Mamie's 2019 Madness

Hello, all, and welcome. I'm Mamie...51 year old married mother of four (ages 20, 22, 24, 26) currently residing in Georgia, where it is always hot and humid except for approximately four weeks of the year (not necessarily consecutive weeks, mind). In addition to reading, I love wine, snark, shenanigans and coffee - pretty much in that order. I believe with my whole heart that kindness matters.

This year will be my eighth one amongst this group that is so full of fabulous. I have learned much - like how to love non-fiction, how to properly chill champagne glasses, the best way to remove seeds from a pomegranate, which sunscreen to purchase if one is traveling to California, that some people actually believe that hot water is a beverage...but, I digress. My plans for this year are to once again walk the cat, which means I will just go wherever my reading whims take me. I did a very good job of reading my own books last year, but this year I would like to focus on reading my physical books, so I am setting a goal of reading 50 print books that I have owned prior to this year. I tend to read a lot of books on Kindle and increasingly listen to more audiobooks as my carpal tunnel has been giving me fits for the past several years - hoping to have the surgery to correct it this year, so please cross your fingers. And now, as Max would say, "Let the wild rumpus start!"

.....

...

Completed in January:
1. How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran, 2018 acquired audiobook, non-fiction/essays/feminism - Katie's Dirty Dozen
2. Nerve by Dick Francis, 2018 acquired mass market paperback, mystery - recommended by Julia and read for the Dick Francis GR
3. Dead Beat by Jim Butcher, 2009 acquired ebook, urban fantasy (Dresden Files, book 7)

Katie’s Dirty Dozen - That’s right, folks, KAK’s reserved spot is back for a fifth year, let’s see what she hits me with this time.

From 2019:
1. What Girls Learn by Karin Cook
2. Partitions by Amit Majmudar

From 2018:
1. The North Water by Ian McGuire - Mark and Judy loved this one, too. And also Richard, though a weentsy tidge less.
2. How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran - go with the audio COMPLETED 1/3/19 4 stars
3. Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat
4. The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan - Katie says for when I'm in the mood for something light and recommends the audio
5. When God Was a Rabbit by Sarah Winman - Katie mentioned on Joanne's thread that she loved this one COMPLETED 10/29/18 4.5 stars
6. Matilda by Roald Dahl - the audio narrated by Kate Winslet COMPLETED 4.5 stars
7. Come Hell or Highball by Mala Chance - saw this first on Katie's thread and then Meg's enthusiasm sold it to me
8. The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif - Katie says,"...one of my very favorite books - easily in my top 10."
9. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
10. How to be Safe by Tom McAllister
11. Georgia: A Novel by Dawn Tripp
12. Sunburn by Laura Lippman
13. The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor - she mentioned on Karen's thread that this is one of her all time favorite books
14. West by Carys Davies

From 2017:
1. Everyday people by Stewart O'Nan (linked short stories)
2. Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
3. Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin (memoir) COMPLETED 11/1/18
4. The Golden Legend by Nadeem Aslam
5. Personal History by Katherine Graham
6. Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan
7. Taft by Ann Patchett
8. Dear Fahrenheit 451 by Annie Spence
9. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
10. The Lost Book of the Grail by Charlie Lovett
11. Snow in August by Pete Hamill - Katie mentioned how much she loved this one over on the AAC thread after Mark had posted the list for next year

From 2016:
1. Kamchatka by Marcelo Figueras
2. Destiny of the Republic by Candace Millard
3. The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez - seconded by Charlotte and Susan
4. In the Walled City by Stewart O'Nan COMPLETED 8/12/16 3.8 stars
5. My Reading Life by Pat Conroy - she recommended the audio, and don't speed it up COMPLETED 4 stars
6. Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo COMPLETED 7/21/16 5 stars
7. Ruby by Cynthia Bond - seconded by Charlotte
8. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming - she recommends the audio read by Cummings himself COMPLETED 3/01/18 4.5 stars
9. Songs for the Missing by Stewart O'Nan
10. Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye - Roberta also loved this, Katie says the audio is great, purchased 5/15/16
11. The Jaguar's Children by John Vaillant COMPLETED 1/2018 4.5 stars
12. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi COMPLETED 10/2/16 5 stars
13. Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat - she pointed out that this was only $1.99 on Kindle and that it was one of her very favorites, purchased 7/13/16
14. Tribal: College Football and the Secret Heart of America by Diane Roberts
15. Manhood for Amateurs by Michael Chabon
16. Nutshell by Ian McEwan COMPLETED 1/2017 5 stars
17. Black River by S. M. Hulse

AND, from 2015:
1. The Mermaids Singing by Lisa Carey ($1.99 on Kindle), purchase on 2/18/15 COMPLETED 8/19/16 5 stars
2. Bright's Passage by Josh Ritter (2.99 on Kindle), purchased on 2/23/15
3. The Tilted World by Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly ($3.79 on Kindle), purchased on 3/31/15 COMPLETED 11/7/15 4.2 stars
4. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler ($12.77 trade paperback), purchased on 4/1/15, COMPLETED read for Mark's AAC in January 2016, 4.25 stars
5. Paradise Alley by Kevin Baker ($.99 on Kindle), purchased on 4/9/15 - second book in a series, first book Dreamland was recommended by Katie and purchased last year
6. Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing - used an Audible credit COMPLETED 6/16/15 4.9 stars
7. Academy Street by Mary Costello ($9.99 on Kindle), purchased on 6/12/15 COMPLETED 7/2/16 5 stars
8. Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn ($5.99 on Kindle), purchased on 8/28/15
9. Sweetland by Michael Crummey ($.99 on Kindle), purchased 9/5/15 COMPLETED 11/19/15 4.5 stars
10. If You Only Knew by Kristan Higgins ($7.99 on Kindle), purchased on 10/26/15

The Chosen Ones - my 2019 list of book bullets:
1. The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker - recommended by Susan
2. Well-Read Black Girl by Gloria Edim - recommended by Beth
3. The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes - recommended by Susan
4. Clockwork Boys by T. Kingfisher - Heather
5. The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai - Bonnie
6. Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison - Carrie
7. Snapshot by Gary Disher - series recommended by Richard

My 2019 Data:

Print Books (Acquired before 2019) Read From My Stacks: 0/50

Books read: 3
Group/Shared Read: 1

Books that are part of a series: 1
In Translation: 0
Rereads: 0
GNs: 0

Format:
hardback:
paperback: 1
ebook: 1
audio: 1
audio/print or ebook combo:

Borrowed: 0 (local public library), 0 (FLP)
Acquired in 2018 or earlier: 3
Acquired in 2019:

Authors:
Living: 2
Dead: 1

Male: 2
Female: 1

American: 1
Canadian: 0
English: 1
Welsh: 1

New to me authors: 1

fiction: 2
non-fiction: 1

Genres/category:

non-fiction/memoir: 1
non-fiction/essays:
non-fiction/film history:
non-fiction/history:
non-fiction/politics:

classic:
literary fiction/contemporary fiction:
literary fiction/espionage
literary fiction/historical fiction:

crime fiction/espionage:
crime fiction/mystery: 1
crime fiction/noir:
crime fiction/police procedural:

romance:

weird fiction:
dystopian:
fantasy:
urban fantasy: 1
sci fi:

juvenile fiction:
YA:

play:
short stories:


LT Recommendations Read:

Katie's Dirty Dozen - 1
Julia - 1

Reading 50 Print Books From my Own Shelves (acquired before 2019):


Penguin Clothbound Classics:


Penguin Deluxe Classics (with deckled edge pages!!!):


Everyman's Library Editions:


Europa Editions:


Penguin Orange Collection (totally Charlotte's fault):


Pedestrian Books (or Everything Else):

This should do it - next one's yours!

GAWD! I was wondering if you were *ever* going to get here... ;-)

Well. There you are.

😀

Let the madness begin. You'll probably be on thread three by the time I get back here. ;-)

Hiya, Mamie! Wishing you a great year of reading and fun in 2019!

>9 katiekrug: I missed the first bus, Katie. Anyway, I'm here now. *grin*

>10 drneutron: Hello, Jim! I finally made it.

>11 SuziQoregon: Hooray, Juli! That is definitely the motto here. I love me a little madness. Hoping you'll be back before thread three.

>12 harrygbutler: Hello, Harry! Love that vintage card! And thanks for those good wishes, my friend.

Happy reading in 2019, Mamie!

Dropping off my star, Mamie!

>14 FAMeulstee: Thank you, Anita! Happy reading to you, too!

>15 ronincats: Thanks, Roni!

Well. At LAST. No matter when, so long as you're here, it's officially a Party.

Champagne bar! Mamie's here!

Hi Mamie! I'm glad to hear that you're going to have CT surgery this year.

>7 Crazymamie: So I see Old Filth and The Man in the Wooden Hat in the Europa editions. (Snooping in your library,) I see that you have Old Filth in your To Read collection. We're going to be having a group read of Last Friends, the third in the trilogy sometime early this year. Just a thought... it will be a while because some of us haven't even read the second one yet, but I've kept track of who's expressed interest and it's up to 12 of us so far. If you'd care to make it 13, we'd love to have you join in.

Have fun walking the cat again this year.

Woo hoo! The Dirty Dozen is back!

And you are listening to one of my favorite audios from last year.

This is a banner Mamie thread for me... *grin*

Hi Mamie! Happy New Year!

I have a classic or two on my docket this year. I'm not sure when, but Duma's The Three Musketeers is a go for 2019.

