A Few of my Favorite Things

It's no lie that I have a daily struggle with what I see myself doing in the future.
I think many of us do.
But give me a nice glass of wine, a festive smelling candle & a good book and you have one happy gal.

Lunch in Paris

I had the pleasure of finishing this book while I was basking out in the sun on Sunday.

If you have a passion for cooking and food, I highly recommend this sweet little book!
Think, "Eat, Pray, Love" but with the basis being all things French Cooking, French Eating, Love & Passion, daily trips to the market, and recipes at the end of each chapter!

I enjoyed every moment of this story and it really inspired me to be more courageous in the kitchen when trying new things.

New York Times: Best-Sellers

Such a wonderful little page on the internet...observe:

COMBINED PRINT & E-BOOK FICTION


1.A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, by George R. R. Martin


2.THE HELP, by Kathryn Stockett


3.NOW YOU SEE HER, by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge


4.THEN CAME YOU, by Jennifer Weiner


5.A GAME OF THRONES, by George R. R. Martin

I just finished reading The Help and at the moment I am reading A Game of Thrones.

And a Game of Thrones is amazing so far!! I strongly recommend this book.
But warning... there are parts that are vulgar and quite disturbing...so prepare yourself.
I didn't think I would like a book like that, but it IS always good to step outside of your comfort zone every once in a while.
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
List taken from New York Times Best Sellers.

Book Review: The Help

Can I just start off by saying how inspirational and amazing this book is?
I think that in High School sometime, teenagers should HAVE to read this book.
It should be a requirement, that's how educational it is.
I learned so much from it that I didn't know before.

Let me just some up the plot for you.

This book is set in the early 1960's when Black People and White People just DID NOT get along.
In this novel, Black Women are maid's to rich White households. They sometimes cook, they always clean, they take care of the White Women's kids, and they can't share the same damn bathroom because White's are afraid they will catch diseases.

One young white women, fresh out of Journalism school decides to write a book about the point of view's of the black maids. She interviews them and then, obviously, puts those interviews into a book to get published which, naturally, causes an uproar among the White Households.

I think what surprised me the most in this book is how eye opening it is.
I mean, this wasn't that long ago. My parents were born in the 60's. My grandparents were adults in the 60's.
This was NOT long ago at all.

And look how much has changed?
It's interesting to know that we are more equals now than ever before.
Of course, racism still exists but seeing how much has changed in such a short time span, maybe that will change soon enough as well.
Hopefully, one day soon, the only difference between us really will just be skin colour.

Read this book. It's so important.
It's important for learning. It's a tearjerker. It's laugh out loud funny. It's heartbreaking. It's inspiring. It's...important.

And it really does change the way you think about many things.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

3 more sleeps until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 comes out in theatres!

Oh-You know I'll be there the first showing that airs!

However, once it's over, I'm probably going to feel like something is missing in my life.

I'll feel, well, empty.

Harry Potter will be done forever.

PPD-Post Potter Depression.

Anybody else going through the same thing?

Does anybody have any good book recommendations that could even come CLOSE to Harry Potter?

Please let me know. I'm going to need it.

Weekly Gratitude: May 27th

• Thank you to a wonderful 7 1/2 months (or 6 months if you want to count it officially today!) with my wonderful boyfriend, John! It's been so great and I've never been happier in my life. I can't wait to keep going on our day to day together and continue to have as much fun as we do.
• Thank you to great summer reads. Right now I'm reading the sequel to Something Blue. Although, I'm more anxious to get into other books. I'll just finish this one for now though and hopefully find a read that captivates my attention as well as provides me with a memorabe read.*
• Thank you to my busy work schedule the past couple of days. I've been absolutely swamped but it helps the days go by faster!
• Thanks to the relaxing weekend I'm about to have. I really need it and can't wait to sleep in tomorrow!
• I'm so very thankful for the sun shining every single morning when I wake up! Even though it's not that warm, something about it being bright when my alarm goes up, helps me to wake up faster and actually WANT to get out of bed.
• Thank you to my free movie passes all the time. I love going to see movies and it really helps when I don't have to pay a bajillion dollars for a ticket. :)

Have the most wonderful of weekends! xoxo.

****Has anybody read "The Help"? A girl from work recommended it and I'd love to read it and gather more opinions???

Book Review: Something Borrowed (Spoilers)

Everytime I ask for a good book recommendation, somehow, this book always came up.

So when I found out that they were making it into a movie, I decided that I needed to read it.

I have a thing where if I'm interested in a movie (like, really interested) and I know it's based off a book, I have to read the book first.

Anyway, let's get to the point.

I loved this book and I really cared about each and every character.

I think it makes a huge difference in a book when the characters are so well developed, that it matters to you what happens to them and you feel like you're somehow involved in their lives. Like they are your friends and you are the "other character".

As much as this book was honest and funny and even a little sad, I couldn't help but get angry at some points of the book.

I don't believe in "cheating" and that's what this entire book was about. It was about an affair. And not just a random affair. It was a book about betraying your best friend when you're her maid of honor. And you're having sexual relations with her fiancee, Dex. It really is an awful thing when you think about it. Throughout the book, the main character, Rachel, is trying to justify her being "the other woman" because Darcy (the bride to be) can be selfish and inconsiderate. But no one deserves that sort of treatment.

However, we found out later that she cheated on Dex with Dex's best friend and is having his baby. So really, who's the bad guy? Rachel. That's who I think.

