Small Talk: Ughngnggh! Ugghhnnn!

[Nashville]

I bought a new book and I'm wondering if anyone is familiar with the book or the author. It's called Six of Crows and I found it in the YA section. I've mostly been unimpressed with YA books (I'm the demographic's parent age wise) so I'm hesitant. I loved the title though. I read and enjoyed all of the Harry Potter books and I also liked The 5th Wave, by Rick Yancy (I think that's his name) I did not like the Hunger Games, Heavenly Creatures or Divergent. I'd tell you the author of the Six of Crows but I've forgotten it already! It's Kate and her last name starts with a B. She wrote a previous series that topped best seller lists. Memory wise, I appear to be the demographic's addled grandparent. It's been a long week!

 

Is this the book you're thinking of...?

[Irishmaple]

Yes, that's the one. I really liked the title, the cover art is very cool and the genre is the bulk of my reading. I'm been into fantasy since I actually was in the target demo. Andre Norton was my favourite as a teen.

[kj4ever]

That sounds like a good read....Let us know how it is Irishmaple...

 

I survived Thanksgiving and it was a raging success.  Probably because it was mostly friends and not a lot of family...lol  I don't really have much in the way of family and what I did have fragmented a lot when my parents died.  The nieces and nephews always come to my house though, and lots of friends.  A good time was had by all, the food was fantastic (if I do say so myself) and even now, three days later I feel like I could sleep for a week.

[morgankobi]

*sigh*

 

I've had just over a week off and I didn't get a single thing done that I planned to do. It didn't help that I was under the weather foe a few days, but the rest was complete laziness.

 

Oh well. Opening shifts for 2 days then its the weekend. Maybe I'll get something done then?

Getting stuff done is over-rated.

[nachomama]

I never get anything done. I'm ok with it. All in all we're just another brick in the wall.

[Irishmaple]

That book? I devoured it like it was covered in chocolate. I can't recommend it enough. I really enjoyed the story and loved the characters. Totally invested in all of them. I need the sequel now.

[nachomama]

excellent, I might look it up. I'm reading some mistborn books and I'll be done soon. 

 

Oh and I keep forgetting to say, A VAN RAN INTO MY BUILDING THIS MORNING. Not quite sure what happened to make the man lose control but I heard mucho squealing of tires and I backed away from my desk because I knew it was going to hit. Sure enough a bookcase jumped away from the wall and boom, van ended up pinning us in, blocking the front door. No one hurt. This is actually the 8th time a car has hit our building. This was minor by comparison, 2 years ago a drunk fool got all the way in the building, to the back wall. So nothing much happened today...

Edited November 30, 2015 by nachomama

[shanndee]

Oh my god, that is awful!! I'm glad you're ok!

 

Is there any way for the management to put in guard rails (or something) to avoid a 9th car hitting your building??

 

I hope things normalize for you soon!

[Nashville]

excellent, I might look it up. I'm reading some mistborn books and I'll be done soon. 

 

Oh and I keep forgetting to say, A VAN RAN INTO MY BUILDING THIS MORNING. Not quite sure what happened to make the man lose control but I heard mucho squealing of tires and I backed away from my desk because I knew it was going to hit. Sure enough a bookcase jumped away from the wall and boom, van ended up pinning us in, blocking the front door. No one hurt. This is actually the 8th time a car has hit our building. This was minor by comparison, 2 years ago a drunk fool got all the way in the building, to the back wall. So nothing much happened today...

Is your office furniture covered for uninsured motorists? :>

[morgankobi]

I think, nachomama, that the universe is telling you guys that you need a drive-thru.

[nachomama]

I kept telling the fedex guy, UPS guy, mailman etc we are putting in a drive thru. 

 

The city for reasons  unbeknownst to us will not allow any outside reinforcement type guard rails etc. Like we could put up those concrete/titanium posts like the white house has surrounding. I'm sure we couldn't afford white house grade quality but something like that. You'd think our insurance would do something for the walls etc, but it's never on them. We don't jump out in front of cars so it's always the drivers' insurance and I do not know what that entails, but we've never been reinforced etc. We got a ginormous concrete curb kinda thing, it actually looks like a big bench outside the building, the van did hop it and scrape it up this time. Last time it acted like a launching pad to hurl the truck through the window. Who knows, but we never have anybody's desk up front. :D

[kj4ever]

That book? I devoured it like it was covered in chocolate. I can't recommend it enough. I really enjoyed the story and loved the characters. Totally invested in all of them. I need the sequel now.

