Visiting Family

No, no, I wasn’t out of town to visit my family recently.  They were through town.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned that my brother is changing jobs and moving back to our home town (along with his family obviously).  They and Mom and Dad have spent this week driving them and their stuff from one location to another.  Due to the cold weather, they took a longer, more southern route and wound up here in town.

So I took yesterday off work.  Yes, I could have gone into work in the afternoon, but I decided to spend the afternoon running, napping, and reading.  It was wonderful.

But even better was the morning.  I got some time to visit with Mom and Dad before the rest of them were up.  And then I got some time with my niece!  Okay, so everyone else was there, but it was fun.  She smiled so big when she saw me.  Yes, Uncle Mark is completely smitten with her.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have much more than a couple hours together because they needed to get on the road so they could reach home last night.  But it was still a great morning.  I’m thankful for bad weather so they had to come through town and their willingness to leave late so they could spend a little time with me.

Running Pier to Pier

Two years ago when I was training for my first Camp Pendleton Mud Run, I got the idea to go to Santa Monica for a run along the beach.  I found out that the distance between Santa Monica Pier and the Venice Pier and back was roughly 6 miles.  (I read 5.7 this weekend.)  Naturally, I decided that would be a blast to run.  Head down there in my mud run clothes and when I get hot, take a break and jump in the water.  Sort of a mud run on the beach.

But that never worked out in 2010.  Or 2011.  But I did it Saturday!

Actually, it all started when I was planning to do my long run on Friday night or Saturday morning.  Also on the docket was a trip down to Redondo Beach to get the latest from Sue Ann Jaffarian.  The weather was so nice on Thursday and Friday it made me want to be outside.  And suddenly, I got to thinking I could go do the run then.

Granted, I debated long and hard about it.  Firstly, I’m indecisive.  Secondly, it was supposed to be cooler on Saturday.  But I decided to go for it.

And it was cooler.  It was around 60 degrees.  While I did jump in the water at the end, but just let my feet splash through the water until then.

I didn’t quite do the pier to pier run.  I knew of a metered lot part way down where I could park for much cheaper since I was only there for the run.  So I started in the middle, ran to Venice, did the entire distance to Santa Monica, and then back to where I started.  Okay, I did a little extra to say I ran 6 miles (although I didn’t clock it so I don’t know if I actually made 6 miles or not).

And it was so much fun.  Yes, I ran barefoot.  I think part of it was I was doing something I wanted to do for a while.  And part of it was I was running some place different instead of my normal, familiar loop which can get a little boring.

I thought my legs would be killing me afterwards, but they aren’t that bad.  The back of one knee bothered me during ultimate yesterday, but that was it.  Unfortunately, there was a part of that same leg that killed me when I tried to go for a run this morning, but it was fine for a walk.  Hopefully, it will be fine for running Wednesday.

Also, unfortunately, it look longer than it should have to get to the signing when I finished the run, so I got there late but still in time to chat with the authors and get Sue Ann’s latest autographed.

All told, it was a great day.  And I'm hoping to do it again sometime when it's warming so I can jump in the ocean along the way - maybe make it part of a longer day at the beach.  Who knows of that will happen or not, but for now I've done that much.

Weekly TV Recap for February 11th

Castle - I had wondered if they'd be able to pull off the dual mysteries in two time periods, but they did it perfectly and kept me interested in both.  Yes, it was an excuse to get Castle and Beckett to kiss, but it was still lots of fun and pretty funny.

White Collar - So we finally got to see Sara again.  And I wonder where this FBI agent is going to go with the hearing coming up.  Frankly, I wasn't that impressed with the Peter story involving his in-laws, although it once again gave Mozzie some great lines.  I need to hire his writers for my life so I can come up with those great one liners.

Ringer - Shoban has finally told someone what's going on.  Now what's going to happen to Bridgett?  Is she about to get turned in?  What kind of danger is she going to be in from the ex FBI agent?  What's going to happen when she goes back to Paris?  Or will she even make it back there?  And I was kind of expecting the storyline with the daughter to head in this direction.  I'll be interested to see how they play that.

Royal Pains - So does this mean we've seen the last of Paige this season?  And if she's gone the rest of the summer, what about next season since it looks like summer is only half over?  I truly hope they aren't going to break them up.  I love Evan and Paige together.  In other news, the golfer is an idiot but makes for a great storyline and the stuff going on around the play was quite fun.

Wipeout - So, I wonder if they changed the rules on the third round because only one woman was looking like she'd finish.  And they changed how they do things in the Wipeout Zone and the woman of the second team didn't even have to go.  Interesting.

Big Bang Theory - Sheldon on vacation driving Amy crazy.  What's not to love?  Although I am wondering why Bernadette and Howard have invitations if they don't have a date yet, or did I misunderstand that part.  I was expecting a May wedding for sweeps, but it sounds like he'll be in space instead.  Interesting.