Glad to find you :)
I like your goal to read your print books. I joined the ROOT challenge to do the same. I’d like to get to 30 of my dead wood books this year. I think I’ve got about 75 to choose from that are lonely up there

Hi there, Mamie! Welcome back and Happy new year! Hope it's treating you well! Those are some very smart shoes you're sporting in >1 Crazymamie:.

Happy New Year!

It's about time you showed up, Crazy! : ) I am also trying to read more of my print books this year. In fact, all my challenges (except 1) were chosen to help me achieve this. Good luck to us both!! Course with Katie's Dirty Dozen, book buying might also happen.

Hope you get the CT surgery sooner than later so you don't have to deal with it anymore.

Happy new thread and Happy New Year, Mamie. It's good to see you back posting again.

Good to see you back again. Happy New Year, and may it bring lots of books that need to be read.

I'm late! Salivating over the pics in >7 Crazymamie:. Also thinking that I want to read all of Katie's DD list.

Fingers crossed for the carpal tunnel fix. That sounds v frustrating.

Happy 2019
A year full of books
A year full of friends
A year full of all your wishes realised

I look forward to keeping up with you, Mamie and all at the Pecan Paradisio, this year.

>18 richardderus: Aw shucks, BigDaddy! Thank you so very much for your generosity and that lovely welcome back.

>19 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Yes, hopefully to the surgery this year - Craig still needs another procedure and he is getting four crowns this month, the poor dear, so it will have to be after that.

I do have Old Filth, and your GR of the third one may be just the incentive I need to finally get to it. I love that you went snooping in my library. Do put me down for #13 (my lucky number!) - thanks so much for the invite.

I appreciate those good wishes - also wishing you a year filled with reading full of fabulous!

>20 katiekrug: *Grin* Your Dirty Dozen is a permanent fixture of my thread, Katie. And the audio is just as excellent as you said it was - you really have to listen to her How to Build a Girl narrated by the delightful Louise Brealey. If that name sounds familiar, it's because she plays Molly in Sherlock:



*sigh* Anyway, she delivers the book perfectly with all of its charming and bittersweet sincerity. Moran obviously took her material from How to be a Woman and transformed it into novel that is most excellent. The sequel to it just came out last year, and I snapped it up - so, I'll listen to How to be Famous later this year.

*By the way, Benedict Cumberbatch and Louise Brealey read together in this, which I also plan to listen to this year:

Happy New Year, Mamie!

>21 brodiew2: Happy New Year to you, Brodie! I have that one in the stacks of my Penguin Deluxe Classics editions. If I tackle it this year, I will probably try to combine it with the audio, which I have heard good things about. I am really wanting to get to Vanity Fair and Lolita this year, and currently I am working on The Charterhouse in Parma.

>22 ChelleBearss: Hooray for finding me, Chelle! Sounds like we can cheer each other on with our ROOT goals. Craig bought me this for Christmas, which will aid me in my progress:



I have already tried it out, and it works perfectly with every size book, so it is awesomesauce. It is amazing what a difference it makes.

>23 Carmenere: Hello, Lynda, and thank you! So far so good with the New Year - we finally got our roof replaced on New Year's Eve, so that was a relief to be able to enter 2019 with the roof once again intact. So many people are still waiting - amazing the damage a hurricane can do! I hope never to experience that again.

I am looking stunning in the topper, no?!

>24 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita! Happy New Year to you!

>25 Berly: It's lovely to be missed, Kim. And Yippee Skippy for another who is focusing on reading her own books - and you will notice that I did not mention anything about reining in my purchases. Heh. I actually already own quite a few of those Dirty Dozen books, as I try to pick them up on Kindle if I see them in one of the daily or monthly deals. Of course, that doesn't help me with my goal of reading my physical print books.

Thanks for those good wishes concerning my surgery - hopefully this Spring.

>26 Familyhistorian: Thank you, Meg! It's good to be back.

>30 Crazymamie: *sigh*

I could stare at that gif all day...

Hi Mamie!

>30 Crazymamie: You're on the list!

>32 Crazymamie: My husband gave me some frivol money at Christmas, and I just ordered one for myself - in mocha - and it arrives Saturday. I don't have problems with CT these days, but sometimes holding heavy books gets to be a bit much or I want to prop a book while drinking coffee or etc.

>27 Helenliz: Thanks so much, Helen! Happy New Year to you - wishing you just as many books that need to be read!

>28 charl08: Charlotte, where have you been?! Those books are so lovely, aren't they? I love just looking at them on my shelves. And Katie's Dirty Dozen has been excellent so far - I have enjoyed every one that I have read.

You are right that the carpal tunnel is so frustrating. I used to be able to get longer respites from it after routinely icing it and wearing the splints at night, but it has gotten worse, and now I am dealing with some numbness, too, so it definitely needs to be attended to soonish. Thanks so much for crossing your fingers for me.

>29 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul! Good to see you posting. May 2019 be kinder to all of us.

>31 alcottacre: Happy New Year, Stasia! I am looking forward to getting some more great board game recs from you this year. So good to see you back.

>34 scaifea: Me, too, Amber. Me, too. *scrolls back up to >30 Crazymamie:*

>35 karenmarie: Morning, Karen! And thank you! I predict that you will love the Book Seat. It even works with those huge annotated editions - Craig bought me both Persuasion and Sense and Sensibility for Christmas:

.

Also, I can get back to Future Noir and Travelers in the Third Reich, both of which I had to abandon last year because I just simply could not hold them up to read.

>30 Crazymamie: Wow! I wonder how many takes it took get that clip captured jusssssst right.

>36 Crazymamie: Good golly, numbness! Sorry you've been suffering with CT for so long. It's amazing you sound as cheerful as you do.

>38 Carmenere: Morning, Lynda! It's perfect, isn't it? Perfect attention to detail, and Cumberbatch is an expert at that.

I am SO over the CT, but I am so very thankful that there are options to deal with it. I truly believe in life that you get what you get, and you don't throw a fit. I feel very grateful each and every day for all for the things that are going right. When Birdy was little, she said in a dinner prayer, "Thank you for everything that we have and for everything that we don't have." And we laughed, but the more I thought about it, the more truth I saw in that simple statement. It has stayed with me, and I carry it forward, remembering to be thankful for everything that I don't have.

Wow, how prescient of Birdy! That is a wonderful prayer/mantra to use everyday!

>32 Crazymamie: That's awesome! Is that to help with hand issues? What is it called?

>37 Crazymamie: - I got that edition of S&S for Christmas, too! I'm only missing Northanger Abbey in those editions now. I have How to Build a Girl saved on audio, I think. I'll probably get to it this year.

>40 Carmenere: Agreed, Lynda. Out of the mouth of babes...

>41 ChelleBearss: Exactly, Chelle. It's called a Book Seat - Craig got it from Amazon. This is the one I have: Book Seat

>42 katiekrug: Hooray, Katie! They are gorgeous, aren't they? I also have Pride and Prejudice, which he got me last year - I want ALL of them.

Hoping you do get to that audio this year - so full of fabulous!

Happy New Year, Mamie. It looks like you have a good year of reading ahead. Love the Austens.

>45 BLBera: Happy New Year to you, Beth! Me, too with the Austen love.

I had something called a Peeramid that was a lot like the Book Seat.

I wish I'd had a houndstooth one, but my purple one was exactly right for the color scheme of my house.

Since I can no longer sit up for any appreciable length of time without needing to get up and walk, those lovely devices aren't useful to me. Thank the Bibliogoddesses for the Kindle.

Welp, I just bought a Book Seat :)

>47 richardderus: I love that name, Richard! I also love my Kindle - one of my very favorite things.

>48 katiekrug: Whoop!! Hoping you love it as much as I do, Katie. Did you get a purple one?

Hi Mamie! Happy New Year! I hope you have a year filled with good reading.

I did get a purple one. You know me so well!

>51 katiekrug: My little house in Austin was Mardi Gras Manor...purple, green, and gold.

>50 cbl_tn: Carrie, I was just over on your thread! Thank you for those good wishes.

>51 katiekrug: *grin*

>52 richardderus: How fun!

Paint's cheap, why not have fun with color? I never understood the obsession some have with changeless decor. I want to mix stuff up, which is why I never put up wallpaper.

Happy reading in 2019, Mamie.

>55 richardderus: Agreed. I love color.

>56 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara! Happy reading to you!

Wow, that book seat looks awesome! Perhaps I'll ask for one for my birthday :)

Good thinking, Chelle - I really love mine.

Hi Mamie! Just sipping my hot water here...:-) Your thread is beautifully organised, and now I have to see if Amazon UK sells those book seats. Why, yes they do :-)

>60 susanj67: Hello, Susan! *grin* I knew you would get the reference. Thank you for the kind words. I can't help hoping that you treat yourself to one of those book seats - I love thinking of you and me and Katie and Chelle and Karen all sharing a moment from my thread when we sit down with our big books.

Yay! Mamie's back in town! Mamie's back in town!

Happy New Year, my friend. I'm already enjoying the wild rumpus on your thread.

>37 Crazymamie: I LOVED that annotated Persuasion. I haven't read the annotated Sense and Sensibility, so I'll look forward to your comments on that one. Seems to me Craig must be up for Best Husband Ever after that gift-giving.

If you put a little cold water in your hot water, it spices it up . . .

>62 jnwelch: Thank you so much for that, Joe! I feel the love.

I cannot wait to really dig into it - I started it (The Annotated Persuasion) on Christmas day to try out the new book seat, and it worked fabulously. Craig did an excellent job with the gift giving this year - I also got an Everyman's Library edition of The Charterhouse of Parma, which is lovely and much prettier than the Kindle edition which I was reading. Heh. AND the first set of DVDs of The Young Montalbano:



Haha with the water - I like my hot water run through some freshly ground coffee. Which reminds me that I also got this:

Nice haul! I was so-so over The Charterhouse of Parma; I keep meaning to read The Red and the Black, which I remember Al Gore said was his favorite book.

