Life: It Goes On - February 16

I'm starting to feel like a broken record, a whiny girl who's just realizing that she lives someplace where it snows and gets cold. We haven't even had a blizzard this year, or even a major snowfall. But, seriously, I can't tell you how much I hope that ground hog was right and we'll magically wake up, one day soon, and find that winter is over early. We don't. Winter, of course, will always last at least six more weeks after Ground Hog's Day. Which means another month or so of dangerous commutes, worrying about family on the road (because worrying is one of my strengths), and scooping in the bitter cold. I'd plan a trip somewhere warm, but then I'd have to worry about sitting in a plane while it's being de-iced and knowing for sure that we'll likely skid off the end of the icy runway. Do you see where my brain is going, people - I NEED spring!

Last Week I:

Listened To: I finished David Sedaris' When You Are Engulfed In Flames (in my review, I'll tell you why I should listen to Sedaris whenever I'm driving in the winter) and I restarted Kristin Hannah's The Great Alone (her descriptions of winter in Alaska are making me realize, even more, how whiny I'm being), which my book club will be reading later this spring.

Watched: Agatha and The Truth of Murder on Netflix in which the filmmakers imagine that Ms. Christie's 1926 disappearance was the result of her attempting to solve a real murder mystery from six years earlier. It's not high art, but I did enjoy it.

Read: I finished Golden Child and started Edith Wharton's The Custom of the Country, which is my book club's classic selection for this year. I always enjoy reading Wharton but you can certainly not count on a happily-ever-after ending.

Made: Bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin with cherry preserves and mashed potatoes for Valentine's Day dinner at home. We far prefer to eat a really nice dinner at home that day to going out.

Enjoyed: Valentine's dinner with my sweetie, watching BG teach the cat how to play poker (she was oddly fascinated when he brought a deck of cards which somehow lead to them playing poker!),  happy hour(s?) with my friend, and cocktails with book club friends on Friday evening. We got together because one of our friends who has moved to St. Louis was in town.

This Week I’m: 

Planning: Finally finishing Miss H's room! Her "new" desk is painted and in her room and her new shelves are finally hung. We've got to paint the mirror above her desk (the desk really being a vanity), rehang artwork, and finish cleaning and organizing her closet. Then it's on to my office, which has, once again, become a dumping ground. Also, I have that empty shelf I freed up a couple of weeks ago which is just begging to be filled.

Thinking About: Happily-ever-after endings. We talked about this Friday night when one of my friends mentioned that she read that people were really wanting books with happy endings during this time of political turmoil.

Feeling: Productive.

Looking forward to: Book club this week and a little thrift store shopping.

Question of the week: How about you - are you finding yourself reaching for books with happy endings more and more?