Buddy Reads

With work going a thousand miles a minute, a book blog that I'm trying to get going, a bachelorette party for baby sis that I'm trying to work on, house chores that are just piling up, blah, blah blah... there really isn't enough time in a day sometimes, but hey, there always is, or should I say, there always should be, for things that give you me pleasure. Riiight??? Riiight!!!...

Ever since I joined Goodreads, I had the pleasure of joining a group within the website. And within this group, we regularly buddy-read books.

The mechanics is quite simple. There is a start date. Once you start reading, you post what percentage,or page, you're at. You can talk about a particular scene, or what you're feeling at that point, or anything you think noteworthy. You use spoiler tags if you think what you're about to write may spoil the experience for those who haven't reached that point. And when you're done, you write about how you feel about it. Opinions can differ, obviously, but that is the beauty of it. And the whole process is quite organic, I thought. Because depending on what's being posted, the discussion can veer off the book itself but I think it just enhances the experience.

When friends outside my online world ask what it is, I always say it's the online equivalent of a book club. But I think it's much more than that. Book club meetings tend to happen once a book is read. Buddy reads happen from the time you pick up the book to the time you finish reading and possibly even past that. And the beauty of it is you can talk about the book right from the start. If there's a part you're not understanding, you have your "buddies" to ask for clarification. If you're struggling with certain parts, your "buddies" can hold your hand, so to speak, to get you through it or at least help to make sense of things. If you're feeling particularly sad about a certain scene, you know you're not alone. And whether you enjoyed it or not, there is an immediacy to the response as there's always someone online.

Best part of all, you're not limited by geography. The buddy reads I've joined tend to have readers from North America and Europe, for the most part. Can't get any cooler than that, no?...

... Like I said, things that can give you me pleasure... Riiight??? Riiight!!!



Have you ever done buddy reads? Do you like it?

Well, Hello There!

Holy cow! It's been almost a year since my last post, how about that! 10 days to a year to be exact! Crikey!!!

Clearly, I'm still around, and yup, this is what happens when real life takes over. Or should I say, when another blog takes over my non-work life...

Let's just say that this has kinda' taken over my waking hours, much to my hubby's chagrin *sheepish smile*...

My trusted Kobo reader, and my fairly new other toy... I've burned thru an android tablet last year and by happenstance, and I swear, pure happenstance, my rubber arms got twisted and ended up with the iPad Mini over Christmas *chuckles*.

And can't forget about my phone too. Seriously, I'm pretty sure if hubby can chuck them all, he would, considering the amount of time spent on those gadgets. Hah!

Anyhoot, they're mostly for reading my gazillion e-books (I wish I'm kidding when I say gazillion O.o), which pretty much translates, as a consequence, to copious amount of time spent on Goodreads to kvetch with my kindred bookworms; which then led me, crazily enough, to creating a book blog, imagine that! No, not gonna say which one, as I'm not prepared yet to mix this world and that... What? Me, hide something? Nevah!

So as much as I want to say that something super dramatic occurred in the last year which would explain my absence, no, not really... Unless you count the roller coaster of a ride I've been having at work as well. And by roller coaster ride, I don't mean the fun one. It's more like the scary gargantuan one. Seriously, I just want to make sure I don't lose my grip, in case I get flung around by accident. Just saying...

And on that note, I thought I'd end this with something representative of my handle name, the latest addition to my collection. Ok, it was bought over Christmas, but I'm still waiting for the right weather to wear them >.< {Un}Retail therapy or not, as far as I'm concerned, it's always, after all, about the...

Tory Burch ballet flats

Riiight?!? Riiight!!!

Happy Day y'all!

This One's For You

So Valentine's Day has come and gone, and as I may have mentioned in the past, Valentine's Day has taken on a new meaning 8 years ago. I'ts just one of those things...

This was one of my Dad's ties, one of my fave, as a matter of fact, that I've hold on to now for 8 years. And without any planning really on my part, it's something that's now part of my wardrobe once a year ever since. Call it silly, call it whatever, I call it my ritual, my tribute, my celebration, my connection...

