Friday Five: TGIF

For today's list, the five things I'm most excited for this weekend. It's a simple list, but then again, everything seems a little simpler on the weekends.

1. Writing: It's been a rough week at work, which makes it difficult to come home and write, but the weekends mean I can leave work at work and focus on writing. Here's to getting one more chapter finished.
2. Chaos: I'm planning on finishing the Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness. These books have kept me on an emotional precipice since I picked the first one up two weeks ago. Seriously, I think this roller coaster might be even worse than it was with The Hunger Games.
3. DC Adventure: Some good friends are moving next week, so as a farewell, we're having a clue-based race around town to visit all their favorite places. I haven't done one of these since I was a teenager, and I can't wait to see where the clues lead.
4. The Avengers: I watched Captain America this week and I'll watch Thor Saturday afternoon, all so I won't be behind on Joss Whedon's newest film. I might not actually have time to see The Avengers until next week, but this superhero kick is kind of fun.
   
5. My Mom: Being so far away from family is never easy, but on Sunday I have an excuse to be a little homesick. I'll get to call my mom and tell her I love her, and I'll get to hear her say it back to me. What better thing to do on Mothers' Day?

Friday Five: Bad blogger. Bad, bad blogger.

I am well aware that I have been woefully neglecting my blog. To all you who come looking for book lists and NoVA children's/YA lit event news, I apologize. And to all you who come looking for updates on what I'm up to (yes, that means you, Mom), well, the lack of content is indirectly proportional to the amount of obligations in my life.

So, for this Friday Five, I have the five things preventing me from being a reliable blogger.

Number 1

I spent Veteran's Day visiting friends in North Carolina. Tim, Annie and Maddie have made many appearances in this blog, including Thanksgiving two years ago, last fall, last Thanksgiving and this Labor Day. This time we headed down to their neck of the woods to help with remolding their house. Of course, we couldn't go to Jacksonville, NC, without a quick trip to the beach.

Number 2

A much larger chunk of my time is now dedicated to my commute as my office moved into the city this month. Not that this is a bad thing. In fact, I've missed taking public transportation to work, and in the past 18 days I've to listen to tons of audiobooks.

Number 3

I've been doing a ton of manuscript critiques. While this is tons of fun and a great way to deconstruct the mechanics of writing in order to build up my own skills, all of the manuscripts I'm currently reading are historical fiction, which takes a ton of time to critique effectively. But it also means I get to learn about exciting places like Revolutionary-era London and mid-evil Scotland and even a fictitious island in Polynesia during the Victorian era.

Number 4

I started working with a personal trainer, which makes me feel obligated to do things like work out every day and pay attention to what I eat. Being healthy takes an amazing amount of time, effort and money (that I don't have). Lucky for me, two-year-old Maddie helped me out last weekend by showing me the proper form for downward facing dog.

Number 5

And of course there's the ever-present grad school applications. In fact, I'm taking the day before Thanksgiving off—not to drive anywhere or prepare food, but to write my critical essay while everyone else is gone. But least you fear I'll spend all my time writing and no time giving thanks, I ordered a ready-made Thanksgiving so I won't miss out. (P.S. This is in no way an indication that I have nowhere to go for the holiday. Don't feel sorry for me as I've been invited to several dinners, but I desperately need to finish my applications.)

Friday Five: Five Weeks in Five Pictures

The past five weeks have been a little crazy, but it's been one of those crazy wonderful months. I know that I posted a couple of these pictures, but they kind of bear repeating. So here are the five best things that happened to me in the past five week.

Chicago Trip

When you get to spend an entire week with your family and best friend, you'd be thinking about it and smiling about it a month later as well. I wish we could be together everyday, but I'll just have to be content with fond memories and plans for another trip soon.

Uncle Ron's Visit

I love when people visit me in DC, but I especially love seeing my family. So when my uncle came to town, we had an amazing few days touring the monuments—especially seeing MLK Memorial for the first time— and spending a morning at the National Arboretum—my uncle's a master gardener, which made this visit especially fun.

