Sometimes there are things that tug at our hearts. Things that we want to do, or see, or become. Many times, we put a little bit of time and effort in and don't immediately see the results we wanted, or it's hard work, so we give up. Way too soon. I have to remind myself all the time to have patience. Push forward. Work hard.
It's Turn the Page...Tuesday, an online reading group that Adrienne at Some of a Kind has been hosting forever. Read what you want and then tell us about it on the first Tuesday of each month. Couldn't be easier! Today I'm going to tell you about two of the eight books I finished in May.
Doc
~ Mary Doria Russell
'He began to die when he was twenty-one, but tuberculosis is slow and sly and subtle. The disease took fifteen years to hollow out his lungs so completely they could no longer keep him alive. In all that time, he was allowed a single season of something like happiness.'
This is the first paragraph from the novel Doc. This was a real fantastic read about the life of John Henry "Doc" Holliday before the O.K. Corral shootout. It takes place for the most part in Dodge City, Kansas where Doc lived out a few years of his life as he struggled to live with his disease, and struggled to live with Kate. Doc Holliday was a young man and not the wild killer that so many stories have made him out to be. He was a soft-spoken Georgian gentleman who had bad flares of temper, would rather practice dentistry than gamble, loved to play the piano, had a biting tongue, and was quick with a gun.
The author did an incredible job with research and writing a novel that tells us so much more of who Doc was then any of the other countless stories and movies that have been written about him. That being said, I love the movie Tombstone and read every single word uttered by Doc in Val Kilmer's "Doc voice". It made it all the more fun!
This was a great book. I really enjoyed it and am now putting it on the Caveman's nightstand because I think he should read it too!
From Goodreads:
Born to the life of a Southern gentleman, Dr. John Henry Holliday arrives on the Texas frontier hoping that the dry air and sunshine of the West will restore him to health. Soon, with few job prospects, Doc Holliday is gambling professionally with his partner, Mária Katarina Harony, a high-strung, classically educated Hungarian whore. In search of high-stakes poker, the couple hits the saloons of Dodge City. And that is where the unlikely friendship of Doc Holliday and a fearless lawman named Wyatt Earp begins--before the gunfight at the O.K. Corral links their names forever in American frontier mythology when neither man wanted fame or deserved notoriety.
My Beloved World
~Sonia Sotomayor
'I was barely awake, and my mother was already screaming. I knew Papi would start yelling in a second. That much was routine, but the substance of their argument was new, and it etched that morning into my memory.'
And so begins My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor. This first paragraph is pretty powerful and epitomizes the strength this woman possesses. She was only six years old, newly diagnosed with diabetes when she wakes up to hear her parents fighting about who had to give her her insulin shot. Sonia realized that if it was such a hard thing, then she would never again be able to go spend the night at her grandmother's house, so she got up, walked into the kitchen and begin to boil the water herself to sterilize her needle so she could give the shot to herself. She knew that it was going to have to be up the her to take control. Pretty sad at six years old.
I read this book as the May read for the book club that I'm in. It is not a book I would have picked for myself and I even thought, "Ugh! A political memoir. Shoot me know." , but in all honesty, it was really good. Sonia Sotomayor was the 3rd woman and the very first Hispanic to be appointed to the US Supreme court. She tells her story from childhood to the time of the appointment in a voice that is not self-pitying and is there to tell a story and give hope to others. I have all the admiration in the world for this strong, resilient woman who has given back simply by telling her own story.
Highly recommended!
From Goodreads:
The first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor has become an instant American icon. Now, with a candor and intimacy never undertaken by a sitting Justice, she recounts her life from a Bronx housing project to the federal bench, a journey that offers an inspiring testament to her own extraordinary determination and the power of believing in oneself.
Here is the story of a precarious childhood, with an alcoholic father (who would die when she was nine) and a devoted but overburdened mother, and of the refuge a little girl took from the turmoil at home with her passionately spirited paternal grandmother. But it was when she was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes that the precocious Sonia recognized she must ultimately depend on herself. She would learn to give herself the insulin shots she needed to survive and soon imagined a path to a different life. With only television characters for her professional role models, and little understanding of what was involved, she determined to become a lawyer, a dream that would sustain her on an unlikely course, from valedictorian of her high school class to the highest honors at Princeton, Yale Law School, the New York County District Attorney’s office, private practice, and appointment to the Federal District Court before the age of forty. Along the way we see how she was shaped by her invaluable mentors, a failed marriage, and the modern version of extended family she has created from cherished friends and their children. Through her still-astonished eyes, America’s infinite possibilities are envisioned anew in this warm and honest book, destined to become a classic of self-invention and self-discovery.
And that's just what they'll do. One of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you...
Not really. Just joshin'. But they will go for a walk again. Probably one of these days soon.
Memorial day weekend around here is treacherous in the fact that we live on the coast and everyone wants to be here, rain or shine, on a holiday weekend. For most of us who live here full time, we avoid the roads and the beach like it's the plague. We really wanted to get out and take the dogs on a good walk where they could run, so we headed up to a logging area known as California Barrel. As you can see, it was completely overcrowded!
