If you’ve been around here for a while you know I like things that are “a little extra,” as the kids say.
Why have a standard bus stop bench in front of the library if you can have one that looks like an open book?
This bench sits in front of the main library in Chillicothe, Ohio. Here’s a view of the back.
Good for the library for adding whimsy to an everyday thing! Life would be more interesting if we all took a page from their book!
Last night I stood in the middle of the living room, holding a precarious stack of books and despairing over what to read next.
I was paralyzed with indecision.
Have you ever struggled in this way when faced with too many choices?
I consistently struggle in three main areas:
When it comes to books, there literally are too many interesting books being released every year on top of all the things written in the past to ever feel like there’s enough time.
Issues with letting go of things seem to be genetic and related to my Appalachian roots where holding on to stuff has been an economic decision. My ancestors knew the value of a dollar, of a thing, and of having a stash of stuff for when you need it. Packrattery is a survival mechanism.
And travel decisions are hard because, like books, there are finite resources (time + money) and an infinite amount of places to go. How do we begin to choose?
These areas have felt like an uphill battle for some time now.
When it comes to travel, I typically take longer trips with adventure pals and shorter trips with my fella. Life circumstances for my adventure pals have made it harder for them to go on those longer journeys. And honestly, I’ve just been lazy about getting some shorter trips on the calendar. I used to have adventure ideas in my back pocket every week. I need to get back to those roots but am often torn by the multitude of places to visit and other life things to do.
But I digress.
Back to that stack of books last night,
I am not an especially fast reader but I am a devoted one. I watch little tv and carry a book nearly everywhere including to the dentist’s office yesterday. Most nights I fall asleep with a book in my hands and wake up to the thunk of it falling on me.
How my face isn’t black and blue is beyond me.
When I finish a book, I pick up another, switching genres to keep things interesting and prevent any ruts from forming.
I like the feel of a physical book in my hands and the smell of a book is one of my very favorite things. If you ever see me smelling a book, keep moving. There’s nothing to see here.
I did finally choose something and I have high hopes for it. All the same, I had reservations when walking away from that stack I had pulled. By itself, that stack represents about a month of reading. We are already about a third of the way through the year. When will I get to them and all the others?
Clearly, there needs to be more reading hours in my day along with more time to travel. And perhaps some time for therapy because I do sound like something of a basket case.
This I know.
We are the culmination of our habits. If we want to do more of something we need to prioritize it and build our habits around that thing.
What do you wish to do more of? Does indecision ever interfere? Please tell me not the only one!
If you are fortunate enough to be a guest at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs and are a book lover, there’s a very special place to see. It’s called Pourtales Library and it’s located just off the main mezzanine in the resort’s main building.
I had seen a photo online but was still delighted and enchanted to see it in person for the first time. We were fortunate to be there for the first time when no one else was around.
It’s a small place with big character and an elegance that comes from something that feels both timeless and almost medieval. There’s a massive fireplace with a crest. Floor-to-ceiling shelves are stuffed with books that were donated by a longtime Broadmoor guest.
There are delightful reading nooks built into bookshelves and a warmth that makes you want to sit down and stay. There’s even a ladder!
Time didn’t allow me to sit and stay but I did take time to browse the collection a few times. It’s an eclectic assortment of old and new available to guests on the honor system. Some of the books are truly strange and others are perfect for browsing at a place like this.
I liked everything about this place including the name. Incidentally, it was named for Prussian Count James Pourtales who was a driving force in the development of Colorado Springs and the construction of Broadmoor Casino. That casino no longer exists but was the precursor to the hotel that exists today.
It’s like something from a storybook. If you ever get to stay at the Broadmoor, I hope you will seek out this space and rest a while amongst the books. You will love it!
PS: If you’re into woodworking, you might find this 2020 article about the redo of this library interesting. The woodwork is pretty special!
I have been beating myself up over my 2025 reading list. This year’s goal was to read 100 books. Truthfully friends, there is no prize for hitting my goal, nor punishment for a miss. The point is to keep me always reaching for a book rather than a tv remote or worse, for my phone. I spend way too much time scrolling as it is and do enjoy a good book.
I fell behind at some point this summer. A dozen books behind schedule is a pretty big hole to dig yourself out of but I did manage. Yet, all along, I felt like I was doing something wrong. Like what I was reading wasn’t good enough.