SCBWI Mid-Atlantic Conference

I know, I can't say enough about how wonderful this conference was. I net so many wonderful people there that I hope to keep in touch with for years to come. Joining and then volunteering with SCBWI was the best decision I've ever made.

Meeting in the Berkshires

I was asked to speak at a conference in Massachusetts, and despite the early snow, I had a wonderful time. Hopefully the attendees found my presentation worthwhile (I spoke about building relationships with local media) because I know it was lovely to meet all of them.

Grad School App

That's right, my very first graduate school application is complete (except for one promised letter of recommendation that hasn't been submitted yet). I cannot tell you what a relief it is to have the first one in—now the other two don't seem like such insurmountable obstacles. My decision to go to graduate school is seeming more and more real and getting more and more exciting.

Friday Five: The Best Things in Life Are Free

Between now and the end of October, this is the only weekend I have completely to myself. Don't get me wrong, I'm way excited to take my best friend to Chicago for the first time, I'm proud of my role in planning the Virgina Day of Service, I can't wait for the National Book Festival followed by Banned Book Week, and I love helping with the SCBWI Mid-Atlantic Fall Conference. But sometimes it's nice to spend a quiet weekend at home.

1. Read The Gray Wolf Throne by Cinda Williams Chima: I was planning on purchasing this book the day it came out, but I'm still hoping to catch one of Cinda's book signings. Instead, I had to wait until the library processed it and transferred it to my pick-up center. Then there was the rain. Oh, the rain! I was finally able to dash out for a late lunch and pick it up. Then it proceeded to taunt me from the corner of my desk for the remained of the day.


2. Fold laundry: I know there's nothing overly exotic about doing chores, but my cluttered house is driving me nuts! When my clean clothes are all put away and my floor is vacuumed, my house will be home once again. A friend of mine is also heading to her hometown of Bastrop, Texas, next weekend with a Uhaul of donations for her family's community that have been displaced by the wildfires. This will provide me with the opportunity get together some linens I no longer use and give them to a family in need.


3. Sleep, blessed sleep: I'm going to take a nap this weekend. I don't know when or for how long, but I'm going to make it happen. And because I have no other plans, I'm going to bed early. And sleeping in. And totally ignoring any phone calls, emails and text between the hours of 10 p.m. and 10 a.m., so don't even bother.


4. Walk in the rain: I know I just talked about dashing out during a lull in the rain to pick up my book, but it's different when you're in business attire and responsible for the well-being of library property. There's been a ton of rain in this area, and I want to go out and survey the water level of the creek at the end of my block. I want to enjoy the smell of damp earth washed clean by rain. And I want to be outside after sitting at my desk all week long, no matter what the weather conditions.


5. Listen to an audiobook: It's been forever since I've finished a new audiobook! I'm not sure which one I'm going to listen to yet, but whatever it is, I'll enjoy hearing it while I vacuum my living room and fold my laundry and walk in the rain and laze in bed.

Why am I still typing? I have a weekend to get to!

