Revised List of my Children Book Reading List for Year 2009

Yup crossed those out that I've done reading.. and I've added new ones to it

1. Freckle Juice by Judy Blume (Yearling, 47pgs)
2. Fudge-A-Mania by Judy Blume (Berkely, 166pgs)
3. Chocolate Fever by Robert Kimmel Smith (Puffin, 93pgs)
4. The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl [Ill. by Quentin Blake] (Puffin, 63pgs)
5. The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl [Ill. by Quentin Blake] (Puffin, 42pgs)
6. Esio Trot by Roald Dahl [Ill. by Quentin Blake] (Puffin, 63pgs)
7. George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl [Ill. by Quentin Blake] (Puffin, 89pgs)
8. Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl [Ill. by Quentin Blake] (Puffin, 81pgs)
9. Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary (HarperTrophy, 165pgs)
10. Mr.Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater(Little Brown, 139pgs)
11. Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell (Yearling, 137pgs)
12. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell (Yearling, 184pgs)
13. Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright (Square Fish, 136pgs)
14. Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff (Yearling, 180pgs)
15. The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary (HarperTrophy, 186pgs)
16. The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes [Ill. by Louis Slobodkin] (Harcourt, 80pgs)
17. Nate the Great on the Owl Express by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat & Mitchell Sharmat(Yearling, 27pgs)
18. The Zack Files: Evil Queen Tut and the Great Ant Pyramids by Dan Greenburg (Grosset&Dunlap,59pgs)
19. Frindle by Andrew Clements (Aladdin, 105pgs)
20. The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman [Ill. by Peter Sis](Scholastic, 89pgs)
21. On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer (Yearling, 90pgs)
22. The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh (Aladdin, 60pgs)
23. A Catwings Tale: Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin [Ill. by S.D. Schindler] (Scholastic, 48pgs)
24. Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry (Scholastic, 92pgs)
25. Dogsong by Gary Paulsen (Simon Pulse, 181pgs)
26. Abel's Island by William Steig (Square Fish, 119pgs)
27. Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner [Ill. by Greg Hargreaves](HarperTrophy, 83pgs)

I Can Read Series, Oxford Bookworms Series, some other chapter books & children story books

(I was debating whether to put this up or not.. but then again even though it may be abridged.. it's still a book, right?)

1. The 18 Penny Goose By Sally M. Walker [pictures by Ellen Beier] (Lv. 3 HarperTrophy, 62pgs)
2. The Case of the Hungry Stranger by Crosby Bonsall (Lv.2 HarperTrophy, 64pgs)
3. The Witches of Pendle by Rowena Akinyemi (Lv.1 Oxford, 40pgs)
4. Aladdin and the Enchanted Lamp by Shahrazad - Retold by Judith Dean (Lv.1 Oxford, 41pgs)
5. Ruby the Coppycat by Peggy Rathmann (Scholastic, 30pgs)
6. The Five Chinese Brothers by Claire Huchet Bishop & Kurt Wiese (PaperStar, 50pgs)
7. In a Dark, Dark Room and other Scary Stories - Retold by Alvin Schwartz (HarperTrophy, 63pgs)
8. George Washington and the General's Dong by Frank Murphy (Random House, 48pgs)
9. Next Spring an Oriole by Gloria Whelan (Random House, 60pgs)
10. A to Z Mysteries: The Haunted Hotel by Roy Ron [Ill. by John Steven Gurney] (Random House, 87pgs)
11. Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds by David A. Adler (Puffin, 58pgs)

Children's book!!!

Since I'm having a hardtime reading books.. thought I'd read a bunch of children's book.. why not? right? Anyhow, finished reading Judy Blume's Freckle Juice yesterday.. only took about 30mins. ;) well, it is a tiny little book.. so here are the list of children's book that I plan to read and finish by the end of this year.. only have about a little over a month left..

1. Freckle Juice by Judy Blume (Yearling, 47pgs)
2. Chocolate Fever by Robert Kimmel Smith (Puffin, 93pgs)
3. The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl (Puffin, 63pgs)
4. Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary (HarperTrophy, 165pgs)
5. Mr.Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater(Little Brown, 139pgs)
6. Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell (Yearling, 137pgs)
7. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell (Yearling, 184pgs)
8. Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright (Square Fish, 136pgs)
9. The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes [ill. by Louis Slobodkin](Harcourt, 80pgs)
10. The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl (Puffin, 42pgs)
11. Nate the Great on the Owl Express by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat & Mitchell Sharmat(Yearling, 27pgs)
12. The Zack Files: Evil Queen Tut and the Great Ant Pyramids by Dan Greenburg (Grosset&Dunlap,59pgs)
13. Frindle by Andrew Clements (Aladdin, 105pgs)

this is it for now

July 19th Meeting

BLUE BLOODS by Melissa De La Cruz

Hey guys.. Our last meeting was just Dana and me.. =(

we didn't reallyl like the book.. though we wanted other opinions but there wasn't anyone to give..

