sprite writes
broodings from the burrow

September 30, 2022


naya, sunset, and another gear
posted by soe 2:00 am

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. House- and dog-sitting for a friend means I spend a lot of time curled up with a snuggly pup.

2. Tonight’s sunset was the kind where every moment you think it’s gotten as beautiful as it possibly can and then it amps it up again.

3. A couple strangers at pickup volleyball offered compliments on my play (one guy made particularly head-turning comparisons) and a friend whose own skills I respect echoed some of them.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

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September 27, 2022


top ten books using interesting typography
posted by soe 2:34 am

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic from That Artsy Reader Girl asks us to share books with interesting use of typography on the cover. Here are ten such books I’ve judged by their covers and would like to read:

 


  1. Attack of the Black Rectangles by A.S. King

  2. The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood

  3. Hummingbird by Natalie Lloyd

  4. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

  5. Present Tense Machine by Gunnhild Øyehaug

  6. This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

  7. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

  8. Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi

  9. The Wax Pack by Brad Balukjian

  10. You Go First by Erin Entrada Kelly

How about you? Do you like when typography is front and center in a book jacket, or would you prefer a more illustrated cover?

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September 24, 2022


final september weekend plans
posted by soe 2:01 am

I kicked off this weekend with an apple-picking and cider doughnut-acquiring trip with Sarah and Rudi. Rudi and I were going to quickly eat supper and then head back out to catch the first day of Art All Night, but I’d stayed up late getting some job applications ready to submit this morning, and between that and the day in the sun, I was done and utterly crashed on the sofa.

But the weekend stretches before us, and here’s what I’m hoping to fill it with:

  • Baking with some of the apples we picked. There’s definitely a crisp in my future and maybe a quick bread or an apple cake.
  • Playing volleyball. The last grass court volleyball season of the year kicks off tomorrow.
  • Working in the garden. There should be more tomatoes to pick and I might try planting the potato that’s on the counter that started to sprout. It’s late in the season, but what do I have to lose?
  • Picking up holds from the library.
  • Taking advantage of the second day of Art All Night. I’ll be more awake, and at least some of the activities will be in our neighborhood, so even if I’m not…
  • Going to my friend’s on Sunday.
  • Shopping at the farmers market. We’ve got to be getting close to the end of peaches and corn.
  • Getting the group baby shower gift for a friend sorted out.
  • Knitting.
  • Tidying up the kitchen. We found a small bag of potatoes had gone bad the other night, because it had gotten hidden behind some other things on a shelf. It’s time to get that space sorted out.
  • Getting some sleep. And with that, I’m off!
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September 23, 2022


sunset, back home, and bribery
posted by soe 12:41 am

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. The sky reminds me of a poster Grey Kitten used to have on his wall growing up, all pinks and oranges.

2. Rudi comes home after ten days away.

3. We got gelato as a chaser to our second COVID boosters.

How about you? What’s beautiful in your world lately?

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September 20, 2022


top ten books on my fall 2022 tbr list
posted by soe 2:18 am

It’s that time of the year: the Top Ten Tuesday topic from That Artsy Reader Girl asking what we hope we’ll be reading in the upcoming season:

  1. Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn (a non-Veronica Speedwell title!)
  2. A Restless Truth by Freya Marske
  3. GennaRose Nethercott’s Thistlefoot
  4. Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet
  5. The Kiss Curse by Erin Sterling
  6. Jenna Evans Welch’s Spells for Lost Things
  7. This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
  8. Sisterhood of Sleuths by Jennifer Chambliss Bertram
  9. These Precious Days by Ann Pratchett
  10. Aurora’s End by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Is there anything you’re particularly looking forward to reading this fall?

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September 19, 2022


plans for the autumnal equinox week
posted by soe 9:19 am

It’s been a while since I’ve contemplated what I’m hoping to do with my week. But Rudi comes home and a new season begins, and it seems like an obvious time to consider what the next seven days might hold:

  • Attending the seasonal volunteer training (my volunteer gig kicks back off next Monday)
  • Playing volleyball
  • Picking Rudi up at the airport first thing in the morning (and convincing him the next logical stop is the doughnut shop)
  • Making a cherry tomato dish
  • Knitting
  • Cleaning
  • Applying for a job
  • Doing laundry
  • Going apple picking with Sarah
  • Planting some seedlings in and weeding the garden
  • Catching some of Art All Night on Saturday
  • Practicing getting up early a couple days so dogsitting doesn’t come as a horrible shock next week!
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