Dropping in for a chat.

I intended to send this almost a week ago. I slaved and slaved and got it just right and then forgot to save it. I was so peeved I had no desire to try to re-create it again. (How do you re-create perfection?!!!@*#*) Well, here I am again, giving it my best.

Put the coffee on. Black, please. I have doughnuts.

Oh, the world is a mess right now. The news is depressing (but IMHO necessary to keep up with.) I don’t trust Russia; after Ukraine, it will be Poland, and there’s historical repeat if there ever was one. American politics is a sinkhole, especially our Congress, whose purpose has been lost among the conspiracy theories, missing laptops, criminal indictments, mean and nasty rallies, and….oh, I better stop or I will rant.

And that is not why I’m at your doorstep today. I thought I’d share some good things that I’ve discovered in the past few weeks, as I look for the positive and joyful, in memory of my joyful buddy Carol. I need to connect to my friends, where my joy exists. And you, dear readers, are among those friends. Thank you for answering my knock. (The doughnuts are chocolate-covered. Of course.)

OK, so here I go…

My friend Kelly and I were treated to an evening with Randy Rainbow recently. Politics aside (just for the record, I believe he captures it quite well), I think the man is a musical genius. His lyrics, rhymes, perfection of parodies is so entertaining. And I would totally recommend the pizza at Bombo across the street for a gorgonzola, mushroom, and I forget-all-the-rest pizza. And best beet salad I’ve ever had - and I’ve had many best. . Mmmwwaaa!

His suits got more spectacular through the performance. As you can well imagine.

I’ve recently discovered two new mystery authors, both of whom set their stories in Seattle. I enjoy knowing all the places they refer to.

And I have some book loves to pass on.

Holly. Stephen King. Loved it. I think he turns phrases like few others can. And I love Holly. Stephen King fans will know her. I couldn’t put this one down. Not horror or particularly scary; just the figuring out of a crime. Though I do love being scared just reading a book - think Misery or Christine - If an author can scare me with words, I think that’s great writing. Anyone can scare me with film, easy-peasy.

A 3-generation story I couldn’t put down.

The thing about this mystery series is it takes place in a variety of Italian locations. Just reading about the food he eats, the museums he visits, and the places he visits makes me want to go to Italy. NOW!

Poppy is delighting us. She is curious, loves being in laps, has the energy for racing down the long hallway just for fun, has a cacophony of meows all of which we are deciphering, quite successfully I might add. She is full of personality, and most of that has come out since she - we - lost our buddy Moosie. Until then she was a watcher, careful observer. I called her Ho-Hum then, but there’s nothing Ho-Hum about her. Loves loves belly rubs.