Sunday, July 31, 2016

What I'm Reading This Week: An Abundance of Katherines

   It has been a while since my last post. With school and work, I definitely fell behind on my reading. In the time span of my last post, I've read only four books. I just came across An Abundance of Katherines by John Green and I immediately fell in love. If you haven't heard of John Green yet, I highly recommend you check him out. Most of his books are for teens so they are an easy read; so you can actually finish his books relatively quickly. I picked up An Abundance of Katherines this morning and I have roughly fifty pages of it left. Trust me; you will love John Green if you don't already.
   Our story centers around a recent high school grad, Collin. He is a child prodigy worrying about his future on top of girl troubles. He always falls in love with girls named Katherine. But his last relationship with whom he addresses as Katherine XIX left him depressed. She dumped him like all of the other previous Katherines. For Collin though, this break up was different. This time he really loved her. John Green put Collins break up in probably the best wording I have ever read. Collin's friend Hassan is always complaining how Collin should get over it  and how after 19 breakups he should be used to this by now. Being the prodigy Collin is, he compares his break up to a punishment seen by the Greeks. They pulled out all of this person's teeth. Just like teeth pulling is a monotonous task, so is getting dumped. However, now matter how many teeth you pull or how many people dump you, it doesn't hurt any less. I absolutely loved that. Collin in a last ditch ever to win her back and make her see that he is indeed a genius tries to find his "eureka" moment. He sketches a graph of his breakups and tries to come up with an equation to predict the outcome of a relationship. Just as Pythagoras believed that math can predict anything, Collin feels the same way. Numbers can predict love.
   I highly encourage this book to all of my John Green readers. It is definitely not a new book, so I am sure many people have read it. If you haven't though, definitely check it out. An Abundance of Katherines puts a new perspective on how to see relationships and offers some comic relief as well. John Green is a talented writer who offers a realistic perspective on romance. His books aren't fairy tales. The characters are relatable. We don't expect every relationship to work out perfectly. Nor do we expect to fall in love with the first pretty person we see. The same goes for John Green's stories. In An Abundance of Katherines, Collin is able to acknowledge all of these attractive girls but no matter how much he wants to move on, he can't forget about his first real love. John Green depicts break ups both poetically and accurately. He puts love in a logical and mathematical way. If you want an interesting and new romance novel, then this book is definitely for you.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

What I'm Reading This Week: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Jonathan Safran Foer)

   After finishing my book on the human genome, I thought I would read a fiction book for a change. My waiting-to-be-read pile of books has definitely accumulated over the past several months so I just decided to start from the top of my pile and work my way down. Little did I know that I would choose arguably the most compelling book I have ever picked up.
   Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close follows the adventures of a young boy, Oskar, seeking closure and answers to his father's death. Just as the plot shows, the book is one of sadness but also one of hope. Jonathan Safran Foer really takes us on a journey of emotions. One second I feel like I'm getting closure and the next I'm feeling hopeless and depressed. The book is written in the view point of Oskar which makes it much more personal. I really feel like I am in Oskar's head feeling all of his emotions. Oskar once had a very close relationship with his father only to have is father taken away from him by the devastating event of 9/11. He is feeling lost and mistreated even a year after his father's death. However, he finds a mysterious key while rummaging through his father's old things in his closet. This key takes him on a wild adventure, solving the last mystery his father left him. The book is raw emotion. Not only do you get to see how 9/11 affected a little boy, but you see how it affected the citizens of New York. How are people rebuilding their lives? How are people coping with loss? This book answers all of those questions. In the end it seems all we need is a little friend to get us by. I haven't finished the book just yet, but as of now my favorite quote is on pages 73-74. Oskar has just finished speaking with his grandma.
              "We need much bigger pockets...We need enormous pockets, pockets big enough for our                      families, and our friends, and even the people who aren't on our lists, people we've never met but still want to protect."
   Taken out of context this quote might not make much sense. Oskar is referencing to his question about why matches are so short. However, the quote is a reoccurring theme throughout the book. All we ever want to do is protect those we love. We survive in numbers. Therefore, when it comes right down to it, we really do just need to protect each other. For in the end, everyone loses everyone anyway. It is a sad book. However, it also has its happy moments. Oskar's interactions with his fellow citizens of New York bring comedic relief and hope for a new tomorrow. 
   My only complaint is that Oskar is relatively scatter brained so it is hard to understand what he is trying to say sometimes. Then again, that might be why I love it so much. We really are in the mind of a little boy, not just some fictitious character. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is wanting to read a different type of book. This book is unique just like its characters. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Sad is compelling and overall very special. I will definitely hold a place for it in my top favorite books.   

