Book Ratings

I’m not sure if many of you keep up with what I’m reading (partly because I don’t discuss it often, or do reviews), but as I was laying in bed last night, I had a good idea.  I was so tired (went out to ANOTHER movie…I’ve seen almost everything that’s out at this point.  We saw “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark”, and it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be.  It was an okay movie; not a huge fan of Katie Holmes.) that I didn’t come on and do it last night, but I’m going to start doing ratings on the books that I’ve read.  I’m not great at reviews, but I am good at saying whether a book is good enough to check out from the library, or even to buy, and when to not waste your time or money on one.

Since moving into the dorm, I’ve been reading a lot more than I did this summer.  I have no T.V. in the room, and I can only do so much on the computer before I hit my bandwidth cap.  So I read.  I’ve finished about 4 books since moving into my room, and I’m going to start with those books for ratings.  If you’d like me to rate any of the other books I’ve read, leave me a comment asking me to do so.  The reason I’m starting with the ones I’ve recently finished is because they’re still pretty fresh in my head.  I’m giving them ratings of hearts; 5 hearts is the best, 1 heart is the worst.  Or you can think of it in terms of grades; 1 heart is an F, 5 hearts is an A.

If you want to see the ratings of books I’ve just finished, click HERE.  (Any other time you’d like to go, hover over “Books” and click on “2011”.)

Also, I was thinking about doing some vlogs (video blogs) because I’ve been so bad with writing lately, and things are going to get busy once school starts up, so I won’t have a whole lot of time to sit down and write out posts.  Is there any interest in vlogs posted here?  Let me know what you think about them.  Would you be interested in watching little 5 minute videos updating you with what I’m doing, what I’m reading, and other things?

Boxes!

I ordered books and yarn about a week ago, and after anxiously waiting, I got both boxes all at one time today.

I got 5 books and yarn for my first hat order.

(You may notice the Kathleen E. Woodiwiss stuck in there… :) )

Hooray for mail!

Class

Class has been going well for me; I’m enjoying all four of them, and I’m happy to say that I got into the one I was trying hard to be in (which is Physical Anthropology).

I had a funny thing happen to me yesterday.  I woke up early, did my questions, and then headed off to check the mail to see if my books had come in.  When I got there (it was about 11:15 at this point), there was nothing in my box, so I left, intending to go to Ted’s to check my schedule, and then come back to the mail room because deliveries are usually made at noon.

When I got to Ted’s, I headed back to the board where everything is posted, and looked for my name.  Under “Tuesday, January 4th” it said: “Server Assistant: 11:30-2:00”.  I was supposed to be at work right then (it was about 11:25).  I went looking for the manager, and told him that I didn’t know I had work, and I was going to run back to my dorm and put on my work clothes, then come back.

I made it back at about 11:40, and after I finished seating the guests that were waiting, doing an open menu count, and collecting menus, I went back to get a drink of water because I was dying of thirst.  The first thing I did was spill it all down my front.

After all that, the rest of the day was pretty slow.  When I got off work, Kyle and I checked my mail (my books had come in), and then ate.  At 4, I left for the class I was wait-listed on (Physical Anthropology) and waited nervously for the teacher to tell me that I was in.  That class was let out early, and I headed to dinner, with just enough time left to grab my bag and walk to my next class (at 6:30 p.m.).

At the end of the day, I was beyond exhausted.  Kyle and I did some latin homework, and then I went to bed.

Only to find that my sleep schedule for all of break (get to bed at about 12 and wake up at 8ish) prevented me from going to sleep right away.  So I dug under my bed in my book box.  The box holds all of the books I’ve acquired since I’ve moved here (and two I brought from home), and I’ve read none of them.  (I also just ordered some books from Barnes and Noble, but I’ve read two of the four I ordered.  I just wanted to own them.)

I grabbed “Fair is the Rose“, a story set in Scotland, and settled in to read it.  I was immediately immersed in the story, and ended up not going to bed until about 1.

Tonight, I’m going to try a lot harder to get to bed early.

I have another goal for this year: I want to finish reading all of the books I bought that are in the book box.  Another goal for January and February: Start (and finish) “The Clan of the Cave Bear” series before I get the new one shipped to me.

Well, I’m off to do class reading for Mythology, and then go to class.  The rest of the day is going to be spent taking money to the bank, making a few payments, going to the candy store (Kyle told me that it was time to go there), maybe going to the library, and hopefully reading and going to bed early.

A pretty picture of the book I’m reading, and my plants (one of which, the rose in the bowl, is not doing so good).

