Sunday Salon ~ Settling down… Maybe…

 

Oh man… Today our church had services outside and then a picnic and fun and games after.  Gwen, my 15-year-old, entered the watermelon eating contest and came in second.  She at an entire melon and hasn’t felt up to much eating since.. lol.  Cotton candy, snow cones, hillbilly golf (no idea what that is), three-legged races, sack races and so much more.  All told, we were out on the blacktop in the unhindered sunshine for about 3 hours, and went home hot, FULL, and ready for fellowshippin’ with Pastor Pillow and Sister Sheets!  Not long ago, after scratching my forehead, I f0und my skin to be rather warm and sensitive.  My arms are a warm pinky color, but my face is a shiny red sunburn. yay.  Guess I’ll be tearing into the aloe plant in a bit 😉

I finally got the bookmarks from my old computer and put them on here.  The kids are being good little troupers and not complaining about the lack of internet.  Someone suggested I get a router to plug into the modem, and then plug my and their computers into it.  I hope it’s not terrible expensive, I’m already a desk and 25-foot cable into it.

Also, since my desk has been covered with stacks of books, which all went onto my bed when I took out the old computer and put in the new one, making sleep nigh impossible that night (especially since Mags had crawled in my bed while I was working), I finally broke down and got a new bookcase… a HALF bookcase, I don’t intend on filling it… nope, no way… nuh uh!  But, within 24 hours, it had been claimed by someone else.

Wait, THAT'S not on my TBR pile!

Well, I’m hoping for a better week of reading and looking forward to maybe settling back down into a routine, again.  I’m also wondering if maybe I should go through Mt. TBR and being honest with myself, “Am I really ever going to read this?”  Especially if it’s something I know a lot of people have wishlisted.  I’ve already found a home for The Audacity of Hope, which I got last year along with McCain’s book with the plan of doing a post of opposing candidates.  Honestly, I’m not going to read it now, and BM had 199 people wanting it, so it’s going on to a new TBR pile.  Maybe they’ll read it, lol.

I’ve come to a point in having too many books *gasp, clutch pearls!  That’s blasphemy!* where I’ve bought or mooched books I already had, and, if I never got another book, it’d take me at least 3 or 4 years to get through them all.   I should unsubscribe to Shelf-Awareness… lol… but I’d just go to the website.  Too many books and NOT ENOUGH TIME!

K, so now I’ve come to the point in the post to announce the winner of the Something Beyond Greatness giveaway 🙂  And that winner is:  sdechantal!  Congratulations, if you’ll send me your address, I’ll get that out in the mail to you next week 🙂

and now, a video of MY OWN 😀  YaY!  I love my computer, I can now share my pics and vids from my new camera!  This is my dog, Missy.  She’s a Rat Terrier, and her favorite thing in the world is Hardee’s.  Can you guess what her LEAST favorite thing is?

and while watching the vid here, Missy started getting excited and prancing around.  She thought I was saying these things, NOW, to her… LOL….

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TSS ~ I’m LOST in the VioletCrush of Springtime!

Oh my! What a week… or two 🙂  We’ve had the season finale of LOST, which seem to pull in every title and concept of every show for the last six seasons, and left us with quite a quandary (meh, I’m not in a quandary about it, but some people are I guess).  DON’T WORRY!  NO NEED TO CLICK AWAY!  I’m NOT going to post spoilers or anything.  I hate it when I watch a movie, or mention I’m planning on it, and that one pain-in-the-ass tells you, “Don’t bother watching it, John dies in the end.”  (Actual title of a book, John Dies in the End, which has been on my wishlist for about six months or so… NOT a LOST spoiler, so stop white-knuckling the mouse!)

For the most part, I’m not much of a TV viewer anymore.  I watch my TV shows on DVD from Netflix, on the Internetz, or OnDemand.  LOST, however, is the only show the world stops for (at least, at my house it does), and I hafta wait until February of NEXT YEAR before the NEXT new LOST episode… AND next season is the LAST season (okay fellow Losties, I’m sure we can organize a memorial for the loss of our life show).

