2011 Reading Goals

Between school and tax season, 2011 is flying past me. I'll try to get back this week for an update and the rest of my goal for 2011.
For today I want to get my reading goals posted. My reading goal for 2011 is 40 books. That does include bookclub books, but does not include required school books.
I have updated the books read section on my sidebar to 2011 books.
Happy reading!

Read in 2010 Final List

37) What Katy Did Next by Susan Coolidge (currently reading) not finished...
36) The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah Strohmeyer
35) A Mountain of Crumbs: A Memoir by Elena Gorokhova
34) The Cinderella Pact by Sarah Strohmeyer
33) Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire
32) Silencing Sam (Riley Spartz #3)by Julie Kramer
31) Missing Mark (Riley Spartz #2) by Julie Kramer
30) Stalking Susan (Riley Spartz #1) by Julie Kramer
29) The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
28) The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
27) The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
26) Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon
25) The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
24) Think Twice by Lisa Scottoline
23) Why My Third Husband Will Be A Dog by Lisa Scottoline
22) Stone Creek by Victoria Lustbader
21) Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip Heath
20) Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
19) Look Again by Lisa Scottoline
18) The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
17) Tool and Die by Sarah Graves
16) House Rules by Jodi Picoult
15) The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
14) Mallets Aforethought by Sarah Graves
13) Unhinged by Sarah Graves
12) Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk
11) Wreck The Halls by Sarah Graves
10) Repair To Her Grave by Sarah Graves
9) All Men are Mortal by Simon de Beauvoir
8) Isabella Moon by Laura Benedict
7) Wicked Fix by Sarah Graves
6) Triple Witch by Sarah Graves
5) Dead Cat Bounce by Sarah Graves
4) Nail Biter by Sarah Graves
3) The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
2) The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo
1) Everything Matters by Ron Currie Jr


My goal for 2010 that was posted on Jan 4, 2010 was ... "Read more. Since I only read 10 books in 2009 (school books don't count), my goal is 20 books. The bookclub will take care of 12 of them, so that leaves 8 of my choosing. (Considering my "to read" pile, this shouldn't be a problem.)" It does appear that I managed to surpass that one.

What day is it?

Or whould I ask what month it is? Not sure where the time has gone.

Since I last posted...
...early fall quarter has come and gone.
...I'm interning for a dj & karaoke company.
...Tommy came home on r&r and has headed back to Afghanistan (this is one of my fav pictures from while he was home.)




...fall quarter has started - and is almost done (business ethics and artist management & live performance).
...winter quarter has been registered for.
...H&R Block's income tax course has run it's course.
...I've been hired as an H&R Block seasonal tax professional.!
...as my read in 2010 list attests, I have gotten some reading done.
...I've gone camping (twice). - those who really know me, please pick yourself up off of the floor.
...I went "deer hunting" - no I didn't shoot, I studied while he went hunting and did some spotting for him.
...Yes, I met someone. We've been seeing each other since the end of August.

I'll try to come back in the next couple of days for a concert/sports/events update.
Happy Thursday all!

Long Lost Sister?

I just finished reading Why My Third Husbard Will Be A Dog by Lisa Scottoline. I swear she could be my long lost sister - or cousin - or something. She wrote about things I've thought about. The book had me laughing and, at a couple of points, crying. The chapters are short, but say a lot.
Even if you don't read the whole book, everyone should read the chapters "Thank You" and "Meals on Wheels"....every woman should read "Newsflash" - ok, so maybe men should read that one too, they might get a hint.
If you've read the book, what did you think?
If you haven't, what are you waiting for?

Time flies...

