tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60389310302641588282024-03-05T22:59:33.327-08:00An Antisocial ButterflyAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.comBlogger164125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-12584731714591626702019-01-01T19:42:00.001-08:002019-01-01T19:42:55.635-08:0019 Books in 2019It's still here. My blog, I mean. I haven't been here in so long myself, I wasn't sure. <br />
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For 5 years, starting in 2014, I've hosted a FB group for people to post/review books they read throughout the year. You can read <a href="https://anantisocialbutterfly.blogspot.com/2014/01/14-books-in-2014.html">the original post here</a>. My goal has always been to at least hit the number of the last two digits of the year. Last year was the only year I haven't made it so far. I'm proud to say I not only made it to 18 this year, I surpassed it by 11 books.<br />
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So let's get to it. Here is my list from 2018.<br />
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1.<i> This Is How It Always Is</i> by Laurie Frankel<br />
2.<i> Iced</i> by Robert Grindy<br />
3.<i> Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk</i> by Kathleen Rooney<br />
4.<i> Artemis</i> by Andy Weir<br />
5.<i> Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstances</i> by Ruth Emmie Lang<br />
6.<i> In the Woods</i> by Tana French<br />
7.<i> The Likeness</i> by Tana French<br />
8.<i> The Girls in the Picture</i> by Melanie Benjamin<br />
9.<i> Everything Here Is Beautiful</i> by Mira T. Lee<br />
10.<i> Tangerine</i> by Christine Mangan<br />
11.<i> A is for Alibi</i> by Sue Grafton<br />
12.<i> One Shot at Forever</i> by Chris Ballard<br />
13.<i> Cocoa Beach</i> by Beatriz Williams<br />
14.<i> The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society</i> by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows<br />
15.<i> The Lying Game</i> by Ruth Ware<br />
16.<i> The Outsider</i> by Stephen King<br />
17.<i> The Great Alone</i> by Kristin Hannah<br />
18.<i> The Immortalists</i> by Chloe Benjamin<br />
19.<i> The Woman in the Window</i> by A.J. Finn<br />
20.<i> On Turpentine Lane</i> by Elinor Lipman<br />
21.<i> The Couple Next Door</i> by Shari Lapena<br />
22.<i> Where'd You Go, Bernadette?</i> by Maria Semple<br />
23.<i> You Will Know Me</i> by Megan Abbott<br />
24.<i> The Death of Mrs. Westaway</i> by Ruth Ware<br />
25.<i> Crazy, Rich Asians</i> by Kevin Kwan<br />
26.<i> There There</i> by Tommy Orange<br />
27.<i> Tribe</i> by Sebastian Junger<br />
28.<i> Elevation</i> by Stephen King<br />
29.<i> Lethal White</i> by Robert Galbraith<br />
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29 for the year, 27 fiction, 2 nonfiction <br />
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9 Recurring Authors: Andy Weir, Melanie Benjamin, Sue Grafton, Beatriz Williams, Ruth Ware, Stephen King, Kristin Hannah, Elinor Lipman, Robert Galbraith<br />
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21 Never Read Before Authors (yes, I did the math - two authors for <i>Guernsey)</i>: Laurie Frankel, Robert Grindy, Kathleen Rooney, Ruth Emmie Lang, Tana French, Mira T. Lee, Christine Mangan, Chris Ballard, Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows, Chloe Benjamin, A.J. Finn, Shari Lapena, Maria Semple, Megan Abbott, Kevin Kwan, Tommy Orange, and Sebastian Junger<br />
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Books with Movie or T.V. Tie-Ins (At Least That I'm Aware Of ) :<i> The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society</i> (Bravo, Netflix! Well done!) and <i>Where'd You Go Bernadette?</i><br />
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And now for the best part...the made-up awards! There are some repeat awards and naturally, some new ones included this year.<br />
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First up: the new awards:<br />
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The "First Time I Ever Counted a Previously Read Book On My List" Award goes to... Sue Grafton. <br />
If you read <a href="https://anantisocialbutterfly.blogspot.com/2018/01/18-books-in-2018.html">my post from last year</a>, you'll see my explanation about how Grafton's death affected my dismal total last year. I had to go back to where it all started to get some closure.<br />
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The "Welcome Back (It's About Damn Time)" Award...<i>Lethal White</i><br />
The wait felt like forever.<br />
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The "This Writer's Still Got It" Award... Stephen King<br />
Honestly, what other writer do you know who can span decades and still keep you captivated whether it's a 1000 plus page tome (<i>The Outsider)</i> or a quickie (<i>Elevation)</i>? Not many.<br />
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The "I Could Hear the Soundtrack Playing and It Sounded Like a Hitchcock Movie" Award goes to...<i>Tangerine</i><br />
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The "Blew Me Away Debut" goes to...Tommy Orange<br />
<i>There There</i> put him on the map. Can't wait to see where his career goes.<br />
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Now for some repeat awards...<br />
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And the "I've Read Everything This Author Has Written" Award goes again to...Melanie Benjamin, but also Elinor Lipman, Sue Grafton, and Tommy Orange too, I guess<br />
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"Best New Author Find" goes to... Tommy Orange. He's a multiple award winner this year. What do you know?<br />
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The "Made Me Cry" Award...<i>One Shot at Forever</i> <br />
Sometimes nonfiction has a way of doing that because you know it's true.<br />
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The "Page Turner" Award...<i>The Outsider, Elevation, Lethal White,</i> and<i> On Turpentine Lane</i><br />
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And my favorite, the "Stayed With Me Longest in an Unsettling but Fascinating Way" goes to...<i>There There</i> by, you guessed it, Tommy Orange<br />
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There you have it. Feel free to join us over at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/218375705020417/?ref=bookmarks">19 Books in 2019 on Facebook</a>. Hope to see you there.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-3905062075383170352018-09-03T16:59:00.002-07:002018-09-03T16:59:30.407-07:00August Reading ReceiptI'm actually quite impressed with myself as I look back at the number of books I read in August this year. August is one of my least favorite months (along with April, so cruel) because it is so stressful with going back to school and the heat and going back to school in the heat with no air conditioning...and usually my number of books suffers because of it.<br />
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Long story short, I read four books this month, just like I did in June and July.<br />
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I picked up a paperback copy of<i> Where'd You Go, Bernadette?</i> by Maria Semple for 50 cents almost a full year ago at our local Friends of the Library sale last Labor Day. I was between library requests and grabbed it off the shelf it had been sitting on. Wow. What was I waiting for? Loved this. I really identified with the misanthropic title character and enjoyed her daughter's character so much. I've got to check out Semple's other stuff now.<br />
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Apparently I was still waiting on the library because I read<i> You Will Know Me</i> by Megan Abott next. I had bought this for Kindle when it was on sale for a couple of bucks quite some time ago. This was set in the world of competitive gymnastics with the main characters being an Olympic hopeful and her family. I honestly didn't like any of the main or minor characters in this book except the little brother who was virtually neglected throughout the story due to the parents focus on the gymnast, but the story was a good one in that it moved forward and kept me engaged. <br />
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Finally the library did come through for me, but it wasn't the best timing. I had put in a request for Ruth Ware's newest,<i> The Death of Mrs. Westaway</i>, back in June. It showed up for me in August the week before I went back to teaching. I still finished it quickly because it was so riveting. I've said it before, but every time I read a Ruth Ware book, I like it better than the one before. This held true for<i> Mrs. Westaway</i> as well. This one had a premise I could hold onto and a protagonist I empathized with. So good.<br />
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I was surprised to get<i> Crazy Rich Asians</i> from the library so quickly (within a week of the request!) because of the movie coming out and the fact that it has been a huge hit. It was interesting to look at the whole world of unimaginable wealth, but I felt that the story that it centered on, the romance between everyday Rachel and super rich Nick, had characters that weren't that well-defined. This was most definitely enjoyable though. My daughter and I plan to get to the movie ASAP. <br />
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Speaking of movies, it seems only appropriate to mention in this post that the Netflix original movie<i> The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society</i> premiered in August, and while it wasn't perfect, it was pretty damn good and wonderfully cast. Two thumbs up to this adaptation!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-27833456598867655662018-08-05T09:22:00.001-07:002018-08-05T09:22:39.963-07:00July Reading ReceiptThis month is a personal best for 2018 - 5 books read in July!<br />
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I was surprised that I got<i> The Great Alone</i> from my library as quickly as I did since I was seeing it everywhere on the internet and Kristin Hannah is pretty popular these days. Not even 5 days after putting in a request, I got the email saying they were holding it for me. Yay! It was very compelling which meant it was read quickly. The only other book I've read by Hannah is<i> The Nightingale</i>. At first I was thinking how different these two books are (<i>Nightingale</i> set in France during WWII,<i> Alone</i> in Alaska in the 70's), but realized a day or two after finishing the second, they also had a lot in common - the effects of war on families, what people will do to survive). I intend to read more of Hannah's books (I even have one I bought for 50 cents over a year ago at our library's annual sale), but for now I can wholeheartedly recommend what I have read from her so far. (Somehow I forgot to take a pic of<i> The Great Alone,</i> maybe because it was a new release and had to be back at the library so fast. So here's a 4th of July picture I love that was taken during the week I was reading it. Ha!)<br />
