Mardi and the Metal Stick of Doom

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’m beyond tired for no reason. I don’t feel like complaining even though I could. Didn’t watch the halftime show. Definitely didn’t watch the other thing with the irrelevant old white dude/pedo and handful of people I’ve never heard of. So, instead, I’m leaving you with a video of Mardi and the metal stick she found behind Dad’s shop. She found it a long time ago, but he only gives it back to her once in a while. Why? Because she does this for hours if it isn’t taken away and hid. It’s adorable for the first five minutes. Plus it terrifies the other dogs. Anyway, here’s a picture of the little terror. The video is under that.

A Rant: Outback Steakhouse

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Things here are okay. I have nothing to ramble about, so Dad suggested that I rant about our ordering experience with Outback Steakhouse in Mesquite on Sunday. There’s so much stuff going on in the world that this is inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, so I feel like I’m just bitching to bitch. Which I guess I am. But it was annoying and I’m trying really hard to convince myself that I am allowed to feel my feelings and share them even though I know there are worse things happening right now. It’s okay to be made happy or annoyed or whatever by the little things even though major things are happening all around you. Right? I feel like I’ve seen a meme with that somewhere. Anyway, to the rant!

First, some background. I do not order through third party delivery sites. If I’m ordering food, I only want to deal with the restaurant, not some middleman who charges ridiculous fees. If the restaurant wants to outsource their deliveries, that’s fine as long as I don’t have to call DoorDash or whoever myself when no driver shows up. If I order through a restaurant’s website, I expect them to deal with any errors and they usually do. If they don’t, I never order from them again. This severely limits our options, but I don’t like middlemen and neither does Dad. Don’t get me wrong. I tried a couple of delivery services, but a few orders in and there’s inevitably a screw up and the delivery service blames the restaurant and vice versa, then it takes me multiple phone calls to both places just to get our money back. It’s not worth it to me.

Second, the facts. Sunday is my shower day, so Dad doesn’t feel like cooking after spending hours getting me ready for the week. Thus, we almost always order something that day. There are multiple steakhouses in Mesquite, but only two fit the criteria above: Outback and Saltgrass. The latter is more expensive for smaller portions and basically the same selection and quality, so it’s super rare for us to order from them. Outback has always been our go-to, even when we were still going out all the time. They didn’t have half their steaks or appetizers. It was weird. But we found things to order. So, I placed an order at 7:46pm (they close at 9:00pm). The email said the order was scheduled for delivery at 8:34pm. The confirmation page after the order was placed said the estimate was between 8:34pm and 8:44pm. I know they use DoorDash for their deliveries, so when I didn’t receive any tracking info by 8:30pm, I was antsy, but I had to wait until 8:45pm to call the restaurant because I’m weird and have to give people the full time they estimate or else I feel like a Karen. So, I called the restaurant at 8:45pm and got swapped around three times before the manager got on. I can’t remember her name, but she was polite and understanding. She acknowledged that our food was ready and had been waiting for an unspecified amount of time, but no one had picked it up. She offered to call DoorDash and find out what was going on, but admitted that since it was ten minutes to closing, the driver probably wouldn’t make it in time. She also offered to refund the order if I’d rather do that. I opted for the refund because it was late and I didn’t feel like dealing with it. But most places close early on Sundays around here. Even the places that are open late close delivery at 9:00pm or 9:30pm. So, Dad ended up having to warm up leftovers. On Monday, I filled out the “how did we do” text with my complaints. On Tuesday, I checked their website and most of the missing stuff was back, so I guess they somehow ran out of a bunch of stuff on Sunday. I also received a form text from the owner with the obviously vague apology and link to a $20 discount for our next order.

