Wednesday Whatever - Birds

Butters was the star of the last Zoom meeting with my PA friends.  It's a new member of a household. They needed some entertainment during the time of Covid.  Believe me, Butters will be spoiled rotten. 

 I stole this pic from a friend's Facebook post. Just a stunning picture. 

Life is for the birds right now. They have free rein to gather in large groups, gossip on the wires, paddle on the pond with no worries, and head any direction for the winter. 

Free as a bird takes on new meaning: 

raise eyes

watch the hawk soar

drift with the drafts

wind ruffles hair, its feathers

 feel lighter till it flies out of sight

heart plummets back to earth

trapped in our masked cage

our song, a muffled gasp

JF - Dec. 2020

Monday Moment - Book Review: News of the World

 News of the World by Paulette Jiles is a small gem of a book that covers Texas after the Civil War. Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through the outlaw wilds to perform live readings of newspapers. Folks eager to hear about other places pay a dime to hear this dignified seventy one year old war hero give them news and escape for an hour. 

In Wichita Falls, the Captain accepts a fifty dollar gold coin and mission to take a young orphan to her relatives near San Antonio. At age six, Johanna was captured in an Indian raid that killed her folks. Now age ten, this blond haired blue eyed girl, is wild - knowledgeable in Kiowa ways. The Captain has a challenge ahead. 

The four hundred mile odyssey is fascinating - thieves, Indians, anarchy and lawlessness rule Texas. Yet as the miles go by, he and a wary Johanna become quite a team. She's in a dress learning how to use a fork. He's learning to appreciate her survival skills and grows fond of her resourcefulness and spirit. 

Their fate is intertwined and the conclusion is heartwarming. News of the World is sweet, well written, descriptive, and has rich characters in the Captain and Johanna. Pay a bit more than a dime, and enjoy this book escape. 

Frivolous Filler Friday

In a normal year, I would be in line at Kohl's with my coupons for Black Friday shopping.  2020 isn't normal, so I'm off to San Saba with Ray for a quick visit to Aunt Pat's . I'll come home Saturday for some time on my own - to read, chill out, and watch some holiday movies on the big screen. 

People who care nothing for their country's stories...are like people without a past - without a memory - they are half people - Alasdair Gray

As I walk, solitary, unattended

Around me I hear that eclat of the world

    Walt Whitman

Sunsets, snakes, San Saba - plenty of stories will be told on Friday night. I hope you and family are enjoying a quiet holiday weekend - staying safe

 And after the turkey feast on Thursday, there's always a Tex-Mex meal Fri, Sat, or Sunday.  Enchiladas, anyone?

Happy Friday

Wednesday Whatever - Grateful

2011 - Thanksgiving back East - here's Dad, me, and Lori.   Happy Birthday to my little sis today Wed. 11/25/20.  She's the best!

I'm grateful for my brother David and his wife Cherie up in PA.  They are a hoot and do a lot for my dad. Hard working, good people.  I'm very fortunate to get along with my siblings, even long distance. (Or maybe it's best that I am long distance - ha. Either way it works)

I'll give a grateful shout out to my cammo wearing, RZR riding, golfing, sporty, good cooking, sweet to put up with me husband.  (Sweetheart - have fun hunting over Thanksgiving weekend, but you TRULY do not have to shoot a thing. That would make me extra grateful)

I'm grateful to my PA gang above (RIP Terri on the right). From junior high, high school, and college, we met and stuck together. Now it's laughs and book club, tears and medical issues, and through it all  - solid friendship.  I'm also lucky with long time TX friends - hugs to Linda H,  Julie, Linda T, Trish, and writer friends Becky and Deb,  and more. 

 I'm going to throw in a grateful to Founding Fathers in Philly back in the day who pulled together this wacky country  and wrote down some words that I hope work. If only Americans can still read. 

Have a safe, healthy, distance Thanksgiving with all of the trimmings. 

