ostrich Logic, 153
33. 10/1 Heart of Darkness (again), 172
34. 10/16 Youth, 183
35. 10/25 Typhoon, 188
36. 10/25 Amy Foster, 188
37. 11/14 Secret Agent, 193
38. 11/25 Sleeping With Nikki, 194
39. 12/7 The Duel, 195
40. 12/7 The Return, 195
41. 12/20 Fourth Genre, 197
42. 12/20 Metro, 197
43. (posted 12/27, read somewhere around 10/7) An Outpost of Progress, 211
44. 12/28 Switched, 3.5 Stars, post #214
45. 12/29 Poems and Prose, 3 Stars, 215
46. 12/30 Half Prince Volume #1, 5 Stars, 216

So textbooks. . .

15. The Practice of Public Relations by Fraser P. Seitel 4 Stars
As far as text books go, this was pretty good. Formatted well, case studies at the end of chapter, interesting and informative examples, and it was very clear.

As for the rest of my textbooks this semester, we only used sections or excerpts. But I am counting the following as the equivalent of one entire book.

16.
Wie Geht's? by Dieter Sevin 3.75 Stars
Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft by Janet Burroway 3 Stars
Working Words: The Process of Creative Writing by Wendy Bishop 3 Stars
Thirteen Ways of Looking for a Poem: A Guide to Writing Poetry by Wendy Bishop 3 Stars
Fiction 100: An Anthology of Short Stories by James Pickering 3.5 Stars

Hey, Kate! Nice new thread you have here :)

Hello, Katie! :)

Welcome, welcome.

I have started City of Fallen Angels and Just a Couple of Days. Though I was exhausted after the semester, so I kept falling asleep while I was reading :/ Should make some progress today and tomorrow. . . 2 days off! No school, no work! I don't remember the last time I had 2 days off in a row. Excited :D

Congrats on a couple days off in a row! I hope you get tons of reading done!

17. City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare 4 Stars
This is book #4 of the Mortal Instruments series, the 1st of the 2nd trilogy. . . I know, that's a little confusing, but there will be a total of 6 books with 2 separate 'larger pictures'. I probably just lost everyone. . . so onto what the book was about! This starts 2 months after City of Glass. (Oh, if you haven't read the previous, there will prolly be spoilers in this next part, just fyi). Everyone is settling down after the war and the new Accords, figuring out their new places. And all of our main characters spend lots of time in this book figuring out their love lives. But when Shadowhunters start showing up dead in downworlder territories, the sleuthing and action kicks in. Big forces are at play, unexpected ones at that. It's so hard to say what happens in this book without giving away spoilers *le sigh.

Anywho, if you like the previous books in the series, you will like this one. The beginning is a little slower than the others, but it's a necessary buildup. Some interesting developments for the next books in this series and Infernal Devices (prequel series). . . may have to reevaluate my understanding of Will. Oh, and there's this whole cliffhanger thing that I was not wanting. Gah! The next one doesn't come out until May 2012 and the next of the Infernal Devices doesn't come out until this December. *over dramatic and unnecessary weep*

Cliffhangers are so hard! I finally got all caught up on your old and new thread, Katie. I wishlisted the Speed Racer book for both my brother and me. It is kind of a nostalgia thing. I also wishlisted Wie Geht's?, mostly for my daughter who studied German. "Wie geht's" is about all the German that I remember. :)

Hi billiejean! Speed Racer is great for nostalgia :)
I had an interesting time with Wie Geht's?. Mostly because my teacher in high school ran me through the grammar of 4 levels (except for endings, not sure why endings were glazed over) and not nearly the same amount of vocab in 1.5 semesters. --This is not how it was usually taught, I just fell into this method because of my schedule and ability to pick it up.-- So the book, while probably in the proper order, felt out of order to me. They did lay it out nicely though, with those lovely repeating section patterns. Could figure out the basics with the book, but some of their trickier exercises needed explaining (but isn't that how it goes for any language?). Overall, pretty good and does its job :)

I'm about to head out to an internship interview. . . for the county library! I hope I get it. Aw, to work surrounded by books, a place of comfort and familiarity. And I am really sick of searching and trying to get hired.

Good luck on the interview, Kate!

Good luck!

Thanks! It went really well! She wants to double check with the director that it's cool (though she said they pretty much never turn away help), but they want to hire me for September :DDDD

Wonderful news, Kate! I hope it all works out for you!

Happy Towel Day to all you hoopy froods!

LOL at the one holding their towel upside down!

Yeah, but at least he/she knows where their towel is!

Haha...I guess I need to read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I haven't read it because my library doesn't own a copy.

That is a grievous crime against Bookdom.

#15 -- Love that picture!

#18 -- You should complain! Or at least request that they purchase it. That's a pretty popular and well-known title for them not to have.

Well, I live in a pretty small town and it's a very tiny library, so I can't really expect them to have everything. Although, they do have like a MILLION Danielle Steel novels. Nothing wrong with that, it's good to have variety so everyone can find something they want on the shelves, but there is a noticeable imbalance there...

lol, imbalance indeed. Do they do inter-library loan? I get a bunch of books that way.

My friend stopped by my work today to give me my belated bday present: Over the Edge: Death in Grand Canyon by Michael P. Ghiglieri. It recalls all the known deaths that happened in the Grand Canyon. It looks like it has nice chapter breaks for easy switching. I might start that after I finish 20 Years Later, which I should be finishing tonight or tomorrow.

They do, but...errr...that would required me to...y'know, talk to someone...

They don't let you do that online? Mine does. But librarians are nice, Stephen. Maybe just slide a note with the request and your library card? Then you wouldn't have to talk AND still get the books you want.

Nope, no online request unfortunately, I'm not sure why.

And my hand-writing probably isn't legible, so... :P

It's okay though, they have more books than I can read already.

18. 20 Years Later by E.J. Newman 3.5 Stars
20 years ago It happened, killing millions of people. Established governments, electricity, transportation, and most modern conveniences are gone. London has been divided into rival gang territories that are fight-happy. But in this new chaotic world, Zane has grown up in relative safety and comfort thanks to his mother's strategic alliance with two nearby gangs in exchange for healing. But Zane's innocence often hinders his ability to accurately assess and judge people and situations he comes across. But his isolated, innocent life is pushed into the harsh world when he meets two new friends, Titus and Erin, and they realize that they have unique abilities. In their quest to save Titus' kidnapped sister, their abilities, friendship, and morals will be tested against greater forces than they have ever known.

I enjoyed this book. I haven't run across many post-apocalyptic novels that have characters with such convincing innocence, especially with a character at the age of 15. The world and characters had depth to them. However, I think there was a bit too much time focused on world building in the beginning and some of the action scenes could have been expanded--especially the end. The world building was very interesting though, not the slow trudgery of some books. Oh, and that cover makes it seem much grittier than it actually is. Yes, there is death and killing, but it doesn't over elaborate. And other things are only eluded to, such as rape--they never say the word or go further, but if you're not sheltered, it's pretty obvious. Not saying anything's wrong with that approach, especially for a YA book, but the cover just gave me the impression that it would be a bit darker and grittier is all.

This is a good start to a new series. It doesn't say if it's a trilogy or more, just that there will be 'sequels.' I will read the next ones when I come across them. I really want to see how their abilities develop and how the gangs deal with it.

Someone else in the group recommended that one recently, so I have already got it in the BlackHole. I am glad to see that you liked it too, Kate!

I spent an awesome afternoon/evening at a friends house today. He just graduated and is leaving for a summer program in Tunisia til August, so had a party for both. Sloppy Joes, Tibouli (spelling?), fresh fruit, and general omnomnommings. Also spent a good portion of that 9 hrs in the pool and hot tub :D

Tomorrow night I'm going to a Front Line Assembly concert--some fun electronic-y, goth-y type music. And, for novelty, we're breaking out our old high school goth clothes. I'm pretty excited. And I'm fairly certain I will feel pretty people exhausted on Monday with all the mingling this weekend. So I think all I will have on the agenda that day is to connect my Xbox 360 to the interwebs (finally, and if it's feeling cooperative), play the first Portal, and do some reading. . . . maybe go to the gym (and by maybe, I mean force myself once my muscles start getting twitchy from sitting for so long).

