February Wrap-Up

    Hello!  I hope everyone is relishing the end of Winter as we move on into March.  Last month I definitely felt the pressure of necessary homework on my leisure reading, so I didn't get to everything I thought I would, but I still read three books, which is nothing to scoff at.  For the first time I can remember, I've found it hard to concentrate on my reading outside of schoolwork (which I've always had a hard time concentrating on, but I digress).  Sometimes I find it difficult to prioritize, even when I know it's the right thing to do.  Anyway, here's what I read last month.

(goodreads.com)

    My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand:  I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this book, but I'm actually really glad that I picked it up.  A few of the BookTubers I follow have raved about how witty and fun this book is so I thought I deserved a little of that lightheartedness in my life.  It was definitely an interesting take on historical events...in a good way.  Lady Jane Grey is widely known as the "9 day Queen" because she ended up ruling England for only 9 days before being executed.  Fortunately, there are no beheadings in this book (that I can recall) and focuses mainly on a vile plot to overthrow the true King Edward (Jane's cousin), along with a lot of nobility that can shape-shift at will into animals.  It reminded me almost of a Patronus; but if the wizard turned into their Patronus form instead of projecting it.  Needless to say this book was really entertaining and I honestly laughed out loud in several places.  Very reminiscent of my Georgia Nicholson books, which I appreciated.  I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

(goodreads.com)

    Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge: This book took me by surprise.  I had really enjoyed Hodge's other book Cruel Beauty and thought it would be along the same line, but I was wrong.  This book was way more action-packed than the first and followed a heroine that resembled one of Sarah J. Maas' female characters, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  Rachelle acts as a sell-sword to the King after surviving a harrowing ordeal in the forest which resulted in her becoming bound to its will.  She is eventually tasked with guarding the prince, who has also been touched by the forest.  Legend tells of a sword that could destroy the forest for good and release the souls it's claimed, so Rachelle and the prince set out to find it.  This story propelled itself forward, relying heavily on the plot and the tension to save the kingdom.  I would say that I liked this a tad more than Cruel Beauty, so if I were to recommend reading them in any order, I'd start with this one.  I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

(goodreads.com)

    Caraval by Stephanie Garber:  This was one of my most anticipated releases of this year and it did not disappoint (entirely).  I loved The Night Circus, so when I heard of this and that it was compared to it, I had to have it.  Where Night Circus revolved around two lovers over the course of decades, this story revolved around two sisters, Scarlett and Tella, who are sequestered on a remote and conquered island and abused by their father.  They have always dreamed of attending the invite-only Caraval, but have never been allowed to leave.  By chance, they are able to flee their island and get to the performance, just in time for one of the sisters to be kidnapped.  The rest of the story follows Scarlett as she tries to find her sister through the twists and turns of the game.  I loved that I couldn't guess where the plot was going to end up.  This is no ordinary game and the stakes are more real than they seem at first glance, so I loved the suspense aspect of the story.  I liked how mysterious all the characters were and how that played into the game and Scarlett's illusions.  The only thing I didn't like about this book was how Scarlett described her feelings as colors.  At first it seemed poetic, but by the end of the book I was cringing at the metaphors and symbolism because it just felt SO WRONG.  I thought it must be because her name is "Scarlett" and she must have always resorted to visualizing her feelings as colors, but it didn't end up mattering in the plot of the story so I thought it was kind of pointless.  Despite that setback, I ended up giving this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.  It seems like the author has another book coming after this one, so I'm curious to see where it'll go from here.

    Those are all the books I read last month.  Let me know in the comments if you've read any of these and what you thought if you did.  I'm about 75% through one of my other most anticipated releases of this year right now, so I'm excited to get that review up for next month.  What you you reading right now?  Let me know or follow me on Instagram to keep up with my reading lists!  You can also check out reviews I write for my library here under "Lax Literarian."  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

September TBR

    Hello again!  I figured since I was late posting on Tuesday, I would wait until Friday morning to post my September TBR.  I'm feeling a little ambitious this month and since I've already started two of the books I plan to read I'm feeling better about my odds.  I've chosen four graphic novels/comics and five novels to read this month, (so much for taking it slow).  I feel like I'll have a good reading month this month and I have a system in place where I'm reading my graphic novels and comic books at my workplace and reading my books at home.  In case I hadn't mentioned it before, I am now working at the local comic book store part time, which is a pretty cool job!  Plus, I get exposed to a lot more comic books and graphic novels this way, which is great.  So without further adieu, here are my picks for the month of September, starting with comics.