I LOVED the Young Montalbano DVDs. Look at all that hair, compared to Luca Zingaretti, the older Montalbano. As my wife and daughter would say, the young one, Michele Riondino, is "easy on the eyes."

Happy New Year, Mamie and Happy New Thread. I am so glad to see you back in the fold again. Did you post a best of 2018 list or did I miss it?

I hope you inspire me to read more Austen. I have read very little of her, the past 2 years.

“For throughout history, you can read the stories of women who - against all the odds - got being a woman right, but ended up being compromised, unhappy, hobbled or ruined, because all around them, society was still wrong. Show a girl a pioneering hero - Sylvia Plath, Dorothy Parker, Frida Kahlo, Cleopatra, Boudicca, Joan of Arc - and you also, more often than not, show a girl a woman who was eventually crushed.”
― Caitlin Moran, How to Be a Woman”

This was just as fabulous as Katie said it was. Snarky and funny and observant. It's a collection of essays/memoir that will have you laughing out loud, and it's perfectly delivered by the author. I love how she talks about reading and about stilettos and about coming of age. I grew up in a large household just like she did, although thank goodness there were only six of us and not eight, especially since my family is all girls. Anyway, her comments about the hand me down...um...clothes rang true, and her talking about feeling like she could only ask her mom one question about getting her period, and the agony of those first cheap pads, which were also used as mattresses for their Barbie wannabes. Truth! She also shares her thoughts on motherhood and on how women are expected to have children in order to fully evolve. On eating disorders and weight and aging and role models...So much here to like, and one I know I will listen to again.

>63 Crazymamie: Great mug!
I was reading a minimize lifestyle magazine about reducing the clutter in our house and maintaining a "less stuff" lifestyle. I was acually agreeing with them until I saw this! As if!

>64 jnwelch: I am really liking Charterhouse so far, Joe. I was surprised by the humor in it. And I do have The Red and the Black in the stacks.

I am very excited to finally get to watch the Montalbano - you and Caro are the ones who brought the shows to my attention.

>65 msf59: Thank you, Mark! I did not post a best of 2018 list - right off the top of my head, I would say that I LOVED Tin Man. I will have to put together some thoughts.

Austen is perhaps my very favorite author - Pride and Prejudice, followed closely by Persuasion are favorites of mine.

>67 ChelleBearss: Okay. That made me laugh out loud, Chelle! I love all of my mugs, too.

>66 Crazymamie: Oh, so it's only for women then. Okay. One fewer entry on the TBR. Yay!

>67 ChelleBearss: Fewer coffee mugs?! CLEARLY a deranged lunatic who probably drinks *shudder* tea wrote that. I am one person who drinks two cups a day and I have six (6) coffee mugs. Well, five now, I dropped one yesterday.

>70 richardderus: No, it's not only for women, but I am guessing it would not be a riveting read for you.

Totally agree about the mugs. And so sorry about the mug - may it RIP.

The utter, unspeakable agony of having coffee ready and no clean mug into which one may decant it...well...YOU know.

I have grocery-store mugs from China, which *were* cheap. I priced the formerly-$6 items today: $9. Trade wars blow chunks.

>72 richardderus: Exactly. Bummer about the price. Highway Silk Road robbery.

We have a gazillion coffee cups and mugs, but I have 4 favorites, with two tolerable and many more emergency backups in case the favs are in the dishwasher. I think we have at least two boxes of coffee cups in the attic... and I learned early on when Jenna was little to NOT give her teachers coffee cups as gifts.

>74 karenmarie: Right. We have a mountain of mugs, but of course we cannot part with a single one. And Abby and I have handmade mugs that Roni made, and they are GORGEOUS. She is my only coffee drinker, and we wanted matching special mugs, so that when she moves out when can still have morning coffee together. They are red and full of fabulous.

The girls and I watched this tonight (first time for me), and it is completely charming. If you just read the premise, it sounds like it could be vapid and shallow, but it's SO not. Highly recommended.

Happy New Year and new thread, Mamie. I'm glad your CT is in remission so you can keep up with this busy start to 2019. I'll be lurking lots and posting once in awhile as we journey through the books together. I love the Book Seat upthread. I don't have trouble (yet) with my hands. It's the old eyes that give me the most trouble. Thank goodness for audio books!

>76 Crazymamie: - I watched that a couple of weeks ago, and totally agree.

>63 Crazymamie: Love that mug! LOL

>66 Crazymamie: Book bullet. And I am thinking an audio purchase.

>67 ChelleBearss: That's just wrong!!

>76 Crazymamie: >78 katiekrug: And I will have to look for this one.

Gotta go--so many things to do now! : )

>77 Donna828: Happy New Year, Donna, and thank you! Sadly, my CT is not in remission - I am getting by with a lot of icing and Advil and wearing splints at night. I do bits and spurts on the computer, have added a mouse to my laptop, which I can use with my left hand, and am avoiding loads of things that I know irritate it.

I am happy to hear you will be lurking. I love seeing what everyone is reading and comparing notes on shared reads. The book seat is a life saver - now I can read my physical books again. I just got my first pair of progressive lenses last year, and I LOVE them - cannot believe what a difference they make. I do have baby cataracts on both eyes, but nothing that is causing me any trouble yet. Wishing you a year full of fabulous reading.

How to be a Woman audio purchased!! Thanks Katie and Crazy. : )

>78 katiekrug: Hooray for the shared movie love! I was surprised at how much I liked it.

>79 Berly: Hello, Kim! The mug makes me laugh every time I use it. And definitely go for the audio with that book - you can thank Katie and me later.

The movie is on Netflix, if you have that. Abby has seen it seven times, and finally got me to watch it with her. Birdy and Rae both liked it, too.

>81 Berly: We cross posted - so funny, as I was just saying that you would thank Katie and me. I predict you will love it.

Kim, I'm pretty sure the movie is set in Portland, so it's got that going for it, too :)

>83 Crazymamie: >84 katiekrug: Checking out Netflix tonight!! And I blamed thanked you both on my thread.

>84 katiekrug: Cool - I did not realize that.

>85 Berly: Most excellent! We will happily take the blame for this one, Kim!

Hiya, Mamie - It's been a while, but I wanted to pop in on your shiny new thread and wish you a happy 2019!

We downsized our mug collection a bunch before we moved, but I did get a new one for Christmas, too, and I LOVE it:

https://weratedogs.com/products/goob-morning-mug

I'm a huge fan of Thoughts of Dog on twitter, so this one honestly one of my favorite gifts.

>30 Crazymamie: I bought the book version for my daughter, Catey, who loves books of correspondence and has a birthday coming up and the audio version for me just because. Thanks for the mention, Mamie!

>87 Dejah_Thoris: Hello there, Dejah! Thanks for popping in and wishing me well. Happy New Year to you! I need to track down your thread.

>88 scaifea: Good thinking to do it before a big move, Amber. And I love your mug even though I don't do twitter and therefore don't know what Thoughts of Dog is all about - that one translates. *grin*

>89 alcottacre: That is so great - you'll have to report back, Stasia! And you're welcome.

‘Morning, Mamie! I hope you have a day full of wonderful.

I remember the ice, Advil, and splints. One of my doctors gave me a 10-day prescription for Celebrex in 2004 or 2005 and I loved it, but started reading about it and didn’t ask for more. Too bad, it really helped. But once I got the CT surgery in 2006, the pain stopped immediately. I mean as soon as I woke up, I realized it was gone. My other hand was supposed to need the surgery, too, but I think it got scared. Over the course of several days, it stopped acting carpal-tunnelish and it never flared up again.

>80 Crazymamie: I tried progressive lenses and absolutely hated them. My husband has them and loves them, but they did not work for my reading at all, so back to bifocals, which work fine for me.

My Book Seat arrives tomorrow, can’t wait, and I have told my friend Louise about it and promised to bring it over to show her. She’s Very Interested.

Finally making it to the various threads. Like everyone else, I have far too many mugs, but they are spread out between home, office, and the garage. The ones in the garage probably need to go in a garage sale. I just need to get busy going through the garage to clean things out.

>Morning, Karen! Thanks for those most excellent wishes! Hoping your day is also full of wonder.

That is so great to know about the CT surgery - I definitely have to do something as it is getting worse> it used to flare up, and I would do all the things, and then it would calm down and behave for a bit before flaring up again. Now it is an almost constant thing even with doing all the things.

Weird about the progressive lenses - so sorry they did not work for you as they have been a miracle for me - I just adore them. I'm glad the bifocals work for you.

I am so happy about the Book Seat! I love mine and wish I had gotten one earlier.

>92 thornton37814: Hello, Lori! Great to see you! We have mugs in the garage, too. I try to change some of them out seasonally (laughing because there are no seasons in Georgia), but I have two favorites that have permanent CHOSEN status - the one Roni made for me and the one Abby bought me from Magnolia Market.

CROCK POT MAPLE DIJON CHICKEN DRUMSTICKS

We tried a new recipe last night from the newest Skinnytaste Cookbook, and it was full of fabulous. We added in more drumsticks and also chicken thighs and doubled the sauce, which is really delicious. Served it over jasmine rice with a side of baby peas. Everyone loved it. This is her third cookbook, and I have all of them and would highly recommend each one. I love when there are photos for each recipe. The latest one has loads of recipes for the slow cooker and the Instant Pot. This is the latest one:

Recipe looks good, Mamie!

