#spend the night- jennifer owens

[kiwibirdlafayette]

i'll be waiting where you'll see me; shall we try forever?

got fixated on being a mcytber lately forgot to draw so have some ethubs to make up for it <3

[moodywyrm]

modern au hcs i have about the salt lake crew cuz why not i felt like sharing:

abby's secretly into cosplay but she won't admit it; manny's celebrity crush is sza; nora's a "no shoes in the house person" (she almost stabbed owen when he came over for a group get-together); mel's lowkey a disney adult and its adorable (her fav film is frozen); owen and jordan are both filmbros but in different ways - owen's the annoying kind (yk the kind 🙄) while jordan is genuinely passionate about films and film history and gives fun facts during movie nights; nick makes tiktok stitches like this one https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT88SYgkG/ ; leah's one of those drunk girls who hypes up other girls in bathrooms, like she'll see a pretty black girl with gold charms in her hair and start crying cuz she's so beautiful (abby & nora had to drag her out)

this is one of the cutest asks I've ever gotten oh my god? lemme expand on your beautiful thoughts. while I have beef with the salt lake crew, I also appreciate them and I think, had we started with them, we would have all loved or tolerated them.

abby + cosplay is so full of possibility omg. I imagine it started as an appreciation for cosplayers because she thought it was super cool! and then slowly. she started doing outfits inspired by her favorite characters. and then recreations. and then next thing she knows, she's dragging Manny to comic con to be her lil protector/buddy while she dresses up as Spiderman, or Junker Queen, or Samus. she has literally had craft nights where the crew helps her work on her cosplays. mel is the best at it, helping her form foam armor pieces. owen is passable only because he has experience building and fixing shit (the boat). Jordan is laughably bad any it but he tries <3

manny's celebrity crush is Sza AND Kali Uchis. He genuinely thinks he could pull them and, honestly, maybe he could. but abby loves telling him they're out of his league (they kinda are). he has like, Pete Davidson rizz. if that makes sense.

Nora is 100% a no shoes in the house girl. it's how she was raised! her house is fucking Pristine, man, which is honestly such feat because girly is a busy ass nursing student. and you're right about Owen! shit head wears shoes inside houses WITH CARPET. I will say rn, it's pretty much impossible to not wear shoes inside the house in my place bc we have two dogs, but we have tile so it's not as bad. however with carpet? evil. vile. Owen and his nasty ass nike sneakers tried to step onto Nora's pristine cream carpet and she nearly smacked him with a pair of tongs that had just came out of hot oil. as she should. he learned, and has never tried it again (mostly because Mel reminds him every time)

Disney adult Mel!! I know Disney adults get a lot of hate, but I feel like she'd be really sweet about it. like whenever she wants to go, she offers to pay for the others food and stuff, if they can't, she always brings them little gifts. like pins and stuff, shirts, ears, plushies!! she has a special pair of mickey ears that a frozen themed, Owen got them for her on her birthday <3 (this is me taking my powers as a writer to turn Owen into an actually good partner for Mel and not a piece of shit <3). one time, Mel got Abby to disneybound Gaston and it was so cute!! she has disneybounded as Anna and she looks so cute in it <3

the filmbros. oh god. Owen is 100% the type of guy to love Quentin Tarantino films and think they're the peak of cinema, all the while hating Jennifers Body. Jordan however, king, he loves Jennifer's Body and 100% listened to Leah and Nora spend like three hours talking about the nuances of girlhood and queerness in the movie. Definitely watched and appreciated Barbie with them, even dressed up in all pink! borrowed some of Leah's clothes to do it <3 he loves channels like Dead Meat, because I feel like he especially likes horror movies? will defend the slasher genre with his life, hates torture porn movies. big fan of sleepaway camp!

I don't know much about nick but I can say this is accurate, I feel like he also does those videos reacting to weird white people recipes? like how long does it take for them to add a block of cream cheese to the crock pot, or the weird obviously fetish content ones? and he just makes this really stoic disappointed face like. fr.

drunk girl Leah!! I imagine the salt lake crew occasionally goes clubbing, and you're so fucking right about Leah. they all get kinda tipsy, but Leah takes two shots of vodka and starts falling in love with every fem presenting person in the building. gives the good compliments too. how beautiful they look in the party lights, the shine of their hair, the twinkle of their eyes, the highlighter! the outfit! is literally fawning over every fem person she sees and Jordan is just like yeah go ahead. mostly because he knows she loyal and also, she's literally just so cute. disclaimer that it's never in the like, fetishizing wlw for men, Leah literally just compliments every girl she sees ever. especially in the bathrooms! if she sees you crying, she is the first one at your side, offering to beat up whoever made you sad, holding your hand, helping you fix your makeup, the works. drunk girl Leah is a gem to humanity and there are leagues of girls out there whose nights have been saved by this drunken sweetheart. there have been. too many times where abby has had to physically throw Leah over her shoulder to get her out of the bathroom because they need to Leave and she's starting conversations with everyone who walks through the door.

this is so cute!! thank you for this ask nonnie!! and I got your ask about it being duets and not stitches <3

[fayechives17]

THE GEOGRAPHY OF YOU AND ME

I. INTRODUCTION

The Geography of You and Me is written by the Author named Jennifer E. Smith. Jennifer is a young Author of a young Adult Novels, including best sellers The Geography of You and Me. Although I nearly never give Jennifer E. Smith's books more than two stars, I still pick up her next book because they are entertaining and quick to read. No different from The Geography of You and Me! The story centers on a girl and guy who become confined in an elevator together and almost immediately fall in love. This story didn't really surprise me, but l learned to expect that from my sugary sweet contemporaries. I thought this book was just too choppy, to start with. After the halfway point, one of the protagonists travels, and every other chapter begins with "In Prague" "In Venice," or something like, which made it exceedingly challenging to gauge how much time had elapsed. I believe that the book was intentionally lengthened by using short chapters to give the impression that the plot was developing more naturally than it actually was. Although I normally adore a good one-sentence chapter for emphasis and am not one to complain about chapter length, I truly would have liked to have seen more character development. The most crucial details, such as Lucy's relationship with her parents, who prioritize her brothers over her, and Owen's unresolved sentiments after the death of his mother, never felt fully addressed. Or, in the event that they were, the characters' time spent mourning or reflecting on their own emotions was reduced in order to make room for the developing romance. Additionally, both Owen and Lucy had breakups with different significant others at some time in this book, and neither breakup scene is even mentioned. Smith may have decided it would be best to pretend they never happened because they would have such a negative impact on the major characters' morals. It's not good for you, and it's not fair to the other person, to get into a relationship when you're in love with someone else.

II. SUMMARY 

The electricity goes out in New York City and along the whole eastern shore of the US one September day before the start of the school year. Prior to this, Lucy Patterson had rushed to the elevator and opened the door. The new child and Lucy, who had just moved into the basement flat with his father, the new superintendent, a month earlier, are left entirely in the dark when the elevator grinds to a halt. They think the blackout only affects their building, therefore they are unaware of how widespread it is. The boy's name is Owen Buckley, and Lucy discovers that he doesn't much like New York while they wait to be saved. Following the passing of his mother, Owen and his father relocated to New York. Living at their Pennsylvania house became too painful after she passed away, and after being unemployed for a year as a contractor, Owen's father was offered a position as the building superintendent in New York. The parents of both teenagers are absent-Lucy's parents are in London, England, and Owen's father has left for Brooklyn on a personal errand. She is a native New Yorker, and he is a newcomer. As they pass the time in the pitch-black elevator, Lucy and Owen discuss life in the Big Apple and how they each see the city differently. They are eventually freed from the elevator, only to find that the city and the entire seaboard are without power. Owen and Lucy first part ways, but Owen changes his mind and pursues Lucy to her apartment, 24D. They grab a flashlight and head out onto the street in search of ice cream and drink. Owen and Lucy plan to spend the night on the building's top as they have a key to it. Owen finds out that Lucy's parents frequently leave her home alone because they seem to be off seeing "amazing places" all the time. Her father travels a lot because he works for a British bank. Every time they go, they always send Lucy a postcard from the location. Owen observes that Lucy appears dejected. Lucy discovers herself on the roof by herself in the morning. While everything was happening, Owen returned to the apartment, worried about his father, who had been stranded in Brooklyn the day before. He walks all the way home and discovers his father suffering from heat exhaustion in the apartment lobby. He spends the following day caring for him. During the blackout, Sam Coleman, his father's second cousin, neglected to properly maintain the apartment complex because of his father's absence. Coleman cautions Owen that his father will lose his job if he doesn't do his job. Which is precisely what takes place. Owen and his father thereupon set out on an adventure that takes them across America. Owen is nowhere to be found despite Lucy's search. Her parents get in touch with her and arrange a flight for her to London once the blackout is over. When Lucy gets there, she finds out that her father is looking for work in a bank in London and that they won't be returning to New York. While in London, Lucy writes "I actually do." on the back of a postcard she sends to Owen that has "Wishing You Were Here stamped on the front. Lucy receives the same kind of postcard from Owen in New York with the same wording. A few weeks later, they unexpectedly cross paths in New York. Both Lucy and Owen admit to one another that they are leaving New York City - Lucy for London and Owen for wherever his father can find employment - and that they are going their own ways. Owen and Lucy must decide if their romance will withstand the upheaval of the upcoming year even if they vow to communicate via postcards.

