books — Page 171

In and Out: Two Views

February 2, 2015 at 8:33 am by Claudia

2-2 view

This has been my almost-constant view lately, as I sit in my chair, kleenex in hand, sniffling, coughing, drinking orange juice, generally feeling yucky. Sometimes I read; actually, I’ve been reading a lot, sometimes I browse on the old internet, sometimes I feel sorry for myself. Waaah.

Last week was a tough week and this one….well, it’s starting out with a bang. We’re in a snow event here with snow falling all night and about 7 or 8 inches on the ground this morning, with snow expected to fall all day long. Here’s another view for you today:

2-2 snowevent

Soon it will be higher than our chairs on the funky patio. I got up around 6 this morning, jolted awake by a coughing fit, and Don got up just long enough to go out and shovel Scoutie’s little corral for her. Then he went back to bed. This picture was taken about an hour later. You can’t even tell where Don shoveled.

And the temps are frigid out there, which doesn’t bode well.

I’m ready to shovel, but Don won’t let me. (I may sneak some in.)

We are ready for winter to be over.

Unfortunately, it’s only February 2nd.

Thanks for all your wonderful 10 favorite movie lists yesterday! What fun it was to read everybody’s faves. As I suspected, each time I read a list, I was reminded of yet another movie that I loved. (I stealthily added Cinema Paradiso to my list later in the day.) If you haven’t read the comments on that post, you may want to make some hot chocolate, or coffee, or tea and peruse everybody’s favorites.

What else? I’m just about to finish Howard’s End is on the Landing by Susan Hill and I’m diving into The Long and Faraway Gone by Lou Berney. I have a book review coming up on this blog tomorrow.

I’m taking a little survey on Just Let Me Finish This Page, inspired by a chapter in Susan Hill’s book. Do you jot notes in the margins of books? Are you someone who never writes in the pages of a book? Or are you somewhere in between? Stop by Do You Scribble in the Margins?

Happy Monday.

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One a Month

January 31, 2015 at 9:00 am by Claudia

SFC – Still Feeling Crappy. In fact, crappier. That’s all I need to say about that.

1-31 austen

One a month.

A Penguin Classics hardbound edition in this series costs between $18 – $20, less than most new hardcover books. The latest, Emma, was about $18. I don’t spend money at Starbucks. I rarely eat out. I rarely buy magazines (too pricey, not enough original content.) I figure I can get away with one of these editions monthly. When I’ve collected all of the Jane Austens, I’m also going to get Middlemarch by George Eliot, another favorite of mine.

They’re so beautifully done.

What will be next? Persuasion? Northanger Abbey? Mansfield Park? Well, you’ll just have to wait and see.

Remember that photo of Scout I posted the other day? Where she was sleeping on the sofa?

1-31 Snooze

Here she is just a few minutes later. She makes me smile.

It is COLD out there. Wind chills well below zero, more snow on the way Sunday into Monday – right now, the forecast is for 5 – 8 inches. Bitterly cold all next week.

Maybe we should build an igloo.

This – whatever it is, Don thinks it’s a cold – is sapping my strength. I was able to concentrate long enough yesterday to finish the book I am to review on ~~Monday~~ Tuesday (my brain is mush.) Now I have to start another. No big sacrifice since I love to read, but my attention span is spotty, at best.

I’m also reading Howard’s End is on the Landing by Susan Hill. Hill is a well-known English author (and she shares my surname – maybe we’re distant relatives?) This book was inspired by a search she made for a particular book in her full-of-books cottage. In the course of the search, she discovered all sorts of books that she had never read, so she decided to stop buying books for a year and, instead, read the books in her home library. It’s really a lovely read. I think you’d like it. I’ll review it on Just Let Me Finish This Page when I’ve finished.

That’s all for today, my friends. Back to blowing my nose and sniffling.

I’m thankful for flannel pajamas.

Happy Saturday.

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We’re Waiting

January 26, 2015 at 8:21 am by Claudia

1-26 snowglobe

I instagrammed a photo yesterday entitled “The Calm Before the Storm.” Though this photo is a different one, I suppose the message remains the same.

There’s a big storm coming. We’ve been deluged with lots of ominous updates and, in the end, who knows exactly how much snow we’re going to get? At least a foot. Maybe two feet. This event will start later today and go on through Wednesday morning.

Yikes.

We made the usual pre-storm trip to the grocery store yesterday and it was packed with shoppers. We always end up buying canned goods that we hopefully never have to eat but want to have on hand if the power goes out, like Spaghetti-Os and canned macaroni and cheese. Bread. Milk. Bottled water. Pie. (That’s not an absolute essential, but Don likes comfort foods in times like these.)

We’ll fill the tub with water since we have a well pump that runs on electricity.

And that, my friends, is about all we can do! I find the time that I spend waiting for it to start the most unsettling. So I’m going to give myself lots of chores to do today. It is what it is. That particular phrase gets a bit over used, but then again, it seems to work for all sorts of situations.

1-26 den

I’m diving into Laura Lippman’s first book in the Tess Monaghan series, which is being reissued. I’m reviewing it next week.

I am on alert for shovel duty in Scout’s mini-corral. That will be the ongoing challenge during the storm; clearing enough space for her to do her business.

That mini-corral, by the way, has been a godsend. I am so glad we built it for her. With all the ice we’ve had this year, the big corral would have been nearly impossible for her to navigate. Even now, the pathway up to the corral is covered in ice. She has adjusted to it rather nicely. We have to keep on top of ice and there have been a few times that we’ve had to salt it like crazy, but she’s safe. That’s the most important thing.

By the way, I do love Instagram. I try to post there once a day. It’s a lot of fun, easy to scroll through when I’m out and about with my iPhone, easy to update. No, I’m not one of those bloggers who prefers Instagram to blogging. Not by a long shot! But I love seeing photos from the people I follow that represent little bits of their daily lives. I usually post photos that I don’t post on the blog, so you’ll get a different take on my life here at MHC. If you’re interested in following me, there is a button at the top of the sidebar (it looks like a camera) that you can click. Or you can click here.

New post up on Just Let Me Finish This Page. I’ve gathered together a list of books that are about books, bookstores and collecting books. Click here.

Happy Monday.

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In and Out: Two Views

One a Month

We’re Waiting

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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