Category Archives: Challenge

Spring Reading Challenge Wrap Up

 

  • What was the best book you read this spring? Fiction: Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers , Non-Fiction: Seeing and Savoring Christ by John Piper
  • What book could you have done without? I didn’t have a long enough book list to have to have an answer to this one. They were all worth reading.
  • Did you try out a new author this spring? If so, which one, and will you be reading that author again? Yes, the new author I tried was Dorothy L. Sayers and I will definitely read her again.
  • If there were books you didn’t finish, tell us why. Did you run out of time? Realize those books weren’t worth it? I never got around to Harry Potter #6. I’ve read it before and wanted to read it before #7 came out…
  • Did you come across a book or two on other participants’ lists that you’re planning to add to your own to-be-read pile? Which ones?  Yes, Stepping Heavenward by Prentiss. I bought it and am reading it.
  • What did you learn — about anything — through this challenge? Maybe you learned something about yourself or your reading style, maybe you learned not to pick so many nonfiction books for a challenge, maybe you learned something from a book you read. Whatever it is, share! I learned that I can read a lot more than I have in the past. There is time to read. I’m a multi-book reader (more than one at a time). I’ve learned I’ll enjoy and digest non-fiction more if I only read a chapter at a time. I have a stack of 4-6 books on my nightstand and I try to read a little out of each in the evening instead of watching TV.
  • What was the best part of the Spring Reading Thing? Meeting other readers and seeing the hundreds of books I’ve never read.
  • Any other thoughts, impressions, or comments. I like to take reading a step further by recording any sections of the book that stand out to me.
  • I will definitely participate in a fall reading challenge!
  • I’ll be posting a review of  When People Are Big and God is Small soon. 🙂

Thanks so much to Katrina at Callapidder days for hosting this event so magnificently and unselfishly…

Blogging 101 Carnival ~ Inquiring Minds Want to Know

Chili a.k.a. Chilihead is sponsoring a blogging carnival and I’m diving in…

1.  How did you start blogging?

I used to send weekly emails to my family and friends of quotes, prayers, encouragements, etc. My brother Steve started a blog and there were several blogs I’d visit daily. Steve kept telling me that I needed to start a blog because basically what I was doing via email was a blog. One day when we were together he pulled out his computer and said “We’re starting a blog for you right now.” He set me up with wordpress helped me through some glitches that I have with technology and the rest is history. Here’s a picture I took of my brother setting up my blog back in March of ’07.

2. Did you intend to be a blog w/a following? If so, how did you go about it?

It wasn’t my intention to have “a following”. I still wanted to search and find encouraging things to post. I wanted some way to also catalog my new life away from my adult children and best friends in Seattle. This vehicle has given me that. I believe I have the gift of encouragement and it comes very naturally to me. I’ve always been a card and letter sender. I am a commenter because that’s what I like to do. Through some of my comments I have made blogging buddies that check my blog.

3. What do you hope to achieve or accomplish with your blog? Have you been successful? If not, do you have a plan to achieve those goals?

I want to continue to post things that are encouraging. I would like to continue growing in my walk with Christ. I want to learn more and share what is the “truth” and is honoring to my King.

I hope to keep my brain working hard. I want any motivation to be a continued learner. Blogging is accountability for me in this aspect of my life desire.

4. Has the focus of your blog changed since you started blogging? How?

The thing that has changed for me is that as I find more blogs I enjoy, I participate in some of the weekly blogging events.

5. What do you know now that you wish you’d known when you started?

To have a shorter http:, I get tired of typing https://happywonderer.wordpress.com/ into the blogger sites. WordPress and typepad and some others store my info…that’s really nice for avid commenters. Some sites seem to punish you for not being one of their own! 🙂

6. Do you make money with your blog?

No, I do not make money with my blog but I save a lot of money because I’m not out shopping as much as I used to be…

7. Does your immediate or extended family know about your blog? If so, do they read it? If not, why?

Yes. Some do, some don’t. For some it’s hard to keep up with my daily postings. Some like to keep up with what I’m doing in Southern California now that I’m not living full-time in Seattle. Some read it but they don’t leave comments.

A few of my immediate and extended family have blogs. The more serious bloggers are my sister Lana at Above the Clouds and my brother Steve at The Temple. My son and daughter have a blog but their posts are few and far between…

8. What two pieces of advice would you give to a new blogger?

Check out a variety of hosting sites before you choose one.

Consider whether some controversies that won’t be settled on this earth should become the focus of your blog. You might get more than you bargained for…

You can go to Don’t Try This at Home and see what other bloggers are saying…

 

Summer Reading Challenge 2007

Here are my list of books for the Summer Reading Challenge…better late than never. Still completing my Spring challenge books. So for the summer…

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and these….

