karenmarie's 17th year in the 75ers - part I

Welcome to my first thread of 2024

Five ways to describe me and books: bibliolater, bibliomaniac, bibliophile, lectiophiliac, bookworm.

The Good: Family, friends, kitties, books, in constantly-rotating order. Jenna being home is wonderful although I know living at home chaffs her and she’d rather have her own apartment and a kitty or two. She just got a job as a vet clinic receptionist/customer service rep and starts on January 8th. She’s pumped – scrubs instead of business casual. Ten months post left knee replacement surgery, and I’m happy with where I am with it. Right knee replacement surgery scheduled for February 29th. I’ve found a good hair stylist AND a good seamstress. Simple pleasures for simple minds.

The Bad and the Sad: Trump is not going gentle into that good night. Words fail me regarding that man. We’re heading back to the 1950s and heading towards becoming a third-world country.

The Ugly: The Gang of Psychos is the ugliest thing going on in this country right now. Vicious, evil people in power with a pseudo-Christian agenda that does not come close to following Christianity.

Like everybody else who gets to 70, I think “How did I get to be old?”

I read and am a charter member of the Redbud and Beyond Book Club, started in 1997. Here’s the 2024 portion of the 2023-2024:

Jan 24 - The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters – started and not particularly interested in
Feb 24 - Solito by Javier Zamora
Mar 24 - The Scapegoat by Daphne DuMaurier
Apr 24 - The Last Ballad by Wiley Cash
May 24 - Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

I happily turned over the reins of the Presidency of the Friends last summer and am Immediate Past President. I’ll stay on the Board for however long the next President serves, then completely leave the Board and just stay on the Book Sale Team. I currently volunteer for small duties to help various members of the Board. I’m a member of the Book Sale Team, which meets on Tuesdays to sort donations for spring and fall book sales, and I volunteer at the book sales in addition to acquiring many books.

I have been married to Bill for almost 33 years and am mother to Jenna, who turned 30 last August. The three of us live in our own little corner of paradise on 8 acres in central North Carolina USA.

We have three kitties. Inara – 16 ½. She’s deaf as a post and needy. However, she does all the things kitties do – eat/drink/use the kitty box/groom/go outside. Can’t ask much more from a kitty who’s 82 in human years. Zoe – 5. She rules the roost and once she’s sleeping it takes a lot to wake her up. Wash – 4. Our derp boy. He startles easily, spooks easily, and frequently sees bugs in place where there are no bugs in this dimension.
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Met in Connecticut in 1977. Friends until 1990, when things changed. Married in 1991.
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My goal last year was 75 books, based on what I thought would be a tough reading year because of my health. Ha. I read 393 books, mostly on my Kindle, mostly using Kindle Unlimited. They were, as my daughter calls them, smut, and my friend Karen in Montana calls them, porn. *shrugs* I still really, really enjoy reading this subgenre of contemporary fiction/romance and will continue until it no longer interests me. It’s getting more challenging to find books as I’ve refined my targeted trope(s), but I’ve become a great detective. This coming year’s goal is 150 based on still reading smut. I haven’t made the goal higher because of my knee replacement surgery, and as I recall from last year, the first month following surgery was not much reading.
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New Year’s Resolutions – 2024
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Health:

Lose 10 pounds.
Work out for cardio health 3 times a week when appropriate given right knee surgery on February 29th.
Get right knee replacement surgery and assiduously follow through with all PT and other requirements.
Reduce red meat consumption and increase salmon and other healthy fish consumption. We did increase our salmon consumption last year, and will make sure to continue doing so this year. Red meat is difficult, frankly, but we might start eating “the other white meat”.
Continue low-sodium lifestyle and gradually work to reduce sugared items to 2-3 times a week.

Reading:

Read 5% nonfiction this year.
Finish The Federalist Papers, and read all my RL book club books, even including Demon Copperhead. Sigh.

Keeping up on LT:

I'll post on the 3 I always post on then sort by New Total and keep up with the top 5. If I do that every day, I won't let threads get out of hand. *preens*. At least that's the plan.

Inter-personal:

Be in better touch with family and friends. I tend to isolate when stressed.

General:

As Judy says, pay attention.
Express gratitude for what I have - family, friends, intangibles and tangibles - every day.

*added 1/6/24

read - 393 last year

1. Just a Bit Wrecked by Alessandra Hazard 12/31/23 1/1/24 205 pages Kindle Logan and Andrew Straight Guys 11 2020
2. Just a Bit Captivated by Alessandra Hazard 1/1/24 1/1/24 239 pages Kindle Aiden and Zain Straight Guys 14 2023
3. Tell No One by Barbara Elsborg 1/1/24 1/2/24 280 pages Kindle Tag and Delaney 2022
4. The Making of Jonty Bloom by Barbara Elsborg 1/2/24 1/3/24 383 pages Kindle Jonty and Devan Unfinished Business 1 2020
5. Reinventing Cato by Barbara Elsborg 1/3/24 1/4/24 327 pages Kindle Cato and Vigge Unfinished Business 3 2021
6. Waiting for Ru by Barbara Elsborg 1/4/24 1/5/24 352 pages Kindle Ru and Jasim Unfinished Business 4 2021
**abandoned Brave for You by Crystal Lacy** 166 pages
7. Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls by Lela Lee 1/5/24 1/6/24 168 pages Hardcover
8. Falling by Barbara Elsborg 1/5/24 1/6/24 333 pages Kindle Malachi and Harper Fall and Break 1 2017
9. Breaking by Barbara Elsborg 1/6/24 1/7/24 333 pages Kindle Archer and Conrad Fall and Break 2 2017
10. He's the One by Barbara Elsborg 1/7/24 1/8/24 377 pages Kindle Col and Theo Fate We Make 1 2023
11. Hold On by Barbara Elsborg 1/8/24 1/9/24 322 pages Kindle Dominic and Ren Fate We Make 2 2023
12. This is Real by Barbara Elsborg 1/9/24 1/9/24 262 pages Kindle Murdo and Lukas 2022
13. Edge of Forever by Barbara Elsborg 1/10/24 1/11/24 348 pages Kindle Pasha and Levi 2018
14. Zeke's Wood by Barbara Elsborg 1/11/24 1/11/24 68 pages Kindle Zeke and Gideon 2017
15. With Or Without Him by Barbara Elsborg 1/11/24 1/12/24 306 pages Kindle Haris and Tyler 2017
16. Drawn In by Barbara Elsborg 1/12/24 1/13/24 335 pages Kindle Kell and Gethin 2016
17. Cowboys Down by Barbara Elsborg 1/13/24 1/14/24 287 pages Kindle Jasper and Calum 2017
18. Give Yourself Away by Barbara Elsborg 1/14/24 1/15/24 353 pages Kindle March and Caleb 2017
19. Every Move He Makes by Barbara Elsborg 1/15/24 1/16/24 277 pages Kindle Logan and Zak 2017
20. Dirty Games by Barbara Elsborg 1/16/24 1/17/24 346 pages Kindle Linton and Thorne 2017
21. Where Forever Started by Barbara Elsborg 1/17/24 1/18/24 Kindle Barney and Raf 2017
22. The Bastard and the Heir by Eden Finley and Saxon James 1/19/24 /1/19/24 337 pages Kindle Darcy and Wren 2024
**abandoned The Fake Boyfriends Debacle by Hayden Hall** 79 pages
**abandoned In The Gray by Christina Lee** 140 pages
23. A Wedding in a Week by Con Riley 1/19/24 1/20/24 292 pages Kindle Marc and Stef 2023
24. Assassins Are People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/20/24 1/21/24 133 pages Kindle Marc and Dillon Assassins in Love Series 1 2019
25. Assassins Love People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/21/24 131 pages Kindle Marc and Dillon Assassins in Love Series 2 2019
26. Assassins Save People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/21/24 122 pages Kindle Marc and Dillon Assassins in Love Series 3 2019
**abandoned Love Me Again by Max Walker** 70 pages
27. Crashing Upwards by S.C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/22/24 314 pages Kindle Harper and Sam 2018
28. His Death Bringer by Courtney W. Dixon 1/22/24 1/23/24 316 pages Kindle Luca and Dante The District 1 2023
29. Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen read by Arte Johnson 12/31/23 1/23/24 11.5 hours audiobook
30. Keeping It Casual by Jax Calder 1/23/24 1/23/24 140 pages Kindle Dustin and Jeremy 2023
31. The Anonymous Hookup 1/23/24 1/24/24 121 pages Kindle Lane and Sam 2022
**abandoned Love is Blind by S.C. Wynne** 30 pages
**abandoned Head Over Feels by Bix Barrow** 284 pages
32. The Mission by Barbara Elsborg 1/24/24 1/25/24 146 pages Kindle Conrad and Arlo 2023
33. A Spaceman Came Traveling by Barbara Elsborg 1/25/24 1/25/24 62 pages Kindle Seven and Cooper 2023
34. Trapped for the Holidays by Courtney W. Dixon 1/25/24 1/25/24 98 pages Kindle Rhett and Patrick 2023
**abandoned Return by Fire by Tracey Jerald** 34 pages
**abandoned Stix & Stones by Courtney W. Dixon** 191 pages
35. Anticipating Disaster by Silvia Violet 1/26/24 1/26/24 248 pages Kindle David and Oliver Anticipation 1 2019
36. His To Own by Leo Rivers 1/26/24 1/27/24 151 pages Kindle Rowan and Zane Heart of Thornes 1 2023
37. Mine to Claim by E.V. Olsen 1/27/24 1/27/24 Kindle Rex and Devon Wasteland Temptations 1 2023
38. Mine to Protect by E.V. Olsen 1/27/24 1/28/24 62 pages Kindle Rex and Devon Wasteland Temptations 2 2023
39. His to Break by E.V. Olsen 1/28/24 1/28/24 51 pages Kindle Mac and Cal Wasteland Temptations 3 2024
40. Nixon by Laura John 1/28/24 1/28/24 238 pages Kindle Dante and Nixon Hunter Security 1 2023
41. Kissing in the Snow by Laura John 1/29/24 1/29/24 101 pages Kindle Dane and Ryan related to Sentinel Protection Duology 1 2021
42. Damaged Like Us by Krista Ritchie and Becca Ritchie 1/29/24 1/29/24 399 pages Kindle Maximoff and Farrow Like Us 1 2017
43. The Plus-One Entanglement by Paulina Ian-Kane 1/29/24 1/30/24 127 pages Kindle Asher and Jordan Love After Forty 1 2023
**abandoned One by Paulina Ian-Kane** 197 pages
44. His Mafia Prince by Leo Rivers 1/30/24 1/31/24 133 pages Kindle Angelo and Sebastian Toscano Doms 1 2023
45. The Billionaire's Rival by Silvia Violet 1/31/24 1/31/24 276 pages Kindle Ford and Jay Bad Boy Billionaires 2 2023
46. True North by C.E. Kilgore 1/31/24 1/31/24 57 pages Kindle Chris and Joshua Hearts Compass 1 2015
47. Down South by C.E. Kilgore 1/31/24 1/31/24 61 pages Kindle Gabe and Liam Hearts Compass 3 2015
48. Back East by C.E. Kilgore 1/31/24 2/1/24 57 pages Kindle Eli and David Hearts Compass 2 2015
49. Out West by C.E. Kilgore 2/1/24 2/1/24 62 pages Kindle Alex and Mateo Hearts Compass 4 2015
50. Objectified by C.E. Kilgore 2/1/24 2/1/24 48 pages Kindle Zane and Tyler 2015

Currently Reading:

The Geographer's Library by Jon Fasman 1/26/24 audio book 2005 15.5 hours
North Woods by Daniel Mason 1/6/24 Hardcover 372 pages 2023
Honesty by
An Immense World by Ed Yong 10/22/23 Hardcover 355 pages 2022
The Federalist edited by Jacob E. Cooke 5/28/22 656 pages hardcover 1961

adds - 337 last year

1. Thrift Shop - How to Give Up Plastic by Will McCallum
2. Thrift Shop - Worth Dying For by Lee Child - hardcover upgrade for mass market paperback
3. Thrift Shop - Hieroglyphics by Jill McCorcle
4. Thrift Shop - The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni
5. Thrift Shop - Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
6. my catalog - readded so net 0 with cull, below: Foreigner by C.J. Cherryh
7. brought back into my catalog - The Complete Vampire Chronicles: The Tale of the Body Thief, the Queen of the Damned, the Vampire Lestat, Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice
8. Kindle - Where Forever Started by Barbara Elsborg
9. Amazon - Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat because I had to have a book by someone with that name
10. Kindle - Assassins Are People Too by S.C. Wynne
11. Kindle - Assassins Love People Too by S.C. Wynne
12. Kindle - Assassins Save People Too by S.C. Wynne
13. Amazon - The Complete Tutankhamun by Nicholas Reeves
14. Kindle - Trapped for the Holidays by Courtney W. Dixon
15. McIntyre's - Sacred Altars by Anne Strand
16. McIntyre's - On Digital Advocacy by Katie Boue
17. McIntyre's - A Line in the Sand by Kevin Powers
18. McIntyre's - Son of the Old West by Nathan Ward
19. McIntyre's - Songbirds & Stray Dogs by Meagan Lucas
20. McIntyre's - Boundaries and Protection by Pixie Lighthorse
21. McIntyre's - The Plague by Albert Camus
22. McIntyre's - Transient and Strange by Nell Greenfieldboyce
23. McIntyre's - Building a Better Boomer by Neil Offen
24. McIntyre's - Please Unsubscribe, Thanks! by Julio Vincent Bambuto
25. McIntyre's - The Apple in the Dark by Clarice Lispector
26. McIntyre's - Nuts & Bolts by Roma Agrawal
27. McIntyre's - Longstreet by Elizabeth Varon
28. Kindle - Crashing Upwards by S.C. Wynne

culls - 64 last year

1. Grant by Ron Chernow - CDs
2. How to Read and Understand Shakespeare by Professor Marc C. Conner - DVDs
3. The History of the Supreme Court by Professor Peter Irons - DVDs
4. Shakespeare's Tragedies by Professor Clare R. Kinney - DVDs
5. Terror of History by Professor Teofilo F. Ruiz - audio CDs
6. Great Artists of the Italian Renaissance by Professor William Kloss - DVDs
7. The History of Ancient Egypt by Professor Bob Brier DVDs
8. Dreams of My Father by Barack Obama - CDs
9. Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls by Lela Lee
10. The God Dog Connection by Marti Healy dogs - ugh
11. Nothin' But Good Times Ahead by Molly Ivins - duplicate
12. The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

***mass market paperbacks - small print, tanned, not interested in any more, etc.***
13. The Age of Innocence by Wharton, Edith
14. False Impression by Archer, Jeffrey
15. Deep Storm by Child, Lincoln
16. Cat O'Nine Tales: And Other Stories by Archer, Jeffrey
17. Atonement by Mcewan, Ian
18. Faithless by Slaughter, Karin
19. Fatal Burn by Jackson, Lisa
20. At The Stroke Of Madness by Kava, Alex
21. Eden Burning by Lowell, Elizabeth
22. Don't Scream by Staub, Wendy Corsi
23. The Rebel Angels by Davies, Robertson
24. Sphere by Crichton, Michael
25. The Making of the President 1960 by White, Theodore H.
26. Beauty and the Beast by Howell, Hannah
27. The Program by White, Stephen
28. Travels by Crichton, Michael
29. Foreigner by Cherryh, C. J.
30. World of Wonders by Davies, Robertson
31. I Know This Much Is True by Lamb, Wally
32. The Four Feathers by Mason, A.E.W.
33. The Next Accident by Gardner, Lisa
34. The Third Victim by Gardner, Lisa
35. The Survivors Club by Gardner, Lisa
36. The Key to Rebecca by Follett, Ken
37. Perdido Street Station by Mieville, China
38. The Broom of the System by Wallace, David Foster
39. Death's Door by Sawyer, Meryl
40. Why Aren't They Screaming? by Smith, Joan
41. Malice Domestic by Hardwick, Mollie
42. The Sculptress by Walters, Minette
43. Cold Allies by Anthony, Patricia
44. The Divide by Evans, Nicholas
45. A Knife to Remember by Churchill, Jill
46. Sullivan's Evidence by Rosenberg, Nancy Taylor
47. The Times We Had : Life with William Randolph Hearst by Davies, Marion
48. Beneath the Skin by French, Nicci
49. The Winter of Our Discontent by Steinbeck, John
50. Travels with Charley by Steinbeck, John
51. Blind Justice by Alexander, Bruce
52. The Daily Jane Austen: A Year of Quotes by Austen, Jane
53. A Regency Christmas 6 by Balogh, Mary
54. Someone Perfect by Balogh, Mary
55. The End of the Road by Barth, John
56. A Seer Out of Season: The Life Of Edgar Cayce by Bro, Harmon H.
57. After the Storm by Castillo, Linda
58. Among the Wicked by Castillo, Linda
59. Down a Dark Road by Castillo, Linda
60. Her Last Breath by Castillo, Linda
61. Shamed by Castillo, Linda
62. Victory by Conrad, Joseph
63. The Last Plantagenets by Costain, Thomas Bertram
64. The Manticore by Davies, Robertson
65. May We Borrow Your Husband?: And Other Comedies of the Sexual Life by Greene, Graham
66. Fever Season by Hambly, Barbara
67. Traveling with the Dead by Hambly, Barbara
68. To Die For by Howard, Linda
69. Mortal Fear by Iles, Greg
70. A Dangerous Man:: A Novel of William Wild Bill Longley by Johnstone, William W.
71. The Ritual Bath by Kellerman, Faye
72. A Grave Talent by King, Laurie R.
73. Night Work by King, Laurie R.
74. O Jerusalem by King, Laurie R.
75. The Miernik Dossier by McCarry, Charles
76. Tularosa by McGarrity, Michael
77. The President's Shadow by Meltzer, Brad
78. Ice Hunt by Rollins, James
79. Bury the Lead by Rosenfelt, David
80. First Degree by Rosenfelt, David
81. Open and Shut by Rosenfelt, David
82. Angle of Repose by Stegner, Wallace
83. Last Breath by Stewart, Mariah
84. The Hellfire Club by Straub, Peter
85. An Autobiography by Trollope, Anthony
86. He Knew He Was Right by Trollope, Anthony
87. Rachel Ray by Trollope, Anthony
88. Why Frau Frohmann Raised Her Prices and Other Stories by Trollope, Anthony
89. Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Bridal Wreath by Undset, Sigrid
90. Kristin Lavransdatter II: The Mistress of Husaby by Undset, Sigrid
91. Kristin Lavransdatter III: The Cross by Undset, Sigrid
92. The Ringer by Wallace, Edgar
93. Back Home by Mauldin, Bill

While looking for a book on shelf L46 to read for the tribute to Julia, I found Proust and Trollope and decided that I'm going to deaccession almost everything I have by each author. None of them are of the quality I want, and if I decide to read these authors, I'll acquire paper copoies or Kindle versions that are easier to read.

Trollope
94. Barchester Towers & the Last Warden
95. The Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope
96. The Vicar of Bullhampton
97. The American Senator
98. The Claverings

Proust
99. The Captive
100. Cities of the Plain
101. Within a Budding Grove
102. The Sweet Cheat Gone
103. The Past Recaptured
104. The Guermantes Way

...
105. The book of Unusual Knowledge by Publications International, LTD.
106. The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig
107. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris
108. More Letters from Pemberley by Jane Dawkins
109. Five Victorian Ghost Novels edited by E.F. Bleiler
110. The Preacher by Camilla Lackberg
111. What's Bred in the Bone by Robertson Davies
112. Counterparts by Gonzalo Lira
113. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
114. These Three Remain by Pamela Aidan
115. The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
116. Parting the Curtains Interviews by Dannye Romine Powell
117. Into Africa by Martin Dugard
118. Luka and the Fire of Life by Salman Rushdie
119. Back to Blood by Tom Wolfe
120. The Source by James Michener - copy bought, then decided to give to Irene. I have 2 or three others on my shelves

while looking for two by Alice Hoffman to deccession, I found these I don't want any more:

121. The Moor by Laurie R. King
122. Victorians at Home by Susan Lasdun
123. Here on Earth by Alice Hoffman
124. Thomas Jefferson: A Biography in His Own Words
125. Mr. Jefferson's Lost Cause by Roger G. Kennedy
126. The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

and back to our regular programming, although with heightened awareness of what I want to not keep on my shelves
127. Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen - audio book
128. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
129. Norwegian Night by Derek B. Miller
130. Fields for President by W.C. Fields
131. The Longevity Plan by Dr. John D. Day and Jane Ann Day
132. The Love-Girl and the Innocent: Victory Celebrations: Prisoners by Alexander Solzhenitsyn

YTD Statistics for 2023

393 books read
2 of them on my shelves before 1/1/23 and not rereads
118 books abandoned, 12824 pages abandoned, 1 audiobook, .45 hours abandoned

165.75 audiobook hours

Avg pages read per day, YTD = 279
Avg pages read per book, YTD = 259

Book of the Month: Two book series: Malicious Intent and Instant Regret by EM Lindsey
Introduction to Judaism by Shai Cherry

Books by Month
January - 33 e-books, 19 books abandoned for 1711 pages
February 34 e-books, 1 paper book, 1 audiobook, 6 books abandoned for 718 pages
March 18 e-books, 7 books abandoned for 443 pages, 1 audiobook abandoned for .45 hours
April 35 e-books, 9 books abandoned for 974 pages
May 32 e-books, 1 audiobook for 16 hours, 8 books abandoned for 1,112 pages
June 39 e-books, 1 audiobook for 17.5 hours, 7 books abandoned for 948 pages
July 36 e-books, 1 audiobook for 18 hours, 8 books abandoned for 849 pages
August 29 ebooks, 1 audiobook for 22.5 hours, 6 books abandoned for 688 pages
September 25 ebooks, 8 books abandoned for 1,041 pages
October 26 ebooks, 1 paper book, 12 books abandoned for 1,163 pages
November 32 ebooks, 2 audiobooks, 16 books abandoned for 1,600 pages
December 48 ebooks, 1 audiobook, 13 books abandoned for 1,577 pages

Author
Male 13%
Female 79%
Undeclared * 5%
Non-Binary 3%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Living 100%
Dead 0%

US Born 41%
Foreign Born 37%
Undeclared * 22%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Platform
Hardcover 1%
Trade Pback 0%
Mass Market 0%
Audiobook 2%
e-Book 97%

Source
My Library 8%
Library 0%
Kindle Unlimited 92%
Borrowed less than 1%

Misc
ARC/ER 0%
Re-read 2%
Series 63%

Fiction 99%
NonFiction 1%

Author Birth Country
Australia 11%
Belgium less than 1%
Canada 4%
Cuba less than 1%
England 13%
Germany 1%
Ireland less than 1%
New Zealand 2%
Philippines less than 1%
Portugal less than 1%
Scotland 1%
UK 3%
Undeclared * 22%
US 42%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Original Decade Published
2000-2009 .5%
2010-2019 34%
2020-2029 65.5%

Category
Contemporary Fiction 97%
Crime Fiction 2%
Informational Nonfiction 1%

Acquisition/Source Date
Kindle Unlimited 363
2002 1
2004 1
2012 1
2013 4
2014 1
2015 1
2017 2
2018 6
2019 1
2020 3
2021 2
2022 3
2023 3
Borrowed 1

Average Rating
1.5 - Very Bad 2
2.0 - Bad 5
2.5 - Average 16
3.0 - Good 36
3.5 - Very Good 74
4.0 - Excellent 187
4.5 - Outstanding 72
5 - Masterpiece 1

Average Rating 3.81
Books acquired YTD 337
Books culled YTD 64

December 2023 Lightning Round

Manny for the Mafia by Brendol James 11/30/23 12/1/23 Kindle

Ugh. Awful. I do not know why I even bothered to finish it, but it was only 121 pages. Every shortcut, every pulling at the heartstrings, every unexplained emotional shift, every everything bad was in this one. Man nanny.. and a mafia boss and his two ‘dorable children. Gay for you mafia boss, too. Sheesh. Caveat emptor re sex.

Absolution by Sloane Kennedy 12/1/23 12/1/23 Kindle

First in the Protectors series. Color me surprised because this is an MMM book that I really, really liked. Mace is assigned the assassination of Jonas by the underground company he works for, but after a month or more just can’t find it in himself to pull the literal trigger. Jonas is supposedly a pedophile, so this really resonates for Mace, but… He just cannot do it, and there’s a lot of pressure from his boss to just get it done. Then the other people who want Jonas dead chime in, and Mace and Cole, who is the brother of a young girl Jonas knew when they were both on the streets, are on the run. Three-way sparkage, pretty well written in this straight white woman’s opinion. Bad guys vanquished, love triumphs. Caveat emptor re very steamy sex.

Salvation by Sloane Kennedy 12/1/23 12/2/23 Kindle

Second in the Protectors series, color me disappointed. Seth is the younger brother of Trace, man in the Army with Ronan. It’s during Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and they are keeping their relationship secret. They both get severely beaten by homophobes, and Trace dies. Ronan is traumatized, stops being a doctor, and sets up the underground company mentioned in the first book. Seth is Trace’s younger brother. Seth loves Ronan, Roman is shut down emotionally. Lots of “I can’t ever touch you again because it’s not fair to you because I’m so damaged” by Ronan, Seth saying he loves him, both giving into sexy times, and blah blah. In the meantime, Seth’s being targeted but nobody knows why, and Ronan and his company protect Seth. HEA, but I didn’t feel particularly good about it. Too much angst? Caveat emptor re sex. I’m going to try the 3rd in the series and hope for close to 4.5 stars like the first book in the series.

North's Pole by Leta Blake 12/3/23 12/3/23 Kindle

Poor North, not intellectually smart, part of an acting family, rich, connected, adrift. He sends a pic of a portion of his anatomy to a potential hookup but accidentally sends it to his entire social media contacts – Twitter, Instagram, FB, etc. – and it becomes too much for him to handle and he hightails it to Idaho, where his former security guard, Liam, lives. North fired Liam 3 years earlier because he was in love with him. Liam was in love with North, too, so wasn’t upset about the firing. North hides out in a local high-end hotel that Liam used to work in, and Liam comes to him. Immediate sparkage, immediate honesty, immediate everything. It’s very sweet, very spicy, and has a satisfactory HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Once Upon a December by Jess Bryant 12/3/23 12/3/23 Kindle

Short and sweet novella. Gibson has stormed over to Felix’s family’s new house in a posh suburb and tells his mother that according to the HOA covenants no gaudy Christmas decorations are allowed. Felix storms over when he sees Gibson leaving for work one morning and tells him off in no uncertain terms. Gibson see’s Felix walk back to his pregnant sister, makes the assumption that she’s his wife… Felix owns a successful and prestigious party planning company that has been hired by Gibson’s company to plan the Christmas Party. Gibson hates Christmas but puts on a party every year for the employees. Sparkage, getting over the hurdle of Gibson’s cold exterior, and etc. Another sweet story, works perfectly as a novella. Caveat emptor re sex.

Retribution by Sloane Kennedy 12/4/23 12/4/23 Kindle

Third in the Protectors series has Hawke, 10 years after his wife’s rape and death, finally honing on the father and son responsible. He finds the younger brother, who fled with his brother’s child 3 years previously, living hand to hand and makes a deal – he’ll make sure Matty gets the medical help he needs and Tate goes with him to the town he fled from to track the murderers down. Sparkage, which Hawke’s stunned at and resists, but a second love and a bad ending for the murderers when they come for Tate and Matty make for a satisfying ending. Caveat emptor re sex.

Grinch Kisses by DJ Jamison 12/4/23 12/5/23 Kindle

Griff, divorced from his wife and estranged from his teenaged kids, has returned to Christmas Falls and is the Project Manager for the month-long Christmas fest. He doesn’t feel it, feels like he failed his marriage and his kids. Logan has come to Christmas Falls as Griff’s sister’s fake boyfriend and with no room at Griff’s parents house for him, Griff puts him up in his guest bedroom. Serious guilt-inducing sparkage, because Logan can’t tell Griff he’s only there as a fake boyfriend, and Griff not willing to hit on his sister’s boyfriend. Logan comes from foster homes and just can’t get his head around Griff’s love and his family’s acceptance and bringing him into the Calloway Family fold. HEA, caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Forsaken by Sloane Kennedy**

Sometimes I read a series too quickly and the authors less-than-stellar quirks become irritating. Thus with this fourth in the Protector series has another hot member of the underground company crossing the path of someone with bad guys after him. Sexy tattoos, vulnerable twink, etc. Caveat emptor re sex.

The River Leith by Leta Blake 12/5/23 12/6/23 Kindle

This book, on the other hand, a standalone, was absolutely stunning. Leith wakes up from a coma, not remembering anything of the last 3 years. This retrograde amnesia is portrayed movingly and, although I have no other reference, I feel like the author did quite a bit of research to report the amnesiac’s view point and the view point of people he/she loves. In this case Leith was the victim of an illegal hit in a boxing match. He can’t remember his male lover and thinks he’s straight, doesn’t remember his father’s death, doesn’t remember his brother telling him that his mother’s death when he was young was actually a suicide. He slowly comes to terms with the new version of him, although there is a lot of anger and bewilderment. His lover, Zach, has to mourn the old Leith. Leith knows that Zach is more than a friend and so is accessing emotional memory, but the painful process of realizing new limitations, re-learning his relationships and place in the world is painful. Absolutely stunning. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Watch Me by Sloane Kennedy**

I got 165 pages in this one before remembering that I’d read it. I originally gave it 3.5 stars, wasn’t interested in finishing it again. Here’s what I originally wrote:

Private security bodyguard Nicolai is the last ditch attempt by his boss to properly guard Jude, a successful wheeler-and-dealer, who is curiously reluctant to accept this protection from a series of written threats and a break in of his apartment. Nicolai scares him into submission and discovers why Jude doesn’t want anybody to learn anything about his private life. Lots of angst and playing on the heartstrings, some of which was interesting and some of which was eye-rolling. Nicolai breaks the rules when the sparkage between them ignites. A few ups and downs, the threat eliminated, HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned, with reluctance but surety Pilgrim by Timothy Findley, started June 2022**

Excellent book, beautifully written, with Pilgrim not able to die, Carl Jung’s clinic, and various and sundry other things. I read about half, 260 pages, before not returning to it last fall. However, the timing was terrible in that I have needed to immerse myself in romances without any way to know when I’ll truly start reading other genres, so I’ve decided to take this one off my ‘Currently Reading’ list.

Without Warning by Reese Knightley 12/6/23 12/6/23 Kindle

Formulaic but not in a good way, with Ryder the Security Guy, Harrison the Protectee, sparkage, bad guys after Harrison because of a ridiculous stipulation about him having to marry or lose all his money. Adequate with a HEA, lots of stupid failures on Ryder’s part when his southern parts start thinking instead of his northern parts… caveat emptor re sex.