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

What I'm Reading This Week: Mutants - Armand Marie Leroi

Since I am so passionate about reading, I'm starting a new segment every week about what I'm reading. If you know me, you know that I read fairly quickly. My goal is to finish a new book every week. Also, this might help my fellow book lovers find a new book to read. That is assuming of course their pile of books waiting to be read is finished.
This week, I am reading Mutants by Armand Marie Leroi. This book explores the human genome documenting many cases of gene mutations. Now I realize this book sounds like a typical science book and some people just simply aren't into nonfiction books. However, I find this book fascinating. The book discusses how all of us are considered mutants seeing as all of us exhibit mutations in one gene or another; but some of us are more mutated than others. If you like science this is definitely a book to look into. I just finished the section on "cleppies" which discusses ectrodactyly and other congenital disorders in the limbs. The best part is that you don't have to be a scientist to understand the material. The book really goes into depth to help someone who isn't educated in the field to understand.
Mutants explores the history of genetics and gives rise to possible answers to scientific theories. For example, the book tries to justify how Hox genes are the last judgements of our fate as an embryo. The book also discusses various genes and what they do as well as where we experience our mutations as we develop. Mutants is highly informative in topics such as cyclopia, conjoined twins, fibrodysplasia, and gigantism. The book also emphasizes the importance of scientific evolution. Science is always changing over time. Leroi gives a historical perspective of each mutation as well as a brief overview of the discovery of each genetic anomaly. Even genetics isn't your thing, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in science or going into a science related field.

Monday, April 4, 2016

Why Reading Should Be Everyone's New Hobby

A bibliophile is someone how loves or collects books. I pride myself on my love of books. However, I am a bit displeased to find out that not everyone loves books the way I do. Last weekend, I was telling my boyfriend about the book I had just finished. Although he never actually understands the things I tell him, he always listens to my rants and facts about books and characters. I really appreciate this about him. However, I told him to read The Harry Potter series (who doesn't love that series?). That is where things really went downhill. He had the audacity to look me in the face and say "But I've seen all of the movies." I was just appalled that he would even think such an absurd thing. I know he's not the only person out there who feels this way. I have several friends who feel the exact same way about books. Why read the book when you can just watch the movie? I like to imagine that books are like a house. You have the foundation which is sort of like the plot. It holds the whole story together. Then you have the necessities like a door and some windows. Maybe a chimney thrown in there too. Those are the characters. I like to think of the roof as a conclusion that finishes the whole house. However, you wouldn't just live in a pile of wood or a pile of bricks would you? That is basically what a movie is. The movie compared to the book is just an unfinished house. You can't really establish a story in an hour without taking things out. I want everyone to reestablish their love for reading.
I know a lot of you are thinking "I just don't have the time." Well you have to make time. You don't need to go out and buy a 900 page book to love reading. There are so many books out there. If time is truly an issue you can always buy audio books and listen to them in the car. There are no excuses. Also, "I hate reading" is definitely not an excuse. The only people who hate reading are those who have never done it properly. Our school systems do a severe injustice to us especially in high school. In high school I had to read so many books I really just didn't like. Being forced to read really takes the enjoyment out of it especially if it's a book you have no interest in. Don't base the books you read in school on all of the books out there. There are billions and billions of books in the world. You just need to find that one. Your book soulmate. You'll know when you find it because it will make you fall in love with reading. It will be the book that you go back to every time. I'm lucky. I fell in love with books at a very young age. I don't have just one book soulmate. I have entire series. I love the Harry Potter series. Those are the books I go back to when I've finished all the books I need to read. I keep going back to those books because they make me feel like I'm falling in love with reading all over again. Not everyone is like that though. Finding your book takes a lot of trial and error. I've read so many books in my lifetime. I'd be lying if I said that I loved every book I ever read. Some books will disappoint you. Some books will make you cry. Some books will take you on a journey. Books are so powerful. Think about it: tiny words on paper have the power to educate and inspire. How amazing is that? There is a book for everything. There is a book for everyone. I promise. I encourage everyone to go out tomorrow or the next day and just read. Just take 30 minutes out of your day to read a book. You will not regret it.