Personally, I didn't think that the book was going to end the way it did. Dex and Rachel end up together and I don't know how I felt about that. Near the end, Dex tells her that he can't leave Darcy. That just won't work for him. He can't hurt her that way. So Rachel runs off to England for a trip to visit her friend. But then she comes back and Dex says he called off the wedding and then of course, Dex and Rachel end up together.

I thought that maybe he WOULDN'T call off the wedding like was originally planned, and then he found out that Darcy cheated on him and then tried to go running back to Rachel only to have her reject him and then quit her job and run off to England.

I sort of wish that would've happened. It would've convinced me that Rachel wasn't such a terrible friend and Dex wasn't a jackass.

Anyway, read this book. I really do recommend besides all my ranting. It's cute and you love the characters.

Kbye!

Tina Fey: Bossypants

"First, Lord: No tattoos. May neither Chinese symbol for truth nor Winnie-the-Pooh holding the FSU logo stain her tender haunches.

May she be Beautiful but not Damaged, for it’s the Damage that draws the creepy soccer coach’s eye, not the Bea......uty.

When the Crystal Meth is offered, May she remember the parents who cut her grapes in half And stick with Beer.

Guide her, protect her
When crossing the street, stepping onto boats, swimming in the ocean, swimming in pools, walking near pools, standing on the subway platform, crossing 86th Street, stepping off of boats, using mall restrooms, getting on and off escalators, driving on country roads while arguing, leaning on large windows, walking in parking lots, riding Ferris wheels, roller-coasters, log flumes, or anything called “Hell Drop,” “Tower of Torture,” or “The Death Spiral Rock ‘N Zero G Roll featuring Aerosmith,” and standing on any kind of balcony ever, anywhere, at any age.


Lead her away from Acting but not all the way to Finance. Something where she can make her own hours but still feel intellectually fulfilled and get outside sometimes And not have to wear high heels.


What would that be, Lord? Architecture? Midwifery? Golf course design? I’m asking You, because if I knew, I’d be doing it, Youdammit.


May she play the Drums to the fiery rhythm of her Own Heart with the sinewy strength of her Own Arms, so she need Not Lie With Drummers.


Grant her a Rough Patch from twelve to seventeen. Let her draw horses and be interested in Barbies for much too long, For childhood is short – a Tiger Flower blooming Magenta for one day – And adulthood is long and dry-humping in cars will wait.


O Lord, break the Internet forever, That she may be spared the misspelled invective of her peers And the online marketing campaign for Rape Hostel V: Girls Just Wanna Get Stabbed.


And when she one day turns on me and calls me a Bitch in front of Hollister, Give me the strength, Lord, to yank her directly into a cab in front of her friends, For I will not have that Shit. I will not have it.


And should she choose to be a Mother one day, be my eyes, Lord, that I may see her, lying on a blanket on the floor at 4:50 A.M., all-at-once exhausted, bored, and in love with the little creature whose poop is leaking up its back.


“My mother did this for me once,” she will realize as she cleans feces off her baby’s neck. “My mother did this for me.” And the delayed gratitude will wash over her as it does each generation and she will make a Mental Note to call me. And she will forget. But I’ll know, because I peeped it with Your God eyes."

-Tina Fey's Prayer, BossyPants




This sort of made me tear up...but just a bit.

It's Kind of a Funny Story

I'm very sorry to anyone who loves the book "the Hunger Games" but I just could NOT get into it.

I have only 40 pages left to read and I couldn't bring myself to finish, so I just had my sister tell me what happened and I am SO happy I didn't waste my time.

It's not that the concept wasn't good or the characters weren't well developed, but I just don't like that sort of story. A story about gathering food and hunting people and trying to survive. It's just not for me.

So instead, I went to Chapters and bought a brand new book that I've been interested in for a while!

Have you heard of the movie, "It's Kind of a Funny Story"?
Well did you know that movie is based on a book? I didn't until I saw it and it looked SO interesting.

And I'm so beyond happy that I bought it (on sale for $8.50) because I'm only 40 pages in and it is already amazing.

Don't get me wrong, it is very dark and sort of depressing, but the writing style is so conversational. It's natural and life like.

I'm so excited to see the direction this book goes in and to meet the other characters.

I can't say too much about it now but I will be sure to let you know how I like it when I'm finished (and I will finish it!)

I'm so happy I found a book that I like. I was definitely in a reading rut.

Some other books I'd like to read after I'm done this one:

I own this one just haven't read it yet.



Something about reading is magical, isn't it? You get to just enter this whole other world. Someone else's world. And something about that is just so surreal.

Have a great Thursday!

Eat, Pray, Love-Complete.

So after a month or so of trying to get through the book, "Eat, Pray, Love," I finally finished it. When I say "trying to get through," let me clarify that it was not because the book was boring or hard to read, I was just caught up in daily activities that caused a barrier with me and my reading.

Allow me to say that this book was: Refreshing, soul cleansing, and inspirational.

Anytime I felt sad, I would pick up this book. Any time my spirits needed uplifting, I would pick up this book.

Something about Liz's journey to Italy, India and Indonesia and the tales she told about her adventures allowed myself to feel hopeful about God and Love.

I'm really not much for Religion and some of my beliefs are all over the place (although that is a topic for another time), but this book was very spiritual and somehow I still found myself wanting to know about her relationship she built with God and her different beliefs. I found that many of her beliefs about religion matched up with my own. Hinduism for example was spoken about in this book briefly, and I found that I believed in a lot of that Faith.

It wasn't all about God though. It had a lot to do with how her travels helped her discover herself and what makes her happy.

So much about this book is a reminder about why being negative is a waste of time and how happiness always wins in the end, no matter what.