Showing posts with label Halloween. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Halloween. Show all posts

Thursday, October 30, 2025

Odds & ends

  • Annoying thing:  Someone's snide post on Threads, to the effect of "who's the genius without kids who scheduled Game 6 of the World Series on Halloween?" 
    • I initially scrolled past it, then went, "Hey, wait a minute...!" -- but then I couldn't find it again. :p  Anyway, it pissed me off...!   
  • Both Lyz Lenz at Men Yell at Me and Anne Helen Petersen of Culture Study have made the move from Substack over to Patreon in recent weeks (Lyz is now here and AHP here).   
    • It's a major pain in the butt to have to learn the ins & outs of yet ANOITHER new platform/app 🙄 (I mean, seriously...??) -- and Patreon is new to the newsletter business, and still working out some kinks -- but these two were, I think, the first two Substacks I paid for, and I get a lot out their writing and the discussion threads with other subscribers, so...  
  • Anne Helen Petersen is childfree by choice -- and one of her first posts in her new space is the first in a planned new series called "BIG NO KIDS ENERGY," about the joys of not having children. 
    • The post is from a childfree by choice perspective, and so are some of the comments. Happily, those of us who did not necessarily choose this life are commenting too. (I added a comment myself). It may be difficult, especially if you're new to realizing children are not going to be in your future, to imagine that life can still be good, in a different way -- that there can be anything joyful about not having children. But there are positives, and I think that childfree people and their positive perspective can be helpful to us in realizing that. :)  
    • The post itself is public, and I'm not sure about the comments, but I believe you have to be a paid subscriber to comment.  
    • She's looking for ideas for future posts in the series too!  
  • Rosalyn at The NoMo Book Club had a great Substack post recently about inclusive language, labels, and reproductive identity. 
  • The New York Times's Well newsletter on anticipatory grief:  "Is It Healthy to Grieve Before a Loss?"  (Answer:  "Yes. Here’s how to cope.") (Gift link.) 
  • Lisa Sibbett at The Auntie Bulletin makes a compelling argument that "The Nuclear Family is a Failed Experiment." 
  • "Jennifer Aniston Said No To Adoption. Does That Mean She Is Selfish?"  writes Marcia Garcia at Life Without Children (originally posted on Medium). This is written from a childfree by choice perspective, but happily, it does reference the CNBC experience.
  • Non-ALI related, but very personal to me: Canadian Returnee shares "The Ukrainian Story of the Prairies." 

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Monday, October 27, 2025

#MicroblogMondays: It would have been nice...

We had lunch and spent Saturday afternoon at Younger Nephew's new home, about a 30-minute drive from here, along with BIL & SIL, Older Nephew & his family. It was noisy and chaotic with two excited children under the age of 6 running around together, plus a cranky, teething baby, who cried every time his mother went out of his sight (!) -- but it was a lot of fun too.  :)  

The three great-niblings modelled their Halloween costumes for us:  Little Great-Niece is going as Cinderella, in a pretty blue dress I would have KILLED for at her age;  LGNephew #1 will be Superman (his costume has padding that looks like abs!!  lolol) -- and his baby brother will be wearing a Batman costume!!  He didn't like wearing the cowl/hat/mask, but he still looked hilarious. Many photos were taken.  :)  

As the afternoon began to wind down, SIL suggested to LGNephew #1 that he read to her from the new Halloween book she'd brought him. They sat together on the couch and he read the entire book aloud! I was mesmerized. He is still not yet 6 (birthday coming up soon), just in Grade One, and he reads SO WELL. There were only a few words he struggled with -- he's improved tremendously since the last time I heard him read. I was SO proud of him!! (and told him so!) -- I got a little teary listening to him. He's growing up so fast! 

I'm not sure it was just listening to him read that got me so emotional, though. It could also have been the sight of him sitting like that with his grandma. Then Little Great-Niece joined them after a while -- one on each side, snuggled up to SIL. 

I will admit, I felt a momentary pang of envy. 

It would have been nice... 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 
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Wednesday, October 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.)

September was a busy month (when are we not busy these days??), with mostly good weather (yay!). Younger Nephew moved into a new house, LGNephew #1 started Grade 1 (!), his little brother (LGNephew #2) was baptized (and we weren't there to see it  :(  ),  we (finally!) got the balcony windows washed (just in time for winter...!), and we spent another lovely weekend with dh's cousins at their cottage. 

This month included: 

  • Dinner at BIL's (and some one-on-one time playing with Little Great-Niece), after dh spent the afternoon helping him and Younger Nephew move some stuff over to their new house. (Sept. 2nd) 
  • (Dh) Helping with the move and setting things up at the new house the next day (Sept. 3rd). He & BIL came to get me later in the afternoon and took me over (in rush hour traffic...!) to see the new house and have some dinner. Younger Nephew's MIL brought LGNiece over (she'd had her all day) along with some food, which we all enjoyed. (SIL now goes there to take care of LGNiece two days a week, so we haven't seen her since then. :(  )  
  • Brunch, gelato and then a browse at the bookstore (Sept. 4th), postponed from the first day of school (on the 2nd, when dh was helping Younger Nephew move). 
  • More plumbing work (Sept. 8th, after a previous/expensive round in late August).  :p  (Hopefully the last needed for a LONG time...!) 
  • Lunch and grocery shopping with dh at the supermarket (Sept. 8th, after the plumbers left!). 
    • More grocery shopping (and takeout soup/pizza slices for lunch)(Sept. 15th & 29th). 
  • Shopping/walking at the local mall for the first time since mid-August (avoiding back-to-school shoppers...!), Sept. 9th;  and again on Sept. 16th, 23rd & 30th.  
    • Picked up dh's prescription at the drugstore en route home on the 9th. 
  • Withdrew cash at the bank on Sept. 11th to put in a card for LGNephew #2's baptism gift (on Sept. 14th). 
    • Took it to BIL's house the next day for them to deliver (since we weren't invited. :(  )
  • Brunch (again) on the morning of Sunday, Sept. 14th (while LGNephew #2 was being baptized).
  • Washing the balcony windows!! (Sept. 17th) (They look SO good!!) 
  • Haircuts, lunch and a bit of shopping at the mall in our former community (Sept. 19th). 
  • Browsing briefly at the bookstore and buying a board game there to bring as a hostess gift for our cottage weekend. (Sept. 24th) 
  • Manicure & pedicure, then grocery shopping at the supermarket for supplies for our cottage weekend (Sept. 25th). 
  • Our 5th annual fall weekend at dh's cousin's cottage with BIL & SIL, the couple that own the cottage and another cousin (Sept. 26th, 27th & 28th). 

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Also right now:  

Reading: I finished 2 books in September (all reviewed on this blog, as well as Goodreads & StoryGraph, & tagged "2025 books"). 
This brings me to 27 books read in 2025 to date, 60% of my 2025 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 6 books behind pace to meet my goal.  :) 

Current reads: 
  • "Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe, the current "slow readalong" with Footnotes and Tangents. Started Sept. 29th, runs for 5 weeks. 4% completed to date. 
  • "The Two Mrs. Abbotts" by D.E. Stevenson. Chapter-by-chapter reading & discussion with my D.E. Stevenson group, which started Aug. 4th and runs through mid-October. (My original 2015 review here;  most recent review here).  79% completed to date. 
  • "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, 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. ;)  
(Simon is a big fan of the late great Hilary Mantel, and the books he selected for 2025 were all ones that were either written by her or ones that she loved -- so he figured they would probably be worth reading!  2026 selections to be announced soon...) 

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


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Watching: 
  • "The Marlow Murder Club" on PBS Masterpiece Mystery. The second season began on Aug. 24th and ran for six weeks, through Sept. 28th. I provided some thoughts on the first episode in my recent review of "Death Comes to Marlow" (which forms the basis of the first two episodes), here. 
    • Pronatalism alert:  Annoyingly, the TV show injects a lot of content about families and motherhood/mother-child relationships into the scripts that is not present in the books (and generally not at all relevant to the plot). (Judith, the main character, is childless.)  
  • Watched the first two episodes of "House of Guinness" on Netflix with SIL & dh's cousin's wife at the cottage last Saturday night. Pure (and often ridiculous/over the top, lol) soap opera, set in 1860s Dublin, based (very loosely, I am sure...!) on the real-life Guinness family of brewers. I enjoyed it enough that I will probably look for the other episodes to watch on my own!  
Playing:  
  • Heardle Decades: Stats as of Sept. 30th:  
    • Heardle 60s: 74.0% (779/1053, 309 on first guess), down 0.4% from last month. Max. streak: 15.
    • Heardle 70s: 76.8% (610/794, 348 on first guess), down 0.3% from last month. Max. streak: 18. 
    • Heardle 80s: 40.1% (264/659, 96 on first guess), unchanged from from last month. Max. streak: 5.
    • Heardle 90s: 32.1% (244/759, 63 on first guess), unchanged from last month. Max. streak: 5. 
  • NYT Connections: 
    •  By Aug. 31st, I'd completed 398 games and won 87% of them, including 205 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors, including 9 where I got the most difficult/purple category first.  Maximum winning streak: 45 (unchanged). 
    • As of Sept. 30th, I'd played 428 games and won 88% of them, including 220 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors, including 10 where I got the most difficult/purple category first.  Maximum winning streak:  45 (unchanged). Current streak: 30. 
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 (in fall 2024) earned us both serious chats with our family doctor. We've been trying to maintain/improve on those numbers (and lose/keep off some extra pounds) since then, by eating healthier and moving at least a little more.    
    • This goal took a bit of a hit over the summer -- as weight loss efforts often do.  While you might be out and about more/a little more active, you're also likely socializing and eating out more! (a few examples of that below...!) 
    • I ended the month 0.4 pounds lighter than when it began. (I'll take it...!  lol)  Overall, I'm down about 12 pounds since our chat with the doctor last October (dh has lost more than 20), and a little over 24 pounds from my heaviest-ever weight a few years ago. 
    • We've slacked off a bit lately (eating out a bit more) -- but we'll be seeing our family dr again for checkups (and, I'm sure, more bloodwork!) in late October -- so we've been trying to get back on track..! 
  • We went out for brunch not just once but twice this month (and had omelettes both times -- ham & cheese for me, a Western for dh): 
    • We'd planned to go for brunch on Sept. 2nd (first day of school hereabouts) -- because we can!  but those plans were upended when dh had to help Younger Nephew move. So we did it on Sept. 4th instead, followed by gelato ;)  and a browse at the bookstore. 
    • We went again on the morning of Sunday, Sept. 14th, while LGNephew #2 was being baptized. 
  • We ate very well at dh's cousin's cottage this weekend! The menu included barbecued hamburgers and sweet potato fries for lunch on Friday; chicken and veggie skewers on the grill for Friday supper;  excellent steaks and potatoes for Saturday night dinner, pasta & beans with sausage for Sunday lunch. Indulged in some wine and coolers to drink, and made a stop at the local ice cream shop for some Kawartha Dairy ice cream on Sunday afternoon before we all headed home. (I had the salty caramel truffle -- it was excellent!).  
  • We also indulged in some of our usual takeout meals for lunch once or twice a week, plus Saturday night dinners, including soup and pizza slices from the supermarket, and veal & chicken cutlet sandwiches from California Sandwiches.
Wearing: (Still!) Enjoying my capris, sandals and short-sleeved T-shirts, while I still can...! 