Missing as always...


Is it just me, or do you have the same rituals?

New Year's Resolution

Yes, yes, I know it's already February. I've yet to pick up my momentum to blog as regularly as I used to, not sure why. Oh, I know why. It's totally reflective of my real life, I admit. At times, it takes me a bit of time to work my way towards something I've been meaning to do. Call it lazy, call it procrastinating, call it whatever, but the way I've always seen it, I figure I'll get there eventually, no? O.o

Anyways, I can't even recall anymore the last time I made a New Year's resolution list. I must have been a child. Seriously, it's been that long. If it's still not clear, it was because I never really put any effort into it. By Jan 2, my resolution, whatever it was, has usually fizzled out. Hah!

This year though, not really sure what happened, I've decided to take on things and really do something about it. Very top of my list is to lose weight. Surprise, surprise! (ok, you have no context so perhaps not, but at the same time, this is usually on most people's list, right?)

When I started out with this thought, I knew I have to do something but didn't really know what. Enter one of my staff who casually asked if I will work out with her if she buys the T25 program. Without hesitation, I said yes. Talk about perfect timing, eh?

via T25 Facebook page

So finally, her order has arrived, and on Jan 27th, we got started. And oh boy, talk about brutal when we first got started! Thank god there's a bunch of us doing this, coz really, if I started out with just myself, who knows, I may have stopped by day 3 (hehe). And here we are, here I am, 2 weeks later, 1/2"-1" smaller all around, and still on it, big yay! And this is without even sticking to a diet, really. Not bad, right? 2 weeks down, 8 to go. To me, that sounds daunting, but hey, hopefully, my co-workers will continue to call me out on it, or even I will call myself out by writing it here, right? One day at a time...

So what else is on that resolution list? Like I said, I have an idea, but I still haven't quite hashed out the details yet. What did I tell ya? I figure I'll get there eventually, no? haha


So how are you doing with your New Year's resolution so far this year, if you have one? What finally pushes you to stick to A plan? How do you maintain your resolve? What motivates you?

How To Fangirl Properly

fangirl  

A fan, sometimes also called aficionado or supporter, is a person with a liking and enthusiasm for something (or someone). Fans of a particular thing (person)...

I was told I'm too cynical to know how to "fangirl" properly. Ok, just by my sister (hehe). No, I say I'm not... (maybe I'm too old?) And even if I am, I say a cynical gal can still fangirl. How, you ask?

• Take everything at face value. Whatever the person says/writes/quotes, let that be THE word. No questions asked. Which means that once in a while, you may have to put aside your own opinions, overlook typos, whatever, because let's face it, the person has more knowledge than you and must have a legitimate reason for everything (yes, including the typos).
• Never ever ask the person difficult questions; questions that may actually need to be handled by the person's PR team. Stick with simple ones (eg. "How do you take care of your lovely skin?")
• Always gush on your posts/tweets, about everything concerning the person! (eg. "I love how you look sipping coffee in that pap picture, perfection!")
•  Show support to whatever the person supports, let the person know about it, AND announce it to the world. Virtual world, that is. Real world doesn't count 'cause the person's not in it anyway.
• Get on the fansite bandwagon, and agree with all the other fans.
• Post on the person's FB page, or tweet the person, at least once every day, or twice (maybe not thrice or more, as that may just appear stalker-ish).

(via Google images, courtesy of isatv.com)

HAHAHA... Ok, I'm just being facetious. *grins* (see above image)

Actually, I fangirl quite a bit over certain people, that's for sure. And I have no shame admitting it. I have no qualms letting people know out there how much I adore them AND their work. I don't expect any response unless I have a specific question (mind you, it makes my day, that's for sure, when I get a reply regardless). And believe me, people who knows me know when I'm fangirl-ing over somebody.

Perhaps I should apologize if I sound offensive and I just want to clarify that what I don't get is the way some women fangirl without substance... hmmm, but is that the point of fangirling?... hmmm, am I confused about what fangirling is all about?... hmmm, maybe I don't know how to fangirl after all... hmmm... or do I?... hmmm...

