However, unfortunately this year I actually have a really busy weekend with IMPORTANT things to do that I cannot move. The past two years, I've always blocked off the weekend of the Love-a-Thon on my calendar so I can stay in all 48 hours (except for maybe a tiny walk to the grocery store for errands or Tim Horton’s for a donut) and just have a great, relaxing weekend of blogging and reading FUN. I tried to do that again this year but as it turns out, it just wasn't going to happen. WHICH MAKES ME SO SAD because there is honestly nothing more I want than to hang out with you guys. But I can’t so THAT SUCKS. I have pre-scheduled all the posts (like this one) to go up this weekend instead of writing them as I go along as I did last year so I’m not missing out anything. But the things I can’t pre-schedule like the commenting and the replying to comments and the random acts of kindness will probably have to hold until Monday or whenever I have a chance to get to them this coming week though I will try to get to as many as I can during the Love-a-Thon. Same thing for the chats.
EDIT 2/19/2015: I have not gotten to the scheduled posts yet because haha guys guess what else is dooming me for this Love-A-Thon. NO INTERNET. Our plan only renews on the 23rd after the Love-A-Thon and as of today, I have TWO GIGABYTES LEFT. I told my mom, she does not understand how I managed to do it YET AGAIN. Blame streaming. Not my fault. So therefore, I'm really trying to conserve in case I need it for emergency purposes/school/priorities. I'll see if I can type up the other posts in time but MAYBE NOT. They still sound fun so... I might do them after the Love-A-Thon. Totally cheating, I know. Ah well.
Um, so that’s that, I guess. That spiel might have been a little useless… I think it was more to reassure MYSELF and make ME feel better about missing out on everything this year than actually information you would actually care about. But anyway, that’s besides the matter.
Let the 2015 Love-a-Thon festivities commence! And kicking us off is my introductory questionnaire!
My name is Annie!
2. Where in the world are you blogging from?
Toronto, Canada, my lovely hometown. It truly is a great city even though we get a lot of flak from the rest of Canada for being rude and obnoxious but I swear that’s not true at all! We’re all really kind people and our city has incredible diversity and so many fabulous festivals and places to visit. If you’re planning a trip here any time soon, I HAVE LOTS OF SUGGESTIONS FOR YOU.
3. How did you get into blogging in the first place?
After a boring summer. It’s been my third year of blogging (I think?) which means I started blogging in 2012. I don’t remember that summer too clearly except for the fact I was SO bored on my vacation because it was TWO MONTHS LONG and we’d already seen everything we wanted to see and all that remained was just a lot of catching up with family and hot, hot weather and I know I sound ungracious but at the time, I really was so bored. I flew through like thirty books that summer which is so much more than I ever read. And after blowing through those books, I started searching books on the Internet which led me to Elizabeth Eulberg’s author blog which then led me to Katie’s Book Blog which then led me to all the other book blogs out there which then motivated me to start my own blog, Random Reads (which obviously I no longer blog at) in August of 2012. And yeah, I actually remember the exact sequence of occurrences that led me here!
4. How did you come up with your blog name?
My first blog was Random Reads, as mentioned above and that came from an email that I had created back in the fourth or fifth grade (that I embarrassingly still use for pretty much everything). It was randomreader which I thought was SO smart at the time and unique because oh my god, who would know it? I was both RANDOM and a READER.
Pigs. (Random, right? Wait a few seconds… HAHA GET IT??)
So I thought it would be fitting after having that handle for so long that my first book blog would be named after it. When I decided to create a new blog in 2013, alliteration was something I really had my mind set on. And I knew I also wanted ‘reader’ to be a part of the name so I literally flipped to a random page in the R section of the dictionary and took the first word I saw that would work which was ‘runaway’. Honestly I don’t think it makes a lot of sense but I do like it more than Random Reads so there’s that… I have heard a pretty good logical explanation of my blog name though about how books are an escape and as a reader, I run away to books to escape (which definitely, definitely made a lot more sense being told to me than now as I’m telling you).
5. What genre do you read and review the most on your blog?
I read the most contemporary so I think it would make sense that most of the reviews on my blog are also for contemporaries? Which reminds me that YES I HAVE BEEN PARTICULARLY SUCKY AT BLOGGING. I will work on it.
6. What other types of posts do you do on your blog, apart from reviews?
Really anything that strikes my fancy at the moment. I've done Top Ten Tuesday posts, discussions and monthly recap posts. I have a bunch of features I do as well: some on covers, others on ‘just bookish things’ and yet others on books I want to read and places I want to visit and music I enjoy and films I've seen. I do Life of Blogger posts and lists of my favourite drinks at Starbucks and really anything, ANYTHING I want. Some things not even book related.
7. Best blogging experience so far?
The Book Blogger Love-a-Thon!! Seriously though, the Love-a-Thon is always such a great experience for me. I love doing all the fun challenges and commenting and finding new bloggers and talking to everyone. It’s always been a lot of fun.
8. Favourite things about the blogging community?
Obviously I love the books otherwise I wouldn't have joined the community. I love finding out about new books and discussing books but more than all of that, I love the people. The book blogging community really has some of the nicest, sweetest people ever. I am so so grateful for blogging as it’s given me the opportunity to talk to and become good friends with so many fabulous people that I wouldn't have met otherwise.
