The usual April chaos- but what a fun ride!
It's been a busy couple weeks! I've been working on stories for two magazines, and it's the usual busy season for entertainment-related things. But it's been a lot of fun! I'm doing stories on restaurants in one area, and doing a story on another community's K-9. Those assignments kept me on the road a good deal, which I love. Also indulged in two Painting With a Twist evenings. One was my birthday gift to me. But I forgot my water bottle and when I went to retrieve it on the following Monday. It was pouring down rain so long story short, they had a small class (four other people) so I stayed out of the inclimate weather and had another fun night. And I have two more paintings :) Yes, I am addicted, although I better take a break for a bit on those.
Spent a great afternoon today with a good friend and my lil sis. We caught a movie and my friend and I had lunch afterwards. New movie, new restaurant... more below.
Weather has been gorgeous this weekend, after a (hopefully) last wintery blast. I actually had a couple of inches of wet snow fall on my birthday. Wheeeeee. It melted away before the end of the day, but then we got more Saturday night into Sunday afternoon. We've had worse, and it looks like the spring flowers have tenaciously hung on. Yesterday was close to 80, today did get above 80, and both days lots and lots of sun and blue skies. Bliss! It's supposed to stay nice, too, 60s and 70s for the foreseeable future. Woohoo!
My lil sis and some of her friends (and mine, too) got to see the musical Hamilton ... was it three weeks ago now? Wow, I haven't heard this much buzz over a Broadway musical since Wicked! Really want to see this... I've seen snippets on YouTube, plus have heard the music through the sidetrack. Wow, the music is addictive! I've listened to it three, maybe four times already.
Also off to a good start to me new experiences goals- now 42.
1. On my birthday day last Friday, I tried falafel. It was...OK.
2. Now this was fun- I'm going to be doing a story on a handbell choir. I went to cover the rehearsal for one of the choirs. Afterwards, two of the members stayed behind and showed me the different bell ringing techniques (and wow are there a LOT of different techniques!) This was eye-opening! I never thought handbells were easy, always realized a lot of cooperation and coordination would be involved. But I never realized just how complex and how versatile handbells were!
3. Saw The Jungle Book. Disney came out with a live action Jungle Book. I wasn't sure what to expect but found myself enjoying it overall! The CGI is amazing! The young man playing Mowgli was very good. Warning to parents- stick to the original animated version for smaller fry- this take on the story is a lot darker and may be too intense for younger ones.
4. Tried a new restaurant- Burger Fi. It was good. The hamburgers were delicious, and I tried a red velvet milkshake. Yum! Now I am stuffed to the gills, even two hours later.
So that's four so far. Not too bad, with only a bit more than a week in!
And yes, this time I have books to report on. Only one is for the challenge this time.
The Book Mouse's Book Report:
10. Grounding the Cloud, by Todd Lyle. This is a short, easy to follow book aimed at businesses eyeing going into the technology cloud. I also heard Lyle's talk at the Hudson Library, and he covered verbally large parts of the book, so this book reinforced his talk. It's a short, quick read but covers the important information in a way a non-IT person can grasp.Each short chapter is followed by a bulleted synopsis of the high points. I recommend it for those wanting a read on the basics of cloud technology.
11. The Little World of Liz Climo, by Liz Climo. My lil sis gave me this charming book for my birthday. A lovely and different gift! Climo fills a book with amusing cartoons. The cartoons range from cute to light comedy to just a bit twisted. There is some mild language in a handful of the comics, but the main reason I consider this more geared to adults is that I don't think younger children would get half of the jokes or references. Overall, this collection made me smile.
12. Ukrainian Folk Tales, by Irina Zheleznova. This is a lovely collection of short folk tales, many with beautiful illustrations. This was a book sent to me by a dear friend who lives in Ukraine. I was struck how many tales had parallels with stories that I grew up with. The Little Round Bun, for example, is similar to The Gingerbread Man. Another story (don't recall which one) had elements of Snow White. What was fascinating was the staple characters and scenarios. The stories are filled with devils, witches (including Baba Yaga), Sister Fox, wily wolves, and dangerous dragons. A couple I've heard before in different formats- the flying ship and the one with the glove. All in all, an enjoyable collection of stories. They are well-translated; there were only a few places where the translatons and ion felt a bit off, and nothing major. Also loved the illustrations within. I found it curious that the dragons and snakes were often depicted as green-skinned people.
13. Hedy's Folly, by Richard Rhodes. This one fulfills the Reading Riot challenge for a biography. Hedy Lamarr was well-known as a famous Hollywood actress and, for her time, regarded as the most beautiful woman. What is not as well known is that in her free time, she loved to invent. One of her inventions, which she worked with composer George Antheil, has impact even today: spread-spectrum radio. The technology was initially created for the World War II Allies' torpedoes. With the technology, torpedoes would not only be controlled by radio communication but the signal that controlled them would hop randomly from frequency to frequency - making the torpedoes' radio signal virtually impossible to jam. Lamarr used her knowledge of weaponry from her ex-husband and his contacts, and Antheil used his technical know-how from working with recording and with player pianos (I know that last one may sound odd; it just proves how the strangest knowledge can come in handy in the most unforeseeable ways). They were spurred into action after the torpedoing of two boats filled with children being spirited away from their war-torn countries. The book refers to Hedy but it's almost a split biography, with roughly equal pages dedicated to the movie start and Antheil. This is a quick read, and easy to follow. There's a good balance between setting the scene and time period and keeping the story moving.
