So, uh, we don't live in T Town anymore.

Just as April came upon us, we stowed a few of our belongings into a big ol' truck and caravanned 1800 miles to Tuscon, AZ. I was behind the wheel of my nifty (new) little Mazda :)

Just before leaving Tonasket city limits for the last time, we stopped off at Roosters Espresso and said our goodbyes to the loyal baristas who'd always been there for our caffeine fix. Then it was four straight days on the road.

In case you couldn't guess, the primary difference between Arizona and the pacific northwest is the weather. Luckily, we weren't quite as unfortunate in Eastern WA, weather-wise. Still, seventy-degree winters? I think yes.

I started at Catalina Foothills High- or Catfoot, to its occupants- a week after we arrived, met with a puzzled group of counselors who wondered why on earth a student would start at a new school three weeks before summer vacation. In that three-week period I took up Bari Sax and decided to join band; and also experienced my first 'senior prank day'. Apparently the seniors of Catfoot take a liking to throwing food in various states of ripeness.

Sky served as my travel buddy, and helped us unpack and settle in. A couple weeks later Levi & Kassy decided to have their own sojourn to the Rainey Villa (or so-called, according to our Wifi)

So that's pretty much been life, lately. I'm happy here, and a sun-kissed complexion greets me every morning. I miss Washington for its greenery, but safe to say I'm more than content to live where the umbrellas stay away. Nanner and Shelby are coming to see me over summer.

Goodreads Review of Be More Chill

Be More Chill by Ned Vizzini
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was pretty good.

I really like Ned Vizzini's writing; he has the incredibly sought-after ability to write in the voice of his character, like a pro.

Be More Chill is a story about Jeremy Heere, social misfit in Middle Borough High. He gets ahold of a squip, a tiny quantum computer you ingest to make you act Cool. And then, of course, everything backfires.

The beginning was really cool, the way Vizzini set it up. It moves along at a fast-enough rate that you aren't bored, and it was compelling enough to pick it up.

I know it's fiction and all, but.. I mean, this story doesn't really capture what 'cool' is. And I thought the moral of the story would be something along the lines of 'Being yourself is more cool than someone's idea of it'. But, um, no. I don't think that's anywhere within the covers.

I dunno... I don't really like how teenagers and "cool kids" are shown. God knows I'm not 'cool' or whatever, but that doesn't mean I'm silent and withdrawn from my peers. The characters were pretty 2D in this book, is all I'm saying. But hey, it was entertaining.

I just had to laugh at some of the thoughts of this troubled youth. Do kids actually strive this hard to be 'cool'? As a tenth grade girl, I can tell you that no one in my school thinks nonstop cussing, random pop culture references, and being disrespectful to people is 'cool'. Or.. at least no one I'm friends with. Usually we refer to those kids as "tools".

And Vizzini didn't exactly strive for realism when creating the females characters, either.

I guess I felt it lacked the proper conclusion and ending that a book ought to have, there wasn't enough closure with the characters. (view spoiler)[ Does his mom make him do therapy? Does he get Christine? Is Rich alright?  (hide spoiler)]

In any case, I was not nearly as impressed with Be More Chill as I was with It's Kind of a Funny Story, another YA Vizzini novel.

There's a few gratuitous parts if you ask me.. um, I don't like reading about (view spoiler)[ A teenage boy jerking off to internet porn. I know it happens, but really? You had to include two pages of this information into a story line (hide spoiler)]. Also there's some cussing, but after Jeremy gets the Squip it 'censors' the cusses (a__, d_m_, __it, and so on)


View all my reviews

Goodreads Review of Be More Chill

Be More Chill by Ned Vizzini
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was pretty good.

I really like Ned Vizzini's writing; he has the incredibly sought-after ability to write in the voice of his character, like a pro.

Be More Chill is a story about Jeremy Heere, social misfit in Middle Borough High. He gets ahold of a squip, a tiny quantum computer you ingest to make you act Cool. And then, of course, everything backfires.

The beginning was really cool, the way Vizzini set it up. It moves along at a fast-enough rate that you aren't bored, and it was compelling enough to pick it up.

I know it's fiction and all, but.. I mean, this story doesn't really capture what 'cool' is. And I thought the moral of the story would be something along the lines of 'Being yourself is more cool than someone's idea of it'. But, um, no. I don't think that's anywhere within the covers.

I dunno... I don't really like how teenagers and "cool kids" are shown. God knows I'm not 'cool' or whatever, but that doesn't mean I'm silent and withdrawn from my peers. The characters were pretty 2D in this book, is all I'm saying. But hey, it was entertaining.

I just had to laugh at some of the thoughts of this troubled youth. Do kids actually strive this hard to be 'cool'? As a tenth grade girl, I can tell you that no one in my school thinks nonstop cussing, random pop culture references, and being disrespectful to people is 'cool'. Or.. at least no one I'm friends with. Usually we refer to those kids as "tools".

And Vizzini didn't exactly strive for realism when creating the females characters, either.

I guess I felt it lacked the proper conclusion and ending that a book ought to have, there wasn't enough closure with the characters. (view spoiler)[ Does his mom make him do therapy? Does he get Christine? Is Rich alright?  (hide spoiler)]

In any case, I was not nearly as impressed with Be More Chill as I was with It's Kind of a Funny Story, another YA Vizzini novel.

There's a few gratuitous parts if you ask me.. um, I don't like reading about (view spoiler)[ A teenage boy jerking off to internet porn. I know it happens, but really? You had to include two pages of this information into a story line (hide spoiler)]. Also there's some cussing, but after Jeremy gets the Squip it 'censors' the cusses (a__, d_m_, __it, and so on)


View all my reviews