A Tiny Little Complaint (Or Two)

I hate to do this (every time I say/write that phrase the thought runs through my mind that I must not hate it enough, or I really wouldn't do it), but I have a few small complaints. I'll just voice them, then be done.

1. I had big plans for the week after Christmas, and they all fell by the wayside. I'll just say it this way: my granddaughter threw up on Christmas day (also her birthday) and that may have been the highlight of the week.

2. I know the week wasn't all bad, but I didn't feel well. And when I don't feel well it obscures reality.

3. My sister's family was here. It should have been a blast. Parts were fun (a couple of great meals, some good Dr. Mario games), but no one was really feeling on top of the world the whole time.

4. Debby and family were here for the whole week. We had fun plans. None of them got done (at least my part). Debby worked and worked on our 2010 family photo album.

5. Today I went to put away my parents' Christmas decorations and the carpet was wet in that room. There's a leak somewhere in our utility closet. I did not move to the desert to have to deal with water problems. I wanted to leave all that excess water behind in the Pacific Northwest.

6. Okay, this one has been sitting in my gut for a month now: my daughter Audrey and her family were in a car accident on December 2nd. They hit packed snow and the car spun around and around. The back window blew out. They lost most of their possessions in the car which flew out that back window. No one was hurt, thank heavens, but not one, let me repeat that, NOT ONE car (and there were several on the road) stopped to see if they were okay. NOT ONE.

There, now I feel better. At least mentally. I still don't feel up to par physically.

The good news is: I set a goal for myself this year, and I'm only three days behind on the goal so far.

Maybe that's why this year I'm going to work on being flexible.

A Dublin Student Doctor by Patrick Taylor

I really, really like these books. This is the sixth book written by Patrick Taylor about Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly and his Irish Country Doctor experiences.

This book is actually about O'Reilly's student doctor days in Dublin (as you can tell from the title) in the 1930's. I found myself mentally walking the halls of the hospitals he trained in, picturing the patients he encountered. Patrick Taylor is a gifted storyteller.

I highly recommend these books. They'd be a great start to anyone's reading New Year. The first is An Irish Country Doctor.

V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton

I enjoyed being back in Kinsey Millhone's world for a few days. Sue Grafton seems to be back on track for these books after a few that weren't so great. I enjoyed U is for Undertow, and I thought V is for Vengeance held up too.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

I didn't see the first Sherlock Holmes movie. My son saw it and gave a shrug when I asked how it was.

This time around I didn't wait for his rating. Ray and I were bored, so we went to the movies. We had great seats, and I must admit to being riveted from the outset. I saw a few things coming, but was delightfully surprised by most of the things that were foreshadowed. It might be fun to see it again, knowing the end from the beginning.

Robert Downey Jr. makes a great Sherlock, and Jude Law is well cast as Watson. The movie bears just enough resemblance to Conan Doyle's stories to make it very fun for me. I've read every one of the Sherlock Holmes stories. That was when I first felt the shiver from a thrilling story. I almost had a heart attack while reading The Hound of the Baskervilles and my dad startled me. But I digress.

I'm now going to watch the first Sherlock Holmes movie. It may not be as good as this one, but I know I'll enjoy it.

Mission: Impossible, Ghost Protocol

If my typing is shaky, it's because the adrenaline is still pumping.

• I thought I might wet my pants from the excitement. 
• I think I crushed Ray's hand during the anxious parts. 
• At one point I had to hide my face in his shoulder so I wouldn't explode from the tension. 
• No chance I was checking my watch or wondering when it would ever be over.
• Good thing the movie was so loud (no one heard my screams).
• Great action.
• Good plot.
• Fabulous supporting cast.
• Whew!

Why My Third Husband Will Be a Dog by Lisa Scottoline

Very fun book.

Lisa Scottoline has written several mysteries that I have not yet read. This book is a collection of her newspaper columns that she writes for the Philadelphia Inquirer. I usually don't care for this kind of reading, but I really enjoyed this.

Lisa's subject matter deals with life as a "woman of a certain age." I happen to be one of those, and she hits the nail on the head. I giggled and related to almost every column.

It's a quick read, and I recommend it.

Now I'm off to explore her mysteries, because we all know how much I love a good mystery!

Disappearing Nightly by Laura Resnick

A friend of mine on Goodreads recommended this book. She said it was fun and funny urban fantasy. I wasn't sure what she meant by urban fantasy (I guess I haven't really explored that genre), but she usually gives reviews that I agree with, so I decided to give it a try. Plus I was ready for a fun and funny book.

It was kind of fun and parts of it were funny. Mentally I give fantasy novels a wide berth. I don't know why, because many of the ones I've read I really liked. But I always balk at the idea of reading a fantasy novel.

This book had minimal fantasy. Just a little bit of magic and mages. It takes place currently in New York City, so perhaps that's where the urban part comes in.

Here's the label I'd give it: a mystery with a little bit of fantasy thrown in. It was a  diverting and quick read. Not great literature, nothing to set the world on fire, but enjoyable. There are more books in the series. I'm not in a rush to read them, but if the opportunity arose I might give them a try.

Dec 25: We Wish You a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

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