Are You Embarrassed of Your Erin Condren Planner?

This is something that is often brought up in the planning community. Do you bring your decorated planner in public? Will people take you seriously? I’m going to give you a little insight about how I go about my “public” planning.

When I first started planning I was using a PlumPaper Planner, so take into consideration that the outside of that planner isn’t as flashy. When I was using this planner, I brought it in pubic way more often. Even the inside is way more streamlined and looks a little more professional. Also, when I was using this planner I was doing more color coding and using less stickers. That being said, I was never ashamed to take that planner in public or take it out in front of people.

Now with my Erin Condren and using stickers more heavily, I question bringing my planner places more. I’m not embarrassed by my planner or my hobby whatsoever, I just don’t think other people understand it. I wouldn’t bring my Erin Condren to my hair dresser and whip it out to write an appointment. I don’t want to deal with the questions or potential ridicule.

The way I have found to solve this is using another simple planner in my purse. I currently am carrying a Day Designer from Target, but I have used many cheaper “pocket-size” planners in my purse. I simply jot things down in pubic in that planner and transfer it into my Erin Condren when I’m at home!

In terms of people I am closer with like my family, friends, and boyfriend, I am more than willing to show off my planner. Most of these people know it is a hobby of mine. I have had multiple actually order PlumPaper Planners or an Erin Condren Planner after seeing how much I love mine!

This may not be the most practical hobby, but I’m keeping my life organized! Some people will understand it, and some people won’t. I think the most important thing is just to consider your audience. The Erin Condren may not be a business planner. Consider your options and choose what is right for you!

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#TBRTakedown Day 5 & 6 Update

You were warned about the no reading on Wednesday. I read a total of 12 pages.

On Thursday I was able to get some reading in. I read 87 pages of Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins.

Tomorrow is the last day of this read-a-thon! I would like to get about 50 more pages read realistically. I will have my official Wrap Up posted on Sunday morning!

Pages read: 99

Total pages read: 450

Books completed: 1

Challenges completed: 2

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Images and synopsis found on goodreads.com.  

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

This book was a little all over the place for me. All I can think about is how much thought had to have gone into every single part of this story. Creating any fictional powers or world has to be so completely time consuming to make sure there are no holes.

The entire idea of how these people acquire their abilities is so intriguing. It all made sense about how certain people had powers, and others didn’t, and how those powers weren’t random.

The beginning part of this book was hard for me to get into. It’s going back and forth between time period of these characters. It’s showing you ten years ago how these men met, and then showing you glimpses at recent times that are building up to the climax that is happening in the present time. So this first part is connecting the dots between how these men met, and how they became enemies.

Then we get to part two, which I would consider the actual plot line of this story. We got the back story, now what’s happening? Where is the story going? And this part kept me locked in. With all the characters they brought in along the way and the suspense, this is what made the book.

This book ended up being not at all what I expected. It was slow at times, but also so intriguing and something I will have in the back of my mind for awhile. I felt like the ending was sort of unresolved. I have not heard anything about a sequel but that is how I felt it was set up. We’ll see.

Overall, I gave this book 4/5 stars. If you are into Sci-Fi I would 100% recommend this to you. It will get you thinking!

#TBRTakedown Day 4 Update

I made time to read today. I had to work, which means working my shift and also a 45 minute drive there. So while a good chunk of my day was taken up, I found my time to read.

I started the day with continuing Vicious by V.E. Schwab. I finished up the last 59 pages before getting ready and heading off to work. I do work a desk job so when we’re not busy, I can read a little bit. I started Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins at work, and continued when I got home.

Vicious completed 2/5 challenges for me. Out of your comfort zone, and book from your most recent haul.

Wednesday’s are always the day I spend with my boyfriend so I don’t plan on getting too much reading done. So for tomorrow, I’m going to say, don’t expect an update. On Thursday, I’m hoping to finish Lola and the Boy Next Door and start Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson.

All of my star ratings for books will be withheld until my wrap up at the end of the read-a-thon. I will also be taking the time to make the appropriate links in that post. These are simply just quick updates throughout the week. If you would like to follow my progress more, add me on Goodreads – Bailey Blicken (linked).

