cameling in the oasis of books - frozen pond 14

January Reads
The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern
1Q84 - Haruki Murakami
The Wanderer : The Last American Slave Ship and the Conspiracy that Set Its Sails - Eric Calonius
Lady Susan - Jane Austen
The Glass Devil - Helene Tursten
The Hare with Amber Eyes - Edmund de Waal
Charlotte Figg Takes Over Paradise- Joyce Magnin
Pistols for Two Breakfast For One - Matthew J. Dick
Man in the Empty Boat - Mark Salzman
Blackberries, Blackberries - Crystal Wilkinson

February Reads
A Contract with God and Other Tenement Stories - Will Eisner
Emperor of All Maladies : A Biography of Cancer - Siddhartha Mukherjee
Forgotten Country - Catherine Chung
Zenzele - J. Nozipo Maraire
Nelson - Rob Davis
Unseen - Mari Jungstedt
The Waitress Was New - Dominique Fabre
Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk - David Sedaris
The Potter's Field - Andrea Camilleri
Audition Ryu Murakami
Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey - The Countess of Carnarvon
Devil's Food Cake Murder - Joanne Fluke
Operation Mincemeat : How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured and Allied Victory - Ben Macintyre
The Whipping Club - Deborah Henry
I am the Messenger - Markus Zusak

March Reads
Gifts and Consequences - Daniel Coleman
Shadows of the Soul - Angelique Armae
Broken - Karin Fossum
1222 - Anne Holt
The Buddha in the Attic - Julie Otsuka
A Small Hotel - Robert Olen Butler
New York to Dallas - J.D. Robb
Stradivari's Genius - Toby Faber
Man Walks into a Room - Nicole Krauss
The Coroner's Lunch - Colin Cotterill
Man in Beijing - Henning Mankell
Absolution - Patrick Flanery
The Finkler Question - Howard Jacobson

April Reads
An Uncertain Place - Fred Vargas
Hark! A Vagrant - Kate Beaton
Seven Moments in Time - Todd Tystad
Mumbai Noir -Altaf Tyrewala
Sleeping with Paris - Juliette Sobanet
Kissing Adrien - Siri. L. Mitchell
Wild Mustang Man - Carol Grace
The Guinea Pigs - Ludvik Vaculik
The Flower Mat - Shugoro Yamamoto
The Rabbi's Cat - Joann Sfar
Below Stairs - Margaret Powell
A Bitter Veil - Libby Fischer Hellmann
An Attempt at Exhausting a Place in Paris - Georges Perec
Foul Matter - Martha Grimes

May Reads
Thirty Three Teeth - Colin Cotterill
Pomfret Towers - Angela Thirkell
The Redeemer - Jo Nesbo
Part of the Furniture - Mary Wesley
A Lonely Death - Charles Todd
A Trick of the Light - Louise Penny
Husband Hunting 101 - Rita Herron
The Hangman (Good Reads) - Louise Penny
Spying in High Heels - Gemma Halliday
The Last Good Man - Kathleen Eagle
The Cat Manual - Michael Ray Taylor
Divine Intervention - Cheryl Kaye Tardif
I Have a Secret - Cheryl Bradshaw
When Pigs Fly - Bob Sanchez
Sleeping Love - Sara Curran-Ross
Match Day - Brian Eule

June Reads
Long Island Noir - Kaylie Jones
Picket Line - Breena Wiederhoeft
Arthur & George - Julian Barnes
Dandelion Wine - Ray Bradbury
Our Man in Havana - Graham Greene
Age of Doubt - Andrea Camilleri
The Halo Effect - M.J. Rose
Hypothermia - Arnaldur Indridason
Disgrace - J.M Coetzee
Treasure Island!!! - Sara Levine
The Man in the Wooden Hat - Jane Gardam
The Child Thief - Brom

July Reads
The China Governess - Margery Allingham
Yes Chef - Marcus Samuelsson
Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter - Mario Vargas Llosa
Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
Opal Fire - Barbra Annino
An Artist of the Floating World - Kazuo Ishiguro
Drawing Conclusions - Donna Leon
The Fall - Albert Camus
Sleeping Roses - RaShell Workman
Deadly Affair - Lucinda Brant
Forged in Fire - Trish McCallan
A Handbook of American Prayer - Lucius Shepard
Land of Green Plums - Herta Muller
Don't Let Me Go - Catherine Ryan Hyde
Anarchy and Old Dogs - Colin Cotterrill

August Reads
Bad Intentions - Karin Fossum
The Delilah Complex - MJ Rose
The Island at the Center of the World - Russell Shorto
Willow Pond - Carol Tibaldi
The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul - Deborah Rodriguez
Persuader - Lee Child
The Venus Fix - M.J. Rose
For Fukui's Sake - Sam Baldwin
Pretty Witches All in a Row - Lisa Olsen
Forgotten Soldiers : What Happened to Jacob Walden - Warren Martin
Curse of the Pogo Stick - Colin Cotterill
Death and Judgement - Donna Leon
The Imperfectionists - Tom Rachman

September Reads
Remarkable Creatures - Tracy Chevalier
Popular Hits of the Showa Era - Ryu Murakami
Kushiel's Chosen - Jacqueline Carey
Vulture Peak - John Burdett
Before I Go to Sleep - S.J. Watson
Death of a Cozy Writer - GM Malliet
The Great Railway Bazaar - Paul Theroux
Murder on the Links - Agatha Christie
Enid Blyton : The Biography - Barbara Stoney
Chopping Spree - Diane Mott Davidson
The House Sitter - Peter Lovesey

October Reads
A Place of Greater Safety - Hilary Mantel
Decline and Fall - Evelyn Waugh
The Keeper of Lost Causes - Jussi Adler-Olsen
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Started Early, Took My Dog - Kate Atkinson
Forged : Why Fakes are the Great Art of our Age - Jonathon Keats
Woman With Birthmark - Hakar Nesser
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson

November Reads
The Girls From Alcyone - Cary Caffrey
Whispers in Autumn - Trisha Leigh
Winter Omens - Trisha Leigh
The Lemon Table - Julian Barnes
Death and the Lit Chick - G.M. Malliet
The Semi-Attached Couple - Emily Eden
Georgiana Darcy's Diary - Anna Elliot

December Reads
Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind - Ann B. Ross
People of Paper - Salvatore Plascencia
Blue Christmas - Mary Kay Andrews
Caviar : The Strange History and Uncertain Future of the World's Most Coveted Delicacy - Inga Saffron
Envious Casca - Georgette Heyer
I Am Not Sidney Poitier - Percival Everett
Big Bad Wolf - Gennita Low
Bruno : Chief of Police - Martin Walker
The Painted Girls - Cathy Marie Buchanan
No Wind of Blame - Georgette Heyer
Edible Stories - Mark Kurlansky
DeKok and the Somber Nude - A.C.Baantjer
Twelve Days of Christmas -Trisha Ashley
The Holy Thief - William Ryan
Delusion in Death - J.D. Robb

Blue Christmas - May Kay Andrews

An antique shop owner is fighting competition from another antique store across the street, not just by them poaching some of her customers, or successfully bidding on an antique breadbox at an auction, but also in winning a ribbon for decorating her store at her town's Christmas competition. But things go awry when someone appears set to wreck her display before the judging, steal the cocktail food she set out for the open house, her dog runs away for the night, a mysterious woman starts sleeping in the bed in her window, and she manages a Christmas party from hell.

It is a fun zippy read.
3 stars

Caviar : The Strange History and Uncertain Future of the World's Most Coveted Delicacy - Inga Saffron

Tracing the beginnings of the sturgeon's roe eaten by fishermen and others during religious feasts when meat was not allowed to an icon in luxury and wealth. The author covers the journey of how caviar was made through the years, the challenges of transporting barrels of the delicate and easily perishable eggs, and how the demand from the rising middle class resulted in over-fishing and poaching. Sturgeons were over-fished in the Volga, the Caspian, the Delaware and Hudson Rivers and the Elbe before the thoughts of farming them took root.

Caviar has been used by the Communists to bring in much needed cash into the USSR, but upon the collapse of the regime, so too did the careful controls on sturgeon farming and harvesting collapse into one of chaos. Caviar companies had to compete against emerging producers of cheaper forms of caviar, from paddlefish, white sturgeon, salmon and even trout.

From pig feed to the table of kings, this is a fascinating study into the tiny, glistening, black slightly pearls of fish roe.
4 stars

Back from NY and so happy to be home, not having to live out of a suitcase ... at least for a couple of weeks.

Am I first? What do I win?

Nice new thread, Caro!

How about the menu from Amity Hall for stuffed burgers as a prize, Darryl?



Thanks for coming over for a visit, Mamie. :-)

Hi Caro!
Love the camel by the sea! Usually they are in the dry, dry desert.
Welcome home!

Just the menu? Not even a free burger??? Hmph.

Hello? Heeelllooo? It's me, the guy who lives with Stella...you got me...I requested Caviar from the liberry.

Great pictures, lovely new thread!!

Welcome home. And nice new thread, too. : )

Happy New Thread, Caro!

Like the new thread, Caro! Another treat to celebrate with:

I love the new thread pic :) I am not caught up... but still.. I want to catch up....points for that?

Just barely caught up, I do have to agree that reading your thread always makes me hungry. Your description of your Italian dinner had me practically drooling over the keyboard. Speaking of dinner, I guess it's time I went and put something together for us - unfortuately all I have is leftover roast beef.

This seems like a good time to catch up with you Caro! ;) 15 unread messages is much more manageable compared to 150...haha!
Glad to hear you will be able to stick closer to home for the next little bit as well. :)

*wave*

Caro - a day late to the beach party. Congratulations on another thread.

Lego Camel

A day without Caro in LT land.. le sigh.

Love the camel by the sea! Lucky camel on vacation! ;)

#7 : Cee, it's been warm enough these 2 days to brave a visit to the beach. If this warm spell continues, I might just do that this weekend .. I love going to the beach in the winter.. not in the water of course, but for afternoon walks or runs, having the whole place to myself. Or at least almost to myself. There are sometimes a few other oddballs out there with me. :-)

#8 : Darryl, the menu was to entice you ... to join me the next time we're in Manhattan at the same time.

#9 : Guy who lives with Stella ... guy who lives with Stella .. guy who ... OH ... HIM! Err.... what's your name again?

#10 : Hi Roni. You're going to be so proud of me ... well if you aren't you should be (haha) .. I bought some yarn yesterday with the intention of crocheting a bag for a niece. Now the test is to see if I actually complete this project before her birthday next year.

#11 : Hi Kim, thanks. Good to be home and know I'm going to be home for at least a couple of weeks until Christmas when we'll head down to NY again.

#12 : Thanks, Ellen. No running for me these 2 days. :-( Just been too tired. But I'm going to drag myself out early tomorrow to go for a swim before work ... I hope.

#13 : Aww.. a camel cupcake. That's just so cute. Thank you, Joe. I had a camel cake for my birthday one year and my younger cousin decided to take a bite out of one leg and the whole thing fell over, broke in half, with one half staying on the table and the other half falling on the dog sitting next to the table in hopes of scraps. I was scarred for life and since then have not had an animal shaped cake.

#14 : Kath - hello there. You always get points for wanting to catch up. It's the intention that counts. You get a G&T though, when you actually do catch up. :-)

>13 jnwelch: You may have been scarred for life by the cake falling, Caro, but that had to be one of the happiest dogs ever.

#15 : Judy, I get hungry when I visit Joe's thread because there are usually pictures of food there as well. Best to visit only after having eaten, I've learned. I went for lunch today with a couple of colleagues to a sushi restaurant and together, we demolished a bowl of miso soup each, some wonderfully moist and plump pork n vegetable gyozas, and then a platter of about 48 pieces of sushi. It must have been the terribly boring meeting we all 3 emerged from this morning that made us ravenous by lunch time.

I love roast beef, especially with thick gravy, roast brussels sprouts and mashed potatoes. Perfect winter food, if you ask me. Hmmm.... maybe that's what I'll make for dinner tomorrow since I've already got stuff to make a bouillabaisse for dinner tonight..

#16 : Valerie, don't I know it .. this time of the year, I can only hope to pop in and make short comments on some threads that I've woefully neglected since March just so the owners don't get too offended and to remind them that I'm still lurking, albeit sporadically, on their threads. I keep saying I'll be better about keeping up the next year, and then the next becomes the present year and by June, I'm already behind on some starred threads. A very prolific group this. ;-)

#17 : Hi Jenn. Thanks for stopping by. Can't wait to see what you're up to craft-wise for this holiday season.

#18 : Paul, 'tis never to late to join a beach party. Just doff the shirt, slather on some sunscreen and leap in.

#19 : Morphy, I love that lego camel. I wonder how many pieces of lego it took to make it ... wouldn't that be a cool yard ornament though? hmm.....

#20 : Kath - 'twas a very good reason for me to be absent from LT-land yesterday. I met a friend for what turned out inadvertently to be a 3 martini lunch although we did share a plate of chicken wings and I had a delicious pasta bolognese. Then had to go buy the hubster's Christmas present during which I bumped into another friend at the mall and we decided to swing over to Chili's for a drink and to share their molten chocolate cake, and wouldn't you know ... when the hubster called, it was close to 6pm so I crossed over to Barnes & Noble to meet him, got lost in stacks for an hour, and then went back to Chili's since it's just next door, for a burger. I was toast by the time I got home.

#21 : Chelle .. too right... did you notice that big smile on his face?

#23 : Joe, the dog was ecstatic with the cake incident. He didn't even mind the bath my mom insisted on giving him after he ate and licked up every bit he could find on himself and the floor. He had the worst gas though the day after.

Envious Casca - Georgette Heyer
Another in the Inspector Hemmingway series. Light entertainment but I don't think one of the better ones in this series. I suspected who the murderer was early on, and I thought the romance angle right at the end of the story rather forced.
3 stars

I Am Not Sidney Poitier - Percival Everett
When a boy is named Not Sidney by his eccentric mother, you can see how this would cause some problems with other kids in the neighborhood and at school. "“What’s your name?” a kid would ask. “Not Sidney,” I would say. “Okay, then what is it?” This usually resulted in Not Sidney getting beaten to a pulp.

When his mother passes away, he discovers that he's inherited a lot of money, she being a major shareholder in Ted Turner's company. Ted, an executor to his mother's will, brings him home to Atlanta to live in one of his houses, and therein becomes father-in-situ to Not Sidney. Leaving home and driving to Georgia, Not Sidney leaves his comfortable and protected home, to face racism in the extreme, is arrested on trumped up charges, jailed, escapes with a fellow inmate, and finally finds his way back home again.

Buying his way into Morehouse College, he befriends an eccentric professor, is persuaded to join a fraternity, enters a relationship with a manipulative girlfriend and is introduced to her class conscious parents, and has now made aware of color consciousness within the black community.

Hilarious adventures and misadventures cross Not Sidney's path, not the least having to solve what appears to be his own murder.

This sardonic and comic novel brings out the absurd realities of racism and class structures that still exist in America today, and the challenges of forging one's own identity amidst preconceived ideas.

4 stars

A three- martini lunch, and then a drink, and then dinner. I want your metabolism in my next life. Unless I could get it now!

Did you say you would be in NY the week of Christmas? Let me know - Jim and I do plan to be around.

Oh, Not Sidney sounds like a great guy to know! A kind of Candidely tale, eh what?

#27 : Judy, thankfully these major binges don't take place too frequently because otherwise I'd be as big as a house.

I am definitely going to be in NY during the week of Christmas. I'll text you before to see you guys would like to get together for a little Meetup. :-)

#28 : Richard, this book is a satirical riot and quite reminiscent of Candide. You'll like it.

