Mayan Ruins - Tulum, Mexico

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Quoted - C.S. Lewis Edition

Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement. He is a rebel who must lay down his arms.

Book Review - Crunch Time

Diane Mott Davidson writes mystery novels. They are not scary. And they always have recipes included. Lemme try to explain. Each novel is about a caterer named Goldy Shulz. Goldy is married to a police detective (comes in handy) and has a teenage son. Everywhere she goes, people get murdered. It sounds grisly but, somehow, the author, makes it seem like "Murder She Wrote". Remember how everytime Angela Lansbury would visit someone, the audience would be like "Not everybody is gonna leave this dinner party alive."? Same thing with this series.

So somebody gets murdered. At this point Tom, the husband cop, warns Goldy not to get involved in the investigation. Goldy always agrees and describes how busy she will be with her various catering jobs. She then proceeds to cook and snoop until she solves the case 400 pages later. She usually gets attacked at some point in the process also.

Seriously, the same things happen in every book. But they're great. Trust me on this.

The Graduate - Emily Edition

I hope that the in the two years since Dylan graduated I have learned a thing or two. So let's see if I can fashion a post that won't get me in trouble.

1. Emily is NOT my baby. She is my step-daughter but I really do love her to smithereens.

2. I take absolutely NO credit for her achievement in graduating from high school. But I am awfully proud of what she has accomplished in the last year. And I pray that her future is filled with all the things she is hoping for.

Congratulations Emily!!!

Book Review - The Art of Racing In The Rain

My neighbor loaned me this book. I put it in the closet and proceeded to forget all about it. Then, she kept asking me about it. Not in a "when am I gonna get my book back" kind of way but in a "I can't wait for you to experience the awesome" kind of way. So I read it.

It's a short book and it's awfully easy to read. It's written from the point of view of Enzo the dog. I can honestly say that I don't think I have ever read a book narrated by a dog before.

Enzo's owner is having kind of a bad life. He marries, has a child and then his life goes to crap. His wife dies, his inlaws bankrupt him trying to take custody of the child.

Also, the guy is a race car driver which explains the title. I think there is supposed to be some kind of heavy metaphor involved here but I never could figure it out. If you read it, let me know what I missed.

I actually finished this book at the pool. A woman sitting near me saw it and had to gush about how much she had loved reading it. I'm just not sure I get her enthusiasm. I liked the book but I don't think I will be discussing it with strangers anytime soon. Maybe you have to really, really like dogs.

The Challenge - Summer Edition

Today I begin my summer challenge. I am gonna read the entire Bible in 90 days. I'm trying this for a couple of different reasons. The main one being that I am really feeling at loose ends right now. I am not involved in any formal Bible study for the first time in...well, a really long time. While this 90 day plan is certainly not 'study', I do think it will keep me focused until some (hopefully?) new opportunities arise in the fall. Also, I tend to focus so completely on the kids during the summer that I often lose sight of myself. (I know that sounds goofy, but it's true.) This challenge will force me to carve out at least 45 minutes a day as selfish "me" time.

If I can just make it through Leviticus...