August Updates

August was pretty slow up until a few days ago so I thought I should update before the month is over!

On Friday, August 24th, I went to see Wicked and it was awesome! I had started to read the book a while back but couldn't get into it. The tickets were a gift and I wasn't too sure about it but I am glad I went! It was entertaining and quite funny as well. I wasn't sure what to expect at first but I was pleasantly surprised!

On Saturday, August 25th, we went out for dinner at Le Vieux-Port Steakhouse to celebrate my birthday and then everyone came back to our place for cake and coffee. Yes, I usually have my BBQ but I really wasn't up to it this year at all and going out was a nice change! Less work for me at least!

And tonight... MADONNA!!! Need I say more? I am super bouncy and excited today and I can't wait! I have AMAZING seats, better than ever before, and I am really looking forward to this show! Apparently she was 2.5 hours late a couple of nights ago but it was her first show in North America so they were having "issues". Her trucks have already been spotted here so hopefully they are all ready to go! I can't wait!!!

From Chick-Lit to Erotica? Part II

So, I did it. I read them; all three of them. What am I talking about? The “Fifty Shades” trilogy by E.L. James of course! What are my thoughts? Well, for starters, they certainly do not live up to all of their hype, that’s for sure!

In my opinion they were OK, no more than that. Definitely not the page turner I had anticipated and the storyline was a bit unrealistic but they ARE fiction after all. The main thing that bothered me was the writing itself. The level and/or style of writing which the author uses are horribly repetitive and amateur! As one review said, if you were to pick one of the many “repeated phrases” used in this book and drink every time you read it you would be blackout drunk by chapter 4! Thankfully, I got used to the writing by the end of the first book which made it easier to read the remaining two.

As for the sex scenes, this is most likely where all of the hype came from I assume. The scenes were probably quite shocking to A LOT of people. But, after an average of one scene per chapter I found myself getting quite bored with them and wanting to just skip through and get to the story amidst all of the sex. As you all know, I have now learned that I don’t mind a good sex scene thrown in now and then, but when the book has a higher percentage of smut than plot it is a little discouraging. In the last book I would literally jump through pages to get back to the storyline because I didn’t care for the garbage anymore.

I think this is a series that most will either love or hate, but I am still somewhere in the middle. Once I was reading I didn’t want to put it down, but after putting it down I would go days without picking it up again. It kept me busy on the bus to work and waiting for appointments and such, but I wouldn’t read them again.

It’s back to chick-lit for me for a bit! Oh, and to the “Fifty Shades” readers… Laters!

'Ohana

“Ohana means family. Family means no one is left behind - or forgotten."

Lilo from Lilo & Stitch

I used to write a detailed account of my life on all of my websites but those days are long gone. All of those sites have been taken down and in many ways my life has become a little bit more personal than ever before. I think I did it to justify myself and who I was, to help people understand me better, but I don’t feel the need to tell the world my story anymore… at least not so openly; there is a time and place for everything.

I am writing this because, consciously or not, I tend to put quotes around the world “family” when I write and a few people have asked me about it so I will attempt to explain without going into too much detail.

Basically, the dictionary definition of "family" is as follows: 1. a group of blood relatives, especially parents and their children; 2. a group of persons sharing common ancestry; 3. a group of individuals related by blood, marriage, or adoption. While all of these may be true, I feel that there are many more variations to the word and that this definition is far from complete! Personally, I do not necessarily consider those that I share my blood or my ancestry with as being my “family”. Yes, I can associate the titles of “mother”, “father”, “grandparent” and such to each person in my bloodline, but I consider very few of them to actually play their defined roles in my life. I hardly know the majority of my “family” members, and of those that I do the connections are mostly lost, forgotten or betrayed.

There’s an old saying that goes: “You can pick your friends but you can’t pick your family” and I disagree. Many of my closest friends ARE “family” to me and I do not feel that a “family” should be based solely on a luck of the draw bloodline. They should be the people that I feel connected to, supported, loved, and nurtured by, and those that I truly care about. Some people get lucky… they cherish their bloodline, ancestry, and those who make up their “family”; but, not everyone can be so fortunate.

That being said, I do consider myself to be pretty lucky though because every person that I consider to be MY “family” is truly special to me and that is what I feel is most important!