Things I've been meaning to tell you 2.7.2024

For years I was blogging four to five times a week, then three, then committing to still documenting weekends and monthly reads, then a substack post here and there, then stopping even the weekends and monthly reads the weekend after Thanksgiving…and I stopped with no regrets. I didn't want to sit at my computer any longer than necessary. I didn't feel like I had the capacity for it. Since then it’s been like having all the things I shared regularly for so long bottling up in my brain causing a traffic jam. I never thought not putting a blog out would add to my mental load instead of subtract from it, but that's what happened. I am a creature of habit and continued adding any little unimportant thought that flew through to a mental list until my brain felt like the scene in a movie where a pillow bursts and the asshole down feathers that are a PITA to clean up are everywhere.

I'm going to try for a weekly round up, which I will start immediately with no expectations and achieve with varying degrees of success. Let us begin.

1. I’m so glad Tracy Chapman is getting all her flowers for Fast Car. Now let’s do Talkin’ Bout a Revolution.

2. Then let’s actually have a revolution where the needs of actual every day people are met over the need to return profits to shareholders or fund the military industrial complex, which America does without care for how it impacts and erases actual every day people, scorches the earth, and does lasting damage to our shared humanity. Too many of us do not realize our entire lives are attributable to the luck of being born where we were born. Related: let's Make America Go Back to When Congress Produced Things Aside From Sound Bytes Again. Do nothing motherfuckers owned by corporate and/or foreign interests, the lot of them

3. White women powers, activate! Form of: the same shield around Black and Brown women - celebrity or not - we use to surround Taylor Swift. This isn’t a dig on TS, it’s a reminder to us white ladies that white supremacy AND patriarchy are not the shark, they are the water we swim in. And a lot of the time, us white ladies are the lifeguards who focus so hard on some swimmers that we’re just letting non-white women drown. Plenty of Black women have more to say on this than me, and plenty of white women are slamming the door on it because they are sick of the beating Taylor Swift has taken because the NFL shows her on the screen which, ladies, I’m with you. Two things can be true at once. If you read shit like this and get defensive, stop and discuss with yourself. I immediately stop and ask why I’m getting defensive. And as a rule and lifelong commitment to my authentic self, I am ruthlessly honest with my answers. It is okay to change your thought process or to have a realization that sparks a change in how you see the world at any time. If you find yourself stuck, you might be dead.

4. Some of you right now: Back on her bullshit, why did I start reading this

5. I spent two hours on a combo of live chat and phone chat with the bastard Xfinity this morning to lower our shore internet only cost from $160 to $102. How the shit they justify Internet Only at $160 when it was $85 in 2020 is one of the world's greediest mysteries. The cost of utilities in general is absolutely insane globally. Also why isn't Internet fucking free. 

6. Free deodorizer for dog beds, blankets, etc: sunshine. The same thing that kept the Ingalls family from smelling like old crotches through most of the winter. Have you ever read The Long Winter as an adult? If not, recommend.

7. I'm thrilled with how  table originally purchased for $20 from ReStore turned out in Philly - this is Modern Masters Metallic Paint in Amethyst over All in One Paint in Thistle. My niece critiqued it while it was in progress, prompting an additional coat I was not going to do but she was correct. I still need to add a lacquer top coat. More metallic painting shit coming this weekend at the shore. Who knows how that will turn out, because I'll be damned if I'm letting the rest of the thistle go to waste so it will be the base for the two smaller tables I'm doing at the shore as well. Different metallic paints are going on top of that but they are not in the same color family so the end results will be a surprise to both you and me. 

8. Items of note from last weekend: Mr. Rooney's first $$$ emergency vet visit. Face time with a good friend is always comforting and fantastic. Bruce is back on his coffee bullshit. A two hour walk on a windless Sunday in February feels like an amazing dream.

9. Have I mentioned I'm putting my feet in the water every day I'm at the shore, winter included? The water's not bad, really. I need to ground myself in all seasons, and also I'm a pisces what do we expect

10. Woman who is always saying, "I rarely watch movies," has recently watched movies.

I'm coming back next week, I swear.

Saturday, wait

This week kicked my ass. It started off tired since we had a wedding Sunday night. Tuesday Kim was in town so we did HomeGoods together and stayed up past midnight talking. The title of this post is of course from Friday I'm in Love.

