Tuesday, November 15, 2016

What I Read November


I read Lab Girl by Hope Jahern

I believe this was recommended by someone on Modern Mrs Darcy's Quick Lit Link Up. I found this a fascinating read. I don't know any female scientists nor have I ever think of the challenges that gender might cause in he scientific exploration. I loved how frank Hope was about her challenges both professional and personal.

An illuminating debut memoir of a woman in science; a moving portrait of a longtime friendship; and a stunningly fresh look at plants that will forever change how you see the natural world

Lab Girl is a book about work, love, and the mountains that can be moved when those two things come together. It is told through Jahren’s remarkable stories: about her childhood in rural Minnesota with an uncompromising mother and a father who encouraged hours of play in his classroom’s labs; about how she found a sanctuary in science, and learned to perform lab work done “with both the heart and the hands”; and about the inevitable disappointments, but also the triumphs and exhilarating discoveries, of scientific work.

Yet at the core of this book is the story of a relationship Jahren forged with a brilliant, wounded man named Bill, who becomes her lab partner and best friend. Their sometimes rogue adventures in science take them from the Midwest across the United States and back again, over the Atlantic to the ever-light skies of the North Pole and to tropical Hawaii, where she and her lab currently make their home.  (AMAZON)


WHAT IS UP WITH AUTOBIOGRAPHIES WRITTEN LATELY?  Tell me my YOUR story.  I don't want to be educated about the tools you used if it doesn't enhance the story.  I don't want to be educated about plants unless it increases my understanding of YOUR story.   I will say as it was used in Lab Girl it wasn't quite as clunky as it was used in Dirt Work and  Hammer Head. I do not like this used as a literary device.  I found myself wanting to skip those chapters and get back to the real story.  I want to tell editors that I picked this book BECAUSE I was interested in the author's personal story.

7 by Jen Hatmaker

Our bible study finally finished this. Jen Hatmaker has a lot of controversy.  Some of her personal views were a bit much for a number of our members of her bible study. Jen Hatmaker has been dropped from the Lifeway brand due to her views. We lengthen this study by doing the study homework together during our meetings.  I thought it was an interesting thoughtful study about excess in our lives and how to manage things that might become idols to us - social media etc.. We as a group thought her last two lessons were perhaps the strongest in the whole study.


Anyone else watching The Crown on Netflix.  Prince Philip - The Turbulent Early Life of the Man Who Married Queen Elizabeth II would be a good companion read to The Crown.I had previously done on a post on books and movies that I felt complimented The Crown.  I admit I didn't know anything about Prince Philip.  What an interesting life he had before marrying Queen Elizabeth or Princess Elizabeth at the time.

I am linking up with Modern Mrs Darcy's Quick Lit

Saturday, November 12, 2016

BIG SHOT COFFEE SIGN

My husband makes these wonderful shot up picture frames from gun range target frames.  I convinced him to make this chalk board sign to hang above my kitchen sink.  My kitchen has a lot of coffee decor.  Hey, I lived in the Pacific Northwest where you can't throw a rock without hitting a coffee stand.  I spent a lot of time trying to come up with a catchy saying . I finally settled on "Home of Big Shot Coffee".

I traced the letters onto chalkboard. I used the technique found at Jenna Sue Design Co.  I used regular chalk on all the letters except the "O". It was a whole lot of chalk dust. I borrowed my son's pencil sharpener to sharpen the chalk to a point.  On the "O" I used a cooper chalk pen. After sitting with it for a bit we decided it wasn't popping enough and colored the "O" in with a cooper and gold chalk pen. We wanted the "O" to look like the end of a bullet casing. I have another post on Chalk Lettering for those of you who want to learn how to hand letter.


My husband also made me a really cool sunburst/half sun with roached target frames too.

Friday, November 11, 2016

Happy Veteran's Day

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!





I feel so proud to have so many veteran's in my immediate family - My Dad, My Husband, Pappy, and Myself.  Thank You!

Sunday, November 6, 2016

November Linky Love



Stop Doing These 8 Things for Your Teen This School Year - Note to Self I need to be meaner. I do make my kids make their own lunch.

10 Reasons A Hot Mess Mom is the Best Friend Everyone Needs

Rudeness Makes You Dumber - this is really interesting and lends credence to the fact also to the fact I tell my kids when your upset your brain shuts down.

Saturday, November 5, 2016

Washington State Park GeoTour End


More than 10,000 people participated in the WA State Parks GeoTour over its three-year run - wow! (And that's conservative, based on account logs, not actual bodies.) The State Parks counts it as a huge success and has cemented geocaching as a positive recreational activity in the parks. (We've come a long way, baby, from 2002 when they wanted to ban caching!) - GeoTour Manager

Most Found:
    2551: Iron Horse - Hyak
    1024: Peace Arch
    992: Fort Casey
    766: Saltwater
    743: Saint Edward

Least Found:

    133: Fields Spring
    159: Mount Pilchuck
    163: Crawford
    167: Camp Wooten
    168: Steamboat Rock

Most Favorite Points:

    174: Fort Worden
    136: Potholes
    125: Rosario Beach - Deception Pass
    107: Peace Arch
    97: Wenatchee Confluence
We were so excited as a family to participate in this geotour. It was great having our own cache at Peach Arch and we also found as a family 50 of the state park caches.




Friday, November 4, 2016

Getting Your Royal ON!

Me getting my Royal on for Halloween
I don't know about you but as an American the British Royals are interesting to me. With the release of the new netflix series The Crown, I thought I would do a little round up on Britsh Royals.  So Get your Royal ON!

I read The Royal We  back in 2015 but I didn't blog about it.

American Bex Porter was never one for fairy tales. Her twin sister Lacey was always the romantic, the one who daydreamed of being a princess, but it's adventure-seeking Bex who goes to Oxford and meets dreamy Nick across the hall-and Bex who finds herself accidentally in love with the heir to the British throne.  (AMAZON)

I really liked it but I just think that SO MANY people reviewed it that I didn't have anything to ADD.

Love the Lively Show Podcast that interviewed the authors of  The Royal We.


The Royal Night Out as well.  The true story behind The Royal Night Our.


T

The Crown premeires on Netflix Nov 4 - TODAY - Yeah. More details from the DailyBeast