439th Friday Blog Roundup

Well, obviously mainstream media touched a nerve with me this week.

Denver Laura’s question about what would be written in her obit got me thinking what would be written in mine.  What would make the highlights reel?  If Yvonne Brill will forever be known for her beef stroganoff, which recipe of mine will people talk about after I’m gone?  Will it be my balsamic vinaigrette, which people seem to enjoy?  My challah, which I wrote down on the inside of one of our cabinets?  Or my chocolate chip cookie recipe which I perfected a few years back?

I think the chocolate chip cookie recipe.

But maybe put that in the second or third paragraph vs. the lede.

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I am currently living in fear of the Brood II cicadas which are set to emerge this May. (Warning: there is a picture if you click that link.)  They are different from the Brood X cicadas that won’t be here until 2021, but they’re still a big brood.  The only thing giving me any comfort whatsoever is that our town may not see many:

Not everyone will hear it. Cicada sightings will be spotty throughout the Mid-Atlantic. In this area, D.C. residents might not see or hear any, but residents in Southern Maryland and Virginia could witness more than their share, entomologists said.

Based on sightings of this group’s parents in 1996, residents of the following municipalities should be on the lookout: Richmond, Williamsburg, York, Fairfax, Falls Church and Baltimore, and Loudoun, Prince William, Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s, St. Mary’s, Wicomico and Baltimore counties, among others.

Which is a small comfort.  I don’t want to see any.

Friends keep teasing me, but I have no idea why they’re laughing when they know full well that I have no qualms calling them until they come over to remove a cicada regardless of the hour or what they’re in the middle of doing.

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And now the blogs…

But first, second helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week.  In order to read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “Gifts” (Serenity Now)
• “Practice Makes Perfect” (Through the Ardennes)
• “5 Years” (Viva la Vida!)
• “Travel Plans?” (Certainly Not Cool Enough to Blog)
• “The Break Becomes an Ache?” (By the Brooke)
• “Easter Blues and Bubbles” (The Road Less Travelled)
• “Giving Up vs. Letting Go” (The Road Less Travelled)
• “Open Letter to Infertility” (The Kooky Chronicles)
• “Tiny Pants: They’re Like Lunch” (Glum Bunny)
• “Luxury of Time” (Anabegins)
• “What It Feels Like to be Infertile” (Life of a Digital Girl)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Queen of the Slipstream has a post four weeks into parenthood.  It is about the role adoptive parents serve as one of the three relationship bridges in adoption.  She writes: “I have wrestled with my emotions over how I feel about my position as Baby J’s mom, R’s position as Baby J’s first mom/birthmom and what my role is in bridging all of the complex relationships that are unfolding together.”  I love her discussion of how the relationship defies description: that it works even if she can’t explain why.  Great post.

Baptism by Fire has a post about pinboards and infertility and childlessness, focusing on the 369 pins on her boards.  She admits, “I have other boards, such as horses, ice cream, cadbury eggs and Star Wars, yet I keep returning to infertility boards to see what pins had been posted, either for me to pin on my board or to click on ‘like’.”  It is a powerful, powerful post about the role the Internet has played in both healing her and separating her from the outside world.

Lastly, Inconceivable has a post about waiting for her beta after getting a call about her progesterone levels.  After patiently waiting through the first week in the two week wait, she thought she would be able to get to that final blood test without drowning in the anticipation.  But good news about her progesterone levels has infused her with hope.  I love the conversation between the angel and devil on her shoulder, and hope that she gets a positive next week at the end of the wait.

The roundup to the Roundup: Newspapers are making me cranky.  Freaked out about cicadas.  And lots of great posts to read.  So what did you find this week?  Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between April 5th and April 12th) and not the blog’s main url. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week?  Read the original open thread post here.