Published : 2021 || Format : print || Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the...
Good morning, fellow readers! Happy Sunday! I've had a really low-key weekend filled with a lot of decluttering and reorganizing - yes, I'm still working on these. I have been trying to get rid of stuff that I no longer need, reduce clutter, and make space for our little one's things. When we bought this house, we were already thinking ahead and trying to plan around one day having a family. But now, after two years here, we have managed to establish non-baby related habits and conventions for every space. It's really hard breaking into them, mostly because those conventions are still very necessary.
Still decluttering...
I'm still working on the office room, which is our stockpile of all things unwanted, packaged away in neat boxes and drawers. I can be very ruthless when I'm in a decluttering mood. When I'm not, however, I just keep collecting and postpone decision making to another time. (Is there such a thing as bipolar declutterer?) Yesterday, I opened one box of paperwork that had some of my bank stuff, some legal papers, our medical records, and Rue's vaccination records. I'm feeling very proud to say that more than half of those papers have been shredded/recycled. It's amazing how my brain can make different justifications for the same thing at different times.
Anyways, I still have three more such boxes before I can be done with this room. Because the dog has been
...and then the fun starts
(I don't know if I have ever mentioned this, but I love decluttering and reorganizing. I am just not artistic or inspired enough to always think of the best way to do something, even with Pinterest.) Once I'm done with all the cleanups, it's time to start thinking baby decorations! We will not be having a separate nursery, at least for now. We need all the bedrooms we have, at least until the end of the year. By then, our girl should be around 6 months, so that's when we will start thinking about a separate room. We have also decided not to paint - no time to do this, what with all the trips the husband has had to take (and more coming), so it's extra challenging to decide what goes well with beige walls. (If you have any ideas, please pass them along!) I am a big fan of violet-gray colors though I don't yet have a theme in mind - maybe a zoo theme or starry night theme. Still working on that - I am hoping something just starts clicking once we start doing it.
Tonight...
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It's Game of Thrones night! No one to watch it with though, since the husband won't return until next week. This has been a crazy long wait for this show and I cannot wait to watch the season premiere. Every time, I watch the show, I end up having a renewed desire to read the books. But seeing that this season is going into unpublished territory, especially with George R. R. Martin not finishing his book (Seriously dude, just write that book!), I've decided to wait until Martin has published or is close to publishing his 7th book before diving into the books. By then, I will hopefully forget how long-drawn and wordy his first book is (yawn).
Also, last night, I started reading The Magicians by Lev Grossman - a book that I have been thinking of reading for a while, but never quite wanted to because some of the issues that others had with it would likely bugger me as well. I can totally see those issues already (a whiny annoying protagonist, too much setup, a protagonist who isn't surprised or shocked by the sudden appearance of magic in his life, even if he has been dreaming about that fantasy for a while). But I'm planning to stay on with it - I generally love reading literary fiction about magic (Harry Potter, The Night Circus, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell - the latter I never really got to finish but plan to soon) so hopefully, this one will turn out to be more good than annoying).
Congratulations to my brother-in-law, G, and his lovely now-wife, S, on their wedding, which just got over a few hours ago. I miss not being there and was super-jealous whenever I called home to see how much fun you all have been having. May you guys have a great married life ahead!
Comments
Re: The Magicians -- if it helps at all, the problems I had with the first book mostly evaporated by the second. It improved so much on the issues I had with the first one that I wanted to write the author a letter to thank him (but I thought that would be ultimately more insulting to his first book than flattering to his second).
Beige is a great color - I can think of a few other colors that could go with it: orange, green, yellow, maybe purple? How about gray&pink? Good luck with the project, I'd love to see the outcome.
I know what you mean about GOT. I'm excited about it too. I had no idea G.R. Martin didn't finish the book. Must be hard, with so many people having high expectations.
If you want to read more fantasy, there's a read-along for Little, Big by John Crowley starting in May: http://dolcebellezza.net/2015/04/04/a-little-big-read-along-care-to-join-in/
Congratulations to your brother-in-law and his wife!
The Magicians is a book I have wanted to read for awhile now--but haven't for the reasons you name. Oh well. Someday. :-)
I hope you have a great week, Athira!
I will have to look into that readalong. I hadn't heard of that book before but it looks interesting!