Books, Books, Books - This is What I've Been Reading

I set the reading bar low in 2022 because I wanted to do other things. I haven't actually done the other things I had planned or hoped to do, but there is still time. This year I've read the following books. Forgive the lack of a good picture but it was the best I could do with the screenshot. My favourite reads out of these were the Ken Follett book (I've loved all of his books) and the Maye Musk memoir. It was very interesting to learn who raised Elon Musk and also to learn how Maye Musk and her family moved from Canada to South Africa and what brought her back to North America.

 

I'm reading several other books as shown in the photo below but am am really only focussed on the novel A Spool of Blue Thread. I've also placed a few books on hold though I'm trying to restrain myself so I can do some sewing. Perhaps if it gets too warm I won't be able to sew until the Fall but then I have the issue of less natural light. We shall see. There is the added issue of not yet finding patterns I would like to use for the items I want to make and like last summer I've been buying more clothing so I don't actually need anything more.

I hope your reading plans are going well and that you have something interesting to keep your mind occupied.  Weather where I am is hot this week.  I find I can't do much when the air is too still. That's when I sit and read or watch the television whilst sitting with open windows and fans blowing.

Until next time, keep well and keep safe. 

The Last Week

 Hello friends,

Thank you to all who left well wishes and comments on my last post. I truly appreciate your beautiful words.

I trust you are well and enjoying summer/winter wherever you are in the world. There is so much going on around the world.  Most of it is not that positive so it's important we do what we can to safeguard our mental and physical health to help us cope. Some of the ways I safeguard mine are through enjoying nature (the sky and gardening), reading, short walks and some self-care now and then (exercise, prayer, deep breathing, relaxation, slow routines, mani-pedis and massage). I was blessed to do most of the above this week. All the photos in this post were taken this week.

Today (July 10th) was a lovely day.

 

I had my second booster shot a few days ago. All went well save for a sore arm on the second day after the shot. Not everyone in my province has had their first booster shot yet let alone their second shot. They have to be eligible first and eligibility is generally based on health status and age. For some reason the head doctor here makes the age cut off very high unlike all other jurisdictions in the country. I think that is wrong headed but I'm not the one making the decisions.  Just the other day however I read that the government has opened things to everyone aged 12 and older to get a booster shot in the fall when Covid cases are expected to increase once more. 

Jonah had his 2 vaccinations in Kenya and that was good enough to travel and enter Canada when he travelled in May.  But like most insurance there is a waiting period to get a health card here in the province of BC before he can register for his booster shots. Once the waiting period is over he can complete health card registration provided he has received the permanent resident (PR) card issued federally. 

Canada is very backlogged in virtually every area of service due to the pandemic so PR cards and other things are taking months to receive instead of a week or two. We were happy that Jonah's card did indeed arrive at just under 2 months wait time and he has been able to register or apply for the last bits of documentation he needs.  It's a huge relief since many people are experiencing significantly longer wait times.

 

Jonah has been very busy getting accustomed to life and work here and he has been enjoying both.  The other day he joined the work party at the community garden to help repair the raised beds that were falling apart and to do some extensive weeding around the plots. Weeding and general upkeep of the community garden area is the responsibility of all gardeners who have a plot but most of them don't seem to do much. Maybe they don't know that they have to volunteer 4 hours of time over the summer to the work needs of the garden. I certainly didn't know until the new chairman pointed it out a few weeks ago. Basically, Jonah's garden work on Saturday fulfilled the volunteer hours required for this year.  In addition, my nephew's girlfriend put in several hours of work a few weeks ago so we have more than covered our volunteer work hours requirement for the year.  We only have one plot which my nephew's girlfriend has planted and tended this year.  I'm hoping next year she will be able to get her own plot because she loves the gardening process. I hope they don't say she is disqualified due to living too far from the neighbourhood.

 

My left leg is still giving me problems though I do see signs of improvement here and there. I'm trying to make sure I take time to do the exercises and the walking recommended by the physiotherapist.  It's been a difficult balance  because it doesn't take too long before I've overdone the walking. I had such a day on Friday when Jonah and I went out to do our business. I came home very tired and spent the rest of the weekend indoors to recover and get the housework done slowly so I can be ready for the week ahead. I also spent some time outside in the garden. When I wasn't outside I left my patio door wide open and enjoyed seeing the little hummingbirds come by.  I also enjoyed the chirping of birds. They were very active this weekend. I don't remember hearing them last summer when there was so much smoke in the air. That couldn't have been good for their little lungs at all.

I finished reading this new book French Braid by Anne Tyler.   It was a quick read and I enjoyed it although it was far from one of my favourite reads.  Unbeknownst to me I also started reading another book by Anne Tyler just a few days before.  That one is called A Spool of Blue Thread: A Novel.  I thought the two books seemed quite similar but French Braid seemed to flow a bit better and so I finished it first.

Last, but not least, I finally made time on Wednesday to get a mani-pedi. I've been needing a good clean up of the nails for quite some time but don't like to pay the prices or sit for so long. I was glad I did get there as the young woman who worked on me had a very pleasant personality and I asked her to give me an extra long hand massage because she asked me to wait for my manicure while she worked on another client who was there with a friend. I agreed to her request and she gave me a nice long massage when she returned to work on my fingernails. 

In the "old" days one would always get a wonderful hand and foot massage as part of the mani-pedi. Nowadays you mostly have to pay a premium for these services.  If a salon does happen to include a massage with their basic service it is usually nothing to speak of.  Often you don't even get one especially since they started using gel nail polish. While I was waiting for the nail tech to be free, I enjoyed a nice, long massage on the massage chair.

It's been a busy week despite the leg issue and I'm expecting another busy week ahead. 

I wish you all a wonderful and happy week where ever you are in the world. 

Stay safe. 💓💓💓