Best Book Club Week Ever!

One week in November, it so happened that every book club I belong to (in town, anyway) met.   Usually they don't all meet during the same week, but because of Thanksgiving and maybe because I paid attention this year, all this  below happened in one week.  

November had a lot of people missing from certain book clubs, so while you can't see all my bookish peeps, you can see a lot of them.  You might notice there is a face or two that cross over into other clubs, but I am the only constant, and while this might seem silly to you, this is my social life!  People I love and love to talk books with!

People I love and love to drink coffee and talk books with!

So,  here we go---my best Book club week ever!

Ignore my big selfie face 😚 (which takes place in most of the photos) but this is the start of my best week ever! 5...count 'em...FIVE book clubs in one week!  (I counted wrong---there were 6 if I included my bible study--so I did.  I mean, we read, right?!)

This is The CCB (Coffee Conversation and books!) Club.

Book Club #2 of my 5 book clubs in one week week! This is Totally Lit ( missing about half)

Marathon book club week continues for me. This is a book club number three… The library book club.

And Book Club number 4! The oldest club in Winnemucca! (and I mean out of all social clubs not just book clubs. In the good old days used to be written up in the newspaper… What book was talked about, what lunch was served, who wore what etc etc...lol) This is the Literary Guild. Now we just say literary lunch as ‘guild’ is so old-fashioned. Lovely ladies whom I get to have lunch with every month and talk books!

Most of them had/have no clue what I'm doing---blog? Instagram? what? -- but they indulge me anyway. 

Did I say this was a 5 book club week? I was wrong—it’s a six book club week if I count my 6am Bible study. And we just started a new book, so… I'm including it!

 I did it! 6 book clubs in 6 days! The last one deserved two pictures… Because we were laughing so hard and having so much book fun. These are the Lit Wits! (minus a whole bunch. If everyone comes there’s about 20 in the group). Best Book Week Ever for me!!

(also, I was trying to cover my cleavage--because, over 50, you know!  You don't really need to show that stuff, but sometimes I can't  help it. ~grins~ )

And that is my life in book clubs!

The CCB (coffee, conversation and books) club-- He Said/She Said

This is my 'non' book review.

And if you haven't read it but want to, you probably shouldn't read further.  NOT that I'm giving an in-depth review with spoilers--this will just be a few sentences--but I'll ruin something for you.

My opinion below was the consensus of the whole book group. 

Here we are--having coffee on Saturday morning. 

Even the newest member Penelope  (Robin's granddaughter) agreed!

I gave it four stars.  Sometimes Goodreads ratings are hard for me tho---I feel it was a solid 3.7, not really quite a 4.

For the first part of the book, I was thinking it was only so-so, but the ending took me by surprise.

Total surprise!  And then I thought, WOW, what a great job the author did.

And as I mentioned, that was the thought of the CCB Bookclub.  It was interesting that three of my friends (CCB friends pictured above) had gone to see the big eclipse last month.  They were all in agreement that it was AMAZING to see in person and would become eclipse chasers if at all possible.  If we are still a bookclub in 2024, we might make a book club trip to Texas. 

I failed to mention that Total Eclipse was a major theme of the book, but it was,  so discussing it (it was pretty close to us, so we saw 89% totality) lots of fun.

From Goodreads

In the hushed aftermath of a total eclipse, Laura witnesses a brutal attack. She and her boyfriend Kit call the police, and in that moment, it is not only the victim's life that is changed forever. Fifteen years on, Laura and Kit live in fear, and while Laura knows she was right to speak out, the events that follow have taught her that you can never see the whole picture: something, and someone, is always in the dark.

So, I didn't really spoil it, but sometimes I hate when someone says to me--oh the ending!! You'll be so surprised.  Cuz then I won't want to read it.

Happy Sunday!

Friday Friend Recipe #122 -- Savory Pepper Steak

Come with me as I continue to countdown my Friday Friend Cookbook!

What is it, you may ask?

In a nutshell...
About 17 years ago, 50 of my closest friends and family, who had been on an e-mail forum with me, sent in recipes in different categories and we compiled a cookbook.
I decided to count those down!
Why?

Because  one night I was looking thru the cookbook and I said, "I should make every recipe in here for my blog"
The Handyman--who thinks he knows me better than I know myself, said,  "you'll never EVER do that."
Well,  maybe I will!  Maybe I'll show him!

Which brings me to recipe #122 MY Savory Pepper Steak

I cannot tell a like, I got this recipe years ago, from my mother-in-law, but I make it all the time (or I used to) and the Handyman loves it (maybe because it  was his mother's?), and it was inexpensive and in the crockpot (2 deal breakers when I had a young family ), also I was the one who turned it for the Friday Friend Cookbook---so I am claiming it.

This is good and easy!  If you don't like peppers, just don't eat them.

Tasty strips of round steak are seasoned (I think I seasoned them first) and then slow cooked with peppers (I always use green peppers, but red would work) and stewed tomatoes. 