The Last Text by Alice Winters 12/7/23 12/7/23 Kindle

I read another book where a grieving widower texts his dead husband/lover’s cell phone and the person on the other end, just getting the phone recently, replies. This one is as good as the other one, with Merrick barely functioning after his lover is killed in a head on car crash. Jace and he text incessantly for a month, with sometimes hilarious results, and finally meet when Merrick’s computer hoses. Jace is a computer tech. Jace is simply a sweet, happy person, who understands that Merrick cannot stop loving Daniel, and finally convinces him that there’s room for Daniel and Jace in his heart. Very sweet and sassy, with a satisfying happy ending. Caveat emptor re sex.

A Different Kind of Honeymoon by Sofia Scott 12/7/23 12/8/23 Kindle

Rory’s husband of less than a day is found cheating on Rory. Rory had put up with this and planned on putting up with it in the future, but not on his honeymoon. He throws his husband’s stuff out of the RV they’d rented to travel around NZ, but drives onto an unpaved road and gets stuck. Aiden comes to his rescue, hauling the RV and Rory back to the auto repair shop Aiden works for in a very small town. Part not available for 3 days, Aiden and Rory start spending time together, even watching a meteor shower. The husband shows up and Rory returns with him, but realizes that the marriage is truly over and returns to Aiden. Age gap, with Rory 20 years older than Aiden, but neither cares and neither do I. HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Awfully Ambrose by Sarah Honey 12/8/23 12/8/23 Kindle

Liam and Ambrose meet in an unfortunate way – Liam is a waiter and Ambrose is the horrific boyfriend meeting the parents of his girlfriend for the first time. It ends up with Ambrose being kicked out of the restaurant. Liam has an overly-anxious mother who wants him to be happy and is ‘threatening’ him with re-introducing a boy from his childhood who he does NOT want to even consider as a boyfriend. He knows the woman dating Ambrose and sees her at uni and sympathizes, and she tells him that Ambrose was a paid-for-awful date so that her parents would appreciate her real boyfriend. Liam needs a boyfriend and hires Ambrose to be a good boyfriend, so good in fact, that his parents invite Ambrose for a 4-day weekend. By then Liam and Ambrose are panicky and want Ambrose to act bad but not be awful. Throw in Liam’s wonderful and eccentric family, sister Neve’s truly awful boyfriend, a daring rescue by tractor with John Phillip the dog, and sparkage/feelings, and there’s a quite wonderful HEA. Laugh out loud moments, too. Caveat emptor re sex.

Captured by Scarlet Blackwell 12/8/23 12/9/23 Kindle

First in the Cold Love series finds Gabriel in his Alaskan retreat working on his next book when an armed man rushes into the open door as Gabriel is trying to air the place out after burning toast. Ethan has escaped prison where he’s serving a life sentence for a murder he didn’t commit. For two days he and Gabriel dance around each other as sparks fly and Ethan tries to be tough and Gabriel tries to figure out what’s going on. Eventually the police come and find Gabriel tied to the radiator and capture Ethan in the attic, returning him to prison. Gabriel finds out that there’s a free Ethan website, gets in touch with the founder, Bob, and together they go over the evidence. They find the man they think is the killer. Bob lures him away from his hovel so Gabriel can look for the trophy they’re convinced he took. Gabriel finds a bound and gagged man. All hell breaks loose when the murderer returns unexpectedly. This wouldn’t be the type of book it is unless Ethan is found innocent, of course, and we eventually get our HEA. Caveat emptor re sex. It turns out that I abandoned this one in January – I have no memory of this – but this time around I loved it.

Caught by Scarlet Blackwell 12/9/23 12/9/23 Kindle Second in the Cold Love series showcases Blackwell’s ability to make you feel the bitter, life-threatening cold of an Alaskan trucker’s life. Marshall leaves a rest stop on his delivery trip and realizes he has a stowaway, Luka. Luka has escaped an abusive relationship with barely enough clothes to not freeze to death. Marshal tries to not get involved and even drops him off at a small town at one point, but realizes that Luka can’t survive there and returns for him. Heroics, continuing sparkage, but still Marshall drops him off in Fairbanks at the end of his run, returning to his little house, feeling empty and regretful. A chance encounter gives us honest feelings and the HEA I wanted. Caveat emptor re sex.

** abandoned Adam's Song by Spencer Spears**

Up and coming singer unintentionally takes too many pills with booze when his boyfriend breaks up with him in a humiliating way just before he goes onto stage, and he ends up getting his stomach pumped and in rehab. His best friend pays for it and returns home and … just couldn’t care how we get the HEA. I didn’t read far enough to get to warn anybody about sex.

Entangled by Scarlet Blackwell 12/9/23 12/19/23 Kindle

Wow. Emo on steroids. Jamie’s the police chief of formerly Barrow, now Utqiagvik, Alaska. Ephram’s an ex-con just arrived in town. Sparks fly, sparkage off the charts, and they agree to enemies-with-benefits. Jamie becomes infatuated and tries to make it more, but Ephram sends mixed signals. Honestly, I just wanted to smack them sometimes, but it was highly amusing and I was anxious to see how Jamie would convince Ephram to make it more. Caveat emptor re sex.

Revived by Scarlet Blackwell 12/09/23 12/10/23 Kindle

Kanen’s in love with Jamie from the above Entangled, but in the 10 years Kanen’s lived in Utqiagvik, Jamie’s considered him his best friend and nothing more. Heck. He doesn’t even know Kanen’s been in prison. Jensen arrives in town and sets up another trinket shop literally next door to Kanen’s and when Kanen realizes that the stolen items from his shop are in Jensen’s, he decks Jensen. Jensen’s smitten, Kanen’s still in love with Jamie. Jensen and Kanen start a relationship, and things go well for a while until Jamie kisses Kanen in order to punish Ephram, and all hell breaks loose. Other drama, but we finally get our two HEAs and a stalker gets his comeuppance. Caveat emptor re sex.

All I Want for Christmas is Revenge by K.A. Merikan 12/10/23 12/12/23 Kindle

Dark story, but the authors warn you. Rowan is the survivor of a home attack, with physical and mental scars and a limp to prove it. All he wants is revenge, but his therapist wants him to forgive. He writes his feelings out and goes to throw them away but they miss the trash can and Saint, an assassin who takes revenge assignments, picks it up. He tries to sneak into Rowan’s apartment and talk to him, but Rowan flips out. He changes gears and romances/seduces Rowan, with the promise of killing all four murderers by Christmas if Rowan will be his. Not too hard a sell, since Saint and Rowan have serious sparkage. They kill the bad guys, Rowan becomes his apprentice, and they live happily ever after, taking on revenge assignments. You’ve been warned. Caveat emptor re sex.

Wrong Way Home: Taken by K.A. Merican 12/12/23 12/12/23 Kindle

Another dark story, but the authors warn you. Colin is a pre-med student, doing what his parents want in every aspect of his life. While going home, he takes a less traveled shortcut, goes down a private road, and witnesses a murder. Taron can’t let him go – keeps him caged but otherwise healthy – food, medical aid, water, etc. Sparkage. Colin wants to leave to return to his life but starts realizing that life is not what he wants. Fast forward to a home invasion by an enemy of Taron’s, and all of a sudden things change and they get their admittedly-off-to-a-very-bad-start prisoner/captor HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Malicious Compliance by E.M. Lindsey 12/12/23 12/13/23 130 pages Kindle

This book is well-written, told from Jules’s POV, and we immediately learn that Jules, a cellist, has been dumped by his lover, a prominent composer in Europe after a 7-year relationship. He knows he will be blacklisted forever. He returns to NYC with his tail between his legs, completely broke, and is given the unheated, awful, basement apartment in his uncle’s building. He gets cello students, and his neighbor between buildings but connected by heating vents, Forrest, comes unglued at the noise and there are words. Eventually Forrest gentles when he realizes how devastated and hollow Jules is, and starts encouraging him. They start learning about each other and falling for each other without having ever met. Jules gets an audition with a philharmonic orchestra, and the book ends there. Caveat emptor re sex, but not one with the other directly, as it were.

Instant Regret by E.M. Lindsey 12/13/23 12/13/23 Kindle

This book is told from Forrest’s POV and we learn why HE’s living in a basement apartment, although it is not unheated, has real furniture and we get the sense that Forrest is well off. The first book is recapped from his point of view, and goes from where he invites Jules to a showing of his art, where Jules finds out that Forrest is blind. Forrest doesn’t think it will upset Jules that he’s withheld this information, and he’s right. HEA, caveat emptor re sex. These two books together are fine, very fine.

Sentenced to Christmas by Marshall Thornton 12/13/23 12/13/23 Kindle

Lies upon lies upon lies, which really irritated me. Friends who have superior gaydar brought in to see if someone’s gay… gads. This made me very unhappy and yet I read all 246 pages. Why? I guess I kept thinking it would heat up and have some real emotions between Gage and Cal, but alas. One kiss and a very silly story that I’m sorry I wasted my time on.

**abandoned The Spy and the Mobster's Son by Keira Andrews**

I actively dislike books where the supposedly competent and hyper-aware spy is caught by the bad guys multiple times as he’s trying to protect the good guy/love interest. This was another, and it just kept getting stupider and stupider.

The Christmas Veto by Keira Andrews 12/14/23 12/15/23 Kindle

So Reid needs a fake boyfriend – he just came out as bi – to get his grandmother off his back. He’s 29 but can’t stand up to her. *eye roll* At a company party his brother shows up with is best friend Connor, and Reid impulsively asks Connor to be his fake boyfriend. Connor says yes – he’s been crushing on Reid for 8 years – and this go predictably from there with few deviations. HEA, and caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Chance Encounter by Luna David**

Assassin Tate sees Chance getting beaten up by his father as Tate’s getting ready to assassinate him. He rescues Chance… and I couldn’t get much past that.

**abandoned Guys Like Him by Aimee Nicole Walker**

Kieran is just out of prison for a crime he didn’t commit and is taken in by a ranch that gives ex-cons structure when they come out of prison. Kieran is out for revenge against the man who set him up and is convinced that the owner of the ranch is part of the car/insurance fraud ring. However, he’s immediately attracted to Finley, not an ex-con, in charge of the barns where Kieran is assigned to work. Blah blah blah, attraction, should/shouldn’t blah blah. Just no.

Debt by Louise Collins 12/15/23 12/16/23 Kindle

Levi is second in command to Greyson, who runs a set of illegal enterprises. Levi and Jace go out to collect money and only Levi returns, shot and beaten. Greyson gets other members if his group to clean up after Levi managed to kill the two men who set him up, finds out who the inside betrayer is, and seduces Levi when he realizes that he can only trust Levi and Levi’s willing to give his life for Greyson. Short, sweet, and … weird? Caveat emptor re sex.

The Silent Mountain Man by Casey Cox 12/16/23 12/16/23 Kindle

Sweet story of Eddie, who is coming home to close down and sell his father’s house but barely makes it out of his car before a mudslide covers it and blocks the road. Harrick rescues him, and there’s immediate sparkage and immediate very steamy sexy times. Each is reminded of his first love – Harrick was abandoned by Eddie and never knew why, and Eddie was taken away to a conversion therapy camp by his mother when his parents found out about his feelings for Harrick. He came back 3 months later and Harrick was gone. Now, 11 years later, each is reminded of the other. Eddie finds the letters they wrote to each other as teens, they’re reunited, and it’s a forever and HEA for them. It’s a combination of very romantic and steamy. Caveat emptor re sex.

The Curious Mountain Man by Casey Cox 12/16/23 12/16/23 Kindle

Branum is Harrick’s brother from the previous book. He is skinny dipping on his property and sees a young man with red hair running for his life when Branum discovers him. He recognizes him as the new librarian and loves gingers, so off he goes to the Library. He has a secret – he cannot read – and PJ has several secrets – not least of which he’s neurodivergent and OCD. Somehow or another Branum musters the courage to ask PJ out, and two dates later it’s love and forever for both of them. Sexy times galore, but also very sweet times as PJ supports Branum in his studies to pass a 10th-grade reading test on his way to his GED, and PJ is amazed ad Branum’s acceptance of his OCD and other neurodivergent behaviors. Very sweet in addition to caveat emptor re sex.

Tell Me a Lie by Brianna Flores 12/16/23 12/17/23 Kindle

Debut novel, an absolute stunner although a bit twee every once in a while. Sage hooks up with Lucas, and four months later is looking for a job. Guess who owns the shop? The sparkage continues, they both are willing for the sexy times but reluctant to have a relationship – Sage because he thinks he doesn’t deserve one, Lucas because he's never been in one before. Tell Me a Lie refers to the hookup when Sage asks Lucas to tell him “I love you”. Sage has never heard those words before, was sent to conversion therapy, has been rejected by his parents. Onward and upward. I was fascinated with this book and hope the author writes more sooner than later although this one just came out three days ago, on the 14th. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned If I Met You First by AB Julian**

New author, and one can always hope, right? However, this was shallow, with lazy shortcuts instead of serious character development. Also, it didn’t make sense that Myles would attempt to sabotage an important family event so that Xander would fail. Blech.

And Then You by Briar Prescott 12/17/23 12/18/23 Kindle

The second in the Until series. I read the first one in July, also giving it 4.5 stars. In this book, Stephen goes through a traumatic event at age 15 and doesn’t feel like he deserves happiness. He sabotages friendships, doesn’t have relationships, and hates, absolutely hates Quinn. Quinn has his own issue, but they’re different and we only learn about them about 4/5 through the book. What starts out with Stephen being Quinn’s fake boyfriend for a week, turns into Quinn’s attraction to Stephen physically, then obsession, then sparkage on both sides, then a slow romantic dance with Stephen wanting Quinn but not feeling he deserves him. There’s more to Stephen’s story, which we only learn about after Quinn’s issue. There’s snark and trauma, and high quality emotive writing as well as thorough character development. There’s a very satisfying HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Finding Mr. Fabulous by Con Riley 12/18/23 12/19/23 Kindle

Dev has snuck into the house where an important meeting’s supposed to take place and is caught by Rex, also an attendee, apparently stealing something. Regardless, there’s an immediate attraction and they share some sexy times before parting ways. A month later they’re in the same place again, and Rex realizes that Dev is not a thief. Rex needs someone to help his father remember his meds and etc., and Dev is anxious to look through the attics of the old castle. Feelings grow, Rex gets a shock, and there’s a wonderful happy ending that includes found family and new family. Caveat emptor re sex.

Dust of Snow by Indra Vaughn 12/19/23 12/20/23 Kindle

Gregory is the PA at the US office of a company where Ashley comes to work as a manager of sales. Gregory had been dumped by his boyfriend a year ago and was feeling like he deserved it. He starts receiving secret Santa gifts – a latte, a car scraper, a coffee with a hand-knit cozy, roses, and feels so uncomfortable and unworthy that he writes a note that simply says “Please stop.” The gifts stop. The ex-boyfriend tries to reconcile, Ashley starts wooing Gregory, and after a cat kidnapping and some interesting insights into both Gregory and Ashley’s families, we have a very sweet and sexy happy ending. I particularly liked that although Gregory was not a large man, he was able to protect himself physically. Caveat emptor re sex.

Feeling Santimental by M.J. O'Shea 12/20/23 12/20/23 Kindle

Two men who have a crush on the other but both are too shy to explore it. Ellery’s brash and an extrovert and Simon’s shy and an introvert, but Simon makes sure he’s Ellery’s Secret Santa and at the Christmas Party reveal, they fully share their feelings. Very sweet, with one kiss at the end.

Man on the Inside by LJ Zephyr 12/20/23 12/21/23 Kindle

Oh my. This was written by a 22 year-old man, who clearly already has his writing chops and understands human relationships. The plot is convoluted yet completely understandable by the end. The themes are complex and very pertinent, the characters subtle yet vivid. Neil is a cop. His partner, a woman, Nimm, and he, are tracking down Artemy, a member of a nasty crime family. Artemy apparently ‘only’ deals in forgeries and counterfeits as opposed to murder, drugs, trafficking, etc. Neil goes undercover to find and arrest Artemy. Things go absolutely sideways from there. In the meantime, we learn that Neil and his wife of 15 years are divorced, with a 12-year-old son and a 14-year-old trans daughter. Throw in Artemy’s vicious mother, a few electrifying events and reveals, and I was absolutely mesmerized and enthralled. Caveat emptor re sex.

A Changeling Christmas by Eli Easton 12/2/23 12/21/23 Kindle

Two sweet ones in a row, and I realize I like the more edgy ones – assassins, enemies to lovers, etc. Felix goes to a speed dating event, crashes and burns, and is given the opportunity to spend 3 days free in a cabin because the man needs to leave. He takes him up on it, not realizing that the man is a criminal. Riggs, a cop, is there on holiday, waiting for 2 friends to show up for fun times of skiing. Avalanche, Riggs is asked to check out Felix, who’s pretending to use the name of the guy who had to leave. Attraction, suspicion, etc. Short and sweet, fortunately. Caveat emptor re sex.

12 Days of UPS by Eli Easton 12/22/23 12/22/23 Kindle

Paul’s isolated during Covid, already isolated because he writes gay romance fiction at home anyway. Dan is a UPS driver delivering one package a day from an anonymous giver. After a couple of days Paul starts opening the gifts in front of Dan. Part of him thinks it is Dan, part of him thinks it’s someone else. Sweet reveal, a hug and a kiss between Paul and Dan at the end, with promises of a HEA.

Perfect Ten by K.M. Neuhold 12/22/23 12/22/23 Kindle

First in the Palm Island series. An island of men running from their former lives. Hard work during tourist season, kicking back and partying during off season. Ten gave up his medical residency after he nearly died in a car crash. Bambi (nickname for his huge doe-like eyes, otherwise Ryan), temporarily gives up his medical studies after his father dies. After two years on the island, Bambi moves in, platonically, to Ten’s guest bedroom. Bambi’s had a crush for 2 years, Ten starts realizing that hookups no longer work and starts having feelings for Ryan. Lots of eccentric characters, a well-paced plot, and some help from dead but well-remembered island denizens moves the romance along. I really liked this because both men had serious baggage and Ten’s realization of what he wants surprises him as much as his attraction to Bambi. The ending is perfect. HEA and serious caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Fated by Indra Vaughn**

This one moved too slowly for me, frankly, and Hart and Toby seemed like caricatures.

**abandoned The 12 Kittens of Christmas by Amy Lane**

Although I seriously love cats, this one was sweeter than the eggnog pie I recently made that was too sweet. Abandoned kitties, serious vet bills, Feelings, capital F.

**abandoned Swift’s Temptation by J.R. Loveless**

I really like the first person POV, but honestly, it’s so improbable and antagonistic that I just can’t finish it. Fagan’s telling the story, Xavier is a complete ass to him from page 1, when Fagan is offered a job at an escort service after the owner’s huge dog jumps on him and spills his coffee. Just… over the top descriptions that are lazy, and improbable situations.

Counterclockwise by LJ Zephyr 12/23/23 12/24/23 Kindle

Simon’s a time traveler, come back almost 70 years to gain an understanding of what happened at 10 Downing Street with the Prime Minister and her son Leon, supposedly murdered by her other son Noel. Somehow Noel has created The Rift, which is destroying London and will eventually destroy the world. Simon learns more about the brothers and the power that may have caused the Rift. I found the book to be riveting and easy for a time travel/paradox novice such as myself to feel comfortable with, even as more sophisticated aspects of possible outcomes are discussed. Simon and Lee, how Leon is actually known in his time, start caring about one another even as Simon knows of the awful event that will take his mother’s and his lives on June 29, 2030. There are so many ironies and switchbacks and yes, things that seem to go counterclockwise, that it takes more than just a quick read to see things as I imagine the author might want them to be seen. I figured out 60 pages before the end part of how things get resolved, which is unusual for me. No sex, but love and a few kisses. This book opens itself up to a sequel, but in the 4 books the author’s written so far there’s only wiggle room without too big a stretch in this one IMO.I really like this author.

Merge Ahead by Tanya Chris 12/24/23 12/25/23 Kindle

Character-driven plot, with Adam a high-powered exec meeting Will, a wanna-be writer and call-center supervisor at an airport. There’s serious sparkage, but they never meet each other again until they’re both on a flight to Hartford, where they both live. Adam’s company has bought out Will’s, and there are complicated times ahead, both with the work situation and Will’s feelings of not needing to be dependent on Adam and Adam’s feelings of wanting to take care of Will, which is how his parents’ marriage works. Will’s Puerto-Rican American and has internalized his father and mother’s traditional roles as to how he perceives things. He’s more than tetchy about not being the ’woman’/submissive in the relationship. Adam insists he isn’t. This is a constant theme of the book on top of them working out all these issues, moving in together, and Will being laid off and finding out how to become the man he wants to be and the partner he wants to be to Adam. Caveat emptor re sex.

Among Heroes by Tanya Chris 12/25/23 12/26/23 Kindle

Rook is a commercial airline pilot, taking 10 people to an island so that they can reach out to the indigenous population. He and his copilot argue – he wants to continue the mission when the weather changes and they’re flying into more danger, she wants to abort. He wins, but they crash on the island, although his superior flying skills actually insure their survival. Survivor instincts kick in for all of them, and Rook is confronted with Bryce, who wants to take charge as much as Rook. Enemies to lovers, instant sparkage, the only two gay men among the 12. The flight attendant has been seriously injured, and Rook and Bryce go to the only major town on the island, taking 3 days, to get aid for her. They’re all rescued, Rook and Bryce continue their relationship, HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Forget I Told You by Tanya Chris 12/26/23 12/27/23 Kindle

Wildly improbable plot, with Jay having orchestrated his own ‘amnesia’, being moved by the FBI to Seattle, and ‘married’ to a woman to protect him from assassination attempts because of knowing who killed a patient of his. He’s mildly unhappy, mildly anxious, and one day stops taking his morning meds. Two days later he sees someone he knows and instinctively knows he loves – Deron – and all hell breaks loose as his cover is blown and Deron tries to protect him as they both navigate what used to be a relationship. I really liked this one for the absolute love between the two, even with distrust and strange currents moving around them. Jay’s trying to unlock his old laptop to provide the clues to what he knows and Deron is simply trying to keep him alive as Jay realizes that Deron’s on his side. HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Better Off by Tanya Chris 12/27/23 12/27/23 Kindle

Hailey runs a failing used book store in a run-down building in a run-down part of town. Mac is the owner of the development company trying to get Hailey out of the building, the last holdout. It’s instant attraction on both sides, as they both realize that their goals are different and this may be no more than an inconvenient hookup. But the more time they have to spend together, the more Mac sees the true worth of Hailey regardless of his poverty, his failing book store, and his stubbornness in not leaving before his lease is up. Told completely from Mac’s point of view, we see his growth as a human, his insecurities, his love of Hailey and willingness to do what it takes to make Hailey happy. Through Mac’s eyes we see Hailey’s compromises, too, and we get a wonderful HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Planes, Trains, and Hurricanes: A Christmas Road Trip Romance by Eli Easton 12/27/23 12/27/23 Kindle

Joe’s driven by success and money, returning way too late with a hurricane due to hit Florida, needing to get there in time for a fancy party his fiancé requires him to attend. The man he just signed a contract with asks him to do him a favor by taking Remy back up to NYC with him because Remy’s mother’s dying. Remy’s easy going and they hit it off right away. Trying to get to NYC is tough though, as they take detour after detour to avoid roadblocks and floods. They have to hole up in a hotel due to flooding, and the next morning volunteer to rescue people from roof tops. Joe re-evaluates his life choices as he sees how wonderful Remy is. Sparkage, HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Perfect Storm by K.M. Neuhold**

The first in this series, Perfect Ten, was wonderful, but this one feels forced and is extremely irritating. I didn’t care for Chef Storm or Hennessy or their backstories or Chef Storm’s non-con forced reason to get together. Harrumph. No more in this series for me.

Fake the Date by Ana Byrde 12/27/23 12/27/23 Kindle

Ben comes from a wealthy family and is taking business courses to take over the family business while living in an expensive apartment in Atlanta. He takes on Evan as a roommate and immediately develops a crush on his straight roomie. Ben’s sister is getting married at a destination wedding and Ben’s mother keeps threatening to throw another woman at him to force him to marry. Ben brings Evan, and Evan starts realizing he’s not straight after all. Ben’s mother is over the top, but how can I resist a wonderful sister, a tiara/pornographic headband exchange between Ben’s sister Charlie and Evan, and a deaf dog named Toto? Sweet, believable, happy making. Caveat emptor re sex.

Suddenly Beck by Vawn Cassidy 12/27/23 12/28/23 Kindle

Nat escapes his life in London, showing up on the Cornish coast and nearly drowning. Beck literally saves his life, and there’s immediate sparkage. Nat gets a room at a local B&B, gets a coffee just when Beck’s mother finds out that her restaurant manager has absconded with funds and let pretty much every body go. Nat’s certified enough as a chef to take over the kitchen, and thus it begins, with Nat and Beck dancing around each other but Beck’s mother telling him to stay away from Nat. He does, they do, but still. In the meantime we learn more about their back stories. I really liked this one a lot because it had an interesting plot and characters that I wanted to find out about. Plus wanting the HEA, trying to figure out how they’d get it, which they did of course. Caveat emptor re sex. I probably won’t continue with the series, but you never know.

The Island by Lisa Henry 12/28/23 12/28/23 Kindle

Oh my. Where to begin with this one. Shaw is a facilitator – gets buyers and sellers together – for anything from stolen artwork to weapons. He’s on a desert island to sell a Cezanne to Vornis – an evil man but one who’s willing to buy stolen art. While there Shaw sees and is eventually given a captured DEA agent, Lee, to use as he sees fit. Shaw is conflicted – rescue drug-hazed/tortured/abused Lee or finish the deal and meet men he’s been planning to meet for 6 years. He pretends to abuse/torture Lee while giving him a sliver of hope. He plans to get in touch with the DEA to tell them Lee’s alive, after being missing/presumed dead for 8 weeks after he finishes the deal. We see Shaw work through the gray areas of his morality and Lee starting to rely on Shaw during times of lucidity. The ending is completely satisfying, with a few stunning plot twists in the middle. HEA and caveat emptor re sex. Caveat emptor re abuse/torture.

Cool Story, Bro by Lisa Henry and Sarah Honey 12/29/23 12/29/23 Kindle

Sweet short story of Travis and Levi. Travis is a recent transplant from Canada to Australia, temporarily abandoned by his mother who must return to Canada to make long-term care arrangements for his grandmother. He’s very lonely. He misses Canada, misses his mother, misses snow and the Northern Hemisphere winter. Levi is an Australian local. Both work at what I call an ABC store and what the author calls a bottle shop – selling liquor/wine/beer. They are attracted to each other but both are too shy to do anything about it until Levi and his best friend come up with an idea to give Travis their version of a Canadian Christmas. There’s one sweet kiss in the aftermath of the cool room Christmas, then Travis invites Levi to his family Christmas. Food, family, the barbie, and the beach, plus holding hands and watching the sunset make for a very satisfying and excellent use of the form. How their romance begins and becomes the story of that beginning is the title.

The River's Edge by Jordan Castillo 12/29/23 12/29/23 Kindle

Not being raised Catholic, I was only vaguely aware of what happens after death in that world. Gino was clubbed and Shane had been high when they met in a misty fog by a riverbank. They tried to walk away but kept coming back to the same place, the same pilings, and several times a boatman went by, ignoring them but picking up other people or, in one dramatic case, watching something horrific happen to Surfer Guy. There’s sparkage between Gino and Shane, gradual understanding of where they are, decisions to be made. I found this short story very powerful and satisfying. Caveat emptor re sex.

Two Man Station by Lisa Henry 12/29/23 12/30/23 Kindle

Gio has been banished to a two-man police station 2 days drive away from his home after he reports his abusive cop boyfriend for steroids. He gets a negative rep and Jason, the Sargeant looks at him negatively. Slowly over time Gio proves that he’s a good cop and trustworthy. Jason’s a widower with a 10-year old son, and since they live next door behind the station, start socializing a bit. One night Jason kisses Gio and things go from there. They try to keep it as an extended hookup, but things change, there are feelings, and after a traumatic event that leaves Jason seriously injured and Gio using force on an attacker, they realize they want to make it work romantically. HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Just a Bit Ruthless by Alessandra Hazard 12/30/23 12/30/23 Kindle

In some ways, this one was disturbing, in other ways it simply showed alternate sexual needs that Luke has. Luke intercepts an email from Roman to his father and decides to attend a meeting with Roman instead of his father, not realizing that they’re both doing shady things. Roman tells the ‘boy’ to go home then kidnaps him in order to have leverage over the father. After the guards rough him up, only give him a bit of water, one piece of bread, and keep him in a not-heated room for a week, Roman decrees that he be moved to the room next to Roman’s. Roman’s straight, but this seems to be a demi-sexual situation in which he becomes attracted to Luke. Luke’s immediately smitten, but keeps saying it’s Stockholm syndrome. They dance around each other, and Roman tries to repay Luke’s father for his betrayal indirectly. It works – Luke’s father is killed by another disgruntled criminal. Luke escapes, is returned to London, and realizes how crooked his father was. He’s threatened, calls Roman for help, which Roman provides for a 20% ownership of Luke’s company. And so it goes. There’s a HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Just a Bit Dirty by Alessandra Hazard 12/30/23 12/31/23 Kindle img src="http://static.librarything.com/pics/s8.gif">

Another disturbing one in that Miles thinks he’s asexual. He comes to the US from London to visit over the summer but starts working as a PA for Ian, the man whose company took over the company owned by Miles’ family members. Ian’s son has been traumatized by his mother and won’t speak or show affection to his father, and Miles looks like the ex-wife. Ian introduces Liam to Miles and Liam clings to him and cries, so Ian switches Miles to live in-nanny. I know – ridiculous. However, Miles is immediately attracted to Ian, who has never had a successful relationship because he is so overwhelmingly controlling. This control includes taking care of his partners, and as Miles and he become involved, there’s sparkage on both sides. Fast forward through family and company politics, Ian getting in an accident, many months where Miles is back in London but pining for Ian, and Ian realizing that he loves and needs Miles – there’s a satisfying HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

393 books read

1 Masterpiece
51 Stunning
181 Excellent
48 Very Good
30 Good
9 Average
4 Bad

Best Fiction
Show Me Wonders by Riley Hart Review
The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith Review
Honeytrap by Aster Glenn Ray Review
The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey Review
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Review
*runner up The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths Review

Best (only) Nonfiction
1066: The Year That Changed Everything by Professsor Jennifer Paxton Review
Lost Christianities by Bart D. Ehrman Review
Introduction to Judaism by Professor (Rabbi) Shai Cherry Review

Top five overall for the LT Top Five Books of 2023 List
Show Me Wonders by Riley Hart Review
The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith Review
Honeytrap by Aster Glenn Ray Review
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Review
Introduction to Judaism by Professor (Rabbi) Shai Cherry Review

…...

