1) A bookstore photoshoot

I had this idea in my head that I wanted to introduce the world to my girlfriend via a cute, Pride-themed photoshoot in June. I’ve also never officially come out on Instagram so there were some coworkers and even some family members who didn’t know about my queer identity. On Friday, we met up with Bri and her husband to take photos at our favorite bookstore (owned by a queer couple!) in downtown St. Pete. Even better: there was a Pride kickoff party happening nearby that same day! Bri was an amazing photographer and took well over 100 photos of us both inside and outside the bookstore. (We took a few photos outside the bookstore and then when we came inside, the booksellers clapped for us and were more than happy to let us take photos inside.)

2) Meeting all the people

My girlfriend and I are definitely in the “meet all the people” stage of our relationship. I’ve met her brother and her best friend, and she has met Bri, Bri’s husband, and my mom. (!!!) I think I was way more nervous to meet her brother than I was on our first date! I like to think I’m a likable, personable person, but I’m also incredibly shy and have social anxiety, and that can sometimes come off as standoffish. But meeting all the people has gone really, really well so far. Bri and her husband adored her, which made me really happy. My mom also loved her, and we had a really great dinner with the three of us. I also got the stamp of approval from her brother and best friend, which is such a relief!

Next up is meeting more of my girlfriend’s friends (we’re doing a game night next Friday) as well as her parents (which will be lunch the following day). Whew! We have had to put on our extrovert pants this month, but it’s all totally worth it.

3) Cancer-free

This whole post has been filled with wonderful news, but this is the BEST news: My family member was declared cancer-free this week! He’s been doing chemo and radiation for a few months now and had scans done last week. When he went in for treatment this week, he was told the scans came back clear and he was done with treatment. He got to ring the bell and everything! I am so, so happy that he is cancer-free and can get back to his normal life again.

4) A milestone birthday

On Monday, my dad turned 60 years old. Estrangement is such a hard thing, and it feels especially difficult when I don’t get to celebrate with him on his birthday. Father’s Day is also right around the corner, another day that can be fraught for me. I’ve been pretty sad this week, thinking about my dad and wondering if he has anyone to celebrate him on his birthday. I hope he did.

5) Weekend plans

It will be a fun-filled weekend for me! Today, Bri and I have a lady date planned. We are going to hit up a BBQ place for dinner and then head to this super-cool museum in downtown St. Pete that’s doing a Pride Immersive Experience. We’ll check out the exhibit and do a scavenger hunt, which should be really fun. On Saturday, I have a writing date with Mikaela in the morning, podcast recording with Bri in the afternoon, and game night in the evening. (WHEW!) And Sunday will be more of a low-key day!

What are your weekend plans?

1) On Friday, I had my mole removal appointment at my dermatologist. Once they numbed me up, it was pretty easy! I just laid on my stomach with a pillow under my head and chatted with the dermatologist and her assistant about weekend plans. When my mom changed my bandage the next night, we were a little shocked to find out that I had seven stitches from the procedure! I had a mole removed last year and only had to get two stitches, so seven feels like a lot! I haven’t exercised much since the mole removal because I’m a little scared about popping a stitch since it’s in a bit of a precarious area of my back (a place where the muscles pull a lot). I’m going to attempt some low-intensity cycle classes this weekend and see how it feels, but I’m going to stay away from any strength classes until the stitches are out (next Friday!).

2) During my mole removal procedure, we got to talking about game nights and trying to find games like a 3 player card games that would interest a wide range of ages (we usually have an 8-year-old, a 14-year-old, and three adults). The assistant told me about this game called Fishbowl that sounded really fun. We played it on Saturday night and really enjoyed ourselves! Here’s how it works: everyone writes down 5 different words on five sheets of paper, folds up the paper, and puts them in a bowl. The game is then played in three rounds and on teams (our teams were my brother and my youngest nephew, and my mom and me). During the first round, you pick out a folded piece of paper from the bowl and play like Taboo. You’re able to give clues about what the word is and give as many clues as you want (without, of course, giving away the word). Once all folded papers have been played, they all go back into the bowl for round two. During round two, it’s charades. You have to act out the word on the piece of paper. Same as before, when all folded papers have been played, they go back into the bowl for round three. During round three, you can only give one word to describe the word on your piece of paper. The genius of this game is that, after the first round, you will know all of the words being played (if you have a good memory). So guessing the word can get easier as the rounds go on. Let me know if you play this with your family!

3) Eloise now believes that the best place to sleep during the day is on my laptop keyboard. And I probably created a monster because I let her stay there all day Wednesday since it wasn’t messing up what I was doing. Since I have a wireless keyboard that I use, her being there didn’t cause my computer to act all weird, even though she was literally holding down a bunch of keys at one time. But on Thursday, it did cause some issues. She started adding “jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj” to documents, highlighting a bunch of text at one time that I didn’t want highlighted, and once even almost reported one of my emails as phishing. So, I had to move her off the keyboard all day long on Thursday. I even tried to create a cozy nest on the other side of my desk with a blanket and she wasn’t having it at all. I don’t know why a bumpy laptop keyboard is more comfortable than a cozy blanket, but cats are weird. It’s my own fault for letting her sleep there on Wednesday but look at how cute she was:

4) I have developed the most painful pimple on my right cheekbone. Did I think I was still going to be dealing with hormonal pimples in my mid-thirties? No, no I did not. But here I am, and every time my period is about to come, something erupts on my face and it is super unpleasant. And this pimple hurts. It hurts to sleep with the right side of my face on my pillow, it hurts to wash my face, it hurts to smile. I’ve been applying my little pimple reducer gel to it daily, and even that is so, so painful that I can’t do it more than once a day. Ugh. Hormones suck.

5) It’s a three-day weekend around here! Yay! I have a lunch date with my girlfriend this afternoon and then book club this evening (we’re doing Greek food and shuffleboard, with possibly dessert afterward). Saturday, all I have going on is my writing date with Mikaela, which we’ll be doing later in the day. And Sunday – who knows! Originally, it was going to be booked with podcast stuffs (recording two episodes), but Bri isn’t feeling great so we may have to cancel. If so, that frees up a day to spend with my girlfriend, so I’m not too mad about it, ha. I’d love to do some sort of pool day/cookout at my mom’s on Monday—just have to get her and my stepdad on board, which I think I can do. 😉

What are your weekend plans?