Nostalgia

We had a family reunion a week ago and we held it at a campground where we went a lot as a family when I was a kid.

A lot of the campground didn't ring any bells--it's been about 30 years since I've been, and the world looks different when you are an adult than when you are a kid. Things that were big seem smaller, you've got decades of memories to confuse things, and a completely different sense of direction. And I don't know if we were in the same campsites as when I was a kid or not. 

But one thing definitely hadn't changed: the creek. There is a creek running through the campground, and as kids, we spent hours wading up and down and all around. It was ice cold, because the water is mountain runoff (so cold it hurts, as my nephews discovered), but if you stayed in the water long enough, your feet went numb so you couldn't feel the ache anymore. But the best part of the creek was that there were spots where it ran over the road. You could drive through the creek! It was the best!!! Imagine my joy to see that is still a feature! 

I don't remember much about any hikes when I was a kid. I'm sure we hiked, or at least followed the trails. But this trip, we hiked up to the spring. I don't know if we did that when I was young (our camping trips were very unstructured. I remember just playing outside all day, occasionally reading, and playing some games, so we maybe didn't do formal hikes). A couple of nieces, one nephew, and I drank the spring water, unfiltered. Which may not have been the smartest thing to do, but 1) If you can't drink spring water, what can you drink?, 2) My niece is studying to be a nurse, so surely it's okay?, and 3) I've survived water in stranger places.*

Anyway, it was quite fun to remember my experiences and also to watch my nieces and nephews have their own, new experiences in a place that was such a part of my youth. I don't know if there's a term for that experience--nostalgia mixed with ...what? It was sweet, and if there isn't a word, there should be. And I hope someday (if you haven't already) you get to experience it.

*How ridiculous would it be to get massively ill from water in my home state?! 😂

Nostalgia

 Somehow I stumbled upon this the other day, while doing some online stuff:

It's a glo worm toy! Admittedly, I stumbled across a mini version first, and this brought back my childhood, because I had one of these! Not the mini version, a full-size version. 

I remember it was not very comfortable to sleep with because it had a plastic case inside for the batteries that (as you can deduce from the shape) was not well-padded. But the lighting-up aspect was fun, and it worked pretty well. 

I'd totally forgotten about this toy and it was a happy little reminiscence. Thank you internet!

Remember that?

So, we are now in the 93rd year of 2025 (and simultaneously wondering how on earth it is the middle of August, because that's just how time works now). And I saw some headline the other day about Luigi Mangione and I thought, "Wait a minute! Was that this year???". It wasn't, it was last December. And when it happened, it was all the news all day every day. Until it wasn't. So then I was trying to remember what has happened this year, and wow, I forgot a lot about it. Because time is a mess. Remember these goodies?

January

There were those fires in LA

There was an earthquake in Tibet

There was that whole South Korea president impeachment thing

There was the helicopter crash in DC, and all those other aviation things

There was the inauguration

There was a ceasefire in Gaza

February

They found Thutmose II's tomb, which was probably the highlight of the month and under-covered in the news

There was the first meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump at the White House

I think this was the month of "Let's make Greenland, Canada, and Panama states"

The Baltimore Bridge collapse incident

March

There was the whole "let's bring back the woolly mammoth" thing, starting with a woolly mouse

Trudeau resigned

There was that massive power outage at Heathrow

There was an earthquake in Myanmar

April

There were the tariffs. Then there weren't. And were. And weren't, for a few months.

Pope Francis died 

There was that big old power outage on the Iberian peninsula. I interviewed someone for an internship who was in Spain. Totally forgot about that

There was that mineral agreement with Ukraine

That space ship full of rich ladies sort of went into space, depending on how you define it?

May

We got Pope Leo and my colleague in Peru admitted there was one thing Peru was NOT the best in the world at

June

That flight from India crashed

World War III almost started in Iran

July

That massive flood in Texas

That earthquake in Russia that set off Tsunami warnings in California

And in that time dozens of national elections across the globe, battles in ongoing wars, shootings, other weird weather alerts, etc.

