Mystery

  

I recently read two 19th Century mystery novels. They weren’t particularly good but it was okay for a quick read on the treadmill. However it got me thinking about my preferences in mysteries. I used to think that I like reading mysteries until I realized recently that I really dont’ like contemporary thrillers and mysteries very much at all. I hardly ever read those. I love reading mysteries that are set in a different time. I  divide my mystery preferences into two groups.

A. Vintage Mysteries- This is really categorized by Agatha Christie for me, I just don’t know other writers who were writing in that time period. I love the British setting and the dialogue and reading about little details like teashops, housemaids, getting news through the radio, butchers who deliver parcels. I have re read all her mysteries so often that I already know the killer and the plot but I love the old fashioned details. Whats great is A&E has made all the books into movies and some wonderful person has put up the Poirot series on YouTube. Now I’m hooked , it wonderful to see the cool 1940s fashions , cars, and other details. I guess thats why I like the young adult mysteries of Enid Blyton too, I might have outgrown the plots but I love the details and the language.

B. Historical Mysteries- These are written in contemporary times but the plot and the characters are set in the past. I have just recently started reading this genre and its not as good as Christie but they are still fun. I guess the problem is that in spite of the details the language seems very modern. But I did like the two recent ones I read because it did have little details about life in post civil war Boston. It has motivated me to learn more about the Gilded Age, so I suppose thats good.

Challenge- $100

Challenge:
Consider this and blog your answer:

If you found a $100 bill on the sidewalk, what would you do?
a/put it in my wallet, hello new shoes!
b/Pass it by, gross, germs!
c/Give the money to charity.
d/Add it to my savings.

Pick your answer and then blog/expand on your decision

I pick (e) use it to save for a honeymoon. J and I are considering our wedding in India and little travels there as our honeymoon. But it really will be a family affair with friends and family. So , lately we have been talking about taking a typical , tropical getaway for next summer and having that be our honeymoon. Although, I don’t know if I’d be able to hold on to the $100 for that long, I’d probably use it up for wedding expenses.

4th of July Layout

I did  fun silly layout for 4th of July. The whole purpose of the page was to use up these red , white and blue star shaped Brads I had bought for a $1.

Fireworks Make A 4th of July: Bazill card stock, Target Brads, Heidi Swapp Chipboard and patterned paper.

Drunken Citrus Salad

 

This sunday for the weekly sunday potluck I made Drunken Citrus Salad. It is the easiest, tastiest and prettiest salad ever.

Drunken Citrus Salad

1 cup manadarin oranges

1 cup navel oranges

1 cup red grapefruit

1 cup white grapefruit

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh, finely chopped mint

3 shots of good quality gin

Combine all the ingredients together and let sit for a while. Garnish with Mint leaves before serving.  You can also add sugar if you like your citrus sweet. I served it after 2 hours and it was good,but it was even better the next day.

Flowers

J and I had dumb fight last week b/c we have been so stressed about the wedding but he made up for it by buying me one of my favorite flowers Daisies. This is huge becasue J doesnt’ “believe in” flowers, he doesn’t understand why girls like them or why they are so expensive so it was a gesture that he did just for me and it was very sweet! I am a lucky girl to be marrying him.

Busy

Its been rather busy the last couple of days, both at home and work , therefore the lack of posts.  The biggest development I think is that I’m finally out of my wedding apathy funk. I’m a wedding planning machine these days- making calls,sending emails, looking at quotes, making decisions.

I had a phone meeting with my photographer last week about the wedding day and she brought up some issues that  I hadn’t considered

-Lighting

- Timeline for the day

-Getting ready.

Need to get these things figured out soon.

However, I did update the wedding website with our lodging info and a break down of activities. Have also started looking more closely at favor options. I am also getting excited about my wedding present from KD. We are going on a trip to Las Vegas just the two of us! I am soooo excited.

Challenge- Boredom

I guess July is anti boredom month, so in honor of that I am posting my answers to these questions from the challenge

1. Your entire family has gone away for the weekend. The house is all yours. What are the first three things you do?

Make a Snack, Paint Toenails, Read while they are drying

2. Your bankbook is looking healthy, you have a four-day weekend ahead. What sounds good?

Depends on how healthy! If its looking really good and its an ideal world, I’d want to take a quick trip abroad, maybe fly down to the Carribean. Only a little healthy then a road trip or a camping trip closeby. If leaving town is not an option then its going to be a weekend filled with food, hanging out , going to the movies etc.
3. What do you do while waiting in the doctors office?

Read old magazines that they have, read my own book, or catch up on phone calls
4. Would you rather spend an afternoon alone in a book store, a mall, napping in the hammock?

A combination of all three but but if I had to rank them, then bookstore first, hammock second , mall third
5. You have an unexpected 48 hour stay in the hospital. You’re coherent and not in pain. How do you spend the time? Reading? Channel Surfing? Laptop surfing? Calling your friends to come visit? Ringing for a nurse every five minutes? Sleeping?

