Haven't read many history books over the years, can count on one hand.
Think we talked about The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, i still have that in hard cover and paperback...and The Longest Day..have boxes of books in the attic...my favs were political thrillers and crime drama...my all time fav is The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth, still have that one with rubber bands holding it together...read other books by him but that was the best.
Last book i read was The Da Vinci Code, very good..movies of books always fail, except maybe The Godfather and The Exorcist...

Read it a few months ago...which lead me to reading brands on texas, which lead to sam houston... and reading jackson also made me want a book on quincy adams, and clay. Read on clay last month (and polk)
I like brands writing style, lots of info but not dry or boring. I think ill read grant next. His memoirs were good, but i enjoyed shermans more.

When i got the JQA book out, i said 'that author sounds familiar'. I have his book on james monroe

You mentioned The Da Vinci Code. I've read 3 or 4 of those books by Dan Brown. They're all pretty entertaining. I think the last one I read of his was called The Lost Symbol. There's a lot of info in that one about the influence of the Masons on the founding fathers and on Washington DC.

Read the da vinci code. I enjoyed figuring out the clues, the round church, aka the temple church, for one. Will marshall buried there. Was obvious to me tho that he had written the book with a movie in mind.
The godfather movie was helped by puzo writing the script.

As for history, i was always interested in british history. But i have expanded over the years. i have a book guaranteed to cure insomnia. 'The history of europe'. It is booooring.

Powerball
 

Went to get a powerball ticket last night. Jackpot huge. Nobody won. Now at 425 million. I probably wouldn't have played, but had to take wife over to Little Rock to the airport so she could fly to California. There's a big sign on the way that gives the powerball and megamillions totals. Wife said to play. Surprised I remembered to play. Whatever, she says often goes in one ear and out the other.:D Probably a little selective ADHD acting up. Played $10 bucks worth. Which is 5 sets of numbers. Got way more numbers right than I usually do. Usually only get one or two numbers right. Got 4 numbers plus the powerball. Unfortunately only 2 numbers plus the powerball on one line so only a $7 winner. One more number would have been a decent $100. Oh well, better chance of getting hit by lightning than winning powerball, but no great loss this time.

To little rock.....hey, neighbor.:D

Yes, I thought you lived in Arkansas, but I didn'tk now exactly where. I was thinking down there in that "godforsaken" southeast Arkansas:D in maybe Hamburg or Crossett. Course a lot of people think of all of Arkansas as being "godforsaken." I used to work down there a lot and just about everywhere else in Arkansas. I didn't really hate it down there. Just hated the drive from Hot Springs. Not sure how many miles I drove in my work career, but a lot. Now hate having to go the 8 miles to town and really hate driving the 55 miles to Little Rock which I do usually a couple of times every week because my daughter is an OB/GYN and a single mother. She delivers babies at night and so I have to go to LR when she is on call to spend the night with my grands(6,8 and 10).

Yep, hamburg. We both work in crossett. And it is forsaken, but i don't regret moving there at all.
We just bought 42 acres on bull shoals, in oakland. Plan to retire there in about 15 years.

Not that I hate being with my grandchildren, but just that I hate that boring drive to Little Rock that I've done so many times before both in my personal life and when I was working. I'd rather drive from here to California than to drive to Little Rock.

I've been retired for 2 years. Wife is still working. Not sure when she will retire. Probably when she reaches 66 because of Social Security. Want to be sure that we are firmly in the 47%.:D We have contemplated buying a lake lot, but they are outrageously high here in Hot Springs and I think expensive no matter where you get them. Wife wants to buy a condo in Las Vegas. Lots of reasonable properties there now. We love Vegas. Usually go there 2 or 3 times a year anyway.

Yeah, price is why we went further north. Found a great spot with a beautiful view, and very happy with what we paid. Gently sloping, all usable. Would have loved a place near degray, but the prices...ugh

Erwha?

Rosemary's Baby?
The Shining?
Misery?
Silence of the Lambs?
No Country for Old Men?
Jaws?
The Hunger Games?
Princess Bride?
Gone With the Wind?
Lord of the Rings trilogy?
Wizard of Oz?
Casino Royale?
The Shawshank Redemption? (okay, novella, whatever. So add Stand By Me, too)

What are your favorite adaptations?

However,I totally give you this- the films of The Exorcist and The Godfather are much, much better than the books. The list of movies better than the books is pretty short. Oh, Jaws. Move Jaws to this list. Much better than the book.

I usually like both, but I think that sometimes the problem is that in movies they sometimes change something and put something in the movie that was not in the book. Sometimes makes it better, but sometimes not.

I had the powerball only..4 bucks....been playing for awhile...their payoff chart sucks..like you said, you have a better shot in the electric chair..:D

Last nite at 11pm TNT was showing da vinci code..i watched about 20 mins and hit the sack..

I guess I'll have to go give them another donation, if I can remember it on Wedneday night for the 425 million. Probably won't remember it without my "sweet thang," here to remind me. She's only been gone for two days and I already miss her. Already tired of eating things out of a can.:D I may lose some major weight while she's gone. Could go into town to a restaurant, I suppose, but I have always hated eating alone. One thing good though, don't have to watch any brainless episodes of the "housewives." Much rather watch History channel or CNN.

What! you don't cook for yourself?...wife fractured her right arm bout 5 weeks ago and can't do crap...I'm chief cook and bottle washer..had lot's of leftovers from thurs but ran out yesterday so back to the kitchen for me today..call myself Chef Boyardeejay..:D...think i'll go with spaghetti today...yum..

Watched some of it too, but had already seen it, so turned tv off and started to read "Game of Thrones." Not much opportunity to read around here without the TV on. Wife likes to watch a lot of reality TV which basicly makes me a bit crazy. Not sure whether we are typical household or not, but watching TV and reading sometimes is hard for me to do, but not for her. Not sure whether any studies have been done or not, but I think, if any have they probably prove that women are way better than us at multi-tasking. When she is watching TV, I usually have to seek refuge at the computer and even that is difficult. She likes to wander from the living room to kitchen and turn the kitchen tv on which is right next to our small "media" room where the compter is located. Anyway, plans to read "Game of Thrones" went awry. Nodded off after about 10 minutes.

I do cook a little, but might have to seek help from the poison center, if I did much.:D Do have some turkey day leftovers which I may try. Something about Thanksgiving leftovers that don't really appeal though. I don't do too much cooking. Wife is much better at it. Since I retired have pretty much become a house husband. Since wife still works, only fair that I do most of the housework cleaning and doing laundry, etc. Not wild about it, but do it. Gives you some appreciation for what women do. Not that I needed much, having lived with one for 40 years and having had women bosses most of the time when I worked. Amazing how much laundry 2 people have. Always thought that I would enjoy cooking, but so far have not added that to my resume.

Did all the cooking for years. With just the two of us now, we generally only cook on sats and sundays. I do not miss cooking at all.