Books read in 2014

Death's Acre: Inside the Legendary Forensic Lab the Body Farm Where the Dead do Tell Tales, William Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Roads, Earl Swift
Never Suck A Dead Man's Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI, Dana Kollmann 
Confessions of a Surgeon, Paul A. Ruggieri M.D.
Lincoln's Grace Robbers, Steve Sheinkin
Why Your Prescription Takes So Damn Long to Fill, Drugmonkey
Beyond the Body Farm, Dr. Bill Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession, Mark Obmascik
True Hollywood Noir: Filmland Mysteries and Murders, Dina Di Mambro
Island of Vice: Theodor Roosevelt's Quest to Clean Up Sin-Loving New York, Richard Zacks   
Mortal Evidence: The Forensics Behind Nine Shocking Cases, Cyril H. Wecht
Amelia, Nancy Nahra
Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World's Stolen Treasures, Robert K. Wittman & John Shiffman 
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green
Hot Lights, Cold Steel, Michale J. Collins, M.D.
Blue Collar, Blue Scrubs, Michael J. Collins M.D. 
Dark Dreams: A Legendary FBI Profiler Examines Homicide and the Criminal Mind, Roy Hazelwood & Stephen G. Michaud 
Swim, Bike, Run: Our Triathlon Story, Alistair Brownlee & Jonathan Brownlee
The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule
Beauty, Disrupted: The Carre Otis Story, Carre Otis & Hugo Schwyzer
House of Versace: The Untold Story of Genius, Murder and Survival, Deborah Ball
Trama: My Life as an Emergency Surgeon, Dr. James Cole
Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies, J.B. West
Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain
Back of the House: The Secret Life of a Restaurant, Scott Haas 
Shooting Stars: My Unexpected Life Photographing Hollywood's Most Famous, Jennifer Buhl
Trauma Junkie: Memoirs of an Emergency Flight Nurse, Janice Hudson
You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again: The True Adventures of a Hollywood Nanny, Suzanne Hansen
NYPD Confidential: Power and Corruption in the Country's Greatest Police Force, Leonard Levitt 
The Things That Matter, Nate Berkus
Chicago Cop: Tales from the Street, Star #14931
The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute of America, Michael Ruhlman
Monica's Story, Andrew Morton
All Too Human: A Political Education, George Stephanopoulos
Flowers in the Attic, V.C. Andrews
Petals on the Wind, V.C. Andrews
If There Be Thorns, V.C., Andrews 
How I Helped O.J. Get Away With Murder, Mike Gilbert  
Rawhide Down: The Near Assassination of Ronald Reagan, Del Quentin Wilber
Standing Next to History: An Agent's Life Inside The Secret Service, Joseph Petro & Jeffrey Robinson  
Intensive Care, Echo Heron
Condition Critical: The Story of a Nurse Continues, Echo Heron
Cabin Fever: The Sizzling Secrets of an Virgin Air Hostess..., Mandy Smith
Dancing with the Devil: The Windsors and Jimmy Donahue, Christopher Wilson
The Season: A Summer Whirl Through the English Social Season, Sophie Campbell
Joe and Marilyn: Legends in Love, C. David Heymann
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies and the Making of a Medical Examiner, Judy Melinek, M.D.
Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents, Cormac O'Brien
Secret Lives of the First Ladies, Cormac O'Brien
The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren
Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II's Most Audacious General, Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard
Gone Girl, GIllian Flynn
 
Currently Reading: The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art, Don Thompson

Geisha oil pastel

Finished another drawing last week. The medium I used was oil pastel.

I love Geisha art, photos and their culture, so I found geisha prints online and used it as my inspiration. I do like what I created. I did shade just a little of the kimono near the obijime. I didn't shade anywhere else because none of the early Japanese prints of geisha are shaded.

