So here is the first shelf!

1. The first books in the shelf are the Jessica Darling Series. I have all five but have only read the first three. The first two books are the ones that mean the most to me. I remember staying up reading them in to the night. This is the case with most of the books that I keep. The third book I had a little trouble reading and so I just never got around to reading the last two. I will though one of these days.
2. The next few books are my Jennifer Weiner collection. I have Little Earthquakes, Goodnight Nobody, Best Friends Forever in hardback. Then I have Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, The Guy Not Taken, Certain Girls, and Flyaway Home in paperback. I haven’t read Flyaway Home  yet. I usually wait for her books to come out in paperback now just because for awhile I couldn’t afford hardback books. The first Jennifer Weiner book I ever read was Good In Bed and I have been hooked on her ever since. I think my favorite of hers though is In Her Shoes. I remember sitting on the floor of the condo that I was living in at the time reading it. My back up against my bed and my best friend coming in to talk to me. For the record I’ve actually had to wait for each of her books to come out since I read Good in Bed when it first came out.
3. The next few books I have are Emily Giffin’s books. This includes Something Borrowed, Something Blue, Baby Proof and Love the One Your With. I love Something Borrowed. I had a friend that reminded me of Darcy and I never said no to her. Everything was a competition but I adored her. I adored our friendship and she got me through some things that I don’t know I could have gotten through. We had a falling out though and so we aren’t really friends now. I just related so much to Rachel through out the whole book. I read Something Blue on a family vacation to Flagstaff. It had snowed outside and so we were all sitting by the fire and I devoured that book.
4. The next two books are Jenny Colgan books, The Boy I loved Before and Amanda’s Wedding. Amanda’s Wedding was one of the first chick lit books I read so it just holds a special place in my heart.
5. Then there are my Sophie Kinsella books. I have all the books in the Shopaholic series, Can You Keep A Secret?, The Undomestic Goddes, Twenties Girl, Remember Me? and her new one! She is one of my favorite authors and has always done a good job of making me laugh. I look forward to her books every year!
6. Lastly there is Bridget Jones and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. The first being the first ever chicklit book I read. Also while I was reading it I was living at home with my parents and I would laugh out loud. My mom then had to read it because she wanted to know what i was laughing at. Ever since then I have been getting my mom to broaden her horizons with books.

Well that’s it for the first shelf. Other things on the shelf: a beanie baby doll that was given to me as a gift by my Aunt, my mother’s wedding picture, a little white box with flowers painted on it that was my Grandmas, a shot glass from Chicago that my best friend got me when she visited there and a little bear figurine that I got from my old supervisor at work.

I think I’ll write about each shelf once a week if not more. I’m kind of having fun with it and also it helps me keep track of what I have!

This book is not particularly a book you would read for the language. The dialog makes me cringe a little bit except for when Lexi finally stood up for herself, which shocked me so much I had to go back and read it again. I also dislike Jude and I get that what happened to her and the Farradays was terrible! The “what” being a possible spoiler so I won’t say? Honestly I’m not even sure if it is a spoiler since tragedy is sort of noted in the description of the book? I’ll try to keep my mouth shut all the same. I’m afraid though I just didn’t feel compassion for Jude for most of the book. It wasn’t until the end when I was crying all over my Kindle that I did.

With all that being said I LOVED this book. HA! I bet you didn’t see that coming, or maybe you did because I gave it away with my crying sentence? Seriously though, I couldn’t put it down. I haven’t had a book like that in a long time where all I could think about was the book. I actually can probably put this book down with Twilight where I didn’t particularly care for the writing, but I loved the story and the characters. (I mean come on Stephanie how come it takes you pages and pages to write about a car accident? Maybe it wasn’t pages but I remember it droning on for a long time. Yet I still maintain that I loved Twilight!)

I’m sad that it’s over. I don’t even know what to read next! I want to read more about all the characters. I thought story was woven very well, and after the tragedy I could feel the loss that all the characters felt. I almost wish there had been epilogue. Although have you ever been reading a book and you just wish you could read from another one of the character’s point of view? I felt that way about the character Zach. I wanted to read what his thoughts were and what he was thinking.

