Her, Again

I know that I just did a Maggie-on-my-lap photo sequence recently, but this morning she was just ridiculous, and I have to share. Enjoy!

What a life.

Audible? Are You Okay?

I got an email from Audible with my recent listening stats, and it shows that these are my most-listened-to titles, which is accurate.

(I listen to audio books to fall asleep, so I tend to listen to the same ones a lot, because I know them well enough that the need to follow the plot won't keep me awake.)

However! It then goes on to suggest these titles for me:

What on earth?

I am perplexed.

Like Dad Used to Say

My dad was a bit of a wiseass, and one of his sayings was, "I made a mistake once. I thought I was wrong." In fact, I think he had it on a sign on his desk! I was reminded of it this morning when I was trying to figure something out, and thought that I had made a mistake on my "books read" spreadsheet.

Back in 2013, I started this spreadsheet to keep track of what I read when (some day I plan to write about all the things I use spreadsheets to track). Over the years I have added more and more things to track about each book I finish (I don't track the DNFs). I don't necessarily know what items I added when, but as of today, I put:

• the date, title, and author
• whether I read the book for the first time or it was a reread 
• was it from the library
• was it sci-fi/fantasy, YA/YR, non-fiction
• was it on the tablet/e-book
• was it an advance copy

At the end of the year, I copy the date/title/author fields onto a tab called "combined," so that I can sort by title or author to see when I first read a book, when I started reading an author, how many times I've read a book, that kind of thing.

So, an author I have discovered this year and greatly enjoyed (listing those is another blog post on its own: I've found a bunch this year) is KJ Charles, and she has a new book releasing this week, which is a sequel to the first of hers that I read. I wanted to read the first one again, but it wasn't on my Kindle, AZ doesn't show I bought it, and the entry on my spreadsheet doesn't say I got it from the library. In fact, I didn't check off tablet/e-book either, so I was very confused about how I read the thing: I read more and more e-books these days, so that was where my mind went first.

Finally, I thought to check my actual, physical bookshelf. There it is!

Oh, that's right! I bought the physical book from the UK. They had it on sale, with free shipping. Now I remember.

And now I can read it again before the e-book of The Duke at Hazard drops into my Kindle on Thursday. (I generally prefer not to mix formats, but the e-book is $2.99, and the paperback is $17.99, and for that much of a difference, I can stand it. Well, it's not as expensive from the UK, oddly enough. I may end up ordering that too.)

A note about the series, btw, which is Regency period romance that the author called "Heyer but gayer" (any Georgette Heyer fans reading?): they are neither straight nor straight-laced, so if men with men and on-page sex is not your thing, pass on by. The author has a whole page on content warnings for other items in all her books as well. I very much like her writing style, but everything isn't for everyone.

Nap/Lap Level: Expert

This morning, herself really threw herself into napping.

Would that I could relax half as well.

Naming Things

I turn to the blog for serious answers to serious questions, so brace yourself:

Does your family name things around the house? 

I was thinking of that this morning, when I went to get ice from the fridge-door ice maker and it gave me far more than I needed. "Jeez, Fred, calm down!" I said, as my cup runneth over.

Because, yes, we call our ice maker Fred. No, I don't know why Fred, specifically. But it clearly needs a name so that we can either thank it, or chide it for being overly enthusiastic. (Fred is a giver.)

So, do you name things? Appliances, cars, anything?

Library Woes

Before I start this story, I want to stress that I love the library. Libraries are awesome. I borrow tons of books that I want to read, or at least try, but don't want to own, and I appreciate that so much.

However.

I requested a book a while back, and for some time now, a few months at least, it has shown that I am hold number 1 of 1 for the one copy that is checked out. I've been meaning to ask them about it, so when I went in on Saturday to pick up a hold, I stopped at the desk first (holds are self-serve, across the room) and asked the woman there if she could tell me anything about it.

She looked up my account while kindly explaining to me that sometimes, if there are a lot of holds, it can take a while for it to be your turn. Uh, yeah, don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs, honey. I repeated that I have been hold 1 of 1 since at least April. 

She looked at my holds, and once she confirmed which title I meant (that would be, again, the one that I'm hold 1 of 1), she said ah and called another person over to confirm that, as the book had been billed, it was apparently not going to be returned at this point, and they should cancel the hold because I would not be getting it. As we circled around this point, one of them mentioned that it had been billed in October.

At this point, I am thinking that if the single copy of a book has been billed for months, the system should not have allowed a hold to be placed on this book. Which I still absolutely believe, but I didn't bother mentioned it to them in that moment, because it's not their fault that the system is set up in this stupid way.

I also did not get into why they wouldn't be reordering the book, which only came out last year, because I do understand that if there isn't demand, they might not. Just because I want it. I do get that.

