Meadowbrook Murders - Book Review

I recently read Meadowbrook Murders by Jessica Goodman. I read a review copy compliments of Netgalley and I am not being paid to give this review.

I enjoyed reading this book because I enjoy murder mysteries. It takes place at a boarding school, and Amy, a senior, finds her roommate and her roommate’s boyfriend dead in their dorm room. The story is told from two main viewpoints: Amy and Liz, the school newspaper's editor. I like the many twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat as you read. This book would be a great backdrop for discussions on dysfunctional families, peer relationships, loyalty, personal safety, and trust issues. I would recommend this book for a high school library.

Wakodahatchee Wetlands

This morning we went to Flakowitz for breakfast and then headed to the Wakodahatchee Wetlands. We got there around 9:30 and stayed for 2 hours. We walked along the boardwalk and saw 4 alligators, lots of iguanas, lots of birds, a raccoon, and a brown basilisk. By the time we left, it was getting hot and the there was a huge line coming in with cars waiting for a parking space to open. 

Iguanas

Wood Stork

Alligator

Brown Basilisk

Great Blue Heron

Original photos by Pat Hensley

The Rain Finally Quit

The rain finally quit and I needed to get out of the house for a few minutes. I did a little weeding and then took the yard waste to the street. I sat on the front porch for a few minutes before my neighbor came out to visit so we stood in the sun for a little while and talked. It felt good to get some fresh air. As I went in, she said she had some caterpillars on her candlestick bush so I had to see them. Life goes on, even when it’s cold! 

Manatee Lagoon and Jupiter Lighthouse

Since it was cool outside yesterday, we decided it would be a good time to visit the Manatee Lagoon. We had never been there before so we thought it would be fun. There was no admission cost or parking cost which made it even better. They had a nice visitor center with much information about manatees and their habitat. Then we went upstairs to an outdoor balcony where you could look down in the inlet and see the manatees. There were tons of manatees there (I stopped counting at 30). We saw several mamas with their babies. While we were there a school group came up beside me and it was so nice to hear their gasps and sounds of amazement. Then we went downstairs and walked along the outside walk to look for manatees but the view was much better from the top balcony.

 

After the lagoon, we headed north to the Jupiter Lighthouse. We had seen it several times on the news but we had never visited there before. When we arrived, we paid our $12 admission fee (senior/veterans rate) and found out that a tour was beginning at noon if we wanted to join it. We had a little time before the tour to go into the museum. Frank was the docent giving the tour and he was wonderful. He talked about the Native American history of the area before the lighthouse was built. Then he talked about the history of the lighthouse. Along the brick walk, we saw many bricks with names on them and we found one with Jimmy Buffet’s name on it. Then we climbed up to the top of the lighthouse (34 steps up to the base and 105 steps up to the top). The view was beautiful and worth seeing. When we decided to leave because we were getting hungry, we were surprised to see that we had been there for almost 3 hours.

Original photos by Pat Hensley

Walking, Grocery Shopping, and Knitting

Today was the perfect day. It was about 70F when I sat outside to enjoy the morning. I love mornings!

After my hubby woke up and finished breakfast, he invited me to go on a walk with him. He is trying to get back into the routine of walking three times a week in the neighborhood. Today was our second day. I finished my aerobic workout before he woke up so I closed my exercise ring for the day but I still wanted the steps.

After walking, we went grocery shopping. First, we stopped at Aldi’s and hubby realized he had forgotten his wallet so I drove to Walmart when we left. After Walmart, we had to go home to put away the cold and frozen foods. Next, we went up to Costco and it was very crowded.

Once we got home, I sat outside some more and did some knitting. Hubby decided to wash the car.

In the evening after dinner, we watched Twilight Zone episodes on Amazon Prime Video.

Things we saw on our walk: 

Original photos by Pat Hensley

1973 8c Boston Tea Party

National Hot Tea Month is celebrated in January so I thought it would be fun to look for stamps about tea.

The 1973 8c Boston Tea Party stamps (U.S. #1480-83) were issued by the United States Postal Service on July 4, 1973 in Boston. Each of these stamps costs 8 cents and celebrates an important event in American history: the Boston Tea Party. This event happened on December 16, 1773, when American colonists protested against British taxes by throwing tea into Boston Harbor.

There are four different stamps in this series, and each one shows a unique part of the Boston Tea Party. The first stamp features colonists dressed as Native Americans to hide their identities. The second stamp shows the tea being dumped into the water, which highlights the protest. The third stamp includes British ships that were in the harbor during the event, and the fourth stamp shows the Boston Harbor itself, where everything took place. Together, these stamps tell the story of how colonists took action against unfair taxes. The Boston Tea Party was important because it brought the colonists together in their fight for freedom from British rule. It inspired many people to stand up for their rights and helped lead to the American Revolution. The stamps serve as a reminder of how brave individuals can change history.

