Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Creating this as a thread where members can chat about nonbook things if they are so inclined. At least until Goodreads tells me we can't ...

Awesomesauce! ;-) Several times last year I wished I had some place to "say" something to my Goodreads pals here. Now I can. (Of course, I have nothing nonbookish to say right now.)

I think as long as it's appropriate there shouldn't be any problems. :)

This looks like a perfect site for me, my kids complain about my "stream of consciousness" conversations.

Nadine, I've had the same problem! Sometimes I could just slip it into my weekly check-ins, but what happens when I want to say something on Saturday? ;)

Has anyone ever tried to pen down every single thought that crossed their mind in a day? I did that for half of my day yesterday and it completely freaked me out! #RandomRambles

Hello all. Happy New Year!

Nitika wrote: "Has anyone ever tried to pen down every single thought that crossed their mind in a day? I did that for half of my day yesterday and it completely freaked me out! #RandomRambles"

No, but that would freak me out too! I do track some habits though! Things like if I took my vitamins for the day, abnormal sleeping (trying to see if there is a pattern to my bits of insomnia), how much water I had for the day (trying to get better at having water!) So not exactly what you did but keeping it written down keeps me accountable to these things :)

I once tried to keep track of every request I received/responded to at work. It was exhausting and didn't help me with anything so I didn't do it long. This was 10 years ago too.

Megan wrote: "Nitika wrote: "Has anyone ever tried to pen down every single thought that crossed their mind in a day? I did that for half of my day yesterday and it completely freaked me out! #RandomRambles"

No..."

I tried one of those million phone apps to remind me to drink water and then it started making weird gurgling noises in between official meetings, so I deleted it! It made everyone laugh a lot though. Have you found an effective technique to increase your water intake? Most nights at dinner, I end up telling my boyfriend that that's my first glass of water all day and he says that I have a cactus syndrome or something! -_-

Nitika wrote: "Have you found an effective technique to increase your water intake? "

Drink from a bottle instead of a glass.

poshpenny wrote: "Nitika wrote: "Have you found an effective technique to increase your water intake? "

Drink from a bottle instead of a glass."

Oh, I didn't know that could make a difference. Will give it a try. Thanks! :)

A roomie told me that once, and it works for me. I usually cannot force myself to drink water from a glass, but I will reach for a bottle while doing other things without even thinking about it.

Juanita wrote: "I once tried to keep track of every request I received/responded to at work. It was exhausting and didn't help me with anything so I didn't do it long. This was 10 years ago too."

I was writing down rather personal thoughts that crossed my mind during work actually. I am trying to do this thing of bringing focus back when it wanders away and I realized that my biggest fear is that if I stop thinking about the other new thought in that moment, I will forget and miss out on a great idea! That's why I decided to take a moment each time to pen it down for later so that I can focus on the task at hand. I agree with you, it has been quite exhausting to do that though.

The worst is when I am having an argument with my partner and something else pops up in my head and I want to write it down. I tried it and I wouldn't recommend it. It makes them really mad when you pull out your little diary and they aren't allowed to read it. xP

This thread made me smile :)

I have found that when I use a water bottle I really like I drink more water. Also I start every morning with a large glass of water. Usually the more water I drink the thirstiest I am but its really because we commonly dehydrate our bodies and our body quits sending us thirsty signals as much. When we start drinking water again it kicks back in. Or so I've been told.

I write down things that give me anxiety and that list is bad enough I can't imagine every thought!

Jessica wrote: "This thread made me smile :)

I have found that when I use a water bottle I really like I drink more water. Also I start every morning with a large glass of water. Usually the more water I drink th..."

Thanks, Jessica! I am definitely going to take your advice! :)

I read "Furiously Happy" by Jenny Lawson and that book somehow helped me channelize my anxiety in some weird way. Unfortunately, I cant explain how. But the book made me laugh so hard and completely changed the way I deal with anxiety! I would totally recommend it to you to try. :)

Nitika wrote: "Jessica wrote: "This thread made me smile :)

I have found that when I use a water bottle I really like I drink more water. Also I start every morning with a large glass of water. Usually the more ..."

Yes, that book is a gem. I laughed so hard, even the acknowledgements are so funny. I loved that book!

Even I once started writing all the words that passed through my mind on my phone but it gave me a very bad headache, I was using my phone so much, and always scrambling for it, sometimes I would put off something to write later on, and I would forget it and pass hours on recalling it.

And then, when at the end of the day, I would try making out that list, it would be so messy and I would realize how articulate and intelligible I am not!

Nitika wrote: "Has anyone ever tried to pen down every single thought that crossed their mind in a day? I did that for half of my day yesterday and it completely freaked me out! #RandomRambles"

My problem is I get some song stuck in my head and will keep repeating it for hours at a time. It drives my crazy. Particularly when its a tune I don't really like LOL

Nitika wrote: "Megan wrote: "Nitika wrote: "Has anyone ever tried to pen down every single thought that crossed their mind in a day? I did that for half of my day yesterday and it completely freaked me out! #Rand..."

