Rachel (hibernator's) Reads the Second

Hi! I'm Rachel. 46yo mom of 3 humans and 5 furbabies. The humans are stepdaughter D (16yo), stepson M (13yo), and son IL (7yo). The furbabies are Puck, Hero, Polyphemus, Freyja, and Sake.

About half of what I read is fantasy, but I also read nonfiction (a variety), literary fiction, classics, and other assorted fiction. I read over 160 books last year, including short chapter books to IL.

I read 76 books last year, not counting short chapter books. My goal was one book a week, at least, and I nailed it. I'm going for 75 this year.

In addition to parenting and reading, I care for, and live with, my dad. I am a caregiver by job. I also pen pal and cross-stitch. I have about 30 pen pals.

January reads

1. One Piece Volumes 13 - 15, by Eiichiro Oda
2. Brawl of the Wild, by Dav Pilkey
3. The Case of the Toxic Mutants, by Ursula Vernon
4. We Shall Be Monsters, by Alyssa Wees
5. Castle Hangnail, by Ursula Vernon
6. For Whom the Ball Rolls, by Dav Pilkey
7. Valley of Fear, by Arthur Conan Doyle
8. Fetch-22, by Dav Pilkey
9. Dog Man and Cat Kid, by Dav Pilkey
10. One Piece Volumes 16 - 18, by Eiichiro Oda
11. Grime and Punishment, by Dav Pilkey
12. Mothering Heights, by Dav Pilkey
13. The Great Hunt, by Robert Jordan
14. Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea, by Dav Pilkey
15. The Curse of the Were-Weiners, by Ursula Vernon
16. Cat Kid Comic Club, by Dav Pilkey
17. Cat Kid Comic Club Perspectives, by Dav Pilkey
18. The Scarlet Shedder, by Dav Pilkey
19. Influenza, by Jeremy Brown
20. Big Jim Begins, by Dav Pilkey
21. Mermaid You Look, by Andres Miedoso
22. Fly Guy's Big Family, by Tedd Arnold

February reads
23. Dog Man Big Jim Believes, by Dav Pilkey
24. Determined, by Robert Sapolsku
25. Influenza, by Jeremy Brown
26. Guards, Guards!, by Terry Pratchett
27. Cat Kid Comic Club On Purpose,by Dav Pilkey
28. Cat Kid Comic Club Collaborations, by Dav Pilkey
29. Cat Kid Comic Club Influencers, by Dav Pilkey
30. The History of the Ancient World, by Susan Wise Bauer
31. His Las Bow, by Arthur Conan Doyle
32. House in the Cerulean Sea, by TJ Klune
33. Press Start Super Game Book, by Thomas Flintham
34. The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle
35. Dread Nation, by Justina Ireland
36. Super King Viking Land, by Thomas Flintham
37. Super Rabbit Boy vs. Super Rabbit Boss!, by Thomas Flintham
38. Super Rabbit Boy World, by Thomas Flintham
39. Super Rabbit All-Stars, by Thomas Flintham
40. Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets, by Dav Pilkey

March Reads

41. The Super Jump Between Worlds, by Thomas Flintham
42. The Meaning of Human Existence, by Edward O Wilson
43. The Other Name, by Jon Fosse
44. The Diary of a Minecraft Zombie When Nature Calls, by Zack Zombie
45. Super Rabbit Boy's Team-up Trouble, by Thomas Flintham
46. Super Rabbit Boy Blasts Off, by Thomas Flintham
47. Deathless Divide, by Justina Ireland
48. Super Rabbit Boy's Time Jump, by Thomas Flintham
49. Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chendweth
50. Super Cheat Codes and Secret Modes, by Thomas Flintham
51. Hold on to Your Heads, by Andres Miedoso
52. Beware the Werewolf, by Andres Miedoso
53. War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy
54. Beast Mode Unleashed, by Andres Miedoso
55. I'm Your Biggest Phantom, by Andres Miedoso
56. I is Another, by Jon Fosse
57. A Master of Djinn, by P Djeli Clark
58. Game Over Super Rabbit Boy, by Thomas Flintham
59. Robo-Rabbit Boy Go, by Thomas Flintham
60. One Piece Volumes 19-21, by Eiichiro Oda

April reads
61. The Haunted House Next Door, by Andres Miedoso
62.Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Enemies, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth
63. American Eden, by Victoria Johnson
64. Men at Arms, by Terry Pratchett
65. A New Name, by Jon Fosse
66. Zombie Swap, by Zack Zombie

May reads
67. Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan
68. The Show Must Demon, by Andres Miedoso

June reads

Open for business

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, dear Rachel.

Happy April, Rachel. Happy New Thread. Our first camping trip is scheduled for early June. The latest we have started camping season. Of course, we are going to Portugal/Spain at the end of the month, which will take us into mid-May. Sacrifices need to be made, right? 😀

Happy new thread, Rachel!

>9 foggidawn: >10 PaulCranswick: >12 drneutron: Thanks foggi, Paul, and Jim!

>11 msf59: Hi Mark! I was about to start booking camping sites when I realized D16 is having knee surgery in June, and we'll have to be around to help her. I think I'll book some for May, though.

Wednesday, I took Puck to the vet for an echocardiogram. After a huge bill, we found out that there was nothing notable about his heart. So I guess we can clean his teeth now. I took Dad to the gym. Then my last two appointments of the day were cancelled.

In the evening, we had a contractor over to give us an estimate on painting the outside of the house. There is a lot of peeling paint on the house, and it turns out it's lead paint. The quote was large, as expected. We will try to get quotes from more companies, but so far, the other companies are giving us the runaround. Apparently when they have enough customers, they don't care about new ones.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 30 minutes
A New Name, by Jon Fosse 69 minutes
Big Jim Believes, by Dav Pilkey 46 minutes

Media finished:

Big Jim Believes, by Dav Pilkey

Time reading: 145 minutes

Happy new thread!

>15 figsfromthistle: Thanks Anita!

Happy New Thread!

Here's the Easter readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/383354

Thursday I had a headache, body aches, low motivation, irritability, and fatigue. I somehow managed to take M13 to an appointment and then take Dad to the gym. I played D&D in the evening.

No reading

>21 The_Hibernator: oh, dear, feel better soon!

Thanks Rhonda! I am in discontinuation syndrome from a med, so presumably there's an end in sight. I still feel really low energy today, but better than I was. So I think I'm ok soon.

I was still feeling awful on Friday. I took IL7 to his appointment and Dad to the gym. I ran errands.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen Podcast 38 minutes
American Eden, by Victoria Johnson 69 minutes
Cat Kid Comic Club Perspectives, by Dav Pilkey 63 minutes

Media finished:

American Eden, by Victoria Johnson

Time reading: 170 minutes

Saturday was the first day I felt almost normal all week. I even got some reading done! Aaron, D16, and I went to Walmart to buy Easter food and some other items. Aaron, IL7, and I went to the new Mario movie.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 29 minutes
Mermaid You Look, by Andres Miedoso 40 minutes
Diary of a Minecraft Zombie: Zombie Swap, by Zack Zombie 20 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 46 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 31 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 27 minutes

Media finished:

Mermaid You Look, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 193 minutes

Easter Sunday, Dad was feeling too weak to go to church, so we skipped. D16 hid some plastic eggs in the yard, and then IL7 did a hunt. Everyone got a book from the Easter Bunny, too. IL7 got "BFG" by Roald Dahl. I got a biography of Benjamin Franklin. M13 got a history graphic novel. In the evening, I cooked a ham dinner.

Media read from:

Systematic Theology, by Wayne Gruden 33 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 109 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 33 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 36 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 30 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 241 minutes

Monday, IL7 was home sick with a fever. We played Minecraft and 7 "chapters" of an imagination game with LEGOs. Apparently, there are infinite chapters, but it's ok, because we can play it every day. In the late afternoon, dad had a visit from his in-home nurse.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 13 minutes
A New Name, by Jon Fosse 59 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 30 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 30 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 29 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 161 minutes

>26 The_Hibernator: Would that be the Ron Chernow bio of Franklin?