III. ANALYSIS

If you were to draw a map of the two of them, of where they started out and where they would both end up, the lines would be shooting away from each other like magnets spun around on their poles. And it occurred to Owen that there was something deeply flawed about this, that there should be circles or angels or turns, anything that might make it possible for the two lines to meet again. Instead, they were both headed in the exact opposite directions. The map was as good as a door swinging shut. And the geography of the thing-the geography of them- was completely and hopelessly wrong.

IV. CONCLUSION

What I have learned or realized in this story is that, there was no point in waiting for someone who hadn't asked, and there was no point in wishing for something that would never happen.

[anitosoul]

tripreport.018: The Return of the Disco Samurai

the sound of the jungle fire 🐅

Key Inspirations

Hiking (Activity)

Cultural pride (Activity)

POC Artists (Music artists)

Sherelle (Music artist)

Jungle (Music genre)

Acid House (Music genre)

AceMoMA (Music artist)

Avalon Emerson (Music artist)

WTCHCRFT at Nowadays Nonstop (DJ set)

Octo Octa (Music artist)

JPEGMAFIA – LP! (Music album)

Yves Tumor (Must artist)

Halloween (Event)

Music from the Mountain Provinces (Music album)

b2b with Lissoms (Activity)

LCD Soundsystem at Good Room (DJ set)

The Wu-Tang Clan (Music artist)

John Tejada (Music artist)

planetqueer (Community)

iiiPoints Music Festival (Event)

Jamie xx (Music artist)

The jungle (Place)

Night on Earth – Jungle Nights (TV show) (The Junglist Warrior mix somehow syncs up perfectly with this episode)

The Return of the Disco Samurai Tracklist A-Side: Junglist Warrior

Kulintang – Badjao or Yakan Gong

Stones Taro – Full Train

DJ Rashad & DJ Manny – Drums Please

INVT, DJ Earl – WORK

Kelly Lee Owens – Re-Wild (Breaka Remix)

Mickey Hart – Frog Dance

Octo Octa, Avalon Emerson – Adrift (Avalon Emerson’s Furiously Awake Version)

quest?onmarq – WATCH THIS

Mark Broom – Jungle

John Tejada – Abbot of Burton

LAVA LA RUE, Congo Natty, Phoebs, Nia Archives – Magpie (Nia Archives Remix)

Ivy Lab – Suzuki

3ASiC – Lorentz

The Fugees – Ready or Not (A SURGEON Remix)

Remarc – RIP (DJ Hype Remix)

Kiat – Stranger Tings

BEARCAT – The Bells

Fixate, Double 99 – Ripgroove

Yves Tumor – Secrecy is Incredibly Important to the Both of Them

The Return of the Disco Samurai Tracklist B-Side: Wild Fear

Dumagat – Throat Singing

AceMoMA – 1 Million Breaks

Avalon Emerson – One More Fluorescent Rush

Ataw Allpa, Trio Ternura – A Gira (Ataw Allpa Remake)

3 Times 6 – You Can Run

Die Orangen, Full Circle – Yaranabe (Full Circle Goa Way Remix)

Wu-Tang Clan – Triumph

JPEGMAFIA – ARE U HAPPY?

Breaka – Get Your Sweat On

Stones Taro – To Rave

Ase Manual – Soniferous (Instrumental)

Viper Diva – Alice

Psychedelic Research Lab, Deetron – Keep On Climbin’ (Deetron Remix)

Shakedown, Peggy Gou – At Night (Peggy Gou’s Acid Journey Remix)

Jennifer Lopez – Waiting for Tonight (Hex’s Momentous Club Mix)

In previous months, I increasingly turned to music for guidance, comfort, truth, and therapy. In October, I submitted to the music completely. It became all-consuming, and I filled my brain space with unending tunes, either listening to music in headphones, mixing songs with my DJ controller, or dancing at a live show. There were a variety of reasons I became so engrossed, but the main driver was twofold: purpose and performance.

Coming out of September, I was dealing with a lot of difficulties surrounding grief and loss. I used music as therapy in September, but in October I began to use music to give my life a tangible meaning. For the first time, music gave me something to work towards. I was no longer just a consumer, but I was on my way to becoming a contributor. It clicked for me that I had opportunities to share my own creativity within music through DJing and live performance. I started planning events with a few friends, building a community we called planetqueer. It started as a party with drag performances and DJ sets, and it was a chance for me to perform live quickly after getting into DJing. 

For my first performance, I crafted a set with specific themes around my own identity; I wanted to express what the Ifugao persona represented to me. This meant drawing upon music evocative of the jungle, my indigenous Filipino roots and anti-colonial sentiments. I went on a hike early in the month and spending that time in nature rejuvenated me. I listened to Avalon Emerson’s DJ-Kicks and some of Octo Octa’s albums; the natural sounds resonated with me. I had a primal hunger, and the music had to represent that. 

On the day of the planetqueer party, it was cold and rainy so we moved the event inside our friend’s apartment. It was great for the drag performances and it was incredible seeing how engaged everyone was. I started my set, though, and got a little worried. I didn’t feel like it would hit as well being indoors, but I went for it anyway. Shortly after I started, the rain cleared up and we moved the event upstairs to the roof. Being outside felt right! I began my set. It was crafted around the lane of dance music that represented me: not so much techno or house, but drum & bass, jungle, and breaks. To my surprise, people were actually into it. They were dancing the whole time, filming me, asking for track IDs, and genuinely having fun. At the apex of the set, as I was playing the most chaotic and high intensity song (Ripgroove), the wind matched in intensity, blowing so hard that the canopy covering the DJ set up started flying away. People were scrambling to weigh it down as the track orchestrated the maelstrom. It was epic.

After that, I was totally charged up. The rest of the month was dedicated to performing or consuming music. Shortly after the planetqueer party, I went to see a surprise LCD Soundsystem DJ set at Good Room, and a few days after that some friends and I went to Miami for the iiiPoints music festival where I got to see some of my favorite artists and DJs. I saw the Strokes in the rain, crowd chanted Peggy Gou’s name, had a spiritual experience at Jamie xx’s set, was reminded of the importance of community and respect seeing the Wu-Tang Clan, and danced through a mind-boggling back-to-back rave run of John Tejada, AceMoMA, Kaytranada, and Robert Hood to close out the festival. That same week, I also somehow spontaneously decided to see JPEGMAFIA tour his incredible new album and had Yves Tumor melt my face off on consecutive days. Both nights I moshed harder than I ever had before, and it was so worth it. 

On the Friday after that, we pulled off hosting a one-off planetqueer Halloween back-to-back DJ set between me and my friend Holden, aka Lissoms. Playing b2b brought out the best in both of us, and we delivered a killer set that had people dancing until the very end. With the very last of my energy, I decided I would attempt to last as long as I could for Nowadays’ Halloween nonstop weekend, which was the last Mister Sunday party of the season. It was a space and community that had given so much to me, so I wanted to take in every last bit of it. I donned my skeleton costume and signature frog hat (this time in white, going as a skeleton frog) and submitted to the rave. Every set blew my mind; particularly WTCHCRFT’s bouncy witching hours set, MoMA Ready’s emo sunrise liquid DnB set and the legend Todd Edwards’ sunny UKG set. By the time Mister Sunday was happening I was fully a husk, barely able to move or speak (I lost my voice at some point). The music kept me going, though, and as day turned to night I said goodbye to the Mister Sunday season which had given me so much this year.

I didn’t fully complete this mix until December, but all the tracks I either used during my set at PQ, the Hallowb2bn set with Lissoms, or were songs I heard live. It made sense for this mix to be a sequel to The Rise of the Disco Samurai, as it brought forward a lot of the themes I explored in that mix. The Rise of the Disco Samurai was my first foray into mixing and narrative-building, and The Return of the Disco Samurai was the manifestation of that character in my first live set. If The Rise of the Disco Samurai was the Disco Samurai dealing with feelings of being displaced and disconnected from his roots, the Return of the Disco Samurai is the Disco Samurai fully embracing where he came from and unapologetically living out his culture.

[thebestbookrecommendations]

Kill Creek - Scott Thomas

At the end of a dark prairie road, nearly forgotten in the Kansas countryside, is the Finch House. For years it has remained empty, overgrown, abandoned. Soon the door will be opened for the first time in decades. But something is waiting, lurking in the shadows, anxious to meet its new guests… When best-selling horror author Sam McGarver is invited to spend Halloween night in one of the country’s most infamous haunted houses, he reluctantly agrees. At least he won’t be alone; joining him are three other masters of the macabre, writers who have helped shape modern horror. But what begins as a simple publicity stunt will become a fight for survival. The entity they have awakened will follow them, torment them, threatening to make them a part of the bloody legacy of Kill Creek.

