Amber's (scaifea) Thread #16

Hey, everybody!

I'm Amber, a one-time Classics professor, turned stay-at-home parent/lady of leisure, turned part-time library assistant, turned once again Classics professor. I spend my free time sewing, writing, knitting, baking, and, of course, reading.

My reading life is happily governed by lists, which means that I read a healthy variety of things across various genres.

I'm 45 going on 12 and live in Ohio with my husband, Tomm; our son, Charlie, and Mario the Golden Retriever.

Here I am in all my New Haircut glory, I suppose:



Favorite Books from 2020
The Lumberjanes collected comic volumes
Call Down the Hawk
New Kid
The Wise Man's Fear
The Slow Regard of Silent Things
Pride and Prejudice
Silver in the Wood
A Tale of Two Cities

What I'm Reading Now:
-Uncle Silas (books by year - 1864)
-Captain Fracasse (1001 Children's Books)
-Red, White, & Royal Blue (romance list)
-Cards on the Table (audiobook)
-The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas (family bedtime read-aloud)
-Three Men in a Boat (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob)
-Gates of Fire (unread book from my shelves)
-Mister Impossible (series read)
-A Likely Story (cozy mysteries)

Books on Deck:
-(an unread book from my shelves)
-(a book from my Read Soon! shelves)
-The Experience of Insight (Buddhist reading list)
-(cozy mysteries)
-Henry VI Part 1 (Shakespeare re-read)
-Children of the Alley (Banned Books)
-Lud-in-the-Mist (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy list)
-Wheels within Wheels (Prometheus Award)
-Cards on the Table (Christie bibliography)

The five-ish or so books I have going at once and the On Deck books nearly all come from the following categories and lists:

1. A book from the 100 Banned Books book (at least currently. As soon as I finish this list, I'll replace it with another, and oh, I've got tons of lists).

2. A children's book, for Charlie's library. I'm trying to collect books from various award lists, and I like reading them before reading them to Charlie or deciding to add them to Charlie's shelves. For this category, I’m currently working through three lists:
a. 1001 Children’s Books You Must Read Before You Die
b. The Newbery Honor books
c. Cooperative Children's Book Center list

3. A book from the Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy List, in chronological order.

4. A list I'm working through together with my best friend, Rob: The Hugo/Nebula/WFA/Bram Stoker (and other) lists (combined, in chronological order)

5. For this category, I cycle through 9 different stacks:
a. Agatha Christie's bibliography (in chronological order)
b. Stephen Fry's bibliography (in chronological order)
c. John Boyne bibliography (in chronological order, sort of)
d. Neil Gaiman's bibliography (in some order other than chronological (don't
ask)).
e. Christopher Moore's bibliography (in chronological order)
f. Maggie Stiefvater's bibliography (in chronological order)
g. The NEH Timeless Classics list
h. The National Book Award list (in alpha order by title)
i. The Pulitzer list (in alpha order by author)

6. An unread book from my shelves.

7. A book from my Read Soon! shelves.

8. A book on Buddhism or from the Dalai Lama's bibliography.

9. Book-a-year challenge: Three years ago, along with a few others in this group (*cough* Paul *cough*), I made a year-by-year list to see how far I could go back with consecutive reads. I've since been trying to fill in the gap years.

10. A book from the couple of series that I'm reading together with my mom.

11. A full-on re-read through Shakespeare's stuff.

12. A read-aloud-to-Charlie-at-bedtime book (or two).

13. An audio book, which I listen to as I knit/sew/otherwise craft/drive.

14. A romance novel, using as a guideline an excellent list of authors and works curated by lycomaflower (I know virtually nothing about this genre, but I now work in a library where many, many lovely people come through to check out books of this genre, and I want to know something about it).

15. This slot is reserved for books that just grab me and shout that they need to be read Right Now.

Books Read

JANUARY
1. Spinning Silver (Alex Award) - 10/10 = A+
2. Swamp Thing: Twin Branches (Stiefvater bibliography) - 8/10 = B
3. Manchild in the Promised Land (Banned Books list, AlphaKIT: M) - 9/10 = A-
4. The Wish Giver (Newbery Honor Book) - 8/10 = B
5. Silas Marner (audiobook) - 8/10 = B-
6. The Story of Tracy Beaker (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B-
7. Thick as Thieves (series reread) - 10/10 = A+
8. Lumberjanes #16: Mind over Mettle (series read) - 10/10 = A+
9. Pilgrimage (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy Books) - 7/10 = C
10. Each Tiny Spark (Schneider Honor Book) - 7/10 = C
11. The House on the Borderland (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy list) - 6/10 = D
12. Beyond Religion (books on Buddhism) - 9/10 = A
13. Outlander (romance list) - 6/10 = D
14. Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun (Newbery Honor Book) - 7/10 = C
15. Far Away Across the Sea (1001 Children's Books) - 10/10 = A+
16. The Daylight Gate (Read Soon! Shelves) - 8/10 = B-
17. The Queen of Attolia (family bedtime read-aloud) - 10/10 = A+
18. Works and Days & Theogony (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A-
19. The Book Thief (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob) - 10/10 = A+
20. Return of the Thief (series read) - 10/10 = A+

FEBRUARY
21. The Bacchants (myth course reading) - 9/10 = A
22. Camp (romance) - 8/10 = B+
23. Song of a Whale (Schneider Award) - 8/10 = B-
24. Gardens of the Moon (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy list) - 4/10 = F
25. Oedipus Rex (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
26. Antigone (Myth course readings) = 10/10 = A+
27. Agamemnon (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
27. Upon the Head of a Goat (Newbery Honor Book) - 8/10 = B
27. Volcano (Newbery Honor Book) - 7/10 = C
30. A Promised Land (audiobook) - 8/10 = B+
31. The Stone Book Quartet (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C+
32. The Libation Bearers (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A
33. Eumenides (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
34. Electra (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
35. The King of Elfland's Daughter (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy Books) - 7/10 = C
36. The Goalkeeper's Revenge (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
37. Conrad: The Factory-Made Boy (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B
38. Medea (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
39. The Frogs (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A
40. Metamorphoses (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
41. Iliad (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
42. Odyssey (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
43. Aeneid (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
44. The Histories (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
45. Till We Have Faces (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy Books) - 8/10 = B-

MARCH
46. My Sweet Orange Tree (1001 Children's Books) - 9/10 = A
47. Lord Foul's Bane (BSFA) - 2/10 = F
48. Manolito Four Eyes (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
49. The Early History of Rome, Book 1 (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A
50. Farmer Boy (family bedtime read-aloud) - 9/10 = A-
51. The Henna Wars (romance list) - 8/10 = B+
52. Cursed (Schneider Award) - 9/10 = A
53. Heroides (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A
54. The Apocolocyntosis (Myth course readings) - 9/10 = A
55. Sandman: The Kindly Ones (Myth course readings) - 10/10 = A+
56. Tales of the Rue Broca (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
57. Far Away Across the Sea (family bedtime read-aloud) - 10/10 = A+
58. After the Rain (Newbery Honor Book) - 8/10 = B-
59. Ready Player Two (from my Read Soon! shelves) - 9/10 = A
60. The Moonstone (audiobook) - 8/10 = B+
61. Memoirs of a Geisha (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob) - 8/10 = B

APRIL
62. The Club Dumas (unread book from my shelves) - 9/10 = A
63. Good Night, Mr. Tom (1001 Children's Books) - 9/10 = A
64. The Liverpool Cats (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B+
65. The Ugly American (100 Banned Books) - 9/10 = A
66. The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tiler (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B+
67. The Haunting (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B
68. The Whistle, the Grave, and the Ghost (family bedtime read-aloud) - 9/10 = A
69. Sense and Sensibility (unread book from my shelves) - 8/10 = B+
70. Middlemarch (audiobook) - 2/10 = F
71. Ordinary Hazards (audiobook) - 8/10 = B-
72. Chaotic Good (Read Soon! Shelves) - 9/10 = A

MAY
73. The Beast Player (Printz Honor Book) - 8/10 = B+
74. Another Country (100 Banned Books) - 8/10 = B-
75. Lumberjanes Vol. 17: Smitten in the Stars (series read) - 10/10 = A+
76. The Worm Ouroboros (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy Books list) - 4/10 = F
77. Where the World Ends (audiobook) - 9/10 = A
78. In the Beginning: Creation Stories from around the World (Newbery Honor Book) - 7/10 = C+
79. Max and Sally and the Phenomenal Phone (1001 Children's Books) - 8/10 = B-
80. BUtterfield 8 (unread books from my shelves) - 9/10 = A
81. Nine Princes in Amber (Green Dragon 1001 Fantasy list) - 4/10 = F
82. Stories: All-New Tales (books from my Read Soon! shelves) - 8/10 = B-
83. Visitors from London (recommendation from Julia) - 9/10 = A
84. Storm (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
85. Dig (Printz Award, audiobook) - 9/10 = A
86. The Crossover (reread with Charlie) - 9/10 = A
87. The Rose and the Ring (1001 Children's Books) - 6/10 = D
88. Guard of Honor (Pulitzer list) - 8/10 = B-
89. The Girl on the Train (Read Soon! shelves) - 9/10 = A-
90. Sunday's Child (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
91. Mrs. Dalloway (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob) - 7/10 = C
92. Captive Prince (romance) - 8/10 = B+
93. High School (audiobook, Alex Award) - 9/10 = A
94. Scorpions (Newbery Honor Book) - 8/10 = B+
95. Children of the Alley (Banned Books) - 8/10 = B-
96. On the Banks of Plum Creek (family bedtime read-aloud) - 9/10 = A-
97. Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (Printz Honor Book) - 8/10 = B+
98. The Swallows (Alex Award) - 9/10 = A

JUNE
99. Steeple (impulse read) - 9/10 = A
100. Journey to Jo'burg (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
101. Dao de Jing (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob) - 9/10 = A
102. My Friend the Painter (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
103. Drowned Country (from my Read Soon! shelves) - 9/10 = A
104. The Ruins of Gorlan (audiobook) - 9/10 = A

The Kiddo at Work:



The Mario and her Magical Rainbow Snoot:

Next one is yours!

happy new thread! Love the new 'do!

