Reading List

Even though it is getting kind of late on a Friday night, and I have to be up early to take Christopher to work and go to the gym, I have the strongest urge to make a large pot of coffee (Vanilla Nut flavored beans sweetened stevia to be exact) and curl up and read this:

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I love J. D. Salinger. His short stories and of course, "The Catcher in the Rye" is only my favorite book of all time ("To Kill A Mockingbird" and the "Harry Potter" books tie for second). Iv'e even been contemplating, many years from now, when I have children, if I have girls to name them Franny and Zooey. Zooey, I love, however, with Franny I am not keen on naming a child Frances or Francine. Anyway, I probably won't be having the coffee or reading that tonight, but I suggest you go read all Mr. Salinger has to offer. Even if you read "Catcher" in high school, and didn't like it, I will choose to not degrade you or look down upon you, but suggest to try the short stories. Just pick one, you don't have to read them all. Try and enjoy it. I remember reading them in high school and loving them.

Getting Reacquainted With:

ABC Family, like they do all the time, has had a Harry Potter weekend. Since I went to bed at 9 pm last night and woke up still sick at 7 this morning, I have taken this opportunity to lay around and reacquaint myself with my good buddies: Ron, Hermione, and Harry.

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I still think I enjoy the books better, and I ahven't seen the last 3 movies, yet, I guess they'll be back on my Netflix queue. I only have the first 4 books here, my sister has the last 3. I've been meaning to read them again (as well as Twilight, but that's a totally different post).

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So, while I drown in Airborne and get some rest, turn on some ABC family and reacquaint yourself with some former friends.

Heaven

I just finished reading this book (it did not even make it to the "Bookmarks" page).

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It was a really quick read. It was pretty short, and very engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and whether someone believes it or not, it really brings all these positive things into your mind. If you haven't read it and want to, maybe you shouldn't read the rest of this, but if you plan on reading it, I know that you probably already know what it is about.

First and foremost, I love the idea of the little sister that was miscarried before Colton (the little boy) was born. She does not have a name, but he met her on his very short trip to heaven. I like to think that when I go to heaven, and when my parents are there, that we will meet "Nicholas" and we will know him without even questioning it. It will be so exciting to meet him. As much as I would have loved to have him here with us, I think being in heaven is a better place for him. Had he lived on this earth, he would have had a very difficult time. Nobody knows for sure how handicapped he could have been, but God and Jesus are better buddies than anyone here would have been. I can not even begin to imagine what he would look like, but thinking about this makes me so excited to meet him.

Second, I can not wait to see Grandma Pat again and Grandma Mo and Grandpa Gerry, and Uncle Bob, and everyone in the family who I haven't met before. I hope that Casper is hanging out with them and being the good dog that he always was.

Three, I can not even imagine the fight that will go down when Satan is finally sent to hell. I never would have thought that he was hanging around, but he is. That's why we all struggle so much with sin. I would not have ever thought about it, until I read this book, that he isn't in hell yet. Realistically, hell does not exist yet. I think, I'm not really sure.

Read this book. It is great. If you believe it, awesome, if you don't, I'm sorry.

Five Things

Five Things I Love and Had Forgotten I Enjoyed So Much:

1. Ben Folds, Bright Eyes, and Modest Mouse. Sometimes you just need to switch it up.

2. Melty ice cream on the bottom of the bowl swirled with the still frozen stuff. Delicious. It might be the best part (falls into the same category as the fact that I like soggy cereal).

3. Chips & Salsa. Do I really have to say more?

4. Classic Books: Little Women, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Catcher in the Rye. I actually love all J.D. Salinger and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Honors English my junior year of high school worked well for me.

5. Football. Not really forgotten, but the Chargers have their first preseason game tomorrow. It is definitely meaningful game, they are playing the Seahawks. Chris's BFF Damian who died in February was a huge 'hawks fan. I might just have to be a 'hawks fan tomorrow. Shh... don't tell Chris.

Happy Wednesday!

:)

Things That Make Me Smile

Even though Mondays (especially when C has to be at work at 5 AM) generally suck. I'm going to be an optimist and show you things that make me smile.

And maybe some of them got me through this Monday:

{one}

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Really, what would I do without my coffee?

I don't know. But I am turning into my mom.

I can not function without coffee in my system.

Awesome.

{two}

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The fact that this guy FINALLY has another book out.

I hope the library has it.

Or I could buy it for my collection.

Hmm...

{three}

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I would really like this shirt.

I love the play on the "potty mouth" of BS.

And I love Blake Shelton.

I'd be upset that he's married, except that he's married to my favorite lady: Miranda Lambert.

Have I ever mentioned their photo is my computer's desktop?

Okay, you can be officially freaked out.

{four}

This music video:

This song.

I LOVE IT.

Its so smiley and happy.

{five}

The fact that even though I didn't work out today, I ate pretty well and don't feel too badly about any of my choices.

Smiles and high fives all around.

Happy Monday!

Turning Pages

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." - Dr. Seuss

I have not been very good at updating my "Bookmarks" page, because I read entirely too fast.

However, if you wanted to know, I've updated it.