I liked that one a lot!

PBS did a nice video bio based on it a few years back

>28 magicians_nephew: It's the Walter Isaacson one. I didn't know Ron Chernow wrote one. I've only seen his biography of Hamilton

Tuesday, I took Dad to a doctor appointment and played Super Mario 3D World with IL7. Dad took us all out to Olive Garden.

Media read from:

Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 30 minutes
One Day, Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad 59 minutes
A New Name, by Jon Fosse 50 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 29 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 35 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 17 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 220 minutes

Happy new thread, Rachel! You look busy like normal but it looks like you're getting a lot of reading done. Good for you!

>31 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg!

Yeah, I'm still getting reading done. I recently had to take my magazines out of my queue so I could have time for yardwork, so non-winter will be a slightly slower season for me.

On Wednesday, I took Dad to physical therapy, then to the gym. I took IL7 to two appointments. I played Scribblebots and Minecraft with IL7, and Aaron played Brotato with him.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 33 minutes
A New Name, by Jon Fosse 135 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 31 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 56 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 16 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 271 minutes

Thursday we had two separate contractors out to give quotes on the exterior paint of the house. I took D16 to an appointment. IL7 had his first grade concert. He didn't want to be there, but he managed to participate in a couple of the songs.

Media read from:

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad 24 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 44 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 43 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 111 minutes

One Day Everyone will have always been Against this sounds like a terrific podcast, and Oh so True! So True!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/383511

>35 magicians_nephew: It's actually not a podcast. It's a book that won the National Book Award for nonfiction this past year. It is very good so far.

Friday, there was no school - to add on to the three days IL7 was out of school at the beginning of the week. I took him to an appointment and took Dad to the gym.

Media read from:

A New Name, by Jon Fosse 51 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 37 minutes
One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad 40 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 62 minutes
A Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 42 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 26 minutes
The Scarlet Shedder, by Dav Pilkey 53 minutes
Klawde Evil Alien Warlord Cat Enemies, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 51 minutes

Media finished:

A New Name, by Jon Fosse
The Scarlet Shedder, by Dav Pilkey
Klawde Evil Alien Warlord Cat Enemies, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Time reading: 362 minutes

Not much happened on Saturday. I played Kirby with IL7. Aaron went to board game with his friends.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 120 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 31 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 31 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 31 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 30 minutes
One Piece Volumes 22-24, by Eiichiro Oda 31 minutes
Dogman, by Dav Pilkey 25 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 299 minutes

Hi Rachel! It's about time I started returning visits (again) after a sort-of-hiatus from LT while I was away. I couldn't find you at first and then, after hunting for a bit, I realised that you're THE Hibernator, not just any old Hibernator ;0)

It sounds like things are chugging along at your end. I had to make a decision and just jumped in on your second thread so I've missed all the news in the first one. I hope everything is fine with you and your family.

>40 humouress: Hi Nina! No problem! It takes me a while in between thread visits, so I often miss a lot of news. I totally get it. My family is stressful right now, but that's not new, lol.

Sunday started out calm enough. I took M13 shoe shopping, and Aaron took IL7 on a tour of the police station. At about 12:30, I told Dad to get out of bed - I was making him oatmeal. He had only been out of bed for a couple hours, in two different bouts, on Saturday. He hadn't eaten at all. But on Sunday, he couldn't stand. Much to his dismay ("Is this really an emergency?"), I called 911. They checked him into the hospital with pneumonia. I spent most of the rest of the day there. D16 was sick, though, which was also distracting. I promised I would make an appointment for her on Monday.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 27 minutes
Dogman, by Dav Pilkey 30 minutes
Zombie Swap, by Zack Zombie 22 minutes

Media finished:

Dogman, by Dav Pilkey
Zombie Swap, by Zack Zombie

Time reading: 79 minutes

Monday was exhausting, I was fatigued, and my brain was foggy. I took IL7 to an appointment. Then I made a bunch of phone calls and went shopping before the big storm was supposed to hit. Then, when IL7 got home from school, we visited Dad in the hospital. In the evening, my friend Liz came over, and we watched an episode of Doctor Who. Afterwards, I played Minecraft with IL7.

Media read from:

Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 110 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 110 minutes

>42 The_Hibernator: I hope your dad is out of the woods soon.

>44 humouress: he's getting out today, Nina

We had big plans for Tuesday. Aaron and I both kept the day clear so we could get some pressing yardwork done. Aaron had already started digging when I got home from work, but before I finished breakfast, he threw out his back.

I was about to go out and do some work, when I noticed Freyja's eye was squinty. I wouldn't have overreacted, but the eye was overly dilated compared to the other eye, which weirded me out. So I took him to the vet, but by the time I got there, the dilations were even and the squint wasn't as pronounced. I did have a couple of pictures as proof. He was diagnosed with conjunctivitis.

While I was on my way to the vet, Dad called to say he was being released from the hospital between 1-2. So I grabbed his oxygen compressor and made his bed, then rushed out there. He wasn't released till 4.

Aaron took M13 and IL7 to the Mario Galaxy movie. I had been going to, but I guess at least Dad is out of the hospital.

Media read from:

One Day, Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad 87 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 34 minutes
Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 58 minutes
Team of of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 31 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 210 minutes

Wednesday, I made all the calls requisite after Dad gets out of the hospital. No appointment roulette was necessary! I went through my to-do list, hand-fed Puck 3 times, washed Dad's bedding (an all day process), and read for a little while. In the evening, I took IL7 to a couple of appointments.

Media read from:

Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 92 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 30 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 45 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 167 minutes

I'm glad your dad's home Rachel. I hope he's fully recovered.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/383730

>48 humouress: Thanks Nina! Recovery willbe slow. But he's recovering.

>49 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver

Thursday I took care of Dad, took M13 to an appointment, wrote a letter, and attempted D&D. I wasn't in the mood, though.

Dad's nurse came by and brought a hospice nurse to discuss our options. I wasn't impressed. Neither Dad nor I want to give up on "aggressive" treatment and diagnostic procedures. I get where they're coming from, though. He is declining. I felt that they were simplifying the situation too much, and I multiple times disagreed with what they said. For instance, they implied Dad didn't need a specialist anymore, because their doctor was a specialist in everything. That's called a general practitioner, not a specialist.

There's a chance Dad has lung cancer - we'll get a CT soon, and if he decided not to go through treatment, then hospice is a better option. I doubt it's cancer, based on what the radiologist said, though.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen Podcast 62 minutes
One Day Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad 24 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 86 minutes

Saturday, IL7 and Aaron were camping. Apparently, IL7 had fun in and off, but really wanted to come home that night.

I got the day off, so I got lots of reading done, as well as some cleaning and errand-running. I also cooked some gumbo and took care of a pesky electrical problem.

Media read from:

One Day, Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This by Omar El Akkad 24 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 121 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 53 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 34 minutes
Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 92 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 55 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 37 minutes
Dogman Unleashed, by Dave Pilkey 44min
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 35 minutes

Media finished:

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, by Omar El Akkad
Dogman Unleashed, by Dav Pilkey

Time reading: 495 minutes

Sunday, I spent a lot of time doing laundry. IL7 went to swim lessons. IL7, Aaron, Dad, and I went to Red Lobster. Then the family started our new D&D campaign that Aaron is DMing.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 29 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 12 minutes
The Show Must Demon, by Andres Miedoso 35 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 47 minutes

Media finished:

The Show Must Demon, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 123 minutes

Team of Rivals is such a good book. You have to admire Lincoln appointing to his cabinet such a group of diverse voices and strong voice and voices that hadn't always agreed with him.

You have to admire Lincoln's confidence and his belief that he was the man to keep this team in line.

>54 magicians_nephew: I agree. He was an excellent leader.

Monday was very busy. It started with an IEP meeting for D16, then I took IL7 to an appointment. I dropped Dad off at the gym, then did some yardwork. We're trying to dig out the raised beds before we get the house painted. It's a lot of work. Then I had a video visit with a provider.