Monday, February 8, 2016

5 Stories That Will Give You Hope This Valentine's Day

With Valentine's Day approaching, I have seen an increasing number of negative posts about being single. Well being single isn't all that bad. Being the awkward and embarrassing human being I am, I have composed a collection of my top 5 most embarrassing/awkward moments to either a) make you thankful to be single this Sunday or b) give you hope that there is somebody out there for you. Because Lord knows that if someone can find me to be the most beautiful creature on this planet, anyone can find someone.

1. "National Kissing Day"
I'm fairly certain that there are at least ten National Kissing Days per year but I will never forget the first time I experienced that day about three years ago. So this guy from my school started texting me (typical high school thing, I know) and long story short he asked me to go on a walk with him. Everything was fine and dandy because we were semi-friends and me being the silly girl I am thought "hey we might actually become really good friends." Well boy was I wrong. As we were walking he tried to hold my hand. "Hm I don't think I like this," I thought because I really was not into him at all. As we approached my house things took a sudden downturn spiral. Here is a brief overview of our conversation:
              "So, do you know what today is?" he said with a really strange and creepy half smile.
              "Uh (insert random day of the week)," I said with a really awkward laugh knowing perfectly what day it is but not wanting him to get the wrong idea.
              "No. Guess again," his smile getting wider and much creepier.
              "Uh (insert random day in July)," I said panicking, plotting how to get out of this uncomfortable situation.
               "No. Try again," he said.
So instead of doing what any normal person would do and tell him that I really was not into him in that way, I did the most awkward thing ever. I gave him a side hug. I gave him the hug that you give to strangers that you are desperately trying to be friendly around but always end up embarrassing yourself around. I said goodbye as fast as I could and scuttled myself back into my house never looking back. About thirty seconds later I received a text that said "It's National Kissing Day..."

2. Disaster Date
I always ask people about their most awkward dating experience. My current boyfriend had a major disaster date, but to be honest I think mine might top his. I had this friend who wanted me to go on a double date with her. She had been dating this guy for about six months and thought it would be neat to meet him and go on a blind date. That should have been a red flag seeing as most blind dates NEVER go well, but I thought "sure why not." So I planned on meeting a super cute guy and we'd be really compatible and things would go well like in the movies. Well obviously that plan was short lived. I went to the movies with my friend and her boyfriend showed up. He said his friend was running late. It wasn't a big deal because I was nervous anyway. Things just got worse. His friend shows up and he is not the Zac Efron I anticipated. But I thought that it was no big deal and that looks are not everything. After all, I'm no Angelina Jolie. His friend approaches me and gives me a side hug (I guess I'm just notorious for those). He didn't even introduce himself first. Still, I was optimistic. Then he tells me he forgot his wallet, so naturally me being the generous person I am paid for his ticket. We get into the movie theater and the first thing he tries to do is put his arm around me. "Woah there, mister. I just met you." I think. Then he leans in for a kiss on the cheek. I panicked and reached down for my purse. "I'm going to get some snacks," I announced already getting up and trying to make my mistake. "I'll come with," he said. After the longest movie of my life and trying to avoid his hand holding, kisses, and cuddles we all decided to go out to eat. During this meal he called me his valentine and told me he loved me. That is how I ended up eating a huge basket of chicken tenders and a large popcorn in the span of three hours to avoid making conversation. How do you even respond to a stranger saying they are in love with you? It was quite the eventful Valentine's Day.

