From Ian:

The Big Read, an initiative by the National Endowment for the Arts, has estimated that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they’ve printed. How do you do?

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicize those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Caught myself

Caught myself agreeing with a series of people on a series of unimportant things this week. And I didn't actually agree with them, I just said I did. I hate that, slinking back into that safe cave where everyone likes me because I don't ever speak my mind, but reflect back what they want to see.

Well, people are going to see what they want to see regardless of if I agree with them or not. I have an opinion, and it counts. Whether or not it's truly informed or just my general feeling, it's mine.

Feeling generally feisty, which can be a good thing. Trying not to take it too seriously, except as necessary.

Fuel Savings

Holy moly! Gas prices are not new news. I just paid nearly $60 to fill up my mid-size sedan. Youch!

I've heard a bunch of different fuel savings ideas. I received the email referred to in this Snopes article. Sometimes it's hard to determine the good from the chaff.

Today is just reporting on the price of gas and oil. Not new news, but still news.

One of my favorite ideas for saving gas is to SLOW DOWN. AAA offers this as one of their tips and I tried this out last night on my 25 mile trip home from Mom's house. I stayed between 40 and 50 mpg and was passed by half of the state. My favorite passing partner was a full size RV trailing a Jeep and a skijet thingy. I don't know how much I saved, but it was kind of entertaining. Hopefully it won't engender vast quantities of road rage (I did keep to the right... I try to be polite).

I've also started carpooling, hopefully twice a week, and I'm involving some of my coworkers in the joy. I've been promising for looking into taking the bus once a week. There are definitely benefits, including gas savings, but I have to balance those with the drawbacks. Keeping it in mind tho.

Holiday weekend over

Nothing like a holiday weekend to relax and recharge.

Spent some time on Saturday with Girlzoot doing the shopping thing. Not much luck on the shopping front, but always good to catch up. I love Meiningers and the TC, just didn't find anything I couldn't live without. Although there is a really spiffy pen at Meiningers, a Cross Townsend with sparkles on it (looks like the night sky). But truthfully I have many many pens, even a large selection I don't use, tho I love each and every one.

Later, after more cleaning (I had something like 15 phone books in various parts of my house!), I spent some time with Mom. We went to the early show of Indy 4 and then caught Iron Man. Actiony goodness!

All in all, good weekend, if too short (as always).

Spring Cleaning (in pieces)

I hate to admit it, but I'm not the tidiest person in the world. This is one of the things that drives me crazy about myself. I would love to have people over to my house, and not to be so uptight about it all, so I'm making an effort.

I've cleaned the kitchen, even under the stovetop where all the crumbs collect. And so far, it's nearly completely still clean. Yesterday, I worked on the porch, bringing out the bistro table and chairs, sweeping the concrete, and washing down the grill. The actual grill part of the grill is in my sink drying off after a good scrubbing. I spent most of my Sunday afternoon outside in the beautiful weather reading a book. I haven't done that in ages. Felt good.

Now I'm off to buy something fun for mom's birthday. Then back to reading my fascinating book. Not much of a wrap-up, but hey, can't win them all.

Lyrics... la la la

Ok, so for years, I've said that la la la la la isn't lyrics. And I'm retracting it.

I'm singing songs with lyrics like 'ba ba bam' 'woo woo ooo' 'oooh wah ooh wah' 'na na na na' and quite possibly my favorite 'dibit dibit'.

I'm enjoying singing with the SoundWaves at work. I got a private lesson Monday because I was the only one who showed up. We're learning Take a Chance on Me and The Longest Time. Fun times :)

Falling behind

Seems I've fallen behind on the posting schedule.

Busy week. Went to see 'Doubt' at the DPCA on Tuesday. Very good, dark, thoughtful play.

Rockies won Wednesday (we were at the game, enjoying the beautiful weather and the winningness). Got a Helton T-shirt give-away. Fun!

Missed the first night of the new league bowling. Found out we finished 7th (of 8) in the last league.

Had a guest speaker at our company quarterly update meeting - Dr. James Rouse, the Optimum Wellness guru. Very motivational and kind of exciting. Hadn't seen him in person in 10 years, he used to be my nutritionist. Wasn't ready for his message then, think I'm ready now. Actually, I know I'm ready. He gave me a big hug and said I was looking great, which means a lot coming from him.

Went bowling today, got some tips from the guy on the next lane. He was really good.

Ok, tomorrow's Mother's Day and I'm going up to Genesee to celebrate with my family. Best get some sleep.

Book & Lover's Day

Books, mmm. Here are my treasures from Book and Lover's Day last Wednesday.

We had a lovely breakfast at Watercourse and then sauntered over to the Tattered Cover on Colfax for a lovely hour or two among the books.

I've finished another two books on my BFS list, Faith of a Writer and Brave New World. Right on track.

Here's a pic of the lovely rose I got from the TC. Awww, pretty.

Recycling Adventure

Today I decided to take my recycling out. I had a few errands to run, and it's a beautiful day. I got to my normal recycle spot, and the big dumpster like bins were gone. Still not sure if they were just being emptied, or have been permanently removed. I've since found another one (way closer to my house) and I'll make a trip over there before dinner and after a quick episode of Buffy.

So, I took myself off to the city recycling center behind City Hall. I piled in my plastics and cans into the bin, careful to take back the bags to reuse (as well as being told by all the signs that bags were not allowed in the bins). I usually recycle my junk mail, but this spot only had a separate bin for newspapers. I had plenty of those coupon flyers with the weekly grocery store ads, which count as newspapers as far as I'm concerned, being on newsprint, and also included in the weekly paper, which I dutifully separated from my opened junk mail to deposit in the bin. The last load I had my keys in my hand and somehow they slipped off my finger and into the bin, lost forever I was sure. Sadly, I didn't have my spare key for the car, nor did I have spare keys for the house if I could even get the car going.

I stopped a nice young couple who had dropped off their recycling at the same time and they helped me look for the keys. After several fruitless minutes, one of my good Samaritans saw a police officer in the parking lot. I walked over and spoke to the officer and he said he would be back or send someone soon, but he had an issue to handle. I thanked him and went back to the bin, telling my flagged down rescuers that they were off the hook. I looked from the other side, but I couldn't get myself in the bin (need arm work, upper body strength has never been my forte). The young woman moved some more papers and found the keys in a pocket, and her boyfriend kindly climbed in and rescued my keys.

I was so happy, I thanked them both a bit gushingly and asked them if I could buy them dinner or something to thank them. They shook off my offers and left to the rest of their beautiful Sunday. I pulled my car around away from the bins (Sunday seems to be a busy recycle day, or it was just beautiful out and people were cleaning or something). Reading in the car, I waited for the police officer to return, not wanting to be the girl who cried wolf. Not a big deal, but when he came back in about 20 minutes, he was very kind and happy I had resolved everything satisfactorily. He even gave me his card.

I swear, I don't do things like this on a regular basis. Knock on silicon, I didn't lock myself out of the dorm, out of my apartments, out of my house, out of my car. And my keys are gonna stay much closer, like in my pocket or purse, instead of my hand. What was I thinking?

Even though I thanked everyone involved personally, I want to send a very grateful thanks out to the two strangers who helped me out today, as well as Officer Yopp, who did come back to check on me. My faith in humanity and the kindness of strangers has been refreshed.

Thank you.

Oddball dream

Ok, now I know where this one came from, having seen Street Kings last Friday, but what is with the celebrity guest appearances in my dreams lately? In this latest installment, I was some sort of personal assistant to Keanu Reeves and we were sitting on stacks of books and something happened with untied shoe laces that's really just a faint memory. Vague and in retrospect a bit disturbing, but he was really nice at the time. He's got a sweet smile.

Time for bed...

Street Kings & New Jeans

Friday night, after getting my new bowling ball (13# purple with sparkles) set up for drilling, Glender and I went to see Street Kings with Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker, and Hugh Laurie. Ooh, it was good; violence, corruption, and betrayal. Good stuff.

