jehara

the master list

2010-01-01T18:19:00.002-06:00

well, i didn't quite make it to the finish line with the 999 challenge, coming in at 76/81 books read. so close! i just couldn't find the time this month to squeeze in those last four books. i did make my reading goal for the year, which i feel good about. another reading goal for 2009 was to review every book i read. i was really good at keeping up with this the first half of the year and i just fell horribly behind during the second half, which made me feel a bit overwhelmed at times. towards the end i just decided to not worry about it. if i reviewed, awesome, if not, that's ok too.
this year i would like to focus on smaller challenges rather than eating up all my reading with one big challenge. in addition to having fun with challenges and maintaing 10 books/mo average i would like to focus more of my reading on theater texts and plays, more nonfiction, and metaphysical/spiritual books. and do my best to review books read. we'll see how that plays out in the year to come. :)

1. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 2

2. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 3

3. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 4

4. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 6

5. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 7

6. Secrets of the Monarch by Allison DuBois*

7. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan*

8. Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr*

9. Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero*

10. If the Buddha Married: Creating Enduring Relationships on a Spiritual Path by Charlotte Kasl*

11. Aromatherapy through the Seasons by Judith Fitzsimmons and Paula Bousquet*

12. xxxHolic vol 1 by CLAMP

13. xxxHolic vol 2 by CLAMP

14. Alex the Fey by Claudia Christian Hall

15. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi*

16. The Van Alen Legacy by Melissa de la Cruz*

17. Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts*

18. 168 Feng Shui Ways to a Calm and Happy Life by Lillian Too*

19. The Wedding Goddess by Laurie Sue Brockway*

20. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult*

21. Vegan Lunch Box by Jennifer McCann*

22. Judy Blume: A Biography*

23. Vegan Lunch Box Around the World by Jennifer McCann*

24. White is for Witching by Helen Oyemi

25. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne*

26. Anne Sexton: A Biography by Diane Middlebrook*

27. Tattoo by Jennifer Lynn Barnes*

28. Valiant by Holly Black*

29. The Tarot Cafe vol 1 by Sang Son-Park*

30. Ironside by Holly Black*

31. Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger*

32. Brida by Paulo Coehlo*

33. don't kiss them good-bye by Allison DuBois*

34. Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult*

35. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

36. We Are Their Heaven by Allison DuBois*

37. TH1RTEEN R3ASONS WHY by Jay Ascher*

38. My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme*

39. Julie and Julia by Julie Powell*

40. The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman*

41. Incantation by Alice Hoffman*

42. The Bride Quartet: Vision in White by Nora Roberts

43. Tithe by Holly Black*

44. The Green Bride Guide by Kate L. Harrison

45. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson*

46. The Conscious Bride by Sheryl Nissinen*

47. Moving to Arizona by Dorothy Tegler*

48. Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Storks*

49. Bones of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner*

50. All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris

51. gossip girl: nothing can keep us together by cecily von ziegesar

52. From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris

53. Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris

54. gossip girl: only in your dreams by cecily von ziegesar

55. gossip girl: would i lie to you by cecily von ziegesar

56. gossip girl: don't you forget about me by cecily von ziegesar

57. Dingo by Charles de Lint*

58. Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson

59. chibi-vampire vol 13 by Yuna Kagesaki*

60. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson*

61. The Midnighters: Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld

62. The Midnighters: Blue Noon by Scott Westerfeld

63. chibi-vampire vol 10 by Yuna Kagesaki*

64. chibi-vampire vol 11 by Yuna Kagesaki*

65. chibi-vampire vol 12 by Yuna Kagesaki*

66. Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

67. Club Dead by Charlaine Harris

68. Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris

69. Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris

70. Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris

71. The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga*

72. Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz*

73. The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson*

74. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson*

75. chibi-vampire vol 8 by Yuna Kagesaki*

76. chibi-vampire vol 9 by Yuna Kagesaki

77. Red is for Remembrance by Laurie Faria Stolarz*

78. splintering by eireann corrigan*

79. Ten Things I Hate About Me by Randa Abdel-Fattah*

80. Blood Roses by Francesca Lia Block*

81. gossip girl: nobody does it better by cecily von ziegesar*

82. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

83. The Squad: Perfect Cover by Jennifer Lynn Barnes*

84. Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz

85. Revelations by Melissa de la Cruz

86. Twilight Director's Notebook: The Story of How We Made the Movie by Catherine Hardwicke*

87. The Squad: Killer Spirit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

88. Mia Tyler: Creating Myself by Mia Tyler*

89. Tying the Knot: A Gender Neutral Guide to Handfastings for Pagans and Goddess Worshippers by Jade River

90. chibi-vampire vol 6 by Yuna Kagesaki

91. chibi-vampire vol 7 by Yuna Kagesaki

92. A Year in the Merde by Stephen Clarke*

93. The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

94. Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz*

95. White is for Magic by Laurie Faria Stolarz*

96. Silver is for Secrets by Laurie Faria Stolarz*

97. The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman*

98. gossip girl: you're the one that i want by cecily von ziegesar

99: gossip girl: i like it like that by cecily von ziegesar

100. The Midnighters: The Secret Hour by Scott Westerfeld

101. Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvich*

102. Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr*

103. chibi-vampire vol. 4 by Yuna Kagesaki

104. chibi-vampire vol. 5 by Yuna Kagesaki

105. The Seer: Don't Die, Dragonfly by Linda Joy Singleton*

106. The Seer: Last Dance by Linda Joy Singleton*

107. The Seer: Witch Ball by Linda Joy Singleton*

108. The Seer: Sword Play by Linda Joy Singleton*

109. The Seer: Fatal Charm Linda Joy Singleton*

110. eco-chic weddings: Simple Tips to Plan an Environmentally Friendly, Socially Responsible, Affordable, and Stylish Wedding by Emily Elizabeth Anderson

111. altared: bridezillas, bewilderment, big love, breakups, and what women really thing about contemporary weddings edited by Colleen Curran

