Weekly Blotter: There and Back Again

Trying to come back here and write on a regular basis can be hard when you have gotten out of the habit.  There was once a time that I was here every week, sometimes multiple times a week to share the books I have been reading and just to talk stories in general.  In fact, I did it for almost ten years.  Then, life happened and my plate became so full that something had to go.  My life threw me a curveball one right after the other, and writing became an after thought.  Reading did too.  Over the last year, I have really pushed to get back to those things I love:  words in all its forms.  Writing and reading is just an integral part of me and when it is not there, I find that a piece of me is missing.  I am slowly getting back to both, first a little writing for myself and a freelance gig here and there and a habit to move towards audiobooks to get my story fix when the physical books cannot.  I see improvement every week, and I finally feel that hole being filled again.

Today, I am here.  I am hoping to once again resurrect this site, to have some bookish conversations with old and new friends, and to nurture my little corner of the internet with all things I love.  My goal is once again to share something one day a week.  I have other plans up my sleeve.  Plans and dreams that I finally have the courage to pursue, and I hope to share those with you here as well.  In the meantime, I leave you with my life in pictures.  Enjoy!

CURRENTLY READING

CURRENTLY LISTENING

CURRENTLY PODCASTING

A RANDOM VIEW FROM MY WEEK

YOUR TURN:  If you are an old friend, help me catch up with you.  If you are a new friend, tell me how you found me and how I can find you.  

Weekly Blotter: On My Plate

My goal was to post every week.  I'm at about every other week, but I still consider that progress.  Afterall, before this, I published a post over a year ago.

Since it has been so long since I have truly checked in, I thought I would share what I have been up to.  Here is just a peak into what I've had on my plate lately . . . 

I moved into a new house.  One that is all mine.  Now, I just need to finish painting, unpacking, and finally getting my new office/library together.

I took on a project of renovating an old house.  I did not go into this little project with experience, so I have been learning a LOT along the way.

I have continued to organize activities, events, and education opportunities to discuss suicide prevention and awareness.

I took on the job of presenting webinars with a focus on mental health and self care.

I started freelance writing again.

I discovered Podcasts.  Starting small and playing catch-up on all that I have missed.

I chose to take the biggest leap of my life, and have gone on temporary leave from my full-time job.  Because I believe it is never too late to pursue your dreams.  

After a really rough reading slump, I have finally started reading again.  It's slow, but it is progress. 

And, to help really dive back into the blogging and reading world again, I've decided to participate in RIP XV and FrightFall Readathon.

What about you?  What have you had going on?  What have you been reading?

Anyone Still Out There?

It has been almost a year and a half since I was last here chatting books.  Life happened.  Not a lot of reading happened.  A lot has changed, and I finally feel like I am able to get lost into books once again.  I am not back to reading where I once was, but I am taking it one day at a time and trying to read again on a regular basis.

I have missed visiting with my book community.  Even though I have visited with some of you a bit over on Instagram, it is just not the same.  Even though I lead an online book club with friends, the conversations are different over there.  I have decided to try to sneak back into my little corner of the internet and revive this little chatter box right here.  I am going to try to start with one weekly post to discuss all things books.  I'm keeping it simple.  And to keep along with that theme of simplicity, I have changed up my design, turned my website a bit minimalist, and gave it a fresh new look.  

I remain on Instagram with my new focus.  I am reviving my Facebook page and have slowly returned to Twitter thanks to the recent Reverse Readathon.  I am also unofficially participating in Bout of Books this week to help ease into the transition.  In the weeks ahead, you will see that my threads are going to be interactive and will likely fall into three different categories:  random chatter, literary topics, and book discussions.  I will no longer review books as I previously did, but rather encourage a conversation about books instead.

Baby steps.  They serve a purpose.  Because I have goals.  And, I hope to share those with you all in the weeks or months ahead.  In the meantime, stay tuned.  Tell me you are still here.  Stop in and say hello.  Tell me what you are currently reading.  Tell me you are surviving gracefully (or not so gracefully) this crazy, chaotic pandemic world we now live in.  I want to hear from YOU.

BOOK CHAT: Best of 2018

Every year, I share with you the best of the year.  Each year looks a little different, but you can always count on at least my favorite reads of the year.  This year will be no different.  It just happens to be coming at a much later date than usual.  Because . . . life.

I think my favorite book of the year was Dear Martin by Nic Stone.  I listened to it on audiobook towards the beginning of the year, but it has stuck with me all year long.  When I recently went to the bookstore, I saw it sitting on the shelf and I knew that I had to have it for my own personal collection.  It is one that I will likely revisit because it is a quick read that I will extract new things from each time I read it.  If you have not yet read this story, you will want to add it to your list sooner rather than later. 