(P.S. I just noticed the flowers in the picture…along with the book of the same name. “Fair is the Rose” sitting by roses.)

More Books

I’ve written about the number of books I have collected since I’ve moved away from home, and for Christmas, I got three more.

I got “Jane Eyre” (which I’m reading now), “Pride and Prejudice” and “Grimm’s Complete Fairy Tales”.  I showed you “Arabian Nights”, which I got for my birthday, and “Grimm’s Complete Fairy Tales” (to be known as GCFT from here on out) is from the same collection.  Both books have gorgeous illustrations, pages tipped with gold, and a ribbon bookmark.

GCFT had me in awe the minute I opened it.  The picture that is on the inside cover looks like this:

I’ve always wanted to read Grimm’s versions of the fairy tales that I know and love, and having an awesome hardcover will get me reading them.

And there are a TON of stories in here.  This is the first page of the Table of Contents:

These are the 2nd and 3rd:

These are the 4th and 5th:

And here’s the last page:

The front cover is a picture of Rapunzel wrapped in her hair:

I also got another book for Christmas, although I won’t get it until March.  I’ve talked about it a million different times.  It’s Jean M. Auel’s “The Land of Painted Caves”!  It was pre-ordered for me for Christmas, and it’ll ship within days of it’s publication.  I’m anxiously awaiting it’s arrival, and after I get some knitting done, and read some of the books that I already have, it’ll be here and I can enjoy the end of the series!  My goal is to read the first ones (again) to get ready for it to be here.

By the way, all the photos in this post were taken with another Christmas gift I got: a Sony Bloggie video camera.  Kyle got it for me, and I’ve been using it for everything…I actually made a video a few days ago showing some of my Christmas gifts.

Now I need to go and get Kyle’s Christmas gift made.  I spent so much time on Annette’s gift that I didn’t get time to even start his.

Chegg vs. Bookrenter

Yesterday, I was checking out my schedule for winter term (my college has three trimesters instead of semesters.  We study the same amount as in a semester, but with trimesters, we don’t have as many classes per term, and can take more classes during the year.) and with my schedule, the books that came along with each class.

Winter term is my fullest term with 12 credits (that’s the max amount you can take without paying extra for an “overload”).  My classes are Latin 102, Archaeology, Classical Mythology and Physical Anthropology (I’m on the wait-list for this one, but I still have to buy books and show up to class).  I’m so excited because all of the classes study what I love, and I get a double dose of my two favorite professors; Dr. Fontana with my Archaeology/Physical Anthro and Dr. DeBrauw with Latin and Mythology.  I have two teachers for all term, which is awesome.

Now, the thing that’s not awesome is the price of these books.

I already have the Latin book because I knew I needed it for all the other latin classes, so I just bought it.  But I also need a few others.  All the other books I rented.  Here’s a rundown of the books I need, and the dent they’ll make in my bank account:

Archaeology: “Images of the Past” – $122.25 (Buying new is the only option from the bookstore)

Classical Mythology: “Classical Myth” – $72.25 (Used)

Physical Anthropology: “Intro to Physical Anthropology” – $102.75 (Used)

Latin 102: “Auricula Meretricula” – $9.75 (Used) and “Scribblers, Sculptors, & Scribes” – $17.99 (New)

So, if I bought (because with these books, there is no option to rent) everything from the bookstore, my grand total for this term would be $324.99.

Now, if you’ve been reading this blog for awhile, you know that I don’t have anywhere NEAR that kind of money.  But this last term, I didn’t get everything from the bookstore.  I think I ended up renting two books from there because the price online wasn’t any cheaper and if I ordered from the bookstore, I didn’t pay shipping.  I mostly got my books from Chegg.  I found out about this site through Facebook, and went to see how much cheaper books were from there.  Turns out they’re A LOT cheaper.  And Chegg plants a tree for every book you order.  No shipping costs, and they’re free to ship back as well.  Let’s look at a rundown of renting (so I won’t have a bunch of books lying around) my books from there:

Archaeology: “Images of the Past” – $51.49 (rent)

Classical Mythology: “Classical Myth” – $40.49 (rent)

Physical Anthropology: “Intro to Physical Anthropology” – $49.49 (rent)

Latin 102: “Auricula Meretricula” – $12.80 (Buy new, $12.95 new at bookstore) and “Scribblers, Sculptors, & Scribes” – $15.79 (Buy new)

Total for renting/buying books from Chegg: $170.06. (I don’t have that kind of money in my bank account, either, but after my next paycheck I will.)  I save $154.93 just switching places.  Because I have so long to get the books, I might order from other places too.  I’m not done shopping around, but I thought I would bring it to your attention that Chegg is better at saving you money.

