Saturday, September 26, 2009

The Attack of the Lawnmower!



[The good stuff in the video starts at the 1:45 mark. From the episode of Mad Men "Guy Walks Into An Advertising Agency"]

You know how when you were a kid, people would well meaningly tell you about dangerous household items in hopes that you would take care around them?

I was afraid of lawn mowers when I was six because a guest to the classroom told us a story of a little kid getting their foot chopped off by one. The child was running behind it.

I was frightened of the deep freezer, because I was told that if you let it close on you, you would suffocate. Anytime I got anything out of the deep freezer, before I would let the door close I would run to the opposite side of the room. You know, to prevent me somehow getting sucked into it.

I refused to swim when my parents weren't home because I might drown. They themselves warned me of this, and to this day refuse to believe I didn't once take a dip while they were at work while I was stuck home, alone, with no air conditioning. [Not to digress, or anything]

And the above video? I guess it was the sixties, so no one warned them as children that lawnmowers are DANGEROUS DANGEROUS RUN AWAY!!!! [unless you are the one on it, of course] That is the moral of the above video.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Oh man, reading is the best!

[From Book Blogger Appreciation Week. Which has since totally past. But I love thinking about the way I read.]


Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? Primarily right now I read while eating lunch. Usually a sandwich.

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you? Most of the books I read are library books, so I don't write in those. I'm reading for a science fiction book club right now, so I underline passages I like or want to talk about.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open? Usually I hold the book open with one hand or I lay hardbacks on a table.

Fiction, Non-fiction, or both? Mostly fiction, sometimes a little nonfiction if its recommended.

Hard copy or audiobooks? I hate audio books. Mostly because I can read faster than they talk so I get impatient.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point? I try to wait until chapters, but sometimes I get too sleepy.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away? Nope, I usually just move on.

What are you currently reading? Biting The Sun by Tanith Lee for science fiction book club.

What is the last book you bought? Same book as above, since the DC public library didn't carry it.

Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time? Sometimes I start more than one when I'm bored, but I try to stick to one at a time.

Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read? I like to read at lunch and on the metro.

Do you prefer series books or stand-alone books? Anything that's well written. And if a series stays well written, I'll keep reading it. (I'm looking at you, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins.)

Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over? The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?) At my parents house, they're organized by which books would be friends with each other (i.e. High Fidelity goes next to Bridget Jones which goes next to Size 12 Is Not Fat) but right now in my apartment, they're in random order. Its glorious.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009