And that doesn't include:

That time when Elon Musk had a black eye. And was going to start his own political party

Jimmy Carter died

Facebook got rid of fact checking

The whole Tik Tok ban that was then wasn't. Then was? I don't know, I lose track

Crazy snowstorms in Louisiana

At least one whale swallowed a guy, who apparently didn't taste very good, because he came back up

The whole DOGE thing, which I guess is still a thing, but maybe we got bored with it? 

The whole Signal-gate thing

Weirdly a couple stories about colossal squids or other underwater life. I think I missed that in the first go around

The whole measles outbreak thing

We said goodbye to Skype forever. Forever, people!

Seriously, what a year. Or 93. And that's not even half of what's gone on this year. Most of that stuff was such a big deal and then there was another big deal and another and before you know it, you're waking up and saying, "Was that really this year? How can that be?"

Which I think basically means, we all need a vacation. 

The glory days

On Friday, I came home from work and I read a book. It wasn't even non-fiction! And I just read and read until I was done, just like when I wasn't an adult with responsibilities. 

I probably should have been doing some adult thing, like laundry, or organizing, or cleaning, or something, because there's always something practical to do. And all day Saturday, I kept thinking I should be a productive adult, but instead I picked up another book and read (not til the end of the book though. I did do some adult things). 

It was delightful, and it was awesome to have a book that I didn't want to put down, and to just do a thing I enjoy but don't do often. 

Sometimes, you just gotta tell your grown-up self to take a break.

The petty things in life

Well, as the world continues to fall apart (or so it seems, at least on a global scale, which is far different than an individual level where I would like to acknowledge that I am incredibly blessed and really have nothing to complain about on an individual level, beyond the minor nuisances. I can't even complain about the price of eggs, because I have a good job and can afford it, but on behalf of others, I am disgruntled. For many reasons), I can either talk about that or go into a mindless and absolutely unimportant analysis of Awards season fashion, which gives me a chance to be snarky without being dismissive. So, here goes.

Ladies, WHAT in the name of sanity are we wearing on the red carpet these days???? And more importantly, WHY???

I think we are hitting the apex of absurdity in red carpet fashion. I mean, first off, how in the world is a body supposed to navigate a room, let alone sit down in some of these dresses? They look like they are wearing gigantic lampshades. Or have what is essentially a fancy cone that a dog would get from the vet. Or some other structural thing going on with clothing that honestly makes someone wearing a hat in a movie theater seem like nothing in comparison. I mean, let's be real. It's ridiculous. And I for one do not have the spacial awareness to get into some of these architecturally designed gowns, let alone take 2 steps in them without knocking down a building. Perhaps I just lack spatial awareness.

There was also the trend of "stained glass" looking dresses, or crystal-encrusted dresses this year. I mean, those ladies had to sit on those things for 4 HOURS!!! That can't be healthy for the gluteus maximus, you know what I mean? I really hope there was some padding somewhere between the tushie and the dress, because otherwise, agony. And possibly numbness, tingling, loss of control of muscles, etc. Which sounds like the side effects of a medication, frankly.

I also noticed, at least with the Oscars red carpet, that a number of these women's chests are being squeezed right out of the gown. Which can't be comfortable, invites a wardrobe malfunction, and just feels like a gigantic whoospie all around.

There is always that part of me that is just super practical and thinks, "The cost of that dress could buy so many houses. Or feed so many people. Or provide Ukraine with a lot of missiles." (Okay, maybe not that last one, because missiles seem to be really pricey. And they don't even have pearls, diamonds, or crystals on them!) I know, awards ceremonies are big deals and it doesn't have to be all about practicality, but surely you can make a beautiful dress at a more reasonable price? I would think?

On another practical note, do these women freeze all night long? I suppose with enough people in there, there's body heat keeping the room warm enough, but I would definitely be freezing at some point in the 4 hour show. Do they have someone holding a jacket for them, out of sight of the cameras? I sure hope so. And what about bathroom breaks? Are those just off the table for the night for some dresses? You can definitely get a feel for what my clothing requirements are! (gotta be able to move in it, and besides, I like nice flowy looks; gotta be able to go to the bathroom while wearing it; gotta be able to be warm enough in it; and please don't make me worry about how much money I'm wearing, in case I spill something or what have you).

