Okay, I Caved!

I just pre-ordered the paperback copy of Stephanie Meyer's Eclipse, the third book in the Twilight Series, with mixed feelings. I finished Twilight earlier this month, and didn't like it much at all! I finished New Moon over the weekend (I'd already bought it, so I decided to go ahead and read it), and liked it a little better. Now I'm hoping the series will continue to warm up for me. For those of you following the Twilight Series, it looks like I'm in the Team Jacob camp so far.

I continue to be curious about the hold this series has on people. Teenage Bella seems to be at her worst when she's with Edward, vampire extraordinaire: klutzy, whiny, clingly, and dependent. Edward's family seems to accept all of this, and they remind her of her own awkward self at different times throughout the first two books. When Bella befriended Jacob (who turns into a werewolf in New Moon), she became more self-confident and adventurous. That's why I liked New Moon better--Bella became a much more interesting and well-rounded character.

I'm such a horder of books I want to read, that I am beginning to get a little overwhelmed by all the unread possibilities on my bookshelves at home, not to mention my Amazon.com Wishlist and my to-read list on Goodreads.com (there is some duplication between the two lists, but not totally). While many of the books I have at home are personal copies, many are library books (both university and public). I recently decided to start weeding books out a bit, so that I can focus on what I really want to read for a while, and make my home office a more comfortable place to read, write, and relax in the evenings. Recently, I took a few personal books I didn't want to keep to work to share with my colleagues, with the promise that I didn't expect (or even want) to see them again. This afternoon, I returned a bunch of books to the public library that I'd either finished or decided I could read later on down the road. While my bookshelves are still double-stacked when possible, and now-smaller stacks of books still abound elsewhere, my home office is looking more airy, relaxing, and productive. I feel like I have a little more focus.

Meanwhile, I have a total of seven (SEVEN?!) books in various stages of ordering and shipping at Amazon, so I'm hoping to finish up some other books at home before they arrive! Three of those books are released for shipment in August, and another won't arrive until late October, so I'm hopeful that I can make some progress between now and then. Three of the seven will arrive this week, though. I'd better stop writing and go read for a while! :)

Work Meets Running

I'm running in the Run for the Oaks 5K tomorrow morning, and they have a corporate team competition. I stepped out on a limb and solicited other interested runners at the library. Now, three of us are going to brave the rain tomorrow morning in Raleigh! I'm excited! The rain will be a bit of an adventure, or at least a good story to tell later.

Last night I went to the Athlete's Foot at Cameron Village to pick up my race packet. The man behind the table made a comment that he recognized my name, that I must run a few races around here! :) I didn't mentioned that I'm a back-of-the-packer. TMI.

I picked up a new pair of running shoes while I was at the store, but I'll save them for after the rain.

Just the Book for Me

A couple of days ago, I decided to see what titles the library I work for has about podcasting, and I was thrilled to see that Podcasting for Dummies was held by the library--and available! I started reading it yesterday, and I think it'll provide a decent introduction to podcasting and give me a good idea about 1) whether or not I really want to do it, and 2) if so, what it takes.

At the 30Threads Blogger Bash I dropped in on a couple days ago, someone I met there mentioned that someone at her work had suggested borrowing library books instead of buying them as a way to be green. I smiled when I heard that, because I'd picked this book up during a visit to Barnes and Noble over the weekend, but put it down and decided to wait. At the time, it hadn't even dawned on me to check with "my" library to see if if was there. Yay!

NC Odyssey Project: Sampson County

Today I went to Sampson County to do some genealogy research. My mom's mother, a McLamb before marriage, grew up in the town of Newton Grove. I've been to Sampson County numerous times since I started working on my family tree, and it always feels like a historical "home" whenever I drive through the county! The picture on the left is a plowed cotton field along Hwy 421. There are lots of farms in Sampson County. The picture on the right is for Spivey's Corner, home of the National Hollerin' Contest.

The county's most famous resident was William Rufus King, who was a US Representative from North Carolina, a Senator from Alabama, and the 13th Vice President of the United States! He was born in Sampson County, graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1803, and practiced law for a bit in Clinton. He had a long career in Congress, and was elected VP under Franklin Pierce. He was in failing health by that time, though, and was inaugurated in Cuba, where he's gone for health reasons. He eventually returned to his Alabama home, where he died, and was buried in Selma, Alabama, where I grew up.

I enjoyed working in the J.C.Holliday Library in Clinton this afternoon, in the North Carolina Local History Room.

Sampson County is the second largest in the state in terms of square mileage behing Robeson County. One of its most unique town names is Turkey. While driving through the county heading northwest toward home, I passed the Coharie Tribal Center on Hwy 421. I wished I stopped and taken a picture.

Beautiful Libraries

A co-worker sent us this link to pictures of beautiful libraries, and it's definitely worth a look-see! What a feast for the eyes! Check it out:

http://curiousexpeditions.org/2007/09/a_librophiliacs_love_letter_1.html

By my bed....

Last night I started reading John Kerouac's On the Road. It seems like a perfect summer reading book, especially since I've stayed close to home this summer. I've checked out a stack of classics from the library to read over the next few weeks, and am looking forward to each one. Of course, I'll take a break from the stack at hand when I get my hands on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!

Getting settled in

George and I are getting settled into our new apartment, bit by bit. We're having some drama with our washer and dryer, or lack thereof, which has put a bit of a damper on things. But I'm enjoying the place, even with walking up and down thw two flights of stairs to our third floor apartment. (Could be worse, plus the extra exercise is good!)

The towhee family seems to have flown the coop, I mean nest. I miss being able to watch them.

I'm enjoying the time off from work, though it hasn't been much of a vacation. I've been taking care of business-y things, like changing addresses on my car registration and drivers license. Today I was able to get a new library card for our "new" county, and that was kinda fun. That library system seems very good, and I was able to check out several books on CD for my new commute.

What I'm Reading

At the moment, I'm enjoying the book, Courting Trouble, by Lisa Scottoline. It's a legal mystery, and is a pretty fast read, nice for almost-summer, especially with the stress in other areas of my life. It's a nice escape. I'll probably finish it this week and return it to the light reading paperback shelves here at the library. Time to start weeding through my own bookshelves at home and see what I need to return to the library, or pass along to others, or save. I love books, and in time I'd love to have a room dedicated to books in my home.