The Nook Tutorial

One of my local Barnes and Noble stores did a Nook Tutorial.  I have to say, it was a pretty use thing to go to.  Of course there were things I already knew after all the research I did online.  But there were a few things I did not know that I learned.

I would recommend anybody who is interested in the Nook, or any e-reader, go to learn about the Nook and e-readers in generally.  And beware, it may convince you to buy one soon.

A Quick Trip

For a quick trip this summer, it was decided that Colorado Springs would be the destination.  Sometimes it is just nice to get away, even if it is just an hour away.  Here are a few pictures from Garden of the Gods.  It is a beautiful and peaceful place.

The Summer We Read Gatsby

I decided to read this book after seeing it on quite a few summer reading lists, including Oprah's.  I can somewhat understand why Oprah put it on her list.  She seems to be a fan of thoughtful writers, and Danielle Ganek falls into that category.  But other than that, I cannot say I enjoyed the book.  I had such little interest in it that I quit reading a little before the half way point.

It is a story about  half sisters that have to come together when their aunt dies.  Their aunt, Lydia, writes in her will that Peck and Cassie must live in her Southampton's house for a month out of the summer before they can sell it or inherent any of the other items in the house. 

I think this is one of those books where people either love it or don't really care for it, ( I can't say hate it, because that was not the case, I just did not really care about it.)  Maybe my problem with it was the characters.  Peck seemed to be portrayed as a very condescending and pompous, and was always putting Cassie down for not being as classy and sophisticated as herself.  And Cassie seemed to be a push over and just excuse it and let it happen.    I had not attachment towards either character and I think that is ultimately why I did not care about finishing the book. 

I am sure there are people out there who will love the book and all the Gatsby references ( I loved Gatsby, which was why I wanted to read the book, and even this did not get me) and love the descriptions about the parties and Hampton's lifestyle.  But this was just one of those books that was not for me. 

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - The Movie

As you can tell, I am enamored with the Millennium Trilogy.   I just watched the Swedish version of the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, as it is called in Sweden, Män som hatar kvinnor – "Men Who Hate Women".  (The book is called the same thing.  Very telling and interesting.)  As with any book to movie, it is hard to get all the same feelings and emotions of the book into the movie.  Niels Arden Oplev, however, did do a very good job.




The overall story line was there.  Blomkvist was convicted of libel for the story he wrote at Millennium magazine about Hans-Erik Wennerström, the business man.  So Blomkvist decides to take some time off from the magazine and gets asked by Henrik Vanger to solve the mystery of his missing niece, Harriet.  Eventually, Lisbeth, helps Blomkvist solve the mystery.

Now, here are the things that I did not like or did not think were captured in the movie.  First off Berger.  In the book Berger is Blomkvist's ongoing lover.  This was not represented in anyway in the movie.  And for some reason I always pictured her as a brunet not as a blond.  I am sure there was a description of her in the book, but I just do not rememeber.

 Second, Lisbeth.  I loved her in the book but not so much in the movie. They represented her as very stand offish in the movie, much like the book.   But I don't think they did a great job of showing how smart she was.  In the books she came across as very intelligent, with photographic memory, problem solving and computer hacking.  Some of this was shown in the movie but not to the same extent. I also found her a little to harsh in the movie, but I understand why.  If you have not read the books, you need to understand that she does not like to have relationships with people and the harshness represents that, (at least in mind).

And the third thing I did not like, which is true in all book to movie renditions I view, story lines taken out of sequence.  It drive me crazy, because it makes me feel like the story line has changed.  

But overall, a very good rendition.  There is the main Vanger mystery along with the growing relationship between Blomkvist and Lisbeth.  I cannot wait to see the Girl Who Played With Fire.  And I am also curious to see what the American version of the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is like.  I hope they can capture they same intense feeling that the Swedish version did.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

Stieg Larsson did not let me down with this book.  The third book in the series picked up right where the second book left you with a cliff hanger.  (I was a little worried it would start off sometime in the future and we would lose some time.)

