I love to read but finding the time was hard. So, I became a seasonal reader. I read a lot in the winter because I don't care to slosh around in the snow. Snow brings ice and I don't like ice. A cup of herbal tea, fluffy pillows, the afghan my aunt knitted for me before she past away and a good book.
My dad was a major influence for me regarding reading, that is something we shared when I was little. Anything and everything that Johnson Public Library offered, my dad had me there to enjoy and participate. That is how I would spend my Saturdays. Go to the library and right across the street was the movie theater. That is where I also discovered my love for movies. I can read at least two books within two weeks if I am into them but I usually stretch it out.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Writing Essays
It has been 25 years since I had to write an essay. Last semester, I got my feet wet one might say. It is difficult for me to make my thoughts clear. I tend to write like I talk and that is all over the place, I ramble a lot. I read it out loud after and find myself changing things. I try to write down thoughts that come to me but most of the time it does not always get into the paper. I prefer reading than writing. The way I am going a writer I will never be. :-(
Saturday, September 26, 2009
What's with the baggy pants?
What's with the baggy pants? What statement is being made? My mind can not grasp the concept of this phenomenon. I mean when I go to the laudromat and see this lovely vision in front of me, a man my age and a little overweight, I'm saying enough is enough. Where is the inspiration to walk like a duck and be a walking oxymoron?
I'm just saying if your life was in danger, how would you get away? It defeats the purpose of the invention of the belt not to mention if your willing to show your underwear, why the long shirt?
Repairmen were stigmatized because of the butt crack visual and not we have a whole new ball game that sets the imagination off in so many directions. At least, when you saw the repairman bend over you knew what you were in for because it was in your face. Now, it is up to the imagination going in every direction of what this visual implies.
To me it says: (1) I want to be cool and unique, the only problem with that is every nationality is doing it and the older men, JayZ. (2) I didn't have time to do the wash when I decided to put these pants on. If your underwear has to be seen, let us not see the tag. (3) It shows X marks the spot, a road map to we don't want to know where it goes. If your underwear has to be seen, can we not have the visual of it seeping into your inner netherworld.
I just can't fanthom what you are trying to say with this trend. Each generation has a need for expression and when you express yourself like this, it just makes me think what the @#$%!!!!
I'm just saying if your life was in danger, how would you get away? It defeats the purpose of the invention of the belt not to mention if your willing to show your underwear, why the long shirt?
Repairmen were stigmatized because of the butt crack visual and not we have a whole new ball game that sets the imagination off in so many directions. At least, when you saw the repairman bend over you knew what you were in for because it was in your face. Now, it is up to the imagination going in every direction of what this visual implies.
To me it says: (1) I want to be cool and unique, the only problem with that is every nationality is doing it and the older men, JayZ. (2) I didn't have time to do the wash when I decided to put these pants on. If your underwear has to be seen, let us not see the tag. (3) It shows X marks the spot, a road map to we don't want to know where it goes. If your underwear has to be seen, can we not have the visual of it seeping into your inner netherworld.
I just can't fanthom what you are trying to say with this trend. Each generation has a need for expression and when you express yourself like this, it just makes me think what the @#$%!!!!
Dead Until Dark
Welcome to the world of young adult horror fiction. The first book that I am reading is "Dead Until Dark". The protagonist in this story is Sookie Stackhouse. She is a cocktail waitress in a small town called Bon Temp, Louisiana. Sookie has an unusual gift but to her it is a disability.
She is a clairvoyant and spent most of her life trying to block people's thoughts out of her own mind. Trying to have a coherent conversation with people made it difficult, so the town just deemed her crazy Sookie.
Her life was not going anywhere until she met Bill the vampire, at her place of work, Merlotte's. Apparently, prior to her meeting the Vampires came out of the coffin. To acclimate into society, they claimed to have a virus that causes them to have a reaction to sunlight, garlic, and silver. Their blood have great healing powers not to mention that it is a highly potent aphrodisiac. Which makes it a hot commodity on the black market.
Drainers, like the Rattrays or the Ratts as Sookie often refers to them, were syphoning Bill's blood using the silver to incapacitate him. Sookie gets a chain from her brother's truck and to the rescue she goes saving Bill. Later Bill returns the favor after the Ratts retaliate against Sookie and gives his blood to restore her back to health. However, the Ratts suddenly become dead meat due to a Tornado that touched down in just their trailer park, Sookie puts two and two together and figures that Bill did that and is in awe of his vampire power.
Jason Stackhouse, Sookie's brother, describe as a hottie with brains but a womenizer found out she had a fight with the Ratts and was seen socializing with Bill Compton the vampire. Jason did not like the association with the vampire but Sookie's Grandmother did. Sookie herself seem to enjoy this new relationship, for once in her life she could be herself and relax. She could not here the vampire's thoughts which was wonderful for her. It seems that word got around about Sookie's new boyfriend and everyone had an opinion. Like it was not bad enough they thought of her as crazy but now they thought she was pathetic because the only relationship she could have is with a man that is neither alive or dead or dead until dark. Bon Temps is a very small town, if you were to fart the whole town would know about it.