I got this one for Christmas:

>96 katiekrug: Really good and SO very easy. Love when that happens. All of her cookbooks and her blog are really well done. Have you made anything out of that one yet? Abby just had all of those cookbooks out yesterday and she tagged a bunch of recipes to try. I am very excited about the project because she also made the grocery list, did the marketing and plans on taking charge of the meals for the next several days. Tonight we are having panini sandwiches - YUM!

Nope, haven't made anything yet. I'll peruse it this weekend...

>98 katiekrug: Be sure to report back when you have.

But of course...

>95 Crazymamie: Mmm sounds yum!
I don't have any of the Skinny Taste cookbooks but I use the website quite a bit. I made the cheesy turkey meatloaf earlier this week and it wasn't as good as last time I as prepped it in advance and then Nate baked if before dinner. I think I'll make it fresh next time

Good morning, Mamie! We have mounds of mugs, too, as for years I got them as souvenirs when we'd visit museums or other attractions. I've toyed with using a new mug for work each week, but I never actually manage it — at least partly because I too have preferred mugs and don't care much to use the rest. I should probably purge some more, too.

>95 Crazymamie:, >96 katiekrug: Ooo! *skedaddles to Ammy for Instant Pot idea-starter*

Happy weekend! Sending vanquish-pain *whammy*s and adding my voice to bifocal luuuuv.

>100 katiekrug: *grin*

>101 ChelleBearss: It was delicious, Chelle. Most of the recipes are on her blog, but there are a few that are only in the cookbooks - I just like having the physical book to look through. That cheesy turkey meatloaf is good - we made it after you recommended it, and it was a hit here at the Pecan Paradisio. Good to know that it tastes better freshly made - making a note of that.

>102 harrygbutler: Morning, Harry! I still need to track down your thread. I love everyone's mug stories - so funny how we all have more than we need but can't bear to part with any of them.

>103 richardderus: I love her recipes, Richard - we have loved almost all of them we have made. And thank you for that whammy - much needed and greatly appreciated. *smooch*

I have one fewer mugs than we did after the husband had a mug accident. Lo! the mug had no handle and he didn't know how that had happened...
We, too, have more than we need, but isn;t it funny how you use the same ones over and over rather than try a different mug.

Too funny, Helen! Craig recently broke one of his favorite mugs, so now he needs to come up with a new favorite for taking to work with his morning coffee. I cannot believe he drives with an open mug every morning without making a complete mess of it, but he somehow manages.

Yes to the not trying a different mug! We recently started moving ours around to try to encourage using different ones, but we just go and hunt up our favorite one instead.

>60 susanj67: I have one of Roni's mugs too and it's my #1 favorite. Keeps my tea (sorry, never coffee) nice and hot and is comfortable to hold plus I know the maker and she's really cool!!

>108 RebaRelishesReading: That's exactly how we feel about ours, Reba!

Hello Mamie!

>2 Crazymamie: Love the Corgi with the headphones. Cute! My parents had a Corgi for years until recently.

Mug Story...



I've been working at the same company for 18 years. The doors of this office will be closing at the end of the year. At the front end of my time, the company supplied paper cups until about 3 years in. At that point, they went GREEN and decided that we should all bring our own cups to the office. My wife worked for Starbucks at the time and we got two of the mugs in this series. However, this is the mug that has stood by me for the last 15 years. It has been a trooper.

>110 brodiew2: That's a handsome mug! It's 15 years old?!? Wow.

>111 richardderus: Hi Richard. It's a little older than that, but that's how long its been with me at the office. :-)

Re: To All the Boys I've Loved Before

That's a great movie! It does seem like it might be your typical high school rom-com, but it stays away from many of the stereotypes and tropes of the genre, and the cast is incredibly likable. Much better than Sierra Burgess Is a Loser, in my opinion, the latter of which got more attention.

Hi Mamie, I am dropping my star and then toddling off to Audible to get myself a copy of How to be a Woman. I've read her novel How to Build a Girl, which I loved and with recommendations from both you and Katie, I am looking forward to this one.

Oh, I definitely have too many mugs and I do move them around for different seasons. And like you said, everyone has a favorite. I was lucky enough to find a duplicate of my oldest daughter's fave. She has adulted and moved out, but I gave her the copy for Christmas so now I can think of her when I use it and vice versa.

Sorry to hear that your CT is still bothering you, Mamie, but it is good to see that you are able to work around it - you probably couldn't resist January on the 75ers threads, could you?

>90 Crazymamie: Oh, Thoughts of Dog is the absolute best. A guy tweets using his dog as a voice and they are Everything. Example:

"gooooob morning. i was told that this year. is the year of the belly rub. please don’t look that up. you can trust me"

"i forgot to tell the human. what i wanted for christmas. but that’s okay. it’s hard to wrap a hug"

"my stuffed fren sebastian. is being washed as we speak. the time apart can be lonely. but i can be patient. for when he emerges from the dryer. he’ll be super toasty"

It's MADNESS! good to see you! Hope the CT surgery goes well! Dropping off a star!

>110 brodiew2: Hello, Brodie! I love that corgi, too - I put him up there in honor of Lucy, who was my very first LT friend and who helped me to set up my first thread here back in 2012.

I love the mug! And the story is also very cool - thanks for sharing. It's looking excellent for 15+ years.

>111 richardderus: Agreed.

>113 originalslicey: Hello and welcome to my thread! hanks for your comments - I completely agree with that first statement. I have not seen the other movie that you mention, and sounds like I could skip it?

>114 DeltaQueen50: I am so happy to hear that, Judy! You will see that she took a lot of the material in How to Build a Girl from her own life experiences. I love how she talks about reading and the thoughts that she shares on being a feminist.

>115 Berly: Very cool, Kim! That's the idea behind the mugs that Roni made for Abby and I, except we will both have the originals. I bet your daughter loved both the mug and the thought behind it.

>116 Familyhistorian: Thank you, Meg. This is the only social media I do, so that helps. You are so right that I could not miss the January excitement here - I was SO missing all of you.

>117 scaifea: Amber, that sounds like a hoot! Too funny.

>118 dragonaria: Kimberly! Lovely to see you here! Thank you for those kind words and for dropping a star. I need to come find you.

With all this mug talk, I just have to share that a very dear friend of ours gifted all of us this year with Christmas mugs that have our names and them and they each have a matching coaster. It was full of fabulous because they also arrived with perfect timing - on Christmas Eve! Abby had made up a very gorgeous hot chocolate bar with all sorts of toppings and flavors to add, and the mugs arrived just as we were trying to decide what mugs to use. It could not have been more perfect.


Me, Birdy, Craig, Rae, Daniel, Abby

And here they are closer up:





*note for Katie - please check out Craig's Jack Reacher hands as discussed on your runaway thread. See how his mug looks like a child's mug but is actually the same size as the rest of ours?

Love the mugs!! Will you reserve them for Christmas only use or use them year-round?

You're hitting me with BB's for Building a Girl and How to Be a Woman. I'm thinking about Audible. What do you think, read with eyes or ears?

>123 RebaRelishesReading: Reba, we are going to reserve them for Christmas use. We didn't have any Christmas mugs except for one tiny little Spode mug, so it will be fun to add these to our Christmas traditions.

EARS! Trust me, you do not want to miss the brilliant narration of both of them. I promise you will be laughing out loud.

Thanks Mamie! I'll head over to Audible right now.

How fun to have special Christmas mugs. We really don't have room for such things but in your big house I'm sure there's a place they can be stored to wait for special use :)

>125 RebaRelishesReading: You are welcome!

We are just going to pack them away with the rest of the Christmas stuff - we have attic space.

Our condo is pretty big as condos go but it has VERY little storage space. As to attic type space, we have a "cage" in a room off of the lower parking that is 3' by 6' by about 8' high. I really do have to watch what we keep.

Turned out I'm out of Audible credits at the moment so books went onto wish list for when new supply arrives :)

>127 RebaRelishesReading: We downsized a lot when we moved from Indiana, but we still have loads of stuff, so luckily there is generous attic space here. You are right that your storage space is tight. I plan on really letting a lot of stuff go with our next move, which won't be until Craig retires.

Bummer about the Audible credits - I am also out. My membership renews in January, so I'll get new credits then.

This is my very first Dick Francis read, but it will not be my last. I read it for the Dick Francis year long GR that Julia so kindly organized and set up. You can find the thread here: SHARED READ: Saddle up for Dick Francis' horsy adventures!. We are reading a book every other month.

I mentioned over there that Francis is a favorite of my oldest sister who started me on my love of mysteries when she gifted me with my very first Agatha Christie one year for Christmas. I prefer Scandicrime to cozy mysteries, and really this has a bit of what both types offer - danger and intrigue and violence (but not graphic violence) set alongside a well developed narrative and a sense of place. I loved the detail, and I thought the pacing was perfect. Just a few minor quibbles, which I will save for the group discussion, but overall a very good read. Thanks so much for the nudge to finally get to this author, Julia!

Love the Christmas mugs and your family picture!
Craig's mug does look tiny! lol

>122 Crazymamie: I can't tell you how that picture of you and your family with the mugs makes me feel. Love you all.

>122 Crazymamie: Great mugs and family photo! I have a Christmas mug that my brother and sister-in-law got me, which has a photo of my nephew on his first visit with Santa printed onto it. It stays in the cupboard year-round, but I only use it at Christmas time.

>105 Crazymamie: Though I could get rid of some mugs (and indeed have), Otto has claimed others. He likes to get a fresh cup of water every morning when I'm getting my coffee, and again when he accompanies me up to the home office to work, where he has a second dedicated cup.

>129 Crazymamie: Glad to see you enjoyed it since I have it coming up.

>132 harrygbutler: I'm glad to see another cat that attempts to drink coffee.

