It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (31 May, 2010)

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme held by Sheila at Book Journey!  I haven't participated in way too long, but over the last few weeks I have read a few books.  I finally started Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series with Dead Until Dark.  I can't wait to read them all!  I feel so behind the times. 

I read Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott.  If you haven't read this, you must.  It's a quick read, but I must warn, it's hard to read about what happens to this girl.  But despite how sad it is, it's incredibly moving.  At least it was to me.

And lastly I started a fantastic fantasy/sci-fi series by Anne McCaffrey called the Dragonriders of Pern.  The first book is Dragonflight and I just finished it this morning.  Which leads me to what I'll be reading this week - the second book in the series, Dragonquest.  Dragonflight was such a well written text; I was fully immersed in the world of Pern.  Anne McCaffrey is an amazing author!  I can't wait to see what else happens to the Dragonriders of Pern!

Also, if I get through this book this week, which I probably will, I may read the third in Anne's series, The White Dragon.  If I feel like taking a break from Pern, I may read the second Sookie Stackhouse novel.  We'll see how it plays out.  Good reading to you all!!

Found Poetry

Well I have come across a poem I wrote in second grade!!  Yep, way back when.  It was in an anthology of poems my class did, apparently.

What is Pink?

Pink is a baby piglet when they are a few days old.

Pink is rosy and very happy.

Pink is a bouquet of tulips.

Pink are cheeks when people are happy.

Pink is a Farrari driving down a country road by a corn field.

Pink is a button on my shirt.

Pink can be passion or can be a beautiful silk dress!

Pink can be a vase of roses.

Pink is brighter than purple and lighter than green.

Pink sounds like birds singing happy songs.
Pink tastes like peppermint.
Pink is a classroom full of happy children.
That is pink!
           -Charlie Quillen, Second Grade (1992)

Quite simple, but I still like it! LOL  Hope you all enjoy my poem about Pink.

Thought-full

Thought is subversive and revolutionary, destructive and terrible, thought is merciless to privelige, established institutions, and comfortable habit.  Thought looks into the pit of hell and is not afraid.  Thought is great and swift and free, the light of the world, and the chief glory of man.    - Bertrand Russell

Paintings, Mom, and Toasts!

Hello All!  I haven't blogged in over a month.  I guess I sort of fell of the earth for awhile.  I needed some time to gather myself,  I was getting a little overwhelmed with life - as it so happens sometimes.  Trying to get my house ready for a lease-renewal inspection, applying for school, and dealing with family issues all at once.  So I took to a lot of reading, painting, and relaxing.  Here are a few of my new paintings:

Hope you enoy them!  I know I do, and my mom at least. Haha!

Anyway, it's Mother's Day, so Happy Day to all of you moms out there!  My mom is having a hell of a time right now, travelling from Washington to Denver in a motorhome.  She's all by herself with just her two little dogs, and her motorhome keeps breaking down.  First she ran out of gas from a broken gauge, then a flat tire stopped her, next the ignition went out, and now she's parked from her breaks and steering giving up.  But she's not giving up - even though she didn't make it to me in Denver by Mother's Day.  She's a strong woman, so I hope she can hold it together along with hoping her motorhome holds together.  Just twelve more hours and she'd be here.  I just hope she gets here!

So here's to everyone else hopefully having a good Sunday and Mother's Day! 

Toast of the Day:

Here's to a moment of relief.

Noteable Notes:

Today is Billy Joel's birthday!  Also, it is Lost Sock Memorial Day!  Look out for those lost socks! :)

Opportunity

"If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door." -Milton Berle

That is all.

Lost

Silly Saturday

Silly Saturday is all about everything silly, off the wall, crazy, and senseless.  I have some books from the series of "imponderables books" by David Feldman.  They are titles like "How Does Aspirin Find a Headache?" and "Why Do Clocks Turn Clockwise?".  I'll pick a question or two from these books and educate you all on something silly! 

Silly Question of the Day:
Do Snakes Sneeze?

     Norman J. Scott, Jr., zoologist and past president of the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles told Imponderables, "As far as I know snakes don't sneeze with their mouths shut, but they do clear fluid from their throat with an explosive blast of air from the lungs."