On a non-fashion related note, who are these people? I was looking at all the stars and had no idea who most of them are! Does that mean I've officially hit the "When I was young..." or "Get off my lawn!" stage of life? What is the order on those? "When I was young" comes first, right? Add it to the list of "I'm not young anymore": You don't know most of the people on the red carpet. Good times.

Well, there you have it. Snark about nothing of any great importance, because talking about things of importance kind of hurts these days. It's good to have something to poke fun at. 

To the Universe's Maintenance Department

To Whom It May Concern:

I would just like to say I am super impressed with your work. You've created a fantastic product. I love the mountains, fall leaves, oceans, and just all the diverse backgrounds you've got going. Also a big fan of all the animals, especially pandas, penguins, and sloths. Huge fan of the birds and I dig the whole plant thing. 

I'm also a fan of the seasons. Love the variety. That being said, I'd like to report a potential maintenance problem. At my latitude and longitude, we get four seasons, one of which is winter. I know not everyone is a fan of winter, but I like it. Snow is great! But I think the winter setting might be broken, because we are getting all the cold, but none of the snow. 

I've also heard some complaints that the non-snow places are getting the snow (MY snow!!!), so it might be a wider programming issue. Anyway, if you could look into it, that would be great. 

Thanks,

A (mostly) satisfied customer

It's a gift

I have probably read one too many advice columns from my newsfeed, because now the algorithm is constantly showing me advice columns and articles about people who complained to the internet.*

One of the very common things people complain about is not getting the desired recompense for a gift. And, maybe you like me are confused about the idea of being recompensed for a gift, because it seems to mean it isn't a gift anymore, but in case it helps, by definition a gift is:

"something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation"**

Now, I love giving gifts. I love it when I find something that will make someone smile or laugh or have their face almost drop of from excitement (Ah, my nephew's reacting to one of their Christmas gifts. SOOO worth it). I hope to get that reaction, but if not, well, that's okay. When I give a gift, I expect nothing in return. Not a thank you note, not a gift in return, not even a reaction, however much I enjoy them. Because it is a gift, and when I give a gift, I do it by choice, not out of some sort of transactional expectation. If I get something, I am always grateful and delighted, but if I don't, that's okay too. I didn't give the gift so that someone would do something for me. 

So, it makes me a little sad how many people write to advice columnists or complain to the internet because they gave a gift and didn't get their compensation. Relatives who stop giving gifts to loved ones because loved ones never wrote a thank you note, or who paid for people to join them on vacation but didn't get a gift in return. Things like that. 

Now, I do understand wanting a relationship with loved ones, and hoping to hear from them (and it is nice to know they received and liked the gift). Everyone wants to be thought of. So maybe what some of these people are after is connection, more than repayment. I support that. So, maybe it's just bad phrasing of what's really hurting them. been there, too. And most of my relationships are really easygoing about things like that, so that makes it easier for me. But if you ever get a gift from me, here's the way it works:

1. If I'm giving you a gift, there are no strings attached. If I gave it to you, it's because I love you and I know you are grateful, even if you don't say it.

2. The moment I give a gift to you, it is yours. You can do whatever you want with it. Open it, toss it, regift it. It's yours. That's also part of how a gift works. I hope that you will like it and enjoy it, but sometimes I don't get it right, and there's always limited real estate in our lives, so I also understand that it may not hit the spot, or you may have outgrown it. It's yours. Do what you need to. 

To all those who graciously give me gifts, I would now like to say thank you. I am better at giving gifts than writing thank you notes, and I apologize for that. But I value every gift, and the kindness behind it. So thank you, for the gift and for your patience. 

*Side note: It makes me super sad that people are taking all of their complaints, every little thing, to the internet. I have reached the age where I proudly say, "in my day" and, well, in my day we didn't have that option. If someone did something that seemed rude (that was probably completely unintentional, if we are honest, or had a whole reason that we just don't know), you complained about it to a friend and moved on. Nowhere to stick it for the whole world to see and judge someone they've never met and to stoke the 'righteous' anger. I think it was probably, on the whole, healthier. At the very least, it was much kinder. 

