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Sooo I know I promised to read 50 books this year, and I AM well on my way but have been lax on updating. Here are my most recent reads:

 #10   The Little Friend by Donna Tartt -- I listened to this as an unabridged book on tape, read by the author, which I felt greatly enhanced the experience. I really enjoyed this book and the images still sit with me a few weeks later. I don't think she has measured up to the amazing Secret History, but this is still worth a gander.

#11   Livia by Anthony Barrett  -- a wonderful biography about Augustus Caesar's wife, Livia.

#12  Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges -- This book is on the favorite list of many literary-minded friends and I have to admit that I just don't see why it's so brilliant overall. Maybe I'm the one that's not so brilliant, sigh.

#13  The Game by A.S. Byatt -- It was just ok. Nothing of the brilliance that Possession had. Overall I felt like it was rather a let down. But I bought it second hand for about $2 so I suppose it evens out.

#14  Salem Falls -- Jodi Picoult -- Better by far than The Game but still, just OK. I picked it up at the airport in Oakland in a shop that had a terrible selection of books. She has done some work with Grub Street in the past so I tend to want to patronize authors connected with one of my favorite organizations. It's an easy read but the whole teen witchy thing felt cliched.

#15 The Witch of Portobello -- Paulo Cohelo  who, according to the book flap, is one of the most beloved writers of our time (he is?).  So I haven't read the Alchemist yet, don't sue me. At any rate, this book was also a fast-paced read but I did find that the ending rather fell flat for me as some great "literary" fiction has a tendency to do. Again, maybe I just don't have an overall affinity for the esoteric? What I liked about this book was the style--not a single bit of it was told from the POV of the main character but instead, through a series of interviews of everyone that knew her.

#16  The Secret of Lost Things by Sheridan Hay -- I really liked this book partially because it was about books and about a bookstore and because the characters are so strange and peculiar. Despite the oddness of the cast, the book is very accessible and reads quickly. Definitely recommend.

#17  The Collected Poems of Carl Sandburg  --  Ahhh just plain wonderfulness. I often read poetry to Joe before we go to sleep at night. When you read poetry aloud to someone who isn't much of a reader, you realize that accessiblilty is of the utmost importance. I was struck by how many of his poems, now 100 years old in many cases are still so very relevant, fluid and modern even today.

I'm also halfway through Aldous Huxley's The Island, partway through Margaret Atwood's The Tent and sigh of sighs, only about 400 pages into War and Peace. I like the Peace portion a lot but the War portions tend to drag on for me. And I can't figure out how late 18th Russia had so many damn princes and princesses...they seem to be everywhere you turn around!  

I'm not sure how I missed this, but here, for your viewing pleasure, Linell having a chat with some rabbits...

Ahhh nerds. :)

It often doesn't come at all, instead going right from winter into spring. Joe and I took a walk over to the Mt. Auburn Cemetery today...pure gorgeousness.

over at Cork'd so if you are interested in wine add me (and by default, Joe, who knows oodles more about wine than I do).

http://corkd.com/people/crystallyn

For someone who isn't into math, I'm all about the headline equations lately.

One of the challenges of the world today is that you have to be very thoughtful of your actions in public in a way you may never have had to in the past. Politics in particular have seen how this phenomenon works. Gaffes and debacles that might have blown over ten years ago now have longevity and can go viral before you even realize it. Controlling what happens when you do stupid things is near impossible with technology like Youtube courting millions of users around the globe.

Take Monica Conyers, Detroit city council woman. Her appalling behavior will now serve as a marker for many on what not to do (like calling the bald city council president, "Shrek").

I'm not sure why I never have anything to say anymore, on either of my blogs. I'm usually spewing some drivel or another so you might think it would end up here, but well, I have to chalk it up to laziness.

At least with a list like this it proves you can find pretty much anything you want on the Net. And that Stumbleupon rules. Here are a few of my favorites to keep you busy for hours.

 And so, for your lazy link pleasure:

• Sunbeam Poem Projector
• LSD vs Alcohol vs Tree
• Stun your friends with these crazy Latin sayings!
• Mentos and Coke Record Explosion
  
  
  

  Mentos and Coke Record
• An Error
• Lots and lots of cat facts
• I am a Zombie Filled with Love
• The Ten Most Puzzling Ancient Artifacts
• Star Wars Urban Photography
  
  
  

  Don't Mess with Boba Fett
• 100 greatest dance songs of the 90s
• I'm a Creep
• Frank Melech's Dreamworld
• Book Autopsies
• Velociraptor season is here. Are you prepared?
• Don't Panic!
• To satisfy your morbid fascination
• 19.20.21
• Forbidden books
• World of Inspiration
• Sickeningly cute
• How to make roses from maple leaves (useful, I know!)
• CandyKitty will take care of your money (coveting)
• Cottonmonster
• May the force be with you
• 349 scandals in eight years with time for more!
• Face your childhood fears

That should keep you busy for now. :)

I have a few years to go but my father tells me that my new pic at the left makes me look my age. I just laughed. ;)

I've been trying to get a good pic of me for awhile so was glad when that one turned out. My hair has grown so long!

not sure which forces are aligning but my sister and I are ending our jobs at the same time. In both cases we have been a valuable part of the company and both companies really really didn't want to see us go. Her company (she manages cosmetics for a major retail department store in the southwest) was pretty much BEGGING her to stay. No extra compensation offered, just a plate of good, old fashioned guilt. Which made her waver a little, but in the end today is her last day.

And tomorrow is mine. I'm most excited to not have to use Lotus Notes anymore. Hate hate hate that product. Not looking forward to leaving behind colleagues who have become friends, especially my former manager, while I know I'll remain close to her, it just won't be the same not being able to pop down to her office on a whim and rant or rave about any given thing.

The worst thing about my sister quitting though is that my supply of free cosmetics and perfumes (Lancome, Dior, Givenchy, etc) will come to an end. And well, I can't justify spending $60 on face cream or $40 on mascara, so I guess it's back to CVS for me, sigh. Still, it was very very good while it lasted. :)

Yesterday Joe and I took advantage of the few hours of sunshine that Boston had and went down to check out the tall ship Stad Amsterdam which is docked at Rowe's Wharf for just a few days. The ship has luxury accomodations for special trips. Yesterday they had clearly done some sort of day trip and were just coming back to port. I wish I could have snagged some pictures with the sails up.

oh wait, we were...at this Jens Lekman show. In fact in watching this Joe realized that we were standing next to the guy filming. You can hear us laughing, my screaming and I can even pick out places where you can hear me singing along.

He's telling the story about the song, which is about a time when he went to Berlin to visit his lesbian friend who had lied to her father about him being her fiance--and the embarrassing dinner that ensues.