Creating a Virtual Book Club

I do not profess to be a high tech person, but I learn from trial and error, more errors than I care for.

I have always loved reading and I can devour a book in a day, two days if I just have to pay attention to my family(ha,ha).

The past few years, I have not been reading. Life got busy, as do most people's lives. I put off reading because that for me was a luxury. I also had trouble purchasing an actual book, really. I would wait for friends to give me their used books and so my reading became more sporadic.

Now with the new technology of computers, Kindle, Nook, iPad, and even Blackberry, you can download the kindle. So with my newest gift of the iPad from my family, for some reason, I can purchase a book with no problem...I know, weird.

I read my first book on my iPad and I am hooked. So then I needed someone to talk to about the book I read so I posted on facebook. Now for my second book, I asked people on FB that I would like someone else to read it with me so I could have someone to talk to about it. A few responses and today, I created the virtual FB book club. Maybe I will be the only member, but that's ok. I can post my opinions of the book and if others want to post their opinions, then there ya go, great sharing. And to get book recommendations from others, bingo, home run.

Why not join a 'real' book club then in my area? I really don't have the time committment neccesary and with the virtual club, there are no time limits, no schedules, one can post when they have the time from anywhere. I'm feeling so high tech now. Anyone intersted, let me know, you can contact me thru here or on FB under Kim Anderson Hanson. Now let's get reading!

Laptop vs. iPad

I was the only person in my family that didn't own an iPod. I really don't listen to music all that much anyway so I didn't need one. Then came the iPad. I was intrigued, just because it looked like a cool toy and that is how I looked it, as a toy. The laptop I have is the size of the iPad so I'm used to the small size.

My family gave me the iPad for my birthday, which really was a great gift, because they have a hard time thinking of things to get me. Usually I tell them not to get me anything so this was a nice surprise. Now that I've had the iPad for two weeks and have been able to play around with it daily, I use it ALL the time! It isn't a replacement for a computer, but really, it has replaced my laptop. I can check email, surf the web, keep a calendar, post on my blog, all the things I did on my laptop, not mention all the apps available. I read a book on this too and that was pretty cool.

I've had to really teach myself how to use this toy, but I'm figuring it out by trial and error, like I do most things that deal with techie things. I am not a computer person so I have to teach myself. I am looking forward to taking the iPad with me when I travel but I'm still waiting for the specific iPad case, very hard to find in the store so I ordered it online, of course. I wish I could transfer everything from my laptop to this, especially all my documents, but I can't all at once. I can email them to myself so maybe by the time I have to travel, I will have that completed.

So it looks like the iPad has won over my laptop. For my needs, the iPad works. For those in the business world, maybe better stick with the laptop. Good timing for this change since the letter "i" is still sticking on my laptop. I have joined the Apple world and I like it!

Fell off the Wagon..For Women Only

Seems like a pattern with me. I get all excited about exercising and do great...for two days, then I stop. My excuses range from pure laziness to no motivation to not feeling well. I am not sure how to get over the two day hump. When I'm not feeling well, I give myself a break, because trust me, I seriously can't move(darn cramps). I've had horrible cramps since I was 11 years old. There were plenty of times I would have to call my mom at work and be excused from school, then I would have to walk home.

I've had people say to me they think those that experience cramps, it's all in their heads...really? Do they want to trade one month with me and see if I am making it up? Since I have experienced child birth, I can now say my monthly cramps feel like labor pains. I have a very high tolerance for pain so I can still function like nothing is wrong, but only when I have to. Just like when I have migraines, I do the tasks and no one would know.

