Category: Meanderings

Good Morning fellow book lovers!  Are you as super excited for the weekend as I am?  I love weekends!!!  I am going to the gym this morning then I work today, might roller blade a bit this afternoon… or bike… I am undecided, and then date night tonight with my hubby…. his pick.

Right now I am enjoying a second cup of coffee…. and thinking that I could go for some tarts.  Yes, coffee and tarts would be nice.

LOL…. I do love the Red Queen.  Actually – I really love her dress too.   Wouldn’t she be a fun character to dress up as?  Hmmm…. just got an idea for a pondering moment post.  🙂

Have a great day everyone!  Book review coming up today of 100 Cupboards!!!

“I wonder if I’ve been changed in the night? Let me think. Was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I’m not the same, the next question is ‘Who in the world am I?’ Ah, that’s the great puzzle!”

Don’t you just love that wording? It is a quote out of Alice In Wonderland.  And the more I read the more I fall in love with the language of the book. I don’t know why I never picked it up before but I now use the words “Curiouser and curiouser” at least once a week!

Do you ever have a book do that to you?  Where you just fall in love with the words?

Today after many  moments with Coffee Cup I am off to have my bike checked out and then meeting Amy at 10 am on the bike trail.  Today we will do 32 miles to prep for Sunday.  32 takes us on the trail to Nisswa (nearby town)  and back.  Should be a good ride.  I completed this ride on Tuesday and enjoyed it.

I normally work today but this was the only day Amy had time to ride so I switched my schedule and will work tomorrow instead.  I love the flexibility of my job!

So – I am off for now – but put the question back on you:

Do you ever have a book do that to you?  Where you just fall in love with the words?

I am up!  And Coffeed.  And….

I bought something.

I actually bought it in Florida – in the wonderful Books a Million.  Actually, now what I think about it, the book review going up later today is also a purchase from Books A Million.  Ahhhhhh….. a BAM day!  🙂

Ok here it is but do not (DO NOT) laugh at me:

Ok…. if you must snicker, turn the other way and act like you are coughing.  Yes I realize I purchased a piece of twisty plastic.  But – of yes there is a but, if you seen my morning ritual you would understand.

Every morning when I am prepping for my day I have a book in the bathroom with me so I can read as I blow dry my hair, style, make up…  I have done this for years.  The trick is keeping the book open.  I use a large lotion bottle, hairspray, whatever I can find that will keep the book open.  Then I have to move said item to read the words.  Occasionally said item rolls off the book and I lose my page.

This item, the Gimble, was a huge “aha moment” when I seen it.  For $5.95 – worth it.  here it is in action:

Mmmmmm hmmmm…. that’s what I’m talking about!  How super cool is that?

Ok…. I need to finish up my coffee and get ready for work.  Today I am going to bike in.  It is only 3 miles and I am trying to get in as much biking as possible.  I have a fantastic book review coming up later.  Well, maybe the review isnt fantastic – but I am going to try to be because the book was.

Here is the question I want to leave you with.  What do you prop your books open with (or is that just me?)

I am having an affair.

Have you heard of Books A Million?  I have only found these stores in Florida….. I have only been in them twice….

but I am in love. ♥

Is it wrong to love a book store?  To enjoy browsing through their large counters of clearance books?  To find books that you seen the day before for $18+ at a B & N, and at Books A Million find that same book for $3.99?

We went in the Books A  Million looking for a Honda Magazine for Navy son, Brad.  B & N did not have it.  B.A.M. (yes, that’s right – I have given it a pet name!) did.

It’s where I bought the book Hold Still that I will be reviewing later this week.  AND – I bought something else really cool….. but that will have to wait for another meandering… another day.

Today I am back home in Minnesota.  Touched ground about 3:30 pm yesterday afternoon.  I have not made it around to everyone who participated in yesterdays What Are You Reading Meme – but I will!  Also – if you have not read the delightful author chat I had with Kay Cassidy, please do.  Her first book is on the shelves and she is witty and funny – and a tea drinker but I can forgive her that… because she is witty and funny.  😀

I have a review up yet today be sure to stop back in…  and I also have giveaways that need to be announced.  With a little luck – I just may start catching up!

Whats on your agenda this week for fun?

Hello from Pensacola.  (Ok…. that was cheesy).  😀

My flight from Brainerd to Minneapolis (a 30 minute flight) was memorable because the stewardess on the flight was quite unusual.  She used different voices as she read the safety info about the plane.  No kidding.  She used an Irish accent at some points, a southern one through other parts, and a deep mans voice about the no smoking rules.  Can I say this was funny and disturbing?  There were no kids on the flight…..  of course, I will always remember her as she asked the pregnant couple in front of me if they were having twins….

Oh…… can you say awkward?  ;D

After three flights and a rental car, we made it to the hotel.  Last night we went out to dinner at a restaurant called Kings Buffet and – YUM!  But of course with the word buffet,  in it – totally ate too much.  After that we went to the Movie Date Night which was extremely laugh out loud funny.  Seriously – if you like Steve Carell and/or Tina Fey – go …. and laugh….. much.

Today we are going to go check out the beach with our books!  We pick up Brad around 4:30 pm so then we will tour the Navy Base, have dinner – and possibly a movie if Brad is up for it.

This morning as I have my second cup of coffee, I am finishing up a review I wanted to go up yesterday but I never got back to it.  Have a super fab day wherever you are!

This morning I am on a plane from Brainerd to Minneapolis.  There I will meet up with Justin (College Son) and together we will fly to Pensacola Florida to spend the weekend with Brad (Navy Son).

