Nothing in January

I was looking back at my posts and realised that aside from one rather meager post to say "Happy New Year" I did next to nothing on the blogging front.

The sad fact is that I was pretty overwhelmed by the time January came around after an exceedingly busy December and early January.

We had a lot of cultural, musical and concert type events which we participated in last year and that culminated in several shows in December. The highlights included James Morrison and David Campbell performing at The Basement (not together) and a play with Cate Blanchett in it called "Uncle Vanya" though that was rather depressing what with it being Russian and all.

There were also a large number of social events, friends to catch up with, lunches and dinners.


Then there was Christmas which was just brilliant. This year we spent Christmas with the Kneebones who are great friends and a delightful family. We had to travel very far for Christmas ... all the way to St Ives! We arrived Christmas Eve, hung out and had dinner, went to bed and woke up to waffles (the boy cooked) and opening presents. We then had a progressive lunch with soup and salad served at 12pm, followed by lunch at 3pm and dessert a little after that. It was an amazing feast which Yanna prepared (I helped a little). We had planned to stay the night and depart Boxing Day but the boy came down with the flu and we left a day early. I was rather disappointed by that and was glad to have had such a wonderful Christmas celebration with great friends.

After Christmas, it was preparation for New Year's Eve. We were hosting a party at our apartment with people coming over to watch the fireworks and sleeping over. Yanna cooked again and there was so much cooking to be done that I went over to help cook the day before. We then had to drive out on the day to help collect all the food. That night we had about 20 people (adults and kids) and had a blast. The fireworks were great and as the night drew to a close we ended up with about 12 people strewn across our living room floor staying over for the night. Breakfast in the morning was more waffles by the boy. I had bought sausages and eggs to cook for breakfast but we never got to it.

January was a busy month and we tried to catch as much calm and down time as we could. It was difficult since we had the Medibank International Tennis Finals planned and also Steve was super busy at work. Note below picture of Steve with the Mambo Ball Goddesses which he delighted in having his picture taken with - his project is called Project M@MBO, so he was definitely wanting that picture. *grin*

We had planned at the end of January and early February to be in Malaysia for Chinese New Year but had to cancel as Steve was super busy at work and there were some critical things to be done that needed him around.

I think I just spent most of January trying to recover from December. It's now almost a quarter way into February and I've made a rather pathetic attempt at getting active again since I've been sick for the last part of January and most of what is February so far.

Here's hoping for improvement in the coming weeks.

Still wretched

For the last several weeks I've been on a roller coaster of heat stroke and what I think is the flu though with a lot of coughing.

The ride seems to be slowing down and I *appear* to be on the mend though that can be deceiving since yesterday I ventured out to get some groceries and that wiped me out and put me down for a 3 hour nap. Granted, it was about 45 degrees outside according to our new weather station (gift from Robert!) and it was a 25 minute walk there and back.

Today seems to be a bit better. One particularly violent bout of coughing has pulled a muscle in my back and that kinda wore me out, which led to another rather long nap.

Taking is easy since I'm under house arrest today - been told by the boy that I'm not allowed to go out gallivanting. I forgot to ask if going out to collect his laundry is allowed but I might wait till tomorrow to do that. I'm very hopeful that I will be much better tomorrow and on the mend.

The back still hurts but I've taken some painkillers for that. Hopefully, that too will pass.

So far today, I've napped a lot, played on the Kindle page for a little bit and watched a movie (Salt - how unbelievable! although they did leave it open for a potential sequel - that was so obvious!) and I think I'm going to settle down for some reading. I don't want to nap anymore.

Eucalyptus, tea tree and lavender

I should be in bed (and the boy would be pissed with me when he finds out I'm not) but I wanted to extol the virtues of essential oils before I zone out for a few hours on account of this bug I've got.

For the last two weeks I've been sick on and off over the entire time.

First it was (what I thought was) heat stroke where I was dizzy, nauseous, dehydrated and vomiting. I concluded it was heat stroke because it always came on after I'd been outside in the heat and went away after a few hours of rest (after the vomiting) in a cool dark room.

A few days later, I started coughing and having this tickle in my throat followed by aching bones for the entire week. It was the strangest thing. I'd be fine between 10am and 6pm but once I got to around about 6pm my bones would start to ache and I'd start to get shaky and clammy. Then I'd start coughing and I'd cough in the middle of the night when I woke up and in the morning. Then I'd be fine again. In fact, one day I felt so good during the day (I thought I was recovered) I went out gallivanting with a friend and then proceeded to suffer an awful relapse during the night. Boy, was Steve mad at me.

Anyhow, last night I was feeling particularly poorly and on top of everything else my nose had started running. I had the full complement of symptoms - runny nose, sore throat, fever, cough, aching bones, etc. Not at all fun.

It got to bed and tried and tried to go to sleep but couldn't because my nose was too clogged up and I couldn't breathe properly.

I lay in bed gasping away (and coughing) for about an hour until Steve finally asked me why didn't I put the vaporiser on (stupid!) and get our usual combination of essential oils for down days going.

Duh!

My only excuse was that I could not breathe and hence the oxygen was not getting to my head and I wasn't thinking straight.

After that I dragged myself out of bed to prepare the vaporiser - water, eucalyptus, tea tree and lavender essential oils.

Of course, you ask why Steve isn't the one getting out of bed to do it since I'm the one that's sick. Answer: he doesn't know how to. Never learnt. I've always done it.

I got the vaporiser going and I kid you not within 2 minutes of it going I could breathe again and promptly fell asleep a few minutes later.

That stuff is amazing!

The combination of vaporiser and essential oils (the right ones, of course) just does wonders.

I had a blissful, brilliant night sleep. In fact, I didn't even wake up at 3am as I usually do and slept straight through to 6:30am.

Ranting in public is so not cool

Yesterday, as I was posting about this one person SHOUTING on the Kindle page, I briefly mentioned that at times there is some nastiness that goes on. Well, today it seems is one of those days. The level of aggravation going on by this one woman is rather astounding and all of that energy poured out over a free book being offered by the publishers of the book and Amazon and the fact that this woman chooses not to have a credit card in her life.

For the most part, you'll note that everyone is friendly, kind and just trying to understand and help her out. However, it would appear that she does not want to be helped or understood. She just wants to rant ... and rant she did. Many times. Vociferously. Rudely.

Quite stunning actually but it makes an interesting study into human nature. I find it hard to believe that a little thing such as not being able to "purchase" a free book because you don't have a credit card should engender such hostility in a person.

It could be that this was her "straw that broke the camels back". Maybe she was already having a bad day? Maybe she's just an argumentative, cantankerous person by nature. Maybe ... Maybe ....

I think Rich Meyer says it best when he commented:

Okay. I just attempted to buy Thunder Without Rain, using the account I use as an author. I don't buy anything on it, even free books. And guess what? Since I don't have a credit or debit card for the purchase, Amazon asked me for one! Glor...y-be! Lawsy-lawsy! I'm coming up to meetcha, 'Lizabeth! How dare a company try to verify it's buyers with a readily-available and near-universally accepted method! Those bastards! How dare they want to make sure I'm me and make sure I am able to pay for any purchase that may be incurred if I screw up and click on the wrong thing! So what if they'll refund ANY mistake or buyer's remorse within 7 days!

I don't normally suggest this to people on this forum, but I think it would be best for Barbara and the world at large if she sticks to regular paper books. Assuming she understands how to operate them.

But then, Rich has always been a super clever and witty person on the board. His posts always crack me up.

So here you go, here's Barbara (of the only 4 friends on facebook) in all her ranting glory. Feel free to skip to the end if you don't want to read it all, but it's like watching a train wreck, you just can't help stopping and staring just out of pure morbid fascination and curiosity.

Barbara Argiropoulos

This is Not fair! I was offered 2 books last week FREE but turns our they were PreOrder! Amazon wanted a credit card... something I dont have. So I figure thats ok I order them the day they were to be del. NOW they cost grrrr Than today I was offered a Freeb book & again it turns out its a PreOrder deal grrr ONE of the MAIN reasons I liked the Kindle No Cred Cards were Needed.. For them to want a cr card for a Free PreOrder is Unfair!!