Buying (besides books, lol):  This was an expensive month (and not for good reasons...!):   
  • Paid for (more) plumbing repairs (Sept. 8th) -- hopefully the last for a LONG time...! (The bill for this round was, at least, substantially less than what we'd paid for "stage one," a week or two earlier in August...!).  
  • Around the same time, we were notified of a "special assessment" on our condo unit, to help cover the cost of roof repairs (already done) as well as replacement of the rooftop "chiller" unit that provides air conditioning to all the units (and has broken down at least twice in the past two years during heat waves). 
    • We've already had a previous special assessment, not too long after we moved here, to help rebuild the reserve fund (after it was drained by the completely useless now-former property managers who ran the building when it first opened -- robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak...). 
    • Many owners in our building are up in arms, saying they won't pay (ummm, sorry, but that's what you signed up for when you bought the condo...!). There was an owners meeting/town hall last week with the board and property manager to discuss the matter. All owners were "strongly encouraged " to attend.
    • Dh & I did not. I'm very conflict-averse (or maybe I'm just a coward, lol).  
      • (I can't help but think of what happened in December 2022 at a condo building near the mall we frequently shop at -- a building we actually had on our list of potential places to look at (but never did), early in our search.  :(  I don't think I posted about this event at the time -- we were at my parents' house for Christmas then -- but you can read about it here, here and here.)  
    • Obviously, we're not HAPPY about coughing up several thousand dollars (in two installments), on top of the monthly fees we already pay (AND the plumbing repairs we just had done...!)  -- but if the work needs doing, the work needs doing -- and as owners, it's our shared responsibility to ensure it gets done and to pay for it. 
    • We do question, though, why both the roof and the chiller unit need replacing already, when the building is only about 10 years old??  (Did they use the absolute cheapest materials when they built this place??)  
      • We also think the board/property manager could have communicated better with us up front while the repairs were going on, and when a/c was breaking down, just what was going on, and that this might be a possibility... 
  • Gave LGNephew #2 cash in a card for his baptism on Sept. 14th (despite the fact we were not invited...!)(!). 
  • Couldn't resist a pretty new blouse for myself from Reitmans... 
  • ...or some new V-neck T-shirts from both Gap and Old Navy outlet stores.  :)  
  • Started gathering stuff for Halloween goodie bags for the LGNiblings. :)  So far, each bag includes both Halloween and Christmas-themed PJs, a T-shirt, a book, a plastic Halloween tumbler (from the dollar store), jack-o'lantern deelybobbers (ditto), and a chocolate lollipop from Purdy's Chocolates (get 'em started on the good stuff young, lol),  
  • Continued to purchase Canadian products (or from Canadian companies), as much as possible ;)  (albeit I will admit I'm not as much of a purist as some people seem to be...!).    
Prioritizing: My book club obligations, versus my own reading picks (tempting though some of them may be -- "The Impossible Fortune," I'm looking at you...!)// 

Noticing: Problems with my vision. Both eyes have been incredibly dry and irritated these past few weeks (no matter how many eyedrops I put in them), and recently, they've been itchy and gritty, and the eyelids red and irritated (allergies?). The left eye in particular has been irritated and the vision has frequently been blurry lately (but sometimes it clears and it's better??).  Either my vision is deteriorating (hopefully it's just aging, and the Saltzmann's nodules I had surgically removed three years ago from my right eye have not returned...??), my glasses need replacing (lots of scratches, etc., which certainly don't help matters), or (most probably) a bit of both. My glasses, after all, are 11 years old (!) -- they've served me well!  I liked them, and still do, but I think it's time for new ones. 

