Sunday Salon: December 31, 2023

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz hosts The Sunday Salon.

This Bird Has Flown by Susanna Hoffs
Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick
Dark Corners by Megan Goldin

Oh my, it's New Year's Eve. 2024 is only hours away....

Christmas Eve was lovely at my parents' house with my daughter and Christmas morning we headed back to my parents for a scrumptious breakfast of baked goods (difficult to go wrong with muffins, croissants, and scones) and stocking presents. We spent a bit of time over at my best friend's house with her family (a tradition since 1975), and otherwise hung out.

I only got one book for Christmas: Louise Kennedy's Trespasses, but I also got a gift certificate to our wonderful indie bookstore and you know I'll enjoy that! The photo above shows the hysterical gift my daughter got me: a chicken lamp (note the lit up egg!).

I was back at work Tuesday through Friday with a break on Wednesday to spend time with my high school girl friends, which is always restorative. My daughter headed down to Corona for a week to spend time with a friend so I am on my own for a bit, which means a slower pace and more reading. I also fit in walks with a few different friends, which as we all know, I love doing.

With one set of friends, we walked through our local monarch butterfly preserve. Santa Barbara is on their migration route and for the past few years there haven't been many butterflies, but this year they are back (see large clumps of them above). We also saw a number of dolphins making their way up the coast so it was a wonderful afternoon! The other image is that group of friends in the late '90s, 2016, and this week.

Tonight I'll be at the symphony with friends for New Year's Eve; they are playing pop songs so it should be fun.

Happy 2024!