Berly Turns the Page #2

Four hundred candles line the waters of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool leading up to the Washington Memorial. A tribute to the over 400,000 Americans who have died due to COVID. I eagerly await the new leadership of the Biden/Harris administration because this shouldn't have happened. I am sorry for everyone's losses and know now more than ever that each day is a gift.

So many choices!! What should I read?

Reading Now
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent (B 395 pages) by Isabel Wilkerson
The Sandman (🎧 8.5 hours) by Neil Gaiman
Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam

Next?
March -- The Topeka School by Ben Lerner with Twin/BLBera
March-April -- Odds Against from the 1960s, first in the Sid Halley series, Dick Francis
April--Viveca Sten
April -- Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
April -- My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
May -- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi with ffortsa/Judy
??? Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (SouloftheRose's fault)
ARC -- Ancient Bones
ARC -- Voyagers

Read in March ?? pages / ?? 🎧 hours
2021 Total // pages / ?? hours
15. @ In the Woods (B 431 pages) by Tana French 4.0

Read in February ?? pages / ?? 🎧 hours
2021 Total // pages / ?? hours
❤️ @ Untamed: The Wildest Woman in America and the Fight for Cumberland Island (B 310 pages) by Will Harlan 5.0
14. @ The Book of Delights (B 141/274 pages) by Ross Gay ✗
13. @ The Cipher by Isabella Maldonado 3.75
12. ✔ Did You Ever Have a Family (B 295 pages) by Bill Clegg IR #55 with Paul 4.0
11. ✔ In the Shadow of Power (K 393 pages) Book #7 by Viveca Sten 3.5
10. ✔ In Search of Black History (🎧 5.5 hours) by Bonnie Greer 3.75
9. @ Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs 3.5

Read in January 1,673 pages / 25 🎧 hours
8. @ Keep Sharp (🎧 8 hrs) by Sanjay Gupta 4.0
7. @ The Viscount Who Loved Me (K 344 pages) by Julia Quinn 3.75
6. ✔ Squeeze Me (B 336 pages) by Carl Hiaasen 4.0
5. @ Banker (K 323 pages) by Dick Francis 3.5
4. ✔ Heaven's River (🎧 17 hrs) Bobiverse #4 by Dennis Taylor 3.75
❤️ @ Themes and Variations (K 17 pages) Essay by David Sedaris 4.0
2. ↩ Jazz (K 244 pages) by Toni Morrison 3.0
❤️ ✔ Girl Waits With Gun (B 409 pages) by Amy Stewart 4.25

Ratings
❤️ Favorite(s) of the month
Loved it! 5.0
Really Good 4.0
Good 3.0
Hmmmm 2.0
Don't Bother 1.0

Source
IR = Indiespensable Readers
LT = LibraryThing Early Reviewer
✔ = Off the shelf (not acquired this year)
L = Library
↩ = Reread
@ = Acquired this year
✗ = DNF

Media
B = Printed Book
🎧 = Audio
K = Kindle
= Graphic Novel

Books Freed = 0
Powell's isn't open for drop-offs....



Catalogued 39/52 shelves -- I am determined to finish this in 2021 and I am off to a good start. I did another shelf today!!!

1/5 -- I am now in the M's.
1/25 -- In the N's.

RL Book Club #1
✔ February - News of the World by Paulette Jiles
April - Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
June - Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
August - The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
October - The Intuitionist by Colson Whitehead

RL Book Club #2
February - Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
April
May
June
September
October
November

Literary Arts 2020-2021
September, 2020 -- ✅ The Nickel Boys & ✅ The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
October 13, 2020 -- H is for Hawk and ✅ Vesper Flights by Helen McDonald
January 28, 2021 -- ✅ Circe by Madeline Miller
February 18, 2021 -- ✅ How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
April 8, 2021 -- The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay
April 20, 2021 -- An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo
May 18, 2021 -- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Powell's Indiespensable Readers Challenge

Hubby signed me up for this (Thank you!!). Over the years I have received over 90 installments (some with two books), and I haven't read all the books yet. Not even close! In an effort to catch up -- I want to read 12 this year. The complete list (such as it is) can be found here:

https://www.librarything.com/topic/301060#

Let me know if you want to read one with me!!

2021 Shared Reads
March -- The Topeka School by Ben Lerner with Twin/BLBera
April/May -- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi with ffortsa/Judy

Done
1. Did You Ever Have A Family with Paul
2. Leave the World Behind -- reading
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

The Nerd 2021 Reading Challenge
To help motivate me to set off BOMBs!! (Books Off My Bookshelf) There are 52 categories and I have chosen 26 and made a few changes ('cuz this is supposed to be fun and not a chore!).

1) An Audiobook
2) An LT Trending Book
3) Gold on the Cover
4) Two Word Title
5) Author Starting with E
✅ Part of a Trilogy - Jazz by Toni Morrison
7) NYT Bestseller - The Sandman by Neil Gaiman
8) Debut Author
✅ Title Starts with G or K - Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart
✅ Multiple Perspectives - Heaven's River by Dennis E. Taylor
11) Features Traveling
✅ Standalone - In Search of Black History by Bonnie Greer
13) Set in Winter
14) SF or Mystery
15) A New-To-Me Author
16) Over 400 pages
17) Food on the Cover
18) Same First Initial as Me (K)
19) Romance or YA
20) Set in the Future
✅ Released in 2020 - Squeeze Me by Carl Hiaasen
22) Purchased Years Ago
23) A Book Gifted To Me
24) A Book I Never Finished
✅ Five Word Title - In the Shadow of Power by Viveca Sten
26) Body Part in the Title

I can't resist buying books!!

I seem to manage to read around 50% of my newbies, except in 2019 where I (ahem) added a few more books to my collection than normal. But then in 2020 I killed it and read almost 75% of my newbies!!

2017 47/85
2018 45/88
2019 45/128
2020 75/103

Let's see how I do this year...

2021 5/19 Read

✅ Keep Sharp by Sanja Gupta MD
2. Paradise by Toni Morrison
✅ Themes and Variations: An Essay by David Sedaris *
4. Hadley and Grace by Suzanne Redfearn *
5. Cold Earth by Sarah Moss (Thank you TwinB!) *
6. The Liar's Dictionary by Eley Williams
✅ The Book of Delights by Ross Gay - DNF
8. Effie by Suzanne Fagence Cooper (Thank you Whisper1!) *
9. Infinite by Brian Freeman *
10. Voyagers by Robert Silverberg * ARC
✅ The Cipher by Isabella Maldonado
12. How to Avoid a Climate Disaster by Bill Gates
✅ Untamed: The Wildest Woman in America and the Fight for Cumberland Island by Will Harlan
14. In the Woods by Tana French
15. In Bad Company by Viveca Sten
16. The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
17. Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
18. Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
19. The Light Through the Leaves by Glendy Vanderah *

* Free or gift

Favorites from 2020
Fiction
Non-Fiction

Have to ponder this a little......

I am going to try and keep track of series I am currently enjoying here:

Series/Author/Next Book
Bobiverse / Dennis E. Taylor / #5 not yet published
Bridgerton / Julia Quinn / #3 An Offer From A Gentleman
The Chronicles of St Mary's / Jodi Taylor / #6 What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Cormoran Strike Series / Robert Galbraith / #5 Troubled Blood
Kinsey Millhone Mystery Series / Sue Grafton / Read ABCDEQX / Next F is for Fugitive
Kopp Series / Amy Stewart / #2 Lady Cop Makes Trouble
Sandham Murders / Viveca Sten / #8

Come on in!!

Happy new thread!

Love the doors!

>12 quondame: Hi, Susan!! Thanks for getting my thread going. Always nice to see you here. : )



I figure why not choose your own door to come into my thread! Which one do you like most?

Reposting from my last thread....

I started collecting my Thingaversary books today.