With Lisbeth in the hospital recovering from her attack, Blomkvist is still working on solving the murder of his friends and exposing the criminals who did it.  While working on this he discovers that there is a secret group who has been covering up many crimes and also changed Lisbeth's life.  Which has made her the person he knows. Ultimately, the criminals are brought to justice and Lisbeth finally gets her day in court. 

The character development continues in this book.  And I found I became more attached to some of the characters.  But I was a little disappointed with Lisbeth and Blomkvist.  I know a lot of people had trouble liking Lisbeth in the beginning, but I loved her from the start.  After the trial, Lisbeth seemed to become even more withdrawn and harsh.  It was almost too much for me.  I was also disappointed with Blomkvist's love interest in this book.  She was a police officer he was working with.  I think we can all conclude that he is not a typical serious relationship type of guy,  (although he does have a long on going relationship with Berger), but he seems to be on the verge of starting some sort of serious relationship with this police officer.  I found it strange.  He does not seem to like the needed and clingy type of girl, which is the way I viewed her.



Ultimately, this was a great conclusion to the second book and to the series. It was not as suspenseful as the second book, and there was some more character development, that I believe would have been expanded on in the next books he planned.  Everything was tied up well.  This was a great book and a great series.  I would recommend it to anybody how loves mysteries and thrillers.  I have yet to hear of anybody who as not loved this series. 

Ebooks From the Library

One of the things I liked about the Nook was the ability to download ebooks from the library.  Here are the directions on how to do that.

1. Connect your Nook to your computer
2. Download Adobe Digital Editions
3. Install the program on your computer
4. Open the program and register and create an Adobe ID or log in if you already have on.  If you do not have and ID it is free and easy to set up.   
5. Activate Adobe Digital Editions
6. After you have logged in and activated Adobe, it should see the Nook, and install the program on the Nook
7. Once you have pick out your book from the library then download it.  You may need to follow the instructions from the library.  Mine was exceptionally easy.  Once it was checked out it said, download.
8. Make sure you have Adobe Digital Edition open.  On the main page you will see your books, and the Nook at the bottom of the list.  Drag your book to the Nook picture.  
9. Now the book should be on the Nook and you can unplug it and start reading.  

I think it should be pretty easy to download library books going forward.  Just download and open Adobe Digital and drag to the Nook.

Happy reading!!

The Girl Who Played With Fire

I thought it would be hard to top The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. This book may have done it.

Salander decides to spend some of the money she earned and take a trip around the world. She has had no contact with anybody including Bloomkivst, who has been trying to contact her throughout the year. Salander returns home and feels uneasy and decides to purchase a new apartment and rents out her old apartment to her friend Mirium for a dollar.

Meanwhile, Bloomkvist is still a reporter at Millennium and a reporter comes to his magazine with an explosive topic, the sex trade throughout Sweden. This leads to murder and Salander is accused through the weak connections.

Like he previous book in the series, you are on the edge of you seat throughout most of the book. The story is so well written and thought out. There were twists and turns that I did no see coming, just like the previous novel.

Guess What I Got .... A NOOK!!!

I got a nice belated birthday present this weekend.  A Nook!!  I know there is an ongoing debate of the Nook vs. the Kindle, her is how I decided on the Nook.

The last week I saw that e-reader prices had dropped.  First the Nook and then the Kindle.  I had not looked at e-readers previously.

1. I was not sure I was ready to convert.  I have to say it is nice coming home with a book and cracking it open. 
2. I was not ready to shell out of $200 to be able to read, and on top of that have to buy items to read.  I am an avid library person.
3. I think subconsciously, I knew if I started playing with one in the store I would want one.

Once I saw this price drop, I started looking online at the different features of the Nook and the Kindle.  And then I went into the Barnes & Noble store to get some coffee and look around.  And I looked at the Nook.  Bad idea, from that moment I wanted one. 

But let's take a step back.  Let me tell you how I chose the Nook over the Kindle.  (And I am sorry to say the Sony e-reader was never in the running, so I did no research on that.)   If you look on the Nooks website it does give you some comparisons of the Nook and Kindle.  They both have the same screen E INK technology made by the same company, text size adjusting, built in dictionaries, ability to read newspapers and magazines, and ability to listen to audio books or music.  Books can be purchased on both the e-reader devices by their distributor, (i.e. Barnes & Noble and/or Amazon depending on the device).  

