Five-Star Books
I never give a book five stars, but when I read one that combines all my literary loves–environmental fiction, philosophical horror, and just plain weirdness–I have to gush. A five-star book impresses me with an original plot or set of characters, includes a social commentary that makes me think, disgusts/surprises me at least once, and…
Lists, Failures, and Mentors
I wrote about my countdown list for the end of the year three days before my 50th birthday. Shortly after that, I felt the signs of a flare brewing that crescendoed around December 18th. I spent the rest of the year in bed, on the sofa, or in the hospital for a quick diagnostic procedure.…
The Countdown List
I don’t know how I ended up here, writing after so long. One minute I was applying museum wax to the bottom corners of a picture frame, mentally cataloging all the small projects I wanted to finish, and then the next minute, I was grabbing my laptop, and putting my list down in writing for…
Deep Drawer Organization
I planned to include how I handled deep drawer organization in the bathroom in my post about makeup organization for tiny bathrooms, but I decided to separate the two and keep things organized. As with all my organization solutions, my goal was to find something simple, lasting, and frugal. This post is about how I…
Makeup Organization for Tiny Bathrooms
It took me several years to figure out how to organize my makeup in my tiny, 1958 primary bathroom. Pinterest is rife with posts on makeup organization for standard-size primary bathrooms. Less available are storage ideas for small bathrooms that don’t require wall and counter space. I’m not a fan of open shelves, and because…
Historical Fiction Middle-Grade Book List
A couple of weeks ago, I posted a few middle-grade books I read and recommended on my Instagram stories. Those posts resulted in several lovely conversations with parents via DM about books for kids. One of those conversations was about middle-grade historical fiction, a genre I read quite a bit of recently! I collected all…