Pages read: 164

Total pages read: 351

Books completed: 1

Challenges completed: 2

#TBRTakedown Day 3 Update

I had about 5 hours of available reading time in my schedule to read on Monday. While I was reading during that time, I was also trying to get other things done.

I continued reading Vicious by V.E. Schwab as my “out of my comfort zone” book. I only got 86 more pages read. This is about 2 hours of actually sitting down and reading for me.

So, I didn’t finish the book like I had planned, but I am very close now. It is guaranteed that I will finish on Day 4. I still plan on moving on to Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins when I finish.

Pages read: 86

Total pages read: 187

Books completed: 0

Challenges completed: 0

Haul: Week of July 20th (Books!)

I didn’t have a haul last week because I only got one book during the week of July 13th. I was saving for my trip to San Francisco, knowing that I was going to be stopping at some local bookshops while I was there.

Before I left I got Wait for You by J. Lynn in the mail. I read this book earlier this month on my Kindle and gave it 3/5 stars. I also posted a blog post here.

Going off on my trip I really was planning on finding more bookshops than I did. I of course couldn’t buy a ton of books to haul back home on the flight with me, but I did pick up these few upcoming books.

The first bookshop I stopped at was City Lights. I didn’t purchase anything at this stop but I spent my fair share of time looking through the shelves and sections of this bookshop. It was in a very unique area of the city and you could tell it was a well-loved little place.

The next bookshop I found was kind of a coincidence. The friend I was traveling with and I were looking in The Ferry Building and ran into Book Passage. I was so excited about this one. We were having a more chill day and actually had time to look in this bookshop for awhile. It wasn’t the biggest place but they really had something for all readers. I was completely surprised by the size of their young adult section because of this size of this shop. I purchased Vicious by V.E. Schwab and sadly put down a few that I would have loved to be able to bring home!

The last shop we stopped at was what I was truly looking forward to the whole trip. Finally, on our last day there, I went to Alexander Book Company. This bookshop was massive! There were three floors filled with books. The two people who were working were extremely friendly and helpful. I left this bookshop and headed straight to the airport with Cress by Marissa Meyer and The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson.

I would 100% recommend each of these bookshops if you are traveling to San Francisco.

I also got a cute little trinket for my bookshelf at one of the gift shops at Fisherman’s Wharf.

Weekly Spread: July 20th – July 26th

I couldn’t seem to take a picture that gave this spread justice. It’s one of my favorite so far! I used my June Mystery Box from ScribblePrintsCo on Etsy for the beginning part of the week while I was on vacation, and switched back to the monthly colors once we got home on Thursday night. I am still ready to be done with July’s colors!

I mostly just kept track of the tourist things we did in San Francisco at the beginning of the week. Not too much planning. The colors in that kit were absolutely gorgeous.

Thursday was my favorite day aesthetically. I think the blue’s blended so well changing back into the July colors. Also, that book sticker is probably my favorite sticker I’ve ever used! My weekend got hectic with having a date day on Friday and then I had a bridal shower on Saturday and a baby shower on Sunday! Doing all these things while also trying to get settled back in makes my planner look busy!

Next week the August colors are finally going to start peaking through! I am very excited because green is my favorite color and that’s the accent color for August.

Lastly, I purchased a Day Designer at Target this past week that I will be posting a quick overview on later this week! This is going to be the planner I carry in my purse!

#TBRTakedown Day 2 Update

So this read-a-thon actually started on Saturday, but I started on Sunday. So, while this was my first day reading, it was the second day of the read-a-thon.

I started with Vicious by V.E. Schwab. I am using this as my “out of my comfort zone” book. I am 218 pages in. It is very Sci-Fi which is not something I usually gravitate towards, even though I have enjoyed plenty of books from the genre.

If I finish this first book tomorrow, which I plan on doing, I will hopefully be starting Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins.

Pages read: 101

Total pages read: 101

Books completed: 0

Challenges completed: 0

#TBRTakedown 2.0

I wasn’t sure if I was going to participate during this second round of #TBRTakedown. I am just getting back from my trip and really trying to settle back in. The first round of this read-a-thon went so good for me though that I just couldn’t resist. This second round starts today (July 26th) and goes through Friday, July 31st.