Now to the differences between the two.  With the Kindle you have access to everything Amazon carries.  I don't do not how much, if any books are free over Amazon.  (I have read there is none, but did not take much time to look into this.  So, don't take my word on it.)  On the Nook, I am able to download e-books from my library and load them on the device.  My library does not currently support the Kindle, and I believe there are very few that do.  I am also able to download books from Google Books, or other sources that carry free books.  And Barnes & Noble also has a variety of free e-books on their site. 

Honestly, that was the biggest selling point the Nook had for me, free books.  I love the library because of this.  Books can get very expensive. 

The other benefits I saw to the Nook are hardware benefits. They both have 2 gigs of memory out of the box,
approximately 1500 books.  Now that is a lot of books.  But say I become a speed reader, (doubtful, but hey),  with the Nook I am able to add addition memory with a mini SD card.  I read online, that many people use this as a way to organize their books.  The Kindle does not have this capability.  The other thing with the Nook, is the replaceable battery.  The Kindle is like the IPhone, it will need to be send to Amazon to be replaced if the battery dies.  

So my final decision was the Nook, and lucky for me, I came home Saturday from an appointment, and had one waiting for me.  I was extremely excited and broke it out.  It is far to early to do a review, but so far I love reading on it.  I will do a review(s) in the following weeks and months about my experience with it.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

I always love a great mystery and a book that makes you think and use deduction.  That is exactly what The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is.  Just like many other people, I heard it is hard to get into.  It can take 100 to 150 pages to get going.  I was in the same boat.  But at about page 80, it all of a sudden took a turn for me.  I could not put it down.

There are 2 subplots in this novel.  First is the story of Lisbeth Salander, a young woman, who is extremely secretive, almost a recluse at times.  She works as a contractor for a private eye type of company. There is also the story of Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist who has just been convicted of libel.  He is convinced that a Wennerström, (the company which he wrote about when convicted of libel) is a corrupt company.  And still feels that he needs to let the public know about it.


Mikael Blomkvist decides to take some time off after his convection and is offered a job from Henrik Vanger to do two things, write a history of his family and his successful company and solve the mystery of his great-niece that went missing without a trace.  Mikael starts writing the family history and begins to uncover some interests finds.  He finds that there is so much information to go through and will need a research assistant.  A confidant of Henrik recommends Lisbeth.  They begin working together and develop a relationship that neither expected.

I thought this was a great book.  It was a good engaging story, with mystery and intrigue.  It was long but I did not feel like there was extra stuff thrown it.  I felt everything included was necessary, and I even wish there was more.  But I am sure that will be addressed in the next books.

Julie and Julia Review

I have been reading Julie and Julia by Julie Powell for about 2 months.  I finally decided to give it up.  I decided to read it because I saw the movie and thought it was cute.  This is one of the view times where I thought the movie was better.

The story is documenting a blog project that Jule Powell started.  She wanted to document her process through Julia Child's cook book in one year.  She had to cook everything in the cook book and in the process she documented her ups and downs. 

I started reading the book and immediately found it to be dense and wordy.  It seemed to be overwritten.  It should be a fun quick read but I did not find that.  I often put it down to start reading other books.  (I read 3 other books while I was trying to read this.)  Ultimately, I only read half of it and just decided to give it up. 

This yet another reason why the library is great. I don't feel guilty for spending money on a book then not enjoying it.

Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)

I Will Remember You by Sarah McLachlan

101 n 1001 List Update

It has been awhile since I have post anything regarding my list.  I have updated the list.  I have completed 14 tasks and there are many in progress. 

Day 15 — A fanfic

I don't know about you, but I had no clue what a fanfic was. According to thefreedictionary.com, it is "Fiction written by fans as an extension of an admired work or series of works, especially a television show, often posted on the Internet or published in fanzines."

I figured there would be a ton on Harry Potter and sure enough I found a website dedicated to it, http://www.harrypotterfanfiction.com/.