OK, I'm going to start by saying, I'm not sure how it's been two months since I posted. But then again my concept of time has been really messed up lately - not necessarily my concept of time, but my ability to keep track of what day of the week it is. (Yes, I've been known to have to look at my phone to see what the date is, then look at the calendar to see what day of the week it is. - one of the hazards of being unemployed.)
Mostly, I've been looking for work and doing school work. No luck so far on the employment front. This quarter at school, I have workplace legal issues, operations management, and recording industry. IF I've calculated correctly, I have about 12 classes left after this quarter - and yes, I'm planning on taking "early fall" classes (known to the majority of the world as summer session).
I haven't been doing much (ok - any) stitching, but have done some reading. The list on the right side of the page is up to date - and next on deck is The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (a bookclub book, not my choice).
I'm slowly learning to cope with my DS being deployed to Afghanistan. The news is really hard to watch some nights, and reading the newspaper is harder some days than others. There are also certain songs that I can't listen to without crying. (If you run into me at karaoke and I walk out while you're singing - it's nothing personal, it's the song you've chosen to do.)
I have spoken to him on the phone several times, and he sent me a present. Well not a souvenier type thing, but I got a Wii delivered to my door step courtesy of him.
I've got it hooked up, but haven't played with it a lot yet - dealing with school and an issue that ex #2 caused.
What kind of issue? Long story short, ex #2 took one of my vehicles without my permission. He got a DUI and I'm waiting to see if the insurance company is going to total out my van. Still not sure what he hit - the report I've seen from court indicates "failed to yield right of way". Dealing with this had been very time consuming!
Will end with a bright note. I made it to the drive in last night. (Admission pricing has gone up from last year, but the concession stand prices appear to have gone down - I don't eat there but love to go look at the memoriabilia they have in the building.) Shrek Forever After was ok, but a little disappointing - ok story line but not as funny as anticipated. Iron Man 2 was also disappointing - they tried to stuff too much into the movie. A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) was a waste of time. I've never seen the original, and there was no character development, so in my opinion - don't bother. (The person that went with me has seen the original and felt the same way.)
If you've made it this far, thank you! I can't guarentee that I'll post every day, but it won't be two months before I post again.
Have a happy and safe Memorial Day!

Happy Dance!

No, don't get too excited. I haven't found a job....or finished a cross stitch project. However, I do have tickets to Brooks & Dunn with Jason Aldean for May...and just saw the commercial that "Glee" is back on the air the day before my birthday. OH, and I finished another book, next up the April book club book.
Hey, I'll take what I can get. What are you celebrating today?

Weekend!

What happened to the weekend? Where'd it go?
OK, let's start by admitting that since getting laid off, I sometimes lose track of what day of the week it is. Sometimes, I have to look at the cell phone to see what the date is, then look at the calendar to see what day of the week it is.
This weekend was a blur of football (I got 3 of the 4 games right), Johnny Depp (Public Enemies was pretty good),reading (school work and started The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo), job hunting, and a little baking (trying to keep from devouring the loaf of cranberry bread). Now I'm going to do some stitching and watch Ty (Extreme Makeover Home Edition).
So, how was your weekend?

First book of the year completed

Everything Matters!: A Novel by Ron Currie Jr.


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Parts of this book were hard to read. That being said, I did like the book because it made me think.

View all my reviews >>

2010?

I had this first post of 2010 all figured out.
About how can it be 2010 already? Wasn't it just last year that we were dealing with the fears Y2K.
A post reflecting on the past decade. Not the big, national stories like the attack on the twin towers, or the collapse of the 35W bridge, or the collapse of the economy. Pesonal things, like losing my grandmother in 2000. About how proud I am of my DS who became a teenager in 2000, and became the Army specialist that he is today. How in the past decade I met the man who is now known as ex #2. About my battle with nonHodgkins. About how the decade started with the birth of a nephew and ended with the birth of a niece.
A post about reconnecting with old friends, growing closer to people that were "acquaintances" at the beginning of the decade (including the person that I consider one of my closest friends). Discovering the Cross Stitch Crazy board, the Little Bit of Everything Bookclub, the monthly stitching get together group, the Freefallin' band - and the friendships that came with these discoveries. And of finding out who my friends really are.
About trying to find the balance between school, job hunting, and me time.
In the "me time" catagory, I went out of town with friends for a couple of days and didn't even log on to check emails. I spent the time enjoying the company, did some reading, did some stitching, relaxed, and thought about the last ten years.
That's what this post was suppose to be about.
Then I got home and the repeat of the season finale of Biggest Loser came on. I heard Jillian make a statement - "Don't wait for life to happen. Make life happen."
This got me thinking. I can't change the past, I can only learn from it. I can take control of my life.
And that's were this post ended up. What do I want? Where do I want to be a year from now?
I want to finish my degree.
I want to find a job that I love.
I want to kick my business into gear.
I want to get back to my goal weight.
I want to sing more.
I want to relearn to play the guitar.
I want to read more.
I want to stitch more.
I want to be happy....strike that, I deserve to be happy.
Some of these things I know what I need to do. Some of them I need to brainstorm on.
I'll be back with goals for those that have such a thing.

