Three confessions
1) Yesterday was my 13-year work anniversary! Can you believe that I started as a scared 25-year-old and look at me now! It’s uncommon for someone to stay at an agency for as long as I have, but what can I say? I love the stability and freedom that comes with being one of the OGs.
2) Ever since I moved into my apartment in October, I’ve had a short phone cord next to my bed. It’s rather annoying because it means I can’t use my phone in bed, especially if it needs to be plugged in. It took me almost an entire year to realize: Get a longer charging cord, Steph! Such a simple solution. It makes me wonder what other things are causing friction in my life that could be solved this easily.
3) This weekend, Bri and I recorded our 100th podcast episode! I can’t believe we made it to this milestone. Most podcasts only do a few episodes, and while ours isn’t even scratching three figures in terms of listenership, it’s small but mighty. And we have fun with it, which is the most important thing.
Three books I recently bought
1) In Every Possible Way by Alicia Thompson – I bought this at Book + Bottle two weekends ago because I’ve been intrigued to read a romance by this author. She’s local!
2) The Paris Daughter by Kristin Harmel – Book + Bottle had a bunch of Kristin Harmel books and I haven’t read anything by her. When I looked at her books on Goodreads, they all had great reviews. I chose this one because the premise enticed me!
3) The Unknown by Riley Sager – This was an add-on with my Book of the Month box because I can’t help myself when it comes to Riley Sager. Plus, the cover is gorgeous!
Three things I’ve said to my cats this week
1) “Oh, is it time for special yum-yums?” I walked out of the bathroom one evening and they were both sitting on the dining room table, staring at me. I knew what that meant! (They love their Sheba Meaty Sticks, so I split one between them a few times a week.)
2) “Are you having hammock time???” Imagine this in a high-pitched voice and accompanied by me collapsing next to my cat to pet her as she sleeps soundly in the hammock by the window.
3) “But why? Why are you so cute?! Who allowed this to happen?!” I say this to my girls a few times a day. At least.
Three more audiobook thoughts
1) Listening speed – I listen to all of my audiobooks on 1.7 speed, but I’ll drop it down to 1.5 if the narrator has an accent (mostly because my ears just need the words slowed down a bit so I can understand the plot). I never listen to my books on 1x speed anymore. I used to, but now that feels so slow.
2) Balancing podcasts and audiobooks – Many people said that they don’t listen to audiobooks because they have a large podcast queue and yes, I can relate! When I had a commute, I would use that time for audiobooks. Listening at a faster speed meant I could usually get through one book a week with my 30-minute (one way) commute. And then 2020 happened and figuring out how to work audiobooks back into my life was difficult! How I do it these days is that in the morning, I finish whatever podcast I had going the day before and then turn on my audiobook. The goal is to finish 2 hours of the audiobook before I can return to my podcasts. (And since I’m listening at 1.7 speed, 2 hours is just over an hour of “real” listening time.) I don’t always do this, as sometimes there are podcast episodes that are calling to me, so I miss a day, but I generally come back to it the following day.
3) Romance novels on audio – One thing I forgot to mention in my post is that one of the genres I refuse to listen to on audio is romance! Y’all, I just can’t do it. I can’t listen to all the sex scenes. No, no, no, no, no. It makes me cringe just thinking about it! (If the romance is by an author that I know writes closed-door romances, I might attempt it, but I still get weirded out by all the love talk.)
Three things I’m doing this weekend
1) Book club – We weren’t able to sync up our schedules to meet up for book club in July, so this is a July/August book club meeting. Our activity for the evening is bedazzling! I may bring my pill container to bedazzle because this is what book club for elder millennials is all about these days.
2) A writing date with Mikaela – I am making lots of progress in my novel! There have been weeks where I struggle to write 500 words and weeks where I am typing away like a madwoman, completely delighted by my characters. I am currently in a state of flow with my novel, so I’m excited to get back to it.
3) Watching a movie – I have a goal to watch two movies this month and I have watched exactly zero movies. It will either be Sleepless in Seattle or The Martian, just need to figure out what I’m in the mood for.
Three things on my to-do list
1) Finalize our New England itinerary – I like to create very detailed travel itineraries (as in, “8:00am – leave hotel and go to SPECIFIC RESTAURANT for breakfast, 9:30am – order Uber to go to THIS SPECIFIC LOCATION). It’s just what I need to feel settled and confident as an anxious traveler! I have a draft of our vacation, but I’m created separate tabs in the spreadsheet for each day, which makes my little organizer heart very happy.
