Happy New Year!

I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year!



Anyone have any big plans for the evening? I did, but now we are supposed to have a blizzard! So, I have no idea what I am doing. I was really looking forward to tonight, too, so this is not a very cheery thought. The last part of 2008 was not very great for me, so I was hoping to start 2009 off right. That being said, 2008 started off really well and then sort of fizzled. Maybe it is better if you start the year off snowed in?


Anyway, because I am feeling rather uncheery right now, I am going to see if I can come up with a list of good things about 2008.


1. Trip to Lunenburg. I went to Lunenburg in August with the charming comedian and we actually had a really good time! It is not exactly an exotic trip location (well, for me anyway), but it was nice to get away and spend some time together! We still bring it up and talk about the things that we did, so I am happy with it... Which leads to number two...


2. Finally getting to go for a ride on the Bluenose Schooner. I have taken the tour a bunch of times, but I could never find anyone to go with me! The charming comedian had gone before, but he agreed to go again. I wish it had been a nicer day, but this was something I can cross off the list of 'Things I Wanted to Experience in Life'.


3. Going to Cape Breton. I am not very close to my mother's family. I only see them every few years, so, it was actually pretty nice to get away and see them all. Will they ever return the favour? Probably not. Have we started talking a lot more since? Nope! For that one weekend, though, we acted like we were related, so it was nice. I have my memories, and since my grandfather is not getting any younger, it is very possible that I will never see him again.

4. Reunion of Friends. One of my best friends came home from Alberta this summer and I went to my home town and visited for three days. When I was there, I saw her and two of my other really good friends. Then, we ended up meeting up in Halifax at a later date while she was home. One of the other people from the home town visit was there and then another one of the group. If you are not following, there are five of us (including me) and that was the closest we have been to all being together in years. I am hoping next time we might be able to coordinate five...


5. The funny stories. As I have said countless times... the charming comedian is really random and says the strangest things! I honestly don't think I have laughed as much as I have laughed this year! He said something last night (which could have been taken several ways) and he said 'Thank god you have a sense of humour!' In other words, I chose to laugh at it. I have to say, the chair breaking was by far one of my best memories of the year. I wasn't there for it, but the story... We have been chair browsing lately, and, I have to admit, I can't help but giggle when he is weighing the different options!

6. My cellphone. I swore I would never get one, but I did, and I have to say that despite the fact that it is a piece of junk and keeps breaking on me, I am glad I got it. Through text-messaging, I have reconnected with people that I haven't talked to in years. I still am not a big fan of it, but it serves its purpose.

7. Just Us! Mexican Morning coffee. I am not a big coffee drinker, but I had that earlier in the year and now I love it! And, it is Fair Trade coffee, which is always a good thing.

8. Good television shows. This year I watched all the seasons of Soap. That show went downhill, but it was funny in the first couple seasons! I finally got around to watching Heroes. I will probably be watching the second season soon. Rome. I always saw bits and pieces of that when it was on, so I was happy to watch the first season from start to finish. I was very happy to find out today that I also have the second season, so I will be interested to see where they go! Then, there are shows I have liked all along: CSI, House, and NCIS.

9. All the people I have met this year. I work in the customer service industry so I am always meeting new people. It is the best thing about my job!

10. Reading and blogging. I was rather slack in both this year, but what I did accomplish was great! I also enjoyed meeting new bloggers and getting to know ones I have known for a while better.

Okay, that was actually really hard! I suppose a given one is friends and family. Now, I have to go see if I can rouse the charming comedian (it's 1 in the afternoon) and figure out what I am doing tonight!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Best of 2008

I was a real slacker this year when it comes to recording what I read. It wouldn't be so bad if I actually wrote some reviews once in a while, but I didn't, so I am going to try and do a best of 2008 post. I don't even know how many books I read this year. I know it wasn't the 200 I was tentatively aiming for.

I am just going to list the books that come easily to mind. If I can remember reading them, they must have been good, right?

