Storeetllr (Mary) Is Cautiously Optimistic in 2018 - Q1 Thread

Nickel and Rosie and I (wearing a rakish beret and holding the yellow sign) wish you all a wonderful 2018, filled with health, happiness and lots of great reading!

Quarter 1 Books Read

January

1. Provenance by Ann Leckie. 4 stars. Audio.
2. The Deepest Grave by Harry Bingham. 5 stars. Kindle.
3. Doctor Death by Lena Kaaberbol. 3.5 stars. Audio. Intriguing historical mystery set toward the end of the 19th century with just a few problems that I managed to ignore while reading. I read this because I won the second book in the series and don't like to skip books in a series.
4. Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz. 4 stars. (Kindle) A fun romantic thriller. Not a high literary novel by any means, but lots of fun.
5. Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews. 4 stars. (Kindle) New urban fantasy. Very weird but I really liked it.
6. Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews. 4 stars. (Kindle) These just keep getting weirder and more fun! I already ordered the third (and so far latest) in the series.
7. One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews. 4 stars. (Kindle) And now I am caught up and in danger of jonesing for the next in the series. (Oh! I hope there is a next in the series! Now I'm worried.) What a fun urban fantasy. I love how the romantic triangle (a la Stephanie Plum) got worked out, and I love all the magical wonder of the Inn and Innkeeper and the humor in the books.

February

8. Map to Nowhere by Marie Brennan. 4 stars. LTER. Fantasy short stories. Reviewed here.
9. Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews. 3 stars. (Audio). Second in the Kate Daniels UF series. Right. Well, it turns out I already read this a few years ago, soon after I read the first book in the series which I did not care for, because I like to give series a couple of chances to hook me, and wasn't impressed with it much then either. Kate is annoyingly angsty, Curran (the Beast Lord) is annoyingly arrogant, and her magical system still doesn't make sense. Still, I've been assured the series gets better after this, as do the characters, and the world begins to make more sense, so I will persevere.
10. Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews. 3.5 stars. (Audio). Okay, now we're getting somewhere. This one was more compelling. I esp. liked when Saimon had his bout in the gladiatorial games, and the way Curran resolved the Pack's disobedience of his First Law.
11. Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews 4 stars. (Audio) Huzzah! It does get better, and now that I'm enjoying the story more, I will continue with this series. I esp. loved when Kate and Aunt Erra have tea together and the way Kate resolved the Pack Alphas' conflict with her, notwithstanding the Hyenas' advice.
12.-21. Angel's Blood, Archangel's Kiss, Archangel's Consort, Archangel's Blade, Archangel's Storm, Archangel's Legion, Archangel's Shadows, Archangel's Enigma,Archangel's Heart, Archangel's Viper by Nalini Singh. 4 stars overall. (Audio) (Rereads) Really enjoy this series. A bit heavy on the sex scenes, especially in the first couple of books, but things settle down some. Anyway, I usually skim/skip/listen-with-half-an-ear-to the sex scenes.
22. Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh. 3.75 stars. (Audio) (Reread.) First in Series. Extra half star the second time around. Sasha Duncan and Lucas Hunter star.
23. Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews. 4 stars. Audio. Someone is killing magic, and Kate must find out who and how to stop them before everyone with even a tinge of magic in them dies. I loved the part at the end when the creep from the Order gets his. Sorry, but I was wanting that to happen from the very first time he showed up insulting Andrea and Kate and Curran.
24. Visions of Heat by Nalini Singh. 3.75 stars. Audio. Reread. 2nd in Psi-Changling Series. Still a bit heavy on the sex scenes, but overall I enjoyed the stoy of Faith Nightstar & Vaughn DiAngelo, tho not as much as Sasha's story.

March
25. Caressed by Ice (Judd & Brenna), 26. Mine to Possess (Clay & Tali), 27. Hostage to Pleasure (Ashaya & Dorian), books 3, 4 and 5 in the Psy-Changling series by Nalini Singh. 3.5 stars. (Audio)
28. Dark in Death by J.D. Robb. 4 stars. Extra 1/2 star for writing herself in as a character, and the plot that involves a mystery series.
29. Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews. 3.5 stars. How Andrea got her groove back.
30. Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey. 3.5 stars. Loved it when I first read (and reread) it four decades or so ago, but, when I reread it this time, the rough treatment of the main female protagonist by the main male protagonist was jarring, to say the least. I'm glad that trope has become less tolerated today.
31. Why Kill the Innocent by C. S. Harris (First-To-Read ARC). 4.5 stars. Latest installment in the St. Cyr historical mystery series. The winter of 1814 was not a good one for England, which was locked in a nasty, long-running war, locked in the grip of a brutal winter, locked in a frozen Thames. Not good for Jane Ambrose, either, piano teacher to Princess Charlotte, daughter of the Regent. When Hero literally stumbles over Jane's body one dark snowy night on her way home from the stews of Clerkenwell, it sets her and St. Cyr on the trail of her murderer.
32. On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder. 5 stars. Audio. Reviewed here.
33. Branded by Fire (Mercy & Riley) 4 stars, 34. Blaze of Memory (Devros & Katya) 3.5 stars, 35. Bonds of Justice (Max & Sophia)3.5 stars by Nalini Singh. Audio.
36. Burn Bright by Patricia Briggs. 3.5 stars. Audio. Latest in the Alpha/Omega series. Okay, but it felt just a bit "off" to me, and I just could not care that much.
37. Magic Rises by Ilona Andrews. 4 stars. Audio. Last Kate Daniels I can find on audio from the library, so not sure when I'll be picking the series back up again. To get hold of enough of a drug that will prevent young shifters from going rogue and being killed, Curran accepts a job to mediate a dispute among the European packs, all of which hate him and want to destroy him and the Atlanta pack. Uneven, but parts were compelling and I LOVED the ending.
38. Play of Passion by Nalini Singh. Audio. 3 stars. (Drew and Indigo)
39. Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh. Audio. 3.5 stars. (Hawke and Sienna)
40. Container Theme Gardens by Nancy Ondra. 4 stars. I'm dreaming of my summer garden. Just like the ones from years gone by. Where nasturtiums are glowing, calendula are growing, and marigolds tempt the butterflies! This is one of the better container garden how-to books I've seen. I borrowed the Kindle version, but I think I'm going to break down and buy it so I can have it handle for future years.

Currently Reading

The Garden of Blue Roses by Michael Barsa (ARC) (print book)
The Saint of Wolves and Butchers by Alex Grecian (F2R ARC)
Lake Silence by Anne Bishop (Audio)

On Deck

A Lady in Shadows by Lene Kaaberbol (LTER) (audio)
Pick Your Teeth With My Bones (Kindle) (LTER)

Top 3 (or 4, or 5) Favorites

Q1

Book Recommendations:

Neogenesis by Sharon Lee - Roni

Books I started but didn't finish for one reason or another:

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Just ran out of time.

God Stalk by P. C. Hodgell. Just couldn't get into it.

Fellside by M. R. Carey. Just not in the mood. Too soon after reading The Girl With All the Gifts and The Boy on the Bridge.

Ooohhh, Provenance gets 4 stars! I award it 4.5 myownself. Got to get that review done.

Yay! Richard the FIRST!

Yes, my goal this year is to post reviews (or, more likely, mini reviews) of all the books I finish. Wish me luck with that. I look forward to reading your review.

>7 Storeetllr: AND I didn't like Ancillary Justice, which makes the feat all the more impressive.

Ah, Ancillary Justice was damn hard for me to get into, but once I was through the first 1/4, I ended up loving it, as well as the next two in the trilogy.

Dropping off a
And wishing you

Thanks, Roni!

