Y'all, I have fallen down the figure skating rabbit hole harder than I have since I was about 10 years old, except now I have a reliable internet connection and financial independence. I have been checking the Stars on Ice website far too often to try to manifest a show that's closer than 2 states away (again, Jason Brown). I have found a rink that does beginner adult lessons. The algorithm has found me and is serving me figure skating videos left, right, and center. Send help.
And, I'm going to look at rent houses tomorrow! I'm not actually super excited about any of the options the rental agent has given me, but it's a huge relief to have the process started.
Well, hi friends! Erin, seeing John Mayer! Eeeek! Very excited for you!
I've got nothing but treasures this week! My birthday was Wednesday and we took a beautiful hike, and met friends for dinner - could not have imagined a better day! The foundation has had two wins recently that hopefully will pay off with donations and more attention! I was interview (yikes!) on local morning news yesterday! It was scary and went by so fast, but I think it went ok! On top of that, the foundation is being given the North Bay Spirit Award (I've never heard of it before, but apparently, it's a big deal) and it comes with a newspaper interview (done), a professional photo shoot (done) and a FILM CREW is coming to my house on Monday for the video portion of this thing! I've never done anything like this before, and it's so far out of my comfort zone, I can't even see it from here. I am praying my way into this and will pray my way through it, but am so hopeful that it'll bring much needed attention to our little nonprofit. If you think about it, please say a prayer on Monday that I don't freeze. Have a great weekend friends!
I feel that flossing tweet so hard. I generally am a truthful person, but I regularly lie to my hygienist about how often I floss. Mostly because they're always like, "Your teeth look great, keep doing what you're doing!" So I have no incentive to change my poor habits.
My boss is on vacation in Costa Rica this week. Part of our responsibility is snowblowing and shoveling. There's a joke around the building that it only really blizzards when he's out of town, except it's not a joke, and I'm still tired from all the shoveling yesterday. More snow on Monday! He doesn't get back until Thursday! 😬
I got a bunch of seeds from Tamara for Galentine's! I signed up at the lady minute - it was so fun to get to be a part of it! Thanks for setting it up Jillian!
I'm very late to the comments - I've gotta say, it's so stressful to look at the newsletter this "late" in the day and see how far behind I am!
Well, my job is weird because the company that Salt & Honey partnered with is weird! And it's stressful and gives me anxiety!
Also, I found out I have a $700 MEDICAL BILL THAT I NOW HAVE TO PAY. So that's fun. Love that for me. Definitely do not have the money for that right now! Awesome!
Trying to not stress this week. Quickly running out of spoons. Very tired. Very tired of life. But VERY EXCITED TO SEE Y'ALL IN CHICAGO.
Random big medical bills are the *worst*. If I could turn monopoly money into real money, I would send you a million dollars stat. (I'd also buy up every monopoly game I could get my hands on and become a true gazillionare, aaand now this thought thread is getting weird, sorry 😂). Anyway. With you in the turds, Sheby! 💛
Could you imagine if monopoly money could turn into real money? We'd all have a reason to keep that awful game around lol. As a person who hates board games, that game took ENTIRELY too long for me to stick with it 😂
Logging in late today too! Those sneaky @$$ medical bills are the worst! Have you tried negotiating it down? It's such a pain, but it does work. Happy to share some resources and scripts if you want! (Sorry for the unsolicited advice. Please pretend I said nothing if it was unwanted!)
Good morning friends! Popping in from the west coast, where it still feels pretty early. 😅
💩:
I am in a class (that I don't want to take, but have to take) for ordination within my denomination, and I hate it. Truly. It is not academically challenging (which is a killer for me), and the prof is... nice, but seems to only speak from his own experience instead of teaching or discussing the course material with us. Oh, it's also 6-10 pm on Tuesday nights.💀 I only have 3 more classes left (PRAISE JESUS), but am struggling to even make myself do the homework. If you have any tips on how to not lose my mind (and actually get my work done), I would love to hear them! 😂
👑:
My husband and I finally re-booked our May 2020 trip to Europe for this May!(!!!!!!!!!!) We had been saving up for the trip since 2017 as a Master's graduation present, and I think canceling that was more disappointing than canceling graduation. 😂 I kept pushing it back every six months (which kept me hopeful), so it's a little surreal that we actually booked plane tickets! We are flying into London and then home from Dublin, and the plan is to hop over to Rome in the middle. I studied abroad in Rome in college, but this will be the hub's first time in Europe! I am hesitantly excited and actually letting myself feel hopeful that it might not get canceled. 🤞 Also, we'll be in Italy on my birthday, which is a LIFE DREAM.
Also, Scott's Cheap Flights is my FAVE and if you like to travel (or window-shop for flights, like me), you'll probably love it too. 💯
Okay, looking forward to hanging out with you in the comments today! 💛💛
Your trip sounds amazing! So happy for you! I love all of those places! If you have extra time in Rome, take the train to the coast and ferry over to the island of Ponza! It is magical
That's so exciting that you rebooked your trip!! I hope you have such a wonderful time!! We booked our tickets to NYC the other week and I'll spend MY birthday there!! Hooray for us and spending our birthdays on vacation!
