Sunday, May 31, 2015

The Sunday Salon 5/31/15: What Happened to May?


Well, that was quick. May always seems to be a busy month. Years ago it was First Communions, Confirmations, recitals, concerts, and sporting events. Now we have progressed to graduations and moving kids around. And let's not forget about Mother's Day and Memorial Day.

After attending Twin A's boyfriend's college graduation and party last Saturday, I was thankful for the rest of the long weekend to recover, but Tuesday I was back on the road to help her move out of her apartment. Yesterday we loaded the SUV and my husband drove her (and the guinea pigs!) to Manhattan. She will live with Daughter #1 while working a summer internship at L'Oréal. There was no room left for me, but that means I am enjoying a quiet weekend at home. No complaints!


In the midst of all the packing, unpacking, and repacking this week, we hosted a greyhound sleepover. This  allowed Zelda (on the right) an opportunity to meet Red Angus, a recently retired racer who will be staying with us for 10 days while his new family is on vacation. After a few tense moments (for me) and several growls (from Zelda), they reached a tentative understanding. Zelda remained standoffish, but Angus seemed pretty happy to be here. He'll be back tomorrow... and I am hoping they'll be pals by the end of his visit.


Finished reading//


Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy (a read/listen combo)
Wow, what a story! Review coming soon.

Current reading//

The Seven Sisters by Margaret Drabble
Quiet, but enjoyable. It's rainy and cool today, perfect weather this book.


New Books//

Chowderland by Brooke Dojny
From Netgalley. Requested for my husband, who loves seafood in a bowl.


The Tin Horse by Janice Steinberg
Another $1.99 kindle deal. I need to stop buying and start reading these books!


In the kitchen//

I finally tried Trish's Molasses Glazed Chicken Thighs this week. The whole family loved them, and I ended up making more just a few days later!

Today I'm cooking a Boston-Style Creamy Clam Chowder from Chowderland... should be ready by the time hubby gets home from NYC. I'll review the cookbook in an upcoming Weekend Cooking post.

On the blog//

Tuesday Intro: The Sevens Sisters
Beach Bag Recommendations, 2015 Edition
Review: Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler

Around the internet//

I'm in a classics mood this week. O's review of Wives and Daughters  by Elizabeth Gaskell and Cat's review of The Kill  by Emile Zola both make me wish I could read a lot faster!

The 2015 Audie Award winners were announced Thursday night. Audible.com provided a live stream of the event, but I was only able to watch part of it. Have you listened to any of the winners?

It seems like it was all BEA, all the time this week. Between twitter, Instagram, and the Armchair BEA blog posts, it was almost as good as being there.


Did you see that  Flannery O'Connor will appear on a new postage stamp?  I was disappointed yesterday when my post office was sold out of the Maya Angelou stamps (despite the misquote), so I'll make it a point to check for these on the June 5 release date.

How was your week? What are you reading?

42 comments:

  1. The dogs look wonderful. It great (brave) of you to watch them. I've been enjoying the BEA posts. They have given me a greater sense of what it is like. I hope you have a great week. I wish I could be there for your Clam Chowder.

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    1. Pat - I'm a little apprehensive having such a 'fresh off the track' dog here, but he seems like such a sweetie. Fingers crossed. But if I'm not around much for a while, you'll know why!

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  2. Happy Sunday, and happy almost June! I think "I need to stop buying and start reading these books" could be the official book blogging motto. It would fit nicely on a t-shirt or a pillow! And I suddenly have this craving for clam chowder :)

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    1. Lisa - LOL! If I had a little more creativity, I'd design a needlepoint pillow... wonder if Audrey can help us out ;-)

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  3. May is so busy. And beautiful dogs- hope they make friends.

    Chowderland made me hungry :) and I thought the Vacationers looked good after looking at your Beach Reads. Maybe I just like that cover!

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    1. Greg - The chowder is made and I hope it tastes as good as it smells! The Vacationers was wonderful... think family dysfunction in an idyllic setting. I loved it!

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  4. What an exciting time for your twins! May is a busy month - next you'll be moving on to weddings and baby showers - these events seem to come in cycles for us.

