Sweet Trouble

Rants, raves, book reviews and one girl's thoughts on life, the universe and everything.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

FreeRice

I mentioned it in passing in the last entry, but the phenomena that is FreeRice deserves it's own entry.

Looking for a fun way to kill five minutes online? Trying to improve your vocabulary in order to impress your friends or boss? Getting a handle on the English language? Taking the SAT or ACT tests anytime soon? Want to do more for the starving masses than clean your plate like your momma always told you?

FreeRice.com is for you.

Warning! It's highly addictive, but at least you'll be able to use the word vermicular in a sentance with ease. If you're reading this blog because you're, well, a reader then you may be like me and find pleasure in proof that reading really does expand your vocabulary. The parts of a knights armour pop up occasionally and I think the only reason I know what a pauldron is comes from reading Tamora Pierce's novels. Likewise I can link apostate and mendicant to Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Dart and so forth and so on.

So go have fun: You'll feed the hungry and your own mind. Just remember to set yourself a timer.

Monday, February 04, 2008

Web Comics

I spend a lot of time raving over the latest books I've read, and forget to give a little love to the things I read right here at my computer every day, or week.

Small World Cartoons by Tom Briscoe. This is a weekly web comic with a special place in my heart. The creator/illustrator is my beloved husband and those are my cats he hates on a regular basis. For inquiring minds...that's me playing freerice in the most recent offerings.

PVP by Scott Kurtz is a daily strip. This one had it's origins in roll playing and computer gaming, thus the title "Player Vs. Player." It's grown beyond that into a office sitcom with geeky tendancies, and it provides consistent entertainment. PVP has a large cast of characters, so there should be something for everyone. In fact, there's cat hate here, too, oddly enough, but this time it's the cat doing the hating.

Girls With Slingshots by Danielle Corsetto has no cats, but who can say no to the talking Scottish Cactus that the main character communes with when snockered?

Rhymes With Orange by Hilary Price has no ongoing storyline, and some are funnier than other. It's consistently amusing enough to bring me back on a daily basis, plus I the name just plain appeals to me.

Evil Inc. by Brad Guigar is the newest addition to my daily links. This one is all out geeky in premise, but in execution should appeal to anyone who's ever worked in an office, dealt with big business, had to call a help line or taken care of a three year old.

There are many more webcomics out there, and I'm open to reccomendations. These are just the ones I've found or been directed to and likes enough to go back to again and again and again. Check 'em out.