What I'm Reading Wednesday (a Day Late)

I have been having a very hard time getting back to my regular posting since the end of the A to Z Challenge, but I think I have worked up a writing schedule that I can work with.

Currently I am reading Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton.

Image Source:  readinginthegarden.blogspot.com

This book comes highly recommended by two separate people: my sister and one of my best friends.  I couldn't resist.  I've just started, so I can't really say how I feel about the book yet, but I do love the language.

Before that, I read A Dance With Dragons by George RR Martin

Image Source:  oregonlive.com

This book is book number five in the Song of Fire and Ice Series, and I am still hooked.

In this book readers get to reconnect with Tyrion Lannister, quite possibly my favorite character.  I have enjoyed his antics since the very beginning of this series.  He's a smart-ass and he always manages to get out of every scrape and difficult situation somehow.  It was good to read about his adventures again.

Daenerys is also a big part of this book.  Her story has always interested me too.  However, in this book, her story was less fascinating, in my opinion.  I got tired of her life in Meereen and the whole slavery problem.  I almost wished the author had just skipped the whole thing.  I am glad that she finally got to ride a dragon, although I still can't decide if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

There were some very surprising deaths at the end of the book.  At one point I almost cried.  I was reading on a break at work, so I managed to hold back my tears :)  It's difficult to imagine the series without this character, but that seems to be a theme since book number one when Ned Stark was killed.

I already cannot wait for the next installment!

What are you reading right now?  Have you read either of these books?  

What did you think of them?

Z is for Zed

Zee, zed, however you say it, it's the last letter of the alphabet. That makes this the last day of the challenge. And it has truly been a challenge! I participated on two of my blogs this year. I had no idea how that would take over my life. Some of my posts were a little bit late, but they were all completed, and I had a ton of fun.

Thank you for everyone who followed along with me. Welcome to all my new followers. I will be visiting all of your blogs as soon as I find the time :). I hope everyone was successful in completing the challenge.

Y is for Youth

Youth. What defines youth?

Obviously, youth is the time of our lives when we are considered to be young.

But how do we define youth on a personal level? Does our schooling define our youth? Shared experiences? The games we played? Our individual experiences?

I often wonder how much of my youth I missed due to my medical problems. I was not allowed to participate in PE classes from 5th grade on. I never participated in an organized sport. By the time I got to college, my doctor didn't even want me climbing stairs.

Of course I didn't always listen to my doctor because stairs are often more convenient than elevators :)

My youth was punctuated by pain.

I tried to not let it hold me back, but sometimes it did. Instead of sports, I participated in drama. My physical problems still limited me, but not too much. I wouldn't trade those experiences for anything.

I guess everyone's youth had its ups and downs. I try not to live my life with regrets. I am happy with my life right now and hopeful for the future. I have dreams that may still come true.

X is for Xrays

I have had a lot of xrays in my life.  At first I worried that they would damage my body or cause cancer.  Now I don't even think about it anymore.  I do wish that I could keep some of my xrays though.  I have been able to borrow them occasionally, but the doctors always want them back.  I think they should be considered my property, since I paid for them and they are images of my bones, but apparently they are not.
Some of the images are so neat, especially the post-surgery xrays.  It looks like there is a knife in my leg!  The ones from before the surgery are weird, but a good reminder of how far I have come.  I really hate dental xrays because I am reminded of all my fillings :)

W is for Waterboys

The Waterboys - a great band

Fisherman's Blues

V is for Verbose

I have never been verbose.  In fact I would say that I am the exact opposite of verbose, especially when I write.  Sometimes I worry about my ability to meet the necessary word count for a novel.  I tend to write things succinctly, without many words or details.  Maybe once I have edited and added all the necessary details, the word count will be perfect?  We'll just have to wait and see :)

U is for Unwritten

So much of my life is unwritten, yet to come, yet to be experienced.  So many stories in my head remain unwritten, fighting to come out and live on paper.  I continue to find inspiration in this song.