Dad Is Fat by Jim Gaffigan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Funny book, and a very fun, enjoyable read. Jim Gaffigan is a wonderfully funny comedian. And while this book is good, it’s not side splitting, like I want from a book like this. That being said, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this book to anyone for a good fun read.
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I love this book! I love the historical fiction of it. I love the sci-fi aspect. I really love the medicinal/herbal part of the story. But I could really do without the sex. I’m not saying that Diana Gabaldon should change her way of writing. I’m sure many people love this aspect of the book as well. And the argument can be made that it’s an integral part of the story that is being told, but I just don’t like it and I can’t recommend it to younger readers for this reason.
Still, this is the second time I’ve read (listened to) this book. The narrater, Davina Porter is AMAZING! There is no other way to describer her. I would listen to her read a phone book. She brings each character, male and female, young and old, Scottish or English to life.
The Story of Sushi: An Unlikely Saga of Raw Fish and Rice by Trevor Corson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book seemed to move somewhat slowly, but I really enjoyed the depth of information in the book and the way that the information was wrapped into the story line. I would give the depth of information 5 stars and the story would get 3 stars. I’ll settle on 4 stars as an average, I suppose. A non sushi lover would probably not enjoy this book as much as me. But due to my absolute passion for sushi, I found it a wonderful look into almost every aspect of it.
How many years has this page from this self help book (and many more like it), kept me from achieving my full potential?
Friday, while searching the web for help on “sticking to one thing,” I came across a website, puttylike.com. It was a revelation…an epiphany.
But let me back up just a little.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve had the intense drive and desire to do something special with my life. But time and time again I’ve found myself going through the same pattern:
Has it really been a whole year since I wrote here on jamesberghout.com? Time flies when you are…err… Well, never mind about that.
I really love the coming of a new year and the chance it gives me to make a new start. Every year is different. Some years come in with less planning and goal setting than others. This one is on the high side of goal setting for me. Though I’m not setting a great deal of ‘high end’ goals, I’m setting a number of really good ‘maintenance’ goals. Those that will improve my general well being and quality of life.
My goals for myself include solving my sleep problems, keeping a better journal, tying to figure out how to exercise more frequently, and working on doing better with personal finances, among other things.
I have a lot planned for this coming year and I have a feeling that this site will be a major part of it.
Stay tuned!
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
World War Z is an excellent book, and not at all what I expected. It’s as much a political, military and human nature examination exercise as it is about Zombies. For once I’m glad that the movie is nothing like the book. They are different, though is easy to believe that they are part of the same universe.
Baldur’s Gate by Philip Athans
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Just okay. Not poorly written, but uses every cliche imaginable. It has parts that are humorous and incorporates many D&D Monsters. I listened to the audio book from Audible. If simply imagining that I was on this adventure as a Dungeons and Dragons campaign its much more enjoyable.
Of Dice and Men: The Story of Dungeons & Dragons and the People Who Play It by David Ewalt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is a well written history of Dungeons and Dragons AND has some very compelling sections of fantasy story telling weaved it. It works, trust me. I listened to the audio version. The author David M. Ewalt reads the RL portion while Makael Naramore narrates the “story”. Both portions of the book were entertaining.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Interesting social experiment. Recommended to everyone. Fun quick read. Very Well written.
This past weekend I attended Nerdtacular 2013 with my wife, Sarah. Held this year at the Snowbird Ski Resort up Little Cottonwood Canyon here is Utah. It was 2 days of geeking out with all the fine folks from the Frogpants Network.
We were lucky enough to arrive on Thursday, due to a mud slide that closed the canyon Thursday Night, preventing resort workers and attendee from getting to their destination. Friday night, the rain caused a mud slide in the canyon again, but it was open by 6:30 am. What are the chances of this happening twice in 2 days? I don’t know the last time a rock/mud slide closed the canyon, but is certainly not the norm.
Here is my Nerdtacular 2013 photo gallery:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesbdotcom/sets/72157634549036331/
