A lazy, sloppy blog entry. It is late. I am going to just quickly summarize the last two days. There isn’t much to write about, so it should not take long.

Friday, after several attempts to get through to the board of education in Albany, I finally got through again. I was told that there were many people who also had application in, so that might have been the reason for the long delay (6 months) in getting my application processed. I was very happy to finally have some kind of confirmation that my application was finally being processed. I decided that on Monday, I would schlep around to various schools that I recently subbed at to see if I can find a teaching position. Hopefully, I will be able to find something before Thursday (the day teachers are due to return to the classroom). I really hope I will be able to get in a classroom before the kids.

I went for a walk to the big retail store (think red and white logo) to buy some more rat glue traps; there is another rat in my room. I can tell I have another rat visitor, because 1. I can hear some movement, and 2. poison pellets lying around even though I’ve vacuumed the carpet a few times. At the store, I first checked out the DVD section, then the book section. I decided to buy another book. I am about 1/3 of the way through the “Broker” book. So, any opinions so far? Well, at first I wasn’t really getting into it, but then later, I started enjoying the book. How, or why did I change my mind?

First, I should confess. It is a little embarrassing to admit. I am really not a reader. I won’t embarrass myself by admitting the time span between the double read I did last year (The Da Vinci Code & Harry Potter – the Half-blood Prince) and the time before last year when I actually read a book cover to cover (that wasn’t a textbook). The problem, since last year, I’ve been measuring all (I should say the few) books I’ve picked up with the two summer reads mentioned above. When other books would not hold my attention the way last summer’s books did, I would lose interest. At first I told myself that the John Grisham book I am reading now, was not very interesting. However, once I stopped comparing it to Da Vinci Code, I realized that this book is fairly interesting. I am almost half way through, and I have to say that I am enjoying the main character’s development so far. I also enjoy being able to pull out my book when I am standing on line. Since I’ve gotten back from Japan, It amazes me how poorly service has gotten. Or maybe, I got used to living in a country where people are taught to take pride in serving another person. Maybe this is just a sign that old-age is slowly creeping up. I am getting sidetracked.

At the store, I had trouble making a couple of decisions. I couldn’t decide whether to buy the “adult” edition of the Chronicles of Narnia (containing all seven books in the series) at $16, or buying each part separately at $8 each. The adult edition is about the size of a 5 pound dictionary. I am lazy about carrying things when I am walking. I am frugal, but I like the idea of buying separate books in the Chronicle series. The separate stories are about 200 pages each. I can finish the small books without risking boredom. I worry a little bit that I have not developed as a serious enough reader to handle a 5 pound book.

The other decision? I couldn’t decide between the Chronicles of Narnia and The Bartimaeus Trilogy. The Bartimaeus Trilogy reminds me of Harry Potter, it seems to have a bit of a dark edge.

I decided on:

The Bartimaeus Trilogy (Book 1 [462 pages]) The Amulet of Samarkand. According to the cover, this book was a New York Times Best-Seller. While waiting on the line to purchase my items, I read the first chapter; I liked what I read. I also liked the cover. Book 3 is out now in Hardcover. By the time I’ve finished with books 1 & 2, Book 3 should be out in paper back.

Today (Saturday) was just a very lazy day for me. I was on the computer/ internet for most of the day. Half the time, I was searching for apartments. I was seeing what was available for my price range. I watched a couple of news reports from time to time that said that a person should not spend more that 1/3 or his or her salary on rent.

It is getting late, so I better summarize quickly. It is 2:25am. So much for getting back on regular school time sleep patterns.

After surfing the net for apartments, I got curious about downloading. I decided to download a video on my dial-up connection to see how long it would take.

The results?

5 hours and a half for a 12 minute video. Interesting. I also looked at some second-hand printers. In order to print a document, I have to walk about 12 minutes (uphill) to the near office supply superstore. There, I have to pay 2.50 just for them to access my floppy disk, then I pay about 10 cents a copy. I was planning on buying a printer yet, but I saw a couple of nice and cheap ones. Unfortunately, when I got around to writing e-mails to the advertisers, my computer started the freeze and stop working. At least I was able to read some of the Grisham book. I am almost at the halfway mark. I am currently on page 182 out of 422 pages.

Finally, I need to go shopping. I was so lazy today, that I did not feel like going out, so I had to go through the food that I had in the cabinet to make my dinner. I ate miso soup with spinach, and frozen fish sticks ( heated in the oven). Since I was still hungry, I boiled a couple of eggs. After letting my food digest, I did an hour on my rowing machine (without the plastic suit). Yesterday, I was watching Men in Black and did not exercise.

Post Date - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 11:29pm