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I also got<i> The Immortalists</i> by Chloe Benjamin from the library quickly. Four siblings go to a mysterious woman they hear about who can tell you the day you will die. As you might guess, most of them are not happy with what they hear. Parts of this really worked for me, especially the youngest who dies at the youngest age and the oldest who lives the longest, and I really liked the exploration of the idea of whether or not knowing how long you have to live changes the way you live. The story line of the two middle siblings dragged a bit for me, and I never felt the fortune teller piece of the story got developed enough or resolved.</div>
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As I've mentioned many times, I do Book of the Month Club (BOTM). Sometimes a selection will appeal to me enough to order (I like that you can skip months with no obligation), but I don't have time to read them when they arrive.<i> The Woman in the Window</i> was a BOTM selection I didn't order, probably because many people were likening it to Hitchcock's<i> Rear Window</i>, which is my favorite Hitchcock movie, hands down. I thought it might be a cheesy, unoriginal knockoff. But I kept seeing people whose opinions I respect write that they loved it, so onto my library request list it went. I wish I hadn't let the comparisons to<i> Rear Window</i> deter me because I really enjoyed this as a suspense/thriller. It was fast-paced and had a number of good twists that didn't feel like they were thrown in there to conveniently resolve the story.<br />
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Somehow I missed that Elinor Lipman released a new book last year. When I saw someone I follow on FB mention how much she enjoyed<i> On Turpentine Lane</i>, I immediately got online to request it. It was sitting right there on the shelf, my library request showed me. I've always felt like Lipman deserves a bigger following than she has as her books always have delightful, real characters who find themselves in believable but somehow unlikely situations. The woman can<i> WRITE.</i> Unfortunately, I've read everything of hers now once again and will have to wait for something new.<br />
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My last book for July was actually finished on August 1st at 12:55 A.M., but since 99.9% of it was read technically in July, I'm gonna go ahead and count it, mmmmkay?<i> The Couple Next Door</i> by Shari Lipman was one of those aforementioned BOTM club picks I ordered but didn't have time to read. Having been pleasantly surprised by<i> The Woman in the Window</i>, I wasn't optimistic that another suspense/thriller was going to work, but it did! This was a page-turner that kept me reading past when I should have gone to bed. I didn't<i> love</i> it, but I liked it very much and would recommend to anyone looking for this type of book.<br />
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Oh, I also surpassed my 18 books for 2018 this month. Here's to seeing how many more before the New Year!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-64904385122627505702018-07-05T12:57:00.000-07:002018-07-05T12:57:34.166-07:00June Reading ReceiptWhat's this? I'm actually getting this done in a somewhat timely manner? That's what happens when you have seven days a week off work instead of two, I guess. <br />
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You also have time to read more books. Four, to be exact. This month I can recommend three out four with no reservations.<br />
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First in June was<i> Cocoa Beach</i> by Beatriz Williams. This was the one I was kind of lukewarm about this month. I had read<i> </i>the very enjoyable <i>Tiny Little Thing</i> by Williams two years ago, so I bought<i> Cocoa Beach</i> when it was on sale for Kindle a ways back. This dragged for me, and I didn't care for the ending, although I did feel compelled to finish it to see who was lying. <br />
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Another amazing Kindle deal was <i>The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society</i> by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. What a treat this book was! Why don't people write letters anymore? Never mind, I know why. But this book made me long for a time when people did. This story is told entirely (very nearly) through letters. It is a love story but also a history lesson about the German occupation of Guernsey (which I knew nothing about). Loved it. LOVED. IT. It's been brought to my attention that this has been turned into a movie for Netflix (to release soon). My hopes aren't high because I think it would be the<i> perfect</i> fit for a mini-series instead of a movie, but I'll watch it regardless.<br />
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Next was<i> The Lying Game</i> by Ruth Ware.<i> The Woman in Cabin 10</i> was my BOTM club introduction to Ruth Ware last year. I liked it, but I read her previous release<i> In a Dark, Dark Wood</i> after<i> Woman</i> and enjoyed it even more. I also got<i> The Lying Game</i> through BOTM several months back, but I didn't hear much buzz about it and wondered if it would be as good. I was pleasantly surprised to find it to be my favorite of Ware's so far. I'm on the waiting list at the library to read her latest.<br />
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Speaking of library waiting lists, I put Stephen King's<i> The Outsider</i> on my list at the library after it was released and was happy that I didn't even have to wait two weeks to have my turn. This was Classic King that I slipped into like a pair of perfectly fit jeans. This is the first time I've read a NEW release by King right when it came out (last year I read 11/22/63) since<i> Doctor Sleep</i> was released. I've forgotten how much fun that is. Is it weird that a horror novel is fun? Never mind, I know the answer to that too.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-29000212064832571562018-06-11T21:39:00.001-07:002018-06-11T21:39:27.011-07:00April/May Reading ReceiptsWhy, yes, I am behind on this again. Thanks for noticing. Here's what I read in April and May, along with a few personal highlights.<br />
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In April I read Melanie Benjamin's latest historical fiction,<i> The Girls in the Picture</i>. I'm not sure if it was a coincidence, but with all the #metoo stories coming out of Hollywood, this story was really timely and interesting. It focused on the lives of silent movie star, Mary Pickford and her screenwriting bestie, Frances Marion. There were supporting roles from Charlie Chaplin, Rudolph Valentino, and Douglas Fairbanks, but what these two women did in their day and age really and how they accomplished it, was extraordinary. I haven't read a Melanie Benjamin book that I didn't like yet.<br />
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My other book for April was<i> Everything Here is Beautiful</i> by Mira T. Lee. This story showed how one person's mental illness affected everyone around here, and although this was some heavy subject matter, this book read like a dream.<br />
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April was busy. It's one of those months that just about sucks me under every year, it seems. It started with Easter, took a detour to winter, involved a choir trip for the boy and my husband, and ended with nice weather, a concert dream fulfilled, and hatching chickens. Looking back, I'm amazed I read two books.<br />
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In May, I can often see the light at the end of the tunnel with the school year ending and start to believe I'm going to make it. My first book for the month was<i> Tangerine</i> by Christine Mangan. This was taut and suspenseful, different from a lot of things I've read this year.<br />
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I don't normally count re-reads for my yearly count, but I'm going to this year because it's my party. And this re-read was significant. As you know if you're a reader, Sue Grafton passed away this year, This was a bitter pill to swallow as she was just one letter short of finishing her alphabet mystery series (which I've mentioned several times that I was hoping she would find a way to continue even after the letter Z). I felt the need to go back to where it all began and re-read<i> A is for Alibi</i>. And just like always, it was like meeting an old friend for lunch. <br />
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Last in May (I finished it on the 31st) was<i> One Shot at Forever</i> by Chris Ballard. I'm usually not a sports reader even though I love baseball and am somewhat knowledgable about it. This was an exception as it was a nonfiction account of a high school baseball's team run for the state championship. Said high school team was from a small town just five minutes south of me. This really hit me right in the feels, as I felt like I knew these small town farm boys who were very much like the ones I grew up with and it was a great underdog story, the kind of which I am always a sucker for.<br />
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May brought with it a wonderful Mother's Day, the boy's 13th (whaaaaat?) birthday, my twin niece and nephew's graduation from high school (again, whaaaat?), lots of dance recital rehearsal hooopty do, the end of my school year, and some strawberries. All in all, May ended well.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-50471033309515901622018-04-15T09:57:00.001-07:002018-04-16T16:47:17.603-07:00February/March Reading ReceiptI decided to put these two months together because:<br />
A) I didn't read very much in February and<br />
2) I was too<strike> lazy</strike> busy to get the post up that month.<br />
Also - the Cubs game for today was cancelled due to the Winter That Didn't Want to End, and so I decided I actually do have time for a post today.<br />
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There. We're done with that.<br />
