BOOKISH THURSDAY #40: (AFTER A SHORT BREAK)….

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

It has been ages since I participated in this event, so here goes with today’s feature, which is not a romantic book at all, but with characters trying for some romantic moments.    Behind Her Eyes, by Sarah Pinborough, features three main characters:  the husband, David, a psychiatrist and a cheater; the wife, Adele, who seems to be trying to save her marriage…but there is more to her game; and Louise, the lover…who is not in this scene.

 

 

David and Adele have been fighting, mostly about his drinking, but she turns her attention to making dinner:

I let him go and don’t call him on the fact that I know he has several bottles of spirits in his study and that maybe I’m not the only one with secrets in this marriage, however well he thinks he hides them from me.  Instead, I do what I do best, and start preparing the roast lamb for dinner.  There is something heartwarming about a roast dinner and we both need that.

I season the meat with rosemary and anchovies driven into the fatty skin, and then, as I chop and saute and simmer my potato and vegetable side dishes, the steam makes my bruise throb.  I’ve covered it with makeup and David no doubt thinks that’s to hide it from him, but he’d be wrong.  It’s to hide it from myself.  I’m filled with shame at my own weakness.

***

Not a very cheery scene, right?  Well, there is so much more to this story than appears on the surface…but today I’m focusing on Adele trying to make a wonderful dinner.

***

 

 

• My last post here was just before Christmas, and it was a lovely time….but then January came, with all that a new year brings…
• Here we are in February and I’m trying to distract myself with books and movies; I recently watched Z:  The Beginning of Everything on Amazon Prime, and loved it.  Right afterwards, I ordered the book Z:  A Novel of Zelda.

 

• My two lovely granddaughters have birthdays this month:  Aubrey, on the 13th, and Fiona, on the 21st.  They will both be 20!  The “twin cousins.”  They are each going through their unique phases.  Fiona, on the right, looks tough, while Aubrey looks cheerful.  They could totally switch within days.

 

 

 

• It is passport renewal time!  I can’t believe ten years have gone by….so I went to the new place where they are taking care of these things, Passport Place at the local university.
• My daughter’s April 1 wedding is coming too fast!  I need to pick a suitable outfit.  The wedding will be on the beach, so it’s not formal, but the dress needs to be nice.  My daughter says it must be grey.  Hmm, I’m leaning toward silver. (I thought she was joking at first, but apparently the other colors in the wedding look best against neutrals).  I’m looking forward to the beach setting.  A reception for more friends (and family) will be held the next day back here.
• In June, they are off to Europe for their honeymoon, and their first stop will be Prague, to visit my eldest son and his wife.
• I am envious.
• Today I’m meeting up with a friend to go for a walk; she is taking baby steps in her walking journey after a recent Triple Bypass.
• I will then come home and resume my reading…the book I featured above is hard to put down!

 

So…that’s my week so far.  What does yours look like?

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #39: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

 

Today’s featured book is Another Brooklyn, by Jacqueline Woodson.

 

***

After her father’s funeral, August and her brother meet up at an old, familiar diner…a place that reminds them of the 1970s in Brooklyn when they were growing up.

***

The diner smelled of coffee and bread and bleach.  A neon sign flickered EAT HERE NOW in bright green, dusty silver tinsel draping below it.  I had spent Christmas Day at the hospital, my father moaning for pain medication, the nurses too slow in responding.

A waitress brought my brother more hot water for his mint tea.  I picked at my eggs and lukewarm home fries, having eaten the bacon slowly to tease my brother.

***

A very sad breakfast indeed, but the poignant feel of it drew me into the story.

***

 

 

• As we approach the end of this year, I am thinking how happy I will be to say goodbye to 2016.
• But what will happen in the New Year?  I am trying to stay positive.
• Right now I’m focusing on finishing as many books as I can for my Read the Books You Buy Challenge.  I have already finished 94!  The parameters are books bought between June 2015-December 31, 2016.
• This has been a good reading week!  I’ve finished three full-length books and a short story.
• Now I’m ready to tackle the January NetGalley review books…but first, I’m reading a book that I’ve been eagerly awaiting for a while:  When All the Girls Have Gone, by Jayne Ann Krentz.  Thrillers always spur me on in my reading.

