Rainy Days are for Reading

I always fantasize about a rainy Saturday where everything gets canceled, and I cozy up on the couch and read for a bit.  We've had several soggy Saturdays this Fall and definitely some youth sports cancellations, but none of them have yielded much reading time.

Today was no exception.  I ended up driving my son to basketball, doing store returns in the rain, taking both boys to open skate to prep for hockey evaluations, and going to the library with my daughter.  Not a bad day by any stretch but not the stuff of fantasy.  Here's hoping for some evening reading time in front of the fire my husband just started.

Even if I haven't had much time to read today, I did manage to add to my reading pile.  I've written before about my obsession with our library's book sale room.  It is now a book sale corner but still a great place to find books for a suggested donation of $1 per book.  Today's finds are pictured above.  Something about the title of The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley did not appeal to me when the book first came out, but when I picked it up today and read the summary, I was intrigued.  The Girl Before and Every Last Lie should be good for when I'm in a suspenseful mood.  The Tumtum & Nutmeg one is the kind of book I hope my daughter will want to read one of these days.  I let her drive her own reading bus though.  She's on her second My Weirder School book of the evening with another on deck and that's a-ok.  Warms my heart to see her love books even if we don't always love the same books.

Okay, off to do my own rainy day reading ... finally. 

I'll Push You

A friend texted me that we needed to go see a documentary she heard about.  I'll Push You is the story of two friends journeying five hundred miles on the Camino de Santiago with the plot twist that one of the friends, Justin, is in a wheelchair.  As I left the house this evening, I admittedly wished I was going to see a chick flick.  It's been a long and kind of stressful week and I thought I wanted something lighter.

I'll Push You ended up being exactly what I needed ... one more reminder of the importance of being willing to ask for and to accept help and a powerful testament to all the graces that come when you give of yourself and, and this is the part I struggle with, when you allow others to give to you. If it's showing near you, go see it.  Definitely look for opportunities to stream it in the future.  There was one joke about sex (which was no big deal), but I think he film is appropriate for upper elementary and middle school kids.  I'd like my kids to experience this story and see this amazing friendship.

One tip:  sit as far back in the theater as you can.  I tend toward motion sickness, and the filming of the wheelchair on very rugged terrain was too much for me from my second row recliner seat.  After closing my eyes quite a bit the first third of the film, I ended up standing in the entry aisle to watch the rest.  You know it's a quality film when you don't mind standing to see it.

I'm lucky to have friends who push me to watch, read, and experience things outside of my comfort zone. 

Reading Roundup -- My Getaway Books!

Each October, I get away with my husband on an annual business gathering that includes spouses.  These gatherings are always in great locations and offer me rare and cherished moments of alone time to read and rest.  I read on the plane, in the hotel room, at the pool or beach, at lunch, and whenever else I feel like it.  Tis glorious.

Sometimes I feel guilty for not exploring and experiencing more, but in late October, after the stress
and craziness of back to school and fall youth athletics, I crave the relaxation time.  I'll leave the energetic exploring for the empty nesters.

Here's what I read...

My library hold for Winter Solstice rolled in five days before departure.  I managed to wait until we got to our airport gate before cracking the spine.  This book, the fourth in Hilderbrand's Winter/Christmas in Nantucket/Quinn Family series, was even better than I anticipated.  It's been a pleasure visiting Nantucket in winter and getting to know the Quinn family over these four books.  I teared up several times at the end.  My only regret?  That I couldn't hold out and read it by the Christmas tree.

I'm just going to say it ... a lot of my Book of the Month Club selections have been either underwhelming or disappointing.  I loved the cover of this one and the title (advice I've never been able to live by).  I liked Hunter's writing but, man oh man, I found this story depressing, which is okay--books with Little Debbies on the cover aren't obligated to be hopeful and fun--but not my best choice for vacation reading.  (BTW, the glass in this photo held Dr. Pepper because the very lovely hotel where we stayed offers the underwhelming, disappointing, practically detestable beverage called Diet Pepsi: Drink Only When You're Really, Really, Really Thirsty). 

I've been making my way through Angela Thirkell's Barsetshire books for about five years now.  I've purchased quite a few because of the gorgeous covers on these Virago editions.  I'd been warned that the books set in World War II have a different feel.  That's true and how could they not?  But even when it's wartime in Barsetshire, it's such a pleasure to see Thirkell's wit and powers of observation.

I love it when I learn about intriguing titles, especially "vintage reads," via #bookstagram.  Angela Brazil's The Fortunes of Philippa came to my attention thanks to the awesome bookstagrammer, les_livres_.  Could her photo above be any more inviting?  Sadly, I couldn't secure a copy of the book as beautiful as hers, but how cool is it that could I learn about a tempting book and find a 99 cent ebook edition of it within minutes?  It's a boarding school/growing up story, set in Britain.  Very sweet, very innocent, a little bit boring but still I was tickled to go from #bookstagram to #bookinhand within minutes.

And, if you can believe it, I left my ipod at home and thus did not take any long walks on my getaway.  A solitary walk without the option of an audiobook companion?  Didn't tempt me.

I will be making my yearly attempt to participate in NaBloPoMo and post every day in November.  Come back tomorrow if you can.

Back to School Washi Works

I needed some small centerpieces for a back-to-school event and am very pleased with how they turned out.

The vase is from Dollar Tree.  The tape is the Scotch decorative masking tape (not actually washi, but same idea).  The royal blue and white one (our school colors) was already in my stash, but I purchased the school-themed tapes at Office Depot/Max.  As I always do, I purchased the market bunches of flowers at Jewel.  They didn't have the best offerings that day, but I still think the centerpieces turned out great.