8 hours ago ·
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            Charlotte Durma Jones Register with Amazon your debit card on your checking account. Works the same as a Visa or MasterCard.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos So now I need a Checking account to get something FREE!! To me this is Bait & Switch!! IF its not free they should not be offering it!
            8 hours ago ·
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            Charlotte Durma Jones Pre orders are good, especially whe FREE......because when the book is actually available it won't be free anymore. So you guarantee that your e-cop will be free by pre-ordering. How do you get other books for your Kindle if you do not have a credit or debit card registered? Actual CASH can't be done online.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Brenda Ernst Zalegowski It's not bait and switch, it is free. I don't know why they require a credit card for a preorder but you won't be charged for it when it's released.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Connie Cortesi Barbara it is Free. They don't charge the card. I've done hundreds of transactions with Amazon. I've ordered over 200 free books. now you're just being rude. sorry, JMHO
            8 hours ago ·
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            Chrissy Mele it could be to verify that u are the holder of the account and they only verify it on free books ive gotten a few off them free and all they really do is verify that im the account holder I get an email right after telling me of my order and the charge which is 0
            8 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos IF its FREE why the heck would they care to verify my account?? duh
            8 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos I am sure there are Lots of people that dont think this is fair! They need to STOP sending offers if there are Conditions Attached!
            8 hours ago ·
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            Jennie Hunt They have to verify the account so they know it's you that's ordering the books, I would think. I'm curious as to how you think you are going to be able to buy any books at all with no debit or credit card and no bank account? Magic beans?
            8 hours ago ·
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            Chrissy Mele strange ya cant have an account without a card an whats with the rudeness here were just answering u the best we can for all they know u hacked the account sorry this is the last post from me I agree with connie ur rude
            8 hours ago ·
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            Rich Meyer People, people! Don't feed the troll.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Janice Stroup Can't you add a gift card to your account? Don't know just wondering. It's true that it IS free. I've bought hundreds of free books and it's always been total charge 0.00.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Chrissy Mele u gotta have an account first lol
            8 hours ago ·
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            Teri Pre Ok, I'm curious. If you have a Kindle, and you've ordered books in the past, how have you paid for them? Maybe your answer will clear up our confusion!
            8 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos I already have money in my account! So I dont need to add more for a Free books BUT apperantly Amazon ONLY GIVES to those that have Credit Cards.
            8 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos PLEASE READ MY POSTS!!
            8 hours ago ·
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            Marianne Fokas I suggest that you stop yelling and complaining and call CS or put your debit card on your account if you have one, you will be "charged" $0.00, it's FREE, maybe Amazon will have a "workaround" for you...jeez
            8 hours ago ·
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            Joni Allen Sternberg that was going to be my suggestion... take it up with the people who set the rules and stop being rude to everyone else who is just trying to understand and help
            7 hours ago ·
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            Jennie Hunt I don't have a credit card, I have NEVER ever had a credit card, and I have an Amazon account that works perfectly. You DO NOT NEED a credit card to have an Amazon account, Barbara!
            7 hours ago ·
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            Nancy DeCilio Gauthier Some people just can't comprehend simple things - like Free is Free.
            7 hours ago ·
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            Jennie Hunt So it would seem. Ah well, we can but try.
            7 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos Jennie I Never used a Credit card with Amazon! I had Tons of Free Book offers in the past 18 months UNTIL the Last 3 offers where it seems they are Only Free to Cr cardholders.

            Nancy Free should be Free to ALL customers Not just people ...with Credit Cards! There should be No Strings Attached!

            7 hours ago ·
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            Marianne Fokas Barbara, did you call CS yet?? I really think you need to do that
            7 hours ago ·
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            Jan Brown I've noticed some of those pre order free ones are the very limted time offers compared to some of the other free limited time promos
            7 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos Theyu are Not Free at All if you dont Pre Order You CANT preorder even with Money in you account Without Adding Cr Card Information!
            7 hours ago ·
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            Rich Meyer Just so you understand, "CS" means "Customer Service". Call them and quit whining here. No one here can do a thing for you, especially since you haven't got two important things: 1) the ability to read/listen to what people tell you, and 2) a clue.
            7 hours ago ·
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            Barb Kirchofer I can see Barbara's point, but gees if this makes you that mad, you are headed for serious medical issues in the future. First call CS. If they are not able to help you then file a complaint with Amazon. I guess most all of us have debit cards now days, so we don't have this issue. Life is too short. Take a deep breath.
            7 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph What a freaking JOKE.... the book is FREE no CC needed. They are just making sure that it is you and your acct... GEEEEEZZZ....and why are you bewitching here on the FB page for Kindle? We have NOTHING to do with Amazon and how it does or does not charge. These nice people have been trying to help you and you just argue back at them.. What a joke..........
            7 hours ago ·
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            Karen Ng I'm sorry that you don't have a credit card...but it does not make you less worthy.
            6 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos The books are FREE ONLY IF you have a CREDIT CARD other wise they are $15! I have called CS. [If you bother to read the above posts.] IF Amazon is going to tun into Barnes & Noble where you NEED a Credit Card to even get a FREE book the...n Perhaps I should request my Money back for the Kindle & $125 in eBooks ALL Paid for via Gift cards. I Would Much rather see People Protest this Policy [as I have done] Is this such a Selfish world that people that want Credit Cards dont Care that people that Dont are treated like 2nd class customers by companie ALL so Credit Card people can get FREE Items! Com on people Call Customer Service Tell them You Don t Feel it fair After ALL its JUST a FREE book!
            6 hours ago ·
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            Barb Kirchofer You can use a debit card. You don't have to use a credit card. Gosh, I really can't understand why thus is such a big deal for you. But since it is, return your Kindle if it is within a30 days of purchase. Or if not sell it on ebay. Read the books you've bought first. Then be done with it. Obviously, this is an important issue for you. Don't do business with Amazon.
            6 hours ago ·
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            Angela Velon Tollis Did customer service give you any alternative solution besides registering a cc on your acct? Maybe call them back and ask if there java workaround using some other way to verify yourself as the acctholder. Good luck! I know things like this can be frustrating :-)
            6 hours ago ·
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            Angela Velon Tollis ‎*is a
            Not java... darn autocorrect
            6 hours ago ·
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            Alyssa Popov McCain Barbara: My husband and I don't have a single credit card and we are able to get our Amazon books easily. At first I used our debit card and now I just load a gift card (which you can buy with cash at the grocery store if you like). I am really surprised by the amount of anger you are directing at the people on this page that are just trying to be helpful. :(
            6 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos For the 6th Time I use Gift Cards! But how would you like to be charged a Different price for an Item Depending on HOW you wish to Pay for it? Think about that people! O gee the Company Already has my Money the instant I Buy a gift card weather I use it or not! An dot that CASH customers are being Charged MORE sheesh
            6 hours ago ·
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            Jennifer Milam I have never heard of a free book that was free only to credit card holders as you say. Why don't you post the name of the books so we can check it out?

            But remember the golden rule and that rudeness begets rudeness. Please and thank you.
            6 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph Jennifer I can about tell you which one it is.. there was only one pre-order freebie this morning.. let me go get the link...
            6 hours ago ·
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            Alyssa Popov McCain Barbara: Why are you being so rude to us? We are trying to understand your situation and offer our experiences. Like I said, I have NEVER USED A CREDIT CARD on amazon and I have often ordered free ebooks. So, from my experience, I'm not understanding what is happening to you. What titles are causing this to happen?
            6 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos Thunder Without Rain by Ryan Brown .... When you try to order it Amazon refuses the Order without Credit Card information! For customers using Gift Cards it Cant be Pre Ordered & will cost $15 when released in Oct. This is but one of Several thats poped up in the past few weeks!
            6 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos BTW I have Ordered Other things Pre Ordered Not had an issue using my Gift Cards to Pay for!
            6 hours ago ·
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            Alyssa Popov McCain Yep, when I try to buy the book it takes me to a credit card page. That's really strange. It does say the book's price is set by the publisher so I think this is another case of "agency price" messing up things. While it is unfair, it is in their right. The publisher can set the rules to sell their product. I'm thinking they are checking sales demographics or something by collecting the credit card information even though the preorder is free. Sorry!
            5 hours ago ·
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            Teri Pre Since you've been able to order and pre-order other free books, there just might be a problem with the system.

            Many people have suggested contacting Customer Service about it. Maybe if you do so in a pleasant manner, you'll get good resul...ts!See More
            5 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos So people are OK with Amazon giveing out YOUR credit Card Information?? No wonder there is Sooo much Identity Stealing going on!

