#11: read at least one book a month for one year - DONE

i get to cross off another goal today!

goal #11 on my 30before30 list was to read at least one book a month for a year. i started my first book of 2012 in early january, and instead of stopping at 12 books, i actually made it through these 15 books:

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groff

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. The Help - Kathryn Stockett

9. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime - Mark Haddon

10. Blood, Bones & Butter - Gabrielle Hamilton

11. Gone Girl - A Novel - Gillian Flynn

12. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

13. The Receptionist: An Education at The New Yorker - Janet Groth

14. Unbroken - Laura Hillenbrand

15. Half Broke Horses - Jeannette Walls

some of them i loved & some of them...not so much. but i'm not really one of those people who can start a book and just set it down halfway through if i decide i don't like it. once i've invested time in it, it's getting finished.

do you put down books halfway if you just hate them? or do you force yourself through them?

in case any of you are interested in my very non-professional literary opinion, 

i had a really hard time getting through the receptionist (very slow and anti- climactic), cloud atlas was also a bit too slow in my opinion, and the same kind of different as me was not at all what i was expecting (turned out to be a very religion-focused book which i was not interested in. i can be really interested in a book about religion if that's what i set out to read, but in this case - i didn't).

my favorites were the non-fiction books: wild, arcadia, unorthodox, blood bones & butter, unbroken & half broke horses. in fact, i absolutely loved all of those books and i would highly recommend them to anyone who loves reading memoirs, auto biographies, anything non-fiction.

although i was able to check this off the list this year, i still want to make sure i read a lot next year, too. so i'm beginning to put my 2013 book list together and will come back with an update on that semi-soon.

have you read any books this year that you absolutely loved?

or hated?

update: book list for 2012

one of the goals on my 30before30 list is to read at least a book a month for one year.

i can technically go ahead and check this one off, since i've read more than 12 books this year, but i want to see how many i can get to by the end of 2012. so, here's a quick update on my book list:

(previous update: here):

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. The Help - Kathryn Stockett

9. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime - Mark Haddon

10. Blood, Bones & Butter - Gabrielle Hamilton

11. Gone Girl - A Novel - Gillian Flynn

12. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

13. Bringing Up Bebe - Pamela Druckerman

14. The Receptionist: An Education at The New Yorker - Janet Groth (currently reading)

what are you reading right now?

(see my full 30before30 list here)

updates

a few months ago i posted about my summer to-do list, so i figure it's time for an update on how it's coming along.

this is how things are looking right now:

1. read 4 more books-
i have read 3 books since this list was posted. i've gotten through the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime, the girl who played with fire, and finally read the help (even though i had watched the movie first). i'm about to start reading the receptionist: an education at the new yorker. and i know i can finish that one before september 1st, which means: so far, so good.

2. get through all 10 of my bikram yoga classes (although ideally, I'd like to accomplish this before I go to the bahamas on july 5)
i finished all 10 of my bikram classes that were included in my groupon, and moved on to buy 8 more. as soon as those 8 are done, i'm going to take the plunge and sign up for a membership. it's expensive, but it makes me feel great so i'm thinking it's worth it.

3. complete at least 2 more craft projects
um. well, no crafts have been completed this summer. and i have only a few weeks to get this done, so it looks like i should be posting some DIY inspiration this week or next.

4. host a sunday night supper in june or july
yeah, this didn't get done either. it was entirely too hot and too busy to host a sunday night supper in june or july. i'm actually thinking that we won't host one until october, because i want to be able to enjoy the backyard and right now it's miserable and the mosquitoes have their eyes peeled for me.

5. take photos using something other than my iphone
i have actually been taking photos with my nikon! i'm not ready to share them yet because i feel like they're terrible...but at least i've been taking them, and that's what counts.

so, it's not all done yet. but i did give myself until the beginning of september to finish it all.

 since i mentioned it above, here's what my reading list looks like now:

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. The Help - Kathryn Stockett

9. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime - Mark Haddon

10. Blood, Bones & Butter - Gabrielle Hamilton

11. Bringing Up Bebe - Pamela Druckerman

12. The Receptionist: An Education at The New Yorker - Janet Groth

since i'm ahead of schedule, i'm guessing i'll get through 15 books this year instead of the 12 books that i originally listed as my goal.

have any of you accomplished any of your summer to-do's?

reading list update

I've finished another book (The Virgin Suicides), so I'm about to start book #7 of the year! 