Read if You Like:

Horror

Paranormal

Thrillers

Supernatural

Fantasy

Mystery

Books about authors

Haunted Houses

Recommended if You Enjoy:

Shirley Jackson (The Haunting of Hill House)

Jennifer McMahon (The Invited)

Rose Red (T.V. Miniseries, 2002)

The Haunting (Movie, 1999)

The Conjuring (Movie, 2013)

3.5/5

[books-in-a-storm]

Snowflake Book Review’s

Title: Falling for Owen(The McBrides #2)

Author: Jennifer Ryan

Pages:432

Snowflake Rating:❄❄❄❄(4/5)

Synopsis: Attorney by day, rancher by night Owen McBride conquered his dark past and made it his mission to help the innocent-even at the expense of a personal life. But when a client's abusive ex-husband targets Owen and his gorgeous neighbor Claire gets caught in the crossfire, his feelings turn anything but professional. The mysterious beauty awakens something in him, and he'll move heaven and earth to keep her safe. Coffee shop owner Claire Walsh learned the hard way that handsome men aren't to be trusted. Owen may be sexy as hell and determined to take care of her, but she's reluctant to put her heart on the line. His presence in her life puts a target on her back, yet the more time she spends with him, the more she finds she can't help falling for Owen.

[rivalsofnycupdates]

“No man is rich enough to buy back his past.”  

■ ABOUT. ■

name: Gabriel Russo age: thirty occupation: Theif for the Royals of Purgatory gender: cis-male pronouns: he/him sexuality: homosexual 

■ HISTORY. ■

Growing up in a small apartment on the far side of Queens, Gabriel learned the importance of family values from a young age. With two younger sisters, a sick mother and an absent father, the young boy had calloused hands since the ripe age of seven. Of course, he’d learned to never complain, realizing the stress of living in a house with only one bedroom with three kids was enough to his mother. Three days before his fourteen birthday, his mother passed away from cancer affecting her lungs. In those three short days, Gabriel was forced to learn what it was like to not only be a teenager but a parent as well. As the years passed by, Gabriel learned how to provide for his two younger siblings. Working day and night and yet it still wasn’t enough, and even though the hours were adding up in shifts, it seemed he was still unable to move his small family out of the single bedroom apartment they shared. Making just barely enough to feed them and so most nights he went without, always putting his sisters first. This wasn’t the life he wanted for them, nor for himself and so finally Gabriel decided to find a means to an end.

Pickpocketing had always been looked down upon in his family, but he knew it was a talent he had. Taking things here and there without others noticing, but the guilt still existed, and so he created a moral code for himself. Deciding to only steal from those who he could tell had more than enough to start. This included the wealthy citizens of the city, the ones who would flash their watches or overstuffed wallets while so many were going hungry. The one major rule he had, was to never steal from someone he knew. This sport became like a full-time job as Gabriel spent his weekends in the larger parts of the city thieving what he could from those he thought didn’t deserve it. No, not when his younger sisters were starving and growing too quickly out of their clothes.

It hadn’t been a life choice he was proud to admit but it served its purpose and by the time he was in his late twenties, he’d become something of a pro. No longer were his siblings living in poverty or sharing a bed. Now both girls were getting ready for college in the bigger cities, his younger of the two wanting to study at New York University, a school filled with the art and life she so craved and so he decided that if he was going to support such dreams, he’d need to aim bigger. Pulling just a few more large jobs, so he could make sure his sisters both had the life they deserved without worry.

■ WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON? ■

It was a Tuesday evening, the first and only time Gabriel had ever been caught stealing. Having decided to spend his time at East Village bar, the male was watching those around him, picking out who would be both the wealthiest and best target. Tonight his gaze was fixed on a familiar face, someone he’d seen in the Newspaper, as well as his sister’s social media. A true New York highlight, who went by the name of Christopher Krongold. He was both a business owner and apparent heir, which meant he had more money than he could surely spend. So Gabriel felt no shame in approaching him, using his charm and wit to catch his attention. Their conversation lasted hours, and though Gabriel found himself enchanted by the other male, he kept his sights on what really mattered, and when Christopher brought him home that night, Gabriel snuck out just hours later with his wallet and a few other treasures. However, by the time the sun had risen, the male had returned, guilt-stricken after getting to know Christopher in just that one night, realizing that maybe not all the rich & famous of New York were horrible people. And after his confession the Krongold, a deal was made, and Gabriel met Joshua Krongold that evening and his life was forever changed.

■ KEEP THIS AWAY FROM YOUR ENEMIES ■

A total of six years has passed since Gabriel has joined the Royals, and he knows he owes everything to the Krongolds. Because not only have they helped his sisters through college, but have also given him purpose. Allowing him to further master his skills as a thief, and find a place amongst those ranks. And for a while, everything seemed perfect. It was jus ta few months into his membership that he started dating Christopher officially, the two were on and off again for years, always messy, and in truth a little toxic. It seemed the other brought out jealously in Gabriel, a side that he didn’t know he harbored. But no matter how bad the fought, they always found each other again, at least until the last fight in which had sent Gabriel packing. It was meant to be a good night, a perfect night, and somehow everything went sideways. But what Christopher never found out, was that Gabriel had planned on proposing that evening before everything went off the rails. And due to this fight, the male had finally decided to take that vacation to visit his sister who was studying aboard, but after receiving a mysterious text, telling him that Christopher was spiraling, Gabriel finds himself back in the states, determined to make sure his ex-boyfriend is okay. Though when he arrives in the city, it seems much has changed, including the fact that his youngest sister is now a Devil, and if any of the Royals found out, they’d both be in trouble. 

■ RELATIONSHIPS. ■

■ Jonah Greyson: This is one of the few people in the city that Gabriel truly missed, his best friend and he knows he owes his busy an explanation for his disappearance, he just isn’t sure how to explain it without telling the whole story.

■ Joshua Krongold: It was because of Joshua that Gabriel was able to support his family, but now with Esme picking the other side, he is struggling to decide who he should trust more. Joshua to help him fix this, or his sister to know what she is doing.

■ Esme Russo: Esme was his youngest sister, the baby of the family and yet now she has gone off and made the choice to join the other side. Family has always been most important to him, but how can he protect her without lying to the Royals?

■ CONNECTIONS. ■

■  Owen Madisson > Old hook-up

■  Payton Fischer > Good friend

■  Christopher Krongold > Ex-Boyfriend

■  Jennifer Krongold > Friend

Gabriel Russo is a TAKEN character and is portrayed by Jack Falhee who’s FC IS SEMI-NEGOTIABLE.

[tabloidtoc]

OK, July 29

Cover: Celine Dion -- inside her amazing new life 

Page 1: Contents 

Page 2: Contents 

Page 4: Miley Cyrus opened up about her complex marriage and her husband Liam Hemsworth isn’t happy about it 

Page 6: Tension on the set of The View 

Page 7: Hugh Jackman spends big bucks on his self-care routine, Reese Witherspoon is burning the candle at both ends, Jenna Bush Hager and Joanna Gaines want to bring their friendship to a cooking show 

Page 8: Tori Spelling hoping the 90210 reboot will get her back on track financially so she can buy the Spelling estate, Emma Stone and Scarlett Johansson became fast friends due to their respective significant others Saturday Night Live’s writer Dave McCray and Weekend Update anchor Colin Jost, Emma Roberts would dump Garrett Hedlund in an instant if James Franco showed interest in her 

Page 9: Adele planning Jennifer Lawrence’s bachelorette party, Justin Bieber’s posts about Tom Cruise on social media are simply a ploy to get Tom to notice him 

Page 10: Red Hot on the Red Carpet -- white -- Gabrielle Union, Gwyneth Paltrow, Elsa Hosk 

Page 11: Sienna Miller, Eva Longoria, Jessica Chastain 

Page 12: Who Wore It Better? Dua Lipa vs. Melissa Satta 

Page 14: News in Photos -- Miranda Lambert and Brendan McLoughlin 

Page 16: Jacqueline Bisset and Angelina Jolie, Alya 

Page 17: Kendall Jenner and Joan Smalls, Beth Ostrovsky Stern 

Page 18: Janelle Monae, Nicole Murphy, Carrie Underwood 

Page 19: Karolina Kurkova, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend 

Page 20: Roller Skates -- Ashley Graham, Kat Graham, Brooke Burke, Owen Wilson 

Page 22: Heidi Klum and Tom Kaulitz, Christina Milian and Matt Pokora 

Page 23: Pink, Andy Cohen, Idris Elba 

Page 24: Jessica Alba’s Beverly Hills home 

Page 26: Ashley Benson and Cara Delevingne tying the knot 

Page 27: Eric Johnson wants wife Jessica Simpson to take it down a notch in her obsession to lose 70 pounds, Kris Jenner has turned down Corey Gamble’s proposals several times 

Page 28: David and Victoria Beckham are shopping for a castle to mark their 20th anniversary, Chris Pratt has gained a lot of weight and Katherine Schwarzenegger is helping him get back in shape to film the third Guardians of the Galaxy film 

Page 29: Julianne Hough and Brooks Laich have turned to a sex therapist, Ryan Seacrest’s summer fling with model Larissa Schot 

