JULY 28, 2024 FOREVER YOUNG

My mother-in-law turned 93 years young the other day AND she's still living large. Plays bridge twice a week--takes piano lessons--tends to her gardens AND really enjoys her life. She's taking advantage of every minute she has left on this planet. She's a lucky woman. With  plenty of family around, She NEVER  feels lonely. She is truly blessed in that sense. We had a birthday celebration last night and she played the piano -- we sang songs -- had a few cocktails--just like the old days. Did I mention--she still looks fabulous--she could probably pass for 75. She was also blessed with great skin. Praying I look half as good as she does when I get older AND want to  have just as much fun. Life is short SO enjoy and cherish it. If you want to find out where life has taken Eilis Lacey, the main character of the novel Brooklyn, you'll have to check out the sequel by Colm Toibin called Long Island. If you remember--Eilis came to New York from Ireland, met and married a plumber named Tony Fiorello. As the sequel unfolds, Eilis is now forty years old and lives on a cul-de-sac with Tony, her two children and Tony's extended family in the neighboring houses. One day while Tony is at work, a man shows up at their house looking for Eilis. He tells her that his wife is pregnant with Tony's child and he refuses to raise it. He says he will be dumping the baby on her doorstep. After this shocking news, Eilis decides to return to Ireland to make amends with her mother and brother as well as introduce them to her children. While in Ireland, Eilis catches up with old friends from her tiny village and bumps into her old love, Jim. Old feelings stir as Eilis starts to question her life and future. Find out what happens to Eilis and family when you read this novel that I really enjoyed. Just hoping there's another installment of this series. 

July 18, 2024 RUNNING ON EMPTY

 

Ran the annual Sailfest 5k on Sunday. NO TRAINING AT ALL. It was a last minute thing. Got together with old running friends to relive our glory days. Not sure when they changed the course but it's basically an in and out--NO HILLS. Thank God. Back in the day--there were a few serious hills that killed me every time. Sadly--this race--without hills--killed me too. I'm just not in shape to run in the HEAT-HUMIDITY. There wasn't a breath of air out there. My first two miles were pretty good BUT then I DIED. I couldn't keep up the pace. I actually had to stop and walk several times because I felt like I was going to THROW UP.  I'd rather run in the dead of winter through a snowstorm then run in that heat again. Ha. After every race--we always share a beer. Couldn't find a bar open. Luckily--Muddy Waters--in addition to coffee-tea-smooothies--HAS ICE COLD BEER. They saved the day. Cheers! If you like books about books--I can't resist them--then check out The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett. The main character of this mystery is Peter Byerly, an antiquarian bookseller and recluse. After his beloved wife, Amanda, dies of cancer at a young age, he is paralyzed with grief. He decides on a whim to leave North Carolina for their home in England to try to pick up the pieces. One day while in a rare bookstore, Peter comes across a Victorian watercolor from the 18th century that looks just like his wife. He becomes obsessed with finding more about the painting and in doing so discovers a rare copy of Pandosto, which is believed to be source material for some Shakespeare plays. Somehow the Pandosto and the painting are linked and Peter is determined to find out how. Along the way, Peter meets an Art Scholar named Liz who helps him solve this literary/art mystery that is full of twists, turns, suspense, murder and intrigue. This is a well written, historically accurate pay turner--a great escape! It's only about 350 pages. Give it a try and let me know what you think. 

July 11, 2024 WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS

Finally......a break in the humidity. I don't know about you BUT this humidity is a killer. It just sucks the life right out of me. I become a huge blob--can't get out of my own way. What a difference a day makes--I feel completely energized again--the sun is shining, birds are chirping and I'm NOT dripping in sweat. Don't think the weather affected me this way when I was younger BUT in my advancing age----I really feel it. I'm just hoping that July's not the new August and August's isn't the new September. That would be a shame. The only good thing about the humidity is that I read a lot--because I can't move. Literally read a 500 plus page book in a few days that I really enjoyed called Three by Valerie Perrin. Set in a small town in France called La Comelle, it is 1986 when ten year old Adrein, Etienne and Nina  meet and become inseparable. They share good times, bad and the usual ups and downs of growing up. They vow to move to Paris together after graduation to attend school and become musicians, but something happens and the future is forever changed. They no longer speak. It is now 2017 and a car is pulled out of the lake in their hometown with a body in it. Who is the body? What does this have to do with the three friends? This interesting story of friendship, betrayal, grief and forgiveness spans several decades as the narrator, Virginie, takes the reader through their lives which are filled with twists and turns and ultimately a redemption of sorts because time heals all. This is a lovely story originally written in French and translated by Hildegarde Serle. It did take me a bit to get into it, but then I couldn't put it down. I was competely drawn into their world and needed to know what happened to these friends and how it would end. Give it a try. Let me know what you think.