Infinite Summer

Well hello there, day that is not Thursday! How about a wee bit of blogging?

As some of you may be aware, Infinite Summer is an online reading project that has gained a fair amount of attention in recent months. The goal is to read or re-read the late David Foster Wallace's ground-breaking 1996 novel Infinite Jest between June 21st and September 22nd 2009. Weighing in at an astonishing 2.4lbs and a bold 1104 pages, it definitely proves itself to be quite an immediate challenge.

Thanks to my recent move and my local bookshops being out of stock, my gargantuan paperweight (get it?!) of a summer read didn't descend into my greedy little palms until Wednesday. This mishap immediately placed me an immodest 2 weeks and 4 days, or approximately 185 pages (excluding a plethora of endnotes) behind the curve. Not exactly fashionably late. But, no worries, I'm up for the challenge. While I'm not entirely convinced that I can make the September 22nd deadline, it's a book that I am keen to be challenged by and plan to persevere. You can find out more about the Infinite Summer project here.

Are any of you taking part in Infinite Summer, or have you read Infinite Jest?

If you're interested in becoming an Infinite Summer buddy, I'd love for you to leave a comment, email me, or even send me a tweet (@robotnic)!

Hope you are all having a lovely weekend!

Nicola x

Things I Love Thursday: The Return

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What the hell you guys! Sorry for the sudden departure and lack of updates, I've been very busy trying to sort out my little post-grad life. While I did honestly type a TiLT post last week, it was so lacking in enthusiasm that I gave up. BUT I'm back so HI and READ ON!

Nostalgia - Quick catch up of the past 2 weeks: Graduation! Grad ball! High praise from high people, seeing my friends, reading lots and lots, flying home-from-home with company!, getting back to California, palm trees & blue skies & delirium.

The Gym - Definitely in a respectable place on the list of Things I Thought I'd Never Say Thursday... it's actually great. I've taken yoga, pilates, and completed about 8 miles of cardio work-out in the past week. It feels good!

My Boyyyy - He's awesome, and life is pretty sweet with him around. But I shan't gloat.

New Stuff! - Moving over here has a cloud: lack of stuff, with a silver lining: new stuff! I tend to go a bit overboard, but I feel I've accumulated some good essentials. Gym gear, gym membership, desk & chair, shorts, Reef sandals (my faaavourite, complete with bottle-opener soles!) aaand yeah. Good stuff.

San Franciscooo - How I miss thee. We're departing tomorrow for a Giants game on Friday night and then Andrew Bird & Death Cab for Cutie on Saturday at the Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley. I can't wait! It's going to be so much fun! Baseball + Andrew Bird = big time squees. For real.

Living like an Amurrican - 4th of July was pretty fun, we got some fireworks and barbecued and played some drinking games. As always, the food was the best part of the celebration. And that's why I looove Amurrica. Heh. Also, having FINALLY got my social security number in order, I've begun applying for some jobs. Evan calls it "temporary citizenship", hah. We'll see.

& more...
Returning to Chick-fil-A (my favourite fast-food ever!), finally being 21 in the US, Andrew Bird on Saturday!, late-night Scattergories, reading reading reading, Late Night shows, the Daily Show & Jeopardy.

What's making your week explode with awesomeness?!

Things I Love Thursday

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Happy Thursday all! It's been a very quick week, I can't believe it's Thursday again already. Here are some of the reasons it has gone by so quickly...

+ Spending time with my man - He made his transatlantic journey on Monday, arriving here on Tuesday evening. His presence makes a huge impact on my internet presence (hence the lack of posts around here this week, I do apologise). We spent most of the day yesterday just sitting around/him sleeping. Today we ran through a rather rainy Glasgow and went to see The Hangover. It was good. The next two weeks will be alternating between quiet days and busy ones.

+ Books! - Yes, yes, I know. I do go on. It's an addiction, a sickness, a fetish if you will. Despite having quite a substantial number still to read on my shelves, I'm always dying to buy more. This past week I read My Booky Wook, Into The Wild, and Neverwhere. I'm currently reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and trying to decide whether to continue with The Da Vinci Code. Any opinions? Reviews to follow!

+ Spending less time at my computer - So good for my tendinitis. My wrists are thanking me heaps.

+ Lists - Forever saving my life. Lately I've been writing down words I didn't know, like, or have never used and need to add to my active vocabulary. All in a day's work for n aspiring word-smith. Ahh, words. What would we do without you?

+ The Coming Week - Catching up with friends, graduation!, lots of dinners, graduation ball, packing (call me a dork but I love packing), and generally being high on life. People, smiles, good food, alcohol & celebrations.

Et aussi...
Pan's Labyrinth, getting to-do lists out of the way, middle-of-the-night pangs of inspiration, cuddles & smiles, exchanging things (better than shopping!), getting recognition for all your hard work, Dairy Milks, life in general.