112. The Meditation Bible by Madonna Gauding*

113. chibi-vampire vol. 2 by Yuna Kagesaki

114. Llewellyn's Witches' Spell-a-Day Almanac*

115. chibi-vampire: the novel by Yuna Kagesaki

116. Chakra Clearing: Awakening Your Spiritual Power to Know and Heal by Doreen Virtue*

117. Bridal Bargains: Secrets to throwing a fantastic wedding on a realistic budget by Denise and Alan Fields

118. chibi-vampire vol 1 by Yuna Kagesaki

119. Angel: After the Fall by Brian Lynch

120. Offbeat Bride: Taffeta-Free Alternatives for Independent Brides by Ariel Meadow Stallings

*books read for 999 challenge

december reads

2010-01-01T16:00:00.001-06:00

1. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 2

2. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 3

3. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 4

4. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 6

5. The Tarot Cafe by Sang-Sun Park vol 7

6. Secrets of the Monarch by Allison DuBois

7. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

8. Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr

9. Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

10. If the Buddha Married: Creating Enduring Relationships on a Spiritual Path by Charlotte Kasl

11. Aromatherapy for the Seasons by Judith Fitzsimmons and Paula Bousquet

12. xxxHolic vol 1 by CLAMP

13. xxxHolic vol 2 by CLAMP

happy new year!!!!

2009-12-31T17:06:00.003-06:00

it's a blue moon too!
may everyone's new year be blessed with health, prosperity and opportunity. i, myself, am looking forward to settling in, enjoying some hot tea or a glass of wine while reflecting on all that has passed during these past twelve months and setting my intentions for the following twelve. it's been a crazy year of change and transition. i look forward to getting back into the rhythm of things.
love!!!!

more challenges. . .

2009-12-21T05:06:00.010-06:00

i think i've caught the challenge bug from eva. i like how challenges vary and widen my reading landscape. and there's the community aspect which i love. i am keeping my commitment level low so i am fairly confident that i can keep up with all of them. and if not, well that's ok too. it's about having fun and broadening horizons. ;)

take another chance challenge: 1/1/10 to 12/31/10.
i remember seeing this challenge last year. it sounded fun and interesting but i felt i had enough on my plate with the 999 challenge. i'd like to play this year. since i have already signed up for several challenges already, i am going to gamble small-complete 3 of the 12 challenges. i can always increase my participation level as i go along but for now will take three chances. :)

not sure which challenges i will take on, but i am interested in 1, 2, 3, 6, and 7.

the chunkster challenge: 2/1/10-1/31/11
chunkster=450+ pages

i am signing up for the smallest level-3 books. i have a few chunky novels on my tbr list that i have been, perhaps, avoiding? i really want to read them, but their size is a bit intimidating. i also still have my sister's copy of The Host. she insists that i read it and not to give it back until i have done so. i also have a salman rushdie novel staring at me from my book club with autumn. yeah. this will be a good motivator. ;)

YA reading challenge: 1/1/010-12/31/10
i love YA and read tons of it anyway. the mini level of 12 books is very doable.

the countdown challenge: 9/9/09-10/10/10
i'm a little late in the game on this one, but there doesn't seem to be a cutoff date on joining. this is another challenge i saw last year that looked like a lot of fun. read the number of books first published in a given year that corresponds with the last number of each year of the 2000's. (10 for 2010, 9 for 2009, etc.) you can cross over books with other challenges. i'm not going to make a list now.

buy one book and read it 2010: 1/1/10-12/31/10
i plan to participate at level 2, buy 6 books and read them by the end of the year. i frequently buy books and sometimes i wait a long time to read them. for example, i bought A Girl With No Shadow by Joanne Harris right after it was published and still haven't read it. that was at least two years ago i think. same goes for The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman (purchased months ago) and Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger. what a concept to read it within the year! i think this can also support the other challenges i've signed up for. :)

manga challenge wrapup

2009-12-20T17:45:00.002-06:00

chibi-vampire vol 1
chibi-vampire vol 2
chibi-vampire vol 4
chibi-vampire vol 5
chibi-vampire vol 6
chibi-vampire vol 7

The best book: my favorite out of the first seven was six and seven. the story goes more into karin's family history and the plotline thickens. i enjoyed this series so much that i continued reading it. i only have the last one left to read and then i will be finished. it is a great series.

Any new authors? yes. i don't read much manga so all manga authors are new to me. :)

Books I did not finish: i read them all.

What did I learn from this challenge? i rediscovered manga and how much i enjoy it. there are several other manga series i'd like to check out. i had so much fun with this challenge that i will definitely participate in the second round in 2010. thanks, rhinoa, for hosting such a fun challenge!

challenges for the new year

2009-12-12T03:57:00.017-06:00

i have been finding a lot of challenges coming up in the new year. this past year i got back into challenges after taking a year break, but i chose to focus mainly on one big challenge, the 999 challenge which was a total of 81 books, and participated in a couple of small challenges. it was a good way to get back into challenges without feeling overwhelmed and keeping it fun. it also helped that i mostly picked books as i went along, instead of sticking to a set list. that way i could read more on a whim while staying in my challenge parameters, leaving room for new discoveries.

this year i have decided to forgo the 101010 challenge in lieu of several smaller challenges. here are the challenges i've signed up for so far. i am keeping my participation at modest levels so i don't overwhelm myself; however, i do have big reading pools to give myself lots of options. :)

The Flashback Challenge hosted by aarti is a re-reading challenge with three different reading levels running from 1/1/09 to 12/31/09. as i was unpacking my books into our new bookshelf last week, i came across several books i thought would be nice to re-read, so i am particularly tickled to find this challenge. i am going to try for the scholar level (4-6 books) and be modest and aim for four. i can always add more right? within the challenge there are three mini-challenges if you are up to the task-re-read a book from childhood, one from assigned in high school and one from adulthood, which my books easily fall into.

my reading list:

1. Just as Long as We're Together by Judy Blume. i loved loved loved this book in grade school. in fact i still have my battered copy i re-read so many times as a kid. i think that will be fun to revisit.

2. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. i recently read Reading Lolita in Tehran and one of the books focused on was The Great Gatsby. it made me want to revisit that story and it fulfills the high school requirement.

3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. when i learned that dan radcliffe would be doing a nude scene in the movie, i searched the book to find the silver doe scene to see if that was accurate. flipping through made me want to re-read it again. and it will be fun to re-read it before the movie comes out. this, of course, fits the adulthood requirement. :)

4. Dangerous Angels by Francesca Lia Block. last year i read the companion novel Necklace of Kisses. i loved it and it made me want to re-read the weetzie bat series.

alternates:

Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
The Probable Future by Alice Hoffman
Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston

The Art History Challenge is about reading books about art, fiction or nonfiction. there are four levels of participation. i am opting for Curious at 3 books.

reading pool:

Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliet and Brett Halquist
The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier
Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland
Luncheon of the Boating Party by Susan Vreeland
The Private Lives of the Impressionists by Sue Roe
Lydia Cassat Reading the Morning Paper by Harriet Scott Chessman

read the book, see the movie challenge runs from 1/1/09 to 12/31/09. i am a sucker for books turned into movies. there are five reading levels. i am going for saturday movie marathon-read 4 books/see 4 movies.

1. Alice in Wonderland by C.S. Lewis. i have never read this and i'm not sure why. perfect time to pick it up since tim burton and johnny depp are getting together again to bring us another magical movie experience.

2. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. i have read this book twice, but it's been years. i would really like to read it again since the movie comes out in january.

3. Whip It by Shauna Cross. Drew Barrymore and Ellen Page in a movie based on a book. i'm in. :)

4. Charlie Wilson's War by George Crile. i have a deep fascination of all things espionage.

alternates:

Evening by Susan Minot
P.S. I Love You by Cecilia Ahern
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Into the Wild by John Krakauer
Becoming Jane Austen by Jon Spence

the world religion challenge runs all year and has several reading levels. i plan to read at the unshepherded path, which lets me be more flexible in how many books i read.

my reading pool:

The Spiral Dance by Starhawk
The Faith Club by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Prsciilla Warner
Her Voice, Her Faith ed. by Arvind Sharma
Wiccan Warrior by Kerr Cuhalain
The Gospels of Mary Magdalene by Jean-Yves Leloup
The Woman with the Alabaster Jar by Margaret Starbird
Kabbala: A Love Story by Rabbi Lawrence Kushner
Saltwater Buddha: A Surfer's Quest to Find Zen on the Sea by Jaimal Yogis
Peace is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life by Thich Nhat Hahn
Unveiling Islam: An Insider's Look at Muslim Life and Beliefs by Ergun and Emir Caner
The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran
Contemporary Mormonism: Latter-Day Saints in Modern America by Claudia Bushman

women unbound challenge encourages readers to read books relating to women's studies, nonfiction or fiction. the challenge runs from 11/1/09 to 11/30/10. it looks like a lot fun. there will be hosting guest posts on the challenge blog and have activities scattered throughout the year for readers to participate in, if they wish. there are three reading levels. i aim to read at the bluestocking level, which is 5 books, 2 of which are required to be nonfiction.

reading pool:

Woman: An Intimate Geography by Natalie Angiers. i have wanted to read this ever since i directed and produced The Vagina Monologues in college.
Packaging Girlhood by Sharon Lamb
The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf
Full Frontal Feminism by Jessica Valenti
Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism by bell hooks
Sisterhood, Interrupted: From Radical Women to Grrls Gone Wild by Deborah Siegel
Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture by Ariel Levy
Yes Means Yes: Visons of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape by Jaclyn Friedman
He's a Stud, She's a Slut, and 49 Other Double Standards by Jessica Valenti
Bitchfest: Ten Years of Cultural Criticism from the pages of Bitch magazine ed. by Lisa Jervais
Interrogating PostFeminism: Gender and Politics of Popular Culture ed. by Yvonne Tasker
Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female with Mass Media by Susan J. Douglas
The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan and Anna Quindlen

The Graphic Novel Challenge runs from 1/1/09 to 12/31/09. i intend to read at the intermediate level (3-10 graphic novels).

i don't have a list yet but i do intend to check out Gray Horses and Skim.

well, this concludes my list of challenges for the new year. i am looking forward to digging in!

challenge wrapup

2009-12-12T02:50:00.004-06:00

the 666 challenge, hosted by morbid romantic, is a supernatural challenge where you are to pick six supernatural categories and read six books in each running from 1/1/09 to 12/31/09. your books can overlap categories, which means you could potentially read 6 or 36 books. the only requirement is that you read at least six different authors. i read a total of 23 books by ten different authors falling into my chosen categories of witches, vampires, werewolves, ghosts/poltergeists, humans with special powers and paranormal events.

the books i read:

Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz (vampires)
Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz (vampires)
Revelations by Melissa de la Cruz (vampires)
Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (vampires, humans with special powers)
Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris (vampires, werewolves)
Club Dead by Charlaine Harris (vampires, werewolves)
The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry (witches, humans with special powers)
Red is for Remembrance by Laurie Faria Stolarz (witches)
Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris (witches, werewolves)
Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris (witches, werewolves)
All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris (witches, werewolves)
Dead as Gone by Charlaine Harris (witches)
Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris (werewolves)
The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman (humans with special powers)
The Midnighters: The Secret Hour by Scott Westerfeld (humans w/special powers, paranormal event)
The Midnighters: Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld (humans w/special powers, paranormal event)
The Midnighters: Blue Noon by Scott Westerfeld (humans w/special powers, paranormal event)
don't kiss them goodbye by Allison DuBois (ghosts, paranormal event)
we are their heaven by Allison DuBois (ghosts)
Secrets of the Monarch by Allison DuBois (ghosts)
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (ghosts, paranormal event)
White is for Witching by Helen Oyemi (ghosts, paranormal event)
Alex the Fey by Claudia Christian Hall (ghosts)

favorite books: i think my favorite was The Graveyard Book, but i also immensely enjoyed the Midnighter trilogy, The Lace Reader, and Alex the Fey, which was a unique experience as i read it online. it was published a chapter at a time each week and finished last month. you can find it here.

