TEN YEARS!!!

Ten years ago today, 16 year old me started this blog for a purely selfish reason. The idea of reviewing books came to me when I won a contest for an Advanced Review Copy of one of Meg Cabot's books. On the back cover it said that it was an ARC and I had never heard of such a thing. When I realized that I could get books for free, before they were released I did everything in my 16 year old power to make that a reality. This blog was the place I would record the reviews I wrote in exchange for those advanced copies.

As I graduated High School and moved into College I had less time to devote to my reviews. I was reading less Young Adult novels, which was primarily all I had read and reviewed. As I evolved throughout College so did my blog. I started to review less ARCs and more library books of all genres. I've never been consistent with what I had read so why should my reviews be limited to the advanced copies? As I moved away from those, less got sent to me which was a relief as it had gotten out of hand.

I could never consistently post blogs either because life is busy! I never stopped reading, but I didn't always want to review the books I had read so I started writing more blogs that had nothing to do with books. I expanded my posts to what had become a minor obsession for me after I had graduated college and that was traveling. I became what I like to call a literary tourist. A lot of my trips involved places I had read about in books. I write about what caused me to go somewhere and what I saw when I got there.

If I had to pick a favorite type of post I love the ones like this, when I just write whatever it is I am thinking. Ten years ago a post like this never would have happened. This blog has always surprised me. I've had friends tell me about this local blog they had found, only to realize that it was mine (when I started this I used an assumed name as I had been a minor). I have also had some backlash over what I have written, both in reviews and about my adventures. This blog is almost a digital version of my life and it would be unrealistic if I didn't have problems here too.

Bookworm Extraordinaire is no longer strictly a book blog like it was when I started it 10 years ago. I originally envisioned that my reviews would one day become my profession. Now it is just a hobby, something for me to see how I have grown. People tell me they are impressed with my writing that they have seen sampled here, but like anyone I will always have doubts. Some consider me a writer because of what they've read here, but I don't think I will ever see myself that way. I'm not quite sure what will make me change my mind but rest assured if I figure it out I will probably write about it here!

I'm not sure what the future has to hold for me or for this blog, but looking back I can't believe how far this has taken me. I have had over 300 readers and when I reached that milestone I did a giant giveaway! My love of reading has sent me to two Book Cons in New York City, several wonderful Teen Book Festivals, and so many book signings! I have met so many other bloggers and readers at those events that no matter what I'm reading someone I know is reading it too so I always have someone to gush with! My travel bug sent me to two trips overseas including a 6 week solo backpacking trip. But most importantly it has allowed me to go on countless adventures, both real and read! Here's to the next ten years, bookworms and fellow adventurers! Thank you all so much for sticking with me!

~Laura!

Some Thoughts on National Geographic Live with Ami Vitale!

I'm not sure I can explain to you the overwhelming excitement I felt when I found out that one of my favorite photographers, Ami Vitale was coming to Buffalo! No one ever comes here so it was a huge surprise! There was no way I was missing it, especially since it was at Kleinhans!

Ami gave a talk on Rhinos, Rickshaws, and Revolutions. If you are a fan of National Geographic you may have seen her recent photos of the passing of Sudan. He was the last male of his species, the Northern White Rhino. Ami told us about how she had done a story on Sudan and his daughters were being moved from the Czech Republic to Kenya and that she had grown close to their keepers. Close enough that when Sudan became too old for him to have a good quality of life and his keepers made the hard decision to put him down they had Ami come to Kenya to say good bye. If that doesn't tell you how special a soul Ami is then I'm not sure what will.

Ami dropped everything secure in her life to become a photo journalist so that she could bring stories to the World. She spent a decade covering conflicts that most people have forgotten, such as Kosovo and Cashmir. She made such strong connections there and through her photos brought those connections to the rest of the World. She has the ability to empower and amplify voices of the individuals like no other photographer I have seen.

But at one point, enough was enough, Ami couldn't be around war anymore. She wanted to take a break from everything, but then she was offered to do story about trees. And that opened her up to nature and wildlife conservation photography, which is my favorite. She got to go to China and observe how scientists there choose which babies should stay in captivity and which should be trained to go into the wild! She even had to wear a panda suit. Ami, once again, showed how special she is because of how she photographed one of the Pandas going into the wild for the first time: she donned a special camouflage suit that made her look like a bush while no other journalist thought to take Hope's feelings into account. Ami did and was rewarded by Papa Panda! She got to hold not one but two baby pandas. A dream come true for most people. (Obama only got to hold one if that tells you anything!!)

Ami Vitale and I!

