Category — Friday Blog Roundup

Beorn didn’t like anything about the eclipse. He didn’t even get that excited when I bought him blueberries and told him they were eclipse berries (because they look like the moon in front of the sun), and he usually loves blueberries. I brought his playpen outside so he could enjoy the event, but he decided that he wanted to go back inside after about five minutes, and I didn’t let him see the sun because he was not going to keep those glasses on his little piggie face.

It’s hard to be a little guinea pig during a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Josh and I gave the eclipse two thumbs up. 5 stars. We only had 87% coverage, but it was still very cool.

*******

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.

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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:

• “Separate Waiting Rooms” (Stirrup Queens) – thank you, Jess!
• “Knowing I Won’t Have Kids” (Infertile Phoenix)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path writes about her total eclipse of the clouds. She explains: “It was really cool, but it was also an exercise in practicing being appreciative in the face of disappointments (which so many of us are REALLY good at, unfortunately).” I think that is a very profound lesson from the eclipse, especially because the event comes with a lot of anticipation AND many things (e.g., weather) outside a person’s control. And it still sounds like a cool experience in the totality zone, clouds and all.

Lastly, Infertile Phoenix writes about what it means to now have the knowledge that she will not have children. I especially love these lines: “Knowing I am not going to have children is easier than trying to get pregnant. Living my life knowing that I won’t have kids is easier than coping with the initial years after the realization.” It’s a wonderful post about life after knowing.

The roundup to the Roundup: Beorn’s not-so-loving-the-eclipse Eclipse. 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 April 5 – 12) 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 went from making no plans to see the eclipse — despite everyone I know having solid plans to see the eclipse, so it wasn’t as if it wasn’t on my radar — to asking Josh if he could come home from work early because we really need to see this eclipse. This meant digging through the drawers to find our old eclipse glasses from 2017 and writing frantic texts to the kids about how they need to procure new eclipse glasses.

Ha — though with the 2017 eclipse, I talked about having seven years to do things better. Forgot that memo until this week.

*******

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.

Finding a Different Path writes about separate waiting rooms because it really is the best idea in the world. (Though, side note, I got tea on my computer for laughing during this line: “I guess because I didn’t ‘fess up to shaving my bellybutton? WTF.” If that doesn’t get you to click over, I don’t know what will.) She unpacks many different offices and finally ends up somewhere good. But it highlights what offices and doctors need to do differently and what they get right.

Lastly, A Blank New Page talks about a conversation with a 93-year-old woman who asks if she has children. The woman also did not have children and shares her feelings about it. She writes, “How calmly she asked me this question back then. How calm her own comment on it was. And how liberating it felt for me, how good, how accepted, understood and yes – how calm I felt.” Love this.

The roundup to the Roundup: Eclipse! 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 March 29 – April 5) 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 first saw the news about the Baltimore bridge as a headline when I woke up at 6 a.m. I rolled over in bed, checked my phone, and clicked on the news alert. It sounded like the boat damaged part of the bridge, and I wondered if everyone was okay and whether it would impact traffic.

When I Googled the bridge, the first hit was its Wikipedia article, and I realized that it was written in past tense — as in, the bridge was no more. Someone had updated the article, already declaring it gone. It took more clicking to find a news article with the whole story and the bridge’s complete collapse. It’s unfathomable.

My heart goes out to the crew members who were on the bridge that night.

*******

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.

The Barreness has a post about her father’s fall that changed all of their lives. She writes: “My life has forever been altered and spun out of control.” It is about how a traumatic event can change your life in a second, and my heart is with her as her family navigates this situation.

Lastly, No Kidding in NZ has miscellaneous thoughts about aging without children. One interesting idea: Does having a younger generation in the house help you adjust to new technology (or, before computers, adjust to the new butter churn)? And what happens when a younger generation has taken you down the technology road and then moves out while things are still in flux? It’s an interesting topic.

The roundup to the Roundup: Bridge collapse. 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 March 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.

The twins were home for spring break. We went to the aquarium to get our fish on (everyone in the house hates it when I say that, and they refuse to respond when I shout, “Let’s get our fish on!”) and ate double ice cream by the river. Lest you think that means we ate a double scoop, I want to clarify that we ate a double scoop and then decided that we needed more ice cream. So we got it again.