Love that Book Seat - I have a book pillow but I like the angle on this one better.

>122 Crazymamie: What a great photo of all of you!!

Well hello there stranger. I very much enjoyed watching Hermione wack Harry again and again in the gif above (and may admit to having watching the Beneditch Cucumbersnatch one a few times as well). And Dick Francis? I was very into him in my late teens, and had entirely forgotten about him! Maybe time for a re-visit.

Your Christmas mugs are great! Love the family photo with all of them too :)

Happy New Year! The Christmas mugs look wonderful!
>7 Crazymamie: I really like your goal of reading 50 books from your own library!

I was more successful in 2018 than in other years in my ability to read my books off the shelf. I'd like to continue that and add more.

All good wishes!

Holy giant hands, Batman!

:)

Love the mugs...

ETA: My Book Seat arrived today, and while I haven't had a chance to put it to real use, my experimentations are promising.

For some strange reason, my ears have been burning...Oh, I see! It's for a GOOD reason, so that's okay! I also have way too many mugs--I posted a picture of my cat mugs out on the dining room table on my thread last year when I was trying to cull out the ones I don't like that much--still ended up with way too many!

Happy New Year, Mamie! Here is hoping the CT is manageable until you are able to get the surgery.
Looking forward to another great year of thread activity to follow. :-)

>32 Crazymamie: - What a fabulous bookie gift!

>122 Crazymamie: - Those mugs are great and love the family photo!

'Morning, Mamie!

Thanks for sharing the family w/mug pics. Good idea to pack them up with Christmas stuff and make them a special part of your family tradition.

>129 Crazymamie: I happily just finished Nerve yesterday. It's a re-read for me, but a very satisfying one. The last time I read any Dick Francis was probably about 2005, so they will all seem new.

>122 Crazymamie: What a great family photo! Thanks for sharing.

Morning, Mamie. Happy Sunday. Hope all is well, at the Pecan Paradiso. We have been very mild here in the Midwest, so I have been taking advantage of every minute.

>129 Crazymamie: So glad your first Dick Francis was a good read, Mamie! It's very stressful trying to pick books that you think other people will like — this leading a shared read stuff is not for sissies! I pulled out my paperback yesterday so I'll be revisiting Rob Finn soon.

Awe! what a great family photo with your gifted Christmas mugs! The cups are awesome! I'm putting them in my memory cabinet for future gift ideas.
Have a happy Sunday!

Stopping by to wish you a Happy New Year and catch up a little. I love the photo of the family with their mugs!

Love the photos of different book edition/series at the top -- I have become obsessed with the New York Review of Books Classics myself.

So far I've evaded CT, to my amazement really, but I am finding that playing too much Words With Friends with my hand hovering over the phone is making some trouble. It's the hovering. So I rest my hand, trying to develop the habit.

Morning, All! Not too much planned here today - we are watching the games for sure. I need to do some laundry and a bit of tidying up,but other than that I am hoping to take it easy.

On the reading front, I am almost finished with Dead Beat, which is book #7 in the Harry Dresden series by Jim Butcher. Normally I love to listen to these on audio as they are narrated by James Marsters, and he does a fabulous job of it, but for some strange reason the library doesn't have this one. If that name sounds familiar, he played Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We especially love him in this one:



I'm still working on The Charterhouse of Parma and Petals of Blood. On audio, I have started Turn of the Screw narrated by Emma Thompson - liking it so far, and I am pretty sure that I read this one wayyyyy back in middle school, but I am not positive, so I'll be counting it as a first time read. This fits the January ScaredyKIT: NPR 100 Favorite Horror Stories or 100 Killer Thrillers (over in the Category Challenge Group), and it has also been in the audio stacks since 2016, so...

>130 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle! And I know! He has really large hands, and his dad's hands were even bigger, which boggles the mind.

>131 Morphidae: Morphy!! SO good to see you here! And I am hoping that the photo is happy making for you - we love you, too, my friend!

>132 harrygbutler: Thank you, Harry! I love the thought of your photo mug - a lovely moment frozen in time. It always amazes me how powerful photos are - they can bring back such strong memories that include sound and smell, and for just a snippet we are there again.

I LOVE the photo of Otto drinking from the mug! Our oldest cat, Mercy, prefers her water over ice in a Tervis tumbler. She will walk around pointedly going up to each person's glass and then go over to the window ledge and meow. Once she sees you get up, she will get into position and patiently wait for the glass to be presented to her. It is the funniest thing - she has trained us well. Heh.

>133 thornton37814: It was very well done, Lori - I read it in a single day.

>134 SuziQoregon: I am in love with my Book Seat, Juli. I can even prop my iPad and my Kindle up on there, so it really saves my wrist a lot of strain.

Glad you like the photo!

>135 evilmoose: Me, too, Megan! Neither of them ever gets old for me. If you do decide to revisit Dick Francis, come over and join us on the GR thread - Julia has a beautiful set-up, and the books we are reading this year are listed in order.

>136 bell7: Thank you, Mary!

>137 Whisper1: Happy New Year, Linda! How fabulous to see you here! Glad you like the mug photos.

I am determined to read 50 of my print books this year - I did a good job of reading my own books last year, but a lot of them were on Kindle, so I am wanting to focus on the physical ones this year.

Thank you for those good wishes! Hoping that 2019 is full of fabulous for you, my friend!

>138 katiekrug: Right?! And hooray for the mug love.

I hope you love your Book Seat - I am going to feel really badly if you all end up hating them. I adore mine - a game changer for me since I just can't handle the hardbacks and the thicker paperbacks right now.

Great story about the mugs, Mamie! I love the serendipity.

>139 ronincats: *grin* Yup. We've been praising your incredible talent, Roni. I remember that photo of the cat mugs!! I had never seen so many before. You are the queen of cat mugs!

>140 lkernagh: Happy New Year to you, Lori! Thank you for those good wishes.

The mugs and the book seat were book wonderful gifts - glad I could share them with all of you.

>141 karenmarie: Morning, Karen! I am happy to share the photo - we rarely have one with all of us in it these days.

This was my very first Dick Francis read, which is incredible really since my sister has all of them in hardback prominently displayed on her shelves. When I lived in the same city with her, I was a teenager, and I think the horse racing backdrop put me off.

>142 msf59: Morning, Mark, and thank you! It's mild here (going to 68F today), too, but at least we have lower humidity for the past two days, which has been lovely. I am excited for next week because we are supposed to get some weather in the 50s - please, PLEASE, let it be so!!

>143 rosalita: I think you did a brilliant job of it, Julia. I loved all the background info you provided and the set-up of one book every other month. I probably would have never read these books on my own, but how could I resist a shared read with you and Susan (which is how I first heard about it)?! And the funny thing is that I thought I would not care for all the horse racing detail, but I loved it.

Now, *looks over the top of her glasses* when are you going to set up your 2019 thread, young lady?

>144 Carmenere: Thanks, Lynda! They were a great gift idea, weren't they? Thoughtful and practical. Happy Sunday to you!

>146 Crazymamie: Ah, Buffy. We love it and Spike. I can hear him saying that right now.

Oh, those mugs are *wonderful*! And what a great family photo! Makes me just want to come and hang out with all those cool people. *sigh*

Also, huge fan of Spike and Buffy. HUGE.

>145 sibylline: Hello there, Lucy! Glad you loved the photo!

Oh dear, I don't have any New York Book Review Classics. I can see another binge coming on. I had to go and check them out, and I am drooling over the travel writing ones - if they had deckled edge pages, they would already be on their way to me. I was looking at their Children's collection, and I realized that I had purchased one of these for my niece's daughter. This one:



And it is a gorgeous little thing. The shop I bought it in just had the one book with a display of little mice that came in boxes that look like match boxes, only larger. SO charming. Anyway, I bought her the book and the little ballerina mouse:



All this to say, that I did not know that they had an entire collection of children's books, so now I can do one each year - awesomesauce!

The CT! I worked for years as a Medical Technologist, so that is where mine comes from. I don't do anything on my phone these days except answer it if it rings - no texting and no gaming. I will be very happy to finally get the surgery later this year (hopefully).

>150 alcottacre: Thank you, Stasia - serendipity is right! I love when things like that happen.

>153 karenmarie: *grin* We just started watching the entire series again. We're ready for season two. The high school years are our favorites, but there are a few great episodes in the college years - like that Thanksgiving one.

>154 scaifea: They are, Amber! And thank you - what a lovely thing to say.

Hooray for the Spike and Buffy love!! So much fun.

>155 Crazymamie: I highly recommend their edition of The Thirteen Clocks, which is gorgeous, of course, and a great read, plus it has an introduction by my favorite, Neil Gaiman!

>155 Crazymamie: Absolutely adorable book and mouse!!

>155 Crazymamie: That does look like a good Scout book. I do have some other NY Book Classics for children.

>157 scaifea: We have that one, Amber! I bought it several years ago because it was such a beautiful thing, and of course, I am just now putting together that it is from that collection - that lovely red binding!! I cannot part with my own copy, but you are right that it would make a perfect one for gifting. I am excited because when my niece was growing up, I gave her each year for her birthday something fun and in the moment for her and then a hardback edition of one of my favorite childhood books. The first one was a copy of The Secret Garden. Anyway, it will be lovely to start that tradition again but with different books for her daughter. And the timing is perfect because she is just turning one this month.

>158 RebaRelishesReading: Thank you, Reba. There are tons of different ones of the little mice, and they are all charming. It was difficult choosing just one.

>159 BLBera: It would be perfect for Scout, Beth! I am guessing she would also love the little mice in their match boxes - they had all different ones, and each one was charming.