Meanwhile, between all this romance going on, murders of local women, who work blue collar jobs and have a proclivity to vampires, known as fangbangers occurred and Jason and Bill were the primary suspects. Bill, because the victims had bites in their necks from vampires but no loss of blood. Jason, because he dated and did other things with the victims, (i.e. ala Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson and recently McSteamy). Which made him the ultimate suspect..
To take suspicion off her brother and her beau, Sookie took to playing detective with the help of Bill. To Bill's dismay it did not turn out productive. Upon venturing to the vampire club called Fangtasia to get information, they encountered Eric, the Nordic God of a vampire and the oldest and strongest in the area. Eric was very enamored by Sookie and her gift and in the vampire world that is yummy but for Sookie that could be very dangerous. They did not get very far into the investigation but she managed to be obligated to help Eric in the future.
Eric was not the only vampire other than Bill that Sookie met. Enter Malcolm, Liam, and Diane. They made Nosferatu look tame. They came to cause Bill trouble, they menanced any vampire like Bill who wanted to mainstream into human society, and they died from a lynching by fire. Sookie felt who ever is killing the women in Bon Temp, put the bug in the ear of the lynch mob.
More killings happened including the murder of Sookie's beloved Gran and her brother Jason was arrested. He was found in his truck unconscious and a tape in his lap. Circumstantial evidence was against him. He had a tendency to brag to his friends Rene Lenier and Hoyt Fortenberry about his many conquest, yet he failed to mention his penchant for video taping his escapades. Alas, this was a set up and detective Andy Bellefleur relish the thought of Jason being the pervert he always thought he was. This was a bias thought seeing they were sort of high school rivals.
Sookie got her brother a lawyer and got him out on bail. During the wait for the trial, Sookie and Bill was summoned by Eric to help with investigation of fraud in his club Fangtasia. Sookie met yet another vampire, Long Shadow, a native american. It turned out Long Shadow was embezzling from Eric. Eric had to kill Long Shadow before Sookie could say his name out loud after reading the mind of one of the employees interrogated. That is against vampire law to kill another but he was smitten by Sookie. The whole experience put Sookie off of vampires for a while. Running out of space to be continued.
She is a clairvoyant and spent most of her life trying to block people's thoughts out of her own mind. Trying to have a coherent conversation with people made it difficult, so the town just deemed her crazy Sookie.
Her life was not going anywhere until she met Bill the vampire, at her place of work, Merlotte's. Apparently, prior to her meeting the Vampires came out of the coffin. To acclimate into society, they claimed to have a virus that causes them to have a reaction to sunlight, garlic, and silver. Their blood have great healing powers not to mention that it is a highly potent aphrodisiac. Which makes it a hot commodity on the black market.
Drainers, like the Rattrays or the Ratts as Sookie often refers to them, were syphoning Bill's blood using the silver to incapacitate him. Sookie gets a chain from her brother's truck and to the rescue she goes saving Bill. Later Bill returns the favor after the Ratts retaliate against Sookie and gives his blood to restore her back to health. However, the Ratts suddenly become dead meat due to a Tornado that touched down in just their trailer park, Sookie puts two and two together and figures that Bill did that and is in awe of his vampire power.
Jason Stackhouse, Sookie's brother, describe as a hottie with brains but a womenizer found out she had a fight with the Ratts and was seen socializing with Bill Compton the vampire. Jason did not like the association with the vampire but Sookie's Grandmother did. Sookie herself seem to enjoy this new relationship, for once in her life she could be herself and relax. She could not here the vampire's thoughts which was wonderful for her. It seems that word got around about Sookie's new boyfriend and everyone had an opinion. Like it was not bad enough they thought of her as crazy but now they thought she was pathetic because the only relationship she could have is with a man that is neither alive or dead or dead until dark. Bon Temps is a very small town, if you were to fart the whole town would know about it.
Meanwhile, between all this romance going on, murders of local women, who work blue collar jobs and have a proclivity to vampires, known as fangbangers occurred and Jason and Bill were the primary suspects. Bill, because the victims had bites in their necks from vampires but no loss of blood. Jason, because he dated and did other things with the victims, (i.e. ala Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson and recently McSteamy). Which made him the ultimate suspect..
To take suspicion off her brother and her beau, Sookie took to playing detective with the help of Bill. To Bill's dismay it did not turn out productive. Upon venturing to the vampire club called Fangtasia to get information, they encountered Eric, the Nordic God of a vampire and the oldest and strongest in the area. Eric was very enamored by Sookie and her gift and in the vampire world that is yummy but for Sookie that could be very dangerous. They did not get very far into the investigation but she managed to be obligated to help Eric in the future.