>7 drneutron: Thanks, Jim, times two!!

Happy new one, Amber!

ETA: Since he's now on summer break, we need a new photo of The Kiddo at play.

Happy new thread, Amber! You have beautiful hair. I'm glad the haircut went well.

I agree with Katie - we need a new photo of The Kiddo at play.

>9 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie!

We'll see about the photo. Charlie has recently become camera intolerant and I'm respecting his wishes.

>10 karenmarie: Thanks so much, Karen! It feels off brand for me, but I do actually really love my hair in general (it was too long there for a bit, but otherwise I tend to be pretty happy with it).

(See my response to Katie above about the Kiddo photo.)

Happy New Thread, Amber! Love the new 'do!

I totally get the camera intolerance thing and respecting that.

Happy new thread! Glad the haircut went well. I’ve always loved the *idea* of waist-length hair, but mine won’t grow that long.

>15 foggidawn: Thanks, foggi!

Oh gosh, my hair grows *so* fast. And yeah, I think you'd still just love the idea of it and not the reality - it's a pain.

Happy new thread, Amber!

The last time I had waist-length hair was in high school but I haven't let it get that long in ages. The added weight of it means my curls aren't as bouncy so my preferred length is usually somewhere between chin-length and brushing the tops of my shoulders. I just booked my first hair cut in a year and the longest sections of it have gone from a bit below to chin-length to the lowest point of my shoulder blades in that time. So there will be a fair amount coming off at the end of next month.

Hopefully your hair is now at the point where it doesn't feel like it's going to strangle you if you roll over in your sleep. :)

>17 MickyFine: Ha! My "fair amount" was so much that the stylist had to sweep up three times so she didn't slip on the piles. Yoicks.

Hi Amber my dear, happy new thread and love the hair.

>18 scaifea: Have you ever donated your hair? If it grows that thick and fast, I'm sure it would be a wig-maker's dream.

>19 johnsimpson: Thanks, John!

>20 MickyFine: I haven't. It's never really thought about it. If I ever let it grow out again I'll try to remember that.

My wife had long hair when we met. We both got tired of: "Ow, ow, ow. You're on my hair!" The hairdresser put into a fat braid and scissored it off. Judi sent it to "Locks of Love". In the early to mid-1970s.

>23 weird_O: Ah, yep. Been there (the "owowow" part).

Wait, what!?! Didn't I just .... oh well,

Happy new thread!

>12 scaifea: Gotta honor Charlie’s wishes about photos. We’ll just have to be patient. My daughter’s not intolerant, just not thrilled when I take a photo. I try to minimize my requests.

>25 quondame: Ha! Thanks.

>26 karenmarie: It feels in some ways like a small thing, but I think it's super important. There are a ton of little ways through the years that I've tried to teach by example that No Means No and Your Body Your Choice to him, and this is one of them. Things like, even when he was tiny and we were tickling each other, the second he said "stop!" even if he was giggling, I'd immediately stop. When he asked why I stopped, I'd tell him it was because he told me to.

Today's Agenda:
I think I may bake some bread today and then maybe spend some time in the sewing room. It's pretty overcast and chilly here today, so definitely no bike rides. High percent chance of reading this afternoon. Tomm's grilling for dinner - some sort of sausage and herbed, roasted potato thing. Sounds pretty good, really.

I also need to order new knitting needles: I'm working on a pair of socks right now, and last night I got a splinter in my hand from one of the needles. So that's it - I'm done with wooden/bamboo needles! Gah.

On the reading front:
Same report at yesterday, to be honest: more Children of the Alley, more Scorpions, and more The Swallows read.

What We're Watching:
We recently decided that Fridays will be dedicated to our Marvel rewatch. Last night was Captain Marvel, one of my very favorites. I cry real tears of joy at the end every time.

Happy new thread, Amber! Nice new haircut too. Mine grows fast and I'll grow it out and then chop it short & donate it every few years. Gives me an excuse to try different styles in the interim, and my hair stylist always gets a huge kick out of cutting it short and changing the style drastically.

Sounds like the perfect day for bread, and hope you have a great weekend!

>30 bell7: Thanks, Mary!

I went through that style-experimenting phase when I was younger, but now I've found a style that really works for me and I love it. It was really fun to try different styles back then, but I also love just having My Style now. If I ever manage to go all grey I've vowed to get some pink and purple highlights or some such, but I still don't think I'll vary the cut.

Off to start making the bread now!

Ouch to the a knitting-related splinter! I've never had that happen. I like wood/bamboo for my double-pointed sock needles, but my circs are all metal.

>32 lauralkeet: I love bamboo needles for their non-slip security, but this isn't the first time I've gotten a splinter and I'm just done with it. I'm hoping I can find some good metal dpns to replace them.

Splinters from knitting needles are no good! I'm sure you'll find some good metal ones that won't be so aggressive. Our weather has been all over the place — it was low 80s on Monday, it rained most of the week and last night we had a frost warning. I swear, if it starts snowing I'm out of here!

Ouch! Sorry to hear about the knitting splinter and good luck finding metal needles that work for you.

And I'm with you on getting all the feels over Captain Marvel. I think I cried when I saw it in theaters at least twice.

>34 rosalita: Hi, Julia! Yeah, I was pretty mad about the splinter last night, but Tomm was good enough to get it out for me.

I'd invite you to run away to here, but we're having the same kind of crazy weather. Ugh.

>35 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky. I ordered a set of metal dpns in several sizes from Knit Picks this morning. They're one of my favorite knitting shops so I suspect they'll be good needles.

Captain Marvel: That scene with the montage of her through different ages getting back up after getting knocked down over and over again as proof that it's her humanity (and the fact that she's a woman) that gives her her strength, and how she comes to realize that the Kree/men's perception of her as a human/woman is what has been holding her back is just so amazing. Plus, when she has no time for Jude Law and his nonsense in the end and tells him as much. Just...wow. When we saw it in the theater I actually stood up and clapped at that part.

>37 scaifea: ❤

We've got the same weird weather here - day before yesterday was warm and sunny. Yesterday was grey and cool, today more of the same. But it's supposed to go up nearly 20 degrees tomorrow, and another 7 (to 87) on Monday. Right now that sounds great, I'm chilly, but I'll be roasting by Monday (only lasts a day, though, temps back down to 80 and high 70s by Tuesday and for the rest of the week. Maybe).

Happy new thread, Amber!

Love your haircut. Amazing how long your hair can grow. Mine never got longer than a few inches over my shoulders.

>39 jjmcgaffey: Hi, Jennifer!

Yeah, we're still looking at chilly weather today, but then it looks like this coming week might be lovely (mid-70s all week).

>40 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita!

Family on both my mom's and my dad's sides all have had thick, coarse, fast-growing hair, so I think it was inevitable for me. Tomm has, too, and so of course, does Charlie.

Overcast and chilly again today, so we're all planning for a cozy day inside. Housecleaning (blech), then some sewing room time for me, followed by some reading before dinner prep, which I think will be sausage gumbo with peach cobbler for dessert. I've already made a batch of Apple Orchard Muffins for the week's (and this morning's) breakfasts, and they really hit the spot on such a dreary morning.

On the reading front:
I finished Scorpions yesterday (review to come) and made some progress with The Swallows as well.

What We're Watching:
It was Tomm's pick last night and we watched that Will Ferrell movie about Eurovision - I can't remember the name. It was funny, but not my favorite of his stuff.

>43 scaifea: - We watched that Will Ferrell movie a couple of months ago. It had its moments, but yeah. Not the best of his movies.

We are having similar weather. Sigh.

>44 katiekrug: Honestly, Graham Norton was the best thing about this one. I do love him to bits.

Sorry about the weather over there - maybe you'll have 70s and sunny next week, too?

Sorry to hear about your less than ideal weather, Amber. It's been warm and sunny here with a heat wave coming this week (highs are supposed to be 24-29°C (75-85°F) all week).

Hope your cleaning goes fast so you can spend more time on fun stuff.

Morning, Micky!

Cleaning is finished - woot!

94. Scorpions by Walter Dean Myers (Newbery Honor Book) - 8/10 = B+
12-year-old Jamal is facing stressful situations on all sides: he's having trouble at school. which is exacerbated by the casual racism of his principal; his older brother is in jail for killing a man during a robbery; he feels a low-grade constant worry for his mother, who works too hard out of necessity and is herself worried sick over her oldest son; and he is now facing pressure from his brother's old gang not only to join them, but also to take his brother's place as their leader. When the neighborhood gang lord gives him a gun to help solidify his new position, Jamal at first balks, but then becomes dependent on the gun for a feeling of security, forming a love/hate relationship with the weapon. The gun, of course, leads to nothing but trouble, and Jamal's only constant - his sweet and kind and loving best friend, Tito - gets caught up in the consequences.

This one feels pretty heavy for a Newbery Honor Book, but then again, if there are middle grade kids getting pulled into such a violent life, then there should be middle grade books out there tackling the subject. There's no happy ending here, but it's an important read, nonetheless. Jamal feels very real, and his emotions and reactions to the situations he finds himself in are believable, which is not an easy writing goal to accomplish. Overall, recommended.

>47 scaifea:

>49 MickyFine: *snork!*

Aw, thanks, Dean, for being so excited for me!