And, new in 2024, courtesy of @Jackie_K and my husband:

Welcome! Glad to finally be here, now I have a lot of catching up to do!

Wordle 926 4/6* slate, coral, rural, mural

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Our friends Geoff and Diane visited yesterday from 3 - 8 p.m. We had tasty finger foods and lots of good conversation.

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I'm recovering today from being very busy yesterday and not sleeping well. Senior kitty is in my lap, but I'll be heading up for a nap soon.

When I come back down, I'll gird my loins, so to speak, and take the dirty dishes out of the broken dishwasher and wash them and put them up after they air dry. The last cycle wouldn't complete two nights ago. The door locked, and Bill had to pry it open with a screwdriver yesterday - the last resort that the internet seemed to offer after several other things that didn't work. Oh well. It's old and I guess it's time for a new one. I might look at Lowe's website today.

Reading, straightening up, puttering otherwise.

Happy New Year, Karen!

Happy new year, Karen!

I had missed that Jenna had gotten a new job - congrats to her!

Happy New Year Karen! Nice new thread you have here.

RIP dishwasher. What sucks most about that is having to hand-wash dishes until it's replaced. I hope that doesn't take too long.

Kudos to Jenna for landing a new job! I hope she loves it.

Happy new year and happy new thread! Sorry about the dishwasher. I haven't had one for 12 years and still miss it!

What I *really* miss is my internet. Our home wifi and my phone have been acting up and I created TWO threads for 2024. I saw your message on my the one I am ignoring. Jim is updating the title for me as you can't delete threads evidently.

Please use this one instead: https://www.librarything.com/topic/356470

Happy New Year and new thread! Hope 2024 is kind to you

Hi Karen. I’m delighted to be here on your new thread to wish you a very happy new year and lots of good reading in 2024. You amaze me with the number of books you have read. Keep up the good work!

Congratulations to Jenna on her new job. That sounds like it would be right up her alley. The dishwasher news is not happy making. I am probably one of the few people in this world that doesn’t mind handwashing dishes although when we have company the dishwasher is my friend.

I hope to keep up with your chatty thread and may even post once in a while. Ha ha!

>6 karenmarie: Have to say this one was terrible for me...six book bullets and a damn-shamer (Grinch Kisses is a waste of a great title!) and you are doomed, doomed I say to a terrible afterlife for giving me new ways to splodge my pittance into Bezos's pockets.

Be well and happy this year. *smooch*

Happy New Year Karen!

Happy New Year, Karen. Good luck with the knee surgery. I hope 2024 is good to you and yours.

Welcome back, Karen!

Hi Karen!

Wishing you a great one!

Hi Karen - as you aren't touchstoning or entering your smut browsing, and I admit to be too lazy to search through your lists, I'll just ask if you've heard of A Taste of Gold and Iron? The author just made a splashy (re-)entry on the Discord page I joined and I'm trying it out. Angst though quite readable so far, and the smut has all been behind doors at 26%.

Happy New Year!

>1 karenmarie: Happy New Year!

You blew that goal of 75 books right out of the water!

Happy New Year, Karen! Happy New Thread! See you in the morning, my friend.

Happy new thread and new year, Karen. Somewhere upthread, I noticed the title The Paying Guests. I DNF'd it a few years back, just couldn't get into it. Life is short... and all that.

Love the kitty pics and congrats to Jenna.

Hi Karen. Congratulations to Jenna for the new job -- very exciting!

As always, I love seeing the pictures of the feline family members. I look forward to following your reading adventures in 2024. Very best to you for a Happy New Year (even though I am with you 100% on the scariness of the world right now and I predict November will be painful no matter what happens).

And Happy New Year!! I can't believe you read more than a book a day in 2023. You are my hero. : )

Happy New Year and Thread, Karen! I'm happy to read that Jenna got a new job and that she is looking forward to it. Sorry to read about your dishwasher. I hope you get a new one soon.

Happiest of New Years, Karen, to every two and four legged in your house. And congrats to Jenna for her new job!

Happy reading in 2024, Karen!

Thank you to all my visitors!

>11 DianaNL: Hello Diana. It’s nice to see you here. I’ve just visited and starred your thread.

>12 katiekrug: Hi Katie! Thank you re Jenna. She’s thrilled at the idea of working again. That and a new friend/romantic interest have her smiling and energized again. Makes her mom very happy.

>13 lauralkeet: Hello Laura, and thank you re new year wishes and my thread. I washed the entire load of dishes yesterday, let them air dry, then put them all up. Thanks, too, re Jenna.

>14 witchyrichy: Hello Karen, and thank you. I generate most of the dishes here at the house and would be very unhappy to have to handwash most of them. I just visited and posted to your correct thread.

Ugh to phone and wifi problems. I hope they’re fixed soon.

>15 ChelleBearss: Hi Chelle! Thank you.

>16 Donna828: Nice to see you here, Donna. Thanks for your 2024 and reading good wishes. I’m almost exclusively reading on Kindle right now – a trend I started in 2022 as a result of serious stress and wanting to completely escape reality. Still stressed but better, and still enjoying the subgenre I’m working my way through.

Thanks re Jenna. Actually, hand washing the dishes yesterday was quite satisfying. It reminded me of when I was a child in Hawthorne, CA. We’d fill up the sink with hot sudsy water and put the dishes in, stacked properly by size, put the not-sharp-knife silverware in to soak, get ‘em all washed, wash the sharps, then soak and then wash the non-dish items. I felt proud when my mom let me wash dishes.

I’d love to see you visit here during the year, too.

>17 richardderus: Hiya, RDear. #SorryNotSorry about the book bullets. You are the biggest giver of BBs to me as you well know. Yes, Grinch Kisses is the waste of a perfectly good title, however, there are lots and lots of books with the same title by different authors. Someone out there might use it again on a better book.

Thank you for your good wishes for 2024. I wish the same for you. And I am truly intending to make more Pecan Puffs today, some of them possibly making their way to Long Beach NY.

>18 SandDune: Hi Rhian, and thank you.

>19 BLBera: Hello Beth. Thank you. I hope 2024 is good to you and yours, too. I’ll be happy for January of 2025 because if my second knee surgery has me feeling as good as this one is doing at ten months, I’ll be in great shape.

>20 drneutron: Hi Jim, and thank you.

>21 quondame: It took me a bit of careful looking to understand what I was seeing – and I absolutely adore cavitating penguins. Thank you, Susan. I wish you a great 2024, too.

>22 quondame: I just looked at A Taste of Gold and Iron, Susan. Hadn’t heard of it. I mostly stick to contemporary MM romance, but have wish listed this one and hope the Kindle price drops soon. I browse many authors and titles and almost exclusively choose those available on Kindle Unlimited or ones that I can spend $5 or less on. I’ve been listing the books I abandon in my Lightning Rounds these days, to remind me of the duds. Sometimes an author skeeves me out, other times a good author just creates a dud.

>28 Berly: Hi Silver, Happy New Year to you, too. I really want to try a readathon early this year – don’t give up on me yet!

>24 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita. A Happy New Year to you, too. I used to always read 100 books or so, when I was reading more than MM gay romances. I’m reading a lot on my Kindle these days even though I acquire way too many paper books, which I do intend trying to make a dent in this year. MM romances fly by for me – they’re just doing it for me these days.

>25 msf59: Hiya, Mark, and thank you! I’m here early this morning, insomnia and finished a great book, my 3rd book of 2024 so far. My eyes are a bit gritty but I might nap this afternoon. Almost too early to see birds. I think there’s a female Cardinal in the Crepe Myrtle, nobody else visiting right now.

>26 jessibud2: Hi Ellen, and thank you on behalf of Jenna. Happy New Year to you and P and Carson, too. Yes, the world seems to be imploding right now, and you’re right that it will be a train wreck regardless of outcome. I do hope more states follow Colorado and Maine’s examples to try to keep the Dictator Wanna Be off ballots.

>28 Berly: Hi Kim, and thank you. What can I say? I was a book-reading fool last year. I’m also proud that I got through knee replacement surgery and have STILL avoided Covid – knock on wood. (Fully vaccinated for it, the flu, and RSV). Love your stars.

>29 vancouverdeb: Thank you, Deborah. The dishwasher report is below. Jenna is looking forward to the job – she’s always been willing to work but a regular office job is soul destroying for her. I think the busy-ness of a vet clinic which combines her business skills and her customer service skills will make her happy. Plus we hope that she will get the chance to get some vet tech classes/certificates along the way.

>30 streamsong: Thank you twice, Janet. Karen and I were discussing last night the fact that of the 7 denizens of this household, 5 are Gingers. Bill, me, Jenna, Zoe, and Wash. Inara is part ginger, being a dilute calico, so 6 1/3…

>31 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita, and thank you.

Wordle 927 3/6* slate, groan, aging

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I was mostly lazy yesterday except for hand washing an entire load of dishes when the dishwasher failed and locked the other night. It actually felt good.

We thought we would need a new dishwasher STAT, but Bill managed to get it unlocked, did a reset of something or another, and successfully ran an empty-load cycle last night. We'll see if he's fixed it. 🤞

...
Book sort is this morning, then Virlie's for breakfast/lunch depending on when we finish sorting and get over there. I'll stop off at the Tru-Value Hardware store to drop off an Amazon return using UPS, and depending on my energy levels, might use the treadmill today. I also plan on making more Pecan Puffs. We'll see how much of that actually gets done.

Morning, Karen. I was hoping for a more interesting FOY bird yesterday but it ended up being Canada geese. There were at least 200 hundred of them so they were hard to ignore. My second sighting was a pair of flickers, which I thought was pretty good. We don't see them as much in the winter. My feeders were hopping with the usual suspects yesterday.

Off to do Trail Watch this AM. It has been a few weeks. Good luck with the book fondling.

Morning, Karen. I saw your comment on Mark's thread about audiobook sources. You might take a look at chirpbooks.com. There is no monthly subscription, but it's similar to Audible in that you just download an app to listen on your phone/bluetooth. I am thinking of canceling my Audible subscription because I have a large library built up, plus I use Chirp, plus most of my audios actually come from the library.

Anyway, just wanted to share another option with you!

>32 karenmarie: Puffs! Puffs! Puffs! Puffs!

Tru-Value is still alive?! Wow, I thought Lowe's and Home Depot would've eaten their lunch by now. Happy, huggy, washdisherful day of book fondling, Horrible. *smooch*

Happy new year! Love to see your sweet kitties.

>33 msf59: ‘Afternoon, Mark! Happy Tuesday to you. Gads, 200 Canada Geese. Think of the noise and the poop. Whew. I love Flickers, they are so gorgeous. I hope Trail Watch went well. Book fondling went well. We finished about 10:40, so were able to order breakfast. After that I got a few things at the grocery store and dropped off an Amazon return at the UPS Store in the Tru-Value Hardware Store.

>34 katiekrug: Katie, thank you so much! I’ll check it out.

>35 richardderus: My goodness, RD. The first cookie sheet’s worth have 5 minutes to go. Then I’ll roll them in powdered sugar, let them completely cool, roll them in powdered sugar again, and make up a box for you. I’ll try to get them mailed tomorrow, along with friend Karen’s in Montana.

Yes, Tru-Value’s still alive. A nice local alternative to Lowe’s, although about the same distance. Fun book fondling, but no books came home with me. *smooch*

>36 ursula: Hi Ursula. Happy New Year to you, too. Thanks re our kitties.

Hi Karen!

>35 richardderus:, >37 karenmarie: Hardware stores: we have a wonderful store in our town, a family business that has been operating since 1914. Their prices are sometimes a little higher than the big box stores, but they almost always have what we're looking for. When we can't find an item on the shelves, we ask the staff and it magically appears. It's an old-timey kind of fabulous. Last year an Ace Hardware opened about a mile away but we won't shop there. If Nichols can't supply what we need then we'll drive 20min to Lowe's, but we won't support Ace's efforts to put Nichols out of business.

>35 richardderus:, >37 karenmarie:, >38 lauralkeet: - Thanks to The Wayne's love of poking around old-timey hardware stores, we've discovered the next town over has TWO such places, just a couple of miles apart. I love a town that supports two such niche "mom and pop" places...

Happy new year Karen! And congratulations to Jenna on the new job. That's a great way to start the year.

>38 lauralkeet:, >37 karenmarie:, >39 katiekrug: Austin had a chain that was born there in Texas and grew, that I used to get my hardware store fix by shopping in, called McCoy's...their tag line was "Go Build Something" which is pretty much the ethos of the place and the city.

Congratulations to Jenna. Looks like her life is in an interesting chapter.

I see you also got Wordle in three today. Apparently, this was a tough one and busted quite a few folks' streaks.

I'm glad that Bill managed to get the dishwasher working so quickly. That must be a big relief!

>34 katiekrug: Thanks for this, Katie. I will also check out chirpbooks.com. When my library on Audible gets too large, I just put the membership on hold for a couple of months. That way I still have access to the Daily Deal.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. Trail Watch went fine but it was quiet out there in the woods, few birds but we did see 4 white-tailed deer. I am going to do a solo run to the Arb later on, chasing a couple of target birds and then meeting my cousin for lunch. The life...

I am really enjoying North Woods. Have you started it?

>38 lauralkeet: Hi Laura! Cut-throat practices from Ace, eh? I think I’d do the same. I must admit that I haven’t just cruised through the Tru-Value yet, only using it for UPS, but I might go in there one day soon to do just that.

Having said that, I can’t imagine ever having been able to find the shelf support pegs I needed when I was moving my books tagged ‘read’ to the shelves I co-opted in Jenna’s Playroom = Karen’s Retreat after she moved to Wilmington in 2013. The brass pins holding up the adjusting shelves couldn’t bear the weight of books instead of toys. After looking for what I needed at Lowe’s and the Ace Hardware in Siler City, I got smart and went to Amazon and got these beauties:



I’m sure one or the other store might have ordered something that they thought might have worked, but I couldn’t be arsed to go through that. (I’m reading smut set in the UK right now, so love this phrase.)

>39 katiekrug: Nice to have two such places locally, Katie. We used to go to the Ace in Siler a very long time ago – 20 years or more to just browse in addition to getting lots of things from them.

>40 Jackie_K: Hi Jackie! The same to you, and thank you re Jenna. Between her new job and her new … dare I say romance? … she’s doing well. She’s also very happy to have it confirmed that they want her to wear scrubs. She’ll get one set before she starts work on Monday then get more soon.

>41 richardderus: It is the type of store one can just have fun in, RD, for sure. Separate but related – when I had my annual exam in late November, I was talking with my PCP about the 8 prescriptions I take every day. I was musing about going to Alliance Rx to save money but frankly can’t seem to want to go to the effort, and he said it wasn’t a bad thing to support the local pharmacy.

>42 quondame: Hi Susan, and thank you. A friend of mine says it’s Jenna's first Saturn Return, so there’s that, too. *smile*

>43 EBT1002: Hi Ellen. I use a spreadsheet to check guesses – first that they’re part of the original 2,309 words, and second, if they’re a valid word on that list that they haven’t been used since Wordle’s published inception. When neither works, I will sometimes use the internet for words with the letters I have. I like to be challenged, but not completely frustrated. And yesterday’s effort was just guessing words and checking against both sides of the spreadsheet.

>44 vancouverdeb: Hi Deborah. Huge relief, and we’ll see how it goes on its first true cycle, with dishes and Cascade, probably Friday or Saturday.

>45 msf59: Nice of Katie, wasn’t it, Mark?

>46 msf59: ‘Morning, and happy Wednesday to you, too, Mark. Nice to see 4 deer. We have a herd that roams through here, and most recently saw a buck (4 or 6 points, didn’t use the binoculars), with 3 fat does. Have fun at the ‘Arb’, and then lunch out.

I did start North Woods, got to about page 4, love the rhythm and how the author pulled me right in, but LIFE and smut got in the way yesterday. I’m going to read more of it for a while, then smut, then either some of An Immense World or Grounded: A Senator's Lessons on Winning Back Rural America OR Federalist #53. I started an audiobook I was going to give to the Friends but decided to listen to instead, Bad Monkey. So far so good.

Wordle 928 3/6* slate, blunt (shouldn't have used a word with L in the wrong place), twirl. I admit that I searched for a twi word that had an l in it. All's fair in love and war and Wordle.)

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Yesterday was fun - book sorting, Virlie's, UPS dropoff, groceries. A supposed run of ~$15 became an extended small run of $57. Sigh. Air fryer bone in/skin on chicken and vegetables for dinner.

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I have an appointment at noon for my semiannual visit to the dentist. Should just be a cleaning, but because of my knee replacement, I have to take amoxicillin an hour before the appointment. Every time I have any dental work done, forever apparently. Fortunately, I don't have a bad reaction to it. The text reminder from my dentist's office this morning reminding me of the appointment also reminded me about the amoxicillin an hour before. I already had it out, but I appreciate that it's flagged in their system. After that, I'll use the treadmill at the Senior Center.

Happy new year, Karen!

>5 karenmarie: Astounding stats!

I will be following along as always and have dropped my star.

>47 karenmarie: Ha - having seen you mention a "friend" more than once, I did wonder if there was a burgeoning maybe-romance going on! How lovely!

Great news that Jenna ended up with a job in a vet's office. It sounds like a good fit for her.

Fingers crossed for the dishwasher. When I moved into this place the dishwasher died after 4 months and I ended up getting a new one which sat unattached in my kitchen for a good part of a year because it seems that the flooring had been put in after the old dishwasher was installed and I had to find someone to cut part of it away to get the old one out and the new one installed. Hope your easy fix worked!

>48 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul, and Happy New Year to you. I guess reading’s reading, so my smutfest since July of 2022 is just me reading a lot, isn’t it? Thanks for dropping the star, welcome aboard.

>49 Jackie_K: Yes, Jackie, things are progressing. I’m mostly being kept in the dark, which is as it should be. She’s going over tomorrow.

>50 Familyhistorian: The job fit does sound good, and Jenna’s getting mentally geared up for it. New routine again, making of lunches and even late afternoon snacks depending on how late she’s there some nights. Driving, learning, and etc.

Sad about your old dishwasher and the efforts you needed to go through to get the new one in. We’ll know if this worked after the first soap/dishes cycle.

…
Dentist visit was uneventful, which is the best kind of visit. Not even any x-rays, so I only paid a ridiculous amount, not a jaw-dropping amount. I should get quite a bit of it reimbursed although our dentist is out of network. We like him, we trust him. Plus he has red hair…

I stopped at the Chatham PTA Thrift Shop on the way back to town and got 5 books.

How to Give Up Plastic by Will McCallum – better late than never to at least read about it, eh?
Worth Dying For by Lee Child – hardcover to replace mass market paperback
Hieroglyphics by Jill McCorkle – love the cover and she’s a native North Carolinian, born on my mother’s birthday July 7th
Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni – I just love the title

31 minutes on the treadmill at a good rate of speed for this septuagenerarian. First time I’ve self-identified as a septuagenarian. Gads.

Mailed 2 packages at the PO and filled the gas tank.

Home bonding with Senior Kitty and reading.

Hi and happy new year!

I love reading people's life summary, in post #1, it is a good reminder of things other than books that are going on for people.

Glad you got to read more than 75 books last year, even if some did categorise them as smut ! (haha- read what you want, I say!!!).

Love your cat profiles, too. Ours is 3 years old, acts like a kitten still in that she sleeps A LOT, is super playful, and goes a bit crazy every evening at dusk (which for us at this time of year is about 930pm!).

Happy Thursday, Karen!

>51 karenmarie: An uneventful dentist visit sound very good, I hope the same for my appointment at the end of this month.

>52 LovingLit: Hi Megan, and thank you. Happy New Year to you, too. Glad you like my >1 karenmarie: post. Identifying it as smut and soft porn by daughter and best friend respectively doesn't bother me at all, in fact it's rather endearing. Plus, I actually shared what I was reading with them, so there's that. Neither one's on LT, although I'm trying to get Karen to catalog her books and join the fun.

I'm glad to hear about your cat. Our gingers go crazy too, either on their own or with each other, chasing around, clattering up and down the stairs, zooming through the center space of the kitty condo in the living room. I've never lived in a place where dusk was that late, although when I visited Montana in 2018 for almost 3 weeks it was that way. Seems weird to me.

>53 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita! The word uneventful is more and more attractive to me - uneventful drive, dentist visit, doctor visit, etc. Good luck with yours at the end of the month.

Wordle 929 3/6* slate, stamp, scant. I still think they're rewarding people for using slate, as identified as the best starting word in the NYC article.

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I'll be having lunch with Rita the Librarian today, place to be determined. After that I'll go use the treadmill. Jenna's off to visit her official girlfriend. Most likely soccer reruns for Bill.

drat. duplicate post.

>53 FAMeulstee: >54 karenmarie: I speak to my parents weekly on the phone, and have taken to wishing them a thoroughly boring and uneventful week till the next call. I'm too old for dramas (especially at a distance, where I'm limited as to how much I can do to help), and so are they!

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. Jackson duties today and tomorrow. Long day over there today but I will share duties with him tomorrow. Nothing happening at the Arb yesterday. I missed my two target birds. I will persevere.

Enjoying North Woods. Take a break from the smut...😁

>54 karenmarie: You know Oberon/Erik was actually *AT* the Arsenal game on New Year's? He's a soccer booster of his local club, the Loons in Minneapolis as well as Premier League.

Lovely lunching today wherever it takes y'all. *smooch*

Just checked and it is still morning, so a "Good Morning" is still in order. Scattered is what I am now and have been for some time. Still holding dementia at bay. "I'm a man, but I can change. if I have to. I think."

Do I remember correctly that you really liked Time and Again? I'm reading it now. I must say it's a bit of a chunkster. It's holding my interest.

In response to your exhortation on my thread: Yes yes. I'm working on that homework.

>7 karenmarie: I am seeing Lessons in Chemistry on several of the 'Best Of' lists for 2023 and I completely agree. I very much enjoyed it too. Thanks for sharing your lists, Karen. I will be looking for the ones I have not yet read.

Happy New Year! Happy New Thread!

>59 weird_O: “I'm a man, but I can change. if I have to. I think."

Aahh! Red Green! I have the boxed set of Red Green shows. Might be time to rewatch a few.

Karen O

>54 karenmarie: Karen, I got Wordle in 3 today, also. I use my same-old first word and I think you’re right—it’s similar to the first word that was recommended.

Have a great day!

Karen O

Found and starred! Have a great reading year! And I so sympathize with you both on wondering how we got old (I'm "only" 66) and on the gang of pseudo-Christian psychos.

>56 Jackie_K: I love it, Jackie! Thoroughly boring and uneventful. I, too, hate dramas.

>57 msf59: ‘Afternoon, Mark! Sweet Thursday, what’s remaining of it. Ah, Jackson duties. I hope you have a good time with your favorite grandson. I’ll take a break from the smut tomorrow morning. Promise.

>58 richardderus: I’m envious of Erik. I can’t see it ever happening, but I would love to go to an Arsenal home game. As if I don’t already eat there once a week, Rita wanted to go to Virlie’s. We both had a hamburger steak, called The Bubba… mine with mushrooms, broccoli, and grilled zucchini, hers with mushrooms and gravy, sweet potato fries, and grilled zucchini. A good time was had by both of us. After that I used the treadmill for 36 minutes, then came home and have puttered. Time to eat the second half of lunch.

>59 weird_O: It’s afternoon, now, so Good Afternoon, Bill. I’m sorry you’re scattered, I know you’ve got a lot going on. The only thing I can give you is hugs: (((()))). I have read Time and Again although it’s not in my catalog any more. I read it before joining LT.

>60 alcottacre: Hi Stasia! You’re welcome re my lists. Happy New Year to you, and thank you.

>61 klobrien2: Missed that completely, Karen. I’ve never heard of The Red Green Show.

>63 ArlieS: Hi Arlie. Yay. Thanks. You’re a young’un, for sure. Glad we’re in synch about the gang of pseudo-Christian psychos.

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So as mentioned above, lunch, treadmill. I may have eaten 3 or 4 Pecan Puffs after coming home…

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Tomorrow will be treadmill again. It’s amazing that one time isn’t good forever. Sheesh.

Lots of puttering planned, cleaning up the Sunroom, possibly getting rid of some of the books here that need better homes.

>64 karenmarie: Your diligence impresses me. Go you. I am dodging be inspired however.

Hi Karen.

>59 weird_O: - Time and Again is one of my all-time favourite reads. I seldom reread anything but I have read that one 3 times, including once on audio! I am waiting for the right director (Spielberg or Ron Howard) to adapt it to film.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/356840

I have bookmarked a website that tracks all the words that have already been used. Sometimes I'll check it when I have a long list of possible words and I don't want to get into a pure guessing game. Like house, mouse, douse, louse...

Hi Karen. Happy new year and I hope this year will treat you well.

Your health goals look very sensible, and I hope the knee surgery goes well and gives you relief.

Your book club plans look interesting - sorry that the Sarah Waters book isn't speaking to you.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. A couple of Jackson photos over on my thread. I had a great time with him and will head over there again this AM and bring him back here so Grandma can get some loving in. Expecting some snow tonight. We have been lucky.

>65 quondame: Thank you, Susan. My diligence is based on having a STEMI (‘widow maker’) heart attack in November 2021 and not wanting to NOT do what I need to do to live a long life. Do I want to work out? No. Would I like to eat processed foods and olives and pickles and bacon? Yes. And etc. Your dodging inspiration is what you need for your continued well being too.

>66 jessibud2: Hi Shelley. I’ve read 2 by Finney and had Three by Finney on my shelves before I deaccessioned all three a while back. Good books, but I got in a mood one day. I won’t read them again, and wanted the shelf space.

>67 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver.

>68 EBT1002: You’re smarter than I am, Ellen – but I have a filter on the 2,309 tab and can eliminate letters when I get desperate in addition to looking for words on the words used tab. That’s what I did today because I didn’t want to spend a lot of time on Wordle today.

>69 PawsforThought: Hi Paws, and thank you. I’m debating whether to go on the 14th – it’s a particularly good Book Club friend and we’ve talked about the book, but I’m embarrassed that I haven’t given it more effort. There’s still time though.

>70 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and happy Friday to you, too. Yay for lots of Jackson time for you and Sue. I’d like snow, but looks like we’re expecting heavy rain Monday/Tuesday instead. I guess there’s less and less chance of snow for you, although we’re technically only 5 weeks into winter.

Wordle 930 4/6* slate, whole, liege, lunge. with quite a bit of help from my spreadsheets.

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I did get some things cleaned up in the Sunroom, got the 5 books entered into my catalog yesterday.

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Sunroom straightening, NSR (non-smut reading 😁), SR (smut reading), treadmill. Jenna and I will probably take Christmas stuff down.

>71 karenmarie: Saw this today on Tumblr and thought of you right away, Horrible:

Of course you did, RD! I'm thrilled. Yes, my reading is almost 100% emotional support these days. I'm still chuffed at your getting 5 BBs from my Lightning Round for December.

I just finished another good'un, Waiting for Ru, by Barbara Elsborg. Fourth in the series, I've read 1, 3, and 4. The description of 2 didn't particularly appeal to me, but in hindsight I should probably have read it to get more of Ru's backstory.

So I have a new version of my previously-unpublished New Year's Resolution to keep up with threads.

I'll post on the 3 I always post on then sort by New Total and keep up with the top 5. If I do that every day, I won't let threads get out of hand. *preens*

At least that's the plan.

Oh...Horrible...The Worst Has Happened! The Feds have sent me this

picture telling me there was addictive contraband in it and they were going to keep it until I gave up the source of the white powder that was all over the drug-dog's nose and unless I get more they're going to sling me into prison for trafficking illegally addictive substances! Help! Help! Send replacements for the ones they say are filled with addictive stuff!
My future freedom is in your hands! (And oven)

Yes! I mean I believe in dog, but have a backup kindle. And phone, and iPad.....

Happy New Year, Karen!

>74 karenmarie: That is quite a plan! I also resolve to keep up better this year but I don't have a specific structure attached to it. I do sort by unread posts, etc., and try to check in before a thread gets too far ahead of me.

Have a great weekend, Karen!

>75 richardderus: Yay for the Post Office. It arrived a day before they said it would. I’ll send you a cake with a file I it so you can break out instead. *smooch*

>76 quondame: Heh. Android AND Apple. We have a two-platform household, too, Susan.

>77 ronincats: Hi Roni, and thank you.

>78 EBT1002: It’s actually going to make it easier, I think, Ellen – saving me stress and guilt and giving me structure. There are more things that I prefer unstructured than structured, but the occasional RULE helps.

I just went to re-add the LT resolution above and realize that I somehow left off some of the resolutions from last year, which includes Be in better touch with family and friends. I tend to isolate when stressed.

I hope you and P have a great weekend, too.

Wordle 931 3/6* slate, alive, cable

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I was able to get 32 minutes of treadmill in yesterday but read smut and Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls by Lela Lee. It's a riot, and a quick read. I'll finish it today.

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I was going to go to the antique store to look for a lawyer's bookcase this morning, but it's gloomy, cold, and raining, so may not. Jenna will be gone today, and I may just stay at home. I woke up with a sore throat. It's mostly gone, but I do have some congestion. They'll be open next weekend, after all.

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. We are waking up to snow. Only 1-2" out there and it looks nice. We sure had a couple of good days with Jack. He was such a good boy. I had my FOY short-eared owls yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, they were very far away but good enough to identify. Love these guys.



-NMP

>79 karenmarie: Meanie! Here I am, facing prison, and you won't send me pecan puffs! My next communication may well be from White Deer, PA, and then you'll be sorry!

*smooch* for a solid, lazy SAturday if watching the weather do its thing without participating

Good morning, Karen. Our day had brightened a little moments ago, but the clouds have thickened again. I live in hope of getting to walk today. The CHAIR consumed our walking time for the past two days, and we need to walk!

Read and be happy! Or get that bookcase and be happy! Or both!

>80 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! Happy snowy Saturday to you. I’d love snow – it’s 46F and raining. I’m glad you had such good times with Jackson. Congrats on the Short-Eared Owls. I love the pic, even if it isn’t yours.

>81 richardderus: Yes, RD, I’m the meanest person in the world. No (more) Pecan Puffs. Give me your address and prisoner # and I’ll send you that cake/file. Jenna’s gone to visit her girlfriend for the day/evening, I’m not going out, one of the you-know-whats is in my lap, and I’ve just had brekkie and meds. Life’s tolerable. *smooch*

>82 LizzieD: ‘Morning, Peggy! We didn’t get any brightening, and it’s solidly raining right now. I hope you get to walk with your DH. I’ll be reading/napping and happy.

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I just finished Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls. I'll create a ROOTs thread, stealing my first message here with a different goal. A realistically small goal. ROOTs for me are any book that was on my shelf before January 1st.

Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls by Lela Lee
1/5/24 1/6/24





From Amazon.com:

The girls are back and angrier than ever! The fourth book in the successful Angry Little Girls series features the hilarious return of this beloved cast of characters, this time recast as fairy-tale heroines. Kim, the angry little Asian girl, stars in "Snow Yellow and the Seven Short Men"; Wanda, the fresh soul sistah, stars in "RapPunsWell"; Xyla, the gloomy girl, stars in "Little Miss Wears a Hood"; and the other girls star in furiously fractured versions of "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Princess and the Pea."

Filled with Lela Lee's culturally charged humor, this clever collection of new comics proves that there's an angry little girl inside of everyone.

Why I wanted to read it: Friend Karen gave this book to me in 2018, and I figured it was time to finally read it. Plus, it’s a jump-start on my ROOTs goal for the year and NOT an MM romance.

Clever, interesting, and all fairy tales I remember from my childhood. Well-done artwork. Not much more than that, really. You may not want to buy a copy, but if the Library has one, go for it.

Six word review: Clever feminist takes on fairy tales.

Hi Karen my dear, a belated Happy New Year. Great news that Jenna has a new job, i will be visiting throughout 2024 and wish you a lovely weekend. Love and hugs to you, Bill, Jenna, Inara, Wash and Zoe from both of us and Felix sends kitty skritches.

Whoa... It's snowing. Making the ground white. Supposedly will continue overnight, but there is some scuttlebutt that asserts it'll get all runny because the temp will rise before morning. What me care?

Yesterday I astonished myself by getting something done. Traveled to the Big Town (Kutztown) to shop for groceries, pausing to buy farm-fresh eggs from Mrs. Bauscher and meat from the Dietrich family. Left highly desirable junk at a thrift store. Separate trip to Waste Management with a lot of recyclables. Made an appointment with an ENT doc to get the sh*t out of my ears and incidentally get hooked up with a hearing aid person.

Today I spent a lot of time in Ye Olde NYC with Simon Morley. I pored over maps trying to establish points of interest. I know where the Dakota is and Madison Square, and Gramercy Park, and City Hall Park as well. He's covering a lot of ground! I'm past halfway and expect to spend more time with Si. Sunday and Monday. Getting a brace of Mark Twain's books lined up for next.

Happy 2024, Karen! I'm slowly making my way through the threads and hope to do better at keeping up this year.

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday. We have a family party this afternoon. Books and laundry this AM. It looks pretty out there in the backyard. I have only seen a lone cardinal. Lots of activity yesterday.

>84 karenmarie: Sounds really cute.

I hate cute.

Good job I have no reason I need to read it, eh what?

Sunday *smooch*

>85 johnsimpson: Hi John, and thank you! I’m glad you’re going to visit – that’s my plan, too, to be a better LT friend to you and others. Love and hugs back to you, Karen, and dearest Felix. Kitty skritches for him, of course.

>86 weird_O: Bill, I am envious. I.Want.Snow. Your Friday was a major set of accomplishments – if it wouldn’t sound weird coming from a 70-year old to a what-ever-year-old, I’d say I was proud of you.

Your reading sounds great. I myownself was thinking of reading Huckleberry Finn soon, but that may be ambitious and unrealistic given my current penchant.

>87 Copperskye: Hi Joanne! Thank you. Ah, another one of us who wants to do better this year. Good luck to all of us, right?

>88 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! Happy Sunday to you, too. Yay for the books and family part, for sure. I’ve got lots of activity now – the usual suspects.

>84 karenmarie: Hiya, RD, happy Sunday to you. Yes, it’s cute, and I’ve increased my books read total for the year in a genre that is not MM romance, aka contemporary fiction, aka, smut. I will probably deaccession it, adding to my culled totals, too.

I mostly hate cute, which is why I don’t read cozy mysteries any more except for Miss Marple and Ariadne Oliver and have even just recently abandoned an MM romance, Brave for You. This is what I wrote about why I abandoned it:

I don’t know exactly what it says about me when I abandon a book because it’s too twee, but there’s no angst, conflict, tension. One protagonist had one sexual experience with a boy in high school and is now more than open to being gay with the second one, even though his wife abandoned him and his baby 5 months previously. His parents accepted his bisexuality, the other man’s parents are severely disappointed that he’s gay and won’t talk with him about it. I find that I don’t really care.

Wordle 932 5/6* slate, stump, stick, stork, stony. Alphabet soup. I feel like I was lucky to not get skunked.

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Much puttering yesterday, and I reorganized some of the books that are in large boxes in the Sunroom to UHaul book boxes, changing their location in LT and on my Boxes in the Sunroom spreadsheet. Two down, 15-20 to go.

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Jenna and I already made scratch buttermilk pancakes with real maple syrup. I've had coffee and my meds, and we're going to grocery shopping in about an hour, after I make a consolidated grocery list and etc.

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Shopping done and put up. I've finished another excellent book, and remembered that I hadn't posted the top MM romance character names of 2023. The number to the right of the name is the number of times that specific name was used in a book.

Hi Karen! I lived at home as an adult for a while, too. It's nothing to be ashamed of, but it's a hard pill to swallow due to our culture.

Hello, Karen! I *finally* made it over to your thread. Is it too late to send happy new year wishes?

>1 karenmarie: I must have missed that Jenna got a new job while I was out of town. That's fantastic news! I hope she loves it!

Is your dishwasher still working after getting a real workout? Keeping my fingers crossed for you. In 2019/20 we got home from Mississippi just prior to the New Year, and we woke up on Jan. 2 to find that our refrigerator had died. It's no fun to have a major appliance give up the ghost right at the beginning of the year. However, I consider us fortunate, because it would have been a disaster if it had died in mid-March just as the world shut down due to COVID.

>43 EBT1002: Seeing this, I feel relieved. It took me 6 to get Wordle that day, and I thought I was going to get skunked. I thought maybe my brain wasn't working right for Wordle after not doing any puzzles for almost 2 weeks. Of course, I'd already lost my streak by not having access to wifi for most of the time we were out of town, so it wouldn't have been a big loss if I did get skunked.

>47 karenmarie: I'm all in favor of supporting local pharmacies! My DH's father ran a pharmacy for many years, and my DH worked as a pharmacist for awhile as well, before getting a PhD and going into research. A few years back, a mom & pop pharmacy opened up here, and we moved our prescriptions from Walgreens to them. They give fantastic service, ordering OTC items that they don't stock on the shelves for us. Recently we ran out of Gly-Oxide and couldn't find it anywhere. Walgreens apparently doesn't carry it any more. The mom & pop place ordered it for us and had it in the next day.

I have treadmill, Karen, but I also walk outside a lot, because we have a dog, and often I prefer to walk outside to my treadmill. But your post @ 64 Tomorrow will be treadmill again. It’s amazing that one time isn’t good forever. Sheesh made me think of myself some days. Today when I was out walking the dog for a couple of miles , the fourth day in row, I thought, I'm 62, and I have to keep walking like this until I die, I guess. My mom is turning 82 this month, and she is still out walking most every day, a mile or more. Her reasons are two fold, she quit driving when she turned 80 and one winter she stopped walking over the winter and developed high blood pressure, which she says she has reversed by her walking. I also tell myself - soonest started, soonest finished. Often I enjoy my walks , but some days.. no .

>91 The_Hibernator: Hi Rachel. You’re absolutely right that our culture says you’re a failure if you live at home, where most cultures in the world think it’s a fine thing. More and more of Jenna’s generation are living at home, though. I love it, though she feels like it’s a failure on her part, plus she just wants her own place.

>92 atozgrl: Hello Irene, nice to see you here, and it’s definitely not too late to send happy new year wishes. Thank you.

Jenna was offered the job just before the new year. The dishwasher just went through its first load and Bill reports that everything came out clean. We might just get a new one the next time Lowe’s has a sale, simply so that it’s taken care of before it’s an emergency.

Yes, it was hard to get things pretty much during all of the worst of the pandemic. Now it’s just a matter of adjusting to the businesses that are gone, the grocery store items that are gone, the higher prices on everything. *shrug*

I have been debating whether to use the small independent pharmacy that opened up here in 2021, but have been too nervous to. I’ve gotten every single vaccine there since my first two Covid vaccines. They do a great job with them – you don’t need appointments, just walk in. I think once they didn’t have a Covid booster but I came back on the day they said they’d have it. Walgreen’s has done a fantastic job with my prescriptions in the last two years, though, and their available stock of OTC stuff is phenomenal. Bill and I each get $120/quarter for OTC stuff from our Medicare supplemental programs, so there’s that, too.

>93 vancouverdeb: I need to get a treadmill here at the house. I wanted to get one at the beginning of last year, but then had the knee replacement, and then Life. Your comments about having to keep walking until you die resonate with me, although I live where it’s not easy to walk. Brava for your mother. I remember my days at the gym and early days of my cardio and know that some days are easier than others.

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Just the usual stuff yesterday, with salmon and rice for dinner.

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Jenna's first day at her new job. She loves the scrubs she got and looks good in them. She's getting her food ready and will leave in about 15 minutes or so.

I'll use the treadmill today and buy more blackberries... they're particularly good right now. Other than that, perhaps more books in smaller boxes.

Morning, Karen. Back to the grind today but looking forward to seeing my other "kids". I felt a bit under the weather yesterday, so I stayed home. Hoping for a quick rebound. I may have salmon and rice for dinner too. 😁

'Morning, Mark! Ugh to the grind, but yay for the kids. Sorry you were under the weather. I was on Saturday, but felt fine yesterday. Yay for salmon and rice. The salmon I buy at the local grocery store is wild caught, and even after freezing and then thawing always tastes wonderful. Rice was basmati.

I just had a male Red-Bellied on the sunflower seed feeder. I've got a Carolina Chickadee trying to decide what to do, and many Cardinals and Finches. I need to fill the sunflower seed feeder today.

I just finished the first story of North Woods. It's brilliant writing, and although I won't devour it, I'm not sure it should be devoured.

Interestingly, Richard just reviewed a thriller called Northwoods, and I just put it on my wish list. It's due to be published tomorrow, my sister's birthday.

>94 karenmarie: Blackberries *drool*

I hope they're going to be savored extra hard since their season is so very short. *smooch*

Happy Monday, Karen! Have a wonderful week!

I hope Jenna had a great working day!

The first week at a new job is always so draining, but being so full of newness that there is relief in distraction. It great that she has her family for support this week.

Keep on chooglin'.

I've always thought choosing a profession for which you wear scrubs is infinitely wise.

>74 karenmarie: Best of luck with your new strategy for keeping up on the thread, Karen. I still haven't master that.

Congratulations to Jenna, and all good wishes to her for a smooth transition to a new job.

Regarding adult children living at home, I think it's very okay. Our eldest son, now 39, left home at the age of 22. But at the age of 35 he returned home due to financial difficulties and though he says it is not forever, I don't see any signs of him leaving . It is very expensive here, I think about $2500 per month to rent an average 1 bedroom apartment, if you can find one. My sister Tannis has lived at home forever, and she is now 62. I think my parents were actually just as happy to have her at home, and as my dad died of cancer at the age of 65, I think my mom has been very glad to have her there as she has aged. I don't think my mom could manage on her own without my sister there. She is healthy , but does not drive, and is extremely hard of hearing as she as aged. My mom does not use the telephone except to text , and probably would not hear the doorbell. Around here , it is quite common for adults to live with family , as it is so expensive.

I hope Jenna had a good day at her new job!

Count me in the list of those who enjoy having a family member who lives with them. My Grand daughter Kayla was living with me and then left to be with her boyfriend. His mother presented some issues, and Kayla will return at the end of January. I very much look forward to having her back.

Morning, Karen. I was being a bit tongue in cheek when I mentioned "the Grind". Well, we are experiencing our first big snowfall of the year. Not sure what the totals will end up being. It snowed all night and will snow all day. Getting ready to pick up my ninos!

Our son lived with us until he was over 30. We didn't mind helping him out but we are also glad he found a place with his girlfriend. I love being an empty nester.

>97 richardderus: Alas, I didn’t stop at the grocery store but I will today. The last ones I got were so recently picked that some of them had fresh green stems.

>98 alcottacre: Hi Stasia, thank you, and I hope you have a wonderful week, too.

>99 quondame: Hi Susan, and thank you. The Jenna report below.

>100 weird_O:

>101 EBT1002: Hi Ellen. When Jenna was in middle school, the words ‘uniform’ got mentioned by the powers that be. I, as a parent, was firmly in favor, Jenna, as a student, was seriously unhappy. I was sad that it didn’t come to pass, she and all the kids were happy.

>102 Familyhistorian: So far mostly so good, Meg. I’m changing it up a bit, in that it’s now the 3 threads I visit regularly, then my newest visitors here, then the top 5. I may not get to it completely today since I have to leave in less than an hour for book sort.

>103 Whisper1: Thank you, Linda!

>104 vancouverdeb: I don’t think I remembered that your eldest was living at home again, Deborah. Thank you for sharing that and that your sister has always lived at home. A decent apartment out here costs ~$1300-$1500 month, but Jenna’s wages can’t support it. not if she wants to eat more than ramen noodles.

>105 Whisper1: Ah, Linda, I wondered why Kayla isn’t living with her boyfriend any more. Too bad The Mother presented some issues, however I’m glad that you’ll have her again and she’ll have you again. Stinky the ferret and all! I always loved the idea of having a ferret, don’t know if NC allows it. California didn’t, and my friend Marie tried to sneak her ferret in in the late 1980s and he was confiscated at the border.

Wordle 934 4/6* slate, feral, lower, liner

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Jenna loved her first day on the job. She loves the people and the fact that it's a truly welcoming environment. Lots of colored hair and a non-binary folk or two in addition to others in the LGBTQA+ community. Plus, puppies! 7 week old puppies. We got pictures and excitement on her lunch hour. They do lots of training, so she wasn't thrown to the wolves on the desk her first day, and will shadow someone 'til next week. She has today off - floating schedule - and works Wed - Fri this week. Here's a pic of her in her scrubs:



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Book sort, Virlie's, cleaning ladies. Puttering, and etc. I forgot to mention that we're supposed to get 1.5-3" of rain, high winds, and a possibility of tornadoes and/or thunderstorms today. I think I'll be safe going out first thing, but am glad I won't be out this afternoon. Jenna doesn't work today, so that's good, too.

>107 karenmarie: Get home safe, Horrible. I hope your book fondling goes interestingly today.

Jenna looks quite spiffy in that smile! *smooch*

Hope y'all weather the weather. It may be ugly. The snow hasn't diminished as quickly as I thought it would. Rain will make for a mess. Hopefully rain will be it. No high winds, tornadoes, power outages.

I completed Time and Again Sunday night, and after a false start in Roughing It, I've getting into The Innocents Abroad. I'm still looking for a copy of The Gilded Age, which Twain wrote with Charles Dudley Warner; the book is somewhere in this house, but it is successfully eluding me. (I know you are smirking.)

Thumbs up for Jenna.

I'm glad that Jenna is home today too. It does not sound like fun - electric storm without rain (I didn't know that was possible. Do I have it wrong?), a LOT of rain, high winds after the rain. We'll lose some big branches and probably a tree or two for sure. In fact, it's blowing hard enough to catch the bare crowns of trees right now.

Jenna definitely compliments those scrubs. I'm happy that she has found a good place. I'd be reassured if I met her with my sick pet.

Happy New Year, Karen. And happy reading.

Jenna is looking good in the picture. Are those her scrubs? Good for her, and I hope the job will be to her liking.

Hurray for Jenna! I'm delighted her new job is off to such a good start. Also, she is really rockin' that haircut. It looks fab.

Excellent news about Jenna's first day on the job! Im so glad it's a welcoming environment. That matters SO much in one's work happiness! And ... puppies ! *smile*

Congrats to Jenna on the new job, and good to hear the first day went so well.

Unlike so many here who have grown kids living at home, I AM the grown kid living at home. Hopefully not for super long.

>94 karenmarie: I wish I could send you our treadmill, Karen. It was left in the house along with a pool table and ping pong table, none of which get much use. The grandkids play pool once in awhile and the ping pong table got put in the storage building. Both my husband and I are avid outside walkers. We went in the snow this morning before it started sticking to the pavement and getting slick.

>107 karenmarie: Jenna looks so happy in her scrubs. Who wouldn't be? So comfy. And puppies! Sounds like a dream job.

Hurray for Jenna's first day on the job being a happy one!! Sorry about the weather....stay warm and dry!

>107 karenmarie: Jenna makes scrubs elegant!
Puppies are so fun, but I don't think I'd want to share a house with one again. And they have that strange smell, at least all the puppies I've ever handled, and I used to hang out at the pet store at lunch hour or before knitting classes.

Thanks to everybody for your congratulations to, liking of scrubs and haircut, and smile, and general support for Jenna!

>108 richardderus: Hi RD! Weather report below. *smooch*

>109 weird_O: We did have weather, Bill. It was ugly, but no damage to us, kitties, house, or property that we can tell. I hope you liked Time and Again. Yay for Twain, although yes, I’m smirking. Location tags, location tags, location tags. I’ve only got 72 books misshelved or mia, so 98.75% accuracy.

>110 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! We’re glad Jenna was home yesterday, Stuff came through with a bang. We didn’t get anything without rain… you’ll have to report back. Jenna’s good with people and pets, and was good at the clerk job at the hotel, so I think she’ll be a good first face when people come in with their pets. Thank you!

>111 EllaTim: Hi Ella, and thank you. Yes, those are her scrubs. They’re dark blue – navy – and she has some black scrubs and will get more dark scrubs. She was told dark scrubs, no cutesy ones with dinosaurs/animals or whatever. This is actually her preference, so yay.

>112 lauralkeet: Hi Laura. Thanks.

>113 EBT1002: She was thrilled that it was so welcoming, Ellen. There are 7 vets, all women, people with colors in their hair, one non-binary person, and etc. And puppies. *smile*

>114 PawsforThought: Thanks, Paws. She just left for work – starts at 7 today. Living at home isn’t ideal, I know, and Jenna would like to not be living at home either. But as a parent, I’m glad that we can provide for her.

>115 Donna828: Awww, Donna, thank you for the thought. Sorry things were left in your house that you don’t really want or use.

>116 Berly: Thanks, Kim. She's already on her way to work.

>117 quondame: She found them on Amazon, and I must say they’re good quality and feel good to the touch, wash like a dream, and even though we let them dry on hangers and then put them in the dryer with a wet washcloth to get them completely wrinkle free, she could probably just put them in the dryer then hang them quickly after drying.

My female Doberman, Ruby, had 10 puppies (we were not diligent with her and Jet!), and I loved the milky, warm smell of them. Even after they were weaned and we started feeding them ground beef/brown rice/garlic, they still smelled pretty good to me. My then-boyfriend Mark found good homes for them all. He kept Jet and Ruby after we broke up.

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Well, yesterday was way too busy for me. Book sorting, which went well, Virlie's for brekkie, which was a lot of fun with 8 of us, then home because the weather was uncertain. By then my cleaning ladies had just arrived and they were for 3 hours. The weather kicked in just as they were leaving and got pretty nasty with high winds and lots of rain and distant lightning/thunder.

And then, irony of ironies because the generator people are supposed to come out TODAY to finish moving things around on the panels and finalizing the new generator, we lost power. Jenna and I were out at the shed in rain and wind and distant lightning/thunder, and the old generator wouldn't even crank - Bill thinks we need(ed) a new battery. He's responsible for generator stuff, so didn't dare complain when we lost power. So we were powerless for 2 hours. Fortunately, I kept and will still keep oil lamps and between those and candles we did fine. Jenna was probably texting her girlfriend upstairs by candle light, I was reading on my Kindle by oil lamp, and Bill was in the Living Room with an oil lamp and his cell phone watching the news. We were able to charge our cell phones as needed with our UPSs. I was surprised power came back as quickly as it did, frankly. We're still technically under a flood warning, but we're not near the Haw River and our property is safe from flooding. It's not light enough yet to see if our creek has flooded.

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I'll use the treadmill at the Senior Center today, possibly go to the store for the blackberries I crave. I need a few OTC things at the pharmacy, too. I might make chili/cornbread tonight. Reading and puttering, otherwise.

Plus, I'm making headway on getting the books in boxes in the Sunroom into smaller boxes and have a system now that works very well. The UHaul book boxes will go upstairs into the Media Room, properly labeled and tagged in LT, with easy access to each. I will try to do two more today.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. Congrats to Jenna and her new job. She's looking good. I am sorry, I missed it but what is her new gig? Good luck with all that rain. Yikes.

They say we got 6-8 inches of snow yesterday. Wet, heavy stuff too. We are supposed to get even higher amounts on Friday into Saturday, with plunging temps. Winter has arrived. Off to pick up my kids.

ETA- I really enjoyed North Woods. I hope you feel the same.

'Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday to you, too.

Jenna's a Customer Service Rep at a large, highly-rated vet clinic/animal hospital/urgent care/boarding facility in Durham. 6 vets, all women. She will hopefully get the chance to take courses to get certified in some aspect or another, perhaps eventually a vet tech. She is full time, permanent, with a variable schedule. She loves not having to wear business casual, doing more than sitting in an office with a computer, and ... puppies! kitties!

We got about 2" of rain. I was out during a lull to clear the drain. Yes, I could have asked Jenna, but I was intrepid and had fun.

Wow. 6-8". Stay safe. I'm loving North Woods. In fact, after I get off LT, I'll be reading some more of it.

Had a Downy visiting the suet feeder a while ago, have some finches fluttering around.

That sounds like an awesome job for Jenna! It sounds like a very nice practice. My daughter considered being a vet tech too but got into real estate instead.

Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb your reading of North Woods, plus I gotta go pick up those kids.

>118 karenmarie: Oh myyy, as Takei would say...I asked about this very subject in my thread earlier. Crumbs! It all arrived just a little too soon. And too late. I know your preparedness is feeling very good about now.

Our Weather was not much, though that could change as the week progresses. *smooch*

>118 karenmarie: ”… dry on hangers and then put them in the dryer with a wet washcloth to get them completely wrinkle free.”
That’s a trick I’ve never heard of. And now that I’m retired, I don’t need it! lol

>121 msf59: So far Jenna's a Customer Service Rep. There is a potential to take certifications/classes to work towards vet tech or other position in the office. I may not have written about it accurately above. I am glad you interrupted my reading.

>122 richardderus: I can just hear Takei saying that in his very deep voice. We got inspected at the proper time by the proper agency within our county. They came out and spent all of 5 minutes looking at things and didn't even talk to or with us. I'm currently running off UPS power as they've shut house power down again. Up and down today.

Not having weather is sometimes a good thing. *smile* and *smooch*

>123 EBT1002: Yes, you're retired! I'm so happy for you. You'll probably get rid of anything that requires anything more than washer/dryer.

I still use that trick because I don't put my mock-Ts in the dryer, just put 'em on hangers then run 'em through the dryer later. Jeans, too. And dress shirts... hmm. Quite a few things, actually.

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So the generator guys have been here all day. I went out to use the treadmill, get the blackberries and 2 other things, and stopped at the pharmacy to give them my new insurance card and get Claratin-wanna-be and use some of my 1st quarter OTC money.

>118 karenmarie: Oil lamps!?!
It's the 21st century! Go to Amazon and order a dozen LED lanterns and keep them charged. We also have a battery+solar panels from camping and before our house went solar. But I have LED lanterns and flashlights and decorative lights all over the place. No fire hazard or venting issues!

Happy Thursday, Karen!

Jenna's job sounds good, and taking courses too. She looks very good in her scrubs. I had to look up that word, when you used it before. A picture is way better fot understanding.
I hope the generator is okay now.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. We are bracing ourselves for an even bigger snowstorm which arrives later tomorrow. No Jackson this week. Hoping they all get better. It looks like we are going to hunker down for a long weekend, arctic temps arrive on Sunday. Brrrrrrrrr....

It's so nice to hear that Jenna is liking her new job. Getting to wear scrubs is ideal, for sure.

Good to see another endorsement of North Woods. That one is definitely on my radar.

>125 quondame: Hi Susan. Honestly, I never thought of or actually heard of LED lanterns. Bill had an oil lamp from before we were married and we bought one more sometime a long time ago. Plus we have a pottery one that uses a different wick and that we’ve never used – I just inventoried everything. Extra wicks, extra oil, extra burners. They’re actually less trouble than LED lanterns, not needing charging, some even requiring D batteries. I suppose if I didn't have extra of everything I might consider LED lanterns instead. I’ll stay in the stone age. True that they’re potentially a fire hazard, but we don’t have to worry about venting. The only thing I have to do when the emergency is over is clean the chimneys if they get sooted up.

>126 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita, and happy Thursday to you. Thanks re Jenna. Generator report below.

>127 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and sweet Thursday to you, too. Yikes – I just looked at your weather report. Lots of snow. High of 4F on Sunday, 2F on Monday. Brrr indeed. I didn’t realize the Bree fam was sick. I do hope they all get better soon. Too bad you don’t have any books to read during the nastiness, right? *smile*

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Generator guys left but they have to come out one more time for something small, plus the final inspection has to be scheduled with the county. But it worked flawlessly yesterday and Bill will show me how to get the app on my phone and how to set it up. Bill wants to get a concrete pad around it instead of decorative rock, but we'll talk about that. I don't see why we need to go to that extra expense.

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I do not need to leave the house today so probably won't. We're getting more weather tomorrow so I'll run my errands early: Another strong storm system is expected to bring rain, strong gusty winds, and possibly strong to severe thunderstorms late Friday afternoon into Friday night. - NWS

I will putter, work on our finances, work on putting big box books into small box books. It's very satisfying - I get to fondle my own books and make sure things are right in my catalog.

Oh, and read...

Usually it's Jenna that gives me cute memes, but Bill provided this one:

>128 katiekrug: - We posted at the exact same time... Weird.

Hi Katie! You snuck in, so glad you came back. Thanks re Jenna. She left before I got up this morning and since she's not allowed to do anything on her cell phone except at lunch, I'll probably not hear from her until she's on her way home. She went to visit her girlfriend for a couple of hours after work yesterday - got fed salmon, rice, and vegetables. Her girlfriend's love language is food and a calm environment. When Jenna got home she helped me give Inara her capsule, took a shower, then was asleep within the hour.

North Woods, for me, will be a slow, thorough read. It's fascinating. I've decided to put a Post-It flag one place in each story for later review purposes, and yesterday I moved the flag 3 times because the quotes in the 2nd story just kept getting better and better.

Posting timing weirdness always makes me happy.

>129 karenmarie: The meme is brilliant! Good-o on the generator progress, and what is the point of a concrete pad *around* it if it isn't ON the pad? Am I missing something?

Ick-ptui on the Weather. Today is perfect here...high thirties/low forties and sunshine with a breeze...so I mmmight just go out to do the one remaining January errand.

Might not, though.

The generator is on some kind of code-friendly pad, but I don't think they poured concrete. Frankly I neither know nor care - I just want a generator that works.

Our weather is gorgeous today, if cold. Blue skies, 45F. High of 58F.

Ain't it nice to have the option of whether to go out or not? I was going to go to the seamstress's office today - no voice mail, no real way to get in touch with her. She's a referral from a dear friend who has really good clothes and I want to get Bill's Mama's dressage jacket and jodhpurs repaired - moth holes and lining repair. The lining isn't torn, just need seams sewn. Moth holes are a different matter, but there aren't too many of them and I'm hoping she'll do them for less than the $5-10/hole that the seamstress associated with the town's dry cleaners would have charged.

*smooch*

>133 karenmarie: It is gorgeous not to be Required to Do Something. The absolute best art of not punching a timeclock!

Whatever the generator is on, it meets code, so that is the urgent bit done. Hoing the repair does not break the bank. *smooch*

>129 karenmarie: I once owned an oil lamp. Over 50 years ago, part of Berkeley counter culture esthetic. It was not less trouble than an LED lamp/lantern/flashlight. Back around 1979 I did have a small brass lantern converted to battery power as a gift to my Zork loving BF. I should have kept it for my Zork loving self.
I will cede, in the interest of avoiding waste, that using old reliable technology is a good thing. I will, for my own part, continue to trust the old reliable technology of LEDs, batteries, and solar panels.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/357120

>134 richardderus: Even in retirement, I am less happy with days that I have to Do Something than with days that I don’t have to leave the house. Bill has not given final approval for the generator-install company yet.

>135 quondame: Heh. Zork loving BF. Yes, I looked at them online yesterday and was considering buying 3, one for each of us, but then thought that I’d keep the oil lamps anyway so why bother. After inventorying stuff, I have extra wicks and oil so don’t even need to spend money any time soon. Your relying on LEDs, batteries, and solar panels is also good. We converted to LED outdoor spotlights several years ago and love them.

>136 SilverWolf28: Hi Silver, and thank you. I’ve updated and printed out a readathon spreadsheet – I’m a spreadsheet person – and will see how it goes. I won’t officially join the thread though.

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Glorious don't-leave-the-house Thursday. I created one more small box of books, updating the spreadsheet and location tags, made chili, and read and puttered. We had sourdough garlic toast with the chili. I've finally nailed the recipe, after a bit of tinkering with the spices/herbs and getting the InstaPot bean technique exactly right.

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This morning is my hair appointment, 74 miles away. I'm going by myself because Jenna has to work. On the way home I hope that I'll have enough energy to work out, but if I don't, then oh well.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. It is snowing heavily, about 2". It looks like a winter wonderland out there. We are supposed to get gusty winds later, so I am not sure when I will tackle the snow on the driveway. We are stocked up with snacks and refreshments. I did spot one lone junco under the feeders. No wonder they call them the winter birds.

"Too bad you don’t have any books to read during the nastiness, right?" LOL. No problems there...

ETA- Two juncos and one cardinal.

Horrible! *smooch*

Good morning, Karen! Good travel and Happy Haircut!

Mama and her sibs took a big oil lamp apiece from grandmama's family homeplace when they sold it. If we had wicks and oil, I guess we could use it. Otherwise, hers hangs on a bracket that my uncle made. Flashlights, candles, and early bedtime do for us.

Hello, Karen! I'm falling behind again, and had a bit of your news to catch up on.

>107 karenmarie: Jenna looks so good in those scrubs! I'm glad to hear that the job, people, and work environment are so good. It sounds like a perfect fit for her.

I hope you had a good trip to your hair appointment, and have made it back safely before the latest round of storms moves in. I hope the new generator is available tonight, in case you need it.

>75 richardderus: a fast scroll past that image and I saw salami!!!

>90 karenmarie: love the most popular male love-interest names! Excellent.

Jenna's new job sounds good- and she looks happy :)

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. The snow has moved on but the arctic temps are moving in. Ugh! We got about 6-8" yesterday so not as bad as it could have been. My feeders were hopping all day yesterday and it looks like they are already busy this AM. I am sure I will have to fill the hopper soon.

>142 LovingLit: Salami! I saw it as snow globes before but now I can't unsee it.
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Happy weekend, Horrible my dear.

>93 vancouverdeb: >94 karenmarie: I resonated with the notion of having to keep walking until the end. It is good for us and generally makes me feel good. But, I have given myself permission to take a few days off here at the turn of the year.

