How important are book covers in getting you to read a book?

I think that the book cover is more important in getting me to pick up the book. What the book jacket says, either on the inside of a hardcover or the back of a softcover book, is more of what influences me to read a book. But, some books will speak to me at different times. When I first picked up The Help, I could not get into it. Everyone said what a wonderful book it was, and although the back cover looked interesting, I could not get into the book. I put it down for awhile and then picked it back up and could not put it down! A book that I thought I may be interested in reading by the cover and even own a copy, but have never picked up is Eat, Pray, Love.

Crazy v. Happy

Think about something that drives you crazy. 
Now, think about something that makes you happy. 
Does it change your perspective on the former?

Something that drives me crazy is when my children ask questions and then don't bother to listen to the answer that I give them so they have to ask the question again.

Something that makes me happy is being able to have conversations with my children in the van. We have had many bonding moments in the van, and I, sometimes, think of it as the former dinner table. The other time that I get information from my children is right before bed while I am reading a bedtime story. Even though my son just listen and reads his own things from his bed, I still sometimes get information from him if it is really bothering him during this time.

It does change my perspective. I realize how much I enjoy talking to them and communicating with them. One day, they will be independent and not ask me questions anymore because they will "know it all"! I better appreciate the conversation while I can get it!

How much of the day are you plugged in? Do you consciously set aside offline time, or does it happen whenever it happens?

I am plugged in most of the time that I am not at work. When I am at work, I only check texts if I get them and answer an occasional phone call. Once I leave work, I tend to plug in to find out what is going on in the world. Because I am not plugged in at work, I found out about both Sandy Hook and the Boston Marathon via social media after work.

I don't consciously set aside offline time. Starting this week, my husband has stated no electronics until we get some housework done, dishes, laundry, dinner started, homework, etc. It has proven to be a good strategy because once he plugs in, I don't see any reason to do work because he is not helping out. It is really annoying at restaurants when I am trying to get myself and the kids not to use electronics and he pulls out his phone to check scores/play games. I finally got to the point of if you can't beat them, join them. Kids and I still limit ourselves during the meal itself though.

I find that if I am into a really good book, I will be offline more. I have seen it with my kids also. Tonight, my daughter read for 90 minutes because we went to the library and she found a new series of books that she really likes.

Tell us about a time when you felt out of place.

There was a time in my life that I always felt out of place. Being Asian and living in the Midwest, it is easy to be the only Asian in the room most places you go. As an adult it is something that I always notice, and it is hard not to in a profession of predominantly white females. When I was in my graduate school program, how to get more people of color into the profession was a topic of conversation and still to this day, there are not many more than there were before.

I remember when I lived in California, I had an Asian friend who had lived in the LA area since she came to the United States. Her boyfriend was also Asian. One day, she was telling me a story about her weekend. She said that she was with her boyfriend and they went into a restaurant and had to leave because they were the only Asians in the whole restaurant. I told her that it is that way in most places outside of LA. I don't think that she really believed me, but, in my experience, it is true.

Nowadays, I can feel out of place even among people who look like me. Just looking like someone does not provide a sense of belonging with those people. I have found my own way and my own sense of who I am outside of what I look like. Those that are my real friends and family can see beyond the color of my skin. 

My New Interest: Pinterest

My student teacher was the one who told me about StumbleUpon and Pinterest. At first I was hesitant to get started with these new "research" sites. I tried StumbleUpon first and I liked it, but once I got my Pinterest account, I loved it. The ideas that other people pin are awesome. They are mostly from blogs that I may not find in a regular Google search. I have found things that I would use in my home as well as professionally. The problem I had with StumbleUpon was the websites, where it sent you, were mostly pretty crappy and very random. You cannot see where you are going prior to getting there. With Pinterest you can see what you are going to pin before you find out where it is from.

What Do I Look Forward to in the New Year?

I look forward to travelling in the new year.  We are trying to get to some places in the United States as well as travel overseas.  My son is really into American history and would love to see some more of the historical sites in the Eastern United States.  I would like to take him to Boston again to see the sights near there.  I have not been to Thailand since 1998 and am excited to see my family and friends and share Thailand with my husband, son, and daughter.  We will see where opportunities lead to travel later on in the year.

What Was My Favorite Gift?

My favorite gift is definitely the ipod touch.  I really enjoyed having this piece of technology and it is working out the way that I intended.  I wanted it for myself as well as for the kids, but did not have to buy them their own individual ones.  I also decided that I am done buying kid speciality computers; my kids are old enough to use the adult versions if they are taught the proper way to use them.  I bought a Fisher Price iXL last Christmas for Reese, and she loves it, but will also grow out of it.  Now, we have a tablet and an itouch so the kids have their own devices, and we can share them all.

Which do you enjoy more: receiving or giving?

I enjoy giving more than receiving.  I like to think of people and their delight when receiving a gift as I am picking out their gifts.  I feel that sometimes, when receiving a gift, I may seem unappreciative if I do not "act" happy enough or excited as I am opening the present.  I guess I think there is more pressure to receiving because you want the person that has given you the gift to believe that you truly love the gift.

Presents

Do you like to buy presents ahead of time or right when you need to give them?

I use to like to but presents right when I needed to give them so I could have a particular person in mind while I was shopping.  As time has gone on, I have found that I like to buy some presents ahead of time because I do not always have the time to shop when I need something.  I like to keep lots of general things around so that I have a choice when I pick a gift from the things that I have on hand.  I also find that the gift stash is convenient when trying to keep the cost down when buying gifts for my children to take to their friends' birthday parties.  When they do not go to the store and pick out something, I can better control how much is spent on the gift.

Alone v. Social

Do you enjoy being alone? Would you rather be around other people?

I go through phases of liking both.  I am an only child so I can be alone; it does not bother me.  Now that I have a family, I do enjoy the time that I get to spend alone because those moments are few and far between.

I mostly don't mind being around other people especially if I know them.  My husband comes from a big family, and I love to be around them when we get the opportunity.  I can get along at a party of strangers, but don't always feel like I particularly have to be social.  I don't have to be the center of attention and can float back and forth between talking with people and standing around observing the scene.

I do need my down time each day for myself.  After school when I have been with students all day and after I have decompressed with colleagues, when I get home, I need about a half an hour to do what I need to do before we can start homework or dinner.  My alone time gets me through the social times.

Pen or Computer?

I have decided to use the NaBloPoMo prompt tonight because I had to work late and wanted to get in a blog post to keep my commitment to a blog a day.

When you are writing, do you prefer to use a pen or a computer?

I like to do is a little of both.  I can blog directly on the computer, but for more elaborate writings, I like to at least write out an outline before I sit down at the computer to write.  I think this is because my blog writing is more conversational and I can type like I speak, but when I write a paper, I have to have a plan of where I am going.