95. Children of the Alley by Naguib Mahfouz (Banned Books) - 8/10 = B-
The fictional history of a gebelawi (alley/neighborhood) in Cairo, but it's really an elaborate allegory for/retelling of Adam & Eve, Cain & Abel, Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad. At first I loved it, and that love sustained me through the Cain & Abel section and through the first part of the Moses bit, but then the variation in the saga (and it is, as it seems to me, much longer than it needs to be) leaked out and I lost interest. It's clever to a point, and I think the cleverness would have won out with a bit more editing.

Today's Agenda:
I slept in this morning with a nasty headache, which is still hanging on. I've taken meds and hopefully it will calm down because I'd like to spend some time in the sewing room today. Otherwise, there will be napping and attempted reading and not much else. Thankfully we have plenty of leftovers in the fridge for dinner.

On the reading front:
I started two new ones yesterday: Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me and Drowned Country. Both seem promising so far. I also made good progress with The Swallows, and if I can get into the sewing room today I'll maybe finish it (or maybe I'll just lay in bed and listen).

What We're Watching:
It was my pick last night, so we watched Mulan (the animated one). One of my favorites.

96. On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder (family bedtime read-aloud) - 9/10 = A-
Ma, Pa, Laura, Mary, Carrie, and their bulldog Jack move to Minnesota this time, live in a sod house for a bit, then move into a new home built by Pa and a friendly neighbor. They live through a swarm of grasshoppers and several blizzards this time around, and Laura discovers leeches in a stagnant pond (*cringe*).

This is the book in the series that introduces us to the setting for the classic tv show, complete with Nellie Oleson and her bratty curls. I'm fascinated by how much more I can see in the story reading it as an adult. As a kid, I blindly loved the whole family (although Mary always struck me as too goody-goody), but now it's clear that Pa was probably always just a half step ahead of creditors and his poor life choices would be comical if they weren't so tragic. But Laura is still a girl I hugely identify with, just as I did as a kid, and I'm happy that Charlie is enjoying the series (although he's a much more sophisticated reader than I was and has few illusions about the wisdom of some of Pa's choices).

Sorry about the headache, Amber, and I'm glad that you have nothing that has to get done today.

>54 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen. The meds are kicking in and the headache is easing up a bit. I may try to get some sewing done - we'll see...

Glad to hear the meds are starting to kick in, Amber. Hope the headache continues to dissipate. Share your Mulan love and frequently make this reference:

>53 scaifea: Interesting take on this book as an adult, Amber. We can relate to what it must have been like, for both parents, to be homesteading as they did, and just trying to make ends meet. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been for anyone to start from nothing as they (repeatedly) did.

Also, I'm sorry about your headache. I hope it eases soon.

>56 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky. I'm feeling progressively better as the day goes along.

I'm not really an Eddie Murphy fan, but I do love that little dragon.

>57 lauralkeet: Laura: I can't shake the feeling that if he had just let Caroline make the decisions, they wouldn't have had to move and start over as often as they did...

And thanks - it's gradually getting better throughout the day so far.

>59 scaifea: ahhhh well, yes there's that. Women had absolutely zero power back in those days.

>60 lauralkeet: Well, very little, at least.

97. Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me by Mariko Tamaki (Printz Honor Book) - 8/10 = B+
A YA graphic novel about a toxic romantic relationship between two teenagers, and how one of them gradually realizes that toxicity and how it's also making her a bad friend in other areas of her life. A good, realistic portrayal of teen relationships, and the illustrations are excellent.

98. The Swallows by Lisa Lutz (Alex Award) - 9/10 = A
Alex Witt starts her teaching job at a swanky private high school with a trunk full of reservations tucked away with the other personal baggage she brings with her. It doesn't take her long to start suspecting that something bad is going on among the students and that the other faculty either don't know what's happening or choose to ignore it with a 'boys will be boys' kind of attitude. A small cohort of female students decides that enough is enough, and with Witt's not-fully-witting guidance, they stage a full-scale revolt that has more serious consequences than anyone could have predicted.

It's difficult to classify this one: it's part mystery and part thriller, but not fully either, and it seems to be labeled as Adult Fiction, although a strong majority of the characters are YA (it also won the Alex Award, so it clearly does straddle that particular distinction). Whatever category it belongs to, it's also an excellent read. The characters are sharply drawn and the voices a credibly distinct; there's also not really one character I'd say that I liked, but even so I was definitely rooting for a few of them throughout - and there are a handful of characters whom it is very easy to hate. The suspense is nicely done and the climax is satisfying. Recommended.

>63 scaifea: That's a BB.

>64 quondame: Enjoy!

Today's Agenda:
Headache's still hanging on, although it's not nearly as bad as it was yesterday morning. I have a eye doc appointment today and I know I'll need new lenses because I'm having trouble reading smallish print even with my bifocal these days. I also need to run to the UPS Store to drop off a package (returning Charlie's textbooks) and I need to pop into the library to pick up holds. I'm feeling pretty okay about all that since I'll just keep my mask on the whole time.

My appointment isn't until 11, so Charlie and I will have time for our morning walk and to get started on our summer math program: Tomm's work has a program called Aleks, which is an online math learning/review system by school grade. It's pretty cool because it gives pre- and post-evaluations that determine what areas you need more work on, and then assigns the proper sections for you. It shows you each time your progress via pie charts and such. It's a great way to keep math a little bit in his brain over summer break and I kind of like doing it with him. So we'll get started with that this morning, too.

This afternoon I may try to get some writing done, but possibly I'll just sit and read or even take a nap, depending on the status of the headache. Charlie's in charge of dinner tonight - he's decided to make chicken noodle soup.

On the reading front:
I read through the first collected volume of Steeple, made progress with Drowned Country, and started listening to Catch-22.

What We're Watching:
It was Charlie's pick last night and we watched a few episodes of Gilmore Girls.

Don't know how I missed it (busy re-cataloguing books is the actual reason) but better late than never to wish you a happy new thread. x

Hope your headache clear up soon. xx

>67 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul, times two!

>53 scaifea: Ugh, the leeches! *shudder* That's one of the reasons that book is probably my least-favorite of the series. Yeah, Pa was not always good at making life choices.

Hope your headache clears up soon!

Hi, Amber. Caught up with you again. Sorry you didn't like Mrs. Dalloway. Glad you got a haircut, finally - really down to your waist! Wow. I love the way it looks now.

Mine would still curl at waist length, I think, and probably stand out on all sides too. Not to be thought of!

>69 foggidawn: Thanks, foggi! The headache seems to be one of those that comes and goes throughout the day, which I guess is better than constant pain.

I think Plum Creek is my least favorite, too, although I'll have to see once we get through the others (my memory isn't great on the details of those).

>70 ffortsa: Hi, Judy. And thanks for the curl love! I'm really happy that it's back to its normal length and style.

Eye appointment was a success! My eyes are super healthy, but yeah, my Rx has CHANGED, the doc said. Which means that when my new glasses come in, I should be seeing things up close with much less effort! Woot!

Yet another reminder that I REALLY need to make an eye appointment....

Glad yours went well!

>74 katiekrug: Yeah, I'm not great about keeping up with my yearly health appts, I'm afraid. I'm feeling very adulty today, though!

I have my appointment booked for Thursday! *proud*

I'm good about the doctor and the dentist but I really hate the eye doctor so I tend to let it slip. It's been, um, a few years...

>76 katiekrug: WOOT!!

I stupidly get nervous that they'll tell me something is seriously wrong with me so I avoid going. So dumb. And not very adulty.

99. Steeple by John Allison (impulse read) - 9/10 = A
A young new apprentice chaplain arrives in the small village of Tredregyn, eager to spread the Good Word through community service, but what she finds there is a priest with a Moby Dick sized obsession with fighting sea monsters nightly and a church of Satan with a healthy congregation, which seems surprisingly not all that evil. She's got some mental adjustments to make as she settles into this strange new town.

Witty, weird, and adorable in turns, this first volume comic collection is an absolute hoot. I instantly wanted to be friends with every character in here, and that's quality writing, right there. Definitely recommended for fans of comics/graphic novels with smart and hilarious dialogue and folks who don't mind walking the borderline for the slightly heretical.

>66 scaifea: My daughter works for a company called Mathnasium® which does math tutoring - her first job was as a tutor there and after a couple of accounting jobs which were disasters for entirely different reasons, a former supervisor at Mathnasium connected her with a support job there - one of the services she supports is the remote tutoring that the company was just starting to roll out before Covid. That got jumpstarted!

>78 scaifea: Oo! That does sound fun!

>79 quondame: Interesting - good for her! Tomm's work (he works for a major textbook company) has, of course, done really well this year with its online products.

Glad to hear the optometrist appointment went well and hopefully you're able to get your new prescription quickly. I've got funds in my work health spending account, which I may use to buy myself some new glasses. Although I should probably do an eye exam first. I go every other January usually as my health plan only covers them every 2 years (although the health spending funds would cover that too :P).

Did you pick new frames already? Similar to what you have or something different?

>81 MickyFine: We used Tomm's HSA for when insurance didn't cover for this, too. I've ordered the new glasses (new frames and all) - two pair: a regular pair and a set of sunglasses. Should be here in about 2 weeks. The regular ones are not too different from what I've got - a similar shape and they're dark blue. The sunglasses are black frames.

>82 scaifea: Awesome. I've been toying with getting some frames in a not utilitarian colour. I love my tortoiseshell cat's eye frames but it might be fun to mix it up with something brighter occasionally. I'm sure yours will look glam!

>74 katiekrug: Ditto. I was due for my annual checkup last November, but ...

Also need to reschedule my dentist appointment again. And a haircut. Sheesh. I'm having more sympathy for the Facilities Management staff at my university, who are constantly complaining about the false savings that result from deferred maintenance.