No worries…. Laptop and Coffee Cup will be traveling along so I can chat away with you and continue to post reviews that I have to get caught up on from this past weeks reading and the readathon.

You may have noticed I changed the header to this blog.  That’s not the only change…. I also have followed through on my trimming of the blog name, “One Persons Journey Through A World Of Books”.   Thanks to the advice I received from many of you when I posted the possibility of change (see post here) I trimmed up the name.  No worries – I made this completely user-friendly.  There are no link changes and – thanks to your advice, I kept the original as a subtitle…. in fact added a little fun to it by adding “and coffee”.

The Monday Meme will remain under the original blog name so new buttons do not have to be formed.

The new name is simply Book Journey and works for me as that is my blog address and my Twitter name.  I also use that when commenting on blogs so I believe I still have name recognition.

Anyway – I have a plane to catch!  I will be on later today with an exciting review and probably twittering tonight from Florida!  (Twitter name:  Bookjourney)

Hmmmm…. I slept a little later today than I normally do.   I am having one quick cup of coffee and then I need to stop at the grocery store on my way into work to get my supper ingredients and my items for tonight.  My head is full of things I need to get done yet before Thursday when I fly out of Brainerd at 7 am.  I will meet up with Justin (College Son) in Minneapolis, and then together we will fly to Florida to hang out with Brad (Navy Son) for the weekend.   Yes, Laptop is going with me….  I am hoping for a bit of reading time and a lot of sun….. (one can hope right?)

Tonight my book club reviews Little Bee by Chris Cleave.  It will be fun to see what everyone brings to the potluck.  We are supposed to theme the food around the book.  I will post the review later this week as well as the Book Club comments and plans.

I had such a great weekend with the readathon and Sunday I biked with Amy 18 miles and Rollerblade with Justin 8 miles.  I wish I could get that kind of workout every day!

Yesterdays question about the book(s) that pull you completely in was a lot of fun!  Seeing the books that come up time and again is interesting and new books are hitting my radar.  If you have not answered it yet, that post is here.

Have a fantastic day – I am off to conquer a desk of paperwork!

The readathon is over!  Thank you blog subscribers who put up with the overload of posts yesterday in their email box.  I have a plan on how to do that better for the Fall 2010 Readathon that will not create all those posts.  My visits to participants yesterday gave me great ideas on how to do this.

So how did I do?

Well, I started yesterday at 5 am CST, two hours too early – but for some reason I had it in my head that was when it started.  I was up, with a lot of coffee and managed to complete 3 books throughout the day and start on a 4th.  I managed to stay up until 11:20 PM, crashed until midnight when I woke up to close out my mini challenge, crashed again until 4:40 am, and then read until 5:30 am to close out my 24 hours.  I actually participated 19 of the hours between reading, mini challenges and cheering.

How do I feel?

Like a scruffy guy who hasn’t shaved in a month.  And yes, I realize I am a woman…. but I seriously feel as though I have grown facial hair overnight….  LOL

Changes to my next Readathon participation?

I do wish I had spent more time reading, but I did really enjoy the cheering too.  I think I need to just pick a better ratio and stick to it.  I seen a few pretty cool ways that people posted their updates all in one NEAT post.  Trust me, I am sooooo doing that next time.  I loved doing a mini challenge as it was so fun to see all the bloggers I have never met stop by.  I am hoping later tonight when life settles down to visit their blogs.

Plan for today?

Well, I am thankful that I did sleep because my day is a fun and full one.  I am going biking with my friend Amy and I hope we do the 18 mile round trip to Merrifield and back.  She and I are in a bike tour in a couple of weeks – her first one and our goal is 65 miles.   Then, my College Son Justin and I are going to Rollerblade in the afternoon and he will probably push me to do at least 14 miles.  Of well, it is good training for me 🙂

We may go to a movie later afternoon, depending on how long we blade, then I will plan supper and tonight Amazing Race!!!  (Which I love!)

I missed out on the “What’s In My Mailbox” post I usually do on Saturday evenings, but think I will add it to my “It’s Monday!  What are you reading?” post that goes live tonight.  This Mondays participants should have interesting posts with all the reading that went on during the readathon.  It would be fun to know a total of books read during the event.

Any way – I need to get moving!  10:07 am and still am in my pj’s! 😀

Riddle me this… why is that when I go to buy my dogs these little dog foods I find myself studying the flavors as though I was going to eat it myself?

Seriously, I am in that dog food aisle for about ten minutes trying to choose if I want to get the smoked bacon and egg, grilled steak and ham, salmon, or the chicken and liver.   When the trance lifts, I almost always have more of the salmon in my cart because that just sounds good.

Sounds good?

My dogs have never showed a preference.   They happily accept whatever I serve and yet even picking it out of the cupboard I am doing it again…. “Let’s see… last night they had chicken….“

OK then…. 😉

Today I have a workout schedule in mind and hopefully get all my planning set for next weekend when I go to Pensacola Florida to see Navy son.  I have my flight taken care of but have been so busy I have not booked the hotel yet.  Yipes!  I will bet here Thursday – Sun… hoping to get in some great weather and wonderful times with both of my sons!  (Yes!  College son will be flying with me to hang out with his brother!)

Now I did promise to have the video up for my “Payback” that I gave to Brett for “foiling” my office last week for April Fools Day.  Here is that payback:

**For some reason I can not get the video to work… will try another day 🙂

I hope many of you are going to bed early tonight and joining me and many other bloggers tomorrow for the Readathon.  🙂