Looking for a rare Shakespeare Book

Hello all,
I just thought I'd use this space today for more of a personal search. I've been looking high and low for a certain book, and I don't know how else to search for it effectively except to post on here asking for help.

I'm looking for the seventh volume in a rare set of books called The Plays and Poems of William Shakespeare Complete in 13 Volumes. The set is made up of small green books and has historical notes by Charles Knight. They were published by the Outlook Company in New York in 1899. I'm including pictures of the front of one of the books and the title page to help anyone that might know where I can find Volume VII. Please include any tips on finding rare books or clues as to where I might find this book in the comments. :]

Restaurant Review: Porto's Bakery

So, today a friend and I took a drive down to Downey, CA and visited Porto's Bakery. Overall, I have to say I think this place is heaven in bakery form. It focuses on good cuban food, and the pastelitos de carne (meat pies) are absolutely to die for! I also tried the Opera cake, the Mille Feuille cup, flan, pastelitos de guayaba y queso and just cheese. Everything was well worth the calories though.

One word of advice, though. If you really want to get the best experience out of Porto's, choose to go for EITHER a meal OR snack nomming. I made the mistake of trying to start out with a broccoli cheese soup in a bread bowl, THEN try to eat my fill of pastries and treats. BAD IDEA. I was SO full that I couldn't even finish my half of the treats we had picked out, and ended up having to bring a lot of them home. Also, this place gets very busy, especially since we went at around lunch time, so I wouldn't recommend it if you only have a half-hour lunch break.

This place also takes big orders in advance of pastelitos, which I promptly ordered for Super Bowl Sunday. I also do have to say that the customer service here was very prompt and friendly, although one girl that helped us did seem like she hated her job and wasn't very enthused to serve us.

This place is definitely one that you want to take a day-trip to, and there are other locations in Glendale and Burbank.

WoW Thoughts: Vashj'ir

Alright so here's the first of one of my posts that going to be focused on World of Warcraft. This past week I finally got my priest to 80 so I could start the Cataclysm content (woohoo!). I decided to take the less-taken route and go to Vashj'ir first to quest. From what I've heard, most people to go to Mount Hyjal first because it's a bit easier and more lore-filled.

I gotta say, when I first got to Vashj'ir, I was pretty shocked by how hard it was going to be to adjust to questing underwater. Now, as I'm almost done with the quest achievement for the zone, I've found it surprisingly easy to get used to. I even like the fact that you're constantly swimming because you almost never have to travel around looking for stairs when you're looking for a quest-giver. Just swim up and around! Granted, when you first get to Kelpthar Forest the mobs are so concentrated together it's hard to get anywhere without having to kill a couple mobs first. Also, it's kind of pain at first to kill them since they're HP pool is much bigger than the mobs in Northrend, but it'll get better once you start getting the Cataclysm gear, whether it's from instances or just from quest rewards.

There are also a couple other good things about this zone. I mean, come on, can anyone say FREE MOUNT? I wish all mount quests were like that! Also, the achievement from the Visions from the Past questline is pretty easy to get. Overall, Vashj'ir is growing on me. I'll only be able to go there once on each toon, and never go back again, but at least I won't HATE it while I'm there. :]

Quality Friendship

In the age when being friends with someone can be easily achieved just by clicking the button marked "Confirm," I feel like there's a great lack of quality in friendship. There are many people that I can call my friends just because we banter back and forth on Twitter, but we must also remember those that are true friends, and appreciate them for the status they have higher than those of friends on Twitter or Yelp.

I was reminded by this today when I was able to reconnect with one of my true friends that has been out of the state for quite a while. I realized that true friendship isn't having someone continue a poke war on Facebook, but someone who can be out of your life for long periods of time and it feels like not much time has passed at all. A lot of stuff has happened to each one of us during the time that we have been out of touch, yet I found myself laughing next to her as if we'd just talked yesterday. I still feel like I'm able to tell this friend anything that I need to, whether it's because I need to vent because I had a bad day or just to share exciting news about what has happened to me recently.

Something I also realized, though, is that I have not had a true friend like this for some time. I have my family, and other friends that I can talk to occasionally whenever timing seems to pan out. I blame some of this on myself because of my busy schedule with school and volunteering and work, but I also think technology is somewhat at fault here. Because of social networking sites, instant messenger services, MMORPGs, and text messaging, I've been trying to substitute virtual friendship for real friendship. I've found that obviously, that's just not possible.

