Thursday, November 19, 2009

Updates on . . . things

I know I owe you guys a pork chop recipe and I swear I'm going to get to it, but between a head cold, a long night without sleep, helping Kiddo with a project I'd very much like to label "stupid and kindergartenish" (the assignment, not the end product) and National Novel Writing Month (see stunningly accurate visual of my storyline, at right, from Lambert/Hulton Archive Getty Images), Bookfool is a train wreck. I just don't feel like propping up a book to copy a recipe, today. I am too weak and weary.

So, you get an update, which is honestly just as much as I can handle.

Bookwise: I finished Against Medical Advice by James Patterson and Hal Friedman, last night. It was a really quick, very touching read (so quick, in fact, that I didn't manage to add it to my sidebar) but it left me with a few questions. I don't know if they can be answered; I just wonder if the subject of the book -- a young man who had a debilitating combination of Tourette's Syndrome with OCD and anxiety -- got better because of what he did to get control of his life or if it was at least in part because he grew out of his syndrome a bit. Does anyone have thoughts on that?

I won Against Medical Advice from Thoughtful Joy and it arrived pretty quickly, which leads me to a thought . . . Hatchette. Not to pick on them, but I have been on both ends of the giving and receiving love from Hatchette and sometimes the books won show up lightning fast; sometimes they just flat don't show up.

I don't want to nag drawing hosts (at least not more than once), so if they don't show up after a first mention, I let it go. I'm curious if anyone else has had a contest win never arrive. Never as in NEVER. Meaning months have passed, you've asked once, the nice blog drawing host said, "I'll remind them," and still nothing. Just curious. I've gotten a few complaints, myself, and that's one reason I've decided I'm about to stop hosting their drawings, at least for the time being.

There are other reasons, which are probably much better . . . one of which is the fact that I've preemptively declared 2010 a "Mostly No-ARC Year". I've already bungled that up by signing up to write a bunch of reviews in January, but I hope to gain strength as the year progresses. I've been working on writing a review policy to that end and, unfortunately, drawing a total blank. I'm reminded of the time we had a power outage and, just to be silly, I changed my answering-machine message to "Nyeh, go away," and then promptly forgot about it. A few hours later, someone I knew -- but not well enough to explain away that bit of madness -- called.

"Nyeh, go away," does not seem like the best of review policies. It's all I can come up with, right now, though. That's probably my head cold talking.

Nano-wise: Sometimes I love it; sometimes I hate it. My story, that is. I seem to alternate between good writing days and bad ones. Yesterday was good. Today, bad. My favorite really horrible excerpt:

In the Medical Restricted Zone, Kole awoke to find himself a little sore but feeling surprisingly well for a man who had been shot by some unknown kind of laser beam. He was also manacled to the bed. That sucked.

I just love to read that bit over and over, again. It makes me laugh. The awfulness of it tickles me so much that I'm leaving it in, for now. I'm not supposed to edit anyway, right? In case you're interested, my current word count is 27,467. I like meditating upon the fact that I have now passed the halfway point, if a bit late. I'm still behind but closing in on where I should be.

Other bookish things: Since I've decided to back away from reviewing advanced readers and read the ominous, glaring stacks of books before the infamous book rebellion in which the weak and seriously outnumbered are killed and eaten (say that aloud 5 times, fast), fewer books are arriving on my doorstep. I have, however, received two that I'm very anxious to read:

They Were Just People: Stories of Rescue in Poland During the Holocaust by Tammeus and Cukierkorn, and

Custer Survivor: The End of a Myth, The Beginning of a Legend by John Koster

Also, I've just found out that my church is going to be doing a year-long study using the God Sightings Bible and its Companion Guide. I have this Bible and guide for review and I've been a little perplexed as to its purpose and what to say about it (although I'm enjoying reading it, whether I "get it" or not), so I'm hoping that joining the group will illuminate me a bit and enable me to babble about what I learn. Because that's what I'm good at. (<---Bad English, sorry.] Babbling, I mean. At left is an image of the God Sightings Companion Guide, which I feel compelled to share because I just love that picture. I am excessively fond of a sheep.

I'm still reading all those books in the sidebar, also. Nano has slowed down my reading significantly, but I'm about to give in to this nasty cold and go to bed early. A few nights of caving in early to read and maybe I'll be able to change out that boring old set of same old, same old. The French chef's cholesterol-lowering nutrition advice and recipe book is still a huge hit around here, by the way. Just don't kick me if it takes a few days to say something about it and type up that pork chop recipe. I need sleep. Lots of sleep. And, the old kind of Nyquil.

Nighty-night.

Bookfool, aka "Sickie-poo"

7 comments:

  1. Gah--reading this post reminds me of how much I love bloggers and this blogging world. "nyeh--go away" has become my new motto of late (this could be the first comment I've left in 3 weeks and I come via twitter--don't dare open that GReader). Anyway, blah blah blah--I basically fend off offers by explaining that I'm overbooked but thank you. It seems to work and isn't a lie--especially if you're taking stuff for January already!! When I do accept ARCs or review copies I make sure it's a book I REALLY want to read. Otherwise, who has time for stuff you might want to read but maybe not?

