Friday Randomness

I missed a week of randomness. I had things to say, but somehow couldn’t muster myself to come here and say them. So here goes, lots of drivel ahead.

June 15th was the anniversary of my mother’s death. Here she is in 1960, a picture for a calendar she made for my Grandma for a Christmas gift, where she dressed up in different costumes for each month. She was 18 and found herself to be hilarious. I find her hilarious too. These anniversaries are tough, and her loss is tied closely with the loss of my dad too. When she died in 2008, it was Father’s Day, so when I called him to tell him, he thought I was calling to wish him a Happy Father’s Day. Then, 9 years later, Father’s Day was the last time I spoke to my dad on the phone before he left for his vacation to the Dolomites in Italy, where he died. This coming Sunday will be the 9th anniversary of his death. It doesn’t seem possible that it has been that long already. UGH.

I saw Amy and David Sedaris on YouTube a couple of weeks ago, and they were talking about what it’s like to lose your parents, about how they are always with you in your thoughts, and how profoundly it changes you. It’s not just the grief, it’s the experience of having gone through that, which makes you part of this really shitty club that you didn’t want to join, and how only members can truly understand what it is like. I felt that so keenly. I was an early member of this club among my friends, and have had several people tell me they are sorry that they just didn’t get it at the time, when my mom died, but now they do. I don’t think one CAN get it until they’ve gone through it themselves. I also found the part where they talk about their sister really interesting, about how each child has a different relationship with their parents.

In happier news, look at the bright and beautiful dinner we had one night. Ted was in Los Angeles at the RUSH concert (he had a GREAT time and LOVED it, and is looking forward to seeing them again when they are here in October). I went to the farmers’ market and got ingredients, and made bruschetta, then topped some toasted baguette with goat cheese and nectarines. Delicious. Oddly, the nectarines that I bought at the grocery store were better than the ones from the farmers’ market. The ones from the FM went from hard to mushy and never really ripened properly. Anyway, it was a delicious meal, we shared this big plate and watched Disney movies (Enchanted, Little Mermaid, and The Lion King…though really Maya watched The Lion King, I went to bed early, since I had gotten up early to take Ted to the airport.)

This is Yosemite. There were 5 kittens at the rescue starting on Saturday, by the time I got there on Wednesday it was her and two little black kittens. I saw this picture on the FB group for volunteers, as she was being adopted. I love her little face peeking up over the top of her new bed!

These are the black kitties…I love the little white paws on the one in the front. They caught a tummy bug, perhaps from the grass someone put in with them, and went back to the office to see the vet and get better, so no kittens for me this week. I don’t remember their names, but goodness they’re cute.

I was stressed out there for a bit when so many of my books came in at once, especially since The Calamity Club was so long. I had to calm myself though, because I got through it in plenty of time. I breezed through The Things We Never Say, which is sort of the opposite of Calamity, since it’s only 7 hours, but I loved it so much I am going to listen to it again. Note Whistler, which was an ebook. I tried reading it on my iPad, using my Kindle app, and I hated it. I went looking for my physical Kindle, but then remembered that I got rid of it because I never used it and hated it. So I used my Bookclub.org gift card and ordered a physical copy of Whistler. I was surprised, given the cover, that I got about 1/3 of the way through the book with no horse. Now that I’m about 1/2 way through, there is finally a horse, and I’m enjoying it. Next up, my audiobook of Kin just came in. So many excellent books!

I made another frittata last week. The picture from my broccoli and feta is still the best, but this one was the best tasting, in my opinion. I used the broccoli recipe for ratios of egg to milk and so on, but I used kale and tomatoes instead of broccoli. SO GOOD. I don’t really like kale, but this was delicious. It’s really difficult to clean my cast iron pan, though, so next time I’m going to try it in my enameled cast iron instead.

Someone put this book, which was filthy (and not in a good way) and had been cut into, in the Little Free Library. WHY? I took it and threw it into our recycling bin.

I snooped around on Nicole’s blog and found her recipe for her favorite Greek salad. I made a big batch and enjoyed it all week. YUM.

Ted and I had a fun outing last Friday! We went to a local community theater and saw a play, Tiny Beautiful Things. A friend of Ted’s was performing, and it was really great. I am a fan of Cheryl Strayed, enjoyed the film version of her book Wild, and I used to love listening to Dear Sugars, her advice column podcast with Steve Almond. I read the book, Tiny Beautiful Things and I enjoyed it, but not as much as the podcast or play.

For Father’s Day, we went to see Disclosure Day, Steven Spielberg’s newest alien contact type film. I like going to the movies, and the popcorn was good. The movie? B-, maybe C+. It was OK, but it was too long (2.5 hours), and felt bloated. I think it would have been better if it were under 2 hours. I didn’t mind the ending, but Maya hated it, thought it showed a lack of creativity. Ted liked it, but didn’t love it. I thought the acting was really good, so there’s that. I talked to my stepmom yesterday and she hated the entire thing, but it’s not really her type of movie to begin with.

Guess where my sister and her husband are right now? If you guessed Paris, you are correct! They are having a great time despite the heat, seeing the sights, trying to stay cool. I haven’t spoken to her, just a few texts, but wow, this heat dome sure sucks. It’s an expensive struggle for sure. I wouldn’t want to be touring our town when it’s 104 outside.

I hope they have a/c at their Air BnB (now I can’t even remember whether they are staying in an Air BnB or a hotel…) They spent some time in England, and went to the Royal Ascot horse races! My sister in a fascinatior! I love it. They will also go to Munich and the Dolomites, to the village where our father died. I’m not sure I’m brave enough to do that, but she feels ready.

I’m hitting my vacation cap at work, so I’m taking next week off from work. Tuesday I’m getting my hair done, Wednesday I’m going to a museum with a friend, Friday is our 33rd (!!!) anniversary. Hopefully I will find some time to come visit your blogs, because I am woefully behind.

What’s up with you, buttercup?