(goodreads.com)

    The first comic series that I picked up this month is The Wicked and The Divine Vol. 1- The Faust Act by Gillen McKelvie and Wilson Cowles.  Volume one contains issues 1-5.  This series follows a group of twelve gods incarnate as humans in our world, who appear every 90 years and live only about two.  These gods act as pop stars and genuine pop-culture royalty and are treated as such.  Laura, a super fan in London, gets involved when one of the gods gets in trouble.  I've already almost finished this volume and so far, I'm intrigued.  This comic series has a lot of mature and violent content, so if you're easily squeamish, beware.  The artistry is awesome and it's such an interesting concept that I was hooked from the start.  I can't wait to (maybe) start volume two before the month is out, but definitely a must-read for anyone interested in mythology, mystery and legends.

(goodreads.com)

    This series was actually just recommended to me by a fellow coworker who enjoys the same genres I do.  Wayward Volume 1- String Theory by Jim Zub, Steven Cummings and John Rauch introduces us to a young girl named Rori as she tries to reconnect with her mother in Japan.  She encounters the yokai, spirits dwelling in the dark, ancient areas of Tokyo, and they are intrigued by her for one reason or another.  I don't know a lot about this series, other than it has some element of Japanese mythology and folklore surrounding the yokai, which are Japanese spirit monsters that can shape shift and cause trouble.  I used to really enjoy Japanese culture and mythology, so I'm hoping this sparks something in me from my childhood.  The artwork in this series is breathtakingly beautiful and the colors are stunning, so I can't wait to pick this one up!

(goodreads.com)

    This next comic series is East of West Volume 1- The Promise by Jonathan Hickman, Nick Dragotta, and Frank Martin.  This volume contains issues 1-5 of the series.  I've heard almost nothing about the premise of this series, other than it has something to do with the apocalypse and the Four Horseman roam this futuristic wild-western world.  I've also heard this series is extremely violent and gory, so maybe not for children.  This series has gotten great reviews from other BookTubers and my husband really enjoyed it, so I thought I'd give it a try.  It's not a genre I usually pick up because I tend to steer clear of wild west settings with cowboys and such, so I hope it's not terribly like that.  I'll give it a try and hopefully I'll like it as much as everyone else does.

(goodreads.com)

    The last comic book I'm going to try to read this month is The Woods by James Tynion IV and Michael Dialynas.  Volume 1- The Arrow contains issues 1-4 of the series.  I became interested in this series because so many BookTubers were reviewing it and loving it, so I thought I would give it a try.  At first glance and from reading the description of what the comic is about, it seems sort of on the scary side, so I'm not sure if I'd like that, (I'm very easily scared and do not like horror by any means).  That being said, the description still made me want to pick this one up.  Here you go:

  On October 16, 2013, 437 students, 52 teachers, and 24 additional staff from Bay Point Preparatory High School in suburban Milwaukee, WI vanished without a trace.  Countless light years away, far outside the bounds of the charted universe, 513 people find themselves in the middle of an ancient, primordial wilderness.  Where are they?  Why are they there?  The answers will prove stranger than anyone could possibly imagine.

    Scary, right?  But it sounds SO interesting, so I can't wait to see what this series is all about.

    The first book I'm (already) reading this month is Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas, which is the second book in the Throne of Glass series.  I LOVE THIS SERIES and I am officially ADDICTED to Sarah J. Maas.  This all started after I read A Court of Thorns and Roses and I was instantly hooked on her writing style and world building.  I had every intention of picking up this series and I'm glad I started.  The first book introduced us to Celaena Sardothien, who is an assassin imprisoned by the king and then released after years of hard labor solely to compete to become his champion.  The second book follows that story and involves Celaena fighting for not only her loyalty to the king, but her loyalty to herself as well as the men in her life.  I can't go too much further with this because I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm already almost finished with this book and it is already better than the first!  I highly recommend this series, especially if you're trying to get into fantasy.  Even though it's technically young adult literature, it certainly doesn't feel like it.  I already got Heir of Fire, which is the third installment of this series, so that will end up in here too.  I just can't stop...

    Yes, here it is.  The third book in the Throne of Glass series, Heir of Fire.  I really have no idea what this is about, other than a continuation of the second book, which I will probably finish today.  This will definitely be a quick read for me.  The fourth book just came out this week, so I will have to get my hands on it somehow.  I will also be reading The Assassin's Blade, which is a collection of five novellas about Celaena's past as an assassin of Adarlan.  I will probably put that on my October TBR list since I've already got too many books as it is.  It will be interesting to see her from a time before this series takes place.  I can't wait to see how this series turns out!

