Welcome

Welcome to my ever-evolving blog. It started out as a blog on Beachbody workouts and products, mainly when I was a Beachbody coach. I no longer coach, not because I don't believe in Beachbody's programs (I subscribe to Beachbody on Demand and use their workouts every day), I am just not a salesperson and hated that aspect of it. I am more than willing to answer questions about my experiences with their products and the various workouts, and I feel freer to do so without the appearance of giving a biased review of something.

I have also started adding reviews for various things I have purchased like movies, books, CDs, and other products. This was brought about by a fight with Amazon in which all of my reviews were removed over a completely bullshit allegation that I posted a review that violated their terms of service. After going back and forth with the morons in the community-reviews department (even after they admitted that my posts did not violate their guidelines) they restored my account (which took them six months to do), but I have been posting my reviews on my blog to have them preserved in case something like that happens again. And here, I will post uncensored reviews so I will swear from time to time and post reviews that may be longer than Amazon's character limit. Everything I post here on any topic or product is my personal opinion, and I take no compensation for any product reviews I post. I am a member of Amazon's vine program and because I get those products for free, I keep those reviews on Amazon only, but everything I have purchased with my own money, whether from Amazon or some other store/website/outlet, I will post here.  

I also plan to do some longer blog posts on various topics, such as how to learn physics, how to get through calculus, and longer reviews of workout programs as I do them. Basically, whatever strikes me as interesting at the time.  As you can see if you navigate around the blog, I had many years in between postings. During that time I was going back to school to get an engineering degree, and learning material that I avoided my first time through college was a different experience and one that gave me a lot of insight into how to do well in those classes, which I will try to impart here for those who are looking to get a science or engineering degree. 

Monday, January 5, 2026

Book Review: Sunrise on the Reaping

 


Sunrise on the Reaping, published in 2025, is the fifth novel in the Hunger Games series (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, and the first prequel novel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) by author Suzanne Collins. It is the second if you read them in chronological order. This one is set around the 50th Hunger Games, or the Second Quarter Quell, which is the games that Haymitch (who would later become Katniss' mentor) won. It is set 24 years before the events of the original novel and details how Haymitch was selected during The Reaping, the plans to undermine the games, and the lengths President Snow would go to keep order and punish those who got out of line. It also explains Haymitch's personality and actions in the later books.

The hardcover version of the book is just over 380 pages. The style, tone, and pacing of the book are similar to the others in the series, so it will be as fast or slow a read as those if you have read the others. While the story in this book is mostly a stand-alone story you can follow without reading the other books, it does help, as the author assumes readers know the history of the games and the reason they are held, and does not rehash that part of the story. Collins does a very good job of making the story interesting and suspenseful, even though, if you have read the original trilogy, you know part of the outcome going in. Chances are, most people who will read this are already fans of the series. If you are, this is absolutely worth reading. If you are into dystopian future stories, this is also worth your time, but I would highly recommend reading at least the first novel in the series (The Hunger Games) before you read this one.

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