2) Deep clean the girls’ feeders – I wash out the bowl and wipe down the feeder a few times a week, but I only do a deep clean every quarter. It entails taking apart the entire system, washing everything by hand, and then leaving it out to air dry before putting it back together.
3) Write some postcards – I’m a little behind on my snail mail goal for this year, so I need to catch up in August!
Three things we’re doing on our New England road trip
1) Doing a tour of Fenway – Are we baseball fans? No. But are we excited to tour this iconic park? Hell yes! (This was a specific ask from my mom, so her wish is my command.)
2) Visiting Acadia National Park – I am so excited about this. The views are going to be insane, especially in early October!
3) Driving through Smuggler’s Notch in Vermont – It’s one of those quintessential fall road trip experiences, so of course we’re doing it!
Three things on my Etsy wish list
1) Postcards – I love finding fun postcards on Etsy, and I’m starting to run low with my current stack so it’s time to peruse my Etsy favorites to figure out which batch I want to order this time around.
2) iPhone cases – I think I’m ready for a new phone case, and Etsy never lets me down. I have my eye on this black cat/rainbow phone case!
3) Lots of great feminist tees – Childless cat lady? Read books and fight the patriarchy? Stay woke? I have lots of options!
Three things that made me happy this week
1) Snickers pumpkins being back in stock! We are so back, you guys.
2) An excellent mid-year review
3) Watching Lila go nuts over the cat grass I bought. She was so aggressive with it that the pot kept falling off the table!
Three recent searches
1) “claire foy” – she was mentioned on this week’s Patreon episode on The Popcast and I was like, “Why does that name sound so familiar?” Turns out, she played Queen Elizabeth in the first few seasons of The Crown!
2) “what’s a dopamine deficit in relation to ADHD?” – yes, I’m still doing a lot of research and rabbit-holing about ADHD. Do I have ADHD? I have no idea, but at the very least, the strategies that work for people with ADHD resonate so well with me.
3) “why do my airpods keep pinging?” – This happens from time to time when I’m charging my AirPods. Turns out, it’s due to the outlet. I switched to a different outlet and no pinging!
What’s something you’re doing this weekend? What made you happy this week?
Congrats on your work anniversary and your 100th episode! Both big exciting milestones.
Have fun bedazzling. Your book club is so fun. I think my book club needs to do more things like this! I think I’ll bring this up at our next meeting!
I love Etsy and right now I have a credit, so I am thinking about what I am going to get next. Eeee!
Rob and Mark are on a backcountry epic hike right now but they get back tonight, I have a feeling the old guy is going to need to take it easy after 70km hiking in four days. So it will probably be a quiet weekend! I don’t mind that though.
You have a fun group of friends yourself! We had a great time bedazzling our pill containers, haha.
A credit with Etsy? I would not be able to handle myself!
GAH. Your trip is going to be SO AMAZING. And what a great time to get out of Florida. October is when I start to get very, very angry about the heat. Last year I went to Illinois to visit my son in October, but this year I’ll be right here, sweltering.
I don’t listen to audiobooks, but I think it was on Currently Reading that they talked about listening speed- if you only listen at 1x, it seems too slow. Like it’s slower than you would be reading the book with your eyes. So 1.7 sounds good. Also Meredith always talks about her love/hate relationship with Riley Sager. I haven’t read any of his, but I will someday.
Your weekend sounds fun! Are you watching any Dolphins preseason? I had to miss the first one but am hoping to catch the end of this Saturday’s game after work.
My mom and I were looking at the weather in Boston/Vermont today and it’s like in the high 60s???? IN AUGUST WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??? We are going to be living our best fall dreams!
Riley Sager is a polarizing writer, I think. I generally find his thrillers pretty good, although I am not too critical of the genre myself.
I haven’t watched any preseason! Eeps. But I am excited for the season… I mean, my hopes are pretty low but let’s see if this team surprises me!
Your New England trip sounds amazing! I love Acadia National Park–I went camping there after completing my first year teaching with some friends from grad school and it was really fun. I’d love to go back some day. I’m definitely one of those people who doesn’t do audiobooks because there are always too many podcasts, but since I have limited time alone to listen (I usually have at least one kid with me), I think that makes sense. When I had a commute, I would do audiobooks more often.
Sam! I miss your posts. <3 I hope you're doing well!
The only reason I miss having a commute is because of that PRIME audiobook listening time. It was great!
