A note.
Happy Spring!
I was at Target today, and looking at the fully stocked hand soap aisle, it was hard to fathom just a year ago those shelves likely would have been bare.
February through Mid-March is usually a tough time for me. The holidays are over, any enchantment I had with snow is long gone, and one sunny, warm day will break my heart with its false promise. This is not unique to me; many people suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder. Unsurprisingly, it is compounded this year. I am desperate to travel. I long to drive to Florida to see my cousin, where I will stopover in North Carolina and eat take-out in my hotel room while drinking a local beer— something I had been doing semi-regularly before covid hit.
I am an oversharer ( much to the chagrin of some people in my life when I write about them); life is messy, and humans are messy, and I think we should talk about it all. I have been trying to write, and it has been a struggle. People check in with me so often during the “typical” grief times - the holidays, Mother’s Day, my mom’s birthday and death date and I am always grateful. But it is the ordinary days, an unassuming Tuesday in March when I can’t stop crying and I don’t want to overshare my feelings in a newsletter, that I wish I had a mom to call.
So! I still have a lot to say, and I hope you continue to subscribe and read whenever the next real newsletter may come ( hopefully soon!)
In lieu of anything thought-provoking, here are some things that I enjoyed and made me laugh during the difficult previous few weeks —
This hilarious photo of my nephew, Mason :
Daydreaming about a tiny house in Asheville, NC
This podcast episode: https://www.ttfa.org/episode/2021/03/09/tiny-snail
This poor man, who found shrimp tails in his Cinnamon Toast Crunch:
Listening to Brandi Carlile; these songs in particular ( to be clear, I cried but I love a cathartic cry) — Hiding My Heart, Have You Ever
Spotting my 34th bird species, the brown-headed cowbird
Moscow Mules
Chats with my favorite people
This podcast episode: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/one-year-of-plague-living-with-michelle-goldberg/id1382983397?i=1000512209653
Thinking about the time I did online dating and got many free dinners and martinis and one guy donated a lot of money to my breast cancer fundraiser and then never spoke to me again
Getting my newest artwork from Talula Christian, she is my favorite artist and you can find her work here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TalulaChristian
Sending two penpal letters
Buying a new blender
Waking up to Mourning Doves cooing outside my window
This documentary: https://www.netflix.com/title/81130691
So much trail walking
Did I mention I cried to Brandi Carlile?
The thing about a list like this is it becomes longer than you thought possible. Perhaps I’ll list my joys more often. Here’s to sunnier ( and more creative) days ahead.