You Know You're Addicted to Books When...

I've had A LOT of time on my hands recently and I've filled a lot of that time with books and reading (which I'll probably end up recommending and posting about at a later date). I've always loved books, but summers always allow me the time to fall in love with them all over again. And due to the massive amounts of reading and time spent at the library this week, I present to you, "You Know You're Addicted to Books When..."

...you have a Kindle/Nook, but rarely use it because it can't compare to the feel and smell of a brand new/or used book.

I got this Kindle over a year ago, and I LOVE it. But it's true, I basically only use it on airplanes or long car rides because of it's convenience. However, there's always at least one actual book tucked away in my suitcase...which brings me to my next point.

...you run out of room for clothes in your suitcase.

There's a select couple of books that go with me everywhere. And they most definitely look like they go everywhere with me too. As heard someplace, somewhere, "a girl's gotta have her stuff."

...the signature on your library card is worn off.

My past roommate, Jessi, forced me to get a city library card a year and a half ago. And thank goodness! 

...you enjoy library decoration.

Honestly, who wouldn't?!?! Especially when decoration includes Nathan Fillion, Hugh Jackman, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan!

...you can spend hours on end in a bookstore.

This would be Jessi. In Barnes & Noble. For a very long time. I must say, working in a bookstore would be FABULOUS.

...you're favorite childhood memories revolve around books.

I'm the daughter of both a librarian and an elementary school teacher, so I was bound to love books, and thus my childhood has many happy memories involving books. After hours at the public library, piling up towers of books to buy at book fairs, tallying up totals on book orders, and overflowing homemade book shelves.

This book, Martha's House, has a special place in my heart. It resided in the glass covered bookcase at my grandma's house for as long as I can remember. And when she passed away a few years ago, it was one of the only things I requested to keep from her house. It's made the journey with me to college and beyond. I'm sure it'll eventually hold its rightful place inside my own glass covered bookcase one day.

...your idea of a perfect day off is a trip to a building that was built in 1892.

And what a beautiful building it is! This is the Provo City Library. It originated as Brigham Young Academy, the origin school of Brigham Young University (where I recently graduated). There's just something about reading in an old, beautiful building that contains so much history and legacy...

...your nightstand has gotten taller than your bed.

I seriously love reading right before turning out the light at night. It sometimes facilitates quite a few interesting dreams as well!

...you forget to eat lunch because you were so immersed in your book.

I may have done this the other day. I was in the middle of the third book in one of my favorite YA trilogies (Shades of Earth in the Across the Universe series by Beth Revis). I didn't get around to lunch until 4:45pm...

...your favorite movie is based on a book and every aspect of said movie has something to do with books and reading.

Matilda. My all-time favorite. So much a favorite that I rented the book it's based on by Roald Dahl, again for the 20th time. I couldn't resist. Yes, its a children's book, but I just had to. 

And here are some of my favorite quotes from it:

"A book?! What do you want a book for?"

"To read."

"To read? Why would you want to read when you got the television set sitting right in front of you? There's nothing you can get from a book that you can't get from a television faster!"

"You wanted cake, you got cake, now EAT IT!"

"You can do it Brucey!" 

"I'm right and you're wrong. I'm big and you're small, and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: you are not alone."

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So, you readers and friends, go pick up a book. Get addicted. It's the best kind of drug.

Fictional Friends

My friend and past roommate Kaitlyn tagged me in a post on Facebook to the following video. I do believe this is my life right now. I just HAD to share it! 

*please excuse any language*

Those who know me, know I'm an obsessive person. Another friend and past roommate, Jessi, once said that if I didn't have TV, I'd be shooting up in an alley somewhere...that is how addicted I get to things. First it was S Club 7...then 7th Heaven...then Gilmore Girls...and now Castle.

Thank goodness there are thousands of other people on this planet who are just as obsessed as me, even if they try to hide it. Thank goodness for Twitter & Tumblr where people understand! :)

One day this will change. But that day is not today.

