Sunday, June 1, 2025

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.)

May -- the Victoria Day long weekend, at least -- is traditionally regarded as the kickoff to summer in Canada.  This doesn't necessarily mean the weather will be summer-y!  The rule of thumb, at least in the parts of Canada where I grew up, is you don't plant your garden before Victoria Day, because frost is still a distinct possibility.

By mid-May, I'd abandoned my long sleeves & cardigan. The Friday of the Victoria Day long weekend was sunny, warm and humid enough for dh to turn on the air conditioning. I optimistically wiped down the balcony furniture and hopefully pulled out my capris & sandals... only to have to put my long pants & socks back on again (and consider turning the heat back on!), when the weather turned grey, chilly and rainy on Sunday (and mostly stayed that way for the rest of the month...!). In fact, it hadn't been this consistently cold in late May since 1967!!  Thankfully, slightly warmer temperatures (if not the sun itself) returned just before the end of the month.  

This month, we: 

  • Drove to a bookstore about a half-hour north & east of us on Sunday, May 4th, to attend a book signing by an old friend. (I wrote about her book here.)  
  • Went to the mall to walk & shop (May 5th, 13th, 20th & 27th). 
  • Spent most Friday mornings this month with SIL & Little Great-Niece at BIL & SIL's house. 
    • Some explanation: SIL has been taking care of her granddaughter (Little Great-Niece) two mornings a week, since her mom returned to work part-time last summer.  The other grandmother takes care of her the other three workdays.  Both parents mostly work from home, and the office space in their small townhouse is simply not big enough for both of them, let alone LGNiece and SIL too -- so Younger Nephew started going to the office at his parents' house to work!  Then LGNiece learned to climb stairs (lol) and kept heading up to see what her mother was doing!  So Younger Nephew started bringing LGNiece to his parents' place instead. So far, she's left her dad alone to work -- at least, more than she did with her mother!   
    • We wanted to spend some time with LGNiece (as we did with LGNephew #1 before he started school), but didn't want to add to an already-crowded situation by going to  Younger Nephew's townhouse, even though it's not very far from us. Visiting at BIL & SIL's house, however, is a different situation!  
    • And so, we joined SIL & LGNiece for a walk to the nearby park on May 9th, then returned to the house for tea & snacks. Younger Nephew also came downstairs for a few minutes to say hello (one of the perqs of working remotely!).    
    • Went for a walk around the neighbourhood on May 16th, with SIL & LGNiece (it rained overnight, so it was too wet to spend much time at the park), then back to the house, where BIL (who had the day off work) grilled hot dogs for us all for lunch (including Younger Nephew).  
    • It was raining AGAIN on May 23rd, so we mostly played in the basement. :) 
    • We missed going to the park with SIL & LGNiece on May 30th (they'd already been by the time we got there), but had fun playing in the back yard with the water table & helping SIL water her tomato plants. 
    • LGNiece is much fonder of the women in her life -- happily, including me! -- than the men (not including her daddy)!  It took her a long time to warm up to her nonno (BIL), and for some unknown reason, she is afraid of poor dh (!) who is generally a kid magnet. "I don't want you here," she will sometimes tell him with 2-year-old frankness. She has shown some signs of thawing, but I think it's going to be a long, slow process...!  (But then, when we first started going over to SIL's to visit him (after being largely absent from his life during the worst of the pandemic), LGN #1 used to hide behind his nonna's legs when he saw us coming! -- and he certainly came around!)  
  • After visiting SIL & LGNiece on May 9th, dh & I went out for an early Mother's Day brunch (his idea!). :)  Then to Reitmans (women's wear shop), Chapters (bookstore) and then home. 
  • Went to the bank on the morning of May 21st to arrange an RESP (registered education saving plan) for Little Great-Nephew #2 (as we've done for the other two great-niblings).  
    • A signature from Older Nephew's Wife/the mom was required within three business days -- so dh called her and we drove up there (about an hour, one way) after lunch (takeout pizza slices from the supermarket). (Dh called SIL too, to see if she'd like to come along, but she was busy.)  
    • We only stayed for half an hour or so, but we got to spend time with the baby and take turns holding him.  Also got to see the dog -- albeit I think he was a little miffed that I was holding the baby and not petting him, as I usually do when I'm there, lol.  (LGN #1, of course, was at school.)  The baby is such a happy, smiley little guy, and we hadn't seen him (or LGN #1) since Easter. (Still haven't seen LGN #1 since then!  :(  )  DAY MADE.  
  • Had my first mani-pedi of the year/season on Friday, May 23rd!  :)  (The salon was PACKED and I immediately put my mask on when I walked in... for the fumes, as well as the germs, lol.)  
  • Went with SIL to a lovely bridal shower on May 25th. The wedding is in August;  the bride is marrying the son of a cousin of dh & BIL's, and all of the female cousins & remaining aunts on that side of the family were there. The groom is the same age as Katie would have been -- his mom's pregnancy and mine briefly overlapped. (Her baby shower happened shortly after we'd announced my pregnancy, and I received almost as many congratulations as she did!)  Not sure how I'm going to feel about this one...!  But I did have a pretty good time at the shower!  