Hey, to each their own, no?

(Don't mind me. With work keeping me busy, I'm just trying to enjoy summer, and not over-exert my brain with too much thinking. Clearly, not necessarily the best results, but hey it is what is:p)

Back "Home"

I'm a child of an immigrant family. We've been living in our adoptive country, our "new home" for close to a quarter of a century now, which for me translates to pretty much more than half my life. So when people ask me if or when I'm going back home, that simple question becomes a moment of reflection. All the time.

(via Google image, courtesy of cntraveller.com)

To add to that, after getting married, hubby and I moved and now live on the opposite coast, and this is not counting the time we spent living in the US.

So in my head, it shouldn't come as a surprise then that I don't necessarily think of the country that I was born in immediately as home, nor the city that our family first moved to (which the rest of the family still calls "home"), nor the city where we currently live in. And I guess what I'm trying to say is as cliche as it may sound, home, really, is where the heart is, which makes it 3 different places, in my case. And for me, that's ok.

My native country will always hold fond memories of my childhood. My adoptive country, my new native country if I can call it that, makes a chunk of my past now and has shaped me as an adult. My current city represents my present. And as for the future, who knows!

On that note, wishing all Canucks out there a "Happy Canada Day!" :)

To Dads

To the new dads just discovering the joy of fatherhood...

To the old dads who continue to be there for their children, whether they're 4 or 40...

To the future dads looking forward to a future with their children...

But most of all, to MY dad...

Happy Father's Day!

Miss you more and more everyday...

Closet...

... Blogger

Still? Yes. To this day, still not too many of my friends know that I blog. I started sharing this fact with a few when I first started, but as it turns out, most of my friends are not so keen on blogging, whether reading or writing one, let alone finding out about my inner thoughts. Well, duh, I guess they hear enough from me in person or FB (ok, not so much there either lately), and now I expect them to read about it too? As it also turns out, some, if not most, are keen on keeping their privacy and think blogs negate that. Hey, so am, and do, I! Yes, seriously! Perhaps my major reason to begin with about being in the closet with my blogging. Oxymoron-ic, I know (is that even a word?).

... Tweet-er

Again, I learned that my friends are not that big fans of Twitter. Solid FB users, thru and thru, but the love doesn't quite extend to Twitter. What's not to love, I'm not sure. I can be succinct or cryptic as I can be in 140 characters or less to no one in general.

... Tumblr-er(?)

Ok, I don't really use my Tumblr account.

... Goodreads member

If you're an avid reader and haven't been to this site, you have to check it out. Maybe it's just me, but it's addictive! I can get lost in this site for hours just discovering new books and reading what people think about various books. And I think because I was reading so many reviews, I had this brilliant idea that I can do the same *raises an eyebrow*  I thought if I cared enough about what some random people feel about a book, without knowing anything about those people, then perhaps some other random people will feel the same way about what I write... *sigh*

(via Google images, courtesy of syra-arts.com)

So there you have it! My virtual self, all (mostly) compartmentalized in tiny digital boxes. *grins* You may, or may not, get a sense of (a part of) who I am...

When you blog/tweet/post, what goes thru your head when you hit that publish/tweet/post button? How reflective of your real self is your virtual self? Do you ever think of possible consequences, or if there are any at all?

Things That Keep Me Up At Night

How am I going to find time the time to read my bajillion books?

What book should I read next?

Why is my e-reader not syncing properly?

How can some e-books be more expensive than their paperback version?

When are they going to put that pair of shoes on sale?

What restaurant should we try next?

What if I miss {insert name}'s tweets?

Generic ketchup or not?

How can she wear the same top from yesterday?

How can they end The Following that way?

Why am I keeping all these episodes of {insert title}in our PVR?

Why is {insert title} so popular? What am I missing?

Did s/he just really write that? What is s/he thinking?

Did I use the right tense in that sentence? Was my grammar correct?