Other favorites of the year was Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke, another story I digested in audio format.  I enjoyed it so much that I immediately recommended it to my son and he immediately checked it out from Overdrive to take a listen for himself.  I also enjoyed the Finishing School series by Gail Carriger (i.e., Etiquette & Espionage, Curtsies & Conspiracies, Waistcoats & Weaponry, and Manners & Mutiny).  This was such a fun series to listen to, and I couldn't get through them fast enough.  Lastly, Amy Poehler's Yes Please came into my life at just the right time, and listening to her read it made all the difference in the world.  I didn't always agree with what she had to say, but I did relate to so much of it way too often.  It made me laugh and cringe and even cry, and at the time, it was just what I needed.

As I look back on my favorite reads for the year, I realize that every favorite was actually an audiobook.  Most of my reading in 2018 was actually via audio; 23 of the 44 total books to be exact.  I also discovered that it was my worst year of reading yet (at least of the years that I have been tracking).  I hope that 2019 will see an increase in my reading, no matter what the format may be.  I can definitely use the escape at this point.

I leave you with my top nine pictures from the year as well.  There are not as many books featured this year, but I will admit that most of them were some of my personal favorite pics that captured my year fairly well.  Here's to hoping for more book pics and more travel pics, as I adventure both in and out of the pages!

YOUR TURN:  What were some of your favorite reads of 2018? 

BOOK CHAT: Books Read in 2018

In 2018, I read a total of 44 books.  I did not finish one book in December.  Life was turned upside down for me, and my reading took a hit.  It is one of my worst reading years on record.  It's okay though.  My life turning upside down was surprisingly just what I needed.  Now, I am just working to get back into reading like I once used to.  For those interested, here's the full list of books read for the year.  I will be back to share my favorites from the year hopefully later this week. 

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JANUARY

1.  Black Panther #1:  A Nation Under Our Feet by Ta-Nehisi Coates
2.  Dear Martin by Nic Stone
3.  The Dragon of the Month Club by Iain Reading
4.  Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd (Flavia de Luce #8) by Alan Bradley
5.  Etiquette and Espionage (Finishing School #1) by Gail Carriger
6.  Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris

FEBRUARY

7.  The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson #4) by Rick Riordan
8.  Whatever You Are, Be a Good One by Lisa Congdon
9.  Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

MARCH

10.  China Dolls by Lisa See
11.  The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

APRIL

12.  Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
13.  Dragons at Crumbling Castle by Terry Pratchett
14.  A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

MAY

15.  When Luck Dies (The Murder Lawyer Series #1) by Piper Punches
16.  The Witches:  Salem, 1692 by Stacy Schiff
17.  Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke
18.  Strange Weather by Joe Hill

JUNE

19.  Curtsies and Conspiracies (Finishing School #2) by Gail Carriger
20.  If I Stay (If I Stay #1) by Gayle Forman
21.  Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
22.  Where She Went (If I Stay #2) by Gayle Forman

JULY

23.  Lord of the Flies by William Golding
24.  It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
25.  The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian
26.  The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) by Suzanne Collins
27.  Princesses Behaving Badly by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie
28.  Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls by Elena Favilli
29.  Bold School by Weston Kieschnick
30.  Waistcoats and Weaponry (Finishing School #3) by Gail Carriger
31.  Wizarding World:  Movie Magic Volume 2 by Ramin Zahed

AUGUST

32.  The Magic Misfits by Neil Patrick Harris
33.  Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) by Suzanne Collins
34.  Manners and Mutiny (Finishing School #4) by Gail Carriger
35.  Sam the Chandelier Man (The Murder Lawyer Series #2) by Piper Punches

SEPTEMBER

36.  Night Film by Marisha Pessl
37.  The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume 1 by Arthur Conan Doyle
38.  Snared:  Escape to the Above by Adam Jay Epstein

OCTOBER

39.  Frog Music by Emma Donaghue
40.  Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
41.  Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) by Suzanne Collins
42.  Yes, Please! by Amy Poehler

NOVEMBER

43.  The Familiars by Adam Jay Epstein and Andrew Jacobson
44.  The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See

DECEMBER

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PAST BOOK LISTS

Books Read in 2017

Books Read in 2016
Books Read in 2015
Books Read in 2014

Books Read in 2013

Full List of Books on Goodreads
Full A-Z Review Index