Things I Love Thursday

(Image found via observando.)


Helloooo Thursday! It's been a bit of a dead week but I have some glorious things for which to be pleased - so let's get to it!

BEDA Buddies - These girls are awesome, I tell ya. Maureen set us up together to encourage each other throughout BEDA, but we Tweet together constantly, have an epic Facebook chat on the go, and have been gradually kindling our own little blogging circle. We've decided to make TiLTs a weekly commitment from now on, and I'm super excited to read all of their posts every week! Check them out via my blogroll! They are Autumn, Christina & Becky.

BOOKS - I ventured into Fopp today, which is always a dangerous game. I spent a total of £6 on books and came away with Russell Brand's biography (loooow-broooow! For some reason I suddenly realised-- I kind of like him. He's smart.), Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen (respectable, for a change!), Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting (why a Glaswegian hasn't read it while her Californian boyfriend managed it continues to allude me!), and Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. The last two were packaged together for £2 in total - I couldn't resist!

OMGah! - My boyfriend is coming to visit in order to attend my graduation, and then we're flying back to California together on the 29th to begin my Trans-Atlantic Adventure 2.0. He arrives on Tuesday, I can't wait!

Midday Catch-ups & Afternoon Drinks - I am a teensy bit tipsy after a couple of large glasses of wine this afternoon. I met up with my good friend from uni and we chewed the fat for a few hours. Always makes for a good time =)

Old Habits Die Hard - Lately I've been nurturing the old magazine junky inside me, and she is grateful. I just realised that this month's Empire has a quote on the spine:
"John Dillinger was killed behind that theatre in a hail of FBI gunfire. And do youk now who tipped them off? His f***king girlfriend."
Oh, Empire. You are too much. The Classic Scene is "There's no crying in baseball!" Brilliant.

Hard-Work Paying Off - Recently I've heard a couple of people describe post-graduation life as a series of accidents. I recently decided that I'm ready to put myself out there, and the results seem promising so far. Waiting to see what happens next is pretty damn awesome.

Honourable Mentions:
Also buying The Weather Man, the most hilariously dry film ever; cleaning out Gmail and seeing how many meaningful messages actually come through; BEDA Buddies, again!; lots & lots of awesome books (please please please go read Water for Elephants!); Skype chats, especially in the morning; Having lots to look forward to; compiling my personal hell (less scary when you don't believe that it will actually happen!); happy-dancing, and seeing the awesomeness in life.

What made you do your happy-dance this week? (Literally or metaphorically!)

The Perfect Carry-On Bag

(Image by aknacer.)


Carry-on bags are a fickle business. What you put in there can stay on your back and about your person for days, so it's important to pack well. Except for a couple of heavy valuables, I think I've just about cracked it. Aside from the super-obvious, I'm always sure to pack the following:

Laptop - A necessity, due to its valuable nature. But it isn't too hard to find a backpack with a sturdy laptop pocket to make this less cumbersome. (I use a Dakine).

iPod & headphones - Headphones and earphones are desirable, so as you can change it up. I like ear-buds with adjustable sizes as they block out a lot of outside noise without costing a fortune. Stock up on podcasts and a couple of new albums. I like music that tells a story, so I'm saving The Decemberists' Hazards of Love for my next long-distance traverse!

A book & A magazine - I'm guilty of lugging 2 or 3 books on board for one journey, and much of the time don't even get around to reading. Paranoia sets in: What if the writing is hideous and I can't concentrate? What if I finish the last 150 pages 4 hours before we land? Chillax. Get a good recommendation and stick with it!

Notebook - As a lone traveller it's easy to get a bit lonely, so grab a notebook and get scribbling! Extra points for 140-character, Twitter-style remarks on your eccentric aeroplane buddies.

Passport & documents - Keep them safe, in one place, and always know which bag/pocket you put them in! I once thought I'd lost my passport after a 15-hour journey and they wouldn't let me connect without it. It's not fun, so keep it together! Etsy is bursting at the seams with cute travel wallets. It's also a good idea to print your itinerary and keep it handy for picky airport staff.

Toiletries - Toothbrush, toothpaste, some moisturiser, and a couple of face-wipes. It helps to land feeling clean and refreshed. My hands dry out something terrible on long-distance flights. A dab of powder and a lick of mascara can really uplift your mood after sitting next to a grump for 11 hours!


A couple of cheeky travel tips:
- Drink lots and lots and LOTS of water! You'll feel better on the other side-- trust me!
- Sign up for frequent flier miles (and treat yourself to a free upgrade once in a while).
- Spare socks and hand sanitizer are your friends.


What items are top of your to-pack list? Where in the world are you off to next?