I think I will not rush to collect my 13, but rather feel less guilty when I buy future books. ; )

The Liar's Dictionary by Eley Williams
From the book -- "Peter Winceworth, Victorian lexicographer, is toiling away at the letter S for Swansby's multivolume Encyclopaedic Dictionary. His disaffection compels him to insert unauthorized fictitious entries into the dictionary in an attempt to assert some sense of individual purpose and artistic freedom.

"In the present day, Mallory, a young intern employed by the publisher, is tasked with uncovering these mountweazels before the work is digitized. She also has to contend with threatening phone calls from an anonymous caller. Is the change in the definition of marriage really that upsetting? And does the caller really intend for the Swansby's staff to 'burn in hell'?

"As these two narratives combine, both Winceworth and Mallory discover how they might negotiate the complexities of the often nonsensical, relentless, untrustworthy, hoax-strewn, and undefinable path we call life. An exhilarating debut novel from a formidably brilliant young writer, The Liar's Dictionary celebrates the rigidity, fragility, absurdity, and joy of language."

The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay is a collaboration between Literary Arts and the Multnomah County Library "Everybody Reads" event. Ross Gay is a poet and I am excited to read his essays. (He will speak virtually in April.) I am excited because the book is supposed to be a fun, funny, grateful, philosophical, beautiful book about lots of life's daily events and small details, a reminder that we need to look for delight and enjoy our shared bonds. I could really use this right now!

Happy new one dear Kimmers.

>1 Berly: Topical and appropriate topper. Good luck to them for sure.

Love all the challenges and the colourful way in which you have set them out. Your Powell's challenge of course struck a chord with me.

Hello, Paul! Yes, I am a little nervous about tomorrow and the Inauguration Ceremony. Crossing my fingers....

You should check out my Powell's collection and see if any of them appeal to you. I'd love to read a book with you!! The link is in >6 Berly:. : )

>1 Berly: So sad and yet beautiful.
Happy new thread, Kim - and have fun with your Thingaversary collection.

So a few of us have been reading the Viveca Sten murder mystery series and the new thread is up!! Join us if you want.

https://www.librarything.com/topic/328895

Book #7 In the Shadow of Power--get your copy guys!!

>17 SirThomas: Hello there, Thomas! Yes, my topper is sad, but I think it's important to pay tribute. I hope our new leadership can get my country back on its feet in so many ways.

And I do indeed enjoy collecting Thingaversary books! 2 down and 11 to go! 12 years and one for good luck. ; )

>16 Berly: Most definitely up for that, Kimmers.

I have several on my shelves that you don't appear to have read yet.

Since I profess to be a gentleman I will give you the option to choose from:

The Mars Room
She Would Be King
Shadow Tag
The Listeners and
Did You Ever Have a Family

If you are up for it I can always squeeze in February or the next available for you.

Happy new thread, Kim!

>4 Berly: I thought it was a new picture, missed it in your previous thread, anyway I see progress! :-)

Happy new one, Kim. What a stop-in-your-tracks beautiful but somber topper. I am also nervous about today but have to hope for the best.

I love the cover of The Liar's Dictionary! Sounds intriguing, too.

Happy new thread, Kim!

Happy New Thread, Kim. LOVE the topper, my friend. Just a few more hours...

Happy new thread!

>4 Berly: what a great undertaking! I found over the past 16 years when we had a "library" in our Maine house that the biggest challenge to cataloging was getting other users in the household to drop off books to be cataloged and THEN getting those books on the "correct" shelf. After a couple years I gave up. I decided to keep track of "my" books, and let the chips fall on all the others.

Happy new thread, Kim! Lovely topper!

>14 Berly: I have The Liar's Dictionary which I may read next month, Kim. Ross Gay is new to me, and I do love essays...

Happy New Thread, TwinK!
>1 Berly: Love the photo.

>8 Berly: You are welcome.

Nice acquisitions for your thingaversary.

>20 PaulCranswick: Awesome! You are indeed a gentleman, and I choose Did You Ever Have A Family. : ) I should be good to go at the beginning of February. Work for you?

>21 FAMeulstee: Yup. Yes, the photo has the same little piece of yellow paper saying "Here", but on a new shelf! And now it's been two weeks since I've made any progress. Good reminder to do another one. ; )

>22 jessibud2: It's official!! Joe Biden is President!! I am so happy and relieved. And the transition went smoothly, thank goodness.

I know -- the cover of The Liars's Dictionary is so cool! It definitely helped make me choose it.

>23 EllaTim: Thank you for the congratulations and for being here. Welcome!!

>24 msf59: Hello, Mark!

It happened!! Biden is President!! Thank God.

>1 Berly:->11 Berly: Such an amazing lineup!
>14 Berly: The Liar's Dictionary sound amazing. Will have to look that up. Someday. I'm slow.

>25 drneutron: Hi Jim. Always a pleasure to see you. Make it a habit, okay?!

>26 tututhefirst: Oh, I totally get you. Each of my kids has their own bookshelf in their room and I don't even bother to log those. They are on their own! LOL. I have trouble enough keeping up with me. ; )

>27 Carmenere: Glad you like the topper! Thanks for stopping by. : )

>28 Caroline_McElwee: Oooh....maybe we'll both read them this year! I'd love to hear what you think of them. I have never read either of them, but they called to me.

>29 BLBera: Hi TwinB! I am excited for life to settle down here in America so I can stop obsessively watching the news and actually read some books and get some LT time. I felt a little removed last year with everything going on. But 2021 is already off to quite a start...water is bubbling up in the middle of our driveway. A water main broke. Argh!! The city confirmed it is after the meter and on our property so it's our problem. Luckily, since we work with water all the time, my Hubby called up someone and they are working on pulling out the old PVC pipe and laying in a new one. Water only off for the day. And they don't have to pull up the whole driveway.

>32 justchris: Hey Chris! Thanks for stopping by. I hope to get to The Liar's Dictionary soonish, but there's no pressure for you. I keep buying books and then I get distracted and don't get to them for forever. So take your time and I'll let you know what I think when I get around to it. : )

Happy new one, Kim! Love the topper - that was a powerful moment last night.

Bummer about the water main. Hope the repair of it goes smoothly - so happy that you don't have to tear up your entire driveway.

Happy new one, Kim!

Sorry to hear about the water main, Kim. What a headache!

Love your photo of all the doors. There's an Instagram account I follow that's just photos of front doors in London and they're so lovely.

Hi Kim my dear, Happy new thread. A very happy day in America with the Inauguration of Biden and Harris, we watched it over here and enjoyed the whole thing from the guests arriving right up to Kamala and her husband seeing off the Pence's. Thank goodness the Childish tantrums of the last four years are over with and you can get back to adult politics.

Sending love and hugs to you and the family from both of us dear friend.

>1 Berly: I totally love that photo!!

>2 Berly: and that one :)

and I wish you a very happy new thread :)

Boo to broken water mains, but it sounds like you have it under control.

>31 Berly: YES! Finally, as you noted, I can stop obsessing about the news and be confident that adults are running things. I loved Lady Gaga's performance.

>35 Crazymamie: It was a moving event and worthy of a President of the Unites States. We have to acknowledge the tragedy and the grief and mourn together, as a whole. Very moving.

All done! Water is back on and we just need the concrete guys to come in and finish the job. What's a couple thousand dollars anyways. Why the builders put a junction under the driveway is beyond me. Idiotic. Sigh.

>36 katiekrug: Hey, Katie!! How is January going for you?

>37 MickyFine: Yeah, well, life happens. Glad it is mostly fixed and hopefully our water bill won't be outrageous. Thanks for the sympathy!

I love all the pictures of the doors and I'm glad you do, too. If I had Instagram I'd ask you for the name of the door account. Fun!

>38 johnsimpson: Indeed, John. I am very happy that crazy, disrespectful things didn't happen on MLK day or on the Inauguration!!! I am ready to move on, and hopefully fix the chaos and disrespect which the last administration fostered. Clearly there's a lot of work to do and we can't just sit back and relax, but now I am not opposed to my leader. A HUGE step in the right direction.

>39 RebaRelishesReading: LOL. Reba I am glad you like my photos. : ) And this will be a happier thread, at least from an American political point of view. Okay, and hopefully my reading, too.

>40 BLBera: Thanks for commiserating with me TwinB. And wasn't Lady Gaga awesome? I love her.

>30 Berly: Yes, that is fine, Kimmers. I have managed to sort and shelf all my unread books in their proper places (alphabetical by author sorted chronologically) so it is the work of a moment to pick it off the shelves and get cracking.

Glad to hear your water is working again.
Best wishes and have a wonderful day full of hope!

Ooof, sorry about the water business, but yay for it being a relatively easy fix!

Just stopping by to say hi, Kim. I'm glad your water problem has been solved.

I spent the past week organizing and culling the books in my library and am close to being ready to catalog. Are you using a scanner? Your iphone? An app? Forgive me if you've shared before. I have several collections, in particular, that I want to start with. Thanks for any advice.

>18 Berly: I hope you enjoy! I have the newest one that I have been putting off reading but I'm sure I will read it sometime soon. I'll follow along with the chats :)

Don't mind me, I'll just be here vegging out.

>1 Berly: I love that image. I made it the background on my FB page. Ten months, >400,000K lives lost, and this was the first acknowledgement of the tragedy from national leadership.

Back to your prior thread, the quote from Caste about the old house was so spot on. I really appreciate that. I have the book on my kindle, need to read it this year.

>31 Berly: YES!!!!!! It has been a weird year for Wednesdays, hasn't it?

I'm looking forward to reading Paradise with you, Beth, Laura, others who may join in.

Happy Friday tomorrow!

Happy new thread! Although I am already 51 post behind ;)

THERE you are, Kim! I will catch up all the treads at the weekend - meanwhile happy Friday!

>31 Berly: It happened!
Is what I was thinking as well :) I felt there was so much potential for things to go awry. I am very relieved!

Happy New Thread, Indispensable Reader!

Lovely and poignant photo up top. So many have died who needn't have, thanks to the orange idiot. Biden is having to start from scratch in vaccine distribution. Arggh.

Ross Gay: I see you bought his essays. My next poetry book is his Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude. Have you read him before? I've read some of his poems along the way, but that's it.

>11 Berly: What a wonderful image. It was a day to remember. Mainly, I believe, as many are noting, there is a marked sense of relief.. No more crazy tweets, no more nastiness from a presidential bully.

Amen! Rhom Emmanuel said that the country is tired of the constant attention this man demanded (I am paraphrasing, but I do belief this bully wore us down! Everything had to be about HIM! He thrived large crowds, attention, and argument.

Amen he was not on the platform with former Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama. That would have been supremely ackward.

Good luck on organizing your books. I gave away over 300 books in the last months. Diane Keenoy sent a text to let me know Bookcloseouts.com is having a 20% discount on all books. It is a never ending battle, get rid of some, and then accumulate more.

https://bookoutlet.com/

Hi Kim, although not an American, I believe my country breathed a collective sigh of relief to know that Trump is gone and that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are now in charge. I feel the world is a safer, more sane place now.

Happy new thread, Kim. Good to see that the adults are now in charge and nothing dire happened just before they took over.

Is your driveway all back together now?

Hey TwinK! I was thinking of you as I was scrolling through the new book list at my library. I think you loved the Tearling trilogy, right? Did you know there's another book coming out? I think it's a prequel. Anyway, I thought you would be excited about it. :)

Hi Kim my dear, hope all is well with you and the family and that you are having a good start to the weekend. We enjoyed watching the Inauguration and Amanda Gorman's poem was fabulous, she is a very good young lady and one to watch. At last you can all breathe a sigh of relief that adult politics is back instead of the Childish tantrums and tweets of the last four years.

We are both fine and Amy had her 28 week scan and all is well with the baby, we just hope that we will get to see her before the birth, fingers crossed.

Sending love and hugs to you and the family from both of us dear friend.

Happy new thread from one asymmetrical haircut to another ;)

Happy new thread! I am sorry about your water main, but equally excited about the inauguration. Hoping that we both end up with less worry and more books read.

Hi Kim, and happy new thread.

Excellent topper image and like has been said here, finally acknowledgement at the federal level of the lives lost.

I'm sorry about the water main, glad you were able to get the water back on so quickly. Nothing like connections, eh?

>44 PaulCranswick: Great! I have my copy sitting on my night table and will pick it up the beginning of February! : )

>45 SirThomas: Thank you, sir! It has been a very busy weekend and I am still playing catchup. Yesterday we moved my daughter to her new apartment. She is so excited! And I am excited for her, but it also broke my heart because now she won't be here every day. Dang it. I miss her already.

>46 scaifea: Yes, well. About the water. It wasn't actually a done deal. They had to drill in from the water box and they broke a side so then they had to get a permit and fix the dang thing, but luckily we do once again have water. Now we just have to wait a week for the concrete to dry and since it is cold here right now, there is a very cute blanket covering it to keep the heat in and help it cure. So no parking in the garage! Life happens. : )

>47 Oregonreader: Hi there! Well, see above ^^. LOL

>48 witchyrichy: Hi! How fun! Yes, I use the LT scanner. It is an app I downloaded on my phone. Then I press the "+" button to add to my collection. Tehn on the next page you click on the bar code to pull up the scanner. It will connect with your camera and you take a picture of the bar code on the back of your book. It's magic!!! And you can select what categories you wish it be logged under. Listed at the top above the camera image. Let me know how it works for you!

>49 ChelleBearss: I will probably start the next Viveca Sten next week sometime. It is a fun collection and I hope you join in the chat. : )

>50 richardderus: Mmmmmm. Looks comfy. I'll just pull up a chair and sit next to you for a bit. Watcha reading?

>51 EBT1002: I know. IT's about time someone acknowledges the full impact of COVID. I mean more lives lost than in WW2!! Glad Biden is in the White House.

I am more excite to read Paradise with all of you than for the actual book! LOL

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend and you still have half a day to go. ; )

>52 figsfromthistle: Ha! I am often behind here. Even on my own threads!! I am glad to see you here.

>53 PersephonesLibrary: That made me laugh! Thanks. I am kinda burnt out after moving my daughter yesterday. I will probably try to catch up the threads a little myself. And read a book. : )

>54 LovingLit: Nice not to have that weighing on us anymore. Now maybe we can regroup, unite and fix some of the problems that have surfaced. Not that they weren't there, it's just time to acknowledge them and move forward.

I am still reading Caste and it is so important. More quotes later....

>55 jnwelch: Ha! I love that you are calling ME an Indiespenable Reader! : )

I have not read Ross Gay before. He is the sponsored author for Portland's "Everybody Reads" event this year. The library gets tons of copies to distribute and also publishes things to help people understand and explore the chosen author and there is also a talk scheduled for April. I am trying to read an essay a day from The Book of Delights. I can definitely see the poetry behind his words, which I like, but so far the essays seem a little too in-the-moment for me; I want a little more structure. However, it is upbeat which I can really use right about now. We'll see how it goes. Interested to see what you think of his poetry.

>56 Whisper1: Okay, but in the battle of books there can be no loser!! LOL. I can't believe you got rid of 300 books last month! Wow. I have a small bag of donations and I will wait until it is full before I try to drop them off somewhere. I would think that Powell's would be accepting donations by now, but I don't know. And, yes, I am always finding new books I simply must have! I will dutifully check out the link. Thanks. I think. : )

>57 DeltaQueen50: Me, too! Frankly, I was worried for the last few weeks of his Presidency because he had the nuclear code. So I am very relieved to have Rump gone. But there is so much we need to make better. I saw a flag on the back of a truck today and instead of making me proud of my country, I got mad because the driver is probably a Rump supporter. Ugh. I want to be proud of my country again.

>58 Familyhistorian: Yes, things are moving in the right direction again in America. Now we just have to get a handle of COVID.

