Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up below! I love seeing my blogging "friends" and new people participate! 

1. I seriously don't understand why the Newtown 911 tapes, or any for that matter, needed to be released. People call 911 in moments of terrible panic- why does that personal moment need to be publicized?

2. My sister-in-law got me this necklace for my birthday (oh, and the cake ended up being a simple chocolate devil's food with the best peanut butter frosting ever, both from scratch):

[I wore it with my typewriter shirt- can you get any dorkier?]

3. I sat down a few days ago and made a list of posts for the month, instead of just posting haphazardly like normal. I felt so organized. Plus I have a feeling I forget a lot of post ideas, so hopefully having a place to put them from now on will help with the content in terms of quality and quantity. 

4. Thanksgiving for 21 at my house went fine- no one was late, everyone brought what the said they would, nothing was spilled on the carpet (this is a serious, legitimate fear that I have whenever people eat at my house... I ran around after my grandma trying to take her cup and put it back on the counter, WHERE IT BELONGED!!!!), and nothing was broken. This is the second year we've done it and I'm on the fence about whether or not it will be our last- it's great to not have to decide where to go or to travel, but it's not exactly cheap and does require a lot of cleaning and prep work.



5. I've been back at yoga now at least once a week for a bit, and I must say it is so very humbling to practice as a pregnant person. There's a lot I have to modify (the classes I go to are really tough- they're not the kind where you sit there, gently stretch, and say "omm" occasionally, but instead the  kind where you sweat buckets, are constantly moving, and wake up sore the next day), and it's incredibly frustrating. I always shot for the tougher moves and I worked hard over the summer on my headstands, which are no longer allowed. I'm trying to work through the frustration, though, knowing if I quit going back after the baby is born will be that much harder (in terms of motivation and ability).

6. I'm excited that my stupid time-suck Christmas wreath is done and I can refocus my free time on reading. I'm a few books shy of my goal of 61 this year and want to get back on track by reading short books that fly by quickly.

7. One of my students found out that she won the prestigious Questbridge scholarship for Stanford, meaning she has a free ride for the next four years. She is incredibly smart and deserving (and a female wrestler!) and I know that it will be put to good use. And as selfish as it sounds, it makes the hours and hours I spend writing letters of recommendation worth it. 

8. I've ordered a few things of Etsy before and have had absolutely no issues, but recently had a bit of a problem with a shop. I ordered a beautiful print and it was supposed to ship on a certain day (and I was charged). A week went by. I contacted the shop owner and heard nothing. Five days went by. I contacted her again. Still, nothing. Two days went by and I contacted her again. Nada. I opened a case with Etsy and still wasn't acknowledged by the woman. I finally had the bright idea of digging around and found her Facebook page- I wrote a polite, but direct, post on her wall and BOOM! I had a response in two hours. Hopefully the issue is resolved now, but we'll see....

9. My husband discovered last night that when I check my AOL email (I think we've talked about this- I've had it forever plus I truly believe it's a totally retro move) through the actual AOL site. The laughter that ensued... yeah. Apparently I'm supposed to use the mail program on my MacBook? No one ever told me that! Whatever. Someday it will be cool again, just like turn tables and flannel.



10. I'm listening to Gone Girl on audiobook right now while I walk and I am so very thankful I didn't actually read it. The story is semi-interesting, but the writing is definitely not impressive.


Christmas Projects #3: Garland


My last little Christmas Project was a simple green garland intertwined with burlap and red ribbon cinched (or something) together with string. It was pretty simple once I was able to deal with the measurements of my banister (which I hate and want to redo, but that's neither here nor there) and make the always painful trek to Michael's... twice. I'm over it, so let's proceed.

Materials
18-ish feet of ribbon
18-ish feet of burlap (after it was spliced)
15-ish feet of greenery (3 standard cheap packs from Michael's)
Heavy duty needle
Heavy duty string

Directions
1. The burlap that I bought was too wide, so I spliced it down the middle. I also cut enough string to go up one side of the bannister twice, just to be safe. 

[does this not look like DNA transcription?]

2. This is hard to articulate, but the best way I can describe it is that I made several folds of equal size (every two inches) to create a sort of cinched gather. I then stuck the need through the bunch (four major folds was as thick as I could shove the needle through).



3. Repeat many, many times, pulling the sewn burlap and ribbon out so it's not too bunched up (unless that's how you want it; then you'd need more). 



4. The best way to see if it's ready is to just test it out- I did this a few times on the first try especially. 



5. When you have your desired length, twist it with your greenery and secure the ends. Repeat if you have another bannister to deal with.



6. If you don't want to deal with the sewing/gathering part, just twist the burlap, ribbon, and greenery together. In retrospect I wish I would have done this just to save time and preserve my patience... 

[shitty pictures... sorry]

Gifts for Bookish People

A few fun gifts for the bookish people in your life (click prices for links):

Library Letters

[$20/letter- I bought 2 and love them!]
A Bookish Print

[$19 for 10 x7]
 Audible Gift Card


 Botticino Book Coasters

[$40/4]
 Harry Potter Stamps 

[$9.20/20 stamps]
 Kate Spade Card Catalog Bag

[$228]

Custom Made Notebooks
[$19]
A Bookish T-Shirt
 
[$24]
Bookish Jewelry
 
[$42]
Awesome Bookends
[$53.54]

Book Book iPhone or Laptop Case

[$59]
 

2013 Holiday Gift Guide

Hands down, books are my favorite gifts to both give and receive, but I am of course a bit partial. If you receive a book from me you can rest assured that there was some legitimate thought put into the gift-selecting process.

Here are a few ideas for those on your list that may not be as steadfast in their reading- in a few days I'll do a post for ideas for the more bookish folks. 

In full disclosure, I haven't read all of these, but I've done my homework. Trust me

For the Animal Lover


The Art of Driving in the Rain by Garth Stein

How to Tell if Your Cat is Trying to Kill You by The Oatmeal
 
For the Biography Fan


Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones

Tune In: The Beatles: All These Years by Mark Lewisohn

For Kids

 Mouseton Abbey by Nick Page

The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

For the Cook

The Mac + Cheese Cookbook by Allison Arevalo

 Pizza Dough: 100 Delicious, Unexpected Recipes by Gabi Moskowitz

For the Traveler


Where'd You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple

Walden on Wheels by Ken Ilgunas 

For the Recently Retired


 The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

November Reviews- So Sad

I only read two books in November- I blame the wreath and my students, since I've had to be in letter of rec/personal statement overdrive this month. Nonetheless, they were two good ones and I'm sure now that things are settling down December will be much more impressive.

Orange is the New Black
Piper Kerman
327 pages
I wrote a nonfiction nagging post on this book here.

Verdict: If you are a fan of the show you definitely should read this memoir- her time in prison was much, much different from than show.

The Bell Jar
Sylvia Plath
288 pages
I'm sure most of you have read this memoir-in-disguise-as-a-novel by Plath, so I'll spare you the lengthy synopsis. Basically, it tells the story of Esther Greenwood's emotional breakdown one summer, ending up in her electric shock therapy sessions at a mental institution. The writing is simplistic, but the themes of depression, growing up, and mental health are not.

Verdict: If you're a fan of Plath's poetry or are studying her it's definitely a must. I thought it was a quick, interesting read that shed some light on her psyche and the mental health care system during that time period.
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