Snippets of the weekend 5.22.2023

Friday amidst working I finished painting the last freaking wall in the efficiency apartment, walked into town to get the beach tags for the season and picked up some OPC on the way back, sat out on the porch for a spell at the end of the workday, and started doing my upstairs main house chores in sections, starting from the top floor and moving down. MFD had his own list for the weekend. I took a solo walk down to the beach close to 8 and read the rest of the night.

I knew Saturday would be an assbreaking day so I eased in with some coffee and a book before continuing my room by room wall cleaning/repair/touch up painting, general furniture moving cleaning, room refresh, ordering shit we're missing, baking soda to absorb odors, replenishing supplies, etc. It's hard to show this process in photo or video because you're just moving from one thing to the next and it looks like a lot of nothing or mess in photos. 

MFD was not feeling well so was down for the count. I took Ben for a long walk in the fog at night - tough weather for a late May weekend at the shore, I feel bad for merchants - and peaced out reading at the end of the day. Exhausted. 

Sunday was another day of doing the same things as Friday night and Saturday, only add in Target pickup, hunt for two beach chair replacements (unsuccessful, will limp through MDW), and MFD was back up and around with a longer list than me because somedays it's just like that. I peaced out around 6 and read and painted my nails. 

weekending reels on Instagram 

 

Snippets of the weekend 5.15.2023

Friday afternoon Melissa & I hit the beach, then back home to eat and back up for a few more hours then onto the porch for a while. It was a lovely day.

Saturday I painted the apartment in sections - it's so small in there that everything has to be prepped and moved in pieces. MFD was not pleased because it rained all afternoon and he just wanted to have a lie down with TV but I had ripped shit up. Most walls are Sherwin Williams Jocular Green (SW 6736) but two small ones are the darker green seen in the first photo below which is Sherwin Williams Dancing Green (SW 6716).

I cleaned up for the day, Melissa put out a spread, and we hung out on the porch for a while and people watched and laughed about nothing. It was a nice relaxing night. 

Sunday morning and afternoon another trip to Sherwin Williams and more moving furniture and painting in sections. This was a tiring project. When I was done I headed up to the beach and got a few slices of pizza and Melissa met me there and we sat for a few hours. An inexperienced kite flying lady let her kite gently bump into me and I nearly choked with laughter. Another great day. I did a house walk through with Melissa for summer prep, packed my car up and left around 7.

weekending reels on Instagram 

 

So great to spend the weekend with forever friends and their kids friends who we also enjoy. Thanks for the time, laughs, gifts, and spreads. 

Snippets of the weekend 5.8.2023

Friday my car got serviced $$$$ woof, solid day of work, saw Dad & Carol off in the morning, and we had a family dinner for Rich's 70th (tomorrow) with a rainbow and Sadie joining from the living room. We got home at about 8:45 or 9 and then I drove to the shore. My second in the dark drive in a week. I talked to Kim for about 40 min of the drive which always makes it more bearable.

Saturday I checked out the completed shit pipe repair in the light, built a toilet paper wall, started assessing, sorting, organizing, ordering, and all that jazz for our summer rental supplies and linens. After that I did some of the spring block party real quick - hits this year were bags that have curses on them LOL and this homemade granola. 

MFD arrived later in the day. I took a solo walk to the beach and read a bit. Mark, Sarah, and Harry arrived later. Mark and MFD assembled my second go at a dining room chair replacement that is no good and being returned. I went to bed around 10. 

Sunday I woke up refreshed after a very good sleep.We went to Dog Beach for a while and everyone enjoyed.

Otherwise I got stuff out for Freecycle, pulled everything out from under the third floor beds and reorganized them, assessed what is missing/needs replacing and looked for quilts, MFD worked on cleaning the outside with assist from Mark. I read a bit on the porch. Sarah and I picked up dinner from the Anchorage which they grossly underestimated the timing of. We watched the end of the Sixers game and I was in bed reading by 9 - finished a book and started another. A good Sunday mix of productive and relaxing and social and not.

weekending reels on Instagram 

 

Today is Geege's birthday. He's been gone since September 2017 and I cried really hard about physically missing him just last week LOL. Happy birthday best good boy, I know you are still with me. 

Snippets of the weekend 5.1.2023

Shiteous rain all day didn't stop us from an after work walk to the beach. Blowing sand kept us off of it though. I made pasta for dinner, did some kitchenware and linen cleaning and sorting, started a book, and assed out on the couch early. 

Saturday I expected more rain but it turned out to be pretty nice most of the day. I cleaned and sorted in one of the upstairs bedrooms and removed everything from the back of the house in preparation for sewer pipe repair. 

I also swanned about town so I could visit my favorite used paperback bookstore for Independent Bookstore Day. I got a paper thin scarf to throw over shoulders in European churches this summer and tried a pseudo muffaletta from Capo Strado. Did not like the sandwich (I do like the original Central Grocery muffuletta in New Orleans) but the baked to order bread was fucking incredible. We hit the beach for last day of dogs on regular beach season which Ben celebrated by rolling in the vilest smelling shit imaginable that had us all annoyed on the drive back to Philly. MFD gave him and Mae a bath there. 

