Sunday Salon/Sunday Post - July 13, 2025: 637 months old!

Lucky number 13! Last month, June 13, was my birthday. So apparently I'm 637 months old today! LOL I had a hard time getting my free movie ticket to work, so today I'll be finally going to the movies with our son. I think we'll see Elio. I'd like to see Materialists base on feedback from those who have seen it, but I'd rather have company :) 

Happy Weekend! I'm joining up with Deb at Readerbuzz and Kimberly at Caffeinated Reviewer for my sort of regular weekend post. 

What I'm reading this week:

I'm still working on reading Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini in print and Fog and Fury by Rachel Howzell Hall on my kindle.

Three Good Things:

1. My exterior home improvement stuff is almost done! There's still a dumpster at the end of my driveway, so I'm guessing they'll be back for some detail work, but the obvious rotten wood around some windows and porch posts has been replaced with beautiful (and durable) concrete fiber logs that look JUST like the wood style they've replaced. And my loan check arrived before the bill is due! Yay!!
2. I worked 56 hours last week! And payday is while I'm in  Toronto with hubs! All the pieces seem to have fallen into place. I got Thursday and Friday off this coming week so I can go to Toronto with hubs (he'll be working, I'll be doing whatever I want!), and my mom is coming to stay and take our son to and from band day camp and sleep in the house overnight (since our nearly adult daughter is camping with her girlfriend this week). Hubs says Toronto is one of the fun locations he works from time to time, and I'm looking forward to a fun long weekend.
3. High School graduation number one is nearly in our rearview mirror. Graduation was early June, and the party celebrating our daughter was at the end of June. She finished the thank you cards just before leaving for camping, so now it's my job to finish getting postage/mailing the thank yous. See goal below. LOL

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. Yeah. Ima finish getting those thank yous return addressed and stamped. I'll deliver them to the post office early this week. Once she gets back, we do the big ole bank run to cash the checks and deposit the cash so she has money for her life at college!
2. I really, really want to get my camera bird feeder installed! It's a birthday gift from my mom, and SO perfect for me! But I'm feeling technologically and construction challenged to get it mounted and installed. I've asked for help, but it hasn't come through, so wish me luck!
3. Another huge push to clean my office is on the agenda today. I made a good dent last weekend, but it needs to be done already. My biggest motivator (besides just being able to better enjoy the space) is to set up a table for my LEGO. I'm getting ready to start my biggest set yet (The Sanderson Sisters' House), but we have our daughter's birthday party in a couple weeks, and I don't want it out on a table in the middle of things. So the office must be a useable place for LEGOing before I can start that set!

I probably won't be posting next week, but I'm sure I'll be thinking about ya'll while I make my own adventures.

Sunday Post/Sunday Salon - July 6, 2025: Happy Independence Day?

Thank goodness for three days off work (plus an extra should-have-been-an-hour-but-at-least-was-40-minutes). My direct managers always try to give us an extra hour of company time on US holiday weekends, but workload. So, in summation, I've been away from work since about 1:50pm on Thursday, which is cool. So I've been HOME (including on my back deck or front porch) since a grocery run for the weekend on Thursday. Another WIN. I'm a bit of a homebody, but will probably leave later today to use my free birthday Emagine theater ticket and see Bride Hard. At least that's the plan. So happy holiday weekend, even if 'Independence' day seems to be a stretch lately (check out the shirt at left
here).

As I think I've stated before, high school graduation season is no joke. I've spent the last several Sunday mornings either preparing for graduation parties or college orientation visit, taking the younger one to camp, recovering from a graduation party at our house, and even sneaking in a breakfast with out of town friends. It's been a month, but now I'm back to post with Kimberly at the Caffeinated Reviewer for Sunday Post, and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. And I need to say that I really missed my slow, reflective Sunday mornings sitting right here, saying what really doesn't feel like a lot, but is a spilling of my words. Even if who I am is often a response to my kids, family, and work. None of them oversee this - it's me.

What I'm reading this week:

As part of this great, at-home, doing me stuff weekend, I finished two books yesterday, reviewed two, and started two more. My reviews for The Athena Protocol (which published years ago, and I finished reading weeks ago) and Into the Leopard's Den (published on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, and apparently the last in the much-loved Bangalore Detectives Club series) were written yesterday and will be publishing to Books I Think You Should Read soon. 