Never mind all the articles and professional reading I was doing as well.
My reading tastes range from historical fiction to thrillers to kiddie lit and non-fiction on a variety of topics. It felt like this year I devoted too many slots on my list to kid’s books. Out of the 102, 15 were kiddie lit. Three were from the Hector Fox storybook series gifted to the world by an author named Astrid Sheckels. These books feature exquisite artwork and fabulous stories about this group of animals that go on grand adventures but always come home to Hector’s den where they read a book or eat snacks together.
I want to live in Hector’s home, by the way.
The kiddie lit stack also includes Charlotte’s Web and the first of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House On The Prairie series. I hadn’t read either since I was a child and was taken by how beautifully written these books are. The stories are captivating and thought provoking. These two and Hester Fox are better told stories than many of the adult contemporary fiction books I have read this year.
I also read 20 nonfiction books on a variety of topics including farm life in the Great Depression, living in nature, and true crime.
The rest were fiction and that stack included some truly wonderful books along with some that I would deem junk food for the brain. In particular, there were some thriller writers that required no effort to read.
I have a bookshelf where all the current year’s books live and where they are shelved in the order I read them. I also keep a Goodreads list and a notebook to record the books I read. The shelf, though, allows me to visualize all that I’ve read this year and the space these stories occupy in the world.
Let’s face it – this is kind of a trophy shelf but I’m ok with that.
On January 1, I always remove the books from those shelves and sort them on the kitchen table into the categories of Fiction, Non Fiction, and Children’s. I sort the favorites and which ones to give away. Then I shelve the keepers in their permanent homes. It’s a fun process for a closeted librarian.
As I removed them 2025 books from that shelf, I realized there are trends in my reading year. Winter is reserved for longer books and a lot of nonfiction. By spring I’m reading more fiction, the heat of summer introduces kids books, and by Christmas it’s a steady diet of Richard Paul Evans and others who tell soft, happy Christmas stories.
I read some great books this year. Why on Earth am I beating myself up over some kiddie lit that, in the grand scheme of things, is better done than some of the bubblegum fiction we are told we should be reading?
Don’t worry. I’m done beating myself up now.
Reading is reading, friends. Whether you’re reading storybooks to your kids or diving deep into the world of Jane Austen, or reading bestselling fiction, it is all reading.
And what a miracle it is that 26 little letters can be manipulated into thousands of words that tell a story in a book that is unique of all the other books next to it on a shelf. The creativity and effort that goes into writing books is something to be celebrated! The fact you choose a book over other distractions is amazing.
Let us rejoice that there are books in this world and that we choose to read them!
Around here, my long awaited Christmas vacation is winding down. It’s back to work on Friday even though it feels like I’ve hardly had a break. I’m cherishing these last few days.
Around here, Mother Nature is doing her Ohio thing where the mercury rises to 65 degrees one day and then plummets overnight to a daytime high of 20. Factor in a wind so strong it will knock you down and suddenly winter has arrived.
Around here, I have several projects underway. One is to remove most of the Christmas decorations but I’m leaving up the tree for a while. It has white lights, pretty ribbons and woodland themed ornaments. This tree is pretty in the winter without being Christmasey. Some snowmen and other non Christmas specific things will stay out. Meanwhile, the place is bare in spots and piled up with totes ready to store.
Another project involves finally getting my craft room in order. This is where I store hobby supplies, holidays decorations and extra decor. I have a weakness for vintage and antique items and like to freshen up my home by rotating in and out small pieces of interest. That room is a habitual mess but I swear this is the year I get it done. To that end, I bought a shelving unit which I assembled over the weekend. Progress can be seen but, golly, there’s much to do.
Around here, I am working on my reading goal for the year and considering what my goal should be in 2026. I’m finishing up my 101st book – one over the 2025 goal. While that list includes some good fiction, there was very little nonfiction and several kids books. This is a sign of how tired my mind was and how badly I needed some quiet, fun distraction rather than learning and enrichment.
I’m thinking about knocking the goal down to 75 or 80 to make it easier. My goal means absolutely nothing but it does keep me reading and it keeps me always ready to start the next good book. There’s some wisdom in making it high just to keep me engaged with my TBR.
Scout is enjoying having me home and especially appreciates how much time I have spent relaxing with a book lately. He finds reading time a wonderful opportunity for naps!
