Don't forget to run. It's my reminder every day. Don't forget to run, don't forget to run, don't forget to run.

I never thought I'd enjoy it. I thought running was strictly a chore to stay healthy. So I'd listen to "motivational" music and treadmill it, or I'd run outside and my lungs burned. Nothing seemed to fit.

For just a few weeks now, I've been running. It started when I was extremely stressed out by work one day and when the end of the day rolled around, I felt so extremely overwhelmed and frustrated and worried that I didn't know what to do. I hate working out so there was nothing in my closet that worked, but I hurriedly put on a pair of old beach shorts, a heavy t-shirt, and Merrells that are primarily for walking, not running. I threw my hair into a ponytail and I RAN.

And I'm not talking about a jog. I was so stressed out that day that I RAN, unhealthily pushing myself, my body that has not worked out in years. I RAN, sprinted like someone was coming after me, and everything hurt. I thought I was having a complete meltdown.

When I slowed down, my lungs about to fall apart, and my mind in a complete whir of to do lists and "oh-my-goodness-I-forgot-to-do-that" moments, I realized I actually felt...better. Could it be? Was it possible the people I knew who ran for fun, the ones I always scoffed at and thought they were insane, might actually be right?

I tried it again the next day. The temperature was creeping up but I didn't care, I wanted to try again and see if I could do it and feel the same way. I did. I felt refreshed, I felt better, I felt FREE.

The next day I took my iPhone so I could listen to my audiobook. I've always thought I was supposed to listen to something like hardcore music, or something uplifting, making me feel like I was in my own personal Chariots of Fire movie. Meh. I guess it could help. But for me, the ticket was realizing that I don't always have to do what everyone else does and instead, I decided to listen to an audiobook. It WORKED. I was so focused on the story that I didn't even realize I had been running for a little bit and that I was having fun. I could not believe it.

And you know what else I realized? I knew I was not a natural runner, but because I finally bought the RIGHT types of running gear (Brooks shoes, lightweight shorts, dri-fit socks, an armband for my iPhone, a white lightweight hat made for running so it reflects the sun and cools my head instead of my dark hair soaking in the sun), it's like it suddenly clicked. I outfitted myself with the right stuff and the gear helps, it doesn't weigh me down. It all makes sense for me.

But, it's only been a few weeks since I started running. I hope I don't lose sight of my goals to lose weight and to feel FREE, and I hope I don't forget how much FUN I'm actually having. It's my own thing, it's about me. Don't forget to run, don't forget to run, don't forget to run.

Yeah, I've got a Pinterest board now for running. Let me know if you have one so I can follow it. I need all the help and reminders I can get.

This post was my first for Joy's Book Blog's regular Tuesday meme, Readers' Workouts.

Someone will download this audiobook because of my freakish exuberance and will think I've gone crazy. SO BE IT.

Guys, it is completely ridiculous. It is hauntingly weird. It is fantastic. But, this is not for everyone. 

This was AWESOME. Finally, people, I have come across an audiobook that I don't "just enjoy" but that I LOVE. And I loved both this crazy, crazy story and the narrator. Everything fell into place, and oh my, was I hooked.

Carl is a lonely widower in his forties. As a reporter, he starts writing an article for the newspaper he works at about the sad topic of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. A curious link to a poem, either sung or spoken, to children before they go to bed is uncovered and is the only common event for all of the deaths he's researching. The only problem is that it's not an innocent poem at all; in fact, it's actually a tribal death chant.

Carl and a real estate agent named Helen, her secretary Mona, and Mona's boyfriend known as Oyster, go on a quest to pull all of the books that have this lullaby in it and rip the pages from the books. It's their way to save the world, and for Carl especially, a way to overcome the death of his own wife and daughter. As Carl goes through the process to find each and every single copy, he has to stop himself from using this on people he doesn't like. He knows he needs help when he's beginning to wildly wield it on not just enemies, but on random, innocent people. He certainly didn't realize that along this insane path, he might actually come to terms with the horrible things in life, and maybe, just maybe, fall in love.

I'll go over my thoughts on the narrator below, but let's just say he is AWESOME for this story. I couldn't stop listening to it and I got pretty ticked off when I had to pause it.

At the heart of this story is just a lonely man who has an inordinate amount of pain and suffering in his life that he's experienced, as are the people he teams up with to track the whereabouts of the poem in every part of the country. But, it's not just what's at the heart of this that makes it so unique, it's the entire story, the peculiar method of storytelling, the characters that could be loyal or maybe not. Lullaby is certainly not for the faint of heart in several scenes, but it certainly is memorable. What a sad story wrapped up in creativity.

This is my very first time with a Chuck Palahniuk story and it will absolutely not be my last. I have this sneaking suspicion that his books might be even more fantastic in audio; I can assure you this one certainly is. It is odd, unique, filthy, ridiculous, hilarious, and heart-wrenching. And it is WEIRD. If you are a fan of straight-forward stories that don't have creatively uncomfortable and odd ways of telling the story (with a dash of crudeness), then this may not be for you. However, if you want to try something a little different and don't mind a little bit of contemptibility in some of the characters' actions and events, than oh my, pick this one!

Audio Notes: As I've already gushed, Richard Poe ROCKED. This was like some fantastic stage play come to life for audio only. His voice is smooth and he easily voiced the emotions so effectively that in the earlier spots when there was a considerable amount of heartbreak and sadness over his personal losses, my heart felt the character's pain. Richard Poe's breathing, his enunciation for certain feelings, was just PERFECT. I am a brand-new fan of his. Look at me! I'm downloading all of the audiobooks he's narrated! You know what I wish? I wish that Audible.com has the ability to "favorite" a narrator, so that way when a new audio comes out that they narrate, you'd get an alert letting you know. Isn't that a great idea? Do they do this already? If they don't, this is my idea!

