Saturday, May 21, 2011

Blogger vs Wordpress...

I've noticed more & more lately that people are leaving Blogger & going to Wordpress. So, I went over and set up a blog there (just in case, you know, I liked it better) but call me a creature of habit, or whatever, but I like Blogger better! I think it is easier to use, costs less to have your own domain ($10 for Blogger vs $17 for Wordpress), and it's easy to create your blog design! I don't know, maybe I'm missing something? Does anyone have a reason why Wordpress is better?






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Weekly Wrap Up
(05/21/11)


posts

my week
Well, as I said previously, now that the weather is improving, I will be reading less! This week I read Bitten In Two & The Deadliest Bite by Jennifer Rardin and listened to Immortal In Death by J.D. Robb. I helped out at my friends day care a couple of days (whew! that was exhausting!) and rode my bike whenever I had a chance! It was my MIL 81st birthday, so we had a nice dinner & birthday cake on Wednesday. And that's about it really. How was you week?



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Friday, May 20, 2011

Buddy's Tail
By K. Anne Russell


Buddy Boutonnier, a big-hearted Standard Poodle, subsists in the bare backyard of a tract hme in the desert city of Yucca Dunes. MacKenzie, a Border Collie, and Javier, a Chihuahua, provide Buddy with companionship and bring him food scraps when his neglegtful owners forget to provide for him.

When Buddy's owners decide to move, Buddy meets a wonderful lady who visits his house with prospective buyers. The poodle's humans try to sell their dog and Buddy goes through a series of unsuitable living situations. The final family returns Buddy to the tract home not realizing the owners are out of town. His only lifeline, MacKenzie, is killed by an evil Hummer driver while bringing him food. Tiny Javier tries to support Buddy with the aid of Dumb Derek, a Rottweiler whose brain is damaged from years of guarding a chemical dump. The two are unable to help the poodle.

Buddy dies, but is brought back to life by Sonny, the Good Shepherd. Sonny grants Buddy's wish to go live with the wonderful lady, in return for his promise to go with Sonny when he comes back for him. Buddy has a happy life with the lady and her dog, Skootch. Together they rescue abandoned Leroy and abused Roxanne. Years later, during Skootch's fifteenth birthday party, Sonny comes for Buddy. True to his word, he goes without complaint.

Sonny takes Buddy to Haven, the canine paradise, where he is reunited with MacKenzie. Sonny explains the rules in Haven; dogs acquire free will and give up their role of caring for humans. Their only responsibility is to help guide other dogs to Haven. Buddy excels at guiding, but on a mission to bring back a bomb dog from Afghanistan, Buddy breaks the rule and helps a human, the dog's Marine partner.

The residents of Haven are furious with the poodle and he is exiled to the perimeter of paradise. There he meets a young girl who died of cancer and befriends her, another infraction of the rules. He is dragged before the communal tribunal, where MacKenzie defends him. With the help of the marine and the girl, MacKenzie convinces the judges that Buddy is not an offender, but a hero.

Buddy's story teaches young readers about the bonds of love and friendship, the role of free will in building character, the importance of responsibility in our lives, especially as it relates to animal welfare, and the acceptance of death as part of life's journey for ourselves and our pets.

My thoughts on this book.....

I loved it!!! I will be reading it to the children in my family and encouraging everyone I know to do so also.




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Thursday, May 19, 2011

Bitten In Two
by Jennifer Rardin

Jaz Parks here. I. Am. Pissed. Just as Vayl and I arrive in Morocco to secure an ancient artifact, he wakes up calling me by another woman’s name. And it’s not even a good one. But since any form of argument transforms him into an unholy terror, I’m forced to play along until the gang and I can figure out what kind of power has so vastly altered his perceptions.So it’s time for me to do what any well-trained assassin in my position might do. I attack. What follows is a hair-raising, breath-taking bullet train ride to the finish as the crew battles on multiple fronts. I now know what I have to do – I must return to hell one last time.



my thoughts~
I had a hard time with this book. I didn't know if it was the book or the fact that I knew after this one, there would only be one more and so I was wanting to drag this one out. It had all the things I loved in the previous 6 books. Jaz. Vayl. Cole. Bergman. I enjoyed reading the book, when I actually sat down to read. But still, it took me 4 days!  I would read a little and stop to do something else. In the end, I loved it. But I am sad knowing that I only have one more book to read in the series. 






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Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Waiting On Wednesday
(05/18/11)


Word has leaked to Anita Blake that hit men are headed for St. Louis- and that she, Jean-Claude, and Richard are the targets.

