Flowers, Audio Books, and Coloring Books (Everything You Ever Wanted to Know)

Whoop whoop, TJ's had ranunculas on it's flower cart yesterday when I stopped in after Bible Study. And there is nothing that delights me more on a cold, cloudy day in February than a fresh bunch of these gorgeous multi-petaled flowers.

And then to make the day even better they also had mini daffodils for $2.49.  Now how could anyone pass up these sweet petals of golden yellow?

When you see this you can't help but think that the promise of Spring will be here shortly. Well, possibly not shortly here, but somewhere.

And speaking of Spring, my blogging buddy, Jeanne, sent me a text on Friday inviting me to join her in the hill country of Texas in April for blue bonnet season.  A former photographer for Southern Living is conducting a photography tour of the area sponsored by the Dallas Arboretum, instructing us on photographing these beauties.  After that adventure we will head over to Fredricksburg and delight in all that's to see and do around that area for a few days. Can't wait.  Jeanne is originally from the Chicago area and now lives in the Dallas area, while I grew up in Dallas and now live here in the Chicago area. We met thru blogging and then met face to face a few years back while she was visiting family here. After that the 2 of us met in Charleston, SC a couple of years ago for a photography tour and had a great time together. Already have my plane ticket booked and Jeanne has booked our lodgings. Now Texas knows how to do Spring right, unlike here where it's iffy all thru April and even into May.

I've recently discovered a new sleeping pill.  No, it's not what you think, no drugs involved. It's called audio books. I have recently downloaded some audio books along with the read-a-long kind on my Kindle when the books & audio are a reasonable price.  No sooner do I turn that audio on, listen for possibly 15 minutes, and then I'm gone (asleep, that is). There is a 30 minute timer that I should set so the story doesn't get too far ahead without me actually listening. It's like falling asleep with a book on your lap that slips to the floor and you have no idea what words you last read or what page you were on. That's how I feel when I wake up and there is a voice reading to me and I have not a clue as to what I have missed or how much I need to back-up. Maybe I should be doing something productive while I am listening. Nah, I would rather fall asleep.

I ran into a friend at TJ's yesterday when I was gathering the beauties above, along with a few food items.  We have decided with the extra day in February, (the 29th) we are going to have an adult coloring day party. Won't that be fun. I just bought myself a brand new box of Prismacolor colored pencils, PS those are the best if you are interested in joining the coloring craze. I have 4 coloring books that are just waiting for those strokes of color. Have you joined the coloring book craze?

                            

I know, I know, I am a terrible grandmother, but I did buy this for my granddaughter. She thought it was the best gift ever. Oh and she is 25 years old, so it's not like I gave it to a child. So while she is coloring swear words, I will be coloring Paris objects and flowers.

OK, I'm done (in more ways than one).

Until next time......

Some Ramblings

Again, I have been MIA for several weeks. I notice that when I click over to the blogger page, I continually lose followers. I don't blame them, why follow someone when there is nothing to follow. I do the same,

And now that I am back on these pages I am struggling with what to write. When I was writing daily it was easy to write about book I was reading at the moment, the TV show that caught my eye, or a movie that resonated with me.  And my intention has always been to use this space as a way of keeping an illustrative diary of sorts of my daily life. Well, if anyone wanted to catch up on my life they would think I was dead, or just barely alive. That is not the case, yet.

The pic of the bird above is pretty indicative of what life is right now.....brown and boring. We have no pretty snow, altho I am glad we didn't get the major dump that the east received from Storm Jacob. By the way, when did "they" start naming snowstorms?  And it's a long, long time until Spring arrives in the midwest.  The only color I could find was some dried up berries still hanging from a tree across the street.

