I have been woefully remiss in keeping track of what I've read this year, so I will try to download things out of my head in a meaningful manner. This is not the order I read things in; half of my books are still traveling from Japan to me, and may or may not ever get here. Thank you, customs in Osaka.

Anyway, here we go!

23. THE ACTOR AND THE HOUSEWIFE by Shannon Hale

I really liked this book; in general, Shannon Hale is an author that I always like. And I found this story amusing and heart-warming and sweet. But it was very, very Mormon to me; the main character had viewpoints and actions that I simply didn't comprehend. It was, at times, like watching an alien creature who acted like a modern woman... but didn't. I disagreed vehemently with many of the character's choices, which perhaps says more about my liberal East Coast upbringing than it does about Mormons themselves. I should clarify that one of my good friends is Mormon, and I know many, many other wonderful people who are that religion. I have nothing against them. I just really disliked the character of Becky in many ways, yet I couldn't stop from reading the book. And that's a mixed review, if there ever was one. =)

24. THE PRINCESS OF THE MIDNIGHT BALL by Jessica Day George

Jodi Meadows said this book was about knitting--it totally was! I really enjoyed it, and now I'm seeking out more of Ms. George's work.

25. MARRIED IN THE MORNING by Lisa Kleypas

It had a good premise, but it didn't feel like a well-realized book to me.

26. LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON by Lisa Kleypas

This was a much better book than the previous one, although not a blow-me-out-of-the-water romance by any means. I do want to try writing an epistolary novel or story now though...

27. TEN THINGS I LOVE ABOUT YOU by Julia Quinn

This romance novel, on the other hand, was a wonderful romance. Julia Quinn is back, people! I adored this one! Every detail was spot-on--bravo! I do think this has now earned itself a place as one of my favorite Julia Quinn romance novels. =)

28. A SECRET AFFAIR by Mary Balogh

I have a hard time articulating why I didn't fall head over heels in love with this book. The only thing I can think of was that I didn't fall head over heels in love with the characters. Yet, I liked Hannah, the main character, and I did read the book in one four hour sitting. It's a strange quandary--if anyone else has opinions on this one, please share.

29. A MATTER OF CLASS by Mary Balogh

In contrast to the other book, this one was a shining example of a romance novel (novella) done completely and totally right. I can't say much about it for fear of spoilers, but I will say that you should run, not walk, to read it.

30. THE SHADOW QUEEN by Anne Bishop
31. SHALADOR'S LADY by Anne Bishop

More on these later, in a different venue.

32. MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins

ADORED this.

33. SERVANTS OF THE UNDERWORLD by Aliette de Bodard

I liked this, but didn't love it with an undying passion.

34. WHEN THE KING COMES HOME by Caroline Stevermer

This was merely ok.

35. A KISS AT MIDNIGHT by Eloisa James

This was wonderful and witty and a true fairy tale. Highly recommended for anyone who likes romantic comedy.

36. LAST NIGHT'S SCANDAL by Loretta Chase

Also wonderful and witty. I love her books so much. I already want the next one!

37. IMADOKI, Volume 2 by Yuu Watase

Fluff manga, but I like it.

38. DRAGON SLIPPERS by Jessica Day George

This was good, but I preferred her YA book more than this juvenile one. I think I was too old for its charms, sadly.

39. MURDER IN ZANZIBAR by M. M. Kaye

If you've never read THE FAR PAVILLIONS by the same author, you're greatly missing out. This was a good, period-set, mystery. It was defini

I'm so happy that I'm married to my husband, Chris! We've been together for almost nine years and married for three. Life is very, very good. =) Happy Wedding Anniversary to me!

Have a picture of him!

Keith Olbermann at his very best about what it means to be an American. It is sincerely worth watching all the way through.

(Look, I'm being political--fancy that!)

I have tried to figure out why I haven't been blogging as much lately, and besides the obvious no-no of typing with tendinitis (shh, don't tell my doctor right now!).... I just haven't felt like babbling lately. I've come to the conclusion that I don't know what sort of voice I want this blog to have, which I think is holding me back. I'm not an agent--and although I am a writer--I don't need to speak about publishing and be all professional anymore. Not that I was very professional all the time, but I had STANDARDS. Now I don't need those standards, and I'm not sure where to go.

Do I be all personal and blabby about my feelings?

Do I tell you what's going on in my life?

Do I say nothing?

Do I only do publishing news?

Do I do something new?

I have been contemplating wanting to write an epistolary story; I wonder if that would be an interesting thing to post on the blog? Would people stick around through it all?