The driveway had a second crisis, but it is now repaired, we have water, and we just need to concrete to set. Phew!

>59 BLBera: Yes! I do love The Tearling books. A prequel you say....I must go check it out. Thanks! You da best.

>60 johnsimpson: So exciting to hear that Amy is doing well and so is the baby! I do hope you get to see her sooner than later. Fingers crossed.

Soooooo happy to have a new President here. : )

>61 Esquiress: You got that right! ; ) Wishing you a great week ahead.

>62 banjo123: I like how you think: Less worry and more books. The sounds like an excellent plan!

>63 karenmarie: Hello there! Yes, things are moving in the right direction, both politically and personally (the driveway). I will happily take it!

Congrats on fixing the water problem, TwinK - now for some reading and relaxation.

Eek, I can relate to water problems! Though mine were in the basement, not outside, still, it's NO FUN! Glad yours resolved so quickly!

Hey, Kim, way behind here, but you inspire me to place a hold on Caste. I'm only 401 in line, but there are about 40 copies in the system. Glad the water emergency was fixed quickly. How far away is your daughter's apartment? Just not the same not to have her in the house, though, is it?

Yes, congrats on fixing the water issue. Now would you send those experts here to fix our water issue? We've been without hot water for three days now (thank goodness it doesn't affect the heating - it's been down in the 20s this week). Jim and I have a membership in a gym across the street, and we are heading there today more for the shower than the workout! All running water is off until 5PM, but I don't think that will be the final fix. Fifty year old building, and probably not enough preventive maintenance. Sigh.

BTW, love the doors! Haven't gotten to Jazz yet, and may skip it and see if I can join you and Paul in February.

>66 Berly: Thanks for the directions. I was able to get into the app and find it. I know what I am doing on my day off on Friday!

Guck on the water issues caused by carelessness on others' parts, Kimadillo. So sorry!!

A new week, a new book? Or Caste still going strong?

>73 BLBera: Nope. NOT reading and relaxation. After helping my daughter move I got the cleaning/purge bug. I am a whirlwind today!! LOL

>74 jessibud2: Ohhh! Water outside is definitely preferable to water problems inside. I hope you issue is well mended by now!

>75 ronincats: Definitely! Caste is fascinating! I'll give you another quote to seal the deal. ; )

Where the term Caucasian came from...

"...A German professor of medicine, Johann Freidich Blumenbach in 1795. Blumenbach spent decades studying and measuring human skulls--the foreheads, the jawbones, the eye sockets--in an attempt to classify the varieties of humankind.

"He coined the term, Caucasian on the basis of a favorite skull of his...from the Caucasus Mountains of Russia. To him, the skull was the most beautiful of all that he owned. So he gave the group to which he belonged, the Europeans, the same name as the region that had produced it. That is how people now identified as white got the scientific-sounding yet random name Caucasian. More than a century later, in 1914, a citizenship trial was underway way in America over whether a Syrian could be a Caucasian (and thus white), which led an expert witness in the case to say of Blumemnbach's confusing and fatefull discovery, 'Never has a single head done more harm to science.'" (Caste, p.66)

Touchstone not working...

>76 ffortsa: No hot water!! That's awful. And for three days. Yikes! Glad you have the gym close by and I hope the problem is resolved soon.

Just join us in February for Toni Morrison's Paradise and stop stressing! ; )

>77 witchyrichy: Yay!! I wish you lots of cataloging fun. : )

>78 richardderus: Caste is still going strong. I am also reading The Book of Delights by Ross Gay and on audio I am about to start Neil Gaiman's The Sandman. And what are you delving into? Inquiring minds want to know!

>80 Berly: Today, in Richard's Hall of HorribleCripplingShame, we have Dueling Banjos: The Deliverance of Drew by Ronny Cox, aka "Drew." I sorted my DRCs oldest-->newest and was APPALLED that I got this DRC ten (10) years ago and never posted a review of it.

Yeah. So. Tomorrow the review goes live. While Ronny Cox still is, though as he's 82 there's no tellin'.

Squeeze Me by Carl Hiaasen 4.0

I love this author for his snarky sense of humor and improbable scenarios and this book includes the ex-President and First Lady as somewhat central characters. Warning: If you are a fan of Rump, you will not like this book! But I loved it. : )

Pythons are somehow finding their way into many luxurious and posh settings in Palm Beach, Florida. Chaos and death follow. Where are they coming from? And so many! One of the victims is a wealthy, high-society dowager and a White House supporter. She immediately becomes the center of many unfounded rumors including unjust racial accusations. Enter feisty Angie Armstrong, a wildlife wrangler set on solving the mystery.

Lots of laughs and I can't wait to discuss this with my Dad, sister and daughter next weekend. It's my family bookclub. LOL

>81 richardderus: Shame on you! Well, I am glad you are finally writing, I mean righting, this glaring injustice. Ten years, man! A crime, I say, a crime.

I catalogued another shelf! Made it to the N's. And purged four books. : )

>84 Berly: Yes! I see progress :-)

>84 Berly: you know, I've still not read The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht! Great going on your organisation skills :)

And, Caste sounds fascinating!

>84 Berly: Woo hoo! I see My Name Is Red there. We should read that one.

>84 Berly: Awesome idea, Kim. I have really been trying to read more off shelf. I did pretty good last year but I would like to double it if I can. I LOVE seeing the Ness books on there. I have a "keeper" copy of A Monster Calls.

>87 BLBera: If you decide on a group read, I'm in. :)

Hi Kim, are you thinking of reading Toni Morrison's Paradise in February? Beth and I just exchanged messages about timing. We plan to start reading around the middle of the month, which coincides with Morrison's birthday on February 18. It was really fun to see so many people reading Jazz in January, so I hope you will join us in February too!

And of course anyone else who sees this post is also welcome!

Im a big fan of Neil Gaiman's Sandman stuff there are several rounds and they get better and better.

Have you ever read Gaiman's The Graveyard Book. Or his mind bending (if you love Marvel Comics) Marvel 1602 throwing all the 1960's Marvel super heroes back into the days of Queens Elizabeth.

>84 Berly: Nice "shelfie" pic. You are progressing nicely with the cataloguing. I see the O's on that shelf and a really good one (Becoming) have you read that one yet.? It was a great read for me.

Enjoy the rest of the week.

Sorry it's taken so long for me to swing by your thread, Kim! Hope you've had some great reads so far in 2021, and nice job on cataloging your books :)

Happy new thread, Kim.

Love the shelfie pic: that's a diverse collection of books!
I would like to read My Name is Red too. Just saying... :-)

>87 BLBera: I'd be up for My Name is Red in March. I've been wanting to read it for a while.

See what I've done, TwinK? There is momentum for My Name Is Red. :)

>97 BLBera: Just let me know... I need to get it. That's one book I actually do not own (yet).

Oh dear....I haven't read My Name is Red yet either.

I’d be up for My Name I’d Red too, if you don’t mind me joining in.

Hop to, y'all! My Name is Red is one of the most deliciously off-kilter stories I've read.

I own a copy of My Name is Red but damn if I can put my hands on it. It's *somewhere* in this house and if I can find it, I may join the group read. But that's a big if. It wasn't where I was sure it would be and now, who knows where it is....

>102 jessibud2: This has happened to me so many times... I'm still trying to figure out where my copy of Midnight's Children has disappeared to. Rushdie was here several years ago for a library lecture series event, and he signed my copy. I'm sure I put it "somewhere safe"...

>103 laytonwoman3rd: - Ah, yes, those *safe places*, where all other things of value and import reside. My mother used to hide chocolate from my father, then she would come to me and ask me where the latest *safe* hiding place was, when she had a craving for chocolate.... Books and chocolate, you know, the priorities of life...;-)

Hi Kim! I just created a thread for February's group read of Toni Morrison's Paradise.

Last I heard you were planning to join us and I hope some others will too!
http://www.librarything.com/topic/329307

>104 jessibud2:

"Books and chocolate, you know, the priorities of life"

and TV remotes, apparently!

