I finished The Dictionary of Lost Words yesterday. About a quarter of the way through, I had this feeling of ‘meh’ – thinking that it just wasn’t doing it for me. But I stuck with it and I absolutely loved it. It’s beautifully written. I’m still thinking about it today. Recommend it highly.
War and Peace is ongoing. I’m currently in Part II, and today I’m due to read Chapter 8. Don and I were chatting about Chapter 7 last night. Don said that Tolstoy writes in a very cinematic manner and he’s right – especially about the war, which is what we’re reading about in this section.
Started – but just – A World of Curiosities. I know it will be wonderful but I’m in the very first chapters where plot points are just getting established.
Don made breakfast burritos this morning and oh my goodness, they were good. Imagine my life without Don’s culinary skills: an endless series of bland meals, because yours truly does not like to cook. Anyway, I made the coffee, Don made the burritos, and now we try to weather well below freezing temperatures for the next few days.
I need a proper sketchbook, one without lines. But when I first had this itch, I was in the city and the only place there might have been one on my way to rehearsal was Target. They didn’t have one, but they did have a lined Moleskine notebook, so that’s what I went with. I know there are unlined Moleskines, and I like the portability of that particular size. I’ll get one, eventually.
Kathy, you got me hooked on the Hershey’s No Sugar chocolates. I found some at a local grocery store a month ago, but they haven’t had any for a while, so I ordered through Amazon. They should be arriving today. I love good chocolate and I certainly love decadent chocolate. But my first love will always be Hershey’s chocolate.
Okay. Time to wash the sheets.
Stay safe.
Happy Thursday.
Was thinking of you this morning. You want snow, and I am praying no. Sorry
Some of the family leave Saturday evening for Indianapolis. Daughter stays u til next Thursday, so we do not want snow. Boys want to see it next wi ter. They were supposed to go skiing Vermont over Cmas but plans changed/. Enjoy your Penny book. My friend, a writer and a painter, my advisor and professor in college…is emailing me and loving it. I am sending mine to friend in Iowa. Don is great to cook for you. Hope you find the sketchbook you want soon. Sure you will. Thank you for your blog. Also glad you are doing W and P with Don and others. Prayers dear girl. You might be happy or NOT. The PA groundhog evidently
Saw his shadow…not sure about our WV one.
There’s ALWAYS 6 more weeks of winter where I come from, Brenda. Michigan, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New York: winter never ends early!
With the exception of California, of course.
Stay safe.
I know. When son lived California it was something. We have had two cold nights here on the coast. I love the freeing atmosphere here but told grandgirl I kind of miss those snow days in my pjs. We live in a little area here where winter pjs are not really needed. I had to add that.
Claudia I love your blog. I just adore you two.
I am a lover of flannel pajamas, so I need winter.
OOPS…WV groundhog did not see his shadow and predicts and early spring…lol…I always chuckle at this…
WV is quite a bit south of us, so I guess it makes some sort of sense!
xo
glad you and don are reading “war and peace” together, like your own little book club (though i know you’re in the w+p read-along). the other books sound interesting, too. but i don’t get being able to switch books, reading several books in the same time frame! kind of like people in those flosstube videos having more than even two works-in-progres (one said she had and showed more than 20 wips)! no judgment from me … more like a bit of awe or maybe jealousy. because my brain doesn’t work that way … just one project at a time here. anyway, happy reading, especially during those super-cold days. and stay warm!
last night i was at the nearest thing we have to an art store here (joann fabrics) and picked up a few more inktense pencils … love and highly recommend them. looked at the sketch books/pads of paper, but left without buying one. have plenty here. never tried a moleskin, but have heard good things about them. glad you’ve got an unlined one on the way. hope you keep going with art (sketching, painting) as you have a lot of talent. even better that it makes you happy. :)
glad you like the sugar-free chocolate and found more (though i don’t want to cause temptation … sorry). before i went further in school (for an msw in ohio), i wanted to try something different, take a break from social work, just in case, and so managed a chocolate shop in minneapolis. when i first started and anytime i wanted, without a known allergy or other health problem, i had (got) to sample chocolates daily. oh, my! lots of fancy stuff was there … but i agree with you, claudia … i like hershey’s better.
just looked at the clock … almost noon! best i get going.
hope you, don and everyone else have a good, easy day.
kathy
oops … though i’m sure you figured it out, “progres” is supposed to be “progress”.
kathy
xo
I don’t normally read more than one book at a time, Kathy. But it’s quite easy when you’re only reading a chapter a day in one of them, as I’m doing with War & Peace. If I was reading both books full out, no, I couldn’t do that.
My chocolates just arrived! Don and I always have a couple of small pieces of chocolate in the evening. We can get delicious sugar free chocolates from a local shop but they’re expensive. So we save them for special occasions.
Stay safe, Kathy.
I think it’s so interesting that you’re reading Tolstoy. Ambitious endeavor! A few years back, my friend’s husband decided it was time to quit buying books (they have so many shelves of them, lining two floor-to-ceiling walls of their quite-large home office [that they need a library ladder]). Instead, he decided to read what had been purchased but which he’d never really ‘got at’ in the collecting of them. He didn’t want the books to just be ‘decoration’ as some were, like nice sets of the classics. Books we had to read in school; that sort of thing. So, yeah, he went back and read all the celebrated authors which I’m sure included Tolstoy. It took him a long time. But he felt enriched.