I go back to school in the fall, and I'm not sure you want to read about me attempting college for a second time. Well, I'd like to note that I'm not attempting it; I have a perfectly good BA from Carnegie Mellon University, so I like to think I managed to conquer college the first time around. But I am trying to learn more Japanese, which requires going where the Japanese teachers are, and short of moving to Japan full-time (I'm still lobbying the husband, albeit unsuccessfully)... that's college. See, and here I am, babbling, and typing far more than I'm sure my doctor would like me to be doing. Do they make soft, slightly squishier keyboards?

I should be dictating, but my husband is asleep with a cold, and I don't want to wake him. Plus, Dragon drives me up a wall, and I need more RAM. I did manage to finish revising a story by speaking slowly, which is good. And now, I must stop typing because I'm starting to twinge in pain. Leave a comment, do.

Because you probably didn't know that I adore The Guild. Watch the music video! And then the trailer! But first, oh boy, the music video. =)

<br/><a href="http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/season-4-music-video-game-on/y0da39gh?fg=sharenoembed" target="_new"title="Season 4 - Music Video - "Game On"">Video: Season 4 - Music Video - "Game On"</a></br/>

&amp;amp;amp;lt;br/&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/the-guild-season-4-trailer/y08waqri?fg=sharenoembed" target="_new"title="'The Guild' Season 4 Trailer"&amp;amp;amp;gt;Video: 'The Guild' Season 4 Trailer&amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;gt;

Just a short note of apology to say that I've been feeling really run-down the last few weeks, and I'm still working on getting the right treatment (read: more powerful antibiotics) from the doctor.

Blogging will resume regularly, sooner rather than later. =)

I'm behind on everything, including posts of substance. Bear with me while I catch up on everything--much stuff to do around these parts.

But, in the meantime, I'd like to direct your attention to the fact that my friend Spencer has named his new son, Samwise. Yes, after that Samwise. I think it's wonderful, but then again, I'm still fighting to eventually name a son of mine Severus. The husband's current thought on that: "It will be just our luck that Rowling will write a prequel about Harry's parents and it will be huge, and then our kid will be in elementary school and mercilessly teased because his name is Severus."

Can I help it that I love Snape?

I've always enjoyed reading Catherynne Valente's LJ, and recently she's been blogging every day about something relatively substantial in nature. I thought it was a neat experiment, and so I'm going to do it here too. Thirty days of having to write a decent blog post every day should be an interesting experience and discipline, at the very least.

So let's start, shall we? =)

One of the things that I haven't told you about my time in Japan has been the utter joy of having friends in real life. I had people that I could call up and say, "Want to go get dinner together?", and then, we would actually go get dinner together. I went sightseeing with my friends. I sang karaoke. I played with bunnies. I went out to lunch almost every day with my friend from my Japanese class. I had people who were near my own age, and who had similar interests as me, and I got to interact with them in real life, in realtime, not just seeing them every now and then and mostly being online.

And don't get me wrong, because I sincerely, sincerely love the friendships that I've made online, and then transitioned to real life. I wish I could see those friends more often. I am continually sad that I don't often get to have everyday experiences with them, and that I am limited to e-mails and ichat and infrequent visits at cons or at each others' houses. But for the last five years, my group of online-to-real life friends has been the highlight of my social experience, outside of my husband and my family. I know it sounds sad, but it isn't meant to be.

I live in suburban NJ, right around where I grew up. It's a great place to raise children. But it's not a great place to be an adult in your mid to late 20s, while you're trying to find people who aren't interested in drinking all the time on the weekends. You know, people you'd be happy discussing politics and books and silly anime with on a regular basis. It's also not a great place to live if you can't drive at night, which I can't, due to night-blindness.

The combination of all that resulted in precisely new two friends. One moved to Oregon, and the other one lives 45 minutes from me. I have a scattering of other friends who live in and around NYC, who I see infrequently due to the distance.

So I grew accustomed to not having people to do things with. I grew accustomed to hanging out with my mom. I lived for when my husband came home because I could get him to drive me somewhere and we could do something fun. I tried to plan my days around not being able to drive in the dark, which sometimes worked, and sometimes didn't. And the whole time this was happening, I was lonely in a quietly subtle way.

But I didn't realize how lonely I had been, until I got to Tokyo and started having real life friends again. I started being able to act like the natural extrovert I am, and I was so incredibly happy. I realized that you can have friendships of many different kinds, both online and in real life. And that while I have a rich and varied online life, I don't have that in real life. I am hoping that taking college classes this fall (more Japanese) might help me find more real life friends in NJ, but I'm not kidding myself. The school is over an hour from my home in traffic, and don't forget the whole unable-to-drive-at-night thing. I am temporarily resigned to being lonely again.