Happy New Year, Mary, and happy reading.

Wow, and you've already finished a book!

Thanks, Ella! Happy 2018 to you too!

Haha, yes, I started it at bedtime on 12/30 and tried to finish it before midnight last night, but no luck. Ended up finishing it around 2 a.m.

Happy 2018, Mary!

I liked Provenance, too. She's on a roll.

Welcome back! Happy new year!

Hi Mary! Happy new year of reading!

Thanks so much, Joe, Jim and Jo. (The Three Js!) Happy New Year to you too!

Happy Reading in 2018, Mary. Hope to see you around more. I have missed you. And hooray for Nickel & Rosie! Such cuties!

Thanks, Mark, and back atcha! Like Nickel's crusty beak? It's how she looks after she scarfs up her breakfast, before she scrapes the food off her beak.

Hope your 2018 is full of good reads!

Happy New Year
Happy New Group here
This place is full of friends
I hope it never ends
It brew of erudition and good cheer.

Happy reading in 2018, Mary!!

Happy New Year! I wish you to read many good books in 2018.

Dropping a star, Mary! Happy New Year to you!

Happy New Year, Mary. It looks like you are off to a good start.

Thanks, Lori, Paul, Anita, Rachel, Mamie and Beth!

So, thanks to Lori (thornton37814) for the tip on GoodReads' "Your Year in Books" stats! I had no idea this kind of thing was available!

This might be a good time to set out "My Favorites of 2017" list:

Fiction

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. 5 stars. Audio.
*The Girl With All the Gifts, 5 stars and
The Boy on the Bridge, 5 stars, both by M. R. Carey
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. 5 stars. Audio
How the Marquis Got His Coat Back by Neil Gaiman. 5 stars. Audio.

Not the Best, but Such Good Fun

The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard. 4.5 stars. eBook
Hard Magic by Laura Anne Gilman. 4.5 stars.
We Are Legion by Dennis E. Taylor. 4.5 stars. Audio.
Silver Silence by Nalini Singh. 4.25 stars. eBook
Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie Brennan. 4.5 stars. Audio.
Silver on the Road by Laura Anne Gilman. 4 stars. eBook

Hon. Mentions:

SeveneveS by Neal Stephenson. 4 stars - Because I'm still thinking about it months after finishing it.
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. 4 stars. Audio. Because it really is unique and very well written.

Nonfiction

March: Book Three by John Lewis. 5 stars. GN
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. 4.5 stars. Audio.

*These two books about zombies - my least favorite horror trope - are amazing. Carey has really grown as a writer from his Felix Castor, Lucifer and Hellblazer days!

>27 Storeetllr: They sent me an email about its availability. That's how I found it.

Well, I thank you for sharing it, Lori!

I'm so glad you posted on my thread today, Mary. In all the hubbub of the start of the year, I hadn't realized that yours was one thread I hadn't yet tracked down. But now I've got a good hold, and I won't be letting go!

>27 Storeetllr: Very nice feature, but I would have had to enter all my reads on GoodReads to take advantage of it, and I didn't.

>31 rosalita: Yay, Julia! I feel a shenanigan coming this way.

>32 ronincats: Yeah, 2017 was the first year I entered all my reads on GR. Before that, I wasn't very consistent so, tho I read over 150 books in 2016, GR showed only around 55. Well, it's an extra step, but I kind of like the add feature in GR more than in LT. I do both, but then what else do I have to do now that I'm retired. lol

Happy belated New Year, Mary. Happy reading in 2018, and I look forward to following along.

>28 Storeetllr: I like your Best of Lists up there, Mary. Great to see The Girl With All the Gifts. I also loved it and I NEED to get to the follow up this year.

Not familiar with How the Marquis Got His Coat Back. Will have to add to the mix.

>34 libraryperilous: Thanks, Diana! (Although, really, it's only the 3rd day of the year, so not actually all that belated. :)

>35 msf59: I think I heard about Girl from you, Mark, though I could be wrong. I'm going to try to do better this year keeping track of reccies. But yes, you do need to read Boy. It's different but as good. As for Marquis, it's a short play with different people doing the different characters. Very fun!

Well, I am not sure I can take credit for you reading The Girl With All the Gifts, but I sure warbled incessantly about it. I even got my wife and daughter to read it, along with a co-worker.

I'll have to get my mitts on The Boy on the Bridge.

**I just snagged The Boy on the Bridge on audio. Yah!

>37 msf59: Yay! It starts out with a different feel from Girl, but don't worry. It is wonderful in its own right!

Mini Reviews:



1. Provenance by Ann Leckie. 4 stars. Audio. Set in the same world as the Ancillary trilogy, this is much less a space opera than it is a coming-of-age story that includes a murder mystery, political intrigue, cultural foibles and sibling rivalry. As for characters, I never quite warmed to the main character Ingray (a flibertigibet) or her brother (insufferable). I did like Pahlad, who was a third gender person and seemed to have more depth than the other two. The glimpses we get of the alien races were intriguing, though, and I really loved the spider mechs. I enjoyed the book well enough but not as much as the Ancillary books or the Liaden Universe books, which I think do this kind of story much better.



2. The Deepest Grave by Harry Bingham. 5 stars. Kindle. Best Fiona book yet, and I have loved all of the previous ones.

Fiona is only truly happy when she is working a murder investigation, so it is with great relief when, after about a year and a half's dry spell (not a lot of complicated murder cases in Cardiff), she's assigned to work a murder inquiry under the supervision of her new boss, a by-the-rules powerpoint-driven control-freak with a creepy beard. When she sees the body of the archaeologist, though, and its head, which has been removed from its shoulders by an antique repro sword and sits perched on a side table in the corner of the murder room, she feels like she has hit the jackpot (so to speak).

In the beginning, I was a little uncertain about the Arthurian aspects, but I should have trusted the author, and Fiona. Bingham wove it and the murder and the investigation together so deftly that, by midpoint, I couldn't remember what I had been concerned about. All his characters - including the countryside of Wales - were as usual compelling and fully dimensional. I especially liked the new characters of Katie and George and even DI Jones, he of the creepy beard. Like another reviewer, I was so happy to get a chance to see her dad in action, and to see DCI Dennis Jackson featured more. Only niggle was that I would have liked to see the arch villain brought into the story sooner than at the denouement. This book made me so happy, although I must admit that I cried in a couple of places, especially toward the end.

I also liked the Author's Notes at the end, which is highly unusual for me. I seldom ever read them much less enjoy them.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

>39 Storeetllr: I'll keep the Bingham book in mind.

ETA: The first in the series is available at my library in ebook and audio book formats. Added it to my list so I can grab it when I'm ready.

Oh! I think you will love Fiona Griffiths, Lori! I both read and listened to Talking to the Dead and loved both formats, though I think I preferred the audio version (I prefer audiobooks if the reader is good, and this one was). I'm also glad I listened to it because it helped with the Welsh words and pronunciations in subsequent books. Unfortunately, that's the only book in the series that was made into an audiobook - Harry said it was his publisher's decision, but he is trying to get them to change their mind.

>39 Storeetllr: You remind me that I should get back to the Fiona Griffiths series, Mary. I have just read the first one so it will take me a while to get to that one. I dropped my star to follow along in 2018.

Skipping you review of Fiona, Mary, as you are way ahead of me. I am ready for book three. So interesting about only one book being made into an audiobook - I think that's a mistake. Hoping he gets the publisher to rethink that.

>39 Storeetllr: I've Kindled the first Fiona, thanks; and I liked Provenance better than you did, as well as more than Ancillary. Your points about the coming-of-ageness of Provenance are well taken.

