Wee Interim Post

Prepping something longer with all kinds of loveliness and Deep Thoughts, but as tidbits have been flowing over, here's a quick drop-in to sustain us. Book news, recipes, fave new show, and more!

Just a few sweet random library pics today.

I so remember the days of letting my children eagerly, stubbornly, check out their own books on the self-check machine. Now I just watch, wistfully, nostalgically, with not a little envy.

And on a different note, this ginormous cuddle bunny visited the branch where I was working recently. He stayed for several hours (lying on the floor and blocking an entire corridor) while his person used a computer, and agreed to pose for me right before they left. What a good boy!

Outside the library, here’s what’s going on:

Bulletin Board - Industry news
Here’s a hodge-podge of book stuff for you to read with deep interest (hopefully) or skim right over (more likely and totally fine!).

Thanks to Deborah Kalb, author of Off to Join the Circus, for featuring me on her book blog! (Deborah has interviewed Jenny Colgan TWICE, and that makes her incredibly cool to me!)

I also thought I’d share an audio (and video) interview I did with Mel Rosenberg two years ago. I have not listened to it/watched most it myself because EEK, CRINGE but I did enjoy the process. Mel is basically an entertainer, and has a knack for making you feel comfortable and drawing out interesting info! It was sort of like talking to a good therapist. :) (Also, his adorable picture book is coming out soon!)

Both Mel and Deborah have interviewed loads of other people (including my critique partners Katey Howes and Ariel Bernstein!), so search their archives for your favorite authors. Book bloggers work hard and do so much to promote other authors, and I’m grateful to them for that!

A coastal park in Port Hardy, Vancouver Island created a storywalk of To Live on an Island. This makes my heart sing!

(A storywalk is when pages from a picture book are set up in a natural setting, and people are encouraged to read them as they walk. Claude and Alcatraz have also been turned into storywalks, to my delight!)

And lastly, here’s a brief feature in the Santa Barbara Independent. As you may recall, I lived in Santa Barbara from 1996-1998 and still feel a little connection to it for that reason! (Here’s the amazing house I lived in, on a re-visit in 2022.

Audio-Visual - What we’re watching
Dept. Q. Yet another police procedural we finished this morning (did I ever mention that we watch TV in the mornings? If we try to watch at night, one of us falls asleep. Instead, we get up at 5 am and watch 30 minutes every morning. Try it!). It was excellent and I cried at the end. (Oh, according to this ad it’s from the maker of The Queen’s Gambit, which I did not watch because those 1960s aesthetics are just not a draw for me, but I should probably get over myself because I know everyone loved it.)

From the 641s - Food & Cooking
Last night’s dinner (recipes linked): Local halibut with a browned butter-lemon sauce, salad with tahini-caesar dressing, grilled chili-lime corn. This is the sort of dinner that makes me hum with happiness as I bop around the kitchen pulling it together. It feels so rustic, yet also sophisticated, like I’m feeding my family in the most wholesome, sustainable, homey way, with fresh, local ingredients and an emphasis on beauty and presentation, but no pretension. (Halibut is in season here, but you should use whatever’s local to you!)

From the 910s - Travel
Everett flew off to Edinburgh yesterday, for a month. He’ll be studying history and culture. I don’t know how to feel about it yet. So far it’s mostly sick with nervousness. This is the only photo we’ve gotten from him as of yet.

Also, isn’t it wild how we can track people now and stay in constant touch (evidence below)?

Seasonal display
The cherry tree right right behind our Little Free Library has a nice smattering of gleaming ruby gems ready for picking. It always happens so fast. One day they’re tiny green things and I despair of their ever ripening. The next day we’re popping them in our mouths as we go down the front stairs. If you happen to walk past, please help yourself!

That’s it for now! Hope you’re all having a good week!