Before Isolation

Throwback to before social isolation - when it was still ok to go to Starbucks to grab a coffee.

I was channeling my inner Kim Kardashian with this flesh colored sweatsuit, 

which is another London purchase, BTW. 

(Fun Fact about me: I've never seen an episode of the Kardashians and I don't plan to.. my guilty pleasure is the Real Housewives franchise). 

This girl brought her basketball team to a win in the semi-final! 

But then they were not able to play in the final because it was canceled due to COVID-19. 

Books: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

I had seen this book on the recommended reading lists for a long time, but never picked it up until after it was recommended to me by my cousin. And I'm so glad that she mentioned it and that I picked it up! This is a well written book, almost chick-lit, but better. Gail Honeyman is a wonderful Scottish writer, and I actually learned a lot of new words. It was good that I read this book in the electronic version as it was much easier to look up the words by highlighting straight from the text. This is Gail's first book, and she won the Costa First Novel Award. The story addresses loneliness, which is not a sexy topic, but very timely especially given the social isolation we're experiencing at the moment. It's not a fun story, but the book is both funny and heartbreaking at the same time. It's a quick read, but stays with you for a while after reading. Strong recommendation.

The Beauty of Spring

The good thing about living in the suburbs is that we can still go out for walks during this Stay-at-Home order. Although we live in a "hot spot" of coronavirus cases, it's still easy to keep the required distance. I've been going out almost every day for a long walk, and have enjoyed seeing the trees starting to bloom. Spring comes regardless of our situation, and that helps keep us grounded. It's definitely been comforting to admire nature's beauty when emotions are on a roller coaster ride due to the pandemic. 

Books: Daisy Jones and the Six

I picked up Daisy Jones and the Six from the online library after I had seen it in every book store in London. I hadn't read any reviews and didn't know what the book was about, the only thing I knew was that it was a Reese Witherspoon book club pick, and since I've liked her picks before I decided to give it try. When I started reading I was a bit confused...is this a real documentary about a band that I  had never heard of? I had to look it up, and found out it's fiction. But it is very realistic and the concept is clever. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a very good writer. It does take a little time to get used to the interview concept but after a while I quite liked it. The pacing of the book is a bit uneven, and I think it probably could have been slightly shorter, but overall I enjoyed it.