Just a tad behind....

Well since the month of January is over 1/2 gone, I guess it's time to try to catch up. As many of you may know, we've had some challenges with my 89 year old Mom who lives 620 miles away in Baltimore, so I haven't had as much reading time as I'd like. Mom fell and broke her pelvis just before Thanksgiving and was doing really well getting back to reasonable mobility when she fell again just after New Year's and broke her wrist - this time requiring surgery.  It's a bit difficult using a walker with your arm in a cast. 

Thankfully she has four daughters who have all pitched in to take turns helping out.  I spent about 10 days with Mom starting New Year's Eve, and finally got back to Maine just last week.  The surgery seems to have gone well (she's scheduled to have the stitches and cast removed today) and with lots of helpers and therapy, she hopes to be able to resume her independent life in another 6-10 weeks.

I have about 10 books waiting for reviews, and I'll be working on those for the rest of this week.   I also have several ARCs waiting and a blog tour for February for one of my favorite new authors -Wiley Cash, whose book The Dark Road to Mercy is scheduled for publication next month..

I'm still deciding whether to stay on the Maine Reader's Choice Awards panel to judge books published in 2014. We're finishing up the long list for 2013 books and will announce the short list in early February. We actually won't be finished the 2013 selections until this summer.  My team has finished reading and selecting from its batch of 27 and some of those will be among those reviews to be posted here in the next few weeks.

I'm resigning my librarian job at the end of my term, so as of April 1st, I'll only be involved in the monthly book discussion group, and the Friday Mah Jongg gang. 15-20 hrs/week as a volunteer is getting to be a bit much for this chronologically advantaged lady.  Too much going on to do justice to the job.

I'm not setting any 2014 reading goals. I plan to read whatever falls into my hand, or shows up on the shelf at the library. I have over 302 books in my current TBR collection, and there are over 4000 books residing in this house, (and several 100 others on the Nook and/or Kindle) so I'm sure I'll be able to find something to read. This may even be the year I get some of it organized.

This year Bob and I hope to do some traveling. He's not running for re-election for town selectman so he can concentrate more time on writing the next book about Jason Stewart the sea Captain from his book Strike from the Deep. Whether it will get published (if and when he finishes it) is a question of luck and  money.   I'm still planning to do a giveaway to get 2014 sales off to a good start, so stay tuned.  We really want to get to Quebec this summer to do the Gamache mystery tour, and visit some old friends in the New England area.

I even hope to get my Great Blue Heron needlework done!

So darlings welcome back to Tutu's unmitigated mess - just remember that dull women have immaculate homes/desks/lives/threads and I have never been accused of being dull.