Books I've read in the past few months:

Push by Sapphire - excellent. An illiterate girl's journal about her painful past, present, and hopeful future.

The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger - fluffy topic but well written. About a girl's experience as an assistant to a high-powered, extremely villanous fashion editor.

The 5 People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom - don't quite understand why this book is a bestseller.

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri - I always like insight into other cultures...this one was Indian.

Foundation, Foundation & Empire, Second Foundation, and Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov - probably among my favorite books. i read them in that order and liked it that way...would suggest the same order for anyone reading it the first time. It's about the futuristic science of psycho-history (simplified: a mathmatical approach to predicting the future) and the implications it has generations later.

I Robot by Isaac Asimov - I think Asimov is so smart and creative. I would have read this even if there hadn't been a movie (which i enjoyed). Short stories about the interesting quirks that can happen to robots when they face the confines of the 3 laws and external factors.

The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan - with my new-found love of sci-fi, I thought i'd venture into other genres I generally avoid. This book fits into fantasy and i enjoyed it b/c of the rich character development (782 pages total!) but i slightly resent being forced to read a sequel. I like it when i find closure within one book but still yearn to read the next. This book kind of leaves things hanging but it was good enough that i'll probably read the next one some day.

Am currently reading Hoot by Carl Hiaasen - young reader's book. about a boy's adventures in his new Florida town. cute so far (very cute cover).

I also halfway started a bunch of books which i don't usually do - i normally finish them b/c i'm optimistic that the book will redeem itself in the end but after reading Asimov, i became a bit snobby about what i was reading. the weird side-effects of reading good literature.

some news, some old

I'm writing this on my brand new desktop! it's not a super nice computer or anything but i understand the excitement that some guys feel about their new gadget toys. I finally have more than 1 gig of empty space for memory! my laptop was kind of hating it. But i'm worried about a potential anime binge...i just saved 79 episodes into this computer. hmm...

Besides anime, the rest of my days post-summer camp were filled with a quick trip to DC and NYC with my high school friend (pictures to come soon once i figure out how to post them up), an even quicker trip to Vegas (8 hours to be exact), a LOT of poker (not in Vegas), even more poker, watching poker on tv, and books.

Needless to say, it's happened again as it does every summer. my body has returned back to its natural, normal rhythm of sleeping around 3am and waking up around 10:30. This one habit has probably been the most consistent thing about me (other than my shoe size) considering I started it in early high school when i'd stay up too late to read. Back then, i didn't have the luxury of sleeping in till 10:30 b/c i had to get up around 5:30am to help my parents out at the deli, but back then, i didn't feel as old and tired as i do now. =)

And tired i do feel. Not from lack of sleep per se but i think i'm getting the jitters about school starting. AGAIN? it's my 4th year...boy, i had no clue when i was just a student. Teachers are even more unhappy about the 1st day of school, yes siree! I woke up several times this morning already feeling anxious. yucky. Technically summer's pretty much over b/c i've had a bunch of meetings as a member of the discipline committee, and next week i start full-day meetings at a science leadership institute (whatever that means). After that, we have full-time meetings at school in preparation for the new year (some of which i'm leading...what the heck??) and then students come after labor day! eeeeeek!

Am i allowed to complain, though? apparently my roommate was inspired today to become a teacher b/c she just got back from her vacation to Cabo and didn't enjoy returning to work. I don't think having me as a roommate helped. But teaching is a noble profession. If that's what gets people into it, then be it. The money and the fame sure ain't doing much.