Went bowling Saturday morning, had fun with the cosmic, black light, flashing lights, and music bowling. My 12# ball glows in the black light, which was fun, didn't bowl particularly well, good practice tho.

After bowling and a quick trip to Chick-fil-a, we parted ways and I did some shopping. I found some jeans at Target (shock of shocks) and they fit! Surprisingly enough, they were even smaller than I expected. Love that.

Chock full of entertainment

Monday: Left work early for the Bon Jovi concert at the Pepsi Center. Daughtry opened, and I realized that I need more of their songs. iTunes to the rescue. They did a very good set. Bon Jovi just rocked the house. At one point, he and Richie Sambora played on a tiny stage about 5'x6' in the middle of the audience. Loved the show, sang along to many songs, reminisced about songs played at my 8th grade dance, and had a wonderful time with Mom (who had ASKED for the tickets, she of the hating Bon Jovi-ness back in the day).

Tuesday: We saw Merry Wives of Windsor at the DPCA. I met Mom early for dinner and a spot of tea. The set design was amazing, as always, with benches and oaks coming up from the floor and the pub coming from inside the row houses. Adored the interaction between Mistress Ford and Mistress Page.

Wednesday: Criminal Minds 3.14 Damaged aired, the first new episode since the end of the WGA Strike. Very happily guest starring Nicholas Brendon as Kevin Lynch. Seeing 'more' of Nicholas was interesting, especially since CM didn't have his tats covered. I really liked the interaction between Lynch and Garcia in both scenes, kudos to the writers and Kirsten Vangsness for the 'somewhere between a Commodore 64 and a block of government cheese' line. Nick's expression, perfect. And the moment at the end where Kevin was waiting for Rossi in his office, priceless.

Thursday: Got my Buffy Special Edition box set. Didn't get a chance to watch any until Friday & Saturday. Checked in on my Aunt after her back surgery. Prognosis is good, she just needs to get through the PT and the pain. Her family, immediate and extended, is here to support her.

Sunday: Stories on Stage at the DPCA. "Adults deserve a great story and cookies and milk, too!" Today's theme was Out in the Wild. Due to traffic and the parking situation, we missed the first reading by Norma Moore of 'Brilliant Silence' by Spencer Holst. Next was 'Kathy Chalfant reading 'Wakefield' by E.L. Doctorow which was funny, and very well read. After intermission, Frank Corrado read the classic 'The Most Dangerous Game.' Finally, a big secret surprise (at least to me - I was given tickets at the last minute), Bill Pullman read part of 'A Walk in the Woods' by Bill Bryson, which was also very funny, and read aplomb. Afterwards, during milk and cookies (literally), all the actors came out and I got a chance to meet Mr. Pullman face to face. He was a really sweet, down to earth guy, loved the audience and said he had a great time.

All in all, very entertaining week. Now for some sleep before work tomorrow.

Serenity Meme

Ok, feeling a bit under the bright sunny weather outside. Took this fun little quiz.

Your results:
You are Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic)

Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic) 85%

You are good at fixing things. You are usually cheerful. You appreciate being treated with delicacy and specialness.

Click here to take the Serenity Personality Quiz

Dream Script

I had a surreal dream this morning. I was watching a rough cut of a movie with my favorite actor and we were going to edit the film. He starred in the film as well. (Pretty sure this doesn't happen stretched out on the carpet in front of an old tv from the 80's with knobs and a VHS machine, but hey, dream rules). We talked about one of the scenes, which was dialogue heavy and a bit awkward.

GirlZoot showed up (but had always been there, dream rules again) with the script and I looked at the opening sequence of images, which had explanations in the script. The entire opening sequence suddenly made sense and I wasn't sure if that was a film thing or a me thing. I suddenly had a burning question. "Is there a final version of the script that matches what the final edited version of the film is?" Never got an answer. I was thinking there's always the deleted or extended scenes, they're part of the original script. Do they stay part of the script or are they marked or removed from the 'final' version? It's different from books, where the final version is it; a screenplay isn't necessarily the last word, editing and at times ad lib play such a big role. (Thank you GirlZoot and Shaych for your film commune / school rubbing off on me).

