Favorite Book for July 2023

 Once again, I am still in a book drought.  I started a couple and gave up on them because they just weren't holding my interest and I had better things to do.  However, my husband read some he liked, but his favorite was The Quiet Tenant.  Here is his review of it:

In The Quiet Tennant by Clemence Michallon, Aidan is a hardworking family man but is not a very nice man, especially toward women.  The story is narrated by those closest to him, his daughter, his girlfriend, and the one victim he spared.  I thought this book was really good!  I was into it from the first few pages.  It had good character development and the ending will have you turning pages quickly!  (Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

I am currently reading it now and am still interested.  Hopefully I will actually finish this one.  I'm just up to the part where the guy moves his hostage into his home with his daughter.   

Visit our book blog to see what other books he liked.

The Bad Thing About a Good Book

You know I'm reading a good book when I read for three hours straight and still look forward to reading more.  This book is so good, it's like watching a movie.  A couple times it made me laugh out loud!  The bad thing about it is that I didn't move much.  I'm used to being on my feet all morning, at least standing at the computer if not walking or exercising.  At least I did get a long walk and some exercising in before I started reading--good thing.  Yesterday, the only reason I stopped was to eat lunch before going to play pinochle at the Sr. Center for two hours.  (More sitting, although since I kept winning, I did get to move a little when the winners moved to the next table.)   

The Lady's Mine by Francine Rivers is the Christian historical fiction book that has got my attention.  One of all-time favorite books is Redeeming Love by her so I was eager to read this one.  It did not disappoint and this one has clean language!  A well-to-do lady from Boston who was involved with the women's sufferage movement was sent off to the wild west to claim her uncle's inheritance.  The town has no sheriff, few women other than prostitutes, is dirty and full of saloons.  She finds her uncle had a mine, a small newspaper office/house and was murdered but no one was charged.  She is determined to find out who killed her uncle and why, make the town better and restart the newspaper her uncle wrote.  She stirs up the town not only by being a new pretty lady, but also with her curiosity and determination to make it on her own and learn to operate a mine.  Here is the link to my full review of it:  https://ourstack.blogspot.com/2022/04/the-ladys-mine-by-francine-rivers-is.html

Now time to read some more before going to play Bunco.

What is the last book you read for at least three hours straight?

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How We Get Books With Libraries Closed

At the corner of our street is a "Little Library" where we found Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans, In the Dark by Brian Freeman, The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien.  I read Promise Me a long time ago but my husband didn't.  He read about halfway and gave up on it.

I have loaded several that I have not gotten to yet because before the Senior Center closed, I took a couple from there to read.  I just finished Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult and am currently reading Water From My Heart by Charles Martin.

With the libraries closed due to the Corona Virus, we've been reading books that we had from the library before it closed.  They were Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware, Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah, A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer, Bravelands--The Spirit Eaters by Erin Hunter.   We both Liked Turn of the Key and A Heart So Fierce and Broken best.

I also have loaded some to my Kindle that I have not read yet but which I plan to read.  My husband read Her Last Breath by J. A. Schneider; however, he prefers to hold a book.  He does not like having to press the lever to advance the pages.

Finally, to our surprise, a neighbor of our who is a librarian dropped off If It Bleeds by Stephen King for us yesterday.  It actually has four short stories.

We are managing to continue reading but still look forward to getting back to the library when it opens.

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7 Things I Learned from Reading Marooned in the Arctic by Peggy Caravantes

Marooned in the Arctic is the true story of Ada Blackjack, the "Female Robinson Crusoe" who went on an expedition in 1921 to Wrangel Island with four men.  Ada and a cat were the lone survivors of her expedition party for two years.  I came across the following things I didn't know before reading it and thought I'd share them here:

(1)  I had never heard of Wrangel Island and had no idea where it was.  Now I know--north of Alaska and Russia.

(2) It gets as cold as -50 degrees F.  Burr, I would never want to live there! 

(3) The wildlife included polar bears, foxes, walruses, seals, ducks and snow geese.

