Jana Says

Fall projects: The plan

October 6, 2015 by Jana 20 Comments

Now that it’s fall and I’ll be spending even more time indoors, I thought it’d be a good chance to finally work on some projects I’ve been meaning to tackle but get too lazy or distracted during the summer to actually do. Let’s face it, though. Being indoors more than not isn’t exactly the best motivation for someone who just spent 10 hours binge watching How to Get Away with Murder to accomplish anything. Which is why all the projects I picked can be done while doing something else, including watching TV because as I’ve said before, I don’t think TV is that bad of a thing and you can totally be productive while you’re watching it.

All the projects can also be completed for less than $25 because I am a lady on a budget who also has a child with a December birthday and has outgrown all of her clothes (the child, not me) so there goes my money. That said, here’s what I’m working on over the next few months:

Organizing my Pocket links. They’re out of hand. I need to be able to find what I want quickly and efficiently.
Uploading, organizing, and printing pictures from my phone. The frames need a refresher and I am also terribly paranoid that I’ll lose all my photos.
Creating a TBR jar. I read this post from Heather over the summer and I loved the idea and my TBR is crazy and I always wind up pulling from the front and this would be a good way to mix it up.
Painting a wooden “L” for our living room. It goes along with the photo wall and makes it more personal. Oh, right. Our last name starts with an L. That’s why I chose that letter. Not because I have a special affinity for it.
Cleaning out my desk and desk drawers. If I’m feeling ambitious (LOLOLOLOL for days), I’ll tackle our office closet.
Framing some quotes about reading for my office and my one day it will happen reading nook. I found a few free printables and combined with some cheapy frames, it’ll make for some nice art work. See also: pictures for my daughter’s playroom and my laundry room.
Making washi tape pencils. I’m channeling my inner Kathy here. But we have approximately 2340723 pencils that are boring yellow. I figure I can make them a little prettier.
Preparing for NaNoWriMo. You know that book I’ve been working on? Well, it still needs lots of work so I’m going to do that during November.
Buying or making a wall mounted coat rack for our front hallway. I will probably wind up buying this one because I can’t find a DIY one in the right size, which is why the other projects need to stay inexpensive.
I can’t really talk about this one yet but when it’s all done, I promise I’ll tell you everything. But it’s a big one.

That’s my grand plan. I’m not big on seasonal goals like Steph and Nadine and some others and I don’t have a fall bucket list like Julia but I figure it couldn’t hurt to have some sort of road map for the upcoming months. Plus, it’ll give me something to do and if the child ever says she’s bored, I can ask her if she wants to help me with one of these.

This week in…: Volume 34

October 2, 2015 by Jana 24 Comments

At least I think it’s volume 34. Maybe it’s higher. I’ve lost count. But I don’t really think it matters much since today is THE MARTIAN DAY!!! Or, as it’s known in my house, the day I got my husband to use a vacation day so we can go see a movie while the child is in school because The Martian is the only book we’ve ever agreed on in our 19 year relationship so of course we have to go see the movie at the earliest time possible.

Also, Erin told me that you get to see Matt Damon’s ass in the movie (and even if it’s a body double I’m pretending that it’s not). Alerting you to a sighting of your celebrity crush’s naked butt is the sign of a true friend.

Let’s see what else happened this week.

Added Radiant Angel by Nelson DeMille to the DNF pile. Finished Modern Romance and picked up 4 more books. Lots of rain and impending hurricane means hours of reading time. Also, don’t forget that Show Us Your Books is on October 13. It’s the one year anniversary and Steph and I have some presents for you to thank you for a year of support and engagement.
Gave a couple of new shows a spin. The Grinder (with Rob Lowe and ~~Kevin Arnold~~ Fred Savage), The Bastard Executioner, and The Muppets (of course). Love the first two. Hopefully The Grinder didn’t use up all its good stuff in the first episode. The Bastard Executioner is violent and disturbing but quite good. The Muppets, though. I don’t want to say anything bad about my beloved Muppets but this show? Not so great.
Speaking of TV, does anyone know where I can watch Fargo, Season 1 for free? I really want to watch season 2 but not without watching the first one ahead of time.
THE METS WON THE NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 9 YEARS!!! Let the playoffs stress being.
Worked on one of my fall projects: organizing all my Pocket links. I have a ridiculous amount of saved links and need an easy way to access them, specifically the recipes and the ones I want to share with you guys. I’ll be publishing the full list of fall projects on Tuesday.
Read author profiles on Patrick deWitt and Andy Weir. My #booknerd heart is full.
Read these interesting articles: Buzzfeed nailed the differences in the way people treat physical and mental illness. Mashable shared some Easter eggs in The Martian inspired by actual NASA things. This post on envying wealthier parents. Rage Against the Machine’s bassist apologizing for Limp Bizkit. And this infographic with the 69 rules of punctuation.
Found this funny around the interwebs:

Hope you guys have a wonderful weekend, whatever you choose to do. See you on Tuesday!

