Monday, January 31, 2011

Maddeningly Unhelpful Monday--The Minivan

Please forgive me, readers, while I direct this bit of advice to the makers of minivan ads. Minivans will never be cool.

Never.

But that's okay, they are very useful vehicles. I should know, I own one. But, ads that try to convince me that they are cool are a waste of money. I don't care how big their speakers are or if fireworks go off when I look at the van. I don't care if rabbits and deer find the atmosphere in and around the van peaceful. I don't even care if rose petals float out the door and giant clams are singing in the trunk. No such van is going to make me drop my perfectly paid for bag of groceries.

Please, just tell me how your van is going to entertain my children. How it will keep me from getting lost despite high levels of volume in the car. How easy it will be to wipe boogers off the walls. And the millions of different compartments available for my kids to hide food in until it saturates the air with its rotting fragrance.

Now, if in the future, you come up with a way to stop the sound in the back seats from traveling to the front seats of the car, or a self vacuuming floor, that might be something to make me drop my bag of groceries over. Thank you.

What features would you like to see in the future minivan?

Friday, January 21, 2011

Two Words....


American. Idol.

I am so happy it is back. I always forget how much I love it. It makes me happy. And I was so worried about the judge changes, but I've been pleasantly surprised. Especially by Steven Tyler. I don't care if my 12 year old daughter calls him a crusty old man-woman. I think he's cute. And he is cracking me up.

I've decided one of the reasons I love American Idol so much is because it is all about people who are passionate about a dream going for it. To watch these singers succeed (or fail) gets me every time. I love it.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Wednesday Review



I don't believe I haven't talked about this book yet. This was hands down, one of my favorite reads of 2010. It was fun, clever, different, and the boy was pretty darn lovable too. Hale. *sigh* *swoon* Seriously, if you haven't read this book, you should. I can't wait for book two to come out. Speaking of....when does it come out?

blurb:

"When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her to the Louvre...to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria...to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own--scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected. Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster's art collection has been stolen, and he wants it returned. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help. For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family's (very crooked) history--and, with any luck, steal her life back along the way."

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Wednesday Review





I love the cover of this book. It's even more beautiful in person. I really liked this book. It kept me reading and was interesting. There were a few things I couldn't picture. Like the Draki--not quite human not quite dragon. It was hard to imagine this. I would picture a dragon and then all the sudden she would talk about their flowing hair and I'd be like, uh, what? But aside from that it was great, sort of Twilight-ish in concept. A lot of times I gauge whether I really like a book or not by whether or not I plan to read the sequel. I plan to read the sequel.

blurb:

"A hidden truth.
Mortal enemies.
Doomed love.
Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.
Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.
Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide."