Right now

Right now...* 

*(A (mostly) monthly series/meme.  Explanation of how this started & my inspirations in my first "Right now" post, here. Also my first (similar) "The Current" post, here.)

August (and the entire summer, really) went by too fast.  We spent the first 9 days of the month with my dad (three weeks total, beginning in July), and I still feel like I'm trying to get back into the swing of things here...!  Now it's September, school is returning next week, and we are rapidly barrelling into fall... 

Some of the things I/we did this month include: 

• Visited my 87-year-old dad in Manitoba (and wound up staying an extra week for a total of three, July 18th - Aug. 9th):  
• Visited Dad several times daily in the hospital, until he was able to come home, a few days after we got there.  
• Took Dad to several medical and other appointments. 
• Helped him with some banking and other admin tasks related to my mom's estate and the sale of the house (which closed on July 1st). 
• Fetched things and made meals for Dad (who has mobility issues and uses a walker). 
• Made umpteen trips to the local Co-op grocery store, and two to the weekly local farmer's market (fresh local garden vegetables, yummmmm!).  
• Made two side trips during those outings to the local drive-in restaurant  (a local institution for 60+ years!) for ice cream, including one on Aug. 7th in tribute to our Katie (since we couldn't be home to visit the cemetery and carry out some of our usual traditions there).  
• Played Saturday night TV bingo with Dad on three consecutive Saturday nights (a family tradition dating back about 50 years!) -- and card games just about every night we were there too!    
• Welcomed a number of visitors, including Parents' Neighbours' Daughter, the Little Princess and her two older (not-so-little anymore) sisters, and PND's parents;  (other) former neighbours from the house, and one of my cousins on my dad's side, whom I hadn't seen in about 25 years.  :)  
• Helped Dad to choose and purchase a niche at the local cemetery and organized the interment of Mom's ashes there, with a few close friends present (Aug. 8th).  Arranged for lunch back at Dad's apartment afterward. 
• Sat on hold with the airline for 2+ hours to change our tickets and extend our stay an extra week (was not able to do it online, for some weird reason??).  
• Flew back home on Sunday, Aug. 9th, one week later than originally scheduled. 
• Back home:  
• Went grocery shopping and picked up some soup and/or pizza slices for dinner/lunch (Aug. 9th, 10th, 11th, 17th, 24th & 31st).  
• Spent a few hours with the Little Great-Nephews, and stayed with them while SIL went for an appointment (Aug. 11th). Returned for visits on Aug. 19th & 26th. 
• Visited the Little Great-Nephews AND the dog (yay!) at their grandparents' house while their parents were at a wedding, and stayed for dinner. (Aug, 29th) 
• Shopped and walked at the mall (amid hordes of tourists and back-to-school shoppers...!). (Aug. 12th, 18th & 25th). 
• Activated a new bank card at the ABM/ATM, browsed at the bookstore and picked up a birthday card, picked up a few more groceries at the supermarket, and picked up a prescription at the drugstore. (Aug. 14th) 
• Got some cash at the ABM/ATM, bought a new CO2 detector at Canadian Tire (and installed it when we got home) and browsed at the bookstore (Aug. 21st).
• Drove to the mall in our old community for haircuts with our longtime stylist, walking & shopping (Aug. 28th). Also stopped at the cemetery and changed Katie's niche decorations to a fall theme.  :)  

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Also right now:  

Reading: August was a highly productive reading month for me, for whatever reasons?? (Not complaining!)  I finished 7 (!) books in August -- the most I've read in a single month in a very long time, I rhink!  (all reviewed on this blog, as well as Goodreads & StoryGraph, & tagged "2026 books").  Year to date, I've read 25 books,  reached 63% of my Goodreads Challenge goal, and am currently 1 book behind schedule to achieve it by year end.  

• "Young Woman and the Sea" by Glenn Stout (the September choice for my Childless Collective Nomo Book Club.)  (4 stars;  my review) 
• "Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris" by Paul Gallico. (4 stars;  my review) 
• "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day" by Winifred Watson. (3-3.5 stars;  my review) 
• "Flying Solo" by Linda Holmes. (3.5-4 stars;  my review)
• "Yesteryear" by Caro Claire Burke. (4 stars;  my review)
• "Still Glides the Stream" by D.E. Stevenson, a summer re-read with my DES group.  Last read in 2021 (my reviews here & here;  most recent review here -- 3.5-4 stars). 
• "Dear Monica Lewinsky" by Julia Langbein. (3.5-4 stars;  my review.)  

Current reads: 

• "The Forsyte Saga" by John Galsworthy. After mulling it over (see this post!), I accepted a commenter's suggestion to do a readalong together!  Currently 69% completed. 
• "Childless: A Woman and a Girl in a Man's World" by Fabiana Formica.  This one is beautifully written, but slow going, and I was reading it (or trying to...!) at Mom & Dad's last summer (2025), where there were a lot of distractions. I've put it aside for the moment to focus on other reading priorities, but I've completed 33% to date.
• "L.M. Montgomery and Gender," an essay collection edited by E. Holly Pike & Laura Robinson. Slowly working my way through, in between the other books...! 

Coming up: Most of my book groups have their next reads plotted out for a few months in advance -- and listing them here helps me keep track of what I should be reading next. ;)  

• For my Childless Collective Nomo Book Club:  
• "The Wedding People" by Alison Espach (October). (I previously read and reviewed this one, here;  rated 4-4.5 stars.)
• "The Women" by Kristin Hannah (November)
• For my D.E. Stevenson group:  
• "Anna and Her Daughters" (Sept. 7th through mid-November;  last read 2x in 2022;  my reviews here and here).   
• Footnotes & Tangents slow readalongs for 2026 include: 
• "The Children’s Book" by A.S. Byatt (September–December) (Planning to take part in this one, as I've never read Byatt and this one sounds interesting.)    

A few recently purchased titles (all in digital format, mostly discounted ($5-10 or less) or purchased with points): 

• "Ace, Marvel, Spy" by Jenni L. Walsh 
• "Villa Coco" by Andrew Sean Greer
• "Land" by Maggie O'Farrell 
• "All the Gold Stars" by Rainesford Stauffer 
• "American Fantasy" by Emma Straub
• "Permanence" by Sophie Mackintosh 
• "The Calamity Club" by Kathryn Stockett 

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

Listening:  

Following: A couple of new people on Substack (how many Substack/newsletter subscriptions is too many??).  

Watching: 

• Too much Game TV (game show network), Cash Cab and Judge Judy (good Lord, she's obnoxious...!), while visiting my Dad...!  (Thanks but no thanks...!)  
• CFL football and Toronto Blue Jays baseball games (also Dad's viewing choices, but far preferable to the Game Show Network!  lol)  We've continued to watch some Jays games since returning home (they've been doing well again, after a bad start to the season..! -- hoping to make the playoffs...!). 

Playing:  

• Heardle Decades: I didn't have much time for the daily Heardles while we were in Manitoba, but since we got back, I've also added Super 60s, 70s & 80s Heardles to the list, which include more obscure/album cuts! Here the stats (as of Aug. 31st):  
• Heardle 60s: 74.4% (982/1320, 398 on first guess), up 0.1%. since July 31st. Max streak: 21. (Current streak: 9) 
• Heardle Super 60s: 43.8% (7/16, 1 on first guess). Max streak: 5. 
• Heardle 70s: 74.7% (793/1062, 445 on first guess), down 0.3% from July 31st.. Max streak: 18. 
• Heardle Super 70s: 61.1% (11/18, 7 on first guess). Max streak:  3. 
• Heardle 80s:  41.4% (380/917, 154 on first guess), up 0.1% from July 31st. Max. streak: 6.
• Heardle Super 80s: 50.0% (9/18, 3 on first guess). Max streak: 4. 
• Heardle 90s: 33.0% (335/1016, 86 on first guess), up 0.1% from July 31st. Max. streak: 9. 
• NYT Connections: 
• During July (up to Aug. 2nd), I completed 717 games, won 90% of them (unchanged since June 30th), including 385 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors, and 20 where I got the most difficult/purple category first (unchanged since Dec. 31st). Maximum winning streak:  45 (unchanged since June 30th, 2025).  Current streak to that point: 18..  
• As of Aug. 31st, I'd played 746 games and won 90% of them (unchanged since Aug. 2nd), including 400 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors, and 22 where I got the most difficult/purple category first (an increase of 2 since Dec.  31st). Maximum (and current!) winning streak: 47! (an increase of 2 since June 30th, 2025). 