Fiction Books:
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran
Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs (I also liked Cry Wolf and Hob's Bargain)
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer
Lords of the Bow by Conn Iggulden (Not as good as the first one, but still good!)
The Serpent Bride by Sara Douglass (The Twisted Citadel was good too...)
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Turtle Valley by Gail Anderson-Dargatz
The Host by Stephenie Meyer
The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Cellist of Sarajavo by Steven Galloway
The Commoner by John Burnham Schwartz
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson
The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint
No Humans Involved by Kelley Armstrong
Dragons of the Spring Dawning by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Mary Modern by Camille DeAngelis
The Princes of the Golden Cage by Nathalie Mallet

Favourite Young Adult Read:
Jolted by Arthur Slade
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Favourite Non-fiction Read:
Ghost Rider by Neil Peart (Closely followed by Roadshow by the same author)

Favourite Short Story Collection:
The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke (Really need to read her novel...)

Biggest Disappointment:
Simon R. Green. Not his books, the fact that they released two books that have most of the books that I have left to read in them, and they are not available already! As much as I want to read the series, I am not happy I have to buy each book individually...

But, the book that I didn't like the most was probably Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer... Are we really surprised?

Looking Back on a Year

Here it is, almost October! The year is just flying by! I am not really in a review-writing mood this week. I just have the most insane allergies. I really wish I could figure out what is triggering them so bad this fall, but instead I switched allergy medicine tonight and I hoping for some results. I have just beent thinking of what I could say because my blog has been pretty quiet this week. Then, I got to think of a year in review. You see, this weekend is my birthday.... That is both a good and a bad thing! Normally birthdays do not interest me all that much, but I am going to try and enjoy this one. Won't be too many more years and I will be pretending that they don't exist, so better enjoy it while I can!

Yesterday, I actually sang to myself on my blog! Thank god you couldn't actually hear it, you just read it, because I would have lost a lot of readers otherwise!

For my birthday I bought Wolf of the Plains by Conn Iggulden, which I reviewed here, and interesting enough I am reading the sequel right now! It's a great series. I plan to go read more after this post.

I read a Giller-finalist, Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay, which actually went on to win! This was part of my Giller-a-thon which I plan to attempt again this year... You can read the review here.

Here is my progress report from October of last year. Back when I kept track! I was slipping in reading numbers and most of those books I never did get around to reviewing! A shame, really, because there are some really good ones.

I came to the conclusion I read too much fantasy....

I posted pictures from my hometown.

I finally reviewed A Secret Between Us, which I think I liked more than the book that went on to read the Giller.

"In Flanders Fields" and "It's Just a Pittance of Time"

I went to the theatres and saw Across the Universe, which I have seen many many times since...

I read a funny book about dogs, reviewed here, and a really good fantasy novel that I should get around to reading the sequel to, reviewed here.

The Kittens! Which I have not seen in forever....

Advent Calendar 2007! This ran all the way through December, but this post has all the entries on it. Be sure and remember all about it because it is going to be happening again this year!

Moving on to December, December 6th was a day of Remembrance.

I interrupted the Advent Calendar to get outraged... This still bothers me!

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly!

My blog turned two years old! That means that soon it will be three....

Secret Santa! Which reminds me that I will want a book soon....

Merry Christmas! I bought books!

The best of 2007!

The Fantasy Review Part One and Part Two

And then life got really busy and I hardly ever posted for the rest of the year! A lot of stuff has happened though. I got entirely rid of my hanging-on boyfriend (we had really broke up a year before but he was still around all the time!), I made friends, I lost friends, I got my mother a kitten, my aunt got married, I went on trips to Cape Breton and Lunenburg, I discovered bands like Rush, I read Neil Peart's non-fiction books, I went to a LOT of karaoke bars, I started hanging out with my charming comedian, my blog became more rambling than reviews, etc... Such is life! I am always behind in reviews, I suck at challenges, and for me, I am having a really slow reading year! But, life goes on and overall, it has been a pretty good year. The good outdoes the bad, I guess.

So, even if it is early, happy birthday to me! Hopefully the next year will bring other good things and I will start reading and reviewing with some regularity! As well as other things.

Also, here's to new allergy pills and actually being able to feel my nose clear! I might be able to breath!!!!!!!!!!!!