I got the exact same response. They must be getting flooded with complaints/inquiries. Grumble.

"...not only are we all unique in our choices, none of us can ever begin to get close to reading all the books worth reading. The order, the content, and the process are, and imho should be, intensely personal, and I think the image of a journey is a powerful one.. because our next steps are shaped by the ones we took before, and our experience of each new place/book is also shaped by what we've seen/felt/lived/processed from the ones before. There is no ideal journey and, heretical though it sounds, no canon of essential literature that could or should be applied to individuals." Eliana, WTM Forums Eliana, I don't have much time but wanted to satisfy your curiosity. Above is the quote I have from you. I will explain later why it means so much to me. Hugs, Hope

I have Calibre but haven't "bonded" with it if that makes sense. It's all confusing to me, and I'm not a computer dummy. Is there some kind of guide to this thing? Finding out how to build collections from a romance writer's blog just seems wrong. And yes, that's a true story. Found it on Google. I'm considering tracking on LibraryThing instead, but it frustrates me to have this software and not be able to use it!

My sleep deprived tirade (it's 1am here): "Please explain how some people are getting coupons for new Kindles and others are not. I have two Kindles and was toying with getting one for my emerging reader vs. just having her read on the iPad. Then I hear that $60 coupons are being flung about, but not for everyone. I don't get it. Why? I rely on my Kindle and am a loyal customer. That's not good enough?"

The Prodigal has returned... I do so enjoy reading all your posts, especially the conversations between, well, everyone! I am honored to be able to be a fly on the wall in this group. Though the year started with a bang for me reading-wise, it is going out with a whimper. As I expected, the summer completely derailed my reading plans and the start of school and readjusting to "real life" has only extended my lack of reading. I've been so overwhelmed that I've drug out my old Franklin Covey organizer and am trying to get a handle on a to do list so long that it literally gives me migraines. I have not the energy to read, or construct cogent sentences, these days. I did read "Angels and Demons" since my last post, finishing my accidental reverse reading of Dan Brown's Robert Langdon books. I don't think it makes a difference what order you read them in, they all stand alone, all read basically the same. Good "escape reading", though. Nice for a summer spent on three continents, in four countries, and 10 airplanes. I have downloaded Geraldine Brooks' "People of the Book" from my library in Texas and hope to read that this week. Right now I'm rereading "Getting Things Done" and reading for the first time "Total Money Makeover". I find GTD to be useful; the jury is still out on TMM. Eliana, one of your quotes above has been copied into my day planner, I hope you don't mind. Stacia, that Pinterest page is going to keep me amused when I can't sleep but am too tired to read. Hugs to all, Giraffe

93. Not going back. Too obsessive.

Expedite or same day. It's worth it!

I ordered and received everything I ordered. I don't know about timing, as I wasn't in town when the package came, but I remember it being timely. So sorry you're having trouble with them!!

I always check the airlines' websites directly and Expedia. The airlines almost always win. And Southwest doesn't participate in Expedia.

We loved Animal Kingdom. Hollywood Studios was a surprisingly huge hit with us too. Driving back & forth is not insane. We stayed even a little further out than BC & WH and it was no big deal.

Try ABF Freight. You'd have to pack it yourself, but they sell empty space on trucks to move large, but not huge loads. I've used them twice and had fantastic experiences with them. http://www.upack.com/ For packing, wrap it in moving blankets and tape them up. Should be enough.

Oh, we did 1900 Park Faire too for an early dinner (their first seating). We weren't sure about seeing the "evil" characters but they were fabulous and IMNSHO better than Cinderella and the Prince. PS: my DD was not a princess obsessed girl before Disney (she saw Cinderella the night before we left for FL). At all. I had to sweet talk/bribe her into the boutique. By the time she was out of the styling chair she was transformed and we have little princess dolls and fairies now that are her go-to toys. Just saying. Disney does something to kids.

Also, www.touringplans.com was invaluable for us as was their book, The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World.