Why did she take that character in that direction?

Did s/he see my tweet? Why is s/he not responding?

Why can't I delete this activity from my timeline?

**********

... ok, not really... {hashtag} first world problem...

HAHA!

Hoorah to Social Media! Death to Social Media!

I recently had an email interaction with a public personality, who I was am(?) a big fan of, about an interview that the person did. It was an interview that I really enjoyed but there was a portion of the interview, about social media of all things, that didn't sit quite well with me and I thought I'd let the person know how I felt about it in the hopes that the person can address it. (Address it? Who do I think I am? *raises eyebrow*)

(courtesy of blog.gemalto.com, via Google images)

Let's just say that it didn't go down very nicely. Had I not been secure with my views and taken the entire content of the response I received personally, let's just say I probably would have been curled up in a ball after reading it, huddled in a corner and just started questioning my beliefs (ok, I'm exaggerating). I think that was the intent of the response anyway. I guess the person felt personally attacked so the person responded in a similar fashion. But I didn't take it personally (how can I when I only "know" OF the person?), and just looked at it as objectively as possible. In retrospect, I still didn't think I've said anything demeaning, I thought I was merely making a point. Unfortunately, from the person's perspective, that wasn't the case, as I've regrettably learned (What do I know? I'm just a fan, after all, right? *insert googly eyes*). Real shame...

Regardless, what it did to me though is it saddened me. It revealed a side of this personality that I wasn't prepared to see at all (I should have just been happy, I suppose, "adoring" this person like a regular fan, is that it?) and it just further confirmed what I already know, that image is not necessarily everything. Shoulda' known better... *sniff, sniff*

The only other thing I'm gonna say about this experience is that social media has indeed become a game changer. For everybody. These are the (digital) times we're living in... fortunately, or unfortunately... depending I guess on which end you're at...

O well... C'est la vie...

Tell Us of a Time...

I haven't really decided if the direction of this blog is changing. Hmmm, did I have a direction to begin with? And do I really need to have a direction? These are my random musings after all, are they not? Hmmm...

Anyhoot, since my random musings lately have gotten more random, thought I'd just talk about the job interview I recently had. The job interview that's led to all these changes lately, to begin with. So, I've been doing this position since beginning of May, officially, that is. Unofficially, I've been doing it for almost a year, although at a different office. And the funny thing was for me to be in that position officially, even though I've been doing the same task already, I had to interview for the position just like everybody else...

"So, tell us of a time when you..."

(courtesy of bubblews.com, via Google images)

Don't you love that question?

One thing that most of us already know when it comes to behavioural interviewing is the STAR method. Whatever your response is, it should follow this format: 

Situation 

Task 

Action 

Result

But what did I really learn out of this experience, and from the people who were instrumental in my preparation for it?

• Because I had back-to-back interviews, I had to really prepare. As in prepare! A LOT! I spent weeknights and some weekends just to prep my notes.
• Practice, practice, practice. So practice I did. And in front of a mirror, just to make it a little bit more uncomfortable. HAH!
• In this situation, I learnt it was all about me. It's what I did and accomplished. "I did this... I led that... I presented this... (you get the gist)"
• And because this was an interview where I know the people on the other side of the interview desk, the best advice I probably received was to pretend that I didn't know those people. The devil was in the details, whether they know about it or not. After all, whether they are fully aware of my accomplishments or not, at the end of the day, they cannot rate me on something they know but I didn't say.

I'm just glad that the result was a happy one... 

Fashion Inspiration

As I'm getting older, the more I'm certain that I'm not really that girly-girl kinda' gal. Granted I wear dresses now more than ever but I've always felt at my most confident in menswear-inspired clothing, or I should say, clothes with some masculine touch to them. Oh wait, same diff, right?

Here are some of the women who then inspires me as I think they epitomize what I mean above.

