In the immortal words of the great Sherlock Holmes, “Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent.”

I believe I’ve lived that quote out this month.

Everything was rather commonplace in late May/early June, and then my sister and I fell ill just before our flight to Alberta—the very first flight we’ve ever taken… at least, since we were about 6 and 20 months old, which was in the good old days B.B. (Before Babies-Had-to-Pay).

[you don’t want to know how many times I rewrote that sentence and pondered over the math]

In the end, we appeared well enough to go, so we packed and got up at 3:00 A.M. to catch our flight. Security, by the way, didn’t impress either of us—it was nothing as fearsome as we’d been led to believe… and also, when something as momentous as catching a plane rests upon you, it’s astonishing how quick you are to ask Competent Adults™ for help instead of shyly shrinking away.

The first flight was quite nice. I had a middle seat, which I rather deplored, but Sister and I shared a seat and had no other partner, so that was pleasant. The girl across the aisle from us had a whole seat to herself and just listened to music while gazing out of her rain-streaked window, and I quite envied her the romance of her position. #storyidea

The second leg of our journey was much less delightful. It was only an hour’s flight but both Sis and I were slightly airsick, and our plane was late, and we landed at one end of the airport while our other plane was boarding at the entire other end. I am convinced the mad dash we did across that building will go down in the annals of the airport. We both panicked and responded characteristically: Sis, powerwalking across the airport, making herself a way through the crowds of fast-moving travellers, glancing frequently at our one map and completely ignoring everything else; me, clutching my skirts, trundling my suitcase behind me and praying it didn’t snap anyone’s ankle or toes, running directly at people and swerving out of the way at the last minute, demanding of Sis if she was quite sure of her directions, and puffing like a grampus as I made uncomfortable eye contact with an airport policemen who seemed confused and worried at my frantic state.

We finally arrived at a gate that Sis was convinced was the right one; I was not. I was too hysterical to believe anything, and couldn’t see any signs, and there was no official to double-check with. Sis asked someone in line, who confirmed the destination, and in sheer desperation I concluded that at least we were headed for the right city, even if we got onto the wrong plane.

My sister turned out right.

That plane was quite full. I had a middle seat again, but the gentleman in the aisle seat kindly asked if I would like him to take the middle seat next to his travelling partner, and he has my blessing forever. That was a five-hour ride; I was slightly airsick and envied my companion for being able to sleep through the entire thing. Or watch a movie. I had, of course, an e-reader bearing over a thousand books, but it’s significantly harder to read when you’re dizzy.

By the time we landed, we felt like seasoned travellers. Sis swore never to fly again; I withdrew the similar vow I had made while airsick and cheerfully proclaimed how fun it had been and how willing I was to repeat it in about 36.5 weeks.

It then turned out both Sis and I were actually still quite sick, and we had a miserable three days of it. I ended up texting my mother at 3 o’clock in the morning bawling and bemoaning, which I kicked myself for afterwards, but, as Phil Gordon says, “at three o’clock at night I never can be logical.” I was also quite homesick and missed the family routine to an extent I hadn’t expected (because for some reason I don’t miss people very well—not unless something happens that is tied to them and then I miss them excessively. I am an odd creature…)

And if you’re interested in seeing what happened next and if we survived, stay tuned for next month’s newsletter, because ‘this is a merciless letter, Gilbert. I won’t inflict such a long one on you again. But I wanted to tell you everything, so that you could picture my [adventures] for yourself.’

Spoiler alert: we both survived.

{ Recent Blog Posts }

|| God Save the Queen // A Platinum Jubilee Tribute

|| May 2022 Wrap-Up

|| Maybe It’s More Than Rules

|| 10 Books to Read If You Are Writing WWII // Part 2: Nonfiction

Query: Are you interested in seeing the links to the reviews I’ve posted on OFBL as well? Be sure to drop me a note if you are and would like me to include them in this round-up!

{ Book Spotlight }

What would you do if you were accused of a crime you didn’t commit?

Kate watched as her campus was torn apart by bombs and now is being accused of perpetrating the crime. As the evidence quickly stacks up against her, she begins to lose hope that the truth will come to light. Even though the handsome FBI Agent, Patrick, has taken up her cause, will they be able to prove her innocence? Will God, who she neglected for so long, listen to her prayers for help?

Patrick is an agent with a very special team of agents. He wants to help Kate prove she is innocent, but as each new piece of evidence is revealed, that goal seems harder. He wonders why he feels so compelled to help her and so sure she is innocent despite the evidence. Will he be willing to put his job on the line to help her? Can he trust in God to make sure the truth will come out in the end?

And so begins a wonderful Christian mystery series, all 5 stars reads for me. I binged it while on my trip (they’re excellent reading when you are sick!). I highly suggested checking them out if you’re at all interested in excellent friendships + banter, contemporary stories, mysteries that are wholesome and cozy while being realistic and enjoyable, strong characters with epic arcs, and splendid messages…

Kate’s Innocence || Kate’s Capitol || Kate’s Dilemma ||

Kate’s Conundrum || Kate’s Christmas || Kate’s Informant

{ Fun Links }

~ If you’re a Sherlock fan, this compilation of Sherlock quotes just might make you geek out as much as it did me. 😉

~ This video on 500 years of hairstyles is on the longer side, but so super cool (and well done, haha!).

~ Elisabeth Grace Foley share this link in her newsletter a year ago or so and I just have to reshare it now because I was reminded of this and still find it super cool. It’s an essay by famous mystery writer Anna Katharine Green on “Why Human Beings are Interested in Crime,” quite fascinating, and she shares an fun story of her own experience there…

~ I told my family this joke and my 6-year-old brother laughed and said, “That’s a good one.”

{ QOTD }

If you had three wishes of literally anything in the world (EXCEPT more wishes), what would you pick? I’m genuinely curious because I think the answer says a lot about people. 😉

AOTD: Like Hannah Bell, one of Anne’s ‘decidedly original’ pupils, I incline to saying I want “to be good without having to take any trouble about it.” Which is, I know, a very foolish and useless wish.

Putting aside, therefore, all spiritual and real-life wishes and focussing on the physical, I would wish for (and these aren’t in any order, unless you want to claim the order they came to me makes an order of preference…)

1. an unlimited access to books, even out of print ones 😜;

2. a beautiful, old-fashioned but well-kept-up home on the edge of some water (but high enough to not be flooded) with plenty of trees and animals and all those lovely nature things;

and 3. to visit all my friends in person in the near future (a girl can dream, right??).

And next time we shall discuss castles-in-the-air, so stay tuned for that...