Bug & The Internet

This is our cat Bug. She is super picky about having windows open at certain times so that she can properly sun her self. She demands that all humans are home in time for curfew and if they are not she will give them a verbal warning.

Bug also likes to complain and ask to see the manager to express her displeasure that her exact and specific requirements are not being met or followed.

Bug loves to play with string. Protect all yarn projects from her or she will come and steal the yarn ball. Bug stole one yarn ball and it has been officially been dubbed "Bug's yarn ball." She has also absconded with a hoody string and shoelaces for toys. Her favorite color is blue. She will eat and destroy plants but only the ones in the blue pots.

Bug is an amazing cat who is not afraid to say what she wants and to tell people when she wants it. She knows what she likes.

The Waking Forest

I read The Waking Forest over the summer and I am not sure what to make of it. I checked it out because I had heard of it and it had popped up in my Instagram. I had no idea what the book was about and had no expectations. I will admit that the expectations I had were very low. I am pretty sure I wanted to read it because I liked the cover so much.

I was a bit confused by the beginning of this book and eventually figured out the plot. The book seemed very flowy and loose and also very much like a fairy tale. I am not sure it was quite my cup of tea. I prefer more structure and more character development.

The romance that was also in this book felt super insta-love. They met in a dream and then he appeared in the attic later and then they were suddenly in love. I just struggled with the whole premise and how we jumped into the story and I wanted more development. The relationships also didn't feel quite genuine. Everyone was close and loved each other dearly but it felt like there was no foundation for the relationship.

Overall 2.5/5 stars.

Close Friendship

A close friend is so very dear and important. The connection and relationship can feed a soul. I have found friendship to be incredibly meaningful and something that has kept me going. I have found support and also someone who will listen to me and tell me when I need to chill out.

I always wanted a really close friend that I would talk to every day and feel deeply connected with. I had it for a little when I was a young child but then that friend and I went our separate ways. I didn't meet my now close friend until I was a first-year in college. We both are a bit unclear as to what exactly is the moment we connected but at one point we started talking very frequently. We then also became inseparable and were always doing things together.

I also have found that my closest friends are diverse in terms of religion. Some are atheists and non-Christians or a different Christian. I have deeply valued these differences of faith as a way for me to grow and as opportunities to learn but I also knew I wanted a close friend who shared my faith. Then my best friend became an Orthodox Christian and is now also my godsister and that has been an immense blessing. It is incredibly wonderful to share my faith with someone so close to me. We have been able to have theological discussions and share ideas. We also have both been in choir.  As Anne of Green Gables put it she is my "bosom friend".

I have deeply enjoyed our close friendship both in a spiritual and physical sense. But now things are changing, my dear friend has had to move 2 hours away for a new job. It isn't horribly far away but we can no longer see each other every day if we wish too. Visits will require a bit more planning and preparation. I am so very thankful though to live in this modern day and age where we have the technology. We are able to call and text each other every day to stay in contact. This is a new phase for our 7th year of friendship and while I mourn the change I also am looking forward to what is to come.

Review: The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue

I was skeptical of this book at first even though I kept hearing so many wonderful things about it. I listened to it on audiobook and at first I hated the main character. I found him very difficult to relate to and pretty much a lot of things I don't like, but as the book progressed he grew on me and grew as a character and now I quite like him.

The main character is a bisexual young man in Europe in the 17th century. He is also in love with his best friend. There were so many themes of talking about sexuality, race, and gender and how they all intersect and oppression. There is even some discussion around ableism. Those were fantastic to read about. There is a trigger warning for some strong homophobia and abuse.

The story itself required a bit of a suspension of disbelief there is an also sci-fi-like element and a big mystery and the characters are running around Europe causing all kinds of havoc. I did find myself laughing out loud in my car while listening as the book was so funny. I recommended this book to many of my friends as a wonderful story.

I do wish there had been more talk about substance abuse and addiction and the intersection of those with trauma. Those elements were all there but just not discussed or explored as thoroughly as they could have been in this book. overall this was a solid 4/5 stars for me. I look forward to reading the spin-off sequel A lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy.

Enjoying Work

With summer I have had a break from my job working as a one-on-one para in a special ed classroom. I originally took this job as it was recommended that I be a para since they were so often needed. I didn't know if I would enjoy it and had some reservations in the beginning.

Now after having completed a year on the job and about to start another school year. I fell in love and enjoyed it in an unexpected way that surprised me. Being a para challenged me and I found new skills and strengths because of it. I found that I was much more capable in the special ed classroom than I originally thought. I was taught patience and thinking on my feet. I also learned much more about how the school district worked with students and families. Being a para I unexpectedly learned that I am passionate about working with families who have children with disabilities. I found an area that I can really specialize in for social work. I might even want to do graduate-level research in my grad program.

Being a para I had some wonderfully sweet moments, surprising ones, and many gross ones. My student sometimes would hit me but once when I needed an inc pack she kept insisting that I keep it on and saying sorry after. I will say I never expected to say "please don't put your shoes in the toilet" or "please don't lick your ipad" but I find that I am able to laugh about it later. I also learned how to create activities surrounding learning for my student that were at her level.

Overall, while being a para wasn't my plan at all it has worked out be amazing and I have learned so much from it. I am so grateful for the experience.

