Education - An Investment You Can Bank On

Hi Mrs. B.

I was reading the news this morning and read an opinion piece that spoke to the heart of a subject near and dear to our hearts: budget cuts to schools and educational programs.

Mrs. B., we've spoken about this you and I (before I started blogging, years ago now) that investing in children's education is investing in the future. It's part of why you kept working at a school library in a small town on a shoestring budget for so many years, why you took time with kids like me to introduce us to books that would spark our minds and foster our curiosity. I don't think I would be nearly as well educated without you and teachers like you throughout my young life.

Glowing... Praise.

Hi Mrs. B.

I just finished reading a truly great true crime book: The Poisoner's Handbook. Okay, so you know I love histories and science. And crime. Forensics makes me geek just a little. But, this book... I'm telling you, this book would really encourage anyone to get their geek on. 

Hungry....

Hey Mrs. B,

So, the holidays got me started on reducing that pile of reading that keeps growing. I started with the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and followed it up with Catching Fire, the second book, which I just finished reading last week. I have to admit, it's an exciting ride and I'm looking forward to reading the third in the series, Mockingjay soon. It's a pretty rich world she's described. I think I can speak some about both books without spoilers by saying that this arc really does bring in the idea of history repeating.

Tired....

Hey, Mrs. B.

It's been a bit of a busy and exhausting week, but I'm hoping to talk to you tomorrow about some of the great reads I've had this week, talk to you about another CRAZY couple of book quotes, and generally give you a bit more of an update on life in general.

Much Love!

-Odd

Cooking with Gas

Hey Mrs. B!

So, this weekend, we had guests and whenever we have guests I try to take the opportunity to make something new for dessert. I was super pleased with the outcome of this:

This was SOOO good. And it even managed to look like the picture in the magazine!

You Can Lead an Elephant to Water

...But apparently not without a dram of whiskey.

I haven't exactly finished Water for Elephants yet, but I'm having a real need to talk about it as I reach the home stretch. Now, this is not a book you would have recommended to me back when. However, it is a fantastic book and one that I've been meaning to read for over a year.

New Year, Starting Over

Hey Mrs. B,

I think you once told me that each new year is a new opportunity to start again right. That, and to "focus, Angle. Focus." (It was either you or Mrs. R. Part of why I love you both.)

Which I'm going to try to do more of this year. Focus is my first resolution: focus on remembering to write more often, focus on remembering to read more often, focus on finishing more often. I'm going to do my best to write you a letter a week, Mrs. B.

There have been a lot of things on my mind in the last year to write you about and this year, Ma'am, I am going to do something about it. More funny book quotes. More books. More about life.

I missed you this year.

Your Favorite Bookworm,

-OddAngle.