Just A Little Red

Confessions Of A Bookaholic – Guilty Pleasures Edition #43 – Sweet Valley High #48 – Slam Book Fever

Posted on October 26, 2014 by DMW

This book was a surprise, just the right kind of ridiculous to make my sides hurt from laughter. You won’t want to miss it! 😉

“Slam Book Fever”

Sweet Valley Scale: 5 out of 5 Twins

Slam books are the newest craze at Sweet Valley High. They are do-it-yourself books of lists and predictions about everyone in school. They start out as fun, but soon they seem to stir up big trouble. First, Jeffrey French, Elizabeth Wakefield’s boyfriend gets paired up with Elizabeth’s friend Olivia Davidson under the category “Couple of the Future.” Then Elizabeth gets matched up with the new boy at school, A.J. Morgan in the same category, and Elizabeth’s twin sister Jessica is furious because she’s the one who has fallen hard for A.J. Will the slam books and their anonymous entries spell the end of happiness for Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield?

I have to admit I wasn’t expecting much from this book. The summary made it seem like a simple space-filler edition, but I was pleasantly surprised, and by the end of the first two chapters I was highly entertained. It was a solid 4.5 edition, even better than last post’s book. By the end of the fifth chapter, this Sweet Valley book was due for an upgrade. The first perfect five out of five twins in I don’t know how long! Why? Because everyone has lost their damn minds! I laughed so hard I cried, and then I laughed some more.

Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Books, fiction, Guilty Pleasures, Reviews | Tagged "book review", "reading list", "sweet valley high", anonymous, break up, entertainment, everyone has lost their damn minds, guilty pleasure, hilarious, hunky redhead, love, man stealing, misunderstanding, rumors, slam book, student literary magazine, superlatives, sweet valley | 1 Comment

Sleep… Interrupted

Posted on October 24, 2014 by DMW

I am in productive mode, but I can’t stop yawning. Last night I got just over seven hours sleep. The day before seven hours, and so it has been… on average I still get seven hours, but I need more, my body definitely needs more – so why isn’t it happening?

Good question, but I don’t really have an easy answer. Last year I was pretty bad about getting enough rest, and my body let me know it, so one of my resolutions this year was to get at least seven hours every night. I wanted to go for eight, but I was so behind I wanted to challenge myself without setting myself up for failure. Seven hours seemed like a decent compromise. But then this year happened and my body demanded much more (blood treatments at the cancer center for example – they always leave me wiped). And I was doing it, averaging just under to just over eight hours a night. But for the last three weeks, I have slipped back into ‘under seven’ territory, and I don’t know why or how to go back to my eight-hour standard.

As much as my body needs eight hours, it is actually the problem. It’s not me. I mean I commit, I’m committed, I’m a committee. But my body just isn’t getting the memo. I usually have no problem falling asleep, but then I wake up after about seven hours of sleep. I stay in bed, try to go back to sleep, but it’s no use. Just like it is pointless to nap or try to sleep during the day – my body just won’t let me. If I go to bed earlier, I wake up earlier, and if I go to bed really late I won’t sleep in. If my body needs the sleep, why isn’t it helping itself out here?

Continue reading →

Posted in Health, humor, Life, Medical, Personal, Thoughts | Tagged "biological alarm clock", "can't sleep", "sleeping pattern changes", "sleeping pattern", "waking up too early", insomnia | Leave a comment

A New Kind Of Sick: The Lie Of Colorado Amendment 67 – Be Informed, Lives Depend On It

Posted on October 23, 2014 by DMW

Every now and then I come across a piece of legislation that makes me sick. Sometimes it is because of what it stands for (institutionalized discrimination like same-sex marriage bans for example) and other times it is because of how the amendment is written, and whether I am for it, or against it, I can already see the fallout. This upcoming election, however, I have a new kind of sickness and it surrounds Colorado’s Amendment 67. The reason for this new type of sickness… I have never seen such a blatant attempt at pulling a fast one over on voters like I have this one. It is this arrogance, dishonesty… and fear that its proponents will get away with it that is giving me serious tummy woes.

