End of Year Round Up

I have read 85 books this year.  I would say it is 50/50 for really good books and books that were just eh.  I didn't post all my 4-5 star books here, but these are some standouts.

Favorite Books Read:

The Darkest Child by Delores Phillips
Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok
Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiavarini
Ellis Island and City of Hope by Kate Kerrigan
My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor
Heft by Liz Moore
The Gods of Gotham and Seven for a Secret by Lyndsay Faye
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall
NOS4A2 and Horns by Joe Hill
The Cuckoo's Calling by J.K. Rowling
The Son by Phillipp Meyer


I wasn't able to keep a record of the Movies that I've watched this year.  But here are some of my favorites.

Ip Man, Ip Man 2 and The Legend is Born: Ip Man were three great movies.  The first two are part of a trilogy and the last one isn't but it does feel like a prequel.  It is about the great Martial Artist Yip Man who helped bring the martial art of Wing Chun to the rest of the world.  He was the Sifu of Bruce Lee.

Miracle in the Rain was one of the best movies I've seen this year.  It is a 5 star all the way.

 

 

It has been a very eclectic year for reading and movie watching.  That is nothing new.  I tried to read more fiction than non-fiction this year, as I usually do it the other way. I believe I succeeded. I don't know the ration, but fiction won out.

 

I have no idea what I will be reading in 2014, but probably a lot of smaller books.  It is hard to read when I'm in school, since I have to read a lot of school texts and books that we are required to read.  I am going for 60 books again. I'm sure I will make it.

 

 

 

 

 



Merry Christmas

I hope everyone is having a great Christmas.  Today it is just me and my daughter as the rest of my family refuses to speak to us, but that is a topic for another day.

I didn't get any books, but since I got my iPad, I joined Scribd. It is like a Netflix for books. You pay a monthly fee and read as much as you want. They have bestsellers as well as classics. They have all different genres. There is something for everyone.

My daughter got me a lot of cool gift.  Here are 2 of them:

My daughter found this pretty necklace at JC Penny. It is silver plated

and has real crystals.  The C stands for Cheerful.

A  gold mug from Starbucks. I've always wanted a gold mug from Starbucks. LOL!

Last night was our concert.  Here are a few shots from then:

Me, Rosa and Theodora waiting for our Music Director to come.

 

My friends Valerie and Josh and the internal nativity.

Paul, our trumpet player is the ladies favorite. 

Valerie, Mary-Ann, Paul, Rosa, Ana

The Months...a quick review

I am still working on my reading nook.  The big pieces are done.  I need a table and a lamp.  At the moment, I am using a folding TV table and an old lamp that has no on/off switch.  Luckily it is hooked up to the outlet that is attached to the wall switch.  At least I have filled up the shelves more or less and the chair is comfy.  I think I want to get an ottoman.  But it is a far cry from the reading nook I had in the smaller room.  I would like to switch out the chair (this chair is over 60 years old).  But my doorway is too small and only certain chairs can fit into the room.

I am currently on break from school. It has been a rough semester.  I'm taking 15 credits, but am doing well.  I've managed to keep up my reading, and so far have read 82 books.  My goal was 60 for the year.  I wanted to do 100 as usual, but I knew school write could alter that plan.

I've been doing some Christmas reading.  I have read this year so far:

The Letter - Richard Paul Evans
The Christmas Stories - Charles Dickens
The Christmas Wedding - James Patterson
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - Barbara Roberts

The last two are children's books.  Sometimes I need to have a little light reading.  I am currently reading 2 more Christmas books. Hopefully I can have them done before the end of this year.

A new favorite author I discovered this year is Joe Hill who some of you may know as Stephen King's son.  I've read NOS4A2 and Horns.  And once my life calms down, I plan to read Heart Shaped Box.

I'm very happy...my favorite Christmas movie comes on tonight.  It's a Wonderful Life!! I have been waiting all year for this.  My other favorite Christmas movies, Scrooge/A Christmas Carol, the one with Alistair Sim, came on Thursday night. My DVR is full of Christmas movies, but these two top the list.  Along with one I missed this year, the original Miracle on 34th Street. It is just not Christmas until I watch at least one of these.
On Christmas Eve - Ann Martin

First post using Blogsy

I downloaded this app called Blogsy it should be able to help me post I'm not at home. So I am testing it out let's see if I mess this up royally

My friends and I went out for our Christmas lunch yesterday.

And this is my Christmas tree.

Posted with Blogsy

Merry Christmas everyone. It has been ages since I have posted anything. I go to school 3 times a week and cannot post from work. I just bought a new iPad. So I am hoping to be able to post more often. Of course I will have to learn how to use it and I researched an app that would make this easier.   So check back