Book 16: Katherine of Aragon The True Queen by Alison Weir

I've read seven (I think) histories by Alison Weir. This book is my second novel by her (the first was Innocent Traitor about Lady Jane Grey.) Katherine of Aragon is the first novel in the series, Six Tutor Queens. 

Katherine's betrothal to Arthur Prince of Wales was a huge boost to the dynastic hopes of the first Tudor king Henry VII. After Arthur's untimely death, Catherine's future was uncertain: she was a pawn in the ongoing negotiations between King Henry and her father Ferdinand of Aragon. She suffered deprivations and embarrassment of being unable to afford new clothing nor pay her servants. 

Her marriage to the new king Henry VIII must have seemed a godsend to her and the fulfillment of her destiny to become Queen of England. In fact, Weir describes an idyllic, fairy tale marriage in the early years. 

Miscarriages, stillbirths, and the death of an infant prince brought an end to that. 

Despite Henry's abandonment of her and the "dissolution" of their marriage, Katherine remained strong and principled. She never waivered in her belief that she was the true Queen and her daughter Mary was the true heir. She was a remarkable woman. 

Summer is Here

Today is the first day of summer and the lightest day of the year (as opposed to the longest day of the year--it's still the same 24 hour day.)

Newscasters seem dismayed that it's a cool day--about 10 degrees cooler than normal. I welcome the cool day--there will be plenty of hot days going forward. 

It's been a busy few weeks, and I'm tired. I could use some lazy, hazy (but maybe not crazy) days of summer.

Clothes Shopping and a Wardrobe Update

I can't pinpoint when shopping stopped being a fun activity and became a frustrating chore. It had something to do with me gaining weight and the inconsistency in women's clothes sizing. 

A few months ago, I realized I needed new clothes. I lost about 15 pounds over the past year. It beats having to buy new clothes because I gained 15 pounds. 

First I tried on all my jeans, shorts, and blouses and packed up the clothes that no longer fit for Goodwill. I bought two new pairs of jeans back in February. I picked up my shopping pace in the last month or so. I got another pair of jeans, three pairs of shorts, a skort, a pair of cropped pants, a pair of cargo pants, a tank top, and a sleeveless henley blouse. Finally, I got two more sports bras (nothing to do with losing weight--I just had very old sports bras.)

I could use some new sandals, but that's nothing pressing. I'll keep my eyes open. I'm also without a bathing suit, but I haven't gone swimming in years, so I'm not worried about that. 

I'm proud that I only paid full price for the cargo pants. All other items were on sale or eligible for promotions. Give me some points for being frugal.

A Sunday Brunch

I've always loved brunch--it connotes sophistication and leisure. That's true even if you have a stay-at-home brunch.

As Jacques--Marge's potential paramour on The Simpsons--once said:

It's not quite breakfast, it's not quite lunch, but it comes with a slice of cantaloupe at the end. You don't get completely what you would at breakfast, but you get a good meal.

Jeff and I had a tradition of at-home Sunday brunches. During the years I was teaching and tutoring, our Sunday brunches were rare. Now that I'm retired, we've gotten back in the Sunday brunch habit. 

We usually have scrambled eggs with cheese and veggies, toast, and fruit. Sometimes we have bacon, rarely steak or lobster. Pancakes are another option. 

Avocado toast is a new selection. I first made it a few weeks ago when the egg carton slipped out of my hand dumping five eggs on the kitchen floor. Ugh, what a mess. 

Saturday night I used an egg to make the breadcrumb coating for chicken parmesan and only had three eggs left. I scrambled the eggs and made bacon, cut some fruit, and added avocado toast. Non-alcoholic sparking wine completed a delicious meal (even without the slice of cantaloupe.)

Warning: Danger Will Robinson

I have smoked in the past but it was never really my thing--I think I bought one pack of Newports once. I knew cigarette packs and cartons have had warning labels on them for years. I didn't realize that there were multiple warnings:

When I was walking Jace this morning, I saw a discarded pack on the ground with the warning face up:

                WARNING Smoking reduces blood flow, which can cause erectile disfunction.

I suspect this is one of the most effective warnings.

Book 15: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

It's been almost a month since I completed my last book. For some reason, it just took me awhile to select a book, and then it took me awhile to get into it. After an intriguing prologue, the next several pages were about a libel judgment that didn't grab me. 

I soon found the story engrossing. I had seen the movie, but luckily forgot who the killer was as well as other details. 

I'm torn about continuing with the series. I want to read more about Lisbeth Salander, but the preview pages include a women being strapped to a bed, imprisoned for forty-three days. If it is Lisbeth, I'm sure she will escape. I'm just not sure I want to read more about that. 

An Excuse

I was scrolling through the google feed on my phone and found an article about the four zodiac signs that keep their homes the messiest. Gemini was one of them. The gist of it is that Gemini is always bouncing from one thing to the next and is scattered in its cleaning. That is so true--at least for me. It also said Gemini is focused on creative projects or busy social plans. I wish I could claim that. 

 A companion article lists Libra among the zodiac signs with the cleanest houses. Jeff is a Libra. I'm waiting for him to show his true colors in our place.

An Evening Walk with Jace

Jace and I have gotten into a routine of three walks each day (morning, midday, and late afternoon/early evening.) Then there's a pee break before we go to bed--we walk up a block or two and return home. Originally, the pee break was at 10, but we ran into a noisy, aggressive doggy neighbor then. We usually go out at 9 now--it works for us.

Tonight Jace wanted to go out early--around 8:20. It was still light when we started. Our afternoon walk had been a short one, so we walked around the block. I don't like to walk around the block after dark because there aren't sidewalks for about half the length. 

The smoke from the Canadian wildfires had abated. The air was full of birdsong. As it grew darker, I heard voices of adults and children. I couldn't make out the words but assumed it involved a parent calling for a child to come inside. 

When we turned back onto Prospect Avenue, a few cars drove by, ruining the quiet contemplative mood. 

We went back inside.

Blogger's Block

I haven't been posting lately--I barely managed 47 words for Anne Boleyn and that was 19 days ago. 

I decided I must have blogger's block. I've never heard the term, but I was sure someone else had coined it. A quick search found this article.

That got me thinking about regular writer's block. I'm suffering from that too. 

I'm retired--I have the time to write. I have ideas. So, what's the matter with me? An obvious response is that I'm not writing because I'm not taking a spring writing course. 

I've been taking writing classes given by the Norwalk Library since the fall of 2018. The spring session is a ten-week course. Presumably, I would have written ten stories in the class. But one reason I didn't take the class was I wanted to write something other than short stories responding to prompts. 

Unfortunately, I haven't written much of anything--only a little journaling.

It's not enough. Not for someone who claims she is a writer. Not writing makes me doubt myself. I can come up with excuses such as I'm busy with other things, I run out of time by the end of the day, etc.  But, they're only excuses and not legitimate reasons. 

I've found myself letting other things slide too--like housework. 

I decided I had to start somewhere. First, I did some easy things I'd been meaning to do. I ordered some summer clothes, wrote a recommendation for a dog walker/sitter, and wrote a sympathy note.  I worked on this blogpost (I had started it about a week ago.) Today, I sat down to write and finished this blog post. 

Small steps.