Not Fit2 Read

I got Fit2Fat2Fit by Drew Manning from the library recently. In a nutshell: A personal trainer who has always been a super-fit health nut lives like the rest of super sized America. He lets himself go for six months and then spends the next six months whipping himself into shape. It started as a blog and became a book.

I think this was an amazing idea. For people who’ve always been thin or always loved exercise, y’all just don’t get it. Manning decided to do what it took to empathize with his clients. That’s great and it would have made an excellent documentary.

This is hands down the worst book I’ve read this year, probably in the last two years. The writing is terrible. Not even the ghost writer could save this enough to make me like it and I really wanted to like it.

Manning has been built like the friggin’ Hulk for most of his life. He spent 50 pages of a 200+ page book on what it was like to get fat and that includes his wife’s chapter. You completely rewrite your physical form and lifestyle and that’s all you’ve got? 

I’ve been larger than life for many years. Restrict me to the last six months and I can still give you more than that in a day. I wanted more. I needed more. If he didn’t have more in him, the book was a mistake. If more was on his blog, why isn’t it in the damn book?

It was compelling to hear about a fit person finally know how the rest of us feel. Society is very scornful of anyone above a certain size. The only people it’s PC to hate are Nazis, zombies, and the obese. Manning felt very judged when he goes back to the gym even though most people probably paid him no mind. 

He makes some excellent points about fitness in the latter half of the book: Form is key for fitness, variety is vital to stave off boredom, set yourself up for success. Getting to them was tedious, dull, and, at times, condescending. Please explain to me WTF John F. Kennedy has to do with fitness? It makes no sense and sounds remarkably pretentious for a memoir with a text message title.

As much as I wanted to like this book, I hated it. I got almost no enjoyment out of reading it. I still think what Manning did was extraordinary. I have a lot of respect for him. So long as he never writes another book, he’ll keep it.

Current Jams: Blown Away by Carrie Underwood

Home Sweet Own 42 Book Challenge

I’ve thought about what I have, what I like to read, and what it will take to get this challenge done. I present to you the new and improved SweetBlckCherry Book Challenge.

Home Sweet Own 42 Book Challenge

1) Fiction – A story about not-real people

2) Nonfiction – About real people and/or real events

3) Sci-Fi – Another fairly simple genre category

4) Fantasy – A book that takes you to a whole other world

5) Mystery – Someone did something somewhere and someone else has to figure out what happened

6) Horror – A book that should not be read before bed

7) Memoir/Biography – A book by or about a real person’s life

8) Chick Lit – Fluffy fiction for women by women.

9) Feminist – A book that supports women are equals to men

10) Teen – A book geared toward the under 21 crowd

11) Holiday – A book about or on theme with a holiday

12) Essays – Collected works of short nonfiction

13) Short Stories – Collected works of short fiction

14) Library – Something borrowed from the library

15) Animal – One or multiple animals play a vital role in the story

16) Book about Books – A book about books or their importance to someone

17) New – A book I obtained within 3 months of starting it

18) Old – A book I’ve had collecting dust for longer than 6 months

19) Pop Science – A book about science written for a broad audience

20) Near – A book that takes place in my tri-state area

21) Far – A book that takes place somewhere far from the DC/Baltimore area

22) Graphic Novel – A trade form of a graphic novel or comic book series

23) Reread – A book I’ve read before

24) Wild Card – Whatever I want

25) Otherworldly Creature – Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, fairies, and/or other creatures not of our world

26) Free – A book I got for the low, low price of free

27) Noteworthy – The book is a critical darling, labeled ‘noteworthy,’ or a major award winner

28) Bestseller –If a scale is needed, I’ll use the NYT bestseller list

29) Themed Anthology – A collection of different works by different people but one element ties the stories together

30) Steampunk – Some form of fiction that falls in this fantasy subgenre

31) Movie-Book – A book that has been made into a movie

32) Media – A book that focuses on film/TV/music 

33) Travel – Someone went somewhere new and did stuff

34) Food – Food plays an integral role in the book

35) Classic – A book that has endured long enough for B&N to make a discount edition

36) Humor – Something funny

37) Poetry – A beautiful form of storytelling, I don’t read enough poetry

38) Past – A book set in times that have gone by

39) Future – A book occurring in a time yet to come

40) Dystopia/Post-Apocalyptic – Either the world has mostly ended or has changed dramatically and not for the best

41) Zombie – Growing in popularity, this subgenre deserves some exploring

42) Sports – A book about a sport or a player

Short stories is just collect works of short fiction. Themed anthologies is different stories by different writers with one common thread. I always find it fascinating what different writers will do with the same prompt. Noteworthy and Bestseller can go hand-in-hand but Tori Spelling is a New York Times bestselling author. She’s probably still waiting for her National Book Award nomination.