And I'm interested in joining the Paradise read since I haven't read that one yet.

See what you're starting?

I'm also trying to check the news less obsessively. It's not an easy habit to break - the nutso conspiracy theories are terrifying.

One of my f2f reading groups read My Name is Red some years ago. Reading over my review, it seems I found it both rewarding and slow. At the same time, I found a book on the legendary hero of Persia, Rostam, that takes place in the same era. The art described in MNiR is on the cover, and the history does inform the novel.

So impressed with your book organizing, Kim! I had a system, but it has fallen apart.

>109 banjo123: I too used to have such an organized book collection... A few years ago, I decided to hell with it and made an art project out of my bookshelves, grouping genres and similar authors, and squeezing in all sorts of little figurines, stuffies, and mementos where appropriate. It makes me smile being able to see it from my bed. However, I sometimes cringe at how alphabetically disorganized it is too :/

>84 Berly: As I bring books down from the attic, I keep finding ones that were never catalogues! I will need to go along my shelves once I get all the attic books sorted (and discarded) and weed like crazy before my move.

>67 Berly: "I am more excite to read Paradise with all of you than for the actual book! LOL"
I know! Our need for connection is as poignant as ever, right???

>82 Berly: I'm glad you enjoyed Squeeze Me. As a native Floridian, I so appreciate Hiaasen's snark, his disdain for all that Florida has become, and his absolute love for what the unspoiled Florida was.

Hi Berly, just wanted to say hello and see if everything's alright! Have a lovely Tuesday!

What the? Where are you!? (asking kindly)

Well, I've picked up two more BB's, My Name is Red and Caste. I guess that's what happens when you innocently go browsing!

>85 FAMeulstee: Slowly making progress. Thanks for the affirmation. : )

>86 LovingLit: You should read The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht. I gave it five stars.

Still enjoying Caste. I am reading a little at a time--it's so good!

My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk

>87 BLBera: Twin! Look what you did! And on my thread. LOL. So, it seems you are not the only one interested! I'd be up for a group read. I actually grabbed my copy from downstairs and it is now by my night table.

So does March work for everyone?

>88 msf59: I loved A Monster Calls! Yes, that would be a nice one to have a keeper for.

>89 PersephonesLibrary: See >117 Berly: : )

>90 lauralkeet: Mid-February sounds great for Toni Morrison's Paradise!! I've got my copy.

>91 magicians_nephew: Ooh! Marvel 1602 sounds amazing!! I will have to get my hands on that one. Thank you.

>92 figsfromthistle: Thanks for the kudos. I need all the motivation I can get to keep goin on the cataloging. Yes, Becoming was an amazing read and I got to see Michelle Obama in person at the same time! Love her.

>93 bell7: I there! No worries. I have actually been MIA on my own thread lately--so far behind. It's always nice to see you, so drop by whenever you want--no pressure. : )

>94 DeltaQueen50: Thank you! So nice to see you. Hope life is treating you well. And the books, of course.

>95 charl08: >96 Caroline_McElwee: >97 BLBera: >98 PersephonesLibrary: Awesome!! Looks like a group read of My Name Is Red is on!!

Check out >117 Berly: and let me know about timing.

I think I will start a new thread and we can talk about timing there.....but I can't right now. LT issue. Will have to get that going later today.

; )

>99 laytonwoman3rd: >100 drneutron: Whoohooo! The list keep growing! So fun!

See >117 Berly: and >120 Berly:.

>101 richardderus: Well, that just seals the deal. Maybe you should reread My Name is Red with us!!

>102 jessibud2: Keep looking 'cuz a group read is gonna happen. : )

>103 laytonwoman3rd: THat's the problem I always seem to have with "somewhere safe," LOL.

>104 jessibud2: Yes!! Books and chocolate are definitely priorities!! I laughed when I read this because I have several hidden spots where I keep the chocolate from/for my hubby. It is a frequent late night request from him. LOL

>105 lauralkeet: Thanks for positing the link to Morrison's Paradise group read. I'm in! Topic starred.

>106 laytonwoman3rd: Exactly!! LOL

>107 streamsong: Another group reader! I probably won't start Paradise for a week or so. Can't wait.

The news is still not exactly uplifting, but at least Rump isn't always on it. I am sure he will be once the Impeachment starts up. Sigh. I want him and his cronies to just go away.

>108 ffortsa: Okay, then. Thanks for the insider information. ; )

>109 banjo123: >110 Esquiress: I have lots of knick knacks mixed in on my shelves, too. Just not on that one in the photo. LOL. Mine are mostly alphabetized, but I have a shelf that's unread, another one of those under my window in my bedroom and then the must-read-soon ones by my fightable (not alphabetized). Then there are the read books, and my INDIEspensable collection. Oh, and then there are the kids rooms and the study. Sigh. I often have to hunt.

>111 ronincats: Good luck on the weeding!! When are you planning to move?

>112 EBT1002: Yup. I love my friends here as much as the books. : )

And my book discussion with my Dad got delayed, so we are talking about Squeeze Me this Saturday. Should be fun--the book was!! And I totally agree on your Haaisen comments.

>113 PersephonesLibrary: >114 LovingLit: Where have I been? Ha!! First of all, thank you for asking and worrying about me. I really appreciate that. I am fine. : )

But....RL has been insane!! First the drive way happened (burst water main talk about on last thread), then my daughter moved out, then my son's girlfriend moved in, but then they found an apartment, so they are moving out again next Tuesday, and my sister is looking for a condo, so my weekends have been spent doing that, and then we had to get an arborist to cut back tree limbs, there were some car repairs, today we are shopping for kitchen stuff....

Now do you understand my lack of LT time? LOL.

OMG!! I could really use some boring alone time.

I may be a little stressed until everyone moves out, but it should get better after next Tuesday.

: )

>115 Oregonreader: Well, those books were just innocently posted. Come visit anytime you run out of book ideas! ; )

Hi, Indispensable Reader.

Ross Gay is definitely upbeat. His sunny but thoughtful and well-written poetry in Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude was a sharp contrast to the glum (but beautiful) Louise Gluck poetry I'd been reading.

I'm not looking forward to drumpf being in the news again either. It has been so much better without him. Gratitude to Georgia again, as it looks like the Senate will pass the Biden covid relief bill along party lines, with Mitch McConnell having no way to block it or screw it up.

>117 Berly: Yup, count me in.

>126 Berly: OMG indeed. I hope you get a little quiet time soon Kim.

>116 Berly: Hi! Your absence was noticeable.

>126 Berly: I hope you get so bored you polish the legs of your dining-room table for fun.

Y'all enjoy the Orhan Pamuk group read! I've sworn off them, it seems I'm never in sync with the group somehow.

It will be so quiet around your house, TwinK that you won't know what to do with yourself.

I would prefer April for My Name Is Red; March is women's history month, so I like to devote March to women. But if that works for everyone else, I can make it work.

I missed you. Make sure you are taking care of yourself.

>128 jnwelch: Ross Gay's The Book of Delights is very stream of consciousness, with some definite sad/poignant images to contrast the bright and beautiful things he writes about. I think I might like his poetry better, but I am enjoying the book.

Props to Georgia, again!

>129 Caroline_McElwee: Yay! I'll try and get a thread set up soon.

And thank you! One more week to get through....today we outfitted my son and his girlfriend with kitchen stuff. A lot will be extras I had floating around, but they definitely needed some new things, too. Her mom came along and we just split the grand total. Not too bad.

>130 quondame: Does that mean you missed me? : )

>131 richardderus: I am not sure I will ever be that bored! LOL. Well, no reread, but feel free to join us and chime in with your amazing perspective and interesting thoughts. Smooch

>126 Berly: That's... a lot. Sounds like you'll need a breather for sure :)

>126 Berly: Ok, 'just' busy :) That's OK then.
My lot went back to school today after 6 weeks off. And, as I wasn't working, I made apple crumble, and then some amazing muffins that look like Simpsons donuts! (and dinner etc). Also bought two books, and had a coffee out with my lovely other.
*Sigh of contentment*

>135 Esquiress: Yeah. A little less going on would be good. Soon....!