Page 30: Cover Story -- Celine Dion -- life after heartbreak 

Page 34: The truth about Meghan Markle -- the duchess is under fire yet again but a source says she’s not the only one to blame 

Page 36: U.S. Women Soccer Stars secrets and scandals -- Megan Rapinoe’s private pain about her jailed brother 

Page 37: Alex Morgan got drunk and into a rowdy altercation at Epcot, Carli Lloyd disappointed to be demoted to a reserve role shortly before the World Cup, Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris are engaged 

Page 39: Some of the surprising stars who have voiced Disney characters 

Page 40: Interview -- Adam Lambert -- the American Idol alum chats about his new album, performing with Queen and his plans for the future 

Page 42: Candace Cameron Bure spills her fitness tips 

Page 46: Style -- Kate Bosworth 

Page 48: Slip dresses -- Amber Heard 

Page 49: Power Ponies -- Lily Aldridge, Kelsea Ballerini, Jennifer Lopez, Bella Hadid 

Page 50: California Girl style -- Ashley Benson 

Page 52: Quick-change artists -- Emma Roberts, Mandy Moore, Scarlett Johansson 

Page 53: Olivia Munn, Charlize Theron 

Page 54: Entertainment 

Page 58: L.A. premiere of The Lion King -- LeAnn Rimes and Eddie Cibrian and his sons Mason and Jake, Shahadi Wright Joseph and Beyonce and daughter Blue Ivy 

Page 59: Tracy Morgan with wife Megan and daughter Maven, Jamie Foxx and daughter Annalise, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner, Yara Shahidi

Page 60: The top 5 highest-paid celebrities of 2019 -- Ed Sheeran, Lionel Messi, Kanye West, Kylie Jenner, Taylor Swift, Hollywood Heat Meter -- Kenya Moore returning to RHOA, Sarah Jessica Parker says a big movie star made her feel uncomfortable, Amber Portwood arrested for domestic battery, Lady Gaga starting her own cosmetics line

Page 61: Sound Bites -- Kim Kardashian, Joe Manganiello on Sofia Vergara

Page 62: Horoscope -- Leo Daniel Radcliffe 

Page 64: By the Numbers -- Seth Rogen

[ihouseucom]

Jennifer Owens unveils brand new track ‘Spend the night’ http://dlvr.it/RdMSRQ

[musiccrowns]

Jennifer Owens premieres brand new heartfelt track ‘Spend the night’ https://ift.tt/3kjKnSs

[surejaya]

The Geography of You and Me

Download : The Geography of You and Me More Book at: Zaqist Book

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they’re rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father. Lucy and Owen’s relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and—finally—a reunion in the city where they first met. A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith’s new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.

Download : The Geography of You and Me More Book at: Zaqist Book

[ramajmedia]

10 Most Underrated Sci-Fi/Fantasy Films Of The Last 20 Years

From the farthest reaches of the cosmos to planet Earth, the sci-fi genre is one of many facets. With the exuberant popularity of legacies like Alien or Terminator, the possibilities of extra-terrestrial existence have become nothing short of a spectator sport. Satiating the demand for the far-out, sci-fi has composed its very own macrocosm of robots, aliens, dystopian worlds, interplanetary travel, and alternate realities ad infinitum.

RELATED: 10 Classic Science Fiction Novels That Need A Film Adaptation

With so much of the genre's success hinged on box office potential, it's easy for a sci-fi feature to become buried in the recent onslaught of superhero films. As a genre commonly overlooked by awards circuits, let's take a look back at some of science fiction's most underrated films of the last twenty years.

10 Attack the Block (2011)

Directed by Joe Cornish, Attack the Block follows a band of South London teenagers led by Moses (John Boyega). After the teens unknowingly mug their neighbor, Sam (Jodie Whittaker), they must join forces with her to combat an infiltration of incandescent-teethed aliens in their apartment tower.

With the help of some fireworks, a few improvised weapons (super-soaker filled with petrol, anyone?), and a safeguarded cannabis grow room, the dark-furred intruders are ultimately vanquished. Though the film vastly underperformed at the box office, it acts as a decidedly offbeat vehicle for a classic alien invasion narrative.

9 Prometheus (2012)

Directed by Ridley Scott, Prometheus acts as the prequel to the iconic Alien series. It follows archaeologist Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) as she leads an expedition to a secluded moon with the objective of investigating the origins of humankind. What ensues is a steep and grisly unraveling.

Though the film's plot was regarded by critics as unambitious, its integrity as an installment of the Alien franchise is preserved by Scott's principal use of practical effects as opposed to relying heavily on CGI. It is a solid cautionary tale against the hubris of mankind, buoyed by superb performances from its cast and grandiose visual splendor.

8 Snowpiercer (2013)

Directed by Bong Joon-ho, Snowpiercer takes place in a fictional future in which an environmental experiment has plunged the earth into a new ice age, and the survival of humankind hinges on the constant motion of the self-sustaining titular train. Because the train remains under an inequitable caste order, a group of lowest-class citizens orchestrates a rebellion led by Curtis Everett (Chris Evans).

The most expensive Korean feature film ever made, Snowpiercer received overwhelming praise and even procured a television spin-off. It serves as both a chilling dystopian examination of poverty as well as a scathing criticism of class order.

RELATED: 10 Science Fiction Projects Currently In Development (And 10 Rumored)

7 Predestination (2014)

Written and directed by Michael and Peter Spierig, Predestination tells the story of a time-traveling agent (Ethan Hawke) tasked with thwarting a criminal known as the Fizzle Bomber. In his travels, the agent encounters a man called John (Sarah Snook) who had undergone gender reassignment surgery after a catastrophic series of events in his former life as a woman.

The film did not receive a wide release in the United States, buts its critical reception was favorable. A story that delicately straddles the border between being mystifying and crucifying intricate, Predestination lends a unique spin to the traditional time travel narrative with its poignant performances and ripe overlapping paradoxes.

6 District 9 (2009)

Directed by Neill Blomkamp, District 9 takes place in a fictionalized version of Johannesburg, South Africa, where a refugee camp is built for a displaced group of insect-like aliens given the degrading nickname "prawns." After the camp declines into bedraggled squalor, a weapons manufacturer is hired by the government to relocate the aliens to a new encampment, a project led by an operative named Wikus (Sharlto Copley). 

Inspired by the similar events of District 6 during the South African apartheid regime, District 9 poignantly synthesizes science fiction and withering social commentary with an earnestness that leaves directer Blomkamp still hoping to continue the story ten years after its release.

5 Super 8 (2011)

Directed by J.J. Abrams, Super 8 follows teenager Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney), reeling from the recent death of his mother, as he and his friends embark on the creation of a horror film for a state competition. While filming late one night, the group witnesses the violent derailment of an air force train which unleashes a malevolent unseen creature upon their quiet town.

A film ripe with 1970s nostalgia, Super 8 offers a more sympathetic telling of the traditional extraterrestrial narrative. Joe serves as the tender heart of his scrappy group of friends (an echo of earlier films like The Goonies) as they gather their resources to abet in the creature's escape from its military captors.

4 Children of Men (2006)

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón, Children of Men chronicles a bleak imagined future following an unknown pandemic which renders all women infertile. A bureaucrat in one of the few surviving civilizations, Theo (Clive Owen) is contacted by a group of underground activists led by his ex-wife and tasked with smuggling a remarkably pregnant refugee (Clare-Hope Ashitey) to safety. 

Though never widely released or commercially successful, the film received several Oscar nominations for its technical achievements, namely its cinematography and editing. It explores traditional themes of political animosity and hopes with a singular gruffness, bolstered by an enduring cast and sensational camera work.

RELATED: 15 Worst Science Fiction Movies Ever (According To Rotten Tomatoes) 

3 The Cell (2000)

Tarsem Singh's directorial debut, The Cell is the story of psychologist Catherine Deane (Jennifer Lopez), a participant in a developmental neurological treatment in which a virtual plane is used to project her consciousness into the psyche of coma patients. Deane is then persuaded by FBI agents to project herself into the nefarious psyche of a recently captured serial killer in an attempt to help them locate his most recent kidnapped victim.

Contrary to the dismissals of many critics who panned the film for a perceived lack of substance, The Cell is a grandiose deconstruction of the standard serial killer narrative. Using dizzyingly nightmarish dreamscapes to explore the extent of human consciousness, Singh cements his heavily stylized but dazzling directorial signature.

2 Annihilation (2018)

Directed by Alex Garland, Annihilation follows Lena (Natalie Portman), a biology professor and former soldier who is recruited along with four other scientists to explore an area referred to as "The Shimmer," a confined section of swampland that causes any and all organic matter within its circumference to inexplicably mutate. The film explores each of the five women's motivations for embarking on what they collectively regard as a scientific suicide mission.

Though it was one of the biggest box-office bombs of 2018, Annihilation's critical consensus was bracingly positive. An amalgamation of science fiction and horror, it summons an intoxicating air of unease with its fever-dream-like imagery and challenges the standard viewpoint that an invasion of unknown origin is inherently harmful.