    The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is a Dystopian young adult novel, which is different than the other books I'm reading this month, (all fantasy).  Sometimes I like to break things up with a different genre, but other times I'm just in the mood for one particular genre, so we'll see how much I like this one.  Darkest Minds follows a girl named Ruby who was sent to a government "rehabilitation" camp when she was ten.  She survived a deadly disease that killed most of America's children, but resulted in her having strange abilities no one can explain.  At age 16 she escapes with some of the other children and seek the sanctuary of the East River, a supposed safe haven for kids who have escaped their prisons.  But not everything is as it seems and Ruby must use her gift to fight for what's right as well as her life.  I was interested in the premise of this book, but it seems very much like others that came before it, (Maze Runner, Hunger Games, etc.)  I'm hoping that it brings something else to the table that I haven't read before.  Here's to hoping!

    Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard has been on my to-read list for months now and I haven't been able to get it from the library!  When I saw that it was finally "in," I literally drove right down to the library to check it out immediately.  I've watched and read many great reviews for this book, so I'm excited to finally get to read it!  This fantasy novel follows seventeen-year-old Mare as she lives in a world divided by blood; those with common, red blood serve the silver-blooded elite class, who are gifted with magical super human abilities.  A thief turned servant of the Silver Court, Mare discovers she too has abilities, which cause her more problems.  She's playing a dangerous game and nothing in her life is safe.  I loved the idea of this book from the moment I saw the stunning cover.  I'm truly excited to read this one!

(goodreads.com)

    The last book I will attempt to read this month is The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen.  This is another book that has been on my TBR list for awhile but has been MIA at the library.  This book is about a young princess trying to take back her throne from a dark power that has taken over her kingdom.  Princess Kelsea was raised far away from her kingdom in a cottage in the woods, (very Sleeping Beauty), after the death of her mother and is unsure of her ability to rule.  This book takes place in a regressed society where technology no longer exists.  I like the idea of a fantasy-Dystopian crossover.  Many BookTubers have reviewed this book already and it seems to be a fantastic choice for an adult read, however I'm worried about the amount of political intrigue in this book.  I'm not a huge fan of that, but I'm hoping it doesn't overpower the main plot of the story.

    So there you have it!  My extremely ambitious book haul/TBR list for September.  I believe in my abilities to successfully succeed this month and I'm looking forward to reading a variety of different genres as well.  Let me know what you think of my picks, especially if you've read any of them yourself.  While you're at it, please feel free to give me some recommendations for next months TBR.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

YouTube Picks!

    Hey guys, I apologize for not posting yesterday.  I actually had to got to work!  I know, I have at least a temporary job agreement with the local comic book store, but how cool is that?!  My employment situation has been a bit up-in-the-air as of late and I'm really hoping to change that within the next week or so.  For now I'm looking forward to getting out of the house and making some much-needed cash.  I had an interview today for a big girl job that I'm really hoping I get, so fingers crossed.  This job is more in line with my educational background and I thought it went alright, but I tend to psych myself out a lot with important things like this and get really down on myself, so I'm hoping this weekend will give me a chance to relax and take it all in before I find out for sure.  That being said, I was at work pretty much all day Thursday and then when I got home I totally forgot about the blog, so whoops!  And here we are.  On to it then.

    Today we're going to discuss my favorite YouTubers that I've been loving as of late.  I've been really engaged with YouTube for a few years now and it's been a great resource for me.  It's a place where normal people can upload their own content and a select few have moved on to bigger things already.  I will say that this is only a list of channels I've been watching lately and frequently, not an entire list of my subscribers, which would be about 50 at the moment, so I obviously can't include everyone here.  I've sort of fallen out of watching most of the videos I'm subscribed to and I'm trying to make some time for a little YouTube every day.  These are some of the channels I've been loving, which include some BookTubers as well as some channels I watch regularly.  I'll provide a link to each channel in their descriptions, (the title of the channel should be highlighted, meaning it should be a different text color).

(youtube.com)

    This is Regan and she is the vlogger behind "Peruse Project."  This is probably my favorite BookTube channel at the moment.  She is an incredible person, extremely entertaining, a little quirky, and she reminds me a lot of myself actually.  I've gotten most of my book recommendations from her as well because she's very fantasy-oriented.  Just because she bleeds high fantasy doesn't mean she doesn't like other genres.  Her book reviews and hauls are very helpful and I've enjoyed every book I've gotten based on her recommendation so far.  Definitely a good channel to check out if you're new to BookTube and want crisp and witty content.

