Category Archives: Blogging Community

Be My Valentine

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that herbal tea is losing its appeal. But I haven’t found an un-caffeinated substitute yet. Things remain pretty quiet here. Maybe quiet is good. We have to start thinking about when we will feel safe to take off our masks. Next week the State of California is ending some of the mask mandates. California counties can make their own decisions about it. The infection rate here is still high but starting to decrease. The weather is a bit hot for February. It’s supposed to be 93 F today. I had to put on the AC the past couple of days. I hope it cools down again before Spring.

I continue on with my book list. I’ve almost finished ‘The Dark Hours’ by Michael Connelly. He remains one of my favorite writers of detective/crime fiction. This book has a steady pace and does not get boring. It stars two great characters, Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch. They team up to solve not one but three cases.

On PBS streaming I have been watching Vienna Blood. In this series Detective Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt teams up with Max Liebermann, a psychoanalyst protege of Sigmund Freud, to solve murders in 1900s Vienna. Max helps determine the psychological profile of the murderer to reveal clues missed in the initial investigation by the police. We learn about the society in Vienna during those times as well.

You may think that I only like detective stories, but I also like science fiction. I have enjoyed ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ on Disney Plus. The season finale was this past Wednesday. Hoping for a Season two.

Thinking about Valentine’s Day coming up next week. The Washington Post had an article this morning by Donald Liebenson which asked several different actors, including Miss Piggy, what were ‘The best movies for Valentine’s Day.’ Miss Piggy likes ‘Breakfast at Tiffanys,’ with Audrey Hepburn…”not only because it stars the incomparable Audrey Hepburn and her fabulous little black dress, but any movie with a meal and a jewelry store in the title has to be an instant classic! ”

So, I started to think about what my favorite romantic movie would be. There is probably more than one that I will remember after finishing this post. But one that came to mind right away is ‘Moonstruck’ with Nicholas Cage, Cher, and Olympia Dukakis. The acting ensemble is terrific. It is romantic and very funny.

What is your favorite book, movie, or song about love?

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

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Featured image ‘Cup of coffee in a cafe bar in Madrid’ by Gvjekoslav on Wikimedia.org (cropped)

Love Is In Da Blog 2022 February 8

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‘A random challenge’ from Bee at The Bee Writes for February. The prompts are about music but can be anything about love. Today’s prompt is ‘ choose your own.’

Stardust was written by Hoagie Carmichael as a jazz song in 1927. Nate King Cole released his version on his album ‘Love is the Thing’ in 1957.

‘Stardust’ by Nat King Cole via You Tube

Love Is In Da Blog 2022 February 7

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My friend Bee at The Bee Writes is hosting ‘a very random challenge’ for February. Today’s prompt is ‘a love song from February 7, 1942.’ My selection is a favorite that was a 1942 Billboard Hit by Glenn Miller, actually written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren in 1941. My favorite rendition is by Etta James. The song is ‘At Last.’

‘At Last’ by Etta James via the Universal Music Group on You Tube.com

#Love Is In Da Blog 22 ❤

Turning Pages

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If we were having coffee, I would tell you I turned over a new leaf, tea leaf that is. I’m having a cup of honey chai turmeric this morning. I do have coffee available if you prefer.

The weather continues moderate here and good for walking outside. We did have some wind the other day which kicked up quite a bit of sand into the air. But none of the extreme weather like I read about in other parts of country and world. Life here continues mostly indoors.

Our book group is starting up again this month. I had already purchased three new books and I am in the process of starting to read the third one. We will meet on Zoom but the plan is for in person in March.

The three books:

‘The Sentence’ by Louise Erdrich

‘State of Terror’ by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny

‘The Dark Hours’ by Michael Connelly

The book group book for this month:

‘The Vanishing Half’ by Brit Bennett

Of the two books on the top list that I just read; ‘State of Terror’ is the page turner. ‘The Sentence’ centers around a haunted bookstore in Minneapolis. It includes current events like living through the pandemic lockdowns and protests after the killing of George Floyd. The bookstore is able to remain open and sell books by curbside pick-up and sometimes home delivery. I picked up a couple of books curbside, but now I order them online for delivery. I did have a book arrive damaged recently and had to go to the local Barnes & Noble to exchange it. I didn’t expect to see so many people in the store, all wearing masks. Like in the book, bookstores are a balm during these times.

Maybe we’ll turn the page on Covid soon.

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer

And Stream of Consciousness Saturday is hosted by Linda G Hill. The prompt word for Saturday is ‘page.’

Tea Bag Wisdom

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If we were having coffee, I would be having herbal tea. It is a habit I have developed after being advised to give up caffeine. The paper tab attached to the tea bags I use has sayings or words of advice printed on it. So, every morning I get words of wisdom with my tea. This morning’s selection said

Inner peace creates peace in the world

I do aspire to find inner peace since there is plenty going on in the world that makes me feel upset. Like reading about the ‘son of Omicron’ in the paper. I did read an expert’s opinion that it was not a son but a sibling. But whatever you call it, it’s not good. This kind of news keeps me up at night. It’s constantly being required to adjust to this pandemic on into the future.

On the local front, some indoor exercise classes have resumed here. Everyone is required to wear masks, but I am not ready to start up with it again just yet. I have lost my trust in the management here since they allowed people to go maskless in those same classes a few weeks ago and then they had an outbreak. I will continue walking outside for now. Walking does contribute a lot to my inner peace.

And so did harvesting our grapefruit tree this week. I did not realize how many grapefruit were on the tree because they were hidden from view by the leaves. We had over 50 grapefruit. I gave nine away so far to the neighbors, so only forty-one to go.

Always glad to spot my roadrunner friend, too.

I like this photo because you can see his spotted feathers

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie the Explorer.

Taking Steps

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If we were having coffee, I would still be having herbal tea, mango ginger to be exact. I continue on with my daily walks. I am noticing more people out doing the same thing. Not sure if it is the moderate temperatures or that our indoor exercise classes were canceled due to Omicron.

The roadrunner was out for a morning walk the other day. He usually walks or runs everywhere, so this was not new for him. If he had a pedometer or smart watch, I wonder how many steps he would record a day? Probably a lot more than me.

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Hope For the New Year

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At the start of a new year, it feels like more of the same. Except now we have had booster shots and purchased KN95 masks. A recent NY Times newsletter described it as being in pandemic purgatory. I really liked the description and when I googled it found out it has been used more than once in other news articles. So not sure who to credit the term to. Only to say to whoever it was, good one.

I don’t like making New Year’s resolutions, but I think this year I resolve to do more in spite of the virus. Not talking about running around maskless amongst large groups of people. I want to plan more activities. I don’t want my life put on hold like it feels like it has been.

One activity is to get outdoors and to walk outside every day. So today I took a walk around the complex for about 30 minutes for a start. I was admiring the neighbors’ plants when I spotted a roadrunner perched on a fence. Before I could get my cell phone ready to catch a photo it had jumped down. I thought I had lost it when I saw him again so was able to catch a few quick shots. It’s hard to take photos will the cell phone in the bright sun because I can’t see anything in the viewfinder. But I did manage to get a couple.