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About twenty minutes ago I received a text message from my mother informing me that my parents had to put our family dog to sleep this morning.
Now I should say straight off the bat that Coco was 14 years old and part rottweiler, so she lived a very good long life. I'm 28 years old now and I still remember when we went to get Coco and our other dog Chanel as puppies the summer before I entered high school. Coco was an outdoor dog and I am not an outdoor human. My sisters were always more attached to our dogs because in the summers while they were outside working on their tans I was inside reading books and watching tv. But I do have very fond memories of Coco and she was a very sweet dog.
Even though I am sad that she is gone I am more sad for my parents. Ever since my sisters and I have left home they have become even more dependent on our dogs so I know this is very hard on them. But really just find myself pissed off.
For some reason I can't helping thinking of stupid pet movies and wondering what bastard out there in Hollywood thought they were a good idea.
Like hello, All Dogs Go To Heaven? Okay, yes, there was a time (before I had dogs of my own that were getting up there in age) when I thought that was a cute movie. But NO when you really think about it that movie is stupid. What ass hole in Hollywood thought "Hey I know, let's make a movie about a dog that will go to great lengths to protect his owner and then have him die in the end to remind kids that, yes, we know you love your dogs and they love you but guess what we all have to go sometime!"
I'm sorry I know that was one hell of a run on sentence but I'm grieving so no griping!!!
And okay those freaking Homeward Bound movies!?! WHOSE F*#K%ING IDEA WAS THAT!!!???!!!
I adopted my own dog Riley about two and a half years ago and the first time I had to leave him behind when I was going out of town I was a wreck! I knew my sister would take wonderful care of him but I was so messed up in the head from watching Homeward Bound that I was convinced he would think I was leaving him behind for good.
Don't get me started on stupid movies like Marley and Me and My Dog Skip...talk about depressing!!!
And I wont even go near Old Yeller and I have learned recently to never watch Turner and Hootch even though I wanted to because I love old school Tom Hanks. But those are two movies that I've never seen and never will!
But what I really don't get is why if you google "sad pet movies" or whatever, the majority of the movies that will come up are DISNEY!!! WHAT THE HELL!!!!!!
When I was a kid, and we would be watching scary movies with my mom, she swore to us that there was an actual law that stated you can not kill children and dogs in movies, period. I'm not even going to tell you how long I actually believed this to be true. I mean I really believed it. But I beg the question, WHY? Why is that not a law? That should be a law! You should not be allowed to kill dogs in movies! (Oh yeah, don't kill the kids either.) Okay, yes, maybe that would be somewhat unrealistic but they should at least put a big warning on it for explicit material if they are going to go around killing dogs! - I'm not really a big cat person so they can fend for themselves.
Sorry for all the venting, but it really has helped. Since I'm at work now and I can't go into the back and fall apart it is easier to stay pissed.
If you actually read this whole post let me hear from you.
What stupid pet movies do you think totally suck ass?
I'm going to stick with Homeward Bound and All Dogs Go To Heaven.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
Abducted by Blog Hop 1.14
Welcome to my second blog hop hosted by CRAZY FOR BOOKS
This weeks question is:
"Why do you read the genre's that you do? What draws you to it?"
This weeks question is:
"Why do you read the genre's that you do? What draws you to it?"
That is really hard for me to say because I don't feel like I read one genre more then the others.
Lately I have been getting into more YA because they tend to be easier faster reads and so they can be really enjoyable. They are like dessert. Sure it is fun to read books with hearty substance but sometimes you want a book to just pick you up thrill you and then be done.
It took me like a month and a half to read Count of Monte Cristo, I think it took me like 3 months to read Lonesome Dove, and as much as I loved these books I'm really loving the fact that I can pick up a YA novel, get into the characters and there stories, and yet still be done with them by the weeks end.
Currently I am reading, NEVER LET ME GO which I have about 50 pages left, and I just started NICK AND NORA'S INFINITE PLAYLIST so I'll have some awesome reviews coming up next week!
P.S. I love all my new followers. Everyday I check my blog and see my number went up I get really excited.
Please make sure you give me the chance to return the favor. So if you decide to follow make sure you let me know!