I serve it with/over rice, but egg noodles would be just as good.

Oh...and the muffins.  Blueberry muffins out of a box--the cheapest I can find, because that's how I did it 30 years ago when the boys were little and we had no money.

It's a fall/winter nostalgic meal for me.

And now MY story (with a gazillion photos)

After 122 times of cooking and posting I have trouble thinking up stories about people--and this one is about me--so I started thinking 'what I am all about?'

And... I think I'm about groups.  Or Tribes!

I just read a book on why tribes are important to our psyche.  We want to be with people who support us and surround us and, well, the definition is:  a social division in a traditional society consisting of families or communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties, with a common culture and dialect.

I like my tribes!

I like structure.  I like things to happen a certain way.  I don't like spur of the moment things. 

My friends tease me about this all the time.

Boring? Nah 

Look how much fun I have with my people!

I like Friday Nights with our Friday Night Friends....

and sometimes we go other places than just our homes!

I like 6am Bible Study on Thursdays with my 6am friends.....

at which we never take photos because we are usually in our jammies, but we also put Christmas in a shoebox this year for Operation Christmas Child, so I did take a few photos of that.  And we took our old Pastor out for breakfast before she moved a couple of times, so there are those photos, but mostly its' our jammies, our coffee and a bible study.

I like Girlfriend Tuesdays (the Handyman named it this) with Debbie Engstrom every Tuesday (again at 6am).....

 We were so young here!

And since we have coffee at 6am and we do always have our jammies on---there is no way that we have ever taken a picture of us at that time. 

This is the closest we have come:

And here we are now, but not at 6am  Tuesday Girlfriend Time.

This is from Tequila time!  (or cooking club--you will notice there is some overlap of friends from group to group here. Small town friendships and all)

I like ALL my  different book clubs once a month.....

I like Cooking Club  4-6 times a year.....

I like Wednesday lunches with these characters (we are doing EVERY restaurant in town this year and rating them).....

I like my 5x5 (which used to be a church group, but now isn't anything resembling 'church' at all-- we still all attend the same church-- it's just that what happens in the 5x5 stays in the 5x5) who get together 4-6 times a year.....

we used to  be a 6x6, but one couple moved away. We've been getting together for over 10 years!

We also made Christmas shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child this holiday season!

I like the "Clique".  Old friends who have been  meeting for coffee in the morning and then later in the day going to lunch every Friday for a gazillion  years......

We even have a CHICK CLIQUE frame!

Besides lunch, we always did birthday celebrations too!

I like this structure!  I like knowing that I have these friends and they have my back!

I love these people.

Then, last but not least--never least--I have the whole Friday Friends group, whom have all contributed to this cookbook in one way or another!

And that's who I am!

And that is recipe #122--

--out of 298!

The Weight of Silence

From Goodreads:

“Two little girls are missing. Both are seven years old and have been missing for at least sixteen hours.”

Calli Clark is a dreamer. A sweet, gentle girl, Callie suffers from selective mutism, brought on by a tragedy she experienced as a toddler. Her mother Antonia tries her best
to help, but is trapped in a marriage to a violent husband.

Petra Gregory is Calli’s best friend, her soul mate and her voice. But neither Petra nor Calli have been heard
from since their disappearance was discovered.

Now Calli and Petra’s families are bound by the question of what has happened to their children. As support turns to suspicion, it seems the answers lie trapped in the silence of unspoken secrets.

From Me:

It's been a long time since I've read this one.  It was a book club choice for May.  So, while not really a review-- just keeping track of what I read---I know that I enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing with some good twists in the plot.

I would recommend if you like a mystery.  

It was one of those books that the more I think about the more I like.

Saturday Snapshot

 

Saturday Snapshot is hosted by

West Metro Mommy Reads!

 

To participate in Saturday Snapshot: post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post to West Metro Mommy Reads!   Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.

 

 

I am kind of doing a BIG CHEAT today.  Well, not a cheat exactly, but catching up with something I should have done long ago. 

In December my Lit Wits book club had a fun gift exchange and I was going  to write about it ---way back in December.   Then I thought maybe January.

And now here  it is the middle of March.

I owe an apology to the Lit Wits for not getting these up in a timely manner.

So...  close your eyes and think back to the holidays to get yourself in the Christmas gift exchange mood...  well, I guess you can't keep them closed or you can't see these fun pics!

 

We had a great time at book club!!

After eating (this is a dinner book club) and discussing the book--The Rosie Project, we exchanged gifts.

We did a sock exchange and our gifts had to be put in the socks.

 

 

 

 

You know I LOVE these ladies  (girls, women---I'm not sure what I'm supposed to call them?  FRIENDS!) 

I find that a  lot of book bloggers have book club friends whom they love too!

So, enough about book club love...and just get on with my Saturday Snapshots.

 

 

 

 

I wasn't going to write any more words, BUT LOOK at Renee's cocktail bucket?  Holy Cow!!  She made them in bulk!!!

 

Cheers!

And Happy Reading!