Sundays with Sam is a combination of Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer and Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews.
My Week in Review
Happy Sunday! What did I do this week? Not much. The laptop rollout went ok. The size of the work laptops is a blessing and a curse. It's small, so it is light which is a plus since I bring it back and forth to work each day. And, it's small, so I have to plug it into my monitor in order to have enough real estate to work. I enjoyed being able to go out on the patio or sit in my glider to work sometimes, but I cannot manage that with such a small screen. Forced to sit at my desk.
Wednesday, I had off for a dentist appointment. Those always go well for me. It was also the day of my mother's hip replacement which went well. I am allowed to work home for the next two weeks to help out. It's actually amazing how mobile my mother is following the surgery. Apparently, that is expected with a hip replacement. I mean, I had surgery on my toe and was off my feet for almost three months. One would think a hip would be more intense.
Does anyone drink "flavored" seltzer? Notice I put flavored in quotes. I drink water most of the time, but sometimes, I want something different. I normally drink one diet Coke a day, but I was attempting to drink less. I have purchased so many different flavors and brands of seltzer, but they all taste the same. I can smell the "flavor", but they all taste like acidic water to me. Anyone have a better experience?
On the Blog
- Monday: Isn't It Romantic? - With Love From Cold World, Breaking All the Rules
- Tuesday: TTT - "One" Word Titles
- Wednesday: CWW - Faking Christmas, The Travelling Cat Chronicles
- Thursday: One Old, One New - Karen Hawkins Edition
- Friday: Spell the Month in Books - July 2023
- Saturday: Sloth Goes Places - New York
Let's Discuss
Stacking the Shelves
There were a few read-now books on Netgalley. I could not resist the puppy book. I mean - puppies! I have had my eye on the Sivec book for a while, so when I saw it on sale, I clicked.
Netgalley/Edelweiss
- Four Weddings and a Puppy by Lizzie Shane
Invites
- Hedging Your Bets by Jayne Denker
Purchased
- The Story of Us by Tara Sivec
Read Last Week
This was a good week for me. I had NO DNFs, one 5-star, and two 4.5-star books. I had loved Fischer's last book and was happy when her follow up wowed me as well. The Book of Silver Linings was my favorite of the week. The magical (mystical?) element was a bit lighter here, but I enjoyed the way it was used in the story. There was a great storyline related to her engagement ring, and every scene with the rescue dogs was wonderful.
Find all my reviews on Goodreads
Books
- The Book of Silver Linings by Nan Fischer - ★★★★★
- Agatha Arch is Afraid of Everything by Kristin Bair - ★★★★
- The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa - ★★★★ 1/2
- My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine - ★★★★
- Code Name Charming by Lucy Parker - ★★★★ 1/2
Currently Reading
It was so busy at work this week, and I used all my spare time at home to read. Therefore, I am still listening to Sweet Spot for Love. I still love the kid and the bromance, but I keep hoping the heroine's insecurities ease.
Charm City Rocks is so good. It's quite fun, and all the characters are wonderful too.
- Charm City Rocks by Matthew Norman
- Sweet Spot for Love by Aliya Burke
To Be Read
- The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy
- The Year of Second Chances by Lara Avery
- Come as You Are by Jess K. Hardy
- Main Character Energy by Jamie Varon
Let us know in the comments!
That sucks about the laptop. I can't function if I use a small screen - and that was even before my latest eye problems.
ReplyDeleteGlad your mom is recovering nicely, but yeah, it's odd that a hip would pose less problems than a foot...
I loved the dog video LOL.
It's small, but at least I had already purchased a monitor. I just enjoyed the flexibility of the laptop before, and I don't feel like I have it now. Those dogs are such superstars.
DeleteYeah, my work laptop is tiny too BUT it's a powerhouse haha I have really nice monitors that I can easily connect to. I like to get carbonated water in bulk at costco and then put in fruit in it. Healthier than soda,but tastes almost as good. I love seeing a Tara Sivec on your shelf there that you added, she is always so fun to read.
ReplyDeleteI know fruit infused can taste good, but I need something that travel since I would bring it to work. I have a monitor, but I like to sit outside sometimes. Can't do that now. Will have to settle for staring out the window.
DeleteIt is amazing just how quickly they get people up and about after hip and knee replacements. Of course, each doctor is different. I was told that I could walk after my foot surgery (I really couldn't because it hurt too much) but my sister was told to stay off her foot and she had the same surgery. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteWhat did you have done? I had traditional bunion surgery which is 6 weeks off the foot, then the stabilizer (graduated), then the shoe (also graduated). It was miserable.
DeleteIt is odd that you'd recover from hip surgery faster than toe surgery, but maybe it has something to do with the nerves in the toe? Also, I know with knee surgeries they usually inject a long lasting, slow release pain killer that helps immensely with the pain. I'm told some insurances won't cover that and I think that's BS! Maybe your mom had something like that injected with the surgery? Glad to hear she's doing well and that you're able to take time off to help!