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I'm also going to add a few personal highlights from these months because I feel like I never have time to do that anymore. I miss it. If there's going to be no baseball today, I might as well make this post worth it.<br />
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In February, I read<i> Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance</i> by Ruth Emmie Long. This has such an ominous, wonderful beginning. It was really one of the best beginnings I've read in quite some time. Although I ended up liking this book, I didn't feel like it lived up to that beginning, which honestly would have been hard to do. It did have what I felt like was a very touching, somewhat unconventional love story to compliment its supernatural vibe.<br />
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Just a couple of other highlights from my month of February:<br />
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We took our kids and our niece to Comic Con for the first time. They<i> loved</i> it. The tickets were my daughter's big Christmas present. Of course, my husband and kids both had the stomach flu a couple of days before the weekend we were supposed to go, so I was afraid we wouldn't make it. But we did, and I'm so glad.<br />
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We had our Valentine's Breakfast the weekend before the 14th, since it is never fun to have a holiday breakfast on a school day when you eat in about 10 minutes. I've been doing this for years. I love it.<br />
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I also started my first Tana French book in February,<i> In the Woods</i> but finished it in March. Several people on the internet and IRL recommended French's Dublin Murder Squad series, so when the third one was on super sale for Kindle, I snatched it up. I didn't feel right about reading the third one first, even though said people told me it didn't matter what order you read them in. So it sat there, unread, until the<i> first</i> one showed up for super sale on Kindle. What can I say? I like to read things in order. And even though I've now read two of her books (although still not the third one that I bought first), and I see that it doesn't matter what order you read them in, I'm still glad I read them in order. All this to get to the point, I really like French's books. If you're a mystery/suspense fan, you'll be pleased.<br />
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I swear I'm really not an OCD type personality (you need only to look at my house to realize this), but I read French's second Dublin Murder Squad book,<i> The Likeness</i>, next. So yes, I still haven't read the third one which I purchased first. I did like this book as well. I felt like the premise was original, but I also felt like it was a tad long. French does not rush a story along, which I have no problem with, but I found myself a little antsy for some action a few times along the way. <br />
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March highlights were:<br />
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The girl's 15th birthday fell on the weekend of her first high school musical performance. The musical was Sister Act, in case you're wondering about her costume. Wait, did I say 15? Yeah, 15. What in the world.<br />
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We also had a St. Patrick's Day Breakfast this year. I lucked out that it fell on the weekend this year, plus I had a day off the day before. I've always done this breakfast as well even though I only found out a few years ago that I am, in fact, a quarter Irish. You can read <a href="http://anantisocialbutterfly.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-dna-of-my-story.html">this post</a> to find out all about how I know how Irish I am. <br />
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There's what you need to know for February and March. Or at the very least, what I have time to tell you.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-17973572309709890272018-01-31T19:09:00.001-08:002018-02-15T14:04:23.920-08:00January Reading ReceiptWelcome to 2018's first monthly reading receipt! I'm pretty happy with my total of 4 books this month. Here they are without further ado.<br />
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<i>This is How It Always Is</i> by Laurie Frankel<br />
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This fictional account of a couple and their five children is absorbing. The parents and the children grapple with some serious issues and become involved in keeping a secret for one family member. It would be easy to say, "This is a book about (insert issue here)", but it's ultimately a book about the excruciating pressure of getting it all wrong as a parent.<br />
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<i>Iced</i> by Robert Grindy<br />
Full disclosure, I actually know the author of this one. His son was in my class for second and third grade, so that's part of the reason I read it. I'm glad I picked it up. I've been very disappointed with some local authors in the past, but there was no letdown here. A community college professor, Henry Streator, is cynical when a slacker student tells him about his idea for a book in which a local billionaire is murdered in a somewhat bizarre fashion. When the student turns up dead, Streator gets to thinking that maybe he could make a go at the student's idea himself. He finds himself caring about something for the first time in a very long time as he launches into writing his first novel. Things become a bit more complicated when the local billionaire actually winds up dead in exactly the same way the now deceased student described. I really enjoyed how the amateur detective got almost everything wrong but still came across as someone I was rooting for. <br />
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<i>Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk</i> by Kathleen Rooney<br />
85 year old Lillian sets out on a walk in her New York City neighborhood on New Year's Eve 1984. We are treated to the story of her life during this walk. I did not know that this was loosely based on a real person as I was reading it.<br />
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<i>Artemis</i> by Andy Weir<br />
Sometimes I like science fiction, and sometimes I do not. I can say that so far, I always like Andy Weir. His new novel is set on the moon with a female protagonist. I really enjoyed this one.<br />
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That's it for January!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-3149154895188611072018-01-01T10:52:00.001-08:002018-01-01T11:10:27.260-08:0018 Books in 2018Some years are better than others.<br />
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This is the first year since starting my book group <a href="http://anantisocialbutterfly.blogspot.com/2014/01/14-books-in-2014.html">14 Books in 2014</a>, that I haven't made the goal. I'd surpassed my goal in 2014, '15, and '16 with no problem. I came close this year, and I surely had time. <br />
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Here's what I think happened. There were a couple of books I was really looking forward to reading this year. One was<i> Y is for Yesterday</i> by Sue Grafton. The other was the new Cormoran Strike mystery by Robert Galbraith, aka J.K. Rowling. Galbraith's book did not come out this year and they have yet to announce a publication date. I am one of those people who are made truly happy when a new book comes out from an author whose writing I love.<br />
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I did read<i> Y is for Yesterday</i> as soon as it came out, and man, did I love it. It was actually the last book I read in 2017. In case you haven't heard, the great Sue Grafton passed away just before the new year, so there will be no more books by her, including the last letter, which was to be entitled<i> Z is for Zero</i>. This makes me sad in a way only a true book series lover can understand. I started reading Grafton's alphabet series when I was 24 at a very different time of my life. At 47, she was still with me. In a way, I feel like I've known Kinsey Millhone for 23 years. Maybe that's because, in a way I have. <br />
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After I read<i> Y,</i> I just couldn't get motivated to read something I wasn't looking forward to as much. I kept hoping that Galbraith's next book, rumored to be called<i> Lethal White</i>, would be released, as I knew I would jump at the opportunity to read it. But it didn't, and nothing else was calling to me as<i> Y is for Yesterday</i> did. I was lazy. I was unmotivated. I was busy. I was greedy for that feeling of anticipation. I just couldn't work up the gumption to get going again. I had several books laying around, accusing me of sloth but for some reason, that just made me resist more. Reading Sue Grafton is such a pleasure that it made everything else seem like work. <br />
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It's a new year, though, and I feel I must press on. Surely Galbraith/Rowling will release that book this year. And I just looked and saw that Melanie Benjamin has a new release coming out this month. So today, though I'm not one much for resolutions, I will begin anew. So without further ado, here's a look back at 2017's books.<br />
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1.<i> Chronicles Volume One</i> by Bob Dylan<br />
2.<i> Seating Arrangements</i> by Maggie Shipstead<br />
3.<i> The Second Mrs. Hockaday</i> by Susan Rivers<br />
4.<i> 11/22/63</i> by Stephen King<br />
5.<i> Into the Water</i> by Paula Hawkins<br />
6.<i> The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo</i> by Taylor Jenkins Reid<br />
7.<i> The Woman in Cabin 10</i> by Ruth Ware<br />
8.<i> My Cousin Rachel</i> by Daphne Du Maurier<br />
9.<i> Sleeping Giants</i> by Sylvain Neuval<br />
10.<i> In a Dark, Dark Wood</i> by Ruth Ware<br />
11.<i> Every Last Lie</i> by Mary Kubica<br />
12.<i> Final Girls</i> by Riley Sager<br />
13.<i> The Hate U Give</i> by Angie Thomas<br />
14.<i> Loving Frank</i> by Nancy Horan<br />
15.<i> Y is for Yesterday</i> by Sue Grafton<br />
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15 total for the year... only one nonfiction, 14 fiction (<i>Loving Frank</i> is historical fiction, based on the life of Frank Lloyd Wright. I counted it as fiction since it is the imagined narrative of his lover.) I was scary weak on nonfiction this year.<br />
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6 Recurring Authors: Maggie Shipstead, Stephen King, Paula Hawkins, Daphne Du Maurier, Mary Kubica, Sue Grafton<br />