*Edited to add:

I found another rental place online: Bookrenter that’s even cheaper to rent books.  In most cases, to rent a book is about $5 cheaper than chegg.  Free shipping both ways (same as chegg), and instead of planting trees (which I love because books are trees), Bookrenter makes a book donation to First Book (which gives books to kids).  In some cases, my rental is $10 cheaper.  I’m doing further research, but I think I may have found my rental place.

Check Bookrenter out :) (Use this link and get 5% off your rental…It’s worth it.)

Tuesday Questions III

So I stayed up until about 2  a.m. reading.  I was reading “Heartless” by Anne Elisabeth Stengl, and I seriously could not make myself put the book down.  I kept telling myself, “One more chapter and then you’ll go to bed.”  But before long, I was more than 200 pages through, and I was exhausted from my day.  I stopped reading in the middle of a chapter and fell asleep.  It feels so good to have a book that holds me, and that I’ll actually finish.  The other one I was reading wasn’t holding me.  I looked ahead, and at about page 300 it looked really good, but I wasn’t even halfway there and I wasn’t going to make myself read.  I usually do, no matter how much I dislike the book, I will see it through, but not this one.  I should make a list dedicated to all the poor, good books that I never finished.  It would probably be longer than my list of read books since I’ve been in college.

This book is a faerie tale, with dragons, kings, castles, and a princess in trouble, and I love it.  It makes me feel so young again to read it.  I’m not the best at doing reviews, so you probably won’t see one from me (I always give away too much information), but you can find a ton on Google.

On to my questions:

1. Mood: I’m completely drained.  Staying up late when I got up so early yesterday was not a good idea.  There was too much going on yesterday, with my final and switching rooms, and let’s just say I’m glad to be almost done with school at this point.
2. Current nail polish: I actually put nail polish on last night.  I was tired of the look of my bare nails (which had just a clear coat on), so I coated them with “Midnight in Moscow“.  It’s a gorgeous plum brown with a pretty gold shimmer to it.
3. Any big plans today/this week? Today I have my anthropology final at 3:30, and then after that, I’m going to start working on my Latin project that’s due tomorrow morning.  I seriously haven’t even looked at this stuff yet.  Anthropology is an open book test, so that’ll be fine, and Latin should be easy enough.  This week is a pretty big week.  On Wednesday, after finals are done, I’m getting all packed up to go to Kyle’s grandparent’s house for Thanksgiving.  We’re spending a few days there and then I have work all day Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
4. If you celebrate Thanksgiving this week, what is your favorite dish at dinner? If you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, what is your favorite holiday dish in general? I love mixing bits of turkey, corn, and mashed potatoes together, with gravy on top.  In my opinion, it’s the best thing about Thanksgiving!
5. Current outfit: White tank top and red NCC pants.
6. What is your favorite holiday movie? I love the Santa Claus movies.  Thanksgiving is that weird time where Christmas is so close, yet so far away, and the perfect time to cuddle with your love and watch Christmas movies.  My love just ordered me “Beauty and the Beast” Diamond Edition, and I plan on some serious cuddle time while watching that since I’ve been on such a Disney kick lately.
7. Ugg boots: yay or nay? I have never own a pair, nor worn a pair, so I’m going to stay neutral.  I am going to say NAY to to girls who wear them with tights and skirts though.  The point is to stay warm, right?
8. Have you/do you plan on seeing the new Harry Potter movie? I saw it on Friday, and I liked it a lot.  I really wish it would have been just one whole long movie, cause I would have gone (and I think everyone else would have too).  I can’t wait for the next part to come out.
9. If you could switch bodies with one person for a day, who would it be? This is a tough one, but I’m going to say someone who’s working with children somewhere else in the world.  I think it would be really cool to be a doctor and head out all over the world to help women give birth, help malnourished babies, and save lives.
10. Weekly goals: Get through the rest of my finals, don’t forget to pack anything (since the dorms will be locked to us), have a wonderful Thanksgiving with Kyle’s family, add some more to the ten pounds I’ve gained already since moving here, and get through work without making mistakes.

Copy and Paste your questions in a comment :)

1.) Mood: 

2.) Current nail polish:

3.) Any big plans today/this week?

4.) If you celebrate Thanksgiving this week, what is your favorite dish at dinner? If you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, what is your favorite holiday dish in general?

5.) Current outfit:

6.) What is your favorite holiday movie?

7.) Ugg boots: yay or nay?

