C is for Cooking

I'm not into cooking. It's like laundry. I don't mind doing it, but it's not my first choice of something to do. It's just another necessary part of everyday life. I know some people, like my brother-in-law, find it relaxing. Others find it creative. And some cook so they can eat well. That would be my son, Theo. 

Theo approaches cooking like almost everything else he does. He studies it and has learned to cook beyond the skills I taught him. He understands spice blends and flavor combos better than I do, and he can tell you the science behind cooking techniques. That's why I'm so happy that we have recently started having a weekly cooking session together. We meet on one of his days off and do a large batch of something we split to have for the next few days. While Ward and I enjoy having a fridge stocked with ready-made meals, the best part is spending time with Theo. It actually makes me look forward to spending time in the kitchen. 😀

Below are a few of the things we've done so far. Sometimes, I remembered to take a picture, but sometimes not.

Today, we made cabbage roll soup. Theo's pot had more hot pepper in it than mine did.

Last week, it was chicken enchilada casserole.

This was the second time we made chili.

This day, we had teraki salmon. All of the sides had a Chinese flavor palette. That was Theo's doing. He thinks about those kinds of things more than I do.

I didn't get a picture, but Theo borrowed our slow cooker and cooked two pot roasts and veggies another time. I made a fruit salad to share. 

Cooking with Theo first started when we were discussing chili recipes and decided to make it together to nail down a recipe. It just kind of evolved from there, but I'm so happy it did.

Until next time...

B is for Blogging

This month marks my 14th anniversary of blogging. When I started, I wasn't quite sure what a blog was, but a friend encouraged me to start one to share some of the stories I had told her. As it turned out, the stories I thought I would be telling were not mine to tell, so I wasn't quite sure how to proceed. 

But I kept writing anyway, trying all kinds of things, hoping to find my voice. Sometimes, I wrote something meaningful, and other times, I felt like I had nothing to say. But I had made friends over the years, and this blog is where I visited with them, so I started Speed Blogging—meaning I'd set a timer (usually 15 minutes) and write for that long about whatever. When that was done, I was done. 

Some day, I am going to revamp and update my blog, but until then it will be my little place to share my thoughts and visit with friends.

But until then, below is my first post --the post that started it all.

___________________________________________________

Sunday, April 17, 2011

What's in a name?

I've been toying with writing a blog for a while now and decided it was time to put my thoughts into action. It all seemed so simple. Use one of the free blog sites and start writing. But wait, what was it going to be about, and what would I call it? My kids advised me that I needed a subject, or it would be nothing more than an online journal. Well, since I'm not that knowledgeable or passionate about any one subject, I decided that it would be personal reflections. My idea was to make comments about things I experience or see around me that other people may be able to relate to. Now, what to name it. It's not as easy as it would seem. With the millions of blogs out there, there's not much left to choose from.

My first idea was Observations of an Everyday Boring life. However, it was suggested that I don't need to tell people ahead of time that my life is often boring. Next, I played with Run of the Mill, Matter of Fact, and So on and So Forth. All taken. Next was Watching paint Dry, but that was taken also with actual web cams set up to watch paint dry. How about Dull as Dishwater?  Maybe that was giving too much away ahead of time again. (BTW, the original phrase was supposedly "Dull as Ditch Water.") 

I was going to have to get creative. The family started brainstorming. Running with safety scissors and Your guess is as good as mine. Taken. My personal favorite was one I thought up- Lend me your nose. A play on Lend me your ear but using nose indicating that you should Take time to stop and smell the roses. 

After several more hours of deep thought, I settled on Live and Learn-Toss and Turn. This title is supposed to indicate that no matter what happens to us, we can always learn from it, and the unknown can still be a little scary and cause us to toss and turn. Or maybe the title just means, that I was really tired and the rhyming of the words seemed good enough. This morning, my son asked me what name I came up with, and after I told him, he replied, "Well, it's not as bad as I thought it would be." I don't think I will ever be able to live down, "Lend me your nose."

Until next time...

A is for A-Z Challenge

EEK! How did that happen? I have been toying with the idea of doing the A-Z Challenge, and now it's already April, and time for it to begin. The A-Z Challenge is a blogging challenge to post every day in April, except Sundays, with each post related to a letter of the alphabet. There are 26 days in April without Sundays, so it works out nicely. 