(youtube.com)

    I was originally drawn to this next BookTuber by her incredible channel name "Padfoot and Prongs07."  Clearly, she is a fellow Harry Potter fan and a huge nerd.  Raeleen is from Canada but the books she features on her channel can also be found in the US.  Her reviews have also been very helpful when deciding what book I will read next.  I love her energy and her enthusiasm for the books she reads or wants to read.  She is very similar to Regan in the fact that they are both a little awkward, but they make it work and they are always themselves.  I admire her so much and I think she's adorable!  We also look a lot alike I think, (especially when my hair was longer).  As my unofficial twin, I recommend her channel for all your bookish needs.

(youtube.com)

    Jesse is a different kind of character all together.  "Jessethereader" has some incredible book hauls and I'm surprised that one person can read that many books in any given month or so.  Jesse is so funny and animated when he's talking about the books he loves and he also does really great in-depth book reviews.  He's also recently started reading graphic novels and comic books, which other BookTubers have already started doing.  I think he's a great resource if you're just starting out with comics, like he is.  His recommendations mirror others found in the BookTuber community.  Overall, if you find Booktube, you not only find a great resource for book recommendations, but also a great group of friends who help each other and recommend books to each other.  I really love this YouTube community, so I hope you check it out!

(feminspire.com)

    I couldn't make a list of YouTubers I watch on a regular basis without including Grace Helbig.  Her channel has been a favorite of mine for the better part of 3 years or so.  She has done very well for herself as of late and is currently doing commercials for Marriott as well as hosting her own show on E! called the Grace Helbig Show.  She's one of the funniest people I've ever seen and I hope her success continues.  Her good friends Hannah and Mamrie Hart, (no relation), are also on my subscription list, but I definitely watch Grace the most.  She typically posts her videos every other day, so if you seem interested, I would definitely recommend her channel!

(youtube.com)

    The last YouTube channel on my list of most frequently watched is Nerdist News.  I watch this channel every day just to get my nerdy fix.  Hosted by Jessica Chobot, this channel brings you the most nerdiest news out there, including updates from your most anticipated movie sets, changes in popular TV show theories, gaming reviews and much more.  The schedule goes as follows: Nerdist News airs an episode Monday through Friday, Nerdist Play airs Tuesdays and covers gaming-related news, The Dan Cave, (my personal favorite), airs Wednesdays and has a plethora of random topics, and Because Science, which covers science-related and experimental things.  There's literally something for everyone and they are usually pretty in-depth.  Not to mention everyone is hilarious!  I go to them as my first source for news coverage because that's all I really care about.  You can also check them out on their website Nerdist.com for more Nerdist News.

    That's all I have for you guys today!  Check out those YouTube channels and if you enjoy what you find, make sure you give them a thumbs up or subscribe.  All the links should be posted above.  If you want to follow any of those YouTubers on other social media platforms, those links should be somewhere on their main channel pages.  If you have a favorite YouTube channel or like any of the ones I've posted here, let me know in the comments!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

TBR for August

   Hello there friends!  I'm going to be trying something new here that I haven't before and that's a TBR.  For those of you who don't know, a "TBR" is a list of books "To Be Read" for a specific month or other period of time.  I've been diving into the YouTube community of BookTube, (which I think I've mentioned here before), which is a vlogging community dedicated to the written word.  They do many types of videos, including TBRs, book hauls, wrap-ups, etc.  This intrigued me and I thought that maybe I could do something like that, but without the video portion.  I've thought about vlogging for a few years now, but have discovered that I'm not quite comfortable being on camera yet.  With my fluctuating health issues and hectic schedule, I think it best to start slow and work my way up to a point where maybe I could incorporate a video portion of this.  For now, let's stick with what I know best and get on with the list!
    Usually, with a TBR list, a reader sets a tentative goal for his or herself of how many books they would be willing and able to read during a given time period.  I have already done my book reviews for the month of July, which you can find in the Book Reviews tab at the top of the page, or by clicking here if you're lazy, like me.  For the month of August, I will be reading a combination of graphic novels, comic books and novels, totaling about 6 titles.  I'm trying to become more well versed in comic books, considering my husband is a writer and has a vast collection to which I am exposed.  I've already started some of these books, so I will include them here because they are still in progress.

