I try to read and review two books a week but this week I stuck with one because it was long, and I was enjoying it too much to rush through it. Reading for fun is not a new concept but us book bloggers often find ourselves weighed down by dates and how many books we need to read that week. I let all of that go this week and just enjoyed an older title and it felt good. It is listed below. We should all read for fun, don’t you think? Especially now, in these pandemic days of ours.
Right Now:
Coffee, online church, and then my daughter’s theatre intensive virtual showcase. Two weeks of singing, dancing, acting along with master classes with some well-known peeps will all come together in the final showcase. She made a lot of friends and really enjoyed the experience.
Later… a youth-group meet-up for tea to discuss how fall will look for us since we can’t meet indoors. We do live in California so meeting outside can be done very late into fall. The only thing I worry about is the lack of daylight (depending on the time) and bugs. No matter how much repellent I put on, I am always eaten alive by insects.
This Week:
I was told to use some vacation time since I am way over the max and need to use up about 165 hours before December. It’s a good problem to have but who wants to use vacation time when you have no place to go? So, I am taking days here and there to extend the weekend. The first of those days is this Friday! I booked tickets for my daughter and I to go to the botanical garden. Timed-entry, face masks, limited attendance. It will be hot but also good to get some fresh air.
My hair appointment was cancelled but I am okay since I did get a cut about 5 weeks ago. Most of our salons are closed again unless they obtained special permission to operate outside. Mine, has not.
Not much else happening. Still practicing driving with the girl. Her final professional lesson is 8/10. I want her to get her license before the DMV closes again.
Reading:
The book that I enjoyed this week was Truly Madly Guilty which I reviewed this past Friday.
The next book on my summer list is In a Dark, Dark Wood. I had it all ready to go but forgot to turn Wi-Fi off and now it’s gone from my Kindle. So, if I can’t quickly get another copy, I may move on to this Coben book The Boy from the Woods which is also on my summer list.
Watching:
I introduced my daughter to Steel Magnolias. It’s funny and charming and sweet and based on a play, which really appealed to her. We laughed and cried. So many stellar performances in that one.
My daughter has been on a crime kick so we watched a little of the The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann on Netflix. That case still gets me after all these years. I can’t lay guilt on the parents because I feel that most parents do the best they can but leaving your child in a hotel room with the door unlocked, while enjoying a meal halfway across a resort in Portugal seems a bit reckless. Perhaps they were just too trusting? Anyway, I can’t finish it because it makes me angry to think about.
Grateful for:
- Coffee or really any food enjoyed on the patio. We are hitting the dog days of summer (104 degree temps) so I go out early and come right back inside once it gets too hot. The Otter Pup likes it too!
- Plants. I have been having fun placing plants in and around my home. My friend just gifted me this sweet little beauty. I name my plants… this is Midge. She is a succulent.
How are you? This past week was filled with school thoughts, including the final year of high school and also college stuff. I just worry too much about everything.
Book Chatter 
I loved all the books I read in July and gave my self permission to abandon (2) – yes, reading should be for enjoyment. Love you plants. I used to have a house full but, gave them aways when we got the (2) new cats as they kept at them LOL
Have fun at the botanical garden, I’d like that.
I am hoping we get a break from the heat for our trip to the botanical gardens. I wanted to go in the morning but my daughter prefers late afternoon. It will be hot.
I decided recently to completely give up ARCs because I was no longer enjoying reading to a schedule and it was truly messing with my ability to read at all. Not that the pandemic helped matters (and last year’s illness). I feel like a load has been lifted. I’m currently reading a longish book and it’s so nice not to feel like, “Need to hurry, need to hurry.” There is nothing out there to keep me from spending a week on a book, now. Or three weeks, if necessary. I’m considering making my 4th attempt at Gone With the Wind, soon.
I have the same problem with plants as Diane. We used to have lots of plants but our current cats will eat anything. Each has been poisoned by a plant, once. So, there are no plants in our house at all. I miss them.
What is the longish book you are enjoying right now? I remember my cat and plants but my cat ate all things even plastic so many things were off limits. You could have a little patio garden since your cats are indoors.
The longish book is The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin (urban fantasy, first in a series). I just finished it, last night. It was good. At just a little over 400 pages, a lot of people wouldn’t consider it long but it was kind of overwhelming, at times, so it was a slow read for me. I’m not normally a fantasy reader.
