Author Walkie Talkie Book Club

What a high!

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Microphones

Ah, the power of a microphone! Image by Rusty Sheriff via Flickr

Found this blog post in the drafts!  Never got published!  Written on May 13… oops! Better late than never, right? Or totally out of context and boring? Oh well…

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Just home and winding down from our “Over the Back Fence” radio show premiere!  Take Note!, our singing group, performed three songs, and the whole thing was such a blast!  We sounded great at sound-check and in the little room we practiced in and during the singalongs and during our songs.  And there were many laughs at the expense of Norwegians everywhere!  Tonight’s show paid tribute to both Cinco de Mayo and Syttende Mai.  What a great little show.  I must try to get there again – and for sure try to listen more faithfully.  I naively thought it would be broadcast live but it is simply recorded live – played later.  It was a great night leading into a great week of music ahead!

On the other hand, I haven’t been getting as much reading done!  Book reading, anyway.  I’m so far behind in my magazine reading but I’m feeling better about that, so I started reading “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” this week.  I finally made some headway today.  I am really liking it!  I thought it would be all heavy and sad and ominous, but it isn’t.  It’s about children.  So I imagine there will be sadness and heartbreak ahead, but it doesn’t seem like it will tear my heart out, so that’s a good thing.

Well, as I said, a music-filled week ahead!  Our big spring concert (with my solo!) coming up on Wednesday, Thursday a performance for a church family night, and Saturday we are performing at Minnesota City days!  It’s been such a great spring with the choir.  Can’t wait for the next adventure!

Well, off to read!  Happy weekend all!

Tra La!

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Ah, one more May blog. 🙂 

It was a good holiday weekend full of hard work!  Not a lot more reading done, unfortunately, but I did finish “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” and it was enjoyable.  As I said on Goodreads, I was hesitant to read it, thinking it would be sad and heavy, but it really wasn’t!  It was sweet and told mostly from the perspective of a 12 year old boy and the 50 year old man he becomes.  It was nice.

I started listening to “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” today, and it starts out hard to listen to!  It starts out with the Prime Minister being visited by the Ministry of Magic and then Snape meeting with Bellatrix and then a lot of newspaper headlines.  I don’t think we see Harry until chapter four (maybe three), so it just feels different than the other books.  Thankfully it’s shorter than the last few, so I should be able to rip through it!

I also downloaded my second library e-book!  A Diane Mott Davidson book, just for fun.  I’ll have to see if I can get the last few books on my Spring Reading Thing list from the library.  Not many left!  Yay!

Well, not many days of work left, that’s for sure.  It’s amazing how much better I feel after time away.  I am dreading the next three days – well, maybe dreading is too strong, but I’m really hoping for strength to get through them.  I have a LOT to do!

But now, I’m off to read!  Blogs before bed!

Tick Tock…

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Clock

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And the days go by… and the blogging doesn’t happen!  Well, maybe 22 days isn’t too bad of a lag, but I think it is.  Mid-May was a very busy time, as “Take Note!”, the choir I am in, had a lot of rehearsals and performances over an 8 day span, with busy weekends and weeknights before.  It was a great time.  The third time I sang “Please, Mr. Postman” I really nailed it.  I should have front-loaded that work rather than being in panic mode.  But panic mode usually works for me, so c’est la vie!  I’ve had quite a bit of time off (for me) and haven’t been cranking through the books too much but have read a few.

I got official and final word Tuesday night / Wednesday that my position at work is being cut due to budget reasons, so the last five or six weeks I have been in crisis mode mentally.  I’m so “in my head,” as I call it.  Introverted.  Immersing myself in meaningless tasks.  Choosing audiobooks or podcasts over live conversations.  These last few days at work will be difficult – it’s hard to say goodbye over and over again – so I am looking forward to it being behind me.  June 7 can’t get here fast enough.  And all of this brings to point something I learned about myself after the flood – I really can only do one big thing at a time.  I couldn’t look for a new house until I sold my old house and had actually signed the papers.  Likewise, I can’t focus as much as I should on looking for a new job until this job is wrapped up.  So although I am going to pretend that I will do some serious job searching and applying tomorrow, most likely I will find some putzy jobs to do and then learn more about my rights through the union.  Hopefully soon I’ll be ‘normal’ again.  Ha.

But I have finished a few books since I last wrote.  I am half done with “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” and really liking it.  It’s quite easy to read, which is unexpected.  I thought it would be heavier, but maybe I’m just not there yet.  I hopefully will finish that soon.  I finished listening to “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” (see above comments about immersing myself in audiobooks) and was amazed at how much I don’t remember from reading the book!  But it was nine years ago that the book came out, so that’s a long time.  I’m sure I’ll remember less about book six and I already know that I remember very little about book seven (it was the last book I read before my house flooded and something changed in my brain that day and that book disappeared – along with a little sanity!).  I am pretty sure I’ll reach the goal of reading the books before July 19 so that is exciting!

And I also finished my very first e-book loaned from the library!  I checked out one book, just any old book I could get, as most had a waiting list, and I didn’t like it.  I couldn’t tell if it was the book I didn’t like or the e-book that I didn’t like.  So I waited and finally got one I wanted to read (“Twenties Girl” by Sophie Kinsella) – a light and fun romp – and I ripped right through it!  It was easy to read and a good, fun book.  The 14 day loan period from the library is a little pressure, so hopefully the others will come spaced out good enough for me to not panic!  I read the book in less than three days, but I had to stop reading “Hotel…” which I didn’t like to do.

And so I ramble.  I must blog more so that I don’t have quite so much to say!  Yikes! I’ll just update my “Spring Thing Reading List” below and be off to read!

Spring Thing Reading List:

  • Mockingbird
  • The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
  • Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
  • Heart and Soul
  • The Hundred-Foot Journey
  • Fly Away Home
  • Winter’s Garden
  • Harry Potter (2)
  • Harry Potter (3)
  • Harry Potter (4)
  • Harry Potter (5)
  • Harry Potter (6)
  • Harry Potter (7)
  • Jane Eyre
  • Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand
  • Twenties Girl
Related articles

Did ya miss me?

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P question

??? Image via Wikipedia

Wow.  I was blogging pretty regularly for a while and then I stopped!  I’ll tell you what happened.  A few things, actually.

Reason #1- I got an iPad 2 from work.  Less need to sit at the laptop or desk top and less convenient to blog on the iPad.  I now read all my blogs, read tweets, search the library website, check email and facebook, and play Words with Friends all on the iPad!  Tonight I downloaded my first library book to the iPad!  Who has time to blog!  🙂

Reason #2 is that I received some news that kinda rocked my world a few weeks ago – they are looking at cutting my position at work for next year.  It’s been an emotional roller coaster.  Tons of sadness, a little anger, and growing excitement at what may be.  Every day at work is emotional because it is hard to talk about it with coworkers.  Hard to think about not working with them and the district families anymore – after 18 years of being there.  But I’m thankful for the support I am feeling from coworkers and parents so my new coping strategy is an attitude of gratitude.  I hope it helps me sleep at night. 🙂

Reason #3 is that Easter happened!  Monday night (5/2) when I crawled into bed, I realized that it was the third night I’d slept there since April 20.  I went to Mom and Dad’s for quite a few days during my break from work and then we left last Thursday for a trip to Denver for a wedding!  It’s a lot easier to blog when I’m home and alone.

So with all of this going on, my house is suffering.  Tonight I dealt with the piling up of clothes and tomorrow I’ll have to tackle the mail and dust.  As I said, I also tackled downloading an e-book from the library tonight.  That was quite a task.

So about the iPad.  It’ll have to go back if/when I leave my job but I really think that I will need to get my own.   I have the nook, kindle, and iBooks apps on there.  Overkill or what?  And then to download library e-books, I had to download Overdrive and Adobe.  They don’t work together?  I’ve been wondering about just getting a nook or other e-reader, but I might just need the whole iPad she-bang.

Thoughts?

And now about books (and maybe a movie) – My Spring Thing reading list is below – and there is progress!  How fun is that?  I just finished “Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand” and it was good.  Not super good, but good.  I liked the characters, was confused about the inclusion of some of the characters, but would like to meet Major Pettigrew.  Or just travel to England. 🙂  Before that I read “The Hundred Foot Journey.”  Can’t remember if I blogged about that, but I liked that book, too.  Again, not life-changing, but good. I really need to get some good Indian recipes in my repertoire.

On Easter Sunday Marissa and I went to see “Water for Elephants.”  It was good, but not nearly as good as the book (of course).  You just don’t get the emotions and tensions that you get in the book.  The characters were pretty well cast, although I didn’t picture the main guy to be as cute as Pattinson.  🙂  But it was true to the story.

Spring Thing Reading List:

  • Mockingbird
  • The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
  • Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
  • Heart and Soul
  • The Hundred-Foot Journey
  • Fly Away Home
  • Winter’s Garden
  • Harry Potter (2)
  • Harry Potter (3)
  • Harry Potter (4)
  • Harry Potter (5)
  • Harry Potter (6)
  • Harry Potter (7)
  • Jane Eyre
  • Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand

Well, off to read!  On the iPad!

