Mondays with Brooke

Oh Monday! How much promise and fear you incite among the masses. You’re such a bittersweet beasty, you are.

Firstly, I’d like to take a moment to honor my niece, Sydney, and the 5 year anniversary of her passing. She would have turned 8 this year and everyday she’s missed. I’d also like to pre-welcome her first little sister, Emery, into our family! The first picture below is of Sydney and my sis-in-law. The second is Christina’s recent maternity photo shoot announcing that she’s having another little girl with my handsome nephews!

 

Today also marks the final week of my impromptu but much appreciated summer vacation! I start the new job next week and can’t wait. Both eager and anxious to rejoin the workforce after a month off. Lots of paper work to complete and a drug test to take before next Monday. Plus, the hubs got his yearly evaluation this past week with included his annual bonus and raise. Nothing huge but every little bit counts. Now we’ve got to sit down and plan out a new budget. I wonder if he’ll let me add a book line to said budget? Probably not since we’re dedicating this next year to paying down debts. Which we have. Unfortunately. Keepin’ it real, y’all. Not that we are buried beneath credit card debt or anything, but we’d like to pay off my car loan and whittle the student loans down a bit. The mortgage will continue to loom large, I’m afraid. We’re just thankful our home is worth more than we paid since so many people are in the opposite situation.

I feel like I should delve into religion or politics next to keep the awkward subjects going! I’ll spare y’all those rants and tell you what’s up on the reading and blogging front this week. Currently reading Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing in anticipation of Joss Whedon’s film and The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. I’m loving both! Hopefully, I’ll have reviews of both those up this week as well as Lionel Shriver’s newest, Big Brother. Happy Reading!

 

 

Questions! I Haz Them.

Been pondering lots of bookish, bloggery type things the past few weeks. And since my readers and the interwebs tend to be a wealth of information, I’d appreciate any and all responses to my somewhat ridiculous questions below.

1. TUMBLR. What is it? I don’t understand the purpose it serves. I already have FB, Twitter, Blog, YouTube channel, and Instagram. What could TUMBLR offer me?

2. Book recommendations. I need them. Particularly contemporary fiction set in or written by an author from the Middle East, Africa, South America, or Eastern Europe. And nonfiction about anything.

3. I want business cards for my blog and don’t know how to go about getting awesome ones made. I know Etsy probably has something, but can any of y’all fabulous people recommend someone you’ve used?

I have lots of other random things swirling around in my head. But those projects are rather large so I’d like to get a grasp on the new job and my working hours before I dive in. Thanks for any and all input!

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope everyone has the day off to relax and extend all their weekend fun. I’m having a fabulous time celebrating the fact that I got a new job!! I’ve been interviewing with this company for a month now. Over the past few weeks, I met with four people and endured three rounds of interviews.  BUT it was so worth it in the end! I loved everyone I met and I’ll be an internal auditor which is a job I’ve always been interested in. Plus, the benefits are amazing. So I went way overboard and purchased all the books in celebration. The picture to the left is just one of the celebratory hauls.

Been reading a ton! Look for reviews of The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta and Scarlet by Marissa Meyer this week. I just started Lionel Shriver’s new one, Big Brother. It’s my first Shriver and I’m finding a dictionary an essential reading buddy. Next up will be Much Ado About Nothing in time for the Joss Whedon film! Joss Whedon might be my hero.

Short and sweet today! Have a great holiday and a fabulous week!

Atlanta’s Book Shops

Sunday afternoon I got a hankering to do some book shopping. Not necessarily buying the books but just the act of browsing the shelves of local indie stores. I’m not someone who hates Barnes and Noble or Amazon, but from time to time I do enjoy patronizing neighborhood establishments. And I got to drag Jimmy along with me and watch his eyes glaze over. Good times.

We started our adventure at Atlanta Vintage Books right near PDK airport. It’s shameful that I live about 5 miles away and had never visited. The store is run by an older couple who had a dream of owning a book shop. The store is filled with shelves and shelves of books everywhere – in every nook and cranny. Also, cats. Lots of cats. (See above – lovingly borrowed from AVB’s website.) Nothing is new – not the books, furniture, or shelving. It smells wonderful, intoxicating. You could spend hours in this store perusing the thousands of deliciously aged pages. Some fantastic first editions – signed Ian Flemings, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Gone With the Wind – are also available.

Downstairs they have cheap paperbacks. And loads more books. I will continue to frequent the store looking for hardback copies of some of my favorite novels of years gone by. The only downside I really found was that the prices were a bit high. The same collection of John Steinbeck shorts that I recently bought at Goodwill for $2.50 was $18. I think a book that is 60 years old should be less than $18. But maybe that’s just me.

Our second stop I consider a favorite – Eagle Eye Books in Decatur. They host amazing authors all year long (Neil Gaiman!). Eagle Eye is mostly used books with a front corner dedicated to new releases. Their used collection is huge, but sometimes I find the selection limited. Like yesterday. Nothing really jumped out at me which was a shame because they were having their red dot sale. Every book with a red dot was an additional 50% off. Normal used paperbacks are about $5-6. They are also in very good condition. The store has a great rewards program, plus you can sell your books to them for store credit.

