24 hr Read-a-thon

What is Dewey’s 24-Hour Read-a-thon?

It’s sort of a reading challenge, only everyone participates at the same time. For 24 hours, participants read books, post on their blogs about their reading, and visit other readers’ blogs. They also participate in mini-challenges throughout the day.

This year's read-a-thon starts at 8 AM ET on October 22nd , and goes until.....you guessed it.... 8AM ET October 23rd!

It was created by the beloved Dewey (her blog has since been taken down, so the link won’t work). The first one was held in October 2007. Dewey died in late 2008.  The read-a-thon was renamed to honor its founder in 2009.
 I had scheduled a post about the readathon a couple of weeks ago, and am quite surprised to see that it didn't post!   


Here are the questions that are asked in the introductory meme. 
1)Where are you reading from today?  
I am in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.  I will be reading in various locations today - my living room, my kitchen, my bathtub, in the car (of course, I won't be driving!!)
2)Three random facts about me…
I love ketchup.  I hate mustard.  I hate any fish and seafood.
3)How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?  
LOL! Well, that depends which pile you are referring to!  In total I have about 40 books here that are options for today! I couldn't choose just a few!
4)Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?  
I would like to read for at least 12 hrs. ( I have to do groceries, make meals, and care for my kids so I am aiming for at least 12) 
5)If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first timers? 
 not really. I guess the only thing I can say is good luck, and happy reading!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness

Today is pregnancy and infant loss remembrance day. Think of someone you know or love who has lost a baby or a child, and take a few minutes to remember & honour their beautiful angels. 

Missing my three angels, that are waiting in heaven for their mummy. There isn't a day that goes by that mummy doesn't think of you.♥

Thirteen Thursday

 I have decided to participate in  Thursday Thirteen again this week! 
My daughter turned 13 last week.  So this week I decided on listing the 13 most popular names for girls born in 1998.
Here are the top 13 in order

1. Kaitlin
2. Emily
3. Sarah 
4. Hannah
5. Ashley
6. Brianna
7. Alexis
8. Samantha
9. Taylor
10. Madison
11. Haley
12. Jessica
13. Alyssa

My daughter's name is not on the list! Actually, her name didn't even make the top 100, or top 375!!  Her name is  # 377 on the list I used for reference.  Hard to believe that Vivienne,  Priscilla, Essence, Fatima,  and Regina were more popular!!

Wordless Wednesday

Bottoms Up!!!!!

It's still Friday!

This week’s statements:
1. I always refuse to admit my age when it doesn't matter, because I don't understand why some people even ask!
2. I won’t eat anything that once lived underwater!
3. I would like to hang out with Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx for a day.
4. I would like to learn how to knit something other than a square or rectangle.

Want to participate? Answer the four fill-ins (the green text in the above points) on your blog, and sign up on the linky. Please, do not forget to follow the host Hilary from Feeling Beachie, and this week's co-host Jen from What Would Jen Do.

Borrowed Book Challenge Update

1. Deadly Lies  by  Cynthia Eden
2. Deadly Heat by  Cynthia Eden
3. Pursuit  by   Karen Robards
4. Weekend Warriors by Fern Michaels 
5. Payback by Fern Michaels 
6. Next Time You See Me by Katia Lief
7. Damage by Pamela Callows
8. Indefensible by Pamela Callows
9. Blood Stains by Sharon Sala
10. Vendetta by Fern Michaels
11. The Jury by Fern Michaels
12. Blood Ties by Sharon Sala
13. All The Pretty Girls by J.T Ellison
14. 14 by J.T. Ellison
15. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
16. The Green Mile by Stephen King
17. This Is Where I Leave You by Johnathan Trooper
18. My Life and Other Lies: Tales from the Writer's List  by Steve Pitt
19. Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens
20. Welcome to Last Chance by Hope Ramsay
21. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby
22. This is Gonna Hurt by Nikki Sixx
23. Sh*t My Dad Says by Justin Halpern
24. Tattoos & Tequila: To Hell and Back With One Of Rock's Most Notorious Frontmen by Vince Neil
25. Alone by Lisa Gardner
26. Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler
27. Missing Max by Karen Young
28. The Taken Inger Ash Wolfe
29. Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke
30. Got You Back by Jane Fallon
31. Discipline without distress : 135 tools for raising caring, responsible children without time-out, spanking, punishment, or bribery  by Judy Arnall
32. You can go to the potty / William Sears, Martha Sears, and Christie Watts Kelly 
33. The discipline book : everything you need to know to have a better-behaved child-- from birth to age ten  by William Sears and Martha Sears 
34. The Playskool toddler's busy play book : over 500 creative games, activities, crafts and recipes for your very busy toddler by Robin McClure 
35. Late-Talking Children by  Thomas Sowell 
36. Escape by Barbara Delinsky
37. The Vinyl Cafe Unplugged by Stuart McLean
38. My Life and Other Lies by Steve Pitt
39. The Absolute Value of Mike by Kathryn Erskine
40. Love In Bloom by Sheila Roberts
41. Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella

Well, it looks like I am almost there!! I am thinking I will definitely achieve my goal!!  I have not included any of the picture books that I have borrowed from the library to read with my son!! The books listed for this challenge are strictly books that I have borrowed for myself!

Thursday Thirteen

I have decided to participate in  Thursday Thirteen again this week! 
13 names belonging to both people and dogs that I know

1. Charlie 
2. Max
3. Chelsea
4. Chloe
5. Bailey
6. Nikita
7. Dakota
8. Sandy
9. Roxy
10. Jake
11. Brandi
12. Sam/Sammie
13. Mitch/Mitchell

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others’ comments. It’s easy, and fun!
Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

Four Fill-In Fun!!

This week’s statements:

1. I don’t remember what time my appointment is on Tuesday.  ( I better call and find out!)

2. I love a HOT bubble bath, with a good book!

3. When I lose socks in the dryer, I think it went to look for it's friends that went missing!

4. My favorite snack to eat while watching t.v. is probably pretzels. I don't eat them often, and I don't watch t.v often either. However, I think the only time I ever eat pretzels is when I am watching t.v!

Want to participate?  Answer the four fill-ins (the green text in the above points) on your blog, and sign up on the linky. Please, do not forget to follow the host  Hilary from Feeling Beachie, and this week's co-host Bernie from One Mixed Bag.

Thursday Thirteen

 I have decided to participate in  Thursday Thirteen again this week! 


13 Friends whose friendship I cherish  (no particular order of course!)

1. Nicole
2. Sarah
3. Marie
4. Sara
5. Janet
6. Tom ( RIP my dear friend!)
7. Lisa
8. Debi
9. Sarah K
10. Tanya
11. Josetta
12. Marg  (RIP my dear friend)
13. Erickah 

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others’ comments. It’s easy, and fun!
Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Borrowed Book Challenge

ShelleyRae from Book'd Out is hosting the The Borrowed Book Challenge.  

The challenge will run from January to December 2011, and you can join at anytime!   The rules are simple, and you can see them by clicking here.

I am participating at the Library Lust level.  In order to complete this challenge, I need to borrow, read, and return 48 books between January 1st 2011, and December 31st 2011.   This seems achievable to me, since books I borrow to read to my son definitely count towards this goal!  

Now I just have to go to the library website, and check out my history so far this year.  I am probably already near the goal since I do read a lot of library books.  (I love supporting my local library, but borrowing so many books from the library means that my own books sit on Mt. TBR for too long! )

Thursday Thirteen

Earlier today I heard of a blog meme called Thursday Thirteen.  Basically, the only rule is that you list thirteen things relating to a theme.  What theme?What do you list? Anything you want. Pick a topic, make a list, and then link up. It seems pretty simple to me, like something I can handle right now.

13 Books I Have Read and Loved  (in no particular order)

1. TOMMYLAND by Tommy Lee
2. The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band by Tommy Lee, Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Mick Mars and Neil Strauss
3. Hidden Wives by Claire Avery
4. i'm not her by Janet Gurtler
5. Still Alice by Lisa Genova
6. The Green Mile by Stephen King
7. Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
8. This is Where I Leave You  by Jonathan Trooper
9. Thirteen Reasons Why  by Jay Asher
10. Envy by Sandra Brown
11. Love Story by Erich Segal
12. Oliver's Story by Erich Segal
13. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

WOW, that was easy! I could have easily thought of 13 more.  I'll save that for another Thursday though!