Amendment 67 seems wonderful because its big pitch is protecting pregnant women. Who wouldn’t want to protect pregnant women? I mean, that right there makes me think, “Yes, let’s protect them!” But this amendment is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, because it isn’t about protecting pregnant women, but in fact endangers a number of them. The gist of the amendment is that ‘unborn child’ will have the same definition as ‘person’ in Colorado’s criminal code.

PersonhoodUSA who is backing the amendment has exploited a real-life tragedy: Heather Surovik was hit by a drunk driver when she was eight months pregnant. She survived, but her unborn baby did not. This is a terrible tragedy, and I personally think the drunk driver should be charged with the murder of that baby. If this amendment was written to truly limit its scope, and protect pregnant women and their fetuses against violence done upon them – I would be the first to vote for it. But that is not what this is; this is just the pitch and official marketing ploy.

Continue reading →

Posted in local, Opinion, Political | Tagged "abortion ban", "Amendment 67", "informed voting", "political deception", "pro-choice", "pro-life", Colorado, elections, misleading, Personhood | Leave a comment

Confessions Of A Bookaholic – Guilty Pleasures Edition #43 – Sweet Valley High #47 – Troublemaker

Posted on October 20, 2014 by DMW

I hope you’re ready for a Sweet Valley book you don’t feel as guilt about loving, because this next installment is light on the guilt, heavy on the pleasure. Hazing hijinks, really bad dancing, and putting a rich prick in his place awaits! 😉

“Troublemaker”

Sweet Valley Scale: 4 out of 5 Twins

No one at Sweet Valley High can understand why a shy, sweet and sensitive girl like Julie Porter is attracted to someone as conceited as Bruce Patman. But no matter what anyone says, Julie sees a warmth in Bruce’s piercing blue eyes whenever he is around her. Julie’s longtime neighbor and best friend, Josh Bowen, isn’t fooled though. He’s trying to get into the fraternity Phi Epsilon, which Bruce belongs to, and knows what the arrogant senior is really like. When he hears that Bruce has invited Julie to a party the fraternity is throwing as his date, Josh is sure that Bruce has a rotten trick in mind. Josh tries to warn Julie and she is furious. She’s never had a serious boyfriend before and she can’t understand why everyone is trying to spoil her happiness. But will Bruce make Julie happy, or is he just out to break another heart?

Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Books, fiction, Guilty Pleasures, Reviews | Tagged "bad dancer", "book review", "reading list", "sweet valley high", ballet, entertainment, fiction, fraternity, guilty pleasure, hazing, prank, reading, relationships, sweet valley | Leave a comment

The Diary Art: To Journal Or Not To Journal, When You Can’t Write By Hand

Posted on October 19, 2014 by DMW

When I was younger I kept a diary pretty much my entire middle school and high school existence. Starting at the age of five, I kept sporadic written recollections but it wasn’t until I was 12 that I actually put it down into a book that I considered a friend. From the ages of 12 to 18, I went through and kept these friends, filling their pages with hopes, dreams, feelings, insecurities, fears, daily dramas, song lyrics, and poetry. Then college kind of took over my life, as did graduate school, and I was back to the sporadic thing, but I didn’t quit completely.

The Last Journal I Ever Wrote In (2003-2008)

I haven’t journaled or kept any kind of diary since 2008. And lately, more and more, I miss it – terribly. I have considered starting again, but there has been one thing that has held me back every time I get that urge. I can’t write anymore. At least not with my hand.

In April 2010, I had surgery on my left arm, and it went terribly wrong. It wasn’t something my surgeons did, it was something they found when they opened me up, a true “Oh shit!” moment. At the time my mother wanted me to sue (not out of regard to me, as much as smelling money) but I defended my surgeon from the get-go. Whenever I give it much thought, I think if anything, I owe my arm to him. Anyway, when I came out of that surgery the question of whether I would be able to keep my arm or not loomed over me, for longer than I care to admit. It wasn’t a clear case either way – my arm was getting oxygen, but barely any/not enough. Meaning cells and nerves started to die off, shut down.

Continue reading →