I started reading The Expected One while we were in London but had to take it back to the library when we got home because it was over-due. I picked it up from the library a couple of weeks ago and finally made time for it yesterday. I made time for it by ignoring the chores on my “to do list”. I didn’t want to put it down!
I love “Mary” stories, and this was one of the better ones.
Technorati Tags: fiction, mary, marymagdalene, greatmary
A whole lifetime ago my friend Janet was ga-ga over the Sweet Potato Queens. Being the most excellent friend that I am (quit laughing), I picked them up and read them in a show of support and encouragement. I wasn’t nearly as thrilled by them as Janet was. They were no “Ya-Yas” and they weren’t even “Red Hat” quality. But, I could see how Janet would be so taken with them and I encouraged her fixation as best I could.
Yesterday, I was wandering through the library stacks while TW searched for new knitting books and I stumbled upon The Sweet Potato Queens First Big-Ass Novel. Feeling nostalgic, I checked it out. Since it is such a new book it is due back to the library in two weeks, so I went ahead and started it last night. And I have been reading it all morning. Not because I’m trying to avoid cleaning the bedroom or the yardwork on me “to do list” but because I was enjoying the book so much.
If you read the other Sweet Potato Queen books and weren’t overly thrilled with them, I think you’ll like this one better. If you’re a Ya Ya fan or a Red Hat fan, you’ll probably enjoy this one a good bit. The gay boy Sweet Potato Queen is a nice touch, by the way. I’m not usually a fan of “token gay characters” but this one works.
I hope there’s a second big-ass novel in the works.
Technorati Tags: fiction, sweetpotatoqueens, women, GLBT
Sweet Potato Queens Read More »
Ah! I thought Frangipani was the first book and Breadfruit the second. We read them out of order, I hate that. Oh well, nothing we can do about that now.
I liked Breadfruit much, much better than I liked Frangipani. I’m looking forward to the next one, Tiare in Bloom.
Technorati Tags: tahiti, fiction, breadfruit, women
Well. Not Buying It didn’t make me feel nearly as guilty as Garbage Land did. That’s good, I have enough guilt in my life and enough clutter frustrations. I’m also just enough of a tightwad to go into full miser mode when I read a really guilt inducing book about clutter or spending or the economy or the way we’re screwing up the planet with our consumerist lifestyles.
The most interesting segments of this book were reflections about the gifts the author and her husband were given (or needed to give). The rest was a bit “ho-hum”.
Technorati Tags: notbuyingit, consumerist, spending, clutter, simplify
Happy National Bubble Week!
In honor of the celebration, why not top your cupcakes with miniature bubbles? Oriental Trading has more varieties than you ever dreamed existed!
These princess wands are 4″ tall so if you push them down in there, they will probably be the perfect cupcake topper. Just make sure they haven’t leaked or your cupcakes will taste a bit soapy, heh. Check out this bright colored assortment, having a bunch of bubbles around is always a good idea so this would do the trick. Take the cord off of the sea life bubbles pictured and you’ll have some fun and fabulous cupcake toppers for a sea life birthday party.
Technorati Tags: cupcakes, cupcaketoppers, bubbles, bubblewands
Daily Dose of Cupcakes Read More »
I have never wanted to be an animal trainer or a zookeeper. I did go through the requisite veterinarian phase though. Reading Kicked, Bitten, Scratched made me very glad I never had any animal trainer/zookeeper aspirations. The workload is frightening, not to mention the animal injuries!
Moorpark College is home to the animal trainer program (and our little community college is home to a sister program for zookeepers). The book was interesting and I really enjoyed it. I was appalled that they didn’t have a fire evacuation plan but then TW said that SFCC didn’t have a hurricane evacuation plan for a long, long time. That’s just, well, appalling!
Kicked, Bitten, Scratched Read More »
No I’m not talking about TW. I’m talking about this. Click the pages to turn them.
I love books and I love oddities. Obviously I love this!
The queer, the quaint, the quizzical Read More »
Someone on a message board at my place of business recommended Kris Radish’s books and she suggested I start with Elegant Gathering of White Snows. Gee, I wonder how she knew this would be the perfect book for me?
It’s sort of like The Red Tent in that female energy sort of way. Fantastic female characters and of course they’ve experienced pretty much every single issue/problem a woman can face. Just go read it, and enjoy it.
Elegant Gathering of White Snows Read More »
Some tidbits from the trip home to Charleston:
Jenn’s new apartment is nice. Fewer stairs but too many for my taste (and my knee.) She’s following in her aunt’s footsteps and has a bedroom for the cat.
Riverview Holiday Inn was fun to stay in since I’ve wanted to stay there since I was tiny, tiny, tiny. (It’s a round Holiday Inn and it makes me think of Melissa and “North Carolina” now, which kind of messes with my head.)
The restaurant in the Riverview Holiday Inn, not so good since most people actually like to enjoy their food when they eat. I think they should go back to the old name (which was Prioleau’s) and maybe that will help the quality of the food.
Business sure is booming over there in West Ashley. Sheesh. It’s almost as “bad” as the north area! I do not like getting lost in my own home town, or feeling like I’m lost because NOTHING looks the same.
Cupcake was cute and interesting and fun to FINALLY find but my goodness what a lot of icing! I don’t really LIKE icing anyway, heh. If you like icing and a really sweet cupcake then you must track them down when you are in Charleston. (wrong end of King St! Don’t walk toward Broad, walk away from Broad) Pst… to the owners of Cupcake, your website is too hard to find. Whoever created it for you needs to do something about that.
I successfully avoided the dumb new bridge, though I did have to look at it from the hotel restaurant several times. And, I had to listen to a lot of touristy people and my dumb ex husband talk about it.
Jenn living West of the Ashley is going to cut our driving time. Taking 17 is much faster than going all of the way up to 26. If I can just avoid having to stop at my ex inlaw’s house… ah well, at least it will cut the trip in one direction. A visit to the lake is a requirement, my ex mil would be sad if she didn’t get to hang out with TW for a bit.
My new nephew (OK fine, ex nephew) is damn cute but his mother should not be old enough to have a baby. That stuff makes me feel old and people need to stop doing it. No more babies! No more nephews growing up. None of that. I’m done with it.
Gas is too damn expensive in Florida. I’m considering forcing Michelle to go to college in either Georgia or SC just for the gas prices.
Yarn shops are fascinating places. Even if they have very social dogs wandering around inside of them. If you’re a knitter and you are in Charleston, go to Knit. They’re nice people and the yarn is interesting. (I never thought I’d be talking about yarn shops on MY blog.) FYI there’s a parking garage right next door. How convenient is THAT?
OK enough with the Charleston recap, back to the real world.
Technorati Tags: charleston, holidayinn, cupcake, knit
Back to work, but first…. Read More »
Wow. Just wow. I expected Water for Elephants to be good but not this good. The circus lore was excellent (I’ve heard a good bit of circus lore in my life, my ex’s grandfather was with Ringling for a good long while) and the characters wonderfully written. The animal scenes were handled nicely – sometimes writers give animals too much personality, or too many “human” traits, not these animals!
I love, love, love this book. What else has Sara Gruen written? Are her other books this good?
Water for Elephants Read More »