Lately I have been getting into more YA because they tend to be easier faster reads and so they can be really enjoyable. They are like dessert. Sure it is fun to read books with hearty substance but sometimes you want a book to just pick you up thrill you and then be done.
It took me like a month and a half to read Count of Monte Cristo, I think it took me like 3 months to read Lonesome Dove, and as much as I loved these books I'm really loving the fact that I can pick up a YA novel, get into the characters and there stories, and yet still be done with them by the weeks end.
Currently I am reading, NEVER LET ME GO which I have about 50 pages left, and I just started NICK AND NORA'S INFINITE PLAYLIST so I'll have some awesome reviews coming up next week!
P.S. I love all my new followers. Everyday I check my blog and see my number went up I get really excited.
Please make sure you give me the chance to return the favor. So if you decide to follow make sure you let me know!
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Abducted by Looking For Alaska
This past week I finished my second John Green novel, and I LOVED it. So let me tell you about my abduction by....
Looking For Alaska by John Green.
Now as I have mentioned before I am a huge fan of the VLOGBROTHERS
So let me take this time to give a shout out to my friend TRACY for introducing me to the VLOGBROTHERS and to my friend MIDNIGHT BOOK GIRL for teaching me how to successfully link things on my blog!
Anyway, so I became a fan of the vlogbrothers and have since wanted to read the books that John Green has written (which so far there are four). I started with AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES (that link will take you to my blog for AAOK).
Now don't get me wrong, I liked AAOK, but I didn't love it. I just felt like the characters were a little underdeveloped and the plot kind of lacked a climax. But it was okay. I guess maybe I just expected more because i love John Green's vlog's so much. I consulted with my friend Tracy, who has read all of his books, as to which one was her favorite and she gave high praise to Will Grayson Will Grayson and Paper Towns. So I figured I should read Looking For Alaska first so that way if it wasn't one of Green's better novels then I could get it out of the way. But guess what?
I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I mean I really REALLY loved this book.
I felt that the characters were fully developed and the story was honest and sincere.
Miles is the main character and the book starts with him making the decision to leave his public school in Florida to attend a boarding school in Alabama.
Now, can I take a moment just to say that IF I ever have kids, I really hope that I am in a position to send them to a boarding school because I personally think it sounds awesome. I have always thought it seemed awesome. I mean hello look at Harry Potter, those kids are having a blast!!!
Once at his new school Miles meets his roommate, Chip aka "the Colonel", and a girl down the hall who is of course the most beautiful girl he has ever seen named Alaska.
The book is divided into two parts the "before" and the "after".
In the "before" section of the book each chapter is titled with a countdown like "147 days before" and then "142 days before" all the way down to "the last day". So while reading you know there is a countdown to something but you don't know what the event could be. Then the "after" shows you the after math of that event.
What I thought Green did extremely well in this book is the way that he showed how certain events can change your life. I mean growing up we all have a certain idea of what events we think are going to change us forever. For an example, take sex. As we come into our adolescence we assume that the day we have our first sexual experience, that will be the day that a boy is made a man or a girl is made a woman. But sometimes, as in Looking For Alaska, that can end up being completely shallow and meaningless. Then there are the experiences and moments in our lives that we have no way of anticipating or preparing for.
And that is also what happens in Looking For Alaska, the event the book is counting down to ends up being one of those moments in life that will pick you up off the path you are on, shake you around and then set you back down on a completely different road. After this happens to Miles and his friends, they have to figure out how they are going to let this event define them and change them.
Sometimes when these moments occur we can let them paralyze us because we are not ready to give up that imagined future we had for ourselves on the other path.
Unfortunately, to be honest, I would say that I am prone to paralyzation. There is a line in Looking For Alaska where Alaska says;
That is so me! I know that I'm on a certain path and I develop these elaborate imagined futures for myself and then when the path changes on me, I become paralyzed because I don't want to give up on the future I had planned.
Looking For Alaska was a wonderful book that I would recommend to anyone. And if it is one of Green's lesser novels then I really can't wait to see how good the rest will be!
Also I have decided to join another challenge. That's right I am taking the plunge and joining the challenge for...