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Also right now:  

Reading: I finished 3 books in May (all reviewed on this blog, as well as Goodreads & StoryGraph, & tagged "2025 books"):  
This brings me to 16 books read in 2025 to date, 36% of my 2025 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 2 books behind pace to meet my goal.  :) 

Current reads: 
  • "Rules For Visiting" by Jessica Francis Kane (the July pick for my Childless Collective Nomo Book Club -- just started;  currently 6% completed).  
  • "A Place of Greater Safety" by Hilary Mantel, the current slow read with Footnotes and Tangents, which began May 5th and runs for 20 weeks (until Sept. 15th). Currently 17% completed. 
  • "Miss Buncle Married" by D.E. Stevenson, for my D.E. Stevenson group.  Our group discussion began on April 21st, and I'll count this as another re-read once we're finished (in July). I've read the book twice before on my own (once in 2015 and again prior to the start of our group read & discussion -- see above! Currently 52% completed.  (Original 2015 review here;  most recent review here). 
  • "Living the Life Unexpected" by Jody Day.  I'm once again taking part in a chapter-by-chapter group read of this CNBC classic!  The most recent Zoom meeting covered Chapter 10.  This is the 5th (!) time I've read this book, or the earlier version of it ("Rocking the Life Unexpected").  (Most recent review, with links to earlier reviews, here.)  
  • "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. ;)  
(Simon is a big fan of the late great Hilary Mantel, and the other books he's selected were all ones that she loved, so he figured they would probably be worth reading!) 

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


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Watching: 
  • "Miss Austen" on PBS Masterpiece, which began May 4th and ran for 4 episodes, based on the novel by Gill Hornby (see "Reading," above). 
  • "The Handmaid's Tale" (the sixth & final season, which wrapped up earlier this week!). My thoughts here!   
  • NHL Stanley Cup hockey playoffs -- at least until the Winnipeg Jets & Toronto Maple Leafs were eliminated in the second round (sob). :(    Cheering for the Edmonton Oilers as the finals (against the Florida Panthers) get underway -- a rematch from last year!  (Even so, I do think hockey in June is pretty ridiculous...! -- the season never went this long when I was growing up -- but then, the league was much smaller then...!)  
Playing:  
  • Heardle Decades: Stats as of May 31st:  
    • Heardle 60s: 75.2% (708/941, 276 on first guess), down 0.3% from last month. Max. streak: 15.
    • Heardle 70s: 77.8% (527/677, 299 on first guess), down 0.3% from last month. Max. streak: 18. 
    • Heardle 80s: 38.8% (212/547, 77 on first guess), up 0.6% from last month. Max. streak: 5 (up from 4 -- fist increase since May 2023!).
    • Heardle 90s: 31.4% (204/650, 48 on first guess), up 0.5% from last month. Max. streak: 5. 
  • NYT Connections:  
    • By April 30th, I'd completed 276 games and won 83% of them, including 140 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors, including 6 where I got the most difficult/purple category first.  And I maintained my maximum winning streak at 30!  :)   
    • By May 31st, I'd played 307 games and won 85% of them, including 156 "perfect puzzles," including 6 where I got the most difficult/purple category first (unchanged from last month)  And I ended the month by matching my maximum winning streak of 34! (On to 35!  lol)  
Following:  

