Morning Meanderings – Page 40

Literary Weekend Trip and a Tasty Recipe

Published on April 19, 2014April 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)36 Comments

I thought this morning I would do a combo post between Saturday Snapshot and Weekend cooking… both memes that I love to participate in as I enjoy taking pictures and trying new things in the kitchen… but dont always have the time to write the posts. 🙂

Last weekend I ventured to the North Shore to our cabin… just me and my dog with the plan to do a little spring cleaning, a little reading and movie watching and just wind down… before spring really hits and life winds up and I go go go!

Large left: the tunnel by Two Harbors Top two right: Just fun things between Duluth and the North Shore Bottom two right: Road as you drive into the rocky terrain, this road was actually blasted through the rock to be made, and the far bottom right is the outside wall of the famous Glensheen mansion, I have toured it many times.

**Sammy made the trip with me. We made a pit stop in Two Harbors for frozen custard.**

While at the cabin in Finland Minnesota I read two books and watched three movies. It felt great 🙂 I never have time to do things like that.

To post your own pics, or to see others and what they are posting this weekend… check out Saturday Snapshot.

Switching gears, a friend of mine hooked me up with a tasty little recipe I would like to share for weekend cooking. Like reubens? This you will LOVE.

Reuben Roll

1 tube Pillsbury Pizza Dough
1/4 cup thousand island dressing, + 2 tbsp for top
1/4 pound sliced corned beef or pastromi deli meat, chopped up (I used deli turkey as I am not a fan of corned been or pastrami)
3/4 cup Sauerkraut, drained and squeezed dry
2 cups grated Swiss cheese, + 1/2 cup for top

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Unroll the Pillsbury pizza dough on a greased baking sheet. Press to about 14 inches x 9 inches. Bake for 8 minutes then remove from oven. Spread the 1/4 cup of thousand island dressing over the crust, all the way to the edges. Top with the chopped corned beef, drained sauerkraut, and 2 cups of Swiss cheese. Carefully roll up the pizza into a tube. Place the pizza roll into a 9×5 inch loaf pan, seam side down.
Drizzle the top with the remaining thousand island dressing and shredded cheese. Continue baking for 10-12 minutes longer or until cheese is bubbly in the center. Carefully remove from pan and slice to serve. Enjoy!

It was delicious – I made it this past week for hubby and I and we both really enjoyed it.

See other fun recipes to try (and I have found more than a few!) by checking out Weekend Cooking.

Morning Meanderings… Gone Girl – Gone VIRAL!

Published on April 17, 2014April 17, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)4 Comments

Good morning – happy Thursday… another week just a plugging away to the weekend…

As of recent weeks I have noticed my Gone Girl Spoiler Page, a post I wrote in July of 2012, getting an increasingly high number of hits each day… right around that 200 -400 mark. I chalked it up to the fact that the movie was starting to catch some buzz now as this has happened with other spoiler pages I have written on books that later become movies….

then on Wednesday afternoon I seen my stat bar and realized that after a year of trying to break my last all time high blog views in a day record of 1,587… I had now blown it out of the water with 2,857 blog views on Tuesday April 14th, 1,643 of them coming from the Gone Girl Spoiler page.

😯

Sadly… that probably blows my personal goals of beating my old stats record out of the water… and I also noticed unusual traffic coming into that post from spam comments. (What is up with the “spell caster” spam? Anyone else receiving that where it is some sad story of lost love but then the “spell caster” can return your love to you…

AND… isn’t it fully that this is associated with the “Gone Girl spoiler post”, and no where else?

Just thinking out loud….:D

Since I closed comments on the post yesterday due to the weird activity… the traffic on it has dropped to 600… lol…. and will probably keep falling 😉

So… today should be good – I work and then tonight I am having a Membership Drive meeting for the Friends Of The Brained Public Library… kind of excited.

And an update on the snow… looks like about 5 inches.

Morning Meanderings… The Post I Was Planning To Post has been…. ummm… postponed.

Published on April 16, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)12 Comments

Good morning!

Snap Crackle… P’o’d.

Ok.. that seems strong for an innocent Tuesday morning when I really have been up for a little over an hour and I can not take certain THINGS out on the day….

or can I?

This is the weather forecast for Minnesota as of last night…

That’s Brainerd upper left at 3.6 inches. And yes… its happening right now.

My post was going to be about this guy that walks outside my office window spring though fall and sings. All the time. Always singing, always loud… and I love his free spirit.. but that post will wait…

because of the s____.

I can think of another 4 letter “s” word that comes to mind.

Have a super day 🙂

Morning Meanderings… It’s Time To Move It Move It!

