Good reviews... and not-so-good reviews!

So I tried to read Nip n' Tuck on my lunch break today, and it was just awful. Dreadful. It didn't make any sense, it wasn't funny, and I didn't understand most of it. The author was trying too hard to be funny and witty, and I left my Irish-slang-to-American-humor translator at home. I had said yesterday the author was British, but she is in fact actually Irish. I normally don't have a problem reading Irish fiction- I love Cathy Kelly and Maeve Binchy. But I couldn't understand one word this lady was writing, and she wasn't funny! Argh! I finally gave up and put it back in my bag and spent the rest of my lunch break catching up on my favorite food blogs.

So into the Box o'Titles I dug for a new book to read... I was hoping to pull a good title, and I have been craving some fiction, and lo and behold!

<insert jazz hands here>

Songs Without Words, by Ann Packer. I just bought this at one of the more recent book sales I frequented in the fall... interesting how my random picks have all been recent acquisitions! But I always give the box several good shakes and get the Post-its all mixed up and jumbly, so I assure you, it's all random coincidence!

Anywho, so here's a quickie synopsis of the summary, which I was not clever enough to paraphrase... this is a direct lift from Goodreads.com: When her mom committed suicide 30 years ago, Sarabeth moved in with Liz, finding a safe haven with Liz's warm and nurturing family. But now it's Liz who is in need of comfort, following the suicide attempt of her depressed 15-year-old daughter, Lauren. For Sarabeth, however, the traumatic incident triggers old memories and "distant music, familiar and sad. A song without words." She doesn't call or visit for days afterward, and Liz feels shut out and let down. All of their dissimilarities emerge: Liz is the staid stay-at-home suburban mom, while Sarabeth is the artsy, single urbanite. Meanwhile, Liz's husband, Brody, and son, Joe, deal with Lauren's illness in totally different ways, leading to a rift in the marriage and the family.

Ooh... intense drama fiction! Just in time for the holidays! I can't wait to get started on my new book tonight!

Now on to the promised good reviews. The first:

I found a Peanut Butter Blisscrisp Jamfrakas Bar (what's up with the name??? I don't get it!) at my local TJs and had to buy it. There's also a Chocolate Chip one waiting to be taste-tested, but I was feeling the pb love today.

My first impression when I opened it was hmmm.... it's awfully small. I know it's for kids, but I was still a little skeptical of its potential to fuel my afternoon workout (not like that was particularly labor-intensive today... it's all sleety and snowy out, so I skipped the gym and did my Abs for Dummies tape at home!), and hold me over until dinner.

Well, first and foremost, let me just say that I underestimated the staying power of this little bar. I ate it at about 4:45, and not only did it get me through 45 minutes of abs and crunches, it's also gotten me through a load of laundry, a shower, and taking out the trash. It's almost 7:30 and I'm just starting to get a little hungry.

But let's move on to the taste. It tasted AWESOME! You know what it reminded me of? Remember those Girl Scout cookies Do-Si-Dos? The peanut butter sandwich ones? I thought it tasted just like that! A repeat purchase for sure! The perfect little snack to stash in your purse or for little core-focused workouts like Pilates or Yoga, where I like a little something in my tummy but nothing too heavy. I love finding tasty new bars! :-)

And now for the best review of the day... ME!!!! I got my year-end review at work today, and it was positively glowing! Apparently I rocked the casbah at work this year. Not that I thought I'd done a bad job or anything throughout the year, but I've had a rough year personally, and although I've tried extremely hard to keep my personal life out of the office, I know there were days where I came in a little stressed and upset. That was actually pointed out in my review; however, it was the ONLY negative feedback that I got, and that wasn't even that bad- just that I seemed a little "withdrawn" and "quiet" at sometimes. But the rest of my review was amazing! Colleagues complimented me on my skills, my work ethics, my ability to meet deadlines, they said I went above and beyond, had a great attitude and a great sense of humor, was a pleasure to work with, etc... it went on so much, I actually got a little teary-eyed from happiness! My official review is tomorrow- that's when I find out how much of a raise I'm getting. But we get our reviews in hard-copy format in advance so we have time to review them before we meet with our managers. Anyway, that just made my day! (Finding out about the raise will make my year, LOL)

Okay, time to make a quick dinner (salmon burger and steamed veggies for me tonight- quick, easy, and healthy!) and watch the season finale of The Biggest Loser.... GO MICHELLE!!!!!!!!!! :-)

Hope you all had as great a day as I did! :-)