Oooh no I hate when I get a book and I have to wait for a sequel.  I read "A Discovery of Witches" (excellent, excellent book) and then found out it was a series and I had to wait a freakin' year for the next one. 

 

I. Hate. Waiting.

[Irishmaple]

I've been reading George Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice (aka the Game of Thrones books) since 1998. The first and second were readily available, and then I had to wait a few months for the third. Since then I've waited what feels like decades between installments to the point that I no longer care. I feel your pain.

[kj4ever]

I've been reading George Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice (aka the Game of Thrones books) since 1998. The first and second were readily available, and then I had to wait a few months for the third. Since then I've waited what feels like decades between installments to the point that I no longer care. I feel your pain.

All three of Debrah Harkness's books are out now and I have yet to read the third one.  They are really detailed and not the kind of book you can read and then just read the next one a year later.  I think I'd have to read the first two over again before the third and I just don't have time.  They are sooo good though.

[Irishmaple]

I just finished that series. My sister recommended it. I took the first one to Cuba back in August and got my friend hooked. I bought the second and she picked up the third. I really liked it.

[nachomama]

I have not been waiting as long as some for the rest of the GRRM books, I feel his pain a little bit. Apparently he's got a new one out, it's set in Westeros, 100 years before the start of the Fire and Ice series and people are livid. They've waited so long to find out what happens and he jumped in the way back machine and started over.  Part of me thinks he's a victim of too much success, kinda like bringing out a sequel to Gone with the Wind, you can never make the die-hards happy. There are so many that scream that the tv show ruined the books and it's now been so long they'd probably tear him limb from limb if they didn't like what he has in store. 

 

I'm probably only able to divorce myself from the books because I didn't start with the books, so I don't hate the tv show. But having read them now I'm ok with either direction. I'm flexible, pretty much up to the point of killing Tyrian. As long as he lives, I'm ok. 

[rab01]

I have not been waiting as long as some for the rest of the GRRM books, I feel his pain a little bit. Apparently he's got a new one out, it's set in Westeros, 100 years before the start of the Fire and Ice series and people are livid. They've waited so long to find out what happens and he jumped in the way back machine and started over.  Part of me thinks he's a victim of too much success, kinda like bringing out a sequel to Gone with the Wind, you can never make the die-hards happy. There are so many that scream that the tv show ruined the books and it's now been so long they'd probably tear him limb from limb if they didn't like what he has in store. 

 

I'm probably only able to divorce myself from the books because I didn't start with the books, so I don't hate the tv show. But having read them now I'm ok with either direction. I'm flexible, pretty much up to the point of killing Tyrian. As long as he lives, I'm ok. 

If you're talking about Dunk and Egg (A knight of the seven Kingdoms), I think it's just a collection of previously published stories so it shouldn't get even the most rabid of his fans angry. I personally swore off the Ice and Fire books until the series is finished because I don't trust GRRM to finish it and I kept losing all recollection of the side characters in the years between books.

[Irishmaple]

I think he's stuck. Somewhere along the line, his editor eased up and now he doesn't know where his story is going. It's too big to wrangle. He let it get away from him. I've never liked Tyrion nor Arya simply because both of them reeked of Plot Armour to me. I invested in Jaime and Sansa because they always seemed at risk. And then the show cast Nickolas Coster Waldau as Jaime and I was done for.

[nachomama]

I liked the explanation in Misery, the Stephen King book, where the author hates his characters so much in a serial situation and when he was done writing the last one he loved, loved, loved killing them off. Because they did get him stuck, he had to write to the expectations of the audience. Any one book is a new thing for everyone. No one goes into it with the stuffed animal and signed toys and then screams when Winnie the Pooh turns out to be the murderer. And then the poor author is kidnapped by his biggest fan and she forces him to resurrect the character because she cannot live with how he wrote it. It's torture to him both from getting his ankles whacked and the fact that he is in essence god of that universe and to have anyone tell you "well, I don't think he would behave that way" just drives a person bonkers after a while. I think he's stuck because there's so much riding on how he finishes. 