>137 karenmarie: Bingo: some days you just don't have the energy to work out and that's ok. Imperfection beats perfection every time! And thumbs up to loving those days when I discover I don't have to go anywhere or really do anything at all at all. It is a lovely part of retirement.

>107 karenmarie: Jenna looks great in her scrubs! I am so happy for her.

Be safe in all this weather. We have gotten rain and wind and it is oddly warm. They say bad stuff is coming our way in February.

>138 msf59: Next day ‘Morning, Mark! Happy Saturday to you. Snow, am glad it’s gorgeous. Snacks and refreshments acquired, hope you’re doing well. I love seeng Juncos. Right now all I’ve got is one Carolina Chickadee.

>139 richardderus: Richard! *smooch*

>140 LizzieD: Ooh, how wonderful to have HER grandmama’s family homeplace oil lamps. Honestly, I would have never thought to use oil lamps except that Bill had one and then we/I bought another. Hair cut report below.

>141 atozgrl: Hi Irene, nice to see you here. The new generator was available for last night, but honestly, and with gratitude, the storms didn’t really materialize for us beyond some good rain. It reminded me of hurricane rain in that it came in strong bands then subsided.

>142 LovingLit: Hi Megan. I keep spreadsheets, so it was easy to create a pivot table after filtering out the MF and MMM/MMF books. I’m a purist. I’m currently reading a book about Kell(an), and Gethin, which I just discovered is Welsh name. I’d never heard of it. Thanks re Jenna – I think this job will be good for her.

>143 msf59: ‘Morning on the same day, Mark, and happy Saturday to you. Brrr. Enjoy your high of 23F today and 1F tomorrow because it looks like it’s only going to get worse.

The birds panic, of course, when all their food sources are covered. I know you’ll take care of them over the next bit of nasty weather.

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I left at 9:06 and got there at 10:18. Bridget got me in promptly, and 45 minutes later I was out. She did what I wanted mostly, although she took an inch off the overall length because she said it needed it. I want to let it get longer. I won't be able to get a hair cut again 'til mid April at the soonest, given that I'll be having right knee replacement surgery on February 29th. On the way home I stopped at Taco Bell - 2 crunchy tacos with 2 hot sauces each are only about 800 mg sodium total - then decided What the Heck! and went to the Senior Center and used the treadmill for 35 minutes. Note to self: Driving 166 miles by myself in a day is a bit more than makes sense once the evening rolls around. But, it all got done, I got 3 sessions on the treadmill in during the week.

The generator needed a new battery, amazingly, which got installed. The light is green this morning, not green/amber like the 2 days after they were supposedly finished. However, it's my understanding that the batteries aren't tested for charge as they supposedly come charged. Personally, I think this is ridiculous, but they're the ones who paid for it by having to send 2 men out for 4 hours yesterday. When I got home they were working on it. I spied Inara wandering around, and the younger guy said he'd snapped his fingers and called for her but she didn't come over. I thought that was very cute. I had to explain that she's deaf and brought her into the house.

I might zip up to the UHaul place on the way to Chapel Hill to get more book boxes. I love my new system - boxes are assigned the location tag Bxx, where xx is the number. They're all going on the stairs to the Media Room right now and Jenna and I will do a bit of organizing in the Media Room when I've got them all done. Other than that, it's a beautiful, breezy day, so I'll putter, fill the bird feeders, fill book boxes with books and update LT appropriately, and read.

>146 karenmarie: A new generator needed a new battery...that does cause my eyebrows to rise. Still, they made good, so whatthehell.

We are in the midst of cold, dank, slightly rainy weather for the weekend. It did not turn into anything notable here next to the North Atlantic. Still, icky and uncomfortable so I will not be tipping a trotter out the door.

Still struggling with depressing non-fiction I must review...what to say without shouting. *sigh* Putter away happily. *smooch*

Hi, and happy New Year, Karen!

I won’t even try to read your entire thread at this time—maybe later—but did want to drop a star.

>146 karenmarie: Looks like we’ll be recuperating together—you from knee replacement and me from hip replacement. (I’ll also be getting my right knee replaced in the summer, so I’ll be very interested in your experience.)

>79 karenmarie: I just went to re-add the LT resolution above and realize that I somehow left off some of the resolutions from last year, which includes Be in better touch with family and friends. I tend to isolate when stressed.

Ah yeah, that's a perennial resolution of mine, too. (Maybe that tells you how much progress I've made with it, haha.) But I definitely go to ground when things are difficult.

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday. It is currently -10F and may struggle to get to +1F. Another day indoors. Getting plenty of reading in and catching up on some TV shows. I should top off the hopper feeder but I am also running low on seed. We will see...

>147 richardderus: I know… Ridiculous. They’ll keep making good until we’re satisfied.

Ugh to the nasty weekend weather. There is dangerously cold weather all over the US. We’re actually pretty lucky here right now, with warmer than usual daytime temps and normal cold temps. No precip any time soon, and the coldest it will be is Wednesday night’s 19F.

Sorry about your depressing nonfiction reviews on tap. *smooch*

>148 Storeetllr: Hi Mary, and thank you. Good luck with your hip replacement – a friend of mine from Friends of the Library had his right knee replaced in 2022 and his right hip replaced in 2023. He’s doing great. I had my left knee replaced last March. This one will be easier for 2 reasons: first, no Bakers Cyst in my right calf, and second, I know what’s coming. It will still be unpleasant and PT is NOT FUN, but now it’s just stuff, not seriously worrisome stuff. By this time next year I hope to be in pretty good shape knee, hip, and back-wise.

>149 ursula: Hi Ursula. Going to ground is an ever better way to describe it – the are after you and the instinct is to find a place to hide and hope to stay invisible. We’ll both NOT make much progress together.

Working to not do that, I need/want to make lunch arrangements with 3 friends - @atozgrl here, friend Jan from high school who moved to NC about the same 33 years ago that I did and who I reconnected with ~10 years ago, and @lizzied’s friend Bobbie, who moved up the road about 5 years ago. We had lunch for the first time late last year and I definitely want to explore the potential friendship.

>150 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and happy Sunday to you. Brrr. Dangerous. Yup to another day indoors. Good luck with the feeders.

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I didn't go out yesterday - yay - and enjoyed the catch up time.

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Another putter day, although the UHaul is open today so might do what I said I might do yesterday.

Good morning, Karen, and happy puttering!!!

You're one better at Wordle today than I was. I'm happy to have found it at all.

Hi Karen!

It's a little bit warmer here today - the forecast is that it will make it to zero. I am a bit stiff and sore from all the hay hauling, but keeping warm.

My standard two wordle beginning words gave me all five letters today. alien, gourd, doing

>152 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I just posted on your thread - I'm running very late today. Didn't even wake up 'til 9:15. I cheated with the spreadsheets, trying doi words and going from there.

>153 streamsong: Hi Janet! Wow. 0F. We've probably had it at 0F or lower ten times here in NC that I remember. We used to haul hay, of course - well not me usually - but hardly ever when it was that cold. Sorry about the stiffness and soreness. I love BioFreeze and CBD ointment...

I love your two starting letters, but just did the major shift from adieu to slate and feel antsy at changing again.

>151 karenmarie: I so wish I was on the unevil timeline. Writing reviews that point up our cultural failings and not sounding hectoring is a little beyond my grasp, though I do keep trying....

Enjoy the Sundaying, and wish me luck in my trip northward courtesy of the gale that is trying to blow the building to Quebec. *smooch*

>151 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! I'm arriving late in the day, as is my wont. I hope you had another good day of puttering.

We definitely need to make plans for lunch, before you are laid up again. It's my turn to come out your way. My DH is scheduled to get his knee replacement the first week of March, so we'll both be dealing with it at the same time, although I'll be the helpmate instead of the patient. I haven't quite figured out how we'll manage, since our bed and bath are upstairs, while the kitchen is downstairs. Obviously, I can bring food up, but I don't think my DH will want to be cooped up upstairs for long.

Wishing you a great week! Stay warm! It looks like we're in for lows 20F or below several days over the coming week.

I'm glad that the new job is working out so well for Jenna, Karen. Great news. Thanks for your kind comments regarding my osteoporosis. I find that many people in particular my mom and a sister in law do not understand what it is , and so make light of it, which can be a bit frustrating. My brother and sister in law have an oil lamp. I'm not sure how often they use it, or why, I think they just like the ambience of an oil lamp light. They burn wood to heat their place , in part because they have electric heating which is quite expensive. But I think they just like burning things. Candles, wood, lamps.

Best wishes with the upcoming knee replacement. I'm happy this time you know what it's all about you will get through nicely , though it's not fun or easy.

My goodness! I'm very wordy today.

>155 richardderus: I hope you were able to travel the time-space continuum, RD, work for 24 hours straight, and come back with only a second or two gone by. I’m not reading about cultural failings as you well know, just The Federalist, North Woods, my current and excellent MM romance, Give Yourself Away, and Bad Monkey on audio. Bad Monkey is narrated by Arte Johnson, and I’ve just gone down the rabbit hole of Audible and spoken with a nice lady named Andrea. I’ve signed up for $5.95/month for 4 months for Premium Plus, which is better than what is offered on the Amazon website, but after signing up I can see it through my Amazon account. I’m happy – I anticipate listening to audiobooks on my cell phone or Kindle, especially after my surgery. So if anybody's thinking of signing up for Audible, use their website for the deal. It was supposed to end in December, currently says ends January 14th, but I just signed up this morning.

Audible folks – I seem to recall that if you don’t use your monthly credits they can build up. I forgot to ask Andrea that – is that true?

Oh – back to you, RD! I hope you’re not in Quebec. But if you got blown away, literally, parlez-vous français?

>156 atozgrl: Hi Irene! You and Peggy tend to ‘LT’ late, no worries. I did lots of good puttering, see below. I’ll PM you about lunch. Your DH and I will be almost identical in our recovery schedules, and the difference in doctors/hospitals/PT will be interesting.

Hope you have a great week, too. I’m grateful for warm clothes, a warm house, a warm car, and warm places to be in.

>157 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah. She mentioned yesterday morning that everywhere she is – home, at her girlfriend’s, or at work – there are kitties, plus doggos at work. Osteoporosis is awful – I have several friends who deal with it, plus a dear friend who’s mother is in constant pain with the results of it. So far so good for me…

Bill and I used to have a wood stove, but when he got tired of buying wood and we both got tired of having it in the house, burning it, cleaning out the wood stove, and etc., we replaced it with a propane stove. I seem to recall this was perhaps 8-10 years ago. Bill was brilliant when we built this house in 1998 because he had them run a propane line to directly under the woodstove. When we switched, all the propane guy had to do was go into the crawlspace, uncap the line, add to it, and connect it to the stove. Jenna and I like candles for ambiance. The lamps are for function. The wood’s gone, so no more mice/spiders/shavings etc. in the house, no more stacks on the back porch with mice/spiders/shavings etc. There’s a theme here – no wood, no mess. We even have a remote control to turn the stove on and off. How decadent’s that? *smile

Thank you re the knee replacement. Everything’s well in hand – appointments for pre-surgery with doctor and hospital, the cell phone app mymobility now has right knee pre-surgery activities/education on it. In February I will pull up the spreadsheet I used to countdown on what I had to stop taking prior to surgery so I don’t have to figure it out again.

Wordle 940 3/6* slate, lumpy, lunch. I was LUcky with LU words. BTW, LUCKY's already been used.

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I deaccessioned 38 books yesterday, then re-added Foreigner because Peggy said how good it is. So net 37 out. I have two more shelves in the Sunroom with mass market paperbacks that I might tackle today or tomorrow. Other than that I napped, read, and watched two episodes of a series I can't remember the name of and can't immediately find on imdb.com. I miss my mind sometimes.

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Today's reading, puttering, a massage and, if I'm organized and create a list before I leave at 11:15, grocery shopping. I also have several adulting phone calls to make.

Morning, Karen. We had a good day yesterday. Got a few chores done, got some reading in and Sue and I caught up with a few TV shows. I also watched some good playoff football.

I had to cancel my bird walk for this morning. It is only -11F out there and will not warm up much more through the AM. I had only 3 people signed up anyway. Not many want to venture out in the winter. I can hardly blame 'em.

Good moring, Karen!

>158 karenmarie: - Re: Audible - yes, your monthly credits roll-over but I think (and it might depend on the plan) that you can't roll-over more than 6.

Hi Katie, and thanks. I knew you had Audible. I can't remember who else does. I'll have 2 credits available for when I have my knee replacement surgery and will make sure that I've picked two good books. We'll just have to see how loopy I am first thing when I get home on March 1. I might need to wait a bit...

>158 karenmarie: I have to make the observation that, if you watched that show yesterday and can remember none of it, why watch more if and when you *do* remember the name...?

I was not, in the end, blown all the way to Quebec though it felt imminent at times. Instead it blew in cold air. Not ULTRAcold like so much of the country but very much colder than before...this is okay with me! Audible, eh? You going over to the Dark Side?

*smooch* for a lovely relaxing day.

>158 karenmarie: “I’m grateful for warm clothes, a warm house, a warm car, and warm places to be in.” Well said! I love your attitude towards life, Karen. You are even approaching your upcoming knee surgery with calmness and acceptance. It’s good to know what to expect, right?

>137 karenmarie: Wow! Driving 150 miles or so round trip for a haircut is very impressive! I’m glad you rewarded yourself with tacos on the way home! ;-)

Re Audible, I recently learned that you can suspend your membership, for three months, I think. I have now done this twice and it saved me three months of membership fee and took a bit of the pressure off. I have way more audiobooks than I will ever listen to unless something changes and I shift away from reading more to listening. I know Katie listens to a book while working on her jigsaw puzzles and I keep thinking I'm going to try that.

Oh, one caveat, I *think* you have to use all your accumulated credits before you can pause, so there is that.

>164 EBT1002: - Ellen, I paused my membership a year or so ago and I'm pretty sure I still had credits banked. I don't think you have to use them before pausing, but things might have changed. You definitely don't accumulate credits while it's paused, of course!

Jenna looks good in her scrubs. I’ve never seen dark ones before. Nice to read about warmer weather. We are in a deep freeze here.

Hi Karen! Stopping by to wish you a wonderful 2024 (I am a bit late for Happy New Year wishes)! Glad to see the generator is all sorted out and you are prepared, if needed.

>158 karenmarie: Lol, Karen. I love the word "adulting." My husband hated it because he thought his ex-wife had made it up, and that it was pathetic she didn't want to act like an adult. He was shocked the first time I used it.

Speaking of which, do you watch YouTube? There's a song about adulting that really makes me laugh. I think this link will take you there if you follow external links.

https://youtu.be/jHNNL6QxJtc?si=G0E4OVlKlSeTCnOm

Hi Karen!

I'm trying to catch up after my computer replacement woes. Wood stove do sound like more work than they are worth if you are past 40.

>159 msf59: Missed you up there, Mark. I’m sorry. Bad weather does have some upsides. Yeah, -11F is a bit much to go out looking for birds.

>160 katiekrug: I’ll have to check about how many I can roll over. I’ll definitely have 2 before my knee replacement surgery on February 29th. Thanks.

>162 richardderus: I can remember the show, just not the title. Secrets, on the Smithsonian channel. It has just enough interesting information to make me overlook the repetitiveness and occasional sensationalism. Bill is keeper of the remotes 99.999% of the time, and just goes to Amazon’s Paramount+ subscription service that we have and queues up the next episode. We're on season 6 of 7.

>162 richardderus: Heh. The dark side. Yes, for at least some of the time I’ll be in bed downstairs after surgery. It’s a good deal, too, and frankly, I don’t have many more CDs to listen to in my car. Less and less people are buying them because cars are not being sold with CD players. I'm dreading when my 2012 Escape dies and I need another car. I’m anticipating using it for car listening after I can drive again, too. *smooch*

>163 Donna828: Thanks, Donna. I let things get to me so much more when I was younger, and with this surgery I definitely know what I’m getting into. A good hair stylist is worth her weight in gold. Curly hair just can’t be cut by anyone, and I’ve had some awful haircuts over the years.

>164 EBT1002: and >165 katiekrug: Ooh, more info. Thanks, Ellen and Katie. So far I only listen in the car, although I have brought a book back in the house if I only have one CD left to go. I have ONE, count’em, ONE credit.

I’m not a knitter, not a puzzler. If I’m not playing on LT or reading, I’m working around the house and/or puttering.

Wordle 941 4/6* slate, cloud, blood, blond

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I had a 60-minute massage yesterday, which was heavenly. Then I went grocery shopping. Home and etc.

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This morning is book fondling and Virlie's, then home. Jenna has today off, will work 9-10 hours each day tomorrow through Friday to get in the 36-40 hours she works per week.

I've now deaccessioned 81 books from the Sunroom - most of them mass market paperbacks that I will never read for a variety of reasons. Some are going to Karen, most are going to the Friends to be put in the Library's book cart or the box for the local bookseller.

I haven't left much time before leaving for book sort, so I'll visit threads after I get back.

Morning, Karen. Currently -6 in Chicagoland. School was canceled again today, so no Kids Kab again. At least we are back in the mid-teens tomorrow. Whooppee! I had 10 species of birds at the feeders yesterday, which is a lot at any time. Even had a few starlings show up.

>170 karenmarie: Oh, Secrets! Yes, I too got interested in that show back in its early seasons but gave up in s3. The sensationalism got too thick for my taste. The Smithsonian Channel was a draw to cable early on.

I know how you feel about your Escape, too...the 2020s cars are scifi vehicles. *shudder* I get it, it really does make sense to make them this complex, but they scare the bejabbers outta me.

BRAVA for the 81-book deaccessioning! It must feel good to trim the population to make room for the new wave.

*smooch*

>106 msf59: Chiming in on the generation that lives at home, my granddaugther lives with me. She tried to live with her boyfriend, but his mother was jealous and interfering. I am so proud of her in that she saw a situation that was not going to be fixed, and moved out of it. Though there is an emotional price she is paying.

When I was young (oh so long ago,) it was frowned upon fot live at home with parents. I know the outlok on such things is different now. Kayla is not a burden. She helps around the house and carries packages I could not carry. Periodically, she makes dinner. Last week, she did the grocery shopping.

I'm aware that she takes five college courses and needs down time to study. She gets quiet space to study, and I get a delightful young lady who I am very proud of.

Good morning, Karen!!!!

>158 karenmarie: Bad Monkey or Bad Money? What a combo!

Wordle in 3 for me today, thanks to your list. Enjoy your morning. I'll be glad to manage our shower/shampoo!

>170 karenmarie: Ooh, massage, sounds wonderful! Congratulations on deaccessioning so many books. I need to go through mine as well, especially the mass market paperbacks, which I would also like to clear out as much as possible. But I've got other decluttering that I need to take care of before tackling that project.

>146 karenmarie: I love how you say "I keep spreadsheets", like they are pets or something :) I am only now learning how do do things with spreadsheets, and have found that a quick Google search will usually tell me things that I need to know re: how to do the fancier stuff. I am not at pivot tables yet, but my colleagues are doing some amazing dashboards lately. I am in awe of Excel's capabilities, and at how little of it many people can use.

As for CD players in cars, my husband got a new Toyota Corolla last November. It did not come with a CD player, but he purchased one separately from amazon for about ??? $150, maybe $200.00 . I guess he has enough CD's that he decided that he wanted that extra CD player for car. I'm sure you can get them elsewhere in case you don't use Amazon. Lots of snow coming down here, for our area, where we are not used to snow. Yesterday I asked Dave - while he was at work - want me head out and get some groceries? He said no, I'm not afraid on any snow, because he has snow tires. Just now, as he went to bed, he said, maybe he won't want to out in this snow after all. Fortunately we have the basics at home - left over chicken , veggies in the fridge, milk in the fridge , frozen bread. So , we'll see how it goes. Fingers crossed. I wonder if my son that lives at home will make it into work later today .

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. Back to Kids Kab today. I miss the little buggers. We will also creep up into the upper teens today which should feel good. I bought bird seed yesterday. Yah!

I never made it back to LT yesterday. I was particularly weary, so just read and napped. Lots of visitors, thank you all.

>171 msf59: -6F yesterday morning. I’m glad they cancelled school. I hope they have enough days built in to get whatever official number of days are required for the school year. We had several bad hurricane seasons when Jenna was young, and they needed to take from spring break and one memorable time made them all come in on a Saturday. 10 species is impressive.

>172 richardderus: Hiya, RDear. Last night’s episode about Tutankhamun was mostly drivel – about how he would have to fight demons and evil forces in the afterlife to Save Egypt. However, amazingly, since I’ve read a lot about Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon, and Tutankhamun, I never realized there were two mummified infants found at the time of the discovery of the tomb. Even then, Carter opined that they were the daughters of Tutankhamun and Ankhesenamun. And, the new book acquisition wave has started. I just gave myself a BB by reading an article about the infant mummies and seeing The Complete Tutankhamun by Nicholas Reeves and buying it. I’m even a menace to myself.

Complex computer-driven cars break down differently than mechanical cars, of course. Mine is computer-driven but Bill’s 2023 Escape is a nightmare, IMO – can take over driving, pulls you back into the road if you veer off to the side-warning thingies, track your speed and etc. He also keeps his Location services on at all times and I only turn mine off if a particular app I use needs them. *smooch*

>173 Whisper1: Hi Linda. I saw the bit about Kayla’s boyfriend’s mother being jealous and interfering. That, of course will probably never change, especially since they are so young. I was almost 38 when I married Bill, and I spent a lot of time keeping Bill’s Mama from interfering and trying to control us. It didn’t let up until near the end of her life, 19 years after we got married. I’m glad Kayla is back for your sake AND hers.

>174 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! >158 karenmarie: fixed. Bad Monkey, of course. Yay for Wordle. I hope yesterday’s shower/shampoo was … uneventful… and didn’t tire you overmuch.

>175 atozgrl: Hi Irene. I indulge in a massage once every 3-4 weeks. I’ll get another one, 90 minutes as a special treat, on Feb 21st, 8 days before my right knee replacement surgery. Good luck with the mass market paperback deaccessioning, too. Oh, I have other things I should probably tackle first too, but this is the room I hang out in most, and the boxes of books were/are bothering me. If the books still in boxes do not fit on the shelves here, I’ll simply deaccession more books that I’ll never read and/or have quality issues.

>176 LovingLit: Hi Megan. You make me smile. They almost are pets – I play with them almost every day, love them, and take care of them by saving frequently and backing them up. I’m not a sophisticated spreadsheet user by any means, but there are a few things I’m good at that help immensely – filtering and pivot tables and referencing cells between tabs. Excel help and internet searches are … well… excel-lent, too. I never managed to master macros but fortunately can do what I want to do without them.

>177 vancouverdeb: Hello Deborah. I anticipate having to get a CD player for any new vehicle I eventually purchase because I re-listen to several several audiobook series. I am less and less inclined to spend money on audio books EXCEPT for Great Courses and I get those at the Friends of the Library sales. I can’t remember the last time I listened to music CDs in the car. Good luck with the snow and staying in.

>178 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday to you, too. Glad you were able to get out and get bird seed.

Wordle 942 4/6* slate, timid, grunt, court

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Book sorting, Virlie's. We stayed there a long time chatting - some of the 8 of us 'til about 12:15. It was nice to not have to leave to do something else. Reading, NOT adulting on some of things I was supposed to adult on. They weren't required yesterday, and will be handled this morning.

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Adulting, reading, puttering, treadmill. Putting books up onto newly-made-space on shelves here in the Sunroom. Perhaps making pumpkin bread, perhaps not. Perhaps making dinner tonight, perhaps not. I just got out bone in/skin on thighs and breasts, so may make air fryer chicken and baked potatoes or salad.

>179 karenmarie: Happy that your book findling day was so agreeable. I think that Smithsonian Tut video tried too much myownself. Why lard Tut in on top of an already complicated and really fascinating topic of Egyptian afterlife beliefs? JoAnn Fletcher did an entire series in the Aughties of Egyptian life and death from prehistory through the Ptolemys. That was six or seven episodes...almost four hours long. THAT is enough space to give the topic its due!

Pumpkin bread sounds luscious. Of course, so do pecan puffs....

*smooch*

Good morning, (((((Karen))))), and I'm off. I watched a few minutes of the Tut thing and went away!
Enjoy your day!

>180 richardderus: I've always been fascinated with ancient Egypt, especially Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon, whose family seat, Highclere Castle, was used for Downton Abbey, and the finding of the NOT intact King Tutankhamun's tomb (although it was robbed in antiquity and resealed then).

You should have gotten your Pecan Puffs fix, RD, until next Christmas. Aack - looks like I promised you Pecan Puffs next Christmas.

I need to get the eggs and butter out of the fridge if I'm going to make the pumpkin bread.

And I need to eat a bit of lunch before trundling off to use the treadmill.

BUT, I did the two adulting things I needed to do, plus another one that was waiting for funds transfer. Lots of things off my list.

>181 LizzieD: Hi Peggy. Tut is endlessly fascinating to me. I particularly love the book by Thomas Hoving, Tutankhamun: The Untold Story.

Happy hump day! Adulting is especially hard when you are supposed to be retired, isn't it? This is our second childhood; why do we have to do hard things? It does feel good when they are done, though.

We just get rain and more rain but might get an inch on Friday. Enough for a "first alert" day in my neck of the wood.

As for going to ground, I am very good at that so proud of myself for going to my RLBG yesterday. It was nice to connect with them.

>182 karenmarie: looks like I promised you Pecan Puffs next Christmas

*happy dance*

Of course the sensible thing to do is to ensure your competence in the making of the pecaan puffs does not slacken or, perish forbid! disappear, by regular practice runs. And it would be very wise of you, given your advanced eight decades of decrepitude, to practice finding the post office and mailing such complicated things as parcels of delicate foodstuffs by sending them to me a few times a month until the Yule is upon us again....

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. We got a fresh coating of snow overnight- an inch or two but the temps might hit the mid-20s today which will feel awesome...if you can believe that. Heading out to pick up the "kids".

>183 witchyrichy: Hi Karen! Thank you, I hope your Hump Day was a good’un. I’m quite self-indulgent and am mostly doing exactly what I want to do in retirement. In 11 days I’ll be retired 8 years.

We haven’t gotten any rain for quite a while and only have a chance of showers on Friday. I hope you enjoyed your RLBG on Tuesday.

>184 richardderus: Nice try, RDear. I only make them two times a year, Louise’s birthday mid-October, and Christmas. They’re calorie and fat bombs, although, gratifyingly enough, not sodium bombs.

>185 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! After sub-zero temps, I can see how the 20s are a godsend. I hope the kids pickup/drop off goes well. Enjoy your day.

Wordle 943 5/6* Alphabet soup. new first word trope, then stove, stone, stoke, stole

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The rest of yesterday was complete laziness. Reading and ... reading. Watching two episodes of Secrets. The first was sensationalism about Pompeii, and the second was an interesting one about Neapolis and garum. Well, I didn't make dinner and and will make it tonight. I also didn't make Pumpkin Bread and will try to make it today.

I have an 11:30 chiropractic appointment then will head on over to McIntyre's Books to get the 8-10 boxes of book donations for the Friends. I won't have to load them, just take my SUV to the back delivery entrance and call Sarah. On the way home I'll use the treadmill.

>186 karenmarie: *mournful deprived sigh*

You do sound like you will spend a productive day today, Horrible. The donation boxes are quite the alluring thought. Tread ye olde mill well.

*smooch*

Good day to you, dear Karen. You're already off on errands, and I'm just getting started. Enjoy your day!

When I think of changing my new first word, I have a day like today and don't. I'll take some time before I get bored with it, I think.

>165 katiekrug: Good to know. I may be pausing my membership again pretty soon. I just can't keep up!

>182 karenmarie: "I did the two adulting things I needed to do..." I was just saying to P this morning "there are still a lot of chores and errands a retired person has to do." Of course, it's 2:30 in the afternoon and, instead of being at work, I'm sitting at my kitchen counter catching up with LT! *big smile*

>186 karenmarie: One of my friends had a very similar wordle pattern this morning. Those words that are so similar!

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. Waking up to more fresh snow and the temps dropped back into the high single digits. WTH? Can't catch a break here in the Midwest. At least I can find some comfort on Jackson Day. Sue had a good time with him yesterday. I will probably bring him back here for the afternoon.

>187 richardderus: Poor, sad, RDear. No Pecan Puffs, at least from this source, for a while. Treadmill and donation boxes report below. *smooch*

>188 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I was getting ready, left at 10:45, got home at about 2. The day was productive for sure. You and I like consistency with our first words, you with a second word. Wordle Sisters!!

>189 EBT1002: Hi Ellen. I’m happy that you were at your kitchen counter LTing yesterday afternoon, newly retired. Yesterday was alphabet soup. Today’s just bad choices. But, I wasn’t skunked.

>190 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! Happy Friday to you. Wow, more snow. And a high of 11F, wind chill of -9F. Winter with a vengeance. Stay warm. I’m glad you and Sue are getting Jackson time.

Wordle 944 5/6* trope, tacky, trick, twist, thing

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Yesterday was the chiropractor, picking up the boxes of donated books, treadmill, home, late-Christmas-for-Karen with the books, air fryer chicken and baked potatoes for dinner.

I found one book for a fellow LTer which he's said he'd like to have, and found these for me:

Please Unsubscribe, Thanks! by Julio Vincent Gambuto. Advance Reader's Edition
On Digital Advocacy by Katie Boue. Advance Reader's Copy
Son of the Old West by Nathan Ward. Uncorrected Proof.
A Line in the Sand by Kevin Powers. Advance Reader's Copy
Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses by David Scheel. Advance Reading Copy
The Apple in the Dark by Clarise Lispector. Uncorrected Proof
Sacred Altars by Anne Strand. No touchstone.
Building a Better Boomer by Neil Offen.
Transient and Strange by Nell Greenfieldboyce. Advance Reading Copy
Nuts and Bolts by Roma Agrawal. Advance Uncorrected Proofs
Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South by Elizabeth R. Advance Reader's Edition
The Plague by Albert Camus, new translation by Laura Marris.
Boundaries and Protections by Pixie Lighthorse.

So glad I cleared shelves for books in boxes on the floor. Now, most of them will stay on the floor as I add these books to the shelves. Gads.

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I may or may not go use the treadmill today. It would be as much to protect seniors at the Senior Center as to take care of myself. I have some congestion and my voice is croaky. I sound like a bass.

The eggs and butter, flour, sugar, and canned pumpkin are all still out to make pumpkin bread. We'll see.

The bird feeders need filling. Puttering. Reading. More coffee needs to be drunk.

I'm up, coffee at my side. There IS that. I did get out yesterday to see the ENT doc. He dug the crap out of my left ear. Topping my day (at 11:30 in the morning): learning that the soonest opening to see a hearing aid specialist is mid-May.

Hi Bill!

