2021 Reading List

I love to read.  I don't necessarily go to bed early because I'm tired, I go to read. (Though often I am exhausted and don't get much reading done.)  I am not and never have been a fast reader but was surprised by what I was able to read this year.  If you ever want to talk books, I'm all for it!  

Here are the books I loved this year and recommend:

What's a Smart Woman Like You Doing at Home? Linda Burton, Janet Dittmer, and Cheri Loveless
This book was written in the 80s and is therefore quite dated; I would love to see a revision for today's stay-at-home-mom.  There wasn't a lot of "ah-ha!" moments but simple reassurances that your choice to stay home to raise your children is perfectly fine and your choice to pursue your career is perfectly fine.  I also found interesting the Dept. of Labor statistics, how DOL defines work and how some reports we hear or read about may be misinterpreted if these definitions aren't included.  

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, Angela Duckworth
An interesting read if a bit of a self-adulation for the author.  An interesting study on not needing to be talented at something to succeed.  

The Enigma Game, Elizabeth Wein
I loved, loved, loved Wein's Code Name Verity and have read it numerous times.  When I realized this was a quasi-prequal, I had to read it.  I also highly enjoyed the movie "The Imitation Game" and this was a kind of meshing of the two in a lovely WWII historical fiction.  I got a bit annoyed with what seemed an editorial on the whole race issue the country is dealing with, but if you can look past that, a great read.

The Science of Skinny, Dee McCaffrey
This book scared me.  I am not looking to diet or feel I need to lose weight, but was interested in the science/chemistry behind some of the most common ingredients in our food.  I already tried to buy whole grains and avoided high fructose corn syrup like the plague, but there were other eye opening things explained in food processing and how our bodies processes (or don't) certain things that have changed my purchasing and cooking habits.

David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
A classic. Simply a lovely classic to get lost in.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Suzanne Collins
A prequal to the Hunger Games trilogy.  An interesting, creepy, and well written look into the adolescence of President Snow.  Loved it!

Rhythm of War, Brandon Sanderson
A friend suggested another of Sanderson's books a few years ago and it was then I realized I'd actually read one of his young adult series and loved it.  I have yet to read something from him that I haven't loved.  I only wish his books would come out faster.  This was book four in his Stormlight Archives and I loved it.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Victor Hugo
Another classic I've been wanting to read for a while.  When Hugo stays on the plot (instead of explaining in great detail the layout of the city of Paris) it is quite captivating.  Depressing on the level of a Thomas Hardy novel though.

Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel
I really didn't like Severance and reviewers who didn't like it either suggested Station Eleven.  I loved this book.  What is fame?  Who will remember us?  How will we be remembered?  How do we want to be remembered?  What do we do when the world ends?  Who was the main character or was there one?  So much to ponder with this book.

The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss
Similar to the above, I didn't like The False Prince and other people who didn't either suggested The Name of the Wind.  I may have somewhat abandoned my family as I was consumed by this story.  Fantasy but not too heavy.  It seems the norm for current storytelling to have the underdog win or the somehow limited character overcome all odds or the fool to blindly stumble his way to success.  (I mean, come on!  The "Star Trek" remake movies turned James Kirk into a drunken looser!!  Really!?!?) It was nice to have a character with the skills to overcome face challenges and his own weaknesses and work through them.

Here are books that were interesting or entertaining but I wouldn't necessarily recommend them:

Gregor and the Marks of Secret & Gregor and the Code of Claw, Suzanne Collins
I started this series last year and finished it this year.  A fun, silly, fast read, pre-teen story of a boy who finds a world hidden under NYC and saves the day.

Troubled Blood, Robert Galbraith
J.K. Rowling's pseudonym for her mystery series.  An excellent mystery but extremely dark and excessive amounts of strong language.

Exercised, Daniel Lieberman
A curious look at evolution and exercise.  I don't know if I agreed with everything, but it definitely changed and challenged a few of my previously held beliefs about the activity level of our ancestors.

