Day 16 #PHOTOADAYMAY

Day 16- What I am Reading

Usually I am reading a stack of magazines (Lucky & Food Network Magazine are two of my favorites) and then a stack of books. I picked Insurgent  by Veronica Roth on the Kindle even though I'm only reading the preview right now. This is on my "read really soon" list and I loved it's predecessor Divergent...

Also included in the stack of books I'm currently reading are Salem's Lot, Abandon, The Peach Keeper and more....

Hello September! Hitting the books & the playground this month

     Well...it's September 1st and I'm officially back in school. So far I like my classes and feel genuine interest for the subjects. My major is still up in the air but I'm pretty sure I'm going for Liberal Studies, which will allow me to keep this erratic course selection I've been choosing and still graduate at a semi-decent date. More than anything, I am trying to find a way to make money doing things I already love to do. 


      My interest in writing has never been stronger. This is unfortunate in a way, because my sister, the self-proclaimed "greatest writer in the world" (and rightfully so) has narrowed her focus on this area of her particular giftedness as well. So like singing before it, I find myself in the "me too" category of a talent that I am genuinely good at...but perhaps not as genius at as the aforementioned sister. Still, I am good enough and the lifestyle beckons me as none so strongly have beckoned me since my acting aspirations. I know MY category is supposed to be photography (and I DO like it...a lot) but it's more of a pleasure hobby, for me....a great escape. I tend to glaaaaze over when the technical jargon kicks in.
     
     Anyway, I suppose the only way to wrestle myself from that second status, into a niche of my own is to actually write something that I'll actually allow other people to read. Ha ha! Yes, I do write things just for me...but seriously, it's time to write in public. Funnily enough, the more I read, the more I like to write, and the more I write, the more I want to write anything. So I'm going to have to give myself a writing assignment, designed for public consumption and SHARE IT. I think I'm going to push through NaNoWriMo this year and emerge with a product. And I think I'm going to pull from my unfinished Script Frenzy bone-yard.


     **On a totally off-topic side note: I am keeping up with my fitness better than I EVER have in my life! I work out minimum 30 min x3 weekly! MINIMUM. If I had a bike, it would be more. The best thing about committing to fitness is that I'm not suffering through torturous sessions...I'm re-learning how to play. Yes play. Play is fun and it's why we all miss childhood so much sometimes. It doesn't have to be the kind of organized games called "sports" that the masses expect adults to do. It can be silly and crazy and fun. It can have no rules or made-up rules. It can be whatever gets you moving and laughing and enjoying yourself and I guarantee it will burn calories...laughing burns calories. 


     Anyway, all for now. Hello September, nice to see you, please be gentle. :)

Book Review

Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman by Jon Krakauer


My rating: 5 of 5 stars


My mind is blown. I'm not sure I have even had the time to process this book thoroughly yet, but here are some impressions:


The book is several things. It is a portrait of a man who left an impression on everyone he met. It is a war story. It's also part social commentary, part investigative reporting.

Author Jon Krakauer seamlessly weaves between the details of Pat Tillman's life and the rise of US involvement in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan. He has a rich writing style that draws the reader in, immersing them in the worlds he writes about, taking his time to give details without weighing the story down.

The story of Tillman's life is interesting, but kind of normal. The story of his death is both fascinating and horrific. The realities of combat and service are shocking to the average civilian reader who suddenly becomes aware that they are "the public" and "the American people" while reading this behind the scenes look at war, government, and public relations.

This book was recommended to me by a friend; I don't normally read war or military books, but this one I will recommend to everyone. I can't believe how little I knew about what is going on in the world, and what our country/government is/was doing in other parts of the world and why.


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