Felicia Fredlund

Writer. Editor. Reader.

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Great Books: In Death series by J. D. Robb

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This series of posts are about entertainment that I recommend when people ask me for recommendations. It also includes place-specific “entertainment”, such as beautiful gardens; it might be stretching the definition of entertainment, but I enjoy myself in the places I recommend.

They are not universal recommendations. I wouldn’t recommend a dark thriller to someone looking for something nice and happy; I’d recommend a romance.

They aren’t perfect or without mistakes.

Art is never finished, only abandoned. ~ Leonard da Vinci

In Death series by J. D. Robb

Edgy crime with a dose of romance.

That is how I’d describe the In Death series by J. D. Robb (aka Nora Roberts). This series is over 40 books long and the first one is called Naked in Death.

I love the protagonist in this one. Tough, kickass, and used to bulling her way through her emotions and her free time. She’s a NYPD detective and head of the homicide squad.

Man, just writing these few words of it has me excited to reread the whole series and I did that last year, all 40+ books of it.

This one for me is what I really look for in crime/mystery novels. I’ve previously mainly gotten my crime fix on TV with shows such as NCIS, Criminal Minds, Person of Interest, Elementary and more. I’m sure I’ll have a couple of posts covering some of those shows.

This series have that crime of the week with great characters and a dark edge (that sometimes goes very dark). Unlike some crime of the week though, the main detective and everyone around her keeps growing and changing with all the things that happen to them.

I go to this series when I want that dark edge, but with the safety net of knowing it is a mystery novel so the crime will be solved.

Picture of the Month — January 2019

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Winter-nature-Sweden-2014
Winter can be lovely like this.

This photo is from January, 2014. I taking a walk with a friend in Nyckelviken, Nacka (suburb to Stockholm, at least that is what I would call it). I had a good time and had a great picture from it.

Great Garden: Portland Japanese Garden

Posted:

This series of posts are about entertainment that I recommend when people ask me for recommendations. It also includes place-specific “entertainment”, such as beautiful gardens; it might be stretching the definition of entertainment, but I enjoy myself in the places I recommend.

They are not universal recommendations. I wouldn’t recommend a dark thriller to someone looking for something nice and happy; I’d recommend a romance.

They aren’t perfect or without mistakes.

Art is never finished, only abandoned. ~ Leonard da Vinci

Portland Japanese Garden

I’ve been fortunate enough to visit Portland Japanese Garden twice.

I still remember the first time.

The feeling I get is like being able to suddenly breathe very deeply. Like there is space in my chest for endless breath and with that feeling comes relaxation.

The second time I visited (May, 2018) I saw the new entrance they’d added and the culture village (as they call it).

They had a bonsai exhibition. Miniature trees that look like full grown ones. I’ve seen some amazing ones, and one of them looked like a small forest (pictured to the right).

The main garden area is divided into several different types of Japanese gardens. The most famous type of Japanese garden being the zen garden with raked gravel and rocks; Portland Japanese Garden has one of those with beautiful Japanese style historical walls closing it off from the rest of the garden and the outside.

Personally I love the wandering type of garden best. It often have a river, perhaps a waterfall; or it has the simulation of those things with pebbles. Wooden bridges to cross the water filled with colorful koi fish.

Mostly Japanese gardens are 50 shades of green. That is what I love.

Water, green shades, and some small human made details, come together to calm and refresh me.

It is also a good place to write poetry, and I’ve written some at Portland Japanese Garden, as well as in other gardens.

Picture of the Month — December 2018

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Christmas advent lights all lit-2016
Taken on fourth advent, 2016. Christmas is here!

Christmas, or winter leading into the holiday season, is one of my favorite times of the year. I love Christmas music. I love how I take the time to slow down. I love baking holiday treats. I love lighting candles and all the holiday/winter/Christmas lamps/fairy lights that show up in windows and that I set up around my own home (when I have a home).

Each advent Sunday, I light another candle in my advent candle holder (see picture above). I’ll usually have a fika at the same time, which will usually be a glass of glögg (mulled wine) or tea and some gingerbread cookies.

Christmas breakfast-2016
Best Christmas breakfast evah!

If I have my advent pause with breakfast, well then, just look at the picture of the kind of breakfast I’d make myself on such a morning. One of the few food pictures I’ll ever share, haha.

Christmas tree close up-2012
Happy Holidays! Merry Christmas!

Great Music: The Corrs

Posted:

This series of posts are about entertainment that I recommend when people ask me for recommendations. It also includes place-specific “entertainment”, such as beautiful gardens; it might be stretching the definition of entertainment, but I enjoy myself in the places I recommend.

They are not universal recommendations. I wouldn’t recommend a dark thriller to someone looking for something nice and happy; I’d recommend a romance.

They aren’t perfect or without mistakes.

Art is never finished, only abandoned. ~ Leonard da Vinci

The Corrs

I’ve listened to The Corrs for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t something I chose myself.

I was more Spice Girls, Aqua, Backstreet Boys, etc. when I was a kid.

During summer vacation, we’d often go somewhere by car, visiting my much older half-brother or driving over to Denmark to vacation at the beach and visit Legoland.

On those long car rides, when my dad picked the music, we often listened to The Corrs. At least, that is the only music outside a few things us kids loved that I remember hearing.

I love listening to The Corrs. Whenever I’m on a bus, train, plane or other transport and I want music, The Corrs is my most often picked music.

Nostalgia is definitely a part of it, but it is also pretty calm (country-ish) and cheerful (I can’t speak for the lyrics (I honestly haven’t listened to the lyrics much), but the sound is cheerful). Basically, it is very easy to listen to and it doesn’t jar me out of thoughts or out of naps.

What more can I ask of music while traveling?

Picture of the Month — November 2018

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Halloween-2013
The cake was good!

Happy Halloween!

Photo taken in 2013, when I held a halloween dinner for some of my close friends when I lived in Stockholm, Sweden.

Picture of the Month is one day early this time to be right on time for halloween. November says hello in a few hours. Next PotM will be on December 1 as usual.