Any new authors?yes! most of them were new authors for me save for alice hoffman (LOVE her), neil gaiman and scott westerfeld.

Books I did not finish: i finished them all. :)

least favorite books: i didn't enjoy don't kiss them goodbye as much as i thought i would. i liked dubois' subsequent books much better, though. i also wasn't too keen on Dead Until Dark, but i found the series to get better as it went on, which is evident since i read them all. :)

What did I learn from this challenge?i already knew that i love paranormal stories, that's why i signed up. the hardest category for me to fill was ghosts. reading allison dubois gave me a lot to ponder on and the category in general was a bit outside my comfort zone as my paranormal reading leans more towards witches and vampires. i also discovered helen oyemi as an author. she has a very distinct, intriguing style and i would like to read other books by her. if this challenge repeats itself next year, i would definitely do it again.

and that sums up my second biggest challenge of the year!

p.s. i adapted eva's challenge wrapup format because i really like it. thanks, eva! hope you don't mind. :)

november reads

2009-12-11T14:49:00.000-06:00

1. Alex the Fey by Claudia Christian Hall

2. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi

3. The Van Alen Legacy by Melissa de la Cruz

4. Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts

5. 168 Feng Shui Ways to a Calm and Happy Life by Lillian Too

thursday thirteen how i've missed you

2009-12-09T22:11:00.004-06:00

it's been a while since i blogged and a long while since i played TT. so i figured to get back in the game i would just do a general update/random thoughts kind of thing.

1. november went by so fast. i got married on the sixth, had the reception on the seventh and brunch to see everyone off on sunday the eighth. 99% of our guests were out of towners since we just moved a few months ago.

2. we spent a week in the city for a stay-moon. phoenix is new to us and we really didn't feel like planning anything big. it was wonderful and relaxing to just hole up in a hotel in downtown, go out walking in the afternoons to explore and not feel bad if we didn't feel like doing anything at all. we both ended up sick at the end of the week though with some sort of stomach bug. that wasn't so much fun.

3. while on our stay-moon in downtown we unexpectedly came across a great place for rent. we spoke with the owners, took a tour, did some negotiating and at the end of the week we went back to sign the lease.

4. so the remainder of the month was super packed with preparing to move and moving. we spent the better part of five days painting. we are crazy and decided we wanted to paint the whole house. we painted the living room three different shades of purple-a deep purple, a medium and a pale-which looks quite lovely and makes me feel all happy inside just sitting in the room. we painted the bedroom a cool gray with a deep wine red accent wall. the other room is cool gray with an accent wall of a deep shade of blue-green. we decided to not go ahead with the hall area as we were quite painted out after all of that. the kitchen was already painted two shades of mint green which looks good and feels cozy so we left that alone.

5. once the painting was done then we cleaned the place. we rented a moving truck to haul all of our boxes over in one go. then it took about the better part of a week to get all unpacked. in between the unpacking we went shopping for a couch, a new tv (since his brother took back ours that he gave to b FIVE YEARS AGO), a giant bookshelf, and a platform bed. oh and curtains. the ones originally up were hideous.

6. we procrastinated on getting the utilities turned on. the electricity came first of course. another week and we finally got the cable/internet hooked up. and yesterday the gas guy came. apparently, az has gas appliances and gas heat, something i am unfamiliar with. and apparently it takes forever to get ahold of the gas company as well. it took us a week to get someone on the phone because they weren't taking calls. it was very weird.

7. so yesterday i was finally able to cook real food instead of heating up frozen food in the microwave and eating lots of salads. to inaugurate my new kitchen i made spiral's vegan chili and vegan cornbread muffins. it was super tasty. for dessert we feasted on some peanut butter zigzag (soy) ice cream.

8. i am still waiting for the wedding pictures to come in the mail. i would like to share some of them with you. i also have a lot of thoughts rolling around in my brain about the whole process of getting married and being married that i would like to share as well, but i haven't felt up to putting them down on paper (or screen).

9. i really love our new place, even though it has no insulation and feels much colder inside than it is outside. feels like texas winter in here. :) we live smack dab in downtown, a skip and a hop away from the light rail, two indie coffee shops (one of which does a poetry slam on fridays), the art museum, the theatre and the big library. there is a park directly across the street from us instead of houses. our neighborhood is historical and most of the houses on our street, including the one we're in, used to be boarding houses back in the forties. the area is pretty much perfect for us. and i have to say i feel much better about this whole az move now that we are back in the city and out of the suburbs.

10. i know i just saw most of my friends and family last month for the wedding, but i am homesick knowing that christmas is right around the corner. thanksgiving was just weird. it was my first one without them save for the year i was in france. and christams without them is just, well, it feels a little unbearable. i know i won't be able to go back every year, but it feels important to this year. and we can so why not?

11. with all of this busy-ness i haven't read that much. i am not sure i will be able to complete the 999 challenge, but i plan on giving it my best effort.

12. it is 58 degrees in our little house and i am stubborn and refuse to turn on the heater. not that we've had it for more than a day. however, i have been using the little space heater sparingly for the past few weeks. i hate being cold, but oddly enough i thought it would be a winter without any cold based on what i had been hearing and that made me feel a little sad. so, while i may be cold and not want to get up in the mornings, i am grateful for it. i enjoy being bundled up with blankets and sweaters. i enjoy drinking hot tea throughout the day. and this cold really motivates me to get in the kitchen. once i am cooking it just warms up, and eating hot food is so satisfying right now!

13. i'd like to end by saying that i have really missed TT. i intend to get back in the blogging groove and keeping up with my favorite meme.

to play along with other thursday thirteeners, go here.