I've done this challenge a few times in the past and have a love/hate relationship with it. I find posting daily arduous, but I am often more creative when I have a deadline every day. So, I guess I'll give it a go for a couple of weeks anyway. I'll be traveling at the end of the month with unpredictable internet, so I may pick the challenge up in May, where I leave off. If I had been coordinated, I would already have my posts ready. But that didn't happen. 

People often post with a theme, and I tried that once but didn't find it any easier than random topics. I've been toying with the idea of looking through the Wayback Machine and reposting things from the past. I've been casually blogging for 14 years, so it could be interesting to take some trips down memory lane. And if past experience with this challenge has taught me anything, I never end up where I thought I was going to go.

So, without further ado, let the challenge begin.

Until next time...

Don't Shoot the Messenger

I heard a story recently that disturbed me. A young family we know was Swatted. I wasn't familiar with Swatting, but Ward says it's been around for a long time. It involves making a false 911 call about a dangerous disturbance at someone's house. That activates a heavily armed police response, often a SWAT team. It has been deadly at times, with the homeowners shooting what they think are intruders invading their homes in the middle of the night. The SWAT team fires back, shooting to kill. The Swatting call is meant to harass and intimidate.

Both parents were at work, and the babysitter was home with the toddler when the police arrived. They were responding to a call about loud arguing at the house that sounded dangerous. When the police arrived, the house was quiet, so luckily, they didn't break down the door. They asked to come in. However, the babysitter, a newly arrived au pair from South America, wouldn't open the door until she called the mother and asked what to do. (By the way, everyone is happy how the babysitter protected the child and just didn't let the police in until she was sure it was safe.) The mother said to let them. They did a complete search of the house, found nothing, and left.

I guess you could say that all's well that ends well, except for the emotional trauma caused by the whole incident. I can only imagine how terrified the au pair was and how unsettling it was for the family to think about someone wanting to Swat them.

An investigation is underway, but no one knows who made the call or why. The father is in law enforcement, so maybe someone didn't like what he stands for. Or maybe someone thought the au pair was an illegal alien. 

This is another example of the shoot-the-messenger mentality. Too often these days, people's anger is directed at the messenger, not the real cause of their anger. And they don't think about all of the innocent people they hurt along the way with their "protests". There are many examples I could give of this, but I think I'll end now before this post gets too political. But it all makes me upset.

Exercise This Week, March 21

Since retirement and more free time, I am focusing on getting more exercise. I give weekly updates here to make myself accountable and see my progress. 

This week was full of dancing, and a couple of gym classes were thrown in for strength training. I am continuing to challenge myself, but I seem to spend most of the time with sore muscles. My thoughts fluctuate between maybe I need to scale things back a bit or just keep doing what I'm doing. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will my fitness be.

Friday, March 21:

Strong and Balanced: This is a good class for me, and I am making an effort to get to it. It works at strengthening and stretching all parts of the body. It especially helps strengthen my back and shoulder muscles, which I have problems with. Today's class had two older women (80-something and 90-something.) who were hunched and had difficulty walking. To look at them, you would use the word feeble. However, they were both using heavier weights than I was. The 90-something sat for some of her exercises but has given me something to aspire to. 

Ballroom Dancing: Our ballroom dance class had a practice party tonight. We brought refreshments and danced for two hours, practicing what we had learned and trying to remember dances from the past. It was fun and definitely a good workout.

Saturday, March 22:

Free Day: Nothing much happened today, exercise-wise, not even yard work, because it was cold and windy. I was okay with that because I had two good workouts yesterday.

Sunday, March 23:

LIIT (Low impact interval training) This class continues to be the week's biggest challenge. I tried hard to pace myself with lower weights and a slower speed than the instructor, but it still wiped me out. But I went, and I consider that a win.

Monday, March 24:

Ballroom Dance: We reviewed the waltz, learned left turns in the rumba, and added to our samba routine. When we were getting all of the parts of the rumba, it felt good and was fun. I was confused during the new samba parts we "learned" at the end of class, but I will try to practice them. The class got my heart rate up comfortably. 

Tuesday, March 25:

Line Dancing continues to be the highlight of the exercise week. I've been going for over a month now, and I am learning some of the dances enough that I can occasionally give them some flair—more than just trying not to bump into anyone. We learned a new dance today, but I couldn't tell you what it was. Hopefully, it will look familiar next week. 