The ChickieNob asked me to save the Netflix show One Day until she was home so we could watch it together. We love David Nicholls’s books, and while we usually quote from Us, we do like to say to each other, “You didn’t even ask if she was there Moriarty!”

So, we climbed into my bed each night and watched a few episodes. It was perfect. It helps if you’ve read the book because they have to gloss over some big parts to fit it all in, but the two actors capture the characters perfectly. The episodes felt like a countdown to when the kids would leave: 12 episodes left, 9 episodes left, 5 episodes left, 2 episodes left… always knowing that we would probably watch the final episode or two on the last night.

Knowing the plotline made it already difficult to watch, but feeling like it was a creative countdown clock made it a little bit harder.

*******

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:

• “Finally Resting” (Infertile Phoenix)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Hopelessly Infertile and Surrounded by Fertiles has a post about being in the right place at the right time with the right people. I laughed with the therapist’s response, and her comment: “These are our people.” It’s funny but it’s also true that finding those connections makes all the difference in the world.

Lastly, No Kidding in NZ has two great quotes. Fully agree with her: “I love finding that someone has perfectly, succinctly, eloquently expressed an emotion I have not previously been able to articulate. Or when I read a quote that has expressed a feeling or belief I have had, and I see it validated in print.” They are such good thoughts, too.

The roundup to the Roundup: Spring break. 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 March 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.

I scrolled past the original image from @princeandprincessofwales on Instagram without thinking much more than, “Oh, nice photo.” That night, I saw the news stories about how someone altered the image, and I went back to the photo and zoomed in. I could see what they were referencing, but it didn’t seem like a big deal, especially because the photo was so small on my phone. Who bothered to enlarge a family portrait to see that?

And you know how the rest goes. I don’t care that she pulled together images to create a good one for her Instagram feed. It’s not like she edited herself into a place she wasn’t or edited herself out of a place she was. If I knew how to edit photos, I would love to pull the best version of person X from photo A and the best version of person Y from photo B and bring them into photo C, which has the best version of person Z. Again, an image capturing an event of world importance — I’d probably rather see all of the outtakes. An image capturing an everyday family portrait… I’d probably rather see one version where they all look at the camera.

But what struck me was what a terrible existence. She did everything right: Announced her absence, gave a reason, and stated when she’d return. And people (not her boss; just the general public) couldn’t stop asking where she was a month before she was set to return — not just asking but hounding and critiquing.

Would William get the same commentary, questioning, and scrutiny if the roles were reversed and he was stepping back to take care of his health? I sense not.

*******

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:

• “No Kidding Voice Count” (No Kidding in NZ)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path has a post about IVF terminology in the media. This is my pet peeve, and I once wrote the NYT’s about it in 2009. (The opening of my note: “This isn’t the first time I’ve read this in the New York Times but I truly felt compelled to write this time. Doctors can transfer embryos. They cannot implant embryos. If they could, IVF would have a much higher success rate.” Their response: “I hear you, but knowing this beforehand we made the conscious decision to use the word implant. The average reader doesn’t understand what a ‘transfer’ is.” Grrr…) This part in Jess’s post blew my mind: “Bryce just said that if the phrasing is that the embryo is ‘implanted’ in the uterus, then the failure falls on the woman when it doesn’t continue. Which I never thought of before, and adds to the insidiousness of the self-blame I felt (and I’m sure others did too) when cycles failed.” So true and so frustrating that I was writing the NYT in 2009 about this, and it’s now 2024, and nothing has changed.

Apron Strings for Emily is back with a discussion about reproductive rights in the US. There was anger after the Roe v Wade reversal, but she writes: “But this time … this IVF issue really hit too close to home. Which is why I finally picked up the pen – err, dusted off my keyboard – and decided to write again.”

Lastly, Scientist on the Roof has a post about visiting D.C. I love hearing what people do when they visit here, and I’m glad they got to the Portrait Gallery because it has the best atrium in the world. But I also thought it was sweet to read about the time together with her child.

The roundup to the Roundup: I would not want to be Princess Catherine. 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 March 8 – 15) 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.