Some thoughts about some books: Goats and taxes, Han Solo’s origin story, and a life of danger

“Flat Broke with Two Goats” by Jennifer McGaha


I stumbled on this one via the Big Library Read. “Flat Broke with Two Goats” was purported to be a charming memoir about a life in Appalachia that doesn’t go as planned. The author is surprised to learn that they owe a large amount of back taxes to the government, so McGaha and her husband let their house go into foreclosure and wind up living in a “rustic” three-story cabin at the base of a waterfall, where they proceed to make a series of even more questionable financial decisions. I didn’t find the story all that charming.


“The Paradise Snare” by AC Crispin

I don’t think I’ve read a paperback sci-fi yarn since high school, when I found out that Rockford liked “Dune” so I decided to read it so I’d have something to talk to him about (and then before I knew it I’d read the whole series and was looking for all the sci-fi to consume). But then awhile ago someone on Twitter was talking about AC Crispin’s Han Solo trilogy, and it sounded intriguing. I requested a copy of “The Paradise Snare” from a library in a galaxy far, far away, and once it finally got here I read it in just a couple of days. I love Han Solo, and I enjoyed this origin story enough to read the next one. “The Hutt Gambit” should be arriving any day now. I’ll be curious to see whether “Solo” takes any cues from Crispin’s stories.


“I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death” by Maggie O’Farrell

I think I originally read about “I Am, I Am, I Am” in the New York Times Book Review. I was expecting to be moved, to cry and to emerge with a greater appreciation for life and all its frailty. But the essays really just left me a little more paranoid than usual about life and all its frailty. This shouldn’t have surprised me, knowing me as I do.


If you’re interested in seeing everything I’ve read this year — and why wouldn’t you be? — you can check out my 2018 Reading Challenge at Goodreads.

In which Nichole pats herself on the back

I am, as always, trying to find a way to feed the household on piano-soccer-guitar-tae-kwon-do-school days. Usually my answer is either the Crockpot or sandwiches, but yesterday it occurred to me that perhaps I could make dinner in the morning, when I’m not running everyone to and fro, and then everyone could heat up the components and eat whenever they got home. So while Poppy read about electrons and chemical bonding, I cooked a couple of chicken breasts and made a bourbon-mustard pan sauce. And in the evening everyone ate one by one as they shuffled back home. I have to admit, I was pretty pleased with myself.

Monday: Bourbon-Mustard Chicken
We tried out a box from Plated a few weeks ago, and my main takeaway from the experience was that Chicken With A Pan sauce is an easy and delicious dinner. So I searched for more of such recipes, and this one struck my fancy. The kids weren’t crazy about the sauce, but I loved it.

Tuesday: Spaghetti and meatballs
I’m doing a weight-loss challenge with some friends on Facebook, so my meal will be more Meatballs and A Salad than spaghetti and meatballs.

Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner
I think my goal for the summer might be to get the kids very comfortable with cooking eggs so they can make this one on their own.

Thursday: Steak & Gnocchi
Pete loves the recipe station at Publix, and he picks up the recipes whenever they’re serving something he likes. He picked this one up quite awhile ago, and we’re finally going to try it at home.

Friday: Take-out, probably
Or we might end up with frozen pizza again. We shall see.

Hungry for more? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie.

A menu plan for the week after Spring Break

We spent Spring Break last week in cold and rainy New York City, and now I have a cold — not the fault of the state of New York; I took it up there with me — and one million pounds of laundry to fold. Why is it always so hard to get back to the real world after vacation?

Here’s what’ll be on our table this week.

Monday: Sandwiches
I might be having soup, because one of the things I brought home from NYC was a cold.

Tuesday: BFD
Note to self: Buy more veggie sausages because the kids have already eaten them all.

Wednesday: Take-out
I’m not sure yet from whence.

Thursday: Quesadillas
I’m not eating cheese anymore, which means it’s been a long time since I’ve had a quesadilla. Someone suggested to me that sweet potato quesadillas might be a delicious alternative, though, so I’m going to try it. The rest of the family will likely be having cheesy ‘dillas.

Friday: Pizza
There are a couple of pizza places near us that we haven’t tried yet, but I don’t know if they have dairy-free options. I’ll just pick up my trusty ol’ Amy’s vegan Margherita if they don’t.

Hungry for more? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie.