Cheezburger does Aims' favorite kind of lovely lumps: [link] and a cat explains blinvisible friends: [link]

a cat explains blinvisible friends: [link]

Heh. Smart cat.

~ma to your grandmother, askye. We went through a similar ordeal with my grandma, and it just sucks.

YAY HAPPY ELOPINATING!!

Hey we have veterans here, and people who love veterans. So happy Veterans Day!

Happy Armistice Day to them as celebrates that, too.

SJ, congrats on the nice day for elopement!!!! May it continue to be beautiful for a long and happy life together

and because it deserves a separate post, ~ma to Askye and family. I presume her doctor already mentioned hospice options? it's a tough choice to make, but wonderful for pain management and supporting the caregivers.

So, I finally found the Kirkus review- thankfully, not a savaging. Actually, for a first Kirkus review, not too bad. The thing the reviewer was most critical of is actually something I feel is subjective. Most people who've read the book like the descriptions. And I suspect if I'd gone thinner on the descriptions I'd be getting criticized for glossing over an activity people aren't as familiar with, so it's just One of Those Things.

Soledad Reyes, a Cuban-American high-school senior, lives to dance and hopes to win a spot in a professional ballet company. When classmate Jonathan Crandall, a handsome and hunky horn player, suggests she audition as Carmen in the competitive world of drum and bugle corps, she’s intrigued—and ends up nabbing the role as well as Jonathan’s heart. Hampered by hazy descriptions of the competitive action, the conflict-free overlong middle section drags, though it eventually becomes clear that something is off with Jonathan. His feelings for Soledad have a suffocating intensity, and he’s locked in an unhealthy battle with his controlling father. For her part, Soledad, who is experiencing intangible knee problems, enjoys a forbidden flirtation with a handsome Spanish futboler. Finally, in a gasp-out-loud moment around the three-quarter mark, the novel takes a shocking turn then moves at a swift pace as all the loose ends are neatly tied up. Soledad’s first-person narration feels authentic, but the material would engage more if it were shorter and sharper. (Fiction. YA)

Quick pain relief ~ma for Plei's dad

Comforting ~ma for askye's family

Continuing to send good thoughts out to Ray and loved ones.

Woo Hoo! It is really your wedding day tomorrow, sj. Very exciting.

Trudes, look for directions in your emailbox!

Oh, Plei. My thoughts are with you and your dad. I hope the stone loses quickly and as painlessly as possible given the circumstances.