But I am no longer resigned to continuing to live like this forever. My husband and I are very, very slowly trying to figure out where we want to move for the next couple of years. I'm lobbying for Tokyo, but it's more likely we'll end up closer to New York City (hopefully, in it), or in California. Maybe we'll end up in Spain or London or Timbuktu. Maybe we'll find more friends together and have more real life adventures with people we care deeply about. Maybe I'll find lots of real life friends wherever I go; maybe I won't.

There's a lot of uncertainties in

... I'm emerging to tell you that my friend and former assistant, the fabulous Jodi Meadows, has sold a trilogy to Harper Collins. =) I am so proud of her that I can't put it in words.

Read hers, instead.

I should be asleep since I'm set to be on a plane out of Tokyo in approximately fifteen hours from now. But I can't sleep; can't even attempt to think about it at the moment, because I feel like I'm saying a long sad goodbye to Tokyo itself.

I will wholeheartedly admit that I have fallen head over heels for this city. Despite the rain, despite the humidity, despite the fact that I have so many damn bug bites--I will miss this place. I've tried over the last three months to articulate to my parents why I love it here so much, and I think I've failed every time. But just for me, once more, I will try again. Let's do a numbered list!

In no particular order:

1. Politeness is a whole different game here. Everyone is polite to you, even if they secretly hate you. It's damn refreshing.
2. Everything, and I mean everything, is clean. Usually sparkling clean. They dust and polish the escalator handrails several times a day in the train stations, for pete's sake. I can use a public restroom anywhere, and it will most likely be clean and decent-smelling.
3. The clothes are awesome, even though I only fit into some of them still. Fashion rocks, and I never realized I liked it so much. I knew there was a reason I was addicted to my Lucky magazine...
4. The trains come on time.
5. Space is utilized in a million different ways. I've spent the last three months living in a house that's on the top of a hill, and I've seen houses built into hills too. The architecture is diverse, and it tends to vary from neighborhood to neighborhood in the city.
6. Shinjuku, and most particularly, I like Kabukicho. This amazed my Japanese teachers, but it felt so much like Times Square and New York's 8th Avenue area, except, you know, with lots of visible yakuza. =)
7. I have an unfortunate addiction to towel-like handkerchiefs.
8. Melon pan.
9. Omuraisu.
10. Hello Kitty, I adore you!
11. Cute is a huge marketing factor and it appeals to me. =)
12. Being able to walk practically anywhere.
13. My language school, which I will miss dreadfully.
14. All of my friends here, who I'm already missing dreadfully.
15. Getting to hang my laundry out to dry, which I oddly like doing.
16. Takuan--pickled daikon radish, which I adore.
17. The food in general rocks my socks off.
18. The rice is superb.
19. The miso is superb.
20. They make French-inspired desserts; I swoon for mille crepe.
21. Street crepes in Harajuku.
22. Sunshine City.
23. Japanese movie theaters, which are interesting.
24. Book-Off, my dear, dear used bookstore love.
25. Kappabashi, which I could go wild in.
26. The scramble crossing in Shibuya, which I adore.
27. Daikanyama.
28. CHEAP HEALTH CARE even without insurance.
29. People love crafts here. Really, really love them.
30. Everything is Jenny-sized. I am the average size of a Japanese woman. None of my new pants are too long.
31. The fruits and vegetables are slightly pricey, but they're excellent quality to cook with and eat.
32. Shinkansen, baby!
33. Kichijoji
34. Tokyu Hands, which can be addictive.
35. Konbucha with shiso--it tastes like you're drinking the sea.
36. Mugicha, my new fave drink.
37. The way that everyone really takes their jobs seriously. Even at a convenience store, they really want to do a good job. It goes beyond work ethic, I think.
38. The arcades, oh, the arcades. I think they're more fun with a friend though.
    
39. The energy and the life and the purpose that everyone here has. I know people portray Japan as apathetic, but where some see apathy, I see masses of people living their lives side by. Individually, they may be apathetic, but collectively, they're hugely powerful. I love watching everyone just LIVE, side by side.
40. And finally, the three gong-strokes at the local temple, precisely every morning at 6 am.

The title says it all, but I'll also quote what I said on Twitter earlier today:

I want a Bromstrom Repair on my damn right ankle, and after that, one on my damn left ankle Ten years of this spraining and hurting. Enough.

