jessibud2 Makes No Promises in 2018 - page 3

Almost April so time for a new thread.

In LT terms, 2017 was a good year for me. I read more books than I ever have, and reached (and even surpassed, if only barely) my personal goals. I also had 5 threads, more than I ever have since joining LT. Among the 75ers, a mere drop in the bucket, for sure, but for my own personal stats, not too bad. I never did complete any of the challenges I joined but I think that is due more to my own erratic reading habits than anything else.

I am going to change my focus a bit in 2018. I enjoy following some of the challenges, and I love all the lists I am already seeing posted on various threads but I think I will just dip in and out rather than commit and instead, the only real challenge I will aim for will be 2-fold: read more than I read last year, and read more of the books already on my own shelves. Surely, with what I have in this house on my shelves (and floor, and in piles...), I can find enough to allow me to overlap into LT challenges! I also want to track how many Canadian books I can read and try to surpass what I read in 2017. I never really paid attention to or tracked that aspect of my reading before and I want to!

So, if that's enough ambiguity, let the games begin!

Books read:

My goal is to read more CanLit than I did last year.

Well, damn. I thought I'd be clever and try once again to create a separate ticker to track my Can Lit reads this year. I went back to my last year's thread to see how I did it and I see that it worked when I put the tickers into 2 separate threads. Not working here. It just copies the one above. Even though I chose different tickers and tracker pics. Do I need to have a separate password for a second ticker? I do not remember doing that last year; I would have written that down, for sure. So, rather than aggravate myself, I will just use this thread to keep my own tally, sans ticker. Grrrr

To date: 11

Happy new thread!

For those who saw my review of the book, Forgiveness, by Mark Sakamoto, on my last thread, it won the Canada Reads competition yesterday. It was an excellent book and this morning, on the CBC radio program *q*, host Tom Power interviews both Sakamoto as well as Jeanne Beker, who defended it in the competition. It's a great interview, and by the way, a truly fabulous read:

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/q/canada-reads-2018-mark-sakamoto-and-jeanne-beker-on-fo...

Hi Shelley and happy new thread!

From your last thread, I'm still surprised that Dylan won the Nobel Prize in Literature. However, if you take the music out and simply read some of his lyrics as poetry, they are powerful. It's no surprise to me that his speech is off the wall, given that he's always been off the wall. In the long run, I think I'll say "Bravo" to the Nobel committee.

Happy new thread, Shelley!

Happy new thread, Shelley!

>3 jessibud2: Yes a new ticker needs a new password and a new link.
If you remember your password from the ticker you used last year, you can reset that one and use it again.

>4 drneutron:, >7 Crazymamie: - Thanks, Jim and Mamie!

>6 karenmarie: - I agree, on principle, Karen, that he was a bard of his generation, writing some profound and powerful lyrics. I can't say anything about his later works as I simply am not familiar with them. I just found the lecture to be, well, odd. And I have seen at least one documentary film about him and found his personality (at least what he shows of it in the film, which could be totally a *show*, who knows), to be pretty nasty and unpleasant. Provoking and rude. And while I have loved his lyrics, I could not the same thing - not by a long shot - about his voice. So, I guess it's safe to say I'm not that much of a fan. Still expected better of him in that lecture.

Moving on... ;-)

>8 FAMeulstee: - Oh, thanks, Anita. I will try that a bit later on. I honestly have no memory of using 2 different passwords for the 2 different tickers on my last year's threads. I Actually have a book where I write down website addresses and passwords and upon checking, only one password is written there. But I will try a new one and edit it in if it works. Thanks again. Hope your knee is healng

Hmmm, apparently, today is my 5th thingaversary. I even got a badge! Five years sure has flown by quickly! :-) Loads of fun and loads of great people!

Happy new thread, Shelley AND Happy 5th Thingaversary!

>12 Carmenere: - Thanks, Lynda! :-)

Happy New Thread, Shelley!

Forgiveness looks like a good one. I'm glad she won the award.

Happy 5th Thingaversary!

>14 jnwelch: - Hi Joe. Thanks. I finally got the touchstone in >5 jessibud2: to work. There was a good discussion on my last thread when I posted my initial review.

I've just started another book that looks like it will be a good one: The Boys in the Boat, about the American rowers who won Olympic gold in 1936 Berlin.

Also, can't remember who I first heard warbling about this one from but I picked up the graphic novel Josephine by Patricia Hruby Powell from the library the other day and it's lovely.

>15 karenmarie: - Thanks, Karen!

Happy Thingaversary! Hope you are getting your five books plus one to grow on!

>18 thornton37814: - Hi, Lori. Thanks. Actually, the way I've been adding books (lately, or at all), I have no right to deliberately go out and add more, especially since I am trying really hard to cull. But since when has that stopped me.....? :-)

Happy New Thread, Shelley and Happy Thingaversary! Hooray for #5! The Boys in the Boat is a great read. Enjoy!

Josephine: The Dazzling Life just came in for me at the library. I think it's Ellen who tipped us off. Looking forward to it!

>20 msf59: - Hi Mark, thanks! I'm enjoying the book so far. He is a good writer. I got a bit more reading time today than I expected as I was downtown (it was my theatre day) and coming home, there was a huge delay on the subway (some police investigation going on at the station where two of the subways lines intersect caused a ton of delays). It took me over an hour longer than it usually does to get home but I got another couple of chapters in!

>21 jnwelch: - I knew nothing about Josephine Baker beyond her name and the fact that she danced mostly in France because of the discrimination in the USA. I think I might seek out more about her after this one. It's a good intro and has sweet illustrations

>23 richardderus: - Why, thank you, Richard!! Is that chocolate or are my eyes playing games with me? YUM!!

xoxo :-)

Those are superultrascrummy honrycombs covered in chocolate. Sounds awful, is delicious. "Enjoy"!

>25 richardderus: - No arm-twisting needed. If it's chocolate, it's yummy. I will even share!

Now see? How nice y'all are up there! I myownself would hack an arm off someone foolish enough to reach for my yum-yum.

LOL! We'll tame ya yet!

Such sad news today from (my) baseball world. One of the most beloved original members of the (now defunct) Montreal Expos baseball club, has died. Rusty Stab, Le Grand Orange, as he was affectionately known in Montreal.

Rusty Staub

I remember skipping school with friends to go watch them play at Jarry Park. Hard to believe he was an Expo for only 3 years. He was one of the icons of the club. I was so impressed that he learned French just so he could talk to his French Canadian fans. It isn't easy to learn a language as an adult, but he was determined. I think it's the third clip down, in the link, where he is being interviewed in French and he holds his own!

He would have turned 74 tomorrow.

Happy new thread, Shelley.

I hadn't heard of Rusty Staub, but the name is a very suggestive one. Memories seem to be piling up on all of us!

Have a relaxing Sunday. xx

>23 richardderus: That looks like chocolates to me, Shelley! Happy Easter and Happy New Thread! Happy Thinganniversary. I can never spell that :-)

Josephine: The Dazzling Life - This was a BB from someone here in the 75ers group (Ellen? Mamie?). Anyhow I picked it up from the library on Friday and it was lovely. I didn't know much at all about Josephine Baker and now, I am going to google or seek out another *adult* book about her life. And what a life! Not sure this book is actually a graphic novel; it seems more just a children's version of her story. But it is done very well. Simple, vibrant illustrations by Christian Robinson and the text is also simple but powerful, with varying fonts to add exclamation to the story. The only thing I want to know, that the book did not address, is what happened to her children.

>30 PaulCranswick: - Hi Paul! Lovely to see you and thanks. Since your Sunday is probably nearly over by now, I hope you got some down time!

>31 vancouverdeb: - Thanks, Deb. :-)

Hi Shelley! Happy Sunday and Happy Easter to you.

>34 karenmarie: - Like you, Karen, I am not Christian and, as you said on your thread, Easter is much more a Candy Holiday for me, though in truth, I have begun to try to eliminate (well, at least, reduce) sugar from my diet. Not easy but no Cadbury's eggs for me this year. ;-)

Ah yes, the Spring Candy Holiday! It's hard to avoid sugar. Good luck. Cadbury eggs aren't my Waterloo, fortunately, but See's Jelly Bird Eggs and dark-chocolate-covered marshmallow eggs are. So far I've avoided both this year.

Ok, LTers, how many of the following 15 places can you claim as your own?

Perfect Reading Spots

For me, 9 ring true

5 for me

9 for me too!

Hi Shelley, happy new thread my dear and a happy 5th Thingaversary for yesterday dear friend.

Happy new thread, Shelley, and happy Thingaversary. I actually use my Thingaversary as an excuse to buy fewer books in a month - just the ones I am entitled to. It helps to have a Thingaversary in February when I do that. LOL.

That's too bad about Rusty Staub. The one and only time I saw a professional baseball game was when Les Expos played their first Montreal season. It was quite a feeling to be in the audience in person, quite thrilling. Who knew that baseball could feel like that?

>40 johnsimpson: - Hi John, thanks!

>41 Familyhistorian: - Well, I did! lol! In fact, just today, my Toronto Blue Jays just had a dramatic win in the bottom of the 8th, bases loaded, 2 out and a grand slam to take (and keep) the lead, 7-4. That's exciting! And I was home in my living room!

>16 jessibud2: So cool, Shelley! I just picked up The Boys in the Boat two days ago from a brand new Little Free Library in Rockville run by a new-to-me Bookcrosser! I was so excited about that book being available that I drove over to pick it up right away. I think that was the first ever book I picked up from a Bookcrossing book alert in all the fourteen years I've been on Bookcrossing. That book came highly recommended by a friend in Rockville. Now we can read it together! :D

Bookcrossing journal entry:
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/14976911/

Happy 5th Thingaversary! Five years?! Already?!!

חג פסח שמח

Shelley, I most often read while sitting at my kitchen table. I need a lovely stuffed chair, I think. I never read in bed because it drives my husband crazy.

>43 SqueakyChu: - Madeline, how cool! I never signed on for release alerts. The system seems so broken lately (with JEs) that it surprises me that alerts are working! I'm only about 50 pages in so far but already you can see that this author is a good writer, lots of detail and setting of character and atmosphere.

Yep, 5 years since you dragged me, kicking and screaming, to this place! lol!

>44 vancouverdeb: - Deb, I cant imagine not reading in bed! But then, I don't have a hubby to contend with, lol! Why not buy him some eye covers, like those ask-type things, to keep the light out.
I also like to read on my couch, which is the only time my cat will sit on my lap. I would LOVE a big comfy reading chair, though. It's on the list..... ;-)

I missed the start of your new thread, shoot!
Hope you had a great Easter!

Thanks, Chelle.

Did you get snow out your way? We escaped, yet again. Haven't had snow here in ages (though I am probably jinxing it as we may get some this week but it won't stick). It's been chilly here ,for sure, though today almost felt like spring!

No snow in a while now, thankfully! Chilly, yes!

Ok, confession time. And begging pardon from my American friends, in advance.

Did anyone get taken in yesterday, by an April Fool's joke? I did.

I listen to CBC radio a lot. There is a program I listen to every Sunday morning called The Sunday Edition. Its host, Michael Enright, is very good; smart, a good interviewer, with a good sense of humour, But it can also be a serious show, especially when it comes to politics.

So, yesterday morning, he interviewed a man, Peter Navarro, US trade advisor, about the trade wars between Canada and the States. I was a bit taken aback at the arrogance of this guy, how crazy he sounded, (just like his fearless leader). He demanded an apology from Enright for something someone else had said and it got a bit heated (Enright remained calm and remained polite but Navarro starts gong off the deep end. He swears and eventually hangs up before the interview is done. You can hear the suppressed laughter in Enright's voice but he is smooth.

I was a bit shocked. I emailed a friend to see if she had been listening. It wasn't until later, when I went to the website to try to get the link for her (she hadn't been listening), that I saw that I had been taken in.

Shelley falls for it

Maybe my first clue should have been that trump would never hire someone with a Latino name. But it was just so outrageous! But then, so much of what is coming out of the States these days (in politics, that is) is outrageous, that it is entirely plausible, crazy as that sounds. I guess if we don't laugh, we cry. And I also guess that if you can't laugh on April Fool's Day, when can you? It's no laughing matter, I know, but he got me. I wonder how many others fell for it, too. I will surely find out next Sunday when Enright is sure to comment about it.

;-p

I've got a " sensitive sleeper " for a husband, I'm afraid. But , strangely enough, he sleeps with a pillow over his head, and once he is asleep, just try talking to him, or waking him up! But should I have a light and book, he's wide awake!

I didn't get pranked on April Fool's Day, but I did have a laugh from facebook. A cousin of mine who lives in Alberta, had an ad from Alberta Motor Association on the law of the " Courtesy Wave Law " for stopping accidents and road rage. But I recognized it as a prank and told her it was about time Alberta got on board, because we in B.C. have had the courtesy driving law for ages now :-)

Today would have been Maya Angelou's birthday and google has a lovely tribute to her. Click on it and listen to her (and others) read her poem *Still I Rise*

https://www.google.ca/?gws_rd=ssl (or your local google page)

>50 vancouverdeb: Hi Deb. That sounds funny!

HI Shelley!

>37 jessibud2: Eight, although remove the word "frustrating" from hammock. It's getting to be hammock time again here in central NC.....

And congrats on 5 years.... I see you've got your "Fiver" badge!

Oh dear, i'm late to the party but happy new thread and congrats on meeting and surpassing and readjusting your goals and being a LT 5 year committed member! Nice! Great reading going on here and will for sure I will reserve Forgiveness. I thought The Boys in the Boat was a great read. Sorry couldn't change the touchstones even after a few tries. There seems to be lots written on the topic of "forgiveness". I guess we make lots of boo boos as humans!

>37 jessibud2:

6 here - how perfect!

Morning, Shelley. Happy Friday. I saw a male goldfinch at the feeder yesterday and he had most of his color back. Yah! Were you able to listen to the Talkin' Birds podcast? I am really enjoying it and the last episode, they discussed the downy/hairy woodpecker issue. Really interesting stuff.

Seriously tired, of this crappy weather. Sighs...

You’ll be interested in what I’m reading now. The book is Itsuka by Joy Kogawa. She was born in Vancouver so, yes, she is a Canadian author. However, more than that, she and her Japanese family were interned and persecuted in Canada during the Second World War. I have previously read and liked her first book, Obasan. She writes novels about her own and her family’s experiences. In addition, I bought the book at The Write Bookshop, the store owned by my friends in St. Catherine’s, during my Canada Day trip north of the border in 2017. You remember that! :D

Knock, knock...anybody home? Good to see that we are back!

It's good to be back, isn't it, Shelley. Server problems, I guess.

9 for me, too. I don't think we've ever embraced while reading, but I imagine my wife would be willing. For a while, anyway - it probably isn't ideal for reading. :-)

Hi Shelley. I'm back among the reading and posting. I was all ready to spend some time catching up over the weekend but LT had their down time. I am amazed at how infrequently that actually happens! And the good news is that instead of posting, I did some reading! :-D

Yes, finally we are back! That was a long server problem.

>53 karenmarie: - Hi Karen. I never had a hammock. Not sure I could relax in one. Sort of reminds me of a rope bridge, in the movement department, though height is not a factor...;-)

>54 mdoris: - Hi Mary. Your touchstones look like they kicked in after you posted. That has happened to me a few times.

>55 m.belljackson: - Hi Marianne!

>56 msf59: - Hi Mark. Can I listen to that podcast just on my computer? I have only ever listened to one podcast, from Malcolm Gladwell and it looks like it only lasted 2 seasons. I can't find a third season. If I can, can you tell me how?

>57 SqueakyChu: - Hi Madeline. I read Obasan many years ago. The parents of one of my students' gave it to me and it was excellent. Oddly, I have not read anything else by her yet. And yes, of course I remember your mentioning that friend in St. Catherine's I have not heard from her yet though

>59 jnwelch: - Hi Joe. Yes, it was a rather longer hiatus here on LT. But I have to say, the communication and updates were appreciated.

Haha, re that cartoon. I say, you should try it! :-) And report back, if you do!

>60 EBT1002: - Hi Ellen. Welcome back to the land of the reading! I am in a minor reading slump at the moment. No accounting for the timing. I am actually loving the book I am reading, The Boys in the Boat, but I just seem unable to sit and read for any extended time. So, instead, I have been thumbing my way through some old magazines in order to pull out some articles I want to read, and toss the rest into the recycle bag. So, its time not entirely wasted but sheesh!

>61 vancouverdeb: - Oops, missed you there, Deb! Good to be back online, isn't it?

How's Melissa?

I am not sure if everything works the same way in Canada, that it does here but here is the Talkin' Birds link and you should be able to listen to it right on your computer:

http://www.talkinbirds.com/archive

Thanks, Mark, I'll give it a try tomorrow. Watching the ball game now.

I am sure most of you have heard about the terrible tragedy in Humboldt, Saskatchewan that happened a couple of days ago, in which a bus of young hockey players was T-boned by a large semi truck. So many killed and injured and an entire small town (and country) grieving and devastated.

Today, another twist in the story: apparently, there was a mix-up of identities of 2 of the kids. One was reported dead (but he wasn't) and one was reported as a survivor, but he wasn't. Truly compounded an already awful situation.

Identity mix-up

I can't imagine how much more painful this is for everyone.

But it reminded me of a book I read some years ago, of an eerily similar situation, only, if you can imagine, much worse. It was called Mistaken Identity. I found this book disturbing and almost unbelievable. But I googled and watched the family's appearances on tv, and it is all really true. Has anyone else read this? How on earth a family can not know their own child, even after weeks and weeks, is beyond me. I know the mind and the heart can be powerful but it boggled my mind and really creeped me out a bit, if I am honest. And it was also far too heavy on the religious focus for my taste.

Thankfully, if anyone can say there is anything at all to be thankful for in Humboldt, this error was discovered quickly. Still such tragedies are beyond my ability to wrap my head around.

Hi Shelley!

It's nice to have LT back, isn't it? Makes me realize how much I value 'talking' with y'all.

I have a very nice Pawley's Island hammock. Once I'm in, with a nice pillow behind my head, I'm good to go. Just a very gentle, barely noticeable motion. I can comfortably read, watch birds, or doze as appropriate. We have a metal stand on our front porch and bring the hammock out from end of April - Septemberish.

Morning, Shelley
If you use itunes at all Talkin' Birds is available in Canada on it.

That bus crash is just horrible and so sad for all the families. I don't think they know what happened yet which probably makes it harder for the families.

In other news the Jays are actually doing well so far! Keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way! I'm really enjoying Solarte and his happy dancing :)

>73 ChelleBearss: - Hi Chelle.
Did you hear about last night's game? Donaldson hit a grand slam in the top of the 9th inning! We already a 2-1 lead for most of the game, and a bases loaded run was walked in at the top of the 9th, then he hit his homer so we ended up with a 7-1 win. Sure is a better start to the year than last year!! Go Jays! :-) And yes, Solarte is funny!

As for iTunes, no, I don't do much other social media apart from LT, bookcrossing, my online Scrabble and checking some live bird cams in the summer. And email, of course. I just never got into that and don't mind at all that I am not that connected. If I can listen to something on my computer, it's a bonus, and if not, then that's ok, too. Once the weather gets a bit warmer, I try to spend a lot more time outside and not connected electronically. I do gardening, walking, reading outside, weather permitting, as much as I can. It sort of makes ups for being such a slug all winter.

Any Canucks watching the one hour finale of the Rick Mercer Report? I am soooo going to miss this guy! He's going out on top!

I am planning to tape the Rick Mercer Report later this evening, Shelley. I'm going to miss him too. I've been shocked about the tragedy in Humboldt too. I feel for the driver of the truck too. What happened, I don't know, but a moment's in attention can cause so much unintended grief. When our kids were younger, we had a 10 year old killed in front of our house by a middle aged fellow who was out getting milk for the family. The 10 year old was with his mom, and she felt it was safe to cross the road, and the young boy came from behind the family van and was struck my the other driver. No one was found at fault, but the mom of the son sure could not rest. A few years later, in the same community, my eldest son was in his grade 12 year at school and 5 young men n grade 11 ( same school as my son ) got into a car at lunch hour and drove out on the highway and" hotboxed" , blew a stop sign and ran into a semi truck. 4 of the young men were killed, and the driver of the car lived, but was badly brain damaged. It was a very horrible thing to happen in any community, but this was smaller town of 20, 000 and so it was particularly awful . All of this added up to encourage Dave and me and our sons moving back to Richmond. Too much tragedy and you can't escape it in a small town.

>76 vancouverdeb: - Oh, Deb, how awful. You are right, such tragedy can happen in the blink of an eye and it can change everything for so many. And it's something that I don't know how anyone gets through it.

I worked with a guy at my school who worked part time. He was disabled, walked with a limp and his speech was difficult to understand. His wife was an assistant in my class for a while. He (Rob) was around 40, 45 years old. But when he was in high school, he was on the ski team and they were on a bus, on the way to a ski trip. The bus was involved in an accident and many were killed. Horrific accident. Rob was severely injured and in hospital for many months. He was never the same again but he recovered enough to be able to have a life and drive a car, etc. I was at their house for dinner one evening and he showed me a scrapbook his mom made during that time, with all the newspaper articles, coverage, etc. I didn't live in Ontario at that time so knew nothing about that incident until I met Rob but I suspect the feeling in this city (which was much smaller back then than it is now), was much the same as Humboldt is feeling now. Just mind-boggling.

I missed >37 jessibud2: the first time through but had to check it out when I noticed the other posts referencing it. I count 8 that are in the cartoon. Comfy bed is my favourite but so to is at the table in front of my open lap top with the TV on.

So sad about the hockey team from Humboldt. It will be hard for all those who survived to come back from that.

>78 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg. Humboldt continues to hurt as another fatality was announced this morning. They have a long road ahead...

I hit one of my reading snags last week but instead of just stopping, I just switched to going through old magazines instead, just so as not to stop reading. This happens to me every year, thankfully not too often and not for too long. I just find myself unable to sit and read for long stretches at a time. Whatever. And it isn't as if I have nothing good to read. My current read is excellent! I am about half way through The Boys in the Boat, about the 9 Americans who, against all odds, won Gold in Hitler's 1936 Berlin Olympics. It is not only a truly compelling story, but also so very well written. This afternoon, I took a *short* break and started googling. I watched a bunch of youtube items on the team, interviews with the author, Daniel James Brown, the making of the PBS documentary done on the story, etc. etc. Turns out, it wasn't such a short break but I have saved many of those links and will go back and watch them all once I finish the book.