Friday Five: smile-worthy YA book news

1. Events: All the talk about ALA2011 has gotten me pumped for book events. I won't be in NO this weekend (the association I work for has our big convention in San Antonio), but it got me thinking about the National Book Festival, which isn't until the end of September, but they're already announcing authors who will be participating. Sherman Alexie, Cassandra Clare, Susan Cooper, Tomie dePaola, Sarah Dessen, Gordon Korman, Toni Morrison, Katherine Paterson, Brian Selznick, Chris Van Dusen and Rita Williams-Garcia will all be there. (David McCullough will also be there, but as he's an author of history books for adults, I didn't include him in my totally-excited-for list.) Do you know how long I'll be willing to wait in line to get my copy of The Adventures of Hugo Cabret and my Dark Is Rising books all signed? Yeah, you'd better bring a sleeping bag, is all I have to say.
2. Audiobooks: It's been a good year for Katherine Kellgren, who was recently named Booklist's Voice of Choice, has yet to miss an Odyssey Honor from the ALA's YALSA audiobook awards, and is a 16-time AudioFile Earphones Award winner. Now The Washington Post listed her narration of The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin as one of their three Summer’s best audio books.
3. Releases: Together again for the very first time. The 2009 Debs officially announced the release of their anthology The First Time. It will only be released as an ebook, but with fantastic authors like Sydney Salter, Carrie Ryan, Jenny Moss, Kurtis Scaletta and Jon Skovron, I'll have my ereader ready for download come October.
4. Blogs: I'm a big fan of my library's YA blog TATAL, and this week they really outdid themselves. They got a panel of four guys to discuss what attracts/detracts them in a book cover. It should come as no surprise that they prefer action shots to pictures of girls with no heads holding shoes, kissing couples are also taboo, orange is a much cooler color than pink and bold fonts matter.
5. Personal: I'm officially caught up on all the Jacky Faber books by L.A. Meyer. As I started the series Thanksgiving weekend, that means I've averaged one book a month, and now I'll have to wait until the fall for The Mark of the Golden Dragon. (To tie in to #2, I'll be sure to listen to Katherine Kellgren's audiobook version). Instead of being bummed about the long wait, which really isn't that long of a wait, I've been listening to my sea chanteys and heading over to the Jacky Faber website to get some recommendations from Louis (whom I probably shouldn't refer to so familiarly as I've never met the man, but he does have great taste in music).

Friday Five: A Bundle of Book News

Most of the people who read this blog fall into one of two categories. The first are those who know me and want to find out what's going on in my life. The second are those who love books and come here looking for book recommendations. For the people in the first group, you might not think this post is about my life, but I assure you I have spent more time contemplating these issues than anything else in my life this week (with the possible exception of my not-so-internal grad school debate). For the second group, much of this will be old news though maybe you'll be happy to see someone else cares just as much as you do. And for those of you who fall into both categories, well, that's why you're my best friends in the world.

1. ALA Youth Media Awards: I could not have been more excited for the authors honored by the ALA. This year, more than any year I can remember, the awards reflect a great cross-section on literary works for children that highlight the skill of writers and the diversity of readers. I was, however, disappointed not to see Sugar Changed the World by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos on the nonfiction list. But the Quick Picks almost made up for it by listing several of my favorite QPs.

2. Today Show Snub: My exhilaration was quickly followed by great frustration when those well-deserving winners were cut from the Today Show's usual coverage. We wonder why children aren't reading and media is taking over the lives of our children. Umm...maybe it's because we aren't setting a very good example for them. Maybe it's because we aren't instilling within them a love of books anymore. We should be ashamed of our selves that Snooki, a character who will be forgotten sooner than her tan fades, takes precedence over characters who will be a part of the literary world for more than a hundred years to come. Oh, yeah, and the 90-second Newbery videos being made as a form of protest are kind of hysterical.

3. Copyright Violations: This has not always been an issue I much cared about. But as I've gotten older, learned more about intellectual property and experienced first-hand the frustration of breaking into the publishing industry, this topic infuriates me. People, go to the library! Spend $20 on a book rather than a movie! Find a book exchange! Learn to live without a book! But for heaven sakes, don't steal from a poor author by ripping their books online, no matter how unfair you think the pricing is. Find another way to communicate your frustrations, but don't illegally download books just because you feel you are entitled to the content. Because you're not! The only person who's entitled to that content--legally, ethically and morally--is the author who created it.

4. Sad News from Lisa Madigan: It's not every day you hear a contemporary author so openly address her own mortality. Fortunately, Lisa Madigan exhibits a grace and internal strength that is far from common. A friend going through a mastectomy recently wrote her friends: "I knew I wanted to share this journey with you and not only it would allow others to cry with me but it would allow others to pray for me, to fast for me and to comfort me. Thank you so much for your prayers, for your tears and for your faith!" I thank Lisa for doing the same, and I hope her fans and the writing community will give her the same support my friend is feeling.