I am behind frustrated because I can't possibly see how I will get to Kyoto and Nara next week, if I'm still like this. Aaargh.

For the record, I did not fall into a ditch this time. I did not walk into a sign. I was walking on level pavement on the sidewalk. I stepped onto a sewer cap, which might have been a few millimeters lower than the the surrounding pavement. And my entire right foot just flopped sideways. I don't understand why my ankles keep doing this, I really don't.

I have a wonderful amount of blogging that I want to do about my trip to Hiroshima this weekend and finally getting to meet the wonderful Nadia Lee and her husband, Hero Material.

But I seem to have given myself a mild concussion, so please stand by.

In the meantime, I want to discuss something else! Why am I such a clumsy individual? Are other people out there? Is there some reason that I manage to injure almost anything that can ever be injured, in the stupidest ways possible? (Current injury cause: slamming my head into a taxi door by accident.)

Surely, I'm not the clumsiest person out there, am I?

My husband's theory is that even though my glasses and contacts correct my vision a huge amount, they're not perfect. Combined with my natural klutz tendencies, he thinks that I just simply don't see things. But if his theory is correct, then why don't we hear all these stories about the vision-impaired injuring themselves? What am I doing wrong??

(ETA: Anyone who suggests that I need a cane like a blind person, or that I should avoid going anywhere will be instantly deleted. I can safely drive a car. I am not legally blind. My glasses and contacts correct me to somewhere in the range of 20/30-20/40, although my ophthalmologist keeps telling me it's as close to 20/20 as he can get it.

Also, I went to Odyssey last year with someone who IS legally blind, and she got along just fine in everyday life. In fact, she has better knife skills than I do, which is really neat. =) So I don't easily accept the argument that my vision means that I should limit my activities.)

Yes, this is a spoiler-filled post.
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It's the look that gets me at the end--the look that Finn gives to all the other Glee kids during "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" when Rachel has her head on his shoulder. It's the look that says he's the luckiest guy in the world, and don't you wish that you were him. It's the look of utter content and bliss and absolutely everything that being in love means when you're 16.

I cry every time.

And it's the look that Puck and Quinn give each other, and the fact that you can still see that they care deeply about each other and that they're terribly, terribly in love still, even if they don't know how to make it work. Or may never make it work. Or may have just had the baby and will move on with their lives. But I'm a romantic at heart, and part of me wants Quinn and Puck to grow up and to have more babies together, that they keep as parents and raise together. Part of me wants them to be so happy, since I think they both deserve it.

The music was great. I adore Journey. The birth scene intercut with Bohemian Rhapsody was simply stunning.

But it's the characters that make me keep coming back to Glee, over and over and over. I love the music and I actually like the quick-moving plots and wacky writing at times. But god, I love these kids and this Glee Club more than I think you're supposed to love television characters. They hit on exactly what it's like to be a teenager; they touch this chord in me that resonates and vibrates, even though I graduated from high school eleven years ago. It's enough to make me want to be the reason that Finn looks like that--because it's the look that gets me everytime.

Let's assume that I have a large amount of money, which I'll tell you up front that I absolutely, without a doubt, do not have.

And then let's assume that I decided that I really wanted to do something fun with that money. Something not-boring. Something that I might actually enjoy.

And let's say, in this entirely hypothetical situation (because remember, I REALLY don't have the money this would require), that I wanted to start an online magazine. An online zine for short fiction.

What type of magazine and stories would you want to read?

Yoinked from Boing Boing, this is librarians doing Gaga. It needs to be seen!

I should be asleep because I have class in nine hours (it's 12:39 am on Wednesday morning here in Japan), but screw it, I'm writing this post.

Today, I marked an epic milestone in my three-month long trip to Japan: I bought new insoles for my New Balance walking shoes. For those of you who have never owned New Balances, they're tough shoes. I have the 845s, which are the successor to the long-loved 844s. I've worn the same model of shoe, or practically the same model of shoe, for the last five or six years. If there's any shoe I know, it's these shoes.

And so, when I tell you that I have never, ever, had to replace the insoles on these shoes, I hope you believe me. But here we are, six weeks into my trip in Japan, and I have walked enough that I must replace them or die first. The shoes were brand-new when I left the US on April 6, 2010; it's now May 26, 2010, and they're getting a replacement pair of insoles already. Besides the dirt from regular use, the outer parts of the shoes don't even show any wear-and-tear.

As an American, and particularly, an American who hasn't been physically active for many years, this amazes me. I have literally never walked this much in my life.