Friday Four Fill In

This week’s statements:

1. When I was younger, I always wanted a monkey. Haven't you always wanted a monkey? (couldn't resist - Barenaked Ladies If I Had a Million Dollars)

2. I don’t remember the last time I slept for more than 3 consecutive hours. (Probably almost 13 years, except for a few times after my surgeries)

3. During a storm when the power goes off, all I want to do is fall asleep, and sleep right through the storm! ( I HATE storms)

4. The  scent of Noxema reminds me of my grandma.

Want to participate?  Answer the four fill-ins (the green text in the above points) on your blog, and sign up on the linky. Please, do not forget to follow the host  Hilary from Feeling Beachie, and this week's co-host Cathy from Cathy Kennedy’s Blog 

An explanation of a previous post, which also explains my lack of posting lately.

So, I guess there are people that read my blog. Or at least one person!  A few weeks ago, I posted a Wordless Wednesday post.  I did not leave any explanation as to why I chose that photo. Someone did comment, and from that I assume she is curious, and maybe someone else is too. So here is my explanation.   You can see the post by clicking here. 
On July 4th, a friend of mine passed away unexpectedly. She lived 3 doors down. I had been walking my dog at about 9:30 pm. I stopped and chatted with her for a minute, and she had said there was something she wanted to talk to me about, and asked if I had time to sit and have a tea with her. I told her that since my son was awake, and at home, with my daughter, I didn't really have time. I asked if she would be up for awhile, and told her that I was going to go home and bathe my son, get him into bed and come back when I was done. She said that she was a bit hungry so she was going to go grab a snack, and that she did want to talk, so I should just come back whenever I could. I told her that I would be back between 10:30 and 11:15. I told her not to bother making me a tea, I would bring a coffee, and she laughed at that because she has been offering me tea for almost 7 years, and I have never accepted, but always brought my own coffee.
I went home, bathed my son, got him settled down for the night and made my coffee. At about 10:35, I let my daughter and my other half know that I was headed over to her place because she wanted to talk to me. I walked out my door and saw 3 police cruisers, a firetruck, and 2 ambulances. I was thinking " what the heck is going on?" I saw a bunch of neighbours watching , talking, speculating or whatever I should call it - I'm not sure. Anyway, I thought it was weird, and proceeded to walk to my friend 's place. I still had no idea where all the "commotion" was since the emergency vehicles started at my place and went past her's. As I was walking over, her daughter called out to me and in that instant I knew something was wrong. I thought it was just a reaction to a new medication her doctor had prescribed a few days prior, so did her daughter. (it happened before, with one of her meds). Her daughter asked me to stay, and one of the police officers started asking both of us a couple of questions. A few minutes later her nephew came to me and said " I did everything I could, but I don't think it was enough." At this point I am still wondering what the heck happened. He told me that he walked into the living room and she looked like she was sleeping, but her mouth was open, he tried to wake her to tell her to go up to her bed, and she was unresponsive, so he grabbed her hand/wrist to try to wake her, and didn't feel a pulse. At that point he called 911 and started CPR, and continued until EMS arrived. About 15 minutes later, I overheard someone in the house say that they tried to intubate, but there was an obstruction. A few minutes later an officer came out, and just from the look on his face I knew it wasn't good. (They removed what they could, and tried to intubate again, but by then it was too late. Cause of death - choking.) The officer asked to talk to me for a minute, and broke the news to me first, so that I was already aware, and could help them with her daughter. I stayed as strong as I could for her sake.
I felt horrible. I felt like maybe if I had stayed and talked with her, rather than arranging to come back in a bit, it may not have happened. Maybe if I had gone over earlier, I could have helped her. I know her nephew did all he could, but maybe it would have been different if I was there. I would like to think that I would have done the Heimlich, he mentioned something that happened when he was doing CPR & the first thing that popped into my head immediately was- she needed the Heimlich (though of course, I didn't say that). ( I have worked in health care, and have had to do the Heimlich on a patient in the past). Anyway, I just feel guilty because I wasn't there for her. And, I will never know what she wanted to talk to me about. I miss her terribly. To be 100% honest, sometimes she was a real pain in my @$$, but I loved her. Funny thing about that is - she used to say to me, I know sometimes I am a pain in the @$$ , but you'd miss me if I wasn't around. ( she was thinking of moving- and I was too)  She was right. I really miss her.
Her funeral was nice, considering why we were there. I was holding up pretty well, until her brother mentioned me by name in a speech he made. At that point it really hit me. I have been having a hard time with it.   
Ok, so back to the photo. The picture is of my son walking my friend M's dog Mag. Mag was M's best friend.  Quite often when I had my son at the park to play, M would walk up there with the dog, and we would sit and chat while my son and the dog played together. My son used to like walking with M and her dog, and occasionally we would just go over and get the dog, and take her for a walk, since our 110 pound dog is too hard for my not yet 3 year old son to walk!   
Unfortunately, Mag HATES my dog.  She is quite mean to him.(yup, my 110 pound dog is scared of the 15 pound dog!).  For that reason, I was unable to take her into my home and care for her.  However, I found her a great home. She is still in the neighbourhood, and my son visits her daily, and walks her at least 3 times a week.  
Well, I better post this. I am getting teary-eyed again, and it's time for Mag's walk.  

