You poked the bear!

I was super productive this weekend. I replaced the flapper in one of my toilets.

(Oh, the toilets. It is never-ending).

And then I cleaned out the drain in my bathroom sink.

All I could think of was this episode from Modern Family.



Later, when the girls are actually cleaning, they say, "Dad, we're hungry."
And Phil yells, "You won't be in a minute! Get started on that drain."

Yeah, grossest thing in the world.

If you like, you can review my daily log of social interactions.

Time for an update on the Social Life Jar.

I am now up to 33 rocks. 

A few weeks ago, I was at 22 and I had said I would get myself a reward when I hit 25. And then I couldn't figure out what to get as a reward. 

I asked for some recommendations. 

Kim said I should get a Camaro.

That seemed a little unrealistic. 

Several people said ice cream. But since I don't actually eat ice cream these days. That didn't really work. 

Carla said she gets things that she wouldn't ever buy herself normally. And that she loves getting TV on DVD. 

That sounded like a really good idea. So I ordered myself season 1 of the BBC's Sherlock. 

I can't wait for it to get here!

Yeah, you don't mind kicking ass when you have to, but otherwise you'd rather be hanging out with your sisters, baking cookies, or knitting booties.

My mom sent me a pattern for baby booties. It is a super cute pattern. But it was really hard. First, I haven't made a lot of things with shapes, and second, these boots are tiny. So the hook was tiny, and the books were tiny.



So here's my process.

I started. And messed up pretty bad.



Then I pulled it apart, and did it again. Then I gave up.

I found some simpler patterns, and made them with cheap yarn.



Then I tried the hard pattern again. With cheap yarn, and a larger hook.



And then I tried again. With the smaller hook and the nicer yarn.



It turned out really cute, right?

No, it... it's a good book. Your friends will love it. You know, it's got mazes in it and, you know, little coloring areas, sections, pop-up pictures.

Book Reviews:


Timeless by Alexandra Monir

The story:
A girl is sent to live with her grandparents. She finds a necklace that takes her back in time. She starts time traveling with the necklace and objects around her grandparents home. In the past she meets and falls in love with a young man she has been dreaming about her entire life. (Not dreaming figuratively, literally night-time dreams).

The review:
This story was a cute light read. It was really quick and had an interesting idea. The girl travels back and is actually meeting her ancestors. That gave the time traveling a purpose and interesting direction.

There were a few things I found annoying. Like the drama around the guy she falls in love with. It was rather "Twilight-y." And I was annoyed that there was a huge set-up for a sequel.

****

Elizabeth Street by Laurie Fabiano

The Story:
A true story of an Italian immigrant family that gets caught up with the Mafia. The writer's great grandmother is the main character of the story, and the writer inserts herself a little bit as well. The great grandmother is an amazing figure who overcomes a lot of huge challenges.

The Review:
The story is fascinating. The book is not.

This is one of the types of books that I am just disappointed with. The story is such a great story. It has such potential. And it just didn't meet that. The writing was flat and the characters weren't developed as characters. Because of all that, I didn't really care about them.

Because I was disappointed, I can't recommend this book.

*****

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

The Story:
Claire is visiting Scotland after World War II with her husband, and she is sucked through the stones of Stonehenge back in time. She discovers that she is suddenly in 1744. She has to find her way and falls in with a Highland clan.

The Review:
I read and read and read. And then I thought "Why is this the longest book ever?!"

So that's pretty much my review. Claire is pretty smart as a character, and she does a fairly good job of acclimating to two hundred years in the past. And then she just keeps doing really stupid things. That got annoying. And then as far as plot, there was the basic story, and stuff just kept being added and added and added, and it was the longest book ever.

And as always, I feel like I should give a parental warning like I do for my students: There is a lot of sex.

(Um, and if you are looking for some hilarious reviews, check out Goodreads. There are a couple reviews there that are super funny).