This morning I finally finished a sweater/jacket I've been knitting off and on for nearly a year! *happy dance* Now I can start my Christmas knitting....*LOL*
(If any of you are interested in my knitting projects, I keep a separate blog for those. You'll find a link over on the right side of the page for it. If you're not interested in knitting, feel free to skip it. I promise I won't be offended.)
Once more it's race weekend in my little corner of the world. Our city is filled to the brim with NASCAR fans. While I am grateful to the monetary contributions they make to our fair city, I'll be more grateful when they go back home. I handling the race crowds the way I usually do: I'm staying home and out of their way! I always make sure I have all necessary supplies (aka Diet Coke and coffee), then just plan to hole up for the weekend.
I had a week at the office that can only be described as "crappy", so I felt the need for comfort food today. My solution was to cook a big pot of bean soup. I love the smell of bean soup cooked slowly on top of the stove! It's done, but I've not sampled it yet. I'll have dinner out of it today and tomorrow, then I'll freeze the leftovers to enjoy later. *yum*
I won't describe my work week, because it'll just make me mad all over again to talk about it. Take my word for it, it was crappy. The good news is that I don't have to deal with any of the things that irritated me again until Monday.
I've been reading a lot lately (I ADORE my Kindle); in the wee hours this morning I finished a Kurt Wallander mystery, "Dogs of Riga", which was very good. Next on the reading list is the 9th installment of James Patterson's "Women's Murder Club" series. After that is another Wallander mystery, then a reread of "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe". It's so great to be able to check out books electronically from my local library and download them to my Kindle. I can keep new reading material available at all times and never have to go to the library. I'm a woman of simple pleasures. *LOL*
On that happy note, I will now peruse my yarn stash and cast on some Christmas gift knitting. That always makes me happy!
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Showing posts with label Kindle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kindle. Show all posts
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
A Puddle of Waiting Yarn
I'm off work today; those may be the four most beautiful words in the English language. I was off work yesterday, too, but that day was a busy day involving shopping, having tires put on the car, and a trip to have my eyes examined. It was a good day (highlighted by a delicious salad from Mellow Mushroom), but a busy one.
At 5:00 this morning I decided that today would be different. Yes, there's a long list of things I SHOULD be doing today, but the list will hold until tomorrow. Relocating my printer to a more convenient location and dressing myself have been then only two things I've done today that could remotely be considered "work". And when I say "dressing myself", that's a debatable phrase. I'm in sweats and a t-shirt. Dressed, but not really presentable, y'know? What's worse is that I don't even care.
I'm in the recliner, having now switched from coffee to Diet Coke. I've downloaded three library books to my Kindle in case I want to read. I've downloaded "Angela's Ashes" on audiobook so that I can listen to something while knitting.
As soon as I finish this blog entry I'm going to reach into the untidy puddle of yarn waiting beside my recliner and pull out the sweater jacket I'm knitting. Rows and rows of lovely mindless garter stitch. I can knit and knit and lose myself in the glorious Irish brogue of Frank McCourt.
Have you ever used audiobooks? I began using them initially so that I could "read" while knitting. Don't misunderstand, I still love to read, and I read a lot. But sometimes I enjoy having someone read to me. On occasion you run across a book that is read by a gifted reader. Some readers are, unfortunately, dreadful. But some are born with the necessary talents to read aloud. Frank McCourt is a gifted reader.
Today I am a very happy person. :-)
At 5:00 this morning I decided that today would be different. Yes, there's a long list of things I SHOULD be doing today, but the list will hold until tomorrow. Relocating my printer to a more convenient location and dressing myself have been then only two things I've done today that could remotely be considered "work". And when I say "dressing myself", that's a debatable phrase. I'm in sweats and a t-shirt. Dressed, but not really presentable, y'know? What's worse is that I don't even care.
I'm in the recliner, having now switched from coffee to Diet Coke. I've downloaded three library books to my Kindle in case I want to read. I've downloaded "Angela's Ashes" on audiobook so that I can listen to something while knitting.
As soon as I finish this blog entry I'm going to reach into the untidy puddle of yarn waiting beside my recliner and pull out the sweater jacket I'm knitting. Rows and rows of lovely mindless garter stitch. I can knit and knit and lose myself in the glorious Irish brogue of Frank McCourt.
Have you ever used audiobooks? I began using them initially so that I could "read" while knitting. Don't misunderstand, I still love to read, and I read a lot. But sometimes I enjoy having someone read to me. On occasion you run across a book that is read by a gifted reader. Some readers are, unfortunately, dreadful. But some are born with the necessary talents to read aloud. Frank McCourt is a gifted reader.
Today I am a very happy person. :-)
Sunday, August 07, 2011
A "Normal" Weekend
Who would ever think that I'd be grateful for a Saturday spent chasing dust bunnies? I have to admit it was nice to have a more normal day than I've had for awhile.
I won't say I finished my housework (is it EVER really finished??), but I did put a pretty good dent in it before my energy ran out. :-) I went about my work at a steady pace, taking a brief break from time to time, listening to The Green Mile on my Zune to ward off boredom. Is it weird that I find rereading Stephen King novels relaxing? Speaking of which, I'm rereading The Stand in hardcover as part of an online book club at Crazy Aunt Purl's website. (If you've never read her blog, you might find it fun.)
I love listening to audiobooks while performing tasks that don't require me to think. And let's face it, housework doesn't require much thinking. Had I ever told you that I never buy audiobooks? I check them out from the local library via the internet. For free. I don't even have to leave the apartment to do it! If you've never looked into this, check the website of your local library to see if they participate in the R.E.A.D.S. program. If you happen to live in my little corner of the world, here's a link to the Bristol Public Library's webpage for this wonderful program: http://www.bristol-library.org/resources/ebooks-audiobooks.