At my last visit to the optometrist (more than a year ago), he told me to come back when I turned 65 (i.e., January) -- presumably so he wouldn't have to charge me for the visit. (It's free for seniors 65+ in Ontario.) I may try to get in to see him earlier than that, though.  

Enjoying/Appreciating:  The nice fall weather (even if it's not exactly normal... and even though it's delayed the arrival of the fall colours a bit...!) 

Wondering: When our doctor's office will be running its fall vaccine clinics for covid & flu shots?  

Anticipating:  Getting to see the great-niblings on our upcoming (Canadian) Thanksgiving long weekend (if not before that...).  :)  We last saw LGNiece on Sept. 3rd (at her family's new house! -- almost a full month ago now...!), but haven't seen the two LGNephews since Aug. 16th ( = almost two full months).  :(  

Loving: Shopping for things for them. :)  Cute outfits for little girls still have the power to give me occasional pause, but I am glad that, for the most part, I can visit a children's wear store or department these days without feeling overwhelming sadness for what might have been... 
 
Trying:  To let things slide a little, re: my overflowing inbox & never-ending notifications. Trying to remember that I don't HAVE to look at/read everything...!  

Wanting/Hoping: (Still!!) To book a getaway of some sort, somewhere, before the end of the year...! (The days go by so quickly, and I often don't have the bandwidth to do the necessary research, let alone actually book something...)  
                              
Feeling: Disbelieving that we're into October, and the final few months of 2025, already!  Thankful that the weather has been so nice. But also: apprehensive, because it's not usual for this time of year....!  A little sad about the big changes that I know are coming for my family, as my aging parents (finally!) begin considering new housing options, after 40+ years in their current (split-level!) home. 
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Friday, November 1, 2024

Right now

Right now...* 

*(an occasional (mostly monthly) meme, alternating from time to time with "The Current"). (Explanation of how this started & my inspirations in my first "Right now" post, here. Also my first "The Current" post, here.)

October was a pretty good month overall (as I noted in a recent post!).  The weather was decent, more days than not (we actually had the balcony door wide open both yesterday & the day before!);  the fall colours took their time to pop out, but they were worth the wait;  we got to see the nephews & great-niblings a couple of times;  we had a nice Thanksgiving with family. Lots to enjoy!   

Pandemic diary/update:  October was month #55 since the covid pandemic began in March 2020, now in Year FIVE. :(   Anticipating an upswing in new cases (as well as flu and colds), the four downtown Toronto hospitals that comprise the University Health Network have reinstated masking requirements for all staff, patients and visitors, other than in food courts, lobbies and other common areas. 

We (still!) remain covid-free (knocking wood, loudly...), and we continue to mask in stores, malls and (most) other indoor public spaces hereabouts, especially if/when there are a lot of people around. (Well, I do -- I know dh has been slacking off again, whenever I'm not around to hand him a mask...!) 

We both got our latest covid boosters on Oct. 20th. (I think this was #9? -- to date, we've had every one we've been offered.)  Dh also got his annual flu shot the same day. I was told I'd have to wait until Nov. 3rd -- the first shots were reserved for those 65+ (! -- I guess there are some advantages to getting older??) -- but fortunately, our family doctor was able to give me one when we went to see him a few days later for our annual physicals, sparing us a third trip!  