Eric was not the only vampire other than Bill that Sookie met. Enter Malcolm, Liam, and Diane. They made Nosferatu look tame. They came to cause Bill trouble, they menanced any vampire like Bill who wanted to mainstream into human society, and they died from a lynching by fire. Sookie felt who ever is killing the women in Bon Temp, put the bug in the ear of the lynch mob.
More killings happened including the murder of Sookie's beloved Gran and her brother Jason was arrested. He was found in his truck unconscious and a tape in his lap. Circumstantial evidence was against him. He had a tendency to brag to his friends Rene Lenier and Hoyt Fortenberry about his many conquest, yet he failed to mention his penchant for video taping his escapades. Alas, this was a set up and detective Andy Bellefleur relish the thought of Jason being the pervert he always thought he was. This was a bias thought seeing they were sort of high school rivals.
Sookie got her brother a lawyer and got him out on bail. During the wait for the trial, Sookie and Bill was summoned by Eric to help with investigation of fraud in his club Fangtasia. Sookie met yet another vampire, Long Shadow, a native american. It turned out Long Shadow was embezzling from Eric. Eric had to kill Long Shadow before Sookie could say his name out loud after reading the mind of one of the employees interrogated. That is against vampire law to kill another but he was smitten by Sookie. The whole experience put Sookie off of vampires for a while. Running out of space to be continued.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
How do I find the time to read?
How do I fit time to read in my schedule? That is a good question, since I had trouble with time management last semester, I learned to cut out TV and TIVO my shows.
I read inbetween the long days I have at BCC (Bergen Community College), while I am doing laundry (I go to a laundromat), and one to two hours at night on the days I have the short classes. Monday, Tuesday, and Friday I am able to manage the time. However, for my first book "Dead Until Dark", I have to fit in a two week time frame because it is a hot commodity right now. So, apparently there is a waiting list for this young adult horror fiction. I finished it and now I don't know if I should continue with the series or move on to the Twilight series.
I read inbetween the long days I have at BCC (Bergen Community College), while I am doing laundry (I go to a laundromat), and one to two hours at night on the days I have the short classes. Monday, Tuesday, and Friday I am able to manage the time. However, for my first book "Dead Until Dark", I have to fit in a two week time frame because it is a hot commodity right now. So, apparently there is a waiting list for this young adult horror fiction. I finished it and now I don't know if I should continue with the series or move on to the Twilight series.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
What am i reading?
As I was browsing and could not seem to find what I was looking for, a nice young lady helped me. I was not quite sure if she was some grad student or if she worked there. Anyway, I was told the genre of my book is young adult horror and the book is called "Dead Until Dark", by Charlaine Harris.
The reason why I chose this particular book is a little known series called "TRUEBLOOD" and the connection I have to Louisiana, which is where the book and the series location is based upon. I read Anne Rice books for that same theory, I am warp that way, I like quirky, but I usually read the book first, then go see the movie or watch the show to compare my imagination to the creator of the movie or show. Most of the time I find myself getting disappointed but it is rare that i am in awe. I was like that with the "Harry Potter" books. well mostly in awe, I don't care for snakes and I definitely, absolutely, undeniably don't like spiders and from what I am told because I refuse to look, they did a great job. So I look forward to my reading, I am already at chapter four. I must say that the show took quite a few liberties.
The reason why I chose this particular book is a little known series called "TRUEBLOOD" and the connection I have to Louisiana, which is where the book and the series location is based upon. I read Anne Rice books for that same theory, I am warp that way, I like quirky, but I usually read the book first, then go see the movie or watch the show to compare my imagination to the creator of the movie or show. Most of the time I find myself getting disappointed but it is rare that i am in awe. I was like that with the "Harry Potter" books. well mostly in awe, I don't care for snakes and I definitely, absolutely, undeniably don't like spiders and from what I am told because I refuse to look, they did a great job. So I look forward to my reading, I am already at chapter four. I must say that the show took quite a few liberties.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Why I think reading is fundamental
My name is Denise Smith and I am currently attending Bergen Community College, majoring in accounting.
The purpose of this blog is to offer my opinions on the books I will read and discuss with you. I learned from my father, who is an advocate for reading books, that reading allows you to have a connection with places, people and things. In reading, you can use your imagination of what the characters would look like, how a city or country would be and something you never thought of coming to fruition in your mind.
I will be having a discussion on the plot and characters of the books that I will be reading. My goal is have a better understanding of what I read and help me to improve my writing skills, in order to produce reports that are comprehensive and not condescending when I go back into the accounting field workforce.
The purpose of this blog is to offer my opinions on the books I will read and discuss with you. I learned from my father, who is an advocate for reading books, that reading allows you to have a connection with places, people and things. In reading, you can use your imagination of what the characters would look like, how a city or country would be and something you never thought of coming to fruition in your mind.
I will be having a discussion on the plot and characters of the books that I will be reading. My goal is have a better understanding of what I read and help me to improve my writing skills, in order to produce reports that are comprehensive and not condescending when I go back into the accounting field workforce.
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