Eating/Drinking:  My eating habits took a nosedive while we were away... I may have some explaining to do to my doctor when I have to redo my bloodwork this fall, particularly re: my cholesterol levels (gulp)...! 

• Over the past almost-two years (since some less-than-stellar bloodwork results for both of us in fall 2024), we've been trying to eat healthier and lower our cholesterol levels -- and avoid having to take (more) medication. Results have been mixed (initially good, less so more recently...), and it's been a struggle to maintain momentum. 
• I'm up 0.6 pounds this month, since we returned home. Overall, I'm down 15 pounds since late October 2024 -- close to my lowest weight in more than a decade -- and 27 pounds from my heaviest-ever weight  (in August 2021). 
• (Dh  has gained a little weight back this summer, and is currently down about 14 pounds overall since fall 2024.)
• Takeout meals included the usual pizza slices, soup and teriyaki rice bowls from the supermarket, and rotisserie chicken from Swiss Chalet. (It's gotten a little boring lately, to be honest -- but it's not easy finding takeout meals that are (a) cheap-ish -- especially lately! (b) not too horrible in terms of cholesterol and (c) something dh & I can agree on...!)  
• My dad gets meals delivered directly to his building from a subsidized community meals program for seniors -- and since dh & I are also seniors, we can get them too, when we're there!  They're available every week day -- the menu is published a month in advance -- and dad gets them several times a week (as do many seniors in his building). It's not exactly gourmet fare, but it's tasty, balanced, and filling, always including a protein, starch, veggies or salad, dessert and a bun (often homemade) -- all for the grand price of $7.50 (Canadian) -- plus a few dollars extra delivery fee.  Not bad!  

Not eating:  Lettuce from the U.S. ( = fewer salads lately, since so much of our produce comes from there...!), since the cyclospora parasite outbreak there...!  Happily, the supermarket where we shop recently stocked some local/Ontario organic lettuce! -- I'm enjoying it while it's still in season!

Wearing:  I WAS wearing lots of shorts, tank tops and T-shirts... but I'm shifting back towards short sleeves vs tank tops again, and I even dug out my capri yoga pants earlier this week (vs shorts), as the weather has been slightly cooler recently.  

My sister loaned me a really cute (and very comfortable) black sleeveless dress with a tiered skirt and a zipper down the front to wear to our Mom's committal service at the cemetery. (I'd brought a pair of black capris and a top with me, just in case, but this was nicer!) 

Appreciating:  The cooler temperatures and lower humidity! (if not the recent lack of sunshine...) 

Buying (besides books, lol):  Cute fall clothes for the great-niblings (from Old Navy and Carters/Oshkosh).  I also bought a few tops for myself at Old Navy, as well as a burgundy & navy-striped soccer shirt with a white collar at the Gap outlet (why are so many women's shirts these days cropped??), and a cute burgundy "rugby" sweatshirt at American Eagle.    

Noticing: The days/hours of light are already getting shorter...  :( 

Wondering:  Whether we're getting an invitation to dh's cousin's cottage this fall??  We've been there with BIL & SIL every fall for the past five years, and they've usually asked us well before now.  However, they DID have ALL the cousins there in May (16 of us!! -- which was really very generous of them!!), and I know they've had a very busy summer. I wouldn't blame them if they wanted some cottage time to themselves! 

Loving:  Getting more books read this month! 

Feeling: (Still) Tired.  A little "blah."  Glad to be back home and to spend some time with the LGNephews.  (Missing:  Little Great-Niece -- we haven't seen her since Easter!!)  A little sad that summer is drawing to a close (already! -- I guess it's because we were away for three weeks, but it seems to have been really short this year...!).  But... 

Anticipating/Looking forward to: Fall, which is generally a lovely time of year here (if not what follows later...!).  Also looking forward to: kids returning to school (if not all the hype and last-minute-rush to enjoy the last of summer), and having fewer people crowding the stores and malls during the week!  lol  We're planning to go out for brunch on or around the first day of school to celebrate!  ;)  

Coming up in September: Older Great-Nephew heads back to school (to Grade 2!!). And World Childless Week. 

