Friday, August 22, 2014

7 Quick Takes {Take 50} Back to school! edition...

-1- I missed you all!

Happy Friday everyone. :) In the summers, I tend to take off a number of Fridays so that I can secure long weekends with my family, and thus I miss out on 7 Quick Takes. Which is fine, of course, but I do miss it when I'm not able to blog! And so, what is new with me? Let's see...

-2- School starts on Monday. How on earth did *that* happen?!

Grades K-12 doesn't start in this area until after Labor Day, but classes at the university I work at begin Monday. The campus is already hopping with students moving in and orientation sessions ongoing. It seems like this summer absolutely *flew* by. I do enjoy the fresh feeling of a new fall semester, it's one reason that I'm glad I stayed in academia for my career. There are, however, things about it that I do not like. My schedule gets more hectic, for one thing. It's nice to not to be sitting in meetings that feel like they last for all eternity each day, kwim? And here at this particular university? For the love of all that is holy, THE PARKING. Good God. During the main semesters, if you arrive after 9 am, or God forbid have an appointment in the middle of the day and need to *come back,* you might as well just stay at home. Doing the driving around, swearing, and stalking people to their cars that is necessary to secure a spot is just sin-inducing. I'm not looking forward to that again.

-3- Henry seems to be growing *daily*...

Also school related, is that we have been making preparations for Henry to go back to school on September 2nd. I love that the children in this area don't go back to school until after Labor Day, it just has such a fall feeling to it on the first day of school. It's been like this my whole life, since I grew up about only 20 miles north of where I live right now. So, we've been procuring school supplies and new uniform clothes for Henry. In going through his closet, we discovered that he needs new *everything*: pants, polo shirts (both short sleeved and long), belt, socks, shoes. Oy. That kid certainly does know how to grow. And he's *always* been at the top of the growth chart, even from when he was a tiny infant. It seems like he's destined to be tall, despite the moderate height of both Mike and I. We just seem to produce these giant children. :0 And so I spent a slice of yesterday making a massive school uniform order. I should have done it sooner, I'm hoping everything gets here in time, since otherwise he'll look like he's expecting a flood on the first day of school, but it can't be helped. ;-)

-4- An end-of-summer dance vacation

*sniffle* My dance teacher is attending a workshop and dance convention this weekend, and so we're officially on summer holiday at the studio after tonight's class for 2 whole weeks. She's using the opportunity (since the convention is in Miami) to vacation and generally rest up for the busy fall and winter. Although I'm happy for her and know how important it is to have time for inspiration and retreat, I will seriously miss dancing and laughing with those ladies for 2 weeks. :-\ Who else can I get new and crazy balancing ideas from?! She does always comes back from workshops with wonderful new fodder for us, so I'm looking forward to that. And our fall hafla has been scheduled for November 22nd, so I can use the break to clean up my Middle Eastern playlists and maybe select some music to dance to for that. I will do my best to keep my spirits up about this. ;-)

-5- A working document for rosary design. Because that is how much of a nerd I am.

One of my other fall projects is making a rosary for my good friend Irena, to give her for Christmas. We've been convo'ing about colors and themes and such, and I broke down and created a Word document with photos of beads and rosary centerpieces, because seriously. I am a librarian, I like organization, and also I just flat out LOVE THIS STUFF. Catholic stuff. I get excited just thinking about it. I just saved the working document to my flash drive so that when I go out on the reference desk, I can continue to work on the design ideas in the quiet moments. Because...fun. :0

-6- Currently on my Kindle...

It wouldn't be a 7 Quick takes over here at Life of a Catholic Librarian without letting you know what I'm currently reading. I'm in the mood for some light romance these days, and so I'm reading an installment in the Cardwell Ranch series, this one being Cardwell Ranch Trespasser:

B.J. Daniels is one of my favorite Harlequin authors, and she always writes stories set in Montana, a place dear to her heart. She loves that land, and it shows in her writing. She is a wonderful writer, and really knows how to keep the reader in suspense!

-7- Next Book Club installment on Wednesday!

It's time for the Catholic Book Club once again, and next week it will be Don't You Forget About Me, by Erin McCole Cupp:

This is adult Catholic fiction/mystery, and a fantastic read! Come back on Wednesday to read more about the book, my thoughts on it, and an interview with the author! Exciting, no?! If you'd like to read along, the book is a mere $3.99 for download at Amazon right now!

All right everyone, my reference shift is coming up, so I'm off! I hope that you all have a fabulous weekend, check back in with me on Monday. Until then, head over to Conversion Diary for more 7 Quick Takes!

3 comments:

  1. The book in #7 definitely looks interesting, so I'll try to remember to check back for your review! As for #6, I've never known a Harlequin to be a "light romance" but perhaps I'm wrong :) as we both know, even librarians can be wrong!

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    Replies
    1. Not all Harlequins are created equal, in my experience. :) This is a romantic suspense line, and the emphasis is on the suspense, though certainly with some romance in there. Ironically, Harlequin Romantic Suspense seems to be heavier on the romance and less on the suspense. :) Intrigue is the one secular line of theirs that I read regularly and enjoy. I adore the Love Inspired and Love Inspired Suspense books, which have a Christian foundation.

      Do check back on Wednesday! I'm looking forward to it.

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  2. Actually, I just read your reply above and remembered that I read and reviewed one of the "Love Inspired" books for CatholicFiction.net--and I really liked it. The story was sweet, and it was very well-written. Before I read that book, I had this idea that all Harlequin Romances were cheesy and full of sex. I guess you can't judge a book by its cover...ha ha.

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