So they kept saying that they should cancel the hold, should cancel the hold, and I said fine, and went to get the book I was picking up. When I scanned my card, though, it told me that I owed a fine of 50 cents. Now, the fine was real: I was a day late returning two books last month, and since I hadn't returned anything late in a long time, I was surprised that they charge a quarter a day for that. But okay, fair enough, that's the rule and I was late.

But I paid the fine, a week prior, when I was in. I remember that I was pleased that I had two quarters with me to pay it. 

And now it's saying I still owe it. On top of the previous interaction, I was kind of pissed. But okay. I checked out my book and went over to the desk, where the first woman still sat. I told her that it was showing I had a fine, and that I paid it last week, but here's a dollar, could you be sure that comes off. And god love her, I don't know if she's new or she assumes that no one knows what they're doing, but she looks at my account and starts explaining to me which titles it was that I returned late.

Bless her heart. I KNOW.

I put the dollar down and said, I know, here is the money, could you just please take it off the account, and I walked away, probably leaving her thinking I was rude, and maybe I was. But I use the library all the time*, I know how it works, and it's not that I can't afford to pay it, or even to pay it twice, and maybe they do get a lot of people trying to claim they paid when they didn't, but I paid it, I did.
*I have borrowed 50+ books from them in the first half of this year. Didn't finish all of them, but it does indicate I am familiar with how it works.

As I drove home, I was thinking that if the system still says I owe it the next time I'm in, I'm going to have to stand at the desk until they can prove to me that it's really off this time.

And then I got home and when I looked at my account, the hold is still there. That they said multiple times they would have to cancel now. Still there.

Okay.

I checked the other library I have a card to, and they have the book, so I'll get it from them. But do I have to be the one to cancel the hold at the library here? 

Why, Yes, I AM a Crazy Person. Knitter. Whatever.

When I was writing up my recent guest post for NGS, one of the things I mentioned knitting was the 2-in-1 socks, and apparently thinking of it woke the I-should-do-that-again feeling that had been slumbering in me since I finished the first ones. I can't really explain why. You do it once to prove you can, but doing it again? Hmmm.

The pattern strongly suggests using yarn that you can start in two different colors, like different points in self-striping yarn, and that is totally true. My yarn choice the first time was not good in that regard, but this time, I knew better.

I wound up this beautiful colorway, trifolium, in the Continuum yarn from String Theory Colorworks.

So pretty. It rolls through red, orange, yellow, green, purple.

I wound that off into two balls, and cast on. Separate at first:

And then combined.

And a while later, I had this:

See? One inside the other.

I checked frequently to make sure they weren't crossed anywhere.

The ribbing is...well, it's a total PITA. When you get to the body of the socks, you're knitting the inside sock and purling the outside sock, so the two working yarns stay where they are, front and back. But in order to do one-by-one ribbing, you have to move the front yarn in, knit a stitch, move the yarn back, knit the inside stitch, purl the outside stitch, then bring the back yarn forward to purl the inside stitch, then put the back yarn behind again. And then do it again. And again.

The pattern says to do an inch of ribbing, and adds: "You could work for longer, but you probably won't want to." Word.

By the time you give up on the ribbing and switch to the plain stockinette, it almost doesn't seem like a crazy thing to be doing.

Almost.

So. I have no reasons. But this is what I'm doing. Apparently.

From Schoolhouse Rock for the Holiday

When I was a kid, I loved the Schoolhouse Rock segments that played as part of Saturday morning cartoons (IYKYK). They were fun and I learned things from them without feeling like a lesson was being pushed on me (set it to music and I'm halfway there). I'm Just a Bill, Conjunction Junction, so many great ones.

For instance, this is why I know the words to the Preamble to the Constitution:

And for some reason, this week, with Independence Day as well as the recent "Supreme Court"* ruling, I am also thinking of No More Kings:
*Not feeling so supreme right now, I have to tell you.

Hmmm, yeah. I mostly loved the word ones, of course, but this week, history is more pressing. As someone on social media put it:

I Wish I Had This Pie Today

Happy 4th of July to the Americans reading, happy Thursday to anyone else. (I guess there might be a few readers from Canada? Happy belated Canada Day to you. Does anyone read from anywhere else?)

The topic of holiday desserts came up in a recent chat with friends, one of whom has to bring something to a 4th of July event, and I remembered that I had made a stars-and-stripes pie one year. I checked the blog, because of course I did, and yes, I wrote about it! Good girl, ccr, who needs a memory when you have a blog.

Bonus Carlos picture at the end of that post, bonus Maggie picture on this one.

"Every day is a holiday to me, but if Mom has extra lap time, I'll take it."

The Joys of Anticipation

I am, as I have written before, a person who really enjoys having things to look forward to, whether it's lunch with a friend or a vacation or just yarn in the mail ("just"). I took a look at my remaining vacation time for the year, and had a good think about plans and possibilities.

