Today I spent some time browsing through that wonder of the modern age: the audiobook section of the Calgary Public Library ebook collection. I love ebooks. I love audiobooks. The library is making books more accessible to me? I can download audiobooks directly to my phone?!?!?! YES PLEASE. Maybe you are thinking to yourself "this again? Ugh, stop harping on it." All I have to say in response to that is: if you've got book problems I feel bad for you, son. I've got 99 problems but free access to a plethora of quality audiobooks ain't one.
What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast / Laura Vanderkam isn't an audiobook so much as it is a hour-long mine of information and inspiration. Who here wants to be effective and productive? Who wants to spend their time well? I'd wager most of us do. I know I do. Basically, the gist of the...thing? audio program? book? instruction manual? who cares? is that mornings are valuable and you/I/we can use them better! Pretty straightforward. Pretty great. Vanderkam makes a productive morning schedule seem simple and accessible, and those are two things I like.
Here's how to have a productive morning: wake up early, and get stuff done. THAT'S IT. If you listen to it, which I recommend you do (I have already "returned" it to the CPL, so that you can go borrow it. I reckon you have an hour of time at some point, probably today, to listen to it. Audiobooks are good for: driving, filing, tidying, putting away laundry, grocery shopping, etc) you will find that Vanderkam just wants you to have the time to do the things you love, the things that are important but not urgent, and the things you won't have the willpower to do later. She gives ideas and pointers and leeway.
Such was the inspiration that I've made a plan to make my mornings fuller and more productive (as well as more enjoyable! Yessssss) AND a part of that plan is to keep a record of my mornings in a new blog, which I am calling (oh-so creatively) The Morning Project. If you want to read it, YOU CAN. Fair warning: it's pretty much a list of what I did before getting to work and that's it. I have a strange and insatiable interest in people's routines, especially morning routines and getting-ready routines, so I would probably be alllll over this baby if someone else was writing it, and so I am putting it on the world wide web, for your reading pleasure.
Take-aways from this post: get What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast into your ear-hearts. You'll want to make your mornings into fabulous "are you a CEO" mornings.
2.27.2014
2.24.2014
faerie
Something needs to be cleared up. I read quite a few blogs, and a couple of them have recently mentioned fairy tales, and I am somewhat confused as to what exactly people think fairy tales are. Fairy tales are not stories in which an incompetent damsel in distress gets rescued by a prince and suddenly has an amazing life. Sure, there are a couple that go along those lines, but more often than not fairy tales are stories about people coming through extreme peril using mainly straight-up ruthlessness and/or cleverness and/or kindness.
To illustrate my point, here is a short list of some of the very clearly not "cute/clean little stories for children and impressionable teenage girls" features in some of the better-known fairy tales:
Let me disabuse you of the notion that fairy tales are cute stories in which a helpless, pretty princess is rescued by a handsome, morally upright prince and they go on to live happily ever after. Fairy tales are a lot of things, but they are not cute. Do they often involve love stories? Yes. Do they also involve a whooooole lot of murder and mayhem? Also yes. Interestingly enough, instances of the woman, the man, or people working together doing the rescuing are pretty even across the board. Don't try to feed me some idiocy that fairy tales are some sort of evidence that women just want to be rescued by men and then they'll be happy and fulfilled. If you say that, you clearly have not read very many fairy tales. Women rescue men, men rescue women, groups of people work together to achieve a goal, people rescue themselves, and sometimes no one is rescued and everyone comes to a grisly end.
These stories are valuable not because they are supposedly full of happy, shiny people, but because they illustrate the human condition and tell tales of triumph over evil in the face of our own flaws and seemingly insurmountable odds. Cinderella relies on steadfastness and honesty. The Little Mermaid chooses self-sacrifice over self-seeking. Rapunzel finds and heals her prince, introduces him to his children, and they go on to rule a kingdom together. Characters in fairy tales, the good guys as well as the bad guys, do terrible things to each other and make mistakes and misjudge situations, but they stick to their guns and they learn fast and they pull through. I don't know about you, but I would way rather hear a story about someone who has flaws and learns and grows and comes out victorious than about a vapid shell of a human being relying solely on another to rescue them and provide "happily ever after".
To illustrate my point, here is a short list of some of the very clearly not "cute/clean little stories for children and impressionable teenage girls" features in some of the better-known fairy tales:
- When trying on the glass slipper, Cinderella's step-sisters cut off parts of their feet in order to fit into the shoe.
- The Little Mermaid commits suicide.
- At her wedding, Snow White forces her step mother to dance in red-hot iron shoes until she dies.