Published on April 15, 2014April 15, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)6 Comments

Good morning Tuesday! Wow. It’s still cold here in Minnesota *shakes fist at air*, however sitting inside the house this morning looking outside… it looks nice – and after this LONG winter… I can accept the fact that it looks like spring.. even if it doesn’t feel like it yet. (Yes…. this mornings run on sentence is brought to you by…. me apparently. 😉

I have been in such a long winter funk I think my energy has been zapped unlike anything I have dealt with in a long time. I come home and I want to do pretty much nothing… and its driving me bananas. 🙂

The good thing is there are AMAZING things to be looking forward to. Yesterday evening we had a great first team meeting to our Wine and Words event this fall. It is always energizing to see others get excited about what is planned.

Also – in a couple of weeks there is a 10K I am participating in with my friend Amy… and that same weekend… a Zombie event in my home town that… well, honestly… I just want to be a zombie for a few hours. (Episode after episode on The Walking Dead has prepared me for this role…)

In May – College son graduates AND I am in charge of a BIG garage sale for a movie campaign…. then… the Book Expo in New York is the last week of May followed immediately by a run in the cities on June 1.

Armchair BEA registration is now open as well – we had a brain storming session yesterday afternoon with the team and this is going to be a great year… if you are not going to BEA – be sure to register for this, it is going to be awesome! (More on Armchair BEA to come in future posts!)

Holy smokes… things are going to take off fast here. 🙂

Just writing all that down is helping. Think I need a little video jam to go with this post.

Oh and I am reading To Rise Again At A Decent Hour by Joshua Ferris and it is fun. This may be the book for Bloggers Recommended, May edition out later this month. I am listening to Rob Lowe’s new book that just came out (loved his first one on audio) and I just really enjoy listening to him… the boy has a lot of talent, narrating included.

Dance it up people. It’s Tuesday! I like to move it move it! 🙂

Morning Meanderings… End Of A Really Good Week

Published on April 11, 2014April 11, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)8 Comments

Good morning! It is Friday and the sun is shining. No kidding… in Minnesota… it is true, check this out:

Yes. That is my back deck this morning… finally warming up for future hang outs with ice tea, friends, and books.

This week was such a good one. Monday was our Friends Of The Public Library meetings, Tuesday was book club, and last night I went with friends to a wine tasting, secured 50 donated bottles of wine for the Wine and Words auction, and went to Divergent with a few friends.

Today as soon as I wrap up a couple emails I am heading off to the cabin for the weekend to check on things up North, get in a little reading, writing, and R and R before I come back on Sunday and hit it again.

Here are the books and audio I am taking with me – not because I think I am a speed reader/listener – but because I do not know what I will want to read or what will grab me. The drive is over 3 hours there and the audio I am currently listening to, Divorce Papers, will end before I get there today. 🙂 I like options.

I do plan to pop in over the weekend, however North shore internet is iffy so we will see….

Enjoy the weekend – read something AMAZING!

Morning Meanderings… Read It Before You See It!

Published on April 9, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)13 Comments

Good morning! Happy Wednesday already! Lots of fun things happening here… book club last night (more on that later) and earlier this week I changed out the library window to books that will or are movies with in a two-year span. It was a fun project:

I used books from my own stash and those that I did not own I printed out covers for.

It was hard to get a great pic – I was picking off a glare on the window but this gives you an idea.

What an exciting time with so many wonderful books becoming movies! I really get excited about that! And yay to Gillian Flynn with both Gone Girl and Dark Places hitting the big screen!

Is there a particular book that you are excited to see become a movie? What one are you waiting for?

Morning Meandering… Let Me Introduce You To Armchair BEA 2014

Published on April 6, 2014April 6, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)28 Comments

Good morning! Yesterday was a pretty sweet day here in Central Minnesota…. it was warm (well 50 degrees makes me happy at this point) and looks to stay this way moving forward (*cartwheels* * back flip* *High fiving anyone and everyone*) AND when it starts to feel like spring…

I start to think about BEA (Book Expo America).

I have been able to go every year since 2010 and I have been amazed every year. If you are on the decision side of should I stay or should I go…. you should GO. And over the next 7 or 8 weeks… you are probably going to see me chat about BEA a lot here…. however, before you think “Sheila, this totally does not apply to me, I will not be attending and I really do not want to hear about something I am not taking part in…”

Oh but wait my friend….

Have you heard of Armchair BEA?

Armchair BEA is a way for those who will not be attending to get the feel of the event from their very own homes. Through this site you can participate with daily discussions, giveaways, and live videos and posts from the event itself. It will be like being there without the expense of the plane train or automobile to get there.

I a, super excited to be part of the On-Site Correspondents Team. *SQQQUUUEEEE* What that means is that myself as well as 3 other awesome bloggers will be the eyes and ears on site for those participating from home. We will take video of what we are seeing and doing. We will do interviews and give you as much BEA as you handle. I am SUPER excited to be a part of this team.