>82 scaifea: >83 MickyFine: I'll just put a plug in for my favorite glasses website, eyebuydirect.com. They regularly have great sales and I often get new pairs (frames and lenses) for less than $30 total. It's been really fun to be able to buy some of the wackier frames that are fun to wear every once in a while but that I wouldn't buy if I were spending a ton of money on a pair I'd be wearing every day. I've been really happy with the quality, too!

>83 MickyFine: Blue is my favorite color and the dark blue frames aren't too flashy (I love the idea of flashy but not so much in actual practice for me).

>84 rosalita: *snork!* Deferred maintenance is so spot on!

>85 curioussquared: I looked at a few of those online glasses sites, but I'm a little squicky about ordering something like glasses online. I realize you have time to try them out and can send them back, but that just seems like a hassle to me. I'm glad it works out well for others, though!

I gave up wearing prescription sunglasses quite a few years ago, when Jim introduced me to Dioptics, which makes non-prescription sunglasses that fit over your regular glasses. He got a pair from the surgeon after eye surgery, and we were intrigued. They are quite cheap, and hold up pretty well, and look good too. With masks, it's been a little less convenient having two pairs of earpieces behind the ears. But other than that, I'm very pleased with them.

>78 scaifea: Looks interesting, especially as my library just added it to Overdrive.

>89 ffortsa: Nice! I don't mind having a second pair of glasses at all, so it's not an issue for me, but I'm glad they work for you!

>90 drneutron: Oh, yay! I hope you love it, Jim!

>89 ffortsa: Well that slowed me down. I'm fresh out of clip-ons so I went looking on Amazon for Dioptics and then forgot I was in the middle of an LT thread. Typical. I still haven't ordered more clip-ons.

Today's Agenda:
Hey folks - I woke up and the headache seems to be gone! Woot! (For now.) And, I don't need to leave the house today! Double Woot!! (This getting back to normal thing is leading to me needing to Go Places waaay too much already.) It's cloudy and rainy this morning, so I'm not sure if Charlie and I (and Mario) will be able to get our morning walk in, but it's also Wednesday, which means it's Baking Day for Able Baker Charlie; today's recipe is Mint M&M Brownies. Otherwise, I'll try to do so more of my room-by-room spring tidying, maybe some writing, and possibly some cross stitching. I miscalculated on how many leftovers we'd have at this point, so instead of relying on what's in the fridge, I think we may rely on frozen pizza tonight. (Chef Charlie's Chicken Noodle Soup last night was amazing but we ate most of it - I really thought it would make a bigger batch...)

Oh, and our bike ride last night was wonderful. Sunny, breezy, kiddos out in their yards laughing and playing, neighbors waving at us...perfection.

On the reading front:
I started two new ones yesterday: Uncle Silas, which I'm in love with already (gothic is my jam), and Journey to Jo'burg, which is okay, but I have some issues with it. Also, I'm not sure how I feel about Catch-22 (my current audiobook); it's either brilliant or super-annoying or maybe both? I can't tell if I want to continue or pull the eject cord.

What We're Watching:
Tomm worked more after dinner, so Charlie and I watched a couple of OUAT episodes. That show is just nuts, but such a fun kind of nuts. Also, the other characters need to step away from Rumple and stop yelling at him about how awful he is: HE KNOWS. Yeesh. It's just rude, to be honest.

Charlie's Chicken Noodle Soup:

>94 scaifea: MINT M&M BROWNIES ?!
Those sound like manna from heaven, Amber. Is there a recipe you can share?

>96 lauralkeet: I don't have the recipe typed up, but I can tell you that it's really just a basic brownie recipe (you could even use a box mix) with 1 teaspoon of mint extract and 1 cup of M&Ms mixed in. Top it with buttercream frosting (with more mint extract stirred in if you want it *really* minty) and sprinkle more M&Ms on top.

>97 scaifea: ohhhh that does sound pretty easy Amber. I used to be a brownie-baking snob, using only a "from scratch" recipe, but the pandemic converted me into a box mix brownie baker. Mostly I just throw chocolate chips into the batter but mint and M&Ms are a nice variation.

>94 scaifea: I am in the "it is both" camp about Catch-22, Amber. I did read it last year and ended my review with The good parts were worth 4*, the bad parts no more than 2*.

>98 lauralkeet: I generally prefer making baked goods from scratch, too, but I learned a long time ago that certain brownie mixes are just as good (and sometimes better!) than what I can do on my own and *so* convenient. This time will be from scratch, though, because ABC will be in charge...

>99 FAMeulstee: Hi, Anita! Thanks for the input about Catch-22. Ooof. I'm still debating if the good parts are worth it...

Hi Amber!

Congrats on the eye appointment going well and feeling adulty. We use it in it’s verb form – adulting and adulted. *smile*

>94 scaifea: I loved Catch-22 when I read it as a young adult and wonder how I’d feel if I reread it now. My current copy has been on the shelves since 2010, and I somehow acquired Sparks Notes about it, too.

>95 scaifea: Yum, looks fantastic.

>100 scaifea: I look forward to seeing a picture of ABC’s Mint M&M Brownies.

>102 karenmarie: Morning, Karen!

One of the things I love about English is the ability to turn nearly any kind of word into nearly any other kind of word and make it make sense. Linguistics is a hoot.

Yeah, I'm never going to get to the point where I love the book, I already know. We'll see if I can hold on a bit longer, but the annoyance factor is pretty high right now. I'm happy you liked it, though!

Able Baker Charlie made a last-minute recipe tweak: he decided he'd rather exchange the brownie base for a chocolate shortbread one instead. So, currently in the oven is a pan of Minty Chocolate M&M Shortbread. Chefs can be divas - what can you do?

Charlie's soup looks good - what a full bowl! And his brownies shortbread sounds great, too. I really want some brownies now. Or shortbread. I'm not picky.

>104 katiekrug: Yeah, I may have been a little greedy with the soup and left most of the broth behind in my helping...

The shortbread is out of the oven and the entire house smells So. Minty.

Mmm, I hope the shortbread is as tasty as it smells.

Where are you in OUAT these days? Rumple being yelled at for being evil doesn't really stand out because... it happens at least once a year.

>106 MickyFine: I haven't tasted it yet, but it does smell very minty (I'm not a huge fan of super-minty things, so I'll have a small piece and praise how good it is to the chef and then probably not have any more).

OUAT: They're in Neverland, Rumple is on a martyr kick, Neil is being a jerk to his dad, Hook is making wooing motions and Emma is resisting (as if that's not gonna happen I mean seriously do us all a favor and get a room), Putz Charming drank the magic waterfall juice and is not dying...for now, and Snow is doing her overly-dramatic and overly-tired Come On Guys Don't Lose Hope! act. Also, once a year?! Try once an episode. My sweet babboo is so mistreated.

Okay, so I'm abandoning Catch-22.

I've come firmly down on the side of it being much more exhausting and exasperating than brilliant. I get it, I do: he's got the whole free association thing going, and the circular logic theme is clever, I guess, but already tired by 10 pages in. Every so often he produces a turn of phrase that is actual Really Good Writing, but it's so not worth the flood of sentences that are trying so hard to be that. My god, the sheer volume of similes is almost impressive. But honestly, not every single description needs one, just like not every single noun needs three adjectives. YOICKS.

So, anyway, yeah. I'm done. I give in. I've read enough that I get what it's all about, but that's all of my time I'm willing to give to this one.

>108 scaifea: - Good for you. I will always cheer for abandoning books (unless it's one I've recommendaed - heh). Life is too short!

>109 katiekrug: Seconded

>109 katiekrug: *fist bump*

>110 London_StJ: *another fist bump*

So I've had a shortbread now and I can confirm that they are both very minty and pretty darn good:

>107 scaifea: Ah yes. I'm pretty fond of the Neverland arc. Captain Swan is my ship so I'm a big fan of all the flirting. I look forward to seeing your reactions to a few of the things that are revealed during this part of the season. :D

>112 scaifea: - NOICE.

>113 MickyFine: As much as I don't like Pan (the actor is atrocious), I do like the idea of Pan as essentially evil and definitely dangerous, and casting the Lost Boys as older teens is brilliant. I'm super into whatever history Pan and Rumple have together, too, but the Bella Vision is kind of annoying.

>114 katiekrug: *snork!* I'll pass along the compliment!

>115 scaifea: I'll save my comments on Pan until you've watched more of/all of the Neverland arc.

>117 MickyFine: Cool.

Today's Agenda:
Menu planning and grocery ordering for pickup tomorrow, a bit of spring tidying, probably some writing, definitely some reading. Breakfast for dinner tonight (short order eggs and toast, essentially).

Charlie and I managed to get our morning walk in yesterday in between bouts of drizzle, but it was raining after dinner, so we didn't get that second walk in. Our morning one looks iffy again today - it's still drizzly out there. I'm all for a rainy day, but I know that Charlie misses our walks when we have to skip them.

On the reading front:
I finished up Journey to Jo'burg yesterday and read a chunk of Red, White, and Royal Blue, which I'm loving to bits so far.

What We're Watching:
Another late night of working for Tomm, so Charlie and I watched more OUAT. I love this show tons, but for the love of Zeus it's Pandora's JAR IT'S NOT A BOX IT'S AN IMPORTANT PLOT POINT IN THE ORIGINAL NOT JUST A MINOR DETAIL GAAAAAH!!

Morning, Amber! Sweet Thursday. I remember reading and loving Catch-22 back in high school but have never revisited it. Funny, in all the years I have been on LT, I do not think I have heard anyone talk about it or Heller either.

>120 msf59: I'm glad you enjoyed it, Mark! And that's funny, but you're right - I don't remember anyone talking about it, either, although it's a fairly famous novel.

I read Catch-22 in my early twenties. I don't remember why, except I think I thought it was one of those classics that "everyone" should read. I finished it, but that was also before I learned to abandon books. I remember scratching my head through most of it, wondering why it was considered so great.