Stephanie and Lisa at  Once Upon A Chapter  are hosting the Sizzling Summer Read-A-Thon this weekend.  When I read about it this morning, and realized how simple the rules are, I couldn't resist joining in.  

The only thing expected of you is that you create a post indicating your participation, and then read as much as you can between 12:00 AM Friday August 5th until 11:59 PM Sunday August 7th!  There are no mini-challenges that you are expected to complete throughout the weekend.  The hostesses are so easygoing that they will allow you to just do a final wrap up post!  At the end of the read-a-thon, post a wrap up post letting the other participants know how your weekend went. That's it! Easy-peasy! 

For more info, and to sign up click here!

Wordless Wednesday

I can not type the things I want to say right now. So, I am sharing this photo.  My next post will explain why I chose this one.

The Winners Are.......

I FINALLY had a chance to do the draw for the Literary Giveaway Blog Hop!!  I was pleased with the amount of entries!

There was a total of 72 entries for my copy of Of Mice and Men.  I wrote every entry down on a sheet of paper,  in the order in which they were posted, using the entrants name. I then used random.org to randomly select a number between 1 and 72.  
The winning entry was 
 # 19  BrittanyGale 

I followed the same steps to select a winner for the bookmarks, for which there was 51 entries.  
The winning entry was
#36    Ricki


Congratulations to both of the winners! I hope you enjoy your prizes!  I will be sending you both an email within the next day or two requesting your address.  If you see this post before receiving an email from me, please email me at   lusravesandrants AT gmail DOT com

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because they are particularly fond of lists over at The Broke and the Bookish.  They  love to share their  lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!  So, every week, a topic is posted. Bloggers create their Top Ten List based on the topic. 

This week's topic :  Ten Bookish Websites, Organizations, Apps. Etc.  ( NOT blogs!)

I am not sure that I can come up with ten, but I really wanted to participate since there are some bookish websites I just love!!   Other than the first two, which I spend too much a fair amount of time on, they aren't in any particular order.  (I linked them! You should check them out if you aren't familiar with them!)

1.  GoodReads
2.  Bookcrossing
3.  LibraryThing
4.  Bookmooch
5.  Fantastic Fiction
6.  Book Depository 
7.  Fresh Fiction 
Okay, so I only came up with seven. I can't really think of any more, which is probably a good thing because I spend way too much time of a few of these ones....lol!!  

Welcome to stop 69 of the Literary Giveaway Blog Hop!!

