Book Reviews: What are you reading?

It's fun. A lot of bloggers are reading, especially here in the dead of winter. We've lots of snow, and we are -14 C. this morning. The weekend is going to be -22 C. I bet get the last of my shovelling done! Hopefully we will have sunshine today.

📚BOOK REVIEWS

I am so sad. Our virtual book club is no longer going to be hosted by Barrie Summy. Being socially anxious, my friends are all online these days. This was a nice way to do a book club for me. It used to be the first Wednesday of the month, but people get busy, as they tend to do. 

📚 I just finished The IT Girl. I had trouble with it at first, but settled in to it. It is so far removed from my university experience. It was tough actually liking the victim, and feeling an attachment to the characters. I waited something like 6 months for it to be available from the library. I'd about given up, but I ended up getting involved in the plot and characters. [READ THE FIRST CHAPTER HERE.]

🎁I have read A World of Curiosities. You'll have to understand how we work out Christmas pressies. I order what I want, JB orders books he wants. Some packages stay in the Amazon cardboard, but most of them we wrapped for one another. This happens over a few weeks and by the time Christmas rolls around, we forget what is in the packages! Ain't old age grand?!

📚 Louise Penny is a famous Canadian writer, and I read 99 pages the first night. I had to put the book down, as I wanted to savour it. It's like communing with an old friend at bedtime, the setting, and the characters appeal to me. I have read the entire series and I quite like the mythical Three Pines. In the meantime, we were watching Three Pines on Amazon Prime video.  It is so non-Hollywood that it truly appeals to me.

For Alfred Molina, playing Armand Gamache in ‘Three Pines’ is a privilege TorStar – Nov 28, 2022

“He's not your run of the mill male detective that we've gotten so used to: the haunted and tortured man who drinks too much, and has a terrible relationship with his wife or is divorced. There's none of that. Playing a character like Gamache is a privilege.”  

Another busy weekend!

It is so nice to see the sunshine, Jan. 28, Saturday morning! It wasn't to last, though. These are photos with my videocamera.

I found an old photo from 2010. It shows this wee tree!

It sure has grown. It's a great barrier, protection from the noise of the highway. I've had to trim the lower branches in order to go around with the lawn tractor.

By the time I was done, so was the sun.

Happily, the sun comes and goes. Jan. 28/23

windy day from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

It's difficult walking! Here is coyote in the storm.

 

forest coyote from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

It was a bit of a storm.

 This weekend was the one-year anniversary of the so-called Truck Convoy. Protesters are now being called Convites, since most weren't truckers. The Court Cat (@ResistanceCats) covers their trials and bail hearings. The Cookie Lady (@MeTheCookieLady) has been watching them plan this past weekend. 

This time the police were prepared, anticipating 600 or so. They were took action. I was really impressed with the OPS liaison team. They talked some of the whackos down. 

This dude live streamed it on YouTube. 

Ottawa Police said Sunday morning that OPS and Ottawa Bylaw officers had issued 200 parking tickets and 47 Provincial Offences Notices, while 19 vehicles had been towed from the downtown area. – CTV

Not much of a crowd, happily,
as you can see from the Parliament Hill webcam.

Then there was Alberta.

There was a storm Sunday, things started off slowly! 

Jan. 29, 11:26

Sunday...

Book Review: Satan Takes Over

I reviewed another Jass Richards book, Turblojetslams. It was a hilarious take on modern cottage life. We cottaged from 1960 until 2010. Things were so different in the 60's. Not for the better. 

This book takes modern times, with renters who fire off fireworks every night for two weeks, jetskis doing figure 8's, bonfires day and night, and manages to solve the problem. It is a hilarious take, based in reality. You know Jass has lived this life. It is way too familiar. 

I love the creativity with which she writes. I just laugh at her take on modern cottage life, as much as I cry over the inhumanity towards one another. The noise that blocks out the sounds of the critters, what with technology and lake toys. The sights and smell of smoke wafting across the lake, bonfires on hot summer days. The notion that landowners are kings of their own castles drove us away from lakeside life.

