Book Review #22

Both Brad and I were reading good books this long weekend. You would think this is a good thing but it's not really. We didn't do anything we intended to!

And now the weekend is over.

First world problems I know.

Shutter Island - Dennis Lehane

I don't know, this book bugged me. I read it really quickly while we were staying in a cabin so it was good fluff. There's a a twist at the end, but it fell flat for me.

Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger

I think there is a subtle reason this novel is such a classic. If I had read this when I was a teenager it definitely would have resonated with me because the main character is SUCH a teenager. One minute extremely annoying, then you just want to protect him and comfort him the next minute. A must read.

The Distant Hours - Kate Morton

I really get in to Kate Morton's books. This stuff is right up my alley. I love how she goes from the past to the present, strings me along with the mystery right until the end and builds up tension. This one is as good as all her others. I notice a definite "formula" to her stories but who cares?! It works.

He's Gone - Deb Caletti

In all the madness that was Gone Girl, this one falls into the same category. I was hooked right away. This couple was pretty dysfunctional to begin with, but when he disappears I could relate to what she went through. The twist at the end caught me off guard. I'd highly recommend.*

The Big Over Easy - Jasper Fforde

I really want to like this guy. His crazy stories seem totally suited to my mental personality. And he throws a murder mystery in?! Sounds perfect.

But it sucks. I gave this book one star on Good Reads. I couldn't stand it. The writing was boring and honestly, something really dumb happened at the end that put me over the edge but I can't remember what it was. I even remember ranting about it?!

In the Woods - Tana French

 
This one started out promising with a good mystery, good writing....then it seemed to turn into a character study of the two detectives. There was a strong female detective whose personality I totally got into, but overall I would hesitate to read her again.

What have you guys read lately that's worth picking up?


*A hundred times better than After I'm Gone by Laura Lippman.

New PC Buddy

The day after this post, I bought my new laptop.

We went into a local computer store and the minute we walked in I knew we were in the right place. There were wires, packages, random computer parts all over. A guy crawled out of a back room and asked us if we needed help.

He was perfect - graphic tee, grubby jeans, nerdy personality and super knowledgeable about PCs!!

I almost started crying with relief.

We showed him a link to the computer I wanted, and I bought it off him right then. I had it by the end of the week.

The great unveiling

 
Such a great experience!! Buying local, I'm totally satisfied and they offer lots of support. Plus - real humans!!

Next was the big install.

I drank gin as AutoCAD and Revit installed.

My little office is all set up and ready to go. I bought a mouse last night. There were so many choices?! Mine looks like a spaceship.

Last night I said to Brad "What's the next thing on the list of stuff for my company?"

He didn't hesitate: "Get a job?!"

Point taken.

The Book Sale

Uh-oh.

This year we both said "five to ten books and that's it."

Remember how last year was Brad's year? Well, karma was in the house because this year belonged to me. I got four books off my paper list (fist pump if I find one) and three off my GoodReads list (casually pick up and put in my bag without looking at the back).

On our way in I said that I wanted to find a Photoshop textbook. Wandered over to the computer section..Boom. Done.* While walking to the check out, I said that I hadn't found the book I wanted the most.....we looked at the 'Staff Picks' table on the way out - there it was.

I don't think I've mentioned this before but I totally love old sci-fi book covers from the 60's and 70's. In the science fiction section there was an entire box of old Robert A. Heinlein books - old ones. I bought  three including this one:

What are those pink snake-lizards? Those guys have awesome uniforms and what is that floaty submarine-sphere? I love it all.

*Said like Johnny T!

Coffee and Daft Punk

I've been working in a different office for the last two weeks. Actually, it's the office I used to work at! It was funny because the night before I was starting I had anxiety - you know - it's a new job, first day....

...until it kicked in that I know and adore everyone in there?!

I'm working on a few projects and it's going really well. One of them needs a bit of cleaning up before it goes out for tender. Once I met with the people organizing it and got my head into it, it was time to do my favourite thing:

Drink lots of coffee, plug in to Daft Punk and slam it out as fast as I can.

I've had to figure out a new lunch routine. There is really only one good place to hang out that's near this office, but it's really small. In the summer it has a great outdoor patio but the weather hasn't been great.

So I'm missing my old hangout.

It's crazy though because in another month I have no idea where I'll be working. Could be this office, could be with a millwork designer or I could be working from home for someone else. Or all three!

What am I doing again?!

PC Hell

Okay.

I've already felt like I've been pushed into making a ton of changes lately. This isn't a bad thing. In fact, I'm still really excited about where this could go.

However, today I'm a little on edge.....

So I have to buy a computer. I knew this would happen, but it's happening much quicker than I thought. Again I'm not complaining. That being said, I'm venturing into territory I'm really not familiar with. 

I need a PC laptop*. I don't even know where to buy a PC?! Some friends have told me good places online I can try. Okay a good place to start...

I'm looking to spend quite a bit of money on this thing. I'm a little uncomfortable buying something off a website like this......without being able to see it in person. Sometimes there aren't even photos?!

I know, super judgey.

I found one that was perfect, but I can't buy it. It's either out of stock or simply won't ship to Canada. I'm long past the point of just wanting to talk to a real life human. We have the name of a store we'll try tomorrow, but there are so many different PCs out there it's not like they will just have the one I want.

Bottom line: I don't want a massive, heavy, manly, cheap black plastic with red backlights and exhaust ducts laptop!?


*Technically I could buy a Mac but it would cost me over $3,500. Yeeaahhhhh....

Changes

Hooooollllyy crap.

I've had a really intense, exciting, crazy two weeks. I'll quickly summarize:

I'm now a business owner......and I work in a different office.

I had so many things to do on the weekend, my brain wouldn't stop. At one point I drove Brad a little insane.

