The Last 48 Hours

Just in case anyone is interested, I have a new Livejournal account at KC: Geek Chic, the Livejournal Derivation. It's mainly for those who do not like Blogspot and would like to follow me somehow. However, if you have a Blogspot account, I highly encourage you subscribe to my journal at http://kcgeekchic.blogspot.com. It'll be the same blog for the most part since they're linked, but I know a lot of kids who wouldn't touch Blogspot with a stick. Honestly, I dig Blogspot--Livejournal is starting to become a tad annoying with the ads that keep popping up on my main page. But, c'est la vie.

Speaking of phrases and sentences with "c'est" in it, I've decided to add a little something-something at the end of a post every now and then that I'm calling "C'est Geek Chic." Basically it'll be a picture of a piece of clothing or accessory that I'd love to possess that is stylish and/or geeky in nature. Let's face it, I'm a geek, but I'm also a girl and I love to window shop for new clothes. Don't worry, my more masculine readers, it'll mostly be T-shirts, but don't be surprised if I throw in some jewelry or bags or shoes or something. Maybe there'll be a little comment below the picture, maybe there won't. It'll just depend on my mood. But we'll get into that later.

Anyway, as per the title of this post, I want to let everyone know what has happened within the last forty-eight hours, more or less. It began yesterday at around 10am, when I was at work. I got this vibe that it was going to be a weird day. And it kind of was... something seemed kind of off with everyone. It seemed like everyone was still kind of waking up, including myself. I was really tempted to buy some coffee, but I've been trying to avoid it so that I won't have to rely on caffeine. And throughout my shift, my metabolism was kicking my back. It was like a cat shredding it's claws through my stomach, telling me it was time to feed. I ate an extremely fatty cookie to make it stop, but no dice.

Well, I get out of work at 2pm and I think to myself, "You know, since I'm really hungry and I'm trying to be somewhat healthy today, a Subway sandwich sounds really good right now." So I drive to Subway and order a $5 foot-long so that I can have half for lunch that afternoon and the other half for lunch the next day. Perfect, awesome plan. Then I get to my car and I go to start it...

Nothing happens. No vroom, no lights going blinky, no nothing. I knew deep down that it was the battery, but I'm a stubborn person and I was bound to find something else with the vehicle. Then after the help of the very sweet employees at Subway and Fred Loya Insurance, I find out after a few jumps and ending up stuck in the middle of the parking lot's road that my car battery is completely fried. Many curse words streamed through my head.

I realize that I don't have my cellphone because I left it at home to charge the dying battery... strange coincidence, huh? Again, I ask the wonderful employees of Fred Loya Insurance for help, and they let me use their phone. I called the only person who's phone number I knew off the top of my head, which is my dad. I tell him what happened and he says, "Well, s***." Which, oddly enough, was the first sentence I said when I found out my car wouldn't start. My dad told me he'd be on his way, and I managed to get my car into neutral gear, and a nice random gentleman and I moved it into a parking space.

Now, just in case some of you don't know, when I get extremely frustrated and stressed, my physiological response to cry. I'm not proud of it, but it is what it is. As my father arrives, I'm sniffling and drained and still crying. And my poor dad tried pretty hard to cheer me up as he went over the car just to make sure it was the battery that was the problem.

DAD: Don't be upset, it's not that bad. So you got some Subway, huh? Why don't you eat and I'll take care of this.
ME: *sniffle sniffle* I'm not hungry... *sniffle sniffle*

I'm a lot like my dad, but in cases like this where unforeseen circumstances take place, I become a little bit neurotic. It's funny to look back on now, because I can just picture me losing it and my laid-back father hiding his confusion about how to make the situation better. Then he just gave up on making me feel better and told me to clean my car... which actually snapped me out of it.

So long story short, we got a new car battery and my car came back to life. And I stopped crying, my frustration went away, and I became hungry enough for my entire $5 foot-long in one sitting. But I was still drained and just muddled around until I fell asleep.