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Judging Covers with The Husband, second edition

October 1, 2015 by Jana 31 Comments

This entry is part 3 of 11 in the series Judging Covers

It’s time once again for Judging Covers with The Husband! I mean, how can you not want to know his opinions after the last time and also from the man with whom I recently had this conversation:

Husband: What do you think are my chances for becoming the leader of a country?

Me: I think you have a better chance of leading a cult.

Husband: I *am* persuasive.

Exactly.

This time, we reviewed four books (well, eight, but I’m splitting it up into two posts mostly to protect your sanity because trust me). The first four, the ones we’re looking at today, are books I am ecstatic to read, especially Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick deWitt who also wrote The Sisters Brothers, one of my all-time favorite books. So of course he had some things to say about that.

Let’s explore. Same as last time, I’ll show the cover, tell you what he said, and then give the Goodreads summary and let you judge for yourself how close he came (hint: not even close, bud. Also, points for me for throwing in a Breakfast Club reference because what goes better with books than one of my most favorite movies?)

Book #1: Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick deWitt

The Husband says: It’s about fun at a nighttime castle. (Jana’s note: I don’t really know what the difference is between a nighttime castle and a regular castle)

Goodreads says: A love story, an adventure story, a fable without a moral, and an ink-black comedy of manners, international bestselling author Patrick deWitt’s new novel is about a young man named Lucien (Lucy) Minor, who accepts employment at the foreboding Castle Von Aux. While tending to his new post as undermajordomo, he soon discovers the place harbours many dark secrets, not least of which is the whereabouts of the castle’s master, Baron Von Aux.

Book #2: Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy

The Husband says: It’s about a fat, rich bitch who likes to be taken care of. Or it’s about the love of Chinese food. (Jana’s note: We had a small tiff about his choice of words for this one)

Goodreads says: Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked…until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.

Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.

Book #3: Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg

The Husband says: What the fuck is this? I’m not even sure what this cover is! It’s like the last words a serial killer says to you.

Goodreads says: On the eve of her daughter’s wedding, June Reid’s life is completely devastated when a shocking disaster takes the lives of her daughter, her daughter’s fiancé, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend, Luke—her entire family, all gone in a moment. And June is the only survivor.

Alone and directionless, June drives across the country, away from her small Connecticut town. In her wake, a community emerges, weaving a beautiful and surprising web of connections through shared heartbreak.

From the couple running a motel on the Pacific Ocean where June eventually settles into a quiet half-life, to the wedding’s caterer whose bill has been forgotten, to Luke’s mother, the shattered outcast of the town—everyone touched by the tragedy is changed as truths about their near and far histories finally come to light.

Book #4: Who Do You Love by Jennifer Weiner

The Husband says: It’s about an office romance. Because of paperclips.

Goodreads says: Rachel Blum and Andy Landis are eight years old when they meet late one night in an ER waiting room. Born with a congenital heart defect, Rachel is a veteran of hospitals, and she’s intrigued by the boy who shows up all alone with a broken arm. He tells her his name. She tells him a story. After Andy’s taken back to the emergency room and Rachel’s sent back to her bed, they think they’ll never see each other again.

Rachel, the beloved, popular, and protected daughter of two doting parents, grows up wanting for nothing in a fancy Florida suburb. Andy grows up poor in Philadelphia with a single mom and a rare talent that will let him become one of the best runners of his generation.

Over the course of three decades, through high school and college, marriages and divorces, from the pinnacles of victory and the heartbreak of defeat, Andy and Rachel will find each other again and again, until they are finally given a chance to decide whether love can surmount difference and distance and if they’ve been running toward each other all along.

Bonus conversation re: Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

Me: Do you know anything about this book?

Husband: No.

Me: Do you know who Harper Lee is?

Husband: Yes. The author of To Kill a Mockingbird. It says so on the cover.

P.S. Don’t forget the anniversary edition of Show Us Your Books is October 13 and Steph and I have some surprises in store. So make sure you read and link up!

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My library: A love letter of sorts

September 29, 2015 by Jana 29 Comments

I know you guys are thinking “oh, holy hell. Not another library post. What can she possibly tell me about the library that I don’t already know?”

It’s not really that kind of post.

I mean, you guys already know that the library is filled with all kinds of awesome things like free books and eBooks and audiobooks and magazines. You already know that it’s a great resource for workshops and children’s programming and book clubs. You already know that there’s free wifi and computers and a quiet place to read or relax.

So there’s no need to repeat all of that.

But what I do want to tell you about is my library. My third home (I’d say second but that’s really the child’s cheer gym although if I had my choice, they’d reverse themselves in order but unfortunately that’s just one of those things that really not in my control so I just deal with it and maybe also complain a little). The place that, when it sends me emails, I get all kinds of giddy.

