karenmarie, addictively turning pages, chapter 12

Welcome to my twelfth thread of 2018. Thank you to all my visitors!

Being retired is bonaroo! It’s the berries! It’s aces, snazzy, hot, smooth, sweet, swell, keen, and cool. It’s also the fox’s socks, the cat’s pajamas, the bee’s knees, the eel’s hips, the monkey’s eyebrows, the sardine’s whiskers, the gnat’s whistle. I do not miss working at all. I still do a happy dance every morning I don’t have to wake up to an alarm.



I read, am a charter member of the Redbud and Beyond Book Club, now in its 21st year, am Treasurer for our local Friends of the Library (henceforth abbreviated FoL), and manage our home, finances and etc. as my husband heads off to work Monday – Friday. Being an introvert (you’d never guess it from these pages!) I need and cherish the alone time to recharge my batteries.

I have been married to Bill for 27 years and am mother to Jenna, 25, living about 3 hours away and working on a 2-year business administration program at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington. We have two kitties, 18-year old Kitty William and 11-year old Inara Starbuck. We live in our own little corner of paradise on 8 acres in central North Carolina USA, currently down two trees because of Hurricanes Florence and Michael.

This is a photo of my paternal grandmother Nellie Patrick Pomeroy. My guess is early 1900’s, before she married my grandfather in 1907. I still have the silk shawl she was wearing.




My goal is to read 105 books in 2018, 5 more than I read in 2017. I’ve read 92 so far. I missed my pages read goal of 34,000 pages by 525 pages last year, so will keep the same pages goal. I don’t think I’m going to make it, and next year will not have a pages read goal, I think.







And, in honor of Sue Grafton, I am going to re-read all her Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Series books this year. Alas, there will never be a Z. I’ve read A-M so far.




A few quotes about libraries that mean a lot to me:

Libraries are reservoirs of strength, grace and wit, reminders of order, calm and continuity, lakes of mental energy, neither warm nor cold, light nor dark. The pleasure they give is steady, unorgastic, reliable, deep and long-lasting. In any library in the world, I am at home, unselfconscious, still and absorbed. Germaine Greer

I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book. – When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library. Jane Austen

I like libraries. It makes me feel comfortable and secure to have walls of words, beautiful and wise, all around me. I always feel better when I can see that there is something to hold back the shadows. Roger Zelazny

And finally, very few books are worth slogging through when the inspiration to read them has gone. I abandon books with glee.

My theme for 2018, addictively turning pages, comes from an image on Mark’s thread first thread of 2018. In this case, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Read

1. Every Dead Thing by John Connolly 12/27/17 1/6/18 *** 467 pages trade paperback
2. Kinsey and Me by Sue Grafton 1/6/18 1/9/18 **** 283 pages hardcover
3. The Country Girls by Edna O'Brien 1/1/18 1/10/18 *** 1/2 175 pages trade paperback
4. You're All Just Jealous of My Jetpack by Tom Gauld 1/1/18 1/15/18 **** 160 pages hardcover
5. Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House by Michael Wolff 1/6/18 1/17/18 *** 1/2 328 pages hardcover, Kindle
6. No Middle Name by Lee Child 1/17/18 1/19/18 **** 418 pages hardcover
**abandoned after 90 pages** Brain Food by Lisa Mosconi 1/9/18 326 pages trade paperback ER Book
7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 12/3/17 1/22/18 **** audiobook, 19 hours
8. The Hounds of Spring by Lucy Andrews Cummin 1/23/18 1/23/18 ****1/2 160 pages trade paperback
9. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman 1/20/18 1/26/18 **** 337 pages trade paperback
10. The Far Side Gallery 5 by Gary Larson 1/24/18 1/27/18 159 pages trade paperback 1995
11. A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton 1/26/18 1/30/18 ***1/2 209 pages hardcover
12. Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens 1/1/17 1/31/18 **** 780 pages plus 9 pages introduction
13. A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley 2/1/18 2/5/18 ****1/2 367 pages trade paperback
**abandoned after 32 pages Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright 2/1/18 266 pages hardcover
14. B is for Burglar by Sue Grafton 2/5/18 2/6/18 **** 186 pages hardcover
15. C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton 2/7/18 2/8/18 **** 181 pages hardcover
16. D is for Deadbeat by Sue Grafton 2/8/18 2/9/18 **** 184 pages hardcover
17. E is for Evidence by Sue Grafton 2/9/18 2/10/18 ***1/2 180 pages hardcover
18. F is for Fugitive by Sue Grafton 2/10/18 2/13/18 ***1/2 182 pages hardcover
19. Dead Wake by Erik Larson 2/14/18 2/19/18 *** 359 pages trade paperback
**abandoned after 56 pages Plainsong by Kent Haruf
20. Obsession in Death by J.D. Robb 2/19/18 2/22/18 **** 404 pages hardcover
21. The Power by Naomi Alderman 2/23/18 3/1/18 *** 382 pages hardcover
22. G is for Gumshoe by Sue Grafton 3/2/18 3/4/18 ***1/2 227 pages hardcover
23. H is for Homicide by Sue Grafton 3/5/18 3/8/18 **** 202 pages hardcover
24. The Godwulf Manuscript by Robert B. Parker 3/10/18 3/12/18 *** 153 pages hardcover
25. God Save the Child by Robert B. Parker 3/12/18 3/14/18 **** 145 pages hardcover
26. Mortal Stakes by Robert B. Parker 3/14/18 3/18/18 **** 157 pages hardcover
27. The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson 2/25/18 3/20/18 ****1/2 396 pages trade paperback
28. I is for Innocent by Sue Grafton 3/14/18 3/22/18 **** 224 pages hardcover
29. God's Kingdom by Howard Frank Mosher 3/22/18 3/26/18 ****1/2 228 pages trade paperback
30. J is for Judgment by Sue Grafton 3/26/18 3/31/18 *** 254 pages hardcover
31. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling 1/22/18 4/2/18 **** audiobook
32. The Shining Girls by Lauren Buekes 4/1/18 4/5/18 **1/2 368 pages hardcover
33. Promised Land by Robert B. Parker 4/5/18 4/6/18 ***1/2 218 pages mass market paperback
**abandoned after 132 pages The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
34. Euphoria by Lily King 4/6/18 4/10/18 ****1/2 257 pages trade paperback
35. I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella 4/10/18 4/12/18 **** 433 pages trade paperback
36. Blue Monday by Nicci French 4/13/18 4/18/18 **** 322 pages trade paperback
37. The Last of the Bighams by J.A. Zeigler 4/18/18 4/21/18 *** 230 pages trade paperback
38. Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson 4/20/18 4/23/18 277 pages trade paperback
39. The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley 04/23/18 04/29/18 *** 318 pages hardcover
40. A Perfect Match - Jill McGown 4/29/18 4/30/18 **1/2 186 pages mass market paperback
41. The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd 4/3/18 5/3/18 **** 13.5 hours audiobook
42. The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews 5/2/18 5/4/18 **1/2 trade paperback
43. The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore 5/5/18 5/11/18 ***1/2 307 pages hardcover
44. Longbourn by Jo Baker 5/11/18 5/18/18 **** 332 pages trade paperback
45. The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson 5/20/18 5/25/18 **** 354 pages trade paperback
46. K is for Killer by Sue Grafton 5/26/18 5/28/18 ***1/2 238 pages hardcover
47. The Grand Tour: Around the World with the Queen of Mystery by Agatha Christie, edited by Mathew Pritchard 5/28/18 5/29/18 ***1/2 376 pages hardcover
48. The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie 5/29/18 5/31/18 ***1/2 232 pages hardcover
**abandoned after 60 pages Prayers for the Stolen by Jennifer Clement
**abandoned after 25 pages Eva Luna by Isabel Allende
49. L is for Lawless by Sue Grafton 5/31/18 6/2/18 ***1/2 225 pages hardcover
50. Until Proven Guilty by J.A. Vance 6/2/18 6/3/18 **** 310 pages mass market paperback
51. Injustice for All by J.A. Vance 6/3/18 6/6/18 **** 342 pages mass market paperback
52. Trial by Fury by J.A. Jance 6/6/18 6/7/18 **** 322 pages mass market paperback
53. M is for Malice by Sue Grafton 6/7/18 6/10/18 **** 244 pages hardcover
54. Montana by Gwen Florio 6/10/18 6/11/18 **** 256 pages hardcover 2013
55. The Story of Human Language by John McWhorter 5/4/18 6/13/18 ****1/2 audiobook 18.25 hours
56. Calypso by David Sedaris 6/12/18 6/13/18 **** 259 pages hardcover
57. End of Watch by Stephen King 6/13/18 6/18/18 ***1/2 431 pages hardcover
58. The Quiet Child by John Burley 6/20/18 6/23/18 **** 288 pages trade paperback
**abandoned after 40 pages Gumshoe on the Loose by Rob Leininger
59. Death Without Company by Craig Johnson 06/24/18 07/05/18 ***1/2 271 pages trade paperback
60. Dakota by Gwen Florio 07/14/18 7/17/18 ***1/2 264 pages trade paperback
61. Shine Shine Shine by Lydia Netzer 7/18/18 7/23/18 ****1/2 309 pages trade paperback
62. Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz 7/15/18 7/29/18 ****1/2 391 pages hardcover
63. The Call by Yannick Murphy 8/1/18 8/9/18 *** 222 pages trade paperback
64. Less by Andrew Sean Greer 8/11/18 8/15/18 ****1/2 261 pages trade paperback
65. N is for Noose by Sue Grafton 8/17/18 8/18/18 **** 248 pages hardcover
66. O is for Outlaw by Sue Grafton 8/18/18 8/19/18 **** 274 pages hardcover
67. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen 6/23/18 to 8/20/18 318 pages hardcover - read on Kindle
**abandoned after 83 pages Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosely
68. The Storied Life of A. J. Fickry by Gabrielle Zevin 8/20/18 8/22/18 *** trade paperback
69. P is for Peril by Sue Grafton 8/21/18 8/26/18 ***1/2 hardcover
70. The Bridge by Doug Marlette 8/26/18 8/31/18 *** trade paperback
71. Tuesday's Gone by Nicci French 9/1/18 9/6/18 **** 371 pages hardcover
72. The Long Fall by Walter Mosley 9/7/18 9/15/18 **1/2 339 pages trade paperback
73. My Reading Life by Pat Conroy 9/7/18 9/18/18 **** 333 pages hardcover
74. Lethal White by Robert Galbraith 9/18/18 9/23/18 **** 647 pages hardcover
**abandoned after 64 pages Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor
75. Every Day by David Levithan 9/25/18 10/2/18 **** 324 pages trade paperback
76. The Diaries of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain 10/2/18 10/2/18 ***1/2 199 pages trade paperback
77. Lisey's Story by Stephen King 10/3/18 10/12/18 ****1/2 509 pages hardcover
78. Q is for Quarry by Sue Grafton 10/11/18 10/16/18 ***1/2 386 pages hardcover
**abandoned after 78 pages The Library of Shadows by Mikkel Birkegaard
79. The Singer's Gun by Emily St. John Mandel 10/18/18 10/19/18 **** trade paperback
80. November 22, 1963 by Adam Braver 10/19/18 10/21/18 ****1/2 206 pages trade paperback
81. R is for Ricochet by Sue Grafton 10/22/18 10/25/18 ***1/2 352 pages hardcover
82. The Outsider by Stephen King 10/25/18 10/29/18 **** 561 pages hardcover
83. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders 10/26/18 10/31/18 ***** 343 pages hardcover
84. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders 10/26/18 10/31/18 ***** 7.5 hours audiobook
85. Ordeal by Innocence by Agatha Christie 10/30/18 11/2/18 *** 212 pages hardcover
86. Tell No One by Harlan Coben 11/3/18 11/5/18 **1/2 370 pages mass market paperback
87. Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny 11/5/18 11/6/18 **** 386 pages ARC trade paperback
88. Devil's Cub by Georgette Heyer 11/6/18 11/8/18 **** 310 pages trade paperback
89. Past Tense by Lee Child 11/8/18 11/10/18 **** 382 pages hardcover
90. Force of Nature by Jane Harper 11/10/18 11/12/18 **** 324 pages hardcover
91. On Writing by Stephen King 11/13/18 11/14/18 **** 430 pages hardcover
92. S is for Silence by Sue Grafton 11/13/18 1118/18 ***1/2 374 pages hardcover
93. Brimstone by Preston & Child 11/23/18 11/28/18 **** 728 pages mass market paperback
94. Blackbeard's Sunken Treasure by Mark U. Wilde-Ramsing & Linda F. Carnes-McNaughton 10/6/18 11/29/18 **** 183 pages trade paperback 2018
95. T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton 11/29/18 12/1/18 **** 387 pages hardcover
96. Old Filth by Jane Gardam 12/2/18 12/5/18 292 pages trade paperback
**abandoned after 129 pages First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones
97. U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton 12/7/18 12/9/18 **** 403 pages hardcover
98. V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton 12/9/18 12/13/18 **** 437 pages hardcover

Currently Reading:

The Man in the Wooden Hat by Jane Gardam 12/x/18 233 pages trade paperback 2009
Lincoln and Chief Justice Taney: Slavery, Secession and the President's War Powers by James F. Simon 10/24/18
The Gospel in Dorothy L. Sayers edited by Carole Vanderhoof 11/10/18 235 pages trade paperbook 2018
Jesus for the Non-Religious by John Shelby Spong 11/19/18 293 pages hardcover 2007
Red:A History of the Redhead by Jacky Colliss Harvey 6/28/18 218 pages hardcover
Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari 5/5/18 464 pages hardcover, Kindle

Added

January - 16

1. SomeGuyInVirginia - True Tales from the Annals of Crime and Rascality by St. Clair McKelway
2. Thrift Shop - Secrets in Death by J.D. Robb
3. BookMooch - Guardian Angels & Spirit Guides by Brad Steiger
4. BookMooch - God's Fires by Patricia Anthony
5. Circle City Books - A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman for Feb Book club
6. Circle City Books - Plainsong by Kent Haruf for March Book club
7. Amazon - Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright
8. LT ER - The Hounds of Spring by Lucy Andrews Cummin
9. BookMooch - The Silver Swan by Benjamin Black
10. Thrift Shop - The Princess Bride by William Goldman
11. Amazon - A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor e-book
12. Amazon - Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff e-book
13. B&N - Persons Unknown by Susie Steiner
14. BookMooch - Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
15. Amazon - Kindred by Octavia Butler e-book
16. Amazon - Not Perfect by Elizabeth LaBan e-book

February - 9

17. Jenn - Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman
18. Scuppernong Books - A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley
19. Amazon - The Power by Naomi Alderman
20. Amazon - The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
21. dianekeenoy - My Name is Venus Black by Heather Lloyd
22. Amazon - The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White
23. Friend Sherry - Rebel: My Life Outside the Lines by Nick Nolte
24. Friend Sherry - The Journal of Best Practices by David Finch
25. BookMooch - Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson

March - 10

26. Amazon - The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor
27. Amazon - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling
28. Amazon - Enter Spenser by Robert B. Parker
29. Thrift Shop - I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
30. Amazon - God's Kingdom by Howard Frank Mosher
31. Circle City Books - Eva Luna by Isabel Allende
32. Circle City Books - Promised Land by Robert B. Parker
33. Amazon - On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder - ebook
34. Amazon - The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman - ebook
35 Amazon - True Fiction by Lee Goldberg - ebook

April - 69

36. ER - Gumshoe on the Loose by Rob Leininger
37. The Complete Cartoons of the New Yorker by Mankoff, Robert
38. 20,000 years of world painting by Jaffé, Hans Ludwig C.
39. Legends: The Century's Most Unforgettable Faces by Jordan, Killian
40. Tutankhamun: His Tomb and Its Treasures by Edwards, Iorwerth Eiddon Stephen
41. An Acceptable Time by L'Engle, Madeleine
42. Blanche on the Lam by Neely, Barbara
43. Enjoying Purple Martins More: A Special Publication from Bird Watcher's Digest by Wolinski, Richard A.
44. A Cure for Dreams by Gibbons, Kaye
45. Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Quindlen, Anna
46. The Best of Will Rogers by Sterling, Bryan
47. Theft by Finding: Diaries (1977-2002) by Sedaris, David
48. Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power by Carwardine, Richard
49. Theodore Rex by Morris, Edmund
50. The Hush by Hart, John
51. A Very Private Enterprise by Ironside, Elizabeth
52. Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms,and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories by Winchester, Simon
53. The History of Ancient Egypt by The Great Courses
54. The Story of Human Language by Professor John McWhorter
55. Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932: A Novel by Prose, Francine
56. Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Vowell, Sarah
57. What Happened by Clinton, Hillary Rodham
58. The Black Death by Ziegler, Philip
59. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Noah, Trevor
60. Did Lincoln Own Slaves?: And Other Frequently Asked Questions About Abraham Lincoln by Prokopowicz, Gerald J.
61. Sunday Silence by French, Nicci
62. Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer: A Novel by Stace, Wesley
63. The Ladies' Man by Lipman, Elinor
64. Jane Austen's Novels: The Art of Clarity by Gard, Roger
65. Recipes & Remedies From The People's Pharmacy by Joe & Terry Graedon
66. Into the Wild by Krakauer, Jon
67. Mrs. Bridge by Connell, Evan S.
68. National Geographic Complete Birds of the World by Geographic, National
69. The Mystery of the Ivory Charm by Keene, Carolyn
70. The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Keene, Carolyn
71. The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Keene, Carolyn
72. The Secret at Shadow Ranch by Keene, Carolyn
73. The Whispering Statue by Keene, Carolyn
74. The Ghost of Blackwood Hall by Keene, Carolyn
75. The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk by Keene,Carolyn
76. The Clue in the Old Album by Keene, Carolyn
77. The Clue of the Tapping Heels by Keene, Carolyn
78. The North Carolina Birding Trail: Piedmont Trail Guide by North Carolina Birding Trail
79. Damascus Gate by Stone, Robert
80. Gump & Co. by Groom, Winston
81. The Astronomer: A Novel of Suspense by Goldstone, Lawrence
82. The Last Enemy by Brophy, Grace
83. The Truth According to Us by Barrows, Annie
84. Language & Thought by Chomsky, Noam
85. Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child by Spitz, Bob
86. The Malcontenta by Maitland, Barry
87. Necessary as Blood by Crombie, Deborah
88. Changing Places: A Tale of Two Campuses by Lodge, David
89. The Accomplice by Ironside, Elizabeth
90. The Sheltering Sky by Bowles, Paul
91. The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science by Angier, Natalie
92. Slouching Towards Bethlehem: Essays by Didion, Joan
93. The Underpainter by Urquhart, Jane
94. The Cold Dish by Johnson, Craig
95. Ten Dead Comedians: A Murder Mystery by Van Lente, Fred
96. Shrimp: a Savor the South® cookbook by Pierce, Jay
97. Early Man and the Ocean: A Search for the Beginnings of Navigation and Seaborne Civilizations by Heyerdahl, Thor
98. King Solomon's Mines, She and Allan Quatermain by Haggard, Henry Rider
99. This Is NPR: The First Forty Years by Roberts, Cokie
100. Tartuffe by Moliere, Jean Baptiste Poquelin de
101. Confessions of a Shopaholic by Kinsella, Sophie
102. Iced by Siler, Jenny
103. American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Ellis, Joseph J.
104. For the Time Being by Dillard, Annie

