Books, Music, Podcasts, Outside Adventures!

A Beautiful Monday and Audiobook Delights

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

As it is nearly Monday again, I thought I should share photos from the beautiful Pilot Butte hike I took on Monday. I have shared numerous photos of Pilot Butte, our miniature mountain with a wonderful 360 degree view of Central Oregon and its surrounding Cascade Mountains, in previous posts in my series Pilot Butte Adventures.

Our weather in Central Oregon is all over the place – somedays snowy and cold, other days beautiful Spring weather. Monday was the latter and I went on a solo hike on Pilot Butte and listened to a wonderful audiobook. More on the audiobook and my other recent audiobooks a little later.

Pilot Butte

I’ve shared like a zillion photos of Pilot Butte in previous posts on my hikes, so I will just share a couple more below to give you a little taste of my experience.

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Headed up the Butte
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Near the top, taking in the panoramic views
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Headed down the Butte and of course some really fit Central Oregon Senior Citizen passed me

When I got to the top of the Butte, I took a break at the summit and spent time cloud gazing. While cloud gazing I noticed something I’ve never seen before – a prism of color in the sky (like a little section of rainbow. I captured it as best I could with my smartphone camera:

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It was quite magical!

Audiobooks

I’ve listened to a lot of audiobooks lately (I borrow them from my local library and download them directly to my smartphone using the Overdrive app).

On Monday’s Pilot Butte hike however I listened to an audiobook I found for free on iTunes podcasts: High Performance Habits with Brendon Burchard by Brendon Burchard.

Here are the 6 habits which the author discusses in depth:

  • Seek Clarity
  • Generate Energy
  • Raise Necessity
  • Increase Productivity
  • Develop Influence
  • Demonstrate Courage

You can Google “High Performance Habits” or “Brendon Burchard” and find lots of information as well as YouTube videos such as the one below:

There are many gems in this book, here is one of them:

“Often, the journey to greatness begins the moment our preferences for comfort and certainty are overruled by a greater purpose that requires challenge and contribution” – Brendon Burchard

Now here is a list of the other audiobooks I have recently listened or am currently listening to:
  • Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks – a collection of short stories written by the actor Tom Hanks. I have listened to two stories so far (narrated by the author!) and so far it is AMAZING! Who knew this awesome actor is also an awesome writer?
  • Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations by Thomas L. Friedman. This intriguing book is by the Pulitzer Prize winning author who also wrote The World is Flat and Hot, Flat and Crowded which explore the rapid changes to the world in the 21st century. His current book explores the extremely rapid technological changes and how we can survive them. I am only in the first section of the book but the author shares an awesome analogy (paraphased): If a car from the 1960s had advanced in technological development like the computer chip did, then cars of today would get 200,000 miles to the gallon and cost 4 cents.
  • Living an Examined Life: Wisdom for the Second Half of the Journey by James Hollis.  This is a complex but beautiful book and reads like poetry. Here is a nice summary of the book on the Sound True website: Living an Examined Life.
  • Waking Gods, and Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel. These two books are part of a trilogy (I think it is a trilogy as I am currently anxiously awaiting the third book due to be released in May 2018). Unusual and exceptional science fiction presented in a very creative method: through a series of interviews. The audiobook performance is exceptional as it is done by a series of actors and they perform it in a way that you feel like you are listening to actual conversations. One of the best audiobook performances I’ve even listened to and a great engaging story!
  • Nine Women, One Dress by Jane Rosen. This was a fun “chick-lit” romantic comedy – predictable but fairly well written. The story is exactly as the title implies but very engaging!

You can follow me on Goodreads (I am “Tierneycreates” on Goodreads) if you want to follow what I am reading.

Published by tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Quilter, crafter, obsessive tea drinker and lover of all furry creatures (especially dogs and cats) - join me on my tierneycreates blog as I share stories from "A Crafter's Life".

17 thoughts on “A Beautiful Monday and Audiobook Delights”

  1. Great photos! We do live in a beautiful country, don’t we?
    I used to take my class outside to sky gaze. We would lay on blankets and look at the clouds. Then we would write poems. Those were such fun days!☁️🌈
    My daughter-in-law, Shenika, suggested I get audio books. She is on Goodreads also.
    Do you listen to books as you sew?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks for your comments! Yes I do listen as I sew, as I walk/hike, as I drive, etc. I love that you took your class outside to cloud gaze and then write poems! Oh my goodness – what a lucky class 🙂

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  2. Another lovely C.O. post! After moving here 17 years ago, I learned those rainbow – like color spots are called “sundogs”. I suppose that is a local or non – scientific name!

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  3. Ahhhh…..enjoyed the beauty of your Pilot Butte hike again. Meanwhile, down here near the Gulf of Mexico the azaleas and amaryllis are blooming in our 70-80 degree days. Beautiful spring.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Beautiful photos! I’m very intrigued by that prism – it looks like a UFO! And, lovely to know that you’re in the company of many good books these days. I find myself exploring the idea in that quote, too: it’s very true that growth and comfort can often be at odds. I’m working on learning to distinguish between good discomfort (growth) and un-good discomfort (i.e. get outta there!). Does this make sense? Happy reading!

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    1. Maybe it was a UFO! I knew it was only a matter of time before my UFOs (Un Finished Objects) in my studio would take wings and start flying around Central Oregon! 🙂
      Thanks for your comments and it sounds like you are working on some pretty good stuff as far as personal growth!

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    1. Shirley and Tierney standing outside, looking up.

      Tierney: “Shirley, isn’t that the piece, which is flying around in big loops, the one you made in a class and hated and shoved in the back of your closet 5 years ago?”

      Shirley: “Why yes Tierney, and I see that piece of yours you partially finished and was torn as whether to donate it or to just burn it so no one will ever know about it, is hovering above us!”

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