Sounds like a good weekend, Kate! Enjoy yourself!

Any suggestions on how to get some stubborn water out of my ear? It's been driving me crazy all day!

Went to HPB and picked up Infected by Scott Sigler, Poison by Chris Wooding, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, and The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett (since it's prolly high time I started reading the Discworld novels).

Also picked up The Orange Box (video game) from Gamestop. It includes the first Portal, a bunch of Half Life games, and Team Fortress 2. My goal is to finish Portal by the next Microsoft Monthly (the 10th, I think?) so I can play co-op on Portal 2 w/ a friend.

Portal looks soooo cool, but I haven't played it yet. I need to find some sort of bargain bin used copy of The Orange Box just for that game.

Good luck finding it cheap-like. It was a limited run game. I've seen it on Half.com for $14, but that's the lowest. I spent more on it so I didn't have to wait for shipping. But I've seen used copies sell for $40. I could maybe lend it to you when I'm finished, though.

Ah, but yours is for the wrong system, I'd need the Playstation 3 version. You're right though, I used to see it on Amazon for $5-$10 but right now the cheapest copy is $19! :o

bah! I forgot you had the PS3. Maybe once Portal 2 has started its decline both will be cheap-ish. *shrug*

I hope so.

How is the new Mortal Kombat, by the way?

Ah, it is a beautiful gore-fest. In the story mode, each chapter (with several fights) is a different character, which is nice but also makes it a bit more difficult for not knowing combos before you use the character on the harder levels. I'm about half-way through story mode. Did a couple rounds of the side games. Definitely happy with it, even though I expect it to get very frustrating soon :D

You working on any good games right now?

I'm not playing anything I haven't already played to death, actually. I seem to be in some sort of racing mood. I got 100 percent completion (for the third time) on Flatout 2, I've been toying with Flatout 1, and I've been playing alot of Trackmania on the PC. I haven't fired up my PS3 in some time...

Racing games are fun though, haven't played one in ages. Usually just jump back to Mario Kart if I feel the need, or maybe some old school Gran Toursimo. Crazy Taxi too.

Just beat Portal :)
It was very enjoyable. For those of you who aren't familiar with the title, it's a puzzle/thinking game mixed with some action. You use portals to complete tasks and exit the chambers. Kind of short. . . but for someone who rarely finishes games, means I could see the end. Didn't get all the Achievements, so I may go back and try for those, not sure yet. Still a good buy, considering there are 4 more full games on the disc. I believe they're all shooters, so I'm guessing they'll stay unfinished (terrible, terrible at shooters).

Haha! Man, that makes me want to play the game even more! Some of the crazy things they show in the commercials on TV look really neat.

Stephen, you play computer games, right? Portal started on Steam. I just checked and the first one is only $10. Steam's pretty nifty too, just download their content management program (free I believe) and you have access to your downloaded games, the store, and multiplayer capabilities. I haven't been on in a while though, since my computer's memory is sucked up by other more needed processes.

Ah, but my internet is slow, and game downloads are GIANT. I wanted to download a free expansion pack for Trackmania but the file is 90mb, which is completely impossible for me...and that's not even all that large.

I know, I'm a real pain in the ass sometimes, right? :P

Decidedly :P

Well, at least the pc version of orange box looks less expensive than the PS3 version.

Oh, I have a response for that too. My computer is an old piece of crap and probably can't play anything released after...oh, let's say, 2003-2004. :P

Accepted.

Ha! I win! Or...do I lose? Hmmmm...

A little bit of both. Enjoy this moment while I hold my copy of Portal and eat a cookie (yes, cookies for breakfast) ;P

That's okay, I have chocolate animal crackers... :P

I have Milano cookies :P

Gonna go see Thor for $5 today. Hope it's good *crosses fingers*

Thor was really good :)

Read-a-thon! Today 3:30pm. Come join :D

Holy crap, it's 103 degrees Fahrenheit at 5pm. . . . I don't like this game. Our a/c isn't set-up yet *whimper

Ick! That doesn't sound pleasant at all. :(

No pleasantness yesterday or the day before. I think I slept a total of 4 hours between the two nights because I was too hot to sleep. Thankfully, today was much better. I think we were around high 70s/low 80s. Apparently it's 68 right now and it's HEAVEN!

Guess what I'm playing?

Dead Rising 2! :D

My sister bought it with graduation money she received and now I get to borrow it. :D

Nice! I haven't played either of them. Been on a little video game hiatus since Portal, mostly just watching Netflix the last few days. But, Friday is Microsoft Monthly! We get to play games in the swank Microsoft store at Mall of America.



Not the best pic, but I couldn't find a super good one. I'll take one on Friday where you can see the bomb screens on the wall.

Sounds fun! :)

EWWWWWWWWW!!!1!! My milk is chunky. Waste of a bowl of Life cereal. *poutface* It's not sposed to expire til the 15th, but I'm not going to test that. . . . now I have to buy breakfast *grumble grumble*

*Cringe* I'm not a germaphobe, in fact I'm pretty far from it! But I definitely am a...ummm...spoiled-food-aphobe. Spoiled milk makes me cringe, and I tend not to like to eat things even after the sell by date...

Phew! The fridge just decided to be extra cold today. I made a sammich, and the meat had thin layers of ice on it.

19. Infected by Scott Sigler 3.5 Stars
Something is turning normal people into raving, violent lunatics. On top of that, their bodies turn into oozing skeletons within hours of their deaths, so CDC investigator Margaret Montoya can't even properly analyze the remains to try and figure it out. The victims, who often turn into killers, have no discernible connections either. Until they start hearing of blue triangles and find one on a partially destroyed corpse. A lead that could possibly connect them to a living victim before they turn homicidal. But for Perry Dawsey, a former linebacker turned tech support, their discovery may be too late. As his itchy rash rapidly turns into something much more concerning, his tough attitude prevents him from seeking help and just dealing with it DIY style. And then the voices start. . .

This is not a book for the squeamish. Right away on page 12, readers are treated to a gore-filled CIA victim extraction that goes terribly wrong. After that, it drops in intensity til around the half-way mark where it all hits the fan.

We are treated to three main perspectives: Perry Dawsey, victim; Margaret Montoya, CDC investigator; and Dew, the Vietnam vet turned cop recruited by former war buddy who runs the CIA. These perspectives give us the full picture of the operations and the affect of the infection. We also get mini chapters from side character perspectives that really hammers home the change in Perry.

Overall, I liked this novel. There was a lull where I lost some interest when they were all scrambling around going "What is this? What is happening?" for a decent chunk of time. But it is worth it for the ending. Rather unexpected from where we started.

#60: Not for the squeamish? I am not touching it then! :)

Hmmm, sounds like one I need to find. :)

Yeah, there are a couple cringe-worthy moments for me, so anyone that doesn't like the gross-outs should probably keep this one at pole's length. Someone commented on my 11in11 thread that they liked this one but weren't brave enough to read the sequel because of the grittier stuff.

Netflix has ruined my reading motivation. Just sayin'. Totally in an excessive anime binge.

And I got a case of the anti-socials today, so I'm skipping today's Microsoft Store excursion. If it was mostly people I knew, I could've probably handled it. But it's like 2 people I know well, 3 acquaintances, and 30 people I haven't met or have never actually interacted with. Not happening today.

I did pick up Alas Babylon from the library earlier this week for a group read in one of the groups in LT land. I fully intend on reading that before it's due, so sometime in the next 2 weeks. Other than that, I've been very flip-floppy on what I want to read. So, I think that means I've pretty much lost the ability to make decisions. -_-;

Must be time for the Magic 8 Ball. :)

Lol, that's going to come in handy. I'm going to enjoy procrastinating with weird questions :P

My mother brought home this cereal today:



All I can think is that the cereal is telling you that you won't fit in your jeans anymore. . . .
(Oh, I don't like blueberry anyway, but you think someone would've caught that double meaning name, right?)