Wednesday, March 26 

Free Day: The day was full of other commitments, so I didn't do any extra exercise. 

Thursday, March 27:

Line Dancing: We went to a new-to-us venue sponsored by the same person we see on Tuesday mornings. It was not close by, but we went to learn some couples' country dancing. We learned El Paso, and it was fun dancing it together. We were there for three hours, and I danced about 1/2 of that time. It was a good aerobic workout; however, by the end, my knee was really hurting. I'm just beginning to understand ways to modify some steps to put less strain on my knees. 

Also, I'm starting to tire of these posts, but I will keep doing them for now. I need all the gimmicks I can think of to keep this fitness journey going.

Until next time...

Spring

Spring weather is definitely here.  And what would spring be on my blog if I didn't whip out Theo's spring poem he wrote in elementary school? So, without further ado, take it away, young Theo.

March 2018

Signs of Spring

The last of winter fades away

Icicles shed their tears

Borne upon a sunlit era

Life awakens once again

In this never ending cycle

Trees grow green, grass is showing

Robins and bluebirds appear

New plants sprout, old ones awaken

New infants to all animals

A time of plenty

Rejoice! For it is Spring!

Book Reviews-Kids

 I've been intending to write a post about some recently read children's books, but I keep putting it off. I figured I'd better do it before I forget what I've read. These are not all of what I read, but if I wait until I have a complete list, I'll never get it done. 

So, without further ado, here are some of the kid's books I've read recently.

Finally Seen by Kelly Yang. Fiction, 2023, middle grades.

Lina is 10 years old and finally joining her parents and sister in the US after a 5-year separation. Her parents moved to California with her younger sister and left her in China with her grandmother until they were established. The story tells of Lina's family's immigration struggles and her struggle to adjust to life in the US and fit into a family she hasn't seen for 5 years. 

The book is moving and does a good job of exploring Lina's emotions and perspective. The ending had me both cheering and moved to tears. I highly recommend this book. 

The author, Kelly Lang, has written several children's books exploring the immigration experience, including The Front Desk, which is listed among the 30 most influential children's books of all time. Lang immigrated to the U.S. when she was 6, and much of her writing comes from personal experiences. 

Finally Heard by Kelly Lang, Fiction, 2024, middle grades.

This is a sequel to Finally Seen and Lina's family. The book explores the problems of too much screen time and the downfalls that come with it. We see Lina gradually become addicted to her phone and watch as she, her family, and friends all have problems with social media. One of her teachers presents the brain science behind it all and gets the kids' attention, but that doesn't stop them from constantly monitoring their phones. As a side story, Nina is developing breasts sooner than her other classmates, causing her teasing and embarrassment. 

While I'm not obsessed like the kids in the book, it gave me pause to think about what instant feedback we get from our screens is doing to my brain. Finally Seen is not as moving as Finally Heard, but it is an important story all the same. I can see this book as a starting point for important family discussions. I also recommend this book.

Yang also wrote this book based on personal experiences with her kids. Despite doing everything right, her kids still got in trouble with their phones. At one point, Yang shut down her home internet and discovered that the kids were using their neighbors' internet. 

The Wrong Way Home by Kate O'Shaughnessy, 2024, Fiction, middle grades

Fern is a 12-year-old who has just moved away from a cult that she had lived in since she was 6 years old. She does not like the outside world and plots to make it back to the cult. The book is a gripping and moving story that gives insights into the cult world. It has numerous awards, including the Newbery Honor, and I highly recommend it.

(Note: Ward says I should have written more about this book. For example, does Fern make it back to the cult? I think that gives too much away, so I left it out. Except for a general sense of what a book's about, I don't want to know too much about it beforehand. I want to discover things while reading. And I'm tired, so that's what you get for now.)

Exercise this week, 3-14-25

 Since retirement and more free time, I am focusing on getting more exercise. I give weekly updates here to make myself accountable and see my progress. 

This week, appointments and a migraine kept me from the gym more than I wanted. I tried to do something at home on those days (except the migraine day), but true to form, I don't push myself as hard as I do in a class. So, the classes are still an important part of the equation for me to achieve better fitness. 

