I have no photographs from yesterday. How did this happen?
Yesterday morning I drove out to visit my people and half way down the road, I discovered that my body is not ready for the driver’s seat yet. But I had promised so I continued. When I got home, I did only critical things like waters then I banished myself to the couch (without moving) for two hours. By then it was almost dark and very slowly I went to feed out. Eleven eggs yesterday and a sore Celi.
I Am fine standing, lying, sitting on the edge of a chair, I can even bend a little more but no car. No shopping (Oh the horror if it! Laugh.).
My eldest son said to me a few days ago.
“You know what your biggest problem will be?”
“What darling” I said, the phone in one hand and the poker for the fire in the other.
“You will feel better and think you Are better.”
“If I feel better I won’t be better?”
“No, you will still be healing. And you can easily break the bone all over again if you are not careful, especially when it has only just finished knitting. Then you will be less than better. ”
“Does it do cable?” I opened the fire door and poked at the embers to let in some air.
“What?”
“The knitting bone. Can it do cable, I have always been useless at cable. I can knit and purl but cable.. “. I hung the poker back up with it’s other cast iron sisters on the special cast iron daddy stand. And studied the fire wood pile left for me by some sweet soul who thinks the fire box is three inches longer than it actually is.
“Are you listening to me?” he said.
“Of course I am listening darling, you are the master of the broken bone. We all listen to you when it comes to broken bones and then breaking them again. How is your floating collar bone anyway. Aha.” I spied a nice fat piece just the right length. ” So how will I know when I am better?”
“You have to listen to your body. Then add two weeks.”
“I am listening to my body and it says it needs a drink.”
“You can’t drink and take pain relief.”
“I know, that’s why I cut down” I picked up the piece of firewood one handed and swung it into the fire box. It flew in sideways knocking a handful of embers flying out onto the floor.
“On the drinking?”
“No darling, what a horrible thought, the pain relief.” Licking my fingers and picking up the embers that had flown out, I threw them back in. My mouth tasted sooty. I pulled myself up and kicked the last few little fire starters onto the tile. I bashed the wood a few times with the wood fire door then latched it shut.
“You shouldn’t drink and take pain meds, Mum.”
“I know darling. I don’t drink ALL day.”
A paternal pause. “Well, remember what I said. This is going to take time. You have to be patient.”
“I know darling but patience is so tedious. I can’t just lounge about like some kind of Roman whore-house mistress forever. My hair is not right for a start. I have nothing to wear. ”
“One more week at least. Ask The Fellowship for another reading list. They are all good readers.”
“Ah. Now that is an excellent idea.”
Do you remember our last reading list? You all wrote your suggestions and then I created a page for all of us to print out. Wait there, I will find it – so you can see where we left off last year. Here it is – 95 books to read. And yes I have about read them all now, it was a year ago after all.
So if you have a book you recommend – put the title and author in the comments lounge today or tomorrow. And I will make us a new list. And copy it into the next days post. Just in time for the holidays. That should keep us out of trouble for a while!
Oh, I am looking forward to this!
your friend on the couch,
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
109 responses to “So: What are you reading?”
Wonderful account of your saucy conversation. My parents won’t do as I say, either.
Such good book suggestions everyone’s making. Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese, is not yet on the list. Oh! It’s so powerful and amazing. Riveting. And The Dirty Life: A Memoir of Farming, Food, and Love by Kristin Kimball — maybe this is too close to home for you right now. But it’s super. Someone mentioned Dick Francis, who is always fun, and his heroes always heal AMAZINGLY fast and they swear by champagne as the medicine of choice. Healing energies beaming your way from here. — Diana
Love this, I’m always looking for new books. Favorites are Rosamunde Pilcher (and her son Robin), Maeve Binchy, The Irish Country Doctor books by Patrick Taylor, I think there are eight of them now and anything by Cathy Lamb. Now understand, these aren’t deep philosophical reads, just good entertainment. I also like the Thrones series and for kind of far fetched adventure anything by David Lyn Golemon. Personally, having a rather high tolerance for pain meds I never turned down a drink when I was on them. Busted a couple of ribs years ago, they said ‘this’ll take a while to heal’. I thought ‘ah give me a couple of weeks’. I was really wrong.
Forgot, (since I turned 60 I do that a lot). Right now am reading ‘The Captain’s Daughter’ by Leah Fleming. Pretty good.