>147 Crazymamie: Very, very happy. I had no idea they would be that meaningful. For them to come right on Christmas Eve at the perfect moment and knowing that they are part of a new tradition fills my heart with joy.

You did good, Morphy! We love them and will think of you every time we use them. And so awesome that they arrived with such perfect timing for our first ever hot chocolate bar! We couldn’t believe it. Perfection. Thanks again, my friend.

>146 Crazymamie: Spike! How lovely to see him in his platinum glory. Such a pity he hasn't had more screen work.

Hour 81 of too-addled-to-read and damned good and sick of it. Thank goodness for Netflix.

>164 richardderus: I completely agree, Richard - I have big love for James Marsters.

You poor, poor baby! Sending you sickness be gone whammy. *smooch*

>7 Crazymamie: oh wow, oh wow, oh wow. That is a pretty post :):):)

>122 Crazymamie: A rare sighting of the Mamie!! Lovely family pic.

As always, I enjoy your chatty thread, Mamie.

I loved the family photo with those Christmas mugs. I’m filing that clever idea away for next year. ;-)

>147 Crazymamie: If Otto walks up to a glass of water, he doesn't just sniff, he drinks — so we have to be careful. :-)

I like the cover illustration for Mouse House. At the moment we haven't any children in the family for which that would be suitable, but I'll hope to remember it when next we do.

>166 LovingLit: Agreed - now I need to read some of that pretty. Glad you like the photo, Megan.

>167 Donna828: Thank you, Donna. Glad you love the photo. The Christmas mugs were very fun, and we are looking forward to getting them out every year - an excellent gift.

>168 harrygbutler: Morning, Harry! Too funny about Otto.

I liked the cover, too - the illustrations inside are just as charming.

>122 Crazymamie: Love the mugs!!!! Have a great Monday, Mamie!

Morning, Anita! Hooray for the mug love! And thank you for those good wishes even though you said the M word.

Mamie, that is such a lovely picture of you all with the mugs! And I am laughing about how teeny Craig's mug does indeed look :-) I have a Christmas mug for the office which I use for the whole of December, and it's surprising how quickly those Decembers roll around...

Glad you enjoyed Nerve. I haven't read it yet, but don't tell Julia.

>172 susanj67: Hello, Susan! Thank you! And yes - Craig has giant hands, just like Jack Reacher. You are so right about December rolling around quickly - it seems to arrive faster every year.

I think you will like Nerve when you get to it - very well written and the story pulls you right in. And don't worry - your secret is safe with me.

>172 susanj67: >173 Crazymamie: I'm sitting right here, you know ...

Happy Day That Must Not Be Named! Here's a cutey drinking coffee to distract you:


Thanks to much sleeping, I'm human again and can get some reading done.

>174 rosalita: Oh, dear! Hello, Julia!! Can I get you anything? Perhaps a Mexican hot chocolate? If I remember correctly, you like those:



>175 richardderus: Welcome back, dear! I am so happy to read that you are human again. *happy dance* And thank you for the very nice thread warming gift.

'Morning, Mamie!

Well, having finished Nerve, I'm waiting for March and the next book. I've got lots of other fun stuff to read, but now I've got the appetite for Dick Francis again. Sigh. I.will.be.patient.

I love that photo of the Mamie clan up there in >122 Crazymamie:, Mamie! Fun mugs, and I got a kick out of Craig's Jack Reacher hands. His mug does look smaller!

I've got to get to Nerve soon. It'll be a re-read for me, and it's been a long time since I've read Dick Francis. I'm looking forward to this.

Hello Mamie! I hope all is well with you.

I am hard pressed to remember many of my childhood favorite books. I cannot, however forget, Arrow to the Sun: A Pueblo tale. Amazing color and imagery. Just beautiful.



>175 richardderus: Nice one, Richard.

Hi Mamie. Hoping the first "one of those days" wasn't completely awful. I did spin this morning for the first time in a couple of weeks. That serves me right really, doesn't it? And in a kill or cure kind of style, it's done wonders for the tail end of my chesty cough as well.
Here's to the start of Tuesday.

>176 Crazymamie:, >179 brodiew2: Dean Winchester appeals to all the aisles in the building. That show's been on since he was a mere lad, and now he's sneakin' up on 41.

Great family mug photo, Mamie. What perfect timing for them to show up!

>155 Crazymamie: Ballerina mouse is so cute. I'll have to check those out.

>177 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! That is a most excellent mantra - I am not good with being patient myownself. The dick Francis read was a lot of fun, and I am looking forward to the second book, which I need to track down.

>178 jnwelch: Glad you love the photo, Joe! Right?! That mug looks like a toy in Craig's hands - so funny.

I am excited you are joining in for the Dick Francis read - we have a nice group of people.

>179 brodiew2: Hello, Brodie! All is well now that Pre-Tuesday is on its way out. I loved The Secret Garden and Mary Poppins and the Nancy Drew books - so many great memories. The one you post is new to me - it does look like it has amazing color.

>180 Helenliz: Thank you, Helen - not completely awful, thank goodness. *looks around suspiciously* Of course, it's not over yet...

I have never spun. There you go - my secret confession for today. Sounds like it did you proud, though, if it helped with you hanger on of a cough. Hooray for that!

Yes! Yes, Tuesday. Bring it on, please!

>181 richardderus: Okay, I had to look him up because I didn't know who he was. DO I also confess that I have never seen the show?

>182 Familyhistorian: Thank you, Meg! The timing was truly incredible. It was like magic.

That mouse! I am love with the little mice in the match boxes - so cute and so well made. I love children's toys like that where you can easily take them along in a pocket.

Just checking in on your thread, Mamie! All this talk of Spike and Buffy want me to recommend to you Legendary: Buffy The Vampire Slayer, a very fun cooperative game (https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/210290/legendary-buffy-vampire-slayer).

>185 alcottacre: Stasia! Thank you so much - I am definitely going to pick that up. We were just talking about adding some new games, and I was saying that you were back in town and I should query you. Most excellent!!

>186 Crazymamie: I am glad I could help!

>187 alcottacre: *grin*

>184 Crazymamie: After 14 years of it being on, that amazes me. Nonetheless, it's uncommon for most people who like to look at handsome men to fail to appreciate Jensen Ackles's boyish, friendly blue-eyed charm.

>189 richardderus: I just don't watch a lot of television except for football and murder mysteries. I will check out the show - totally agree that he looks charming. Excellent word choice.

>190 Crazymamie: Umm. Word to the wise: very very gory and violent fights between His Prettyness, his significantly less handsome brother, and a whole host of demons, fallen angels, and assorted evildoers. Very. Violent.

Thanks for the warning - duly noted.

BUT if you'd rather not watch the show and just see a funny video of him dancing to "Eye of the Tiger" there's this: https://youtu.be/BvfVEm6qkG0

Shockingly, this is one of the two current shows I *do* keep up with. Violent and gore... well, I keep all the lights on and I knit while it's on.

>189 richardderus: >190 Crazymamie: >191 richardderus: I tried watching the first episode last year at some point, because both of those boys are so beautiful and I'm already in love with all the memes, but it was too scary!! I'm such a wimp.

Happy Tuesday, Mamie! I'm fairly certain I've read Mouse House many, many years ago. To refresh my memory I've requested it from the library. Literary mice have been a fave of mine for a very long time and may have started with this book. We'll see.

>193 bell7: Mary, that is a HOOT! Thanks so much for the link - Birdy and I were laughing out loud. And I just have to say that I love the image of you calmly knitting while watching the violence and gore. I actually don't mind violence and gore - but I don't like to see violence against children or animals.

>194 scaifea: I will give it a go and report back, Amber. I love a good scare, but there are certain things that I don't like to watch, so we'll see.

>195 Carmenere: Happy Tuesday, Lynda! We share a love of literary mice. I am going to read the one I bought for my niece's daughter before I send it off - her birthday is later this month.

>193 bell7: I love his goofy, I'm-just-playin' vibe.

Hi Mamie!

It's coffee o'clock!

>197 richardderus: Morning, BigDaddy! Just about to head for my second cup, so you are right on time! Love that image.

All this talk of mugs now has me wondering if there is some kind of correlation between book collecting and mug collecting. I got rid of quite a few mugs in my recent move, but I still have one kitchen cupboard that is mostly full of mugs.

>194 scaifea: I am right there with you, Amber! Both Beth and Catey love the show - I cannot watch it.

Good afternoon, Mamie!

>184 Crazymamie: >189 richardderus: >194 scaifea: My brother turned me on to the show some years back and blazed through Seasons 1-6 and started watching after that. I am not into horror genre either, but this show captivated me because of the family dynamic it portrays. The brothers, Sam and Dean, have a tragic history and a dangerous, relatively solitary, present. However, they love each other deeply and are willing to sacrifice all for each other...over and over again. I stopped watching after season 10, at my wife's behest, but they show is still a wonderful model of family love in the midst of horrific and comedic circumstances.

>197 richardderus: Excellent image, Richard!

......and I am finally caught up with you Mamie. Love the mug shot (see what I did there). Have no idea what gory tv show everyone’s talking about but I know the word gory in the description makes it doubtful I’d ever watch. I’ve never read anything by Dick Francis but that doesn’t mean I won’t try him out in the future. I’ll try to keep up with you as difficult as that may be.

>199 cbl_tn: That's an interesting theory, Carrie. We have way more mugs than we need, but of course we couldn't possibly part with any.

>200 alcottacre: I am curious now, Stasia - none of us has watched it before.

>201 brodiew2: Good Evening, Brodie! I think you might watch more tv than anyone I know - you always know exactly what we are talking about and have additional insights. Amazing.