Spring Reads – April

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Garden with some tulips and narcissus

Spring! Can't wait! Image via Wikipedia

Yay for good books!  As I said, I loved “Heart and Soul,” and “Saving CeeCee Honeycutt” is a sweet book that I can’t wait to discuss at book club.  I’m almost done listening to HP book 3 and picked up book 4 today!  I’m intrigued by “The Hundred Foot Journey,” as I just started it this morning.  Any book about food is fun to read!  It starts in India and moves to London and beyond.  India is so fascinating to me.  But the descriptions of the filth and poverty will deter me from making it a high priority on my visit list.

I’m also saying “yay” about the iPad2 I am using for work!  After I finish with my pile of books, I will hopefully share nook books with friends!

So, although my Spring Reads list is LONG (and getting longer!) I am making progress!

  • Mockingbird
  • The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
  • Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
  • Heart and Soul
  • The Hundred-Foot Journey
  • Fly Away Home
  • Winter’s Garden
  • Harry Potter (2)
  • Harry Potter (3)
  • Harry Potter (4)
  • Harry Potter (5)
  • Harry Potter (6)
  • Harry Potter (7)
  • Jane Eyre
  • Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand

And now to celebrate Poetry month, a poem from “Reflections on a Gift…”  – one of my favorites!

APRIL by Marcia Masters
It’s lemonade, it’s lemonade, it’s daisy.
It’s a roller-skating, scissor-grinding day;
It’s gingham-waisted, chocolate flavored, lazy,
With the children flower-scattered at their play.

It’s the sun like watermelon,
And the sidewalks overlaid
With a glaze of yellow yellow
Like a jar of marmalade.

It’s the mower gently mowing,
And the stars like startled glass,
While the mower keeps on going
Through a waterfall of grass.

Then the rich magenta evening
Like a sauce upon the walk,
And the porches softly swinging
With a hammockful of talk.

It’s the hobo at the corner
With his lilac-sniffing gait,
And the shy departing thunder
Of the fast departing skate.

It’s lemonade, it’s lemonade, it’s April!
A water sprinkler, puddle winking time,
When a boy who peddles slowly, with a smile remote and holy,
Sells you April chocolate flavored for a dime.

Poetry Month

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magnetic poetry

Thankfully mine isn't in a pile like this. Image by surrealmuse via Flickr

I have always loved poetry!  When I was young, my aunt gave me the book, “Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle (Put Up One Summer by Felicity)” and there was hardly a poem in there I didn’t love.  Somewhere along the line I lost the book – but the miracle of the internet and online shopping put it back in my hands a few years ago.  I still love the poems in there – some even more now.  The poems are mostly light and humorous, but there were some heavy and meaningful ones, as well.

I still have the book, “Now We Are Six” by A. A. Milne, which was given to me when I was six (by the same aunt) – and those poems are precious and fun as well.  It is a favorite gift for any six-year old in my life.  Such fun poetic stories about King John or The Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Thief.  And of course, Pooh.

I also still have the “Poetry Books” we created in 9th and 10th grades, probably for National Poetry Month.  They are construction paper covers with pictures cut-out from magazines and greeting cards taped on the typing paper.  No clip-art or fancy graphics available to me in 1985.  But the poems I included were from “Now We Are Six” and “Reflection on a Gift…”, as well as from teen magazines – those sappy love or friendship poems found at the back of the issue!  I wrote a few as well, including a few limericks.

Lately, the most interesting things I’ve written are a few haikus.  They are a lot of fun.  I have great memory of sitting outside on my deck on a hot Memorial Day weekend with my cousin (that aunt’s daughter) reading and writing haikus.  I think many of them are lost, but I still have the book that was the inspiration. I also still have several versions of magnetic poetry around – I just love words!

I lost a lot of books in the flood, but I am thankful for these favorites that were on a shelf high enough to be saved!

Here is a favorite from “Reflections..”  I hopefully will post more favorites in the month of April.  I just love poetry.  🙂

Well, off to read!

Advice to Travelers

    by Walker Gibson

A burro once, sent by express,
His shipping ticket on his bridle,
Ate up his name and his address,
And in some warehouse, standing idle,
He waited till he like to died.
The moral hardly needs the showing:
Don’t keep things locked up deep inside —
Say who you are and where you’re going.

April Fool!

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alarm clock, bought from IKEA

What is your preferred reading time?

About ten days into spring – and I’m moving along on my Spring Thing List!  I’m almost done with “Heart and Soul” by Binchy and then I’ll start “Saving CeeCee Honeycutt.”  I’m going to attempt all the Harry Potter’s on audio this spring, so that’s an addition to my list!  So far, watched one movie (I only cheated because I forgot which book came first and ordered the wrong one from the library!), listened to book 2 and starting book 3.  Maybe I will get them all read by the time part 2 comes out!  A girl can dream…

I’ve been enjoying setting my alarm clock for about 30 minutes before I need to get up and reading in bed in the morning.  Lately, I am not a great night-time reader – probably all of the blog reading I’m doing at night and the getting up early to read in the morning!  Gotta trim time somewhere!  So I am enjoying reading and have only procrastinated a little too long one morning!  Can’t wait for tomorrow… no alarm!