Anyhoo... My opinion of this book is..

I thought it approached the whole vamp story from a very different perspective..now that was brilliant.. but.. well, other than that it was really badly written..

I was able to read it in 2 days and yes it's an easy read.. but 2/3rd of the words were to do with fashion..

And to tell the truth.. I'm not a fashion gal... not really into it.. I wear anything and everything that looks pretty or good on me.. and don't really care about the labels.. but this author kept on going and going about what the characters are wearing that I got confused whether I was reading a fashion magazine review on what the hollywood stars wore or an actual fiction book that was supposed to be about vampires.

the BIG 3-0!

so my pre-birthday started on Saturday, July 11th at 8AM: woke up, got ready and the whole family went to Samsung-dong for a BIG lunch. We went shopping at Hyundai department store afterwards until it was time to meet my friends in Kangnam at 7PM.

Once again this year I reserved Pasha.. I can't seem to find another great place to have a birthday dinner.. though it was a great place ;)

So, dinner and itaewon.. and yes, it was a night to remember.. I don't think I had that much fun for some time now.. It was great to really enjoy, meet people and simply have a great time.

And yes, I did get confirmed today.. I think I went without sleep for 40 hours (except, for a quick 1,2 hour rest) When I got home after all the planned and unplanned events, I think I passed out.. for about 4 hours.. and I just woke up, which by the way is NOT good at all, since I do need to wake up early tomorrow.. Yes, I did not forget that it's a Monday. And yes, I do work.. ;)

Thank you Kris, Mitzi, Emma, Peter, Mike, Rick, Bob, and everyone else I forgot to mention. Love you all!!

And most of all thank you sis for always being the *BIG*sister and looking out for me even though you're younger. Mom, I can't even start to say how thankful and greatful I am for getting me into this world in the first place and for your endless LOVE. I LOVE YOU both immensely.
Dad, I miss you SO MUCH, I know you're in a better place and I know you'll always look out for me.. There isn't a day that I don't think of you.. you're always be in my heart and I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

They say the thirties is the new twenties so let's see how that'll be for me ;)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!! =)

Okay, now I REALLY do need my sleep.. I did get up after sleeping about 4 hours just to write this..

1st to Die by James Patterson

TITLE: 1st To Die
AUTHOR: James Patterson
PAPERBACK: 456pages.

started: July 1st, 2009
finished: July 6th, 2009

Ok.. this is my very first series of The Women's Murder Club..

This is a page turner, and if you're into suspence and murder mystery then this you'll like.


The twist at the end was totally unexpected.
It's intense to begin with and the intensity of the story doesn't loosen up..


We do have good cop story mixed with love and romance in the middle.. a bit girlish some might say..

Though the story does end with some tragedy, they do close the case..

I saw the TV series, well, all of the ones that they've made...
and it does have a different basic plot line and where in the TV series 3 of them are already good friends and one joins in.. in the book only Claire and Lindsay are good friends and when Cindy becomes a friend, they make it into a club and have Jill join in later...


They way James Patterson laid out the foundation of the plot line couldn't have been better..


I did enjoy how the sotry was being built up.. and I can't wait for the second one, though I will take a break because I have another book that I wanted to read before end of this month: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. And it's soon to be in the cinema's.. so it would be nice to have read it and then see it.. ;)

Reading Frenzy

I finished Blue Blood last night.. and I'll hold off the review till we have our meeting on July 19th..
I'm pretty sure that I'll get the second one and read it once I finish my "1st to Die" by James Patterson. It's been on my TBR list for some time now.. well, there are loads of books on my TBR list. I know I've been behind on my readings.. blogging, and writing.. and tons of other things.. but it's time I caught up with some of it, if not all... So, I'm trying to get as many books read as possible..

Hence, the reading frenzy~

So, let's see how many books I can get through per month and then at the end of the year. ;)

June 28th Meeting

CHILD 44 by Tom Rob Smith

This book is a page turner... there were some times where I thought something was amiss.. but still it is a great thriller, nonetheless.