I have seen some outstanding movies lately. I try to and see the nominated ones, so I can root for my best loved come OSCAR night.  My daughter always has a gathering with Chinese food (?) from their favorite take-out. We each pitch in a couple of bucks and then pick our favs to win.  So far I have seen "The Big Short" terrific movie but I have to admit all that financial jargon was a little confusing. "Room" you must see this to witness brilliant acting and the eyelashes of the young boy who spends the first 5 years of his life in the "room".  And finally "Spotlight" another terrific movie about a group of investigative reporters that uncovered the allegations of abuse in the Catholic Church and it's cover-up in Boston. All three of these movies are brilliant. Now onto "Brooklyn", "Carol" and "The Danish Girl". Hesitant about seeing "Revenant" because of the gruesome scenes, but I have a feeling Leo is gonna win the Big O this year for his performance.  I looked up the definition of revenant and the dictionary defines it as "a person who returns" or "as a person who returns as a spirit after death" for your inquiring minds.

OK confession time.  It has been years and I do mean years since I read "To Kill a Mockingbird" but I certainly remember the gist of the story.  Our bookclub choose "Go Set a Watchman" also by the famous Harper Lee who wrote TKAM. I was reluctant to read it, but having memory issues over the original TKAM and knowing Watchman was supposedly her first draft but her editor convinced her to change the whole time-line with Scout being a child instead of a 20 something young woman, I began to read. And I must admit that if I hadn't heard all the brew-ha-ha over this new release I would have thought it was the perfect follow-up to TKAM. And yes, I liked it. It was a short book compared to today's new releases (less than 300 pages) and I read it in 2 days time. Then I read "The Edge of Lost", don't bother. I kept waiting for it to get better but it didn't. Now I am reading Karen Slaughter's "Pretty Girls" a psychological thriller about a family torn apart by tragic occurrences. Supposed to be disturbing, I like disturbing every now and again. I read the first few chapters last night and it roped me in immediately.

See what happens when I don't blog often....I tend to ramble on.  I have been noticing Elvis Presley showing up alot on Facebook recently, just checked and "if" he was still alive he would have been 81 on January 8th. I remember the day he died (Aug 16, 1977) but I certainly don't remember the day he was born. And also January 28th was the 30th anniversary of the space shuttle, Challenger disaster. I remember that too.  I was standing in line at a Sear's store in the Washington DC area buying a small serve coffee pot when it was broadcast throughout the store on every TV operating monitor. Sometimes it's hard to remember last week, but somehow we remember where we were during those significant moments

I have rambled long enough. I hope the winter is kind to you, stay healthy, stay connected.

There are perhaps no days of our childhood we lived so fully as those we spent with a favorite book.

–Marcel Proust

Until next time.....

For Cryin' Out Loud.....

For crying out loud, I did it again.  It's been almost a week since I last sat down to the computer to write a blog post.  How can I get back in the habit if I don't do it!!  But honestly my life has been pretty boring lately, only went out twice this week, once to Bunco and Wednesday to Bible Study. You would think that would leave me plenty of time, right??  Admittedly I have been taking pictures with my I-Phone and posting on Instagram (something I said I would not do), but heh, sometimes I break my own rules and since I upgraded to an I-Phone 6 the camera has far improved.

I have the travel itch....thinking about taking a trip across the pond.  I have been looking into Tracey L. Heppner's Follow Your Heart Travel Experiences, she is going to Morocco, Italy, and Turkey this year.  Doesn't that sound like it would be a great experience?!! Each trip is about 10 days except Italy is shorter, Tuscany and Umbria.  Oh be still my heart.  I am going to Paris in July with my daughter, granddaughters and some of her dance students with their parents. We will be there approximately 8 days with an itinerary that is packed to the gills.  I am hoping to make contact with someone who
lives there (photographer) since I have one day free and would love for a native to take me to places that I know I will never see on the tour.  Anybody know anyone??

It really isn't that snowy outside right now, it is in that "ugly " stage, where it's melted in spots so it looks like it either needs signs of Spring or another good covering of the pretty white stuff.  And I can guarantee that there will be no signs of Spring even when the calendar announces that Spring is here, it won't show up for at least a month or so after.  A couple three years back we had a really early Spring and it was almost creepy, so unlike here.  And then, you betcha, a hard freeze that killed off all those early buds and virgin growth.

OK, so because of the scenery I stop by Trader Joe's weekly for a dose of prettiness and color.  Last week it was a bouquet of mixed flowers.....

This week it was a small bunch of pale pink roses....

And then sometimes I even buy food while I am there that also gets photographed....