 

 

• Yesterday I had a lovely lunch with an old friend at Pismo’s, a restaurant around the corner that I don’t visit often enough.  The place was crowded and filled with merriment.  I wondered what they were celebrating.  Maybe they had all finished their Christmas shopping.  I had two martinis for the occasion, along with my chowder.

 

***

• My Christmas decorations are up, such as they are…every year, I seem to pull out fewer things from the bins.  Here’s a “long view” of the room with the most holiday spirit.  I have another miniature tree on the pub table, which is not visible in this photo.

 

***

 

• Below, my niece’s snow-covered cottage in the mountains.  To me, it looks like a Christmas card.

 

***

That’s it for this week.  What are the rest of you sharing?

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #38: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

 

Today’s featured book is a new Amazon Prime freebie, from an author that is new to me:  The Food of Love, by Amanda Prowse, is a story of a family faced with unexpected challenges.  Freya, the wife and mother is a food writer.

 

 

 

In this snippet, our characters are enjoying an ordinary morning…before everything changes.  We’ll capture that moment here:

 

“Where are you working today?” she asked casually as she reached into the freezer for lumps of frozen spinach, which she lobbed into the blender, followed by half a banana and a whole glug of fresh pineapple juice.  Finally, she grabbed an avocado from the salad crisper in the bottom of the fridge and peeled it, using a sharp knife to slice about half, and tossed that too into her breakfast concoction.  The remainder was wrapped in a strip of tinfoil and popped back into the crisper.

***

I’m not sure about this concoction, but I might try it!

***

 

• Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

• I will be joining my daughter, her husband, her son Noah, and her in-laws….we were there last year, too.  Here’s a last-year’s photo of Heather and David at the table.  Before dessert….

 

• Here’s Noah enjoying some pie…and as I looked at this one-year-old photo, I almost gasped.  The kid has grown two or three inches, at least, since last year.  He is now taller than his mom.

 

• It has been a quick week, of course.  Monday, errands; Tuesday, a spa day; yesterday was reading and TV watching.  I finally finished the third book, one that I started (and stopped) last week:  Two If by Sea, by Jacquelyn Mitchard (click for review).

 

• Earlier in the week, I read Hillbilly Elegy (click for review) and Inheriting Edith (click)
• Gilmore Girls has been on one of my channels in a marathon showing…I have it on, muted, and turn on the sound to catch something interesting, now and then.  I’ve set the DVR for the final two episodes, so I can refresh my memory before binge-watching on Friday.
• Now I’m off to have coffee and breakfast…yes, I usually have it while posting, but I’m scattered today!

***

Enjoy the holiday and the rest of your week!

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #37: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

 

***

My foodie snippet today comes from my current read, Send in the Clowns, by Julie Mulhern:  the fourth book in the Country Club Murders series, set in the 1970s, in Kansas City, Missouri.  Our MC, Ellison Russell, has stumbled upon a number of dead bodies recently, and finds herself helping to solve the murder mysteries.

 

 

In this excerpt, our MC is exhausted, worried, and exhilarated, too;  she just found another body the night before…a murder victim who died in front of her.  The next day, one of her potential lovers, Hunter Tafft, has come over for coffee…and to hear about her latest mystery.  Her wonderful housekeeper Aggie has prepared the repast:

 

Aggie poured two mugs, put them on the counter, and pushed a white box my way.  “I stopped at that French bakery you like and bought crescents.”
Fresh croissants?  The woman definitely deserved a raise.
She added two plates to the counter.  “I’ll be upstairs if you need me.”
She disappeared in a swirl of celery green kaftan.
I opened the refrigerator and scanned the shelves.  “I think we have marmalade and raspberry jam.  Which would you prefer?”
“I’ve already eaten.”
I hadn’t.  I grabbed the marmalade, turned to face the man in my kitchen, and steeled myself to tell him everything.
“Drink your coffee first.”
He knew me well.
I put the marmalade on the counter next to the croissants, climbed on a stool, and wrapped my fingers around a steaming cup of heaven.  I kid you not.  The first sip of coffee in the morning is as close as mortals can come to walking with angels. (23%).

