Kim’s Comments (group member since Sep 17, 2008)

Kim’s comments from the Runs with scissors group.

I tried so hard to like this book that I read all 448 pages of it, and only because I love the author. Richelle Mead, whom I adore, is now trying her hand at a sci-fi/fantasy post-apocalypse work in which religion played a part in the downfall of the world as we know it. Plague and genetics are key elements in the world at large now along with microchips and being monitored.

Gee sound familiar?

Well, the concept is really good, the first book in the new series suffers from execution issues. A glossary would have been nice as terms were used in this book that while words you may have heard in a historical context,they have slightly different meanings in this book,so knowing that up front would have been nice, along with certain slang terms that were known insults (which finally got explained on page 328, too little too late) made this a let down read for me as I need more info upfront.

Fans of this type of book will probably feel right at home with the set up or perhaps not. I am a fan of the author, but if this had been anyone else, I would have not finished it at all.

I am still doing my 1 1/8 mile per week. As of last week, I have to get used to changes in the pool following a drowning tragedy at an another location on the East side of town. According to our locations aquatics director, now she is being able to do what she has wanted safety wise and is being allowed to actually do her job effectively. Up until now, she has been told that the budget doesn't allow for _____. Unfortunately, it takes a tragedy to allow a job to be done.

According to the paper this weekend, in a survey given to the congregants of St. Peter's BEFORE the nun (see above) was asked to leave, the congregation said that they are very happy with the way things are, that the diocese has mishandled things and that they have no confidence in the bishop.

What a polite way of telling him to shove it sideways where the sun don't shine.

The diocese had no comment.

If you travel or know someone who does, you may have a lot of foreign coins that you may not want. UNICEF will take them and use them to help affect changes for children around the world.

This is from their site: http://www.unicefusa.org/donate/other...

"If you have foreign currency that you wish to donate, please send it to the address below. Include your name, address, e-mail and phone number with the donation, so that we can send you an acknowledgement of your gift.

Change for Good Program
U.S. Fund for UNICEF
125 Maiden Lane
New York, NY 10038"


Grate way to do some good with money you may not be using.

This is the jaw dropping second book in the Cahill Witch Chronicles. If you read "Born Wicked" here's your next installment. If you haven't read "Born Wicked", get on the stick and get going! You won't be sorry. At one point,I was reading "Star Cursed" at Narzain's, and I went "OOOOHHHHH!" to which he went "I know that sound. It means somebody's going to get their a** handed to them." There is a lot of that in this book along with so many twists, you will not believe that this is for teens.

Lucy Burdette has set this cozy mystery in Key West. Haley Snow wants to be a food critic for a new style mag. that happens to be owned by her ex-boyfriend's girlfriend. Haley is suspect #1 when the girlfriend ends up dead. Really well done but the one thing that weirded me out was that the victim and her family have my last name and the boyfriend's last namespelled was the same as another family name (while not pronounced the same). Kinda creeps you out.

A while a go the priest and the bishop were supposed to meet face to face. No word on that yet.

The latest on the front page of today's paper,stated that the nun who is their music director has been told in no uncertain terms that she is to leave St. Peter's NOW and not to look back. In a congregational newsletter sent out by her order,she was told that she will be excommunicated if she does not leave the breakaway church. They are now denying that comment. The Bishop is saying that they are not receiving "Holy Communion" as they are not a real church.

The nun has over 50 years of service and this is how she is being treated all because the Bishop is throwing a tantrum.

Narzain will most likely not be happy with me for sharing this, as he was most embarrassed that this happened. In time he will find the humor. For me, I already laughing, mostly at the end of this tale.

So yesterday, I go to the library like normal,and leave at my usual early time so that I can get home to eat breakfast so I can go swimming. Cool. I get home to find a message on the machine and I am thinking hang up, or robo-call scam. Nope. It's Narzain. Frantic phone call,disjointed,freaking out.

He had locked his keys in the car. This included his work keys.