Some raspberries with vanilla yogurt....pretty tasty!!

So, I finished "The Girl On the Train" in 2 sittings (something I never do) so it was a darn good page turner...2 thumbs up.  And I have started "One Plus One" by Jo Jo Moyes, love her books, so I know I will enjoy it.  I started one of those "cheap" books I grabbed off of Book Perks, or Pixel of Ink or Book Bub (if you are a Kindle Reader you should subscribe to these sites, I have purchased some excellent books via their daily emails for $1.99 to $3.99 or in some cases "free").  Anyhoo, I started this book entitled "Burial Rites" by Hannah Kent.  It was quite a downer about a young woman accused of murder and scheduled for execution.  I think it took place in Finland in the 1800's or one of those Scandinavian countries where everyone's names are unpronounceable. I decided to put that down and move on to a more "light" read.  Sometimes I go back and finish reading a book that I have started and sometimes not.  Life is too short and there are too many good reads out there to suffer thru one that isn't appealing.

And speaking of books....sad to hear that Colleen McCullough died yesterday at age 77.  "The Thorn Birds" captured me when I was in my 30's and remains one of my favorite all-time reads.

"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy books and that's kind of the same thing." ` Anonymous

Until next time.....

"Labor Day - Wars - Reading" or "More Rambling"

Happy Labor Day everyone who labors at something.  My laboring is minimal at best....in fact my yard and gardens have really suffered because of the lack of laboring that occurred this past summer.  I could blame it on the weather, but we have had really nice weather this summer, I could blame it on the fact that when the workers installed my new fence last summer they ruined quite a few of the bushes, which in turn kinda ruined the look of the front garden.  And I am sure I could come up with more reasons, but truth be told I think I was just lazy and I don't have quite the oomph nor my sweetie around to help.  Sitting on the back porch reading and relaxing had far more appeal to me this summer than weeding, mowing, trimming etc.

And now with this holiday upon us it really marks the end of summer.  Oh I know it will still be warm and there will be plenty more days of relaxing on the porch.  But somehow when Labor Day comes it is like saying goodbye to summertime.  The kids are back in school, the pool officially closes today, I will hear the cheers from the football stadium and the bands playing not too far from my home, the sun is beginning to lower in the sky and darkness comes earlier.

But with the beginnings of early Fall, my hydrangeas are exploding (see above) and my neighbor's sunflowers have burst into bloom.  I could see the bright yellow from across the street, so naturally I grabbed my camera and wandered around the pond snapping about a kajillion pics of the sunflowers.  Sunflowers have to be in my top 5 fav flower, especially growing.

Today not only is the US celebrating Labor Day but the day is also distinguished as the official end to World War II, VJ Day with the Japanese finally admitting defeat after 2 Atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the Japanese avoided our attempts at peace.  After reading "The Girls From Atomic City" a non-fiction narrative of both the building of the city of Oak Ridge, Tn and it's purpose, to build the atomic bomb I have become more aware of what this world must have been like during the late 1930's thru 1945.    It involved more than 100 million people and more than 30 countries. Horrible, devastating war, but we don't seem to learn....war continues somewhere every day.  Another great book, fiction, involving the destructive effects of the war on a personal level is "All The Light We Cannot See", superb read!!

I am currently reading "The Invention of Wings".  The story of slavery and the bonds that are formed between the white daughter of a plantation owner and her black slave....which ofcourse eventually leads to the Civil War.  I seem to be stuck on wars today.  But since I now read almost 100% on my two kindles, one my original and one a Kindle Fire, I can tell you that I am 25% into the book, or I am on page 96, or there is 7 hours and 53 minutes left according to my reading speed.  Don't ya love it!!

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies.  The man who never reads lives only one." 
                    ~ George RR Martin

Linking up with Tamar from Random-osity for her

                                                                 
Until next time....

I Am Here....

A few of you have inquired about my whereabouts this past week considering I am not usually absent from the blog world for long periods of time, and it does so touch my heart that there are those that miss me when I am not around.  But I do have a reason, sick.  Yeah, sick.  Just that nasty flu-like sick with coughing, sneezing, chills, fever, runny nose (oh my gosh the runny nose) and then after every sneeze and blow I felt the need to clean my hands, so now not only is the nose red and chapped from all that blowing, but the hands are as well, but they are germ free.  At least right at this moment. 

