Back from the dead

I decided to get rid of my outdated online journal and start a new blog. Anyways, for those of you that don't know yet, I now work at Barnes & Noble in Orem. I started the end of January. So far things are going well there and I like it so far. The thing that I like best is that I only work 40 hours a week. Hurray! Plus we are only open 12-7 on Sundays and I haven't had to work a single Sunday yet. I'm a merchandise manager which is a step below the assistant managers. I'm still responsible for opening and closing the store and supervising employees and all that stuff. The good thing is that I didn't have to take that much of a pay cut, and then after you factor in all the hours I worked at Kmart, I'm actually making more money in a way. Besides feeling like a fool because I really haven't read too many books, things are okay. So I've decided to read more to remedy this. Unfortunately, Chris is getting neglected. So I need to balance my time a little better. Sariah suggested that I do book reviews, and I thought about it since my cousin Amanda does that on her blog.

Last week for Valentines day Chris had bought me the Christina Aguilera concert DVD and a collectors edition of The Matrix. I had forgotten how much I liked the movies until it was on tv the other day which is why he bought it for me. It also came with a collectable Neo head figurine that I thought was silly. I asked Chris what I was supposed to do with it and he didn't realize that it came with the dvd's because he had bought it online. Geez, good thing he pays attention to what he buys. :-p I had bought him Guitar Hero 3. I had previously been opposed to playing the game because I heard it was addictive and I didn't want to turn into a zombie because you pretty much stop blinking while you play and go into a trance. Chris' sister has Rock band and we had played it at her house a few times, and after realizing that I'm actually pretty good, I caved and joined the zombie ranks. Chris' reaction when I gave it to him. "Oh, I just sold my xbox to a guy at work". He didn't really actually sell it though so we've been playing it off and on for a week. I've already finished the easy level and am half way through the medium. That blasted pinkie key is a killer and you can forget about it when they add the extra key after that. My pinkie is pretty weak but I'm getting used to it I think. I'm afraid the game has released a few profanities from me though. By the way I'm better than Chris at the moment. We also went to the Outback with Chris' dad and stepmom. We also went to Costco last weekend which forced me to have to clean out my pantry and my refrigerator. I'm trying to convince Chris that getting a freezer is a good idea but he is being a dork about it. Needless to say, we will be getting it. Maybe this weekend if I get my way.

Here are the first books I read since I started B&N.

A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rebel Angels, and A Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray.

They are considered teen fiction, and are a trilogy. They are based in the late 1800's, and are about a girl who finds out that she has powers. It gets pretty good at parts although I got irritated at the repetition in the 2nd and 3rd books and I had to tell myself that it was probably to remind the reader in case they actually had to wait to read them in between publishing dates. I was actually surprised at some of the things in them because there is implied sex in the last book and also a disturbing revelation about the girl's friend. But there isn't anything too descriptive. Overall I liked them, but they weren't my absolute favorite.