bookworm...

for as long as i can remember, i've loved reading. sometimes i'm flying through books and at other times, i may only get through 1 in a month, but it's pretty rare that i'm never not reading something. one of the things i cannot wait to have in our house one day is a library (it can be small, doesn't even matter!) with a rolling ladder. that is what dreams are made of.

i love goodreads to keep track of what i've read, what i want to read, and also to make suggestions. i got a few books for my birthday, and then with a gift card i bought a few more. then i decided to go through dylan's bookshelf and grab a few that i've been wanting to read, which leads us to the pile below. my goal is to get these finished by the end of the year (lawyers gone bad is my 13th book this year and is what i'm currently reading; hopefully i'll be done by today or tomorrow. 13 is actually my original goal on goodreads, but maybe i'll amend that.) which shouldn't be too hard considering i only have 1.5 weeks of school left (!!) and so my focus will no longer be on homework and reading textbooks.

a good mix, but mostly true crime/legal dramas.

a couple of days after i took the above picture i remembered one last book i wanted to add to my pile. written by 2 people, this is a story within a story. the book is fictional and along all the margins are handwritten notes between two people. when it comes time to reading this, i'll have to figure out the best approach...read a page and go back and read the dialogue between the two? read a whole chapter then go back? we'll see.

there's also a lot of loose material added between the pages, like maps, postcards, and old notes. i think it should be a pretty cool read. (a little more about it here)

any other recommendations for me?

the fault in our stars...

as i was putting my shoes on yesterday to walk out the door for class, i checked my email one last time, since this professor has a history of cancelling her classes last minute. what do you know, there was an email sent a whopping 2 minutes before that, and yes, class was cancelled. that meant i had an extra 2.5 hours at home before i had to leave.

i immediately knew that i would spend that time reading 'the fault in our stars', which my friend lent me over the weekend. i got my coffee ready, got comfy, and continued on. i was already 120 pages in from the day before, and i wasn't impressed, but i figured the second half had to pick up. after all, from everything i had heard, i was expecting to fall in love with the characters,  shed many tears, and just all around love it.

i finished the book and was overall disappointed. i didn't cry, i didn't feel connected to the characters, i didn't even like the characters! i felt they were far too wise and witty for their ages and it was all just too much. i guess the fact that it's a teen book didn't help - it was just too simple. afterwards i saw the movie, and surprisingly, it was no better. i thought it really dragged on, it was rather boring, and again, i didn't cry.

i guess this is why i stay away from the fad books. except 'gone girl', that one is amazing.

weekend scenes...

this weekend consisted of...

 trying out a new-ish coffee place.

 uncharacteristically warm weather in january in canada. it was 13 degrees saturday, but the average is usually around -1.

 reading this book (i liked it!), then watching the movie right away (hated it!). (*and trying out new camera apps*)

endless peach bellini's, homemade pizza, and deep fried wings.

ok, seriously though, did anyone read or see the lucky one? i read the book in 2 days this weekend and thought it was pretty good. i was excited to watch the movie once i was done, so on sunday morning, i watched it while dylan was still sleeping. it was so completely different from the book, and not in a good way. so much was left out and changed and i just wasn't a fan. i didn't feel the chemistry between them and she just looked too old for him. i know she's older than in the book, not by much though, and in real life, but they just didn't mesh. the more i think about it, the more i think i hated the movie. meh. but zac efron was still a treat to look at for 1 hour and 40 minutes.

stiff...

working 2 jobs is kicking my a*s right now. between my new job (typically 10 hour days), and my other job, i`m lucky if i get one day off a week. i'm completely exhausted. at my first job (the one i typically work from home, tweet, facebook etc), my boss is away for 10 days and i've been left a lot of work to do. for one thing, we've got an event coming up, and i've gotta get all the posters and info cards out, and spread the word all over the city! i'm going into the office today (office to myself, woohoo!) with hopes that i accomplish a lot, and be home for dinner, or a bit earlier if i work hard; must keep focused!
i seriously come home from work and i'm ready for bed, but usually hold off until 10 or 10:30  ;) i keep telling myself things will get better/easier soon; lets hope i'm right. new jobs are tough enough as it is.