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9 Never Read Before Read Authors: Bob Dylan (only if you count actual books), Susan Rivers, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Ruth Ware, Sylvain Neuval, Riley Sager, Angie Thomas, Nancy Horan<br />
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Books with Movie or Television Tie-Ins: 11/22/63 (This is a series on Hulu. I didn't make it past the second episode. Sorry, James Franco.), My Cousin Rachel (I totally wanted to see this movie, but it only had a very short run at a local theater, which I missed. Note to self: Check Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu for this!)<br />
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Time for the awards. These are always fun as I make up whatever category I want each year. <br />
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And the awards go to...<br />
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"Best Discovery for Suspense Writer" Award goes to...Susan Rivers and Ruth Ware<br />
Check out<i> The Second Mrs. Hockaday</i>. It's a good one. It seems that I, along with everyone else, also discovered Ruth Ware this summer.<br />
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The "I Don't Want to Read This Because It's Supposed to Be Controversial, But That's Exactly Why You Should Read It" Award goes to...<i>The Hate U Give</i><br />
I had seen a lot of buzz about this on the internet. It's controversial because it involves the Black Lives Matter movement. Sometimes a book that is touted as being provocative can turn me off. No matter how you feel about this issue, this should be something you read. Three pages into reading this at Barnes and Noble told me I had to read it. Thomas is such a young talent as well. <br />
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"Most Out of my Element but Surprisingly Enjoyable"...<i>Sleeping Giants</i><br />
Sci Fi isn't really my jam, but this synopsis from Book of the Month drew me in and made me select it. Glad I did, as I had a couple of other disappointments from Book of the Month this year. Which brings us to...<br />
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The "Rotten Tomatoes" Award... It's a tie.<i> The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo</i> and<i> Final Girls</i> were both bombs from Book of the Month for me. You<i> do</i> get a five book choice with Book of the Month, so it's as much my fault as theirs, but I really didn't enjoy either of these. So-so writing and contrived endings abound... (I did get several from Book of the Month that were winners this year:<i> The Woman in Cabin 10, Sleeping Giants,</i> and<i> Into the Water.)</i><br />
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Some repeat awards...<br />
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Best Author Find...Ruth Ware<br />
I would definitely check out anything new by this author. I have her newest laying around and need to get to it.<br />
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The "Stayed With Me the Longest in an Unsettling but Fascinating Way" Award goes to...<i>Loving Frank</i>.<br />
I did not know the horrific way this story would end. Knowing that it was true just made it more unsettling. BTW, this is the first year that Margaret Atwood did not win this award. But that's probably only because I didn't read anything by her this year.<br />
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The "Made Me Cry" Award...<i>Every Last Lie</i><br />
Don't judge. It really isn't a tearjerker, and I only teared up a little bit at the beginning. It was something about the premise of the wife with a newborn baby boy and toddler girl being widowed in the beginning that was a little too much for me. What I like about Kubica's brand of suspense is there is not a psycho, mastermind genius behind everything. Every day people are at the core.<br />
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And last, but never least - The "Page Turner" Award goes to...Sue Grafton. But of course.<br />
The irony here is that as much as I wanted to devour this book, I forced myself to savor it because I knew it the next would be a long time coming. Now it is not to be. Glad I took my time with it now.<br />
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If you are interested, check out the FB page for my book group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/218375705020417/">18 Books in 2018</a>. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some reading I need to get to.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-71033774082809282452017-08-02T20:44:00.000-07:002017-08-02T20:44:48.801-07:00What's Up, Wednesday?Just a little of this and that going on this week. Here's what.<br />
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Dinner and music - a night out for us to eat dinner and see our favorite band, joined by our neighbors.<br />
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A cosplay event at Barnes and Noble for the girl and her friend - she inherited my Fan Girl tendencies. She's in the middle with the black wig.<br />
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Some special flowers at the Farmer's Market - these were my grandmother's favorites. Her birthday was in July and I used to send them to her every year. These have been blooming on my table all week.<br />
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A little classroom work - You might as well put the whole crew to work when you can. It's coming together. Some Before, During, and After pics for your perusal.<br />
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DURING</div>
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AFTER</div>
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Still some work to be done, but we'll get there!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-2041967419713261992017-08-01T20:34:00.000-07:002017-08-01T20:34:28.436-07:00July Reading ReceiptMuch productivity in the "Getting The Books Read" department this month. Here's what I read in July:<br />
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(Also related: I am loving my new letter board and letter kit.)<br />
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#1 <i>Sleeping Giants </i>by Sylvain Neuvel<br />
This was a BOTM selection awhile back, but I passed on it for something else even though I thought the synopsis was intriguing. Parts of a giant robot are found all over the world. Who buried them there 6000 years ago and why? It was later on Super Sale for Kindle, so I grabbed it then. I'm not a blanket sci-fi lover, but if there's a good story with likable characters I enjoy it regardless of genre. This is told in transcripts of interviews and reports. Strangely, my favorite character was the interviewer who wasn't really a part of the action for most of the story. I'm pretty sure this is the first in a series. I'll be reading the next one, so that should tell you something right there.<br />
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#2 <i>In a Dark, Dark Wood </i>by Ruth Ware<br />
After finishing <i>The Woman in Cabin 10</i> ( a BOTM selection I did go for), I realized that I'd had another of her books around for months. I liked this one even better than<i> Cabin 10</i>. I'll also be adding Ware's newest book onto my BOTM selection this month.<br />
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#3 <i>Every Last Lie</i> by Mary Kubica<br />
I went on the waiting list for this at the library before it was even published, so I got it pretty quick when it did finally come out this month. I've liked all of Kubica's books, but this one is my favorite so far. I appreciate that she can evoke tension without any fantastical plot twists. You're on the edge of your seat without feeling like she's trying to pull a fast one on you. When you find out all the answers in Kubica thriller, the explanations are very human. I appreciate that more than anything.<br />
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#4 <i>Final Girls </i>by Riley Sager<br />
BOTM last month and to wit, I felt like this author (Riley Sager is the pen name of a previously published unnamed author) did pull a fast one on me - a cheap, fast one to be exact. This story had me for a bit, then completely lost me with what I felt was a contrived twist. When it's just for shock value, I feel like I've been conned.<br />
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#5 <i>The Hate U Give </i>by Angie Thomas<br />
I will say this deals with the very controversial subject of a racially motivated shooting by the police. Did it make me uncomfortable? Yes. Did I agree with everything in it? No. Did I agree with some of it? Yes.<i><b> Did it I think about it when I wasn't reading it and after I was finished with it? Oh, hell yes.</b></i> And isn't that what great writing is supposed to do? Subject matter aside for a second, this author brought characters to life who jumped off the page for me in a story that grabs you by the lapels and doesn't let go. And the dialogue was the best I've read in some time. She's very talented and has a long promising career ahead of her. Read it.<br />
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<i></i><i></i>One last thing - this month we went on vacation in Wisconsin and made a stop at Boswell Book Company. They slipped this bookmark in with my purchase. I love it very much.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-40111666833288335502017-07-26T21:38:00.001-07:002017-07-26T21:38:29.465-07:00What's Up, Wednesday?I skipped a week because there's just a lot of summer stuff going on around here like movies,<br />
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the new season of Game of Thrones,<br />
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and lots of Cubs baseball. There have been a few brief moments when we've led the NL Central in the last couple of weeks. I'll totally take those.<br />
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What else? Things are getting a little out of hand in the "Back to School" chair. The girl and I also gave my classroom clipboards a much-needed facelift.<br />
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BEFORE</div>
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Also, I won a Carly online in a FB Lula Roe group. I've never bought one before, but of course I've seen countless teachers wearing them. I didn't get to pick it out, but if I had it probably would have been this purple flowered number. <br />