Things that made me smile this week:

  • Finally admitted that I can’t grow anything in my dark downstairs so moved the herbs to my bedroom.  I don’t know if there’s hope, but we’ll see.
  • Improv Everywhere – a little Friday night fun.
  • Laughing at my crabbiness on Tuesday
  • Marissa’s April Fool’s joke!
  • Reading in bed
  • Next week’s plans – Mexican food and Cosmo Girls!
  • Tomorrow night’s plans – the Minnesota RollerGirls!
  • Fake Baking.  Just a little light therapy.

And now, books on my list:(I’ve added to the list… it’s still a work in progress!  And we’ll see… it’s getting more and more ambitious!)

  • Mockingbird
  • The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
  • Heart and Soul
  • The Hundred-Foot Journey
  • Fly Away Home
  • Winter’s Garden
  • Harry Potter (2-8)
  • Jane Eyre
  • Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand

How are you doing on your spring reading?  What is your preferred time of day to read?  And what made you smile this last week?

Well, off to read!

 

Frigid Spring Friday

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"And have you a pale blue dress on?"

"And have you a pale blue dress on?"Image via Wikipedia

Well, not too frigid and beautifully sunny, but cold for spring!

I finished listening to “Jane Eyre” this week – and wrapped up the Jane Eyre challenge on Goodreads!  Kind of a silly little challenge, but fun.  I had to pick my favorite quote, and there were pages and pages to choose from!  I didn’t read beyond the first page of choices and really liked the third quote down.  Lazy or not, it grabbed me.  I’ll even add it to my book quotes page :).  It was: “I would always rather be happy than dignified.”  It’s always good to choose happiness.  As I said on my goodreads review, I really love the language in these old books.  I love when they say the door was “unclosed” rather than plain old “open.”  I love it when they take paragraphs to set a scene or describe someone’s character.  I’m very glad I read it.  I’m sure I’ll see the movie and I’m looking forward to that, too. The only frustration I had with the audiobook was the quality of the CDs.  Many had scratches and the last CD seemed especially bad.  So the climax when I should be learning about what happened to Mr. Rochester was frustrating to listen to.  I miss my iPod for downloading audiobooks.

Another book on my Spring Thing list that I finished this week was “Mockingbird.”  It was a YA book about a girl with Asperger’s Syndrome and told from her perspective.  At first I was frustrated with the fact that it was another book about a person with ASD who was dealing with tragedy.  But I got a little hooked by her voice and the way it was written so that I could really hear her voice.  I had a little tear at the end, although I was racing to finish the little thing so I could return it to the library on time.  It’s worth reading.  It is a lot less cryptic than “The Serious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime,” in that you know almost immediately what is going on.  But it is a YA novel, so not too surprising.

So last night I started a Maeve Binchy book called “Heart and Soul.”  I haven’t read a Binchy book in ages and it just feels like coming home!  I even turned on the light early this morning so that I could read a little before I started my day!  And I”m going to read a little now before heading out for the evening!  Woot Woot!  I’ll have to look at the list of all her books and see if I have missed many.  Don’t think it’s possible!

Heading out tonight to a late movie!  Hope I can stay awake!  I’m looking forward to seeing “Cedar Rapids.”  It’s gotta be a LOT better than the last one I saw in the theatre – “Take Me Home Tonight.”  Wow.  That music video advertising that movie got me inside, but it wasn’t really worth it.  Oh well.  Any night at the movies is a good night!  The most recent netflix movies I’ve seen are:  “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” and “Life as You Know It.”  Yesterday “You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger” came in the mail.  I think it’s a Woody Allen flick.

Gotta love movies and books!
And now… off to read!

It’s a Spring Thing!

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Spring Thing Logo

Image by Zeptonn via Flickr

If I spent as much time reading books as I did reading blogs, I’d have put away quite a few more books in 2011!  But I do enjoy reading what others are reading, how they read, what kinds of things they like to read, and how they write about what they read!  Over on http://callapidderdays.com a “Spring Reading Thing” started!  I’m going to participate because it’s a simple event.

Simply create a list (can be ever-changing) of books that you want to read this spring – March 20 – June 20!  Write about it.  Link to her site.  Write about it at its completion.  Sounds simple enough!  And so, with the help of my stack of books from the library and my goodreads account, here is a start on my list of books TBR this spring!

Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy
the next book from the library… will have to look it up as it’s downstairs.  It was a new release that grabbed me.
The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner
Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand

I think that’s a good list to start with.  I will finish Jane Eyre this week probably, and am looking forward to finding out what happens.  Then I will listen to Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand.

So, do you have a list of books you want to read this spring?

Off to read!