May - 5

105. Mom's house - The Mike Roy Cook Book by Mike Roy
106. Friend Tamsie - The Whip by Karen Kondazian
107. Friend Louise - Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
108. Friend Louise - Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
109. Amazon - The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

June - 9

110. Friend Jan - Until Proven Guilty by J.A. Jance
111. Friend Jan - Injustice for All by J.A. Jance
112. Friend Jan - Trial by Fury by J.A. Jance
113. QuailRidge Books - Calypso by David Sedaris
114. Amazon - Montana by Gwen Florio
115. Amazon - Tuesday's Gone by Nicci French
116. ? - Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottaline
117. Amazon - Healthy Aging by Andrew Weil, M.D.
118. ? - The Quiet Child by John Burley

July - 92 (119 - 211 - Montana trip summer 2018)
119. Visual Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs by Dixon, Dougal
120. Battlefields & Blessings by Cook, Jane Hampton
121. The Indian Mutiny by Spilsbury, Julian
122. The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power by Sharlet, Jeff
123. Reincarnation: the Missing Link in Christianity by Prophet, Elizabeth Clare
124. The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story by Ackerman, Diane
125. Three Continents by Jhabvala, Ruth Prawer
126. The Vine of Desire by Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee
127. A Story Like the Wind by Van der Post, Laurens
128. O'Hara's Choice by Uris, Leon
129. The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness by Wiesenthal, Simon
130. The Secret Life of Bees by Kidd, Sue Monk
131. Saving Fish from Drowning by Tan, Amy
132. Over Sea, Under Stone by Cooper, Susan
133. Animal Portraits by Rouse, Andy
134. The Rape of the Great Plains: Northwest America, Cattle and Coal by Toole, K. Ross
135. The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Lemmon, Gayle Tzemach
136. Fairy Tales for Angry Little Girls by Lee, Lela
137. That Old Ace in the Hole by Proulx, Annie
138. American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America by Hedges, Chris
139. Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters First 100 Years by Delany, Sarah
140. Stones into Schools by Mortenson, Greg
141. The Complete Indian Housekeeper and Cook by Steel, Flora Annie
142. The Valley of Amazement by Tan, Amy
143. The Christ of the Indian Road by Jones, Eli Stanley
144. The West: An Illustrated History by Ward, Geoffrey C.
145. The Apocrypha of the Old Testament by
146. Compass American Guides: Montana by Tirrell, Norma
147. Close Range : Wyoming Stories by Proulx, Annie
148. The End of Days: Fundamentalism and the Struggle for the Temple Mount by Gorenberg, Gershom
149. Mrs. Caliban by Ingalls, Rachel
150. The Uncensored Truth Bible for New Beginnings by Wilhite, Jud
151. The Hundred Secret Senses by Tan, Amy
152. Eerdmans' Handbook to the Bible by Alexander, David
153. Between the Lines; A View Inside American Politics, People, and Culture by Alter, Jonathan
154. Concordance to the Holy Scriptures by Cruden, Alexander
155. The Christian Calendar by Cowie, Leonard W
156. Less by Greer, Andrew Sean
157. Red: A History of the Redhead by Harvey, Jacky Colliss
158. Betrayal of Trust by Jance, J. A
159. Failure to Appear by Jance, J. A
160. Judgment Call by Jance, J. A
161. Cold Betrayal by Jance, J. A.
162. Deadly Stakes by Jance, J. A.
163. Cruel Intent by Jance, J. A.
164. Left for Dead by Jance, J. A.
165. Straight on Till Morning: The Biography of Beryl Markham by Lovell, Mary S.
166. The God Dog Connection by Healy, Marti
167. The Whole Truth and Nothing But by Hopper,Heda
168. In the Dark Streets Shineth: A 1941 Christmas Eve Story by McCullough, David
169. Real Boys: Rescuing Our Sons from the Myths of Boyhood by Pollack, William
170. No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Chödrön, Pema
171. Bloody Crimes by Swanson, James L.
172. Charlatan by Brock, Pope
173. Face Time by Wilde, Patrick de
174. The Island of the Colorblind by Sacks, Oliver
175. The Bartender's Tale by Doig, Ivan
176. Magic or Madness by Larbalestier, Justine
177. War of the Worldviews: Science Vs. Spirituality by Chopra, Deepak
178. Yellowstone: A Journey Through America's Wild Heart by Quammen, David
179. A Dangerous Man:: A Novel of William Wild Bill Longley by Johnstone, William W.
180. Taking the Fifth by Jance, J. A
181. Not the Way It's Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin by Jr., Cornelius Plantinga
182. Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History by Gould, Stephen Jay
183. Lives Like Loaded Guns: Emily Dickinson and Her Family's Feuds by Gordon, Lyndall
184. Letters from Yellowstone by Smith, Diane
185. This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession by Levitin, Daniel J.
186. Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA by Weiner, Tim
187. Time Cat: The Remarkable Journeys of Jason and Gareth by Alexander, Lloyd
188. The Farfarers: Before the Norse by Mowat, Farley
189. Demon Fish: Travels Through the Hidden World of Sharks by Eilperin, Juliet
190. The Catsitters by Wolcott, James
191. Making Haste from Babylon by Bunker, Nick
192. Sarah's Key by Rosnay, Tatiana de
193. Silver on the Tree by Cooper, Susan
194. Many Lives, Many Masters by Weiss, Brian L.
195. Magic Lessons by Larbalestier, Justine
196. Sacred Contracts: Awakening Your Divine Potential by Myss, Caroline
197. Full House: The Spread of Excellence from Plato to Darwin by Gould, Stephen Jay
198. Outlaws and Lawmen of the West Vol 1 by Macpherson, M. A.
199. Thunderstruck by Larson, Erik
200. The Times We Had : Life with William Randolph Hearst by Davies, Marion
201. The Surgeon by Gerritsen, Tess
202. Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush by Dean, John W.
203. Secret Smile by French, Nicci
204. The Story of Jack Ballister's Fortunes by Pyle, Howard
205. Bucking the Sun by Doig, Ivan
206. The Power Is Within You by Hay, Louise
207. A Distant Mirror by Tuchman, Barbara W.
208. Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay by Milford, Nancy
209. Same Kind of Different As Me by Hall, Ron
210. Strange Justice: The Selling of Clarence Thomas by Mayer, Jane
211. Dakota by Florio, Gwen
212. Amazon - Shine Shine Shine by Lydia Netzer

August - 51 (217 - 263 - Larry)
213. Circle City Books - The Call by Yannick Murphy
214. ER book - Day of the Dead by Nicci French
215. Bookmooch - My Happy Life by Lydia Millet
216. Quail Ridge Books - The Fact of A Body by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich
217. The Collector's Encyclopedia of R.S. Prussia by Mary Frank Gaston
218. Collector's Encyclopedia of Nippon Porcelain, 3rd Series by Joan F. Van Patten
219. A Treasury of American Clocks by Brooks Palmer
220. Birds of North America: A Guide To Field Identification by Chandler S. Robbins
221. With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa by E. B. Sledge
222. Prisoner's Base by Rex Stout
223. The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout
224. Three Witnesses by Rex Stout
225. Black Orchids by Rex Stout
226. Champagne for One by Rex Stout
227. Please Pass the Guilt by Rex Stout
228. Murder By the Book by Rex Stout
229. Fer-De-Lance by Rex Stout
230. The Mother Hunt by Rex Stout
231. Death of a Doxy by Rex Stout
232. The League Of Frightened Men by Rex Stout
233. Some buried Caesar by Rex Stout
234. Before Midnight by Rex Stout
235. And Four To Go by Rex Stout
236. Trio for Blunt Instruments by Rex Stout
237. A Family Affair by Rex Stout
238. Too Many Cooks by Rex Stout
239. Three Men Out by Rex Stout
240. The Black Mountain by Rex Stout
241. Death of a Dude by Rex Stout
242. The Rubber Band by Rex Stout
243. Over My Dead Body by Rex Stout
244. Triple Zeck: A Nero Wolfe Omnibus by Rex Stout
245. The Doorbell Rang by Rex Stout
246. The Father Hunt by Rex Stout
247. Gambit by Rex Stout
248. Easy Go by Michael Crichton
249. Binary by Michael Crichton
250. The Last Good Kiss by James Crumley
251. Utopia by Lincoln Child
252. Death Of A Peer by Ngaio Marsh
253. Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy by Frances Mayes
254. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
255. Hooking Up by Tom Wolfe
256. Night at the Vulcan by Ngaio Marsh
257. Barrier Island by John D. MacDonald
258. Fletch by Gregory Mcdonald
259. The Terminal Man by Michael Crichton
260. Artists In Crime by Ngaio Marsh
261. Murder, She Meowed: A Mrs. Murphy Mystery by Rita Mae Brown
262. 361 by Donald E. Westlake
263. Mr. Pottermack's Oversight by Austin Freeman

September - 114 (264 - 275 friend Karen)
264. The Rising Sign: Your Astrological Mask by Jeanne Avery
265. Dreams of Joy by Lisa See
266. Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
267. Freebird by Jonathan Raymond
268. Barbed Wire Heart by Tess Sharpe
269. Nothin' But Good Times Ahead by Molly Ivins
270. Psychic Children: Revealing the Intuitive Gifts and Hidden Abilities of Boys and Girls by Silvia Browne
271. The God of the Hive by Laurie R. King
272. In Search Of Our Mothers' Gardens - Womanist Prose by Alice Walker
273. Servants of the Map: Stories by Andrea barrett
274. It's Always the Husband by Michele Campbell
275. Holy Blood, Holy Grail: The Secret History of Christ & The Shocking Legacy of the Grail by Michael Baigent
276. LT ER - Day of the Dead by Nicci French
277. Amazon - Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley
278. Amazon - My Happy Life by Lydia Millet
279. Friend Louise - South of Broad by Pat Conroy
280. Friend Louise -Camino Island by John Grisham
281. Friend Louise -The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond
282. Amazon - Every Day by David Levithan
283. Friend Louise - Half Broken Things by Morag Joss
284. Amazon - The Long Fall by Walter Mosley
285. Amazon - Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
286. Friend Rhoda - Sleeping in the Ground by Peter Robinson
287. FoL Volunteer book - Friday on My Mind by Nicci French
288. FoL Volunteer book - Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles
289. FoL Volunteer book - Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier
290. FoL Volunteer book - The Gate Keeper by Charles Todd
291. FoL Volunteer book - Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith - audiobook
292. Friends of the Library Sale - The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch - audiobook
293. Friends of the Library Sale - Lincoln and Chief Taney: Slavery, Secession, and the President’s War Powers by James F. Simon - audiobook
294. Friends of the Library Sale - Selections from Nicomachean Ethics and Politics by Aristotle
295. Friends of the Library Sale - Rights of Man by Thomas Paine
296. Friends of the Library Sale - Discourse on Method, Meditations on the First Philosophy, The Principles of Philosophy by Descartes
297. Friends of the Library Sale - Selections from Protagoras, Republic, Phaedrus, Gorgias by Plato
298. Friends of the Library Sale - Selections from Plato by Socrates
299. Friends of the Library Sale - Unbelievable by Katy Tur
300. Friends of the Library Sale - Ship of Theseus by V.M. Straka
301. Friends of the Library Sale - The Dead of Winter by Rennie Airth
302. Friends of the Library Sale - Sea of Glory by Nathaniel Philbrick
303. Friends of the Library Sale - A Murder, A Mystery, and a Marriage by Mark Twain
304. Friends of the Library Sale - Force of Nature by Jane Harper
305. Friends of the Library Sale - Dinosaur in a Haystack by Stephen Jay Gould
306. Friends of the Library Sale - Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
307. Friends of the Library Sale - King Arthur by Norma Lorre Goodrich
308. Friends of the Library Sale - Merlin by Norma Lorre Goodrich
309. Friends of the Library Sale - What Every American Should Know About American History by Christine Lunardini, Ph.D.
310. Friends of the Library Sale - Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman
311. Friends of the Library Sale - A Room Full of Bones by Elly Griffiths
312. Friends of the Library Sale - A Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths
313. Friends of the Library Sale - In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson
314. Friends of the Library Sale - The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels
315. Friends of the Library Sale - Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey
316. Friends of the Library Sale - The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey
317. Friends of the Library Sale - A Shilling for Candles by Josephine Tey
318. Friends of the Library Sale - The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey
319. Friends of the Library Sale - The Singing Sands by Josephine Tey
320. Friends of the Library Sale - To Love and Be Wise by Josephine Tey
321. Friends of the Library Sale - Exploring The Roots of Religion by Professor John R. Hale - audiobook
322. Friends of the Library Sale - Mr. Lincoln: The Life of Abraham Lincoln by Professor Allen C. Guelzo - audiobook
323. Friends of the Library Sale - No Excuses: Existentialism and the Meaning of Life by Professor Robert C. Solomon
324. Friends of the Library Sale - The Foundations of Western Civilization by Professor Thomas F.X. Noble - audiobook
325. Friends of the Library Sale - Great Authors of the Western Literary Tradition, 2nd Edition by Various Professors - audiobook
326. Friends of the Library Sale - Great Artists of the Italian Renaissance by Professor William Kloss - audiobook
327. Friends of the Library Sale - The History of the Supreme Court by Professor Peter Irons - audiobook
328. Friends of the Library Sale - Poetry for Cats by Henry Beard
329. Friends of the Library Sale - Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff
330. Friends of the Library Sale - The Alice Behind Wonderland by Simon Winchester
331. Friends of the Library Sale - Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson
332. Friends of the Library Sale - A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters by Julian Barnes
333. Friends of the Library Sale - Beastly Tales from Here and There by Vikram Seth
334. Friends of the Library Sale - The Disorderly Knights by Dorothy Dunnett
335. Friends of the Library Sale - The Ringed Castle by Dorothy Dunnett
336. Friends of the Library Sale - Checkmate by Dorothy Dunnett
337. Friends of the Library Sale - Midnight Rising by Tony Horwitz
338. Friends of the Library Sale - The Founding Fathers by Encyclopedia Britannica
339. Friends of the Library Sale - Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts
340. Friends of the Library Sale - Ladies of Liberty by Cokie Roberts
341. Friends of the Library Sale - The Lost City of Oz by David Grann
342. Friends of the Library Sale - The Diaries of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain
343. Friends of the Library Sale - After the Quake by Haruki Murakami
344. Friends of the Library Sale - Grasshopper by Barbara Vine
345. Friends of the Library Sale - FoL Volunteer Book - The Kept Woman by Karin Slaughter
346. Friends of the Library Sale - FoL Volunteer Book - Justice Hall by Laurie R. King
347. Friends of the Library Sale - One Dish Meals by Reader's Digest
348. Friends of the Library Sale - Shout! The Beatles in Their Generation by Philip Norman
349. Friends of the Library Sale - The Impeachment of Abraham Lincoln by Stephen L. Carter
350. Friends of the Library Sale - The Vanishing American by Zane Grey
351. Friends of the Library Sale - Arizona Ames by Zane Grey
352. Friends of the Library Sale - The Border Legion by Zane Grey
353. Friends of the Library Sale - Four Colors Suffice: How the Map Problem Was Solved by Robin Wilson
354. Friends of the Library Sale - Jesus for the Non Religious by John Shelby Spong
355. Friends of the Library Sale - Angels of Destruction by Keith Donoghue
356. Friends of the Library Sale - The Cloud Sketcher by Richard Reyner
357. Friends of the Library Sale - The Haunted Mesa by Louis L'Amour
358. Friends of the Library Sale - The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank
359. Friends of the Library Sale - The Museum Guard by Howard Normal
360. Friends of the Library Sale - The Affinity Bridge by George Mann
361. Friends of the Library Sale - Soil by Jamie Kornegay
362. Friends of the Library Sale - Tripmaster Monkey by Maxine Hong Kingston
363. Friends of the Library Sale - The Austen Escape by Katherine Reay
364. Friends of the Library Sale - A Study in Treason by Leonard Goldbert
365. Friends of the Library Sale - Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge
366. Friends of the Library Sale - The Green Knight by Iris Murdoch
367. Friends of the Library Sale - S. by John Updike
368. Friends of the Library Sale - Girls of Tender Age: A Memoir by Mary-Ann Tirone Smith
369. Friends of the Library Sale - Miss Treadway and the Field of Stars by Miranda Emmerson
370. Friends of the Library Sale - Aftermath by Clara Kensie
371. Friends of the Library Sale - Roman Fever and Other Stories by Edith Wharton
372. Friends of the Library Sale - Angels of Destruction by Keith Donoghue
373. Friends of the Library Sale - Spadework by Timothy Findley
374. Friends of the Library Sale - Eva Moves the Furniture by Margot Livesey
375. LT ER book - Never Cry Halibut by Bjorn Dihle
376. LT ER book - One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey by Sam Keith
377. Amazon - Blackbeard's Sunken Prize: The 300-Year voyage of Queen Anne's Revenge by Mark U. Wilde-Ramsing & Linda F. Carnes-McNaughton

October
378. Amazon - The Outsider by Stephen King
379. Bookmooch - Coming into the Country by John McPhee

November
380. Amazon - The Gospel in Dorothy L. Sayers: Selections from Her Novels, Plays, Letters, and Essays
381. Amazon - Elevation by Stephen King
382. Amazon - Past Tense by Lee Child
383. BookMooch - Wallis in Love by Andrew Morton
384. BookMooch - The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld
385. Kindle - The Dry by Jane Harper
386. Amazon - Becoming by Michelle Obama
387. Friend Karen - Personal History by Katharine Graham
388. Friend Karen - The Dead Witness: A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Detective Stories by Michael Sims
389. Friend Karen - Desert Between the Mountains: Mormons, Miners, Padres, Mountain Men, and the Opening of the Great Basin 1772-1869 by Michael S. Durham
390. Friend Karen - Upstairs Girls: Prostitution in the American West by Michael Rutter
391. Friend Karen - Adventures of a Psychic: A Fascinating and Inspiring True-Life Story of One of America's Most Successful Clairvoyants by Sylvia Browne
392. Friend Karen - It's Not About the Horse: It's About Overcoming Fear and Self-Doubt by Wyatt Webb
393. Friend Karen - Sweet Thunder by Ivan Doig
394. Friend Karen - Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace - One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson
395. Friend Karen - The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury
396. Friend Karen - This House of Sky: Landscapes of a Western Mind by Ivan Doig
397. Friend Karen - West With the Night by Beryl Markham
398. Friend Karen - Delicious! by Ruth Reichl
399. Friend Karen - Winter in the Blood by James Welch
400. Friend Karen - Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain
401. Friend Karen - Eragon by Christopher Paolini
402. Friend Karen - Eldest by Christopher Paolini
403. Friend Karen - The Custer Reader by Paul Andrew Hutton
404. Friend Karen - The Hiram Key: Pharaohs, Freemasons And The Discovery Of The Secret Scrolls Of Jesus by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas
405. Friend Karen - Uriel's Machine: The Prehistoric Technology That Survived the Flood by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas

Culled

1. Every Dead Thing by John Connolly first of a series I will never continue
2. Brain Food by Lisa Mosconi
3. Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright - references to The Matrix and powdered sugar donut analogies left me cold
4. Plainsong by Kent Haruf didn't hold my interest
5. The Power by Naomi Alderman daughter expressed an interest and I have no desire to keep it on my shelves for some reason
6. The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes 2.5 stars, not a keeper
7. I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella good but not worth using the shelf space to keep
8. Audubon Bird Guide - Eastern Land Birds 1946, outdated
9. The Clue of the Tapping Heels by Carolyn Keene - duplicate, poorer quality
10. The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk by Carolyn Keene - duplicate, poorer quality
11. The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Carolyn Keene - duplicate
12. The Secret at Shadow Ranch by Carolyn Keene - duplicate, poorer quality
13. The Underpainter by Jane Urquhart - duplicate
14. Waiting by Ha Jin - 2.5 stars, time to go
15. The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera - time to go
16. Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot by Al Franken
17. A Perfect Match - A Mystery by Jill McGown
18. The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews
19. The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore good book, don't need to keep
20. Night and Day by Ann Stuart
21. Prayers for the Stolen by Jennifer Clement blech
22. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - gift to friend Karen
23. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - gift to friend Karen
24. Prince Caspian by C. S. Lewis - gift to friend Karen
25. The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis - gift to friend Karen
26. The Magician's Nephew by C. S. Lewis - gift to friend Karen
27. The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis - gift to friend Karen
28. The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis - gift to friend Karen
29. The 26 Letters by Oscar Ogg (such a lovely name!)
30. Sentenced to Die by J.A. Jance - duplicate of first 3 J.P. Beaumont books - didn't know I had it
31. A Voyage Long and Strange - large print edition, replaced with one from MT trip
32. The Unquiet by John Connolly - don't like the Charlie Parker series
33. Ten Dead Comedians by Fred Van Lente - started, don't like
34. The Bridge by Doug Marlette - read, liked, don't need to keep
35. Sentenced to Die - first 3 J.P. Beaumont mysteries by J.A. Jance - got 3 paperbacks as birthday present and will keep them instead
36. Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley - abandoned
37. The Long Fall by Walter Mosley - finished it, but will not continue with the series
38. Angels of Destruction by Keith Donohue - duplicate
39. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell - finally realized I'd never read it
40. Prince of Dreams by Lisa Kleypas read, won't reread
41. Time Cat by Lloyd Alexander - started, abandoned
42. Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles - duplicate
43. Bushworld by Maureen Dowd - things are so much exponentially worse with drumpf that Bush is irrelevant
44. The Time in Between by Mary Duenas
45. The Siege by Stephen White
46. A Man Called Peter by Catherine Marshall - religious stuff
47. The Face Changers by Thomas Perry
48. The Eye of the Leopard by Henning Mankell
49. Great Tales of Mystery & Suspense
50. The Excursion Train by Edward Marston
51. The Virgin in the Garden by A.S. Byatt
52. The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
53. The Old Farmer's Almanac of 2000
54. A Christmas Treasury edited by Jack Newcombe
55. Range of Motion by Elizabeth Berg
56. The World of Mr. Mulliner by P.G. Wodehouse
57. Irving Berlin by Mary Ellin Barrett
58. A Blunt Instrument by Georgette Heyer - 58-68 will never read the unread ones, given to a good home!
59. Behold Here's Poison by Georgette Heyer
60. Death In The Stocks by Georgette Heyer
61. Duplicate Death by Georgette Heyer
62. Envious Casca by Georgette Heyer
63. Footsteps In The Dark by Georgette Heyer
64. No Wind Of Blame by Georgette Heyer
65. Penhallow by Georgette Heyer
66. The Unfinished Clue by Georgette Heyer
67. They Found Him Dead by Georgette Heyer
68. Why Shoot a Butler? by Georgette Heyer
69. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
70. The Doorbell Rang by Rex Stout duplicate
71. Let it Bleed by Ian Rankin - won't read any more of the Rebus series
72. Hide and Seek by Ian Rankin - ditto
73. The Falls by Ian Rankin - ditto
74. The Book Club Cookbook by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp - meh
75. South of Broad by Pat Conroy - will never read
76. Tell No One by Harlan Coben - will never reread, not part of his Myron Bolitar series
77. Sweet Thunder by Ivan Doig - duplicate, upgraded to hardcover
78. Calphalon Cooks Weeknights
79. Where Did I Come From by Peter Mayle
80. My Body, My Self for Girls by Madaras, Lynda, & Area
81. Asking about Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
82. Growing up: It's a Girl Thing by Mavis Jukes
83. How To Talk to Your Child About Sex by Linda and Richard Eyre
84. Parenting with Love and Logic by Foster Cline, M.D. and Jim Fay

Statistics Through November 30

94 books read
10 books abandoned
28,247 pages read
79.5 audiobook hours
Avg pages read per day, YTD = 85
Avg pages read per book, YTD = 301

Author
Male 44%
Female 56%

Living 62%
Dead 38%

US Born 76%
Foreign Born 24%

Platform
Hardcover 50%
Trade Pback 35%
Mass Market 7%
Audiobook 5%
e-Book 2%

Source
My Library 96%
Other 4%

Misc
ARC/ER 2%
Re-read 30%
Series 50%

Fiction 87%
NonFiction 13%


Author Birth Country
Canada 1%
England 17%
Ireland 2%
Scotland 2%
South Africa 1%
Sweden 1%
US 76%

Original Decade Published
1810-1819 1%
1830-1839 1%
1900-1909 1%
1920-1929 2%
1930-1939 1%
1950-1959 1%
1960-1969 1%
1970-1979 4%
1980-1989 11%
1990-1999 15%
2000-2009 19%
2010-2018 43%

Genre
Archaeology 1%
Comics 2%
Fantasy/Supernatural 10%
Fiction 14%
Historical Fiction 4%
History 3%
Humor 1%
Linguistics 1%
Memoir 4%
Mystery 50%
Politics 1%
Romance 4%
Social Commentary 1%
Steampunk 1%
Thriller 1%
True Crime 1%

Welcome!

Happy new thread, Karen! That photo of your grandma is gorgeous!

Thank you, Shelley!

Happy Saturday, Karen. Happy New Thread! Well, they didn't call me into work, so I am heading out for another bird stroll. Enjoy your day.

Thanks and thanks, Mark! Enjoy your bird stroll.

Jenna and I are going to see Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald at either 10 or 1, depending on when she gets up. It only takes 35 minutes to get to the theater, and I don't anticipate huge crowds either time.

Happy new thread!

Hey Horrible. Brought you a caramel-apple mug cake.

Figured you had the coffee covered.

Happy new thread, Karen. Sounds like you are having a wonderful relaxing weekend. Hope you both enjoyed the movie.

Happy new thread!

I'm in!

Happy new thread! Hope you're having a good Thanksgiving weekend.

Happy new thread, Karen!

>1 karenmarie: Lovely picture of your grandmother and how nice you have that silk shawl.
I don't keep much, but do keep a wool shawl of my grandmother. Don't wear it much anymore, because it was getting thin.

Happy new thread Karen my dear, hope you and the family had a great Thanksgiving Day and that you are having a really good weekend. Sending love and hugs to you all from both of us dear friend.

Happy new thread!

>3 karenmarie: all I can say is ...wow.

Way way a long time ago, early in your last thread, you mentioned not reading much of Lionel Schriver's work on account of disagreeing with some of her views. I hadn't heard about any controversial views....all I know really is about her estrangement from her siblings (which might even be an over statement), supposedly because of her basing characters on them!

Happy new one, Karen!! I love the library sayings up top. And it looks like you are going to make your 105 goal this year--you can do it!!

Happy new thread, Karen. Beautiful picture of your grandmother!

Yikes! Yesterday went by in a blur and I didn’t have a chance to get back to LT.

>11 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>12 richardderus: Oh, yum. Thank you, RD. Coffee was covered yesterday and today – halfway down my first mug.

>13 Familyhistorian: Thank you , Meg. I’m relaxing more than I should – there’s still about 10 minutes to go to get the kitchen completely back to normal. I’ll do that tomorrow. Jenna and I both really liked the movie. This time I got to concentrate on the people by basically ignoring the special effects.

>14 thornton37814: Thanks, Lori.

>15 SomeGuyInVirginia: You’d better be, Larry!

>16 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks Reba – we are. Much relaxing and binge-watching Doctor Blake Mysteries. We’ve had Thanksgiving dinner three nights in a row. I think Bill’s done – he’s not usually much of a leftovers fan. I’ll turn the turkey carcass into soup this week.

>17 FAMeulstee: Thank you, Anita. I don’t wear my grandmother’s shawl but I love having it and knowing that she treasured it enough to bring it to California from Nebraska in 1955. That’s when she moved in with Mom and Dad. I weep when I think of the things she and Dad told me were left in the basement, but the shawl made it.

>18 johnsimpson: Hi John, and thank you. I didn’t exhaust myself as much as usual this Thanksgiving. Jenna was more helpful than ever. Sending love and hugs back to you and Karen.

>19 drneutron: Thank you Jim!

>20 LovingLit: I know, Megan, I know. It almost scares and overwhelms me, but I know next year should be significantly less.

I don’t remember saying that about Lionel Shriver, but in 10 years and 2 months on LT I’ve been rather verbose:

Total messages: 20,488
Word count: 1,741,583
Words/message: 85.01

so I very well may have.

I’ve loved the three books I’ve read by her. I need to cut back on book acquisitions next year, but I’ll grab any by her that I can get used/at the FoL sales.

>21 Berly: Thank you, Kim. It’s funny, I love libraries and spend up to 10 hours/week with Friends of the Library volunteer work, but rarely check any out anything these days. Thanks re my goal, too – I feel very good heading into the final lap.

>22 richardderus: Hi RD! Bags of books, boxes, of books, stacks of books – all are pleasing to the eye. And coffee. You know me very well.

>23 EllaTim: Thank you, Ella. By the time my memories of her start, she was elderly and VERY strict. She was, after all, born in 1882. However, she kept a milkglass jar filled with either lemon drops or malted milk balls in her bedroom (I still have it in the attic somewhere) and I remember her making pancakes for us, playing cards with us, and envelopes underneath the mailbox slot at birthdays and Christmas with $1/each for the three of us in them.

I promise to start catching up with threads later today or tomorrow. I NEED to read before starting breakfast. I'm twitching with the need to read.

"I'm twitching with the need to read." I know that feeling...

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday. Not much going on for me today. Staying in to help with chores and Christmas decorations but I am sure there will be plenty of time for the books. Bad winter storm coming tonight. Not happy about that.

Happy new thread! Love your retirement happy dance! I don't often wake up to an alarm, however I do wake up to a tiny face yelling "Mooooom" into my face

Heh. The old "vanillin-jonesin' volatile organic compound-sniffin' twitch," eh Horrible?

Happy New Thread!

"Twitching with the need to read" - I love that and I relate to that. I think I'll even go do that.

>26 msf59: Hi Mark! I see that you’ve got a lot of snow coming. Stay safe and warm.

>27 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle! I had a tiny human alarm clock for years and years. Now 25, she left a couple of hours to get back to Wilmington for classes tomorrow.

>28 richardderus: Of course, RD! I'm a hedonist at heart.

>29 streamsong: Thanks, Janet. The Panthers just lost, daughter’s driving back to her apartment in Wilmington, and it’s time to read for me again, too.

Hey, Karen. Stop by and share your reading recommendations with me. Because of the paucity of woman authored books among the 94 I've read this year (only 22 vs. 74 men), I'm committing December to only woman writers whose work I have never sampled. I picked 15 authors/books from my TBR Whatsis and what I read between now and December 31 will come from the list. I am open to any and all recommendations. (No, I don't expect to read even half of the 15; lots of distractions, don't you know.)

Hi, Karen, and Happy New Thread! Indulge the Need to Read! That's the best advice I can give, and now I'll go quietly.

>31 weird_O: Hi Bill! Okay. Excellent goal, and I love lists.

>32 LizzieD: Thanks Peggy! And, yes, ma'am. Perfect advice. A few threads, some coffee, some reading. Off I go.

Morning, Karen. Just slugging down my second cup of coffee before heading out. I want to give myself extra travel time today. It is going to be a long five days...

Hi Mark!

I know, I know.... nasty weather in Chicagoland this week for you. Stay warm and safe.

oooh aaah

>24 karenmarie: Where did you find those interesting stats? I'd love to check out mine. : )

>25 karenmarie: Hope you got some reading in and you aren't twitching anymore. LOL

Hi Kim!

On the Home page, click on Stats/Memes
Scroll Down and click on Groups and Talk

Voilà

I've gotten some good reading in, thank you. Not twitching right now. Listening to Queen ('natch), and wrapping a couple of things up to mail.

Wishing you a happy new thread, Karen.

Also I trust that your Thanksgiving weekend was a wonderful one.

>24 karenmarie: In over 7 years in the group my stats

Total Messages : 44,950

Word Count : 2,994,901

Most messages in a month : 1,675 in January 2014.

>38 karenmarie: Got it. Thanks!

My stats:

Total messages: 19,921

Word count: 2,242,369

Words/message: 112.56

Most messages: 803 in February 2017

>36 richardderus: LOVE!

Morning, Karen. No, more snow in this week's forecast but very cold the next couple of days. I can see light at the end of the tunnel, so this will keep me going.

Enjoy your day.

>36 richardderus: RD, I neglected to tell you how much I love that photo. Thank you. I saw it and then had a senior moment.

>39 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul. Thank you, nice to see you here. It was a very nice weekend, frenzied at first, which was okay, then relaxing.

>40 PaulCranswick: Wow. Very impressive. I neglected to mention that my busiest month by far is January of this year with 59288 words and 744 messages.

>41 Berly: You’re very welcome. Fun stuff, eh?

>42 msf59: Hi Mark! Even we’re getting a bit – a teensy bit – of cold. Stay warm and savor the anticipation of your trip.

...
Thanks. Today is more lazy. Books, puttering, perhaps a bit of catalog maintenance. I am not going to a book sale planning meeting - we are having a special foreign language books sale in January after a huge and generous donation. I'll be there, the cash box will be there, and I don't need to go to the meeting to give and get the info I need.

Good morning, Karen, and a belated happy new thread!

My Talk stats are much less impressive:

Total messages: 5,058

Word count: 370,176

Words/message: 73.19

January of this year was also my most active, with 440 messages.

Hey Horrible, that stats thing led me to an amazing (re)discovery: My longest message clocks in at 3,393 words.

>1 karenmarie: Wonderfully said! I couldn't agree more! Three weeks into retirement, and like you, I very much enjoy not awaking to the sound of an alarm.

And, what a wonderful photo of your grandmother!

You are collecting books at a rapid pace. I cut back this year, but the Bethlehem Library sale begins tomorrow and that is always my book buying time.

>44 harrygbutler: Thanks, Harry! Less/more impressive – it’s simply a joy to have a book family here on LT regardless of how many words get written down. I love the idea that you and Erika are in PA with your books, fur kids, antiquing, model railroading, movies, and magazines.

>45 richardderus: Hey RD! Wow, real words. My longest message is the recital of the books I’ve acquired this year. You win. *smooch*

>46 Whisper1: Hi Linda! Thank you! I’m so glad that you’re embracing retirement. Thanks re my grandmother’s photo too. I’ve said it before, I think, but she lived with us from the time I was about 2 until she passed away when I was 10. She and my mother clashed horribly, but never in front of us kids and never in a way that left tension that we could have picked up on. She didn’t want to be called Grandma or Grandmother because she apparently felt that made her seem old. Well, she was, having been born in 1882 and moving in with us in 1955. We called her Mom. Our mother was Mommy.

Two brief stories about Mom, although I have many vivid memories of her. First, when I was 7, my dad turned 39. ‘Mom’ had always told us she was 39 (a la Jack Benny), and when I asked her how she could be 39 when my dad (her son) was 39, she said she’d been fibbing and was really 78. Yikes.

Second, she was spry for being so senior. I don’t remember what I did, but she chased me around the house, cornered me in the living room (stupid on my part), and beat me with a hairbrush until it broke. Sounds terrible until you realize she was 80 at the time, so her strength was diminished and a plastic hairbrush was not particularly wicked. I never held it against her, just thought it was my due for either being disrespectful or disobedient, or both.

Good luck at the Bethlehem Library Sale.

I'm off to check my stats, but I'm reminded of an aghast 11th grader on day 1 in my class. "You mean you want me to write 500 words OUT OF MY OWN HEAD?????"

Total messages: 15,946

Word count: 1,152,597

Words/message: 72.28

>10 karenmarie: Hope you enjoyed it! I will be going with my family next weekend. We watched the first one this past weekend - it was a bit scary for the kids, but they loved it. I had already seen that one, but no one else in my family had.

Hiya, Karen. Happy "Newish" Thread. I'm a slow arriver, darn it.

Love the Grandma (Mom) photo and stories. I'm glad you had a chance to know her, even if she passed away when you were still so young.

>48 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I remember having to write stories and reports from a very young age - perhaps 8 or so. It continued through all my years of school, so writing something out of my own head was never appalling.

A bit of bragging here - daughter Jenna is taking an English class at the community college in Wilmington NC. They were assigned Educated by Tara Westover, which Jenna's been telling me for weeks that she doesn't really like. It turns out that she simply doesn't believe that Westover could have studied on her own, in a repressive/extremist environment, aced the ACT, and gotten a full ride to BYU. However, she wrote a paper that just earned her a 98, so I'm very proud of her.

Yay for over a million words.

>49 The_Hibernator: Hi Rachel! Just before Baby_Hibernator arrives, eh? I hope you and your family like it as much as I did.

>50 jnwelch: Welcome aboard, Joe! Thanks. I'm glad I had a chance to know her too. If I could go back in time, I've got about a million questions to ask her about the family, and I'm sure she could fill in some of the genealogical gaps.

>24 karenmarie: I think the comment I was responding to was way early on in your last thread! We Need to talk About Kevin remains one of the most chilling books I've read. I should never have read it while I was pregnant!

>47 karenmarie: fascinating family story. Your 'mom' and mommy did well to keep their tensions away from the kids. That must have been hard.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday! Go Jenna! I loved Educated but I agree it is tough to believe.

>52 LovingLit: Hi Megan! Ah. I can imagine how scary We Need to Talk About Kevin would have been while you were pregnant. Sorta goes along with the horrific labor stories women Do Insist On Telling You while pregnant. There should be a law against it. On the other hand, there should be a law that your ob/gyn should gently tell you that you'll gain at least half a shoe size after having a baby.

I marvel that we never picked up on it, because I truly don't remember any times where they fought. However, the latent alcoholism in my mother's generation came roaring to life during the 8 or so years Mom was with us, probably when I was 7 or so. All three siblings - my mom, her sister, and her brother, were/are alcoholics. Mom and my uncle tamed it by becoming non-drinking alcoholics, and my aunt somehow has been able to limit herself to a glass or two of wine with a meal for decades now. Bill's parents were alcoholics, too. His mother overcame it and stopped drinking completely, and his dad passed on still drinking heavily but controlled by his wife after he became housebound with ill health.

*blink* Well, that was a tangent, wasn't it?

>53 msf59: 'Morning, Mark! Thank you. Yay to Jenna. I'm 8th in line out of 14, at the library, for the 7 copies they have.

...
I'm feeling a tad puny today. I started feeling 'cold'ish yesterday and am debating whether to cancel dinner with a friend. Sigh.

I'm with you on the puny thing, only I'm a lot puny because I had to change my bandages three times after they quit on me. Knee very painful today. Ugh.

I never tried that "stats/memes" tab before. But the discussion of numbers of messages and the like pushed me. I'm proud to say the books in my collections stack up higher than the Empire State Building. (Although I'm sure the wind blasting amongst the NYC skyscrapers will topple my book-tower.)