Jumping in late today, it's been busy week! I had double online class this week and a coworker unexpectedly lost a parent Thurs so that's shuffled work stuff around. If you think of it pray for him, he's early 30 and while mom had cancer, they weren't expecting her death. He's got some mental health struggles and it's a difficult family situation.
Treasures!
It probably won't happen this year just bc of scheduling to finish my masters, but I think I'm going to take the London trip on my own!! Thanks for your encouragement to travel solo.
I have tickets to see comedian Hassan Minhaj tonight which is exciting, not exciting that I have to work tomorrow, but I'll survive.
I helped out some friends and walked their dog this morning. The weather was just a touch chilly, but it was really nice to take a walk at 8am. Maybe I'll do more of this?
That's it from me, short and sweet. I hope to be in the comments today, but I'll probably catch up with you all tomorrow morning while I'm at work.
Eliza, that is so exciting! London on your own will (probably!) be fun, exciting, exhilarating, and a little terrifying. But so worth it. I explored London by myself in college for about a week, and it became one of my favorite cities on the planet. Rooting for you!!
I have also been dragging my butt out of bed for a morning walk or two this week, and it has been surprisingly lovely. Here's hoping for next week too 🤞
London on your own is the best. Right after college I really wanted to go to England and I was afraid because it's never been out of the US before. Finally I was like, screw it, if I can fly around the States for all these weddings (everyone seemed to get married the year after graduation) I'm pretty sure I can survive in the south of England for a week. I did it by myself and it was a blast. I wish I had more opportunities to travel abroad by myself. Enjoy!
🔊📕 Audiobook treasure alert! If you're a true crime junkie and/or love an atmospheric fictional podcast, can I recommend John Darnielle's newest novel, The Devil House, on audiobook? I'm listening on Scribd! I think there is a PMG trial code floating around somewhere...
John Darnielle is the front man of Mountain Goats, a band I have been a fan of forever. He starting publishing novels a few years ago and I've loved them all. I've been on a nonfiction binge for a while so this is a great change in my routine.
Just to echo again... it's been such a rough year for our school and I know we're not unique. As you pray for teachers, please also keep the admin/staff in your prayers as well. It's exhausting to deal with so many angry parents or kiddos in crisis day in and day out. I'm so grateful to be able to support our teachers every day and wouldn't trade my job for the world, but it's tough out here for everyone in public schools right now.
So many hugs and prayers for school staff. Ugh. I keep wondering (assuming) that kids are in crisis *because* parents are staying angry. I’ve always felt that most children are resilient enough to adjust so long as the adults around them lean into those adjustments well and try to make the most of it without letting things overwhelm (at least externally). If the adults emulate peaceful acceptance, the kids will too. I blame the wretched parents/adults for causing so much mental health crisis in the younger kids. And I hate that for all the staff having to shoulder the daily burden!
Yay Erin! Have the best time! As always the tweets are perfect. That little baby snowboarder is adorable! And i feel like she articulates my journey as well: "I wont fall. Or maybe i will. Thats ok! We all fall down... Indiscernable verbal struggling. I'm a stuckasaurus!" 😆
I had almost no time to be on the internet this week so I have no links to share.
💝 First - thank you Holly for my Galentine gift! The tea drops have been fun to try! I also sent little Galentines out to some lady friends - the card was the Leslie Knope description of Galentines and I included a breakfast bar and a bag of English breakfast tea and the shredded paper used for packing gifts. These gals have all been having such hard times - covid, kids, parents, job stuff- you name it. It was fun to send out a silly package of love. I need to do that more often. Life is hard. We need to be cheered up now and then.
🍋 Valentine's Day at my house was fun! My husband and I have gotten into the Dad Joke/Pun vibe of Valentine's Day. He gives me novelty socks with funny sayings. Last year it was llamas because he lloves me. This year he gave me "Boss Lady" socks cuz it is boss that I'm his lady. So cheesy and great! I gave him one of those hand held lemon squeezers because he is my main squeeze. That suckered works so well! Where has this been all my life? Well. In other people's kitchens. Target. Amazon. Still. This is a game changer for us.
📺 I've been working my way through old musicals and started one I'd not seen before, "The Pajama Game". I'm only part way through and it is pretty "cringe" as the kids say. And the songs are meh. I just keep thinking, "This is so problematic! This is a power imbalance! This is an ethics violation!..." Maybe it gets better? Will finish tomorrow.
📚 My Book of the Month arrived yesterday. I went with "A River Enchanted" for something different. And Lord Peter Whimsey continues to be my faithful companion when I wake in the wee sma's and can't get back to sleep. Just started book 5. It is the perfect, soothing British voice and story that is interesting and not too exciting, so it lulls me to sleep. Kind of like whe I put on a Davis Attenborough animal documentary as background noise in the afternoon to keep the dogs from flipping out at neighborhood noises.
💻 By the end of today at work I will have worked 55 hours, sent off 6 deliverables, and had 3 scary conversations, and organized my digital files and email. I have to work tomorrow, but I am still feeling light and free.
Off to another crazy work day, but I will pull an Amanda and enjoy your comments with a cup of coffee tomorrow morning. Blessings on your heads and hearts, Swipes.
