How do you get poison oak on your foot and not even realize it? Seriously, sometimes I am such an airhead. Instead of giving you TMI, let's make a long story short and say that no matter how cute and fluffy Axel (my dog) looks, I am never rubbing my bare feet on him again.
Also, as some of you might know - as I did mention it a couple of months back - I can't eat dairy. Well, I've finally figured out that I am lactose intolerant. As a whole, it's actually not too bad. There are some amazing dairy-free ice creams out there, especially a couple really awesome coconut ones. And, the truth is, I've not been a milk drinker for years preferring rice or soy milk for just about everything. However...I miss my cheeses. Yeah, I just wanted to tell you all this to I could say how much I miss eating cheese. And it's not even like I ate a lot of really high dollar cheeses. (Though I do love Havarti.) I miss cheddar cheese on my tacos, burritos and roll-ups. I miss real, honest cheddar and mozzarella pizza. I know things should get easier over time, but while there are some great dairy-free choices for most everything else, the cheese seriously lacks.
I would like to say that the reason I got through so many books is because they were just that good - and some of them were - but in truth, for about a week at the beginning of the month, my internet wasn't working at all. So all the time I would have been socializing on blogs or just doing random things on the net, I was reading instead. And some of these books were short. I'd say I also had an extra day off (Labor Day) but all I did that day was play computer games. (In truth, my internet has barely been working for six weeks and I've been getting a lot of extra reading done instead of ... well, socializing.)
I'd also like to take a moment to tell everyone that I'm so sorry. It's partially because of my poor internet service - but I also haven't had energy to interact. Besides, whenever I try to, that's when my internet disconnects me. So, I haven't been ignoring you. I just feel swamped and like I just don't have words no matter how hard I try. Once again, so sorry. The good news is that I've been feeling more social the past week, so I've probably been popping up on your blogs again.
I have been thinking about buying an Ethernet cable and running it to my computer. Does anyone know if they help the internet service? Because I have heard totally mixed things.
What I've been reading...
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo - **** - My Review Here
Enigma by Lindsay Buroker - *****
Red Rope of Fate by K.M. Shea - **** - Review Up 10/7
The Palace Job by Patrick Weeks - ****
Dogs: Bullets & Carnage Vol. 2 by Shirow Miwa - ****
Dogs: Bullets & Carnage Vol. 3 by Shirow Miwa - *****
Balanced on the Blade's Edge by Lindsay Buroker - ****
The Wondrous and the Wicked by Page Morgan - **
Murder, Served Simply by Isabella Alan - ** - Thoughts Here
The Ships of Air by Martha Wells - *****
Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George - ***
Splintered by A.G. Howard - DNF - Thoughts Here
The Time Machine by H.G. Wells - DNF - Thoughts Here
The Comet's Curse by Dom Testa - **** - Review Up 10/14
Monstrous by MarcyKate Connolly - **** - Review Up 10/21
Blooms of Consequence by Breeana Puttroff - * - Series Spotlight Up 10/8
What I've been watching...
So very, very much. Most of these I got finished the third week, because I had so many shows started that I had less than a handful of episodes left of and they were just sitting there. (Because for whatever reason, I didn't want to watch them.)
Finally finished season 10 (the final season) of Stargate: SG:1 and it was crap. I mean, the show had been going downhill ever since season four, (except the awesome, Daniel-free season 6!) loosing heart and the sense of exploration by gallons. But the final episode was probably the most depressing series finale ever and it has killed my interest in rewatching Stargate: Atlantis (which I always did like more than SG:1).
Rewatched Code: Breaker. The word 'awesome' springs to mind. Might even like the characters a bit more the second time around.
Watched The Third: The Girl With The Blue Eye. I mostly enjoyed it, but the ending was a disappointment. (But, then again, so was most anything that concerned the main guy.)
Watched season 7 of Castle. So, I adore the people (characters and actors both) but - and I hate saying this - parts of the last two season have been draggy. (Mostly the romantic angst.) I think the show should just end before it totally drives itself into the ground.
Rewatched season 4 of Warehouse 13. Pertaining to a book I tried reading this month: this is my H.G. Wells! Besides that, I love the show as much as ever.
Watched Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan: Demon Capital (which is season 2) and...I love this show! Seriously, I was worried about season two because second seasons of anime shows are notoriously bad for me. But I needn't have worried because it was even better than season one!
Watched season 2 of Freezing (called Vibration). This is the kind of season two I'm used to. Disappointing. Butchering characters I've grown to love - especially the formerly strong, capable women turning into a weak, pathetic Stockholm Syndrom-er. And a worthless girl who talks the talk but sure don't walk the walk. And I was finally pushed too far with the bitchy in fighting. (Bad season, bad.)
Watched Leviathan - the last defense and it is such a cute little show. Sure, it's not much but fluff, but the girls are totally 'aw' and complement each other so well. Besides, it's an anime from a Gree game, so that's cool right there.
Watched season 2 of Falling Skies. So, I love the show but it is flawed, it does have its problems. The fact that there's a lot of diversity does not negate the fact that nearly every time a named character is killed it's a POC. Also, a line like 'leave the women at home while the men go out to fight' coming from a women only works when the only two named female fighters in the group aren't going. A bonus though is that this show is starting to look like a catch-all for actors that have been on sci-fi shows in the past.
So, my month has been pretty much a mixed bag on everything, but I'm super excited to see the start of October tomorrow! How has your month went?
Logging you in...
FoolsIngenuity 93p · 499 weeks ago
Enough about the books, though, I need to know how on earth you get poison oak on your foot simply from rubbing it against your dog? I am so thankful we don't have it in the UK because I would easily manage something like that. It sucks you haven't had any internet lately, it's always a nightmare when you lose it but then you find yourself doing things that you forget existed before the internet, like going outside (or at least I end up doing that when our internet's down) and you had the added bonus of extra reading time, so that is always good.
My recent post Looking Forward: October
AmyAelleah 80p · 499 weeks ago
I have no idea! Seriously, I have kneeled in poison oak before and never got it but all it took was just rubbing my bare foot over Axel's side for a few minutes and then a few days later, I was wondering why my foot itched. Thankfully, I think I'm almost completely over it and am never doing that again. Yup, with no internet, I had plenty of time to get a crazy amount of reading done. I seriously have no plans to read that much in October, but it was nice to make a dent in my TBR piles. I'm not much of an outdoors person, but because the weather is a bit cooler, I did manage a little outdoors exercise, which was nice. (And something I need to do again.)
FoolsIngenuity 93p · 498 weeks ago
And that's the way these things go, some weird thing leads go poison oak on your feet. That's just luck I guess. Sometimes it's good to have a mega month to just read. You can't do it every month but sometimes it helps you feel like you've achieved something. And don't talk to me about needing more outdoor exercise but autmn here instantly means rain and cold weather so I may just start going to the gym or something instead.