Hi RichardDear!

I'm sorry about your poor knee. Coffee, drugs, books, and hugs and smooches from your own Horrible.

Hey there, Bill!

Stats/memes are a lot of fun, aren't they? Yay for your Empire State Building stack.

Good HEAVENS lady who told you that you could bake?! These peanut butter cookies are TERRIBLE, with a dreadful texture, rotten flavor, and there were so few of them that the crappy little package you casually swept these misshapen rejects into crushed the few whole ones into dust!

Now, you march yourself right back into the kitchen, get out the *proper* ingredients this time, and *carefully* prepare a batch (for once). Then package them *securely* (makes a nice change) and send them to me immediately.

I will forgive this, this cavalier ineptitude once and once only.

*flounces out*

Ah, they arrived two days early. I'm sorry they were terrible, dear one. Bill hates them too. Abject apologies, and your forgiveness is everything.

>47 karenmarie: I was fortunate to have a grandmother and a great grandmother on my mother's side. I have a photo of the four of us shortly after I was born. My father's mother was really very brash and I didn't like her a lot. Whereas on my mother's side, the women were lovely, and never left the house without looking nice, my paternal grandmother seemed large, tall and nasty. Her words were harsh and her manners were so very harsh. She bought me vanilla fudge ice cream -- I liked chocolate marshmallow-- I remember waiting until she left the room and I quickly put the ice cream cone down the kitchen sink with hot, hot water, hoping it would melt before she caught me.

I remember a spanking from her..It was nasty and in my mind unwarranted. Thus, I can relate to your hair brush story.

>61 Whisper1: Your memories of your maternal grandmother and g-grandmother are something to treasure, for sure. I'm sorry your paternal grandmother leaves you with bad memories.

...
edited to add: Another box of books from friend Karen in Montana arrived today. I am soooo spoiled. I haven't looked through the box yet, although I can see that there are enough to take me over the 400-acquired mark this year. She also sent some Béquet caramels, (Bozeman candy factory), totally yummy.

I've looked at this before, but probably not in the last year, Karen.

Total messages: 28,164

Word count: 1,720,067

Words/message: 61.07

Total topics: 5,415

Topics started: 160

January 2013 (figures--January is always crazy since everyone is starting new threads in the new group) at 596.

Hi Roni!

We both joined LT in October 2007 and our word counts are almost identical at 1.72 million and 1.74 million. You're more prolific in number of messages, for sure.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. I hope you are feeling better better today. I finishing up my breakfast and gulping down more coffee, before I head out. Do you see or hear coyotes, in your area?

>62 karenmarie: Unexpected books by mail, and caramels as an extra. A friend to cherish;-)

>65 msf59: Hi Mark! I actually am feeling a tad better, thank you. I may go out to make a FoL deposit, but otherwise will be inside to fully recover. I hope your work day goes well.

There's a pack about a mile from our house off to the northwest that I occasionally hear yipping. I can only hear them if I'm in the Sunroom and usually hear them early evening. I've never seen one here, just heard them. Fortunately they're far enough away from the house so that they don't threaten my indoor/outdoor kitties.

>66 EllaTim: I know, Ella, I'm sooooo lucky. I'm cataloging the books right now and, as always, having a blast. After entering the book, I always make the effort to get a non-Amazon cover, even if it means scanning the new one in.

Books from friend Karen (numbers 387-405 acquired this year):

Personal History by Katharine Graham
The Dead Witness: A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Detective Stories by Michael Sims
Desert Between the Mountains: Mormons, Miners, Padres, Mountain Men, and the Opening of the Great Basin 1772-1869 by Michael S. Durham
Upstairs Girls: Prostitution in the American West by Michael Rutter
Adventures of a Psychic: A Fascinating and Inspiring True-Life Story of One of America's Most Successful Clairvoyants by Sylvia Browne
It's Not About the Horse: It's About Overcoming Fear and Self-Doubt by Wyatt Webb
Sweet Thunder by Ivan Doig
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace - One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson
The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury
This House of Sky: Landscapes of a Western Mind by Ivan Doig
West With the Night by Beryl Markham
Delicious! by Ruth Reichl
Winter in the Blood by James Welch
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
Eldest by Christopher Paolini
The Custer Reader by Paul Andrew Hutton
The Hiram Key: Pharaohs, Freemasons And The Discovery Of The Secret Scrolls Of Jesus by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas
Uriel's Machine: The Prehistoric Technology That Survived the Flood by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas

So Michael Rutter wrote Upstairs Girls...I wonder what kind of karma he's working out.

I discovered another failing of these terrible cookies: They simply surrender their form when coffee is so much as placed in a mug near them. *tsk*

Beryl Markham. An author on my December list. Read along? I forget the others from my list that you said you have on hand. Old Filth was one.

Now that I've publicly committed to only women writers in December, I'm seeing more and more dazzling good stuff that want to read right now. Stuff by men.

>69 richardderus: 'Morning RD! What's with Michael Rutter? Books about outlaws, prostitutes, and other societal outcasts, books about Utah and fly fishing. What karma might he be working out?

Bad Cookies. I tender my humblest apologies for having the effrontery to send you defective small round legume-infused confections.

>70 weird_O: Hi Bill! I was thrilled to get the Markham audiobook, and yes, it's on your December list! Here's some of what I wrote on your thread about women readers for December: have Possession on my shelves. Old Filth is on my shelves, too, waiting to be read, so’s Gentleman’s Agreement, and The Bell Jar. I’ll follow along in your thread, and perhaps read along with you if you pick one of those. I can probably listen to the Markham book in December, but no promises - I'm now beginning to get a bit panicky about finishing 12 more books by year's end. 6 of them should be Grafton's Alphabet Series (T-Y), and 5 NOT Grafton need to be ROOTs for my 42-book ROOTs challenge. I'm trying to finish Blackbeard's Sunken Prize because one of the authors is speaking at the Library on Saturday and have 3 other non-fiction books started:

Red: A History of the Redhead by Jacky Colliss because I'm a faded strawberry blond
Jesus for the Non-Religious by John Shelby Sprong because I love the title and have a continuing interest in Christianity from an outsider's viewpoint
The Gospel in Dorothy L. Sayers because she's one of my favorite fiction/mystery authors EVER

RUTTER writing about WHORES. C'mon, think gutter, this is *me* we're following along with!

Yikes. Rutter. Okay, okay. My mind has now gone into the gutter with you, where we dwell in perfect harmony.

I knew you'd get there in the end.

...that's what the boy at the beach said *rimshot*

*serious eye roll*

93. Brimstone by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
11/23/18 to 11/28/18





From Amazon:

A body is found in the attic of a fabulous Long Island estate.

There is a claw print scorched into the wall, and the stench of sulfur chokes the air.

When FBI Special Agent Pendergast investigates the gruesome crime, he discovers that thirty years ago four men conjured something unspeakable.

Has the devil come to claim his due?

Some things can't be undone.

Why I wanted to read it: I wanted to read something that had been on my shelves forever and this seemed to fit the bill. It was on my shelves when I first started cataloging here on LT, so at least 10 years.

I also did something that I haven’t done in a long time – start a series somewhere NOT at the beginning. This is the 5th book in the FBI Special Agent Pendergast series, but it appealed to me and I’m glad I read it.

The mystery is satisfying, the writing interesting and the pace is well-maintained for a 700+ page mass market paperback. Since the advent of the internet and online searches, I have come to really appreciate books with cultural and historical references. They are easy to look up and have excellent info and visuals to add to the story.

Pendergast is an all-powerful and all-knowing seemingly preternatural being. He keeps his own counsel, much like Nero Wolfe. We are the beneficiaries of his intellect and detective abilities but only hear how he arrives at something after the fact.

The story is told from the point of view of a preacher, a journalist, Sargent D’Agosta, and, to a small extent, several other characters. I didn’t have any trouble moving back and forth among these various viewpoints.

It seems impossible that the murders are not the work of the devil, and there is a heavy dose of religious fervor and plot machinations based on the devil’s probable involvement.

Devil or man?

94. Blackbeard’s Sunken Prize by Mark U. Wilde-Ramsing and Linda F. Carnes-McNaughton
10/6/18 to 11/29/18





From Amazon:

In 1717, the notorious pirate Blackbeard captured a French slaving vessel off the coast of Martinique and made it his flagship, renaming it Queen Anne's Revenge. Over the next six months, the heavily armed ship and its crew captured all manner of riches from merchant ships sailing the Caribbean to the Carolinas. But in June 1718, with British authorities closing in, Blackbeard reportedly ran Queen Anne's Revenge aground just off the coast of what is now North Carolina's Fort Macon State Park. What went down with the ship remained hidden for centuries, as the legend of Blackbeard continued to swell in the public's imagination. When divers finally discovered the wreck in 1996, it was immediately heralded as a major find in both maritime archaeology and the history of piracy in the Atlantic. Now the story of Queen Anne's Revenge and its fearsome captain is revealed in full detail.

Having played vital roles in the shipwreck's recovery and interpretation, Mark U. Wilde-Ramsing and Linda F. Carnes-McNaughton vividly reveal in words and images the ship's first use as a French privateer and slave ship, its capture and use by Blackbeard's armada, the circumstances of its sinking, and all that can be known about life as an eighteenth-century pirate based on a wealth of artifacts now raised from the ocean floor.

Why I wanted to read it: Linda is the wife of a fellow Friends of the Library volunteer, and I’m fascinated with archaeology and NC history. Linda will be speaking at the library this coming Saturday, December 1, so I figured I’d better finish it before her talk. (I hope she brings some artifacts….)

I bought this as soon as Kirk told me his wife had co-written a book about the stunning discovery and underwater archaeology recovery project of artifacts from what turns out to be Queen Anne’s Revenge, Blackbeard’s flag ship.

It’s rather heavy going for someone who hasn’t formally studied inlet alignments, concretion, artifact dispersal, and a host of other disciplines and specialities. However, I persevered and was richly rewarded. The book is filled with photographs of the recovery operation and artifacts, charts, paintings of Blackbeard, other pirates, ships, significant players in Blackbeard’s activities and capture, and sidebars of biography, sonography, slavery, sugar, and fascinating maps. We learn the probable fate of other pirates and the ongoing QAR project.

Fascinating, intellectually demanding stuff.

Hi Karen, I see that you are getting closer to the 100 book mark for the year dear friend, hope you have had a good week so far and all is well at Chez Hengeveld.

Love and hugs.

Hi John! Yes..... but my goal this year is 105 so I've really put myself in somewhat of a bind for the end of the year. I'm pretty sure I can do it, but it won't be smooth sailing. I think my goal next year will be back to 100.

All is well at Chez Hengeveld. I seem to have successfully fought off a cold although I'm a bit tuckered out. Christmas is now looming, although I've gotten my Christmas card and gift lists about 80% complete.

Off to read T is for Trespass - only 5 to go after that to finish my Alphabet Series re-read for the year in honor of Sue Grafton, who passed away last December.

>79 karenmarie:, Hi Karen, I had forgotten that you had upped your target to 105, mine has been gradually reducing although 60 was a lot more realistic than 75 but then that dropped to 50 and I still may miss that.

Karen has almost done all the Christmas baking, the cakes are being turned and get their Brandy fix, the freezer is full of biscuits, cookies, muffins etc and she is on with the cards. Most of the presents have been bought and just need wrapping, it is me that has to do some buying so that Karen has some nice surprises on Christmas morning. I collected the new artificial tree on Wednesday and that needs to go up shortly and be decorated, not sure if we will get chance to do this before we go down to Salisbury next Thursday so it may be on the Monday after we get back late on the Sunday. I will have my instructions for what to do on Christmas Eve as Karen will be working and will not get home before 8pm so I will be doing some pre-cooking and when Amy and Andy come over, Amy has been tasked with setting the table.

I am looking forward to a lovely Christmas with all the family around the table and possibly Louise's parents, Her mum is not well and has asked if it would be ok and Karen said not a problem. Karen works under the principle that the table is never knowingly undercatered, we think she was Jewish in another life and that is meant in a good way, Karen would be mortified if she thought guests had not had enough food and if it appears that we have way too much then food packages are given out so nothing is wasted.

Total Messages - 16,396

Word Count - 1,027,002

Words per Message - 62.64

Best Month for Posts - December 17 - 374

Best month for Words - May 17 - 28757

Hello Karen! Happy relative new one!

>76 karenmarie: THIS! This was my favorite of Pendergast novels and I left the series within a couple of the following books. The first 5 or 6 are brilliant, but then things got predictable and less compelling. I listened on audio and loved Scott Brick's atmospheric narration. I hope you enjoy more of them.

>80 johnsimpson: John, it sounds like you both have Christmas well in hand. I think we're going to have to wait until Dec 8th to get a tree since I'll be busy this coming Saturday and Sunday and neither Jenna nor Bill wanted to get one last weekend.

>81 johnsimpson: Yay stats.

>82 brodiew2: Hi Brodie, thanks! It's nice to know that it was your favorite one. I think it was pretty darned good for my first. My cousin will be getting me the first and second in the series for Christmas, I already have the 3rd, and I'll probably break down some time in the new year to get #4. #5 is the first of a mini-trilogy apparently, so I'll probably also get 6 and 7 for sure then we'll see.

I guess I now have pet deer. I took this yesterday from the Sunroom. I guess they feel safe during hunting season in our no-hunting-allowed 78-acre subdivision.

>84 karenmarie: Take advice from a bitterly experienced deer feeder: Plant some pittosporums around the edges of your piece of Paradise or you'll end up with a denuded rock shelf instead of a garden. (Deer hate the smell of pittosporums.)

'Morning, RD!

I did not know that about pittosporums. They haven't denuded anything at this house, but at our previous house we had a bad winter and they even ate the azaleas. Of course every year after that they ate the azaleas.....

It's a useful little factoid that floated to the surface of my coffee, I mean mind, this morning: "Tell Horrible about the pittosporums," the coffee, I mean brain, whispered to me.

It was very unsettling.

Frankly, it sounds terribly painful. And out of control.

I'm going to use my new Instant Pot to make rice this weekend. Or maybe beans. Something. What I'd really like is for a contraption that I put chicken and potatoes in and 6 minutes later I have chicken salad.

Lots of folks have been mentioning Instant Pot here on LT this year. I love rice, but unfortunately I like it with tons of butter and salt. Chicken always seems to take such effort. Usually worth it, but still.

Hi, Karen! I hope your Friday is going well. Good luck with the deer.

>54 karenmarie: stress surely encourages excessive drinking. It makes sense.

>84 karenmarie: that is so cool! Or is it irritating you? I would deer-gaze all day.....

>91 harrygbutler: Hi Harry! Good and productive day. No pet deer today that I could see.

>92 LovingLit: I personally stay away from alcohol when I'm depressed, what with alcoholism in the family.

I look out periodically during the day, checking out the birds and if there are any deer hanging about. Two days ago I saw a 4-point buck sauntering between our property line and the folks next door. Today I heard a squirrel skittering across the roof - the crepe myrtle needs to be cut back so they can't easily jump on the roof, the little shits. They've just start doing it in the last couple of months.

>84 karenmarie: Oh, I would love to see that outside! They look so relaxed.
My garden isn't that big and with a 1.80 meter fence around, so I doubt they could cross that ;-)

They do look relaxed, Anita - they were soaking up the sun and not having to dodge in the woods with hunters about.

You wouldn't want them in your garden with all your lovely flowers, plants, bushes, and trees.

>84 karenmarie: LOVE IT!

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. We are getting ready to head out. I will be in touch when I can.

Hi Mark! I'll be sending 'safe trip' thoughts. Have FUN!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend, Karen.

Thank you, Paul! Nice to see you out and about.

Happy weekend, fellow "psh who cares *I* don't work anymore" traveler.

Hi RD! I love being retired. Have I mentioned that before?

Lovely tongue twister. And, since it's a coffee cup, extra points!

95. T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton
11/29/18 to 12/1/18





From Amazon:

Sue Grafton ups the ante for private investigator Kinsey Millhone like never before in this “taut, terrifying, transfixing”* #1 New York Times bestselling mystery in the Alphabet series.

Kinsey Millhone's elderly neighbor, Gus Vronsky, may have been the original inspiration for the term “Grumpy Gus.” A miser and a hoarder, Gus is so crotchety that after he takes a bad fall, his only living relative is anxious to find someone to take care of him and get back home as soon as she can.

To help, Kinsey runs a check on the applicant, Solana Rojas. Social security, driver's license, nursing certification: It all checks out. And it sounds like she did a good job for her former employers. So Kinsey gives her the thumbs-up, figuring Gus will be the ideal assignment for this diligent, experienced caregiver.

And the real Solana Rojas was indeed an excellent caregiver. But the woman who has stolen her identity is not, and for her, Gus will be the ideal victim...

Why I wanted to read it: Re-read of the Alphabet Series series by Sue Grafton in 2018.

This book is quite terrifying in two ways. The first is how easy it is to become vulnerable and preyed upon by bad people. The second is the escalating helplessness and sense of being played that Kinsey feels as Solana gains control of Gus’s life and focuses on Kinsey as a hindrance to her goals. We see things from Solana’s point of view and Kinsey’s in alternating chapters.

As always, there are a couple of quotes that stood out for me:

I said, “I guess I should have offered to help, but I decided I’d be better off if I learned to cope with my guilt.

“How’re you doing with it?”

“Pretty well.” p 89

I’m a huge fan of tiny spaces and for less than two thousand dollars – well, one penny less – I could easily imagine myself curled up in a camper with a novel and a battery-operated reading light. Of course, I’d park in front of my apartment instead of camping out in Nature, which in my opinion couldn’t be more treacherous. A woman alone in the woods is nothing more than bear and spider bait. p 154

A good solid entry in the series.

Hi Karen, Hope you are having a good weekend so far my dear, not been a bad day for me today and I have a new thread up so I have been a busy boy. Love and hugs dear friend.

This evening—because it is "dark time," as my younger son used to say—I am starting Old Filth.

This morning, I puttered through the sales room of the Bethlehem Area Public Library. Funny how many of those pesky "books" stuck to me, like burrs on a dog. I did thus collect a number of good titles.

>103 johnsimpson: Hi John! So far so good. Yesterday I attended a talk on Blackbeard's Sunken Prize given by one of the co-authors, Linda F. Carnes-McNaughton. She is an excellent speaker. She had great slides, used the microphone so we didn't have to strain to hear her, and had lots of information, both in the book, and additional information about Edward Thache (pronounced teach). He was the grandson of a minister and had served in the British Navy on the HMS Windsor. He was a privateer until Queen Anne died in 1714, when he became a pirate. I'll mosey on over to visit your new thread anon.

>104 weird_O: Hiya Bill. Eminently logical, your son used to say. Hmm. I've pulled Old Filth off shelf S24 and may read it too.

I like your simile - pesky books sticking to you like burrs on a dog. Yay for a number of good titles.

...
Today is lunch and a musical with friend Louise at the Playmakers Repertory Company in Chapel Hill.

Happy Squoodgeday! (It's raining. I'm not best pleased as I need to get to the library and refuse to do so in the rain since I walk everywhere.)

>105 karenmarie: Ned also called black-and-white films as "gray movies." Funny how the words of kids get ingrained in family lore.

Happy Sunday!

I love the box of books Karen sent you - Woot! Over 400 new ones for the year.

