Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

On Saturday

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View from the kitchen into the living room.

Boy, is it cold here! I hope my newly emerging daylilies can hang in there. It’s going down to the single digits tonight. What the ??? The weather has been so wildly inconsistent lately. 70 degrees one day, winds and freezing temps the next, and now this. Within another day or so the temps will be back up in the fifties during the day.

We even had a little snow squall yesterday.

I have to journey into Manhattan again today for a run through of Anastasia. There will be at least one more run through next week and then on Thursday, the whole production moves into the theater. As they start tech rehearsals, I’ll stay away for a bit and then I’ll be back in Manhattan (and staying there) as final dress rehearsals and previews start.

Don’s car is all tuned up. We had to make some repairs (the driver’s side window wasn’t working) and one of the wheels was locked. The timing belt needed to be replaced. But our beloved CR-V is now ready to roll.

______________________________

My longtime blogging friend, Tracie Truran of My Petite Maison, lost her husband this week. It was sudden and shocking and heartbreaking. Tracie and her husband, Shayne, lived in California for many years. They made a big change last year when they found a house in Nebraska, a short sale, and moved there in order to finally realize their dream of owning a home. And now Shayne is gone.

If you know Tracie, you know that, in addition to her exquisite taste and decorating skills, she has the biggest and kindest heart. Her love for animals is deep and profound. Her beloved Great Pyrenees, Bechet, is a beautiful boy.  She has always been there for me, especially as I navigated the last years of Riley and Scout. Tracie is one of the first people I met through blogging and my heart is breaking for her.

I know that most of you probably don’t know Tracie, but some of you who have been around a while might. If you know Tracie, her daughter has started a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral expenses and bills, to help ease the pressures on Tracie as she navigates this heartbreaking journey. Here’s the link.

Tracie blogged for years and now focuses on Instagram and Facebook. You can find her on IG here. How I wish I could wrap my arms around her right now. Rest in peace, Shayne.

Too much sadness now. Everywhere.

Happy Saturday.

Back in the City

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We’re very close to the day we move into the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway.  I was working under the assumption that run-throughs would occur on Monday – Wednesday next week, giving me another four days or so until I had to work again. Imagine my surprise when I got an email on Wednesday evening asking if I could be there on Thursday for a run-through! Normally, this wouldn’t phase me, but I’m still battling the tail end of this illness, so I was thrown.

There I was, pulling out the laptop at 8:30 pm in order to write yesterday’s book review which had long been scheduled for that date. All night long, we had very high winds. Non-stop. So I had trouble sleeping – I might as well be honest – I didn’t sleep. (The poor catalpa lost even more limbs.)

I don’t know what it is about this show, but it’s sure pushed my sleep and health buttons. Anyway, it was a great day in the rehearsal hall with the first run-through. Oh heavens, it’s wonderful! There have been lots of changes made since Hartford – all for the better – and it’s truly better-than-ever. I cannot wait to see it onstage. Another run-through tomorrow and at least one more next week.

Came home on the bus, slept a little, Don picked me up at the bus station, we ate a late dinner and then I proceeded to sleep for 10 hours. I’m groggy this morning, but very grateful for an uninterrupted night of sleep.

That poster was facing me as I rode Metro-North into Manhattan.

Oh, and I ran outside at 10 pm to cover a daylily that had been coming out of the ground during our unseasonably warm temps with leaves/mulch, since it was going down to the low twenties last night.

Today? Rest.

The other day when I had to drive Don to the bus station, I threw caution to the winds and drove to the bookstore as well. A call to B & N told me that they had a copy of Rules of Civility  on the shelf, so I had them hold it for me. I ran in and out quickly, but I did succumb to this gorgeous quarterly publication – it’s new, this is the first one. It has no advertising, so it’s expensive. But it’s so beautifully done and I needed some visual inspiration. Dang it – I deserved a treat! At least, that’s how I justified the whole thing. Quiltfolk comes out of the Pacific Northwest. It’s full of beautifully photographed articles about quilters, quilt shops, and designers – sort of in the Somerset magazine mode.

It’s really neat. I’m going to slowly explore it today.

Tomorrow – another run-through.

Happy Friday.

 

Book Review: Wilde Lake by Laura Lippman

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Today I am reviewing Wilde Lake by Laura Lippman for TLC Book Tours. As always, I am provided with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

About the book (from the publisher): Luisa ‘Lu’ Brant is the newly elected state’s attorney representing suburban Maryland – including the famous planned community of Columbia, created to be a utopia of racial and economic reality. Prosecuting a controversial case involving a disturbed drifter accused of beating a woman to death, the fiercely ambitious Lu is determined to avoid the traps that have destroyed other competitive, successful women. She’s going to play it smart to win this case – and win big – cementing her political future.

But her intensive preparation for trial unexpectedly dredges up painful reflections of another crime – the night when her brother AJ saved his best friend at the cost of another man’s life. Only eighteen, AJ was cleared by a grand jury. Justice was done. Or was it? Did the events of 1980 happen as she remembers them? She was only a chid then. What details didn’t she know?

As she plunges deeper into the past, Lu is forced to face a troubling reality. The legal system, the bedrock of her entire life, does not have all the answers. But what happens when she realizes that, for the first time, she doesn’t want to know the whole truth?

My review: I’ve read the Tess Monaghan series of mysteries that were written by Ms. Lippman, and have enjoyed them immensely. Wilde Lake  is a bit of a departure – a stand-alone novel – that explores how one incident in the present is informed by emerging memories of the past. Lippmann does this very well, with one chapter taking place in the present, one in the past, and so on. So, though we know the basic facts of that night when AJ saved his best friend, the details slowly emerge as we get further and further into the book. At the same time, what seems to be a slam-dunk case turns out not to be as solid as it was thought to be.

Lu, widowed with two children, has returned to live with her father, a formidable and respected man who is revered in their part of the county. Lippmann paints evocative portraits of all the characters, characters who have known each other all of their lives – and who have secrets. The story is terribly compelling and so beautifully written that I couldn’t put it down.

How this all comes together, what Lu learns, and how it impacts everything she once believed to be true – that is the crux of the mystery and the heart of the novel.

Lippmann is a wonderful writer and her skills shine in Wilde Lake. I recommend it highly.

About the author: Since Laura Lippman’s debut, she has won multiple awards and critical acclaim for provocative, timely crime novels set in her beloved hometown of Baltimore. Laura has been nominated for more than 50 awards for crime fiction and won almost 20, including the Edgar. Her books have been translated into over twenty languages. Now a perennial New York Times  bestselling author, she lives in Baltimore and New Orleans with her family.

Published by Harper Collins.

One of you will win a copy of Wilde Lake. Just leave a comment on this post and I’ll pick a winner on Sunday.

Happy Thursday.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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