karenmarie's Comfort Zone Quandary - Don't Wanna vs Should - XIII

Welcome to my thirteenth thread of Twenty Twenty.

I’m still keeping my head down, pretending we’re still in lockdown, and trying to stay safe. I looked back on old threads and am amazed that it was only on March 3rd that I mentioned Covid-19 for the first time. Two days before, March 1, I was happily planning for and executing book club for 12 at our house. It’s been seven months of shockingly different social and shopping/essential services behaviors. I’m worried that Bill and I will need to postpone or cancel Thanksgiving with family.

I still love being retired, and am beyond grateful that I don’t have to venture out to work to earn a living ever again. So many things are on hold and uncertain right now, but we must accomplish this by voting in the 2020 election.



I read and am a charter member of the Redbud and Beyond Book Club, started in 1997. We haven’t met since March, and I’m not at all certain when we’ll be able to meet again. I am President for our local Friends of the Library (henceforth abbreviated FoL), and am sad that our Tuesday morning FoL book sale donations sorting meetings are still on hold, the Library is still closed, and we’ve now had to cancel two book sales because of Covid-19. It isn’t looking good for the Spring 2021 Book Sale either.

I have been married to Bill for 29 years and am mother to Jenna, who turned 27 in August. We live in our own little corner of paradise on 8 acres in central North Carolina USA. Jenna is currently working as a tutor for her community college and as she settles into that will try to find other work to cover her expenses. We have three kitties. Last night I was the cat magnet. Aren't cell phone cameras wonderful?



The theme for this year’s pictures is no theme – I’m going to use whatever strikes my fancy. The one on the left is from 1972, when I was 19, at Mom and Dad’s house with Hershel. I remember blow-drying my hair straight – I didn’t embrace the curls until my early 20s. The one on the right is from 1993, titled Boppies United.

...

My goal is 100 books again this year. It’s a good goal, not too stressful and not too comfortable. If I can fit in more nonfiction, I will. No page goal, just tracking. I seem to read around 30000 pages per year.







My personal challenge for the year will be a re-read of Jane Austen’s 6 novels. The last time I read them was BLT - Before LibraryThing – and to be perfectly honest I never even finished Emma. Bill bought lovely Easton Press Editions for me for Christmas 2008 which have never been opened. I think it’s time to crack’em. I’m now officially Very Far Behind. I've started Emma but it's slow going. I will also read Sanditon, the Watsons, Lady Susan & other Miscellanea and one biography, to be decided upon later. I've already decided to cut myself some slack and carry this challenge into 2021 if necessary.

A second personal challenge for the year will be of an archaeological nature – I want to dig through each year of book acquisitions and read 2 as-yet-unread books from each year. 13 years, 26 books. My ROOT goal is 30 books, none of them re-reads, so there’s a bit of wiggle room for 4 additional ROOTs. Not doing so well with this goal, but I’ll use the pandemic as my excuse. I may or may not accomplish this goal as my reading has changed focus quite a bit in this annus horribilis.

In response to the pandemic and in need of comfort reading, I’m reading/re-reading the Nero Wolfe mysteries by Rex Stout, all 47 of them. This, too, may carry into 2021. I’ve currently finished book 23 of 47 and am happy to continue.

During my high school and early college years, 1967-1973, I kept a notebook, which included some quotes I liked. Here are a few of them:

There is not much to be said for the business of the male having to be superior except that it’s a terrible strain. For men to be superior, women have to be inferior, which requires a lot of play-acting for both parties and never seems to work. And an awful lot of men would likely trade their male supremacy for a chance to be accepted as they actually are. – Merle Shain Some Men are More Perfect Than Others

I’m quite sure that one never makes fundamental mistakes about the thing one really wants to do. Fundamental mistakes arise out of lack of genuine interest. Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers

Any man who thinks civilization has advanced is an egotist. Will Rogers

…And I asked myself about the present: how wide it was, how deep it was, how much was mine to keep. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

He was so congenitally conceited that he appeared modest. J.D. Salinger

Pleasure not known beforehand is half wasted; to anticipate it is to double it. Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy

And, finally, Comfort Zone Quandary – how do I balance reading for sheer pleasure in genres/authors I love with Book Bullets acquired from fellow LTers and Real Life Book Club? It is a never-ending battle between Don’t Wanna and Should. Don’t Wanna stray from what I love, Should expand my horizons.

books read

January
1. A Divided Loyalty by Charles Todd 12/27/19 1/2/20 326 pages trade paperback, Advance Reader's Edition...
*abandoned* A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens 20 pages
2. Abraham Lincoln: Mystic Chords of Memory edited by Larry Shapiro 1/8/20 1/9/20 **** trade paperback, 79 pages...
3. Why Don't Woodpeckers Get Headaches? by Mike O'Connor 11/24/19 1/12/20 211 pages trade paperback
4. Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith 11/17/19 1/14/20 audiobook 18 hours
5. So Many Steps to Death by Agatha Christie 1/12/20 1/14/20 200 pages
6. The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton 1/3/20 1/18/20 458 pages trade paperback
7. Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly 1/18/20 1/20/20 433 pages hardcover
8. The Night Fire by Michael Connelly 1/20/20 1/20/20 405 pages hardcover
*abandoned* Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination by Helen Fielding, 14 pages
9. Cecily by Clare Darcy 1/22/20 1/23/20 285 pages mass market paperback
10. The Second Sleep by Robert Harris 1/23/20 1/27/20 298 pages hardcover
11. Spying on the South by Tony Horwitz 1/13/20 1/27/20 417 pages hardcover

February
12. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood 1/28/20 2/4/20 374 pages trade paperback
13. Dr. Seuss Goes to War: The World War II Editorial Cartoons of Theodor Seuss Geisel by Richard H. Minear 1/18/20 2/5/20 267 pages hardcover
14. Apprentice in Death by J.D. Robb 2/4/20 2/6/20 343 pages mass market paperback
15. In the Frame by Dick Francis 2/7/20 2/8/20 206 pages mass market paperback
*abandoned* The Cold Last Swim by Junior Burke 131 pages
16. The Sacrament by Olaf Olafsson 2/8/20 2/11/20 292 pages hardcover
17. The Last Basselope: One Ferocious Story by Berkeley Breathed 2/12/20 2/1/20 30 pages hardcover
18. Slay Ride by Dick Francis 2/12/20 2/13/20 279 pages mass market paperback
19. Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher 2/9/20 2/14/20 180 pages trade paperback
20. The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker 2/13/20 2/16/20 299 pages hardcover
21. The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths 2/18/20 2/20/20 370 pages hardcover
22. River of Darkness by Rennie Airth 2/16/20 2/24/20 435 pages trade paperback
23. Echoes in Death by J.D. Robb 2/25/20 2/27/20 371 pages hardcover
24. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen 1/23/20 2/28/20 22 pages of introduction, 381 pages hardcover

March
25. Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz 2/27/20 3/2/20 354 pages hardcover
26. Secrets in Death by J.D. Robb 3/3/20 3/4/20 370 pages hardcover
27. Dark in Death by J.D. Robb 3/4/20 3/7/20 372 pages hardcover
28. Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift 3/7/20 3/8/20 177 pages hardcover
29. Leverage in Death by J.D. Robb 3/8/20 3/12/20 385 pages hardcover
30. Connections in Death by J.D. Robb 3/13/20 3/18/20 371 pages hardcover
31. Vendetta in Death by J.D. Robb 3/20/20 3/21/20 356 pages hardcover
32. Lethal White by Robert Galbraith 1/16/20 3/24/20 22.5 hours audiobook
33. Golden in Death by J.D. Robb 3/22/20 3/27/20 387 pages hardcover
34. Blood Sport by Dick Francis 3/28/20 3/29/20 309 pages mass market paperback

April
35. The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz 3/27/20 4/3/20 373 pages hardcover
36. A Small Book of Grave Humour edited by Fritz Spiegl 4/5/20 4/5/20 192 pages paperback
37. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout 4/6/20 4/10/20 199 pages mass market paperback
38. The League of Frightened Men by Rex Stout 4/10/20 4/14/20 207 pages mass market paperback
39. The Rubber Band by Rex Stout 4/14/20 4/18/20 189 pages mass market paperback
40. True Fiction by Lee Goldberg 4/18/20 4/20/20 248 pages hardcover, Kindle
41. Beastly Tales From Here to There by Vikram Seth 4/5/20 4/19/20 152 pages hardcover
42. In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick 4/22/20 4/26/20 245 pages trade paperback
44. Killer Thriller by Lee Goldberg 4/19/20 4/27/20 287 pages hardcover, Kindle
44. Foucault for Beginners by Lydia Alix Fillingham 4/28/20 4/29/20 150 pages trade paperback
*abandoned* Left to Die by Lisa Jackson 4/27/20 496 pages mass market paperback, 2008, 86 pages

May
45. The Danger by Dick Francis 4/29/20 5/5/20 370 pages mass market paperback
46. The Red Box by Rex Stout 5/6/20 5/7/2020 264 pages trade paperback
47. Too Many Cooks by Rex Stout 5/8/20 5/14/20 179 pages mass market paperback
48. Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout 5/14/20 5/16/20 278 pages hardcover
49. Over My Dead Body by Rex Stout 5/16/20 5/19/20 191 pages mass market paperback
50. Where There's a Will by Rex Stout 5/19/20 5/23/20 255 pages, Kindle
51. Black Orchids by Rex Stout 5/23/20 5/24/20 105 pages mass market paperback
52. Cordially Invited to Meet Death by Rex Stout 5/24/20 5/24/20 99 pages mass market paperback
53. Not Quite Dead Enough by Rex Stout 5/24/20 5/26/20 102 pages hardcover
54. Booby Trap by Rex Stout 5/26/20 5/26/20 116 pages hardcover
55. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling 3/25/20 5/26/20 audiobook
56. The Silent Speaker by Rex Stout 5/26/20 5/30/20 271 pages Kindle
57. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 3/18/20 5/30/20 415 pages hardcover

June
58. Too Many Women by Rex Stout 5/31/20 6/5/20 355 pages, Kindle
*abandoned* Stacey in the Hands of an Angry God by Thomas Keech 60 pages
*abandoned* A New God in Town by Thomas Keech 20 pages
59. And Be a Villain by Rex Stout 6/6/20 6/8/20 247 pages mass market paperback
60. The Second Confession by Rex Stout 6/9/20 6/11/20 168 pages hardcover
61. In the Best Families by Rex Stout 6/11/20 6/12/20 170 pages hardcover
62. That Affair Next Door by Anna Katharine Green 6/12/20 6/19/20 350 pages trade paperback
63. Trouble in Triplicate by Rex Stout 6/20/20 6/23/20 228 pages mass market paperback

July
64. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry 6/23/20 7/2/20 462 pages trade paperback
65. Smokescreen by Dick Francis 7/2/20 7/5/20 212 pages mass market paperback
66. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow 7/5/20 7/12/20 381 pages trade paperback
67. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming 7/12/20 7/15/20 308 pages hardcover
68. The Rat Began to Gnaw the Rope by C.W. Grafton 7/15/20 7/16/20 284 pages trade paperback
69. Wild Dog by Serge Joncour 7/17/20 7/24/20 351 pages trade paperback 2018
70. Curtains for Three by Rex Stout 7/22/20 7/25/20 222 pages paperback
71. Too Much and Never Enough by Mary L. Trump, PhD. 7/21/20 7/26/20 215 pages hardcover
72. A Fountain Filled With Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming 7/25/20 7/29/20 314 pages trade paperback
*abandoned* A is for Arsenic by Katherine Harkup
73. Little Wonder: The Fabulous Story of Lottie Dod the World's First Female Sports superstar by Sasha Abramsky 7/30/20 7/31/20 232 pages hardcover

August
74. Out of the Deep I Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming 7/29/20 8/4/20 325 pages hardcover
75. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling 5/29/20 8/5/20 audiobook
76. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen 5/31/20 8/9/20 494 pages hardcover
77. To Darkness and to Death by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/9/20 8/14/20 311 pages hardcover
78. All Mortal Flesh by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/15/20 8/17/20 322 pages hardcover
79. I Shall Not Want by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/17/20 8/21/20 414 pages hardcover
*abandoned* In the Last Analysis by Amanda Cross
80. #Sad! More Doonesbury in the Time of Trump by GB Trudeau 8/3/20 8/24/20 128 pages trade paperback
81. One Was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/26/20 8/29/20 327 pages hardcover 2011
82. Lewser! More Doonesbury in the Time of Trump by GB Trudeau 7/17/20 8/30/20 127 pages trade paperback

September
83. Through the Evil Days by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/30/20 9/1/20 355 pages hardcover
84. Coraline by Neil Gaiman 9/2/20 9/3/20 163 pages hardcover
85. Murder by the Book by Rex Stout 9/3/20 9/4/20 199 pages mass market paperback
86. Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout 9/5/20 9/7/20 148 pages hardcover
87. Prisoner's Base by Rex Stout 9/7/20 9/8/20 286 pages mass market paperback
88. The Edge by Dick Francis 9/9/20 9/11/20 324 pages hardcover
89. Shadows in Death by J.D. Robb 9/11/20 9/15/20 355 pages hardcover
90. Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith 9/15/20 9/19/20 927 pages hardcover
91. The Book of Eels by Patrik Svensson 9/1/20 9/21/20 235 pages hardcover
92. Hid From Our Eyes by Julia Spencer-Fleming 9/21/20 9/24/20 339 pages hardcover
93. IQ by Joe Ide 9/24/20 9/26/20 321 pages trade paperback
94. The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware 9/26/20 9/28/20 368 pages trade paperback
95. The Nowhere Man by Gregg Hurwitz 9/29/20 9/30/20 356 pages hardcover

October
96. The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout 10/3/20 10/4/20 208 pages hardcover
97. Hellbent by Gregg Hurwitz 10/5/20 10/7/20 404 pages hardcover
98. 2020 Democratic Party Platform by the Democratic National Committee 9/1/20 10/8/20 91 pages PDF
99. Three Men Out by Rex Stout 10/8/20 10/10/20 150 pages mass market paperback
100. How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi 9/28/20 10/13/20 286 pages hardcover
101. Out of the Dark by Gregg Hurwitz 10/13/20 10/16/20 385 pages hardcover
102. Into the Fire by Gregg Hurwitz 10/17/20 10/19/20 385 pages hardcover
103. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 8/6/20 10/17/20 audiobook
104. The Black Mountain by Rex Stout 10/20/20 10/22/20 Kindle
105. The Motion of the Body Through Space by Lionel Shriver 10/11/20 10/23/20 338 pages hardcover
106. Before Midnight by Rex Stout 10/23/20 10/26/20 208 pages Kindle
107. Bangkok 8 by John Burdett 10/26/20 10/29/20 338 pages Kindle
108. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff 10/30/20 10/30/20 trade paperback

November
109. The Fifth Season by N K Jemisin 9/28/20 11/3/20 449 pages trade paperback
110. Glacial Lake Missoula and Its Humongous Floods by David Alt 9/15/20 11/4/20 trade paperback, 186 pages

Currently Reading:

The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child 11/xx/20 351 pages hardcover 2020
The Source by James Michener 10/1/20 909 pages hardcover 1965
The Princess Bride by William Goldman 9/19/20 444 pages trade paperback 1973
Case Pending by Dell Shannon 8/6/20 261 pages trade paperback 1960
Emma by Jane Austen 8/18/20 xxx pages, 1816
Moby Dick 5/1/20 517 pages trade paperback 1851
What the Bible Really Says by Manfred Barthel 2/12/20 388 pages hardcover 1980 Germany
The Bible and the Common Reader by Mary Ellen Chase 314 pages hardcover 1944 US
A Year with G.K. Chesterton edited by Kevin Belmonte 1/1/20 400 pages trade paperback 2012 US (?)

books added - 341 added in 2019 - goal is to reduce that by 20% or more. This should actually be an easy goal given the pandemic and the fact that we've already missed one book sale and will probably miss a second one.

January
1. book sort team reject - Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
2. Amazon - The Second Sleep by Robert Harris
3. friend Karen - Christmas - A Higher Loyalty by James Comey
4. friend Karen - Christmas - The New English Bible
5. friend Karen - Christmas - A Beginner's Guide to The Books of the Bible by Diane L. Jacobson and Robert Kysar
6. friend Karen - Christmas - The Bible and the Common Reader by Mary Ellen Chase, first printing, 1944
7. friend Karen - Christmas - What the Bible Really Says by Manfred Barthel
8. Amazon - River of Darkness by Rennie Airth

February
9. McKays - The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois
10. McKays - The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
11. Jenn - The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald
12. McKays - Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
13. McKays - Kiss the Dead by Laurell K. Hamilton
14. McKays - Leverage in Death by J.D. Robb
15. McKays - Dark in Death by J.D. Robb
16. ER - The Cold Last Swim by Junior Burke
17. Amazon - Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher
18. Amazon - Religous Literacy by Stephen Prothero
19. Amazon - The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
20. Amazon - Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood
21. Thrift Shop - The Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope
22. Thrift Shop - Connections in Death by J.D. Robb
23. Amazon - The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths
24. Amazon - An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim
25. Amazon - Miss Buncle's Book by D. E. Stevenson
26. Amazon - The Blood-Dimmed Tide by Rennie Airth
27. book sort team reject - Ishi Last of His Tribe by Theodora Kroeber

March
28. BookMooch - Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
29. Amazon - The Benefit of Hindsight by Susan Hill
30. Amaon - The Nowhere Man by Gregg Hurwitz
31. book sort team reject - the Epic of Man by Time-Life Editors
32. book sort team reject - Golden A Guide to Field Identification Trees of North America by C. Frank Brockman
33. ER - Wild Dog by Serge Joncour
34. Amazon - Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
35. Bookmooch - Recursion by Blake Crouch
36. Amazon - Vendetta in Death by J.D. Robb
37. Amazon - Golden in Death by J.D. Robb
38. BookMooch - Bad Feminist by Roxanne Gay

April
00. Amazon Kindle - True Fiction by Lee Goldberg, March 1, 2018
39. Amazon Kindle - The Names of the Dead by Kevin Wignall 1-5-20
40. Amazon Kindle - The Complete Novels of Fanny Burney 2-15-20
41. Amazon Kindle - Killer Thriller by Ian Ludlow
42. Amazon Kindle - Moby Dick by Herman Melville
43. Amazon Kindle - Fidelity by Susan Glaspell
00. Amazon Kindle - Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace 8/26/2018

May
44. Amazon Kindle - The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths
45. Amazon Kindle - A Man by Keiichiro Hirano
46. Amazon - An Unnecessary Woman by Rabih Alameddine
47. Amazon - Belgravia by Julian Fellowes
48. Amazon Kindle - Where There's a Will by Rex Stout
49. Amazon Kindle - Too Many Women by Rex Stout
50. Amazon Kindle - Guardians of Ga'Hoole #1: The Capture by Kathryn Lasky
51. Amazon Kindle - The Silent Speaker by Rex Stout
52. Amazon Kindle - Stacey in the Hands of an Angry God by Thomas Keech
53. ER - A New God in Town by Thomas Keech

June
54. Amazon Kindle - Double for Death by Rex Stout - first in the Tecumseh Fox series
55. Amazon - Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell
56. Amazon - That Affair Next Door by Anna Katharine Green
57. Amazon - The Rat Began to Gnaw the Rope by C.W. Grafton
58. Amazon - Trouble in Triplicate by Rex Stout
59. Amazon Kindle - Curtains for Three by Rex Stout
60. Amazon Kindle - In the Last Analysis by Amanda Cross
61. Amazon Kindle - Delphi Complete Works of Anna Katharine Green by Anna Katharine Green
62. Bill - birthday - The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
63. Amazon Kindle - Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant
64. Amazon Kindle - The Devil in America by Kai Ashante Wilson

July
65. Amazon Kindle - Tomboyland: Essays by Melissa Faliveno
66. Amazon - Too Much and Never Enough by Mary L. Trump
67. Amazon - A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia spencer-Fleming
68. ER - Little Wonder: The Fabulous Story of Lottie Dod the World's First Female Sports Superstar by Sasha Abramsky