When IL7 got home, I took him to get a haircut and got one for myself. Then, instead of relaxing, which I should have done for my mental health, I chugged through my to-do list.

Media read from:

Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin 89 minutes
Santantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 29 minutes

Media finished:

Feral Darkness, by Doranna Durgin

Time reading: 118 minutes

Hi, Rachel! I just *found* your thread and read through it. Yikes! When do you sleep? I hope your dad is doing better. He's lucky to have you.

I agree - Team of Rivals was an amazing book, and Lincoln was an excellent leader.

Have a good rest of the week!

>57 Storeetllr: Hi Mary!

Actually, I generally get enough sleep. I work an overnight asleep job, so I sleep at work 4 days a week. It's really quiet! The other 3 days a week, I manage to squeeze it in. It's really reading anything but audiobooks that I'm struggling with right now. I had been doing really well with finding time to read, but things just seem to get busier and busier.

Tuesday, I took Dad to an appointment, and D16 to a video visit with a provider. In the evening, we went out to Olive Garden for Dad's birthday.

Media read from:

Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 37 minutes
The Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll 60 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 97 minutes

Wednesday, I had a virtual appointment in the morning. I made some baked beans. Dropped Dad off at the gym. Made a bunch of phone calls. Took IL7 to an appointment. Played Scribblebots with IL7.

Media read from:

Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 120 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 29 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 45 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 29 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 223 minutes

American Eden is about Dr David Hosak’s quest to bring a great conservatory of plants, especially medicinal plants, to New York. It is a well-written history, though I guess I wasn’t as interested in the topic as I might have been. It is the first finished in this year’s attempt to read about US history.

Another great book from the Discworld group of series. This is the second from The Night Watch. Funny. Fun.

This continues the story of Asle and his namesake. He reminisces in the third person. I admit to not really getting the point of this septology. Why were there two of a couple different people? I was hoping this book would make it clear. I have some ideas, but I’m not sure. Maybe about choosing the better life?

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/383891

Thanks Silver

Thursday, I took Dad and then D16 to an appointment. I picked some dandelions. I think we'll need to treat the lawn again. I made some calls. Wrote a letter. Played with IL7. Played D&D with my friends.

Media read from:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 31 minutes
Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll 58 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 40 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 11 minutes
Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 24 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 8 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 30 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 33 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 235 minutes

Friday had its ups and downs, but overall I was feeling a lot better than I have for months. It unfortunately started with a blood draw for IL7, which really upsets him a lot - which upsets me. Then I took him to another appointment. After that, I took Dad to the gym and trailed along behind him with the oxygen and pulse oximeter in tow.

In the evening, I cooked dinner, then took IL7 to the park on his bike.

Media read from:

Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 137 minutes
Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan 63 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 41 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 27 minutes
Super Rabbit Boy World, by Thomas Flintham 37 minutes

Media finished:

Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan

Time reading: 305 minutes

Makes me wish sometimes that I had a kid of the right age handy to read some of these books with him.

>74 magicians_nephew: Yeah, I really enjoy reading to him.

Saturday went well. Aaron watched IL7 while I went out with a couple of friends. We did crafts. IL7 rode his bike. D16 went to tech crew for her high school play.

Media read from:

Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 10 minutes
The Super Side-quest Test, by Thomas Flintham 15 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 81 minutes

Media finished:

The Super Side-quest Test, by Thomas Flintham

Time reading: 106 minutes

Sunday I had a little extra time because I didn't need to make lunches for Aaron, and Aaron was going to make chili, so I didn't cook dinner. There was also no family D&D because D16 was at crew all day. I played Minecraft with IL6 and got a lot of reading done. Aaron kept busy all day, which was nice of him.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 131 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 62 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 28 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 30 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 59 minutes
Game Over Super Rabbit Boy, by Thomas Flintham 30 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 18 minutes

Media finished:

Game Over Super Rabbit Boy, by Thomas Flintham

Time reading: 358 minutes

Monday started off early with a triple video call - appointments for all three kids. Then I took IL7 to an appointment. I followed Dad around at the gym - dragging his oxygen along behind him. Dad then had an appointment later that day, followed by an appointment for D16.

M13 won the Presidential Award of Academic Excellence (for getting through middle school with above 3.5 GPA). I played a bunch of Roblox with IL7 as a reward for something he had done.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen Podcast 35 minutes
Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 72 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 107 minutes

Well done, M! And IL. I hope your dad's doing well.

>79 humouress: Thanks, Nina. Dad's doing better than he was, though he's been stuck on this oxygen for a long time, it feels.

Tuesday was calmer than Monday. An appointment was rescheduled for Thursday, and Sake's double eye infection looked better, so we cancelled her vet appointment. That left me time to do other things, like errands. I played Roblox with IL7 after school. In the evening we all went to Red Lobster. Aaron played Minecraft with IL7 after dinner. D16 was at tech crew for the high school play all evening.

Media read from:

Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 38 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 31 minutes
Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll 61 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 13 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 143 minutes

Wednesday, I took Dad to the gym - dragging his oxygen and pulse oximeter along after him. Afterwards, he took me to Perkins. IL7 had a couple appointments after that, then I took him to the McDonald's PlayPlace followed by Minecraft.

Media read from:

Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai 62 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 49 minutes
Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 95 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 58 minutes

Media finished:

Satantango, by Laszlo Krasznahorkai

Time reading: 264 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384064

Thursday was another busy day. In fact, I needed to make some important phone calls, but never got the chance. I had to take Dad to an appointment right after arriving home from work, and, soon after that, had to take D16 to an appointment. Dad had a video visit immediately upon arriving home, then I immediately took IL7 to a roadside cleanup with the Cub Scouts. Only, I took him to the wrong park, so we wasted time (as IL7 informed me several times). Immediately after that, Aaron and I went to D16's parent-teacher conference, where we found out that D16 was sweet and so intelligent. D16 had her high school play to go to, where they learned how to use the trap door immediately before the show. The show is Hadestown.

Media read from:

Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll 60 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 46 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 106 minutes

Friday, as usual, was busy. I spent the morning making calls that I meant to make on Thursday. Then IL7 had an appointment, followed by trailing behind Dad at the gym with his oxygen. I cooked an early dinner so I could take IL7 to an indoor park for a couple hours. Then I read to Loki till midnight.

Media read from:

Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 130 minutes
No Sleep for the Sheep, by Karen Beaumont 5 minutes
Major Monster Mess, by Andres Miedoso 34 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 30 minutes

Media finished:

No Sleep for the Sheep, by Karen Beaumont
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: The Spacedog Cometh, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Time reading: 199 minutes

Saturday, Aaron and I went to buy a new dishwasher, as ours had broken. Then IL7, D16, and I went to swim at my sister's hotel room. Meanwhile, Aaron was at board gaming with some friends. In the evening, Aaron went to D16's high school play.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 30 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 42 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 28 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 21 minutes
Super Rabbit Boy’s Team-up Trouble, by Thomas Flintham 18 minutes
School Daze, by Zack Zombie 72 minutes

Media finished:

Super Rabbit Boy’s Team up Trouble, by Thomas Flintham

Time reading: 211 minutes

Sunday, I made some chickpea curry for Aaron's lunches - I had to run for groceries twice for it. M13 got a haircut. IL7 DM'd a Dungeons and Dragons session for Aaron and myself. It was a battle, but he introduced too many baddies, so we'll probably die. He built a creature out of LEGO and ChatGPT made a stat block for it. It was so cute. D16 had the final show of Hadestown. They finally used the trapdoor, so she got to help run that. I enjoyed the show. It was very well-done.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 97 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 35 minutes
Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 33 min
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 30 minutes
School Daze, by Zack Zombie 19 minutes
The BFG, by Roald Dahl 41 minutes

Media finished:

School Daze, by Zack Zombie

Time reading: 255 minutes

Mmmm, I want to make chickpea curry! Maybe tomorrow. I have all the ingredients for it (I think).

Hope your week started out great!

Monday IL7 had an appointment, then I followed Dad around the gym, dragging his oxygen. I had a video visit appointment afterwards. Later in the evening, my friend Liz came over and we watched Doctor Who with D16 and Aaron.

Media read from

Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 28 minutes
Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 128 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 34 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 24 min

Media finished: none

Time reading: 214 minutes

Tuesday, M13 had an appointment, and then Dad had physical therapy followed by a CT scan. I got a bit of reading done after cooking dinner.

Media read from:

Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll 67 minutes
Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 76 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 33 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 38 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearne Goodwin 28 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 31 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 16 minutes

Media finished:

Higgs Boson and Beyond, by Sean Carroll

Time reading: 289 minutes

>88 Storeetllr: I love chickpea curry!

Wednesday I took Dad to the gym, ran some errands, and went to an appointment alone.

Media read from:

Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 120 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 32 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 35 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 35 minutes
Gulag Archipelago Part 3 by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 18 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 240 minutes

Hi Rachel! I'm trying to catch up with old LT friends, although that appears to be a herculean task in your case. Your life is so busy, I'm exhausted just reading it!

Hope you are well! :)

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384205

>93 Ape: Wow Stephen! I haven't seen you around in forever! I'll look to see if you have a thread.

>94 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver!

Thursday, Aaron took the day off and we celebrated our anniversary. We went to our favorite Mongolian Grill and relaxed a bit. When IL7 got home, we took him to the park.

Media read from:

Gulag Archipelago Volume 3, by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn 20 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 96 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 23 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 8 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 31 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 23 minutes
The Complete Essays of Montaigne 45 minutes

Media finished:

Gulag Archipelago Part 3 by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn

Time reading: 246 minutes

Friday I took IL7 to an appointment and then Dad to the gym. I cooked dinner, and IL7 actually cooperated while eating. I got some reading to myself done, as well as some reading to IL7 till midnight.

Media read from:

Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett 37 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 30 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 22 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 35 minutes
The Complete Essays of Montaigne 14 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 62 minutes
The BFG, by Roald Dahl 58 minutes

Media finished:

Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett

Time reading: 258 minutes

>96 The_Hibernator: Happy Anniversary! (Ooh - that reminds me; ours is in a week. Wonder if my husband will remember?)

>93 Ape: Stephen! Long time no see.

>98 humouress: Happy soon-to-be anniversary to you, too, Nina!

Saturday, I put down dandelion killer in the backyard. Aaron and I took IL7 to the library on his bike.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 73 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 30 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 31 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 31 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Caine 56 minutes
BFG, by Roald Dahl 117 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 338 minutes

>99 The_Hibernator: Thank you Rachel.

Sunday, I put down dandelion killer on the front yard. I got some reading done. I took IL7 to swim lessons and Aaron shopped and picked D16 up from her mom's house. Aaron made burgers for dinner and then DM'd a game of D&D.

The group had just defeated a bunch of blights that had risen up from the ground. Sunday, they examined a large, crystalline vine, decided there was nothing they could do, then went to sail away with the captain who had invited them to join her. They had to defeat a bunch of thugs and their leader who were going to steal all the ships. (I assumed that was their goal.) We tried talking it out with the leader, then bluffing our way through. Then Jax threw a bag of holding over the leader's head and tried to suffocate him.

The thugs attacked, and between MY and Karn, they threatened (Star-O will eat you - Karn) and (is this worth your pay - MY) to run away. Two were taken down non-leathly by Karn, one non-leathly by MY, and one non-leathly by Star-O, who ate him alive. The leader was taken down by MY, and the rest of the thugs ran away.

The party got on the ship, which, to their surprise, did not sail away - it took off into outer space. Only Star-O had seen such a thing.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 44 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 30 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 31 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 40 minutes
Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons 41 minutes
BFG, by Roald Dahl 90 minutes

Media finished:

Curse of Strahd, by Dungeons and Dragons

Time reading: 276 minutes

Monday was stressful. I had to deal with a lot of medical stress for D16 and Dad, but everything is ok. D16 was a bit stressed out, too, I'd imagine. Dad kept forgetting about his, so I guess he's fine.

Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 117 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 117 minutes

>102 The_Hibernator: 'and one non-leathly by Star-O, who ate him alive'

Umm ....

>104 humouress: What can I say? Lol

Tuesday, I took D16 to an appointment in the morning. I played appointment roulette (scheduled a new appointment, but had to reschedule three other appointments to accommodate). I wrote a letter, then cooked spaghetti for dinner. In the evening, Aaron and I watched an episode of Andor.

Media read from:

The Complete Essays of Montaigne 66 minutes
Books That Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 29 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 95 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384299

>95 The_Hibernator: Haven't made one yet, but I'll be sure to make one if I manage to finish a book this year. :)

>108 Ape: Good luck!

>107 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver!

Wednesday I had an appointment, then I took Dad to the gym; only we went an hour early accidentally. (The weekly appointment time just changed.) So we spent two and a half hours there, me dragging the oxygen around most of the time. After that, I had two more appointments for IL7. I did balance PT with Dad, then it was IL7's bedtime.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen podcast 46 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 232 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 52 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 29 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 25 minutes
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 17 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 384 minutes

Thursday, I had an appointment for myself, followed by gym for Dad. I got some reading and housework done, then played D&D. IL7 had Cub Scouts.

Media read from:

The Complete Essays of Montaigne 66 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 40 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 68 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Caine 31 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 25 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 230 minutes

Friday, I took IL7 to an appointment and then Dad to the gym. IL7 had a picnic at school in the evening, and Aaron and I took him. We ate, played in the playground, then left.

Media read from:

Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 25 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 80 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Cain 33 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 61 minutes
The BFG, by Roald Dahl 82 minutes

Media finished:

The BFG, by Roald Dahl

Time reading: 281 minutes

Saturday, Aaron took IL7 to a local cemetery for cleanup service with the Cub Scouts. I cooked beef stew for Aaron, then sweet potato casserole for IL7 who had asked to try some. Turns out, he expected it to be purple. I guess I will eat it all. In the evening, Dad took us all to Red Lobster.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 88 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 30 minutes
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Caine 58 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 34 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Target: Earth, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 74 minutes

Media finished:

Ink and Bone, by Rachel Caine

Time reading: 284 minutes

>113 The_Hibernator: Add some food colouring to your sweet potatoes ;0)

>114 humouress: lol. Good idea for next time. Too late now

Sunday, I made some white chili and took IL7 to swim lessons. Aaron did the grocery shopping and picked up M13 at his mom's. In the evening, Aaron DM'd our family D&D.

The group on the spaceship was attacked by another ship that looked like the crystalline vines growing out of the ground at their home planet. Astral elves boarded the ship and attacked. Jax took out the group of creatures manning the ballista with a fireball, which made the group manning the catapult run. Karn non-leathly took down one of the elves, and the other two ran. Karn then tied up the captive.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 37 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 30 minutes
Paradise Lost, by John Milton 43 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 65 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 23 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Target: Earth, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 56 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 254 minutes

>116 The_Hibernator: 'Karn non-leathly took down one of the elves' I'm guessing he didn't get eaten this time?

>117 humouress: lol Karn doesn't eat people. Star-O eats people. Star-O was attacking another guy, who ran.

Monday I took IL7 to an appointment and Dad to the gym. I got a 15 minute workout in after hauling around his oxygen for an hour. In the afternoon, I had a virtual appointment for myself. In the evening, we went to an award ceremony for M13, who has above a 3.5 GPA through his middle school career.

Media read from:

Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 65 minutes
Paradise Lost, by John Milton 35 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 100 minutes

>118 The_Hibernator: Phew! - so he got away alive then?

>119 The_Hibernator: That oxygen tank is getting a workout! ;0)

>120 humouress: yup! Star-O was probably full from the other guy

The oxygen isn't heavy, it just requires carefully keeping a certain distance from him while he walks too closely to stuff, thus throwing me off

Tuesday Aaron tried tilling the area we're seeding while I laid out manure. He got a quarter of the way and couldn't continue, so we hired my nephew to do it. He got another two quarters done before he couldn't go any longer. While Aaron laid manure, I tried to mix it with soil, but discovered standing on the shovel, falling over, and catching myself was harder work than I expected, and I could hardly walk straight after only a little bit. Who knew keeping your balance was so exhausting. I have a new respect for Dad.