8.) Have you/do you plan on seeing the new Harry Potter movie?

9.) If you could switch bodies with one person for a day, who would it be?

10.) Weekly goals:

To Catch Up..

So let’s start with Halloween.

You saw some of it, but here’s more.  We trick or treated for about an hour, but all of the neighborhoods were empty (which was weird because it was still pretty early when we went out).

On the day before my birthday (the day after Halloween), Kyle’s mom ended up getting me some clothes for my job interview (more about that later), and a gift card to downtown.  I made homemade vegetable soup like I used to  make at home, and Kyle’s brother made cheesecake.  The cheesecake was supposed to be chilled for 5 hours.  We didn’t want to wait until 2 am to eat it, so we had some slightly runny cheesecake; either way it was good.  Kyle’s youngest brother Scott drew me a picture (of a hyena!), that I hung right next to my bed.

The next day, which was my actual birthday, I dissected a pig fetus at 10 a.m. for Biology, and at 2.30 went to a job interview. (Yes, I showered in between.  I smelled awful.)

I got the job!

I also got some nail polishes and mascaras with my gift card from Ulta.

A couple of days later, I tried my hand at covering my tattoo, because my job requires that no tattoos are visible (and you know that I have one on each wrist).

Then on Friday, Kyle and I went to dinner with his dad and his dad’s girlfriend.  I got a book, and a set of travel MAC brushes.  (And I tried deep dish pizza, which I’m not really that fond of.)

I got this super soft blanket (among other things, I’m too tired to put everything back together to photograph) from my aunt Stacia.

Then, with the gift card, I got this from Barnes and Noble:

Christmas presents probably. :)

Then before my birthday week even started, I forgot to mention that Kyle bought me another book, one that I had been wanting to read for so long, but never had time to pick it up from the Hulett library.  It’s “The Rose Labyrinth“.  It was on the bargain table for $5.95, and he told me I could pick out any book for under $10.  It’s hardcover and I can’t wait to read it!

And then yesterday, Kyle took me to the mall to find some black pants for my job (I did get pants from Annette but they have gray in them, and I can only wear flat black.).  I got a pencil skirt, and some black pants (and tights, because I can’t have bare legs).  We stopped at Target and picked up some food, and I also picked up some more of the best face wipes ever (which was good, because when we got back, I used the last one from my first pack).

Now, I have reading to do, a paper to do, and I have a test (which is tomorrow) to study for.

Also, don’t forget to enter my giveaway!  It ends in 8 days, and I wouldn’t want you to miss out on free jewelry for the holidays! I pick the winner on Monday the 15th at 11 am Chicago time (so if you get in before that, while I’m in class, you still count).

The Zoo (and Books)

As you might know, yesterday was spent at the zoo.  Only on the ride over was I obsessing over my Ebay on my phone.

It was a very warm fall day, but cool enough that I needed a sweatshirt (I also put shorts on, which was, apparently, tempting fate).

We had a very nice day, and I only complained a few times (about my shoes; I wore my Converse, and they are so worn out that little crunchy leaves got inside from the bottom).  I took a ton of pictures, but I need new batteries for my camera.  I brought three sets, and ended up wearing every single one out.  I didn’t even get a picture of the zebras.  (Or I just need a new camera…)

We also ate zoo food, which was awful.  I got chicken nuggets (10 for $10), and they were McDonald’s quality.  They were greasy, and I came out of the restaurant feeling worse than when we went in.

My internet is slow today, because I was up until midnight watching videos on YouTube (I’m only allowed 750 MB every 24 hours, according to college rules.  When I go over, they bump my speed down), so I’m not going to put photos up of the animals.  I will say, however, that I got quite a few good ones.

And then, when we got home from the zoo, we went to Goodwill to search for clothes for our Halloween idea (Marla Singer and Tyler Durden from “Fight Club”).  I found the perfect dress: (it’s supposed to be ugly, but the more I look at it, the more I love it.  The color is awful though.)

and also got some books for my book stash, which is growing larger and larger by the day.  Who knows when I’m going to have time to read all of them.

I got “Fair is the Rose“, “Plainsong“, “The Scar” (which sounds soo good), and one that I’ve been wanting for awhile, “The Time Traveler’s Wife“.  They were all $0.89 except for “Plainsong”, which is hardcover, and that was $1.79.  I love cheap books.

Speaking of books, I picked up The Yarn Harlot’s books at the library.  I’ve finished “Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter” (it took me a night) and look forward to finishing the others as well.  I also got the book I put on hold; “Lolita“, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “Strange Pilgrims” (a collection of short stories) for the story, “The Trail of Your Blood in the Snow“.

