Saturday, October 22, 2011

Readathon

Hi guys! Ingrid here. I'm so excited to be participating in Dewey's 24 hour readathon for the first time! My plan is to just update this post as I progress. I hope to post an update about every 3 hours and participate in some mini challenges.

Introduction Meme
1)Where are you reading from today? I'm reading from Utah. 
2)Three random facts about me…
-I love salty foods like pickles and olives
-I was born in California
-I drink an unhealthy amount of diet coke ...
3)How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?
Well, I have a good pile of about 10 books but I really have no idea how many I'll actually get to. 
4)Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?
Because this is my first time, I'm not really sure what my goal is. I'm definitely going to keep track of time read, pages read, and books read .... and I honestly have no idea how far I'll get! It will be exciting to find out. I know you're excited! Get excited!
5)If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first time?
Definitely not a veteran. 

Well ... here I go! I need to run an errand in about an hour so that will interrupt my first bit of reading, but I'll be back in about 3 hours with my first update!

Update 1: 9:48 AM (Hour 4 ... I think)
Currently Reading: The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance by Elna Baker
Pages read: err.. 22
Time spent reading: 21 minutes, haha

Ok, WOAH. I didn't realize how distracting it can be to look at mini challenges, read everyone's AWESOME encouraging comments, looking at twitter, etc etc. I can't believe I've only read 22 pages! I did have to go pick up some produce I ordered this week and that took awhile, and I also picked up some breakfast at Einsteins.

This hour I did participate in a mini challenge over at The Avid Reader's Musings.  The challenge was to name three books (fiction or nonfiction) that are good representations of the USA state in which they are set.
Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather (New Mexico)
The Final Frontiersman by James Campbell (Alaska)
Walden by Henry David Thoreau (Massachusetts)
[Although I think a better choice for the last one would have been A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (New York)]

...K. I need to seriously get down to business here. I can't let myself get distracted! I'll report back in a few hours and let you know how I'm doing. Thanks again to everyone for your awesome encouraging comments! They make me feel good!


Update 2: 12:04 PM (Beginning of hour 7)
Currently Reading: The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance by Elna Baker
Pages read since last update: 124
Time spent reading since last update: 1 hour 25 minutes
Time spent fixing the html on this stupid blog post: 20 minutes
Diet Cokes consumed: 1

Ok, it's been about 2 hours since my last update, and things are going much better. I did get slightly hungry during this time and consumed two packets of instant oatmeal as well as one can of Diet Coke. I think I'll update again in 2 hours. Also, I'm really liking this book - it's funny! Maybe I'll do another mini challenge soon. So far none of the others have really been calling my name. Blah blah, k bye.


Update 3: 2:54 PM (End of hour 9)
Currently Reading: Actually, just finished! The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance by Elna Baker
Pages read since last update: 126
Time spent reading since last update: 1 hour 34 minutes
Diet Cokes consumed since last update: 1

Ok, so I finished my book, so that's good ... I've been slowing down a little though. Which is fine with me because I don't want to get burned out. I took a short nap in this time and made myself some eggs for lunch. They were delish. My plan for the next 2 hours is to read a good chunk of The Awakening by Kate Chopin. After that I am going to a dinner for my brother-in-law's birthday. After that it's back to reading!

Update 4: 5:45 PM (Beginning of hour 12)
Currently Reading: The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Pages read since last update: 120
Time spent reading since last update: 2 hours, 2 mintutes
Diet Cokes consumed: 0

It's been a good block ... I'm really enjoying The Awakening. Gotta run to my Brother-in-law's dinner now. I'll be back with an update later tonight.

Update 5: 11:22 PM (Hour 18)
Currently Reading: The Awakening by Kate Chopin - Actually I just finished!
Pages read since last update: 55
Time spent reading since last update: 53 minutes
Diet Cokes consumed since last update: 2

I was gone longer than expected, so I haven't gotten much done since last update. Also ...I'm getting really tired. I'm going to start another book and read more tonight, but I probably won't update again until I add my final update tomorrow. Oh, and I finished The Awakening! I really enjoyed it. Can't wait to review it and share all of my thoughts with you.

Final Update: Well it's the next day now, and the readathon is officially over! Last night I read about 55 more pages after my last update, so I'm adding that time and pages to the total at the bottom. I'm also about to put up a separate post with my totals and end of event survey.

Totals so far:
Books completed: 2
Pages read:  472
Time spent reading: 7 hours, 14 minutes
Diet Cokes consumed: 4