Am down in the dumps today .. my best friend at work got laid off this morning after 15 years at the company. I've known him and worked with him for 11 and his office was next to mine. It was sad walking past his darkened room this afternoon knowing he won't be back.

Oh gee, that is sad news.

Bad news, and bad vibes for the firm. Is his departure part of a larger cut? They can be very demoralizing.

Sorry to hear about your friend, Caro. Tough time of year to get that news, too.

Oh, how sad, Caro. I was in your friend's position at almost the exact same time 4 years ago and it was the absolute worst thing - ever! I'm sure it must very hard for you, not to mention unnerving.

Layoffs. They always happen at Christmas. Been there... and so so so sorry for you, and for him and his family. I hope he finds another position very soon. It is always a frighteneing thing to have your living pulled out from under you..

Oh no. Very unsettling to lose a job after all that time. Hope it all works out much better than your friend can imagine. The same type of thing happened in the company I worked for. People who thought they were safe - weren't. Tough on morale for everyone. Sorry for the bad news.

Sorry to hear about your friend Caro - why do companies always seem to do this sort of thing at the Season of Good Will? My organisation is, of course, minute by your jet setting organisation but I will say that as an Employer the worst thing of all is having to fire staff. I have been lucky that I have so far not had to let anyone go because of turnover or cash-flow issues and have only "sacked" 1 regular staff and, ahem, 5 drivers (1 of which left the company because he mistakenly thought my wife had fired him!!). Having to let go staff I have shared my hopes and aspirations for the company with would be very upsetting.

I wish him well and hope that you have a good weekend nonetheless.

It's a real bummer to be laid off at Christmas - or anytime for that matter. We have had a break-even year at our business, but happily, no one lost their job.

Laughing at your 3-martini lunch that started off a day that would have landed me in the ER! I don't think I could have done that even in my younger days. Go, Caro!!!

Oops--treadmill accidents are no fun! Even when staying home, you aren't safe, Caro!

I could use a 3 Guinness dinner tonight...........

>26 cameling: that sounds like a laugh that one! Well, the name anyway.

>29 cameling: I hope you can still keep in touch with your workmate! What terrible news for him at this time as well....well, I guess there's no good time to tell someone they are losing their job.

>39 mckait: no Guiness for me Kath. The pain killers are still keeping my mind busy, even if it means I cant have an evening wine.

I can certainly recommended the "surgery diet", just in time for Christmas, I have had a lovely little drop in weight and must remember to go easy on the Christmas fare.....not walking is a sure fire way to turn into a truffle!

No Guiness for me, but we did stop by the local establishment for a 6-pack of Sam Adams Winter Ale...

Lunch with martinis sounds mahvelous!! Sorry about the work friend. Happy weekend!!

So sorry for your work friend, and if there's a way to share your excellent metabolism I'll jump right in the queue!

Sorry to hear about your friend, Caro. Getting laid off after 15 years with a company. Sigh. It just seems like it shouldn't happen.

#30 : Richard, now that the shock has worn off, he's in relatively good spirits because he thinks this is an opportunity in disguise .. an opportunity for his life to take a new and positive direction. So he's weighing different options.

#31 : Judy, the irony is that we have just hired 4 people who will start tomorrow at the office and we have new headcount approved for 2013. I myself, have the green light to hire someone for the China market. So the individuals who were laid off were either going to retire next year, and were persuaded to take early retirement, or had not heeded certain warning signs and in some cases, caution letters that their performance was not up to snuff and that if they didn't pull up their socks and make marked improvements, their term with the company was likely to be brought to a close. Unfortunately, my friend was one of the latter. He simply chose to ignore the warnings and didn't believe they would actually let him go because he had a great personality and a lot of people liked him a the office. Alas, the corporate office had no such relationship with him. Still, at least by laying him off, they were able to give him a severance package, and it doesn't affect his resume as badly as if he had been fired.

#32 : Joe, that's the real butt-kicker. I don't understand why companies seem to always choose to make these drastic changes around the holiday season, and ruin the holidays for families. It's not just about an individual. It's also about their dependents.

#33 : Charlotte, sorry to hear that you went through a similar situation. I hope it didn't take you long to find your feet again?

#34 : Kath .. he had something under his sleeve for a few months and this may be the nudge he needed to take a serious look at doing what he wants ....which is to buy a little corner cafe in South Boston. Still ... he hasn't yet told his family and doesn't intend to do so until Wednesday. They think he's on personal time off until Tuesday anyway because he had planned these days off so he's going to take the time to go over his severance package, insurance papers, and check out unemployment to see how the numbers work out, and then he'll put together a plan before talking to his family. His main concern is that they not worry. He has 2 older kids in their late 20s, one of whom still lives at home and works as a paralegal and is engaged to be married, the other is independent and rents with friends, but he has 2 younger kids, one a freshman in college and the other still in high school.

#35 : Cee, yes, layoffs are never good for the morale of those left behind because they are often unannounced and more of a shock when it is clear the company is not hurting revenue-wise. I had a few panicked staff members who were worried there will be a second round of layoffs.

#36 : Thanks, Paul. I think the larger the organization, the more impersonal the top executives are at the corporate level. Without a personal relationship with individuals, they are able to make unemotional decisions without much thought towards all the people who would be affected by them.

#37 : Donna. This has been a crazy few days. A few of us had lunch on Friday at a Chinese restaurant and then since we had the day off, we moseyed down to our favorite Mexican bar and had ourselves a margarita party, with other friends popping in after work, till about midnight.

Yesterday was a long day too. Went bar and cafe hopping since 11.30am and didn't make it home till after midnight. Needless today, today is a quiet day .... just doing some Christmas baking and making spiced nuts to be packaged as gifts.

Tomorrow may be another long day too, because my recently laid-off friend wants me and another friend to spend a day in Boston with him, cafe and bar hopping with him like we used to at his favorite spots. I have every Monday and Friday off this month to use up my vacation days, so it will be nice to spend the day with my closest work friends, especially since come the New Year, I'll have to get used to not having him work in the office next to me.

#38 : Roni : alas, it wasn't the treadmill that was dangerous .. it was my shoelace that came undone that caused the accident. Still, the immediate icing helped because my eye, while still a little swollen today, is not turning black and purple. My tooth probably will need to be seen to sooner rather than later though, so I'll have to see if my dentist has an opening this week. And here's the irony .... the hubster who was working out 2 rows in front of me, had his headset in and watching some tv program, didn't see or hear a thing! He didn't know anything had happened until we got in the car and he saw my swollen eye and chipped tooth.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Exercise will kill you if you let it.

This is why I always wear shiny metal armor when I work out.

>49 jnwelch: Would that contraption be called "the car" Joe?

LOL! Yup, that's it. No injuries, comfortable exercise.

#39 : Kath ....how did the 3 Guinnesses work out for you?

#40 : Megan, I'm sorry you're on pain meds, but hmm.... is there a surgery diet that doesn't need to involve actual surgery I could consider? This is the time of the year when ingesting copious amounts of food and drink result in extra snug clothes by Jan 2.

I will definitely make it a point to stay in touch with my friend. I've had him in my life for such a long time and the hubster and I are always invited to their family parties, that it would be weird not to keep in touch.

#41 : Jim ...I'm a fan of Sam's Winter Ale too...especially really chilled ones.

#42 : Hey there Kim. Had a day of wine, Prosecco, martinis, pizza, oysters, chicken wings, chicken pot pie, and clam chowder yesterday.

#43 : Laura, I think my friend will do ok. I just hope he does ok sooner rather than later.

#44 : Ellen, in the IT industry, 15 years is positively ancient. It should be equated to tenure at a school. Sad that it had to happen, but i hope it's a catalyst for something better to come along for him.

#48 : *sigh* Richard.... I'm beginning to believe it. So no exercise for me today beyond making some Christmas chocolate bark and spiced nuts. I've also some oxtail stew in the slowcooker for dinner. And now ... quiet time on the couch ...ready to watch the Patriots game at 8pm.

#49 : *pictures Joe on a treadmill with a polished suit of armour* .... you must make a lot of noise clanking about on that treadmill, Joe.

#50 : LOL

#51 : Joe .. I think I'll just practice couch exercise for a while.

Hi Caroline, just catching up. I seem to have missed the original post on the treadmill incident and hope you're good as new soon. Also, I'm sorry about your friend but it sounds like he's ready to deal with the situation in a positive way. Have a great time tomorrow!

Bruno: Chief of Police by Martin Walker

The first in this series of the Chief of Police of a little French town of St Denis. Somewhat reminiscent of Three Pines, but without the very colorful characters. Still, for the first in the series, it's not bad and I will be on the look out for the second one.

In this, the town of St Denis is thrown into chaos when a reclusive North African grandfather is found slain in his house, eviscerated and with a swastika carved into his chest. Two teenagers with ties to the National Front are suspected and the politicians and national police want this case closed as soon as possible, despite lack of evidence against them.

Bruno is the only calming force, and together with the support of the mayor and assistance from a couple of police inspectors from Paris, manages to uncover not just the motive but finally the actual perpetrator of the horrific crime.

3 stars

Caro- Just checking in. Hope all is well. Sorry to hear about your friend. What a bummer but maybe it will work out for the best.
Stop by my thread, I have a Challenge favor to ask you!

#54 : Pat. I hadn't actually posted the whole treadmill incident .. I forgot to do so and just commented on Roni's comment because of what she read on my facebook wall.

I was running on the treadmill yesterday morning for about 20 mins when one of my shoelaces came loose. I heard it flapping, looked down just in time to see myself step on the lace and start falling forward. So I twisted myself sideways to avoid falling right onto the front panel of the treadmill and in the process, hit my cheekbone and part of my eye on the support rail of the treadmill, swung the other way and fell on my right side, hitting my mouth on the bottom metal frame, thus chipping a tooth. The person next to me very quickly hit the emergency stop button, so that was good, and someone rushed over to untangle me from my headset so I didn't also strangle myself with the wires, someone else brought an ice pack over and a very very dear elderly gentlemen tried to lift me up even though he was but a third my weight. So no major damage except to my pride. *sigh*

Ha!! Missed me missed me!!

But only because it's already sitting here glowering at me from the TBRs. Good review!

#56 : Marky-Mark ... Done. What a great idea!

#58 : Richard...time to bring it down before the holiday season is over. It does leave you with a little feel good fuzzy warmth in your heart.

Hi Caro, my goodness, you certainly lead a busy but painful life. Sorry to hear about the treadmill accident. Also sorry to hear about your friend getting laid off, but as you say, perhaps this will turn him in a new and better direction.

Bruno: Chief of Police sounds interesting, onto the wishlist it goes!

>48 richardderus: It nearly finished me off... lol. Blasted stationary bike :(

I say, take a break for now Caro... lol

>57 cameling: aargh, you keep up the treadmill antics and you could be on the surgery diet too, and just in time for Xmas ;)

Never a dull (or safe) moment with you.

I was interested to hear you differentiate between being laid off and being fired. I assume 'fired' implies 'cause'? A woman let go from one of my mother's offices sighed and said she couldn't collect unemployment (according to her sucky boss) because she's been 'laid off', not 'fired'. My mother straightened her out, because of course unless the employer was willing to show documented cause, in the eyes of the unemployment office they are the same.

Let Jim and me know what day or days you have available in NYC so we don't book ourselves into a conflict. I'm trying to keep our dance card open, but you know how things go. So far, we're busy the weekend before, have a dinner on Christmas day, a party on Friday evening and another probable one on New Year's Day (if the traditional hosts aren't working!). Busy busy busy. And here all I wanted to do was read.

#60 : Judy, I'm hoping this to be my last accident for the year *crosses all crossables* and that Darryl's Christmas gift of a guardian angle will be more robust than the one I've worn out this year. It will be hopefully a quiet rest of the week in the run up to Christmas.

#61 : *settles in to wait for Kath's story about her stationary bike*

#63 : Megan ... horrors .... maybe I'll swim instead until Christmas instead of risking the treadmill again.

#64 : Judy, yes, if someone is fired, the employer must show cause. Regardless whether someone has been laid off or fired, they can definitely apply for unemployment. A person being laid off though, at least usually gets a severance package whereas someone fired doesn't. In a previous company I worked in, everyone who was laid off not only received a generous severance but also received a year's assistance through an outplacement program with a recruitment company to help them get another job.

For now, it looks like I could come into the city on Thursday the 27th. Would that be good for you and Jim?

My day off yesterday was spent with my recently laid off friend and another close friend from work in the city of Boston. We had a lot of fun, good laughs and definitely ate and drank way too much, but it all made for a memorable day ..... including an error in my directions at the end of the night which resulted in him driving through a gap between 2 bushes instead of turning down a driveway to the final restaurant. Oops.... no damage though, to the car or the bushes. So all's well that ends well.

We started the day at the Salty Pig at 11.30am with wine, cheese board, cured meat board and a deliciously crisp thin pizza with pear, gorgonzola and arugula. Then we moved on to the Met Bar for another glass of wine and a pot of mussels in a broth of Naragansett beer, cream, garlic and bacon.

Then it was off to the North End which is the Little Italy of Boston, for a stop in at Neptune Oysters for a couple of dozen oysters from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Massachusetts and PEI, after which we walked down the street to Pucinellis for some burrata, roasted vegetable antipasto plate and a mixed meat antipasto plate. We managed to score some seats at the bar at Bacco for a couple of martinis and a plate of spiced calamari. A visit to the North End is never complete without stopping in at Bovas, a small but incredible Italian bakery for their large, flakey and generously filled lobster tails, canolis and chocolate mousse cakes. We each left with a couple of boxes of sweet delights to bring home.

But since we hadn't eaten dinner yet, off we went to the Summer Shack and got in just in time before their kitchen closed to put in our orders for pan roasted lobsters.

Today's breakfast consisted of soft boiled eggs and a piece of toast, and I foresee soup for lunch to make up for yesterday's excess. :-)

The Painted Girls - Cathy Marie Buchanan
Historical fiction around the van Goethem sisters in the City of Lights in the late 1800s. Marie van Goethem and her younger sister Charlotte are excepted into the Opéra where they're paid pittance to be trained as ballet dancers. Marie catches the eye of Edgar Degas and models for him to make extra money. She is immortalized in his painting 'Little Dancer Aged Fourteen'. She also meets a wealthy patron whose interest grows more uncomfortable.

Their older sister, Antoinette, manages to land a part in L'Assommoir and gets involved with charming but disturbing Emile Abadie, who is later arrested and charged with murdering a tavern owner's wife. She believes in his innocence and tries to raise money for passage to New Caledonia, believing it to be a fresh start for her and Emile.

The story follows primarily the lives of these 2 sisters, their ambitions to leave the poverty they find themselves in after the death of their father, the challenges that overwhelm them, the challenges they overcome, and the love they share.

It's a dark look at the less glittering side of French society. The author's taken liberty in mixing Emile Abadie with the company of the van Goethem sisters, but it adds well placed drama to the story.

3.5 stars

Hmmmmm...on balance not for me...sounds most intriguing, but I'm keeping my TBRs down in 2013.

*bwaaahaaaahaaaa*

Oh, I *slay* me!

No, I wouldn't recommend this one to you, Richard. I thought it was a pretty good effort but not one that bowled me over, and I forgot to mention it is an ER book.

We had a lot of fun, good laughs and definitely ate and drank way too much,
I love those days!
Good on you :)

#66 wow, sounds like a great day out!

I think the 27th would work nicely, Caro. Jim needs to confirm, but he's in Dallas at the moment (see, even some of us slugs travel occasionally). I'll confirm with him tomorrow.

Caro... You are the Queen of Meet Ups :)
Maybe someday you will fly through PGH and I can see you!