I actually liked this book enough to go to my used bookstore and get another one of Kristen Hannah’s books. I looked over all of the ones they had and ended up choosing Firefly Lane. It looks like she has written quite a few books though so I think I have a lot more of her stories to read even if Night Road is over.

Ok I’ll simply stop gushing now.

This song won’t leave my head. So what do I do when songs won’t leave my head? I share it with everyone else. It’s playing on repeat in my mind. When I’m driving in my car. When I’m lying in bed not reading Night Road by Kristin Hannah unless of course I’m thinking about reading Night Road, which is often. I’m almost always staring at the ceiling, watching the fan turn around. Yes I sleep with a fan on even when it’s cold outside.

Most especially when I’m at work and for a fleeting moment let my mind wander off the topic at hand. I like the way the lyrics slip in to each other. They way they roll together in the sound. I am listening to it on my nightly walks. My iPod miraculously plays it on it’s own sometimes.

Sometimes it’s “I’ve got my red dress on tonight”, that goes through my head.I have a red dress you know. It’s one of my favorite items of clothing.It’s from Libby Story, see now you can see what it looks like. It makes me feel pretty. It makes me love the color red.

Most of the time though it’s the lyric “oh, my god, I feel it in the air. Telephone wires above sizzling like a snare”. I couldn’t even begin to tell you why other then that it’s the chorus.

Things are kind of weird right now. I can feel it in the air.

I can feel a tug from it.
I wish it would let me go.
As I try to pull away,
It pulls me back.

It has made me believe it,
That I should just keep following it.

I struggle against it.
Straining so hard,
My strength gives out.

I can hear it say
No it’s not time yet,
I won’t let you go.

It clouds my judgment,
Until I run smack in to lost.

I stop to think,
Maybe I can make a deal with it.
Stop fighting it,
And try to learn from it instead.

copyright 2010

Can I just re-nominate Kelly? No? Oh alright but I do think her blog is awesome and it’s one of my favorites! I think I shall also nominate Cori, she’s a ninja, she cooks, she reads and she’s funny. I think she’s really funny actually! And then I will nominate  Shutterbug she does photography and just had a baby. I know I’m supposed to nominate 15 but, I can’t do that!

Now I’m going to list 15 things about myself..I guess it should be 7 things but I like lists so I’m going to do 15.

1. I like movies like Sucker Punch because I think they’re pretty to watch, and also I like the soundtrack. I could seriously watch the opening scene over and over again.
2. I’m one of those people that loves movies that a lot of people didn’t. Also like Kelly I have an extensive movie collection (and TV collection) I’d rather not say how much but it’s a lot. They’re in alphabetical order but not by genre.
3. I did indeed go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter on my honeymoon and I LOVED it! I spent a lot of money on Harry Potter paraphernalia, tried Butterbeer and went on the Hogwarts ride. I can’t wait to go back. This also should lead you to believe that I’m Harry Potter obsessed. I am.
4. I love all cheese related snacks. I.e. goldfish crackers, cheez-its and cheeto puffs.
5. I want to own a Mustang some day. I am jealous of all Mustang owners. I want it to be red because I use to drive a red car and I miss it.
6. I used to be afraid of cooking. I couldn’t even microwave hot chocolate! Seriously it was a joke with my best friend since I blew it up in the microwave. Now I love it. The way all the ingredients come together. Sometimes they’re delicious and sometimes I think never again.
7. I have a HUGE crush on Jake Gyllenhaal but he has some fierce competition with Ryan Gosling right now. I pretty much own all of Jake’s movies and I like to think we’re on a first name basis…..
8. I work in Escrow. I never talk about it because it’s not really my dream job, but I love the people I work with. They really help me get through the work day. We make each other laugh.
9. My favorite day of the week is Sunday because I go over to my parent’s house and we watch movies together and have happy hour. My mom usually makes a really yummy dinner.
10. I also like Friday nights because those are my lazy nights, and I sit on the couch with Zack watching television episodes on Netflix or things we have DVR’d. Right now we’re watching How I Met Your Mother. We’re on season 5. Sometimes we eat out some where fun and sometimes we make something.
11. I’m really sarcastic with a dry humor. Sometimes people don’t get me especially when they first meet me. I’m also kind of antisocial and quiet and awkward with people when I first meet them. Unless of course I feel immediately comfortable with them.
12. I’m addicted to buying clothes although lately I haven’t been feeling really pretty in my clothes. Lately it’s been a depressing subject.
13. My doppelganger is Kristen Stewart. Some of my wedding pictures I look at and think “oh great I really do look like her.”
14. I like my own company and always have. I have always been able to entertain myself and I need my space. I like to read because it’s a solitary activity, and also it’s my escape.
15. Trying to find 15 things about myself was harder then I thought. Turns out I don’t like to talk about myself too much. Which is true I have learned the art of deflecting conversations about myself back on to the other person.

