Random Tuesday

I'm linking up with Stacy.

Wow!  Hard to believe, but summer is almost over.  I think there are two weeks left until teachers return and one week later, students.  Eeeek!  I'm not ready!  Are we ever ready to go back to work?  Actually, I have been working a part-time job for the past two weeks.  I'm going to keep it as long as I can.  The only thing I don't like about it is they keep it too hot in there.  I love being around the fabric and crafts, though.  It's inspiring.  So many fun ideas!

And guess what?  I had planned to sleep in today, but my extra job called at 7 AM asking if I could work today.  Of course I said, "Sure!"  I'm still new; I can't say "no" yet.  So off I go!

And now...

This cracked me up!

If I have a dog cartoon, I MUST include a cat cartoon!

Something to think about.

Have a great week!

Sunday Synopsis

Enrique's Journey: The Story of a Boy's Dangerous Odyssey to Reunite with His Mother by Sonia Nazario
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sonia Nazario does a fabulous job with the account of Enrique including circumstances of his family, home, education, personal life, and his long trek to the United States from Honduras.

Enrique embarks on the journey to be reunited with his mother who had left her starving children 11 years earlier in hopes of making enough money to feed and clothe them or buy them safe passage to the U. S. Seventeen year old Enrique is tired of waiting. He knows that the only choices he has to survive in Honduras will involve drugs, starvation, low economic opportunity, and/or street gangs.

Enrique leaves with his mother's phone number written on a slip of paper and inside the waistband of his pants. Most of the trip is taken by climbing onto moving trains, risking losing life or limb if he is sucked under. He is robbed, hungry, sleep-deprived, beaten, and caught by Mexican policemen along the way, who are almost as corrupt as the gangs. When he is able to sleep, it is in a tree, a clump of grass, or a cemetery. He finds a few people who help along the way without whom he would likely be dead.

I believe you will enjoy this book. It was truly a page-turner. You will see another side of immigration and perhaps understand a little more of the motivation that drives some Central Americans to consider the long, difficult journey to the States. I highly recommend this!

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Random Tuesday

I'm going to try to link up with Stacy.

Things at home are still not going as well as I would like them to, but I'm going to attempt a post.

Actually, I'm at my sister's house scrapbooking.  I needed this.  We may not get a lot done, but it's a fun hobby, and we laugh till our sides hurt!

I started working a part-time retail job a couple of weeks ago.  It is going well.  I would like to continue working after I go back to teaching for my last year.  It's kind of difficult, and my feet get soooo tired, but it completely takes my mind off things I'd rather not think about.  Plus, I could do some Christmas shopping there!
We'll see how it goes.

Have a great week!

Sunday Synopsis

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

During the summer of 1793, there was an outbreak of Yellow Fever that killed about 5,000 of the 50,000 residents of Philadelphia. The main character is 14 year old Mattie Cook, a hard worker determined to see her family's business, The Cook Coffeehouse, succeed. Then, Mattie loses her childhood friend to the disease. Then her mother becomes ill, and there is a possibility she will get well. Her grandfather and Mattie must try to leave Philadelphia in hopes of staying free from illness, but things do not go as planned.

The novel is mostly fiction, but the time period, and the events happening during the time period are real. You will get a sense of the culture of Philadelphia in the late 18th, but you won't be overwhelmed with historical details. Mattie is a likeable protagonist.

I only gave this three stars because it didn't move as quickly as I had hoped it would. It is also recommended reading for middle grades, but, except for a few students with a working knowledge of history, some of the details may get lost while attempting to read for comprehension. I don't think the average middle grade student would find it exciting enough to fully keep their attention. Most of my middle schoolers say it is "good" or "okay" but never "great."

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Thursday Thirteen

Welcome to Thursday Thirteen, a fun meme to play.

Today I'm listing some quotes that speak to me in my current situation.

1.  Moving on, is a simple thing, what it leaves behind is hard.

Dave Mustaine

2. 