I'm still pleased with my effort and am starting to notice that I feel better on the days when I go to a class. It's not dramatic, but it's there

Friday, March 14: 

Line Dancing. We went to a line dance at a local country club. We were not members, but the teacher of our Tuesday morning classes was hosting an event there, and the club let her invite some outside people. We were there for 3 hours, and I'd say that I was dancing about half of them. The dances definitely got my heart rate up, but it was an easy evening. And more importantly, a fun one. 

Saturday, March 15: Free Day

Sunday, March 16: 

Free day. I had intended to go to a LIIT class today, but I woke up with a migraine, so it was a no-go.

Monday, March 17: 

Strong and Balanced. This class involved weights and a step. While I got a good workout, the class was not too intense. In honor of St. Patrick's Day, at the end, we did relay races like we were back in grade school. Everyone had a good time, especially since we got chocolate at the end.

Ballroom Dance. Ward and I went to our regular Monday night ballroom dance class. We reviewed the waltz and tango steps we've been working on and started learning new steps for the samba. I had to demonstrate it with the teacher. It didn't go well, but I got good encouragement from my classmates. During this class, I got a gentle aerobic workout, and I won't mention the ice cream Ward and I get every Monday night after class. :)

Tuesday, March 18: 

Line Dancing. This is my favorite class of the week. The class was fun, and I definitely got a good workout. 

Gardening. I spent an hour in a flower bed digging and pulling weeds. I got some good stretching and strengthening for my hands and arms.

Wednesday, March 19:

Free Day. The day was full of various commitments, so no formal exercise was done today. However, I did do a little yard work.

Thursday, March 20:

Free Day. Another day, when appointments conflicted with classes, I was interested in at the gym. However, I did raise my heart rate by practicing dancing with Ward and cleaning another flower bed.

 Until next time...

Happy Spring!

Spring is officially here on both the meteorological and astronomical calendars. Here's what it looks like in our yard this week.

Daffodils are blooming in two spots. 

These daffodils and the ones above came from a friend. 

Crocuses are popping up everywhere. Last fall, I replanted them around the yard without trying to remember where. Finding them here and there is like an Easter egg hunt.

Something has been snacking on them in a few places.

Last year, I planted a few bleeding hearts. I am happy that one of them is coming back up, and I still hope for the others.

Crocus

Crocus

Forsythia along our back fence. 

Until next time...

Therapy Animals

Ward and I had an interesting day last Saturday. We were volunteers helping with the certification of therapy animals. In case you aren't familiar, therapy animals visit with patients in recovery, people with intellectual disabilities, seniors living with Alzheimer's, students, veterans with PTSD, and those approaching the end of life, improving health and well-being through the human-animal bond. We had never done anything like this before and had no idea what to expect.

The testing organization was Pet Partners, and they have very strict behaviors expected from the animals before they can work as a therapy animal. Pet Partners wants to ensure the animal and handler have the proper temperament and control for a successful visit. And perhaps, even more importantly, Pet Partners provides insurance to the handler and animal when they go into facilities. Most facilities require insurance before they will let animals visit. 

The handler and animal had to go through 11 different skills with increasing difficulty. If the animal failed a skill, the test was over, and the handler and animal were advised on how to improve. They were also encouraged to come back and retest on another test day.

The first two tests simulated a greeting that would be given when entering a facility, including petting the dog and walking behind it. Next, the animal was given a "wellness check," including checking its ears, teeth, paws, and tail. During another test, the tester brushed the dog.

Theo is a therapy dog and was also
one of the neutral dogs during testing.

Additional tests had the animal walk a set path by themselves and then take a walk that passed by another dog (called the neutral dog). The dogs also had to be able to sit and lay down on cue and stay in place when the owner moved away and get up only when called.

There were also distraction tests, and that's where we came in. There were four other volunteers besides us providing the distractions. We walked back and forth, simulating a busy hallway, including someone on crutches and someone with a walker. The walker was Ward's job, including being a grumpy old man during another test.  Another time there, we did a loud argument, and I was one of the arguers for that one. We also all crowded around the dog, with everyone petting at once. These tests were designed to see how well the dog handled the distractions and the handler handled the dog. 

The first dog was a whippet, Siren, that was there for recertification because the animals have to be recertified every two years. Siren and her handler passed with flying colors.