My cycles are very unpredictable, I am never on a set cycle. Being around other females, the weather, my stress level, all affect me. I try to estimate the times the best I can so I can be prepared, but sometimes...surprise! Like yesterday morning, I was about to get ready to meet a friend for lunch and all of a sudden, I got a severe pain. I thought it was gas since it came on so suddenly, but the sharp pain continued. I started to think I was having an appendicitis attack. I began thinking of who I could call if this didn't go away, my husband was out of town, my oldest daughter was in training for work, my mom was working. I thought I would have to call 911. The pain was very sharp and I continued to debate about calling an ambulance for about 30 minutes. I even looked up appendicitis online to see what the symptoms were, nope, wasn't it since the pain was on my left side and not the right side. So now what? Um, yeah surprise!

I am thankful I hadn't called 911, that would have been embarrassing! This was the first time ever that the cramps came on so suddenly and so sharply. I'm also thankful I was still home when this happened. I missed out on a great lunch with a great friend, but thank goodness I was home. I'm dreaming of the day I hit menopause, I know, I know, menopause can be just as challenging, but I will put up with those discomforts over cramps anyday. I am 43 years old, I've put up with this long enough!

When I travel, I pack everything no matter the time of the month, I've had to learn the hard way. Oh where, oh where is men-o-pause, oh where, oh where can it be?

Does the Punishment Fit the Crime?

My youngest daughter has been frustrating me lately. She seems to be in a fog, probably due to the end of the school year so close, but come on! Focus! When we got each of our kids cell phones, the expectations were that they would be in constant communication with us if they were away from home. If I text them about anything, my expectation is that they respond back to me. Nowadays with the hectic schedules, it's crazy and being able to text everyone is a faster means of communication when everyone is scattered here and there.

Last night I had texted my youngest daughter letting her know her sister would be picking her up from practice. No response back. You may think I am being too critical, but my youngest is done with practice at 9:30 at night. We now live 20 minutes away so it's not like it's a quick jaunt to get her.

I called her on her sister's phone, she had turned her's off because she cannot use her phone past 9:00pm with the exception of communicating with us. I had just told her prior to practice to make sure to always look for messages from me, well she didn't, therefore, no response from her. She told me she got the message from her sister and turned off her phone.

I asked her to think of a punishment and let me know when she got home. Her idea of a punishment, "I will wipe down the counters and sweep the floor everyday". Really? Is that really a punishment? I told her everyone should do that regardless and clean up after themselves every time they are finished in the kitchen. I do both of things on a daily basis. If I had to wait for her to do this task when she got home from school, I would be the one being punished because I would have to look at the mess the entire day.

I thought about canceling her texting privileges on her phone, but that comes with the monthly service when I looked on our online bill. Then I stumbled upon some extra charges on her phone....oh brother, not minor charges either, $84.00 to be exact! What the heck? The charges stated they came from the Get it Now service, which she has been begging for but we have told her she doesn't need that service. She told me she never okayed the service, but apparently she had. She said she was buying ring tones, really $84.00 worth?? Every time I am around her, her phone is on vibrate and obviously, she can't have her phone on during school so why the need for so many ring tones?

She told me she would write me a check for the amount. Funny, because any money she has in her account technically, it's still our money since we give her an allowance monthly. We don't ask much of our kids daily, just the basics of keeping their grades up and keeping their rooms clean and so on. Very basic at our house.

I am frustrated with her, she seems to be in a fog when it comes to thinking things thru. Taking her cell phone away really doesn't seem to affect her either, not like it did with our oldest daughter. The only threat that seems to really make her upset is if we took away her cheerleading or changing schools. Doing either one of those is even too drastic for me, but the aspect of either one really upsets her.

So why can't she get it thru her head to think things thru? Yes, I am realistic, I know part of it is her age, give me some credit. But punishments do not work with her. I have told her over and over again that she has everything possible in the palm of her hands and she is the one that determines if she gets herself in hot water, not me or her dad. She knows the rules and our expectations. Just makes me want to scream! How long until we are empty nesters??

My Get Up and Go...