I just glanced at the site. I am not sure how I feel about the whole fanfic thing to be honest. I know sometimes I would like to know what happened to my favorite characters, but I think it is nice just letting somethings end on a high note.

Day 14 — A non-fictional book

My non-fiction selections tend to math and science oriented. There are of course other things thrown in, but that is what I tend to read.

So, I was trying to think of a non-fiction book that would be more interesting to a wider audience. And I came up with one Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer. This is a great book, and I would recommend it to anybody who wanted a great read.

Day 13 — A fictional book

I have been talking about Hunger Games and Catching Fire lately, check those out. I am also currently reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and The Wild Things. I will have updates on these when I finish them. You can also check out my goodreads book shelf if you would like to see more of what I have read.

Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy - Catching Fire

I just finished Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. I enjoyed this book more than Hunger Games. Catching Fire is what happens to the winner after the Hunger Games. Below is my review with some spoilers if you have not read Hunger Games, so be aware if you don't want to know what happens.



After the Hunger Games, Katniss and Peeta are sent back to district 12 and are then told that they will go on a tour to all the other districts. Little does Katniss know, that she has started a rebellion in other districts. Katniss tries to everything she can do show her support to the nation and put an end to the rebellion. Little does Katniss realize that her actions did not work.

I would recommend this series to almost everybody. It is so a great story. I cannot wait for the 3rd book. Too bad I am number 128 in the hold list at the library.

Day 11: A photo of you taken recently

I missed most of last week, so I will continue where I left off, day 11. I don't really have any pictures of my that were taken recently. So no pictures today.

Day 10: A photo of you taken over ten years ago

Sorry, I don't have any on the computer, so this day will be skipped.

Memorial Day Weekend

As always, I have a list of things I would like to get done. This weekend I would like to get some cleaning done to have a nice, fresh start for summer. I always seem to makes lists but never seem to get everything done. Hopefully I will make some good progress this weekend. Here is my list in no specific order

-Deep clean bathrooms

-I use to be a huge craigslist seller. I have sold everything from clothes, house hold items, games, electronics, etc. and I have been very successful with it. It was a great way to earn some extra cash. I have continued posting on craigslist but have had little success in the past 6 months. It seems that there is a lot more spamming going on. Which is extremely annoying. So I would like to go through all those items and do inventory and take to goodwill. I will then take the tax write off. This will also help clear some room in the basement.

-Clean and organize the closets

-Mop floors

-Return a view items that were not needed for projects

-I would also like to finish Catching Fire and start reading the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

Other than that I just hope to relax and enjoy the nice weather.

Day 9: A Photo You Took

Day 8: A photo that makes you sad or angry

Day 7: A photo that makes you happy

Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy - Hunger Games

Day 6 is whatever tickles your fancy, so it will be about Hunger Games.

I am just about finished with Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. It is a young adult, science fiction story about what happens to a young girl in Panem, which is North American in the future. The nation is broken up into 12 districts, (at one time there were 13th, but the 13th was destroyed), and a boy and a girl between the ages of 12 and 17 are sent off to the capital to compete in the Hunger Games, which is a fight to the death and the last one standing wins.

I am sure you can imagine what happens. Katniss the young girl from district 12 is going to the Hunger Games and she must survive in whatever way possible in order to win and return to her mother and sister.

This is a page turner. Each chapter leaves you on the edge of your seat and you must continue reading. I cannot not wait to read the 2 other books in the series, Catching Fire and Mockinjay.

Day 5: Favorite Quote

"If you don't own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life."
— Roger Caras

Day 4: Favorite Book

Picking a favorite book is extremely hard. There are so many great books out there. Again, I am afraid I can't narrow it down to just 1. So here are a few.


I reread To Kill a Mockingbird last year. And it was just as great as when I read it the first time in high school.

Another book I love is the Odyssey by Homer.

And of course I cannot leave out Harry Potter. What great storytelling. I love Harry Potter so much that I even have it on my 101 and one list to reread. I have not reread them, but have listened to the audio books and still love them.