- Rapunzel gives birth to illegitimate twins in the desert by herself.
- Rapunzel's prince is pushed out of the tower by the witch, blinded and maimed on a thorn bush, and wanders homeless and lost for two years.
- In some versions of the story, Sleeping Beauty is impregnated and gives birth, all while still asleep.
- After being twice abandoned by their father, Hansel and Gretel are taken captive by a witch who plans to eat Hansel and teaches Gretel sorcery until Gretel pushes her into an oven and burns her alive.
Let me disabuse you of the notion that fairy tales are cute stories in which a helpless, pretty princess is rescued by a handsome, morally upright prince and they go on to live happily ever after. Fairy tales are a lot of things, but they are not cute. Do they often involve love stories? Yes. Do they also involve a whooooole lot of murder and mayhem? Also yes. Interestingly enough, instances of the woman, the man, or people working together doing the rescuing are pretty even across the board. Don't try to feed me some idiocy that fairy tales are some sort of evidence that women just want to be rescued by men and then they'll be happy and fulfilled. If you say that, you clearly have not read very many fairy tales. Women rescue men, men rescue women, groups of people work together to achieve a goal, people rescue themselves, and sometimes no one is rescued and everyone comes to a grisly end.
These stories are valuable not because they are supposedly full of happy, shiny people, but because they illustrate the human condition and tell tales of triumph over evil in the face of our own flaws and seemingly insurmountable odds. Cinderella relies on steadfastness and honesty. The Little Mermaid chooses self-sacrifice over self-seeking. Rapunzel finds and heals her prince, introduces him to his children, and they go on to rule a kingdom together. Characters in fairy tales, the good guys as well as the bad guys, do terrible things to each other and make mistakes and misjudge situations, but they stick to their guns and they learn fast and they pull through. I don't know about you, but I would way rather hear a story about someone who has flaws and learns and grows and comes out victorious than about a vapid shell of a human being relying solely on another to rescue them and provide "happily ever after".
2.20.2014
1001
As you may know I have little resistance power when it comes to lists and "how many of these have you read/seen/etc" and "compare with your friends" and "if you've read more than them you are the winner" type things, so when I came across a "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" list I immediately grabbed a pencil and a piece of scrap paper and started tallying up. Also involved is the 1% Well Read challenge, in which people have to read 1% of this list of 1001 books. I was all "gurl, I have got this in the bag" only to find out that I have read a mere 45 of the 1001 books (which I realize is over 1% but I was thinking I'd be around 10% and so: disappointment).
Actually, the number could vary anywhere between 45-48ish books because I don't know how many Jane Austen books I have read because they all blend together in my mind and here is one of the kickers of this post: WTH is up with Jane Austen mania? P&P is great, sure, and Northanger Abbey had me in stitches, buuuut why are there a gazillion of her books on the list of 1001 books I supposedly must read but The Iliad isn't? Also no Shakespeare? Or Grimm's Fairy Tales? And I get it, you are thinking, "you only want those things on the list because, heyo: favorite things. Also Shakespeare wrote plays so maybe they don't count." But so much of our cultural canon is based on Shakespeare and Homer and fairy/folk tales that if you haven't at least sampled them you've stuffed up badly, IMHO. Also: come on, three Toni Morrison books and no Beowulf?
Not to mention that the Bible isn't on the list. I could go on and on about the value of reading widely when it comes to sacred texts (if you don't know what you don't believe then how do you know what you do believe?) but even if you look at it in a non-religious way then it is still super valuable. Even if you just read it as a What Is Up With Israel primer, you really ought to read it. While I believe that the Bible is God-breathed and useful for teaching and correcting, I get that you might not BUT no one can deny its cultural significance.
Almost 70 books from the 2000s and only 13 from pre-1700???? WTH???? Krup that list. Make your own dang list. Read what you want to, just read. Read widely. Read from different eras. Read to learn, read to be entertained. Read words on a page, or on an ebook reader, or listen to an audiobook, just find the stories you want to hear and knowledge you want to have and ingest it somehow. Don't give me some clap-trap about not having time because if I can have a job and do school and binge-watch Once Upon a Time and hang out with palz and still make time to read then you can too. I believe in you or w/e.
Actually, the number could vary anywhere between 45-48ish books because I don't know how many Jane Austen books I have read because they all blend together in my mind and here is one of the kickers of this post: WTH is up with Jane Austen mania? P&P is great, sure, and Northanger Abbey had me in stitches, buuuut why are there a gazillion of her books on the list of 1001 books I supposedly must read but The Iliad isn't? Also no Shakespeare? Or Grimm's Fairy Tales? And I get it, you are thinking, "you only want those things on the list because, heyo: favorite things. Also Shakespeare wrote plays so maybe they don't count." But so much of our cultural canon is based on Shakespeare and Homer and fairy/folk tales that if you haven't at least sampled them you've stuffed up badly, IMHO. Also: come on, three Toni Morrison books and no Beowulf?