 

***

Sounds good to me!  Especially the part about Aggie waiting on them.

***

 

 

 

• This past week has been very emotional.  Ups and downs, fear and anger.  Disbelief.  It has been like a nightmare, only I can’t wake up!
• The good thing that came out of it:  I read and reviewed FIVE books!  In my Weekly Updates, I talk about my hope of finding serenity, and I link to my reviews.
• After that burst of reading energy, I’ve been stumbling along this week.  I finished reading and reviewing only ONE book…and I started a couple of others.  Send in the Clowns, excerpted above, is moving along nicely.
• My daughter and her fiance impulsively decided to have a civil ceremony here in town, but she planned to keep quiet about it…since there is still an April 1 wedding at the beach on the schedule…but then she announced their nuptials on Facebook a couple of days ago…that secret didn’t last long.  (Note the “hokey” backdrop provided by the County).

 

***

• The beach wedding will be a fun getaway for all of us, I guess.   Since this is her second marriage, I thought they night cancel the beach.  We’ll see.
• Next week is Thanksgiving, and it’s my favorite holiday!  I’m having dinner at the home of my daughter’s new in-laws.
• The Saturday after Thanksgiving, a few of us are gathering for a lunch at Yard House; my son Brett and his daughter Aubrey, as well as local family, will be meeting there.  I always enjoy these events.

 

 

• Today I plan to just hang out here and read…it’s cooling off quite a bit, and it seems appropriate to curl up in this cozy spot.  Especially since my mood is still all over the place.

 

***

So…that was my crazy week.  What did yours look like?

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #36: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

I missed last Thursday due to laziness.  So today I’m eager to be back, sharing a foodie excerpt.  The book is In Twenty Years, by Allison Winn Scotch (click for my review). 

 

 

The characters have returned for a reunion years after they roomed together in college; they meet up in the same old house they shared in Philadelphia.  They are trying out experiences they had back then, including their love of junk food:

 

They walk to Wawa for coffee and convenience-store doughnuts because that’s what they ate back then, when no one had heard of organic food, and their bodies could handle a diet of minimal-to-zero nutrients.  (Not Annie, though—she usually took a bite to be polite, then stuffed the rest in a wadded-up napkin.)

Owen orders a breakfast burrito at Taco Bell Express, just like he used to, and Catherine sighs because his digestive system at forty is not what it was at twenty.  At twenty, it wasn’t even all that good.

“Hey,” he shrugs.  “A college morning isn’t complete without a breakfast burrito.”

“This isn’t a college morning,” Catherine reminds him.

“You’re being technical.”

***

Ugh, my digestive system is protesting!

***

 

 

 

•  What a week!  It flew by, but there was something to do everyday, from tedious errands to more interesting events.
• Yesterday I had lunch with a friend/colleague; it was a birthday treat for me, but we get together monthly to chat and catch up.
• I’m tired of the election drama, and so ready to be over it all…but only if it turns out right!
• I got some of my birthday loot from my Amazon gift card on Tuesday…and here’s what it looked like (I got the two hardcover books in the foreground, and the watch):

 

• I posted about these goodies and a few other things in Hump Day “Coffee Morning:” Birthdays & Halloween.
• As usual, I had no Trick or Treaters knocking on my door Halloween night.
• I just finished reading Saturday Requiem on Monday…and loved it. (Click to see my review).
• Last night I finally finished In Twenty Years, by Allison Winn Scotch (featured above).
• I’m getting ready to start reading The Last Good Girl, by Allison Leotta; it’s the fifth in the series, and I haven’t read any of the others…but I’m going to wing it.