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After getting home from vacation two weeks ago, neither of us felt like cooking. That meant a lot of last minute pizza, mac and cheese, and Ramen noodles last week. This week I've been getting back into squirrel mode in preparation of all those crazy back to school nights that are coming up. A huge batch of spaghetti sauce was made and the extra was frozen into four meals this week along with a couple of lasagnas and meat loaves. One thing I discovered a few years ago is that it's really not that much more work to make extra when you're cooking and freeze it for later.<br />
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My husband really appreciates that lady he calls "Summer Wife" and what she has done for us on those tired, busy, hangry school nights. My husband does at least half of the cooking around here, but he loves Summer Wife because she cooks all these meals for us that just have to be thawed out and served with bread or something equally simple. I love her too. She'll be around for a little over two weeks more and then School Year Wife steps in and takes over. He loves her too, but she's not as much fun. She does have her moments though.<br />
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-69938370094551247652017-07-12T21:08:00.005-07:002017-07-12T21:27:57.319-07:00What's Up, Wednesday?It's vaaaaaaaacation time this week. We got home yesterday and my husband is off for the rest of the week! We are going to spend the rest of the week doing all the decadent and time wasting things, like seeing Wonder Woman, War for the Planet of the Apes, and binge watching the last season of Game of Thrones before the premiere this Sunday. I'm pretty sure the Universe wants me to be happy this week.<br>
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We started our vacation on Sunday by getting up early and heading to Wrigley Field for the Cubs game.<br>
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They lost spectacularly, but hey, it was still Wrigley Field. Somebody posted something on social media the other day that went something like, "Hang in there, Cub Fans," and I told my husband, "Hang in there? I waited 47 years to see them win the World Series. They are the reigning World Champions. That's something that a lot of Cub Fans didn't get to see in their lifetime, my grandfather among them. Don't you worry about me. I'm good for at<b> <i>least </i></b>another 47." <br>
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From Chicago, we drove to Racine, Wisconsin. If you've ever been to Racine (or most places in Wisconsin), then you know about Kringle. If you haven't been there, then you are missing out because my Scandinavian ancestors knew their pastries...pastries and boat building. We chose Racine for North Beach and its proximity to Milwaukee. And, of course, the Kringle.<br>
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We drove into Milwaukee one night. Here's the thing I told my husband I remembered about Milwaukee: You can find lots of places to park and walk around. It really doesn't feel like a "big" city. I'm pleased to report that 23 years later, that's still what it feels like. We ate at Sobelman's Pub and Grill, hit Boswell Book Company (amazing place I could frequent every day if I still lived there), walked the Riverwalk, ate some rolled ice cream (Have you seen this new thing?), posed with the Fonz, and visited my old apartment building.<br>
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This last activity brought on a huge wave of the feels that, quite honestly, smacked me upside the head when I wasn't expecting it. I moved to Milwaukee when I was 24 to train for a teaching job and get my Master's degree. Seeing that tiny efficiency apartment building (and the neighborhood around it, which is quite happening now, by the way) really brought back that moment in time for me. Compared to other years, it wasn't a particularly happy time in my life, but it was something I was determined to do. I really had to figure out what I wanted that year in some ways. And I find myself thinking now that you can actually be happy without knowing you are happy if you have a purpose and a challenge to rise to. Suffice to say, I'm really proud now of that 24 year old kid. She didn't back down when life sucker punched her.<br>
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Moving on.<br>
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We also had to get cheese because, Wisconsin. <br>
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And we visited the Jelly Belly Center in Pleasant Prairie on the way home. I am always amazed by the work and planning and details it takes to make one thing, like the Jelly Belly. From the thousands of tiny molds they pour those things into to the airbrushing of the logo onto each bean, all the hard work that goes into one tiny bean is pretty astonishing to me. I start thinking, "All this work...why didn't they just give up?" But persistence and tenacity are both qualities I respect. After all, I'm pretty sure that's how that kid made it through that year in Milwaukee. The almond Kringle also helped.<br>
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<br>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-15795461362048293032017-07-05T16:49:00.000-07:002017-07-05T16:49:39.205-07:00What's Up, Wednesday?Earlier in the week on Friday, we went to a new restaurant in the area we've been wanting to try because both of the kids were at sleepovers. It was a former church that they've remodeled into a brewery. Dan had the pork chop, and I had a burger and fries. It is my personal belief you can tell the quality of a restaurant by their burger and fries. If they can't get that right, it's hard to believe they'll be able to do anything else. My burger was really good, but those fries were on point.<br />
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It's odd when a national holiday falls on a Tuesday. Several times today, I've thought that today is Monday because my husband had yesterday off for the 4th and was home. We had already celebrated the 4th on Sunday because the country club behind our house did their fireworks on Sunday night. We let my daughter invite her class for a cookout, swimming, and fireworks. My son also got to have a friend. I've decided that throwing a party for a bunch of squirrely teenagers is the way to go for the 4th because they truly know how to have fun and enjoy the holiday. They played pool volleyball, watched the fireworks, and made and ate lot o' s'mores. It was great.<br />
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So on the actual 4th, we just lazed around, watched the Cubs play, and grilled steaks and watched the rest of <i>Stranger Things </i>on Netflix. That made today feel like Monday after a really short weekend instead of a Wednesday. I'm just impressed that I remembered to do this post. I'll get back on track eventually, and if I don't, oh well. It's summer.<br />
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. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-74897883238195521212017-07-01T20:41:00.001-07:002017-07-01T20:41:02.313-07:00June Reading ReceiptIt's been awhile, but I'm back with my monthly reading receipt. I read 5 books in June, getting the fifth one in just under the wire on the 30th. Here's the list:<br />
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<i>11/22/63</i> by Stephen King<br />
It's been a long time since I read an epic tome by King, but I used to read them all the time (just about every time he came out with a new one). But in the last five years I've read <i>Doctor Sleep</i> (which I looooved so much) and a collection of his novellas,<i> Full Dark, No Stars</i> and that's about it. I don't feel like either of those was the commitment that <i>11/22/63</i> is. We're talking <i>Insomnia </i>length here. I'm glad I did though. It was just like old times. Very few writers have the power to transport me like King.<br />
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<i>Into the Water</i> by Paula Hawkins<br />
After the success of <i>The Girl on the Train</i>, this one got quite a bit of hype before it came out. I liked the different narratives in this and the way it spanned many stories of the women in the town and the river. <br />
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<i>The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo </i>by Taylor Jenkins Reid<br />
This was my selection from Book of the Month. I didn't love it. It was an easy enough read, though.<br />
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<i>The Woman in Cabin 10</i> by Ruth Ware<br />
This I enjoyed very much. It was a taut mystery that kept me interested. I was a little disappointed that the big event in the beginning of the book wasn't really linked at all to the mystery at hand. I was waiting for a big "a-ha" as to how the two were connected. Never got it. That may have been my own fault, as I was making a presumption, but I think it was a fairly logical leap to make.<br />
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<i>My Cousin Rachel </i>by Daphne Du Maurier<br />
If you read my blog or belong to my FB book club, you already know that I loved <i>Rebecca </i>by Du Maurier. So it will be no surprise that I loved this as well. It made me nervous in the pit of my stomach the entire time I was reading it because I was never really sure what was going to happen or who was lying or wrong. That's good stuff, as far as I'm concerned.<br />
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<i></i>That's all for June - onto July and more reading!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-68277573656301083882017-06-28T18:03:00.000-07:002017-06-28T18:03:00.939-07:00What's Up, Wednesday? (What? Two Weeks in a Row??)I know. Two weeks in a row. Not bad, eh? Here's what's up:<br />
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Lots of books - so many that my chiropractor, who knows I am a teacher and have summers off, remarked today, "Have you been reading a lot? Because your neck is <i>really </i>tight." Yes, I have. And it's totally been worth the tight neck.<br />
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We could not have had a more perfect day for blueberry picking this year. Last year it was about 100 degrees when we did this, no joke. It was cool and breezy and the sky was beautiful.<br />
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We made a quick run to Pana Saturday evening to bring my dad a birthday cake and present.<br />