Wednesday I was in the city for a full day in which I got very little computer work done, but did have meetings and lunch with coworkers and walked over three miles. I was dead on my feet when I got home and zoned out watching The Goldbergs. 

All the trees are up in Center City, which prompted me to ask about our tree at home and thankfully we discovered that last year was the end year of our tree, it went to the curb with lights out. Whew. I got another ordered for a good deal so I was happy.

I also had a heinous dentist appointment Wednesday and after over a week of excruciating tooth pain, I was expecting the worst. No tooth crack. No root canal. No cavity. Intense clenching of my jaw from subconscious stress is causing insane inflammation in the connective tissue around my teeth. Fucking tooth fibers! Have you ever. I’ve been going to her since 2010 and this is the first time she’s seen it in me. All the shit we’ve been through personally since 2010 and this never happened…I blame the fucking government and Brett Kavanaugh. Seriously though not sure why this is happening now. To mitigate, I’m trying Plackers to start, motrin, indica gummies before bed, stretching, and massage. Otherwise overall sort of puzzled as to how to combat it  - I don’t feel personally stressed daily, haven’t stopped any wellness practice I have in place to combat normal stress, and had no idea I was even doing this. My dentist said at least it’s not your heart or stomach.  A good reminder that the body does keep the score.

I went for my monthly wellness massage yesterday and it is always one of my favorite days of the month. I was especially glad to go after I knew what was happening with my face and jaw so she could focus on that. It's fantastic to walk in, tell someone what is wrong, and they work through that with you and you leave feeling relief. Go see Sarah at Blossom Bodywork - I'm sure she will arrange a gift notification if you want to give a massage as a gift this holiday season.

Speaking of holiday season, I am pumped for Thanksgiving. I am heading back to the shore today after I run 498 errands. This week has been chock full of errands. I’ve been everywhere and twice. No, seriously, some places I have purchased things and returned in the same week and they are mostly dog jackets and I feel fine about that. 

One of those errands was for a new shore apartment couch. We are having a door installed in place of a window and a window added and our furniture cannot stay as it is now for that to happen. So the current couch which is just over two years old must go, and since the doorways are a nightmare, we got a modular. I’m really excited for this reconfiguration but was worried we wouldn't find something that worked for us. We went to Lovesac, caught their Black Friday event, and got 0% financing which sealed the deal. We got a dark amethyst fabric because the one I wanted was too much extra but maybe in the future because you can order additional cushion covers.  It's a light blue but I also love the light peach. We did not get the large sac chair MFD wanted.

Also. Who made Black Friday like a month long event? What is happening?

Nancy Pelosi does not exactly align with me, but I appreciate her leadership and service through some big, de-stabilizing events over the past 20 years. I am sorry she was and is a target for extremism and violence. Thanks for holding the line, Madame Speaker. I look forward to a younger crew of leaders in the House. Let's go.

Speaking of Houses, PA democrats won control of the state house for the first time in 12 years. There was a measure in place for state GOP leaders to ram a ballot measure through for an abortion ban in the state constitution. Every single election counts, every single fucking vote counts and the people of Pennsylvania stopped that. 

I struggled through a book most of this week, flew through another, and hope to settle in with some favorite authors this week. I'm off, allegedly.

donald trump running for anything. Biden running for re-election. Fox News. Twitter. elon. Billionaires. Racist dog whistles and owning the libs over legislation and actual work. When I run out of coffee. People who ran on inflation making investigating a non-government official named Hunter Biden the first order of business instead of combatting inflation, which they were never planning to do but a lot of you fell for anyway

Pets. And a visit from my mom and nephew. 

Yes.

Have a good weekend, miei amici.

TWTW - February Furniture Fiesta

Friday A banner day for a lunch walk. I made stringbeans and mushrooms with a side of pesto pasta and chicken thighs for dinner. Dad & Carol arrived around 6 and I was in bed by 10.

Saturday Bruce woke up with the shits that then translated into the pukes. I tell this dog not to eat dead sea creatures. Does he listen? He does not. I painted my nails (OPI Mylar Dreams and Princesses Rule!), Dad & Carol got donuts. My dad and I went to Ventnor to pick up a piece of furniture that would not fit in his car, so the woman made alternate arrangements...to be continued. I picked up holds at the library, went to the grocery store, and read. It was a glorious weather day and it was so nice to ride around with the windows open and be outside without a coat. 