Review: The Grisha Trilogy

I finally got around to reading the Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. I am torn on how to rate this. I enjoyed it but it didn't wow me the way Six of Crows duology did. I think this is Bardugo's first series or at least one of her earlier writings but and I think you can tell. I will say that if you want to read King of Scars you do need to read this series or else Kind of Scars will make no sense.

I think the thing that made me the most confused about this book is the religion. I felt like Leigh Bardugo tried to base the religion of Ravka on the Russian Orthodox Church without actually understanding the Russian Orthodox Church or its connection with Russian culture. I cannot don't expect things to match exactly when you are parodying but there were things like the roles of saints and the Apparate that confused me and I was unclear how they related to the church. Maybe it is because I am Orthodox that it didn't make sense and wouldn't bother someone who isn't Orthodox.

I struggled to related to Alina and spoiler I do not agree with Alina and Mal being the final couple. I totally wanted Alina to be with Nicolai because Nicolai was the best character in this whole series. Honestly, the series would be 10 times better if there was more Nicolai. I read through these books pretty quickly so I might need to reread to have a more clear picture of what wasn't quite clicking for me about these books.

Side note: I specifically bought these covers because I wanted the onion domes. I am really disappointed that the new covers do not have onion domes.

Meal Prep

I am working a job, going to grad school, and also vegetarian/pescetarian. Make ahead meals are a good plan. Having frozen dinners and then saving leftovers for lunches is important. I struggle to make sure I eat healthy and nutritional food. But I shied away from doing make-ahead meals for one. It felt weird. But I was wrong.

I will admit that I have no idea how to cook for just one person. Also, it is just way easier to make a bunch of food at once. It makes a few dinners and some lunches for work.

If you are going to be getting into make-ahead meals you need to look into pyrex. They have great sized pans for smaller portions when you are making meals for just one or two people. The glassware is also perfect for the microwave at work or to pop stuff in the oven. It is just convenient and versatile. I also created a recipe for bean taco filling which is so delicious I would eat it all the time. My other favorite is a 3 bean chili I made that was just delicious and froze well to have for lunches later. I need to find a lot more recipes for vegetarian or vegan meals.  Vegetarian for most of the year and vegan meals to have during Lent.

Currently, my only struggle is to figure out how to do dinners when I have class from 6:30pm-9pm. It is just a weird time and I am trying to not eat out or eat as much junk food.

Do you meal prep?

Classism, Unions, And North & South

I love North & South. I first watched the 2005 miniseries and then I read the book. I love both versions and think the miniseries conveyed the essence of the novel very well. What most intrigued though when I first watched the show wasn't the romance. Not that the romance didn't interest me or wasn't good, but it wasn't what made North & South just top notch. What made me love North & South was the discussion of labor unions and conversations about class.

If you are unfamiliar with North & South it is set in Milton during the industrial revolution. Specifically, Milton is a town that is made up of multiple cotton mills that are run by a few rich men and then most of the lower classes work for them. The conflict that happens in the book is that mill workers go on strike specifically facilitated by the union leader Nicolas Higgins. The strike is eventually broken but the mill owners are wary of those involved in the union and specifically the leaders. Eventually, Nicolas Higgins and Mr. Thornton (main male protagonist) come to see eye to eye and understand each other. Mr. Thornton is made to better understand the plight of the workers and Higgins becomes less of a radical union leader.

That Higgins seems to compromise his beliefs about workers rights in favor of supporting "masters" more irks me. I can theorize that Elizabeth Gaskell wouldn't want to incite any strong communist leanings and could probably be understood and more of a centrist. She wanted "masters" to treat laborers better but laborers should know their place in society.

As a young teenager, I didn't particularly understand the labor movement or the purpose but reading this book helped me to understand the labor movement and the need for workers rights. That the "masters" lived in luxury and style while their workers struggled to survive in cesspits of filth is abominable. That the "masters" also willfully ignore their worker's struggles and don't listen to the idea that well-fed and well-treated workers make for an overall better profit is frustrating. The themes and ideas from this novel are still relevant today in a society that is more and more anti-union and anti-workers rights.

Review: To Kill A Kingdom

This book originally caught my eye because it was described as a Little Mermaid retelling. I love the Little Mermaid and have loved it since I was a little girl, so of course, I was interested in this book. I will say that the resemblance to the little mermaid is very slight and I would say that the Little Mermaid was more a jumping off point for the story because it is completely its own story and I LOVED it.

The main characters are Lyra who is the daughter of the Siren queen and Elyan who is a prince but also a pirate/siren hunter. Through a series of events, Lyra is punished by her mother and turned into a human and ends up on Elyan's ship with his crew. I don't want to spoil too much of the book but that is the basic framework of the story.

I listened to this book on Audible and I have to say that that also impacted my experience of the book because it was read by two different people for the two different perspectives. The woman who read for Lyra was just amazing. When she read the title of the chapters which was always the name of the character it set the tone of the chapter. When toward the end her reading of the name conveyed urgency and emotion.

The story was quick paced and also explores what it means to be human and also what love is. The is a lot of political drama happening as well. The romance that is in the story is important and part of the plot but I wasn't put off by that. I think it actually added to the richness of the story.

Overall this book was amazing and I would highly recommend picking it up and the audiobook version from Audible is wonderful.