I said I wouldn’t whine about creaky body parts, so I won’t, but I will share that my problematic knee turned savage, and I’ve been nursing that traitorous wretch back to health. You think you know a knee, and then it pulls something like this.
Physical therapy, or physical tyranny as I’ve been calling it lately, has been life-changing for me, but I’ll be having a heart-to-heart with my guy later today. I give him full credit for helping me strengthen my core and pretty much eliminate lower back pain, but I’m no longer on board with the concept of strengthening my quadricep muscle to fix my knee.
I know that’s the standard, but in my case, lunges and squats do more harm than good. They are dead to me. I’m calling it a farewell to harms.
Fortunately, I’ve had a good book to help me ride out the storm. While crime fiction is my default, I occasionally like to read science fiction and fantasy. The library had Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. It’s about a young woman who attends a brutal war college for dragon riders, and I enjoyed it very much. It’s a trilogy, and I just picked up the second one from the library. The third comes out this month, I think.
And so I find myself with the streaming blues. I love the choices available these days, but I hate burning through a show only to find it’s the end of the season, and there are no assurances there will be another one. All that emotional investment, and then it’s wait and see.
Still, I’m weak and continue to watch, even though I know I’ll soon be left high and dry. I’m mostly thinking of Hulu and The Old Man with Jeff Bridges. I have one more episode, and then who knows? Next year, maybe? The show is based on the The Old Man by Thomas Perry. He’s a prolific writer. I really loved his Jane Whitefield series and highly recommend them. The first one is Vanishing Act.
I also burned through some of my PBS shows, including Hotel Portofino. I need to stop around for a new one over there.
Back to Hulu. I liked Shogun, which is a limited series. How great, I thought, that I don’t have to wait for new seasons. I thought the finale was just perfect and was at peace with it being over. Then I went online to read more about the actors, only to discover the show has been such a success they plan to produce one or even two more seasons. That just pisses me off. They’ve already killed off my favorite character, so I’m kind of over it.
The bright side is there’s almost always something around the bend. Season 3 of The Lincoln Lawyer drops Oct. 17 on Amazon Prime. That show is based on Mickey Haller books by Michael Connelly. Speaking of Michael Connelly books, The Waiting, featuring Harry Bosch and Renée Ballard, is out Oct. 15! I’m pretty sure I’ll end up buying that one.
The weather has finally turned cooler, so I’m starting to get excited about fall foods. I adore pumpkin, especially in savory dishes, and I have a boatload of recipes I’ve been saving. It’s a matter of choosing which one. Some recipes call for fresh pumpkin or butternut squash, and others use canned pumpkin. I’m actually a big fan of canned pumpkin, but I’m good with any of the above.
Dale wants to make chili. The question is beef or chili verde with pork. Both are spectacular. He is of the opinion that beans do not belong in chili. He also uses stew meat – nothing ground.
Our election ballots arrived in the mail, so that’s on the docket. I’m quite nervous about the whole thing, but I still have hope Kamala can pull it off. I simply can’t understand how it can even be close. If you haven’t checked out my one-pager about Trump’s shameful pattern of disrespect for the military, you can find it here.