Nikita - Definitely not as intense as the last two episodes, but it got really intriguing half way through.  So how did this woman from Nikita's past create Division?  And what did she do to make Amanda so angry?  I'm ready for the next one already.

The Too Early Review Request

Last week I got quite a few review requests, so I have enough fodder for another couple weeks.  This week they stopped coming.  Maybe they realized I would be mocking them so backed off?

This week's example is a little hard to describe because it's all given over to plot teaser, and I'm not trying to make these obvious who sent them.

The book is aimed at kids who play video games.  Again, not my normal reading material, although I am trying to read more kids books than I used to right now.  I find them quite fun.

But here's the thing.  The book being advertised doesn't come out until May.  That's great - plenty of lead time if you want to request a copy for review.  But it never offers a copy for review.  The author does hope I will choose to review it for my readers, whoever they might be.  Doesn't reference my Amazon reviews, so this is an even more generic form letter than I normally get.

And if you aren't going to offer a free review copy (which you certainly don't have to do), then wait until closer to when the book is released or else it will be completely forgotten by the time the book does come out.

It's too bad because for free I might have actually been interested in this one.

Two Weeks of Bowling

Despite the idea to cut back to bowling only every other week, I've gone bowling the last two Wednesdays.  Why?  Well, because yesterday was my former roommate Daniel's birthday, and he wanted to go bowling again.

Both weeks were fun.  Last week was the typical crowd.  One game was close, but for the most part I was well in the lead.

Last night, however, was a different matter.  My roommate Spencer was on fire.  I was a few points behind him on a couple games and ahead of him for a few frames once, but he won all seven games we played, most of them pretty handily.

And you know what, last night was a blast.  I'm good friends with everyone who was there (including a total of two former roommates).  It was a night to be silly and let off some steam.  With as little sleep as I've been getting I shouldn't have stayed out so late, but it was a huge stress release that I really needed and enjoy.

Word Association for February 8th

Let's do this week's word association, shall we?

1. Conditions :: Changing
2. Transfer :: Money
3. August :: Summer!
4. Glasses :: Reading
5. Crown :: King
6. Release :: Date
7. Incriminating :: Evidence
8. Island :: Paradise
9. Manners :: Good
10. Sentence :: Structure

My January Reads

Here are the books I read in January.  Links will take you to my full review at Epinions.

All ratings are on a scale from 1 (bad) to 5 (great).

HOW TO PARTY WITH A KILLER VAMPIRE by Penny Warner - 4

Presley Parker is hosting a vampire party in a graveyard to celebrate the completion of filming on a vampire spoof movie.  But when a body appears the morning of the party, she begins to wonder if there is a connection between the victim and one of her guests.  I like Parker and find these books fun.

THE MYSTERY OF THE UNINVITED GUEST by Kathryn Kenny - 5

One of two rereads of old favorites this month.  Trixie's cousin is in town for a visit, but Trixie is distracted by the wheelchair that appears and disappears along Glen Road.  Meanwhile, a woman no one knows is trying to get invited to the wedding of Jim's cousin.  While one sub-plot falls flat, I enjoy this great mystery that uses all the characters well and actually keeps them in character.  A great start to the second half of the series.

WELL-OFFED IN VERMONTby Amy Patricia Meade - 4

Stella and Nick Buckley have traded in life in New York City for a small town in Vermont.  But when they arrive at their new home, they find a dead man in their well.  Since they can't move in until the murder is solved, they dig in to catch the killer themselves.  I enjoyed this debut, especially the main characters.  Unfortunately, I felt the momentum in the beginning was slowed down by back story that could have been slipped in better later.

MRS. POLLIFAX AND THE HONG KONGBUDDHA by Dorothy Gilman - 4

It'd been too long since I had visited this old friend.  In this book, the newly remarried Mrs. Pollifax sets off to Hong Kong to find out why one of Carstairs' informants has started sending him bogus information.  Naturally, she is quickly in over her head.  The formula is intact, although the finale of the book is very dark for the series (though not for a spy novel) and a bit rushed.

THE FUTURE DOOR by Jason Lethcoe - 3

The second in a kid's mystery series that combines steampunk and Sherlock Holmes.  Griffin and his uncle have raced home to see what has happened to his parents only to almost be killed as soon as they've arrived.  Why?  The answer lies back in London and may lead to the end of the world as we know it.  I was enjoy this book despite some over writing until I hit the climax which was a cheap way to end things.  Not a bad book, but a disappointing finish.

MR. MONK ON PATROL by Lee Goldberg - 5

Monk and Natalie are off to Summit, New Jersey, to help new police chief Randy Disher gain a handle on the string of burglaries plaguing the normally quiet town.  This book is an absolute treat for fans of the TV show and Lee's novels based on them because of what he does with the characters.