Third, the rant. I understand shit happens, but this is the second time this has happened recently. The first time was a fiasco because the dude didn’t know how to do his job, but at least this manager knew that since I ordered through them, she was supposed to fix it. I was really thrown by the lack of selection, but after checking the menu again, I realize they just ran out of things. How you run out of six appetizers and three or four steaks is beyond me, but whatever. I would blame the weather, but honestly, you’ve had time to restock. Their quality has also been really hit or miss lately. Another gripe is that the order sat there for who knows how long and no one bothered to call me and say “hey, we’re closing in half an hour and your order has been sitting here. What do you want to do?” Ideally they would’ve called DoorDash already so they could give me my options based on all the info. But either way, a call would’ve been nice. And last, the $20 discount is a joke. For one, that doesn’t even cover an entree anymore. It barely covers an appetizer (but yeah, keep telling us how great the economy is…). A couple years ago, it would’ve helped placate me. But it’s mostly annoying because there are zero instructions with it. All it says is “redeem now,” so I figured it was like everywhere else where it would be automatically added to my rewards account. Nope. It says you have 15 minutes to use it once you redeem it, so are you sure you want to do this? No. It doesn’t bother telling me if I need to sign in and get the order ready first or if I have to click it then only have 15 minutes to create the order and place it or what. Just add it to my account or send me a code to enter at checkout. Instead, they make it so difficult that people don’t use the discounts which is insulting because I know it was specifically designed to make people give up on using it. Ugh. Be more like Panera. They just add discounts to your rewards account and give you six months to use them. Easy peasy.

I’m done. I probably missed things, but oh well. See you next week!

Thoughts on A FIELD GUIDE TO MURDER

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely last Wednesday of January? There is so much to scream into the void about, but I’m going to push it down and focus on the book review. That’s right! It’s book review time! This month, I went with a cozy mystery. A Field Guide to Murder by Michelle L. Cullen was released yesterday (the 27th) from Crooked Lane Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

A Field Guide to Murder follows Harry, who has recently fractured his hip and believes his globetrotting life is behind him, and Emma, his caregiver who is trying to get Harry back into the world while avoiding her own problems. When a neighbor calls him during her death throes, Harry finds life in trying to solve her (maybe) murder. Emma gets dragged along for the ride until she realizes she’s finding herself as well. Can they help each other find renewed purposes for their lives? Can they solve the case?

Plot: enjoyable. I’m growing fond of stories that follow people post-retirement. Harry is an older gentlemen and Emma becomes like a second daughter to him. Found family! The mystery part of the plot is standard, but with little twists that make it fun. An upscale gated neighborhood basically (not sure if it’s actually gated or just has that feel) where everyone knows each other and it turns out most of them are shady. One of them dies mysteriously. Drama is revealed. Plus Emma’s drama. It’s all woven together pretty well for the most part. No real complaints here.

Characters: there are too many. This is my only real complaint about this book. There are far too many named characters that don’t really need to exist. It happens a lot when stories are weak, so the author throws in a bunch of names to confuse the reader in an attempt to hide what’s happening. I hate it, especially when it isn’t needed. This story is strong. We don’t need to meet every single neighbor. I knew who the bad guy was, but I kept confusing another name with his, so it was super weird. There are like 12 neighbors plus Emma’s family and Harry’s family and his acquaintances. Oh, and the police officers. It was an unnecessary amount. That said, I loved Harry and Emma. There wasn’t enough page time to get to know everyone else properly.

Writing: smooth. There wasn’t anything particularly special about the writing. It was unobtrusive and let the story shine. Made for a quick, smooth read.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed A Field Guide to Murder. Aside from the annoying amount of characters, I liked this one. I’ll definitely pick up book two if there is one.

Overall, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. I do recommend it for anyone who loves cozy mysteries, older protagonists, or even just found family stories.

Random Life Updates

~ shawnaborman ~ 5 Comments

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Not much going on here, so I thought I’d just ramble about some random life updates. They’re all pretty mundane. We all know things are horrible right now, so I don’t want to add to the unpleasantness (read that as “I don’t want to rant about the atrocities because there’s just too much happening and I wouldn’t be able to stop, so I’m just bottling it all up”). So, mundane life events it is!

1. Sophia and Bonnie (pictured) had their yearly check ups. They’ve both gained weight, but apparently they aren’t chunkers yet, because the doctor didn’t recommend they lose anything. Other than some teeth issues that we can’t afford to fix (and they don’t seem bothered by), they’re both healthy and happy. Mardi goes in for her yearly in April.

2. It’s that weird time where all the doctor appointments seem to happen. Dad and I both go see the doctor on February 2nd for a three month check up. I don’t usually have this appointment, but my yearly showed I was anemic and lacking vitamin D, so I’ve been on supplements and she wants to check to make sure my numbers are going up. I also have a video visit with Dr. Lucifer today (the 21st). She’s my pulmonologist. And no, that’s not her actual name. It’s pretty much “Anything new?” “Not really.” Then a half hour of randomness.

3. Dad made a loaf of rustic wheat bread! It turned out good. Dad was afraid it would be super dense because it deflated and felt like a brick. But it was pretty fluffy and had a nice crust. He salted the crust too, so that added a pop of flavor. It was yummy. He also made a ham, which means beans in the foreseeable future! Mmm…

That’s about it. I’ll be back next week with the usual book review!

40 Things (Part 2)

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful Wednesday? Monday was my 40th birthday, so I’m here to finish my annual random things about me post. You can find part 1 here. I’m a boring person, so please excuse the lack of interesting things to read. Anyway, it’s already late as I’m typing this (after 7pm on Tuesday), so let’s get right to the list.

Here are 40 things you never wanted to know about me. Well, the last 20 things.

1. I celebrated my birthday with Cici’s pizza. They overcooked the cinnamon rolls, which was sad. But it was alright.

2. I also made Dad rewatch A Knight’s Tale with me. I still love that movie.

3. We installed an Eero router system. Our Netgear was old and the signal wouldn’t reach the far rooms. The switch was surprisingly smooth, thankfully. And so far, it seems to be working fine.

4. I hate having my nails (fingers and toes) cut because I can’t do it myself, so I get super nervous. It’s never a nice experience.

5. I want a new ring, but I’m too lazy to figure out my size. I don’t need to spend the money anyway.

6. I randomly thought about Dad’s brandy Alexander things the other day and now I want one. Think boozy milkshake. But we don’t have ice cream and I don’t know if we have the right booze for it.

7. Chambord is my favorite liqueur.

8. A good tequila is my favorite sipping drink.

9. I love a nice black and tan.

10. No, I’m not a lush. I have maybe three or four drinks a year at home, if that much. Otherwise, I’ll have a drink when we go out to dinner, which isn’t often since Covid.

11. I got a calendar and pen from an insurance guy that I haven’t dealt with in years. Do people still use actual calendars? I can’t recall the last time I saw one out in the real world.

12. The aforementioned pen looks nice, but I just use the skinny BiCs because I can’t grip thicker ones. -winkwinknudgenudge-

13. I seriously considered buying some greeting cards and keeping them where I can reach them, so I could write someone (anyone, not the same person) a letter each week this year, but then I remembered my previous attempts at things like that. The cards just get pushed back behind my computer where I can’t see or reach them. I never make it past one or two.

14. I’ve been taking iron gummies for anemia and vitamin D gummies because the sun and I are not friends. Doctor’s orders. I’ll find out in February if they’re helpful. Mostly, they’re just the root of ongoing edibles jokes.

15. If a friend publishes a book, I’ll buy the ebook to read and sometimes I’ll even buy a hardcopy for my shelves.

16. I’m not a tea drinker, but I like miniature tea sets.

17. I’m horrified by the news every day and it’s impossible to avoid it unless you live in a cabin in the woods with no wi-fi, phone service, or newspapers. Speaking of, anyone have a remote accessible cabin in the woods for two people? Asking for a friend.

18. I suppose taking a ship to a deserted island would have the same effect. Anyone have a spare ship with accessible features and know an island? Again, for a friend.

19. I’m tired and going to snack on something now.

20. I’m debating if I want to keep doing these lists. Do you even like the annual random nonsense? If you do, let me know.

40 Things (Part 1)

~ shawnaborman ~ 4 Comments

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this wonderful first Wednesday of 2026? Things here are fine. I’m skipping a goals post this year. I never follow through. But don’t worry. I still shared goals with my writing bestie, so I do have them. I’m just hoping keeping them to myself and one person will help me achieve them. I don’t know. Anyway, I turn 40 on Monday (the 12th), so I decided to do my usual random things about me thing, but over two posts (40 is just too many to do at once). I didn’t bother going through my old ones, so sorry for any overlap.

Here are 40 things you never wanted to know about me. Well, the first 20 things.

1. I wasn’t supposed to make it this far and it’s annoying as fuck. I wasn’t supposed to make it past 6, 12, 18, whatever. Now, I’m 40 and I’ve spent the last 20 years worrying about stuff I was told I wouldn’t live to see. I was lied to! Robbed of death! I demand compensation! Stupid doctors. But seriously… how am I 40?

2. Sometimes, I plan things like I’m a normal person before I realize I’m not normal. Like, I’ll be looking at restaurants and the one I want to go to doesn’t have any tasty looking desserts, but there’s this cute little coffee shop or bakery nearby, so we could just go there for dessert, right? Then I remember I’ll have leftovers from dinner (because I always have leftovers) sitting in a hot van for an hour (because I eat/drink slowly) while I indulge, which isn’t a good thing, so I just shut that idea down. I do stuff like that a lot.

3. I mimic pretty much every alarm/notification sound in our house the moment I hear it. No idea why.

4. Pretty sure I’ve mentioned this one before, but I still think about that drunk lady in the bathroom of a club 20 some odd years ago who sang happy birthday to me and threatened to slice the throat of anyone who said I wasn’t beautiful.

5. I also still think about the arm molester at A-Kon. That’s just what I call him. He asked permission before touching me then rubbed my arm and told me all the nice things, then left me alone to drink with my friends.

6. I keep thinking about dying my hair purple again, but it’s not really worth the trouble.

7. I’m not as active on social media as I used to be. Mostly because every time I scroll through anything, I end up seeing a bunch of Nazi wannabe bullshit or just seeing the orange face of a troll and it pisses me off to no end. So, sorry for not being around as much, but most of the people I know understand.

8. I hate having to pester people to do their jobs. Makes me feel like a Karen, but that doesn’t stop me once they’ve proven they need it.

9. I kind of want something minty. Maybe I’ll have some peppermint bark after dinner.

10. I’m trying very hard to be happy. I know others are too. It’s very hard right now and will be for a while longer.

11. I dislike generative AI. It doesn’t really matter because people are still going to use it, but it’s skeevy and gross and I will totally judge you if I find out you use it.

12. I’m tired all the time, except when I’m supposed to be sleeping.

13. I don’t understand why America needed to remake Doc Martin. And I really don’t understand why it’s listed as a “FOX Original” when it’s literally just Doc Martin. That being said, the first episode was fine and the scenery was lovely.

14. The new Witcher is meh so far (we’re only three episodes in). I miss Cavill.

15. Hazbin Hotel is fun and adorable. If you watch it, who would I be?

16. I’m dreading doing this again next week because I’m already out of things to ramble about.

17. If you ever buy me books, send me your favorite so I can get to know you better. Or send something that reminds you of me so I can see what you think of me.

18. I have a video appointment with my pulmonologist later this month and haven’t received any automated confirmation texts yet. It’s weird. I usually get about 50 throughout the month. But the visit is listed as upcoming in my chart thingie, so I guess it’s fine.

19. I could go for a milkshake, but I don’t feel like ordering a hamburger. Maybe later this week.

20. I’m going to eat dinner now. Leftovers of some kind.

See you next week with the last 20 things!

