Yellow Wallpaper

I generally have a good memory and there are a lot of things I can remember very well--in fact, I have a bit of a reputation at work for keeping track of stuff and remembering things I have seen. However, there are plenty of things I don't, or can't, remember (and some I don't want to). For some reason I haven't memorized my library card number, despite the fact that I've had the same card for about fourteen years and use it regularly. I think it has to do with the fact that I can just scan it so I don't have to type in the numbers. I also worry that I'm not going to remember any passwords anymore now that I started using a program that remembers them for me. What if I have to log in to something from a different computer? I also have the same problem with my AppleID--I need it so infrequently that every time I need to use it, I have no idea what the password is, so I just have to reset it each time. Another thing that I cannot remember is music. I'v...

Several people I know have been following the Eight Minute Memoir prompts that Ann Dee Ellis has been posting on her blog.I'm more than a year behind, but I don't care, so I'm going to try it anyway to see if I can get back into writing and blogging. Instead of starting with the current prompt, I'm going to go back to the beginning.  I remember when gas still cost 99 cents a gallon, and it seemed incredible when the price started creeping up higher than a dollar. I also remember when we lived in Seattle in 2008 and gas prices were crazy high, and we once passed a gas station that was selling it for over $5.00 a gallon, and I thought that was outrageous so I took a picture. I used to worry a lot about gas prices, but now I don't go anywhere besides work, the library, and a few stores, so I only fill up my car about once every three weeks and gas is a small part of my budget. I remember when the kids were little and they work up early and I could put them to bed...

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah This book made me laugh and cringe, often at the same time. If you're familiar at all with Trevor Noah, you'll completely understand. It is such a good book and offers a lot of new insights into a life that's very different from my own; I highly recommend it, but with the slight caveat that some people may find parts of it a bit disturbing. The Finishing School by Joanna Goodman This book had an interesting premise and unique setting, and I was enjoying it until things got really weird towards the end. I was surprised by the main twist in the central mystery and thought it was solidly constructed, but in general I did not enjoy the book.  Lizzy and Jane by Katherine Reay This is the third book by Reay that I've read within two months, and I think it's my favorite. First of all, it's set in Seattle. Second, it involves food. Third, it has a sweet romance. And fourth, the protagonist grows and becomes a better person, but t...