    That pork chop recipe sounds really good, by the way. And I hope you feel better!!! If you find any of that old Nyquil pass it my way. Actually, I bet I have some in the cupboard. Wonder affect what expired and old Nyquil will have? :P

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  2. Trish,

    I'll take that first sentence as a compliment. Sounds like a lot of us are falling into "Nyeh, go away" mode. I, too, fear my Google Reader.

    As to ARCs . . . the problem is that I want to read everything. Ever notice the variety that I read? I never thought that would be troublesome. That combined with the fact that my library sucks have turned me into a yes-Nan. I'm working on it. What I really need to do is just declare a moratorium, no matter how awesome the books on offer sound. I say that and mentally I'm ticking off exceptions. *sigh*

    I can answer the question about old Nyquil. I found some outdated Nyquil from the days when it worked and guess what? It does absolutely nothing. I guess old Nyquil loses its effectiveness. *another great, heaving sigh* So, I'm off to dig for some old doctor-prescribed cough medicine. Desperate times . . .

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  3. I openend my GR after an absence of five days and it was INSANE.

    I've pretty much skipped all ARC reviews lately (unless it's by an author I love or a topic I'm into -aka historical stuff) partly because it's maddening to read all new books and party because the reviews come out before the books are available. Grrrr.

    Lots of YA dystopian stuff! I guess that was the challenge though....duh.

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  4. Carrie,

    Hopefully, the holiday will give us a little bit of a break in the GR end of life. Fingers crossed.

    I'm actually kind of tired of reading new releases - funny you should say that! I find that I keep looking longingly at the classics shelf. I meant to read more classics, this year, and then I actually ended up reading none. Wow, can't get much farther from your resolutions than that!

    The YA Dystopian was actually one that I joined partly because you could get away with reading a single book. But, it's a good fit for me. I love YA. I love Dystopian. I've got two more that I think I'll probably get to before the end of the year.

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  5. I love that b&w photo of the kid with the laser gun. It reminds me of your profile avatar!

    So sorry to hear that you're still feeling crummy. With all the sick employees at work this past week, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if I got knocked down with the nasty bug that's making its way around town. Everyone sounds awful. My hands are so dry from all the handwashing!

    I'm with you on the ARC rebellion. I no longer accept offers, but when one comes across my path at work, it's hard to pass it up. It's getting pretty pathetic when my stack(s) of ARCs include unread books that are now out in paperback!

    No rush on the pork chop recipe. I fixed some the other night and my hubby was in pig heaven! Just took some chops (center cut, bone-in) and dipped them in a beaten egg, followed by an Italian breadcrumb Parmesan cheese mixture. Fried them in a little olive oil. Drained them on paper towels. I have to say they were DELICIOUS! Probably not terribly healthy, but I served them with a big salad instead of a side dish of homemade mac & cheese.

    Hope you can get a nap in sometime today. I plan to catch up on all my favorite blogs, post a review and book tour (Rod's) post, start thinking about Christmas gifts, and maybe go for a bike ride. It's supposed to hit 55 today. Whoohoo!

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  6. Thanks for twittering with me last night! You are awesomeness.
    I've always had the nyeh-goaway policy but I'm starting to get more and more emails asking me to review books. I usually just reply: no-thanks.
    feel better soon and scale that wall! oh wait - it was conquer that wall, I think... !! :o

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  7. Les,

    Hmm, his outfit does resemble mine a bit, doesn't it? Must be my little twinsie.

    I made the mistake of sharing a Coke with Kiddo. Usually, I don't acquire his germs, probably because I wash my hands frequently, but we only had one cold soda, that day, and we both had a craving. Bad move, sharing. He got over his cold in nothing flat and I'm still miserable.

    I'm getting better at turning down books! It's hard, especially when you want to read absolutely everything, but the time has come. I've had that happen - a paperback came out before I got around to reviewing the hardback. blush

    Oh, err, that sounds awful but I'd probably like it. I'm not a fan of pork chops. David blames it on my mother. Her pork chops were always curled up, dry and tough as leather. I'm going to try to type up that review, today, but I'm also working very hard at non-computer goofing and having a grand old time.

    Funny, I already had a nap and it's just 12:30. LOL Seriously, I woke up early, read with a cat on my lap for about 2 hours and then fell back asleep. The cat was pleased. :)

    Care,

    I had fun chatting with you, too! I've got a second thought about cheerleading. You should write a positive thinking book. I'll help you. I humbly volunteer.

    I think part of the reason I've had trouble saying "no thanks" is that I love authors and enjoy helping them out. Of course, sometimes that backfires. I don't like admitting I disliked a book, especially if I know the author is self-published or likely not to get much exposure, but I'm honest and feel obligated to tell the truth.

    Anyway, I'm improving. For me, the offers started out slowly and then kind of exploded. I have a few favorite publicists and a publisher I adore (and three authors I would never turn down). As long as I keep reviewing on a blog, I'll at least review a book, now and then, for them.

    I reached my goal while we were chatting, last night. Today . . . haven't started, yet. Laaaazy.

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