Thoughts on AN ARCANE INHERITANCE

~ shawnaborman ~ 5 Comments

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely last Wednesday of 2025? I’m back! It was a nice break in which I did nothing productive. So, the usual. Anyway! I’m here to do my last book review of the year. Can you believe it’s already that time again? I decided to try some dark fantasy (they marketed it as dark academia, but eh… dark fantasy is broader and more accurate) this month to switch things up a bit. An Arcane Inheritance by Kamilah Cole was released on the 30th (yesterday) from Poisoned Pen Press. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

An Arcane Inheritance follows Ellory Morgan as she settles into her freshman year at Warren University, an ivy league school with a rumored sordid past. Along with competing to keep her grades up, working, and trying to maintain a social life, Ellory has to deal with intense bouts of déjà vu. Throw in a rivalry (maybe more) with one of the hottest/richest guys in school and a search to uncover the school’s darkest secrets and it’s down to Ellory to figure out what’s going on. Can she do it by herself? Does she have to?

Pacing and plot: ugh. This was a slow one. And honestly, super confusing. There was so much stuff that happened off the page that should’ve been an integral part of the story. But instead, we get told about every fucking time someone changes their outfit. I really couldn’t care less that every dude in this book has an ungodly amount of button downs to go under their equally stupid number of vests. Get to the story. Tell me about the missing eight. Oh, we’re summoning one of them by a pond? Probably should’ve led up to that a bit better. Your besties have been having déjà vu experiences of their own? We’re just glancing over that, but you’re telling me someone wears combat boots with another douchey rich boy outfit? Sure. That’s… cool, I guess. Like, I get setting the mood and world building and all that, but when it comes at the expense of the story, it should be reprioritized (cut… I mean that the outfits should be cut in favor of actual plot).

Characters: a big nope. The only character with any real flesh, so to speak, is Ellory. Granted, at the end, there’s a reason the rest are just her ideal versions of character stereotypes. It’s a stupid reason, but it’s still a reason. Ellory herself was okay. Kind of all talk, no action, but that’s mostly because so much of the plot (her chances for growth) happens off the page. Also, her weird obsession with saying Hudson Graves instead of just picking his first or last name makes her sound like a Saturday morning cartoon baddie. “I shall destroy Hudson Graves! -cue squeaky maniacal laughter-” It’s a bit ridiculous. And their rivals to romance plotline is kind of abrupt. I was also disappointed that the bad people were just generic rich old white folks. At least make the main bad dude interesting. But nope.

Writing: pretty much the only thing that made the book worth reading. Despite the focus on clothes, the writing was beautiful. Sometimes it was over the top, but mostly it stayed on the right side of flowery. I did enjoy it from a writer’s perspective.

Ultimately, I wasn’t a fan of An Arcane Inheritance. I thought maybe I was being too harsh. Maybe people like hearing about clothes. But I did check out some reviews to see if I should rethink things and realized very quickly that I’m not alone. I see good things about Cole’s other books, so I might check them out since I liked the writing, but this one is definitely skippable.

Overall, I gave it 2 out of 5 stars. The writing is good, but the execution as a whole leaves a lot to be desired. If you’re already a fan, try it. If not, try something else by Cole first.

Winter Break

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’m okay, just tired and have nothing to write about. Not even the spark of an idea. So, I’ve decided to take most of the rest of December off. I’ll be back on the 31st with the December book review. If something interesting happens before then, I might come back early. But if you don’t hear from me before then, don’t worry. I’ll be back. Have a wonderful holiday season no matter what you celebrate. I’ll still be active on my social media pages if you stalk me there!

Thanksgiving Recap

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone this lovely first Wednesday of December? Things here are usual. We currently have two meetings (my annual and a nursing assessment to make sure I’m still cripple enough for my CLASS benefits) and Sophia’s yearly vet visit. Haven’t decided on Christmas plans yet. Anyway, I thought I would provide you with a Thanksgiving recap since there’s nothing much to ramble about.

