Saturday, January 1, 2022

The Eyes Have It


Happy New Year, everybody! There is something exciting about starting fresh, isn't there? Even in the smallest ways. When I did the dishes last night, for example, I made sure to get the coffee press into the dishwasher -- we usually wash it only when we have room and just rinse it out the rest of the time, but it seemed important to get all of last year's coffee residue cleared away.

I finished "The High King" yesterday. It got better after about 150 pages, when I'd finally stopped resisting and immersed myself fully in the plot, but I certainly won't be reading the rest of the books in the series. What's interesting is, I looked up the book on Goodreads, and it has a very high rating. Lots of people raved about it. Some said it was one of their favorite books as a child. One said the series is every bit as worthwhile as Harry Potter.

I am completely bewildered by this enthusiasm, but I guess I can see how a certain Dungeons-and-Dragons-loving type of kid could get fired up about it. I tried to be somewhat gentle in my review. The last thing I want to do is discourage someone from reading a book that they might love. Not that anyone in our library reads that series anymore.


Here's the new cyclamen -- or "cyclurinamen," as Mitchell cleverly dubbed it yesterday -- on the left with the red flowers. And on the right is one of our canna lilies, which is looking a bit scorched by our earlier cold weather. I had to fill the pot with terra cotta shards because the freaking squirrels have recently insisted on trying to dig up the plant.

Oh, and those new fat balls I bought for the bird feeder? The parakeets don't like them. In fact none of the birds seem to like them as much as the ones we just used up. I think the new ones are harder, and the birds have to work more to break them apart. I guess if they get hungry enough they'll manage.

Dave and I did indeed drink our bubbly last night, and made a toast to the new year. We also watched "London Has Fallen," a silly thriller film from several years ago in which numerous London landmarks get wantonly (but spectacularly) demolished by terrorists. Come to think of it, maybe not the best choice for setting the tone for the new year, but oh well.

Come on, 2022! Don't fail us!

(Top photo: Some curious street art I found during Olga's neighborhood walk.)

44 comments:

  1. Yes, 2022, please do NOT fail us. Thanks for the mention. Do you suppose cyclurinamen will be added to the OED this year? We drank our bubbly last night, too. We actually split a split. Party monsters.

    ReplyDelete
  2. As you suggest, the birds will come to the new fat balls when they are ready - both the birds and the fat balls. Happy New Year Steve!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do think the fat balls need to soften up a bit -- maybe in the rain?

      Delete
  3. Have you watched 'Don't Look Up'? Everyone should watch an apocolyptic movie to end the year say I. It's billed as a comedy, but I've never had a comedy hit as hard as that one did. Happy New Year Steve and Dave.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. YES! We watched it and loved it. A very accurate statement on our modern world, sadly.

      Delete
  4. "The last thing I want to do is discourage someone from reading a book that they might love." I really like that lack of judgment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I try to be somewhat encouraging even in my negative reviews, unless it's a book that I absolutely think NO ONE should read because it's so dated and/or offensive. There are a few of those!

      Delete
  5. I found a complete set of Harry Potter books years ago at a garage sale that were in mint condition and since they were all the rage, I bought them for my oldest daughter. I tried to get her to read them for several years with no success and then suddenly one day out of the blue she read one and got hooked and read all seven (I think) in a matter of a couple months and was all about Harry Potter for a time.

    I watched London Has Fallen a long time ago and Don't Look Up is on my Netflix list.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Those Harry Potter books were a score! Harry Potter has been credited with helping to make readers out of a whole generation of kids.

      Delete
  6. Happy New Year.
    We had the bubbly, too, and I will finish off what's left with my breakfast, albeit it with cranberry and orange juices added!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Those are certainly "morning after" eyes on that utility box. There may be a fair amount of people waking up today with eyes like that.
    I went to my friends house last night and we watch New Year celebrations in Sydney, London and Dubai. That was a lot of fireworks!
    Happy New Year!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fortunately, MY eyes didn't look like that (though they did on the 30th after our dinner party).

      Delete
  8. I fully concur with your last statement. Pleeeaaaasssse...

    ReplyDelete
  9. Well, I've just woken up and although I can see patches of blue it still looks gloomy out there.
    Glad you got through that book without too much pain. Now on to your next!
    You have an entire year ahead of you to finish up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, I'll finish much sooner than that, insha'allah. I really want to be done by the end of January.

      Delete
  10. We're off to a good start here. A brief rain shower first thing this morning and now the sun is shining. Somehow I missed your post yesterday - nice to hear that Olga was feeling frisky. BTW - I did make cream of parsnip and apple soup. It turned out great. Cheers, Wilma

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad the soup worked out! I meant to link you to the recipe Dave used -- I wonder if you both found the same one?

      Delete
    2. could you provide the link? That would be great!

      Delete
    3. It was this one, from FoodWishes at YouTube:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSJ110o5wp0

      Delete
  11. We have our champagne today with breakfast. We went to bed early but I did wake at midnight when the fireworks started and saw a few explosions. Happy New Year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We heard fireworks but didn't see any -- just flashes reflecting off building walls.

      Delete
  12. It's 29F degrees here this morning. What a chilly way to start the new year. Hoping for a bright clear and beautiful day around our planet and a happy new year to all!

    ReplyDelete
  13. We are expecting a snow storm today - maybe 7-8 inches... But I have nowhere to be so it doesn't matter! Wishing you and Dave a happy, healthy 2022!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's kind of a nice feeling when you can stay inside and not feel guilty (as I might) because of the weather.

      Delete
  14. That's a beautiful color cyclamen. Although I don't generally like white flowers, I do love the white version of it too. It has stunning leaves. We all have different tastes in reading as I've discovered from people's reviews of books I've loathed or loved.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm not a fan of white flowers either. We have a big camellia bush in our garden and the blossoms are white. I think, "Why?" Seems like such a waste of a good camellia. (Our landlord owns it so we can't take it out.)

      Delete
  15. Happy New Year to You, Dave, And Olga. Let us hope it is better than the last two!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Happy new year! Love the cyclamen. We decided to save the best bubbly (gift from the boss) for the day when the pandemic reaches endemic status.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, that's a good idea. Will there be an announcement to that effect, do you think, or will it simply fade into the background of our daily lives?

      Delete
  17. Happy New Year to you. Dave and Olga!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Squirrels seem quite a nuisance at times but so can our possums be.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I think there are three films in that "has fallen" franchise. Ridiculous, but totally entertaining. (IMO)

    Happy New Year! Cheers to 2022!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, we'd never seen any of them. I might go back and watch "Olympus Has Fallen," which I guess is the first one.

      Delete
  20. Happy New Year, Steve. I hope 2022 is a terrific year for you.

    ReplyDelete