Around this time, his girlfriend showed up (but had always been there) and the four of us began discussing the film and current events and such. She had an accent, French I think, and was very sweet. They started horsing around together, doing this one leg wrapping thing that I'm pretty sure is physically impossible. They were so cute and madly happy together, my tiny pang of jealousy seemed petty. There was a bit more talking about the script but no more movie watching, just hanging out and enjoying it.

So can anyone tell me, is there a final version of the script that matches the edited film? Is it always that way? Does it depend on the screenwriter? My curiosity is piqued.

Easter Musings

Easter certainly came early this year. The official designation of when Easter occurs is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox. Well, the equinox was on 3/20, the full moon on 3/21, which makes today, 3/23, Easter 2008.

Yesterday I spent a throughly enjoyable afternoon and evening with GirlZoot and her beau playing MTG and Scene-It Disney version and Dominoes. We chatted, discussed writing, and ate the most splendid nachos and strawberry shortcake (there went my diet). Must needs I get my house in a semblance of order to host the next gaming Saturday at my humble abode.

Next week is pretty busy with the Wits End Comedy on Wednesday (comedy mid week, nothing better!) and Mia's Game Night in Boulder Friday night. I love game nights, fun is had by all.

I just finished (just in the last hour or so) Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. I'm still thinking about the themes and the presentation. What price happiness?

Random event last night, it snowed. I'm not certain we were expecting snow and it certainly didn't last that long, but wet white stuff fell from the sky and got all over my car and the porch (which I dutifully shoveled last night when I got home) and has now mostly melted. Bright and sunny outside here at noontime, but I imagine still rather cold.

Enough randomness for now. Catch you later!

Happy Spring!

Hope everyone has a lovely Spring! Today was a bit quiet and a bit windy. Perfect Spring weather.

Keeps getting lighter...

Happy St Patrick's Day

I'm heading over to Mom's house for St Patrick's Day Dinner in a few minutes, so this will be a quick post.

Bowling is going well. We're all having a blast. I'm consistantly bowling over 100 and getting better at positioning the ball. Having my own shoes and ball certainly help!

I'm still working on my online class. I'm having a bit of trouble with keeping up, but I'll work on it. It's more for me than for the class anyway.

I've been composting a new story idea. I have names of characters, some plot lines, and setting, and a hook. Time travel and separate time lines. We'll see how it comes out, but I'm excited about the characters, which makes me excited about the work.

I cut off about 4 inches of my hair and had it highlighted by the lovely and talented Ursula. Still getting used to the length, but it looks cute.

Anything else I forgot?

Oh, Happy Birthday TJ and Mendel (I doubt either of you read this; best wishes nonetheless) Also, Happy Birthday (late) to Trae. I did email you on the day.

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! Having a green drink tomorrow night with Glender and TJ.

Hear Hear (Reprise)

Friday, I had my six week post op follow-up appointment with my otologist. I took the lovely hearing test, the one in the booth with the tight headphones and the little signal you push with your thumb to let them know you heard the tiny sounds they're sending.

After the test, my doctor told me about what happened in the surgery, since I hadn't seen him after. My first, second and part of my third hearing bones were all immobile. He cut off the top of the third bone (the stapes or stirrup) and the remaining part, still attached to the inner ear, moved. Then, he attached a titanium prosthesis to the remaining bone and hooked it back to the ear drum directly, with a piece of cartilage between the ear drum and the prosthesis to prevent wear. Everything was sealed up with lovely packing and I was sent home with a page full of instructions about what not to do.

After he looked at the new hearing test, he told me that what was once my bad ear had now become my good ear. I have 4 decibels better hearing in my right ear than my left now, which was 10 decibels better than he expected with a 'good' outcome. Also, the hearing in my right ear is now within the 'normal' range. I even impress myself. But really, that's pretty amazing, and I thanked him, still in a bit of shock from the good news.