Not to mention that the Bible isn't on the list. I could go on and on about the value of reading widely when it comes to sacred texts (if you don't know what you don't believe then how do you know what you do believe?) but even if you look at it in a non-religious way then it is still super valuable. Even if you just read it as a What Is Up With Israel primer, you really ought to read it. While I believe that the Bible is God-breathed and useful for teaching and correcting, I get that you might not BUT no one can deny its cultural significance.
Almost 70 books from the 2000s and only 13 from pre-1700???? WTH???? Krup that list. Make your own dang list. Read what you want to, just read. Read widely. Read from different eras. Read to learn, read to be entertained. Read words on a page, or on an ebook reader, or listen to an audiobook, just find the stories you want to hear and knowledge you want to have and ingest it somehow. Don't give me some clap-trap about not having time because if I can have a job and do school and binge-watch Once Upon a Time and hang out with palz and still make time to read then you can too. I believe in you or w/e.
2.17.2014
quick reviews
While working on writing assignments for school I have dutifully kept my writing energies focused, but of course you can't do school all the time so I've gotten some reading done as well. And so! A few wee lil reviews for a few books I've finished recently. Also: writing for school is somewhat difficult to re-adjust to. What do you mean I have to write what you want me to?! In a certain format??!!! Heaven preserve us. I'm sure I'll be on the essay train in no time but the first couple are going to be a bit of a slog.
Anyways, who cares about essay writing woes? Certainly not I. Get over it, am I right? Just write the dang essays. And that's what I'll do. And so! Books books books!
1. The Rook / Daniel O'Malley
This book comes charging out of the gate with this doozie of an opening line: "Dear You, The body you are wearing used to be mine". I read that and said "HEYO" because clearly this was going to be my kind of book. Myfanwy Thomas opens her eyes and, oh no, where are her memories?!? They have been myteriously erased! She is surrounded by bodies wearing latex gloves! What could it all mean? We are in for a delightful ride, let me tell you. This was a book I stayed up too late for. Friends, I set a timer for how long I could read it but then my timer went off and I was all "who set this dumb timer" and just kept reading.
It turns out that Myfanwy has mysterious powers and works for a mysterious government organization and her pre-memory-loss self left mysterious letters WELL let me just say that it's a great read. And funny! And clever! And it features my all time favourite thing: BFFs. If there are characters who I can easily imagine high-fiving whenever one of them does/says something awesome, I am all over it. Myfanwy and Ingrid should be non-stop high-fiving, is what I'm saying.
2. Attachments / Rainbow Rowell
Speaking of BFFs! Here they are again, in this charming little number. Premise: it is 1999 and two friends are emailing each other at work. Little do they know that there has been someone hired to read flagged emails and ensure that employees aren't using company email to chat it up etc. Hijinks ensue.
After I read this I was interested to see what others thought of it and found a couple reviews. One of them called it "chick lit" and I was inwardly downcast. Aren't I better than that? I don't want books just to play with my emotions and then give me warm fuzzies! No! But then another review said "this isn't chick lit, like some have said" and I breathed a sigh of relief BUT ALSO began to wonder "what is chick lit anyways?" And I realized that when I hear the words "chick lit" I think "Shopaholic or some such nonsense" but not only have I not read the Shopaholic books and can therefore not pass judgement on them, but who cares if people think my reading choices are a bit shallow sometimes. Also you shouldn't be ashamed of your reading choices just because someone gives them a label like "chick lit" and says that they are less worthy than other sorts of books. What's with the whole "chick lit/flick" idea anyways? Why do we have to look down on people for wanting to read/watch books/movies about love? We don't have a "bloke lit" so why have a "chick lit"? Why can't it just be "books", and some are better written than others?
Suffice it to say that Attachments is enjoyable.
3. Book of a Thousand Days / Shannon Hale
If you were to ask me what genres I have held a deep and abiding love for since I was but wee I would say "fairy tales" and probably carry on to tell you about some gruesome ends that characters came to in the un-disney-ized stories. For example, did you know that the Little Mermaid a) didn't marry the prince, b) had her tongue cut out, c) had an opportunity to become a mermaid again and return to the sea BUT ONLY if she murdered the prince with a magic knife and let his blood soak her legs, and d) opted out of killing him and drowned herself instead. What? Yes. Hans Christian Anderson, you really know how to wound your readers.