>39 Storeetllr: I also liked Provenance better than you did, perhaps because I found Ingray more tolerable, but the story is definitely a different category than Ancillary Justice.

>42 Familyhistorian: Welcome, Meg! I hope to get around your and everyone's threads a lot more this year than last. Going to try anyway. You've got a lot of great reading ahead with the rest of the Fiona books. Just a note: the second book was my least favorite, though it was enjoyable.

>43 Crazymamie: No spoilers in my mini-review, Mamie, though I do understand not even wanting to read others' impressions lest it spoil the experience for you. You also have a lot of great reading ahead - by the time you read the next three, maybe Harry will have written another book! I agree not making the books into audiobooks is a mistake. I think I'll email Harry again and see how his campaign to do so is going. He's a really nice guy and is very good about responding to emails! Here's his contact info, in case you want to add your voice to mine: http://www.harrybingham.com/contact-harry-bingham/

>44 richardderus: Yay, Richard! I think (hope) you will enjoy Talking to the Dead, and they get better as they go along (except for the second, which I've mentioned, though it is not bad, just not as good as the rest imo). I know you liked Provenance, and I enjoyed it too, just not as much as her Ancillary books. Also, I'm not a big fan of coming-of-age stories for the most part.

>45 ronincats: Hi, Roni - Yes, maybe my inability to take to Ingray was why I didn't take to it as much as others have, plus I was hoping for another Ancillary book. :)

Hi Mary You remind me that I read the first Fiona, and liked it a lot. Will certainly be looking for the rest, after your recommendation here.

I tanked on Provenance, even though I liked the Breq trilogy immensely. I thought the heist element would be super fun, but I found myself dragged down by the coming of age aspects of the story. Agree about the spider mechs: They were rad.

I left it on my TBR, though, to try again someday when I'm in a different reading mood.

>47 EllaTim: Oh! You've got five fantastic reads ahead of you, Ella!

>48 libraryperilous: I enjoyed Provenance enough to finish it - Leckie does write so well - but it probably won't be on my "favorite of the quarter" list, in part because of the coming-of-age aspects. Though the spider mechs really were wonderful fun!

Hi Mary, I'm a bit late in this but Happy New Year. I loved both The Girl with All the Gifts and The Boy on the Bridge and although it has a different setting from the two previous mentioned books, I am looking forward to reading Fellside at some point this year. I am also way behind you with the Fiona Griffiths books but hope to get to one of those soon too, as that was one of my favorite new series from last year.

Good review and good comments by others on Provenance, Mary. I enjoyed it - she's got such a knack for writing good sci-fi - but I wouldn't put it at the level of the Ancillary books either.

Yay for Fiona! Those books are so consistently high quality. Can't wait for the new one.

>50 DeltaQueen50: Thanks, Judy! Better late than never, but, no, it's only the end of the first week of the year, so you are not late with your New Year's greeting. lol I do hope you get a chance to read another Fiona or two soon as they just keep getting better and better (tho the first one was so good!). Oh, and thank you for reminding me about Fellside. I just got the audio from the library and hope to "bookhorn" (as Mark would say) it in this week.

>51 jnwelch: Thank you, Joe! Provenance seems to be one of those books that end up with readers having a lot of different reactions to it. The Fiona series, though - I think I've only seen one or two people say they didn't enjoy them. I emailed Harry Bingham last week and asked him when we can expect the next Fiona. He hasn't replied yet so hopefully that means he's busy working on it!

A belated happy new year!

Would you recommend audio for Lincoln in the Bardo? The book seems somewhat daunting in print and I am determined to read it this month.

Thanks, Karen - and Happy New Year (not belated: it's only the 10th day of the year! :) to you too!

Yes, I listened to it and enjoyed it. It wasn't my favorite book of the year, but I am still thinking about it six months or longer after I finished it. So, try it! I borrowed an e-audio copy from my library.

Thought you might enjoy this article, Mary!

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/curbside-gyms-new-zealand-kea-parrots-trou...

>55 ronincats: Oh! Hysterical, Roni! Thanks for sharing! Yes, all birds need stimulation, and all birds sometimes need their rambunctious and occasionally destructive natures redirected lest shenanigans ensue.

>54 Storeetllr: I just finished the print version of Lincoln in the Bardo and was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Like you, I don't think it is going to be my favorite book of the year but the imagery and ideas will stick with me.

Wishing you a great week!

Thanks, Karen! I had a quiet week. In fact, I stayed in all week, resting up after a strenuous few hours Saturday spent marching with about 2,000 others at the Women's March here in Pueblo. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful turnout for our small city and it raised my spirit to know there are so many #Resistors here.

I've been having trouble concentrating on my current read (The Garden of Blue Roses), although it is very good, reminiscent of Henry James' Turn of the Screw, with gorgeous writing and wonderful allusions to classic and ancient literature and a creeping horror that is not (so far) bloody or gruesome. The problem is my eyes can't focus on small print for very long, so I end up reading in fits and starts and losing the momentum. :( It's a short novel, though, so I should be able to finish in another day or two.

Getting old sometimes sucks. Of course, it is better than the alternative, most of the time.

The Kindle edition of My Antonia by Willa Cather is free today! For anyone who hasn't read this wonderful novel yet, or who wants to read it again (like me), here's a deal for you! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N394V65/

>58 Storeetllr: Nice pictures, Mary. Good to see that so many people get involved, and looks like you had fun.

Small print doesn't help in reading, I get magazines that look like that, very small font and lots of white paper, editors seem to think it looks nice, but i think it's annoying:-(

Love my e-reader, I can just choose a larger font.

>61 EllaTim: Thanks, Ella! It was energizing, though the next day I felt it. I'm not used to walking and standing around so much. I really do need to get in shape. I belong to a gym that is about a half mile away. Do you think I can get there though? :)

That's why I prefer Kindle, for the ability to enlarge the font, but mostly I listen to audiobooks when I can.

>58 Storeetllr: Oh I *adore* "Remember, Remember the 6th of November" with its links to the Gunpowder Plot! Which is a TV show. And a good one.

>63 richardderus: Thanks, RD! When I made the sign, I wasn't sure if anyone would "get" it but was gratified that a number of folks did. I didn't know it was a TV show. Though I don't have cable, I'm going to see if I can stream it. Thanks for the tip!

Great picture of you and your sign, Mary. Good on you, getting out there and marching. I saw an article the other day that said more women are becoming involved in politcs and running for office as a direct backlash at Trump.

Hi, Judy! Thanks! Yes, I've heard the same, and my daughter is one of them. She's not running yet, but she is now working for The American Women's Party (https://www.americanwomensparty.org/) and has gone back to college to work toward a degree in poli sci with a minor in women's studies with plans to become a lobbyist or maybe even run. So proud of her and so glad that so many women are getting involved.

>62 Storeetllr: Same here. I want to get back in shape, but... well, right now it's raining outside.

>66 Storeetllr: Interesting, Mary. For an outsider American politics can sometimes be hard to follow, but I looked at their website and I understand they are a part of the Democratic Party, is that right?

It looks like you had a great turnout for the Women's March in Pueblo, Mary! Good for you getting out there and adding your voice. And wow, great to hear that your daughter is among the women who have been newly energized by this catastrophe. Our country will be a better place because of them, I know. Assuming we still have a country by the time we get a new president.

Hi Mary!

I hope 2018 has been treating you well with lots of good books to fill your time! I'm slowly just finding my way around the LT threads and checking out who is still around. So many familiar "faces"! :)

>67 EllaTim: Hi, Ella! American politics is often hard to follow even for Americans. Especially after what has happened in the past couple of years. As I understand it, the AWP is affiliated with the Dems, though not a part of the Dem Party. It was formed mostly as an intersectional feminist org working to enfranchise women.

>68 rosalita: We did, Julia. It was so gratifying! Personally, I think we need to get out on the streets in huge masses every damn day, like during the Vietnam War protests and Dr. King's Freedom marches.

>69 jolerie: Hey, Valerie! So good to see you! Thank you for finding me! I've been to visit your thread too. (Loved your story about your middle son, The Ham!)

January Stats:

7 books read, all fiction

1-Scifi
1-Romantic thriller
3-Urban fantasy
1-Historical mystery
1-Mystery

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Deepest Grave by Harry Bingham.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Provenance by Ann Leckie
Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz
Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews
Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews
One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews

⭐⭐⭐1/2

Doctor Death: a Madeleine Karno Mystery by Lena Kaaberbol

Written by a man: 1
Written by a woman: 6

****

It has been over a year since the disaster of 11/8/16, and I am obviously still in need of escapist and comfort reads.

Love the photos, Mary - so great! Nice stats; I love seeing what everyone has read and what they are keeping track of, stat-wise.

Here's hoping that your weekend is full of fabulous!

Hi, Mamie! Thank you for stopping by, especially since your thread is so crazy hopping! I don't know how you keep up!

It is nice to keep stats and see others' stats. I love learning what books are loved by others and have discovered some favorites from that!

I'm so excited! This week, I finally cleaned out the spare room and put together the guest bed! It's so comfy, one of those gel mattresses on a platform, and has nice new cotton sheets! I was even thinking I might start sleeping on it instead of my own bed, at least once in awhile. :) Anyway, I'm officially open for visitors! I also got a table and two chairs to use in the guest room/office for my craft work and writing. It's also a perfect fit, rectangular, about 2-1/2x4 feet.

I also bought a "new" used dining table with three chairs. It fits perfectly in my little dining room and makes it seem more homelike, as though I'm not just passing through.

Getting it together, and it's only been 9 months since I moved in. lol


Ready for a Guest!


Craft Table/Writing Desk


Dining Room Table

That looks like a very functional craft table, Mary, and a convenient size of dining table too!

>74 Storeetllr: A lovely inviting room indeed. :)

Very nice! I love the size of that craft table. Looks like you are already for company.

Thank you, Roni, Richard and Mamie! I still have some organizing to do, but at least I have places to put things now. And to put guests, of course. My first guests may be my daughter and her s.o. They're coming in June for my niece's wedding. I'm going to give them my bedroom - which has a double bed - and I'll sleep on the guest bed, which is a twin. But I'm hoping friends from California (and maybe Missouri and Iowa) will come to Colorado for a visit and stay with me sometime before I move again. *hint hint* :)

Hmm, friends from Iowa? :-)

I only object to the word "only" in your sentence: "Getting it together, and it's only been 9 months since I moved in." Nine months is but a flash compared to the still-unpacked boxes I have in my apartment — the one I moved into in November 2002!

Lovely guest room Mary!

Don't feel bad about how long it took Mary. I think we've been living in our house for almost 10 years and I have still to put any spare bedroom together. We STILL have stuff in boxes in our basement. ;)

>79 rosalita: I was thinking of you when I wrote that, Julia. Also, hahahaha, 2002. You're my long-lost twin, right?

>80 jolerie: Thanks, Val. I know how that is. I found boxes in the house I sold in 2008 that were unopened from when I moved there in 1988. Couldn't toss them, either, because I tend to put important stuff in with the unimportant. In the past few years, as I get closer to the end of life, I'm trying to clean up so my daughter doesn't have to.

Your guest room looks very inviting and done in my favorite color of green! The way we moved in - one box at a time - means we don't have any boxes to open and put away, that's all been done. Of course you couldn't do one box at a time unless you were moving just a few streets away like we did.

Good for your daughter for getting involved. I am hoping that Trudeau here in Canada will inspire many a younger person to get involved in politics as well, our country is only as good as the people that are involved in the running of it.

>74 Storeetllr: Glad you got the guest room ready, Mary. You never know when I might show up. Grins...

Looks like I haven't been by in awhile. I hope life it treating you well.

I have been chatting a bit with Joanne. We are planning on going to Colorado in early August and I am trying to put together a Meet Up in Denver on August 5th, the day we will fly in. It looks like we will visit the Rocky Mountain National Forest and then spend a few days in Ft. Collins, where I have family.

I sure hope you would be able to make it up to Denver, at that time. Fingers crossed.

>81 Storeetllr: I was hoping you might have meant me. :-) I would love to come visit — the only time I've been to Colorado was when we all met up at Booktopia, which has been a few years now. I think I'm due!

>83 msf59: Mark! I've been meaning to get by your thread and see how your trip to the Yucatan went. I'm sure it's now a couple of threads back, but what's a thousand posts between friends? ;-) Anyway, you (and Sue) are always welcome to come for a visit and stay awhile. If you come alone, you can have the single bed in the guest room. If you and Sue come, you can have my double bed and I'll take the single. As for August 5, I am putting it on my calendar and definitely plan to drive up for a meetup!

>84 rosalita: OF COURSE YOU ARE WELCOME! As I said, I was thinking of you when I wrote Ohio. I remember our Booktopia get-together in Boulder. So much fun! Every time of the year is a good time to visit, though, if it were me, I'd come in late-September/early October so I could see the golden aspens. (I was thinking of Donna when I wrote Missouri. I'd add Illinois for Mark and Joe and California for Roni and Reba and Maryland for Jim and Georgia for Darryl and Mamie and Canada for Judy and others and NJ for Katie and and and - too many to list.) Anyway, if you aren't allergic to birds and give me a couple of days notice to clean and straighten, I would love to have you come stay with me any time of the year! Currently, the only visitors I'm expecting this year are my daughter and her s.o. June 9-19.

Thanks so much for the offer to stay at your place, Mary. Very kind. We don't make it back to Colorado very often, but if we are anywhere in your vicinity, we will sure take you on that.

I will let you know more about our Denver stop, as things unfold, but, as of now, I am shooting for Aug 5th.

>86 msf59: That sounds great, Mark! I've got Aug. 5 down on my calendar for a meetup in Denver.

Today, The Yellow Wallpaper eBook is free from Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZG8Y5B/

That guest bed looks inviting, Mary. Since we can't seem to entice you up to Denver for a meetup, I might have to swing south on my next trip back to Missouri. You are keeping busy with your political activism. Good for you! And good for your daughter, too.

Hi, Donna! Thanks, there is a lot to work with these days in the political arena. I wish it weren't so. When is your next trip planned? I will try to come up, but, if I can't (that drive is a killer; I don't know how you do it), I'd love to have you come through Pueblo on your way to/from.

Just stopping in to say hi, Mary!

Hi back atcha, Roni!

I am hopelessly behind on posting...I hope all is well and you are enjoying a lovely weekend.

Me too, Karen. I may never get caught up. Thanks for stopping by!

It's already March! Eeek! Seems like The Women's March was only a week or two ago.

So, I set up my Garden Tower and have been planning what to plant. So far, my plans call for tomatoes (cherry and beefsteak), lemon cukes, sweet and hot peppers, broccoli, kale, lettuce, dill, basil (lots of basil), borage, calendulas, nasturtiums (lots of nasturtiums), marigolds, carrots, radishes, parsley, and sage. Also wild flowers. I'll be starting seeds inside this week - tomatoes, cukes, peppers, the herbs, some of the flowers. Next month, I'll order the composting worms. Of course, we'll probably be struck by a couple of arctic blasts and blizzards in the next month or two, which may set my plans back a bit. I'm also worried about how the hailstorms we get every spring are going to impact the tower.