Yay for coffee. Sorry about the digging, even more sorry that you can't get in to see a hearing aid specialist 'til mid-May. That's absolutely ridiculous. I hope there's a cancellation so you can get in sooner.

Rather than clutter up Ellen's thread, I'm reposting this picture of my husband on our (now gone) Massey Ferguson tractor/mower and our friend/neighbor Larry bush hogging our pastures in 2019. The growth needing the bush hogging is perfectly shown by what he's done and what still needs to be done on the right side of the pasture. It's too much for a mower.



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and, rather than create a new post,

edited to add: It's only taken me 2 hours, but after responding to posts on my thread and posting on the 3 threads I try to post to every day, I posted to 5 threads I was seriously behind on.

>194 karenmarie: *smoochiesmoochsmooch*

>191 karenmarie: Quite the haul! Luscious lovely collection of ARCs!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/357476

>191 karenmarie: Hi, Karen! That's another great haul! By the way, do the Friends take donations of mass market paperbacks?

I hope your congestion clears up and doesn't turn into anything worse. Stay warm this weekend!

>191 karenmarie: Hi Karen, I read two or three books regarding octopuses, and I am amazed at how very intelligent they are!
I've added Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses by David Scheel. Advance Reading Copy

I hope to find a copy.

Happy Reading...Never feel guilty about taking a quiet day to do nothing but read! This is good for the soul!

>195 richardderus: Hiya, RD. It is a lovely collection. I went through them quickly, and only cherry picked ones that immediately grabbed my attention. *smoochiesmoochsmooch* back at’cha.

>196 SilverWolf28: Hi Silver! Thank you.

>197 atozgrl: Hi Irene. Thanks. And re mass market paperbacks. We do not sell them at Friends sales any more. We only charged 50¢ each, and the room they took in our book sort room was not worth the return. When we get donations, we put ones in excellent condition or very good condition in either the Library’s for sale cart or the bin for Circle City Books for Miles to look through. We donate the ones to the Library but Miles pays us 25¢ each. Your best bet would be to find a local used book store that will look them through and take what they want, giving you credit or even cash. Thanks – I honestly think it was allergies or even the start of a cold, but even though I have a very small amount of drainage today, no sore throat.

>198 Whisper1: Hi Linda. Since I haven’t been to a sushi bar since I moved to NC, I haven’t had steamed octopus. Now, given what I know about them, I would never eat them. Many Things Under a Rock’s publication date was June of last year according to the ARC, so finding a good used copy might be difficult. However, even my very small Library has a copy, so you might find one there. Reading always nourishes my soul. Thanks for the encouragement to take quiet days and indulging.

Wordle 945 3/6* trope, afire, large

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I finally made Pumpkin Bread yesterday. It's very good, but I'll look for a different recipe if I make it again because the loaves didn't rise much. We all like it, though. I also went and picked up Solito from the Library for our next RL book club meeting in February. Sigh. I'll give it the old college try, but offhand it doesn't appeal to me.

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Arsenal plays in an hour. Jenna's off to visit her girlfriend today, leaving at 10:50 a.m. and won't be back very late since she doesn't work tomorrow. I need to catalog books and find shelf space for what's in boxes and the haul. Oh, and I may, perhaps, have bought The Complete Tutankhamun by Nicholas Reeves, using lots of Ammie credit card credits. Plus read, of course.

North Woods is coming along nicely. For me, it's a slow and immersive read. I'm about 1/3 of the way through. I've started my Memorial for Julia book, Crime Beat, by Michael Connelly. I love the beginning - he explains how he got into writing detective novels and has explained a couple of the things about Harry Bosch that stand out.

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. We had a long, busy day with Jackson. We took him to the Children's Museum for several hours and then Sue took him to our library for another hour or so. The plan was for him to spend the night but he started crying for his Mama, around 10pm, (I was sleeping) and one of his parents had to come and get him. This happened last time too. We sure hope this is a brief phase. As you know, he has spent many nights here, so he is used to us.

Other than that glitch, he was a complete joy to hang out with.

ETA- I am glad you are enjoying North Woods. 😁❤️

Good morning, Karen. I trust that Arsenal is keeping you happy. Enjoy your day inside!

I think I'd lap up *North Woods*. Oh dear, oh dear.

>199 karenmarie: I would have difficulty eating steamed octopus, too. They are too smart and wonderful. It would be like eating a dolphin.

>151 karenmarie: So glad to hear that! I’ve been doing PT for my knees and hip and lower back—all last year, in fact—so I’m not too worried about that. (It did help my hip a little, but I think it made my knees worse so had to get injections. The cortisone in my left knee helped a lot, but the one in my right knee didn’t take.) I’m pretty desperate so am not too concerned with the unpleasantness. I just want to be able to walk again without debilitating pain.

Too bad about your pumpkin bread not rising. I recently read something about old baking powder causing that issue.

I agree about octopuses 🐙 . In fact, I’m not sure they’re not a sentient alien life form that somehow got stranded on earth. Not eating one, one way or the other.

>199 karenmarie: I'm glad your sinus issues are better today, and no sore throat. Maybe the drainage will be gone by tomorrow.

Thanks for the information about the mass market paperbacks. I suspected the Friends might not want them for their sales. I've got one I'm ready to get rid of now, and I'm sure I'll have more when I get around to sorting them all. Unfortunately, the one I have is relatively old, the cover is looking somewhat worn, and the pages are browning, so I'm not sure the used book store would want it either. I may just have to donate to Goodwill or Dorcas.

Greetings on this cold, windy Sunday, Horrible...should pumpkin bread rise? The ones I am familiar with are dense, like the old campfire brown breads I love so much. Dense and flavorful is the desideratum here, thought I....

*smooch*

I quite agree with Richard. I'd be a bit afraid of pumpkin bread that was high and fluffy.

Hope you can stay in today, and hope that's what you want. The cat water was frozen solid this morning, but we're supposed to be in the high 70s by the end of the week. Don't you just love NC in the winter?

(((((Karen))))) Best to Jenna and Bill!

>200 msf59: Hi Mark! Happy yesterday to you. Sounds like a fun day with Jackson, but I’m sorry he had a meltdown at night. Sometimes they just need mommy. Yup. North Woods continues to ensorcell me.

>201 LizzieD: Hi Peggy. Arsenal tore Crystal Palace apart, 5-0. I like to watch my teams/players score early, often, and never have to worry about a game/match, so this was jam for me. I’m afraid that North Woods needs to be on your wish list. #sorrynotsorry

>202 The_Hibernator: Hi Rachel. I used to not think about it, but have reached the new conclusion in the last several decades. Of course, it’s been made easier by not going to sushi bars or even Japanese restaurants, although I know octopus is on other culture’s menus.

>203 Storeetllr: You’ll do great, Mary. Between us we’re exercising and strengthening. I went through the cortisone shots, even the hyaluronic acid regimen. Cortisone has worked, hyaluronic acid never, ever made a dent. Cortisone can be a crap shoot, too, sorry it didn’t take in your right knee. Yes, walking without delibitating pain is a grand thing. I don’t walk with debilitating pain right now, but my right knee is making ominous noises when I move in certain directions and hurts when I wake up in the morning. I’ve been bone-on-bone for at least a year, probably much longer.

Baking Powder. Sigh. Baking Soda. Sigh. Both are death by salt, but I have gotten lax in that I use them instead of the non-sodium alternatives I tried right after my heart attack. Neither works properly in baking or scratch buttermilk pancakes or waffles, IMO. I rarely eat enough of anything to threaten my 2000 mg per day regimen. I’m sure I’ve gone slightly over in the last 2 years, 2 months, 11 days, but not often and never deliberately.

Yay for octopuses or octopodes, never octopi. I can’t resist:

The scientific Latin term octopus was derived from Ancient Greek ὀκτώπους (oktōpous), a compound form of ὀκτώ (oktō, 'eight') and πούς (pous, 'foot'), itself a variant form of ὀκτάπους, a word used for example by Alexander of Tralles (c. 525 – c. 605) for the common octopus. The standard pluralised form of octopus in English is octopuses; the Ancient Greek plural ὀκτώποδες, octopodes (/ɒkˈtɒpədiːz/), has also been used historically. The alternative plural octopi is usually considered grammatically incorrect because it wrongly assumes that octopus is a Latin second-declension -us noun or adjective when, in either Greek or Latin, it is a third-declension noun. – Wikipedia

>204 atozgrl: Hi Irene. Thanks – still no sore throat, some drainage. I’ll take that over any kind of sickness. I take Claratin-wannabe every single day of my life, so there really must be something challenging out there or in here.

You’re welcome re MM paperbacks. At a bare minimum, our Thrift Shop gets paid by the pound for books they deem not sellable. This is after we reject them for the Friends and they reject them for sale, so although I feel bad, I don’t feel terrible. Here’s a book I brought home that was going to be pulped, simply to give it a good home:



Hadn’t heard of Dorcas, but now I know.

>205 richardderus: I guess, not, RD, from the feedback. I’ll enjoy it as is, and make it another time. *smooch*

>206 LizzieD: I guess pumpkin cake would be different, requiring it to rise and cream cheese frosting. Yikes to frozen cat water. It was 12F here this morning, and I’m having a hard time staying warm. But, I’m lucky and grateful.

Actually, I do love NC in the winter. My season preference here in NC is Fall, winter, spring, summer. My season preference in SoCal was fall, spring, summer, winter. I think. I'm being logical, but not intrinsically remembering. However, I loved SoCal for having been born and raised there, and miss my sister (but not her husband), my niece/wife/kids, my nephew/wife/kid, and my aunt/uncle. My friends are casual at best these days, alas. I miss hot dry summers, damp cool winters, morning mist that burns off by noon. I miss lots of good restaurants, lots of good live theater and performance art, lots of bookstores, and all the museums, plus the LA Brea Tar Pits. Other things, too, but those are the top ones. (((((Peggy))))) Best to your dear mama and your DH.

Wordle 946 4/6* trope, forty, worth, north

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I was busy yesterday, deaccessioning more books, rearranging shelves in the Sunroom and cataloging/recataloging properly, putting boxes/bags of books in the garage for the Friends and the Thrift Shop. I fell asleep on the couch at 6:15, went upstairs and slept for 2.5 hours, woke up, read, talked with Jenna on her way home, and etc.
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Today is more book arranging, puttering, reading, and grocery shopping. Possibly dinner, but it may be a Wing It Night instead.

I need to decide today whether I'll go to the Friends Board meeting tomorrow. Honestly, I'm not feeling it, and need to start pulling back so I don't get Covid before my knee replacement surgery. Paranoid much? Realistic much? I'm up to date on all boosters and vaccines, including Covid, flu, RSV, shingles, and pneumonia. BUT, you never know.

I have to out tomorrow afternoon to use the treadmill AND get my car inspected for registration and 2 new tires, too, so way too much.

Happy Sunday, Karen. Enjoying the day so far. Laundry and book time. Yellowface has been terrific so far. We are visiting friends later for a game day. I will miss some football time but sacrifices need to be made from time to time.

I do love Los Angeles, west LA for living, and many other areas for visits, though there's been little of that lately. Summer here though, is my least favorite season - except that one that was June gloom through August.

>208 msf59: Hi Mark! I hope your Sunday was a good'un. Happy Day After. I'm glad you're enjoying Yellowface. Well, darn. I hadn't expected to like the premise of Yellowface. I joined Audible in anticipation of wanting/needing listening books while in the initial phases of recuperation from knee surgery, and think I'll use my Audible credit. I'm just finishing Bad Monkey on audio book, and don't like the idea of any audio book I have here at the house - new or what would be a re-read. So I can start listening to it now and perhaps even finish it by February 29th. By then I'll have another credit.

Heh. Sacrifices need to be made... I hope Game Day went well. Sorry your Bears lost.

>209 quondame: Hi Susan. West LA would be wonderful if I was to live in LA again although there's no way in this universe I could afford housing there - rent or buy - and I'm glad you're there. LA gloom is not a bad thing, either, although I disliked the once-a-year-or-so dense fog when having to drive. One time I was driving down PCH from Redondo Beach to work in Harbor City at 5:45 a.m. for work (1977?) and literally had to open the car door to see if I was staying in my lane.

Wordle 947 3/6* trope, tenet, tweak. I admit it - serious spreadsheet use.

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Yesterday was grocery shopping, dinner of steaks and baked potatoes, falling asleep at 6:45 on the couch watching something or another with Bill, then heading upstairs where I woke up enough to read and chat with Jenna before getting a reasonable night's sleep.

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This morning is the Friends Board meeting. I'm guilting myself into going, and will use the treadmill on the way home. Then back out for a 2 p.m. appointment for new tires and inspection so I can get my car registered by the 31st. In the meantime, reading, cataloging books, and printing out/reviewing the agenda, November's minutes, and Jul-Dec financials.

Morning, Karen. We have a snow/rain mix hanging around for the next few days but no real accumulation and the temps will slowly rise. I am itching to get out on the trails, so I am waiting for my opportunity. I think Yellowface would work well on audio. It is first person, with a smart and snappy narrative.

Leaving shortly to pick up the kids...

'Morning, Mark! Ugh, snow/rain mix. Thanks for the comment about Yellowface working well on audio. I listened to part of the sample, and although it was a female narrator, which I don't usually like, I realize that it has to be a female narrator and will most likely take the plunge.

...
From Laura's thread about not having a snow blower - Bill using our leaf blower on powder one year:

The audio of Yellowface is excellent!

>212 karenmarie: That's a great photo, Karen. And not a bad way to deal with snow, as long as it's that nice powdery stuff.

>213 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! I'll get it and then figure out how to get Bluetooth and Audible to work in my SUV after I finish Bad Monkey.

Sigh. Excitement. Big change for me - using Audible instead of acquiring audio books on CD.

>214 lauralkeet: Hi Laura. Thanks re the pic. Oh yes, only on primo untouched powder. We usually get wet take-down-powerlines snow.

Have a good time doing your various adulting things today, Horrible...not too onerous, just time consuming sounds like. *smooch*

Good day to you, Karen! Hope everything goes smoothly and you get home early for something more fun!
Wordle in 4 for me, and I was thankful for that!

>194 karenmarie: I saw the conversation about bush hogging and chuckled. It's one of those IYKYK kind of things, as the young people say! We, well my husband, does it every year.

>199 karenmarie: I think I am destined to read North Woods as it has appeared on lots of threads.

Hope you find some time to read today.

>207 karenmarie: Dorcas is a local Cary charity with a store like Goodwill and lots of other services. Some around here trust it more than Goodwill, and our church helps support them. That book looks pretty well worn alright! I'm glad you gave it a good home.

I keep running into people who say they like Fall best. I always had a low opinion of Fall. My memories from my childhood are of dark, chilly, rainy days, and lots of damp, and wet brown leaves everywhere. I must have been in school when the days were nice. My mom said she liked the fall. Of course, here in NC I was always working, until recently. I'll have to reorient my thinking, but the childhood memories are so deeply imprinted, it's hard to change.

Morning, Karen. We are waking up to a sheet of ice. Temps are hovering just above the freezing mark, with a snow/rain mix coming down. Some schools are closed, including my "kids" school. Hey, I am not complaining at all. Staying warm & snug is a perfect option. Sue made it out but our driveway looks completely glazed.

>216 richardderus: Hiya, RDear. I did major adulting, checking all three things off my list. *smooch*

>217 LizzieD: Hi Peggy, and thank you. I hope your Monday was a good one. Not much fun time, but that’s okay, too. Yay for 4.

>218 witchyrichy: I didn’t know ‘til I moved here and we bought this property. Bill had a little house in a pine forest that we lived in ‘til 1992, when we built our first house which was in a hardwoods forest and on slanting land, then we bought this property in 1997 and moved in to this house in July 1998. This is the only property we’ve had that was ‘eligible’ for bush hogging. We never had the equipment for bush hogging, but our friend Larry did. I think we’re going to have to get someone else to bush hog it this summer, since Larry’s having health problems. Ah well, a problem for late June-early July at the soonest.

I hope you would at least check it out from the Library and start it, Karen – I’m finding it stunning. Just a bit of reading before I left for the Board meeting - minutes/financials/proposal in addition to fun reading. I read the entire time I was waiting for my SUV, then major reading last night.

>219 atozgrl: I saw Dorcas’ website, seems like a worthy charity. Is their book collection extensive or just a shelf or two? Maybe I could stop at it when we have lunch or my friend Jan and I have lunch. I have other pitiful books that are happy to have shelf space too. Makes me feel good.

It’s hard to overcome childhood memories for sure. Mine are of cool days chasing away the dry hot summer in LA and Halloween. You may enjoy your first fall being retired. We’ll have to find something fun to do. And don’t forget the fresh cider!

Wordle 948 3/6* trope, slant, still

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The Board meeting went 1 3/4 hours, very unusual for us, but it was all good, and I managed to get out of it without major homework. *smile* Treadmilling was successful at 33.5 minutes at a good speed, then I went out and spent an hour and a half getting my SUV inspected so I can register it by the 31st and got two new tires. It was only $556 for both. However, safe tires are critical. Anyway, I unintentionally left my Kindle at the Ford place. Called to make sure it was there, spent another 30 minutes on the road. Dumb.

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This morning is book sorting, but I may not go - for some reason I've got a hitch in my gitalong near the top of my left femur. Very strange. It started late last night. We'll see how I feel in half an hour after pain meds kick in.

My cleaning ladies are coming at noon. They do a wonderful job, but I can't relax properly while they're here. First world problem for sure.

Irene mentioned never seeing cowbirds here in NC in the winter on Mark's thread. Proof positive - January 18, 2018, here at our house.

>221 karenmarie: I know what you mean about the cleaning ladies...I can not just get into my morning grooming until after the ladies are done. This morning was awkward because I finally got tired of looking at the bathroom fan grille all dusty and got out my illicit, supposedly illegal...we can not possess electric appliances by law...handvac (grey area...it is rechargeable, not a plug in) and used the brush attachment to clean it.

They know I flout this law, I will continue to do so, but it does give me a start every time I get caught doing it. Anyway, the first worldness of the problem resonates with me, as well.

Hoping your gitalong unhitches so you can go fondle books! *smooch*

>221 karenmarie: Oooh, plans for fall already! Fresh cider is good!

And I'm caught out. I have made plenty of donations to Dorcas, and especially had a lot after my mom passed, but I haven't actually gone in the store. Bad me! So I don't know how much they have in the way of books. They've got a drop-off system where you drive around the back and they'll take what you've brought to donate right out of the car. At the time when I was making most of my donations, I had missed a lot of work time caring for my mom, and didn't really have time to stop and go in the store. Now that I'm retired, I've got more time, but as it's in an area of Cary that I don't normally pass, I haven't thought about it. But I'm starting to collect some things to donate, so I'll have to go in the next time I'm over there.

I'm glad the Kindle was still there! I've done dumb stuff like that myself.

>222 karenmarie: That's quite a flock of cowbirds! I have definitely never seen them here in the winter. Maybe all of ours fly over to Chatham County for the winter. :-)

I hope your left leg is feeling better!

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. I think you missed me up there yesterday. We have light rain and fog here which sure beats snow and ice. Sadly, it will still keep me off the trails. Just the regular visitors at my feeders. I would like to see something new pop up.

Glad to see your cowbirds photo but we DID believe you. 😁

I can hear the snow melting...melting...melting. Gurgling in the downspouts.

>223 richardderus: ‘Morning, RDear the day after your great message. I can see you sneaking the handvac out, eyes looking furtively around, hoping OS won’t say anything (if he’s there/awake when you do this), and then quietly? – coughing loudly? – cleaning the grille. You also flout the law to make your French Press dark roast coffee, too, right? *smooch*

>224 atozgrl: Hi Irene. Nice time to check ‘em out, for sure. I just looked for them on duckduckgo, saw that there were 69 photos on yelp and found this one:

so I think I need to go visit some time.

You’re coming to Pbo this visit, so we can’t go there after a Cary-Apex lunch. Dare I say I might stop there after having lunch with my friend Jan on Monday at Taziki’s in Cary? Looks like they’re only about 10 minutes from there.

It would be a shame to lose my Kindle since it’s brand new. I’ve never, ever left it anywhere before. Sigh. Of course – the cowbirds say ‘let’s flock in Pittsboro and take all the seed from Karen’s feeders. We’ll shake the feeders to get it all out, then eat everything on the ground.”

>225 msf59: Sorry Mark – I saw your message some time yesterday and thought I replied. I know you like to be out and about, sorry for another day of no walks for you.

>220 msf59: I always hate ice, glad Sue made it out, glad you were able to stay in. I hope that Sue made it safely home, too. Looks like you’ve got rain, fog, and overcast skies for quite a few days, so the ice should be gone if it’s not already.

I had a male Red-Bellied Woodpecker try the suet feeder – empty, sunflower seed feeder – empty, then settle for hanging precariously off the wild bird seed feeder to get a bit of brekkie. I liked pulling up the cowbirds photo again, simply so I could see that yes, we have gotten snow. It’s still only one month into winter technically, but I’m not confident that there are many more opportunities for snow. 😎

>226 weird_O: Okay, Bill, that’s just torture. That also reminds me of the time we had 18” icicles hanging from the gutters. Can’t find the photo, though.

Wordle 949 3/6* trope, weird, relic

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Well yesterday was interesting with the hitch in my gitalong. I hobbled to book sort, hobbled to Virlie's, then came straight home.

I had a prescription that I had to back out for and went into the grocery store for 3 things I needed (plus a sugared Dr. Pepper). I actually used the cane. Grrrr. I'm going to make vegetable soup and cornbread dinner tonight.

Ladies came, saw, conquered, AND didn't tell me that Esmerelda's assistant Adela broke the glass cook top for my Jenn-Air downdraft stove glass-topped stove. 6 phone calls later, no authorized appliance repair for my zip code although Jenn-air had 3 listed. $1437.83 for the cook top, and now I have to find an appliance repair shop that will replace glass cook tops, will replace a Jenn-air one, and will actually come to where I live. And I'll have to order and get the cook top delivered to me here directly. I'm not a happy camper.

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The hitch in my gitalong isn't as bad as it was yesterday, so I'm thinking perhaps sciatica or some other strange nerve deciding to screw with me. Feeling sorry for myself, reading, cooking/baking (although only cooking on the right side of the stove, darn it), and playing with my LT catalog are on the agenda for today.

>227 karenmarie: Oh dear. That is a colossally bad day indeed. Sorry for the tsurres the world is hocking you with, Horrible me lurve. *smooch*

Woof. Definitely a no-good, lousy day. I hope repairs go smoothly even though the need for the repairs is awful.

>227 karenmarie: Oh my, that is a huge ding in your life for the luxury/necessity of hired housekeeping. I've lost a few knickknacks and a wireless phone base once, but nothing necessary that huge.

>194 karenmarie: I love that picture, Karen! Thank you! (And in future, certainly feel free to post pictures on my thread, but also fine to post them here and leave a note, as you did this time around.)

Good job getting Wordle in three today. I got it in what I call a Classic Four. :-)

After a stormy morning, the sun is making its way out again. I can hear someone weed-wacking in the yard, so the rain is probably finished for today. Still, it wasn't so bad sitting inside reading with the windows open and the rain gusted about outside. I'm currently reading Chenneville and it is quite good so far.

That's awful news about your cooktop, Karen. I can't believe the ladies didn't tell you about it either. Grrr.

Sorry about the hitch in your get-along and the damaged cooktop. Hoping tomorrow is a much better day!!!

Oh no about the cooktop. Sorry to read about your car accident at the age of 21 and your ongoing back / spine problems. I hope tomorrow is a better day for you. So glad our snow has gone. We have rain but so much better than snow and ice.

>228 richardderus: The day got marginally better, RD! Update below. I’ve tried finding tsurres on duckduckgo, unsuccessfully. Switched to the Dread Google, and they found it as tsuris. Darn them. And when I went back to duckduckgo, they found it. They just couldn’t read my mind. Which means that Google might be able to… Yikes. *smooch*

>229 drneutron: Thanks, Jim.

>230 quondame: We’ve lost a few things over the years, but they’ve always told us. And once some drops of bleach got dropped on a carpet upstairs. Luxury/necessity. Yup. Sigh.

>231 EBT1002: Good to know that I can post pics on your thread, Ellen. I try to not clutter up other peoples threads. Heh. Classic Four. My classic four is 233 games on my current run (I lost my original stats when they converted to NYT). 182 for Impressive 3. I loved News of the World, which we read for RL book club and have two others by her on my shelves. Question: How can a novel in these days and times be ‘fearless’? Is any topic off the table for the right audience? Just wondering…

>232 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura. The only way that I can think of that they didn’t tell me that doesn’t completely piss me off is that Adela truly didn’t realize she’d cracked it. I haven’t been in touch with Esmerelda and she hasn’t been in touch with me. Update to The Cracked Cooktop Caper below. Sorry about the alliteration, couldn’t resist once the first two words got typed.

>233 Berly: Hi Kim, and thank you.

>224 atozgrl: Thanks for the sympathy, Deborah. And thanks re the car accident. 49 years with back problems isn’t fun. Some times have been worse than others. I’m glad your snow is gone. Rain is always a relief after lots of snow or ice, isn’t it?

Wordle 950 3/6* trope, flown, block

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I made vegetable beef soup and corn bread yesterday and had them ready by 3:30. A friend of ours recently had a major stroke, is finally home, his sister gone, and his girlfriend is managing all his appointments/schedule. They came over so he could get out and socialize. They stayed 45 minutes or so and went home with soup & cornbread.

Bill and I were discussing the cook top yesterday. I asked him to provide me with 3 local appliance repair shops, but before he could do that we discussed A New Option. Our wall oven/microwave is 25 years old and the control panel for the wall oven is finicky and will go out sooner than later. Plus, we took out the built-in microwave out after it failed ~18 years ago and now have the second stand-alone microwave on a little shelf we had built. The dishwasher has been tricksky recently, and will probably fail within 6 months. So, 3 appliances out of 4 are on their last legs.

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I will actually have perhaps an hour and a half by myself in the house today – Jenna just left for work and Bill has lunch plans. I’m going to schedule the time I need to be away from the house after he’s back. Time alone in the house is RARE.

Errands might include going to go to Lowe's today to look at their appliances. Looks like they're having a sale through the 31st.

And the sciatica/nerve whatever is even less today, so I might use the treadmill, although not necessarily 30-45 minutes.

And the last errand will definitely be the PO.

Morning, Coffee Sister! So sorry to read about the Cracked Cooktop Caper (although I love the alliteration - sounds like an Encyclopedia Brown title). If it were me, I would be just replacing the appliances, but I am sorry that you are having to deal with it at all.

Hooray for Jenna's new job - I am so happy for her. I will echo everyone else and say that she looks great in her scrubs.

Vegetable beef soup and corn bread sound most delicious. Great comfort food.

Good thinking with staying home while you can have the house to yourself. That never happens here, but sometimes I can get the bedroom to myself if I shut the door. Heh.

Hoping that your Thursday is full of fabulous.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. With the warming temps we have been getting a lot of fog. I will be enjoying a Jackson day. We are going to Louisville for the weekend and leave tomorrow morning. It should be fun. I am still missing my birding.

^Was that a very rare Mamie sighting?

>235 karenmarie: The New Option sounds like a very good thing. A disaster converted to an opportunity to extend your peace of mind. *smooch*

>>236 Crazymamie: MAMIE! Coffee Sister! Second fam since I'm an honorary member of the Pecan Paradisio! I’ve been thinking about you a lot recently and was actually going to try to find someone who had your mailing address and have them forward a card you so you wouldn’t think I was stalking you. I’m so glad to see you here.

Bill’s plans got changed and I don’t think I’ll get time to myself today. I don’t know why I bother getting excited about Time Alone In The House. It never ends well for me emotionally. I’m sorry your only time alone is in the bedroom if you shut the door. Believe me, I empathize and sympathize.

My Thursday will still be full of fabulous, just a different fabulous. I’m pretty sure we’re going to replace the appliances, and perhaps even be able to get them in black. If I can’t get all 3 in black, then I’ll switch to ‘silver/stainless’.

>237 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and sweet Thursday to you. Yay for a Jackson Day, sorry about the birding. However, Louisville sounds like a great time. Visiting friends or just going for the heck of it?

Yes! A Mamie sighting! I’m happy and honored.

>238 richardderus: Hiya, RD, and yes, I think the new option is the way to go. I’m all for anything to give me peace of mind. *smooch*

If you get a new stovetop, I'd like to put in a word for an induction range. I had always cooked with gas, but have had to deal with electric when we left our home of 35 years 3 years ago. I could never get the hang of it ( I make a lot of dishes requiring a long slow simmer) and had to throw out a lot of pots with burned on crud in the bottom of the pot. When we moved to our new house in August, it had an induction range. I was apprehensive at first, but now love it. It's extremely responsive, and doesn't heat up your kitchen. The stove itself doesn't get hot, so I usually put a paper towel over the burner when I cook so all the splatters end up on the paper towel and the stovetop stays clean. The only limitation is you have to have cookware that reacts to a magnet.

It sounds like the Cracked Cooktop Caper is now a Cracked Cooktop Catalyst, and I understand completely how you got there. We recently wrapped up a prolonged HVAC project with multiple units on their last legs, after deciding it was better to bite the bullet and refresh everything than replace things piecemeal as they failed. Yes, it was a lot of money but now it's all done with the side benefit of no longer having to heat with oil.

Good luck finding the kitchen appliances of your dreams!

Glad to hear the sciatica is feeling better!

Oh dear. I have missed a lot. I'm glad that the sciatica is better. It does seem to come and eventually to go. I'm SO SORRY about the cooktop and almost as sorry that the women didn't tell you about it. Thinking that they didn't realize that it happened is generous. I hope that's right.

We're OK. Hope you're having a good Thursday. I should be doing our second meal, so I'd better get to it!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/357793

Oh Lordy! Good luck with your appliance search. Nobody makes 'em like they used to.

My sister got a Garland commercial range 35 or more years ago. Quite recently, the pilot system stopped working properly and she couldn't find anyone in the state of Virginia who'd come and repair it. They are all commercial dealers and wouldn't handle a residential situation. I suggested she put up a sign for "Marty's Restaurant" at the end of her driveway. Well, eventually her husband's son kept fiddling with the burners and solved the problem. Just a buildup of soot clogging the tubes.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. I enjoyed my Jackson Day, which is no surprise. My friend's 10-11 yr old granddaughter is in a touring Broadway musical of "Frozen" and they are currently in Louisville. This is the reason we are going. There are 4 couples going. Of course we plan on hitting a couple of breweries and distilleries too. We will be back on Sunday afternoon. I will be offline for most of it. Have a good weekend.

I came to condole, Horrible...I know you are weeping bitter tears over Djokovich blowing his perfect Australian Open record with a loss. Superfans like you are often more upset than the players themselves. *there there, patpat*

>240 arubabookwoman: Hi Deborah! Down the rabbit hole of the threadbook, over to your thread, starring, back here. Thanks for the recommendation. However, I have Calphalon, and I’m reading that you have to have flat-bottomed pans that react to magnets. 0 for two, I’m afraid. I can’t imagine being able to put a paper towel down while cooking… Except that I have thousands of $$ invested in Calphalon, I’d seriously think about it. I do love gas, but don’t like how greasy it makes the kitchen. Thank goodness for cleaning ladies.

