1- End of school finish line. I think I remember saying last year that I was limping to the finish. This year . . . I have walked slowly and deliberately to the finish. Honestly, I’m proud of myself! I’m not sure why this is the case. Maybe the drama of March/April just made “regular” school busy-ness seem that much easier. Maybe it’s easier to do life when you’re not marathon training (ha, but seriously). Whatever it is, I am grateful. I’m excited for our trip and I don’t feel like I’m headed into it feeling like I need to “recover” from something. I don’t even feel terribly stressed about packing!
(And, both Josh and I are feeling like this June summer trip will be our new official cadence. At least heading in, we both like it better than the August-pre-back-to-school-bonanza we’ve had in recent years!)
2- It’s dance weekend for us, too! Sarah’s daughter is a much more serious dancer, but both A & G have two classes each and I’m super excited to watch them perform; it will be our 3rd year in a row with this studio and the show is always awesome! They each have a performance for ballet, then A has jazz and G has hip hop. Love it. And, we have family coming to join us so that will add to the fun.
3- I might be the only one not to love this book!? I don’t DISLIKE it. I just am not in love with it either (kind of how I felt about Hello Beautiful). I DO see it as a juicy book club pick — a lot to discuss. It’s also pretty memorable (so was Hello Beautiful, for me). But it was no Wedding People, Annie Bot, or Margo’s Got Money Troubles (TOP 3 of the year so far!).
4- TIME TO PACK. I actually feel . . .less packing angst than usual? Probably because I expect NH to be very casual/outdoorsy and we will have access to laundry. Soooo a few outfits with layering possibilities will be it. (One benefit of not having that many items of clothing is that there is not a lot of debate about what to bring . . .)
I do kind of wish I had a pair of cute non-sneakers to wear, but . . . I don’t. Something to work on for the future.
5- Leaving with an empty gmail inbox did not happen but my clinical inbox is empty. I have no major writing/podcasting tasks hanging over my head (except for one ad script that JUST came in), which is awesome and took a lot of prep. Feeling ready for a trip, an official Q2 ending, and a real kickoff to summer.
Additional note (this didn’t feel right to be part of a numbered list): My heart is heavy from the incredibly sad news shared by Ali Feller (Ali on the Run) today on her podcast (the only running podcast I still subscribe to, just because I like her so much). I am so heartbroken for her and sending all of the love and hope her way. Yet another reminder (along with this horrific news story, plus the incredible amounts of suffering happening every day around the globe) of how unfair life is.
10 Comments
That’s so sad about Ali. She is amazing, and I’m sending all of my good thoughts for her to be the exception.
The Bright Years is next on my reading list! Jenny and I are reading Gone With the Wind together, so that’s going to keep me busy for about another week and then I’ll tuck into it. We’ll see if I end up on Team Hype or on Team “What the heck is this book?”
Now I’m almost done and it has grown on me. But I still find it like 7-8/10. Good but not like top top top of list.
Ugh the Ali Feller news just gutted me yesterday too. I can’t believe how affected I am but was just so upsetting to hear after following her. And I learned about her podcast from your blog!
Oh wow the news about Ali is horrible. 🙁 I feel like I have heard about so many BC dxs this spring. Ali’s came back so shortly after reaching remission.
Switching to a happier topic, have the best time in NH! Can’t wait to see pictures!!
OMG THANK YOU for saying that about Hello Beautiful. I did not enjoy it either and felt like I was the only one.
I actually liked Bright Years much better than Hello Beautiful in the end (but not like, 10/10 LOVED). And yes – the love for Hello Beautiful was everywhere and I had sooo many issues with it. I guess it was memorable. . .
Oof, the news about Ali is so, so awful. I cried (and laughed) during her episode, which was brutal. I deeply respect how articulate and positive she is, but what a gut wrenching situation.
Hope you all have a wonderful vacation! We just took a trip the day after school got out (May 23) and it was great timing—highly recommend!
Awful, awful news from Ali — like everyone else I was gutted and truly devastated for her. MBC is part of my family story and she’s going to be on my mind a lot. I truly hope we see a future where metastatic cancer can be managed long term and she can live a relatively normal life for a long time to come.
Oh no, I haven’t listened to that Ali episode- I’ll put it on today.
Glad you are feeling good! Yes, as much as you enjoyed running, it was another (very time consuming!) thing on your plate. I can see how you’d feel a little less frantic now.
I’ll be excited to hear about your trip! I’m sure it’ll be nice to get out of this muggy swamp for a while : )
I didn’t love The Bright Years. I loved Wedding People and loved The Road to Tender Hearts. I also just read James and Demon Copperhead and loved both. We have similar book taste so I always check to see what you are liking to add to my list!