Reading Lolita in Tehran: Gatsby/James

2009-12-09T08:49:00.001-06:00

The Nonfiction Files is a weekly journal of my adventures reading my toppling piles of nonfiction books. I won't be posting reviews, but rather my thoughts about what I'm reading, while I'm reading it.

i am playing along with elizabeth.

current read: Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi

publisher's synopsis: We all have dreams-things we fantasize about doing and generally never get around to. This is the story of Azar Nafisi's dream and of the nightmare that made it come true.

For two years before she left Iran in 1997, Nafisi gathered seven young women at her house every Thursday morning to read and discuss forbidden works of Western literature. They were all former students whom she had taught at the univrsity. Some came from conservative and religious families, others were progressive and secular; several had spent time in jail. They were shy and uncomfortable at first, unaccustomed to being asked to speak their minds, but soon they began to open up and to speak more freely, not only about the novels they were reading but also about themselves, their dreams and disappointments. Their stories intertwined with those they were reading-Pride and Prejudice, Washington Square, Daisy Miller and Lolita-their Lolita, imagined in Tehran.

Nafisi's account flashes back to the early days of the revolution, when she had first started teaching at the University of Tehran amid the swirl of protests and demonstrations. In those frenetic days, the students took control of the university, expelled faculty members and purged the curriculum. When a radical Islamist in Nafisi's class questioned her decision to teach The Great Gatsby, which he saw as an immoral work that preached falsehoods of "the Great Satan," she decided to let him put Gatsby on trial and stood as the sole witness for the defense.

Azar Nafisi's luminous tale offers a fascinating portrait of the Iran-Iraq war viewed from Tehran and gives us a rare glimpse, from the inside, of women's lives in revolutionary Iran. It is a work of great passion and poetic beauty, written with a startlingly original voice.

you can see my previous post here.

my thoughts so far:

the second part of the book really focuses on her teaching. she jumps around a lot in time so i have stopped trying to figure out the chronology of events, but i am really enjoying reading about her life and experiences. she had to put up with a lot as a teacher. one of her students really had a problem with her teaching The Great Gatsby. he waited for her after class one day in order to tell her how immoral the book is, how it promoting western decadence, loose morals and "the Great Satan." nafisi had an inspired idea and decided to put the book on trial. he would be the prosecutor. initially she couldn't get any of her students to act as the defense so reluctantly she decided to stand in as the book. she did get a student to act as a judge and after much cajoling another one to be the defense attorney. there wasn't an actual verdict, but the arguments made by the defense were very moving and insightful. i enjoyed this section much more than the first because i had read The Great Gatsby in school and could relate the analysis to what i remembered of the book.

what really moves me about this book is the great literary analysis and criticism of the books read and nafisi's deep passion for literature and fiction.

the third part of the book focuses on the years that iran was at war with iraq. nafisi is expelled from the university and the veil has been mandated everywhere. nafisi goes through a period of deep withdrawal from the world. she becomes more ensconced in the world of literature. she describes what it was like during those years. tehran was constantly bombed and air raids became commonplace. she spoke of her vigils during the night with a book in hand while watching over her sleeping children. i really cannot imagine what that must have been like. i really can't imagine enduring all the injustices women endured during those years of war and morality squads.

by the middle of the third part, nafisi is back to teaching and her stories focus on the writings of henry james. we learn more about her students that become a part of her thursday morning class.

i am looking forward to what nafisi has to say about jane austen as that is the focus of the final section.

2009-11-20T21:46:00.005-06:00

1. We need less negativity in this world.

2. a black cat darted across our driveway and it made me smile.

3. If you want it, go for it with all you have.

4. just because isn't a good answer.

5. Massachusetts has a proposed 5% sales tax on elective cosmetic surgery; I think that is an odd thing to tax, but hey whatever earns the state a little more money.

6. festivities and sweet treats and quality time with family and friends makes for a happy holiday.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to whatever comes up, tomorrow my plans include lots of painting in our new flat and Sunday, I want to get all our stuff moved in!

Reading Lolita in Tehran: Lolita

2009-11-18T10:29:00.002-06:00

The Nonfiction Files is a weekly journal of my adventures reading my toppling piles of nonfiction books. I won't be posting reviews, but rather my thoughts about what I'm reading, while I'm reading it.

i am playing along with elizabeth.

current read: Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi

publisher's synopsis: We all have dreams-things we fantasize about doing and generally never get around to. This is the story of Azar Nafisi's dream and of the nightmare that made it come true.

For two years before she left Iran in 1997, Nafisi gathered seven young women at her house every Thursday morning to read and discuss forbidden works of Western literature. They were all former students whom she had taught at the univrsity. Some came from conservative and religious families, others were progressive and secular; several had spent time in jail. They were shy and uncomfortable at first, unaccustomed to being asked to speak their minds, but soon they began to open up and to speak more freely, not only about the novels they were reading but also about themselves, their dreams and disappointments. Their stories intertwined with those they were reading-Pride and Prejudice, Washington Square, Daisy Miller and Lolita-their Lolita, imagined in Tehran.

Nafisi's account flashes back to the early days of the revolution, when she had first started teaching at the University of Tehran amid the swirl of protests and demonstrations. In those frenetic days, the students took control of the university, expelled faculty members and purged the curriculum. When a radical Islamist in Nafisi's class questioned her decision to teach The Great Gatsby, which he saw as an immoral work that preached falsehoods of "the Great Satan," she decided to let him put Gatsby on trial and stood as the sole witness for the defense.

Azar Nafisi's luminous tale offers a fascinating portrait of the Iran-Iraq war viewed from Tehran and gives us a rare glimpse, from the inside, of women's lives in revolutionary Iran. It is a work of great passion and poetic beauty, written with a startlingly original voice.

my thoughts so far:

first i have to say that i have never read Lolita, which the first section focuses on, nor am i overly familiar with the Iran revolution. but i intend to do a little research on the revolution before i read further because some terms confuse me and i don't have a context to put the events in. i have never wanted to read Lolita because i didn't think i could stomach it; however, after reading nafisi's and her students' perspectives it has altered my view of the book and i may consider picking it up in the future.

azar nafisi's story is an interesting one so far. at age thirteen she moved from her native iran to america and didn't return for seventeen years. the iran she returned to is not the same one she left. when she was a girl she wasn't forced to wear the veil, didn't have to worry about stray hairs showing, books weren't forbidden and could wear nail polish.

