2. You know you’re in deep when you sit down during a quiet moment at work and idly put together a list of things to work on for when you get home and it ends up being 22 items long. So far I’ve checked off one item. But that’s progress, isn’t it?
3. So the World Cup final will not be particularly interesting after all. I had a 3 in 4 chance of getting a game with a team that I was cheering for once the semifinals were set – Belgium v France and England v. Croatia meant that my final game options were Belgium v England (double yay!), Belgium v. Croatia (yay!), France v. England (yay!) or France v. Croatia (say what now?). And naturally I am left with Option 4. Oh well.
4. Yes I have a friend in France too, but I find that I am having a hard time caring whether France wins or not. I suspect this is because they were one of the favorites and they won it all not that long ago. On the other hand, they do play an entertaining game. Of course so does Croatia and they’ve never won. I’m sure I’ll end up watching the game anyway (and definitely the third-place game between Belgium and England). There will be a long gap after that before the Premier League picks up again and I need to store up my soccer viewing time, though the US men’s and women’s leagues are in session this summer so that will help.
5. It’s marching band season and Lauren is heading to field shows and parades. Kim and I went to the home show that they did a couple of weeks ago, and that was a good time. It was far too hot for the heavy uniforms that they wear, but they did a nice job of playing through it. I was impressed, at any rate. Go Lauren!
6. It’s always such a lovely thing when friends come to visit, especially if they’re people you don’t get to see very often and wish you could. Mike and Krista drove out from Pittsburgh for a few days and it was so good to see them and not nearly long enough. There are people in this world that you only see at long intervals and when you do it’s like no time has passed at all. Hang onto those people, folks.
7. In addition to her marching band, Lauren is also keeping up the family tradition of running spotlight for the school plays. Local Businessman High School is running its summer musical this week and next and Lauren signed up for that gig. So Lauren and I spent some time on Monday morning down at Home Campus walking through the mechanics of running a spotlight and practicing for a bit, and now she’s at rehearsal putting all that to good use. I am a proud theater dad!
8. I need to clean my office. I have space now to clean my office. I have time to clean my office. The office definitely, positively, absolutely needs to be cleaned. I am not cleaning my office at the moment. This is likely not going to end well.
9. My summer class is going well, however, even if I do have a pile of papers to grade now. I miss being in a classroom when I don’t get to teach and this is one of my favorite classes, so I guess I’ll just grade the papers and be done with it.
10. This summer has been far too hot for far too long. Seriously – it’s been heat-wave hot for most of the last four weeks, and as someone who thinks civilized weather starts halfway through the autumn and runs just a few weeks into spring, I’m pretty much done with it. I could really go for some global cooling right about now.
12 comments:
1. If you're only knee-deep, you're ahead of the game. I'm in it up to my eyebrows and sinking fairly rapidly. And you're over 40 (if I recall correctly ...). There is no such thing as getting caught up anymore. Get used to it ...
2. Twenty-two? is that all? That would've been a good day for me for me ten years ago. Don't wanna hear you whining about this shit till you get up into the hundreds. 😜
4. Somehow, "Go Croatia" just doesn't ring for me. "Go Croats!"? Noooooo!
6. Have two held close.
10. The Arctic Circle should be a welcome bit of respite. It was, however, nearly as warm in Fairbanks as it was here yesterday. Sigh. Perhaps Antartica?
And Number Eight is pretty much a brief synopsis of my life.
Lucy
1. Lucy, I passed the half century mark a while back - I'm used to it. ;)
2. The really sad thing about that 22-item list is that it was just what came to me off the top of my head - there's so much more that needed to go on it but I refuse to put it there on the grounds that life in these United States is trying enough these days. One of the things that has occurred to me is that the reason so many people are so close to the edge these days is that there just isn't any space to be otherwise anymore. Between economic uncertainty (even for what were once called white-collar workers), frantic schedules, and the methodical destruction of the American republic by right-wing extremists, most people are pretty much red-lining it all the time. Sigh.
Plus it's my blog and what good is it if I can't whine?
4. Yeah, I'll probably just watch without worrying about it. Go team! Beat that other team! Rah!
6. And a blessing it is.
10. I'm waiting for November. Ultimately I may have to retire to Scotland.
I did actually get a start on cleaning. Kim's stuff is back in her office now that Fran is back in Belgium, and I got the last bit of furniture taken down to the basement. I even sorted through two of the five towering piles of paper on my desk. Fear me: I am Cleaning Man!
1. Obligatory "Get Off of My Lawn, ya kid ya!"
2. Oh, yeah? If it's your blog, where, pray tell, is the sarcasm font? HuH?
4. Those folk just need to change the name of their country.
6. There is hope that I will add more before I die, then I'll get more than 2 people in addition to the obligatory family members and the odd drunk to show up at my wake.
