She-Geeks discussion
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Randomness Thread

My favorite uncle is dyslexic but he hates to read. It's admirable that you perservere despite the challenge.

Congrats on the awesome day btw! :)
Gotta chime in on the e-reader VS real books convo.
I love the quick access of e-readers. They're also a cheap way to read books I'm on the fence about.
I find I read faster on my Nook too. I've discovered some great authors on the Shop page that I may never have encountered otherwise.
BIG however, I will always buy paper books. They're my first love. I enjoy seeing shelves lined with them, makes a house feel like home for me. And the whole new book smell is just sublime. Also, I'm a huge cover art fan, so buying books (and comics for that matter) is kind of like collecting art in my opinion.

Wow! That's so cool that you remembered! I'm going to have to look it up now. It sounds so creepy, and I love creepy.
Anna, I bet they are zinnia. I have some of those in my garden, and they do come back at unexpected times. But I always took it for granted that things bloom and die here in Southern California differently than they do in other places. Our summer is when most things die, getting scorched by the heat. And winter is when things come back to life because its when we finally get rain.
In regards to the book vs. e-reader discussion, I like them both. I can't get over my original love affair with actual books- their smell, their feel, their weight. I'm telling you, reading "Gone With the Wind" feels like more of an accomplishment when you've been lugging the thing around for weeks. But my Nook and now my iPad have opened my horizons to new genres and more books, and I find them pretty comfortable to read. And they've led me to Goodreads, so I can't complain about that.
I haven't read more since joining Goodreads, but I really do like being able to keep track of my progress. Reading has always been a two-fold enjoyment for me: the pleasure of the story and the joy of conquering a book. I always look at large books, difficult subjects, and new genres as a personal challenge to meet. And now Goodreads has given me a way of recording and sharing my conquests. =)

Your GWTW comment made me think of this. If I'm reading a massive book, I'd rather read it in paper. It feels interminable on the e-reader. I'm reading a really long book on the Nook now and it's killing my soul a little.

And I agree with you; I can keep track of my progress easier when I have the book in my hands. I always like to see if I've made it halfway through or three quarters of the way. It inspires me to push through to the end. But the convenience of the e-reader can't be denied. Lighter, easier to pack, and more frequently accessible, I do enjoy its advantages.
I find myself reading different genres in different mediums, you know? Classics in paper and manga/comics in e-reader...don't know if that's the case with everyone. Although I find its a lot cheaper to get a hold of the classics I want to read digitally... and with the economy the way it is, cheaper starts to look really good.

Also I've got more ideas for what to read now. :) And I'm discovering more stuff than ever, tha..."
Oh, yeah, sorry, it's short for university. :)

But then there are also those that cost only €1-2 less than the paper edition and I think that's too much usually. :/

What's the purpose of "owned books?" Ok, dumb question. I guess just to show what you actually own.

http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php...


http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php..."
Oh god, how I love Kate Beaton. Also very lovely person to meet. I she signed a copy of 2 of her books for me at Calgary Expo this year.

Thanks for this. =)
Wreck it Ralph isn't out over here yet :(
I haven't seen Skyfall yet, I need to get that sorted as soon as! I'm loving Daniel Craig almost as much as I love Sean Connery.
The winter is beginning to get to me, I've got a cold and I'm finding it hard to leave the house without a really good reason, which is practically never!
I haven't seen Skyfall yet, I need to get that sorted as soon as! I'm loving Daniel Craig almost as much as I love Sean Connery.
The winter is beginning to get to me, I've got a cold and I'm finding it hard to leave the house without a really good reason, which is practically never!


I haven't seen Skyfall yet, I need to get that sorted as soon as! I'm loving Daniel Craig almost as much as I love Sean Connery.
The winter is beginning..."
Ohh! I think Daniel Craig is the best 007 they've come up with since Sean Connery, although I didn't like Quantum of Solace as much as Casino Royale. Skyfall, however, was very enjoyable! Still not as good as Casino Royale in my opinion, but definitely worth the price of the ticket! I hope you do get the chance to go out and see it.
I completely agree about Quantam of Solace. My Nan took me and my brother to see it and she hadn't seen Casino Royale and it put her off Daniel Craig and the new bond films in general.
Has anyone gotten around to buying Xmas presents? I'm trying to get some done just now, I'm choosing to do them all thought the computer so I don't have to leave the house.
Has anyone gotten around to buying Xmas presents? I'm trying to get some done just now, I'm choosing to do them all thought the computer so I don't have to leave the house.


I had a lovely Thanksgiving. Kids spent most of the day in the swimming pool, got to see my brother and his husband who I haven't seen in ages, and found out that my grandmother and my husband actually have something in common: Irish whiskey! :)
I was a little sad that my oldest two were with their mom, but they're coming home today! Yay!
I have so much respect for all you Americans, I couldn't handle two big family gatherings in two months! The stress of Christmas is enough for me!

Hah! That's what I call early!
Oh wow Chimney, that's amazing! I'd love to do something like that for my little brother. I've got four of my other half's presents wrapped, I'm just waiting for all the other presents to arrive. Got everything ordered from online so I didn't have to bother with Christmas shoppers. It was in theory supposed to give me more time to do coursework but that failed.
Aww that's adorable! I've got one present left to wrap and then I'm all done. I suck at wrapping so they look awful though.

