I apologize for the lack of posting while I was at BEA but I couldn’t get it together enough to get stuff done — especially with the power going out at my apartment! BLAH.

I’ll be back with a Top Ten Tuesday tomorrow. But if you are really interested in my time at BEA I will be doing a recap (sooo long but with pictures YAY!) on Wednesday and then Thursday I will probably talk about the books I got and what I’m the MOST excited about.

But here’s a preview!!

This pic just embodies the trip — silly times with my blogging friends! This whole blogging thing might have been the thing that has brought us together but these friendships are for real! We were trying to spell book but I decided I couldn’t make a “B” so I just did something dumb. Photo credit to the amazing Rachel who you should use for all things photo related if you are in New York!

 And a sneak peek of just one of the books I got that I already am almost done with!!!

Well well well I survived. If you didn’t catch my original post about my experiment of doing a week long social media diet check that out!

So, I gave myself an hour per day to divvy up however I chose from Monday through Friday. I didn’t include the weekend because a) I’m generally too busy on the weekends for my social media usage to be a HUGE problem and b) it’s the weekend before BEA (if you are going check out this post in which I’ve made a handy guide so you can recognize me!) and I need to coordinate and what not.

Did I stick to my plan? Why yes, yes  I did.  I kept track down to the minutes and every time I refreshed twitter it was an automatic 15 seconds and yes I did keep track of them all. So I’m proud of myself for sticking to the time limit and not going over. However, I had all these great plans listed of ALL OF THE THINGS I would get done. But all these great plans got derailed. Let’s just say that Monday afternoon a wrench got thrown into everything when an auto-payment mix-up (and NO notification whatsoever because we are on paperless billing) got our POWER shut off. We called and paid immediately once we realized what the mix-up was but the power didn’t come back on until Wednesday at 5pm. So all that productivity?? DOWN THE DRAIN.

Here was my list of things I wanted to accomplish:

get blog posts written for when I’ll be in BEA and maybe get further ahead (HAHAH nope thanks to the power)
- do all the annoying behind the scenes things I hate doing (review archive updating, putting reviews on Goodreads, formatting old posts I still haven’t fixed from when I moved to WordPress in March 2012).  That was one of my bookish resolutions for this year so I need to get crackin’ on that! (again NOPE thanks to no power)
- clean the home (YES. I did when we had the sun shining into the apartment)
- indulge in some of my other hobbies (I was too stressed to do that and figure out what hobbies I wanted to indulge in lol)
- get ready for BEA!! (YES! I went shopping  and pulled clothes from my closet!)
-  comment on blog posts!! (Again, EFF YOU no power!)
- Work on my super secret project that I referenced here. (NOPE. Too stressed to think about it)
- READ READ READ (that’s what always gets the short end of the stick because of my Twitter addiction…which is ironic because the only reason I’m on Twitter is because of my BOOK BLOG) (YES!! I got reading done at the park because it was beautiful and LET THERE BE  GOOD LIGHT!)

My Observations:

1) It was SUPER lonely. I’m so used to be able to have pleasant conversation throughout the day and it’s nice! And when I did come on I knew it wasn’t going to be for very long so it was hard to engage in good conversation.
2)  Making myself keep track of every little refresh or mindless scrolling made me realize how often I do it and it’s so natural to just open my phone, click on Twitter and refresh — in between things I’m doing or while I’m in the car or whatever.
3. My fear of people forgetting about me was so hard to shake. I know people knew that I was going on this week long diet but I still felt like  nobody was really chatting when I came on.  I was probably being paranoid. I was also so paranoid that I missed things!
4. I had no idea what anyone else was up to throughout the week — blogwise or lifewise — and I didn’t like that.
5.  It was hard because the power was off and we didn’t really have much to do so I FELT my absence so much much as opposed to when I’m scarce on the weeks because I’m busy. Doing other things = no time to think about social media or care.
6. I rely on Twitter a lot for the news: I seriously, because we had no power, didn’t really know about the terrible tornado in Oklahoma because I wasn’t scrolling through my feed  much knowing that I’d get sucked in. I’d pop in and out so I never really saw anything. Kinda felt like an ass about all my tweets complaining about no power.
7. I can’t comment on my level of productivity because of not having my normal schedule due to the power outage but of the blog posts I did get done at Starbucks/Panera I felt like I did them faster and with less distraction. I did get more reading done without refreshing Twitter in between chapters haha.
8. It is SUCH a habit that I had to STOP myself so often from looking at Twitter. I always check any time I’m near my phone. It’s crazy.

My Takeaways

1. It really helped to become more self aware of my refreshing habit on my phone — like really have to look at it and be AWARE of when I was doing it — so I’m going to continue to work on that habit by trying to put the phone further away from me and just not keeping Tweetdeck open all the time on my computer. It seemed so silly all the time I wasted refreshing constantly. Making me aware of it really helped me NOT want to do that.