(pic from anime--not book, since that seems to be elusive *le sigh)

20. Kaze No Stigma #1 by Yamato Takahiro 3 Stars
After 4 years away, Kazuma returns to Japan to exorcise a youma with his fuujutsu (wind powers). But after his return, his estranged family members start being picked off one by one by a powerful fuujutsu practitioner. He could care less if his heartless family are killed, but he doesn't like that someone is using him as a scapegoat. Against his will, he is brought into a fight with a powerful enemy and must team up with a cousin that once humiliated him and was the direct cause of his exile.

So, I watched the anime first. It's only 20 some odd episodes long, not enough imho (but that's because the author died before he finished the series). I looked something up about it and learned it was based on a "light novel series"--which, from what I gather is novella length and very informal writing. Also that it was darker than the anime, which hooked me.

Now, you can't find an 'official' translation of it, so I resorted to an online project where fans did it for fun. Different people translated different chapters. Because of this there are a few inconsistencies that don't affect the story. I also questioned the overall style. Some parts had repetitive phrasing or felt awkward. If the fan that translated this chapter had only been learning Japanese for a few years, their abilities might only be the functional--not the nice 'literary' type deal. However, I've never read a light novel before, so that might just be the style. It is heavy on dialogue and 'telling' instead of showing you details of the surrounding/characters that convey an aspect. It feels more like someone telling you a story instead of reading a novel.

Despite these flaws, this is exactly what I wanted/needed right now. I enjoy the story very much, though I think seeing the anime first definitely helped with the reading in this certain style and translation. It also has enough differences from the anime to keep it interesting. I've been very unmotivated with reading lately and this helped to alleviate it. Chapters are about average length but are broken up into smaller section, so I could easily read snippets while going back and forth between other stuff--and basically letting myself work the current ADD out of my system.

I'm conflicted on whether or not I would recommend it though. I know many people that wouldn't make it past the first chapter due to translation/style. However, I think the overall story is interesting enough to merit investigation by those interested in the topics/themes. Maybe I'll just recommend the short anime series and if you like that, check out the light novels.

Update:

This last week has been very eventful! I've been super social and got some reading in. I'm a little over half-way through Night Runner and got a little further in Death in Grand Canyon. Monday and Tuesday I hung out with some gamer-club friends for 75cent taco night and Kungfusday Boozeday Tuesday--so fun to say, just try it out loud :P Wednesday was a friends birthday, so she had people over for a BBQ and games night. Apples to Apples was particularly epic that night.

Last night I went to the 100 Monkeys concert. They were fabulous, just like last year. Afterwards they stuck around to chat and sign merch. So we got to meet them :D And there is so much pretty in this band ;)

Finally catching up! Happy reading

Hi Melissa! Isn't it terribly difficult to stay caught up? Glad to see you're still popping in :)

Oh! I forgot to mention my achievement! A couple days ago I ran 2 miles straight in 23 minutes on a treadmill! Did I mention I hate running? Because I do. At least running for running's sake. See, I'm sure I've run farther than that while playing soccer, I mean running for 1.5 hrs is definitely more than 2 miles. But just running? I get too bored and distracted. And I really don't mind dawdling, so. . . yeah. Anywho, level up! ;)

21 Night Runner by Max Turner 4 Stars
Zach lives in the Nicholls Ward of a mental institution, but he's not crazy. He's an orphan with severe allergies and the ward is the only nearby place that was willing to treat and raise him. Zach's been there for the last 7 years, but it isn't too bad. The staff is like his family, his best friend from childhood visits him on the weekends, and the ward has a gym and plasma tv. . . . that is, until a man crashes into it on a stolen motorbike and tells him to run. While much more dramatic, this is a mental hospital, so these things aren't unheard of, but Zach gets the sneaking suspicion that he should follow this man's advice. So Zach does what he does best, runs through the night while trying to piece together new and startling information about himself and his distantly remembered family.

I enjoyed this YA book. Characters and situations felt real, even though they were un-ordinary. Zach hasn't gone to school or outside much in his 7 years at Nicholls, so he is adorably unknowledgeable about many things we take for granted. Even so, he reads a lot and comes off as intelligent, if a bit naïve. It's kept pretty PG too, so some of the younger YAs can read it. The worst it gets is some broken bones, burned/charred skin, and two implied make-out sessions between side characters. The first two aren't done in detail and the last one is pretty glossed over.

There was only a small hiccup in my enjoyment of this novel, and really, it's mostly my own damn fault. I was looking forward to a stand-alone, realistic-ish novel based on the paragraph blurb on the back. Silly me didn't read the quotes as usual or a tiny blurb about the author that I missed under the quotes. Well, there are vampires. I started to suspect early on, but I was kind of hoping it was a misdirect. No, it wasn't. So when it was revealed, I examined the covers thinking, "this isn't what I signed up for." Lo and behold, the quotes reveal it. And the pretty cover has bats. And the author blurb reveals it as the beginning of a series. /facepalm. I powered through my momentary grumpiness at myself, and I'm glad that I did. It was a fun, light read with some interesting concepts. And I will read the sequels eventually.

Happy 4th! I was down on one of the Minneapolis bridges last year to watch the fireworks over the Mississippi. Haven't decided if I'm going further than my deck this year (which has a view of the lake). My stupid state has a government shutdown, so a bunch of 4th celebrations and fireworks have been canceled. And lots of parks with prime view are closed. This stupid stalemate better not last very long >:/

Sorry to hear that Katie! You should've just let off illegal ones like I did. :D

It's a bit harder to get away with firing the big fun illegal stuff in the suburbs/cities. We've done it before, but I didn't feel like sprinting from the cops this year. I ended up going to Stillwater with my family--about 20-30 mins away. They still had their carnival and fireworks. It was pretty entertaining with terrible-for-you food and vodka ;P

Vodka and fireworks...and they say public displays are less dangers. Pffft!

Haha, slightly more since we're not the ones firing them. . . . the professionals are, though I can't testify if they're sober or not.

Picked up the Complete Works of Oscar Wilde from the library a few days ago. No chance of reading it all before it's due, but I plan on getting a fair bit read. So far I've read the short story "The Sphinx Without a Secret" and 14 pages of poems.

Oh, I don't know, I'm not sure I would feel comfortable with anyone who is drinking vodka being within 100 yards of that amount of explosives. Nothing safe about that! :P

Yay for the Oscar Wilde. Unfortunately I think I've exhausted my library's supply of his stuff. And I've only read 1 novel and 1 short story. *Shrug*

Sad! Though I'm pretty sure you could find his stuff online. A quick search brought up a bunch of sites. This one looks pretty dece.

That website looks good. And there's always Google Books too which should have full access to Oscar Wilde's entire bibliography.

Finished The Canterville Ghost and loved it! I think when I return this collection to the library, I'm just making my 'book' #whatever read as an Oscar Wilde miscellany.

ETA:
22. Rombies #0, by Tom Taylor & Skye Ogden, 2.5 Stars
It's an online comic. Rome + Zombies = Rombies. It doesn't get very far in issue #0 (don't know why it starts w/ zero and not 1), but it sets up an interesting concept. A father loses his daughter and defies God by doing a ritual to bring her back to life. Obviously, that doesn't end--or rather start--well for anybody. Art is decent, best when it is colored (only a few pages). Low rating because it's not the best beginning I've seen. Hopefully it gets better. It's being released here a couple of pages at a time. So I may not return to it until there's a decent chunk to read.

Woohoo! Yeah, I can understand the issue with the book # when it comes to big collection of short works that you return unfinished. I counted The Canterville Ghost as a full book because mine was an individually-published copy, but if it had been just 1 piece of a bigger book I'd probably be unsure as well. *Shrug*

Rombies...hm... I have a zombie book checked out right now, planning on getting to that after my current read unless I convince my sister to read it. :)

Yeah, I kind of did a similar thing but in reverse for text books last semester. For several we only read sections instead of finishing them. So I combined 5 books, where the pages read equated to a hefty textbook. *shrug* I'm not an accountant, these things don't bother me. Just want a general number of books read.