(4) The thick fur of the Arctic fox changes color--white in the winter to blend in with the snow and brown or gray in the summer.  (page 111)

(5) Cats are companions to lonely sailors on ships.  Some sailors believe black cats have magical powers that can protect their ships at sea.  Another superstition is that if a cat walks toward a sailor on the deck, it is a sign of good luck.  But if the cat turns back, something dire will happen.  Another popular believe if that cats have magical tails with  which they can start storms if they are dissatisfied.  Sailors strive to keep their cats happy.  Even today, felines are valuable members of crews on many ships.  (page 13)

(6)   Scurvy is a nutritional deficiency caused by insufficient amounts of vitamin C.  Symptoms include fatigue, irritability, pain in the legs, small red-blue spots on the skin, swollen gums that bleed or soften to the point that teeth loosen or fall out.  Joints may bleed, causing severe pain.  Shortness of breath is common after physical exertion.  (page 81)

(7)  Today, about 100 Eskimos live in a small village which serves as a base camp for an additional 30 seasonal reserve staff who work from field stations during all but the winter months.  Wrangel island is one of Russia's most treasured wildlife sanctuaries. (page 174)

I'd like to see a Survivor show from a place like this for a change.  I also wonder how the polar bears even survive in our zoos since even our winters are no where near 50 below zero. 

Check out our review of Marooned in the Arctic at Grab a Book from Our Stack.

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Just Sayin' - I Think We Should Be Humane to Humans Too!

I just finished reading Inside the O'Briens this week and although I generally did not enjoy this book, I did learn a lot about Huntington's Disease and how families are affected by it.  It was thought provoking which inspired me to write this post.

When Joe, a Boston cop with a loving wife and four grown children, (some of whom still live at home), suffers from lack of balance, slurred speech, angry outbursts, random jumping and fidgeting and not even being aware he is doing it, he tries his best to keep his job and get a decent pension to provide for his wife after he is gone.  Unfortunately, he has to quit early and will only get about 1/3 of his pension.  He finds out from a lawyer that unless he divorces Rosie, she won't get anything because it will all go to pay for the assisted living place he most likely will end up in like his mother did.

I must say, I agree with Joe's thinking when he considered killing himself.  Here is an excerpt from page 268 that really rings true to me (Yaz was Joe's little dog that died recently):

Joe thinks of Yaz.  He lived a good, full life.  And then, when his quality of life drained away, they didn't make him suffer.  Yaz's end was peaceful and dignified, fast and painless.  Five seconds after the vet's injection, he was gone.

It was the humane thing to do.  Joe takes note of the word human in humane, and yet that kind of "human" compassion is reserved only for animals, not for people.  There is no five-second injection option for Joe.  Doctors aren't allowed to be humane with humans.  Joe and everyone like him will be expected to suffer and suck it up, to endure zero quality of life while being a burden to everyone held dear until the bitter, gruesome end. 

We all hope we never get to the place where we can't take care of ourselves, but many do.  I just think it would be nice to have the option of a lethal injection to speed up the inevitable and spare all the pain and suffering.

In the book, Joe did not commit suicide.  His daughter, Katie, changed his mind with the following words from page 273:

We don't know anyone else with HD.  You're the only example we have.  We're going to learn how to live and die with HD from you, Dad. . . . .  We don't know what's right and wrong when it comes to HD.  But whatever you do, that's the advice you're giving us.

What do you think about this?

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4 Things I Learned Recently

This used to be a popular feature on this blog and I've missed doing it so decided to try starting it up again.  Feel free to comment on what I've learned or share something you learned recently.

(1)  Lobsters grow by becoming uncomfortable and growing a bigger shell. Watch this:
I saw this on Facebook and thought it was both true and interesting about how we need to handle stress.

(2)  When reading Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys, I learned about the sinking of a German ship called the Wilhelm Gustloff that  had way more people than the Titanic.

(3)  I always thought that once I deleted an email from my deleted items, there was no way to retrieve it, but I was wrong.  One of my co-workers showed my a folder tab in Outlook that says "retrieve deleted items."

For some reason I do not know, it works at work but at home, that option is grayed out.  Any explanations?

(4)  Don't trust the protective netting at ballparks to protect fans--a Rays fan was struck in the face by foul ball that managed to get through the protective netting.  See video.


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Why I'm So Glad I Read the Harry Potter Series

When the Harry Potter books first came out, my husband wanted to read them and I told him I'd rather he didn't because it was all about witches and wizards and witchcraft and I didn't want it in my house.  I just assumed that what it was but I was wrong.  Yes, I admit it honey, I was wrong.

When I looked at different booktubers on YouTube, over and over the Harry Potter series came up as being favorite books, best fantasy world, best book about a boarding school, book that got kids into reading and probably some others I forgot.  I never found one negative comment from anyone who actually read the series and my curiosity was sparked.  This year I decided to read it so I could find out exactly what it was that everyone who read it loved so much, and I did!

It is definitely my favorite series and I loved every book in the series.  Never would I have thought I would read a book that was over 700 pages, but I did and want to reread them!  This is so much more than witchcraft.  It is about friendship, family, loyalty, kindness, leadership, sacrifice, good vs. evil and love with lots of humor!  It's a coming of age story following Harry Potter from a little kid through to adulthood and Harry Potter is so cool!  I liked how each book told about another year in Harry's life.  He is a lover, not a fighter.  He just wants to be ordinary and not famous.  He didn't like everyone staring at him all the time because of his scar.  He was always humble and showed love for others all through the book, even to the end and managed not to kill anyone even though his life was threatened over and over.

There are many well-developed characters in this series that were introduced gradually enough that I was able to keep them straight.  I found myself really liking Harry and his friends and felt as though they were my friends too!  This series brought out a variety of emotions for me too which I love.  At times I felt sad, jubilant, scared, angry, excited and curious.  I laughed at quite a lot of things and cried during the last book.  I loved the interaction between the professors and the students, and the interaction among the students.

There is a lot of mystery and suspense with action, adventure and unexpected twists and turns.  This book is so well written and I was just amazed at the imagination that went into it.  J. K. Rowling had me eager to read more and more and get back to whatever book I was reading.  Even after the book was done, I kept thinking about it!   

The plot is very elaborate and complex which is why I'm surprised these are classed as juvenile books rather than YA, especially since most of them are about Harry's teenage years.  Also, I think the vocabulary is very advanced for children.  Because of the witchcraft and the dark plot, I would not recommend it for young children but would highly recommend it for teens and adults who missed out on this classic literature series.  I loved this whole series!!!! 

Here's some links to check out for more information and some fun:
See http://pottermore.com
Here's a sorting quiz (one of many) to see which house you would belong to:  http://www.gotoquiz.com/pottermore_sorting_hat_quiz_2  I got Gryffindor on this one but Hufflepuff on another one

Have you read the Harry Potter books?  Which was your favorite?  (Mine was the 3rd, Prisoner from Azkaban).  What did you think of the series? 

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Happy International Cat Day!

Rest Time

What's Spunky doing?

I like playing with string!

I know, I'm so pretty!

Hey Spunky, a bag to chew on over here!

What should we do next, Spunky?

If you do not have a cat, what are you waiting for?  they are great companions, easy to care for, fun to play with, amusing, and promote a peaceful atmosphere . . . usually.

I'm currently reading Love Saves the Day by Gwen Cooper which I found out about on YouTube from one of the book trailer Booktube challenges:


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Wordless Wednesday

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Weekend Wrap-Up!

Friday my husband bought flowers for our porch and for the front section in front of our porch.  The assortment this year includes geraniums, merigolds and snapdragons.  We usually have success with geraniums.  Our yard has so little sun, it's hard to find plants that do well.

I enjoy our front porch and think the flowers add a nice touch.  Saturday, my husband helped me make my Top 5 Wednesday--Summer Covers video (it will be uploaded to YouTube Tuesday) from this spot which turned out great.  This is the best lighting I've found so far to shoot videos so I plan to make some more from this spot.  Think I'll be hanging our our wind chime this week.

I spent some extra time at the library this weekend stocking up on books I want to use for my next few Booktube videos.  This is just some of the books we got!  Manny Boy is looking them over, wondering why all these books are cluttering up his table.

This is a picture of a house we saw in our neighborhood for sale for only $32,900!  The yard is quite large as you can see, but it terrible condition.  The house looks small but not too bad from the outside.  I wonder what the inside looks like.

I had a very nice Mother's day.  These are the three cards I got:  one from both my cats, one from my wonderful husband, and one from our dog.  Plus, the pets gave me a gift card for Cracker Barrel!  We had great weather, no rain as was predicted.  It was a very nice day!  What did you do over the weekend?








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Zoo Day - A Bit Too Crowded and Too Bright

My husband and I went to the Cleveland Zoo yesterday.  In the morning, before we arrived, a parent dangled their little kid over the edge of the cheetah exhibit and the kid fell in!  Fortunately, the cheetahs did not bother coming near them, but what a stupid thing to do.  The zoo is charging them with child endangering and I'm glad about that!  (See News Article at WKYC Channel 3--some people actually blamed the zoo!)

We went in the afternoon since it was such a beautiful day!  The temperature was near 70 and the sun was shining so it was very comfortable.  I wanted my husband to shoot some short video clips of me recommending some animal books for my YouTube channel that I could edit into a video (Fast Five Animal Fiction Part 1).

Sounds easy, right?  Wrong!

• First, it was SO crowded! we had a hard time finding a quiet place to line up the shot so Gerard could get both me and the animal in it. 
•  Second, we managed to get a few done but the bears were disappointing.  Both Grizzlies were actually lying together in a dugout hole and no other bears were on exhibit.  
• Third, The flowers weren't in bloom, there was lots of construction going on all over the zoo, including the giraffe exhibit so we we couldn't shoot the video I had planned by them.
• Fourth, it was so bright that we really couldn't see the Flip camera screen outside to see if we had the shot lined up well.

The animals of the day though were the otters and I did manage to get a selfie of us in front of the elephants without being able to tell if it was on record or not.  We plan to go back again Friday when I have a day off to do some more.  I figure it will be much less crowded and maybe not so bright.  Some clouds would be appreciated.

Joining in Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop with the prompt:  Tell us about a local news story that's all a buzz in your neck of the woods right now.

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Don't Buy This!

Internet Address and Password Logbook

Nothing like making your logins and passwords obvious and easy to find!  I can't believe anyone would but this item, but I saw it in the Fresh Finds catalog for $7.95!  This is NOT a good idea--save your money! The last thing you would want to do is make it easy for someone to find your logins and passwords.  Here are some alternatives to using a book like this with a title on it.

1.  Use a plain, ordinary notebook without a title.
2.  Better yet, use a sheet of paper and stick it in a book or a notebook.
3.  Put it away from your computer, not in the desk drawer near by.

If you do not think Internet Address and Password Logbook is a very bad idea, I encourage you to read Think Twice by Lisa Scottoline.  That should convince you!  (Click the link for our review.)


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January Favorite Reads

My favorite read for January was Somebody Else's Daughter by Linsey Lanier (Click the link for my review).  This is contemporary fiction about an abused wife who goes in search of her baby daughter that her abusive husband gave away without her knowledge.

Gerard's favorite was Girl on a Train by Paula Hawkins (Click the link for his review).

The one we both liked very much that came in second was Hidden Agenda by Lisa Harris, a thriller with lots of action and suspense from start to finish.


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My Letter to My Dog

After reading A Letter to My Dog by Robin Layten featuring letters from various dog owners, I was inspired to write a letter to our dog, Abby.  Here it is:

Dear Abby a/k/a Dabby Doo,

You are the best dog we could ever have!  You won our hearts the first day we met you with your soft thick fur, your big beautiful brown eyes, your sweet personality, your curly fluffy tail, your big smile and your gentleness.  I am amazed at how well-behaved you were from the first day we met you.  You got along with our two cats just fine and fit right into our family with no problem at all. 

I love how all kinds of people are drawn to you.  It was so much fun taking you to dog training classes at PetSmart because you managed to make people laugh and still were the best at following commands most days.  You are so eager to please and easy to train.  We are so proud of you!  I love to watch you enjoy the outdoors and wish we had an area where you could run off leash like you did at the park the one day when the clasp broke off and you got in a good run.  I couldn’t believe how fast you could go and how happy you were that day! 

The bond you have with Gerard is heartwarming to me.  I know you will always be a daddy’s girl, but just hope you know how much I love you too.  I enjoy feeding you breakfast every morning and reviewing the commands you learned.  I like giving you big hugs and belly rubs too.  You are such a good dog and I am so glad we decided to look on Petfinder for you when we did.  You have certainly enriched our lives!

Also got to read A Letter to My Cat. The pictures in this book are gorgeous!  Why not write a letter to your pet and post it on your blog.  Then leave the link in the comments.

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Friday Fragments: books, money, shopping, church

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. It's been quite a week so I have more than usual this week:

Favorite Reads

Gerard's favorite read in May is Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottoline.

Karen's favorite read in May is Now You See Her by James Patterson.
Click the links for our reviews.

 

Money

This must be the year of spending for us. So far:
$ 500 dental cleaning for our cat (Manny) close to $500
$ 1,000 New computer, 3 yr. virus protection & 3 yr. technical support (used tax refund and money gifts for this though)
$ 600 Car Repairs
$20,000 2012 Ford Escape (paid from savings so that's what we were saving for)
When is it going to be a year for savings again?

New Class

I've been teaching just the 5th grade boys in Sunday School but for the summer, I will have the 5th grade girls too! Should be interesting. Sort of looking forward to it but a bit anxious because I will be using material I haven't used before so will have to start from scratch every week.

Sports Camp

Last year I volunteered to be a head basketball coach and blue shirt worker for the Parma Heights Baptist Church FOCUS Sports Camp (Focus on Christ Using Sports) and this year I volunteered again to be a basketball coach for both morning and afternoon sessions. I requested being an assistant coach but will be a head coach if needed. We'll see what happens--trusting God to give me the stamina and strength I'll need. We are still short of volunteers for all the sports: flag football, cheerleading, volleyball, soccer and basketball. Registration ends June 5.



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Friday Fragments: Computer, Life, Books, Dog's Life

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. It's been quite a week so I have more than usual this week:

It's the Merry month of May and finally the snow has stopped. Now we are into rain almost every day this week.

Abby's Updates

Glad I do not need my jacket outside anymore.

I am really liking Wednesdays now that Gerard is off that day every week. Woo hoo! I like the extra petting and the extra walks. One night it stormed and woke me up--that loud thunder scares me but my mom was nice and pet me up until it stopped. I hid under the covers for part of the time--that makes me feel better. This week I was called beautiful, smart and a social butterfly. I am just friendly to people like when we walk by the ballgames at the park, I visited with all the spectators. When I walked by the high school, the door to the gym was open where the girls were having softball practice after school so naturally I started heading on in, but Gerard didn't let me enter. The girl near the door smiled and talked to me though.

Biggest Problem of the Week

Why when I plugged in my Kindle to my computer to charge it up, I did not see the Kindle listed in the "computer" section as the removable E drive like I do when I plug in other things to the USB port? It seemed to have charged up, but the Kindle screen was blank instead of showing it was charging.

Best Thing This Week

Got rid of some junk items by donating them to the Parma Heights Christian Academy's annual huge garage sale. Some of the things I donated were very good though, like my old computer speakers, computer monitor (although I never liked that AOL one) and my Indians clock. The second best thing was getting free ice cream at work with lots of toppings that was left over from the ice cream social we had last Friday for the support staff.

Current Projects

After switching over to a new computer, I'm still getting my photos organized back into my folders. For some reason unknown to me, they didn't get all transferred to my external hard drive so had to download a lot from from Picasa. I'm also still getting familiar with Windows 7 and trying to get my old movie maker program back that I had on the XP system. (Windows live movie stinks!) Gerard is faithfully cheering for the Bruins in the hockey playoffs, but the Canadians are giving them a hard time. Hope they start winning again!

Favorite Reads in April

We both loved THE WINTER HORSES by Philip Kerr and both read and liked DEAR KILLER by Katherine Ewell (a 17-yr.-old new author). Gerard liked it a lot more than I did though, see our reviews by clicking the links. We even did a video discussing THE WINTER HORSES. What was the best book you read lately?

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7 Friday Fragments (Computer, Money, Books, Sports)

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. It's been quite a week so I have more than usual this week:

Money Well Spent

As they say, "easy come, easy go." This week we got our tax refund and I got some money for Administrative Professionals Day which more than covered the expense of our new ACER computer (can't believe how fast this one works compared to our old one) and the 3 yr. service for 24/7 tech support from iYogi. Wednesday night, I spent five hours on the phone and chat with them to get my computer all loaded with stuff and cleaned up from some downloads I did that I changed my mind about. They do monthly tune-ups to keep it running like new and I love that. They can remotely come in with me permission and take care of everything for me! As I sit and watch, I also learn more too. If interested in looking into this service, please give me your email address so I can refer you.

Microsoft Office

I am so happy I now have Outlook 2013 and it works after the iYogi tech set up my email on it for my last night. I got it for just $10 through a work shopping program. I couldn't get it for my old XP because it wouldn't work on that. Now that I have the Windows 7 operating system, I could finally get it. It took a very long time to download (which is why I was up so late on Wednesday), but it is so worth it to me!

Football

I think it's early to talk NFL football, but the schedules came out this week. I'd be surprised if the Browns win 3 games this year. Another year of starting all over again. I can't even get excited about it. Think I'll be more into the Patriots this year along with my husband.

Books

The only thing that would make this book better is if it had cats.

This month for me, reading has been a bit slow. I finally read a very good historical fiction novel that I could give 5 stars-my favorite of the month so far. It is The Winter Horses by Philip Kerr. It is so touching and gut-wrenching that I cried three times when reading it. Click the link to read our review. This is one we both enjoyed very much about a nice old man who was the caretaker of a animal sanctuary in the Ukraine during WW II, an orphan girl who had a very special connection with the wild horses and the fantastic horses themselves and a brave, loyal smart wolfhound.

Wonderful Easter

We had a wonderful Easter this year, it was a "Perfect Day" for all of us!  Tennis anyone?  How about puppets or a walk in the woods?

Go Bruins

My husband is very excited about the Bruins again this year. So far in the first round of the playoffs, they are 3-1. I really meant to watch with him, but the computer issues took over my time and focus. It's been a wild two weeks but now I finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Surprise Gifts

Last Saturday when visiting the nursing home with our dog, Abby, we were showered with gifts to show their appreciation for us volunteering by bringing Abby to visit the residents twice a month. We did a post about this, in case you missed it: It's Nice to be Appreciated. Share this:

Friday Fragments

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. It's been quite a week so I have more than usual this week:

Politics

I am not big on politics so really got a kick out of the list about politics and politicians at Comedy Plus this week! Check it out for a laugh--it's so true!

4-Day Work Week

This was Gerard's first 4-day work week and what a productive day he had on Wednesday, his day off! See our Thankful Thursday post for details.

Dog License

The dog license renewals are supposed to go out in December but we never got ours so I finally called about it. Got the application and will get it in the mail tomorrow.

Returns

I got an offer in the mail for a small Heat Surge heater and thought I would be able to use it in our bedroom during the night. When I read the instructions though, it said it gets hot and you should not leave it unattended. If we are sleeping, we are not attentive so I called and made arrangements to return it for a full refund ($139).

NCAA Basketball

Sad, both our favorite teams lost in the first round, Ohio State and Duke! Duke's upset was even more unexpected than Ohio State's. Ohio State only lost by 1 point, so close. My only consolation is that others in our pool probably picked them too, but I had Duke going all the way to the final 4--very bad.

Pet Update

Abby finally got groomed this week and her fur is really soft again. Spunky Doodle's been sleeping next me through the whole night lately. Manny Boy will be going to the vet Monday to get his teeth cleaned. I'm told it is necessary to clean the tarter off and they can also get it from under the gums too which prevents disease. Do you get your cat's teeth cleaned?

Divergent

We are looking forward to seeing the movie "Divergent" on Monday when we are off. It takes both of us to get Manny Boy into the cat carrier!

Re-Decorating

After seeing episodes of "Sell This House" a desire is growing in me to do some painting and re-decorating in our house. The only reason I hesitate is that we have so much furniture to move that it is very difficult. That's why we still have our brown carpeting that is over 16 years old. It's still the carpet that was in the house when we first bought it!  There are a lot of things I'd like to change.

Books

We both read and liked The Deepest Secret by Carla Buckley. Share this:

Friday Fragments (travel, sports, books)

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. I have a few this week:

A Trip I'd Like

Over at Snoopy's blog, I saw some very interesting pictures from a trip his mom and dad took down the Amazon, including dogs they saw along the way!  The post is titled "Dogs of the Amazon" but it has pictures of lots of other critters too!

Travel Tips

We don't travel but I came across a very helpful post for those who do at It's Just Life--"Traveling? Take These Along!" She gives a list of items to pack that could be quite useful!   I think this was the most helpful post I read this week.

Paraplegic Hockey

I was intrigued when I watched a bit of a hockey game played by paralegics between the USA and Russia. They sat on a what looked like a big skate using two sticks to slide themselves along on the ice. I struck me most was that there were actually that many paralegic hockey players and that they were so fast!

Good Neighbors

We live on a fairly long street near the one end so walking from the bus stop with snow and ice on the ground and a cold wind blowing more snow in my face is not very fun. I usually walk in the street at the side and am thankful when neighbors see me and stop to give me a lift. We have some very nice people on our street!

Civil War Christian Fiction

I just finished reading another Civil War fiction series by Lauraine Snelling consisting of The Daughter of Twin Oaks, Sisters of the Confederacy, and A Long Way Home. I enjoyed this series very much because of the well developed characters, the adventure and lots of action, and the fact that it is Christian fiction so swear words and steamy sex scenes are omitted. Reading this kind of book helps me keep my problems in perspective.  This series is about saving their race horses, protecting the freed slaves, the separation of families that the war caused, life on a wagon train, how people assisted in the war effort, and how far people will go to protect their loved ones and help others.


What did you find interesting this week?  Have you read anything good lately?

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