Excited that I "won" a galley of the latest St. Cyr historical mystery that's coming out on April 3 - Why Kill the Innocent - from First To Read (http://www.firsttoread.com/). I do love that series!

This month's free ebook from The University of Chicago Press sounds interesting. Now that the books are available for Kindle, I've been getting a copy every month, even if I am not planning to read it soon. Anyway, this one is You Feel So Mortal: Essays on the Body by Peggy Shinner. You can check it out here: http://www.press.uchicago.edu/books/freeEbook.html.

Finally, this is for my teacher friends:

>95 Storeetllr: Isn't it nice when you are preparing for spring, all the plans and ideas? I like your list.

We're having a blast of Siberian cold here, so all garden plans have to wait. Thinking of sowing lots of herbs. Dill, fennel, basil. Calendula, borage. But I usually start with very practical beans as they can deal with some cold. Have fun, Mary.

I can't believe you are planting for spring already.
I'm trying to imagine digging through the mountain of snow to plant anything. It would be a lost cause. :)

I live vicariously through all you green thumbers on LT. My brown thumb doesn't like to cooperate. ;)

>96 EllaTim: Hi, Ella! Yes, I love the entire gardening experience, from planning to harvesting. This past week, it's been warm during the days here - today's 70F! - but nights get into the 20s and teens, and I expect the weather won't stay so unseasonably warm during the days, so no outside planting yet. Probably start putting the hardy plants out in May, and then the tomato and pepper seedlings and such out in mid-May. Then, of course, I will have to be ready to cover them with tarps to protect them from the hail we always get. It's a real challenge.

>97 jolerie: Haha, Valerie - not planting yet. Just in the planning stages. I am going to start some seedlings inside this week, but it's still too cold at night to plant outside, and I expect more snow and freezing temps in the next month or so. Last year's last snowfall was on May 1, if I'm not mistaken. And it was a good'un.

>95 Storeetllr: Oh my heck, that is one *Lucullan* salad bar you're growing there! Borage AND calendulas! And nasturtiums!! *drool*

>99 richardderus: Lucullan - hah! You've been hanging around with Amber, haven't you, RD.

Yes, I'm drooling over all those flowery delights too. I think nasturtiums are my favorite flower, even thought they aren't sweetly scented. They're just so exuberant, every time I see them I have to smile.

Hi Mary, sounds like you are ready for spring weather and spring planting. My husband is more of a gardener than I am and he is planning his planter garden for plenty of color, I just want one fair sized planter for a few herbs cause I love to have fresh herbs available for me to pick.

Hi, Judy! Herbs and flowers are enough to make me happy too, though I do love fresh homegrown tomatoes, and it's hard to find lemon cucumbers in the stores and I love them too. Also, I eat kale almost every day, so having it growing in the garden is great - I can pick as few or as many leaves as I want to add to my salad, soups, stews, etc. When I buy what I think is enough kale, I almost always have to toss some of it in the compost bin at the end of the week. What herbs do you like to grow?

I stayed offline all day yesterday and it was wonderful. I read and did a few chores and did more garden planning instead. I slept great last night and felt so good when I woke up this morning that I was reluctant to get back online today. I had to check my bank balance and credit card account, though, so I couldn't stay off all day today too. I think I'm going to make every Sunday an internet-free day from now on.

>103 Storeetllr: My husband does that, Mary, maybe once or twice a year he starts his PC on a Sunday. It works for him.
Most of the time I am way to curious about what is going on here to skip a day. Only thing that works for me is a vacation destination without or with very slow internet ;-)

Internet free day sounds wonderful Mary. The experts are always advising us to make sure we curb our kids screen time, but truth be told, I think it's the adults that need more limits and boundaries. Half an hour before bedtime is a a no screen time rule for myself otherwise I find it hard to fall asleep. All the more reason to curl up with a good book! :D

>104 FAMeulstee: Hi, Anita! Your husband is a smart man. I'm looking forward to staying offline all day every Sunday too. The relief has carried me through almost the entire week! Even though I've been online every day since.

>105 jolerie: Good thinking, Valerie! I'm not only restricting internet use all day Sunday, but also have been going online only in the morning and putting the laptop away for the rest of the day. It does make a difference.

I put up a bird feeder yesterday afternoon and got my first customers today! I tried to take a picture but, by the time I pulled out my cellphone, one bird had taken off and the other had move from the feeder to perch on the (currently empty) tray. Still, here's proof that at least one bird (a House Finch, I think) visited today.



(Not a great picture, but I didn't want to move closer to the window lest I frighten it away)

Enjoy the bird feeder. I love mine...my husband calls them my "feathered friends." Our goldfinches are starting to get gold and it is almost time to hang the hummingbird feeders. I am not a big fan of the hot summers but they bring the hummers so that's something good.

Hope you are well! I have been trying to stay offline at least one day of the weekend. Unfortunately, I am traveling next week so will have to work tomorrow. But, like you, I find it refreshing to be away from the screen and my desk for a whole day.

Hi, Karen! Sorry to hear you have to work tomorrow, but hope you will be traveling somewhere fun next week.

Oh, hummingbirds! It'll be time soon for the feeder to go up here too. I had an ant problem last year but will be trying something new this year to try and avoid that problem.

Tomorrow I'm going to a Moms Demand Action meeting in the morning, then stopping by Lowe's to see if I can find dwarf tomato seeds, and finally Natural Grocers to buy a bag of organic walnut halves for my parrots. (I know, I know, they are SOOOOOO spoiled.) And yes, I am definitely looking forward to No-Internet-Sunday. :)

Mary, I plant mostly the basics when it comes to herbs, I love having fresh rosemary and thyme. I always had fennel at the house but not sure if it would be too large for a container. When the weather gets a lot warmer I like to put basil out and of course, I love to have a bunch of chives out there as well. My husband put the hummingbird feeder up the other day and we have at least one little guy who comes regularly. We can't tell if the feeder is dripping or he is drooling but hubby has had to clean up underneath the feeder a couple of times already.

>109 Storeetllr: Ah, that's where all the walnuts are going. Can hardly find them in the stores here anymore, we have to make do with peanuts. Well it's all for the good cause;-)

Good idea, No-Internet Sunday. I'm having a bout of sleeplessness so right now I'm glad for the internet and LT.

>110 DeltaQueen50: Sounds good, Judy! I always had rosemary until I moved to Colorado. Apparently the large rosemary plant I brought with me from Cali didn't like the trip, or the dry heat, or something, died, and I haven't bought another one yet. I do have lavender that seems to winter over indoors pretty well, and pineapple sage, which is lovely. And basil is a must!

>111 EllaTim: Lots of packaged walnuts available here, Ella, but they're not cheap! Can't feed my parrots peanuts - it's not good for them - so walnuts and almonds it is, with a pistachio thrown in as a special treat now and then! Sorry you're having a bout of insomnia. My problem is the opposite - I could sleep for 12+ hours a night, but I tend to stay up late so lose half the day. :( And now with stupid Daylight Saving Time coming tonight! We're no longer an agrarian society; I don't see the need for the time change anymore. Grrr.

Well! I had three (3) pairs of finches at the feeder this morning, along with a pair of mourning doves and a flicker (who is really not interested in the feeder - he's digging around in the winter-brown lawn on the other side of the yard). Oh, and a squirrel! I wonder if it's going to try to get up the pole to the "squirrel-proof" feeder. Right now, it's scrounging on sunflower seeds the birds scattered on the ground. Oh! And here comes another squirrel! Mangy little pests. The birds don't seem to mind the company.

