Music

So, I've been following amanda fucking palmer on twitter and I find I rather like her, as a person and not just as a musician. She has amazing strength of will and force of personality (and amazing eyebrows.) Here just on the 11th, she married Neil Gaiman in NOLA with Jason Webley presiding and there's a gorgeous photo on her twitter feed. Not officially, but for really anyway.

I think it is an awesome thing. I think she is extraordinarily lucky to have found someone who gets her so completely. And she's gone back on tour with Brian Viglione, the other half of The Dresden Dolls. (They are the best punk cabaret group in existence.) Support them, go to concerts, buy merch from their website (not anywhere else so they get the profits.)

And one other thing. She makes me want to be real. Really real. Speak my mind and live my life the way I want to live it. Be creative, be loyal, be free, be crazy or sane. Make my decisions without being afraid all the time of what the world might think.

Be my own fucking self.

Thanks, Amanda.

Reading...

Ghosts of Manhattan by George Mann. Think Batman. Think steampunk. Think prohibition era. Got it all in your head? Add a dash of fantasy and mash it all together. Sprinkle in a bit of The Spirit. TADA! You've got this book.

I know that sounds horrible but really, it's a good book. The author blends all these together in a seamless noir/punk story that keeps you hooked.

6/10

I just finished another book - Ash by Malinda Lo. It's a Cinderella story, but not like any Cinderella story you've read before. Ash is entranced by fairies, she reads the stories and she roams the Woods looking for them after her mother dies and her stepmother moves in. She also meets the King's Huntress, who shows her how to live again. But the fairies have found Ash and they may never let her go.

7/10

Disclaimer: I bought these books and I'm not being compensated in any way for mentioning them here on my blog.

Traveling

The husband is traveling. It has been especially nice when he's been home. And when he's gone, I'm packing and working and lounging around watching t.v. It will be soon. Soon I will be out of this little city that I hate with a passion of a thousand suns. I'll be closer to family and I know they are looking forward to it. So am I, as a matter of fact. I miss being able to go and do with family members. As hard as I've tried, friends never really happened here. There was just too much of a difference. People around here are very closed off. Maybe because it's a college town. Too much distrust.

By the end of December, I'll be somewhere else. I cannot wait.

Interesting

I went out at the crack of dawn to work and came home an hour later and went back to bed. I've got several merchandising jobs and this particular company is horrible. They don't support their people on the jobs, they don't train worth a darn, they don't have the right documentation for the jobs they send people out on, and so-on and so-forth. I don't think I'll keep this one, especially since they merged with another company. And? 1990 is calling and they want their website back people. Seriously, of the merchandising jobs I have, this is the worst website I've seen. It looks like an escapee of geocities. All it needs is a flashing banner. Oy.

Also, watching Criminal Minds tonight and after that Storm Chasers. I'm also finishing Jim Butcher's Side Jobs. It has a story/novella in it set after Changes. I'm not going to say more except buy it, it is worth it.

Note: I buy, borrow and beg books. Side Jobs = bought. I don't get paid for this stuff.

Turkey

So, I've not been decorating since moving here. But now, I've started putting little stuffed animals around on my desk that relate to the current season. Now, I have a turkey. Last month it was a little bat and two Hello Kitty plushes. I like it, it makes me feel more connected to whats going on. And the plus is it doesn't interfere with the husband's stuff.

Oh, and they're cute.

Om nom nom...

Food. Yum. Simple cheese and tortillas with salsa. Husband is still at work, which is a bit of a bummer since his day off will be the two days I'm working.

Still reading the Sookie Stackhouse books and I've got one more before I'm pretty much caught up on all the paperbacks. I'll have to track down the short stories next and that shouldn't be too hard. Harris seems to write in anthologys with Jim Butcher so there will be at least two good stories in there.

Work continues to be a pain in my posterior since it seems management can't help but not just stick with the rules. The company has a dress code. You do not get to alter that to your satisfaction. Get over yourself.

Teh Winner of teh Intertubes

Been watching drama unfold on a copyright issue all day. Fascinating.

Work sucks.

Husband has new job, partner/so-called-trainer is epic fail.

That is all.

And Reading...

More Charlaine Harris. I am vastly amused. As soon as I finish the series, I'm going to read Side Jobs by Jim Butcher. It is calling me.

Surprise!

The Husband is home for the evening. We Rockbanded and have been working on laundry (his) so he's ready to go tomorrow bright and early. It is nice to have him around every now and again.

The cat wants to be fed so I'm off.

Happy Day of the Dead!

So Much Going On...And Not

So, the husband got a new job. And we will be moving ... to another part of the state which is totally fine with me. But now he's gone all the time, which is a bummer. But we have money, which is great. But I'm going to have to try and transfer, which sucks. But I don't necessarily need this job, which suits me just fine. But now I need to pack up stuff, which totally blows.

Highs and lows, as you can see.