Publishing Details

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
Date: June 07, 2011
ISBN13: 9780425241134
ISBN: 0425241130
BINC: 3266068





I know that I've said that I have issues (and skipping) most of the s-e-x scenes the later books have had. I've heard that Hit List is close to LKH's earlier writing (but with the sex included). So, I look forward to reading Hit List and seeing for myself if the reviews I've read hold true!


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Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Audiobooks...
do you listen?

Recently, I've began listening to audiobooks. I've tried on various occasions, but always found them hard to follow for some reason. A month ago, I bought a bike and thought I would get a book on CD from the library and listen while I ride. It's FABULOUS! I love listening to someone read the book! I listen while I clean house, garden and of course ride my bike! In the last month, I've listened to Halfway To The Grave, Naked In Death, Glory In Death and I just finished Ceremony In Death! (I know, I've already read these books!) I'm addicted, I think! So my questions to you... do YOU listen to audiobooks? Do you count it as 'reading' a book?




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Teaser Tuesday (05/17/11)

Teaser Tuesday is weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading! It's a great way to check out what your fellow bloggers are reading. Anyone can play! Here are the rules:
  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from the page. PLEASE DON'T INCLUDE SPOILERS!
  • Share the author and title of the book so that others can add it to their TBR list if they want.
my teaser~

Relaxed Ra.ul was a whole different guy. Like somebody you'd want to go bowling with, because between frames you knew he'd have you rolling with stories about when he and his buddies had once hung a gigantic sign lined with old-lady bloomers from the high school roof that said NOW WE KNOW WHY NOBODY BAKES LIKE GRANDMA!

Bitten In Two by Jennifer Rardin
page 79

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Sunday, May 15, 2011

In My Mailbox
05/15/11

audiobooks from the library~
Glory In Death by J.D. Robb
The first victim was found lying on a sidewalk in the rain. The second was murdered in her own apartment building. Police Lieutenant Eve Dallas had no problem finding connections between the two crimes. Both victims were beautiful and highly successful women. Their glamorous lives and loves were the talk of the city. And their intimate relations with men of great power and wealth provided Eve with a long list of suspects--including her own lover, Roarke. As a woman, Eve was compelled to trust the man who shared her bed. But as a cop, it was her job to follow every lead...to explore every secret passion, no matter how dark. Or how dangerous.

Immortal In Death by J.D. Robb

It is 2058, New York City. Lieutenant Eve Dallas uncovers a world where technology can create beauty and youth, but passion and greed can destroy them.She was one of the most sought-after women in the world. A top model who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted -even another woman's man. And now she's dead, the victim of a brutal murder.Police lieutenant Eve Dallas puts her life on the line to take the case when suspicion falls on her best friend, the other woman in the fatal love triangle. Beneath the facade of glamor, Eve finds that the world of high fashion thrives on an all-consuming obsession with youth and fame-one that leads her from the lights of the runway to the dark underworld of New York City, where drugs can fulfill any desire, for a price
Rapture In Death by J.D. Robb
When the autopsies of three suspicious suicides reveal small burns on the brains of the victims, Eve's investigation turns to the provocative world of virtual reality games--where the same techniques used to create joy and desire could also prompt the mind to become the weapon of its own destruction.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
the cold.
Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—watches back. He feels deeply familiar to her, but she doesn't know why.
the heat.
Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he keeps the silent company of the girl he loves. And then, for a short time each year, he is human, never daring to talk to Grace...until now.
the shiver.
For Grace and Sam, love has always been kept at a distance. But once it's spoken, it cannot be denied. Sam must fight to stay human—and Grace must fight to keep him—even if it means taking on the scars of the past, the fragility of the present, and the impossibility of the future.


Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward
Fiercely loyal to the Black Dagger Brotherhood, Phury has sacrificed himself for the good of the race, becoming the male responsible for keeping the Brotherhood's bloodlines alive. As Primale of the Chosen, he is obligated to father the sons and daughters who will ensure that the traditions of the race survive, and that there are warriors to fight those who want all vampires extinguished. As his first mate, the Chosen Cormia wants to win not only his body, but his heart for herself. She is drawn to the noble responsibility behind the emotionally scarred male. But Phury has never allowed himself to know pleasure or joy. As the war with the Lessening Society grows grim, tragedy looms over the Brotherhood's mansion, and Phury must decide between duty and love....







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Help Teach A Child To Read

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library