We just spent a week at Disney in August. Worst time of year to go, but our only choice. There were 5 of us: DH, me, niece (9), DD (6), and my friend's 19yo (au pair for niece, long story). We had all the same questions you did, as my last trip was in 1977. We stayed off site at Lake Buena Vista Resort in a 3br condo for something like $1300 for 6 nights. It was fabulous. We had breakfast in the condo, hit the parks, did 2 character dinners instead of breakfasts. It was not a pain to walk back to the car at the end of the day, and certainly no more difficult than those staying at distant on-site resorts had it. We all still had to walk to the park entrance and board our respective trams or buses or monorails. Ok, the monorail folks had it easier, but that's what, three deluxe resorts and only when at Magic Kingdom or Epcot? I digress. We paid OOP for food and that made the most sense for us. We did eat at the park for lunches, but often went back to the condo for dinner (if we weren't having a character dinner). One night we sought out Mexican away from the parks for a change. We were sometimes just too tired to go back to the parks, but sometimes not. It was easy to return. Your parking fee is valid all day at any park so if we park hopped it was no big deal. Looking back, though, I'm not sure I would do the park hopper again, except maybe for character meals. One park a day was PLENTY for us to try and manage. This trip was probably a one shot deal for us as niece, DD, and I are living overseas (DH is in the US in grad school). I wanted to stay on site. I wanted the dining plan and the whole Disney immersionexperience. What I got was probably better in the long run and still very very Disney. We had a lovely condo, 3br, 2baths, full kitchen and in-condo washer/dryer. I did laundry every day between sweating and rain and dripping ice cream and it was no big deal. DH says it was the most comfortable vacation we've ever done because he goes through tshirts faster than anyone I know. We bought small notebooks in advance to get autographs and big pens for the characters to sign with (those gloves they wear are hard to write with!). I got a picture of each kid with the characters as they got the autographs and am making scrapbooks for them of the signatures and pictures together. There were almost no pin traders there, but it's still going on. We passed on that. The kids had a blast and want to go back. I highly recommend the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique if you have girls (we went to the one at Downtown Disney). We brought our own princess dresses from home and the girls were in 7th heaven! And because our gowns weren't Disney brand, they were more unique and the girls received many compliments on them - we were stopped more than once by families wanting to know where we got them. The character dinner at Askershus in Epcot was wonderful too - we saw Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, Snow White, AND Ariel! Jackpot! And the best place to see Mickey and Minnie was at Animal Kingdom. No wait.

The deals are now, definitely. Looking for DH's ticket home too.

Totally see it.

Medusa?

I had a doctor's appointment that morning. The office didn't have a radio on. I drove to work without the radio (unusual for me). Got to work and walked in to see my co-workers huddled around a makeshift TV set up. I saw the first tower fall and couldn't believe my eyes. After I grasped the situation I called my family to check in with them (my brother was working in No. Va. at the time and saw and heard the Pentagon plane). I then went to work. I know that sounds weird, but growing up as a military brat I understood we were at war and what the terrorists wanted was to disrupt our lives as much as possible. The only way I could fight that was to, in the words of that popular meme, "Carry On". So I did. I saw the rest of the video footage at home that night.

Thanks!

"Wipe your hands on my shirt." (Said to my sound sensitive DD after washing her hands and only finding a loud blow dryer.) "Throw up in my hand." (Middle of the night, no time for anything else.) "For the love of all that is holy...."

I live in Turkey, about an hour from Çeşme (which is on the coast). My understanding is that the wall is somehow connected to the sea to refresh the water and keep it cool and I think the fish are changed out regularly too. It's incredibly thick glass, it would have to be for the weight of the water and to protect against stray rocks. And yes, the owner is rich enough to properly maintain it. I've not seen it in real life though. It's on my list next time I get over that way.

