For the first time ever, I’m using a tracking spreadsheet for my reading this year, and this week I realized a benefit of it that I hadn’t previously considered. It doesn’t happen very often, but sometimes I finish a book and find I have little to say about it; I’m recording those books in the tracker, but I don’t have to review them. This is a huge change in approach for me, y’all. At this point I only plan to use it with books I acquire for myself–books I receive for review consideration will still be reviewed if I read them–but I’m amazed by how freeing this is.

On the other end of the spectrum are the books that rate not only a Book Talk post, but also a Reader’s Journal. I have a feeling that the audiobook I started this week, The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer–the 2011 Pulitzer Prize winner by Siddhartha Mukherjee–may be one of those. At any rate, it’s a very timely choice for me.

Paul still has a healing wound in his left arm and a vacuum drain under it from his melanoma/lymph node biopsy a few weeks ago. The drain will stay until the flow of lymphatic fluid slows to 5 milliliters per day, and the would will be closed when the skin gets a little stretchier. Neither of these things can happen soon enough for him, as you might imagine, but he’s waiting it out.

Kate has responded exceptionally well to her first week of chemo. As of yesterday morning, there were no leukemia cells in her blood at all! The drugs now have to work on the bone marrow where these cells are being produced, and that’s a tougher fight, but we’re all encouraged by the early success and hope it bodes well.

I wrote a post a few days ago for the people who’ve asked what they can do. I hope you’ll take a look at it, and consider sharing it if you think my suggestions are good ones.

I have been texting Kate a picture of Winchester every morning since she started chemo, because whose day isn’t made just a little bit brighter by pictures of cute dogs? (That’s why I subscribe to The Daily Puppy email.)

Here are the ones I sent her this week.

Are you reading, ‘riting, or doing anything else interesting this weekend?