 

• On Netflix, I watched all of Season 3 of The Fall.  (There were only 6 episodes, but they were so intense!).
• I think I’m talked out for now, so off to have my FIRST cup of coffee…how have I done this without it?

 

***

Come on by and let’s chat!

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #34: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

***

 

 

 

 

Today’s featured book is one I just finished, and it had so many delightful food portions that it was hard to choose.  In the end, I picked an ordinary one that symbolized the reconnecting of our two lovers.  Family Tree, by Susan Wiggs (click for my review), is the story of dreams, love, past love, and all that life throws at two lovers.

 

 

In this excerpt, Annie and Fletcher are finally together for a special weekend.  A weekend at his comfortable old home, the one they both fell in love with when they first met in high school.

 

After the old-fashioneds and the porch swing, she’d raided the mostly unfortunate supplies in his kitchen—boxed mac and cheese, white wine, a handful of cherry tomatoes and basil from his garden—and put together a dinner from his humble ingredients.  Afterward, they curled up in bed together with bowls of maple-walnut ice cream and listened to Serge Gainsbourg songs drifting from a hidden speaker.

***

I love the sound of the maple-walnut ice cream!

***

 

 

 

• The week has been much cooler (80s, with the occasional 90), but it is even cooler in the mornings and in the evenings.
• I’ve been restless, and took my reading with me to lunch on Monday at Marie Callender’s:

 

 

• On Tuesday, I participated in a bookish meme, sharing an excerpt from The American Girl.  I plan to read it next.

 

 

• Today, I wrote about the books I’ve read this week in It’s Hump Day!  What Have You Been Reading?
• My interiors are in a state of flux again…read about it in Hump Day Potpourri:  More Changes…
• Heather got another tattoo…a dragonfly.  I asked her if she still had some available skin…lol

 

• I’ve written a post about Cherishing My Interior World:  Balance? ;  I also reexamine the books I continue to add to my stacks.
• Last week, I was planning to visit my stylist (my daughter), but at the last minute, we rescheduled.  Tomorrow is the day!

***

So…that’s my week so far.  What are you sharing today?

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #33: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

Today’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts feature is a book I’ve had for a while.  The Dinner, by Herman Koch, is the darkly suspenseful, highly controversial tale of two families struggling to make the hardest decision of their lives — all over the course of one meal.

 

 

It’s a summer’s evening in Amsterdam, and two couples meet at a fashionable restaurant for dinner. Between mouthfuls of food and over the polite scrapings of cutlery, the conversation remains a gentle hum of polite discourse — the banality of work, the triviality of the holidays. But behind the empty words, terrible things need to be said, and with every forced smile and every new course, the knives are being sharpened.
     Each couple has a fifteen-year-old son. The two boys are united by their accountability for a single horrific act; an act that has triggered a police investigation and shattered the comfortable, insulated worlds of their families.

And so begins the appetizer portion of the meal:

 

“The crayfish are dressed in a vinaigrette of tarragon and baby green onions,” said the manager:  he was at Serge’s plate now, pointing with his pinky.  “And these are chanterelles from the Vosges.”  The pinky vaulted over the crayfish to point out two brown toadstools, cut lengthwise; the “chanterelles” looked as though they had been uprooted only a few minutes ago:  what was sticking to the bottom, I figured, could only be dirt.

 

***

I just lost my appetite!  And the meal, being the centerpiece for potentially violent events, is bound to cause a little indigestion, at the very least.

