A Confused & Bewildered Weekly Link Round-Up

The more I read about the bone-chilling cold in other parts of the country and about people's eyelashes freezing in the -89°F/-67°C temperatures in a town in Russia, the more ecstatic I am that I live here in the Valley of the Sun. (I've personally experienced -50°F; I don't even want to contemplate -89°F!) Back when I lived elsewhere, February was my most-loathed month. Here in Phoenix, it's the start of spring. However, I have a feeling that I'd best stop waxing poetic about our weather before I start getting hate mail.

I've been doomed to confusion this entire week. Why? Because not only was Monday a holiday but Denis's shift pattern changed after years of same-old-same-old. Monday holidays can throw me for a loop at the best of times, but when your husband adds different days off as well.... Let me tell you, I've been bewildered all week!

Good thing I had links out in the corral to remind me of today. They get mighty fractious when they're not taken out regularly, so I'm going to triple check that it is, indeed, Friday before I mosey out there. It is. Okay-- Head 'em up! Moooooooove 'em out!

►Books, Movies & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• There's got to be a better way to categorize the books we love.
• These letters tell the inside story of Mary, Queen of Scots' imprisonment.
• Mark Billingham: "I don't finish any book I'm not enjoying. Reading should be a pleasure." (I'm the same way. If there's nothing about a book that I like, I don't finish it. I also don't think I should feel guilty about any book I've read that's given me pleasure. Life's too short. I'm done pontificating now.)
• How Charles II used art to bolster Britain's struggling monarchy. 
• Experts will use 3D imaging technology to assess art damage.
• The backward-books-on-shelves trend is for neutral and minimalist book lovers. I think I've mentioned this before....

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• Ancient Egypt: archaeologists have discovered child graves containing jewelry and amulets in a temple quarry.
• How 21st-century technology is shedding light on a second-century Egyptian painting. 
• In northern Israel, archaeologists have found the gate to the headquarters of the famed "Ironclad" Sixth Legion.
• Magical new 4,500-year-old finds add to the "oldest toy collection in the world." 
• An ancient sunken warship, steamboat, and lighthouse have been discovered off the coast of Mexico.

►Channeling My Inner Elly Mae Clampett◄

• I can't get enough of this time-lapse photography showing gorgeous cacti blooming.
• It's official: fish feel pain. 
• Climate change is turning green sea turtles female, and that's definitely a problem. 
• The oldest known butterflies existed before flowers.

►The Happy Wanderer◄

• The top ten true western towns of 2018.
• India has decided to cap the number of Taj Mahal visitors.

►Fascinating Folk◄

• David Fairchild, America's first "food spy," traveled the world hunting for exotic crops. 
• Victor Lustig was probably the smoothest con man who ever lived.
• Six remarkable women and the food they ate.

►I ♥ Lists◄

• The twenty-eight best books on writing.
• Of the seventy writers nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1967, meet the five female nominees.
• Eleven literary holidays you need to add to your calendar if you're a book lover.
• The top five greatest author feuds of all time.
• Eight finance books that'll help to get you on your feet in 2018.

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

Have a great weekend, and read something fabulous!