"Dear Monica Lewinsky" by Julia Langbein

If you were old enough to pay attention to the news in the late 1990s, you'll know who Monica Lewinsky is. She's the young White House intern whose dalliance with then-U.S. President Bill Clinton -- and his lies about it to Congress -- led to his impeachment in December 1998. (He was acquitted by the Senate in February 1999.)  The scandal came to light in January 1998, and led to Lewinsky testifying before a grand jury in August 1998. Clinton admitted to the relationship in a televised address on Aug. 17th that year. 

Needless to say, while I was certainly aware of what was happening south of the border (you couldn't NOT know about it...!), I was rather preoccupied with (ahem) other matters in 1998, and August 1998 in particular. I don't remember having strong feelings about Lewinsky one way or another at the time, but when she began speaking out about the experience some years later, as an older and wiser woman, I found her to be a sympathetic figure.  

Now 53 years old, she's never married or had children. She advocates for victims of bullying, harassment and public shaming, and hosts a podcast called "Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky," focusing on personal stories of resilience and identity.

She's also now the title figure in a recently published novel called "Dear Monica Lewinsky" by Julia Langbein.  (I was curious whether Lewinsky has made any comment on the book;  so far as I can tell, she has not, but the author did send her a copy before it was published.)   

Jean Dornan spent six weeks during the summer of 1998 in France on a work-study program, documenting medieval French churches -- and pursuing a highly inappropriate relationship with her professor, David Harwell. Now 45 years old, married and still dealing with the impact that summer had on her life, Jean is startled to receive an invitation from David to attend his retirement party. She's even more startled when, looking at her old diaries from that summer, she realizes this pivotal relationship in her life happened at the exact same time that a very public scandal was unfolding, involving a very similar relationship between President Bill Clinton and White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Pondering the parallels in their stories, she finds herself calling on Monica, as if she were a saint, begging her forgiveness for dismissing her and for not seeing the commonalities between them.  

Lo and behold, "Saint Monica" appears to Jean (in the bathroom of a church in Lower Manhattan, no less!). Together, they look back on that summer, what happened to Jean and the impact it's had on her life since then (interrupted by occasional side comments between the two of them). (Rather irreverent) stories of real female martyr/saints are also interspersed between chapters.  

I enjoyed this book, for the most part.  I learned a lot about (among other things) the architecture of medieval French churches, how lust-filled nuns changed the Catholic church (!)  ;)  and the depressingly similar stories of female martyr saints (a lot of suffering at the hands of the patriarchy.... plus ca change...).  ;)  There's a lot of wry humour. 

However, the section covering what happened during the summer of 1998 in France is long and leisurely -- Jean and David don't even KISS until we're well into both the term and the book! (The effect on the reader is pent-up anticipation, much like Jean's pent-up desire.)  Jean is not always a likeable character, particularly in her younger "Ruthless Jean" incarnation, and the irreverent/snarky tone (particularly regarding religious matters) might rub some readers the wrong way. Like Monica, she deliberately flirts with an older married man and revels in the attention he gives her.  

And yet -- I can remember being the same age, plotting how to attract the attention of the boy(s) I liked, maneuvering to be in the same places at the same times he was -- and the heady feeling of being noticed and desired (and desiring in return)(especially at university, after being ignored by boys through most of my teen years). Unlike Monica and Jean, I didn't have any "inappropriate" relationships with older men (and thank goodness for that...!) -- but I was equally as naive and inexperienced as they were -- and (of course!) there were encounters and relationships (or aspects of them) and behaviour (on my part and theirs), that makes me wince to remember, where I was treated badly by a guy, or wish I had done things differently.   

But that's all part of growing up and learning from our mistakes, isn't it? Which is part of what Monica helps Jean to realize. (We all do dumb things when we were younger -- but most of us don't have to deal with it in public, as Monica did...! -- thank goodness...!).  

The last chapter is kind of bonkers. :) (But cathartic too.)  

A solid 3.5 stars on StoryGraph, rounded up (after some debate) to 4 on Goodreads.   

CNBC notes:  Jean, like Monica, is childless.  

This was Book #25 read to date in 2026 (and Book #7 (!) finished in August), bringing me to 63% of  my 2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 40 books. I am (for the first time in a LONG time!!) ON TRACK to meet my goal!!  :)  (For the moment, anyway...!  ;)  )  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2026 tagged as "2026 books."  