#70 : Megan, I am so fortunate to have days when I can just hang with my best pals, push all worries aside and just focus on enjoying their company. The food and drink certainly helped too. haha.. and now I pay the price and have to work my buns off ... ok, not really off since I have way too much buns to ever work off, but I was back at the gym this morning

#71 : Chelle, it was ... the rain didn't manage to dampen our fun ....although somehow one of my friends has come down with a cold following our day out. Oops?

#72 : Judy, cool. I will keep that date open for you unless I hear otherwise. The hubster might even make another appearance unless he gets a chance to visit with a friend he hasn't seen in a year. :-)

#73 : Kath, you never know .... maybe 2013 will find me routing one of my trips through PGH and I'll take a long layover so I have time to leave the airport and enjoy a meet up with you.

No Wind of Blame by Georgette Heyer

The first in the Inspector Hemingway series, I can honestly say that I am now hooked. I read the 2nd in the series (Envious Casca) first a few weeks ago, and am very pleasantly pleased to discover that the first was actually better. So yes, I am hooked and want to read the next in this series.

Light on the romance and heavy on drama, humor and a suave Inspector who manages to unravel what appears to be an impossible murder.
3.5 stars

I don't have time yet to write a more detailed review but I'll try and edit this later in the week if I can.

Cheese board, cured meat board, crisp thin pizza, 2 dozen oysters, mussels in broth, burrata, antipasti vegge, antipasti meat, spiced calamari, filled lobster tails, canoli, chocolate mousse cake and then pan roasted lobsters.

Dear Caro when are you going to stop depriving yourself?

Am always impressed by your descriptions of eating your way through Boston restaurants. Seems almost like a sport - a decathlon of dining!

Morning Caro! Hope your week is going well! Hugs!

There isn't much on landside at PGH, a coffee shop maybe? But I could go there to meet you if you pass through.
I would love to do it too!

Dear Caro when are you going to stop depriving yourself? LOL Paul.

*smooch*

Ignoring Heyer review quite steadfastly.

>76 PaulCranswick: LOL, too true Paul!

Dont work too hard at the gym Caro, we dont need a Christmas injury disaster! And anyway, you gotta have some buns right?! Useful for sitting down on if nothing else ;)

Am catching up at last and loving all the tales of eating and drinking and driving cars into bushes that look like driveways. And I'm glad you liked Bruno, Chief of Police. I think the series has improved as I've got to know the characters better. I don't really read them for the mysteries, more the people and the food.

#76 : Paul .. what cheek .... this coming from a man who induces an over abundance of drool everytime he makes pitstops at bookstores and comes away with armloads of oh-so-tempting book titles?

#77 : Charlotte .. haha, some morning after these extended (and often impromptu) decathalons, I do feel somewhat exhausted. But it's so hard to think of how we might feel the next day when we're having fun.

#78 : I LOVE that picture, Marky-Mark. A camel nuzzle is just so sweet. *hugging self at the adorable camel*

#79 : Kath ...coffee shop meet up to look forward to ... wheeeee! I must see what I can do to swing this in 2013.

#80 : Richard...but, but ... have you read this one yet?! YOU were the one who turned me onto Heyer's mystery writing to begin with after I upchucked all over my first foray into her pure romance with dandified poncing men in tights and wigs. And I have to say I've been happily impressed. Inspector Hemingway reminds me of Fred Vargas's Commissaire Adamsberg in personality.

#81 : Megan, well, no gym visit for me today. Had to attend the funeral for the father of another colleague this morning which was about an hour away from where I lived. A number of us who have known our colleague for a number of years car pooled. 6 of us after, decided to go for lunch and ... I didn't get home until 5.30 But it was nice to sit down with 3 of my coworkers whom I don't usually work with much because we're in different departments and it's not often we have meetings together.

But, I am going to make an attempt at the gym tomorrow morning.

#82 : Cushla, I'm so glad to hear you say the Bruno series is worth pursuing, even if it means my list of active series just got longer. Hmm... I think I've just changed another category in my 13 challenge now that I'm thinking about it.

Came across this interesting interview with Jo Nesbo and for all you Scandi crime fans out there, I thought I'd share the link : http://bnreview.barnesandnoble.com/t5/Interview/Chain-Reactions-An-Interview-wit...

Waving hello!

I haven't given Jo Nesbo a try yet. I see his books on the shelves all the time but have not had any sense of where he fits in the mystery and Scandi crime scene.
Thanks for the link. Will investigate.

Your night of debauchery with your two friends sounds like fun.

#86 : Hi Jenn ... thanks for stopping. Busy with holiday prep?

#87 : Oh you should try Nesbo, Ellen. He does very dark Scandi crime fiction. His main character, Harry Hole is an alcoholic detective with a nemesis who's trying to discredit him and get him out of the police force. He's been touted as another Larsson, but in my opinion, Nesbo delves into his characters with more depth and his stories are more gritty and definitely dark.

Did I miss something or has the 75er Group not been set up for 2013 yet?

Won't someone please help this little group grow?

http://www.librarything.com/groups/75booksin2013

It's up! It's up!

Whoop whoop. Thanks Jim!!

Oh, no--it's up! Divided focus for the next week.

Caro dear it wasn't cheek it was pure unadulterated envy. Have a lovely Christmas if I am not able to make it to the computer to wish you so again before time. x
decathlon of dining is a lovely turn of phrase Charlotte!

#93 : Roni, I'm going to just make sporadic visits to the 2013 group for the time being, otherwise I'd get even less done than I have to. How did the time whizz by so quickly?

#94 : Paul, when you come over to Boston, fear not....I'll introduce you to a day out just like that too .... with a pitstop at a bookstore at the end. Have a great Christmas vacation with the family if I don't get to wish you on the day itself.

The hubster surprised me with a Christmas tree yesterday when I got home from Christmas brunch with some of my friends. He had stayed home because he had a terrible cold, but on his way out to buy more boxes of tissues, he braved pneumonia to pick up a little tree from our usual tree lot. It's a cute albeit very lopsided tree with a big bald spot on one side. The hubster believes it had character and talks to it every time he walks past it. The tree makes me laugh every time I look at it, for it is surely the weirdest looking tree we've ever had, but I love it nonetheless. When it's all lit up at night, you can't tell that it's lopsided looking in from the outside, and I've covered the bald spot with extra lights.

NOW the house smells like Christmas and looks more festive because since the hubster brought up the boxes of Christmas ornaments and decorations from the basement, we've put some of the stuff up.

I'm in a frenzy today, having caught my second wind of baking. Making muesli, spiced peanuts, lemon bars and oatmeal, chocolate chip & cranberries cookies to package tomorrow in pretty bottles and boxes as Christmas gifts.

..... that's if we actually go down to NY after all because the hubster's in terrible shape today, and if he's not better by Christmas we'll just stay here. His parents are a little fragile, and one of our nieces just had a new baby, so it wouldn't be a good idea for him to go down and infect those with lowered immunity.

Edible Stories - by Mark Kurlansky

Scents and food, for some people, trigger memories, both good and bad. Here are 16 stories where people, their interaction through food and with others, are chronicled. A woman stops eating because she stops trusting those who prepare the foods,believing creme brulee to be toxic, a man finds himself standing with one leg in a hole in the sidewalk, with amnesia, no sense of smell or taste, a woman gradually becomes a vegan and serves tofurkey at Thanksgiving to her family, a man, known for delicious andouille sausages becomes the target of vicious rumors because he appeared bloody after emerging from the bayou, are among some of the stories shared.

These 16 short stories could stand on their own, but as you read through, you realize that some characters circle back through other stories, and that this could also be read as a novel in 16 parts.

3 stars

>97 cameling: Oh that sounds like a lot of fun!

I so so hope you and Edd will be here for Yule! I look forward to seeing you on Boxing Day!

