65 Books You Need to Read in Your 20s

I am almost 30. Wooooo?


A friend of mine recently posted this list from Buzz Feed of 65 books that you should read when you're in your 20's. The compiler proudly proclaims that even if you have already read these books (presumably in high school) you should read them again in your 20's to greater appreciate them. You may not know this about me but I was an English major in college. Whew! So glad that secret is out there. I have liked reading foreverrr. I learned to read when my older sister learned to read. She was 6, I was 3. We've been reading together and separately since 1986. The greatest gift I have ever received was my Nook. (Thanks again sister!). I am not one of those former English majors who went on to become a lawyer, I am also an English teacher. So naturally, I checked out this list right away!! Of these 65 glorious books, I have read zero, zip, zilch, nada. Guess I better get started. Good thing I have summers off. . .sort of. Check out the list here. How many have you read?

Adults in Orlando. . .

Apparently watch an average of 5 hours of television a day. SAY WHA?

I was thinking there's no way that this is possible then I thought about myself. I'm not sure if my TV viewing habits are unique but I'll share them anyway because that's why we're all here. Right?

So I have three prominent ways that I view television. I would like to preface this discussion of my habits with some reminders. One, I don't really sleep that much. Two, I have exceptional time management skills which leaves me with more free time than most. Three, team no kids!

1. I watch the news on a never ending loop. I am home by 3pm most days so I will watch the local news at 4 o clock. Then I'll watch it again at 5 because the 4 o clock news has a lot of teasers to tune in at 5. Then I'll watch CNN from 6 to 9. I am so well informed about local, national, and global issues. Sort of.

2. If I'm not watching the news, I will watch TV while I'm doing other things. I'm not really good at multitasking so usually the TV becomes a light source and background noise. For example, I am watching CSI right now but it is seriously the 3rd time I have attempted to watch it. I turned it on this morning while I was getting ready for work but it ended up taking a backseat to personal hygiene , the dog, and my five course breakfast. I tried to watch again after dinner but for some reason I picked up a book and started reading it. About 45 minutes into the one hour program (I don't even fast forward the DVR commercials anymore) I remembered that my goal was to watch TV and I restarted it. So now I'm watching it again but I'm also writing this. . . third time's a charm right?

3. I binge television watch. There are about 2 days a month where all I do, all day is watch television. Whether that is good, bad, or indifferent, it happens

You are Never Too Old

. . . too drink out three nights in a row. This weekend has been full of drinking, which is fantastic. I haven't had any hangover experiences so I don't think a weekend full of liquor ever goes out of style. 

Friday night is not usually a "school night" but I knew I had to work very early in the morning so the adult in me told my inner drunkard to stay home and rest up for the next day. The drunkard could smell the beer miles from the bar so I ended up going out to celebrate the weekend with some coworkers and friends. I only planned to stay for an hour or so but made it home in time to gather 4 quality hours of sleep before work. 

Saturday I figured I would wake up cranky and flustered but I was ready to take on the world because two of my former "students" were graduating from College. I'm too young for this but whatever. When your first job is working with teens and you're barely out of your teens yourself, this is what you get. (I made it through work but who cares about that). Saturday evening I was able to celebrate graduation style with both of them. I am very proud of them and their accomplishments and I WISH I had some pictures to show of the evening but I've never been good at remembering to take those.  Good news, other people took tons of pictures so I will steal those and share them as soon as they're all up and posted. One of the highlights of the night, the amazing signature rum punch.

T O D A Y is my favorite holiday revolving around alcohol, Cinco de Mayo. I have always believed that in my next life I will be Mexican. I love everything about Mexico and maybe one day I'll even visit. The weather is awesome, their food is incredible, they wear boots year round, and they make tequila on their farms instead of just chickens. It sounds like my type of country. I know the holiday really isn't that important to my kindred people but I'm going to push that fact to the back of my head and go out and celebrate! Tequila! It's what's for breakfast.

How Bizarre

By now, we all know that my dog is very unique in personality and appearance. At least this is my opinion. It is very possible that my dog is displaying typical dog behaviors and every other dog I've ever had was actually weird. Just to verify, I'm going to outline some of the things my dog does that I think are bizarre  If your dog does something similar, drop me a line so I know that this is just a dog being a dog.

1. He barks at himself. I don't have many dog level mirrors but anytime he sees himself, he issues a challenge. . . to himself, in the form of a viscous bark.