The second dog, Radar*, was a golden retriever and was also there for a recertification. Radar got a rocky start by jumping up to greet the tester. That's a big no-no. Since the handler had successfully already had over 150 visits to a hospital in the last year, the tester let the handler calm his dog and start over. Radar then passed all of the tests and was recertified. The handler later explained that when they visited the hospital, Radar had been trained to put his paws up on the side of the bed so the patient could pet him. That may have been part of the reason for his jump-up. 

The third dog, Eva, was a Great Pyrenees and was there to be certified for the first time. Eva would not lay down for the handler, so the testing stopped there. After many helpful suggestions, the testers encouraged Eva to test again. 

One thing that was evident in all of the teams was that they were very nervous. I guess test-taking anxiety shows up in all forms of testing. Photos were not allowed during the testing, and afterward, there was a lot of paperwork going on, resulting in me not getting photos of the dogs. 

Cosmo and Megan

Besides the three dogs, we also saw a rat, Cosmo, undergo the certification process. I'm not a big fan of rodents, but this rat was very cute. Cosmo's handler was not nervous and was fun to watch as they went through most of the same paces as a dog. Cosmo passed with flying colors. Everyone was taken with Cosmo, so he posed for pictures. 

Ward and I enjoyed the day. The animals were friendly, and I loved watching the bond with their owners. It's not going to happen, but I left there wanting to get a dog and train it to be a therapy dog. I guess I'll have to settle for visiting with my sisters' dogs and volunteering for the next certification trials.

Until next time...

*We couldn't remember the golden's name. Maybe it was Radar? 

Happy St. Patrick's Day

 HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY

From a St. Patrick's Day Parade in Washington, D.C., several years ago.

St. Patrick's Day seems to be the time when everyone claims to have some Irish in them. That makes the celebrations more fun. Well, I'm going to stake my Irish claim, too. According to Ancestry.com, I am at least 20% Irish. As there is more data to work with, Ancestry updates heritage percentages from time to time. My percentages bounce around among England, Scotland, and Ireland. In some of the past iterations, I was almost 1/2 Irish. 

When I was growing up, I would hear my aunts talk about how I looked like my great-grandmother, who was born in Ireland. I never met her, but I always liked the fact that I had a "somewhat" recent immigrant ancestor. I especially liked it because one year, she was the queen of the Ritchie County Fair. Decades later, we found out through Ancestry that my mother's birth father was not the same one who was on her birth certificate. So the beauty queen, whom I supposedly looked like, was not my relative genetically, after all. I think there's some irony in there somewhere. :)

St. Patrick's Day is not one that we celebrate much, at least not like in our younger days when green beer was a must (for Ward, anyway). Or when we attended St. Patrick's Day parades in New Orleans. At these parades, they threw vegetables to make an Irish stew instead of beads. (And someday, I will find the picture of the cabbages, potatoes, and carrots we came home with from the parade.)

My nod today to St. Paddy's day was wearing a green shirt to exercise class. It was a fun class because we did relay races with chocolate coins from a pot of gold. And yes, we did eat the chocolate at the end.

Did you celebrate St. Patrick's Day this year?

Until next time...

Exercise This Week

 Since retirement and more free time, I am focusing on getting more exercise. I give weekly updates here to make myself accountable and see my progress. 

I am seeing gradual improvement in my fitness level as most classes seem to be getting a little easier. However, maybe I should make up a rubric to measure progress, like the number of pushups or such. I'll have to give that some thought. My knees continue to be bothered during all classes, with squats being the biggest offenders. However, which knee and kind of pain are inconsistent, so I'm hoping the problem will subside as the muscles get stronger around the joints. Here's what I did this week.

3/7 Friday: Strong and Balanced. This is a 45-minute class that works on strength training and balance, i.e., a lot of weight work and variations of balancing on one foot. It is a good workout for most muscle groups but is not too vigorous. I felt like I had had a workout when it was over, but I was not too tired.

3/8 Saturday: Free day.

3/9 Sunday: LIIT (Low-impact interval training). This class does 30 seconds of exercise with 10 seconds of rest. It works all major muscle groups with weights. Last week, I was totally worn out after this class for the rest of the day. I took it a little easier this week and was not quite as tired. This is the best class I take overall for my fitness goals, with a good combination of aerobic and strength training combined. It also makes me the most tired.