The Glass Hotel & The Singer's Gun, Emily St. John Mandel
After thoroughly enjoying Station Eleven, I read two other books by the same author and am currently in the middle of another.  Both are well written and thought provoking but I wouldn't say quite to the level of Station Eleven.

Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro
Not sure how I stumbled on this one.  You know there is something going on that isn't quite right from the beginning.  I was left wondering why the characters didn't rebel?  Resist?  Revolt?  Especially those who were granted education and edification.  A bit more sexual content than I like.

The Wise Man's Fear, Patrick Rothfuss
The next book in the series after The Name of the Wind.  I mostly enjoyed this book and read it just as fast as the first one simply because the writing is wonderful, even if the story was a bit lacking.  There is not a lot of forward movement in the plot and there is a lot of sexual content to the point where the way women are portrayed is a bit off-putting.  

On the Beach, Nevil Shute
My dad suggested this when I told him about Station Eleven.  Kind of slow, romantic, horrific, beautiful, and sad.  The world is ending, you know it's coming, what do you do?  An interesting question answered in different ways by all the characters.

Here are the books that I did not like and would not recommend:

The False Prince, The Runaway King, & The Shadow Throne, Jennifer Nielsen
I think I read the first book in the trilogy because it was on the home screen for my on-line library and it was available.  I enjoyed the first chapter and then it went downhill from there.  I'll admit I was surprised by the twist, but it didn't do enough to make up for the rest of the book.  Why, oh why did I finish the trilogy?  I don't know.  It was beyond implausible in parts, beyond predicable in other parts, not very well written, and not enjoyable.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris
A friend recommended this and I was very interested as it was based on an actual person and his experiences.  I didn't like it.  I found it very poorly written and, not to in any way downplay or make light of the horrors of the concentration camps, rather cliché.  In my opinion, Elie Wiesel in a 1989 New York Times article best summed up this book: "[Holocaust authors] get a little history, a heavy dose of sentimentality and suspense, a little eroticism, a few daring sex scenes, a dash of theological rumination about the silence of God and there it is: let kitsch rule in the land of kitsch, where at the expense of truth, what counts is ratings and facile success.”

Case Histories & One Good Turn, Kate Atkinson
This author and her main character were listed in a review for another book I read so I tried it.  First book wasn't that great.  I tried a second just to see if it was something that got better as the characters developed but it was about the same.  It's supposed to be a mystery but I'm not sure in either book what the mystery was since the main character didn't seem to do much of anything.  A lot of strong language and sexual content in both books.

Severance, Ling Ma
Wow, I really, really didn't like this book.  I don't know how I stumbled on this one in the first place but my goodness, I didn't like it.  What was the point?  What woke progressive social narrative are you beating to death?  Or were you trying at all?  What?

Looking forward to some good reading this coming year.  Any suggestions??

Wrapping Up 2021

I don't know what it was about this year, but I had a terrible time remembering the year itself.  Weird, I know, but there were multiple times where I would have to take a second to remember if we were in 2020, 2021, or 2022.  Or looking at a date and seeing 2021, taking a moment to realize it's the year we were in.

I am a goal setter.  One goal was to make 2021 the year of the nut.  As long as I can remember, I have never had a taste for nuts.  I don't like them plain, salted, roasted, and get annoyed upset when food that is already quite good is tainted with nuts, like brownies.  I decided I was going to embark on a nutty adventure this year and really give nuts a try.  I learned I don't like peanuts (but love peanut butter and always have), pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, or brazil nuts.  I like pistachios but don't like shelling them and I like macadamias but goodness, they are expensive!  My favorite is the cashew.  Those are delicious!  In a sad twist of fate, I also learned this year that my body has an intolerance to cashews... go figure!

Another 2021 goal was a bit more involved.  I could happily eat the same thing for dinner every night.  My dear husband likes a bit more variety and after the umpteenth serving of my favorite pasta salad, he kindly suggested I not make it again for a while.  I decided it was time to add some new dishes to my recipe book, tackle some I'd had for years but never made, and purge ones with hard to find ingredients or that honestly weren't that good.  Up for a challenge, I set a goal to not make the same meal for dinner twice this year.  (Gil making dinner and warming up left overs didn't count.)

