Bookishly Boisterous

Dildos, Guns, Periods, Yosemite, and Facebook Liars

I generally don't watch a lot of videos online, but there have been some great ones in the past few days that I thought I'd share:

Gun safety and dildos:

Don't lie about your period:

Yosemite is the best place in the world:

Facebook posts are lies:

Books on Your Back- Getting Handy

Out of Print recently introduced their sci-fi line and while I don't read a lot in this genre, this one of course caught my eye:

[$28]

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

[see #10; too bad the 91 freeway is on the other side]

Link up below!

1. Have you read this article about pediatricians recommending reading time to parents from now on? I think it's a bit of a given, but I love that it's official. I try to read to Sawyer everyday, although I am getting a bit tired of our small collection of children's books. One can only read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom so many times...

2. I just completed the fifth run in the C25K (Couch to 5k) program and am loving it so far. The workouts go by super fast and I can already feel myself improving.

3. Whenever I see my friends slacking on their Fit Bit steps I'm immediately concerned that they're sick or that they've lost their precious little piece of technological accountability. By the way, I think everyone I should know should have one so that we can compete and I can work hard to be the best.

4. I finished The Book Thief- good, but maybe not life-changing great. The last two hundred pages did pick up a bit, though.

5. While talking to my husband about what sort of things I do and do not like about history we came to the conclusion that, in his words, I "like criminals." See also: Che Guevera, the mafia, communism, Castro, Watergate, Black Panthers, Prohibition, and Mussolini. I prefer the term "revolutionaries." Si se puede. Fight the power. Down with The Man.

6. I'm currently reading How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Amid and am loving it so far.

7. I'm sorry, but I don't care about the Mockingjay trailer. I love Jennifer Lawrence but still could care less.

8. My mom and sister are coming into town this weekend and I couldn't be more excited. My mom is so great with the baby and I think we're all heading to the beach on Monday. Sawyer is trying to decide between stand-up paddle boarding and surfing.

9. I'm off to get frozen yogurt with two of my favorite students, so that's it for now. Apparently I'm best friends with an eighteen year old now. Totally normal.

10. We went to a big park twenty minutes away last Friday and the baby fell asleep. I, on the other hand, loved it. We will be doing this once a week for the rest of the summer!

Things I Refuse to Feel Guilty About

[Nope. Not going to either]

1. Honking at people. The asshole deserved it.

2. Occasionally shelling out $20 on Smashbox lipgloss.

3. Wanting what other people have. Land Rovers. Awesome patio furniture. Nice feet. Inner peace.

4. Deeply caring about how much I weigh. I've weighed myself almost daily since college, not that I necessarily do anything about it. I'm a stats-driven person.

5. Desperately wanting a housekeeper to come just once, to deep clean. Just once, that's all.

6. Giving my baby a few ounces of formula throughout the day. He's primarily breast milk-fed but sometimes needs a little more. I refuse to let him starve, he's on the smaller side anyway.

7. Drinking, and loving, Diet Coke.

8. Thinking that Patrick Stewart is hot.

9. Throwing clothes in the dryer with a damn towel rather that ironing. Truth be told, I suck balls at it.

10. Supporting various welfare programs but thinking drug testing should be required. I know it's very Republican of me (shudder), but I think it should happen. Those that use, especially parents, should receive assistance with rehab, though.

11. Generally not changing grades. You have to earn it. And no, crying won't help.

12. Refusing to partake in organized religion but praying when necessary. Yes, I'm one of those people. I guess I use God.

13. Not baptizing Sawyer. Speaking of religion... My mom's family is quite Catholic, so I've been asked about this a few times.

14. Liking Facebook. Educated, cultured grown-ups aren't supposed to support such a ridiculous habit, but I don't care. It helps me get in touch with people and is entertaining.

15. De-friending or blocking people on Facebook. If I wouldn't wish you happy birthday I'm cutting you out. If you're a family member that's annoying as shit but would notice if I de-friended you and would ask my mom I'm blocking you.

16. Liking Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

17. Not being impressed with popular books. Even those that are liked by the literate crowd.

18. Not allowing things to get in the way of enjoying my time off with my baby.

19. Caring and worrying about money. And wanting more of it, please.

20. Still listening to The Backstreet Boys, Sir-Mix-a-Lot, and Britney when I exercise. And possibly when I drive too...

What about you?

Scrabble Loving

My love of word games goes back to childhood when I'd watch, and soon join, my grandparents play Upwords (think Scrabble but with the option to build up) every night either before, or after, dinner. They lived six hours away from us so it was only during visits that I experienced this, but boy is it one of those engraved childhood memories. My grandma kept score and would annotate each game with a happy or sad face, depending on how she did. My grandpa would slyly help us when we were stumped when we were super young, and the dictionary they lugged around in their camper trailer was massive. They never turned us down when we wanted to play, which was probably as young as six (although I'm sure they purposefully started lots of games when they knew we were busy, not that I can blame them). As I entered high school I was a definite contender and actually started winning games, which felt pretty great after losing for years. Unfortunately, after decades of playing together my grandparents are unable to still do so, due to my grandma's worsening dementia (which is sadly ironic, given the fact that word games are supposed to help combat cognitive deterioration).

Over the years I've coerced people into playing Upwords and Scrabble with me, but I haven't been able to play nearly as much as I would like to. I recently downloaded the Scrabble app on my phone to play while feeding the baby and I have to say that it's required significant effort to not become addicted. In the past I've played lots of other word games, but nothing beats the simplicity of Scrabble. The only thing missing from the word game itself are the little wooden tiles that I for some reason adore. So much so that I've spent some time perusing the Internet for various things you can buy... here's a look: