I love Top Ten Tuesday, but I'm not always feeling the topic du jour.  Today's is Top Ten Books I Enjoyed But Rarely Talk About and ... I got nothin'.  I seriously can't even think of one book.  So, I'm going to twist the topic and chat with you about Top Ten Things I've Been Doing in Quarantine Besides Reading.

If you're bored and looking for a fun distraction, hop on the Top Ten Tuesday party bus.  It'll be a good time, I promise!  Just head on over to That Artsy Reader Girl to read a few instructions.  Then create your own list, following this week's prompt or changing it up if that works better for you.  Next, spend some happy hours clicking around the book blogosphere.  It's a great way to discover new blogs, show some love to old favorites, and, of course, add awesome new titles to old Mount TBR.  What's not to love?

Top Ten Things I've Been Doing in Quarantine Besides Reading (in no particular order):


1.  Blogging—You'd think with all of the time I have on hand I would have caught up on writing reviews by now.  Not exactly.  I have been reviewing, but I've also been reading about a book a day, so I'm still way behind.  Maybe I'll be on top of things before the quarantine ends?  Not likely ...


2.  Cross-stitching—I used to spend a lot of time cross-stitching.  These days, I can go years without picking up a needle and thread.  In the past few weeks, though, I've felt a hankering to get back to my old hobby.  I finished the project above last week and have started on a new design that celebrates the Fourth of July.  Of course, I haven't just been stitching—I've been shopping for patterns, floss, etc. online (mostly at 123Stitch); reading cross-stitching blogs; even checking out the FlossTube channel my friend and her friend created, M and M Stitchers.  The nice thing about cross-stitching is that I can stitch away while listening to an audiobook, watching t.v., or just chatting with the fam.

3.  Housework—I'll be honest, I never feel motivated to do housework.  Even less so lately.  But, needs must sometimes, right?  There are always toilets to scrub, laundry to sort, dishes to wash, etc.


4.  Words With Friends—I've always been a big Scrabble fan and WWF is a fun, online version of the game.  If you play, hit me up.  My username is sjwordnerd.

5.  Boggle With Friends—Even more than WWF, I love BWF.  It's a fun, fast-moving, addicting game that is a perfect distraction.  My username is sjwordnerd on BWF as well.


6.  Watching t.v./movies—Prior to the quarantine, I only really watched t.v. when I was folding laundry.  As I mentioned above, I've been stitching more, so I've been watching more.  Since my kids are home all day, whatever we watch has to be family-friendly.  My husband and I just finished Limitless; now we're working on Blue Bloods.  I also watched Groundhog's Day (an old favorite), Outbreak (I'd forgotten how terrifying it is, especially considering the state of things these days.  Also, it has a 90's PG-13 rating, meaning it had a lot more F-bombs than anticipated.  Oops.), 93 Days (another pandemic flick, based on a true story), and The Fighting Preacher (an interesting, uplifting movie about a couple who served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the early 1900s in upstate New York and how they overcame the hate and prejudice they encountered there). 


7.  Sleeping—Back in the old days (you know, January), I'd get up at 6 every morning to get my kids off to school and then get on with my day, which was always full of appointments, errands, shopping, volunteering at the school, housework, projects, etc.  These days, I crawl out of bed around 9, shower somewhere around noon, and usually take a nap around 3 because why not?  I literally have nowhere else I need to be but in my nice, comfy bed!


8.  Eating—I don't know about you, but I think I've gained 20 lbs. so far this quarantine.  Although we've had some trouble finding the groceries we regularly buy, we've still managed to eat plenty of food.  Both my 18-year-old daughter and I have been baking away, both out of boredom and craving sweets.  So, yeah, I'm going to be stepping up my weight loss game once if this quarantine ever ends.


9.  Genealogy—As I've mentioned before, I'm in the middle of getting accredited as a professional genealogist through ICAPGen with a specialty in the Great Lakes area of the United States.  I was supposed to head to Salt Lake City in early May to complete my testing, but that has been postponed.  In the meantime, I'm finishing up a big project so I can certify in the Southwest U.S. region as well.