August
69. Amazon - #Sad: Moore Doonesbury in the Time of Trump by GB Trudeau
70. Amazon - Inside Job by Connie Willis
71. Amazon Kindle - Attack of the 50 Foot Indian by Stephen Graham Jones - Richard
72. Amazon - Or What You Will by Jo Walton - Susan
73. Amazon Kindle - I Shall Not Want by Julia Spencer-Fleming

September
74. Amazon Kindle - Speedy Death by Gladys Mitchell
75. Amazon Kindle - The Saltmarsh Murders by Gladys Mitchell
76. Friend Karen - The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump by Bandy Lee
77. Amazon Kindle - It's a Bird by Christian Cooper
78. Amazon - Shadows in Death by J.D. Robb
79. Amazon - Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
80. Amazon - The Fifth Season by N K Jemisin
81. Amazon - The Obelisk Gate by N K Jemisin
82. Amazon - The Stone Sky by J K Jemisin

October
83. Friend Jan - Instant Pot For Two Cookbook by Alice Newman
84. Friend Jan - The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook by Simon Rush
85. Amazon - Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Cookbook by Jennifer Smith
86. Amazon - The Motion of the Body Through Space by Lionel Shriver
87. Judy - 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
88. Amazon - Final Proof by Rodrigues Ottolengui
89. Amazon Kindle - The Black Mountain by Rex Stout
90. Amazon Kindle - Before Midnight
91. Amazon Kindle - Bangkok 8 by John Burdett
92. Amazon Kindle - Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
93. Amazon - The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child
94. Amazon Kindle - Bangkok Tattoo by John Burdett

books culled - 255 culled in 2019 - goal is to maintain or increase by 10%

1. A Cold Treachery by Charles Todd
2. A Test of Wills by Charles Todd
3. A Matter of Justice by Charles Todd
4. Legacy of the Dead by Charles Todd
5. A Fearsome Doubt by Charles Todd
6. Wings of Fire by Charles Todd
7. Search the Dark by Charles Todd
8. A Pale Horse by Charles Todd
9. Watchers of Time by Charles Todd
10. A Long Shadow by Charles Todd
11. A False Mirror by Charles Todd
12. The Red Door by Charles Todd
13. A Lonely Death by Charles Todd
14. The Confession by Charles Todd
15. Proof of Guilt by Charles Todd
16. Hunting Shadows by Charles Todd
17. A Fine Summer's Day by Charles Todd
18. No Shred of Evidence by Charles Todd
19. Racing the Devil by Charles Todd
20. The Gate Keeper by Charles Todd
21. A Divided Loyalty by Charles Todd
22. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling - duplicate
23. Beowulf translated by Seamus Heaney
24. The Book of Merlyn by T.H. White - duplicate
25. Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination by Helen Fielding - abandoned
26. Cecily by Clare Darcy - read and culled
27. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro - thornton37814's review made me realize I'd never read it
28. Life with Maxie by Diane Rehm - dogs, not me, plus I need .3 points on bookmooch
29. Rise to Rebellion by Jeff Shaara - ditto the .3 points, plus novels about the revolutionary war ... meh
30. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen - ditto the .3 points and I'll never read it - contemporary fiction
31. Left to Die by Lisa Jackson
32. Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout - duplicate
33. Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout - triplicate
34. The Partner by John Grisham
35. The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths
36. Black Orchids by Rex Stout - duplicate
37. Not Quite Dead Enough - duplicate
38. Hawaii by James Michener - when I looked at it the other day, I realized that several of the pages were misprinted and even if I wanted to re-read it RIGHT NOW, it would be a terrible reading experience. I'll have to look for another copy. I actually threw this one into the recycle bin!
39. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout - duplicate
40. And Be a Villain by Rex Stout - duplicate
41. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
42. Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson
43. Still Life by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
44. China Road by Rob Gifford - dated
45. The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova
46. Glass Houses by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
47. A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
48. A Rule Against Murder by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
49. The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
50. The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
51. Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
52. A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
53. The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley
54. Midwife of the Blue Ridge by Christina Blevins
55. No Instructions Needed by Robert G. Hewitt
56. The Dry Grass of August by Anna Jean Mayhew
57. The Long Way Home by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
58. How the Light Gets in by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
59. The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
60. The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny - won't read any more of the series and won't re-read this one
61. Wild Dog by Serge Joncour - ER book I don't want to keep
62. Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter - won't read
63. Walden and On The Duty of Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
64. As Meat Loves Salt by Maria McCann
65. The Timetables of History by Bernard Grun
66. Pruning Made Easy by Lewis Hill
67. Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
68. Reader's Digest Illustrated Guide to Gardening
69. Shagging in the Carolinas by 'Fessa John Hook
70. A Reporter's Life by Walter Cronkite
71. The Majors by John Feinstein
72. Stupid White Men by Michael Moore
73. Better Homes and Gardens Step by Step Landscaping
74. Needlepoint by Hope Hanley
75. Britannica Book of English Usage by Christine Timmons
76. The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout - duplicate
77. Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler - won't read it
78. The Life of Amelia Earhart by Mary S. Lovell
79. Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1) by Jim Butcher
80. Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, Book 2) by Jim Butcher
81. Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, Book 3) by Jim Butcher
82. Summer Knight (The Dresden Files, Book 4) by Jim Butcher
83. Death Masks (The Dresden Files, Book 5) by Jim Butcher
84. Blood Rites (The Dresden Files, Book 6) by Jim Butcher
85. Dead Beat (The Dresden Files, Book 7) by Jim Butcher
86. Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files, Book 8) by Jim Butcher
87. White Night (The Dresden Files, Book 9) by Jim Butcher
88. Small Favor (The Dresden Files, Book 10) by Jim Butcher
89. Turn Coat (The Dresden Files, Book 11) by Jim Butcher
90. Forrest Gump by Winston Groom
91. Gump & Co. by Winston Groom
92. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Brashares, Ann
93. The Cat Who Blew the Whistle by Braun, Lilian Jackson
94. The Cat Who Moved a Mountain by Braun, Lilian Jackson
95. The Cat Who Played Brahms by Braun, Lilian Jackson
96. The Cat Who Played Post Office by Braun, Lilian Jackson
97. The Cat Who Said Cheese by Braun, Lilian Jackson
98. The Cat Who Sniffed Glue by Braun, Lilian Jackson
99. The Cat Who Tailed a Thief by Braun, Lilian Jackson
100. The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts by Braun, Lilian Jackson
101. The Cat Who Turned On and Off by Braun, Lilian Jackson
102. The Cat Who Went into the Closet by Braun, Lilian Jackson
103. Full Cry by Brown, Rita Mae
104. Murder on the Prowl by Brown, Rita Mae
105. Murder, She Meowed by Brown, Rita Mae
106. Nine Lives to Die by Brown, Rita Mae
107. Outfoxed by Brown, Rita Mae
108. Riding Shotgun by Brown, Rita Mae
109. Brain Droppings by Carlin, George
110. Mason & Dixon by Pynchon, Thomas
111. Warning Signs by White, Stephen
112. A Flame in Byzantium by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
113. Better in the Dark: A Novel of Saint-Germain by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
114. Blood Games: A Historical Horror Novel Set in Nero's Rome by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
115. Crusaders' Torch by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
116. Darker Jewels: A Novel of the Count Saint-Germain by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
117. Out of the House of Life: A Novel of the Count Saint-Germain by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
118. Path of the Eclipse A Historical Horror Novel Set in the Far East by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn
119. Writ In Blood: A Novel of the Count Saint-Germain by Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn

I've broken mysteries down into mystery, suspense, thriller and re-categorized appropriately

Statistics Through September 30

95 books read
28 of them on my shelves before 1/1/20 and not rereads
10 books abandoned, 553 pages abandoned
26810 pages read
57.8 audiobook hours
Avg pages read per day, YTD = 98
Avg pages read per book, YTD = 282

Author
Male 59%
Female 41%

Living 60%
Dead 40%

US Born 67%
Foreign Born 33%

Platform
Hardcover 48%
Trade Pback 22%
Mass Market 19%
Audiobook 4%
e-Book 7%

Source
My Library 80%
Library 15%
Other 5%

Misc
ARC/ER 3%
Re-read 24%
Series 64%

Fiction 89%
NonFiction 11%


Author Birth Country
Austria 1%
Canada 1%
England 25%
France 1%
Iceland 1%
India 1%
New Zealand 1%
South Africa 1%
Sweden 1%
US 67%

Original Decade Published
1810-1819 3%
1890-1899 1%
1930-1939 6%
1940-1949 13%
1950-1959 6%
1960-1969 1%
1970-1979 5%
1980-1989 3%
1990-1999 7%
2000-2009 11%
2010-2019 34%
2020-2029 10%

Category
Biography 3%
Chrestomathy 1%
Contemporary Fiction 1%
Fantasy 5%
Historical Fiction 5%
Humor 4%
Informational Nonfiction 5%
Mystery 64%
Poetry 1%
Science Fiction 3%
Suspense 1%
Thriller 5%

September’s Lightning Round

Through the Evil Days by Julia Spencer-Fleming 8/30/20 to 9/1/20

8th in the series, Clare and Russ are on a week’s vacation at an isolated cabin in upstate New York. In Millers Kill, a house burns down and a little girl is missing. Meth, the FBI, a winter storm to beat all winter storms, and Hadley’s past comes back to haunt her. I particularly liked the descriptions of trying to get anywhere in the storm, solve a crime in the storm, and stay alive in the storm. Once again the first third was rather boring. Clare is heedless of her personal safety, Russ is being childish and immature. Danger wakes them both up.

Murder By the Book by Rex Stout 9/3/20 to 9/4/20

Number 19 of 47 in my spur-of-the-moment-in-2020 Nero Wolfe books read. This one is particularly ingenious, starting off with a piece of paper with 15 names on it and ending up with a spectacular denouement in Wolfe’s office. In the meantime there’s a 1951 description of Glendale CA, a father’s grief, Archie’s ways with women, and Inspector Cramer chewing on his soggy unlit stogie. I don’t think I’ve ever read this one before, so it counts for my ROOT challenge, too.

Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout 9/6/20 to 9/7/20

Three novellas:

1. Home to Roost. Mr. and Mrs. Racknell hire Nero Wolfe to find out who murdered their nephew, an avowed Communist, who they say told them he was really working for the FBI. Wolfe sets into motion actions which he thinks will expose the killer.
2. The Cop Killer. Archie has paying clients – the coat check and one of the manicurists at the barber shop where he and Wolfe get haircuts. They are in the country illegally and flee after a cop is killed in the shop. Archie keeps them at the old brownstone and checks it out. Eventually Wolfe gets into the act after having fed the couple, and once in the shop he sees the vital clue and the murderer is discovered.
3. The Squirt and the Monkey. Archie nearly accidentally kills the monkey, Wolfe looks through 3 years of comic strips to figure out who really owned the rights to Dazzle Dan, and the man of the family is the wife.

Prisoner’s Base by Rex Stout 9/7/20 to 9/8/20

Archie and Wolfe don’t let a rich young heiress rent a third floor bedroom for 5 days, putting her into a taxi late at night. This is a mistake. Later, after a confab in Wolfe’s office with ten suspects in her and her maid’s murder, another mistake causes Archie to feel personally responsible and he and Wolfe work the case for nothing. There’s a particularly poignant scene where a coat and hat are left on a chair and the owner never returns, but that’s not one of the crimes of this case. Just an interesting tidbit.

The Edge by Dick Francis 9/9/20 9/11/20

Well-done, with another of Francis’s enigmatic, intelligent problem solvers. This time it takes place in Canada, with ‘Tommy’ the waiter, also known as Tor the investigator, trying to ensure that disaster doesn’t strike a week-long train jaunt across Canada with owners, horses, grooms, and a crook who’s escaped retribution so far trying to blackmail and otherwise disrupt the trip. I was particularly pleased with this one.

Shadows in Death by J.D. Robb 9/11/20 9/15/20

Straight police work on a heinous crime in the 51st book in this series. The killer is quickly identified since he lets himself be seen by Rourke. This is an ancient enemy of Rourke, and Rourke knows he will come for him or those he loves. I wasn’t thrilled with the killing of Sweetie the cat, and I was deathly afraid that there was going to be a kidnap/torture situation, but thank goodness not. There was just a botched capture with a high speed/international chase, ending up at Roarke’s relatives land in Ireland.A solid entry in the series although we don’t see Mavis.

Hid From Our Eyes by Julia Spencer-Fleming 9/21/20 9/24/20

Intriguing right from the start, with 3 mysterious deaths on the same stretch of road, 3 young women in party dresses, no shoes or stockings, purses or personal belongings, 1952, 1972, and ‘present day’. Alternating chapters allow us to see how three different Chiefs of Police try to solve the cases. In the meantime, Clare and Russ are juggling new parenthood. An interesting intern is placed with Clare, and there’s a move to close the police department down and let the ‘staties’ support 3 local communities. A very good entry in the series. Now I have to wait!

IQ by Joe Ide 9/24/20 9/26/20

Smart, funny, and clever. Isaiah Quintabe drops out of high school when his brother is senselessly killed by a hit and run driver, is aimless for a while, figures out what’s important. The two timelines work. IQ is likeable and on the side of the angels.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway 9/26/20 9/28/20

We have a young woman who receives a summons to a large house. She thinks she can con the family into believing her a relative and get enough money to pay off a debt to a loan shark. There are clues in the house, unspoken tensions in the house, and even murder attempts. I couldn’t put it down and read far into the night to finish it. My biggest criticism, which hit me on almost every page, is the nickname for our heroine, “Hal”. It is generally a man’s nickname and it was very off-putting.

The Nowhere Man by Gregg Hurwitz 9/29/20 9/30/20

Second in the Evan Smoak series. Wow, what a roller-coaster ride. Every time I thought things would settle down a bit, the tension and sheer CF nature of what Evan got into ratcheted up and I wondered how he’d get out of each situation. I’m very glad that Hurwitz didn’t draw out the suspense of Jack actually still being alive beyond this second book. I was also especially pleased with the way Evan took out the bad guys at the end although one tantalizing enemy is still out there and the last phone call sets up the next book.

Normally thread number 13 would be in December, but this is 2020, after all...

Welcome!

Hi Horrible! *smooch*

Happy new one!

>8 richardderus: Quick off the mark, RD! *smooch*

Happy dance!



>9 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita! And the dance continues.



Gotta find something to make us smile, don't we? Visitors and Calvin and Hobbes are always wonderful.

Happy new thread!

Hi Karen and Happy New Thread!
I'm excited to read IQ in November. :-)

Hi Karen, took me a moment to try and figure out why the thread wouldn't "jump to first unread"...

Lots of 4 and-more star-reading. Yay for you ~ you've done really well picking reading material to your tastes!
I hope the future reads are just as 'tasty'.

Happy new thread, Karen.

Happy baker's dozen of threads, Karen.

The lucky thirteenth! Go you. Racing ahead :)

Happy New Thread, Karen!

I was too slow getting back on your last thread, but I'm glad Shelley found the squirrel-flipping Droll Yankees Yankee Flipper for Sandy: http://drollyankees.com/product/yankee-flipper-bird-feeder/

>11 quondame: Thank you, Susan!

>12 EBT1002: Thanks, Ellen. I hope you like IQ. I want to continue the series, but am lazy. The second in the series is at another library branch in my county and I haven’t been in the mood to drive that way recently.

>13 SandyAMcPherson: Sandy, that’s exactly what happens to me sometimes when I try to go to “jump to first unread”. Then I go back to the last thread, get caught up, and start the new one over.

Thanks re my reading. Comfort reading is the order of the day, and I’m at 71% for mystery/suspense/thriller.

>14 jessibud2: Thank you, Shelley.

>15 PaulCranswick: Thanks Paul! I know what a baker’s dozen is, but not why a baker’s dozen is thirteen. From the Britannica:

In medieval England there were laws that related the price of bread to the price of the wheat used to make it. Bakers who were found to be “cheating” their customers by overpricing undersized loaves were subject to strict punishment, including fines or flogging. Even with careful planning it is difficult to ensure that all of your baked goods come out the same size; there may be fluctuations in rising and baking and air content, and many of these bakers didn’t even have scales to weigh their dough. For fear of accidentally coming up short, they would throw in a bit extra to ensure that they wouldn’t end up with a surprise flogging later. In fact, sometimes a baker’s dozen was 14—just to be extra sure.

>16 LovingLit: Thanks, Megan.

>17 jnwelch: Hi Joe! Any bird feeder that thwarts squirrels makes me smile.

…
I was caught up short when needing thread 13. I had the ego pics selected, but not kitty pics. Last night I had three resting kitties near me, so zoom snap x 3. I've edited message 1 above, too.



…
Annual exam. Blech. Stressful. I know I’m fat, I just hope it doesn’t show up in the numbers. My blood pressure has been creeping up over the years, so we’ll see. Lots of cholesterol, both good and bad. Sigh. I will be a much happier camper tomorrow morning.

In the meantime, coffee, books, and puttering. I’m determined to finish How to be an Antiracist today or tomorrow. And I started The Motion of the Body Through Space, Lionel Shriver’s newest, last night. I love the first person narration by Serenata Terpsichore – last name rhymes with hickory.

Well. So it's Monday again, is it? Mm. And here it is raining a steady soaker, too.

The kind of Monday that used to make me miserable is now the kind of Monday I smile softly at and go back to reading. I hope you will, too.

>17 jnwelch: Yes she did! Thanks for posting this, too. It truly is hilarious.

Happy new one, Karen!

>19 richardderus: It is indeed Monday again, not so bad for those us who don't work, eh? No rain here, but I can still smile softly and read. Oh yes, for sure.

>20 SandyAMcPherson: Here's a different kind of flying squirrel. I got a Flying Squirrel Onesie for Jenna for Christmas 2016. As you can see, she was quite happy. She's as skinny as a rail, but you sure can't tell that from this pic.


>21 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie!

Happy new thread, Karen. Loved the photo walk through history :)

Happy new thread!

Great new thread, Karen! I look forward to enjoying it!
What a crime though to straighten all those glorious curls. At least you didn't do it long. My younger cousin ironed her beautiful blond curls so long in the 60s that her hair is straight, limp, and dull to this very day.
OH that squirrel ONESIE!!!!

>23 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba.

>24 drneutron: Thanks, Jim, and as always, thank you for all you do for our group.

>25 LizzieD: Thanks, Peggy. Sorry about your younger cousin ironing her curls and the resultant damaged hair. I only used a hair dryer on mine. When younger, I also used huge rollers to 'straighten' my hair - sleeping on them was hell.

Jenna has a Carrot Onesie, too, but I don't think I ever got a picture of it. She wears both of them around her house in the winter.

Serenata Terpsichore! Is that a real name???

Hi Karen my dear, happy new thread dear friend.

>27 ffortsa: Serenata Terpsichore is a fictional character in Lionel Shriver's newest, The Motion of the Body Through Space, Judy. Serenata's husband's name is Remington Alabaster. Go figure.

>28 johnsimpson: Hi John! thank you.

Your threads do move along, Karen. Happy new one!

Thank you, Beth! I usually start my 13th thread late November or early December. I'm about 6 weeks ahead this year.

Happy thirteenth, Karen!

>26 karenmarie: Ouch, I remember those rollers, used the smaller ones overnight. I had fairly straight hair, so I wanted curls :-)

Morning, Karen. Happy New Thread. We are back. As you could tell, we had a great time camping with friends. Sue doesn't start work until 1pm, so I am going to hang out here and we are going to clean and put the camping gear away. I will hit the books this afternoon. I didn't get much book time in, on the trip.

Thank you, Anita! You wanted curls, I wanted straighter hair. Rollers were hellish.

>31 karenmarie: What is, "The Pandemic strikes again," Alex?

Absolutely. Cause and effect. I'm usually scrambling around in mid-December making sure I will meet my goal for the year.

Jenna told me about a YouTuber named Julie Nolke. She has three pandemic videos, where her 'present' self meets her 'future' self. Search 'explaining the pandemic to myself'. They are a riot and make you want to cry at where we are. Here's the first one.

Explaining the Pandemic to Myself

100. How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
9/28/20 to 10/13/20





From Amazon:#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the National Book Award–winning author of Stamped from the Beginning comes a “groundbreaking” (Time) approach to understanding and uprooting racism and inequality in our society—and in ourselves.

“The most courageous book to date on the problem of race in the Western mind.”—The New York Times

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • Time • NPR • The Washington Post • Shelf Awareness • Library Journal • Publishers Weekly • Kirkus Reviews

Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.

Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.

Praise for How to Be an Antiracist

“Ibram X. Kendi’s new book, How to Be an Antiracist, couldn’t come at a better time. . . . Kendi has gifted us with a book that is not only an essential instruction manual but also a memoir of the author’s own path from anti-black racism to anti-white racism and, finally, to antiracism. . . . How to Be an Antiracist gives us a clear and compelling way to approach, as Kendi puts it in his introduction, ‘the basic struggle we’re all in, the struggle to be fully human and to see that others are fully human.’ ”—NPR

“Kendi dissects why in a society where so few people consider themselves to be racist the divisions and inequalities of racism remain so prevalent. How to Be an Antiracist punctures the myths of a post-racial America, examining what racism really is—and what we should do about it.”—Time

Why I wanted to read it: Lots of LT buzz, figured it was time.

A thoughtful, angry, hopeful memoir and informational nonfiction book that frames his growing awareness of and solidifying antiracist theory and definition in terms of his own growing up cisgender Black heterosexual male and finding his way to the conclusion that racism was promulgated for the self-interest of capitalists and how that self-interest has created racist policies. It becomes crystal clear as you read the book. "Of course!" "Nothing else makes sense!" "This clarifies and eliminates all other explanations!"

His position is supported by 43 pages of notes and a 13 page index. He argues with brutal honesty about his buying into assimilationist and segregationalist positions and the women and men he’s met who have helped him come to understand and clarify what an antiracist is.

Chapters that have definitions at the beginning include Definitions, Dueling Consciousness, Power, Biology, Ethnicity, Body, Culture, Behavior, Color, White, Black, Class, Space, Gender, Sexuality, and Failure. The last two chapters, Success, and Survival, summarize where he is in his life so far and what the world needs to do to become antiracist. It won’t be easy, it won’t be short-term, but he equates his metastatic cancer with the cancer of racism/racist policies and the metaphor holds.

Wow. Stunning. Everybody should read it.

Happy new thread, Karen!

>22 karenmarie: - That is an awesome picture!

Hoping all goes well with the annual exam.

Thanks, Lori! Jenna was beside her self with joy. She'd asked for the Carrot Onesie, but just mentioned the Flying Squirrel Onesie as an aside many months before Christmas and wasn't expecting it.

The annual exam went well. No bloodwork surprises or otherwise surprises. My blood pressure was 138/82, without meds, which is not bad. I'm always stressed when I go there, as are most people, so my doctor took that into consideration and wasn't worried about it.

My cholesterol is high, has been for years, and last year my doctor, knowing that I won't use statins (genetic component to reaction, my sister had a terrible reaction, so nope!) mentioned a drug called Zetia. I researched it then but didn't bite, but this year figure I should give it a go. I'll pick it up today or tomorrow. I had to overcome my false pride in not being on any medications except for a muscle relaxant. Still, I'm not thrilled with the idea.

I've also been having problems with my right knee for about 8 months... it just started causing problems when Covid reared its ugly head and I was more than reluctant to go to the doctor. But we discussed it yesterday and he gave me a cortisone shot. A cortisone shot worked well for a baker's cyst in my left knee in January, so I wasn't anticipating any problems, but last night I had what's called a 'cortisone flare' when I was in 6 of 10 pain for many hours. Ibuprophen and tylenol worked, but I didn't sleep well and was up from 4:30 to 6:30 this morning before going back to sleep for an hour and a half. I'm whupped. I took more ibuprophen when I got up and will take some more tylenol here in a minute or two. It's tender but not painful. I'll baby it for a couple of days.

I also got my flu shot, so yay for that.

Hi there, Karen! Congrats on the magic 100!!! So glad you loved How To Be An Antiracist! What a powerful read that was.

And congrats on the mostly good annual exam. Phew. Good luck with the Zetia. I hope the cortisone flare subsides and then it works magic on your knee. I am off the the plastic surgeon today. Ugh.

The Flying Squirrel costume gave me such a laugh and I needed one, so thanks!

Stay well, and well read. : )

>38 lkernagh: *ow*ow*ow*

Book-bulleted by Horrible's 100th shot of 2020. *sigh*

>40 Berly: Hi Kim! Thanks. I deliberately slowed down other reading to make this book #100.

My knee already feels better, but I'm babying it. We'll see how it does tonight. Boo hiss on having to go to the plastic surgeon. I hope you hear what you want to hear. Is that what I should say? I hope you hear that your nose will look pre-Mohs within 3 months? I'm out of my league here, but wish you the result you want.

Glad that Jenna in her Flying Squirrel Onesie made you laugh.

>41 richardderus: I know you follow threads of other folks who've read this, RD, so am flattered that I BB'd you.

...
I let the new kitties out the Sunroom door today, had to leave it open so they wouldn't panic and run away since they don't know how to get to the kitty door from this side of the house yet. They're back in, and so is a fly. I wonder if it's Mike Pence's fly?

Hi Karen my dear, congrats on hitting one hundred books for the year so far dear friend.

Congratulations on hitting your goal of 100, Karen!

And further congratulations on your new thread.

I’ll just say that I tried several different statins and wound up saying, “Not doing that again. Nope, no, and nay.” I’ve been taking Zetia for about a year. While it doesn’t knock the cholesterol way down, I reduces the levels enough to satisfy the dr and me. No side effects at all for me. I hope it goes as well for you.

>43 johnsimpson: Thank you, John!

>44 Matke: Thanks, Gail, twice.

I'm so glad to hear that about Zetia, because the doctor did say that there wouldn't be the same % reduction as with statins. He said 20-25%, but anything would be good, and fantastic that you haven't had side effects. I'm not overly sensitive to drugs or foods or etc., so have high hopes that this will work for me.

>37 karenmarie: It is a very impressive book, and a great choice for completing you 100 reads for the year.

>37 karenmarie: Congrats on #100, Karen. And I can't think of a better book for it. I agree it's one that everyone should read. That, and Caste. 😀

I see many high stars in the books you read thus far this year! Congratulations on reaching 100 books!

>46 quondame: I feel very good about finishing it as my 100th book for sure, Susan.

>47 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura. I'm debating getting a copy for my friend Karen for her birthday and for Jenna for Christmas. I'll have to check out Caste.

>48 Whisper1: I've abandoned 10 books so far this year, Linda. Those were the stinkers. *smile*

100 WOW!!!!! I'll never make that lofty goal although it would do me good!
I'm happy to hear about your check-up. I don't think we can realistically hope to have nothing at all wrong. You seem to be doing most things right.
Good for you!!!!!

Morning, Karen. I think you missed me up there yesterday but I can handle it- I am a Big Boy. I also really enjoyed How to be an Antiracist. Strong stuff. I did see a tufted titmouse at my suet feeder yesterday. Only the second time, I have seen one in my backyard. Heading out with my birding buddies in a bit. Enjoy your day.

>50 LizzieD: 100 seems to be a good goal for me in retirement, Peggy. I am not taking care of a parent as you are, daughter's out of the house, and Bill is remarkably self-reliant. And... pandemic...

My biggest problem is my weight. Except for brief periods in my life, I've always been heavy. I hate it. I know what to do but just can't seem to do it. I asked the doctor about diet pills the other day but we nixed the idea because of heart risks.

>51 msf59: I did, and I'm sorry, Mark. Thanks re my new thread. I am glad you had a good trip and yesterday's plan to get the camping stuff put up in a timely manner sounds good to me. Did you get any good reading in?

Okay. Now to today's message after the apology and catch up. *smile* Congrats on the Tufted Titmouse. Right now I'm seeing some Cardinals flitting around in the Crepe Myrtle. The hummingbirds are definitely gone - I think the remnants of Delta finalized their migration. I need to bring the feeder in, wash it, and put it up until next April. My goodness. I wonder where we and the world will be in April? Mostly a scary thought, that.

Enjoy your birding morning, and hope you get some good reading in this afternoon or evening.

...
I just belatedly published the Minutes for last meeting and agenda for the October Board meeting of the Friends, which will be next Monday. I just forgot in the last two days - probably because of stressing about my annual exam and then the unexpected cortisone flare yesterday.

Coffee, brekkie, reading, puttering. Maybe hammock time this afternoon. I had a nice nap in the hammock yesterday afternoon.

From the fourth Orphan X book, Out of the Dark, by Gregg Hurwitz, page 97. Too bad what we have isn't even remotely close to this.

Ask a dozen people what the president's job is and you'll get a dozen answers. But above all else, the job of the president is to demonstrate order. To maintain security. To project power. That keeps citizens from the realm of chaos. It keeps them from having to contemplate the realm of chaos. He keeps them happy and industrious, minding the laws of the land and paying their taxes and letting the grown-ups do what needs to be done.

Congratulations on reaching 100, Karen! That was/is my goal for this year but now I'm just glad I've got 75 done. Hope you do get some of that hammock time this afternoon.

Thanks, Reba. It's a gorgeous day here in central NC. The hammock will beckon once it hits about 70F outside. It's 66F now.

Reading isn't supposed to be homework unless you're in school, of course, but I must admit satisfaction when I reach my year goals. Good luck getting to 100.

Hey there, Horrible, have a hammocky Wednesday. *smooch*

Wasn't early morning lovely, Karen? (By "early" I mean "after 7:00 but before 8:00.")

Good day to you!

>56 richardderus: Thanks, darling Richard. I'm particularly happy today - dishes and kitchen under control, plants watered, knee feeling much MUCH better, cortisone flare a thing of the past, plans for errands tomorrow, good, book in hand.

I may make a pound cake today. I will definitely be making dinner tonight - probably shrimp risotto. I just took the raw shrimp out of the freezer, so am now committed.

>57 LizzieD: Early morning may have been lovely, Peggy, but I was still in the arms of Morpheus. However, I was awake by about 8:15 or so. Today is the kind of gorgeous day that makes NC such a wonderful place to be. Good day to you, too, dear friend.

>58 karenmarie: Heh, yes indeed, once shrimp have thawed they MUST be used because eeewww

Pound cake gooooood

Thawed, peeled, washed again, cut in half, in the fridge waiting. Onion chopped in food processor, garlic pressed, parmesan cheese grated. I'll start back up in about 15 minutes.

Chocolate pound cake out of the oven, cooling.

>60 karenmarie: Mmm! Sounds like a great cake!

Congratulations on reaching 100, Karen. I agree that How to Be an Antiracist should be required reading for everyone.

>61 figsfromthistle: I liked but didn't love the pound cake. It's a recipe I got with my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer that I've made before, just don't remember it being a tad bland. Not that it will get wasted, mind you, it's just that I'll probably make the regular pound cake next week.

>62 BLBera: Thank you, Beth! I was just private messaging one of our number and told him that How to be an Antiracist tore my head off. Not the stuff of official reviews, but the more I think about it the more I feel that what Kendi said is so absolutely right.

Edited to add: Does anybody else hate the new Talk layout as much as I do? It just absolutely sucks, IMO.

>63 karenmarie: I am mostly unhappy with new Talk. A couple of things are improvements, but overall I'm annoyed.

>64 quondame: >63 karenmarie: Some significant browser compatibility issues as well as style not suited to small device screens, for sure.

I suggested Susan look at using a different browser.

Edited to add: There are definitely some glitches despite the Safari browser compatibility. I abandoned Firefox a coupe years ago for not keeping their programming compatibility (or usability?) patched up.

So far I don't mind the Talk. It is easier to read, but it is a huge change.
(Desk top and Firefox for me, btw)

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. We had a good time birding yesterday, although we missed our target birds, especially the fierce merlin, a small falcon that had been seen in that particular area. A lifer, I have been in search of. We are going on the Chicago lakefront later this morning. Our temp has dropped 20-plus degrees, so it will be chilly.

I am enjoying Utopia Avenue. If you like 60s music and fine writing, you might like this one.

I never like changes on the Web at first, but I think I'll get used to this.

I don't mind the changes at all. They are just different and need to become familiar. I don't envy the LT staff having to field all the questions and complaints - everyone uses LT differently and trying to make all of us 100% happy would be impossible!

Hi, Karen. What Katie said about the changes. The look is fine by me, but there is at least one way I used to organize things that I haven't figured out how to do in this new set-up.

Sweet Thursday. Good review of How to Be an Anti-racist. We have that on the tbr shelf, and I need to get to it.

>64 quondame: Annoyed is a good word. Amped-up annoyed is a good phrase.

>65 SandyAMcPherson: I use Firefox, but have Edge and Chrome available. For me it's not the browser that the issue, it's three things:

1. Not being able to sort on the headers. Sometimes I like to see whose threads I'm furthest behind on.
2. Each entry taking up 'two' lines because they've put the user name on one line and the day/time beneath.
3. Star/Unstar a topic are now way up in the right corner, not immediately available near the group/title.

>66 LizzieD: Hi Peggy. I don't like change very much, especially when it was working just fine for me. It sounds like the changes are being made for android devices, so I guess desktop/laptop users are going to become second class citizens.

>67 msf59: Hi Mark! Glad you had a good time yesterday, sorry you didn't get your target bird (sounds like a military operation to me!) Brrr.

I do love 60s music and of course do love fine writing. For some reason the idea of this book hasn't grabbed me, but perhaps I need to pay more attention.

>68 BLBera: Apparently one of my two complaints is already going to be addressed – sorting on headers will return. I never like changes on the Web either. I’ll have to get used to it. LT is my go-to-social media website. Sigh.

>69 katiekrug: I realize they can’t keep everybody happy. If it was only just visual changes that I had to get used to fine, but I can only see 50% of topics that I could see before because of stacking username/ day-time. I’ve lost functionality. I also can see the writing on the wall – that phone/device functionality will drive LT and computer/laptop users will eventually be second-class citizens.

>70 jnwelch: You and Katie are more easy-going than I am. I need to breathe deep and relax, right?

Thanks my review. I borrowed it from the Library. I don’t feel a huge need to have it on my shelves. Friend Karen in Montana is sending me a copy of Stamped From the Beginning, probably for Christmas.

...
They've already fixed the stacked username/day-time problem, already gotten rid of the jarring red when hovering/scrolling. And they've said they're going to bring back header sorting. Yay.

>71 karenmarie: I use LT on Chrome on my 15.6" HP Chromebook, and have no issues with usernames/timestamps on different lines. The world of tech makes my head spin because it seems to me to be such a chaos-for-profit nightmare.

Anyway, the new khaki-and-blue colorway makes my eyes very happy and, since I do so little fancy shuffling, they've made me happy by getting rid of the old colors. Awful.

*smooch*

I already feel sort of third-class, Karen, with our old desktops.
My new complaints are that I can't edit by highlighting and deleting in my messages. I also miss seeing whether I have a new message on my thread. I'm certainly not going to keep up with the exact number of messages there from day to day. Otherwise, O.K.

>74 LizzieD: - Peggy, the highlighting issue looks to be resolved now.

How did you used to see if you had new messages on your thread? I've always just gone to the "Started by You" link and unread messages shown up in bold, as they do on my "Starred" list. I know some people access talk through the Home screen, though, so maybe there is an issue there?

The LT staff is working through a lot of the issues, and updating on the thread devoted to the changes.

I miss the highlighting deleting too but otherwise I really like the new look. I find the font easier to read and the colors bright and clean looking.

>63 karenmarie: I agree that Kendi is a good head smack, and that it should be required reading. His earlier one was that for me - and I think he's mostly right on target with his ideas.

>73 richardderus: I’m glad your eyes are very happy with the khaki-blueness.

>74 LizzieD: I don’t know if they’ve fixed the highlighting/deleting problem yet. I hope they do soon, they should, as that’s a pretty serious problem for people.

>75 katiekrug: To answer your question to Peggy, I use the Talk link with the Starred Topics selection almost exclusively. I occasionally sort by different headers to see things differently but usually sort by last message.

>76 RebaRelishesReading: Bigger font helps a lot of us.

>77 drneutron: I wish I could get my extremely conservative sister to read it, but am not even going to open that can of worms. Like I said up above, I should be getting Stamped From the Beginning by Christmas at the latest.

I'm one of those who are accustomed to looking at my starred threads on my home page. So far the fixes to the headers haven't migrated there, but the factual TALK page looks better now, and thank goodness the topic sort is working again. That way, you are always at the top of my list!

I don't look at IT much on my phone, but I do use my tablet for it before I get to sleep. So far it's ok.

Ah! I have the "new message" at the top of my thread tonight, so if there was a problem, it's fixed. I have a link from my profile to my thread, and that's how I get here.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. My friends had to bail yesterday, due to family issues so I went out for a solo jaunt. Thanks to my new spotting scope I picked up a lifer. I also saw my first of the season, dark-eyed junco and chipping sparrow at my feeders. I think I am laying low at home today. I need to get some quality reading time in.

>79 ffortsa: Hi Judy! I find it interesting the different ways we use LT to talk with friends/acquaintences.

>80 LizzieD: Hello Peggy. Looks things are back enough normal for most of us while still letting LT expand device functionality.

>81 msf59: 'Morning, Mark, and a very happy Friday to you. Congrats on your lifer! I'll come on over for a visit in a few to see who the lucky birdie is. Enjoy your reading day.

I'm mostly seeing Cardinals right now, a few LGBs. A Tufted Titmouse just made an appearance. The hummingbirds left last weekend.

...
I didn't get up 'til 9, so am just on my first mug of coffee. I finished up the 4th in the Orphan X series last night, Out of the Dark. Clever, mostly fluff, but Hurwitz is very good at characterization.

Good Friday to thee, Madam. My findest wishes for it to be a quality reading and coffeeing day.

Good Friday to thee too, kind Sir. Coffee, check. LTing, check. Books soonest. Errands run yesterday, no need to go out today.

At first I didn't like the new look either, Karen.
I recently left FB because I didn't take their new design...

I have found a solution that works for me: putting my screen to 90%. It reduces the white, and everything fits perfectly on one line. Almost the same amount of messages on my screen.
In Talk I use "Starred Topics" and usually go from the bottom up to the newest messages

Hi Anita!

I guess I haven't been on FB since they changed their new design.

Interesting the way you 'work' the threads.

>86 FAMeulstee: >87 karenmarie: I view the starred threads usually having the top threads be the busiest and go top down until there are only single messages left, then go bottom to top. Except when I go straight to a thread where a hot discussion is in progress. We're talking a few comments in a morning or afternoon here folks!

It's hard to keep up with you, Karen! Congrats on reading 100 and with such a significant book, too. I'm not loving the new changes either but I know I'll get used to them and the old threads will look strange after a while. And, yay! The preview button now works on Firefox.

>88 quondame: I usually keep it sorted on Last Message except for the times, quite a few recently, when I'm way behind in reading threads. Then I sort on what's called New/Total and work my way down. Some days I'm proud to get have the most unread messages at about 25. Sigh. I don't always post when I read a thread, so always go back to my last post on a thread and go from there. I have 2 people I post to pretty much every day.

>89 Familyhistorian: I blink and I'm starting a new thread this year, Meg. When I get to 200 messages I start thinking about the next thread and figuring out which pictures I want to post. It's been a small ray of sunshine in a whirling shit storm from hell. 2020 begone.

Thanks re my 100th book - I timed it for that book. So far I'm happy again with how the Talk page looks and acts. Glad they've got Preview working here on Firefox again. They've changed the homepage display of messages, and I don't like that - the Group is stacked and it makes the number of threads displayed much fewer. I'm still a tad perturbed with the larger font size when using blockquote. I don't know if it's design intent or a design flaw although I mentioned it on one of the threads about changes in Talk.

Here's a regular sentence.

Here's verbiage within blockquotes.

...

A nice brisk morning, 47F right now. Coffee in hand, book to read, take out for lunch (our once-a-week indulgence), college foosball for Bill.

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. Sounds like you have a relaxing day planned. I haven't decided if I will go out birding today or not. It is October Big Day, where everyone keeps a tally of the birds they see. I might just count the birds I see in my backyard. Here is the link:

https://ebird.org/news/october-big-day-2020-bigger-than-ever?fbclid=IwAR3nFp3qBn...

'Morning, Mark! Relaxing = lazy. *smile* Although, as I wrote on Richard's thread that I'm excited about one autumn ritual - changing out the Summer Bed Linens for the Winter Bed Linens. I'm already washing the mattress cover and the summer sheets. The blanket and summer bedspread are next. Then, into the closet until late next spring!