I think I failed at accepting this award! Oh well  but thanks Kelly! I talked to Zack and I’m pretty sure I can convince him of BEA next year!!

All the things I ate/drank whatever (I was merry): Home made Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes, broccoli, and fruit salad for desert. Wheat chips and salsa, root beer with cream vodka. Eggs(a little bit of cheese, tobasco sauce, chilli pepper and sour cream on top), bacon and hash browns. Caesar salad with chicken, lemon drop shots and rum and coke served by my cousin Jay. Spicey BBQ Buffalo Wings and Irish Carbomb(NEVER AGAIN) shots from PaddyCoyns. Mcdonalds (not even kidding). Chicken nuggets and Pasta Ready (also not even kidding). Eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast at Lil’ Johns. Home made Turkey in a crockpot, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli with cheese sauce, Rosemary Bread and lemon cupcakes. Starbucks. Red Robin’s Chicken Caesar wrap and fries, toasted wheat toast from Great Harvest Bread company with cheese. Cinnamon Bread from Great Harvest Bread Company. Broccoli cheese soup in a bread bowl at Panera Bread. Pizza from Costco. Home made Fritatta with bacon and toast. White Chocolate Oreos, popcorn, and peanut butter cheerio’s. Home made French Toast, and Burgermaster. Chocolate pudding and peanut butter cookies which we dipped in to the chocolate pudding (Zack would love this). Some kind of mint chocolate alcoholic beverage and lastly Vodka sunrises.

I’m pretty sure I got fat all over just typing that.

All the things I did: Had dinner at my Grandmas then went to stay at my cousins. Watched Macguber (which in my opinion wasn’t that great wasn’t great at all). Referred to my trip as Jennie and Christa’s week of fun. Had a migraine and so slept a lot. Went to lunch at the New Castle Golf Club. Went to see my Aunt and Uncle’s new house that will be referred to from now on as the “Castle”. Had extended happy hour. Went to dinner at Paddycoyns. Watched Robin Hood Men In Tights (this is considered a classic amongst my cousin and I). Went to the Seattle Aquarium. Walked around Seattle and Pike’s Market. Shopped at a three story Forever 21. Saw Sherlock Holmes 2. Came home and watched many episodes of The Office. Read. Slept. Went to breakfast with my cousin James. Read. Went to my Grandma’s house. Went to IKEA. Ate at Red Robin. Came back home and read. Slept in. Went to Panera and then the outlet malls. Froze. Spent some money at the coach outlet. Went on a scenic drive. Came home and bailed on going out with my cousin so that I could stay in bed to read The Woman in Black. Had homemade brunch with my mom, Uncle and Grandma. Read some more. Played a lot of intense games of Uno. Went with my cousin while she babysat. Froze. Got under the electric blanket at my cousins and melted. Woke up with another super bad headache and sick to my stomach. Watched episodes of How I Met Your Mother to try to get over it. Took a really long shower. Felt better. Froze. Went to see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (good but Sherlock Holmes was better). Came out and it had snowed. Ate at Burgermaster (I can’t go to Washington and not eat at Burgermaster. Well that goes for Panera to). Went to a friends house with my cousin and had drinks and watched TV (Grimm and the first four episodes of Homeland which I’m sad about since I think I have to wait for them to come out on DVD to watch the rest). Lastly as per tradition watched Friends(season 5 to be exact) with Jennie which is basically our show, we always watch it together when I go up there. Got under the electric blanket because it was a winter wonderland and my cousin turns the heat off at night. Melted. Went to the air port while it was snowing. Froze as I packed my jacket so I didn’t have to carry it. Finally came home and watched How I Met Your Mother. (oh that’s not part of the trip?).