Haha, silly little finches. I can see them taking seeds out of the feeder and dropping them on the ground for the squirrels to find, like a toddler does with a dog. I think I better get another feeder and fill it with a seed mix for finches. They apparently aren't thrilled with the sunflower seeds.

>107 Storeetllr: Nice setup! If you feed them, they will come!

Are they House Finches or Goldfinches? The house finches are very messy and boisterous at the feeder. The gold finches are more sedate. They like the nyger seed we put out for them. Our flickers manage to get sunflower seeds out of the feeder with their long beaks and tongues. We finally put a suet cake out but had to buy a squirrel baffle to keep them off.

Good luck with your squirrels! They do keep the ground clean anyway.

>112 Storeetllr: I have had that problem as well, Mary. Losing half the day is awkward.

Your daylight saving starts full two weeks before ours, how complicated. I like the long evenings but the time change always is a struggle to adapt to.

Yes to pistachios!

>114 Copperskye: Had to smile about your description of the birds and squirrels on your feeders. On our feeders most birds are Great Tits. They love sunflower seeds, and will throw the rest of the seeds to the ground, for the mice to eat. Or the finches of course. They love peanuts as well.

>114 Copperskye: Thanks, Jo! It's not the full setup, but the water dish holder was broken, so can't put it up until I get a replacement from the manufacturer, if I get one. If not, I'll be leaving a bad rating on Amazon. As far as the finches, they are house finches, and I don't really mind their messes. At least so far. I picked up some finch seed mix and a suet cake and put them out today, so we'll see if the squirrels manage to get to it. So far, they seem to be happy to stay on the ground. If they start climbing the pole, I'll be getting a baffle too. I'm just happy there is some wildlife coming to the yard.

>115 EllaTim: Yeah, it is awkward at the very least to lose a half a day to sleeping in. I've been trying to get to sleep by 10 pm, and I must say that doing some heavy gardening and other types of exercise during the day, plus not eating too close to bedtime, helps me get to sleep. Of course, reading a good book before bedtime can ruin all my good intentions.

>116 Storeetllr: Is it a Grey Bunny pole? They replaced our cracked water bowl and were very nice about it. (Don’t let water freeze in it!)

>115 EllaTim: I was curious if Great Tits were similar to our Bush Tits and (very carefully) googled them. What a pretty little bird! Not at all like the tiny grey Bush Tits we have but similar to our Chickadees, at least at first glance.

>117 Copperskye: Yes! It is a Gray Bunny pole. Got an email this morning from them saying they sent a replacement. I do love companies that pay attention to their customers and make things right!

Too late. Last night I did let water freeze in it. I meant to bring it in but forgot. The bowl seems okay - no cracks or anything, but I won't forget again.

Funny story: this morning, I came out in the jammies I wore to bed which consisted of a bright red top and navy bottoms and stood at the patio doors to watch the action at the feeder. All the birds and the squirrels took one look at me in red and scattered. Only a couple of brave finches came back after I changed to a white teeshirt. I guess red is a no-no color.

>117 Copperskye: :-) very carefully. It's a strange name, isn't it? (In Dutch they are called koolmees, makes for easier googling.) And they even sound a bit like Chickadees!

>118 Storeetllr: you must have looked like a big Robin to them? Do you think the birds recognise you when you fill the feeder? I always think ours are waiting for us.

>119 EllaTim: It's too soon for them to understand that I am the feeder filling goddess. ;) I just started late last week. I'm giving them a couple of weeks; I bet they figure it out.

>107 Storeetllr: Love the feeder! Looking forward to visitor updates!

Howdy, Mary! How are you, stranger. It looks like it has been awhile since I visited. Bad Mark? Hope you are getting some reading in. You know I am...grins.

My feeders have been slow these past few weeks, with little flare-ups of activity now and then. I am hoping with migration season, just around the corner, this will spark more appearances.

So funny about the pjs, Mary!

>121 msf59: Mark! It's Mark! So lovely to have you visit! It has been awhile, but it's been awhile since I've posted on one of your numerous threads too. I admit, it's pretty intimidating to try to keep up with you! So no, not "bad Mark," unless it's also "bad Mary." :) Of course, I'm always thrilled when you make an appearance around here. ;D Anyway, I'm enjoying my backyard birdie activity since putting up the feeder. Mostly I get little house finches and big doves - mostly Eurasian collared doves and mourning doves, but today there was a pair of white-winged doves out there. Also northern flickers. Hoping to get more activity too once the migration season begins.

>122 ronincats: :)

Speaking of doves, I attended one of the many student walkouts/memorials here in Pueblo, and, at the end of the seventeen minute memorial (which was both heartbreaking and inspiring), they released seventeen white doves. Here's a couple of pics I took at the event.



Panoramic view: Students on the right in front of the school and supporting adults from the community to the left, lining the sidewalk facing them with signs saying "We Have Your Backs."





Not sure how many students attended, but a former teacher said it looked like a large portion of the student body, which totals around 800 students.

So, today is Pi Day, but I won't say it's all that happy. Though I never met him, I already miss Stephen Hawking, whose Brief History helped me to grasp at least a few concepts of astrophysics. There were quite a number of tributes to him, but these are my favorites:





Long live Neil DeGrasse Tyson!

>118 Storeetllr: Ha! I wonder if the color makes any difference to them.

>125 Storeetllr: So sad...those are both great tributes.

I feel so proud of all those kids walking out today. And hopeful. They give me hope for the future.

>124 Storeetllr: Students were very active here today as well, very appropriately and powerfully.
>125 Storeetllr: Wonderful!

They said after Sandy Hook that since nothing got accomplished, nothing would ever get done. So glad to see that the youth are saying enough is enough and are willing to stand in the gap when the adults around them have not been able to get very far...
Such a fitting tribute!

>125 Storeetllr: Wonderful tributes, both.

>127 ronincats: I think it's wonderful that kids do this. Some very young ones, ten, eleven years old.

>126 Copperskye: All I know, Jo, is, when I wear black or white, they ignore me (behind glass). When I wore red that day, they scattered fast. :)

It was an emotional experience to see those kids standing up for what's right, and even more to be there supporting them. After the walkout ended, and most of the students went back inside, a dozen or so students came back out and came up to us adults and thanked us for being there for them. Lots of sniffling and wiping tears away as we all shook their hands or hugged them and thanked THEM for standing up.

>127 ronincats: Powerful, indeed, Roni!

>128 jolerie: Yes, I was thinking of Sandy Hook too and why the murders of so many babies didn't make Congress act. I think the children were too young and the parent too devastated, though a few of them have been vocal. But these kids - they remind me of us back in the late 60s. So full of passion and energy and righteous anger. A friend said the kids who protested in the 60s and were instrumental in ending the Vietnam War were cannon fodder for that war, just as the kids today who are protesting gun violence are today's cannon fodder for the NRA's ideology. I saw her point. High school kids today should be worrying about what to wear to the prom, not how to escape a gun nut with an AR-15.

>129 EllaTim: Aren't they wonderful tributes, Ella! Reminds me of the old Joni Mitchell song, "We are stardust, we are golden, we are billion year old carbon..." I bet Hawking liked those lyrics. :)

>125 Storeetllr: Wonderful tributes, both. Sad to see him go.

>131 richardderus: Yes. I'm sad he's gone too - such a brilliant mind - but hope he's dancing among the stars tonight.