**Thank you Merriam-Webster.

Different kinds of smart

I just survived buying a new car, an accomplishment on par with climbing Everest. It was seriously a process, and I feel like I had to navigate the 3 dangers of the car dealership*.The final stage was having a concierge walk me through all the bells and whistles--aka buttons and tech--on the vehicle. And I just have to say that I miss the good old days of when a car was neither smart nor dumb. It was just a car. 

My new vehicle is essentially a bunch of computer chips held together by a frame and wheels. Given that the basic function of a vehicle is to move a person from point A to point B, it really seems like overkill. For example, it has a 'smart glass' windshield. Why does my windshield need to be 'smart'? It's a windshield, not a rocket scientist. And that's just the tip of the iceberg, really.

Anyway, it got me thinking about how we define smart. In the society I live in, smart is understood in a fairly one-dimensional, non-inclusive way (primarily defined by a gpa). And I think now that same society is applying a one-dimensional understanding to objects, too. Like "smart cars" and other smart appliances. Yep, I guess it's one kind of smart. But there's also a kind of smart where you have a windshield that is just a piece of glass and doesn't require a computer technician and deep pockets to repair or replace. Or the smart that is a washing machine that does what you tell it instead of it sassing you and doing whatever the heck it wants. 

Technology does a lot of good things, and I always enjoy finding the ways it can intelligently improve my life. I really like my car, perhaps in spite of the tech (although there are a couple of  features hat make a lot of sense and I will enjoy using).

But maybe there's more than one way an object can be smart. 

*akin to the dangers of the Fire Swamp in Princess Bride, in case the reference didn't make sense.

Whatever happened to buckles?

I've been looking for new sandals, because it's finally getting warm here and you know what I'm feeling really nostalgic for? 

Buckles.

I haven't thought about it in years, but in junior high, I had a pair of sandals that--brace yourself!--had buckles. I LOVED those sandals (not just for the buckles).

Now I'm looking at sandals, and they all have velcro. And not just for the strap at the ankle. Like, everywhere a buckle should be. Which, aesthetically is just not cutting it. And, velcro gets stuff trapped in it, and it's never positioned in the right place, so there's this huge bit of extra strap sticking out, with velcro on it. So inelegant and just...sheesh. Why all the velcro?!*

Buckles are not that complicated. They get the job done. They look so much better. 

I miss buckles.

*Also I'm not 5. I act like it maybe, but I'm not.

Did you graduate?

A few weeks ago, a co-worker told me about attending his 6th grader's 'graduation.' He lives in a fairly small town and it was pretty funny to hear him describe everyone in tears watching the kids say their goodbyes to elementary school. For a small town where everyone knows everyone, I imagine there is a stronger sense of community that would make one teary-eyed seeing the town kids grow up.

But, as one who didn't grow up in a time where there were lots of graduations, I admit, it seemed a bit much in a way. 

Then a few days ago, I saw some headline about a celebrity's kid 'graduating' from pre-school. Yes. Pre-school. Friends, we have definitely crossed a line when we are having preschool graduations. 

But just to be sure, I looked it up in the dictionary. And what do you know, the very first definition is "to receive an academic degree or diploma." 

Now, as far as I know, there is no Preschool diploma. And while I've been out of school for a while, I've heard nothing about a PS (Preschool) in any field. Pretty sure it still starts with a bachelor's degree.  

I suppose you could argue that under the second definition (to pass from one stage of experience, proficiency, or prestige to a usually higher one) some of these 'graduations' might count. But, I'd say it's a stretch. Definitely not something preschoolers are doing. I didn't do preschool, but is it really a significantly, notably different experience from kindergarten? Are they really that proficient in anything? And even for 6th graders, I'm not sure it counts. They might be changing the format of learning, or location, but the very fact that the transition from grade school to middle or junior high school varies makes me think it isn't moving from a stage of experience or proficiency to another one. For most of them, it is simply a result of being a year older.*

I'm okay with a school having a goodbye ceremony. I get it! These kids, be they preschoolers or 6th graders, have been a presence in your life! Celebrate, and give them a good send off! But it isn't really a graduation. So, maybe you can skip playing "Pomp and circumstance."**

*Oooh, maybe we should all graduate every year...oh, wait. That's a birthday. 
**And go for something way more fun. "Happy Trails". "Hit the Road Jack". "So Long, Farewell" from Sound of Music. Lots of options. 