Isn’t War and Peace like well over 1000 pages to read? I’d always thought I should give Anna Karenina a go …
Loved AK
My translation is about 1200 pages. I’ve read my share of 1000+ page novels. It’s not a big deal for me. But I probably wouldn’t have tackled this particular book without the readalong
Stay safe, Vicki.
I wanted to say something more on the sketching. Seriously, Claudia, if you can sketch that effortlessly, you should pursue it! I was always just awful at sketching and drawing; stopped trying and actually quit a college class on the subject. I was too frustrated at that age! When I was younger and would paint, always trying to master watercolor but failed at that too, I’d go back to acrylics freehand; Mother was partial to oils but the odor would get to me with my asthma. Don’t the best artists always sketch before they paint? I do think it’s a real talent and wish I’d been blessed with the ability! Agreeing with another reader here that I’m glad Don snapped your sketch with the very-effective red and black. I was interested to see the comments about micron pens; I’m actually gonna order some for lined journaling. I don’t like it when sharpies bleed thru to the reverse page. BTW, I’ve found it pretty hard to find a hardbound, blank-page journal ala sketchbook; they’re all spiral and faint-lined; I’m still trying to hunt down some blank-page ones that catch my eye. (I have to have some cover color and not just, say, a plain neutral-color book!)
I also don’t like when a pen bleeds through! Check art supply stores online for a hardbound journal/sketchbook. If I find one, I’ll send you the link.
I tend to think the sketches are really amateur but Don thinks they’re great and says he could never do that, so I’ll merrily go ahead and keep sketching. Thanks for your kind words, Vicki.
Stay safe.
Stay warm. I just looked at my phone and we are supposed to see minus 21 degrees tonight. Brrr! Only a high of 3 degrees tomorrow but then it warms up into the upper 20’s and mid 30’s. We’ve had some colder weather here, earlier but it has been a fairly mild winter not including the unusually early heavy snowfalls, freezing rains and sleet etc. I’m fairly confident the groundhog would have seen his shadow here as the sun is nice and bright today. One of the most important things for survival in the winter, is the sun and it is so appreciated even on days we know it is bitterly cold outside. It helps to have a good book to read also. I am finally reading The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Not as good, IMO, as The Night Circus, but a fun read. Kudos to you and Don for taking on War and Peace. My husband tried it with audio but couldn’t stick with it. He has it in his mind he will give it another shot one of these days soon. I’m not there yet.
We’re getting colder on Friday and Saturday. I loved the Starless Sea but I REALLY loved The Night Circus. I love the way the author’s mind works!
Stay safe, Ranee.
The best thing about snow is watching our pup zeroing on whatever we’ve thrown for her like a runner sliding into third base. Snow sprays flying everywhere!
Is it funny that I never even noticed your notebook was lined? I just admired your sketch and was thinking I should improve my drawing skills too. I had to go back a post and see if there were actually lines!
Cheers to winter and the groundhog and our red Forester who turned 21 today. She had a complete makeover this year (thanks to son#1) and will give us a few more years of worry-free trips.
Time to pack up my snowmen and snowladies and break out the cheery hearts. I did remember to change my calendars, so I feel well ahead of the curve!
Keep healthy
We always loved watching our dogs in the snow. They loved it as did my parents’ very big golden retriever.
Stay safe, Roxie.
Our groundhog Jimmy, predicted 6 more weeks of winter. (He’s right 60% of the time.) Which if you think about it, is about the time Spring arrives on the calendar anyway. Guess we’ll just have to deal with it…eh?
You are very fortunate to have a “chef” as a husband. There are many a day I just don’t feel like cooking. You are one lucky girl.
My morning was spent purging our entertainment center. Feels good to have that project done. New homes were found for somethings, while other things are headed to the consignment store. All in all it’s a cleaner look.
Enjoy the rest of your day! ;)
Yeah, I always laugh at this since mid March is the absolute earliest that we might get a hint of spring. And it’s usually a week or two later than that!
I am very lucky, I know. It wasn’t always that way. Much of the time we split dinner cooking duties, He really got into cooking about 12 years ago.
Stay safe, Donnamae.
It would be great if you would show a picture of your chocolate bag. That way it would be easy to order.
Thank You.
Charlotte, I don’t have time to do that right now, but in the meantime, just Google: Hershey’s No Sugar chocolate and a photo of the packaging will magically appear on your screen. (I bought mine through Amazon.)
Stay safe!
I did that before I asked you and the only reason I bothered to ask was because there are many to pick from. Wanted to buy one that someone recommended.
No problem I can order with out a picture.
I appreciate your reply.
Have a pleasant day in spite of the weather you are having today.
They’re all good, Charlotte. Pick whatever kind appeals to you.
Stay safe!
Glad you and Don can discuss War and Peace together. And making good coffee is important, too. We visited Value Village (a thrift store) and I found a bright yellow wooden Adirondack chair just the perfect size for Jessie and Walter (my Blythe dolls). I was pleased because it’s cute and it was only $4.99. The ones selling on eBay are quite pricey. Take gentle care. Stay warm in this polar weather we’re having. Hugs, Elaine
The chair sounds adorable, Elaine! Congrats!
Stay safe.
Breakfast burritos do sound tasty! I think sketchbooks are terribly personal. For me, it’s plain pages and thick enough to hold watercolor without TOO much buckling. I have the “good ones” and the practice ones (more pencil and markers vs. paint). I couldn’t pick a favorite!
I’ll just have to experiment, Jeanie.
Stay safe.