"Still Glides the Stream" by D.E. Stevenson (re-read)

My D.E. Stevenson fan group read "Still Glides the Stream" together not that long ago, in the summer of 2021 (previous reviews here & here). For our summer 2026 reading, I would have preferred to choose a Stevenson book I haven't read before, or in a long time (there are still a few of those!) -- but when another member stepped in to suggest "Still Glides" (one of her favourites) -- along with an offer to organize the discussion (something I was too busy to commit to this summer) -- members eagerly took her up on it.  We began our discussion on June 22nd, and finished today.  

The title "Still Glides the Stream" comes from a Wordsworth poem. First published in 1959, this book is sometimes referred to as a "sequel" to "Amberwell" and "Summerhills," both about the Ayrton family.  A couple of the Ayrtons make a brief appearance here, but it's really a standalone story.  

Will Hastie is back with his father in Scotland, after spending 12 years in the military during and after the Second World War ( = it's now the early/mid-1950s). His childhood best friend Rae, from the neighbouring estate of Langford, died during the final days of the war, and Rae's younger sister Patty is engaged to her cousin Hugo, who will now inherit the estate. 

Before he died, Rae wrote to Patty, hinting at a big secret he hoped to share with the family when he returned home. This piece of unfinished business has been gnawing at Patty, and when she shares the letter with Will, he decides to go to France, trace his friend's final days and try to figure out what he wanted to tell his family. What he learns there changes everyone's lives. 

Like Stevenson's other books, this is a warm, gentle little story of a bygone era -- in both positive and negative ways. On the minus side, the clash between French and English cultures and ways of doing things is a thread that runs throughout the book (including the implied assumption of British superiority). The decision made by one of the characters near the book's end might horrify modern readers, but I am sure readers of the day had no doubt that she was doing the right thing.  

Nevertheless, I appreciated the themes of post-war grief and loss and moving forward, as well as Stevenson's usual well-drawn characters and lovely descriptions.  

On previous reads, I rated this book 3.5 stars on StoryGraph, rounded up to 4 on Goodreads. Those ratings still stand. 

Our next book is to be determined.  

This was Book #24 read to date in 2026 (and Book #6 finished in August), bringing me to 60% of  my 2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 40 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 1 book behind pace to meet my goal.  :)  (Catching up...!)  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2026 tagged as "2026 books."  

"Yesteryear" by Caro Claire Burke

I finally picked up "Yesteryear" by Caro Claire Burke, one of this year's "buzz" books, after hearing a lot about it on. I've always liked time travel novels, and this promised to be one  -- or, at least, to contain a time travel element as part of the storyline.  

Natalie Heller Mills is a "tradwife," raising five homeschooled children (and pregnant with #6) in a rustic home (which is nevertheless equipped with all the modern conveniences) on a ranch known as "Yesteryear" in rural southern Idaho. She's married to Caleb, the rather hapless youngest son of a powerful U.S. senator who has presidential ambitions. 

She's also a highly successful social media influencer, who employs a producer as well as two nannies/teachers for her children, so that she can focus on being in front of the camera. She's clearly modelled on Hannah Neeleman of Ballerina Farm and other social media tradwife influencers,  with echoes of Tara Westover's "Educated" (setting in the mountains of rural southern Idaho, Ivy League scholarship, fundamentalist religious upbringing, etc. -- although in Natalie's case, the denomination is unspecified).  

On the surface, Natalie's life seems idyllic. But it quickly becomes evident that she's seething with rage and insecurity, as she tells us (in a first-person narrative) about her life, her family, and how she got to this level of fame and fortune.    

Then one morning, Natalie wakes up and abruptly finds herself somehow transported back to the year 1855 (!) -- actually living the traditional back-to-the-land life she's represented.  The story pivots back and forth between the story of Natalie's marriage to Caleb and how she became an "influencer," and the bewildering world she now finds herself in, with a husband she calls "Old Caleb" and four children, who are familiar in some ways and not at all in others. 

It didn't take me long to realize I disliked Natalie -- a lot. She didn't improve much over the course of the book -- although I felt a certain amount of sympathy at her bewildered and terrified reaction to waking up in 1855. I'm not sure any of us would have reacted any differently! (Still, there was a bit of schadenfreude, watching her having to practice/live what she preached...!). 