ReplyDeleteI don't usually like the flavored seltzers either. They have to be non-sweetened for sure if I drink them. Bubbly has a grapefruit one I like, but I like the sparkling water Topochico the best right now. l just squeeze a little bit of lime in it and it's so good! Kind of like Perrier but better.
I think I'll grab up that Nan Fischer.
Remember when insurance used to cover stuff? Those were the days. I am not taking off, but am working from home, so I am available when she needs help. I have tried Bubbly (Bounce). They don't have all their flavors in the Bounce line. I have never seen Topochico. I just googled and they were talking about a shortage of them. Did you read Fischer's last book? I am a fan
DeleteWell at least there is no disaster this week Sam so that's a plus! :-)
ReplyDeleteDisaster free is a good thing
DeleteI had a relative who had a hip replacement earlier this month and they had her up walking around within hours. It really is amazing how they do that.
ReplyDeleteI've had trouble with seltzer and finding flavered water or drinks that I like. I end up just drinking water w/ lemon or just... water lol, but I wish I could find a seltzer or a flavored drink I like. Besides soda which os of course bad for me.
My Roommate looks good.
I have been more successful with the flavored water. Hint water is good, but I am trying not to buy drinks in plastic bottles. That was the whole point of the metal bottle and the water filter. I don't like lemon in anything that I drink. I like it on food, but not to drink. I wish I did. Things would be easier.
DeleteI love Clearly Canadian but it's a little pricy for a a 4 bottle pack, plus it has sugar so it's not exactly healthy or low cal lol.
DeleteThey have as much sugar as a Starbucks drink. Bet it tastes great, but I don't drink anything with sugar.
DeleteGlad to hear your mom's surgery went while. It is wild how quickly they get people up and about after those hip surgeries. I've had some luck with the Sparkling Ice waters. They have a black raspberry flavor that I like and a strawberry watermelon that is pretty good, as well as a couple of lemon based ones that taste a bit like Sprite to me. Some of the others definitely smell way fruitier than they taste though.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame the Sparkling Ice are packaged in plastic. I switched from bottled water to a reusable bottle of home filtered to cut back on that.
DeleteWait! Looks like they have caffeinated ones in cans. I have to see if they sell them near me.
DeleteThat's amazing that your mom is so mobile after the surgery. You hear horror stories about recovery but everyone's experience is different. I drink flavored sparkling water pretty regularly. For a long time I was drinking the Sparkling Ice black cherry flavor. But recently the taste started to seem very fake (where it didn't before) so I've stopped those. Now I mostly stick with Bubly and Perrier. I tried a couple Poppi flavors but didn't like them (plus they are pricey!). I've had the mass market paperback of The Story of Us sitting on my shelf for ages! I can't believe I haven't read it yet.
ReplyDeleteI am impressed with the hip replacement recovery. I mean, she is still in pain, she had surgery, but she can get around fairly well. Poppi are probiotic. I thought I was going to vom when I drank one of those. I guess if you kombucha, you may like those. Not for me. I didn't realize Sparkling Ice Water had an artificial sweetener in it. I would stick with Diet Coke if I was doing that because I like it. Trying to consume less artificial sweetener, but very disenchanted with all the seltzers so far.
DeleteI might have phrased that wrong. I was referring more to the black cherry flavor tasting fake. It actually contains some cherry juice so I'm not sure why I was getting a fake flavoring vibe but something about it just started tasting off to me. As for sweetener, I think the Sparkling Ice drinks use sucralose as the sweetener.
DeleteI thought they were like the seltzers, no sweeteners. Oh, well.
DeleteI don't like any seltzer. Glad to hear your mother's hip replacements going well.
ReplyDeleteI may have spoken too soon. Mom hurt herself today doing PT. Too much, too soon? I don't like seltzer on its own, but I keep hoping the flavors without sugar/sweetener could work (so far, they don't)
DeleteYes, they want you up and moving almost immediately after replacement surgeries. My mom had a hip and both knees done and that was the case. My husband recently tried Liquid Death seltzer water and said it was good. It's not calorieless, though.
ReplyDeleteI would settle for low cal (if the added sugars were low and it tasted good). I tried Spindrift - it as expensive and very sour. Maybe I tried the wrong flavor. The only liquid death flavor with caffeine has 6 grams of added sugar, not terrible compared to some drinks, but I have to watch added sugars.
DeleteI'm not a fan of small screens at all. I love the portability of a laptop, so I have to deal, but I got a nice size screen. So glad your mom is doing well. I am surprised at how quickly people with hip replacements recover. My husband was on his feet 2 days after his surgery. I just checked out Lizzie Shane and see she has written several books about puppies. I love that. Enjoy your new additions, Sam. I don't drink flavoured seltzer water, but I do drink flavoured water that I enjoy. I am not a big soda drinker of any kind and carbonated beverages are not my thing either. I hope you find something you like.
ReplyDeleteThe job has double monitors for us to plug into at work. It's up to us to make it work at home. Mom was doing well until she pulled a muscle during PT yesterday. It's not good at the moment. I plan on taking out Shane's last book (a puppy book) for when I review the new one.
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