Books 'n Bars (October)

On October 26th we met for our fifth meeting of Books 'n Bars and it went great!

For those of you that are new (welcome, btw!) I crossed 'Start a book club' off from my bucket list this past summer and friends of mine, colleagues, class friends, and friends of friends have kept it going for almost six months now! I couldn't be happier and am so excited to see where it goes from here!

Since starting the club, I have received emails from authors (umm, wow!) and have discovered that there are WAY more readers than there are non-readers out there. We even had our first guy member join us a couple months ago! (I believe he is earning some major brownie points with his girlfriend ... ;) )

The books we have read so far are:

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
The Help
Secret Daughter
The Murderer's Daughters

The bars we have been to are:

Saints (in Beaverdale)
Tally's
Mullet's
High Life Lounge

Last month we read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides and met at Star Bar. Star Bar is the ultimate after work happy hour spot, located just west of downtown Des Moines on Ingersoll it's location is perfect for anyone working in the area. None of us work in the area, but that didn't stop us. Our goal is to check out a new bar each month, preferably a local bar.

We had great conversation about Middlesex and pretty much everyone had a different opinion. A couple of people loved it, a few were so-so, and most of us just didn't enjoy the content.

Middlesex is about a girl named Calliope that is a hermaphrodite. The first half of the book covers Calliope's family history and the incest that has created this abnormal gene that caused Calliope's condition. She doesn't know for sure that she is a hermaphrodite until very late in the book, when she finds out the truth her doctor wants to do surgery to complete her female organs but she doesn't want the surgery.

I wasn't a huge fan of the book, and struggled through most of it. The text is very dense and the description is over the top. Jeffrey Eugenides is a beautiful writer and I love the way he writes, I can see why he won a Pulitzer for it, but I felt several areas were over emphasized. I would have rather learned more about Callie as a girl, and then Cal as a boy. Instead, we learned more about the family history.

I didn't hate Middlesex. But, I didn't love it either. I'm glad I was able to finish it, but it's not a book I would recommend to others.

For November we are reading We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver and we're meeting at another downtown bar, this time at The Lift.

If you're in the area we would love to have you! We're meeting at 7:30 on Wednesday, November 30.

What books have you read lately? Do books that have won awards, such as the Pulitzer, make you want to read them?

Quick & Dirty.

• This week is going to be insane.

• I might not be around that much.

• That being said, I do have a few things lined up that were written in advance.

• I had a great time shopping in Minneapolis with my mom and sister.

• We hated the Sofitel hotel.

• We loved Ikea. (I still think it's a little bizarre though. Sorry.)
  

• My mom was introduced to sushi. And she liked it!

• She was also introduced to curry. She didn't like it. (We ate hers. Don't worry). ;)

• I didn't get any studying done (besides reading for children's lit. Which, let's face it, my trying to tell myself that that"studying" is just ridiculous. I still am though.)

• My mom and sister are now well aware of my addiction to Twitter. It's only a matter of time before they find my blog (and, that... sorta freaks me out).
  

• This week might kill me.
  

How was your weekend? Do you like Ikea, or do you think it's kind of bizarre too? What's your favorite hotel to stay at?

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Whoa, I haven't done a book review in a LONG time! I have been reading though... a lot! I've been reading so many books for children's lit and, no I am not complaining one bit about this! Most of the people in my class are early childhood or primary grades and I am one of the few upper elementary and middle school people so of course my books are all chapter books.

It's kind of cool how this class is set up, we read one book each week from a different genre and then we meet with the others that read it and basically have a book club discussion. I am loving it! It's been great practice for my actual book club and I think I'm getting better at facilitating the conversation (it's finally getting easier!). The first time we did the discussion in class one of the girls looks at me and goes, "Don't you have a book club? You can start the discussion!" Well, ok then. No problem. ;) Kind of caught me off guard, but I guess she heard me talking about it one day.

Earlier this semester I read A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle to satisfy the science fiction genre and I am officially in love with that book. I know I read it in elementary school (which is too young, if you ask me) and I didn't get anything out of it. In fact, I specifically remember a paper coming back from my teacher with the comment, "Did you even read this?" I remember, because I was mad. I was mad I got caught! Ha! I was too busy reading Sweet Valley Twins and Babysitters Club to worry about A Wrinkle in Time!

This book is about time travel and the basically the overall theme of good versus evil. There is so much going on in this book and so many themes you could talk about! It's hard to even know where to begin!

Twelve year old Meg, her brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin are trying to rescue Meg and Charles' father who has mysteriously disappeared after experimenting with the fifth dimension of time and is stuck in another world. Together the three of them visit these other dimensions and places that are completely different from earth. Through all of these travels, the main character Meg, figures out that it is okay to be different. Meg is struggling with wanting to be like everyone else and not be different at all. In Camazotz, the main planet they visit, everyone seems to operate from one mind. Everyone does the exact same thing, at the exact same time, in the exact same way. Meg finds out that life this way is no life at all.

Other interesting themes I enjoyed were the theme of love conquers all, the inessential need of words to communicate, and that one person cannot know everything.

My favorite quote comes from Meg's mother:

"Just because we don't understand doesn't mean an explanation does not exist."

(maybe I am a quote person after all!)

This book is a fantastic read that children and adults are sure to enjoy. It's a classic that I'm sure I will over and over again and that I hope will be in my curriculum someday.

Have you read A Wrinkle in Time? What are your thoughts?

Mottos to live by

I'm not a big quote person, I mean, I like them as much as the next person, but I don't have a book of them or anything.

I love to pull quotes out of books I'm reading (the ones you find on your own are the best!) but I almost always forget to write them down and have only just recently started starring them in the books I own.