3/10 Monday: Ballroom dancing. This week, we worked on adding more steps to the Tango and Samba. Once again, I was confused about the position of my feet on the new steps, even with more individual attention than I wanted. However, Ward and I will practice this week, so I won't be so lost next week -- that is, until something else new is thrown at me. This session is like most sessions in that there are a lot of people in the beginning, and it slowly dwindles to a few of the regulars, including us. There is good comradery among our group, and I enjoy that. This class gave me a gentle aerobic workout.

3/11 Tuesday: Line dancing. This is a fun class that gives me a decent aerobic workout, but not to the point I want it to be over before halfway through like some other classes. I would say that I am getting the steps right about 3/4 of the time, so it also gives me a mental workout.

3/12 Wednesday: Free Day. I wasn't totally sedentary today as I worked in the yard. It was not aerobic, but I did get some stretching and arm workouts.

3/13 Thursday: Mat Pilates. I have taken two other Pilates classes that were good workouts, but this one really did me in. There was more core workout than any class I've done so far, and more of my joints seemed to be hurting, including my knees, shoulder, lower back, and hip. At one point, my hip was in so much pain from the pressure of laying on it that I had to stop the exercise. After class, I talked to the instructor about possible modifications to solve that problem. At the very least, the next time, I will use two mats. I am torn about not going back because of the above problems or going back again and hoping some of the issues would resolve themselves in time. 

So, I feel like I had another good effort this week. We'll see what next week brings. 

Until next time...

Book Reviews and A Case of Mistaken Identity

I said my next book reviews were going to be about children's books. Well, I changed my mind. First, I am going to discuss another adult book.

First up is Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death by M. C. Beaton, mystery, 1998

There are over 30 books in the Agatha Raisin series, with the first 24 written by M. C. Beaton. In case you aren't familiar with Agatha Raisin, she is a 50-something woman who sells her advertising business in London to move to a simpler life in the country. She brings her city ways with her and is often brash and impatient, but she gradually adapts to the slower way of life and eventually gains most of the locals' acceptance. She also has an obsession with James, her next-door neighbor, and they have an on-again-off-again relationship as they investigate murders together.

The Agatha Raisin books are cozy mysteries and easy reads. I enjoy them then and again, although I sometimes tire of Agatha's fixation on James. 

The Wellspring of Death is #7 in the Agatha Raisin series. In this book, there is a controversy over the use of a natural spring and the subsequent murder of the council head, who had the deciding vote on what happens. There is a long list of people who are upset for one reason or another, and one of them is the bad guy in the end. 

And now, for the rest of the story. Ward saw my Agatha Raisin book and asked if he would like it, especially since it was a mystery, which he reads a lot. I said maybe, but he wouldn't initially like Agatha, but she would grow on him. However, I suggested he should start with the first one, The Quiche of Death, so he could learn the characters. He likes to read e-books, so he checked it out and started reading on his phone. He was about a third of the way through before he figured out he had the wrong book. He was reading The Quiche of the Dead by Kirstin Weiss instead of The Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton. He was wondering when the story was going to introduce Agatha, the main character. However, he finished and enjoyed Weiss's book, fortunately, the first in a series. He enjoyed it enough that he has read four of the series so far. 

In the meantime, I checked an Agatha Raisin DVD out of the library. British television made a series from the books, and we watched the Quiche of Death episode. I was right. Ward didn't like Agatha very much. The show was pretty true to the book, but I like reading the mysteries better than watching them. I am going to encourage Ward to give Agatha another chance and actually read one of the books.

But before that, Ward will review The Quiche of the Dead for You.

Ward says he doesn't remember agreeing to write a review of "The Quiche of the Dead", and he's going to be busy for a very long time, so I should just go ahead and publish this post.  😉

Until next time...

Note: Miss Landers has read all of the Agatha Raisin books and said that Ward and I should keep reading them and watch the characters develop.

Ward here: OK, I've been asked twice to do this. Here goes - The Quiche and the Dead by Kirsten Weiss is the first of a series of cozy mysteries centered around Valentine Harris, who runs the Pie Town bakery. She is accompanied by her seventy-something pie crust maker, Charlene, who has no filter and says what she thinks and who believes in crazy theories. Together, they work to solve a mystery - in this first book, a customer dies of poisoning in her pie shop after eating one of her quiches. Romantic tension arises from the attraction between Val and the (single, handsome) policeman Gordon, who cannot act on his feelings because Val is a suspect. It is sweet and silly, wrapped around a decent mystery. I think there are five or six books in the Pie Town series, and I'm on book number four.

