- I trust we all saw this post on Book Riot about what happens when you like books more than anything else in the world. I know I could relate to it ALL.
- Remember that one time when I ranted about body image a bit? I think this writer gets it. GOD it's hard to be a woman.
- You know when you're randomly good at things that you'd never think to brag about because they seem so teeny? This blogger DID brag about them. And it's kind of awesome. (And when I say 'brag' I really mean 'showcased'. There's no arrogance here.) What are YOU randomly good at?
- I enjoyed this post of someone's top ten West Wing episodes. I want to make a similar list, but that means watching all of The West Wing all over again (obvs) and I just don't know if I'm ready for the EMOTIONS. I do agree with quite a lot of these, though.
- Stephen King reviewed Joyce Carol Oates's new novel, and it was just like two of my favourites colliding. It was so awesome I had to read it reaaaally sneakily at work. (shhhhh...). Also, dammit, I REALLY want to read this book.
There now, wasn't that fun? I've sent you off to a load of other posts, so now I don't have to write one. What's that? I do still have to write one? Well...
Awww, tiny Malfoy. The CRUSH I had on him when I was about 12...
Anyway. This week! It happened! It involved stuff, and also things. You know what, I have to be real, very little happened this week. I worked all day Thursday and Friday, which was good because of how I was ill and had 4 days off work, and I don't get paid for that so it made back some of that lost money, but also NUMBED MY BRAIN. You know, just a little. The world (or, like, just the Catholics of the world, I guess) got a new Pope, but I couldn't watch any of the stuff that happened because I had a pressing engagement to see Oz The Great and Powerful, which was good but I'm not raving about it. Annnd, my friend at work left work (well, technically she doesn't leave until Tuesday, but Friday was our last shift together) so I has a sad about that.
I've been confused all week because of the fact that the US clocks went forward last Sunday, and so things that tend to happen at a certain time have been happening an hour earlier, and I'm just like 'WHAT IS WRONG WITH EVERYONE, YOU ARE UP SO EARLY!' and then I remember the clock thing and BAH it is confusing. All will be well when WE put our clocks forward in 2 weeks time (wouldn't it make sense for everyone to do it at the same time? Yes, it would) but for now it just hurts my brain. Which isn't difficult. I guess that this would be the time to travel, though, so that the time difference is less harsh... *squirrels that information away for next year*.
Um, what else? Well, I used The Book Jar for the first time this week and, well, kind of gave up on the book it chose after about 40 or so pages? Which doesn't sound like a good thing, but me getting rid of books is definitely a good thing (just ask my mum) and I feel like this is going to be a secondary function of The Book Jar- not only telling me which books to read, but getting me to start books to see if I even want to finish them or not. And if the answer is not, then I can get rid of them and move onto the next one. It's going to be good, I can feel it.
What I HAVE been reading is a mix of Les Miserables (I feel like I've read SO much of it, and I'm about a quarter of the way through?), The Green Mile (which I've tried not to read, so as to save it for a bit later, but it's proving impossible to resist), and Come As You Are, which is a book about Nirvana written in 1993, which is the WEIRDEST thing to read because the thing that's at the centre of all other books about them, and which ultimately defines the band, I guess, hasn't even happened yet. It's so strange, but also kind of nice. Also I've had the book for the LONGEST time, so it's about blooming time I got round to reading it.
Wow, I guess I had more to say than I thought I did. Wouldya look at those paragraphs?! Amazing. Enjoy the rest of your Sundays, good people! Tell me nice things in the comments.
I'm glad you liked Oz, lots of reviews have been a bit crap and I've been walking around being all 'i will not let my choices be affected by other people's negative opinions' so now I can tell Rhys that you thought it was ok and make him go see it (which I was kind of gonna do anyway).
ReplyDeleteAlso, I baked awesome bread this week thats like half pork and onion and half chocolate nut. That's a nice thing,right?:-p
Hahaha, I'm sure that my opinion will be the one to sway Rhys! And if not then IT SHOULD BE! But yeah, it was pretty good- not the most amazing thing I've ever seen or anything, but good solid entertainment.