I use it only for audiobooks because the ebooks offered are not compatible with my Kindle. My guess is that there's probably a way to convert them to make them compatible, but I already have tons of reading material on my Kindle so I've not looked into that. As for the audiobooks, there's a large selection. If the particular book you want is currently checked out, you can reserve it, and the program will send you an e-mail to let you know when the book is available. You can check them out for up to 14 days, and can check out several at one time. I usually check out only two at a time, just so that I can be sure I'll finish them up before the end of my checkout period.
If you've never listened to audiobooks before, you'll find that some readers are better than others. On occasion I've given up on a book because I didn't care for the reader. That's rare, though. They're usually quite talented and make the book an interesting experience.
Audiobooks will never replace reading for me; I've read as long as I can remember and it's always a relaxing experience for me. And as much as I love my Kindle, I still love holding a hardcover book in my hands, the smell of the paper, the calming effect of turning the pages. That was always my favorite thing about the beginning of the school year as a child: getting our new textbooks, hearing the slight crackle of the glue in the bindings as the fresh pages were turned for the first time.
But I digress. As usual. *LOL*
Back to my "normal" weekend. On the agenda for today: not a lot. I have just a couple of small tasks to finish up, then I'm going to go spend what I hope will be a restful afternoon with Mom and Dad. I'll take along some knitting (I'm finishing up a few Christmas projects) and Mom will have a pot of her delicious coffee waiting, as always. As I'm finishing this post, I hear a gentle rain beginning to fall outside. A restful, rainy Sunday....sounds like a great afternoon to me! Have a great weekend, everyone!
I won't say I finished my housework (is it EVER really finished??), but I did put a pretty good dent in it before my energy ran out. :-) I went about my work at a steady pace, taking a brief break from time to time, listening to The Green Mile on my Zune to ward off boredom. Is it weird that I find rereading Stephen King novels relaxing? Speaking of which, I'm rereading The Stand in hardcover as part of an online book club at Crazy Aunt Purl's website. (If you've never read her blog, you might find it fun.)
I love listening to audiobooks while performing tasks that don't require me to think. And let's face it, housework doesn't require much thinking. Had I ever told you that I never buy audiobooks? I check them out from the local library via the internet. For free. I don't even have to leave the apartment to do it! If you've never looked into this, check the website of your local library to see if they participate in the R.E.A.D.S. program. If you happen to live in my little corner of the world, here's a link to the Bristol Public Library's webpage for this wonderful program: http://www.bristol-library.org/resources/ebooks-audiobooks.
I use it only for audiobooks because the ebooks offered are not compatible with my Kindle. My guess is that there's probably a way to convert them to make them compatible, but I already have tons of reading material on my Kindle so I've not looked into that. As for the audiobooks, there's a large selection. If the particular book you want is currently checked out, you can reserve it, and the program will send you an e-mail to let you know when the book is available. You can check them out for up to 14 days, and can check out several at one time. I usually check out only two at a time, just so that I can be sure I'll finish them up before the end of my checkout period.
If you've never listened to audiobooks before, you'll find that some readers are better than others. On occasion I've given up on a book because I didn't care for the reader. That's rare, though. They're usually quite talented and make the book an interesting experience.
Audiobooks will never replace reading for me; I've read as long as I can remember and it's always a relaxing experience for me. And as much as I love my Kindle, I still love holding a hardcover book in my hands, the smell of the paper, the calming effect of turning the pages. That was always my favorite thing about the beginning of the school year as a child: getting our new textbooks, hearing the slight crackle of the glue in the bindings as the fresh pages were turned for the first time.
But I digress. As usual. *LOL*
Back to my "normal" weekend. On the agenda for today: not a lot. I have just a couple of small tasks to finish up, then I'm going to go spend what I hope will be a restful afternoon with Mom and Dad. I'll take along some knitting (I'm finishing up a few Christmas projects) and Mom will have a pot of her delicious coffee waiting, as always. As I'm finishing this post, I hear a gentle rain beginning to fall outside. A restful, rainy Sunday....sounds like a great afternoon to me! Have a great weekend, everyone!
Saturday, April 23, 2011
A Good Day
I am very thankful that through much hard work during the past work week, we managed to get ourselves in position to actually take a TWO DAY WEEKEND this week! *happy dance* It's been awhile since we were able to take both Saturday and Sunday off, and this feels a little like a vacation!
I didn't sleep very well last night, and woke up much too early....4:00 am! I stubbornly refused to get out of bed at that hour. So, I reached for my Kindle and finished reading "The Thorn Birds". Not a bad way to start my "long" weekend. :-)
I did a few household tasks....nothing very strenuous. Then I decided to knit a bit on a pair of socks I'd started earlier. This afternoon I went to visit Mom and Dad for awhile, then came back home and called Kris (my daughter, for those of you who might not know).
So now I'm fed, kicked back in the recliner with my netbook in my lap and my knitting nearby. I have a Netflix movie I've not watched yet ("Hereafter" with Matt Damon), so I foresee a restful evening. Thank goodness.
Happy Easter, everyone!
I didn't sleep very well last night, and woke up much too early....4:00 am! I stubbornly refused to get out of bed at that hour. So, I reached for my Kindle and finished reading "The Thorn Birds". Not a bad way to start my "long" weekend. :-)
I did a few household tasks....nothing very strenuous. Then I decided to knit a bit on a pair of socks I'd started earlier. This afternoon I went to visit Mom and Dad for awhile, then came back home and called Kris (my daughter, for those of you who might not know).
So now I'm fed, kicked back in the recliner with my netbook in my lap and my knitting nearby. I have a Netflix movie I've not watched yet ("Hereafter" with Matt Damon), so I foresee a restful evening. Thank goodness.
Happy Easter, everyone!
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