2. He gathers up a mouth full of food, runs across the room, spits out the food on the floor, then eats it one kibble at a time. Then he repeats this until he is done eating.

3. He always tries to beat people through a doorway. I know this is an alpha dog thing but he never wins. He is too clumsy and too slow to actually make it through the door before the human.

4. He sleeps with one eye open. It's like he's expecting something bad to happen and he wants to be prepared. (At least I know I'm safe!)

5. He pushes people in the pool. If you stand to close to the edge of the pool with the intention of staying dry, he will run by and push you in with his hind legs.

A N D

6. He lays NEXT to his bed. He sits on the bed, plays with toys on the bed, humps the bed. When it's bedtime, he lays next to the bed. Sometimes he uses it as a pillow.

Thirsty Tuesday

Water. It makes up some crazy percentage of our body, a larger percentage of the world, and is just so necessary.

As I rapidly approach 30, it is becoming more and more obvious that things that used to be okay just aren't anymore. I have just recently discovered how important water is to humans. People have told me my entire life to drink water but I usually ignored them.  Over the last year or so, I have significantly increased my water intake by choice.  Within the last few weeks, however, I have HAD to drink more and more water. I have been so incredibly thirsty. Today at work, I was so thirsty that I actually had to leave work to go buy some water. I have a pretty sizeable tumbler that I drink out of all day and I felt like I was becoming more thirsty as I drank more water. Within an hour of initally "discovering" the unquenchable thirst, I had the worst headache I have ever had. I don't like to take pain relievers etc because I'm paranoid about them losing their effectiveness as I get older. (Geriatrics need their BC powder) So I sprinted to the convenience store (in my car) and bought 48 ounces of water. Then. . .I drank it all within the hour.


Moral of the story?

I guess, drink W A T E R kids

Spread the Word

I have this really bad habit of just spitting out ideas without any consideration of the repercussions of what I've just said. So I'm going to share this crazy idea I had a few days ago. My friend and I are going to write a children's book. It's going to be awesome for several reasons that I will not outline just yet. As we work through the writing and creating process, I will share the journey with you. Until then, this is all I have to say because I don't want anyone to steal our fantastic idea. Stay tuned folks!!

In the meantime, please share my blog with your friends over and under 30. I hope to reach 1,000 page views over the next two weeks but I can't do it without your help. That being said, here are some blogs that I follow that you should check out too.

Bottom of the Net: A blog about basketball from the perspective of a coach

Hortipopia: A blog about going greeen and gardening H A R D

Everyday Ephee: A blog about everything and I mean everything

I love TMZ

but only because I am not a celebrity.  I know it is trashy and mindless and in poor taste to watch a show centered around gossip but it's entertaining.  Maybe I'll grow out of watching and reading TMZ as soon as I turn 30 but maybe, just maybe, I'll be watching them until they no longer exist. 

Now that we all know I'm a TMZ fan, I think my next train of thought will make a bit more sense. I have a very small bubble that I call home. I went to one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school. I have had the majority of my friendships for well over 10 years. I'm not even sure if I know how to make new friends because I can't remember the last time I've had to do that.  In fact, I still live within 5 miles of the house I grew up in, all of the schools I attended, and most importantly the homes that my dad and sister live in today.  That being said, while Orlando is a pretty big metropolitan area, I consider this a "small town area".  I can't really go anywhere without seeing someone I know or knew well at one point or another. This is why I try hard to never, ever, ever leave my house looking crazy. 

“I don't understand how a woman can leave the house without fixing herself up a little - if only out of politeness. And then, you never know, maybe that's the day she has a date with destiny. And it's best to be as pretty as possible for destiny.”

― Coco Chanel

I think celebrities know who Coco Chanel. She's pretty famous and to some infamous. Regardless, this quote says everything I am thinking and feeling about looking at pictures and videos of celebrities out and about. On one hand, I get it. You are probably on your way to a set where your hair, makeup, and wardrobe will be selected for you. Maybe you just really want Starbucks after 36 hours of working on location. Maybe you just don't feel well! On the other hand, did you see what Coco said? Seems like pretty solid advice. This may sound like judging but I'm not. I'm just making observations and blogging about them. This is America! You are free to dress however you like regardless of what you may look like plastered on tmz.com.  I, however, will be channeling the wise words of Coco Chanel each and every time I leave the house. For now. . . who knows what life is like after 30?