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I got my hair cut yesterday. I almost didn't go for a big change, but I'm so glad that I did. It's way too easy to get stuck in a rut with the way you look (especially the older you get). Not this gal. Not yet.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_lz9TQqIa5RAu3nAQ98omes2IKh-VlLn51x_NQBW4s8U8YQJNKoQULERXvvMtQxA1eW8L5cGTV2qVX1r_jRC8vYvhL2EMus-AwgbH3avXTlOZswuHswDXhQ91GtY3piwuvYUoNLgl1E/s1600/IMG_7295.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_lz9TQqIa5RAu3nAQ98omes2IKh-VlLn51x_NQBW4s8U8YQJNKoQULERXvvMtQxA1eW8L5cGTV2qVX1r_jRC8vYvhL2EMus-AwgbH3avXTlOZswuHswDXhQ91GtY3piwuvYUoNLgl1E/s320/IMG_7295.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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One last thing is that I feel I have finally unlocked the puzzle that is T.J. Maxx. I have a very good friend who has always loved to shop there. I would comment on something cute she was wearing or in her house and she would respond, "T.J. Maxx." So I would go in there and I just DID NOT GET IT. There was never anything there that appealed to me AT ALL. I've been hunting for Rae Dunn pottery for months (because as you might know, I am a sucker for things with words on them) and NADA. Then we made a trip down to Carbondale and I found two mugs. And three pairs of shoes. Aaaaand two organizers for the house.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyyY7LUinmOk-y4vl9sBD08ddbJtP0izh0Dj0MkT1ah15rAdg7KjCSxIV-1q22FCh9hid8WrggiID7-xGkv7h87lq76Wf9EWC9awyiTUwE8bwN_ugB0OtcRqATljuvMBTh2ukHSjIRhw0/s1600/IMG_7256.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyyY7LUinmOk-y4vl9sBD08ddbJtP0izh0Dj0MkT1ah15rAdg7KjCSxIV-1q22FCh9hid8WrggiID7-xGkv7h87lq76Wf9EWC9awyiTUwE8bwN_ugB0OtcRqATljuvMBTh2ukHSjIRhw0/s320/IMG_7256.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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I've been to a couple in different locations since, and I swear, it's like they finally let me in the secret entrance to the room they keep the good stuff in. Tonight I hit the Rae Dunn jackpot.<br />
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And as for their reusable shopping bags, I think a lot of you need this one in your life. <br />
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You can never have too many reusable shopping bags or pictures of cats wearing glasses or hats. But that's just my opinion.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-5457469811128822702017-06-21T15:15:00.001-07:002017-06-21T15:15:09.658-07:00What's Up, Wednesday? I'm BAAAAAAAACK!It was the middle of March the last time I did a Wednesday post. I only know that because Blogger dates these posts for me. From that point until now has been one big blur, but I'll try to recap:<br />
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First there was Spring Break and Easter:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8F1E3wz7GTF67-yJ_Mv0pz5SCaad4Z6AzBN9JNNucQx601HqOOq4OWK4RLsLigZXQTBH49AGNsF54UV9JKrCDrcQn86vTbhowvJTixL4B1v3q14LRzankbMzTBVcFYOliVCexOCYUiUc/s1600/IMG_6311.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8F1E3wz7GTF67-yJ_Mv0pz5SCaad4Z6AzBN9JNNucQx601HqOOq4OWK4RLsLigZXQTBH49AGNsF54UV9JKrCDrcQn86vTbhowvJTixL4B1v3q14LRzankbMzTBVcFYOliVCexOCYUiUc/s640/IMG_6311.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<i> Early dismissal for Spring Break meant lunch at a local burger joint with its distinctive chicken car.</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQGVA-hUYwFkKMeW12dwlOukXfb9piZ29vrlojLqxlf072lAAdMrcaC13ONxRP8IuKnzwuPmguwC3W9Mbl3sJDpEDgQlkotUxXuK_QIa1E3RlgYwMi6g-YvyQdS2YobzckfS-zRzEHgH8/s1600/IMG_6385.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQGVA-hUYwFkKMeW12dwlOukXfb9piZ29vrlojLqxlf072lAAdMrcaC13ONxRP8IuKnzwuPmguwC3W9Mbl3sJDpEDgQlkotUxXuK_QIa1E3RlgYwMi6g-YvyQdS2YobzckfS-zRzEHgH8/s400/IMG_6385.JPG" width="300" /></i></a></div>
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<i>PK's!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-GIJ8tBiYAuNhmDQWCp_WQlTTTNyc9p9368oXExxU3E_Hzc7kqGH-Ymjkm7_FEoAj8fmjv73gGFdhSOsjVfKIdaZ3GgEmQ7qWGmzMJX_rFYXv_7Bu2JxB7RDJ65sLUK9Os45mXcz064/s1600/IMG_6381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-GIJ8tBiYAuNhmDQWCp_WQlTTTNyc9p9368oXExxU3E_Hzc7kqGH-Ymjkm7_FEoAj8fmjv73gGFdhSOsjVfKIdaZ3GgEmQ7qWGmzMJX_rFYXv_7Bu2JxB7RDJ65sLUK9Os45mXcz064/s400/IMG_6381.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<i>How cute is this place?</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghPuqGO-m5LaRKckbQETwHUgC46Ib2yIQJ1mEOUrrzGAJydeB8DQrC_QsO3CcnPeUt6BIq-XO5hWHT-xeZpULAGKM7fw7d1_xXISQ8gt8wlDoqMJOt59uUJmmBtwwKWONfOT4JzlO_p48/s1600/IMG_6419.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghPuqGO-m5LaRKckbQETwHUgC46Ib2yIQJ1mEOUrrzGAJydeB8DQrC_QsO3CcnPeUt6BIq-XO5hWHT-xeZpULAGKM7fw7d1_xXISQ8gt8wlDoqMJOt59uUJmmBtwwKWONfOT4JzlO_p48/s320/IMG_6419.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i>Just a quick trip to a winery before we ran home...</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifBqgKTMX-C6hfrJSNw1iT3lqSJhe_q67UOXkeqkdBdBj61ub_hFBQg4buZbVMY-_OyQPfeq6DwHqFQTlP7vzlF-3rNcW-hwZKuw4cCZeDYQziOH0wWSKAWCWhIlxTOmwb93GDoPw4xh4/s1600/IMG_6428.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifBqgKTMX-C6hfrJSNw1iT3lqSJhe_q67UOXkeqkdBdBj61ub_hFBQg4buZbVMY-_OyQPfeq6DwHqFQTlP7vzlF-3rNcW-hwZKuw4cCZeDYQziOH0wWSKAWCWhIlxTOmwb93GDoPw4xh4/s320/IMG_6428.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i>to dye Easter eggs.</i></div>
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Then my daughter graduated from 8th grade. She's been at her school since she was 4 years old, so this was a big deal for us.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4Egp3sLLiIZFsM0Untobac4BiG8hQpxcim_CBy3VUgwKUd11sWa4ecFn-FLdF9oMPYw0QITe1HQF9A_B_MZJqPg1ZCkAfA_neJqamv7FSi-vsUH64IhugQFQwB4BB1nTAspfFXSIbAM/s1600/IMG_1404+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4Egp3sLLiIZFsM0Untobac4BiG8hQpxcim_CBy3VUgwKUd11sWa4ecFn-FLdF9oMPYw0QITe1HQF9A_B_MZJqPg1ZCkAfA_neJqamv7FSi-vsUH64IhugQFQwB4BB1nTAspfFXSIbAM/s400/IMG_1404+%25281%2529.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Don't forget Mother's Day...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0IkYYzuYttDN5bWMM25xhrlFMC7_1VFHYAROy7brPi7BBmlqz-Z_zXm74CEhD_GO3FC9KEu8CdfVPOJPQc1DsTyqG6JZYrOFdeif3st8fI9WD0yH3EIwN1ZMKwrbojhSu4yso-YTU8c/s1600/IMG_6815.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0IkYYzuYttDN5bWMM25xhrlFMC7_1VFHYAROy7brPi7BBmlqz-Z_zXm74CEhD_GO3FC9KEu8CdfVPOJPQc1DsTyqG6JZYrOFdeif3st8fI9WD0yH3EIwN1ZMKwrbojhSu4yso-YTU8c/s320/IMG_6815.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Then my son turned 12. Next year I'll have two teenagers. ?<br />
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Then my daughter had her Confirmation. <br />
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Somewhere in there, I interviewed for and was offered a job teaching second grade at a different school in my same district that I accepted.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK0h0OcZRuNDJtU7D24gyp3BAaX-IK9Jpz4in3Sg-FEoFET8AtP9im5OTjjmQH1EwiKW2yqLxjpgFTO0g4bDROYnkLPRqo1iFww08lYAv10rpP_lSot59vlJI5Sp5XUP6DLy2YOSSczaQ/s640/blogger-image--459243424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK0h0OcZRuNDJtU7D24gyp3BAaX-IK9Jpz4in3Sg-FEoFET8AtP9im5OTjjmQH1EwiKW2yqLxjpgFTO0g4bDROYnkLPRqo1iFww08lYAv10rpP_lSot59vlJI5Sp5XUP6DLy2YOSSczaQ/s640/blogger-image--459243424.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i>My new school's mascot is a dragon. How cool is that for this GoT fangirl?</i></div>
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And then the end of the school year was upon us, and I had to move everything out of my classroom yet again this year. So after lots of packing and trips to the car and my husband's truck, my classroom was all nice & empty...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWCFRgwM2or1KpDgiDRd1LqEX0VyB_yo4cCQCj8a3sAAiXa9BRpo8uADC0khqLsxZfwO9uMN_KkXg12DiNJR0sjN0gnw2qye94o0i2qZgEHO0L05l09CZGXu-Y9jw5K7Q6V90F-a1Aug/s1600/IMG_6940.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWCFRgwM2or1KpDgiDRd1LqEX0VyB_yo4cCQCj8a3sAAiXa9BRpo8uADC0khqLsxZfwO9uMN_KkXg12DiNJR0sjN0gnw2qye94o0i2qZgEHO0L05l09CZGXu-Y9jw5K7Q6V90F-a1Aug/s400/IMG_6940.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>but here's what my garage looks like right now:</i></div>
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<i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEg0AXUpFTFfezfEXWCKXuFNAeIgvHp4DsUx43sd1wwedi-HeaQlJWBJatVrPkGoc_SQnltk4mA6DqfdiKWdYDEOfjT73Ny3QgzQV1tnv_Df_Qu7TX7pMjr-XLy9l3k3q91xrArrBDjbc/s640/blogger-image-1050885130.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEg0AXUpFTFfezfEXWCKXuFNAeIgvHp4DsUx43sd1wwedi-HeaQlJWBJatVrPkGoc_SQnltk4mA6DqfdiKWdYDEOfjT73Ny3QgzQV1tnv_Df_Qu7TX7pMjr-XLy9l3k3q91xrArrBDjbc/s640/blogger-image-1050885130.jpg" /></a></i></div>
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My daughter's dance recital weekend was last weekend. It was four shows from Thursday to Sunday.<br />
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Then my husband and I made a quick three day get-away for our 15th wedding anniversary.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJqJ7xW_LuspSN-wBl8FVOBEISgerv3koFtJLnERFnPyoKDasNaeZ8EognKfFXTSuyCbYcz8GCYVQEVhmmFqGyDQG_aqNr_fIq0W1gR_NDkVhQ4pAu6eiUQcfPXRTTJSzKuJvYVi9wVo/s1600/IMG_7189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJqJ7xW_LuspSN-wBl8FVOBEISgerv3koFtJLnERFnPyoKDasNaeZ8EognKfFXTSuyCbYcz8GCYVQEVhmmFqGyDQG_aqNr_fIq0W1gR_NDkVhQ4pAu6eiUQcfPXRTTJSzKuJvYVi9wVo/s400/IMG_7189.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIlAMTWEKBSao95FFRMbrP8dSR9bx1eqifXtHo5dG3LKuOkKkIXto9V1WLqHex3NN6jeO02dNKBf3uMTvT2aT5JHEYRPeMPC-RRjLRuLYPVBkTtSk_DFxIwp56j3Xl02ETEV8Geadzeg/s1600/IMG_7197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIlAMTWEKBSao95FFRMbrP8dSR9bx1eqifXtHo5dG3LKuOkKkIXto9V1WLqHex3NN6jeO02dNKBf3uMTvT2aT5JHEYRPeMPC-RRjLRuLYPVBkTtSk_DFxIwp56j3Xl02ETEV8Geadzeg/s400/IMG_7197.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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And then we had Father's Day at our house on Sunday.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPb9FJKJwodyC0xZoa8XxSxQ3q7z_wYBHGrUBYKJddUiNVA5lQMCLm0IncFrb3Mfy0UAxeRe0ZROX-hY6E1b7nKgxfUTSgpM2_pFy-C3Kia03C0PX3r_gvmBeZD-N5hoEKK2SX-3kj0RY/s1600/19237912_10155472286479207_5930249934370869855_o+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPb9FJKJwodyC0xZoa8XxSxQ3q7z_wYBHGrUBYKJddUiNVA5lQMCLm0IncFrb3Mfy0UAxeRe0ZROX-hY6E1b7nKgxfUTSgpM2_pFy-C3Kia03C0PX3r_gvmBeZD-N5hoEKK2SX-3kj0RY/s640/19237912_10155472286479207_5930249934370869855_o+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<i>The Four Dads - picture credit goes to my brother's awesome gal</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcxLauSh5flCAVdrrgVKX0aqMFISFqUrjs3kD9wA8UOQMUKM8biIxQgqvvL78-F_w1mvWsmBUL0obobz8Ol24EiyrjMGq4ZcL_PV4kjDOLZede9Uf7pehwuIM_jbVAF32iwgZIb5aaZMQ/s1600/IMG_7243.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcxLauSh5flCAVdrrgVKX0aqMFISFqUrjs3kD9wA8UOQMUKM8biIxQgqvvL78-F_w1mvWsmBUL0obobz8Ol24EiyrjMGq4ZcL_PV4kjDOLZede9Uf7pehwuIM_jbVAF32iwgZIb5aaZMQ/s320/IMG_7243.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i>Taco Bar for Father's Day!</i><br />