>202 brenzi: Hello there, Bonnie! I am honored that you caught up with me. And yes, I saw what you did there - made me laugh. No gore for you, huh? Duly noted.

The Dick Francis was very good - I loved all the details from the race horsing world, which kind of surprised me. He spins a good story, that's for sure.

I will also try to keep up with you this year - I kind of fell off LT last year, so I am hoping to do better in 2019. Thanks so much for stopping in.

I just realized up in my beautiful post containing all the book editions that I collect, that I forgot about my Virago Modern Classics, so now I need to hunt down an image I like. Most of mine are Angela Thirkell because I fell in love with the covers:



But I really want a square image to fit with the others I already chose...

And aren't these gorgeous, although I don't own any of these particular ones:

>204 Crazymamie: OOOoooooooooooOooOOOOOOOOooooooooo

*quietly covets Mamie's treasures*

>205 richardderus: Right?! All that gorgeous. *sigh*

Hi Mamie!

>203 Crazymamie: I have seen a lot of tv over the years, but you might be surprised by the gaps in my viewing. I would have let Supernatural pass had my brother not been so persistent.

>204 Crazymamie: Beautiful cover, all. I especially like The Brandons cover. I just Googled some of the others. Very cool.

>204 Crazymamie: Gorgeous

Hi Mamie! Wow, you have a busy thread! I, too, plan to walk the cat this year, which is my usual reading M.O.

>204 Crazymamie: those are beautiful! I love Angela Thirkell. I had never heard of her until about 10 years ago, and then it was from Richard! Love this place.

>207 brodiew2: Hey, Brodie! I tried watching the pilot episode last night, but I got a little more than halfway through, and the streaming quit. I'll try to finish it up today.

The covers are indeed beautiful, the first one is what snagged my attention:



>208 BLBera: Agreed, Beth.

>209 AMQS: Hello, Anne! I have been walking the cat for several years now, too. I am a mood reader, so it's what works best for me.

Richard is a gem! I stumbled across them and fell in love with the cover, and after purchasing it and posting about it, Richard was saying what great books they were, so of course, I felt like I was justified in collecting all of them. I have only read the first one so far, which was delightful - I need to get back to them.

Morning, Mamie!

This is book seven in Butcher's Harry Dresden books, and it is my favorite so far. Harry is blackmailed into tracking down the Word of Kemmler in order to help save a friend's reputation. He doesn't even know what it is, but it's Harry, so of course he is off and running to find it. Along the way he will encounter necromancers, zombies, ghosts, and a few other things that go bump in the night. Fast paced and really fun. I loved how Chicago's Field Museum plays a pivotal role in this one. Highly recommended, but read them in order.

Thanks so much to Roberta, who urged me to keep going with these books when I wanted to bail after the first few - she was right, they do get SO much better, and Harry stops being so angsty and actually starts letting others help him out.

>211 katiekrug: Morning, Katie! Sorry you have to go to the dentist today.

>210 Crazymamie: I have that one! I just read it last month and enjoyed it very much.

It's charming, isn't it, Carrie?!

Morning, Mamie. Happy Wednesday. We are back to winter cold here, after a lengthy reprieve. Just about finished with the Obama memoir. It will be my first 5 star read of the year. B.A.G.

Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday. We are also enjoying some colder weather here - well, cold for Georgia. Going to be in the 50s through Saturday, which feels like a gift. *happy dance*

I am waiting for my Audible membership to renew to get Becoming. I am not shocked that it will be a 5 star read for you - I have heard only good things.

>212 Crazymamie: Hi, Mamie! I stopped reading the Dresden books after the fifth one, Death Masks. As I recall, I started reading Ben Aaronovitch's series about British police wizard Peter Grant (the first being Midnight Riot) around the same time, and I thought the Butcher books suffered badly in comparison to the wit and plotting of Aaronovtich. But that's probably just me. I'd like to get back to them again, but so many books, so little time ...

>209 AMQS:, >210 Crazymamie: *garshk* y'all actually listen to me, that's so sweet.

>212 Crazymamie: I'm reading all the Dresden books this year. I think I'll make a goal of finishing one series a year for a while until I can catch up on my series. :)

>212 Crazymamie: Hello, Julia! I agree that the Dresden books suffer in comparison to the Peter Grant books - LOVE those, and also the humor is delightful. If you do decide to give Harry one more chance, I think books six and seven are turning points for Harry - we get more backstory, more accepting of help, and less angst. Harry was making me crazy with how he always rushes in without thinking things through all the way, feels that he needs to do it all alone, whines about how tired and banged up he is when it is no one's fault but his own, and seems to be ill-prepared and ill-equipped to deal with anything. BUT books six and seven start turning things around. Anyway, if you ever feel a burning need to give Harry one more chance (well, two because I would recommend reading both six and seven together), then you know you are at least at the perfect entry point for some positive change. I totally get the so many books, so little time thing - choose wisely for you.

>213 Crazymamie: Well, of course we do, darling. *smooch*

>220 The_Hibernator: I like the idea of finishing one series a year as a goal, Rachel. I have to be in the right mood to read multiple books in a series, but I do often end up doing that in the course of a year - choosing which one ahead of time would be the kiss of death for me, as I would lose interest as soon as I said I was going to do it. I love to make lists, but I am terrible about following through. Heh.

Hmmm, Mamie, Angela Thirkell is new to me. What should I expect from her?

>223 Carmenere: Hey there, Lynda. Charm and wit in spades from Thirkell. The books I have by her are from her Barsetshire series - full of humor and warmth, they are set in 1930s England in the fictional county of Barsetshire. I think you would like them, although I have only read the first one, I have it from the best authorities that the entire series is great fun.

Super! I like great fun! I'll see if she's in my library system. Thanks

Looks like the new Jackson Brodie will be coming out in June of this year!!! *squee*

>225 Carmenere: You're welcome!

>213 Crazymamie: - No cavities!

>226 Crazymamie: - Squee! indeed!

>228 katiekrug: Well done, Katie!

Right?! I can't wait.

>226 Crazymamie: Hooray!

>230 cbl_tn: Indeed!

Good afternoon, Mamie.

I too love those Angela Thirkell covers up in >204 Crazymamie:.

I wish I wasn't caught up on the Harry Dresden books! I envy you reading Dead Beat. Kudos to Roberta for convincing you to continue; I snap up every new one that comes out.

>226 Crazymamie: That's another series that I started and then stalled. I read the first two books in 2013 (I think) and haven't gone back yet.

>226 Crazymamie: Great news! Can't wait.

It sounds like I quit the Dresden series just before it got good. :-) I'll let you know if I give him one/two more chances someday. If I do it will strictly be because of you.

And hoooray! for new Jackson Brodie!

Wow, I’m so glad I stopped by before you started a new thread and I totally missed this one. I loved the photos you posted of the different book editions. I adore the Penguin Deluxe Classics and gifted a few this Christmas. I’ve a couple on my shelves to get to, too.

>210 Crazymamie: I just bought that for myself! Have you read it yet? I haven’t read anything by Angela Thirkell but I’ve heard her mentioned favorably around LT and couldn’t resist.

I, too, have a mug problem... bookmarks and mugs are the two things I like to pickup as souvenirs when I travel. Plus, my husband has a bunch of union local mugs and I have a box full of cable network mugs. At least they’re relatively small. And I love your family’s new personalized holiday mugs!

And another hoooray for a new Jackson Brodie book coming soon!

>196 Crazymamie: Oh I'm a complete wimp, the knitting is so that I have something else to look at when it gets violent ;) Glad you enjoyed the video! It still makes me laugh.

>197 richardderus: I watched the first 9 seasons on DVD and that was one of the after-the-episode things on one of them that just cracked me up completely.

>236 Copperskye: You are in for a treat, Joanne, this series is delight between covers. Set in Anthony Trollope's fictional Barsetshire, county town Barchester, the interlocking casts of characters make it a sprawling multivolume funny/sad/moving soap opera.

>237 bell7: The actor, Jensen Ackles, seems like a pleasantly goofy down-to-earth kind of dude.

>226 Crazymamie: Oops looks like I should read Started Early Took My Dog which has been languishing on my shelves since she said she wasn’t thinking about Jackson Brodie anymore.

>238 richardderus: Excellent! I had no idea, Richard, so thanks for that info! I picked up a used copy from the bookstore before the holidays more or less on a whim.

Well, you all talked me into seeing if there were any Angela Thirkell books in my library. There are so at least one of those will be in my future and I was also reminded that I am due to get to the second Jackson Brodie soon - so many books, so little time!

Happy (belated) New Year Mamie! And happy new thread!



Wishing you and your family the best for 2019.

>70 richardderus: As my husband would say, god is watching you. Thou spakest thusly about tea and thine coffee mug hath been smote.

>95 Crazymamie: >96 katiekrug: Noooo, don't do that to me; I cannot squeeze anything more onto my cookbook shelves (the books there are already deforming). Darn - I think I felt an impact. And you make me think my son might enjoy getting involved (hah! not likely IRL).

>101 ChelleBearss: ... wait - there's a website? My bookshelves and wallet thank you.

>122 Crazymamie: I like the family mug photo. I can see the resemblance between the sisters.

As for mug collections, we deliberately don't collect souvenirs when we travel (I like matched sets) but my husband picked some up that I suspect came free with something he ordered (they also look suspiciously like some freebies his parents got and which haunt me everywhere I visit). They look nice enough (white with three coloured bands around the top) but the handles get hot if they're microwaved, so no good for reheating anything in.

Phew! made it to the end of your thread before you started a new one, even if I had to skim a bit.

Morning, Mamie! Almost Friday... :)

Me too, me too! My library system has High Rising and Christmas at High Rising. They sound similar. Anyway, I reserved HR and hope to be able to book horn it in.