Ready for spring

Well friends, it's been a winter. A good one. One that is reminiscent of my childhood (and we had some good winters). I think it's been the most legit winter since I moved here and I've loved it. It's about time, to be honest, and not just because we've had a pretty severe drought. More because I'm a little over people around here wailing about how we have an inch of snow that will melt in a day and oh my gosh it's so horrible and cold and woe is us isn't our life so hard. I grew up in this neck of the woods, and an inch of snow is pansy. 

So, yes, I've really enjoyed an actual winter. But now, friends. Now it's April. And I have rules. It is now spring, so winter has had it's turn and it's time for it to move on. I left my house this morning and there were about 8 inches of snow on the ground and still some stray flakes coming down. But then this afternoon, I was walking back to work after lunch and there were birds singing and the sun shining. It's ridiculous. 

Also, it's messing with my sense of time. It's April, and spring, and I should be planning all sorts of summer stuff and moving into wearing jackets and thinking of outdoors things to do, but instead I feel like I should be getting ready for Christmas! 

Yep, I'm ready for spring. Thank you universe for the snow, I loved it. But what if we save the rest for this year's winter, and let the flowers have their moment?

The other side of the table

In my new* role at work, I drew the short straw and now oversee some hiring. Nothing big, mostly interns and the occasional contract position. And I've just got to say, it's very weird.

I'm not saying that I know a ton about hiring. Honestly, I can only speak for myself, which, pro tip for all you job applicants: in my experience, 90% of the time not getting hired for a job probably has more to do with the person hiring than the person applying. And also based on my experience, it's far less objective than it needs to be. And, again not saying I'm amazing at it, but I do try hard to build in some objectivity. And I've done hiring where we wanted to hire all of the finalists and had confidence that they would all be great but in the end, one had a skillset we needed specifically at that particular moment. The equation might be:

             employer personality + business need + candidate qualifications = hiring decision

And that is an overly simplistic equation.

Anyway, it's super weird to be on the side of the table where I'm making hiring decisions. I still feel like I am trying to convince the world I'm worth hiring most of the time! So it is totally strange that I am the one looking at a resume and ruling people out, compiling questions for an interview, conducting interviews, and actually choosing who we hire. And I've gotten lucky because we've had some good people apply (not sure I'm good at picking them, so much as they've just been great). But honestly? How did I end up here? 

Just more evidence that the world makes very little sense, my friends. 

*newish--I mean, it's almost 2 years. Although it took 6 months for the boss to actually figure out what the job was, so that doesn't count, and they announced the changes and then took 4 months to actually make them happen, so yeah. It still feels new.

The downside of adulthood

I know. There are lots of downsides of adulthood. It definitely doesn't float on a balloon. But here's a random and very minor one.

I'm listening to a book that I have read before and enjoyed. It's a retelling of the twelve dancing princesses. I enjoy retold fairy tales, and I am enjoying this one. However. In this retelling, the youngest 'dancing' sister is an infant. Literally a baby. The oldest is maybe 16? So, 12 kids, between 0 and 16, a deceased mother, and a father who is off at war. They are all inexplicably (maybe it explains later and I will get there) they are all SUPER obsessed with dancing. And the older kids, as they are sneaking out to dance every night, are thinking, "Hey. I know what we should do. We should drag along a baby with us while we go dancing. It will be fine!" Really?!?!?!

I know it's totally a story-telling device. If stories made sense, it would just be real life, and I get it--we get plenty of that. Maybe I always realized these little bits were kind of crazy and just didn't care, but it feels like now they scream at me, instead of being subtle niggles that I just ignore.

Don't get me wrong--I'm going to keep reading and I'm going to enjoy it and it's all going to be dandy. It's just one of those dumb things about being an adult. 

An interesting sell

Yesterday, I was driving through a neighboring city and saw a bunch of signs for a high school fundraiser. We all remember those, right? Well, me not so much in high school. We did chocolates in grade school and junior high. And I know there was other stuff we were supposed to sell. I wasn't much of a salesperson (not then, not now), so I didn't do much selling, other than the chocolate. In the words of my 3 year old niece, "Because...chocolate." And I bought most of it, I'm pretty sure. 