I think that zombie comic took me all of 10-15 mins to read. It's super short, only twenty-some-odd pages.

I haven't fully decided what's next (besides playing more Assassin's Creed II). I'm thinking either War for the Oaks, Heart of Darkness (for class this fall, got at least 3 books to read this summer), rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, or possibly finally getting around to The Hunger Games. Decisions, decisions.

I'm addicted to Borderlands again. Playing through it a 2nd time with my original character and a 3rd time with a new character. *Twitch*

Checking in, Kate. It has been too long since I visited last. I added Night Runner to the BlackHole :)

>82 katelisim: The Hunger Games is totally worth getting around to. You know, in case you want some other opinions to push you in a certain direction. :)

Stephen: I still haven't beaten it yet. . . I'm so terrible at shooters, someday I'll stop buying them and get games that I can actually succeed at.

Hi Stasia! Enjoy Night Runner whenever you get to it :)

Hey Micky! Oh, I know it's worth it. . . it's just that it's feeling more like a chore to start it, even though I know I'll enjoy it immensely. Darn rebelliousness with popular books. *le sigh

#86: I will - if my local library ever gets a copy!

#87: I'll send some 'get this book' vibes at your library :)

So, after being tempted by all those books I listed in post 82, I ended up starting Le Morte d'Arthur. . . which is fitting my mood perfectly. Not too far in yet, but very much enjoying it. I read an excerpt for class last year in Middle English. . . almost wish this was in ME. I find it so entertaining to read in ME, even though it sometimes aggravates me with eluded meanings. I wonder if I could even find it in ME at a decent price. A quest for another day. And sadly it is soon bed time and I have plans all day tomorrow, so I won't be able to return to Arthur and Merlin until Sunday.

Arthur and Merlin will still be waiting for you on Sunday, Kate :)

>88 katelisim: I have a copy of that hanging out on my bookshelf and one of these days I will get around to reading it.

#89: Right where I left them! ;)

The weather has turned atrocious! Right now, it is 91F with 70% humidity. Heat index is 108. It was worse earlier. . . . and it's supposed to be worse tomorrow (T-T)

Blech! It's been slightly cooler here recently, but the temperatures/humidity are creeping back up again. Looks like I'll have to stay inside, read, and play video games. Oh darn. ;)

Oh darn, indeed :P

I must say, air conditioning is one of the best inventions ever.

Yes. I am 'fortunate' enough to live in the tiny little place, so it doesn't cost me a fortune to run it. Ahhh... ^_^

We just have a few window units, so it's really weird to walk through the house on really hot days. Nice and cold in one room, walk out the door and you can't breathe, 6 steps later you can breathe that nice artificially chilled air again.

So last night/this morning I was listening to some stuff that I listened to a lot in high school but not as much anymore on the youtubes. So I was playing the game where you just click what comes up in the sidebar. Well, one of the bands I started with was Aiden (metalcore), who were never that amazing, but I loved a couple of their songs. Sidebar suggests someone called William Control. So I click. It's the same vocalist as Aiden, but it's his electronic side project. Which I'm liking a bajillion times better than Aiden. Anywho, I threw it on automatic playlist to hear a bunch of the songs, and what pops up? A song about Dorian Gray! Sadly, that's probably one of the lesser songs of his, but still, I have a soft spot for songs about books.

Like ones about/that reference (following are yt vids, not touchstones) Brave New World, The Veldt (a short story by Bradbury), Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Antisoc has one about Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy that I can't find a clip of. I know I have more, that's just what I have on the top of my mind.

Anyone else know music that is about/references books?

Oh oh oh! I don't know if you'll like the style, but Lovecraft's Death by Septic Flesh is perfect. The atmosphere is just right for the author the song si based on, sounds very Lovecraft-ian. Big fan here.

I'm sure I have a slew of other songs I could list, but nothing is coming to mind right now.

Oh, I'm definitely digging it. I've never actually read any Lovecraft. . . . which I feel is a crime against myself. I know I'll like it, just haven't gotten to any of it :/

*Ahem* Ummm, errmmm...me either. D'oh.

I just found out that Minnesota is hotter than the freakin rain forest right now. Humidity too. Our heat index is hanging around 115 and it's sposed to be worse tomorrow. Where's that Batman villain when you need him?

Oh, and apparently this is the summer of video games, not reading. Just sayin. I've only had the motivation to read a couple chapters a day. I'm not complaining, really, just that I won't have many updates on that front. As for games, I've been rotating through Assassin's Creed 2, Mortal Kombat, Eternal Sonata, and I just picked up Alice: Madness Returns (American McGee's, loosely based on Alice in Wonderland--so that's closer to a book update, right?), and Ninety-Nine Nights which I haven't started yet. This ADD thing I have going right now is better suited to games.

Y'know, this might be partially from the heat. I can't go outside w/out feeling like melted death, I haven't gone running/weight lifting to burn out all my energy (which has sorta upped my insomnia), and it's a little cabin fever-y with only a couple rooms with a/c. *shakes fist at Mother Nature

Blech! Hot here too.

I'm playing two of my sister's games right now. Fallout: New Vegas on the PS3 and Kirby's Epic Yarn on the Wii. The Kirby game is so darn cute it makes my eyes bleed a little.

I seem to have the opposite problem, though. Can't seem to find time to play video games because all I want to do is read and goof off here on LT.

Ah, cute games are, well, just too darn cute! I particularly love when cute/pretty is mixed with deranged and violent. . . .
Current game with this combo = Alice: Madness Returns. A couple screen shots:



So nice and pretty there with some cute children's toys floating in the air, right? But you also get this:

Since it's miscellany, this is Oscar Wilde. He's pretty pimped out with that fur coat and cane.

23. Oscar Wilde miscellany
Okay, so as I said before, I checked out this mega collection of Oscar Wilde from the library that was the size of 3 average sized books. I read quite a bit of the poetry and a couple short stories, including The Canterville Ghost--which I loved. It was my favorite of what I read. The other short stories were okay--I can't think of their titles, shows how memorable they were, huh? Of the poetry, I really disliked when he got very Christian. I did, however, really enjoy much of his poetry. I especially liked the ones that related to Rome and the classic Greek/Roman gods. There were also a few tribute poems to other authors that were quite good. Overall, I must say that I like Oscar Wilde's stuff (I read Dorian Grey last year and looooved it), even if there are some duds. I will venture back to read some more eventually.

101: That's what I call Awwww and Awwwwesome! :D

Yay for Mr. Wilde.

Hehe, yeah, this game is pretty much going to the favorites list. I'm currently shrunken to bug size and just freed some nice bugs being oppressed by terrible samurai wasps. . . . they gave praise to the "mighty lepidoptera" --lol, some cool nerds made this game :D

Hey everyone! I have a guest post on our own Ellie Potten's blog today for her Page to Screen event. Go check it out and let me know what you think. I'm considering starting a blog in the next year and this is kind of a nice test run. And while you're over there, read some of the other fabulous guest posts and Ellie's wonderful posts about her books and customers. Did I mention she's doing a giveaway? You should jump on that before it's done.

Speaking of giveaways, I totes won a book from an acquaintance's blog. I will be receiving an electronic copy of Angelfall by Susan Ee soon.

Oh, and I bought a book off Half.com with the most hipster name ever: My Favorite Band Does Not Exist. It's about parallel universes and duality. AND it was described as "School of Rock meets Alice in Wonderland". . . . this may finally break my reading dry-spell :D

Sounds like a quirky read. I'll wait for your review and then decide whether to stick it on the TBR.

I hope the book does sound the end of your reading dry-spell, Kate!

Oh! I bought My Favorite Band Does Not Exist at the library booksale I went to awhile back. It looks interesting but I haven't gotten around to it yet.

Oh, I hope so too Stasia. I'm making the deal with myself that I can't read that until I finish Heart of Darkness for an upcoming class. Maybe that'll motivate me to get through it. So far I've only trudged through 37 pages, of which had 70 (foot)notes in the back of the book.

>109 katelisim: You have my sympathies. Thankfully, it's a short book.

110: Yeah, it is short. Unfortunately, I have several more Joseph Conrad to read over the next few months. I'm not hating it, but I'm not really liking it either :/

I had a professor in my first year of university who would constantly refer to Heart of Darkness during a narrative theory class and thus, I have sworn that one day I will read it, even if it isn't fantastic.

24. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad 3 Stars
Marlow gets hired as a steamer captain in a Dutch trading company, where he must go to Africa to transport ivory. Thinking this is just another ship adventure, he is unprepared for journey ahead. He is faced with imperialism, skewed politics, 'savages,' and the questioning of his own nature, values, and morality as he makes his way into the depths of the African continent.

I'm in the middle on this one: not extraordinary, but not bad. I found the beginning a bit boring, but it picked up about halfway through. It's very short--only 96 pages. However, there were only 3 'chapters'. I wish it would've been broken up a bit more. And it was written in the late 1800s, so it has sentences that will last 7 lines and paragraphs that will span pages. Just minor annoyances, really.

Nice review. Hopefully your next read is more enthralling.

25. My Favorite Band Does Not Exist by Robert T. Jeschonek 4.5 Stars
Idea Deity made up a band called Youforia and made a fake website for them. But, as is wont with the internet, it explodes with popularity with a cult following. He is also a runaway from overbearing type A parents--and the malevolent author that he believes pulls the strings of his life. A chance meeting with Eunice Truant, a girl with a tattooed face on the back of her head, starts his escape.

Reacher Mirage is the lead singer and creator of a secret band called Youforia. He is waiting for the magic feeling when he plays to know they are ready to go public. But someone created a website detailing their unreleased bios, song lyrics, tour updates, and even location to the online masses. They get so popular that and music magazine put a bounty on their heads for their first interview. He and his girlfriend, Eurydice--another girl with a tattooed face on the back of her head, must stay ahead of their pursuers.

Deity is out to find the band impersonating his creation and those cashing in on his work. Reacher is out to find the person leaking his band's secrets. Both find a journey that changes their lives and everything they ever believed.

Jeschonek weaves these two main story lines in with a third--a book that both characters are reading: Fireskull's Revenant. It features Fireskull, a tyrannical king with a head engulfed in flames and leathery wings, trying to overthrow his greatest enemy and rival king, Johnny Without--whose body cannot keep a single form for more than a few seconds. Throw in some epic battle scenes and prophecies, and it's a crazy medieval fantasy smack dab in the middle of this modern urban fantasy story. At some points the switch is a little jarring, but all story lines kept my attention very well. And the payoff is in how all three come together in the end.

Overall, I kind of loved it. Srsly. This book has some of the weird stuff my brain defaults into thinking about when doing mindless stuff at work: bands, teh silly internets, excessive fandom, duality, multiple universes, what happens when universes meet, being in books, original ideas not being original, AND (most importantly) PERCEPTION. Green is not green to everybody--ramifications from that are soul churning. The further I got in the book, the more my eyes and brain wanted to devour it. The ridiculous names (along with those already mentioned, include Loving and Vengeful Deity, Wicked Livenbladder, and Spill Ringamajig) gave this book a bit of a comical charm that in some other books has felt overly pushed and off-putting. Many of the difficult ideas have been simplified enough and put in such a way to reach the young adult readers, but not lose their integrity--even when a couple of parallelisms were stated, instead of trusting all the readers to get it themselves.

And, I just found out he has written some of the sanctioned Doctor Who books.
Must.Resist.Until.Xmas.

Does anyone know how to give half ratings on a book's LT page? I can only either get 4 or 5 stars. . .

Click on the star a second time. For example, to give a 3.5 star rating, click on the fourth star twice.

Thanks Foggi!

You make the Jeschonek book sound totally fascinating!

Ronincats: It's super fascinating. There's so much going on to keep your brain busybusybusy, but it never gets too stuffed to distract from the story. And it's one of the few recent books I've read that I haven't been able to completely guess what's coming next--little things, sure, but not the bigger picture :D

Cool! Like I said, I bought that book at a library book sale, I really need to get around to reading it. :)

Yes you do, Stephen. Yes you do :P

That book sounds really interesting. But reading the description in your review made my brain hurt a bit, so I think I'll put off adding it to the TBR list for now.

122: Well, I'm in the middle of a book now, I plan on reading the 2 other books in the series, I have 2 books requested and being delivered at a public library, and I want to pick up 2 books in a series I already started last month, THEN I plan to try to get some of my own books read...but I have 2 other books I want to read first, and by the time I finish those I'll probably have been back to my public library to pick up more books and have requested a couple more books from the other library. I'll get around to it...ummm...eventually... :P

Hehe, isn't that how it always goes? We accumulate books but don't read them until there are no other books vie-ing for our time. No worries, I won't get to another 'fun' book for another month at least. . . dang ER and school books. Well, unless my poor self control lapses into where it shouldn't go anyway. . . . which there is always a chance of

Oh yeah! I forgot I have 2 ER books I have yet to receive, add those to the pile of 'must read soon' books as well. Yeah, "eventually" is the key word for that My Favorite Band Does Not Exist.

26. The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad 3.5 Stars
A young captain takes over a ship and crew about to start a 3 month voyage. He is a stranger amongst this tightly knit crew. Their first night out, he takes watch, contemplating his situation. As he goes to roll in a ladder, he finds a man hanging on the bottom rung. He helps him on board and listens to his story, forming a connection to the man. But the discovery that he is a murderer makes his new captaincy even trickier.

I liked this one better than Heart of Darkness. I related with this character more. I also liked that it was shorter (only around 60ish pages). I don't really like most sailing/sea stories, so the fact that it was shorter and focused on the psychology really helped.

#115: Terrific review, Kate! I am glad to see that you enjoyed the book so much.

#127: I have not yet read that one by Conrad. I need to get around to it eventually.

Sometimes I go on an XKCD binge

I ♥ xkcd

>130 katelisim:: I have actually had this conversation. More than once.

131: Me too! I work mornings Wednesday through Sunday (so my weekend is Monday and Tuesday), so my friends give me crap for not wanting to be out super late. . . mind you, I usually say not past midnight or 1am, and they want me to be out til 4 or 5am *eye roll

So I have finally started reading The Hunger Games. . . and I knew I would like it. But this may be my favorite main character duo in a long time, so far anyway (only about 1/3 of the way through). So I'm getting a bit squee about it. And I remembered they cast one of my movie star crushes. . . now learn it's one of the main duo. Keep saying to myself: "Do not turn into what you hate." (i.e., fangirl) At least if they screw up the movie I can just stare at him >:}

*Don't judge.

27. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 5 Stars
Aren't there enough reviews of this book now? I can just give it the 5 stars and tell you it's not sugary coated like a lot of other YA books and call it a day? So I can go start the next one, yeah? Okay, my one-way conversation wins! Off to book #2, since I have tomorrow off and don't need to wake up in the morning :)

28. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins 4.75 Stars
No time for review. And am not feeling very review-y anyway. But will be stopping in at Borders, before I meet my friends, hoping they have the third. Probably won't be able to start it until Monday though :/

#134: I am glad to see you loved The Hunger Games as much as I did :)

:) And I'm 2 sections through Mockingjay. I'll prolly finish it tonight.

A first just happened to me. . . I was so grossed out by a dream that I can't eat breakfast. Started out as a trailer for a zombie-ish shooter video game which I was transplanted it. . . with really smart zombies-ish things that could talk. But instead of following the shooter, I was treated to the undead army's perspective. I don't think I'll be able to chew gum today either. . . Which may be for the best anyway, as I have a dentist appointment in an hour :/

Awesome! I want to be in Katie's dreams.

Wait, that's not what I meant...

ROFL! I actually have a lot of strange and in-depth dreams featuring zombies, varying apocalypses, dystopiary societies, and really weird sci-fi. . . then there's the less prominent but still more prominent than everything else dinosaur dreams. You'd prolly fit right in :P

My dreams have a tendency to be hopeless mundane. They, alot of times, involve average every-day conversation. Of course, because I get none of that, it makes sense that I would dream about it.

