This week's featured book blogger has seen a bit of the world. She was born in Cornwall, England, and when she was thirteen, she and her family moved to New Zealand. Now she's living with her husband in Taiwan and working on her Master's thesis in post 9/11 literature.
Who is this very busy and well-traveled book blogger?
Kath of [Insert suitably snappy title here...]!
Although I enjoy following along with her journey through
War and Peace and the other parts of her bookish life that she shares with us on her blog, I have to admit that the icing on the cake for me is when she talks about life as an expatriate. If you haven't visited her blog, I certainly hope you take the time to click on over to
[Insert suitably snappy title here...]. Don't forget to say hello to Kath while you're there!
(Before we visit Kath and her creative spaces, don't forget that you can click on each photo to view it full size.)
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| Reading and blogging buddy Kratos |
There are two places where I do the majority of my reading and writing: my desk in our shared study and the couch in the living room. As a general rule, I only really get to read/blog on the couch if hubby is out of town as that is where he can normally be found when he's home, doing battle with some sort of mythical creature or enemy army on his PlayStation. When I get to take over the couch, however, I'm normally joined by our fur-baby Kratos (named by hubby after a PlayStation game character). Kratos has been with us for nearly a year now after following me home one day. He had been abandoned on the streets and was bone thin, dirty and in need of some love and attention. Now he's one of the most spoiled dogs on the block, regularly seen snuggled up on the couch next to me.
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| It's Kratos Time! |
Occasionally, he decides that I've been paying far too much attention to the computer and it's his turn for some Mummy time. This photo was taken of him as he was (successfully) attempting to persuade me to leave the blogging for later and play ball with him. It's kind of hard to ignore a fully grown German Shepherd licking your face and pawing your laptop out of the way.
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| The study |
If I'm in my study then it means one of two things: hubby has taken over the couch area and is playing a loud game that's impossible to tune out OR some serious writing is going down. I'm in my final year of writing a Masters thesis on post 9/11 literature so my desk is necessarily strewn with academic journal articles, books, notes, drafts and other thesis-related paraphernalia.
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| Domo toy |
The little Domo toy is kind of our family mascot. My husband and I found him a few years back and decided that we loved this little character so much that we even used two dressed up Domo figurines on top of our wedding cake. Officially, he's the mascot for Japan's national broadcaster NHK, but I'm sure they won't mind our undying love for this strangely cute character.
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| Kath's books |
Right next to my desk is my bookshelf. In the spirit of equality, I share the shelves with my husband which I happen to secretly think is a tad unfair as he has hardly any books and just fills his shelves with what I think is random rubbish, but what he of course thinks are a collection of irreplaceable items. However, I'm trying to be a good wife and partner so he gets half of the shelves while I cheerfully double stack my precious books and dream of one day upgrading to my very own library. That said, I am very fond of my bookshelves and having space restrictions does give me pause when I'm thinking of buying a book. Every book I buy these days is one that I'm really sure I want to own, which makes them extra loved.
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| The shared desk |
In the interests of full disclosure and marital harmony, I should note that my dear hubby surrendered his window-front position at the study desk and gave it to me when I moved here and started writing my thesis so that whole sharing thing does go both ways.
Thanks very much to Cathy for inviting me to be a part of this extremely cool feature and allowing me to share two of my favourite things (my fur-baby and my bookshelves) with everyone. Happy reading!!"
The thanks go both ways, Kath-- thank you for sharing your home (and the extremely handsome Kratos) with us! Your study looks like the perfect place to get some work done, and even though Kratos demands his fair share of attention, he seems to be a wonderful blogging and reading buddy. I'm so glad you rescued him from the streets!
Mark your calendars for next Wednesday when we'll be visiting another member of the book blogging community. See you then!
I think you got the better end of that deal with the desk at the window!
ReplyDeleteLove Domo! And what a fabulous story on how your dog came into your life - he certainly does seem well-taken care of so he clearly made the best decision to follow you home! That is how I got my dog and cat - both strays and both thoroughly neglected, but now spoiled and incredibly loving!
ReplyDeleteI am so glad to have come across your blog and have enjoyed your posts! Keep it up - and good luck with your thesis!
When you speak of sharing shelves, I think some minimalist necessity like that wouldn't be a bad thing for me. I'm too spoiled with a study to myself and it's gotten out of control. Love your dog and his story.
ReplyDeleteCaite - I agree! It's lovely to have some natural light while I'm trying to think. The view isn't anything to write home about but it's better than staring at a painted wall!
ReplyDeleteCoffee and a Book chick - Thanks! That's cool that your dog and cat are rescues too! Kratos certainly has the good life now, and I'm more than happy to ruin him completely. I think he deserves it ;)
Barbara - It sure does have its advantages when it comes to reigning in my book buying - now I know that everything I get I really really want and it keeps the TBR from getting out of hand. Well, you know, by TOO much anyway!
It's always so much fun to visit other people's workspaces. Love your big window - and who can successfully write without a dog to keep you company? My two lie on the floor behind my chair, preventing me from escaping until I'm done with my work!
ReplyDelete2ManyBooks - Thanks! Absolutely agree that a dog is an essential key to successful writing. I love how he keeps my feet warm in winter and provides much needed breaks from the seriousness :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely space! I'm going to check her blog out - I know what it's like to be an expat!
ReplyDeleteHow fun to be able to picture you blogging away on that couch and at work in your study!
ReplyDeleteBermudaionion - Thanks for dropping by my blog!
ReplyDeleteLisa - Thanks! It's a great couch to blog from (as I am at this very moment, along with Kratos presenting me his ball to throw every few minutes!!)
have to agree with caite there. desk was the better end of the deal there.
ReplyDeleteOh, oh, oh - LOVE the GSD :) And your blogging area is great too!!!
ReplyDeleteJennifer - I agree! So nice to have a view while working :)
ReplyDeleteWendy- aww thanks!! I will have to feature him a bit more on the blog, he is proving very popular! Which of course makes me a very proud mum ;)
Kathmeista, so cool to see pictures of you and your puppy, and where you work. Lovely to find out a little bit about the person and life behind [insert suitably snappy title here]. What a great idea!
ReplyDeleteHi Robyn! Thanks very much :) I know isn't this feature absolutely awesome? Three cheers for Kittling: Books I say!
ReplyDelete