>136 LovingLit: That sounds lovely! I am totally jelly! (Apparently that's the cool way to say jealous now. If you are young. LOL) Hope your happiness continues. : )

>137 Berly: A balance between "too much" and "too little" is preferable. I don't know about you, but if I don't have at least a few things to do, everything grinds to a halt and I get nothing done (e.g., during my pandemic unemployment last year).

>132 BLBera: Oops! Hi, Twin! I am still trying to start a new thread to talk about when we want to read My Name is Red and the link it not working. I am not set on March and since you got all this enthusiasm going, I think we can push it out a bit to accommodate you. : )

>138 Esquiress: I totally get what you are saying. It's just so hard to strike a good balance sometimes. I am clearly missing the mark right now. So, just a FEW days of nothingness and then back to a little something. LOL.

So, I just started 3 new books....

>126 Berly: No pressure intended. I was just wondering - and I am glad it was "just" being busy. :) I am in for My name is Red in March or later. So April is perfectly fine with me.

You don't have to wait on me, TwinK.

>140 Berly: The picture gremlin strikes again. I can only see Clegg's book.

>143 thornton37814: Me, too. (I thought it was my internet connection)

>143 thornton37814: - Me three!

I really enjoyed Did You Ever Have a Family, Kim. Hope you do too! I was friends with his sister in middle school and first heard about the novel from a Facebook post of hers. He has a new one out that also sounds good.

>145 katiekrug: Me four, and when I try to open the other two in different tabs, there's a privacy error. Maybe use LT's cover images?

LOL!! I did use LT's cover images!!! WTH?!?! And they all show up on my screen. So, in print...

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
In Search of Black History by Bonnie Greer
In the Shadow of Power by Viveca Sten

I am already really enjoying DYEHaF--love that it has multiple points of view and it works!
ISoBH takes the reader to all sorts of places and times outside of American History, so I am enjoying that.
And ItSoP is the next in a series I have very much enjoyed, so I expect it will satisfy, too.

I still can't begin a new topic for My Name is Red. Is anyone else having problems with starting a thread?

Is everyone OK with April for our month to read it?

Katie can't use the continuation feature on her 1,176-post thread, either. Jim said something over there, I think it was post 967 or so, about being able to use the feature again in two weeks.

But he got up on the wrong side of the bed, so might have been yanking her chain....

>147 Berly: They are showing up now. I think the ones coming from Amazon sometimes have problems, so changing to one of the "high resolution" user-submitted photos usually does the trick.

>147 Berly: I could see them. Could it be a Mac/PC thing? No hurry for My Name is Red thread. :)

I am so with you on the need for boring alone time! Your house has been hectic.

I see that you called last week. How did I miss that? Must have been in a zoom meeting.... LOL

Today I’m volunteering at a community vaccination clinic. 600+ booster shots. And I’ll get my primer shot!

I’d be interested in the group read of My Name is Red, too. Right now I’m trying to get into Paradise.

Miss you, my friend.

Wishing you a lovely weekend, Kimmers.

>147 Berly: I am also keeping my date with you and Bill Clegg. About to start Did You Ever Have a Family

>148 Berly: April sounds good to me, Kim. Looking forward to *finally* getting it off my shelf and read!

Kim! There you are. I lost you somehow, but now I’ve found you again and all is well.

>140 Berly: I can see all three photos on my iPad.

Just passing by to see how you are doing, Kim! :)

My Name is Red Group Read!!

Shooting for April....

https://www.librarything.com/topic/329739

>149 richardderus: The new thread button is finally working today!!

>150 thornton37814: Phew! Glad the pics are showing up again. : )

>151 BLBera: >152 EBT1002: Miss you, too, two, Twins!! I am so wiped out. Way too much going on. Moved my son out this week and of course, his version of leaving his room clean and mine are not quite the same!! LOL. So today I cleaned that room and then moved my nephew into it. Nephew has been in a much smaller room, so he's psyched! My son loves his new apartment. He is downtown on the 19th floor and can see Mt Hood out one side and downtown and the river from the other. He is in heaven.

My sister closed on a condo and had the inspection, both this week. Looking good, so she will only be with me for another 5-6 weeks. Then we got hit with the snowstorm--snow layered with hail and ice. Ugh. Both my sister and son got two snow days off work. I am still trying to hang on -- really could use my own space again, but I know that will happen soon.

Pissed they acquitted Rump. WTF?

I am watching lots of tennis. : )

>153 PaulCranswick: I am using that lovely wish this weekend, since I didn't really get it until today. ; )

>154 PaulCranswick: I am halfway through Did You Ever Have a Family and loving it. All the short stories from different people's perspectives and how they all come together. Very well done so far. What do you think?

>155 charl08: Yay! And I finally got the thread up. >158 Berly: I think it will be fun and several people are on board. : )

>156 humouress: All is indeed well if you are here! : ) And look! I made it back to my own thread, too. Life is good. LOL

>157 PersephonesLibrary: Thanks for checking in on me. I am over most of the hurdles life has thrown my way. Maybe now I can get back to books and LT. That's my plan anyhow. : )

I have received two ARC from LT lately and I need to get to them...


Voyagers: Twelve Journeys Through Space and Time by Robert Silverberg and


Ancient Bones: Unearthing the Astonishing New Story of How We Became Human
by Madeleine Bohme

>158 Berly: April is perfect. *'d.

>160 Berly: Such a lot of tooing and froing Kim, but also lots of happy campers too.

Yes, scowling at the impeachment outcome too. Not enough people with real civic duty in their bones, but yay for the few who did what they should despite knowing they would fail.

>161 Berly: I'm almost done and it is a good one isn't it? Sort of occupies the space that Kent Haruf has vacated but with a slightly different approach. About two hours and I'll have finished it.

Happy Sunday, Kim. I miss seeing you around but it sounds like all is well with you. I remember enjoying Did You Ever Have a Family but it has been several years. I also started Paradise. I am glad I was able to join this G.R.

How is your weather? My sister in Salem reported that they got hit with a nasty ice storm and lost power, along with some tree damage.

Thanks for My Name is Red thread. I guess I'll be reading it in April. :)

Go Serena! I would curl up and duck if the ball were coming at me that hard.
And, of course, go Rafa!

Tennis has been cutting into my reading the last few days.

You sound as busy as ever. I hope you are taking care and get some down time soon.

>164 Caroline_McElwee: Excellent!! The * not the impeachment outcome. ; )

>165 PaulCranswick: I should finish it up in a day or two. Thanks for suggesting Did You Ever Have a Family to kick off my INDIEspensable reading this year. I apparently haven't read any Kent Haruf, so I can't verify the comparison, but now I need to add him to my TBR list!

>166 msf59: I miss being here!! And you!! LOL. I figure I have another 5-6 weeks with my sister here and then my life can get back to normal, well the new COVID normal, which should have more LT time in it. Not that I don't love my sister and nephew ( I do!), but time has been spent on much more social things, lots more games and movies and I am enjoying their activities while they are here.

>167 BLBera: April seems to work for everyone for My Name is Red, so I went with it.

I have been watching lots of tennis lately, especially since we are snowed in. Portland got hit hard and it's snow mixed with ice and sleet, so lots of fun. I'll try to take a picture. 'Course it is nothing compared to the temps I have been seeing for MN. My brother says its ridiculously cold!! I think you guys beat the North Pole this week. Yikes! Stay warm!

>160 Berly: So glad your son has an apartment he loves and that the move was successful. I do understand you needing your own space again. I am an only-child and have an only-child so I've never lived in a big household and I think I would find it difficult.

Pissed? of course Surprised? not at all -- except actually surprised that 7 Republicans voted to convict.