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So, I think that hits the major points thus far. <br />
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I'm back now and ready to get to more regular posting. I haven't done a Book Receipt Post since February because...well, I hadn't read any books until this month. Sad. I intend to remedy that this month as well!<br />
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Thanks for hanging in there with me!<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-75972969066834112652017-03-15T18:58:00.001-07:002017-03-15T18:58:28.060-07:00What's Up, Wednesday?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;">
It's been two weeks since a Wednesday post, so here I am. What a time it's been.</div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigOTRw8X4ridiHtOPIFpdDD9eZsYDe5mXVdL3LoGLK1mm4qL99i1Af3WKA8WuzZYci21fsgtqtWcLre9P3wDZ6_IVmJ6B2gEbFi2csJF69-M2SUl-AqCH1kyNOEqmzjwkevmkOBmr31Oc/s320/IMG_5831.JPG" width="320" /></div>
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First of all, the girl turned 14. I fully intend to write a longer post about this, but I've also been trying not to dwell on it, so naturally it's a bit difficult to write about something you are trying not to think about. Let's just leave it at "I-had-a-breakdown-listening-to "It Won't Be Like This For Long" by- Darius-Rucker-the-week-of-her-birthday" for the moment. We good with that? Okay, moving on...<br />
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<img alt="Lol: " class="pinImage rounded" data-load-state="pending" data-src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/08/d8/1d/08d81d55956c1dc13bdfec9bff273560.jpg" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/08/d8/1d/08d81d55956c1dc13bdfec9bff273560.jpg" /><br />
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Mardi Gras came and went. I love this King's Cake we get from a local bakery. And I pretty much ate the whole thing myself and then had to downshift for Ash Wednesday. If you talked to me that day, I'm sorry for what I said when I was hungry.<br />
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Hello...</div>
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and good-bye </div>
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What else? The weather has been manic depressive of late. Take your lithium, Mother Nature. I fear there will be no blueberries this summer. <br />
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Last week...</div>
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...and this Monday </div>
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Just one more thing...There are times when I get fully fed up with my job. I've mentioned a few times on the blog what I think we're doing wrong in education these days, but I don't like to go off on long rants about much of anything, let alone testing and pushing things on kids too early. But then there are things like this:<br />
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And I fall in love with an abusive partner all over again. <br />
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I read this in <i>Big Magic </i>by Liz Gilbert over a year ago and it's still hanging around in the attic of my brain. Gilbert says, "I recently read a fabulous blog by a writer named Mark Manson, who said that the secret of finding your purpose in life is to answer the question in total honesty: 'What's your favorite flavor of shit sandwich?' What Manson means is that every single pursuit- no matter how wonderful and exciting and glamorous it may seem - comes with its own brand of shit sandwich, its own lousy side effects. As Manson writes with profound wisdom 'Everything sucks, some of the time.' You just have to decide what sort of suckage you're willing to deal with. So the question is not so much, 'What are you passionate about?' The question is, 'What are you passionate <i>enough</i> about that you can endure the most disagreeable aspects of the work?" <br />
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I've had many people tell me, "You should quit your job teaching if you find it frustrating and just become a writer already." And I answer, "Like that's not frustrating too? And I already am a writer. All you have to do to be a writer is write. Somebody doesn't have to pay you to do it."<br />
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Even writing for a living would suck some of the time, even though I'm passionate about it too. If you don't agree that everything sucks some of the time, well, we most likely won't have a whole lot to talk about. Probably not even the weather...<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-60983571857894418132017-02-22T17:23:00.000-08:002017-02-22T17:31:20.940-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?<div>
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Valentine's Day fell squarely on the suckiest day of the week this year, aka Tuesday. Because of this, I did our annual Valentine's Day Breakfast on the Saturday before. </div>
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Omg, those Paczki with raspberry filling...<br />
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I bought some really cute Valentine's Day stuff from the Target Dollar Spot this year, but this banner with its little clips just may be my favorite. Look how adorable it is with our Valentine cards on it!!!!<br />
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And Tuesday wasn't so bad after all because my husband got lunch from Panera and delivered it to me at work. He also got me some bee-you-tiful flowers. I love that guy.<br />
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We also went to see the Lego Batman movie. Loved.<br />
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Our washing machine experienced a hiccup. <br />
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A bearing was bad, but luckily Dan knew that and rustled us up a new one and replaced it. He had it up and running the next day. This makes me want to go into a long tirade about the importance of teaching things like this in school since this probably saved us the cost of a new washing machine. I won't go into said long tirade because I think I just made my point in the previous sentence. Take that, PARCC.<br />
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This is my new Plunder Posse. It's a pineapple necklace and earrings! It could not have pleased me more. <br />
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Teacher friends, I have found the Holy Grail of school supplies - the glue sponge. I saw these on Pinterest this summer but I'm never a believer of any Pinterest hack until I try it. These take the most worthless school supply of all, the bottle of white glue that works exactly one time before it somehow dries up and can never be squeezed again without the aid of a paper clip plunger (and even then it still doesn't work like it originally did) and makes it into <b><i><u>glue kids can actually use all year!!!!! </u></i></b> Now I hear what you're saying. "That's crazy talk, Kim!" But trust me friends.<br />
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Then there's this: I feel like I keep getting drawn towards preschool age things. Yes, I did buy some toys this week that nobody who lives in my house will play with. I also bought some books that are even a little young for the second graders I teach (although I'll still take them to work and they will love them). I'm trying to figure out what this means. I feel like it means <i><u>something</u></i>. I'll figure it out one of these days. Until then, I'll just keep letting it lead me to these lovely things.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-83147735056187722292017-02-08T17:32:00.001-08:002017-02-08T17:32:13.111-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?I'm going to lead off with - It snowed all afternoon today!!! Never mind that it was close to 60 and foggy the two previous days or that it's going to be warm again this weekend. This was beautiful. We had early dismissal today due to teacher meetings, which meant I got to gaze out our library windows all afternoon, watching the snow fall.<br />
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<i>Tyrion got a little snowy.</i><br />
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Now just a couple, three, four things more...<br />
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I debuted my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Kims-Plunder-384050388631121/">Plunder jewelry page this weekend, Kim's Plunder</a> this weekend. Check it out! I am swooning over this jewelry. If you'd like to earn some free, gorgeous baubles, let me know. We can do a FB party or a "in real life" party. Here are few of my faves:<br />
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Two obvious things: 1) I cannot afford a professional (aka: good) model and 2) These are taken in my classroom before school starts so that I still look like a human being.<br />
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We took the kids and hit an Illini game this weekend...but not just any Illini game, an Illini game with a showing of the Cubs World Series trophy. Yay!!! We got a pretty good package deal for their Social Media Day - four tickets, four t-shirts, four foam basketballs, and $40 in concession vouchers for under $100. <br />
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Sock of the Month arrived this week too. This was a Christmas gift for my husband and me. These socks are made right here in America. (I'm also kind of loving that our pairs coordinate, if you want to know the truth.)<br />
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His...<br />
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Hers...<br />
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Aaaaaaaand I started this book:<br />
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At the start this is reminding me of <i>Rebecca </i>by Daphne du Maurier which I loved. But it's its own person too. If that makes any sense. (Trust me, it does if you're read them both.)<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-44808990307216447312017-01-31T19:54:00.003-08:002017-01-31T19:54:59.054-08:00January Reading ReceiptOff to a New Year of Reading Receipts here on AAB!<br />
