The long overdue update!

Whew! Long time no post. I should perhaps mention there’s been a small blip in my life. What’s that, you ask? Well, see, it wasn’t enough for the universe that I go through the h-e-l-l that is divorce. No. The lords of karma (along with some help from Toshiba) thought that now would be a good time for me to get laid off from my job of eight years.

Yeah, because having no salary will really help me with my goal of keeping my house so my child has a place to LIVE!

But, I’ve chosen to view this as an opportunity to move on and hopefully UP in the whole career sector of things so I shall not dwell overlong upon my woes.

Hmm…I guess it shows that I’ve been re-reading the entire "Amber" series by Roger Zelazny. That last sentence was PURE Corwin! These books are such long time classics that it’s not productive to review them. I’m just mentioning that they are all now out in one convenient, albeit super-sized, volume. If you’ve never read them or missed a few along the way or have an incomplete collection, you really owe it to yourself to pick up this version.

So, let’s move on to the other books, shall we?

I read the latest installment of C.E. Murphy’s "Urban Shaman" series. Joanne (Siobhan) Walker is back…still way too powerful and way too clueless. The story itself was okay except that I felt the villain was way too obvious and that Joanne was far too easily taken in by him. Also, early on in the book, Coyote, who is one of the more interesting secondary characters disappears very mysteriously and doesn’t come back. Yes, I know, set up for the next book, but it was a poor choice in my opinion. These books NEED Coyote for humor and interest. The rest of the story is dullsville without him. Overall, I feel like Murphy has a diamond in the rough with this series, but I would’ve liked to see more progress in the “polishing” of it from one book to the next.

Then, of course, there is the beauty that is Jim Butcher’s "Dresden" series. I just finished the latest installment, “Proven Guilty”, and I’m still at a loss as to how Butcher manages to get it right time after time with this series. Harry is back with a new mystery to solve, new villains to fight and gosh darn it but the White Council is STILL on his back although in a new and inventive way. This book is set at a horror movie convention so fans of the scary movies will enjoy the inside jokes sprinkled throughout and the book opens a number of interesting new possibilities for Harry’s future and yet is still a self-contained piece with enough of an ending to be satisfying. I’ve talked about these books before so no need for too much more detail. Frankly, if you haven’t picked up the first one and gotten well and truly addicted by now all I can say is hie thee to the nearest Barnes & Noble and get lost in the wonderful world of Harry Dresden!

Oh, and did I mention that the Sci Fi channel series based on the books has had 11 episodes picked up and that they’ll begin airing in January, 2007?

{insert fanfare and fireworks here}

As long as they don’t screw it up!

In other news, Daisy Jewelry is not long for this world. My supplier will no longer be carrying these beads and I haven’t been able to locate another source so that means when they’re gone…they’re gone! I’m already down to the last few pieces in the “clear” background color, but I have slightly more left in the blue, green, gray and red backgrounds.

Anyway, get ‘em while they last, folks! I’ll be updating the page as availability dwindles.

That's all for now. Take care, everyone!

KJ