Saturday, April 25, 2009

My Weekend Plans and a Quick Challenge Update


It is that time of year again. Today you will find me at the University of California, Los Angeles campus where the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is being held. I am thrilled to be able to go again. This year, my husband and I will be meeting up with several fellow book bloggers from the area (and a couple from out of state). I am both nervous and excited.

Anjin and I decided to go light on the author panels this year. We hope to take our time and look around more leisurely as opposed to watching the clock and racing around the campus like we usually do in order to get a good place in line. That means we may have less time to sneak in a moment of reading though.





I have been saying I needed to settle in and check my challenge progress for a couple of months now. Well, I am finally getting around to it. It could be worse. And, yes, it could be a lot better. That darn life thing! Always getting in the way!

Let's take a peek at my progress, shall we?

1st in a Series Challenge - 2/12
2nds Challenge - 1/12
ARC Challenge - 11/12
Buy One Book & Read It Challenge - 2/12
Chunkster Challenge - 1/3
Classics Challenge - 0/3
Cozy Mystery Challenge - 1/6
Herding Cats II - 0/Undetermined
New Authors Challenge - 9/20
Nonfiction Five Challenge - Begins May 1st
2009 Pub Challenge - 7/9
TBR Challenge - 3/12
Themed Challenge - 0/4
War Through the Generations: WWII Challenge - 1/5
What's in a Name Challenge - 1/6

No challenges completed; but then, I am not one of those industrious bloggers who plows through challenge lists in hopes of finishing them a month in. I like to spread the books out and draw the challenges out for as long as I can. That's half true, anyway.

While some challenges will be wrapping up sooner then others, many still have months to go. I haven't given up hope on any of them yet. I actually feel more confident about them than I did last year--and I was signed up for quite a few less then. For me, it is all about having fun in the process and that's exactly what I am doing--having fun.

31 comments:

  1. Enjoy the festival Wendy. Be sure and tell us all about it. Good luck with the challenges and have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Festival of Books sounds great. Enjoy your time. It would be so much fun to meet fellow bloggers.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm so jealous of all the book bloggers that are going to the book festival!! But seriously, HAVE FUN!! I'll be looking forward to hearing about your wonderful time!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I remember when you went to the Festival last year - I hope you have another great time! And I suck on my challenges too. =)

    Take care,
    Jill

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wasn't Natasha Maw coming to that festival? I am also jealous for many reasons...books, other bloggers, something different to do! I can't wait for an update after its over. Now as far as your challenges are concerned, you've got so many of them! If you add up all the ones you've read, it would be more than the ones I've read, and I only have a few. I went light this year. I wanted to see what was a reasonable amount. If I make my goals, I will ratchet it up next year!

    ReplyDelete
  6. You got an award waiting :) please pick it up here ..

    http://desertrosebooklogue.blogspot.com/2009/04/2009-friendly-blogger-award.html

    ReplyDelete
  7. I hope you have a wonderful time at the Festival of Books!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Have a fun weekend!

    If I don't try and plow through some of my challenges in the beginning, I find that it becomes an out of sight, out of mind problem!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Kristy - Thank you! It's going to be fun. I saved my Christmas money so I wouldn't come home empty handed. Not that I actually need more books . . .

    Eliza - Thanks! This will be my first time meeting bloggers.

    Stephanie - I was surprised at how many of us will be there too. Ten or eleven, I think! It's like a reunion--only we've never met before. At least most of us haven't.

    Jill - It should be fun. :-) I'm trying to decide now what to wear. Los Angeles is a bit cooler than where I live. It's been so warm lately, but I think it's supposed to be cooler today.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sandy - Yes, Natasha (Maw Books) and Jen (Jen's Book Thoughts) are coming from out of state. Isn't that great? Most of us, if not all, are planning to meet up for dinner tonight. Should be fun!

    I should have gone light with the challenges, but I had so much fun thinking of all the books I could read for them. It looks like I've read a lot, but the truth is I haven't read much at all this year. I have a lot of crossover books.

    Desert Rose - Thank you so much for the award!

    Vasilly - Thanks! I'm going through my mental checklist to make sure I have everything I need before we hit the road.

    Kathy - Thank you! I hope so too!

    I'm about to go and make sure hubby is awake. It's about an hour and a half to two hour drive from where we live to the campus. Hopefully there won't be much in the way of traffic.

    Kelly - Thanks! I hope you do too. :-)

    I prefer to pace myself with the challenges so I can read other books in between the challenge ones. I can see why so many (like you) prefer to race through them though. And if it's a method that works for you, then it's the best one for you, right?

    ReplyDelete
  11. There is lots of time for those challenges! Take your time and have fun. Who cares if you don't actually finish them all? :-)

    Lezlie

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hope you have a WONDERFUL weekend. I wish so much I could have made it down to LA for the festival...maybe next year!

    I think you're doing great with challenges, Wendycat. Better than I am!