Deciding what to do is a sign that retirement is kicking in for you, I think. Interesting about October Big Day, thanks for sharing the link.

Hi there. Such a lovely passage, this brief moment of fall. *happy sigh*

Yes, happy sigh. Bill's outside on the second-to-end-of-season mowing. Weather's perfect for it.

...
I'm sad.

I've finally decided that we need to cancel Thanksgiving, much as it pains me. It's worse again in the US, our state is worse again, and I'm not going to have 7 non-close family members over for the afternoon. We may not even have our daughter out - she and I have already talked about it tentatively and it will be probably become the first time in her life that we haven't had Thanksgiving dinner together. These are perilous times.

>90 karenmarie: I read every day and am pretty much caught up by late afternoon, but post mostly when I have something to say about a discussion or a book, or have a picture that has to be shared, though I space those out. I try to post a couple of times a thread aside from the de rigueur new thread greeting.

>94 karenmarie: - I'm so sorry about Thanksgiving, Karen. That is hard. It's my favorite holiday, and while The Wayne and I have once or twice not been with family for it, I know this year will be the hardest to be on our own. I'm not sure whether to ignore it or to try to do something special for just the two of us.

>95 quondame: I understand about posting when there's something to say rather than just post. I occasionally do the "Just dropping by to say hi", especially if I have no comments about a book or etc., but that's a rare thing.

>96 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie. I can make it special for 'just' Bill and me or the three of us by cooking everything anyway, just smaller portions (like 6 potatoes for mashed potatoes instead of 5 lbs!) and a 10 lb turkey instead of a 20 lb turkey. I do enjoy cooking, but of course just the two or three of us will be a tad depressing compared to the hustle and bustle of family and friends.

You and The Wayne have done some wonderful cooking through the Pandemic, so if you wanted to make it special with food I'm sure you'd do a fantastic job. But takeout from a special place would work too. We don't have any special places within 30 miles of us, being so far out in the sticks as we are.

For those of us who have to make modifications, we'll all get through the hollowness of not celebrating T-day the way we're used to and just carry on. This is relatively minor compared to sickness and death.

>94 karenmarie: Oh no...I'm so sorry, Horrible. What a crap year this is.

>90 karenmarie: I looked at https://www.librarything.com/topic/177029# and the display example of a block quote also did the same thing (enlarged the font).

Kind of silly that it isn't fixed. Not that I know beans about the set up.
I've blown off too much time on the New pages thread, so I'm not looking at the discussion there now. Maybe someone will eventually address your post. Celebrate with an example here for us, when they do?

I see the "cancel" box is gone missing again from below the message box. Not a very stable design update.

>94 karenmarie: Sorry to hear about your thwarted Thanksgiving plans but I believe you are very wise to isolate from enlarged social circles.

I'm sorry you've had to cancel your traditional Thanksgiving celebration, Karen. I hope you can find a way to make the most of it. We've never had a crowd for Thanksgiving. Neither of us come from large families, and for various reasons once we had children we celebrated on our own. One year we all went to the home of some friends and really enjoyed the "party" atmosphere but usually it's just the four of us. We are planning the same this year. My daughters routinely get covid tests before leaving town (apparently a common practice in NYC), and we won't really go anywhere while they are here.

In other news, you inspired me to stop biting my nails and so far it's working. I used a strengthener for a while but it turns out I was allergic to it. Nevertheless, it gave my nails a good start.

Enjoy your Sunday. I'm just coming alive after those critical first sips of coffee.

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday! I ended up with 12 species in my backyard yesterday, including most of the regulars and even a stray warbler dropped in, which is rare. I also had a great reading day too. I plan on clocking in some reading time before the Bears/Panthers too. Oh yeah- Go Bears!

It may not get out of the 40s today. I think it is a good time to finally put those flannels on the bed.

>98 richardderus: Yup. Who would have ever thought back in the innocent days of March that we’d be looking at 40,038,160 world cases, 1,115,713 world deaths, and 8,343,244 US cases, 224,284 US deaths. And social distancing and wearing masks and washing hands and a tanked economy and a sociopath/psychopath as President. My sister sent this to me.



>99 SandyAMcPherson: Hi Sandy. I was a programmer/systems analyst, but when I rolled something out to new users, it would be to 100 or so at the most. Not many hundred thousand active users like LT. I know they can’t please everybody, I just didn’t like losing functionality. Most of it's back. I still don't like always going to the last message from anywhere on a talk line. Got back most of the rest.

Thanks for the confirmation that I’m doing the right thing re Thanksgiving.

>100 lauralkeet: Hi Laura. Your mentioning that your daughters get Covid tests makes me wonder if we couldn’t do that for Jenna coming out. A thought. Thank you.

Wow! Congratulations. Sorry you’re allergic to strengthener, but I’m glad you’re breaking the habit. I had a small crisis last week when I got a tear really far down my nail, but kept pushing it down and not playing with it until it got to the point where I could file it away. My nail still looks lopsided, but lopsided is better than chewed.

I’ve had a few sips of coffee already, too. Rolled out at 8:43.

>101 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark, and happy Sunday to you, too. Congrats on 12 species in your backyard! Yay for reading.

Go Panthers!

It’s 40F here now but will get to 68F. But the winter micro fleece sheets and bedspread were wonderful last night.

…
Coffee, brekkie eventually. Panthers. Chili for dinner. Reading.

Oh! My Sunday morning brain hadn't yet jumped to, "can Jenna get tested?" So I'm glad yours did lol. Yeah, my two have been on several weekend trips either to see us or with close friends. Each trip is preceded and followed by a test. NYC is set up really well for that -- testing is readily available for anyone who wants it, and turnaround is quick. That may be unique to NYC but hopefully Jenna will have access to testing as well.

Just a quick hello, Karen. I hope all is well at your place.

>103 lauralkeet: Testing would not be easy out here, and I don't know how much it would cost. It also depends on how much of Thanksgiving week Jenna'd have to work. Sigh.

>104 Ameise1: Hi Barbara! As well as can be expected in these strange times. We're safe and sound, and as I always say in my Christmas letter, we're fortunate to have a roof over our heads, food on the table, to be cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Hi Karen. An (American) friend just sent this to me. Thought you'd appreciate it. it made me chuckle:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/17/1987337/-Only-Trump-could-resist-the...

>102 karenmarie: is priceless!

I have mixed feelings about Thanksgiving, Karen. We usually have 15-20 family members here because we have the biggest house and I personally feel Thanksgiving dinner is the easiest holiday meal to prepare as the menu changes very little from year to year. It looks like we will have only six here this year -- our usual "bubble" of me, DH, my youngest son, his wife, and two daughters. It is going to seem weird, but my housecleaning will be minimal with no out-of-towners this year. We will go up to Kansas City (3 hours away) for a day trip sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas to see our daughter and her family. Strange times.

How wonderful that you've read 100 books already. That's my goal for the year, and I don't expect to reach it until sometime in December.

>106 jessibud2: That's an absolutely riot, Shelley. Thanks for sharing. I've shared with Bill and Jenna.

>107 Donna828: We do what we must, right, Donna? It sounds like you're playing it safe, too.

>102 karenmarie: Made me smile a tad sadly.

Well done, Karen, on passing 100 books already.

Sorry to hear about your Thanksgiving, Karen. I hope that you find a way to have Jenna over for dinner this year.

Morning, Karen. My turn to share a cardinal but only a single. No birding plans today but that could change. I sure got a lot of reading in the past 3 days. Sorry, about your Panthers but I like seeing the Bears 5-1.

>102 karenmarie: Love this meme.

>109 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul. Most things are tinged with sadness this year, at least for me. Thanks re 100 books.

>110 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg. Still more than a month to go. We’ll see what happens.

>111 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! Yay for your excellent cardinal pic. Cocky little guy, isn’t he? I’ve got a male on my wild bird seed feeder right now, but that’s probably because the sunflower feeder’s empty and I need to fill it. Enjoy your day.

Yes, darn it, your Bears won. If that opening Panther drive hadn’t been disastrous…

…
The Friends Board Meeting is at 10 this morning. I’ve already printed out the agenda. In the meantime, I finished the 5th Orphan X book, Out of the Dark. I’m caught up but just pre-ordered book 6, Prodigal Son, and will receive it on its release date, January 26, 2021.

All the cardinal photos are raising my serotonin levels. Keep it up, y'all!

Happy Monday, hope the Zoom was effective, efficient, and above all short.

Hi RD!

The meeting was .... good... some friction between the Librarian and our Treasurer, who doesn't do things the same way I did and also some friction about budgeting. My BP might have been a tad high, but I have gotten feedback that I handled the meeting well from a Board member I respect. Whew!

Cancelled Thanksgiving with Aunt Ann, friend Diane/husband Geoff, and Cousins Rebecca and David. Makes me sad.

Morning, Karen. Happy Tuesday. Bummer about your Thanksgiving plans. We are keeping it very quiet ourselves. It might just be the two of us.

I did make it out for a quick solo jaunt yesterday, before heading to Costco. It felt good getting back into the woods. I will get out for another solo run today.

'Morning to you, too, Mark, and happy Tuesday. Quiet indeed. Enjoy your solo jaunt today.

I haven't been to Costco since January. I've been resisting the urge, because I haven't run out of TP yet and we've been getting some of the things Bill needs (antiacids and Gavascon wanna-be) from Amazon. I don't know whether to stockpile TP from the grocery store runs or break down and go. It's 56 miles round trip. Decisions, decisions.

I have a phone call with the head of the Book Sort team today to discuss finding a new Treasurer. Reece knows lots and lots of folks and was the one who found us our tech guru Jim. Pete only took the Treasurer's job back on (he was Treasurer for the 3 years that I was Treasurer for 3 years) because we tried and failed twice to find one in the spring, but Pete would be happy if I could find a Treasurer and let him 'retire' to his other role as Immediate Past President.

In the meantime, coffee, reading. Beautiful day out.

>116 karenmarie: Beautiful day out.
Nice... here in the north, we woke up to a skiff of snow.
Barely covering the grass but lined up along the fences and tree limbs, roofs etc. Kind of pretty (and inevitable). I admit to it looking very Christmas-cardish.

Flu shots today and I will treat myself to some juvenile reading. The Man brought up 2 kid's cowboy type stories from his stash of vintage books. I'm on a mission to read potential novels that our grandson might enjoy. All about culling the books no one around here will be likely to read.

I'm sure the Ineffable Plan includes a 512pp section on "Ways to Cause Richard Multivarious Sub-Acute Stress" because I think the goddesses are flipping around randomly to tick me off.

No ballot yet. No Medicare cardiologists in Nassau County accepting new patients. No transportation to other counties unless I fork over $200. Cash. In advance.

I bloody hate 2020.

>117 SandyAMcPherson: Snow! Well. Is that early or right on schedule? Flu shot, good idea. Culling, good luck.

>118 richardderus: It sucks for you, and I'm sorry, RD. On the eventual bright side - only 2 months and 11 days to go before it's 2021. (But I hate to tell you that there's going to be at least Covid crap in 2021, even if we get rid of the psychopath and get Biden).

>102 karenmarie: Hi Karen. I saw that on FB and it cracked me up.

>116 karenmarie: Regarding TP, I highly recommend Who Gives A Crap toilet paper. You can order a case of 48 rolls, the price isn't terrible and the paper itself is quite soft. You do need a place to store a big box of 48 rolls of TP....

>112 karenmarie: Hmm. I need to find and read the second Orphan X book. I really enjoyed the first and had not realized the series has taken off so!

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. It was a breezy, chilly day on my walk yesterday, but I ran into some seasoned birders and got to hang out with them. We did not see any of their target birds but I still ended up with 30 species.
Heading out shortly, on a guided walk, to a place I haven't been to in about 2 years. Hope it is productive.

Hi Ellen!

>120 EBT1002: Thank you for WhoGivesACrap. I just ordered 48 rolls. I'll send some to my daughter. I have a wonderful closet under the stairs.

I'm almost glad that there are 'only' 5 Orphan X books with one due out in January. Otherwise, I wouldn't be reading anything else.

>121 msf59: 'Morning, Mark. Happy Wednesday to you, too. Much birding. I hope you have a great time.

...
I woke up to the alarm at 9:30. That alarm is for taking my vitamins, assuming I've been up for a while. Sheesh. First sips of coffee taken, feeling a tad groggy. And I was in the middle of a very strange dream.

>122 karenmarie: - Karen, I think strange dreams are becoming a covid thing. I have had a few, myself. The most recent, was of a former educational assistant I had, Myrtle, getting a new puppy. Myrtle was a lovely, gentle lady who I liked immensely. She was in my class for 2 or 3 years, but retired a few years before I did, and that was at least 4 or 5 years ago. I can't say I've thought of her much since then, so why she suddenly appeared in my dream is quite beyond me. And the only thing I can think of re the puppy, is my recent acquisition of Theo and Owen, which of course, has no relation to Myrtle. Go figure. Yep, strange...

Hi Shelley. I believe that dreams are the necessary processing of our 3rd dimensional Earth reality. I don't pretend to always understand what the symbols mean, but I do believe in the symbolic nature of dreams.

Strange about your assistant and her new puppy.

>119 karenmarie: 'Morning Karen. I'm coffee-binging myself, after a late arising.
Flu shot didn't bother me much after an extra-strength acetaminophen.

Snow still hanging around in shady areas. We often have an early snowfall that totally melts and more warm fall days. This year it was warm days up until yesterday (after frost in early September). I expect we're stuck with snow of some sort until mid-April. The bad part is actually drought. We haven't had any autumn rains to saturate the ground going into what for us is (will be) a very dry winter.

Pretty much our situation ~ ~ Stories of the American West

An amusing read of difficult times in the 1930's, a 'feel-good' story for these times.

Hi Horrible, it's Wednesday and the world's still spinning. I'll go with that.

Good afternoon, Karen!
Dreams! When I woke my mama up this morning, she was dreaming of taking care of her little brother, who was being very good. The weird thing? In the dream she was an adult and U. Wm., who was only three years her junior, was a child.
As I picked up Obelisk Gate last night, I was wondering whether you ever started *5th Season*. I hope you'll give it a chance. I had to read 20 pages or so before it grabbed me, but when it did, I was completely captivated.

>125 SandyAMcPherson: Hi Sandy. Late arising is not a bad thing at all. I’m over being groggy. Sorry you had to take some acetaminophen after the flu shot.

Weird weather for you – I hope you get some more rain and sunny days before winter.

>126 richardderus: Hiya, RD. There are small signs of good things but I won’t jinx it by feeling complacent. The Republicans make me absolutely sick with trying to keep people from voting in any way they can. Once again, surprisingly, Chief Justice Roberts has come down on the side of history rather than the side of the mind-numbingly evil ways of the GOP and let stand the ruling that absentee ballots in PA that come in 3 days after the election can be counted. Also, in a 12-3 decision, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a bid to halt the North Carolina State Board of Elections from tallying ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 that arrive before Nov. 12.

>127 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! Good afternoon to you, too. Interesting dream with your mama being an adult and her brother being a child.

I started The Fifth Season, and am on page 76. It’s very good and I’m following the world-making pretty well, it’s just that I was able to get Orphan X books and then decided to read The Black Mountain, #24 of 47. My old mass market paperback is too tanned and small-printed to be easily readable, so I got the Kindle version for only $.99 after using a $4.00 credit I had apparently picked up somehow. Yay Kindle.

Cute Wash pic and I made Instant Pot Rice pudding today. The smaller dish is for friend Louise.
...

Ricey puds! Yay!

I'm making mexican rice and refritos for my dinner. Had a mammoth salad with everything (olives, chickpeas, peppers, onions, tomatoes, cukes) for lunch to keep the fat intake within screaming distance of reasonable.

>123 jessibud2: No kidding! Mine was actually about Covid, a family with 5 grown daughters I know, blended with Little Women and my new tiny Little Women dolls including a really bratty Amy.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. Storms through the night but it is supposed to clear up and get much warmer today. We are supposed to go the Chicago lakefront to bird, but I am waiting to see if that happens. Enjoy your day.

>129 richardderus: Your lunch salad sounds good except for the onions, and refritos y arroz muy sabroso.

The ricey puds came out creamy and flavorful.

>130 quondame: I don't think I've had a single dream that I can lay at the door of Covid. I've had weird and symbolic dreams for decades.

>131 msf59: 'Morning, Mark, and happy Thursday to you, too. I hope you're able to get out and about. Not much planned for today, perhaps grocery shopping, perhaps not.

...
First sips of coffee. I'm going to finish The Black Mountain this morning, the 24th of 47 books in the Nero Wolfe series.

I was going to read my old mass market paperback which is in very good shape for being 44 years old, but the pages are tanned and the print is small, so I bought the Kindle version for $4.99 but somehow or another had a $4 credit, so ended up paying only $.99. Yay.

When I went to Amazon to find it, I saw that old MM paperbacks of it were selling for $20 and up, and on Abebooks the least expensive was $32. So now I'll just put it back on my shelves and leave it for some day when I might sell it for a bit of money.

I just deaccessioned the first 11 books in the Harry Dresden series by Jim Butcher if anybody would like any or all of them. The first 10 are mass market paperbacks, well read, and the last is a hardcover.

>133 karenmarie: Hi Horrible. You know one person who for SURE won't be asking for those.

Have a gorgeous Thursday! It's so foggy outside that I can't even see the boardwalk 200ft away. Icky-ptoo-ptoo weather.

Hiya, RD!

No surprise, there... I read the first four and was pleased. I think the fourth one introduced fae, and so after reading the next one I was done. I can't explain buying the next six in the series except either optimism or bibliomania. The only series where the fae haven't irritated the major shit out of me is the Sookie Stackhouse series and even there overcoming my initial irritation took a while.

I looked at your weather on weather.gov this a.m. and saw that there was fog. Didn't realize it would be a most- or all-day affair. We don't fog all that often here at the house; I don't commute like Bill does over Jordan Lake, where fog is a regular event.

Finished up the last of the Sunday chili, with sharp white cheddar, and I'm thoroughly loving The Motion of the Body Through Space by Lionel Shriver. Except that Serenata doesn't particularly like people, I'd love to be friends with her.

>135 karenmarie: We're on Day Three of socked-in fogginess. Yech. I was fine for one day, irked by two, annoyed by three.

Oh well, this too shall pass. I think I'll make chili, thanks for the idea!

>135 karenmarie: I can see the fae being a major pain in urban fantasy - although I think some of the earliest featured them. And they've pretty much become the core of the Dresden novels since they've appeared. So yes, if it's the fair folk you want to avoid, you don't want more of the wizard of Chicago.

>94 karenmarie: I’m afraid we will be doing the same. My son’s in town now and I can only picture him coming for dinner if the weather is nice enough to eat outside (kinda’ slim chance but possible). Same with my (step)daughter and her family. I can deal with Thanksgiving but I can’t even really think about Christmas right now and how different it will probably be. :(

Homemade rice pudding sounds wonderful! Our weather is cooling off finally and so I’ll be thinking about baking more (if my waistline can stand it).

YOur threads are flying along at warp speed, Karen! We won't be seeing family for any of the holidays as the virus is increasing at a rapid rate in Kansas, and quarantining for 14 days after we get there is not a viable plan. I'm just hoping we have a downturn by the end of February for my mother's 90th birthday.

Yup. It took me 45 minutes, but I found all 11 Dresden books and have taken them out of my catalog. I read the first 5 in 2009 and haven't read any more since, so figure 11 years taking up shelf space is enough.

>138 Copperskye: Sounds like a sad but safe plan, Joanne. Jenna lives 3 hours away, so it would be very hard on her to come for just an outside meal. I've already told our cousins that we probably won't make it to the December 12th family dinner - it's about 3 hours away going the other way from Jenna. She said she understood, that we should do what made us feel safe, and said they'd send our Christmas presents. Of course, I haven't bought but two Christmas presents so far - both for Jenna - but know the kinds of things they like and would, of course, do the same by mailing presents to them.

Baking and making are a lot of fun, aren't they? This rice pudding was Instant Pot, and very easy. Lots of prep work but totally worth it.

I am sorry that you had to cancel your Thanksgiving plans Karen! I understand numbers are going up significantly at your place. So sorry, staying safe and having friends and family stay safe has to be the most important thing of course, but it is no fun at all.

