Weekend Busy, Weekend Happy

Today I am linking up with Sunday Post for the very first time.

Not much time was spent reading this weekend. Mr Busy and I attended a GWRRA (Gold Wing Road Riders Assoc) District (Wyoming) Rally in Buffalo WY. If you ride any brand of motorcycle you need to come to Wyoming to ride. If you like beautiful mountain vistas, you need to come to Wyoming to experience those. If you like to shop of artisan type gifts, you need to come to Wyoming. If you like to fish, hunt, camp and hike, you need to come to Wyoming.

We spent the weekend helping make the rally a success. We manned the registration table, sold various raffle tickets, helped tally poker stroll hands, helped serve up BBQ and all the trimmings. We enjoyed the camaraderie very much. This will probably be our last rally as Mr Busy has decided to sell our Gold Wing. We have been riding with this group since 1990 and that means that we are getting old. Not the oldest riders in attendance. That honor went to a guy from Nebraska, who is 88 years old. He rode from his hometown of Scottsbluff  NE to Buffalo WY with a couple from his local chapter.  He does ride a trike, a common sight these days, but he is pretty amazing.

I am still reading The Color of Water in July and hope to finish it soon. Then I will start Shem Creek,  by Dorothea Benton Frank.

I checked it out at our local library and I need to get it read.  It is #4 in the Lowcountry series, but the Goodread synopsis looks like it will work as a stand alone story as well.

Pat Conroy has called her books “hilarious and wise”, noting that they are “funny, sexy and usually damp with sea water.” Anne Rivers Siddons said of Sullivans Island that it “roared with life.” Now Dorothea Benton Frank takes us back to the Lowcountry to introduce a whole new cast of characters whose lives will surely move your heart.Linda Breland has no experience managing a restaurant, but then neither did Brad Jackson, and he owns the place.
Meet Linda Breland, single parent of two teenage daughters. The oldest, Lindsey, who always held her younger sister in check, is leaving for college. And Gracie, her Tasmanian devil, is giving her nightmares. Linda’s personal life? Well, between the married men, the cold New Jersey winters, her pinched wallet and her ex-husband who marries a beautiful, successful woman ten years younger than she is—let’s just say, Linda has seen enough to fill a thousand pages.
As the story opens, she is barreling down Interstate 95, bound for Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, the land of her ancestors. Welcomed by the generous heart of her advice dispensing sister, Mimi, Linda and her daughters slowly begin to find their way and discover a sweeter rhythm of life.

What kept you busy this weekend? Did you read or play?

The Color of Water in July by Nora Carroll

From Goodreads: Hemingway Point and The Color of Water in July are alternate titles to the same novel.

When Jess spends the summer in her late grandmother's rambling Victorian summer cottage, she uncovers heart-rending mysteries and lost love. It has been seventeen years since Jess has last visited the elite lakefront summer club where she had spent the summers of her youth. Now, she returns with her photographer boyfriend who wants to write an article about the distinctive old house. Sifting through old letters and pictures she finds in a hidden trunk, Jess unravels long-hidden family secrets. Including, just maybe, the secret to her own heart. In this vivid, cinematic debut, Nora Carroll tells the story of love lost and found in lyrical and evocative language that touches the heart. Sure to please readers of Anita Shreve, Jodi Picoult, and Lou Ann Rice. 


My thoughts:  The Color Of Water In July by Nora Carroll
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thought when I started, that this was going to be a chick lit summer read. It is all that and more. Nora Carroll tells a story of Jess from the when she spent summers at the lake with her grandma Mamie at 17 and then again as she comes back to the elite cottage community with her boyfriend, after her grandmother's death. She tells of story of family, community, and hidden secrets.

Without giving any of the story away, there were twists and turns that I did not see coming. I thought I knew how the story was going to end, but I had no idea how Jess was going to get there. I really like the format of the story, with the POV going back and forth with Jess at 17 and again at 34. Then the details were filled in with Mamie telling the parts that Jess did not, could not know.

I have not read Nora Carroll in the past, but I will in the future. 


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Saturday Snapshots - Longmire Country and Gold Wing Motorcycles

Saturday Snapshots is hosted each week by  West Metro Mommy Reads . To share a photo or a few  there are a few rules, check them out at Melinda's blog.

Mr Busy and I are spending the weekend in Buffalo WY, nestled beneath the beautiful Big Horn Mountains. We are attending a GWRRA District Rally. We are not riding our Gold Wing this year, Mr.B's back and hip are giving him trouble so we did not take the chance on two wheels this time. 

This in the wine and beer list that is on each table. The cafe is a tiny place and our table was at the window and we could look out to watch Clear Creek run by. It was heaven. 

 We are in " Longmire Country".  Craig Johnson, who writes the Longmire mystery series, lives just down the road. So the local merchants take some advantage of his celebrity.  We had breakfast this morning at The Busy Bee Cafe.  The coffee cups, in addition to advertising the cafe, also make it known that you are in Longmire Country.

Just incidentally, the coffee was great, the Quiche of the Day (vegetable today) was out of this world. It came with a side of fruit , which was great too. My DH is across the table, you can barely see that his t-shirt sports the Wyoming bucking bronco cowboy on it. Though this one has the cowboy on a Gold Wing Motorcycle. Apropos don't you think? 

We are having a great time, which is why I am a bit late posting to today's Saturday Snapshot. We go home tomorrow. The final day of the Rally is today, there is dinner and closing ceremonies tonight. 

Off to check out all the other snapshots for today. 