            Repeat #3 I Have contacted CS! TY

            5 hours ago ·
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            Jennifer Milam I have a strange feeling that the free preorder this morning is a gimmick. There is no description of the book ANYWHERE, and its not even available until October 2011. And this is the first freebie that I have ever seen, preorder or otherwise that requires a credit card... and I have downloaded them all. But this particular one seems odd. I might ask Amazon about it myself... but no need to stress.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Jennifer Milam Again... why are we complaining about something FREE. FREE is a gift, no one is forcing you to accept it. Gifts, just like sweepstakes, sometimes have terms. You are free to pass up the deal if you don't like the terms. Seems kinda silly for all the anger & threats to return your kindle simply because of a freebie.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Angela Velon Tollis barbara, I know you already called CS, I'm thinking you could call back, speak to someone new?
            5 hours ago ·
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            Angela Velon Tollis Idk if it's a gimmick, but the author is legit. Ryanbrownauthor.com.
            Publishing company listed on his Contact page is also legit.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Jennifer Milam ‎@Angela, I thought maybe its a gimmick just to see how many people grab something just because it says free & we don't even know what it is. LOL
            5 hours ago ·
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            Chrissy Mele OK PEOPLE ENOUGH OF THIS WE TRIED WEVE BEEN NICE AN SHES BEEN NOTHING BUT RUDE DROP IT LIKE A HOT POTATOE AN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT SUBJECT PLEASE (Deanna: Uh oh! Shouting!)
            5 hours ago ·
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            Malinda York No. I have no problem w/Amazon having my credit card on file.I have dealt w/them for years and never had a single problem. A credit card number usually cannot result in identity theft as the person would need much more info than that to succeed. While I understand you are frustrated, your approach toward everyone here is horrid. You need to count to 10 and relax. In the grand scheme of things......this is really not that important at all. Turn on your TV and watch what's going on in Egypt!
            5 hours ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel I ordered Thunder without Rain this morning preorder with no problem and no cost. But I agree with Chrissy, everyone has tried every way possible to help. There is no answer that is going to satisfy this person. However, we do know that her caps lock and exclamation point work extremely well.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph ‎3rd book down at the moment.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Robin Paolillo Holland I ordered it this morning fairly early. It didn't bring me to a credit card page though. I just one-clicked like I always do.
            5 hours ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel Same with me, Robin, same procedure as always. Must be different with a debit card apparently.
            4 hours ago ·
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            Joni Allen Sternberg i pre ordered mine with a debit card on file no issues and it says it was free....
            4 hours ago ·
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            Stacey Battenfield Does your gift card have a balance on it RIGHT NOW? If it doesn't you aren't going to be able to order the free book.
            And you have mentioned several times that you have called customer service. What was the reply you were given regarding y...our rant.
            My husband buys approximately $700 worth of propane at a time to heat our house~he only gets a discount if he DOESN'T pay with a credit card. There are some old fashioned gas stations around here that still abide by the cash price is less than the credit card price for gasoline. Crafters at craft shows accept cash, sometimes checks. They rarely take a credit card unless you either spend a minimum dollar amount or pay the fee that they in turn have to pay to accept credit card payments. Maybe I should pitch a fit too since I want to earn some point on my credit card so I can go back to Disney World. Oh wait, it's their rules and I can abide by them or take my business elsewhere.See More
            4 hours ago ·
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            Amanda Williford She's gone on to the Inkmesh page to gripe about it too...Really must have pi**ed her off. Dare i take a peek at the "other" ereader page to see if she's sunk so low to go bi*** there? Something smells here. You may not be a second class person, but your actions and hateful responses to fellow readers sure make u look like one.
            4 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos CS took my information.... The more that complain the better! I dont thinks its fair to punish those of us that pay CASH in advance! No more than it NOT fair when Credit Card people get charged Extra. Things Wont change for equal fairness IF People Dont speak up!
            4 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos I Warned people on Inkmesh So What! People have the Right to be Forwarned that Its Not Free unless you have a credit card & Willing to give your information out...
            4 hours ago ·
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            Stacey Battenfield Meh, she has a post under Kindle Customer Service Q&A too. She should call her local tv/radio stations and let them know about the injustice of it all :P
            4 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos Those of you that have credit cards sure are a Selfish Bunch! (Deanna: wow! who's being judgemental now?)
            4 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph LMAO Stacey... lights- cameras - ACTION !
            4 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph How are we, Credit Card Owners, selfish? That makes no sense what so ever to me. Why would us having credit cards seem selfish to you? Can, for some bad credit or no credit reason, can you not get one, and you think that makes us who have them selfish? You should explain the reasoning behind calling the people here names...
            4 hours ago ·
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            Joni Allen Sternberg to buy anything online which is what kindle is, online buying, you need a card of some sort, as sad as it is this is not a cash society any more, and she has no right saying that because i have a credit card im selfish. I pay cash when possible, when it isnt i pay credit/debit card, that doesnt make me a bad person.
            4 hours ago ·
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            Amanda Williford "Those of you that have credit cards sure are a Selfish Bunch!"
            Barbara dear, I don't use credit cards either. If I can't pay for it using cash or my debit card, I don't need it that bad. I've seen too many go into debt with credit cards an...d I refuse to do the same...
            however, I don't go bi****ing about something free if I don't qualify to get just because someone else did. There are thousands of instances where someone qualifies for something free and others don't. It's the giver who gets to decide what the qualifications are.
            My family got a free trip to Florida and the theme parks because my daughter had a life threatening illness (cancer, and she's beat it so far). Are you going to complain to everyone you know that you were left out of that?
            As my kids say..."You get what you get, and you don't throw a fit!"
            Not everything in life is going to be equal for everyone. Even my kids know this.See More
            2 hours ago ·
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            Barbara Argiropoulos IF people would contact CS about this it Would Change for Everyone Including you! (Deanna: and she is also idealistic.)
            2 hours ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel We have all wasted six hours of our lives that we will never get back trying to help someone that only wants to argue, bitch and moan. That is so UNFAIR!!
            2 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph Amanda, first off, I am so sorry your daughter has had to go through what she has and I am so happy to hear she has beat it so far and I truly hope she continues the path she is on to a full recovery.

            Second, your response here is wonderful ...and very true, and I wanna borrow your kids saying, I think it is great! Best of wishes to you and yours!

            BUT if you read her response just below yours, you like the rest of us have wasted our time and breath on this woman.. she is a hopeless case. I would truly hate to be such a sad and angry person in life as she is.See More
            2 hours ago ·
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            Jessica Kupillas Hartung
            It looks like amazon changed their pre-order policy require credit cards on one-click only pre-order items (things like ebooks and mp3s). It's been like this for a while, I guess it just hasn't been a big deal for ebooks before (I download ...alot of mp3s from amazon so I noticed it months ago). I too don't like having my cc or debit card online and prefer gift cards so I got around this by buying a visa gift card for $5 then registered that as my cc on amazon. It just sits there and amazon deducts the cost (if any) from my gift cards instead. Maybe this could work for you? And believe it or not, I believe the reason they changed it was to make the preorder price guarantee easier to uphold so I think they did it with good intentions. And at least they aren't requiring credit cards for ALL free books, you just can't PRE-ORDER anything.
            2 hours ago ·
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            Rich Meyer
            Okay. I just attempted to buy Thunder Without Rain, using the account I use as an author. I don't buy anything on it, even free books. And guess what? Since I don't have a credit or debit card for the purchase, Amazon asked me for one! Glor...y-be! Lawsy-lawsy! I'm coming up to meetcha, 'Lizabeth! How dare a company try to verify it's buyers with a readily-available and near-universally accepted method! Those bastards! How dare they want to make sure I'm me and make sure I am able to pay for any purchase that may be incurred if I screw up and click on the wrong thing! So what if they'll refund ANY mistake or buyer's remorse within 7 days!