I'm so thankful for being able to rekindle such an important friendship for me, and I'm glad that I still have the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of real friendship, whether it's laughing, crying, or just being able to look in someone's eyes and immediately know what they're thinking. Don't let your true friendships go to waste: they really are worth it.

My Sketchers Shape-Ups Experience (Part 1)

So we've all seen those commercials about how extraordinary Sketchers Shape-ups are, and how they can make our lives so much better. I tried on a pair last summer and found they are extremely comfortable to walk around in. They became an addition on my Christmas list, and luckily I received a pair.

The question now is... Do they work? Well, from just the packaging they seemed pretty intense. The booklet that comes with the shoes explains that walking in Shape-ups takes some time to get used to and we should limit our walking in them to about 20-30 minutes per day for the first two weeks. Obviously, since I got them for Christmas, I'm past that point so I decided to wear them all day yesterday and today. Yesterday I didn't feel anything working and walking around didn't seem to be harder than usual. This morning when I woke up, however, I noticed that the inner thighs are VERY sore as well as my quadriceps. Since I was sore, walking and even sitting down was very tiresome.

I would say that so far, my Shape-ups are showing some promise. But there's still much to be decided. Are they helping me get my legs in shape, as they promise, or am I just using some muscles that I didn't have to use in previous pairs of shoes. When my legs get used to them, will I be more toned or will I just have slightly stronger leg muscles? There's a lot to be explained and discovered, which I will cover in a later entry of my blog.

As far as a recommendation thus far, I wouldn't know what to tell people. I've had problems walking long distances and standing for a long time with normal shoes, and the Shape-ups have definitely relieved me of that pain. It seems like the way they require me to walk so far has done the following:

• relieved pain in knees and feet from walking/standing for a long time
• improved posture (I am standing up much straighter), which leads to better overall physical appearance
• soreness in inner thighs and quadriceps

Just for the pain relief alone I would recommend them, but I'll have to wait and see what the long-term effects are before I let y'all know for a definitive answer.

Love,

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New Zodiac...WTH?

So I was sitting on Facebook wondering about what to write about on my blog today (because I haven't gotten any suggestions yet, please fix that soon you guys :P). I figured that the best way to come up with an idea is to see what all the members of my network are considering post-worthy. Because after all, a blog is just like a giant Facebook post, right? (Okay, maybe not really.)

I started seeing a ton of posts pop up about people's frustration with their Zodiac signs. Status messages stating "Uh, NO. Screw that, I'm not going to adopt a new Zodiac sign," seemed to come out of nowhere from a lot of friends. And I'm not talking about just my sorority sisters, or just my WoW friends, or just my family friends. I'm talking about a lot of different groups of my friends. So what exactly happened?

Well, apparently today a lot of online news sources (KTLA, Boston Globe, LA Times, etc) posted articles regarding a change in the Zodiac, which will add a 13th symbol into the rotation, which is named Ophiuchus. Ophi--whaa? Yeah, Ophiuchus, which apparently represents a healer interested in medicine. The new symbol will squeeze its way into the date range of November 29 to December 17. This means that the entire cycle of symbols has been shifted, changing many people's zodiac signs. Load of people are obviously outraged about this, as I'm sure has been publicized not only on my Facebook news feeds but on many others. One website states that many of us are likely to be screwed over by this change, as we may have tattoos, heirlooms, or other items that are associated with our symbol. After all, the Zodiac signs have been a way for us to figure out what's going to happen to us on any given day (horoscopes), figure out if another person is "the one" based on what sign they are, or to justify the way we act around other people.

See, I may be less sympathetic because my Sagittarius sign did not change, but I'm going to elaborate on why I think all this hubbub is a load of, as my grandfather would say, heifer hockey. Let's take a look at some of the ways we've depended on the Zodiac signs in the past:

"Every day I look at my horoscope to give me a preview of what my day is going to be like."
Millions, nay, billions of people look at their horoscope whether it be on Facebook or those little scrolls you pick up at a liquor store to figure out what their sign says about what's going to happen to them that day. After the loss of a significant other, the horoscope will say "After recent sorrows, things will look better soon." Similarly, after a promotion, a reader may look back at their horoscope, shocked and amazed, because it read, "The planet _____ signifies success in your near future." Magic, right? But come ON. Have you actually read any of the OTHER signs horoscopes? If you look closely, they are written so vaguely that anyone, anywhere feels they can relate to the information given. The "recent sorrows" could be the death of a family member, loss of a phone, or even the gain of a pound. "Success" could be related to a new relationship, a good grade in a class, or finding a quarter on the ground. All I'm saying is, no matter what your Zodiac sign is, you'll find something you can relate to in your designated horoscope of the day.