    I mentioned this series in my book reviews section, so check out my review of The Bone Season first!  The Mime Order is the second book in The Bone Season series by Samantha Shannon.  This series follows a clairvoyant named Paige Mahoney, an Irish transplant refugee in an alternative Dystopian Scion London who is hiding from others who are interested in her immense power.  The first book, The Bone Season, introduces us to Paige and how she became the person she is now as well as her struggles with her clairvoyance during an impending war with a different race of beings unknown to the rest of the mundane world.  

    The Mime Order continues Paige's story from the previous novel, which ends with her exodus from a prison called Sheol I, located in the outskirts of Scion London.  She is currently the most wanted person in London and is on the run from everyone because she can trust no one.  While Paige tries to outwit her adversary, the leaders of her clairvoyant underground community called "Mime-Lords" and "Mime-Queens" respectively, hold a rare meeting to decide the fate of their community while war brews overhead in the human world.  Little do they know an invasion is on the horizon and Paige will have to run in order to stay alive.

    I've already started reading this book and I'm only about 130 pages in, but I really like where it's going so far!  I fell in love with this series from the time I read The Bone Season last Christmas, so I couldn't wait to pick this one up.  So far I'm really enjoying the mystery of the events unfolding at Paige's expense.  I can tell that there will be some backstabbing in her future but from who, I'm not sure.  I'll save the rest of my thoughts for the review, but so far, I like what I'm reading!

(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17878931-red-queen)

    The second book on my TBR for August is one that I've been wanting to read for awhile.  Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard follows a young 17-year-old girl named Mare Barrow, who lives in a world divided by blood, split between commoners and the elite class.  Mare is a Red girl, a commoner, who finds herself working in the Silver Palace under direct supervision of the warrior class.  Despite her Red commoner blood, there is a power lurking deep inside Mare, which could threaten to destroy the Silver elite control of her world.

    This book just sounded really interesting to me.  I've come to love the fantasy world building that these books tend to have, so I'm curious to see how well they set up the world in this book.  I've also been reading a lot of books with a female protagonist, which seems to be very prevalent these days.  I've seen numerous recommendations for this book within the BookTube community, so I had to grab it.  At the present, I get most of my book recommendations from BookTubers, who are a great source for material I wouldn't have otherwise come across on my own.  Can't wait to read this one!

(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23399192-rook)

    This book just recently caught my eye and it sounded really interesting, so I thought I would give it a try!  This is another alternate-city Dystopian world book, which I apparently love because this is at least the fifth book of this kind that I've read.  Rook takes place in an alternate Paris called the Sunken City, in which a new revolution has transpired.  There is a mysterious vigilante called the "Red Rook" who fights for the safety and well-being of the innocent people in this world.  Think not-your-average Robin Hood character.  Then there's our main protagonists, Sophia Bellamy and Rene Hasard, who are in an arranged marriage but are not who they seem to be.  This unfortunate and unwilling couple get caught up in the machinations of the Red Rook and chaos ensues.

    I love the premise of this book!  This book also seems to deal with another strong female lead, which I like, coupled with a brash male co-conspirator.  Overall, I'm just curious to see where this book leads and I've heard a lot of great things so far about it, so I'm really excited to read it!

    This is a graphic novel series from Vertigo comics which I have already started reading because I am currently ADDICTED to it and can't stop/won't stop.  Fables, written by Bill Willingham and illustrated by Lan Medina, Steve Leialoha, Craig Hamilton and James Jean follows popular story book and fairy tale characters as they are exiled out of their homeland by the mysterious "Adversary" and into New York City to live amongst the humans they call "The Mundane" or "Mundies" for short.  This is definitely not a series fit for young children, as there is a lot of sexual and violent content, but it's SO GOOD!  There are relationships among the Fables that you would never expect and the story just keeps getting more crazy and interesting as I read on.  The illustrations are amazing and full of detail and the cover art is breathtaking.  I'm currently on Volume 5, which includes issues 28-33.  There are currently 22 volumes in this series, so I will be getting more of them once I catch up to what my husband already has on hand.  I'm loving this series, so if you like Once Upon a Time or the Grimm tales or anything along those lines, you should check out this series.

(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18188160-mara?ac=1)

    This series was recommended to me by my husband actually.  We've met the artist, Ming Doyle, several times at different comic book conventions and she's amazingly talented, not to mention super nice!  My husband is mildly obsessed with her and this is one of his favorite comics of all time, so I figured I'd check it out.  Look at that bad ass female protagonist again!  Mara by Brian Wood and illustrated by Ming Doyle follows a popular celebrity athlete named Mara Prince as she struggles to maintain her normal persona while dealing with the manifestation of superhuman abilities.  As she is slowly disowned by most of the world she's known for years, she has to fight back against those who appose her as she figures out who she is.