Another great book I read was The Art of Racing in the Rain. It is not on my all time favorite list but it was such a great read.

You can also check out my goodreads bookshelf to see what else I have read, along with ratings and reviews.

Day 3 - Your Favorite TV Series

How appropriate that today is the favorite TV series day. Currently, my favorite TV series is



I just started watching LOST this year. I was able to watch all the seasons through Netflix and I was hooked. Now, the real question is will all of the questions be answered. I kind of doubt. But it is still an amazing show.

Day 2 - Your Favorite Movie

There are a few movies I love, and will almost always watch when they are on TV. I am not sure I can pick just one, so here are a couple.

and

Day 1 - Your Favorite Song

Day 1: Your Favorite Song

I listen to a huge variety of music. Everything from oldies, rock, pop, hip hop. The only I don't really like is country. It took me a while to think of my favorite song. It was tough. I love so many different artists, from Britney to Jay-Z to Tom Petty to Black Eyed Peas to the Beatles. And then it finally came to me: Mary J. Blige. I have to say, that she has got to me one of my all time favorite artists.

So now to the song: Be Without You from The Breakthrough. Check it out here.

30 Day Blog Challenge

Since I seem to have problems keeping up on blogging, I decided that I would do the 30 day blog challenge. Below is a list of the challenge. Now let me warn you, there will probably be some that I will not care to answer and may change to be something else. Here I go, let's see if I can do every day for 30 days.

Here's the challenge:
Day 01 — Your favorite song
Day 02 — Your favorite movie
Day 03 — Your favorite television program
Day 04 — Your favorite book
Day 05 — Your favorite quote
Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 — A photo you took
Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 — A fictional book
Day 14 — A non-fictional book
Day 15 — A fanfic
Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 — An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 — A talent of yours
Day 20 — A hobby of yours
Day 21 — A recipe
Day 22 — A website
Day 23 — A YouTube video
Day 24 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 — Your day, in great detail
Day 26 — Your week, in great detail
Day 27 — This month, in great detail
Day 28 — This year, in great detail
Day 29 — Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 — Whatever tickles your fancy

1000 Journals

One thing I love about netflix is the chance to get a variety of different types of movies. I just watched 1000 Journals. It is about some guy, that is what he wants to be called, that decided to send 1000 empty journals out into the world. It is interesting to see the images of what has been put into these journals. Originally, a website was set up to document the progression of these journals.

There was so much popularity, that there is now 1001journals.com It is pretty interesting to see the scanned items and where the journals have traveled. You can even sign up to receive a journal and add your own piece to the project.

Basement Organization: Storage Room

The basement in my house becomes a collect all place. There is so much random stuff in my basement it is hard to believe. As you can see there are chairs, boxes, toilet paper, paper towels, fans, clothes and so much more. There is just way too much stuff. I was starting to go through things and I kept finding things that I needed to put in the storage room.

The storage room was no better than the basement. I could barely walk into the storage room. My storage room is small to start with. It goes under the stairs so there is limited space. As you can see the storage room was like the basement. All kinds of stuff everywhere. Boxes stacked on boxes, light bulbs, shipping boxes, paint. Again everything.

So I needed to figure out a way to make it easier to walk into, and easier to find things. And once you find what you want, capable of getting the item. Lets just say, that I was not able to that the way it was.

If you see in the first picture there is a shelving unit. I was able to take the shelving unit apart and make it 2 small units to stack against the back wall. This made a huge improvement. Now there is room to walk in. And now things are organized in a much better. And there is also room to put more things in the storage room when needed.

I was also able to throw a lot of things away. I also found something that I can sell on craigslist to get a few extra dollars.

So now it is time to tackle the basement. I have a feeling that may take longer than an evening like the storage room.

Feeling Like an Old Lady

Lately, I have been waking up feeling like an old lady. My back hurt so much I felt like I had slept on a log or wood plank or something. So the time had finally come to start considering looking at mattresses.