            I don't normally suggest this to people on this forum, but I think it would be best for Barbara and the world at large if she sticks to regular paper books. Assuming she understands how to operate them.See More
            2 hours ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel Go to the Kindle Customer Service Q & A post and you will see that this person is ranting there as well. We have wasted so much time on this person when we could have been reading. I love to help people that want to be helped. Some people can't be helped.
            2 hours ago ·
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            Sheila Renfro Pendergraph Carol it appears she has b**ched all every page she can find... she does not want help... this all has a funny feel to me...can't put my finger on it but something is just NOT right here.... smells fishy .
            about an hour ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel I keep thinking someone should start a new thread and suggest that we completely ignore this person and not comment anymore. She is getting what she wants every time we reply.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Joni Allen Sternberg I just cant get over how unpleasant she is... I wonder if she has any friends in real life or if she is alone and bitter
            about an hour ago ·
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            Amy Lindell Holler WoW!!
            about an hour ago ·
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            Allyson Rawlins All I can say is wow... You can't reason with a mentally unstable person...
            56 minutes ago ·
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            Andrew Welker Hey Barbara, your attitude sucks. And you seem willfully obtuse.
            55 minutes ago ·
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            Denise G-l Any publicity is good publicity... wonder if this is a ploy to have us all go purchase this book? Am just wondering...
            38 minutes ago ·
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            Caleb DeLagarino ‎*Not once HAVE I gotten in a fight with anyone on this page.
            36 minutes ago ·
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            Tammi Labrecque ‎"I just cant get over how unpleasant she is... I wonder if she has any friends "

            Well, according to her FB page she does. 4 of them.
            27 minutes ago ·
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            Joni Allen Sternberg HAHAHAHAHA i bout fell out of my chair when i read that Tammi
            4 minutes ago ·

Which then spun off this ... which as you can see is also quite fun in a weird kind of way because most of these people are quite familiar with each other, at least on this page. In case you're wondering, Heather was the subject of the last set of nastiness which spawned a post with over 200 comments. It's all her fault and she is Queen! *grin*

Carol Rice Kappel
It just astounds me the number of people on this page that have spent so much time today trying to help one particular person, especially when the person wanting help is nasty, argumentative, and accuses people of being liars. I hope the woman that has been so rude the last 6+ hours to a lot of very nice people will go away and free up everyone else to help people that truly want and appreciate their help.
about an hour ago ·
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            Heather Danis Uh-oh.. Have I missed something?
            about an hour ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel Oh yeah.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Caleb DeLagarino I'm going down to see this woman. This is the Kindle page. We all like each other here. At that rate she'll turn this page to the Nook page.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Allyson Rawlins I must have missed it too... This is too bad.... I feel like this is the very thing we try to avoid on this page
            about an hour ago ·
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            Marianne Fokas Carol, I walked away from it hours ago, after you posted now, I went to look OMG!!!!! Yeah, I think she complained anywhere she could....selfish credit card holders???? It's not worth anymore time.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel One person can leave a bad taste in the mouth for a whole lot of people.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel If you go to the Kindle Customer Service Q & A it's going on there as well.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Caleb DeLagarino What's her name?
            about an hour ago ·
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            Marianne Fokas Caleb....hours ago, I think it was Barbara something (Greek last name) trying to forget..lol something like 85 comments
            about an hour ago ·
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            Jan Brown makes you wonder if she's one of those "bully's" in real life, just gotta stir up stuff to make people react and pay attenton to her. Best thing that works, ignore em and they will end up talking to a blank wall and not us!
            about an hour ago ·
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            Marianne Fokas On Amazon's site too...people are out there with REAL problems and she complains about not being able to get a free book...really
            about an hour ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel I am just so appreciate when I get help, I hope people don't get so jaded by nasty people that they leave the page.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Adam Stephens Carol don't let her steal any more of your life than she already has. You deserve better. For that matter we all do. I think this board is great. 99% of the people on here want to help out one another so let's all let this one go and enjoy.
            about an hour ago ·
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            Heather Danis Oh-boy... Just read through that thread.... The term whackadoodle comes to mind....
            about an hour ago ·
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            Darlene Schofield I just found it and read it also she is a nutcase for sure!
            about an hour ago ·
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            Andrea Baker lol that conversation gave me a laugh that i needed
            about an hour ago ·
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            Suzie Irby some people just dont care and wont even know this is about them!
            59 minutes ago ·
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            Heather Danis Maybe we could all chip in a dollar and get her another ereader so she can go play with them instead...
            59 minutes ago ·
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            Jim Fay I think people with Oberon covers are selfish.
            59 minutes ago ·
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            Mary Hagedorn Morgan Goin down to take a peek
            58 minutes ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel LOL Jim only if they bought them with a credit card!
            58 minutes ago ·
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            Heather Danis I have several... I'm extra special selfish
            57 minutes ago ·
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            Mary Hagedorn Morgan Heather - havent found the thread yet, but I'm assuming it's your fault?
            54 minutes ago ·
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            Darlene Schofield I will chip in a dollar and help buy her a nook so she never comes back here again
            53 minutes ago ·
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            Jim Fay Heather, I'm sorry. That was a typo. I meant to say "shellfish."
            51 minutes ago ·
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            Carol Rice Kappel I think I would feel sorry for the people on the nook page.
            51 minutes ago ·
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            Mary S Roper Oh My Mary! I was thinking the same thing! (Re: Heather - havent found the thread yet, but I'm assuming it's your fault?)
            51 minutes ago ·
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            Deanna Lang Wow. I must really have missed something being laid up in bed with the flu. I will see if my phone will let me scroll down that far to check it out.
            49 minutes ago ·
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            Heather Danis Yep, it's my fault... Actually, it was probably me in disguise... Just trying to keep everyone on their toes.. (not really, but I'm usually accused if that)
            49 minutes ago ·
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            Heather Danis Carol, I'm not sure would...