Among other things we did this month, we: 
  • (I) Spent four Thursday evenings taking part in a Zoom webinar series sponsored by the Ontario Genealogical Society (also known as Ontario Ancestors), exploring various aspects of writing about your family history.   
  • Spent a morning at the mall (Oct. 1st), walking, shopping and having lunch. Bought a few things for the great-niblings :)  as well as for myself (see "Buying," below!).    
    • Returned to the mall for more of the same, Oct. 22nd...  :) 
    • ...and again on Oct. 30th, except this time, we had lunch later at home.  :)  
  • Dh had a guys' dinner out at a nearby Italian restaurant with his brother and two of their cousins on Oct. 3rd -- and brought me home a large (and very boozy) takeout slice of tiramisu. :)  (I think I'll keep him. ;)  (It was a huge portion, and I shared it with him!) 
  • Spent the afternoon/early evening of Saturday, Oct. 5th, at BIL's. Older Nephew & his wife were at her friend's wedding (she was a bridesmaid), and so Little Great-Nephew was staying with his grandparents for the day. We took him to the nearby park for a while (which I don't think we've had the chance to do so far this year!). Later in the afternoon, Younger Nephew, his wife and Little Great-Niece came, and we all stayed for dinner (BBQ hamburgers & hot dogs).   It was a perfect fall day -- clear, sunny, not too hot, not too cold, just a touch of autumn crispness in the air. A good time was had by all.  :)  
  • Walked over to the nearby local lab on Oct. 9th, where we had blood drawn for bloodwork, in advance of our annual physicals.  
  • Browsed at the recently renovated mega-bookstore and then shopped for Halloween treats for the great-niblings at the drugstore (Oct. 10th). 
    • Returned to the bookstore for a browse on Oct. 24th. Still getting used to the new layout!  
  • Celebrated (Canadian) Thanksgiving on Sunday, Oct. 13th, with BIL, SIL, the nephews and their families (including Older Nephew's dog). They ordered dinner from a caterer (it was good!) and stuffed ourselves and generally had a good time.  :)  
  • Headed back to our old community for covid & flu shots at our family doctor's office on Sunday, Oct. 20th (see "Pandemic diary/update," above). 
    • Back again on Wednesday, Oct. 23rd for our annual physicals. Discussed our bloodwork results -- which showed elevated levels of cholesterol for both me & dh (erk).  He doesn't want to put us on meds just yet -- so we're going to repeat the bloodwork in January and try to watch our diet, lose some weight, and get more active again in the meantime. (Sigh.) 
  • Went with dh to a local supermarket on Oct. 24th to buy a grocery gift card for Older Nephew & his wife, to help them out while she's off work and on unemployment benefits, waiting for the baby to arrive. (We did the same thing when Older Nephew was off work for several months last year, after donating part of his liver to save his dad's life in a transplant operation.)  
    • Delivered the gift card when we drove with BIL & SIL up to Older Nephew's on Oct. 27th.  He was home with Little Great-Nephew;  his wife/LGN's mom was at a shower. A nice visit. :)  
  • Went grocery shopping with dh on Oct. 28th.
  • Visited the nearby art gallery where I have a membership with dh... and a gazillion schoolkids, lol. We'd decided masks weren't necessary, based on the mostly empty parking lot -- so that was a surprise!  (I guess the school buses dropped the kids off and then left!  lol) It was a gloomy, rainy day, so we couldn't walk around the property and enjoy the dwindling fall colours, as we'd hoped.  Nevertheless, we enjoyed touring the galleries (as usual -- I think our last visit was in January for my birthday, so there were lots of new exhibits to look at!) and then lunch in the cafe.  
  • Celebrated my 17th (!!) blogoversary!! (Oct. 31st) 

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Also right now:  

Reading: I finished 4 books in October (reviewed on this blog, as well as Goodreads & StoryGraph, & tagged "2024 books").  
This brings me to 31 books read so far in 2024, 69% of my 2024 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books.  I am currently 6 (!) books behind schedule to meet my goal. :(   

Current reads: 
  • "Miss Buncle’s Book" by D.E. Stevenson, for my DES fan group. We began reading this together on Oct. 7th, and will finish in mid-December. I'll count this as a re-read then. (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 meeting covered Chapter 3.  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.)  
  • "The Mirror and the Light" by Hilary Mantel (book #3 in the Thomas Cromwell Trilogy) -- part of a year-long "slow readalong" hosted by Simon at Footnotes and Tangents.  We started during the week of July 21st.  I chose to focus on some of my other books over the past couple of weeks, and as a result, I'm currently about 9 weeks behind the reading schedule (! -- gulp...), at about 34% read -- hoping to catch up, eventually...! We will finish the group read at the end of December. 
    • Simon will be repeating the Cromwell Trilogy slow readalong in 2025 for paying subscribers. I highly recommend the experience!  Details here!  
    • FYI -- participants have dubbed this one "Wolf Crawl,"  lol.  :)   
  • "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy (!). As I wrote here, I need another book club/readalong obligation like a hole in the head  ;)  but nevertheless, I'm taking part in a year-long readalong of this book, hosted by Simon at Footnotes and Tangents -- a chapter a day for a full year, which began Jan. 1, 2024. (And I'm really enjoying it!)  Currently at about 86% read.  
    • If you've always thought about reading W&P, Simon will be repeating the readalong in 2025 for paying subscribers -- and I highly recommend the experience! Details 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. ;)  
A few recently purchased titles (mostly in digital format, mostly discounted ($5-10 or less) or purchased with points):  

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Watching:  
  • "Moonflower Murders" on PBS, the adaptation of the Anthony Horowitz novel, which I finished reading just as the series started.  I enjoyed both book & TV versions hugely.  :) 
  • "The Marlow Murder Club" on PBS, adapted in four parts from the Robert Thorogood novel, which I started reading before the first episode, and finished just after it aired (see "Reading," above). 
    • I thought "What a pretty little town, I wonder where it was filmed?"  Believe it or not, there is actually a town in England called Marlow, and the TV series was filmed there! 
  • "Wolf Hall" on PBS, based on the books "Wolf Hall" and "Bring Up the Bodies" by Hilary Mantel, both of which I read earlier this year (click on links for my reviews). An adaptation of "The Mirror and the Light," the final book in the Cromwell Trilogy (which I'm reading right now -- see "Reading," above) will begin airing in March 2025. 
  • Too much American/election news (CNN).  :p  :(    
Listening:  We listen a lot to the Stingray classic rock and 1970s channels (part of our TV package)... I've recently been listening to the 80s channel as well, for some variety. (Maybe it will help boost my scores for my Heardle 80s game, lol -- see below!).  