1 Ex Machina (2014)

Written and directed by Alex Garland, Ex Machina follows Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), a programmer for fictional search engine empire Blue Book, as he is selected to spend a week in the company of Blue Book's enigmatic CEO, Nathan (Oscar Isaac). Once at Nathan's secluded estate, Caleb is tasked with conducting the Turing test on a sophisticated robot with artificial intelligence called Ava (Alicia Vikander).

Despite relying far less on action and rather using tension to drive the majority of the scenes, Ex Machina managed to score a well-deserved Oscar win for best achievement in visual effects. It provides a highly polished vehicle for its disquieting allegory, calling into question the moral value of man-made AI and the notion of captivity.

NEXT: 11 Most Accurate Science Fiction Movies Of All Time

source https://screenrant.com/sci-fi-fantasy-underrated-films/

[brokehorrorfan]

Best New Horror Movies on Netflix: Spring 2017

I know there's an overwhelming amount of horror movies to sift through on Netflix, so I've decided to take out some of the legwork by compiling a list of the season's best new genre titles on Netflix's instant streaming service.

Please feel free to leave a comment with any I may have missed and share your thoughts on any of the films you watch. You can also peruse past installments of Best New Horror Moves on Netflix for more suggestions.

1. It Follows

I assume most horror fans have already seen It Follows, as it was one of the most-talked-about genre films of 2015, but if you somehow missed it, stop reading this and watch it right now. A horror classic for a new generation, the plot revolves around a curse passed on through sex in which the recipient is followed by... something. Not only does it draw influence from Halloween and A Nightmare on Elm Street, the film also evokes everything I love about those classics: a strong female lead in Maika Monroe (The Guest), a dreamlike atmosphere, precise direction, stunning cinematography, a memorable synth score, a familiar suburban setting, and an unsettling, mysterious antagonist. Read my full review of the film here.

2. Under the Shadow

The first half of Under the Shadow works well as a compelling war drama, while the last act turns into an edge-of-your-seat supernatural chiller. The Persian-language film takes place in 1980s Iran while the Iraq war rages on. When her husband is drafted, Shideh (Narges Rashidi) is left to raise their young daughter on her own, living in a war zone under the constant threat of an attack. The daughter becomes convinced that evil djinn have taken her beloved doll and soon develops a fever that won't break. The stressed mother dismisses her stories until she experiences the hauntings herself. The film explores similar themes to The Babadook, in addition to sharing an appeal to both genre and arthouse/film festival audiences.

3. The Invitation

As raw as it is calculated, The Invitation is an understated thriller that brings to mind such films as Rosemary’s Baby, The Shining, and Let the Right One In. The captivating plot revolves around a group of friends reuniting at a lavish dinner party, but one man (Logan Marshall-Green, Prometheus) becomes increasingly paranoid of ulterior motives. Director Karyn Kusama (Jennifer's Body, Aeon Flux) strings viewers along with just enough information to maintain engagement without sacrificing ambiguity, anchored by brilliant performances from the ensemble cast. The deliberate, slow pace creates a pervading sense of dread, which culminates in a chilling finale worthy of the build up. Read my full review of the film here.

4. Train to Busan

Think you’re done with zombie movies? Think again. In addition to smashing records in its home country of South Korea, Train to Busian is easily accessible to a global audience. Like Snowpiercer meets 28 Days Later, the plot involves a ferocious zombie outbreak aboard a train. It's on par with a Hollywood blockbuster movie in terms of spectacle, performance, and entertainment value. It's also surprisingly heartfelt, thanks to characters for whom the viewer cares - including a sweet father-daughter relationship and one of the best supporting characters in recent memory. Read my full review of the film here.

5. Cheap Thrills

Cheap Thrills is a few years old now, but if it went under your radar, you need to check it out. A quick glance at the trailer or synopsis may leave you questioning how the plot - in which two desperate men perform increasingly twisted dares for money - could sustain itself for 88 minutes. Against all odds, you'll watch in suspense, wondering what they'll do next and questioning if you'd do the same with money being waved in front of you. Ethan Embry (Can't Hardly Wait) completely reinvents himself in the role of the scumbag, while Pat Healy (Starry Eyes) earns the audience's sympathy despite being just as guilty. David Koechner (Anchorman) plays the wealthy man handing over the money, with Sara Paxton (The Last House on the Left) as his arm candy.

6. Trash Fire

Trash Fire certainly isn't for everyone, but if you've enjoyed writer-director Richard Bates Jr.'s previous output - Excision and Suburban Gothic - you should have a pretty good grasp on what to expect from his latest. In an attempt to mend their toxic relationship, arrogant pick Owen (Adrian Grenier, Entourage) and his on-again, off-again girlfriend, Isabel (Angela Trimbur, The Final Girls), visit his estranged sister (AnnaLynne McCord, 90210), who was horribly burned in a fire that killed his parents. The cast also includes Fionnula Flanagan (The Others), Matthew Gray Gubler (Criminal Minds), Ezra Buzzington (The Hills Have Eyes), and Ray Santiago (Ash vs Evil Dead). The genre bender begins as a quirky, black comedy, then transforms into a dark and disturbing drama with horror undertones. Both halves are uncomfortable in their own way.

7. Evolution

Evolution is definitely tailored for the foreign/arthouse crowd, as French director Lucile Hadzihalilovic explores the horrors of puberty in an esoteric manner. It's immediately striking, from the breathtaking, Planet Earth-esque underwater photography that opens the film, and remains visually interesting even when the plot goes off the deep end. The story centers on a young boy who discovers a dead body in the ocean, after which he's sent to a mysterious hospital where he and other boys are subjected to bizarre experiments. The finale is a memorable one.

8. The Similars

The Similars (known in its native Spanish as Los Parecidos) is an unabashed love letter to The Twilight Zone and similar science fiction thrillers from the 1960s, right down to the Rod Serling-style voiceovers that bookend the story. The film takes place in 1968 Mexico, adopting a period-appropriate aesthetic with desaturated color, nearly to the point of being black and white, stark film noir-esque lighting, and fake film grain. The events occur in a bus station during a heavy rainstorm, where the handful of stranded patrons face a bizarre phenomenon that I won't give away here. It goes a little off the rails toward the end, but the premise is so riveting you won't be able to take your eyes off the screen.

9. Tales of Halloween

Tales of Halloween is a horror anthology made up of 10 segments from directors such as Neil Marshall (The Descent), Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw II-IV), Lucky McKee (May), Paul Solet (Grace), and Mike Mendez (Big Ass Spider), among others. The cast is equally impressive; you'll recognize nearly every face as a genre veteran, indie favorite, or master of horror filmmaker, including Barry Bostwick (The Rocky Horror Picture Show), Lin Shaye (Insidious), Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator), and Adrienne Barbeau (The Fog), to name a few. There's really only so much you can do with a Halloween-night setting in 10 minutes, so the film becomes monotonous at times, but there's still a lot of fun to be had. It won't replace Trick 'r Treat as the go-to Halloween anthology, but Tales of Halloween makes for a great addition to your seasonal viewing.

10. Antibirth

Antibirth is further proof (as if we needed it) that Canadians love David Cronenberg's body horror fare. The first half of the film is, frankly, a chore to slog through, but once the prolonged set-up is out of the way, we're rewarded with nightmarish visions of blood, pus, and hideous deformities. It's worth the time commitment for the insane final 10 minutes, which make this movie a fun one to watch with a group of friends. Natasha Lyonne (Orange Is the New Black) stars as an unfortunate girl who shows signs of being pregnant - including a bulbous belly - without having had sex. Whatever is inside her infects both her body and mind. It's a wholly unglamorous role, but Lyonne owns it. Chloë Sevigny (American Horror Story), Meg Tilly (Body Snatchers), and Mark Webber (Green Room) make up the supporting cast.

11. Death Race 2050

It's hard to warrant a purchase for Death Race 2050, when the original Death Race 2000 does the same thing far more successfully, but a Netflix viewing is the perfect way to spend a mindless weekend afternoon. Roger Corman returns to produce a new reboot of the 1975 cult classic. Like many of his productions, it's not a particularly good movie, but it’s an amusing one. It serves as a timely satire under our current administration, with Malcolm McDowell (Halloween) as the Chairman of the United Corporations of America. He hosts a three-day, cross-country race that plays out like NASCAR meets The Hunger Games with a hint of Looney Tunes. Manu Bennett (The Hobbit) assumes the role of half-man/half-machine reigning champion Frankenstein. Read my full review of the film here.

BONUS: American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson

I think Ryan Murphy is brilliant with casting and marketing, but I've always found his storytelling on American Horror Story to be heavily flawed. By basing his latest anthology effort, American Crime Story, on true events, he's able to focus on his strengths without as much concern for sticking the landing. The People v. O.J. Simpson is well worth the 8+ hour commitment; it's engaging even if you lived through the infamous case, doubly so if you don't know all the details. The cast is populated by notable names like John Travolta, Cuba Gooding Jr., David Schwimmer, and Nathan Lane, but it's Sarah Paulson and Sterling K. Brown who steal the show as the defense attorneys.

[lifeofaliterarynerd]

YA & NA Contemporary Reads for Valentine’s Day

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before - Jenny Han //  Lara Jean  has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters.