But an unlikeable heroine is not necessarily a deal-breaker for me in a book. It was an interesting premise, if not always smoothly executed, and it sure kept me turning the pages. I'd heard there was a twist ending, and a little about what it involved. But even so... let's just say I did not expect what ultimately unfolded!

ALI/CNBC note:  Obviously, this is NOT an entirely "safe" read for us, given the subject matter...!  Notably, there's a home birth described near the end of the book that I found difficult to read. 

4 stars.  

This was Book #23 read to date in 2026 (and Book #5 finished in August), bringing me to 57% of  my 2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 40 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 2 books behind pace to meet my goal.  :(  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2026 tagged as "2026 books."  

#MicroblogMondays: World Childless Week 2026 is coming!

World Childless Week 2026 is coming in September -- the 10th annual!  Every year, WCW is built around submissions from childless people around the world -- essays, poems, letters, lists, videos, paintings... There are also webinars featuring community members, discussing relevant topics related to the daily themes. 

I always have great intentions to submit something 🙄 which never seem to materialize... and the deadline for submissions WAS this past weekend. However, things have been slow and so Stephanie Joy Phillips, the organizer, is keeping submissions open. If you've been thinking of submitting something, now is the time!  

(I just submitted Katie's name for the Our Family Tree project -- and I'll be taking part in a webinar on Sept. 17th... more details on that closer to the time!)  

Have a look at this year's daily topics (below) and go to the website for more information. You can also browse previous years' submissions for inspiration!  

This year's themes include:  

• Monday 14th September: Our Stories
• Tuesday 15th September: Childless Disability & Chronic Illness
• Wednesday 16th September: 10 Things You Should Know About Me
• Thursday 17th September: Childless Father's and Mother's Day
• Friday 18th September: "Why do YOU want time off? You haven't got kids!"
• Saturday 19th September: We Are Worthy
• Saturday 19th September: Our Family Tree (an ongoing remembrance project for our children's names)
• Sunday 20th September: Moving Forwards

Details on the themes and how to submit can be found here: https://worldchildlessweek.net/past-events . 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

"Flying Solo" by Linda Holmes

"Flying Solo" by Linda Holmes is a followup to her debut novel "Evvie Drake Starts Over," which I read earlier this summer. 

Laurie Sassalyn is turning 40, single (again, after recently calling off her wedding), and back in her hometown to clear out the home of her beloved, recently deceased (also single and childless) Great-Aunt Dot. (The book is set in Calcasset, Maine, the same setting as "Evvie Drake," and includes a shoutout to Evvie and Dean from that book). 

Tucked away in a cedar chest, Laurie finds a mysterious wooden duck that piques her interest. A local antique dealer tells her the duck is worthless and gives her $50 for it. Laurie soon realizes she was conned, and enlists some of her old friends -- including her old boyfriend Nick, now the town librarian and divorced -- to help her get the precious duck back. (There's more to the story, but that's the barebones of the plot.)  

I picked up this book expecting another light romance like "Evvie Drake." It is -- but it isn't (it's a little more complicated that most romcoms, and it doesn't end quite like you might expect). I certainly did not expect it to turn into both a mystery and a caper/heist story, lol.  And needless to say, as someone who, like Laurie (and her Aunt Dot), didn't have kids (albeit for different reasons), is coming to terms with aging and recently spent time clearing decades and generations of accumulated stuff from her parents' house, there was much here I could relate to. ;)  

I rated "Evvie Drake" 3 stars all round. In some ways, I liked it better than this one;  in some ways I liked this one better. They're both good reads in their own ways. I finished it in two days flat. 

3.5 stars on StoryGraph, rounded up to 4 on Goodreads.  

Additional ALI/CNBC notes: One of Laurie's brothers and his wife are infertile and going through  IVF.  There's a long conversation in which he, Laurie, Nick, and Laurie's best friend June talk about having children (or not).  

This was Book #22 read to date in 2026 (and Book #4 finished in August), bringing me to 55% of  my 2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 40 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 2 books behind pace to meet my goal.  :(  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2026 tagged as "2026 books."  