I’ve watched that little snowboarder over and over the past 2 weeks. She brings me so much joy. And I’ve claimed those words as my Current Season Mantra: “Indiscernable verbal struggling. I'm a stuckasaurus!” I’ll just lie here till it all passes, if that’s okay, thanks. 😂
I love how you celebrate holidays Dawn! The puns sound like so much fun. I remember growing up with a huge VHS collection of Rogers and Hammerstein musical collection. My husband and I had a whole summer of watching musicals a few years ago, and I remember thinking "uh oh, some of these Rogers and Hammerstein ones have NOT aged well."
I was too! My stepmother introduced me to My Fair Lady when I was 8 years old, and I was a goner. So far I've done that and Flower Drum Song. I have a hodge podge melt of songs in my head now. 😆
Hello from the Midwest where the weather is out to eff with all our minds. 50+ degrees one day, sleet & freezing rain the next, ice & 2 hr delays the day after that. I’d now like to skip spring and just bring on heat. I’m DONE.
🛷We’re taking our 3 kids snow tubing with friends tomorrow and the session only lasts 2 hours. So we’ll get a super fun 2 hours and then have to be done, which is great for my indoorsy self, haha.
📚I’ve been reading ebooks & listening to audiobooks sooo much over the last few weeks & days, and it’s really making me feel more like myself! The audiobooks feel especially like self care because I listen while I do chores & tend children.
👧My youngest (2 yo) is becoming more verbal and it’s the most precious, hilarious thing to hear her tiny voice parrot the rest of us. One of my favorite little-kid phases.
Yes yes yes to Midwest weather! We had a "snow" day in the middle of the week, but the snow didn't actually hit until 3pm! The weather truly is something else. What books are you reading? I'm always looking for something else to read besides the YA fiction I sink into. And yes to the 2 year old repeating...right now mine is really enjoying saying "butt! butt!" because it makes her older siblings giggle so much!
Hello, friends! Nothing major to report, good or bad, and that’s a delightful change that I’m embracing with my whole heart. Stasis is my new goal.
🛌 This week in the continuing adventures of sleep problems, I’ve been on a 24-hour cycle: 24 hours awake, 24 hours in bed (some awake, some asleep), then 24 hours awake and another 24 hours in various levels of sleep and lying about. It’s maddening, yet I’m not fighting what I cannot change.
Interestingly, my mom has gotten into the habit of waiting for me to rouse her, so when I didn’t wake up the first full-day-in-bed, she also did a 24-hour stretch. 🤦🏻♀️ Again, I cannot change this cycle quite yet, so when we both found ourselves *waking up* at 11pm, we just turned on the Olympics in real time and sat like lumpy potatoes for the next 10 hours. Did I care? I did not. The first pandemic year (and a life of insomniac issues) taught me that time is truly a construct and when there are no pressures or responsibilities on the schedule some things truly don’t matter. I remind us both that this is a season and it will eventually shift. But it’s been really nice to just soak in the Olympics in large chunks of time and see events that I don’t usually get to watch.
⛸ Speaking of… yesterday’s women’s skating drama was INSANE in real time. The prime time broadcast didn’t do it justice; that silver medalist from Russia had a legitimate breakdown and screamed at people with heavy sobs that she “hated skating, hated this sport,” does more and more and more than anyone else but never wins gold. She said, “everyone gets gold but never me!” It was simultaneously a drama queen FIT and the most heartbreaking reminder of the pressure placed on these very young athletes. But it was also some extremely bratty behavior that overshadowed the gold medalist’s beautiful win (much deserved). That poor girl was stuck between the “favorite” being consoled because she did poorly and the second place athlete having a self-centered breakdown. Both of whom are her own teammates! And *no one* congratulated this actual winner for more than half an hour. She never got the celebration she deserved. To say the gold and bronze medalists displayed grace is the biggest understatement of these games. They’re the true heroes.
👩🎤 Finally, a confession: I missed the Super Bowl and have followed the commentary on halftime (good and bad) but it just doesn’t hold much appeal for me. I checked out on hip hop around that era, only really like Mary J, and know none of (nor care for) the songs by the male artists. Gen-X 🙋🏻♀️ But I’ve been HERE FOR all the old age jokes aimed at elder Millennials. It’s about time that stuff moved past my own generation, thankyouverymuch. 😂
Grandma J out. Wishing you a weekend of lumpy potato-ish if you need it or great productivity if that’s your jam. 👵🏻 ✌🏻
Well that’s just fascinating! (my E5-wing is giddy!) And I find biphasic sleep to be true for me when I’m exhausted; I’ll crash hard for 3-4 hours and then be awake for a few hours before sleeping again… usually for 6-8 hours more. Now I know, I’M NORMAL! 😂 So maybe a shift will occur for me, embracing the various phases instead of fighting them. I’d be a lot more productive, that’s for sure!
Figure skating drama is one thing, but this was on a whole other level. First of all, coach, your skater already knows if she did badly, there is no need to jump down her throat about before she even gets her bladeguards on. Then you don't send anyone to check on your winning skater and she's just abandoned in the holding area. Meanwhile the Japanese skater is just trying to live her life. Anyway, go Team USA, ban Russia.
It has been a week. It feels like it’s been a turd/treasure/turd kind of week for us, but we made it. I am so happy it is Friday.