When I was younger (and I mean, tween/teenager age) I was obsessed with the "If you love something set it free..." quote. You know which one I'm talking about, right? What fourteen year old didn't love that quote and think that whatever you "set free" was going to come back to you because it is "yours"? Yep, that was me. Oh, puberty and teenage dreams... Blech.

Lately, I haven't been thinking of quotes. I've been thinking about the mottos I tend to live my life by. There are several that I kind of repeat to myself over and over to get me through something "tough" but there are five that really stick out. So, today I am going to share those with you!

1. Fake it, till you make it.
I don't care who you are, everyone lives by this motto. Don't even try to deny it. To me, it's the equivalent to "sink or swim" and I never want to sink, so many many many times... I'm fakin' it.

2. What goes around comes around.
Karama, baby. I believe in it. 110%

3. Mind over matter.
I have repeated this to myself in so many cases (@missoakly, I'm looking at you) and it has gotten me out of many sticky situations. Let's back up... My junior year of high school my AP English teacher taught us The Secret. You know, the book, The Secret? It wasn't out at that time, but it's basically the same thing. The secret says, what you put out there, is what you get back. If you say you're going to get sick - guess what? You're gonna get sick! Don't say it, if you don't want it to happen. This phrase is also helpful on a particularly tough run or workout... just repeat, "mind over matter, mind over matter..." It works for me.

4. Be the best you can be.
This one came from my dad. Oh, and Abraham Lincoln. He said, "Whatever you are, be a good one." (It also came out of the book, American Wife, which is one of my top three favorite books of all time. Ofcourseyoualreadyknowthat). My dad always told us that whatever we were doing, whether it was scrubbing the floor or writing that term paper - do the best you possibly can.

5. Count your blessings.
It's too easy to get all down and all "woe is me...boo hoooo hoooo" But, let's face it, things can always be worse. Don't try to control what is out of your control.

Those are my top 5 mottos. What mottos do you live by? Do you have a favorite quote?

Photo source

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snooooooowwww....

Can you believe it's November? I really can't. This year has literally flown by... I'm excited for the holiday season, but c'mon, slow down already!

I spent a lot of time this month missing summer. Despite our unseasonably warm weather I couldn't help but feel a tiny pain every time I saw a boat behind a truck (I'm sure it was on it's way to being winterized, boohoo) or I slipped on sandals (my cherished reefs that are practically glued to my feet in the summer).

Summer is over though, and it's time to let go and embrace winter (yeah, I'm in denial. I know).

Yesterday we were scheduled to maybe have our first snow. Instead, we got cold drizzly rain ALL DAY. Even if it had snowed (which it still could overnight, this post is being written early) I'm sure it would melt right away. Due to that horrible forecast, I had one of the classes I taught do their writing prompt on what images come to their mind when they think of 'the first snow.'

(This is the kind of stuff I love. I literally do the writing prompt at the same time they do. Pretty sure they think I'm crazy)

But, aaaanyway. The first snow makes me think of ...

... Christmas coming soon...
....piping hot coffee or hot chocolate...
...cooking decadent, delicious food and indulging...
...bulky sweaters, leggings and boots....
...more boots...
...snowball fights...
...continuing the battle of convincing my friends ice skating is a GOOD idea...
...thick cozy socks...
...snuggling on the couch, preferably with a fire going (too bad I don't have a fireplace anymore :(
...candy canes and Christmas decorations...
...sparkly stuff...

Reading what the kids wrote made me smile. They took it seriously, and it seemed to make them happy. Which, made me happy. I'm with the same kids for the next two days (which, is so nice) and I'm looking forward to what else they write. :)

What does the first snow make you think of? If you live somewhere where there isn't snow - what do you think of when you think of snow? Have you ever seen it?

Photo source

Wordless Wednesday

Yesterday was 74 degrees and gorgeous...



Today, they're forecasting snow...

Oh, Iowa...

Ten on Tuesday

It's been awhile for Ten on Tuesday! As always, thank you Chelsea for hosting! These questions are pretty random, just like I like 'em! :)

Be sure to hop on over to Emily's blog today, where I guest posted what an average day is like for me!

1. What is your favorite month?
This is a tough one... I cannot choose between June and December. I love June b/c it's the first month we usually start heading to the lake for weekend trips and summer is just starting... but, then I love December too because it's Christmas season and everyone is happy and singing Christmas carols...

2. What is the best candy to get while trick or treating?
I always loved peanut butter cups... and Almond Joys.... and licorice... (I like candy. A lot.)

3. What kind of pen do you use?
I don't have a certain kind... I'm a fan of "free" promotional pens. ;)

4. You go to a new Italian restaurant, what is your go-to order?
Chicken parmesan or toasted ravioli

5. If you could choose to have any celebrity’s hair, who’s would you choose?
Anna Kournakova.... I have been lusting after it since she started The Biggest Loser. So pretty!

6. What’s your favorite board game?
Sorry! My sister and I used to get into major fights over that game. (it probably included one of us bumping each others game piece across the floor and shrieking SORRY! Haaa!)

7. Do you know how to play poker?
Yep. But, I have a TERRIBLE poker face. You can read every single emotion on my face.

8. What do you think about Old Navy commercials?
I think they're dumb... and they're getting dumber. The jiggle one?? Come on.

9. What hurts worse- a stubbed toe or a paper cut?
Oh, definitely a stubbed toe! OUUUCCH!

10. What’s your favorite kind of pie?
Peach pie. Preferably my grandmother's peach pie. YUUUMMMMM.....

Do you have a good poker face? Do you enjoy card games?