Author Archives: chick

A Great Series

Posted on 01/23/2024 by chick

Two of the books of Lloyd Alexander’s Chronicles of Prydain were on the Top 100 Children’s Books. If I’d had any say in the list, I’d have included the entire series as a single item (ditto the Harry Potter and … Continue reading →

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Don’t Read It for the Mystery

Posted on 01/22/2024 by chick

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb, B- In The Violin Conspiracy, high schooler Ray McMillian wants to play the violin, but his mother wants him to get his GED and quit school early so that he can get a job. … Continue reading →

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The Wind in the Willows

Posted on 01/21/2024 by chick

Continuing my quest to read all of the Top 100 Children’s Books, I read The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. In short, the story is about three anthropomorphic animals (Mole, Ratty, and Badger) who become friends and help … Continue reading →

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A Couple of Things I Learned Last Year

Posted on 01/20/2024 by chick

If you need to survive in outer space without a spacesuit, you should not hold your breath. Having a lot of air in your lungs will cause your lungs to explode. Ouch! So let out as much air as you … Continue reading →

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Random Thoughts 1/17/24

Posted on 01/17/2024 by chick

My daughter recently turned 13. It’s hard to believe that it was over 13 years ago that my little girl was ushered into this world by a snowstorm, and yet I cannot imagine life without her. If there’s one thing … Continue reading →

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Mind Your Assumptions

Posted on 01/16/2024 by chick

It’s still arguably a “man’s world,” but I thought we had established that women live in it, too, and that they also like many of the same things that men do. I guess I was wrong. If we had in … Continue reading →

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Losses

Posted on 01/15/2024 by chick

My Uncle John died shortly before Christmas. He was a bit of a strange guy, but he had a good heart and a wonderful storytelling manner. My Aunt Gayle died a couple of days ago. She was kind and smart, … Continue reading →

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No Raise :(

Posted on 01/14/2024 by chick

For the first time since I started my job back in 1995, I did not get a year-end raise. It wasn’t my fault. The company froze salaries and also slashed Christmas bonuses (ouch!). They announced these unfortunate things long before … Continue reading →

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Reading in 2023

Posted on 01/13/2024 by chick

I ultimately finished 47 books in 2023, a number which was better than what I’ve come to expect and fairly close to what I’d hoped for. The list of books seemed very American until I started looking into the particulars. … Continue reading →

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Knee

Posted on 01/12/2024 by chick

Yesterday I had an appointment with the knee doctor. He examined me knee, moved it around, said it seemed to be working fine. But my x-rays show a new area of arthritis along the right side, and he suspects this … Continue reading →

Posted in Crazy Me | 1 Comment