While I finished Reading Into the Leopard's Den yesterday on my kindle, I also finished Funny Story by Emily Henry. That was my first read of the four adult Battle of the Books contest reads for mid-August. Our local library does a super-fun trivia contest on four pre-announced books at a local bar/restaurant. The first one was postponed from April 2020 until summer of 2023, and our team/book club (formed in January 2020 for the purpose of this contest) WON! Last year I think we came in third by just a couple points. This year, 3 out of 5 of our members from our championship year are not available, so the two remaining have added one of my co-workers, and the other team member's sister. The other three books are Huda F Are You? by Huda Fahmy, Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini by Sid Fleischman, and The Lost City of the Monkey God by Doulas Preston. So I finished the pop fiction, started the kids' book, and still have the graphic novel and non-fiction to go. Wish us luck!

I'm currently reading the print copy of Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini and Fog and Fury by Rachel Howzell Hall on my kindle. 

Three Good Things:

I think Deb started '3 Good Things' during COVID lockdowns, but I'm still all in too. More good news is always good :)

1. We spent a few days at Northern Michigan University, where our daughter will attend in the fall, for new student (and support person) orientation. It was a fabulous event. She stayed in a dorm room with another incoming freshman, learned her way around campus a bit, met her suite-mates and a bunch of other new students, and even got to do an off-campus hike to see the beauty of the area. We're more sure than ever that she's made the right choice and is gonna love the next step in her life. 
2. Actually, this weekend so far has been a good thing :) I love staying home, reading, building LEGO, puttering/cleaning/improving my surroundings, a bit of coloring, watching movies with the kids.... Our son and I even had steak dinner Friday night. It's really been my optimal weekend off.
3. I'm reading more books lately. What that actually means to me is that I'm focusing and checking things off, not just vegging out and sleeping as much as possible. It's a good thing.

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. While our son's closet re-org/design is done and he's working on putting it, and his whole room, in a better place, I've also found the motivation to work on my home office. And I've made noticeable progress! My goal is to have room for a table in here, so I can do my LEGO without stray pieces being at risk of being in someone's way. 
2. Cleaning out part of my office has already unearthed three brand-new water bottles (I think they have company logos, which reminds me I'd rather have an actual RAISE than another 'free' water bottle, but I digress). Anyway, I'd like to clean out a couple kitchen cupboards which will give me a box of similar items to donate. And get them out of my house!
3. The kids and I have been wanting to re-do the curio cabinets. I have two of my grandmother's old curio cabinets in our 'formal' dining room (with an old table where I've been doing LEGO). While there is memorable stuff in them, we'd like to update it with stuff that is currently meaningful to us. It's on the list.

Hope you're having a summer you're enjoying :)

Sunday Salon/Sunday Post - June 1, 2025: Summer, Please?

We may not have the weather yet, but I've got the vibes. While hubs invited us to hang out at his fancy hotel downtown while he's working at the Grand Prix, I really, really wanted to stay home and do things I enjoy. So I did. Yesterday I woke up before the kids (not a challenge LOL) and went to a flower sale that was donating a portion of proceeds to our high school's marching band. I always wait til after Memorial Day to start buying flowers, so this was it! I got five hanging baskets and some of the lil ones (flats?). Then I even got the lil ones planted in two planters I keep on the back deck. I still have room for four more hanging baskets (three in the front garden, and one outside my kitchen window at the back), and I think I'll get at least one big ole planter for the front porch.

I'm joining in with Deb and Kimber for the Sunday Salon and Sunday Post this morning. I see at a quick glance that a few of the summer read linkys are starting today, but I want to do a post listing the local (to me) summer shows today or tomorrow too. We'll see how my motivation holds out! I am trying Starbucks new canned energy drink this morning (the Watermelon Twist flavor, for reference). I was bummed to find out Friday that our local Starbucks no longer carry my favorite Melonburst energy drink. I think the cans (from the grocery) are supposed to be the substitute.

What I'm reading this week:

I just started The Ashtrays are Full and the Glasses are Empty by Kristen Mickelwait on my kindle last night. So far, so good. It's based starting in the 1920s or so in the U.S. - a favorite setting for me. In print, I started a book I picked at a previous Battle of the Books as a prize - The Z Word by Lindsay King-Miller. It's almost like a zomedy (zombie/comedy) in writing (okay, maybe a little more gore than a typical zomedy). It's going pretty quick for me.