Weekly TV Recap for February 4th

Once Upon a Time - You know, this one had me feeling sorry for Regina for a few minutes.  How her husband was treating her to her face (going on about his first wife) was crazy on his part.  And I thought she was really falling for the Genie.  Then we found out it was all part of her plan all along.  Meanwhile, I can't believe Emma was stupid enough to fall for the "evidence" she and Sidney were finding.  I wonder how long it will be before she catches on to the fact that he is playing her.

White Collar - While I love Neal and Peter's relationship, Elizabeth and Mozzie are my favorite "couple," so you can imagine how much I loved this episode.  It was so much fun, and I was laughing at so much of it.  Definitely felt some Rear Window inspirations, but it was so much fun.

Ringer - It was so good to have this show back.  Sibohn being in New York is certainly going to make things interesting.  And I wonder what is really happening with the step daughter.  I don't know how they can make this show more complicated every week, but I like it.

Royal Pains - I knew I recognized the female doc, but I couldn't figure out who she was until I saw a tweet earlier.  How great was it to see Joanna Garcia in a fun role like that.  I'm surprised they've kept Tom Cavineia around so long.  I wonder where they are going with his story.  I liked how had Hank realized that some of Evan's ideas were good while Evan realized just what Hank brings to the table.  Plus I loved how he actually figured out a medical condition.  Okay, so it was the car, but still, a nice touch.

Big Bang Theory - That wasn't quite as funny as I thought it would be, but I still enjoyed it.  I knew Howard would get the worst astronaut name ever.  Actually, I'd forgotten about that storyline.  But Leonard and Sheldon breaking apart the roommate agreement was a nice change.  I knew Sheldon wouldn't learn anything from it, but his attempts to live life without Leonard was enjoyable.

Wipeout - Yes, I watched it, but I really don't think I have any comments on it.  Well there is one thing.  Has it really been on for 5 years?  If so, that probably explains why I'm getting tired of it.  Especially since it's now on 9 months out of the year instead of just 3.

Nikita - I'm glad I have this show still on Friday nights to help me get over Chuck.  Yes, this one is much more serious, but it's still amazing.  Just look at tonight.  Things got worse and worse and worse until our heroes were finally able to save the day.  I knew they would, but holy cow I didn't know how.  And just when it looks like things might get better, Amanda goes and reveals she's working for someone who works for that Russian guy.  Yes, I think they've just set up the bigger arch for the rest of the season.  Meanwhile, with Percy on the lose, Nikita will have her hands full.

Review Requests I Get

I've started getting so many requests to review books thanks to my reviews at Amazon that I thought I would share some of the funnier ones here occasionally.  (I think I did this once or twice in the past, but this might become a regular feature).  These seem to have increased recently thanks to the self-publishing capabilities of Amazon.  So here's the first (and the real inspiration.)

The e-mail starts out like this.

Greetings,

First of all, I want to thank you if you reviewed one of my previous novels [Name of books removed] I recognize that reviewing a novel is a very personal adventure, in addition to being taxing on your time and patience. If the experience of reviewing one of my novels was not unpleasant, then I am happy to offer a new novel for review. It is always my desire to offer a PDF to review, but I understand the need for a physical book in hand and gladly oblige such a request. I am also open to author interviews and giveaways.

Now I don't mind getting a form letter.  Most of them are.  However, there are some serious things that made me laugh here.

First, he doesn't even bother targetting this to those who have reviewed a novel previously or not.  Instead, it is so impersonal that he thanks those who have "if you have."  Way to make sure it sounds like a spam e-mail.  I know if I had reviewed a previous book, it would make me feel so appreciated.  Since I haven't, I'm okay with it.

Usually, a review request will mention seeing my profile at Amazon, so at least they are targetting me because of that.  Here, it sounds like he is hitting me up for promotion on my blog.  How many author interviews and giveaways have you seen around here?  That's what I thought.

Dude, at least write two or three different form letters and target them better.

Here's the thing.  I recognized the name.  I've ignored him in the past (most of the time, these just go in the trash).  So maybe you need to try a different approach with people who have ignored you.

I won't share the plot synopsis, but let's just say that it sounds boring except for a mention of zombies.

Yes, this appears to be a zombie novel.  How, let's talk about targetting again.  How many zombie novels and movies have I talked about here?  0.  Guess how many that means I've read.  You guessed it.  So again, why are you sending me a request when I've ignored you in the past and you write something I don't normally read?

E-mail is certainly cheaper than regular mail, but it opens us up to more junk like this which obviously really doesn't apply to me.  But I get a laugh out of it and move on.

Word Association for February 1st

Let's kick off the new month with this week's word association.

1. Every day :: Routine
2. Rinsed :: Washed
3. Funeral :: Sad
4. Whitening :: Teeth
5. I am :: God
6. Cooperate :: Get Along
7. Blazer :: Suit
8. Valley :: Mountain
9. Difficult :: Project
10. Service :: Church