I do, of course, have plenty of the crazy dreams as well. :)

The few times I've had mundane dreams they were so realistic I mistook them for actually happening. . . and, well, there was a day or two of confusion surrounding each case :/

29. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins 4.5
It actually made me sad at the end. I'm pretty sure that has never happened before from a book. Granted, I had a rough weekend and wanted to continue on the action and rebellious acts from the first two, so the emotion was already simmering under the surface. The deaths of characters didn't bother me so much. More, that I am very similar in temperament and my approach to interpersonal relationships to Katniss. . . without the bonus of boys fawning left and right over me. And I don't want to throw any spoilers out, so I won't go into what exactly punched me. That said, I still really enjoyed it. Even the last sad bits that fit the story. I think I will enjoy it more on reread when I'm not in such a mood.

*goes off to find something happier to read*

141: Yes, thankfully I don't socialize much so there is no confusion. I did wake up once disappointed that a particular librarian at my local library didn't smile at me the way I dreamt she had. :(

Yeah, I know, aren't guys my age supposed to be having sex dreams? *Rolls eyes* I dream of being smiled at.

I'm going to read that series eventually..,

Hehe, smiles are good though. Can be much more meaningful than sex, too. And that just proves that you want a deeper connection.

It is a great series. And after running 5 miles I felt a bit better, not completely, but a fair amount. That ending just mirrored a few things in my life, especially from the last week, that I was trying to use books to distract me from. *le sigh

Woohoo! Won another ER book! That's two I need to read now. Got Envy last month and That Which Should Not Be this month (and should be coming soon) :)

Cool! I've won two months in a row as well. We're kicking ER butt. :)

30. Dragonsinger by Anne McCaffrey
Reread. Sequel to Dragonsong and second of the Harper Hall Trilogy.
The Pern books are so nostalgic for me. It was the second series I ever read, falling behind Harry Potter. My teachers weren't fond of me reading HP because it was under my reading level, but they seemed content with these. Over 4 years I read 15+ books in the series. It's very comforting to reread these stories. I should really get to the newer ones, but they're primarily written by her son. . . so I'm a bit wary of them, even though I'm sure they're fine.

I was actually going to reread Dragonflight. . . but I seem to have lent it to someone and don't remember who. Oh well, I will eventually find it. Or just buy a new copy from HPB for around $1.50. Maybe I'll reread the third of the trilogy while I'm at it.

!!!Look!!! Four books in one week! That's the best I've done all year. I'm happy this bookish kick has come before school started :)

4 books in a week!? *Bows*

#147: Four books in one week! That's the best I've done all year.

Congratulations, Kate!

Thanks! I'm about a quarter through my next one too. Also a Pern reread, The White Dragon. Then I really must read that ER book I got. *puts on her determined face

Haha, yeah, I have a Member's Giveaway book sitting under a pile of 11 library checkouts. Hmmm...

31. The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey
Another reread. I'm finding it a bit dangerous to reread these books. I forgot how involving they become to the point where it's all I want to read. *le sigh. It may be a very good thing that most of the ones I own are lent out at the moment.

32. Ostrich Logic by Lou Ferreri
A collection of cute and silly poems, written and illustrated by my high school art teacher, Mr. Lou. The poems all feature an animal and many times discusses what they are not. Also, lots of irreverent things. Just silly and lighthearted. I miss his class. But I did get to see him yesterday at the Renaissance Festival--he has a booth there. Me and a friend actually worked for him at a second booth one summer. Here's the books website if you wanna check it out--even has some sample pages and drawings that aren't in the book :)

Just a little update:

New computer! It's a beast of a thing I named Mini-Moose, partly because I'm a nerd, partly because it's a 17.3in laptop. My old (over 5yrs) laptop was not having a good time recently and needed to be replaced for school and my sanity. I will be clearing most of it and using it as a backup computer and to do any downloading to keep the new one virus free :)

School started! And it will be a tough semester. 3 English classes (senior level) and an internship. I will have a minimum of 14 pages of writing a week, that is more likely 20+ pages. So my reading will pretty much be limited to what my classes demand (maybe a comic or two, if I can swing it). Look forward to more stuff by Conrad on here though.

Internship starts tomorrow! At a county library :) I'm a bit nervous and very excited. I will be there 3 mornings a week doing marketing and office-y things. Though, I can say I'm none too thrilled with the whole dressing business casual like.

I also applied to dj a weekly radio show on campus. No word back yet. But I really wanna do it. I applied last year too, but the open slots didn't fit my schedule. It's my last chance at it *fingers crossed.

I'm still working too. Over 20hrs a week, but, thankfully, under 30hrs. Yay money. And working out. Sitting all day does not work for me since my job has kept me on my feet for long stretches of time for the last 6yrs of my life. It was a rough transition back to school after a year off, but I found gym time makes me not get all twitchy.

Basically, I might go M.I.A. at times due to the busybusybusy schedule. But on the flip-side, I may procrastinate a lot more. Either way, I will be at least doing the occasional lurking. And vicariously living through other people's fun reading.

Wow, sounds like you have a lot on your plate, Katie!

Much luck with all of the classes, job(s), and internship!

Thanks!

Day 1 went well. Mostly just getting acclimated. Didn't have things to pack a lunch, and the school quick lunch place's cooking machine was broken. . . so I only ate a yogurt until almost 5pm. Then I inhaled a salad from work. Must.Get.Lunch.Stuff.

Well, now off to type until my fingers bleed!

*hands Katie Hello Kitty band-aids*

Sounds like quite a semester in front of you! Enjoy!

Thank you Mickey. They make the wounds cheerier. :)

I will definitely try to enjoy this craziness.

I unofficially have a radio time slot! :DDD More crazy hectic times!

Just got a tooth pulled and the novacaine (spelling? apparently my comp/LT don't know it) is starting wear off :( At least they gave me Vicodin. Today will now be internet, tv, and movie catch up time. No schoolwork today. Tomorrow, well, that's a diff story. Internship 8-noon, work 1-7. Might attempt to eat Chipotle (bday at i'ship and mini party with it). It's probably a great thing that I ran 4.5 miles before. . . I'm quite tuckered out--earlier today in class I was fidgety! My leg was bouncing at a hundred miles an hour.

*grabs pill bottle and lays down to watch last weekends ep of Doctor Who

Oh boy, a tooth pulled, ain't that fun? Y'know, when I was on the novacaine, I got SUPER talkative. I jabbered like a madman to my mom and sister before it started wearing off.

o_0
Really?!?
Novacaine pretty much silents me. More because of the whole drool thing. I just try to think really hard at people a little more than usual.

Fun? Um. . . I'm a say no, lol. It sounded like the demon offspring of Pop Rocks and Rice Krispies at times. At least the dentist was nice and funny. The glasses were the best part--they were like gangsta meets hipster meets 9th grade science lab.

Haha, yeah, I didn't feel a thing but the sounds were...unnerving...

Mine hummed maniacally while she was pulling my tooth. I think it was supposed to be soothing, but anyone who can hum happily while yanking out someone's infected tooth is nuts! :P

That's kind of creepy. Mine just talked every so often. I got called a 'trooper' a few times. He made a couple of jokes too, and called my tooth 'stubborn' --which I really wanted to laugh at. I'm very stubborn, so much so, that my bones are stubborn, lol.

I'm so tired and hungry and just want to go back to sleep *shakes fist at responsibilities.
My stupid mouth was still bleeding at 11 something last night, so I didn't eat dinner. And had to leave the gauze in. I was so paranoid that I was going to swallow it, I kept waking up all night. If the bleeding has stopped, it will either be insta-mashed potatoes or pudding for breakfast.

Ugh, I hope I get some weird kick of energy today. And I really hope I can get at least the critiques done tonight. Stupid hectic-ness.

Yeah, mine took awhile to stop bleeding as well. I realized the next day that, every time I pulled the gauze out, it would sort of 'rip' a new hold. I guess it was getting dry and a little sticky, so every time I pulled it out it was like I had to start all over again.