    I've honestly never looked into this series until now.  I knew Ming Doyle did great work and that was one of the main reasons I wanted to pick this short series up.  It seems to be set in a futuristic/alternate world as well, so we'll see.  I'm intrigued by this comic and I hope I like it!

(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22078240-saga-deluxe-edition-volume-1?ac=1)

    This is another series recommended to me not only by my husband, but through BookTube as well.  This is an award-winning series written by Brian K. Vaughn and illustrated by Fiona Staples.  Saga follows new parents Marko and Alana through their struggles during a galactic war in this sci-fi/fantasy world.  This series is very reminiscent of Star Wars.  It is not for the faint of heart and should only be read by mature readers, but overall I've heard enough hype about this series to warrant picking it up.  I've literally heard nothing bad about this series.  My husband owns the Special Deluxe edition, volume 1, (which is pictured and linked to above), and contains issues 1-18.  I'm excited to read this, especially after hearing the premise.

    That's it for my August TBR!  If you have any recommendations or thoughts on the comics or books I listed above, let me know what you think in the comments.  I'm hoping to get to all these this month, but being reliant on the library's selection really puts a damper on my reading goals.  If you have any ideas for what I should pick up for September, let me know in the comments as well.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

Updates!

  I'm back!  Sorry that took so long, but I really needed a break.  A lot has happened since the holidays, so I'll try to catch you up to speed.  I have announcements, health updates and even a review of The Bachelor so far, which I've missed terribly!  I'm also going to be updating my "Book Reviews" tab with my most recent finished novel, The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon.  At this point, I'm going to try to get back into my regular blogging routine so I don't lose my luster, so we'll see how that goes, but I'm at least going to give it a shot.  Can't hurt, right?

  First things first: health.  Not that I really need to update you all on this, but I've been doing alright.  Over the holidays I did have a serious flare up situation, (just Christmas Eve and Day mostly, you know, the important days...), in which I could barely walk and that is not an exaggeration.  My husband had to carry me around at times, (which was less than stellar and incredibly degrading), but it was all due to a lack of drugs and once I got those back I went back to "normal."  Needless to say the holidays were a lot more stressful than I had originally anticipated, but I'm glad I survived.  More recently I've been battling the ever-present virus that keeps circulating around my profession.  Working with kids has its downsides and constant exposure to various illnesses is only one of them.  I ended up catching some sort of upper respiratory virus, which was actually the flu in disguise, and gave that to my mother, who has been miserable.  We currently have at least three boxes of Puffs Plus Vicks going downstairs as well as two boxes each of DayQuil and NyQuil, among other things.  Luckily I haven't been working because of back-to-back snow days, which have picked this week to drop at least two feet of snow on us.  So I've been spending most of my time inside, in comfy pants watching Netflix, reading and working on my colloquium for my internship.

  Nice segue, self!  Right now my internship is at a stand-still.  I recently made the decision, after the holidays, to forgo teaching at the high school level in favor of having the opportunity to teach at the middle school level.  Although I'm glad to be out of my high school nightmare, I'm currently in limbo regarding my middle school placement.  It's been about two weeks at this point since I officially left my freshman and although I miss some of them, I miss being in the classroom more.  I've been trying to be as patient as I can, but it's difficult when you aren't in control and there's literally nothing you can do to speed things up.  I've been trying to keep myself busy, but I feel like I'm slowly losing my sanity.  I don't want to lose anything I've built up over the last few months.  I feel like I haven't done anything meaningful with my life in awhile and that I need to do something productive to help reaffirm my passions.  That's partially why I've been trying to read more for leisure, just so I can become a more literate English teacher, (which should be a no-brainer).  I don't want to lose the connection I have to my subject matter and I don't want to lose my excitement over the prospect of teaching my preferred age group, but it's slowly getting less bearable.  I've been trying to come up with curriculum units I could do with an imaginary class, seeing as all my other intern friends are either planning or currently teaching their solo week plans.  I feel like I'm falling behind, but not by choice, and it's frustrating.  Hopefully I hear something about where I'm going by next week, but at this point I'm not holding my breath.  I'm just hoping something happens for me so that I can continue to improve and finish strong.  I didn't realize just how close we were to the end up until a few weeks ago, but by April I'll be expected to look for jobs for next year.  By May I'll hopefully have my Masters degree and register for graduation.  My final months of university are approaching.  YIKES.