🦄: Great birthday weekend
💩: Testing positive for Covid on Sunday
🦄: 7 month old rolling over, trying new food, saying sounds that definitely sound like “mama” 🥰
💩: 7 month old getting Covid and loving (said with dripping sarcasm) getting his nose sucked out 2-3 times a day.
💩: Disappointed big boys missing out on Valentines exchange at co-op, Super Bowl party with friends, going to the library, etc.
🦄: Creativity thriving via science experiments, homemade board games, snow day crafts.
🦄: Road trip prep
💩: Figuring out of our road trip can still happen (it is, but with tweaks).
🦄: Looking forward to bringing my big boys to Legoland California and seeing good friends we haven’t seen in 5ish years.
Anywho, Ts&Ps appreciated for continued healing and planning and executing this epic trip. I hope you all have a weekend filled with more unicorns than turds. ❤️
I just said "Yay!", "Noo!", "Yay!" all in quick succession lol. Sending you healing prayers and hoping you get your trip planned with a minimum amount of stress!
We are in escrow purgatory right now and I have been escaping into some good shows when I can.
Modern Mrs Maisel is back as of last night! I forgot how much I enjoy this show ☺️. Also I am not immune to watching train wrecks and tbr new season of Love Is Blind is can’t turn away cringe. When one of the guys in his proposal kept referencing his mother 💀. I enjoyed “I want you back” on Amazon for a different take on a romcom. Jenny Slate forever 💜.
Can’t wait to hear your treasures as I munch chips and try not to stress to much😆!
Oh man. Escrow. It is the worst! Real estate feels so backwards and archaic to me. We are in the middle of pre-approval paperwork shenanigans now, and it is my 2nd job. Hope you find out soon! Also, so excited about Mrs Maisel! Maisel-tov!
My husband makes me watch Love is Blind with him and he loves to psychoanalyze all the contestants 😂 last night he said “I just don’t think Natalie wants to be loved” and then we spent the next 30 minutes talking about who will and won’t make it to the altar.
I haven't watched the Superbowl halftime show yet, but the number one sign to me that it was awesome? This newsletter is the first mention I've seen of who won the game, while there's been nonstop talk about the show!
We found a replay and I think it's definitely worth your time, my husband and I really enjoyed it (and we didn't watch a lick of the game, we watched curling instead haha).
Y'all, I have fallen down the figure skating rabbit hole harder than I have since I was about 10 years old, except now I have a reliable internet connection and financial independence. I have been checking the Stars on Ice website far too often to try to manifest a show that's closer than 2 states away (again, Jason Brown). I have found a rink that does beginner adult lessons. The algorithm has found me and is serving me figure skating videos left, right, and center. Send help.
And, I'm going to look at rent houses tomorrow! I'm not actually super excited about any of the options the rental agent has given me, but it's a huge relief to have the process started.
I would love to hear more updates on the figure skating adventures! I have always dreamed of being graceful enough to do that. But alas.
This is so great. We will need skating updates from you!
It will have to wait till later in the year, but I'm very excited about it.
Yay for starting the rental process, I hope your agent is able to find you a place you love!
I look forward to this every week! So glad I finally figured out how to comment last week 😅
@thevondyfam is always another one of my favorite treasures every week 😍 https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPdBGbauC/
OK. That was the best. A tap dancing Sherlock Holmes!
Yes! 😍
I was not ready for her to bust out those tap shoes...LOVE IT!
IKR! All her videos are like that. My sister and I just take turns sending them to each other 🤣😍
Well, hi friends! Erin, seeing John Mayer! Eeeek! Very excited for you!
I've got nothing but treasures this week! My birthday was Wednesday and we took a beautiful hike, and met friends for dinner - could not have imagined a better day! The foundation has had two wins recently that hopefully will pay off with donations and more attention! I was interview (yikes!) on local morning news yesterday! It was scary and went by so fast, but I think it went ok! On top of that, the foundation is being given the North Bay Spirit Award (I've never heard of it before, but apparently, it's a big deal) and it comes with a newspaper interview (done), a professional photo shoot (done) and a FILM CREW is coming to my house on Monday for the video portion of this thing! I've never done anything like this before, and it's so far out of my comfort zone, I can't even see it from here. I am praying my way into this and will pray my way through it, but am so hopeful that it'll bring much needed attention to our little nonprofit. If you think about it, please say a prayer on Monday that I don't freeze. Have a great weekend friends!
Happy Belated Birthday Denise!!
I hope it all went well! Can't wait to hear an update!
Thanks so much Shelby! It did! Eeek! They made an objectively weird experience feel almost normal! I posted some photos of the day on my Instagram!
Omg fun!! What is your instagram??
My personal one is @deniseredeker and the foundation is @heartfelthelpfoundation
The is all so exciting! I hope you stayed warm and had a blast. Congrats all around.
Hooray for your nonprofit, it all sounds wonderful, and what a great opportunity! Sending you all kinds of good vibes and prayers!
That’s so fun! Let us know how it goes.
I feel that flossing tweet so hard. I generally am a truthful person, but I regularly lie to my hygienist about how often I floss. Mostly because they're always like, "Your teeth look great, keep doing what you're doing!" So I have no incentive to change my poor habits.
My boss is on vacation in Costa Rica this week. Part of our responsibility is snowblowing and shoveling. There's a joke around the building that it only really blizzards when he's out of town, except it's not a joke, and I'm still tired from all the shoveling yesterday. More snow on Monday! He doesn't get back until Thursday! 😬
I got a bunch of seeds from Tamara for Galentine's! I signed up at the lady minute - it was so fun to get to be a part of it! Thanks for setting it up Jillian!
I'm very late to the comments - I've gotta say, it's so stressful to look at the newsletter this "late" in the day and see how far behind I am!
Well, my job is weird because the company that Salt & Honey partnered with is weird! And it's stressful and gives me anxiety!
Also, I found out I have a $700 MEDICAL BILL THAT I NOW HAVE TO PAY. So that's fun. Love that for me. Definitely do not have the money for that right now! Awesome!
Trying to not stress this week. Quickly running out of spoons. Very tired. Very tired of life. But VERY EXCITED TO SEE Y'ALL IN CHICAGO.
So sorry about the bill! Can we somehow send you some spoons?
I wish you could! For now I will take the virtual spoons. ❤
Oh no! So sorry about the bill!
Shelby! I wish I could give you some extra spoons friend, I know this is hard for you. And yes, we will have THE best time in Chicago!!
Sorry about the medical bill. So not fun!
Ugh. Medical bills are truly the worst. Sorry it has been a WEEK😑
Random big medical bills are the *worst*. If I could turn monopoly money into real money, I would send you a million dollars stat. (I'd also buy up every monopoly game I could get my hands on and become a true gazillionare, aaand now this thought thread is getting weird, sorry 😂). Anyway. With you in the turds, Sheby! 💛
Could you imagine if monopoly money could turn into real money? We'd all have a reason to keep that awful game around lol. As a person who hates board games, that game took ENTIRELY too long for me to stick with it 😂
Ugh, unexpected medical bills suck so much. I hate that your job is stressful and I wish I had advice but all I have is empathetic anxiety.
Love you, Shelby! Chicago's coming so soon!
Logging in late today too! Those sneaky @$$ medical bills are the worst! Have you tried negotiating it down? It's such a pain, but it does work. Happy to share some resources and scripts if you want! (Sorry for the unsolicited advice. Please pretend I said nothing if it was unwanted!)
No I definitely appreciate advice!! I tried my best to negotiate it down. Nothing I could do. :/ But thanks for caring!!
Ugh. I'm so sorry. Sending wishes of annoying hangnails and traffic jams when they have to go to the bathroom upon the medical billing industry.
I need to remember these wishes... 😄
Good morning friends! Popping in from the west coast, where it still feels pretty early. 😅
💩:
I am in a class (that I don't want to take, but have to take) for ordination within my denomination, and I hate it. Truly. It is not academically challenging (which is a killer for me), and the prof is... nice, but seems to only speak from his own experience instead of teaching or discussing the course material with us. Oh, it's also 6-10 pm on Tuesday nights.💀 I only have 3 more classes left (PRAISE JESUS), but am struggling to even make myself do the homework. If you have any tips on how to not lose my mind (and actually get my work done), I would love to hear them! 😂
👑:
My husband and I finally re-booked our May 2020 trip to Europe for this May!(!!!!!!!!!!) We had been saving up for the trip since 2017 as a Master's graduation present, and I think canceling that was more disappointing than canceling graduation. 😂 I kept pushing it back every six months (which kept me hopeful), so it's a little surreal that we actually booked plane tickets! We are flying into London and then home from Dublin, and the plan is to hop over to Rome in the middle. I studied abroad in Rome in college, but this will be the hub's first time in Europe! I am hesitantly excited and actually letting myself feel hopeful that it might not get canceled. 🤞 Also, we'll be in Italy on my birthday, which is a LIFE DREAM.
Also, Scott's Cheap Flights is my FAVE and if you like to travel (or window-shop for flights, like me), you'll probably love it too. 💯
Okay, looking forward to hanging out with you in the comments today! 💛💛
What a joy to travel at last! I can think of worse places to be on your birthday than Italy!
So excited for you to finally be able to book your flights! Fingers crossed you don't have to cancel again
Italy on your birthday sounds fantastic! Congrats on being able to get your trip re-booked!!
Your trip sounds magical! I hope it gets to happen. I miss Italy.
Your trip sounds amazing! So happy for you! I love all of those places! If you have extra time in Rome, take the train to the coast and ferry over to the island of Ponza! It is magical
Oh, that sounds amazing! 😍
Oh my goodness, your trip sounds amazing and I'm so happy you were able to rebook it!
Thanks Melanie! It feels like a tiny baby miracle at this point 😅😊
At this moment, tony baby miracles are ENOUGH. Hopeful for you!
That's so exciting that you rebooked your trip!! I hope you have such a wonderful time!! We booked our tickets to NYC the other week and I'll spend MY birthday there!! Hooray for us and spending our birthdays on vacation!
Shelby, YES!! When are you guys going to NTY/when is your birthday?? (I am *so* excited for you 🤩🥳)
Jumping in late today, it's been busy week! I had double online class this week and a coworker unexpectedly lost a parent Thurs so that's shuffled work stuff around. If you think of it pray for him, he's early 30 and while mom had cancer, they weren't expecting her death. He's got some mental health struggles and it's a difficult family situation.
Treasures!