(all images via Google images)

Emmanuelle Alt

(courtesy of nymag)

Gwyneth Paltrow

(courtesy of graziadaily.co.uk)

Jackie O

(courtesy of writingsofthegoddess.com)

Marlene Dietrich

(courtesy of last.fm)

Katherine Hepburn

(courtesy of suecarterflinn.com)

To me, these women represent(ed) strong, confident, and feminine all at once. Do you agree? Who inspires you sartorially?

...It's A New Day, It's A New Life...

... ok not really...

I realize being away for a week from the blogosphere is like a month in real life, so imagine being AWOL for a month, let lone 5 months! A blogger might as well be gone for years, no? I guess that's just what happens when the blog world in particular has the attention of a goldfish... Not that it really makes a difference, does it?

It's been ages even I feel awkward, sheesh! What's up with that?!... Not really sure what happened. It just did, whatever it was.

Regardless, here I am, 5 months later. Reminds me of the time I used to have a journal when I was younger. Before I knew it, I'd just stop, then I'd be back a year later. It's quite an interesting read actually, only for me of course. It felt a little jarring since there would be such long gaps, but it also felt like no time has gone by, and there I was back again.

Christmas came and went, a fun time spent with family. Winter... Easter... Spring... And now here we are, here I am, and it's almost summer. Work has been really crazy busy, a major contributor to my absence here, that's for sure, but fortunately, with really happy result. I'm now in a different office, after what felt like almost a whole year of bouncing from one office to another, one task to another, one project to another, one position to another.

And I'm happy to report that my {un}retail therapy is kinda' sorta' working *insert googly eyes* Well, a tad... Since Christmas, I've been really good, I thought, up until a week ago. But hey, that's like almost 5 months! That should count for something, no?

Cynthia Rowley blouse (Winners)

Gap ballet flats

That's it, I swear... Although... (dum-duh-dum-dum) I must say yes, I have not been shopping per se, but I may have inadvertently found a new kind of retail therapy *eeep*...

Kobo Touch e-reader (Christmas gift from sisters)

... in the form of e-books! *gasp* Well, at least I'm feeding my brain, right?

On that note, will just leave you with these lovely thoughts I happen to stumble upon on my way home from work one day...

Who knows when I'd be back here again hehe... sooner rather than later, I hope...

All Over the Place

Today, yes, literally! A colleague and I had to visit various offices to talk to people about a pending major change. We ended up visiting 6 offices spread throughout the city. It didn't appear to be much work, but having to talk to every single person at every office and maintaining a certain level of energy all day, boy, I was just pooped at the end of it. The best part, we do it all over again tomorrow, wheee!!!

And to add the weekend that just passed seemed all over the place as well, heck I guess my thoughts have been scattered around for a good few days now...

Anyhoot, with the Black Friday that just passed, Canadian retailers have now figured that they should participate now as well so Canadians wouldn't find the need anymore to cross the border to get advantage of sales. I didn't think it would really make a difference but I guess I was wrong. The mall that I went to was buzzzy! It's like Boxing Day, but only in November. It was cray cray! Fortunately, I didn't get carried away...

Bath & Body anti-bacterial hand soaps

Needed to refill our stash so the deal couldn't have come at a better time.

American Eagle jeggings

I had to recently dispose of 2 black jeans thanks to that common(?) problem of thinning out and ripping at the inner thigh (is it just me? eeep). At 40% off, I figured, again, the deal couldn't have come at a better time. And that was it! Whew!

Then, yesterday, I decided last minute to recreate the steak dish I had at the wedding I went to last Friday night.

Ribeye steak with broccolini on a bed of mashed potato

I thought it was just as delish as the wedding steak, albeit not as nicely plated and the portion is a tad(?) bigger. I learned it takes a great deal more butter than I anticipated to make it just as delish, but you're definitely not gonna hear me complain, nope. Hah!

And since I painted my nail that nice dark wine color last week, I couldn't resist going even a bit more dark this time.