A few years back, my company started giving us an additional day for our birthday, to be used on the day itself or the nearest workday if it's on a weekend. My birthday is on a Wednesday this year, so that starts things off. I'm hoping to get up to Apple Festival around then (it's always over Columbus Day weekend, aka Indigenous Peoples' Day), though I'm not making reservations yet. But hey, you know ... I could just go ahead and take off the Thursday and Friday after my birthday ... and the whole week after that ... and have flexibility and a REAL break from work!

I look at that on the calendar, and the week at Thanksgiving when my brother is here, and know that I should have some time left to take in December...ahhh. What a good feeling.

I'm elsewhere today

I have a guest post up on NGS's blog today, as part of her celebration of 20 years of blogging. Check it out, and let me know if you have questions!

It's...Maggie Time!

It's Friday, it's hot, I am so tired, but isn't looking at cat pictures always worth it? I'm sure you agree because anyone who doesn't wouldn't be reading here.

More Reading! Full Speed to a Crash Landing and The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

I've read two good books recently, one an advance copy and one already out; one science fiction and one young adult; not a ton of overlap there, eh? But I really liked both of them, so I wanted to share.

First, Full Speed to a Crash Landing by Beth Revis, which comes out August 6. 

I was approved for an advance copy by Daw Books--thanks, y'all!

Publisher's description:

A high octane sexy space heist from New York Times-bestselling author Beth Revis, the first in a novella trilogy

Ada Lamarr may have gotten to the spaceship wreck first, but looter’s rights won’t get her far when she’s got a hole in the side of her ship and her spacesuit is almost out of air. Fortunately for her, help arrives in the form of a government salvage crew—and while they reluctantly rescue her from certain death, they are not pleased to have an unexpected passenger along on their classified mission.
...
A phenomenally fun novella that kicks off a trilogy of sexy space heists and romantic tension, Full Speed to a Crash Landing is packed with great characters and full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the end.

My review:

I raced through reading this and enjoyed every twist and turn along the way! Ada has an upfront attitude and hidden depths, and she’s not the only one who may not be fully what they seem. As layers are pulled back, I was constantly reevaluating what had come before—it really made me think. I kept putting it down to ponder and then immediately picking it back up because I had to know what would happen next. The ending was both satisfying and left me wanting more: I look forward to reading the next in the series.

Also, I really want to talk about some things in the book that would be spoilers, so please read it and then let me know, and we can talk!

The other book I just read was The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith. 

I read about it on someone's blog, though of course I can't remember whose--take credit if it was you. Apparently it was a Netflix movie last year, but I haven't seen it. Loved the book, though!

From the author's website:

Today should be one of the worst days of Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it.

That could go in a number of ways, couldn't it? I wasn't certain from the description if it would be my thing (I still read plenty of YR/YA, but less than I used to as I get older), so I did the online equivalent of picking up the book in the store and reading the first few pages. Yep, sounds good! And it was. Yes, I'm a bit old for teen angst, but this was full of humor and wit and banter and yet not at all overly precocious. Believably unbelievable, if that makes sense.

Take a look at the opening, and if you like it, read on--it's like that. And I liked it.

And In Goes the Cabinet

I wanted to get the new cabinet in place this weekend, and see if Maggie will consent to using the litter box at that level.

This is what the space looked like before. Yes, it's in my bedroom. That's the box on the floor on the corner. The camp chair is where I sat to feed Maggie. 

I used to feed Maggie in the kitchen, but a few years ago when we were having work done (was that when the roofers were making noise outside, or when the windows were being replaced?), I started feeding her in my room. I've been wanting to switch that back to the kitchen, so I started feeding her there again on Friday. She was very confused--"that's not where I eat"--but seems to be adjusting now. She will eat there, anyway, which is all I need. And thus, the chair can come out (and stay in the garage for now, until I decide if we should keep it).

I brought the cabinet upstairs on Saturday. I will say that while it is on wheels, it is so low to the ground that it can't easily clear even a small height (I thought I might have to roll it around to the car door of the garage, as it did not want to go though the people door and make that inch down to ground level). It also steers like, I don't know what, what steers very poorly? Like that.

But it fit in the elevator, if with not too much room to spare.

Maggie was very curious.

"What is this now?"

"Are you sure about this?"

Sniff sniff sniff.

I left it there overnight (and cleaned it, though it wasn't all that dirty). Sunday, I rolled it into the room, where it fit perfectly.

Nice! Very satisfying.

When Maggie next came out from her nap, I went into the bedroom and sat on the bed, and she followed me to see what I was doing. And inspected it.

I wanted her to know that the litter box was still there, so I picked her up and put her next to it.

She sniffed around.

Considered everything.

And jumped down, bypassing the little table I put there in case she wanted to take it in stages. I'll leave it there anyway, for a while, and see if she uses it.

Shortly after all this went down, thunder rumbled and the cat vanished. But at least now she knows it's there. Further updates as events warrant. 

P.S. She used it this morning!