***

 

My Bookish (and Not So Bookish) Thoughts:

•  Great reading so far this week!  I finished All the Ugly and Wonderful Things, by Bryn Greenwood (click title for my review).
• I’m currently reading and loving Small Great Things, by Jodi Picoult, a NetGalley e-ARC to be released on 10/11. With richly layered characters and a gripping moral dilemma that will lead readers to question everything they know about privilege, power, and race, Small Great Things is the stunning new page-turner from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult.
• I haven’t been feeling that great this week:  achy, sore throat…and if I hadn’t just had my flu shot, I might think…wait!  Sometimes mild flu symptoms appear after a shot.  I wasn’t expecting it, because I’ve had flu shots every year for several years, with no adverse effects.  Hmm.  I am feeling better today, though.
• Friday, guess what?  I must go to see The Girl on the Train!

 

 

• This week, I started watching a new show on Netflix.  I had finished the ones I had been binge-watching (Offspring & Longmire), and now, I have started Shameless.  So far, so good.
• Old and new favorites on TV are grabbing me…slowly.  I started to watch a couple of new shows, but abandoned them when they didn’t keep my attention (Conviction was one of those; Speechless was another).
• So far, I’m liking Notorious, the second show in the Thursday line-up…and Grey’s Anatomy and How To Get Away With Murder are both still keeping me tuned in.
• I have put my idea of moving on hold, for now…unless I find something amazing before the end of the month (when I have to turn in my lease).  I am still looking, and getting emails from Zillow.
• Meanwhile, I can purge some more…just in case.
• Today I wrote a post called Hump Day Potpourri:  Happy Birthday, Brett (& Other Tidbits).  Brett is my second son, the one who lives in LA., and today is his birthday.  Here is a photo from the weekend, when he and his eldest, Alec, went to a baseball game.  Alec is a senior at UC Berkeley.

 

 

 

• I’m looking forward to a new series starting on Sunday, with Sarah Jessica Parker, called Divorce.

 

 

 

• And that’s my week so far.  Hope to finish my current read tonight, and then will start The Dinner, shown above…I think.

***

What has your week been like?  Mine wasn’t bad, except there was a return of the Word Press commenting issue…again.  Comments were going into spam folders right and left; not always, but just often enough to be incredibly annoying.  Bear with me if I have to contact you via Twitter…requesting that my comments be retrieved.  lol.

I did contact WP Support, and sent them some info that they requested.  Answers soon, I hope!

***

BOOKISH THURSDAY #31: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

 

Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts:

Today’s feature is Sunshine Beach, by Wendy Wax, the fourth book in the Ten Beach Road series, which follows the three women who have found a new life after losing their money in a Ponzi scheme…and that new life is all about renovating houses in Florida.

 

 

 

The three women (Maddie, Nikki, & Avery) are currently staying in Bella Flora, the first home they renovated, purchased for Maddie’s daughter Kyra and her son Dustin, by her ex-boyfriend, a celebrity.  Their next project is an old mid-century hotel on the beach.  Getting ready for the day, they are planning breakfast, when Maddie’s ex heads across the lawn to the main house.  He had dropped in the night before.

 

“You aren’t going to feed him again, are you?” Nikki asked as they watched Steve amble toward the house.  Once you fed a stray they never left.

“I’m not going to cook especially for him, no,” Maddie said as Steve disappeared through Bella Flora’s back door.  “But if I’m putting breakfast on the table, which I am, I’m not going to tell him he can’t have any.”  She smiled and stood.  “Speaking of which, I think it’s time to get things under way.”

“Geema!”  Nikki watched Dustin’s face light up when his grandmother entered the kitchen and felt the oddest tug.  Steve Singer looked pretty happy to see her, too, or maybe he was just hungry.  “Can Dustbin have Mench boast?”

“Absolutely!”  Maddie beamed at her grandson. “Do you want to help?”

Within moments Maddie had whisked eggs and milk in a big bowl, heated up fry pans and a griddle, and was helping Dustin, who stood on a chair beside her, to dip the pieces of bread into the egg mixture.  Syrup was put in the microwave to warm.  Kyra set the table while Nikki set out cartons of milk and orange juice, her stomach turning over at the smells that filled the kitchen.