DeleteOMG WHAT IS THIS BREAD I LOVE IT! Apart from the pork. But YUM!!
You can probably substitute something else for the pork :-) It's from the first Great British Bake off cookbook which is the baking book that I love the most. ever.
DeleteOooooh! I've got the one from the most recent series, but not that one. *totally considers buying ANOTHER cookbook*
DeleteI have so many cookbooks, it's a little insane. We have an entire bookcase in the kitchen devoted to them :-/ and I just got the new Hummingbird Bakery one for mothers day. It's awesome - it has Jaffa Cake cupcakes in it!!
DeleteMy literal dream is to have my own kitchen just so I can have a bookshelf/case for cookbooks. DAMN LIVING WITH MY PARENTS. But anyway, BEX! I totally got the Hummingbird Bakery book for myself for Valentines Day! (I love me.) It's honestly maybe the best cookbook I've ever owned, in that I want to make EVERYTHING in it (I'm being completely serious).
DeleteOh, that 'what are you randomly good at?' post is a great idea!I have a Rain Man-like ability to remember numbers and dates. I know the coronation and death dates of every monarch going back to Richard III, the phone numbers of every childhood friend I've ever had and I just need somebody to tell me their phone number once to remember it. What are yours, you didn't mention!
ReplyDeleteI've never seen West Wing! *hides to dodge the incoming rocks* I keep meaning to and SO many people have told me that I should, but I never got round to it. Maybe I'll give it a go when my exams are done :)
I take it Green Mile is good then? The film broke me into so many tiny pieces (the mouse!) that I'm almost too scared to read it.
I don't know that I've thought of the things I'm randomly good at properly! But I can remember all 50 states of the USA, and I'm weirdly good at copying things (like, drawing-wise) but terrible at actual drawing. And there must be more, but I can't think of them! Yours is a total skill though- must come in so handy!
DeleteYou tooootally should watch The West Wing- there are quite a lot of lawyers in it (basically everyone on staff is a lawyer, actually) so you could just watch it noww and call it research! It is one of my favourite tv shows EVER, I'm sure you'll love it!
The book is preeeeetty much the same as the film, which means that it totally breaks me into tiny pieces. As does the film. And it's difficult to get up the nerve to read it, but it's SO well written that once you start you kind of can't stop and then you end up SOBBING on your bed at about 1am (totally happened.) But it's really good!
I really like the "stuff I'm randomly good at" post. It's so true, we all have these little tiny quirky things that we excel at and are secretly proud of, but others rarely notice and it's so exciting when they do!
ReplyDeleteStinks that you were so sick this week :-/ but glad you're feeling better! Or at least you seem to be. And riiiight I still want to make my own book jar! If we go shopping anywhere today for date night, I need to be on the lookout for a pretty jar. And paper. And markers! (This could easily get expensive, lol.) What was the book that you only read 40 pages of before giving up? I could use the jar SOLELY for that purpose - I have so many books that I consider getting rid of, but I decide to wait and at least try it and then I never do... le sigh. We have it so rough.
Have an awesome week!!
What are your skills Sarah?! TELL ME! But yeah, I know right?!
DeleteI wasn't sick! Are you just having flashbacks to basically every other SS post where I've felt not good?! Duuude, you totally need to make a Book Jar, it's the BEST. I love just looking at mine, so there's that! The book I got rid of was Grace Notes by Bernard MacLaverty, which I only had because it was a course book for one of my uni modules that I never read because I kind of, um, skipped that week. And now that I think about it, I probably should have gotten rid of it before, but I was like 'but what if it's really really good?!' But it was not.
You have an awesome week toooooo!
Oh yeah, I had that Nirvana book - Michael Azerrad, right? I did start reading it at one point but it got culled; now it's sitting unloved and untouched on the Music shelf at the shop. A tiny part of me is now thinking "Maybe I should just... y'know... take it home again" but a much bigger part of me is screaming "DON'T YOU DARE YOU SNEAKY SWINE!" So, y'know, progress. :D
ReplyDeleteOff to read an article or two over a sandwich, if everyone will GO THE HELL AWAY and let me eat my lunch!