Congrats on the podcast milestone! It is in my commute rotation (on 1x speed, haha) and I so enjoy your dynamic with Bri! Also, YAY for Fenway making the New England itinerary! I am so biased, but it is so cool to visit; the Green Monster, Jersey Street… and you’re only about a mile away from the Boston Public Library… This weekend, I am hoping to finish a massive overhaul/clean out of my daughter’s room before her birthday next week. It’s been a heavy lift – in so many ways – but she’s so excited to see her “aesthetic” and Pinterest board come to life!
Thank you for listening! I am so honored that it’s your commute rotation. I also listen to podcasts on 1x speed so I get it!
Ooh, I’m excited for your daughter’s new room! I get so nostalgic when I see little tween girls’ rooms. Such a fun time!
Congrats on your work anniversary and your review! How nice to have found a place where you feel comfortable and challenged — especially if it’s a place where the people in charge recognize the hard work you do!
Also: 100 episodes!!!! Wowza!
How ARE your cats the cutest?! WHO allowed that to happen?! My cat is also the cutest and I ask him how this is possible many times a day. Speaking of the cat, his water fountain is due for a cleaning. I don’t know why I put it off — it doesn’t take very long, and it’s not difficult. But I put it off and put it off. So guess what I will be doing this weekend, lol.
I still haven’t deep cleaned the feeders, so…. who knows when it will get done! (It will get done, right???)
Our cats have a lot of explaining to do on why they are so damn cute!
Happy 13 years! I’m a bit behind you at 11 but that’s by far the longest I’ve worked by a company by a factor of over 2! The thought of changing jobs exhausts me so I am happy to stay put, especially with my short timeline for retiring!
Something that mad me happy this week was hosting Birchie and Kyria! This coming weekend we have a play date at a different pool with Will’s best buddy and his family on Saturday and then on Sunday there’s a playdate at the park at school for incoming kindergarteners that we’ll swing by. We will also celebrate Phil’s birthday with his mom.
Congratulations on 13 years at your job, a good review, and your 100th podcast episode! All amazing! I have never sped up an audiobook. I hadn’t even considered it, but I enjoy the regular pace so much that I probably won’t change. My brain probably couldn’t handle it! Ha! Ha! Your cats ARE the cutest!
I listen to audio on 1.15x speed. (Unless I’m listening to a play then I listen at 1x speed because that’s prt of the performance.). I think 1.15x is a good speed for me to really enjoy the narrator, but also not so slow that I get impatient.
Congrats on the work anniversary! I’ve been working at my company since 2003 (I started as an intern) and I do really like the stability of knowing where things are and how things are done. Of course I only work there maybe twenty weeks a year, so I think that also keeps me on my toes.
I’m going to see some friends this weekend, so that will be fun!
Congrats on your work anniversary (and mid year review)! I get it 🙂 I used to love the stability of my job too!
And congrats on 100 episodes of your podcast! That’s awesome!
I haven’t listened to any podcasts in a month+, mostly because I haven’t been working as much and don’t have as much commuting/listening time. But I have the opposite inclination—to skip my podcasts and listen to books LOL.
I should deep clean our cats’ feeders. Someday. Ha ha.
Those are ameowzing postcards. I have some similar ones that are set in Chicago! I love the phone case too.
I am so excited about your trip to New England, especially Boston. And you’re touring Fenway! GAH! I am jealous. I’ve been to Fenway (for a game) but haven’t done a tour. I wanna hear all about it. 🙂
I wish I was into podcasts or audiobooks, but alas, I am not. I do not have (or don’t make) the time and I don’t know how other people do it, especially people like you who also READ an enormous number of books.
Congrats on your work anniversary and your 100th podcast episode! Amazing!
Congrats on the podcast milestone and hitting your stride with the novel!
Your NE trip sounds very cool; Acadia NP is definitely on my list. Chuckling at your kitty baby talk and agreeing with not being able to do regular speed on books any longer…
I cannot figure out how people listen to sex scenes in audiobooks. I hit that “skip forward” button so fast…
I’ve had 2 DNFs in the last day (10% on audio and 30% for an e-book) and I’m leaning toward DNF’ing my third attempt. Book ruts. Ugh.
This made me laugh: “I have a draft of our vacation . . .” You know someone is a planner when… 😉
Double congrats to you – a work anniversary and the milestone of 100 podcast episodes. Wow.
Also yeah for your novel taking shape and being in flow. How exciting.