How is it the end of January already? Although January always does feel like a very long month doesn’t it? I was doing so well with my reading coming into the new year but I think as I usually take a couple of days off around the holidays, I feel like I will always have that extra time and have big plans and then reality hits. Haha…

So even though it’s a long month, my reading has been very slow going. I’ve been quite busy with work but I’m also really carving out time for my crafty/creative practice. So that means that I am reading every day but maybe not as much.

That means that in January I only finished two books: The Librarianist by Patrick deWitt and The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton. I really enjoyed The Lock Artist and my mystery book group for the most part gave it a thumbs up also.

I’m going in to February with three books and I still need to add a book for the Japanese Literature reading challenge. Maybe the month also calls for a bit of romance reading. We’ll see.

Anyway, I feel like I have so much more to share but I’m sitting here yawning and need to get to bed because I have back-to-back meetings tomorrow. I hope you all had a great reading month and let me know if you had any outstanding reads!

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you’ve all been staying warm during this winter. It was very cold here last week but thankfully no repeat of the 2022 winter storm. Anyway, thank you to Deb at Readerbuzz for hosting this chat.

What I’m reading: For my commute I started a new audiobook, Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng. It starts with the dramatic sentence that, “Lydia is dead. But they don’t know it yet.” Lydia being a teenager in 1970s Ohio. I’m on chapter four and am really hooked.

What I’m watching: We love crime dramas and recently discovered Gangs of Oslo. Two childhood friends are now on opposite sides of the law. Three episodes in and so far so good.

What I’m savoring: Given that it’s been so cold it’s perfect soup weather. So we’ve been having a variety of soups and hot chocolate for an afternoon treat.

What I’ve been creating: I mentioned that I’m participating in Wanderlust 2024 and so far have kept up with the classes. Ok, it’s only three but that’s a great start for me. One of the classes we did recently was on watercolors and I love the look of watercolors but always find them so challenging. I think because I have typically worked with oils or acrylics and they can be more forgiving as they allow you more time. But the class I took was great and first step was just to try and make different brush strokes and familiarize yourself with the brushes you have.

I wanted to share a photo of two watercolor spreads of tidal pools. No laughing at the mussels (dark blue items) on the bottom of the page! haha. We were supposed to use a toothbrush to make them and I didn’t have an extra toothbrush lying around so I had to use a small brush. Anyway, I cut up a larger piece of watercolor paper and taped it side by side so I could work on both at the same time. I was actually quite happy with the end result.

What is my quote for the week: “Don’t think about making art. Just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad. Whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding make even more art.” ~ Andy Warhol.

I think this quote can easily apply to any type of creative endeavor. So, hope it also gives you that little push to go and do something creative.

How about you, how’s your weekend going? Any big plans for next week?