Anyway, reminiscing aside, back to the story. This high school wasn't fundraising with chocolate or calendars or wrapping paper or cards or whatever. Their fundraiser was--wait for it--mattresses. 

Yes, mattresses. 

It's an interesting choice. I mean, there's a very specific demographic that would 1) be able to buy a mattress to help raise funds for a high school and 2) would need a mattress. Whereas, chocolates most people could probably scrape enough together to buy at least one box and you always need chocolate. Long-term, a good mattress is much more healthy than a box of chocolate, but short-term, one is definitely more affordable. 

So, it's an interesting choice, yeah? Mattresses. And then a block or two after I saw the first sign, I saw kids--and I just need to say it, there's no way that these kids could be in high school. I mean, they looked twelve! Maybe this is just one of those, "you are getting old things", but seriously, they do not look old enough to be in high school. Anyway, these kids were wearing mattresses. Half a mattress, accurately, and obviously not the springs and stuff, just the exterior. But they were wearing mattresses to sell their mattresses.

And basically, I'm just curious to know how they decided to fundraise with mattresses. And what other fundraisers are the kids doing these days? 

Man, the times they be a changing. 

Once upon a time

Once upon a time, it seems like I had time. At least more time. Time to get things done after work, time on the weekends. Time for leisure and time for the daily routine. 

It seems like that was a thing, but I don't know when it would have been. I think the main difference is that at one point, I might have been more organized with my time. Never super organized, mind. Just more organized. Even then, I'm not entirely sure that was the case. 

Some of it is probably just being more and more exhausted. Most days, I feel pretty drained after a day of work. It seems like more and more of us are feeling that way, if my very unprofessional and unorganized survey at work is any indicator. But that may be a misremembrance, too.

Even if it wasn't a reality, I sure miss having more time. I miss life not being so busy. I miss that wonderful once upon a time. 

An ideal world

The other day, I was having a conversation with some friends and we got on the topic of name mispronunciations and spellings. My name isn't a super common one*, so growing up I usually knew that it would get misprounounced.** And probably mispelled. But I never had to spell my last name, because back in the day, when you watched TV, you HAD to sit through commercials. And Reynolds Wrap had commercials and so everyone saw how Reynolds was spelled, and that made it pretty easy. People heard my name, and they knew how to spell it. 

And even if they didn't know how to spell my name, I could usually say, "like in Fur Elise, by Beethoven"*** and they knew what I was talking about. 

But not anymore. Fewer and fewer people know what the heck song I'm talking about, and no one is seeing Reynolds Wrap commercials, so now, I end up spelling out both my names. 

Anyway, we're having this conversation, and I'm lamenting the world where I have to spell my first and last name out, when I used to not have to do that, and not for the first time, I realized what a great world it would be if the problem I were discussing was really the worst thing going on.

And so, for all of you, I wish for a world where the worst problem we have to deal with is name misspellings. I totally want to live in that world. 

*Although, the number of people I meet who know someone with my name as either a first or middle name is really high. And I have a good friend with my name. But we spell it differently. There's like, 18 different ways to spell my name. But I claim that mine is the original--unless you can find a spelling that pre-dates Beethoven.

**Winner of mispronunciations: Elsie. Totally understandable. On my first day of junior high, I tallied how many teachers called me Elsie and how many called me Elise. I think it was 4-3. 

***Like I say, I have the original spelling.

Back to normal?

Last week we were supposed to start working in the office again, like normal.* Except that half the people weren't there, which may have been because of some HR/director last-minute messaging about coming in that ended up being confusing, or because people are working hybrid schedules mashed up with 4 10s, 9 9s, or who knows what else, so honestly, it seems absurd to call it "back" to normal, because, well, not so much.

On Tuesday, though, we had a division meeting, and so lots of people were there, and we all wore our masks, and when we got out of the meeting, instead of just me and a couple of coworkers going back to our desks, it was a horde! I did NOT like it. There were far too many people. Oh, no, no, no. Not because of COVID. Just because I am more introverted and haven't had to share my space with anyone for 18 months-ish, and when I did go in the office, there was less than half the normal staff there. And I liked it that way. And now there are people everywhere, and I want them to go home! Or at least for me to just have my own little office hidden away in some corner where people forget about me until I emerge from the depths to go to a meeting or something.

