Friday 5+1 (5 Things I Love + 1 Thing I Don’t) – 2.7.20

Happy Friday everyone!  I hope you’ve had a great week and are ready to roll into the weekend.  I’ve been crazy busy already this year, and apologize for the radio silence.  The fact that the sun has come out maybe once over the past 10 days isn’t helping either.  Sunshine is good for the soul.  Since it’s been awhile since I’ve shared a 5+1 post, I’m ready to get to it.  This post contains some affiliate links.

Big Lies in a Small Town

I listened to 80+ books last year, and I’m hoping to top that this year.  I’m off to a roaring start at least, and finished a few over the past couple of weeks.  In looking back at some of the books I’ve read recently, Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain sticks out as one I would definitely recommend.  

I’ve been binge listening to her books lately, and I love that she’s such a versatile writer.  I’ll let the Amazon description give you a preview:

“North Carolina, 2018: Morgan Christopher’s life has been derailed. Taking the fall for a crime she did not commit, she finds herself serving a three-year stint in the North Carolina Women’s Correctional Center. Her dream of a career in art is put on hold – until a mysterious visitor makes her an offer that will see her released immediately. Her assignment: restore an old post office mural in a sleepy southern town. Morgan knows nothing about art restoration, but desperate to leave prison, she accepts. What she finds under the layers of grime is a painting that tells the story of madness, violence, and a conspiracy of small town secrets.

North Carolina, 1940: Anna Dale, an artist from New Jersey, wins a national contest to paint a mural for the post office in Edenton, North Carolina. Alone in the world and desperate for work, she accepts. But what she doesn’t expect is to find herself immersed in a town where prejudices run deep, where people are hiding secrets behind closed doors, and where the price of being different might just end in murder.

What happened to Anna Dale? Are the clues hidden in the decrepit mural? Can Morgan overcome her own demons to discover what exists beneath the layers of lies?”

This book is one that provides a great visual description of the story that is told, and I love that the loose ends are tied up beautifully.  I’m still a bit bummed that I finished it already!

Amazing Noise Cancelling Headphones

I recently went on my annual scrapbooking trip, which is always a lot of fun.  There were 11 of us this year, and sometimes it just gets loud and you want to turn off the noise and just concentrate.  Enter these Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones.  They are fantastic.  At one point, people were trying to get my attention – waving and yelling at me, and I flat out didn’t hear them.  You can adjust the noise cancelling level, but it’s nice to have that option.  The sound is phenomenal as well.  I’ve always been a Bose fan, and these live up to my expectations.

A Great Commentary on Midlife

I read this great blog post from Rambling Renovators about How to Deal with a Midlife Crisis, and thought it was beautifully written and so spot on as to what so many of us deal with in midlife.  I can certainly check off a few of the items that she talks about and think it’s a great read, even if you’re not quite as “middle aged” as I am. 😉

Nutribullet

I have to give a shout out to my Nutribullet.  I’ve had it for awhile now, but this little magical blender does not disappoint!  I have been using it a lot lately, making healthy smoothies (see midlife crisis article above), and my daughter has been making her own version of a frappe with it.  It packs a lot of power and is better than any blender that I’ve ever owned.  Although my friend got a Vitamix recently (but that’s a whole different animal).

Make Your 90’s Granite Disappear

If you don’t already follow Maria Killam, check her out now.  She is the Queen of all things related to paint colors, undertones and everything in between.  I loved her post on making your 90’s granite disappear.  I have some of this granite in my kitchen, and I’m not a fan.  But she shows you ways to work with what you have if you can’t change it (I’m working on that).  It’s a great read, with awesome photos of how to work with what you have.  Here’s a sneak peek of a great example…

My +1 for the week – 

I’ll just leave the +1 here for you as a picture.  I don’t think my husband ever learned how to properly open a box of crackers, a bag of chips, etc…  Maddening.  Am I alone?

Have a great weekend!

Jenny

 

10 Comments

  • Reply
    mysuburbansanctuary
    February 7, 2020 at 2:20 pm

    Ha! the last bit about the hubs and the cracker packages is in reverse here! My husband is driven to distraction by the way I open packages, he is very neat and precise, Me? um, not so much! 🙂 I’m a huge reader, I read two to three books a week on average. I’m not into listening yet, truth? I may never be. My favorite time is to become so immersed in a book that I don’t hear a thing, I do have music on, but don’t always hear it! I’ll need to pick up the mystery/suspense book; Big Lies and probably browse through the Mid Life, altho I passed mid life awhile ago. Enjoy your blog, I usually fins something that connects within me!

  • Reply
    calypsointhecountry
    February 7, 2020 at 3:35 pm

    Ha! That Triscuit box is something I’d see in my home! That book sounds great! I’m currently reading Where the Crawdads Sing. It has a ton of hype and great reviews but I haven’t fallen in love with it yet. I’m only a few chapters in so we’ll see! Enjoy your weekend!
    Shelley

    • Reply
      Jenny
      February 9, 2020 at 1:11 pm

      I’m kind of with you on Where the Crawdads Sing – I don’t think it lived up to all of the hype, personally.

  • Reply
    Suzi Thomason
    February 7, 2020 at 4:23 pm

    Hilarious Triscuit box opening fail !!! This is a common fail in my home also…along with putting it back in the pantry EMPTY !!!! My pantry often looks like a family of raccoons ripped through it. Argh!

    • Reply
      Jenny
      February 9, 2020 at 1:10 pm

      Oh my goodness YES!!! I can’t tell you how many times I pull something out of the pantry only to find the box/bag empty! Which is also the reason I don’t buy more of said item when I go to the grocery store – I didn’t realize we were out of it!!

  • Reply
    Debbie Bernard
    February 7, 2020 at 9:15 pm

    Shelly, I just finished where the Crawdads Sing. I thought it was awkward and novice throughout the read but I hung in there for the end since it was so well received. My take is that the storyline is two dimensional … and so is the heroine by circumstance. Subtle and simple yet complex…kind like life anywhere.

  • Reply
    Shelley
    February 8, 2020 at 4:30 pm

    My husband can’t match up four corners of a towel to save his life. That is my maddening peeve.

    • Reply
      Jenny
      February 9, 2020 at 1:09 pm

      That must be a man thing – same here Shelley.

  • Reply
    Linda N
    February 9, 2020 at 4:39 pm

    Here’s another great book. I love historical ficrion, this one is about the internment camps during WW two written from the point of a Japanese American family. It is so moving and beautifully written. It’s called Daughter of Moloka’i by Alan Brennert.

    • Reply
      Jenny
      February 9, 2020 at 8:13 pm

      Thanks Linda! I love historical fiction and seem to go in spurts with the types of books I read. I’ll add this to my list!

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