Three Good Things:

1. I ordered the organizational layout of my son's closet! My budget isn't thrilled, but we are! LOL We're working with Closets by Design. The woman who came out was so nice and really helped us zone in on what we wanted to do. Delivery/installation is in a couple weeks. 
2. Graduation is this week! We are so proud of our daughter, and since she and I enjoy spending time together, I'm familiar with a lot of other seniors as well. I am a little amused that our favorite school board member said she's going to try to be the one who gives Maggie her diploma. We'll see, but regardless of that, high school is about done for this one, and college is coming up fast on the horizon. I have one year of not having a kid in the high school, then we start our son's four years there in the fall of 2026.
3. My volunteer term with our local theatre boosters is done (for now). I'd looked at joining one of the women's groups who awarded our daughter with a scholarship, but all the pictures - even on their international site - are of old white women. Which I am, but I don't want to end up in a room full of... well, people I don't want to be in a room full of. While some say it's 'just politics,' I feel we have a fundamental disconnect about human rights. I'll keep checking around to find out more about this group and others. Anyone have a women's group (non-religious) that they would recommend?

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. Does it help that I've been having vivid daydreams about how I want my home office to look? Display some of my LEGO, a comfy chair with good light to do counted cross-stitch or read in peace, a little secretary or desk where I can write, in addition to my computer spot, of course.... I have a few days off coming up where I don't have stuff booked all day. We'll see what can happen.
2. I want to start doing my Five Minutes Before Bed journaling again. It's an old goal thing I used to do when I was successful in direct sales. I can't find a good description online anymore, but it was from a group with Dana Wilde. 
3. Prep our son's closet for the reorganization/install! We need to get everything out of there, uninstall the rods/shelves that are already there, and re-paint. We didn't order backs on our organizational units, so we can pick a great color to show through.

Sunday Post/Sunday Salon - May 25, 2025: Three-Day Weekend for Memorial Day!

A three-day weekend is always what I need. While we were originally hoping to join hubs at the Indianapolis 500 today, the plan for that didn't work out. I'm not entirely bummed about that, because crowds. Ugh. The next plan was to say home in my PJs all weekend. Hahahaha... Also didn't happen. Yesterday the kids and I went to my parents' house to visit a small bookstore in their town (so cool!) and have lunch with them, before heading to iFly for some indoor skydiving. It was the second time for our son, and the first time for our daughter. They both loved it, and I may get them some private lessons to learn more tricks. Today our daughter picked up a shift at work, so our son wanted to check out a sale at Hot Topic, and then I need to do grocery shopping. Hubs expects to be home late tonight, and tomorrow is the local Memorial Day parade.

I've pulled my usual trick and just gotten out of bed and ready for the day when I first wake up, well before the two teenagers. LOL I'm joining Kimber for this week's Sunday Post, and Deb with the Sunday Salon.

What I'm reading this week:

I'm currently reading When Canaries Die by Luis Figueredo in print. It's got everything - a post-COVID pandemic, immoral politicians, and top-notch brilliant litigators. On my kindle is Dear Future Me by Deborah O'Connor. It's about a woman trying to untangle a crime from school after her best friend commits suicide possibly because of what a letter written in school and mailed to her more than a decade later contains. Especially odd since yesterday our daughter received a letter in the mail that she wrote to herself in school four years ago. But in real life, no one died. Yay!

Three Good Things:

1. While the kiddos did have fun in the pool a couple weeks ago, we're back to hoping for 60 degrees F here. At least the rain seems to have let up. Glad the track season is over for our son. The last meet was 50 degrees and a constant drizzle of rain. Not ideal.
2. I finally did some hardcore adulting last week and went in to get my Real ID so I can make the trip to Toronto with hubs in July. My license was expiring anyway, but you have to go to the Secretary of State with either your passport or a bunch of other proof of existence and pay extra for the driver's license upgrade. I did the things, and now I'm just waiting for it to arrive (sort of bummed they couldn't get a decent picture with my awesome glasses on though - they're kind of my trademark this year).
3. I've gotten really stubborn about working my scheduled eight hour shifts, and taking time off for the kids' things. And while being at work still isn't very pleasant, having more time away is a marked improvement.