I am here to reassure you about this book Ellie! It's not BAD or anything, but it's kind of the source book for all other books about Nirvana/Kurt Cobain, so if you've ever read anything else about them then you're probably fine not to read this. Nice progress though :)
DeleteI hope everyone left you alone! Stupid people wanting to buy stuff!
My family and I just started re-watching The West Wing on Netflix. I swear, every episode gives me chills. Here's to feeling the feels. In so doing, I think I also stumbled across at least part of the answer to the question that's been bothering me for the last 6ish years, "Now, why did I get this worthless political science degree anyway?" Yeah, I forgot.
ReplyDeleteMy random talent is finding things that no one else can find. It is a sucky talent to possess, what with everyone always wanting me to find their lost stuff and all.
I also agree that everyone should time change on the same day. One year I was in London when the time changed, and then I came home to ye olde US of A and the time changed *again* the following weekend. Talk about confusing, and uh, how I'll *never* get that hour back.
Ohhhhh yes, basically every episode gives me the chills too! There's just something really majestic and kind of, I don't know, noble or something about it. Best President ever. For reals. If you literally did your degree because of The West Wing then I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!
DeleteHahaha, that is an AWESOME talent! You could probably solve all the worlds problems with that one talent!
I feel like you kind of lost more than one hour there. It feels like it doesn't quite add up! I'd be a lot more confused if I actually had to live in one place and then another, seriously. I just get confused on like twitter and stuff.
Sad about your work buddy leaving. That sucks. I mean good for her for doing something else but sad for you.
ReplyDeleteWait, Daylight savings doesn't happen to everyone at the same time? This is bullshit. This being timezones in general and the fact that time is so easy to just change whenever the powers that be feel like it.
Now I'm off to read all the links!
It is sad for me! She left to finish off her phd (fancy!) and, not to be snobby about it but I thiiink everyone else in the office basically just left school at 16 (which is totally viable here, by the way.) Which doesn't mean they're bad people! But I totally had a lot in common with my buddy :(
DeleteIt IS bullshit! And daylight savings was just meant to be like a WWII (WWI?) thing so farmers had more daylight hours to plant crops or whatever, so TECHnically, we shouldn't even do it any more. That being said, I do love it when it's light til about 10pm. So. Never mind.
I hope you've read all the links now!!
Oh jeez, The Green Mile. That was the first book I ever 1) actually threw across a room and 2) deliberately REFUSED to finish - I was something like 15 pages from the end, too. My heartstrings! Damn you, Stephen King. Also, I saw that movie on a first date, which is something I do not recommend you do unless you're okay with your date seeing you Ugly Cry.
ReplyDeleteLES MIZ! I need to read ittttt but I also need to come up with a better way of marking things in books beforehand, because I will have so. much. to say. (Based on how much I have to say about the first 2-3 chapters of Bleak House, which I keep putting down because THE THOUGHTS.)
See, now, I would NEVER throw a book across a room because it was making me cry. Because, like, that kind of makes me respect a book? Which is fucked up, now that I think about it. But OMG SO MUCH CRYING! I think I'm only going to read it when I'm like in the house. Seems safest to avoid the crying in public.
DeleteOh my god, I have SO much to say about Les Mis already! Mostly it's pointing out the differences between the book and the musical (they are numerous, obviously) but also SO MUCH STUFF. I was going to be talking about it section by section, but that's not happening, so... Yeah, it's going to be a big post when I finally finish it.
Oh, Les Miz. Good luck. I liked that book for the first 600 pages or so, and then I'm like "SERIOUSLY ARE YOU STILL TALKING?"
ReplyDeleteI will be interested in seeing how it goes for you :)
Yeeesh, thank you! I'm doing alright at juuust under 400 pages, but I have already skipped a whole section. Might just keep doing that for the rest of the book.
DeleteThank you so much for the link love!! Loved reading this post and through all the comments. I love random things people are good at :) - and copying a drawing totally sounds like a useful thing! Have a great week!!
ReplyDeleteAw, you're so welcome! Sorry it's such a late link haha! Copying a drawing does come in handy sometimes, I have to admit, but I would like to be able to draw properly :)
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