Tag: reading

Scifi Anthology

There have only ever been a few science fiction novels that I have really gotten into. But I love science fiction short stories. I also love volumes of horror short stories. I will start posting some of those ones to show what I have found to be good. I am just diving into this volume but I really like it. Lots of creative and interesting story lines.

I actually have several volumes of horror, Science Fiction, and Fantasy that I need to work through. I will probably right about those as I go. Then I’ve got this book called Year’s Best Weird Fiction. And that has some dark and strange stuff in it.

French Poetry

I love the French Romantics. Who doesn’t? The first volume of poetry I ever bought was Les Fleurs due Mal by Charles Baudelaire. Forgive me if I have butchered that spelling. I spend more time inside of that book then I do on the cover. But it was my first favorite poetry book. At the time my parents didn’t want me spending money, or wasting money as they saw it, on books because anything that could be got for free at the library shouldn’t be bought. But I was at a Barnes & Noble and saw Charles Baudelaire’s book and fell in love. I hid it in my dresser drawer under some clothes and kept my little secret for a long time. I used to take the book out after everyone in the house went to bed and read in the dim light.

Baudelaire isn’t the only French romantic I love. He’s just the first one. But what I know next to nothing about is contemporary French poetry. I don’t know what the French are writing about. Or more importantly, how they are writing it. I might be missing out on wonderful poetry that I would absolutely love because I haven’t read any poetry from France written after about 1900.

I think this book will be extremely educational at the very least. And if I find some poets I like it could really spark my creativity and lead me down some new paths for my own writing. I am looking forward to digging in this week.

 

Kindle Books

Okay, so I absolutely love books. As should be apparent to Anyone who reads my blog. But the other day I did what was rather on thinkable, and the truth is it’s not the first time in the past month. I downloaded a Kindle book to read on my phone. Actually, three of them. I still ordered two normal books with wonderful scented pages and crisp covers. But the three out of five that could be purchased in an ebook format I purchased that way.

I will miss not having a hard copy of the books, but I ordered ebooks for a couple of reasons. Number one, my library is absolutely overflowing. I have over 20 books that need to be resolved and I have no idea how I’m going to fit them. We are going to have to get at least one new bookshelf if not to over the coming months and after that there’s simply no room for any more bookshelves. So something’s got to give. Some of the books I read cannot be accessed as ebooks. Like the other two that I bought. So for those kinds of books I’m just going to have to find some way to make the house work. But for any book that I can get as an ebook I probably should. We simply do not have the space to keep up with the rapid rate at which we read.

The second reason is that some of them are cheaper as electronic books. It’s not that I’m not willing to spend good money to have hard paper copy, but when you order as many books as I have been ordering recently if you can save 2 or 7 Bucks here or there it can really add up.

The third reason is that I like being able to read on the go. I do like to bring books with me when I go out sometimes, but you never know when you’re going to get stuck waiting at the car dealership or at the airport or get to the movie theater early or anything. And I just don’t always think ahead of time that I might need a book with me. By having these Kindle books on my phone I can read anywhere I am, since I always have my phone on me because it’s smaller and easier to lug.

I can’t wait to write about what I have read.

Introverted and Tired

The past couple of weeks have been hectic. I visited my parents for two weeks in Virginia. Some of the trip was very nice.

Travel was extremely stressful. The trip home was especially bad. I had an anxiety attack in the middle of the Dallas Airport. Luckily there was someone else there, another Christian, who helped me and kept me company and prayed for me and helped me get through the day. Our second flight had been canceled and that’s what set off my anxiety attack. Luckily the airport staff got me on the next flight out, but that was delayed because there was some sort of problem with the plane and they had to fix a part. We got home late and I was completely threadbare by the time we did, but I was just grateful to have gotten home.

Now I have returned to my quiet house facing the mountains, and I am retreating back to my quiet life of books. When I got home I had many new packages of books waiting for me. I was ordering books while I was at my parents house, and I ordered some before I even left that just hadn’t arrived before I was out the door.

