More Books

I'm continuing with my Million Page March this month. My job is always busy in August and, as a result, I don't get much time for reading. I do however have a few books for you this time.

Sherlock Holmes Vs. Dracula by Loren D. Estleman: The very first book I recorded back in May 2005 when I started this challenge. It is a look at how Holmes would deal with Dracula if inserted into the classic tale by Bram Stoker. I liked it and it is an interesting read for any fan of Holmes or Dracula.

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane: Recently made into a movie, this is the story of Marshall Teddy Daniels investigating the disappearance of a patient at an insane hospital on an island. This was a good novel with many twists and turns and an ending that surprised and saddened me.

Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles: The story of Bennie Ford, a man who has made a mess of his life but is trying to make amends by attending his estranged daughters wedding. However, on the way, he is stranded in Chicago and all flights out have been cancelled. Taking out his frustrations in a letter requesting a refund, Bennie instead writes down his life story. This was a fun little book that took me about a day to read. I liked it but felt that the parts of the book that show the latest novel that Bennie is working on, (he is a translator of foreign novels) slows the book down some.

Thanks for reading.

Late evening update

It has been a while since I did a regular post. I have only been doing Friday's Feasts and posting my questions of the week for you all. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have left comments on the site. It means a lot to me to have people comment on what I have written. I just want to take this opportunity to update you on a few things.

I have done some more work on my book lately. I am a little farther behind than I want to be at this point, but have really been writing some pages lately so maybe I can get back on track soon.

Work is starting to get a little busier at this point, but no more than I can handle. The busy season is still ahead of me at this point. I cleaned out my office on Thursday night, one of my goals for this summer. I am glad that particular task is behind me at this point.

I haven't had a chance to see any of the big summer blockbusters that have arrived at the cinema the past two months. It sucks because I want to see so many of them so badly but don't have the funds at the moment. It sucks not having money.

I have had a chance to read a few books this summer. I am slowly making progress on my Million Page Project. Still way behind on the number of books for this year, but every little bit helps.

Question of the week

With the final Harry Potter book coming out later this month, what other series of books should I turn to and read? I am open to all suggestions. I need all the books I can to complete my Million Page Project.

At the end of the day.

It has been one interesting week. A woman who was beloved in the community where I work and live passed away suddenly this week. I didn't know her well, but she affected many lives and her loss will be great. It reminded me of the fickleness of life and how we are not promised tomorrow.
The book is slowly coming along. I know I have a long way to go. The hardest part will not be in the writing of the book but in the editing process after. I am hoping to have 20,000 words by the end of the week. It is the largest single writing job that I have ever done. It is challenging to me both as a person and as a writer.
Several years ago, I worked as a security guard at a factory. During an 8 hour shift, I was busy maybe an hour and a half at the most. So I had a lot of downtime in between. My supervisor told me to bring books to read since I was waiting on trucks to be signed in and out. With nothing left to do other than listen to the radio, I got to read a lot of books. One day I got curious and kept track of how many pages I had read during a shift. It was something to keep my mind occupied. Then I wondered if I could read 1,000 pages in a week. It went on from there to see how many pages I could read in a month, a year, and so on. So beginning with the first day of January of 2005 I began what I call my Million Page Project. To see if I could read a million pages of literature. I have hit my yearly goals so far. As an added bonus, I get to read a lot of great books. Let me know what you think.

Taking the same land twice

One of the resolutions that I have made for myself this year was to lose wight. This morning I weighed myself and I have lost 20 pounds. Yeah!!! It got me to thinking though, about something I heard once. This old military saying that some general or something was to have said once. The saying is that this general said that he hated to ever have to retreat, because he didn't want to have to take over a piece of land twice. That is how my weight loss has been. I hate to see that scale creep up even a pound, because that means that I have to lose that pound all over again. Kind of like a one step forward, two steps back kind of thing.

The new Harry Potter book comes out this summer. I feel so bad, I haven't read but one book this year. I am really falling behind in my reading. Things at work have been really hectic as this is one of the busy times of the year at my job.

A tow truck is coming to get the station wagon this week and take it off to the junk yard, presumably to be crushed. It had a good run.

Summer is almost here

This is a good time of the year for me. Things have slowed down at my job. I have some free time to pursue my interests. I am going to get a lot of reading done this summer. I am also going to do some writing, especially in this Blog.
I am also doing something at the end of this month that I have wanted to do for a long time. I am going to my first Major League Baseball game. My father, younger sister, and I are going up to Baltimore to see the Orioles play the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. This is so exciting to me. It is something that I never got to do growing up. I thought to myself earlier in the year, "What am I waiting for?" If I don't do this now I may never get the chance to do it. So I took the plunge and ordered the tickets. I am taking my notebook and writing notes throughout the game of the experience. Then I am going to come back and write about it here.
We all need challenges in life. I challenge myself to little things all of the time. As 2005 began I challenged myself to read a million pages in books. I have been keeping track ever since. I have hit every goal along the way that I have set for myself. I am looking forward to knocking quite a few pages off the list this summer. I have a backlog of about 20 books that I have to read so lack of reading material is not a problem.
I have been slowly getting back into my regular television watching habits. With my job, things can get out of hand quickly. A quick list of my favorites listed by night:
Sunday
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Monday
Prison Break
24
CSI: Miami
Tuesday
NCIS
House
Boston Legal
Wednesday
Criminal Minds
CSI: New York
Thursday
My Name Is Earl
Friday
Numb3ers

Respectfully Submitted