So instead of complaining about how I felt physically and more complaining  about this dang winter weather that refuses to leave (another 4-5 inches of snow last night) I just decided to back away for awhile.  The photography has been slim to none, just how many pictures can you take from your front window of the same snow day after day??  Taking a picture of the gallons of orange juice that I consumed didn’t excite me either.  And because I was sick I didn’t even go to Trader Joe’s for my weekly dose of flowers to add color to my world.  See now this is why I didn’t blog, I am having a pity party and that was not my intent. 

What I did do was read, nap, watch a little TV, read, nap and watch a little more TV.  I finished “The Girl You Left Behind”, good book – recommend.  Then I switched to something totally different, “The Bat” by Jo Nesbo a Norwegian writer dealing with crime fiction and a main character named Harry Hole.  Kinda gritty and unless you are into crime novels with some gore probably not what you would want to read.  Harry is from Oslo but is assigned to a murder case in which the victim is Norwegian in Sydney, Australia.  It does feature a fascinating take on the lives of Aboriginals in contemporary Sydney and is well written.  Now I am reading “The Rules of Civility” by Amor Towles a completely different story that begins at the end of 1937 and follows a young girl from the Bronx on her journey into the upper echelons of high society New York in the late 1930’s.  All the glamour and glitz of New York City, interesting story and great characters. A definite recommend.  As you can see, I am into variety, and I particularly like a well-written, character driven book.  

And speaking of writing, I have registered in another writing class at our local college.  It begins Wednesday and we already have homework.  If I come up with any good stuff or a "high five" from the instructor I might share....might.  I figured that if I didn't stimulate my brain somehow that it would begin melting unlike the piles and piles of snow.  

I came across a couple of great quotes today that I think are quite appropriate for this winter...

"May we all emerge from winter with our strength renewed and any unwanted pieces left under the ice"  ~  John Darnielle

and this one....

"At some point you just have to let go of what you thought should happen and live in what is happening."  ~  Unknown

Until next time....

Random 5 On Friday....uh Saturday

Joining in a day late for Nancy's Random 5 on Friday, only today is Saturday....that might give you a clue as to overall disposition lately. 

1) Oh my goodness, it has been 6 days since I have posted anything new, maybe, just maybe I haven't been totally inspired by much lately.  This winter has really taken a toll on my overall attitude.  This week alone we have had another major snowstorm that pushed us into the annuals of being the 5th snowiest winter since 1800 something...whoop whoop (fake excitement), we had temps that rose almost to the 50 degree mark which caused much melting of above stated snowstorm, followed by downpours on Thursday which caused major flooding coupled with the melting snow, after all the rain a major fog rolled in, cancelling another kazillion airline flights, followed by 50 mph winds on Friday.  Now I state again....where does one get inspiration from that series of events??? 

2) I did get excited the day of the major snowstorm when I spotted what I always think of when I imagine spring is on it's way.....a robin.  

He even turned around so I could capture both sides of him.

But then the very next day I read in the newspaper that the robins that we are seeing are either 1) those that hang here all winter, never going south or 2) Canadian robins that winter here.  Talk about bird brains, number 1 who wouldn't want to go south for the winter? and number 2 who would in their right mind want to winter here??  My attitude is showing again.

3) I am really trying to get in the mood of Spring by purchasing flowers....

I am even hanging on to the tulips even tho they are way past their prime....

4) I am really trying to eat better these days.  Leading a single life sometimes leads to bad eating habits. After preparing meals for almost 50 years, first for the two of us, then when the children came along, the four of us, then back to the two of us when the kids fled the nest, then my mom moved in and it was the three of us...so for many a year there were loved ones around to prepare meals for.  Gathering new recipes, watching cooking shows was then a part of my life.  But now with just me, that urge to prepare a meal has fizzled. I am finding new ways to add a little more healthiness to my daily diet. Trader Joe's has answered some of those needs.  They have (not only great flowers) but fresh veggies and fruits neatly packaged and already prepared which makes it super easy to correct some of my bad eating habits.  Instead of a donut for breakfast (not to say that never happens) I buy their already seeded pomegranates and sprinkle them on top of my cereal for breakfast.  They add that extra sweetness and crunch, actually I could eat a handful on top of nothing....!!

5)  Yesterday when the winds were blowing, another good day to stay inside I started reading "The Girl He Left Behind" by Jo Jo Moyes.  Well, honestly I couldn't put the book down.  The title of the book is actually the title of a painting that was painted before World War I by a young artist in Paris for his beautiful new wife.  The early story begins with the German occupation of France in 1916 then moves to present day London with the painting being the connection of those lives and times.  Well written, wonderful characters and I am returning today to finish it.  The "kids" sleep either on my lap or on the floor near me as I read on.

I know I lead such an exciting life, but in February, in Chicago this is about as good as it gets, for me anyway.  

"The word happiness would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness." ~ Carl Jung

Until next time......

Now I Am A Book Snob!!

I am very fortunate that I live in a town that has an independent book store.  Last night I attended a book review of good books for book groups...an event that occurs a couple of times a year and is presented by two of the ladies that work at the book store and actually read the books that they recommend.  Now I say that because many times if you go into a "big chain" store ala Barnes & Noble and ask for a recommendation the people there are not actual readers they just shelve books, and take your money. Now I shouldn't put them all into that category because I know there are many that work in large bookstores are readers and can recommend but my experience has been that many are not, or only read whatever happens to be on the "best-seller"  or "popular fiction" list at the moment.  Now James Patterson & Danielle Steele's books hit the best-seller lists almost as soon as they are published but I wouldn't call any of their titles book-club worthy discussions or consider them literary fiction.  Oh dear, now not only am I a pumpkin snob, but it sounds like I am a book snob as well.  I guess when I was younger, "those" books appealed to me, but as I grow older and appreciate a good story and a well written book I no longer read what is on the "best-seller" list.

Anyhoo, last night we were presented with a list of their latest picks and I thought I would share these with you today.  I love it when people share and recommend good books.  All of these are in paper-back, are great discussion books for those of you in book-clubs and are in no particular order.

Fiction

• THE STORYTELLER by Jodi Picoult (wondering how to pronounce her last name? "PeeKo"
• THE SILENT WIFE by A.S.A. Harrison
• FLIGHT BEHAVIOR by Barbara Kingsolver
• I AM FORBIDDEN by Anouk Markovits
• MRS. LINCOLN'S DRESSMAKER by Jennifer Chiaverini
• ARCHIPELAGO by Monique Roffey
• SCHRODER by Amity Gaige
• DEAR LIFE by Alice Munro - short stories
• MRS QUEEN TAKE THE TRAIN by William Kuhn
• ROUND HOUSE by Louise Erdrich
• ORPHAN TRAIN by Christina Baker Kline
• THE DINNER by Herman Koch
• TIGERS IN RED WEATHER by Liza Klaussman
• THE LIFEBOAT by Charlotte Rogan
• THE TWELVE TRIBES OF HATTIE by Ayana Mathis
• THE LOWER RIVER by Paul Theroux
• HOUSE GIRL by Tara Conklin

Non-fiction

• SHAKESPEARE SAVED MY LIFE by Laura Bates
• THE WARMTH OF OTHERS SUNS by Isabel Wilkerson
• THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB by Will Schwalbe
• THE INVISIBLE THREAD by Laura Schroff
• THE BOY IN THE MOON by Ian Brown
• QUIET by Susan Cain
• I NEVER PROMISED YOU A GOODIE BAG Jennifer Gilbert

And a couple of hardcover recommendations - 

• THE RETURNED by Jason Mott (the author was working in a Verizon store when he wrote this book and shorty after it was published it was picked up by Brad Pitt's production company to film a mini-series based on this book, needless to say, Jason quit his day job) 
• MUD SEASON by Ellen Stimson
• LONGBOURN by Jo Baker (for lovers of Jane Austen and Downton Abby 

Tonight is book club and this month we read THE LIGHT IN THE RUINS by Chris Bohjalian.  It was an OK book, I've read better and it left me unsatisfied.  Does that make sense?  It bounced back and forth between 1943-44 and 1955 in Italy during World War II when the Germans occupied much of Italy.  I will be interested to hear how the rest of our group liked it.  So for books, and there are many, and for book groups that inspire good discussions I am grateful.