At 2 we had to go back over to Ventnor for no reason, just for a guy to load the furniture into his truck and follow us back to OC. When we got back, MFD was there so my Dad was off the hook after it got inside. Lots of moving furniture and arguing because the width that was on the listing is the body, not the top that juts out and prevents it from siding all the way back in the recess of the wall. It's still in progress, I'm swapping my cream colored storage bins in Philly for these white ones, but it's staying and it functions like we need it to. There is an entire desk set up inside of this piece as well as storage. Thanks to my Dad who went back and forth with me twice and endured the whole unplanned saga with me and Carol who stayed with the dogs as MFD was delayed in his arrival due to showings in Philly. 

Dad and Carol got dinner from Jon & Patty's, and I did a salad and fries. Another early to bed to read with my two black and white animals. 

Sunday Bruce was not in the mood to get up. I spent the morning purging and organizing, and we took a beach walk at the end of the island. Dad & Carol were there for a little then went to another beach to shell. I read a bit when we got back.

I am never into the Super Bowl unless the hometown team is in it then the excitement is intoxicating but I am always into the food and usually buy block pools to support organizations of kids. Carol made Mozz sticks, MFD picked up hoagies from White House in Atlantic City, and I made homemade wings. MFD was the only person in America to scan the QR code because the rest of us are over them. The game was actually good, although if I'm rooting it's for the underdog so I wish the Bengals won. Loved the halftime show - where can I get a knock off of Dr. Dre's jacket? I won $125 in a block pool from the Rhode Island Doyles. Good times. 

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you celebrate all types of love all year and that you have a lion's share of love for yourself. 

Last Friday in January: things I want to remember about this week

Looks like we made it, people. Happy last Friday in January. A long, cold month for many of us. Things I want to remember about this week:

New couches that were sitting in the upright position since 7:15 am on January 2 are out and they are comfortable and amazing. If you are in the market and want some for consideration, these were ordered in late October I think and due to arrive March 18 and came January 2 so yay but with virtually no notice so you need to be able to pivot. Close up so you can see they are a light green (what they call bayou spray). Not too expensive as far as couches go, same basic style as the couches I had that lasted 10 years. I didn't clean up for the photo, I'm not that kind of person. You can find that elsewhere on the internet. The chair in the corner is being replaced, and I might paint or replace the 10 year old half moon table against the wall, otherwise this room is done for now.

Thanks to MFD and Marcus Aurelius for moving the beloved old couches down to the basement, where they live in a flop house/frat house formation for now. The blue green one will be moved to the basement office eventually as will the shelves. This is basically a holding room for furniture right now.

Since Mark was over he brought us our Christmas lasagna and Jesus it was good. I was extremely pleased to have that and also stopped at Brother's after my hair appointment at Salon Harmony Wednesday. I am firm in my unpopular Neshaminy School District stance that Penndel Pizza is the best pizza, then Trevose Pizza, then Brother's. This is Brother's thicker crust which I love.

Thanks for the streak and your good, kind energy, Jeopardy Amy. We'll miss you on Jeopardy but we'll see you on the gram.

I started using prescription Retin-A and the zits during the first week. The zits. The nearly 45 year old woman zits. My face purges when I try new products. It's lovely. LOVELY.

Stunner winter beach scenes from Monday & Tuesday of this week

This month started with 13 inches of snow followed by 4 more at the shore in the first week and we'll get dumped on again tonight into tomorrow to close out January. Possible 18 inches? I dealt with the first storm on January 3 by myself shoveling for 20482304 hours in the wind with the damn snow drifts. At least MFD is here this time. I'm making a bastardized version of Damn Delicious's cauliflower chowder for sure but will probably mostly eat brownies and dump cake. Why do snowstorms make me feel like I should ride the Sugar Dragon into the depths of hell?

Coffee and wordle to start the day and tea and a book to end it is how I've been rolling this week. I like to wordle when my brain is fresh. 

What do you want to remember from this week?

Sliding into the weekend easily. I hope. Stay safe and warm out there everyone.

TWTW - the one with the New Year

Friday I was wreath hunting and exchanging slippers early after painting my nails. At night I lit the bayberry candles for luck and made tater tot cups. Carol made mini crab cakes and we had delicious desserts. I finished a book literally at midnight and was asleep by 1. 