Abercrombie & Fitch

It's been a hot topic lately: the Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries has made the highly controversial statement that he doesn't want "fat" kids in his clothes. Only the "cool" kids can wear the A&F symbol. 

Jeffries has been quoted to say: "We hire good looking people in our stores. Because good looking people attract other good looking people, and we want to market to cool, good looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that." 

In my experience, Jeffries is completely correct in what his company is doing. In high school, I was far from stick thin. I was healthy enough, had some meat on my bones, but honestly, I just wanted to own a pair of Abercrombie jeans, or even Hollister for that matter. But there was no chance I'd ever fit in those comfortably. Now I see why.

The A&F CEO has also said, "In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. We go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don't belong in our clothes, and they can't belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely." 

Rude, right?!

And they clearly advertise that way don't they? 

And remember that song by LFO back in the day called "Summer Girls." Their chorus starts with, "I like girls that wear Abercrombie & Fitch, I'd take her if I had one wish."

I, myself, am a fan of American Eagle Outfitters. They cater to the widest range of body types, and their clothes--especially their jeans--seem to fit every body perfectly. Abercrombie only makes jeans up to size 10 (the average American woman is size 14) while American Eagle goes all the way up to size 18 jeans. 

I hate what this man, Mike Jeffries, has brought to light and promoted. Young girls, especially, are bombarded with enough imaging of what a woman "should" look like. They don't need some MAN, who is only in the business of MONEY, telling them what they should look like. 

You are BEAUTIFUL. You were created in the image of God. Your body is a gift and the most beautiful creation on Earth. Don't let someone make you feel otherwise.

And honestly, with advertising like this, I wouldn't want to shop there anyway.

A Tough Time of Year: Hiatus

This is an extremely tough time of year for me. Yes, it is May, which means all of my TV shows are ending until September, as long as they got renewed, that is.

For the most part, I'm a happy gal with all but two of my shows returning in the fall.

And while I've still got quite a few shows that have yet to air their finales, Castle's season 5 finale graced my television last night. And boy, was it a doozy!

With a title like "Watershed," we knew it would be a hard episode to swallow. "Watershed," according to its dictionary definition, means "an event or period marking a turning point in a course of action or state of affairs." And the choice was there--a job with the FBI based in Washington DC or her life with Castle in New York. The episode's cliffhanger was just that....we still don't know her final decision.

So here's what I thought of the episode...

First, anytime Papa Beckett makes an appearance, I'm a happy viewer! I just loved Scott Paulin as Jim. He is always such an amazing voice of reason for Kate, always giving her encouragement and letting her know that her mother would be proud of her. So glad that they brought him in for the finale!

Second, these two are just too much. I love how much Ryan & Esposito love Kate, they're her loving and protective brothers. They really shined in the aspect of having her back "till the wheels fall off." My favorite scene with them last night? In the nasty laundry room of the SRO, discussing pregnancy. It was brilliant. Espo was so adamant and appalled to think of Kate pregnant but so darn happy for Baby Ryan on the way!

Third, the swings. Cue me melting into a puddle of mush. The first time this couple visited the swingset was almost 2 years ago, when Kate came back to Rick after her shooting, pleading with him (subtextually) to wait for her to be ready for a relationship. And then a year ago, Kate visited the swingset again, in the rain, before going to Rick and finally starting their relationship. And now, swings yet again! Everything important in their relationship happens at the swings, which I find just oh so poetic! Which leads me to number four...

Yep, Castle popped the question to Kate! Out of nowhere! On the swings! Using her full name! I can't contain myself! I have tons of theories as to what she's going to say (yep that was the cliffhanger so we must wait until September...), but I have no idea where showrunner Andrew Marlowe will take this. He is constantly surprising me and beating out anything and everything imagined in the FanFiction world. It wasn't the "ideal" proposal we as fans have been imagining, but it has so many layers, that I'm sure I have yet to explore and realize. I am just extremely happy that it wasn't an ultimatum, he clearly said, "no matter what happens and no matter what [she] choose[s]."

