It is a hot and sticky day. What with the piercing calls of song birds and the repetitive shrill of crickets, I feel transported to the rain forest. When I poured myself a glass of cold water this morning, condensation immediately sprung up, both outside and inside the cup. The toilet seats are perpetually damp.
The sky is this milky white color and there is the sound of thunder far off in the distance. Lynn, pretending to be all nonchalant, has come off the couch and settled herself next to me, in case of a storm. Should there be, she is prepared to stay at all times underfoot, causing mayhem and looking hapless.
I have been reading "The Coal Tattoo" by Silas House. It's a sequel of sorts to "A Parchment of Leaves" which is also a beautiful book, and set in the Appalachians. That was my fourth library book, I also took out "Memoirs of a Geisha" which I have read at least four or five times.
Also "Winter Solstice" by Rosamund Pilcher which I have also read a million times, but there's nothing like the comfort of one of her novels. Not only is the writing lovely, but it's comforting because as a writer, I can see the many times she is reusing her favorite characters, phrases and metaphors. One she especially likes is to compare long hair to a silk tassel, which I thought quite clever.
I like seeing how other authors are repetitious, because I see it in myself as well and it drives me crazy from time to time. Like talking about the weather. But I like talking about the weather, it grounds me. Later, when I reread my blog, I like seeing how the seasons are passing by, paragraph by paragraph.
Lastly, I took out a completely new book, "Haunted Ground," which is set in Western Ireland and is about the decapitated head of a red haired girl found in a peat bog. Grisly stuff, yes, but fascinating. Peat bogs can keep bodies perfectly preserved for centuries even, so this head could be ten years old or a hundred years old.
I was reading it yesterday when waiting for Keith to help two soldiers fix the front breaks on their truck. They were using the shop on post and couldn't figure out how to use the lift, so Keith drove all the way back on post and stayed an hour helping them out while I read in the car. I love that about him.