Oh no! So sorry to hear that Edd is sick :( or was sick is what I'm hoping.. as I would like to see you heading out to be with family...good health mojo heading out for both of you..
hugs

OK...ok. If you can find the time to decorate a tree and talk to it, I guess I will pull out a few red balls and give my naked tree (lights only) a little Christmas cheer. Ya got me!

I sure hope you and DH are germ free by Tuesday and get to enjoy your Christmas visit. Healing hugs!

#98 : Richard...be warned that this is not meant to be a humorous book, although I can see how some people would find some of the 'mishaps' that befall some of the characters somewhat smirk-worthy. Oh... darn... if I had read this in January, I could count it towards your short story challenge. By the way, are you adding the short story challenge thread to the 2013 75er group?

I hope we get down so I can come over to visit you on Boxing Day too. By the way, what are your feelings towards lemon bars?

#99 : Thanks Kath - the hubster is looking, sounding and feeling a little better today. Not well enough yet to be let loose among people though (I guess I don't count as people since he's been coughing and sneezing around me all day). He has been walking around with Flavius, my new hippo under his arm all afternoon too. Not sure how I feel about him getting Flavius all germy...

#100 : Cee - way to go! Won't Ron be pleasantly surprised when he gets home. I was contemplating just decorating the tree with just the lights and an angel on the top, but since the whole tote of ornaments was sitting on top of the lights, I put one on and the rest just followed.

Thanks for the healing hugs....especially since I'm starting to feel a little achy myself now, but it might just be because I've been making muesli and spiced peanuts all morning and have just finished making some empanadas.

Trust you, Caro, to end up with a Charlie Brown christmas tree! I know it looks beautiful now.

I very much hope you are NOT getting sick, and the hubster is much better.

I have only the warmest personal regard for lemon bars, tinged with the sadness of seeing them before me all too seldom, he drooled.

Short stories challenge thread is already up and percolating. Feel free to offer some thoughts over there!

Hi Caro- Sorry to hear that your DH is sick. Bummer. Hope you are enjoying a peaceful Sunday and getting some prime reading in. Hugs!

Hi Caro - Edible stories sounds interesting. I'm getting hungry reading about your baking, will have to make some biscotti I think.
Hope you get to NY and Richard gets those lemon bars.

Hi there Caro. I just wanted to wish you and your hubby a very Merry Christmas and a Happy, happy New Year.

Sorry your husband is sick. Lousy timing. I think I have the same nasty cold. Or something similar. Coughing up a lung. Got it from my kid, of course. Crafting - my husband is making a bed for our daughter's American Girl doll. I am making the bedding. Will post photos after Christmas, if you like.

Have a wonderful and HEALTHY Christmas!

Merry Christmas Caro!! Hope your husband feels better for Christmas!

Stopping by to wish you all the best for the holiday season, Caro. Crossing my fingers that both you and your husband are feeling well and are able to follow through with your Christmas plans.

#102 : Roni ... you are so right... if this tree were any wonkier it could not be a better Charlie Brown tree. It's looking a tad happier because it now has a pile of presents under the tree. I didn't dare put too many ornaments on it because since it's lopsided, it already fell over once yesterday.

so far, I don't think I'm falling sick...*knocking on all wooden surfaces*

#103 : Richard, thanks for the link to the short stories thread....I may just post something there in the early part of the New Year. I don't know if it's because you've suddenly put short stories into my subconscious but yesterday I picked up 2 books from my TBR Tower that I wanted to read and realized they were both short stories. Hmph..... I put them back of course ... nyah nyah....will start the challenge officially only in 2013.

I love lemon bars too and was considering making some to bring to your house on Boxing Day ...but it's still pretty much up in the air as to whether or not the hubster will be well enough for us to drive down tomorrow. *sigh*

Still, since I was a Girl Guide and try to always Be Prepared, I have a ham being glazed in the fridge right now, and a rolled roast marinating, just in case we have to stay at home. If we do go down, I'll just bring them with me and cook them at my in-laws'

#104 : Hugs back at'cha Marky-Mark. Hubster appeared to be better yesterday but today he's feverish and all congested. More soup is on the menu for the day....and grilled sardines for me.:-)

#105 : Kerry, my baking spree ended well yesterday. I made my rounds to the post office this morning and handed out tins of baked goods and gift cards to the corner Bruegger's Bagels to the postal officers who work there and then crossed the street to the bank and gave the same thing to the bank tellers. I may need to put together another round of last minute baking tonight because some friends stopped over last night and munched their way through the rest of the lemon bars and some chocolate fudge cookies I'd also made.

#106: Bonnie, thank you. And wishing you a very Merry Christmas too!

#107 : Jenn ...Absolutely! I'd love to see the pictures! Sorry to hear you're under the weather too! Talk about bad timing. I hope you feel MUCH better in the morning.

#108 : Chelle - Merry Christmas to you too! Love the lit up Rudolph!

#109 : Thanks, Judy. We will go with the flow depending on how the hubster feels tomorrow. My in-laws just called to tell us that their boiler died or something, and they now don't have hot water. Sheesh.

Wishing one and all a wonderful holiday season!!

Merry Christmas, Caroline!! Happy reading and running (and traveling) to you in 2013.

Glitterfy.com - Christmas Glitter Graphics

I want to wish you a glorious celebration of that time of year when we all try to unite around a desire for Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward All. Merry Christmas, Caro!

Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2013!

Here, hear, Roni! A truly wonderful goal we should all strive towards. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwansa, Happy holidays, one and all!

DeKok and the Somber Nude - by A.C. Baantjer

The first in the DeKok series of a Dutch police inspector and his young partner, Vledder. In this novel, a nineteen year old girl is reported missing by her cousin and business partner, who believes her to not just be missing but dead. Without any evidence, DeKok decides to try and trace her through the last few days in which she was seen by and with a journalist, a drug addict cousin, a stockbroker and his son and an artist.

DeKok reminds me a little of Commissario Brunetti in his mannerisms. I think I'd like to keep this an active series and see if the author is able to develop the characters a little more.
3 stars

*trying not to notice that the 2013 group is already up*

Hi Caro,
All your christmas baking is very impressive! I did my Xmas Bikkies early this year, and they didnt last (boo hoo) so I didnt get to do my annual competition with my dad on who bakes the best ones. (I am so obviously the best at them, I feel I dont even need to enter the competition this year, that and being on crutches!)

Happy holidays, one and all!
I thoroughly endorse your sentiment!

Merry Christmas to you and hubby - hope you are both well :-)

Dear Caroline, wishing all the best to you and your loved ones, and looking forward to continued exchanges in 2013. Thanks for following me along my photographic journey and for keeping my threads warm, especially as I haven't been an assiduous visitor!

Merry Christmas, Caroline!


glitter-graphics.com

Merry Christmas, dearest Caroline! I'm sorry that I'll miss seeing you in person this year, but I'm sure that we'll get together in 2013, hopefully in Philadelphia this spring and NYC at Thanksgiving or Christmas. I hope that Edd is feeling better, and that you stay healthy.

Holiday Hugs!

#118 : Megan, aww...no more holiday bikkies? I think I hear a sigh of relief from the other contenders at the annual bikkie competition.... they get a chance to win the coveted bragging rights this year. ;-)

The baking madness continues because I made some tri-berry muffins this morning.

#119 : Cee, what a darling photo of Loki, looking the very picture of Christmas. Hope you're enjoying a beautiful white Christmas.

#120 : Merry Christmas Ilana, and a big Christmas smooch to Coco, looking very festive with the bow in her hair. I've been loving your photos. What camera do you use?

#121 : Terri - Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones too. Apt pic.. it snowed this morning and I made a little snow squirrel when I went out to sweep the snow off the front walk.

#122 : Darryl, I hope you're enjoying a restful and Blessed Christmas. Edd is much better but to be safe, we're staying home another day and will go down to NY tomorrow instead. Our niece just had a new baby and we don't want to risk passing him any of his germs. While we would love to see the newest family member, it's better to wait till they leave tomorrow morning before we go visit Edd's parents.