It probably won't happen this year just bc of scheduling to finish my masters, but I think I'm going to take the London trip on my own!! Thanks for your encouragement to travel solo.
I have tickets to see comedian Hassan Minhaj tonight which is exciting, not exciting that I have to work tomorrow, but I'll survive.
I helped out some friends and walked their dog this morning. The weather was just a touch chilly, but it was really nice to take a walk at 8am. Maybe I'll do more of this?
That's it from me, short and sweet. I hope to be in the comments today, but I'll probably catch up with you all tomorrow morning while I'm at work.
So glad you decided to go for it with a trip!
Omg please keep us updated on your London trip! I would love to know what you plan to do!
London sounds lovely, I hope you will get the opportunity to go!
Eliza, that is so exciting! London on your own will (probably!) be fun, exciting, exhilarating, and a little terrifying. But so worth it. I explored London by myself in college for about a week, and it became one of my favorite cities on the planet. Rooting for you!!
I have also been dragging my butt out of bed for a morning walk or two this week, and it has been surprisingly lovely. Here's hoping for next week too 🤞
London on your own is the best. Right after college I really wanted to go to England and I was afraid because it's never been out of the US before. Finally I was like, screw it, if I can fly around the States for all these weddings (everyone seemed to get married the year after graduation) I'm pretty sure I can survive in the south of England for a week. I did it by myself and it was a blast. I wish I had more opportunities to travel abroad by myself. Enjoy!
Yess, going to London on your own will be so worth it!
I love walking in the morning but also I never get up in time to do it before work!
Oh Eliza I am so happy you decided to take the London trip on your own! That will be so magical for you. Have fun seeing Hassan! That sounds so fun!
I’m never not calling them unforeseen joes even though I’m in the sloppy wet camp. Best.
🔊📕 Audiobook treasure alert! If you're a true crime junkie and/or love an atmospheric fictional podcast, can I recommend John Darnielle's newest novel, The Devil House, on audiobook? I'm listening on Scribd! I think there is a PMG trial code floating around somewhere...
John Darnielle is the front man of Mountain Goats, a band I have been a fan of forever. He starting publishing novels a few years ago and I've loved them all. I've been on a nonfiction binge for a while so this is a great change in my routine.
Just to echo again... it's been such a rough year for our school and I know we're not unique. As you pray for teachers, please also keep the admin/staff in your prayers as well. It's exhausting to deal with so many angry parents or kiddos in crisis day in and day out. I'm so grateful to be able to support our teachers every day and wouldn't trade my job for the world, but it's tough out here for everyone in public schools right now.
Sending virtual hugs and actual prayers for you and everyone else who works in schools.
So many hugs and prayers for school staff. Ugh. I keep wondering (assuming) that kids are in crisis *because* parents are staying angry. I’ve always felt that most children are resilient enough to adjust so long as the adults around them lean into those adjustments well and try to make the most of it without letting things overwhelm (at least externally). If the adults emulate peaceful acceptance, the kids will too. I blame the wretched parents/adults for causing so much mental health crisis in the younger kids. And I hate that for all the staff having to shoulder the daily burden!
So many prayers for everyone working at schools these days. Y'all are truly heroes.
Yay Erin! Have the best time! As always the tweets are perfect. That little baby snowboarder is adorable! And i feel like she articulates my journey as well: "I wont fall. Or maybe i will. Thats ok! We all fall down... Indiscernable verbal struggling. I'm a stuckasaurus!" 😆
I had almost no time to be on the internet this week so I have no links to share.
💝 First - thank you Holly for my Galentine gift! The tea drops have been fun to try! I also sent little Galentines out to some lady friends - the card was the Leslie Knope description of Galentines and I included a breakfast bar and a bag of English breakfast tea and the shredded paper used for packing gifts. These gals have all been having such hard times - covid, kids, parents, job stuff- you name it. It was fun to send out a silly package of love. I need to do that more often. Life is hard. We need to be cheered up now and then.
🍋 Valentine's Day at my house was fun! My husband and I have gotten into the Dad Joke/Pun vibe of Valentine's Day. He gives me novelty socks with funny sayings. Last year it was llamas because he lloves me. This year he gave me "Boss Lady" socks cuz it is boss that I'm his lady. So cheesy and great! I gave him one of those hand held lemon squeezers because he is my main squeeze. That suckered works so well! Where has this been all my life? Well. In other people's kitchens. Target. Amazon. Still. This is a game changer for us.
📺 I've been working my way through old musicals and started one I'd not seen before, "The Pajama Game". I'm only part way through and it is pretty "cringe" as the kids say. And the songs are meh. I just keep thinking, "This is so problematic! This is a power imbalance! This is an ethics violation!..." Maybe it gets better? Will finish tomorrow.
📚 My Book of the Month arrived yesterday. I went with "A River Enchanted" for something different. And Lord Peter Whimsey continues to be my faithful companion when I wake in the wee sma's and can't get back to sleep. Just started book 5. It is the perfect, soothing British voice and story that is interesting and not too exciting, so it lulls me to sleep. Kind of like whe I put on a Davis Attenborough animal documentary as background noise in the afternoon to keep the dogs from flipping out at neighborhood noises.
💻 By the end of today at work I will have worked 55 hours, sent off 6 deliverables, and had 3 scary conversations, and organized my digital files and email. I have to work tomorrow, but I am still feeling light and free.