  As I said before, I have a lot more free time on my hands at the moment, so I'd like to use it accordingly to improve on and rediscover my passions.  I got a lot of books for Christmas, so I plan on trying to get through as many of them as possible and add to my collection along the way.  I've been spending a lot more time on Goodreads, updating my profile and my lists so that I can get more accurate recommendations.  I've also been watching more BookTube YouTubers to get book recommendations and to see what's out there, what's popular and what other readers are most excited about.  I was seriously considering turning my YouTube channel into a BookTube channel, but I'm still working on that.  I've determined that I really don't like being on camera, especially now that I don't look my best when I'm sick and I'm very self conscious about my appearance.  I would, however, like to continue to blog and write about books, seeing as that's my area of expertise.  I will see if I can update my tabs to include a link to my Goodreads account, but until then you can find me here.  I will try my best to keep up with this and hopefully my love of books will continue to grow.

  Lastly, we have reviews.  I have been watching this latest season of The Bachelor with much enthusiasm.  Starting with over 30 women was exhausting, but now that we're already down to 11 it feels manageable.  The most important things I took away from the first three episodes are that Ashley's are still my least favorite kind of people, Canadians are awesome, there IS such a thing as too much country, (and whiskey), muscles and competition aren't everything, and there can be more than one virgin in the house at a time.  Needless to say it's been an interesting season so far, culminating into what I believe are the three top ladies at this point: Kaitlyn, Whitney and Jade.  It's obvious that Chris has a natural connection with Kaitlyn.  She's obnoxious, care-free and ridiculously funny.  She's not afraid to get down and dirty outside or open up about her feelings.  She seems like an all-around great girl and a great fit for Chris, who seeks normalcy above all else.  She's my front runner at the moment, so I'm rooting for her.

  Jade is my second favorite, solely because of her genuine nature and girl-next-door vibe.  She's quiet, but respectful and patient, and Chris notices her anyway.  I also think they would be great together, but we'll have to see if she stands out over Kaitlyn.  Jade totally deserved that Cinderella date!  Ashely I. was getting on my nerves, complaining about her lack of pampering.  The reason the sisters chose Jade is because she doesn't normally get this sort of treatment and deserved to get some, not because she would look good in the expensive, outlandish ballroom attire.  That wasn't the point and the fact that Ashley somehow missed that makes me think she's not long for this show.  Obviously she's not right for Chris.  Those Jersey girls can't be trusted around shiny objects...

  Whitney I'd rather not like, but I can't deny that her and Chris had a pretty rad date crashing that wedding.  Their connection is also obvious, so I'm curious to see if it will eventually outshine or succumb to Kaitlyn's or Jade's.  Next week's episode looks like we'll be seeing more drama unfold from unlikely sources, so anything is possible!  If you'd like another place to get recaps of The Bachelor, I particularly love Mel Got Served.  She's hilarious and has a unique approach to reviewing each episode.  She also does recaps of other popular reality television programs, so if you're into that, please go check her out!
  That's all I have for this week.  I think that's enough actually...  If I'm still not doing anything next week, I should be able to upload my blog on time, or at least at a decent time.  I'm thinking about adding one or two more shows to recap along with The Bachelor, but I'm having trouble narrowing it down.  I just started watching Agent Carter, in addition to Arrow, The Flash, Gotham and Agents of Shield, which are all returning from their mid-season finales.  I've gotten to the point where I have too many shows to watch that I've gotten behind, so I'm trying to catch up.  The Amazing Race is starting again soon, as is Vikings, which I'm very excited about, so maybe I'll leave it at that.  Let me know what you guys think and what shows you'd like recaps and/or reviews of.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

The Equivalent of Screaming Into a Pillow

    Good evening everyone!  It has certainly been an exciting and hectic week...  I had lab work to get done Monday, baking and other preparations for the last few days for both parties taking place this afternoon, (hopefully the one I couldn't be at went well, or else I may be in trouble...), a team meeting during a delayed opening, finishing my pedagogy, (FINALLY), AND, to top it all off, we're officially moving in six weeks, which means they're starting to show our apartment tomorrow.  That is a long and very stressful list of things that I have had to get done without a lot of time to do any of them.