Just sitting in bed getting ready to read for awhile before going to sleep, when all of a sudden the wind came up, rattling the windows, and now I'm all shivering and thinking of getting up and making myself a nice cup of lemon zinger tea to warm me up. Of course, after drinking the tea just before bed, I'll be up again at 2 am. 😏

Wow. First-to-Read has offered three batches of early review books to request in the past three weeks! I got a book from the first two batches, but I'm not going to request one from this batch as I am overwhelmed with early review books that I need to finish and review. There are a couple, though, that are by popular authors, including Michael Ondaatje.



https://www.firsttoread.com/

I finished the audio of On Tyranny last night, and all I have to say is this very short book should, as others have said, be required reading for every American citizen and especially those in high school and college. I was so blown away by it that I am going to buy a print copy for myself so I can make notes and also a few copies to give away to people I think could use it. It was a succinct and erudite discussion of how Drumpf is following the playbook of Hitler to undermine our democracy and drive us into a fascist authoritarian rule, and what we can (and must) do to prevent it.

^I want to see a white-collared dove. Wah! I don't think they come this far east. We mainly get mourning doves only. An Eurasian collared dove would be cool too.

>134 Storeetllr: I have never had any luck with First to Read requests. Are these egalleys or physical books?

>135 Storeetllr: That sounds scary Mary. But it is good to be aware of what is happening, and what can be done. I'm going to look for that one as well.

>136 msf59: We have a pair of these in our allotment garden;-)
We call them Turks Tortel, so Turkish Turtledove.

>136 msf59: I've read that Eurasian collared doves are an invasive species here in Colorado, although the Audubon Society says no obvious negative impacts have been noted so far. You can read about it here.

>137 msf59: They are eGalleys that you read on your computer with Adobe Digital Editions. It's not as convenient as reading it on an eReader, but sometimes it's worth it. The more you log into the site, request books, review books, interact with the site in any way, the more "points" you get. If you really want a certain book, you can pay with points to be sure you get the book. To reserve a copy of Warlight, for example, it would "cost" 600 points. I only go on the site maybe a couple of times a month, unless there are books on offer and I win one, in which case it's a few more times, and I have "spent" about 1,000 points to reserve two books in the past few months, but I currently have about 5,000 points.

>138 EllaTim: I find it scary as hell, Ella, what is happening here, but it is good to be aware and what can (and should) be done. This treatise is clear and concise and, for all that the subject is terrifying, not at all inflammatory.

>139 EllaTim: Hmm, I haven't heard them called Turkish Turtledoves, but they do look like the ones in my backyard. They are originally from the Middle East, so I can see why they'd be called Turkish doves. Interesting how quickly they spread across Europe, were introduced by accident in the Bahamas in 1974, and "soon spread to the Florida mainland. Its expansion westward and northward from there since the 1980s has been remarkable, and the species is now common to abundant across much of North America, as far northwest as Oregon and Washington." From the Audubon Guide to North American Birds. Tuff birds! :)

Hi Mary, I love the look of the dove in >136 msf59:. One of the things I remember about the Arizona desert was the doves calling. I love that sound. The closest thing I've found here is a group of pigeons that someone must keep around here, they get out about once a day and fly around, often landing on the building across the road for us nd we can here them cooing away to each other. Have a good weekend.

Hi, Mary. I thought On Tyranny was really good, too. It was a succinct and erudite discussion of how Drumpf is following the playbook of Hitler to undermine our democracy and drive us into a fascist authoritarian rule, and what we can (and must) do to prevent it. Yes.

>135 Storeetllr: Yup, required reading!

We have a pair of Eurasian collared doves that visit our yard regularly. But come to think of it, I haven’t seen them for several days...now I’m a little worried. Anyway, we only started seeing them in the area two or three years ago.

One was sitting on top of our chimney a week or so ago, cooing. The sound traveled right down the chimney to the fireplace and sounded as if it was in the room with us.

Have a great weekend, Mary!

>136 msf59: Just come over here, Mark, I have a couple in my garden.

>139 EllaTim: & >140 Storeetllr: The "tortel" in the Dutch Tortelduif, comes from "tortelen" wich means cuddling. An other name for this dove is love-bird, as the male and female are often seen "cuddling" eachother.

>141 DeltaQueen50: Yes, some doves sound so sweet, and I haven't personally heard the call of the Eurasian collared doves yet, but I read that their call is like fingernails down a chalkboard. lol Not looking forward to that!

>142 jnwelch: I've become a warbler like Mark for On Tyranny, Joe.

>143 Copperskye: Maybe your two ECDs (Eurasian collared doves) have moved to Pueblo, Jo. :)

That story about the dove on the chimney is so funny! I bet it was startling at first.

>144 FAMeulstee: Aw, that's sweet, Anita. I haven't seen the doves cuddling yet. They're usually too busy eating.

Yesterday, one of them flew (slowly) into the patio door glass. It flew away again, and it was going really slow, so I am pretty sure it wasn't hurt. Anyway, I hung up a clear shower curtain over the glass. The wind promptly blew it down. So I used staples which the wind also laughed at and blew down. I'm going to try again today, using longer staples. Wish me luck.

>144 FAMeulstee: "Just come over here, Mark, I have a couple in my garden." I just got an offer to visit Holland! Yah!

Happy Sunday, Mary. Went on a nice bird stroll earlier. Just the usual residents but it was such a nice day, I had to go out.

I would rather not use Adobe. I don't like reading on anything, other than my Kindle. I have been using Edelweiss and there is plenty available to request over there.

>140 Storeetllr: Looks like it works with Bluefire Reader so I assume I could read from my iPad. I'm not in a rush to sign up there, especially since so many say they don't have luck. I think a lot of those are offered on NetGalley, and many publishers pre-approve me there.

>145 Storeetllr: Maybe there was some slight exaggeration going on in that newspaper article on the doves. It was clear they didn't like them. To me their call reminds me of warm and lazy summer afternoons.

>146 msf59: Yay for nice Sundays and bird strolls! And thanks for the reccie of Edelweiss. I went over there just to see what it was about. Of course I had to sign up and request the new Dr. Siri novel that's coming out later this year. Grrrr. Not like I don't have enough early review books to get through and review as it is.

>147 thornton37814: Hmm, since I joined in March 2015, I've "won" 6 books from FTR out of 20 requests and used points to "guarantee" two more. Not that much worse than LT's Early Review program. I used to subscribe to NetGalley, but I found it less friendly than FTR and LT's program so dropped out. To each their own, I guess.

>148 EllaTim: Haha. I haven't experienced any screeching calls from them so can't comment. Anyway, no bird's call - not even crows - can rival my Rosie's screeches when she gets going. (If you've ever heard an Amazon parrot, you will understand.)

>145 Storeetllr: After a finch flew into our patio door last summer (and flew away...I hope he was ok), I bought some window cling that supposedly stops bird strikes. So far, so good. (You may have noticed them on our kitchen slider.) They are frosted, semi-clear, leaf shapes. I got them on Amazon.

That's a good idea, Joanne. I'm going to check it out and order some next time I place an Amazon order. Or, maybe they have them at Target or - wait. I think I have some Easter window cling in a box somewhere. I'm sure I could endure looking at pastel egg and bunny rabbits until I get around to ordering something decent.

Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed -
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.
-Langston Hughes, poet and novelist (1 Feb 1902-1967)

>149 Storeetllr: Yes, I can imagine, I've heard them in the zoo. Very loud!

We have an invasive exotic, a small parakeet. They live in flocks in the parks, and start the day with loud screeching, flying around. In my back garden as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoMidnDz0co

>152 Storeetllr: Such a powerful poet (from my home state) and such a timely message, Mary!

>153 EllaTim: Loud and raucous! The Amazon room at the bird sanctuary where I used to volunteer was about the loudest, except for the Conure room. Those little birds can really screech! When I lived in Pasadena, we used to have wild flocks of small green parrots that sound much like your wild flocks of parakeets. I never minded except when they woke me up at 5 in the morning screaming outside my bedroom window. lol

>154 ronincats: Yes, isn't it!

