Listening List

It’s been a couple of long travel days. I went from Waynesboro, MS to Campobello, SC where I stayed with Aunt Dot and Uncle Richard for a brief overnight on Wednesday. I made it all the way to New York City on Thursday and stayed with Sarah. Now I’m back on the Cape at my Mom’s! I’ve been gone nine weeks, it doesn’t’ quite feel like it. Today Beep Beep got an oil change and a bath, I went for the super wash with rust buster, polish and shine, Beep Beep deserved a little pampering.

Books on CD have really gotten me through this trip. They are great for the really long drives and make the time pass quickly. Thanks to Trish, Luanne, and Aunt Dale who let me borrow books!

Connected – The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives by Nicholas A. Christakis and James H. Fowler. I picked this one up at Ocean State Job Lot and asked my mom to buy it for me for my Christmas stocking. It was a good one to start my journey with since I would be relying on my family and social network for places to stay as I traveled. A few key points I took away are that happiness is contagious and your future spouse is more likely to be a friend of a friend than a mysterious handsome stranger. Note to friends and friends of friends – anyone you want to set me up on a date with? J

The Guinea Pig Diaries – My Life as an Experiement by A.J. Jacobs was another Job Lot special. Read by the quirky author it offers some new perspectives; he outsources his life to India in one chapter and lives by George Washington’s rules in another.

Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, was a rough one. Instead of being read, it’s acted out and the voices are hard to follow. I turned it off after the first track, Gollum was sooo scary sounding! I got desperate later on and finally listened to the whole thing. There was a lot of complaining about being tired which made me cranky as I drove!

How I Write by Janet Evanovich was yet another Ocean State Job Lot bargain. I had never heard of her, but since I was starting to write I figured it couldn’t hurt to listen to it and maybe learn something. I learned all about her Stephanie Plum series and later Aunt Dale ended up giving me two of the novels to listen to Ten Big Ones and Twelve Sharp, both funny and good easy listening for the ride.

Steering by Starlight a self help book by life coach Martha Beck. I’m definitely a fan of self help/motivational books. I really did enjoy this one, though I couldn’t stop the CD and do the exercises while driving. It focused on taming your inner dragon and listening to your inner stargazer by following your intuition.

True Believer by Nicholas Sparks made my car battery die. I was part way through it when I made it to Waynesboro the first time. Since I wasn’t driving long distances anymore I was only getting a bit of the story at a time. So, after running some errands I got a frosty and sat in the car to hear the end of the story. It didn’t seem like that long, but then my car wouldn’t start. I ended up having to call my cousin Drew to come give me a jump, oops.

Sophie’s World a novel about the history of philosophy by Jostien Gaarder. I had listened to this one a while back and remembered enjoying it. But I didn’t make it all the way through this time.

Isle of Dogs by Patricia Cornwell and Come the Spring by Julie Garwood were good. I got through both of them on the drive from South Carolina to New York. I vaguely remember the storylines, but at that point they just seemed like a way to fill a long day.