Amazingly, this little adventure only led to new-ish book purchases. I bought two first edition hardcover Harry Potters (books 3 & 4) since I’ve been meaning to collect them for some time. My paperbacks are falling apart. At $7 a book, I couldn’t resist. It made me wonder who doesn’t keep such beautiful HPs? Weird.

How about you? What are your favorite bookstores where you live?

Life and Read-A-Thons

As many of you know, I spent my weekend in LA begrudgingly. Jimmy’s sister was getting married and it may have been the strangest wedding I’ve ever been to. If you follow me on twitter, you understand. Having been to LA several times now, I can honestly say it’s just not a city that impresses me at all. I’m so glad to be back home on the east coast where I belong.

Because I was out-of-town, I missed out on the read-a-thon which had me super bummed. I spent most of Saturday staring at twitter longingly wishing I was reading alongside everyone else. I’ve vowed to take an active role in October’s event and I’m already counting down the months. To hold me over, I’m going to have my own little read-a-thon starting this morning and going through Wednesday. The Hubs will be in Louisiana so it’s the perfect time. Can’t wait to dive in!

On the job front, things have taken a slightly downhill turn. I didn’t receive my final paycheck because the company couldn’t afford to pay us. That puts an extreme financial strain on Jimmy and me. Hopefully, I’ll find another job very quickly so things won’t get out of control. The world is such an uncertain place. Glad to have an interview lined up for Thursday. I also spent a few hours this morning sending my resume out to more companies. (EDIT: Got my paycheck in the mail!!!)

In happier news, I have two packages arriving today. One is my very own copy of The Silver Linings Playbook film (YAY!) and Lauren Graham’s first novel – Someday, Someday, Maybe.

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week!

Tuesday Talk

I haven’t finished a book in time to post a review this week. I hope to finish three or more in the next few days so hopefully this dry spell won’t continue long. Sunday was book club and we discussed The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. I’m pleased to report that everyone really seemed to like and appreciate the novel. Some had a harder time getting into the story in the beginning, but eventually were able to overcome that obstacle.  We talked at length about the time period and what we thought of May, Ellen, and Archer. I’m just glad that everyone seemed to enjoy Wharton and I hope they give her other works a chance in the future.

Jimmy had his wisdom teeth out yesterday morning and he was the worst patient ever. He wanted to break all the rules and pretty much did which angered me off and on all day. I’m also in a state of anxiety over the disappearance of my job. I’ve applied several places and hope to hear back soon. I’m going to be putting in more applications this week. Fingers crossed that something positive happens soon!

In the meantime, I’m reading, cleaning, and hoping to spend some time in the sun this week. Friday Jimmy and I are flying to Los Angeles to attend his sister’s wedding on Saturday. It will be a busy weekend.

I’ve watched a few movies lately that I really enjoyed and want to recommend. End of Watch was such a well done and brilliantly acted cop movie. Depressing though. Gone Baby Gone was also superb – Ben Affleck is just an awesome director and Dennis Lehane provides excellent source material. But without a doubt my favorite film recently was Safety Not Guaranteed. So good. A little sci-fi, romcom indie film. Stream it on Netflix. I was smiling so hard it hurt by the end!

Tonight’s World Book Night! Have fun if you’re participating. I can’t wait!

The Monday Salon!

Let’s pretend I’m waving to everyone, shall we? How have y’all been? I feel as if I’ve been absent for too long from the blogging world. I know I’ve had posts pop up, but I haven’t been actively reading and commenting like I normally try to do. Life just keeps getting in the way – by making me sick over and over again. Not fun.

I think for the first time in my life allergies have actually become a thing. I have been nearly bedridden for the past week or so with aches, fevers, chills, stuffiness, and just general feel badly-ness. I’ve been sleeping non-stop and still resemble something a Mack truck ran over several times. Hoping for all this pollen to disappear soon. Like yesterday.

In worse news, my job is going to not exist soon. Yep, after finally finding something back in December, I’m going to be jobless again. Because that is my life. Filled with all the bad luck. So back to the drawing board I go. Hoping to find something by the end of May. I hate when investors back out of deals and all the new people are no longer needed. Shitty is shitty.

On the geekery front, I’ve been reading a bunch of Edith Wharton this weekend and will spend most of this week continuing that theme to prepare for Sunday’s book club meeting. I love her so much. Expect some Edith-centric posts soon. I also finished Me Before You and have things to say. Spoiler alert: I cried the ugly cry.

Might also throw up some movie reviews. Loved End of Watch and Gone Baby, Gone. Red Dawn – not so much.

And finally – Happy 4/15 any accountants who might be reading! I know that tax accountants are still going to have a rough day, but all the auditors will be partying tonight (including my husband). Time to let it down and get back to having a life!