Currently reading: Big Girls Do Cry, by April Kirkwood.
Spent a great afternoon today with a good friend and my lil sis. We caught a movie and my friend and I had lunch afterwards. New movie, new restaurant... more below.
Weather has been gorgeous this weekend, after a (hopefully) last wintery blast. I actually had a couple of inches of wet snow fall on my birthday. Wheeeeee. It melted away before the end of the day, but then we got more Saturday night into Sunday afternoon. We've had worse, and it looks like the spring flowers have tenaciously hung on. Yesterday was close to 80, today did get above 80, and both days lots and lots of sun and blue skies. Bliss! It's supposed to stay nice, too, 60s and 70s for the foreseeable future. Woohoo!
My lil sis and some of her friends (and mine, too) got to see the musical Hamilton ... was it three weeks ago now? Wow, I haven't heard this much buzz over a Broadway musical since Wicked! Really want to see this... I've seen snippets on YouTube, plus have heard the music through the sidetrack. Wow, the music is addictive! I've listened to it three, maybe four times already.
Also off to a good start to me new experiences goals- now 42.
1. On my birthday day last Friday, I tried falafel. It was...OK.
2. Now this was fun- I'm going to be doing a story on a handbell choir. I went to cover the rehearsal for one of the choirs. Afterwards, two of the members stayed behind and showed me the different bell ringing techniques (and wow are there a LOT of different techniques!) This was eye-opening! I never thought handbells were easy, always realized a lot of cooperation and coordination would be involved. But I never realized just how complex and how versatile handbells were!
3. Saw The Jungle Book. Disney came out with a live action Jungle Book. I wasn't sure what to expect but found myself enjoying it overall! The CGI is amazing! The young man playing Mowgli was very good. Warning to parents- stick to the original animated version for smaller fry- this take on the story is a lot darker and may be too intense for younger ones.
4. Tried a new restaurant- Burger Fi. It was good. The hamburgers were delicious, and I tried a red velvet milkshake. Yum! Now I am stuffed to the gills, even two hours later.
So that's four so far. Not too bad, with only a bit more than a week in!
And yes, this time I have books to report on. Only one is for the challenge this time.
The Book Mouse's Book Report:
10. Grounding the Cloud, by Todd Lyle. This is a short, easy to follow book aimed at businesses eyeing going into the technology cloud. I also heard Lyle's talk at the Hudson Library, and he covered verbally large parts of the book, so this book reinforced his talk. It's a short, quick read but covers the important information in a way a non-IT person can grasp.Each short chapter is followed by a bulleted synopsis of the high points. I recommend it for those wanting a read on the basics of cloud technology.
11. The Little World of Liz Climo, by Liz Climo. My lil sis gave me this charming book for my birthday. A lovely and different gift! Climo fills a book with amusing cartoons. The cartoons range from cute to light comedy to just a bit twisted. There is some mild language in a handful of the comics, but the main reason I consider this more geared to adults is that I don't think younger children would get half of the jokes or references. Overall, this collection made me smile.
12. Ukrainian Folk Tales, by Irina Zheleznova. This is a lovely collection of short folk tales, many with beautiful illustrations. This was a book sent to me by a dear friend who lives in Ukraine. I was struck how many tales had parallels with stories that I grew up with. The Little Round Bun, for example, is similar to The Gingerbread Man. Another story (don't recall which one) had elements of Snow White. What was fascinating was the staple characters and scenarios. The stories are filled with devils, witches (including Baba Yaga), Sister Fox, wily wolves, and dangerous dragons. A couple I've heard before in different formats- the flying ship and the one with the glove. All in all, an enjoyable collection of stories. They are well-translated; there were only a few places where the translatons and ion felt a bit off, and nothing major. Also loved the illustrations within. I found it curious that the dragons and snakes were often depicted as green-skinned people.
13. Hedy's Folly, by Richard Rhodes. This one fulfills the Reading Riot challenge for a biography. Hedy Lamarr was well-known as a famous Hollywood actress and, for her time, regarded as the most beautiful woman. What is not as well known is that in her free time, she loved to invent. One of her inventions, which she worked with composer George Antheil, has impact even today: spread-spectrum radio. The technology was initially created for the World War II Allies' torpedoes. With the technology, torpedoes would not only be controlled by radio communication but the signal that controlled them would hop randomly from frequency to frequency - making the torpedoes' radio signal virtually impossible to jam. Lamarr used her knowledge of weaponry from her ex-husband and his contacts, and Antheil used his technical know-how from working with recording and with player pianos (I know that last one may sound odd; it just proves how the strangest knowledge can come in handy in the most unforeseeable ways). They were spurred into action after the torpedoing of two boats filled with children being spirited away from their war-torn countries. The book refers to Hedy but it's almost a split biography, with roughly equal pages dedicated to the movie start and Antheil. This is a quick read, and easy to follow. There's a good balance between setting the scene and time period and keeping the story moving.
Currently reading: Big Girls Do Cry, by April Kirkwood.