>241 lauralkeet: Yes, Laura. It is now the Cracked Cooktop Catalyst. I love that. I’ve done a bit of looking online at Lowe’s, and after talking with Bill I think we’re going to go for replacing 3 of the 4 appliances. I’m glad you bit the bullet with your HVAC units – we did that within the last 10 years (can’t remember what year), and keep the maintenance up. Yes, not heating with oil is good, too. Thanks re my getting the appliances of my dreams.

>242 The_Hibernator: Hi Rachel, and thank you. It returned a bit yesterday while I was out because I did a bit of a twist at the Post Office somehow, so that by the time I got to the thrift shop to find 4 smallish plates for the kitty wet food, I could really feel it again. I’m going to baby it today and whichever weekend day Jenna goes to her girlfriend’s, but will be out at Lowe’s with her on the other weekend day.

>243 LizzieD: I’d prefer uneventful, Peggy, but alas. We’re still working on the Cracked Cooktop Catalyst. As I wrote above, the sciatica-or-whatever came back a bit yesterday, so I’m babying myself today and one weekend day. I’m glad you’re all doing okay.

>244 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver!

>245 weird_O: Thanks, Bill, and you’re absolutely right about that. We’ve had 2 stoves (although this one would have lasted much longer), 3 refrigerators, 2 dishwashers, and the microwave failed on the wall oven/microwave and we’re on the second microwave in that. We’re also on the 3rd set of washer/dryers, too. Sigh.

I’m glad your sister’s husband’s son fiddled with it enough to get it to work. Nobody in the entire state of Virginia – that’s as bad as nobody being able to work on my Jenn-Air. So, no more Jenn-Airs for us.

>246 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and happy Friday to you. Yay for a good Jackson day. Wow. Congrats to the granddaughter. Well of course you’ll hit breweries and distilleries. I hope you have a wonderful and safe time. Thanks re my weekend.

>247 richardderus: Well, darn it, RD, Djoko broke his streak. I am weeping bitter tears… not. I’ve just recently figured out that I was a Roger Federer fan, not a true tennis fan, since when he retired I completely lost interest in the men’s game and had lost interest in the women’s game before that.

Wordle 951 4/6* trope, cloud, flown, aloof

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Yesterday was supposedly going to Lowe's to look at appliances, but it was raining and I looked at the parking lot and said no. So I went to Taco Bell instead and had two crunchy tacos sitting in the parking lot and reading my Kindle. Then down to the PO to mail a book and on the way back home stopped in the thrift shop to buy 4 small plates for wet kitty food. One of our other 4 got broken a while back, and since I like symmetry, using 3 of one kind and 1 of another bothered me. I spent all of a dollar and like the new little plates. They're porcelain... the kitties are dining in style. I did a bit of tag updating, read, and etc.

...
I'm having lunch with @atozgrl, Irene, today at Virlie's at 12:30 and all the usual stuff otherwise.

Off to Hickory Mountain Antiques to see if the glass-fronted cabinet is still available and/or a lawyer's book case. I was going to do this a year ago but didn't, but really need something for my Lladro Christmas Bells during the season and books the rest of the year.

Wordle 952 X/6* trope, juice, glade, amaze, heave, knave.

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edited to add: Went, saw, conquered. It's sturdy, and Bob says the stained glass is original. It's 1/2" cross-cut oak. It has adjustable shelves, which were probably added later, but I'm very happy. Bob says he'll look for a key that will fit the lock. The bottom latch on the left side swivels - so cool. He will deliver it on Wednesday, Jenna's day off so she and I can help - mostly her. They're all of 1.9 miles away.

>249 karenmarie: Have a great time shopping today, Horrible! How was lunch with Irene, as if I didn't know? Find much to talk about?

Hiya, RDear!

I just added the successful shopping day cabinet to my message above.

Lunch with Irene was great. We met at Virlie's at 12:30 and didn't leave 'til 2ish. There was never a quiet moment except for actually eating. I told her about the used book shop within sight of Virlie's, Circle City Books, and she messaged me that she didn't find two books she was specifically looking for, but found 3 others.

She mentioned McKay's, which I had gone to with @nittnut, Jenn, before they left for Colorado. We made tentative plans to go to the McKay's in Greensboro in the summer or fall, plus I gave her the dates for the Friends Spring Book Sale.

>249 karenmarie: What a lovely piece. It makes a statement without being too loud and looks very useful.

>249 karenmarie: Good morning, Karen. What a great find! I'm glad it was still there. I got two lawyer's bookcases from my parents. My sister got the three matching, connected set of lawyer's bookcases (durn it). They're such a great place to keep books.

Lunch yesterday was so much fun, I had a great time! And also a good visit to Circle City Books. I'm glad to know that they are there; not so close that I can go all the time, but close enough to be a reasonable drive.

>227 karenmarie: I've definitely missed out by not going into the store at Dorcas. I will have to make some time to do that. I have already started collecting things to donate, so I will just have to visit the store when I go.

I hope you can find the appliances you want. Have a great weekend!

>239 karenmarie: I LOVE the bookcases!

I do hope life is looking up. I particularly like imagining you tucked in your car with tacos and your Kindle. I think I need to do that one of these days.

>252 quondame: Hi Susan, and thank you! I can’t wait for Bob to deliver it this week. I’ve already thought of the perfect and totally appropriate tag for it: C01. I envision finding the piano a new home and finding another cabinet for its spot on the long wall.

>253 atozgrl: Hi Irene! Thanks, and I’m glad Bob came over to my SUV at 9:50 while I waited there for him to open. I immediately asked if it was still available, he took me over to it, I liked it, paid for it, and was home by 10:15. I still want lawyer’s bookcases, a fun thing to look for down the road, but am very happy with this cabinet. Envious of your two and your sister's three.

I’m glad you had as good a time as I did. And yes, Circle City Books is way cool. @nittnut, Jenn, and I went there the time she came to Pittsboro for lunch with me and she loved it, too. Definitely a reasonable drive for you if you absolutely need a new place to look for books. And yes, a combination drop off/book acquisition sortie to Dorcas sounds great.

Thanks re the appliances, and I hope you and your DH are having a good weekend.

>254 witchyrichy: Hi Karen, and thank you. Life, as always, has its ups and downs, but between Taco Bell, mostly being over the left hip strangeness/sciatica/whatever, the cabinet, and Crunchy Tacos and my Kindle, I’ve had some good things happening this week. And the appliance search is going to be fun with Jenna today. Esmerelda has agreed to pay me the money it would cost to replace the glass cook top, parts/labor, and we’ll come to an agreement about how much to take out when she comes to clean each time.

A Taco Bell visit is always good… I don’t like getting them and coming home with them, since they get soggy. So rather than going inside in these still-Covidy-days, I’m happy to hang out in the parking lot.

Wordle 953 6/6* Gads. trope, sheer, never, elder, eager, ember

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Cabinet acquisition, reading, and napping were my Saturday.

...
Today will be Lowe's to look at appliances and baked salmon for dinner, side/s to be determined.

>249 karenmarie: What a beaut! I especially like the stained glass uppers. Since you are not investing in it as a priceless antique but rather as a practical piece of furniture, go! whoever had the idea of putting in adjustable shelves.

Sunday *smooch*

Hi RD, and thank you. I'm very happy with it. It just felt like mine the minute I saw it.

...
So. Jenna and I went to Lowe's, fully expecting to finalize make/model numbers of 3, perhaps even 4, appliances, perhaps even paying for and scheduling delivery of same.

We walked away with nothing. How to not make a sale to an eager customer:

1. Don't engage. Don't smile. Don't empathize.
2. Don't listen. I said downdraft propane stove, not cooktop. Not electric stove either.
3. Don't know your stock.
4. Don't jump on the chance to sell me the only downdraft propane stove you have at $5K when I say "If I have to get stainless, I will."
5. Immediately tell me I have to go to a specialty appliance store.
6. Don't thank me for coming in.
7. Don't even ask what other appliances I'm looking at, since I said I was looking for 3.

Sigh.

>257 karenmarie: Well then! A giant middle finger from Lowe's was had, resulting in a big ol' bye bye now, idiots, being waved.

>249 karenmarie: GORGEOUS! I'm happy for you!

>257 karenmarie: I think sometimes that if I needed to work, I'd try to hire myself out as a specialist in customer service since nobody but our local MacDonald's seems to expect anything from or teach anything to their employees in that regard. Of course, fast food drive-throughs are all I see these days.

Anyway, I'm glad that you and Jenna are back and can now have the rest of the day for whatever you want (I hope).

Yay Taco Bell! Boo on Lowes. Yay on lunch with Irene! Love the cabinet--now the fun of filling it with books! Enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

>257 karenmarie: The delights of dealing with someone who can't even hate their job intelligently.

>257 karenmarie: I also like Taco Bell!

Sorry you had such a bad experience at Lowe's. It certainly sounds like whoever you spoke to has no idea how to be a salesperson. I hope there's another place you can go.

When our washing machine died about 15 months ago, the salesperson at Home Depot was extremely helpful, and they also had what we were looking for, so that worked out well for us. I wish you better luck on your next appliance shopping trip.

Ugh, sorry Lowe's failed so miserably. Here you were, ready to spend a lot of money and they completely blew it. Their loss, not yours. Hope you can find another place to shop.

>249 karenmarie: That is a lovely piece of furniture!!

>257 karenmarie: Ugh indeed. I'm so sorry you had that experience.

Morning, Karen. Thanks for keeping my thread warm & cozy. We had a nice weekend. Details and photos can be found on my thread. Unfortunately, it was my turn to bring home a bad cold, so I have been wiped out. I switched with another driver so I didn't have to work today. I am hoping for a quick rebound.

>258 richardderus: Yes, a big middle finger to Lowe’s. Sigh.

>259 LizzieD: Hi Peggy, and thank you. Yes, good CSRs – Jenna’s a CSR for the veterinary practice – are rare, all the way from fast food to at least Lowe’s level of store. I would imagine a high-end store might take more care, although I’m remembering Pretty Woman and the store scene when she goes back.

>260 Berly: Hi Kim, and thank you.

>261 quondame: Susan, you really made me laugh. Yes. Someone who can’t even hate their job intelligently.

>262 atozgrl: Hi Ireme. Sometimes it just has to be Taco Bell. If I still lived in SoCal, it would just have to be Del Taco. Thanks for the sympathy and recommendation.

>263 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura.

>264 EBT1002: Hi Ellen, and thank you. Can’t wait for Wednesday. And ugh is about right.

>265 msf59: 'Morning, Mark! You're very welcome. Glad you had a good weekend, I'll be over in a minute or two to visit. Yikes to the bad cold, and hope you get over it quickly.

Wordle 954 5/6* Much help from the spreadsheets. trope, speak, edify, jelly, leggy

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So after the Great Lowe's Debacle, I did a load of laundry, read, worked on spreadsheets and finding books to read. *smile* Dinner was salmon and french fries. I make no-salt-added FFs in the air fryer, wave the salt shaker over them, and then use lots of sodium mgs on ketchup.

...
Today is probably lunch with friend Jan, probably at Taziki's. Haven't heard back from her to confirm. If so, I just may go to Dorcas on the way home to cry in my soup over Lowe's by buying books.

I hope your day turned out okay, Karen. Good luck with your appliance shopping. I find the people at Home Depot very helpful too. (They are actually trained to be CSRs *gasp*)

>267 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg, and thank you twice. My day was excellent, see below. Wow. Trained CSRs. Will wonders never cease? Jenna's been at her new job for 2 weeks and one day, and they're still training her before letting her loose on her own to (wo)man one of the front desks.

Wordle 955 3/6* trope, pecan, expel

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I did end up having lunch with Jan. I gave her her November birthday presents and card, she gave me my Christmas presents. I'd had a Collins Street Bakery Fruit Cake mailed to her for Christmas. I've been getting them forever, and decided to make it easy on me at Christmas and sent them to several family members/friends. We talked for almost 3 hours, getting caught up and ahead. It was so much fun.

Bill had mentioned Garner Appliances, which definitely delivers/installs to my town, and Jan lives in Garner. I mentioned it to her, and we're going to meet at her house, which I've never been to, have lunch, then go there with brand/model#s in hand. We'll do it next week.

And, >240 arubabookwoman: Deborah, I'm actually going to research and consider an induction stove. They're more common, with less mess in the kitchen, and etc. We already have 240 power to the island from when we had an electric oven in the first Jenn-Air gas cook top/oven, so that wouldn't be an issue. Cookware would definitely be an issue, but the idea is becoming more and more attractive! You put it in my head, and thank you.

...
This morning is book fondling sorting then Virlie's, then some grocery shopping. Possibly the pharmacy, too. Reading, of course, and etc.

Duplicate message. Sigh. I'll probably put a picture of the cabinet after it's delivered tomorrow in here and refer to this message #.

Morning, Karen. I had to skip Kids Kab again. Still struggling. I am hoping I will be better tomorrow. At least I am able to get some reading in. That is a blessing.

>268 karenmarie: Fondle hearty, Horrible! I think the induction cooker sounds very interesting, and Jenna could move out when she does with an amazing set of Calphalon. *smooch*

>212 karenmarie: This method works quit well with light powdery snow.

>249 karenmarie: What a great cabinet! Solid wood so you know those shelves will be able to handle all those books :)

Hope you are able to find someone more knowledgeable about the appliances they sell. Even in specialty stores, it is surprising how little they know about the products.

Happy rest of the week!

>268 karenmarie: We had to buy new cookware when we discovered our new house had an induction range (which I had never heard of before). We found a few of our old pots worked, and we just bought some basics (not an expensive set)--large and small skillet, large and small sauce pan, and a Dutch oven. It was well worth it to not have to have an electric range again.
Do your research, and I'll be interested what you end up with.
Another good thing is that they don't heat up your kitchen as much as other options because the stove doesn't get hot.

>268 karenmarie: We have an induction hob as well, and I definitely wouldn't go back to gas now. I'm amazed at just how quickly it can bring things to the boil. And so much easier to clean.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. This virus is still hanging on but I am going to do Kids Kab today. I will mask up. I think getting out for some fresh air might do me some good. The sun returns later on and will creep into the 40s.

>270 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! I’m sorry you were still under the weather yesterday. That’s always the sweet spot – too sick to work, well enough to read.

>271 richardderus: Hi RD! Fondle report below. I’m leaning more and more towards it. And, of course, yes, Jenna would get a shit ton of Calphalon. *smooch*

>272 figsfromthistle: Hi Anita. Nice to know that someone else uses a leaf blower on powdery snow. I’m excited j0 the cabinet comes today.

I’m thinking that Garner Appliances will have someone who can help me. Happy rest of the week to you, too.

>273 arubabookwoman: Hi Deborah! Not a single pot is magnetic, so it’s new cookware for me, stored Calphalon for Jenna. The more I read about them, the more it makes sense. More musings below. Thanks!

>274 SandDune: Hi Rhian, and another vote for an induction hob. I have read testimonials about how much quicker water comes to the boil and how easy it is to clean. Thank you.

>275 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! I’m glad you’re feeling well enough to ferry the kids to school, glad you’re going to wear a mask. And, warmer weather, so no chill.

Wordle 956 4/6* trope, clash, skull, bulky

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I went and fondled books yesterday. I was tired, having only gotten about 3 hours of sleep, so didn't go to Virlie's. Came home, read and took a nap, and Bill texted me that Arsenal was playing at 2:30, so came downstairs for that. They beat Nottingham Forest 2-1. Now, I'm hoping Man City fluffs it their next two games and ties or loses. *smile*

...
So, cabinet delivery at 11. Lunch at Virlie's with Louise after Bob leaves, whatever time that is.

Last day of the month, and I should be able to finish one more book by midnight.

Our generator just did it's second successful self-test. It's every other Wednesday at 10 a.m. Scared me badly two weeks ago - I thought we were going to be annihilated by a bomb.

Sounds like you have a splendid day coming up, Karen! Enjoy!!!

HOORAY for Jan and the Garner appliance store! Fingers crossed for a satisfactory buying spree!

Crossing the crossable that all goes smoothly in your quest not to have any more appliance debacles, sooner rather than later.

*smooch*

Hi Karen my dear, Hope all is well with you, Bill, Jenna, Inara, Zoe and Wash dear friend, we are both well but i fell i am time strapped at the moment, my reading and visits on here are limited although when i get an opportunity, i make the most of it.

On Saturday we got your Christmas card my dear, not sure if it is your postal system or ours that caused the delay, ours is shocking at the moment and has been for the last nine months so it could be ours.

Sending love and hugs to you all from both of us and Felix sends kitty skritches my dear friend.

>207 karenmarie: ensorcell: word of the day!

>257 karenmarie: the customer and the service part of 'customer service' sorely missing with this encounter! Silly person.

>276 karenmarie: I had already pretty much made up my mind that when the time comes to replace our range, I was going to look for an induction stove. I'm glad to see your investigations support that thought. Good luck in finding what you need!

Garner Appliance saved our bacon when our refrigerator died. They ordered a new one for us, and believe it or not, they gave us a loaner fridge until the new one arrived. We were glad we went to see them; I don't know of anyone else who would have provided a loaner. We didn't even know that was a possibility.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. This cold is still hanging around like an unwanted guest. I WISH it would just LEAVE! Yesterday went well and I managed to get out with my birding buddies for a couple of hours. They masked up and we kept a proper distance. It felt good being out and we somehow managed to see 20 species. I am doing Kids Kab today. I won't be seeing Jack this week. ☹️

Thursday orisons, Horrible! Off to do adult-y things again today? For my part, the day will be spent doing housekeeping chores on NetGalley and Edelweiss. It seems that I have failed to repost there reviews that I posted here, or on Goodreads, to the tune of more than two dozen fails. Of COURSE there is no search I can do to get the answers quickly except one in my already-shown-to-be-flawed memory, so slog I must. *sigh*

>277 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! Yes, it was a good day, see below. I’m actually glad that the guy at Lowe’s was awful, because I probably would have gotten a propane stove and I’m now leaning heavily towards induction. I’ve even put a set of pans into my Amazon Save for Later list.

>278 richardderus: Hiya, RDear, and thank you. Next Friday, the 9th of February. *smooch*

>279 johnsimpson: Hi John! Sorry you’re feeling time strapped, so I’m especially happy to see you here. Saturday!?!?! I really thought I’d mailed in time this year. Sheesh. Love and hugs to you and Karen, and kitty skritches to Felix the Cat.

>280 LovingLit: Hi Megan. I love that word, and shamelessly started using it after getting it from Richard some years ago. Customer service definitely has its ups and downs in recent years, some of them relating to Covid, some of them relating to the general collapse of society, some of them related to businesses squeezing everywhere they can to get profit, including but not limited to the quality of their CSRs.

>281 atozgrl: Hi Irene. Great minds and all. I did not know Garner Appliance provided loaners, so that’s really good to know.

>282 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and sweet Thursday to you, too. I’m sorry you’re still sick. I’m glad you got out, as much for your mental well-being as your physical well-being. I’m sorry you won’t be seeing Jackson.

My sunflower seed feeder needs attention. No bird visitors right now.

>283 richardderus: Hiya, RDear, and Thursday orisons to you, too. I’m so sorry it’s a NetGalley and Edelweiss housekeeping day for you. *smooch*

Wordle 957 3/6* trope, flame, alive

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Bob hadn't arrived by 11, so at 11:30 I called. I then called Louise, who said that whenever I got there I got there, and a late lunch was just as good as an early lunch. Bob was there at 11:45, cabinet delivered by noon, and I'm pleased with it. The shelves are still sitting on the sofa, but that's okay, and I'll have fun with it when I can.

Louise and I had a wonderful time at lunch, and then on the way out we saw Rita the Librarian and her new county-level Librarian boss Kristy. Home again, just wasn't in the mood to put in the shelves and add books, and thus it sits.

I went upstairs early, without eating dinner although I had some raw pecans and a bag of Skinny Pop around 7:30 then a dark chocolate and cherry trail mix granola bar. Lots of reading, some sleep.

...
I'll be taking friend Dwain to his PT/OT appointments today, leaving at noon. His girlfriend needs a break and was thrilled when I offered. I'll probably get home around 4ish. Kindle and North Woods will go with.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/358016

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. There was a family emergency so they need me today at Kids Kab. Fortunately, Sue is covering my Jackson shift. Of course, I would rather be with my boy. I might try to do some solo birding after I drop the kids off at school. The sunshine felt wonderful yesterday but it will be absent again today.

>285 SilverWolf28: Hi Silver, and thank you.

>286 msf59: 'Morning, Mark. Happy Friday to you. Sorry you had to work on your day off, but glad you could help them out. Yay for solo birding.

Wordle 958 3/6* trope, flute, cleft. Dumb to use e as the last letter again, but it did give me f and l.

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I puttered, read, worked on my January statistics, and took Dwain to PT. More puttering, and preliminary grocery list prepared.

...
Grocery shopping, pharmacy for a couple of OTC things, possibly working out - my left hip has started behaving itself. However, I may just give it 3 days 'til I try to use the treadmill again. I have started the exercises my surgeon's office wants me to do prior to surgery. I'm using an app called mymobility, which gives me education, assessment, and exercise routines to do in the lead up to February 29th. I used it for my left knee last year, and I really like it.

>287 karenmarie: good morning, Karen. I hope you have a nice day despite the trolling in >288 bfSH: which I have duly flagged. I flagged the user too. If I could flag them 1,000,000 times I would.

I think the MyMobilty app is one I used for some knee injury PT a few years back. I thought it was really useful too.

>288 bfSH: Well. That was disturbing. Flag and block!

>289 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura. I flagged and blocked, too. I like the MyMobility app because rather than have pieces of paper to follow and many reasons to NOT do the work, it reminds me over and over 'til the tasks are done for the day. For some reason they've got me doing the exercises every other day instead of every day - perhaps there's some residual core effect of what I did last year, when the exercises were every day. Not complaining since I'm lazy...

YTD Statistics through January

47 books read
2 of them on my shelves before 1/1/24 and not rereads
9 books abandoned, 1191 pages abandoned, 1 audiobook, .45 hours abandoned

11.5 audiobook hours

Avg pages read per day, YTD = 366
Avg pages read per book, YTD = 241

Book of the Month: The Mission by Barbara Elsborg

Books by Month
January - 46 e-books, 1 audio book, 1 Graphic Novel, and 9 books abandoned for 1711 pages

Author
Male 3%
Female 86%
Undeclared * 11%
Non-Binary 0%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Living 100%
Dead 0%

US Born 19%
Foreign Born 15%
Undeclared * 66%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Platform
Hardcover 2%
Trade Pback 0%
Mass Market 0%
Audiobook 2%
e-Book 96%

Source
My Library 15%
Library 0%
Kindle Unlimited 85%
Borrowed 0%

Misc
ARC/ER 0%
Re-read 0%
Series 89%

Fiction 100%
NonFiction 0%

Author Birth Country
Australia 6%
Canada 4%
England 0%
New Zealand 4%
UK 2%
Undeclared * 65%
US 19%
* - can't find any info anywhere

Original Decade Published

2010-2019 47%
2020-2029 53%

Category
Contemporary Fiction 96%
Crime Fiction 2%
Informational Nonfiction 2%

Acquisition/Source Date
Kindle Unlimited 45
2014 1
2018 1
Borrowed

Average Rating
1.5 - Very Bad 0
2.0 - Bad 0
2.5 - Average 1
3.0 - Good 5
3.5 - Very Good 7
4.0 - Excellent 26
4.5 - Outstanding 8
5 - Masterpiece 0

Average Rating 3.87
Books acquired YTD 28
Books culled YTD 132

January Lightning Round

Just a Bit Wrecked by Alessandra Hazard 12/31/23 1/1/24 Kindle

Logan’s gay, Andrew’s a homophobe. Their plane crashes on a tropical island and they are the only survivors. Andrew’s wife dies and he’s absolutely wrecked. Over the ten months they are there, they form a physical bond, but Andrew will not acknowledge the emotional bond or label. After they are rescued, both of them feel incomplete without the other. Andrew returns to being ousted from his job with truly nowhere to live, and Logan return to NYC. Andrew is at his wit’s end and looks for Logan at one of the hotels Logan owns in Boston. The manager relays Andrew’s request that Logan get in touch with him, and Logan shows up. They fall back into the physical relationship, but cannot seem to acknowledge the emotional one. They eventually do, and the ending is very satisfactory. Caveat emptor re sex.

Just a Bit Captivated by Alessandra Hazard 1/1/24 1/1/24

Aiden is kidnapped by traffickers and sold to Zain, a sheikh, to keep his gay brother occupied. *eye roll* However, even though Aiden hates Zain, he’s captivated by him and they start a physical relationship even though they’re in a Muslim country and they’re basically only safe because they’re on Zain’s island. Zain’s not particularly religious, but has always thought he was straight, as did Aiden. Zain decides to release Aiden after 10 months, but while working out the logistics, Aiden is taken by his brother Jordan’s mafioso boyfriend. Aiden is another of this author’s intelligent and needy heroes – his physical and emotional dependency on Zain shocks even himself, but when he’s separated from him, he is almost in physical pain and completely unhappy. HEA, of course. Caveat emptor re sex.

Tell No One by Barbara Elsborg 1/1/24 1/2/24 Kindle

Tag is offered money to go to a party, where it’s implied that he’s there for sex. Delaney’s an undercover cop, part of an op to bring down some very nasty men. I really liked it, I promise, but there were some aspects of kink that I didn’t like. Tag and Delaney have serious sparkage of course, and we eventually get the HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

The Making of Jonty Bloom by Barbara Elsborg 1/2/24 1/3/24 Kindle

Jonty is the night manager at a small, family owned hotel on the radar of the company Devan works for. Devan want to make an offer to the owner, displace all the employees, and turn it into a resort for rich people. Devan is upset when he comes down there because he’s been betrayed by his fiancé and brother. Jonty can tell he’s sad, is his usually sunny and talkative self, and Devan’s hooked. There are ups and downs, of course, and Jonty’s backstory is a major part of the story. They bond when they’re nearly swept out to sea in a rip current. Devan has money, Jonty doesn’t. And etc. This book was sweet and funny and sassy, along with some serious topics of abandonment, betrayal, attempted murder, and etc. Caveat emptor re sex.

Reinventing Cato by Barbara Elsborg 1/3/24 1/4/24 Kindle

Even better than the first in the series, this third book has Devan’s younger brother Cato needing to get to London in the midst of a major snowstorm. No cars for rent, but he asks Vigge, returning to London with a car reservation, to take him. They have a hookup, and Vigge, who’s in the closet, is cold afterwards and Cato leaves, catching a ride with someone else. Cato’s interviewing for a job with NASA. Vigge is a Detective Inspector. Soon Cato’s being threatened to not take the job or a family member will get hurt, so he asks Vigge for his help. The sparkage is off the charts, yet Vigge keeps rejecting Cato. Cato keeps coming back. The threats against Cato escalate, and there are 3 murder cases that seem to be committed by the same person, and they are people who’d hooked up with Cato. The mystery is a challenge, their relationship is fun to read. There’s a tragedy in Vigge’s life from 18 years ago, and that gets brought up, too. The author writes characters brilliantly. More ups and downs, and we get the HEA. Cavet emptor re sex.

Waiting for Ru by Barbara Elsborg 1/4/24 1/5/24 Kindle

Ru is Jonty’s best friend’s lover’s brother. Ru, knickname for Ruari, is part of a Traveler family who settled down, was abducted by his aunt and uncle when he was 8 and forced to live isolated on a horse farm for 12 years. He escapes, has to come back up to Ireland to give a statement against his aunt and uncle, and goes to the auction where his two favorite horses, Cookie and Juni, are being sold. He is saying goodbye when Jasim, a rich polo player and member of Saudi royalty and closeted gay man, sees him with the horses and on a whim buys them. He gives Ru his business card, and when Ru is back in England near Jasim’s estate, he asks to see them. Jasim is smitten, Ru’s secretly smitten, not knowing whether he’s straight or gay but thinks he’s gay based on his thoughts/feelings for the last 5 or so years. Jasim hires him based on what he sees of how Ru is around horses. They secretly meet. Jasim can’t come out, Ru knows this, but Jasim wants to have a life with Ru. Things get exciting, there’s sweet sparkage, and they get their HEA. I really liked this one for the emotional content of Ru’s back story, his goal of becoming an equine nurse but never having gone to school past age 8, and Jasim’s willingness to face the wrath of his family for Ru. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Brave for You by Crystal Lacy**

I don’t know exactly what it says about me when I abandon a book because it’s too twee, but there’s no angst, conflict, tension. One protagonist had one sexual experience with a boy in high school and is now more than open to being gay with the second one, even though his wife abandoned him and his baby 5 months previously. One man’s parents accepted his bisexuality, the other man’s parents are severely disappointed that he’s gay and won’t talk with him about it. I find that I don’t really care.

Falling by Barbara Elsborg 1/5/24 1/6/24 Kindle

The problem with reading so many excellent books is that some are more excellent than others, and this is definitely one of those. First of the Fall and Break series. Malachi has left a controlling relationship and is living at his sister’s with no job, no bedroom even, and homophobic abuse from his brother-in-law. Harper’s newly released from 10 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, but the world still thinks he did. They see each other at a grocery store and exchange a look but nothing more. Then Malachi gets work with a contractor and is sent to the house Harper is coming home to in order to get it ready to sell for his father, who has early onset dementia. It sounds bizarre, but Elsborg’s writing style is fluid, strong, vivid, and I found myself immediately caring for Malachi and Harper. There are quite a few strands to this one – pressure from a contractor for Harper to sell, fear by Malachi that his former lover will find him, and local harassment because Harper’s supposed crime was rape. There are no shortcuts, which I appreciate. The story is given detail and depth and I was frantic to find out how things would turn out. The look becomes sparkage becomes more… and there’s a HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Breaking by Barbara Elsborg 1/6/24 1/7/24 333 pages Kindle

Second in the Fall and Break series, the controller that Malachi left in the first book is now convalescent after a hit and run accident left him temporarily paralyzed and just barely able to walk. He’s convinced that he was deliberately targeted, but nobody else believes him. He’s gone away to a remote house on a remote beach and while sitting on the sand, contemplating where he went wrong with Malachi and what he’s going through now, he sees a surfer in distress, going under. He somehow gets into the water and gets them both holding onto the surfboard, gets them to the shore, and gets the surfer into his house. Sparkage. The surfer is Archer, an assassin who was shot at during his last hit and has escaped to a remote place to regroup and figure out what’s going on. While both are intrigued with each other and making quips about things of a sexual nature, there are attacks. Archer protects Conrad, they end up fleeing to Conrad’s father’s castle – yup, Conrad’s a Viscount and Archer starts calling him My Lord. More attacks, more trying to figure things out. During all of this, Conrad is slowly continuing to let go of Malachi’s ghost, Archer is trying to figure out if what he feels is only lust or something more, and we eventually get a wonderful, emotionally satisfying HEA. Caveat emptor re very steamy sex.

