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Life
I had a pretty boring week but a nice weekend. I'm still stuck in this relapse of my chronic immune disorder, so I spent the week horizontal, on the couch and in my reclining chair on the deck. I was still fairly productive, working on my laptop when I was up to it. I spent much of the week trying to sort out prescription problems; I called CVS Caremark (my mail order pharmacy) every single day! After a week and a half of phone calls, I finally got a notice on Sunday that my medication (which is in short supply right now) shipped! Yay! I left the house Friday for my much-anticipated appointment with my primary care doctor. I shared with her copies of the research I'd been studying about a new treatment (old drug but new application for my disease). She read everything, listened carefully, and agreed that it sounds like it might help me! She sent my prescription to a specialty pharmacy, and I am waiting for that one to ship, too. This completely new treatment approach gives me hope!
I had the best Mother's Day gift I could ask for: both of my sons were home this weekend! My mom and her husband were also visiting, and we had one daughter-in-law-to-be join us on Saturday (we'll see the other next week at her Master's graduation), plus the new pup, of course. It was a wonderful weekend, and I really enjoyed their company after being so isolated the past two weeks. We ate a lot of great food (mostly take-out), talked and reminisced, played a game, celebrated my mom's birthday, and laughed a LOT! I'm worn out today, but I needed that!
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| Mom and I on Mother's Day |
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| Mom and I with my sons yesterday |
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| Celebrating mom's birthday! |
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| Sweet little Chester napped under the table while we ate! |
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| All of us together! |
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| Chester loves my soft Snoopy blanket as much as I do! |
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| My family spoiled me on Mother's Day! |
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| Roses from my mom |
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Off the Bookshelf Tag - Fun questions about my life outside of books and Booktube!
Weekly Reading Wrap-Up - Had to record this one from the couch, but I didn't miss my weekly update of what we're reading!
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I just finished season one of The Pitt, and I loved it! This has been a slow watch because my husband has opted out of medical shows since his cancer diagnosis in December, so I watch it at lunchtime on his golf days. As a longtime fan of both ER and Grey's Anatomy (watching that one on my own now, too), I dove right into The Pitt's frenetic energy, intense medical storylines, and great character development. It takes place in an ER in Pittsburgh, where the head doctor on day shift is Dr. Robinevitch, whom everyone calls Dr. Robby, played by Noah Wylie (who also starred in ER). He's just as great as I expected, displaying a wide range of emotions in this first season, from compassionate to joking to breaking down in the midst of a mass casualty event that has him flashing back to the horrors of COVID in 2020. The rest of the cast is just as outstanding: Katherine LaNasa as head nurse Dana Evans (we enjoyed her in Imposters, one of our favorites), Patrick Ball as Dr. Frank Langdon, Taylor Dearden doing a magnificent job as 3rd-year resident Melissa King, and too many more to list! It's fast-paced, suspenseful, and filled with emotional depth as the medical staff struggles with a constantly overflowing waiting room, unusual cases, difficult patients, and their own personal issues. I'm going to start season 2 tomorrow!
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I finished reading Dig. by A.S. King, a YA novel and winner of the Printz Award. Can you believe I have never read an A.S. King novel before? My husband gave me this one several years ago. I absolutely loved this novel and am missing the characters now that I've finished it. Admittedly, the beginning is fairly confusing, but I was hooked just a short way in. It introduces five main characters, all teens, plus some secondary characters, with short 1-3 page vignettes. Some of the characters aren't named but are referred to as The Freak or The Shoveler (the meaning of which is explained toward the end). Each of these teens is dealing with some really difficult stuff: a dad dying of cancer, moving constantly, living in poverty with an abusive father, and more. Themes of white privilege, classism, and racism are prevalent throughout the novel. The writing is excellent, the characters are engaging, and the pace keeps you turning the pages as the narrative shifts between characters. When all of their stories finally, gradually weave together, it is hugely satisfying. I was rooting for these kids! It was an outstanding novel that I won't soon forget, and I look forward to reading more from A.S. King. Any recommendations?
I definitely had a book hangover when I finished that one and was going to just skip my upcoming book group book (I probably won't be feeling well enough to attend the meeting Wednesday), but I decided to at least start it: The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post by Allison Pataki. This is historical fiction about the heiress to the Post cereal/General Mills empire. I really didn't think I was interested in the subject, but the beginning of the novel really grabbed me. Marjorie was just a young girl in 1891, when her mother took her very ill father, Charles W Post, to Battle Creek, Michigan, to visit the famous Dr. Kellogg and his Sanitarium. The doctor's methods are unusual, to say the least (and obviously, cereal grains play a large role!), but her father's eventual improvement seems more due to the homemade food in the home where they're boarding than from the great doctor's ministrations. A prologue in 1968 shows Marjorie hosting Lyndon B. Johnson and Lady Bird in her Mar-a-Lago estate (I had no idea she built and lived in Mar-a-Lago!). I'm enjoying it so far and do hope I can make it to book group for the discussion.
On audio, I finished listening to Yusef Azeem Is Not a Hero by Saadia Faruqi. This novel is set 20 years after 9/11, in 2021. Yusef is excited to start middle-school because he will finally be eligible to compete in the Texas Robotics Competition. But from the first day of school in his small town, there is a tension he's never felt before, as he gets anonymous messages in his locker saying things like, "Go home!," and a man brought up in town recently returned and started a White Supremacist group called Patriot Boys (his son is in Yusef's class). As the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, and this group protests the new mosque that the local Muslim families are working hard to build, Yusef is dealing with a mix of emotions, as well as typical middle-school issues, like bullies and changing friendships. He starts talking with his mother and uncle (both born in Texas) about their experiences as kids on 9/11. This was an outstanding novel filled with emotional depth that was excellent on audio. It really delves into issues of Islamaphobia and racism, with compassion and sensitivity. Highly recommended.
Now, I am listening to a classic nonfiction book on audio, Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck. I've been meaning to read this book for ages and was thrilled to discover that actor Gary Sinise narrates the audio! He's excellent and completely inhabits Steinbeck's voice as he drives cross-country with his pick-up truck camper and his French poodle, Charley. It's interesting and funny, filled with observations of the places he goes and the people he meets. I am especially enjoying his descriptions of places we've been to, like Maine (his narrative about how taciturn Mainers are is hilarious!) and the badlands of North Dakota (now Theodore Roosevelt National Park), where we stopped on our big trip last year. As a lover of road trips, travel, nature, and John Steinbeck, I am thoroughly enjoying this delightful travelogue.
My husband, Ken, is still reading The List by Steve Berry, a book I put in his Easter basket. He is struggling a bit with the premise so far: an evil corporation that kills off its older retirees to save money!
Ken's daytime "slow read" is Moby Dick by Herman Melville, a classic we've both been meaning to read for years. He says he's enjoying it, and he's amazed by how witty and relevant the writing is, given how long ago it was written.
Our son, 31, is re-reading Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson, book 4 of his famed Stormlight Archive series, in preparation for reading book 5, which he got for Christmas. Sanderson is one of his favorite authors! This weekend, I asked if he'd finished it yet, and he pointed out that it's over 1200 pages long! When I opened my Mother's Day gifts, including two books from my husband for Big Book Summer (starts in less than two weeks!), he said, "You call those BIG?" ha ha He thinks anything under 400 pages isn't worth his time.
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What are you and your family reading this week?
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