My goal for this week is to cull the children’s bookcase. Elmer and Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse haven’t been in demand for years and despite priding myself on my non-attachment to things, I’ve been postponing this job for over a year. We need the space. I’m sharing it here to help hold me accountable.

Schools in our area started this week. Violet’s middle school held three days of in person classes (she’s enrolled in their virtual option) and by the end of Friday we’d already received a notice that there had been a case resulting in a 14 day quarantine of close contacts. Abram’s school is still planning on playing football this fall (he’s also enrolled in a virtual option). I still sometimes catch myself thinking “maybe it’ll all just go away and things will be back to normal by October.”

The garden is a tangled mess. I still have a few things ripening and waiting to be harvested but most everything is winding down. I ordered some seed catalogs for this winter and we have plans for putting it in additional beds. I find myself daydreaming about buying some land south of town and having some egg chickens and meat chickens and a root cellar and a giant garden. If you had told 18 year old me (heck, 28 year old me) that at 42 my biggest dream would be 40 acres with a creek running through it, I would never have believed you. I’m amazed at all the ways I’ve changed, and all the ways I’ve stayed the same, as I’ve grown older.

Knitting: I’m still working on this scarf. After which I will be working on this scarf. I also need to cast on some socks to mix it up.

Reading: I’ve been in this horrible loop with the Jennifer Weiner book where I didn’t want to read it because I didn’t like it, but I didn’t want to move on because I worried that it might get better, but I couldn’t make myself actually pick it up to find out if would get better. I decided that I would re-read Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge and when I’ve finished that I can pick up a different “puff” book.

Watching: The Big Bang Theory and cheesy 90-00’s rom coms.

Making: an effort to get me out of this angry, bitter funk I’m in. I set screen limits and had Jesse set the passcode so I couldn’t just override it, started writing weekly intention lists in my bullet journal again (and checking them off). And with temperatures moving decisively into fall this week, I’m making a big pot of chili and this soup (with the kale I preserved earlier this summer).


I hope you are all doing well and staying healthy (and wearing your masks)! Let me know what you are -ing this week and any other news you care to share.