I made a spreadsheet to track what we had for dinner and to make sure I didn't duplicate.  I also stuck to my habit of not using my oven during the summer months, which will be even more important now that we're in Arizona.  In a few days, I will finish the year without having made the same thing twice.  It has been fun and challenging and we've eaten some good food and some not so good food.  There are quite a few meals that were so good that January seemed a long way away (when I could make them again).  Below is a screen shot of my spreadsheet.

Goals for 2022?  At the moment, only one.  Get through my third trimester, have a safe delivery and a healthy baby.

San Diego

Last December I purchased a get-away trip for Gil and I to celebrate his graduation in May.  There were different destination options across the country and in Mexico.  I was ready to sit on a beach in Mexico and Gil go his passport renewed.  He graduated and I asked where and when.  He was busy with work, then helping family, then he got his new job and had no time off.  The trip was about to expire and I wanted to use it.  One of the destinations was San Diego, driving distance from Phoenix, so I booked for me and Wesley.

The Wee Lad is a good little traveler.  He sleeps, we sing songs, he looks at the trains and the rocks, and we stop somewhere for a picnic lunch.  Our hotel was in downtown San Diego.

Thursday morning we were up bright and early and headed to Cabrillo National Monument.  The weather was perfect.   

We enjoyed views of the Pacific and and looking across San Diego Bay to downtown and the rest of the city.

We explored the old lighthouse.

We went down to the beach and had lunch.  A little after lunch was low tide and we were able to explore the tide pools and find some cool creatures.

An urchin!  Talking to one of the volunteers, apparently these are pretty rare to find.  It was a brilliant purple, the photo doesn't do it justice.  A really, really cool find.

We found quite a few anemones too, including this lovely white one.  We also saw a ton of crabs.

The beautiful southern CA coast.

We then drove up the coast to the San Diego Temple.  Such a beautiful temple.  

While we drove north the clouds rolled in, the wind picked up, and the temperature dropped.  We were planning on going to a beach in La Jolla for some quality sand digging time for Wesley but it was not pleasant beach weather anymore, even with a jacket.

Friday morning we went to the San Diego Children's Discovery Museum.  It was a first time to a children's museum for Wesley and he loved it!  I loved it!  I nudged a bit to get him started but otherwise, I let him decided where he wanted to play and how long he wanted to play there.  It was wonderful to watch him play and explore and experiment and pretend.

Cooking dinner.

For the most part, he was pretty good about keeping his mask on too.  We were there two and a half hours and he wore it without complaint just about the whole time.  

The museum closed at noon, we had a picnic lunch and headed home.  It was a wonderful quick trip.  Next time, we hope Gil can join us.

Thunderbird Conservation Park

We continue to explore our new place.  There is a park about 15 minutes north of us we decided to check out yesterday.  

We had beautiful views of the Phoenix Temple for most of the hike.  There were quite a few people on the trail too.  The day and the weather were perfect.  

Wesley continues to be a great hiker and got incredibly dusty.  He loves to climb on all the rocks.  We did have an incident where a dog passing us sneezed.  Wes is scared of all dogs, regardless of size, and the sneeze was quite traumatic for him.  He had Gil carry him for quite a bit while he calmed down.

We made it to the top of the peak and had a lovely 360* view including the Phoenix valley.  

My pregnancy carpel tunnel is starting to get a little uncomfortable but is still manageable.  With this pregnancy, I've had some pain in my lower abdomen.  Usually it's also manageable.  I did just fine on this short 2.5 mile hike.  Gil drove us home, I stood up out of the car and couldn't take another step.  I could not lift my legs.  Whatever muscles/tendons/ligaments in your lower abdomen you use to lift your legs screamed in pain.  Dear, wonderful husband of mine got Wes in the house then came back and helped me.  I hobbled around the rest of the day and am still hobbling a bit today.  A friend recommended a pregnancy belt but my tummy's not big enough for it to hold and lift anything.  We'll have to find other ways to adventure if I want to be able to walk afterwards.