Playing:  
  • Heardle Decades: Stats as of Sept. 30th: 
    • Heardle 60s: 76.6% (573/748, 227 on first guess), up 0.1% from last month. Max. streak was 15.
    • Heardle 70s: 79.1% (385/487, 214 on first guess), down 0.6% from last month. Max. streak: 18. 
    • Heardle 80s: 40.9% (147/359, 56 on first guess), down 0.2% from last month. Max. streak: 4. 
    • Heardle 90s: 26.6% (123/463, 25 on first guess), up 0.2% from last month. Max. streak: 4. 
  • NYT Connections: 
    • At the end of September, I'd completed 64 games and won 77% of them, including 33 "perfect puzzles" with zero errors (i.e., more than 50%!) and a maximum winning streak of 13 (and counting...!).  :)   
    • By Oct. 31st, I'd completed 95 games and won 78% of them, including 46 "perfect puzzles" and a maximum winning streak of 15. :)   
Following:  

Eating/Drinking:  
  • Takeout: The usual soup & pizza slices from the supermarket, once a week or so;  wood oven pizza, California Sandwiches (veal for dh, chicken for me) and Swiss Chalet rotisserie chicken (with a baked potato). 
  • For (Canadian) Thanksgiving dinner:  BIL & SIL ordered from the catering department of a local supermarket, and it was very good!  The package (for up to 10 people) included two turnkey breast rolls, mashed potatos, mixed root veggies, a Caesar salad, buns, gravy, cranberry sauce and about two dozen? mini-cannolis.  :)  SIL added stuffing (from a mix), sauteed rapini and a green salad, and the nephews bought some pies (apple, pumpkin & pecan). We all took home leftovers. :) 
  • Had lunch with dh at the cafe at the art gallery where I have a membership (which includes a 10% discount on food there), on Oct. 29th.  It's a very limited (and pricey) menu, and I opted for a Caesar salad, which I'd had when I was there for lunch with some former coworkers a couple of years ago (pre-pandemic).  (With my tomato allergy, a Caesar salad is a "safe" choice for me.)  
    • It was all right -- but nothing spectacular, and certainly not worth the $18 (Canadian) it cost!!  and it was NOT the same salad I remembered either. Then I remembered that they changed food service providers recently. Oh well.  Next time, we'll probably just have coffee/tea & pastries...! 
  • More beans and lentils, more fresh fruits & veggies, fewer cookies, since getting my cholesterol readings...!  I'm not cutting out sweets entirely, but definitely cutting down/back!  
Buying (besides books, lol):  
  • New clothes for Little Great-Nephew & Little Great-Niece, including both Halloween and Christmas-themed PJs!  (Presents for Halloween, Christmas, LGNephew's upcoming birthday, and "just because.")
  • A couple of Henley lightweight sweatshirts (or should that be heavy T-shirts??) from Old Navy for dh.  
  • Some new long-sleeved ribbed Henley T-shirts from Gap Factory Outlet, for myself. 
  • A couple of soft, cuddly, baggy Henley sweaters at American Eagle. (They call them "plush T-shirts"! -- why not call them what they are -- sweaters?!)  
  • Candy cane flavoured lip balm by La Neige from Sephora. (I have tons of lip balm, but I like peppermint, and I couldn't resist scooping up a seasonal special...!) 
  • Plane tickets to visit my family at Christmastime.  :)  (At almost double the price we paid to go there in the summertime...! :p  )(That WAS a good deal! -- still...!)  
Wearing:  Got a few more wears out of my capri jeans/yoga pants and bare feet (inside) or sandals (outside), early in the month -- but soon had to put on my long yoga pants/jeans, socks & shoes, longer-sleeved T-shirts, and a jacket (outside), as the weather got colder. (Sigh.)  

Enjoying:  The fall colours!  It felt like they were a little late this year, but once they started popping out, they were pretty spectacular!  

Appreciating:  Our family doctor -- (a) that we have one (when they are so hard to come by right now...!) and (b) he's really great!  :)  (Even when he's delivering a lecture about cholesterol, lol.)

Trying: To make better food choices and be a little more active = lose some weight and lower that cholesterol!  (I'm already taking prescriptions for high blood pressure and a sluggish thyroid -- I do NOT want to add another one!)  

Wondering:  Have I lost any weight yet? It's been a whole week-plus! (lol)  

(ETA:  I weighed myself this morning and I AM down slightly from the last time I stepped on the scale! Yay!)  

Noticing:  Christmas commercials on TV -- ALREADY!  A full week (or more) before Halloween!! Yikes!! 