It was a timely read for us, as we work on preventing a gun range nearby. Jass is a kindred spirit, a clever writer, and a person with a seriously wonderful sense of humour. Some days you just have to laugh. If you need a laugh, you can find her publications here, I've downloaded several on my iBook. It makes for great reading. You'll shake your head as you recognize characters, as much as you want to whack them upside the head! 

🛥  🧨  🔥  🛥   🧨  🔥 🛥  🧨  🔥 🛥  🧨  🔥

Cottage life used to be simpler. We hand pumped water up from the lake. There was a two-seater outhouse. Eventually, we got in Hydro, and were connected to Bala's town water and the sewer system.

We were given an old wooden boat by friends who built seafleas. I loved that old boat. I'd crank up the 60 HP outboard, and toodle up the lake to visit my friend. Wooden, and a heavy boat, it eventually rotted. Here is my dad being given the boat by Bob Scythes.

My uncle had a sailboat, and dad bought it from Uncle Fred when he upgraded to a bigger, better boat. Dad would roar up and down the lake.

Mom and dad bought me a used canoe from a kids' camp. I loved that canoe!

Bonfires abound:

 

Renters partying, yelling and screaming on the lake at 2 a.m.. Setting off fireworks in the dark. I called the OPP. They were quiet, then ramped it all up, again.

Then there were the people ice fishing. They built a fire on the ice. In the meanwhile, the truck roared up and down the lake. You could both hear and feel the waves under the ice sloshing back and forth towards our shore.

Citiots peeing in the lake. This makes me laugh as much as it creeps me out. We were sitting here, quietly watching the wildlife, on our lakeside bench, just like our kids. I had my smaller zoom lens on. 

Saturday Critters on snowy Crumbly Acres

We were hit by big storms. For the most part they stay deep in the forest.

The critters have not been too busy, but the odd time...

fisher from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I snapped it on the other camera, too. It is quick. Wait for it, it'll come back! Jan. 24

fisher from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

The coyotes like to run by the camera.

coyote 1 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

They are beautiful animals, even in black and white, in the dark!

coyote 2 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

OK, one more. When spring and summer comes, wee don't see them too much! This pair seems to be frequent flyers! Can you see their eyes in the dark! Very cool.

coyotes in the dark from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

The snow really slows the critters down.

doe from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Crumbly Acres captured the poor deer in the snow!

deer feeder from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

deer in yard from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

deer yard from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Visit Eileen's: Saturday's Critters # 476. Our faithful host.

❆ More snow!

It was a tricky jab, as always. Poor JB and his quarterly PSA tests. All went well, and the test was good, same as last thing. He took in two hand warmers, and they seemed to help. I'm glad he had the test Wednesday, since we had a major snow storm. 🌨  The results came in online, and all is good. 

My job is clear. Clearing up! The question, as always, is when to start. I try aim for near the end of the storm! 

The snow ploughs were out in southern Ontario. Our main highways are always pretty good, once they get going.

There was a bit of shovelling to do. The bird feeders are quite snow covered.

The last storm vs. this storm. 

I eased myself into the day. It was going to be a big job. Cinnamon, however, was full of beans. A bird or squirrel came by him as he sat in the window, and he broke off my massive orchid stem. He didn't mean to. Fight or flight, and fight won. There is another bud stem coming along. Thankfully.

He was still up to having some fun. They like the catapillar. Cinnamon and Nutmeg. 

cat play from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Shovelling out, first job: the sidewalk. There was 26 cm, some of it windblown.

Nice, crisp edges! Average depth =  22.86 cm.

The plows go by and leave a bit of snow! I got it, though.

Ta da! A shower was called for. 

I looked like this, again! The wind was wicked.

Today, I plan on doing the back deck! I meant to get the snow off the water fountain, but I was too tired!