Reading, Laptop Surfing and Channel surfing. Hospitals usually get good channels
6. You have a nine hour trans-continental flight. Get excited about finishing a hot novel? Watch the in-flight movies? Become best friends with the stranger seated next to you? Take three valium and sleep the time away?

Read the hot novels and watch all the inflight movies. I usually don’t like to talk to strangers on long flights. Also I don’t really sleep very well on planes.
7. You have a seven hour layover in Chicago O’Hare Airport. Do you wear down your cellphone battery calling friends? Read a book? People watch? Shop every store in the airport? Take a taxi and see the city?

Read and people watch.
8. What do you do when your bored stiff?

Play Scrabble w/ J , watch SVU, go on a walk, or scrapbook, and of course read
9. Work first, play later? OR Play while you can, the work will still be there when you get home?

A mix of both, but leaning more on the Play while you can when it comes to household chores, work first when I’m at my job.
10. List three times that you are easily bored.

Sunday afternoons, when i just feel antsy, The monday night of a 3 day weekend, At J’s science parties where I feel like I don’t know anyone and I don’t care enough to get to know the people.
 

Good Deal

One more thing can be crossed off the to-do list of wedding planning. KD’s husband has kindly offered to be our videographer. This saves me a huge hassle because a) it will be free and b) it will also help T to expand his portfolio. Also , I don’t have to worry about coordinating with and interviewing a complete stranger in this busy time. Also T know both J and me very well and I’m sure he will capture the essence of our wedding very well. Thanks T !

Lucky Find

When I was a little girl one of my favorite authors was Enid Blyton. Blyton was a children’s book writer and she wrote wonderful stories that filled me with a longing of adventure, fantasy, whimsy and just plain fun. She wrote several series books and also some individual ones. When I moved to the U.S I was sad to see that her books weren’t available here at all. I guess she had never made the transatlantic journey and most American kids , unlike European and Asian kids , have no idea who she is.  Therefore I could never buy her books on Amazon or Barnes and Noble, but today I found a small web retailer that sells most of her books. I have a few of her books from childhood that I brought with me to the U.S but I am now excited to add more.

Blyton wrote for different genres, for the older kids there are her mystery books which have different groups of friends investigating mysteries. Since she wrote in the 1920s and 30s and 40s her books have old fashioned and vintage details. My favorites are the following series:

   

 Famous Five: This is a series of 4 cousins and one of their dog who solve a variety of exciting childhood mysteries, like finding lost treasure and stopping crimminals. The also have internal squabbles because they often don’t get along. This is one of her most popular series and there was a T.V show on this as well.

  

Secret Seven: This is a series that has seven neighborhood kids who have a club house which meets every week. Other than solving neighborhood mysteries they have secret codes for the club house and bullies and pesky younger siblings who want to join. These mysteries were less complicated but I loved reading about their private clubhouse and how they would have secret meetings with yummy food and play pranks on each other.

 

The Five Find Outters: This series is about 2 pairs of siblings and their friend who solve mysteries in the countryside. They also have a local constable who is goofball hates the findoutters  for solving crimes before him. These have a more comic tone than the other two.

The Barney Mysteries: These were usually more adventurous and the kids were older(teens) and they would go on vacation and find mysteries to solve.

 

Mallory Towers: These follow the story of Darrell and Sally and their years in boarding school, from first form till they graduate. The stories are about friendships, adventures, playing pranks on teachers etc. These girls are fun and spunky and intelligent and the heroines aren’t typical girly girls but they all have lessons to learn.I actually own the set.  I love this series and the St. Clair series even more now after having experienced boarding school.

 

St. Claires: This series is similar to Mallory towers and follows two twins and their years at boarding school. The twins and some these characters are more naughty and this is a more fun series. In these, they often plan elaborate midnight feasts which are against the rules and worry about swimming and tennis competitions.

 

The Faraway Tree: This is Blytons series that are more fanciful and magical. This is one of my favorite books from my childhood. It is the story of 3 poor(ish) kids who move to a cottage by the edge of a forest and find out it is a magical forest with a magic tree in the middle. They have all sorts of adventures with the magic folk like pixies and brownies and goblins when they climb to the top of the tree and find that there is a different magical world, like the land of giants, or the land of upside down and it changes every week.

She also wrote a lot of books in the same vein as the Faraway tree with magical creatures and friendly toys like her O’Clock Series, Family Series, Mr. Twiddle, Mr. Meddle, The Naughtiest Girl, Circus Stories, Noddy and many more.

Good Books

Lately, when it is slow at work, instead of focussing on wedding stuff, I’ve been addicted to GoodReads. Good Reads is an online community like Flickr for people to share what they are reading with their friends. On the site you can keep track of what you are reading, when you finished it and how you would rate/review the book. Its addictive, and I love having a chance to go back and think about my favorite books and why I love them.  Feel free to check it out and add me as a friend!