Some new things have come to light in regards to the Nook.
A) You can only lend a book once - IN THE LIFETIME OF THE BOOK. Not
only that, but not all books are lendable, it's up to the publisher.
B) You can't use B&N giftcards to purchase eBooks, because they have
to be associated with a credit card. That means I can't be gifted
during the holidays.
C) I already knew this, but it's coming back repeatedly to bite me in
the ass. Kindle has MUCH better prices on eBooks - period. They also
have more. I'm sure that B&N will eventually catch up, but until then
I'm screwed.
But...but... the Kindle is UGLY. Watching the videos of it doesn't
make me want to use it at all but when I watch the videos of the Nook
I do. So, do I pay more for the books now and limit myself to
selection because the device is better - and HOPE that B&N catches up
- or do I go with the Kindle and hope that the Kindle catches up in
regards to hardware?!
Oh, and I found out that the Nook is selling out like hotcakes,
they've already pushed the preorders (well, if you preorder now - mine
hasn't been pushed back) to the second week in December from the last
week in November. Maybe I can sell it via eBay and get all my money
back and then some?
Yesterday we finally made it to Disneyland! Paul & I have season passes, we
bought them in June, but we hadn't gone back since because we needed someone
to come along and help us with Evy. Paul & I decided to gift my sister early
this year for Christmas with a one day pass to Disneyland - so she could get
a season pass too. It was a lot of fun, I'm glad my sister went because she
kept reminding me not to stress out (like I always do) because we had season
passes. Our trip was filled with a lot of bumps, but just laughing through
them.
We got a late start, good traffic though. Once in Anaheim we stopped at a
Burger King for something to eat - but they wouldn't take our credit cards
so we had to go across the street to another place. We got a bit lost on the
way to the parking because Disneyland was redirecting to a different parking
structure and the signs they had were confusing. Then once we'd parked we
had to ride a bus to the park. Then we got to the park entrance and
discovered that Paul had left his wallet (and his season pass) in the car so
he had to go back. That took awhile because he had to wait for a bus, get to
the parking center, wait for another bus, and then come back. My sister & I
decided to go into the park and get her season pass, but then I discovered
I'd left HER ticket in my purse which was in the car. Luckily Paul was able
to grab it and we got into the park around noon.
We didn't ride very many rides, but we still had a really good day! Pirates
of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones, Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain - bit of
the Christmas parade. We ended up leaving pretty early because we just got
such a late start, but since we have season passes we'll be going back :)
I'm not feeling very social - online - recently. Not sure why.
I've been spending a lot of my free time playing silly Facebook games, they
are stupidly addicting. I knew I shouldn't have even glanced at one. They're
like homeless puppies, you just can't give 'em up.
Work has been slow this week, this whole month seems slow since I'm waiting
on not only my Nook but also Star Trek on Blu-Ray. Amazon gave me a great
price and promised it would be on my doorstep the day it was released. I
wonder if my Nook will be shipped with the same speed? That's one thing that
rocks about Amazon - their shipping with high profile items.
As much as I hate to admit it, because I really wanted to keep breastfeeding
& pumping until she was a least a year old, I think I might stop
breastfeeding soon. I can't seem to keep up on the medication that keeps my
supply even sufficient enough (we've been having to give her bottles of
formula at night before bed), and even if I do there's no promise that my
supply will even last much longer. Plus, I can't even fathom dieting and
losing weight while doing this and recently I've become so disgusted with my
body. That great feeling I had from knowing that I'd successfully lost all
the weight I put on with the baby is gone and now I'm just left with the
realization that I was fat before the baby too.
But I feel there is a lot standing in my way. I know that if I thought about
it, I could get past it all, but it's hard. I need to learn how to cook -
and to find recipes within my budget and experience level for just two
people. I also need to make the time to exercise as I know that dieting
alone will only do so much. My schedule is very limiting because I have to
wake up at 5am to go to work - and once I get home I just want to spend time
with my family. Most nights I'm in bed by 8:30-9pm, it's a grueling schedule
but it's not changing until AT LEAST Christmas.
But, now that I think about it, I can do it. I can change my schedule at
Christmas, breastfeed until then which'll take me to at least 9 months, and
then start trying to get myself into shape. I hate being a fat mom. I hate
perpetuating the American stereotype of fat, lazy, and careless. I do care.