***

Hmm, I wonder what’s up with Nikki and her “upset” tummy?  More later, I’m sure.

***

 

 

Bookish (and Not So Bookish) Thoughts:

 

• Last week was all about Bloggiesta (click for my wrap-up post), which I enjoyed thoroughly.  I love doing the new layouts, headers, and tweaking the pages…I seldom do anything too techie.  Someday, maybe.
• Tomorrow, Longmire’s fifth season is coming to Netflix!  Yay!

 

 

• In the interim period, I’ve been enjoying Offspring, and I’m now on Season 5 (there is one more season!).
• Tonight the TGIT lineup arrives with the new season for Grey’s Anatomy & How To Get Away with Murder, along with a new show, Notorious.  The DVR is set!
• Sunday, Secrets & Lies returns, and I’ll try to “stomach” Juliette Lewis’s very annoying cop character.  lol.
• I read that the Showtime series, The Affair, is coming back on November 20.
• So….the fall is full of stuff to watch.
• I’m eager to get a Pumpkin Spiced Latte at the neighborhood Barnes & Noble...and browse for books.  Love going there and finding stuff, even though I only ever buy print books from the bargain table.  There’s something about being surrounded by books, while inhaling the scent of rich coffee.

 

• Now…here I am, writing this post, and haven’t yet had my first cup of coffee!  What’s wrong with me?!  Excuse me for a moment….Now, here’s the breakfast tray on my office coffee table/trunk, surrounded by stacks of books.

 

***

That’s it for today…I am ready to eat that Special K with Coconut, Quinoa, etc.  And sip that coffee.  Enjoy your day!

***

 

 

 

 

 

 

BOOKISH THURSDAY #30: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

 

Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts:

Today’s feature is an ARC from Amazon Vine:  Untethered, by Julie Lawson Timmer.

 

 

 

When Char Hawthorn’s husband dies unexpectedly, she is left questioning everything she once knew to be true: from the cozy small town life they built together to her relationship with her stepdaughter, who is suddenly not bound to Char in any real way. Untethered explores what bonds truly form a family and how, sometimes, love knows no bounds.

***

In this scene, family and friends are hanging around in the days after the funeral, and food seems to be a focus.  Some are trying to figure out what one particular guest will eat, since she tends to prefer wheatgrass shakes.

 

“Or something.  Whatever it is, it likely doesn’t allow her to eat a regular lunch.  Or any of this stuff.”  She waved her hand toward the stove, where Char was scrambling eggs and Will was tending to two frying pans, one filled with bacon, the other with sliced potatoes and onions. “It’s just as well she’s tied up this morning.”

“We’d better clean up all the evidence before she gets here,” Will said.  He winked at Allie.  “Don’t want to get you in trouble.”  Looking at his sister, he added, “Or you.”

***

 

My Bookish (and Not So Bookish) Thoughts:

• Today I wrote a post about some of the changes in my space, like gathering up some dolls that were on my sofa table and settling them onto the halltree.

 

***

• My sofa table now looks like this, with fewer and smaller pieces:

 

***

• This weekend was frustrating for me, as I couldn’t comment on any Word Press sites, even though all of my blogs are at WP…and I obviously have an account.  They somehow ended up in spam folders everywhere.
• Thankfully, by Tweeting to the various blog owners about my situation, they were able to find the comments and retrieve them.
• Could my user name “laurelrainsnow,” which showed up on comments, be the problem?  If so, why now?
• I changed the name on my comments to Laurel-Rain Snow, rather than the user name, thinking it seems less “spammy.”  Or not.  My name, no matter what form it takes, does sound a bit like a weather report…lol.  My comments are going through this week, but probably because a number of bloggers pulled some out of the spam folders, which alerted Askimet that all is good here.
• My Netflix viewing of Longmire is on hold until Season 5 arrives on the 23rd.
• Meanwhile, I’m obsessed with a show called Offspring, which is dramatic, funny, with some characters I enjoy, and others that are truly annoying.