This one is hosted by LIFE IS TO SHORT READ FAST. At first I was only trying to double how many I read last year but now I am thinking that since I'm off to a good start, why not shoot for it? I may not be complete successful but if I don't have something to shoot for I wont even try! - wish me luck!
Looking For Alaska by John Green.Now as I have mentioned before I am a huge fan of the VLOGBROTHERS
So let me take this time to give a shout out to my friend TRACY for introducing me to the VLOGBROTHERS and to my friend MIDNIGHT BOOK GIRL for teaching me how to successfully link things on my blog!
Anyway, so I became a fan of the vlogbrothers and have since wanted to read the books that John Green has written (which so far there are four). I started with AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES (that link will take you to my blog for AAOK).
Now don't get me wrong, I liked AAOK, but I didn't love it. I just felt like the characters were a little underdeveloped and the plot kind of lacked a climax. But it was okay. I guess maybe I just expected more because i love John Green's vlog's so much. I consulted with my friend Tracy, who has read all of his books, as to which one was her favorite and she gave high praise to Will Grayson Will Grayson and Paper Towns. So I figured I should read Looking For Alaska first so that way if it wasn't one of Green's better novels then I could get it out of the way. But guess what?
I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I mean I really REALLY loved this book.
I felt that the characters were fully developed and the story was honest and sincere.
Miles is the main character and the book starts with him making the decision to leave his public school in Florida to attend a boarding school in Alabama.
Now, can I take a moment just to say that IF I ever have kids, I really hope that I am in a position to send them to a boarding school because I personally think it sounds awesome. I have always thought it seemed awesome. I mean hello look at Harry Potter, those kids are having a blast!!!
Once at his new school Miles meets his roommate, Chip aka "the Colonel", and a girl down the hall who is of course the most beautiful girl he has ever seen named Alaska.
The book is divided into two parts the "before" and the "after".
In the "before" section of the book each chapter is titled with a countdown like "147 days before" and then "142 days before" all the way down to "the last day". So while reading you know there is a countdown to something but you don't know what the event could be. Then the "after" shows you the after math of that event.
What I thought Green did extremely well in this book is the way that he showed how certain events can change your life. I mean growing up we all have a certain idea of what events we think are going to change us forever. For an example, take sex. As we come into our adolescence we assume that the day we have our first sexual experience, that will be the day that a boy is made a man or a girl is made a woman. But sometimes, as in Looking For Alaska, that can end up being completely shallow and meaningless. Then there are the experiences and moments in our lives that we have no way of anticipating or preparing for.
And that is also what happens in Looking For Alaska, the event the book is counting down to ends up being one of those moments in life that will pick you up off the path you are on, shake you around and then set you back down on a completely different road. After this happens to Miles and his friends, they have to figure out how they are going to let this event define them and change them.
Sometimes when these moments occur we can let them paralyze us because we are not ready to give up that imagined future we had for ourselves on the other path.
Unfortunately, to be honest, I would say that I am prone to paralyzation. There is a line in Looking For Alaska where Alaska says;
"You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it one day, and how awesome it will be, and imagining that future keeps you going, but you never do it. You just use the future to escape the present."
That is so me! I know that I'm on a certain path and I develop these elaborate imagined futures for myself and then when the path changes on me, I become paralyzed because I don't want to give up on the future I had planned.
Looking For Alaska was a wonderful book that I would recommend to anyone. And if it is one of Green's lesser novels then I really can't wait to see how good the rest will be!
Also I have decided to join another challenge. That's right I am taking the plunge and joining the challenge for...
This one is hosted by LIFE IS TO SHORT READ FAST. At first I was only trying to double how many I read last year but now I am thinking that since I'm off to a good start, why not shoot for it? I may not be complete successful but if I don't have something to shoot for I wont even try! - wish me luck!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Abducted by my first Blog Hop - Jan. 7th
BLOG HOP HOSTED BY : CRAZY FOR BOOKS"WHAT BOOK INFLUENCED AND CHANGED YOUR LIFE?"
My answer would be Letter's From Rifka by Karen Hesse which I read back in middle school. My friend recommended it to me and then I begged my Grandmother to get it for me and she did and I read it in like a day, which for twelve year old me was really fast!