Zombie and Steampunk get their own category because they’ve really taken off as subcultures. There are zombie walks, charity races, and conventions. In addition to cons, I’ve seen steampunk in different movies and TV shows. Each novel set in its respective world can have its own set of rules and possibilities. 

Dystopia and Post-Apocalyptic are lumped together because one generally begets the other. They blend together so well that it didn’t make sense to split them up or exclude one. 

Current Music: Anything Could Happen by Ellie Goulding

New Book Challenge

I’ve pondered how to best handle my debate between challenges and I’ve decided to combine them. 2013 will be the year of the Home Sweet Own 42 Book Challenge.

I have no idea if I can pull this off.

I can tell myself I’ll read what I want and hope it syncs up with the challenge but I know that’s not going to happen. I have thought about the 42 categories and the books I’ve wanted to read. Rather than trying to make this challenge difficult, I’m going to make this as fun as possible

Rules are as follows: 

-Any book used to complete a challenge category must be one I own or have borrowed.

-One book for each category. I cannot use the same book for more than one category.

-I can go in any order I choose.

-Any book I deliberately obtain must be noted here. Gifts do not count; freebies I sought out do. I’m trying to save money and not let my collection get any more out of control than it already is.

I’ll post the 42 categories soon.

Current Music: Weile Waile by The Prodigals

The Girl

Hitchcock created some amazing films. He was also notoriously hard on actors, especially Tippi Hedren. The Girl looks at his relationship with an actress plucked from obscurity and sent back to it on his whim.

I loved the pacing of this movie. It doesn’t drag its feet at all but it was never rushed either. It took just enough time to do its tale justice. This drama does a better job of building tension than most scary movies I’ve seen. When portraying the five days of live bird attacks Hedren endured, I felt the tension and fear. They did a great job of creating empathy within the audience.

Julian Jarrold did an outstanding job mirroring Hithcock’s own movies here. It’s subtle but if you’re a fan of Hitchcock, you’ll recognize and appreciate what this adds to the story. Other echoes of Hitchcock are seen in Toby Jones’s portrayal of the director. Hitch is just as sinister as any of his villains. Jones found the balance between the vulnerable boy within the man without removing any of his darkness.

I’ve heard so much about Sienna Miller being a world class party girl than acting. It’s nice to know she has some real talent. I’m not sure how close the story is to fact but it definitely makes you wonder.

Current Music: I Knew You Were Trouble by Taylor Swift

Alphabet Challenge Round 25

Ladies, gentlemen, and everything in between, I give you the final letter in the Alphabet Challenge! C is for Casual Vacancy, the much anticipated grown-up novel by J. K. Rowling. 

Rowling has created incredibly realistic characters. The quiet domestic desperation felt by these people reminds you so much of your friends and neighbors. One teen is a cutter, one father is abusive, one mother fantasizes about a boy band member to compensate for her unsatisfying marriage, and more than one adult acknowledges how few friends they really have. 

Because the characters were so close to life so was their drama which was equal parts compelling and depressing. You wanted to know their stories but those stories also broke your heart. It’s good when fiction reflects life but by Cthulhu’s madness could it be dismal.

The only time I couldn’t relate was with the small town politics and some of the character’s idea of their place in the world. Pagford is made out to be such a huge deal but I grew up between DC and Baltimore. I don’t think I’ll ever understand the small-town-big-deal mentality

I think Rowling is a great writer but I think some of her editors were afraid to tell her what to cut. This book needed to be tightened up and parsed down. I think her next work will be excellent so long as someone makes sure Rowling edits it down. 