2. Besides the constant refreshing my other biggest problem was that I wasted SO MUCH TIME refreshing and scrolling and NEVER SAYING ANYTHING  for like an hour. I realized that I so craved the great conversations and when I’m just scrolling I’m not using Twitter productively or in the way that benefits me because I seriously MISSED the great conversations and saved a lot of my hour per day on making sure I could be on for a chunk of time rather than wasting that time on refreshing, scrolling and not interacting.  MORAL OF THE STORY: quality time vs. quantity of time I’m spending on Twitter.

3.  I liked being more present in what I was doing and hope to continue to keep that in mind. Because I wasn’t constantly refreshing and checking mentions I found myself more involved in the book I was reading outside or sitting in the car with Will and actually listening to him with my full attention. I also found that I fell asleep easier and didn’t sit in bed on my phone for 30 minutes later than I wanted to go to bed. That also could have been me trying to conserve my phone battery because of the lack of power.

4. I plan to continue to try to document my productivity level so that i can see how it compares on days I’m really spending lots of time on Twitter. I think that will be eye opening to me to see it on paper. I already KNOW I’m less productive with my bad Twitter habits but sometimes it doesn’t make me change until I SEE how bad it is on paper with numbers to it.

Overall it was a good experiment though circumstances beyond my control made it a lot different than I thought. It was eye opening and confirmed a lot of the things I thought and I definitely want to work towards better habits. I have to say though I made up for it already today because of my withdrawal from only going on 1 hr/day.

So I was contacted for an opportunity to read The Program by Suzanne Young with my fab book club that I told you all about. This was one of my anticipated reads for Spring so naturally I said HECK YES once book club all gave the nod that they were down for it. You all know that I read & really loved this one but I’d LOVE to share our Program themed book club meeting and some general thoughts from ALL of us! And then, of course, the giveaway at the end for you!!

Throwing A Themed Book Club Meeting For The Program!

So we went with a themed drink for book club — an adult beverage as we are an adult book club. In The Program, when you try to commit suicide or get flagged for have the “symptoms”, you are taking to the Program and your memory is wiped away. The drink I thought of immediately for that? The Mind Eraser! Let me tell you, book club didn’t need much of this concoction to see how this was aptly named The Mind Eraser.  We are a responsible book club (people had to drive home!)so we didn’t allow ourselves to experience the full mind erasing qualities of this beverage but I think my husband saw the effects of it starting to take place when he came home from the gym. His words not mine: “Book club seemed really fun tonight. I would almost maybe join.” I think our neighbors seriously might hate us now because we were LOUD.

There were a few recipes for The Mind Eraser (one was a yummy sounding shot with melon liquor)  but this is what we picked:

Themed  Snacks

We had jelly beans & Skittles in the color of all the pills in The Program!

We  loved the memories Sloane had with her dad getting ice cream  (and we love ice cream) so naturally we ate some yummy cookies & cream ice cream!

Realm was always eating pretzel sticks in The Program so we HAD pair those with some YUMMY cookie butter from Trader Joe’s! BUT we couldn’t stop there so we played some Bullshit before book club started and with pretzel sticks always comes fake cigarettes!

Bullshit & Pretzels! The Mind Erasers COULD be kicking in!

More drinks!

Book club or booze club? You decide!

Our discussion:

- We all either LIKED it or LOVED it. Betty had just read the book SLATED and found a lot of similarities to that book and The Program so it was hard for her not to compare them.
- We all thought this book brought THE FEELS…especially as you got further and further on. We loved that it seemed like this Program couldn’t erase your natural tendencies!
- We all agreed that it was a complete page-turner until the very end!
- REALM = BOOOOOO. JAMES = YAYYYY. Although, a certain someone in the group DID disagree. SHOCKING.
- We are all very curious about HOW society got to be to this point and HOW something like The Program actually is allowed? Why is it mostly teens? We are hoping these questions are  answered in book 2 now that we are so completely invested in these characters.
- THE ENDING. We had so many theories. I don’t want to get into spoilers here but YAH. We thought the ending was a homerun and left us drooling for book 2!

The Giveaway For You!

What can you win?

A chance to host your own Book Club with some of your friends – enter for your chance to win five (5) copies of The Program and a $50 Visa gift card! If you don’t have a book club, I have some tips on how to start a book club!

Prizing provided by Simon & Schuster

Giveaway open to US addresses only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About The Program

Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.

About the author

Suzanne Young currently lives in Tempe, Arizona, where she teaches high school English. When not writing obsessively, Suzanne can be found searching her own tragic memories for inspiration. She is the author of several books for teens, including The Program, A Need So Beautiful, and A Want So Wicked.

Find out more

Learn more about The Program

Visit Suzanne Young’s Official Site

Follow Suzanne Young on Twitter

Going to BEA (Book Expo of American) this year or planning to visit NYC in general? Estelle from Rather Be Reading has put together an awesome week of tips and recommendations from various bloggers! Check out the rest of the series here! I’m excited that she invited me to participate!