9. Name the 5 books you’re most excited for in 2015.
P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han because I loved To All the Boys I've Loved Before and Lara Jean is my literal BFF while Peter is my literal BF.
The Winner’s Crime by Marie Rutkoski because Arin and Kestrel.
Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling because she’s Mindy Kaling and I absolutely adored her last memoir and love The Mindy Project.
Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen because even though I haven’t had a good experience with her books since The Truth About Forever and This Lullaby, I am not giving up hope that I will one day stumble upon another Dessen I love.
A Whole New World: A Twisted Tale by Liz Braswell because Aladdin. Do I really need to say anything else? And retellings. Basically everything right with the world.
10. What’s an underrated book you think everyone should read?
Oh man, talk about a tough question. I am not going to say Boy on Ice because I've said that so many times over already and wish as I might, everyone will NOT read it because it’s not in everyone’s interest. Although it is very good so if you’re interested in athletes and hockey you should definitely pick it up.
I guess on another Young Adult related note, an underrated book to read is Torn Away by Jennifer Brown which is about the aftermath of a horrible tornado. It’s quite a short book but it packed all the emotional punches. I have never felt a story as viscerally as I did with Torn Away. Small Damages is another lesser-known book that I quite enjoyed as well.
11. Which book boy or girl would be your book BFF?
Well since I've already made a post all about how we’d be a perfect match, I’m going to go with Lara Jean from To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han. (Oh and add to that list the fact we both like under-ripe green bananas.)
12. Apart from reading, what are your other hobbies and interests?
Apart from reading, I also enjoy pottery which I've been doing for maybe two years now and I love it. My school actually has ceramics as a class you can take which is fabulous because that means I can continue with pottery during school time and get a credit for it! We don’t do a lot of wheel stuff since there are only maybe 15 for a class of 30 which is unfortunate because that’s what I tend to like but the not-wheel stuff is fun as well.
I also like listening to music and am always up for new music (which is a plea for you to please drop some music recommendations in the comments below!). I also like watching TV although I cannot commit to a show for my life and watching movies although I also cannot commit to a full length movie unless I’m being forced to watch it or it’s a rom-com. Swimming is another thing I've come to like and on the topic of sports, I also like watching soccer (but only when my favourite team in the entire world, Germany, is playing) and watching the Leafs lose.
And shopping is always fun, as is eating and sleeping.
13. Apart from book shopping, what do you like shopping for?
Wow, smooth transition much! I swear I did not plan that one.
And to answer your question, EVERYTHING. I like shopping for everything. There is not a thing I will not like shopping for. It’s really a shame that I’m not a billionaire and therefore, cannot actually buy all the things I want but give me the money and WATCH ME GO. I’ll buy kitchen utensils, clothes, perfume, soap, food, random wooden flowers… Really anything. I have a slight problem in that I’m always seeing things I want.
Some of my favourite stores to visit at the mall include:
- Indigo/Chapters
- Williams Sonoma
- Sephora
- Bath and Body Works
- The Body Shop
- Urban Outfitters (and all the other clothing stores like Aritzia, American Eagle, Forever 21, H & M, Anthropologie, Brandy Melville, Topshop and etc. Even though I might not get anything, I can still drool over the clothes right and imagine they are on me?)
- I can’t think of anything else.
14. At a party, the DJ suddenly changes the song and it’s your song. What song would be playing?
Oh god, probably a Taylor Swift song because I hardcore jam to her like always. Maybe Blank Space or I Knew You Were Trouble (which I will happily announce I know all the harmonies too) because those are the best Taylor songs to jam to.
ALSO PROBABLY JESSE MCCARTNEY. I LOVED HIM WHEN I WAS FOUR AND I STILL LOVE HIM NOW.
And because this question reminds me a lot of This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales, I’m going to add my favourite Smiths song, Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now, in honour of all the indie clubs I will go to in the future in which I will make sure the DJ actually switches it to that.
15. Pick out either a book you want turned into a film/TV show or a book film/TV show you want turned into a book.
This is so hard! I can’t think of any book I’d want to be turned into a film OR a show. They’re just two different mediums and it’s hard for me to comprehend how a book that’s SO GOOD at being just a book would end up as a show or a film. I think there are other people better qualified to make that decision of whether or not to adapt this piece of literature and vice versa with the film/TV show thing. Although I do have dreams of better Vampire Academy and Percy Jackson adaptations.
And since I’m still not quite to let you guys go, here are some rapid-fire question and answers.
1. Favourite colour?
Blue
2. Order at Chipotle?
A chicken burrito with white rice, corn salsa, tomato salsa, pinto beans, lettuce, cheese, green peppers and sour cream
3. Chocolate or vanilla?
Chocolate always
4. Cold or hot?
Cold because you can always put on more layers and be warm! There are only so many layers you can take off when you’re hot until you’re just perpetually uncomfortable and sticky
5. Coffee or tea?
Coffee always. I will never understand the love for tea ever. The only time I can stand it is when it’s been diluted by tons of milk and sugar.
And now we've really reached the end. Thank you for reading so far, I know that was a pretty long introductory questionnaire but hopefully you've learned a little bit more about me! If you've done this questionnaire as well, link yours below in the comments. Do we have anything in common? And if you haven’t done this questionnaire, pick one (or a few) questions to answer so we can all get to know each other a little better!
See you guys back at noon when my first mini challenge goes up!
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