I have read the first chapter or two of It's Not About the Horse. It's one of those that I am determined hope to finish reading this month.

And I've meant to read Winter in the Blood forever. It's the first of the modern Native American reservation novels - I remember my mom reading it for a class in the early 70's.

I don't think I'll make my goal of 104 books either, this year. Although I do have quite a few shorties I could sub in.

>68 karenmarie: Congratulations on accumulating over 400 books this year. I note West With the Night on the list of recent acquisitions. I went to the local Bethlehem Library book sale yesterday with Diane Keenoy. She noted this as one of the books she would like to read. It really is beautiful. I loved both the movie and book Out of Africa. Beryl Markham was quite a woman, as was Isak Dinesen. Both were strong women, though Karen Blixen, aka Dinesen, was a very needy woman in contrast to Beryl.

I only bought ten books at the sale yesterday. I vowed that I would not buy more than my neck or spine would allow me to carry. I hope to sort through all my books this year and obtain some sense of order.

Happy Sunday to you!

Hi! I'm poking my nose in to say hello. Lovely new box of books and deer in the yard and Plays with Louise. Happy Sunday!

I love your pet deer! On top of magnificent retirement status, that is the cat's meow!

I hadn't really paid any attention to my stats. I joined LT in January 2011; since then I have posted 26,038 times. My average word count per post is 76.01. I was most active in 2014 and 2015; my posting has fallen off this year (although I have one month in which to make up some ground!).

Good night! Good night!
Hooray for books! Hooray for bucks (and does) taking refuge and not eating the ornamentals!
I was amused by a Latin student's writing about the ancient Romans' concept of time and referring to daylight hours and nightlight hours.

It's smart to let the deer roam around. That way they're not all crowding your freezer at one time.

>106 richardderus: Hi RD. Happy Squoodgeday to you too, one day late. Books and water don’t mix and eyeglasses and water don’t mix.

>107 weird_O: Gray movies sound perfectly logical to me. My mom once told me that when I was little and we were driving somewhere I wanted to know where the little man was who was talking to us in the car. I guess I didn’t know the word radio yet. Also, I apparently would ask for them to “un the yight”, not being able to pronounce my L’s yet, but knowing that “un” was a prefix on a verb to express the reversal of the state of the light being on.

>108 streamsong: Thanks, Janet. Karen is intellectually curious and I am the beneficiary of her unintentionally buying duplicates over the years. Of course I tell her that LT will help her identify her duplicates and help her prevent them in the future, but so far she hasn’t taken the exquisite plunge. I also look forward to being a recipient again once she brings the 40 boxes of books she still has in the shed into the house!

Shorties will help you reach your goal. Good luck! I actually think I will make my goal of 105 – 10 to go. This week should be pretty good for reading. I may read some short’uns, true, but as I’ve said elsewhere in time and space, books is books.

>109 Whisper1: Hi Linda. Thank you. It’s a mixed blessing, because I have to find space for them. Permanent stacks around the house are totally unacceptable to me. Jenna’s coming home on the 14th or 15th for winter break and will stay through the new year. I’ve got some more ideas on moving books upstairs to the Parlour – I’ve got 238 books in the Library tagged ‘reference’ and some of them can go there to make more space available in the downstairs Library for 'tbr's.

West With the Night is next up for my audiobook, I think. I usually only listen to audiobooks in the car and don’t commute any more, thus reducing listening time, but I just may bring my current audiobook Lincoln and Chief Justice Taney: Slavery, Secession and the President's War Powers inside to finish it this year.

Isak Dinesen is a fascinating woman, too. Ditto on Out of Africa.

Only ten? You are very strong to limit yourself. And have fun getting your books sorted into some sense of order. That’s one of the first things I did when I retired, but since I use location tags I inventoried them to make sure the tag matched their physical location. It’s an ongoing process and I need to do some work in the coming year again. A labor of love for sure.

>110 nittnut: Hi Jenn. I had a very nice Sunday. More below.

>111 EBT1002: Thanks, Ellen. I knew about them and then forgot about them, too, until weird_o Bill reminded me again. Of course I had to remember how to find them. They’re all quite fascinating, and kudos to LT for providing them. I don’t know about other years, but this one has been pretty busy for you for sure and it’s certainly understandable that your posting has fallen off. You’re coming up on your 8th year Thingaverysary, too – early congrats.

>112 LizzieD: Books and bucks and does, oh my. I can imagine that you have an entire career’s worth of strange, interesting, and unusual things students have said. Do you have them written down, Peggy?

Louise and I saw a musical called She Loves Me, a fun and frothy musical set in Budapest in the 1930s. A gigolo, a romance via letters, and a misunderstanding are combined with excellent songs and choreography. I was smiling or laughing most of the time. And bonus - Louise knows about my Queen/Freddie Mercury obsession and we listened to Queen all the way home. Louise likes to listen to music really loud, so we rocked and rolled for 45 minutes.

This morning is a FoL meeting then a bit of this and that for the rest of the day.

Excellent advice, no?

Absolutely, RD! *smooch*

Hello Karen! Just a fly and wave!

Hi Brodie!

*blinks* I just took a very intense nap. What is the symbolism of cutting down trees?

Ah yes --- to quote cartoon Kathy, I spend my time hydrating and looking for bathrooms.
And, yes, Karen, I do have most of the student stuff written down. I had thought about a book once, but I put them all on my thread several years ago, and there's not enough for a book without commentary, and I'm lazy. They go from the obvious (ones that I didn't imagine anyone would actually write) like "aqua ducks going into the Tiger River" to abstruse (from English class) "That was a big missed ape."
Here comes the sun and cooler weather! I'm ready.

I love the through thought tough trough thorough and though mug! All them words making my mind crazy!!!

(or is that my thesis....)

>119 LizzieD: Looking for and standing in line for public restrooms is a pet peeve of mine. Grrrr.

I found 'em, Peggy, on your first thread of 2011. Very creative, in their own strange way.

I'm happy the weather's cooling down again, and see that we might get a wintry mix on Sunday and Monday. I was going to go to Biltmore with two high school friends Dec 9 - 11, but the one who lives in Georgia is worried that we'd get stuck in Asheville so we've put the whole thing off. It's actually fine with me. We'll probably get a Christmas tree. Bill does not know this yet.

>120 LovingLit: I said it out loud, Megan, just for the sheer pleasure of it.

...
I might go to see Bohemian Rhapsody again today - today is Tightwad Tuesday and all tickets are $6. I'm thinking about it.....

Good morning, Karen! We'll likely get our tree sometime this week or on the weekend. The weekend looks likely for other decorating as well.

'Morning, Harry! I was just getting ready to visit you. Have fun with your tree and decorating!

We'll get our tree and get it into the stand and do other decorating, but Jenna and her Dad put on the lights and we all three put ornaments on the tree, so that will have to wait until December 16th. She'll come home on the 14th or 15th, we'll attend a family party on the 15th, and then decorate the tree on the 16th.

How do, Horrible, I'm already caffeinated (!) and ready to take on whatever today brings me.

Should I finish The Dreaming Stars, Cold Earth, or The Disappearance of Emile Zola first?

'Morning, dear one!

The Disappearance of Emile Zola since you're caffeinated. I was just thinking about the Dreyfus case the other day, I need to refresh my memory with the details.

K

I got interested in Dreyfus again because it's the 120th year since it happened...which meant 1998 was 20 years ago and that just wigs me out...and library'd up a few books on the topic. This one is the oddest, since it's hard for me to feature that arch-Parisian Zola in London!

Hilarious, as it turns out.

Buenos Dias, Karen. As you can tell, we are having a great time and it is only Tuesday morning. Yah! Today should be a lot of fun. I hope I can find someone, on the excursion, that can help me ID some birds. There are so many on these little islands. They are designated sanctuaries.

>126 richardderus: I am seriously ignorant, but less so than 20 minutes ago. Zola fleeing to London seems to have been the only hilarious part of the entire debacle. It saddens me that there are still ignoramuses who persecute Jewish people, 120 years after the Dreyfus Affair.

>127 msf59: Buenos dias, Señor Mark. Bueno suerte en su viaje a ver las pajaros!

I finished Old Filth last night. Great fun.

I just may tackle Beryl Markham next. (Hope she doesn't mind a little roughhousing. Heh heh.) It's got West with the Night next to the bed, and Linda's (>109 Whisper1:) comments moved the book to the front. (Sadly, I didn't see Linda at the book sale on Saturday.) Your comment that it might be next your your list is an added incentive.

Bye the by, at that sale I got a copy of Paula McLain's Circling the Sun. Benita alerted me to that novel based on Markham's life. I liked McLain's The Paris Wife, so finding this Markham-inspired book is a fortuitous find.

Mugwumping around this Wednesday. Hey, we're re-upping the beet chat on Joe's thread. He said...implied...he missed the strong opinionating about beets that once took place there.

>129 weird_O: Hiya Bill! I just finished it about 25 minutes ago! Wonderful book. I'm actually going to immediately start The Man in the Wooden Hat, Betty's story.

West With The Night will be my next audiobook after I finish Lincoln and Taney. I'm still seriously fangirling on Freddie Mercury and Queen, which includes listening in the car, though, so haven't listened since October 24th.

Sorry you didn't see Linda at the sale. I have seen your list of recent acquisitions, you bibliomaniac, you! Yay for Circling the Sun.

>130 richardderus: Mugwumping. Sounds good to me. Beet chat. .... Okay.... I'll go check.

96. Old Filth by Jane Gardam
12/2/18 to 12/5/18



-

From Amazon:

Sir Edward Feathers has had a brilliant career, from his early days as a lawyer in Southeast Asia, where he earned the nickname Old Filth (FILTH being an acronym for Failed In London Try Hong Kong) to his final working days as a respected judge at the English bar. Yet through it all he has carried with him the wounds of a difficult and emotionally hollow childhood. Now an eighty-year-old widower living in comfortable seclusion in Dorset, Feathers is finally free from the regimen of work and the sentimental scaffolding that has sustained him throughout his life. He slips back into the past with ever mounting frequency and intensity, and on the tide of these vivid, lyrical musings, Feathers approaches a reckoning with his own history. Not all the old filth, it seems, can be cleaned away.

Borrowing from biography and history, Jane Gardam has written a literary masterpiece reminiscent of Rudyard Kipling's Baa Baa, Black Sheep that retraces much of the twentieth century's torrid and momentous history. Feathers' childhood in Malaya during the British Empire's heyday, his schooling in pre-war England, his professional success in Southeast Asia and his return to England toward the end of the millennium, are vantage points from which the reader can observe the march forward of an eventful era and the steady progress of that man, Sir Edward Feathers, Old Filth himself, who embodies the century's fate.

Why I wanted to read it: weird_o said he was going to read it, it’s on my shelves, and it meets the need to read something that was on my shelves by the end of 2017 for my ROOT challenge.

This book could have been irritating because it goes back and forth in time and is elliptical in nature. Having said that, however, it worked extremely well for me and the dawning awareness of the true nature of Filth’s childhood and young adulthood made him even more interesting than he already was. There were tantalizing clues throughout and there were several “Ah ha!” moments when the reference was explained.

I’ve never heard of Raj Orphans, “young children who were sent by their parents from the warm colonies of the British Empire back to the chilly mother country to be brought up by relatives, or even strangers. “ (Children of the Empire by JILL PARKIN, Daily Mail Last updated at 14:33 03 November 2005). It’s fascinating to learn how this system worked and how being sent home by his father informed pretty much the entirety of Edward Feathers’s life.

The characters are well drawn and vivid and the spare writing makes reading this book a great chance to use my own imagination and historical knowledge of the 20th century.

I mostly dislike books about Old Men, A Man Called Ove being the only exception that comes to mind, but Edward Feathers is likeable for his overcoming the misfortunes of his early life and his understanding of himself as he approaches death.

It does sound like a good one, Karen. Great review

Glad you liked Old Filth. The whole trilogy is excellent.

>133 jessibud2: Hi Shelley! Thank you. I zoomed through it in 2 1/2 days.

>134 katiekrug: Hi Katie! I'm getting ready to start the second one, The Man in the Wooden Hat, later today.

I liked Old Filth and the Man in the Wooden Hat. For some reason, I never did get to the third of the trilogy. Next year?

Good review of Old Filth, Karen. I think you'll appreciate the change of perspective in the second one. I haven't gotten to the third either - we probably should have a group read!

Good heavens! I never read Last Friends either. I wonder why. So GR run by Horrible in 2019 it is.

>132 karenmarie: Superlative summation of Old Filth, Karen. Can't do it as well, never mind better.

I don't own Man in the Wooden Man. Yet. May have to acquire it somewhere other than a library sale. Sames goes for Last Friends. Well, can't do either of them until 2019. In December, I'm only reading women authors I haven't read before. I've now read Gardam, so I can't read another by her until December is over. Hey, I don't make the rules, ok? Wait...I did make the rules. Never mind.

Just asking here: Isn't Man in the Wooden Hat Curious George's handler?

>136 streamsong: Hi Janet. Good to know. 1 for a group read of Last Friends next year.

>137 jnwelch: Thank you, Joe. I'm anxious to hear Betty's story. 2 for a group read of Last Friends next year.

>138 richardderus: Jumpin Jehosophat, RD! 3 for a group read of Last Friends next year.

Let it be so. I've made a note in my 2019 desk calendar to start making group read noises in January.

edited to add:

>139 weird_O: I had just posted this message and thought that I should mention that because of you, Bill, I actually read and loved Old Filth and thought I'd put your name into the ring to read Last Friends, too. We'll discuss this in January and see when makes best sense. We'll urge you to read The Man in the Wooden Hat early in the year so you can be ready for the third in the trilogy. We'll wait for you, promise.

I'm not a Curious George aficionado, so can't answer. I guess it's a joke, right?

Re: Curious George, it might've been a play on The Man in the Yellow Hat, but not a direct lift.

Your review just moved Old Filth up several notches in the TBR pile.

>141 richardderus: Ah. *smooch*

>142 nittnut: Hallo, Jenn! I'm so glad I read it - I continue to thank weird_o for inspiring me to read it at the same time he read it.

...
Brrr. 23F. Clear skies. We may be getting some serious weather out of this storm that is still in California!

Warmer here than there: 33°. I do love seaside living.

Happy Thursday, Horrible dear.

Good morning, Karen! It's rather chilly here, too, though I don't know the exact temperature. A good day to stay indoors.

>144 richardderus: 'Morning, RD, I just posted on your thread after discovering that I know someone on the board of directors of my county's Beekeepers Association.

>145 harrygbutler: Hi Harry. I just discovered that weatherunderground.com has a weather station set up about a mile or so from my house, so in addition to NOAA weather and local TV station website weather, I can see exactly what's happening near my house. Our temps are always colder than what's reported for our town, and weatherunderground.com has information I don't have and the temperature it reported just now is .1F lower than I'm showing on our weather station. Way cool.

I'll be indoors most of the day but am having dinner with a friend.

>132 karenmarie: Good review, Karen! I'm thinking I should try it. I find grumpy old men easier to deal with in book form, than in real life;-)

And over here it's 50 Fahrenheit! And it has been raining since Tuesday and will go on raining. Have to get out of the house sometime, very depressing weather, this.

Hi Ella. Thank you. Oh yes, book form for most irritating/anger-inducing people, for sure.

50F and raining. Too many days of rain is depressing, for sure.

I just put on the propane heater in the Sunroom. We set the downstairs heat 24/7 to 65F two days ago to conserve electricity/propane and this end of the house gets really chilled. Thank goodness for my handy-dandy-nifty propane stove to take the chill off! Using the room heater is less expensive than heating the whole downstairs to a tolerable temp when it's only me during the day, and we both sleep better in a cool room.

Love the pic of the deers outside your window! Such a nice view

Hi Chelle! Thanks, I spend a fair amount of time just gazing out and enjoying our property.

>140 karenmarie: Thank you for including me in the group read thingie. I'm up for it.

Richard is correct on both counts. The Man in the Yellow Hat. Filth is in a very different club.

Good grief, are you guys going to get snow this weekend? We may get a few flakes but really, in this town, how would I know? We got flakes everywhere.

Our flakes will be of the frozen water variety. Looking more and more certain that we might 5-8" or so here at the house. As I wrote on nittnut's thread, Extra bread! Extra milk! Extra whole bean coffee!

>120 LovingLit: that series of words was the subject of the NPR puzzle - or at least I think so! Confirmation to come on Sunday.

LOVED Old Filth and have never read the other two. I can't die yet.
We won't get the winter weather, DG. Hope you enjoy it.
Beekeeping? My DH was a professional beekeeper in a small way for years. He worked for a big commercial guy from New York and had 100 or so hives of his own. One of the worst nights of my life was helping move 50-some hives home from pollinating blueberries several counties away. Imagine a flat tire on the already-loaded trailer at about 4:00 AM with dawn and flying bees coming quickly. Said trailer fish-tailing all the way to the home bee yard with me the lookout. Sting between the eyes - elephantiasis of the face. Enough said. I get the willies just thinking about it.

>140 karenmarie: Dang! That means I am already two books behind. Can you read the third later in the year so I have a chance to join in? : )

Also, your book from friend Karen? I love Eragon and Eldest by Christopher Paolini. Have fun!

Love the photo of deer in your backyard. I get coyotes sunning on my basketball court. And an occasional deer in the grass. We have a city forest bordering our backyard. Love it!

>154 ffortsa: I heard that puzzle, Judy, and started thinking about 'rough' - didn't get further than that but I guess I had close to the right idea.

>155 LizzieD: A good reason to not die yet - too many books to read. You're going to get rain, apparently, just what your little town so doesn't need.

Beekeeping came up on Richardderus's thread after I used a link he provided to determine my spirit animal. It said bee. I said I didn't want it to be a bee. I wanted it to be and am pretty convinced it truly is a cat. I can say cat on my thread because it's my thread not RD's. There was a slight flurry of messages, and I remembered that I have a friend who's a beekeeper. I looked at the Chatham County Beekeepers Association website and see he's not on the board anymore, but a woman I met at the most recent FoL sale (she was one of my Square volunteers) is. Hence the mention of beekeepers.

100 hives does not sound so small, Peggy. Just reading that story gives me the willies. Bees are good at a distance and I like honey. *smile*

>156 Berly: Hi Kim! We don't have to read it right away. I'll bring it up in January and see where people are. Peggy just wrote that she's only read the first, so we might have a 'catch up to Last Friends' push in the first 2 or 3 months of 2019. We'll see what people think.

The Paolini books sound good. I don't know when they'll call out for me to read them.

Thanks re my pet deer photo. Your deer spottings I like, but coyotes sunning on my basketball court wouldn't be a good thing for us - we have indoor/outdoor kitties. I lost a kitty, Poppyseed, to coyotes once in SoCal. I heard the local pack yipping twice yesterday. They're no more than a mile or so away but have never come across our creek - I haven't even seen one on the hill leading down to the creek.

Brr. This winter storm is definitely going to give us fits. I might go to the grocery store today since I have to go to town anyway, to make sure there's enough of the bread we like and my nonfat organic milk. Probably another package of whole bean coffee would not be amiss.

Morning, Karen!

I'm all for a 2019 Last Friends GR push. It helps to have inspirational company. Mark and I did Infinite Jest the way you and Bill did Old Filth.

Hello dear, hope your c-a-tly day goes by without any HIVES OF BEES STINGING YOU.

*smooch*

>158 jnwelch: Hi Joe!

