help me decide!!

i need a new phone like, yesterday, and so i stepped into the verizon store to see what they could offer me. i came out with two very different phones to choose from. so, im going to put down my needs and the link for each phone's specs, and maybe i'll get some feedback from readers.

so:

• i really want a good solid camera on my phone. the 2.0 mpxl in the standard phones is ok. its nice, and it works. but i'd really love to have a bit more, so i can have pix to post on my blog (of course). camcorder is nice too.
  
• i'd like to keep the phone for the full 2 year contract, so i want something durable.
• i want something sleek and light
• i dont want to get something that's going to "go out of style" or become outdated too fast

that said, the two phones i'm looking at are the samsung gleam and the samsung flipshot.

good things about the gleam: it's cute, extremely light, very functional, has 2.0 mpxl camera and is shiny-pretty. oh, and it's free.

good things about flipshot: it's high-tech, a bit lighter than my current phone, has 3.0 mpxl camera & camcorder & flip screen for easy use, has a USB cord (this is big), looks like a digital camera when it's flipped, and is black-techie looking.

bad things about gleam: it's rather generic and prozaic. doesnt have the quality of camera that i'd like. it appears that newer phones will upgrade to the 3.0 mpxl real soon.

bad things about flipshot: it's a bit bulkier than i'm used to, more tricks to learn cuz of more features, its possible that it will have bugs, there is a 2 second focus/shutter delay, it's $50 AND i'll most likely have to buy a memory card for it within the next few months.

i'm inclined to nab the flipshot b/c it's brand spankin' new and on sale. where else can i get both a phone and a digital camera for $50?? granted, it's a long way off from the standard 10 mpxl cameras out there, but it's better than nothing!

the practical person that lives in my brain tells me that i should stick with the gleam. it's pretty and shiny and functional, and i wont have problems with it. should i kick this person to the curb???

kitty bronchitis

did i spell that right?

so kitty (aka "romeo") lost his voice last week. i was more amused than concerned as he's a "talker" and tends to drive everyone nutz with his yowling. little squeeks and raspy halts filtered out at regular intervals, amusing me and definitely NOT intimidating the kitten (yes, you read me right - kitten).

after a few more days humoring his ailment, i noticed that he developed a cough. not one of those awful gut-wrenching, car-start hairball coughs, but actual, legit, "old man-type" wheeze/hacks. yum! a quick trip to the vet revealed kitty bronchitis. during my tday vacation i get to look forward to shoving large tuna-flavored pills down kitty's throat. hopefully this will not result in his subsequent fear and loathing and strategically placed vomit (must remember to check shoes every morning).

and yes, i did indicate that a kitten now lives in the over-stuffed townhouse. sis found her about a month ago and didnt have the heart to take her to the shelter. thusly resides "ella," the hyperactive kitten.

she does serve the purpose of general mediator between the other cats. all of them think she's too cute (or something) to hiss/spit/run away from her. romeo took her under his wing immediately and began giving her washing lessons. unfortunately, she wasnt having any of it. all at once now: "awwwwwwww!"

october books

yikes... blogging is not going well for me lately. i've been up to my ears in work-stew and topped it off with a glorious week in cali with the relatives (and wine). hopefully the holiday season will allow me more time for the things i love: cooking, reading and blogging!

october was a tough month for reading. i was able to finish up two books, and get a solid start on a third. first on the list is anne of windy poplars. via wikipedia, i found out that this book was actually written years after the anne series was completed. apparently the 3 years anne and gilbert spend apart cultivating their careers were not immediately important to montgomery's readers. the feminist in me indignantly cries "what??!! of course it's important!", but the person who finished the book says "oh, i see why now..."

gilbert spends 3 years getting his medical degree in some western part of canada, and anne obtains a principalship at a high school in a town not terribly far from avonlea. this book sets out to fill in the gap with an exchange of letters and experiences from the two lovers. it's a pretty idea, really. but my biggest complaint is that we NEVER see a letter, or get an excerpt from any correspondence from gilbert! from previous books, we know he's smitten with anne, and i expected a few juicy tidbits here and there (however provincial they had to be).

my second complaint is: in this book, anne can do no wrong. of course she encounters difficulties and large hurtles, but while in previous books the reader was left with a solid feeling of anne's goodness, we are simply TOLD of anne's goodness from the townspeople's constant verbal compliments. how this girl survived three years w/o getting a big head is beyond me. sure the trials are funny, sad, entertaining and creatively solved, but c'mon... can one girl really save the entire town in three years time?

despite my growing sense of cynicism, i will continue with the anne series. it's heartwarming, and great for a quick lunchtime break. i also have faith that montgomery did not spoil her next few books with overly saturated goodness, as they were written directly after the first few.

the second book i read was the big over easy by jasper fforde. it's the first in a series of nursery rhyme themed detective novels, and also our book club pick of the month. it's a cute book, but i dont recommend it for a book club. there's not much to discuss, and the plot changes so much that it's difficult to keep track of via our particular group's methods of communication.

basically, a nice, chummy, family-oriented detective has the crappiest job in the station and he ends up handling the biggest case the town's seen in years. there are playful references to nursery rhymes, and it was fun googling them to remember the exact phraseology. the action that happens is reasonably well written, but grows confusing over the course of the book. i'm not a huge fan of this one, and probably wont continue the series. i'm grateful for the light read, but would like to see where else the book club takes me.

because i joined a new book club, i abandoned northanger abby for a bit and started the american by henry james. this one was a large chunk to chew, and the club didnt meet till early november, so i kept it as my vacation novel. i'll report more on it for november books.

i have a few books on deck: end of the affair, the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime, and guns, germs & steel. we'll see how far i get, and with a heavy work load ahead of me, i'll need lots of luck! happy reading!