"Life in the Islamic Republic was as capricious as the month of April, when short periods of sunshine would suddenly give way to showers and storms. It was unpredictable: the regime would go through cycles of some tolerance, followed by a crack-down. Now, after a period of relative calm and so-called liberalization, we had again entered a time of hardships. Universities had once again become the targets of attack by the cultural purists who were busy imposing stricter sets of laws, going so far to segregate men and women in classes and punishing disobedient professors."

the main story is the class she formed in her home after she finally left the university. i can't imagine how scary that must have been, to do something so simple as hold a class in your home, but worry about the revolutionary guards catching you with books that the land has deemed forbidden.

the image i find most striking is of everyone arriving on her doorstep. as soon as they cross the threshold and are safely hidden away in nafisi's apartment, the women slowly remove their veils, scarves and robes, revealing layers of clothing, color, hair and jewelry. i imagine it like a painting emerging, a butterfly breaking free of its cocoon. and the same image reversed is just as striking and distressing. all that color and personality cloaked away. but the women have their small rebellions. they wear nail polish under their gloves. they may purposely leave a strand loose.

it's hard to imagine walking the streets of tehran as a woman, holing up within yourself lest the revolutionary guards take notice of you. the world seems so small and stifling. so many rules to be aware of.

nafisi weaves literary criticism into her tale. that is the bulk of her story, how she and her students interpreted these forbidden western works and related them to their lives. she references several books, but the main novel of the opening section is, of course, Lolita. they make Lolita their own. she does address the question, why Lolita? and her answer is thought-provoking.

nafisi's main assertion is that "the desperate truth of Lolita's story is not the rape of a twelve year old by a dirty old man, but the confiscation of one individual's life by another." she is also quick to point out that they do not view themselves as Lolita or Lolita as a critique of the islamic republic, but they focused on it because "it went against the grain of all totalitarian perspectives." in class they speak on Lolita without a past, that Humbert has taken it from her and creates one for her. as much as she asserts that they are not Lolita, the way they speak about her and relate to her, how the islamic republic creates their own history, refuses to let them create their own or be who they are, it would seem to me, that they are Lolita. at least in that respect. but i do have to point out again, that i haven't read Lolita. i am only basing my opinions on the in-depth discussions Nafisi and her students have.

the next section is Gatsby, which incidentally, i have read. i am really liking this book so far, its the literary criticism and its insights into the lives of iranian women.

"A couple of years after we had begun our Thursday-morning seminars, on the last night I was in Tehran, a few friends and students came to say good-bye and help me pack. When we had deprived the house of all its items, when the objects had vanished and the colors had faded into eight gray suitcases, like errant genies evaporating into their bottles, my students and I stood against the bare white wall of the dining room and took two photographs.

I have the two photographs in front of me now. In the first there are seven women, standing against a white wall. They are, according to the law of the land, dressed in black robes and head scarves, covered except for the ovals of their faces and their hands. In the second photograph the same group, in the same position, stands against the same wall. Only they have taken off their coverings. Splashes of color separate one from the next. Each has become distinct through the color and style of her clothes, the color and length of her hair; not even the two who are still wearing their head scarves look the same."

tomorrow. . .

2009-11-06T00:05:00.002-06:00

i am getting married!

so weird.

but i am getting married!!!

we are going to have an awesome handfasting on a beautiful red rock mountain in the open air.

saturday we will have one kick ass party.

can't wait!!!!

october reads

2009-11-01T08:18:00.002-06:00

1. The Wedding Goddess by Laurie Sue Brockway

2. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

3. Vegan Lunch Box by Jennifer McCann

4. Judy Blume: A Biography

5. Vegan Lunch Box Around the World by Jennifer McCann

6. White is for Witching by Helen Oyemi

7. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

8. Anne Sexton: A Biography by Diane Middlebrook

9. Tattoo by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

10. Valiant by Holly Black

11. The Tarot Cafe by Sang Son-Park

12. Ironside by Holly Black

challenge updates:

R.I.P. IV challenge-2/2 completed

999 challenge-63/81

666 challenge-34/36

anne sexton: part IV

2009-10-28T12:00:00.001-05:00

The Nonfiction Files is a weekly journal of my adventures reading my toppling piles of nonfiction books. I won't be posting reviews, but rather my thoughts about what I'm reading, while I'm reading it.

i am playing along with elizabeth.

i am currently reading Anne Sexton: A Biography by Diane Middlebrook. you can read my posts here, here and here.

synopsis from publisher:

anne sexton, who died at forty-five by her own hand in 1974, was, as she herself claimed, "the only confessional poet," and is one of the most widely read poets of recent decades. in this, the first biography, diane wood middlebrook reveals the rewards of ten years labor, unearthing the multiple truths of how anne sexton's deeply troubled life and powerfully candid work interacted. the result is a model of the biographer's art, a harrowing and uplifting tale of a gifted woman's life.

anne sexton grew up in a conventional middle-class massachusetts family, married in her teens, and worked for a while as a fashion model. her life displayed little to anticipate artistic achievement until after the birth of her second daughter, when she suffered a suicidal breakdown. her psychic identity was so severely threatened that even psychiatric intervention had little effect, until her therapist suggested one day that she might try writing poetry - an inspired idea, immediately acted on. sexton soon joined a writing group, which brought her into contact with her closest poetic friend, maxine kumin, and entry into the orbit of such poets as robert lowell, george starbuck, and sylvia plath, then living in boston.

