The week has just begun but I’m already looking forward to the weekend. Tim will (hopefully) arrive Thursday night to spend a few days with me. I say hopefully because of the travel nightmare he experienced last year trying to fit in a short visit with me. Because of mechanical issues and boarding pass mistakes made by the airline, Tim and I lost a whole day together. It’s frustrating, but to avoid a repeat of what happened last year and again just this past Christmas, Tim has scheduled a rather lengthy layover between flights. We’ve found it’s better to have that extra cushion than to make good time. He’s also staying a little longer just in case flights get canceled and he’s a day late getting to me again. 

I finally got some writing done on Wednesday. It was only 1500 words, but it’s something. I’d been kind of down on myself for not writing sooner. Then I looked at my Winter Sabbatical 2023 journal and my January blog posts. Altogether, my word count is over 15,000! Maybe it’s time I cut myself some slack. 

Here is the list of books and TV I have consumed since my arrival, along with my ratings:

TV:

• The Crown season 5 (6/10)
• Harry and Meghan (8/10)
• Derry Girls (10/10)
• Banshees of Inisherin (4/10)
• The Swimmers (8/10; This is a true story from the Syrian war a few years ago and it was hard to watch at times. Keep the tissues handy.)
• Ozark seasons 1 and 2 (8/10)
• Most of Drunk History (10/10 I have to watch a little of this after watching Ozark, which is a good show but DARK.) 

Books: Most of these are audiobooks I’ve listened to on bike rides, walks, and trips to Progreso. This scale is 1-5 as I am giving my Goodreads ratings.

• Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner (5/5 I recommend the audiobook to hear Zauner give the correct pronunciations of Korean foods)
• Soundtracks: The Surprising Solution to Overthinking by Jon Acuff (5/5)
• Mommie Dearest by Christina Crawford (3/5, though I vacillated between 2 and 3 throughout the book) 
• The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom (5/5)
• Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (5/5 because of the audiobook. Kristoffer Tabori was magnificent. I’d probably have landed on 4 if I were reading it in print.)
• Horse by Geraldine Brooks (4/5)

I am currently reading Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, The Change by Kirsten Miller, and the first draft of a book written by friend and coworker, Adam Chapman. I haven’t read any of my gardening books yet, nor have I begun to plan my garden in earnest. I’ll likely start that in February. This doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about it, though. I’ve made several plant and seed purchases this month.

Since Tim will be here with me next Monday, I will be a day late with my next blog post. Here are a couple of pictures of my last floral arrangement using a piece of pottery I bought in Chelem last year.