>122 lauralkeet: Oh, whew. So Anita and I aren't the only ones! I get what he's (trying to) do(ing) and I get why people this it's brilliant. I just think it's way more annoying than innovative?

Do you think there's a gender element, Amber? Again, this is something I wouldn't have been thinking about in my twenties but now I have trouble with novels that are overwhelmingly masculine.

>124 lauralkeet: Oh, interesting thought! I don't think so, for me, at least? It's the style that irritates me more than anything, and I think it would still bother me if the gender thing were more balanced. Then again, that could be in there somewhere for me, in an underlying kind of way... It's very possible that I'm also subconsciously annoyed. I'm certainly capable of being annoyed on several planes (pun absolutely intended sorrynotsorry) at once.

>125 scaifea: I'm certainly capable of being annoyed on several planes
HA! Good one Amber. And yes, me too.

>126 lauralkeet: It's a particular skill - we should be proud.

>123 scaifea: I just think it's way more annoying than innovative?

I wonder if it's a similar to the situation I found myself in when I finally read Sherlock Holmes after having read mysteries of all sorts for many years. I expected to love love love Sherlock, but I was disappointed at how unoriginal it seemed. Then I remembered that it was (more or less) the first, and all the things I was perceiving as unoriginal from my modern perspective felt that way because Conan Doyle had invented them and all the other authors I'd been reading were following in his footsteps.

In other words, I think it's hard for any modern reader, including me, to fully understand why Catch-22 hit like such a shock to the system when it was first published. There are so many good books now that capture the insanity of war with a cynical and satirical viewpoint, but C-22 might have been the granddaddy that made all those possible.

Or maybe it's just not that good. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So, Charlie and I just squeezed our morning walk in before it started really raining. Aaaand, there's a dead mole in our front flower bed. Our reactions to seeing it were...comical. (Neither of us are great fans of wildlife, living or otherwise, up close, apparently. There was squealing. Also high-pitch yelling. On both sides.) I am *so* glad we decided to leave Mario at home - she will NOT be coaxed into anything more than a medium mosey on our walks (she's not the most athletic dog you'll ever meet) and I wanted to be able to hustle back home if we got caught in a downpour - because I suspect I would have had trouble holding her back from inspecting the discovery. Yoicks.

>128 rosalita: Okay, I will deal with you not instantly loving Sherlock Holmes on my own time (there may be smelling salts involved), but yeah that's a great point. I think, though, that I just don't like that free-association business at all. But I'm interested in the idea of finding originals derivative, or, well, you know what I mean.

>130 scaifea: Sorry to have gobsmacked you with the Sherlock info! I did grow to enjoy the stories very much as I continued reading them, and of course the BBC series with Benadryl Cabbagepatch is *chef's kiss*.

And oof, totally with you on the free-association thing. I generally don't have a lot of patience for experimental constructions unless it's done really, really well (I quite like Ali Smith, for example) but that's really, really rare. Sounds like Heller didn't have the right stuff (no wait, that's Tom Wolfe — oh, you know what I mean!)

And sorry about the dead mole. That sounds ooky.

>131 rosalita: Ha! No worries. I'm fine now. And you're right about Candlesnark - he's *so* good as Sherlock. *swoons* (Ope, I may need those smelling salts again.)

Agreed about the really really well done thing - that makes just about anything tolerable. (*snork!* to the Wolfe reference!)

Dead mole is extremely ick, yes. Manly Man of House will take care of it later. He says he thinks the neighbor's cat may have left it as a tithe.

100. Journey to Jo'burg by Beverly Naidoo (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
When their baby sister falls seriously ill, two young South African siblings set out from home to make the 200+ mile journey to Johannesburg to find their mother, who works as a housekeeper for a rich, white family.

This middle grade book has some issues, I think. It seems clear that the point of the novel is to point up some of the major problems with apartheid, but at the same time it seems to downplay those problems too much. The dangers and massive injustices inherent in that system are mentioned and then, weirdly, glossed over quickly, and the ending is a little too pat and trite.

It's possible I'm overreading these elements, because I was aware going into it that the book was written by a white woman from South Africa. Naidoo has a history of standing up for equal rights and speaking out against apartheid, and that's wonderful, of course, but I still don't know how I feel about white people writing stories for PoC. Maybe, at the time, it was an important step toward handing that authority over? So maybe it was a good first step in children's lit, but I do know for certain that there are now, happily, more and better versions of this kind of story out there by #ownvoices authors.

Hi Amber!

>103 scaifea: I’ve never heard of chocolate shortbread before, so will have to make some one of these days. ABC is now ABCD…

>108 scaifea: Too many books, too little time.

>112 scaifea: Very nice. Aesthetically pleasing, and I’m glad they have your seal of approval, non-mint person that you are.

>128 rosalita: Good point, Julia. It certainly wasn’t the first anti-war novel, but it was one of the first that expressed the sentiment, in Yossarian’s words, The enemy is anybody who's going to get you killed, no matter which side he's on, and that includes Colonel Cathcart. And don't you forget that, because the longer you remember it, the longer you might live.

My go-to genres are mystery/thriller/suspense, and yet I’ve never read much of Holmes either.

>129 scaifea: You probably wouldn’t like living at my house. Yesterday we had one dead shrew inside the kitty door, an offering. Jenna saw it first so had to dispose of it – the family rule is whoever sees it has to do something with it - and another live shrew that got away when I tried to initially rescue it from Wash and it scurried behind the refrigerator. It ended up meandering between the bags of books in the dining room, just around the corner from the refrigerator, where Jenna and I were playing Yahtzee. She spent 20 minutes herding and coaxing it into a jar so she could safely get it outside. She kept telling it she didn’t want to hurt it. We had a live mole in the house when Jenna was perhaps 7. It was swimming along the baseboard, and we kindly asked Bill to capture it and escort it outside.

Yay for Red White and Royal Blue!! McQuiston's second book came out on Tuesday and I just got notified that my copy shipped from my local indie, so I expect I'll be diving into that one soon :)

>134 karenmarie: It may be one of the first modern novels to express such a thing (although I am leaning towards doubt on that point - maybe American novel, but surely those Europeans have hit on this idea before, yeah?), but it very much isn't the first piece of lit to do it - that goes back at least as far as Homer... (Oh, yes, I have nit-picking SKILLS.)

You don't have to love Holmes to enjoy Doyle's substantial influence on the genre, of course.

*Add's Karen's house to list of LT homes never to visit; gives Laura and her snakes side-eye*

>135 curioussquared: Woot! I suspect that one will go on my list, too - I'm loving this one so far.

>136 scaifea: I think I was thinking more of the cynical humor/satire aspect as being somewhat original (and yes, I was thinking only of modern works because I am not smart like you). I think at that time, the notion of ever suggesting that the politicians and the generals might not deserve to be unquestioningly obeyed was radical but not unprecedented, but the insulting nature of Heller's comedy in relation to the military was what struck me as somewhat novel (ha, see what I did there) when I read it back before the lava dried.

>136 scaifea: HEY!
Does it make it any better knowing we don't have that rule about who has to dispose of the thing? No, I didn't think so.

Yesterday we were driving on a country road and Chris suddenly said "wait, stop!" (I was behind the wheel, obvi). There was a snake extended across our path. We wondered if it was alive or dead. It was a narrow road, not really two lanes, so not much room to avoid it, but I didn't like the idea of mowing down the snake either. However, I was NOT going to deal with it. Fortunately Chris was willing to get out of the car and poke it with a stick. Sure enough, it was very much alive. But the poke was enough to get it to move out of the way, and on we went having done our good deed for Virginia's wildlife.

Quite the morning at your house!

Snort laughed over your OUAT spoiler rant. :D

>138 rosalita: Again, you may be right about it being the first of this kind of satire in an American modern novel, but Aristophanes has got it beat as far as criticizing military leaders with cutting cynicism, and I'd also venture to wage money that there's this sort of thing somewhere in post-classical European literary history, too (although I don't have the expertise to back that last one up, just a hunch).

>141 scaifea: OK, you win! There's nothing new under the sun. :-)

>139 lauralkeet: You are NOT helping your cause, Laura.

When I was a kid, one day my mom and I were coming home from the grocery, and when she pulled into the drive, there was a big black snake laying across the driveway. We both spend some quality time screaming in the car, then she gunned the motor, ran over the snake, threw the car in reverse without braking, backed over it, threw the car in drive again, and drove over it again. Then we spent probably 15 minutes freaking out at the idea that it was not yet dead and in fact slithering its way into the car from underneath somehow, until my dad came up from one of the barns to ask what in the sam hill we were doing. We didn't open the car doors until he assured us that the snake was No More. From which story you may infer that one does not simply get out of the car and poke snakes with sticks. It's simply not done.

>140 MickyFine: I could do without such excitement, generally.

And I'm glad my mental anguish amuses you.

>142 rosalita: *snork!* There you go.

>137 scaifea: RW&RB quickly became one of my comfort books almost as soon as I read it. Just such a sweet, escapist story. I hope you keep loving it!

>146 curioussquared: It IS a comfort read! I love when you can fall in love/like with every character instantly and then continually *squish* at their story developments. The. Best.

>144 scaifea: Isn't the mental anguish why you enjoy SPN?

>148 MickyFine: Yes, but this isn't SPN (although they also make some fairly massive mythology mistakes (and we won't talk about the Latin...)).

>149 scaifea:

>150 MickyFine: *grins*

101. Dao de Jing by Laozi (books I'm reading with my friend, Rob) - 9/10 = A
I breezed through this one fairly quickly, with the intention of rereading it often and sometimes more thoughtfully. Even at a too-fast pace, this is a calming delight of a text. Much of it does, in fact, need more time and mental effort, but this time through I loved it for its soothing and simply-stated precepts that hint at contemplative depths. In short, I'll be back for more.

