It's a sunny Sunday afternoon in Florida - temps in the mid 80s, a light breeze, and slightly lower humidity. We're taking a day off from the real estate frenzy of the past week... slept in this morning, went to the Farmer's Market for lunch, and spent a couple of hours reading this afternoon. I feel like a new woman!
Finished reading//
Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner
This fast-paced novel explores the lives of two sisters from their 1950s childhood to the present. It was my first experience with prolific author Jennifer Weiner. I enjoyed the characters, their relationships, and feminist worldview... even as I shook my head at some of their choices. I laughed out loud a few times and cried at the end. My craving for a "good summer read" has been satisfied.
my rating: somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars (rounded up to 4 on goodreads)
Listening to//
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed
by Lori Gottlieb
narrated by Brittany Pressley
I'm loving this audiobook. Even though I borrowed the ebook from the library (thought it would be good as a read/listen combo), I've yet to read a single page. The narration is so good! Lori's story and the stories of her patients are fascinating... I'll be sorry to reach the end of this book.
Nonfiction November//
It's almost time! Nonfiction November is my favorite blogging event of the year - five weeks, five topics, five hosts, and an Instagram photo challenge, too. All you need to know is here. Will you be participating?
In the kitchen//
For the first time in months, I've been inspired to try a couple of new recipes... nothing fancy, but it's good to feel like cooking again.
Vinegar Chicken With Crushed Olive Dressing was one of the New York Times featured recipes last week. It's cooked on a sheet pan, with a briny sauce made from the browned bits left behind. It was quite tasty, but would have been even easier if I'd though to purchase pitted olives! If you don't subscribe to the Times and would like the recipe, let me know. I'll copy and email it to you.
Slow Cooker Banana Nut Oatmeal from The Lemon Bowl has part of our regular breakfast rotation for a while, but yesterday I decided to change things up with Peanut Butter Banana Baked Oatmeal from two peas & their pod. I've noticed several baked oatmeal recipes lately, but this is the first one I've tried. It was very good (my daughter loved it) but a little heavier/more dense than I was expecting... probably due to the peanut butter. We'll be happy to eat the leftovers for a couple more mornings though!
The week ahead//
Real estate... we close on our NY home on Thursday. A little hard to believe, but the end of an era. We met with a contractor at what will soon be our new Florida home. We shared our ideas, he had some good suggestions, and we'll touch base again this week. Seems like it's all going to happen!
How was your week? What have you been reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
What a life change you are undergoing. Wow. What fun you will have in Florida. No more cold winters. Every day will feel like a holiday. Now you just need to get all the paperwork finished.
ReplyDeleteI am eagerly looking forward to Nonfiction November. It’s one of my favorite events of the year. I’ve already been reserving books for this event. I’m so happy to be participating.
I felt like I learned a lot about therapy and about myself in Maybe You Should Talk to Someone. Over and over, I was hit with ways I could do a better job of being a good human being. I recommend this book highly.
The Vinegar Chicken looks wonderful. I subscribed for a while to the Times, and I’d like to subscribe again. I learned a lot from that daily email. Maybe I will try it again.
Have a fabulous week!
Deb - The escape from winter is the best! I used to love it, but that changed about a decade ago when when we had an ice dam with significant interior damage. It was like a switch flipped and I just couldn't stand it anymore. I'm learning a lot from Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, too. Such a good book! I have a couple of author interviews saved to listen to when I finish.
DeleteWow, all the real estate stuff is exciting but I know it's exhausting too. Our son is in the process of buying a house but things seemed to be stalled right now - he's waiting to hear back from the sellers about his repair request.
ReplyDeleteWeiner is hit or miss for me (mostly miss) so I've decided to skip her latest.
Kathy - I hope things work out for Vance...it's all so complicated and stressful. As for Weiner, I've never read her but this suited my 'summer read' need just fine.
DeleteHi JoAnn,
ReplyDeleteI was so happy to be back attending one of your Sunday Salons again. I'm glad you've had some moments of repose to enjoy reading. And the weather sounds very good! I, too, was sorry to come to the end of listening to Lori Gottlieb's book. A wonderful audio experience. I'll be excited to learn of your future adventures as you settle down in Florida!
Judith - And I'm so glad you're here! Lori Gottlieb's book is wonderful... though feels slightly voyeuristic to be enjoying it so much. Sounds like Sandy is settling in well with your family.. We miss having a dog around, but the time still isn't right for us.
DeleteFlorida in the fall is such perfection and it sounds like you had a wonderful day. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone sounds really good and I'll have to get it on audio. Good luck with the closing and the contractor. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - It was such a relief to have a day completely off today... I even tried another new recipe for dinner. I'm thinking of you and your family as you deal with your recent loss.