Still, I worked at a bookstore last year wrapping presents for customers. heh.
(This year they didn't take me cause I have too much university seminars in the last week before Christmas. :( meh. Staying poor.)
I chose Minnie Mouse wrapping paper this year for my presents, by which I mean I made my girlfriend wrap all of my presents in Minnie Mouse wrapping paper. When I was young my mum would have a different colour paper for me and my brother so we could see what presents belonged to each other without the need for tags, just one of the silly traditions I'm bringing to Christmases with my girlfriend now that we live together.
Does anyone else have any traditions they have each year? For a while my mum got quite down around the holidays so we would try to have alternative Christmases, the best ones were when we didn't have Xmas dinner but for three or four years we had a vegetarian curry and then chocolate fudge cake for dessert. Reading that back I realise just how crazy my family is!
Does anyone else have any traditions they have each year? For a while my mum got quite down around the holidays so we would try to have alternative Christmases, the best ones were when we didn't have Xmas dinner but for three or four years we had a vegetarian curry and then chocolate fudge cake for dessert. Reading that back I realise just how crazy my family is!
Chimney - am I right in thinking it's Minerva? Your traditions sound amazing, I hate that as you get older some of them fade away. Once I found out Santa wasn't real I used to help my mum take all the presents into the living room when my brother was asleep, I made an amazing elf!
Lela - I don't think decorations are huge in Britain (possibly because i live in the city) so I've never really gotten to drive round laughing at them. My Nanny took me to a house one year that was covered in lights, it was the craziest I've seen over here.
Lela - I don't think decorations are huge in Britain (possibly because i live in the city) so I've never really gotten to drive round laughing at them. My Nanny took me to a house one year that was covered in lights, it was the craziest I've seen over here.

Happened to us one Christmas, probably the cat deciding to climb up there... Luckily not much was lost cause the tree landed on the dinner table and most ornaments didn't even touch the ground.

Granted that Christmas is spent with my mom's extended family. When I lived at home we had Christmas about a week before with my immediate family, which was much more informal. I remember one year we went out to eat and sang carols in the car on the way home to save time because the Survivior finale was on that night and we wanted to watch it (this was before tivo).
Chimney wrote: "Our tree fell over tonight, probably broke about have of the ornaments."
That's so sad. Is it ok?
That's so sad. Is it ok?

It really only happened once that the tree fell, guess the cat learnt his lesson. ;) I'm a bit sad that our flat here is to small for a tree. But I hope my mum will get a big one again this year. Since the rooms at her place are almost 4 metres high we always had really large trees. And we also used candles, but the last years, my mum also added some lights so that you don't have to worry about the candles so much and can have the tree look festively lit, even if you're out of the room for a while.
Aaaah, you make me wanna bake some cookies now, too. >.<

My husband and I are trying to create our own traditions for our kids. My family still has Christmas dinner every year, and we go to that, but they've stopped doing most of the cool traditions from when I was a kid, and it's just a laid back dinner and presents, and not everybody is able to show up every year. My husband's family quit doing holidays sometime before I met him, which really sucks. Sometimes we can get his parents to come for a holiday dinner, but they won't stay long. :/
So we've been trying to come up with little things that make the holidays specially ours. We've set aside December 5th as the day we always decorate for Christmas (the day after my youngest daughter's birthday, so that Christmas never overshadows her birthday). I have several large boxes of decorations, and I let the kids decorate the living room however they like. We have special decorations, like my snowy village collection, my oldest daughter's snowglobes, and stockings with our names on them. This year will be the third year that we've gone Christmas caroling in the neighborhood. My oldest daughter arranges that all on her own: picking the date, inviting friends, preparing snacks for afterwards. On Christmas Eve the kids will each open one present (new pajamas), and then we'll have presents from Santa in the morning.
And maybe one day we'll have a giant Christmas party with all 7 of our kids and their spouses and kids. And grandkids. :)
Chimney wrote: "My grocery store committed some horrible sins today! They had no Goya soda and they had no pork butt! How am I supposed to get the required amounts of coconut or strawberry soda and pulled pork if..."
This entire comment made no sense to me. What is Goya soda? I'll pretend I have a clue though. RAGE! That must have sucked. I'm at my most annoyed in a supermarket when they run out of decent peanut butter.
This entire comment made no sense to me. What is Goya soda? I'll pretend I have a clue though. RAGE! That must have sucked. I'm at my most annoyed in a supermarket when they run out of decent peanut butter.

I'm looking at getting more L5R cards. Does anybody play?
Oh Chimney that Worrible thing is adorable! I wants. I just turned a corner of my bedroom into an Xbox gaming den but to make it comfy I've covered it in cushions and all my old teddy bears. I don't think I ever want to leave it!
Chimney - you can't have it but I'm willing to share. It is so comfy, I wish I never ever had to leave it!


L5R or Legend of the five rings is a collectable card game with an Asian inspired fantasy theme. Yes, there are battles.
Chimney wrote: "Sharing is caring. :) I'm super jealous. The way my room is set up I don't have much space for a gaming area. I don't have any games at the moment due to certain events, but when I get some I shall..."
You should definitely make a gaming den, I'm glad uni is over for the break because I'm not leaving my den until after the New Year!
You should definitely make a gaming den, I'm glad uni is over for the break because I'm not leaving my den until after the New Year!

I hope you all had a wonderful day yesterday. We're you spoilt? I certainly was, my girlfriend got me an Xbox and lots of cool games so my life will be taken over by that.

now bed time. the cat needs to calm down as well. still sounds like war outside, though.

Are there any Mind Readers in this group? I have to know who wrote this as well as just the description of what it was about got me interested in it.

Are there any Mind Readers in this group? I have to know who w..."
See message 51.

Are there any Mind Readers in this group? I have t..."
Thank you so much. I guess that's what I get for just skimming through the messages. Thanks again. :)
Also I've got more ideas for what to read now. :) And I'm discovering more stuff than ever, that's for sure!"
What's Uni?