5. Comic Books, Poetry and Mark Twain: I think it's funny that stories on all these subjects are currently floating around the blog-o-sphere. I can't tell you how many people tell me they don't get comic books, they can't stand reading poetry, and they hope never to have to pick up another "classic" book again. But the truth is, our lives are richer for all of these types of creative works. They expand our horizons, give us commonality and at least provide us with a medium we love to hate.

Friday Five: Not Everything's about Harry

1. I wore my Muggle t-shirt under my sweater today to show my supporting HP7.1 even if I had to look business casual. Also, my sweater is maroon and I'm wearing gold accessories, if you know what I mean.

2. I won't be able to see the movie tonight because of an un-birthday party my roommate and I are having as it's the only weekend night we'll both be home between our birthdays. Just a few friends, some good food and fun games. This is the only acceptable reason for me to wait a week to see HP7.1.

3. Thanksgiving is less than a week away. We'll be on the beach, which will be a lot of fun even if it will be too cold to swim. I won't be cooking as much this year as I did last year, but my homemade mac & cheese will be back by popular request. Oh yes, I'm also planning on stealing my roommate's nephews to take them to a certain movie while everyone else is cooking.

4. My reading list is getting shorter rather than longer for the first time in years. It's nice to be able to catch up on some reading even if it was because I was too sick last weekend to do anything else. Apparently meeting the word count for NaNoWriMo and running a fever don't go well together.

5. Our schedules are coordinated for Christmas for once. My brother and I will both be home at the same time for the first time in four years and only the second time in eight years. Think we'll be able to make Mom cry again? All signs point to "Yes."

Fantasy Freak Week: Friday Five

Do I plan on proving that fantasy written for children is better than fantasy written for adults? Of course not. Just because my opinion is the correct opinion doesn't mean it can be proven. Here are five reasons MG/YA fantasy is far superior to adult fantasy.

Better editing: Adults read to escape while kids read to learn. Even if it is unintentional on their part, every time a child picks up a book, they're expanding their vocabulary, improving critical thinking and discovering new concepts at a much higher rate than adults do when they read, which means editors have to work twice as hard to make sure kids don't find typos, plot holes and faulty logic.

Faster pacing: Shorter attention span, lower comprehension levels and early bed times mean kids don't spend as much time reading in one sitting like adults do. Children's lit is usually much shorter, which forces writing to be more concise and conflict resolution to happen faster.

Stronger female leads: Females not used as sex symbols are an anomaly in adult fantasy, yet they are the driving force in teen fantasy. Only as the demographic shifts to more male readers as the audience gets older do you find fewer female leads and more females as mysterious soothsayers, damsels in distress and evil queens.

Character first, setting second: Maybe it's because of the word-count restriction thing, but children's authors spend less time establish worlds and rules and more time building characters. In order for a young reader to connect with and keep reading a book, they have to relate to the main character. Adults, however, tend to read a book even with a despicable main character if they find the concept interesting.

Truer to motive: While there are always exceptions, children's fantasy isn't trying to make a political point or driven by societal morals like so much adult fantasy is. Of course they are exceptions to this (His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman comes to mind), but political commentary tends to go over kids' heads or even turn off parents and librarians who are the primary book buyers.

A for a special Friday Five bonus...

Crossover authors: Don't be fooled. While many best-selling adult authors are amazing writers, they can't always pull of younger characters and vice-versa. Here are five authors who cross the age divide, some more successfully than others. But I'll leave it up to you to decide who does it best.