Hood by Stephen Lawhead

Ancient Christian Devotional (year long)

Linnets and Valerians by Goudge

The little White Horse by Goudge

The Nine Tailors by Dorothy Sayers

Have His Carcase by Dorothy Sayers

The Documents in the Case by Dorothy Sayers

Knowing Scripture by R.C. Sproul

Stepping Heavenward by Prentiss

Future Grace by John Piper

I’m also in the midst of my daily Bible reading. I’m reading every book 20 times starting with the shorter books in the New Testament. I’m on I Timothy right now and I’ll move to Philippians next. By the end of the summer I might have 3 more books of the Bible completed…

I might also add any good books I find at Goodwill during the summer…:)

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I hope to join the fun at Seasonal Soundings….

First Name, First Letter, Meme

Saw this meme over at Karen’s  Simply A musing blog. She double-dared anyone to try it, so what’s a dare-devil to do…   Now that you’ve read this, consider yourself double-dared, too! The game is SCATTERGORIES…it’s harder than it looks! Here are the rules: Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following. They MUST be real places, names, things…NOTHING made up! If you can’t think of anything, skip it. Try to use different answers if the person before you had the same 1st initial. You CAN’T use your name for the boy/girl name question.

Your Name: ~ Ellen
1. Famous Singer/Band: ~ Enya
2. 4 letter word: ~ Easy
3. Street: ~ Elm
4. Color: ~ Ecru
5. Gifts/Presents: ~ Earrings
6. Vehicle: ~  Explorer
7. Things in a Souvenir Shop: ~ Ewer, Extinguisher, Exotic items, Exit sign, Emblems (Okay I went overboard with this one)
8. Boy Name: ~ Earl
9. Girl Name: ~ Elizabeth
10. Movie Title: ~ Escape from Alcatraz
11. Drink: ~ Elderberry Wine
12. Occupation: ~ Engineer
13. Celebrity: ~ Dale Evans
14. Magazine: ~ Easy Home Cooking
15. U.S. City: ~ Englewood
16. Pro Sports Teams: ~ Evesham United
17. Reason for Being Late for Work: ~ Emotional meltdown
18. Something You Throw Away: ~ Egg shells
19. Things You Shout: ~ Enuf!
20. Cartoon Character: ~ Elmer Fudd

http://www.letterlane.com/LetterKids/Emily.GIF

Just For Fun

Sarah in Lancashire started me on this funny google search.  You type your First name with the word “needs” after it and see what comes up. My name is Ellen so I typed into the google search, Ellen needs. Here’s what came up. I hope you all get family friendly stuff but there are no guarantees so beware. I’m going to just share 7 with you.

Ellen needs you

Ellen needs a job

Ellen needs a term

Ellen needs glasses

Ellen needs wit

Ellen needs your help to get elected….. and my personal favorite

Ellen needs to continue her dive south!

You can come back and share what comes up for you in comments if you’d like. Hope you get a good laugh out of this exercise!

 

Spring Reading Challenge Book Reviews

      

Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers

I need a dictionary close by when reading these mysteries. This story is set in the 1920’s in England. This particular mystery involves Peter’s brother, the accused murderer, whom Peter needs to clear of charges by finding out who really killed his sister’s fiance. Twisted plot, interesting characters, Old English style, and language give it a charming appeal.

This is one of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries. I love the character that Sayers has developed in Peter Wimsey’s mother. Here are quotes from her in this book;

“I think there’s often a great deal in what one’s mother says.”…

“My dear child, you can give it a long name if you like, but I’m an old fashioned woman and I call it mother-wit, and it’s so rare for a man to have it that if he does you write a book about him and call him Sherlock Holmes.”

If you’d like to read more about Dorothy Sayers you can click here.

Spring Reading Challenge

 

I’m joining the fray over at Callapidder Days  for the Spring Reading Challenge. Here’s my list of books I’d like to read/re-read.

Clouds of Witness  by Dorothy L. Sayers,  “One of the greatest mystery story writers of this century.”-L.A. Times   

The Screwtape Letters  by C.S. Lewis,   “My dear Wormwood,…”

The Treasure Principle  by Randy Alcorn,  “This book is about the joy of giving”

When People are Big and God is Small by Edward T. Welch,   (Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man)

Byzantium by Stephen Lawhead,  An Irish Monk, Aidan, accompanies a gift, the Book of Kells to Byzantium. (Fantasy)

Oops! I forgot I’ll need to read Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling so I’m ready for book #7.

Just for the record I’m finishing Practical Christianity by William Wilberforce, and Living the Cross Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney before I move on to the rest.

Update: You can find my book reviews here;

https://happywonderer.wordpress.com/2007/04/04/spring-reading-challenge-book-reviews/

https://happywonderer.wordpress.com/2007/04/11/spring-reading-challenge-book-reviews-2/

https://happywonderer.wordpress.com/2007/05/08/book-reviews-byzantium-and-the-treasure-principle/

Let the reading continue!   LNB