from the day sexton began writing in 1956, her poetry and her inner life worked in tandem to give her eighteen years of wild productivity, which produced nearly a dozen books. among her achievements were a pulitzer prize for her third volume, live or die,fellowships, professorships, stardom in a performing musical group called anne sexton and her kind, attempt to write for the theatre, and a hectic emotional life which severely strained her husband, her daughters, and her lovers and friendss, including james wright, w.d. snodgrass, anthony hecht, tillie olsen, and others. in her later years she reached desperately toward religious belief.

middlebrook's story of anne sexton's life and work is a model of fairness and discernment. with special cooperation from the family, she has had privileged access to the records and testimony of sexton's principal psychiatrist and to the surviving family's records and memories, and has achieved a tender comprehension of sexton's life as a woman and keen insight into her work as a poet. anne sexton was the most bewitching and exasperating of women, as every page of this magisterial biography demonstrates. it is not a tale for children nor for the innocent, for sexton's complicity in her own self-destruction was the despair of her friends, to many of whom this biography will reveal more than they understood while sexton was alive.

my final thoughts:

the last section covered 1968-1974. i was actually surprised how it ended. i thought that kayo left anne, but it was the other way around. the last few years of her life were some of her best. she had achieved a sort of celebrity status, continued to win awards and fellowships and honorary degrees. she was able to hike up her reading fees. she started a chamber rock group to accompany her readings in order to reach a younger audience. she was invited to write a play for off-broadway. she continued to churn out poetry and published three more poetry books before her death. she was making strides in her therapy and was off her thorazine. and it was during this time that she started seriously teaching. she was a non-tenured professor at boston university. ironically, it was her seeming stability that made her decide to leave her husband. it was an utter and devastating blow to her husband, his mother and her children. at first she stayed with friends, but they quickly tired of taking care of her. she did engage in love affairs, but those fizzled out. after her divorce was finalized she began to deeply regret making the move, realizing that she needed the stability that kayo provided for her. she became very lonely and missed her old family life. this was her undoing and ultimately led to her taking her life. she was such an unstable personality that i wonder if she would have lived as long as she did if she hadn't met kayo.

this was a fascinating read. i have to go dig out my copy of sexton's The Complete Poems now.

end of read-a-thon survey

2009-10-25T06:01:00.003-05:00

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? hours 22 and 23.
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? i think YA and fantasy novels are good to keep around on the list because they are quick and easy reads.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? no, i think it was very well organized.
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? i think splitting up the cheerleaders into groups was a great idea. it seemed like people were getting more comments and it was a lot less overwhelming as a cheerleader.
5. How many books did you read? 3
6. What were the names of the books you read? Tattoo by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Tarot Cafe (manga) and Valiant by Holly Black.
7. Which book did you enjoy most? i really liked The Tarot Cafe.
8. Which did you enjoy least? i liked them all. Valiant got off to a slow start, but it picked up momentum and i was fully engaged by the end.
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? this was my first time cheerleading, so i will leave that to the experts. ;)
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? i will definitely do it again! this is one of my favorite events to participate in. i think i would like to be a reader/cheerleader again. and if i have another idea for a challenge, i wouldn't mind doing that again. i had so much fun with that.

hours 21-22

2009-10-25T05:16:00.002-05:00

the last two hours i have been cheering and taking breaks. i did a little yoga-downward-facing dog, child's pose and legs up the wall. i cheer. i get up and walk around. i cheer. i lie on the couch. i cheer. i have lost track of reading and pages and all that stuff. i am barely hanging on, but the end is so near, i don't want to go to sleep yet! i always want to stay up the whole time because i feel like i am missing out otherwise. ;) my eyes are loopy, the screen is too bright and pretty soon i will fall into bed, that sweet abyss of sleep.

hours 18-20

2009-10-25T03:04:00.002-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: Ironside
Number of books read since you started: 3
Pages read since last update: 60
Running total of pages read since you started:
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 45 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started:
Mini-challenges completed: 7

during hour 18, i relocated to the patio where there was a refreshing cool breeze to keep me wide eyed. i started a new book, the book that follows Valiant. after a while, i got cold so i came back inside and spent the next two hours cheering. now we are headed into the twenty-first hour. my brain feels a little fried, the computer screen is too bright and my eyes feel all wacky. i think i am going to get up and move around a bit, check out some challenges then resume my cheering and possibly read a little manga.

we are in the weeeeeeeeeeeee hours!!!!

i can't believe how quickly it goes.

hour seventeen

2009-10-25T00:23:00.002-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: i haven't read since last update, i've been cheering!
Number of books read since you started: 3
Pages read since last update: 0
Running total of pages read since you started: 744
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 0
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 5.5hrs
Mini-challenges completed: 7
Other participants you’ve visited: lots

i spent the last hour focused on cheering. i visited over 20 blogs. i am slow at cheering, but i love it. i am having a lot of fun doing it. i really admire the veteran cheerleaders who actually make up clever, rhyming book cheers. maybe my brain will be up for that next time. i also participated in nick's dance-a-thon mini-challenge.
. i put on brian setzer's jump jive and wail and practiced my lindyhop. my MIL is still up and i asked her if she would dance with me and she was game. it was fun and definitely got the heart pumping. :)

well, i am off for more cheering, and then back to reading. :)

hours 13-16

2009-10-24T23:04:00.004-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: Valiant
Number of books read since you started: 3
Pages read since last update: 140 pages
Running total of pages read since you started: 744
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 1.5hrs
Running total of time spent reading since you started:
Mini-challenges completed: 6
Other participants you’ve visited: lost count

okay, i have pretty much lost count of everything except my page count. i have lost track of how much time i have spent reading, how much time i have spent cheering and how much time doing neither. but that's ok. this read-a-thon has been much looser for me. i am not keeping my notebook and judiciously tracking how my time is spent and that's ok.

after i posted my mini-challenge post, i drew a bath for myself as i was beginning to feel tired and grimy. i read my book in the bath and by the time i was done i was almost finished. i finished my book and then went back to cheering. funnily enough, i haven't done any yoga of my own yet, but i plan on it in a bit.

