I'm so freaking cold! The heat in my office isn't working and the wind is blowing through the air conditioner as though it were made of kleenex. It's 60 degrees and with every passing minute my fingers increasingly resemble the ice sculptures from the winter carnival. If my gloves weren't too thick to type in, I'd be wearing them. I finally draped my coat over the AC unit, hoping that will stop some of the draft.
And yet it was only a day or two ago that I was walking to my car, reveling in spring. There's nothing like the sharp green sap smell of budding leaves to make my heart sing. It reminds me of Alaska, delighting in my solo rambles through the birch and aspen forest by the river.
Congratulations to Stacey & Jeff on the arrival of Baby Boy Gunderman! He's beautiful and Stacey was a real trouper throughout labor & birth. I was honored to be asked to help watch the other kids and to get the opportunity to actually watch him being born. Truly amazing.
Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of A Man Who Rescued A Million Yiddish Books by Aaron Lansky
Wow. A book combining my love of books and languages (Yiddish, which is close enough to German and Hebrew that I can understand most of it). I found myself thinking that if I'd known about this guy 20 years ago (and been in my 20s at that point), I would have dropped everything to move to NY and help with his project. Heck, I probably would have proposed. I loved this book.
Time's Fool by Leonard Tourney
I enjoyed this one. A fun mystery about Shakespeare. And I didn't even figure out the twists and turns of the murder until the very end. That was a nice change.
Caffeine Blues : Wake Up to the Hidden Dangers of America's #1 Drug by Stephen Cherniske
According to the author, caffeine causes just about every health problem we can imagine and should be completely avoided. While I do agree about the addictive qualities, I question some of the extreme statements in the book. What problems does it cause? What doesn't it cause?
When I worked at the coffee show many years ago, I sometimes referred to myself as a pusher. Here I was, getting paid to feed addictions all day long. And oh the headaches when I'd go on vacation for a week and drink less than my 5 or 6 cups a day! Now I'm down to one or two cups of tea, if that, and would like to avoid additional addiction. I don't think that small an amount is really going to cause me any great harm, regardless of what the book says.
Mrs. Jeffries Pinches the Post by Emily Brightwell
Unbelievable characters and I guessed the murderer half-way in. I won't be reading anything else in this series.
The Rice Mother by Rani Manicka
I started reading and within the first few pages thought this would be one of my favorite books. The language was beautiful. By the middle I hated it and put it down for a few days because I couldn't bear to read any more. And then I thought it deserved a second chance, so I finished it. I hated it less at the end, but still wasn't too excited about it.
The narrative structure of the book reminded me a lot of Poisonwood Bible, with each chapter told by a different character. Unfortunately, I find that format very hard to follow.
Trading Spaces: Rooms for Living is much more practical than the 3-Ingrediate Decorating book I mentioned earlier. Fewer nausea-inducing color schemes, which is nice. And hey! I think that lamp on page 57 is almost the same as the one I bought for my bedroom! They must have good taste. :)
Flea Market Furniture Makeovers by Mickey Baskett
Some cute ideas, if you like country-painted furniture. Unfortunately, even with the detailed patterns and color-lists, 99% of the people who read the book will never be able to make their stuff turn out as nicely. An aspirational book - one that makes you aspire to be able to paint like that.
Wishful Sinful by Tracy Dunham
I don't really remember why, but I don't think I liked this mystery much.
Trash to Treasure: The Year's Best Creative Crafts
Yeah. The best creative crafts, if your idea of "treasure" is a necklace made of old foil gum wrappers or a tv "remote caddy" (to hold your remote controls) made out of 4 mac & cheese boxes. Please, people. If you're going to do crafts, do something worthwhile.
Thin for Life : 10 Keys to Success from People Who Have Lost Weight and Kept It Off by Anne M. Fletcher
Alas, there was no really new information in this book. What did the people do? Eat less, move more, find support, decide to really make it work this time, and find their own way rather than following someone else's plan. Like I'm not doing that already. Sigh.
3-Ingredient Decorating from Better Homes and Gardens
Never trust a decorating book whose front cover features a room with orange and lilac walls, purple curtains, red furniture, and mirrored tiles on each sides of the windows "for added glamour."
Excuse me, but I think 1964 threw up all over your room.
The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich
There was beauty in the language, but I was distracted by the descriptions of the butcher shop. A bit much for this vegetarian, I guess. Overall, it's an ok book but not one that I'm going to insist that you all read.
The Wicked Winter by Kate Sedley
I enjoyed this one, but then I tend to enjoy most mysteries set in the middle ages. They make me glad for central heating and running water. As a bonus, I didn't guess the murderer until close to the end of the book. So I'll probably read others in this series if I run across them.
The Seven Sisters by Margaret Drabble
A strange, sad story about a strange, sad old woman. I didn't enjoy it much, but the pages of the book held that sharp flower scent of my grandma that I remember from childhood. So I kept reading, for the memories it pulled from hidden corners of my brain. And now it sits by my bed and sometimes I pick it up and sniff it carefully before going to sleep.
The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie King
Ok, it took me 150 pages to be totally sure that I'd already read this book. But I was enjoying it so much that I went ahead and finished it. I enjoy this series, which focuses on Mary Russell, the 15-year-old apprentice to Sherlock Holmes.