I haven’t written in a while and I wish that I had. I’ve had a few ideas and just lacked the drive to get them down before the thoughts faded. One pondering I had a week ago has stuck with me though. It was some kind of comparison of myself as a helium tank. I think it was meant to talk about inflating other people and how sometimes your tank is just empty. I am sure it would have been absolutely profound but my tank was so empty when I got home I didn’t write it down and now this vague recollection is all I have. I think we all can agree that my half-though is less than sufficient. Lesson learned.

I am short on insight these days. We’re facing another move and all the life changes that come with it. I’m mostly excited but I am also noticing I’ve started falling into my old, familiar coping techniques. What do I do when things get hard? Avoid, avoid, avoid and then when everyone had given up on you, rise to the challenge. Do I have to be that dramatic? Apparently!

One good thing that has come from my complete denial about the changes coming down the pike is I have been doing plenty of reading. I know I said I didn’t want this space to only be about book reviews but I spend a lot of time with books right now. My New Year’s resolution was to read twice as many books as I did last year and now I’m only 4 books away from that goal.

Here’s the deal. I sometimes don’t know what it interesting and what people could care less about. I thought I would ask for a little feedback. Below is a list of every book I’ve read in 2016 and 2017. Can you leave a comment about any book you see on this list that you might want to hear my thoughts on or my recommendations? The books with a (*) are books I loved and would suggest. Here it goes:

A Thousand Splendid Suns*	Khaled Hosseini
Exposed: The Secret Life of Jodi Arias	Jane Velez-Mitchell
If I Can’t Have You*	Greg Olson & Rebecca Morris
Normal*	Graeme Cameron
Pretty Little Killers	Daleen Berry & Geoffrey Fuller
The Brave*	Nicholas Evans
To Heaven and Back	Mary C. Neal, MD

Carry On, Warrior*	Glennon Doyle Melton
A Long Way Home*	Saroo Brierley
90 Minutes in Heaven	Don Piper
Coyotes*	Ted Conover
Contrabando*	Don Henry Ford, JR.
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right*	Al Franken
The Alchemist*	Paulo Coelho
The Devil’s Highway*	Luis Alberto Urrea
The Help*	Kathryn Stockett
Picture Perfect: The Jodi Arias Story	Shanna Hogan

I guess I should explain that while I was pregnant with my second child I was going crazy and needed something to occupy my mind. I ended up watching the entire Jodi Arias murder trial on YouTube and therefore feel invested enough in it to, every now and then, read a book about it still. In my defense, that last one was something my hubby found at the dollar store so I felt obligated to buy it if it was only a dollar. I think reading it did let me know I’m pretty much over it. I think the bitch got what she deserved.

Right now I’m beginning to read John Irving’s “A Prayer for Owen Meany” but it is a big undertaking and will likely take me a solid two weeks to complete.

So, if you saw anything in that list that you want to hear my take on, let me know. I am also ALWAYS searching for more “must-reads” to add to the canvas bag sitting by the couch telling me to keep going. I love searching for treasures at Half Price Books and thrift stores so let me know if my life is lacking a certain book.

Thank you in advance for feedback. Sometimes I just want to send words out but this time I truly want a few back. Let ‘er rip!