Valiant started out a bit slow for me, but it picked up pace and i enjoyed it to the end. i look forward to reading the third in the series. for the next few hours i am going to cheer and read manga. and eat some sour candies b brought me today. :)

the winner of the yoga mini-challenge is katrina. thanks to everyone who played!

yoga mini-challenge

2009-10-24T19:49:00.001-05:00

hello and welcome! i am very excited to be hosting a mini-challenge. for this challenge, i propose 5-15 minutes of yoga. most likely you have been reading all day, you may be feeling a bit tired and droopy so this will give you an opportunity to get re-energized. you don't have to be flexible, you don't have to be a yogi, and you don't need to have any prior experience.

in case any of you are shaking your head at me, i thought i would post pictures of myself doing the poses to counteract the perfection of the models. i have been practicing sporadically since i was an adolescent. i have been practicing more regularly in the last two years, but i'm not always consistent. i am still not flexible in my legs and hips (my spread eagle is laughable) but i love it. it makes me feel calm, centered, relaxed and energized, all at the same time, which i find just a little bit amazing.

a great pose to do when feeling sluggish is legs-up-the-wall, hands down. it is simple, easy, and completely refreshing. this is good to do if you have been sitting all day or standing all day.

another easy pose to do is downward-facing dog. it is completely energizing. it is my favorite pose to do at work when i feel like i can't keep my eyes open a second longer.

two other insanely simple poses that are great for relieving fatigue are corpse pose and child's pose.

all of these poses anyone can do. however, if you are familiar with yoga and are up for something more challenging, you can always try seated forward bend, standing forward bend or bridge pose.

if you really want to challenge yourself, you can always do a couple of rounds of sun salutations. that will definitely energize you for more reading. :)

if none of this interests you, you can always check out yoga journal for a slew of poses to try.

don't forget to breathe, relax and above all have fun with it! try it for as little as 5 minutes or as long as 15. you can do one pose or several. (doing corpse for 10-15 minutes is completely luxurious). then leave a comment with the length of time, poses you did and a note about your experience. the challenge will last for three hours. did i mention there are prizes? the winner will receive a book of the winner's choice up to $20 in value and a bookmark by jennifer gordon.

so go! rejuvenate! re-energize! refresh your spirit! and don't forget to come back and tell me about it. :)

hour twelve

2009-10-24T19:17:00.003-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: The Tarot Cafe vol 1
Number of books read since you started: 2
Pages read since last update: 172
Running total of pages read since you started: 604
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 40 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 4hrs
Mini-challenges completed: 7

mid-event meme

1. What are you reading right now?

i just finished vol 1 of The Tarot Cafe. going to go back to Valiant.

2. How many books have you read so far?

two

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

i am looking forward to reading more manga.

4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day?

no. i have been pretty fortunate to not have anything scheduled each time the read-a-thon rolls around.

5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

this time around i have. but i am living with my in-laws at the moment until we find a house, so that is to be expected. they had the grandkids (nieces to me) and they were very noisy. the 3 year old kept wanting me to play with her. i found it difficult to find uninterrupted time to conduct my reading activities.

6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

how tired i feel. usually i am not this tired. but i was too excited to sleep last night. also the last two read-a-thons i lived in texas where the start time was 7am. now i am in arizona and the start time is 5am. that is pretty early for me. and i am surprised at how little reading i have done. if i am cheering, that's cool, but i haven't even been able to spend that much time cheering. i think i've done two hours, perhaps a little more. i feel like if i didn't spend much time reading, then i should have more cheering under my belt, but like i said earlier, all the distractions got to me. however, i think the second half will go more smoothly.

7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

i never have any suggestions for this. i think the read-a-thon is always so well done. i don't know how the organizers do it, but i am super thankful for them. this is one of my favorite events of the years.
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year?

9. Are you getting tired yet?

yes. but i have been tired since i started.

10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered?

nothing that i can think of at the moment.

hour eleven

2009-10-24T18:12:00.002-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: Valiant
Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 26
Running total of pages read since you started:
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 20 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started:
Mini-challenges completed: 6
Other participants you’ve visited: none this hour

i tried reading a little bit more of Valiant, but distractions proved to be, well. . . distracting. i played with my niece for a bit. b came home with some pei wei so i took a break to eat. niece has gone home, the in-laws look like they might even be leaving soon. if so, then i will have some blessed quiet. ;) this next hour i am going to give Valiant a break, as i am to read The Tarot Cafe along with rhinoa, which i am very much looking forward to starting. we will be doing buddy reviews in a couple of days. well, i am off to go enjoy the patio for a bit. ;)

hour 9-10

2009-10-24T16:29:00.004-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: valiant
Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 40
Running total of pages read since you started: 406
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 30 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 3hr
Mini-challenges completed: 6
Other participants you’ve visited: none

hour nine i ate my snack and relocated. it's a full house today and quite noisy so i retreated to the bedroom. i read a little bit but didn't get too much done as i cleaned up the kitchen after i ate. top of hour ten i had some internet problems i had to resolve, then i did the re-reading mini-challenge. hour ten i caught up with some reading. i am about halfway done with valiant.

hour 8

2009-10-24T15:07:00.002-05:00

Title of book(s) read since last update: Valiant
Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 34
Running total of pages read since you started: 366
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 20 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 2.5 hours
Mini-challenges completed: 5
Other participants you’ve visited: i've lost track

i've already lost track of some of the time. i've been up since 5am. i haven't spent much time reading as i want to do justice to my cheerleading duties as well. somehow, i lost track of one of the reading hours. i don't have my notebook this time for keeping judicious track of how my time is spent. oh well! i did a little bit of reading this last hour and took some pictures. i am still reading valiant. once i finish it, i will get back to my cheering. :)

beth's eat to read mini-challenge

my snacks for the day include chocolate covered peanut butter crackers, caramel toffee scones, chips with fake nacho cheeze dip, black bean dip and salsa with some dried mango and cherry cider. later i will be having some pei wei and in the wee hours i have a fruit platter planned.