Books Books Books: Summer Reading Update

Hey all! So, last month I made a list of the books that I was going to read this summer. I apologize but I haven't been putting up any sore of reviews here, mostly because I've been kinda lazy. Anyways, I wanted to take this time to summarize what I've ready as of now since it's near the end of the first month of summer!

As of now I've read only two books on my list, Divergent and The Lightening Thief. However, to be honest, I got distracted by The Lightening Thief and ended up reading the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in a few sittings. This series was awesome and really held my interest throughout the books. Now, yes I do have the mind of a teenager at times when it comes to books, but I think these are all definitely worth a read. As for the Divergent series, my apartment mate has just finished the second book in the series, Insurgent, and has started the third, Allegiant, I think I may hold off on these two though until she finishes the last one so I can read them all the way through without having to wait. The first one was brilliant and I can't wait to read the rest of the series! I've heard good things!

Instead, next on my list is going to be Game of Thrones. Now, a disclaimer, I realized that the picture I put up on my previous post about this book was a picture of the cover of the graphic novel. I will not be reading the graphic novel, but the actual thick, paperback version of the story. I'm hoping to have this one done before Matt and I head to a friend's for the 4th of July.

For any of you who did look at my Goodreads account, you know that I am also reading a few other books at the same time. I hardly ever only read one book at a time, that's just not my style. I am also currently reading My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire by Michelle Goodman, mostly because I've got this dream of being able to write my own stories someday and I'm a personal trainer (not usually classified as creative, but still a professional for hire!) and knowing how to run my own 'company' or at least hire myself out is something that I think would be good to know! The other book on my reading list is Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People, according to my boss, it's a book that every professional should read (even though it was published originally in 1936) and so I am reading it. Lastly, Eating Animals is still not done...it's hard for me to get through.

I put this last picture in here because that is how I'm feeling a bit about my summer reading list, since nearly all the books have been made into movies (nothing to say the movies were bad....but Percy Jackson?), be sure to ready the books if you want to learn the true meaning behind over half the movie and what really happened to the characters! Just because the movie isn't the best means nothing for the worth of the book itself! Remember :)

Love,
Sara :)

Decorating My Bedroom: Clocks

As many of you know, I moved into a new apartment with a roommate this about six weeks ago (woah!) and since then it's been busy nearly all the time for both of us. However, we are still trying to figure out how to make our home seem more like a home. Being me, I turned to books for advice, specifically: I'm currently breezing my way through Adulting: How to Become a Grown-Up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown. This is one read I would highly recommend for anyone who is moving into a house or apartment for the first time (more likely apartment, but the same stuff can also apply to a house) mostly because it addresses pretty much everything from cooking, to what to look for in an apartment, to dating, to dealing with neighbor's sex noises....yes, it's actually in here!

Anyways, that was a bit of a tangent, getting back to our new apartment! We are working on decorating and while things are coming around slowly, one thing that we both have noticed that we need are clocks. So, being that the clocks we've been finding at Michaels and Kohls have been either not our style or too big, I've been turning to the internet for ideas! What do you guys think?

ThinkGeek is always a great place to start! :P This clock has always been one of my favorites since I first saw it in a friend's room in college. Find it here!

Or if you're in doubt, Etsy is another place where you can find some of the more creative versions of anything. Also, I do tend to be late for things...so this clock is quite accurate for me! Find it here!

I really can't help but put up this clock as one that I'd love to have hanging in my own kitchen someday! Maybe a bit ambitious considering my current state, but I love it just the same. And, it's from the lovely ladies at A Beautiful Mess!

What do you guys think? Kinda cute clocks? I'm not sure what we are going to be doing as far as reality goes, probably more window shopping until one of us finds something that we both like and that works for our place, but I wanted to share these :)

Love,

Sara :)

Summer Reading List 2014

I was meaning to put up a spring reading list for this year and then never did. So, here's my summer reading list of books that I want to get read by the time September rolls around. Now, for those of you who know me, you know that I don't always pick the books that I'm going to read, especially at the library, they almost pick me. I'm starting this list at the end of May (or planning on it at least), I mean summer is sort of a unspecified amount of time, so does it really matter? Meh, we will see :P

1. Divergent series. My apartment mate is actually getting me a copy of the first book in this series and I am super excited to read it. Yea, I'm a little slow on the uptake on this book, but better late than never right?

2. Game of Thrones. I started this book a year or so ago and then lost it for a while and really need to get started on it again because I want to know what happens but I don't remember enough to start again where I left off.

3. The Lightening Thief. Yea, I think I said this one last time too....but honestly this just needs to happen. Like, seriously.

4. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. I finished the first one and it turned out I didn't have the second one :( So, I need to get my act together and get it read while the last one is still fresh in my mind. Also, side note here: if you haven't actually read this series, you are seriously missing out on a great adventure story!

5. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World. Long title, but after reading what it's about on Amazon and reading the reviews, I can't help but admit that it sounds so cute and awesome. Not to mention I've been starting to read more non-fiction books and even though they tend to take me longer, they are a lot of fun and really interesting!

6. Wuthering Heights. Yea, yea. I'm a post-college bookworm who hasn't read one of the most popular classics in the history of writing. Sue me...I'm working on it!

I am currently finishing up In The City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist by Pete Jordan, and all I can say now is that Amsterdam is definitely on my list of places to go when I travel the world!
What are you guys gonna read this summer? What other things do you have planned for this summer? Follow me on Goodreads!

Love,
Sara :)

IDEA Fitness Journal

My boss (who hates when I call her my boss) gets a journal every few months called IDEA Fitness Journal. After she reads through it, she is nice enough to let me look through it as well. I've been a CPT for almost 5 months now and I've learned a lot just through experience, so when we are told that experience is the best teacher, it's honestly true!

 

Anyways, this Journal is interesting because it is written for CPTs and Fitness Studio/Gym owners. There are articles in here about all sorts of things from nutrition to group exercise to senior fitness and just about everything in between. For instance, in the April 2014 issue (which I am currently going through) a few of the articles include "Health Profiles of Extreme Marathoners" and "Personal Training for Tennis Players", along with an article about how important post-workout rest is called "Recovery: The Rest of the Story", even personal trainers are allowed our little puns! But one of my favorite parts of this Journal is how it introduces new ideas (well, at least new to me) in the form of exercises, training methods, as well as nutrition. Below is pictured an article from last year about a food called Freekeh or Freikeh or Farik (depending where you look), which I had never heard of before and found it very interesting Stay tuned for possible recipes later on!

 

I haven't done much journal reading since college simply due to the fact that these articles cost money and that is not exactly something I have a plethora of currently. However, whenever I get my hands on any sort of Journal of this sort, I get this old excitement in my gut that I'm going to learn something good. Yea, I'm a bit of a nerd here, but I'm proud of it and I love that there is always more to learn no matter what field I'm reading up on! What types of reading do you do for your career?

Love,
Sara :)

 

Half-Price Haul

I remember mentioning at some point that I was addicted to Half-Price Books. Well, I made a trip to said bookstore once again and have returned with more books! Yay!

I'm going to go through each of these books quickly, top to bottom, see what you think!

1. The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman

A historical fiction (always a hit and miss genre) set in England back in 1831. A single, teenaged mother, struggles to make ends meet, as a potter's assistant by day and a dress lodger by night. What caught my eye was that it was is supposedly set in a modern tone, which is very intriguing for a historical fiction. I'm interested to see how this one turns out!

2. Bone Man's Daughter by Ted Dekker

Kidnapping. Serial killer. Psychological puzzles. Need I say more for your curiosity concerning this book to skyrocket? Or is it just me?

3. Hitler's Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen

Ever since taking that class in college on the Holocaust, I've been fascinated with so many different aspects of World War II and how it affected Europe. I'm not sure why, but when I say this book for $2, I really couldn't pass up another book to add to my growing collection concerning the Holocaust and Hitler.

4. Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin

A murder mystery set in the time of Henry II with a female detective who is suspicious of everyone and sounds like a version of Sherlock Holmes! I'm super excited!!!

5. Deception: Spies, Lies and How Russia Dupes the West by Edward Lucas

I almost didn't buy this book. I think I passed it like three or four times...but the concept of spies is one that I'm not sure I'm capable of passing up. And so I didn't pass it up, I got the $2 book.

What are you guys looking at as far as books or your own entertainment?

Love,
Sara :)

Current Reads

I did manage to get started on a few of the books that I posted last week. Mainly, I'm reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer whenever I'm passing time outside of my house and My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire by Michelle Goodman. So far, these two books are quite interesting, but let me start with Foer's book.

I can normally go through interesting non-fiction in not too long, however with Eating Animals, I've found that I need to put it down every so often and take a deep breath. I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting from this book, but what I got wasn't it. Don't get me wrong! It is a well written and interesting book, but it is hard to read at times and that makes the book itself difficult, but I also can't seem to just drop it. Like I said it is well written and Mr. Foer is a very smart man, so I find myself wanting to finish out this journey with him as he learns more about where our food comes from.

Michelle Goodman's book is the other end of the scale for me. Since I am reading it before bed, I don't go through it nearly as fast as some of my other books because I'm already tired when I'm starting to read it. But from what I've read so far, I really want to drop one of my day jobs and pick up some sort of art or freelance writing just because I love doing it so much and she is very much a follow your dreams kind of writer. I love that she never once says that following what you want to do is going to be easy, in fact it will probably be the opposite, with many hardships and 'doh' moments along the way, but if it means you get to do what you love, wouldn't it be worth it? I recognize some of her ideas as parts of my personal training job, my boss has even mentioned before that if she didn't have to make a living, she wouldn't charge people for personal training because it's just something she feels that passionate about! How cool is that?! I love talking to people who are that passionate about what they do! I hope to someday be as passionate as they are!