Monday book review - The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

 Ann Patchett can do no wrong as a writer, and her latest book The Dutch House is a tour de force in my humble opinion.  It's the story of paradise lost that digs deeply into questions of inheritance, love, forgiveness, how we want to see ourselves, and who we really are; plus it's suspenseful.  (cover blurb)

Indeed, I wanted to read quickly to find out what happens to Danny and Maeve. But I also tried to read it slowly to savor the story, the writing, and the characters. I enjoyed the suburbs of Philly and could feel the chill in the air. 

Cyril Conroy bought the Dutch House, completely furnished, as a surprise for his wife. That did not go over well as she leaves him with two young children and heads to India. Danny tells the story as he and his sister Maeve are ultimately exiled by their stepmother from the house where they  grew up. Back and forth in time, we learn how Danny wanted to follow his father in real estate but first got his medical degree at Maeve's urging. Education funds were the only life remnant from their father. 

cover blurb - Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past. Danny and Maeve rely deeply on each other, and as they sit outside their former estate they smoke cigarettes and spin memories. 

p. 121 (some wonderful writing) There are a few times in life when you leap up and the past that you've been standing on falls away behind you, and the future that you mean to land on is not yet in place, and for a moment you're suspended, knowing nothing and no one, not even yourself. 

I really liked The Dutch House for its characters, story, and soul searching. It's the choice of my PA book club and I look forward to our 12/4/20 discussion.  Why don't you read it over Thanksgiving and join us?

Happy Monday

Finally Friday

 In a normal year, this weekend I could be flying to PA to see family and enjoy Thanksgiving with them. Well, that ain't happening.  2020 will be the first year ever to not go to see Dad.  But, this little meme sums up life and holidays to me. Hope everyone is dialing down their ambitious family hugging plans. We shall see what the week brings.  I'll give a grateful post on Wednesday

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Meanwhile, here's a quick book review. All Adults Here by Emma Straub follows the Strick family. Astrid's the senior and matriarch of the family. Russell passed away and she has a secret love - Astrid the local salon owner. It's a small town, so if she goes public, that could be quite the news item. 

Her son Elliott and his wife Wendy have twins - holy terrors at age three. Younger son Nicky and his wife Juliette don't know what to do with teen daughter Cecilia. After a school incident, they send her to live with Grandmom Astrid. And Astrid's daughter, Porter, feels her time clock ticking. She sleeps with her ex, Jeremy, but ultimately re-thinks a sperm donor. 

That's quite the summary of small town and family drama. (A Thanksgiving gathering in 2020 would be a blessing of sorts if canceled. )  Just saying - some families could use some time apart. 

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And that's another week done. Enjoy your weekend everyone. Stay safe. Don't watch the news. 

Take a fall walk in the leaves. 

Wednesday - Wander Britain with Bill Bryson (a book review)

 If you want a very humorous read and a nice escape, read The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson. An American from Iowa, he lives in England with his wife, and this is his second homage to a beloved country. He's very funny and has a way with words. Plenty of walks, a few train rides, and time in the car lead him from Bognor Regis in the south to Cape Wrath in the north. 

Gardens, museums, bars, and small towns - he wanders down plenty of paths many of us would miss. His droll observations are a hoot.  p. 119  "I have never assumed that anything is fun just because it looks like the English are enjoying themselves doing it."  (This was in reference to a bitterly cold day at a beach). 

p.222  He talks about the train game at Cambridge station. He calls it - does the train really terminate here? A train stops, but is it really done or will it go on to London? The signs are not giving a clue. "Eventually a few brave souls got on, and then there was a kind of rush like when they opened up the Oklahoma Territory to settlers, as nearly everyone hurried to get a seat. But we all had to remain poised to jump off again."

I chuckled my way through this book (it was published in 2015), and shall use it as a travel guide someday. Every place sounded delightful, and Bryson absolutely gushes over the English countryside. 

I'm ready for a long stroll and then a stop for some tea or a pint.  Cheers, mates on a Wednesday.