Also, Nicholas Sparks has a new book out.

And I have like 5 library books waiting to be read, and one that is waiting for pickup.

I don't know, I might have to return the ones that are not as new, so I can read the newer ones and move on.

Back to Mr. Sparks.

He went to my high school.

I've read all his books, possibly more than once.

I don't know if I have a favorite.

I think "The Notebook" and "A Walk to Remember" are great.

Yet, I'm a big fan of "The Rescue"

Anyhow, keep reading my friends. It is food for the soul.

Oh and I spent my afternoon reading in Barnes and Noble.

Its soothing, calming, and when I can get a big, comfy chair, it is perfect.

I call this my playlist of reading music.

Take a listen:

Book Review and a Killer Workout

I will start with what is definitely most exciting. I just finished reading this:

I am going to tell you that I COULD NOT put it down. I put it on my document holder at work so I could read while I was doing other things (and should have been working). I was reading it at the beach, at lunch, on my break, and at night. I stayed up late to read it. It was just that good.

I would definitely recommend it. It flows really well, and like I said, you just can not put it down. It is historical fiction, written by someone with a talent and a knack for the genre and the era. Look up her biography and you know how well she could associate herself with the book.

There was more than one character, and I like the going back and forth between the different characters and their thoughts. It puts an interesting spin on the story. It is set in the 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi. In the heart of the Civil Rights movement. The whole story revolved around this, and it truly put a spin on it that only someone from the south, who grew up near the era could have ever done.

I am pretty excited to see the movie. In fact, I can't wait, and I might even shell out the big bucks to go see it in the theater. Maybe I'll take the day off and see it as a matinee. I'm kind of a cheapskate. Anyway, it is definitely worth reading.

I will give you this though: I was reading reviews and message boards about the movie and I can not even begin to fathom how people can say it is terrible. The author was not trying to make it look as though black women back then were bad or ignorant. In fact, if anything, I think she portrayed them with strength and dignity. She made the white women look terrible, as many were back then, and the black women shone against that. She told it like it was between black and whites and those who might have been somewhere in the middle. It is a part of our history, and we can not take any of it back. We can apologize and hope that this never happens again, but racism will forever be in this world and this country. We will all, always be different. If we weren't different there would be no interesting things in this world, but these differences are also what make us fearful of the others; yet at the end of the day, we all do want the same thing, to be happy and healthy. Anyway, GO READ IT!

WORKOUT:

I decided I'd spice things up and do an intense interval work out. It went something like this:

5 min - 4.0 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 6.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 7.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 6.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 7.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 6.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 7.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

1 min - 6.5 mph

3 min - 5.5 mph

5 min - 4.0 mph

It killed me. But it was so worth it.

Things I Really Like and Think I Could Not Live Without (But Probably Could)

I really love this photo of my cousin and her dad, my uncle. I wish there were more days for him to have been with us, but moments like this one are cherished by everyone. I love this photo, definitely a fave.

This was a picture of the sunset at Mission Beach last weekend. I love sunsets on the beach in San Diego. Maybe more to come this weekend. Beautiful.

Reliving my childhood... Spice Girls. :]

From Here

Emily Giffin might replace, well, not replace, but join in line of the author who I will eventually end up reading all of their books. I loved Something Borrowed, I'm waiting for Something Blue to be ready for pick up so I've begun reading Baby Proof.

Nicholas Sparks

Jodi Picoult

Stephenie Meyer

J. K. Rowling

Emily Giffin

Soon I will be able to cross her off that list.

From Here

I need a big floppy hat, ASAP. I can not find one that I really, really like. I like the ones that I saw at H&M (not pictured above - which I should have but I don't want to edit this post) but I could not find the right color. Ugh. I want one SO BAD.

From Here

Why hello there, what could be better than the Backstreet Boys? Or what could be better than New Kids on the Block? Oh, that's right, THEM JOINING FORCES FOR NOT ONLY A TOUR BUT A CD! Okay, I'm sorry for yelling, but you should see the huge cheesy grin on my face. I love it. Love, love, love it. I had my Danny doll as a kid, which if I hadn't gotten him at like 4 years old I would have kept for a collector's item. Oh well. Swoon, NKOTB and BSB together. Big smile.

Found Here

Fruits and vegetables. Yum, I've been getting all my servings, and it feels and tastes good. All we have left are pears. I need more than pears!!

Found Here

Bruno Mars' Grenade. I love this song. Chris and I both love it. At first the song is all about being heartbroken, but then he gets angry. It is phenomenal. I love it. He's kinda cute too, but I have more of an affinity for the above mentioned NKOTB and BSB.

Found Here

This movie, Titanic, is on TV. I used to have the biggest crush on Leo. My friend from elementary school and I were obsessed. I had this framed photo and my mom stepped on it and broke the glass and my friend and I about went into shock. Anyway, it is on and it definitely makes me think of my childhood; oh and my mom covering my eyes during the sex scene.

Finally, a post with photos. I hope to take a solo adventure tomorrow and maybe have some photos, although I will be busy.

Gym

Make stick/post for Relay

Find rings for Flamingo toss at Relay

Pick up some candy for Relay

Clean the house