Until next time.....

                   

Look What I Found At Barnes & Noble

Yesterday was B&N day with my gal-pals and just as we sat down, in walks a young Mom with her 2 children.  When I spotted this little girl my little ole photographer heart began palpatating and it was only about a minute before I bravely asked...".can I take her picture?"  Her mother was most gracious and agreed, so snap away I did.  Her eyes, her hair, her smile....a photographer's dream.  Her brother was a little less animated, but still a quite handsome young man.  Thanks, Mom, for making my day. 

After B&N it was off for our last bookclub gathering until Fall.  Today was "recommend a good book day", so thought I would list some of the books that were recommended by other readers.  I have not read these, (except for one) so cannot give an opinion, but my thoughts are if recommended by a reader it must have great merit.

  WONDER by R. J. Palacio
  THE WEIRD SISTERS by Elinor Brown
  OUT OF WARRANTY by Haywood Smith
  THE SHOEMAKERS WIFE by Adriana Trigiani
  THE FALLS by Joyce Carol Oats
  MRS. LINCOLN'S DRESSMAKER by Jennifer Chiaverini
  THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS by M.L. Stedman
  NOTHING DAUNTED by Dorothy Wickenden
  THE ENGAGEMENT by J. Courtney Sullivan
  AND THE MOUNTAINS ECHOED by Khaled Hosseini
  BEAUTIFUL RUINS by Jess Walter (I am almost finished reading this one....it is a delightful read that has  
  a cast of great characters and wonderfully written.)

If you are looking for a stash for your summertime reading you might want to check on these.

Linking to Kim's  Little Things Thursdays

Until next time....

Reading Anything?

Are you reading anything at the moment, anything you would recommend to us who love a good book?

This past month I read two books, "The Kitchen House".  Another of the many, many stories of the lives of American slaves.  This ofcourse, takes place in the South, on a big plantation with many slaves, mostly well treated.  Along comes an orphaned white child and because there is nothing else to do with her, she ends up living among the slaves and considers them her family.  It is her story, living among both families white & black as she becomes a woman struggling with the treatment of the blacks in the deep south.  Many characters in this book, took me awhile to get everyone straight, who belonged to who...almost needed a little cheat sheet.  This was the book chosen for our February Book Club, and unfortunately I missed it.  I think if I would have attended the discussion I may have found more of an appreciation for this book, sometimes discussions do that.  But it did not compare to my favorite book of the South, "The Help" altho a completely different era, sometimes the treatments were the same.

The second book I completed recently was "The Lost Wife".  Again a story of history, taking place during the rise of Hitler and the devastation he wrought among the Jews.  Slavery in a different form.  Two people, Josef a young Gentile man living in Poland and Lenka a young Jewish woman also living in the same city.  They meet and fall in love but are torn apart by the ravages of war, Josef to the US and Lenka to the Jewish workcamps never reuniting until many, many years later.  It is both of their stories, beautifully written with phrases that will no doubt bring tears to your eyes before you close the pages of this book.

My sister-in-law recently sent me a delightful book which I am reading in between....The title, "Eight Girls Taking Pictures".  Individual chapters on early women photographers, their histories, their journeys in becoming photographers.  Such a insightful read.

And now am starting "The Secret Scripture" by Sebastian Barry....a book group favorite.  Just barely started, will give you a review later.

And must begin our Book Club choice for this month, "Don't Let Me Go" by Catherine Ryan Hyde.

I am hoping all this shows up....I was doing a copy paste and I am not sure blogger likes that.  And I don't know what the heck all that space is on top, I can't get rid of it.  Spacey....like me!  aha, went back in and was able to remove all those spaces.  Blogger, definitely a mind of HIS own.

Until next time....