>120 msf59: It doesn't show up very often, but at least twice elsewhere in 75bpy in recent memory - I don't have much else, so it has to be recent memory.

I was grown up enough when Catch-22 first came out to remember the reactions of the adults who read it - they were laughing their heads off a good deal and quoting bits back and forth. I didn't have any problem with it but also no desire to go read it again.

Snakes and spiders, except for venomous ones, don't give me any problems, but don't get me started on moths. Nothing that plump should fly, really, and they squash so so messy.

>143 scaifea: LOL. I particularly like the quality time screaming in the car.

>154 karenmarie: If only that were an exaggeration. We've laughed so hard about it several times since, though.

>130 scaifea: There's a story about the high school senior whose review of Tolkien consisted of "It's full of cliches! Elves, dwarves - where's the twist?".

>143 scaifea: Awww. Big black snake - probably a king snake. They eat rodents and are non-poisonous. I don't want to touch a snake (unless someone has it under control - I've petted a boa at a demonstration, once) but I don't have the fear reflex. And I don't mind insects unless a) they're _on_ me, or b) they're something that bites me or eats something I care about (moths in the house get swatted! Spiders get escorted outside so they can eat things in my garden).

>156 jjmcgaffey: See, the thing about phobias (and my mom and I have full blown phobias for snakes) is that it doesn't matter in the slightest that they're not poisonous or that they're 'good for' things. Nope, they're good for nothing at all in my world.

>143 scaifea: Oh. my. god.
Note to self: don't ever get on Amber's bad side. Or her mom's!

>158 lauralkeet: *snork!*

Today's Agenda:
Weekly bill sorting, grocery pickup, and possibly a trip to the local thrift shop to drop off a load of clothing that Charlie's outgrown. The sun seems to be back for now, so hopefully we'll get our walks in today. Frozen Friday dinner.

On the reading front:
I started two new ones yesterday: Mister Impossible, which is the second in the Dreamer Trilogy and I've been so excited to get to it and so far it is not disappointing, and My Friend the Painter.

What We're Watching:
A couple of Coupling episodes, an Arrow, and a couple of Friends episodes.

Morning, Amber. good for you for abandoning catch-22. I remember liking it way back when, but if all it's doing is make you roll your eyes and wish you were reading something else, well, you gave it a chance.
the UNi
BTW, I gave Becca Aristotle and Dante Discover the Universe and she's excited about reading it.

I"m glad you liked Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with me. Me, too. Mariko Tamaki is one of my favorite graphic authors.

Isn't reading the little house books as an adult interesting? What challenging lives they led back then.

'Morning, Amber! Happy Friday to you.

My phobia is spiders. It's as irrational yours is with snakes, and therefore to be respected.

>161 jnwelch: Morning, Joe!

Oh, I bet Becca is gonna *love* that one - I sure did. I listened to the audio, narrated by Lin-Manuel Miranda. So, so excellent.

Tamaki is wonderful and I'll be seeking out more!

And yes, revisiting the Wilder books as an adult is very interesting...

>162 karenmarie: Morning, Karen!

Oh, I definitely respect the phobias. They're very real and I totally get it.

>160 scaifea: I've got three big bags of clothes I cleaned out from my closet just waiting to be dropped off at our local charity shop. One of these days...

Happy Friday, Amber!

>165 MickyFine: I just come back from the thrift shop, but yeah, I've had those piles ready to go for months (they're just now starting to take things in again).

102. My Friend the Painter by Lygia Bojunga Nunes (1001 Children's Books) - 7/10 = C
A young boy narrates the process of grieving for his friend and upstairs neighbor, a painter who committed suicide.
Meh. It feels like it's trying to do too much at once by both describing how grief looks and feels to a child and also talking about how the main character learns to appreciate art. It also falls into the trap of making a young character seem unrealistically precocious.

>94 scaifea: I'm looking forward to see what you think of Uncle Silas. I tried starting it around Halloween last year (2020) and put it down but it seemed interesting!

>168 leperdbunny: Hi, Tamara! I'm not very far into it yet, but I am *loving* it so far.

As soon as I'm away for a short while, I've already missed most of it.
Happy new thread, Amber and have a wonderful weekend!

>170 SirThomas: Thanks, Thomas! Happy weekend to you, too!

Today's Agenda:
We had french toast this morning from the leftover homemade bread that I purposely squirreled away for it, and now I'm puttering on LT with my first cup of coffee. Tomm's off to borrow his parents' truck for the weekend - he needs a bunch of plywood or some sort of somethingorother for his garage project and he needs a way to haul it. While he's doing that, I'm going to do some baking (chocolate chunk cinnamon coffee cake, for this week's breakfasts), and I may go ahead and get my portion of the weekend cleaning done today, too. Also maybe some sewing room time: I'm still working on piecing together the top of that quilt, which is taking forever (this entire quilt process in every part is taking FOREVER). And then some reading this afternoon, of course.

On the reading front:
I started a cozy read yesterday, A Likely Story, and I'm enjoying it so far. Oh, and I started Captain Fracasse, too, which seems like it might be a hoot. And The Ruins of Gorlan is going great on audio - I may have found a new series to love here. One of my myth students listed the main character as his favorite fictional character and gushed about the series, so I thought I'd give it a try, and so far I'm really glad I did - I've already sent Student an email thanking him for bringing it to my attention, and now we're chatting back and forth about other book recommendations. I love it.

What We're Watching:
Family Game Night and it was my pick, so we played Zeus on the Loose, a really fun and fairly simple card game, and then we watched Iron Man. RDJ was so perfectly cast as Tony Stark. I love him to bits in that role.

>108 scaifea: and everyone else who has commented on Catch-22. I really believe it's one of those novels that needs to be read at precisely the right moment or not at all. And quite likely, the right moment cannot come after you're a fully accredited adult in the 21st century. I remember reading it early in my college days, when I was still pretty impressionable; I stayed up most of the night with it, often trying not to laugh out loud and wake my roomies. I remember it as dark and disturbing and absurdly hilarious, utterly unlike anything else I'd ever encountered in my sheltered life. But I never was tempted to recommend it to anyone I knew, nor to revisit it. I doubt that it "works" anymore. It had its day, though.

I love the idea of making a quilt but 1) I'm terrible at sewing in a straight line and 2) the size of the project intimidates me. My library has CreativeBug and there's this gorgeous red and white quilt pattern/course in there but I'm not sure I'll ever attempt it. All this to say, your skills never cease to impress me and I hope piecing goes well if you tackle that today.

And heartily agreed on RDJ. We watched the third one last night and I continued to love him to bits.

>173 laytonwoman3rd: Interesting take, Linda. You may be right; maybe I would have thought it brilliant 30 years and several hundred books ago...

>174 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! I kind of needed that boost today - I'm having one of those "nothing's going right and I can't do anything at all well" kind of days. Blech.

Okay, I need to check to see if either of my library systems has this CreativeBug you speak of...

And yay for RDJ! Those giant brown eyes don't hurt, either.

Hi Amber my dear, congrats on hitting 100 books read for the year so far, sending love and hugs to you, Tomm, Charlie and Mario from both of us dear friend.

>177 johnsimpson: Thanks, John!!

>176 scaifea: Hope the day improved. There's a ton of cool stuff in CreativeBug so I'm hoping at least one of your libraries has it.

Now that you mention it, the eyes definitely don't hurt.

>179 MickyFine: I couldn't find it in either system. That doesn't mean it's not there, but at least my initial try turned up nothing. I may ask the next time I'm in.

Today's Agenda:
Not much at all on the agenda. I didn't get into the sewing room yesterday, so I may do that today, but otherwise - and other than a small pile of laundry - I think there will be lots of reading time today. Shredded chicken tacos for dinner tonight.

On the reading front:
I spent my reading time yesterday with Uncle Silas and Captain Fracasse, both of which are going well. I'm also still listening to The Ruins of Gorlan and loving it.

What We're Watching:
Tomm's pick last night and he decided to introduce Charlie to Freaks and Geeks.

>176 scaifea: I hope today is an everything going right kind of day.

>182 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul - me, too!

Lots of reading time sounds great! Hope the books enjoy all the quality time with you. :)

>184 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! I've just finished up in the sewing room for the day, so the reading will commence soon...

103. Drowned Country by Emily Tesh (from my Read Soon! shelves) - 9/10 = A
(Spoilers ahead for Silver in the Wood)

A sequel to Silver in the Wood, this short novel follows Silver as he grapples with his new role as Green Man and his wrecked relationship with Tobias, all while helping find a young woman who may have been kidnapped by an ancient vampire.

I love the Silver/Tobias storyline and how it's framed within the other world of forest spirits and fairy lands. My only complaint is that I could have read a ten-book series instead of two novellas about these two. *sigh*

>133 scaifea: I hear ya. While I don't begrudge anyone the opportunity to write a book from another perspective, I feel a little itchy about these books.

>187 LovingLit: Right? It just feels...not right...on a lot of levels.

Wow Amber you are doing so awesome on the reading this year! I can only aspire to these levels. Hope you are well :)

>189 vikzen: Thanks, Victoria! I hope your reading year is going well, too!

Today's Agenda:
Charlie gets his second shot today! Woot!! That's this afternoon. Before that, we'll do our usual: morning walk, some Aleks (the math program), reading time and MarioKart after lunch. I'll probably do a bit of tidying and some writing. Dinner depends on how we're feeling when we get back from Charlie's appointment; if he feels like it, he'll cook, but if not we'll go with leftovers.

This morning I moved up to Level 2 on the treadmill program, and Holy. Heck. It felt like a HUGE step up from Level 1. Yeesh. I will never understand people who say they enjoy jogging/running. Like, how? How is that pleasurable in any way?! I mean good for them, I guess, but it will always be Sucko City for me. We hates it, precious.