It's the same here. We don't have Thanksgiving, but other festivities are being cancelled. St Nicholas entry, usually a big children's festivity, impossible right now. Lots of towns have already cancelled the carnival celebrations in spring. (The whole corona pandemic here started with carnival in the south of our country.)

Christmas? I am afraid to visit my mother right now. New Years Eve? We'll have one friend over, who lives alone. I really hope things will improve after this winter!

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. We had a nice birding adventure yesterday morning, although I missed a couple of my target birds. More details on my thread. Rain here, starting soon so that will probably keep me indoors. More time for the books, right?

>102 karenmarie: Love it! Yes 2020 needs to be done SOON!

>141 EllaTim: Hi Ella.

My county has now had 1,888 out of a population of 63,505 cases, 2.97%, and 60 deaths.
My state has now had 252,992 out of a population of 10,488,084 cases, 2.41%, and 4,082 deaths.
The US has now had 8,674,858 out of a population of 331,605,717 cases, 2.61%, and 228,473 deaths.

It's bad. I'm sorry cases are going up where you are, too.

Yup. Christmas is up in the air here, too.

>142 msf59: Hi Mark, and happy Friday, too. Rain + retirement = books. Have fun.

>143 BLBera: Hi Beth! Yes, 2020 begone.

...
Friend Tamsie will be coming over in a while to sit on the porch 12 feet apart and chat. Before she gets here I need to blow the leaves off the deck, patio, and porch, which should take about 30 minutes or so. I'm looking forward to seeing her again.

105. the Motion of the Body Through Space by Lionel Shriver
10/11/20 to 10/23/20





From Amazon:

In Lionel Shriver’s entertaining send-up of today’s cult of exercise—which not only encourages better health, but now like all religions also seems to promise meaning, social superiority, and eternal life—an aging husband’s sudden obsession with extreme sport makes him unbearable.

After an ignominious early retirement, Remington announces to his wife Serenata that he’s decided to run a marathon. This from a sedentary man in his sixties who’s never done a lick of exercise in his life. His wife can’t help but observe that his ambition is “hopelessly trite.” A loner, Serenata disdains mass group activities of any sort. Besides, his timing is cruel. Serenata has long been the couple’s exercise freak, but by age sixty, her private fitness regimes have destroyed her knees, and she’ll soon face debilitating surgery. Yes, becoming more active would be good for Remington’s heart, but then why not just go for a walk? Without several thousand of your closest friends?

As Remington joins the cult of fitness that increasingly consumes the Western world, her once-modest husband burgeons into an unbearable narcissist. Ignoring all his other obligations, he engages a saucy, sexy personal trainer named Bambi, who treats Serenata with contempt. When Remington sets his sights on the legendarily grueling triathlon, MettleMan, Serenata is sure he’ll end up injured or dead. And even if he does survive, their marriage may not.

The Motion of the Body Through Space is vintage Lionel Shriver written with psychological insight, a rich cast of characters, lots of verve and petulance, an astute reading of contemporary culture, and an emotionally resonant ending.

Why I wanted to read it: I was in the mood for Lionel Shriver but the only one that truly grabbed me by description was her newest.

There’s something insightful, funny, snarky, or vivid on pretty much every page. Here’s page 27. Starts with young woman Tommy, answered by protagonist Serenata.

”Well, you post your steps. Every day. Online. Just about everybody clocks up, like, twenty K or more, and Marley Wilson, this total c** from senior year, regularly posts thirty.”
“How many miles is that?”
“Just under fifteen,” Tommy said promptly.
“Unless she’s really hoofing it, walking that mileage could take five hours a day. Does she do anything else?”
“Whatever else she does isn’t the point.”
“Why do you care how many steps other people take?”
“You don’t get it. But you should.”

And, another random page, 167, arm wrestling.

When Sloan took his turn, the antagonists were a matched set. They both had the naturally well-formed limbs of born athletes, and the elongated figures of avatars in video games. Meeting each other’s gaze, each seemed to apply gradually more force, but nothing moved; the sides of their palms grew whiter. Only after a full minute did it become apparent that Sloan was merely holding her there.
“So how long do you want to do this?” His voice was relaxed.
“You’re a condescending son of a bitch, aren’t you?”
“I’m a man.”

Last, even though it’s from the Afterword, page 327, it’s not really a spoiler and could as easily have come from the beginning as from the end.

This idea that in historical terms boomers were unusually deluded about the inexorability of their decay now struck Serenata as unfair. For the abundance of human existence, no one got old. They died. Mass aging was a recent phenomenon, and in joining the “old-old” on any scale she and her peers would be pioneers. Besides, Serenata Tersichore had never herself grown old before, so it made a certain sense that she wouldn’t be very good at it.

A strong plot, well worked, with interesting and vibrant characters. Shriver’s insights and observations ring true.

Afternoon, Karen! Thanks for that review. If you post it, I'll thumb it.
*Kevin* blew me away, so I'm sure that I'd appreciate this one too.
Meanwhile, my DH delivered our ballots this morning. See my thread for the sordid little story. Sheesh!!!!! (A ploy to get a visit? Sure!)

I literally just came back from your thread, Peggy. What a pain about the ballots, glad they're all there finally.

Okay, I'll post it. Thanks for the reminder. I don't post as many reviews as I should.

I got my ballot yesterday, immediately marked it up, made sure I hadn't screwed up and voted for 45 (checked 3x), and gave it to a friend to find a mailbox outside the county to send it in.

I live in a majority-GOP county. I ain't takin' even one chance with my ballot.

So that's done. And am I glad! Have yourself a lovely little clear-out, Horrible.

Bravo, RD, well done. One more thing to check off your list.

Had fun with Tamsie. She was here for 2 hours. While she was here we watched the Fed Ex truck go down my neighbor's drive. Didn't think anything of it until I came in and had an e-mail telling me it had been delivered - went over to the neighbor's and sure enough, Fed Ex delivered my 48 rolls of toilet paper to them instead of me. Harrumph. I don't think that's ever happened with a Fex Ex delivery before. Mail, yes. Fed Ex, UPS, Amazon Prime (with their own cute little trucks now), no.

>144 karenmarie: It looked like LA county's cases were holding steady at a somewhat lower level, then a backlog of test results was added in, and it is just the forerunner of backlogged test results.. But the deaths do show lower rates, which is a bit hopeful.

>144 karenmarie: For a comparison: the Netherlands has probably 10.000 deaths, in a population of 17 million people. That number is an estimate, in fact.
At the moment lots of people are testing positive, but the % that has to be admitted to a hospital is lower than it was in March and April. Let's hope it stays that way.

>145 karenmarie: That sounds like fun! I was thinking of buying a Fitbit watch or something like that, but when I read this I think I'll stay away from the social aspect of it.

Karen, like you, I have struggled with weight. There was a time in my life when I walked five miles every night. I had a walking buddy in the neighborhood, and it was lovely getting to know her.

I stepped on the scale today and noted five pounds crept up since I stood on the scale last month.

I'm not sure if it is a good idea to step on the scale every day, but I think if looked at positively, it can be a wake up call. But., because it was 25 years ago when I walked all those miles, I need to cut back of eating..

That's difficult with covid, wee are keeping inside.

I share my story in the hope that you know weight is a constant battle.

My experience is that you are one of the shining star members of the group. You certainly have helped me because of your loving posts.

Much love to you

>150 quondame: Hi Susan. There do seem to be fewer deaths. Testing varies by state, of course. One thing I’ve noticed is the jump in numbers on Mondays, catching up from the weekends. Many of my friends are now saying that they think this may be a major problem for several more years, not just several more months. And I think I agree - there will be no magic bullet in the spring after a winter of flu and covid. Plus people go through phases of covid fatigue and let their guard down. Not me, so far, but I can see how easy it would be.

>151 EllaTim: Wow, Ella. .6% mortality. But let’s hope fewer people need the hospital, positive tests slow down, and actual cases slow down.

Different people need different things. Sharing Fitbit or other exercise-measuring results may be exactly what inspires you most, who knows? There’s a character in the book, Cherry, who is inspired by the group and is wildly successful in finishing the triathalon, resulting in respect from her husband and children and a solid boost to her confidence. To each her own. You should do what is good for you.

>152 Whisper1: I come from a long line of heavy women on both sides, Linda. At my absolute skinniest as an adult, and at 5’5”, I weighed 140 lbs. I looked too skinny, actually. I was never anything smaller than a size 8. Ribs, collarbones, and hipbones stuck out. Sometimes I’d like to lose enough weight to take advantage of all the blasted clothes in the closet I still haven’t gotten rid of… other times my goal is to maintain a low-stress lifestyle and worry less about my weight. Stop worrying about my weight, actually. Sigh.

I never get on the scale, just judge by my clothes. I should have paid more attention from about ages 45-55. But I’ve always used food to feed my feelings. I know what to do, it’s just almost impossible for me to do it. Well. Enough about weight.

I think once a week is good, Linda. That’s my opinion. I'm glad you shared your story with me.

*blush* Thank you.

Karen, My partner of 18 years passed away 16 months ago. He had heart surgery, but after the surgery, his lung were, according to the surgeon "shot."

For three solid months he struggled to breath. He was in and out of intensive care for that time period.

Will was heavy. When I started dating him, a friend told me she would never date a man who was as heavy as he was. I nicely told her he was very intelligent, raised three children on his own when his wife left him -- the kids were 2, 5 and 7. He loved his children, and, he cared about me, loved my daughter and was a fine, fine person.

I could have dated a thin man who had no feelings for others. But my bet was on Will as a fine person who showed love to all those he knew.

Moral of the story...looks are not everything. I remind myself of that when I think I am putting on too many pounds.

Thanks for sharing your story as well.

Karen and Linda,
So many of us have fought the weight battle and suffered self-esteem issues.
A physiotherapist listened to my moaning about the inevitability of my yo-yo-ing weight and told me this ~
It's better to have a body in shape,
Than to obsess about the shape of your body

That little ditty has probably done the most good of anything I've heard or read.
I am allowed to forgive myself and focus on a different aspect of health.
Perhaps this sentiment will be useful for you.

Morning, Karen. Happy Saturday. Good review of The Motion of the Body Through Space. I have read Shriver but I had not heard of this one.

Just before dinner last night and dusk was falling, I spotted a sparrow on the ground, under the feeders, that was acting differently. It turned out to be a Fox Sparrow. The first time I have seen one at my feeders. I did get a photo too, which I will share at a later time. A good week for Fox Sparrows.

>154 Whisper1: Looks are not everything for sure, Linda. Your Will was a lucky man to have you, and you were a lucky woman to have him.

>155 SandyAMcPherson: Hi Sandy. I like the ditty. Thanks for sharing.

>156 msf59: Happy Saturday to you, too, Mark! Thanks re my review. Fantastic that a Fox Sparrow was foraging under your feeders, so yes, a good week for Fox Sparrows. I hope you have a great day.

…
Today at 5 p.m. we’re getting Spectrum. This may sound like a small thing, but Spectrum does not offer service in our rural area. One of our neighbors identified a contiguous neighborhood of 51 households and approached Spectrum about offering service just over a year ago. Spectrum apparently does this kind of thing, and although it’s taken 8 months longer than the initial projected ‘due date’ because of equipment shortages due to Covid, licensing/contracting rights with the county and with Duke Energy to use their poles, and most recently their installation contractor reneging on their contract but for the good reason of going to help Louisiana recover from Hurricane Laura. Cable has been laid, service boxes installed in the neighborhood, and Bill called on Thursday to schedule our installation. We realize this works well for Spectrum, too, as they are simply putting some infrastructure in place to eventually expand beyond our 51 homes to this part of the county. We will be paying $67/month for high speed wifi and Spectrum’s Platinum TV service through the billing entity the neighborhood set up, and separately we will have our telephone service transferred away from Centurylink and also pay for DVR directly, about $30/month. So we’ll have a net savings of about $150/month by getting rid of Centurylink and Dish and acquiring Spectrum. We did buy this thing - NETGEAR Orbi Whole Home Tri-Band Mesh WiFi 6 System (RBK752) – Router With 1 Satellite Extender | Coverage up to 5,000 sq. ft. and 40+ Devices | Mesh AX4200 WiFi 6 (Up to 4.2Gbps) – for whole-house coverage of all our devices which was not cheap, but TV is Bill’s books, so I can’t begrudge it to him. Plus, it benefits me for getting coverage for my Retreat.

We’ll see how it goes. Bill is looking forward to cancelling Centurylink service by telling them exactly why they suck, although I’ll have to switch to a new email address. This will be a pain in the keister, but I hate Google, won’t use my gmail address (needed for my cell phone, apparently), and Spectrum will give us free email addresses with the phone service we’re getting.

Longwinded. Highly satisfying - we'll see how it actually works out!

Yay Spectrum! Anything to not have to rely on Dish. And y'all's collective and well-founded dislike of Centurylink is reason enough to pop something chocolatey into the oiven. Just pop the chocolate chips in place of the brickle and Bob's your uncle.

I just printed that recipe out, RD. I might make them this coming week, with choc chips as you suggest.

What I find highly amusing about recipes on the Internet is all the verbiage and pictures. It makes sense with so many people cooking and baking now because of Covid-19 who didn't cook or bake before, but blah blah blah.

>159 karenmarie: I know, right? Like, "belt up and gimme the goodies." SMH

Morning, Karen!
We think that we'll get our Internet from Spectrum now too. DH has installed it, and so far it's working a bit faster than AT&T. We'll hold on to the #)!*&&%)@!!AT&T copper phone wire as long as we can. We were one of three households that we knew after Matthew who had phone service, so we were able to stay in touch with our family.
As to weight - you know that I eventually lost the 20 pounds by reducing portion size. I ate everything I wanted - just less. Waiting the 15 minutes or so after a meal to feel full was the hardest part. I've gained about 3 of those back during this isolation, but that's apparently a set-point.
As to Linda's opinion of your presence here: she's a very perceptive woman.

Good luck with the transition to Spectrum, Karen. I hope all goes smoothly!

When we moved into our current house we bought some fancy new streaming audio equipment and the firm we bought it from also did a proper network design to address all of our requirements (computers, TV, audio). This of course led to shelling out $$$ for access points and other boxes I don't understand, but it's been totally worth it. We had lots of network performance issues in our previous house due to not having the optimal setup.

Short version: enjoy your fancy new network!

>160 richardderus: *smooch*

>161 LizzieD: We're going to keep the landline, at least for a while.

Volume has always been my problem. I admire you for being so disciplined, and gaining 3 pounds back in 8 months is not bad at all.

Thank you.

>162 lauralkeet: Well, they came an hour and 15 minutes late, dropped line, then realized the box at the top of the cul-de-sac isn't working because the work wasn't completed on it. Sigh. We'll get there eventually, but Bill is frazzled. We have the business card of a higher-up Spectrum guy and I suggested to Bill that he send an e-mail to him telling him the (temporary) pickle we're in.

I'm glad you're happy with your network - sometimes money is required to get it absolutely right.

Getting scheduled for installation = one step forward. Not having the equipment at the top of the drive work = two steps back. It's another department that has to finish the box then we have to reschedule the install.

>163 karenmarie: well that's annoying Karen! I hope you're able to get it sorted quickly.

Thanks, I hope so, too. I don't doubt that we'll be happy when it's finally done, but in the meantime...

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday. I got use my scope yesterday, at a couple of locations but didn't drum up anything exceptional. Despite the chill, it was still nice to be out in the sunshine and fresh air. I did see a couple bald eagles soaring high above. Not sure what I am doing this A.M. Still deciding.

'Morning to you, too, Mark, and happy Sunday. One of the joys of retirement, getting to decide what to do today. And every day, really. Have fun dithering.

...
Yay for my first sip of coffee. While in the kitchen getting my mug, I saw on the news that another TS/Hurricane will hit the same area of the gulf - Zeta. Amazingly awful.

>167 karenmarie: The Weather Goddess seems to really *hate* Louisiana/Mipsipipsi/Alabackward, no?

*smooch* from afar, so my coffee breath won't mingle and cause a Weather Event (hey, it's 2020, that's not a small consideration!)

From a personal perspective I didn't need any hurricanes coming through this year and am grateful, but at the national level it's a disaster.

Thanks for the long-distance smooch. So you're equating your coffee-breath smooch with the butterfly effect in chaos theory?

virtual *smooch* back

Happy Sunday, Karen! Only two days until the new Jack Reacher book comes out!

I've been enjoying the cardinal photos, so I'll contribute:

Hi Joe, thank you! A very happy Sunday to you, too. Your cardinal makes me happy. I also just saw two males on the bird feeders.

I hadn't grokked that the newest Reacher would arrive Tuesday. The 27th seemed far off, actually.

Today is actually a rather important day on my mother's side of the family - my grandparents ran away and got married in a neighboring county in 1928, my Aunt Joyce and Uncle Ted got married in 1975, and my grandmother died at the age of 93 on the 75th anniversary of the day she married my grandfather, who died at the age of 50. I just sent Aunt Joyce a happy 51st anniversary email. I managed to remember a card for their 50th, but this year has just gotten by me in so many ways.

>171 karenmarie: That's and interesting collection of concurrent anniversaries. Did Aunt Joyce and Uncle Ted choose that date so as to have fewer dates to remember?

>157 karenmarie: Oh, sparklies. Even buried, still it sparkles.

Our experience with cable tv/internet has been vexing for decades. We're just a little off the beaten path. In the 1970s, the site was subdivided and phone and electric lines were buried. No cable, because cable hadn't spread in our corner of the county. When the cable outfit wired the township, we got bypassed because, well, we were a mile off that beaten path. Not worth it to run a mile of cable to serve, at best, nine customers; now we have a dish. No internet because the telephone equipment wasn't upgraded (and we don't have cable); it's only been the last 8 years or so that we got reliable and fairly speedy internet.

But, ya know? We're off the beaten path. That's primo.

Hi Karen -- interesting discussions above. Weight has been a life-long issue for me. Lost a lot a couple of times but always found it again. I've managed not to gain any during Covid but not lost either even though I promise myself regularly that "by (some date in the future) I will have lost xxx pounds. Then I tell myself that at my age I'm going to stop caring. Then I think of the health reasons to care... ugh.

Hope you had a lovely visit with your friend. Being outside is a great answer to a lot right now imho.

>172 quondame: Hi Susan. Aunt Joyce and Uncle Ted chose the date to honor her parents, but Grandma, feisty as she was, saw it as a diminishment of HER wedding anniversary somehow. As much as I loved Grandma, I didn’t agree with her on this one. I would be honored.

>173 weird_O: Off the beaten path is nice, but so is good internet. I rue the day that Ma Bell was broken up because even if you were 20 miles from the closest hub, you would get a phone. Now they’re all for profit mini-fiefdoms and customer service doesn’t really matter because the mostly have mini-monopolies. Internet for all may have been able to happen because of Ma Bell’s control.

>174 RebaRelishesReading: Hi Reba. All the same weight things apply…

Our visit was very nice. The out of doors was lovely, the conversation in-depth and interesting. We’re going to visit again this coming week for sure.

…
Well, my Panthers lost, but the game was competitive and I only feel bad, not awful.

Morning, Karen. It is cold and wet here but I am still venturing out with a birding group, (last guided one of the month). I hope we can drum up something interesting.

i had a great day with the books yesterday. No complaints there.

'Morning, Mark! Since you're now retired and it shouldn't matter any more, Happy Monday to you. *smile*

Enjoy your bird outing. Glad you got a lot of good reading in yesterday.

*smooch*

Hi RD.

Well, you got that one right. Looks like I didn't have enough.

A Spectrum guy just showed up, no notice of them coming here to continue the work from Saturday, just knocked at the French doors. He said they were going to do something different than we were initially told about the hookup. I wasn't happy with the idea, and it sounded like a permanent solution to a temporary problem. He said he'd have a supervisor call. Instead of having Bill speak with him directly right then, I said to have the supervisor call Bill. They drove away. I guess I screwed up, but I don't like change, don't like surprises, and wasn't thinking. Crap. Bill rightly said "Why didn't you call me and let him speak with me?" Brain rot. Double crap. Stress.

>179 karenmarie: ONOZ

That's so not-fun. I'm sorry!

More coffee....

I talked with my sister, which helped. She's stressed about different things than I am, so we always manage to cheer each other up. We don't talk about politics or religion, but everything else is fair game. *smile*

...
I'm making something I call cracker fudge - line a 9" x 13" pan with a layer of saltine crackers. Melt 1 cube of butter and pour it over the crackers, bake 5-10 minutes or until the crackers are golden.

