Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon: Mega Post

It's that time of year again, friends! It's the Dewey's 24 hour read-a-thon! As usual, the read-a-thon starts at 8am for me so I probably won't start until at least 9am. It's a Saturday, people. I want to sleep in a little bit! Truth: I'm actually writing this little intro on Friday night so on Saturday I can just get started on the opening meme and get the party started. I hope you have a great day and keep checking back to see what goodies I've posted.

Kicking things off, as usual, is the opening meme!

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

Today I'm reading from my little home in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. For those who have zero idea where that is, it's about 20 minutes away from Niagara Falls. 

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

Confession: I do not have a stack. I'm kind of winging it. I do have a vague idea that I might (finally, finally!) read Attachments by Rainbow Rowell. I'm starting the day reading Good to Myself which is by one of my favourite authors, Heather Wardell.

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to? 

I need to pop out later today and I will just happen to be by a Marble Slab and I just happen to have a fully stamped card so I think I might treat myself to some ice cream! I'll also be having popcorn. It's one of my favourite snacks and I usually end up having it during the readathon. That and hard cider (though I think tonight it'll be wine!). 

4) Tell us a little something about yourself! 

I'm a month and three days away from being 28. Last year I spent my birthday in Australia (where I finally learned to like wine even though I live in a major wine region) and this year I'll spend it in New York City (BEA!). I own the cutest little rabbit named Tonks (she'll be three this fall!). I have zero idea what I want to be when I grow up but I'm working on it. I'm ridiculously tall (6') and love it (except when I'm trying to find clothes that fit). I'm a huge tea fan and the people who work at David's Tea know me well.

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I've been participating in read-a-thons for a little while now and always have fun. I approach it with a totally open mind and just do what I can do. I know I always go to bed on Saturday with the idea that maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to get in an hour before the end of the read-a-thon but it never happens. And that's ok. Who wants to get up at 7am on a Sunday? I don't even want to get up at 7am on a workday! I'll read, I'll take part in challenges, I'll find new friends on Twitter, and I'll eat. It'll be great!

Mini-Challenge: Classic Words of Wisdom
Hosted by A Literary Odyssey

I knew as soon as I saw the challenge that I wanted the quote to be from the Anne of Green Gables series. I've been rereading them this year (best idea of 2015) and I'm remembering how lovely the series is. I chose this quote because I really adored Anne of the Island plus it's just so true. College or university doesn't teach you everything. It teaches you a lot, and not just the typical education, but you're always learning and finding life lessons. Learning doesn't stop after you graduate.
What are some of your favourite classic quotes?

Mini-Challenge: 4 Seasons, 4 Books
Hosted by Bart's Bookshelf

For this challenge we posted a picture (with the hashtag #minichallenge4S) that showed four books featuring covers or titles that represented each season.

I went a tad obvious for two, Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah and All the Summer Girls by Meg Donohue. The seasons are right in the title! But the covers are very much representative of their respective seasons. Redesigning Rose by Lydia Laceby is my spring choice (gardening plays a big role in the book) and One Tiny Lie by K.A. Tucker is my choice for fall (just look at those colours!).

Update!
I have just finished my first book, Good to Myself by Heather Wardell. I adore Heather as an author and a person so I must admit I was feeling a little guilty because I hadn't read one of her books in so long. This one didn't disappoint and I'm really happy it coincided with the readathon! It's been a slow reading day since I got started late and had to pop out earlier. I signed up for an art class at Michaels as you could get 50% off if you signed up today - I'm going to learn how to make a metal stamped bracelet! And because it was so close to Marble Slab I just had to get some ice cream. I had a fully stamped card though so my ice cream, birthday cake with Crunch and Skor, was free. Yay! How's your reading been going? I'm finding I'm not doing as many challenges this time around as none of them are really speaking to me. Have you been taking part in any challenges? Well, time to get back to it. I'm really not sure what book I'm going to read next. The past month or so has been picking a book and reading it instead of working off a monthly list, which is what I usually do. It's kind of nice! Hm, and I think it's time for another cup of tea...and figuring out what to do for supper. It's almost 5:00pm here! Happy reading, all!

Mid-Event Survey:
1. What are you reading right now?

Four Seconds to Lose by K.A. Tucker. I. Am. Hooked.

2. How many books have you read so far?

I've only finished one and I'm about halfway through this one.

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

Like I said before, I have no plan! I have no idea what I'll read next. Or if I'll even start a third one.

4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

One major one when I had to go out. But I saved myself some money on signing up for a jewelry making class that I'm excited about and I got some ice cream so it really wasn't a big deal!

5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

I'm not doing as many mini-challenges as I thought I would. I find that if I'm not immediately able to answer or do the challenge creatively, I don't bother. I want to be reading right now (which is why the massive pile of dishes in my kitchen is still there...) and don't want to put a ton of effort into a challenge that won't pay out with a good reward.

Update and End of Event Thoughts:
Well, this year's read-a-thon has come to a close! (Well, technically it ended almost three hours ago but I was still curled up in bed...it's Sunday!) I only finished two books but I'm totally fine with that. I do have a bit of a guilty feeling as I needed to do approximately five million other things other than read yesterday but it was nice to be reading when I knew so many others were doing the same. I read until about 1:00AM, which is later than I usually stay up. I wanted to get my book done and I had gotten distracted by wine, popcorn, the boyfriend coming home and watching Breaking Bad, the rabbit, the rat in the backyard that I named Porridge...ahem. Anyway! I spent the last half hour or so petting my rabbit with one hand and holding my book and turning the pages with the other. Hey, when Tonks wants to snuggle, I'll pet her! All in all, it was a good day. Could I have read more? Sure! But I'm happy with what I read and I hope you are too. There's no pressure with this event, it's all for fun. And fun I had! See ya in October, read-a-thon friends!