Saturday Happy New Year! The Mummers parade was postponed which doesn't happen often and feels really weird. I returned something to Marshalls and we picked up something from Sam Ash for MFD, then it was old school punch and pork and sauerkraut time. My pork was dry and I was not pleased. I always fuck up when I don't follow my nose. It smelled done 15 minutes earlier than I took it out of the oven. At night I made ziti for Sunday with help from MFD and Carol, and we nearly got divorced over couches that did not fit down the basement stairs. El Fin.

Sunday I was woken up at 7 am by someone telling me my new couches would be there within 15 minutes. Over two months earlier than they were supposed to arrive period. Okay then, screw that 8-12 window. So yes, there are four couches in the living room, a Mummers parade, and snow coming so there will be four couches in the living room for a few days. I picked up rock salt and filled my car with gas, changed sheets, and did four loads of laundry while MFD was off mumming. 

I watched the parade - loved less props this year - then I ran over to see MFD with my brother & nephew, and MFD's sister and nephew stopped in too. I said hello to a few people then took off for the shore to secure everything since snow was expected overnight, and it is delivering.  

Happy happy birthday to my BFF Laura today!

If this is the first time we're catching up this year, Happy New Year! 

Thursday Thoughts - Is there a line that I could write that's sad enough to make you cry?

1.I was happy I made it into the city yesterday to do the Christmas Village and Dilworth Holiday stuff to see and stroll and support some small businesses. I missed that last year, and missed doing a DiBruno sweep close to the holidays as well so I did that yesterday too. It was a little of a now or never thing as I'm headed back to the shore tomorrow and will be there most of next week.

2. I'm pretty sure I stayed out of the city entirely last December, January, and February. Maybe I had a dentist appointment in Feb? Anyhoo the train was absolutely deserted if I did go in. I forgot what it was like to wear a coat and have three bags on a crowded train at the end of the day, shoes feeling too tight and everything generally sardine-ish. Add a mask to that and my claustrophobia was extremely close to losing my shit in a burst of sudden movement trying to get free. Also the scarf I'm wearing in the morning before my claustrophobic overheated breakdown was knitted by my Mom Mom when I was younger and is at least 30 years old. 

3. The Great Couch Crusade is back on. In 2020 we replaced the old sectional in our shore apartment - we searched for a suitable replacement for five years. Sat  on it in the store for an hour, fine. That damn couch is not hospitable for laying on. Our couches in Philly are about 10 years old. I would die for these couches but they are no longer suitable for the living room and will be moving to the basement to live out their remaining years down there. I jumped back into the game and ordered couches online (these in bayou spray, after arrival I will get a secondary set of covers probably in a different color) that look a lot like the beloved couches that are no longer made. They will allegedly arrive in March.

4. I was talking to my coworker friend this week about car and appliance woes (hers).It made me think about how when I was younger I could not wait to be in charge of everything and let's be real I still like being in charge of shit that relates to me but the pain in the ass shit and the bills are not what I was bargaining for when I thought about adulthood as a youth.

5. Totally digging Puma athleisure shoes lately. I got these with cousin Rob's friends and family discount code. Merry Christmas to meeeeeeee. I sold two pair of shoes on Poshmark this week and have two others up for sale. I also dropped off donations. Both things have been on my list for a freaking eternity.

6. Along with the closet contact papering project which finally happened Monday night. Between that and the Poshmarking shit and the basement reorganization Sunday I've cleared off some 2020 items from my to do list. Oi.

7. Not much else doing around here in Animal Town. The dogs love their electric blankets, why didn't I do this before this winter? They have one in Philly and one at the shore. Billy has been playing fetch and bounding around a lot this week like a proper dog. Gus sleeps most of the time. And Bruce is desperate to sit next to my dad constantly even though my Dad does not want to sit next to Bruce ever. 

8. I'm beta reading Shelby's book this week, and started something from Netgalley that I can't recall the name of at this time. Show Us Your Books is Tuesday!

9. Reminder: This via Keeley Shaw. Also restore some of the light people and things have sucked out of you by helping people who need it however you can, all the times you can, but please don't donate to the Salvation Army.

10. Ecards - 

What appears beyond the hyphen in Thursday Thoughts titles is what I'm listening to when I'm starting this - this week is Found Out About You by Gin Blossoms