Oh, do read Random Harvest by James Hilton….it is a marvelous, twisting love story (it’s also a movie with Greer Garson…wonderful)……right now I’m reading The Witching Hour by Anne Rice….it’s the history of the Mayfair Witches…..I also recommend anything by Pat Conroy. If you’re into nonfiction, I just finished Primetime Propaganda by Ben Shapiro about Hollywood’s influence on American culture over the years………….I love to read…LOL! 🙂 Rest, rest and more rest, Celi! Be a good Mom and do what Son says…LOL!
Oh Celi! I am so sorry to read about the damage the wind did. Both for the tree house and you! We had some damage to our High School, and half the town was without power for albout 36 hours. We were one of the lucky homes, spared from the power outage. Our worst problem was no phone (cell or land line) for about ten days. Finally fixed yesterday.
it will take a little longer to heal, and I will chime in with my two cents of asking you to take the time you need! My current read is the third in the series “The Hunger Games.” The whole series is an enjoyable read, in my opinion.
Hi Mlissabeth 🙂
I read the whole series of Hunger Games and really loved it! It’s all a battle of good vs. evil, I think…..a really good read!
No need for photos, your words paint a very clear image… I’m still laughing 😀
My of 2013…. and I’m still reading Michael Pollan. I put down The Ominvores Dilemma and read Cooked, which was fantastic, and am now back to the T.O.D.
I have no idea what happened to my comment… weird. My book club’s book of 2013 was Blood & Beauty by Sarah Dunant (a fiction novel based on the Borgia’s), and it was very good 🙂
As if you didn’t have enough choices: The Goldfinch (Donna Tartt) and The Book Thief (Markus Zusak).
Get better soon!
Your son is so wise. Lucky you. I recommend my own book, ‘Touching Snow: a Taranaki Memoir’. It will bring back NZ memories for you and tell you of a girl’s determination to get to the mountain, even though the family had no car and there was no transport of other kinds. You are climbing the mountain of healing right now and it’s asking you to develop new capacities, such as patience stillness, compassion, self care. Maybe this book will inspire you. You can check it out at
http://www.julietbatten.co.nz/books/
and I can even send you an ebook version if you wish.
Do listen to that wise young man you raised! Feeling all mended? Take it slow for another two weeks! Two books I am reading and enjoying right now are:
Jackdaws by Ken Follett which is set in Normandy during the last days of May 1945 so seems very appropriate to read while living here in Normandy
God of Love – a Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity and Islam by Mirabai Starr. This is required reading for a course I’ll be taking starting in December and, reading it, I feel like I have been looking for Ms Starr my whole life.
Take care and take time. Let yourself heal. A list of good books is perfect for that sort of activity. 🙂
I’m currently reading “Full Dark, No Stars” by Stephen King. Of the books I read this year, my two favorites are “Flight Behavior” by Barbara Kingsolver and “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini. “Wanderlust: A History of Walking” by Rebecca Solnit was an interesting non-fiction read.
I have just finished re-reading Sheila Weller’s Girls Like Us, a combined biography of Carole King, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon. It is jam-packed with information about the singers and session musicians, husbands, lovers and children, obscure records, etc.
You do need to listen about being cautious with a partially healed / newly healed bone. A second crash would be much worse….book list is a great idea – can’t believe it’s been so long since the last one.
If you like historical fiction of Scotland(Mary Queen of Scots), England, France – even as far as Russia, try one of Dorothy Dunnett’s series. History/Court intrigue/Clans and family loyalties/Royals/political traitors/spies. Great characters. The Lymond Chronicle is an outstanding series (Book 1 is “Game of Kings”, then”Queen’s Play”, “Disorderly Knights”, “Pawn in Frankincense”, “Ringed Castle”, finally “Checkmate” is the series end.) She has written multiple series – once you get started…. Dunnett is one of my favorite authors.
Do you ever read Robin Hobb? She writes assorted science fiction/fantasy that could be historical fiction in a strange foreign land. Start with Assassin’s Apprentice “a young man destined to alter the course of a royal house in grave peril.” Quite epic in tone
Hmmm…I must make time to read and finish that book I started! (without a tumble, please)
Loved the telephone call! Ha! Just what is it you’re drinking that is giving you such relief that you can lower your meds? 😉
I too am an avid reader. Especially since I’ve been under the weather for the last 7 weeks. Lately it’s been all happy, joyful, slightly romantic, holiday stories. Nothing stressful. That’s the key! 🙂
Your son knows you pretty well. 🙂 A new book list is just the right thing.
You like to tease your son? Too funny, but he is right you know. Glad you are mending, even slowly, it is progress.