I am sure that there are probably many of you who have read this book, right?

Yup, I really liked The Boys in the Boat. I get a reading funk in the summer for some reason and am never happy about summer being over but am always glad when the reading love returns in the fall. Funny about reading snags!

Shelley, I figured it out! I have a wonderful book Lost in Translation and it has a page and illustration that perfectly describe my summer reading snags ......BOKETTO....It is a Japanese noun and the definition is "gazing vacantly into the distance without really thinking about anything specific." That's me...all summer long!

>82 mdoris: - Mary, you crack me up! That is a great concept! And definition. For me, it's more a matter of restlessness, not being able to sit still and focus on any one thing for any extended period of time. I flit (a specialty of mine, lol). I wonder if there's a Japanese word for that! :-)

>82 mdoris: That is also me right now. I can't quite settle on a book the past couple of days. Sunny weather here today! Nice!

>80 jessibud2: So it turns out that it's not me reading The Boys in the Boat. It's my husband! He's about halfway through the book as well!

I hope you get past your reading snag soon, Shelley. I can't say that has ever happened to me (knock on wood) but sometimes I just don't want to read the books that I am currently reading, then I add a fast read to the mix. I have had to do that a few times lately. I think I took on too many challenges this week. I hope you get back to reading by this weekend, sounds like you'll need it.

>85 SqueakyChu: - Read it after Jose is done, Madeline. It's a really good read.

>86 Familyhistorian: - I think I am getting back into the groove, Meg. It just annoys the heck out of me whenever this happens.

>74 jessibud2: I missed that game but I always check in the morning to see how they have played. I have gotten to watch quite a few so far this year and that makes me happy. I should be able to watch the game tonight as Hubs is working nights :)
We are going to try and take the girls to a game in September. Ellie will be over a year by then so it should be fun. We will stay over and hit the aquarium as well.

>88 ChelleBearss: - Oh, that would be fun, taking your girls to a game and also to the aquarium. It's amazing there. But always busy and crowded, so be aware!

The other night, Aaron Sanchez took a no-hitter into the 8th inning! It was incredible! Especially after the frustrating year he had last year, with the thumb problems and missing so many games. Thankfully, even though the no-hitter was broken that late in the game, he still did get the win. I think we have a good team this year. I hope they can maintain the momentum.

I am looking forward to watching tonight's game and reading my book. Chloe is at a sleepover and Nate is working so I have the TV all to myself!
I was happy to see Osuna get his 100th save already. Love that guy!

We've been to the aquarium by ourselves a couple years ago and loved it. It will be nice to take the girls. I think Chloe will really enjoy it! Hopefully if we go in September on a Sunday it may not be too busy

Crazy crazy weather. We are in the middle of an ice storm.. Yes: ice, rain, freezing rain, snow, ice pellets, winds. I would almost say it looks like a winter wonderland outside my window but it's the middle of APRIL!!! It looks and feels more like January. This is said to continue through tomorrow and into Monday before it subsides and spring attempts a comeback. Though, I am not sure *comeback* is the right word. Spring hasn't really made much of an appearance here at all.

My poor crocuses. Just starting to pop and show colour. I am not so sure they will survive. I guess I'll know next week.

The baffle I put over my feeder yesterday, though, has been a big hit with the birds today. It is serving as a sort of umbrella for them and it has been a busy day at the feeder today.

I had plenty of weekend plans today and tomorrow which have all been cancelled. I am not leaving the house until this mess is gone. The roads are just too dangerous and there is nothing so urgent that I can't wait it out.

Sheesh

I posted this twice because LT was having hiccups and wasn't posting for a bit.
Deleted now

Things seem to be working again

I think LT is broken again. I just posted a message here twice and although it looked like it worked, both times, it is not showing up. And even after refreshing, the same 3 threads are at the top , marked as unread even though I have read them.

Hmmm

I noticed a couple of nights ago LT was having a hiccup or two. I think they are still fixing problems left over from last weekends outage. Sorry to read about your dreadful storm. I guess I ought not to complain about our rain. The magnolia trees are in full bloom, the tulips, daffodils etc - it's finding a sunny day in which to actually enjoy them.

I saw footage of the streets in Toronto on our news, Shelley. They looked pretty bad. Good plan to stay inside and ride it out! I hope your crocuses survive.

>95 Familyhistorian: - It's a holy mess out there, Meg. I put a few pics on my gallery. I had planned on seeing 2 documentary films yesterday and didn't go. This morning is my Sunday doc fil series and I am missing that, too. It's just too dangerous to even be on the roads at all. Police are strongly advising any non-essential travel to be cancelled. I know that the airport has cancelled a bunch of flights, as well. It's still coming down and they are saying that when it eventually tapers off, tonight, it will just turn to rain as the temps rise. And it will be heavy rain which brings with it the problems of flooding.

Yuck

>96 jessibud2:

Further southwest here in Wisconsin, it was dangerous just to step out on the concrete porch and steps -
I had to dig out my metal shoe grippers again to get safely to the road for Sunday paper and to feed the birds.

Re: LT problems = I'm just happy that Everything hasn't disappeared into some Hacker's Alley.

Just finished PICTURE US IN THE LIGHT. It turned out to be memorable YA and adult reading for many reasons.

Sorry for the bad weather, Shelley. Batten the hatches! I saw just a bit of the news and yes, it looks dreadful in Toronto.

>98 vancouverdeb: - Deb, did it make the ews out there that, thanks to our ice storm, last night's baseball game in our INDOOR domed stadium was cancelled because a big slab of ice slid off the CN Tower and punctured the domed roof, with a 2-3 foot hole? Crazy.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/baseball/mlb/jays-game-falling-ice-rogers-centre-1.4621...

I couldn't get out of my house on Sunday and on Monday had to chip away at the mountain of ice that turned my front steps into a big slide.

Ok, I am completely innocent. Just wanted to say that up front. I finally ventured out of the house and onto the roads, after our recent weekend ice storm (I had my snow tires removed weeks ago so was hesitant to do so until the danger of black ice was gone which was around mid-morning today).

I went to the library to return a DVD which was due back today, and to pick up another audiobook which was on hold for me. I happened to glance in the window before pulling open the door to the library. Sale? What sale?

I do not remember seeing any notice for this and there was no mention of this on the website, which I check regularly. It wasn't a big sale, just 4 or 5 tables. I returned the DVD then went over, just to have a peek. The sign said: $1 per item or fill a small bag for $5 or a large bag for $10. I wasn't sure if I'd even find anything of interest so I didn't buy a bag, at first. Fifteen minutes or so later, with 11 items in my arms, I went to the desk and paid my $10 for a lovely blue canvas library bag. Ten dollars for 11 books. Not too shabby. The fact that this breaks my resolve (again) seemed not to matter. The fact that 5 of the 11 items are hard covers (which I swore I would no longer bring into the house), seems to have been forgotten. The fact that one of the books is one I have read and own more than one copy of (and I am not a re-reader, as a rule), never even entered into my decision-making.

Well, I can blame some of this on the fact that I recently had a thingaversary. Right? The rest, well, I don't need to have an excuse here on LT, do I? Ha!

Some of the titles just looked good to me. Some, I never even heard of

Hardcovers:
The Mighty and the Almighty - Madeleine Albright - NF
O a Presidential Novel - by anonymous - fiction, looks intriguing
Drift - Rachel Maddow (can't find correct touchstone) - NF
The Pedant in the Kitchen - Julian Barnes - NF, actually classified as Humour
A Slap in the Face - William Irvine - NF - never heard of this one but looks interesting

Soft covers:
Human Kindness and the Smell of Warm Croissants An Introduction to Ethics - Ruwen Ogien
(never heard of this one either but loved the title and it looks interesting) - NF
The Family Album - Kerry Kelly = fiction, Canadian author
Time and Again - Jack Finney - fiction, and I bought it because it's one of my favourite all time books and I don't have this edition
Expecting Adam Martha Beck - NF - sounds so good
The Moslem Wife and other stories - Mavis Gallant - I am not a fan of short stories but Gallant is Canadian and I felt that I'd like to give it a try
Tuck Everlasting - Natalie Babbitt - I remember owning this as a kid but if I read it, I have no recollection at all.

Overall, not a bad haul. I am grateful this wasn't a *major* book sale...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ack. Can I just say that I just looked out the window. It is snowing sideways. Sigh... It won't last but really, is it necessary, Mother Nature?

Hi Shelley!

Fantastic! Yay for your Library sale and the irresistible lure of books. You deserve a reward for your Thingaversary, for the snow, and .... books.

>100 torontoc: - I didn't leave my house at all, from Saturday to yesterday, Cyrel. I missed 3 films but didn't want to drive, not even to the subway, plus, I wasn't confident that the subway system wouldn't be affected (I was, apparently, right on that count, for parts of the lines). Anyhow, I didn't mind at all except for Sunday night when the howling winds kept me awake. The branches of the tree at the back of my house were so coated with ice that every time the wind whipped them against my window I was scared they'd break the window. It spooked the cats and me! Thankfully, the winds were only bad that night. Big mess on the ground and the street but no major limbs down (like there was in 2013!)

>102 karenmarie: - Thanks, Karen. I can't touch your recent library sale haul but that's a good thing - for me! ;-)

What is that I see out my window??? I think it may be the sun!!! It is a balmy 6C and starting tomorrow, we may hit double digits. Be still my heart. It's almost May and it's been a long haul.

A friend just sent me a picture that I find hilarious. I have asked Madeline (SqueakyChu) if she could post it here. In addition to the sun, I think we could use the chuckle.

Stay tuned....

Here it is...

Hi, Shelley. I'm glad you're finally getting some decent weather.

I love that word "Boketto" up in >82 mdoris:. That's one I can get a whole lot of use out of! It's sort of my default position. Leave me alone long enough and I go right into Boketto.

>101 jessibud2: Glad to see you had fun at the MINOR book sale! LOL. And I have seen >105 SqueakyChu: that one before and I love it. Come on Spring!

>105 SqueakyChu: - Thanks, Madeline! When I got it in my email, it was larger and you could really see the *paint* on the snow. I couldn't stop laughing. I think it's making the rounds, especially for those of us still wallowing in winter. I sent it on to several friends, and many of them say they have already seen it this week! lol!

>106 jnwelch: - Yep, me too, Joe. In spurts, though. It's one of the things that I love about retirement: it feeds my inner slug, er, Boketto......

>107 Berly: - Ha! Kim, I can't even come close to some other LTers when it comes to library sales. Thankfully, either we don't have them as often, or I am clueless as to when they happen. Which is probably a very good thing.

Hi Shelley! I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Yay for double digit weather and Boketto.

>105 SqueakyChu: Clever.

I just love today's Google page. Jane Goodall has always been one of my heroes and this is lovely:

https://www.google.ca/webhp?hl=en&ictx=2&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiijPaH6M3aA...

Happy Earth Day!

Morning, Shelley. Happy Sunday. Thanks again, for all your great, informative posts on my thread. Always a pleasure to see and to explore. You were the first to suggest watching Life of Birds, right? Well, I picked up the DVD set from the library yesterday and plan on starting it this week. You da best!

Seeing anything special at your feeders? Things should be picking up.