So I came up with the plan to bite down on the gauze for 10-15 seconds, then lift the gauze up with my tongue for a second or two, then bite back down again, etc. That worked for me, although it's not what my dentist advised... *Shrug*

Food was an issue for me too. I just drank lots of liquids and pudding for the first day. For me though, the worst part of the whole thing was the taste in my mouth. Whether it was the blood, the salt water, or the antibiotics, I was getting nauseous by the constant bad taste in my mouth after about a week of it.

So why did you need the tooth pulled? Mine was infected...for 5 days...not fun. Now I'm just waiting for the one on the other side to do the same so I can go through it all over again...oh boy!

Mine was broken. I could've got a crown, but couldn't afford it at 700 some dollars. Cheaper to just gank it out. It has stopped bleeding. So I ate a pudding cup. Bringing 2 with me. Maybe I can stop home between internship and work to eat some potatoes. . . or maybe my mom will be nice enough to bring me some at work. I should've ate more before the pulling yesterday :/

Ah! Yeah, I had the option of a root canal but yikes! Way to pricey for me.

Ouch! Sorry to hear about the tooth removal. Hope it heals up soon and that in the meantime you get lots of tasty pudding.

Thanks!
So much pudding. I had some mashed insta-tatoes last night. I'm going to Perkins in a bit for a movie night and will try eating something a bit more solid while working on some homework. Speaking of, I'm gonna get an ulcer from my Non-fic class. I have to write about myself in a long coherent manner. . . last time I tried to do that there was the beginnings of a panic attack--the only one ever. Ugh, an 8 page memoir-ish thing. And I'm in the first day of critiques. *shuddering whimper

Officially has a slot on my school's radio station! Which is dang good news because that small town has a woefully small and mainstream music selection. . . and way too much country music for me. *evil genius steeple finger thing* Time to educate *cackle

AWESOME! Yeah, nothing but country, hip hop, and pop rock around here. Then again, I don't even like the metal channels on satellite radio (that I get though my TV) because I think it's too mainstream. *Rolls eyes* I'm impossible, I know.

Update (aka, I'm in procrastination mode and haven't posted here in a while):

Tooth, or I should say the gaping hole, is healing fine. I'm pretty sure that the adjacent tooth was shifted slightly in the pulling cause it killed for about a week--much longer than the actual wound.

I was viciously attacked by a wasp last week. It flew into my neck, stung me twice, then fell into my shirt and dug its stinger into my chest two more times. I'm not deathly allergic, but I get really bad reactions. Chin down was all hives. And you could see the welts for over a week. They do nothing to endear themselves to me.

Was excessively sick-ish last weekend. All fevered out. Which has a tendency to lead me toward hallucinations. Two nights of 10+hrs of sleep got me healthy-ish. Because of these three things, I haven't worked out in two weeks. Bit fidgety, but haven't had time enough to spare. Just been trying to do the odd exercises during other things (calf raises while working register, reading heavy class books at arms length for extended amounts of time, etc).

Internship is super busy. I get a little frustrated with the email waiting game, but over all I'm really liking it. I get a lot of random office work, but I'm also a point person on organizing a huge event. Super cool. Still need to find time to get more appropriate clothing though. And boots. The ones I have now I've had since 10th grade. I have worn grooves into the fronts, so they're a bit big now which means my feet slide down the incline. Blisters, blech. And I shouldn't have worn them into so many mosh pits. They're mis-shapened by dents and the seams are starting to fray.

Radio week one was last Tuesday. It went wonderfully. The guy that was in the office at the time (also student w/ show, acquires promo music from bands/labels) was listening in and gave me props. He left before I was done, but our student manager came in as I was finishing up and said that guy 1 texted him to say how good I was! Yay!

Schedule is insane. I pretty much don't get to sleep. I've found that since my appetite died from the inability to eat normally after the tooth stuff, that I forget to eat sometimes. I have read and critiqued so much of my classmates work it feels like it should be October. And I get to go down to only working 3 days a week! A whole extra night to do homework. Yay?

Oh, and I had to read Heart of Darkness again. My professor gave the assignment of listing every location and character in the entire book, even the incidentals that have no strong impact on the narrative. *le sigh

33. Heart of Darkness (again)
I did, however, like it slightly more this time. Señor Conrad has quite the odd and dry humor that didn't stick out to me much the first time through. And knowing some of the historical context helped me see that and some of the finer details. At least this class is actually teaching me something.

Thus concludes this quite lengthy and unnecessary post :P

Most definitely not unnecessary. Glad to read everything that's going on with you and hearing that for the most part it's good. Hopefully in that hectic schedule of yours, you can find some space to squeeze in some time just for you. :)

I lost my phone! Oh noes! It was prolly time to upgrade anyway (slider phone, from 2006 I think). Any suggestions?

Wish I could help. All I have is a several-years-old tracphone...with no minutes on it.

How very much like a criminal of you :P

Pffft, nonsense. *Glances nervously at getaway vehicle*

I think someone's on to your plan *points to blow dart in getaway vehicle's (now flat) tire*

*Sigh* I should've prepared for that. I was completely convinced my nefarious plan was impervious to error! Oh well. *Returns Katie's Pop Tarts to her kitchen*

o_0;;;

So I was actually looking for my Pop Tarts today. . . . and thought I left them at work. Guess I know what really happened.

Haha! I don't know what you are talking about, obviously I am an incompetent criminal as I was caught so I DEFINITELY didn't steal those ones. Nope. Didn't happen... *Subtely tries to cover Pop Tart stain on his shirt with a random lamp*

*Thanks the vigilante with the blow dart gun*

34. Youth Joseph Conrad
Another sea-faring tale. Bad things happen, then worse things. That poor ship. Kind of Candide-ish.

ROFL! I don't know why, but I think that might be the greatest review ever. :)

Thanks, lol. Does that mean I should post it as an official review on the book's page? I more just have no time or will to do proper reviews. I guess you can probably look forward to more of this during the rest of the semester :P

I feel like that review would make an excellent Jeopardy clue. Or a series of haikus. Keep 'em coming. :)

HA! I totally see the Jeopardy clue!

35. Typhoon by Joseph Conrad
A ship in a typhoon. Water splashes, wind blows. People go crazy. I suspect the captain has Asperger's.

36. Amy Foster by Joseph Conrad
A doctor fellow tells a tale. A man washes ashore. He doesn't speak English and is thought to be a raving lunatic beggar, gets hit in the head a few times by fearful citizens. Amy gives him bread. They fall in love. He dies (but don't worry, not a spoiler, you know that right away).

Yet more excellent minimalist reviews! Hope you get to take a break from Conrad soon?

Not until December. . . At least 2 more books and 2 short stories. Safe to say, I prolly won't be reading Conrad in the next few years.

Got another ER book, Switched by Amanda Hocking. Seriously, though, why don't I win them as much when I am not in class? That brings the total up to 3, btw. Holiday break will be ER catch up for sure.

Currently, I am reading yet another Conrad, The Secret Agent. 50 pages in and it keeps trying to bore me to sleep *le sigh.

37. The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
It induced sleepiness for the first 100 pages. Then it was tolerable. The last 60 pages actually felt interesting. My least favorite Conrad so far. Plot-wise, anything I say makes it sound like a great read--anarchists, a bombing, murder, class distinction that borders class warfare, spies. I don't know how it was so boring. And I guessed one of the big plot twists less than 100 pages in. . .

On a better note, I went to HPB today. I have this weird essay to do this week where we are required to have an outside source for mild-research. . . but it's not a research essay, and we're not supposed to really have any idea what to write about. Anyhoo, we have to have our source in class tomorrow. So I wandered HPB until I found a couple things that looked interesting. Ended up with: Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Creatures, Extreme Bugs, and The Philosopher's Stone: Alchemy and the Secret Research for Exotic Matter. Hopefully I can make one of those work. I also picked up Punk Rock Etiquette cause it looked silly and only cost $1.

38. Sleeping With Nikki by Dessa 5 Stars
Short story, released as a promotional additive with the preorder of her newest cd. I didn't have the funds to preorder, sadly, but my friend did and he lent it to me :)

Alex meets Nikki over a dying baby bird that fell from a nest. They start a relationship that quickly leads to them cohabiting. She informs him that he's sleeping wrong--that he's an unknowing insomniac. Together, they try to fix it.

