Sunday, May 23, 2021

Life: It Goes On - May 23

Happy Sunday! I'm posting early because I've got a busy day ahead of me. I'm starting my first project of the year today - I'm refinishing a desk that we inherited from my great uncle. It's never much been my style and, over the years, our family has been hard on it. It needs to get moved from where it's been in my family room so it makes sense to get it cleaned up while we're moving it. That's my part of a larger project that involves doing some rewiring, moving the entertainment center and hanging the tv on a different wall. That job belongs to The Big Guy and Mini-him and I'm happy to leave them to it. 

Last Week I: 

 Listened To: I finished Jenny Offill's Weather and I'm still trying to figure out what I think of it. Since nothing else that I've had on hold has come in yet, I checked out the second book in M. C. Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series. 

Watched: Not a lot this week - I've been too busy actually seeing people at long last!

Read: I finally finished Ann-Marie MacDonald's Fall On Your Knees, which had been meant to be a book club choice but I've changed my mind about that. Not that it's not a good book. It's just that there are some things in it that I know would be very difficult for some of our members to read. 

Made: Tex-Mex turkey chili, grilled pork chops, Southwestern salads, and Bushman's bread. Can you tell that our weather has gone from wet and chilly this week to hot? 

Enjoyed: So much time with friends! Tuesday was our first in-person book club meeting at someone's home since October, Wednesday was a five hour happy hour with two of my besties, and Friday was an evening on the patio with friends. 

This Week I’m:  

Planning: See above. This is bound to be a project that takes much longer than I think it will.

Thinking About: What I still want to do in the laundry room to finish that revamp. That project sort of took a backseat to the family room revamp once Mini-him bought BG the new tv. 

Feeling: Proud of Miss H who today celebrates three years clean. She has come such a long way in those three years!

Looking forward to: A four-day weekend next weekend. 

Question of the week: Since I've scratched Fall On Your Knees from the book club line up, I'm in need of a new selection written by a Canadian author. Preferably one that is set in Canada and not too dark. Any recommendations?

7 comments:

  1. I remember reading Fall on your Knees a few years ago - I think it was a Tuesday BookTalk (now called True Book Talk) GoodReads selection. I remember it being oppressive, though interesting. The most recent book I've read by a Canadian is Field Notes of an Unintentional Birder, by Julie Zarankin. Despite the title, it is about more than simply birding--it's primarily about being an immigrant from Soviet Union and finding a place in Canada to live and work and thrive.

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    1. Field Notes sounds interesting; I'll have to look for it!

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  2. A four-day weekend? I didn't think to ask for an extra day.

    I am so happy for your daughter's sobriety. Three years clean is a huge win.

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    1. It really is! I'm so grateful for the people of NA who have been there for her every step of the way and always hold her accountable and hold her up when she needs a lift.

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  3. I could recommend enough books by Canadian authors to fill your bookshelves ;-)

    But a few of the best I recall right now:
    if you're still interested in Cape Breton: A Possible Madness by Frank MacDonald;

    set in Newfoundland (seems to be an endless of good NFL lit): The Glass Harmonica by Russell Wangersky or (lighter) Most Anything You Please by Trudy Morgan-Cole;

    set in Manitoba (if memory serves me correctly): Good to a Fault by the very reliable Marina Endicott https://www.exurbanis.com/archives/12537 and https://www.exurbanis.com/archives/12659

    just about anything by Elizabeth Hay (except for Alone in the Classroom) - see #13 in this post https://www.exurbanis.com/archives/7192

    A Recipe for Bees by Gail Anderson-Dargatz https://www.exurbanis.com/archives/7192#recipe;

    and for something COMPLETELY different: Shakespeare's Dog by Rick Chafe - it's not set in Canada and it's a play but it's by a Canadian, is quite short and wickedly funny.

    I hope you can find suitable AND enjoyable in this list. :-)

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    1. Oh gosh, thanks for all of the recommendations! Even if my book club doesn't read them, I will!

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  4. I'm always happy to recommend CanLit. Please ask any time.

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