Also, I'm reading the Sookie Stackhouse books. And I can't put them down. Totally recommend for entertainment purposes only.


Disclaimer: I bought the damn books, lay off. I don't get paid to mention this shit and either I buy, borrow or get from the library.

Books, 2010

23. Heart of Veridon by Tim Akers. Thumbs up. I can't wait to get a hold of the next in the series which will be The Horns of Ruin out in November.


Disclaimer: I don't get anything for these little blurbs, get over it. Books are my own or borrowed from various people or the library.

Much Watching Of Netflix

I've spent an impressive amount of time watching Anthony Bourdain. It's a good distraction from trying to find a place to live that doesn't suck.

A TON.

Like, windows that don't shut, holes in the walls, dirty cabinets and dishes left behind, yards filled with tires. And these are places run by property management companies. The other side of the coin is crappy places that charge way too much renting by individuals with the same problems. Nasty. I'm sure eventually I'll find something since the local college has had graduation so places will empty out.

Now to find a place that will take a cat. Shoot me now.

Oh, and books

21. Spellwright by Blake Charlton - Awesome, can't wait for the next one. Take a young man on a quest and make good stuff happen, twists, turns, and standing things on its head.

22. Soulless by Gail Carriger - Also teh AWESOME. Amelia Peabody gone paranormal. The second book, Changeless, is just as good with what I would consider a cliffhanger ending and I am stalking the book store for the third, which comes out in September. (Blameless) w00t! Brand new series to collect!

Books Post

17. Ecobeauty - Not too bad, I might track down a copy used.

18. Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison - Good stuff. I have got to pick up the books I'm missing in the series. There was one I didn't much like and it threw me off reading the rest of the series for a while, I'm glad I picked it back up again.

19. Black Ships by Jo Graham. The reviews I read on this book weren't very good, but I'd have to say they were wrong. I liked the take of history she used in the book, the point of view and all that good stuff.

20. The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag. I am fond of this series. It has an odd little charm that keeps me coming back to it. I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.

Books, 2010

13. The Blood King - Gail Z. Martin
14. Dark Haven - Gail Z. Martin
15. The Ages of Chaos - Marion Zimmer Bradley
16. Farm City - Novella Carpenter

Currently reading: The Fall of Neskaya by Marion Zimmer Bradley and Deborah J. Ross

Books, 2010

10. Liar by Justine Larbalestier
11. Stalking the Vampire by Mike Resnick
12. Julian by Gore Vidal

Working on a series now.

Books of 2010

9. The No Asshole Rule - Robert I. Sutton, PhD

The subtitle of this book is "Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't". Definitely it's one I wish I could give to my organization but that wouldn't think that it applied to them. I did get some good ideas on dealing, though.

How to handle the assholes I work with every day, how they affect the performance of others, how to try and keep the negativity in check, how to keep yourself from becoming one of them and why they have some good points.

Recommendation: Totally recommend it. Nonfiction goodness - 5 outta 5 stars or books or whatever.

Received: borrowed from library.

Books of 2010

8. Unseen Academicals - Terry Pratchett.

I love Pratchett's books and this one was as good as I expected. Only confusion I'm sure anyone will have is the U.S. vs. everyone else's idea of football. This was soccer, but more that soccer. It always seems that while there's humor and an obvious story, there's also an underlying truth about humankind floating thru the story too.

Anyway, awesomeness.

Contest Win - Old Faves

7. Stardoc - S. L. Viehl. I won a contest on her blog for a copy and since my originals are still packed away, I was really excited to see it show up in the mail Tuesday. And then I promptly stayed up until 4 in the morning reading it all over again.

Definitely recommending this to sci fi readers out there, Viehl writes a compelling character based story that grabs you and doesn't let go even after you've finished the last page. I have to go dig the rest of the series out of storage now.

PS - I read for fun, not profit and anything I put up here I've won, bought or checked out of the library. I don't get paid for saying I like or dislike something.

Books

2. The Dragon Book - ed. by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois

I liked it. Lots of little short stories, some better than others. I liked Naomi Novik's short - it gave a little background story to her Temeraire world.

3. Leviathan - by Scott Westerfeld

I cannot wait to read the next one in the series. (Behemoth) Steampunk vs. Darwin science and it's fascinating. And I love the cover.

4, 5, and 6. These are by Megan Whalen Turner - The Thief, The Queen of Attolia, and The King of Attolia.

Got these as a recommend from the Book Smugglers and I am going to happily recommend to others. Fantastic storyline about a thief and what he's sent to steal and how that all works out. At least, that's the first book. :)

Nothing I didn't like in this batch, good books all around.

First Book of the Year

"The Mermaid's Madness" - by Jim C. Hines. Strong female characters, interesting twists. I'd definitely recommend to others. I'm looking forward to the next one about Little Red Riding Hood.

Torchwood

Not as good as the Doctor, actually.