Tokyo is a city that is built for walking with residential areas radiating out from central stations that have adjoining commercial centers. Which isn't to say that there aren't stores far from stations or houses close to stations, but that's the basic principle of the place. There are stairs everywhere, and while there are elevators and escalators on some train platforms, the stairs are often more convenient. On top of that, because of the way the city is laid out in general, I have the ability to walk ten minutes from my house and get the majority of my daily shopping done, including groceries from the supermarket. If I want to go farther afield, I have a choice of taking the regular trains or the subway; I can go shopping at various other stores including in a covered shopping arcade; and I can choose from a wide variety of bars.

Once I hop on a train, I can walk practically anywhere from whatever station I end up at. For example, Shinjuku, a favorite of mine, has large-size women's clothing (Isetan, my dearest expensive department store friend), a Kinokinuya bookstore with English books, and all the arcades and karaoke you could want within a 15 minute walk from the station. But when I go out, I don't usually go out to one place, so I end up walking and walking, just looking and enjoying myself.

Take today, for instance.

I walked from my house to the local station, which is 900 m each way, a little more than a half mile. I took the train to Takadanobaba, where my school is, after transferring once within Ikebukuro station. I walked from Takadanobaba station to my school and went to class. Then, I went from the school, past the station, and walked a few blocks more to go to the cheap udon/soba place with my friend, Kim (last-name). We didn't go very fast, since Kim is almost six months pregnant, but we walked it all. We ate lunch at the udon/soba place, walked back the way we had come from school, and got on the train at the Takadanobaba station. We rode down to Shinjuku and then navigated the positively gigantic Shinjuku station, until we figured out the right exit to take for Tokyu Hands, a lifestyle/home goods/random stuff store we wanted to visit. Ten minutes from the Shinjuku station, we got to Tokyu Hands, which was delightfully in the same building as the Prada and Gucci stores; we gazed adoringly at the extremely expensive stuff we can't afford. An hour and change later, we had covered two floors of Tokyu Hands, both bought lots of stuff, and were ready to go home. Walking the entire time, mind you, as women do while shopping together.

God, this is long, so let's do a paragraph break! Feel free to visit the bathroom and replenish your beverage. =)

Ok, so then ten minutes back to Shinjuku station, onto the train again

....or tell me something happy... or tell me something that just makes your day brighter.

I am having one of those days that I won't blog about because it will drag the entire world down into an abyss of blah. =) So instead, I will tell you what makes me happy, and you can tell me what makes you happy. Sound good? Sounds good to me. (Notice how I'm doing both parts of the conversation here... =)

What Makes Me Happy: I have half a bottle of ice-cold milk tea and an air conditioner. This is tantamount to bliss right now.

What makes you happy? What's something good or day-brightening? Comments will be unmoderated periodically, although I may not reply to all--I'm still reading though.

Dearest UK readers who have opinions,

Can some of you please explain what the recent election means in terms of your country? I've been reading lots of news coverage, but I'm a little lost on how this impacts the regular people of the UK. Thanks much in advance!

With hugs and anticipatory knowledge and elucidation,
Jenny

There are so many reasons that I totally heart Tokyo, but today, I love it for the shopping. Most of the time I just window shop everywhere, but today I hit Tomato the fabric store and got a million and one fat quarters. After years of not being able to find quilt fabric that I loved--I found it. And my mom is going to dig up the sewing machine and give it to me when I get home, so finally, finally, finally, I will make my Flying Geese quilt. It's the silly, crafty things in life that make me so happy. =)

Tokyo is many things, but the segment of its shops that cater to crafty people + bored homemakers has to be among my favorites. I am frighteningly domestic sometimes.... for years, I was convinced that I wasn't a girly girl at all, but then I hit my twenties and realized that yes, I was. And now I can take wonderful delight in totally girly things in a city that has a ton of them! =)

(Yes, pictures to follow. I've been busy and I have a ton of homework to do this weekend.)

(Also, addendum #2: I've decided that most of you are all bored with me now, due to lack of comments. Obviously, my life is now deathly boring since I'm not an active agent. I shall just babble from now on, I suppose.)

My dearest, dearest family dog, Dusty, has made it through his spleen removal surgery with flying colors. He's home, groggy, and being babied by my mom. He lives with my parents, by the way, which is why you don't hear about him often. It's probable that he has lymphoma, but I'm just so thrilled that he made it through the surgery alright. At almost-13-years-old, that's no easy feat for a Labrador Retriever. =)