Not much to report. Been watching THE TOURIST and this and that. I never even finished REACHER. Also not reading enough. Just packing boxes and lots of details to take care of. And a million pieces of pottery to get rid of. Phil and I had a lot of fun antiquing on weekends. And going to used bookstores. And now I am paying the price. What to do with it all.
What about you?
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Thanks to HBO MAX I finished watching the last of this year's Oscar nominees. Driving My Car, the Japanese film nominated I found well shot and acted but boring. A talky drama about coming to terms with grief was way to slow and long at about three hours. West Side Story I thought very well done and directed. I enjoyed it more than expected to. And remember I don't like musicals. King Ricard, a routine biopic. Shouldn't have been Oscar nominated. Hope Will Smith doesn't win for this.
Watched The Tourist which I liked although it got a bit silly at times.
Read Scoundrel a true crime book by Sarah Weinman. Reread Black Money by Ross MacDonald, currently halfway through Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes.
Trying to avoid the news coverage of Ukraine. It's very disheartening.
Moving always means those never-ending boxes, and the decisions about what to take and what to donate/sell/get rid of, as you pack. It's an interesting retrospective... Anyway, I wish you well as you keep going through the process.
Yes, stuff. When we moved to our apartment 30-some years ago we had more room and especially more closet space. But the problem with that is, you fill them up. We have gotten rid of a lot of stuff over the years - and we easily resisted taking almost anything when my parents died - but there is still way too much. Jackie's closets and drawers are stuffed with clothes, much of it things she couldn't wear these days (or wouldn't). She still has a plaid jacket she bought in Edinburgh in 1972! Sadly, it doesn't fit, but someday...? My problem, of course, is too many books. And I'm a piker compared with George.
Even down here, it is an issue. Jackie insisted that yes, the car was packed, but there are things we'd be leaving here or throwing away, plus all the food we were bringing would get eaten. But if I told you how much stuff she has bought since we've been here...let's just say I don't think the car will be any emptier than it was on the way south. I dread packing at the end of the month.
But, let's put that aside for now. Florida weather has been pretty good, though it is getting a little warmer than I like. A pretty quiet week here. I have been having trouble finding books I really like, so have returned several and stuck mostly to short stories. Reading the new Dean Koontz book (QUICKSILVER) now, the first of his I've read in some time. I think the last was the Odd Thomas series. I like this one.
Television continues as before. Finished the Danish THE CHESTNUT MAN (terrible end, mediocre show) and CHOSEN (I suppose there will be a second series), the final (so far) Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories series, Moone Boy series 2, Only Murders in the Building.
We're watching series 4 of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and have started PIECES OF HER (Netflix), though I'm not sure about that. I realize the daughter was traumatized, but she is supposed to be 30, yet is acting more like a dumb teenager so far. Series 3 of Glitch (Australia) has not gotten better after the huge falloff from series 1 to 2, but we might as well finish it. Also on Hulu, we're watching THIS WAY UP and have started RESERVATION DOGS.
Yesterday, out of the blue, Western NY dealt with 60 mph winds and 65 degree temperatures. As you might suspect, our snow melted fast so everything is green here.
Patrick returned to NYC after running a half-marathon in Vegas. Katie returned from Newport Beach, CA where she visited a friend (and got out of Boston's cold).
Diane has gone into Marie Kondo mode and I've taken bags of clothes and household items to the Salvation Army Thrift Store. I took a couple boxes of books to our local used bookstore. Sure, it's a drop in the bucket, but I'm hoping I can chip away at reducing my book collection in 2022 through donations to SUNY at Buffalo and local Library Book Sales and used bookstores.
Good luck with your move!
Jackie says, Simple rule: if you haven't used a utensil or looked at a piece of pottery or anything else for two years, you don't need it.
Liked Reservation Dogs.
Yeah, THE TOURIST is a bit weird but I like the diversity in body types and landscape.
Glitch really did lose it the second season.
Been meaning to watch DRIVE MY CAR but maybe I won't. I hate long movies. Perfect length for me is 100 minutes.
I watched ENCANTO-so many, many unmemorable songs. LMM needs to take a hiatus from scoring every movie. Also, could it be any darker? Why do kids need to watch movies about rejected children?
Remember, I just moved six years ago. Why the heck did I bring everything with me.
That wind was something, George.
Patti, you're right about the wind! Our vehicle was buffeted by the high winds as we drove down to Shea's Performing Arts Center yesterday afternoon. Fortunately, the drive home was more placid.
I can't recall a single song from ENCANTO. You're analysis of LMM is right on the money!
I wish we lived closer to you so we could pitch in and help you move! When Patrick and Katie were going to college, we moved them to campus in the Fall and back home in the late Spring.
Ah, kitchen gadgets...Kitty once had a square egg press which made (duh) square hardboiled eggs which she dyed purple. She would then serve them to unsuspecting guests. Good times. Who knows what strange and interesting items you will find as you begin clearing out for the move.
Speaking of Kitty, today is (drum roll, please) her birthday! To celebrate, we are deferring her blood lab work until tomorrow when she also scheduled for some pulmonary tests. She is still is having a difficult time breathing although her heart and lungs are clear; her blood 02 level can drop to 81 if she even walks 50 feet or so. These tests may help to determine why this is happening and what we can do to reverse it. She's also meeting her hematologist on Friday to see how the chemo drugs are doing. As can be expected, she's been a little trooper through all this.