    Firstly, I did get my kidney biopsy results back with not a lot of good news, (not that I was expecting any).  My Lupus has spread to my kidneys, as we had thought, so now it's time to devise a plan for treatment.  Hopefully it won't be too difficult, but I'm anticipating at least some mildly uncomfortable side effects and/or long term damage to some other organ in my body.  It has been great feeling relatively normal these last few weeks, but I know that eventually I'm going to have to face whatever is coming and it won't be good.  Needless to say I have so much support it's ridiculous, so I wanted to publicly thank my husband for his understanding and his unrelenting patience when it comes to dealing with me when I'm needy.  I'd also like to thank my parents, both of whom have provided me with enough support, advice and love to last even the longest lifetime.  I honestly don't know what I would do without my family.

    Speaking of family, my mother has graciously offered us a place to stay.  We'll be moving back to my childhood home very soon, but it's a very different place.  We will practically have our own private apartment upstairs, complete with a full bathroom, bedroom, common area and even an office, (in the foreseeable future).  There is a lot of stigma surrounding adults moving back in with their parents, but in my situation it's actually a positive thing.  Moving back home does not always have to symbolize failure or disappointment.  It can actually be a great opportunity to get back on track, save money, live a healthier lifestyle and get in touch with your goals and aspirations.  Both my husband and I are very excited about this opportunity and this arrangement and look forward to reaching our goals so we can live the life we want to live.  If you told me six years ago that I would be living with my husband at my mother's house, I would've told you that you were crazy.  I'm very excited about the prospect of happiness and look forward to moving into a better environment.  Although, I'm not a huge fan of the moving process in general...  Boxing everything up and storing it for years at a time isn't my idea of fun, nor is moving said boxes from Point A to Point B in various vehicles.  I'm not looking forward to the process, but I am definitely looking forward to the end result.  We've already got a head start on cleaning because of all the scheduled showings, so it'll be easier to pick through the debris.  We're hoping to be out of here by Thanksgiving break at the latest.

    In teaching news, I've been working on setting up teacher observations anywhere and everywhere: within my school and subject area, outside my district, outside the state, etc.  Every opportunity is precious, so I have to make them count.  I'm looking forward to seeing how other professional teachers teach and the strategies I can take away to use in my own future teaching practices.  In seminar we've been asked to think about what constitutes a "professional teacher" and I'm hoping to find out through these observations.  If I've learned anything from this process so far, it's that the preconceived notions you may have going in aren't necessarily going to ring true by the end of your journey.  In other teaching news, I created this great lesson plan for a Halloween-themed "hero's journey" activity that I would really like to do with the kids, but don't think it'll happen because of time commitment issues, (and the fact that the 30th and 31st has already been planned...).  I just wanted to do something fun with the kids and take a break from the monotony of The Odyssey, but it may not be in the cards I guess.  I'll keep you posted on how it goes if it really does come to fruition, but I'm not holding my breath on this one.

    TV this week has been sparse, but I did get some Once in.  It was crazy confusing this past weekend.  The best part of the entire episode was Hook, (or Killian), and Emma's date, which was almost as awkward as I thought it would be.  Still very sweet, but we definitely need a second date in the near future.  That should give Hook time to sort out what the hell is going on with his hand.  I have absolutely no clue what's going on with Rumple at this point.  He seemed to have changed last season with his marriage to Belle, especially after he gave her back the real dagger.  But now, he's being a complete asshole to everyone for what seems like no reason.  The sorcerer's hat has triggered so many memories and events so far, so it's importance is imminent.  I'm excited about the prospect of introducing more elements of Fantasia into the mix, but when the poor apprentice got sucked into the depths of that black hole inside the hat I got a little scared.  The hat seemed so innocent and unknowing in Fantasia and now it's this evil black hole weapon thing...  I don't know how I feel about all this, but I do know by now that when Rumple wants something he will stop at nothing to get it.  Who knows what's going on with him ever?  I do think it's cute that Henry is attempting to infiltrate Rumple's "lair."  We'll see how well that works out.

    There's one more thing I've stumbled upon this week that I thought was interesting.  There's a community of book-loving readers on YouTube called "Booktube."  This community regularly posts videos and vlogs regarding book reviews, suggestions, book hauls, and more.  Each Booktube vlogger brings there own personal flair to their channel and I'm intrigued enough to explore this new community that might actually interest me.  I've been looking back into vlogging again and this might be an avenue I travel down, considering my profession.  Let me know what you think in the comments below.  I have everything I need to start, just need the time and the confidence to do it.

    That's all I got!  Even if I don't start my own Booktube channel, I will do my best to revamp my Book Reviews page on here and keep it updated as frequently as possible.  Now that I'm starting to read more for leisure it should be a lot easier.  Fingers crossed!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.