Has gone up and went. I am talking about exercising. I've talked about this before and how I am not in the mood to exercise. I've tried, really I have, but my enthusiasm only lasts at the most, two days in a row. I have exercise equipment available to me in an actual exercise room with a great view too. I can also watch tv while I exercise. My other option is to walk outside and enjoy the beautiful scenery, but even that isn't working for me.

Back in 1993, I started working out at a health club and I got hooked. I would work out three hours a day, five days a week, even if I felt sick I would work out. The club had excellent child care so that really helped me stay focused. Every month, I would get my body fat tested, yeah I was that hard core. The lowest I got to was 16% body fat. I could have gotten lower, but I was eating like a horse and did not cut out any foods(I'm still that way today, I love food). I did this routine for 4 1/2 years, even while I was pregnant with my son. Don't worry, i was careful not to over do it. No wonder the delivery went so quickly.

When we moved back to Omaha in 1996, my enthusiasm began to lessen. I think it was partly due to a change in clubs, you know how you get comfortable in a certain setting. Plus the search for a new club was disappointing and kind of discouraging. I finally found a club I liked. I worked out five days a week, but not as hard core as in previous years. Having three kids also changed the dynamics. I guess I burned out tho from being so hard core. I lasted at the club til around 2001, then I stopped going daily and cut down to three days a week, then eventually, I stopped altogether.

I figured I could exercise in the spring and summer in the pool. Well, that didn't happen either. So I continued on without exercising, but I think the key to my success was not beating myself up for not exercising. I really did change the way I was thinking about myself and that really made a difference.

Now it is time to get back on the wagon. I do have about ten pounds to lose. Last summer was a whirlwind of events with selling our old house, buying a new house, and traveling to Korea all within two months, then moving two months later. I have to get into a routine in order to function well so now that my kids are almost done with school, I am hoping I can get into the swing of things. I will keep everyone posted, exciting huh.

Bike to Work Week

In Omaha, really? I guess I am really not into biking but out where I live, we see a lot of people that are. As we drive on the two lane roads, it's not uncommon to see a group of bikers along the side of the road. The roads are narrow and have soft shoulders so for those of us driving, we have to be careful even passing them.

So in honor of Ride Your Bike to Work Week, I will hop back onto my exercise bike and actually try to ride it for the week, at least Monday thru Friday. I have been very incosistent about exercising. Summer is right around the corner so I really should try to get in shape.

Did I Really...

Need another appliance for my kitchen? Ever since we moved into our new house, I have loved everything about it BUT there are a few things I would change to fit our family better. Our old house, we built it the way we wanted it so buying an existing house was a change, but about 99% of this house we love so that's a great percentage!

In our old house we had a free standing stove/oven, my 'dream' stove at the time. It was a Maytag with the smaller oven at the top and regular sized oven below it, the luxury of two ovens at a cheaper price. My entire family loved this feature, especially when preheating for a pizza or other snack. The wait time for preheating was about five minutes.

We now have the built in double ovens. They look awesome, love em for mass cooking needs BUT for the frozen pizza cravings, the preheating times take FOR-EV-EEER! So I finally broke down yesterday and bought a toaster oven. I was fighting it all the way, first because that would entail spending money and second, because it would take up counter space and I like to have counters free of everything, and third, the cost of heating up a full sized oven bothers me(can you tell I have money issues?). But I also had a 20% off coupon for Bed Bath and Beyond, that made spending the money a little easier.

I had to laugh at myself at the store, it took me a good 20 minutes to decide on a toaster oven. I haven't used one since I was a very young child and I wanted just the right one. Of course I found one online that I really liked, found it at the store, but it was bigger than I had thought. I looked at all the other choices, I wanted one that looked a little more up to date than the kind from the 70's. I went back to the one I found online, but the clincher? Yeah, something as simple as the crumb tray. This one was located in the back and the other ones were accessible directly from the front.

I did end up buying a toaster oven, I was determined to buy one because I had my mind set on it and plus, I was already at the store just for that purpose! I hope it brings me all that I'd hoped for.