April Snapshots
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| The pear tree is blooming. |
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| Creepy bunny krispie treats. |
1.
I believe the scientific term for this is “clusterfuck.” April
was one of the worst months I’ve had in years. My mom and my dog both had big
surgeries, and I discovered that I am a terrible
caretaker. This is why I should never have children. Seriously, you should see
my house right now. Imagine that a gang of enthusiastic lemurs trashed the
world’s most useless hospital. That’s how the house looks. All the furniture is
pushed up against the walls, and there are strange medical devices lying
around, and the floor is covered in bloody tarps because the dog’s surgery cut
won’t stop leaking. I can’t remember the last time I slept for more than 4
hours. AND WHERE DO ALL THESE DIRTY DISHES KEEP COMING FROM? Nobody goes to the
store, so we don’t have food, but we always seem to have dirty dishes? What is
this black magic?! How do I make it stop?
Everybody is still alive. I
guess that means I’m winning? I don’t know. I’m so tired that I keep going
cross-eyed. It doesn't feel like winning.
2.
Dewey’s happened in April. Dewey’s 24-Hour Readathon is my favorite
bookish event. Since I wasn’t allowed to sleep, I figured it’d be fun to read
all night while Twitter cheered me on. Here are my Dewey's Twitter shenanigans:
Wayward Googlers
Cait @ Paper Fury
sometimes posts the amusing Google searches that led people to her blog. Today,
I’m stealing her idea. Here is an unfortunate soul who ended up on Read
All The Things! instead of finding what they were Googling for.
“Meatball.
On. Natflix.” A meatball natflix sounds like a sandwich. I’d
eat that.
Books I Read In April
Well, this is embarrassing. I
only finished two books in April. What did I even do last month?
Thunderhead – Neal
Shusterman
I kind of made progress on my
challenges. Click here to see how I’m doing.
Best Book Of April
Most-Viewed April Reviews
Most-Viewed April Non-Reviews
All The Things!
Distance I’ve sloppily jogged
so far in 2018 = 94 miles (151k)
Number of unread books on my
TBR shelf = 55 books
I’m currently reading = A Head Full Of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
What did you do in April?
I'm so sorry about your mom, and your dog! I hope everyone starts feeling better soon and you can get some sleep. That's really great of you to take care of everyone.
ReplyDeleteMy heart breaks looking at your poor beautiful dog looking so sad! Insomnia and stress are no fun at all (I've been plagued with both most of my life) so I have so much sympathy for how knackered you must be. I hope both your mum and dog are on the mend and that you can start to get some proper rest.
ReplyDeleteI'm very sorry AJ to hear about your mom and dog! Being a caretaker is hard and you find it difficult to address other things, especially daily tasks, because you don't have the same priorities, focus and energy. You may be able to catch up with some of them over time but if you don't it's totally normal so try not to be too hard on yourself. What you are going through is not easy at all. Sending you hugs and love
ReplyDeleteOMG, you're a hero! I'm sure you're taking care of both of them very well, you're just being too hard on yourself. Relax, you're doing all you can, I'm sure. They are lucky to have you around. I hope both of them will recover soon. I'm sending a virtual hug your way. *hugs*
ReplyDeleteRonnie @ Paradise Found
Those cookies are too cute! They remind me of a bunny cake my mom used to make when I a kid.
ReplyDeleteI hope everyone is recovering well and lol that pasta scoop scratcher.
Karen @ For What It's Worth
That's great your able to help your loved ones. I kinda participated in Dewey readathon but had so many things going on that day it didn't workout. I'm still debating reading Thunderhead.
ReplyDeleteTori @ In Tori Lex
Aww that sounds really awful with your dog and mum being ill! I'm sorry for you all. 😭😭And I can imagine it'd be hard to read + balancing all of that!? So 2 books probably is super amazing here and go you !! (I want to read Thunderhead so bad omg.) Also that search term tho. 😂😂
ReplyDeleteYour poor doggie...staples on her leg and her head?! I think that doggies needs lot of treats :) I hope your mom is doing well. Some months just don't cooperate with reading. I am looking at May's calendar and already know that my numbers will be way down. I couldn't stay up for 24 hours anymore so good for you!
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess that explains why you skipped the Sunday Post. Hope the patients are okay. Hope you're back to your normal sleep schedule.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're running, even though I don't anymore.
