Category: Uncategorized
Poll: NetGalley vs. Edelweiss
Lazy Sundays: Wildfires
One of the things I’ve never really had to worry about too much in my area of Saskatchewan was wildfires. For the past few years we’ve had consistent rain and heavy snowfall that prevented these sorts of things from cropping up. Not this year, however. This year there was very little snowfall and there’s been even less rain while the temperatures are pushing the mid-30s Celsius. So there are wildfires all over Saskatchewan, particularly here in the north.
I’m in no danger from the wildfires currently and they are still several hours north of where I am. The only way these things really affect my life is with the smoke coming down on the wind. It has settled down all over Saskatchewan and the air quality is very poor, along with the visibility. My asthma isn’t exactly the best at the moment but I’m making do.
I just hope that the fires don’t do too much damage where they currently are and that the evacuees (some of them are even staying in my community) can return to their homes soon. A little rain would be nice right now.
My Kindle Paperwhite: Two Years Later
Today I was looking back through my archives for inspiration and found this post when on June 26, 2013 I was very excited that I finally bought a Kindle Paperwhite. It’s been two years since then (even though it feels like just yesterday) so I figured I might as well share my thoughts about it now that I’ve used it much more.
1. It’s still really light and I can hold it at all kinds of angles.
This is especially good when I’m reading in bed and it’s too cold to have anything but a single hand out from under the covers. The area where you can touch to turn the page is relatively large so I don’t even have to be that precise. It’s definitely a good size for my hand as well.
2. I can even read in the dark.
My Kindle Paperwhite has a very gentle light that’s easy on the eyes. It’s great in the daytime and when I turn it down to the minimum I can read in the dark for hours without my eyes aching. Given how much time I end up looking at a computer at work during the day, this is kind of a relief when I just want to sit down and read in the evenings.
3. The internet connection is very good and the downloading speed is quick.
When I want to download a book I received from NetGalley I turn my Kindle’s wifi on and within seconds the book starts downloading. It’s also done in a matter of seconds, even though my wifi really isn’t the greatest. Given that I read books that are 500+ pages sometimes, this is quite impressive.
4. Best of all, it holds a lot of books.
I currently have over 200 books right on my Kindle and it has space for many, many more. So if you’re an avid reader like myself, even the basic Kindle Paperwhite like I bought will hold more than enough books for you. I of course delete the ones I don’t like but even if I didn’t I’d have quite a bit of space left. Basically, your Kindle can be your mini-library.
5. Sometimes it can’t keep up with my reading speed.
The only bad experience I’ve really had with my Kindle is that sometimes when I’m just sight-reading or skimming it freezes because it can’t keep up with my reading speed. It doesn’t happen very often, mind you, but it is kind of annoying when it does.
So if you’re undecided about getting an ereader I’d highly recommend getting one. I got a very basic Kindle Paperwhite for $129.99 and it has definitely been worth the money over these past two years. I’m sure the freezing problem has probably even been improved on the newer Paperwhite models and the higher-end models like the Kindle Fire. Basically, if you’re an avid reader or you do any book blogging and want to get books from authors/publishers/agents, you’re going to need an ereader. And even if you’re reluctant like I was, I think you’ll find that it was definitely worth it.
Learning to Say “No”
One of the things I’ve struggled with all my life is learning when to put my foot down and just say “no”. I’ve always been a people-pleaser and I partly blame that on my personality but also on the way I was taught to behave at school. “Smile more! Don’t be grumpy! Don’t put your hand up so often; you’re intimidating the boys!” Hearing stuff like that your whole life really has an effect on you and I have to say one of the consequences was that I had no idea how to just say “no” and not constantly apologize for it.
When I started my blog I wanted to get involved in every book-related project I could. I joined NetGalley and Edelweiss, opened up my requests to authors and said yes to almost every one of them, commented on so many blogs regularly, etc. It took up a lot of time but it was generally enjoyable. However, things took a turn for the worse when I realized that they were taking up too much of my time. My blog was eating into the other things I liked to do, like read. Suddenly, I didn’t have the time to read all of the books I was requesting and accepting because there were too many of them. I was buried under a pile of commitments to other bloggers. I became very, very stressed.
Then suddenly I said no.
I closed down my review requests, respectfully declined on some projects and only requested from NetGalley what I would read and review within a week. It was really hard but for the first time in my life I was tired of pleasing people. I just wanted to please myself for once. Just saying no, the simple act of saying no to someone online was a turning point for me. I began to say no to things I didn’t want to do in real life. I realized I don’t have to please everyone; at the end of the day I’m the one that has to live with myself. So while I continue to be pleasant to everyone and help out where I can, I’ve finally realized that my number one priority is me. It’s my life so at the end of the day I come first. Of course I still help out in the community with various fundraising and volunteering projects and I help out friends in need. But I’ve learned to say no to some things so I have room for the more important things in life.
As a book blogger you’re probably a natural people-pleaser as well as most of us seem to be more introverted. You don’t have to be! You really can just say no sometimes, especially if you don’t have time for something. Saying no isn’t a bad thing. It can be absolutely liberating and saying no to a couple of things you didn’t really want to do leaves time for you to say yes to things you really want to do.
I know it’s hard, but just say no once in a while. It really is liberating.
Lazy Sundays: Father’s Day
Today I was lucky enough to spend the whole day with my dad. We had a great time together and although we planned to go out and do something ended up spending most of the afternoon on the couch binge-watching Game of Thrones (because my family has never been conventional). I also presented him with a surprise I cooked up for Father’s Day:
It’s an old fashioned beehive skep carved out of a single log. The artist who does the carvings goes all over Saskatchewan peddling his wares but he always seems to spend the most time in my tiny little town because his sculptures are the thing to have around here. He does great work and he’s really good with special commissions so I asked him to make the sculpture above. I took it home, bought some stain from work (I work at a hardware store) and stained it this colour. Then I took a nice thick varnish and used it to seal both the base of it and the actual sculpture. That way it won’t crack and become damaged by the weather over time. I may have to apply a few new coats in the future but it will last for a lot longer than it would have had I just used stain.