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Sunday Salon: November 29, 2020

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz runs The Sunday Salon. 

What I've been reading:   
 

What it's like outside:
Fall in Santa Barbara is a wonderful time. While we don't have many trees that change color, we do have great weather (sunny and low 60s to low 70s) that means we can take walks to the beach and get vitamin D sitting in the garden. This one tree in my front garden changes color and the bark even turns red.

What I've been eating:
This week we've had some of my favorite dishes: pearl couscous with grape tomatoes, chickpeas, and feta, Indian take out, and one-pan orzo with spinach. Our Thanksgiving dinner was Indian left overs for my daughter and I while my parents had a traditional turkey dinner from their favorite restaurant.

My daughter introduced my parents and I to the Cheesecake Factory this week. She and I drove about 40 minutes to our closest one and bought 2 slices of cheesecake (White chocolate raspberry and lemon raspberry). Oh my, those are yummy. Did you know each slice has between 1000 to 1800 calories depending on the flavor you choose?! Our choices were in the lower range, but holy moly. Luckily, the two slices lasted the 4 of us 3 nights.

What I've been watching:
Oh my gosh. I binge watched a Korean drama (K-drama) called Crash Landing on You, which is soooooo good! I loved every minute of it. It has romance, comedy, and suspense and a large cast about whom I cared very much, especially the group of women who lived in the North Korean village. We are slowly making our way through the latest season of the Great British Baking Show.
I love that my daughter has eclectic watching tastes because when she comes home I see shows/movies I would never know about on my own. Last night we watched Your Name, the highest grossing film in Japan. It was a little confusing for me, but the animation was phenomenal and I ended up really enjoying it.

What I've been noticing:
My mom came home from the hospital Tuesday after her back surgery. It's amazing, she is up and walking around, going up and down stairs, and has only taken Tylenol. She isn't allowed to bend or twist or pick up anything heavier than a milk carton for 6 to 8 weeks, but otherwise is doing really well. What a relief; it's great to have her home.

Since my daughter just came home from college and I picked her up at the airport, she and I isolated from my parents and wore masks within our house for 5 days and then took Covid tests. Those negative results felt so good so now we can all be together maskless!

Having this week off from work has been therapeutic. I've slept in a bit, worked out, read, watched fun shows, gone on walks, and helped my mom. It's all good. 

How I am doing on my 2020 challenges
  • Big Summer Book Challenge--5 books total (completed)
  • Literary Escapes Challenge--29 states and 30 countries total
  • Mount TBR Challenge--80 books total
  • Popsugar reading challenge--38 books total
  • Social Justice Challenge--14 books total
  • YA Award Winners--10 books total

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