[ParadoxLost]

The city for reasons  unbeknownst to us will not allow any outside reinforcement type guard rails etc. Like we could put up those concrete/titanium posts like the white house has surrounding. I'm sure we couldn't afford white house grade quality but something like that. You'd think our insurance would do something for the walls etc, but it's never on them.

 

I'm surprised your employer or whoever owns the building hasn't done anything.  They may be financially ok as long as just the driver is hurt.  But the premiums on the insurance for the building have to be higher if just for the risk of an uninsured driver.  But I would have thought they'd do something because I don't see a scenario where they don't get sued if an employee is injured.  It would seem reasonable to be able to go after the company if you can say 'well this was he ninth time it happened.  They must be playing the odds.

[shanndee]

Oooh no I hate when I get a book and I have to wait for a sequel.  I read "A Discovery of Witches" (excellent, excellent book) and then found out it was a series and I had to wait a freakin' year for the next one. 

 

I. Hate. Waiting.

 

I just read the summary of this book...I think I need to get it. Thank you for the recommendation! 

[morgankobi]

Even though I watch GOT, I won't start the books until (if) they're all done.

I was able to wait until all three Hunger Games were out to read them, and then finished them in one weekend :)

 

The Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde is an on-going series that I like because they go together but don't really rely on cliffhangers to get to the next one. Literary buffs should check them out. Has a good British humor feel, as well

[shanndee]

Oh yes, a friend bought me the first book of the Thursday Next series for my birthday. I read it quickly and ran out to but books 2 and 3. I haven't started them yet, but I'm looking forward to doing so.

 

kj4ever, I just put the box set of the Deborah Harkness books on my Christmas list! :-)

 

If anyone is interested in a creepy, suspenseful, stand alone novel detailing the struggles of the survivor of an apocalypse give "Bird Box" by Josh Malerman a try!

[Anela]

Oh yes, a friend bought me the first book of the Thursday Next series for my birthday. I read it quickly and ran out to but books 2 and 3. I haven't started them yet, but I'm looking forward to doing so.

 

kj4ever, I just put the box set of the Deborah Harkness books on my Christmas list! :-)

 

If anyone is interested in a creepy, suspenseful, stand alone novel detailing the struggles of the survivor of an apocalypse give "Bird Box" by Josh Malerman a try!

I read Bird Box, back in June, and got through it quickly.

 

I couldn't get through A Discovery of Witches. I'll look up Thursday Next, and also want to read a whole series by Christopher Fowler (?) - I had two books out of my local library, but found that they were the last two in a series.

 

I've also just remembered that I want to put Secondhand Souls, on order through my library.

[Anela]

*whistles* I hope I didn't kill the thread.

 

I'm watching "River" on Netflix. I'm not in the mood for reading at the moment. We had another death in the family, so I'm just disappearing into something I can watch. 

[shanndee]

I'm sorry to hear that Anela. I know how horrible that is. It is so easy totally exhaust and neglect yourself with all of the turmoil and stress. Please take care of yourself.

 

I haven't heard of "River".I'm currently watching "Jessica Jones". I'm on episode 6. I'd be watching more right now, but I promised Hubby I wouldn't watch without him, and right now he is in bed with a bad cold. Maybe I'll see what "River" is about...

[walnutqueen]

I'm sorry for your loss, Anela.

[kj4ever]

I'm so sorry Anela :(

[Irishmaple]

Condolences, Anela. Take care of yourself.

I demoted Into The Badlands to On Demand because I do not care enough about it to watch it live. I have to give AMC credit because I would have dropped it after the first episode if it hadn't been sandwiched between two shows I actually wanted to see. I'll stick with Badlands for The Widow. Kill her off and I'm gone.

Continuing my new habit of getting teary-eyed at the movies on Sunday afternoons, I saw Brooklyn yesterday. I knew this one would resonate. I emigrated from Ireland, my parents almost went to Australia before I was born, I have cousins in San Francisco and Boston, and cousins I've never met in New Jersey, descendants of my great-aunts who did sail from Cobh to Ellis Island like Saoirse Ronan's character. It seemed for a long time that Ireland was breeding its population for export! I really liked the movie and empathized with Ailis's dilemma. 90% of me lives in Canada but there's still that part wondering if I could go back.

[editorgrrl]

Continuing my new habit of getting teary-eyed at the movies on Sunday afternoons, I saw Brooklyn yesterday. I knew this one would resonate. I emigrated from Ireland, my parents almost went to Australia before I was born, I have cousins in San Francisco and Boston, and cousins I've never met in New Jersey, descendants of my great-aunts who did sail from Cobh to Ellis Island like Saoirse Ronan's character. It seemed for a long time that Ireland was breeding its population for export! I really liked the movie and empathized with Ailis's dilemma. 90% of me lives in Canada but there's still that part wondering if I could go back.

Is Brooklyn sad for everyone? I could use a good tearjerker! (Then again, my grandmother's grandparents came from Ireland…)

[Irishmaple]

It's only sad in places and the cause of the sadness is universal. Also it's pretty romantic. I'm a hardened cynic with barely a romantic bone in my body (located somewhere around a small toe would be my guess) and the movie got me in the feels.

[nachomama]

I love Saoirse Ronan, I don't know how many feels I want at the moment but it looks good.

[Nashville]

I'll stick with Badlands for The Widow.

With you on that. Always had a fondness for redheads. Hell, I married one.

Continuing my new habit of getting teary-eyed at the movies on Sunday afternoons, I saw Brooklyn yesterday. I knew this one would resonate. I emigrated from Ireland, my parents almost went to Australia before I was born, I have cousins in San Francisco and Boston, and cousins I've never met in New Jersey, descendants of my great-aunts who did sail from Cobh to Ellis Island like Saoirse Ronan's character. It seemed for a long time that Ireland was breeding its population for export! I really liked the movie and empathized with Ailis's dilemma. 90% of me lives in Canada but there's still that part wondering if I could go back.

I'll have to check it out. My bunch were Scot-Irish who came out of County Galway in the early 1700s.

[shanndee]

Ok, maybe I'm easily impressed...but U2 have just impressed me.

 

I just finished watching a live concert of U2 in Paris on HBO (rescheduled from the night of the attacks). They closed their show by saying "since their stage was taken from them that night, we thought we'd share ours". Then they brought out The Eagles of Death Metal. The 2 bands played a song together, then U2 left the stage and The Eagles of Death Metal played a song on their own that closed the show.

 

Classy move U2!  :D

[nachomama]

Would you eat a cupcake that was banana pudding flavor with peanut butter frosting? It's an Elvis thing. My friends birthday yesterday and I was going to get a little assortment of cupcakes. Personally I wouldn't go near it. No likey nanners. I also ordered really ridonkulous tshirts for xmas presents. $5 each with random Star Wars or goofy stuff on them. hey I'm cheap. 

[Irishmaple]

I was making progress with the Christmas thing. I made a list and organized it as to actual in-the-mail cards, ecards, texts to meet up, gifts and so on. Then my room mate said "remember how much fun we had when we went to Mexico last January?" I agreed that we'd had a great week at the resort. She said "so what do you think about this for February?" We booked ourselves a cruise. So much for the list, I just went broke buying myself a Christmas present!

Edited December 8, 2015 by Irishmaple

[nachomama]

That works, screw other people, treat yourself nice. I got tickets for Eddie Izard for my treat to myself.  ***PLUS tacos at taco boy :D ****

Edited December 9, 2015 by nachomama

[JBody]

My condolences, Anela.

[JBody]

Sunny and warm in downtown Toronto.  Where the eff is all the snow?  ....ok ok I take that back....  I don't miss the cold that freezes exposed skin in 5 seconds or Mayor Mel calling in the army like he did for Snowmageddon '99, but I do want a white Christmas, dang it.

[walnutqueen]

I dream of a white Xmas once in a great while - I haven't had one of those since 1981, and haven't even been in a snowy place since the early 1990s when I took my nieces to see the snow in Big Bear, CA.  Then I remember the cold toes, slushy dirty snow, shoveling walks and scary black ice driving, and think my tired old bones are doing just fine without all that shit.  My creaky joints ache enough as it is!  :-)

 

I don't celebrate holidays anymore, so the balmy winter weather here doesn't bother me a bit (well, other than the drought conditions and dire global warming consequences).  I can always watch something appropriately wintery on my teevee.