Eating/Drinking:  
  • As I've mentioned before, we achieved our goal of lowering our cholesterol levels in late January,  after less-than-stellar bloodwork last fall earned us both serious chats with our doctor. We'll be doing more bloodwork later in the year to check again -- so we've continued our efforts to eat healthier -- reduce portion sizes, cut back on fatty & processed foods (fewer casseroles, more chicken and beans/lentils), eat more fruits, vegetables and fibre, snack less (and make better snacking choices), and be at least a little more active. 
    • Since then, I've continued to yo-yo a bit, but I still ended the month almost a pound lighter than at the end of April. (I'll take it!)  Overall, I've lost about 12 pounds since our chat with the doctor last October (dh has lost about 22), and 24 pounds from my heaviest-ever weight a few years ago. 
  • As mentioned above, dh took me out for brunch on the Friday morning before MDay -- the same place where we went on the Friday before Valentine's Day. ;)  (Much less busy! -- and less expensive than dinner out!)  We both had omelettes (ham & cheese for me), which came with home fries and toast. 
  • The bridal shower menu on May 25th included a lovely salad with berries, chicken with roasted potatos and vegetables, and a creme brulee tart with berries. Plus a traditional Italian cookie table.  :) There was a mocktail bar with a large menu when we arrived, which was fun, and wine was served with lunch. Not quite as elaborate as some of the Italian showers I've been to, food-wise, but it no one starved, and the food was good! -- and it was a lovely setting (at a golf clubhouse) and all beautifully presented. The company was great too! 
  • Notable recent takeout meals: soup, pizza slices and teriyaki rice bowls from the supermarket takeout counter;  wood-oven thin crust pizza, and Swiss Chalet rotisserie chicken. (Trying to avoid the stuff that's really calorie & fat-laden!) 
Wearing:  Earlier in the month, with the weather (finally!) starting to warm up, I put away my long-sleeved shirts in favour of shorter sleeves, and by the Victoria Day long weekend, I was wearing yoga capris and a tank top and ready to bring out my denim capris & sandals!  Alas (as I mentioned at the beginning of this post...!), it turned chilly and rainy and I had to bring out my long pants, socks and cardigan again!  :(  (boo, hiss...)  I finally got to bring out (and wear!) the capris earlier this week, when milder (if not sunnier) weather finally returned! 

Buying (besides books, lol): 
  • More Canadian products (or, failing that, international) products (vs American -- you can probably guess why...! It's not always easy, though, given how intertwined our two countries' economies & supply chains are...!).  
  • Cute summer outfits for the great-niblings (including matching Canada Day T-shirts from Old Navy, lol). 
  • For myself:  some black denim shorts (Old Navy), and some soft, colourful 100% cotton T-shirts (Gap).  
  • Also for myself, from Reitmans (Canadian women's wear chain):  two shirts & a pair of white linen pants, plus a couple of pairs of yoga pants (all on sale). I wore the linen pants with one of the tops (black linen -- couldn't find a link for it to show you?) to the bridal shower on May 25th, mentioned above.  
  • Not just one but two dresses at Laura (another Canadian women's wear chain).I'll wear one of them to a wedding in August and save the other for another wedding next year. 
    • The first one I tried on (which I sadly couldn't find a link for?) was absolutely gorgeous, and looks great on me (if I do say so myself...!) -- navy blue, short, fitted, sleeveless with a portrait collar, and some ruching and a rhinestone embellishment on one side. Simple and classically elegant. The only drawback is the fabric is a bit heavy, and might be a bit hot for an August wedding. But I could not resist it. :) 
    • As backup, I also decided to get another dress I really liked  ;)  -- it's a much lighter fabric, also navy (background) with a floral print (pink & plum tones), sleeveless, high-low hemline and a fuller skirt. Here's a link. :)  
Anticipating (nervously):  Our next visiting to the dentist (!), in mid-June. I've been anxiously obsessing about my front teeth ever since I took a(nother) fall in mid-April.  I'm 98% sure all is well, but I will feel much better once the dentist has had a look! 

Appreciating: The lack of extreme heat & humidity so far (while still hoping for some more sun than we've had to date!). It's been very hot & humid out west where my parents are, and there have been some terrible forest fires that have affected the air quality where they live.  One fire, in a "cottage country" part of the province, got within six miles of my cousin's place. So far, they're okay! (They don't live there year-round, but they do spend a fair amount of time there, particularly in the summer.)   

Noticing:  It's staying lighter outside a lot later these days! -- sunset isn't until almost 9 p.m. now (and it will keep getting lighter until the solstice, later this month! (It's also getting lighter a lot earlier, too!)  And I'm noticing more (and more colourful) sunsets again, too!  :) 

Speaking of which...! 
 
Enjoying:  Sunsets, again!  :)  Yes, I know, the sun sets every day, year round!  But it seems like they're not as noticeable (or as pretty) during the winter! And we do get some pretty great views of them from the windows & balcony of our condo!   

Wondering: Why my eyes have been so dry lately??  (especially when it's beginning to get more humid outside!) I'm going through eye drops like crazy (and they're expensive!). 

Trying:  Not to worry too much about getting through my emails every day -- prioritizing the urgent/most interesting ones, and letting some of less important ones sit on the back burner (or go altogether!). 

Wanting: To start making plans for the next few months, for a trip west to see my family, for our upcoming wedding anniversary -- and hopefully for a nice trip somewhere later in the fall!  (Now to corral dh and get him to help me make some decisions...!!) 

Loving:  The weekly photos Older Nephew's Wife posts of LGNephew #2 every Friday. (She often posts others during the week, of the baby and his big brother -- but always one on Friday marking how many weeks old the baby is)(now 23!).  And he always has a huge smile on his face too!   
                              
Feeling: Glad that winter is finally behind us!  Looking forward to the summer, to our wedding anniversary, and to going "home" in July to see my parents (and to celebrate a significant anniversary for them!). 

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