Annoying things & small pleasures

Annoying things:  

• For the first time ever, I lost my cellphone last month (July). Thankfully, it was only a temporary thing:  I left it sitting on the table at the restaurant where we were having dinner on our wedding anniversary. (eyeroll)  I normally don't look at my phone much when we're out for dinner (and of course we haven't done that as much since the pandemic) -- but the service was a little slow (and dh was looking at his), so.... 
• When we got home, I realized it wasn't in my purse or in any of the other usual places I set it. Tried calling it with dh's phone -- nothing. (Uh oh...)  Dh went down to the parking garage;  it wasn't in the car, so he hopped in and went back to the restaurant while I called ahead. Thankfully, the waitress who served us had already found it and left it at the front desk. Whew! 
• (Another reason why you should leave your phone in your purse/pocket when you're in a restaurant...!)  
• I'm sure I've written before about the McMichael Centre for Canadian Art, a true national treasure in a small town near where I now live. I took out a membership not long after we moved here, and we've really enjoyed visiting there a couple of times a year to tour the exhibits, hear some of the interesting lectures and stroll around the beautiful grounds. I've also brought guests with me occasionally. (My membership is a "plus one," i.e., it covers admission for two people, and also includes a handful of time-limited guest passes.) 
• The last time we were there was earlier this year, and I'd been saying to dh that we should go again soon (and certainly in the fall, when the colours are at their peak!). 
• I'd heard the gallery was planning to expand -- but it came as a bit of a shock when they  announced on July 16th that it was (temporarily) closing... for THREE YEARS (until sometime in 2029).  (That's assuming all goes well, of course...!) 
• Not only that, the closing date was July 26th -- just 10 days after the announcement (!) -- and a few days before we were scheduled to leave for Manitoba for a few weeks -- meaning we wouldn't have time to squeeze in a last visit before closure.  (I wasn't the only person who questioned this schedule...!)  
• Meanwhile, my membership has been paused. 
• A lot of very hot, humid days, both here and at Dad's (although this past week has not been as bad). The humidex reading one day at Dad's was 47C ( = 117F).  Yuck.  Thank goodness his apartment has an air conditioner (albeit it's very noisy, and he kept turning it off because he would get cold...!).  
• The plug-in carbon monoxide detector we bought & installed when we moved into our condo 10 years ago reached the end of its life and started giving off warning chirps... at 5 AM (why do these things ALWAYS go off in the middle of the night??!), the morning after an exhausting day of travelling home from visiting my dad (!). 
• It's been four years (!) this summer since I had both eye surgery and gallbladder removal, three weeks apart (!)... and a selfie I took and posted on social media, of me prepped and waiting to get rid of pesky gallbladder, recently surfaced in my Facebook memories. I reposted it with a caption saying, "No regrets, hardly any digestive issues since! (And a much easier recovery than the eye surgery I had three weeks earlier...!)"  Would you believe I had THREE people offering me thoughts & prayers for a speedy recovery??!  I mean, it was lovely of them (they were mostly older friends of my parents, perhaps not entirely social media-savvy), but... does anyone actually read captions anymore?
• On a recent discussion thread I was on, the host asked for ideas for future discussion thread topics... and someone suggested a thread of birth stories (!), saying it made her sad to think she only had so many people to tell her story to, and it would make everyone [ed. note: "everyone??"]  feel supported and also prepared, because "no one talks about it!"  
• Do she & I live on the same planet?? 
• I was tempted leave a comment reminding her (and everyone else reading) that not all of us who wanted a baby get to give birth, and some of us have birth stories you really do not want to hear (and yeah, some of us really don't want to hear yours either...!) -- but I bit my cybertongue and scrolled on. (And came here to vent, lol.)  

Small pleasures:  

• Sleeping in my own bed again!!  
• (On that note:)  The new sheets I got just before we left. My sister had recommended them to me a while back, and while I've been reluctant to order from Amazon or buy American lately if I can help it (for obvious reasons...), dh shredded our bottom sheet with his toenail (don't ask...), and my former go-to places to buy bedding (The Bay, Sears, Bed Bath & Beyond...) have all gone the way of the dodo bird in recent years, so...  They are lovely, crisp 100% cotton damask sateen, 500 thread count, deep pockets on the fitted sheet, and reasonably priced.  I'm going to order a second set to keep in reserve!  
• Spending time with the the great-nephews after three weeks away (almost half the summer...!).
• I was pretty busy while we were at Dad's, and I had my share of screen time while I was there (more so on the phone than my laptop) -- but I did have time to finish five (!) books while we were there (albeit a couple of them were pretty short).  :)