In the meantime slowly melt and combine 10 ounces of peanut butter chips and 10 ounces of chocolate chips (I use semi-sweet). When the crackers come out of the oven, slowly and gently spread the melted chips over the crackers. Cool to room temperature, then into the fridge for an hour. Break into pieces.

I'm including a box with a friend's birthday presents. There will be enough for us, too, fortunately.

Baking/cooking my way out of depression!!

>181 karenmarie: on my way
*drool*

Bill approved, and I've got a box filled with the stuff to send off tomorrow.

Quick greetings!
I'm sorry that your decision process sounds pretty much like mine. Mine is a permanent condition; yours sounds more Covid-y/election-y.
Anyway, cracker fudge sounds like a winner. Good for you!

>178 richardderus: Like!

Morning, Karen. We sure got a taste of winter yesterday, on our walk. Not only cold but it started snowing too and continued for over an hour, making things a bit uncomfortable. Hey, this is one of the reasons I quit the route, right? We didn't really see anything special bird-wise either. I am going out with my birder buddies today too. It will be cold but at least, it will be dry, plus I get to give my spotting scope a workout.

>184 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I was so distraught Sunday when the White House Chief of Staff said "We're not going to control the pandemic. We are going to control the fact that we get vaccines, therapeutics and other mitigations." In effect, signaling defeat against the pandemic. Absolutely stunning and demoralizing.

And yesterday's Senate vote... and then the Spectrum problem with our installation.

Baking and cooking are a good way out.

>185 msf59: 'Morning, Mark, and happy Tuesday to you. Funny, I can't see Richard's >178 richardderus:

COFFEE
When brains aren't enough

link, but copied the link and got a gander.

Wow. There's early snow in so many places right now. We've got a bit of fog this morning, already burning off because it's already 9 a.m. Enjoy your BBA - birding buddy adventure.

...
Coffee, NOT looking at the news on my cell phone. Bill and I absentee ballot voted two weeks ago - I took the ballots directly to the BOE - and Jenna early voted yesterday at the college campus.

I'm having lunch with my old Sanford work friends today - bring our own lunch, eat at a park. Then I'll mail a package to a friend for her birthday and go to the bank before heading back home.

Sorry about your Spectrum problems, Karen. We had them in New York and they were much better and less expensive than Cox here. We dropped cable here and stream with a fiber-internet provider here and love it. No idea what the choices will be in Washington.

Hey, Karen. Drinkin' espresso and readin' steampunk here. Stay strong.

I can not even with the news. The arrival of Cthulhu to eat our souls and enslave our bodies would barely make a dent in the horror I'm feeling.

>187 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba. It was good that they didn't do the work yesterday because it turns out that they would have run a line from a pedestal farther away than the one at the top of our drive. It may take longer, but we'll get the right installation.

>188 weird_O: Hiya, Bill. You're doing two very good things - caffeinating and reading. I'm trying to stay strong, mostly succeeding, and trying to only whining off-camera. *smile* Stay strong back'atcha.

>189 richardderus: Nope. News is out right now, except for fun stuff like Toobin pleasuring himself on a Zoom call and Obama saying that Trump's jealous of Covid-19's media coverage.

...
Lunch out was good - glad it was outdoors as it turns out that at least 2 of them are going to church regularly, another is seeing her kids/grandkids from other households regularly AND still running a socially-distanced catering service. Yeesh. It seems to me that more than 2 other people getting together results in too many conversations.

I'm reading the first in the Royal Thai Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep series, Bangkok 8. Friend Tamsie loaned one to me further along in the series but suggested I start with the first. It's very good so far.

AND, The Sentinel was sitting on my chair in its nice Amazon box just waiting for me when I got home. Yay Lee Child. Curious about Andrew Child. We'll see...

Morning, Karen. Happy Wednesday. Bangkok 8 was fantastic. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I think I read the first 3 or 4 of the series.

Heading out on a birding venture. The waterfowl are the main objective, as they are migrating through in large numbers. The spotting scope is sure coming in handy.

Welp. Wednesday. I need a new calendar, this one still says "October." It *must* be March 2027 by now.

Hi Mark! I hope you enjoyed your birding adventure. Yay for the spotting scope.

>192 richardderus: Welp. Yup. Humpday. This one still says 2020.

Here's optimism for you:

>193 karenmarie: If that works, Imma do it for 2016 retroactively.

>190 karenmarie: Well, whaddayaknow? I picked up a copy of Bangkok Haunts during the late summer at a Goodwill raid. I bought it for no reason other than having spent about 10 months in Bangkok, 1966-67. I'm going to have to look up the author and get a list of the books in the series.

My older son's in-laws visited Bangkok a year or two ago, which prompted me to try scanning photos I took during my tour there. I also looked at on-line maps of the place. Lordy. I do believe everything I remember of Bangkok has been bulldozed and replaced with superhighways.

Fun Fact (which I just discovered last night): That screechy bimbo who is dating Donald Jr., Kimberly Guilfoyle, is an ex-wife of Gavin Newsom, the current California governor. Ok. Sorry for bringing that up.

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday! Not much to see on my solo bird rambles yesterday, but with the help of my trusty scope, I got good looks at a pair of lovely Common Loons. Heading out with my birding buddies this A.M. and then book time in the afternoon. I like this schedule.

>194 richardderus: Hi, RD! Let's get Mr. Peabody's Wayback Machine revved up. I'm game.

>195 weird_O: Hiya Bill. Superhighway Bangkok doesn't surprise me at all.

Ewwww, Kimberly Guilfoyle. Double ewwww DJTJ.

>194 richardderus: 'Morning, Mark, and as you say, Sweet Thursday. We're getting weather from Tropical Storm Zeta - I woke up to rain at 7, went back to sleep, just got back up to rain which has now mostly tapered off. We're supposed to get some pretty strong winds then when this storm is gone there will be a cold front moving in with the chance of tornadoes apparently.

Bam and Bpm - birds in the am and books in the pm - sounds like a great schedule.

...
First sip of coffee taken. Bangkok 8 is coming along.

edited to add: We lost power due to high winds about half an hour ago. Estimated time til we get it back: 5 p.m. Thank goodness for the generator.

Orisons for the generator's long and effective life.

*smooch*

Pouring rain here, so of course I had a haircut appointment. Then I went to the nearby Museum of Modern Art, only to find that not only were the coatcheck and restaurants closed, so were the bathrooms. What? So now we are home again. We have to go out to help a friend with her computer later. Maybe the rain will have eased off by then.

Regarding weight, yeah, I'm on the round side. Last year I lost ten pounds and a lot of blood pressure points, but I've gained them back. Hard to to be impulsive under current conditions. But I can only start again from where I am, right?

>198 richardderus: The Generator is still doing its job. The estimate for restoration of power has shifted to 6 p.m. Spectrum hasn't shown up, but not a big surprise with 50+ mph winds and downed power lines.

>199 ffortsa: It sounds like it was one step forward and two steps back for you today, Judy. I hope you can help your friend later today. I've got a friend who's been losing weight because she's too stressed to eat, but most folks I know are stress eating. Yes, you can only start again from where you are.

107. Bangkok 8 by John Burdett

10/26/20 to 10/29/20





From Amazon:

A thriller with attitude to spare, Bangkok 8 is a sexy, razor-edged, often darkly hilarious novel set in one of the world’s most exotic cities.

Witnessed by a throng of gaping spectators, a charismatic Marine sergeant is murdered under a Bangkok bridge inside a bolted-shut Mercedes Benz. Among the witnesses are the only two cops in the city not on the take, but within moments one is murdered and his partner, Sonchai Jitpleecheep—a devout Buddhist and the son of a Thai bar girl and a long-gone Vietnam War G.I.—is hell-bent on wreaking revenge. On a vigilante mission to capture his partner’s murderer, Sonchai is begrudgingly paired with a beautiful FBI agent named Jones and captures her heart in the process. In a city fueled by illicit drugs and infinite corruption, prostitution and priceless art, Sonchai’s quest for vengeance takes him into a world much more sinister than he could have ever imagined.

Why I wanted to read it: A friend loaned Bangkok Haunts to me recently but I thought I’d better start the series at the beginning.

The method of murder is almost as much a mystery as who kills the Marine and why, and it's gratifying to find out in the last few chapters how it's accomplished.

Pretty much every aspect of Thai culture as represented here is alien to me, but Sonchai explains things well to this foreigner. We learn about his upbringing and mother and two of her former lovers. Slowly he figures out who might have murdered the Marine and why. His interactions with Kimberly Jones are playful yet deadly serious and dangerous.

Buddhist teachings inform all Sonchai’s actions. Interesting and beguiling because very little follows the path of Mysteries That I Have Known. There are surprises at every turn and attitudes towards life and existence that make much more sense if you’re from Bangkok than from Southern California. The mystery of the culture is as much a character as the players are, which made this book pleasurable and challenging.

>201 karenmarie: Oh, ouch, I'm feeling shot!

>202 quondame: OMG, me too.
I hope I can find book one.

Morning, Karen. Happy Friday. Good review of Bangkok 8. Glad you liked it. I am not going out on any bird rambles today (unless I get an irresistible alert), so I will run errands and take care of some things around here.

>202 quondame: and >203 SandyAMcPherson: Well, a pair of BBs first thing this morning! That and coffee are a good start.

>204 msf59: Good morning, Mark! Happy Friday to you, too. Thank you re my review. What!? A non-birding day? I hope your errands are all successful and your 'things around here' get taken care of easily. I hope books are part of your day, too.

...
We got power back about 7 p.m. last night. At one point I woke up to heavy rain. This morning it's clear skies and a nice crisp 60F.

>205 karenmarie: So happy to see that your weather has turned for the better.
That Zeta storm was an awfully late arrival into the Autumn wasn't it?

I put a hold on Bangkok 8 just now. I was happy to find a potential new series. I've run out of wanting the read anymore (at least for now) of the ones I'm midway through).

It's beautiful here, today.

The Atlantic hurricane season is officially June 1 to November 30, so although not normal not out of normal range.

There's a 'tropical wave' in the eastern Caribbean that has a 70% likelihood of turning into a named storm within 2 days and an 80% chance within 5 days. It would be named Eta. There are only two more names on the auxiliary list, Theta and Iota before they officially run out.

I hope you like Bangkok 8 when you get it.

Welcome back, Karen. Whew! We got only a bit of wind yesterday, mostly in the morning. I'm looking forward to cooler weather. On the other hand, I have mixed feelings about getting back on sun time. I have enjoyed late afternoon walks, a shower, and getting back to Mama before dark. Don't know exactly how that's going to work from now on.
>206 SandyAMcPherson: I've run out of wanting the read anymore (at least for now) of the ones I'm midway through). Sorry, Sandy. Been there, not done that. My solution is to choose one to power through and put the rest aside.

Hi Peggy! Glad you only got a bit of wind. Yay for the cooler weather, although switching time is always a royal pain in the keister and should be abolished. I hope you can figure out a good exercise schedule as things become darker earlier.

I'm in the nice position of having approximately 20 years worth of not-yet-read books here at the house at my rate of 100/year. I've only read 30 previously unread off my shelves so far this year, taking advantage of the library and shamelessly indulging in new books when the urge strikes, though, so have way more than 20 years worth of unread books.

108. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
10/30/20 to 10/30/20





From Wikipedia:

Hanff was in search of obscure classics and British literature titles that she had been unable to find in New York City when she noticed an ad in the Saturday Review of Literature. She first contacted the shop in 1949 and it fell to Doel to fulfil her requests. In time, a long-distance friendship developed between the two and between Hanff and other staff members, as well, with an exchange of Christmas packages, birthday gifts and food parcels to help with the post-World War II food shortages in Britain. Their letters included discussions about topics as diverse as the sermons of John Donne, how to make Yorkshire Pudding, the Brooklyn Dodgers and the coronation of Elizabeth II. Hanff postponed visiting her English friends until too late; Doel died in December 1968 from peritonitis from a burst appendix, and the bookshop eventually closed in December 1970. Hanff did finally visit Charing Cross Road and the empty shop in the summer of 1971, a trip recorded in her 1973 book The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street.

Why I wanted to read it: It has been on my wish list since 2018, but it would have remained there had not ffortsa, Judy, kindly sent me her wonderful 1976 copy. I’m irritated with myself for never reading it before, but it was a perfect book for today, and I guess that’s as good as it gets. Thank you, Judy!

I have classified this as a memoir because epistolary isn’t one of my official genres anymore. I love epistolaries and this one is no exception.

How I would love to have met Hanff and Doel and all the other people mentioned, however briefly or extensively, in this book.

Here are several quotes, listed by date. The book includes letters from October 5, 1949 to October, 1969.

Helene: December 8, 1949 I do love secondhand books that open to the page some previous owner read oftenest. The day Hazlitt came he opened to “I hate to read new books,” and I hollered “Comrade!” to whoever owned it before me.

Helene: April 16, 1951 I wish you hadn’t been so over-courteous about putting the inscription on a card instead of on the flyleaf. It’s the bookseller coming out in you all, you were afraid you’d decrease its value. You would have increased it for the present owner. (And possibly for the future owner. I love inscriptions on flyleaves and notes in margins, I like the comradely sense of turning pages someone else turned, and reading passages some one long gone has called attention to.)

Nora Doel: 20-1-52 Our oldest girl was twelve last August, by name Sheila, who by the way is my ready-made daughter, as Frank lost his first wife during the war. Our youngest, Mary, was four last week. Last May, Sheila announced at school that she was sending Mummy and Daddy an anniversary card and told the nuns (it’s a convent) that we had been married four years. It took a bit of explaining as you can imagine.

Helene: May 11, 1952 You’ll be fascinated to learn (from me that hates novels) that I finally got round to Jane Austen and went out of my mind over Pride & Prejudice which I can’t bring myself to take back to the library till you find me a copy of my own.

Helene: September 18, 1952 I personally can’t think of anything less sacrosanct than a bad book or even a mediocre book.

I realized soon after this quote that I needed to STOP, otherwise I’d quote every 3rd or 4th letter for the rest of the book.

A sweet, acerbic, informative book about a reader’s love of books and a poignant story of how friendships start and evolve.

>210 karenmarie: - Karen, this is one of my all-time favourite books. Together with its sequel, The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, it was made into a movie, called 84 Charing Cross Road. It is one of the few film adaptations that is true to, and as good as, the book in my humble opinion. The casting could not have been better: Anne Bancroft as Helene and Anthony Hopkins as Doel. If you can get your hands on it, DO! You will adore it!

>210 karenmarie: A life-long favorite read of mine, so I'm delighted that you enjoyed it too.
It's ick-ptui here, cold, dank...I'm not a Halloweenie, so what this means for the dress-up holiday I can't imagine.

*smooch*

Very glad the book arrived and you enjoyed it!

Hi Karen!

Just wanted to drop by to wish you a wonderful weekend.

>210 karenmarie: Looks great! BB for me

>211 jessibud2: and >210 karenmarie: I loved the movie and then sought-out the book, since I didn't read that first.
In a very rare convergence in my experience, both were excellent.
I loved how the movie ended, that final scene. It was very poignant.

>211 jessibud2: I’m glad to hear that the movie’s good, too. I did a bit of research on Helene Hanff and am interested in The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street.

>212 richardderus: I can’t believe that it took me this long to get to such a good book. Epistolary, too, one of my favorite genres.

Sorry the weather’s yuck up nawth, RD. Halloween was only meaningful to me until I was 13 and my parents told me I had to stop trick-or-treating, and from 1993 – 2005 when Jenna was interested in trick-or-treating. She got bored with it and wasn’t interested by the time she was 13.

>213 ffortsa: Oh yes, Judy, it’s a winner and I really appreciate your generosity.

>214 figsfromthistle: Thanks Anita, and I hope your weekend is a good’un, too. Yay for a BB.

>215 SandyAMcPherson: You and Shelley are in agreement, and both saying that the book and movie are equally good carries weight with me.

…
Well, we lost power again today, the same 800 customers or so, but only for about 2 ½ hours. Tomorrow we’re supposed to get Spectrum after a slapstick series of miscommunications among the Spectrum people, their installers, their office, and their third-party hardware installer. Here’s hoping.

And, finally, Jenna and I decided today that it best that she not come home for Thanksgiving. It's not the end of the world for our family unit, and we'll all feel safer and like we're helping to not potentially spread Covid.

Life is interesting, isn't it, Karen? I'm sorry that Jenna isn't coming for sure, but I think that you are all wise. You know that, but I know it's a sadness for all three of you.

I can't add anything to the Hanff discussion, but I agree with every positive thing everybody has said.

GOOD LUCK with Spectrum!!!!!!!!!

>216 karenmarie: I seem to have landed in multiple communities of Halloween celebrators - some years there'd be 3 parties to visit. All crashed now. And the decorations go way beyond what I can get my head around. I'm not much for decorations. Costumes I like though, and candy.

>216 karenmarie: - There is also a third book, called Q's Legacy that tells the story of how she came to write the other two books, sort-of the second sequel.

Wishing you a lovely weekend, Karen.

>210 karenmarie: Hard to think that a book lover would not at some stage of his or her life, read that one. A must.

Morning, Karen. Happy Halloween! I had a great afternoon with the books yesterday. I am meeting my birding buddies at the Arboretum in a little while. I have not been there in 2 or 3 months. You still need a reservation to get in.

Enjoy your day!

>217 LizzieD: Life is way too interesting, Peggy, what with the pandemic and election. Right decision, sad decision. Thanks re Spectrum.

>218 quondame: Hi Susan! Doesn’t surprise me that you’re amongst Halloweeners, what with SCA and all. Sorry the parties are all off, glad that the parties are all off, Covid-wise. I do love the candy. I broke down and bought a second bag of Candy Corn. Pure sugar and high fructose corn syrup, but immensely fun to chew the tips, then the middle, then finally get to the yellow band.

>219 jessibud2: Another Hanff BB, thanks Shelley!

>220 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul! I hope your weekend is chugging along happily, too. I’m finally part of the in-crowd on 84, Charing Cross Road!

>221 msf59: Excellent use of pumpkins. ‘Morning, Mark! Have fun at the Arboretum.

…
Coffee, winter jammies, 47F outside. Just waking up.

84 Charing Cross Road is wonderful! Your comments make me want to pick it up again.

Yes, 2020 needs to be done, already.

Hi Beth.

I read it yesterday morning without rushing through it, so an 'easy' read/re-read.

2020 is a once-in-a-lifetime (except for one or two folks who survived the 1918 flu pandemic) horrific event. It's embarrassing to be in the country where the federal government has abdicated responsibility to the people who live here. We've lost cred as a powerful and engaged-with-the-world country and we're going to have to earn our wings again when Biden gets elected.

Cold here, sunshiney, and dark: Sean Connery died today.

I'm still chuffed by discovering Nancy Pearl among my Twitter followers, but sad because 007 is dead, and sorry you can't have your daughter home because of 45.

What a mixed bag being a grown-up is. *smooch*

I read about Sean Connery this morning. 90 is quite a respectable age.

Numbers, eh? My Pearl rule is 33 although I don't use it, then 007, and and hopefully no later than 1-20-2021 45. I'm lovin' my 864511320 shirt...

Statistics Through October 31

108 books read
28 of them on my shelves before 1/1/20 and not rereads
10 books abandoned, 553 pages abandoned
29816 pages read
68.8 audiobook hours
Avg pages read per day, YTD = 98
Avg pages read per book, YTD = 276

**new feature**
Best nonfiction book of the month: How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Best fiction book of the month: The Motion of the Body Through Space by Lionel Shriver

Author
Male 61%
Female 39%

Living 60%
Dead 40%

US Born 69%
Foreign Born 31%

Platform
Hardcover 47%
Trade Pback 20%
Mass Market 18%
Audiobook 5%
e-Book 10%

Source
My Library 77%
Library 17%
Other 6%

Misc
ARC/ER 3%
Re-read 24%
Series 65%

Fiction 88%
NonFiction 12%

Author Birth Country
Austria 1%
Canada 1%
England 23%
France 1%
Iceland 1%
India 1%
New Zealand 1%
South Africa 1%
Sweden 1%
US 69%

Original Decade Published
1810-1819 3%
1890-1899 1%
1930-1939 6%
1940-1949 11%
1950-1959 9%
1960-1969 1%
1970-1979 6%
1980-1989 3%
1990-1999 7%
2000-2009 10%
2010-2019 33%
2020-2029 10%

Category
Biography 3%
Chrestomathy 1%
Contemporary Fiction 2%
Fantasy 6%
Historical Fiction 5%
Humor 4%
Informational Nonfiction 6%
Memoir 1%
Mystery 60%
Poetry 1%
Science Fiction 3%
Suspense 1%
Thriller 7%

The whole world is blowing up, but you, Karenmarie, have your reading stats right up to date. Hoo-ray! I did want to get a new thread started at the end of the third quarter, but a self-induced "episode" bollixed that. Maybe I can get a new thread started this weekend.

