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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel | Thoughts

   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 story of her family through the other protagonist, El

Year One | This Week's Five

1. A one-year old babe

You know how for the first few months of every new year, we keep writing the previous year in all our books, journals, and checks? That's what is happening to me every time someone asks how old Shreya is. On Wednesday, she will turn one. That's a milestone that felt so far away at one time. And it's here already. Her party is going to be next weekend but I will take Wednesday off. Every day of this week, I will likely be in a "This time last year..." mode. (For instance, this day last year, we were at the hospital thinking I was in labor but was really not. However, the next night, it was going to start.)

We still have a lot to do for next week. Stuff to buy, food to order, decor to plan, house to clean. The cake has been ordered, thank goodness. It's fun, doing all this. It also reminds me every day that this girl is growing up... fast!

2. Margaret Atwood

Last night, or rather at midnight, I turned the last page on Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. This is certainly one of the most frightening books I have read; it even changes the meaning of dystopian lit for me. When I read books like The Hunger Games and The Walking Dead, I find the dystopian aspect of the books entertaining rather than something to dread. The Handmaid's Tale however, felt so relevant and plausible that it scared the heck out of me. It didn't help that the book was a timely read. There's so much bad happening in the world today that the news is just bursting with it.

3. When phone apps are rabbit holes

I have a page on my phone that is just for distractions. It started with being a row and a half high but now it's getting crowded. It's where I love hanging out most of the time. I do have another page that is just for reading but since I don't see reading as distraction (rather it's necessary), the reading apps go to that page. On the distraction page, there are two apps in particular that I have been using a lot - Litsy and Pokemon Go. Are you on Litsy? If you are, find me - I'm readingonarainyday there. This is one awesome book app. It could do with some more improvements but it's so easy to get lost in there with all the many bookish posts. It's what I wanted my Tumblr blog to be so I'm glad to have this app. As for Pokemon Go, I'm playing. Slowly. A little at a time. I used to play this game a lot years ago so there's a nostalgia element as well. What I really want to do is go for a walk soon and catch a bunch of Pokemons. Are you playing too?


4. In the Kitchen

I generally go between phases when I want my meals to take care of themselves and when I want to be taking care of them. Right now, it's the latter and it's been so much fun making delicious meals. We recently got a Vitamix and we have been making a lot of smoothies and beverages (lemonade or coffee). I'm trying to cash in on my current culinary enthusiasm so that I can bookmark some quick healthy and easy meals for when I don't have that enthusiasm anymore.


5. Work

My office has started summer hours this month. I did not sign up for it, however, but if I did, I would have got Fridays off (of course, I have to work Mondays to Thursdays to death). This means work gets insanely busy on those four days and then everything quiets down on Friday because most of my colleagues are out. I have to say I like these quiet Fridays.

How is your weekend going?

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