Thursday, January 8, 2026

Wisdom, Humor, Inspiration, and a Little Bit of Crazy Times in October 2025

 It's January 2026, and I'm still writing about October 2025. 😱 I'll get caught up this month! 

Like him or not, this was a great accomplishment.


Interesting.

Screenshot from an interesting MWEG event I attended. These statistics are sad. I've been feeling particularly motivated to try to become less partisan and divisive in my outlook. 

Sorry to contradict that now a bit with this image, but I'll always be an advocate for Christopher Columbus. I object wholeheartedly to what's been done to his name and legacy in our twisted day and age.

"Richly blessed and highly favored"...I love that response.

I have long believed this.

Vaccines + Tylenol can be a dangerous combination for babies. I believe it may have harmed one of my kids, and I feel guilty about it. 

I love them all!

Legal immigration is good. Illegal immigration is harmful.

Hello, America! We need to teach history better, all of it, as well as deeper critical thinking.  
"...all of these pathologies are common worldwide...only in the West was slavery first outlawed and tribalism curtailed."

YES!!



Honey is so cool! I love that David does beekeeping and harvests delicious honey from his hives.


I was reading The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins, and I found it very insightful. This paragraph really resonated with me.

😂

So funny!

Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Books I Read in 2025

As tradition dictates, my first post of the new year is a graphic from my Goodreads reading challenge from the previous year. I had to change my reading goal from 36 to 20(!!) because 2025 was rather busy and I didn't read as much as usual (three reasons for that: David and getting married, moving, and work). This year, I plan to read more, and I set my goal for 25 books, so about two per month, which is definitely attainable. I love books and reading and always will! 📚 

2025
Year in Books
6,705
pages read
Donna
20
books read

Updated January 5, 2026.
Newly completed books appear after a delay.

The Greatest Sentence Ever Written by Walter Isaacson
Shortest Book
67
pages
A Secret History of Witches by Louisa Morgan
Longest Book
494
pages

Average book length in 2025
335
pages

Atomic Habits by James Clear
Most Shelved
3,291,493
people also shelved
The Greatest Sentence Ever Written by Walter Isaacson
Least Shelved
4,385
people also shelved

My average rating for 2025
3.6

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Highest Rated on Goodreads
4.50 average

Atomic Habits by James Clear

My first review of the year

really liked it
This book has a lot of useful, easy-to-use information about building good habits and being successful in life, and is so encouraging.

MY 2025 BOOKS
Atomic Habits by James Clear
really liked it
The Falcon at the Portal by Elizabeth Peters
A Quiet Life in the Country by T.E. Kinsey
The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena
The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict
The Only One Left by Riley Sager
The PLAN by Kendra Adachi
The Woman in Suite 11 by Ruth Ware
really liked it
Everything Is Tuberculosis by John Green
The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner
With a Vengeance by Riley Sager
A Secret History of Witches by Louisa Morgan
She Didn't See It Coming by Shari Lapena
The Orphan Keeper by Camron Wright
The Secret Christmas Library by Jenny Colgan
The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins
Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell
really liked it
The Greatest Sentence Ever Written by Walter Isaacson

The Greatest Sentence Ever Written by Walter Isaacson

My last review of the year

really liked it
A quick, thought-provoking read that is timely and insightful, and renewed my understanding of and appreciation for the Declaration of Independence, the principles of democracy, and the United States.