>232 jnwelch: Hello, Joe! Aren't those covers cool?

Craig is also all caught up with Harry - he has read through the series multiple times, and Birdy just bought him the only season they made of The Dresden Files for his birthday. As much as he loves Harry, his favorite Butcher books are The Codex Alera, which Daniel also loves.

>233 ChelleBearss: Oh, Chelle, they're so good! I hope you get back to them someday.

>234 BLBera: Me, either, Beth! I got so excited last year when Charlotte reported on her thread that there was going to be another Jackson book. I thought we would have to wait at least a year for it, and yet it is coming in June!!

>242 humouress: ...gotta wonder about the priorities of a Supreme Being who's a petty, vengeful tea-drinker...

Hi Mamie! Hoping it's as perfect a reading day for you as it is here.

>235 rosalita: Most excellent, Julia! If it doesn't call to you, then don't bother, but if you do decide to jump back in, a least you know those are pivotal books. And book 7 is SO much fun.

I am over the moon about the upcoming Jackson Brodie. LOVE him.

>236 Copperskye: Joanne, what a lovely post! None of my extended family are big readers, but luckily, Craig and the girls are. And the girls love deckled edge pages almost as much as I do. I check periodically to see if they have come out with any more that I want.

Yes, I read High Rising and few years ago and loved it. I need to get back to the series, and I will probably reread that first one since it's been awhile.

We used to collect deck of cards when we traveled because they are easy to pack and because we love to play cards. We got our mugs pretty much one mug at a time - Craig is very good at breaking them, so we don't have as many as we might have. The new holiday mugs were perfect for us, and we will treasure them - glad you loved our mug shot!

Hooray, indeed, for the new Jackson Brodie!

>237 bell7: Well, it's an excellent choice, Mary - your knitting is so pretty! The video was so fun, and I had to play it twice as the girls came running to see what I was doing.

>238 richardderus: Thanks for that, Richard! A lovely description, and since I have only read the first one, you are a better source for the series.

"...seems like a pleasantly goofy down-to-earth kind of dude." This also describes my Daniel!!

>239 brenzi: Yes, you should, Bonnie. You can stop hoarding it now that you know there will be another.

>240 Copperskye: So fun, Joanne - we can compare notes when you get to it.

>241 Familyhistorian: Hooray, Meg! And yes, get back to Jackson.

>242 humouress: Hello, Nina, and thank you! You words of wisdom to Richard made me laugh!

Right - her blog is excellent, and while it does not have all of the recipes that are in her cookbooks, it does have most of them. My kids all loved cooking with me, so I am crossing my fingers for your son.

Glad you like the photo! Oh, dear to the mugs - mine have to be able to handle the microwave, as I tend to warm up my drink a lot.

Skimming is perfectly acceptable - thanks for dropping in and taking the time to leave me a note.

>243 katiekrug: Morning, Katie! Yep - almost made it.

Good morning, Mamie.

71 messages in 3 days since I posted. Sigh.

I'll just say that I'm happy you have cold weather - 50s - and I'm freezing a tad further north with it still below freezing at almost 10 a.m. It will be a hot chocolate afternoon, I think.

When things get too violent or bloody when we're watching something on the TV, I just say to Bill "Tell me when I can look again." I either turn to a cell phone game or try to entice one of the kitties to sit with me.

>244 Carmenere: Most exciting, Lynda! This is so full of fabulous!

>245 Crazymamie: Haha - I love your response to Nina! And thank you for those good wishes - that looks a cozy spot to nestle in and enjoy the day.

>250 karenmarie: Morning, Karen! The threads are hopping, but then they always are this time of year.

I am loving the spot of cold we are experiencing. The high today is supposed to be 53F, which is full of fabulous. I applaud your liberal use of hot chocolate - I have been taking advantage of Abby's hot chocolate bar and adding a little to some espresso and steamed almond milk - SO good. My own version of a cafe mocha.

Whatever works, I say - sounds like you have a solid method for dealing with avoiding violence overload.

>246 richardderus: You seem to be labouring under the misapprehension that tea drinking is not of the highest importance. (Petty and vengeful I may have to give you.) But please note >249 Crazymamie: 'words of wisdom' :0)

>249 Crazymamie: Thanks Mamie. I think I got to about 150 posts before I started skimming.

I'm assuming the hot chocolate bar is solid which you melt down, add comestibles to and then drink it? Sounds delicious.

>253 humouress: *belly laugh*

No, but that does sound delicious. It's a beautiful tray of items that Abby put together for Christmas Eve - it includes hot chocolate mix, various toppings like shaved chocolate and tiny toffee pieces, some syrups, snowflake shaped marshmallows, whipped cream, Peppermint Kahlua...we loved it so much that we gave it a place atop Craig's new liquor cabinet that he got for his birthday from me. I'll see if I can take and post a photo in the next day or so.

>253 humouress: Tea ≠ anything remotely within hollerin' distance of important. A fact so immutable, so self-evidently correct, as not to need further discussion. *smooch*

>254 Crazymamie: Haven't you heard of Abuelita?!?

Mexican-style bars of cinnamon-tinged chocolate, to be melted in a pot of steamed milk. For which to dying it is.

>255 richardderus: Oh, dear! Not until now. *adds it to the shopping list* Thanks, BigDaddy!

>256 Crazymamie: Prego, amore. I'm all about hooking people into new addictions. *evil Muttley laugh*

>257 richardderus: Well played.

>255 richardderus: The only thing better than cinnamon and chocolate is chipotle and chocolate -- try it in brownies some time :)

>259 RebaRelishesReading: Reba, I also love that combination. YUM!

>258 Crazymamie: :)

>259 RebaRelishesReading:, >260 Crazymamie: Chipotle dark chocolate gelato. 'Nuff sed.

>260 Crazymamie: :)

Hello Mamie! I hope your day is going well.

I may be the only one intrested, but I'm wondering if you got through that pilot of Supernatural.

For December I had an advent calendar of tea, one of which was chocolate flake tea. Tasted a bit like tea after you'd dunked a dark chocolate digestive in it. Not sweet chocolaty, more a cocoa edge to the tea taste. Not one for every day, but for an occasional change.

>261 richardderus:, >262 RebaRelishesReading: Of course, now I want that even though cold things make my teeth ache.

>263 brodiew2: Hello, Brodie! All is well. I did make it through the rest of Supernatural, and I liked it, so I will continue.

>264 Helenliz: Helen, there is some kind of chocolate tea that Abby really likes - I shall have to ask her what kind it is. I bet the tea advent calendar was fun.

>265 Crazymamie: it was! I did consider a wine or prosecco version, but decided spending an entire month slightly blotto was probably not a good idea... I wrote myself a note on each day's tea, so that at the end I'd know which I'd enjoyed and which I hadn't. There were a few interesting combinations, but only one I detested (popcorn tea, I'm looking at you). It was a good idea and I'm glad I found it.

Hiya, Mamie
Glad that you are enjoying some cooler temps. We have cooler temps too, finally, but I won’t say I’m enjoying them or the wind chill. It’s nice to see some snow instead of mus for a change, through :)

I think I have the next Kate Atkinson book on my wreader so perhaps I’ll pick it up again this summer.

YIKES to the popcorn tea! Yowza. Great idea to take notes - I did that once with a sample box of different kinds of espresso, and it came in so handy down the road when I was deciding what to buy a larger amount of. I would love to do a wine advent calendar one of these years.

>267 ChelleBearss: Hello, Chelle! I would love to see snow, but that ain't gonna happen. I will settle for my 50s temps, which are really lovely. I can finally wear long sleeves outside!

I love those Jackson Brodie books - happy reading when you get to it!

Wow, you are back with a vengeance, Mamie. Good-O!

I'm glad you posted a family pic. We've seen snaps of you kids. Nice to see you and Craig.


Gotta look again at those recoms from Katie; I think I saw a few I'd be interested in.

>270 weird_O: Hello, Bill! It's good to be back, and I'm glad you liked the photo.

I have never been disappointed by a Katie recommendation - she is most excellent that way.

>270 weird_O: and >271 Crazymamie: - *grin*

Were your ears burning, Katie?

>254 Crazymamie: The tray sounds beautiful.

I used to do a tap class with a few other ladies and afterwards we'd drive down the road to a French café where they'd serve you hot milk with a small jug of melted chocolate; you poured the chocolate into the milk and voilà, hot chocolate. (The best part for me was scraping out the melted chocolate and consuming that. Bad manners, I'm sure, but I couldn't resist.) I'm sure the calorie expenditure for the morning was negative.

>255 richardderus: Oh Richard, Richard. *shakes head sadly in despair*

>266 Helenliz: Getting through December slightly blotto each day might improve my season of birthday parties/ end of school year/ birthday & Christmas shopping/ actual birthdays/ setting up for Christmas etc. etc. etc.

Recently my husband decided, for whatever reason, to buy food flavourings (not even natural flavourings I think) to add to my nightly cup of Earl Grey. Despite the fact that I said I didn't appreciate my tea being adulterated in that fashion he added it again last night. I was looking forward to it because it smelled delicious - before he added the flavour. After he added, all I could smell was esters. My son tasted it (the smell made him curious), I sipped it and then my husband had a taste; the whole thing went down the sink :0( Hopefully that's the end of that experiment.

>274 humouress: It is, Nina, and it is getting a lot of use - so fun. And I love that story! I would have scraped out the melted chocolate, too - YUM!

I like your thoughts concerning December and the wine advent calendar. *grin*

Oh, dear, to the added flavourings! YIKES! Crossing my fingers for you that they are history.