3.  Recovery begins from the darkest moment. 

John Major 

4. 

5. Much of your pain is the bitter potion by which the physician within you heals your sick self. Khalil Gibran

6.

7.  I have sadness in me. I have anger in me. I have heartbreak in me.

 Ellen DeGeneres

8.

9.  History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, 

need not be lived again.

 Maya Angelou

10.

11.  There is no better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time. 

Malcolm X

12.  

13.  People do stupid things... words are important. 

Rodney Frelinghuysen

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/

Random Tuesday

Hi all.  Not feeling very random today.  I'm dealing with some emotional issues right now.  Thanks for stopping by.  Here's a pun for you before you leave:

Sunday Synopsis

First There Was Silence by Leonie Haubrich
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I think 3 stars may have been too generous. I almost gave up on this book. There were several characters that were difficult to keep separate due to their names and nicknames, and the author did nothing to endear any of the characters to the audience.

First you are introduced to a foster mom who doesn't want to return a baby to the parents. She seems a little nutty. The biological mom, you learn much later, had lost a child to SIDS during her first marriage. Her current husband knew nothing about it until their daughter is kidnapped. Most of the story is about the search for Lotta.

The characters are not developed such that you root for one over the other; in fact, I didn't really like any of the characters including the police. I honestly did not care if they ever found Lotta or not.

I believe this was written in German because they cover says, "translated by Ruth A. Gentes Krawczyk." Perhaps that was one reason I couldn't get into it. I sooo contemplated abandoning this book, and now that I've finished it, I would have been good with the choice to abandon. Sorry, folks. This one is slow, unrealistic, and not suspenseful.

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Random Tuesday

I'm linking up with Stacy.

Hello!  We just returned from a mini-vacay.  Can you tell what city we visited?

Please leave a guess in the comments.

Summer is flying by, and I don't like it one bit!  How's your summer going?

Image Credit

Did anyone catch the Homerun Derby yesterday?  Congratulations to Pete Alonso from the Mets.  He did a great job, but the duel between Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. and Joc Pederson?  3 ties!  I was rooting for Guerrero, not that I have anything against Pederson or Alonso.  I know nothing about them.  But, I think it's cool that it was a rookie who won.

I really don't have any news or interesting tidbits to share today, so I'll get to some funnies,

Sad, but true!

This is so me. In fact, it's so me that I've probably posted it before!

Also completely true!

Have a great week!

Sunday Synopsis

The Devil You Know by Terry Tyler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This one was interesting. Set in Lyndford, Lincolnshire, England, there is a serial killer murdering young, beautiful women, mostly prostitutes, but not just them. Five people in the town believe they know the killer, and the killer is close to them.

One of them is right.

Could it be Maisie's mum's new beau? Or Juliet's abusive husband? Or could it be Jake, Tamsin's handsome crush? Steve's childhood friend? Or Dorothy's son?

You will find out. Just when you think you know... you don't know! This will keep you twisting and turning until the end.

Along the way, you'll learn some British slang! Most of us have heard "shag," "arse," and "mate." But how about "wanker?" "Nip?" "e-fit?" There are many more! It gives the novel a quirky, edgy feel.

I was a bit confused at the beginning of the novel since there are numerous characters, but I caught on, and when I did, I couldn't put it down! Loved it!

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Happy 4th

I'm linking up with Stacy for random Tuesday.

Wishing you all a happy 4th of July!  Be careful as you are celebrating.

Whether it's hot dogs, fireworks, or a few adult beverages, whatever you do, stay safe.
If you're enjoying a cold one, designate a driver (it's usually me in our household), call a taxi or an Uber, or just stay put.  As a mom, this is probably what worries me most now that my children are adults.  You can't control what other people do, but you can control yourself.  It is estimated that 40% of deaths on the 4th of July weekend are due to alcohol, and I don't want my family and friends to become statistics.

Sad, but true.

Have a great week!  Be safe!

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