            Jim, only shellfish can order Oberon covers? Well, I am a Cancer.... (the crab, not the disease...)
            43 minutes ago ·
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            Suzie Irby Couldn't find it...
            42 minutes ago ·
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            Nancy DeCilio Gauthier Wow, I was part of that trying to talk her down (or out - whatever), but I walked away. Now I am curious - have to scroll and look for it LOL.
            40 minutes ago ·
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            Virginia Francisco-Truett WOW. I missed it. Glad I did though.
            32 minutes ago ·
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            Kami Bingham Sims WOW, I had to peek! I do love that most of the time we all get along. I think this is just God's way of throwing a little spice into our kinlde page. Keeps us on our toes, gives a good laugh and reminds us all to be THANKFUL of the group... we have.
            Maybe we should get a screening process that will not let you like this page if you are, um, how to say this, half a bubble off a plum.See More
            31 minutes ago ·
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            Allyson Rawlins I found the thread, and it was embarrassing for the offender. She made herself look like a whining jackas*... I have found nothing but sweet, helpful and amazing people on this page. Even though I've been posting here for 3-4 months or so, ...I still ask questions that have been asked multiple times, and people are more than happy to help me. I've made some friends, had some great laughs, and been introduced to books and authors I would have never heard of. This page has opened me up to a whole new world of reading. It saddens me when people can't appreciate little things... Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. Happy Kindle-ing everyone. I ♥ u!!See More
            31 minutes ago ·
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            Jacqueline Howett Gee! that was quite a post. Happy Kindles to you all too!
            8 minutes ago ·
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            Caleb DeLagarino I left a comment. Ugh I hate when people get b****y on this page. Although it may have only happened twice.
            6 minutes ago ·

It has actually spawned another post encouraging people to ignore her, but it's just getting tedious now, so I'm leaving it.

SHOUTING when writing

I participate quite actively on the Amazon Kindle board on facebook.

I go there to exchange information, help out newbies, chat with other regulars that I've gotten to know in the course of the months that I've been visiting the forum.

Some days are quite fun and there can be a fair bit of silliness going on.

Some days can be quite aggravating like when someone (a troll) from the nook page decided to come over and attack one of our members. There was swearing, but not by me. I was just gobsmacked at the person's vehemence and nastiness. But that's besides the point.

Most of the time there's just a whole lot of niceness, book recommendations, helpful hints and such going on.

There's also the aggravation of some newbies and others who ask really, really dumb questions that makes me want to throw my hands up in the air and just walk away from it it all, but that's also not the point.

The point is today there's been a lot of SHOUTING on the board.

How do I know it's shouting? you ask.

Well, because, as one person decided to post:

ANYONE GOT ANY BOOKS I CAN READ? I LIKE THRILLERS ... HORROR ... AFRICAN AMERICAN FICTION ... BROKE RIGHT NOW SO CAN'T AFFORD TO BUY ANY ... HELP A FELLOW READER OUT!

So us helpful sorts provided some advice and comments,  plus I added:

And do you really need to type with your CAPS lock on? It seems like you're shouting at us.

To which she replied:

DEANNA I TYPE HOW I TYPE I FOLLOW MY OWN RULES AND NOT ANYONE ELSES...WHO SAID TYPING WITH CAPS IS SHOUTING? PROBABLY SOMEONE WITH ISSUES :)

No really, no issues, but truly, when you're commenting and writing on a post, some basic grammar, punctuation and even the appropriate use of upper and lower case letters would be helpful.

I mean, doesn't all that CAPS lock "speaking" sound like SHOUTING to you? When everything else is said in nice moderated lower case tones, with appropriate grammar and punctuation in place?

