Catching up!

I have done some reading in the past month, even though I haven't posted here much. An update on what's happening to me: it's all good!

I got offered a wonderful job, doing exactly what I love doing - I'm the Business Manager of a non-profit called Discovery Green Conservancy. The organization runs a city park in the middle of downtown Houston. It's a 12-acre green space built over a parking garage. It's a sort of new concept for Houston - the park being run by a nonprofit instead of by the Parks Department itself.

The park opened in April 2008, and offers daily fun for kids and families and just folks. Oh, and dogs too! There's the regular park stuff - green space where you can sit and picnic and run and play. There's a wonderful fountain - no, 2! - with water that kids (and just folks) can get wet in and scream and have a great time. There are 2 restaurants, 1 casual, 1 a little more upscale. There are 2 actual performing spaces with stage-type platforms (mind you, it's nothing like Miller Outdoor Theatre - no major full-scale shows with drops and lights and sets). But there are scheduled bands performing and such. There are spaces to rent for birthday parties and family reunions and fund raising parties. There are free classes in yoga and pilates and more. There are 2 dog run spaces, one for smaller dogs and one for larger dogs.

On weekends you can rent little radio controlled sailboats and sail them around the "lake" (ok, it's more of a large pond, but to the tiny sailboats, it's big!) (oh - they're not really TINY - about 3 feet in length) Also on weekends, recycling collection and a green market/AKA Farmers Market.

It's really everything I love, with kids and theater and farmers markets and all that and more! And I get to work right there, in the park, in a wonderful glass building that looks out at the busiest fountain filled with kids. I have to laugh - my co-workers are pretty jaded by 18 months of kids screaming outside the office, whereas I am still filled with wonder and awe at the energy and hopefulness of it all.

What with having to find and rent an apartment and then furnish it, and start a new job in a new city, I have been a little busy. Plus - drat my friend for getting me addicted to Mafia Wars on Facebook! I need to back off the mafia stuff and get back to reading! It was bad enough when I played solitaire and freecell constantly, but add Mafia Wars, Metropolis and a couple of different gem-drop games, and I'm sunk. Then - since I had to indulge in an iPhone, I started playing games on it too! Someone stop me!!

I have read at least 4 books and listened to one and a half audio books in the past 4 weeks, and if I can remember them well enough, will post my reviews. I don't even know if I posted a summer challenge, but I can guarantee I haven't looked at it or even tried to do find books that fit.

Thanks to all who follow who knew I was going through a transformation and sent good wishes. This job is so ME - it's the skills and talents I already possess, the folks are great, the atmosphere wonderful. Now I just need to Get A Life again, one that defines me as just me, not me and someone else. That's actually harder than it sounds, for someone my age and with my history!

The books I read:

Julia Quinn, What Happens in London - 4 stars. It's good, I enjoyed it but wasn't wowed by it. There was some funny stuff, and I loved that she read the Miss Butterworth book because I howl everytime I listen to my audiobook of It's In His Kiss where Hyacinth is reading it!

Loretta Chase, Don't Tempt Me - 4 stars. Another good but not great read for me. I love a lot of Chase's books, and this one came close - but no cigar. I wasn't that taken with the heroine.

Sherry Thomas, Not Quite A Husband - 4 stars - ok it's a pattern. Three of my very favorite authors with new releases all of which I really liked but didn't love. I had higher expectations for Thomas, maybe because of the buzz, maybe because I loved her first 2 books. I just never could see the appeal of the heroine - she seemed so mannish and not attractive. What did he see in her?

Marsha Canham, Under The Desert Moon - 4 stars. Yep, another favorite author, another 4 star read. I wanted more from this book. Maybe it was the American West setting that I didn't find as appealing. But hey, I still liked it very much, just not a keeper status book.

Oh, and the audiobook was a Dave Robicheaux book (what's the author's name? James Lee Burke I think) which was just 3 stars. The half audio book is Lavinia, don't recall the author, and I was really enjoying it but have about half to go...