Our House in the Middle of Our Street

  The moon and Mt. Baker as seen from the Glen Valley dike trail, September sunset Although I did finish some book titles in September and October, they weren't as abundant as I would have hoped. So it goes! Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell - I've said it before and I'll say it again - I will read just about anything this millennial Omahan woman will write. She's just a tad older than me but everything in her atmospheric romantic comedies is just right . I recognize the places, the humor, and the stories from another lifetime. I think I read this in about three days. I typically don't go for steamy lit (like, at all - zero interest), but I wanted to read this one. There's just a small bit in one scene that I found easy to skip over.  The Mueller Report by Shannon Wheeler - Listen, I didn't want to read a 450+ page report about the Russian interference in the 2016 election, and neither do you. But read about the main events and findings within a 1.5 hour graphi...

Ani and I took the train down to Portland in late August when she had finished up her first full-time summer job. We had a very quick 48 hours in the city.  It had been 6 years since we were there and we basically planned our trip around Powell's Books! We hadn't been there since 2018, but a lot of the city is boarded up, from our uber drivers, as a result of covid and businesses leaving.  A wall in just a small bit of the section of Newbery's! Imagine! On Tuesday afternoon, after our train arrived, we stopped in for just an hour to Powell's, and then walked to Tita's Juice bar for some smoothies. Later we ate dinner at Mother's Bistro - which was said to be a local favorite. I think we missed the memo on skipping dinner if we weren't able to make brunch. It was underwhelming and half the staff we interacted with were honestly terrible! The other was fantastic. Wouldn't go back unless it was brunch.  Ani's first Stumptown coffee. She liked, but nothi...

  Glen Valley dyke trail, early July, 6AM Watership Down (graphic novel) adapted by Richard Adams - I have never read this classic novel, but the graphic novel has stunning illustrations and I knew I'd read it this way if I had it from the library. I'm glad I read it as a graphic novel - I don't know that the premise of the story would entice me (well, it hadn't thus far anyway) to read it in its original format, but having the illustrations certainly helped me understand the storyline.  Swim Team (graphic novel) by Johnnie Christmas - Just a little piece of middle-grade, graphic novel candy for summer. The equivalent, I suppose, of most people's "beach reads"! The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbury - I followed along (late, however) with Joy Clarkson's online book club on her substack. I had bought this book at least a decade ago at a thrift store, then gave it away to someone (who?!) and then finally got it from the library and I finished i...

  Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in late May Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard - This book was both poetic and raw, and had a few disgusting parts, along with a few achingly beautiful parts. I will never forget that a type of waterbug can literally suck out the guts of a frog and leave the skin like an orange rind. (If I had to know it, you do, too.) The depth of discovery Dillard found around Tinker Creek, not only of the active natural world, but what that means to us as humans, was surely why this book won a Pulitzer in 1975. Highly recommend, but it's not a page-turner, it's a slow savour.  Worm  (graphic novel) by Edel Rodriguez - This graphic memoir was SO good! It is the story of Edel (mostly his childhood) in Cuba and his life from 'before' and then the communist takeover, through his family's escape by boat in the Mariel Boatlift of 1980 . Rodriguez went on to become a very famous artist, and has had numerous artwork on...

17! You're FINALLY 17! You can drive independently, and you have read the manual, watched professional drivers and gleaned tips from others about this test that you've been dreaming about for years. You were given a car by a friend of ours, cleaned it to perfection, fixed it up in places, and have driven your sister and friends all over for the past week in near-unbridled joy. I am so happy for you (and I'd be lying if I wasn't happy for me, too)! You are such a mature and kind-hearted young man. You have big plans and are taking the steps to proactively execute them. You are sweet to your sister even if you'd deny it in front of your friends, and your relationship with her has come full-circle back to being as close as you two were in your littlest years.  You have so many goals and you work hard to achieve them! You prioritize what's important to you, and are willing to cut the rest. Although I sometimes wonder how you will remember to get to appointments with...

  Whistler in early March on a bluebird day Sigh. It's September 5th when I'm writing this. I hate that I'm so late with these because I can't remember much from 5 months ago. I remember liking or not liking a book, and I might have a memory or two - an image or a sentence I liked, but I didn't keep great records of some of these. So, peanuts. It's what I can offer! Above Ground by Clint Smith - This book of poetry was (very likely found) via Padrig O'Touma's Poetry Unbound podcast, where I find most of my poetry books to read. I remember liking this book, but I can't remember anything else about it. Sorry! Parasitic Oscillations by Madhur Anand - I also remember liking this one. There was nature, grieving the poet's parents, and tension. Darn it I wish I could give you more, but I guess you'll just have to read it and get back to me.  Somehow by Anne Lamott - I will read anything this lady writes. This one was okay. It wasn't her best...