reading — Page 38

What Are You Reading?

November 23, 2019 at 10:10 am by Claudia

Taken from inside the bus as I made my way home yesterday.

Coaching went well. As usual, even though I coached for two hours or so, the day itself – from the moment I left the house until I drove up our driveway – was 10 hours long. Imagine what it’s like for Don when he has an audition; all that time for approximately 8 minutes actually auditioning.

It was a windy, rainy day, which is always a challenge in Manhattan. My umbrella flipped inside out at least 4 times. I was very happy to arrive home to a welcoming wave from Don and dinner ready to be served. He’s a great guy.

Speaking of that great guy, I told him that I didn’t want anything for my birthday, as I’d just had an incredible gift in our trip to Paris.

There was little gift bag, however. And in it was this:

A print of a picture of us kissing on the Seine. The story behind this: Don stopped a young woman and asked her if she would mind taking a picture of us with the Seine in the background. (You can see her shadow in the bottom right corner of the photo.) She took a few of us doing the usual standing side by side thing, and then Don suddenly and unexpectedly grabbed me and kissed me. For quite a long time! And this lovely woman kept snapping.

Anyway, isn’t it sweet? What a wonderful memory.

Today is sunny. Tomorrow will be rainy. I believe it’s time for a major porch clean up.

I’m reading The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry. I just started it yesterday while on the bus and I read a bit more this morning. It had rave reviews a few years back and won all sorts of awards, so I’m expecting a very good read.

Since I’ve told you what I am reading, will you tell me what you are reading? It’s my favorite question, you know.

Happy Saturday.

Back in the Blogging Saddle

October 10, 2019 at 10:13 am by Claudia

I’m back. I called my internet provider on Tuesday and the tech said that the signals coming from our modem were very weak and he scheduled an appointment with another tech yesterday afternoon.

In the meantime, the modem was in and out all morning long yesterday, so each time I started to write a post, the wifi/modem would go out. I finally gave up, posted on IG that we had internet problems, and hoped you all would check there. If I can’t post and I can get to my IG account, I’ll always let you know what’s going on.

The tech arrived, couldn’t find anything wrong with the modem (though we agreed that it’s probably time for a new router) and he went outside and checked the cable going into our house and then drove down to the road and climbed a huge ladder. At one point I heard voices and realized my neighbor was out there talking to him. I ran outside to chat with her and, sure enough, they were having problems, as well. Then, as I was headed back inside, my other neighbor walked down her driveway and talked to the tech. Clearly, it was a neighborhood thing – which the tech confirmed. He found out there had been a crew working all morning elsewhere in the neighborhood and everything looks okay now. A day or so before I called them, I noticed them working at another neighbor’s house. So it’s been ongoing for a week or so. More info than you really needed, but there you go.

Leaves and more leaves. Today it’s supposed to be a bit windy…so more leaves. But it’s awfully pretty out there.

I’ve started reading Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers. I’m not too far into the book yet, because my time has been taken up by wifi/internet. But I like it so far. Oh, forgot to say, yesterday’s impending visit by the tech necessitated a major desk cleanup by my husband because that’s where the modem and router are. I had been gently asking him to clean up his part of the office for quite some time – to no avail. It was a MESS of stacks of paper, photos, mail, files, memorabilia from the run of Escape to Margaritaville, camera stuff, etc. With a deadline, Don had no choice but to go through everything with a ruthless hand. Huzzah! It looks much better now.

I’ve never seen the limelight hydrangeas look as spectacular as they do this year. That color is so intense! Gorgeous.

We’re into Season 2 of Goliath on Amazon Prime. We really love it. I’m partial to Billy Bob Thornton, who is one of the most honest actors I’ve ever seen. Not a false move. And Tony Award winner Nina Arianda, his costar, is the same. She is simply wonderful. (Don’s crazy about her.)

I just finished Paris to the Moon by Adam Gopnick, a series of essays he wrote for The New Yorker, when he and his family lived in Paris 20 years ago. I recommend it highly if you’re at all interested in Paris, Parisians and the differences in our cultures. Gopnick still writes for The New Yorker and I’ve been a fan for a long time.

A reminder that I’ve disabled my comment reply plugin, so you’ll need to check back if you want to read my reply and the comments of your fellow readers. Thank you!

Okay. Glad to be back!

Happy Thursday.

Reading, Gutters, & Falling Leaves

October 1, 2019 at 10:19 am by Claudia

Every autumn, after most of the wildflowers on the property have already bloomed, these pale lavender beauties come along. I’m not sure exactly what they are, but they look like an aster. I have to remind myself not to yank them before they bloom. The plant itself just looks like an unattractive weed. But from weeds, beauty often follows.

We had our first cup of coffee this morning and then headed out (I was still in my pajamas) to clean the gutters, as we’re due for rain. It’s a messy job, but it must be done. After we finished, I raked a bunch of leaves in piles. I’m going to put them on the tarp later today. Then we came in, treated ourselves to our second cup of coffee and looked at the weather forecast.

It had changed. No rain today.

Oh well, we got it done and won’t have to do it again for another week.

I can’t believe how fast the leaves are changing and how many have already fallen. It seems early this year, but maybe I’m wrong. Many of the trees surrounding the house have turned color and are dropping leaves constantly. The one holdout is the catalpa, but as soon as we get a frost, all the leaves will fall to the ground en masse.

I finished Birdman by Mo Hayder. Excellent. A real thriller, but gory, which I don’t mind. But if you do, you might want to pass. I’ve ordered the next two in that series from my local library system. I’m now reading Down to the Woods by M. J. Arlidge. I’ve read all of his books and this is the newest. The plots center around a police inspector in Southampton, England by the name of Helen Grace. I’m also reading Paris to the Moon at the same time. Fiction and nonfiction, which makes for a nice balance.

It was a gray day yesterday. Another gray day today. I’d like to see some sun, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Happy October.

Happy Tuesday.

What Are You Reading?

Back in the Blogging Saddle

Reading, Gutters, & Falling Leaves

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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