This guy had a ton of friends. They were partying it up poolside. Well, a lot of them were swimming and frolicking. I think this guy, we'll call him Buddy, jumped out to sunbathe for a bit. I didn't have the heart to tell him that sun was not on the forecast.
Maybe he really just got out of the pool to console his friend, Slug. It seems that Slug was pouting, feeling left out and a bit like a wallflower. Nice of Buddy to notice and make time for a chat.
(By the way, notice Buddy's nice orange color. His underside is way brighter and this little fellow is toxic. He's a Western Newt and you shouldn't eat him if you are in the woods and hungry. That's not nice anyway.)
There is so much pretty vegetation in our woods. One of my favorites is Oregon Oxalis, otherwise known as Wood Sorrel. It's bright green, looks like 3-leaf clover and covers the forest floor. Really pretty. I think there may have been a gnome or two hiding under there but they are way to fast for me.
Riff cut several loads of firewood up here this fall. He was explaining to me where the good pile was and the intricate nature of pulling the logs out to cut. It's what he does. He's a 'xplaner.
(I was listening intently, of course.)
The Pacific Northwest is very lush and grows super quick. Don't lose your car int he woods, because you may never find it again with all the vines, ferns and moss that will quickly take it over.
This stump is what is known as a Nurse Stump. Tree died for whatever reason, was logged, fell over in a "wind event", whatever the case, and that old stump becomes a nurse to new vegetation. You can see that new tree growing right out of it along with some ferns and stuff. Don't stand still too long. It'll grow right over you too.
When this handsome boy was just a puppy, we named him Gustav but decided to call him Gus until he became more dignified and grew in to his royal name. Scratch that. See that brown, (or possibly green), crap on his shoulder. Yep. Serious crap. Elk poop to be exact. He will never be Gustav but will forever remain merely Gus.
(Can you blame him? Look who raised him, after all. Riff is legally Richard, but nope, that's never going to happen either. Merely Riff. At least he doesn't roll in elk poop.)
Walk is over for the day. Loading up to head home to that hose in the backyard and some shampoo to wash off Gus' very fragrant cologne.
Did you know that the toothpick predates modern man? Yep, according to Wikipedia and we KNOW everything there is correct and completely accurate! The skulls of Neanderthals show clear signs of having had their teeth picked with a tool.
The Neanderthal, I mean husband, that lives at my house is always in search of a good toothpick. Don't you love it when you are in a restaurant and they have cinnamon or mint toothpicks? The best! Today I decided to make a batch of cinnamon. I think my caveman will like them! Super easy! First gather up your supplies ~ 1 small glass jar 1 box of wooden toothpicks 1 bottle of certified pure Cinnamon essential oil 1 bottle of fractionated coconut oil (or any carrier oil you want to use; olive, grapeseed, etc.)
Cover the bottom of the jar with your carrier oil. Don't put to much, just enough to cover it.
Now add that delicious, yummy Cinnamon Bark oil. 15 to 20 drops will do it.
( Make sure you are using a good, 100% pure, unadulterated, therapeutic grade oil. These are toothpicks. They will be in your mouth so you want to make sure you know what's in the oil you are using.)
Toss those toothpicks in! Well, be gentle. You want them standing up and not just all willy-nilly in there.
Put the lid on.
Leave it on for about 8 hours.
After the loooong 8 hours have passed, pour them out onto something flat.
They should be in one layer on the plate. I know. Do what I say, not what I do. You want them to dry.
It might take up to 24 hours. I know. So stinking hard to wait.
When the sand has finally made it's way to the bottom, your toothpicks are finally ready. Yay!
Stick 'em in a tin, maybe a recycled Altoids tin, and enjoy!
Seriously, is it okay to eat wood? Sorry Caveman. These are mine!
(p.s. To get your own certified pure essential oils, contact me for more information. paulaniz67@yahoo.com)
On a morning in early May, bright with sunshine and unseasonably warm, Riff and I decided to take a drive and visit the Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens in Woodland, Washington. The gardens are a wonderful, serene place to visit in this busy little town on the I-5 corridor. Birds are always chirping, bee's buzzing, and from tine to time, little spring peepers are singing their froggy songs. We've been there a handful of times and enjoy the visit every time.
This particular early May visit was once upon a time, but not very long ago. Just this past Saturday in fact. Mother's Day weekend is a fantastic time to visit. It is during the couple of weeks known as Lilac Days. During this festive time is the only time the little farmhouse is open for tours and also the only time that you can purchase starts of so many of the wonderful varieties of lilacs that are grown here. Hulda was a pioneer in propagating so many new varieties of lilacs. You can read about our first visit and more of Hulda's fascinating story here.
With the early spring and unseasonably warm weather we've been having, the lilacs were all done blooming for the most part by this past weekend. The gardens were still beautiful.
There is a variety of lilac grown in this garden called Belle de Nancy. The first year we visited, Nancy wasn't a start that was available to purchase but I vowed to haunt the gardens every year until we could bring Nancy home. This was the year! I'm so excited to have not one, but TWO baby Belle de Nancy's to nourish and grow! Yay!!
Here is what here blossoms look like on a full-grown bush. Light lavender and white double blooms. Absolutely breathtaking! It will be some time before our baby Nancy's produce blooms like this. I can hardly wait!
Meet our little babies. Aren't the twins adorable?!