Shopping for a mattress is not an easy task. Laying on a mattress for 2 minutes in the store is not the same as sleeping on a mattress for about 8 hours a night for 8 to 10 years, approximately 1,401,600 minutes to 1,752,000. Obviously, 2 minutes does not compare. I started looking at the weekly ads and online for what I think I would want and need. And I got the Consumer Reports issue that discussed mattress and talked to some people about it. Let me tell you, that just created more ideas and confusion.

Finally, I started looking at memory foam, latex, and air camber beds. I figured it would be nice to get a bed that would last longer that then 7 to 10 years, that traditional mattresses are reported to last. I ruled out latex pretty quickly because from what I read on the internet, they are just starting to become popular in the US and can be harder to find. That left memory foam and air camber mattresses. I was really interested in trying memory foam, because I have a memory foam pillow and love it. But I was worried that the bed would be very different from the pillow. After trying it, it is much like a traditional mattress, different firmness and comfort levels. After finding the right comfort and firmness it was just like my pillow and felt great. I also tried the Sleep Number bed. I saw some great reviews of the product saying it was the best bed they have ever had, and some saying it felt like they were sleeping on a blow up air mattress. After trying it, I really liked it. I liked that is can be adjusted with the way you are feeling that day as well as over time. I also liked the fact that you can add more padding to go on top of the air chambers to make it feel like a more traditional bed.

Now came the decision. Both beds had a try at home guarantee. If you don't like the bed they will take it back. Both beds have a 20 year limited warranty. However, the prices varied dramatically, the memory foam bed I liked was about $3600 before taxes and delivery and haul away, and the sleep number bed was $1600 before taxes.

I will not keep you in suspense any longer. I decided to go with the Sleep Number bed.

The price was a big decision maker for me, and I love the fact that I can adjust the bed to my comfort level. I also figured if I was to add in the memory foam feeling, I can buy a decent topper and put that on the bed.

And I am happy to report that I no longer feel like I am an old lady when I wake up. No more back pain!! And for the record my sleep number is currently 40.

Organization: Part 1

When I got my new laptop, and I needed to install some of the software I had on my old laptop. This sounds much easier than it actually was. It meant time to go on a software search in the office. I try to keep all my computer stuff, (ie. hardware, software, cords, etc.) in totes to keep them organized. Well, it seems that only some stuff was in the organized totes, while other stuff was all over the place. That means it is organization time!!

The office and basement in my house seems to be the collect all areas, which is apparent from the pictures. When I clean the house the stuff that I no longer want to look at that is the main living area or master bedroom either goes in the office or the basement. I can always close the basement door and the basement is not completely visible from my living room. The really is no preference between basement and office, it is just based on size which is closer. So, that makes cleaning and organizing a bit confusing.

I decided to start with the office. When the office is packed full, I usually just close the door. Poof, I no longer need to look at it. This past week I decided I would start with the office and then I would do the basement. I decided I would do a little each night during the week. Some nights 10 minutes, some 30 minutes. By doing a little each night, it left the office a bit chaotic. As you can see, there is stuff everywhere. Shoes, boxes, paper, CDs, clothes, and so much more.

So it took some time to clean, and some of it went down to the basement, the other collect all place. But in the end I got the office clean, and the door can now stay open. There is still some stuff piled up, CDs, some paper work and some clothes. But I know what this stuff is, it is organized and I have plans for the stuff to be moved.

Now that the office is clean, that means it is time to move on to the basement. And that is not going to be nearly as fast or easy for me to complete.

It really does amaze me how stuff just piles up.

Step It Up!! (Part 2)

So, I said I was going to start stepping up my blogging again on Dec. 30th. Considering it is now March 12, and I have not blogged at all, I have not stepped it up at all. So, it is now time for part 2.
We all know it is the dreaded tax season. I know a lot of people recommend that you set up your with holdings so that you pretty much break even and do give the government a interest free loan. However, I like getting that nice extra payday this time of year. And in all honesty, with the current interest rates where they are and the amount of my return, I really would not have earned that much interest.

So with some of my tax return I decided to give myself a nice little present, a new Toshiba laptop.

This will be replacing my 2006 Dell laptop.

And the rest of my return will be going to savings and bills. Not nearly as exciting, but logical.