Wow, you've definitely had a crazy month. I hope both of your patients are doing well! And I hope you can get some sleep soon, also, because sleep is important. Also, I am madly impressed by people who can do 24-hour readathons. Five minutes past the regular time I go to sleep and I feel like I've been up for days with no sleep--I'm a wimp! (I've also done many similar things to you petting your dog with a pasta scoop, so you're not alone!) Best of wishes that May starts improving a bit, you're incredible!
ReplyDeleteI hope your mother and your dog are better now. You did pretty well, you did the important things, that's impressive.
ReplyDeleteOh, wow. I knew about your dog, but somehow I missed that you mom was sick too ('cause, you know, apparently I pay more attention to pets than humans). I feel like my house is such a wreck ALL the time---if I had to care for truly sick family members, I don't even want to think about what it would look like.
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Sorry you're having to deal with all that. I wish I were closer and could help out with Mom. :( Hopefully everyone will get better, soon!
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, so sorry that April was a rough month for you and your family. I saw about your puppy on insta. ):
ReplyDeleteHERE IS TO A BETTER MAY (or else).
My son's Godmother always used to give my house dirty looks, and early one morning before he was uo (when he was three) she had to stop at my house on her way to college to pick up a paper I had typed for her. She made a remark about how nice and clean the house was. When she stopped back to have coffee two hours later, the house was a total wreck (from my son). When she came in her jaw dropped and she said she would never have bad thoughts about my housekeeping again. People just don't understand. I still have trouble keeping the dishes done and my son is 26, so you aren't alone on that one. Ha!
ReplyDeleteThe pear blossoms! I used to cut a bare branch from the tree we had at our old apartment every Easter for our egg tree, and put it in water and it would bloom. I loved it. <3
I hope everyone is still on the mend at your house. Your puppers made my Dewey's wrap-up on my Sunday post. I hope her (his?) head has stopped weeping. :)
Sometimes, there are just months that get away from me! That's how I felt in March between travelling and visitors, I read 2 books and barely wrote one review! Hoping your reading motivation is high in May :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a month! I sure hope May is more fun. I just started Dread Nation this morning, and so far am really enjoying it.
ReplyDeleteIt is kind of hilarious that we are all going, "Oh, poor puppy," and are mostly oblivious that your mom is also ill. Maybe you need to post pictures of her looking pathetic too? Or maybe not. Might not be good for mother-daughter relations.
With your mum and dog both having had surgeries, that's good to hard! I can honestly tell you, parenting is winging it 95% of the time, so it sounds like you're doing just fine on the caregiving side. Haha!
ReplyDeleteInteresting Google search leading to your blog....
Happy reading in May & a wonderful month as whole to you!
I'm sorry that April was such a hard month. But don't be so hard on yourself. Taking care of people or animals after surgery is hard. I hope both your mom and your dog are feeling better and that May is going to be so much better for you. <3
ReplyDeleteSorry about your dog and your mom. I hope they get better soon.
ReplyDeleteSorry you had such a tough month, but it honestly sounds like you've been doing a great job of looking after your dog and your mum. Well done for taking part in the readathon. I might try it next year.
ReplyDeleteYou certainly had a shocking April - so sorry... I hope your mum is on the mend and I've read your Sunday post so I'm aware of your dog's prognosis. Sometimes we just get mugged by Life - all I can tell you is to hang on in there - because this, too, shall pass... In the meantime, you are doing a great job in very difficult circumstances. Take care!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your mom and your dog! Hope they both get better soon! And two books is still amazing considering the month you had. Hope May will be so much better for you!
ReplyDelete*hugs* caring is hard. damned. work. Make sure you take care of yourself too, please. You can't help other people if you're that burned out. You rock, you're doing *absolutely* awesomely, take care of yourself!
ReplyDeleteAlso, as long as you washed the pasta stirrer, I won't judge you! ;)
*more hugs* Hope things get bettererer in May! <3
Fingers crossed that May picks up for you and that you get your sleep quota at least. Being a carer is tough, especially with two patients at once. You're a hero!
ReplyDeleteEveryone is still alive so that is definitely a good sign! Please remember to take care of yourself too! Um, I'm not going to judge you for the pasta stirrer because I've done things like that with my kids lol. I hope everyone gets healthy in May!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear your Mum and dog have been ill. Sounds like you've had a lot on, but remember to take care of yourself and know that you're doing the best you can. It may have been a slow reading month, but quality trumps quantity. I'll have to check out the Arc of a Scythe series!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry April was such a hard month for you! I hope that this month is going much, much better for you, your mom and your doggy! Hugs!
ReplyDeleteOn a happy note, 94 miles is amazing! Yay you for keeping at it and running!