Pushing Forward Back: September/October 2017

The Sunday Salon, What I'm Listening To, What I'm Reading, What We're Watching

So as planned, I started September with a four-day Labor Day Weekend as I tacked on Tuesday as a vacation day and caught up on some reading.

Mid-month, Kim and I went on a wine bus trip to Seneca Lake, one of the Finger Lakes in New York. The trip was part of our library’s Centennial Celebration, included three wine tastings, and a lobster festival at another winery.

I ended the month with a day off from work this past Thursday where I read my final book of the month, bringing my total to seven books, tying my best month of reading this year with January. The seven books were:

  1. The Rubber Band, the third Nero Wolfe, by Rex Stout.
  2. The Lost Book of The Grail by Charlie Lovett, which was recommended by Tasha of the blog Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Books.
  3. The Red Box, the fourth Nero Wolfe, by Rex Stout.
  4. Gallows View, the first Inspector Banks, by Peter Robinson, after seeing Tina of the blog Novel Meals mention the series on Instagram.
  5. The Western Star, the 13th Walt Longmire, by Craig Johnson.
  6. Too Many Cooks, the fifth Nero Wolfe, by Rex Stout.
  7. Some Buried Caesar, the sixth Nero Wolfe, by Rex Stout.

The best of the eight was The Lost Book of The Grail. The most meh of the eight sadly was the Longmire. I must admit that I liked the earlier ones better.

As for TV and movies, Kim and I began the month watching Game of Thrones (now up to Season 6), mid-month watched Wonder Woman, and ended the month with rewatching a lot of Parks and Recreation.

Spinning on my virtual turntable this past month was a little bit of this:

And a little bit of that:

Pushing Forward

October begins with Kim undergoing a procedure called cardioversion in an attempt to get her heart back in rhythm after learning in August she was, and is (still) in atrial fibrillation. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

On the reading front, the highlight should be Dewey’s 24-hour Readathon that takes place on Saturday, Oct. 21.

Other than continuing with Game of Thrones this coming month, we also are looking forward to the return of Stranger Things at the end of the month:

How was your month of September? Favorite book read, TV show/series watched, album listened to? What were the highlights for you? What are you looking forward to in October?

Published by Bryan G. Robinson

Blogger formerly known as Unfinished Person. Still an unfinished person...

Published

13 thoughts on “Pushing Forward Back: September/October 2017”

  1. That sounds like a fun month. I am thinking positive thoughts for Kim and sincerely wish her well.

    As for my bests of September, book-wise that would be the second volume of Alias by Brian Michael Bendis, which was published in 2003 but is on display at a lot of bookshops right now because of the TV show based on it, Jessica Jones. It’s a fantastic comic. TV-wise, I really loved the second season of Master of None. Aziz Ansari has got way more creative this time round and is making genuinely excellent TV.

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  2. Woah, how have you managed to avoid Game of Thrones spoilers?

    The wine and cheese tour sounds delish.

    Hmmm September is in our bad books here in the Caribbean thanks to hurricanes Irma and Maria…hopefully the worst of the season is behind us. I posted a link for anyone who can help with relief efforts https://jhohadli.wordpress.com/2017/09/10/after-the-storm

    On the reading front, I finished Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter https://jhohadli.wordpress.com/joannes-extra-ness/blogger-on-books-v/blogger-on-books-v-abraham-lincoln-vampire-hunter-by-seth-grahame-smith somewhere between Irma and Maria. Loved it. I’m not even ashamed; it was the perfect diversion.

    On the TV show front, hmmm I’ve been catching up on Outlander lately and Brooklyn 99 has been bringing some levity.

    Album? Jay Z’s 4:44…but my last music blog is all Linkin Park https://jhohadli.wordpress.com/joannes-extra-ness/joannespicks

    My niece turned 18 at the end of the month; we hung out at the movies which is how I ended up watching Kingsman 2 (never watched 1, wasn’t interested; but 2 was fun if predictable).

    Looking forward to the release of my next children’s picture book Lost! A Caribbean Sea Adventure which is currently available on pre-order https://jhohadli.wordpress.com/2017/09/14/now-available-for-pre-order-lost-a-caribbean-sea-adventure

    In terms of shows, I’m behind on everything (The Americans, Queen Sugar etc.) but I am looking forward to the return of The Walking Dead (dreading more like because last season was so bad) and Stranger Things (great first season). And as far as books, reading A History of Seven Killings (loving it).

    That’s what’s up.

    Hope your wife’s health looks up. Keep pushing forward.

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      1. I’m on a small island myself but social media spoils a lot of stuff before I get to see it (sucks); though I suppose I can credit it for introducing me to things I might not otherwise have been aware of (or aware of as quickly). Feel like I’m dodging spoilers sometimes. But, cool; it’s a roller coaster of a show *zips mouth*

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  3. First off, I hope Kim’s procedure goes well. My friend has that done. I may have mentioned it but it worked for her.

    Your questions:

    How was your month of September?

    I guess it was a pretty good month. Good reading. But my work days blur into one another. I’ve been carrying around a sense of dread and spoke about it to many but after Sunday’s shooting it has left me so I wonder if I was building up to that. I am so sensitive to shifts in the universe. It sounds hokey but it’s true.

    Favorite book read, TV show/series watched, album listened to?

    I read Bird Box this past month and it was by far, my fave book of the year, so far. Review posts tomorrow. TV? Same old. Waiting for Stranger Things.

    What were the highlights for you? What are you looking forward to in October?

    I took some extra time off to celebrate my bday so that was definitely a highlight. My son getting into the Disney College Program was also a highlight. I just love October. I turned in all my holiday vacation time so I am already counting it down.

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  5. Definitely keeping Kim and you in my thoughts. Please keep us informed how she is doing, especially after that procedure!

    I am so looking forward to the readathon. I was actually bummed to find out that my friend’s bridal shower and bachelorette party is scheduled for the same day. I am already trying to determine how early I can cut out of there without being rude so that I can go back to reading. I love my friend, but I love reading and the readathon just a bit more.

    We finally watched Wonder Woman this past weekend, and I regret waiting so long to watch it. SO, so good. I’m excited about Stranger Things returning as well. Jim and I have started watching the TV show “Dexter”. We got to about season three originally and stopped watching for one reason or another. I want to go back and finish the series. I want to do the same for “Mad Men”, “Breaking Bad”, and “The Walking Dead”. Eventually.

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    2. The procedure has been delayed for at least six weeks, if ever. She’s first going to try losing weight, which she has done before, through diet and exercise… As for the readathon, I already have my stack ready, all juvenile and young adult fiction.

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