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. 
   I finally finished my Lucky Bamboo LEGO yesterday, and went to hubs home office to find his 3-in-1 that I got him for Christmas. I'll be putting that one together probably later today. It's a bird, or a frog, or a fish. I had a similar set and did the bird, so I think I'll do the fish with his set.
2. I was looking at an awesome angel I did in counted cross-stitch for my mom (in 2006) at her house yesterday, and I really want to pack up the super cross-stitch organizer she made for me and get to stitching.
3. I also really want to get pictures of our daughter in her graduation gown (we've got the gown, and graduation is June 4). The goal is to get the pictures ASAP, so we can design and order thank you cards ASAP. She's already gotten one check from someone who said they can't make it to her party!

Sunday Salon/Sunday Post - May 11, 2025: Mothers' Day Edition

Happy Mothers' Day indeed. My kids left me the sweetest momentos. My daughter printed a picture I LOVE of her and me on our first family trip to Disney, where she was giving me the BIGGEST hug. She matted it and wrote a whole page letter on the back about my awesomeness.  My son made me a card that explained how much more than 'good' I am. His has a pocket that says 'Here is the greatest mom in the world...and the little one,' and holds a picture of him and me at the Detroit Pistons basketball game last month (he's a couple inches taller than me, for reference).

Anyway, I took Friday off of work originally to go to the Lavender Labrynthe, but then decided I'm just too beat to put much effort into anything right now. So I stayed home, and got my nails done, finished mailing graduation open house invites, paid the bills, and grocery shopped. And a three-day weekend is always a win.

I'm wrapping up the long (for me) weekend before brunch at my brother's, by joining in with Sunday Salon (does anyone else accidentally type a 'g' at the end of Salon almost every time?) and Sunday Post. Check out some other blogs! We all appreciate the love :)

What I'm reading this week:

Still finishing up The Woke and the Dead in print, but reviewed January Thaw yesterday on my blog. 

The giveaway on my review of See How They Fall ends today! Interesting surprise ending to that one.

Next up, I'll be starting When Canaries Die by Luis Figueredo in print, and maybe Dear Writer by Maggie Smith on kindle. We'll see.

Three Good Things:

1. We finally have some warmer weather! My brother says they opened the pool, so the kids are invited to bring their suits and dive in (not sure if it's actually 'adult' warm yet. LOL). I'll wear shorts, anyway. 
2. I have an appointment to get my 'real ID' on Wednesday. My drivers' license is expiring anyway, so I'll bring my birth certificate, marriage license to support my name change, and two bills/statements addressed to me at our Michigan address to prove my residency. Seems like a lot, but I'm a rule follower, so I'll do it.
3. Hubs stopped home to surprise us today! He was originally using his day off to go to a race and drive with friends, but the race teams blew up both cars yesterday. 

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. Actually progress being made on the office, so I'll keep going with that.
   
2. Next LEGO set is the Lucky Bamboo, so I'll probably get started on that this afternoon. 
3. Still striving to be as quiet as possible at work. Funny story - a couple weeks ago my manager pulled me in and said, "You've been really quiet - everything okay?" Fast forward to last week when she pulled me in to say that someone complained about my singing. So I'm striving to be less. I suppose the good news portion is that I just have a few more years. Retirement is closer than when I started working, right?

January Thaw - Book Review

January Thaw (Murder by Month RomCom Mystery #9) by Jess Lourey
Publication:  January 1, 2014
Pages: 267 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars ☆☆☆☆
Sweet Spark: Mira James is a magnet for criminal activity, but she and Mrs. Berns are always up for justice!

While I haven't read all the books in this fun series, and certainly not in order, what I've read have been great, quick moving cozy mysteries in an engaging voice. I know I've still got more in my TBR list, and I look forward to them.

In this book, Mira and Mrs. Berns are back home in Battle Lake and are attacked in an alley after a strange noise lures Mira to check it out. They avoid harm when the attackers are re-directed by another newcomer to town who has been hanging out in the library sometimes while Mira is at work there. Suspension of disbelief will serve readers well, as this sounds like a crime unlikely to occur in their exceptionally small town, but I digress.

When Mira recognizes their would-be rescuer the next day, it's unfortunately by finding the man - dead - under the ice while skating. Of course she now feels compelled to solve this heinous crime!

In Mira's world, weird things happen in multiples, so she soon finds herself trying to solve the murder of the victim she saw in the lake and chasing down a returned local for a local private investigator. Could the two be related? To wrap them up in just a few hours of reading, undoubtedly. 