Sunday it pissed rain all day, so happy I returned from the shore Saturday night instead of Sunday as originally planned. I picked up a bit around the house then mostly lay on the couch and read, painted my nails, watched The Menu (WTF!) and National Lampoon's European Vacation, ordered sushi and some other stuff for dinner, and watched Succession on time. 

weekending reels on Instagram 

 

A few weeks of miscellaneous shit

So good to get an impromptu visit from Frank and Amanda last week!

Dad and Carol were here for a quick visit this week and they changed out the contact paper on the island for me. The befores are with the teal wooden stools - they show the old floors too. Now I want new kitchen counters and MFD was like no.

We're nearing the end of dogs on the regular beach season and we are not okay. Look at this unbridled joy.

It's been beautiful.

Pets pets pets. 

I think this is gorgeous. 

Button from Aubrey and coaster from my mom are both very me

Two trips to my office from the shore in the three plus weeks I've been down here made me extra happy for Old City office - ease of getting into the city from the Ben and the ability to park on the street

I saw this in a public bathroom and wondered if I was getting invited to the Matrix. First of all, I fucking hate the Matrix movies and secondly MFD says the red pill represents the alt-right and I certainly am not accepting an invitation to that missile ride to hell.

Some books I've added to my to read list recently:

I'm very thankful to John and Gisele Fetterman for talking openly about depression and mental health. No matter who you are or where you fall on the political spectrum, please recognize how this helps all of us talk about something that is still so stigmatized. It has been a topic in our house forever, one that was not always as openly spoken about as it is now - one that was self medicated for a long time, and brushed off as melancholic episodes like Fetterman's depression was when he was younger. It is so important for us to recognize the need in others to take a step back and address their mental health. Depression is not a weakness or a character defect. It is a matter of health to be talked about and dealt with like you'd deal with any physical health issue: with care, and with an eye on both how you feel now and how you want to feel in the future. 

I'm not getting into the abortion pill debacle, the people who have been shot doing regular mistake things like going to the wrong door or turning around in a driveway, the erasure of trans people, the rise in anti-Semitism, how anti-american and anti-democracy and morally bankrupt the christofascists are, the white supremacist war on democracy in the Tennessee state house, the absolute pittance Dominion settled for with Fox News in lieu of going through a public trial, or any of the other depravity happening across this country. It is exhausting out there right now. Hold tight to yourselves, stand up for each other and anyone in communities under attack, and find joy every day. Otherwise what is the point.

Happy birthday to Gail yesterday and Evil Stephanie #1 today!

I've got a personal and professional to do list that's a mile long like everyone else right now so I'm going to skedaddle. Peace in the east.

Snippets of the weekend 4.3.2023

Friday I did the working and at lunch I dropped stuff off at the recycle center and picked up materials for one of two official Beach Sweeps of the year for our adopted beach. We did the beach walking, and then MFD headed back to Philly and I engaged in a recent favorite pasttime in which I look incessantly for replacement dining chairs in all the same places I've been looking for the past two months, think I have found them, save them, and wake up the next day to realize I've found nothing. And so it goes.

Saturday I spent a few hours on taxes and did coffee on the porch before heading out to a local antiques store where I scored an old bookcase for Philly and the side table I need for the shore living room - both for $64 total. I was quite pleased. I picked up a few groceries, re-upped Mae's CBD oil, and popped into a bakery. I relaxed in the afternoon, took a long nap when the weather got shit, finished a book, and started another. 

Sunday I slept until 8, spent some more time gathering prepping tax info, and MFD came back around 1. We started restoring order upstairs in the main house, did some purging, he hung a lamp in our apartment, I ordered more of those, made this delicious, quick, and easy chicken piccata from a recipe Mimi recommended (I doubled the sauce and used a shit ton of capers because that's what I like), took the dogs for a beach walk, put my feet in the ocean, and got ice cream from Churn House. I did a little more straightening upstairs then painted my nails and finished a book while MFD had Back to School on. 

weekending reels on Instagram 

 

snippets of the weekend 3.6.2023

Chased the sun down the beach for a glorious sunset Saturday, and this was the highlight. Feeling the full sense of life I do in moments like these is always the highlight.

Otherwise I read three books, ate a lot of caesar salad, tried a new ice cream place (Churn House), walked a lot, tried to set the main house back to rights a bit, and hit TJMaxx HomeGoods Sunday to return a table I love but that doesn't work.

weekending reels on Instagram 

snippets of the weekend 2.27.2023

Friday started early with final prep work for floor replacement at the shore - the installers were at our house before 8 am and the banging commenced. I cannot believe the difference, it is fantastic. All the baseboard and moldings were replaced also, and they were cobbled together and measured incorrectly and just a complete fucking mess. I am absolutely thrilled to have this planned to be done in 2020 project actually done albeit in 2023, all by 5 pm. MFD was supposed to come down to be here for this as it was going to happen Monday but I was here and he had things this weekend so I just stayed. 

Otherwise it was a small amount of putting shit back, a large amount of looking for a chair I'd like to jam in next to the couch as well as new contact paper for the kitchen island, staying inside due to shitty weather Saturday afternoon., and Facetiming with MFD.

Finished Joshilyn Jackson's newest, read the extremely overindulgent newest from Bret Easton Ellis, and started the fourth You novel by Caroline Kepnes which I am struggling to finish. Yawn. I also watched all of season two of Euphoria.

weekending reels on Instagram