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - The Color of Water in July by Nora Carroll

Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea hosts this fun way to share a bit of the book you are currently reading or a book you want to read soon. And even more important is the chance to take a peek at what others are reading to see if you might find one you want to try. Be warned!  Your TBR list could grow a lot.


This week I am reading a book that has been on my Kindle for sometime. I was attracted to the cover at first. Then I read the blurb on Goodreads.  However, you know how it is. So many books, so little time, and I did not get to it right away. Well, along comes a reading challenge in the Goodread's group, Love of Reading. One of the categories is to read a book with one of the following words in the title: "July", "Flag","American", "Day", "Sun", "Nation", "Patriot", "Duty","Freedom", " Birth", "Red", "Blue", "White" or "County".  There were lots of books to chose from, but I had this one already downloaded on my Kindle and so it is the one I chose.

The Color of Water in July
Nora Carroll
Published March 2011 by Amazon Digital Services
  (first published in a slightly different form with the title Hemingway Point)

Jess age 34

Chapter One

There must be a precise moment when wet cement turns dry, when it no longer accepts footprints, or scratched in declarations of love; on ordinary moment, unnoticed, just like any. But in that moment, the facts of life can change.

At the age of thirty-three, Jess thought she knew everything there was to know about leaving places: getting on a plane or stepping into a car, and moving forward, on to the next thing. 

She had not yet learned the art of going back. 

So would you try this one?  I am wondering why she is going to need to go back?

Check out the Goodreads synopsis HERE.


Until next time,
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Saturday Snapshots The Bad, the Ugly and the Good of the Season 7-4-15

Saturday Snapshots is hosted each week by  West Metro Mommy Reads . To share a photo or a few  there are a few rules, check them out at Melinda's blog.

On Thursday this week, Mr. Busy and I were watching Longmire. ( His Father's Day gift, the season 3 CD).  The window were open, the evening was warm, there had been fireworks earlier in the evening. They are prohibited in our town, by the way, but I don't call the PD because it's dark and you can't really tell who is setting them off or exactly where they are coming from. I got up to get us some ice cream and noticed a orange/yellow glow. I moved to the patio door and saw flames leaping into the sky at least 18 feet. I yelled at Mr. B to call 911.

About that time, I heard sirens so knew that someone already had called the Fire Department. My husband decided to use the garden hose in the back yard to wet down the tree that stands directly behind our garage and about 2 1/2 feet from the neighbors hedge.  ( He is a retired volunteer fireman).

Long story short (Mr B says I lay every nail in the railroad when I tell a story ), this is a picture from across the street of our house. I had the dog and my purse and my cell phone , just as the FD arrived. The neighbors juniper shrubs were on fire from a smoke bomb the kids had rolled down the street.

This is about 5 minutes later and you can see there is just smoke , the fire is basically out. We did not lose anything, nor did our neighbor (except his hedge) and no one was hurt. So all is well, but it was close to our house and our neighbor's. Thankfully the FD responded quickly and there was no wind.

In the daylight it doesn't look  quite so scary, but you can see the burned remains of the hedge surrounding the front yard of our neighbor's yard. The large tree on the right is ours, and located directly behind our garage.

                                  On a happier note        Happy 4th of July. 

 This is a quick snapshot of our buffet, inherited from my mom when she moved into the nursing home. I try to decorate it with signs of the season each month if I can. I made the scrappy table runner to fit. It is only 36" across, short for a table runner.  The other things are just candles and a picture that were elsewhere in the house.

This is a little banner that I made last year. It makes me smile and hangs by my front door.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy weekend. Let's make memories and smores!!

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - State of the Onion - Julie Hyzy

Every Tuesday Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros. It is a place to share the first paragraph or (a few) of a book you are reading or thinking about reading soon. Post about your first chapter first paragraph then link up at Diane's blog. It is a great way to get a glimpse into a book you have been thinking about too or maybe one you never would have considered otherwise. 

State of the Onion
Julie Hyzy
Berkley Prime Crime
2008


Chapter 1
  
I slid my employee pass into the card reader at the Northeast gate of the White House, and waited for verification--a long, shrill chirp that always made me wince. The pedestrian gate unlocked with a click and one of the guards, Freddie, emerged from the checkpoint to greet me. Like all of the staff here, he was fit, smart, and imposing. But he had a soft spot for those of us in the kitchen. We gave the guys cookies when we had time to make an extra batch.

" Hey, Ollie," he said, looking at a bulky parcel in my hand, "What's that?"


A pretty benign beginning, but setting up the chapter pretty well. Do you read cozy mysteries?  I have come to like them a lot. They are a favorite genre. I have a lot of favorites...most of them. 

Would you read on?


Hoping to finish this one today and then begin the another library find. I'll probably feature that one next week. 


Stay Busy and Stay Happy

The Boston Girl - What's In a Name Challenge 2015

The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Addie Baum begins to tell the story of her life to her 22 year old granddaughter, when Ava asks, "How did you get to be the woman you are today?"  Addie is 85 and begins her story in 1915, the year she joined the library group at a neighborhood settlement house for girls. It was there that she found her voice, and made friends with teachers and other young girls who would become lifelong friends.

I love how the story is told as a grandmother talking to her granddaughter. It feels private and personal and truthful. The chapters all have names, like What are friends for?, or How do you go on after that?, and It made me feel like a real Boston girl.

Ms Diamant tells an unforgettable story about family, remarkable friendships, and feminism from the POV of a young Jewish girl growing up in Boston in the early twentieth century.


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