But, with the end of this LOST season we are greeted by the return of Mr. Sun (Yay!) and the flowers and the green-green-grass and the song birds (even the ones that sing outside our windows at 2 in the morning) and the garden and….. books?  what are those?  and what is a blog?  Seriously, WHERE is my grill brush?  the charcoal and lighter?  Got a good fire going… now where did my book disappear to? 

Needless to say, Spring is a distraction 😀

Add to Spring’s already siren-like call, it’s the end of the school year, which means choir concerts, class parties, summer-school registrations (I’ve lost the paper for my oldest daughter’s enrollment, which is bad… without summer school, she don’t graduate!)  We’ve got eye doctors appointments, calls to the dentist for possible lost fillings (plastic ones, so The Island had nothing to do with it 😀 ), and the question:  Is it scabies? or psoriasis?  Doesn’t matter, just put lotion on it!  (LOL…  Teulah’s dad in  My Big Fat Greek Wedding had Windex, I’m always telling them to put lotion on it…. I’ve got the slipperiest kids in town!)

Ah!  Thus is mi vida loca!  Not living La Vida Loca, mind you, just have a vida loca.  With 2 teenagers and a tweenager, all girls, a dog and three cats, could it be any other way?

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And now, to announce the winner for my copy of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford.  All entries were randomly compiled and numbered, then the winning number was chosen using Research Randomizer.  Number 12 was drawn, and that number belonged to:

Violet of Violet Crush!  Email me your address so I can get that out in the mail for your reading pleasure 🙂

I wanted to add that I enjoyed Violet’s answer to the giveaway question:

“What tangible thing (a toy, record, woobie, etc) from your childhood you wish you had back the most?  What does this item mean to you?”

I really really wish I had my book of Ramayan back. It was my grandfathers. I never read when I was young but I was attracted by the bright and colorful pictures in it. I spent hours drawing pictures from it. I remember my grandfather reading to me from it but I never really paid attention (come on, it’s a religious book). I wish he would read to me now 😦

After looking up Ramayan, I had to add it to my book wishlist, it looks like a beautiful book 🙂

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And now, some music to read this blog by… crap!  Suppose this should’ve gone at the beginning instead!  Oh well, click play and read it again LOL… or, music to comment by.  Whatever tickles your fancy 😉

OH! BTW! Those who didn’t win, despair NOT! Stephanie of The Written Word is hosting a giveaway for a copy, open until May 20th 🙂

Congrats to Amy on winning a copy of Matrimony!

After a two week interruption in my home internet service, an interruption that forced me to suffer the limitted resources of the library’s computer (though it’s wonderful that we have such access in our town), I am finally back online at home.     !! \O/ YaY \O/ !!

So now, belatedly, I will announce the winner of Mt. TBR’s drawing for a personalized, autographed copy of Matrimony by Joshua Henkin.

Congratulations to Amy!  She has won the contest 🙂

Thank you, everyone, for visiting Mt. TBR and be sure to come back!

TSS – Middle-aged Vampire adopts Malevolent Child

I’ve been much happier with myself this week. I feel like I’ve actually accomplished something. I finished The Richest Season, registered my 15-year-old for school, read Twilight(my high-schooler was shocked about that. She said, “Everybody in my school’s reading those!” I guess I’m hip?), read and reread and re-reread Cherise the Niece, accomplished my goal today of finishing Book One in Caesar’s The Conquest of Gaul… which may be the death of me, and am almost a fourth of the way through When We Were Romans… which I’m not sure if I like it or not, but at least it’s simple and short.

I also started a meme (even if it’s a meme of two… thanks Suey) this week called Viral Video Wednesday. A lot of people left their videos in the comment section, as well. This weeks was VVW – Numa Numa. A post dedicated to the history and evolution of Numa Numa. bermudaonion gave me the idea for next weeks, so check back in to see. I’m still trying to figure out how to slip Mr. Safety in next week’s post.

As promised, Today is the day I announce the winner of the signed copy of Mishka: An Adoption Tale. Again, I used Research Randomizer because it’s free… Random.org charges money… and the random number is 17, which is The Eighth Art! With only one entry I might add… Buy a lottery ticket, today seems to be your lucky day! So email me your address so I can send you your beautifully illustrated, heartwarming book 🙂 Check in on Monday, when I will announce my next giveaway!