Everything is still loud and he recommended using ear plugs, especially in loud places (like the bowling alley or the Bon Jovi concert). I've set my Shuffle to have a maximum volume of 50%, and am watching the volume on my mini (it has no preset). I'm still waking up in the middle of the night when one of the boys uses the litter box, but eventually I'll get used to that, especially considering the alternatives.

Overstimulation on a walk with the cat

Well, we just got back from quite an exciting ride.

I've had my AT3 pet stroller for almost two years now. Alec, loves his walks (when the weather is nice; he's not a fan of rainstorms even with the rain guard) and in the recent warm weather we went out for a long walk last week, down behind the railroad tracks and along some open space. We were out for about an hour and Alec loved it; he lay down and watched me for a while, then turned around and watched the world for a while. He's a very mellow rider.

Now, Deke, while he loves sitting in the stroller when it's just in the living room, he is a very vocal and fidgety rider. He does eventually settle down and get into the groove, but it takes several minutes of quiet, non-bumpy strolling to get to that point. This afternoon, I decided to get another long walk in before the snow expected tomorrow. Since we take turns, it was Deke's turn for a ride.

The route to the bike path is along my street, and while it's not usually very busy when I'm driving on it, every time I'm walking along it a car comes about every 45 seconds to a minute, which is loud and not happy making for Deke. However, he did stop crying and started watching out the front by the time we got to the bike path itself. As we came up to the entrance to the open space/bike path, a young kid maybe 12 or 13 came jogging off the path and ran across the street toward the houses there. He looked in a bit of a hurry for a Saturday afternoon.

I began walking down the path and a biker rolled past me at a leisurely pace. I continued, singing along to my Shuffle, when I saw the smoke. The wind was to the north east, not toward us but angled off to the left (we were walking south along the path) and a trail of grey then black smoke came wafted in the brisk breeze. I came around the corner and saw flames in the brush on the far side of the path. The biker had stopped his bike and gotten out his cell phone, which I registered just before I hit send on the 911 I had punched into the phone. I caught up with him, leaving Deke about 30 feet back on the path, and heard him talking to the dispatcher. Apparently someone had already called the fire in and the fire department was already en route. In my opinion, it was probably the kid I saw earlier in such a strange hurry. Good for him, even if he started the fire. Always good to do the right thing. Bad to start fires. Except in approved fireplaces, etc.

The biker continued on and I decided discretion was the better part of valor and I turned around, heading back home the short rather than the long way. The flames when I had come up were about 5 or 6 feet tall. By the time we turned around and left, the fire was taking over a tree that had to be 18 to 20 feet tall and shooting further up in the air. I heard the sirens as I walked back up the path. I hadn't gotten to the trail head before the firemen had cut the locks on the gate keeping motorized vehicles off the bike path so I pulled Deke over into the brush while the fire engine drove past toward the fire.

By now, Deke was pacing inside the stroller and crying a lot. It was not exactly the calm, quiet walk I had wanted for his first walk since last fall. About five minutes from home, he finally lay down in the back close to me. I saw a young couple who had pulled over and climbed onto the railroad tracks to watch the fire returning to their car. They assured me the fire was out. When we got home, Deke leapt out before I got the back door fully unzipped.

Now he's sitting back in the stroller giving himself a much needed bath after such a traumatic experience. I think he'll get over it; his memory isn't terribly long (especially when he's been told no). Next trip will be shorter and quieter, I promise.

Leap Day

Happy Leap Day, everyone!

As usual, I took today off. I only get one leap day every four years and I'm not giving it to corporate America or anyone else.

I spent most of the day in the company of the lovely and talented Girlzoot. We did some art store shopping, bought elephant journals (happy coincidence, not a planned occurrence), got some jewelry (earrings for GZ, ring for me), and had some tasty nachos at Good Friends down on Colfax.

After a brief stop at home to unload the car and paint my nails, I headed out to Wits End Comedy Club with Glenda. We ran into a group of other folks from the office and friends. The comedians, Scott Derenger and Ron Feingold were quite funny. Ron did a combination of standup and A Capella, which was originally a bit odd, but turned out to be hilarious. I bought his cd, and can't wait to listen to it.

All in all, a good Leap Day.