I took D16 to a blood draw, only to discover she was supposed to be fasting. The rest of the night, Aaron and I rested. M13 had a concert - his last time playing the trombone. He won't play in high school.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 47 minutes
Paradise Lost, by John Milton 30 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 28 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 105 minutes

Wednesday started with taking Polyphemus to the vet for his yearly checkup. I took Dad to the gym. I took IL7 to an appointment. Then I relaxed. J22, my nephew, finished tilling the area we're seeding, then lay down some more manure. We now have the entire area covered, but a quarter of the pile left. We will just put the rest down on Thursday then sweep up the dregs. Aaron ran a bunch of errands.

Media read from:

Paradise Lost, by John Milton 17 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 30 minutes
Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin 36 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 61 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 26 minutes

Media finished:

Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin

Time reading: 170 minutes

Here's the Memorial Day readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384526

Thanks Silver!

Thursday, Dad had his PT appointment, followed by D16's appointment. Then I lay manure, leaving some of it to Aaron.

Media read from:

Illiad, by Homer 40 minutes
Essays of Montaigne 92 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 84 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 28 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 19 minutes

Media finished:

Time reading: 216 minutes

Friday, I took IL7 to an appointment and Dad to the gym. I wrote a letter and watched Dr Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog and Remarkably Bright Creatures with Dad. Aaron played his game with his friends. D16 and M13 went to visit their mom for the weekend.

Media read from:

Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 87 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 63 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 45 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Target: Earth, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 69 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 264 minutes

Saturday, Aaron, Dad, IL7, and I drove 3 hours to visit my cousins and uncle for his 90th birthday. It was fun seeing everyone. I got a lot of reading done while Aaron was driving. I also got to see my friend George. IL7 was incredibly independent and stayed off the phone.

Media read from:

Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 76 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 123 minutes
The Iliad, by Homer 57 minutes
The Week: Cash for Criminals 50 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Target: Earth, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 21 minutes
My Fangtastically Evil Vampire Pet, by Mo O’Hara 55 minutes

Media finished:

Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Target: Earth, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Time reading: 382 minutes

Sunday was busy. I went out with IL7, my friend Liz, and her nephew L11. IL7 and L11 love playing games together on their phones, despite L11 being closer in age to M13. They both have excitable personalities. Though they feed off each other.

While I was out, Aaron tilled the ground to mix the manure with the dirt, then he went out to eat with Dad while I raked it flat. Aaron laid the grass while I did balance PT with Dad, but he fell over on the first exercise and ripped up the skin on his elbow pretty badly. So I got a good 45 minutes in trying to figure out the best way to bandage the big scrape.

The rest of the day was spent watering the grass seed (3 hours because I needed to move the sprinkler twice). We played D&D with IL7, which this time was mainly him role-playing with his various LEGO creations - so not really D&D.

Media read from:

Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 65 minutes
Mega Mole Girl Digs Deep, by Thomas Flintham 20 minutes
My FANGtastically Evil Vampire Pet, by Mo O'Hara 60 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 145 minutes

Monday, I cleaned, read, and went to Outback Steakhouse with my family.

Media read from:

The Week: Cash for Criminals 35 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 39 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 72 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 30 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 32 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 27 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 235 minutes

Tuesday was very busy. Upon getting home from work, I rushed around - watering, laundry, cleaning. Then I took Dad to the medical supply store to ask about backpack oxygen compressors. But it turns out that to get a backpack one, he needs to be evaluated by a respiratory therapist. The backpack one doesn't continuously let out oxygen, it does it in poofs, so they need to check if he can stand that while walking. Then I returned home and cleaned and watered and laundered a bunch more. In the evening, my friend Liz came, and the family watched Doctor Who.

Media read from:

Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem 29 minutes
Essays of Montaigne 69 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 17 minutes
Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett 41 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 52 minutes

Media finished:

Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett

Time reading: 208 minutes

Wednesday was busy. It had 4 appointments, and I got very little else done. Aaron cleaned and shopped.

Media read from:

Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 29 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 145 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 29 minutes
The Week: Cash for Criminals 25 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 27 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 60 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 33 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 348 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384644

>133 SilverWolf28: thanks Silver!

Thursday, I picked my mother-in-law up at the airport. Our broken air conditioning was fixed. Dad took us out to Olive Garden for dinner.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 54 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 54 minutes

>130 The_Hibernator: The Outback Steakhouse near us closed during COVID and never came back. It was a nice neighborhood place for a cosey casual meal. We miss it.

How are you finding Montaigne? I was very taken with him in college haven't looked at him since.

>136 magicians_nephew: Too bad it closed, Jim! I really like it there - but it's a 20 minute drive. We have a Texas Roadhouse about 5 minutes away, but IL and M only eat fries due to their eating disorder, and they don't like the fries there. COVID closed a lot of good places.

I am enjoying most of Montaigne there are times I have to listen very carefully, though, because it is too complex for a quick listen while I'm doing something else. He was a very good essayist.

Friday IL7 had an appointment, then I took Dad to the gym. I read to IL7 till midnight.

Media read from:

Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 82 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 17 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Emperor of the Universe, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 45 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 144 minutes

Saturday, Dad treated the family to Perkins in the morning. Then, Aaron, my mother-in-law, and I went to the arboretum to see the flowers. We walked the 3-mile loop. It was very beautiful. Afterwards, M14 chose Outback Steakhouse as his birthday dinner. He opened presents afterwards and then we all had cake.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 38 min
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Emperor of the Universe, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 60 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 98 minutes

>139 The_Hibernator: Happy birthday M!

(Awfully coincidental that he chose Outback Steakhouse just now.) ;0)

OMG. I am exhausted after reading all that you do. Glad you manage to fit in a little fun every now and then. : ) Happy reading and happy bday to M.

>140 humouress: Hi Nina! I was surprised he chose Outback, but all he eats is fries (I may have said that) so it doesn't matter, I guess. I think D16 was bummed not to go to Perkins because she didn't want to go that morning. We go to Red Lobster frequently because IL7 loves the bread.

>141 Berly: Hi Kim! Yeah, I'm pretty busy lately. Plus, Dad takes about 1-2 hours of direct care most days. Sometimes less, as he's been doing well lately.

I try to read as much as I can, and I write letters. I gave up cross-stitch during the summer (except occasionally) because I have yardwork. And I watch Doctor Who with my friend every other week. I don't get out much, but I'm prioritizing.

Sunday, IL7, D16, Aaron, my mother-in-law, and I went to Color-Me-Mine to paint some ceramics. I did penguins, IL7 a Minecraft person, and D16 a princess. Later, IL7 had swim lessons.

Media read from:

Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 36 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 56 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 26 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 30 minutes
The Week: Playing for Keeps 24 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Emperor of the universe, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 102 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 274 minutes

Monday, Aaron to his mom to the airport for her trip home. I took IL7 to an appointment, took Dad to the gym, went to lunch with my sister and Dad, then took D16 to an appointment. After dinner, Aaron and I watched 2 episodes of Andor.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 28 minutes
Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 80 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 30 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 138 minutes

Tuesday was ok. After work, I took Dad to his physical therapy. I had an hour's break which would turn into a half hour if I drove home, so I ate at Olive Garden while Dad took a nap in the car. Their soup and salad is pretty affordable.

Afterwards, I took Dad to respiratory therapy to see if he's qualified for a backpack oxygen. He is. It was a mess getting there - very confusing. But getting back was ok, as all I needed to do was exit the parking lot, which was hard to get into (as was the building). After attacking my to-do list, I read for a while and wrote a letter.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 47 minutes
Complete Essays of Montaigne 71 minutes
Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 71 minutes
The Week: Playing for Keeps 37 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 43 minutes
Mr Ballen 47 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 316 minutes

>145 The_Hibernator: I love the soup, salad, and breadsticks at Olive Garden. I rarely order other things there because I like it so much.