Nicole by OPI in Razzle Dazzler (sorry, this is before clean-up)

All over the place, aren't I?! And like I said, we get to do it again tomorrow, so looking forward to it! *snort*

Thank You, Advertisers

Maybe it's just me, but I really gotta hand it to these ad people when they make me like a song even more than I already do, or actually discover a song, just by using the song in their ads. No, I'm not talking about those cheesy ones (no offense). I think they nail it in the head. The whole point is to evoke an emotion, right? For the song to reflect their product? Not that I end up buying their products. Hah! But it does give me the warm fuzzy feeling. Kinda like the Google Chrome ads (here, here, here, and here). I'm such a sap, I know hehe...

Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop (Landon Pigg), from De Beers Diamonds, 2008:

 


We Are Young (Fun), from Chevy Sonic, 2012:




Everything At Once (Lenka), from Microsoft, 2012:




Home (Phillip Phillips), from Tim Hortons for Tassimo, 2012:




Out of all these, I'm realizing two things. First, I imagine from the artist perspective, the whole thing about commercialism might equate to a feeling of selling-out, but I also imagine, they need to stay commercial eventually, no, in order to survive. Second, what does it say about me when I discover a song thru an ad? Does that validate an artist when it's able to reach an audience like myself? AND more importantly, am I that old that I only hear certain songs thru ads? Or maybe I just watched too much TV, is that it? Which is it? Hmmm...

Keep on (Food) Truckin'!

Lately, I'm finding myself kinda' losing momentum with my posts (did I even have one, in the first place? hehe). Is it the weather? Is it work? What is it? Is my brain prepping for hibernation mode? If only that can be done, eh?

I haven't really been up to much lately. Other than work, just doing my best to relax with hubs and friends. A drink here, a dinner there, a lunch here... and there...

Soho Road food truck

Tried the butter chicken one. Fresh naan, the right amount of heat, it was yum!

Cazbah Express food truck

Love love Persian food to begin with!!!  Got the Koobideh and it did not disappoint. The combination of the ground meat with the veggies and the yogurt and hot sauce inside the pita bread, another yum!

Guanaco food truck

Pupusa platter

Is it a good pupusa? Wouldn't know since that was my first pupusa, but it I thought it was really good. And the yucca fries (at least that's what I think it was) was crispy on the outside and with just a right amount of creaminess inside. I like how the cole slaw salad and the salsa on the side balance the richness of both the pupusa and the fries.


If I really think about it, I'm pretty sure work has got to do with it mostly. With what's happening lately, I'm barely able to collect my thoughts at the end of the day that really, when I get home, I only have enough energy to enjoy whatever mindless drivel is on TV that moment, or to get lost in some of my books to relax for a bit.

Anyhoot, I think I'm slowly getting used to a different pace now and I'd like to think I'm gaining grounds again. Besides, the holiday's just around the corner, so there's something to look forward to.

At least got another day to rest tomorrow, thanks to the long weekend. An hour and 35 min left to the day, Happy Remembrance Day! And tomorrow would have been dad's birthday. Happy Birthday, from down here!!! Miss you more everyday...

Outliers

Over the weekend, I finally got around to finishing the book, Outliers.

via

It's quite an interesting read, I thought. The writer definitely offered a different point of view as to the success (or failure) of certain people.

Personally, I find it comforting/encouraging how hard work comes into play when analyzing the success of the people he wrote about. A fact I think that sometimes some of us forget or choose to ignore, especially when one appears to have achieved overnight success.

What I find less comforting/encouraging is the fact how things we have no control over, like the month or year or generation we're born in, or the culture we grew up with, also could play a part in what could make or break us in our chosen career or endeavor. That something that could be considered so random have so much impact, although he does go on to explain why it may not be so random after all. It felt like the cliche, being in the right time and the right place. Or I should say born in the right time and the right place.

There was that interesting part about planes and pilots...

Then I revert back to feeling comforted/encouraged with the fact that being born with a silver spoon is not an automatic guarantee of success. Although it can definitely open up opportunities. O wait, does that mean I'm feeling less comforted/encouraged again? HAH!

I do like how he mentioned the people behind some of these successful people, the part that they played in these successful people's lives whether done intentionally or not.

