Sunny days arrive -
Heating up my happy cats.
Sudden storm erupts.
(Haiku written by me, 10 Nov, 2026)
It's been hot. Not Summer hot, but hotter than I'm used to at this time of year. Then yesterday (Tuesday), a loud storm erupted, lasting most of the morning. Later a smaller shower added the punctuation to the day. Neither cat hid under furniture - bonus!
I missed Fiction Friday. I'm in a funk. These days, coffee is just plain old black coffee made at home (using a phin, of course).
But I got out of the house to visit the optometrist yesterday. As a special gift for a new customer, they sent me home with a 1/2 kilo of coffee!
 |
| "Unleash creativity - Pursue passion"😆 |
I'm still reading All the Light We Cannot See, but for lighter fare I've also been progressing through two children's book series (mid-grades) - The Dork Diaries, and The Last Kids on Earth - both of which I started with students.
Do you ever pick up a book aimed at a younger audience? Just for a break?
If so, which ones? If not, what is your "I need something lighter" go-to?
Too lazy to work,
Too tired to read a short book.
Stupid menopause.
Not much, but literally my thoughts today. I could be coming down with something. That always makes me extra lethargic. Or maybe it's the onset of a depression, but today it suits me to blame it on hormones.
I was in my 40s before I realized I was judging others' coffee choices. To each their own, right?
I'd always said that, but when someone claimed to be a coffee snob and then described coffee that didn't meet MY definition of good coffee, I definitely felt a little vindicated in my own superior taste. You know, better beans, better caffeine content, BETTER!
I'm better now. I love Vietnamese coffee. I love Turkish coffee! I've enjoyed all kinds of coffee and I've disliked some coffee that other coffee snobs swear is the best. To each their own!
If someone comes to visit me in this country with its deeply rooted coffee culture and brings their own favorite flavor of General Foods International Coffee because that's what they like, I will not try to force Vietnamese coffee on them. When people travel, it is important to do it in a way that makes them happy!
Same goes for books. Maybe more so.
I love old classics and rereading books I've read a dozen times, but I'm learning that I need help finding awesome new reads. I know better than to just randomly trust best-seller lists.
Currently I'm reading All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr and LOVING it! It came out in 2014, and I'd seen the title around for years. A quick look at the blurb told me it was set during World War II and had interesting main characters. So I downloaded it.
I'm not even 1/4 through, but it is gripping and intriguing and heartfelt. Of course we all know how the war ended up, but following two individuals living through it in very different ways makes for a compelling story.
I've read a few surprising books in the last year. I guess I don't really have a favorite genre anymore. Fiction. As long as it is well-written and an interesting or fun story, I'm in!
What makes an awesome book for you?
"But how do I do it, Mama?" he asked. Now that it was Halloween, he was nervous again.
She sighed at the repeated question. Rather than look him in the eye, she smudged at the fake blood to make it look old. "Look, there will be hundreds of kids doing the same thing. It's easy! You'll see."
"You said never to take candy from strangers."
"I did. And you shouldn't. Except today. Today it's okay. And Uncle Joe will be with you."
Jakey cringed. "He smells weird," he said in a soft voice.
"Only because he's been dead for fifteen years." She touched up the tear in his t-shirt exposing a gash on his exposed ribs.
"People are going to tease me for talking to myself. They always think I'm talking to myself when Uncle Joe is with me."
Finished, she leaned back on her stool and touched his nose with a dry brush. "Ah, that's the beauty of Halloween! Uncle Joe can wear a sheet to look like a fake ghost so it won't look like you're alone."
Jakey's face lit up. "Okay!" He liked the idea of trick-or-treating, but he'd always been afraid to go. Now that he was in the third grade, some of his classmates were giving him an extra hard time about it: calling him a scaredy-cat. (He kind of was.) Saying he was a baby. (He definitely wasn't.) He had always helped hand out the candy at home, a little jealous of the kids in costumes, but mostly happy to be at home.