Registration will soon be open to sign up to be an Armchair BEA participant. I do hope you will all sign up and hang out with my virtually for a week at the end of May. I will keep you informed here when registration is open, in the mean time, please check out the site and grad the button I posted here for your side bar.

It’s going to be a good good time.

As far as books that came to my home this week… I am never short of reading material that’s for sure…

Hope your Sunday plans are something fun or relaxing or both 😀 I will be working on our book club read this afternoon and possibly going to the movie Noah with my hubby.

Morning Meanderings.. “Agate Vines”

Published on April 5, 2014April 5, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)30 Comments

Good morning! Hope everyone is doing SUPER FINE this happy Saturday 🙂 We had a bit of sunshine yesterday that melted away Thursday snow storm so I am looking forward (*hopefully* fingers crossed*) to no more snow.

Yesterday evening, our Friends Of The Brainerd Public Library helped to host a local artist who had recently created original lights to go over the circulation desk. Today I thought I would share that for Saturday Snapshot.

I have known Greg Rosenberg for many years now. Until recently, his business was located downstairs from the office I work at. Occasionally I would pop in to see what he was working on. Greg works with stained glass, metal, and yes – agates, to create original art works. Here is one of his many lamps he has made:

Gorgeous yes?

Here are pictures from last nights event:

**Other artists spoke regarding the importance of art in our community and Greg spoke about the lights and the inspiration behind them.**

**It was a good turn out. About 35 people came to see the lights and celebrate with Greg.**

**The Friends of the Library served cake….**

**and Lily had made a tasty beverage with apple juice, 7 up, lemon juice and real ginger.**

The lights as you can see, each hang from a metal “root base”. They hook into the base. Each one is unique and as you look at them you will find hidden vines, shapes, one even has an extended heart shape agate that comes off the lamp to look like a leaf. **The agates are Brazilian Agate and Minnesota. Greg calls the lights “agate vines”**

Here is a picture of the lights over the desk. There are 6 in all. Attendees of last nights event had an opportunity to walk behind the circulation desk as well so they could see all sides of the lights.

**This is Greg and his wife Margaret standing by the circulation desk.**

Greg also made a beautiful window using a mixture of agates and stained glass that sits above the doors into the library from the entryway. I apparently was too busy talking to people last night and forgot to take a picture of it, but it is another gorgeous original piece.

To see more of Greg’s work, please check out his website at Shining Light Studio.

It was a fun evening!

Morning Meanderings…. Eternal Winter

Published on April 1, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)17 Comments

*sigh*

Will it ever stop?

😦

Last night started the freezing rain… I was up town running a women’s groups and you could hear it outside – just pouring. This morning I wake up the snow end of the storm. Snow. Again. And wind. Not an April fools joke…I am looking at, snowing like it is December. I am ready to hop on a plane and run away to somewhere warm and where the sun (I believe there is still a thing called the sun) shines and the planet we live on actually warms.

Sigh memories.

1ca — **This is a pic from my front window this morning. I did not have the heart to go outside and take a picture.**

No wonder with all the world battling different forms of this crap that we are in a funk. GAH. POO.

A readers salvation?

This is my book room (once our home office) and spending some time in it makes me happy. Over the weekend I put away the books I picked up at the Spring (ha ha spring… I laugh at thee!) Library sale.

Does anyone else find browsing through books therapeutic? 😉

Today I work and I am debating if I put out the “Who wants to go see Divergent” text today or not…. I do want to see it, just trying to find the time. 😀

Morning Meanderings… Plethora of Books (or preparing for the Book Apocalypse)

Published on March 30, 2014March 30, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)20 Comments

Happy Sunday! What a L O N G week. Yesterday was a great day of relaxing, reading (yes yes – I read!!!!! Thank you Harlan Coben for yet another un-put-downable treasure!). I cleaned up the book room, and between the books I brought home from the library sale and the books and audio that came in this past week… I am ready for any book apocalypse and you are all invited over to survive with me. No shortage of books here 😉

I looked up “plethora” this morning to use in my post. I wanted to be sure I was using the word correctly 😉 . I do not particularity like the meaning… definitely excess yes, but too many or too much?

What’s too much?

😛

Any way – that’s my thought this morning. After church I am on my way to the cities to a camp board meeting. Admittedly I normally do not mind these two-hour drives as I can listen to audio but today I will have two other ladies with me in my car so no audio for me…. I know I know… I can try to not be such an introvert and actually talk with them. 😛

One more thing, we need to post a winner of the library book sale book win –

and that winner is:

Lexi Swoons

Lexi’s choice if she won was SPEAK and since I have already read that book I will be sending it off to her as soon as I have her address. Thanks Lexi!

Have a super Sunday!