Oak Ridge Cemetery III - Springfield, IL

Books read in 2014

Death's Acre: Inside the Legendary Forensic Lab the Body Farm Where the Dead do Tell Tales, William Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Roads, Earl Swift
Never Suck A Dead Man's Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI, Dana Kollmann 
Confessions of a Surgeon, Paul A. Ruggieri M.D.
Lincoln's Grace Robbers, Steve Sheinkin
Why Your Prescription Takes So Damn Long to Fill, Drugmonkey
Beyond the Body Farm, Dr. Bill Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession, Mark Obmascik
True Hollywood Noir: Filmland Mysteries and Murders, Dina Di Mambro
Island of Vice: Theodor Roosevelt's Quest to Clean Up Sin-Loving New York, Richard Zacks   
Mortal Evidence: The Forensics Behind Nine Shocking Cases, Cyril H. Wecht
Amelia, Nancy Nahra
Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World's Stolen Treasures, Robert K. Wittman & John Shiffman 
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green
Hot Lights, Cold Steel, Michale J. Collins, M.D.
Blue Collar, Blue Scrubs, Michael J. Collins M.D. 
Dark Dreams: A Legendary FBI Profiler Examines Homicide and the Criminal Mind, Roy Hazelwood & Stephen G. Michaud 
Swim, Bike, Run: Our Triathlon Story, Alistair Brownlee & Jonathan Brownlee
The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule
Beauty, Disrupted: The Carre Otis Story, Carre Otis & Hugo Schwyzer
House of Versace: The Untold Story of Genius, Murder and Survival, Deborah Ball
Trama: My Life as an Emergency Surgeon, Dr. James Cole
Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies, J.B. West
Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain
Back of the House: The Secret Life of a Restaurant, Scott Haas 
Shooting Stars: My Unexpected Life Photographing Hollywood's Most Famous, Jennifer Buhl
Trauma Junkie: Memoirs of an Emergency Flight Nurse, Janice Hudson
You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again: The True Adventures of a Hollywood Nanny, Suzanne Hansen
NYPD Confidential: Power and Corruption in the Country's Greatest Police Force, Leonard Levitt 
The Things That Matter, Nate Berkus
Chicago Cop: Tales from the Street, Star #14931
The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute of America, Michael Ruhlman
Monica's Story, Andrew Morton
All Too Human: A Political Education, George Stephanopoulos
Flowers in the Attic, V.C. Andrews
Petals on the Wind, V.C. Andrews
If There Be Thorns, V.C., Andrews 
How I Helped O.J. Get Away With Murder, Mike Gilbert  
Rawhide Down: The Near Assassination of Ronald Reagan, Del Quentin Wilber
Standing Next to History: An Agent's Life Inside The Secret Service, Joseph Petro & Jeffrey Robinson  
Intensive Care, Echo Heron
Condition Critical: The Story of a Nurse Continues, Echo Heron
Cabin Fever: The Sizzling Secrets of an Virgin Air Hostess..., Mandy Smith
Dancing with the Devil: The Windsors and Jimmy Donahue, Christopher Wilson
The Season: A Summer Whirl Through the English Social Season, Sophie Campbell
Joe and Marilyn: Legends in Love, C. David Heymann
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies and the Making of a Medical Examiner, Judy Melinek, M.D.
Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents, Cormac O'Brien
Secret Lives of the First Ladies, Cormac O'Brien
The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren
Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II's Most Audacious General, Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard

Currently Reading: Gone Girl, GIllian Flynn

Oak Ridge Cemetery II - Springfield, IL

FIBA Women's World Basketball Championship

Associated Press

The USA Basketball Women's World Championship team defeated Spain 77-64 to win the gold medal Sunday at 2014 FIBA Women's World Basketball Championship in Istanbul, Turkey. The United States went 6-0 at the World Championships. With the win, the USA won its ninth World Championship and earned a spot in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

 Maya Moore led the US with 18 points and was named the tournament MVP. Moore led USA with 11 points in the first quarter. Moore's WNBA teammate, Lindsay Whalen had a good game and scored 12 points and Brittany Griner added 11. Diana Taurasi chipped in six points, but did have eight assists.

Bulldog Run 5K

I ran the Bulldog Run 5K on a chilly and windy Sunday morning. The temperature was hovering around 40° at the start of the race. I ran in compression socks, Oiselle shorts, O long sleeve shirt,  O singlet and a stocking hat.

Not very many of us signed up to run the 5K. Normally this race is run on Saturday morning. Which is the day of college homecoming football game. The race was moved to Sunday morning this year. The day after the football game. Part of the course was run in the football stadium parking lot. There was so much trash. It looked like someone tipped over a dumpster and all of the trash had rolled out of it.

When the starting gun went off, I was fourth. I was surprised that more people weren't up at the front. I did get passed by a tall guy heading down to the track to run a lap before running off college property. I was running steady by myself until the first mile. The volunteer called out "8:03" when  a man and woman and myself passed by. They ended up running away from me. I couldn't keep up with their fast pace. Soon after that, a college age girl ran beside me. At a point she started to pull away from me. I was able to catch back up and pass her. Once I passed her, I heard two college age males behind me talking to the girl I passed. They soon passed me.