His mom was a professional makeup artist at the theater downtown. She had been so excited when he announced he wanted to go trick-or-treating this year that for a minute his feelings had been hurt. Didn't she like his help at home? Did she think he was a chicken like Billy and Keaton did? But she had patiently addressed his concerns and he figured out that she was excited about helping him with a costume more than anything else.
"What do you want to be?"
"I don't know, something scary, NOT babyish! NOT a cartoon or a superhero!" He had something to prove this year.
She threw out a few scary costume ideas and even looked them up with him online. (Dracula he knew. Frankenstein was a new one for him.) When he'd settled on zombie, her whole face lit up. "Aha! Now that's a good one." She'd pulled over her notepad and started a list. "We'll need a..." Thinking, writing, then suddenly, "Oh! And some..." Then more writing... "Jakey, go up to your room and find a T-shirt you don't mind destroying - one you never wear anymore. And some - hmm, are you going to be a pants zombie or a shorts zombie?" He shrugged. "Well, some bottoms you can wreck, too. We're gonna have fun with this."
That was two weeks ago. Now he was in costume and ready to go. Where was Uncle Joe?
"Joe! Little brother!" his mom called out. "Are you in the attic or the basement?" The makeup palette slid across the table on its own, while a laugh echoed in the room. "Very funny, Joe. Your costume is sitting on the sofa in the living room."
"Okay. You look great, little dude. Scariest zombie I've ever seen!" Jakey raised his hand in a high-five, and felt a whisper of air as his uncle obliged on his way to get in costume.
"Come on," said his mom. "Get your treat bag, and let's get a picture of you together before you go."
At the door, he hugged his mom tight. "Remember, Mom, one treat each, unless it's a specially good costume!"
"Go scare some people for me," she told him as he crossed the front stoop. "And mind your uncle!" She flipped on the porch light as her son and brother turned onto a sidewalk clotted with groups of kids.
The season seems past.
Daily the sky dawns blue and clear.
Please don't prove me wrong!
(haiku by me on October 28, 2026)
It's truly hot, but at least it's not as humid as where I used to live. I actually find myself looking for a cloud or some drizzle. Soon the winds will pick up. That will help.
Have a great week!
Recently, I met a friend for coffee. Twice now! This is a milestone since moving to this town: having a friend to meet for coffee occasionally.
It changes the coffee experience, doesn't it? Usually, I just go to a coffee shop with my book, settle in, and enjoy the coffee and ambience. But when somebody comes to join me...
Well, the first time, we'd arranged where and when to meet, only to find the coffee shop was closed. We pivoted to my backup location. No problem.
This time, I was already at my usual spot when I sent a quick message that our first-choice coffee shop was open again. He joined me a little later. No fuss, no elaborate planning. He's a good coffee buddy.
What makes a good coffee with a friend? For me, it's a balanced conversation. I don't want to spend time with somebody who monopolizes the conversation, but I don't want to have to carry it, either. I don't need to be the center of attention, but I do like to participate. And when the conversation flows, does it even matter what you're talking about?
I've had friends who only really connect with me on one or two topics. And that's fine, too. Sometimes you need a movie friend or a book friend.
This is not a book friend, although we talked a little about reading. Of course we did! I was reading when he arrived. So he naturally asked what I was reading. For once, I wasn't reading a well-known book or author.
"I'm reading Let's Eat Grandma's Pills by David Thorne."
"What?"
"It's funny, but not really a story. More like a collection of short snippets of life."
"And it's a book?"
I'm not sure I made it sound particularly appealing! Especially since this is my first David Thorne book, so I didn't have much more to say about it. But it's very funny! In fact, I started it this month because October at home involves so many dark movies and TV shows that I needed some humor to lighten my brain.
And that, I suppose, is part of the pleasure of coffee with a friend. You don't have to share all the same interests, or even have a particularly fascinating book to talk about. You just have to enjoy the conversation.
What makes a good coffee with a friend for you? Is it the conversation, the company, or simply having someone to share the coffee with?