I could go on and on about Ami's talk, (I took a copious amount of notes) which will stay in my heart and mind for a very long time, but I don't want to spoil too much in case one day you are lucky enough to hear her speak as well! I wholly encourage you to try to! And she has a book on her experience with the pandas coming out next month! You can pre-order Panda Love: The Secret Lives of Pandas by Ami Vitale at any of your favorite booksellers!!

Oh and not only was I able to hear her speak about her long and amazing career I was lucky enough to meet her after! I was a bundle of nerves, but I didn't make a fool of myself! In fact, even she agreed that we were kind of sharing a wave length! I couldn't help but mention how my work mirrors hers in a way I didn't realize until hearing her speech! She is frequently in the company of people who live their lives in service of orphaned wildlife, which is what I do in my rehabilitation work. And she told a story about how while at the World's Largest Camel Fair people would take photos of locals without even asking their names or even for something as simple as permission! This hit home with me because of my own photography project on Instagram called The Name of Strangers, where I do just the opposite of those tourists, I purposely go up to strangers and ask them their names, ask them the stories behind their names and ask if I may take their portrait! I was honored that Ami loved the idea and took one of my business cards. Having a World renowned National Geographic Explorer and Photographer think my idea is a good one means so much I cannot even begin to tell you!

The takeaway for me from meeting Ami was about how empathy is the most important thing individuals can use to make the world they want to live in, remembering to see the whole picture and look past the doom and gloom headlines because inevitably there will be something or someone who warms your heart just behind it!  

~Laura!

On Birding!

Today's post is about one of my favorite outdoor activities: birding! I decided today was the day to write about it because I was supposed to go on a birding trip to Owl Woods in Rochester, but I couldn't go due to a horrible headache. I'm pretty bummed, but I figured I'd still devote today to our feathery friends!

On any given day you may find me inside because mostly I find the outside usually horrible, but at least once a month you'll find me outside in the woods looking for birds! I am one of those people who never really thought of birds. Why is that when they are the most visible wildlife we see? Why because they are so common of course! I mostly ignored them. I noticed them, but I never really tried to tell them apart other than the obvious. I knew the easy ones like crows, pigeons, robins, cardinals, blue jays and owls (but not what kind of owl). Other than that I had really no idea. Once I realized that I only truly could identify a few types of birds I was disappointed in myself. I began birding because I wanted to learn more about them!

What is birding, though? Basically, it is just watching the birds. Watching, observing, listening, and learning about them! You can do this no matter where you are! Sure it helps to have binoculars, but you don't really need them. And if you do get them they don't have to be über fancy or anything.

I saw this black capped
chickadee at our nest box!

I am lucky enough to have a pair of nice binoculars that my parents bought me for Christmas, but my everyday birding is done just by sitting at my window looking out at the bird feeder or on neighborhood walks!

I love birding because there are so many things to learn. I can't imagine knowing everything there is to know about ornithology, the study of birds. If you're gonna go out birding you may want to get a field guide. It doesn't have to be fancy, and you don't even have to buy one as I'm sure your library probably has a good one! I have a pocket size guide to birds that are just in New York State. These are helpful for identifying the birds that aren't always recognizable at first, like a male cardinal.

I'm getting better at recognizing birds that I see pretty often, but what I'm still horrible at is recognizing the sounds of birds. I think it would be nice to be able to tell which bird it is I'm hearing because that is the first thing most people notice first: the birdsong that is waking them up at the crack of dawn. But, goodness, it is almost stupidly hard. I can't even remember the common birdsongs. I think the only one I can identify with any ease is the red wing black bird which makes a wholly ridiculous sound of CONK-ER-REE! 

Birding was the first outdoor activity I really looked forward to doing. I love birds now. I love the sheer amount of them. I also love how loving them can bring people together. I go to a birding 101 class every month and there is a core group of people who have never missed a class! Our instructor is amazing! She is so knowledgeable and she is extremely patient.

I didn't need binoculars to
see this Canada Goose strut
its stuff!

She has a passion for birding that she is eager to pass along. She took me under her wing and sometimes takes me on adventures outside of class to look for birds. It's with her that I took my two first place winnings in a photo contest, it was with her that I first saw a foggy sunrise, and it was with her that I was supposed to go searching for owls with at the crack of dawn this morning. I don't think I would care as much about birding now if it wasn't for her enthusiasm! And my birding has helped me greatly as a wildlife rehabber! The more I know about birds the easier it is for me to take care of them!