>146 foggidawn: Hi Foggi! I love their alfredo sauce, too, so I often get that.

Wednesday, I took Dad to the gym and got in a workout for myself. I took IL7 to a couple of appointments, then Dad took everyone to Red Lobster, where we discussed organ donations and Newtonian physics. (Explaining organ donation to a 7 year old is awkward: "But it's dead! It won't pump blood anymore!" "Well...you see, the hospital is keeping the body alive, but the person is dead and then they take the heart while it's still alive…”)

Media read from:

Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 157 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 50 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 29 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 13 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 249 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384773

>148 The_Hibernator: OMG - is IL 7 years old already? Time flies.

Good luck with the medical explanations :0D

>150 humouress: Yeah, it does. I vividly remember posting while I was in the hospital being induced, and everyone was like: why are you posting?! Lol That was soooo boring.

>149 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver! I'm camping this evening and Saturday, and then have a party on Sunday, so we'll see.

Thursday, I had no appointments. Yay! I made some gumbo for Aaron's lunches, did housework, ran some errands, hid for an hour and read, and made dinner. IL7 is trying to earn a prize for behaving during dinner, and that was number 3 of 10 times. Then IL7 had a ceremony where he ranked up from Tiger to Wolf in Cub Scouts. IL7 and I both rolled down the hill at the Cub Scouts ceremony, and it turns out I rolled a lot faster and straighter than him. I had trouble standing up. It turns out to be harder than in my 20s.

Media read from:

Complete Essays of Montaigne 65 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 29 minutes
The Week: Playing for Keeps 8 minutes
Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 117 minutes
Books that Matter The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 10 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 229 min

Friday, the kids were home from school on their first day of summer. Besides taking Dad to the gym and preparing for camping, I didn't do much. Though preparing for camping was a lot, since I needed to clean up a bit so Dad wouldn't get swamped while we were gone.

Aaron went to a team-builing day at a llama farm. He got to walk a llama.

In the late afternoon, we headed out to our campsite. IL7 enjoyed the fire and playing flashlight tag/hide and seek at night.

Media read from:

Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder 42 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 29 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 47
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 17 minutes
The week: American Coliseum 26 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 26 minutes
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Emperor of the Universe, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 15 minutes
My FANGtastically Evil Vampire Pet, by Mo O'Hara 34 minutes

Media finished:

Witches Be Crazy, by Logan J Hunder
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat: Emperor of the Universe, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Time reading: 236 minutes

Happy Saturday, Rachel. I hope you and the family are doing fine. We are finally heading out on our first camping trip of the season. A very nice state park, an 1 1/2 hour away so not bad. We then have an Iowa state park trip planned in just over 2 weeks. Have you been out yet?

>154 msf59: Hey Mark! Glad to hear you've been out camping. It's nice weather for it, here. We were camping this weekend.

Saturday started with me getting up at 5:30am to drive home. I needed to feed Puck (who is fed by hand) and water the new grass. When I got back, IL7 and Aaron were still asleep, so I read for a while.

After Aaron cooked sausages and we relaxed at the campsite a while, we went to the playground. But we can only stay there an hour tops because it is so poorly designed that the playground gets super hot. After that, we went to the beach. We were exhausted after all that sun.

After Aaron cooked brats, I drove home to water and feed Puck again. Then we made s'mores and played flashlight tag. I stayed up till midnight reading to IL7 again.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 115 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 49 minutes
The Week: American Coliseum 37 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 48 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 30 minutes
My FANGtastically Evil Vampire Pet, by Mo O'Hara 35 minutes

Media finished: My FANGtastically Evil Vampire Pet, by Mo O'Hara

Time reading: 399 minutes

Sunday, Aaron, IL7, and I woke up at about 9:30 and packed up. After quickly watering the new grass and showering, Aaron and I left IL7 in the care of M14 and went to his friends' party, and then to eat at our favorite Mongolian Grill. On the way there, I scratched my cornea and ended up in an eye patch for the rest of the evening.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen Podcast 156 min
The Week: American Coliseum 29 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 62 minutes
I’m Your Biggest Phantom, by Andres Miedoso 33 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 34 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 314 minutes

Monday, I took IL7 to an appointment, Dad to the gym, and IL7 and M14 each to an appointment. I cooked dinner, then the family relaxed.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 31 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 114 minutes
The Week: American Coliseum 27 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 34 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 206 minutes

Tuesday had 3 appointments - one for D16 and two for Dad. When I was done with all that, IL7 and I made a cake. Then, my friend Liz came over and we watched a couple of episodes of Doctor Who.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 102 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 40 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 10 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 152 minutes

Wednesday was calm in the morning. I did the usual things: watering, housework. In the afternoon, Dad had to go to the gym, and IL7 to an appointment. In the evening, Aaron and I watched 3 episodes of The Amazing Digital Circus with the kids because I promised to take the kids to the movie. D16 moved a bunch of stuff upstairs so she could stay there after the surgery.

Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 141 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 31 minutes
The Week: American Coliseum 14 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 36 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 33 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 255 minutes

In this third installment of The Wheel of Time, Rand and his friends go on separate quests to save the world from darkness. Excellent book. Excited for the next one.

Dungar sets off on a journey to rid the kingdom of an evil witch queen. A bizarre and funny book.

Susan, granddaughter of Death, needs to take over for him when he disappears. As usual, Terry Pratchett is a wonderful author.

The Library is a powerful organization which controls the world. Jess joins it, then realizes it’s not as great as it may seem. This was a very interesting and creative dystopia. It remained fast-moving most of the time, with a few slower spots.

Lincoln assembled a cabinet of powerful men who didn’t agree on a lot, some of whom were his direct rivals. This is something no president these days would get away with. Goodwin shows how brilliant this choice was for Lincoln.

In this very educational set of lectures, Sean Carroll does a fantastic job of clearly explaining a difficult subject.

Like the first two volumes, this book describes the Russian gulags before the fall of the Soviet Union. Informative, if not exciting.

This is the third book in Discworld’s Night Watch series. Very funny and engaging.

Omar El Akkad mixes thoughts on his life with thoughts on how Western countries are responding to the genocide in Gaza. For instance, the fact that it’s difficult for people to refer to it as genocide – instead come up with euphemisms.

As a child, Brenna calls on an ancient god to help save her dog. Now in her 30’s, she discovers that a darkness is attacking her town. This was a great story. I really enjoyed that.

A town is under an evil influence. The blurb said satanic, but I didn’t quite catch that.

Catching up on my "reviews."

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384866

That is a mega update, Rachel....phew!

Thanks Silver!

>187 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! Yeah, I apparently didn't post for over a month.

Thursday was D16's knee surgery. Aaron headed over to the clinic at 5:15am, and I came a little later after dropping IL7 off at his daycare. The surgery went well, and D16 was more independent afterwards than I expected.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 67 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 34 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 101 minutes

Friday I had a little more time than I originally expected. I picked up IL7 for his appointment, but it was scheduled at the wrong time (as in, the appointment is every week at 11:30, but this one was scheduled at 1). Then, I didn't have to go to the gym with Dad, as Colette dropped him off. But I had a lot of laundry to do, so I kept busy. In the evening, Dad took us to Red Lobster.

Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 78 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 35 minutes
The Week 33 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 62 minutes
Mega Mole Girl Digs Deep, by Thomas Flintham 18 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 45 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 271 minutes

Saturday, Aaron was very productive. He mowed the lawn, weeded, and filled a Bagster with junk to be taken by the trash company. I was less productive, only doing laundry, watering, and cooking. In the evening, the family watched 4 episodes of Amazing Digital Circus, so we are ready to go to the movie.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 31 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 31 minutes
The Week 28 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 28 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 76 minutes
Double Creature Feature, by Andres Miedoso 36 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 14 minutes

Media finished:

Double Creature Feature, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 216 minutes

Sunday, Aaron and I both kept busy with work around the house. IL7 had swim lessons. The family went out to Amazing Digital Circus in the evening. We tied a gait belt on D16 to help her get down the front steps with no weight-bearing. The first time (down) went poorly because I thought she was steady when I let go, and she wasn't. When I let go, she toppled backwards, but didn't hurt herself. On the way back up, we communicated better.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 9 minutes
Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 43 minutes
The Super Jump Between Worlds, by Thomas Flintham 30 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 6 minutes

Media finished:

The Super Jump Between Worlds, by Thomas Flintham

Time reading: 88 minutes

Monday was a good day. IL7 didn't have his normal morning appointment, so I let him sleep in an extra hour. He doesn't like the daycare camp we have him at (except when they go on field trips, which is about half the time), so I let him hang out at home till I needed to start my day.

