Friday's Fave Five, 9/29/17

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I guess it is Friday, isn't it?  I have been holed up since Monday, and at home in my recliner since Tuesday, following major abdominal surgery Monday afternoon.  Still a little fuzzy in thinking, but there are good things to come even out of a week like this one.

1. Pain medicine. Yes. No more to say than that.
2. Everything went well - no unforeseen complications.
3. Wonderful care by family, neighbors, and friends.  I've got so many people looking out for me that I have to turn off the phone to take a nap.  That's a good thing.
4. Nice food and flowers.
5. Grace from God to come through this OK.

Here's to next week.

Friday's Fave Five, 9/8/17

 Link to Friday's Fave Five host blog

1. Mike is making progress with his shoulder therapy.  He got thumbs-up from the physical therapist this week.  AND - he can now do his exercises on his own.  I've had to help him with a couple of the exercises, which has not been good for marital harmony.  :-)

2. Beta Club induction ceremony today at school.  I'm the sponsor, so of course it falls in my lap.  The officers this year are very detail oriented, so that helps tremendously.  And it all went over well.

3. Finished a blanket this week and got it mailed off to the recipient, who should have it now.  I've discovered that a larger crochet hook makes progress go so much faster.

4. For the past two weeks, I've gotten beautiful tomatoes at the farmers' market, and we have enjoyed great BLTs, and ham and tomato sandwiches.  I've also enjoyed more tomatoes and cantaloupe, which most people think is weird, but it's great.

5. Finally - it looks like we will get more rain than wind from the hurricane system.  We have the possibility of being off of school Monday.  Daughter who lives near the coast may not have to evacuate either.  She sent me this picture today.  I didn't get it at first, but it is funny once I did get it.  Blessings and safety to all in the path.

Lark Rise to Candleford

 Lark Rise to Candleford is not a typical style of reading in our fast-paced age.  It was on a list of the most famous books of each year, one of many that pops up on the internet.  It sounded interesting, especially after one review stated that its style was similar to the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Apparently I bought an abridged version, but a note in the book made it clear that most of the book was intact. The book is pictured here with the title page because the outside is a quilted cover; the title is embossed into it but is not visible in a photo.

The story is semi-autobiographical of the author, Flora Thompson.  It was earlier written as two books that were combined into one, and published as a single volume in 1945.  The quiet story of a small English town in the 1880s is told in this book, through the seasons; and the book caught on because it told so well the stories of this agricultural people in a time of great social and economic change.  Laura Timmins is the main character of the book; however, the book is not really about her.  It's about the town, and the ways of the townspeople in every area of their lives.  Their lives were hard.  Homes were small and rude, and both men and women had their own forms of backbreaking work that kept them busy and without much time for personal pleasure.  But the story is not depressing - it is a realistic account of the good times and the bad ones for these people.

This book is recommended to anyone who likes slower paced reading that is more character- than plot-driven, and to anyone who enjoys glimpses of other historical time periods and other cultures.