It took me on and off about 2weeks to finish it... yes, if you do have the time just for reading you'll probably be able to finish it in 2 days.. or if you're a fast reader.. even less. It's about 400 pages long or more I can't remember the exact number of pages.. but that's not really important.

Our meeting took place at our hangout "Take Urban" same time.. and there weren't many of us since Sandra and Susan were out of town.. WE MISS YOU GUYS!!! Mitzi, you're greatly missed, too.

So, there was Dana, Rebecca, Bernadette, and me.. just us 4 girls.. we had a little chit-chat about the book and after our little discussion we headed to the bookstore to pick out our next book.. and we did have some trouble choosing what to read.. but we did come up with the next 2 books. Our next book, for July 19th, is Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz. And our next one after that is called The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan and we don't really have a date set for that one yet.. but we'll come up with one..

Hope you all have a great week.. Happy reading everyone!

June 14th Meeting @ Sanbon

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

And to fit the occasion, we had a picnic style meeting which was perfect~!
We all met up at Sanbon station, got some food from E-mart and headed up to the foot of the mountain... I brought the mat and we settled down in a very quiet place.
It was different from our other meetings because there weren't much people around and less noise (practically no noise). Cool mountain air and terrific scent of nature.. it was very relaxing.
We had a wonderful discussion. Wish you were there~

Change...

2009 is, well, it's not one of the best years I've had..
but it is a year that does give me the opportunity to look at things in a different perspective.
I haven't really been myself lately.. though that itself is a very confusing statement.
I feel like I'm in a whirlpool struggling to get out but the current is too strong.
Yes, there is progress.. time to time, I feel myself surfacing but then there is that pull that sucks you right back in and you're back to where you started.. it feels like it's never strong enough.
I'm not really rushing myself.. but I do know I need to straighten things out soon..

Losing someone you love is never easy...
It feels so surreal and that feeling doesn't seem to go away..
I try to busy myself and tell myself that there are things that needs to be done..
but to actually get around to doing it seems hard..
Nothings seems right.. and reality isn't reality any longer..

a new start.. a new beginning

Starting Monday, I'll be working at a new job.

It's a fulltime thing and I'll be working from 9am till 6pm like normal people.. none of that evening classes, staying up till 3/4 in the morning and waking up at noonish business..

I've taught English in Korea ever sine I got here.. and that's a long time this was my 12th year teaching. I did start from tutoring going to companies to lecture and teaching at hakwons.. I do love teaching and it's a great job but I do believe anyone can get really sick and tired of their job once in awhile.. for me, the cycle seemed to be 3 years.. well, it also is true for living in Korea.. I don't know if it's just Korea because I haven't really lived in one place over 3 years till now... Maybe that's why I get those anxious, jitty feeling around 3 years time and am eager to just pack up and leave.. but because you need to earn your living and bring home the bread.. it's a different story.

Well, I'm taking a break in teaching and will try something different. It's still related to teaching, though. I'll be recruting teachers and hopefully it will not be a bore. I am nervous of how I'll adapt to it, though I do get used to things pretty quick.

Oh, and for the occasion.. I did some cleaning, it's not really to my satisfactory but I reorganized my shelves and my room and I think (and hope) am ready for Monday.

I GOT IT!!!

something that's been on my mind for sooooooooo long..

a nice confy sofa.. though to buy an actual sofa(/recliner) is somewhat pricy..

so the alternative was the beany... you know the round big thing that we all so loved..

I looked everywhere.. searched on the web.. and no luck.

but last year I finally did find something similar to what I wanted.. however, it wasn't the time.. and my room was too small to put such a big thing in.. and still hadn't really organized it after putting in the shelf.. =( I know, I've been lazy.. but, I wasn't really in the state of mind to do anything, so there, there's my excuse...

anyhow, I ordered it I think on May3rd and got it on the 6th.. really quick, huh?

and this is what it looks like...

It is REALLY comfortable.. a bit expensive but I think it was worth it...

MAKEOVER!!!

Since I was merging two of my blogs, I thought I'd do a make over.
It's nothing fancy... I just made it simpler, bigger, and changed some colors around.
Originally, I wanted to go with a brown background to give it a softer look.. but couldn't find the shade of brown that I wanted from the color code so this is the end result.

I think it still has a warmth to it so, there.

Hopefully, I'll be able to keep it up and maintain it regularly...
Things are beginning to look better...

Merge

trying to keep up with several blog is, well, not an easy task..
So, I've decided that it's time for me to concentrate on one thing.