Prioritizing: Catching up on "The Mirror and the Light" by Hilary Mantel (for my "Wolf Crawl" slow readalong), versus starting another book right now (tempting as that idea is...!). I am WAY behind (see "Reading," above) -- but, at the moment, I'm pretty much caught up on all my other book club obligations, or managing to keep pace with the other chapter-by-chapter reads, which gives me a little more flexibility in what I can read.   

Wanting: A magic wand to make all the items on my to-do list miraculously resolve themselves...! 

Hoping:  That Little Great-Nephew had fun trick-or-treating last night.  :)  (I'm sure he did! -- but I'm betting his parents had just as much fun as he did or more!  lol  They love Halloween!)  He went as Optimus Prime and had an awesome costume.  

(Little Great-Niece did not go out trick or treating this year -- she's still pretty little -- but her parents did dress up her up as a pumpkin and sent us photos!)
 
Missing:  Seeing all the little ghosts and goblins on my doorstep (one of the few things I miss about living in a house!). 

Anticipating:  That it's going to be Christmas before we know it...!  
 
Loving:  Spending time with the nephews and the great-niblings this month.  :)  

Feeling:  A little sad that October is over -- it's been a pretty good month (and November has never been a favourite of mine -- even in non-U.S. election years!  lol).  Increasingly nervous about upcoming events -- i.e., the U.S. election, and how things will play out, not only there but here in Canada and around the world.  I think I can safely predict that (a) it's going to be VERY close, and (b) either way, the next few weeks & months (at least!) are NOT going to be pretty.  :(    
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Tuesday, October 31, 2023

Sweet 16 on Halloween :)

Sixteen (16)(!!) years ago, on Halloween night in 2007 -- 9 years after the stillbirth of our daughter, and 6 years after my last infertility treatment -- I hit "post" here for the very first time, and started my journey down yet another road less travelled: blogging.  

I'm not sure what more I can say about the past 16 years that I haven't said in my previous years of blogoversary posts. (And I will admit that this post is more or less an update of the ones I've written on this occasion in recent years!)  The blogging world has changed in a huge way since 2007 -- but blogging has been (and continues to be) a joy and a release and a comfort (and yes, sweet! -- as in 16, lol) --  and it has enriched my life in so, so many ways.  

This year hasn't been quite so prolific in blogging terms as some recent years -- 146 posts so far, versus 163 last year and 178 in 2022. Still, not too shabby...! ;)  Somehow, I still keep finding things to write about... and I am very glad that people keep reading and commenting!  

Whether you're new here or whether you've been here the entire time (and I know a few of you have!) -- THANK YOU!  ❤

*** *** *** 

Blogging stats, 16 years later:  
 
Number of years blogging: 16

Published posts (including this one): 2,348

Average # of posts per year: 147

Average # of posts per month: 12 

(So far in calendar year 2023, I've published 146 posts -- 147, including this one -- a minimum of 10 posts (in June) and as many as 19 in one month (January).)

Published comments: 12,211 

Page views (all time): 1,513,566 (!!) 

Followers (on Blogger):  153 

Past blogoversary posts here.

First blog post ever here! :) 
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Sunday, October 29, 2023

