It's Monday....what are you reading, listening to and/or watching?

This was a strange week as I was trying to keep my mind off my son Ben's surgery.  He's had an injured shoulder from work and he had surgery for it today at the University of Iowa.  The fact that he was at a top hospital really helped.  He is home now but not without a few tense moments.  He had never been under anesthesia before and evidently it worked really well....too well, in fact.  There were moments when he couldn't speak and then he panicked.  He had the surgery early this morning and in the afternoon he was still having problems.  The anesthesiologist was in quite a bit as all his vitals were fine.  It scared me because it sounded like a stroke.  I talked to him awhile ago and he's home now but he has not had any pain meds yet and he sounds like he is drugged up.  He's hungry though and that's a good sign and good to have something in his stomach before he takes any pain meds too.  I wish I was there but it would have been difficult and he assured me he would be fine.  So, if I have been a little pre-occupied this week that is why.  You think you don't worry about them anymore at that age but you do!

 Here is one of my favorite pictures of Ben and Uriah together.

I did get quite a bit of reading done this week!  I finished 3 books...okay, so one was really a children's book but I didn't know that until I received it in the mail.

This was my library book and I rate it about a 3 out of 5...those darn award winners!  This was a story about a family and it was well written and interesting if it had been true but it was a made up family and there was no plot or story line that I could see and the ending fell flat in my opinion.

This was a children's book and so young that I don't feel in a position to rate it although it reminded me of my summers with my Aunt and Uncle on the farm. 

 This was the best book of all and last night when I couldn't sleep, I stayed up until 1:00 a.m. and finished it! LOL!  I really enjoyed it and it is a great young adult book and the type of book I loved when I was young.  A book that inspires you to dream and work hard and be self-sufficient.  See, I still like those books!
  It is based on the author's childhood of he and his sister helping their parents run their apple orchard in New Mexico.  You also learn a lot about apple orchards and what it takes to care for one and there are diagrams too and some math.  I'm thinking my grandson Sam might enjoy this one as he is very detail oriented.  This was a pretty thick book though so it was adult size for sure.  I give it a 5!

 I am listening to another Agatha Christie mystery...Hercule Poirot in The Cretan Bull.  Very good!

 I'm reading this issue of Sift from King Arthur Flour but it is not the first issue evidently.  I'm thinking of getting my SIL a subscription for Christmas as this would be right up his alley and it truly is a beautiful magazine.  More great recipes too!

I'm still pouring over this beauty and it is really mostly recipes so far and lots of ingredients that we can't get down here. But it is definitely eye candy!

I went to the library today and took back my one book but found nothing inspiring or calling out to me and looked for several books but they didn't have them even when the online catalog said they did...oh well, Thrift Books here I come!  I do have some lined up though until my Thrift books arrive.............also I am still reading this book although it is slow....I can only digest so much de-cluttering at once.  I think I'm on Chapter 3.........

This is a book I found while digging through stuff 
de-cluttering...........I love a good memoir so I hope it is just that.

Then there's this one which is the only book by Nicolas Evans I haven't read.  I remember years ago being in Barnes & Noble and sighting The Horse Whisperer for the first time and I had to buy it right then and there!  It had just come out and I couldn't wait for the paperback.   It later became a film with Robert Redford.   I still have that hardcover book....I should re-read it and yes the book was better than the movie.....aren't they always?   There's always a lot of nature in his books and I love that.

Friday night at the movies with pizza didn't happen last Friday night.  There were phone calls and I had made Eggplant Parmesan to use up some eggplant and by the time I ate and hit the sack I didn't want to get involved with a movie so I watched a podcast and did some crocheting....I hadn't run out of yarn......... yet!  I am missing satellite a bit as I still enjoy football and I watched a "cartoon version" of the Bears game on NFL.com but when they lost after being ahead most of the game I was glad I wasn't paying $30 a month to watch them lose! LOL!  I'm trying to catch up with Bakery Bear podcasts and if you haven't watched them you really should.....they are such a cute couple and there is so much more than knitting.  They travel around England showing historical sights and where I am now was following the legend of Robin Hood and the movie sights where Kevin Costner was in England.  I have also been listening to another audio podcast; The Knitting Pipeline which is very informative and there are wonderful tips on techniques and patterns.  It's a great one!  That's about it for this week!  What are you reading, listening to and watching?
Happy Trails!