I will get past 75 soon, but I was hoping that by the end of the year I'd be about where you are now. Nevertheless, I'll take it.

We'll be missing the Thanksgiving gathering this year. Son the Elder said last weekend that he and his wife are contemplating providing a "Thanksgiving Dinner on Wheels" for Judi and me. Cook the family-traditional meal, and bring us two full plates.

We'll being missing our stint doling out Halloween candy to kids at Son the Elder's house.

Bill, keeping up my stats is one of the few ways I feel in control in this world. That, eating too many sweets, and keeping the cat boxes clean...

I'll keep checking for thread #3... make it so!

Keeping motivated to do anything at all is getting more and more difficult. I think simply reading for pleasure and information/knowledge regardless of statistics and objectives is the way to go, at least for me. I've now got eleven books officially started. This from the woman who used to keep one fiction and one nonfiction going MAX. One book will definitely get finished by the end of the year - it's a daily dose of G.K. Chesterton and I'm actually caught up through yesterday. Who knows about the others?

I'm so sorry you'll be missing Thanksgiving with Son the Elder even though you'll get Thanksgiving Dinner on Wheels. Missing the Halloween trick-or-treating is rough, too, and yet you're doing the right thing, as I am by cancelling Thanksgiving with family, friends, and daughter.

And, insult to injury, the Spectrum guy who just came out said that he can't lay temporary line across the driveway although the guy who came out two weekends ago was perfectly willing to do so only the box didn't have the tap - we now have the tap and a guy who won't lay the line. My Bill's beside himself. Another month of paying CenturyLink and DISH and I've now paid $61 to Spectrum. It's a tad dismal around here.

>222 karenmarie: No candy corn or mallow candies (I'm partial to maple flavor and those are few and far between without prior arrangement) but I was given an unsolicited promise of Baby Ruths for later.

>226 karenmarie: Back in the days ... I'm thinking mostly the 80s ... the men of my acquaintance seemingly conversed in numbers with frequent x86's. After a year or so I instituted a count down. When my tenth finger went down no more numbers could be mentioned.

Hi Susan!

Baby Ruths are one of my absolute favorites, along with Look bars.

I'm glad you had the Power to enforce the no more numbers.

Hmm, I don't know Look bars but I LOVE Baby Ruths!!!
Oh, and I have an 864511320 bumper sticker. I've had at least one person look at it and not be able to figure it out. 🙃

I read Bangkok 8 years ago and I remember enjoying it. I didn't pursue the series but I have seen editions at bookstores now and then and thought I might do so.

I'm reading IQ by Joe Ide. I described it to P as a sort of modern urban Travis McGee. It clips right along.

>227 karenmarie: Always like to see your statistics, Karen, and compare them with my own.

Hi Karen! I had 84 Charing Cross Road on my wish list, but it has gone up thanks to your review.

>229 karenmarie: Amsterdam doesn't do Halloween, but I did see one little witch with her mum yesterday. Must have been one of our British expats. We have Saint Maarten, which is children coming round with lights and singing, for candy. That's been cancelled. Disappointing for the kids, but understandable.

How annoying those Spectrum guys!

Morning, Karen. Happy Sunday! Windy and cold today, so I think I will stay indoors with the books. The Bears play later, so I will be watching that. We had a good day on the walk yesterday. It was chilly but everything was beautiful.

It is a statistical likelihood that you will have a lovely Sunday.

>232 EBT1002: Hi Ellen! Look Bars are described as “an enticing chewy, peanut-filled nougat covered with mouth-watering, rich dark chocolate.” Probably got my start loving dark chocolate from Look bars when I was little. I realized that Amazon had them several years ago and have occasionally indulged. They have less rich dark chocolate now than I'd like, but I love 'em anyway.



Yay for your bumper sticker. I downloaded Bangkok Tattoo, #2 in the series, but have gone back to reading The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. I loved IQ.

>233 FAMeulstee: I love looking at statistics, Anita, and right around the first of each month is a good time to see what people have posted. I still give credit to Jim for inspiring me to start keeping them.

>234 EllaTim: I think you’ll love it, Ella, and hope you can find it and read it soon.

I would have been upset at Halloween being cancelled when I was a kid. This year, of course, children have been dealing with cancelled birthday parties and family gatherings and now Halloween, Thanksgiving if the families are being responsible, and of course your Saint Maarten. Who knows what'll happen for family Christmases as we head into dark days indeed pandemic-wise.

Bill’s aunt called this morning to tell me that the we-already-said-we-aren’t-attending family Christmas party on December 12th has been cancelled because cousin Jenn, the hostess, is having foot surgery and will have to be off her foot for 2 months and still in a cast for up to 4 months after that. Aunt Ann is still going to Florida for Christmas to visit her daughter/SiL and grandchildren. I just kept my mouth shut about that decision.

Spectrum is just another way we feel powerless this year. We’ll eventually get the services, Bill will adapt, and we’ll get back to neutral, possibly ahead if we truly do get the high-speed internet like we're being promised. But for now it’s phenomenally irritating.

>235 msf59: Hi Mark, and happy Sunday to you, too. Indoors with books sounds like a good idea. We’ve got rain and cold, too, but no Panthers as they played Thursday night and lost. Glad your yesterday’s walk was good.

>236 richardderus: I’m definitely one for numbers, RD, and hope they don’t lie for today. So far I’ve had coffee, spoken with Aunt Ann, made chipped beef on toast for our breakfast, watched an episode of Museum Secrets – the British Maritime Museum with Bill – and am now here on LT and will do some reading soon. Statistically on the upside. Icky weather, but we’re inside and warm and dry, so there’s that. And, Aunt Ann asked if I wanted her cookbooks - she's probably going to be moving to FL to live with daughter/family in 2 or 3 years and doesn't think she'll be doing much with the cookbooks in the meantime. You know me and cookbooks...

>222 karenmarie: Absolutely the orthodox way to eat a piece of candy corn, Karen. I hope that my DH will find a bag on sale when he grocery shops tomorrow. I'll take 6 months to eat them, but they won't go bad. (Oh dear) I don't recognize the Look! bar, and I believe I can keep it that way. I do have a yen for those pineapple candies that Megan mentioned years ago, but since all I can remember is "those pineapple candies," I'm safe.
DH has been dealing with techs too as he decides whether to try Spectrum (which I think will be the case) or stick with AT&T for our Internet. Like everything else, I guess, you get a good or bad one through the luck of the draw. I hope they get you straightened out soon.
Absolutely stay in this raw, gray Sunday!

I'm glad you eat candy corn the same way, Peggy! Make sure you put in an order with your DH. 6 months, my goodness you're disciplined.

Look bars are deadly good if you like nougat and peanuts and dark chocolate, but once you acquire the taste, it'll be hard to not go looking for them.

Good luck with the Spectrum and AT&T decision.

We're staying in, and I've decided to make shrimp, new potato, and corn chowder for supper. If I get ambitious I'll make cornbread or Bisquick rolled biscuits to go with. I'd make homemade buttermilk biscuits but don't have any fresh buttermilk in the house and reconstituted buttermilk works for some things (pancakes/waffles) but not biscuits.

>237 karenmarie: AUNT ANN'S COOKBOOKS!

Now that was worth waking up for. I am vibrating with jealous loathing. Old cookbooks are probably a little more fun than new ones...I had to learn what a "no. 10 can" was, for example, when I was using my grandmother's old New Orleans cookbook...but they're all good, clean fun.

*smooch* (but just a little bit stiffly to show how supremely jealous I am)

Oh yes - we had a great conversation AND I get cookbooks. I can't imagine why neither of her DiLs wouldn't want them - or I flatter myself that she offered them to me first since she knows I value books and always cook from scratch.

Old can sizes, "a wineglass full" of liquid, no instructions just ingredients, no oven temp or time - I love all that stuff and have quite a few recipes like that.

I've peeled and halved 1 lb of small shrimp which are chilling in the fridge, finely chopped half a huge yellow onion, and will measure out dry ingredients for cornbread in a few minutes. 1.5 lbs of potatoes have to be cut just before cooking, and etc., but the worst two jobs are out of the way.

>229 karenmarie: Keeping motivated to do anything at all is getting more and more difficult. I think simply reading for pleasure and information/knowledge regardless of statistics and objectives is the way to go

Me, too. Probably for slightly different reasons, but I sure feel the same way.
It's the ongoing-ness of uncertainty that sucks my mental energy and resilience.

I hope all those newly-acquired cook books make for a happy mental place.

Hi, Karen.

I ate The Sentinel in a day. There were a couple of nits I could pick (we can discuss when you're done), but overall it was the unputdownable page-turner I wanted. So far so good with the bro pairing, for me.

P.S. I've enjoyed that John Burdett Bangkok series, and I'm a couple behind. I'm glad it went okay for you.

>237 karenmarie: A very few years back our not-quite-a-wherehouse store chain Smart&Final started carrying 24 bar boxes of some of the candies such as Look bars that had been long absent from our mafia controlled shelves. I got Big Hunk and Cherry Mountain the latter which started showing up a couple of years later at our local CVS checkout. In my 20s my lonely weekend consolation menu was two each Big Hunk, Cherry Mountain, and Payday bars. My later 20s and my 30s were rather less filled with lonely weekends so I didn't notice when certain candies first left the shelves.

Oh, The Fifth Season. I still have that on my TBR shelf. It might be a good December read.... I have this unrealistic fantasy that December will be the easiest month of 2020. But who knows.

>242 SandyAMcPherson: Oh yes, uncertainty, Sandy. We all have Covid to worry about, and we here in the US have the moron vs Biden. I think that listening to my non-US friends here on LT has made me realize that who is President here is of some importance to the rest of the world. There seems to be angst and worry out there on our behalf and for the world as a whole.

Family cookbooks are very important to me. That and all the index cards in all the different metal boxes I’ve inherited, too…

>243 jnwelch: I’m glad to hear that it passes the Joe test, and will read it soon. For some reason now’s not the right time, which surprises me. I’ll report back when I’ve gotten in the right frame of mind. Glad to hear that you like the Bangkok series, too. I actually thought quite a bit about you as I was readingBangkok 8, as so much of what Sonchai said was about Buddhism. Any particular thoughts?

>244 quondame: I’m sad to say that I don’t recall Cherry Mountain, Susan. Big Hunk, of course, but I liked Look better because of the chocolate. Mafia-controlled shelves – you’ve got that one right! Less and less offerings from fewer and fewer companies. Hershey’s chocolate does absolutely nothing for me.

>245 EBT1002: I’m enjoying The Fifth Season, Ellen, and hope you get around to it in December.

I’m hoping and praying that this horrific presidential mess will be resolved by December without the Republican Court – oops, Supreme Court – sticking their noses into it, that Trump see the writing on the wall and signal a smooth transition of power, and that even though Covid will still be rampant in the land we’ll have some measure of peace knowing that an adult will take the reins on January 20, 2021.

…
Yummy soup and cornbread, and joy of joys! Bill discovered that Buffy the Vampire Slayer is free on Prime, all 7 seasons. We just watched (for the umpteenth time) the first two episodes of S1.

>246 karenmarie: I was mistaken - it is called Big Cherry. There was a Mountain version without the cherry surrounded filling. There are Mountain and also Cherry Mountain bars, but they aren't the ones from the 50s through 70s that I got.

I love all the candy talk today, but I don't recognize any of the names. I just checked out Big Cherry (peanut?) at Amazon. They have 12 bars for $29.99. Ouch! I had to copy this customer review that says, "... I had to throw them away... they were discussing!" (I was reading something just lately about how Hershey puts something in all their chocolate that is a sort of vomit ingredient. I taste it. I guess I should look it up again.) How I miss Aldi!
I'm GLAD that you're reading *5th Season* with pleasure, Karen. *Obelisk Gate* is in my rotation.
I'm GLAD that you're getting the family cookbooks too!!! Obviously, the aunt knows where they will be most cherished and used. Enjoy! My MIL's cards are in a reinforced cardboard box, even older than the metal ones, I guess.
Your soup supper sounds great! Hope you have leftovers.

>248 LizzieD: I do know the bars aren't good chocolate, in fact pretty bad chocolate, and the local S&F price is about 1/2 what Amazon charges - after all that free shipping has to be paid for somehow. Still, the taste is close enough to what I remember. Since I developed my weird taste disorder dark chocolate is usually really bad tasting to me so there's no point in me spending lots on it. Also many dark roast coffees and complex red wines. Yes, it sucks.

Hi Karen, I can’t help but smile whenever I see that someone has read 84, Charing Cross Road for the first time. It’s such a charmer.

And my ears (eyes, actually, I guess) perked up at your Spectrum discussion. I worked at Charter Communications’ Corporate office (Spectrum is their consumer name) for 16 years. I have my fingers crossed that everything goes okay!

>247 quondame: Still never heard of it, but looking just now I’d love to try one.

>247 quondame: I just saw the same Amazon info about Big Cherry – $29.99 for 12. Ouch is right. It’s almost too early to grok that butyric acid – the ‘vomit’ ingredient – is in Hershey’s chocolate. Some people taste it. I don’t, but I still don’t like Hershey’s chocolate because it tastes fake and waxy to me.

Today will be a The Fifth Season day. It’s good to know that The Obelisk Gate is holding your attention.

Anything interesting in your MiL’s cardboard box?

And yes, there are leftovers for tonight. We each only had one bowl of soup and 2 pieces of cornbread.

>249 quondame: I’m sorry that you have a weird taste disorder around dark chocolate, dark roast coffee, and complex red wines, Susan. I don’t like dark roast coffee – I prefer medium roast – and fortunately the local grocery store has their own ‘generic’ brand of coffee beans. I get 1.5 lbs for $7.64, tax included. Recently I’ve noticed that reds can give me a headache – not often, but occasionally.

>250 Copperskye: Hi Joanne! Lovely to see you here. It is a charmer for sure, a pleasurable respite from politics and Covid and my usual choice of books that include murder and mayhem, violence and dysfunction.

I hope we’ve resolved the Spectrum issue this week but am not holding my breath. We’ll get past this and love Spectrum, I’m sure, but right now I’m not particularly thrilled with them. Thanks for your crossed fingers.

…
Well here I am at 7 a.m., already up for an hour with coffee consumption in full swing. Damned time switch. My niece and her wife apparently kept the baby up late last night to help with this morning. He was very fussy and Not Pleased. I remember those days when Jenna was little.

Morning, Karen. I am feeling a bit under the weather this A.M. which is not that surprising since Sue has had a cold for 4 or 5 days but is at the tail end of it. I have to get an oil change, but other than that I am going to lay low and monitor my symptoms. With the Covid crisis still going on, it has definitely changed the health landscape.

'Morning, Mark! I'm sorry you're under the weather. Stay safe and feel better soon.

I forgot to post this the other day. I might start adding the lightning round to the bottom of my statistics.

October’s Lightning Round

The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout 10/3/20 to 10/4/20 208 pages

Archie is irritated with Wolfe and interrupts after-dinner coffee by bringing in a young client. 12-year Pete Drossos sees a woman wearing golden spider earrings mouth the words “Help me” and wants to hire Wolfe. Soon after the boy is killed in an apparent hit-and-run accident and his mother brings the boy’s $4.30 in savings to Wolfe as a fee. Intricate, multi-faceted, and entertaining.

Hellbent by Gregg Hurwitz 10/6/20 to 10/7/20

As much a story of how Evan grows as a human being as a story of rescuing Jack’s last protégé and recruit. At one point I actually had tears in my eyes. Evan gets a 1-855-2-NOWHERE call, is protecting the protégé, and sets up the next book nicely with the last chapter of this one. The best of the three so far, but they are all fantastic.

2020 Democratic Party Platform by Democratic National Committee 9/1/20 10/8/20

Dense, detailed, robust, stating the US’s return to world participation, support of all racial, sexual, and economic groups within the US and rebuilding of the US and our relationship with the world. Compare it to a one-page blurb by the Republican National Committee whining about staying safe from Covid preventing a new party platform and making it 2016 again.

Three Men Out by Rex Stout 10/8/20 to 10/10/20

Three novellas:

1. Invitation to Murder. Archie’s been hired to discover which of three women his dead sister’s husband is planning on marrying so he can cozy up to her to insure that his income from the estate isn’t jeopardized. While Archie is at the house, murder ensues, Wolfe makes a rare on-site visit, and easily figures out who the murderer is. Okay but not memorable.

2. The Zero Clue. Archie stumbles across murder when he deliberately disobeys Wolfe’s order to not pursue a client. A clue in pencils and erasers eventually leads Wolfe to the murderer.

3. This Won’t Kill You. There’s baseball fixing at a World Series game, and a murder to boot. Archie and Wolfe are at the game. Drugged players and a missing second baseman, a loving wife, a druggist, and a radio all figure in a neat little case.

Out of the Dark by Gregg Hurwitz 10/13/20 to 10/16/20

Evan meets a client who further stuns him into empathy. The set up from the end of the last book materializes – Evan is going after the President of the United States. He acquires an interesting ally and I’m glad to see his protégé Joey in this book, too. Easily the most memorable conversation of this book:

”If we don’t have trust, Evan, we don’t have anything.”

“I’m trustworthy,”, he said. “I just have limits on disclosure.”

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 8/6/20 to 10/17/20

No matter how many times I read or listen to this 3rd in the Harry Potter series, it always satisfies. The occasional crack shows after so many perusals, but the main points are always consistent and Harry’s growing knowledge of his skills, talents, and place in the magical world is cemented when he understands more about his parents and their role in the fight against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Into the Fire by Gregg Hurwitz 10/17/20 to 10/19/20

Evan’s newest client has a problem that Evan solves. But people are still after Max Merriweather, and Evan keeps going and going until the hydra is finally killed. Easily the best in an extremely good series.

The Black Mountain by Rex Stout 10/20/20 to 10/22/20

Nero Wolfe’s best friend, Marko Vukcic is murdered. Wolfe vows to find his murderer and bring him to justice. The search takes Wolfe and Archie to Montenegro, where footsore and walking a tightrope of local politics and dangers with Archie not understanding any of the languages spoken, they discover who the murderer is and justice is served.

Before Midnight by Rex Stout 10/23/20 to 10/26/20

Wofe is hired to discover who took the creator’s wallet and answers to the final questions in the Pour Amour Perfume Contest. Wolfe and Archie end up solving the murder, too, but only as a byproduct of finding out who took the wallet and answers. Clever and fun.

Lots of Wolfe and Archie going on has to be a GOOD THING. Read on, my friend!
Thanks also for the butyric acid ID. I just briefly googled it and see that the ba is a byproduct of their process to stop fermentation in fresh milk. It also may explain why I'm not a great lover of parmesan. I hasten to add that I've never tried Parmigiano-Reggiano. Oh well.
>249 quondame: Susan, I'm sorry about that taste disorder. In the great scheme of things, I guess it's not a major loss, but it makes me sad for you. I'd certainly be sad for me if it came to pass.

Time change: GRRRRRR. I love the cool weather this morning though.

Hiya, Peggy!

I've never read all the Nero Wolfes, and I've never even read any in order. This is a lot of fun, actually.

Not a lover of Parmesan, eh? I like the taste of Parmesan, but my daughter loves it - she eats plain hunks of it and I always have to check if I have enough to cook/bake with when she's home because she raids my store of it.

Yay for the cooler weather.

>254 karenmarie: Wow, Horrible, that's less a lightning round than a reading supercell!

Happy week ahead. I mean that with all the overtones intact.

I thought Into the Fire was easily the best in the Orphan X series, too. Isn't that encouraging for future books.