In the end, regardless of what I got out of it, I thought it was a good (and easy hehe) read. None of these information is new to anyone I think, but to me, I like how it was presented in a different light.

Halloween Dinner

No, I don't have my dates wrong. I know it's now November. And what's Halloween dinner to begin with? Actually it wasn't. On Halloween, we celebrated a friend's birthday, that's why... nyek, nyek, nyek...

I did end up wearing my pink wig to work, in the spirit of Halloween. I almost chickened out but like hubs reminded me, why did I buy it to begin with?

And since I knew for a fact that I had a wig hair underneath for wearing that pinkness all day, I really had no choice but to wear it thru dinner that night... hehe...

And of course, dinner was at this nice French restaurant. Not appropriate? Well, it was Halloween after all, so meh... HAH!

Ris de Veau (sweetbreads)

Bouillabaisse

Creme Brulee

The evening's mascot
(not endorsing smoking, for sure)

Not counting the fabulous company, loved the food and loved the ambiance of the place, for sure!

Like we were discussing over dinner, in addition to word of mouth, isn't it interesting how social media is all a good resto need these days to get its name out there, and they don't even have to do anything about it. Well, they have to make good food at least. Thanks to Instagram, Four Squares, blogs, whatever, people readily tell their friends (or readers) where they were and post pictures of the food to confirm to their friends (or readers) how good the food was.

Providing of course they have friends, or readers...

HAH!

I Read Like I Eat

Over the weekend, the public library nearby had its annual book sale. Not really sure why but this is actually the first time I checked it out. Oh, man, so many, many books! It was a tad overwhelming just because most everything is all over the place, especially the paperbacks.

From top: Emma, Wicked, The Kite Runner, The Lovely Bones, The Historian

Tried not to go too crazy. Yes, even though they were dirt cheap. After all, how much can I really read for a certain period? I figure these books will tide me over for a good while. There were a few more picked up that were not included in the pic, just because I'm kinda' embarrassed to admit that I read them kind of books hehe Heck, I don't even know why I'm saying that here. HAH! Oh yes, to reinforce the fact that there are indeed enough books to tide me over.

I find since I've been out of school, I go thru cycles with my reading. I will go for months and months without touching a book then boom, I'd be reading non-stop, book after book after book. I guess I'm in a reading cycle of late, a much longer reading cycle, mind you, not sure why.

Oh, and on top of that, I realized too in my older years that I can't speed read like I used to in my younger years. I can still pretty much finish a book in a day, depending on how engrossed I am in the book, but I do remember when I can finish a book in half a night if I wanted to. Now, I'm finding myself savoring the words and scenes much more, letting myself totally wrapped up in the story, therefore taking longer, definitely, to finish a book sometimes. Kinda like when I eat. Over the years, because they say it's better for digestion and healthier eating (that is what they say, no?), I've learned to chew my food longer and by doing so, really savor my food. The good thing about that, like they say, is that you end up eating less. True, but then when your taste buds are open like that, the taste for rich(er) food also gets magnified, no? Or is it just me? Hmmm...

Now if only I can eat like I read. In cycles, that is... HAH!

When Am I?

Time is such a funny thing, no?

Had a course to attend to this week so it was a short work week for me. Yet the way this course broke up the week, the short work week doesn't feel that short on one hand, considering the amount of work done both in and out of the office. And on the other hand, the short work week felt truly short, since I was only in the office for 2 days...

When I do the scheduling at work, I obviously have to work on it in advance. So here I am in the present, looking at the calendar for the next few weeks. Sometimes, when I work on it too long, I think I convince myself that I am on that week already, forgetting about the present...

Then when I blog, I blog as I think, for the most part, but sometimes, I will have too many thoughts in my head that I break them up and schedule posts for the future (which seems to be the recommendation by some out there... meh...). And what happens? I forget about them, I go back to my blog a few days later and it feels like I'm remembering something that happened a while back yet I'm posting in the present.

Huh? Does that even make sense?

My point, exactly!

HAH!