Hang in there -- :)

>168 Berly: Just to let you know, I finished the Bill Clegg. You picked a good 'un, Kimmers!

>160 Berly: & >171 RebaRelishesReading:
I think the terminology for what has happened to Chump needs to be modified, Kimmers. 57:43 in favour of conviction is a constitutional failure to convict but it is not an acquittal. It will always be read that a majority of the Senate voted to convict.

Actually I think this is the best result. The Egotistical Maniac will keep posturing and probably set his sights on a run in 2024. The GOP will almost certainly not consider heaping further disgrace upon themselves by picking him as their candidate and the moron will run as an Independent thus splitting the votes on the right. The Democrats will almost certainly get two terms this way.

I hope you had a wonderful Valentine's Day, TwinK. Yes, it is ridiculously cold here. You should come for a visit. :)

>173 PaulCranswick: I like your political idea, Paul, but if the Repubs stick with closed primaries they may actually nominate him again, if he's not completely doddering by then. In the meantime, midterm elections are coming, not to mention the mayoralty of NYC, so there's lots of political activity starting up already.

I wasn't so much a fan of My Name is Red Be curious what you all make of it

Hi Kim!

I hope you get time to be alone and read soon. I remember how twitchy I'd get when I didn't have a quiet house with just me, books, and the kitties. I usually have 3 days a week now when Bill's gone from 7 - 5 at work (he works Tuesday and Thursday from home), and I cherish this time.

Happy reading weekend, Kim!

>171 RebaRelishesReading: Hi Reba. Well, I've gone from 7 down to 4 in my household and I think my sister is going to move into her condo by the end of March so I am just trying to enjoy my time with her and then I'll enjoy my alone time!!!



>172 PaulCranswick: Paul--I don't usually enjoy stories with this many narratives and so many troubled people, but I thoroughly enjoyed Did You Ever Have a Family. Not all of the characters found happiness in the end, but enough found a forgiveness or a new path that I was very satisfied. Recommended! And thanks for being my reading buddy. : )

>173 PaulCranswick: I fear that enough Republicans are fearful of Rump that his power will continue. The upside would be if the party splits and a new one is created and this would also divide the vote and perhaps make it easier for the Democrats to stay in power. I just want my country and the politics to stop being so sharply divided. I want us back to United We Stand. And I think Biden is off to a great start.

>174 BLBera: Valentine's day was fun. I made a lovely dinner and had the candles set out, which was very fortunate because...then the power went out. For days. Obviously, since I am here, it did come back on, but we didn't have heat, power, internet or phones for quite a while. It totally made me realize how much I take my life for granted! I still have friends in the next town over who don't have power yet. And it was cold, not as cold as MN, but still. And I feel for Texas.

Twin--"Yes, it is ridiculously cold here. You should come for a visit."
ME--You should really come up with a better idea for getting me excited to come see you. LOL.

>180 Berly: I'm so sorry to hear you were among those without power! We were very lucky. We had done a grocery run on Thursday morning and so we just sat inside and enjoyed the show...and never lost power, thank heavens!! Glad yours is back on now.

>175 ffortsa: Ugh. Politics. But I am happy to see you, Judy!

>176 magicians_nephew: Jim--I hope the anticipation doesn't kill you -- we aren't reading My Name is Red until April! And I hope I like it better than you did. ; )

>177 karenmarie: Right now we have "offices" everywhere in the house. Most of us work from home. I have the main floor study. My hubby is upstairs in a bedroom and my nephew is at the kitchen table. My sister uses the dining room early in the morning before she heads out to work. Yikes!!

Your household schedule sounds perfect, Karen! I am envious.

>178 PersephonesLibrary: Kathy--Thank you for the wishes. I could really use some reading time. Same to you!

>181 RebaRelishesReading: Reba--Glad to hear you didn't lose power. I felt a little like I was a pioneer. We had candles set up everywhere! Luckily have a gas fireplace and stove, so we kept pretty warm and could make food. And we had water, but we are on a private sewer system on a hill and it takes electricity to pump things up to the general sewer line so we had to really be careful not to use much water--washing dishes and flushing toilets. None of us took a shower until the electricity came back on! Thank goodness it was only a few days...!

>179 Berly: sounds like I need to read Did you ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg. Our is currently in a nearly-3-year-old rift which feels like it is cementing rather than healing. It's horrible.
So, a BB, at least!

>180 Berly: I wonder why the US has only a two party system? It really needs more to fill the gaps between the extremes. Mind you, maybe not as many as Singapore whose proud boast in last year's election was that every seat (I think) was contested. Although each seat was only contested by a total of two parties and there were almost as many parties in the country as seats.

Glad your electricity is back. I remember the days in Africa with power cuts. Of course, we were more prepared for them and it wasn't freezing cold.

Happy Birthday, Kim!

Happy {mumble}ty-{mumble}th Birthday, {Mumble}-boo!!


(thought it'd be more realistic if I pretended I couldn't pronounce your name, either)

Happy birthday, Kim!

Happy Birthday, TwinK - MANY, MANY happy returns! So glad you now have power, water, etc. I hope the day treats you like a queen.

Ooh, is it your birthday? HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

I see you got the candles out, even before Richard did but I see he brought the cake.

Hi Kim, been awhile since I delurked and posted a greeting.
Today is a perfect time to do so, and very happy wishes to you and the hubs (whose day was yesterday, IIUC).

I can't catch up, but I can certainly say Happy Birthday, so here it is: Happy Birthday, Kim!!! Enjoy! Enjoy!

>183 Berly: Gosh, having to be careful with sewer would be the last thing i would think of. Glad you were OK otherwise though. We have a couple of battery camping lanterns that I bought some years ago when we were regularly losing power in our San Diego neighborhood. Of course, as soon as I bought them the problem was fixed and we've never used them. I think of them as our electricity protection -- as long as we have them we won't lose power lol.

AND...Happy Birthday!!

Big Hugs to my pal, Kim and her birthday! Let us know if you get any books!

Happy birthday! Hope you're having a great day.

Happy birthday, Kim!

Adding my birthday wishes Kim. I hope the year ahead will have improvements on the last.

Happy birthday!

Great month for a birthday, Kim. Hope you were spoiled (maybe, with books?)

>185 humouress: if you read the early history of our country you can see that the founders expected to have many parties, small issue parties, regional parties and the like fighting it out every four years.

The Electoral College and the complex procedures that we rarely use now were put in place with the idea that there would rarely be a obvious victor and that the professional politicians in the Capital would get together in a smoke filled room and figure out who should be president more often than not.

Our modern "primary" system is a relatively recent invention - before the 1950's the regional leaders would pick candidates and the people did not have much of a voice in the selection. Times change.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday Kim! I hope it was a good one.

Happy birthday, dear Kimmers.

>95 charl08: & >180 Berly: I think he is off to a good start too. What a lovely change not have to see those inane tweets every day.

Dropping in to wish you, Happy Birthday, Kim!!!

happy birthday, Kim!

Happy birthday, Kim!
Have a wonderful time.

Happiest of birthdays, Kim! I hope you had a great day!

>158 Berly: Starring that thread, although I am having trouble keeping up with anything these days.
Including that I missed your birthday!! I hope it was a good one.

xoxoxo my friend

More Happy Birthday wishes, Kim, to add to those on FB! I hope you had fun on your big day.

I had trouble transitioning to a new thread - I got an automated notice that Tim S. was being notified, but I had to do a new book cafe from scratch, with no star carryover, so some people are still just now finding it. That sounds like a different problem from yours, though. If it continues, the LT folks probably can help.

Hi Kim my dear, i hope you had a really lovely birthday and so glad that you got power back.

>184 LovingLit: You're welcome!! : )



>185 humouress: Yes, it's nice to be warm again. And have internet and a working phone. Yeesh. Although I know I was still pretty lucky, better than some of my friends and way better than Texas!

It would be really interesting to have more than two parties. I don't like having just two extremes, but sometimes if they are too close in philosophy, candidates might cancel each other out and let the other "side" win. IDK. It's what we have right now....