Neil Gaiman

Brandon Sanderson

Carrie Vaughn

Maria V. Snyder

Orson Scott Card

Friday Five: Five Books in Five Days

I've kind of fallen off the reading wagon lately. While I've been busy with travel and writing and other projects, it mostly just comes down to being lazy. I didn't want to think about the books I was reading, so I just didn't read anything. But now my brain has turned to mush from too much TV. Thus, the exercise process beings.

I will read five books in five days, and you're going to hold me accountable. All of these books are books I should have read months ago, so I'm kind of embarrassed to admit I haven't read them yet.

My reading list includes:

Once Was Lost by Sarah Zarr

Everything Is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis

Swoon at Your Own Risk by Sydney Salter

Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams

Matched by Ally Condie

And by next Friday, maybe I'll read my Bonus Book:

The Clockwork Three by Matthew Kirby

But that's only if  I read my two Banned Book Week books. So really that's seven books in seven days with a bonus book next Friday. Think I can do it?

Friday Five: The Canadian Edition

When I was a kid, I used to always love finding Canadian coins mixed in with the American ones. They were so similar to American coins, yet I couldn't spend them. It really blew my five-year-old mind. But Canada is much more than just useless (at least to me) coins and vast tundra. So in this edition of the Friday Five, I give to you five things that blow my mind about Canada.

1. Slings and Arrows--I've been thinking a lot about how comedy and drama go hand in hand. Even Aristotle recognized their relationship. And somehow, this Canadian TV series manages to balance comedy with drama as well as the real with the fantastical. Plus, the first season featured a pre-Notebook Rachel McAdams. How wild is that?


2. Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton--People often forget that Canada has produced vocal artists outside of Celine Dion and Alanis Morissette. There's also Leslie Feist and my personal favorite Emily Haines. The first time I heard "Doctor Blind," I had to replay it three times just so I could listen to Haines' deeply soulful voice. I mean, wow, just wow.


3. Constitutional Monarchy--Whatever that means. It's a sovereign state (technically a parliamentary democracy), but it is still somehow rules with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state just like Australia. But it's not a part of United Kingdom. Maybe I've been indoctrinated by the American prospective, but I don't get how that works. Then there's also the fact that it has two official languages even though only about 5% of the population speaks French.


4. Hockey and Curling--Again, it's probably my Americanization, but I don't understand half the rules of either of these ports. Despite becoming and "curling expert" for my college newspaper to cover the sport during the 2006 Winter Olympics, I still don't get it. And then moving to DC just in time for the Capitols to be in the running for the Stanley Cup, yeah, I don't get that sport either.


5. Eh--Or is that Ay? I always thought this was just a stereotypical Canadian joke. And then I got a Canadian roommate. Rachel was from Cardston, Alberta, and she said "Eh?" all the time pretty much every other word. I was amazed. Fiction became fact that semester, and my life has never been the same.

(Apparently Lady GaGa is also from Canada.)

So thank you, Canada, for being our peaceful neighbors to the north. Except when you're playing hockey. And curling.

Traveling with the Friday Five

1. Broadway, here I come! I'm so excited to see Promises, Promises while I'm in NYC next week. We were originally going to see the revival of South Pacific but had a last-minute change of plan. We're also going to the Guggenheim Museum, which I really wanted to see the last time I was in NYC but didn't have time for.

2. It's official: I will be touring the White House with my sister and her boyfriend when they come to visit in September. I know this is not technically travel as I drive past the White House every day, but I will take the day off work to spend time with my sister. Plus, I haven't been to the White House since I was 12 years old. Not that anything has changed since then.

3. I'm not going anywhere in October (so don't ask me to, not even over Columbus Day Weekend). The Mid-Atlantic SCBWI Fall Conference is in October, and I'll be busy helping out with that and then making revisions and putting out queries for the rest of the month.

4. Despite plans to participate in NaNoWriMo once again, I'm also going to be at the beach for Thanksgiving. It might be a little cold to go swimming at Virginia Beach, but it's never too cold to sit in the sand with a notebook and write. Plus, I'll be surrounded by adopted family and kids and food. No better brain fodder for a writers than, well, fodder.

