the week in review

It's been a slow week, here in the valley. Weather has been very mild until this weekend, when it has climbed to the high 90's and is predicted to stay there or go higher. It's about time. Mr. C. was away for the week, visiting his family in Ohio. As a result, I watched several movies, stayed up later than usual, but mainly puttered around in the garden, and enjoyed my solitude. He returned on Thursday, happy for the visit and happy to be home.

Wednesday I went for my annual check-up with my eye surgeon. She is the one who did the phenomenal vitrectomy on my left eye four years ago and, basically, restored my sight. I had so many years of laser treatments to stem the retinopathy, particularly in my right eye, that the left one really serves as my "seeing" eye. With it out of commission I was sunk, so her handiwork was particularly gratifying.

Movies included: The Namesake, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and the BBC series Blue Murder, a sort of working-class Prime Suspect. Caroline Quentin as hard-driving DCI Janine Lewis is terrific. Only objection: too much cell-phone use here! I had some problems with the Manchester accent, but by the third or fourth episode I got the hang of it. I've seen six episodes so far. More will be coming later.

I finally finished reading (listening to, actually, on CD) "Cutting for Stone". Well worth the effort. Next reading project: "Devil in the White City" while I wait for my name to percolate up to the top of the "Elegance of the Hedgehog" list. I started at 27; I've move up to 17 but now the library is closed until the third week in September so I have to fill in the meanwhile with some of my bedside stack.

I have spent several teary hours watching and listening as the nation bid farewell to the last of the Kennedy brothers. High praise, high criticism. Much focus on works well done. Expected focus on Chappaquiddick. But here's the thing about those three chaps, plus all of their various offspring; have you ever seen so much dazzling dental enamel?