There’s no point in wasting time feeling sorry for yourself because you made a mistake, did the wrong thing, or disappointed someone. I’ve had to learn this lesson the hard way, as this attitude runs in my family. We’re human—we make mistakes! We fail sometimes. We disappoint others and ourselves. But every second is a second chance…we should stop worrying about what we did and worry about what we can do.
via Dweebist
For those of you who are still interested in my resolutions updates (and by “for those of you” I mean “for me so I’ll get my butt in gear”), I’ll say up front I’ve not been doing well on most of my goals. There is a lot going on in my life right now…all the things that come with the end of the “fiscal year” at work, a huge project at work that I’m spearheading, and now house stuff.
Yes, indeed, Jonathan and I are looking to buy our first home. We’re pretty far along in the process…pending a home inspection and a loan approval (and closing, of course), we should be getting a house next month.
I’m very excited about it, but I do tend to slack on my resolutions when I have so much going on. I don’t think I’m going to be able to give 100% to my resolutions in the coming weeks. I have to give myself a break while I’m so busy. But I do think I can do better. And I will, starting today!
For those of you who are interested, here’s a picture of the house. Hopefully Jonathan and I will get out soon to take pictures of our own, but this picture on the listing is the best I can do for now.
Thanks for keeping me accountable. I hope you’re all doing well with your goals!
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Severance is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read. In fact, it’s a little creepy. The premise is based on two scientific theories: 1) that a person’s head remains conscious for one and a half minutes after decapitation and 2) that humans speak at the rate of 160 words per minute when they’re in a heightened state of emotion. These two theories indicate that a person who is decapitated might think 240 words before they’re completely dead. Based on this figure, Butler has written a series of short (240 words each, to be precise) monologues of decapitated people, fictional and non-fictional. These monologues are presented in chronological order, starting with Mud (“man, beheaded by saber-toothed tiger, circa 40,000 B.C.”) all the way through the author himself (“writer, decapitated on the job, 2008”). Fortunately, Robert Olen Butler was not decapitated in 2008—that would’ve just been too weird.
The book is interesting especially because of the glimpse it gives you into the lives of famous characters you’ll recognize: Medusa, John the Baptist, George (AND the dragon), the lady of the lake, Marie Antoinette, and so on. I’m mostly intrigued by the format of these monologues. I’ve never heard of a book quite like this and I’m always impressed with books that are out of the norm.
I doubt, however, that I’ll read the book again. It was entertaining and engaging, but not something I would gain insight from by reading it another time. I definitely think it’s an interesting read, but I’d suggest borrowing it from the library rather than buying it.
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I recently finished reading The Lightning Thief, the first book in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. To be completely honest, I didn’t enjoy the book as much as I thought I would. I would definitely say my favorite book genre is fantasy, and I would also say that I love young adult literature, but this book didn’t really do it for me.
I felt like the invention of this new world, this world that involves gods and monsters and magical weapons, seemed very forcibly created. I also felt disconnected from the characters for the same reason. Everything was very pushed. Rather than showing the reader that a character was experiencing something through that character’s actions, Riordan would outright tell the reader. I find that this makes this new universe pretty unbelievable and not very engaging.
I do think, however, that there are people who would find this book enjoyable. I also think the story has enough potential that the movie might be pretty awesome. :) But I’m disappointed to say that I have no interest in reading any more books in this series.
Sorry to write a bummer review. Hopefully the next book will be better!
If you’re keeping up with these updates with any consistency, you might have noticed I didn’t post a resolutions update last week. Actually, I’ve done very well on all fronts, including the frequency of my workouts (the hardest part of all for me). Since I’ve done well, I didn’t feel the need to post last Sunday. I think it’s important that I keep on updating about my progress, but I think perhaps I don’t need to do it every week anymore. Everything is coming easier for me now that it’s been a few weeks and I’ve been holding myself accountable via this blog. So I’ll definitely keep updating, but probably on a bi-weekly basis for now until either 1) I start to lapse and need to update weekly again or 2) do even better and can further reduce the number of resolutions update posts (let’s hope for the latter)! :) Thanks for reading—keep holding me accountable!
- I will write more.
- I will read more.
- I will honor the Sabbath.
- I will find a home church.
- I will take better care of my body.
- I will be more loving.
I can do it!
Success is a fight between you and yourself. ~ Unknown