It really seemed to me as though she was shouting at all of us. Maybe I do have issues ... but I don't think so. 

It just doesn't seem like good manners.

Where is it written or when has it become acceptable to be rude just because you're writing online and on a social networking site rather than submitting an English Lit essay? 

Senior citizens ROCK!!!

I got this from a friend who posted it today. It was just too good to pass up.

A married couple are traveling by car from Victoria to Prince George . Being seniors, after almost eleven hours on the road, they were too tired to continue, and decided to take a room. But they only planned to sleep for four hours and then get back on the road. When they checked out four hours later, the desk clerk handed them a bill for $350.00

The man explodes and demands to know why the charge is so high. He told the clerk although it's a nice hotel, the rooms certainly aren't worth $350.00 for four hours.

The clerk tells him that $350.00 is the 'standard rate'.

He insisted on speaking to the Manager.

The Manager appears, listens to him, and then explains that the hotel has an Olympic-sized pool and a huge conference centre that were available for us to use.

"But we didn't use them," the husband said.

''Well, they are here, and you could have," explained the Manager. The Manager went on to explain that the couple could also have taken in one of the shows for which the hotel is famous. "We have the best entertainers from New York , Hollywood , and Las Vegas perform here," the Manager says.

"But we didn't go to any of those shows," the husband said.

"Well, we have them, and you could have," the Manager replied.

No matter what amenity the Manager mentioned, the husband replied, "But we didn't use it!"
The Manager is unmoved, and eventually the husband gave up and agreed to pay. As he didn't have the check book, he asked his wife to write the check. She did and gave it to the Manager.

The Manager is surprised when he looks at the check. "But ma'am, this is only made out for $50.00."

"That's correct. I charged you $300.00 for sleeping with me," she replied.

"But I didn't!" exclaims the Manager.

"Well, too bad. I was here, and you could have."

The moral of this story is Don't mess with senior citizens. They didn't get there by being stupid!

Currently reading 45 books

Okay, I'm not really reading 45 books all at the same time. That would make it exceedingly difficult to keep track of.

I'm reading one book right now. Yes, that's right ... just ONE book. It's the last book in a 4 book series. The first 3 have been wonderful.

I've got 44 others queued to read.

I've signed up with Goodreads to keep track of my reading since the MS Word document I was using was getting unwieldy - about 45Mb in size. Yikes!

It's a rather nifty website that has an massive book database and you just enter your books into it and tag them as "read", "to read" or "currently reading". You can even create your own tags or "shelves" as they call them. I haven't bothered.

So ... about this reading 45 books.

I joined 3 groups on Goodreads and one of them  has a whole bunch of discussions and book reading challenges it posted.

I decided to do two of them.

One of them was "New To You". I'm not sure if it's authors or books that are new to me or just authors. I decided to interpret it as both authors and books, so I've got a bunch of new authors in the list and a couple of books from continuing series that I am wanting to read. That's 12 books there, to be completed over 6 months which would be 31 July 2011. Easy peasy.

The other is an "A to Z" challenge where I have to read books with authors with last names in all the letters of the alphabet. This one is a bit tricky because it's of the Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance sub-genre only and I don't have enough books in my list of books I already own to fill all the gaps. I've managed to fill all the alphabets but I have had to pull out of my library some historical fiction, historical and contemporary romance and even once thriller. Obviously, I've disqualified myself from the reading challenge in the strictest sense but I've written to the group leader and told her that. I'll do this one on my own. That's 26 books but I've added a few more because I added some series and I've put a few of the books of the series in, so that makes it 39 books, but some are repeated in the "New To You" challenge above. This one is supposed to be done in 3 months, which takes us to 30 April 2011. Not so easy peasy.

Throw in a few other odds and ends that I've got previously queued to read and that makes 45 in total, by 31 July 2011. Doable if I do not go back to work but I might go back to work. Not sure about that. I have a job interview tomorrow. We'll see how that goes ... but I digress.

Anyway, here's a visual view of the books I'm planning on reading, not in any particular order and just because I think book covers are awesome and they all look so pretty.

Oh yes, I'll be reading all of these on my Kindle *happy face* ... except for 2 of them. I don't have those in Kindle format so I have to read them on the nook *sad face*.

Reading 29 out of 100

I've challenged myself to reading 100 books this year. Last year, I didn't challenge myself at all and managed to hit on reading 101 books, which really surprised me.

So far, I've already read 29 books and that was as of yesterday - 31 January 2011. I must say, I'm very pleased with myself, since it's almost a book a day and that's quite an accomplishment. Day before yesterday, I read 2 books and spent the day reading since I wasn't feeling up to much else (coming down with the flu and it hit yesterday) and didn't have anything else planned. I'm not sure if I will continue at this pace for the rest of the year (highly unlikely) but at this point, I'm enjoying it.

Here's what I've read so far:

I'll continue to update as this progresses.