Now, it has been about ten years (no exaggeration) since I read this book but from what I recall it was the story of a very young girl and her family as they are fleeing from Russia to come to America. They make their way to England (I think?) on a train. While traveling Rifka becomes very ill and when the family gets to England they are told that the best thing for them to do is leave Rifka behind while she is ill. Once she get's better, Rifka has to make the long journey to America on her own.
All these years later the main spirit of the book has stayed with me and now I'm thinking I really need to re-read it this year for the challenge that MIDNIGHT BOOK GIRL is hosting...
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Abducted by Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror
Alright, well, we are only three days into this new year and I am already suffering from a severe case of too many books and too little time!!!
Luckily enough I've already finished one,
so now it is time to share about my abduction by...
Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestley.
In this collection of short stories there is a little boy named Edgar, who goes to visit with his Uncle Montague. Uncle Montague lives in an old house filled with lots of random trinkets and gadgets. Each object that Edgar stumbles upon has a story behind it that Uncle Montague then shares with Edgar.
Out of the 10 stories only half of them really had a moral or a purpose to them and those were the ones I liked. The other half of the stories had no meaning at all and those were the ones that were hard for me to get through.
All of the stories did have a kind of twilight-zone style behind them and were meant to be more unsettling then they were frightening. I'm not really sure what demographic these stories were int
ended for. I mean they are written in a manner that would make you think they are intended for 8 year old boys but a lot of the stories actually involve the main characters (who were also young kids themselves) off killing their cats or their siblings or their parents. I mean actually killing them. One of the stories was about a young girl who killed her own grandmother by pushing her down the stairs and then went to go smother her younger sister.
I enjoyed Priestley's obvious love and natural talent for storytelling and I really enjoyed the graphics and artwork laced throughout the book. But I was continually thrown by the relationship between the Uncle and Edgar. Priestley gives you little snippets to show their relationship in between the individual stories. These snippets lead me to believe that Edgar adored his Uncle and visited him quite often, however the very last chapter in the book left me feeling like they really didn't have a bond at all.
If you are a fan of twilight-zone type stories then this series of books may be right up your alley but I think I'll pass on reading any of the other volumes.
Now, before I sign off I also want to mention another recent abduction of mine. One of my absolute favorite things in life is TV on DVD, I can't get enough!
And for Christmas my dog, Riley, got me the complete series of a certain show. I had actually never seen this particular show before, but I have had a lot of friends recommend it to me over the years so I was pretty sure I would like it.
So, over this past week, I have been completed abducted by Arrested Development!!!
And guess what...
I really..
really...
REALLY
LOVE this show!!!
I am completely won over! Now I can't wait for the movie!!!
And not only has it cemented my love for Michael Cera, whom I have always adored,
But it has also aided me in developing a thing for Jason Bateman.
hmm...I wonder if Silver Spoons has made it to DVD yet?
Luckily enough I've already finished one,
so now it is time to share about my abduction by...
Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestley.
In this collection of short stories there is a little boy named Edgar, who goes to visit with his Uncle Montague. Uncle Montague lives in an old house filled with lots of random trinkets and gadgets. Each object that Edgar stumbles upon has a story behind it that Uncle Montague then shares with Edgar.
Out of the 10 stories only half of them really had a moral or a purpose to them and those were the ones I liked. The other half of the stories had no meaning at all and those were the ones that were hard for me to get through.
All of the stories did have a kind of twilight-zone style behind them and were meant to be more unsettling then they were frightening. I'm not really sure what demographic these stories were int
ended for. I mean they are written in a manner that would make you think they are intended for 8 year old boys but a lot of the stories actually involve the main characters (who were also young kids themselves) off killing their cats or their siblings or their parents. I mean actually killing them. One of the stories was about a young girl who killed her own grandmother by pushing her down the stairs and then went to go smother her younger sister.I enjoyed Priestley's obvious love and natural talent for storytelling and I really enjoyed the graphics and artwork laced throughout the book. But I was continually thrown by the relationship between the Uncle and Edgar. Priestley gives you little snippets to show their relationship in between the individual stories. These snippets lead me to believe that Edgar adored his Uncle and visited him quite often, however the very last chapter in the book left me feeling like they really didn't have a bond at all.
If you are a fan of twilight-zone type stories then this series of books may be right up your alley but I think I'll pass on reading any of the other volumes.