I've been writing a lot lately, but I hope you guys don't mind because I guess it's a sort of release for me as well. I'm working on a piece concerning why I blog and hopefully that should be out in not too long so you can understand a little more about me :)

Love,

Sara :)

Current Reads

I realize that it has been a while since I have done any updating that involves books and me reading. I have been reading quite a bit and my habit of buying books before I finish them is becoming obvious as I realize I have to start packing up my books to take them to my new apartment (still so freaking excited to share that!) and I have several boxes with just books in them....yea, that's how awesome I am! Anyways, I wanted to share the new books that I've gotten and then what I'm currently working on, especially since I am also still getting library books.

From bottom to top I'll try and go through each book quickly!

Thunderstruck by Erik Larson.
Back in high school I read Mr. Larson's top seller Devil In The White City, which if you haven't read you need to go out and read now! It's a brilliantly written (in my opinion) story about a series of murders which occurred during the Chicago World's Fair. I have only heard good things about his other books, so when I found this for $5.99 at Half-Price Books, how was I supposed to say no?

The Muse Asylum by David Czuchlewski.
Whenever I walk through the isles of a bookstore, I find myself waiting for something to catch my, almost like the book itself is calling out to me. This is how I felt when I saw this book. I'm not sure what exactly drew my attention here, but I picked it up and here it is now in my to-read pile!

Life Drawing for Beginners by Roisin Meaney. 
I'm not going to lie, when I saw this book I panicked slightly at the idea of it being a novel about life drawing. These tend to end up very sexual, and for all I know, it still could turn into a bit of a lemon filled novel, however I had to allow myself one purchase of a novel that was not about murder (*cough*ErikLarson*cough*) and could have a bit of romance.

Blogging for Creatives by Robin Houghton.
I've been trying to keep this blog up (and I think I'm doing alright?) for over a year now, and I figured maybe it was about time that I do a little research and figure out what I'm doing right vs what I'm doing wrong. Maybe it could help with me trying to figure out what to do from now on!

My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire by Michelle Goodman.
I'm still trying to figure out why I bought this book. Honestly! I'm not a creative professional for hire, I'm a personal trainer...I mean Matt is a creative professional in a sense, but I'm still not sure. Perhaps it is the vain hopes that I will end up becoming a creative professional and get to do creative things for a living like paint or write. We all have our dreams!

Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer.
I am a pescitarian (a vegetarian that still eats some seafood, milk, and eggs). I have absolutely no problem with anyone else eating whatever sort of red meat they want and I don't judge because, hey, that's their choice not mine. But when I looked at this book if caught my eye because it seems to be more about where our animal products come from and not so much trying to convert people to vegetarianism or what-not. So, I figured it could be a good read! Also, this is the guy who wrote Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and I enjoyed the writing in that book too.

And lastly, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan.
I know, I know, I'm a bit slow on the uptake here. This book has been out for how long and has been a movie for how long again? Hey! Better late than never! I received the entire box set of this series (5 books) for Christmas this past year from a friend and haven't gotten the chance to read them yet, so it is now near the top of my list to read.

I will say that these books that I'm sharing are not the only books I have that I have not yet read. If I were to go through all those books I would need several days! What other books do you guys have a suggestions for me to start reading? I'm open to just about anything, just not too big on horror....like Stephen King...he's bloody brilliant! But not really my style, ya know?

Love,
Sara :)

ps. Please forgive the quality of my photos, my camera from the iPhone is being stubborn and not working so I'm using a family member's iPod touch, but honestly, the lighting in my bedroom is super sucky. I'm working on getting that new camera but I'm still at such a loss for what to get! Help!!

Raining

Whenever it rains, I tend get two things:
1- a stuffy nose (from allergies)
2- excited!!

The first is self explanatory, since most people with allergies can relate. The water in the atmosphere brings down all the pollen and dust and stuff that's been in the air and causes all us allergy-ridden folk to become slightly unhappy (yes, I'm trying to sound smart here, idk if it's working but that's my basic understanding...)
As for the second, well I can't put my finger on one reason as to why rain makes me happy, but I can attempt to give you a sort of guess. One big thing is that I really do enjoy thunderstorms as well as times when it rain super hard and we are left with puddles everywhere the next morning. No matter how many times I've watched a thunder and lightening storm, I never really get tired of them, in fact I can usually fall asleep to them quite easily. And no matter how often someone tells me that it's just a reaction in our atmosphere I can't help but feel like it's a magical sort of thing (a little...ok a lot corny, ik, but hey! I'm being honest here!). I know I've also been lucky in that I've never been stuck in a tsunami or hurricane, which I have no doubt would not be fun in any way, shape, or form! But when it comes to being on campus or really anywhere, doesn't matter if I'm inside or outside, I try and always make time to go puddle-hopping with anyone who will come with me! It's also the fact that after a rain, it means that the ground (when spring finally gets here) will look so much brighter and the flowers start looking not so dead. It's like the rain brings the world back to life in some way. I'm not really sure how else to explain it.
And after, a shower and I get to curl up and read a book for the rest of the day, usually something that I enjoy (not homework). For instance this morning I was reading A Sea of Trolls, which is coming along quite nicely! :D
So, that's my little word vomit (for lack of a better term for this) about rain, and in case you were wondering, yes, it did rain this morning, but sadly it has stopped :(. Maybe that means that spring is on its way!
Love,
Sara :)

