Saturday, March 23, 2019

A few books of late

Folks,

Every time I work through a couple of books quicker than normal leaves me with a sense of awe.  Why yes, I did just read for fun.  Sure thing I did nothing but just read for a bit.  I know that I've mentioned this before, but it's truly one of the most mind boggling possibilities in my life right now.  The cool thing about the spring semester is that my Spring Breaks are staggered a bit, which effectively draws out one week off to about a month of low workload (read: GRADING).  And. That. Means. More. Reading.

A sample from the last week...

The Reckoning by John Grisham - 400+ pages, done in 1 week while working full-time and keeping 2 minors alive every day
It's a lot of classic Grisham and a decent amount of a different perspective that we've not seen from him before.  Here's the thing.  We still all love Grisham for classic Grisham writing.  But after a couple of dozen novels, I get how he wants to try new things.  I'm cool with that.  I'm even more cool with that when it's caught up in something that's well familiar and, as aforementioned, well loved.  Dang, but he's a good storyteller.  It's hard to get readers to care about characters that they don't like and aren't supposed to like.

Tracks by Robyn Davidson - 200-ish pages, taking longer to get through
I'm a bit too meh about this, but it's gripping in the unexpected.  She's not the best writer, but she also makes no bones about not trying to be.   There are enough Australian moments and wordings that pass me by to keep things tingly as we go, which is really what I like best about it.  I don't want to be reading another American's privileged journey.  Here's the thing...I don't really know WHY the journey was a necessary moment in her life.  And that's a bit disorienting.  But, there are camels.  And who knew that camels could be so interesting. ***Addendum since I've finished reading this: It never paid off for me, but I OK enjoyed it because camels and Australia.***

The Cafe by the Sea: A novel by Jenny Colgan - almost 400 pages, not a debut novel but rather reads like one (a bit twisty, loose ends that are long in the set-up but quick in the resolution)
It's nice to read something that tastes a little bit familiar in a vastly different and unknown environment.  Overall, light and fluffy is sometimes so satisfying just to flip-flip-flip through a chunk of pages.  Skim read.  Who cares if you remember all the details?  Jettison a few chapters instead of just one before bed.  This was my runner-up option to take this new author for a spin, and I think I'll come back for another round once I find the book I was trying for to begin with.

I'm dabbling in the possibility of utilizing more audio books, something I've never really used for myself being more of a podcast kind of girl.  But those podcasts are going to have to go on hiatus for a bit.  Because it turns out that I can listen to a couple of Mary Roach books, which have long been on my list to explore.  And if you're on the Mary Roach fan club, let me know which is your favorite (I have Stiff waiting on deck ready to go tomorrow).  

I have words to hear and sentences to explore, new story lines that I've never been privy to before.  I'm 10 books done for 2019, and it's a comparable feeling (I imagine) as looking up from your iPhone one day in a crowded cafe and locking eyes with the one who you used to believe was going to be the love of your life but has only turned into a passing acquaintance.  But then that eye catching moments leaves you realizing that YES, you remember why this person is so perfect in any way, despite the flaws and weird quirks (s)he has.  It's time to rekindle some of that old fire.

Saturday, March 9, 2019

Today: nothing special & pretty great

Today,

1.  I got paid to sit at my desk on my day off and grade for 5+ hours...sounds like a scam, but it even involved doughnut holes.  For the win.

2.  I played Scrabble (the real one) with my 6-year old, who is thrilled to play 2 & 3 letter words and didn't that I got the J, the X, the Z, and the Q and threw them down on a couple of triple letter tiles.  Boss points that we weren't keeping.

3.  I made dinner.  And extra dinner for the week.  And cinnamon rolls for a carry-in brunch at church (have sweeter words ever been uttered before...!?!).  And no one complained that dinner was 40-ish minutes late in so doing.  And it felt great flexing my triple-dipping-at-a-time skills.  Cutting board kung fu.

4.  I got to just read out loud to my child.  Some day they won't want me to anymore.  My soul feels a little bit shrively when I consider that possibility.  (Our pastor will tell me "You read well" when I volunteer for the prayers at church.  I think to myself "I have months upon years of practice.  I can narrate Paul in his letters to the Corinthians like a boss.")  Voices for every chracter.

5.  I ate 2 1/2 of the cinnamon rolls in front of my child while they were perfectly warm, soft & pillowy, and she didn't notice.  Admittedly, I take some joy in my ninja skills.  Plus, I needed her to eat some peas for the love of vegetables.  All were happy.

6.  The boy single parented most of the day, and props to him because winter is wearing on that guy's soul, and the girls have been sharp like icicles a few times too many when he's been wearing the proverbial parent hat.  But then he had some quality Monopoly time and work time and chit-chat-just-because-time with the Elder.  Some things are true and necessary.  For the love.

7.  I got to write a court report tonight for my CASA kid and just glow in it for the first time - so many good things happening, so long in coming.  We're on the upswing here.  Thanks be.

8.  I heard the Younger sing.  And sing.  And SING unconsciously.  She just does, with all of the joyful verve and abandon that a 6-year old can bring to to the table.  She has a knack for picking up on lyrics, and there's something delightfully ironic (if not forehead-slapping-I-can't-believe-my-kid-sings-this) about a tiny tot putting some soul into "Jolene" and the one who's "begging on my knees, don't take my man."  Eat your heart out, Dolly.

9.  There have been a couple of rounds of thunderstorms roll through - honest to goodness, I just jumped out of my skin thunder boomers.  Tonight, the boy added "spring thunderstorms" to our thankful prayer because any sign that the end is drawing 'nigh is a praise ye, hallelujah.  Let it be so. 

10.  Books are saving my soul right now.  Get thee to a book repository and read Tsh Oxenreider's At Home in the World: Reflections on belonging while wondering the globe.  Post haste.  I may have absolutely searched flights and guesthouse rental options for Europe last night.  There's validation in the pages that discomfort and childish airport shenanigans are, you know, worth traveling through.  Why do we need the OKAY in order to take our children and go do world things (not resort things but real, honest-to-different-culture-world-things)?  I don't know.  But validation sure helps.  My itchy travel itch is getting all itched up.  Let's go.