So, we are having a windstorm here today. I had to go out and bring in the bird feeder because it was being blown around so much the seeds were being spilled on the ground. The birds have all taken off, I hope to more protected areas. A gust almost blew me off my feet, and I'm not little. The Weather Channel was calling for winds to 35 mph, but I swear the gusts are closer to twice that. Have I mentioned that I've been through earthquakes, droughts, forest fires, torrential rain storms, and blizzards, but high winds freak me out more than any of the other things.

Fantastic turnout at yesterday's March for Our Lives in Pueblo. Here I am with our guest of dishonor, Cardboard Cory Gardner (R-CO).



Plus, I'm in the photo on the front page of the Pueblo Chieftain (worst pic ever of me, but everyone else is looking good!):

https://www.chieftain.com/news/pueblo/hundreds-march-in-pueblo-against-gun-viole...

Plus, I was interviewed by a reporter from Channel 5 news (KOAA) and some of it was on TV last night. Since I don't have a TV, I missed my 15 seconds of fame. lol

Well done, Mary! I feel a bit guilty for sleeping in and not participating in Atlanta's March for Our Lives, especially since several of my current and former colleagues marched, in the ATL and elsewhere.

We do what we can, Darryl! Next time. :) And yes, sadly enough, I'm sure there will be a next time.

Here's a story from one of our local TV stations in which I am quoted. :) As my daughter said when I told her about it, "Yay! I raised an activist!"

http://www.koaa.com/story/37802846/hundreds-marched-as-one-in-southern-colorado#...

>158 Storeetllr: Right, Mary. There are several more nationwide protests planned for this year, and I'm sure there will be many others until 2020.

Well done by being quoted in that news story!

The day turned cold and windy and it just started to rain. Bird are hovering around the feeder, getting in their dinners. Perches for 4 birds. Currently have five house finches on the feeder, one on the water dish, and one on the ground. No, two on the ground. May end up being a cold, snowy night.

Glad I made my mother's recipe for hamburger soup yesterday. First time in years, but it's so darn delicious I'm going to make it often, at least until the weather warms. I love that the recipe basically allows pretty much any grain, vegetable, bean that you have on hand. Only "must" is the hamburger. Mine always has barley and potatoes - two favorite things. I also added carrots, celery, garbanzo beans, kale, tomatoes, corn, green beans, onion, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Yum!

>152 Storeetllr: Love the Hughes poem! Perfect timing.

>156 Storeetllr: I am so glad you made the March for Our Lives event in Pueblo. I am quite proud of our young folk.

>160 Storeetllr: That hamburger soup looks amazing. I wish I could take some for lunch tomorrow.

Happy Wednesday, Mary. Hope the week is going well.

>160 Storeetllr: The soup does look tasty.

>161 msf59: Hi, Mark! Thanks for stopping by - I know how busy you are! The Pueblo march was inspiring. Pueblo's not that big a town and is surrounded by farmland and smaller towns, so for 300 people to come out for the march was pretty impressive. That soup is the easiest thing you'll ever make, other than a ham sandwich. It took me less than a half hour of prep time and an hour and a half of cooking time. Of course, the longer it simmers, the better it tastes. :)

>162 thornton37814: Hi, Lori! If you lived closer, I'd bring you a bowl!

Good on you, Mary, getting out there and letting your voice be heard. I love seeing and hearing about the young people standing up and getting involved, the like of which we haven't seen since my youth and the Vietnam days!

>163 Storeetllr: I think it's the wrong set of mountains. Great Smoky vs. Rocky.

Great to see the turnout in Pueblo for the march, Mary, and well done with your interviews! Your soup looks absolutely delicious.

>156 Storeetllr: Love it! I’m looking forward to voting Gardner out of office. And nice work in adding your voice to the cause! We had planned on going to the march in Denver but John’s back was bothering him so we opted to stay home.

Your soup looks yummy! I’ll be making tortilla soup today. It’s also good and easy.

We’ve had a rainy and snow week here. Or rather sunshine and warmth for a day followed by rain and snow the next. Repeat. So glad to get some moisture - things are greening up!

>164 DeltaQueen50: Thanks, Judy! Yes, the youth are going to lead us out of this mess if anyone can, and I too am reminded of the youth of the 60s and 70s.

>165 thornton37814: Haha, well, if you ever get out to the Rockies, Lori, you know you are welcome.

>166 rosalita: It was so inspiring, Julia! Pueblo hasn't been much of an activist town, or at least that's what I'm told (hard to be activist for a cause when you are out of work and worried about where the rent money's going to come from), but the last election woke people up, and the gun violence issue is making a lot of people realize that we must do something. And, as Judy said, the youth are leading the way on that. As for the interview, I was shaking but frankly this is so important an issue I felt I had to stand up and, you know, fight down my introvert nature. Soup tastes as delicious as it looks! It's almost gone, and I am already planning to make another batch when this one's gone.

>167 Copperskye: Yes! First we Topple Tipton and Cast Off Coffman, then in 2020 we Kick Gardner to the Curb. That's my hope, anyway. Sorry John's back is bothering him enough to keep him home. The wet cold can't be helping, though I know the plants are loving the moisture. I hope John's doing better now. Mmmm, tortilla soup sounds good too!

>159 kidzdoc: Hey, how the heck did I miss you up there, Darryl? You must have snuck in when I wasn't looking.

Thanks, I was so nervous when I was giving the interview - I HATE cameras of all kinds, and video cameras most of all. Hate my look, hate my voice. But. Gun violence is too important an issue to allow my shyness to stop me from speaking out in support of the kids' movement to end gun violence.

In Pueblo, I believe the kids will be marching again on April 20 (19th anniversary of Columbine), and both Indivisible and Moms Demand Action will be out in support of them. Moms will be hosting a showing of the film Making A Killing: Guns, Greed, and the NRA and Indivisible will be hosting a showing of Bowling for Columbine during that week. We may also have a Tax Protest on Tax Day. Busy busy.

Happy Easter!



And good for you for getting out of that comfort zone to speak your important truth!

Aw, thanks, Karen! Happy Easter to you too!

Well, closing out the month of March (and already finished the first book for April).

Stats

16 - Books read
9 - Rereads
6 - New reads
12 - Audiobooks
4 - Print/eBooks

Genres

1 - Mystery
1 - Historical mystery
11 - Urban fantasy
1 - Scifi/fantasy
2 - Nonfiction

Best of March

Fiction

Why Kill the Innocent by C. S. Harris (First-To-Read ARC). 4.5 stars. Latest installment in the St. Cyr historical mystery series. The winter of 1814 is not a good one for England, which is locked in a nasty, long-running war, locked in the grip of a brutal winter, locked in a frozen Thames. Not good for Jane Ambrose, either, piano teacher to Princess Charlotte, daughter of the Regent. When Hero literally stumbles over Jane's body one dark snowy night on her way home from the stews of Clerkenwell, it sets her and St. Cyr on the trail of her murderer, a trail that culminates at the Ice Fair on the frozen Thames.

Nonfiction

On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder. 5 stars. Audio. I finished the audio of On Tyranny last night, and all I have to say is this very short book should, as others have said, be required reading for every American citizen and especially those in high school and college. I was so blown away by it that I am going to buy a print copy for myself so I can make notes and also a few copies to give away to people I think could use it. It was a succinct and erudite discussion of how Drumpf is following the playbook of Hitler to undermine our democracy and drive us into a fascist authoritarian rule, and what we can (and must) do to prevent it.