I'm not going to get into details, but I'm really excited. I've had lots of positive feedback, encouragement and offers from people. I've even met new people and connected with old friends.

My purgatory is over.

Krull

I'm reading the most incredible book right now: Ready Player One*. There are tons of 80's references and some of them take me back to my childhood in a big way.

I was innocently reading along when the author happened to mention the title of a movie:

Krull.

The instant I read that word, I immediately saw this image in my mind.

Yeah, I know.....shudder.

I never actually saw the movie. I just remember looking at the VHS cover with disgust when I was a kid. It blew my mind that I could recall this image in an instant. Cheesy lasers, cheesy princess, giant claws, scary head and best of all: what the hell are those little glowing things flying out of the monster's mouth?!

So I convinced Brad that we should watch it that night! I warned him that I hadn't seen it, had somehow knew to avoid it when I was younger and that it was most likely horrendous.

We had no idea.

Brad made it though about 45 minutes before I noticed him curled into the fetal position, begging me to turn it off. I'm not sure if it was the flying horses with flaming hooves, the silly princess, the annoying character who kept turning into random animals or the cyclops that put him over the edge.


*If you haven't read this book, do it. Do it now. Do it.**
** Do it.

Plates and Screws

I'll be honest with you: sometimes I wonder if this is ever going to end.

A few weeks ago I noticed a red bump on one side of my gums. Since I still have partial feeling at best in a lot of areas in my mouth, I wasn't in any discomfort.

My orthodontist thought I should have the plate removed that was next to the bump. Yup, I had an infection. Seven months after the surgery!?

Ugh.

I'll spare you the details of how I ended up here, but it's been interesting! My surgeon is still around but he doesn't have his own office anymore so we were texting to set up appointments and instructions....

Luckily he was willing to work with me and organize with another dentist to use his office and get an anesthesiologist in to have me put under IV sedation. He would have liked to do it with a local, but seriously? The thought of someone using a screwdriver on my jaw?

That is not happening while I'm around.

Everything went smoothly. I have three stitches in my gums and a sore jaw but T3s take care of any discomfort. I'm not even on a liquid diet! Soft foods and no straws for about ten days, or when the stitches fall out.

I took today off work which was the right decision. Now I have the weekend to recover fully.

I can deal. Just let this be the last beating.

Glove and Boots

I don't think comedy, as Hollywood defines it is funny. People don't believe me when I say this. I usually get lists of "fantastic actors", movies I should watch, people have even forced me to watch YouTube clips of Hollywood movies.

I. Just. Don't. Get. It.

For some reason it's unacceptable that I don't like Ben Stiller, The Office or The 40 Year Old Virgin. Do you know how alienating this is?!

It's so rare that something makes me laugh really hard.

Well, finally it's my turn.

Glove and Boots is a YouTube channel that seems to be made for me. I've probably watched some of their videos close to twenty times and I still laugh. Some of the them make me laugh so hard, I almost cry.

There are gorillas.

Johnny T is too good to be true.  Mario - the guy "whose face don't make no sense" - is my favourite of all.

The guys that put this together have a special place in my heart. When I'm feeling down I know where to go.

The next time I show this to someone who doesn't think it's funny, I won't care. I've put up with crap recommendations long enough.

Hit and Miss Reading Genre

I've been hinting about telling you about my foray into the science fiction genre. It's been good, confusing, inspiring and ultimately....frustrating.

I'm at the point where the next sci-fi book I read will have to be a) highly recommended b) not chosen off the shelf "because it sounds cool" and c) written by a highly reputable author.*

In no particular order, these are the books I've read so far which have either destroyed my interest in the genre or inspired me to discover more about it.

Hull Zero Three - Greg Bear

This was my number one reading FAIL for 2014. I will take the blame - partially. I got way too excited for this book, built it up to be something it wasn't and searched all over the island for it. So when I ended up reading about doughnut monkeys, let's just say I was disappointed.

I devoted an entire blog post to this so I won't say much more.

I'm still confused.

The Long Earth - Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter

This book sounded right up my alley and indeed it was. The concept of parallel universes was genius, I wanted to live in one of these worlds - who wouldn't? The main character being 'special' added interest and enabled them to develop the storyline. Character development fell by the wayside a bit but I could let it go.

However when I got to the end and realized it was going to develop into a space opera series in Book #2, I put the series down.

That being said, I'm intrigued with Pratchett and will be exploring more of his books.

The Lure - Bill Napier

I think I'm learning a lesson about randomly picking books off shelves without recommendations. Case in point.

This one sounded like a great page turner! Scientists find a signal from space. Unfortunately it gets way too Hollywood with car chases and daring escapes. Not enough science.

Neuromancer - William Gibson

Happily this was my very first attempt at science fiction. Good thing because this was one of the best I've read so far. Given that it was written in the 80's I couldn't believe what I was reading. So trippy with crazy, intense characters and a fast paced plot. The language and writing style were sometimes difficult but it's worth pushing through.

Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke

What would we do without authors like Clarke? I was on a downward spiral with science fiction when I picked this up. I remembered that you can't really fail with Clarke so I happily began.

What a fantastic book. Such a great vision of the future for the time it was written. Clear descriptions, just the right amount of science** and a kick ass, intriguing plot line. I'm looking forward to my next Clarke read.

Spin - Robert Charles Wilson

Again, a book picked off the shelf because it sounded cool. I think I should stop doing that?

Imagine one day a giant black shroud envelopes the earth and we can't see the stars. Would you then, basically do a character study of three people?

This guy did.

Titan - Stephen Baxter

Again, I've devoted an entire post to this space ship owner's manual. I'm still recovering from this book which is responsible for putting me into a holding pattern around the entire genre.


 * Carl, you're on deck.
**Hint. Hint. Baxter I'm looking at you.