I've been really, really excited to get started on Blood, Bones & Butter. I just bought it on my Kindle and am crossing my fingers that I can start it on my lunch break today instead of studying modules and working through lunch.
PS. I plan on replacing both the Stieg Larsson books on this list, I'm kind of over them.

So here is my list as it currently stands.

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - Paul Torday

9. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson

10. Blood, Bones & Butter - Gabrielle Hamilton

11. Bringing Up Bebe - Pamela Druckerman

12. The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides

super quick update on my reading list

So far, so good on goal #11 you guys!

I've added 2 more books to my 2012 reading list that I had written down several months ago and shoved in my desk drawer at work. Luckily I was doing a very necessary cleaning of that drawer today and came across my scribbled down titles: Blood, Bones & Butter and Bringing up Bebe. Have you guys heard about that second book around the blogosphere? Some might say it's controversial, but I think it makes perfect sense. It's basically about why women (and men) should raise babies the way French parents do. Where the parents dictate the in-and-outs of every day and dominate conversations and schedules instead of letting children do that. And sure, I realize that it's not only French men and women who raise their children this way. I was pretty much raised that way and I am in no way French. Either way, it sounds pretty interesting and I'm intrigued, so I'll let you all know how it is. Click the titles for more info, below are some of the covers for your viewing pleasure.

(Oh and I finished reading Unorthodox a few weeks ago and just hadn't updated the list yet. So I'm 5 books in and not in May yet, which means I'm ahead of schedule!)

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - Paul Torday

9. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson

10. Blood, Bones & Butter - Gabrielle Hamilton

11. Bringing Up Bebe - Pamela Druckerman

12.

(see my full 30before30 list here)

update on goal #11

Update! On goal #11 - read at least one book a month for a year.

I just finished reading Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. You guys. It was so good. I started it on Sunday and finished it last night (Thursday) because I couldn't put it down. I think the reason I love memoirs and/or autobiographies so much is because normally, the lives these people have led are so, SO different from mine and I'm unbelievably intrigued by that. And I'm always a little bit sad at the end of a book that I couldn't put down - I never really want it to be over. But I'm really excited to move on to the next book, because this is one of the funnest goals I have on my list! 

My bookshelf has always been a prized possession - 

from when I was a little kid and filled it with Bernstein Bear books, through high school when it was filled with Ray Bradbury and F. Scott Fitzgerald,  to living in my first apartment and filling it with Kerouac, to now...filling it with Palahniuk, more Kerouac, Murakami and as many memoirs as I can get my hands on.

(source is me - this is currently my bookshelf)

Here's what my list looks like so far (click the titles to link to descriptions):

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - Paul Torday

9. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson

10.

11.

12.

I'm getting started on Unorthodox tomorrow and am pretty excited about that.

Still undecided on the last 3 books, but I got some good suggestions and will be deciding soon! Also, the list will most likely change, let's be honest. 

I'm happy that it's April 13th and I finished my book "for the month", so I'm not only on track, but I'm ahead! 

(see my full 30before30 list here)

attempt at releasing my inner bookworm

Since January 1st of this year I've been working on goal #11 on my 30before30 list - read at least a book a month for one year. So far, so good...it's mid-March and I've finished 3 (and a half) books. For the most part, I read books on my Kindle which means that I don't have the physical reminders of what I've read. I realize that I could keep the titles on my Kindle and compile them at the end of the year, but I hate the look of the messy screen with tons of titles on it, so I delete them after I'm done.

Anyway!

I'm going to use this post and continually update it with the books that I've read each month. I also want to keep a list of books I'd like to read this year, because I always find some that catch my eye and I'm intrigued by but forget the titles a few days later.

So, here are the books I'd like to read this year, and the ones I've read so far.(Click on each title if you're interested in reading a little more about the book) 

1. Not That Kind of Girl: A Memoir - Carlene Bauer

2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

3. The Same Kind of Different As Me - Ron Hall

4. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson
5. Wild - Cheryl Strayed

6. Arcadia - Lauren Groft

7. Unorthodox - Deborah Feldman

8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - Paul Torday

9. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson

10.

11.

12.

That's all I've got for now.