***  It is June 25th in some places, so go ahead and enter!!

The Literary Giveaway Blog Hop is being hosted by hosted by  Leeswammes.  The hop starts on Saturday, June 25th and lasts until Wednesday, June 29th. You can hop to over 70 different blogs, all offering one or more giveaways of books or bookish things!  I have included a list of participating blogs, at the bottom of my post.  ( Please keep in mind that some giveaways will go live at different times throughout the day due to the blog owners being in different time zones!)
I will be giving away 2 prizes.  I was originally going to have my giveaway limited to Canada and the US, but have decided to open it internationally!
The first one is

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

This is one of my old favourites. The copy I am giving away is one of my gently used copies.
The 2nd prize will be an envelope containing some bookmarks.  Not exactly sure how many, but at least 4, probably more.    This giveaway will end on June 29th at 11:59 EST. 
To enter  
 Leave a comment  and let me know which prize you would like to enter to win. You may enter for both.  Please also leave your email address in your comment, so I can contact you for your mailing address if you win! 
Want an extra entries??
1. Follow my blog through GFC. ( Make sure that you follow publicly as I will check to confirm your entry) 
2. Like Lu's Raves and Rants on facebook.   Leave a comment with your first name and last initial. 
Don't forget to leave your email in your extra entries!  Good luck, and have fun hopping around to the other participating blogs!  Here is the list

1. Leeswammes (Int)
2. The Book Whisperer (Int)
3. Kristi Loves Books (Int)
4. Teadevotee (Int)
5. Bookworm with a View (Int)
6. Bibliosue (Int)
7. Sarah Reads Too Much (Int)
8. write meg! (USA)
9. My Love Affair With Books (Int)
10. Seaside Book Nook (Int)
11. Uniflame Creates (Int)
12. Always Cooking Up Something (Int)
13. Book Journey (Int)
14. ThirtyCreativeStudio (Int)
15. Col Reads (Int)
16. The Book Diva's Reads (Int)
17. The Scarlet Letter (USA)
18. The Parrish Lantern (Int)
19. Lizzy's Literary Life (Int)
20. Read, Write & Live (Int)
21. Book'd Out (Int)
22. The Readers' Suite (Int)
23. I Am A Reader, Not A Writer (USA)
24. Ephemeral Digest (Int)
25. Miel et lait (Int)
26. Bibliophile By the Sea (Int)
27. Polychrome Interest (Int)
28. Book World In My Head (Int)
29. In Spring it is the Dawn (Int)
30. everybookhasasoul (Int)
31. Nishita's Rants and Raves (Int)
32. Fresh Ink Books (Int)
33. Teach with Picture Books (USA)
34. How to Teach a Novel (USA)
35. The Blue Bookcase (Int)
36. Gaskella (Int)
37. Reflections from the Hinterland (USA)
38. chasing bawa (Int)
39. 51stories (Int)
40. No Page Left Behind (USA)
41. Silver's Reviews (USA)
42. Nose in a book (Int)
43. Lit in the Last Frontier (Int)
44. The Book Club Blog (Int)
45. Under My Apple Tree (Int)
46. Caribousmom (USA)
47. breienineking (Netherlands)
48. Let's Go on a Picnic! (Int)
49. Rikki's Teleidoscope (Int)
50. De Boekblogger (Netherlands)
51. Knitting and Sundries (Int)
52. Elle Lit (USA)
53. Indie Reader Houston (Int)
54. The Book Stop (Int)
55. Eliza Does Very Little (Int)
56. Joy's Book Blog (Int)
57. Lit Endeavors (USA)
58. Roof Beam Reader (Int)
59. The House of the Seven Tails (Int)
60. Tony's Reading List (Int)
61. Sabrina @ Thinking About Loud! (Int)
62. Rebecca Reads (Int)
63. Kinna Reads (Int)
64. In One Eye, Out the Other (USA)
65. Books in the City (Int)
66. Lucybird's Book Blog (Europe)
67. Book Clutter (USA)
68. Exurbanis (Int)
69. Lu's Raves and Rants (Int)
70. Sam Still Reading (Int)
71. Dolce Bellezza (Int)
72. Lena Sledge's Blog...Books, Reviews and Interviews (Int)
73. a Thousand Books with Quotes (Int)