i've wanted to read this book for years. finally decided to buy it.

most of the time, i get home, watch a show or two, and then read a chapter or so. we're slightly lacking in the entertainment/date department lately with our crazy schedules. let's hope for an improvement in that sooner than later.

one extreme to another...

lately, life has been a little boring. i've been at another location for 2 weeks now, and my work schedule has pretty much been the opposite of what i typically get. while it's been a nice change of pace, and nice to get to know different people, i'm ready to get back to my regular schedule with the people i normally work with. plus, working at 7:30am is really screwing my sleeping; even though i'm an early bird, i'm not up that early (6am).

 i browsed the sale section of the book store the other day and treated myself to a new book. so far so good.

when i'm not working, this is what we're doing. and when the weather is cooperating, we're out for walks.

speaking of the weather, last week i was in shorts and a tank top. monday and tuesday of this week, i had to wear a winter coat, a scarf, and earmuffs. and they're calling for snow tomorrow. so weird. in other boring news, i have to get my passport renewed today because it expires the day before we get back from nyc. quite annoying. i'm not looking forward to likely sitting in an office among a hundred other people for a couple hours. luckily, dylan is coming with. what a way to spend my day off...

happenings...

a few things going on lately, courtesy of the instagram app, of course. (username: simply_girly)

1) forgot how great earmuffs are until i just got a pair 2) smizing? is it working? tyra?

1) i love pancakes 2) i love food, and yes, i love chinese food 3) portion control? low carb diet? not in a million years.

1) i love the birthday cakepops from starbucks. 2) it's time for the wonderful crest white strips again!

the book in the picture is 'go ask alice' and let me tell you, it was awful. the character was beyond annoying and i was so ready for the book to be over. right now, i'm reading 'i hope they serve beer in hell' and i have to say, while it's so raunchy, disgusting, and he is a major douchebag, i find it quite funny. but that's just my sense of humor. definitely an easy read.

skipping the gifts?

this year, me and dylan decided to skip christmas gifts for each other. kind of. we're getting one book for each other, because we both love to read (and both have really long amazon lists full of books), but what we're really doing is putting money that would have been used on gifts (ie. stuff) for our next trip. when or where that trip may be is still undecided. but a getaway together is way better than getting more stuff, in my opinion. and he agrees. and it's not like my parents don't spoil me, still ;)

i could barely muster up a list to give my parents. my mom bugged me for months, asking me what i wanted, and i literally could not think of a single thing. finally, late november/early december a few ideas started trickling in. mostly practical things like a wooden cutting board, a milk frother, a french press, oh and a bracelet.

plus, stockings are still my favorite ;) my mom goes all out.

(in order from l-r: chloe, mocha (the cat), my dads, dylan's, moms, and 2 for me :))

i see all these wishlists around blogland, and i only wish i could come up with lists like everyone else! it would make my moms life a lot easier. what are some things you're asking for? or just link me to your list in the comments!

word on the street...

as me and my mom were driving back into toronto on sunday, i heard on the radio there was a book festival that afternoon in queens park! after we put my stuff away, we ventured on over. it was huge! tents and books galore! it took over the majority of the park and a main street.

 delicious, i'm sure, but we passed.

on the radio they had said the author of 'the book of awesome' was there at 4pm, but when we got there and saw how big this festival actually was, i didn't even know where to go. and i would have had no idea where he was. bummer. we didn't buy anything, and we didn't really stay too long. it was just way too crowded and i wasn't finding any good deal. you win some, you lose some.

your ass is a little bony...

in the past week, i have managed to watch 4 movies. i'm not generally a big watch-a-movie-by-yourself type person, so that's a lot. most were my first time seeing them. but, that's what happens when 3 of your girl friends are in italy and croatia, another is in nyc, and dylan is on a 10 day field trip for school (but, it counts as a full credit, so that's awesome).