Sleeping Healthy

So, I realized that I haven't done a post about being healthy lately, it used to be I had a blog entirely for that, but seeing as I no longer have more than one blog (which could change in the future?? looking for opinions on that!) I suppose that I will have to just add some up here. Today's topic is going to be about something called sleep (radical, I know!) and the different theories surrounding it.
There is a hormone made in the brain called Melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that signals to the body when it is time to start preparing for sleep. In a recent study by the Journal of Applied Ergonomics, when you use a backlit digital table, such as a iPad or laptop computer, for two hours before bed your Melatonin level drops by an average of 23%. This can change depending how bright the light is and what you are doing on the tablet. Without getting into the scientific details of the study, pretty much when you use a bright screen for an extended period of time before you try to sleep, you are suppressing the hormone that tells your body that it is time to sleep, meaning you are going to be less likely to be able to sleep well. (Information originally found in FITNESS magazine and the link above) This can also be connected to excess use of cell phones before bed, which is not recommended. Using these types of screens doesn't allow your brain to settle down and start considering sleep because it is too busy doing other things; it is similar to trying to fall asleep when your roommate comes in a turns on the light after you are comfortably in bed and almost asleep: you wake up and takes a bit longer to fall back to sleep. This drop in Melatonin has also been linked to some cases of cancer, especially breast cancer in women, as well as heart attacks.
Another thing to consider about sleep is that a lack of sleep can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular problems. It can also lead to an increase in potential for psychological issues and emotional distress. I haven't looked at a lot of research on this, supposedly women are more prone to these, but researchers aren't positive since the majority of studies have been performed on men. Yet, a study at Duke is putting this idea out there now, so perhaps there is something to it?
A lack of sleep has other consequences which I am sure many people have experienced, I know that I am slightly ashamed to say that I have. A lack of sleep can lead to a disruption in learning and attentiveness. While this may not be a big deal for weekends or for days spent at the house, but a disruption in learning can affect schoolwork for anyone in school as well as work performance in general. If you can't stay awake during school or work, your performance will inevitably decrease which isn't something that is very helpful or positive. A disruption in attentiveness can do the same things for school and work related issues, but it can also lead to other problems such as inattentive driving, or walking, or just being generally unaware of your surroundings.
Alright, I've gone through a bunch of negative things about lack of sleep, but I do think that they are important to know! On the other hand, 1-I'm almost done with this post and 2-I'm going to add a little positive flair at the end :D
I know that there is always more stuff to do during the day, and there just isn't enough time to get all the sleep that you may need, but if you get enough sleep and are productive during the day (the hard part....believe me I know) then you will be better off than not getting enough sleep! FITNESS magazine online provides a great story called "5 Steps to a Good Night's Sleep" which I think you should all read if you get the chance because it has some very good points!
All in all, get enough sleep, my friends, and life will just seem a lot better :D Let me know what you guys think about me having a fitness section for this blog or if I should create another blog entirely for just fitness ideas like this, I promise that I would listen to all the opinions and take my decision from there! :)
Also, I started trying out Tai Chi....it's interesting, more of a workout than one might think!
Happy Saturday!
Love,
Sara :)

Image from here

Magic of Reading

I create this post as I am just over half-way through the book Dracula by Bram Stoker. It won't be very long, but I wanted to get this down. For the past several years, pretty much since I entered high school I haven't had a lot of free time to sit down and read a book for the fun of it. When I was little, I used to lose myself in books and could spend many hours reading without a hitch if I found the book interesting. This past month (though the class is not yet over) with my class, Monsters: Myths & Movies, has really brought back to me this love for reading and for getting lost in a book and trying to understand the characters! Not only that but finding a magic in the books in the way that they can take you to another world for a while, or simply back in time to the victorian age or medieval times, or across the globe to Egypt or Transylvania (can you tell what I'm reading now? :P). Welcome back into my life, reading for the fun of it! I'm sure starting next semester and after graduation that we will be seeing much more of each other :D
Have a good night, my friends!
Love,
Sara :)