Buddhism in Bangkok 8: I enjoy Sonchai and the insights into a very different kind of Buddhism. Western Buddhism has different flavors, but generally is simpler than Eastern, and pragmatic, particularly as practiced by moi. As seems common with religions (although Buddhism really is a practice like Yoga), Buddha gave us the basics, and then subsequent generations added all sorts of ornate goojeemajiggers and extrapolations.

The crazy thing is I am actually losing weight. My son and his fiance are vegan and recommended The Starch Solution by John McDougall. Heck, they gave me a copy for my birthday. It's vegan and no oils. I was very slow to start it, since I wasn't sure what a complex carb diet would do to my blood sugars (unlimited potatoes! corn! rice! etc). I started out with an occasional compliant meal. Now, I'm eating almost entirely vegan. Lunch today was a taco bowl with brown rice, black beans, corn, green peppers, tomatoes, black olives and salsa. Tonight will be leftover curry (made with full fat coconut milk) over rice. Yum!

I'm very close to reaching a milestone weight and my blood sugars are the best they have been for a long time.

>201 karenmarie: Gotcha'd me, too! I put it on my library list. Unfortunately, it will stay there for a while since the library is taking a step backwards in their services due to all the Covid in the county and Montana in general.

>257 richardderus: Well, I wanted to start keeping a few notes on books worth reading but not worth reviewing, and this was a very good reading month with 13 books read but only 4 reviewed.

>258 jnwelch: Future books = Prodigal Son, due out January 26th! Thanks for the insight into Western vs. Eastern Buddhism. I particularly like Sonchai's being able to immediately see a person's past lives, especially as they've interacted with him, giving us shortcuts into a person's character and motives..

>259 streamsong: Janet, that's fantastic news. Losing weight and getting your sugars down. Keep up the good work.

I'm sorry your Library is taking a step back. Our Library only introduced curbside service on June 20th, with a phone call required to request the books and establish a pickup day/time. Our county commissioners make the decisions about the Library staying shut or reopening, and our numbers are bad enough that they're not going to open up the Library for a long time. Library members were supposed to be able to reserve books online for curbside pickup starting last week, but the county website got hacked on October 28th, and the network, email, and phones are inoperable. Therefore no calling the Library to reserve books, much less put them on hold online. Fortunately the Board of Elections wasn't hacked.

Hi, Karen.

I always enjoy reading all the doings, scrapping with service providers, cooking, running errands.

Me and Judi, well, we're here just kinda vegging. Big outing tomorrow! Going to vote. Holy Moses.

During the family Zoom yesterday, we got to see all three of Son the Younger's daughters; they've been absent from our Zisits for the past few weeks, so it was great to see and hear them. Leia, the middle girl, has lost her front teeth. Annie, the youngest, has shed her extreme shyness and did a lot of silly mugging. We haven't seen them in person since Christmas 2019, even though it's only a 90-minute drive to their home. Bugger.

Son the Elder's crew were absent. But I got an email from Claire, the Bryn Mawr classics scholar. The student body is "on strike" to protest the police killing (in Philadelphia) of Walter Wallace, a Black man with a history of mental health issues. The downside of striking is the part where you don't go to the dining hall. The good news is she'll be finished with the fall semester before Thanksgiving and will be home until February, when the spring semester starts. Maybe we'll have some warmish days at the end of the month so we can have a visit on the front porch.

Boy, I miss family.

Just popped by to say I'll be thinking of you all down there (tomorrow especially) ~ what a traumatic chain of events led to so many of your northern neighbours taking note of this difficult turmoil - peace and calm wishes for the rest of this week.

Morning, Karen. I love the lightning round up there. You are pounding through the books, my friend. We are in for a nice stretch of weather but I think I am going to hang tight at home again. Maybe, something fun will show up at my feeders.

>261 weird_O: Hi Bill! Yes, never a dull moment here in central NC. You're in a much larger family deficit than I am - I've only got the one daughter - but I haven't seen her since early January.

Glad you're still zisiting as you put it and getting emails from Claire.

Good luck voting, may you have no lines, no protesting, no maskless folks, and good weather. I think that encompasses most wishes for today!

>262 SandyAMcPherson: Thanks, Sandy! Bill's in the living room and of course the news is about the Election today. Now that it's here I hope it's an Election Day Blue Tidal Wave at every level of government. We need to vote the red ones OUT.

>263 msf59: 'Morning, Mark! Thanks re the lightning round. I have been pounding through the books. It feels good although some of the ones I've started are staring reproachfully at me from the shelf. Ignore, ignore, ignore.

I hope your day inside knocks the cold right out of you. Edited to add: I hope Sue's C-19 test is negative.

...
It's a nice crisp 32F outside, some frost on the ground. Beautiful blue skies, great day for voting although we turned in our absentee ballots on October 16th. Daughter early voted last Monday. It's all good.

Wow, it's really busy here this morning!

If you were near-by I'd bring you a box of cookbooks to go through. I have quite a few that I've bought over the years and now never look at (a few exceptions there) and plan to cull with the move. I'd love to share them with you.

Abba Zabba :)

Good morning, friend. The day at last....Roll Tide Blue!!!!!!!!

>265 RebaRelishesReading: Things are a'buzz here for sure, Reba. I'm vibrating with stress and hope and angst today.

Sweet thought about the cookbooks, thank you. I've tagged 135 books as cookbook but am always up for more. Most of the ones I use have just one or two recipes in them that I make.

I love Abba Zabba. No need to wonder why. Abba Zabba, Look, and Big Hunk are all made by Annabelle's Candy.



>266 LizzieD: Please, God, hear our pleas.....

Hi there, Horrible. I'm not talking about that until tomorrow, earliest. *smooch*

I'm not following things too closely yet, and will not watch anything about the election tonight, but will check WaPo, NYT, CNN, HuffPost, Politico, and etc. off and on during the day on my cell phone.

>269 karenmarie: Braver, or more masochistic, or both, than I am.

In order to not clutter up Joe's thread, here's how I use location tags for my books. The location tag is always first tag in my tags list.

Room
Shelf
Row

Rooms are (S)unroom, (L)ibrary, (K)itchen, (G)reat Room, (P)arlour, (R)etreat, (M)edia Room, where I, ah, repurposed one of Bill’s built-in bookcases. Shelf starts from the left, rows are top down. So S24 is Sunroom, where I’m sitting right now, second shelf from left, 4th row down, as an example. R11 is first shelf on left in Retreat, top row of two. Additional tags are ERR for ER books removed from physical catalog but kept to keep the ER gods happy, Kindle, misshelved, and a few R(oom)xx tags where I just got them into whatever room they landed in but either aren’t on a shelf or are on a shelf and I haven’t updated the tag. Looks like I've got some in K, L, P, and R, but not many.

Tags take time to maintain, of course, but I don’t have to keep authors together because I can find all books for an author by searching for the author. A search on ‘Salinger’ using Title/Author brings up 5 authors and 13 books. I also have some series tags which help, too. I typically shelve books by the height of the shelf needed for the book if it's shelved vertically. Some books are shelved horizontally. All shelf space is optimized.

Offhand I'd say that my location tags are probably 98% accurate. I take periodic inventories, sometimes just rows, sometimes whole shelves.

>270 richardderus: Whatever works for each of us, right? *smooch*

109. The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin





From The New York Times Book Review - Naomi Novik :

The Fifth Season brings us to the end of the world in three different times, with three orogene women at different stages of life and loss…Essun's story, told in the present, begins in the moment of the larger cataclysm and is the most intimate; her agony and its second-person voice demand our close sympathy. All three narratives are urgent and deftly interwoven to reveal their far-future earth, a world that has buried our own civilization and many others in its lower strata…The Fifth Season invites us to imagine a dismantling of the earth in both the literal and the metaphorical sense, and suggests the possibility of a richer and more fundamental escape. The end of the world becomes a triumph when the world is monstrous, even if what lies beyond is difficult to conceive for those who are trapped inside it.

Why I wanted to read it: LT buzz among people whose opinions I trust.

I usually use Amazon’s blurb about books but occasionally there’s either nothing or it’s unsatisfying. This time it was unsatisfying and I did a bit of duckduckgo-ing around to find something closer to what I perceive to be the overall feeling of the book’s plot.

Powerful women, powerful beings, powerful men, but mostly powerful women. Jemisin’s characters are vividly written, combining themes important to women – family and children and being under the control of men – and the use of power to seek what they want and need in the world.

Had I followed Nancy Pearl’s Arbitrary Rule of Book Abandonment, 33 pages in my case, I would have missed a book of astounding world building, vivid and emotive characters, and the dawning realization that this book was much, much more than I could have imagined.

The most amazing thing about this book only dawns on me when the author allows it to dawn on me. If I read more fantasy perhaps I would have intuited it. As it was, when I read what I read, it STILL didn’t dawn on me that there was another component to this Most Amazing Thing.

I usually have problems with fantasy because the world being built has strange names and strange cultures that I can’t easily figure out. I must admit that I kept trying to understand the cultures, town names, and land formations in terms of Earth and just couldn’t quite get there. I’m not even sure there’s a correlation, but if there is, I’m not surprised, just aware that I tend to miss these kinds of things, no matter how hard I try.

So amazing characterization, interesting plots, vivid world building, and emotional clarity for the characters all left me feeling mostly satisfied, a bit irritated that perhaps I didn’t get it even at the end, and willingness to read the second in the trilogy, The Obelisk Gate.

Morning, Karen. Question: Why in the HECK is this election so close? Honestly, I was not counting on a landslide but I am astounded that Trump still has this much support. Even if Biden wins, it will still be a tumultuous 4 years, especially with the senate in place.

Good review of The Fifth Season. I liked it quite a bit too but I will probably not continue.

Good (?) morning my friend. Nice book review. Peggy read The Obelisk Gate didn't she?

Right about now, I feel like I'm living in the apartment above a meth lab....
This waiting for over 100 million mail in votes might not make the difference in the electoral college...

>273 karenmarie: Glad you liked it! There is a lot to figure out here, strange cultures, beings and more. What I found fascinating here is the premise of what if... your world is going through a catastrophe every so many years and you have to start nearly from the start from that again.

>275 SandyAMcPherson: I heard that most of these mail in votes might be from democrats? If so they could make a difference.

>276 EllaTim: Depends if there are enough in the right states to capture the big electoral college votes, no?

>274 msf59: ‘Morning, Mark! I have absolutely no clue as to why anybody would vote for such a perverted person and perverted party. Inconceivable. Unfathomable. Thanks re The Fifth Season. I’m undecided as to whether to continue with The Obelisk Gate or read The Sentinel or Three Witnesses for fiction.

>275 SandyAMcPherson: Hi Sandy. Thanks. I think Peggy has it and may have started it, don’t think she’s finished it.

Interesting analogy about living in the apartment above a meth lab. I don’t disagree with it… I just hate being in the meth lab.

>276 EllaTim: That’s part of what I liked about it, too, Ella, although I didn’t articulate that in my review. We hope and pray that mail in ballots are mostly blue. The GOP has tried hard enough to exclude mail in ballots from drive through voting and after November 3rd to make me hope that it’s true.

>277 SandyAMcPherson: Once again I say, expletive-deleted Electoral College.

Think I'm in Hell. There is a gawd and she's decided to punish us some more.

I'm delighted that you enjoyed *5th Season*, Karen, and surprised that there is something that can delight me at the moment. I am still reading *Obelisk*, and it's as good as *Season* and as complicated. I'm vastly interested in the study of how a despised group of persons deals with hatred and marginalization.
Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Speaking for the marginalized in the USA, Lord have mercy on us.

>279 richardderus: In order to NOT pay attention to the news every 5 minutes I've taken a nap, eaten some candy corn, fed the kitties treats, and cleaned up two spots of kitty urp from Inara, poor baby. Amazon has delivered 6 lbs of arborio rice and Jenna's Christmas Pez dispensers - Pokemon. I continued from about page 16 reading a phenomenally dense and snore-inducing book called Glacial Lake Missoula and Its Humongous Floods by David D. Alt. The redeeming features are that is talks about valleys and towns I have been in and driven through and there are lots of diagrams and photos. Ever heard of rock flour or belt rock?

>280 LizzieD: Oh yes, Peggy, it was fantastic. Good news about The Obelisk Gate, i just don't know when I'll start it.

I'm right there with you, Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Speaking for the marginalized in the USA, Lord have mercy on us.

In the meantime, I think more candy corn...

edited to add: My 2021 Lett's of London Desk Diary arrived. I've been getting these since 1993, the first courtesy of a company I worked for. I loved them so much I have bought them personally ever since. No on-line calendar for me.

Here are all my desk diaries since 1985, 3rd row down. How I wish I'd started keeping them earlier.

Hot off the presses!

What is "rock flour"?

>273 karenmarie: Glad you enjoyed The Fifth Season, Karen.
I did read all three books in a row, the other two are as good :-)

>274 msf59: Money. That's what I think the answer to this close election is. Lots of money, much of it indirectly supplied by those of us in the middle class as we buy goods and services and invest our money with companies which funnel it to billionaires. And from those who have little choice but to buy from Walmart. I've given up products I've loved that I know support the Oligarchs, but I also buy through Amazon, so I can't claim clean hands at all.

>284 FAMeulstee: Good to know, Anita.

>285 quondame: It is money, agreed, but even more it's power.

I still boycott Gallo Wine after all these decades, use Google as little as possible, have stopped using Facebook except for reading messages sent to me by friends, but I will not stop using Amazon. Even pre-Covid, rather than drive hundreds of miles to find things I could simply search, select, and click. I also have a Chase/Amazon credit card and get anywhere from $20-$50 Amazon credit every month depending on what we've purchased during the month. Plus Streaming Video. And, Bill discovered the other day that all 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer are available on Prime for free. Guess what we're watching?

-Great Horned Owl

Morning, Karen. Sweet Thursday. I am still not feeling great. This will be my fourth day but I did get out for a solo walk yesterday, to take advantage of our unbelievably mild weather. My reward, were a pair of GHOs. This photo is from earlier this year. I did get a couple of photos but they were quite skittish.

>282 karenmarie: I love this. I just wish we could wrap this up. Jeesh!!

'Morning, Mark! I'm sorry you're still not feeling great. Yay for the GHOs.

The suspense is awful, and the GOP retaining the Senate upsetting, but Cooper got re-elected as Governor and my county's election results were mostly blue.

And things are looking better on the Presidential election.

Morning, Karen!

>210 karenmarie: Abby and I both love this book, too!

>211 jessibud2: Shelley is so right about the movie - I just watched it within the past year, and it is charming.

>273 karenmarie: You are reminding me that I have this one in the stacks. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on it - sounds like I need to bump it up.

>282 karenmarie: This made me laugh!

Love all the candy talk. I am also a fan of Baby Ruth. My favorite used to be Bun - remember these?



My favorite were the maple ones. My favorite aunt used to buy me Zero bars when we went on adventures together - they were her favorite, and I never had the heart to tell her that I didn't like them. And chocolate covered Paydays! I miss those - they were most YUM.

And hooray for Buffy! We were just watching the Halloween one the other night- the one where Willow is a ghost. Such a fun one.

Mamie, I can't tell you how happy I am to see you here!

I don't remember Bun. I just looked them up and see that Pearson's is in Minneapolis/St. Paul. It may have been regional when I was growing up. Anybody know if Pearson's candies were distributed in SoCal in the 1950s-1960s? I don't remember chocolate-covered Paydays, either. I still love Paydays.

The Halloween episode is really good. It says a lot about their characters as to what they choose for costumes.

Jenna's and my favorite episode is the musical one, which Bill actively dislikes. I even bought the CD - one copy for Jenna and one copy for me!

...
Well, the generator won't start but we don't need it right now. We discovered this the other day when we had a 2-3 hour outage, no real harm or foul, but. Gotta have the generator. The propane company came out to confirm that it's not the line from the buried propane tank to the generator itself. Next step is to get someone out to look at the generator. Bill's talking to someone in the other room - hopefully he found the name of the company that replaced the capacitor 5-7 years ago.

Aw, shucks - thanks. Shame about the lack of Buns in your childhood. They were delish. The chocolate covered Paydays were short lived, unfortunately - I think they were only around for a year or so. *sadness* I do love the regular Paydays, but the chocolate covered ones were full of fabulous.

Is that Buffy episode the one with the dummy? I am trying to remember it.

Hoping you get your generator sorted - I hate when stuff doesn't work. We are experiencing trouble with Frank the faucet (in our kitchen sink) - he has decided to just randomly turn himself on and off. Weird, but it also cracks me up.

The musical episode is described on IMDB as "In this musical extravaganza, Sunnydale residents find themselves bursting into song, and flame, when a demon attempts to make Dawn his bride." Our favorite song is I've Got a Theory

OKay. You just made my day - we have not seen that episode!!! We have watched through the high school years multiple times, but we stalled on the college ones because they were not as great. Clearly, we need to get back to Buffy!

Glad to oblige - If you've got Amazon Prime, all 7 seasons are currently free.

I don't like the college ones as much either, especially Riley but as a whole, all 7 seasons of Buffy are right up there for us. Even Angel has its moments.

Just stopping to say hello.

And add my two cents about corporate money/power. I do my best to avoid companies when I’m opposed to their policies and/or politics. Does my individual stance make a difference? Probably not. But I’m not going to spend my money to support them, because that’s on me.

And yet...Amazon. Sigh.

We do have Amazon Prime. Totally agree with your spoiler. I have not tried Angel, but I need to.

>295 Matke: Hi Gail!

One of the worst wrongs done to human beings in the US was when corporations were granted 'personhood'. IMO corporations should feel privileged to be able to do business in the US. They should pay taxes and be responsible for environmental and other disasters they create and not pass on the costs of fixing those to the consumers, but rather to the stockholders. I'm thinking Duke Power and the coal ash ponds here...

I've been using Amazon since 1999. Initially books only, since that's all they offered (or at least all that I was aware of). Prime member since 2005. For me personally they are a good way to acquire goods and services.

>296 Crazymamie: Yay for Amazon Prime! I foresee many happy Buffy hours ahead for you and your family.

...
And now back to Spectrum. They were supposed to come out tomorrow but have moved it up to today, to bury cable from the box at the top of the drive to the house, then run cable from the house to the satellite dish input to the house. We'll get rid of DISH when we're actually up and running on Spectrum, which is now scheduled to perform the in-the-house installation on Saturday. Fingers crossed, again. This time it's an actual Spectrum team, not third party wanna-bes.

>289 Crazymamie: Bun is one I've never seen. It does look like I'd love it - especially the maple ones. Long time no see!

>297 karenmarie: So many companies sell natural resources that no one can really own, keeping the cost down by ruthlessly destroying anything between them and profit. And we use the cheap gas and oil voraciously. The cost always gets passed along, in despoiled lands and lives, and they keep the profits. Without guarantee of profit they wouldn't get off there asses to do anything and we don't have any working mechanisms to get a more sustainable, less destructive, supply going - though solar and wind may help with power, food and clothing production is also hugely polluting.

Once more, good luck with Spectrum today, Karen.
I don't have Prime but occasionally order something for the DH from Amazon itself. I DO buy Kindle books all the time and use AMP for most of my paper book purchases. I google, use g-mail, and have Android devices. Apple would be better? I do what I can afford.
Here comes the warmer weather again. Oh well.
Am I getting used to living with uncertainty? Today feels better than yesterday.

>298 quondame: Isn’t it fabulous to see Mamie out and about?

>299 quondame: Capitalism has a lot to answer for. I’m not quite sure what, if anything, is actually better as practiced, but capitalism as practiced has put human beings into a stranglehold here in the US.

>300 LizzieD: Thanks, Peggy. They’ve come and gone – brought the right equipment and trenched cable from the box at the top of the drive to near the power box. The installation team on Saturday should be able to finish everything up properly, but I’m not counting those chickens yet.

Bill and I have never wanted Apple products – wait, Bill had Mac computers until the cost got prohibitive so grudgingly switched to PC. However, we have always had Android phones but Jenna wanted an Apple phone about 3 phones ago and we’ve indulged her ever since. All her friends have Apple.

Yay for warm weather, at least for today, since I’m going to visit friend Tamsie in about half an hour to sit outside, 10’ apart, for a visit. Then off to the grocery store, then home.

Today does feel better than yesterday. I’m breathing a little bit better too.

…
Off to create my first-ever fourteenth thread. Stand by!