I am a terrible blogger

I really am (a terrible blogger).  I start blogs and abandon them on a fairly regular basis, and I really didn't want that to happen with this one.  (That statement sounds like the beginning of me breaking up with this blog, but it isn't - it's actually the beginning of me trying to repair my relationship with this blog...and we're going to put THAT metaphor to an end right now.)  So.  Sometimes life gets in the way of things like blogging, and that will be my excuse.

It really has been kind of a busy month (or so) for me - I've really only spent one weekend in my apartment since sometime in July (note: I'm not complaining about this, since a couple of those weekends were spent on the shores of various Minnesota lakes, and I could not be happier about that), I spent two weeks working out of town, I'm moving in four days and am not at all prepared, and so on.  So really, I was distracted from both blogging and reading, and since this is a blog about what I'm reading...well, you can see the problem.

Enough about not books.  Though I haven't done much reading, I have done some.  I'm STILL working through David Copperfield, and I have to say, it's growing on me (this should be read in a "pleasantly surprised" tone).  I compared it a while back to a young adult novel - the more I read of it, the more I believe it really is a prototypical YA novel.  Update the language and break it into a series, and you've got yourself a book that the kids would love (irresistible bad boy Steerforth, girl-next-door Agnes, scheming nerd Uriah Heep - these character types are straight out of just about any YA relationship drama).

It really is just a likable book, with a likable protagonist.  I was delighted with David's reaction to learning that Betsey Trotwood (herself a fabulous character) had lost all of her money - the secret thrill he got from going without and putting in long hours is so strangely easy to relate to.  Of course, financial struggle isn't fun, but I was reminded of how I felt when our street flooded one summer and I had to stay up all night to help keep an eye on sump pumps and make sure no drains were backing up - I was tired and wet and what-not, but I also kind of enjoyed those temporary privations (I would have enjoyed them less had they continued beyond that night - fortunately, they didn't).

This has been kind of all over the place.  That's what comes of going a month without blogging, I suppose.  I will try to be better.  And I really am going to try to get through David Copperfield - in a week, I'll be back at work and aching to get my hands on the new YA lit that will have appeared on our shelves like magic over the summer.  If you've stumbled on this page and made it all the through my stream-of-consciousness rambling, I wish you a happy last week of summer.