Eye Candy Friday

August 16, 2019 By Carole

I cut this bunch of flowers early in the morning last week and then brought them in the house and made a few small bouquets to tuck here and there – one on the wood stove, one on the bathroom sink, and one on the windowsill over my kitchen sink. They make me smile, not just because I grew them myself but also because it’s such a simple thing that really brings me a lot of joy.

Guess what else brings me a lot of joy? Vacation with my family and it starts NOW! A whole week with Jackie, be still my heart.

I’ll catch you back in this space after next week. Behave yourselves, mmmkay?

Three On Thursday

August 15, 2019 By Carole

I’ve got three photos for you today. Well, actually four photos but two of them go together and I’m only counting them as one. Confused? Hold on, I’ll show you the two that count as one right now so you won’t be.

When I got my haircut last week my stylist lopped off almost three inches! Here’s the back view as well as the front view. (That’s why this counts as one!) It’s swingy and bouncy and much faster to dry and I love it.

Here’s a photo of Dale and his sister Lisa tailgating at Buffett last Saturday. Lisa has loved and listened to JB for a very long time, way back before he was popular at all. She attended an event in the western part of our state and actually met him and kissed him on the cheek. #colormejealous And yet, this was the first time she had been to one of his concerts since way back then. Like all of us, she had a ball!

And finally, we had ice cream for dinner the other night. Dale was not on board at first – you’d have thought I suggested we go in the backyard and eat dirt for dinner – but he came around when I said I wasn’t making him anything anyway so he might as well go with it. I pointed out that, much like when Hannah went off to college and we started eating in front of the tv, we are grown ups and don’t have to set an example for anyone. Plus, I had a peanut butter sundae and peanut butter has protein. #thatsmystoryandimstickintoit

That’s all I’ve got for you today, kids. Happy Thursday! And don’t forget to share your post if you wrote one.

Summer Book Bingo Success

August 14, 2019 By Carole

I got my Summer Book Bingo Coverall last Friday and that made me a very happy reader!

25 books from May 31st until August 9th is a great accomplishment.

Here are the books I have finished since my mid-July update:

Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There were parts of this that were so well written it took my breath away. It’s an incredible book that left me yearning for more while knowing full well there wouldn’t be more because of the author’s tragic real life story.

Bingo Square: Originally published posthumously

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A gut-wrenching story about racism in America, mostly told from the viewpoint of children, which makes it all that much harder to process. It’s an important and extremely well-written work.

Bingo Square: Banned in the US

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jacqueline Woodson has written another incredible albeit short novel. This one opens in 2001 at the 16th birthday party of Melody but the timeline then goes back and forth and the viewpoint switches between Melody, her parents, and her grandparents. Themes of race, class, unexpected pregnancy, education, and loss are covered beautifully and honestly. Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Bingo Square: Latest book by an author your love

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve read this before but re-read it for my Summer Book Bingo card. I had forgotten many of the details but not the overall terrifying nature of the story. This is Atwood at her finest and I’m really excited about the sequel coming out in September.

Bingo Square: Re-read

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a fabulous story, full of 1970s culture, lots of good rock ‘n roll, and enough romance and angst to make it truly interesting. The audio is fabulous but now I sort of want to read it, too. Highly recommended for a great summer read.

Bingo Square: Audiobook with multiple narrators

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Try as I might, science fiction just is not my thing. I think the imagination of H.G. Wells is incredible and I can appreciate that this book was ground breaking in it’s time but I had a hard time caring about the characters or setting.

Bingo Square: Originally published in the 19th century

Days Without End by Sebastian Barry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Can the slaughter of Native Americans, the civil war, and prison be poetic? In the hands of Sebastian Barry it certainly can. This book is beautifully written, exposing the vulnerability and humanity of truly heartbreaking times in our history. There were moments where I gasped out loud and I absolutely adored the story even though so much of it is brutal and tragic. Highly recommended.
Bingo Square: Historical fiction

Almost all of those books were already in my reading queue and I managed to find a way to fit them each into a square. A few were ones I’ve been meaning to read for ages and book bingo provided the incentive to get that done. A few were ones I’ve heard mentioned or meant to read and, again, book bingo was the incentive to get them read.

I’m tempted to say something along the lines of now I can read whatever I want but that sounds silly because I can always read whatever I want. I’m not a student, I don’t (usually) have books I have to read for work, and my reading choices are all my own. I like Summer Book Bingo because I enjoy a challenge and because, as I noted, having a specific square (like reread a book, which was perfect for me to reread The Handmaid’s Tale in anticipation of the sequel coming out next month) is a great motivator to move something into my reading queue that I might not have gotten to read otherwise.

Even though I won’t say something about reading whatever I want, I will say that I’m very much looking forward to vacation reading! I hope you all are reading fabulous things right now!

Weekending

August 13, 2019 By Carole

If you thought last weekend was busy, well, hold on to your hats because this weekend was actually quite busy! Busy with fun, that is.

It started on Wednesday night when we went to see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. This was on Kym‘s recommendation and I’m going to tell you what she told me: don’t read anything about it first, just go see it.

On Thursday we headed into Boston. We had a fun tour of the State House with our friend Steve, who works for our local NPR radio station and has his office in the building. After that we went to see the Downton Abbey Exhibit. It was wonderful – the sets of the kitchen and dining room were recreated beautifully and so many of the iconic costumes – including all of the wedding gowns – were on display. I’m really glad we made the time to go see this.

We walked back to our car through the Public Garden and actually rode the Swan Boats for the first time ever for both of us. It was reasonably priced ($4 for me and $3.50 for Dale with his . . . ahem . . . old man discount) and it was old fashioned and fun. The sun was hot but there was a breeze and it was just sweet to be out on the water on that little paddled boat.

We knew rush hour would be starting soon so we headed south towards home and stopped at a local golf course restaurant I’ve been wanting to try. The drinks were good, the food was even better, and the view of the Boston skyline was spectacular.

Friday was a busy day of getting ready for company (Doreen and Mark were with us for the weekend) and also getting our tailgating stuff together for Jimmy Buffett. Lobsters were on sale for cheap money at our local grocery store so I got a bunch, had the store cook them, and then let them cool. Dale and I shucked them and set the meat aside and we had lobster rolls and local sweet corn for dinner. I can’t think of a better or more iconic summer New England meal!

Saturday was Jimmy Buffett Day. We headed over early so that we’d be in line to get into the parking lot at 1pm when it opened. That’s right, friends, we started tailgating at 1pm for a show at 8pm. This day is not for amateurs! It was super fun with lots of time to hang out and drink some beer and tequila, eat delicious cheeseburgers (what else?!?) and play some games. The show was terrific and I’m so glad we got to go since we haven’t been since 2015. This was our 10th time attending a Buffett show and I sure hope it won’t be our last.

Sunday was a day of hanging out and relaxing. We said goodbye to Doreen and Mark, emptied coolers, put away our tailgating gear, and read a lot on the couch. That first part was me since they left before Dale got up, the stuff in the middle was Dale, and the last part was me again, in case you don’t know how work gets divided up around here.

We ended the evening on the deck with drinks and burgers and lots of thoughts of a very happy weekend.

Macro Monday

August 12, 2019 By Carole

Week four of taking macro shots using the tripod, this week featuring a lime slice left over from tailgating at Jimmy Buffett on Saturday. You can bet that when I finished taking these pictures I threw that piece of lime into a glass of tequila. Shooting these images each week has taught me some cool things about focus and composition and I’m also discovering new features my tripod has.

Like many things I’ve set out to do over the years, the summer of Macro Mondays has broadened my world in unexpected ways and I’m pretty happy about that.