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This month I read <i>Chronicles Volume One</i> by Bob Dylan. This was a Christmas gift I picked out when my husband realized that the special high top sneakers he ordered for me would not be here in time. I've been a Bob Dylan fan for about 30 years, so I really enjoyed this. His narrative writing somehow manages to reflect his lyric style. I would have thought this was impossible, but no. Never one to please the masses, Dylan doesn't talk a lot about how he wrote his most iconic songs. <br />
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The second book I read this month was <i>Seating Arrangements</i> by Maggie Shipstead. <i>Astonish Me, </i>also by this writer, was one of the last books I read in 2016. I really loved <i>Astonish Me</i>, and while <i>Seating Arrangements</i> was excellently crafted, it didn't grab me as much. It's about a wedding among other things. I did feel like the characters (especially the main character) were drawn exceptionally well. <br />
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That's it for this month. Onward to February!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-90400854180672714442017-01-25T19:21:00.001-08:002017-01-25T19:21:49.583-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?I have had a headache all week. All. Week. I think it's the weather. It's supposed to get cold again tomorrow, so I hope that will help me out. On the bright side (pun intended), I think we did actually have one day this week that was not overcast. We all enjoyed it.<br />
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Dan ordered two presents for me Christmas that did not come in time. One was out of stock and he got a message that it wouldn't be back in stock any time soon, but the other arrived this week. Awesomeness.<br />
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It was time to take Jack to the vet for his annual check-up and shots. Just like always, he was a champ!</div>
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Thank goodness my Donor's Choose program was funded, because I don't know how I would even begin to teach subtraction with regrouping without materials. We started today, and I was happy with how well the two groups I worked with did with the concept.<br />
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Back to that headache...I decided tonight that the only remedy was a chocolate milkshake from Steak and Shake. Really, is there anything better in life? (Maybe also not having to cook and clean up dinner?) And it did cure me. It also made me smile when I noticed Dan putting together the Steak and Shake car. The kids don't care about it anymore, but he just can't resist a car. <br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-6859224911800728922017-01-18T19:41:00.001-08:002017-01-18T19:41:08.814-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?What's up this week?<br />
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I finished a good book about Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan. I've always admired Dylan's "I Do What I Want" attitude. Who else wins the Nobel Prize for poetry but doesn't show up for the award ceremony?<br />
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We started watching The Crown on Netflix on Monday. John Lithgow is my favorite. My husband is sick now, so we haven't been able to watch more. Hopefully this weekend, he'll feel a little better and it will be a great excuse to take it easy on the couch and finish the season. <br />
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New flowers this week too - they're good for what ails me. What is ailing me right now is all this gray, gloomy weather. Oh sure, it's been warmer, but I'd rather it be ten below zero and sunny than this. Blechhh! But these flowers? They brighten the place up.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-37138530909601754292017-01-11T17:18:00.001-08:002017-01-11T17:18:29.219-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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Okay, here's the thing. It's been cold. Then today it got warm. I hate that. Let me just duck while you all throw rotten tomatoes at me, but I love the cold. But more specifically what I love is coming inside after being out in the cold and getting cozy. Which is why I was about as happy as I can be when I came home after grocery shopping on Friday (the day I took the above pic) to a fire my husband had made and an evening to read this book on the couch with my dogs.<br />
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This twice baked potato was miraculous. Somebody my husband works with gave us a couple of these recently, explaining that he has perfected this particular culinary delight. He wasn't wrong.<br />
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Also, the Target Dollar Spot this month has been phenomenal. I have bought lots of banners. Lots. Of. Banners. This little tray may just be my favorite though. Florals for the win every time.<br />
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I'm not at all sorry to have made up this whole #onepictellsastory deal on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kjhainlinedar/">Instagram</a>, even though I do realize I could have just saved myself a lot of time and told some people on Facebook to unfollow me. (LOL) It makes me stop and appreciate moments like this. <br />
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We've been getting more math stuff in from my Donor's Choose project and have started to reap the benefits in class. <br />
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Also, we did this writing project about Martin Luther King, Jr. last week. They were supposed to write about their own dream. They each have a picture on the side with them looking thoughtful (which I cropped out of this pic for privacy's sake), and I was happy with how supercute these turned out to be. Oh, and meanwhile I'm just over here livin' the dream...<br />
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Last, the girl represented her school in the Catholic Schools Spelling Bee today. In typical fashion for her, she took it all in stride and didn't even study or tell us about it until the last minute. She made it to the top 5. The word she missed was "Icarus". I told she flew too close to the sun, and she totally got the reference and proceeded to explain to my son and husband why that was funny. I think I was more proud of her for that than for going to the Spelling Bee.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-10582560386740299112017-01-04T17:28:00.000-08:002017-01-05T18:50:02.250-08:00What's Up, Wednesday?The first "What's Up?" of 2017 - let's do this.<br />
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Rogue One was very, very good. We got to go for free because the realtor we worked with this year rented out the theater for a customer appreciation night. This was pretty nice considering we neither sold nor bought a house this year. We did make a formal offer on one, and that's what got us the invite, complete with free popcorn and drinks.<br />
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When I heard that Carrie Fisher died a few days before we went to see this, my reaction was kind of "Awww, that's too bad, " and I went about my day. So it took me off guard when the final scene of Rogue One snuck up and sucker punched me in the feels. I actually <i>teared</i> up. Whoa, where did that come from? <br />
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I finished my last book of 2016, <i>Hillbilly Elegy</i>. I related to this book for a number of reasons: I teach kids who live in poverty, my paternal grandfather was a coal miner for a number of years, and my maternal grandmother left high school due to poverty, but the bottom line is: I think this is a good book for a lot of people to read.<br />
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New Year's Eve was rocking - appetizers for dinner and trivial pursuit! <br />
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My office space got a tad out of control in December what with work and the holidays:<br />
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but I managed to get it back to workable on Monday.<br />
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Also my wonderful husband put in a light fixture and ceiling fan there. This room has always been lacking in lighting department. Do you ever finally bite the bullet and tackle a home improvement project and then ask yourself, "Why in the world didn't we do this sooner?" Yeah, us too.<br />
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My Donor's Choose math project was fully funded right before Christmas. Boxes started arriving today!<br />
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I also kicked off a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kjhainlinedar/">#onepictellsastory on Instagram</a> this week - one picture a day for the whole 365. <br />
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We're due for snow tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to it. How else are we supposed to know it's January?<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6038931030264158828.post-35176590821913877242017-01-01T21:29:00.001-08:002017-01-01T21:29:03.352-08:00#onepictellsastory<br />
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I use my cell phone all the time to pick up little details of my day. Sometimes I share them on the blog or use them for inspiration when I need something to write about, but most times I don't. It's nice to look back on them over the month and remember the small details of life. Instagram is the perfect place for this, but I need the motivation to remember to do it. I'm doing this for myself as much as anything else. I want to be able to look back at the end of next year and see the big story of 2017 with 365 little stories.<br />
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I'm shooting for one picture a day on Instagram this year. I'm thinking it will be small details most days, as those are the pictures I tend to take. It might be bigger news on other days.<br />
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I'll be using #onepictellsastory as my hashtag. Feel free to follow along with my 2017 stories <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kjhainlinedar/">on my Instagram account</a>. <br />
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Here's to many good stories in 2017.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05439225942226600347noreply@blogger.com0