Perspective

To my friends and loyal readers. Sorry that it's been so long since my last post. The day after that post I was laid off (after 19 1/2 years with the company). My world was disrupted (to say the least). Since then I have been looking for a new job, trying to concentrate on my classes towards my degree (this quarter statistics and finance), and taking a tax preperation course.
I've also been putting things in perspective. At my age, and with the economy the way it is, looking for a new career opportunity is a challenge. A challenge, but not the end of the world. This is an opportunity to re-evaluate what I want to do and where I want to be.
Putting this in perspective, I looking at...
*Two friends have been diagnosed with cancer. My thoughts and prayers are with them and their families. I admire the way they are handling what life has thrown at them.
*My son is scheduled to go "down range" next year. I'm proud of him, but am a mom.
*My nephew messed up his knee playing high school football. Thankfully, it's not too serious - physical therapy should have him back to new.
*My SIL is expecting in December. Now if my niece would cooperate and move from the breach position.
*Concerned about my mom's health, but she doesn't want to hear it. Or do anything about it.

On the bright side, I've had time to actually do some non-school reading, to spend more time with friends, and to find out who my true friends are. I've picked up a crochet hook for the first time in almost a decade and a cross stitch needle for the first time in too long.
As Gloria Gaynor sang "I Will Survive"....maybe I need to break that out at karaoke (something else I've done for the first time in too long).

NaNoWriMo

Sue had a post on her blog about National Novel Writing Month last week. I read her post, but didn't really think much about it.
When I was checking blogs today, I saw her post again and the wheels started turning. I wanted to be an author when I was little (maybe I'll post a copy of The Adventures of Super Tornado someday - if I can locate it). My life has been compared to a soap opera at times (they say you should write what you know). It's not like I have anything else to do (work, school, stitching.....)
It's not like I have to decide today - writing starts on November 1st.
Hmmm....

I Splurged

more animals

It's sitting on my coffee table at home.

Monday Mutterings...

Or This That and The Other....

Movie Review.
Did anyone else see the 2007 movie Penelope?
"Penelope Wilhern (Christina Ricci) is cursed, and the only way out of it is to fall in love with someone of suitable stock. But how can she possibly find her soul mate when she's sequestered inside her family's sprawling estate with only her parents (Catherine O'Hara and Richard E. Grant) to keep her company? Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon co-produced this unconventional fairy tale about a girl who bucks convention to make her own happy ending."
I watched it last week and adored it! Some of it was a little predictable, but over all a good movie. A feel good movie, especially if you need a little pick me up.

Reading Review - Part 1.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
"As a young man, Jacob Jankowski was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the great Depression, and for Jacob, now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. It was there that he met Marlena, the beautiful equestrian star married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. And he met Rosie, an untrainable elephant who was the great gray hope for this third-rate traveling show. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and, ultimately, it was their only hope for survival."
Read this book for book club. (Disappointed that I won't be able to make it to the meeting to discuss it.) I liked it. The movement from past to present wasn't overly jarring.
One of the girls from the club commented on Good Reads that one of the terms used in the flashback portion wasn't used at the time that portion of the story took place. My response to that - the main character is remembering the past. He probably didn't remember the exact words of the conversation, just the jist.
Overall, while I wouldn't read it again, I would recommend it.

Music Review.
My plans for Saturday night got changed, so went to the Fridley Crab House (a.k.a. the Fridley Music Cafe) to see Chain Lightning perform.
This was my first time at the venue. The set up was ok. For listening/viewing the band it was good. I wasn't dancing, but the dance floor seemed on the small side.
The stage was larger than many I've seen. The fact that it had a door to the outside for loading in and out has been added to my notes for future reference. (For when I grow up and start managing/promoting bands.) Another note...great happy hour specials, $2 drinks.
Chain Lightning was awesome. They were already playing when I arrived. The first set was great. The guest sax player was interesting. Might have been my imagination, but the set was longer than a normal set. The second set seemed to fly by - but that could have had something to do with happy hour :}

Sunday Sunshine.
Ex #1 and his brother-in-law were late getting to my house for the game, so we got to the Metrodome late. Maybe that was the magic ticket. VIKES won! Enough said.

