Lamb: The Gospel According To Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal
by Christopher Moore

I really wasn’t sure about this book at all. Sam had wanted to read it, but I was hesitant because I thought that it would be a lot of Jesus bashing/making fun of which I am not into at all. I told Sam he could give me a review after he read it. Shortly after he started reading it, I began reading the good reviews at GoodReads. Sam chimed in with good reviews and I promised him I would read it when he was done.

This book is obviously fiction. The author, in the afterword, emphasizes this himself. It does take liberties with events and such (as any good fiction does) but honestly, I didn’t feel like the book was offensive at all (to me). Lamb takes a look at the life of Jesus (especially those years before He began his ministry) through the eyes of Biff, his best friend. Biff is a bit mischievous (who doesn’t have one of those friends) but is always there for Jesus. It’s a humorous, charming, adult (Biff does enjoy, um, “adult activities”) book that I would recommend to anyone, Christian or not. I enjoyed it.

I’m pretty rough on my glasses. I wear them pretty much all of the time anymore and even lay around in them so I can see the tv. My last pair of glasses was getting so bad that when I looked down, they slid down my nose from being to stretched out.

I had heard a lot of good things online about Zenni Optical, so I decided to try out their services. First, I went to a local Dr. Bizer’s store to get a current eye exam (good thing too since my prescription had changed slightly). Then I got a copy of that prescription (which I am told they have to provide for you, legally). I got online and ordered one of the cheapest pairs they had, so that if I didn’t like them or their service I wouldn’t be out too much. I got the whole set of glasses, lenses, everything for $12 INCLUDING shipping. That is without any insurance or anything like that. I don’t know about you, but I can’t get a pair of glasses even with my insurance for $12.

The glasses arrived in 12 days (they say it should take approx. 2 weeks on their site) in a nice padded envelope. A pleasant little extra they added in the package was a hard case that the glasses were in, along with a cleaning cloth.

Pardon the “getting ready to go to bed” hair.

The glasses fit right from the time I took them out of the package (which may not be the case for everyone, I know) and the prescription is great. I can see better out of them than I can my old glasses. They do feel a little lighter than other glasses, which may give a cheap vibe to some people, but personally I like not having all that weight on my face. Other than that, no complaints at all from my book. I’ve gotten several compliments on the glasses already. Sam and I have plans to order more here soon (I want a pair with the sunshades on them).

I’ve been trying to share this info with everyone, because it’s such a great deal. It’s nice not feeling like I’m getting ripped off for a necessity. A co-worker forwarded the information to her aunt who works at a women’s shelter and says this will really be able to help some women who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford glasses. I can’t help but think of how nice this would be for parents of glasses wearing kids who might break their pair. And really, for any glasswearers, because saving a buck is saving a buck, no matter how much money you might have.

I’m one of those people who totally judges a book by it’s cover. I will go through the different editions at Half-Priced Books until I find the best looking version. I don’t turn down a book just by it’s cover, but something about the cover just can influence my feeling of the story, which I know is, like, wrong on so many levels but whatever.

I have been reading like a crazy person here lately. Well, not so much like a crazy person, but like I used to be before I lost my reading groove. I’ve read (or finished reading) 8 books since the beginning of the year! And I have a whole stack of books that I can’t wait to dive into.Very exciting!

Just this weekend I finished reading 1984. I’ve wanted to read 1984 for awhile now and Sam has a (pretty cover) copy that he let me borrow. It’s a very intense book, as least at the end. Several times when I had just read a passage from 1984, I would catch myself looking around, feeling like people were watching me. I’m glad I read the book, but it’s not one I ever see myself re-reading.

After I finished 1984 I needed something lighter, something a little less depressing. My husband recommended Syrup, a book he read the week before. We both like the author and he knew I would enjoy all the marketing references in the book. I finished it within one day. It was a great light book with an interesting plot. Syrup is a quirky little book that I would suggest to anyone that’s might be interested in crazy marketing ideas or characters with names like Sneaky Pete and 6.

I just started reading World War Z after I finished Syrup. I’m a hundred pages in and it really is as good as everyone says. I never thought I’d like a zombie book, but World War Z is written so well that I can really see the logic about how a zombie outbreak could spread across the world (not that I think that it could happen, but if it did…) I guess I’ve been really getting into this book as well, since last night I had a nightmare that some of my coworkers were zombies and trying to get in through the windows. I figure this is either a testament to the writing in this book or my overactive imagination. Maybe both.

I’m not much of a lotion girl, but in the winter my hands get dry dry dry. Two of my major beefs with lotions are that they are too scented (giving me a headache) or that make my hands feel too greasy. I’m a tough critic.

This C.O. Bigelow Quince Hand Lotion from Bath and Body Works is the best lotion I’ve ever found. If you know me and the cheapskate that I am when it come to necessities, you know that I am not the type to pay $9 for this little bottle of lotion. But it’s worth it! Worth every penny!

It moisturizes, has a light clean scent and doesn’t feel greasy afterwards. The little bottle fits perfectly into almost any bag. And you only need to use a little at a time, so the bottle lasts forever. I think I had my last one for a couple of years before it bit the dust. I was so excited to buy a replacement last night. My hands were begging for it.

If you remember (and I don’t expect you to), I wrote back in October that once I had tried out the new browser Flock, I would let everyone know how I liked it. Well, I’ve been using Flock since then and I love it. It’s so much better than it was when I tried it out probably a year ago.

Flock bills itself the social web browser and what sets it apart is the ability to integrate social networking sites with the browser. It’s basically an amped up Firefox (which I also love btw). The layout is smooth and slick. You get the tabbed browsing that, I for one, have come to expect and need in web browsing. One of my favorite features is the fact that I can update Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and the like, all in a sidebar, rather than opening the page. I have no problem with the speed of the Flock browser either, which was one of my major issues a year ago. And I love the fact that most Firefox extensions will work on the browser as well.

So I totally suggest Flock to anyone who, like me, participates many different social networking sites. It’s a slick looking browser that works great.

I have no affiliation with Flock.