Happiness is Progress

~ Jenny ~ 68 Comments

So this week two guys came in and basically scalped my yard, getting rid of a ton of limbs and grass and miscellaneous trash, and then I ordered a dumpster to put it all in along with all the stuff I’m discarding as I empty out this house. It’s stressful, but it also makes me happy. PROGRESS!

How did you progress on happiness this week?

This is a Good Book Thursday, March 16, 2023

~ Jenny ~ 192 Comments

Connie Willis’s Crosstalk is on sale for $1.99, which is a great deal because it’s a great book. “Science fiction icon Connie Willis brilliantly mixes a speculative plot, the wit of Nora Ephron, and the comedic flair of P. G. Wodehouse in Crosstalk—a genre-bending novel that pushes social media, smartphone technology, and twenty-four-hour availability to hilarious and chilling extremes as one young woman abruptly finds herself with way more connectivity than she ever desired.” So yes,it’s quirky–at the request of her boyfriend, a woman signs up for a procedure that will increase the empathy between them and it works really well, just not with him. I loved it, but then it’s Connie Willis.

What did you read this week?

Happiness is a Goal

~ Jenny ~ 151 Comments

You know those times in your life when things seem overwhelming so you gear yourself up and say, “The only way through it is to do it”? Yeah, I’m in one of those, have been for awhile, but I was doing things because I had to not because I wanted to. The slog. And then something appeared on the horizon that I decided I wanted. And suddenly everything I was wading through became Things To Get Done Because I Want That Goal. Which is an ENTIRELY different thing. A goal is a good thing; a goal with a brand new future waiting behind it is an excellent thing. My advice? Get yourself a goal.

How did you aim for happiness this week?

Happiness is a Second Look

~ Jenny ~ 94 Comments

As I have whined to you all before, so far 2023 has kicked me in the teeth, or at least it felt that way. I’m handling it, my teeth are loose but not lost, and one of the ways I’ve been handling it is working my way through Rosalind James’s New Zealand rugby romances. Full disclosure: I know zip about New Zealand (yes, I was there once, for a couple of days of romance conference and book tour which means I saw most of it through a car window and met most people signing books; it was beautiful and the people were wonderful, but I still know zip) and even less about rugby (I grew up in Ohio and went to school just south of the Canadian border, I know football and hockey, that’s it). James’s books are gentle, based on family and even the rugby stuff is about teamwork, plus she’s a good writer, so that makes her good recovery reading. Also, I have some major rewrites coming up there and it’s good to read somebody new that you like to see how they do things. Think of it as a second look at romance writing. Times changed, what’s happened? Continue reading →

Working Wednesday, March 1, 2023

~ Jenny ~ 65 Comments

I’m working. I’m shoveling snow, bathing dogs, sorting through clothes, changing sheets, throwing out half the house . . . the usual. Also getting back into Rocky Start after two weeks of being sick as a dog, so I’m trying to be extra cooperative since I just dumped everything on Bob during that time. Turns out “extra cooperative” makes Bob extra nervous. I should have done this years ago.

What did you work on this week?
Continue reading →

Happenss is a Hint of Spring

~ Jenny ~ 80 Comments

Okay, it’s not exactly warm here up north, but things are shifting, we’re not getting a lot of freezing temperatures and . . . basically I’m short on things to be happy about so I grabbed that one.

Give me some good stuff, people: What made you happy this week?