Since we’re talking about reading, I’m happy to say that I’m more than half way through “God’s Concubine”, and I love it.

I have a lot of reading to do, because Kyle’s mom also gave me a few books; “Pushing The Bear“, “We Are All Welcome Here“, and “The Shadow of the Wind“, which the review calls a “dream date for those who love books”.  And then from home, I brought Candace Bushnell’s “One Fifth Avenue“, the book I bought in the Florida airport, “The Botticelli Secret“, which has a bookmark in it from when I started, and I still haven’t finished “Scar Tissue“.  I’ve pretty much completely removed that book from my mind, even though I want to get through it.

Wow.  Look at all the books I want need to read.

(Notice “The Clan of the Cave Bear” stuck in there…Probably won’t get to that before it’s due back at the library.)

And one more thing; the Halloween giveaway has been moved to become a Christmas giveaway. :)

This is Going to Happen

I’m going to do this. I’m going to do this.   I’m going to do this. I’m going to do this.  I’m going to do this.

Maybe if I keep saying that over and over to myself, I’ll blog every day like I’ve been meaning to do.

This will be a short one, kind of like using training wheels so I can get used to this blogging thing.

I have a job interview at 5, I have a lab and a worksheet on science due tomorrow.  The interview is about 2 hours long, and I’ve already scoped the house out with the help of Kyle.  It looks nice.  It’s huge.

I had a different interview a few days ago.  I think it went well, but I haven’t gotten a phone call back yet.  I hope I do.  I need money.

I keep telling myself to take more pictures, and today I took two of my dorm room.  The bed is rumpled, because I had to get up to get to class at 8, and I let Kyle sleep in.  I took one of my desk, which is piled high with everything from a fan to a bottle of sand.  (It’s my goal sand.)

The amount of time I spend sitting at my computer, eating stuff out of my food drawer, is larger than the amount of time I: blog, take photos, attend class.

Salem got a home.  He’s happy, the family is happy, I’m happy.  (His name is now Faolan, which means wolf in Gaelic.)

I’m still reading.  (Right now it’s Kathleen Woodiwiss, but I wanted something fast and easy.)

Where Salem Might Find a New Home…

Today might be the day that I find a new owner for Salem.  Here’s how it happened:

When I went to the ranch yesterday for work, I realized that people I’ve met before are there for a few days to visit and help out.  They usually hunt there in November (or whenever deer season is), so I wasn’t expecting to see them.  Well, last night, Beth and Sam went out to a play, and Pat went out to work on the tractor and wouldn’t be back until late; therefore, I was in charge of dinner.  When the guys came in (Dick is the grandpa, Jake is the 14-year-old grandson) and sat down to eat, the fact that I had to get rid of Salem slipped out of my mouth when I was talking about leaving for college.  Jake was suddenly interested.  He asked the usual questions; What’s his name?  How old is he?  When was he born?  Is he still wild like a puppy?  Has he been around guns? (they’re hunters, I expected that one).  Finally, when dinner was drawing to a close, I told Jake that I would bring Salem up to the ranch so he could see if he liked him.  He agreed.

When I left, Jake was on the phone with his parents asking for a dog.  I don’t know how it went, but I know that he has a chocolate Lab already, but she’s getting really old and he wants a younger dog that he can train to hunt with him.  Salem is definitely his dog.  He loves to swim, he’s pretty good at bringing things back to you, and he’s been around guns before, and he doesn’t shake and hide.  He’s pretty much bred to hunt.  And he’s healthy.

So, in a few hours, I’m headed up to the ranch to see if Jake wants to have him.  Then I’m taking Salem back home, then going back up to the ranch to work for the rest of the day, and get paid!  My car is going to be paid off, and I’ll have my half of the tickets to Naperville paid off with this check.

Tonight, I’m leaving for April’s because I’m helping her for the week.  Then on the weekend, I’m back at the ranch, helping on Monday too, and then I wait a week to get on a plane and fly to Naperville for college orientation.  The rest of this month is crazy, and next month is going to be just as crazy.  I get back on the 18th of August, and the next morning, I’m going to drive down to my sister’s to help with the baby (and I hope I get to be there when he’s born, although I may miss it) for a week or so, and then I have to leave again for college.

While down in Naperville this time around, I’m gonna stop in at Anderson’s, and see if I can get a job application.  Anderson’s is a family-owned bookstore that I’m really excited to go to.  I’m even more excited by the prospect of working there.  If I got a employee discount, I would be buying books like there’s no tomorrow.

One can never have too many books.