So, after finding him at work,I tell him to relax, I'll go get the extra key (door only) and bring it to him. Now, I am debating with myself as to whether or not I go swimming. "Captain America: Winter Soldier" is filming here at the moment, so parts of Downtown are closed and part of a highway are closed for filming,so I decide that getting my fat rear to the Clinic and back is more important.

To Narzain's apartment to get the key, stop and get gas,then on my way. At least all of this is ON the way to downtown. I get there no problem,find a space and head in. Now, you may not know, but I have mild rosacea caused by one of my meds., so I flush red easily. 4 people asked me if I was alright before I even go to the lobby! Nice to know that a hospital pays attention!

I find Narzain, give him his key,he gets permission to go to the employee garage to get his keys, and then walks me out. I give him a ride to the lot where he will catch a shuttle back. Fine. Kisses good byes, I'm on my way. I get on the highway,on a SHORT approach, which is get on and get over RIGHT NOW! or you WILL be getting off at the next off ramp which is RIGHT HERE! I get over, no problem.

I'm cruising along, and HEY! there goes my turn! I am now going South,when I should be going West. A few choice words later, I am wondering if my family will be happy to see me, as I am now heading toward my dad's family. Now, I do know where I am, and I know I can get back home, I'm just more out of my way than I would like.

I am now going South, and hey, there's the exit for the zoo! I'll go to the zoo! I know how to get home from there! Sure I do. I made a right instead of a left. More choice words. Intersection. I know this! My friend used to live over here! Only I'm in the wrong lane. Cut down a side street and voila! I end up where I wanted to go! Go down another main road and pick up another to get back over to where I would have been if I had gone swimming in the first place.

I decide to run the errands that I was going to run after swimming (the open swim is now over by this point), so I wend my way to the post office. After paying for my stamps, I can't find my keys.

I locked them in my car, dangling from the ignition.

*sigh*


Thankfully, I keep an extra key in my purse and could get back in.

Moral: Always keep a key handy.


Still not as bad as me losing his keys 2 years ago. THAT was bad, and expensive.

Teen urban fantasy. Light reading, but well worth it. Love the division of supes. The only thing that nagged at me was the whole " the main character knows notthing (yet again!) and stumbles around and causes a HUGE problem that results in one of several cliched things. Typical of this type of writing, but still worth the read.

BRAGGING "AUNT" TIME!

My "niece" Leigh graduated on Tuesday. My "niece" graduated 7th in her class of a 100+ (it's a HUGE Catholic High School), wore 5 honor cords, 2 tassels (one honors the other her school), was awarded 2 Presidential letters for Excellence, was one of 5 students inducted into the Academic Hall of Fame, and was the only student awarded the Medal of Educational Excellence by the Sister of Notre Dame.

If I wore buttons, they would be bursting!

For the last 3 weeks, I have been managing 50 lengths at a time, which means that I have been swimming 1 1/8 miles in the pool per week instead of my typical 1 mile per week.

Wednesday, the pool was 82, which is cold for an indoor pool, especially one that is normally 86 or so. It was a bit nippy for me, but I did my 1/2 mile anyway. I was too cold to do 50 lengths instead of 44, but I will make up of that today provided the pool is warmer and not too crowded.

Miss Endora is indeed an escape artist. She has gotten loose 3 times this wee, twice in one hour while Narzain was there to catch her. Not in the actual act, but close. The cage is now clamped,covered with parts from the old cage and things have been removed from inside the cage that may have provided leverage for Miss Tiny Henie. Come on growth spurt!

We are excited about the ninja mouse thing,as it is fun to watch them climb. As of Friday evening, the two newbies were climbing upside down. (By the way, Narzain you did a great job of relating what happened.)

I knew something wasn't right when the smell started in the car. I haven't smelled that since Etoille and Sol so I knew that that meant! Unpleasant is one word for it.

On Saturday, while we were at the library, my contact lens was irritating my left eye. I went to remove it, and could not find it. My eye was still bothering me, so I thought my contact had migrated to above and or behind my eyeball. I'm panicking,thinking I need to go to the ER and have my eye flushed out. It was on the desk. It blended in with the desk. They are lightly tinted to bee seen when you drop one, except the desk is the same color as the tint. So, there I am, with only one eye to see with, trying to type.