Reading Review - Part 2.
The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart
"When Cameron was fifteen, she and Sonia were best friends—so close it seemed nothing would ever come between them. Now Cameron is a twenty-nine-year-old research assistant with no meaningful ties to anyone except her aging boss, noted historian Oliver Doucet.
Nearly a decade after the incident that ended their friendship, Cameron receives an unexpected letter from her old friend. Despite Oliver’s urging, she doesn’t reply. But when he passes away, Cameron discovers that he has left her with one final task: to track down Sonia and hand-deliver a mysterious package to her.
The Myth of You and Me captures the intensity of a friendship as well as the real sense of loss that lingers after the end of one. Searingly honest and beautiful, it is a celebration and portrait of a friendship that will appeal to anyone who still feels the absence of that first true friend."
A People Magazine “10 Great Reads,” 2005
Started this book Saturday afternoon. So far I'm about two thirds of the way thru, it's a easy read and hard to put down. I'll let you know what I think after finishing it.

Finally.
There is a quote in the book that is haunting me.....
"I felt like I was getting what I wanted for the first time in my life, and this was both terrifying and exhilarating, a free fall." This describes what I'm feeling right now about something that happened this weekend. (Sorry, this is something that I can't write about in case a certain someone should stumble across my blog.)

What's on your list?

Jen found this listing of the best books written. I have read the ones in bold. Maybe I should add the other to my "to read" list.....like that list needs any help.

On July 21, 1998, the Radcliffe Publishing Course compiled and released its own list of the century's top 100 novels, at the request of the Modern Library editorial board.
1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
2. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
4. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
5. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
6. Ulysses by James Joyce
7. Beloved by Toni Morrison
8. The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
9. 1984 by George Orwell
10. The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
11. Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov
12. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
13. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
14. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
15. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
16. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
17. Animal Farm by George Orwell
18. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
19. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
20. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
21. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
22. Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne
23. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
24. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
25. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
26. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
27. Native Son by Richard Wright
28. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
29. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
30. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
31. On the Road by Jack Kerouac
32. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
33. The Call of the Wild by Jack London
34. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
35. Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
36. Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin
37. The World According to Garp by John Irving
38. All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren
39. A Room with a View by E.M. Forster
40. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
41. Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally
42. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
43. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
44. Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
45. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
46. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
47. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
48. Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence
49. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
50. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
51. My Antonia by Willa Cather
52. Howards End by E.M. Forster
53. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
54. Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger
55. The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
56. Jazz by Toni Morrison
57. Sophie's Choice by William Styron
58. Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner
59. A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
60. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
61. A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor
62. Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
63. Orlando by Virginia Woolf
64. Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence
65. Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe
66. Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
67. A Separate Peace by John Knowles
68. Light in August by William Faulkner
69. The Wings of the Dove by Henry James
70. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
71. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
72. A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
73. Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
74. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
75. Women in Love by D.H. Lawrence
76. Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe
77. In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway
78. The Autobiography of Alice B. Tokias by Gertrude Stein
79. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
80. The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer
81. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
82. White Noise by Don DeLillo
83. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
84. Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
85. The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
86. Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
87. The Bostonians by Henry James
88. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
89. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
90. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
91. This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
92. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
93. The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles
94. Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis
95. Kim by Rudyard Kipling
96. The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
97. Rabbit, Run by John Updike
98. Where Angels Fear to Tread by E.M. Forster
99. Main Street by Sinclair Lewis
100. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

So, how did you do?

Austen Quiz

Found this will clicking thru blogs (sorry, don't remember who's blog I got to it from even)....Since we're having a Austen book club meeting on Sunday, it was a sign that I had to take the quiz.

Take the Quiz here!

Guess that's a sign that I need to read Persuasion?