The History of Tea

Tea has a long and fascinating history that dates back thousands of years. The first known use of tea comes from China around 2737 BCE. According to legend, Emperor Shen Nong was boiling water when some tea leaves blew into his pot, creating the first cup of tea. The drink quickly became popular in China, where it was used for both its refreshing taste and medicinal qualities. By the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE), tea had become a central part of Chinese culture, and it began to spread to other parts of Asia, including Japan and Korea. Tea was also traded along the famous Silk Road, helping it reach other parts of the world.

Tea arrived in Europe in the 16th century, brought by Portuguese and Dutch traders. The British developed a strong love for tea in the 17th century, and it became a key part of daily life. By the 18th century, the British East India Company played a major role in the tea trade, and the drink became a symbol of British society. In America, tea was popular until the American Revolution. Today, tea is enjoyed all over the world, with many countries developing their own special ways of drinking it.


References:
https://www.si.edu/object/8c-boston-tea-party-misregistered-block-four%3Anpm_2011.2016.3.1-4
https://stamps.org/news/c/news/cat/boston-2026/post/third-boston-2026-label-now-available
https://www.mysticstamp.com/1480-83-1973-8c-boston-tea-party/
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/teas-time-146624691/
https://www.teausa.org/10017/about-tea

25 in 2025

Here are things I'd like to accomplish in 2025:

1. Knit a sweater.

2. Create a new knitwear design. 

3. Walk more. 

4. Reorganize the yarn in my craft room.

5. Get rid of 25 things I don’t need. 

6. Exercise regularly. 

7. Join the Photo a Day challenge. 

8. Do something useful every day. 

9. Study Spanish on Duolingo regularly.

10. Teach classes at the university level. 

11. Read more. 

12. Drink more water. 

13. Relearn to play the guitar. 

14. Practice my watercolor painting. 

15. Create at least 1 new sketch in my sketchbook. 

16. Log my food in the food diary on My Fitness Pal. 

17. Reconnect with friends. 

18. Read my bible. 

19. Practice meditation. 

20. Do more gardening. 

21. Learn something new. 

22. Try a new recipe. 

23. Write a letter. 

24. Try yoga. 

25. Practice Tai Chi. 

26. 
    

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

2024 in Numbers

• Wonderful days spent with my husband - 366
• Hurricanes that did damage to my house - 1
• Days without a kitchen - 290
• Cruises taken - 2
• Road trips taken - 2
• Books read - 50
• Pages read - 18,860
• Projects knitted or crocheted - 44
• Yarn used - 14,686 yards
• New patterns published - 1
• Blog posts written - 58
• Miles walked - 1381 miles
• Number of cruising days - 20

Photo by Eyestetix Studio on Unsplash

Time to Repot Snake Plants

This morning we went to Home Depot to buy some potting soil. While we were there, we picked up some sweet mint and some spearmint. Then we went to Dollar Tree to buy some flower pots. There were only 8 of them so we bought them all. We have a lot of snake plants in flower pots that have become root-bound. Don helped me re-pot them. We had a lot of extra plants and I contacted my neighbor to see if she wanted them. They were $15 each at Home Depot!

After lunch, I knit on my sweater and watched SWAT episodes. It was a beautiful day outside.

We watched the Sugar Bowl at 4 p.m. and the Gator Bowl at 8 p.m.

It was a very nice day!

Original photos by Pat Hensley

Word of the Year

This year my word of the year is going to be BALANCE. 

I have the bad habit of jumping in with both feet and that means if I have a new project, other things fall by the wayside. I need to be better about finding balance in the things I do.

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

A Happy Day in the New Year

I had a fabulous New Year’s Day.

The weather was perfect, and I was able to sit out on the front porch in the morning light. I did some knitting until my niece called me from NY, and we had a wonderful chat.

After that call, I started cooking our traditional meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas. I cooked the collards for about 2 hours. The black-eyed peas only took 8 minutes in my instant pot. We had lunch at noon and hubby said it was the best collards that I had ever made. I’m not sure if he was just hungry or that it had been a year since the last time I made them. It didn’t matter, because we enjoyed the meal. Leftovers were saved for dinner.

 In the afternoon, we watched Bowl games. It was sad that the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans had to be postponed due to the terrorist attack on New Year’s Eve. I will never understand the meanness in people.

I took a little nap since the score of the Texas vs. Arizona St. game was one-sided. When I woke up from my nap, it was the third quarter and things began to get interesting. The game actually went into 2 overtimes. Texas eventually won.

In the evening, I was able to get on Zoom with my Zombie Network knitting friends. That was a perfect way to spend the evening.