Books 2008: the avoidance-episode edition

[hawkwing_lb]

So, this is what I did instead of study Thursday.

Books 2008: 70-73.

70. C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp, Touch of Madness.

Urban fantasy (paranormal romance) with nasty-icky parasite vampires. Sex scenes boring, parasitic vampires interesting, but more vampires than sex, so on the whole a win for overall entertainment.

71-73. Laura Anne Gilman, Curse the Dark, Bring It On, and Burning Bridges.

Interesting urban fantasy. I missed the first installment (bookshops with their uneven stock problems, ack), but I didn't feel as though I lost too much context. Fun.

---

Hot weather yesterday (about 20 Celsius) so there was swimming. Today, I'm in the throes of rearranging my workspace (new shelves!) and otherwise ignoring the fact I have exams Tuesday and Wednesday.

I feel pretty anxious. I have trouble concentrating, when it's warm, and when I'm under pressure. Both together are bad. And my social anxiety is back, to the point where it's affecting my online interactions as well. I feel very much like an idiot, and I hate that.

Exams. So not my favourite things. Anybody got good news? :)

Comments

[clarentine]

Um. Captain Alatriste was better at the end than 100 pages into the beginning? And I have book two waiting for me for more bus reading?

Chaz looks likely to survive? (I hope that's not a surprise; I do so hate being spoiled, and would not want to accidentally spoiler you, but since I suspect you've read the episode....)

It's not cold here today? Of course, I'm walking around complaining about how hot it is.

I have tomorrow off, even if it's for car maintenance and doctor's appointments?

The local pro soccer club, http://richmondkickers.com/, won for the second time in a row this weekend?

By this time on Thursday, your exams will be done?

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Oh, Captain Alatriste. I need to get my hands on The Sun Over Breda.

I've been on Refining Fire on the dot of one am every morning, yes. Come hell or high water. :)

You follow soccer? Do you play, too?

Thanks. Good points, all. :)

[clarentine]

I used to play against my son's recreational (as in, not "travel") soccer team on Fridays when the coach had parent-kids games to give the kids some competition, and I scored five goals two seasons in a row. Against 12-year-olds. *g* My son's long outgrown that and the only workout I get from soccer now is my vocal cords.

The one real thing I will miss when we leave Richmond next summer and move out into the countryside south and west of Nashville is having a pro team to go watch in person.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

There's a reason they call it the beautiful game, no?

I can't watch team sports anymore. They make me sad I don't have time to make a commitment to go play. :)

[clarentine]

Well, you're young. You can go play once you've finished with school. There are plenty of adult leagues here, so I'm sure they exist in places where more people have played the sport!

And beautiful...oh, yeah. I love to watch the plays build. And then there's the players. >:-)

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Mm. Pretty footballers. :)

[ossuarian.livejournal.com]

Is 20 degrees really hot weather in Ireland in May? I generally don't go swimming unless it's (pause for conversion from English Units) 35 degrees. Granted, that means I only swim in the summer and am not much of a swimmer regardless, but 20 degrees?

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Um. Once it turns 15C or above? I tend to start looking longingly at the sea. 18C is a warm (edging towards hot) summer's day. 24C and above is a heatwave.

(I think I've swum when the air temp's about 10 degrees, but that was in late March, oh, ten or so years ago, when I was a)twelve, and b)living right beside the sea and had a warm oven to go back to.)

It's not proper swimming unless you've gone numb at the extremities! So cold you start to feel warm!

...Admittedly, not all Irish people feel this way. But there are some who feel even more strongly, and swim all year round.