P.S. Lots of people have been reading the blog lately and subscribing. Thanks for visiting and I’d love to hear from y’all in the comments!!

 

Last Stop Before Dirty Thirty!

As most of y’all know, I turned 29 on Sunday and had an absolute blast all weekend long. During all the birthday shenanigans the blog and books got put on the back burner. I’m not sure how I’m going to manage meeting the halfway point of Vanity Fair before this Friday. I’m listening to it on audio as well as reading the print and I’m still eons behind.

Enough of that! Let’s discuss the birthday shindig, shall we? Friday was my relaxation night. I finished watching The Artist which I thought was cute but lacked that certain something which makes a movie amazing for me. Both leads were about the most attractive people in the world though and the little dog stole my heart. Saturday saw the festivities amp up! I chopped my hair off, picked up a friend from college staying for the weekend, and had a great dinner out at Terra Terroir. It’s this lovely little restaurant/wine bar in my own neighborhood that we’d never been to. The wine was delicious and the food super yummy. Afterwards, I was feeling the need for some James Bond and Daniel Craig so we threw together a little marathon of Casino Royale and Skyfall with martinis – shaken, not stirred! The lovely Jean and John even bought me flowers and an Amazon gift card. Sweet friends, they are.

Sunday was the main event! We slept in and then had Chinese food at Chef Liu’s. I’m slightly obsessed with their soup dumplings. The rest of the afternoon we drove around looking at open houses and antique stores which was fun. Dinner was for seven at 4th & Swift in Old Fourth Ward and could not have been tastier! I, of course, had the steak cooked to utter perfection, brussel sprouts, mixed greens, and potatoes. We ordered a bottle of wine, shared steak tartare and duck meatballs, and had a blast keeping up with the Oscar dresses! To close the night we headed over to my friend’s house to watch the Oscars and got to bed around 2 am. Best birthday in recent memory! Looking forward to turning 30!

As for gifts, Jimmy ordered me some fancy chocolates from NYC. I bought myself some nice baking dishes and water carafes from Crate and Barrel. I was one lucky lady!

But now it’s time to dive back into my reading and get some books finished! This week on the blog I hope to discuss Salem’s Lot which I finished up and Vanity Fair (fingers crossed). Have a great week!

 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

I was a bit worried I wouldn’t get today off from the new job since I have no vacation time as a newb. But on Friday my boss told me not to bother coming in until Wednesday which made me a very happy accountant. I hope everyone else is able to take a few days off as well!

Just going to ramble on a bit. Went to see Jack Reacher on Friday despite never having read the books. Not a perfect film and I’m sure the novels are much better, but an enjoyable action flick nonetheless. Had some laugh out loud moments which were pleasant surprises. I did think Tom Cruise was playing his role a bit too earnestly to be believable.

Tonight is Christmas Eve! We’re having a quiet little holiday – just the two of us and our dogs. Our very first Christmas not spent down south with my family and I’m quite looking forward to it! We’ve booked a dinner for this evening at a steakhouse and plan to see Les Mis tomorrow. My husband is obsessed and can barely keep still knowing how close he is to seeing Hugh Jackman as Jean.

Not really doing presents this year. I bought a few books for myself and the first season of Homeland. Jimmy says he’s more than happy with my employment status as a gift…haha.

Been reading some great books recently which will be reviewed on the blog before year end. Currently devouring the second Flavia de Luce novel by Alan Bradley. I just love little Flavia and all her eccentricities. Mystery stories have really been my go to choices this Christmas. I might make that an annual theme – just seems sort of appropriate!

Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours! Looking forward to a New Year!

A Monday Ramble…

I finally feel able to write a little something about the Newtown tragedy that happened Friday morning. I feel so strongly for that community and the families affected. Having lost my niece tragically a few years ago, I have some idea of the absolute hell those families will be going through for the rest of their lives and my prayers are with them.

Friday was hard emotionally with the shooting and loss of precious lives. But it was also bittersweet since I found out I got the job I’d been interviewing for all week. I’m excited to re-join the working world and give private accounting a chance after hating the public accounting lifestyle. I can’t even fathom a job that only requires 40 hours a week. Ever since I was 17 I’ve either worked amazing amounts of overtime or worked two jobs at a time. I think this shorter work week might just be what I’ve been searching for. My new company is a real estate investment partnership which is exactly what I used to audit, so I feel comfortable with the work. And I won’t lie, the paycheck will be a welcome relief.

I am a bit saddened to lose a ton of my quality reading time. My first day is Tuesday which will immediately cut down my reading time, but I’ll be able to listen to audiobooks on my rather long commutes and during lunch breaks so perhaps I won’t be affected too much. I do know that 80 books a year won’t happen again in 2013! I’m hoping to get to 50 at least. Of course, the book buying might be even worse in 2013! Oh dear.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season! We’ve got our little fat Christmas tree up and decorated. Christmas music is blasting away and we’ve booked a yummy dinner for Christmas Eve! I love this time of year like no other.