This weekend was Tire Jack Out Weekend. He had one basketball game and two lacrosse matches on Saturday and another lacrosse match yesterday. His teams won all but one of the games (and that they lost by one point). Erin is sending a gazillion pictures of her hedgehog on social media...I think she and the animal have bonded. We are trying to get Mark (who is probably the most clueless man on Earth) prepared for some upcoming nuptial duties; he is scheduled to be an usher and a best man at weddings over the next few weeks. (Us: What are you going to give as a wedding gift, Mark? Mark: I dunno. Socks? Us: Nooo!!!) In the meantime he is applying for a position at an alligator/venomous reptile farm. We seldom see Ceili -- she's been working 12-18 hour days, raking in overtime. Amy, meanwhile, is perfecting her soup skills, making and freezing some kick-ass soups, brining over frozen blocks of soup for us every week. We do appreciate it. Yum.
Yesterday was a beautiful day in the 70s with a light breeze, so we just had to go beaching. Because of Kitty's condition, we (with Christina, Jessie, and Amy) went to the main beach where we could sit on benches rather than traipse over sand. It was glorious. I must note, however, that some women just should not wear thong bathing suits. The same goes for men, but we did not see any of those yesterday.
Watched a lot of good TV, bad TV, and very forgettable TV. Currently working on the first season of STARGIRL. As far as reading goes, I read the latest Reacher novel by Lee and Andrew Child, THE FLIMFLAM AFFAIR, a Carpenter and Quincannon novel by Bill Pronzini, and several of the novellas in Joe R. Lansdale's FISHING FOR DINOSAURS. Currently reading the new one from John Connolly, with Stephen Graham Jones' MY HEART IS A CHAINSAW in the batter up box.
Heartsick about Ukraine, pissed at antivaxxers and right wing enablers, steaming mad about the stupidity of the likes of Lauren Boebert, Majorie Taylor Green, and Paul Gosar, saddened about the people who have lost much because of recent national disasters. To offset that, there is the joy of family, the small and large acts of kindness I see every day, the beauty that surrounds us, the inquisitiveness of the the human mind that can do such remarkable things as send the James Webb Telescope into space, the courage of ordinary Ukrainians, the protests of much of the Russian peoples, a cat who feels that I deserve to cuddle her even after she has thrown up in Kitty's shoes, good books, and whip-smart late-night comics. And, of course, your upcoming move. Have a great and (hah!) stress-free week, Patti! Stay safe.
I can see so clearly how much having your family so much a part of your daily life keeps you focused on what is really important, Jerry. Happy Birthday, Kitty!
I don't like to buy a lot of things anymore (except books, and I am trying to cut back on that too) but I have a problem getting rid of things. And we live in a very small condominium. So I still have lots of stuff that I need to get rid of.
We saw Glen's doctor last week and the macular hole in his eye has closed, which is a relief. Now it is just a waiting game. He still has the gas bubble in his eye, but it continues to shrink. As it lessens, it affects his vision in different ways. And after it is gone, it will still take a while for the vision to improve.
I finished THE POSTSCRIPT MURDERS by Elly Griffiths in the last week. It is the second book that features the policewoman Harbinder Kaur. I did not like it quite as well as THE STRANGER DIARIES, but I liked all the characters. It was lighter in tone.
I also read THE SPIES OF SHILLING LANE by Jennifer Ryan, which is historical fiction set during World War II. The main character is a middle aged woman divorced by her husband, who goes looking for her daughter living in London, and gets mixed up with Fascist spies. Not so realistic, but I still liked it. Another lighter read.
We are in the midst of getting our taxes ready to mail in. I fertilized the lemon tree and two dwarf citrus trees. And looked at all the work I need to be doing to clean up the back area. It is so small and yet there is so much to do.
Sometimes it seems that a writer is able to spend years polishing that first book but then is rushed to get out a second. Everyone I know seems to have eye issues now.
I think I may be having cataract surgery sometime this year. In some ways, Glen has been lucky. He started having problems with the retinas in both eyes over 20 years ago, and it has taken a while to get this bad.
Happy Birthday to Kitty! May she have many, many more.
Phil had retina issues too. The specialist says that he is one of the first people he had seen whose problems may have stemmed from looking at the eclipse in the late sixties unprotected. I almost remember him saying that little cardboard square couldn't make a difference.
When we moved six years ago my local library asked me to stop donating, they had no more room to store. Sold all my vinyl, sold my vintage paperbacks and art books. Still surrounded by books and CDs, many of which made the trip down here. Have years worth of draft poems and stories, raw material and books in attic boxes.
Disheartened by Ukraine and the inability of local, state and Federal prosecutors to prosecute the Orange Menace and his corrupt advisors.
Sara Gran’s The Book of the Most Precious Substance was a fun read.
Very little to be heartened by. My next library sale will be mostly my books. I must stay away....
Happy Birthday to Kitty!
Last week was Scott's visit with the neurologist. Two hours after the scheduled time we were finally seen by the doc who wants another brain wave test in August and a doc visit in September. Assuming that he clears the brain wave test in August AND nothing happens in the meantime he will be cleared to start looking for a job. Three years plus after that horrible summer night when he had a seizure, his first ever.
Went back and forth to the Dentist is light rain mixed with sleet yesterday. Everything that had to be done is now done. Nothing more until the next cleaning in late April.
Social Security is now auditing me yet again regarding my disabilities. I have a two page letter to fill out and send back. Based on that, they will decide if they want to do the sixty page audit, get records from everywhere, and send me to their paid docs AGAIN. It has been ten years plus since the Judge ruled in my favor. Instead of the every three to five year deal that it is supposed to be, they audit me every two years. Annoying.
Anyway, that is about it from my little piece of NE DALLAS. We may have another winter precip weather event Friday and then next week, as I stagger through the day trying to deal with the damn time change crap, it is supposed to be in the upper 70s and maybe the low 80s.
KRT
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