Around Phoenix

We are getting to know our area and have ventured out and about a few times.

Our first weekend we went to the train park in Scottsdale.  It's on the other side of the valley so we probably won't go that often.  Regardless, it was awesome!  There was a large playground and a small museum about trains and railroads.  There was also a really nice building housing the most extensive miniature train set-up I've ever seen.  It was pretty spectacular.  

There was also a carousel and a little train.  Wesley loves trains but the idea of actually riding on one made him very nervous.  Once the train got moving he enjoyed himself, especially the tunnel.

We were able to attend the Mesa Temple open house.  It is a lovely building and really pretty inside.  Wesley's favorite thing was the chairs.  He tried his best to sit in as many chairs as he could.  

We've been to a few playgrounds and have some good options close to our house.  Gil's cousin and her family drove from southern CA for the temple open house and we were able to go to the park and play with her kids and visit.

I have a weird tradition of asking my insurance agent where I can find the best malted chocolate milkshake when I move to a new place.  I was told Culver's was the place.  We went with Gil's cousin and her family while they were in town.  The company was good, the chocolate malt was lacking.

We enjoyed Thanksgiving with one of Gil's distant relatives.  They have quite the backyard for the grandkids, including a three story playhouse, a climbing wall, a trampoline, and about five battery powered trucks.  Wesley figured out how to push the peddle and turn the steering wheel and had a blast.  We couldn't get him out of it until the battery died.  Dinner was lovely and it was fun to get to know family.

We decided it was time to get Wesley a big bed.  He's been in his little crib so long I worried it would be a hard transition but he took to the new bed immediately.  He's in heaven.

My parents drove down the Friday after Thanksgiving to visit and bring some of our stuff that was in their storage unit.  We went to the Pioneer Living History farm just north of town.  My mom was enamored with the saguaros.   

Gil and Wes did some gold panning.

We had a second Thanksgiving meal Saturday.  Gil made the turkey, as usual, and it was his best yet.  It was so good.  I used to not particularly like turkey but I had three helpings of this one.

We're basically settled.  If you find yourself getting tired of the cold this winter, you're welcome to come visit!

Phoenix here we come!

Gil was offered and accepted a job in Phoenix with Pueblo Mechanical.  It was a fast and furious move.  

We thought we would hire professional movers for less stress.  We knew it would be expensive so we budgeted high.  When the quote came back way, way, way above our already high budget, we decided to get a U-Haul.  I went from thinking I had a week to pack to having a day and a half.  

I packed and sorted all day Thursday.  We picked up the van and car-tow trailer Friday morning.

Wesley had a blast playing in the truck.  He was in heaven.  He now points out to us every "moving van truck" he sees.

Gil packed the van almost entirely by himself.  He is amazing and it was so well packed... he's a pro!  We got to the point where Gil was loading as fast as I was packing boxes.  We had originally thought Gil would leave Saturday but we looked at each other Friday night and were absolutely exhausted and decided to wait until Sunday.

Saturday afternoon we finally decided we were ready, basically.  We went across the street and got a smoothie to celebrate and take a break.  My folks arrived shortly.  They were going to stay for the next few days to help with final packing and cleaning.

We got the car loaded on the trailer but didn't figure out the fender folds down so the car door can open until after my dad had climbed out the car window.

Gil left early Sunday morning and moved into our new apartment in Glendale, AZ on Monday.  He started his first day of work on Tuesday.

Gil's car packed with the last of our stuff.

My parent's car packed with the last of our stuff.

Wesley and I left on Thursday and headed for my parents' place in St. George.  Gil came up on Saturday and we repacked my car and his.  My brother blessed his baby on Sunday, then Gil headed back for AZ.  Wesley and I headed to southern CA so I could attend a memorial service for my friend on Monday.  

Wesley and I finally arrived at our new apartment on Tuesday.  Wesley has his own bedroom, we have a washer/drier in our unit, we have tons of storage space, and we're on the first floor!  We're learning where everything is and getting settled into our new place and new routine.