This was an intriguing story that earned 4 out of 5 stars. It would be recommended to those who enjoy midwest U.S. contemporary stories and small-town quirky mysteries.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free electronic copy of this book. Receiving the book for free did not influence my review.

Sunday Post/Sunday Salon - May 4, 2025: Quatro de Mayo!

Wow. Why is every week, 'what a week!' - am I doing something to bring this all on myself? Granted, I'm trying to lay low, as it really is an amazing spring/summer for our daughter. The musical is done, and this week is her last day anchoring the school news show. Guys, she was awarded/named BEST ANCHOR in the state at a competition for broadcasting programs. AH-MAZING! I am so proud of this girl every single day. I've watched some of her broadcasts as they're available streaming after they're broadcast, but for her last day, their excellent teacher invites families in to watch from behind the scenes. And daughter-who-is-thoughtful-of-everyone said their class likes to eat, so I'm baking Tollhouse chocolate chip and oatmeal scotchies cookies today to take in on Tuesday.

Welcome to my Sunday weekly re-cap/planning post, in which I link up and read as many other posts as I can with Sunday Post and Sunday Salon (does anyone else always try to type an extra 'g' on the end of Salon?). And while I may have some regulars' attention, I'll be in Toronto in early July - sort of alone when hubs works during the day. Anyone nearby to meet up? I know there's some Canadian posters. Or previous visitors with recommendations? He said I'm in the middle of the city somewhere, so if I don't hear otherwise, I'll walk around and see what there is to see, bring a book, sit down where it's comfy, and enjoy some me time.

What I'm reading this week:

Working on reviews now! Books I Think You Should Read has two giveaways ending early this week on books I've reviewed. Glory Daze ends 5/7/25, and At the Island's Edge ends 5/8/25.

Now I'm reading January Thaw by Jess Lourey on my kindle, and The Woke and the Dead in print. The Jess Lourey gook is part of a fun series, 'Murder by Month,' about Mira James and her sidekick, the octagenarian Mrs. Berns. While some of Jess Lourey's other books are kind of heavy nostalgic 1980s thrillers, this series has fun with solving murders. The print book is a somewhat accidental read, as I usually don't accept anything that isn't a stand alone or the first in a series. But I'm not lost and enjoying this murder mystery based in a theme park type city based on the 1970s or so, Nostalgia City.

Three Good Things:

1. Well, my team reportedly picked me as one of the best drafters (writing the actual text of a complaint response). I should hope so; my favorite part of this job is actual writing. Anyway, the 'prize' apparently is being able to train four team members who need to start drafting. There are three people training, and I'm fine with one of the others, but the third is a vindictive know-it-all who actually doesn't know very much, and writes lousy drafts. I'm tempted to say, 'Thanks, but no thanks,' but I'll stick it out for now. Wait, was that really good news? The part about people appreciating my writing, anyway.
2. In follow-up to last weeks' anticipation of getting a bid for the house repairs we need, a little contemplation let me to the conclusion that I just can't afford that now. Which means instead of tightening my belt past recognition, I will continue getting my nails done, and ordered a couple cool shirts for summer. I decided I deserve a few splurges, and a life without disposable income isn't worth an intact house. LOL
   
3. I got a new phone! And an adorable dinosaur case! My phone was a few years old, and locking  up a few times a day. Hubs said it was the oldest in the family, so he switched me over to the Google Fi account they're on and got me a Google Pixel 9 PRO. So far, so good, but I'm sure you all know the level of inconvenience of suddenly having to verify again everything in my life. Hubs and our daughter have been so helpful in getting me all set up again. But, I got a phone call on Friday and was unable to get it off speaker phone (luckily the guy called back after I hung up on him), and the brightness keeps turning itself down (why is there not an 'old' setting that just leaves everything bright and silent for me?).
   

Three Goals for this week/month/whatever:

1. Make the cookies referenced above, duh. I went down to the kitchen first thing this morning and got the butter and eggs out to be room temperature when I start (cuz baking is science). 
2. Keep working on my home office. There's a full bag of trash leaving at the door! Go, me!
3. Start cross-stitching! I'm following a couple cross-stitch pages on Facebook and feeling inspired. I was always pretty good at it, and look forward to doing it again.