5. Less than five months until Christmas. Yes, I'm one of those crazy people who thinks about the holiday five months out. But I can't wait to see my family again, especially since my little brother will be there this year. Just thinking about it makes me want to make a trip to Chicago before then to see everyone. Columbus Day Weekend is open...

Friday Five: Keep Writing

I go through a lot of writing ups and downs. When my life gets crazy, I don't feel like I have anything left to give a manuscript. Last month was an especial struggle for me. I felt stuck on revisions, rewriting and revisiting old material. But I feel like I'm finally coming out the other side thanks for a few tried and true tricks to overcoming writer's block.

1. Turn to a new project. You know that saying about beating a dead horse? Well, writing's a little like that as well. But sometimes, if I move on to something different for a time, I can come back to the original project with fresh eyes.
   
2. Write something, anything. I love watching words fill up a page--a physical manifestation that I can create something good. And if I'm not watching my own words fill up a page, at least I can watch the words of some else fill it up. Usually, within a couple of seconds of transcribing a song or story I love, I've jump-started my own writing.
3. Ask someone for help. I'm a very independent person, so going to someone for help doesn't come naturally to me. But the more I write, the more I realize how little I know. So I ask for a little help from my friends. My writers' (support) group is a wonderful resource that I often turn to to talk over what's going on in my life and what I can change to make the writing process work better. I also have very supportive friends and family who help me when I'm down.
   
4. Don't make excuses. I like to say "Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow?" But if I actually live by that creed, a lot of tomorrows come and go before anything gets written. So I make sure not a day goes by that I don't write something new (not revise something old), even if it's just one line in the notebook I carry in my purse.
   
5. Keep the goal in sight. My goal isn't just to finish a novel or to get publish, although these are both some superficial goals I have with writing. Really, words connect me--to other people, to the characters on the page, to something bigger than all of that. My goal is to express through a story those emotions that I can't quiet express for myself. Seeing a character deal with those emotions make it a little easier to accept them within myself.
   

Through sacrificing time, sleep, a personal life, I discover a little part of myself with each word I put on paper. So maybe my laundry doesn't get folded right away or I eat veggies from a can because I can't get to the store or I have to pull my hair up because it's too long to use the flatiron on. Writing is who I am, and as I fill up myself, everything else falls into place.

Five Easter Favorites (a little more than slightly late)

So I've been a little swamped since getting back from Chicago. I finally uploaded my Easter pictures. Here's a recap:

1. The Food—Portillos was great, Gwen's peanut butter brownie thing was fantastic and all the traditional Easter treats were accounted for. Mmmm. My mouth is watering just thinking about getting another Italian beef sandwich when I go back this summer.

2. Aunt Chris' Hoppin' Easter Bash—We played sibling rivalry bingo, had a special visit from the Easter Bunny and got to spend time together. My aunt does such a great job putting this all together. Our family is huge, but Aunt Chris makes sure each one of us feels special during the holidays.

3. Beating Tom (at a game, not violently)—Have no fear. I beat Tom. He did manage to win a round or two of Skipo, but I won overall. And I creamed him at Bang. My poor sister got stuck in the middle and refuses to play with us anymore.

4. The Polish Museum of America—Yes, I sacrificed watching the opening game and got a lot of great research done. My mom even came along and helped me go through more than a dozen old books, including one all in French. How cool is it that I got to read Casimir Pulaski's letter to his sister all about having dinner with the Washington's in the original language he wrote it in?

5. Getting Away from Washington—I don't get to spend enough time with my family. Every time I go for a visit, it's hard to leave. Babies are getting so big, cousins are growing up and life is moving on. I love living in Washington, but sometimes it's nice to be reminded of what's really important.

The Friday Five (a day early)

Because I'll be at work, in the air and with my family, I wanted to post a Friday Five on Thursday. I'm really excited to be going to Chicago this weekend, and I just couldn't help but post the five things I'm looking forward to the most.