So I’m not a native New Yorker but I’m in Philly and my husband and I come to the city a lot and I come a lot for book signings and such but I was excited to participate in this series with Estelle and the ladies because DAMN I like to eat and that is one of my favorite things about the city. I’m always going and exploring new places to eat in New York because it is so diverse which compliments my eating habits. Whether it’s gourmet, a dive or an ethnic food I’ve never tried before — I’m SO THERE if it’s good. I’m going to mainly focus on quick bites and sweet treats for this but will add a couple of things at the end.

QUICK BITES!

The quick bites I’m featuring today are of the food truck variety! I’m not talking about the hot dog carts or the pretzel stands (though you should totally experience those too just because!) but FOOD TRUCKS! They are the best thing ever and there are so many diverse options and perfect for a quick bite. Before I delve into my favorites I want to explain how they work. The trucks go out to different locations depending on the truck so it’s important to know where to find them if there is a specific one you want to go to because at different days they could be different places. You can google the one you want and they typically have schedule posted on their site, this website  or social media has made it really easy by easily following this account which updates where the trucks are. I’ve also seen several apps for the IPhone that help track.

Korilla BBQ

Picture from my most recent trip to NYC & Korilla – yay new finds!

OMG I think this one is my fave so far. I LOVE KOREAN BBQ. Will and I both devoured what we got. Thinking about it now I’m almost tempted to take the train into the city NOW for it. I got the pork burrito with the Korean BBQ sauce and sticky rice but I forget what kimchi was on it. Will got ribeye with some sauce that was supposed to be spicy I think but we didn’t find it to be that spicy.  I HIGHLY recommend this. So much.

Tribeca Taco Truck

Will and I were shopping on Broadway (Topshop is down there, fashionista friends.  I will go with ANY of you during BEA haha) and were hungry and came upon this truck and OMG NOM. The spicy mango sauce is to die for. I had tacos and Will had a burrito if I remember correctly and I’m pretty sure we shared a quesadilla because we like to eat. haha. I’ve also heard Mexicue is really good and will and I have every intention to try it.

Rickshaw Dumpling Truck

YUM! I love dumplings. I got the thai chicken ones and Will got the Pork dumplings and they were both delish. I wish we would have tried some of the sides but next time!

Food Trucks I’m Dying To Try: The Milk Truck (GRILLED CHEEEEESE), Mac Truck (Mac & cheeese)

Sweet Treats!

Pinkberry

Enjoying some Pinkberry at BEA last year!

If you know me…you know I love Pinkberry. There are a lot of frozen yogurt places now around Philly but Pinkberry is my first love. Unlike all of those places, Pinkberry is not a pay per weight place which is good and bad sometimes. There aren’t as many crazy toppings as other places but I love that. There is a Pinkberry pretty much everyyywhere so have no fear. We always have a crew going to Pinkberry after a long day on the floor during BEA or at late at night after we’ve been cocktailing at parties.

Crumbs

Red Velvet Cupcakes from Crumbs last month!

There are quite a few cupcake places around the city but Crumbs is the only one I’ve ever been to. SO YUMMY and there are quite a few locations around the city. I’ve also had Sprinkles cupcakes but in their DC location and am dying to try Babycakes because I’ve heard good things.

Bisous Ciao

I love macarons and YUM..I was quite pleased when we went here. I had the salted caramel, lemon and jasmine and I really enjoyed all of them. They are a little pricey but definitely worth trying.  There is another macaron place that everyone raves about but I can’t recall it at the moment.

Sweet Treats I’m Dying To Try: Wafels & Dinges (Belgian waffle truck!!), Cupcake Crew (cupcake food truck!)

OTHER

Are you staying in Brooklyn or planning on heading over there for something? Go to Bark for some hot dogs in the Park Slope neighborhood — SO SO YUMMY! It’s quick and real close to the Barclay center and the subway.

Bacon Cheddar Dog

Staying a day later or coming earlier and want to get brunch with a small group in Manhattan? PLEASE go to my favorite place that serves delicious Belgian Waffles — Petite Abeille. Their website stinks but I assure you this place is so good. Other bloggers who I’ve taken there can vouch! I always get the strawberry belgian waffles and of course mimosas! THE BEST PART IS: It’s very close to Books of Wonder (which Alexa talked about yesterday) so you can eat and the go to one of the best bookstores in the city!

Looking for a sit down restaurant that is a little nicer but not TOO fancy? Pala Pizza is fabulous! They have some delicious gourmet-ish pizza. They have other things like pasta AND also have gluten free and vegan pizza as well. It can accommodate a decent sized group if you plan ahead. I also have one of my favorite BEA memories here because it was the first time I got to meet so many of my friends during my first year at BEA. Great atmosphere, great pizza. Anna Reads picked it out and it was great for our first meeting!!

Ok, so these are some of my favorite places as a non native NYer. I really hope some NYers will leave some of their quick bites and sweet treats because I want them too! haha.  And if anybody will be at BEA and want to meet up…I’m always up for food!

Here’s the rest of the posts thus far:

4/14: Under the Broadway Lights (Rather be Reading)
4/15: Foodie Heaven (Hello, Chelly)
4/16: Bookstores in NYC (Alexa Loves Books)