Semi-Accomplished

With the holiday on Friday, thought I could get some stuff done around the house. Well....
Went in to work for a while on Friday to make up for time that I missed due to dentist appointments.
Went to Home Depot yesterday, got paint for both bathrooms. (Behr Lilac Rose for the guest bath: Behr Suntan Glow for the master.) Had to go to another HD to find floor tiles that I liked. (whitish marble for the guest and wood look for the master.) Haven't done anything to either room yet, but did fill out the rebate form for the paint.
Need to go back to get the wood to replace the floor in the master bath and (since the room's going to be torn up anyhow) a new toilet. Need to go back because I couldn't handle (carry, load into the car, unload from the car) these items by myself and ex #2 has not been heard from. (Should that matter? Unfortunately it does, he was suppose to be helping with the work as repayment for some of what he owes me. Yes, I'm more than a little peeved! There's this great invention called a telephone.....)
Got gas for the old lawn mower. The grass is too tall for the reel mower that I bought, so will have to use the fuel powered one one more time. Keeping fingers crossed that it doesn't rain before it cools down a little. Now I'm just waiting for the sun to be a little lower in the sky before I mow.
Did some of the weeding along the sidewalk. There's more to do, but at least the largest of the weekds are gone.
The threads are pulled for a couple of cross stitch round robins that are here. Haven't threaded a needle yet, but the threads are pulled.
Went to Barnes and Noble to look for a book for an upcoming needlework class. They didn't have it, but were able to order it for me.
At least some things got done.

So much to do...

I had a few of errands to run today. Woke up early, thought can't do this yet, can't do that yet. Finished Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, so grabbed a new book to start (to kill a little time). I grabbed Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. Mistake!
Once started, I could not put this book down. Should clarify, I had to put it down a few times to blow my nose since it made me cry (more than once). I did not leave the house until the book was done. If you've read this book (Tammy?) let me know what you thought. If you haven't and you get a chance to - read the book (and let me know what you think).
P.S. I did get my errands done...including buying some new shoes (5 pairs!) I'll try to get some good pictures and post them soon. And decided on the next book to read, since I'm waiting for the book for book club to get here.

A Loss

On my way back from lunch I heard that Jon Hassler passed today. My eyes immediately welled up. Mr. Hassler was one of my favorite authors. I had an opportunity to hear him do a reading from The Dean's List several years ago...my autographed copy of that book is one of my greatest treasures.



Thank You Mr. Hassler for sharing the "Minnesota" experience with all of us in your books. Your wit and wisdom will be missed.

To his family, my heart goes out to you.

Singing is the music nature makes....

I'm back to finishing Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself by Alan Alda. In the book Mr. Alda has the commencement speech that he gave at Caltech in 2002. I've gone back to part of this speech several times....

"WHY? Why should I do this impossible things?
Well, I don't know, maybe for the same reason that the birds sing.
If it does for you what if does for birds, there's a lot to recommend it:

1. It's a good way to improve your chances of having sex.
2. It feels good to sing.
3. Singing is the music nature makes when it dances the dance of life."

Now, I haven't exactly figured out what it is about this that keeps drawing me back. #3 especially causes me to stop. To stop and think. To stop and dream.

Will I figure out what it is about this? I don't know.
I do know that I'll be singing while I'm doing it.

As Promised

What has been going on for the last week that kept me from posting? Here's some of the highlights...

Last Wednesday was the last night of karaoke. It was also a two dentist appointment day. (Drop off my plate in the morning for a soft alignment and then go back in the afternoon to pick it up.) If that wasn't enough, my baby boy decided to come down an visit for the day. (at least I got some stitching done)

Thursday night was dart night. I couldn't hit much of anything. In addition to dropping my PPD average to 14.34, I broke the freeze rule and cost us a game.

Friday - off to the dentist again for an adjustment.

Saturday night it was off to the fights. Grand Casino Hinkley had a boxing event and I got to go (early Chirstmas present from Mom). There was a boxer making his pro debut -- the same fighter that took ex#2 out in a toughman competition there June of last year. That boxer won his pro debut.
Here's a picture I took with my cell phone. Will add a couple more once I get them from the cell to the computer.



Sunday I had a personal consultation with a "gentleman" that wanted to select some of the home party items I have for his kids for Christmas.

Monday Night Football! The Vikings beat da Bears in an ugly game. Took two people that had never been to a game before, hope that they had as much fun as I did.

Tuesday - back to the dentist for another adjustment. Got a call from my darling son on the way there. He was in a "secondary accident" on his way to a basketball game. He's ok, his car lost it's passenger side wing mirror. Unfortunately, found out this afternoon that there was a casualty from the preliminary accident. Haven't talked to him yet today to see how he's doing.

Which brings us to the rest of today....will be doing some Christmas wrapping and some stitching shortly.

Speaking of Stitching...here's some pictures of recent finishes...

This is the ornament that I made for the Cross Stitch Crazy board exchange.










My lot on J's neighborhood round robin.









J's entire neighborhood.








My section of B's designer round robin.








B's entire designer round robin - before I mailed it to her the second time (don't ask).