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Whoo hoo! Already broke my record from last year! I've still been reading more Valdemar books but I think I might be done for the moment. I've started reading the Warriors Saga by Erin Hunter. It's about feral cats and written in the same vein as Watership Down. They're pretty good, very light and entertaining. I have a friend who loves the series so I decided to pick it up from the library. It's technically in the kids' section but so is Harry Potter! 
I'm not going to hit 50 books this year either but over 30 isn't bad...

25. Owlflight by Mercedes Lackey
26. Owlsight by Mercedes Lackey
27. Owlknight by Mercedes Lackey
28. Moving Targets And Other Tales of Valdemar edited by Mercedes Lackey
29. Crossroads And Other Tales of Valdemar edited by Mercedes Lackey
30. Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter
31. Warriors: Fire and Ice by Erin Hunter

#14 Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams. Book two of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy saga. Not as good as the first but still pretty darn good.

And oh my god, I've been rereading Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books. It seems to be a theme this year and last year. I've just been drawn to my old favs, some of which I haven't read since high school. It's a good old fashioned fantasy. I call it my "junk food reading" - it's not literature or groundbreaking fiction, it's just a cute, entertaining story with some good battles, a few odds to overcome, and magical telepathic horses. It's actually a pretty well developed diverse world. My personal favorites are The Black Gryphon, Brightly Burning, and Vows and Honor set (the "Oath" books). I really need to find that Gryphon book or buy a new one...I think I let a friend borrow it years ago.

#15 Arrows of the Queen
#16 Arrow's Flight
#17 Arrow's Fall
#18 Winds of Fate
#19 Winds of Change
#20 Winds of Fury
#21 Storm Warning
#22 Storm Rising
#23 Storm Breaking
#24 Sword of Ice and Other Tales of Valdemar (a collection of short stories written by multiple authors)

There have been a few books I've started but haven't finished. The third Hitchhiker book, Life, the Universe, and Everything just didn't keep me interested. It wasn't as quick and random as the first two (especially the first) and I got distracted by other reading. I also tried the third Shannara book by Terry Brooks, The Wishsong of Shannara, and even though I really tried slogging through it, got about 3/4 of the way through and just couldn't bring myself to finish it. The second book had really gotten my hopes up with those Shannara books too.

I've also been slowly working my way through the Guide to Getting It On! by Paul Joannides (3rd ed.). I know I've read it all but it's neat to read it cover to cover...and if you saw how massive this thing is, you'd understand. It's simply the best "couple's" book I think you'll ever come across. It really does cover everything...especially the newer editions. Holy crap, I think the new 6th edition is a good inch thicker than the one I have. The best thing is that it covers what is "normal", health issues, romance, emotional issues, techniques, sex ed for kids, pregnancy, disability, impotence, and so on (name a topic, I think it's covered) and does it all with a great sense of humor and is written very accessibly. Even if you don't do half of what's in there and a third doesn't even apply to you, you'll still enjoy reading it. It's also kind of fun to go through with a highlighter and a pen/pencil and mark up things you'd like your partner to know about or try. *wink wink*

Sorry for the mass book postings...

What is your dream job? Do you think you’ll ever have it?
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My dream job involves working with animals. I working on becoming a zookeeper...I'm close but not there yet. I just have to keep applying and hoping somebody is willing to give me a chance. I'll get there eventually.

What’s the hardest part about looking for a new job?
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a) Finding one you actually want.

b) Finding one you are actually qualified for.

c) Finding one where they'd actually hire you over all the other qualified candidates.

I'm having a great week so far, starting with the farmer's market I already wrote about.

The day before yesterday my friend Jesse came over and we had a "pony day". We started customizing a few My Little Ponies and had a lot of fun just hanging out. She's working on a green man/nature spirit pony with lots of sculpted bits and I started on a Spiderman pony. Hehe, the new ponies have a magnet in one of their front hooves so you can stick them to things like lamps, the refridgerator, wall studs, etc. so I thought it'd be a lot of fun to paint on up like Spiderman and stick it to things. I also have a hippogryph still in the works. We're planning on getting together again this weekendto work on them some more.

The kid keepers program that I work with at the zoo is going great too. I'm having alot of fun. Yesterday was fantastic. Some of them are really into it and are doing a great job. Some of them are just really high energy and get distracted easily but I haven't really had any problems yet.

My inlaws are coming up on Sunday for a visit too. I love Mike's parents...they are really great people so I'm looking forward to them coming to visit (and to not driving 7 hours each way to go visit them!)

Ohhhhhhhh, dinner was sooooooooo goooooood! I went to the farmer's market today on accident. I'd gone to old town to hit up the knittery and check out the new fibers they've started getting (oh my god *drooooool* They've started carrying fibers for spinning and whatnot...things like bamboo and merino and silk and pretty blended colors! I'm so excited! They'll also be starting classes on spinning and stuff and even have wheels for people to use in the store!) and I saw that the farmer's market was going on! So I stopped over and picked up some golden beets I'm going to play with, a couple of organic peaches, lemon cukes, green beans, summer squash, and zucchini. I also got a little bunch of wonderful lavendar that just smells terrific!
So, for dinner we had green beans sauteed with garlic and olive oil, summer squash and zucchini with stewed tomatoes and onion, and leftover pulled pork we made 2 nights ago with a local BBQ sauce (sweet and SPICY!) and it was all fantastic! I love local stuff.

And now...off to art with some friends!

I had alot of fun last night! Mike and I went out to dinner at the Lost Coast Brewery with Jesse, Tony, Manny, and Sal. Then we all (sans Tony) went to the beach and set off fireworks! It was really cool....I've never set off fireworks before! The closest I've gotten has been sparklers.  Since Manny and Sal had been at AC over 4th of July weekend they didn't get a chance to play with fireworks and I guess Sal has never set off any before either, so Manny had Jesse buy them a box while they were gone. :)  We decided to head over to my house after the beach closed to finish up the box....it was pretty windy and dark so we were having a hard time lighting them anyway. It was kind of nice to set them off in the street because we had a hose available in case of "malfunction" and for a little bit of sweet sweet revenge on my neighbors who were setting off LOUD firecrackers/fireworks at 11:30pm last WEDNESDAY. At least most of these were quiet fountains and it was a Saturday night.  And despite Mike's worrying there were no burns or exploded hands. :)

What does your ideal lifestyle look like 10 years from now?
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Ideally I'd like to be living on a nice ranch with all of the entailing animals (especially horses) and maybe a few exotics (zebra anybody?) with ranch hands and a maid to deal with all the work so I could just enjoy it, a fantastic art room with great lighting, tons of room and storage, and all the supplies I'd ever need. I'd also like for there to be no money worries, neither Mike nor I have to work, a few fantastic kids, and perhaps and vintage muscle car in the driveway (mmm, I love old Mustangs). And hell, as long as I'm fantasizing, let's throw in a genetically engineered dragon for my personal transport.

Ok, fantasy over....my realistic ideal lifestyle would be to have no debt (or at least to have it very much under control and being paid off quickly), a nice chunk of money in savings, a couple of fantastic kids, a house, being able to go on some nice vacations (like bed&breakfast getaways travelling across Europe), and a well-paying job I love doing.

I really just want me and my family to be happy and secure.

If you had one day to spend $100,000 - and you had to spend it totally selfishly - what would you buy?

First I'd pay off all our debt, then I'd buy a new car and put a down payment on a house and pack any remaining into a savings account. I know these probably are not what would be thought of as 'selfish' purchases, but I want to start a family and these are good things to do before that happens!