I remember you guys reading Infinite Jest. I might have joined in had it been on my shelves, but his only fiction I have, still unread, is The Broom of the System.

I keep adding names to my Last Friends list for next year.

>159 richardderus: 'Morning, darling Richard! No bees. NO BEES. I hope they're all safely in their hives against the cold weather.

...
Time to do some FoL research then head out to run some errands.

I didn't post this pic to taunt you, RD! In fact, I originally answered Joe's message, dithered for 5 minutes, then posted this message, which I have now edited to include a reply to you. Skip the following:

Inara Starbuck took the bait - I put one of their baskets in front of the propane heater in the Sunroom and she was in it first thing this morning. Of course the heater wasn't on yet, but hey, it's a cute pic of my darling girl.

>160 karenmarie: Good morning, Karen. Nice photo of the cat!

Buenos Dias, Senorita Karen. Sadly the trip is beginning to wind down, but it has been a good one. All the eating and drinking will stop too, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

I am so glad you enjoyed Old Filth. I never did get to the third one, so I will have to join you guys.

>161 harrygbutler: Hi Harry! Thank you.

>162 msf59: Buenos dias, Senor Mark. All good things have to come to an end, right?

I've added your name to my 'let's start thinking about Last Friends in 2019' list. We may end up with quite a crowd.

Aaaww. Whatta quewty!

Bee protection vibes coming your way! No bees today, sir!

Thank you, Larry! She's our 11 1/2 year old quewty.

No bees.

I just refilled the bird bath - the one that we put a heater in so the water doesn't freeze - and I replenished 3 sunflower seed feeders. I'm cleaning a wild seed feeder and need to replenish the feeders on the front porch tomorrow. I think the birds are going to be rather grateful for food with this weather we're supposed to get.

BTW, when I move I should have more kitchen counter space. I'm going to be able to use my coffee maker AND my new Instant Pot. I am all of a twitter. Ack-shully, I can't wait to make a nice stew. Right now I can't use my coffee maker because I let Parker eat on the counter and I can't risk his getting burned or steamed, I'm sure you understand.

OH! And last weekend I picked him up and he wanted me to put him down. Of course I didn't. He hissed at me! It's not the same thing as with other cats, because he hisses at his toys and the birds outside the window. (I don't think he's the smartest cat in the bunch but for god's sake don't tell him I said so.) Anyway, I got in his face and hissed back. And I swear his reaction was priceless. He was genuinely startled, and when I put him down he did everything but jump back in my arms because he seemed upset that I might be pissed at him. I wish I'd had my camera to record it, his perplexed pacing was really something. And then I had to tell him he was a good boy, and pet him and comb him and bolster his standing in the world because I am a chump. I wasn't ever pissed with him anyway.*

There is no other coffee than whole bean coffee. Everything else is crap! Crap! What brand do you buy? Do you have Mayorga brand down there? It's in Maryland, but I think it's pretty good. Although I'm not a coffee aficionado, so I wouldn't know Jamaican Blue Mountain if it bit me.

*I can't look. If RD's head has exploded please just cover him up.

para 3 >165 karenmarie: Oh yeah, I knew what I was going to say- If you don't feed the critters you go straight to hell. I routinely buy unsalted peanuts for the squirrels.

Yay for counter space. Will Parker still be able to eat on a part of the counter not dedicated to a coffeemaker or Instant Pot?

I've never let the kitties eat on the counter, but I routinely feed Kitty William tidbits from a meal if I'm eating on a TV tray. I'll set a morsel on the TV tray itself and he delicately nibbles away. Of course he's 18 and his teeth aren't what they were, so perhaps I should say he gums it to death then swallows it. Feeding him there drives Bill crazy. *smile*

Parker hissed at you and you hissed back. Good for you, establishing your dominance. And he was insecure and couldn't bear for you to be unhappy with him. I would have loved to have seen THAT scene, for sure.

I'm afraid that I buy inexpensive medium roast whole bean coffee - I was buying Costco medium roast for a while but it's the weirdest thing - when I ground the beans they'd get all static-y and cling to the side of the glass they were being ground into. And once we ran out and I hadn't gotten to Costco so I bought Food Lion medium roast whole bean to tide us over and it tasted so much more flavorful and less bitter. So now we buy grocery store whole bean coffee. Between using my Bunn coffeemaker and using our wonderful well water, I think I get a good cup of coffee.

For 20 or more years I bought Gevelia decaf whole bean. Then they discontinued it and I won't buy ground, so I had to start figuring out what else to do. I'm back to caf and loving it.

...
Bill tested the generator, I went grocery shopping, and we're as prepared as we can be for whatever weather strikes.

Good for you, Karen. Weather the weather!
No access to whole bean decaf (necessary because of the Oscar Barosis in my bones) in this little benighted town. I should be looking for low acid too. My heart and taste buds cry out for Kenya AA. Oh well.
And, because you have an urgent need to know, 100 hives is the minimum to move from hobbyist to commercial beekeeper.

Hi Peggy!

We're very lucky to have a generator, and since we got the new battery before Hurricane Michael (when we lost power for 74 hours but were able to use the generator), we're set to go.

We are going to try to get a Christmas tree this morning - partial errands take the trash to the dump, eat lunch out, one final run to the grocery store for just 3 things I forgot yesterday, and then the tree. We buy our tree from NC tree farmers who live in the mountains, and I wouldn't be surprised if they've packed up for home so they won't get stuck down here. If they've left, I'll check back in Wednesday-ish.

In the meantime, it's just waiting for it to start this evening.

Amazon has low acid decaf whole bean coffee... just sayin'.

Ah, 100 hives is the magic number. All information is valuable, so I shall store this nugget away.

Howdy do, Horrible, hope today's weather is extremely boring and usual instead of exciting and different.

*smooch*

>140 karenmarie: Group read for Last Friends it is!

>146 karenmarie: I love weatherunderground! I especially love the ten day forecasts which seem pretty accurate to me. I'm trusting them when they say snow is not moving in until Monday evening, which means I can get to Missoula early Monday and not have to fight road conditions.

>157 karenmarie: I can't die until I've finished off my TBR stacks. I think of it as my life extension policy. I also think of the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die in the same way. And given that I only read 2 off of the 1001 this year, I should have a nice long life.

Hope the storm is fairly kind to you. We've been having bitterly cold weather; clouds are supposed to start moving in and will warm things up. I envy you your generator.

>171 richardderus: Hi RD! Today might be boring and usual, but I fully expect to see frozen precip when I get up tomorrow morning.

>172 streamsong: You're on the list, Janet!

I love looking at weather.gov, weather.com, accuweather.com, wral.com (local), and weatherunderground.com. I'm a weather junkie when things promise to be 'interesting'.

I like it - your life extension policy. I wish you wonderful reads for many many years.

Thanks re the storm. It took me a long time, being native Southern Californian, to realize that when the skies were bright blue in the winter it meant that it was flipping cold outside and that clouds meant it was warmer. It's about 44F here now but it sure felt colder when we were out looking at Christmas trees.

We didn't find one. There were 8' ones and 6' ones but none in the 7' range that didn't look deformed or scrawny. the one 7' one we saw was laying on the ground. The helper stood it up for me and I loved it, but it turns out it was sold, just not loaded up on a vehicle yet. Sigh. I did get a gorgeous wreath though, fresh made, with boxwood sprigs. I'll put my porcelain/velvet/lace angels on it sometime this weekend and post a pic. I'll go out Wednesday on a Christmas Tree and poinsettia mission.

Sorry about your Christmas tree hunt. Hope you weather whatever weather besets you. I'm in as far as a Last Friends group read goes. All I need to do is get and read Man in the Wooden Hat. And get Last Friends. Nutin' to it.

Getting a nice smallish tree was no problem. Five-mile drive to the tree farm. Ten minutes to look over the trees on display. Five minutes to get it bound up and stowed in the pickup. Of course, the men were unloading a trailer, and Judi thought each one was...well, maybe...a little better than what we'd picked. Gotta set it up tomorrow.

Finishing West with the Night tonight. Just scanned the Wiki entry on Beryl Markham, the author. Oh my, what a life.

>114 karenmarie: I like your idea of tagging where the book is located in your house. This sounds like a great idea!!!

Hi, Karen. I tag location too. Then I move the book, and it's lost forever because I neglect to fix the tag. Oh well.
We probably won't have a tree this year - sometimes we do; sometimes we don't. It totally depends on whether there's a suitable one left when we're finally ready to decorate. Being old, we both prefer our Christmas to start on Christmas day and go through the 12 days. This is another way in which I'm totally out of step with the rest of the world.

>174 weird_O: Hi Bill. Yup, no tree. And so far no weather, but now the local TV station has upped us to 6-10". It's a crap shoot, we'll just have to see tomorrow. Yay for Last Friends.

Nice tree acquisition. Have fun setting it up tomorrow.

I have the audiobook of West with the Night but am still fangirling over Freddie Mercury and Queen in the car. Don't listen to audiobooks in the house.

>175 Whisper1: I love location tags, Linda. Within about 30 minutes of starting to enter my catalog in October of 2007, I realized that I'd never know where anything was without identifying where it was on LT. So I developed my location tags and re-tagged what I'd already entered and then tagged every book added ever since. Room, shelf/bookcase #, row. S24 is Sunroom, 2nd bookcase, 4th row down. L88 is Library, 8th shelf, 8th row (bottom row). Right now I've got some books in limbo, and some are on the stairs and some have made it upstairs on the floor in the hall. They're P-Hall and P-Hall2.

I also tag every book
fiction, nonfiction, or reference
tbr, dnr (do not read - usually for reference books), started, abandoned, read

and various other tags, but always the three above. I just love tagging!

>176 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I’m pretty good at updating the LT location when I physically move a book – not always but certainly over 98%, the last time I inventoried my books.

I think our daughter would be seriously disappointed if we didn’t have a Christmas tree. And I still think I would be disappointed, too. The test will come if and when she can’t make it home for Christmas.

I’ve never heard of Christmas Day and then 12 days, but you must keep in mind that it never was and never is a religious holiday for me. My dad lost his faith as a young man and religion/church were never allowed to make an appearance in the house. Not being raised with it means that in some ways I’m uncomfortable with it. Oh – and being out of step with the rest of the world isn’t bad at all, IMHO.

I ground some coffee and have it in a Tupperware so that if I wake up to no power at least I can heat water on the gas stove and put coffee in a thermos until Bill wakes up and gets the generator going. I’m also going to shut the computer down now so there’s no hard shutdown and potential problems. See y’all on the other side of the snow!

Your system is a great one. I think it will work for me as well. Thanks!!! 2019 will be a great year of tagging over 3,000 books.

Have fun, Linda! I get a great deal of pleasure and satisfaction of being able to find a book 98+% of the time.....

Happy Sunday, Karen. I also read 96 books so far like you. Will we have the same number at the end of the year?

I woke up at 6 and just couldn't go back to sleep, wondering what was happening outdoors. Looks like about 3" so far and it's snowing as I write this.

>180 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara! I wonder, too. My goal is 105 and I sure hope I can get there with the last 5 of The Alphabet Series by Sue Grafton to meet my goal and 6 4 more besides. I lost a little ground by abandoning a book after 126 pages on Friday, but am halfway through U is for Undertow.

I may have to pull out a few smallish books, but books is books and I'd really like to be able to say I met my goal.

OMG as much as 4in of snow with rain tomorrow sounds like the kind of winter weather I least enjoy: Ice. Ew! Stay home!

>181 karenmarie: I have no specific goal. But I would be happy if I reached the number 100 once.

>182 richardderus: 'Morning, RD! Looks like about 4" on the other side of the house, but it's now lightly sleeting instead. We're in for the duration.

>183 Ameise1: Next year I'm dropping back to 100 as a goal simply because now I'm stressing and reading should not be about stress. Good luck getting to 100, I'm cheering for you.

"...reading should not be about stress." Sing it, Sister Woman! Loud and strong!

Hi RD! Stress-free reading! I just finished the 21st in The Alphabet Series by Sue Grafton. Review to follow.

Bill took these photos. It's raining right now, temp is 34F.

97. U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton
12/7/18 to 12/9/18





From Amazon:

Sue Grafton takes the mystery genre to new heights with this twisting, complex #1 New York Times bestseller that draws private investigator Kinsey Millhone into a case shrouded in the sins of the past.

Looking solemn, Michael Sutton arrives in Kinsey Millhone's office with a story to tell. When he was six, he says, he wandered into the woods and saw two men digging a hole. They claimed they were pirates, looking for buried treasure. Now, all these years later, the long-forgotten events have come back to him—and he has pieced them together with news reports from the time, becoming convinced that he witnesses the burial of a kidnapped child.

Kinsey has nearly nothing to go on. Sutton doesn't even know where he was that day—and, she soon discovers, he has a history of what might generously be called an active imagination. Despite her doubts, Kinsey sets out to track down the so-called burial site. And what's found there pulls her into a hidden current of deceit stretching back more than twenty years...

Why I wanted to read it: Next up in my reading of The Alphabet Series by Sue Grafton this year.

This book really showcases Kinsey’s pre-cellphone, pre-Internet sleuthing skills. She is relentless in searching down leads and figuring out links and clues. There are also the wildly improbable scenes where she just happens to see something off kilter or inconsistent that helps solve the case.

This one was particularly satisfying in that many separate plot lines got resolved or at least brought out into the open. There are two child kidnappings and two families whose stories are dealt with in great detail, all the time meandering in and around the case Kinsey is hired to work on for one day.

It could have been confusing going back and forth in time and between points of view, but Kinsey’s voice is well-defined by this, the 21st book in the series, and the other players are distinct and the story lines are easy to follow. Chapters headed with dates don’t hurt either.

Her irritating cousin Tasha invites her to a party, and all her feelings of anger and upset at the family that she feels abandoned her for 32 years come up again. There’s an interesting family scene near the end.

This book was particularly fascinating in its portrayal of 1967 California hippies, a group of people just a few years older than I was as I was growing up in southern California. Grafton gets it right.

Henry, Rosie, William, and Cheney show up, but only peripherally, but overall a very good entry in the series.

>187 karenmarie: It's bittersweet to see all the places Grafton has already been. Glad you're revisiting them, that way I don't have to.



To be shared with your friends and family in this holy, holy time.

>186 karenmarie: - Ha! I love the before and after pics. Looks like you've had some visitors! ;-)

>188 richardderus: - The finger positions are all wrong! He'd have to be alternately touching his index and middle fingers to his thumbs. But otherwise, LOL!

edited to correct my dumb typos!

>188 richardderus: We aim to please, RD. 4 more to go…

Heh heh. Good one.

>189 jessibud2: Hi Shelley! I took some fun ones, too, but Bill’s are the clear winners today. Many birds have been visiting today. Inara has only been outside once and didn’t come in sopping wet. Kitty William has been on the couch or my lap all day.

Karen, your weather made our local news on tv tonight. It looks nasty but good for you for being prepared. That's the best (and only) way to enjoy it. Here in Toronto, we have nada, in the way of snow. I am not even wearing boots yet.

Edited to add that this is not a complaint, from me, lol

Oh, I have read both Old Filth and The Man in the Wooden Hat but Last Friends has been languishing on the shelves for a few years now. Perhaps I'll join you all in January.

>188 richardderus: LOL

>191 jessibud2: Now you can say you know people who've been in Winter Storm Diego! No snow in Toronto? That surprises me, actually.

I don't know if this is an indicator for the whole of the coming winter or a one-off with a dry, NO PRECIP winter. I don't know which I prefer, either. *smile*

>192 EBT1002: Hi Ellen! I've added you to my Last Friends group read list. We'll figure out timing in January for whatever month makes most sense for everybody. I plan on starting The Man in the Wooden Hat after I read V is for Vengeance - I am on a Sue Grafton roll and want to get V-Y read before the end of the month. I'll probably need a break after V, having read T and U in the last 11 days.

Your weather made our local news as well tonight. Glad you were well prepared.

Also have read the first two Gardam books but not Last Friends, so perchance shall also join you.

Asheville got 11 inches of snow in this storm. My sister was hunkered down with all she needed, including the latest Lee Child novel and Fear by Bob Woodward. To quote her: "I'll be snowed in with Jack Reacher and Donald Trump, the quintessential mixed bag."

Morning, Karen. Back to the grind. At least, I am off tomorrow, so I just need to stumble through this one.

I did freshen up my feeders yesterday, on my return and the regulars all stopped by. B.A.G.

>186 karenmarie: You did have lots of visitors. I trust you've been feeding them well;-) Will you be getting more snow, or was it just the one day?

We had 5 where I live in East Tennessee and maybe another inch overnight. It's kind of odd because the break line between light snow (2 inches or less) and us was not but the next larger town over. I've seen that type of effect before. When I lived in Cincinnati, they had 2 inches at work. I had 14 inches at my house with 3 foot drifts in the driveway. I told them I'd be in as soon as I could get someone to come plow the driveway because the shovel wasn't cutting it. All the private plows had to do their contracted parking lots before getting to driveways though. I saw a TV station graphic from Raleigh that showed about 18 inches at Linville, NC and 16 in Boone, NC. I'm thankful I'm not dealing with that! We're on a two hour delay this morning. I'm going to head in a bit early because I need to mail Christmas cards if the post office is open in Talbott.

Good morning, Karen! I hope your week is off to a good start.

The rain washed away much of the storm yesterday afternoon. I heard it sleeting in the night, but when I got up just now it’s snowing again. Bill was thinking about going into work until he turned the weather report on. 42 miles in this is not a good idea and his boss said it was fine to work from home.

>194 ronincats: We’re famous! I’ve added you to my list, Roni. So far it’s up to 10 who might participate in a group read of Last Friend.

>195 EBT1002: The mountains really got the weather for sure. I’m guessing Greensboro did too, which is where nittnut lives. Smart sister. Mixed bag for sure – honest, ethical Reacher and dishonest unethical drumpf.

>196 msf59: ‘Morning Mark! I’m sorry you have to be at work today. I hope it goes quickly, and I’m glad your birds are happy.

>197 EllaTim: Hi Ella! The feeders aren’t empty yet – just checked. Ah, the cowbirds have found the wild bird seed feeder. I must have 30 birds between the 2 feeders and in the Crepe Myrtle. Frankly I only expected rain or sleet this morning, but it’s 30.7F so it’s snow for the time being, at a moderate rate.

>198 thornton37814: Hi Lori! 5” is respectable. I know how it is with the break lines, too. I’m 28 miles sorta north of where I used to work and they’d get nothing and we’d get snow, they’d get rain and we’d get freezing rain. Two hour delay makes sense. Stay safe and warm.

And I’m really envious that you’re mailing Christmas cards. I ordered the ones I want and should have them late this week – I’ll have my holiday letter printed out for the people who get the letter. I also hope that family members will take a pic of the three of us at Saturday’s family Christmas party so I can use it with the cards that I usually send a pic to. Then mail to everybody on Monday.

Daughter woke me up at 7:50 in a panic – her car won’t start. The Gear shift is in the park position but when she goes to start it, it tells her that it’s not in park. I told her to get a cab to school and worry about the car later – she’s got a test at 9 a.m. and then an English class at noon.

>199 harrygbutler: Hi Harry. It's predictable - in because of weather, although I thought it would be sleet and freezing not snow. It's still snowing. Bill says that the local weathermen have apparently looked outside and now they're saying we'll get another 2-4".