He's the One by Barbara Elsborg 1/7/24 1/8/24 Kindle

Fate We Make series, first book. Col’s back to living with his adoptive parents after learning that his boyfriend is married and has 2 children. Theo is the heir apparent at is family estate, called My Lord but treated as less than the lowliest employee by his father’s estate manager, ignored by his father and put down and verbally abused by his mother and grandmother. Col is a stonemason at the estate and rescues Theo when a stone accidentally falls. There’s interest on both sides, but Col is let go for other reasons and until they accidentally run into each other at a fete at the estate, they thought they’d never see each other again. There are so many subplots in this one – Col’s siblings are gone, Col’s brother is in prison and Col’s ex is stalking him and being abusive. The estate manager is cooking the books, and as things start going well for Col and Theo, things move along satisfactorily with all the subplots, too. Theo is a chatterbox, Col is calm and serene, strong where he was once submissive in the earlier relationship. Sparkage turns into caring and love, and we’ve got a serious HEA for both Col and Theo and two other surprising couples. Caveat emptor re sex.

Hold On by Barbara Elsborg 1/8/24 1/9/24 Kindle

Second and final book in the Fate We Make series has Col’s brother Dominic out of prison and staying with Col and Theo. In the meantime, the archaeological dig being run in one of the fields by Will has his brother Ren visiting after he was left for dead after an undercover operation gone awry. Ren accidentally clips Dominic with his motorcycle, and thus it begins. They are both damaged, Dominic mentally and Ren physically yet find in each other something that might possibly be quite wonderful. However, their pasts are attempting to get caught up with them and it’s only by Theo’s family helping to protect them both and quick thinking on both their parts along with a lot of luck, that we get a very sweet HEA. Dominic has never been in an airplane, and when Ren takes him out in a fixed wing two seater it reminded me of my first time in an airplane – a 6-seater. My boss in college was appalled that I’d never been in an airplane, and she and her husband took my roommate and me out over LA – all the way to Palos Verdes, into Orange County, up the coast to Malibu, east to the Inland Empire. It was magical, and my awe was reflected in the beautifully written scene of Dominic’s awe. Caveat emptor re sex.

This is Real by Barbara Elsborg 1/9/24 1/9/24 Kindle

Murdo, an Englishman and Harvard Math Professor, is a serious fan of Lukas, a movie star. Murdo’s friend Elodie asks him to do her a favor and drive Lukas up from the Boston airport to New Hampshire to shoot some scenes. Murdo’s going up there for skiing anyway. Lukas is a jerk, Murdo is distraught. Elodie gets Murdo in to see the day’s rushes, and he mentions to her that Lukas’s English accent is all wrong. Elodie gets them both to agree to have Murdo give him pointers on making his accent better. After they get over their anger and upset at being coerced into this, there is sparkage and privately, to Murdo only, Lukas comes out. He fears rejection by his family and a threat to his career as a straight romantic lead. They are having a wonderful time but Lukas’s family comes over with only a few minutes warning. Lukas tells Murdo to leave. It goes from there. I love this author’s writing style – a combination of humor, strong emotional writing, great plots even if there are some serious coincidences and unrealistic plot twists. HEA, of course. Caveat emptor re sex.

Edge of Forever by Barbara Elsborg 1/10/24 1/11/24

Levi is in Russia at a cattle ranch for 6 month to teach Russians how to be cowboys. Pasha has been sent to the cattle ranch for 6 months by his father, ostensibly to keep him away from a toxic boyfriend. Pasha is openly gay, Levi in the closet in Russia and at home except to his father/brother/SiL. Levi was forced into conversion therapy when he was 14 and the situation at home is very tense even though that was 12 years ago. Pasha is harassed, Levi is attracted, Pasha is attracted. There is a lot of info on cattle, calves, birthing, cleaning birthing stalls, horses, riding, and etc. All endlessly fascinating to me. Pasha is moved into Levi’s room to protect him from harassment, and the sparkage becomes sexy times. However, Levi does not want a relationship. Pasha is falling in love. Dramatic things, dangerous things, a satisfying HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Zeke's Wood by Barbara Elsborg 1/11/24 1/11/24 Kindle

So is 68 pages a novella or a short story? Zeke lives at the edge of a wood and his save-the-wood group and the town have lost out to a developer. At the final meeting before bulldozing starts, the developer’s son Gideon is there and is smitten with Zeke. It’s truly love at first sight for both of them, but the developer wanted his son there to seduce Zeke although he doesn’t, and Zeke has a final act of defiance that could turn things sour but doesn’t. Very sweet and steamy. Caveat emptor re sex.

With Or Without Him by Barbara Elsborg 1/11/24 1/12/24 306 pages Kindle

Tyler is a college student who chooses to gets paid for sex in order to get his student debt down. Haris is a millionaire venture capitalist who sees Tyler at a college recital then sees him helpless at a sex party, sets off the fire alarm, and rescues Tyler. He’s so smitten with Tyler that he offers him $20K to live with him for 4 months. All sorts of things are wrong with this scenario, and each makes wrong assumptions about the other and their feelings grow but are hidden. Add a snarky butler/valet, a cute dog named Alcide, and it made for an amusing read. Oh, also throw in that Haris is half Saudi and had to flee because of his gayness, his malevolent brother, heartbroken/dying father, and etc. Caveat emptor re sex.

Drawn In by Barbara Elsborg 1/12/24 1/13/24 Kindle

Very well done. Kell(an) is working undercover, Gethin is a PI. (Gethin is a Welsh name, had to look it up.) They meet outside of these roles, Kell at a posh birthday party for his best friend, Gethin filling in as a waiter for his landlord’s party company at this same party. There’s serious sparkage, each hiding what he is, but their cases collide, there’s danger, rescues, more sparkage, backstories, and a very satisfactory HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Cowboys Down by Barbara Elsborg 1/13/24 1/24/24 Kindle

3 stars is generous. Mostly a disappointment, although the initial sparkage is quite well written. Jasper is a London stockbroker, Calum works on his father’s ranch in Wyoming. He’s not foreman as he should be, he’s a major disappointment to his father because he’s gay, and etc. Jasper comes to the dude ranch to overcome his fear of horses. And it goes downhill from there. Here’s what a reviewer on Amazon wrote:

Imagine a single book featuring a parent with Alzheimers, another who's had two heart attacks by the end of the book, yet another who committed suicide, a sister who's gorgeous, but intellectually challenged, a quadriplegic brother who died young, a gang rape of one of the men, an abduction and attempted murder, the obligatory time in the hospital, a neighbor who is trying to take over the ranch, multiple poisonings... I could go on and on. Unfortunately, the book does go on and on.

Although I love Ms. Elsborg's prose, this is that rare book that left me anxiously anticipating it ending. I normally love long books - the longer the better - but all of the incredibly dreadful things that happened took their toll until I started talking to myself: "oh damn, what's left to happen that hasn't happened already?" and "time for a HEA already!" (fortunately the reader does, eventually get one).

The sex scenes were sometimes hot, but often just ate up pages at an alarming rate. In more than one case, the reader is treated to an extended sex scene followed by a paragraph or two of development, followed by another interminable romp. One of the biggest cliffhangers in this book is "will he bottom, or won't he"?

Also throw in Calum’s amazing artistic abilities with clay, Jasper getting a gallery owner he knows to cast them in bronze making Calum hundreds of thousands of dollars… gag. There are some sweet romantic and steamy sexy scenes, but overall the rare miss by Elsborg. Caveat emptor re sex. And no, I won’t tell you if Calum bottoms. *smile*

Give Yourself Away by Barbara Elsborg 1/14/24 1/15/24 Kindle

Two damaged men, each devastated by an episode from their pasts. Caleb is surviving outside the system, March is hiding in plain sight. They meet and are attracted. If I say much more it will give away too much. The reason I didn’t give it a higher rating was the drama and major coincidence, although it is convincingly explained. It still bothered me. Very good understanding of a situation and explanation of how one survived and the other survived differently. Anyway, caveat emptor re sex.

Every Move He Makes by Barbara Elsborg 1/15/24 1/16/24 Kindle

Over the top and improbable, once I gave 3.5 stars to the one above, I realized that my original 3.5 stars for this one needed to be knocked down to 3. A very generous 3. Logan works for MI6 and is tasked with babysitting Zak while MI6 is trying to lure his father to the UK. It’s one of these hide out and see how fast things can go downhill with the bad guys finding the good guys. Honestly, I enjoyed it while I was reading it but barely remember anything except for a note that Zak writes when he thinks he’s going to die. Caveat emptor re sex.

Dirty Games by Barbara Elsborg 1/16/24 1/17/24 Kindle

Linton is living his good life, just returned from 3 months in NYC. He comes home to his brother trashing his place and kicks him out. Linton works for the brother of his best friend, but there are secrets there. The brother blackmails Linton into setting Thorne to be humiliated and dumped in public and Linton agrees in order to get money to send his brother to rehab. I liked this one for several reasons. Lindon’s life keeps getting worse and worse and he is still trying and working to make things better for his brother and Thorne. Thorne grows up, realizes what he wants, and it’s Linton. Caveat emptor re sex.

Where Forever Started by Barbara Elsborg 1/17/24 1/18/24 57 pages Kindle

Sweet short story with Barney struggling with two low-paying jobs. He sees a homeless man getting beaten up and rescues him by taking him into the company he does the cleaning for. He cares for his injuries, feeds him, and they have a lovely moment on the roof with snow falling and a sweet kiss. But Raf leaves at the stroke of midnight, asking Barney to meet him the next day. Raf isn’t what he seems, and although it’s just kisses, there’s a lot of romance and physical attraction and a HEA.

The Bastard and the Heir by Eden Finley and Saxon James 1/19/24 /1/19/24 Kindle

Wren is raised by his single mother and finds out when he's 16 that his father, Warren, is a rich and a powerful billionaire. Wren, whose legal name is Warren although his last name is different, completely rejects him. Fast forward to when Warren dies and Wren finds out that he has three brothers, Darcy, the heir by being born first, and his two younger brothers who look like Wren. Wren is in the will very prominently, but doesn’t want anything to do with them or the money. However, he agrees to work there for 3 months so that in the event that Darcy dies someone can take over the company since the younger brothers cannot or will not. (Wren has a bachelor’s in business but doesn’t use it.) There’s sparkage but half-brothers – ewww. Wren’s suspicious of the timing of their births and secretly gets Darcy’s DNA tested. They’re not related, and they start a secret affair. However, Darcy doesn’t feel he can be with Wren openly because the world thinks they are brothers and it would jeopardize the company, and they break up. Both are miserable until Wren comes up with an idea on h how to get what they want and keep the company safe. I loved this one, because of the yearning and some interesting side plots. HEA and caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned The Fake Boyfriends Debacle by Hayden Hall**

I don’t know why I start books with the protagonists in college – they’re way too young for me to read about and I always envision them breaking up after 10 years. Jacob’s the scholarship boy and Caleb’s the heir apparent to his father’s businesses and riches. Sparkage, caveat emptor re sex. I abandoned it after 79 pages.

**abandoned In The Gray by Christina Lee**

Lachlan is homeless after he breaks up with abusive boyfriend and is living in a tent with his belongings in a cart. Foster is a librarian and after adopting a dog, the dog makes a beeline for Lachlan on Foster’s way to get his morning coffee. They chat over the dog. Lachlan is reluctant to take anything from Foster, Foster wants to help in a way that respects Lachlan’s current situation. It just didn’t do it for me, and I’m not talking about the sexy times. *shrug* 140 pages were enough. Caveat emptor re sex.

A Wedding in a Week by Con Riley 1/19/24 1/20/24 Kindle

Pure poetry, all wrapped up in Cornwall. Stef runs the family farm after his and his brother Lukas’s father dies. Marc has come for summers since he was 8, and in that summer that their father dies, Marc tries to kiss Stef and more. But Stef is overwhelmed with his father’s death and isn’t sure he’s right for Marc. Three years later Stef’s been in a serious accident and Lukas and Marc come to the farm to help. This time Stef won’t make the same mistake of rejecting Marc, and Marc won’t take a rejection anyway. They’re fated. There are vivid secondary characters, threats to the farm, potential solutions to keep the farm afloat, and Marc’s younger brother needs their help and the strong and healing life on the farm. All together a very satisfying read. Caveat emptor re sex.

Assassins Are People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/20/24 1/21/24 133 pages Kindle
Assassins Love People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/21/24 131 pages Kindle
Assassins Save People Too by S. C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/21/24 122 pages Kindle

Assassins in the Love series. I know… 3 short books, 385 pages total. Marc is an assassin and lives in the same apartment complex as Dillon. They’ve never met before although Marc has seen Dillon and calls him Blondie in his mind. They ride up in the elevator one day, and it just happens to be the day that another assassin tries to take Marc out. Dillon whacks him with a potted plant. Sparkage, yet Marc keeps his distance, until they get involved, bad guys are after them both, and they flee. I loved the contrast in personalities, which is what most assassin novels are about. Dillon is snarky and Marc really tries to keep emotionally unentangled. There’s a lot of violence, a lot of sexy times, quite a bit of second guessing whether they’ll be able to make it work, yet we get our HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Love Me Again by Max Walker**

Austin returns to the town that has Charlie – his ex who he has no good feelings towards. Charlie has retrograde amnesia, losing 7 years of his life. Austin is miraculously interested in Charlie again, there’s a mystery about the accident that caused Charlie to fall. Not enough to interest me.

Crashing Upwards by S.C. Wynne 1/21/24 1/22/24 314 pages Kindle

Sam runs into bike courier Harper and takes care of him when he realizes Harper has no one. Harper is fiercely independent, but they bond and yes, amazingly, there’s sparkage. Throw in Sam’s politican father who won’t countenance Sam’s coming out, and the clash of economic classes, and it was interesting enough for me to enjoy it. Caveat emptor re sex.

His Death Bringer by Courtney W. Dixon 1/22/24 1/23/24 316 pages Kindle

There are assassin novels, then there are assassin novels. Dante is tasked with taking out one branch of the Russian mob. He’s so good that he goes in alone, to take out 21 people. Yeah, right. However, he does so and it’s almost credible. There’s someone else there, though – a young man who’s dressed as a young boy, mute, scared, and holding Rabbit. Dante can’t bring himself to kill him as he thinks he should, and takes him home. Luca calls him his Angel. Dante regrets saving Luca yet gets him clothes, shows him how to cope after being kept sexually enslaved for 11 years. Dante uses the resources of The District, the group he works for and the name of the (currently) 2-book series, to track down Luca’s parents and discover why they withdrew their missing child report. Lots of death, some torture, sweetness between Dante and Luca, and etc. I really liked this one because Luca is so pure even though he’s been so abused and traumatized, and Dante’s demons recede as he comes to care for and eventually love Luca. Caveat emptor re sex.

Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen read by Arte Johnson 12/31/23 1/23/24 audiobook

Yancey attacks the husband of the woman he’s having an affair with, getting kicked off the police force and put on restaurant inspections. A mangled arm turns up. There’s a bad monkey, naturally, Medicare fraud, a house being put up next to Yancy’s that’s 9 feet over code. Yancey employs devious methods to keep the seller from actually selling it. We learn an effective method to corral roaches for counting purposes, what a hive of bees will do, and etc. and etc. Typical Hiaasen, read beautifully by Arte Johnson.

The Anonymous Hookup by Jax Calder 1/24/24 1/24/24 Kindle

I read this last October, only remembering that I’d done so about page 30 or so of the 121 pages. Here’s what I wrote last year:

A longish novella that works at 121 pages. This is the sweet story of Lane, who always seems to pick the wrong guys. His BF persuades him to just hook up, and the hookup remains anonymous for weeks – no names – but play dates for the dogs (also being play dates for them), time spent at each other’s houses. Lane’s insecure that Sam’s more successful financially than he is and wonders how Sam can possibly want to be with a teacher, Sam admits that he’s falling in love with Lane then walks away because Lane keeps saying they’re hookups. There are several coincidences, but it truly seems like Fate’s involved, as they get their HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

I still feel the same.

Keeping It Casual by Jax Calder 1/23/24 1/23/24 140 pages Kindle

I really liked this sweet romance of Dustin, who moved to a small town to get his son away from bad influences. Everybody wants him to get together with Jeremy, the only other out gay man in town, also a father, but of a young girl. Dustin’s not ready for a relationship, but they agree to a fake date to get everybody off their backs. The fake date goes well because there’s no real pressure, and then they keep meeting around town and since there’s sparkage, they become friends with benefits. And of course, there are feelings on both sides, and a very cute plot twist that was not easily discernable. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Love is Blind by S.C. Wynne**

Escort for a blind man, awful dialog, angst and anger within the first 30 pages. No thanks.

**abandoned Head Over Feels by Bix Barrow**

I abandoned this one after 284 pages, if you can believe it, because what started out nicely became lots of Feelings and Crying and explosions, revenge against Felix and a unicorn on a cast for Malcolm. I didn’t need any sweets yesterday because this became way too syrupy. Caveat emptor re sex.

The Mission by Barbara Elsborg 1/24/24 1/25/24 Kindle

Conrad breaks up with Marc for the 8th and final time when he finds Marc in bed with Ernesto. He goes to his office, his only safe space, thinks he’s alone there, sits at his desk, and cries. Arlo is the owner’s brother and they’re there while Rurik finishes up some work. Arlo wants to save everybody, but Rurik tells him to let Conrad have his privacy. Fast forward 3 months, and Arlo just happens to behind Conrad in line at the airport for a company-sponsored staff/customer ski trip, just happens to bump heads with him. Conrad gets upgraded to business class and just happens to be sitting next to Arlo, who’s an airline pilot. I know… but Arlo is so cute and Conrad is so hurt. Arlo’s family has a chalet in the town where the ski trip is being held, and if Arlo suggested to Rurik to influence Marc to choose that town, well. Arlo admits the stalkerish behavior, Conrad is confused and a bit nervous, but their first kiss is off the charts. Fast forward through Conrad visiting the family, Marc being a jerk, the family being entranced with Conrad, and Arlo and Conrd falling in love. I really liked this one because Marc gets his just deserts (no spoilers), and Conrad and Arlo get their HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

A Spaceman Came Traveling by Barbara Elsborg 1/25/24 1/25/24 Kindle

A very sweet short story. Seven works in the café attached to a gardening/etc. center, living in an abandoned house, barely scraping by. Cooper brings Ben in for hot chocolate and sweets, especially to get glimpses of Seven although Seven does not know that. Seven overhears Ben asking Santa Claus for a spacesuit for Christmas so he can go visit his mom in heaven, and gets things from a thrift shop and uses his art supplies to make a space suit. He wraps it and leaves it outside their house. Cooper figures out that it’s Seven, goes over to thank him, and invites him to spend Christmas with Ben and his parents. Sparkage. Seven has a secret, and it’s a doozy. HEA and caveat emptor re sex.

Trapped for the Holidays by Courtney W. Dixon 1/25/24 1/25/24 Kindle

A novella. Rhett’s the owner of the company Patrick works for, and Patrick’s fixing an IT problem late on Christmas Eve. Rhett’s also been working late, they take the elevator down, and shock! The elevator gets stuck. They’re there for several hours, Patrick pulls out the whiskey he was taking to a friend’s house, they’re attracted to each other, and Rhett invites him up to his condo to feed him and let him spend the night in his guest bedroom, it’s being Christmas Eve and snowing and all. Serious sparkage and sexy times, but Rhett tells Patrick it’s casual, so Patrick leaves early in the morning. It doesn’t sit well with Rhett, who finally figures out that it’s okay to date an employee and they get their HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned Return by Fire by Tracey Jerald**

Too many characters introduced indiscriminately early on, although the author provides a cast of characters at the beginning. I’m not quite sure I want a cast of characters in an MM romance. Agatha Christie, yes. However, reading it on Kindle and not wanting to go back and forth and not really caring about any of the characters, I quickly abandoned it.

**abandoned Stix & Stones by Courtney W. Dixon**

Abandoned after 191 pages. It was too predictable without creating a truly good dynamic between them.

Anticipating Disaster by Silvia Violet 1/26/24 1/26/24 Kindle

Oliver is an introvert who freelances articles, living in a cottage on his grandmother’s property. The family is spending Christmas in a chalet in Wyoming, where Oliver wishes he didn’t have to go. He hated snow and most of his family. However, his grandmother prevails. Oliver can’t get his key card to work, David’s just passing by. David has a tourist business in town. They chat, and David pretends to go to a family event with him. David’s bi but hasn’t been serious about men since college, Oliver is flamboyantly gay. Hoewver, sparkage, sexy times, skiing and snowshoeing times, and at the end of the visit Oliver goes home. It feels wrong, feelings have developed on both sides. HEA. I finished it, but honestly, it brought out every trope, every standard homophobic character, and was predictable and not in a particularly edifying way. Caveat emptor re sex.

His To Own by Leo Rivers 1/26/24 1/27/24 Kindle

Zane takes Rowan, thinking he’s Caleb, someone his mafia competition wants. Rowan doesn’t give it up that he’s not Caleb. Sparkage, dubious consent, and a strange HEA where a formerly law-abiding man is now the lover of a mafia boss. Ugh. Caveat emptor re sex.

Mine to Claim by E.V. Olsen 1/27/24 1/27/24 Kindle

A very successful short story, first in Wasteland Temptations, wherein Rex is challenged for food by Devon in a post-apocalyptic virus-caused world. No infrastructure, few people. Devon offers sex for food. And it goes from there. Both characters are vividly drawn, POV is Rex’s. Caveat emptor re sex.

Mine to Protect by E.V. Olsen 1/27/24 1/28/24 Kindle

A very successful short story, second in Wasteland Temptations, told from Devon’s point of view, continuing on where Mine to Claim left off. Rex gets sick, Devon overcomes his skittishness, forages for food and supplies. Both characters are vividly drawn. Caveat emptor re sex.

His to Break by E.V. Olsen 1/28/24 1/28/24 Kindle

A very successful short story, third in Wasteland Temptations, telling the story of Mac and Cal. Mac is mentioned briefly in Mine to Protect, when Rex is delirious. Told from Mac’s point of view. Cal comes to Mac, desperate for food. Yup, food for sex. Mac’s intensity and harsh use of Cal has him leaving but coming back after two weeks, starving again. Mac takes him in, simply because Cal needs to be taken care of. The last nine sentences are wonderful. Caveat emptor re sex.

Nixon by Laura John 1/28/24 1/28/24 Kindle

Dante is a famous actor who is closeted. After a serious threat he is forced to have a bodyguard, and Nixon is the man. Nixon’s gay but not obvious about it. Threats, blackmail, Dante was rejected by his parents for being gay but they pretend it’s because he turned his back on their church. Pretty good, if very predictable. Caveat emptor re sex.

Kissing in the Snow by Laura John 1/29/24 1/29/24 Kindle

Ryan is driving in a blizzard to get to his cousin’s wedding when he goes off the road. Fortunately, Dane finds him on his way to his second home and takes him in. No wedding, no leaving for 3 days. It’s Christmas. Dane is a loner, wants nothing to do with Ryan until Ryan offers to cook dinner. Then decorations go up… sparkage, etc. The plot grinds audibly when Ryan, who has hated his job, quits, and on a whim puts in a resume to the small hospital near where Dane lives. The hospital hires him, and they get their HEA. Caveat emptor re sex.

Damaged Like Us by Krista Ritchie and Becca Ritchie 1/29/24 1/29/24 Kindle

Oh my. Vivid, eccentric, totally loveable characters. Maximoff is part of a billionaire family of 3 sisters, their husbands, and all the kids. The world is ensorcelled by them and stalk them all the time, so everybody has a bodyguard. Maximoff’s bodyguard Declan retires, and his mother’s bodyguard, Farrow, is assigned to him. Maximoff has had a secret crush on Farrow for 6 years, Farrow ditto, but of course bodyguards aren’t allowed to mess with their clients. Maximoff and Farrow break the rule. Kittens, crazy times teaching a cousin who swims, has won 5 events at the Olympics, and is retired from swimming because doing it once was enough how to safely drink, surrounded by loving cousins and bodyguards. Maximoff is a caregiver and loves beyond measure every single member of his family and tries to fix everything. He cannot, of course. He lives with his cousin Jane platonically, but after he rescues her in front of their house while only in his boxers, and one of the paparazzi takes a photo of him that shows love bites and it goes viral, the family thinks he and Jane are incestuously involved and his romance with Farrow comes out, but only within the family and the 3 intertwined security companies that provide bodyguards. I really, really liked this one for how Maximoff and Farrow suit each other, both strong alpha males but willing to give and take, both romantically and in other aspects of their lives. HFN. Caveat emptor re sex.

The Plus-One Entanglement by Paulina Ian-Kane 1/29/24 1/30/24 Kindle

Jordan, a second-grade teacher, was cheated on by his boyfriend and gets a wedding invitation for the wedding between his ex and the man he cheated with. After a bit of tequila, Jordan RSVPs with a plus-one, then panics about who to take. In the meantime, he gets caught in an ATM kiosk during a heavy rainstorm with Asher. Power goes out, they are locked in there for an hour, sparkage, a wonderful kiss. Jordan runs off, feeling ignored, when the ATM company’s rep shows up to let them out. Jordan sees Asher at his brother’s tattoo shop and learns that Asher works for the accounting company upstairs. After an accidental meeting at the grocery store, Jordan tells Asher that he needs a plus-one and Asher agrees. Asher is blowing hot and cold with Jordan, which confuses him. They go, they stand up to the ex, but then Asher ghosts him. Jordan’s brother comes to the rescue, Jordan finds out why Asher’s been blowing hot and cold, and they get their HEA. I really liked this one for the description of Asher’s full back tattoo. *smile* Caveat emptor re sex.

**abandoned One by Paulina Ian-Kane**

Nope. Just nope. Psychopaths are fine, coincidences are okay, but some of the kink isn’t. *shudder* Caveat emptor re sex.

His Mafia Prince by Leo Rivers 1/30/24 1/31/24 Kindle

Sigh. Every stereotype, every trope, every shortcut. It was short, thank goodness, so I finished it. Sebastian is a brand-new college professor, insecure and ineffective. One night on the way home he witnesses the murder of a mafioso. The murderer chases him but doesn’t catch him. Somehow Angelo, Mafia kingpin, tracks Sebastian down and kidnaps him to help him find out who betrayed him. And, of course, sparkage, and Sebastian gives up guiding principles of his life because of his attraction. Danger, betrayal, bullets flying, fisticuffs, and no more in this series for me. Cavet emptor re sex. I’m also done with this author.

The Billionaire's Rival by Silvia Violet 1/31/24 1/31/24 276 pages Kindle

Nominally straight Jay and clearly not straight Ford spar on the tennis court and in a legal battle between clients of theirs. Jay realizes his feelings for Ford are more than platonic, and they start exploring them when forces larger than just the legal battle heat up. Danger, rescue, love. Enjoyable but a tad long. Caveat emptor re sex.

True North by C.E. Kilgore 1/31/24 1/31/24 57 pages Kindle

One of four in the Hearts Compass series has the world shut down after a series of devastating solar flares take out all electronics in the world. Joshua leaves his apartment in the city, wanting to head north from Lincoln Nebraska. He wanders and ends up face down in a snowdrift, rescued by Chris. Chris has survived several months in by being isolated and having supplies and non-electronic heating, cooking, and etc. things on his farm in rural Kansas. Joshua is surprised that he’s only made it to Kansas… is secretly enamored of Chris, afraid to say he’s gay, assumes Chris is straight. Secrets come out and it’s only when Chris’s ex shows up to take back up with Chris that we get the HEA. At just 57 pages, the world crisis is well written, Joshua and Chris are vivid, well-formed characters, and the emotions and feelings ring true. Caveat emptor re sex.

Down South by C.E. Kilgore 1/31/24 1/31/24 61 pages Kindle

There are 4 in this series, and I went with my gut feeling of ‘North, South, East, West’, although as it turns out that’s not the way it’s presented on Amazon. The stories are completely separate and there’s no need to read them in order, IMO. Gabe owns a ranch in rural Texas, is deeply in the closet, and one day Liam, British and very much NOT in the closet, carrying camera cases and a rolling suitcase, shows up. He explains his car died and the ranch was closest. At the same time Gabe and his family/ranch hands realize nothing electronic works, cranks up the diesel generator and gets the old Ford pick’em up running. He and Liam head into town, where they hear the President’s message on an old hand-crank tube radio with everybody in town listening in, explaining the crisis. Gabe brings Liam back to the ranch, where they secretly meet up. At 61 pages we get a different view of the crisis, see how Gabe runs the ranch and finally figures out that Liam’s worth coming out for, regardless of how he thinks folks will react. Of course they knew all along, and their personal lives work out with a satisfying HEA within the scope of a world crisis and danger everywhere. Caveat emptor re sex.

The next two are in February’s Lightning Round, are well worth the read.

how are you doing today?

Hi Owltherian. I'm doing pretty well, just getting started with my day after Wordle, coffee, and LT threads. I just visited your thread, glad to see you have created one. I hope you're doing well today, too.

Nice stats, Karen! Hope you have a good Friday.

>295 karenmarie: Honestly i am doing better than yesterday, some people on this site are absolutely horrible.

>293 karenmarie: Okay, I was here, and the book-bulleting was empty! I get a brief reprieve! *smooch* See ya next thread!

Ah. Caught up again.

I would LOVE an induction cooktop. But I don't think the apartment has a 240 volt line, and if not, I doubt I could get it added, being a renter and maybe not even if I owned the co-op. I may check. I grew up with an electric range and never liked the gas ones I've had in NYC.

As for being alone in the house, I feel your pain. But Jim has gone for the long weekend to visit family, and I just didn't know what to do with myself yesterday. That's happened before. I'm not good at changing gears!

>296 katiekrug: Hi Katie, and thank you twice. I hope you're having a good Friday.

>297 Owltherian: I'm glad you're having a better day than yesterday, Owltherian. We get trolls occasionally, and flagging and blocking are the best answer. Most of us never engage directly.

>298 richardderus: Hiya, RD. I'll be starting a new thread now. I was trying to get the new you-know-whats photo uploaded, and I can't - don't know if it's just me or if other folks are having problems, too. Regardless, I'll start the new thread and get a photo of THEM out there later.

>299 ffortsa: Hi Judy! Caught up just in time for my new thread...

We have 240 already wired into the island AND the two circuit breakers are on the generator. I hope a check gives you a happy surprise.

Bill's gone to run errands, so I get perhaps 45 minutes or so. I'm glad you get the long weekend. I hope you can change gears quickly to enjoy the alone time.

Okay. Off to start the new thread.