Off to another crazy work day, but I will pull an Amanda and enjoy your comments with a cup of coffee tomorrow morning. Blessings on your heads and hearts, Swipes.
I’ve watched that little snowboarder over and over the past 2 weeks. She brings me so much joy. And I’ve claimed those words as my Current Season Mantra: “Indiscernable verbal struggling. I'm a stuckasaurus!” I’ll just lie here till it all passes, if that’s okay, thanks. 😂
I have shared her everywhere. She speaks for all of us in 2022. Lol
I love how you celebrate holidays Dawn! The puns sound like so much fun. I remember growing up with a huge VHS collection of Rogers and Hammerstein musical collection. My husband and I had a whole summer of watching musicals a few years ago, and I remember thinking "uh oh, some of these Rogers and Hammerstein ones have NOT aged well."
Right?
I was raised on old musicals. What a fun thing to work through.
I was too! My stepmother introduced me to My Fair Lady when I was 8 years old, and I was a goner. So far I've done that and Flower Drum Song. I have a hodge podge melt of songs in my head now. 😆
Hello from the Midwest where the weather is out to eff with all our minds. 50+ degrees one day, sleet & freezing rain the next, ice & 2 hr delays the day after that. I’d now like to skip spring and just bring on heat. I’m DONE.
🛷We’re taking our 3 kids snow tubing with friends tomorrow and the session only lasts 2 hours. So we’ll get a super fun 2 hours and then have to be done, which is great for my indoorsy self, haha.
📚I’ve been reading ebooks & listening to audiobooks sooo much over the last few weeks & days, and it’s really making me feel more like myself! The audiobooks feel especially like self care because I listen while I do chores & tend children.
👧My youngest (2 yo) is becoming more verbal and it’s the most precious, hilarious thing to hear her tiny voice parrot the rest of us. One of my favorite little-kid phases.
Have a warm (but not too warm) weekend, friends!
Yes yes yes to Midwest weather! We had a "snow" day in the middle of the week, but the snow didn't actually hit until 3pm! The weather truly is something else. What books are you reading? I'm always looking for something else to read besides the YA fiction I sink into. And yes to the 2 year old repeating...right now mine is really enjoying saying "butt! butt!" because it makes her older siblings giggle so much!
Treasures:
- Cooking Class (Bri McKoy) for Valentines
- Baking Class for French Macrons
- Olympics
- Trojan Horse podcast...maybe have stayed up until like 2:00 am listening...!!!
Turds:
- The whole awful situation around the Russian skater...she's 15! Have your opinions on the situation but hold her with some care
- headaches...I changed meds about a month ago and the body still hates it
- side effect: yelling at my boyfriend over everything due to said fried brain from headaches
It's a ride folks but I have a new season of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel to watch and will be celebrating with some champs!!!
Maisel-tov!
Hello, friends! Nothing major to report, good or bad, and that’s a delightful change that I’m embracing with my whole heart. Stasis is my new goal.
🛌 This week in the continuing adventures of sleep problems, I’ve been on a 24-hour cycle: 24 hours awake, 24 hours in bed (some awake, some asleep), then 24 hours awake and another 24 hours in various levels of sleep and lying about. It’s maddening, yet I’m not fighting what I cannot change.
Interestingly, my mom has gotten into the habit of waiting for me to rouse her, so when I didn’t wake up the first full-day-in-bed, she also did a 24-hour stretch. 🤦🏻♀️ Again, I cannot change this cycle quite yet, so when we both found ourselves *waking up* at 11pm, we just turned on the Olympics in real time and sat like lumpy potatoes for the next 10 hours. Did I care? I did not. The first pandemic year (and a life of insomniac issues) taught me that time is truly a construct and when there are no pressures or responsibilities on the schedule some things truly don’t matter. I remind us both that this is a season and it will eventually shift. But it’s been really nice to just soak in the Olympics in large chunks of time and see events that I don’t usually get to watch.
⛸ Speaking of… yesterday’s women’s skating drama was INSANE in real time. The prime time broadcast didn’t do it justice; that silver medalist from Russia had a legitimate breakdown and screamed at people with heavy sobs that she “hated skating, hated this sport,” does more and more and more than anyone else but never wins gold. She said, “everyone gets gold but never me!” It was simultaneously a drama queen FIT and the most heartbreaking reminder of the pressure placed on these very young athletes. But it was also some extremely bratty behavior that overshadowed the gold medalist’s beautiful win (much deserved). That poor girl was stuck between the “favorite” being consoled because she did poorly and the second place athlete having a self-centered breakdown. Both of whom are her own teammates! And *no one* congratulated this actual winner for more than half an hour. She never got the celebration she deserved. To say the gold and bronze medalists displayed grace is the biggest understatement of these games. They’re the true heroes.
👩🎤 Finally, a confession: I missed the Super Bowl and have followed the commentary on halftime (good and bad) but it just doesn’t hold much appeal for me. I checked out on hip hop around that era, only really like Mary J, and know none of (nor care for) the songs by the male artists. Gen-X 🙋🏻♀️ But I’ve been HERE FOR all the old age jokes aimed at elder Millennials. It’s about time that stuff moved past my own generation, thankyouverymuch. 😂
Grandma J out. Wishing you a weekend of lumpy potato-ish if you need it or great productivity if that’s your jam. 👵🏻 ✌🏻
Team Stasis For Life!