Merry Monday! Have a lovely snow day. *smooch*

Thanks, RD! I need to work a bit on FoL financial analysis. Also, the FoL financial advisor at our Edward Jones office is calling at 11 to talk about another of our-3-month rolling CDs that has matured. We have 3 of them, invest $30K in a CD every month and scoop the interest into our brokerage account. It is better than the 0.001% (or whatever it is) nothingness we were getting for the money market account we have at the bank.

MMAs make sense as opposed to DDAs that have no *possibility* of paying interest. It's a wonder they still exist...though not a wonder that they're the only sorts of DDAs available to poor people.

The FoL is very fortunate to have you. *more smoochings*

A snow and jammies day! Whoo-hoo!

>204 richardderus: Thank you, RD! *basks in the glow*

>205 SomeGuyInVirginia: Yup, Larry! I had to change into new jammies as I had a sloppy moment and spilled coffee down the front of the first pair. (just washed them in cold water and the coffee didn't stain) Note that I did not put REAL clothes on, just another pair of microfleece jammies.

Morning, Karen. Enjoying a day off. I could get used to one day on, one off. It will be sunny and chilly here, but I will probably get out for a bird stroll later on.

Hi Mark! I'm glad you have a day off to recover from your vacation. *smile*

I hope you get out for a bird stroll.

Northeast side of house this morning. The birdbath is heated.

>208 karenmarie: ...you have a heated birdbath...

more coffee

Well, of course, RD! You can barely see it, but there's an extension cord snaking down from the birdbath. It's covered in snow, now of course. The heater rests in the bottom of the basin and we cover it with a rock to keep it submerged. It will stay in place until about mid-April, when the danger of hard freezes is over. We have another heater somewhere and should really try to find it for the other birdbath on the other side of the house - this one is very exposed to predators but I can see it from the Sunroom so selfishly put it in "my" birdbath.

I'm on my 3rd cup of coffee. I woke up at 5:30 and that's all she wrote. Up since then. Le sigh.

Bill's going to attempt to go into work after it gets above freezing, I think. Right now it's 27F - same as it was at 5:30.

>210 karenmarie: Gadzooks. The wild birds in your garden are better cared for than human beings in 45's Murrukuh.

more coffee

Karen, your yard is where birds go when they want to get away. The bird bath is probably advertised as a vacation destination on bird tee-bee! You could forgo the heater and put anti-freeze in the water. It's probably more humane than the potential for sparrow fricassee, n'est-ce pas?

Despite the Ambien I couldn't sleep last night. Work's nuts since I'll be gone for 2.5 weeks. Tummy is upset.

I like the cold and even in winter sleep with the window cracked. Parker likes the heat. If I turn the heat on in the living room he'll spread out like an oil slick over his kitty perch and won't wake me up three times during the night. I'm starting to see a beneficial pattern developing...

>211 richardderus: True! They're well fed and when they need water it's available, too. *smooch*

>212 SomeGuyInVirginia: Ha. Bird tee-bee. Between me and neighbor Louise they've got it made.

I'm sorry the Ambien isn't working for you, Larry - can your doctor give you something else? I know that panicky feeling about needing to get things done before holidays and when I didn't get 8 hours and knew I'd feel sick all day. I hope today goes well.

Parker on his perch spread out like an oil slick..... great visual.

Here's KW just now. He has never slept in the basket here in the Sunroom, but the house heat is set to 63F in the rest of the house, so he's where the warm is.

Looks cozy. Did Bill make it in to work today? We finally got our road plowed about 7 pm, but we are under a black ice advisory until 11 am tomorrow. Gets me another day off work and the kids off school. They were having a heated discussion over whether to have a HP or LOTR marathon tonight, which I immediately kibboshed. They reviewed options and have amicably agreed on a documentary about Dodo birds. Whatever. Weirdos. LOL

Hi Jenn! He made it in safe and sound and left work at the usual time and made it home safe and sound. We have a neighbor who plowed our .5 mile cul-de-sac road. Bill said that the state must have plowed the 2 roads to Hwy 64, so it was very easy.

Wow, not plowed 'til today. How much snow did you get?

Dodos. It actually sounds interesting, more interesting than what we're watching now - The Blacklist which was great for a season or two until the plots got ridiculous and the lead actress forgot how to act and the writers substituted schmaltz for real emotional content. Still love James Spader, though.

I am not sure of the exact amount, but more than 12". It was so frozen this morning that I didn't even sink when I was walking out on the snow this morning. I am so glad I shoveled the driveway yesterday. Once I got out on the main roads today, it wasn't too bad. Just very, very wet, so I imagine there will be ice everywhere in the morning.

It sleeted here for maybe a half hour. I could hear it but not see it. Later it snowed for maybe 10 minutes. I doubt that our temp went lower than 39°. I'm well content.

>216 nittnut: It always pays to shovel the driveway as soon as possible. I'm grateful we got a bit of rain to wash off the drive the morning after the snow. My knees had been giving me fits so it was impossible for me to shovel. I really need to find someone who can tend mine in the future. It's really a shame neighborhood kids don't offer to do it in hopes of some money nowadays.

>208 karenmarie: Hooray for the heated bird bath. I finally picked up my de-icer yesterday, so my birdbath is ready to go too. I also stocked up on plenty of bird seed.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday.

>216 nittnut: It’s 27.5F here, Jenn, so it’s probably colder where you are. Ice is the danger today before it warms up for sure.

>217 LizzieD: Your little town does not need any more ‘weather’, even if it’s now frozen and not a deluge, Peggy.

>218 thornton37814: Hi Lori! Bill forgot to scrap our concrete on Monday – just forgot and I didn’t think about it – but for some reason he was able to get out easily.

>219 msf59: You’re a good bird daddy, Mark. Happy Wednesday to you, too.

>213 karenmarie: Another cozy kitty. Would they share a larger bed, or do they prefer their own spaces?

Morning Horrible let's drink brain starter, shall we

>221 harrygbutler: Hi Harry. Unfortunately, Kitty William tends to dominate Inara Starbuck. He's 18 but occasionally decides to chase her. Separate everything is always indicated, although they can be in the same room and even within a few feet of each other most times. Right now Inara is in the basket in front of the propane heater. KW is in the living room with Bill.

>222 richardderus: Hallo RD! Yes, lets! I'm just going into the kitchen to get mug #2 and then do a bit of FoL deposit prep.

I've finished my pot. It's a boon and a blessing to have the wherewithal to make my own starter fluid.

BTW, I was just kidding about anti-freeze. That's a terrible thing.

I talk to Parker and sing to him and generally carry on like a Wild Eyed Nutter with the cat, especially when I get home from work. My brother is the same way. I've started letting him explore the hallway when I get home. One night we were right outside my door and I'm trying to coax Furry Butt away down the hall and I overheard the couple across from me speaking behind their door:

Him: Is he talking to his cat again?
Other him: Yeah.
Him: Hehehe.

They're dog people.

Mornin', Karen (Checks, and yes, it is still the forenoon.)

I finished The Bell Jar last night, and I've taken up Homegoing. I've read 7 books by women in a row, and I haven't hit a clinker yet. Lynne Olson, J. P. D. James (who doesn't exactly fit my challenge criteria, since I have read a couple others of her mysteries), Nadine Gordimer, Judy Blume, Beryl Markham, Jane Gardem, and now Sylvia Plath. Yaa Gyasi's novel will be be number 100 for the year.

Ooh, thanks for the info on how to get stats, Karen. I'm quite far behind you at:

Total messages: 13,188

Word count: 730,617

Words/message: 55.4

Total topics: 2,059

Topics started: 52

But I only started posting in 2013, so not too shabby for only 5 years in.

>224 richardderus: I hate drinking coffee out – it never tastes as good as my own coffee. Starter fluid – good one.

>225 SomeGuyInVirginia: Larry, I had somehow skipped over that bit. No harm no foul.

>226 SomeGuyInVirginia: My brother is the same way. I've started letting him explore the hallway when I get home. Your brother or Da Floof? (kidding) That’s a riot about your neighbors.

>227 weird_O: ‘Evening, Bill. You are on a wonderful streak, for sure. Good for you for addressing what you perceive of as a deficiency. Fun pic although I’m glad it’s not my books. *smile*

>228 Familyhistorian: You’re welcome, Meg. They’re lots of fun. You’ve done a great job for only being at it 5 years.

…
(Larry - this will look familiar. Thank goodness for cut and paste).

I'm frazzled - we went for a tree Saturday. The ones they had that were the height we wanted were deformed looking or too expensive (I'm sorry, $170 for Christmas tree is too rich for my blood). So today I went to Lowe's. Their trees were anorexic and ridiculous. I went back to the too-expensive place but there was 3" of mud to wade through to get to the snow-covered ground if I wanted to look at trees, so I said to myself that I didn't want to ruin my shoes. Headed up to Walmart because we've bought trees from them in the past but they weren't selling them at all this year and their poinsettias had glitter on them. So came back into town to the grocery store, where the remaining 5 trees were more anorexic than the ones at Lowes, but I bought 2 very nice poinsettias and have had several people tell me other places to go for Christmas trees tomorrow. Sheesh. Morale of the story: buy a tree Thanksgiving weekend even if you don't decorate it for 2 more weeks.

Or go back to Lowe's and get this and be done with the whole thing for good:

Really sorry about your troubles finding an attractive and affordable tree for Christmas. You haven't torn out all your hair, have you? Shrieking is okay. I do that in such episodes.

>230 richardderus: *sob* I just CAN'T get an artificial tree. It would traumatize me permanently and since I plan on living for another 30 years, that's a long time to be traumatized. Besides, my daughter would look at me with her soulful brown eyes and say "Mom, how could you?"

>231 weird_O: Hair is intact, Bill, but I binge ate a Baby Ruth Candy Bar on the way home. I should have shrieked and saved the calories and the chocolate/caffeine, which will haunt me about midnight.

I am resolved. I have 2 places in town I can look tomorrow, and one about 15 miles down the road once I get to town. In the meantime, the poinsettias look very nice. Kitty William is now in the basket in the living room soaking up the heat from the propane stove.

>232 karenmarie: Sorry Karen, your story is funny, Though I must say I feel your pain;-) but seriously $170 for a Christmas tree, that is atrocious!

We are real cheapskates, we make our tree ourselves. After much thought, we cut some good boughs from a pine tree in our garden, my husband fits them in the shape of a tree and we hang it on the wall. There you go. It solves the problem of not really having space for a tree in this small house as well:-)

The tree in our garden is a Christmas tree from years ago, it has grown to be very large, and can easily miss a couple of boughs.

I like those poinsettias!

>232 karenmarie: ::eyeroll:: Yes dear.

If I got a poinsettia Tinykin Skywalker would eat it before I set it down. Aren't they poison to cats?

My company has given up on supplying offices with Christmas wreathes. But we get Good Friday off. Go figure.

Oh oh oh! You have a Franklin stove! I love those things! And they'll run you out of the room.

>232 karenmarie: - Karen, you know that poinsettias are poisonous to cats, right? Just wanted to let you know, in case you didn't.

Oops, just saw that someone beat me to it in >235 SomeGuyInVirginia:

>233 EllaTim: Hi Ella! I will try to keep this in perspective – if push comes to shove we’ll have a smallish deformed tree and hide the worst side. As you can see, I have the perfect place for the tree – this is the one from 2016. If I could make a decorative wall tree I would – but even if I could I have the problem of not having wall space – I’ve got floor space but not any place that I can think of where we could put anything like that. You’re to be commended for being so creative and making it special by using boughs from your own live Christmas tree. Thanks re the poinsettias. In Southern California where I grew up, they were a scraggly outdoor plant growing in the corner of our back yard. I like ‘em as they are here in North Carolina.



>234 richardderus: You tried, and I’m grateful for the $298 attempt. It’s purty but just not me.

>235 SomeGuyInVirginia: They might be, Larry, but my cats have never touched any house plants, ever. Of course, having said that….. Do you have greens for Da Floof? I bought some one time - you grow from seed and let the cats nibble as desired, but nobody liked them.

Frankly I’d take the day off rather than the wreath if I was still working.

>236 SomeGuyInVirginia: The stove is a Jøtul gas stove – we use propane instead of natural gas since we can't get natural gas out here in the NC boonies. We love not having to worry about wood any more, switching from a wood-burner to the propane one in 2016. We even have a remote control to turn it on! It can get hot, for sure, but it sure feels good tonight.

>237 jessibud2: Hi Shelley! Larry did mention it, but honestly, I’ve never had a single cat EVER eat house plants. Perhaps it’s because I have indoor/outdoor kitties and they get what they need outside? Don’t know, but I’ve got philodendron in the Dining Room and it cascades down the sides of a tall plant stand, and nobody’s ever touched it either. Nobody's tried to eat Christmas trees, either, although we have to keep the water reservoir for the tree covered so they don't drink from it.

Glitter on the poinsettias? NOOOOooooo!
Our cats would gleefully eat house plants. We don't let them by not having them. We used to pick nice individual grass blades (alfalfa maybe from DH's childhood pony?) for our kitties, but that was when we had only 2 or 3. No more nice grass and fistsful for 6 is too much.
Good luck on the great Christmas tree hunt. If we can get a cheap one before the lots close, that will be fine. If not, we'll put out a pineapple or something. I object to Christmas starting before the 15th and refuse to decorate before then.
We are flooding again and expecting more heavy rain Friday. Yesterday the river was at 17.2 feet (13 is flood-stage; hurricanes put it at 24+). I haven't heard today, but it's high and sad for folks who would truly like to have their lives back.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. I just started Transcription. I am a big fan of Atkinson. Are you?

>238 karenmarie: Looks nice Karen! I can see a problem with a wall-hung tree for you, where would you put the gift packages? No, this looks better. Good luck with the hunt!

>239 LizzieD: Hi Peggy. You have indoor kitties, right? If so, it reinforces my theory that my kitties get enough grass/greenery outside.

Thanks re the tree. I hope you can find a cheap beauty.

Your poor town. Bill said last night that we're supposed to get a couple of inches, but looks like you're supposed to get 2-4".

>240 msf59: 'Morning, Mark! I have read Behind the Scenes at the Museum and 2 of the Jackson Brodies in addition to Life After Life. I liked the first three, didn't like Life After Life, won't read the sequel, and am not interested in Transmission. WWII novels as a rule don't interest me for some reason. There are exceptions, but the only one I can think of offhand is Escape From Warsaw, a childrens book I read as a child - bought it from Scholastic and I still have that copy. Now, WWI is an entirely different matter. Novels and mysteries from that period are always fascinating to me.

>241 EllaTim: Thank you, Ella! Well, there are lots of packages, for sure, but less this year because I won't have time to put presents for the family party on the 15th and the presents that go to California under the (currently nonexistent) tree.

Hiya Horrible. Well, I attempted to sell logical solutions to the cost of a dead tree, the frustration of picking one out, carting it home, getting it set up with enough water that it doesn't burst into flames just from the heat of the lights, and then the aggravation of cleaning up after it, not to mention disposing of the poor thing's carcass, and all for a measly one-time purchase price.

But hey. *smooch*

Hi, Karen.

I've got Behind the Scenes at the Museum on my radar. I do like WWII novels for some reason - what a lot they went through. So Life After Life and Transcription worked for me; I'd take the former over the latter, but they're both good. I've only read the first Jackson Brodie, so I'll likely read more of those at some point.

>243 richardderus: And you did it so well, RichardDear. I'm appreciative but adamant.

I found a tree - a good'un at a place I didn't even know sold trees as I was on my way out of town to make the 15-mile hike to rumors of trees. It was on the left just before the last business on East Street, heading east, and I think they made a mistake on pricing on top of its being a nice tree, because he wanted to charge me $25 more than the price on the tag. When I pointed this out to him, he went outside, brought the tag in, saw it was the price I said it was, and so I got a very nice tree, they cut off 1/2" on the bottom to help it wick water in the stand, cut off some of the lowest branches, wrapped it in netting, and affixed it to the top of my Escape. They also said I could take as many branches as I wanted from a huge pile, so I picked up enough to decorate the mantle. I'm well pleased. It's in the garage. I haven't told Bill - I'lll see if he notices. *smile*

And when we take it down after full enjoyment of it, the poor carcass will decompose on our land in peace and quiet, enriching the soil as have the previous 20 trees here at this house.

>244 jnwelch: Hi Joe! I've read Brodie 1 and 3 - read the third one without even then realizing it was a series. I've since acquired 2 and 4. I just might back and read/reread the whole series next year.

Some years we do a little chrismas decoration, some years we don't.
This year it is do: one poinsetta at the table and we took our black/silver christmas piece in (silver painted dried willow twigs with silver/black ornaments and some black feathers at the bottom in a glass rectangular vase).

Hi Anita! I'm glad you're decorating a bit - I don't put too many things out, but I love looking at the ones that make it downstairs and visible to all. Your black/silver Christmas piece sounds elegant.

It's Friday. Not that *we* care, but it's worth noting that there are only 10 more days to do your patriotic duty and buy Chinese-made trinkets and trash since next Yule you won't be able to even if you could afford to.

Hi RD! It is Friday. I love getting up without an alarm, just finishing breakfast and still having 1/2 mug of coffee to go.

11 days, yeesh. My Christmas cards should get delivered today, daughter's coming home and will be here in 2 hours. I have to go shopping for salad fixin's for tomorrow's family party, and set up the 'wrapping station' upstairs to wrap 5 presents and put 2 gift certificates into cards.

To get back to tariffs, bloviating orange gasbag, or Orange Shitgibbon, as I think you call him, is despicably inept at being prez. I have cousins in Iowa who grow corn and soybeans. I worry about them - I'm about 99.9% sure they voted for idiot boy, and unfortunately are now reaping what they have sown, so to speak.

We don't buy too many Chinese trinkets for Xmas, although I did get some serving bowls for my niece/wife that were Made in China. You're right, next year they'll probably be double in price.

No dear, the 24th is the last shopping day...only 10, since today doesn't count as "left". Gawd! Your Orange Shitgibbon fancying family, while deserving of the economic apocalypse that's coming, will of course be of concern to you. One just hates to see the saps get sapped on the skull by their own intellectual failings.

*smooch*

Okay. 10. I saw 10, I meant to write 10, but 25-14 came out 11 and thus it was.

Nobody has been able to satisfactorily explain why Evangelical Christians support/supported drumpf. My OSFF in Iowa, Indiana, Texas, and Michigan (I think Michigan), are all evangelical Christians. I love 'em, but still. My sister and her worthless husband are also evangelical Christians. I love her, but still.

I have an aunt/uncle and niece/wife who think the same as I do, otherwise they are all deluded by the party and by most of the members of that party. It's been hijacked by extremists and white supremacists. Not that I'd ever join it, but I hope it implodes as currently populated and rebirths itself as a party of secular moderates. Then, at least, I can only rail against their policies, not the idiots destroying our country, too.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. Sorry, to hear about your snow and ice. Bummer. Our weather has actually been pretty good. It seems just damp and foggy at the moment. This I can handle.

Hi Mark! I'm glad your weather is pretty good. Coming off warm and sunny, a snowstorm would have been pretty traumatic, I think. *smile*

It's been raining here since at least 5:30 a.m., and I still have snow and some ice:

>251 karenmarie: Actually, Karen, I just read an article yesterday that addressed this. Obviously it was meant to be, so I can pass it on to you.
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/andrew-sullivan-americas-new-religions.ht...