Around here, I’m gearing up for my January No Spend Challenge. This is an annual tradition and one I look forward to every year. I’m currently compiling my annual list of things to do that don’t involve spending money. I’m up to about sixty activities ranging from fun things like dabbling with watercolors and putting together a puzzle to going for a hike and doing chores like cleaning closets and decluttering.
Around here, as nature turns cold and less habitable, I am turning inward. My mind is quieter. I’m using this time to calm my nervous system. Two doctors have informed me recently that I’ll never be better until I work on this. Soft lights, quiet, and the softness of home are just what I need and exactly what I aim to embrace during my No Spend Challenge.
Around here, there are stories waiting to be told and others waiting to be read. Some are waiting to be lived. A new year is just around the corner.
I’ll be around here if you need me.
One of my favorite contemporary writers is a southerner named Sean Dietrich. He also uses the moniker Sean of the South for his blog and a one man show he performs all over the United States. He uses music and humor to make folks feel good.
But he’s more than a southerner and more than a writer or a musician. He’s a storyteller whose message and everyman themes stretch across geography, generations, denominations and all the other imaginary lines we humans like to draw around ourselves.
My gateway into his work was this video where he talks about a kind librarian and the difference she made in his life. Go watch it and come back. I’ll wait. It is lovely, heartfelt and worth your time.
Because of this video I discovered his daily essays and podcasts before finally reading one of his books and then another and another. I have not read everything he’s written but I’m working on it because his writing inevitably makes me feel better about the world.
Searn writes about people who are kind or who are doing something good in this world. He writes about his dog Thelma Lou and about how church ladies run the show. He writes about his own origin story which he justifiably still wrestles to understand.
He writes stories that prove there are still good people in this world. What he doesn’t write about is politics, religion or anything else that might divide us. His writing is a study in seeking out the good, looking out for one another, and in creating the family you need or, maybe, that needs us.
He’s a modern day Mark Twain and is said to be the south’s answer to Garrison Keillor. He’s a man of profound words and many talents with a sense of humor that ranges from smartly witty to canned corn. And for someone who regularly stands in the circle of a spotlight, he seems a humble man too.
My fella and I built a long weekend of books and fun around seeing the Sean of the South stage show in Cincinnati earlier this month. I’m a fan of the advice to never meet your heroes because too often we find that talented humans are still just human. They’re never as good as we hope.
I’m thrilled to say that Sean Dietrich was exactly what I thought he would be and more.
Sean performed in Ohio for the first time as what must have been a sold out audience welcomed him to the 20th Century Theater. His wife Jaime meets and greets folks at the merchandise table where you can buy books, shirts, and music cds.
His stage show is a fun medley of storytelling and music. He tells jokes and funny stories using music sometimes as vehicles for the stories and sometimes like props. It’s a high energy show with few lulls and no time to get bored. Sure, there were some men in the audience who clearly were there because their wives demanded it but the rest of us were thrilled to spend a couple of hours with his wit and melodies.
When it was over, Sean Dietrich stood by the front door and greeted every person in line. He signed books, hugged people, posed for pictures and talked with folks. We had second row seats so we were near the end of the line and waited about an hour to have our turn. Friends, there are few people on this planet I would stand in that kind of line to meet but I was so grateful for the opportunity. We accepted hugs even though I’m not a hugger but it’s sort of a when in Rome moment. He signed my books. Best of all, he answered my question about writing in a way that was so gracious and kind I was actually surprised at how much thought he put into it.
I thanked him for his daily essays, a bright spot on social media which feels more like a cesspool sometimes than a place to find inspiration and light. I told him to be careful going home and he told us to watch out for deer. We rural folks like to remind everyone of the ever lurking dangers of deer in the road.
It was like chatting with an old friend.
In fact, everything he puts out in the world feels like a chat with an old friend and that’s something we badly need these days. We need someone in our life who will remind us there’s still good in this world despite what the algorithm shows us. We need talent and creativity and someone to inspire us to be kind to a stranger, to share a funny story or to flex our creative muscle even if it’s just for ourselves.
By the way, his father committed suicide when he was only eleven years old. While this horrific event helped to shape him into the person he is today, it didn’t break him and I don’t believe it defines him either. If a child can survive something so terrible, it seems like the rest of us will be ok too.
Read his books. Follow him on Facebook for daily essays. Listen to the podcast. Go see the show. You won’t be disappointed. Get started at his website.