No, its still a work in progress. I have a post it that I just tick off how many glasses I'm at. I do well at work, but once I get home I forget to because I get distracted with other things!

Does anyone find themselves reorganising their whole life around their reading.

I just reshuffled my gym and work schedule for the rest of the week to give myself optimal reading time. Thinking maybe this is on route to obsession! Guess it could be a worse addiction!

Jennifer wrote: "Does anyone find themselves reorganising their whole life around their reading.

I just reshuffled my gym and work schedule for the rest of the week to give myself optimal reading time. Thinking m..."

You are in good company. First thing I do each day is get a cup of coffee and review goodreads, look over when my library loans come through, look at challenge list and add any titles to my word document for potential ideas.

I'm definitely OCD when it comes to reading and tracking and lists....and maybe I shouldn't be putting this out there in to the world! haha First step is admitting, right???

Jennifer wrote: "Does anyone find themselves reorganising their whole life around their reading.

I just reshuffled my gym and work schedule for the rest of the week to give myself optimal reading time. Thinking m..."

yes, it's definitely on the level of addiction for me. I've ignored needed daily tasks in order to keep reading. The nice thing is, it's not a harmful or debilitating addiction (except for when I'm ignoring needed daily tasks).

I have a whole routine, just like Megan ;-) woe betide my children when they try to get between me and my reading!! It's okay, they understand.

Nitika wrote: "Jessica wrote: "This thread made me smile :)

I have found that when I use a water bottle I really like I drink more water. Also I start every morning with a large glass of water. Usually the more ..."

I'll definitely look into it. I finally broke down in the last year and realized I needed some real help for my anxiety that had sort of slowly snuck its way into more and more of my life.

So I'm updating my reading list and eating Hummus. Anyone else a fan? (That's my pondering for the moment :) )

Jessica wrote: "So I'm updating my reading list and eating Hummus. Anyone else a fan? (That's my pondering for the moment :) )"

Me loves Hummus!!! :D

Jennifer wrote: "Does anyone find themselves reorganising their whole life around their reading.

I just reshuffled my gym and work schedule for the rest of the week to give myself optimal reading time. Thinking m..."

All the time! I start reading the very minute I get on the bus to go back home from work. It annoys my friends that I wont sit there and talk to them for ten minutes instead of drowning into a new book every few days. They bought me guitar accessories to maybe somehow help me find a new hobby.
And, I ended up in a fight with my boyfriend AGAIN last night because I wanted to read instead of spending time with him. He couldn't say much to my argument because I am reading a book that HE gifted me. Its called "Rumo and his miraculous adventures" :)

Another thought for the day....also slightly bookish.

My mum taught me my love of reading and always said it was the best way to learn new things and broaden my horizons and it's so true.

I recently read Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage and he talks a lot about this piece of music called 'Le mal de pays'. He mentioned so often that I felt intrigued to hear it so I looked it up on Spotify and have been listening to the album ever since. It's by Liszts and the kind of music I would never normally listen to but it's absolutely beautiful and inspired me to check out more composers of a similar style and maybe even try and see if I can go to a show.

Has anyone else found themselves drawn to a new activity through a recommendation from a character in a book and what was it??

Nitika wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Does anyone find themselves reorganising their whole life around their reading.

I just reshuffled my gym and work schedule for the rest of the week to give myself optimal reading..."

I feel for you with your boyfriend. My husband doesn't read much at all and prefers to walk endless seasons on Netflix ( which I admit from time to time is fine). He feels a bit hard done by sometimes that id rather read and so I often find myself sitting next to him in the lounge reading while he has his Netflix binge.

I love both reading and watching. Last year I read 77 books and watched 220 movies (including multiple viewings and shorts). In fact, today I spent sleeping in, listening to a book and going to see La La Land for the third time. It's especially fun when they overlap. I love books about movies and movies about books! My favorite short film ever is about books!

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore

Jennifer wrote: "My husband doesn't read much at all and prefers to walk endless seasons on Netflix"

I read while my fiancé watches sports on tv!

Megan wrote: "I read while my fiancé watches sports on tv!"

I read while my daughter watches tv :)

I have found my husband is understanding about my reading craze as long as my book and I cuddle him during sports or tv shows.

What I really hate is when you are on a bus reading and someone always starts wanting to talk to me, and all I want to do is read LOL


It seems like that is the one time people want to share their live stories

Well two of three kids and one momma (me) down with the stomach flu. You know it's bad when you can't really read! What's the fun of being sick then?!

You guys!! I have so many good books on my list of ideas for this challenge, I don't know which one to read next!!! So, for lack of a better idea, I'm just going down the list in order (I NEVER do that!). I'm so excited about my upcoming reading year!

And then I see other great books recommended for different categories ... gah! so many good books! so little time!!