After dropping him off, I ran some errands. D16 had her first PT appointment after her surgery, then I dropped Dad off at the gym. I would have liked to stay, but I needed to go to the pharmacy. Then, I picked up IL7 and took him to the gym. He wanted to sit in the sauna for 20 minutes, which was about 10 minutes past my comfort zone and almost to the breaking point where I was going to say: "ok, I need to leave before I get sick." I was soaked with sweat. He was fresh as a daisy. Then he went on the elliptical for a while.

After dinner, Aaron and I watched an episode of Andor.

Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 62 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 17 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 35 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 114 minutes

Tuesday was another straightforward day. I ran errands, played Minecraft with IL7, and took dad to an appointment. Aaron played Minecraft with IL7, too, so he got to play quite a while.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 70 minutes
Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt 67 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 31 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 21 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 32 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 221 minutes

Wednesday, I took Dad to PT, then the gym. I took IL7 to an appointment, then we came home unexpectedly early. The family ate pizza and relaxed.

Media read from:

The Week: Platner's Baggage 37 minutes
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt 160 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 63 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 59 minutes
Books the Matter: History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 20 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 339 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385027

Thanks Silver!

Thursday, after a quick telehealth appointment, I ran an errand and took a break away from the house for an hour. I should have stayed away longer, but I wanted to cross-stitch. Instead I ended up on a 2.5 hour errand to the Verizon store. In the evening, I played Scribblebots with IL7.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 83 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 30 minutes
Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt 90 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 203 minutes

Friday was a good day. Aaron had the day off for Juneteenth, so we went to BWW on a date. I took Dad to the gym. I cooked dinner and read.

Media read from:

Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt 52 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 30 minutes
The Week: Trillionaire Takeover 29 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 56 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 167 minutes

Saturday Aaron and I kept busy. I watered and weeded. I took IL7 to the park, where he worked on beating his best time running around the playground structure. Aaron mowed, did dishes, and cooked chili for dinner. He played Minecraft with IL7.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 90 miny
The Illiad, by Homer 57 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 28 minutes
The Week: Trillionaire Takeover 28 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 79 minutes
Super Rabbit Boy’s Team-up Trouble, by Thomas Flintham 23 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 34 minutes

Media finished:

Super Rabbit Boy’s Team-up Trouble, by Thomas Flintham

Time reading: 339 minutes

There's always so much going on in your threads, Rachel. I don't know how you keep up.

>153 The_Hibernator: Friday, the kids were home from school on their first day of summer. Does that mean summer vacation from school starts in the beginning of June? Here school lets out on June 25 this year.

>202 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! Wow. June 25 is late in the season. When does school start again?

Father's Day was good. My sister and I went out to lunch with my Dad, and I had some sushi. IL7 had swim lessons. Then M14, D16, and IL7 played Minecraft.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 27 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 29 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 33 minutes
The Week: Trillionaire Takeover 14 minutes
Major Monster Mess, by Andres Miedoso 35 minutes

Media finished:

Major Monster Mess, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 138 minutes

Monday was busy. IL7 had a fun science project at Summer Power (his daycare), so I cancelled his standard Monday appointment so he could enjoy it. That left a time-slot open for taking Dad to get his hearing aids looked at. Then I took Dad to the gym. I went on the treadmill for a while.

After the gym, I took Freyja to the vet for his checkup. He was so terrified, he wouldn't get out of the cage. I even tried completely inverting it. All I got out was a leg. We had to take the top of the cage off. Then Freyja remained firmly ensconced in the bottom half of the cage through the entire exam. The vet just poked and prodded him in the bottom half of the cage.

Finally, I took D16 to an appointment. When I picked up IL7, he said he had a good day, which was good to hear, because he hasn't been liking Summer Power because there's no learning.

Media read from:

Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt 117 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 29 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 5 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 32 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 36 minutes
The Week: Trillionaire Takeover 25 minutes
Books that Matter: History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 23 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 267 minutes

Tuesday went pretty well. I took Dad to his PT appointment and to get a vaccination. Dad took me to Perkins. In the evening, my friend Liz came over and we watched Doctor Who.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 65 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 34 minutes
The Week: Trillionaire Takeover 12 minutes
Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt 77 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 40 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 35 minutes
Books that Matter: History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Leo Damrosch 11 minutes

Media finished:

Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt

Time reading: 274 minutes

What did you think of The Amazing Digital Circus? I enjoyed it overall but am not as obsessed as some of my younger (early 20s) friends. I thought the last episode (9) was too long and complicated and should have been 2 episodes

>207 norabelle414: Hi Nora! I enjoyed Amazing Digital Circus. I am generally not wowed by movies/series, so I'm simply not going to be obsessed. IL and D cried.

Wednesday, I ran to Best Buy to get a vacuum. I took Dad to the gym and worked out on the treadmill. I took IL7 to an appointment, then we went to the park with Dad. IL7 rode his bike and Dad and I walked. Then Aaron and I played Minecraft with IL7.


Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 181 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 36 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynn 36 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 253 minutes

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385137

Thanks Silver!

Thursday, we had a post-op nurse appointment for D16, and we have a lot more information now. It was a relief. Aaron was going to join my D&D game, but it got cancelled because it was a bad day for people. IL7 got to play a computer game he was really excited about called Pathogenic.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 49 minutes
Essays of Montaigne 59 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynn 49 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 50 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 207 minutes

Friday, I took IL7 to an appointment, then took him and Dad to the gym. IL7 went in the sauna twice and went on the treadmill and the elliptical. Later, Aaron, M14, IL7, and I went to the pool. It was a little cool, but we enjoyed ourselves.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 59 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 60 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 122 minutes
The Week: Swamped 27 minutes
The Big Brain Storm, by Andres Miedoso 40 minutes
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl 49 minutes

Media finished:

James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl
The Big Brain Storm, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 357 minutes

Saturday, I made a Steam account so I could play Pathogenic with IL7. It was an ok game. IL7 really loved it. Then, Dad, IL7, and I tried to go to the park. But they got tired, and we turned around. IL7 was riding a rather unsteady scooter and fell and "hurt" his knee. We called Aaron to rescue us in the car. IL7 and I made some progress cleaning his room. In the evening, Dad treated us to Outback Steakhouse. Then, after a bit more housework, I read.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 54 minutes
The Week: Swamped 26 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 34 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 52 minutes
Surf’s Up, Creepy Stuff!, by Andres Miedoso 34 minutes
Revenge of the Kitten Queen, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 42 minutes

Media finished:

Surf’s Up, Creepy Stuff!, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 242 minutes

Sunday was a relaxing day for me, but Aaron walked in the pride parade. It was pouring rain for a while. IL7 went to swim lessons, and then the family played D&D for a while.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 66 minutes
Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne 59 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 28 minutes
Mermaid You Look, by Andres Miedoso 33 minutes
Revenge of the Kitten Queen, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 62 minutes

Media finished:

Fury of the Gods, by John Gwynne
Mermaid You Look, by Andres Miedoso

Time reading: 248 minutes

Monday was busy. I took IL7 to an appointment, Dad to the gym, had a video visit myself, and took D16 to an appointment. IL7 played outside for a while, despite the heat. He requested carrot seeds, which we will plant in pots. It's probably not the right season, but we can try.

Media read from:

The Stand, by Stephen King 115 minutes
The Week: Swamped 37 minutes
The Illiad, by Homer 34 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 35 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 22 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 243 minutes

Tuesday, I kept myself busy despite only having two appointments. Right after work, I took IL7 to see his pediatrician then took Dad to PT. In the evening, IL7 took a nap, and Aaron and I watched the last two episodes of Andor. We will watch Season 2 of Wednesday next. Then IL7 and I worked on his summer homework and then hung outside with Dad.

Media read from:

The Illiad, by Homer 44 minutes
Books that Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 44 minutes
The Week: Swamped 27 minutes
Essays of Montaigne 64 minutes
The Stand, by Stephen King 78 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 33 minutes

Media finished:

The Illiad, by Homer

Time reading: 290 minutes

Wednesday I ran some errands, did housework, took Dad to the gym, took IL7 to an appointment - which was cancelled, but they didn't tell me in advance - then took IL7 to another appointment. At home, we worked on his summer school work.

Media read from:

Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 76 minutes
Jingo, by Terry Pratchett 220 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 130 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 426

Here's the Fourth of July readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385250

Thanks Silver!

Young James escapes abusive aunts by flying away on a giant peach with some gigantic bug friends. Like all Dahl, it’s silly and fun. I am surprised at his use of the word “ass” a few times, but maybe it’s cultural. It’s sexist, but I guess we knew that about Dahl. Regardless of its shortcomings, it’s a good read.

Tova keeps herself busy working housekeeping in an aquarium as she mourns her lost husband and son. She is friends with Marcellus, the Giant Pacific Octopus, who wants to help her in her grief. Then she meets Erik, a down-and-out young man. They strike up a friendship over Marcellus and cleaning.

I’m so glad I took time to read this book, despite having plans for the next book I would read. It was fantastic. I loved all the characters, and the plot was so sweet.

Thursday was a great day. It was one of those rare ones without appointments. I went to Olive Garden with my friend, Liz. We never get out alone anymore, but she is on staycation, so we took advantage of kid-free time. It was great.

I ran some errands afterwards. Then, I cross-stitched. That is also something I rarely have time for.

In the afternoon, IL7 and I went to the gas station, then the park - he rode his bike. Dad joined us for the first couple of blocks, but he had to turn around. IL7 played in the park for a while, but got overheated, and we called Aaron to rescue us. I don't know if he really needed rescuing or if he just wanted to be rescued, but it was fairly hot and humid.

D16 and M14 went with their mom to see their grandpa for the weekend.

In the evening, Aaron and I played D&D.

Media read from:

Essays of Montaigne 64 minutes
Books that Matter: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 52 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 27 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 32 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading:175 minutes

Friday, I awoke to a weather forecast full of rain. We had meant to go camping, but decided not to, because IL7 would be annoying stuck in a tent all day. But then, it turned out, IL7 wanted to go camping, after all. So, after Dad's trip to the gym, that's what we did.

Aaron, IL7, and I headed out at about 3, and spent a few hours on the beach after setting up camp. Then we sat around a campfire, played flashlight tag, and went back to the tent to read. It did not rain.

Media read from:

Jingo, by Terry Pratchett 36 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 37
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 33 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 30 minutes
Revenge of the Kitten Queen, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 44 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 180 minutes

Glad your camping trip was not rained out! There was rain in our forecast, but then none, so I watered my garden. So then it rained an hour or so later. Oh, well!

>222 The_Hibernator: Definitely cultural. Bearing in mind it was written in England (I'm supposing) about 50 odd years ago. It's 'ass' as in 'donkey'. Get your mind out of the gutter, woman ;0)

>226 The_Hibernator: Oh; I was expecting a pizza base recipe :0)

>230 foggidawn: Hi Foggy! Yes, overall the camping trip was a success. We didn't get to play flashlight tag Saturday night because the field was wet, and Loki was bummed when I deflated the floatie because apparently he wanted to go back to the beach. But the rain was only for a little while on Saturday.

>231 humouress: Hi Nina! Yes, I knew it was written mid-century (though I think it was closer to 1960? I looked at the time) in England, and that it was referring to a donkey, but it surprised me anyway. 🤷‍♀️ I was also surprised at the cheerfulness about what happened to the aunts.

Saturday, I got up at 5:30am, and headed home to feed Puck and water the grass. When I got back, Aaron and IL7 got up and we went to the beach. When we got overheated (but before Loki was ready to leave), we went back to the campsite. After Aaron cooked dinner, I drove back home for another watering and feeding. It poured rain at the campground while I was gone, so IL7 got to enjoy splashing in the puddles.

Media read from:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens 45 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 44 minutes
Mr Ballen podcast 37 minutes
Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky 141 minutes
The Week: Haitian Exodus 15 minutes

Media finished:

Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens

Time reading: 282 minutes

>232 The_Hibernator: It was a wild guess; I didn't look it up. I see you haven't read enough P.G. Wodehouse - that was kind of schoolboy slang of yesteryear ;0)

TBH it's been a while since I've read Dahl so I've forgotten the story but I vaguely remember horrible but unlikely comeuppances for the bad guys.

>234 humouress: Yeah, I guess I just didn't think anything of it when I was a kid. I'm not sure that would get through the editor these days - at least not in the US. But maybe - I mean, Harry Potter got kinda viscous at the end.

Sunday, we packed up camp and made it home by 11. We spent the day recuperating from the camping trip. M14 and D16 came home from seeing their grandpa with their mom. In the evening, Dad took Aaron, IL7, and me out to Outback Steakhouse.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen podcast 35 minutes
The Week: Haitian Exodus 25 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 34 minutes
Systematic Theology, by Wayne Grudem 31 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 43 minutes
The Big Brain Storm, by Andres Miedoso 40 minutes
Revenge of the Kitten Queen, by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth 11 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 219 minutes

Monday was very productive for me. I got up early to give Polyphemus some anxiety meds before his teeth cleaning. I took IL7 to an appointment, Dad to the gym, and then D16 to an appointment. Plus errands/phone calls that I had been procrastinating on. IL7 and I worked on his homework. And I got some reading and writing done.

Media read from:

Mr Ballen Podcast 63 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 30 minutes
Jingo, by Terry Pratchett 151 minutes
The Week: Haitian Exodus 35 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 30 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 309 minutes

You stay so busy, Rachel, I don't know how you do it all and read as well. Pickwick Papers is very ambitious . I recall enjoying James and the Giant Peach when I was young and then again when my sons were young.

>238 vancouverdeb: Hi Deb! That was my second time with James and the Giant Peach. I am enjoying rereading Dahl.

I actually have complete Dickens novels, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky audiobooks. I am rotating through the. I moved from Pickwick Papers to Brothers Karamozov. Obviously, it'll take years to finish.

Tuesday was a good day. I took Dad to see his physical therapist, then got an oil change and some new filters. In the afternoon, IL7 and I planted carrot seeds in pots (because we don't have a garden, and he suddenly decided he wanted to plant a vegetable). Then we finished up his homework. In the evening, my friend Liz came over and we all watched some Doctor Who.

Media read from:

Discipline and Punish, by Michel Foucault 60 minutes
Jingo, by Terry Pratchett 39 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 32 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 30 minutes
Books That Matter: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Leo Damrosch 24 minutes
The Week: Haitian Exodus 25 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 210 minutes

>239 The_Hibernator: I would have thought that Dostoevsky and Tolstoy were quite the commitment via audiobook, Rachel.

>241 PaulCranswick: Most of my reading is by audiobook, Paul. I'm in the car a lot. How would it be more of a commitment than any other long book? Or than by physical book?

Wednesday started with a dentist appointment for D16, followed by an hearing aid appointment for Dad. I also ran some errands and made some calls. The evening was relaxed.

Media read from:

Jingo, by Terry Pratchett 165 minutes
The Week: Haitian Exodus 12 minutes
Paper and Fire, by Rachel Caine 30 minutes
New Scientist: The Wide Awake Ape 49 minutes
Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin 32 minutes

Media finished:

The Week: Haitian Exodus

Time reading: 288 minutes