After forcing motivation upon myself, I took a quick shower and threw on some workin' clothes! This is not to be confused with work clothes, which are nice things. Workin' clothes are for chores and getting dirty! Today I decided to tackle cleaning up the outside of our house. I started with the back yard by picking up sticks. I know this sounds lame, but you wouldn't believe the number of sticks in our yard! I certainly didn't get them all, but I got all the big ones. I thought about racking, too, but decided to leave that for another day. Then I swept the front porch, car port, and back porch, threw away some random flower pots and things that have been setting around the yard since we moved in, and organized the stuff in the carport (paint supplies, car washing supplies, yard tools, etc...). Then I took the hose and hosed down everything! I went to town on the carport ceiling, the porches, the awnings, and the back walls of the house. I was shocked to see how much of a difference just hosing down the pollen, dirt, and moss made. The frustrating thing is, it still looks dirty because some of it is stained and some will require scrubbing to make it truly look clean. If you saw a before and after, you would easily be able to see the vast difference. Without that, it doesn't look like I really did much, unfortunately. But I know it's better and that's what counts! :)
After all that, Scott came home from work and we had leftover night. Now he's reading and I'm doing this and American Idol comes on at 8. Happy times!
In other news, I've been speeding through books lately! I know my goal for this year was to read at least 1 non-school related book a month, but I've been doing WAY more than that! It's so awesome! And I really owe it all to Scott. I used to read constantly, but when I started dating Scott, I ended up only reading what I had to for school. He didn't really like reading, and I would rather spend time with him than go off by myself and read. But now he LOVES reading! And this means we can spend hours together on the couch, outside on the front porch, or in bed reading together. I love it! :)
The last book I remember mentioning on here was Lipstick in Afghanistan. After that I read Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants followed by The Second Summer of the Sisterhood. I think there are at least 2 more books in this series, but I needed a break. I enjoyed them, but the characters are often too whiny and predictable for me. I'm sure I'll come back to them eventually, but I wanted to read some different things first. A couple weeks ago we visited my grandpa and he loaned us 4 books that he highly recommended. One is called Jerk, California and the others are a trilogy. The first book in the series is called The Hunger Games. I started with Jerk and Scott stared with The Hunger Games. I enjoyed Jerk, California. It is about a teenage boy with Tourette's Syndrome. It's basically a coming of age story, where he travels across several states, meeting people who were close friends with his late father and visiting windmills that his father had built. The trip ends with a visit to his grandmother (his dad's mom) in Jerk, California. She, like him and his dad both, has Tourettes. This boy who never knew his father, has always felt out of place and like a freak, learns about his dad, his family, and himself through this journey. He also brings along Naomi, his love interest who leaves him confused and unsure of her feelings. This trip pulls them apart and brings them together, helping them define their relationship and who they are individually as well. I highly recommend this book, and I'm so glad my grandpa suggested it.
Now, as much as I enjoyed that book, it was NOTHING compared to The Hunger Games, which I read in just a couple days. Scott and I are both DEVOURING these books! In fact, the only reason I'm blogging right now is so he can finish up the second one so I can start it! The plot is completely unique and unlike anything I've read before, but the characters and their emotional conflicts are universal. The books take place sometime in the future in what used to be North America. The community is set up with a Capitol that rules over the rest, which is made up into 12 districts. Each district is confined to its own space and has its own trade. For instance, one is known for mining, one for agriculture, etc... Each year a lottery is held. When children turn 12, they put their names into the drawing once every time year until they're 18. Each district draws two names--one boy and one girl. The selected 24 children then compete in what is called The Hunger Games. Basically, they are set loose in an "arena" which is essentially a large yet contained landscape, and they fight to the death. Not only are they fighting against one another, but they also have to survive by finding food, shelter, and protecting themselves against wild animals and whatever else might be a threat in the wilderness. The last child standing wins for their district, and that get district gets plenty of food for the following year. I thought it was going to be like gladiators or something, but it is much more complex than that because it's a huge area and surviving the elements is half the challenge. That's the premise of the book and it is completely enthralling. I won't tell you much about the characters because that's what really makes the book so lovable. But please--read it!! And Scott just finished the sequel so I'm off to start it now! Hooray! :)
Until next time...
~Christy
sounds like you are getting so much work done! I want to read the hunger games... I've been hearing so much about those books lately! Oh... and I love Gilmore Girls and American Idol this season :)
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