Also, this mask thing. I don't have to wear one at my desk, but I do in public areas, but my desk is semi-public (it's a cubicle. I hope every business is really re-thinking the health and safety around cubicles at this point) and so it is a very blurry line between desk and public space and I keep forgetting because I haven't had to wear one, and basically, do we all feel like it's a Groundhog's Day scenario and we are back at last April? "Should I wear a mask? Is it safe to work? COVID is no big deal, or is it? What is going on?!?!?!" 

Yeah. So, we have gone back to that normal, but I think that isn't actually what we were shooting for.

When I was a kid...

When I was a kid, we'd do wheelbarrow races, the ones where you hold the partner's legs and they have to go around on their hands. I haven't done one of those in ages, or even seen anyone do them, and it just randomly popped into my head, the memory of doing those. 

Also, sticker albums. I can see it, the pink pages and I have a vague idea of the design of the pages, but not super clear. And you'd stick all your stickers in there: scratch-n-sniff, puffy, everything in between. Pages of stickers. 

Also, Duck Hunt. I was SO good at Duck Hunt. I couldn't play Mario Brothers worth a darn, but I was super good at Duck Hunt. It was the summer trips to my uncle's and while he was at work, we were at home playing video games. That's as close as I ever got to being a gamer. 

Sometimes it's nice to remember the little things from childhood. 

Unmasking

Yesterday I went for a walk and for reasons I can't produce now, I decided not to wear a mask. Now, before you panic, yes, I have been vaccinated. Also, my state has removed the mask requirement outdoors if you are vaccinated. (Heck, I think my state has removed all of the restrictions in place due to COVID. I'm not entirely sure. It's like, once we hit the one-year mark and people were getting vaccinated, everyone kind of forgot it was a thing and I'm not seeing updates on it anymore. Ah, the human memory--so short lived!!)

I've mostly still been wearing a mask around, just because I take the "let's just all wear a mask until none of us really have to anymore" approach. This approach is based on my life experience with exceptions: once you make exceptions or try to have too many categories, you might as well give up. But also, a lot of the places I'm going are still enforcing mask rules, so why not just keep living the masked up life? Easier than trying to remember if I need one or not.

But yesterday, I was walking outside, not going indoors anywhere, and I was heading to an area where I knew I would be able to keep my distance from people. Even so, I just felt really weird walking around without a mask. 

It was nice. I mean, It was lovely to not have a mask on. But, yes, it was also super strange. And more and more I run into people who aren't wearing masks--no judgment!! It mostly just makes me unsure what the rules are these days. But, hey, guys! This is what the end looks like!!* Yes indeedy, there will come a time when the pandemic really is a thing of the past. Woohoo!

*we hope. Knock on wood. I mean, there could be another India scenario, but it really seems unlikely, so I'm going to be optimistic. Why not? 

A girl and her crayons

For Christmas, my sister-in-law and her family, remembering that I'd said I'd always wanted the 64-pack of crayons as a kid, gave me a 152 set of Crayola crayons. Which was AMAZING!!! I have glitter crayons, and metallic crayons, and lots of pinks--so many pinks. Interestingly, not so many yellows. Which I kind of get. Yellow is tricky--too much in either direction and you get into oranges and greens. Still, I'm in favor of more yellows. 

Having so many crayons, I needed something to break them in with, like a coloring book. I have, in the past, had one of those adult coloring books. And it was just too much. There is way too much detail and I just don't have time for that. I mean, seriously! That takes way too much planning and effort to figure out the themes and what is going to be what and yikes! 

So, I bought a "Sloths love Llamas" coloring book. Which is designed for kids. Which, I am in so many ways, so it's fine. And I LOVE my coloring book and crayons. I have found that coloring during virtual meetings helps me stay more focused because I'm not touching the computer and being tempted to look things up on the web. 

Clearly, I'm going to have to adapt when virtual meetings go the way of the world, but in the meantime, I just really like coloring.