books — Page 149

Thunder, Lightning, Books, Flowers & Theater

June 29, 2016 at 8:32 am by Claudia

Big, big thunderstorm last night! It seemed to go on for hours. Cracks of lightning, the sky lit up, thunder, torrential rain. This morning everything in the garden is water-logged and sort of smashed down. I know this because I had to go out to remind Henry that the big garden bed was not for him. That scamp!

During the storm, I had my iPhone out and was checking The Weather Channel. There was a warning saying “Lightning Strikes in your area. 0 miles WSW.” In other words, right here. When I tapped the warning, a map came up and I could see all the lightning strikes happening around us and it was actually sort of terrifying! It felt like we were sitting ducks! Maybe it’s better not to know that sort of thing.

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Impatiens are my favorite plant for our shady porch and there are pots and pots of them. Normally, I overwinter several of them, but I only overwintered one plant this past winter.

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Yesterday, the first flower opened up on that overwintered plant. Hurrah!

We chat with Little Z most every night, but now we have introduced FaceTime to the mix. I had a long FaceTime chat with Z the other day where we talked and laughed and he asked to see ‘my things’ and I played a little of the piano for him. He immediately requested another chat, which took place yesterday evening. I love seeing his adorable little face on the screen. I do my best to make him laugh and give him kisses and Uncle Don, who was in the middle of cooking dinner, also made an appearance that sent Z off into gales of laughter. (We’re actors, after all, and are really good with funny faces and voices.) Added bonus: I get to see my dear sister. I had a nice long chat (a traditional phone call) with her yesterday afternoon, as well.

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Yarrow in the big garden bed. I have two yarrows this year.

I’ve started John Connolly’s newest book (I’m a big fan) titled, A Time of Torment. It won’t be published until the beginning of August, but I have an eGalley. You know that feeling when you open the newest book by a favorite author and you read the first page or two and then you sigh with happiness because you know you’re in good hands? That’s what I felt yesterday.

I’ll feel the same way when Daniel Silva’s newest comes out next month and Louise Penny publishes her newest at the end of August. By the way, in case you missed it, I reviewed a book by a new-to-me author yesterday as part of Soho Crime’s 25th Anniversary Read-Along. It’s Rock Paper Tiger by Lisa Brackmann. I really liked it and plan to read the other books in this series. Book review here.

We received the official news yesterday that Anastasia will open on Broadway on April 24, 2017 at the Broadhurst Theater. Even better, the actors playing the four leading characters have been signed. I love that – they are talented actors who captivated audiences and deserve to be a part of the Broadway production. Bravo!

Wonderful piece of writing on LitHub: On the Invisibility of Middle-Aged Women.

Happy Wednesday.

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Bakelite, Books & Rain (Finally!)

May 30, 2016 at 9:18 am by Claudia

I know a lot of bloggers don’t post on a holiday or simply post specifically about that holiday. I, on the other hand, like to read blogs every day of the year and just because it’s a holiday doesn’t mean that every moment of my day is taken up with that holiday. When the pickings are slim, I feel let down. It’s like that ‘nobody’s around’ feeling in a neighborhood. Sort of unnerving.

So, what the heck, I’ll post as if it were any other day. Sort of.

We went to our neighboring town of Rosendale yesterday to have brunch at my favorite vegetarian restaurant – or almost vegetarian – the Rosendale Café. (Don has played there several times.) Oh, what a scrumptious brunch! Great music in the background; it sounded like Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt and it was perfect for a leisurely Sunday brunch. Then we stopped by our friend’s shop, the same shop where we found our chair last week. I came home with these pieces of bakelite flatware.

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Yes, another thing I collect: Bakelite. I actually haven’t purchased any bakelite in a long time, but these three pieces were intriguing. Love the serving fork on the right and the grapefruit knife in the middle. Any ideas what the piece on the left is? A whip? A potato masher? If you have any ideas, share them here!

Then we went to visit Jesse at Postmark Books, my new favorite bookshop. And this time, I actually bought some books.

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Jesse pointed out the Scandinavian mystery on the left. It looks very interesting. And I’ve been wanting to buy Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Between the World and Me for a long time. I’ve heard nothing but raves about it, with one blogger going so far as to say if you were only going to read one book this year, this should be it.

I took more photos of the shop and I’ll most likely post them on Just Let Me Finish This Page tomorrow. Oh, and Jesse does ship, for those of you who asked.

It’s rained all night long and it’s easing up now. More rain and storms tonight. I’m happy that the plants are getting some much needed moisture.

Here’s a picture of the two gadabouts:

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(Taken at the Rosendale Café.)

I’m getting grayer by the minute. So is Don.

Of course, we remember today all those who lost their lives in combat, in war, and under friendly fire. All of them gone too soon.

My fervent wish: No More War.

Happy Monday.

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Too Darn Hot

May 29, 2016 at 9:12 am by Claudia

Cripes. It’s been so hot here that we are under an air quality warning and have been for the past couple of days. It ‘felt’ – according the the weather report – close to 100 yesterday. Where the heck did Spring go? I’ve been staying in, just venturing out to keep water in the birdbath (they are drinking and bathing there almost constantly) and to water my seeds and potted plants.

All the rain that was predicted last week never materialized and we could really use some. I hope that tomorrow’s predicted rain comes. The birds, the animals, the plants, the grass – they all need a break.

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The catmint has really taken off – purple blooms everywhere.

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Yarrow that has self-seeded over by the Chicken Wire Fence Garden.

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Clematis twining and looping and blooming.

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Wind chimes moving gently in the breeze – when there is one.

I read a book in a day and a half. It’s titled Security and it’s by Gina Wohlsdorf. On my Kindle in eGalley form, it is un-putdownable. A high-tech thriller so well plotted and written that I was mesmerized. I’ll write a brief mini-review on Just Let Me Finish This Page today. It will be published on June 7th. Don was out doing a gig last night and there was nothing that interested me on television, so I just kept reading. And then I picked it up this morning and finished it. I love having a nice chunk of time in which to lost myself in a book. It’s the best.

Is anyone, other than Melanie, seeing ads that block the text or photos? I don’t mean the drop down ads that are sometimes above the first post. Those do open up and expand but are easily closed back up. I don’t seen anything on any of my browsers and I use Safari, Chrome and Firefox. I think it might be adware that’s on her browser, but I want to check with the rest of you.

Happy Sunday.

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Thunder, Lightning, Books, Flowers & Theater

Bakelite, Books & Rain (Finally!)

Too Darn Hot

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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