Summertime is for Books and Homemade Ice Cream!
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WHAT I'M READING
THE HERE AND NOW- I am really enjoying this one. The premise is right up my alley. Post-climate change world, most of humanity is wiped out by a mosquito-born virus. A small group of people go back in time to before the plague to try and change the course of history. It reads like a suspense thriller but also has some gorgeous imagery. "Already he is the drip, drip of water that carves a canyon through the middle of me."
Ticked off another couple of boxes in the YA Buccaneers Summer Reading Challenge. You can find out more about the Summer Reading Challenge Here.
WHAT I'M WRITING
I didn't carve out as much time for writing this week as I would have liked. I've been prepping ISIS to send out to CP's and Betas. It feels like I've been doing this Forever. Why is it that nothing ever feels Done?! There's always something that needs tweaking.
- I've been teaching a few classes that Boy Chris refers to as "How to Save The World in 10 Easy Steps". It's been a lot of work, but a lot of fun too. I get to teach people about how to reduce their carbon footprint, how to create wildlife habitat in their yards and how to install rain gardens, etc.
- Still obsessing about building my own Houseboat. This is probably one of the most insane ideas I've had lately. "Don't you just love those?!"- Lindsay Duncan- Under the Tuscan Sun
- Making homemade vegan ice cream. (Because Summer!) My faves: coconut lime, mint chocolate chip and of course, mango. :)
- Gardening. (Lots of it) We're lucky in Florida that we can garden 10 months out of the year, but lately we've been trying to increase that number. Our goal is to grow 25% of our own food and we're getting closer. By finding varieties that can grow in the hot, hot heat of July & August, we've extended our harvest. We found some beans adapted to the West Indies, some greens grown in Thailand and of course tropical fruit trees. (Because mangoes off my very own tree= Heaven) :)
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| Baby Pineapples, Cool Beans and Mangoes |
Posts
Your description of The Here and Now reminds me of The Redemption of Christopher Columbus, which I loved. If you haven't read it, it's the story of people who live on an Earth whose climate has been destroyed to the point where hardly anyone is left, and they know they are about to die. So they find one pivotal moment in history (Christopher Columbus's voyage to America) and go back in time to change it. Good stuff.
ReplyDeleteIn Maine, we definitely don't get 10 months of gardening. We're lucky to get 4. But I LOVE this time of year where there is so much great food! Have a great week.
I haven't read that one, but now I MUST. *adds it to mammoth TBR pile*
DeleteAnd yes, Summer is all about good food. I think I might be in danger of overdosing on fresh peaches. :)
I'm with you on the never-ending edits! There always seems to be more changes and things to tweak. Have a great week! :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, at some point I just need to stick a fork in it and call it done. :)
DeleteHope you have a great week too!
Building your own house-boat sounds like a fun project. And if you reach 25% on your garden, that'd be great - Lol! tips on weed-battling? If you're into post-climate world change, I just read a book myself all about that - FROZEN. It's actually on my What I Read this week.
ReplyDeleteYour gardening skills are amazing! Holy molly that stuff looks awesome. I am totally impressed.
ReplyDeleteOh, wow! Those fruits and veggies look amazing, Kris! I so wish we had more months of warm/hot weather where I live. Our growing season is pathetically short. I suppose if we had a greenhouse or something that might make a difference. Ah well. I'm enjoying the fruits of our gardening labours while they last. :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm right there with you on stories that never quite feel done. In fact, I'm pretty much living there. The worst part? I'm thinking of pulling out a THIRD project that needs revising thanks to an agent MSWL tweet I saw yesterday. (It fit the bill perfectly.) Sigh. Better to have too many edits than nothing to edit at all, right? Here's hoping for some serious productivity for both of us this week! Have a great week, Kris!
P. S. That Ann Brashares book sounds *really* good!
That book sounds amazing. I think I might have to add it to the TBR pile...
ReplyDeleteHappy gardening :D
I love the produce pictures and your 25 percent goal! I hope to garden more one day. We live in FL too but our soil is pure sand and it's military housing so I really don't want to invest tons into the yard. We have a few veggies in containers though :)
ReplyDeleteI love that line from The Here and Now. I loved Ann Brashares' The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books when I was younger and I haven't read anything from her since so I might have to check this book out.
ReplyDeleteThose are some lovely pictures!
Have a good week!
I so want to take your "How to Save The World in 10 Easy Steps" classes! We're pretty environmentally conscious in my family, but I know there's still a lot more we could be doing, and nothing compared to you guys! Wow, those fruit & veggie pics are amazing! We have such a short growing season where I live (and we're in the city) that we'd have a tough time growing 25% of our own food. Plus, I don't exactly have a green thumb.
ReplyDeleteTHE HERE AND NOW sounds like one I'll have to check out. I've seen it at the bookstore, but for whatever reasons didn't pick it up to read the premise.
Have fun dreaming about building a houseboat this week, and I hope your final prep on ISIS goes well! :)
Good luck with the gardening. Any kind of fruit off your very own trees is always better.
ReplyDeleteYour class sounds amazing. And your idea to build a houseboat sounds amazing-er! (I love that line from Under the Tuscan Sun, by the way.) Wow, so cool to be able to grow so much of your own food. I have a hard time growing anything. I kill all my plants. But my oldest is really getting into gardening so I'm making an effort to get better or at least lend her a hand. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteWhat are those beans??? I've never seen anything like that. I'm so jealous of your fruit trees! I grew up with apples and peaches pretty much in my backyard, but the orchard is no longer a functioning one, so instead I troll the Farmer's Market when they're in season.
ReplyDeleteYes, I do love insane ideas. Good luck with your houseboat!!
ReplyDelete