It was a very nice day. Dad and I dressed up a bit because Texas de Brazil used to enforce a smart casual dress code. Not so much now, but most people still dressed up. Anyway, the only two negative things of the day happened early on. We got lost on the way to the restaurant because 635 is constantly under construction and the signage is horrible. Instead of ending up at our exit, we wound up in the Express lanes and couldn’t get off until Webb Chapel. It wasn’t a horrible detour, but I was trying to avoid tolls by taking the Parkway up to Beltline. Ah well. We arrived ten minutes early instead of twenty. This was followed by the next negative thing. Despite having reservations for 3:30, we were informed there would be a 45 minute wait. I didn’t really mind. It just meant I sat around people watching instead of sitting at home on the computer. But the fact that 45 minutes turned into an hour and 15 minutes was annoying. The manager didn’t bother making rounds to apologize while everyone was waiting. He only came around when people complained. They kept taking walk-ins even though they didn’t even have enough space for people with reservations. I know it would probably take away from income, but holidays should be reservation only if you’re that busy, or at least limit the number of walk-ins. Enforcing time limits is another option. According to the manager (who did show up to apologize as we were leaving), the whole wait time fiasco occurs every holiday they’re open. They should have a better way to prioritize reservations by now. Pre-covid, the wait time was 20 minutes at the outside on Thanksgiving with reservations. Figure out how to compensate for the changes. But we were eventually seated at that coveted table by the end of the bar right next to where all the waiters gather to tally orders and all that. Which wasn’t actually bad at all. Our waiter was absolutely fabulous. He was unsure of me at first, but once he figured out I could talk, he treated me like a person. He was attentive, but not overbearing. If we wanted something, he made sure we got it. The food was mostly delicious. The parmesan pork was disappointingly dry, but everything else was amazing as usual. I tried the passion fruit mousse for dessert. It was more of a yogurt than a mousse, but it still tasted good. I’ll think I’ll stick with crème brûlée in the future, though. The valet people were all very nice as well. We skipped the highway on the way home and took Beltline all the way. It was longer, but better than 635. And to top off a lovely day, our neighbor brought us some turkey and potatoes and rice and black beans and other yummy stuff.

That was our day. How was your Thanksgiving? As always, feel free to share your thoughts here or on my social media pages!

Thoughts on MURDER AMONG THE STACKS

~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Are those who celebrate ready for Turkey Day? We are. Well, it’s the last Wednesday of November, so you know what that means. Book review time! This month, I went with a hybrid cozy mystery/word search puzzle. It was certainly something different. Murder Among the Stacks by Rosie A. Point was released from Adams Media yesterday (the 25th). As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do the thing!

Murder Among the Stacks follows Abby Jones and her cat Reggie as they try to make a go it by opening a bookstore in a small town. Abby’s fresh off a bad break up and looking for distractions. When a hot author is murdered at a book signing in her bookstore, Abby gets all the distractions she wants and more. She’s an avid word search solver, so at the end of each chapter is a puzzle for the reader, so they can help collect clues and solve the murder alongside Abby.

The story: surprisingly cute. Each chapter is only one page, so it’s basically just an outline of a story. No flesh, nowhere to really hide anything. But it hits all the cozy mystery tropes all the same. The characters are all stereotypes with no real room to grow. It’s not bad, but avid cozy mystery fans will not be buying this for the story.

The puzzles: standard word searches for the most part. I honestly stopped doing the puzzles about halfway through because there was no way for me to circle the words. It would’ve been a lot more fun if I had a hardcopy or if they created a way to highlight the words in the ebook. Not sure how the final version will work, if they even release an ebook version. But the paperback version should be lovely.

The layout: super cute. There are lots of illustrations to keep the book interesting. The puzzle that reveals the killer has an added trick to it. There’s an answer key at the end. It’s very nicely designed.

Ultimately, I enjoyed Murder Among the Stacks for what it is. It’s definitely more of a puzzle book with a twist of cozy mystery. I would probably have preferred a crossword or something, but to each their own.

Overall, I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. It’s a cute concept and if you enjoy word searches with a little story, I do recommend it. But it’s not something to pick up if you’re looking for a regular cozy mystery.