Best news?  It took only minutes to wrap the tape around the vases and to cut and arrange the flowers.  For ten centerpieces, I spent $10 on vases, $25 or so on flowers, and maybe $10 on tape (with plenty leftover).

I used to wash out and save sauce jars for floral projects, but I may hold back on the hoarding in favor of these $1 vases.  I have a large collection of washi tape and can think of all kinds of cool combos for wrapping a vase.

It's very satisfying to be able to see a project to cute completion without a lot of turmoil or expense.

Late Summer Snackshots

So there's a lot going on here and the color scheme and pattern of the packaging sort of suggest pet food, but this popcorn is delicious, addictive even.  It's not a low calorie treat.  You'll need a water or DC on hand because it's rich.  I polished off two bags and am now on a self-imposed break.  Available at Sam's Club.
 

PSA:  No!  Took one bite, took one photo, and then threw the bag away.  Shame on me for thinking mango, coconut, and caramel could create something harmonious.  Last time I saw it at Sam's, it was marked down to $1.98 for a giant bag. 

Click the Snackshots label below this post if you're interested in previous snackshots.

Audible Monthly Credit(s) Report -- July and August 2017

I ignored this writing space most of the summer so I have a lot of catching up to do.

Quick recape for my tens of readers:  I treasure the monthly ritual of choosing two audiobooks worthy of my Audible.com credits.

I was very pleased with July's credit redemptions.  Both books had been on my radar, and I enjoyed both even more than I thought I would.  Michael Frank's The Mighty Franks invited me into a family very different from my own.  Families are complicated.  Love is complicated.  I admired Frank's ability to capture the complication and the love.  To paraphrase and revise:  they'll mess you up, your aunt and uncle.

Katherine Heiny's Standard Deviation was a gem.  Marriage is complicated.  Love is complicated.  Parenting is complicated.  They're all worth it though.  Heiny gets all the little details right -- a lot of yes, yes, yes-ing as I read.  I also liked how she managed to be smartly funny without being snarky.

The Misfortune of Marion Palm by Emily Culliton was a book I had been looking forward to all summer.  Despite a promising premise, this book was just not what I wanted it to be.  The writing is good, the characters interesting, but it wasn't for me.  The missing ingredient may have been hope.

Tom Perrotta's smart and witty books have offered me many hours of Audible.com listening pleasure and Mrs. Fletcher was no exception.  I was a tad overwhelmed by the sex, porn, and MILF aspects of the book early on (as was my best friend who was also listening and texted "I am listening to Mrs. Fletcher.  Wow") but then I figured out what he was trying to do and thought he did it well.  I'd love to discuss Mrs. Fletcher and/or to eavesdrop on book club conversations about it!  

Want to know how I spent my September Audible credits?  Want to know why I am longer biting on the Audible Deal of the Days?  Want to know how audiobook listening is going without my lil green ipod?  Visit again as future posts will provide answers.

LFL Sighting -- Wilmette

On Labor Day, we enjoyed lunch and some beach time in Wilmette with family.  As we walked toward the beach, I spied a Little Free Library across the street.  We routed past the LFL on our return and I grabbed some pics.

I love the tiered roof and the Alice in Wonderland theme of this LFL.  I really appreciate the clarity of the instructions on top:  Take A Book  ~  Keep It  ~  Share It.  Often the LFLs instruct to "Take a Book.  Leave a Book."  I imagine that the take one/leave one phrase is intended to let you know that donations are welcome more than it is an admonishment, but I always think, "But wait, would it be okay if I took a book if I didn't have one to leave?"  So, I prefer the invitation on this Wilmette LFL, which seems to me like, "You can take a book.  Read and enjoy it.  Keep it if you want or share it with someone else."  If I ever realize my goal of installing an LFL, I'd like to send out that vibe.

And, let's say I was in need of reading material while in Wilmette on Labor Day ... what would I choose from this LFL?  I was heavily involved in the editing of a sibling's essay on Judith Guest's Ordinary People but never have read it beyond scanning for textual evidence for that essay.  There's a copy of P&P, but I own several already.  I smiled when I noticed that in addition to P&P, this library also had Curtis Sittenfeld's Eligible on offer.  I should have moved the two next to each other.  I'm thinking I'd go with S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders.  I loved that book hard in seventh grade and maybe I could "keep it" and "share it" with my sixth grader.  

Despite the kind invitation, I didn't take a book, at least not one from this LFL.  My uncle did send me home with a copy of Peter Davis's Hometown -- a book about the year the journalist spent in Hamilton, Ohio, which happens to be the hometown of my mom and uncle.  I grew up in the town right next to Hamilton but my high school and many childhood activities took place in Hamilton so it has plenty of claims on me.  Hometown is an older book and one I think I might appreciate at this stage in my life and at this distance (five hours away in Chicagoland).  With Hillbilly Elegy and Middleton, Ohio (not too far or too dissimilar from Hamilton) getting so much (well-deserved) attention this past year,  I'm eager to read Hometown.

I just had to include this photo of the beach.  Three of the five kids on the outing braved the frigid waters of Lake Michigan.  I'm at the point where my children are good swimmers and I don't need to hover at the beach but not at the point where I take that freedom for granted.  It wasn't a gorgeous day, drizzled for a bit and almost no sun, but I enjoyed sitting in a chair on the (shrinking) beach and chatting with my uncle and cousin.  Nice farewell to summer.