one year, 27 books

When I turned 26, I made myself a goal of reading 27 books by my 27th birthday.  Somehow, I actually met this goal.  This works out to about two books every two weeks.  Most of the books I read were new but a few were re-reads.  Here's my list!

1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
2. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. Uncle Tom's Children - Richard Wright
4. The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
5. Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
6. Tracks - Louise Erdrich
7. The Ramayana - R.K. Narayan
8. Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali - D.T. Niane
9. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini
10. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
11. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
12. Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity, and the Women Who Made America Modern - Joshua Zeitz
13. America Since 1900 7th Edition - George Donelson Moss
14. Technical Communication 11th Edition - Mike Markel
15. The Broke-Ass Bride's Wedding Guide - Dana LaRue
16. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
17. Call Me Zelda - Erika Robuck
18. Ruth Hall - Fanny Fern
19. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
20. The Awakening - Kate Chopin
21. Wide Sargasso Sea - Jane Rhys
22. The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston
23. Four Souls - Louise Erdrich
24. ...every bedtime story Ari and I have read, which would really probably put me at over 300 books total for the year.

Been Struggling

Alright, alright, I know I've been majorly slacking in the blogging area the past couple weeks -- things have been pretty crazy!  I don't really have that much time to post now, but I figured something short is better than nothing at all.

So.

Here are some things that have gone on, are going on now, or are soon to be going on in life:

1.  Tom is coming to visit!  September 14 to 28.  I'm so excited!!

2.  School started this week, which now applies to my work as well as my academics, since this year I'm employed by a college.  Definitely a change of pace from the summer semester, and it's great.  Things were getting so slow at the end there that it was almost too much to bear.  Much, much busier now!

3.  Got 100% on my first ever FSU assignment... Granted it was only a short post introducing yourself but hey, gotta start somewhere, right?

4.  Blonde is happening!!  Going on Saturday to get my hair done and hopefully lightening the rest up!

5.  I have officially decided to gear my education in the direction of becoming a professor.  English, possibly/probably.  Ya know what would be awesome though?  If I had just gone with that idea when I first had it at about 16, instead of being incredibly indecisive for the past (at least) 5 years. 

6.  I will be going to Atlanta in November for my birthday!  Well, not actually for my birthday.  But I'll be there on my birthday.  I'm going with my friend/co-worker, Marcia.  We're both on something called the Access Services Team at the Library and we're going to a conference in ATL for Access Services Team members. I've heard there's an awesome aquarium there!!

7.  Everything at my new place is finally settling down and looking good.  Just a few last boxes to unpack and some more decorating ideas I want to get in place.

8.  I'm re-reading Harry Potter... Okay this really isn't that exciting.  If you know me, there's probably a 50/50 chance that at any point in time I'm reading a Harry Potter book.  However, I haven't actually re-read the entire series, in order, in years.  On book 3 now!

I feel like I'm forgetting something but whatever it is, I'm sure I'll remember it as soon as I post this.

Also, I know I still need to take some proper pictures of my apartment and post them... Coming soon!!

-teddy x

5 top 5's

I am a huge fan of lists. I make at least one a day. Usually to-do lists, but I'm a bigger fan of fun lists. So tonight I've put together 5 lists with 5 top things* on each of them. They've been posted in no specific order. They all win top place.

*Top 5's are subject to change, as I am extremely indecisive. These only reflect my thoughts as of this moment.

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Top 5 Places I Want to Travel

Saint Tropez, France (or just all of Southern France)

Santorini, Greece

Antigua, Guatemala

Jaisalmer, India

Oslo, Norway (or wherever I can see the Northern Lights)

India. The colors. The architecture.

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Top 5 Hobbies I'd Like to Learn

Piano

Ukulele

Pottery

Painting

Sewing (I want to make clothes)

I feel like I could do this for hours if I learned how.
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Top 5 Coolest Animals

Wrinkly dogs

Anything pygmy (goat, owl, marmoset, etc.)
Red pandas

Wolves

Painted Indian elephants

All the cute.

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Top 5 Reading List

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Harry Potter (because this will never not be on my reading list)

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

I will always live vicariously through The Secret Garden.

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Top 5 Yummiest Food Places

The Real Food Cafe

Wolfgang's

Any English or Scottish pub

Chicken Shack

Maru Sushi & Grill

I could eat this every day.

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thanks for checking out my top 5 "top 5" lists!

cheers!

-ted x