    ReplyDelete
  13. If reading ever becomes a chore then you know you need to do something else!! I'm with you...I read for fun, pleasure, a chance to escape the everyday and be someone else for a while, and to be somewhere else too!! Have fun this weekend!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I hope you guys really enjoy the book festival--how fun! It looks like you are making good progress with your challenges :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Have fun at the book festival! I'm completely challenge-free, now. You're doing great with your challenges! I could never have balanced so many at once.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I'm so jealous! I would love to be able to go to the festival. You're doing fine on your challenges, and it's quite brave to lay it all out for everyone to see like this. ;) I'm not sure I'm brave enough for that.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Oh the Festival sounds awesome! Have fun!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lezlie - Lots and lots of time! ;-) And if I don't finish, that's okay. It's about having fun, right?

    Wendy - It's been great so far. I wish you could have come too, Wendy. I thought about you!

    And thank you for the vote of confidence regarding the challenges. :-)

    Staci - Exactly! I don't want to reading to ever feel like a chore. I hope you are having a good weekend too!

    Laura - Thank you! I'm sure trying with the challenges. I just haven't been able to read as much as I would like.

    We had a great time at the festival. I'm looking forward to going back tomorrow.

    Nancy - Thanks! I'm probably crazy for trying to juggle so many at once, but I've been told many times over I'm an overachiever. :-) Can't let those believers down. Haha!

    Lisa - I would love to have met you. One day we'll get you here!

    I nearly didn't post my challenge progress report. It is kind of embarrassing how many challenges I have going on right now.

    Jen - Thank you! The first day was awesome. I had such a fun time meeting with the others who were able to go.

    ReplyDelete
  19. The festival sounds like a lot of fun! You look like you're doing well with your challenges to me.

    ReplyDelete
  20. The festival sounds like a lot of fun! I hope you and your husband have a great time there!

    As for the reading challenges, I haven't complete any of them yet. Like you, I'm not giving up on them yet. And yes, they're so fun! :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Wendy...Haven't talked in a while...have fun at the festival.

    I am afraid to look at my challenges. I think I forgot what my challenges were. Good reminder...thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I am so jealous! The book festival sounds wonderful. Hope you had fun :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. The festival sounds so fun! I can't wait to hear about it and experience it vicariously through you :P

    ReplyDelete
  24. I'm always so late to response - sorry!

    Since you posted this 2 days ago, how was the festival? Did you buy books?

    Good luck with your challenge books! I know you can do it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Lucky you - a festival and getting to meet book bloggers! Hope you had tons of fun.

    And, I don't know what happened to me with the challenges. I had been doing really well but I seemed to have stalled now. Oh well, there's still quite a bit of time left on some of them so I'm still hopeful :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. I was able to browse at some pictures from your visit to the festival since reading your other post and can I tell you how jealous I am! I'm both scared and excited about the possibility of one day meeting other bloggers--you guys have become such a part of my life.

    I suck at challenges too. And I've been good about joining this year, but I tallied up my numbers this weekend and realized I'll never finish. But you know what, I don't care. And at least for now I'm not going to stress about it. How's that! You're doing fantastic on the ARC, Pub and New Author challenges! That's something, huh? :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. Chris - Thanks, Chris! I'm trying. :-)

    Melody - It was a lot of fun. I'm so worn out now too.

    The reading challenges have been fun. :-)

    Donna - I haven't been able to get around much lately and I feel terrible about that.

    I understand your not wanting to look at your challenges. I felt the same away about looking at mine. :-)

    Stacy - I did have a great time. It was over all too fast.

    Nymeth - Maybe one year you will find yourself in California around the end of April and you can come too! We can dream, right?

    Julia - There's no such thing as a late comment (except maybe for a contest). ;-) The festival was great fun. I came home with quite a few books. Too many probably. LOL

    Iliana - I had a great time and it looks like my sunburn is turning into a tan. Whew!

    Good luck with your challenges, Iliana. I keep telling myself we still have a ways to go yet too. :-)

    Joy - Aren't I? There are advantages to living where I do. :-) Not the traffic though. That's a distinct disadvantage.

    Trish - I was really nervous about meeting everyone and almost talked myself out of going. I'm so glad I did go though. Everyone really was much like they present on their blogs which made things so much easier. It did seem like I was meeting people who I'd already met before.

    The challenges are meant to be fun and it's really okay if we don't manage to finish them all. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  28. I just read your Festival of Books post and it sounds like such fun. I wish there was some kind of book event I could go to, but I'll just have to dream for now.

    You're doing pretty good with your challenges. I'm the same, some of mine are well under control, others I haven't even started yet. But like I tell myself, there's still time for most of them. I've also convinced myself that if I can't finish them, it's ok too. :)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Nat - Maybe someday you will be able to attend a book fair or festival. Maybe even the LA Times Festival of Books!

    It really is okay if we don't finish them. As long as we have fun and don't let it get to us. :-)

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to visit Musings of a Bookish Kitty. Don't be shy! I would love to hear from you. Due to a recent increase in spam, I will be moderating all comments for the foreseeable future. Please be patient with me as it may take a few hours before I am able to approve your comment.