P.S. I Still Love You - Jenny Han //  Lara Jean didn’t expect to really fall for Peter. She and Peter were just pretending. Except suddenly they weren’t. Now Lara Jean is more confused than ever. When another boy from her past returns to her life, Lara Jean’s feelings for him return too. Can a girl be in love with two boys at once?

Anna and the French Kiss - Stephanie Perkins //  Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris--until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all...including a serious girlfriend.

Lola and the Boy Next Door - Stephanie Perkins //  Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

Isla and the Happily Ever After - Stephanie Perkins //  Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart.

My Life Next Door - Huntley Fitzpatrick //  The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

Better Off Friends - Elizabeth Eulberg // For Macallan and Levi, it was friends at first sight. Everyone says guys and girls can’t be just friends, but these two are.  They are platonic and happy that way.They can’t help but wonder . . . are they more than friends or are they better off without making it even more complicated?

Wait For You - Jennifer L. Armentrout //  Traveling thousands of miles from home to enter college is the only way nineteen-year-old Avery Morgansten can escape what happened at the Halloween party five years ago—an event that forever changed her life. All she needs to do is make it to her classes on time, make sure the bracelet on her left wrist stays in place, not draw any attention to herself, and maybe—please God—make a few friends, because surely that would be a nice change of pace. The one thing she didn’t need and never planned on was capturing the attention of the one guy who could shatter the precarious future she’s building for herself.

A Little Something Different - Sandy Hall //  The creative writing teacher, the delivery guy, the local Starbucks baristas, his best friend, her roommate, and the squirrel in the park all have one thing in common—they believe that Gabe and Lea should get together. But somehow even when nothing is going on, something is happening between them, and everyone can see it

Royally Screwed - Emma Chase // Nicholas Arthur Frederick Edward Pembrook, Crowned Prince of Wessco , grew up with the whole world watching, and now Marriage Watch is in full force. Nicholas has to decide who he is and, more importantly, who he wants to be: a King... or the man who gets to love Olivia forever.

Summer Days and Summer Nights - Stephanie Perkins //  Maybe it's the long, lazy days, or maybe it's the heat making everyone a little bit crazy. Whatever the reason, summer is the perfect time for love to bloom. Summer Days & Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories, written by twelve bestselling young adult writers and edited by the international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins, will have you dreaming of sunset strolls by the lake.

Just One Day - Gayle Forman //  Allyson Healey's life is exactly like her suitcase—packed, planned, ordered. Then on the last day of her three-week post-graduation European tour, she meets Willem. A free-spirited, roving actor, Willem is everything she’s not, and when he invites her to abandon her plans and come to Paris with him, Allyson says yes. This uncharacteristic decision leads to a day of risk and romance, liberation and intimacy: 24 hours that will transform Allyson’s life.

Just One Year - Gayle Forman // When he opens his eyes, Willem doesn’t know where in the world he is—Prague or Dubrovnik or back in Amsterdam. All he knows is that he is once again alone, and that he needs to find a girl named Lulu. They shared one magical day in Paris, and something about that day—that girl—makes Willem wonder if they aren’t fated to be together. He travels all over the world, from Mexico to India, hoping to reconnect with her. But as months go by and Lulu remains elusive, Willem starts to question if the hand of fate is as strong as he’d thought.

The Sun is Also a Star - Nicola Yoon //  Follow Natasha, a girl who believes in science and facts, as she meets Daniel, a dutiful son and dreamer, as they spend a single day together in New York - and try to stop Natasha’s family from being deported to Jamacia.

Everything Everything - Nicola Yoon // My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla. But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. His name is Olly. Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster

Beneath Wandering Stars - Ashlee Cowles //  After her soldier brother is horribly wounded in Afghanistan, Gabriela must honor the vow she made: If anything ever happened to him, she would walk the Camino de Santiago through Spain, making a pilgrimage in his name. The worst part is that the promise stipulates that she must travel with her brother's best friend--a boy she has despised all her life.

Isn’t She Lovely - Lauren Layne //  Stephanie Kendrick gave up her whole summer to ace her NYU film school screenwriting course, so she's pissed to be stuck with a preppy, spoiled frat boy as her writing partner. Then again, with her piercings, black-rimmed eyes, and Goth wardrobe, Stephanie isn't exactly Ethan Price's type, either. He's probably got his eye on some leggy blonde with a trust fund... or does he?

Catch a Falling Star - Kim Culbertson //  Nothing ever happens in Little, CA. Which is just the way Carter Moon likes it. But when Hollywood arrives to film a movie starring former child star turned PR mess Adam Jakes, everything changes. Carter's town becomes a giant glittery set and, much to her annoyance, everyone is starry-eyed for Adam. Carter seems to be the only girl not falling all over herself to get a glimpse of him. Which apparently makes her perfect for the secret offer of a lifetime: playing the role of Adam's girlfriend while he's in town, to improve his public image, in exchange for a hefty paycheck.

The Hating Game - Sally Thorne //  Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman hate each other. Not dislike. Not begrudgingly tolerate. Hate. And they have no problem displaying their feelings through a series of ritualistic passive aggressive maneuvers as they sit across from each other, executive assistants to co-CEOs of a publishing company. Now up for the same promotion, their battle of wills has come to a head and Lucy refuses to back down when their latest game could cost her her dream job…But the tension between Lucy and Joshua has also reached its boiling point, and Lucy is discovering that maybe she doesn’t hate Joshua. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.

Wanderlost - Jen Malone //  Aubree’s ready for a chilled-out summer at home in Ohio, until she finds herself taking over her sister’s job as a tour guide…in Europe. Things fall apart almost immediately, and when the tour company owner’s son comes along for the ride and steals Aubree’s heart, keeping up the ruse of being her own sister becomes the hardest challenge of all.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight - Jennifer E. Smith //  Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row. A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

The Geography of You and Me - Jennifer E. Smith //  Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they’re rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. Lucy and Owen’s relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and—finally—a reunion in the city where they first met.

P.S. I Like You - Kasie West //  While spacing out in chemistry class, Lily scribbles some of her favorite song lyrics onto her desk. The next day, she finds that someone has continued the lyrics on the desk and added a message to her. Soon, Lily and her anonymous pen pal are exchanging full-on letters—sharing secrets, recommending bands, and opening up to each other. Lily realizes she’s kind of falling for this letter writer. Only, who is he?

On the Fence - Kasie West //  For sixteen-year-old Charlotte Reynolds, aka Charlie, being raised by a single dad and three older brothers has its perks. She can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows—including her longtime neighbor and honorary fourth brother, Braden. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn't know the first thing about anything. To cope with the stress of faking her way through this new world of  makeup, lacy skirts, and BeDazzlers , Charlie seeks late-night refuge in her backyard, talking out her problems with Braden by the fence that separates them. But their Fence Chats can't solve Charlie's biggest problem: she's falling for Braden. Hard.

Since You’ve Been Gone - Morgan Matson //  It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.  Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane's list. Who knows what she’ll find?

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit - Jaye Robin Brown //  Joanna Gordon has been out and proud for years, but when her popular radio evangelist father remarries and decides to move all three of them from Atlanta to the more conservative Rome, Georgia, he asks Jo to do the impossible: to lie low for the rest of her senior year. And Jo reluctantly agrees.  Things get complicated when she meets Mary Carlson, the oh-so-tempting sister of her new friend at school.

Far From You - Tess Sharpe //  After a painful car accident led to a dangerous OxyContin addiction, Sophie’s fought every day to get and remain clean. When someone plants drugs on Sophie after the death of her best friend Mina, everyone assumes that Sophie fell back into her destructive habits and took Mina down with her. Only she knows that Mina’s murder wasn’t a drug deal gone wrong, and only she can stop the killer.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire  Sáenz //  Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

History is All You Left Me - Adam Silvera //  When Griffin’s first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident, his universe implodes. Even though Theo had moved to California for college and started seeing Jackson, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to him when the time was right. But now, the future he’s been imagining for himself has gone far off course. To make things worse, the only person who truly understands his heartache is Jackson. But no matter how much they open up to each other, Griffin’s downward spiral continues. 

I’ll Give You the Sun - Jandy Nelson //  Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life.

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour - Morgan Matson //  Amy Curry is not looking forward to her summer. Her mother decided to move across the country and now it's Amy's responsibility to get their car from California to Connecticut. The only problem is, since her father died in a car accident, she isn't ready to get behind the wheel. Enter Roger. An old family friend, he also has to make the cross-country trip - and has plenty of baggage of his own. The road home may be unfamiliar - especially with their friendship venturing into uncharted territory - but together, Amy and Roger will figure out how to map their way.

The Unexpected Everything - Morgan Matson // Andie’s got a plan for her summer, just as she does for everything in life. But when it falls apart thanks to a political scandal, and she ends up spending the summer living with the last person she ever wanted to—her own father—all her carefully laid plans take turns for the unexpected, including the one she had for her heart.

Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell //  Cath is a Simon Snow fan.  She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving. Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to. Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell //  Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour //  Emi, a girl who knows how to design a film set like no one else, but finds her love life far from cinematic. Stuck in a hot-and-cold pattern with the same girl, she begins to break the cycle when a mysterious letter from an acting legend leads her to the beautiful and unconventional Ava.

Gena/Finn - Kat Helegeson & Hannah Moskowitz //  Gena and Finn, two girls in different life stages, brought together by fandom for a TV show called Up Below. While their shared love is what initially bonds them, it doesn’t take long for them to click in every other way, baring their souls to each other about their lives and loves and worlds beyond the screen.  But the closer they get, the more complicated things become, especially for Finn and the boyfriend she lives with.

South of Sunshine - Dana Elmendorf //  In Sunshine, Tennessee, the main event in town is Friday night football, the biggest party of the year is held in a field filled with pickup trucks, and church attendance is mandatory. For Kaycee Jean McCoy, life in Sunshine means dating guys she has no interest in, saying only “yes, ma’am” when the local bigots gossip at her mom’s cosmetics salon, and avoiding certain girls at all costs. Girls like Bren Dawson.

If I Was Your Girl - Meredith Russo //  For Amanda, moving in with her father is an opportunity to start over where no one but her dad has ever known her as Andrew, and the move most certainly agrees with her: she makes new friends in no time, and it gives her and her father a chance to get to know each other again. But she also falls in love, which is something she never expected to happen, has no idea how to handle, and just may spell her downfall.

Run - Kody Keplinger //  Bo’s a wild girl who does her own thing and whose parents couldn’t care less what she’s up to. Agnes is legally blind, and has parents who practically keep her prisoner in an attempt to keep her “safe” from the outside world. Despite their differences, the two become best friends…which means when Bo comes to Agnes one night on the run from the cops and asks her to leave town at her side, Agnes agrees, and the two head off on a hell of an adventure, complete with a whole lot of law-breaking.

A List of Cages - Robin Roe //  When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he’s got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn’t easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can’t complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian—the foster brother he hasn’t seen in five years.

You Know Me Well - Nina LaCour & David Levithan //  Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.  When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other—and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more. When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other—and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli //  Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

Always the Last to Know - Crystal Bowling //  Wearing a Maid of Honor dress that very well may cause the South to want to rise again, Jess Reynolds is prepared to walk down the aisle at her best friend's wedding. It's just that things keep getting in the way, like a sex-crazed coworker, an annoying brother-of-the-bride, and a handsome and horribly charming friend posing as the Best Man. As it turns out, Jess might just be the last one to know everything, including the workings of her own heart.

Can You Keep a Secret - Sophie Kinsella //  Meet Emma Corrigan, a young woman with a huge heart, an irrepressible spirit, and a few little secrets: Secrets from her boyfriend: I've always thought Connor looks a bit like Ken. As in Barbie and Ken. Secrets from her mother: I lost my virginity in the spare bedroom with Danny Nussbaum while Mum and Dad were downstairs watching Ben-Hur. Secrets she wouldn't share with anyone in the world: I have no idea what NATO stands for. Or even what it is. Until she spills them all to a handsome stranger on a plane. At least, she thought he was a stranger.…

Famous in Love - Rebecca Serle //  The romantic story of a girl who gets plucked from obscurity to star in the next major feature film franchise based on a book and the ensuing love triangles she gets entangled in on—-and off screen. 

Love and First Sight - Josh Sundquist //  On his first day at a new school, blind sixteen-year-old Will Porter accidentally groped a girl on the stairs, sat on another student in the cafeteria, and somehow drove a classmate to tears. High school can only go up from here, right? As Will starts to find his footing, he develops a crush on a sweet but shy girl named Cecily. And despite his fear that having a girlfriend will make him inherently dependent on someone sighted, the two of them grow closer and closer.

Fan Art - Sarah Tregay //  With the hurdle of coming out to his family overcome, some might think that the worst of Jamie’s problems are over, but really, they’re just beginning. With prom around the corner and his best friend Mason already lined up to take a girl, Jamie is forced to confront overwhelming jealousy and the knowledge that his growing feelings for Mason aren’t going away anytime soon.

One Man Guy - Michael Barakiva //  Aleksander Khederian doesn’t need (or want) summer school, but his strict Armenian-American parents think it’s the best way for him to stay on the honor track. Just when he thinks his summer couldn’t get any worse, he meets Ethan. Cool, confident, and adventurous, Ethan is everything Alek wishes he could be. As he’s drawn closer to Ethan’s alluring persona, Alek realizes that he might want to be a bit more than “just friends” with the attractive skateboarder.

Look Both Ways - Alison Cherry //  A summer away from the city is the beginning of everything for Brooklyn Shepard. Her theater apprenticeship at Allerdale is a chance to prove that she can carve out a niche all her own, surrounded by people who don’t know anything about her or her family of superstar performers. Brooklyn immediately hits it off with her roommate, Zoe, and soon their friendship turns into something more.

The Art of Being Normal - Lisa Williamson // David Piper has always been an outsider. His parents think he’s gay. The school bully thinks he’s a freak. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl. On the first day at his new school Leo Denton has one goal – to be invisible. Attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan. When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms.

[thebookfeelers-blog]

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

The Geography of You and Me was not one of my favorite, I still really enjoyed it because I love all of Smiths book. It’s about Lucy who is home alone with her parents out of town and her older brothers off to college she is home alone in the new york apartment building. Owen s mother recently died, he and his dad live in the basement with his dad being the maintenance man for the hotel. They accidentally meet in the building elevator when the whole town has a blackout. They end up spending the night together traveling the dark town. In the morning reality catches up with them, they end up going their separate ways with Lucy moving to Edinburgh and Owen heading out west with his dad. They continue to send each other postcards trying to stay in touch but can they or is it just another statistical long distant relationship?

SPOILERS 

Not one of my favorites but I still really appreciate they story line with my father always trying to make me move away from the people i consider friends and from my crushes. I like that they try to stay in touch not many people can do that and that they write each other makes it even more special. Even though I didn’t enjoy it as much as other books I’ve would still recommend this book.

[kiddylanes]

No Excuse to Fitness: Working Women of Now

For centuries, women never concerned themselves with fitness or staying active. They dieted to lose weight and the most exercise they got came from chasing their children. There were of course, exceptions to this rule. There were women who participated in physical games with their kids or maybe a bike ride with their husbands. But for the most part, women, once they were grown, didn’t make it a point to exercise. Only a few women understood why fitness is important to women.

Today, women are beginning to consider fitness and exercise an important part of staying healthy. As information becomes available about the benefits of exercise and the dangers of a sedentary lifestyle, women are paying close attention and doing something about it. They are making fitness a higher priority in their lives.

With a workforce of women earning nearly as much or more than their male counterparts, women have been plagued by many of the health problems that men have encountered for years. Women are often in higher managerial positions now and stress related illnesses and diseases associated with certain lifestyles have increased for women. Fighting off these life-threatening diseases is one more reason why fitness is important for women.

Staying physically fit helps to strengthen the heart, respiratory and mental functions. Studies have shown a direct link between fitness and brain function. By sticking to a regular fitness program, women in decision-making positions find it easier to perform their jobs and will be able to better deal with the stress.

Fitness is important for all women, regardless of their occupation. Whether reaching up while stacking shelves or bending down to pick up children, women use large and small muscles throughout their bodies to do every day tasks. Staying physically fit can aid in every moves made throughout the day.

Regular physical activity includes a combination of resistance and cardio exercises. Be sure to mix it up to get maximum results during each workout. Cardio activities raise the heartbeat and help the body to burn calories. Choose activities that you enjoy like walking, jogging, swimming, or cycling, for starters.

Women are busier today than ever and many may think they don’t have time for exercise. 30 minutes of exercise each day is all it takes to stay in shape. You don’t have to spend hours at the gym—just commit to exercising at least 30 minutes a day and reap the full benefits of fitness.

Let's know how challenging it was for Working Mother Editorial Director Jennifer Owens, as communicated to Laura Flynn McCarthy.

The time is now. For many years, she’s put her own health at the bottom of her priority list. “I went back to work three months after each of my two kids was born, and I made a bargain with myself that all my free time would go to them,” says Working Mother Editorial Director Jennifer Owens. “Now I see I’ve let my own needs slide. While I did power walk every other morning after my first was born, that slowly ebbed with the birth of my second child, the advancement in my career and economic changes that left me with more financial responsibility.”

Jennifer has a close-knit family and a job she loves, but the years of neglecting her well-being have left her overweight, frequently tired and concerned about the example she’s setting. “I can’t put it off any longer. I need to show my kids that personal health is important. I haven’t always been a good role model for that,” she admits. “It would be an amazing gift to my family to create a lifestyle in which healthy eating and exercise are as ingrained as brushing teeth and reading every night.”

To the rescue: a realistic food and fitness plan that fits Jennifer’s nonstop schedule (can you relate?), designed with top getting fit experts: nutritionist Elizabeth DeRobertis, MS, RD, director of the Nutrition Center at Scarsdale Medical Group in Scarsdale, NY, and fitness trainer Liz Neporent, co-author of The Thin in 10 Weight-Loss Plan and a spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise. Not a quick fix, this is a can-do program for the long haul. These strategies will help Jennifer swap out bad habits for smart choices that can become automatic and lifelong and allow her to achieve three goals: lose weight and keep it off; become more fit, more energetic and less tired; and make healthy eating and exercise a natural lifestyle for her family.

