Giving Thanks for the Hodgepodge

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. What does patriotism mean to you? 

Loving your country and defending it. Even when things are going as you would like, realizing this is the best country in the world. 

2. September-October-November...your favorite fall month? Tell us why. If you live in the southern hemisphere use these months but sub spring for the word fall. 

November. The beginning of sweater/sweatshirt weather, football, soups, and stews.

3. A song you love with the word thanks (or some form of that word)  in the title or lyrics?

4. November is National Peanut Butter Month. Are you a fan? What's the last peanut butter bite you had? Fill in the blank: peanut butter and _____________________ . 

Oh, and you can't say jelly. 

I love peanut butter. My favorite cold-weather lunch is chicken noodle soup and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. With Ruffles. Since I last had a Reese's Cup, I'm going with peanut butter and chocolate.

5. This week's gratitude question-What event from this past year are you most grateful for? 

There are so many. Being with my siblings and my boys, being able to go back to Ireland, going to TX to tour the painted churches (and see friends & cousins) & learn more about my heritage, going on pilgrimage to Greece, and gaining a daughter-in-law. But maybe my favorite was being able to celebrate CH's life as he requested. My BIL set up the venue, and family & friends gathered. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

"Give Thanks" was the meditation song for CH's funeral mass. It was a perfect way to thank God for everything He has done for us as a couple and as a family with our boys. CH's body was worn out from fighting colon/anal cancer, but he continued to thank God for giving him the life he had. 2025 has been a tough year; people told me the 2nd year would be harder, and they weren't kidding. Our life wasn't perfect (but whose is?), but I'm so thankful to have been able to experience that once-in-a-lifetime love CH & I shared.

These are the last 2 selfies we took while in Colorado in 2023, 4 months before he passed away.

Share Your Shelf October 2025

 

Thanks to Joyce for making me aware of this blog linky. Now that I'm back to reading, I hope my lists will grow each month. But for now, this post is going to be pretty meager.

As I said in my Back to Reading Post, this is the book that the book club I'm in read and finished in October. I hope that still counts since I didn't read the whole book that month! We started at the end of Sept., met every 2 weeks after reading approximately 200 pages, and finished it mid-October.

I knew the book was going to be good since it was from Anthony Doerr. One participant in the book club (another Speech-Language Pathologist) said that she had to make a graphic organizer to keep up with who was in what time period. The end of the book left me wanting more information. I'll just leave it at that. 

This is definitely one to put on your "must-read" shelf!

This is the 2nd book in the Seven Sisters series. I read the first book quite a while ago and read this one while I was on my last pilgrimage to Greece. There were things that I read in the book that paralleled my life.  One was the "evil eye" pendant that Ally was given. The evil eye (or God's eye in Turkiye) was everywhere in Greece. And, Ally is a flautist. So I had a connection, but that was where the connection ended. 

The premise of the series is that a man (Pa Salt) adopted 6 girls (the 7th girl hasn't arrived on the scene yet for some reason).  Each of the girls is named after a star in a constellation. When Pa Salt (who is a billionaire) dies, he leaves a clue to each girl's heritage; it's up to them to discover it if they wish. 

There is some factual history in the books (which I like), but it is in the nonfiction genre. It is definitely an interesting read.

So...that's it for October. Hopefully, I'll be able to pick up more books this month. If you need ideas for what to read next, check out the hosts' blogs:

The Other Side of the Road

Slices of Life

My Joyful Life

Memphis Bridges

Back to Reading

Photo by Dom J

I'm reading again. Finally. After CH passed away, I tried to read. I ended up frustrated because nothing could hold my attention enough to finish a book. I tried different genres without luck. I was beginning to think I'd never read another book again. I've been a book lover my whole life, so it was a little distressing to not be able to read.

Until a local brewery started a book club. Beer & books? Yes, please! I walked into the brewery with confidence, not knowing exactly what to expect. MS said that the owners had no idea how this was going to go...would it be a hit or a dud? 

I've wanted to join a book club for a while, but I wasn't sure how to go about joining. It seems that most book clubs are already established and not looking for new members. It turns out I'm not alone. Several of the members said the same thing. 

Back to the first night: I joined some ladies already sitting at one of the tables. We ended up with 15 ladies the first night, so I'd say it was a hit. The lady who started the book club is a reading teacher at one of the local schools, and most of the members are teachers. Since most of them are teachers for a different school system than the one from which I retired, I didn't know anyone. And it was okay. I'm getting used to putting myself out there and going places on my own. In fact, I'm actually learning to like it. 

Our "leader" chose the first book: Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. His first book was All the Light We Cannot See, which was excellent, so I was expecting great things. I wasn't disappointed. We took 4 weeks to read the book, roughly 200 pages every 2 weeks. It seemed doable, and I liked that the book was broken up like that, so I didn't feel overwhelmed. Cloud Cuckoo Land is one of those books with multiple main characters; each chapter is about a different person. To make things more "interesting", there were 3 different time periods that each lived in. And then there were back stories for each character. The first time we met after reading the first 200 pages, a lot of questions were straightened out. I don't know if I would have enjoyed the book as much if I weren't reading along with a group. I enjoyed it so much that I finished the book even though I missed the last meeting, and then I had to email the leader to let her know how much I liked it. 

This book club has brought back my love of reading. I've read a few other books over the last few weeks and have been able to actually sit down and get lost in them.  I feel like a part of me has been revived. And it feels great!