     Snakes don't sneeze very often, though.  In fact a few herpetologists we contacted denied that snakes sneeze at all.  Bu John E. Simmons, of the Americcan Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Information Committee, insisited otherwise:

     "Snakes sneeze for the same reason as other vertebrates - to clear their respiratory passages.  Snakes rarely sneeze, however,and people who keep them in captivity know that sneezing in snakes is usually a sign of respiratory illness resulting in fluid in the air passage."

                                                            
Submitted by Sue Scott of Baltimore, MD. 

Thanks also to June Puchy Lyndhursst, Ohio.
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There you go!  Now you know that snakes most likely do sneeze, and if they are sneezing, they could be sick.  Silly, eh?  Hope you enjoyed this Silly Saturday.

Journal Juju:

Make a lundry list of everything you are glad you did in the past few days.  Then celebrate your awesome accomplishments - even if they are just errands!!

Toast of the Day:

Here's to the promise of Spring!!  (Today is the first day!!)

Favorite Friday

I'm working out the kinks for Favorite Friday, but today it's going to be about my favorite thing today.  Today in Denver, Colorado it is snowing its' proverbial brains out!  It's blowing sideways snow - the kind that gets into your ear when you're walking outside!  I just got about two pounds of ear snow while leaving work.  So my favorite thing to do when it's snowing like it is, is to cuddle up under a blanket with a good book, all cozy and comfy.  What book should I read today?  And what is your favorite things to do when it's snowing all crazy?

                                                    comic courtesy of chickengiggle.com

Toast of the day:
Here's to the first sip of that perfect hot cider or cocoa!!  (Cider - also a favorite thing to drink when it's snowing!!)

Tao Thursday

I am going to implement Tao Thursdays.  For those of you unaware of what the Tao is, here is a short explanation per Wikipedia:

Taoism (or Daoism) refers to a variety of related philosophical and religious traditions that have influenced Eastern Asia for more than two millennia, and have had a notable influence on the western world since the 19th century. The word 道, Tao (or Dao, depending on the romanization scheme), literally translated as "path" or "way", although in Chinese folk religion and philosophy it carries more abstract meanings. Taoist propriety and ethics emphasize the Three Jewels of the Tao: compassion, moderation, and humility, while Taoist thought generally focuses on nature, the relationship between humanity and the cosmos (天人相应), health and longevity, and wu wei (action through inaction), which is thought to produce harmony with the universe.
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I am very interested in Taoism, and try to use its philosophies in every day life.  Today I will begin with my favorite passages from the Tao Teh Ching (a piece of scripture of Taoism).  It is #11 and this is how it goes in a translation from John C. H. Wu's book Tao Teh Ching:

Thirty spokes converge upon a single hub;

It is on the hole in the center that the use of the cart hinges.

We make a vessel from a lump of clay;

It is the empty space within the vesself that makes it useful.

We make doors and windows for a room;
But it is these empty spaces that make the room livable.

Thus, while the tangible has advantages,
It is the intangible that makes it useful.

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So how do I relate this to writing, you may ask?  Well this, lets call it a proverb, reminds me that it is not just the words that make up a manuscript - it is the feeling behind the words, the emotion, the connection an author has with the words - that is important.  We can get too worried about word counts and forget about what we're actually writing.  I know that happens to me.  I feel the pressure of everyone else's accomplishments and start getting fearful and insecure about my work.  This proverb helps me stay focused on what's important.  Hope it can help you!  Any thoughts?  Leave a comment!

Toast of the Day:
Here's to reading something you really liked an realizing you wrote it!!!

Just Wednesday

Just going to start off with a few good writing quotes:

"I love writing.  I love the swirl and swing of words as they tange with human emotions." -James Michener

"Everybody who writes is interested in living inside themselves in order to tell what is inside themselves.  That is why writers have to have two countries, the one where they belong and the one which they live really."
-Gertrude Stein

The Middle Part:

Today was a tiring day, so I don't have much energy to impart.  Just keep on pushing through! It's already Wednesday!






Journal Juju:
Write about "envy" - what associations does the word bring up for you?  Write about what people might envy you for and what you envy in others.  Then remember to appreciate all the amazing things you accomplish every day!

Envy for me is a dangerous game.  It leads to me doubting my capabilities, which is just downright self-destructive.  Lately I find myself envying all you writers who write, or who have mulitple books written, or have books published!  I know that it's a long, hard road, so I keep on pushing, hoping that one day I'll have someone who might envy my accomplishments enough to use them as inspiration!

Toast of the Day:
Here's to the feeling of receiving a genuine compliment!!