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Books, Puzzles, and Weather

March 2, 2023 at 9:12 am by Claudia

The Deborah Crombie arrived at my local library yesterday, so off I went to pick it up.

Current reading pile – and I am  reading all three at once.

Oooh, how lovely! Three excellent books and I get to read them. I’m close to finishing Underland  and I can’t say enough about how wonderful it is. Of course, three hours after I went to the library, I received an email saying that two books I had also reserved had arrived. I think I’ll wait to pick them up tomorrow, so the two weeks we get for ‘new’ books starts a day later – giving me some wiggle room.

Also, Galaxy Puzzles (based in my old neighborhood in Michigan) is the online company I used to order my very first jigsaw puzzle at the start of lockdown. The owner is closing down because it’s been so successful that it’s become too much for her to handle. So she’s going out on a positive note.  She’s discounting all the stock in her warehouse. I ordered 3 puzzles.  I think they were discounted at 20-30% off. She ships quickly. I ordered on the weekend and I received them yesterday.

Anyway, the discounts are even deeper now; most, I think, at 40% – just in case you’re interested. I saved some money and I have some on hand.

Sophie:

It’s a rainy morning here with another storm headed our way tomorrow night. There is some disagreement on the actual forecast and my favorite local weather guys say it’s too “fluid” at the moment. So, something’s coming, we just don’t know exactly how much. Unlike the pretty snow of earlier this week, this one will have some sleet and ice in the mix. Not good.

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

 

 

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, books, jigsaw puzzles, libraries 18 Comments

Four Books in Two Weeks

February 13, 2020 at 9:57 am by Claudia

We had a mostly sunny day yesterday and one of the perks was seeing this silhouette of the sansevieria leaves on the wall above Stella.

Alas, today is not sunny, it’s gray. We had a small amount of snow overnight which has turned to rain, leaving us with a bit of a slushy mess. But we don’t have to clean it up as the temps will rise and it will all disappear. We’re in the low forties later today and then the temps plummet about 20 degrees on Friday – right in time for my trip to Hartford.

No complaints. I’ll bundle up and walk quickly through the streets of Hartford. Hat, gloves, scarf and winter coat; I’ll be fine.

I dropped by our little library yesterday to pick up two books that I had placed on hold. On the way in, I looked at the ‘new fiction’ shelf and there was the latest Lee Child. I haven’t read his last two books, so I grabbed it. When I arrived at the desk to check them out, I found there was a third book waiting for me, so I left the library with four books that are due in two weeks!

I finished The Snowman  last night (excellent!) and I started The Family Next Door  by Lisa Jewell this morning. It’s not quite at the level of Jo Nesbø, but it’s engaging, and I’m nearly 100 pages in. These books are considered ‘new’ so I can only have them for 14 days. I’m looking forward to all of them, but I’m especially fond of Joe Ide’s books (the IQ series) and was so happy to see another one had just been published. I’ve got a lot of reading to do!

When I’m in a book store and see a book I’m interested in, I take a picture of the cover with my phone and then I go home and search our library system for the title and, if it’s in the computer, put a hold on a copy. I took pictures of the covers of Hi Five  and Lock Every Door  last week and here they are in my hot little hands this week. It saves me money, as I don’t want to buy every new book I see, nor can I afford to. And, unless its Louise Penny or Michael Connelly, I have no guarantee whether I’ll like it. I’m trying to do this more and more and so far it seems to be working rather well.

We’re laying low today here at the Hill-Sparks cottage: reading, eating, Don may pay a visit to the library, I’m doing some laundry before I take off for Hartford tomorrow. Not very exciting, but we like it.

Happy Thursday.

 

Filed Under: books, libraries 30 Comments

Little Free Library & Egg Cups

April 7, 2019 at 9:34 am by Claudia

We took a walk on the rail trail yesterday. Beautiful day, lovely weather – and I’m seeing buds on some trees. Huzzah! On the way back, we had to walk a bit further than usual and noticed this at the other entrance to the trail:

An adorable Little Free Library made in the shape of a railroad car. This is the rail trail and there used to be a railroad station in our little town – right on this site – as well as a big hotel for travelers. Hard for those of us who are newish to this area to imagine, but I’ve heard lots of stories about it from those who were born and raised here.

I have a few books that I was going to donate to the library, but I just may drop them off here.

Today is going to be warmer. Still too early to do any work outside, but we may sit on the glider for a spell. We’re going to Rick and Doug’s for brunch first.

Today’s egg cup theme: Dog egg cups.

Enjoy your day – I hope the weather is getting warmer wherever you live and that signs of spring are finally appearing. It was a long, long winter.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: books, egg cups, libraries 24 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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