Amanda's Weekly Zen: January 2008

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

About Amanda

About "Amanda’s Weekly Zen"
I have been blogging about many things for many years now and recently I turned to Weekly Zen and thought to myself… “Just what is the subject of this blog?” From the start Weekly Zen has been my main online hub, and as such it has changed with me and my interests. But I have come to realize in the five years that I have been blogging that my interests have not changed that much. I have always enjoyed reading and tend to post about what I am reading here. And photography. As I learn and improve I have commented on it here. So if you were to ask me what Weekly Zen is about I would have to tell you two things… books and photography, but not photography books. Then there is this whole other thing that has crept into my life this year… traveling. Exploring new places is something that Norwood and I have done throughout our ten years together and it is only recently (January 2009) that we have hit the road again fulltime. So now Weekly Zen is about books, photography and traveling. Then in December 2009 I decided that I wanted to change my lifestyle so I trained for my first half marathon the Disney Princess Half Marathon in March 2010. I surprised myself and finished it in 3 hours and 7 minutes. Now I walk/jog at least 25 miles a week. Eventually I was able to get Maverick and Norwood to join me on my quest for miles and we often get at least 5 miles a day 5 days a week. Right now I am training with Omron for my first 5k in September 2010 and my first marathon in January 2011. So now Zen is about books, photography, traveling and running/walking. Well that is today, who knows what tomorrow will bring for Weekly Zen.

About Amanda

Amanda and Maverick in front of a hot air balloon

We hit the road in 2009 and here it is 2010 and we are still living the RV lifestyle. Most of 2009 was spent on in the southeast United States and this year we will venture into the northeast. Surfing, sun and lots of sights! Read about it here at Weekly Zen along with other things such as photography tips, my scholary work, book reviews and more.

I am Amanda. I am originally from Colorado. I have an MA in English Literature (specialty in 18th Century English Novel and dining culture). I am a PhD student of Texts and Techology. I am also working on an MS in Software Engineering in the summers. Additionally I spend a good deal of time photographing people, places and things. I also recently have taken up golf. I have been married for ten years to Norwood.

About Norwood:

Norwood is an MBA and Information Technology student. He is the travel guru in this family having seen so many more places than I. He is also an occasional musician. From time to time you will see posts here from Norwood offering advice on travel or alternative energies.

About Maverick:

Maverick is our eight year old border collie who becomes more spoiled and grumpy each day. We found him four years ago at the Longmont Humane Society and although his hair has overrun our RV and Truck we cannot imagine life without him. He is often the subject of home videos posted to You Tube and photographs on Flickr. To see them and find out more check out his very own about page.

To Authors:
I will be more than happy to read your books and review them here at Weekly Zen and several other places that I haunt. Typically I will read and review a book within a two week period after receiving the book. I will email you when it has been received and email you when the review is up. I review a book not only for plot but also for character development, voice, and general style. I have a large interest in reading genres and will not classify myself as a certain kind of reader, but I do read some more than others. I read classics, literary fiction, historical fiction, occasional mysteries and or crime novels. I do not read romances, chick lit or self help books. I will also read textbooks that deal with creative or argumentative writing. To submit a book for review please include the following in an email to amanda@amandasweeklyzen.com:

Author name and Title
Summary of the novel or sample chapter
Any additional websites you would like my review (often Amazon or Barnes and Noble are requested)

I have also been approached by musicians and authors to use my photography for their works. I have no problem talking about the use of my photography for such commercial uses. I do not typically “give away” my photography when it will be used for commercial purposes. If you would like to use any of my works for commercial purposes please contact me at amanda@amandasweeklyzen.com.

My Online Projects
You will find remnants of me online almost everywhere so here are my and my family’s current blog projects:
Amanda’s Weekly Zen (My web home)
Zerepa Designs (Online portfolio)
A Visual Zen (Flickr Account)
Climate Change Website Usability (a PhD Group Project)
Notes on Orality & Literacy: A reference for ENG 6800 students

About My Photography
To find out more about my camera, my pictures and other places my photos are featured head on over to About Photography Page.

About Reading
To see my reading lists head on over to my About Reading Page.

More about Maverick
Visit Maverick’s About Page

Contact Me
The best way to reach me is through comments on this blog. I read all the comments that my readers leave and try to answer you back either via email or in a comment post. But if you do not want to leave a comment you can always Email Me.

Thanks for stopping by my "Weekly Zen" and actually wanting to know more about me and my family.

Have a Happy Day!

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