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    1. Kathy - Nooooo! Too soon for weddings and baby showers ;-)

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  5. Ah, those sweet pups are so gorgeous!
    I'm so excited about the Flannery stamp (and I'm not a person who cares about stamps at all)...I think I'm going to make a trip to the post office for some, too.

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    1. Shannon - I'm not a big stamp person either, but will make an exception here. Fingers crossed the greyhounds can coexist for a week or so...

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  6. I love BEA time because I can live vicariously through all those that attend! I love the picture of the greyhounds. They're such fascinating animals and hopefully Zelda and Angus will be friends. I haven't read or listened to Madding Crowd but I want too. I read Tess in high school and enjoyed it as much as one can enjoy complete and total tragedy. How exciting for Twin A! Have a great week!

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    1. Katherine - Hardy requires a little more concentration and attention from me, but he's certainly worth it. Such plot twist in this book... wonder if the movie will do it justice.

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  7. Yum - that chowder book looks scrumptious! I'm a sucker for some creamy seafood soups!! And, I need to try Trish's chicken thighs...I pinned that recipe when she posted it. Molasses is such an underrated ingredient!

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    1. Sarah - Just finished the chowder and it was a lot of work... sure hope it tastes good. The chicken, on the other hand, was a snap!

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  8. Emptying the nest is definitely one of those milestones...and for me, it would be a revolving door back and forth for a while...and then, finally, they were all launched.

    After seeing your post about The Seven Sisters, I started searching my shelves, but knew that I wouldn't find it. Gone when I moved, I'm sure. I read and loved it years ago...so I downloaded the e-book for a reread. I loved how I felt reading it. A slow savor of a read. I won't get to it for a while...but I love knowing that I can!

    Thanks for sharing....and enjoy your week. Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES


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    1. Laurel-Rain Snow - I often joke that we need to get a revolving door for this house! The Seven Sisters is definitely a slow savor of a read. I'm looking forward to some quiet time with it this evening.

      And I know exactly what you mean -there is definitely comfort in having just the right book on your kindle for whenever you need it :)

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  9. I'm going to have to check out those wings! The Audie Award winners look interesting. I may have to give The Graveyard Book a try on audio. I still haven't made up my mind whether I love it or not. Will June be a more relaxing month?

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    1. Vasilly - I'll probably try that marinade on chicken breasts next time, and am also wondering about pork. It was delicious!

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  10. As for May disappearing, I suspect you've been in Barsetshire, because when I go there I sometimes return blinking and wondering where I am :) Rainy here, too, so I'm enjoying a reading and baking day.

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    1. Audrey - Ha! That's exactly where I've been... must I really wait until July to return ;-)

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  11. I love the Flannery O'Connor picture--it's lovely. I like to collect stamps, but hadn't heard about this release. I will definitely get a sheet.

    Looking forward to your review of Far From the Madding Crowd. One of my favorites by Hardy. Are you queuing up for the movie--I'm waiting for my daughter to visit (in one short week!) before going.

    The pups look happy--we trade dogsitting with our neighbors and it works out great.

    Congrats on your daughter's internship. Sound exciting.

    Have a good week and happy reading.

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    1. JaneGS - Far From the Madding Crowd is playing here through Thursday... sure hope I can get there! My husband has (reluctantly) agreed to go along.

      We're all hoping the internship leads to a job offer. She has one more semester of college left and our fingers are crossed. My oldest daughter is planning to move to the Upper West Side at the end of November, but is hoping for a transfer (promotion) to Denver in a year. Are any of your children still in the city?

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  12. You have inspired me to try the Hardy novel soon. I look forward to your review.

    Thanks for the heads up about the writers on postage stamps, too.

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    1. Deb - Hardy seems to get a little long-winded with description at times, but her sure can tell a story!

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  13. I'm intrigued by The Seven Sisters--may have to add that one to the back burner.

    Reading about the logistics of moving college kids from one place to the other made me smile. It's been several years since I was in that very same situation.

    Thanks for visiting my blog and have a great week.