I slept in a bit this morning and when I went out to hang up the feeder, I barely made it back to my front door before turning around and seeing 4 birds on it already! 2 goldfinches and 2 house finches.They must have been lining up on the tree limbs, tapping their wrist watches and wondering if I was still alive. By far, the goldies are the most frequent and most plentiful of my visitors but I am still seeing others, as well: Mr. & Mrs. Cardinal, red-breasted nuthatches, chickadees, sparrows (though fewer in number than in previous years), downy woodpeckers and the mourning doves. I am also still seeing the occasional juncos though I think they should be moving on by now, shouldn't they?

And yes, re the Attenborough. Enjoy! He is a delightful *guide*, funny and lovely and the cinematography in this dvd set is stunning. I look forward to your impressions.

This is from the Abebooks newsletter, a list of relevant books for Earth Day:

Trailblazing Environmental Books

I have read 4 of these and recently acquired A Sand County Almanac. I was interested to see that one of the books is by an author named Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Wonderful to read a bit of her background, since the first time I ever heard her name was as the name of the school where that terrible tragedy occurred a few months ago. Now I know why a school was named after her!

>114 jessibud2: What a great shopping list! I like the selection.

Have a happy week ahead. It's looking like one day of April showers here, but otherwise lovely livable April at last. I am stoked.

I just saw the incident on Yonge Street on the news, Shelley. How horrific. I hope you and those you know are ok.

I am fine, Meg, thanks, though it is very close to where I was on Saturday, as the place where I volunteer Saturdays is on that exact corner, Yonge and Finch. I can't even begin to imagine how horrific it must have been this afternoon. A beautiful summer day, tons of people just out and strolling in the middle of the day. It is about a 15 minute drive from where I live. What is a bit scary to think about is that I very nearly drove over there today, and it would have been around that very time, too, as I wanted to pick up some tickets to an upcoming film festival. I had phoned their box office and got an answering machine and I had some issues with their online ordering system so I thought about just going to the box office in person to get it sorted out. But in the end, I decided to stay home and work on cleaning my yard.

I just finished watching a live update, by our chief of police. The numbers now stand at 10 dead, 15 injured, some critically. You know, we just don't expect this sort of thing here in our city. Of course, we hear about these things happening elsewhere, in the States and Europe and other places but just not here. It's shaken a lot of people, for sure. So far, it appears to have been a lone guy acting on his own but what was truly amazing was that he was taken down and arrested by a single officer, without a bullet being fired. That alone is incredible as so often, far too often, these types of incidents have very different outcomes. Of course, now the real work begins, for them.

It's good to hear from you, Shelley. I thought it might have been close to where you are. So scary how vulnerable people are to these kinds of attacks. It sounds like that area of Yonge Street will be closed for a while as the investigation continues.

Yes, they have said that the area will be closed for awhile, at least. Though 2 of the 3 subway stations have already resumed service, which is faster than expected (3 stations were closed in the immediate aftermath).

Hi Shelley. Such a shocking event in Toronto today. It sounds like a lone actor , mentally unstable, but I guess there is a lot more investigation and information to come. No, we don't expect these sort of things. I have a huge admiration for that one particular policeman. Take care. Such and shock and so much grief into Toronto today. I am so glad you weren't in the area.

Hi Deb. Thanks. Yes, this city is waking up a bit different today. The officer hasn't yet been named, but I suspect he will be hailed as an example of how to do things right. Finally. There have been far too many incidents of police seeming to shoot to kill, and so much talk about the need for better training for police in de-escalation. I do hope that this officer gets all the accolades he deserves, though I suspect he will be trying to avoid such recognition.

What a horrible day it was.

Sorry, to hear about the terrible incident in your fine city, Shelley. It just seems to never stop. We just had another mass shooting in Nashville TN, by another white twenty-something male. What is exactly happening with these young men?

I know your city will be in mourning, but try to make the best of your day.

I was shocked to see that news when we were out yesterday. It's definitely not something we think will happen around here. Glad to see you had decided to stay home yesterday! From the little bit I've read online sounds like it was a mental health issue and not terrorism. Not that it makes things any better.

>122 msf59: - Thanks, Mark. That is one of the many questions being asked today. I think it will be a long time before we really know any answers.

>123 ChelleBearss: - Yes, Chelle. The good thing was that it was a lone guy and also, that he was stopped, at some point. But it really happened so fast and what seems to be emerging this morning is that there were a lot of witnesses who reacted quickly and compassionately, and this is a wonderful thing.

I was so shocked at the news- what a terrible tragedy!

Yes, still hard to wrap my head around it. One victim has been identified so far and so far, the officer is not being identified. I expect that is deliberate, so that the focus can remain on where it needs to be.

The impromptu memorial set up there reminds me of the chalk memorial that appeared at City Hall after Jack Layton died. Part of me wants to go add my name to it, but I really don't want to go up there. I probably couldn't get near it anyhow, what with the roads being closed and the subway I'd need to get to is the very one that is still closed. A couple of the seniors who are part of my volunteer group live very close to there and I really hope they weren't out for a walk yesterday... I will try to find out today.

What a horrible and tragic incident. Thank you for giving your persoanal responses to it! I grew up in Toronto and can imagine the are very well! Glad that you were not close by.

>117 jessibud2: Shelley, the incident in North York just gives me chills. I am so glad you are safe, and I sincerely hope those you know are also fine. What is going on in our world now (the incident at Yonge and Finch, the two bomb threats at my grandson's preschool) leaves me shaken and fearful. In addition, today I might have become the victim of a utility scam. I won't know for sure until I get my next gas and electric bill. I can't understand why people have the need to do evil unto others. Anyway, stay safe. I still love Toronto!

>113 jessibud2: I am enjoying birds again this year. I just set out a holder with llama, cat, and dog fur for the birds to use as nesting material. They are really going ta it, although it's mostly those nasty house sparrows! Anyway, I've also seen all the birds you have as well as crows which try to steal my cat's nuggets. There is one crow that caws to scare the cat away just to get at the food! What chutzpah! :D

Hi, Shelley. So sorry to hear about the tragedy in your town.

>127 mdoris:, >128 SqueakyChu:, >129 jnwelch: - Thanks. Mary, Madeline and Joe.

I've been watching the news for the last couple of hours. It appears that the driver of the van was a copy-cat of some guy in California who murdered a bunch of people in a university there and then killed himself. Details are slowly beginning to emerge and I expect it will take some time to get it all out. Yonge Street is just now slowly starting to open again. It's been closed since the tragedy happened yesterday afternoon. A large memorial has sprung up and I thought about going, just to pay respects but I am never comfortable in crowds and besides, getting there might have been difficult, by car, and getting there by subway would not have been all that easy either, since the station I would need to get off at, is the one station that was still closed, too. Anyhow, things should be open and running tomorrow as the city begins to get back to everyday life.

The officer who was the hero of the day yesterday by arresting the van driver without firing a shot has been named and is, for obvious reasons, being hailed and praised everywhere.

As for books, I have finished The Boys in the Boat but have been googling and watching interviews with the author, and film clips on youtube so my review will be a bit late. I am still listening to Endurance A Year in Space and hopefully will get it done by the weekend. Not sure yet what I will choose for my next paper read.

It looks like Toronto is going to be quite a party place tonight with their sports teams all playing and three in the playoffs! If I didn't have kids to care for I might have jumped on the Go train and joined the party! I'll be split screen watching the Jays and Leafs tonight :)

>131 ChelleBearss: - Hi Chelle. I am not such a hockey fan but the tension in this city for this final Game 7 is palpable. I was born and brought up in Montreal so was never a Leafs fan. But I can't honestly imagine them winning to go through to the next round. It's just not a *Leafs* thing, this winning. LOL. But this is a young team so who knows

I will be watching the Jays and I'm sure they will be updating the scores of the other games (Leafs, Raptors and Toronto FC)

Hi Shelley, I am starting to get back around the threads again my dear and hope to be visiting on a more regular basis. I am behind on all the posts so I am starting from today and will be keeping a better eye on things.

Hope all is well with you and that you are having a good week so far, sending love and hugs dear friend.

Shelley, I am just catching up and shocked at the carnage. Your guardian angel must have been whispering in your ear to keep you away from there. So sad, so tragic.

>134 karenmarie: - Thanks, Karen. The city is slowly getting back to itself. The memorials are still happening. Today, volunteers from the St. John's Ambulance Society came to the square with therapy dogs, for the people in the area who witnessed the events of Monday and who haven't felt safe to go out, since then. It was wonderful to see them out, embracing the dogs and just milling around as so many people continue to flock to the square to add flowers and words of sympathy to the impromptu signs that have graced the square.

I phoned my friend who lives around the corer from there just to make sure she hadn't been out for a walk. She worked in my class for a few years as an assistant and she just retired last June. She often walks that very stretch to go to the pharmacy or supermarket. Thankfully, she wasn't out on Monday.

Toronto is a very resilient city and it's been wonderful to see this warmth and embracing of others.

More info is emerging about the perpetrator. It isn't pretty. Now it is emerging that he was on the autism spectrum. Possibly, Asperger's. This worries me as I would really hate for this to become more of a stigma than it already is. I think it's safe to say that the vast majority - most! - people with autism would never commit such a crime. Sigh. It is very complicated.

Hi Shelley. I've been thinking of you , with the very tragic incident that happened near you. I've heard quite a bit about the perpetrator too. I agree, people with Aspberger's or a mental illness are extremely unlikely to behave in a violent way. It is indeed complicated. I even feel concern for the parents of the young man. He was still living at home, and likely they knew he was troubled, but how to help and how could anyone predict this. I had never heard of " incels" prior to this.

>136 vancouverdeb: - Thanks, Deb. I have also been thinking about his parents. It's possible that the stigma of the perpetrator's mental situation may have been clouded by cultural issues. Not all cultures are open to help and they might possibly have felt ashamed and paralyzed by their perception of it being *shameful*. Just my thoughts, nothing of this has been said anywhere. But, on the other hand, there have been some reports by people who have worked with the guy, that said that though he was a quiet computer guy, they never in a million years felt that this was possible, never saw any signs that would point to this. Sigh. I wonder if we will ever really know the answers. I, too, had never heard the term *incel* before this.

Ooo, just saw this: book cities around the world. Cool!

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2018/apr/26/10-worlds-best-book-towns-france-...

Well, this was a new one for me. I did not know this was possible. This morning, as I opened the shutters in the kitchen and looked out, just before going to put out the feeder, I saw a red squirrel (the tiny ones), sitting on a branch, chowing down on a goldfinch! I had to use my binoculars to make sure but there was absolutely no doubt. First of all, I had no idea that squirrels even ate meat of any kind. Second, how on earth did it even catch the bird?! The red squirrels are fast, for sure, but maybe the bird was already dead and the squirrel just got lucky? I had to google and sure enough, though not *common*, it can happen. Yikes. After going out to place the feeder, I scooped up a handful of sadly mangled feathers from the lawn.... :-(

The baffle has been working well to keep those rodents off the feeder. Maybe this is revenge?

Good morning, Shelley!

>139 jessibud2: Yeesh. How shocking, and then confirmed with a binocular close up. I didn't know they ate meat either. I'd like to think the Goldfinch was already dead, but nature is violent.

It reminds me a bit of Beetlejuice. There's a scene where the dad is using his binoculars to bird watch, all happy at seeing 'nature', and he sees a ratty looking blackbird tearing apart something.

>139 jessibud2: Wow! I never heard of this. Nature sure works in strange ways.

I made friends with a crow! (Barbara always wanted to make friends with a crow so I just texted her about my success.). This is one crow who always steals the cat food from my feral cat, Uglifruit. Now the crow (which still needs a name - Nudnik? Moocher?) just comes by himself, sits in front of our window and caws LOUDLY when he's hungry. I broke down and started feeding him (or her...how can I tell?). It started with cat food nuggets, but now I'll try other food which may be more healthy for crows. I cut up an apple for him, but he had already left to scavenge elsewhere. I wonder if he's friends with other humans in my neighborhood? :D



ETA: His name is officially Nudnik. :D

>140 karenmarie:, >141 SqueakyChu:, - Hi Karen and Madeline. Well, here is one article that explains it, though it doesn't mention the little red squirrels specifically, they are the most common on my lawn, so I have to assume they would do the same. Maybe the goldfinch had indeed, crashed into the garage door or something and had already been dead:

http://askanaturalist.com/is-eating-dead-birds-normal-for-a-squirrel-or-chipmunk...

I did manage to snap a few pics of the deed as it was happening, from my window but not so sure it's something anyone wants to see so I haven't decided whether to add one to my gallery.

My new baffle, over the feeder, is working quite well and in fact, I noticed, again this morning, looking out the window, that the red squirrel did try to slide down the long S hook and onto the baffle but abandoned it. Maybe it also helps that the icky sticky pine sap is already in a few blobs on the baffle and hopefully, just one experience of getting a paw stuck on that will be enough of a deterrent. It used to coat the lid of the feeder and that is another nice bonus for me now, with the baffle. It is horribly difficult to get that stuff off my fingers and hands!

>142 jessibud2: Interesting article. I guess it all comes down to what food is the easiest to get (for squirrels, anyway).

Lots of interesting bird activity in my yard today, A house sparrow is taking cat fur from a hanging cage for nest-building. A wren is checking out the wooden bird house that no bird occupied last year, although in previous years, it had been chosen as a preferred domicile.

Joe just reminded me of something that I heard on the radio this morning. Today is Independent Bookstore Day. Here in Toronto, we are in the beginning of the Hot Docs festival. Seniors (over 60) get in free for all movies that screen before 5 pm but you have to stand in line for *rush* tickets. I stood in line for 2 hours yesterday (and read a whole book!) and was only the 17th in line, yet in the end, only the first 5 people got in. I was a bit bummed. But it was a beautiful day, if a bit chilly, so I walked. I didn't really plan it but my walking took me past a lovely indie store here in Toronto. It's called Ben McNally Books and I made 3 little purchases: We Should All Be Feminists, Farewell Speeches by Michelle and Barack Obama, and The Reason I Jump. The first two are about the size of On Tyranny and the last one is a bit bigger, and is about *the inner voice of a thirteen year old boy with autism*.

This afternoon is my theatre day and today we will see *Annie*. Believe it or not, I have never seen it.

>143 SqueakyChu: - That is very cool, that you are providing nesting material. Good job! :-)

I finished 2 books in the past couple of days. Reviews later this evening. Gotta get myself moving here now

I await your reviews with bait-scented breath.

>144 jessibud2:

My daughter and I watched David Letterman's Interview with Barack Obama, now out on Netflix.

It's so good to see and hear our President again!

And unfathomable the abyss between him and the current village idiot.

>148 m.belljackson: - My first words, after the last election, were: From Class to crass. Still holds true, perhaps more than ever.

I don't have Netflix but if I can find it (not just a 2-minute clip) elsewhere (youtube, maybe?), I would love to see it. And although I did watch the Obamas farewell speeches at the time, I was thrilled to find this little gem of a book yesterday. I will try to read it tomorrow. (I do have another library book I hope to finish so I can return it tomorrow.)

>141 SqueakyChu: Yah, for Nudnik! He looks hungry!

-Bufflehead, (I saw a few of these guys yesterday. Aren't they adorable?)

Morning, Shelley. Happy Sunday. I wanted to let you know, I started watching The Life of Birds and I really love it so far. Pretty shocking, right? Thanks for putting it on my radar.

The House on Mango Street - Sandra Cisneros

This short book (I read the entire book while standing in line for a movie) is a series of vignettes in the life of the narrator, Esperanza. Part coming-of-age, part adult looking back on her memories, it was a lovely look at the innocence of childhood and how a young girl grows into herself. Cisneros has an ear for language, a way of expression that is insightful and illuminating. Some examples that stood out for me:

"She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow. I wonder if she made the best with what she got or was sorry because she couldn't be all the things she wanted to be. Esperanza. I have inherited her name, but I don't want to inherit her place by the window."

"The dog is big, like a man dressed in a dog suit, and runs the same way its owner does, clumsy and wild and with limbs flopping all over the place like untied shoes."

"You can never have too much sky. You can fall asleep and wake up drunk on sky, and sky can keep you safe when you are sad. Here there is too much sadness and not enough sky. Butterflies too are few and so are flowers and most things that are beautiful. Still, we take what we can get and make the best of it."

The Boys in the Boat - Daniel James Brown - 5 stars

I had not heard of this author before but this book came highly recommended to me so I was happy to give it a try, even though the sport of rowing was never on my radar. I am, however, a huge fan of narrative non-fiction and authors such as Erik Larson and Simon Winchester are among my favourites. I was delighted to discover, in the author's notes at the end of the book, that he cited Larson and drew on his book, In The Garden of Beasts, for some background information in his research.

And research, he did. Brown spent several years researching this book before he actually felt ready to sit down to write it. As he says in a few of the youtube interviews I watched after finishing, the book came to him. It started innocently enough when he happened to be talking to his neighbour, Judy, about another of his books that she had been reading to her dad, who was living with her and was nearing the end of his life. Through this conversation, Brown went to meet Judy's dad, Joe Rantz. As things do, one conversation led to another and slowly, Joe's story - the remarkable story of his life - began to emerge. When Brown asked if he could write a book about Joe, Rantz was initially reluctant. Unless the book was about *the boat*, meaning the crew, the boys. Sadly, Rantz died about 7 months after Brown met him but the seed was planted and with a lot of research and many many conversations with Judy, Brown found himself caught up in a part of history that seems to have gotten lost over the years.

Joe Rantz and the other members of his crew, were working class boys, from struggling families, in the years of the depression and the Dust Bowl, growing up on the west coast of the United States in the 1920s and 30s. They scrabbled to find whatever work they could, at a time when work was scarce, just to be able to put themselves through school. Brown goes into the early lives of each member of the boat (the 8 rowers and the 9th, coxswain), so we get to know them a bit. He also, at the end, reveals that for the rest of their lives, the 9 remained exceptionally close; they met yearly just to get together, and rowed together on the anniversary of their win, until they couldn't anymore. Most lived into their 80s and 90s. But it's Joe Rantz who is central to this story and his life is the one the reader is drawn right into. Abandoned as a child, and truly on his own from age 14, Joe was blessed with a positive attitude and a strong body. And a will to survive and make something of himself.

I learned how physically gruelling the sport of rowing is, how unforgiving and how relentless the training is. Joe had some very tough but wise and excellent coaches at the University of Washington. And he managed to rise to the challenge during his years there. His crew eventually went on to beat the best of American rowers, both in the west as well as the elite Ivy League crews of the east. In 1936, that meant representing the USA at the Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Hitler's Nazi Germany.

One of the things I most loved and appreciated about Brown's writing was his skill in broadening the scope, opening the focus of the larger story. This isn't just a biography of 9 men, or a journalistic report of a highly charged Olympic Games at a crucial moment in history. Brown has dug deep to learn details of not only the back stories but also the parallel stories of what was going on in Germany at this time. We learn in chilling detail about the façade that Hitler and his Nazi cronies created to present to the world, to *show* that Germany was clean and beautiful and safe, even while it was anything but. And, still being pre-war, this charade seems to have worked, for awhile. This book was published in 2013, so the words were never mentioned, but to my 2018 ears, what the Nazis were doing to fool the world, truly rang of *fake news* and manipulating the media for their own purposes. In 1936, Germany had a Ministry of Propaganda, and their very own filmmaker in Leni Reifenstahl, to create the image and the fiction they wanted. Today, we have Fox facts, alternative truths and twitter. I would dearly love to have Brown write a comment on this now....

I won't retell the story of this book. There are enough reviews here that anyone who hasn't read it yet and wants to, can get a sense of it from those. I also really loved the author's notes at the end of the book, chapter by chapter. I learned some interesting trivia there too, that didn't make it into the book itself. For example, among 8 Yale oarsmen who won Gold in the 1924 Olympics, years before Joe Rantz and his crew, was a young man who would, later in his life, become known to the world for something entirely different. His name was Dr. Benjamin Spock. Like that...

Also, I spent a lot of time googling afterwards and found a few interviews and clips that I will link to here, for anyone who might be interested.

Rowing For Gold from "The Boys of '36"

The Miracle 9 - 1936 Olympic Men's Rowing Team

One on One with Daniel James Brown

film by Leni Reifenstahl

The Colour of Canada with text by Roy MacGregor. This book caught my eye as I zipped into the library the other day to pick up something else. I believe that they set up those display tables specifically to lure people like me. It works. This is a coffee table type of book with pages upon pages of the most stunning photography of my vast and beautiful country, from coast to coast to coast, and everything in between. The pages of text by Roy MacGregor weave wonderful tales, not only of his own travels as a journalist throughout this country over the years of his career, but small tales of places and people, secret places and famous places. This book was put together for Canada's 150th birthday last year and some of the photos are jaw-droppingly gorgeous. Makes me proud to be Canadian. If only I could visit a fraction of what beckons in this book .

Last week, I picked up a couple of small books (small in size, like On Tyranny is small). I read the first one tonight. It is Farewell Speeches by Michelle and Barack Obama. Like many people, I watched them last year, on tv, and was as impressed by both of them as I ever was. But as I began to read their words again tonight, I decided to find them on youtube and watch them basically, read this to me. Like an audiobook, in a way, but with visuals.

Watching and listening to Barack Obama deliver these words today, one year plus, after he first spoke them, was, in many ways more powerful, and more poignant, than ever. In light of this past year, Obama's words seem almost prophetic. He seemed to want to remind Americans about all that is right and good and strong about themselves, and their core values, almost as if to arm them against what is about to befall them. He is not only a great orator, he is intelligent, and he is wise. He is passionate and genuine and above all, he is respectful.

The contrast to the current president, well, it is beyond painful. It is almost embarrassing, if the current president had the capacity for embarrassment. Two more polar opposites could not exist, on every possible level.

As I have mentioned before, I am not American but I have such admiration for the Obamas. I really hope they resurface soon, in one way or another. They are truly missed.

The other small book I bought is also one I think I will seek out on youtube. It is We Should All Be Feminists and I learned in the opening pages that she delivered this one as a TED Talk. I have heard her interviewed before and I think it will be lovely to hear this one, rather than merely read it.

'Morning, Shelley, and happy Wednesday to you!

I went to see a Hot Docs film last night- it was very good about two brothers- identical twins, one a photographer and one an artist- they both live far apart and really don't speak to each other- the film " Witkin and Witkin" was excellent- you might enjoy it!
However the film was shown at the ScotiaBank Cinema- the one where the very steep escalator is always broken during film festivals- sure enough- it wasn't working- but as well- the very small elevator wasn't working!
I will avoid that venue for any films I will see this week.

Morning, Shelley! Hope you are having a good week!