And then there was this morning, where I left my apartment on time to get to school, but was deterred by a slow-moving train, multiple stoplights, and people who don't know how to drive in the rain. I realized that my school things were not organized like they usually were, which was just a tad displeasing. And then there was my hair. My beautiful hair which I fixed and styled and primped for a career fair that I attended today, which was ruined because the humidity was so strong that my hair puffed out and made it look like the mane on the Cowardly Lion. And you know the humidity's bad when my straight hair gets one little ringlet. Just the one, mind you. God forbid I get more ringlets so that my hair can have some consistency despite the climate. Yeah, I put on a plastic headband and managed to get five resumes out, but still! My poor hair...

And we top off the evening with my being late to rehearsal... again, because of a train. However, the rehearsal went well and I got quite a bit done, so I was pleased with how that came out.

There you have it. That was yesterday and today in a nutshell. And now I shall bid you all goodnight as I have yet another day of work tomorrow and even more studying to do.

But first, the debut of...

C'est Geek Chic

Property of Think Geek.

Did you honestly think that the first item would be anything else? Silly people. :P

Book Review: Soulless by Gail Carriger

Just thought I'd pop in and write a little book review about Soulless, which I read during my spring break. I mentioned it in my previous blog and I wanted to go ahead and dedicate some writing space to it. Soulless is a debut novel written by Gail Carriger, and is the first in a series of urban fantasy books called The Parasol Protectorate. The synopsis of the book according to the back cover blurb is as follows:

Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she is being rudely attacked by a vampire to whom she has not been properly introduced! Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire, and the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?--Soulless

Sounds intriguing, non?

Soulless is definitely one of those books that makes me feel more like a girl. And you know what? That's a good thing. Sometimes it's difficult for me to acknowledge my girly side when I'm in geek mode and vice versa. To me, this book [series] is the female counterpart to The Dresden Files. I actually like it a little more than The Dresden Files, but that's something different. You've got your alternate history, steampunk, werewolves, vampires, romance, comedy, action, and of course tea, pastries, and parasols. What more could a girl ask for?

I think the major draw for me was the character of Alexia Tarabotti, who is faced with spinsterhood and is constantly criticized for her Italian heritage and her outspoken ways. She's got such a personality and a life to her that I can't help but like her from the moment the book begins. Character is just as important as plot to me, and maybe even a little more so in certain situations. Especially if it's a woman at the center of everything! That was one of my many, many, many, many, many problems with Twilight--the males outshone the females. But Alexia, the sweet and naive Ivy Hisselpenny and even Alexia's mother had clear-cut characters and they didn't fade into the background, whether or not they were likable. Of course, two of my favorite characters were the extremely flamboyant Lord Akeldema and Prof. Lyall. But Alexia's definitely in the top three, and the rankings change often.

My only issue was the book was that the steamy and sexy parts seemed a little... out of place. Don't get me wrong, they were well-written and I enjoyed reading them. It's just that they kind of got in my way every now and then. But I think the issue is my lack of expertise in the pure romance genre, and this book is a romance as much as it is a steampunk novel, a comedy of manners, and supernatural/paranormal adventure. I do like romantic stories, but I have a lot of tomboy in me still and I can't have a lot of romance in one sitting. It will just take some getting used to. I'm not sure if I will ever be able to fully immerse myself into the pure romance genre of literature, but with practice and time, I could read more books like this. If you need an analogy, imagine that romance is a shot of vodka... for me, it's often better when it's mixed with something else to make an enjoyable experience.

And before I finish, I must take quick moment to praise the author[ess] Gail Carriger. Her gift for writing is very obvious, and she has a lot of verve and potential to become even better. As I was reading, I certainly got a a Jane Austen vibe from her style, but it's also very unique. Even though the subject is kind of dark every now and then, she approaches it with a femininity and whimsy that I haven't seen for a while. (Of course, I've been reading a lot of books written by dudes, but again that's something else.) I'm definitely interested in reading anything else she does outside of the Parasol Protectorate.

So, all in all, it was a good and fun book. It kept me interested with the plot and the characters were intriguing. From the excerpt I've read from the next book, I'm really looking forward to Changeless. The street date is March 30, 2010 and I anxiously await its release.

For more info on Gail Carriger and The Parasol Protectorate, you can visit this websites:
Author's Website: http://www.gailcarriger.com/
Author's Blog: http://gailcarriger.livejournal.com/
Book's Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=63457918296
Publisher's Website: http://www.orbitbooks.net/