so what did i watch?
-friends with benefits: i liked this one. it definitely made me laugh out loud and was one of the better comedies i've seen lately. unlike bridesmaids and horrible bosses, which i know i'm totally in the minority about.
-rumor has it: the one with anniston and mark ruffalo (adorable). it was decent. it was sitting on my shelf and i had no idea what it was about, so therefore i watched it. not great, no bad. it kept me occupied for 2 hours.
-the last song: i liked this one. again, had no idea what it was about. liam is pretty cute, but miley still bugs the crap outta me. also, SPOILER, i was totally not expecting the dad plot. whoa sad!!
-black swan: this one was the only one i had seen before. nothing to really say about it, other than i love it. i love darren aronofsky, the director. i think he rocks. he also directed requiem for a dream which is one of my all time favorite movies. i picked up during black swan that it was filmed really similarly to requiem, without even knowing it was the same director. he definitely has a particular style.

hot chocolate, a book, and a webcam.

yes, i also spent the days reading. as i suspected, the book is quite funny. so, since i seem to be on a roll, any other movies i should see?


*title from friends with benefits*

books, books, books...

for christmas, one of the many gift cards i got was for indigo; comparable to your borders (i think). it was a $50 gift card, plus i had a $10 off coupon when you spend $50. great. so i found some books and then my friend who works there got me another discount and my total came to $49.10. pretty good!

the top book i'm in the middle of reading, the other 4 are the new ones i bought :) i'm still into true crime, as you can see! but i've heard good things about chelsea handler books, so i threw one in!

i just finished the last one, and i would like to get one more in before i start school next monday. because when school hits, my leisure reading takes a deep nose dive and i'm consumed in texts and court cases.

what i love is that me and dylan both have a love for books. i don't think i could ever go the e-reader route. we've both built up quite a library of books (me-mostly true crime, fashion and some girly ones; him-religion, environmental and other that are way beyond my intellectual capacity ha) and we never turn down an opportunity to visit a (preferably used) book store. heck, we went to nyc in the summer for books! well, bookstores...

books, ftw! 

& total coincidence too that the last few days everyone seems to have written posts about books; i've had this written since the beginning of the week -not a copy cat, promise ;)

book mania

since i mentioned yesterday i have read 8 books so far this summer, and i'm almost 2 more, i figured i would put a list out there for you to see...

-crime scene by larry ragle (reading). this book goes through how science and medical technology are used to solve cases. it then gives 'sensational cases' as an example. i find some chapters boring, because they can be really science based, but it's still interesting.







-slave master by sue wiltz (reading) about a man who lures women in through the internet. it's america's first known cyber serial killer. it's pretty gruesome but still a good book. right now they're laying the murder charges, so we'll see how the trial goes.. (pic via)

-blood secrets by rod englert (pic via). it looks at what really happens during the reconstruction of a crime scene. blood patterns are analyzed, you learn how they can tell what weapon was used, whether the body was moved or not..etc.and actual cases were given too. this was an easy and i actually found this one really interesting. 

 -manson in his own words as told to nuel emmons (pic via). this one is pretty straight forward...hours and hours and hours of interviews were conducted and manson was able to tell his own story. it was interesting to see his point of view, but i thought helter skelter was a much better book, which i read last summer.

 -the secret history of cults by peter haining (pic via). this was a compilation book and gave stories about 12 or so cults in the world. some were interesting and jaw dropping and others a little boring. but some of the stories, you really just can't believe the power that some people can gain over others.

 -you must be dreaming by barbara noel (pic via). this book was pretty disturbing. the author is telling her story of how she woke up during a therapy session to find her therapist raping her. it then continues after the fact and shows her battle to get justice from the old doctor. i couldn't put this book down because i just had to know the outcome and it was definitely a page turner.