Now, before I sign off I also want to mention another recent abduction of mine. One of my absolute favorite things in life is TV on DVD, I can't get enough!
And for Christmas my dog, Riley, got me the complete series of a certain show. I had actually never seen this particular show before, but I have had a lot of friends recommend it to me over the years so I was pretty sure I would like it.
So, over this past week, I have been completed abducted by Arrested Development!!!
And guess what...
I really..
really...
REALLY
LOVE this show!!!
I am completely won over! Now I can't wait for the movie!!!
And not only has it cemented my love for Michael Cera, whom I have always adored,
But it has also aided me in developing a thing for Jason Bateman.
hmm...I wonder if Silver Spoons has made it to DVD yet?
Monday, December 27, 2010
Abducted by the Books of 2010 Survey
My friend Kate posted a survey on her blog about the books she read in 2010. The survey was originally created by Perpetual Page Turner. So here are my answers to the survey and here is the link if you'd like to do it too.
PerpetualPageTurner
1. Best book of 2010? I don't know if it is only because I just finished it and so therefore it is weighing on my mind stronger then the other books I read this year but I really really loved One Day by David Nicholls.
2. Worst book of 2010? I would say the worst book I read in 2010 was with out a doubt Witch and Wizard by James Patterson. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't all bad. But whatever promise the book had was completely wiped away by the ending.
3. Most Disappointing Book of 2010? I was going to say Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict but now looking over my list of the books I read in 2010, I'm actually going to go with Go! Mutants by Larry Doyle. It's not that I didn't like this book, because I did. But I really wanted to LOVE this book, and that just didn't happen.
4. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2010? I really wasn't expecting much out of Dan Brown's Lost Symbol. I haven't read any of his other books because I just didn't think they were the type of books I would like. To be honest I think I was afraid that they would just go way over my head. But I read the Lost Symbol for my book club and I really enjoyed it.
5. Book you recommended to people most in 2010? Well, if you are asking what book did I actually recommend to people in 2010 it would have to be Relentless by Dean Kootnz, but I read that one a couple of years ago. Now, if you are asking me out of the books I read in 2010 what I would recommend, that would again be One Day by David Nicholls
6. Best series you discovered in 2010? The only series of books that I actually read multiple entries for in 2010 were the Southern Vampire Mysteries and the Hunger Games. So between the two I would have to go with Hunger Games.
7. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2010? John Green, although so far I've only read Abundance of Katherines, I really enjoy his vlogs and I am excited to read the rest of his books soon.
8. Most hilarious read of 2010? Scott Pilgrim by Bryan lee O'Malley. I only read the first one but that book is just dripping with excess sarcasm!
9. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2010? The Lost Symbol was pretty unputdownable, mainly because each chapter would be like 3 pages long, if that, so I would be saying to myself "I'm just going to read one more chapter..."
10. Book you most anticipated in 2010? Probably Mocking Jay by Suzanne Collins. I had read Hunger Games when it first came out so each year I was looking forward to the next installment.
11. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2010? I'm going to go with Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, I liked my cover with it's devilish angel.
12. Most memorable character in 2010? I really can't think of anyone character that I liked or remembered more then the others. But if I had to choose I would say Flavia de Luce from The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. She was just this little kid but she was so smart and so clever and written in such witty and believable way. I really liked her.
13. Most beautifully written book in 2010? I can honestly say that I don't think I've read a book this year that I would say was written "beautifully", but if I had to pick one I would say, yet again, One Day by David Nicholls. I was underlining lines in that book like crazy but also just the whole set up and how he wove the two points of view together was incredible.
14. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2010? Without You By Anthony Rapp. I'm really can't begin to say how much this book meant to me but without a doubt it had the most impact on me this year. I did blog about it though so if you want to read my original thoughts about it click here
15. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2010 to finally read? I'm really sorry but I just don't have an answer for this one. I keep looking at my list of all the books I read this year (and I only read like 26 so it's not that long of a list) but not one book stands out as a book I always wanted to read and only just got around to this year. Also, not one stands out as a book I can't believe I only just found out about because for every book on my list I can totally see why I didn't discover them until this year so it makes sense to me.
Friday, December 24, 2010
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