#TBRTakedown is a read-a-thon hosted by Shannon over at LeaningLights (I linked her YouTube channel but you can also find her on Instagram and Twitter with the same handle). The idea of this read-a-thon is to get through some of the books that you already own and have not read! It comes with 5 challenges.

1) First book in a series

2) Unread sequel

3) Out of your comfort zone

4) On your shelf for over a year

5) Book from your most recent book haul

You can use this a a guide to read 5 books, use some books to fulfill more than one challenge, or even just complete a couple of the challenges. Push yourself, but don’t overwhelm yourself.

I chose 5 books to fulfill each of the challenges, but I am setting the goal of finishing 3 of the 5 books. The books I chose were:

– Just One Day by Gayle Forman

– Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

– Vicious by V.E. Schwab

– Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

– The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Which 3 of these I will be attempting, I am not sure yet. I am planning on doing quick daily updates and then a wrap up when I am completed.

The last time I participated it was my most successful read-a-thon ever! You can find my wrap up here.

I posted a photo of my TBR books on my Instagram @PlanAndRead.

Talk to you soon!

Would You Rather Tag

I was tagged by Justine over at BookwormManiac to do the bookish Would You Rather tag. He is one of my favorite bloggers who started around the same time I did! If you are looking for a good new blogger, check him out!

I honestly struggled with some of these answers more than I should have, so here we go!

Would you rather read trilogies or stand-alones?

Stand-alones. Hands down. I don’t like to commit myself to too much. While I like my occasional trilogy or series, I am really preferring stand-alones right now.

Would you rather read only male or female authors?

This isn’t something I usually consider while picking out or reading a book. Based on some of my favorite books, I would have to say female. I think that since I am female these might tend to be more relatable. I think I read a pretty equal balance of the two though.

Would you rather shop at Barnes & Noble or Amazon?

Barnes & Noble. Amazon is not a bookstore. I am a big believer in supporting bookstores. While Amazon sells a lot of books at somewhat reasonable prices, they would still exist if they didn’t sell books at all. They also don’t have a store base. 90% of the books I order online actually come from Barnes & Noble. I don’t have a Barnes & Noble extremely close to me, so most of the books I buy at an actual bookstore come from a local store in my area.

Would you rather books were made into TV shows or movies?

Neither, but if I had to pick one I would choose movies. Less time for them to screw things up. I am not a fan of book adaptations. I don’t get excited when my favorite books get turned into movies. I do go watch the adaptations, but it’s something I wish didn’t happen. One of my least favorite things is when I love a book and it seems so special to me, and then it gets turned into a movie and all of a sudden everyone loves it. It makes books seem less personal.

Would you rather read only 5 pages per day or 5 books per week?

5 books per week is not reasonable for me. If I was forcing myself to read that much it wouldn’t be enjoyable anymore. So as much as I’d hate stopping all the time, I’d have to do only 5 pages a day. Thank god this isn’t actually something I have to do though!

Would you rather be a professional author or reviewer?

I don’t think I have the skills to do either of these things! I’d love to be an author though. I wish I had the imagination and the writing skills. I think this blog is the max of my writing skills. While I do hope my writing improves I don’t think I will ever get to that level!

Would you rather be a librarian or a book seller?

This question humors me. Why? Because I am planning on going to school to become and librarian, but I would rather be a book seller. I think in my area and my life I will have more opportunities as a librarian than being a book seller. Both of these jobs are ideal for book lovers though so who can complain?

Would you rather read only your favorite genre or every genre but your favorite?

I don’t think I have a favorite genre! I read so many different things that I can’t classify one thing as my “favorite”. If I could, I would have to say I’d choose to read every genre but my favorite!

Would you rather read only e-books or physical books?

As much as I love the convenience of reading on my Kindle, I could never give up physical books.

Everyone I looked to tag had already done this! If you have done it, leave a link to your post in the comments!

I am back home from my trip to San Francisco now and am ready to get some more thought provoking content back on here! See you guys soon!