I live so much inside my own head. My passion for books is only burning brighter as I get older. Ever since the day I learned to read I have been obsessed with books, but as an adult I am absolutely immersed in them. As an introvert and a bibliophile I am one of those people who just needs a lot of time to themselves to decompress and be quiet and alone. And there is nothing I like better when I am alone than to get intimate with the corporeal and spiritual realities of a good book. A book with artistic language and fascinating imagery can thrill me for hours. I’ve been enjoying some time to myself for the past couple of hours. Craig and I went on a date today, but when we got home he was really tired because he worked last night, so he went to bed and is still sleeping. Our babysitter is here, so I am free to study great books and let my mind ignite.

I know this is only my second day back but I still feel so tired. I don’t think I want to travel alone again for a long time. Next time we travel Craig will be going with us. I will wait until he can come. I am just mentally and physically exhausted. I’m in this really weird state where I’m starting to be creative again, and I’m beginning to do my tasks as a homemaker again, but I find myself feeling worn down. I want to take a rest, but my mind won’t. At this point I am not even sure what rest would look like for me. Diving into books allows me to access myself almost as fully as writing does. At the same time all the ideas and images can run me ragged. I think I need the books and the time to read and write. I am just coming down from an anxiety attack. Sometimes after I have an anxiety attack I am tired and quiet for a few days. Maybe reading and writing and homemaking will help bring me back to normal.

Great Instagraming Book

Okay, so I’m not some professional social media marketer, nor do I want to be. So I’m not saying this as an expert. But I really like this book about Instagram. Instagram is a lot of fun, and there are a lot of interesting things on there. I recently started a second IG just for pictures of books I am reading or have read. A bookstagram. I like making things pretty or bright. I am not a subdued girl. And this book provides lots of pretty images to give you ideas, and features tips and challenges to stretch your creative muscles on Instagram.

If you want, follow me @bookstagrammarie

 

Gratitude, Meds, Creativity

My mood dropped a lot last night. I didn’t even finish my hot bath.  I have been uneven lately. I think my antidepressant is starting to burn out. To ward off any deep plunges, I did take double the dose a couple of times last week and that raised me up. But as soon as I stopped taking double I dropped again (yesterday). My antidepressants periodically burn out on me and I have to switch to something different. I am going to ask when I see my psychiatrist on Wednesday. Until then I will be taking double doses to keep myself going and functional and creative. Last night I asked Craig to wake me up before he went to work this morning just long enough for me to take my antidepressants early so that they would kick in by the time it was time for me to get up. The plan worked so I intend to try again. Maybe this can help keep my mood stable and help me wake up earlier in the morning. When antidepressant kicks in it energizes me. So it may be that by taking it at 6 something in the morning I’ll be awake by 8 or 9.

To help boost my mood, and because it is always a good practice, I want to list some things I am grateful for.

1. My mother and father. I am so glad they are in my life. They are wonderful parents and grandparents.

2. My sister. She is a good sister and a great aunt to Angelica.

3. Taco Bell. What can I say? I like their cheese quesadillas.

4. That I live in Hampton Roads where the Mexican restaurants have that white dip.

5. My library. It is a privilege and a pleasure to own a library full of books.

6. My cute yellow cottage. My house is perfect for me and my family. Perfect look, perfect size, perfect design, and for my husband, the perfect location.

7. Plus size stores. Plus size clothing options are still limited, but I know that there is a lot more available today than what there used to be.

8. That I got my car back Saturday from having work done on it since that lady crashed into me.

9. I am grateful to live in a time where there is so much art and music and literature readily available.

10. I am grateful to be short. I just like being petite.

Today I am at the library studying African poetry. Some countries I love. Others not as much. Overall though, I thoroughly enjoy African poetry and this Penguin volume of poetry from each country in Africa is quite educating for me. As usual, reading poetry inspires me to write poetry so I have been getting a lot of writing done. I will post that writing here, though I am not certain some of it is so good. But it feels good to create and be mentally active. Plus, I don’t want to lose any of my work and I use this blog to archive it so I need to post my poetry.