Taking a Break

I'm taking a break (as you can see) from blogging for a few weeks. I plan to be back on October 14 with Waiting On Wednesday ........ and a plan for NanoWriMo. I've had to let many things slide as there are just not enough hours in the day. However, I want to write. I need to write. So, I'm giving myself October to plan, plot, rearrange, etc. so that I'm ready to kick it into gear for November.

See you soon.

Waiting On Wednesday

What I'm Reading: Labor Day by Joyce Maynard

What I'm Working On: Finding time. It's there. I know it is. I just haven't found it yet.

Marathon Training: Love it. Love it. Love it. Plus, all my clothes are now too big. That's a nice by-product.

Waiting on: The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan; March 9th 2010 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Synopsis:

Gabry lives a quiet life. As safe a life as is possible in a town trapped between a forest and the ocean, in a world teeming with the dead, who constantly hunger for those still living. She’s content on her side of the Barrier, happy to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast while she watches from the top of her lighthouse. But there are threats the Barrier cannot hold back. Threats like the secrets Gabry’s mother thought she left behind when she escaped from the Sisterhood and the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Like the cult of religious zealots who worship the dead. Like the stranger from the forest who seems to know Gabry. And suddenly, everything is changing. One reckless moment, and half of Gabry’s generation is dead, the other half imprisoned. Now Gabry only knows one thing: she must face the forest of her mother’s past in order to save herself and the one she loves.

Why:

I have THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH on reserve at the library. I can't wait to read it, but maybe I'll wait until Carrie's new one comes out and have two in a row to read without the maddening wait for a sequel.

Waiting On Wednesday

What I'm Reading: Labor Day by Joyce Maynard and Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

What I'm Working On: Writing. (What writing?)

Half Marathon Training: I did 5 miles on Saturday and it felt great!

Waiting On: Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger.

Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group; September 29, 2009

Synopsis:
Six years after the phenomenal success of The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger has returned with a spectacularly compelling and haunting second novel set in and around Highgate Cemetery in London.

When Elspeth Noblin dies of cancer, she leaves her London apartment to her twin nieces, Julia and Valentina. These two American girls never met their English aunt; they only knew that their mother, too, was a twin, and Elspeth her sister. Julia and Valentina are semi-normal American teenagers -- with seemingly little interest in college, finding jobs, or anything outside their cozy home in the suburbs of Chicago, and with an abnormally intense attachment to one another.

The girls move to Elspeth's flat, which borders Highgate Cemetery. They come to know the building's other residents. There is Martin, a brilliant and charming crossword puzzle setter suffering from crippling obsessive-compulsive disorder; Marjike, Martin's devoted but trapped wife; and Robert, Elspeth's elusive former lover, a scholar of the cemetery. As the girls become embroiled in the fraying lives of their aunt's neighbors, they also discover that much is still alive in Highgate, including -- perhaps -- their aunt, who can't seem to leave her old apartment and life behind.

Niffenegger weaves a captivating story in Her Fearful Symmetry: about love and identity, about secrets and sisterhood, and about the tenacity of life -- even after death.

Why:

I loved The Time Traveler's Wife and she got a HUGE advance for this, so why not!

1/2 Marathon

What I'm Reading: Labor Day by Joyce Maynard and Joker One by Donovan Campbell

What I'm Working On: I think I just need to do a couple of short or new projects so that I can make myself sit down to the computer. Right now I have 0 time and 0 motivation. Maybe if I make it fun (something new), the 0 time will be less of an issue.

Half Marathon Training: Week 2! I love this stuff.

This is my schedule to prepare for my November 22 half marathon. I'm on week 2. Today, I did Monday's workout.

What do you think?

Waiting on Wednesday

What I'm Reading: I'm trying to get into Joker One by Donovan Campbell. It's billed as a story of courage, leadership, and brotherhood and I thought it might be right for my fav high school, but if it doesn't pep up soon, I won't finish.


What I'm Working On: Hahahahahha


Half Marathon training: Week one of official training (after weeeeeks spent on the eliptical, bike, and treadmill. Day 2 of 5:15 am running went better than expected.

WAITING ON: LEAVING CAROLINA by Tamara Leigh
September 15, 2009 by Random House


SYNOPSIS: Piper Wick left her hometown of Pickwick, North Carolina, twelve years ago, shook the dust off her feet, ditched her drawl and her family name, and made a new life for herself as a high-powered public relations consultant in LA. She’s even “engaged to be engaged” to the picture-perfect U.S. Congressman Grant Spangler.Now all of Piper’s hard-won happiness is threatened by a reclusive uncle’s bout of conscience. In the wake of a health scare, Uncle Obadiah Pickwick has decided to change his will, leaving money to make amends for four generations’ worth of family misdeeds. But that will reveal all the Pickwicks’ secrets, including Piper’s. Though Piper arrives in Pickwick primed for battle, she is unprepared for Uncle Obe’s rugged, blue-eyed gardener. So just who is Axel Smith? Why does he think making amends is more than just making restitution? And why, oh why, can’t she stay on task? With the Lord’s help, Piper is about to discover that although good PR might smooth things over, only the truth will set her free.






WHY:
This sounds like the type of feel good story I've been looking for. (And needing.)

Not so good

I'm not doing so good with the blog posts this month. It's been very busy. Next month I'll do better. I fell short by 2 blog posts this month in getting in my bare minimum. But September is just 3 hours away. I will do better.

Better training for my 1/2 marathon.
Better writing -- what's that book I'm working on again?
Better blogging.

Until September!

Waiting on Wednesday

What I'm Reading: Just finishing up My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Piccoult

What I'm Working On: Keeping one nostril above water -- not always successfully.

What I'm Waiting on: HUSH, HUSH by Becca Fitzpatrick

October 13th 2009 by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Synopsis: For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment. But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel. For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

Why: Do I really need a reason?