Oh, yeah, click here for the sample from Audible.com.

Publisher: Recorded Books

Release Date: 01/17/05

Audio Time: 7 hours, 15 minutes

Narrator: Richard Poe

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this audio from Audible.com

About the Author

Chuck Palahniuk is most immediately known for his popular book Fight Club, which some guy named Brad Pitt starred in back in the 1990s. It was an awesome story on film, so I can only imagine what it's like to read it.

Visit the author:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On Myspace
• On YouTube
• On Flickr

I completely forgot that today was the day to post our thoughts on The Stand, by Stephen King, so two posts go up for this Sunday, July 1st. Thanks to Trish for hosting! And people! Ben Affleck is going to direct The Stand for release next year or something like that. I'm so excited; I feel much more confident that Affleck will do a better job than other directors when bringing Stephen King projects to the big screen.

Okay, FYI to all readers and to fellow participants of this #standalong. Only one spoiler below, so if you haven't read up to this part, tread lightly with that bullet.

Overview of where I'm at with a few thoughts (no spoilers)

• I'm on page 751 of the uncut edition and I love it.
• I will say that I thought Book 1 was much, much scarier when Project Blue unfurled out. The complete and utter destruction that the man-made disease caused was believable and frightening. I've heard a few other #standalong participants were developing a cold around the same time they started reading the book and I shudder for you all. I can only imagine how much scarier the book was.
• Once the story got going into the eventual movement of post-apocalyptic groups converging together, I found it wasn't as scary, which is relative. I mean, it's still competely unnerving, but compared to the first part when everyone was dropping like flies, I haven't felt as, well...concerned when opening up the book.
• The book Nick is reading, Set This House on Fire, by William Styron is a real book and one of the character's names is Mason Flagg.
• As my "education" with Stephen King books continues throughout this year, I've learned that EVERY CHARACTER in his books will eventually WET THEIR PANTS.

Things I thought were extremely creepy (no spoilers):

• Larry Underwoood walking through the Lincoln Tunnel.
• Harold Lauder.
• Trashcan Man. (He and Harold Lauder are the reasons kids shouldn't bully others.)
• Randall Flagg, the hardcase, the walkin' dude. He. Is. So. Freakin'. Scary.
• The Kid. (I actually felt a little bad for Trashcan Man.) I learned from The Guilded Earlobe that The Kid was not part of the original version of the book, and I agree with him that this is one section that I would have been happy if Stephen King left out of the uncut version. I mean, the scenes with The Kid were forty pages of NASTY. Also, The Kid reminded me of Arnold Friend from Joyce Carol Oates' short story, "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

Characters that annoy me to NO END (mini-spoiler on the 3rd bullet):

• Frannie. For the love of all that is holy, the way she doesn't tell ANYONE ANYTHING is so ridiculous. The entire human race has fallen off the planet, and there are things that make you uncomfortable with Harold Lauder, and you DON'T TELL ANYONE? Not even Stu? What is wrong with you? Open up your mouth!
• Larry Underwood. I guess he is going to improve (I hope), but right now, he's just so annoying to me.
• SPOILER. The Committee. Seriously, you want Tom Cullen to do what? Really?! That's just wrong.

Characters that I love (no spoilers):

• Mother Abagail. Of course. She's awesome.
• Nick Andros. He is just so daggone smart and cool.
• Stu Redman. Love him, but because Frannie is a naive idiot at times, I question why he'd want to be with her. He seems much more sensible.
• Kojak/Big Steve. This is what I love about Stephen King. He devotes three pages to Kojak's perspective and experience. I LOVE THAT.

QUESTION: Has anyone noticed that sometimes Mother Abagail is spelled "Abagail" and then also "Abigail?" I can't tell if it just happens to be a typo, but who knows with Stephen King.

All right, folks! That's my halfway point post for this incredible book. It goes without saying that I feel like Stephen King is THE MAN.

Note: I'm participating in Trish's #standalong and it coincides nicely with The Stephen King Project I'm hosting with Kathleen. Join if you want to, runs all year.

You may have noticed that it's been a bit quiet out here in my neck of the woods. Truth be told, I'm absorbed in my new role at work and it's swallowed up a lot of my time. When I do get time to read, it's mostly consumed by reading, listening, and... exercising.

• Reading. Stephen King's The Stand for Trish's #Standalong. Man, this book is truly epic and magnificent. What a tale!
• Listening. It's not that audiobooks require less concentration, but when my workday is done, I don't have the energy after being at a computer all day to pick up a book and read. So now when I do stuff around the house, out of the house, and my new hobby of running (!! I know, right?!), I listen to an audiobook to saturate my time with reading while still being active. And I love it. Right now, I'm listening to Chuck Palahniuk's Lullaby. And the story is so freaky weird that I love, love listening to it and get annoyed when I have to turn it off to do something else.
• What? I'm RUNNING now? And who knew I'd ever run as a form of...relaxation...? I'm not a big runner, and I mostly fast-walk, but every now and again, and particularly one stretch of my neighborhood, I actually run. After a stressful day, I enjoy my twenty or thirty minutes when I just get to unwind and abuse the day back by running. Never thought I'd actually like it. I mean, I bought real running shoes. And an armband to put my iPhone in so I can listen to my audiobooks when I run. I have no idea who I am.

So that's life right now.