-vanished by john wells (pic via). this is a hamilton, ontario based book about a man who dismembered women and had managed to get away with it for quite some time. it follows the case and all the work the officers did to catch the man involved.

-little lady, big apple by hester browne (pic via). see, i do read girly books! this one was a cute, simple, girly book. love in the big apple, what more can i say? i read this one in a few days, very easy read for say, the beach. it's not edge of your seat scandalous or anything, but it kept my attention and i enjoyed it.

-ground up by michael idov (pic via). this one is about a couple who opens a coffee shop in NYC. it follows their marriage, love and the struggles that come along with a new business. it was a bit slow at times, but overall the story was good.

 -lion eyes by claire berlinki (pic via). ugh, this book. i can't really even think of how to explain it. it's kind of a love story that happens over email and also has to do with some CIA agent stuff that comes up. it was another simple read, but kind of silly in my opinion. i got it on the sale table at a book store (wonder why!) because it took place in paris haha







so, i guess if you didn't already know, now you do-i love true crime books. i really don't think i have ever come across a boring one. and just knowing that it's all truth in those words makes it a little scary. i never get nightmares, but then again, i'm not reading them at midnight either. also, sorry for the lack of description for each book, i just wanted to give a sentence or 2 to give you an idea of what they were about and my little opinion.
and you know, so i don't seem like a total creep who only reads about death and torture, i read a few books about love too!

nyc: we went for books, we got books.

couldn't find a website for this one

mcnally jackson books

on NYU campus

partners & crime mystery booksellers

biography bookshop-i should mention that this is now shut down, and word on the street is marc jacobs bought it and is going to call it 'book marc'-cute! (it's across the street from his store)

strand bookstore

barnes and noble

three lives & co.

in the chelsea market

192 books

i love a good page turner..

this is what i picked up at the book store yesterday during my walk around the city. i started off at an underground mall nearby, and on my way home i decided to stop at indigo to get my dad his birthday card. then i got to looking around and could have easily walked out having spent $100, but i didn't-just the card. then i realized, i'm off until i start school on may 10 and i need some books! and also a good read for the bus ride next week. seeing as the books at indigo are expensive/normally priced, i decided to head on over to my favorite book store: BMV Books. they sell new and used books at ridiculously awesome cheap prices. except the book in the top left corner (which was given to my mom by a friend to give to me), i got all 5 books shown for a total of $22. score, right? had i paid the price on the back of the books, my total would have been $56.

as you can see, i definitely like a certain type of book. don't get me wrong, i love a good girly book about a girl finding her way and falling in love in paris, or shopping or..you get the point..every once in a while, but true crimes are fascinating to me. i literally just cannot put them down. i think i read about 12 of them last summer. some people don't get it, like "how can you read about murders, doesn't it make you depressed, don't you have nightmares, are you a freak?" lol but you like what you like, right?

bibliophilia

according to wikipedia....

Bibliophilia is the love of books. Accordingly a bibliophile loves books, but especially "for qualities of format." A bookworm loves books for their content, or otherwise loves reading in general. Bibliophilia is generally considered to be an incorrect, but some would say merely recent, usage. The practice of loving or collecting books is dubbed bibliophilism, and the adjective form of the term is bibliophilic. Also, a bibliophile may be a book collector.

i believe dylan and i fall under this category..while we both love reading, we also love collecting books too..

we dream to one day have such an incredible library..wall to wall, floor to ceiling-full of books.

the most common books will surely be true crime, fashion, and environmental works. i would love to also have that ladder that is attached to the wall and slides back & forth, you know the one?

think this idea, but much more modern.

anyways, the following are from "apartmenttherapy.com" and are some pretty freakin awesome libraries, granted, they arent all in homes, but still...!this is a staircase in the picture above--incase the picture is too small to tell!

i love the spiral staircase in the one below..

this one's so cozy looking.

(more from: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/roundup/amazing-libraries-around-the-world-089034 )