Who doesn't love seeing this? Also, I know it says 9 items requested. Don't judge me. — Who doesn’t love seeing this? Also, I know it says 9 items requested. Don’t judge me.

Because my library is pretty kick ass.

First of all, it’s old. Really old.

Sorry for the miniature picture. If you can't read it, it says it was established in 1847. — Sorry for the miniature picture. If you can’t read it, it says it was established in 1847.

Which means it has really old books and a whole bunch of history so if you geek out over stuff like that, you’re basically in nerd heaven.

It’s a contract library which means that it’s part of the state system but also independent. So it can pretty much do whatever the fuck it wants.

Doing whatever the fuck it wants means that it gets to host really cool library and community oriented fundraisers, like painting and wine night. That’s right. You can paint. And drink. And eat. IN THE LIBRARY. That’s badass.

And when you pay your fine? Doesn’t go to the man. It goes to the library to buy more books and things the library needs. Really, it’s the only time I don’t mind paying a fine for something that’s totally unavoidable (seriously, does anyone else have a problem with forgetting to renew, online, their library books?)

There’s garden seed exchange program. True story. There’s a little filing cabinet filled with all kinds of seeds that you can take for your own growing pleasure. Then, when you get a chance, you just replace the packet. And, as an added bonus, there’s usually the literal fruits of people’s labor in baskets on the circulation desk during the summer months.

Let’s not leave out the librarians. I love these ladies. As a lifelong patron of libraries, I’ve become acquainted with many a librarian. None like these. To start, they know me and my daughter by name, without having to look at our library cards. Then there’s the fact that they actually have conversations with you. Pleasant conversations. Not just a “here’s your book and here’s when it’s due” conversation. Also, they are more helpful than any librarians I’ve ever encountered. Oh, you need a book the entire state doesn’t have? Let’s see if we can get it from somewhere else! Oh, you need a book renewed that maybe has a hold on it? Sure, we can help you out! Oh, it’s a little too loud in here? No big deal! It goes on and on. Far cry from the clinical, stereotypical librarian you normally encounter.

Essentially, my library is the Cheers of libraries.

Alcohol included.

I accept your jealousy.

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This week in…: Things from a couch

September 25, 2015 by Jana 21 Comments

Last week I was on Charlotte NC for FinCon15, which is a conference for personal finance bloggers and those in the finance industry to connect and learn and also drink. I mostly did that last one because I am not a finance blogger (obviously). But I did return home with some new friends, great memories, a bag of white chocolate Oreo popcorn (thanks, Tonya!), and a horrible, terrible cold that has been kicking my ass all week.

As a result, I haven’t done much except sit on my couch and so this week, I bring to you all the excitingish things that happened from said couch:

- finished $2 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America and started Radiant Angel. I also picked up Did You Ever Have a Family and discovered a new bookish podcast, Overdue. Reading doesn’t take a break because you’re sick.
- binge watched “Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp” so you don’t have to (trust me. The movie? Excellent. TV show? Abomination. Hopefully on purpose). I started “Hand of God” and you should get on that one. And kudos to Netflix for scoring “How to Get Away with Murder” so I can finally catch up on that.
- ordered a whole bunch of storage containers so I can start prepping my weekday lunches ahead of time. Lunch annoys me and I’d rather just take the headache and decision making out of it. Speaking of which, what’s your favorite make ahead lunch? Let me know in the comments.
- booked my room for FinCon16 which happens to be in San Diego next year and also I’ll be doing another mentoring session which I love to do so hooray for that!
- made a list of fall projects I want to work on. They’re easy and not too crafty so I should be able to complete them (I’m obviously still on a completion high from the Literary Ladies challenge). Would you guys want to know what I’m planning to do?
- watched a YouTube video on how to do an upside down French braid because #cheerhair. I *might* have cursed at the child’s coach when she announced this was the style because really, what the fuck? Why is this necessary? They don’t score points for hair.
- read some internet stuff: How to lose weight in four easy steps (it’s not what you think). 10 ways to stay healthy while working from home (really great tips that I definitely need to employ. Especially the one about getting dressed). This story about a man who embezzled $8.7M and hid for 6 years on the Appalachian Trail (there’s a link to the longform story at the bottom of the post I linked to). Why women love crime (guilty. Also, the woman who wrote the article, Megan Abbott, has written a bunch of book, some of which I’ve read. No real point to that fun fact except it is fun).
- laughed at this:

I was more productive from my couch than I thought! Who knew? Anyway, have a great weekend! See you on Tuesday (oh, I think I’m done with Monday posts for now. I struggle with Monday appropriate topics).

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Fall projects: The plan

This week in…: Volume 34

Judging Covers with The Husband, second edition

My library: A love letter of sorts

This week in…: Things from a couch

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