The guys were running pretty fast. One of the two guys started slowing. I told myself to go after him. I was able to pull up behind him around the second mile mark. The volunteer said 17:03 when I ran by.  About half a block later, I was side by side with the second guy. I passed him and told myself to hurry up. On this stretch of street, the wind was blowing in our faces. I kept my head down and pushed through the wind. Turning a corner, the pair of volunteers encouraged me. A few seconds later, they were talking to the guy behind me. The guy asked, "How much farther?" He then asked the volunteer on the bike if he could have it. I knew that he was a few seconds behind me and that he probably wouldn't catch me.

Making the final right turn to the service drive that lead to the football stadium, I couldn't make my legs go any faster. Running onto the field, the soft, artificial surface slowed me down. It felt like I was running on a sponge. The clock read 25:xx as I was running on the football field. The finish line was at the 50 yard line  and I couldn't wait to get there. I finished in 26:55. I was 8th overall and the 3rd woman. It wasn't my fastest 5K on the year, but that is OK. Just running makes me happy.

Books read in 2014

Death's Acre: Inside the Legendary Forensic Lab the Body Farm Where the Dead do Tell Tales, William Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Roads, Earl Swift
Never Suck A Dead Man's Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI, Dana Kollmann 
Confessions of a Surgeon, Paul A. Ruggieri M.D.
Lincoln's Grace Robbers, Steve Sheinkin
Why Your Prescription Takes So Damn Long to Fill,Drugmonkey
Beyond the Body Farm, Dr. Bill Bass & Jon Jefferson
The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession,Mark Obmascik
True Hollywood Noir: Filmland Mysteries and Murders, Dina Di Mambro
Island of Vice: Theodor Roosevelt's Quest to Clean Up Sin-Loving New York, Richard Zacks   
Mortal Evidence: The Forensics Behind Nine Shocking Cases, Cyril H. Wecht
Amelia, Nancy Nahra
Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World's Stolen Treasures, Robert K. Wittman & John Shiffman 
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green
Hot Lights, Cold Steel, Michale J. Collins, M.D.
Blue Collar, Blue Scrubs, Michael J. Collins M.D. 
Dark Dreams: A Legendary FBI Profiler Examines Homicide and the Criminal Mind, Roy Hazelwood & Stephen G. Michaud 
Swim, Bike, Run: Our Triathlon Story, Alistair Brownlee & Jonathan Brownlee
The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule
Beauty, Disrupted: The Carre Otis Story, Carre Otis & Hugo Schwyzer
House of Versace: The Untold Story of Genius, Murder and Survival, Deborah Ball
Trama: My Life as an Emergency Surgeon, Dr. James Cole
Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies, J.B. West
Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain
Back of the House: The Secret Life of a Restaurant, Scott Haas 
Shooting Stars: My Unexpected Life Photographing Hollywood's Most Famous, Jennifer Buhl
Trauma Junkie: Memoirs of an Emergency Flight Nurse, Janice Hudson
You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again: The True Adventures of a Hollywood Nanny, Suzanne Hansen
NYPD Confidential: Power and Corruption in the Country's Greatest Police Force, Leonard Levitt 
The Things That Matter, Nate Berkus
Chicago Cop: Tales from the Street, Star #14931
The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute of America, Michael Ruhlman
Monica's Story, Andrew Morton
All Too Human: A Political Education, George Stephanopoulos
Flowers in the Attic, V.C. Andrews
Petals on the Wind, V.C. Andrews
If There Be Thorns, V.C., Andrews 
How I Helped O.J. Get Away With Murder, Mike Gilbert  
Rawhide Down: The Near Assassination of Ronald Reagan, Del Quentin Wilber
Standing Next to History: An Agent's Life Inside The Secret Service, Joseph Petro & Jeffrey Robinson  
Intensive Care, Echo Heron
Condition Critical: The Story of a Nurse Continues, Echo Heron
Cabin Fever: The Sizzling Secrets of an Virgin Air Hostess..., Mandy Smith
Dancing with the Devil: The Windsors and Jimmy Donahue, Christopher Wilson
The Season: A Summer Whirl Through the English Social Season, Sophie Campbell
Joe and Marilyn: Legends in Love, C. David Heymann
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies and the Making of a Medical Examiner, Judy Melinek, M.D.
Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents, Cormac O'Brien
Secret Lives of the First Ladies, Cormac O'Brien
The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren

Currently Reading: Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II's Most Audacious General, Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard

Oak Ridge Cemetery I - Springfield, IL