Growing Too Fast

 The Wee Lad is growing up very fast.  Here are a few photos from this summer.

We got him his own sunglasses but he prefers to wear Gil's.  He always puts them on upside down though.

He still does his own dishes and is getting better at it.

Sometimes he's pretty good about wearing a mask.

My mother gave Wesley her old flip phone and he loves it.  It's not a functioning phone anymore but he still enjoys picking it up and giving whoever he's pretending to talk to a running commentary of what's going on in the house.

The chair in the above and below was mine when I was little and it's been popular since it was pulled out of storage.  I had to wash the cloth seat and Wesley still wanted to use his chair.  So, he used a toy box to sit on and leaned against the couch.  Smart kid!

He walked into the kitchen the other day in Gil's shoes and holding his diaper changing map and announced he was going to work.

At the library, he was immediately drawn to the computer, sat down, and announced he was working.  We're not sure where this idea of "work" comes from, but he's very serious about it.

We visited the splash pad a few times this summer. 

He loves to sing and dance.  When I go during the week to church to practice the organ, he sets up his music stand and sings his way through the hymn book while I play.  This particular day he found these massive sunglasses and was absolutely adorable (notice they are upside down).

He also insists he has his turn to play the organ as well.  In some ways it's nicer than the piano because I can pick only one stop and turn the volume as low as it goes.

We got a train set and he loved it.  We were able to find my brother's old set and the two sets fit together perfectly.  We've had a lot of fun setting up more elaborate tracks.

I love this little boy!

Utah Visit

Labor Day weekend we headed to the Salt Lake area to attend a baby shower for my brother-in-law's wife.  She texted us right as we reached the NV/UT border that she was having the baby and the shower was cancelled.

We spent the morning instead with Grandma Sharon and Uncle Bryan at Wheeler Farm.  The boys climbed into the tree house.

We tried the barrel cow ride.

Wesley loved the tractor and would have stayed on it and pretended to drive all day if we let him.  He is fascinated with cars, trucks, trains and other large vehicles.

Sunday afternoon we headed to southern Utah.  Gil and my dad flew on Tuesday to Houston to help Gil's sister move to Missouri.  Wesley and I had a lovely week spending time with Nona and getting to meet Baby Kensley, my brother's little girl.  Wesley was very, very excited to hold her and was very attentive to her needs.

We went to the Dinosaur Discovery Park in St. George.  It was not a place for Wesley but there was a dinosaur we could climb on.  

It was a nice week and good to spend time with family.

Caldor Fire

I worked for the Eldorado National Forest for almost four years.

The ENF is divided into four districts, Georgetown to the northwest, Pacific to the northeast, Placerville slicing through the middle, and Amador to the south.  I worked on the Placerville district.  During my time on this district, I hike a fair share of it, found my favorite places, coordinated with business owners who operated on the forest and was liaison for private land owners within the forest.  

The last two weeks have been hard.  The picture below shows the Caldor Fire's footprint as of this morning (minus the part that's dropped down into the Tahoe Basin).  Everything you see in red is my old district.

This map shows the fire's progression, from when it first ignited to today.  I have former coworkers who have been evacuated, two of them with homes where the fire got really, really, close.  The whole eastern half of our stake is evacuated.  Gil's boss was also evacuated and he and his wife are camped out in their trailer behind the shop where he operates his business.

This is a photo of what remains of the Plummer Guard Station.  It was an old cabin where rangers would stay while out on patrol.  The fire burned incredibly hot here and little remains. We were working on getting it ready to be rented to the public.  The structure in the back is solid concrete.  One of my former seasonal employees who sent me this picture said there are places where the fire burned even hotter and not a single tree survived.  

One structure I was very worried about was the Harvey West Cabin.  It was built in the early 1900s and was a private retreat until becoming part of the ENF.  It is fairly rustic (no electricity but hot running water) and we rented it out every summer.  The cabin was saved, though you can see the flames to the left side of the photo.

We are watching this fire very carefully, praying for those evacuated and for the safety of all the firefighters, and a swift containment.