January 16th, 2024

I can't believe we're more than halfway through the first month of 2024. The time since my last post here has seemed to both fly and drag.

Lots of disturbing world and national news, including what's happening in Gaza (Here are 6 ways we can help.).

Here in the Twin Cities we are experiencing bitterly cold temps but nowhere near the record-breaking amounts of snow we got last year. Except for going out to drive the car for a little while each day, I'm mainly holing up at home with the wonderful sherpa-wool lined hoodie my son gave me for Christmas. Yesterday and today I actually took afternoon naps!--which is not at all my usual habit.

In less sloth-like news, I've written the first three chapters of the first book for a new sisters series I've got in my head. Over the next few weeks I'll be alternating between work on that and work on Galway book 4 (Sonya's story).

My son gave me some oranges the other day and I just had the last one. He'd been telling me about this wonderful variety he's been eating--Satsumas? I read that they're closer to mandarins, which explains why they are so sweet and easy to peel. They were a delicious bright spot in my week and, given that the winter days up here are so short and are often gray in addition to being terribly cold, I really appreciated their bright burst of sweet juice and color.

Another thing I'm enjoying this winter is plants. I have three now, also courtesy of my son: a braided trunk money tree, a small monstera, and a snake plant. They're good quiet roommates, as you would expect, and I feel a mood difference just sharing my space with them.

And last night I finished reading a fascinating memoir: "Unsettled" by Laurie Woodford. It's about how, in mid-life, Laurie struck out to do some traveling on her own, seeking... something. The book follows her through experiences with internet dating, with teaching English in multiple far-away countries, with doing volunteer gigs in other places, and finally, back home again where she eventually finds what she was needing. The settings and situations were beautifully described with a minimum of words, which the writer in me appreciates, but the thing that REALLY made an impression on me was the hopefulness of the book. Laurie meets many disappointments along her journey, but she never gives up. She finds another path to take and she just keeps going. For someone like me who tends to be decidedly un-hopeful, this was breath-taking and inspiring.  If you get a chance to read this lovely book, I'd love to hear what you think of it.