3. Flirting Tips
For some strange reason my friends always flock to me for relationship advice. I'm not sure why they even think this a good idea seeing as I'm really bad at dating. I'm really weird and loud and sometimes I forget most people aren't into that. This story will give people hope in life. The first time I ever met my current boyfriend was at my graduation party. I was single for the first time in forever and I thought "hey, this boy is really cute. I should talk to him." Now don't even ask me how I got that confident because typically I just assume most boys are questioning why a manatee like myself can even exist out of water. However, this time I thought I would go for it. So I go up to him and introduce myself. Nothing crazy just a typical "hey, I'm Emily and that's Erin." Well we got to talking and I guess in my head the things I were saying were normal but now I look back on it and think how weird I was. Instead of trying to hold a normal conversation I asked the most bizarre questions. He can vouch for me on this. The first question I ever asked him was "have you ever read To Kill a Mockingbird?" Keep in mind reading was not even mentioned in our conversation prior. Can I ask even weirder questions? You bet. "Do you like bananas? I don't." I actually said that. Now for some strange reason that actually worked on him because now he thinks I'm majestic and beautiful and basically the queen of everything. However, I don't think that would work on any other occasion. The point is that if you just be yourself, someone will love you for you and that's all that really matters.

4. The Great Water Fiasco 
This story might be my most embarrassing moment to date. I still can't walk into Kroger without feeling somewhat anxious and embarrassed. My sister and I were having some friends over. We were going to play capture the flag. I decided to get some water bottles seeing as we would all be doing lots of running. So there I was in Kroger by myself trying to hurry because people were already arriving at my house. For some reason everyone was out at Kroger. I don't know if Kroger just had a special invite that they sent to everyone or if everyone just decided that it was national shopping day. I don't live in a really big town so this was uncommon. My goal was to just get in and out, but little did I know I would be causing a huge scene. Water bottles were scattered everywhere so I just grabbed the first case I could. If you know me, you know I am very clumsy and trip over everything on a daily basis. Well I couldn't see where my feet were going and tripped over a case that was beside me. Now most people have enough balance to catch themselves and just go on with life. I am not one of those people. I tripped over the case of water and dropped the case in my hand. Not only did I fall flat on my face but I knocked all the water on the shelf over and busted half of the water bottles in my case that was now on the floor. Next thing I know all the surrounding workers are rushing to my aid asking me if I'm okay 1000 times. I was fine just a single bruise on my elbow. I apologized for the busted water bottles, grabbed a new case, and waddled out as fast as I could. I never looked back.

5. Why I Have No Friends
Something I always tell myself is to not sign up for 8:00AMs. Yet, for some reason I always end up with and 8:00 AM class. Now typically in my 8:00 classes I find myself trying to stay awake especially since chemistry is my least favorite subject. This particular day I was very tired and chemistry just wasn't keeping me awake. I kept zoning out. Eventually my day dreaming turned into actual dreaming. That was until the guy next to me cracked his neck really loudly. My boyfriend does this all the time and I'll touch his really strong and attractive arm muscles to reassure him that that is not normal and probably not good for his health. I guess since I was half-asleep I forgot where I was because I did that to a total stranger. He just looked at me as I said "No, don't do that" in a calm tone while touching his bicep. He gave me the look of someone who was severely creeped out and replied "Um okay." Guess who never sat by me again? Although I'm pretty sure he forgot about that event because he now sits by me in another class. I also think he got used to my weirdness because he handed my a syllabus a few weeks ago and I responded "thanks, pal." We aren't pals. He doesn't even know me. This is probably why I don't have friends. But that's okay because the friends I do have put up with my weirdness and still want to be around me.

I hope these stories inspire you to be ultra confident and meet someone new. If I can be confident and weird, there is hope for everyone in this world.