Aviation Postcards: London

 

Heathrow

Gatwick

Gatwick

October 2022 Books I Read

 

Three Blind Mice by Agatha Christie (library) stories. The Three Blind Mice story was the basis for the play Mousetrap. Which I wasn't thinking about, but as I was reading it, I could totally see it on stage. Then boom I realized, duh this is the one that inspired the play. 

Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie (library) A Miss Marple, which I enjoyed. I liked how she just explained how everything was a reminder of stuff from small town life. And I liked how the Police were so thoughtful of her and took her advice and wanted to protect her. 

Persuasion by Jane Austin (audiobook) not my favorite Austin. Reinforced by listening to it.

Mrs. McGinty's Dead by Agatha Christie (library) In this one, Poirot is sooo fastidious. It really is almost comic relief how he is concerned about his meals and cleanliness. 

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware (library) I enjoyed this thriller about a tarot card reader who finds out that she may be heir to a fortune. 

The Cork Boat by John Pollack  Fun, fun book a true story about a guy who builds a boat out of wine corks. He eventually rows/sails it down the Douro River in Portugal! 

In the Shadow of the Mountain by Silvia Vasquez-Lavado (library) If you liked Wild, you will probably like this. It is the story of a lady from Peru, who overcame abuse to climb Mount Everest and now she helps others do the same thing. I liked it better than Wild really. 

Destination Unknown by Agatha Christie not so much a murder mystery as a spy thriller. 

A Talent for Murder by Andrew Wilson (library) so this book has Agatha Christie as a character. It reimagines her disappearance as a blackmail scheme to have her commit a murder. 

The Iron Giant by Ted Hughes (library) He wrote this story after Sylvia Plath died. 

The Underdog and other stories by Agatha Christie (library) such great vocabulary words in all her books really, but here are some from these stories: maladroit, quiescent, perturbation, stentorian, felicitate, and irradiated. 

The Lying Tongue by Andrew Wilson (library) interesting thriller set in Venice. Lots of great atmosphere

By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie another Tommy and Tuppence one (I love these) and this one is one of my all time favorites. 

Halloween Party by Agatha Christie I love it when Poirot is paired with Ariadne Oliver. This is supposedly going to be the basis of the next Kenneth Branagh Poirot film. 

Murder with Mirrors by Agatha Christie (I am getting kind of frantic to finish all the Christies before the end of the year. I have so many yet to read!!)  This one all hinges on Carrie Louise and why would anyone want to murder her? 

They Came to Baghdad by Agatha Christie I was kind of dreading reading this one as I just read it a year or two ago and I thought I did not like it then, but on rereading now, after reading so many Christies, I liked it! I thought it was a fun thriller with a fun heroine. 

Olive Again by Elizabeth Strout (library) The sequel to Olive Kitterage

Aviation Postcards: The Lighter Side

 A selection of arty and comedy postcards

And for a funny movie about flight attendants, I recommend View From the Top 

https://youtu.be/elF04ebuXHI

Aviation Postcards: Hawaii

 

Aviation Postcards: Antique

 

Aviation Postcards: Seattle

 Back in the day, everyone used to either collect or use postcards. Letters were the main way for people to communicate with others. Nowadays, it’s almost like a joke, due to the fact that you can instantly send a message to someone across the other side of the world. Years ago, about 20 million postcards were sold annually. That number is now down by about 75%, and unfortunately this decline is just accelerating.

Aviation Postcards: United and Continental

 Airlines used to have stationery sets onboard for passengers to use to write home. These postcards most likely came from these stationery sets from United and Continental Airlines. Who would have thought back then that these two airlines would one day merge into one airline! 

September 2022 Books I Read

 

Doomsday Book by Connie Willis Recommended to me by a friend on facebook and I quite enjoyed it. Time Travel and during the 1300's and they come from our future where Pandemics have been rife.  So virus and disease and quarantine are subjects. The book was written in 1992, so Connie Willis was right about a lot of things that may be common in 2054. 

The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie short stories. Christie wrote many stories that were serialized or published in magazines much like Charles Dickens did, then they were collected into books for publication. 

Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie (library) this has always been a favorite of mine and I think it holds up well

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis (library) I am really enjoying Connie Willis and will be reading much more by her. This is another time travel book. This time to Victorian England and it makes many references to Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome. You don't have to have read that book to enjoy To Say Nothing of the Dog, but it does help.

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (audiobook) read by Hugh Laurie. I immediately started listening to this one once I figured out that To Say Nothing of the Dog had so much in common with this book. It is a fun story about 3 guys traveling in a boat on the Thames. 

The Labours of Hercules by Agatha Christie (library) clever idea for Poirot short stories, paralleling them with the ancient labors of Hercules. 

A Fine Summer's Day by Charles Todd (library) prequel book in the Ian Rutledge series, this one is set prior to the war. So you get a look at Ian before he was damaged by war.

The Witness for the Prosecution by Agatha Christie (library) not my favorite Christie, I am not a fan of the courtroom stuff but some of the other stories are fun (this is another short story collection)

I Met A Traveller in an Antique Land by Connie Willis (library) LOVED IT, gonna buy it, gonna read it again and again. For all you kindle folks and ebooks folks, READ THIS BOOK. And then go buy an actual book. Just saying. 

N or M by Agatha Christie Tommy and Tuppence mystery spying during the war

Saucer by Stephen Coonts (audiobook) found out that this is the first in a trilogy of books. It was entertaining enough for me to want to read the next two books. 

The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff (library) Holocaust story. set among a circus. It was okay

The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie One of my favorites, it is a Miss Marple, but she only shows up towards the end. The main protagonists are a brother and sister who go to live in a sleepy village so that he can recover from a plane crash. Murder ensues! 

Taken at the Flood by Agatha Christie Set in Post WWII and with many twists and turns. 

The Guest List by Lucy Foley (library) a wedding is taking place on a remote Island off the coast of Ireland and things get crazy. Another with many twists and turns!! LOL

Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid ( library). Fun book with dual timelines.  I like these kind of things. A character’s life branches off into two different directions.  What if? 

Terra Incognita by Connie Willis (library) 3 science fiction stories and they are a lot of fun to read. I especially liked Remake about Hollywood 

Aviation Postcards: Ozark Airlines

 

October 1st is World Postcard Day. Introduced in 1869 as a way of sending a simple message, postcards quickly evolved beyond their practical purpose to become the universal souvenir that brightens everyone's mailboxes.  I hope that more people will send postcards!

Ozark would merge with TWA 

Aviation Postcards: Washington, DC

 

Aviation Postcards: Gander

 

Gander Airport holds a special place in my heart, it is where many flights diverted to during 9/11. There is a wonderful book about it called The Day the World Came to Town by John DeFede. There has also been a play produced called Come From Away about the experiences of the people in Gander during that time. 

Aviation Postcards: Fort Wayne, Indiana

 

The last hikes for Hikeathon 2022

 A terrific end to Hikeathon 2022, I made my goal of 30 miles hiked for the month all while working a full schedule! 

I hiked 2 miles on the Tolt Pipeline trail in Woodinville, WA 

There is the pipeline

On Saturday, I had to run an errand over by Lake Union, so I squeezed in a 2 mile jaunt along the Burke Gilman Trail and through Gas Works Park. 

Walkers on the right, bikers on the left

Apples

And I finished the month with a 3 mile stroll along the Des Moines Creek Trail near Sea Tac, WA

Lufthansa!

I turned around after the waste treatment plant

Another SeaTac arrival

Many thanks to Gretchen, Stephen, Kathy W. Ray, and Holly B. for their recent donations. we are up to $720, my total mileage comes in at 30 miles and I lost 5 pounds this month, just by bumping up my activity level! I've usually only worked on getting 10,000 steps a day, but doing my little 2 mile jaunts 3 times a week helped increase my calorie burn. Woo hoo. 

Washington Trails Association will still be accepting donations thru Sept 7th, You can cut and paste this link to go to my WTA fundraiser page  

https://give.wta.org/fundraiser/3990693

Thanks so much to everyone who has donated!