Read in 2025

Something of concern:

As I do, when I finish a book, I add it to my yearly list and then go to Goodreads to leave a review.

At least twice this year, I had a Gandalf moment:

I know it happened with Tom Holt's "Who's Afraid of Beowulf," which I started this year then noticed I'd already reviewed it on Goodreads, and Brother Andrew's "God's Smuggler."

I'm not sure what that means aside from senility being inevitable, but there we are.

Nevertheless, a lot of good reads this year. Here's the list:

Adventures of Uncle Lubin, The; by W. Heath Robinson. 119 pages.

AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order, by Kai-Fu Lee. 254 pages.

Book of Boy, The; by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. 271 pages.

Book of Mormon, The; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 535 pages.

Child's Garden of Verses, A; by Robert Louis Stevenson and illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith. 105 pages.

Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide, by John Cleese. 103 pages.

Dave Bartry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need, by Dave Barry. 171 pages.

Diary of A Wimpy Kid Hot Mess, by Jeff Kinney. 217 pages.

Fall of Richard Nixon, The; A Reporter Remembers Watergate, by Tom Brokaw. 227 pages.

God's Smuggler, by Brother Andrew and John and Elizabeth Sherill. 241 pages.

Going Postal, by Terry Pratchett. 377 pages.

Leper of St. Giles, The; by Ellis Peters. 265 pages.

Lincoln at Gettysburg, by Garry Wills. 320 pages.

Morbid Taste for Bones, A; by Ellis Peters. 265 pages.

Outrage Machine, by Tobias Rose-Stockwell. 388 pages.

Peanuts by the Decade, the 1970s; by Charles Schulz. 530 pages

Politically, Fashionably, and Aerodynamically Incorrect: The First Outland Collection, by Berkeley Breathed. 128 pages.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in A World that Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain. 352 pages.

Raising Steam, by Terry Pratchett. 365 pages.

Rakkety Tam, by Brian Jacques. 371 pages.

Reflections of A Scientist, by Henry Eyring. 101 pages.

Rickover Effect, The; by Theodore Rockwell. 438 pages.

Road to Freedom, The; by Shawn Pollock. 212 pages.

Rocket Men, by Craig Nelson. 404 pages.

Trolls of Wall Street, The; by Nathaniel Popper. 341 pages.

Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West; by Stephen E. Ambrose. 521 pages.

Why Things Go Wrong, by Laurence J. Peter. 207 pages.

Ze Page Total: 7,776

Today"s Mission: Saguaro

Today's mission: Up close and personal with southern Arizona saguaro. We opted for a walk through Phoenix's South Mountain Park and Preserve, hoping we'd find a few.

We did.

They're woodier than I expected.

Also, the park was much greener than I expected. But this is their cooler, wetter season.

Prepare Weepiness! [Boop]

 

This has always been on the bucket list, seeing the Christmas displays at the Mesa Temple.

Tonight, we made it.

And between snatches of Handel's Messiah and hearing a recording of Thomas S. Monson telling the Christmas story, I got a little weepy.

No Turd Monday, but Lots of Cliff Dwellings

Item: Water was considered a critical.commodity for the inhabitants of the Walnut Canyon cliff dwellings:

I learned today, however, that Walnut Creek rarely runs anymore, as the water is impounded for the city of Flagstaff.

I guess water is still a necessity. Too bad we can't share it with, you know, nature.

Anyway, lots of ruins today.

Tuzigoot we also visited today. Ruins on a hill, reminiscent of an abandoned stronghold I visited in France (Montsegur)

 Similar vibes at Montezuma's castle.

Prelude to the Grand Canyon: A Volcanic Turd

Today's first stop continued the poop theme, with this volcanic turd on display at the Sunset Crater Visitors Center:

I sent this photo to Isaac, who noted a poop theme for our vacation, since I sent him the rock formation resembling buffalo doots yesterday. I'm kind of excited to see what tomorrow will bring.

Speaking of the Grand Canyon: I was expecting canyon views like this, and we got a lot of them:

Like yesterday, however, I was not prepared for certain realities. Like the fact that the canyon, at least on the south rim, is surrounded by a pretty thick forest of ponderosa pine.

Horseshoe Bend, or Buffalo Doots?

We stopped at Horseshoe Bend today.

Everybody talks about the cliffs and the river. I was not prepared for the rock formation that looks like a big pile of buffalo doots.