The Official "If I had time, I would read this" Booklist

Every time someone recommends an interesting book for me to read, I always say that I will read it when I have the time. Since I'm still pushing through graduate school, there really is no time. Well, now that I will be a dissertator in the near (or not so near) future, I've decided to squeeze these books in during short periods of "free" time (like riding the bus, sitting in the bathroom, going to bed at night, proctoring exams, waiting for people at the airport, etc). So far, I've managed to knock down a few (Frankenstein and Lolita).

Here are the rest (in no particular order):

• The God of Small Things (I honestly never finished (sorry, Tomas!), but I'm currently working on it)
• Ulysses (was working on it as bedtime fodder)
• The Buru Quartet
• The Thursday Next novels by Jasper Fforde
• His Dark Materials trilogy
• The Dark Tower Series (which I've been dying to read for about a decade)
• Harry Potter (2 down, how many to go?
• À la recherche du temps perdu
  
• For the Time Being
• Pattern Recognition
• Cloud 9
• Persuasion
• War and Peace
• Lemony Snicket
• The Dubliners
• A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
• The Faerie Queene
• Anti-Pamela
  

2008 New Year's Resolutions

Like every blogger in this time zone that isn't at a party, I'm providing a list of my 2008 New Year's Resolutions. In a year, I vow to check back here and see what I've actually accomplished.

Well, here goes:

• I resolve to exercise on a more frequent basis to become healthy, strong, and fast...That way, if I get chased by zombies, aliens, pirates, ninjas, etc., I will be prepared to run like hell.
• I resolve to have my dissertation prospectus of absolute brilliance (*cough, cough*) completed. I also hope to have at least 1 chapter written, revisions and all.
• I resolve to read 5 non-school books that are on my "If I had time, I would read this" booklist.
  
• I resolve to post on my personal blog at least once a week and on my academic blog 5 days a week.
• I resolve to take at least 1 Writing Center course on Style. According to HW, my life depends upon it!
• I resolve to become more serious about my academic career and less serious about everything else.
• I resolve to stick with a cooking and cleaning schedule. My illustrious partner deserves as much.
• I resolve to learn how to cook at least 5 different main dishes well.
• I resolve to curb my eating, shopping, internet browsing, email addictions. Maybe I should pick up smoking and heavy drinking instead??? J/k.
• I resolve to stop gossiping. I consider it truth proliferation, but we all know I'm a monster and I need to stop.
  
• Finally, I resolve to complain/whine less and appreciate everyone and everything more for their quirky and lackadaisical selves. Objects have feelings too...And so do students (grad and under) and boyfriends (current and ex).