Nadine wrote: "You guys!! I have so many good books on my list of ideas for this challenge, I don't know which one to read next!!! So, for lack of a better idea, I'm just going down the list in order (I NEVER do ..."

I agree with you Nadine, I keep changing the book I want to read next as I add books to my list LOL. That is why I enjoy Team Challenges, they help me pick what to read next based on what will help the team.

Nadine wrote: "You guys!! I have so many good books on my list of ideas for this challenge, I don't know which one to read next!!! So, for lack of a better idea, I'm just going down the list in order (I NEVER do ..."

This is the first year I really have a "list" to go off of when I come to the library. I'm not sure how much I do or don't like it. I'm usually a rather spontaneous book selector once I get to the library (unless I'm into a series) so I'm not sure yet how much I will plan ahead and how much I'll just walk into the library with an idea of the prompt I want to fulfill.

I have some I plan to read, some I have a few to chose from and a lot that are blank and waiting for books to fall into them during the year

My husband is also a nonreader. He is self-employed and lately has worked most evenings freeing me up to read when the kids go to bed.

My friends keep asking me how I read so many books. I say, "I gave up housework." They think I'm joking but ... ;-) And I also have given up watching a lot of TV. There are only a few TV shows I watch and most of those are favorites of my husband's and mine.

Right now I'm working on my "career advice" book and it's a bit of a dud. Ironically, I have been watching TV all day. My kids are away for the weekend so I've been watching S2 of Outlander, which I borrowed from the library. Of course, it's book-related.

I'm trying to read books I own at first. I have 16 books slotted from my own collection.

Yeah I'm planning on using as many books from my TBR shelf (at home) as possible too.

Was clearing out my inbox yesterday tho and so many new book recommendations came from it! Might have to sub out a few of the choices for something else. :)

I have the same thing going on. Some of these prompts leave me with TONS of options, like the 800-page task, the travel task, the mythology tasks. I figure it's better to just let my whims take me where they will. I do know for a fact I own or can borrow from my boyfriend at least one book for every single task, although the career advice book I think I may go with something that is simply related to my career path. I don't have a job and am searching and it's such an overly stressful part of my life, I don't really want to read yet more advice in addition to all the dud advice I find on the internet. None of it seems to be working, but I can't seem to find anything that *does* work.

Caity wrote: "I have the same thing going on. Some of these prompts leave me with TONS of options, like the 800-page task, the travel task, the mythology tasks. I figure it's better to just let my whims take me ..."

I would highly recommend "The Defining Decade" by Meg Jay. :)

I'm really excited right now. The Golden Globes split drama and musical/comedy movies so I could truly root for BOTH of my favorite movies this year, and they both won! (Honestly, no surprise.) Congrats to Moonlight and La La Land! So different but both so wonderful.

poshpenny wrote: "I'm really excited right now. The Golden Globes split drama and musical/comedy movies so I could truly root for BOTH of my favorite movies this year, and they both won! (Honestly, no surprise.) Con..."

I've been hearing great things about La La Land. I should really make an effort to see it...

Hi all,

I'm thinking of signing up for one of these book subscriptions where they send you a new book every month

I love the idea of getting a bookie present in the mail each month.

Has anyone ever tried one of these out and have any recommendations?

I live in Australia so would need to be somewhere that
ships here and probably wouldn't want to go over the $30-$40 mark.

Nadine wrote: "You guys!! I have so many good books on my list of ideas for this challenge, I don't know which one to read next!!! So, for lack of a better idea, I'm just going down the list in order (I NEVER do ..."

I know! I had a couple prompts with only one book picked, some of them have two books, but most of them have three, four, or even five possibilities! My "list" looks more like a bunch of paragraphs. I made an Excel spreadsheet and listed them all there, so even when I finish one & take the others off my list on GR, I still have the names & authors of the others I wanted to read. The problem is I keep reading other people's suggestions & wanting to add even more to the list.

I guess I'm just happy to be reading again. I haven't made time for reading the past few years, and without making time, it just hasn't happened much. I've already read more books this year than I think I read in all of 2016. It's so much fun!!!

I lost a friend over the weekend to a rare postpartum heart condition. She was only 29 and had recently had her fourth child. Reading Sunday was rough, but Monday it was non-existent. I miss her wit, her intelligence, and her great sense of humor. I can't believe I'll never have the chance to see her again.

Trying to focus on reading and job-hunting today sucked.

Caity wrote: "I lost a friend over the weekend to a rare postpartum heart condition. She was only 29 and had recently had her fourth child. Reading Sunday was rough, but Monday it was non-existent. I miss her wi..."

Sorry for your loss, Caity. It's never easy, and someone that young makes it tougher.

Caity wrote: "I lost a friend over the weekend to a rare postpartum heart condition. She was only 29 and had recently had her fourth child. Reading Sunday was rough, but Monday it was non-existent. I miss her wi..."

I am so very sorry Caity. Sending healing thoughts your way.

I'm so sorry Caity :( that's awful and heartbreaking!