Saturday in the Garden | On a Sunday

OUTSIDE

I don't have too much to write about the garden.  The tomatoes have been insanely irritating - they're sparse, took forever to ripen, had a lot of blossom end rot (too little water) and then half of them have been split (too much water) as soon as they ripened.  For a vegetable that anyone can grow I sure do suck at it, lol!  I was visiting a friend this weekend who was growing ground cherries and man were they tasty!  I may have to consider experimenting with them next year.

Here are some scenes from this weekend: first, the Rapidan River and second, the falls at Mineopa State Park both near Mankato, MN.

GAK

My blogging and internetting dwindled to almost nothing the last couple weeks.  Not really sure entirely why but I've got some work stress and I've been pretty obsessed with the Olympics and then  actually traveled and was social this weekend (shocker!).  It's these lapses in attention that keep me from doing anything to fancy up or improve the blog - I really love blogging and interacting with other bloggers but that doesn't always come with a constant level of commitment.  So. Sorry my blog's lame.  I'm sure it's only me that really cares but still.  I'm not sure this week will be any better honestly.  I just got home a couple hours ago, I'm pretty beat and this week at work promises to be challenging.  That doesn't mean I won't be unexpectedly flooded with inspiration and energy - it's doubtful but weirder things have happened.  Like this...

WATCHING, READING and BLOGGING

Watching 

The Olympics.  Sad it is over:(. I love the drama and the feelings of inadequacy it brings;0).  My new favorite athlete crushes are Simone Biles, Usain Bolt (don't ask why it took me so long to get on this train), and Ashton Eaton.  Bad Asses All.

Reading

Finished Last Week:

• Lost Stars by Claudia Gray: My first Star Wars book and it's sooooo gooooood!  
• Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie: I'm not usually a reader of contemporary romance or so-called chick-lit but I really loved this book!
• Beguilement (The Sharing Knife #1) by Lois McMaster Bujold: It was bound to happen some time  - LMB has let me down.  This book was not my cup of tea.

Currently Reading:

• Lair of Dreams (The Diviners #2)  by Libba Bray:  I had an actual Love-Hate relationship with the first book in this series but there was enough love to make me curious about where the series is headed.  I am not not enjoying this book but I'm not making very fast progress.  I just can't express how little I care about Evie and her relationship entanglements with Sam and Jericho. 
• Runemarks by Joanne Harris:  I am actually not going to finish this book though it's not bad.  It reminds me a bit of Cathrynne Valente's Fairyland series, told in a very fairy tale style.  The problem with this is that characters tend to be pretty generic and shallow which means I don't get engaged.  The Fairyland series eventually shifted for me about halfway through book one and this one might have too but I just don't have the patience and attention right now to stick with it and find out.
• The Castle of Wizardry (The Belgariad #4) by David Eddings:  I am re-reading this series on audio - it was one of my favorites as a wee(ish) thing.

Added to the TBR:

This is a list of books that I have added to my Goodreads TBR list this week.  It helps to burn the books I want to read a little more firmly into my mind, maybe get them on some other folks TBRs and gives me a chance to recognize a lot of the awesome bloggers that add stuff to my TBR!

• Agnes and the Hitman by Jennifer Crusie:  Because of above.  There's a feisty lady and a hitman.
• Rhapsody: Child of Blood by Elizabeth Haydon:  I think I heard about this one on the Sword and Laser podcast?  It kind of looks like a generic fantasy but whoever was recommending it, loved it.
• Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins:  Boarding school ...witches...I'm in.  Sounds like a fun YA.
• The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware:  A Agatha Christie-esque mystery thriller.  Sounds great. Pretty sure I heard about this one on Book Riot's All the Books podcast.

Blogging 

On the BLOG LAST WEEK:

The last time I posted a Saturday's in the Garden post two weeks ago I was all proud of my blogging prowess.  NOT so much this fortnight - the below is all I've managed...

TUESDAY (Aug15): Top Ten Tuesday | The Best Books with the Worst Settings

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!