Books Left: 94
Current Book: Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

I’m behind again. This time it’s not because I left Wide Sargasso Sea in a plane heading to Michigan. This time I left it on a car heading to Michigan, and I was not in the car. Luckily, my parents own the car and were able to mail me back the book. I have it. I’m reading it. I don’t really have much to say about it right now. I’m still conflicted. I feel like it’s pushing a bit towards, “Rochester’s not the victim here, Bertha/Antionette is.” However, given what’s in the book itself, not just what I’ve read from Jane Eyre, I don’t completely see her as being victimized. I think that “who is the victim?” is the wrong question. I hope to have more on this once I actually finish the book.

In the meantime, I’ve gathered some interesting and hopefully amusing links over the past week:

The Brainstormer – A fun little do-dad that provides you with a plot archtype, a genre/time period, and a setting for stories, poems, pictures, comics–any creative outlet, really. It’s a lot of fun! Here are 5 random scenarios from the brainstormer (some of them make more sense than others):
“Letting Go” on a stuffy British pier.
“Rescuing a Loved One” on Al Capone’s oasis.
“Daring Enterprise” in an Eskimo hospital.
“Miracle” on a nuclear tree.
“Slaying of a Loved One” on a hippie expedition.

The Sketchbook Project – I’m hoping the brianstormer might help me with the sketchbook  project, which I recently signed up for. You sign up, get a sketchbook, fill it up by January, and then it goes on a “tour” of a few different US cities. You also get to pick a topic: mine is “…you’d be home by now.” So far I only have a few pages filled, but I’m hoping to share a few creations when I have more.

Will Independent Bookstores be the Last Bookstores Standing – This is a fascinating article about how bookstores are fairing against Amazon. While I love Amazon, it’s not quite the same as shopping in an actual physical bookstore, and I was sad when one of my local Borders closed (although quite happy about the sale, if you remember). I love independent bookstores, too. My favorite is Kramerbooks in DC.

Personal Library Kit – I need this. I’ve been loaning out books for years. I love sharing favorites with friends, and while I’ve always managed to get my books back without a fuss (I have good friends) it might be nice to make things a little more official.

Since it’s been so long since I updated, I thought I needed to give a quick update of what’s been keeping me so occupied!

Crafting

Embroidery! I love it. I recently completed an embroidery project for my mom which was a lot of fun! I wish I’d taken pictures of it to show off. Maybe she’ll read this and be inspired to send me some? I used felt and embroidery thread and I was really impressed with how it turned out. I will definitely be doing more embroidery in the future! I’m just not sure what I want to make next, or who I should make something for! It’s easier for me to make things if I have a particular person in mind.

Video Games

Recently I picked up Dragon Age: Origins and I’ve been playing it to death. I’m not crazy about the combat style. I created a mage because that’s the type of class I prefer to play in RPG type games (I’d rather have my character stand back and cast spells than be up front in the action) only to find out you have to manage your entire party’s actions. I’ve gotten good enough at working with the tactics that I can get my party through most fights while just managing what my actual character is doing. What I really like about the game is the character development of the party members. This is the best character development I’ve seen in a game since The Longest Journey–which is still my favorite game ever, partly because it’s impossible to die. I find dying in video games to be really frustrating!

Visiting Family

This Memorial Day weekend I traveled to Michigan for my brother’s high school graduation! I’m really proud of him. He’s an aspiring writer who has not only written an entire novel but also won an award in the school’s fine art’s competition for an amazing poem he wrote. He’s graduating with honors and has some great scholarships for college next year!

The photo is from last year’s 4th of July. My brother is the second from the left, surrounded by relatives. At his graduation party I was able to see most of my relatives. Both my parents having 5 siblings each, and all of those siblings have children, and some of those children have children. It’s hard getting most of them in one place! This probably wont happen again until a wedding or a funeral (hopefully the former.)

Finishing Under the Net

I’m happily reaching the end of the novel, and I should have my final review up soon! I made sure not to read it on my flight to Michigan because I don’t think I could handle leaving it on a plane a second time!