Category — Friday Blog Roundup

A few weeks ago, we went to a screening of Love Actually with a live orchestra. It didn’t work as well as it sounds. Despite pre-paying for parking, we couldn’t find a spot, so we missed the opening.

And then, when we sat down, we were between a woman who laughed (at things that weren’t funny) and then declared to the person she was with that, “I’m laughing! That was funny, too.” Over and over again. And a man who was licking the inside of his popcorn container and unwrapping dozens of cellophane-covered candies. And in front of a man who asked questions about ONLY things that were sexual in nature. (“Are those two people having sex? Is it not real sex? Is it pornography? What did you say? They’re standing in for other actors in a pornography film? Are those two people thinking about having sex? Where would they even have sex?”) It was a lot. We walked out at intermission and went home.

When I told the ChickieNob about the experience, she mused, “I’ve never seen that film.” NEVER SEEN THAT FILM? We must remedy this. So I think we’re watching Love Actually tonight.

I will make sure to be as annoying as possible so she can experience a taste of the chef’s kiss we got to experience in the theater.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

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

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Infertile Phoenix points out the ways her family infantilizes women without children. It’s a heartbreaking post, but I love this sentiment: “I am enough and I don’t need to explain my existence or reasoning.” But that final paragraph is a gut-punch. Sending a hug.

Lastly, Middle Girl has a post about a strange dream that defies interpretation but is weirdly intriguing. And I loved this line: “I know not what any of these means. I do know that now I want kittens that I absolutely cannot have.”

The roundup to the Roundup: Love Actually tonight. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 13 – 20) 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.

It’s Friday the 13th, which I always point out when it aligns with the Roundup. It happens at least once or twice per year, or 33 times since the Roundup began. 34 if you count today, which you have to do because it is Friday the 13th; the second one in 2024.

Josh and I are celebrating by getting matching COVID and flu vaccines.

How are you marking the day?

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

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

• “Advent Calendars” (The Road Less Travelled) — it counts 🙂

Okay, now my choices this week.

Infertile Phoenix sends a preemptive text to protect her emotional well-being. But the kicker is the person’s response the next time she sees them: “She literally said, ‘I know you said you didn’t want to see any newborn pictures, but do you want to see just one’?” Nooooooooo.

Scientist on the Roof made me laugh with her list of things that are never ending vs. things that we wish were never ending. Especially the final point about sleep and the “finale of a romantic-era music piece.”

Lastly, Finding a Different Path has a post about the messaging around ‘giving up’. She points out: “It is so hard to move forward from something when the chanting beat of never NEVER never NEVER EVER give up! Next time will work! You’ll never know if you don’t just KEEP GOING!” She leaves us with a better message instead.

The roundup to the Roundup: It’s Friday the 13th. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 6 – 13) 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.

I’m sure advent calendars have been around forever, but I didn’t see my first one until I was in my 20s — a hazard of being a non-Christmas celebrator. But a co-worker had one, and then Martha Stewart had instructions for how to make your own matchbox advent calendar, and I made one for the countdown to Josh’s birthday that year.

But in recent years — and correct me if I’m wrong — I’ve noticed that people are moving from having one advent calendar to having multiple advent calendars. What went from opening one window and getting one piece of chocolate or a tiny toy has become opening four windows on four different calendars and getting a jar of jam + an airplane bottle of booze + chocolate + makeup. Am I correct? Have advent calendars multiplied?

It’s a fun idea, and four calendars must feel four times as festive, but is my perception correct? Have calendars multiplied? And where is the Elf on a Shelf? As advent calendar posts go up, Elf on a Shelf posts have gone down.

Or maybe that’s just my feed.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

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

• Nothing… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Bereaved and Blessed reflects on her first pregnancy loss, 20 years earlier. She writes, “Though I don’t believe everything happens for a reason or that we need to try to find silver linings when we are grieving, I do think we can find meaning as we navigate difficult, uncertain and painful times in our lives.” A great message.

Lastly, No Kidding in NZ gives a look back on 22 years ago (if I’m doing that math correctly with 16 years + 6 years) when she was trying to figure out what came next and overwhelmed with sadness. On our hardest days, it would be so helpful to know how things look down the road. The most important point: “I don’t feel this way anymore. In fact, it has been a long time since I felt like this.”

The roundup to the Roundup: Advent calendar multiplication. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between November 29 – December 6) 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.

The kids are home after super-long travel days. Thanksgiving sides have been eaten. Family seen. We’re in the quiet days before they have to go back, a moment I started dreading before they even arrived.

But it’s a short stretch this time until they’re home for winter break. Have to focus on that instead of the goodbye.

Hope you had a good holiday if you celebrate.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

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

• “Acceptance Helps, Believe Me” (No Kidding in NZ)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Infertile Phoenix points out the possible difference of a neat vs messy house. The last time her house was neat, she was in a difficult marriage and trying to conceive. She writes, “My house was clean because I never cooked or created any art. I was barely alive so I didn’t make much of a mess.” I also love this line: “I’m holding on to so much because I’ve lost too much already.” I really loved this thought-provoking post.

Lastly, The Road Less Travelled has a post about the narrative around motherhood. She highlights two substacks that gave her a lot to think about. I liked this point: “The acknowledgement that motherhood is damned hard work, and it’s not all sunshine and roses, sometimes comes as a bit of a relief to those of us who get to experience neither.”

The roundup to the Roundup: Kids are home. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between November 22 – 29) 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.

Last week, my friend and I went sans kids to see Frozen (the play, not the movie). I had forgotten numerous plot points, and the stage show had a bunch of additional songs and special effects. At one point, Elsa is singing about letting it go, and she throws out her arms, and she is in the ice queen dress. Snow shoots out of her hands. Olaf dances across the stage. It was really cool.

And it made my heart hurt because the little kids in the audience (and it was bonkers how many little kids were there on a weeknight) kept whispering to their parents, “The real Elsa and Anna are here!” After the final bow, a bunch of kids burst into tears, heartbroken that they were so close to the real Elsa and Anna, but they would have to leave them. There was a lot of wailing in theater lobby.

I felt pretty teary through the whole thing myself, even though I was completely delighted to see something so happy and hopeful amid all the bleak November news. I remember that soundtrack playing on a loop through a chunk of elementary school. How far away college felt back then. How it’s here now.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

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

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Apron Strings for Emily unpacks her thoughts on the election. She writes: “And here we are now, 8 years later … feeling like we’re back to Square One. Some may even venture to say Square Negative One Hundred.” But don’t despair — reading her post may give you a little peace of heart.

Lastly, A Separate Life’s list of favourite cities is a nice distraction this week, even though she left my city in the undecided category. Reading it made me realize that I like small cities. We tend to use a major city as a base (London) but then take day trips off of it to smaller cities. Oxford and Canterbury are still cities, right? They’re just small cities. So I am a small city lady. I like Bayeux over Paris. I like Jaffa over Tel Aviv. I like Figueres over Barcelona. Go read her list.

The roundup to the Roundup: Frozen. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between November 15 – 22) 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.