A very rainy day with high wind warnings. This weather event has hit a lot of people, some with snow, others with deadly tornadoes, and some – like us – with heavy rain and high winds. I hope you’re all safe. Heaven knows we don’t need this on top of everything else.
I’ll be glad when it’s over.
We had a quiet day yesterday. For us, there was really no difference in our Easter from last year to this year. We’re used to being far away from our families. It’s been that way for decades. We most likely would have spent some time with Rick and Doug. We miss them and we miss Sam, too. But otherwise, it’s usually just us.
Don managed to get a walk in this morning during a break in the rain.
Let’s see, what else? I’m still reading The Lost Pianos of Siberia. I got two packages in the mail on Saturday – one that I haven’t opened yet, from a bookseller on Etsy, and one from John Sandoe Books in London. You might remember how thrilled I was when I ordered a book from them last year. I was determined to order something from them during this crisis, as I’m trying to place orders with the independent bookshops that I know and love. The more we support them the better, especially now.
Unlike last time, however, I couldn’t bring the entire box inside and take pictures of the unveiling. I left the outer box on the porch and opened the books inside.
These are books that haven’t been published here in the States – although the Jarman may have been.
Modern Nature by Derek Jarman. I just read the book he wrote about his garden, so I’m eager to read this.
A Bite of the Apple by Lennie Goodings. All about her time working for Virago Press. I love books about books and publishing, and I have read many Virago editions over the years. Sounds fascinating to me.
Square Haunting by Francesca Wade. All about five writers who lived in London’s Mecklenburgh Square during the war; modernist poet H.D., detective novelist Dorothy L. Sayers, classicist Jane Harrison, economic historian Eileen Power, and author and publisher Virginia Woolf.
Looking forward to all three of these, which I learned about on IG. It really is a treasure trove of information about books, reading, and publishing, especially those books that are published across the pond.
We watched Annie Hall.
And that’s it for today. Wish us well. We’d rather not have our power go out as we have food in the freezer that we can’t immediately replace, nor do we have the funds to replace them.
Happy Monday.
Good Morning,
The cover to “Modern Nature” looks beautiful. Would it be possible to see more of the cover?
I hope all go well for you and Don.
Wishing you sunshine and flowers,
Kaye
I’ll try to remember to take a picture of it, Kaye.
Stay safe!
Overcast and high winds here today, too. And cold. Only 23 with the wind chill factor. Haven’t decided if I’m in the mood yet to bundle up and go for my daily walk. Probably not. Think I’ll just stick to my yoga today.
That’s always my biggest fear with the high winds too – that the power might go out. Not only because we wouldn’t have any heat or light, but because we’d lose all the food in our fridge and freezer. And we are well stocked right now. Hoping and praying that we all stay safe.
Your new books look lovely. One of the best things to get in the mail, isn’t it?
So far, the winds have been much less than predicted. Lots and lots of rain, however, but I think we might get through this okay.
Stay safe.
Square Hunting and A Bite of the Apple both look like books that would be in my wheelhouse. It’s fun to get a package any day but especially one like this. I think a lot of us are trying to support small locals during this time. It’s a good thing to do.
I hope the winds aren’t as bad as they predict. They’re supposed to be up to 55 mph in our area today and when I took out the trash I could feel them ramping up. Hopefully they stay just winds and not tornados like in the south.
Charge the phone and stay safe!
They appear to be (it’s 4 pm now) less than predicted, which makes me very happy.
Stay safe today, Jeanie! I hope your winds are less than predicted as well.
Don’t open you freezer to “peek” and your frozen goods should be okay for a few hours. (Hurricane veteran here ).
Right. Believe it or not, we’ve had two hurricanes here, so I know to do that. Thank you, Cindy! Stay safe.
If you loose electricity, covering your freezer with blankets or quilts will further insulate and extend time items will remain frozen.
Thanks, Anne. Good idea! Stay safe.
Claudia, I can remember reading a good review of Square Haunting a few months ago as it mentioned Dorothy L. Sayers.
I had a few Virago books about forty years ago. Have you ever read the Frost in May trilogy by Antonia White or A Pin to see the Peepshow by F. Tennyson Jesse? Virago were the possible forerunners for Persephone Books whereby they word republish women’s writings from the past. They published some excellent work.