"My Zodiac sign is the way I know if I'll be compatible with a possible partner."
Ever had a friend tell you, "Oh, I KNOW that guy I've been dating for three weeks in the one because we have compatible Zodiac signs!"? How long did the relationship last? Yeah, that's what I thought. Probably not long, because the boyfriend or girlfriend caught on that the person they were dating were putting their trust in the Zodiac more than in the person themself. Sure, you can meet someone at the bar and think, "Wow, he's a Taurus, so we must go good together." and it may go great! But then these news articles come out and you find out you're REALLY incompatible. Does this mean you should break off the relationship? Nah. Or maybe your crush's new Zodiac sign says you're the perfect match. Does this mean you should start planning your wedding? I wouldn't hold my breath.

"My old Zodiac sign totally describes who I am, and my new one doesn't describe me at all."
Along with each sign there's a little description as to what the people with that sign are like. As I mentioned above, the new sign, Ophiuchus represents healers interested in medicine. Capricorns are supposed to be pragmatic and prudent. I can tell you right now that I knew a Capricorn before the change that was neither pragmatic or prudent. At the same time, I can tell you that this person's new sign (which describes them as adventurous and passionate), doesn't fit the bill either. If you've known a person whose sign described them as "confident and enjoys solitude," and their sign changed, it could be that the person is just an arrogant hermit. If you've been fun-loving all your life, and your new sign tells you you should be "serene," does that mean you need to be boring? No! Give more precedence to what's practical and enjoyable as opposed to what's expected just because of what constellation you were born under.

I hope I haven't bored you, but seriously. Does our sign (whether it's changed or not) REALLY matter? I'd hope that answer is no.

A Little Bit About Myself and My Hopes for This Blog

Hello readers!

So I had many hopes for what I was going to write about for today's blog topic, but I realized that realistically it doesn't really matter if you don't know anything about me first! So the point of today's entry is just to give you a little glimpse about who I am and what I'm interested in, so you don't have to read three weeks worth of blog entries before knowing who I am.

I'm a 20 year old student, and I live by the beach in Southern California. I'm currently attending community college with the hopes of transferring to UCLA in a couple years. I'm majoring in Mathematics because I like how straight-forward numbers can be. The best way to explain my love for Math is in the movie Mean Girls (I know, right?) where the main characters says that math and numbers are the same in every country. Math is also not confined by history and will not change with one dramatic social event.

In my free time I play a lot of World of Warcraft, which some people think is a little odd because I'm a member of a sorority. In truth, I started playing WoW way before I joined a sorority so I don't think it's that weird and I'm not about to stop something that brings me so much entertainment just because social norms say I should. I'm very much what they call an alt-aholic (see this video if you haven't already, it's hilarious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV2flIu0swA), so I don't have any max-level characters at the moment. I should have an 85 priest soon, but I'll update you when that occurs.

I really love to write, although I mostly like to write academically (like essays) so I find it a little hard to write at a more casual level, which I will be working as I continue with this blog. But as much as I love to write, I have way more empty journals than I have filled ones just because I find it so much easier to type and handwriting takes so long. I also like music of many different types and dancing around like a fool when no one's watching (or when I'm at Disneyland, where acting like a giddy fool is always appropriate).

I have dreams of someday having a regular website that people will look to me for entertainment or inspiration, something that I hope this blog will help me achieve. I hope this blog will also be able to help me grow a little along with my readers. Because I have so many facets to my personality, I can't expect this blog to only be on one subject. Some days I'll blog about my real-life adventures, some days about my WoW adventures. One entry will be satirical, and the next may be entirely serious. Because of this I hope to get many readers, even though they may not like or be interested in every single thing I post.

I hope you'll be able to join me on my blogging journey, and as I said in my previous post, I look forward to hearing any suggestions about future blog entries! Thanks guys!

Love,
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