Katrina1968

What is the equivalent of the "stone" to an American pound?

Just finished Witches of Eileanan by Kate Forsyth. I am currently reading... The Hobbit by Tolkien Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, by Rowling

I'm really enjoying the British mystery writers such as Elizabeth George. I'm a big fan of the armchair by the fireplace cozy villiage mysteries. I think most people really get into mysteries because it allows for our alter egos to see what its like to walk the sinister side without actually having to do it!

Thanks Vanwa! I'm going to give it a shot right here. Bilbo

I'm all for a wide variety of quality reading but Mad magazine and manga books just done fall under the quality of "reading". Our students are required to do reports over the summer and this stuff is just rubbish. When middle schoolers are given a better quality to choose from the high schoolers, their is a problem. The high school students are reading books well below their grade levels. When they are preparing for standardized tests and the SAT, these books wont help them at all.

I'm about to show my age Vanwa!! I have NO idea how to do the spoiler thing:lol: so if you wouldnt mind, can you do it for me? I'm on Chapter 2 already!!

I conquer Vanwa! I was about to say the same thing;) For whoever is ready, we can begin Chapter 2! Dont forget, you can always discuss a previous chapter, no rules here.

Because of where I work, I have the "privilege" of knowing what all our local schools are reading because they purchase their books from us. What I've seen renders me speechless, heartbroken and disgusted. The one private school in the area will read Austen, Shakespeare, Twain, Hemingway, Hawthorne, etc. The public high schools are a letdown. The books that are on these lists are the equivalent of what we call our "middle schools", grades 6-8 (ages 11 thru 13). These schools are reading LOTRs, Lords of Discipline, Lord of the Flies, etc... My son's school has them reading Patterson books, magazines(wt..?!) listening to audios of Alexis Sherman's Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, The Harry Potter series, etc. Not one classic and definitely NOT on a high school reading level. I explained to our son that I didnt care what the schools lists required, he was going to read a wider variety of books. He will read something on the list but it wont stop there.

For me, there is nothing like an independent bookstore. I happen to work in one:smile2:. Its just more personal. We know our customers, can give them the attention they want, remember their likes and special order at no additional cost. We carry everything except adult books (you know the kind). We are the largest in the state but in actuality, its not big at all. We have many loyal customers and work with the schools to make sure books are available for summer reading/required reading, etx. I just love that we can give them what they cant get in Barnes and Nobel and Borders, etc. We can do whatever we want to our store at the drop of a dime without having to get the okay from corporate!

And yet he was such a mild little man who spit when he lectured! When I first read chapter one, I wanted to grab a cloak, sack and traveling stick and follow along on their journey. Something about this book and the LOTRs brought out the wanderlust in me. I am relatively sedentary when it comes to staying in one place but there are moments when I feel the urge to pull a Bilbo (with hubby) and just travel. Oh how many times have sat and thought about selling everything and living in an RV (camper) journeying from place to place at our leisure? A good 4G, laptop, camera and chargers, a few pieces of luggage and coolers and a credit card and we are all set! Ahh, but there are the children... Has everyone finished Chapter 1? Anymore comments? Please jump in! Anyone ready for Chapter 2?

Hi zumii, welcome to the board!

Congrats frankie! Its so hot my appetite is just about nil. I live off salads and smoothies and grilled food during the summer months. That helps alot. I'm also drinking more water, less coffee and soda. Two investments I/we made was the abcircle that the whole family can use. The other is strictly for me:D I splurged on those new Sketcher Tone-ups yesterday. I put them on for the first time today and I LOVE them! The heel is about 2 inches higher than regular sneakers but after the first couple of steps it was easy to get use to. Now I can walk comfortably and excercise at the same time! I cant and WONT do the gym. What a cesspole of nasty germs. I've watched how people would use the machine, sweat all over it and then move to the next one. No one cleaned and disinfected the thing. I refuse to sit on it. Its like sitting directly on a public toliet. Not to mention the air thats circulating around those places. Not very good ventilation. So, overall, I get what excercise I can from at home and outside. I also have a book that I'm reading bit by bit called French Women Dont Get Fat. I like that it expounds using things in our daily lives to become fit. Parking far from the door, using the steps, playing at the park with the kiddies, etc...my kind of excercise. Something that doesnt actually say exercise! It also helps to have to pick up a 25 pound 5 month old and a 30 pound 2 year old! So far, since April, I've lost about 12 pounds. For me, I dont want to be thin, just healthy.

an old favorite, Keeping Mum:blush:

When his publisher wanted him to do a follow up to The Hobbit, Tolkien tried to throw in The Silmarillion also but they didnt think it was a childrens book. He then tried to get it published with LOTR but that didnt pan out either.

You know Vanwa, that thought about the comfort of the Hobbits did cross my mind. From extreme comfort to extreme deprivation. I remember reading something about Gandalf's powers being limited but I think it may have been in LOTR. As of yet, I have not been able to bring myself to read The Simarillion. Chrissy, I read his biography and the author said that Tolkien spent 16 years creating middle-earth. He really had a desire to create his own world and I think he succeeded beyond even his own imagination. The elven language, the middle-earth creatures and of course, the history. Tolkien fascinates me!

Now I do believe had Baggins known that he was to have dwarves over for tea, he would have fedd them appropriately but as he had no idea (thanks to Gandalf) they got what they got! But remember, the dwarves DID request those cakes:lol:

Chapter One....The Unexpected Party Okay, so I've read the first chapter and yet again, it makes me want to go dig a hole in a hill:lol: I think thats what I love most about Tolkien's description of the Hobbits and their dwellings. Its such a cozy feeling. I want tea and biscuits. I want the lovely garden and the small village were everyone knows everyone else. I'm mentally trying to find away to turn my home into a hobbit cottage! Now, reading this for the 5th time, I've often wondered about Gandalf. Have you noticed his ability to arrive, set things in motion and then sit back and watch? He hasnt laid eyes on Bilbo Baggins in almost 50 years but he believes Bilbo needs an adventure and so he sets him up to be a theif. I'm almost certain I would tolerate the same kind of treatment.

Gee, just one thing? I'm just weird by my family and friends standards:lol: I'm a Black woman, southerner, who loves Enya, LOTR, HP and C.S. Lewis. I listen to celtic music, Native American music and I love to read about Scotland, Ireland and England. Oh, and I eat my watermelon with a knife and fork. I cut it into little squares and using the fork and my teeth, I like to smash the melon against my tongue till all the juice is gone!

hehehe! My 14 year old son does a WONDERFUL impression of Gollum:lol: "and I'll take it for meeeeee.....!"

Ballykissangel, season 1!

Chapter One it is then. I've already started:readingtwo:

When I got done watching my first ever match, my ears felt numb. I truly hate those things!