Food That Works

Don't skip breakfast!

As part of her getting fit plan, Jennifer should aim to lose about a pound per week by consuming 1,200 to 1,400 calories a day. Or she can reduce her current daily intake by 500 calories (or by 300 calories and exercising off the other 200). “You can’t rely on willpower,” says DeRobertis. “Healthy-weight adults don’t have more will- power than overweight people. Rather, they put an effective plan in place.” DeRobertis targeted the problem spots in Jennifer’s day that thwart good eating and devised plan-ahead solutions.

Problem Spot 1: The Morning Rush

Jennifer gets up at 7 a.m. and gets herself ready for work and everyone out the door by 8:30, when she walks her kids three blocks to school and then hops on the subway to her office. She eats nothing until about 10 a.m., when she has a chai tea and sometimes a greek yogurt at her desk.

Solution: Eat earlier and spread out your calories. “Women who skip breakfast often have trouble with food the rest of the day, often eating too much after dinner,” says Derobertis. One way to eat less later on is to eat something in the morning. Greek yogurt is a good choice because it’s rich in protein, and many find they eat healthier overall when they start the day with protein. Jennifer needs to eat before she gets to work (even just a cheese stick or hard-boiled egg), have the Greek yogurt at 11 a.m. and then eat something every few hours throughout the day to keep her metabolism going and control her appetite.

Problem Spot 2: Skipping Lunch

Because her workday is nonstop, Jennifer has programmed her work calendar with the reminder “Don’t forget to eat lunch.” Still, it’s often 3 p.m. by the time she realizes she hasn’t. By then she’s ravenous and prone to making poor food choices.

Solution: Pack lunch and snacks. “Bringing your food to work is the top change you can make,” says Derobertis. “It can offer the best weight control results because it stops you from getting too hungry and making bad food choices under stress.” One good choice: a basic sandwich with lean turkey, ham, roast beef or chicken. “One slice of these proteins has about 15 calories,” says DeRobertis. “Put three or four slices on two slices of 50- or 60-calorie bread, add mustard or a 35-calorie cheese spread (such as Laughing cow), and you’ve got a satisfying lunch for about 200 calories.” Ordering in or eating out? Start with a broth-based soup, then have a lettuce-veggie salad with a baked or broiled protein like chicken, salmon or shrimp, a fat-free dressing and, if you want, one “fun” topping like croutons, sunflower seeds or shredded cheese. Try to start lunch by 1 p.m.

Problem Spot 3: Afternoon Snack Attack

By mid-afternoon, Jennifer feels she not only needs a snack (especially if she’s skipped lunch), but she deserves one as a treat for the stress she’s faced. The vending machine and corner bakery beckon with snacks she might down with a diet cola.

Solution: Snack strategically. In her lunch pack, Jennifer should include three or four healthy, pre-portioned snacks with 130 or fewer calories (see below). In addition to a mid-morning snack, if lunch was at 1, she should have a snack around 3 p.m., another at 4:30 and, if she’s working late, another at 6. “Choose pre-portioned foods and avoid handfuls of anything, because one handful quickly becomes many, and you lose track of your calories,” says DeRobertis. One sweet snack like a 100-calorie bag of cookies can be okay, but Jennifer should monitor how she feels when she eats it. If it acts as a trigger to eat more sweets, she should stick with healthier choices. Diet cola may also stimulate appetite, says DeRobertis. Water and flavored seltzer are better choices.

Problem Spot 4: Mindless Munching

When Jennifer gets home, her second shift begins: making dinner for her kids, helping them with homework, reading logs and baths, packing lunches for the next day—all before she and her husband eat their own dinner around 9:30 p.m. Both she and her kids are hungry and need something to munch on while all of this activity is going on.

Solution: Beware of BLTs (bites, licks and tastes). “The snacking you do when you first get home or while preparing or cleaning up dinner adds up,” says DeRobertis. If you’re all hungry, eat foods in order from lowest calories to highest calories. Heat a cup of soup, microwave a bag of low-fat popcorn or put out a plate of raw veggies and fat-free dip, hummus or portion-controlled guacamole for you and the kids to munch on before dinner.

Problem Spot 5: Eating Late

On a typical work night, Jennifer and her husband eat dinner at 9:30. She’s often still hungry after and may snack while they watch television together.

Solution: Think green and lean. “There’s no magical cutoff time to stop eating at night,” says DeRobertis. “If you eat carefully, you can have a late dinner and still lose weight. But you need to avoid foods that are easy to overeat, such as pasta, rice and bread. Instead have one lean protein, such as broiled or baked chicken or fish, and two vegetables.” After-dinner snack? “That’s probably more habit than hunger,” says DeRobertis, who suggests eating more protein and vegetables at dinner if it’s really hunger. If late snacking is a habit, change your routine: Sit in a different room; do something other than watching television. Still want a snack? think 100 calories.

On the Move

You can even exercise in your chair at work. Try it!

Fridays are Jennifer’s “perfect days.” She works at home. after walking her kids to school, she works out for 40 minutes at the gym, comes home, eats breakfast, showers and dresses and is at her desk by 9:30. The rest of her workweek? Not so perfect. “Mondays through Thursdays are stress, stress, stress,” she admits. “I can’t exercise in the morning because I’m tired and need my sleep, and the office is non-stop work until i get home, sometimes not until 9 at night, when I want to collapse on the couch. Fitting in a workout is just unrealistic.”

Solution? Exercise in short spurts throughout the day. “There are advantages to working out in small bursts,” says Neporent. “You can exercise anywhere and not need to change clothes or shower. It boosts your mood. Research shows you burn more calories per minute with several 10-minute bursts of exercise than one longer one. and you may eat less. People who do one-hour workouts often feel ‘I burned it; I earned it.’ But with 5- or 10-minute workouts, people don’t feel that sense of entitlement because they’ve ‘only’ done 5 or 10 minutes. It’s a psychological advantage.” Neporent’s plan to get Jennifer moving while maintaining her schedule:

Mondays Through Thursdays

“Start each day with a chart divided into four sections of 5 minutes each,” suggests Neporent. “Your goal is 20 minutes of extra activity each day, in whatever spurts you can. You’ll burn at least as many calories as doing 20 minutes all at once and rev your metabolism each time.” Before work: get off the subway one stop before your usual one and walk to your office. Check off your first 5-minute block of the day.

At work: Check off 5 or 10 minutes of activity by doing any combination of the following:

While talking on the phone, stand up and pace or do squats, leg lifts or toe raises.

Sitting in your chair, increase flexibility and core strength with roll-ups: Sit up tall; bend forward slowly, a vertebrae at a time, until you’re hanging down. Slowly roll up a vertebra at a time until you’re sitting straight in your chair again.

Squeeze a ball while reading through emails or manuscripts to strengthen your hands.

Walk to co-workers’ desks rather than emailing or calling. “you save time because you accomplish something in one conversation rather than 16 emails,” says Neporent, “and you move more.”

Walk and talk. meeting with one or two others? Do a walking meeting instead of sitting around a table.

In the evening: Do a 10-minute DVD workout. Get a DVD that offers five 10-minute workouts and cue it up on Sunday night so it’s ready when you walk in the door on Monday. “Let that workout help you decompress from work to home, and let your kids see you exercising on a daily basis,” says Neporent. Some DVDs to try: the “10-Minute Solution” series, “Exhale Core Fusion” series, “10 Pounds Down” or “Thin in 10.”

Fridays

Stick with your usual workout that includes a combination of cardio (treadmill, bike or elliptical machine) and using weight machines.

The Weekend

Exercise as a family. you want to have fun with your family and raise your heart rate with sustained aerobic activity. Suggestions:

* Take a one-hour urban family hike.

* Jump rope. It burns about 15 calories per minute. “alternate with your kids doing 5 or 10 jumps each; after 15 minutes it will be a better workout than going to the gym,” says Neporent.

* Go to a playground and do everything your kids do.

* Scooter, which Jennifer’s kids love. “Get an adult scooter with four wheels and a helmet and scooter with them,” suggests Neporent. “You’ll get a great workout, and your kids will think you’re the coolest mom around.”

The ultimate key to getting fit and staying healthy? Turning on your internal GPS. “Eating well and exercising is not about being perfect all the time. It’s about how you respond when things don’t go perfectly,” says Derobertis. “If you take a wrong turn in your car, your GPS tells you to recalculate and puts you back on track. It doesn’t raise its voice and reprimand you. your internal GPS should do the same. If you have an occasional slip, don’t give up and think, I blew it. I might as well eat whatever I want now. Get back on track that same day, and you will reach your goal.” Go team Jennifer!

Courtesy:  Laura Flynn McCarthy and Karen Ficarelli from

workingmother.com and fitness4her.com respectively.

For more of such feeds/blogs, visit https://kiddylanes.com/blogs/news