A Walking on Sunshine Weekly Link Round-Up

Heading into Thanksgiving Week, I have so much to be thankful for. (Don't worry, I won't go into massive detail.) I'm still "walking on sunshine" after having one eye completely worked over. Coming home from The Poisoned Pen one night, I was thrilled because oncoming headlights no longer blind me. Driving to appointments with my ophthalmologist, I was thrilled to be able to read street signs again. Once my right eye is done, Denis will probably have to tie me down so I don't float away with happiness. And once both eyes are done, let me tell you, my camera and I will be out and about again! I've been leaving photography alone for the past few months because I couldn't really tell if my eyes were focusing properly, and I don't want to share sub-par photos.

I recently came across a website that has some book-themed t-shirts that I love. I chose to show the one to the left because it reminds me of someone... doesn't it, Kay? Who knows? You may find holiday gift suggestions for yourselves and others there.

I swore up and down that I wasn't going to say anything about this until I posted my recap, but it was all in vain. Tuesday, Denis and I went to The Poisoned Pen to see Tim Hallinan. We arrived. I saw they didn't have the event chairs set up yet, so my cane,  purse, and I motored to the back so I could return to the good book I've been reading. I noticed that there was a man somewhere to my right looking at books as I walked past, but he was just a tiny blip on my radar. Then I heard Denis laugh. "She didn't even see you!" Oh no.

I'd just motored past Tim!

I was a bit surprised because I knew Barbara Peters was taking him someplace before the event, but when Tim bought his books and then sat down with us for the next hour, I was in seventh heaven. Sharing reading recommendations, talking about his books-- both published and works-in-progress-- I don't even remember everything the three of us talked about. But... as you can see, I have plenty of reasons to be walking on sunshine this week-- and I have a feeling that it's only going to get better! (And as for walking past Tim without recognizing him? He was on my right side... my blind side. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it while I still can!)

Oops, I hear restless links. I'd better hie myself out to yon corral. Head 'em up! Moooove 'em out!

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• According to Sam Jordison, the Booker judges shouldn't blame editors for overlong novels.
• All those books you've bought but haven't read? There's a word for that.
• You could be identified through a genealogy database even if your DNA hasn't been tested.
• The dawn of television promised diversity. Here's why we got "Leave It to Beaver" instead.
• Here's a quiz containing great Scrabble words to improve your game.
• Millennial Aboriginal Australians have developed their own language.
• Anthill Cake: this beloved Russian dessert is the brainchild of Soviet-era housewives with meat grinders.
• Epidemics as entertainment.

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• A rare Viking ship burial has been found in Norway.
• What did Elizabeth I actually look like? This artist has a suggestion. 
• You'll be able to watch Rembrandt's most ambitious work be restored in-person-- or online.
• This 2,000-year-old stone inscription is the earliest to spell out "Jerusalem."
• Rising seas pose an imminent threat to dozens of historical sites across the Mediterranean. 
• A beautifully painted shrine emerges from the ashes of Pompeii.

►Channeling My Inner Elly Mae Clampett◄

• The true story of Misty of Chincoteague, the pony who stared down a devastating Nor'Easter.
• Earth lost 2.5 billion years' worth of evolutionary history in just 130,000 years.
• Male gorillas that babysit end up with a larger brood of their own.
• See which stunning image won Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
• A same-sex penguin couple takes a crack at incubating an egg. 
• Mule deer are eating away at the most massive living thing in the world.

►Fascinating Folk◄

• World War II nurse Bessie Blount, the woman who made a device to help disabled veterans feed themselves, gave it away for free. (And that's not all she accomplished.)
• Emma Willard, a ground-breaking female cartographer, charted the evolution of the United States-- and the dispossession of Native Americans.
• Major Alexis Casdagli, a British prisoner of war, stitched a hidden anti-Hitler message into a Nazi quilt.

►I ♥ Lists◄

• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1900s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1910s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1920s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1930s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1940s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1950s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1960s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1970s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 1980s.
• A Century of Reading: THe ten books that defined the 1990s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 2000s.
• A Century of Reading: The ten books that defined the 2010s (so far).

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!