DeleteNew York to Florida — that's a huge change. The farthest I've ever moved is from Southern California to Northern California. My weekly update
ReplyDeletepussreboots - Yes, the change is huge. We've been spending time here for nearly 30 years years, so it's not really unknown... we're excited!
DeleteMid 80s sounds wonderful right now as I look out onto the grey skies we’ve had in the UK for more than a week. Hope all goes well on the home moving front, such a stressful time.
ReplyDeleteBookertalk - Thank you! The gorgeous weather makes everything less stressful :)
DeleteSoooooo exciting about your new house and new era! Yay!!! Good eating going on at your place.
ReplyDeleteBeth F - It's so good to be able to cook and read again!
DeletePleased you've had some nice weather and some time to rest, read and recharge. It was a pretty wet, miserable week here in the UK, but it was good to be back to work after breaking my foot!
ReplyDeleteJessica - I read your blog post earlier today and am so glad to hear you are returning to work and getting back to your regular routine!
DeleteGood luck with closing on your NY house and the renovations on the 'new' FL house. We've done a lot of those closings, etc. Lots of work, but I know you guys will settle in well to FL. I loved Lori Gottlieb's book - listened to it at just the right time and found that I learned a lot too. I recommend it for one and all and I think the audio is really the way to go.
ReplyDeleteKay - It's been a long time since we've done real estate transactions. Not sure if we've forgotten or if things have gotten a lot more complicated, lol! Lori Gottlieb's book is excellent. I'm learning a lot, too. Just a couple of hours left and I really don't want it to end.
DeleteMid-80s sounds good to me after being in the 30s this week: Oh Canada. You have me interested in the Gottlieb audiobook. I'll see if I can get at the library. And thx for the heads up on the Nonfiction November blogosphere ... I'm half way through UN secretary Samantha Power's memoir and liking it ...
ReplyDeleteSusan - Hope you can find the audio at your library. Mine all had the book, but no audio, but it is well worth the audible credit. Nonfiction November is the best! It brings so many interesting titles to my attention and makes make my tbr list explode.
DeleteVicki - How wonderful to be on vacation... and it's good to unplug for a while, too! You can always go back and read the posts later.
ReplyDeleteI read Mrs Everything this month too. Liked it. Happy reading in the coming week.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Judy... lots of new release, both fiction and nonfiction, are catching my eye this week.
DeleteSo you will be building a new home? How exciting!
ReplyDeleteRight now I am reading This is How it Always Is for a book discussion next week and it's a doozy. About a young boy who identifies as female. It's quite good.
I am craving really messy sloppy joes. Yes, I will have to use a gluten free bun but if it's messy enough maybe I won't notice.
Ti - Not building a new home, but renovating an older model. Still waiting on our second meeting with the contractor.
DeleteI'm going to need to find a new book club here. There is a group that meets at the library I'll try next month, but maybe there will be one in our new neighborhood.
Haven't had sloppy joes since last winter, but it sure sounds like a good idea to me! Hope you're having a good week.
Recipes sound yummy--the book sounds good--AND you'll be done with Real Estate soon! It's been a good week.
ReplyDeleteDebbie - Things have been unsettled, to say the least, over the past few months. I'll be happy when we settle into our new normal!
DeleteFlorida weather sounds wonderful on this cool dreary day.
ReplyDeletePeanut Butter Banana Baked Oatmeal looks yummy.
Carol - The latest cold front didn't make it this far south, but I'm not complaining :)
DeleteThat palm tree makes me wish it was warm here again! In the kitchen, I've been making homemade marinara sauce thanks to a tip from a neighbor and a huge bag of ripe tomatoes from the local farmer's market. Have a GOOD week!
ReplyDeleteHarvee - Nothing beats homemade marinara with fresh tomatoes... wish I could come to your place for dinner! Hope you have a good week.
DeleteI just downloaded the Gottlieb book from Audible. Can't wait to dive in! I might also have to get the Weiner book, especially if it made you laugh AND cry. Sounds like a winner.
ReplyDeleteGlad to read all your recent posts. Trying to catch up... :)
Les - Hope you love Gottlieb's book, too. The narrator is SO good and her patients' stories are so interesting. Her therapist, Wendell, sounds like a gem.
DeleteHave you read Weiner before? I didn't really know what to expect, but was thoroughly entertained... think my sister liked it even more than I did. We both decided it wouldn't be 'appropriate' for Mom ;-)
I had to go back and search my archives to see what I've read of Weiner's. I knew I'd read at least one of her books, but have no recollection of it or the one I mentioned in my review. Obviously it was entertaining, yet not memorable.
DeleteLes - Funny, that title isn't one I'd heard of, but Weiner has written so many books...
Delete