Not good.

Thankfully, I wear disposable ones, and have backups. We were close to my house and it was quickly fixed.

Sheesh!

Dusty passed yesterday and Endora seems fine, so I will be obtaining a companion or two today.

I know it's not funny, but it is.

I am too numb to cry yet. I am going to purchase a companion for Dusty today after I go swimming and rid myself of some of this stress. Narzain is still recovering from whatever he had last week and this has been weighing on us as we have been holding a collective breath.

Tati has a relapse last night and we are preparing for the not so great outcome.

Charlaine Harris did the unthinkable and ended her beloved series about Sookie Stackhouse. She has been threatened with death threats and other not so nice things since the ending was leaked before the books release and many fans are crying foul about how she could end the series at all.

Speaking as a fan of the books (and may I add LONG before the series LOOSELY based on her books came out) that I for one am pleased that she ended the series and that I for one am not unhappy with the ending. I feel that the series was at the "this is going to start getting REALLY stupid and fast" point and her decision to end it on at the height of popularity was a good one. While I never understood "Seinfeld", I did agree with the decision to end the series while it was still popular. Too many t.v series and book series go on way too far beyond their stay and they get stale and stupid.

An author owns their work, not the fans, although one could argue that without fans, an author has no work. Fans get very possessive of a work, and yes we do invest a lot of time and money in these works as we buy them and read them, in many cases, reading them many times and perhaps purchasing multiple copies as gifts. We do feel a sense of ownership and many times there are clear factions of character loyalty that divide fans into near violent froths.

Yet, when an author decides to end a series (which is preferable to the publisher ending it without any final coda) it is hard on fans to let go. "Harry Potter" fans knew that they would get 7 books since it was established early on that we would be following his years at Hogwarts. The recently ended "Septimus Heap" books ended with book 7 which was almost a giveaway from book one, and if you have read them, you know why. (I will not share that here in case any of you will be reading them any time soon, and I HIGHLY recommend them.)
(As far as I know, Angie Sage is not facing death threats from 8 year old's over this decision, but I could be wrong.)

As for Harris, I think people are over reacting, as usual, due to the leak, the popularity of the show, the books,and because we have a whole generation that does not understand "no" and not being able to watch/read/do what they want "NOW!". Harris has written this series for 14 years. It was time. All the short stories that went with this series and all the books, including the overview companion book, take up time. Time that she could spend with her family. Time spent watching her daughter grow up and graduate from college.

Reportedly,she is going to have tie up the loose ends/cross over to the new series book later on this year, and I will read it. I have no animosity toward her for her ending of the series. It was,as I said, time. All authors need to make the decision to end a series,no matter how popular, before the integrity of their characters is compromised, they become irrelevant,just plain stupid, or a combination.

Harris did not enter this choice lightly and I feel that her so called fans are acting like petulant children instead of looking forward to new and possibly even better works. She is taking away their favorite toy and they don't like it. Fictional characters that resonate with you are rare, and when you lose them it is hard, but they are in a book, so you can re-visit them any time you wish. For many, the anger is the ending itself which to me, fit the book. No one is going to be happy with the ending if they felt strongly about one character or another, but I felt that the ending fit. It fit Sookie, the book itself and the series. I applaud Harris for staying true to the logic she crated for the books and did not try to force and ending that would not have fit as well.

I am sorry to see the gang go, but I can always revisit them any time.

As all good things must end, so do book series' and yes, it is better if we know a series is finite BEFORE we read it, but sometimes things happen. Life is like that. It happens when we are not looking, prepared, or ready. It is what it is.

So, I have one more thing to say to the unhappy "fans" out there who feel cheated.

GET OVER YOURSELVES!

I hope Harris' new series is just as good as her last.

I,for one, am looking forward to new adventures.

It's fixed. My paperwork wandered into the wrong slot. I'm good for another year.


Calming down now.

Tatianna is hanging in there. I will know more later today.