Do you have any recommendations for my last 3 books?

Looking over my list, I realized that I've got a lot of non-fiction on there. I'm a sucker for autobiographies and memoirs. But that doesn't mean those are the only suggestions I'll take! I don't have a certain style that I like to read...I just don't like romantic, girly books. But hey, I'm willing to give everything a try. Unless it's a Nicholas Sparks book. I will not give that a try.

(see my original 30before30 list here)

motivated monday

Feliz Monday! I'm feeling very motivated today. That's not true. I just typed it to see if I could lie to myself, and I couldn't. The truth is that I'm feeling sleepy, lethargic and quite honestly, I feel like reading my new book is the only thing that I should be required to do today. I think I've mentioned this before, but I used to be an avid reader when I was younger. Probably up until I turned 20, I read a LOT. And lately, not so much. Which is why one of the goals on my list is to read at least one book a month for one year (#11). I'm not one of those people who goes to Wal-Mart and picks up the first semi-romantic, girly book they see. I'm pretty picky with my books. I pick them meticulously so I get pissed when I finish the book and I hated it. So I know that reading 12 books in one year doesn't seem like a huge accomplishment to most, but when you're super anal about the books you read, it's a difficult thing to do, okay?! 2 books down so far this year (Not That Kind of Girl, by Carlene Bauer & The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson), at least 10 more to go.

Enough of me talking about myself (even though that's what this entire blog is about), let's move on to my Motivated Monday images.

I have to put this set of images up first because I am completely in love with this project by Tom Robinson. In 2005 while on vacation with his girlfriend, he started photographing their feet in front of beautiful backdrops. Since then, he's taken more than 90 travel photos like the ones below. Most recently, a tiny set of feet have been included in the photos, since they recently welcomed a new baby girl. Doesn't this make you just want to travel? And photograph?

(click the source link below to see all the photos)

source

Will one of my friends please, for the love of god, have a baby girl?! I need to throw a baby shower so that I can have ombre balloons and beautiful little girly cookies and cakes. Why will no one grant me this wish?

I love the beach more than I can explain, so it's been decided that we will be spending my 25th birthday somewhere tropical this July. Which means that I have too many feelings to explain. Extreme excitement from getting a tan while hanging out with my most favorite people in the world and drinking something fruity and alcoholic, extreme anger at the fact that I have to get in a bikini, and back to extreme excitement that I'll be turning 25 surrounded by awesomeness. But let's focus on that middle emotion, yes? Here is my motivation for the next 5 months...(today is exactly 5 months before our departing date!)

source

Can you tell I'm in to the ombre effect lately? I really like the look of these yarn wrapped letters. I wouldn't do them with the word love, but I think these would look great in our loft or guest room, in shades of yellow...or maybe even black fading all the way in to white? I don't see the husband being a big fan of the pink, Valentine's day colors.

source

And as I always end these, with a reminder for myself. I -will- do a better job of this going forward.

source

I hope you have a great Monday and found at least one thing to motivate you today and through the rest of the week!

(original 30before30 list here)

#12: read at least 2 books a month for one year

When I was a kid, probably up until I was about 20 actually, I read about 20 or so books a year. The last full book I read was in Spanish (and if we're being honest, I had read the book in English already so I could have possibly skimmed), and before that I read a book called Straight Up and Dirty. Yeah, that's right. This highschool newspaper editor (nerd) stooped low enough to read a memoir that might as well have been based off Sex & The City. Not one of my proudest literary moments. Hence, goal #12. I know it doesn't say that it has to be an "intellectual" book per se, but that's what I had in mind when I wrote it down on my list. I'm not saying it has to only include words I have to look up in every paragraph, but something that actually makes me think. This goal also came up because of my semi addiction to TV...I need to get the hell over that. I would much rather revert back to the Ale that could not name all of the Housewives (except the ones in New Jersey, I'll keep them....), so hopefully this goal will get me back there.
The book I started reading tonight is called Not That Kind of Girl, by Carlene Bauer - a memoir that follows a girl as she's growing up in evangelical churches, and finally decides to explore her religion and even create one that she can call her own. Intellectual enough, I suppose.
Suggestions for my next book (that I have to start in 2 weeks!) are more than welcome.
For now, I leave you with this:

Amen, John Waters. Amen.


(click here to see full 30before30 list)