10. This page was written by someone who is trying very hard to make it sound like the weather in Scotland is just like everywhere else:
https://www.scotlandinfo.eu/scotland-weather-and-climate/
Where is the improvement in that? I'm holding out for them to open immigration in Villa Las Estrellas.
And, for the record, you will still need two Sherpas and a wolfhound if you plan to set foot in my office and close the door.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJMKupYF14I&frags=pl%2Cwn So there.
Lucy
2. I got yer Sarcasm Font right here ... right ... here ... it's around here somewhere ... I just saw it a second ago ... hold on ...
4. Don't go calling for Balkan countries to start changing names - that's how wars start.
6. Well, I'll come. Don't make me do that for a while, okay?
10. No. I spent some time in Scotland. It's grey, chilly, and frequently rainy, and I loved it. Kim managed to get a sunburn in the lowlands of Scotland and I'm not entirely sure how that happened or even if it is possible except that it happened and therefore it must be. I will say that every place I've ever been has had that "don't like the weather? wait five minutes" joke, but the UK was the only place I've ever been where that was absolutely true. At Lyme Regis one afternoon we cycled through four rounds of blazing sunshine, clouds, driving rain, and back to sunshine, in less than half an hour.
Every so often I like to find my office floor and my desk top, just to make all the exciting discoveries that come with that ("so THERE'S my checkbook!") before it all snows in again. Yes, yes - I'm a piker. But there it is. :)
2. If ya left it in your office, we'll never see it again.
You know that, right?
4. Oh, yeah, I forgot ... nevermind.
10. Yeah, whatever. At least 25% of my jeans, I mean genes, originated in Wales. However, the all-time record high temperature ever recorded in Villa Las Estrellas was 55.4° F. Sounds blissful to me ...
And, you'll never get to see your floor ever again. And your desktop never stood a snowball's chance.
👁🗨 😜
Lucy
Oooops. Missed that one:
6. Thanks. Not actually planning anything in the near future. Currently scheduled for the Third Thursday of the Thirty-third month of the year of the Dog.* BYOB.
Lucy
*Schedule subject to change with very little or no notice due to, basically, a complete lack of a reliable crystal ball or any ability to actually use same. Rain checks are not accepted or issued. All guarantees and warranties are basically more trouble than they're worth. Not valid with any other offer. Not valid between 4:01 PM EST time and 4:00 PM PDT on Wednesdays or Fridays. Or, quite frankly, any other time. YMMV. And probably will. Please use your seatbelts, and keep your hands and feet inside of your mouth at all times. Thank you for your support.
The weather looks good at Villa Las Estrellas but then we're back to that whole city thing - there isn't one there, which to me is a problem. I like my urban settings. Scotland it is. Or Sweden. Not sure which would kill me first - learning Swedish or learning how to drive on the left, but I'm willing to find out.
Hey - you never know what comes bubbling up to the surface in my office. I might see it again someday.
Villa Las Estrellas is an actual township. Actual people, numbering in the 10s live there year round. There are actual pictures of the place on the Wikipedia page [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Las_Estrellas ]. I see a sweet little parcel of land in the picture (labeled "View to the bay from the rear") right over there overlooking the harbor that no one has yet built a home on.
I know, you prefer the crowds moderately larger crowds. So, I'll take Villa Las Estrellas as my retirement community, you may have Edinburgh as yours.
I understand a certain former New Yorker owns some property in Aberdeen near there. Will probably make you feel right at home.
(Oooh. Ouch! I'm going to pay dearly for that one, aren't I?)
Lucy
Oooh! Shots fired!
Yeah, yeah. Watching the Scots tear that guy into ribbons has been one of the bright spots of the current regime's existence.* I suspect I'll find myself at home with the Scots, at least. :)
--
*See, for example this or this
I came back to this blog to comment on #7 and discovered the fine round of comments between you and Lucy 😊
We went to see the musical last night and I must say Lauren did a fine job with the spot lights. The whole show was amazing, we have some terrific talent in this area.
Thanks, Julie! She's done the family tradition proud.
We actually went back to see the show a second time tonight, since Lauren told us we needed to see the alternate cast too (they always double-cast these things). It was just as marvelous. There are a couple of people up on that stage who probably could make a serious go of a stage career, and the whole production was fantastic.
Trading comments with Lucy is one of the things I look forward to here. :) I'm glad you enjoyed it too!
"Trading comments with Lucy is one of the things I look forward to here. :) "
Awwhh, Shucks. One of the highlights of my time here, too.
Here's the cookie I promised you. 🍪
Lucy
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