We do have a patio garden! We’ve harvested some incredible tomatoes and tons of jalapeño peppers. We also have several herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme), chives, a couple bay laurels, poblanos and cayenne growing. And, we got a couple lime trees, but they are still quite small so I doubt we’ll get any limes for a couple years. My strawberries unfortunately succumbed to the heat. Bummer. I just like the look of plants inside a house, you know, as a decorative thing? We have a few fake plants and, yep, the cats do chew on them occasionally.
I’m trying to give myself space not to read and write reviews at the rate that would be maximally preferable to me. It is hard. I am terribly critical of myself, hahahahaha. In the meantime, I have also taken some vacation time because I can’t keep stockpiling it — I have a week’s vacation in the week leading up to Labor Day, and I’m really looking forward to it.
I am taking several days around the labor day weekend because it’s my birthday week. No plans as of yet since school will be in full swing but I had to take time so why not let it be around my birthday?
Um, yeah, we all should be reading for fun. Always. This might shock you (not), but I always have read for fun.
Usually even my review reading is for fun because I only accept books that I want to read anyway but sometimes they aren’t great and that is when the fun stops. I am a good picker of books but every now and then a trusted author writes one that is off, in my opinion.
Ooh, and Ruth Ware. Enjoy.
The botanical garden will be fun. You should take more Fridays off. I’ve been liking the cooler temps near the beach at the OC … and so I’m afraid to leave tomorrow to go to Redlands and be in the brutal temps. There’s also a wildfire out that way (the “Apple fire”) sigh. As if covid wasn’t enough. I tested negative by the way … so I’m free to go. Anyways I hope you enjoy your Ruth Ware book. We all need to read for fun, no rush!
I figured you’d be negative since you’ve been very careful. Redlands. Yes! That Apple fire is pretty bad. I think it’s supposed to be cooler this week. It was 104 for us over the weekend which is the max I am willing to endure. LOL.
We have been to the butterflies exhibit at the natural history museum and our botanic gardens. Sad excuses for vacations, but relaxing and enjoyable. It’s going to be a long fall and winter!
Of all the times I’ve been to Santa Barbara I have never gone to the Natural History Museum. How does it compare to the one by USC?
I have been only able to listen to audio these days for longer books, but even that seems to be a burden. I read poetry — dipping in and out of it. But mostly, it’s kids books we’re zipping through, which is great practice for my reluctant reader.
We spent time at our half capacity pool for the first time on a weekend (we usually don’t go because half capacity is still 175 people and the weekends are usually busiest) — but Saturday here called for storms. I’m glad we took the chance because hardly 50 people were there and there were no storms….plenty of room for social distancing. We have 2 pools in the same space — one is the competition pool for the swim team, but we have no team events this year at all.
Then Sunday, our daughter got to go to the local soccerplex/activity park to bike with her friends for a few hours. That was nice until it was too hot and we went home.
I’m glad she was able to hit the pool. She was probably missing it since it’s usually such a big part of her life. It was 104 over the weekend which makes it feel like death to me. We went out many times just to drive around because I am going stir crazy but each time was too hot for me. Then last night I met a student at 5:30pm and it was still so hot out!
Hope you guys have a nice time at the botanical garden. Sounds like a good mother/daughter thing and maybe it won’t be too hot. As to reading for fun, yes, that’s my plan for the rest of my life. I think we should all do that. It wouldn’t be a horrible thing if book people, bloggers or not, stopped putting schedules on their agenda for reading. My opinion only. LOL
I agree.
Ah, I love the grateful section. Lovely! Hooray for a Friday off!
I am glad your daughter enjoyed the theatre intensive virtual showcase. It sounds like a lot of fun. My daughter really enjoyed her virtual choir camp. It’s based out of the LA School of Music, and she wouldn’t have been able to participate if it hadn’t been online. So, I guess some good comes out of this situation.
I hope you enjoy your long weekend and visit to the botanical garden! That sounds like a great way to spend a few hours.
I hope you have a great week, Ti. Stay safe and well.
I need to watch Steel Magnolias again, it’s been years since I’ve seen it.
It’s so hot and humid here I’m rushing my dog to do her business so I can take her back inside. She gets overheated quickly.
My dog gets overheated from just a short walk but could go on and on if I let her.