Anyway.

On the reading front:
Red, White, and Royal Blue continues to be adorable and fun. I'm also still really enjoying The Ruins of Gorlan on audio, and Captain Fracasse is pretty fun so far, too.

What We're Watching:
My pick last night, so we watched the Disney animated Cinderella. I love that she's sweet and kind, but also has a little bit of saltiness in there, too (the look she gives the mice when she says she'll have to interrupt the 'music lesson' is next level sass). Plus, the songs are great.

Congrats on Charliie's second shot today. I'm sure that's a big

The Ranger's Apprentice series! I loved that one. Are you reading it with Charlie? I could see him getting after you to keep reading - it's hard to put down. If I remember correctly, it grew out of stories the author told his son. I love that.

If, later on, you're wanting to read another cozy, Dear Mrs. Bird (oriiginally an RD recommendation) would sure fit the bill. I"m already looking forward to the second one, coming out in August.

>192 jnwelch: Morning, Joe! Yes, Charlie getting his second shot is HUGE and we're all really excited.

One of my myth students recommended the Ranger's Apprentice series and I'm so glad he did! No, not reading it aloud to Charlie now, but I will recommend it to him when I'm done, I think. I suspect he'd love it. Right now he's reading Tan France's memoir.

And thanks for the recommendation! I'll keep it in mind.

>191 scaifea: I used to do a couch to 5K running program every few years in my 20s and while I hated it initially I eventually ended up reaching that point my gym teachers had always said existed of the endorphin rush that makes it feel good. But I reached a point where my knees were starting to complain a bit and I've got a family history of not great knees so I stopped running. Walking is just as good for you anyway. :)

The animated Cinderella is my Mom's favourite too. Have you watched the live action version Branagh directed? So gorgeous from sets through costumes and Richard Madden as Prince Charming doesn't hurt either.



Congrats to Charlie on shot #2. Hope his side effects are on the mild end of the spectrum.

>195 scaifea: I have never ever reached that runner's high thing. I don't believe it exists, at least not for me.

I've not seen that version - I'll have to add it to my list!

And thanks! Yes, all fingers crossed that he's feeling okay tomorrow, because we have a dermatology appt for him then...

Yay for second shot, continued RW&RB, and Ranger's Apprentice! I'm about three books in and it's a fun series.

>196 curioussquared: I'm glad you're enjoying the RA series, too!

Welp, Charlie's doctor was over an hour behind schedule, so that was a pleasant afternoon. Yeesh. But he's got his second shot now, so WOOT! And he's still feeling well enough to have cooked us dinner:

Oh, that look great!

>199 drneutron: It was *so* tasty, Jim!

Congrats on Charlie's second shot! And yummm, how great that he cooked dinner too :D

I think I only read about 3 or so of the Ranger's Apprentice series? But they were good fun and I could see why they're a perennial favorite.

>191 scaifea: Completely understand you don't like running, Amber, the same for me. Walking calms me, running just makes me tired in no time.

Yay, for Charlie's second vaccination.
And yay, for finding the Ranger's Apprentice series. I have read them all, first 10 books even twice ;-)

>201 bell7: Yes! We're happy that we'll all be fully vaccinated soon! And dinner was delicious.

I can't believe that I've never heard of the Ranger's Apprentice series before. Actually, it's likely that I have, but I've just forgotten in the meantime. I'm really enjoying this first one and am in love with Holt (because of course I am).

>202 FAMeulstee: Hi, Anita!

Ugh, yes, the running. So awful. But I did it again this morning and I feel so grown up and responsible. And also sore. And tired.

Thanks for the vaccine love! We're excited and grateful.

I suspect this series will be a favorite for me and I'm so happy to see all the love for it here!

Today's Agenda:
Charlie is feeling just fine this morning other than a sore arm, which is a huge relief because we have an appointment with a dermatologist for him today (his acne is pretty severe right now). So we'll go do that and probably just relax for the rest of the day. Leftovers for dinner tonight, I think.

On the reading front:
Mister Impossible is great so far - Maggie Stiefvater can do no wrong. And of course I'm still loving The Ruins of Gorlan on audio.

What We're Watching:
It was DC Night last night, so while Tomm and Charlie were doing their thing, I rewatched Thor with a friend. A nice review of Baby Loki before this week's Disney+ show starts.

Hi Amber!

I’m glad that Charlie’s only reaction is a sore arm. Good luck at the dermatologist.

Morning, Amber! Hooray for Charlie's lack of side effects!

Well, Charlie's made of great stuff. And he has MADE great stuff. Why am I not at all surprised?

Hope Charlie continues to feel pretty normal today.

It's so strange to think that the Thor franchise went from a Shakespearean epic to the comedy fest that is Ragnorak. I love each of the films but it's not the arc you'd expect. I am psyched for Love & Thunder though.

>206 karenmarie: Hi, Karen! And thanks!

>207 katiekrug: Afternoon, Katie! And Yes! I'm so relieved that I didn't need to cancel that appointment today (and that he feels fine, of course)!

>208 laytonwoman3rd: You'll get no argument here, Linda.

>209 MickyFine: Yep, Charlie's still feeling fine.

Hm. I don't think I'd go as far as Shakespearean epic, really. Sure, it doesn't have that Taika flavor, but I was surprised to remember all the really funny lines (Darcy is amazing). Thor and Loki do relax into funnier characters as the franchise goes on, though, so there's that.

>213 scaifea: Oh it's definitely funny. I laugh every time Thor gets hit by the car because slapstick will always make me laugh. And I'm totally with you on team Darcy. But as I recall from interviews, the reason Natalie Portman agreed to be in the film was that Kenneth Branagh pitched it as this Shakespeare-eque tale and if you look for it, you can see that angle in there.

>214 MickyFine: Oh well absolutely there are Shakespearean elements. I mean, can Branagh do anything that isn't at least a little bit Shakespeare? And also, if you want to get crazy with the argument, you could point up Shakespeare in pretty much every Marvel movie. My point was that I don't think it's a full-on drama. In fact, far from it. Having Branagh at the helm is gonna give it that flavor, and Hiddleston will always bang out a theater-worthy performance no matter what the part, bless his adorable heart, but there's a lot of lighthearted hilarity in there, too. It's no Titus Andronicus, I suppose is what I'm saying.

But can I just say, seriously, Portman?! YOU WERE IN THE STAR WARS MOVIES and you need Branagh to convince you Thor is Shakespeare before you'll do it?! Cripes.

Today's Agenda:
It's baking day, so I'll be acting as sous pastry chef for Able Baker Charlie later on. We may or may not get our morning walk in - it's raining. Again. Otherwise, I need to call in to get a lab appointment for Charlie; the dermatology appt. went well and he's going to start on a med for the severe kind of acne he has (nodular acne), but it requires monthly blood tests while he's on it. He's never had blood drawn, so we'll see how that goes (I think Momma is more anxious than he is, but I'm hiding it well...). Then I'll probably do some writing and some reading. No idea what's for dinner - I didn't menu plan very well this time (I thought we'd have more leftovers!).

On the reading front:
I'm getting close to the end of A Likely Story, which is absolute cozy fluff and I love it. I'm also nearly finished with The Ruins of Gorlan, and I'm still plugging along with Captain Fracasse.

What We're Watching:
Charlie's pick last night - we watched a couple of Gilmore Girls, a Friends, and then rewatched the Loki trailer because we're all so excited for the show!

Good morning Amber. Glad all is well at Scaife Manor, rain notwithstanding.

Are you familiar with the classicist Jane Harrison (1850-1928)? My current read is Square Haunting, a profile of five women writers who all lived in London's Mecklenburgh Square at some point in their lives. I'm reading Harrison's chapter now, and finding it fascinating to learn how she was one of the first to look at the ancient Greeks and their gods/mythology through a female lens. I have zero background in Classics so I am probably telling you things you already know; I'm just bringing it up because reading this made me think of you.

>217 lauralkeet: Morning, Laura.

I've heard of Harrison but don't know much about her. Honestly, we don't do much with the history of the field in Classics (or at least we didn't when I was in grad school), so it's cool that her story is getting out there in other ways.

>218 scaifea: Thanks Amber!

>217 lauralkeet: Iiiinteresting. The book I'm reading now just mentioned Jane Harrison in the same sentence with Edith Hamilton, and I had never heard of Jane. Obviously, you have hit me with a BB.

>221 laytonwoman3rd: Aw, dear Edith. She was my second introduction to Classics, when I was in junior high and saw her myth book at the bookstore and had to have it and took it home and read it over and over (the first was in third grade - my teacher had laminated folders, each with a different Greek myth told on them and I was *hooked*).

Today's Agenda:
We'll be off here in a bit to the lab to get Charlie's blood drawn, then it's a normal Thursday of menu planning and grocery ordering, some writing and some reading.

On the reading front:
I spent my reading time yesterday with Uncle Silas and Captain Fracasse both are coming along just fine. Oh, and I'm still listening to The Ruins of Gorlan.

What We're Watching:
Tomm had his evening class, so Charlie and I played a bit of NintendoLand and then watched some OUAT. Pan. Is. Rumple's. Father. This show is absolutely ridiculous and I LOVE IT.

Good luck with the first blood drawing for Charlie, Amber. I hope the meds will help against his acne.
I had very bad acne in my teens, and Frank had it even worse for many years. He got meds for a while that needed blood drawing, worked well.

>224 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita! He's nervous, but I think he'll be okay. Fingers crossed.

It sounds like Frank may have had the same kind of meds that Charlie's going to take - his doc said it's pretty much the only thing out there that will help this kind of acne.

>221 laytonwoman3rd: >222 scaifea: An unexpected book bullet! I think you'd like Square Haunting, Linda.