 

 

• Bloggiesta starts tomorrow, going through the 18th.  As usual, I’ve already begun working on my chosen blog:  Curl up and Read.
• On the bookish front, I’ve read two books so far this week:

Girl on the Run, by Daryl Wood Gerber (Click title for review):  a story that captures a world of fantasy, secrets, and ultimate betrayal.

 

 

***

They Might Not Mean To, But They Do, by Cathleen Schine (click for review):  a family story, with characters that span the generations.  It’s about aging, about dying, and about coping.

 

 

***

• It is almost 10:00 p.m., and I got a frantic call from my daughter.  The cordless phone was in another room, so she called repeatedly until I went to retrieve the phone.
• What was the emergency?  Well, some of the offspring had been texting me, and got worried when I didn’t text back.   (Because, if I’m not attached to my iPhone like they are, I, the doddering old woman, must have fallen and can’t get up).
•  I was just talking to someone about the Millennials (my grandchildren) and how they are attached to their devices and don’t know how to actually converse.
• It seems Gen-X has the same problem (my grown kids).  I think they are Gen-X.

***

So, now that I have been properly reprimanded for setting my phone down, I guess I’ll close…and go text some of them.

What has your week been like?  Share, please.

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BOOKISH THURSDAY #29: SERENDIPITOUS MOMENTS

Welcome to Thursday, a day that once seemed lost, with nothing exciting happening anywhere.  But then that changed, and today I am celebrating a couple of the bookish events around the blogosphere, like Lexxie’s Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts; and Christine’s Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts.

 

Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts:

Today’s feature is from a book I’m currently reading:  The Sister, by Louise Jensen.

 

 

 

Grace and Charlie were best friends, each from broken families.  When Charlie dies, Grace starts searching for the secrets Charlie was hiding, hoping to find out the meaning of her friend’s last words:  “I did something terrible Grace. I hope you can forgive me …”

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In this foodie excerpt, Grace and her husband Dan are trying to enjoy a Sunday breakfast, their only real time to relax.  Grace is our first person narrator:

 

In the kitchen, I switch on the ancient heating system that gurgles and chugs to life, and pull bacon from the fridge.  We used to take it in turns to make each other breakfast in bed on a Sunday and I can’t remember when we stopped, whether it was after Charlie died or before.  I cut thick slices from a white loaf and slather them in butter in brown sauce.  The bacon hisses and spits, and Mittens (the cat) purrs at my feet, telling me that she likes bacon, too.  I cut off the fat.  I will give half to her and half to the birds.

‘Morning.’  Back upstairs, I rest the tray on the foot of the bed.  The mugs chink together and tea sloshes onto the plates.

Dan sits up, props pillows vertically behind him and sweeps magazines and wine gum packets to the floor.  I pass him his breakfast.

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I love taking a breakfast tray into my bed on a Sunday.  Bacon is always a winner, but I don’t have it very often.

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Bookish/Not So Bookish Thoughts:

• As usual, my week is a mix of reading and binge-watching on Netflix; Longmire is my current favorite, and I’m on Season 4.  Season 5 is coming on 9/23.
• Last night, I watched a movie on Amazon Prime Videos that I loved:  The Meddler, with Susan Sarandon and Rose Byrne.  A story of a mother who is overly involved in her daughter’s life makes for some fun moments.

 

 

 

 

• Today I wrote a post about some of my collections, and thoughts about collections in general:  Hump Day Potpourri:  Layering My Life.  Below – Some of my collections.

 

• So far this week, I’ve read and reviewed I’ve Got Sand in All the Wrong Places, by Lisa Scottoline, and It Ends with Us, by Colleen Hoover (click titles for reviews).

 

 

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• Now I’m off to read some more of my current novel, featured in the food section above….and then it will be time to watch American Gothic.

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That’s it for today.  What are you sharing, reading, or watching?

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