Cindy is right to say don’t open the freezer (not that I have much hurricane experience in the UK, I can only remember one, and it’s still referred to as The Great Storm of 1987!). Anyway as most of your freezer goods are likely to be plant rather than animal based, you should be okay.
Happy Monday
I haven’t read those books but I read a few by the author Elizabeth Taylor (not the actress!) and some more that I can’t remember now. Thanks, Dee Dee! Stay safe.
Have your read of the wonderful response to City Lights Bookshop in SF on go fund me? They closed of course but kept all employees on full pay with insurance and now people have responded with over $450,000. It is a n amazing place with great history. Stay safe we are under high winds advisory in MD.
Yes, I have. It’s quite wonderful and inspiring! Good news!
Stay safe in Maryland, Dottie!
hooray for new books and supporting (especially independent) shops!
and “annie hall” … i like that movie a lot.
that “square haunting” book sounds particularly interesting. and maybe a bit like that “midnight in paris” movie that came out a few years ago …?
hope the winds slow down for you and everyone else and that no one loses power! the power went out here a couple times saturday, briefly, and then for about 90 minutes yesterday, all due to strong winds (up to 62 mph). over that, too.
thanks to jeanie for the reminder to keep cellphones charged and to dee dee, cindy and anne v about protecting food in the fridge and freezer! and prayers for everyone dealing with additional stress and heartache from loss, tornadoes ….
thanks to the kindness and creativity of family, i enjoyed a nice meal and visit with some of them yesterday. because it was raining, they gathered at the front door (instead of an open garage) and i was in my car; we ate together and talked by speakerphone. :)
i’ve had a very productive day so far … cleaning, organizing, ironing … and that feels good!
hope everyone stays safe and well.
kathy in iowa
So happy to hear you were able to see your family, even if it was behind the glass of your car, Kathy. Stay safe!
Claudia, just wanted to chime in. We are under a high wind warning. Our weather man said to look for cloudy skies. That’s a good thing. It keeps the wind speeds lower. I love the picture of Don with the daffodils. When we did some renovations, our daffodils got lost. I miss them.
I write mainly to announce: I finished Night Circus! That was a tough one to get through and I am still not sure I understood it. I need something frothy before starting …Crawdads…. Covering your refrigerator/freezer with quilts sounds like a smart idea! Fingers crossed the power stays.
We definitely have cloudy skies, Carol. Glad you finished The Night Circus. You sound a little conflicted as to whether you liked it. I loved it, but I suspect it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. I have Crawdads in my TBR pile, Carol.
Stay safe today!
Also under the high wind warning here and am quickly becoming exhausted by “watching” it through the windows. It is just crazy windy. Glad we didn’t experience the snow or the heavy rain.
I have been reading most of the day. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. I think somone on one of your What Are You Reading posts talked about it. I am loving it! Nice to be engaged in a good book, as it has seemed challenging over these past several weeks. Hope you and Don are having a good Monday.
Good to hear this particular book has engaged you! It’s been hard, hasn’t it? Sometimes I just can’t make myself read.
Stay safe today. Our winds have been much less than predicted – so far. Fingers crossed!
Those books look and sound interesting. The wind and rain here is playing havoc with the trees. I cannot wait for it to be over. They are predicting it should last until 6 P.M. Take care and enjoy the books.
Marilyn
No wind for a while, please! Stay safe, Marilyn.
Wow, that’s some wild kind of weather of which you speak and are having to endure, Claudia. Hope things are better Tuesday. I know what you’re saying about power outages. I’ve got a friend who has a generator; we don’t. I’m clear across the United States out here in SoCalif but we, coincidentally, had a power failure Monday morning about 9:30am and my heart sank; it’s one of the things I’ve worried about when we’ve recently had our own spate of rainy/windy weather, mostly because my small frig/freezer is somewhat full due to all the ‘stocking up’ for the stay-home orders in the epidemic; but, like you, we’ve spent our wad where the stocking up is concerned; what we’ve got has to last for a good, long while. If we were to lose those frig/freezer contents, I (like what you’re saying) really don’t know now what we’d do, so it was pure relief when the power came back on and, thankfully, the outage was brief. But it sure gave me pause. I feel so badly for those people out of their homes in those tornadoes; it’s just too much, too much. And now they’re in shelters where they can’t physically distance and keep as safe as they were staying at home, when they still had a home.
Heartbreaking. Absolutely heartbreaking.