I want to say we started American Horror Story when I got home but I think that was the next day. Zack and I have been in a “American Horror Story” coma ever since and finished it last night.

That’s it. It was nice. I figured somethings out. I froze a lot and then melted under the best Christmas present my cousin Jay ever gave his sister. Straightened things out. Spent time with my 92 year old Grandma. Decided that eventually I must move to Washington. Eventually. Then I came home and went back to work, which is not fun.

Well actually I guess it kind of is about my vacation because I was able to get in “a bit of light reading”*.  So this is really about the three books I managed to finish while on said vacation, two of which I read on my Kindle Fire.

The first one is The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Can you believe until now I’ve never read this? For whatever reason I did not have to read it in high school or rather it was not part of our curriculum, but neither was Catcher in Rye, which I still have not read. I actually read this book fairly quickly, and to be honest when the ending happened I didn’t quite get what actually had happened. I had to go back and reread it to pinpoint exactly what had happened. I guess to me the language was a bit flowery. Once I went back and did that though I got it. I think sometimes when I’m reading I just read too fast and don’t take everything in. I’m going to blame this on having to learn how to speed read in college to study for exams. This was one of the books I decided I needed to read this year so now I can scratch that off my list. I think all in all I did enjoy the book since I breezed through it. I don’t know if the characters were particularly likeable though nor is the story line original any more. I think the time that the book took place in though was fun to read about.

The next book I finished was Overbite by Meg Cabot which was the sequel to Insatiable. Meg Cabot is one of my favorite authors and also one of my “go to” comfort read authors. So I try to hoard her books for when I feel like I need some comfort. I’ve read all her books except for the Mediator Series and the Allie Finkle books. Insatiable was good! I loved it! Overbite though just came off a little “meh” for me. I actually had a little bit of trouble reading it. I felt like the story was rushed and I’m not sure I liked the ending. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the pairing at the end. It was more like it just didn’t seem like it made sense. Mostly because I think the book was lacking character development between the two. This doesn’t mean I’ve given up on Meg though. I still love her.

Then the last book I read was The Woman in Black by Susan Hill, and okay I’m cheating a little bit on this one. I didn’t actually finish it on my vacation, but rather started it and read most of it. I ended up finishing it last night. Before I say anything, yes I did read this because the movie is coming out and Daniel Radcliffe is in it. I don’t always have to read the book before the movie, but most of the time I do. Now that I’ve said that I can say what I felt about the book. There were points in the book where I actually did feel a little nervous and a little anxious. Especially the nursery chapter but then the story sort of started lacking for me. The ending was an obvious ending in my opinion, and not at all surprising. I think I probably just repeated myself in that last sentence, but I don’t care! It’s my blog! It just seemed like she built up a huge amount of suspense and then suddenly she got bored of writing it and just quickly wrote the ending. It kind of reminds of how felt about the movie Thor, which everyone told me was wonderful! It was not wonderful. (Captain America, however was!) I am still going to see the movie and I have a feeling it will be better played out that way rather then having to read it.

* I couldn’t help myself.

Now I have to get back to scolding my kitten, Fenway, and watching The Glades on Netflix.

Bad Kitty.

I was reaching for you.
So that you would unwind me
And thread me through your life.
I was wanting,
Us to share each other.
I was thinking,
We could learn all about each other.
Laugh all through the night together.
I was hoping,
This was it.
That we’d finally found each other.

I was saving,
You for last.

*Copyrighted by Christa Taebel

I wrote this during a lecture in college in 2009. I guess I wasn’t paying attention.