Happy Wednesday, Shelley. Hooray for The Boys in the Boat! What a great read that is. NNF at it's very best.

>147 richardderus: - Oops, missed you up there, Richard. Reviews now duly posted.

I thought I posted here about this but I must have only been thinking about it. The other day, I woke up and looked out the window. To my horror, I saw something that I needed my binocs to confirm. On the lower branch of my tree, a cute little red squirrel was having breakfast. Sadly, his breakfast was a goldfinch. Totally blew me away. I had no idea this was even possible. I did some googling and found out that, while not common, it is also not impossible.

I have put a couple of pics I snapped, up on my gallery. Warning: not pretty. But I guess everything has to eat. Nature can be cruel. But I learn something every day.

:-(

>156 karenmarie: - Hi Karen. A real summer day here, temp-wise. About time, too!

>158 ChelleBearss: - Hi Chelle! It's been a busy one so far. Is it only Wednesday??!

>157 torontoc: - Hi Cyrel. A friend I had lunch with today was just talking about that film. I had seen a preview but it didn't grab me so much. I did try to stand in line for rush tickets to see Three Identical Strangers last week but didn't get in. Then, yesterday, I was in a rush line at TIFF Bell Lightbox for The Fourth Estate, but they cut it off right at the person ahead of me. Not sure I really want to try for others. I did purchase a few tickets for some films at the TJFF and got a couple of free tickets for the Gilda film for tomorrow at Hot Docs as well as the Mr. Rogers one. I will PM you the rest of the ones I have tickets for

By the way, the first film I stood in line for last week was at the Scotiabank Cinema and people in line were also talking about the accessibility problem. I think people need to let Hot Docs know and request that they either stop using that location as a festival venue or insist that the escalators and elevators are working before the festival. It is really not ok.

>159 msf59: - Hi Mark. I am very mixed up here in my postings. See >160 jessibud2: for the explanation

Hi, Shelley. I just checked out your photos. That is grisly and very surprising. I know squirrels eat many different things, but MEAT? Shudders...

Glad your baffle is working good. The squirrels leave my main feeder alone but still dangle and nibble at the suet feeder. I have it mounted securely and sealed so they can't knock it down or open it.

Nature continues to amaze. When putting out my feeder this morning, I saw something the lawn that confused me. I first thought it was a regular earthworm but it looked, well, odd. Possibly deformed. There were 3 of them at various spots, all the same. I wish I knew how to call robins.

So, I took a snapshot and sent it to my friend, who lives in the country and is way more knowledgeable than I am about nature things. Her reply? Earthworms. Mating.

Seriously?? Now that I think about it, I have never actually thought about how they *do it*. Live and learn...If anyone has a strong desire to *watch*, let me know. It is not a picture I particularly want to have hanging around the gallery but will put it there for the voyeurs among you, if requested.

;-p

>165 jessibud2: LOL! You don't have to post for me, I know how mating eartworms look ;-)
I use the opportunity when snails are mating to pick them up and remove them from my garden.

I can identify: Unfinished Books

>167 jessibud2: Lovely graphic. It describes the reality so perfectly.

You have been seeing some weird sights in your garden lately, Shelley. I don't think I need to see earthworms getting it on and haven't been tempted to see the squirrel pics either. I have just realized I will be in Ontario for your election. I hope there are smiles instead of disbelief at the results.

>168 mdoris: - Hi Mary. Yes, I thought that one was pretty accurate. :-)

>169 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg, Sadly, in my gut I know that - not unlike trump in the States - no matter how dumb and how much of a lying ignorant blowhard Doug Ford is, and continues to show himself to be, day after day, he will get in. We have a sorry state of affairs here in Ontario, when it comes to politicians. I, of course, would jump off a bridge before I'd ever vote for him but there are simply too many rednecks and ignorant people who buy his garbage and sadly, they are allowed to vote.

Do you know your exact dates yet for when you will be here?

We had an insane windstorm here this afternoon. I was actually wearing sunglasses on my drive home today and not 5 minutes after coming into the house, the sky went dark, the clouds opened up and the rain was coming down sideways. Eventually the rain stopped but wow, those winds hit 100 km per hour! I went outside to bring in the feeder and put my one planter of flowers into the garage before it blew down the street. I also went to check the back and found 2 roof shingles on the patio. I dropped a note to the management to let them know and suggested that once the storm was over, they might want to have someone inspect the roves of all the units as there is really no telling exactly where these 2 shingles came from. All is quiet out there now, thank goodness. I heard on the news that there was even a fatality north of the city as someone was hit by a falling tree. Scary stuff.

>141 SqueakyChu: An update on Nudnik (whom we call Niki). I’m not exactly sure how I feel about this friendship with a crow. He caws really loudly when I feed him apples when he really wants cat food nuggets. Yesterday he was so loud I was afraid he was going to wake up my three-month-old granddaughter from her nap!

Today he did the weirdest thing. I threw him some diced apple. Instead of eating that, he went to the compost pile, dug up an apple core, brought it to the birdbath, dropped it in (as if to wash it), picked it up, and then flew with it to the top of the picnic table to eat. Then he went back to the compost pile and did that same sequence of events two more times. He was doing that deliberatively. I couldn’t believe it! Tomorrow Barbara comes to visit. Maybe she’d like to feed Niki. :D

>170 jessibud2: I hope and pray your elections have good results.

Weird weather everywhere! Did you see where Israel had severe rains and flooding resulting in ten teenagers dying in a bus that was carried away in a flood? This is Israel. Pesach is long past. Rainy season is over! Climate change is doing some terrible things to our weather all over the world.

Madeline, crows are among the smartest animals. Seriously. I think it's so cool that he does this in front of you and has come to consider you a good source of food. Madeline's Restaurant (sort of like Alice's Restaurant, lol).

Say hi to Barbara.

Oh, that squirrel eating the little bird. Ugh. Earthworms mating. I feel a wee bit ill. Earthworms are gross enough on their own. Yuck. I realize that earthworms are good for lawns or food supply for birds or something, but still. Yikes.

>170 jessibud2: Your storm made it to the national news, Shelley. I heard there were a lot of power outages. We have had a few storms where people were killed by falling trees often when the trees came down on houses. (We have big trees.)

I have my dates now and will send you a PM.

Hi Shelley. I'll pass on the worm porn, thanks :) I can't say I've even thought about how worms "do it" but I guess almost every species does. *shrug*. Chloe was afraid of the worms yesterday that were on our laneway. I tried to explain that the worms are so slow that there was no way it could touch her but she was mostly concerned that it was looking at her. Kids. Weird.

That wind storm was pretty crazy yesterday! A lot of small communities around us ended up without power but thankfully ours stayed on.

>173 vancouverdeb: - My thoughts precisely, Deb!

>174 Familyhistorian: - Meg, that fatality that I mentioned earlier because of the storm, was a maintenance worker in Halton region and it happened on my friend's road. Just awful. Apparently, there was a second fatality, as well, but I don't know where. I spent a half hour this afternoon sweeping up the mess in my backyard. Between my recent *small nature* events, and the bigger nature events, I am almost ready to hibernate again!

>175 ChelleBearss: - Hi Chelle. My friend lives near Acton and was without internet service until about an hour ago. I thought they had lost electric power as well but she said no, just internet service. Lol, re Chloe. Kids have such funny perspectives sometimes. I used to keep a notebook of funny things y students said. I called it *Kidisms*. :-)

Wishing you a lovely Sunday, Shelley. xx

>177 PaulCranswick: - And you, too, Paul.

We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. This was a quick, one-sitting read but a powerful one. I tried following along on her youtube TED Talk presentation but it got stuck at around the 7-minute mark and though I logged out and back on a few times, I could not get it to work. So I just read the text. It was, however, lovely to see and hear her read for the short time I was able to.

Adichi makes the important and obvious point that: "If we do something over and over again, it becomes normal. If we see the same thing over and over again, it becomes normal. If only boys are made class monitor, then at some point we will all think, even if unconsciously, that the class monitor has to be a boy. If we keep seeing only men as heads of corporations, it starts to seem 'natural' that only men should be heads of corporations."

Socialization is a slow and often unconscious process but until and unless we consciously make the effort to change such mindsets, nothing will change. And it must, if humans are to evolve.

Obvious, yes. But it appears that it can't be said often enough.

Hi Shelley!

Earthworms doing the dirty - sorry I couldn't resist. *smile*

Sorry to hear about that terrible storm especially a fatality.

>179 jessibud2: Interesting about the "important and obvious point" - I continue to pay homage to my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Greenblatt (school year 1963-1964), for rotating all class duties among all students via circle charts - the duty on the outside of a large circle of tag board, an inner circle on top of it with every student's name, held together with a brass fastener so that the duties could rotate one to the right, probably weekly. She also had two for PE so that every girl and every boy could have every position in softball. There were an equal number of girls and boys on each chart.

>180 karenmarie: - Three cheers for Mrs. Greenblatt, Karen! In this day and age, it sounds like a no-brainer but I am your age and I know and remember how unusual that was back then.

I was a BIG fan of We Should All Be Feminists when I read it. It just seemed so "DUH!!!" to me but it still needs to be said over and over again.

Hi Mary. Yes, apparently, people are slow learners and need constant reminders! ;-)

I am in a flitting mood again. I finished the audiobook Endurance: A Year in Space, a Lifetime of Discovery by astronaut Scott Kelly, narrated by the author. He has a bit of a monotone voice but it does grow on you and I really enjoyed this one. A year is a long time to be away from home, especially in space. He chronicled the physical, emotional, social and work aspects of his year in space and I found it quite fascinating. I remember avidly following Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield's time in the ISS and his youtube *journals*, and loving every minute of it. Kelly's book was just as interesting (well, except that he didn't sing).

I also finished The Frozen Thames, a fictional series of short vignettes over the course of several hundred years, that depict what happens when the river Thames has been frozen. I liked how a few of the stories were related (characters reappearing or somehow connected) and how even when they weren't, human nature, over time, can be predictable.

I have 2 audiobooks *in transit* to my library at the moment which is good since I wasn't allowed to renew the one I had on hand due to it being requested by someone (it was Lisa Genova's Every Note Played). I will have to request it again. But in the next few days, I should receive and begin one of either The Good Lord Bird or When They Call You a Terrorist (thanks, Mark!).

In the meantime, I am zipping through an old book from my shelf, Richard Lederer's Anguished English. I've dipped in and out of it before but since I had to sit in a long line at the gas pump today at Costco, and had no audiobook, I grabbed this one to pass the time. I couldn't help laughing out loud - it holds up very well over the years.

I have also begun 2 other books recently, heaven help me. Maphead by Jeopardy's super winner Ken Jennings; this, for the non-fiction challenge, and Expecting Adam by Martha Beck, a memoir. I honestly don't know why I do this to myself, jugging so many at once. One or two, maybe three, is fine but seriously, if truth be told, I prefer one really great book to grab and hold me. The last one like that was The Boys in the Boat - see my review in >153 jessibud2:. I'm sure there will be others but in the meantime, I am plodding along.

In other news, it was with some mixed feelings last night that I watched Canadian born pitcher James Paxton (from Ladner BC) accomplish what had not been done in over 45 years: pitch a no-hitter on Canadian soil. It was at our home stadium, SkyDome (aka Rogers Centre) here in Toronto. Pity it had to come at the expense of my Jays but it was quite wonderful to watch it happen.