You guys might remember I was talking early last week about wanting to
buy a Nook for Christmas, and I did - I pre-ordered it on Wednesday. I
figure this can be my Christmas present from anyone who wants to gift
me :) If not, then it'll just come out of my savings for a few months.
I'm really excited! I went online today and began my "eBook wish list"
and I can't wait to start filling it up. I also found a website that I
can sell some of my books to. Not all of my books are in the eBook
format, but the ones that are I'll probably sell and use that money to
repurchase in eBook format. I think my first set of purchases might be
Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, as those books are HUGE and being
able to carry all SIX (plus her companion book, that indexes
everything from between the first & fourth books) around in one teeny
device will be a dream come true - who knows, I might actually be able
to get through re-reading the series again!
So, anyone want to donate to my Nook fund, or eBook fund? :P
I remember well, the time we went after church one Sunday. We had
a larger group, six of us, no children. We had this waiter who
seemed...off. We'd all worked customer service before though, so
we didn't judge him too harshly. But after he brought us our food,
we never saw him again. We kept waiting & waiting & waiting -
really just wanting to pay and be out of there - but nothing. At last
we found someone else and let the know we just want to pay so we could
leave. Later we were told our waiter had QUIT, and walked out the
door. The owner had to call the cops because apparently he left with
people's credit cards - in his huff.
Very strange indeed.
Oh a puppy - all the way. Sure, babies come with a lot of clutter
but it's acceptable to put a baby in diapers and it's expected
to have 24-hour care. When you get a puppy, it's NOT acceptable to
use diapers - you're supposed to train them. And it's
acceptable to leave them alone for hours at a time so there is more of
a chance of mess. When Ripley was a puppy she chewed on everything
from carpet & wicker baskets to Paul's Playstation 3 - NO
JOKE.
I purchased Sabriel - by Garth Nix - as an eBook a few weeks ago, and
finished it on Monday. DAMN that's a good book. Even though I knew
what was going to happen I was still enthralled, held by the suspense,
and chilled by the visuals created.
If you've never read it, do it! I would characterize it as fantasy for
people who generally don't read fantasy. It didn't require a map, a
genealogy chart, or an index of terms. It wasn't a thousand pages long
and require three books before and three books after to understand.
Just an awesome read with fantastic descriptions and a brilliant plot.
Nix's idea of Death, a cold multi-layered river that necromancers wade
through, is amazing. The writing itself is also very...flowy I guess
you'd say? Not flowering, but just so easy to read that I want to read
it out loud with cultural accents and excited hand motions. Despite
it's seemingly dark story, this is a book I'd love to read aloud to or
at least with Evy when she gets older.
One thing I'd say though is: Give it time. My sister recently began to
read it and she found it a bit confusing at first. Having reread it, I
can understand. If you're not used to fantasy and plunging into
another world, it could take some time to get used to and comprehend.
Here's a good synopsis, if you're interested:
"After receiving a cryptic message from her father, Abhorsen, a
necromancer trapped in Death, 18-year-old Sabriel sets off into the
Old Kingdom. Fraught with peril and deadly trickery, her journey takes
her to a world filled with parasitical spirits, Mordicants, and Shadow
Hands. Unlike other necromancers, who raise the dead, Abhorsen lays
the disturbed dead back to rest. This obliges him--and now Sabriel,
who has taken on her father's title and duties--to slip over the
border into the icy river of Death, sometimes battling the evil forces
that lurk there, waiting for an opportunity to escape into the realm
of the living. Desperate to find her father, and grimly determined to
help save the Old Kingdom from destruction by the horrible forces of
the evil undead, Sabriel endures almost impossible exhaustion, violent
confrontations, and terrifying challenges to her supernatural
abilities--and her destiny."
Thanks to Jenni who suggested it :)
after we left kentucky, we had a killer driving day. we drove through Indiana, Illinois and Iowa in one day. it took us about 13 hours to do. we ended up passing through a time zone which was kind of discombobulating on top of the long drive! we got a motel room that night and ate at this gross diner and fell exhausted into bed.
Illinois - The Land of Lincoln
this reminded me of the car crash scene in Beetlejuice!
we stopped at this museum while passing through Illinois
this is NOT lincoln's hat
whoo hoo lincoln!
old timey piano
the best part of the museum - dress up in the children's section!!! (we were the only ones in the museum BTW)
sitting inside a teepee!
Iowa - Fields of Opportunities
sunset over Iowa
windmills we saw the next morning leaving waterloo, iowa