A – American Virgin by Steven Seagle

B – The Bible Repairman by Tim Powers

C – The Casual Vacancy by J. K. Rowling

D – Divergent by Veronica Roth

E – Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

F – Fifty Shades of Gray by E. L. James

G – The Great Fables Crossover by Bill Willingham

H – How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming by Mike Brown

I – I Do But I Don’t by Kamy Wicoff

J – Jane Austen Made Me Do It by Laurel Ann Nattress

K – Killing Yourself to Live by Chuck Klosterman

L – A Little Night Magic by Lucy March

M – Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

N – Naked City edited by Ellen Datlow

O – One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde

P – Partials by Dan Wells

Q – Q & A by Vikas Swarup

R – Reality Bites Back by Jennifer L. Pozner

S – Songs of Love and Death edited by George R. R. Martin

T – The Tao of Dating by Ali Binazir

U – Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman

V – Vampires, Werewolves, and Zombies by Bruce Waldman et al

W – White Girl Problems by Babe Walker

X – XVI by Julia Karr

Y – Yoga Bitch by Suzanne Morrison

Z – Zoo Story by Thomas French

Current Music: Cold as Stone by Lady Antebellum

Dog Gone

So Michael Vick has a dog. My first thought? I wonder how long until Jerry Sandusky can be a foster parent.

Comparing Vick to a child molester might be a little extreme. He’s not that bad. Hurricane Sandy wasn’t as bad as the Japanese earthquake/tsunami. Both are terrible, neither has a conscience, and you’re not rooting for either of them but one is worse than the other.

A lot of people I talked to don’t see the problem. They said that he’s changed and the dog is for his daughter. People can change but it’s rare and it’s never that quickly or that much.

I think he should be banned from ever getting a dog. At the very least, he should be banned from getting a dog or cat for several years. He should explain to his little girl that the family can’t get a dog because daddy used to help run a ring where they killed each other for sport.

Just because he’s good at his job doesn’t mean he’s changed as a person. I have every doubt that he has learned his lesson. I believe he is enough of an arrogant motherfucker to think he’s above the law and do something like that again. If he was capable of it before, he is capable of it now.

If you want to forgive him for what he did, that’s your call but saying he deserves to get a dog is not forgiving, it’s forgetting. Just because you forgave you’re junkie relative doesn’t mean you leave him alone with your medicine cabinet. Just because a child molester serves his time doesn’t mean you let him babysit. Just because Chris Brown did his classes doesn’t mean his anger issues are resolved. (He put a chair through a window at GMA. Such progress.)

I have learned through multiple experiences that people almost never change. If they do change, it’s because it benefits them. Since Vick got his career back and his supporters pretend this never happened, why does he have to change? Most of what he did reeks of sociopathy.

My philosophy: Just because you’re kind enough to forgive someone doesn’t mean you should be stupid enough to trust them.

Pondering Challenges

With the alphabet challenge drawing to a close (I’m working on C), I needed a new challenge for 2013. I was torn between two options:

Option 1) Read from Home I own so many books I’m out of places to keep them and I haven’t read most of them. The best solution is to only read what I own with the occasionally library loan. Any books I purchase or deliberately obtain for free (gifts don’t count) must be confessed on here. I could also stand to spend less money so that would be an added bonus.

Option 2) 42 Book Challenge A few years back, I attempted to read 42 books in a year each for a specific category. My social life picked up so that I couldn’t complete it. I also had categories that sounded good at the time but ended up just feeling burdensome. It stopped being fun and started being work.

I love the idea of reading from home since I need to get to know my collection again. There’s also books I’ve been dying to reread but have put off because I was doing other challenges. 

If I stick with option 2, I wonder if reading from home and posting random reviews will be enough. It would be nice to read without pressure but if the book is doing its job, I shouldn’t feel pressured.

Current Music: I Will Wait by Mumford and Sons

Burn Out

If anyone tells you dating burn out is not a thing, they are totally lying.

Back in July I had a first date one night followed by a second date the next night with a different guy. Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep those details straight? Which one has a dog and which one has a sister. Fortunately neither guy lasted very long or I’d have started messing up those details.

A month later I met someone at a sci-fi convention. We dated for about six weeks and things were going very well until he got a temporary second job and disappeared. It started with the Single in the Shire incident followed by a whole lot of nothing. If he was too busy to call or text, I was too busy to wait around.

I had a first date lined up with a guy I met on-line who grew up in Ireland and moved here. Accents are sexy. Texting a girl you’ve never met good morning every day before your date isn’t. Not two hours after out date he texted me again asking how things looked. Another hour went by before he asked “Not good?” Yeah, definitely not looking good Velcro.