On the other end of the scale, the Jays were dealt another blow yesterday, too. Their star closer, young Roberto Osuna was charged with assault and placed on indefinite leave from the club. It was good to hear that the club and Major League baseball is taking this seriously and responding swiftly and appropriately but geez. He is a young kid, 24, I think, from a close-knit family from Mexico, he just became a father, and seemed like a serious and decent person. He suffered from a bout of depression (anxiety) last year but took the time to deal with it, talked about it when he returned, and even at the beginning of this year, talked about his joy of becoming a dad. They are saying it is a case of domestic violence (so, assuming against his wife), and it is all very troubling. What a waste of a promising career. How does one come back from something like this? It's not quite as bad, of course, but it in some ways reminds me of Oscar Pistorius, the South African Olympian who murdered his girlfriend some years ago. Now, that was a waste of promise and potential (not to mention, his girlfriend's life!). Sigh... humans!

Your Jay's seem to be having their troubles, Shelley. I hope something good happens for them soon. I didn't realize that Ken Jennings had written a book. How is it?

>185 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg. So far, it's pretty readable. I am only at the beginning. I really liked him as a player on Jeopardy and think this will be a good one.

On my way to the garden centre this morning, I discovered a new Little Free Library. I had turned onto a side street to park so that I could get out and photograph a very gorgeous magnolia tree in full bloom. As I drove up the street a bit to turn around, there it was. I always have a bag of books in the car to donate to LFLs so I added 3, and took one. I am reserving it for you, for when you visit. I couldn't help myself: it was called *Family Historian* and is, of course, about geneology. If you already own it or have read it, we can just drop it off at another LFL. ;-)

Speaking of the garden centre, in this part of the world, May 24th long weekend is generally considered the date for it to be safe to put plants into the ground; before that, we are still not quite out of danger from overnight frost. Heaven help us. But my next door neighbour put some lovely colourful annuals in yesterday and I began to twitch. I can't help myself. I was in the car, heading to the library to drop off some dvds, and once that was done, the car drove me directly to the garden centre.

I still hadn't unloaded the 5 bags of soil I bought on the weekend, from the trunk so it's rather remarkable that I managed to get everything into the car without breaking anything. My wallet is lighter but my garden will be so much brighter. I may wait a day or so before actually putting them into the soil but even just placing them has put me into a very happy frame of mind. And I found the stunning Starry Night petunias that I missed out on last year. I believe that Home Depot garden centre has their own cultivators (at least that's what I was told), and I waited too long last year. I bought a lovely large basket of them today. They are deep blue/purple with white spots to resemble, well, a starry night! I love 'em! :-)

>187 jessibud2: We already planted our garden. Certain seeds are able to handle cold weather ( beets, lettuce, radishes, onions, spinach and kale-all planted 3 weeks ago). The rest we planted this week although we are holding off on the tomato and pepper plants till after the May 24. Generally, if the hummingbirds are here, it's safe to plant :) Happy gardening!

>188 figsfromthistle: - Are you in Ontario? I just heard that we may get frost tonight! I haven't put anything into the ground yet so I will just haul everything into the garage overnight and bring them out into sunshine in the morning.

I live in a townhouse with a postage stamp sized amount of space to plant. I get no sun in the back at all and only filtered sun in the front but I do the best with what I have. I sometimes ignore what the planting instructions say. For example, I have planted things in the back that say they require full sun, and they have done just fine. But my back yard faces east so no veggies out there. And the *rules* (don't get me started) around here are, no veggies in the front, only flowers. But I have grown tabletop tomatoes on my (front facing) kitchen counter for a few years now.

Hi, Shelley. Good to hear your positive reaction to Endurance: A Year in Space. I loved Chris Hadfield's An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, so I'll put this on the WL.

The Frozen Thames is one of my favorite books ever. I've given it to a lot of folks. Those are beautiful short stories, aren't they, and I love the connections.

>189 jessibud2: If you can’t grow veggies because of too little sun, try herbs instead. They often do well in partial sun and are great fun to have handy at home for cooking.

Plant a veggie in the front that has a pretty flower. Tell your HOA that you’re growing the plant for its flowers. Eggplant has a pretty flower! Plus you can use it to make baba ghanoush. :D

Hi Joe. Have you ever read The Boys in the Boat? I bet you'd really enjoy it. It is so well-written.

I should try that, Madeline. (do squirrels like veggies or herbs?) ;-)

I've got The Boys in the Boat, but haven't read it yet, Shelley. Good to have your endorsement.

>192 jessibud2: I don't have problems with the squirrels and veggies. They put all their effort into getting birdseed!

In my herb garden I usually have an assortment of some or most of these herbs: parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, mint (in its own container so it won't spread), fennel, lovage, pineapple sage (which has bright red flowers in the autumn), lemon grass, scallions, and chives.

So tonight, for example, I made scrambled eggs with scallions and chives from our garden. Yum!

>151 msf59: There is one Bufflehead who hangs out on the UW fountain along with the Mallards. I love seeing him when I walk by the fountain on my way to the office in the morning.

Hi Shelley!

>184 jessibud2: I quite enjoyed the no-hitter by "The Big Maple." :-)

I love your comments about crows, too. They are indeed very smart creatures. I still want to read Crow Planet.

Ohh, I really enjoyed my Starry Night Petunia's last year! Enjoy!

Tell your HOA that you’re growing the plant for its flowers Brilliant idea on Madeline's part for the tomatoes.

So far I've not done any gardening. But my sister put in a lot of annuals in last week. Our weather is well past the frost point.

Hi Shelley!

Congrats on all the gardening plans. I love the idea of Starry Night Petunias.

I find it very hard to juggle more than two books, one fiction, one nonfiction. Good luck with them all.

The funny thing is, Karen, I saw the starry night petunias last year at Home Depot for the first time. I was knocked out. But I was not fast enough. I didn't buy the when I first saw them and when I went back, they were gone. So, when I saw a big basket of them last week, I jumped at it. Then, I began to see them in other places, as if they are the most common things. Maybe they are and I only noticed them for the first time last year. Who knows. It wouldn't be a big surprise to me if that was the case. Anyhow, it's still a bit early to put things into the ground yet but hopefully, by the beginning of the week, I can start, as the temps are expected to jump by Monday. We are still in single digits here (Celcius) as I type.

And speaking of juggling books.... 2 more came into the library for me yesterday: Baking With Kafka which I will easily finish this afternoon (and I am thinking that I may need to buy this one as a keeper!), and an audiobook, When They Call You a Terrorist. I just started this one and as it's only 5 discs, I am hopeful that I can finish it this week. And checking the library online, I see that the other 3 that were in transit have now arrived and are ready for pickup: the last 2 of the Ken Burns Jazz series on dvd, which, by the way, is outstanding! And another audiobook, The Good Lord Bird. Since I have a week to pick them up, I think I will wait for the very last minute to do so, to give me more time to get through the current audio without the pressure of having the McBride sitting here and perhaps needing to renew it before I get to it.

Such first world problems, I know...

Ah the juggling of books. That is happening at this end too!
Have fun with your petunias. I have had a blast in the garden, snooping while at beautiful nurseries and buying some old favoourites. Hope things warm up there and you can get planting!

I think the Starry Night Petunias became "popular' in the summer of 2016, as best I know. Of course I didn't know myself, by last year I noticed them and my sister told me she had tried them out the previous year and liked them. One thing that the nursery mentioned to me is that the little while spots can tend to disappear if the heat gets to high. Not disappear entirely, but just become fewer. That seemed to be true for me last year, but I would happily get them again this year.

>200 mdoris:, >201 vancouverdeb: - Mary and Deb, I have uploaded a couple of photos of the petunias to my gallery. If either of you are able to add a pic to my thread here, feel free to do so. It doesn't work for me. And thanks for that tidbit of info re the spots, Deb. If it happens, at least I will know what it is.

By the way, my heart felt sympathies about the provincial election that is about to happen in your province. It's been enough stress here in BC regarding the Kinder Morgan Pipeline, and Alberta threatening BC with various punishments if the pipeline does not go through. I'll say no more. I try to not mention much about politics here on LT, but Doug Ford. Oh dear.

>203 vancouverdeb: - And did you hear that Harper has recently said he supports trump? It's been rather a pleasure not hearing Harper's name since Trudeau came into power but this? Seriously? I have always disliked Harper but I honestly thought he had more brains than Ford and trump, combined. Maybe not. The wonderful Montreal political cartoonist, Aislin, had a very good cartoon today. If I can figure out how to post it in my gallery, I will try.

Yes, I honestly dread our upcoming election. I found a Ford flyer in my mailbox today. I have a sign on my mailbox saying No Junk Mail, Please. I will not even recycle it. It goes directly into the garbage, where I wish I could put HIM!

I finished Baking With Kafka yesterday. What a fun and quirky guy Gauld is! Clearly, anyone who isn't a reader would totally miss all the literary references (and I am sure I missed a few, from genres I don't read) but he is just so clever! :-)

>205 jessibud2: Wouldn't have been keen on baking with Kafka as he never did look the healthiest of specimens.

Have a wonderful Sunday.

Here it is! Sorry if it's too big but it's what happened from a relocation from your pictures. p.s. They are gorgeous!

>206 PaulCranswick: - LOL, Paul! I have to say, I have no idea what the real Kafka looked like.

>207 mdoris: - Thanks so much, Mary! It was a glorious day here today. I removed the cover from my patio furniture, cleaned the table, put up the umbrella, swept the patio and began to play around with arranging the plants and flowers I bought at various garden centres this past week. We will make it into the 20C range starting tomorrow and I will finally begin to put things into the ground! Yay!

I also napped a bit and read a bit. :-)

Technical question. A couple of years ago, author Malcolm Gladwell launched a podcast called Revisionist History. It is as excellent as his books and maybe more so because he focuses on one story each week, in depth. Jim (drneutron) helped me find the link to subscribe as I had never listened to a podcast before and had no clue. I listen only on my computer, not a device.

I was very sad after I finished listening to the 2 full seasons and couldn't find a third. I figured that maybe he was just writing another book. I googled but could find no info.

Then, suddenly, today, I got an email saying that his third season will begin again this Thursday. It says I have to subscribe through apple podcasts. If I don't have an apple computer, can I still do this? Please understand that this is a question from a total techno dinosaur. This was the link:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968?mt=2&i=...

I don't remember downloading anything for the last time I subscribed. Is there a way around this?

Thank you,
Ms Clueless

Hi, Shelley. I have heard you had some interesting bird sightings. Yah, for the grosbeak. We get rose-breasted here. I saw one on Saturday, in Wisconsin, although I have seen them here too, but not at my feeders. We are still getting very few goldfinch, which I find surprising. We are finally getting hummingbirds, though.

Hooray for Baking With Kafka. All of Gauld's books are worth reading. A very clever guy.

>189 jessibud2:

There's an online Search site for Vegetables that Grow in the Shade - mostly in partial shade, but you might get some arugula!

>186 jessibud2: I had to laugh when you said you picked up a book at the LFL called *Family Historian* for me, Shelley. Yay for Little Free Libraries. I am waiting for PoCo Heritage to put their's out but they have to get the city to plant it so it might take a while. Maybe that is good because a couple of the LFL's from the same program were set on fire shortly after they were in place. Hopefully the firebugs will have had their fill by the time our LFL goes outside.

Good to hear that you have gardening weather now. It has felt like summer here for the last week or two. It was 30C today, still is.