>186 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen!!

>187 richardderus: I appreciate the mumbling effect effectively masking the # of years! Brilliant! And nice touch to mumble my name, too, so it isn't too obvious. LOL. Smooch.

>188 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley!

>189 BLBera: TwinB--I actually had the nicest birthday! Lots of love everywhere. On FB and LT and I had two friends drop off a little something, and then I got to have cake with my family at night. And a little champagne. So it was pretty perfect, all things considered. : )

>190 humouress: Ha!! Nina--I was beginning to worry that I wouldn't have enough candles for the power outage, but I still had Bday candles left. And Ricardo is always so thoughtful. : )

>191 SandyAMcPherson: Sandy, thanks for the double set of Bday wishes! Hubby's bday being the day before mine has always worked perfectly. When I wish him a happy bday, he always has 24 hours to come up with something for me!! LOL

>192 LizzieD: Peggy--Catch up? On LT? Is that even possible? LOL. Thanks for stopping in and for the birthday wishes.

>193 RebaRelishesReading: I like that, Reba. Electricity protection. I am going to have to get some lanterns--mine have all died out and that explains why we got hit so hard! ; )

>212 Berly: I'd be happier if we had two extremes. Instead we have one extreme and a puddle of wishy-wash with a slight smear to the left.

>214 Berly: You planned it better than my mum, then. My parents both have their birthday(s) on the 19th - so my dad has only that day to get something. My mum always says she used to wish him in the morning and in the evening he'd come home looking sheepish and with her present hidden behind his back.

>216 quondame: Well, I fall left of centre - so I suppose the wishy washy one would do for me, if I was voting.

Happy belated, by the by!

>194 msf59: Thank you, Mark. A bird--how appropriate!! : ) No books for the birthday this year. I think everyone wanted to get me things I'd appreciate longer (we all read so fast here on LT). LOL. I did get a case of wine from my parents--excited to try them!

>195 bell7: Thank you! I had a wonderful day, filled with friends and family.

>196 PersephonesLibrary: Cute! Thanks for the bday wishes.

>197 Caroline_McElwee: The bar for last year was pretty low, so I think 2021 has a good chance of being better. ; )

>198 false-knight: Thank you very much and welcome! I will have to try and find your thread.

>199 charl08: Definitely spoiled. And I don't feel any older!! LOL

Did you have a nice birthday? Were the any literary gifts? :)

>200 magicians_nephew: Yes, nice synopsis of American voting. Funny how we make plans and things turn out differently....

>201 quondame: >202 drneutron: >203 lauralkeet: Thank you!! As usual this year, I am behind on LT, but with all the birthday wishes I feel like I have been celebrating for days!! : )

>204 PaulCranswick: Thank you and tweets be gone! Praise the Lord!

>205 ronincats: >206 banjo123: >207 SirThomas: >208 scaifea: Thank you so much you guys. I am truly feeling the love. : )

>209 EBT1002: I am not keeping up with everything these days either. LOL. Just glad to see you here.

>210 jnwelch: Problem fixed! Hope life is treating you well. I am (very) slowly making the rounds -- I can't even keep up on my own thread! Hoping life calms down a little now that two of the three moves are over. I have about three weeks until my sister moves out.

>211 johnsimpson: Thank you kind sir. Love having the power back on!!

>216 quondame: "slight smear to the left"!! Sad about the situation but love the phrasing!

>217 humouress: Ha! That's very funny about your parents. Not always, but sometimes, I can see that look of panic enter my Hubby's eyes when I wish him happy birthday and he realized he has one day to make things happen. LOL

>218 Esquiress: See, I like the Mardi Gras approach to birthdays, so keep bringing on the birthday wishes!!

>219 Berly: Awesome birthday. No books, well except for the ones I bought myself. : )

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster by Bill Gates
Untamed: The Wildest Woman in America and the Fight for Cumberland Island by Will Harlan

And I did receive some wine, new Mah Jong cards, suet for my bird feeder, and some bath salts. And I had two friends drop off flowers. And my sister made dinner. More importantly, I saw all my kids for dessert! So, it was a wonderful day. : )

Thank you one and all for making me feel so loved and special!

>227 Berly: *smooch*

I dropped a link to a Georgette Heyer conference on Horrible's thread, should you be interested in investigating a brand-new-to-you author. (She wrote Regency and Georgian historical novels, if you recall.)

>228 richardderus: Oh, I am a big Georgette Heyer fan! I have read some but definitely not all of her works. Like I need another group read, LOL. But I thank you for the suggestion and I am heading over there to find the link. Smooch.

You all have it so well planned with birthday's just in time to jog partner's memory. My b'day is 2 weeks and a day before Hubby's so...(but he has never forgotten)

>230 RebaRelishesReading: Ah, I see you planned your marriage partner requirements well, too! LOL.

Hope you had a great birthday!

Hi Kim!

The Dick Francis SHARED Read March - April thread is up: March - April, Odds Against

>232 ChelleBearss: I did!! And I love the continuing Bday wishes. Thanks. : )

>233 karenmarie: Awesome! I am on it!

Hi Kim. I'm simply stopping by to say I am thinking of you and your very busy schedule with those moving in, and those moving out.

I hope you are able to rest soon!

>235 Whisper1: Very appreciated, Linda!! I am a little stressed, but the end of all this ruckus is in sight, so I am hanging in there. : )

>212 Berly: and today I collected it from the library :) Did you ever Have a Family, that is.

>226 Berly: Bill Gates, isn't he that computer guy who sent fAke sNOw!! to Texas?

lol/not lol

Hey Kim! Hope you had a great birthday.

Belated birthday wishes, Kim. It sounds like you had a great day with family.

I got my first vaccine shot at the Convention Center yesterday. One of the few times being older gave me an advantage. It was hard to get the appointment but easy to get the actual shot. Lots of military helping out.

Glad that your birthday was fun, Kim!

Hi Kim, just dropped by to see what you are reading these days. I hope the 'ruckus' of folks moving out is done. I kind of lost track of the ins and outs...

Have a lovely start of the week, Kim! Hopfully, you had a wonderful birthday and could celebrate with a lot of books!

Just this: xoxoxo

Hi all! Love you, love you, love you!!

My sister closes on her condo next Monday and her pod from MN arrives that Thursday. I figure she will spend another week or so moving stuff from my house to hers. We have also been busy shopping for furniture. She wanted a fresh start and only kept a few cherished pieces from her old house. We are doing the final walk though this weekend. So the craziness is not over yet, but close!! And then I will be back here again. I miss you guys so much. : )

We miss you too!
I wish you a wonderful time, Kim.

What Thomas said!

Missing you Kim my dear, will be along later with a better post, lol.

p.s. Still drinking lots of tea.

We miss you - but real life is more important (most of the time). :)

Dropping in to say hello. Enjoy the last part of the craziness :)

Yoo hoo! Where aaarrre you? *smooch*

Thinking of you and wishing you well.

>244 Berly: Have a lovely end to this upheaval, relief but also, perhaps a time will come when you'll look back say,"Remember when we were all at my house and there was a pandemic?" It will feel surreal. It will be nice to have your house back to normal, too. And us LT-ers will be waiting here...

>244 Berly: We miss you too!

Looks like you're in the midst of a whirlwind, Kim. See you when life settles down again!

Sounds like life is busy!

It's nice you could have your family together but I'm sure you're looking forward to having your own space again. But your sis will be just down the road after this so it'll be easy to pop over for a girls' night. I wouldn't mind that. :0)

Have a lovely week, Berly!

Hi Kim! Hopefully things are well out there in Portland. My husband is visiting Corvallis right now.

Hope you're just having some nice "down time" to recover from all of the family time, family moving, etc. Take care and come back soon.

What a whirlwind, Kim. Bittersweet that you will soon have lots of me time.

Quick hello, and I hope things will settle down soon for you.

I am moving on to my next thread...in more ways than one....