[Nashville]

When I was a kid, I used to pine for snow.

Then as an adult, I spent 4-5 years working with a hospital in Alaska.

Ever been to Anchorage in January? It'll change your life, swear to god.

Now, I'd rather just keep the roads clear - and if I miss the snow, pop a copy of Vertical Limit into the DVD player.

[JBody]

Uh no. Northern Ontario in January is bad enough. Two seasons: snow and blackflies. Yuck. And I don't want a repeat of 2013 with the ice storm and no power for 5 days. The power came back on on Boxing Day. Christmas was cancelled! But a nice blanket on the lawn Christmas morning would be nice. It can all melt the next day.

[diebartdie]

SIGH I'm finally getting just a tad bored with the zombie genre! SHOCKING! No really, the part of the ZA we've seen a million times just doesnt have anything left I dont think. However, I recently read The Girl with All the Gifts and it was SO GOOD!

 

It's set 20+ years after the initial outbreak but the story is about so much more than the ZA. It's about what makes us human, about what it means to have a conscious. Have I posted about this already? I may have, I keep thinking about this book and wanting to tlak to someone, anyone about it, its just that great.

[nachomama]

I only want snow if I'm rich, as in can fly to a resort, ski or not ski, usually not because I have a tendency towards falling and becoming dead. but you know hobknob with the rich folks while someone else schlepps my luggage and brings me hot chocolate, someone else makes a fabulous fire for me to bask in the glow and I get waited on. I don't have to wait in lines or actually be in the cold, just stand there looking fantastic with my vesty ensemble and fancy ski hair. The minute it becomes an "element" to be dealt with I fly back to my beachy resort place and talk about how horrendous it was. And none of that crap happens to me. 

[walnutqueen]

nachomama, on 09 Dec 2015 - 12:18 PM, said:

I only want snow if I'm rich, as in can fly to a resort, ski or not ski, usually not because I have a tendency towards falling and becoming dead. but you know hobknob with the rich folks while someone else schlepps my luggage and brings me hot chocolate, someone else makes a fabulous fire for me to bask in the glow and I get waited on. I don't have to wait in lines or actually be in the cold, just stand there looking fantastic with my vesty ensemble and fancy ski hair. The minute it becomes an "element" to be dealt with I fly back to my beachy resort place and talk about how horrendous it was. And none of that crap happens to me. 

 

Now I wanna know what "fancy ski hair" looks like, nachomama!  :-D

[JBody]

An image of Dumb and Dumber just flashed into my mind. Maybe it was the ski resort vest ensemble. My hair after skiing was always fantastically static clingy because of the touque. Although I haven't skiied in 5 years and it was cross-country because bad things happen if I down hill. I'm too old for that shit now, by crikey.

[Irishmaple]

I've lived in Toronto for most of my adult life and have never skied, snowboarded or skated. I'll go outside in the cold (not much choice there!) but I don't have to like it!

[AngelaHunter]

So I was outside raking leftover leaves today, in a place where normally at this time of year there's several feet of snow piled at the sides of my driveway. The squirrels are now obese.

 

I bought a container of chocolates (Icy Squares!! Yum) for Christmas dinner guests, but the way things are going I'm going to eat them all before the big day arrives.

[JBody]

I used to love those icy squares!! I never see them anymore now.

[walnutqueen]

AngelaHunter, on 09 Dec 2015 - 2:30 PM, said:AngelaHunter, on 09 Dec 2015 - 2:30 PM, said:

So I was outside raking leftover leaves today, in a place where normally at this time of year there's several feet of snow piled at the sides of my driveway. The squirrels are now obese.

 

I bought a container of chocolates (Icy Squares!! Yum) for Christmas dinner guests, but the way things are going I'm going to eat them all before the big day arrives.

 

Oh my, AngelaHunter, I haven't seen Icy Squares in years.  I used to love those things SO much! 

 

 

ETA - JBody & I seem to be sharing a chocolate brain today.  :-)

Edited December 9, 2015 by walnutqueen