Odds & ends: Updates and some good reading

A couple of updates:  
  • First, an update to the Internet/TV saga that I posted about recently (in case you didn't see my later comment on the actual post).  After publishing huge long rants/vents -- here, on Facebook and elsewhere -- and having been told that it might be NEXT FRIDAY by the time we got our new receiver... guess what showed up on our doorstep at lunchtime the very next day?? -- less than 24 hours after we ordered it?? (Maybe after reading the critical comment I left on the survey, they sent out the word to put a rush on it?? lol) 
    • Once again the instructions bore no resemblance to the equipment/setup we had, but between us, dh & I managed to hook everything up. We did ultimately wind up calling for help, and I'm sure the young guy we spoke to was rolling his eyes (although he was very polite and patient) but WE HAVE TV AGAIN! Yay!! :)
    • (My dad saw my rather irate post on Facebook, and called me the next morning because he was afraid I was being scammed, lol.  It really was "Big Blue," Dad, although yeah, sometimes the ridiculous prices they charge really do feel like a scam...!) 
  • A not-so-happy update:  Older Nephew is back in the hospital :(  -- for the THIRD time since he served as his dad/BIL's organ donor in July. :(  He had a mild fever this past week, had his bloodwork checked on Saturday and his numbers were off, so he was advised to head back to the hospital, where he's awaiting yet another non-surgical procedure that will (hopefully!!) correct the problem once and for all. Sigh.  :(    
And now -- some great reading lately that I'd love to share with you! 
  • Dani Shapiro's essay in the New York Times, "Why My Fall Made Me Feel So Ashamed," gave me a feeling of deja vu. (Although my story turned out better than hers, I think!) 
  • I'm (obviously) not a parent, but this NYT opinion piece from Jessica Grose really resonated:  "Stop Micromanaging Halloween — Let Your Kids Be Free." (The "Switch Witch," anyone?  How about "Boo-ing" your friends and neighbours??)  Along with "holiday inflation," the post covers the high costs of "helicopter parenting," to both parents (mothers in particular) and children. 
    • As I read, I remembered other pieces I'd read about "holiday inflation" -- what Grose calls "the ever-encroaching parental project management of holiday madness" -- and a rant I wrote -- 10 years ago now! -- about the Elf on the Shelf. ;)  (Also the piece by Anne Helen Petersen mentioned/linked to in this post.) 
    • See also this Twitter/X thread by Helaine Olen of the Washington Post, referenced by Grose in her article. 
    • I was also reminded that (1) if this is what it takes these days to be considered a "good" parent, perhaps it's just as well that motherhood didn't work out for me...!  and (2) I am sooooooo glad that I grew up in the time & place that I did...! 
    • Says Grose:  "Every year, a holiday becomes just a little bit more labored, a little bit more controlled. It’s just one more party to monitor, just another fresh costume, just another gift bag, until all your free time and money are gone, and your children have no time or space to let their imaginations run wild, which I thought was the point of Halloween in the first place. If your kids are left to manage their candy harvest by themselves, the world will continue to spin on its axis."  (Amen!) 
  • In her Culture Study newsletter, Anne Helen Petersen recently asked subscribers "How has your Internet changed?"   A surprising number of people wrote that they missed blogs!  (Google Reader also came up!) 
    • I piped up to comment that blogs are still out there, and that I in fact was still blogging after almost 16 (!) years. One person asked me to send her my URL. I haven't, yet. I'm not sure she realizes just what KIND of a blog I write...!  ;)  
    • Other notable themes that popped up in the responses:  
  • More recently, Petersen asked "Are You in The Portal?"  She begins by relating how she'd been chatting enthusiastically with her mother about some of the projects she was working on. 
“What are you now, 42?” she asked. “I think that’s exactly when I started writing textbooks. I just had this huge creative surge.”

What an amazing way to reframe the energy I’ve been channeling this last year: energy to write another book, energy to figure out a Culture Study-related podcast, energy to dahlia farm. What if it wasn’t ambition pushing me forward….but a swell of creativity? And what if that swell of creativity was possible because I’ve become a whole lot less concerned with bullshit?

Earlier this year, I was flailing around after my dog Peggy’s death, trying to figure out what I wanted to write about next. On Instagram, Anja Tyson (follow her, she and her daughter are so great) suggested: “the weird spiritual / emotional / professional / transitional portal that women ages 37 to 45 are in.”

I became obsessed with this idea of a portal, and when I brought it up — on IG, but also in casual conversation — it seemed to resonate. Something was happening. Maiden-becomes-crone, sure. Destabilizing, yes. But it was also an experience of transformation, of refinement.

So I started talking to people about what this portal might be. And here’s what they told me.

Interestingly, I'd just been on a Zoom call that morning with a group of childless women. Many of them were in their 40s (some of them young enough to be my daughters -- GULP!) and had only recently, within the past few years, realized that motherhood was not going to happen for them. We all got talking about the moment when the door to parenthood closed for us -- slammed shut in some cases, closed quietly ourselves in others -- and yeah, it happened at 40 for me too -- and we had to begin contemplating "Okay, what next?"  In some ways, I think I'm still figuring that out...! But yeah, my early 40s was when I had to start rethinking and rebuilding my life. 

Warning: A lot of the stories Petersen's interviewees relate are parenthood/motherhood-related -- and one of them is actually a single mother by choice -- so, caveat emptor.  (The comments are better. Some mom-related, to be sure, but a few even mention pregnancy loss and hysterectomies!) 

  • On a related note, Lyz Lenz asked subscribers to her Substack, Men Yell At Me, "What happens after 40?" 
    • "How did your life change after 40?... What has pleasantly surprised you about getting older? What did you think about expiration dates? And have you blown past them? What did you wish you had known?"
    • In the comments, I recounted the story of my 40th birthday weekend and its aftermath (among other things)... and in one of those "believe it or not" moments, someone recognized the story and responded, "Hey this is random but I used to read your blog! Small world!"  Small world indeed!  :)  (And if you're back here reading again, hello!)  
  • Lyz also had a great rant about "The eternal allure of Engagement Chicken: Feminist backlash and the food of marriage."  (I remember Glamour magazine's "Engagement Chicken" very well, albeit I was already married by then, and I was amused to see it being reinvented as "Marry Me Chicken" in the NYT recently.) 
  • On her Substack "She Tried," the always-wonderful Nora McInerny reminds us that "Suffering is not self-improvement." Sample passage: 

The hard parts of our existence are not an aberration or interruption to our life, they are life.

This pressure to make lemonade puts an unreasonable expectation on us as humans, it perpetuates a narrative that says it’s all in your head, or at least in your control.

Um, it’s not...

When life gives you lemons, you do not owe anybody a glass of lemonade. [boldfaced emphasis hers] 

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