>210 msf59: - I will definitely look for more by Gauld. I like how his mind works. :-)

I feel so blessed with the amount of goldfinches that seem to like my feeder. Never saw any the first several years I was here but I guess the word got out. I always imagine a little bird network, broadcasting the news of a new *restaurant*. Maybe *twitter*, lol!

>211 m.belljackson: - Hi Marianne. The more I think about it, the less inclined I am to even try to plant food outside. The squirrels in my neighbourhood are relentless. When I first moved here, I had been living in an apartment building before. I had a gorgeous big balcony and a lovely and successful balcony garden. I brought 2 large potted tomato plants with me and simply placed them in the back yard (before I realized I had very little sun back there). Within days - no, maybe it was hours - squirrels had eaten several of the tomatoes. I was horrified. Here, I bought my first home, dreaming of a real garden. Ha. I learned very quickly that squirrels and dreams don't always mix.

So, I will continue to grow my counter top tomatoes and leave the outside for flowers. It's cheaper than moving again!

>212 Familyhistorian: - I think we made it to 20C here today and it should be that way for the rest of the week. I spent a good part of today in the garden and - heaven help me - went back to the garden centre this afternoon. I need to be restrained!

But I love this time of year and really enjoy puttering in the garden.

It's awful that someone would set fire to LFLs! Has anyone ever been caught? We have a lot of them in Toronto (LFls, not arsonists). I just love them

>207 mdoris: I haven’t seen those petunias before, but they look diseased. I know they’re not.

Today Jose and I were in Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. I have some great flower pictures to share with you when I get home. I’ll put them on my thread then.

Hi Shelley!

The Starry Night Petunias that >207 mdoris: Mary posted are gorgeous. Sorry I can't help you with your technical problem - I'm not an Apple/iPhone person.

Morning, Shelley

>209 jessibud2: From that link that you shared it looks like you can listen without itunes, but not download. So if you are just listening while sitting at your computer the instructions say "To listen to an audio podcast, mouse over the title and click Play."

If you wanted to download them and transfer them to your ipod or phone to listen to with your headphones then you would need to download iTunes first. (which you can do without owning an apple computer. There are windows versions)

Send me a message if you need any help! :)

>217 ChelleBearss: - Thanks, Chelle. I moused over the titles but nothing goes *live*, if you know what I mean. Maybe that's because the season doesn't start until Thursday but I tried doing it for some of the titles of the first 2 seasons and still nothing happens. I had actually tried that immediately, when I first got the email and saw that instruction. That's what I thought I remembered doing last time but when nothing happened, I thought I was doing something wrong. Sometimes, I think I can figure things out by myself but when things don't work, I am mystified. Technology is just not instinctive for me.

When I open it in my itunes I can't listen to them yet so perhaps after the release date it will show you the play button.

(removed the date as I didn't have my glasses on and it was 2016, not 2018 that I saw)

I thought that might be it but was curious as to why I couldn't open any of the previous seasons' episodes. Those shouldn't be affected by the new date for the new season, should they?

Well, I will just wait till Thursday and see what happens. (the email I received shows this Thursday as the first date)

Thanks for trying to help me, though

>214 jessibud2: I haven't heard of anyone being caught for setting fire to the LFLs. I just hope that they have had their fill and moved on to something more constructive. I love LFLs as well and always stop to look at the titles.

Anguished English by Richard Lederer. First published in 1987, Lederer chronicles the many and various ways in which the English language has been abused, misused and generally massacred. I first read it years ago but in the rereading now, I would say it holds up pretty well. There are parts that are truly laugh-out-loud hilarious. Some are familiar because they are famous (think Yogi Berra-isms); others are just plain priceless.

Want some examples?

From student bloopers in essays:
- (reversing a g and a q): "When a boy and a girl are deeply I love, there is no quilt felt between them."
- "In 1957, Eugene O'Neill won a Pullet Surprise"
- "Necessity is the mother of convention."
- "Writing at the same time as Shakespeare was Miguel Cervantes. He wrote Donkey Hote. The next great author was John Milton. Milton wrote Paradise Lost. Then his wife died and he wrote Paradise Regained."

From Modern Day Malapropisms:
- "He is a wealthy typhoon."
- "They call it PMS - Pre-Minstrel Syndrome."
- "I wish someone would make a decision around here. I am tired of just hanging around in libido."

From Mixed-up Metaphors:

- "I'm not going to be side-tracked into a tangent."
- "Let's hope that Steve Carlton gets his curve ball straightened out."
- "It's time to grab the bull by the tail and look it in the eye."

From Lost in Translation:

- "Our nylons cost more than common, but you'll find they are best in the long run"
- (sign in Majorcan shop entrance): "English well talking" and "Here Speeching American."

From Laffing at Misspellings:

- "Many people believe he was a Satin worshipper."
- "Today's special: barely soup"
- "Drop your ballet in the ballet box."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love stuff like this. I will admit to owning several other books by Lederer, who is nothing if not prolific, though goodness knows, there seems to be a never-ending supply of examples to draw from!

One of my bookcrossing friends from The Netherlands, just posted this. This building is located in Dresden and looks like so much fun! I'd love to actually hear it!

Anita or Ella, have either of you ever seen this?
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/kunsthofpassage-funnel-wall

Someone said it looks like the love child of Rube Goldberg and Dr. Seuss! :-)

Oops. Edited to add that I just realized that Dresden is in Germany, not Netherlands. I actually knew that but wasn't thinking. The bookcrossing friend who posted this link is Dutch but is currently visiting Germany, and I just missed that connection. I am not quite as ignorant as I previously appeared! Honest!

>222 jessibud2: Hilarious!!

>223 jessibud2: So cool!

Oh, those Anguished Englishes are so funny! I laughed out loud at Milton's Paradise Regained - he must have had quite a wife - and the barely soup special. Honesty in advertising?

I know, Joe! Aren't they a hoot? The first time I heard of these was when I read his longer section, called The History of the World According to Student Bloopers. All taken from real student essays.

https://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~norman/Jokes-file/StudentBloopers.htm

This was in Lederer's book, too. Better sit down and put down your beverage, before you read it. ;-)

>224 SqueakyChu: - :-) x 2

>226 jessibud2: Oh my goodness, those are so, so funny, Shelley!

I have a whole new understanding of famous figures like Achilles (although I guess I knew he was intolerable), and Socrates (wedlock -didn't see that one coming). Nero must've fiddled really badly, and I'm so glad the troops shouted "hurrah" when Queen Elizabeth exposed herself.

>223 jessibud2: LOL your edit :-)
I have been to Dresden 10 years ago, Shelley, but did not see this. I have seen pictures of it before. If I ever get there again I will look for it on a rainy day!

>223 jessibud2: Never heard of it, but I love it, what fun! Thanks for posting.

^Spotted another Canada Warbler today, for just a few seconds, but I like the look of this bird.

Sweet Thursday, Shelley. I hope you have had a good week. My feeders have been busy, but just the usual suspects.

Remember those 3 adorable baby eaglets in Decorah, Iowa? Not so tiny any more!!

https://raptorresource.org/falcon_cams/

>231 msf59: - Mark, Believe it or not, I had never heard of a Canada Warbler before!

She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton. I noticed this children's book at the library so I grabbed it, curious to see what Clinton had created. It is a lovely enough book, celebrating 13 women who changed the world. It was published in 2017 and I half-expected her own mother to be one of them, but she wasn't.

If I am honest, though, my very first thought was that this was just very derivative of the wonderful book that Barack Obama wrote several years ago, called Of Thee I Sing. He also highlighted the lives and work of 13 people who made a difference and a contribution to life. Coincidence? I wonder. But in truth, I thought that both the text and the illustrations in the Obama book were far superior to the Clinton book. I zipped through the latter and am ready to return it to the library tomorrow, while, because of the depth of the text and the visual richness in the Obama book, I returned to that one several times.

I applaud her for her efforts but it fell somewhat short, for me.

>222 jessibud2: I love it!!

>222 jessibud2: I love it!!

Hi Shelley!

>222 jessibud2: Excellent. I'm currently listening to The Story of Human Language by John McWhorter. I've listened to it before, but it's informative and eye-opening about dialect, language sources, and the transformation of languages over time.

Glad you enjoyed those, Kim and Karen. I have always loved reading and learning about language and ours is sure fodder for some great laughs!

:-)

>232 jessibud2: The eaglets have gotten big but it doesn't look like they are flying yet, just hanging around the old nest. Have a great day, Shelley.

>234 jessibud2: - Hmm. Talk about coincidences. I was just tidying up a bit and guess what I found under a pile of papers? A magazine I must have purchased not too long ago, maybe within the last month or so? It's one of those Newsweek Special Editions. The title? *She Persisted*. With an introduction by Senator Elizabeth Warren. Seems to make a bit more sense to me now, that Chelsea Clinton says in her book that she was inspired by Elizabeth Warren. Maybe she meant by this.

Anyhow, I have just skimmed this magazine, will read it in full later on. But it covers a lot more ground and in more depth than Clinton's (which was, to be fair, written for children). Still, it makes me chuckle to find this today. Sometimes things just work out that way. I can only imagine what other sparks I might find if I tidied up more often!

>239 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg. I think they are 7 or 8 weeks old now and haven't fledged yet. I am not sure if they are even *branching* yet as I haven't been following too closely. That's when they hop out on those big branches to take their first steps out of the nest. You can imagine how massive the nest actually is when seeing 3 nearly full sized chicks and a parent or two hopping around in it! And it's almost heart-attack inducing when they start stretching out their wings and it looks like they will knock each other out of the nest altogether!

-Eastern Kingbird

^I saw one of these on my bird walk yesterday. Actually, he landed on a sign, as I was heading out of the parking lot, but I got a good long look.

Morning, Shelley. We are going to have August temps through the weekend, but I am not complaining. Where have the goldfinch gone? Nesting? I even changed out my feed yesterday, in case the thistle was spoiled from all the damp weather. Still nothing...

Hi Mark. The goldfinches are all at my place. It's interesting. The first several years I lived in this house, I never saw any. I stopped using the nyjer and now use only sunflower hearts (that's the seeds without the shells, thus, no mess under the feeder). The absolutely love it and they must have sent out a mass email to their friends and family because I continue to have many of them daily, even throughout the winter. I, of course, am loving it.

This morning, when I was putting out the feeder, I could hear the blue jays in the near distance. I've been hearing them a lot lately but they rarely make an appearance.

'Morning, Shelley!

Goldfinches are just so satisfying to watch, aren't they? It's like getting a bonus because of their brilliant color. Yesterday and the day before I saw a male Cardinal, male Indigo Bunting, and male Goldfinch at my feeders/in the Crepe Myrtle nearby all at the same time.

This cracked me up:

https://xkcd.com/1998/

There is also a funny pop-up text if you mouse over the main text.

*snerk*

>245 jessibud2: Why sure.

Hi Shelley!

The Eagle Cam you posted on Mark's thread is fascinating - I've been watching it off and on ever since you posted it. I just watched mama Eagle (or is it Papa?) bring back a fish and feed the 3 eaglets. It is very cool.

>245 jessibud2: I like it.

Hi Shelley my dear, I am getting back around the threads after being busy in the garden and we are decorating at the moment in Amy's old room but will be finished tomorrow. Hope all is well with you and that you are having a really good weekend, sending love and hugs from both of us dear friend.