Edith Hamilton's book was required 9th grade summer reading in our school district. It must have been widely used, because there were always loads of copies in one of the big annual used book sales in the area.

I loved Greek mythology too, Amber, and learning about the ancient Greeks and Romans in social studies. I think that was 6th grade. I never got quite as hooked as you clearly did, but it was influential in shaping my religious beliefs. I remember realizing that the myths were serving a similar purpose as the Bible: providing lessons on the origin of the world and how to live in harmony with one another. Oh, so the Bible isn't the single truth? Iiiinteresting ...

>226 lauralkeet: Laura: I think you'd like my lecture on how Dionysus was Jesus before Jesus was Jesus...

Charlie did great with the blood work! It was quick and apparently he has great veins, and he said he didn't really even feel it. Whew! That should make the rest of the lab visits easy (he has to have blood work done every month that he's on this med).

I'm glad the blood draw went well!

>227 scaifea: I'm sure I'd like that one...you should put them into book form for this crowd.

Hi Amber,
I ambled through I dunno how many posts here and lots to enjoy.

Re Catch-22 ~ I thoroughly disliked that book when we had to read it in Grade 10 (yeah, yeah, about a thousand years ago) so I never revisited it as an actual adult.

I put Drowned Country on a hold request at our PL. I really enjoyed Silver in the Wood.

>229 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie - me, too!

>230 laytonwoman3rd: Ha! Someday, maybe.

>231 SandyAMcPherson: Hi, Sandy!

Yeah, I suspect there are other books out there more worthy of your time than a revisit to Catch-22...

And yay for the Tesh - I think you'll enjoy it if you liked the first one.

>223 scaifea: Giggles with delight over your OUAT spoiler. I told you that family tree got nutty. :D

Glad to hear the blood work went smoothly and I hope the medication for Charlie starts working quickly.

Happy Thursday!

>235 MickyFine: Micky: Ha! When it happened, I thought, "Micky will have something to say about this..."

Charlie and I were laughing at how, now, with Pan in Henry's body (we just finished that episode), when Rumple has a conversation with him, he'll be talking to his dad in his grandson's body. This. Show. Is. BANANAS.

>236 scaifea: I actually prefer the Pan actor's Henry as Henry is... not that good and can't get by on little kid cuteness anymore. Aging on screen is tough.

>237 MickyFine: Ha! Well, I also don't think the Pan actor is very good, but yeah, Henry is aging... Honestly, Robert Carlyle (and Sebastian Stan while he was in it) is the only quality actor on the show, but I don't really care. It's fluffy fun and I love it.

104. The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan (audiobook) - 9/10 = A
Will and the other wards his age are facing the day that they are chosen as apprentices by Baron Arald's masters. Most seem excited, but Will is more nervous than anything else; he wants to follow in his late father's footsteps and be a warrior, but he's afraid that he's too small. His fears are realized when the battle master rejects his request to join the ranks of warrior apprentices. Instead, he is chosen by the ranger, Halt, to learn his trade. And so starts Will's life as a ranger's apprentice.

I loved this first book in the Ranger's Apprentice series. Lovely world building and plot setup, with fantastic characters all around. I'm completely in love with Halt already, and Will is adorable and extremely root-for-able. I particularly enjoyed how and early antagonist gets smoothly transitioned into a fast friend instead of evolving into the tiresome "I'll get you for being better at something than me!" vibe. Overall, highly recommended and I'll be continuing with the series, I suspect.

>227 scaifea: oh yes, I would like that very much, Amber!

>230 laytonwoman3rd: upgrading this request: a series of YouTube videos featuring our favorite Classics professor. 😀

>240 lauralkeet: *snork!* Wait, are you saying youtube videos are better than books?!

>241 scaifea: Wait, no! I'm not! I'm saying it would be really fun to attend your classes, and the next best thing would be you delivering a lecture.

>242 lauralkeet: Ha! Okay, I see it now. I would be hilarious fun to have the 75ers crash my course, too!

Glad to hear re Charlie's 2nd shot! Good luck to Charlie re acne journey, I tried pretty much every medicine available before I ended up on accutane which is the only thing that worked! 2 years later and I'm still mostly acne free! just hoping all the best!

>244 vikzen: Thanks! And yep, that's the medicine he'll be taking, too. I'm so glad it worked for you! Fingers crossed it works for Charlie, too.

Today's Agenda:
Weekly bill sorting, grocery pickup, and then this afternoon I've got an appointment to pick up my new glasses! I'm so excited to be able to see properly up close again! Reading has been a bit of a challenge for the last few months. Frozen Friday for dinner tonight.

I'm also happy to say that next week's schedule, for now at least, is empty. This week we had to leave the house almost every day and honestly, I'm not ready for that amount of activity yet (possibly ever). I had a bit of a mental shut-down on Wednesday, had a good cry, and now I'm slow recovering. But yeah, I'm ready for another year and a half of not leaving the house now after this week. Gah.

On the reading front:
I started Gates of Fire yesterday, which is okay so far but a little more graphic than I'd like. That sounds silly, probably, since it's a novel based on the battle of Thermopylae, but still. I'm sticking with it for now, but we'll see how it goes. I also started listening to Cards on the Table, and I'm still plugging along with Captain Fracasse.

What We're Watching:
A Coupling and an Arrow episode each, and then we watched the first Loki episode. OMG. So. Good. *gleeful sigh*

Even in before times going out every night of the week would have been too much for this introvert so I fully understand your breakdown. Wishing you a very chill recovery period of however long you need it.

Glad you enjoyed Loki. During the brief Loki shirtless/naked scene I thought of you and how extra happy it would make you ;).

>247 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky.

Spoiler: Meh, I like him more for his evilness and his face. I'm not so much into naked dudes on screen. For me, the killer swoon scene was when he was so tortured while watching his Future Film. I may have issues. OH! and Loki-and-Hiddleston-as-D.B. Cooper. *sigh* Also, I forgot how much I love Owen's broken nose.

>248 scaifea: Ah you're about the brain lust. Got it. :D

>249 MickyFine: Exactly. EXACTLY. (But also the face. AND the body in nice clothing. I'm a complicated soul.)

Well a man in a good suit is always nice to look at. :)

>251 MickyFine: Ooof, Sammy's coat there is perfection.

>252 scaifea: I agree. I'm a huge sucker for a man in a good wool coat. Or a well-cut sweater. *swoons*

>253 MickyFine: YES.

*wanders in here to procrastinate. winds up DED by suited men with hands in pockets*

>255 lycomayflower: These things do happen occasionally. Apologies for any inconvenience my thread may have caused you.

>255 lycomayflower: Laura! I made a Laura appear!

>256 scaifea: Nice!

>257 MickyFine: No mean feat these days. Congratulations!

Ah, yes. Loki! Loved the D B Cooper reference. This one’s going to be goooood!

>259 drneutron: Jim: YES! It's already my favorite Marvel thing, and the D.B. Cooper bit was absolute genius! I love the idea that Loki is responsible for the some of the world's urban legends. It's just so clever.

Today's Agenda:
My new glasses are soooo beyond fantastic, folks. I. Can. SEE. Again! I really had not idea how badly I needed the new Rx, but reading and knitting were so much easier yesterday! And my early birthday present arrived yesterday, too: Airpods! So I think I'll celebrate by spending time in the sewing room today, being able to see to stitch better and not having to carry my phone around in my pocket to listen to my audiobook. I'm living a charmed life.

Honestly, I don't have much else planned for today besides a bit of laundry and some reading this afternoon. Tomm's in charge of dinner, which involves the grill and some pork chops, which he has been marinating overnight in an apple juice mixture. Sounds pretty good to me.

On the reading front:
I made some progress with Red, White, and Royal Blue and Captain Fracasse yesterday and listened to more of Cards on the Table. I'd like to try to finish up that middle one today and move on to other things. We'll see.

What We're Watching:
Family Game Night was D&D (We befriended a Nothic and nearly caught a wizard, but he used an invisibility spell and got away. Next time...), and the we watched Ironman 2. The scene in which Tony meets Natalie for the first time is one of my favorite things.

Yay for the new Rx and Airpods. Happy early birthday. Are you a June baby?

>261 scaifea: Happy early birthday and welcome to the AirPods family. If you haven't already wondered how you ever got along without them, I expect that will kick in very soon! :-)

I really need to schedule an eye exam. My annual exam should have been last November but, you know. Thanks for the reminder.

>262 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen! Ha! Nope, August - these are a *very* early present. Since I've started actually jogging/running on the treadmill, my earphone cord attached to my phone have become more problematic, so I gave up and asked Tomm to order me the wireless ones.

>263 rosalita: Thanks, Julia! I'm *so* excited about them and I can't wait to try them out today in the sewing room!

Yeah, I hadn't went in over and year and a half and hadn't had new glasses in over three years. It was way past time.

Yay for being able to see and being untethered from your phone! It's a whole new world, my friend ;-)

>266 katiekrug: It definitely is! Now if I just had a magic carpet...

So glad your new glasses are great. Always amazing when everything is suddenly in focus.

I tried wireless earbuds (Skull Candy are my preferred brand) but my ears are apparently a non-standard size and one of them was forever falling out. So I switched to wireless over ear headphones and they work just grand. Bonus of them is they keep my ears warm in the winter. :D

>268 MickyFine: I'm glad you found headphones that work for you, Micky. I was always worried that the earbuds would fall out for me, too, but I've never had a problem with them (my last few wired pairs have been earbuds).

>268 MickyFine: I have the same problem with earbuds, so I've also opted for over the ear ones.

Glad you're liking your airpods, Amber, and your new prescription! I've always enjoyed those first few days with new glasses, when every pebble and blade of grass seems sharp and perfectly defined.

>270 foggidawn: Thanks, foggi!

The new thread is up:
https://www.librarything.com/topic/332898