1. The Food—Portillos, here I come! My sister is also making some peanut butter brownie thing that sounds fantastic, and I'm a fan of those traditional Easter treats deviled eggs and ham. I probably won't have time for Chicago-style pizza, but my digestive system will thank me for that later.
   
2. Aunt Chris' Hoppin' Easter Bash—Every year my aunt goes all out for Easter, but I'm never able to be there. This year, I get to enjoy all the family festivities first-hand and not just hear about it on Facebook. Plus, one of my cousins is having a baby soon, and I can't wait to see her big, pregnant belly, especially since I was away at school when she had her first one.
   
3. Beating Tom (at a game, not violently)—I love my sister's boyfriend, I really do. But he needs to learn that talking smack and actually winning are two different things. He may talk the talk, but I've got the skills to walk the walk.
   
4. The Polish Museum of America—I get to finish up my research on Casimir Pulaski and talk to the experts at the largest Polish history/culture museum outside Poland. Despite my Polish ancestry, I've never actually been there before, and going somewhere new in the city is always fun. Unfortunately, my appointment at the museum is at the same time as the Sox's opening game so I won't be able to do both. Look at the sacrifice I am making for knowledge!
   
5. Getting Away from Washington—I work for a health care reform organization, and things have been a little nuts lately. I mean, I don't get it, it's not like there's anything really big going on right now. My head is hurting trying to understand the new legislation and help answer questions. Reporters have been getting way too much of my time lately, and now I get to spend it on more important things like my family.

I plan on this being the best weekend ever. Even if it's 50 degrees out and they lose my luggage, nothing is going to stop me from having a blast. I just hope you weekend will be as good as mine.

A Friday Five for the first time in...well, I really can't recall

1. I've bee thinking a lot about time again. As many of you who regularly read my blog (or talk to me when I'm in an existential mood) know, this is a topic that intrigues me. I am not a true chronomaniac as I am not obsessed with schedules and time management, and I am kind of the opposite of a chronocentric as I believe that you have to judge people based on their own time and not the time in which you are most accustomed, and I am definitely not a chronomancer as I believe that your fate is created by the actions you take and not what time you take those actions. So my question is, what is it called when someone is obsessed with how time flows and how the past, present and future interact with each other? With how many sci-fi books on time travel there are out there and how many time theories there are in physics, I can't imagine there isn't a term for someone like me. And this all started thanks to a decades costume party I'm going to tomorrow night.

2. I can't seem to make myself sit down and read a book, write a review, work on a manuscript or do anything else at the moment. It is all I can do to make myself post on my blog. I think it's because I changed jobs at work and now spend more of my day reading newspapers, editing editorial submissions and writing media responses. I think I'm kind of burned out at the moment. Hopefully going to Chicago for Labor Day will help pull me out of my funk.

3. I have finally finished unpacking. After more than a month in my new place, I unpacked my last box this week. As this is just a temporary place, I'll have to pack and unpack everything again in January. I don't know if I'm looking forward to that or dreading it.

4. I also organized my bookshelves this week. When I realized I had far to many books to fit, I took about 25 books to the library donation books. While I always deal with a bit of separation anxiety when I give away books, I know the books will go to a good cause--supporting my local library. I also feel a bit liberated by the fact I gave away a bunch of books I have owned for years and will probably never read. Those books haunt my bookshelf. There are so many good books out there and not enough time to read them all, so I need to be a little more selective in my reading choice. Okay, if I was really reading at the moment I would need to be more selective in my reading choice. Right now I just need to chose something--anything--to read.

5. I've been feeling nostalgic for 80's sci-fi movies this week like The Boy Who Could Fly, Flight of the Navigator and Space Camp. I often get in the mood to watch these movies, so I'm thinking I need to start buying some of these classics. I also just realized all of these movies were released in 1986--I wonder if there is any significance there.