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Monday, October 19, 2015

Yup, totally failed

So in 2014, I did do quite a bit of reading, but not so much things on that list.

I did complete Flatland from that list, but really that's about it.  Instead, between that listing and now, I've read through:

Cassandra Clare's  - The Mortal Instruments # 1-5, 
Kory M Shrum - Dying for a Living
Vernoica Roth's - Divergent # 1-3
Dan Wells' - Partials # 1-3
Tony Bertauski - The Annihilation of Foreverland (#1 in a series)
Krista Walsh - Evensong (#1 in a series)
Lauri Notaro - Spooky Little Girl
Lois Lowry's - The Giver (#1-4)
Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

That's only 20.. not doing so great on the "read a lot" plan, but there is always more time to sit and read another great book.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Reading again in 2014

When I was in school, I managed to not read most of the books assigned to me.  Don't ask me how because I think I mentally checked out of English classes all together.

The ones I remember actually reading & enjoying are:
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien

I specifically remember not reading:
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain

If there were others, I've forgotten about them completely.

I spent my reading time buried deep in science fiction books by: Stephen King, John Saul, Dean Koontz, & Frank Herbert mostly.   Recently I learned to enjoy books by Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, Kevin Hearne, Jim Butcher, Terry PratchettNeil Gaiman, JK Rowling, Robert RankinIlona Andrews and so many more.

I've decided I'm ready to go back and fill in some of the gaps and read more of the classics. Best part - so many of them are available for free.



I found a collection of books available in the Google Play store  (mostly free but if there was a charge it was small, 20 books/collection)   And I've compiled them all into a "List Challenge" here:  "Publish This" Classics  That's 100 books, most of which the names I know, some I hadn't heard of before, all of which I'd be happy to check off of my "to read" list.

Will you join me?  I think I'd like to complete at least one in each month.  I think I will use the compilations I downloaded, and the inspiration from the 2014 Jane Austen Challenge


Jan-Feb - Sense & Sensibility
March-April - Pride & Prejudice
May-June - Mansfield Park
July-Aug - Emma
Sept-Oct - Northanger Abbey
Nov-Dec - Persuasion

All of these books are in the compilations (part 1) so the acquisition piece is done.  But, since I just opted for this goal today, and January is complete, with February nearly there... I'll have to switch it up a little.  With some of the books that I expect to be released in the coming months, and how much I think I can get through reasonably... here's my goal: 2-3 books/month (some new, some classics, some I merely need to finish)

January - Completed:


February - Completed


March

  1. Sense & Sensibility - Jane Austen
  2. Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions -  Edwin A Abbott, Banesh Hoffman (finished)

April


May


June


July


August


September



October


November


December









Sunday, December 22, 2013

Great Imaginations

 
I discovered Viral Nova recently. I think a facebook post led me that way. There are a variety of stories there, from heart warming histories, to art finds, and buzzfeed style lists.  Great place to lose track of some time.

Join me on a tour as I share some of my favorite finds.
Michael Paul Smith.
At first glance you think he's a simple photographer, or maybe a photo collector.
But if you dig in just a little bit farther, you see that he crafts these amazing images with a little bit of imagination and the help of forced perspective.
Learn more, donate to his village, or purchase prints at his site: Visit Elgin Park

Lacy Knudson.
What can you do with a little mixed, smooshed play-doh

Your family, a food dehydrator
A plan
& some time?
Something amazing.
Learn more about it at Dozayik.  You can even purchase gift card prints.

Sunday, July 14, 2013

I do love science

I could easily sit here all day and web surf...art (as you've seen in an earlier post) and science are everywhere.

You Tube is a dangerous place for browsing, and there is a lot more than cat videos to poke through.



Vsauce is a fun one.  A philosopher, discussing topics many of us have probably wondered about at some point in our lives.  Maybe we can't always answer the question, but somehow it's nice to know that we aren't the only one with crazy ponderings. Sometimes he's even found some studies to add to the discussion to make you want to learn more.

Is Your Red The Same as My Red?

 In this video he talks about how we each experience colors, thought, curiosity, even pain.
@tweetsauce

Then, if you get all the way through his videos...there's also VSauce2 and VSauce3



The Ri Channel - The Royal Institution
Really fun science videos, like this one about a Superconductor levitating over a magnetic Möbius strip
 



Or you could hop over to Smarter Every Day & learn about an amazon moth that creates a beautiful lacy cocoon

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Cake Wrecks

A blog all about cakes - mostly wrecks, but my favorite days are the perfections.  Jen started the blog Cake Wrecks - when Professional Cakes Go Horribly, Hilariously Wrong in 2008 and I've been watching it about half that long.  She showcases terribly decorated cakes caused by mis-understood instructions, poor spelling, poor sense of design and some overall bad choices.

