Sun's out, tongues out!
My week: The week got off to a rough start when I came home from work Monday to find Alohi's cage the most horrific poopy disaster she'd had yet. The towels we'd put in the cage were sodden with diarrhea, every inch of the crate tray was covered in smashed poop, there was poop on the floor, poop on the wall, and of course poop on the puppy. Alohi stress-poops every single day when we put her in her crate, and the Monday debacle was the last straw: we decided it was time to try leaving her out on her own. The good news: no poop! Which means her anxiety comes more from the cage than us leaving. The bad news: our normally non-destructive puppy did chew up a couple things (we came home Sunday evening to find she had gnawed and played with the remote and in the process turned the TV to a vibrator commercial). But there's no going back -- after a handful of glorious poopy-towel-free days, I have zero desire to ever deal with that again! Hopefully she doesn't decide to see how books taste...
The rest of the week was fine. Wednesday was my second time doing the 4th and 5th grade book club at work and that was fun; we read "The Lemonade War," so I had the kids make lemonade from concentrate (like in the book) and fresh-squeezed (they got to juice the lemons!) and compare the two. Saturday we ate at our favorite gourmet hot dog place for lunch and tried a new bubble tea place, then ran errands, and Sunday we went to the beach.
Reading: Last week I had just picked back up "O Jerusalem" by Laurie R. King (the fifth in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series) and I tried it for a couple days and eventually put it down yet again because it kept putting me to sleep (literally). I had trouble with the second book in the series as well, but I plan to power through this one because I do want to read the whole series!
In the meantime, I picked up "This Is How It Always Is" by Laurie Frankel, a novel about a transgender child and her family. I decided to read it because I'd like to learn more about transgender people -- and to be perfectly honest, while I try to be open-minded, I have a hard time wrapping my head around a 5-year-old just bone-deep knowing he or she was meant to be the opposite sex. That's why the book piqued my interest, but it was such a pleasant surprise -- I loved the characters and I really liked Frankel's writing, and it ended up being one of the best books I've read so far this year! I definitely recommend it!
And now I'm reading "All the Ugly and Wonderful Things" by Bryn Greenwood, which I grabbed from work on a whim after chatting with someone who told me they absolutely, positively could not put it down and read it in a day. I'd already been wanting to read it -- in fact, I'm the one who asked my boss to order it -- but I just never seemed to remember to make time for it. It's a controversial book as it features a, shall we say, May/December romance, as well as an abusive mother and a drug-dealing father. It's on the intenser side, but Greenwood is a great storyteller -- and it is indeed a fast, hard-to-put-down book.
Watching: The "World of Dance" finale, "Game of Thrones" and "Turn." Movie-wise we watched "The Lost City of Z," which was a bit of a dud for me. It was looooong (2 1/2 hours) and it seemed to gloss over or put a rosy tinge on all the bad stuff that happened in the book while simultaneously leaving out all the things that made the book interesting. There was way too much England in the movie and not nearly enough Amazon.
I also got sucked into "Coyote Ugly" when it came on the channel we had left on for the puppy when we went out to eat the other night. It's a movie I used to love and hadn't seen in forever, and it was still just as adorably cheesy as I remembered!
Blogging:
Monday Musings
My August 2017 Reading List
I Judge Books By Their Covers: My Not So Perfect Life
Looking forward to: Jarrod has some use-or-lose leave he has to take from work and I took off two days as well, next Monday and Tuesday! We're planning to do fun Hawaii stuff on those days, maybe snorkeling or hiking. Also, we just booked a quick little weekend getaway to Kauai for September! I'm nervous about leaving Alohi (we're having someone house- and dog-sit for us) but, damn, do I need a vacation (this is definitely a mini vacation, but I'll take what I can get)!
*I'm linking up with Kathryn of Book Date for It's Monday! What Are You Reading?
I've read - and enjoyed - the first three (I think) in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series, but haven't got to "O Jerusalem" yet. Sorry it's a bit of a snoozer! I would like to read the rest of the series though!
ReplyDeleteHere's my Reading List for this week: http://bit.ly/2vxazl9
I really liked book 4, "The Moor," and I was all set to like this one too but it was just way too bogged down in historical details and there was so little focus on any kind of mystery that it just did not hold my interest and, after yet another try, I threw in the towel! I read some reviews and it sounds like others felt the same about this book. I will definitely continue the series, though!
DeleteAll The Ugly and Wonderful Things sounds intriguing. I hope you enjoy your books!
ReplyDeleteMy It's Monday! What Are You Reading? post.
I really liked it! It was different from anything I've read lately and I couldn't put it down. (Though it's definitely a bit dark and intense!)
DeleteSo sorry about your poopy disaster. I enjoy the Laurie King series but will admit that they are not easy reads. They have so much historical detail! Come see my week here. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteI eventually gave up on "O Jerusalem," I'm sad to say. I generally like all the added atmospheric and historical details King includes, but this one was so bogged down I could hardly find the mystery!
DeleteSorry about the poop. At least she's doing better out of her crate than in it. Sounds like she needs a new toy or two to keep her occupied while you're out. She will eventually outgrow her need to chew on things.
ReplyDeleteCome see what I'm reading.
She is so much happier out of her crate -- though you're exactly right, we need to figure out how to keep her from getting bored!
DeleteMy brother's dog is the same way, she flipped out when they tried to leave her in the crate. Enjoyed the World of Dance finale. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteShe really is terrified of her crate! We think it might be because she was quarantined from (but in the same room as) her siblings for several days when she was a tiny little thing. We'll get her sorted out one way or another, even if I have to sacrifice a few more books!
DeleteSorry to hear about Alohi's anxiety issues. I don't think it is uncommon--a number of dogowner friends say their furbabies do very similar things.
ReplyDeleteWe'll get her sorted out, hopefully! She definitely has excessive anxiety about being in her crate and it's just heartbreaking to see, so I'm willing to have a few things destroyed so she'll ultimately be much happier!
DeleteSorry about the disaster but sometimes you do what you have to do. Hope Alohi does well out. Our third boxer had separation anxiety and he would always harm himself in the cage trying to get out. We came home once to blood everywhere and a ripped paw pad and that was the end of his cage experience so I can relate. He did eat a couch before he was completely trained but we loved him anyway :)
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, poor baby! Yes, that was part of the reason we decided to try leaving her out -- the same day she had the poo explosion she had rubbed her poor chin and a bit of her muzzle raw jumping at her cage! It was just pitiful.
DeleteA couch?! Well, we need a new couch anyway. ;)