I'm delighted your Christmas tree adventures worked out so well in the end. We are still debating whether to get a tree with all the young cats in the house, but probably will get one this weekend and just put lights on it. And the nice thing about the new LED lights is that they DON'T give off heat.

>208 karenmarie: Wow, lucky birds!! Their bird bath is probably warmer than my desk at work right now, brrrrr!

>254 ronincats: Roni beat me to it! And let us never forget that that "dangerous liberal Goldwater" (per my parents) also famously said:

>253 karenmarie: - Karen, I am considerably more north of you yet you have more snow than we have. At least here in the city, I have exactly NONE

Just catching up with your thread. Wow! It sounds like you had quite the tree hunting adventure! Glad it all worked out for you in the end :)

Stopping by to get caught up Karen, which did take me a fair bit if time, things have been busy over here. :-)

>208 karenmarie: - Very smart idea to have a heated birdbath!

>227 weird_O: - That looks... well.... precarious.

Congratulations on your successful tree shopping!

Happy Saturday, Horrible. *smooch*

>251 karenmarie: Frankly, I think a lot of Evangelical Christians were in a situation where they felt they were voting for the lesser of two evils. I'm an Evangelical Christian who didn't like either choice. I struggled a long time with the decision, and in the end I voted for the candidate (and I'm not saying which it was) that I felt was the lesser of two evils. I think a lot of others did the same thing. I don't think all Evangelical Christians voted for Trump; I don't think all non-Evangelicals voted for Hilary. Hilary had a lot of baggage. I've never liked Trump. I wish both parties would offer us some viable non-polarizing options. Of course, in this day and age, everything seems to be offensive to someone or something so I don't hold out much hope of that happening.

>254 ronincats: Hi Roni! That is a wonderful and thought-provoking article. I have read it once and saved the link to read again at my leisure. Thank you!

I hope you get a tree, even if it’s lights only. Oh yes, the new lights are way better than the ones when I was little – many a burned finger, as I recall.

>255 ChelleBearss: Hi Chelle! Bill did this for the birds, but I wholeheartedly approve and did the actual set up this year. Sorry your workspace is cold.

>256 richardderus: Amen, brother!

>257 jessibud2: Hi Shelley. It’s strange the way ‘weather’ works. Yesterday’s 1.5 inches of rain has completely removed the snow/ice and now my creek is flooded again.

>258 figsfromthistle: Hi Anita! It was intense for a while because I thought I wouldn’t find a tree that we’d ‘bond’ with that wouldn’t cost twice what I was willing to pay. I love Pittsboro Feed and we’ll go there first thing Thanksgiving weekend Friday next year.

>259 lkernagh: I’m grateful for my friends here on LT, Lori. I love visitors. Thanks re my Christmas Tree Adventure.

>260 richardderus: Happy Saturday to you too, RD!Yes! Perfect. Do you buy Death Wish Coffee? I see that they sell it on Ammie. *smooch*

>261 thornton37814: Hi Lori. Thank you for taking the time to give a thoughtful reply. I appreciate your take as an Evangelical Christian. I’m not asking you to share who you voted for, but I’m interested in the “Hilary had a lot of baggage.” statement. What things are baggage?

…
Busy morning. Presents wrapped, pecan pie baked and just out of the oven, salad fixings prepared. I always take everything for a salad in separate baggies so that the lettuces/vegetables can be tucked into the host’s refrigerator and kept chilled to just prior to serving. We’ve also got craisins and toasted pumpkin seeds, along with croutons and 4 kinds of dressing.

Family party starts at 3, we'll leave at 2.

>262 karenmarie: I haven't bought Death Wish Coffee, no. I've been buying my beans from Porto Rico Importing since the 1980s. Sadly, now I have to have them grind it for me...can't have a grinder here. Too noisy, people complain and, since I'm not *supposed* to have anything like an appliance, discretion is the better part of valor.

I ate a little teeny grocery store pecan pie today and was transported into ecstasies. I have it 2x/year so it's always a major treat. And keeping consumption down = wearing the jeans I have instead of shopping for the medium-sized denim pup tent.

>262 karenmarie: I think you only need to read things said about her and the scandals involving her and her husband from the time Bill was in office to the present to see what the baggage was. Some were probably founded; some probably were not. It's all stuff people have to weigh when making political decisions. As I stated earlier, Trump was no saint either. The lesser of two evils was not a clear-cut decision for many.

>253 karenmarie: Nice photo! Strangely enough, we have no snow, which is perfectly fine with me. A dusting to an inch, on Christmas Eve would be nice. Grins...

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday. I have a few chores to do around here but books are also on the agenda, along with the Bears/Packers game at noon. I will not miss that.

Enjoy your day.

Happy decorating day, Horrible!

>266 richardderus: - Well, that is perfect for me, too. (as I laugh all the way to the bookpiles…..)

>263 richardderus: Good afternoon, RD! I hadn’t heard of Porto Rico Importing, just checked it out. I’m guessing that Vienna Roast is a medium roast. I might splurge one of these days. Too bad about not being able to have a grinder, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do.

The pecan pie was a hit – much better than the banana pudding with …. Gasp… cool whip. I ate some as a friendly gesture, but knew Bill wouldn’t eat any even if we didn’t have something he liked. Got lots of compliments on the pie and gave the rest away except for one piece for Bill. Threw away the banana pudding that was lovingly wrapped up and sent home with us. *shudder* Cool whip.

>264 thornton37814: Got it. Thanks, Lori. I'll quietly close Pandora's box again.....

>265 msf59: Thanks, Mark. It’s all finally gone here at the house – there are still a few plowed chunks on our street and even some in the Walmart parking lot.

I’ve got a few chores, too, hope to get some reading in, but the tree magically made its way into the house and got into the stand while I was at WallyWorld and Jenna brought all the decorations down. We’ll spend some time after the Dallas game decorating, I would imagine. I love this tree. Pics later. Good luck with your Bears! My sad Panthers play tomorrow night.

>266 richardderus: Thanks, darling Richard! Tree, inside the house, present wrapping, card writing… and books… these are a few of my favorite things.

Oh yes. I am rather proud of myself - I haven’t received a book bought by me since 11/26/18. Of course I ordered a book on 11/26/18 that will arrive on 2/5/18 - The Lost Man, a standalone by Jane Harper. I got two books for Christmas from Cousin Rebecca and family yesterday – specific ones I told her about – Relic and Reliquary – nos. 2 and 3 in the Agent Pendergast series. *happy dance*

>267 jessibud2: Hi Shelley! I think it is perfect for quite a few of us here in the 75ers group.

>267 jessibud2: No lie...not even a teensy fib.

>268 karenmarie: ...Cool Whip...ugh. The circular file is the proper place for it and all things related.

Please to explaining unto antiquitous self concept "not to buying the books." Can not to processing this wordstring. Is sentence for realsies, as the childrens be to saying?

Oh, I LOVED Relic and Reliquary! They are such fun, and Cabinet of Curiosities is another really good book in the series. My favorite of the three. You are going to have a blast curled up with them on a cold morning.

Day 2 of my 2.5 week vacation. I'm glad I have a lot to do since I can pretty quickly become a person who is up all night and sleeps all day. If I don't do Christmas cards tonight I'll have to be up tomorrow at 7 to do them by dawn's early light. Man I am really looking forward to some freaking sunshine!

>269 richardderus: So many books bought in this year guilt feeling for to be buying. Realsies sentence, possibly until 8 turns to 9, for sure.

>270 SomeGuyInVirginia: Good to know, Larry. I specifically asked for them after loving Brimstone, so yay.

Yay for day 2. I have a lot to do, too, through Tuesday afternoon, then only meet a friend to exchange food gifts Wed, Thur, or Fri.

But before Tuesday afternoon I have to prepare 70 Xmas cards, wrap and box 6 presents for CA and one present and some cookies for Karen in MT and mail them TOMORROW, finish decorating the mantle, bake many cookies for several gifties, and make a Cranberry-Pecan cheese ball w/crackers for a Library Christmas Party.

But now it's off to watch The Good Place and have leftovers for dinner. Jenna's never seen TGP and we're happy to watch it again.

We got some Christmas cards in the mail today. I had purchased some calligraphy pens and I enjoyed using them to sign and address the cards. I'm still learning the nuances of creating interesting lettering with them.

>271 karenmarie: I asked colleagues for Netflix recommendations the other day, looking for something engrossing enough to watch while riding the stationary bike. The Good Place was one of their enthusiastic recommendations.

>242 karenmarie: >244 jnwelch: Strange that you like WWI but not WWII novels, Karen. I really like WWII novels, especially British ones. Perhaps that is because if WWII hadn't happened I wouldn't be here. I am looking forward to Transcription.

Congrats on finding a good tree at a reasonable price. Was it noticed when you left it in the garage?

>272 EBT1002: Hi Ellen! Have fun with your cards. I loved calligraphy at one point in my life but never pursued it, alas.

We're in stitches over The Good Place. It's forking brilliant. (You'll get the reference if you start watching it!)

>273 Familyhistorian: It is strange, Meg, and I can't really explain it. I hope you like Transcription, it really does sound right up your alley.

I ended up telling Bill about it because he was supposed to do a bit of searching for tree lots on his way home and I didn't want him to go to that effort for nothing.

We had fun decorating the tree - Bill and Jenna always do the lights, then we all give it the 'squint' test to see that they're evenly distributed, make a few adjustments, then throw on whatever ornaments suit us. Here are the before and after pictures for this year's tree:

...

Delurking to say Beautiful Tree!

O! Christmas Tree!

>275 Donna828: Hi Donna! Thanks.

>276 LizzieD: Hi Peggy!

...
Off to work on Christmas cards, drink coffee, and listen to NPR.

Great tree!

>274 karenmarie: Beautiful! Makes my astigmatism a blessing, this Yule tree lighting stuff...take off glasses, enjoy free light show!

>278 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>279 richardderus: Thanks to you, too, RD!

...
Whew. 8 presents wrapped, 3 boxes mailed at PO along with 15 Christmas cards. Mantle decorated with greenery and Christmas stockings, Angels put on wreath, trash taken to dump, food purchased to make cookies, fudge, and cranberry-pecan cheese logs for tomorrow, lunch eaten, 5th pear figured out for The 12 Days of LT Scavenger Hunt. I tell you, it's been a day.

Karen, that tree is beautiful! And I remember my Mom and Dad talking about the squint test, too!

No tree, but I did score two fresh wreaths from the high school boosters between here and Springfield, where the yooge shopping mall is that I haven't been to in years. Crowds were fierce everywhere. The wreaths are pretty and I put one on my front door and one on the balcony door.

After much back and forth, I am actually moving into the bigger place. Yay! I was quoted one number as rent but when I got the papers it was much higher, I guess it was the Amazon effect. It pays to be a good tenant because they honored the earlier, lower rent.

Hankerin' after summer food. You?

>281 SomeGuyInVirginia: Thank you, Larry. Ah, confirmation of the squint test. Excellent.

With Da Floof being a chewer, wreaths are the better option for sure. Festive and supporting the high school. Good for you.

I’m so glad they honored the lower rent quoted and am so excited for you to be moving! At least one pic is required sometime after the move, of course.

>282 richardderus: Nope. Not really. Although, real tomatoes would be stupendous. I have to resort to Roma or grape tomatoes in the winter and even then sometimes forego them altogether.

I’m happy to be doing the winter foods thing – soups, casseroles, chili, etc. And the sweets, of course, which I shouldn’t be eating too many of.

…
24 more cards almost done (just need stamps and return address labels) and 18 or 24 more to go – depending on if Bill wants me to give little boxes of cookies to the six office staff where he works.

Today is the last day for my cleaning ladies. Pat has been cleaning my house since Jenna was 10 months old and she’s now 25 years old, and her daughter Pam joined her about 15 years ago when her partner Claris retired. I am happy to save the money and only moderately only unhappy about having to clean myself. I’m retired, I should be able to carve out some time every week, right? Right?

>274 karenmarie: Nice-looking tree, Karen.

>280 karenmarie: I'm off to mail off two packages (the only ones we'll send) in a short while.

Thanks, Harry!

Good luck at the PO. I hope the lines are short.

>283 karenmarie: real tomatoes dreamy sigh

I am so totally *not* with you on the cleaning. Part of my rent goes toward daily cleaning visits with toilet scrubbing, vacuuming, etc etc. If that stopped I'd leave. I want things clean, and have less than zero desire to do it myself. I'd say give up a car before cleaning service!

>274 karenmarie: Beautiful tree!

Ugh to banana pudding.

Hooray to melted snow.

My daughter is dressed up as a goth or a vampire, or something, and terrorizing us instead of doing homework. The week off was not conducive to focus. LOL

>286 richardderus: I used to grow German Johnsons, Better Boys, and cherry tomatoes. I didn't plant a garden the last 3 years, but WILL plant one this coming year. German Johnsons are a large 'pink' tomato - a rosy red, ugly, but flavorful. I like slicing them very thin, out of the middle, and putting them in grilled cheese sandwiches.

Letting "the ladies" go was a combination of the money and the fact that Pat has had breast cancer and just finished treatments for lung cancer and has slowed down to the point where, quite frankly, I do not get my money's worth. Rather than tell them that, I opted to use the very-real money issue. If push comes to shove, my daughter says she'll come home periodically to clean for me. She worked as a team leader for a housecleaning company and is very good at it.

>287 nittnut: Thanks, Jenn! We're still in the "wow that's a big beautiful tree" and "trust Mom/KP to find the biggest tree that will fit in that corner!" phase.

Banana pudding is not my favorite even with real whipped cream.

There are still small lumps of snow by the sides of some roads, believe it or not.

Well. Daughters do some strange things sometimes, don't they? Goth or vampire and no homework. Good luck with Miss M.

Yesterday mine wore her new Hufflepuff beanie to the Library Christmas Party. Everybody wanted to talk to her, (not because of the beanie, lol), and although she's more introverted than I am, used her manners to power through meeting new people. We took a cheese ball - something I've never made before. It was a hit and I'm required to send the recipe to people. It's very, very tasty. I served it with gluten-free sesame rice thins and Ritz crackers.

Easy Cranberry-Pecan Cheese Ball

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 ounces goat cheese (chèvre), softened
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
• Zest of 1 orange
• 3/4 cup toasted pecans, chopped

Instructions
1. Place the cream cheese, goat cheese, cranberries and orange zest in a bowl and combine thoroughly.
2. Scoop the mixture onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and gather the wrap together to form a ball about 4 inches in diameter. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, then unwrap and roll in the toasted pecans.
3. The cheese ball can either be served at this point or re-wrapped and refrigerated for up to 3 days. Serve with crackers or thin slices of toasted baguette.

...
Today we'll be baking Pecan Puffs and making fudge. Depending on the time and Louise's schedule, we might take over her Christmas card and a box of goodies. Now, it's off to solve day 7 of The 12 Days of LT scavenger hunt and then read before the day starts in earnest.

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. We also enjoyed the first season of The Good Place, but have not continued it for some reason.

I have the day off. I have been battling a cold this week and I am hoping this is the last of it. I am still going on a hike, with a friend and then meeting another bird pal for lunch, so my day should be a busy one.

Hi Mark! Sorry to hear you've been battling a cold. Have fun hiking, birding, and lunch with another bird pal.

Cheese ball sounds num. I am a huge rice-thins eater, even though they're expensive...no gluten...but also that special crunch, the snap to it, appeals to me. I like Triscuits for a similar sensation. I have also discovered that, if broken but not pulverized, rice crackers make a tasty topping to a ploppy casserole (eg, broccoli cheese).

I miss pimento cheese. Too big a pain to make, and up here they've never heard of it.

Will Jenna allow a photo of her in the Hufflepuff beanie to be posted? I'd love to see that.

*smooch* Happy pecan puffing.

It was totally num. I love rice thins, too, yes expensive, but whenever I provide crackers I like to provide a gluten and a gluten-free option. We like Triscuits, too. Plain, plain, plain, though, not one of the gazillion options they have out there now. My head hurts at all the cracker choices.

Aunt Ann had her homemade pimento cheese at our family party. I admit that it's not one of my favorite things, but I did have some on a celery stick. Good but not the way I usually like to 'spend' my calories. I hadn't heard of it before I moved to NC. I have no idea what goes into it - do you have a recipe just so I can understand?

Here's the family pic from Saturday's party. I will try to get a shot of just Jenna, semi-profile, so you can get the full effect with the pompom.



2 cookie sheets of Pecan Puffs out, 1 more almost done. Fudge next.

*baaawww* They're so cute!

Recipe. Note that commercially prepared pimento cheese often has *shudder* Miracle Whip *retch* in place of mayonnaise, and cheap commercial brands use American not cheddar cheese.

Great photo of your tree and family! :)

>292 karenmarie:, Great family photo my dear, sending love and hugs.

Your tree looks beautiful and you have such a great spot to put it. Great family shot and you are colour coordinated!

>292 karenmarie: Thanks for sharing, Karen, great picture of your family.

Love the tree, Karen, and everyone looks happy and in the holiday spirit in the family pic !

>292 karenmarie: Jenna's a cutie!

I was jonesing for pimento cheese and almost caused a four cart collision when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw some for sale in Costco. It uses cheddar cheese, which is standard, but I like the trashy kind my grandmother made with Velveeta and Miracle Whip.

Woke up from Ambien, hope I can get back to sleep. I've got a ton to do today, but I'm going to see John Waters tonight at the Birchmere! Whoo-hoo!

>293 richardderus: Thanks, RD. When Aunt Ann gets back from Florida, I’ll ask her for her recipe, just to see if she’s using the proper ingredients.

>294 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle!

>295 johnsimpson: Thank you, John, and I’m sending love and hugs to the both of you.

>296 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! Thank you. We didn’t plan the color coordination – we all love all the various shades of deep red/jewel tones and it just happened. The scarf I’m wearing was a Christmas present that night from one set of cousins and it PERFECTLY matched my mock-T.

>297 FAMeulstee: You’re welcome, Anita. Thanks re the pic. Cousin Matt took it. He took two, Cousin David took two, and I choose this one and cropped it.

>298 jessibud2: Hi Shelley! Thank you, we were having a very nice time.

>299 SomeGuyInVirginia: Thanks, Larry. I think so, too, even if I do say so myself. She actually looks a lot like Bill’s Mama. I’ll have to dig out a pic of her at that age – we’ve got several prom photos of her in the secretary in the library.

Certain recipes from childhood, regardless of ingredients, are the taste of love and growing up. You might need to make some, if you have the recipe somewhere.

I hope you get all your errands run today, and Yay John Waters! I’d forgotten that it was tonight – when you first told me I looked on his website and his shows sound fantastic. Woo-hoo indeed.

…
This morning will be some reading, a few Christmas cards to go with cookie presents for friends Warren (quick meeting before lunch) and then Michelle, Robin and Kazuko at what they refer to as ‘Girls Lunch Out”. We are not pre-pubescent females, but hey! this is central NC, top of the Bible Belt, and thus it is. After that it’s getting my nails done and stocking-stuffer shopping for Jenna. She and I will go out tomorrow and shop for her dad’s stocking stuffers. Then home and possibly Orange-Cranberry Torte .

Jenna and I also made a Pecan Pie yesterday for Bill to take to work for his Christmas Luncheon today. He doesn’t like flan, and that’s the only other dessert on the menu. Many Hispanic dishes, I think, which he’ll enjoy, but Not Flan.

I love that family photo, too, Karen. You're having a busy holiday season!

Off to the new thread . . .