Numbers 8 and 23

I am currently working on number 8) Read 10 books.

Right now I am reading How to Be a Hepburn in a Hilton World by Jordan Christy.

This book is about how to stay classy and true to yourself in a world that is constantly telling women the only way to get ahead is to wear a miniskirt.  I am currently only about half way through the book (hoping to finish tonight) and although at times I feel like Jordan Christy is a little bit too judgmental of some, while she over idealizes others, she does have some great points and excellent advise.

Here is one of my favorite excerpts (so far)...
"...another great way to up the language ante is to learn a new one.  Audrey Hepburn knew sever languages, including Dutch, English, French, Italian, and Spanish.  However, if you're anything like me your 'foreign language courses' in high school roughly translated into three years of pinata parties and worthless workbooks.  Just as we'd dive into 'Hasta manana,'  one of the oh-so-mature boys would put on the classroom sombrero, run around, and taunt our teacher (who never could quite master the art of discipline) until she sent him to the office.  All in all, I think I gleaned more about Spanish language and culture by watching Adam Sandler in Spanglish than I did in my three sad years of classroom learning on the subject.

So when I got around to really learning a new language, I decided to try one I was genuinely interested in.  (I chose Espanol in high school only because other kids said that the German teacher would blow her cigarette breath in your face if you answered a question incorrectly.)  I'd always been intrigues by the nation of Israel and thought that it might be exciting to try Hebrew, and I honestly had more fun in one week reading Brandeis Modern Hebrew than I did in all three years of Chips and Salsa 101.  I've since fallen in love with the language and can't wait to visit Israel someday."

She goes on to say "You just need to find a language, country, or culture that genuinely appeals to you and immerse yourself in some great learning material from that society.  Bonus:  it gives you a really good excuse to take a vacation to that country once you're well-versed."

After reading this I decided to make this part of my number 23) Do something to grow my skill set.  After I finish reading Jordan Christy's book and The Great Gatsby I will immerse myself into the Irish culture-one that has always appealed to me and where Jamie and I are hoping to go on our Honeymoon!