Snippets of the weekend 8.22.2022

Mid-day trek to the shore on Friday, stopping at the library before I got to my house. Puttering around in the afternoon and flexing my hours to work at night. A nice sunset walk to break that up.

Saturday turnover a little heavier on the cleaning to help our sub cleaner out. Grateful for another long-time departing guest leaving the house in good shape and leaving some gifts behind as well. 

A little under two hours to Melissa's house and an afternoon and evening with two of my BFFs, their kids and Jim in Melissa & Jim's awesome backyard. Always a lot of laughs with these ladies, and a fervent wish that everyone has friends like the friends I have. I hope we can keep this new tradition going.

I got home around 11:30 Sunday and spent the day reading - finished a book and read half of another - and doing laundry. Dinner was Chinese courtesy of Dad & Carol.

In addition to snippets here, I've been doing weekending reels on Instagram if you are interested. 

TWTW - the one with the girls

I don't often straight copy from Instagram, but that's what's happening today because catching up from a day off with another day off coming up, time waits for no one. This blog is evolving anyway, in that it's getting less. I still want to stow some things here for now as touchstones of memory for me.

Girls Weekend 2022. Staggered arrivals and departures, barely any photos and no full group shot; lots of cheese, wine, laughter, dips, driving, rain, fog, one beach opportunity, strolling in drizzle, solving the world’s problems, and sharing. I wish everyone had true blue to the bone friends of 30+ years. I cannot overstate the importance of female friendship and the value I place on it. 

#foreverfriends #femalefriendship #lovetheseladies #throughitall #allmeansall #goodandbad #takeittothegrave #getabidet #Comfyclub #makeawill #thisiswhereweare #isthisonthelist #tuckahoe #buymyfissures #winniethepooh #pussywillows #lovethedoctor #riskreward #winefordays #morecheeseplease #crossfaded #isthatjasonbateman #porchsitting

Happy Monday! 

I hope some people running for office in primaries will actually address white supremacy, inequity, hatred, conspiracy theories, misinformation, dangerous fascist rhetoric spread on Fox News and elsewhere, and violence. No one is safe, and Black people and people of color are the least safe of all of us. It is every person's responsibility to reject racism within themselves and then in their personal relationships, politicians, political parties, government, judicial systems, education systems, and media. Stop acting like racism is a thing of the past or something not to be discussed. A fine fucking time for the fucking idiots in government to be banning books that address racism and for fucking idiot citizens to be supporting that, while 18 year olds are writing terrorist, racist, white supremacist manifestos and murdering Black people in a chilling, premeditated domestic terrorist incident. But hey, as long as the domestic terrorist racist murderer with a deadly weapon in his hand didn't resist arrest, amiright?

The domestic terrorist is not widely panned, he is actually encouraged by people like Tucker Carlson, Matt Gaetz, and an entire party of republican senators voting as a block in order to uphold white supremacy and destroying the country from every angle in the process. 

The "Replacement Theory" Tucker Carlson speaks of freely and Matt Gaetz supports is racist and antisemitic and a lot of you believe it despite it not being based in facts or logic. Wake up. People are dying and this is on everyone who does not reject racist and antisemitic rhetoric and demand their pundits and politicians stop engaging in it. 

Tribe of kick ass women

As I have said many times in this space, I believe your life is only as good as the people around you. My life is excellent even when it's shitty because I have the good fortune to be surrounded by amazing people. That includes, of course, my husband, some family members, and friends. But nothing in my life has carried the weight of my female friendships. They are sacred to me. I am the person who does not trust the women who have no true female friends.

I have found women for my tribe in every stage of my life, starting at birth and continuing through today. Most of them know each other. Most of them are now friends with each other even though they come from different Stephanie eras. There have been some throughout the years who I thought belonged but in the end did not. They are rooted out relatively quickly, falling into one of two categories: friends for a reason or friends for a season.

The ones who stay are lifers. They are so different from me and from each other but they all have some things in common: they are fierce ladies who would do anything for me and know without asking that I would do anything for them, they provide me with a safe place to be my smallest self without judgement, they hold me up, they're people I am comfortable with in silence or noise, in laughter or tears. I have never felt alone in my life because I have these women. I click with all of them. They are my people. I find this hard to write about because my bond with them is so strong that at this point it is more something I know intrinsically than something easily put into words. It's a part of my bones. I'm too close to it and have never operated without it. These women are a part of who I am.

 And today one I've had in my tribe since birth celebrates her birthday. It is hard for me to put into words what a tremendous impact Lori has had on my life. Officially my aunt, she is also my friend, fairy godmother, and someone I am so comfortable in the presence of that it's like sitting with myself except we are quite different people. I couldn't begin to say how many times she has helped me in the time we have been together on this earth or how much her unconditional love has meant.

Happy birthday Lori, and to the other two triplets Dawn and David!

Wherever and whoever you are, I hope you have a strong crew around you that you value and that values you.

Peace, love, and Friday.