Thanks to blogger's great - well, how should I say this - system/service, I was able to export then, import all my postings from my other blog which I used it to scribble personal stuff into this one.. It was very easy to do.. several clicks and all the postings were copied into this one.. and I could even select the ones I wanted to post(though, I didn't want to loose anything so I posted all of it)

Anyhow, I'm planning to use this site mainly for reviews on books and movies.. but also to post things about myself. I did want it to be all separate.. but that's just too much work.. and time which I don't have.. so there it is... a merge.. and that's that! =)

Besides, it's easier to visit one site rather than two, right?

...

written on a notepad.. April 06, 2008 - 01:13 AM

Night and Day merges to one and time just seem to fade away.
Floating in space and time without destination.
Seconds, minutes, and hours just undistinguishable.
Like being stuck in a room full of clocks and watches that are all pointing in their own different directions.
Like visiting the clock smith and seeing all those watches he’s trying to fix.

The fear of being lost and fear of inability to find the way just sucks me into this tiny room where I can barely breathe. All these ticking sound pushing, rushing, ushering me to be quick. And me just standing there, just pacing back and forth unable to make a decision. So, the problem…
Yes, it feels like I’m stuck in that tunnel again.. that I keep coming back to.. and that tunnel is like a shape shifter who changes its shape every single time as it sees fit – preventing me from escape… freedom.

So, it’s that tunnel again..
that hopeless feeling just flooding back…

Look at what my dog did!!! =(

yup...

that's the one right below...

I came home today..

and she was waiting for me with that...

I was just shocked..

and I couldn't even scold her..

Well, hoping that she'd be a good girl and leave the puzzles in one piece was, I guess, my utmost mistake..

Anyhow, I'm just going to have to start it all over AGAIN!!!

But, before I do, I'm thinking I'll do it after I've done another piece I've bought..

so, I'm going to give a short break.. and when I'm done with the new one.. I'll start all over again..

This time she won't mess it up *fingers crossed*

trying not to think..

This is what I've been doing for the past few days now..

I'm back in the mojo of jigsaw puzzles again!! The one I'm doing right now is by Leonardo Da Vinci, called "Head of a young woman with Tousled hair". It's all shiny so it kinda makes it hard to match or even figure out which part is which but.. it's worth it..

It keeps your mind off things for awhile..

and.. I think I'm totally obsessed in finishing it soon.. since I have a bet going on with a friend.. that makes it even more exciting.. ;)

He thinks I can't finish it within this month and I say I can..

If I DO finish it then he's going to buy me another puzzle of my choice.. and if I don't then I'll buy him a puzzle of his choice, complete it and give it to him in a frame..

So that's the bet.

I'll let you know how it turns out when I'm done... AND whether I won the bet or not. ;)

Twilight Saga

I still haven't seen the internationally famous "Twilight". However, I
just finished reading it and am on to the next one "New Moon".

I tried to read but nothing seemed to hold my attention during this
crisis I'm going through. I just couldn't read or concentrate on any
of the words until I decided to buy "Twilight", which I've been
trying to hold off for some time.

Anyway, It did grab my attention while I was shopping for a book for a
student. I was about to just pass by but my book-loving part took
control (I think)... grabed the book and went straight to the counter.

I'm glad I did get it because I was getting afraid that I wouldn't be
able to read anything for some time. It was nice to be distracted by a
high-teen novel and just me able to enjoy it: imagining and just being
consumed by it.

I can't compare the novel with the movie yet since I haven't seen it..
However I do feel that it is an easy-read and something you might want
to read if nothing else just seems to be interesting. Oh, but if
you're not that into vampire stories then you might want to skip it
cus it IS about vampires.

I'm half way into "New Moon". It still is a bit difficult to
concentrate but the fact that I am reading something is more
important. I'm hoping to finish the second book of the four and
hopefully I'll be able to start the third one: Eclipse.

Numb

Last year and this year has been very difficult for me and it still is
difficult to cope. And it's been extra hard to read anything though I
do love to read. I know I used to read to get rid of the strain and it
used to relieve me of stress, allow me to escape from reality, and
live in the literary or imaginary world. However, the numbness that I
feel lately seems to block all that. Dad's not duing so well. It's
been 10months since he's been diagnosed. The doctor did say a year but
what I didn't realize was how short that year would be. He's been
hospitalized now and it's been 2 months Mom's been spending her time
with Dad. She's tired, he's tired we're all tired.... The numbness
just won't go away.. We're breathing, living everyday as if nothing's
wrong but the truth is that nothing's right.. It never will be.. And I
think I'm finally begining to realize that. That everything has
changed...