I've also been spending a lot of time indexing old records through FamilySearch.  I've done this for years and it's a fun, easy way to volunteer your time.  After these records are indexed, which makes them easily searchable, they are published online at FamilySearch.  The genealogy site is, and always will be, completely free.  Anyone can use the records found therein to research their family history.  Likewise, anyone can help index the records.  If you're looking for a way to volunteer from your home, check it out.


10.  Hanging With the Fam—Being cooped up together as a family for a month hasn't been a breeze, but it hasn't been bad either.  We've had more time than usual to eat together, chat together, laugh together, watch movies together, and basically just to enjoy each other's company.  It's been a lovely byproduct of an unpleasant time in the world.

There you go.  That's what I've been up to.  What have you been doing to keep yourself busy and sane during the quarantine?  I'd truly love to know.  Leave me a comment on this post and I'll gladly return the favor on yours.

Happy TTT!

Good Tuesday morning!  How is everyone?  How's the apocalypse going for you all?  My family and I are still doing just fine.  We've got plenty of t.p., food, and medicine, so we're just hunkering down.  The weather here yesterday was absolutely beautiful, so we did venture out to a neighborhood park.  It was full of people walking their dogs, doing yoga, riding bikes, etc.  We ate our lunch in an empty ramada, fully intending to socially distance ourselves, but the first people my 11-year-old daughter saw were two of her really good friends.  The kids all squealed and jumped around, so excited to see each other!  It broke my heart, actually, that these little pals have been forced to isolate themselves when they enjoy playing together so much.  They did get to run around together for a couple of hours, happy as proverbial clams.  Since my daughter's friends are boys, there wasn't any touching involved (cooties, doncha know), but she—and they—got some much-needed time to exercise, bask in the sunshine, and hang out with buddies.  It certainly boosted her spirits and ours.  At any rate, I hope you and yours are healthy and safe during these crazy times.

Speaking of boosting spirits, it's time for Top Ten Tuesday.  Yay!  It's easy to join in the TTT fun—just hop on over to That Artsy Reader Girl, read a few instructions, build your own list, then spend some happy hours checking out other people's posts.  It's a fun way to discover new blogs, check in on old favorites, and rake in the reading recommendations.  What could be more fun, especially when you're stuck at home in need of a distraction?  Today's topic is a good one, too—Genre Freebie (pick a genre and build a list around it! i.e., best/worst romances, non-fiction for travelers, memoirs for foodies, classics that feel timeless, romance novel kisses, science fiction that feels too real for comfort, women’s fiction for newbies, etc.)

Freebies always throw me for a little bit of a loop and this one is no exception.  I racked my brain for a unique, creative way to spin the topic and nothing came to mind.  So, I'm going to take the lazy woman's way out today and ask for reading recommendations instead of giving them out.  Here's the deal:  I'm a positive, happy person who gravitates toward mystery/thrillers/apocalyptic fiction, even in the End of Days, apparently.  I've read so many that right now my soul is seriously craving books that will lift my heart, make me laugh, and provide the kind of light, fun entertainment that's been lacking in my reading choices of late.  Help a girl out?  I like most genres, although I tend to steer away from high fantasy, poetry, serious sci-fi, and anything too dense/technical/boring.  Erotica and the like is absolutely off the table.  What have you got for me?  Here's a quick Top Ten list that will give you an idea of what I like and am looking for more of:

• Light, entertaining stories that still have substance.  Any genre.  Bonus points if they're clean and well-written.
• Inspiring biographies/memoirs
• Easy, breezy romcoms
• Family sagas (think Kate Morton and Karen White)
• Action/adventure/survival stories where endurance/determination wins out in the end and/or where there's more going on than meets the eye (think LOST)
• Women's fiction that's heartwarming without being cheesy or sappy
• Mysteries that are engrossing, but won't give me nightmares (think cozies and Mary Higgins Clark-ish)
• Humor (fiction or non-fiction, just something that is funny without being too crude or suggestive)
• Sweet/small-town romance (think Robyn Carr without the R-rated bits)
• Haunted house/ghost stories that are shivery and engaging, but not terrifying