I'd really like to try and make the Philly Meet Up. I've already added those dates down in my 2013 calendar and will try to schedule work stuff around it...or better yet, fly through Philly as a stop for the weekend.

#123 : Marky-Mark - many holiday hugs to you too.Hope Santa was good to you.:-)

To one and all Kindle owners, Amazon's offering Kindle books for $2 today. http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?ie=UTF8&docId=1000858781

So the snuffling hubster is much better, but his parents hot water heater died on them yesterday and they can't get anyone out to fix it today. That plus a niece from DC is visiting with her new baby, so we've decided it would be better to stay up in MA for another day and maybe drive down to visit the 'rents tomorrow instead. His parents are also saying we shouldn't come down if he's still sick because they're afraid of catching the flu, which given their age, is understandable. The last time his mom had the flu, it turned into pneumonia.

>124 cameling: Thanks, Caroline; I am enjoying Christmas Day so far, but I won't go to Christmas dinner at my friend's house, tonight due to the incoming severe weather and my desire to get a good night's sleep before I go back to work tomorrow.

Edd's parents' comments make sense. If he doesn't have flu he might have RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), which is also very prevalent now. Either infection could be very serious in elderly adults or people with compromised immune or respiratory systems. The flu vaccine seems to be working this year, but there isn't a vaccine against RSV.

Just dropping by with some Christmas cheer from me and the Moomins (another great LT find). I hope your husband feels better soon and that you stay flu-free. Your thread always makes me hungry! But since I allow myself to indulge during the holidays, that's kind of a good thing.

Merry Christmas, Caro! Hope it is full of fabulous!

Boo hoo...it doesn't sound like I'll get to see you on Boxing Day! I am so sad and lonely...sitting here with maple pecan bars...so I guess, woe and misery, I shall have to eat them.

Boo hoo.

#126 : Darryl, I hope the tough days you had running up to Christmas won't be repeated this week. We are likely to drive down to his sister's in Vahalla tomorrow and then down to his parents for a couple of days. Edd's much better today but we're erring on the side of caution and giving it just another day.

#127 : Pat, if there's ever a time to indulge, the holiday season certainly is... besides, if we don't indulge in the last week of the year, how will we drum up the necessary determination to start new diets or head to the gyms in the first week of the new year in yet another attempt to make good on our resolution to be more healthy in the coming year? :-)

#128 : Mamie - A sedate but very nice Christmas it was indeed, given the circumstances. It was the first time the hubster and I have ever spent a Christmas on our own. It was actually quite nice. We missed the craziness that comes with having all the various kids around shrieking when they open their gifts, and sharing laughs with family and friends, but (apart from the hubster's occasional trumpeting nose blowing) it was kinda nice for us to just be cocooned together.

Even though it was just the 2 of us, I made a roasted pepper soup, pomegranate spinach salad, popovers and my mom's Christmas rolled roast with a delicious tomato worchestershire gravy. Dessert was a chocolate raspberry tart.

#129 : Boo hoo indeed, Richard ...'tis Boxing Day and I am surrounded by boxes....boxes of cookies, muffins, chocolate bark and lemon bars that were supposed to have been delivered to various people down on LI . Oh dear .... the hubster has taken it upon himself to singularly demolish the lemon bars and triple berry muffins. If we don't get out of here soon, we may not be able to leave because he may not fit through the doorway.

That rotter ate my lemon bars?! Oooo the noive of the man! Just because he's married to Bubbles Floppy-feet!

Said lemon bar fiend has grinned happily as he popped the last bite into his mouth. He looks winsomely unrepentant.

Caro- Just checking in! glad to hear Edd is feeling better. Hope the rest of your trip goes well. BTW- I just PMed you too!

PMed you back, Marky-Mark. :-)

Twelve Days of Christmas - Trisha Ashley

I was in the mood for a light read with a Christmas theme and chanced upon this little funster. A professional private chef and housesitter, brought up by a Strange Baptist grandmother, shuns Christmas because her husband died a few days before the holiday. She accepts a last minute housesitting job out in the country, and looks forward to the isolation.

Instead, she finds herself gradually and reluctantly getting involved in the home owner's elderly relatives and various villagers, all the while fending off irate calls from a very disgruntled homeowner currently in America.

Dealing with erratic phone service, possible power outages, a goat, an old horse and dog, unexpected house guests and oh, now she's cooking multiple meals and Christmas dinner, it only makes sense that who else should turn up just before a snow storm but the owner... and he's not happy.

3.2 stars
I think I liked it more too because of all the food that was being prepared and eaten.;-) It was just the perfect little read for me yesterday.

Looks like things are pretty much normal for Caroland...
Mostly all is well and a wee bit tilted...
Hope today untilts and everyone is healthy and happy.
yum... lemon bars!

Storm warning, Caro. It's begun to snow down here, just a little, but it's supposed to have more muscle north of the city. If you're driving today, take care.

Lemon bars sound good, are they like muesli bars? Or more like lemon meringue thingies? I am particular about the details sorry :)

Happy Day After Christmas Caro!! Safe travels my friend.

#136: Kath ..today was spent on the couch reading and watching a Castle marathon. I may have a touch of a cold, but nothing major. Hopefully gone by tomorrow.

#137 : Judy - we may drive down tomorrow. I heard about the storm warning, but it doesn't look to be too bad. We will check the weather again tomorrow morning. So I'm sorry but because of the hubster's illness, our plans have had to change and I won't be in the city tomorrow after all. :-(

#138 : Megan, lemon bars are a light lemon custard over a sweet pastry crust, with a dusting of confectioner's sugar on the top. I make it in a big baking sheet and then cut them in bars or squares. I sometimes use a much larger baking try so that the pastry and the custard is spread out more thinly, and then when I bake it in the same amount of time, what I get out when it cools are slightly caramelized, chewy, lemony squares of goodness instead of the lighter and softer lemony treats.

Would you like the recipe?

#139 : Hi Cee ... it's been a slightly sniffly, but wonderfully relaxing day. My butt is a little flattened from sitting on the couch for such a long time, but that's a small price to pay for the reading I managed to get in, and Castle marathon I binged on.

The Holy Thief by William Ryan

Step into 1930s Moscow, with everyone afraid of Stalin's Secret police, the regular citizens as well as the Komsomol and the Militia. When a woman and a thief are both found horribly tortured before they were killed, Captain Korolev is called upon to investigate the murders. When General Gregorin of the NKVD summons Korolev and shows an interest in these murders as well, demanding daily reports, Korolev knows he's potentially stepping into a minefield, with one misstep leading to his arrest and incarceration in Lubianka.

His investigations lead him to the underground network of Thieves, a gang of street urchins, an author with surprising connections, an American broker of Russian artifacts, and unknown assailants with a penchant for hitting him on his head.

While trying to uncover not just the identity of the murderer and the reason why the woman, who turns out to have been a nun, the thief and later a member of the NKVD were murdered, Korolev's investigations leads him to discover the identity of the item that they gave up their lives for.

This is a wonderful thriller from start to finish. The bonus for me in reading this is knowing this is the first in a series ...I can't wait to get to the next one.
3.8 stars

Edible Stories - only review I've seen of that one and it just had to be you!
Trust that the festive season is being kind to good lady and hubster alike. Hope the cold has dissipated by the time I stop typing.

#142 : Paul, with a title like Edible Stories and my penchant for both food and tales, how could I have passed up that book?

Every time I think the cold is on its way out, one of us gets another sneezing or coughing jag. So who knows ... it's at least not a serious one, not mine anyway, but the hubster wants to play it safe with his elderly 'rents. And so ..... we read. :-)

Delusion in Death - J.D. Robb

The latest in the Eve Dallas series, and I think it's one of her better ones, keeping us guessing right till the very end. I was concerned at one point that the ending appeared to be a little anticlimactic, but with the number of pages to go, I figured she had another twist up her sleeve...and she did not disappoint.

In this, an airbourne toxin appears to have been released in a bar, causing innocent people to turn viciously and violently on each other in a matter of minutes. Without clues and with the fear that this could be the start of more mass attacks, Eve Dallas and her team fight against time for information.

It does help to have read the preceding books in the series because there are some references to certain events and groups that would only make sense if one had read about them.

4 stars

*attempts to stanch bleeding from book-bullet*

The Holy Thief...it got me...helpless...must read...

I'll send a healing-mojo *whammy* for y'all to get past this RSV plague-cold.

The Holy Thief... sigh, I'm with Richard. You got me.
I'm glad Edd is feeling better and I hope your holiday season continues to be wonderful.

It might just be a blessing in disguise, this cold. A few days of rest and relaxation sound like a good thing for you.. and then there are books..

#145 : Wow.. I managed to hit Richard with a book bullet .... *does victory dance*

Cold appears to be all gone and the hubster is much better too, so we're driving down to LI this afternoon for the weekend .. just in time for family lunch tomorrow and a friend's party on Sunday in Southold before heading back up to MA.

#146 : Ellen ...another victim.... mwaahahahahaaaaaa.

#147 : Kath - actually it kinda was. It's a bummer we didn't get to spend Christmas with the whole family and see all the kids, but on the other hand, we did see them all in the first week of December for the hubster's father's 91st birthday.

Made a strawberry compote and waffles this morning. I love waffles with chunky strawberry compote and whipped cream. Side of bacon and it was the breakfast of champions.

So now I'm all packed and ready to leave for NY in a half hour....sans lemon bars since the hubster ate them all. Oh well..

Another victim of The Holy Thief review here - added to the obese WL. And about those lemon bars...

Happy Holidays, Caro!



Have fun on LI!

>140 cameling: Lemon Bars sound fabulouso, I would like the recipe if its not too much trouble, any time is fine.

Have fun in NY! (I would love to go back to NYC...*sigh*...one day!)

Safe travels and fun when you get there!

#150 : Mamie, if you like The Holy Thief and decide to get a copy of the next in the series, I just found out that #2 comes under 2 titles: The Darkening Field and The Bloody Meadow because there are 2 publishers of the book. I really wish they wouldn't do that ... it confuses me.

hmm...another lemon bar fan, are you?

#151 : Aww Joe... how cute ....a Santa camel. Thank you and happy holidays to you too. What's being served at the cafe for New Year's Eve?

#152 : Megan, I'll post the recipe for the lemon bars when I get back home on New Year's Eve. Sadly, because we came down so late in the week,we won't have an opportunity to spend time in Manhattan during this trip.We're squeezing as much time with friends and family on Long Island over the weekend before we have to head back on Sunday night. Bummer because I'd have liked to have seen the Christmas window dressings at Macy's and Lord & Taylor's.. something we usually do every year when we take the 'rent-in-laws into the city for dinner.

#153: Kath - we arrived safely last night,a little tired because traffic was awful almost all the way down. What usually takes us 3 and a half hours, ended up being a 5 hour drive. Ugh. But this morning, we woke bright and early and was out at the hubster's best friend's house by 7.30am so the 2 of them and his daughter, could go for a run in the woods, while I stayed in their warm kitchen chatting away with his wife, and nibbling on pistachios.

Was back at the in-laws' by 9.15, just as they were waking up. I made a plate of bacon and then some Texas toast for breakfast, and warmed up the triple berry muffins I'd brought down with me. I decided not to tell them all that the Texas toast was fried in the bacon fat...my FIL's on a new health kick and is insisting that my MIL only use PAM to cook with ...and I hate PAM. So I grunted when he asked if I found the PAM alright this morning when I was preparing breakfast.

Bacon fat.... best thing there is to cook with! lol. I approve :)
Now, what is Texas toast?

Hooray, hooray .... the in-laws have gone back to giving me a gift card for Barnes & Noble for Christmas this year, as has our friend's son and daughter this morning. Our friends gave me Mr Penumbra's 24-hour Bookstore and The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2013...so 'tis a happy morning.

The hubster and I are going to run some errands for his parents this afternoon, which includes grocery shopping....and hmm... it just so happens that the supermarket's just next to Barnes & Noble. :-) Since I'm making dinner tonight, surely the cook's entitled to a few minutes of book browsing time?

Thanks for the info about the sequel to The Holy Thief - good to know. I hate when they do that, too! And yes, waiting for the lovely lemon bar recipe...Agree with the PAM assessment! Rock On, rebel sister - keep using that secret ingredient!

Your waffles sound wonderful. My own favorite is waffles with a hearty dollop of plain yogurt, lots of frozen (but thawed) strawberries, and maple syrup. Yum.

My sister was looking at a recipe for some brussels sprouts for Christmas dinner, and the first step was "saute the bacon in butter." whaaat??

I think she skipped that step. The brussels sprouts were delicious (and probably only slightly less artery-hardening than they would have been had she followed instructions to the letter).

I hope you're having fun in NY, even without your lemon bars!

*waaaah* lemon bars *chinwobble*

The Carle Place Buns and Nubile has gone downhill, sadly. It's still easier to get to than Union Square, though!

Caro - thanks for putting a smile on my face on numerous occasions this year my dear. I can keep up with you on the threads if not in the dining halls! Happy New Year to you and the hubster look forward to meeting up with you again in 2013. x

Hi Caro! Love your travel adventures and your books. Here's hoping to enjoy more of the same next year and wishing you a safer 2013. : )

Happy New Year, Caro!

Happy New Year, Caroline!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year, Caro! Hope it is full of fabulous!

#157 : Mamie ... I've decided, as a New Year's gift to all my LT peeps, I'll post the lemon bar recipe on my 2013 thread .... on Jan 1. :-)

High Five to all butter lovers out there! I made more super buttery popovers at my in-laws for dinner the other night, and they ate the leftovers for breakfast with butter or jam and whipped cream.

#158 : "saute the bacon in butter."
Ellen - I can see how this would taste totally delicious. Maybe a teeny bit of butter wouldn't be an artery risk? I do love brussels sprouts with bacon & balsamic vinegar.

#159 : Sorry, Richard. I'll let you handcuff the hubster to a chair while you eat a peanut butter pie in front of him the next time we're on LI as punishment.

#160 : Paul, thanks for being such a sweet pal and one with whom I can rely on to supply me with more book recommendations than I can shake a cat at. Looking forward to seeing you and hopefully Hani too in 2013.

#161 : Kim - thank you for continuing to keep me company on my thread. I'm looking forward to another year of wonderful reads, laughs and adventures with you and all in LT.

#162 : Happy new year, Joe! Looking forward to another delicious year at the cafe with you.

#163 : Love the happy hippo, Pat. Happy new frolicking year!

#164 : Happy new year, Jenn.

#165 : Mamie ..happy new year! Can't wait to hear about your New Year's Eve celebrations.

Happy New Year, Caro and Edd!

Happy new year, Judy! Can't wait to see you in 2013.

So, made a beautiful glazed ham today and while slicing it, I felt a sneeze coming on ... turned my head, sneezed and.... ouch! sliced part of my finger in the process. Not deep enough stitches and I have a cute Snoopy bandaid on it now. Hopefully this will be the last accident in 2012. Hmm... I have about 8 hours to go ... think I can hold out?

Heading out to celebrate First Night in Boston. The weather is going to be really cold but that will keep the ice sculptures from melting. Can't wait to attend the events in the city and later, a party with some friends.


glitter-graphics.com

Happy New Year, everyone. Have lots of fun, but be safe! I'll see you all .... next year. :-)

Oh no! I guess it could have been a lot worse, but still! Yup, I vote that you have no more accidents this year (or ever!)

Happy new year!

Karen O.

Here's to a great new year ahead, Caro! I looked all over for a New Year's camel, but no go.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, Caro! Here's to many fun reads and many fun miles in 2013!

Happy New Year, Caro!

Happy New Year, Caro!