Taking into account my love of fairy tales, and really, everyone should love them: they are so weird/great, I take a certain delight in retold fairy tales when they are done well. Oh boy, can they ever be done badly but we won't talk about those. Shannon Hale has written a few reworked fairy tales and I've very much enjoyed every one I've read. Book of a Thousand Days is based on an obscure tale called Maid Maleen and it is great. There are people locked in a tower. There are scary wolves. There are magic songs. There are yaks and cats. It's written in diary form. I recommend it to anyone who likes fairy tales.
I also read the last volume of Locke and Key but I don't know how to write about/am still processing it so THERE YOU GO. Some books. Oh and also! The movies from the last post arrrrrre:
Anyways, who cares about essay writing woes? Certainly not I. Get over it, am I right? Just write the dang essays. And that's what I'll do. And so! Books books books!
1. The Rook / Daniel O'Malley
This book comes charging out of the gate with this doozie of an opening line: "Dear You, The body you are wearing used to be mine". I read that and said "HEYO" because clearly this was going to be my kind of book. Myfanwy Thomas opens her eyes and, oh no, where are her memories?!? They have been myteriously erased! She is surrounded by bodies wearing latex gloves! What could it all mean? We are in for a delightful ride, let me tell you. This was a book I stayed up too late for. Friends, I set a timer for how long I could read it but then my timer went off and I was all "who set this dumb timer" and just kept reading.
It turns out that Myfanwy has mysterious powers and works for a mysterious government organization and her pre-memory-loss self left mysterious letters WELL let me just say that it's a great read. And funny! And clever! And it features my all time favourite thing: BFFs. If there are characters who I can easily imagine high-fiving whenever one of them does/says something awesome, I am all over it. Myfanwy and Ingrid should be non-stop high-fiving, is what I'm saying.
2. Attachments / Rainbow Rowell
Speaking of BFFs! Here they are again, in this charming little number. Premise: it is 1999 and two friends are emailing each other at work. Little do they know that there has been someone hired to read flagged emails and ensure that employees aren't using company email to chat it up etc. Hijinks ensue.
After I read this I was interested to see what others thought of it and found a couple reviews. One of them called it "chick lit" and I was inwardly downcast. Aren't I better than that? I don't want books just to play with my emotions and then give me warm fuzzies! No! But then another review said "this isn't chick lit, like some have said" and I breathed a sigh of relief BUT ALSO began to wonder "what is chick lit anyways?" And I realized that when I hear the words "chick lit" I think "Shopaholic or some such nonsense" but not only have I not read the Shopaholic books and can therefore not pass judgement on them, but who cares if people think my reading choices are a bit shallow sometimes. Also you shouldn't be ashamed of your reading choices just because someone gives them a label like "chick lit" and says that they are less worthy than other sorts of books. What's with the whole "chick lit/flick" idea anyways? Why do we have to look down on people for wanting to read/watch books/movies about love? We don't have a "bloke lit" so why have a "chick lit"? Why can't it just be "books", and some are better written than others?
Suffice it to say that Attachments is enjoyable.
3. Book of a Thousand Days / Shannon Hale
If you were to ask me what genres I have held a deep and abiding love for since I was but wee I would say "fairy tales" and probably carry on to tell you about some gruesome ends that characters came to in the un-disney-ized stories. For example, did you know that the Little Mermaid a) didn't marry the prince, b) had her tongue cut out, c) had an opportunity to become a mermaid again and return to the sea BUT ONLY if she murdered the prince with a magic knife and let his blood soak her legs, and d) opted out of killing him and drowned herself instead. What? Yes. Hans Christian Anderson, you really know how to wound your readers.
Taking into account my love of fairy tales, and really, everyone should love them: they are so weird/great, I take a certain delight in retold fairy tales when they are done well. Oh boy, can they ever be done badly but we won't talk about those. Shannon Hale has written a few reworked fairy tales and I've very much enjoyed every one I've read. Book of a Thousand Days is based on an obscure tale called Maid Maleen and it is great. There are people locked in a tower. There are scary wolves. There are magic songs. There are yaks and cats. It's written in diary form. I recommend it to anyone who likes fairy tales.
***
I also read the last volume of Locke and Key but I don't know how to write about/am still processing it so THERE YOU GO. Some books. Oh and also! The movies from the last post arrrrrre:
- An Affair to Remember (1957)
- Barbara (2012)
- Frozen (2013)
- Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2011)
- West Side Story (1961)
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