This and That

I'm still working on finding my retirement rhythm and getting around to the projects I had in mind when I had more time. In the meantime, our days are full of this and that.

The snowdrops have finally bloomed.

We are having a few days of warmer temperatures before the rain and storms return this weekend, so we are taking this opportunity to start some spring bed cleanups and pruning. We are just making it under the wire for some pruning that should happen in late winter or early spring. It is an exciting time of year as things wake up from their winter dormancy and show signs of growth. But it can be overwhelming at times when we look at all that "has" to be done. 

The crocus are finally coming up.

Last weekend, we had a sign-making party at Ward's father's house. Ward's cousin will be running in a half marathon this weekend, and a group is going to cheer her on. We were making signs for that. It was a fun time with most of the family, aged 11 months to 91. Ward and I won't be able to go to the race, but we were happy to make signs. 

Ward's cousin is from Guatemala, so many signs have that theme. This is a quetzal bird, the national bird of Guatemala. 

Ward and I are trying to make Tuesday our primary errand day. With poor planning, we found ourselves too often trying to navigate stores on the weekend. Then, we would be frustrated by parking lots and long checkout lines. With two weeks under our belt, the routine seems to work. First, we go to our line dancing class, followed by lunch. Then we do whatever needs to be done in the bigger town where we do our major shopping. Yesterday, we were organized and made eight stops. 

Really, there's not much exciting going on here, but we sure seem busy. So busy, that I think I'll go take a nap. :)😃

Until next time...

Book Reviews

 Here are a few books I've read recently.

Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, fiction, 2024

In current-day Britain, people from the past are brought to the present day to see how well they can adapt and how well their bodies can survive the process. The story centers around Gore from 1847 and his bridge (unnamed woman), who is helping him adapt to the present-day culture. During this process, there are interesting philosophical discussions about whether all progress is really good. The first 2/3 of the book develops the relationships among the characters with some foreshadowing of the wild ride the last 1/3 of the book takes you on. The book has been described as romantic science fiction, which seems right. It's also been described as a hilarious romp, but I didn't find much humor in the book. The end is surprising, and grasping it all takes some thought. One of my friends said she read the ending three times before she understood it.

The book has been getting good reviews and lots of buzz. Ward and I both read it and recommend it. (Note: I usually don't read sci-fi.) It would make an excellent book for a book club as there is much to discuss about the story.

Summer Island by Kristin Hannah, fiction, 2001

Kristin Hannah has been writing bestsellers for decades, so I thought it was time I read one. This book involves a broken mother-daughter relationship and the week they spend on Summer Island, learning that not all is as it seems and finally coming together again. There is a dying friend in the mix who reminds them that our time is not endless. The story drew me in, but I had to put it down sometimes because the strife the characters were going through was too much. The book was well-written, and I can understand Hannah's success. I will probably read more of her books.

Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe, fiction, 2024

This book has an abundance of good reviews; however, I hadn't heard of it until a customer requested it. Occasionally, when someone came into the library and asked for a book, I would put it on hold for myself. This was one of those books, and I didn't remember it when it finally came in. I had no idea what it was about when I requested it. 

The story features Margo, who becomes pregnant by one of her professors and ends up with no money and a baby at 20. A series of setbacks end her in dire financial trouble. Out of the various options available to her, with little education and no means for childcare, she ends up in the online world of Onlyfans, a subscription online service that produces pornography, among other things. Her father, a retired pro wrestler, comes to live with her to help out. He has his own set of problems, including drug addiction.

As serious as the description sounds, the book has a lot of humor. I found it fascinating because I knew nothing about the wrestling and Onlyfans worlds. They are much more complex than I imagined, and the book gave me new insights into both of them. Ward and I each read this one and would recommend it. It would also be a good book for a book club discussion. However, be forewarned, if a discussion about penises would make you uncomfortable, this may not be the book for you. (One of Margo's Onlyfans gigs is having people send her pictures of their penis, and she telling them what Pokemon character it looked like.)

Funny Story by Emily Henry, fiction, 2024

This is another book that a customer told me about. It is a New York Times #1 bestseller with many superlative reviews. The story revolves around Daphne and Miles, whose fiance, Peter, and girlfriend, Petra, dump them to be with each other. Having no place to live, Daphne moves in with Miles and bonds over their screwed-up love life. They learn to deal with their feelings for a predictable ending. While I found the book an enjoyable read, I don't think I would have given one of the best books of 2024 rating as some did.

Next time, I will tell you about some children's books I've been reading. 

Until next time...

Weekly Exercise update

 I have been doing more serious exercise in the last month than I have for ages. The last time I remember doing sustained exercise over a long period was before Wally was born over 30 years ago. I am sharing my progress here with you, and hopefully, I will be able to look back over these posts and see the progress I have made-- meaning, this is more for me than for you. However, if you have a new habit that you are trying to establish and want to share, I'd love for you to join me. 

So, the main goal is to move more. To put a fine point on that, I want to have 3 days of aerobic exercise and 2 days of strength training/week. This is a lofty goal for someone who has never been into formal exercise, but I'm gonna try. I belong to a gym that has a wide variety of classes that I'm trying out. Also, I take a ballroom and line dance class each week with Ward.

So here is how the last week went:

2/28 Friday: I did a one-hour Zumba class. I am continuing to catch on little by little and don't feel so out of place. The class wasn't full, and I got a good view of the instructor. I am learning her hand signals, which helps. This hour wears me out, but I am making it to 25 instead of 20 minutes before I want the class to be over. 

3/1 Saturday: Free day

3/2 Sunday: This was a 45-minute class of low-intensity interval training with weights. Luckily, I found where they keep the 2 lb weights, so that was what I was using. However, I used them for the entire time which was new for me. I was exhausted after this class.

3/3 Monday: Ward and I went to a one-hour ballroom dance class (at the rec center, not the gym), which went better than last week. Ward videoed another couple who were getting all the steps, and we used that for practice. The practice paid off, so I didn't want to hide behind a door like last week because I was so lost. This class makes me sweat, but it is easy exercise-wise. This class is definitely a mental challenge for me.

3/4 Tuesday: Ward and I went to a one-hour line dance class at a local dance studio. This class gave me a good workout, and I was more tired at the end than I had been before. I think that might be because I am getting more of the steps and am moving more of the time. This class is fun and my favorite of the week.

3/5 Wednesday: I took a 30-minute Mat Pilates class this day. It was hard, but it gave me a good upper body and core workout. I'm still sore from it.

3/6 Thursday: Free day to recover from Pilates class on Wednesday.

I am seeing a little progress, physically, but it's harder to get myself up and out to the classes. Maybe being accountable here each week will be the extra encouragement I need to keep me going.

Until next time...

Seeds

I have been dabbling in vegetable and flower gardening throughout the years but have never been very successful with starting seeds. Years ago, I tried it a few times but couldn't keep the cats out of them, no matter what kind of barrier we put up. After a while, I just gave up. A few years ago, I tried some cold starts of cruciferous veggies outside in milk jugs. However, they never quite flourished in the garden.

One of my goals this year was to try my hand again at seed starting. One, because I like to watch the growing process, and two, I hope to save a little money on the plants we usually buy in the spring. I consider this a learning year and am not trying to do everything perfectly. However, I've read some and talked to Master Gardners from the extension service. I expect it to take a couple of years to figure out what works for me. Here is what I've done so far.

In February, I went to a seed exchange at the town hall. It was more like a seed giveaway than an exchange. I also got to talk with some master gardeners. I have way more seeds than I can use, including the seeds I've been saving over the years. I plan to share some of my bounty.

I started a combination of flowers and vegetables outside, including some tomatoes. Although tomatoes are not recommended for a cold start, one person said she does it every year, so I'm giving them a try. 

Inside, I have started 14 different vegetables and flowers. Most of the seeds I used were old, so I sowed liberally, and we'll see what happens. I purchased two heating mats off eBay for a good price and bought two grow lights to aid the process. Ward made stands for the lights and cleverly made them so they will break down and be stored easily. I wasn't sure where to set things up, but I decided on the living room. Since it is easily accessible, I check on the trays and move things around several times a day. I do not have enough lights or heating pads to leave everything in one place.

The basil was the first to sprout, but more are joining it every day. At least half of what I planted has sprouted. 

I know a lot has to happen between sowing a seed and getting a plant to grow outside, but I feel like I have a good start. My hope is that I will be successful and can share with others. And if not this year, maybe next. At the very least, this is a fun experiment.

Until next time...