2010 Book 3 - A Reliable Wife

I picked up this book the other day at Barnes & Noble because I had some time to kill before going to a quilt guild meeting. It was a fast read and got me through this day of staying indoors and trying to get through a touch of bronchitis.

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick was a quick read, but not something that I would recommend to anybody. Here is the blurb from the back of the book:

He placed a notice in a Chicago paper, an advertisement for a "reliable wife". She responded, saying that she was "a simple, honest woman". She was, of course, anything but honest, and the only simple thing about her was her single-minded determination to marry this many and then kill him, slowly and carefully, leaving herself a wealthy widow. What Catherine Land did not realize was that the enigmatic and lonely Ralph Truitt had a plan of his own.

It sounds like it would be quite the page turner, and admittedly it was, but the characters are very one dimensional and the story line is a little stilted.

I'd rather talk about the guild meeting that I went to. The guild is one of the smaller ones in the area, but I met a very nice lady, Sarah, there who had just joined as well and had also just recently began quilting. The speaker was interesting, while I wasn't a big fan of her work and found some of her stuff to be downright hideous, it did make me want to get involved again in guild work and I'm looking forward, as always, to getting settled and get all my quilting stuff out of storage and get a real studio set up. Tomorrow I go house hunting again, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that there will be something out there that fits my needs and just feels right. As the Queen told me last week while looking I'll either know that the house is the right one when I walk in or I'll decide on the one that best meets all my needs when I get tired of looking. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will be the former.

2010 Book 2 - The Big Over Easy

The second book that I've finished this year is The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde. Now, I'm a huge Jasper Fforde fan. I've read the whole Thursday Next series and will read my way through his Nursery Crime series. To give you an idea of what this book is about, here is what is written on the back of the book:

Welcome to the seedy underbelly of nursery crime... Meet Inspector Jack Spratt, family man and head of Reading's Nursery Crime Division. He's investigating the murder of ovoid D-class nursery celebrity Humpty Dumpty, ex-convict and lover of women, found shattered to death beneath a wall in a shabby area of town. Yes, the big egg is down, and all those little pieces sitting in the morgue point to foul play. Spratt and his new partner, Sergeant Mary Mary, search through Humpty's sordid past in hopes of finding the key to his death. Before long, Jack and Mary find themselves immersed in a bizarre case that reaches into the highest echelons of Reading society and business.

I am truly amazed at the ingenuity of Fford. The yarns that he spins are really quite amazing to me and I thoroughly enjoy reading his works. His writing won't be fore everybody, I'm sure but if you are looking for a tongue in cheek look at the classic nursery stories, pick the book up and see where it takes you.

Not a Sprite

I've developed a bit of a bronchial thing this week and have been coughing quite a bit. I don't think it is anything serious, so I'm not planning on going to the doctor. The one thing has been that it is sapping me of energy...but whatever.

One of the things that I love to have when I'm not feeling well is Sprite. I don't know why, but it is one of the few things that actually tastes good to me. This morning I came into the office (only because for some reason my WIFI stopped working on my laptop and I couldn't work from home). I decided that I wanted a Sprite and went to the soda machine where it clearly has Sprite as an offering. I put in my $1.25 and push the button, I hear shifting within the machine, but nothing comes out. So, I put in another $1.25, because I really want this soda. I push the button and out comes a Sierra Mist.

So, I've now spent $2.50 to get a beverage that isn't what I originally wanted. I'll drink my Sierra Mist, but I won't enjoy it.

House Hunting

It is really tough house hunting. Have just started and am beat already. Spent abou 4 hours on Friday and about 5 today. Saw a lot of things that I like, a lot that I didn't, and a lot that is out of my price comfort zone. Thank goodness I had The Queen with me today to keep me grounded. She is really a great voice of reason for me. Highlights thus far include seeing a master bedroom closet larger than my bedroom in my place in San Francisco. Being told that a mirror isn't standard over the sink in the powder bath. And, a dead bird in the tub of one of the baths...that really freaked me out, surprisingly, though, that house made it to the short list.