Since today is St. Patrick's day, I'll borrow some examples from Jen that fit the theme.

Like this one in 2011. These poor cupcakes never really stood a chance with this heavy handed piper.


Her Tradition for Sundays is Sunday Sweets.  This means on Sunday she posts photos of amazingly decorated cakes and I'm jealous of the talent of each and every one of their bakers.

On today's page for instance, you'll see some amazing Irish themed cakes & cookies... like this one. Amazing colors & piping.  Each of the stunning works of art showcased on Sunday, also comes with a link to more info on the baker.
By: Bobbette & Belle Artisanal Pastries

Two combine both the amazing and the oh so sad, another theme is called Missed Marks.  This is a feature where the customer presents the baker with a photo of a cake (or design/logo) they would like to take home for themselves.  Very often the results are just sad.


Saturday, March 16, 2013

Ravelry

I was raised in a very craft rich household.  As a result, in my adult life I have accumulated enough craft knowledge to have learned how to do many, many different things.  I have to limit my visits to craft stores for specific projects (otherwise I'm much too tempted to come home with more projects then I can possibly accomplish in a lifetime).

My very favorite crafts though (and my biggest weakness) revolves around yarn.  Knit, Crochet, and even spinning my own yarn from raw fibers.

In late 2007 I discovered and joined an amazing community of crafters and discovered patterns and ideas from around the world that I never would have found otherwise.

If you like knit, crochet or even spinning - this site is for you.  Membership is free and if you don't already belong you are missing out.


Browse patterns from around the world.  Sometimes they're free, sometimes you'll have to buy a book or magazine, but it's a great way to peek inside a publication before you make that purchase.


Find a beautiful yarn in your favorite shop and have no idea what to use it for?  Search for your yarn and see how other people used it.

Keep a digital favorites list of projects you love, want to make, or just to use as inspiration

Keep a digital log of all projects you are currently working.  It will help you track all the details along the way, including the fiber used, how long it took you to complete, any special notes or changes you made, even how difficult the project is. 

Create a catalog of your fiber stash.  How much you have, where you bought it.  Want to offer it up to share with someone else, there's a feature that allows you to "advertise" you're willing to part with a fiber in your stash.

Create a personal library. Go through your physical library and catalog everything on your bookshelf.  Whether it's a magazine, a ravelry purchased .pdf, published book and sometimes even loose patterns.  

 Join groups (like online bulletin boards) on a huge variety of topics... not all necessarily fiber related.

Can you tell I love this place?  Like I said, if you are a knitter/crocheter/spinner... you should check it out.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

I'm Jealous of Colossal art

I love to discover new places online that showcase the artistic and scientific minds in the world.

Here are just some of my favorites.  Colossal & Jealous Curator are basically online museums.  Amazing things they find.

Colossal - Art & Visual Ingenuity 
Sculpture & Paint 3D scenes by Shintaro Ohata
LED Mushroom Lights by Yukio Takano
 Poolied Oil Paintings by Matthew Davis
Melting Ice Cream Truck by the Glue Society
Black Hole, Centrifugal paint flinging by Fabian Oefner
Composite Photographs by Shawn Clover
blending 1906 San Francisco with present day
Paper scultpures of every day objects by Vincent Tomczyk
3D Paint & Resin koi goldfish ponds by Riusuke Fukahori
Jealous Curator
Thread installation of Gabriel Dawe
Swing Installation of Ann Hamilton
Cloud by Caitlind & Wayne
Flying Houses by Laurent Chéhère

Google Art Project
If you like a brick & mortar museum, but don't have a world travelers budget, then this is for you.  Virtual tours of real museums from all around the world.
Visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam
or maybe the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Fancy a trip to Greek Acropolis?

TED Talks 
Ted stands for: Technology, Entertainment, Design.  You can download podcast versions in audio or video format, or of course watch them online live.  Most people will never get to attend a TED conference in real life, but they do give you access to everything digitally.  So many amazing idea's and stories to be discovered here.  I won't give you samples, you really have to check them out for yourself.