I really need to start making notes during the week. I can remember there were things I wanted to tell you guys but for the life of me cannot remember what they were.

The work week was both physically and emotionally draining. It was the final goodbye week of one of the girls in my office (there are three of us). She is a truly exceptional human being and she will be missed. She has been there for seven years and I have spent more time with her than with anyone else in my life. And Friday was her last day. So it was a week of people coming in to say their goodbyes…there was a cake afternoon…the other office girl wasn’t going to be in on Friday so we did the Farewell Desk Decorating thing (balloons, banners, confetti) on Thursday and then Friday was the actual last day when I had to try and say my goodbye. Which I really couldn’t. I tried. I’d get a sentence or two out then start crying and not be able to speak…so I finally just said I would write to her.

Everyone leaves.

There were two outdoor events at work this week – Field Day and Sibling Day – which both involve me being outdoors for several hours, mid-day, taking pictures. And sweating. A Lot. And another camera club meetup. Which is where this picture was taken.

And Thursday, after camera club and sibling day, She Who Shall Remain Nameless and I met up after work and drove out east to a sunflower maze (note: was not a maze) to do a photoshoot. So that was a long, exhausting day.

Had dinner afterward at a restaurant in Aquebogue, The Modern Snack Bar (spoiler: it’s not modern). They’re known for their mashed turnips and pies.

Friday afternoon was time for the laundromat with my red crying eyes. I put detergent and $4.50 into a machine and turned it on without putting in any clothes. Sigh.

I was ready for an unscheduled day, which I had on Saturday with Miss Jayne. We spent almost the entire day on the sofa in our nightgowns, reading and scrolling through Instagram.

I got this dress about a month ago. When I saw it on Carmakoma I thought it would be The Perfect Dress, easy to throw on everyday after work and on the weekends. It was marked as Tencel, which I love. But Carmakoma doesn’t ship to the US. So I had to go through the whole convoluted process of paypaling a friend in the UK the money so she could order it, get it shipped to her, then send it on to me in the US. And in the end…MEH. It’s not Tencel, it’s a Tencel BLEND which is not what I wanted. It’s too tall for me – the waist is too low, the length is too long, and it’s oddly tight through the back and sleeves. But to pay to ship it back to UK Friend and then have her return it to Carmakoma would cost almost as much as I paid for it in the first place (it was like 60% off when I finally bought it). SO. It’s on the Poshmark pile for whenever I get around to that.

And this morning I got up, showered, went outside to do a quick shoot on the patio and was immediately drenched from the 300% humidity. You have that to look forward to on Friday. Then I went to the deli for my every-other-week bacon, egg and cheese sandwich…only to find when I got home with it that there was no bacon and no cheese! It was just eggs on a roll. Who does that? Do people DO that? Willingly??

Bettye and Her First World Problems.

On a brighter, yet weirder, note…I have a little crush on someone. Oh, not a REAL person. Ha ha. I mean, he’s a real person, but I only know him (and I use the term “know him” loosely) from the internet. James Nord. He’s the (a?) founder and CEO of Fohr, which is an influencer marketing platform. I don’t know exactly what that means, but it seems they help brings brands and influencers together.

Anyway, he does a weekly YouTube video called A Drink With James where he talks a bit about what’s going on in the world or in his life and then he answers three viewer questions from influencers. I’m addicted.

He is a delight to listen to. First off – actionable information, no BS, no “rah rah you go girl,” he tells it like it is, no holds barred, no apology – just “sh*t’s hard, you just gotta do the work.” But he also tasks listeners with reasonableness, thoughtfulness, “don’t be a jerk.” He is, at the same time, both self-deprecating and high on himself. But always with humor. It’s a charming combination. He repeatedly advises influencers that their content must inspire, entertain or educate – and he is a shining example of just that.

I’ve been binge-listening to the podcast version of A Drink with James for about a month. I haven’t even started the Audible book I downloaded on August 4 because I Just Want to Listen to James. My rides to and from work with James are the closest thing I’ve had to a date in a year-and-a-half, so. Yeah. Just thought you all would like to know about the new man in my life.

Since it was back to being hot and humid, evenings after work were spent on the sofa reading til not enough light was coming in the window.

What I Read This Week:

A Man Called Ov by Fredrik Backman. And just in case you don’t know (as I didn’t), it’s pronounced “ooh-vuh,” not like “stove” without the “st.” This has been on my reading (and watching) list for ages but…I just kept picking up other books first. But Oh My. Water was leaking out of my eyes from almost the very beginning at the same time that I was chuckling. It is touching and sweet and heart-breaking, all those good book things. Two thumbs up and a 4.5.

Evidence of Things Unseen by Marianne Wiggins. This is not a quick read. For one thing, the print is teeny tiny and grey not black. Which forces you to slow down…and which may have been the point. It is a rich story. A tender love story that took place in difficult times and places in our American history: the end of World War 1, the south during the depression, through World War II and the main characters’ contribution to the bombing at Hiroshima. And yet I really wouldn’t consider this historical fiction. The places and events were just a backdrop to their ongoing love story. Two more thumbs up from me…and a 4.65.

This was the kind of book that makes me think of what new classics there are. When I think of classic literature, I feel like the list mostly stops with writers like John Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Harper Lee. I guess Toni Morrison, JD Salinger, Jack Kerouack, Maya Angelou would be closer to this time…but doesn’t it seem like the “classics” are mainly in the past? What makes a classic a classic? Discuss 🙂

Then, a loser. It’s been A LONG TIME since I’ve quit a book. I gave this one two chapters and I wish I had that 15 minutes back because this was just BAD. For one thing, and this will sound ridiculous, but the pages and typeface reminded me of the plastic-film-covered pictorial hardcover copy of Little Women I had as a child. You know those 60s/70s kids books where the thin plastic turned brittle and started to peel and break off the cover? Ha. Then, it was very dated – online dating was a newfangled concept and Mom kept referring to her daughter’s previous “dot com” job. And sexist (remember how turned off I was by that when I read that Danielle Steele book not that long ago?). Ugh. I just couldn’t do it. Oh. It was Match Me If You Can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Don’t. Somehow on Amazon it has 4½ stars. Ignore that. It’s wrong. An accounting error or something.

And lastly, Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love). I’ll give it a thumb. And a 3.25. I do like her writing style. And my low rating is really my own fault as the book is just not what I expected. It’s actually a non-fiction book about the origins and history of marriage, with a bit of true story woven throughout. Her story…of what happened after Eat, Pray, Love. If that sounds interesting to you, then I will recommend it, as, like I said, I do like her writing. If you just want a “memoir-ical” continuation of EPL, I’d say pass.

Pretty soon I’m going to have to change the name from Week in Review to Weekly Book Review.

I’m down to The Last Week Before Vacation. And this is the last big vacation (weeklong) til Christmas, so it really has to hold me til then. I have to make it GOOD. I’m having a weird fantasy about moving to Detroit when I retire because it’s a) SO affordable because b) it’s sketchy the way Brooklyn used to be when I first fell in love with it. I googlemapped it and if I leave at 4ayem on a Saturday, it’s only a 9-10 hour drive! My friends are ignoring my emails about the wondrousness that is Detroit but I think it’s at least worth a visit. So I’m having fun planning a pretend trip that I will probably never go on. Unless the wind hits me just right one day.

I mean, okay, come on, tell me this apartment is not BEAUTIFUL. And it’s $650! You can’t rent a ROOM in NY for under $800!

Okay, that’s enough from me. What have you been up to these last weeks of summer??

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