Birds are fascinating. They are so common and yet we still don't know everything about them. Like how do catbirds know they are a catbird when they were raised by a different species of bird after they were hidden in a different nest? Why do birds of paradise dance so specifically to capture the attention of a mate? How can crows identify faces? How can some crows make tools? How can crows be so smart? (Basically, how do crows become crows? How?! I love crows). Why are some birds so colorful when others are really dull? It is really just their environment? If so why are sparrows all mostly brown when the blue jay is so bright and they both live in my neighborhood? It is all so mysterious!

I hope this post has made you curious about birds and that maybe next time you see a bird you'll try to figure out who it is or when you hear a bird singing you'll wonder who's song it is!

~Laura!

On Penpals and Letter Writing!

In honor of the Month of Letters Challenge and International Correspondence Writing Month, I decided to write a post about penpaling!

I met my first penpal when I started this blog. She was a fellow book blogger and we hit it off right away. We only exchanged a couple letters but have remained friends on Facebook. I missed writing to her and to my best friends who have long since graduated from their far away colleges and have come back home. I missed writing to penpals, but didn't know who to write to!

Then NerdCon: Nerdfighteria happened last February. I joined a Facebook group of attendees and near the end of March, a woman posted there asking for penpals. Well, she got so many responses that the people who commented started to write each other and TADA! Suddenly, I had found my people! That led me to posting on Instagram a photo of my outgoing letters and I discovered a low-key sub-culture of snailmailers!

I have 10 penpals from around the States. I adore them all and they all amazing! 10 penpals is sometimes a lot for me to handle. Because no matter what I do I always get at least half of their replies during the same week! I feel forever behind in responding, but they never mind. I do have a system though. I reply to the letters in the order in which I receive them!

But how do I keep every one of those 10 people straight? Besides them all being different people with their own style and lives which makes it pretty easy, I also keep a notebook of everyone's favorites, their hobbies, birthdays, pet names, and things like that! Before I send out a letter I jot down the highlights of what I wrote to them so that when they reply back I remember what it was I even said in the first place.

But what do we write about? Everything! At the beginning it's introducing yourself and getting to know your new friend. I've been writing for almost a year now so a lot of my penpals are not so much penpals as they are friends that live in a different state. What do you talk to your friends about? Everything. We catch each other up on school and work and what we did that month or last weekend, what our pets did, our family, holidays, bad days, good days, everything! And the letters don't have to be long, they don't even have to be letters at all! During school some of my penpals may send a postcard every couple months just so I know they are just stuck in academic hell and will write whenever they can!

Why even write a letter? Because it's important to not let something die just because it isn't as "easy" anymore. Written correspondence was the only way for people to communicate for such a long time that letter writing was commonplace and incredibly important. History shows that the most remembered figures are remembered more clearly through the letters they wrote (and journals they kept, but journalling will be another post one day). Some of my favorite letter writers are Alexander Hamilton, Queen Victoria, and Vincent Van Gogh! Sitting down to spend an hour using your hand to write a letter also helps you relax and reflect on your day, week, or month (depending on how often you write back and forth). It helps you see what your life looks like from another perspective. My life can be boring to me but different and exciting to someone else. It's a chance to get to know other people and keep a lost art going!

Nowadays, writing letters is much less common and sometimes even confuses people. Like my big brother who was extremely confused as to why I was writing a 10 page long letter when I could have just texted. He didn't get the point at all. But this past Christmas I sent out cards that included a wax seal to close the envelope and several of my friends flipped out! I got so many texts about how cool the seals were and that they'd never seen one of those outside a Hogwarts letter. It also prompted a bunch of people to send their own Christmas cards back to me and on to their family and friends as well, thus spreading not just the holiday cheer but the love of posted mail, too!

 It's also really fun! Stamps and post marks are something I never thought would be so exciting, but they are! Seeing a letter in your mail box that is post marked from across the country and thinking about everything it must have seen on it's way to me is extraordinary! And don't get me started on stamps. Philately is COOL! Stationary and cards, rubber stamps and washi tapes are all things I did not care about but do now! But what's great about writing letters is that it doesn't have to cost much more than that 50 cent stamp because you can get envelopes in bulk and regular notebook paper is always pretty cheap. You can buy stamps at your local grocery or pharmacy usually! And just shove the letter in your mailbox and your postal carrier will take it with them when they deliver your mail! Easy peasy!

So in summary, all this to say: penpalling rocks! Writing letters, sending snail mail, buying stamps, postcards and stickers, and mail art is just cooler and longer lasting than sending a text. That's why I'm so excited to take part in my first Month of Letters Challenge where you write and send something in the mail every day the post runs!

Write more,

Text less,

~Laura!