[ update on life ]

Once again, it has been forever since I've posted. Almost three weeks. Myyyyyy bad.

I've actually been really busy. To prove my point, check out this tiny screenshot of my calendar for this month:


So it's been a busy couple of weeks. I've been working down at the studio three days a week; there have been a couple weddings recently; I've actually had quite a few of my own clients recently; I've been having events with my Meetup group pretty regularly, as well as hanging out with some of the members outside of the group; and I just started working with another business, a health product that has actually been working wonders for both my back pain and my allergies since I started using it, and will also help me get out of the rat-race before I hit 30.

I also recently decided to make a serious effort to do more reading, less television-watching and less random-internet-surfing. Reading more and having more to do has equated to less general time on the computer, with means less blogification. I used to read voraciously when I was younger, and it recently came to the point that I couldn't actually think of the last book I had read. I have definitely successfully changed that: since the middle of April, I've read six books, and I'm working on a couple more.

One of the books I just finished (as in about an hour ago!) is The Bounce Back Book, by Karen Salmansohn. It is a great little book of 75 tips on "how to thrive in the face of adversity, setbacks, and losses." The tips are amazing for helping you through hard times in your life, both small and huge. It's a really quick read, and totally beneficial. Some of the tips are the types of things you should incorporate into your daily life whether or not you are in a particularly tough spot.

Some of my favorite tips, which I'm going to work on bringing into my everyday life:

#10: Happiness is a choice, not just a matter of genes or good luck.
#22: Give yourself 120-second recharging sessions.
#35: Don't just write a "To Do" list. Write a "To Be" list.
#55: Sing your heartache out.
#58: Cultivate the habit of zest.
#70: View change as chance.

(All quoted from The Bounce Back Book)

Obviously there are sixty-nine more amazing tips, and lots more detail to the six I shared with you. I highly, highly recommend picking it up. It's less than $15, and worth every single penny.

So after that crazy tangent, I'm once again apologizing for being away so long. And once again, I am promising to try to be better. I should post about the fun things happening in my life, instead of just doing the fun things, right?!? Indeed!

[ march 21: books i own but haven't read yet ]

I need to read more! I officially own too many books that I haven't read yet... it's wrong!

• Ovid - Metamorphoses
• Janet Evanovich - Two for the Dough
• Clive Cussler - Dragon
• Barbara Kingsolver - Animal Dreams
• Robert Ludlum - The Bourne Supremacy & The Bourne Ultimatum
• Gian Mario Villalta - Vita Della Mia Vita
• Daphne du Maurier - Rebecca
• Neil Gaiman - Stardust
• Jane Austen - Persuasion

I need to get going!

[ march 17: books to read ]

First off, Happy St. Patrick's Day! I'm barely Irish, so I don't have anything exciting planned... but I did wear green!

I'm linking to another list today, instead of copying it over here. It's actually two lists of the 100 Best Novels, posted at The Modern Library. One list was compiled by a board from The Modern Library, and the second was voted on by readers. From what I can tell, the list was compiled around 1998 / 1999. There's also a 100 Best Nonfiction list, if that's your thing.

I've always wanted to have a list of great books that I need to read available to me, so I was wicked stoked when I came across this one. I have read a handful of them, but there's still quite a chunk that I haven't read yet. Good list to chip away at!

So here it is: The 100 Best Novels.

[ reading list ]

So right now, I'm working on three books.

The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived is one, which I've discussed before. I try to read about a few people every couple days. It's still extremely interesting, and I feel like I'm learning a lot about characters that I've heard about frequently, but didn't technically know who they were or what they did.


The second book I'm working on is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I picked it up on a whim at Borders, because I've heard (from friends and various internet sources) that it's a must read. I've only read the first fourteen or so tales (or beads, as the author calls them), but so far I am loving it. It's the type of book that could keep me up all night if I let it. I find myself feeling more and more awake with every word I'm reading. I had to force myself to put it down last night, and will probably have to do so again tonight. However, tomorrow, I can read as long as I want, since I work from home on Friday, and I can be tired!



The third book I'm currently reading is Harry Potter e L'Ordine della Fenice. It's the fifth Harry Potter (Order of the Phoenix) in Italian. I put it down a while ago, and have read probably six other books since I last picked it up, but I've started reading it again. It's just as good as the English version (clearly) and I get to feel proud that I can understand it!



I've started to miss the days of reading voraciously. I used to read so much people thought I was making it up. But I just loved to read. I don't think I've lost that love. I just think I feel guiltier about reading for pleasure now. Like I have other things that I should be doing. Other things that are more important, more pressing, more necessary.

But, I have recently decided that I'm going to give myself some more time to do things that truly make me happy. Hence reading three books at once. I've also started watching Gilmore Girls again. It is one of only two shows (the other being The OC) that I watched religiously. I own the entire series on DVD, and they've just been sitting there, collecting dust. So the other night, while Jesse was having dinner with some coworkers, I popped in Season One, Disc One. And let me tell you, I fell in love all over again. Now I'm going to give myself the time to watch an episode or two every week.

And that show doesn't just make me happy and relaxed. It makes me want to learn. The characters are so intelligent and so well-spoken. Not to mention that at least a dozen times an episode, references are made to things I've never heard of, or have heard of but don't really know what they are or do.

I miss learning. I miss school.


TIATF:

Whatever the hell gene I have in me that makes me love school and love learning and love reading. There's nothing quite like reading to make a person happy. And there's nothing like learning to make a person feel fulfilled.

Also, I am thankful for my desire to give myself an hour or two (at least) to do nothing but be happy and do something that makes me happy. Reading and Gilmore Girls is a good start.

What could you be doing to make yourself happy? Why aren't you doing it?

[ it was inevitable ]

Working on #016: Expand my literary influences - one new author a month.

Jesse & I went to the library today, got library cards and I took home two books. The one I decided to start first isn't a new author, as I read not only the author, but the book in high school. But I hated it then, because of my jerk-of-an-English-teacher, O'B. The man was an ass, and everyone hated English that year. Every book was miserable. But, since then, I've reread a couple books I read that semester, and loved them. So I'm giving this a try too.

"Love in the Time of Cholera" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

First sentence is a killer opening:

[ It was inevitable: the scent of bitter almonds always reminded him of the fate of unrequited love. ]

Pure excellence.

Book number two that I got today: "White Oleander" by Janet Fitch. I just happened to see it on the shelf (as "F" is near to "G"), and decided on a whim to grab it. I'd heard of the movie, but never saw it. I typically like the books better, anyway. That one will be a new author. So, hopefully I'll read both this month.

[ not my daughter you bitch! ]

For anyone wondering if they should read Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, the answer is a resounding HELL YES!!!

I don't think I've ever read that quickly before... 759 pages in about 7.5 hours. About a hundred pages an hour. Holy crap.

So so so so freaking good. I will not give anything away, but I personally don't think fans will be disappointed. I wasn't at all. I was totally all over the place too: parts made me cry, parts made me laugh out loud, parts made me swear. One part got a resounding "ASSHOLE!"

Overall, I absolutely loved it, and am dying for Jesse to finish it so I can read it again.

Good stuff, good stuff.

[ molly weasley, hp & the deathly hallows ]