Sadly, this isn't available to buy right now. I'm hoping that Dessa is working on a new collection that this will be a part of. I read her other book, Spiral Bound at the beginning of the year and highly recommend both if you get the chance to read them.

39. The Duel by Joseph Conrad
Liked this one. A misunderstanding spurs a 15 (or 16?) year long duel of honour during the time of Bonaparte. The movie was pretty good too--The Duellists, one of Ridley Scott's first films.

40. The Return by Joseph Conrad (can't find touchstone)
Sloooooow beginning. I liked the end though. A wife almost cheats/runs away on/from her husband. Set in what I believe is the 1800s, appearances are everything. But the husband starts to question that system and his life.

I'm on my last bit of Joseph Conrad and needed a teensy break. . . I can see the light of modern fluff reading, movies/tv and video games at the end of the tunnel. So Close. I'm nearly half-way through Under Western Eyes, just under 200 pgs left. Better than some of the others. The final is tomorrow at 1pm, so hopefully I can finish and get a bit of other studying in *crosses fingers, even though there are doubts.

41. The Fourth Genre: Contemporary Writers of/on Creative Nonfiction
Like the title pretty much says, nonfiction essays. Some I liked, some I didn't, most were in the middle. I'm not much of a nonfiction gal.

42. Metro: Journey in Writing Creatively
Writing techniques, tips, and exercises. Most of the exercises we did were good, a couple were really annoying, i.e. rewrite this paragraph in 12 different ways. Useful, yes, but just downright annoying to do in one night.

Still working on UWE, which I highly doubt I'll finish before my final. But I'm far enough in that I feel like I have enough to quote and use in a short essay. Even if I don't finish it by 1 today, I plan on finishing it in the next day or two.

Hope your final went well!

Thanks! It went. . . okay. I'm not very good at in class essays. But, I feel all my points were there, and most had quotes with them. Not the best, but definitely not my worst.

I wrote my last paper of the semester today AND started and beat a video game: Rez HD. All in under 7 hours. BAM!

No the question is, continue gaming or watch some anime?

PS, I'll get back to reading soon enough. There is a read-a-thon next week after all :)

I always felt after all the intensive reading and writing that I was totally entitled to some forms of entertainment that didn't require quite so much brain power. So I hope you enjoy the gaming and viewing. You deserve it. :)

Exactly! A little brain numbing pretty visuals usually fixes it all up :)

mistletoe smooches!

Enjoy your holiday!

*Waves and Hugs*

Hi Richard! *smooch*

Roni, that tree looks so much easier to set up than my fake pine tree. And more educated too. Thanks!

Hey Stephen! *glomp*

I got to sleep bunches last night, which made me all cheerful like. Merry Christmahannukwanzakuh! Hope everyone gets the books they're pining for. . . hehe, get it? A little xmas tree pun for you. Gah, my pun-full friend is diseasing my brain.

Merry Christmas, Kate!

Thanks Mickey! Hope your day was merry!

I got books! From the secret santa in LT's Hogwart's Express, I received Clockwork Prince. And from my step-brother I got Hex Hall, Black Prism, and Jumper. I also ended up with a couple of gift cards to Half Price Books and bunches of cash. So there will most likely be a few more :)

I went shopping after I did some photography-ing for le internship (kid program with a clown demonstrating how he does his makeup). Bought The Child Thief and The Reformed Vampire Support Group. Also bought the movie Idle Hands (cause I love it and they --finally-- had it at HPB), Guitar Hero 80's edition for PS2, new skate shoes, a new belt, and Xbox 360 games: Batman: Arkham Asylum, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, and Dante's Inferno. And I still have almost $30 left on my HPB card :D It felt very productive and I have resolved to use the rest of my xmas money on practical things and bills--like a responsible adult.

>>207 katelisim:. The Black Prism is a great book :) Jumper too. Those are the one's I've read. Glad you had a good christmas :)

Thanks! I'm pretty excited about them. I'm on a little bit of an overload right now though and cannot decide what I'll be reading--though I have a couple of days before the read-a-thon --taking a video game break after the semester, but even there, I have a ton to choose from.

Ooops! I realized I missed one of the school readings earlier. . .

43. An Outpost of Progress by Joseph Conrad
Two lazy guys go to run an outpost in the Congo. They are lazy and unfit for the job. They find this out the hard way when the different dangers of the Congo make themselves known.

The end-of-year read-a-thon has started! Pop on over sometime and let us know what you're reading to finish the year

So far during the read-a-thon I've finished Switched, Prose and Poems by William Control, and the first volume of 1/2 Prince. Proper reviews will be up soon. . . though, it might be a day or two into the new year before they show up.

44. Switched by Amanda Hocking 3.5 Stars
For the first six years of Wendy's life, her mother told her she was a monster, not her child. And on her sixth birthday, she came at Wendy with a kitchen knife. Since then her brother Matt, who saved her, and aunt have been telling her otherwise. But a strange new student, Finn, tells her otherwise: She is a Trylle changling, or more commonly, a troll, switched at birth into a human family. Finn wants to bring her back to her birth family and the Trylle's land of Förening, but she is reluctant to leave her brother and aunt behind. An attack from a different troll tribe forces her to run there. But will she be safe there? Can she be happy without the family that raised her?

I found this to be a very enjoyable fluff novel. The storyline was unique and fun and the characters were memorable. However, there were some flaws. Many times I wanted more descriptions. I also wanted to feel it more. It seems she held back a bit and I kept wanting the author to push through that. But, I found the story entertaining enough to keep the 3.5 star rating. The fact that it was originally self-published (being re-released) also eased my concern about these flaws. Switched is the first in the Trylle trilogy and I look forward to seeing the author's style grow with the following books. (Oh! She is also from Minnesota. I love it when I find books set in my home state.)

45. Prose and Poems by William Control (aka WiL Francis) 3 Stars (No Touchstone)
A short collection of prose, poems and essays. Many deal with themes of doubt, lies, darkness, and internal monsters. Not everything is doom and gloom though. There are those about love piercing through them and a nice prose piece about his son's birth. I feel he really hits his mark with the essays and expressing his position on the controversial subjects of religion and gay rights.

This is his first foray into the realm of prose and poetry outside of the musical scene (he is the lead singer of the rock band Aiden and has an electronic project under William Control). As such, many of the poems still feel better suited for that medium. But it's a decent entrance into them. Just wish there had been more essays.

46. Half Prince Volume 1 by Yu Wo and Choi Hong Chong 5 Stars
Feng Lan's brother dares her to play and do well in the game Second Life, which has 99.9% realistic. She must abandon using her womanly charms to obtain items and protection from the fawning fan boys and make her own way. To do this, she becomes the first girl to have a boy character, where all other characters are based on their player's actual looks and gender. But her character, Prince, ends up being a bishonen, or pretty boy, and all the girls are offering him things.

This is just a fun, silly manga so far that has been making me laugh. At times it reminded me of the show Slayers for the silliness and fighting attitude of Lena, and other times of the show .Hack//Sign for the gaming/rpg aspects (PS: I love the music in .Hack, this is my fave song, but they're all great and wonderful for doing homework.) Anywho, if you like comedic SF/Fantasy mangas, check this one out. Or if you want to try a volume, this would be an easy intro.

And here's the end of year meme-ish thing that's been floating around. Answer the questions with the title of a book read this year.

Describe yourself: Spiral Bound

Describe how you feel: Switched

Describe where you currently live: An Outpost of Progress

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: City of Fallen Angels

Your favorite form of transportation: Metro: Journey in Writing Creatively

Your best friend is: Night Runner

You and your friends are: The Secret Sharer(s)

What’s the weather like: Typhoon

You fear: The Secret Agent

What is the best advice you have to give: Ostrich Logic

Thought for the day: My Favorite Band Does Not Exist

How I would like to die: 20 Years Later

My soul’s present condition: Kaze no Stigma