Ok, I think Knox McCoy posted this article in his newsletter a while ago, but when you started talking about your sleep, I thought of it and had to share (maybe you've already read it, but it's super interesting!) https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220107-the-lost-medieval-habit-of-biphasic-sleep
I was just going to share about this. The New York times has had several articles about segmented sleep too.
Well that’s just fascinating! (my E5-wing is giddy!) And I find biphasic sleep to be true for me when I’m exhausted; I’ll crash hard for 3-4 hours and then be awake for a few hours before sleeping again… usually for 6-8 hours more. Now I know, I’M NORMAL! 😂 So maybe a shift will occur for me, embracing the various phases instead of fighting them. I’d be a lot more productive, that’s for sure!
Here is one of the NYT artists. I thought of you when I read it: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/12/style/segmented-sleep.htm
Yes I was up early and watched the end of figure skating, it was truly wild.
Figure skating drama is one thing, but this was on a whole other level. First of all, coach, your skater already knows if she did badly, there is no need to jump down her throat about before she even gets her bladeguards on. Then you don't send anyone to check on your winning skater and she's just abandoned in the holding area. Meanwhile the Japanese skater is just trying to live her life. Anyway, go Team USA, ban Russia.
I mean! 💯
Honestly, stasis is such a good goal. I'm sorry about your sleep problems, but glad you're able to lean into it!
It has been a week. It feels like it’s been a turd/treasure/turd kind of week for us, but we made it. I am so happy it is Friday.
🦄: Great birthday weekend
💩: Testing positive for Covid on Sunday
🦄: 7 month old rolling over, trying new food, saying sounds that definitely sound like “mama” 🥰
💩: 7 month old getting Covid and loving (said with dripping sarcasm) getting his nose sucked out 2-3 times a day.
💩: Disappointed big boys missing out on Valentines exchange at co-op, Super Bowl party with friends, going to the library, etc.
🦄: Creativity thriving via science experiments, homemade board games, snow day crafts.
🦄: Road trip prep
💩: Figuring out of our road trip can still happen (it is, but with tweaks).
🦄: Looking forward to bringing my big boys to Legoland California and seeing good friends we haven’t seen in 5ish years.
Anywho, Ts&Ps appreciated for continued healing and planning and executing this epic trip. I hope you all have a weekend filled with more unicorns than turds. ❤️
Aww - "mama" 🥰 Hang in there on this rollercoaster you are riding!
I just said "Yay!", "Noo!", "Yay!" all in quick succession lol. Sending you healing prayers and hoping you get your trip planned with a minimum amount of stress!
Oh those first “mamas” are some of the best sounds in the world 😍 hoping your trip is as smooth & fun as possible!
Hi friends!
We are in escrow purgatory right now and I have been escaping into some good shows when I can.
Modern Mrs Maisel is back as of last night! I forgot how much I enjoy this show ☺️. Also I am not immune to watching train wrecks and tbr new season of Love Is Blind is can’t turn away cringe. When one of the guys in his proposal kept referencing his mother 💀. I enjoyed “I want you back” on Amazon for a different take on a romcom. Jenny Slate forever 💜.
Can’t wait to hear your treasures as I munch chips and try not to stress to much😆!
Oh man. Escrow. It is the worst! Real estate feels so backwards and archaic to me. We are in the middle of pre-approval paperwork shenanigans now, and it is my 2nd job. Hope you find out soon! Also, so excited about Mrs Maisel! Maisel-tov!
Thanks Dawn! I hope the process goes smoothly for you.
My husband makes me watch Love is Blind with him and he loves to psychoanalyze all the contestants 😂 last night he said “I just don’t think Natalie wants to be loved” and then we spent the next 30 minutes talking about who will and won’t make it to the altar.
Oh fun-and what a rollercoaster
Mrs. Maisel is a delight! I follow one of the women who works in the shop that does their costumes which is a fun behind the scenes.
The costumes are characters themselves! 🥰
Jenny Slate is the best. I got Parks and Rec on DVD for Valentine's Day and rewatching her as Mona Lisa has been a delight!
I just saw a trailer for I Want You Back and I was trying to decide if I should watch it!
It’s fun nothing revolutionary but Jenny Slate is very funny.
I do love her!
I need to get back into Mrs. Maisel. For some reason I quit mid-second season (I think?) and now I can’t remember why.
I held out for a long time but rediscovered it in the pandemic and really enjoyed it.
Mrs. Maisel fan for life- i'm both delighted and mournful they are only releasing 2 episodes at a time.
Yeah I think it will overall be good-ASP dialogue needs to be digested
I didn't expect to laugh as much at "I want you back" as I did! It was a very pleasant surprise. Hope you won't have to be in purgatory for too long!
Yeah it was a different format than usual-pretty fun!
I haven't watched the Superbowl halftime show yet, but the number one sign to me that it was awesome? This newsletter is the first mention I've seen of who won the game, while there's been nonstop talk about the show!
We found a replay and I think it's definitely worth your time, my husband and I really enjoyed it (and we didn't watch a lick of the game, we watched curling instead haha).