Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Officially these were my last check outs from 2022. During the year I checked out over $5K worth of books. I know I didn't read them all, but my library saves me money!

 How to Break up with your Phone is some suggestions on how not to be addicted to your phone or what she terms as WMDs. Wireless Mobile Devices, or Wireless Mobile Distractions. Phone or tablet. I have always done some of the stuff she suggests. The phone does not go in the bathroom and very rarely into the bedroom.

The Love of My Life the husband works for a service that writes obituaries. When his wife is ill he starts researching her life. He finds a few surprises and wonders who he is actually married to.

Grace is written by a speech writer for President Obama and what happens during 10 days during June 2015. During that period the President gives comments on Supreme Court decisions and a moving eulogy.

The Other Wife is part of a longer series but I choose not to read the earlier books and this is fine as a stand alone. Book was published in 2019 and nothing new so far in the series. Plot? Older man in hospital with head injuries and in a coma. His son is called and as he gets to his father's bedside the woman there is not his mother. Who is she and did his father have a second family? Missing money from the family foundation. Who and why wanted the old man where he couldn't talk?

Confidence Man, really it could just read Con Man, all about The Donald! Written by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman who has covered The Donald for many years. Insight into his past and how it shaped him. His attitude for bullying people and the readiness to use legal means to harass people. I read the first part of the book on his early life closer than the second which was more on his presidency. 

Happy Reading.

Mini-ManCat Monday

 My husband said it was him or the cat ... I miss him sometimes.

Mum doesn't have one of those husband thingy types. She has me as her man, even if I am a man-cat!

We got more of that white stuff this past weekend. Enuf already, although mum says it won't last long. You can see we didn't get much white stuff early, but this last month has been really bad. Heck, we were down to one small snowy patch when all this stuff came.

Mum and me did our usual stuff. Reading, napping, crow-shay, laundry, eating. Well I mostly did the napping and eating. Plus the sports watching, but she didn't do as much of that as last week. No teams she really cared about, she would tune in towards the end of the game to see who won. 

Oh yeah, cuz of the snow mum puts some extra dried worms out for the robins. So they had to come really close to get some foods. I had bird TV up close!

Me on mum's latest blankie. She is on the last part of this so it should be done in the next week. 

Plus it is the last few days of the month. Caturday is Fool's Day for April!

 See you next week. 

 

 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Into spring, by a day or so. A little warmer, some sun and rain to come in the next few days. Lots of watching sports this past week. NCAA basketball, NIT basketball, NCAA Women's Frozen Four, NASCAR. Phew. Baseball starts soon too. 

Although with lots of TV watching means I also work on my crochet projects. The latest lap robe. I like this yarn and it comes in additional colors. So when I need to buy more yarn I may try another color or two. I have enough yarn to get me through at least two years! I am trying to do my best and not be too much of a yarn-a-holic!

Had some fun at the library joining in with friends to play trivia once a month. Are we smarter than the librarians? Right now the public is tied with them. Then a talk on Notre Dame in Paris and the symbolism of all the figures and how the restoration is progressing.

The Crime that Binds, the latest in the Bookmobile Mystery series. Our heroine doesn't find the body in this book, but she does help in finding the killer.

The Social Graces a fictional account of the relationship between Caroline Astor and Alva Vanderbilt in the late 19th century.

Overkilt latest installment of the Liss MacCrimmons mysteries. A weird cult seems to have invaded the town.

Moonshot, a book written by the CEO of Pfizer about the company's development of their version of the Covid Vaccine.

The Nature of Fragile Things, a mail order bride, a secretive husband, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Who is telling the truth?

All About Me! My Remarkable Life in Show Business a memoir by Mel Brooks  Written in a nice breezy style, full of stories on his personal and show business life. A fun read.

Happy Reading

Mini-ManCat Monday

There are two escapes from the miseries of life: music and cats. - Albert Schweitzer

That means mum isn't miserable, cuz she has me and she plays her tunes too!

Me snoozing in the front window, soaking up the sunshine. Gotta recharge my batteries, you know we kitties are solar powered. 

Mum says today is the vernal equinox, where the sun is directly over the equator, on its way back to us in the north. Yeah, we have had some sunny days, but on Caturday we also had cold temps and snow showers. Supposed to be nicer during this week. We want warms to have open windows.

Mum has been bizzy with the crow-shay, this is the one she finished a couple of weeks ago and she is almost done with another. Lots of time to crow-shay cuz she is watching all sorts of sports.

Lots of sports, mum bounced between racy cars, basketball with brackets, Bucky Badger playing in the NIT and Lady Badgers winning the hockey first place. Plus mum says there are Cinderfella's playing.

Plus she has been reading a big, fat book on the early kings and queens of England. Some guys called Plant-agents. Mum is almost done, she is setting time aside every day and says she has to read at least pages a day so she can take the book back later this week. 

Everyone have a good week. 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

A stack of books that could hold me for a couple of weeks. Maybe!

Murders and Metaphors, an installment on the Magical Bookshop mysteries. Who killed the wine critic?

Brave Enough is a memoir by Jessie Diggins who in a gold medal winning cross country skier. She helped the US to its first cross country medal in the 2018 Olympics.

Queen of Our Times, a biography of QEII published prior to her death in September 2022. It was released March 2022. It covers her life, but also many of the interactions with family and government officials over the years. Over 600 pages to read, but it was interesting. 

The Betrayal of Anne Frank, a group of investigators in the Netherlands, along with retired FBI agents delve into the case of how the Frank family was exposed. The group used 21st century cold case methods to isolate the person who likely informed the Nazi's that there were Jews hiding in that building. 

Belgravia, by the author/creator of Downton Abbey. Set in the 19th century, the aristocracy meets the nouveau riche in English society. Secret weddings, unknown heirs, unhappy parents. 

 Happy Reading.

Mini-ManCat Monday

 There's no need for a piece of sculpture in a home that has a cat. - Wesley Bates 

First off a very Happy Purrthday to Uncle Stormy. Mum's bro, he is a few years older than mum but still in purrty good shape. 

Winter isn't letting go of us just yet. When we get to the point of very little snow left on the ground, ma nature decides we need more. Mum measured and we got 8 inches last Thursday-Friday and then more on Sunday. A couple of pics from Friday. 

Mum got the snow eater out and got it all taken care of pretty quickly. Then she could just sit with me and read her book, crow-shay and watch the moving picture box. 

All in all a pretty decent week. Mum did hide the hour in the clocks, she even amembered to do the one in the metal monster. She usually forgets that one. She woke up at a good time and she made sure I had enuf foods to get me through the overnight. 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

 The time change occurs this weekend, so someday soon it will be light enough and warm enough to sit outside and read.

At Any Cost, the latest installment of the Forensic Instincts series. Mob hits, serial killer and a possible university admissions scandal. Can the team at Forensic Instincts figure it out before NYPD and keep their client alive?

And They Called it Camelot is a highly fictionalized story of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. Think The Crown but about Jackie. A story woven into known dates and events, conversations between actual people made up. Story runs from shortly before she meets JFK to after the death of Onassis.

Dinner's with Ruth, Nina Totenberg's, of NPR, memoir on her life and the power of friendship. She and Ruth Bader Ginsberg were friends for nearly 50 years. Meeting before Nina joined NPR or RBG being on the Supreme Court. 

All the Queen's Men, there has been a death at Buckingham Palace. Accident or murder? Plus, how did one of the Queen's favorite paintings end up in a Portsmouth exhibit? Set in the near past, can the Queen solve this one? There is one more book like this but I wonder if the author will write any more books like this since the Queen has died.

The Christie Affair is loosely based on Agatha Christie's real life disappearance for 10 days back in 1926. Written from the perspective of the mistress of Archie Christie. I found the story line confusing and hard to read. 

 Happy Reading!

Mini-ManCat Monday

My kitten] is dressed in a tortoise-shell suit, and I know you will delight in her. - William Cowper

I'm dressed in my orinch furs, my natural attire! Me napping on Sunday, just enjoying the sun coming in the window. Having a grate nap until mum got the flashy box out.

We missed out on snowfall this past week and that made mum happy. Means no driving issues. But she was sneaky and called the stabby place on Thursday and they said come on in on Friday! No waiting!

So here I am waiting in the PTU, I stayed there until they made me come out by picking me up, then feeling my inside and listening to my insides too. Good thing was they didn't have to steal my bloods this trip. Plus I got my update rabies shot too. Good checkup so I don't have to come back for 6 months. Plus the good news is that I gained a whole pound since last fall.

Me and mum came home and watched the fevvers outside for a while. Hmm, that one seems to be a bit furry and not fevvers! This guy figured how to jump over the barrier that is supposed to keep him out!

 Our spring birds are back, but the weather guessers says we may get snow at the end of the week!

Oh well, have a good week everyone!

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

 Wow! March already. The days are longer, more sunshine! Spring is coming! I can see a couple of green shoots poking out of the ground on the south side of the house. 

I kept my reading to a reasonable level so far this year, 11 books in January, 12 in February. Enough time to savor the book, not just rush through. Although a few books this past month were page turners!

Code Girls was a book that gave an overview of the women who came to work for the US government as cryptanalysts in World War 2. How they were initially recruited from colleges, their work, living arrangements and personal relationships. I got the Young Readers Edition, so a bit abridged, but still fine.

X Marks the Scot is another installment on the Liss MacCrimmons mysteries. Yes, another body, possible hidden treasure. One thing is that the author has in a few recent books referred to the passage of time. So not a murder coming every 3-6 months.

Kilt at the Highland Games this book precedes X Marks the Scot in the Liss MacCrimmons series. More who done it and why!

Whiskers and Lies, the latest of the Magical Cats mysteries. The librarian, her cats and detective boyfriend figure out who done it.

Foreverland the author's look at her marriage. Meeting her future husband, wedding, kids, etc. Sometimes it seemed a bit tongue in cheek or even a bit sarcastic, but it is her take on her marriage.

Where They Purr is a collection of photos of the homes of 28 cats. All pictures taken without posing the cats. From the descriptions the homes and cats all seemed to be residents of Australia. 

These books were checked out just before Thanksgiving. 

Well, not anymore! When it is bedtime I just go to bed. I don't even read in bed. I stayed up late as a kid and read in bed as a kid. As an adult I don't need to do that. 

Happy Reading.

Mini-ManCat Monday

... she, that will with kittens jest, Should bear a kitten's joke. - William Cowper 

My kittenhood was a furry long time ago, although mum says I sometimes play like a kitten. 

We had an OK week but we had icky weather on Wednesday. Snow and sleet and heavy stuff to shovel for mum. Well she did use the snow eater. It wasn't so bad that she needed to reschedule her purrthday lunch. Again. It got pushed back from the week afor, cuz of the weather. 

 Mum made scrambley eggs with cheese yesterday. I got to clean up the plate! Yum. 

Today it is supposed to rain. Ick. Me and mum will just curl up and snuggle!

Happy week everyone.

 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Final Wednesday for the February Challenge. Just a simple reminder to be kind. It doesn't take much effort to say please, thank you, you're welcome. Hold the door open for someone, take time to smile, be helpful!

It is a wintry day here today with snow, sleet and wind. A nice big pile of good books to curl up with and read in the winter. Where to start? At the top!

The Collector's Daughter subtitle A Novel of the Discovery of Tutankhamun's Tomb, the main character is Evelyn Herbert, the daughter of 5th Earl of Carnarvon who along with Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamum's tomb. Is there really a curse?

The Body in Question a relatively short book. Two people on jury duty have an affair and what happens when it is discovered and disclosed.

From Hollywood with Love all about Rom-Com movies. Well not ALL the rom-com movies, but a selected few over the past 30 years or so.

The Paris Apartment a sister comes to Paris to stay with her brother. When she arrives he isn't around. What happened to him and why?

All That Remains is written by a professor of forensic anthropologist. We die, when that happens, does it get investigated? What does a corpse tell us? Interesting book.

The Appeal is an oddly written book of a dump of emails and letters, texts. A murder has occurred, who done it? Many suspects, some red herrings. I found it hard to read with the bursts of information from so many sources. 

A couple of pics of my current bookmark, a freebee from the library that was given out during one of our Big Read events a few years ago. It has a few dog ears, but not in books, to me that is a huge NO-NO. Damages the  paper and then it could rip etc.

 

What is a Big Read? Libraries can apply for a grant from the NEA to do a big read. A library selects a book and plans events around the book. The NEA supplies the books, bookmarks too and along with funds to help defray the cost of the programming. So you get a larger number of people all reading the same book for a month. So there are various book discussion groups, maybe a movie or other documentaries, author visits all around the theme of the book. 

The books we did locally? True Grit, Station Eleven and Into the Beautiful North. I liked the first two books, didn't get into the third. Our local library hasn't gotten a grant for the past few years. Don't know if they didn't apply or just didn't get one. The NEA does skip you for a few years, only have so much money and can't fund everyone all the time.

 Happy Reading.

Mini-ManCat Monday

Until one has loved an animal, part of one's soul remains unawakened. - Anatole France 

Mum loves me so she must be woke! HA HA HA. 

We have had snow and sun over the past few days, so the snow that came is melting. I am enjoying the sun puddles in the front window. 

Mum finished her hat, again. She didn't like it so she took it apart and did it over. Says this one fits just right.  Now she is back to crow-shay.

 Nope, no more feetsballl but we do have CrashCar instead. Me and mum watched, our guy didn't win.

Have a happy week.

 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

This weeks February Challenge, the local Food Pantry! It serves multiple areas and was founded by a group of local churches to join to do more together. 

I fill in as requested and help with checking the donations, as you see above, for expiration dates. Then moving them to the shelves for their type of food. Plus we prepare bags of food for pickup. Since the pandemic started clients no longer come inside to select their own items. They get three set bags and then the fourth one is where they can request special items that they might need. 

One book that I had been on a long wait list. The latest of the Library Lover's Mystery series. The only book I had to pick up at that time. I was the last of the holds as I could have renewed the book. However, these books usually only take me a day or two tops to read them.

The Plot and the Pendulum has an Edgar Allan Poe feel about it. Want to find a skeleton in a hidden room? Weird tricks of drafts, flickering lights and red herrings? Who done it?

 But then there is always the next book!

Happy Reading.