I had one other first date and one other guy ask me out. Both are friends of friends and seem like nice guys but I was just ‘meh’ about the whole thing. What will get you to a second date is if I care if I see you again. They were nice but I could take it or leave it. As for The Vanishing Act, put pennies on its eyes because what we had is stone dead.

It’s a predicament to have but if I’m not that into anybody, aren’t I better off not leading them on? It’s not fair for me to date a guy who seems to like me because I’m bored and could use a free dinner. After such a busy fall, I’m feeling a little burnt out on dating. Since very few relationships start around major holidays, I think I'm safe until January.

Current Music: When Your Mind’s Made Up by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova

Say Yes to the Alternative

I was goofing around on Etsy earlier and I’ve heard so many things about what great wedding stuff they have. I’m extremely single but I wanted to see what everyone was talking about. If a girl is going to poke around on the web for wedding crap, what is the first place she’s going to look? The dress.

Etsy gave you different options but I clicked on ‘Alternative Dresses’ first. Lords of Kobol is there some crazy stuff out there. Seeing all of the outrageous color and designs makes the white ‘Say Yes to the Dress’ stuff look really boring now.

This one kicked boring white to the curb and embraced embellishments. Another dress from the same people fell in love with color. They had some standard white fair but their nontraditional stuff was amazing. They’re semi-close to where I live so jotting that down if part of hell freezes over and this happens to me.

One retailer had steampunk fashion some of which was pretty and some of which was weird. I got a big kick out of a pirate dress from Australia. If I ever go hardcore theme, I’m getting that sort of mess custom made.

Some stuff was closer to tradition but had personality. A lot of retailers had shorter dresses and eco friendly dresses.

I have a hard time buying shoes and skirts on-line so I don’t think I’d leave something this important to ‘Add to Cart’ but it can expose you to new ideas and reveal new retailers. They also had some awesome stuff in rings…

Current Music: Game of Thrones Main Title by Lindsey Stirling and Peter Hollens

Alphabet Challenge Round 24

B is for The Bible Repairman, a collection of stories by Tim Powers. This was an intriguing collection. All of the stories had very different characters and kinds of magic but Powers kept things consistent with how he told the story. I liked that the magic in them wasn’t always the same. I think the twin story was my favorite.

My big complaint is that, save for the last tale, this was a very California-centric collection. As a born and bred east coaster, I felt like I was missing something because I barely know California. Whether that’s true or not, your reader shouldn’t feel alienated. It took away from my enjoyment of the work. I liked the stories but I didn’t love them and that was before it was all about the west coast. I’d give it a 2.5 or 3 out of 5.

A - American Virgin by Steven Seagle

B - The Bible Repairman by Tim Powers

C

D - Divergent by Veronica Roth

E - Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

F - Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

G - The Great Fables Crossover by Bill Willingham

H - How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming by Mike Brown

I - I Do But I Don't by Kamy Wicoff

J - Jane Austen Made Me Do It edited by Laurel Ann Nattress

K - Killing Yourself to Live by Chuck Klosterman

L - A Little Night Magic by Lucy March

M - Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen

N - Naked City edited by Ellen Datlow

O - One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde

P - Partials by Dan Wells

Q - Q & A by Vikas Swarup

R - Reality Bites Back by Jennifer L. Pozner

S - Songs of Love and Death edited by George R. R. Martin

T - The Tao of Dating by Ali Binazir

U - Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman

V - Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies by Bruce Waldman et al

W - White Girl Problems by Babe Walker

X - XVI by Julia Karr

Y - Yoga Bitch by Suzanne Morrison

Z - Zoo Story by Thomas French

Current Music: Breathe by Two Steps from Hell

Ironic

Last weekend I was taking the train into DC. I had on skinny jeans, knee high boots, and a flannel shirt with a ‘Bite Me’ button on the collar. On the train I was reading short fiction from the New Yorker on my Kindle . When I was walking I was listening to alt-rock on my iPhone. I stopped and realized I spent my morning as a hipster.

Last night at Union Station, I saw a guy in a gray cardigan, dark wash skinny jeans, thick framed glasses, a scarf, and a messenger bag. He was perfectly dressed to be a hipster except I don’t think that was a costume. What is the irony level for dressing as a hipster for Halloween?

Current Jams: Hipster Girl by MC Lars