Happy birthday!! I'm late, I'm sorry - I'll blame the time difference - yeah, that's it! Seriously, many, many happy returns!! ::party::

First I'm going to organize the pictures and do a scrapbook (I've got over 1800 pictures to sort through and that does not include those on my phone or DH's phone!). Seriously, though, I don't know if people would believe a book about this summer a work of non-fiction. From schools of fish jumping in unison to finding someone else's underwear in my luggage while my own capris went missing, it was certainly an adventure. As far as finding time for reading, inter-continental flights with sleeping children are wonderful. That and insomnia, but neither is good for serious intellectual reading. Regardless, I missed you ladies enormously. My reading life isn't complete without these weekly chats. How funny you met Dan Brown accidentally! I hope you eventually found the Dale Brown book you were looking for! As far as Langdon goes, he is the same throughout. More didactic in The Lost Symbol than the others, perhaps, but essentially the same. I just like the conspiracy-theory mindedness of the books. It's fun. And since Angels & Demons was only $2.99 for the Kindle, I'll read that next. (I'm embarrassed to admit that one of my souvenirs from WDW was a Mickey Mouse watch. It was classic, big, and had all the numbers on the dial - everything I've been looking for. And I wear it every day. :leaving: ) Eliana - my heartiest congratulations to your daughter and your family. It sounds like the wedding was a truly blessed event. :)

After way too long, I am finally back! This spring I took a course to get certified as an ESL teacher, then DH arrived from the US: 1 ferry, 2 trains, 3 continents, 4 countries, 10 planes, and 15 beds later I am finally back home. It was fabulous, don't get me wrong, but also exhausting. We saw Turkey, Greece, Germany, and the US. Even in the US we didn't stay anywhere more than a week, going from one state to another seeing family and one very popular mouse (DisneyWorld). We had DD's cousin with us as well for most of the traveling so it was also a grand experiment in having two kids, one of which only sort of speaks English. The kids LOVED DisneyWorld, I loved Germany (which I didn't expect) and we all loved swimming in the Mediterranean. Now for my reading update, which given the pace we were keeping is necessarily short. I went on a Dan Brown bender, reading the Robert Langdon books in reverse order: Inferno, The Lost Symbol, and The DaVinci Code. Haven't read Angels and Demons yet, will wait for it to come available at the library or very cheap on Kindle. The books are good for entertainment, and it's been funny reading them in reverse order. I also knocked out First Meetings in the Enderverse one night in a fit of insomnia. I liked it - it explained Ender's father's reaction to Captain Graff in the Ender's Game novel. I'm way off a book-a-week pace, but I'm enjoying reading everyone's reading reports and continue to add to my TBR pile. I hope to get back to The Iliad and more serious reading soon, but right now life is still crazy. Finished: 17. First Meetings in the Enderverse, Card *** 16. The DaVinci Code, Brown *** 15. The Lost Symbol, Brown *** 14. Inferno, Brown *** 13. The Histories, Herodotus *** 12. The Oracle Glass, Riley *** 11. The Kill Artist (Gabriel Allon), Silva (Just Because) *** 10. Dreamers, Discovers, & Dynamos, Palladino (Education freakout) **** 9. The Mislabeled Child, Eide (Education freak out) *** 8. The Survival Guide for Parents of Gifted Kids, Walker (Education freak out) *** 7. The Paris Wife, Mclain (Library Spree) ***** 6. Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, Chua (Library Spree) *** 5. Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard, Heath (Library Spree) **** 4. Book Was There: Reading in Electronic Times, Piper (Library Spree) *** 3. Alias Grace, Atwood (Library Spree, Canadian) *** 2. The Song of Achilles, Miller (Library Spree) **** 1. The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood (Canadian/Continental, TBR/Dusty) **** In Process: The Iliad, Homer Aggie Amy's Rating System (which I’ve adopted): ***** - Fantastic, couldn't put it down **** - Very good *** - Enjoyable but nothing special ** - Not recommended * - Horrible

Lori D (and everyone else): THANK YOU. I am rushed and doing 14 different things at once but I've read your posts and they have helped enormously. I'm just going to take it slow, play some of the games with DD, and let her get developmentally ready, not just "I want to read now" ready. Yes, there is fear and panic in my post. The school system here is very stringent and doesn't really know what to do with kids who fall outside the norms. I have her in a private school that says they can work with kids where they are at, but my experience here tells me that will be limited. Hence my desire (panic) to get her ready. They DO fail kids in 1st grade (and every grade) here, and I'm worried about that. DD is smart as a tack, but developmentally behind her peers. It worries me. But thank you, all. I am backing off. :chillpill: :chillpill: :chillpill: