Home Alone!!!

Den is at the office today...so...this day is kind of my fun day! Not because he's gone but because it reminds me of my old life. Or one of my old lives...not the life where I taught 7 year olds and was exhausted all of the time...but the life where Den worked and I didn't and my days were more or less structured. On those days I would work out, take a stroller walk with Lucy or Roxie or both...tidy the house, do laundry, tackle a major project, paint a piece of furniture, prep for dinner, set the table, work in the garden, write my novel, take an art class...ok...teasing about the last two...and be showered and relaxed by noon! Ready for drinks and dinner with Den!

Those were the days!

Now that Den is home more...I am a touch more "structured"...sort of.

Books...

I just finished this "coming of age" novel...it was really good...and took place in Ohio...where I grew up! Lots of familiar landmarks and references to Friday night football' high school, graduation parties...but it was sad and dark and intense.

This one is irresistible and it is by one of my favorite authors...there is just a mystery about where all of these characters are headed...everyone has a secret. Everyone is mindful of something! And it's not all good. I will finish this soon...probably tonight.

 

Up next...I think that this is kind of a YA contemporary/fantasy...about a girl who can move through dreams.

So...it's 4:18 and the girls and I are showered and relaxed...waiting for Den for drinks and dinner!

Have a lovely weekend...

Hugs,

Patty

 

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To Bend Or Not To Bend? And Books!

Hmmm...

Today for breakfast we had peanut butter toast with a sliced banana and a drizzle of local honey...and here is the key...we had it on unbendable whole grain seedy toast. It's very crumbly...the toast...it leaves seeds and crumb debris everywhere...thus the big white plates. But when you take a bite...the bread does not bend! I like unbendable pizza slices, too, but that's hard to find here.

This bread is from Giant and makes the best unbendable everything. Top it with an egg...spread it with avocado...put a tomato slice and bacon on top or just a tomato slice. You will still have perfect "unbendy" bites every single time!

 

Reading this...I have not read enough to know how I feel.

 

But...

“[Thorpe’s] second novel, which blends the cultural history of The Tiger's Wife with the madcap energy of Dave Eggers, just might be her breakout book…. Takes readers on a father-daughter road trip to Lithuania, where 17-year-old Vera and her father, Lucas, ponder the meaning of family and the way past mistakes and family history can seep into the present.”

—BookPage

We shall see.

And...at night on my Kindle...I am reading and loving this one...same book...two covers...a US one and a UK one.

That's all I have...spending the next few hours cleaning and organizing...then a lunch break!

Hugs,

Patty

 

 

 

 

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Hmmm...

I am sure that everyone who loves books and loves to read gets a really amazing feeling when a new book is begun and...well...you don't have to fight with it. There's no rereading...there's no trying to keep the characters straight...there is just this magical peaceful feeling and all you want to do is read. This is that book for me. And it's already sad. It starts out sad. But I can take the sadness. It's so beautiful...yep..the sad bits are quite lovely.

The boy...the one in a million boy...with an incredible amount of Guinness World Records committed to memory...mundane ones...the man who walked the farthest with a milk bottle on his head, the man who collected the most hair, the person who spun a coin the longest...these are the records the boy commits to memory. The boy needs things in groups of ten. The boy doesn't really have friends. Ona is the 104 year old lady whom he helps for two hours every single Saturday. When he is finished helping...they sit and talk and share animal crackers. But...one Saturday the boy's father comes instead of the boy. Hmmmm...

Love this quirky book! Ona is quite a character.

Hugs,

Patty

 

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So...

My what I am reading now part of this post...

I am really enjoying this book. It's about Alaska...obvi...but filled with a multitude of quirky and dysfunctional characters. Kache...his parents and brother were killed in a plane crash and as soon as he could he left Alaska. His family home has been sort of preserved for the past twenty years. Lettie...his 98 year old grandmother...has secretly allowed Nadia...a Russian girl with a secret...to live there. When Kache finally goes to his home he sees everything...clothes, furniture, books, etc. arranged as it was when he left. He starts to befriend Nadia who has run away from something or someone in her past life...she is from a group called Old Believers. She has foraged and hunted and raised goats and fished alone on this property for ten years. The only one who knows about her existence is Lettie. When Lettie was more agile she would bring her supplies...apparently Nadia has enough TP to last for a lifetime. Snag...Kache's aunt...has not been to this homestead in 20 years either...she is kind of closeted about her sexuality and also has much guilt. This book is filled with guilt ridden characters.

And that...my fellow readers...is making this book really really good!

 

The life dilemma part of this post...

All we seem to be doing this week is waiting for something else...the tree trimmer, the lawn mowing service ( Den broke his John Deer again ), the clothing pick up...it seems as though we are always waiting for something! And as soon as we are done waiting for this stuff...Den schedules even more stuff to wait for.

We have been trying to just zip off to a beach not far away from us...Bethany Beach.

Even just an overnight...walk on the beach...go to dinner...read...and home again but it's just not happening...yet!

The food part of this post...

 

Potential dinners for tonight...different chicken dinners from Sheet Pan Suppers. I am waiting for Den to decide.

 

Or chicken from Lettie's Kitchen...soooo good! It's a cute little house kind of restaurant!

 

The clothes part of this post...

These are the best and most comfy leggings ever...I have the winter ones and these are the summer ones. They are from Grace and Lace. They donate a portion of the cost to their own schools in India and they always tuck a little gift in the package.

The Elle Dress from Good Hyuman...cotton knitty and a summer toss on...with a wrap...over leggings...I love stuff like this. It comes in black, too, which makes it a must have for me.

The book I will read next part of this post...I think this is going to be really sad...

 

Wood dishes out tragedy and charm in equal measure with an intergenerational friendship that retains its beauty despite death...although most readers will find tissues often necessary while navigating the layers of this story, the conclusion will leave them smiling through their tears."—ShelfAwareness

The end of this post...

Hugs,

Patty

 

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It's Always About The Books!

I really enjoyed this book even though the premise is one I don't normally love but it takes place in my area...so there were lots of familiar landmarks, restaurants, towns...it was so much fun to read! Abbey can't afford the $500.00 purse she just bought so even though her daughter scratched it she is on her way to Nordstrom's to return it. She trips and falls and wakes up in a situation where she is living a life much better than her own. She has a rich husband, better clothes and even a better body. What made this book so good was the humor!

Reading now...

"With sweet, heartfelt characters and a richly described setting, Halverson blends mystery and suspense into a love story of many layers, not the least of which is a declaration of love to the Alaskan wilderness and its people." - Booklist

New books!

Mongrels...a coming of age story.

Mother Knows Best...kind of a funny cozy mystery...with a pig!

Mission Hill...a legal thriller.

Dear Fang With Love...this author wrote The Girls Of Corona Del Mar...which I loved!

Wolf Hollow...a coming of age story...yep...another one. I kind of love coming of age stories...this one gets amazing reviews.

 

Off to chill and read!

Hugs,

Patty

 

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A Sunday Pop-In!

Happy Easter!

It is cold and really awful looking outside.

We had bites of the traditional Easter breakfast that would have been the breakfast of my childhood but nothing really tasted the same. According to tradition you have to have some ham and some nut roll and hard boiled eggs. And kielbasa...a sort of smoked sausage. And you have to have horseradish that is red because it has the juice of beets in it. And you put that on the eggs or the ham. Den loved it and ate lots of it. Actually you put some cold ham on a slice of buttered nutroll...these things can't be changed...seriously. When Den joined my family he would heat his ham and we all looked at him as though he was an annoying alien. He heated his ham this morning. That's just not right. This is what the nut roll looks like...the black one is filled with poppy seeds. My mom used to make this one for my dad. We used to go into shock watching him eat this with coffee! Thank you, Bob, for your photo. I seriously think only people who grew up in Youngstown eat this stuff. When the nut roll is made right...it's amazing...buttered. It's incredibly rich and I literally watched in horror as Den ate three pieces.

So we are doing nothing today other than reading and binge watching TV...it's a weird Easter but Easter always feels off to me...it's when my mom got sick and died so I think I always think of that.

Reading this...and it's funny as well as good...I need that today!

Hugs,

Patty

 

 

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