So now I'm left waiting and wondering for another 124 days or so until the season 6 premiere...

************

And because I am obsessed (and this is NOT the first thing I've been obsessed with), I thought this blurb I found on Tumblr awhile back was fitting for the fandom...ALL the fandoms!

"There's going to come a day when we've all grown up, had a career, maybe got married and had kids, when we're all going about our daily routine. Maybe you're driving to work with the car radio on, or you're making dinner with the TV on in the lounge. Life as usual, and then we hear a name. It's the name of the person you had a blog dedicated to when you were 16. The person you had posters of up on your bedroom wall, or as your desktop background. The person off that show you used to watch every week, as soon as it came out, or that band you used to love. The person from the cast of a movie that changed your life, or the character who you scrolled through page after page of fanfiction of. You haven't heard that name in a long time, and it brings everything back. And then the name is followed by three words you thought you'd never hear.

Has Passed Away.

And then you put down the potato peeler and lean back against your kitchen bench, or you pull over to the side of the road, and tears are streaming down your face. And all over the world, there are people who used to be just like you, with tears marking their cheeks and sobs forcing their way out of their throat, because they remember.

Because fandoms never really die out. We never really move on. We never really forget."

Don't Waste Them

So much depends on the small muscle squeezing in your chest.

The average person gets about 2,759,400,000 of these muscle contractions. If you're really lucky, you'll get 3,127,320,000. And if you're extremely healthy, you could get up to 3,642,408,000 heartbeats. 

That's much less than the US national debt. That's less than half of the world's current population. In the grand scheme of things, we don't have that many heartbeats. We don't have very many days on this Earth. We don't get many chances to make things right, to enjoy the relationships we've forged, to take the little things in, to share the joy of life. 

So yes, you may get your feelings hurt by a friend, lose a job opportunity, have no idea what you're doing with your life, get dumped by your boyfriend, anything...but you still have millions of more heartbeats. Don't waste them on worrying.

Here's some things that have helped me to forget the worry & remember the heartbeats I have yet to experience.

1. Remember how far you've come.

2. Snuggle your teddy bear (mine's name is Seamus).

3. Take a dancing time-out (i suggest the song from The Perfect Man that they danced to, listed below).

4. Read a favorite book (one of mine is To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee).

5. Take a walk outside, breathe in some fresh air.

6. Watch a favorite TV show or movie (clearly mine is Castle...followed by Grey's Anatomy-the early years).

7. Read the scriptures (this is D&C 121:7-9--LDS canon).

8. Watch your goldfish swim in circles (this is Rick).

Whatever you do, don't give up hope. You've still got millions and millions of heartbeats left. Don't waste them.

"Rejection isn't failure. Failure is giving up. Everybody gets rejected. It's how you handle it that determines where you'll end up." -Richard Castle, Castle

"Even on the worst day, there is a possibility for joy." -Kate Beckett, Castle

A Whole New (Difficult) World

"Life is easy. People can be hard." 

-Nathan Fillion

I have been graduated from college for a little over a week now. And literally all I've done is watch some TV shows, eat some pizza, make a few new friends, and throw a few resumes & applications out into the big old grown-up kid world. 

I must admit, I had a much more glamourous lifestyle thought up in my head of the post-grad life. I also thought it'd be sooooo nice not to do ANYTHING for awhile. Well, it's been a week and I'm going a bit stir crazy. 

Finding a job is difficult to begin with, but finding a job that you will enjoy, that you're qualified for, that you've trained 4 years in college to do, and that is close enough that you can walk/ride your bike/take the bus is even MORE difficult. AND even more difficult than that is convincing these people that you're the best for the job and that they should hire you on the spot. Yeah...

I'm trying. I really am trying. And I won't give up.

So I'll throw a few more resumes out into the world and pray one lands in the hands of someone who thinks I'm the coolest thing since sliced bread.

Until then, I'll be here, scouring the internet for leads while I listen to ancient episodes of America's Next Top Model playing in the background. 

Cross your fingers for me, friends!