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    1. Catherine - Our days of moving college kids around are numbered, at last. She has one more semester to go... and I've already sold the minivan;-)

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  14. Zelda is just beautiful. I hope she and Red become buddies soon :)

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    1. Molly - My fingers are crossed. We're certain Zelda had some trauma during her racing days and give her a lot of leeway when it comes to trusting new people and animals.

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  15. I'm sure the dogs will be great friends in no time.

    Sounds as though you loved FFTMC as much as I did! Look forward to your thoughts.

    O also has me wanting to rush straight in to Wives and Daughters.

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    1. Cat - Oh, yes! Far From the Madding crowd was wonderful. Those twists at the end had me turning pages as fast as a I could... and staying up way too late!

      Wives and Daughters will be my next Gaskell, but I'm starting to think I won't get to it this year. I'll be spending much more time in Barsetshire and also need to make time for Zola.

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  16. May does seem like a pretty busy month. We didn't have any of the graduations or birthdays or even Mother's Day events and I still feel like this month just disappeared somehow. Hope June is a lot calmer.

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    1. Athira - I'm hoping for a calm June, too. Will be close to home for at least 10 days while we're dog sitting, anyway. Only a few high school graduation parties and weekend houseguests so far.

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  17. Angus looks cute so I hope Zelda will oblige in letting him stay. Nice dogs! Glad to hear the Hardy classic turned out to be a good read. I hope to take it up sometime as well as the movie. And good luck to the girls in Manhattan. Hope it's a great summer at their jobs.

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    1. Thecuecard - I haven't read a lot of Hardy, but so far he has not disappointed me. Looking forward to seeing the movie this week!

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  18. How exciting for your daughter! And yum on the food as usual. It always makes me wish I was at your house for all the good food you cook. Lol.

    Zelda is gorgeous and I can't even imagine what Sam would do if I brought a dog home to babysit. You are indeed brave. I think I'd have a lot more than growling going on. Lol.

    I can't believe how fast May has gone either. It seems like it just started and its already over. We've been busy putting in the garden and flowers and such and it flew by. Hope you have a great week JoAnn! Have fun with the dogs!

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    1. Darlene - I'm a little nervous about the dog sitting. Angus will be here this afternoon. My fingers are crossed!

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  19. I liked The Tin Horse -- hope you do too.

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    1. Beth F - It was your review that landed this one on my wish list :)

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  20. Love the dogs ... Very nice of you to take on Red Angus what with your busy lifestyle. Thanks for the heads up about the Flannery O'Connor stamp. One of these days I'm going to hop in the car for a drive to Milledgeville and tour her old home and garden. I love to use the U.S. Commemorative stamps, particularly for mail overseas, which is not often in my case. They are all beautiful and provide a great image of the things we are proud of in our country. This weekend I flew through "Vanessa and Her Sister" by Priya Parmar, a novel in diary format as if written by the Bloomsbury artist Vanessa Bell. I am very fond of her art, and most will recognize her as the sister of Virginia Woolf. As another blogger has stated, it was marvelous. I highly recommend, particularly if you are a fan of the Bloomsbury Group. Just hate for good books like this to end. Next in my stack is "The Husband's Secret" by Liane Moriarty. Have a great week! We're just about waterlogged in my neck of the woods and I'm ready for some lasting sunshine to keep my patio garden looking good. :-)

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    1. JudyMac - Angus is here again and so far, so good. We'll see how I'm feeling by next week;-)

      I'm so glad to know you enjoyed Vanessa and Her Sister! It's already on my wish list and I would love to add it to mu summer reading list.

      Liane Moriarty knows how to keep the reader turning pages. I read Big Little Lies last year and found it very entertaining. Have heard The Husband's Secret is very good, too.

      We've had a lot of rain the last couple of days and it is very cold (just 50s now). Not quite as water-logged as the south though. Sure hope you dry up and the sun comes out soon!

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  21. Oh wow, I didn't know about the Flannery O'Connor stamps. I will have to try to get some.

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    1. Patience_Crabstick - Today is release day for the Flannery O'Connor stamp. I realized earlier in the week that it is 3 ounce stamp, but I'd still like to get some.

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