Happy Sunday!
I signed up yesterday for the next Dewey's Readathon, coming up in two weeks on April 24th. I haven't done well with a readathon in a long while but I'm trying to put myself in the mindset that I deserve to take a full day to do nothing much other than read. We'll see. I may deserve it, even need it, but it really means losing a whole weekend because I'll need to sleep on Sunday. If you want to join us, sign up here.
Friday I went into Target for the first time in over a year. Once I parked, I sat in my car for a while, trying to decide if I really needed to go in. I didn't need to go in to buy anything in particular; but I finally went in because I did need to start getting back to life as it used to be. It was stressful and I'm not sure I'll do it again any time soon. But it was a good first step.
Last Week I: Listened To: Sunburn by Laura Lippman, which is this month's book club selection. Now I have to figure out how to discuss this one. Today I'm starting Imbolo Mbue's Behold The Dreamers, which is our book club selection for May.
Watched: The Trial of The Chicago Seven, starring Mark Rylance, Eddie Redmayne, Joseph Gordon Levitt, and Sasha Baron Cohen. Four thumbs up from this house - terrific history lessons and fantastic acting.
Read: I'm reading entirely too many different things at once. So many good books right now including two that are really providing the healing I need.
Made: If it wasn't quick and easy, it wasn't getting eaten this week. Some salads, some readymade spinach ravioli, leftovers from Easter. I wasn't really cooking and I wasn't making any other kind of thing, either.
Enjoyed: A couple of years ago my sister gifted me a set of peg dolls of the ladies of the Supreme Court. A while later, a peg doll suffragette showed up in my mail. Thursday a new peg doll arrived to add to my collection of strong women. My sister had commissioned a peg doll of my mom. She's wearing a sweatshirt of my mom's alma mater, which was so important to her, and holding a can of Pepsi, which my mom always had nearby. I love it so much!
This Week I’m:
Planning: A quick trip north to pick up my dad, who went home with my sister last weekend. We'll meet in Rochester, which gives us a chance to see Mini-me and Ms. S. Very excited to get to see them, especially since we haven't seen Ms. S since last summer.
Thinking About: Mother's Day. I'm dreading it and trying to think of a way to keep myself busy that day so that I don't think about it.
Feeling: I was asked to return to the office full time. I'm going to miss the slow mornings, starting work still in my pajamas, and being able to start supper, do laundry, and snuggling with my cat. But I also know that being in my house 24/7 hasn't necessarily been the best thing for me. Mixed feelings about this but grateful that I got a year mostly working from home; I felt so much safer.
Looking forward to: My second dose of the vaccine. Well, I'm sort of looking forward to it but not looking forward to having the same side effects that I had with the first dose. At least I know it only lasts a day.
Question of the week: If you've lost your mom, how did you navigate that first Mother's Day without her?
What a series of lovely gifts from your sister, quirky and personal.
ReplyDeleteYour caution in going back to public spaces is understandable but congratulations on taking the first step in facing your fear
Wishing you a great reading week
My sister is really one of the best gift givers I know - they are always chosen with so much thought and care.
DeleteLisa, I lost my mom over 30 years ago and the first few years I had to start entirely new traditions (my kids were 10 and 12 at the time and I was a single parent). The hardest thing for me was and honestly, still is -- when I was in a store shopping and I heard a woman say "MOM" it was jarring and brought a tear to my eyes at times. We may never get over the missing but eventually the sadness lessens.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, Diane, I can't imagine losing my mom that young, especially as a single mother. I suppose we should feel blessed (and I do) to have had a mom that we loved so much. I hope that I'm that kind of mom for my kids, too (although, of course, I wish they wouldn't have to experience the pain).
DeleteI understand what you mean about getting back to life. On Saturday, I went with my husband to the city (!) to go to Ikea. It stressed me to the limit, and I couldn't wait to get home.
ReplyDeleteWe did Ikea a few months ago and I felt the same way. The one good thing about that maze of a store is that they sort of force you to all go one direction so you aren't constantly coming face-to-face with people. And, at that time anyway, they were limiting how many people could be in the store at a time.
DeleteThat first Mother's Day was hard for me but not for the reasons you might think. My mom and I were not close and had all sorts of issues with one another. But that first Mother's Day it hit me that the chance to ever have a normal Mother's Day with her would never happen. The lost opportunity is what did me in. That first one, we didn't do much for me on that day either. I just didn't feel like celebrating so we took it easy, stayed home, BBQd if I recall and I just nursed my wounds.
ReplyDeleteI remember when your mom died how hard that was for you because of what you had already missed out on. I am blessed to have so many wonderful memories of my mom and to have had the time with her that I did. A friend once said that my childhood was like a tv sitcom. In many ways it was; money was tight and we did have our fights, but in so many ways it was the image that you see on tv.
DeleteI can't wait to go to Target, but I'm nervous about it, too. Got my second dose last week, so I'll be good to go in another week and a half.
ReplyDeleteHope you enjoy Behold the Dreamers as much as I did. It was a favorite a few years ago. Early reviews of her new novel have been less than stellar.
What a great gift... just love that peg doll! I'll be thinking of you on Mother's Day. I can imagine how tough it will be. Take care, Lisa.
How fortunate to have those memories! It's worth the pain now to have had the 60 years of love and caring that she gave me.
ReplyDeleteFive months later, I've only been inside one more time and I've very rarely been to any other store either. And just when I was starting to feel safe again, Delta came along. I've been out to eat some but I'm thinking it's time to back away from that as well and it makes me so angry that some people won't do the simplest things that would allow me to live a normal life.
ReplyDelete